Book Club

Posted on Tue May 5th, 2020 @ 3:11am by Captain Cynthia Jackson & Lieutenant Jane Sinclair MD, DVM

1,893 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Mission 3 - Coming Full Circle
Location: Jane's Quarters

The lithe Cygnian had been thinking about it for some time. Jane had told her to read Isabelle O’Ryan's new mystery novel and that she would do the same and then they would have a meal together. There was something more implied about that. After all, they had touched flirtatiously but not so much so to scare Zoe away. She rang the chime on Jane's door, took a deep breath and waited.

Jane had spent the previous hour making sure everything was just right. Her quarters were neat and tidy. Her hair, freshly re-dyed bright blue, was straight and cascading down her back and around her shoulders. She wore a red A-line dress with short sleeves that flared out, and red high-heeled shoes which brought her closer to Zoe’s height.

She was finishing putting the food cart near the table when the door chimed. She stopped, straightened her dress, and looked to the door. “Come in!”

Zoe walked into Jane's quarters. "Hi." The moment that she saw how fashionably Jane was dressed, Zoe gave an interested grin. "I am apparently dressed inappropriately. I had no idea that you meant this to be a more formal dinner." She held a PADD in her hand, continuing. "I thought we were going to discuss 'One of Us is Lying.' Was I mistaken?" She gave Jane an interested, inquisitive grin.

“Not mistaken at all,” Jane answered, smiling warmly, “and you’re dressed perfectly fine. I just thought we’d discuss the book over dinner, and I wanted to dress nice and look cute. Success?” She hoped Zoe did like what she saw.

"Success," Zoe confirmed, her eyes lingering on Jane a little too long. "So, where should we sit? Did you have a place that you wanted to start?"

“Well, I thought we could discuss the book over dinner? Penne bolognaise, made from scratch.” Jane winked and pulled out one of the chairs at her dining table for Zoe. Suddenly what could only be described as a wave of...confusion?...washed over her. Conflicting information clashed in her mind. She just confessed love to Bec Hudson, but here she was flirting like a girl with a high school crush. And so soon after being so incredibly taken in by Vivyra. Why? How? What She clutched the back of the chair to stay upright.

Zoe sat down daintily, as she purred, "Penne bolognese sounds delightful. Now is it the sauce or the penne made from scratch? I thought pasta took an awfully long time to create."

A moment later, Jane was fine. The confusion passed and she found herself at the table, a beautiful Cygnian sitting at her table. "It does," Jane agreed, "but it's worth the effort. I had the eggs and sauce ingredients in stasis, and the flour in the pantry space the chef sets aside for me. Chef let me use his pasta making tools on the condition that I made extra for the enlisted crew coming off of night shift. So I took the afternoon off and made this special dinner for us." She took two steaming hot plates off the cart next to the table, set one down in front of Zoe, and the other in front of her own seat, 90 degrees around the small table. She then gestured to the full wine glasses. "I regret that I can't bring out any of my wine; I'm avoiding drinking while I'm on my anti-Vivyra medication, but this is a carbonated apple and pomegranate juice. Bon appétit." She put a cloth napkin on her lap and picked up her utensils. "So. 'One of Us is Lying'. It's fantastic, right?"

"Vivyra?" Zoe asked confused. And then for a moment, she considered it and said, "Oh, that's right! The Orion girl that we picked up. "I'm sorry to hear that you got caught up in that whole thing, too. It really did a number on Captain Cindy, didn't it? It is a good thing that Bec saw it for what it was...."

Looking down at the plate, Zoe was amazed and awed. "You did all of this by yourself? This looks and smells marvelous. If it tastes half as good, I may die and go to heaven." Zoe inhaled the aromas further and said, "One of Us is Lying was fantastic. Who would have thought that the plot would have revealed that it was a third person altogether that was playing both protagonists?"

“It does make sense though,” Jane replied, as she took her own first bite and watched Zoe take her own. “I actually re-read the first chapter knowing the ending and it’s the only explanation that makes sense. And it fits perfectly.” She picked up her glass, but paused before taking a sip. “Wait...what happened to Cindy?”

"What do you mean, what happened to Cindy?" Zoe asked with a stunned expression. "She spent too much time with Vivyra. You know how soft she can be. Azelya was not in favor of it but Cindy insisted that it was not a problem because Orions only effect men, right? Well, seems that Cindy guessed wrong. Thankfully Bec took over and everything got sorted out. You must have received such a heavy dose, too, just clearing up Cindy's exposure."

“That’s...” Jane stared off into her food. “That’s not what happened. I...Vivyra affected me more than anyone else. I ended up on the brig. Bec put me there.” She looked back up to Zoe, her eyes wet. A small amount of blood came from her nose.

