After a solid week of Kaylee pesterin’ him, not to mention the unholy stench that Jayne was giving off, Mal finally gave in and told her to go ahead and rig up some showers. It was either that or seal Jayne off permanently in one of the airlocks.

Well, OK, mebbeso not a bad idea on general principle…

It had taken another two weeks and a rather spectacular incident in which a pipe burst and flooded Zoe’s bunk, but the job was finally done. Mal was looking forward to getting to be really and truly clean when he wanted, not to mention Jayne no longer smelling like the alleyway behind a cheap Chinese restaurant the day before trash pickup.

He gathered the crew to explain the rules.

“As y’all know, lil’ Kaylee here has finally rigged us up some showers. Now, I know that most of us…” A pause to glance significantly at Jayne. “are lookin’ forward to not stinking like the septic vac on a regular basis. But that don’t mean we get to luxuriate. Which means no Core showers. Get in, get clean, get out, dong ma?”

Now the significant glance was aimed squarely at Simon and Kaylee.

“And no doublin’ up. Shower’s for getting’ clean, not dirty.”

Kaylee stuck her tongue out at him and mouthed something about “Cap’n Meany Pants.”

Jayne just scowled.

“Ya mean I can’t get Zoe here to wash my back?”

One eyebrow on Zoe’s face went up slightly.

“Not unless you want the doc here to hafta sew your hand back on.”

Mal decided it was time to re-assert his Captain-ness.

“Awright, that’s enough. Dismissed!”

With that, he headed back to his bunk to gather up a towel, and the shampoo and soap that Inara had gifted him with for his birthday, in anticipation of the showers being built.

When he got to the showers, he found Inara in the dressing area just outside, back to the door, untying her shortie satin robe. Clearly, she was looking to get the first go at the showers.

Mal wasn’t rightly sure what to do. They’d gotten as far as some heavy-duty kissing in whatever it was between them, but he was trying to take things slowly. Which generally meant him having to finish things off by himself in his bunk.

And they were still trying to keep it from the rest of the crew.

Still, the thought of what she would look like under that shower would be enough to keep him awake half the night. Some days, it was mighty difficult to be a gentleman.

“’scuse me, darling, but Captain’s privileges mean I get first dibs.”

Inara quickly retied her robe and turned around.

“Oh! I didn’t see you there. River said that the showers were free.”

“No worries. Won’t be long. No Core showers.”

“And no doubling up. Captain’s orders.”

Mal had the sudden feeling that she was possibly gently teasing him. And that maybe under certain circumstances, Captain’s privilege trumped Captain’s orders.

This is one of those times, Reynolds.

He cleared his throat.

“Well, Miss Serra, it seems to me that sometimes Captain’s privilege takes priority.”

She smiled, and he was of a certainty she was teasing him. And that he was near to done with being a gentleman.

“And just what is the Captain’s privilege this evening?”

Mal took on a serious tone, not wanting to completely ruin things.

“Inara, I’m tryin’ to not rush things. We’ve spent more than enough time getting it wrong between us. I am trying mightily to be a gentleman, shocking as ya might find that notion. And if that means ya want me to go and leave ya in peace, so be it. But if not, you and me, we are done with only taking things part of the way.”

In response, she took a step forward and wound her arms around his neck. Mal took a deep breath. He stole a glance down the front of her robe, and damned if he couldn’t see purt near all the way to Christmas.

“Mal, I have spent the majority of my life around gentlemen. And gentlemen…” She paused to nip at his earlobe. “are refined. And deferential. And predictable. All the things you aren’t.”

“Darlin’, that’s a mighty peculiar brand of sweet talk.”

Mal was trying desperately not to be distracted by the earlobe nibbling. It was not working in his favor.

“Mal, the point is that if I wanted a gentleman, the last place I’d be looking was here.”

“And yet here ya are, wearin’ next to nothing, driving an old man to all manner of distraction in a shower on a transport ship.”

Inara switched to the other earlobe. The whole gentleman bit was really going downhill fast, in Mal’s considered opinion.

“Well, you know what they say, Captain. You really are only as old as you feel.”

At that moment, all Mal could feel was that he had one helluva hard-on. And that he wasn’t rightly sure he could take one more time of having to deal with it all by his lonesome. But he also knew that he had to be 100% certain this was what Inara really wanted. He took another deep breath and very gently pushed her back just a bit so that he could look in her eyes.

“Meant what I said, Inara. You keep on at this, there is no halfway. I can’t live like that anymore. This is a long-haul decision. So if you are not OK with that, best go right now, fast as you can. Because I am a man at the end of his patience with begging for scraps.”

