Disclaimer: They ain’t my characters and it ain’t my ‘verse and no money changed hands. Thank You List includes Joss and the gang for inspiration, Jacqui the Goddess of Jaylee for beta and a great deal of support and encouragement, and to my own dear big, bad man for providing certain, …er, technical resources and guidance. Bein’ as this is my very first fanfic, all comments, suggestions and feedback are most appreciated. E-mail me at Lumenea@aol.com. Fuss at me. Throw chocolates. If ya don’t wanna talk, please just click a rating. Can’t make it better if I don’t know what’s broke.

Waited Long Enough Part Five: Breaking Point

“Shumma? You want me to what? Jien tah-duh gway! Damnit, Mal, I got plans.” Jayne’s angry voice took on a plaintive whine, colored by the desperation he felt.

“Look, Mal, I gotta get off this ruttin’ boat for a stretch before I go plumb space crazy!” He fidgeted with his gear an’ looked for a way to dodge around Mal an’ bolt for the ship’s ramp.

“No need to bust a gusset, Jayne. You’ll get your leave once Kaylee finishes up this overhaul she’s doin’ on the ship. I just don’t want to leave the girl all alone on Serenity planetside. She says you’re useful in the engine room an’ she needs some help. So stow your gear an’ head on down there, dong ma?“

Alone with Kaylee - Wuo de ma! That was the very last in the ruttin’ ‘verse Jayne Cobb wanted right then. His luck had just gone from bad to worse.

****

“Hwoon dahn!” The hydraulic coupling he was tightening suddenly stripped, spewed black oily fluid in all directions. Jerking his face clear of the spray, Jayne slammed against the sharp edge of the converter support, cursing at the sharp flare of pain on the side of his head.

He’d had his mind set on headin’ into town with Mal and the others, findin’ a bar and a woman and not necessarily in that order, some sweet distraction to take his troubled mind off the ache that seemed to have taken up residence in his gut of late. Anything to get Kaylee off his mind.

Instead, here he was, stuck baby-sittin’ Serenity an’ helpin’ the very same Kaylee. Time was, he’d have enjoyed helpin’ the little mechanic with her work on the ship’s engine, flirtin’ an’ taking pleasure from the growing attraction between them.

But things were different now an’ workin’ close by Kaylee, especially alone with her in this engine room she loved so much, was almost more than he could bear, given his frustrated state of mind.

“Gorram piss-bucket!” He punched the engine housing in frustration an’ spat to clear the muck from his mouth.

“Easy with her, Jayne. Serenity just needs an easy touch.” Kaylee chided him.

She grinned in amusement an’ patted the cowling affectionately, then wiped her own splattered face with a grubby hand.

Looking down at the big mercenary flat on his back half under Serenity’s engine, his bearded face smeared an’ his beloved t-shirt splattered with black gunk, she suddenly got the giggles. Mad as he was, he looked just like a pig in mud.

Big mistake – having survived his growin’ up years with a moniker like his, Jayne Cobb did not take well to bein’ the butt of anyone’s humor, especially the cute an’ overly cheerful female grease-monkey he’d been tryin’ his damnedest to avoid.

“What t’ hell’re you laughin’ at, girl?” he growled up at her. How could she manage to be so maddening an’ so cute, too? He scowled an’ shook the offending wrench at her in a threatenin’ sorta way, then struggled out from under the ship’s main hydraulic pump. The look on his face made Kaylee back up fast.

“Didn’t mean no harm, now,” she said, putting both hands up as if to hold him at bay. She beamed at him, hopin’ to disarm the fire in his eye, an’ scuttled backwards right into the bulkhead.

“Now Jayne, I know’d you was just tryin’ to tighten ‘er down like I asked you to.”

“I’ll tighten ‘er down, alright!”

Tossing the wrench on the decking with a loud clatter, Jayne kept coming. He didn’t care what Mal had said about the protectin’ part of his job. Right now he just wanted to wring that infuriatin’ little gal’s neck.

It was hard enough comin’ to terms with her infatuation with Simon without her always heatin’ him up with her flirtin’ and games. A man could only be expected to take so much… At the very least, he’d teach her to quit teasin’ an’ messin’ with him all the time.