Noticing the blood, Zoe acted quickly. "Oh, oh my. You've got a small nose bleed there." She got up and took her napkin and started dabbing it at Jane's nose. "I seem to remember that the best way to deal with this is to tilt your head back and apply pressure at the nose."

“Hey, who’s the medical professional here?” Jane said with a smile. She thought the help was sweet though. “I should be all right. Already stopped. Now, where were we?”

"Vivyra and Captain Cindy, I believe."

“Right. I’m not sure where you got your information.” Jane resumed eating. “I was in sickbay when Vivyra came in. I got dosed badly. She, ah...” The doctor blushed, “let’s just say...I was very very very badly affected by the pheromone. Security locked me up. Wait...you’re security. Were you there? I don’t...remember.”

"Locking you up?" Zoe asked with wide eyes. "Absolutely not. Though, I admit that the prospect of tying you is titillating." She blushed lightly, having overplayed her hand.

Jane blushed as well, and though confused, the comment pulled her back into the moment. “That chapter where Detective Liane Cassidy allowed herself to be tied up by Neena Marshall was...exciting, wasn’t it? Especially since they were making it seem like Neena was the killer. That right mix of titillating and terrifying. And I’m glad Isabelle O’Ryan doesn’t shy away from erotic language. No fading to black for her.”

Feeling hotter, Zoe responded, "No. Definitely none of that. I wish I could have been Neena and seen that curvy detective's body for myself. Oh, such games that could be played." Her tongue slowly rolled over her teeth and then lips. "Scrumptious. It is making me warm, just thinking about it." Her eyes looked hungrily at Jane.

Jane’s breathing picked up. Her eyes were locked onto Zoe’s. “I need to use the head for a moment. I just want to check my nose again. Be right back.” She pushed up from the table and went right into the washroom.

She stared at her reflection. Nothing made sense. She and Zoe had different memories of the Vivyra incident. But another part of her brain considered it normal and tried to tamp down any concerns.

And the part that was still coursing with Vivyra’s pheromone, still not fully out of her system despite the removal of the source, sided with the pro-Zoe opinion.

Five minutes later, she came back out. No longer in her red dress, she wore instead her silk robe, tied lightly around the waist.

“Zoe,” she began, “I don’t pretend to fully understand it, but it feels like I haven’t seen you in months. My head is swimming in different feelings and memories but the one thing that my body is screaming at me is that I’ve missed you and I need you.” She untied her belt and allowed the robe to slip off of her shoulders and onto the ground, revealing the Doctor in all her glory. The robe’s belt stayed in her hand, and she gave it to Zoe. “I want you to do to me what Neena did to Liane,” she growled.

Zoe grinned, "It will be our pleasure." She took the belt from Jane and without waiting a moment longer, passionately kissed Jane. After breaking the kiss, she swung Jane around, slapped her buttocks and then took Jane's arms and locked them behind her back. "I think that we need to get you onto your bed where I can properly fasten you."

Jane squealed as her posterior was smacked. “Yes, ma’am,” she replied, her breath catching in her throat. “Take me there.”

"I do not believe that I gave you permission to speak, Jane." She smacked Jane's posterior harder this time and led her forcibly, but playfully so, to the bed. Taking one of Jane's hands, she fastened it to the bedpost and instructed Jane to lie down on the bed face up." Patiently, Zoe waited for Jane to comply.

Goosebumps covered pale skin. One hand bound, the Doctor lay on her bed, face up as instructed—no, as commanded. She looked up at Zoe, pleading for her kiss; her touch. Her last few encounters, she’d been in command of Vivyra. Tonight, she craved to be controlled by Zoe. Tonight, she was the slave.

Zoe bent down, her lips just out of reach of the Doctor's. She teased Jane as she tied the other arm to the bedpost. She traced the arm lightly with hers and then let her tongue trail down it. She then got up and sat over Jane. "Hmmm. So delicious. I know what will make this better, though. Wait here," she told Jane with a giggle, knowing Jane could not move. "I will be back from my quarters with just the things...."

Jane watched as Zoe disappeared out the door. For a moment she felt panicked, then exhilarated. She knew it was bad practice to leave someone bound out of your sight. If an emergency happened, then she was dead. But Zoe was another senior officer and her room was just down the corridor. She wouldn’t be long.

But the minutes wore on, and Zoe had returned. And Jane began to panic.

“Computer,” she said, “open commlink to Lieutenant Zoe Cayce.”

“There is no record of a Lieutenant Zoe Cayce aboard the Legacy.”

Jane took a deep breath as a single tear went down her cheek. “Computer, open a commlink to Lieutenant JG Neza Glenn.” She held her breath unconsciously, releasing it only when the computer chimed positively. “Neza, it’s Jane. I need your help. It’s an emergency.”

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