Time and Again

eyes. "Get up, you miserable coward, so I can hit you again."
    He sat where he was for a moment, rubbing a hand over his jaw. He didn't mind the blow so much. He knew he'd had it coming. But he didn't care to be called a coward. Under the circumstances, though, it was best to let her get it all out of her system.
    "You're upset."
    "Upset?" The word hissed out between her teeth. "I'll show you upset." Because he obviously wasn't going to get up, she dived onto nun.
    She knocked the wind out of him with another punch as he grappled for her hands. "Damn it, Sunny, stop. I'm going to have to hurt you."
    "Hurt me?" Blind with anger, she struck out as he struggled to roll on top of her. This time her knee slipped by his guard and landed dead on. As the air whistled out of his lungs, he collapsed on top of her.
    "Get off me, you creep."
    He couldn't have moved if his life had depended on it. The pain, deserved or not, was like a silvery shimmer from crotch to brain. His only defense was his weight as he sprawled breathlessly over her.
    "Sunny-" He dragged air into his lungs and saw a new constellation. "Your match," he conceded.
    The fight had drained out of her. She didn't want him to know how weak and helpless she felt. With her jaw tensed, she prayed her voice wouldn't tremble.
    "I said get off me."
    "As soon as I'm sure I'm still intact. If you let me get my wind back, we can go another round." He managed to lift his head.
    She was crying. Huge, silent tears welled up in her eyes and slid down her cheeks. More stunned by them than by the blow, he shook his head. "Don't." He brushed the tears away, but more fell to replace them. "Damn it, Sunny, stop it."
    "Let go of me."
    He rolled aside, determined to leave her alone until she composed herself. Before he realized it, he was gathering her close, dragging her onto his lap, stroking her hair.
    "Don't touch me." Her body was rigid. Anger and humiliation battled inside her. "I don't want you to touch me."
    "I know. I have to."
    "You lied to me."
    "Yeah." He pressed his lips to her hair. "I'm sorry."
    "You used me."
    "No." His arms tightened. "No. You know better than that."
    "I don't know you at all." She tried to arch away, but he only cradled her closer. Abruptly she threw her arms around him, burying her face against his throat. "I hate you. I'll hate you as long as I live."
    The tears were no longer silent. They poured out in hard, racking sobs as she clung to him. He said nothing, had nothing to say. The woman who had knocked him flat with a right hook he understood. The one who clawed and spit and fought he knew how to handle. This one, this soft, weeping bundle in his arms, was a mystery. Defenseless, heartbroken, fragile.
    And he fell in love with this Sunny, as well.
    She clung to him, hating herself. She wanted to strike out, to make him pay for breaking her heart, but she could only hold on, taking the comfort he offered.
    Carefully he rose with her in his arms. He needed to soothe, to protect, to love. He wanted to stroke her until her tears dried, hold her until her body calmed again. Most of all he wanted to show her that of all the things he'd done falling in love with her was the most important.
    She couldn't stop, though she despised every tear. She couldn't fight him now, at her weakest point.
    Now she could only hold on to him, let the storm rage and find some small comfort in the gentle way he held her.
    He took her into his cabin, where the light was dim.
    The bed was water-soft, covered with pale blue sheets. The walls were blue, as well. A quiet, restful color. Still holding her, he lay with her on the bed while her tears dampened his cheek.
    When her sobs began to lessen, he trailed his lips down her temple to her mouth. Her lips were wet, and they were still trembling. As his touched them, she pulled away to roll onto her side.
    "Sunny." Feeling awkward, he touched her shoulder. "Please, talk to me."
    She didn't bother to jerk his hand away. She just stared at the pale blue wall. "I feel like such a fool.
    Crying over you."
    He didn't know if any woman had ever done that before. Certainly none had ever cried in his arms. "I never wanted to hurt you."
    "Being lied to always hurts."
    "I didn't lie. I just didn't tell you the truth." He could see the logic of it, needed to. But he doubted she could. "I was going to tell you everything today."
    She nearly laughed. "Do they still use that old chestnut in the twenty-third century?" She had said it out