In response, she looked down, unable to meet his eyes. Mal realized that despite the earlier predatory slink, she was as nervy as he was about what it all meant.

“Mal, I…”

“What’s it gonna be, Inara? I’ve laid out my cards, time for you to do the same.”

She blushed and chewed a bit on her lower lip, then nodded. Mal decided he liked this version of her better than the painted doll every other man had gotten.

He pulled her toward him and gently tugged at the tie on her robe until it came loose and he pushed it off her shoulders. He stopped to stare at what he had only imagined for so long. He came to the conclusion that he had a piss-poor imagination.

She blushed even harder and looked more uncertain.

“Mal, is something wrong?

He almost broke out in laughter, except he strongly suspected she’d start crying.

“Darlin’, ain’t a blessed thing wrong with you. Just wonderin’ why in hell it took me so damn long to unwrap the package.”

She smiled with a bit more confidence and started to work on the drawstring on his sweatpants. Mal took it as a sign that he’d said the right thing.

Once they were fully undressed, Mal backed Inara into the shower, nipping at her with light kisses. He fumbled around behind him until the water temperature was just right, then kissed her good and hard up against the tiled wall. He had to admit, naked wet kissing beat the hell out of what they had been doing before.

A very dim part of his brain was yelling something or another about regrets and consequences, but it was losing ground against the feel of her breasts in his hands and under his tongue, and the feather-light touch of her fingers along the length of his hard-on.

It was becoming clear that Mal would have to be extremely careful with his footing in all of this, lest one of them break a limb and have some rather embarrassing explaining to do to the doc. After a bit of fumbling, they finally slid down to the floor of the shower, with Mal’s back braced against one wall and her in his lap, facing him.

He grabbed at the few remaining threads of his self-control.

“Last chance to back out, sweetheart.”

In response, Inara braced her arms against the wall behind his head, lifted herself up, and slowly slid down his length. Guess he had his answer, then.

Mal was of a certainty that he’d go to his grave with the image of her at that moment – all soaking wet and riding him – seared onto his brainpan. All things considered, it wasn’t a bad image to have. He was no stranger to sex, even if it had been interspersed with more dry spells than he cared to admit to. Or even, really, sex in unusual places. Hell, there had even been that one time with the general’s rather well-built daughter on the hood of her daddy’s prized personal jeep…

But it all paled compared to that very moment. In a shower stall, on a rickety old transport ship. With a woman worth thousands of credits to the highest bidder giving it to him for free because maybe she saw something in him he wasn’t rightly sure he quite yet saw in himself. Not that he’d ever confess to her the truth – especially if it was likely to make her stop whatever it is she was doing with certain muscles that was just driving him over the edge.

Finding purchase as best he could, he timed his thrusts to match hers. If they were gonna finish this, he’d be damned if they weren’t gonna finish it together. Finally, he hit his release so hard, he thought for a moment he might just black out. Couldn’t tell if that howling noise was him or her, and really didn’t care.

What he did care about was the woman currently with her face buried in his chest. Or more specifically, what he would see in her eyes.

Sweet Jesus, not regret. Anything but that. Well, OK, disgust prolly not so good either…

She finally raised those impossibly thick lashes to look at him. A mixture of trepidation and something that hinted that he was not like all the other fellows before him. Not quite sure what to make of the latter, not wanting to press the matter, and yet…

“You OK, bao-bei?”

A small smile, which was better than a look of horror or mockery.

“Aside from starting to get chilled because we used up all the hot water, I’m fine.”

A kiss on his lips, to assure him she really was fine, and not just playing a role to soothe his tender male ego on the matter.

Huh. Ain’t that somethin’?

With that, they unfolded themselves from their rather cramped position on the floor, turned off the water and stepped out of the shower to dry off. He actually managed to make her giggle as he playfully dried her hair with a towel. Never heard that from her before, and he kinda liked the sound of it.

Now her drying him off, however, was eliciting a whole ‘nother kinda response.

Which was interrupted by furious pounding on the door and the muffled sound of Jayne’s voice.

“Mal, you still in there? I just got done cleanin’ the septic vac and I stink to high heaven. Lemme in!”

If Jayne was complainin’, it had to be bad.

Mal signed and opened the door just wide enough to stick his head out, hoping Jayne wouldn’t spot Inara behind him.

“Be done in a sec. Tho’ ya might hafta wait a bit, seein’ as there’s no hot…”

Crap. Jayne had seen Inara.

“Hey, ya said no Core showers. And no doublin’ up!”

Mal grinned.

“Captain’s privilege.”