"Good morning." He said, is voice gravely as he gave her a long, lazy smile.

"Hi." Juno said softly, not moving from her perch on the chair, her eyes on his.

"Is there any more coffee?" Jamie asked easily, stretching his arms above his head to work out some of the kinks in his back. Juno fought not to lick her lips as the sheet fell away from his upper body to reveal smooth skin and sinewy muscle. Muscles that a few hours ago, she vaguely remembered tracing with her tongue…

Biting her lip, Juno looked away and nodded, a flush on her cheeks. "Sure, I'll get you a cup."

"Mmm." Jamie said languidly. "Breakfast in bed. Can I get a side order of Juno with that coffee?" He teased, and Juno closed her eyes, fighting her urge to not so carefully remove her clothes and hop back into bed with him.

She needed to focus.

She needed to talk this out, and then make it right. To explain that last night… that last night was…

Oh hell, to tell him last night wasn't like her – that she didn’t do that.

Despite the fact it was the most satisfying night she'd spent in a bed.

Ever.

With a slightly shaking hand, Juno handed a cup of black coffee over to Jamie, and then turned to return to her chair. Jamie's hand shot out and grabbed hers, tugging on it slightly. "Don't go." He said, his voice quiet. "Stay beside me." When he felt her slight tug against him, he whispered again. "Please?"

Juno met his eyes for the first time since he'd woken up, and nearly melted at the tenderness and eagerness she saw there. She sat on the edge of the bed priggishly, careful not to stare at Jamie's golden chest or sleep tousled hair.

Jamie cocked his head to one side and watched her for a long moment, absorbing her body language that was clearly screaming 'off limits'. "Juno?"

"Yes?" She responded brightly, flashing him a million dollar, one hundred percent, absolutely fake smile.

"Juno." He said warningly. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head eagerly. "Nothing. Nothing's wrong."

"Juno…" He trailed off, reaching out to take her hand in his, caressing the top of her hand with the pad of his thumb. "Talk to me. Tell me what's running through that overworked brain of yours."

Juno fought for control as his thumb continued to trace lazy circles against her skin, his eyes steady on hers. "Okay." She squeaked before clearing her throat and trying again. "Here's the thing."

"I'm listening." Jamie said, putting down his coffee and sitting up straighter in bed and giving Juno his undivided attention.

"I don't sleep with strangers. I don't do that." Juno said, sounding for all the world like a prim and proper school marm in some stuffy British novel.

Jamie watched her carefully, waiting to see if she was going to elaborate on this point that was obviously troubling her. When she didn't, he nodded slowly. "Alright." He said. "I understand."

"I don’t do the one night stand thing." Juno added. "Ever."

Jamie nodded again, his hand still holding hers loosely, even though he could feel her wanting to pull away. "I don't either." He replied. "Not since an unfortunate night back in uni." He winced a little at the memory, and then focused on Juno again.

"So last night…" Juno stammered. "That wasn't… that wasn't me."

Jamie tried to hide his smile. "So you said. But if it's all the same to you, I liked that girl last night as much as I like you this morning."

"You aren't making this easier!" Juno said, standing up in exasperation and beginning to pace the space of the small room. "That just… we didn't… I can't believe what I did last night. You're a stranger." She added, her voice dropping as though she were ashamed of herself.

Jamie squared his shoulders and looked up at her. "I'm not a stranger." He argued, his heart suddenly racing at the thought of walking out the door and not coming back. "I'm a rescuer."

"A rescuer?" Juno repeated faintly.

"Yes, I'm a rescuer. We're different from strangers." Jamie said, his voice suddenly full of confidence. "There's a loophole there."

Juno looked at him incredulously. "A rescuer? A loophole?"

"Yes." Jamie said, the words flowing from his mouth as quickly as he could form them. Despite his nonsensical blathering, he was sure about one thing: he couldn't let her go. He had to convince her that last night…

That last night was incredible.

Not just the sex, though, Jamie thought with an inward grin, that was indeed incredible.

No, finally getting to see Juno, with her guard down and her defenses lowered, was the most incredible transformation he'd ever seen in a woman.

Just made him fall for her even more than before, really.

Jamie jolted himself back to the present and tried to focus on talking his way out of what appeared to be a slight crisis situation.

"Rescuer, you see. Because rescuers meet damsels in times of distress or high emotion, there is a loophole in the 'stranger' scenario. Rescuers and rescuees often open up to each other and come to rely and trust each other much more quickly than your normal two people meeting, because of the stress of their meeting. You know, like we did. Therefore, rescuers go from strangers to friendlies in just a few hours. Or, sometimes minutes. You know, like we did. In any case, it's a loophole, and I don't think you need to worry about it." Jamie took a deep breath and gave her a prize smile. "You see?"

Juno shook her head slowly no. "No. I don't see. I don't see the loophole."

"Want me to explain it again?" Jamie asked and Juno held up a hand to halt him before he could ramble on again.

Juno squeezed her eyes shut and tried to get back to the Juno she had been before tumbling into bed with the most desirable man she'd ever met.

"Loophole or not, this was a huge mistake so let's just forget it."

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before . after