Permanent assignment

[Lovely]

Feb 15, 2009
early evening


"Hello, love... missed you all day"

"Have you now?" Galen grinned lightly, taking her hands in his, "Does that mean I'm forgiven a little?"

"Depends on which thing you are asking about..."

He looked to the floor and chuckled, "For being a pretentious and arrogant fool, perhaps?"

"Well you do that almost everyday.." Annia smiled a little. "You're going to have to be more specific." He didn't respond right away and her smile faded. "Or be silent....and I'll go in the other room.." Turns to walk away.

He watched her smile curl, causing his own to grow wider. "For being escpecially arrogant... You've shown me some amazing things.. and I still owe you a great deal, Annia.... four years and I doubt I could have treated you any worse. I'm here to apologize for that."

She turned back, leaning against the counter behind her. Her jaw dropped a little and her face showed clearly that she was surprised and touched by his words. "You...you're what?" She shook her head. "Who are you?" She raised an eyebrow, half joking..a slight smile on her face. This was very unlike him...

"A man breaking his own rules," he said, looking back in her eyes, a sparkle in his eye she would have seen only rarely that now shone brightly.

Her eyes sparkled and she smiled softly, looking into his eyes. A warmth he would have seen now and then, evident in the dark hues. "Just so we're clear... which rules are you breaking? And are there any others I could help you break?" She pushed off the counter and walked to him, standing about a foot away.

"There's one... getting close... the second.. becoming attached.. the third, putting someone I care about above myself in the line of duty... broken.. done... oh well," he shrugged and smiled warmly, stemming the gap between them and stepping forward, reaching a warm hand to her cheek. "Heinz... look.. we've spent a lot of time working together... a lot more than most. We work well together.. and damn if we don't play nice together, too."

She nodded. "I have to agree with you on that." She said softly. "But breaking so many of your own rules, Galen... it's not like you..." Her cheek tilted into his hand. "What is it you want?" She asked softly.

He leaned in, his hand sliding back further on her neck, letting a slow kiss roll across her lips. He stepped back and grinned softly.

She laughed very lightly. "A sweet kiss...is that all? And here I thought you were hard to please." She stepped to him and leaned up to place a soft, lingering kiss to his lips.

[Lovely]

He sighed softly, taking in her attention. Normally he was somewhat mechanical, the cold and rational aspects overpowering emotional responses, but with her, that washed away. His first partner had been matched to him based on their skill sets on the job. He'd broken rules in order to get Heinz as his partner, but stood his ground on a hunch he found to be paying off more each day. He pulled back and looked in her eyes, shaking his head, "No... not just a sweet kiss... more... much more."

She looked up at him, her eyes questioning. Her fingers brushed his cheek, lightly. "Tell me what you want." She said softly.

"Permanent assignment, Heinz... you even have me thinking about getting the exam from genetics to get a license for kids... I want you, Heinz... don't need to help me break any more rules... I've already broken my strongest rule... I've fallen in love with you."

He was acting so different from his usual cocky and arrogant self. Though she had seen more of this side of him than anyone, it was still surprising how he..... did he just say kids? Annia stared at him for a moment. "I love you, Irish..." Her eyes narrowed slightly as she looked at him. "You're completely serious aren't you?" She was in awe, she had not imagined he would ever say such things to her. Yeah he said kids and permanent assignment... what did that mean?

"I said I was thinking about it... didn't say I would do it.. just so we're clear, but the rest... we're past the four year mark. The assessment comes around soon... and I frankly don't want another partner... I want to continue working with you," he said, the cloud of arrogance coming back slightly for him to hide behind the blush behind. "Among other things." He leaned to the counter himself, his arms folding, but the grin remaining.

"Should have known.." She muttered. "I am fine with keeping you as my partner, but how much choice do we get in the matter?"

"Should have known what?" he chuckled, pulling her up closer, letting her know in his way he was still serious, but not saying it verbally. "It's not unheard of, you know.. look at Milo... hell, look at Control... okay, maybe a bad example, but it's not unheard of to keep your partner."

Should have known you couldn't let your guard down for more than five minutes... She thought, but did not verbally answer his question. "Right, they have kept their partners..." She tipped her head to the side. "But they are also married to them."

"Right... and...?" he said in a way to prompt her to the conclusion.

"And we're not." She said flatly. "So obviously we can't use that in swaying the decision makers to keeping us as partners."

He rolled his eyes and settled them on her softly, holding her fixed with the gleam shining brightly. "Unless that status were to change, right?"

"Unless you are asking, that status isn't changing.... I'm not going to marry you, if you can't even say that you want to marry me."

He chuckled, "So that's a yes, then?"

[Lovely]

She put her fingers to his lips. "Repeat after me... Annia I love you... will you marry me?" She scrouched his lips up as if forming the words.