Eyes wide at the big an’ very irritated man heading her way, Kaylee saw the cut he’d opened above his ear.

“Lord, Jayne, your head’s bleedin’!”

“Don’t think yer gonna get out of this that easy…!” He snarled, thinkin’ she only wanted to distract him from throttlin’ her.

With a murderous look on his spattered face an’ his arms spread wide to grab her, Jayne lunged toward the wide-eyed mechanic, growling, “Gotcha now, ya gorram little tease!”

It wasn’t like he really had a plan or knew what he was goin’ to do to her. More, it was just a matter of his frustration finally comin’ to the boilin’ point.

He hit the slippery fluid splashed on the engine room decking, his boots skidding as the momentum of his massive body sent his feet flying out from under him. Kaylee gasped as he landed hard on his back, the thump of his already battered head making a resounding bang against the steel deck.

“Jayne!”

As she stood over him, the mechanic’s grease-smeared face took on an expression of alarm an’ concern, blurring as Jayne thought to himself, Somethin’s… not… right…

An’ then he was out cold.

“What kind of trick are you tryin’ to play on me, Jayne Cobb?” Kaylee tentatively nudged his ankle with her foot, expecting him to lunge at her again. No response.

“Jayne, you OK?” Still no answer.

Concussion? she wondered. Oh lord, where was Simon when you needed him?

She carefully stepped over Jayne’s unconscious body an’ sat down beside him, ignoring the greasy floor, gently lifting his battered head so that she could cradled it in her lap.

Blood always made her queasy. She wished she’d thought to hit the comm button, call for help, then remembered that the rest of the crew had taken the mule into town an’ they were alone on Serenity.

“Aw, Jayne, honey, why’d ya have to go an’ do that?”

Quickly wiping her grubby hands on the front of her coveralls, she gently explored the back of Jane’s skull. Nothing felt crunchy an’ the only blood seemed to be that slowly oozing from the laceration he’d made on the side of his head when he banged it against the converter support.

Kaylee rummaged through the pockets of her coveralls until she found a relatively clean bandanna to press against the seeping cut over Jayne’s temple, hoping to help it clot.

She studied the man whose head rested in her lap, wondered how long he’d stay out. She’d never had a chance to look at Jayne this closely, to study the hard, handsome line of his jaw and sensual mouth. She gently stroked his rough cheek, marveled over the dark lashes, half afraid he’d wake up an’ bite her.

Awake, Jayne Cobb was always on guard, the set of his face shaped by the hard life he’d led. Unconscious, he looked younger, an’ Kaylee wondered why he’d taken up work as a hired gun, wonderin’ what had happened to make a man be so wary of others.

Leaning forward over him, she slowly inhaled his scent, the faint hint of tobacco, gun oil an’ cordite mixed with good clean sweat an’ the sharp chemical reek of Serenity’s spilled hydraulic fluid. Funny, the way his smell made her feel safe. It made her think back to other times she’d been close to him, playin’ hoopball or watchin’ in fascination as he cleaned and caressed Vera, aglow in the same sort of sensual pleasure she felt while working on this ship she loved so much.

Jayne’s brown t-shirt, wet with sweat and the dark gush of hydraulic fluid, clung tightly to his deep chest, rising and falling with his breath. Breathin’, now that’s a good thing, she thought.

Kaylee slipped her right hand from underneath Jayne’s dark head an’ traced the rough stubble lining his jawline before resting it ever so gently in the middle of his chest, feeling his heart beatin’ strong an’ regular like. That’s good, too.

The planes of his pecs were outlined by the knit fabric stretched across them an’ she could see where the small nubs of his nipples rose in response to her touch. Her own heartbeat quickened an’ she took a deep, steadyin’ breath before continuin’ her inspection.

South, across a taut mid-section ribbed with muscle, Kaylee’s hungry eyes wandered. Beyond the boundary of a dark, worn, leather belt lay forbidden territory. The soft oily folds of his faded cargo pants draped strong thighs an’ the curve of his fly gave prominence to what was surely a wonder of nature. Ai ya – what had she been thinking, chasin’ around after Simon when this powerful, swai man wanted her? An’ no doubt about it, her heart was clear, she knew she wanted him, too.