"You’re sure, Jim?”
Kirk leaned forward on the bar, and signaled to the bartender to bring Bones another beer. He himself was abstaining for now, until the dizziness from Spock’s whatever-it-was went away. Spock wasn’t gone, exactly, but he had stopped speaking Vulcan in Kirk’s head. Now, it was more just a faint presence at the back of Kirk’s own thoughts.
“Course I’m sure. I’m completely recovered. I want to stick to our original plan of picking up girls.”
Bones still looked concerned. “No Orions though, alright? For your doctor’s sake? Spare me another heart attack and rescue mission?”
Kirk clapped him on the shoulder with genuine fondness. “I don’t deserve you,” he said honestly. Before Bones could protest, he said, “So who do you like in here?”
Bones rolled his eyes. “Picking up girls is your thing, not mine,” he said gruffly, although Kirk caught the way his eyes darted hopefully around the hotel restaurant and bar.
Poor Bones, he mused. Kirk-sitting has worn him out. “Come on, Bones. Which one?”
Bones looked away, embarrassed. “Well, if you must know, I think that brunette to your left is pretty.”
“The Argelian?” When Bones nodded, Kirk cracked his knuckles dramatically. “Sit tight and watch your Uncle Jim work his magic. Just like we used to do at the Academy.”
As Bones followed him, sputtering indignantly, Kirk walked straight up to the attractive Argelian. “I’m James T. Kirk,” he said grandly.
The brunette sized him up. She broke into a pretty smile. “And is James T. Kirk single?” she asked hopefully.
Kirk shook his head. “In a serious relationship with a beautiful lady named Enterprise. But my friend here…”
Bones scowled.
“This is Dr. Leonard McCoy.”
The Argelian seemed mildly interested. “A doctor?”
“That’s right. With a surgeon’s skilled and steady hands and an unsurpassed knowledge of humanoid bodies of all kinds.”
Bones hmphed irritably but didn’t correct him. Her mild interest seemed to escalate. “Really?”
“Oh yeah. Of course he’d never brag about it, being such a true southern gentleman.”
“What's a southern gentleman?”
Kirk nodded and whispered to her so Bones couldn’t hear. “Means he’s got perfect manners and a killer accent.”
“Jim darlin’, just what kind of tall tales are you tellin’ this young lady?” Bones’s sarcasm only made his Southern drawl more noticeable. Scowly and accented – yeah, even Kirk found his best friend sexy like this.
The Argelian’s eyes widened. She grabbed Bones’s hand. “Come buy me a drink,” she said, tugging him towards the door. “I know a place we can go that’s more private.”
“Is that right? And where would that be?” Kirk heard, as Bones let himself be dragged off by the pretty little thing.
“My room.”
Kirk caught his friend’s wide eyes and flashed him a thumbs-up as Bones disappeared through the door. He then went about getting himself a small table at the back of the restaurant where he could try to relax and figure out what the hell his first officer was – literally – doing in his head.
8. Claimed
As he sat at his tiny table in the intimate back corner of the hotel restaurant, Kirk felt the lingering effects of the past two days’ indulgences, not to mention whatever the hell Spock had done in his mind. Still though, despite some light-headedness, he felt - good. Stronger, more like his old self on Earth. And he was also hungry.
No - starving.
He took a chance and ordered a big dinner, hoping the hunger would last. He hadn’t had any real appetite for weeks. But to his delight, when his food came his appetite did not disappear.
He'd wolfed down nearly all his food by the time he heard the voice.
“This seat taken?”
Kirk looked up to see a striking Andorian female standing next to his table, motioning to the chair across from him. Her blue skin and white hair were enticingly alien and the look on her face left no doubts as to her interest. Kirk wasn’t sure if he was interested in anything other than the last of his dinner, but he was flattered by her regard and not about to turn down the company of a pretty female of any species. After so many weeks of rejection by Spock, on this shore leave he would take all of the attention he could get.
He gestured to the chair. “My table is always open to a beautiful woman.”
Her antennae twitched toward him at the compliment. "I see the rumors of human charm are not exaggerated," she said as she sat.
Kirk smiled at that. "I'll do my best not to ruin my species' reputation." He motioned to a nearby Tellarite waitress, who came to their table. He cocked his head, indicating that the Andorian should order. "On me."
"Very charming indeed," she said, and looked at the waitress. "Cardassian Sunrise?"
The Tellarite waitress nodded and disappeared.
The Andorian leaned forward, rested her head in her hands and regarded Kirk flirtatiously. She wasn't green, but she sure was cute. "Your eyes are bluer than my skin."
"I doubt that. You're as pretty as Earth's sky." Kirk liked her antennae, how they moved independently and complemented her expressions.
She grinned appreciatively. "We've already established that you're a charmer. Perhaps there are other rumors about humans you can confirm?"
Kirk raised his eyebrows. "And just what sorts of rumors have you been hearing about us?"
"Only good things, of course," she said, with an playful twitch of an antenna. "My friend says that humans are warm to the touch. Is it true?"
As come-ons went, it was absolutely transparent, but Kirk had always liked women who went after what they wanted - especially when what they wanted was him. He held out a hand in invitation. "You tell me."
She reached across the table and pressed her palm against his. Her hand was cool and soft. "Oh, you are warm, aren't you?" she said, rotating their hands upright. "Isn't that nice?"
Kirk intertwined their fingers. "I'm flattered you think so."
"And are you this warm everywhere?"
Kirk opened his mouth, flirtatious reply on his tongue, when the forgotten presence at the back of his mind suddenly spiked into something white-hot and a familiar voice said, “His body is a human-standard 37 degrees Celsius and you have absolutely no reason to touch him a single second longer.”
Spock.
Despite hearing Spock in his mind earlier, Kirk hadn't been face-to-face with Spock since their fight the night before and he felt panic thread down his spine. He looked up to see Spock standing at the side of their table, face completely devoid of expression yet somehow all the more threatening for it.
The Andorian dropped Kirk’s hand like it had burned her. She leapt out of her seat. “You didn’t mention your jealous Vulcan boyfriend!"