His gaze and grin didn't fade despite her manipulation of his lips. He pulled her fingers from his mouth, kissing them gently, "Annia, I love you... so very, very much..." He looked away a moment and slipped in with his rapid reflexes to steal a kiss from her lips. ~Will you marry me?~

She chuckled softly and shook her head. ~Say it...~ She kissed him tenderly. "I can't say yes till you ask me... out loud..."

"Damnit," he chuckled and watched her warily. "You'd better not say 'no'... alright then." He looked her squarely in the eye, and went so far as to kneal before her, setting her down upon his uplifted knee, placing his arm around her waist, "Heinz...ahem.. Annia... would you give consideration to becoming Mrs. Pretentious and Arrogant... and marry me?" His eyes sparkled as he searched hers.

She did her best not to explode into a smile, though the corners of her lips twitched. "I'll consider it.." Her eyes were sparkling and she could not hold it. "Ok I'm done thinking... Yes, I'll marry you... but we have to do something about the name... Mrs. Pretentious and Arrogant is a little too long." She pushed him back and tumbled to the floor on top of him. Planting the sweetest of kisses to his mouth.

~How about just Mrs. P and A for short?~ he teased, pulling her down to him.

~It could work...especially on the days you are a P in the A!~ She stretched along him and curled around him, deepening the kiss.

~I do my best to make that everyday.. just for you~ He teased, making ready to fight off poking fingers.

~And you do such a good job... It's like you're a natural..~ She chuckled and laced her fingers into his.

He nibbled on her lip a little and gazed up at her, ~Speaking of 'natural'... ~ He slid his hands up behind his head.

~Yes... speaking of?~ She propped up on one arm looking down at him. She poked him lightly.

He did let his guard down, his voice sounding soft, ~Just thinking and sharing this time... how this just always seemed natural.. seemed right.~ He shrugged lightly.

~You mean me and you? Us?~ She smiled a little more and her fingers brushed down his chest. Her hand settling and resting over his heart.

He laced his hands behind his head and laid back beneath her touch, "Us... yes, actually, I think I have always thought of it as an 'us', but.. well that could be where the 'fool' part comes in. I let you go too many times. You're still you're own person and you always will be, but... I was foolish to act the way I did to let you wander off so many times."

Annia chuckled lightly. "Love, often times had you but asked me not to go...." She shifted looking into his eyes. "But there were other times...it would not have been wise to try to stop me..." Her eyes held warmth and love, but it was true some of their spats had been rather heated. "We have always found our way back to each other..."

[Lovely]

He smiled, "Yes we have... although I can't say as I've deserved it." His brow knotted a little and his eyes fixed sharply, "Now I won't go changing to please anyone... you know what you're getting into."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh great, here we go..." She shook her head. "Did you hear me say one thing about you changing?"

"I'm just saying..., "he smiled and shrugged defensively. "Okay, well maybe changing a little... and saying, 'yes', I'm serious about what I said a little while ago. You have me thinking things.. and wanting things I'd never wanted before."

Annia chuckled. "Are you ill?" She put her hand to his forehead, teasing him as always.

"Hmm.. maybe... chills, fever, aching, trembling... vivid pictures in my head... I wonder if it's contagious, though...," he teased gently, rocking her on him as she sat on him still.

"Uh oh.... better get you to bed...right away....only one treatment for such ailments....now, no arguments, mister!"

"Hmmm.. I must be a goner... no argument from me... see? I'm done for... help me, 'nurse'."

"Oh goodness." She stood, taking his hands and pulling him up with her. "Want to go see how strong that bed frame really is?"

He feigned horror, "Do you mean I need to be restrained?"

She laughed. "No.... but I might."

He smirked, a bit of his smugness returning for the moment, "Oh? Think I can't handle it? Do your worst.. and I'll think about it. "

She folded her arms and looked at him, the playfullness fading slightly. "I haven't been doing this long enough to have a worst.." She spoke with plain honesty, simply being truthful.

He raised his eyebrows in a flash and settled into a wicked smile she'd only seen once or twice. "Then do what you want... whatever you want.. Mrs. O'Reilly."

She was rarely at a loss of what to do in a fight or in the field. But when it came to other matters, she was less than expert and faltered still. Having lost the bounce that gave her the confident playfulness she had been showing moments before. Her hands went behind her back to twist almost nervously into the belt loops on her jeans. Other than a few pointers and such 'lessons' from Pieter, she had no other experience in these matters than with Galen and they had only just crossed those borders.

The darkness of his grin faded back to a gentle and rarely seen compassionate and caring look that responded to her uncertainty as he always had, wanting her to trust him and feel safe and comfortable around him. "Don't worry... just.. relax and... be natural. Close your eyes," he said reaching to her hands. "And let these do what they want.. they'll tell you. And these... will tell you something else...," he said, pulling her to his lips again. "The rest will follow... see where they lead you."

Passion flowed from her as her lips touched his. One hand slipping to the back of his neck to hold him to her, the other sliding up his chest and her arm wrapped around his shoulder. Annia kissed him with desire and abandon for several minutes.