Hot Abs and Nice Conversation

[Incandesa]

The first time Natasha really notice the attractiveness of rescuer and now new “partner in crime,” was a few days after he had taken her in. He was working on some sort of machinery for the ship and she just so happened to catch sight of how his muscles flexed as he worked in the heat. Oh yes, even as a doctor with half her limbs chopped off, she was still very much a woman. She could still appreciate a good looking man, even if the attraction would not be mutual.

She returned to taking inventory of her instruments, cataloging what needed to be replaced. All the while subtly, and not so subtly, occasionally glancing over at her ship mate. She had never realized what he was hiding under that large jacket up his. Such a shame too. Had she been in her former glory, she could have swept a man like him off his feet if she only winked at him.

[Marjorie]

Nothing was wrong with the ship but some of the mechanical parts needed replacing. So he'd pulled a few panels off the bulkhead and was wrenching on the ship's guts. He had his shirt off, and he was swearing colorfully as he busted his knuckles as his hand slipped off a wrench.

Whatever notions Natasha might have thought of herself, Raf had found her attractive from the first moment he'd laid eyes on her. Out of his liege, likely, but easy on the eyes, none the less. It might have been the reason he was crawling out from inside the ship's walls without his shirt on sporting scrapped knuckles. Not that he'd acquired the minor injuries on purpose, but usually he wouldn't even bother with them beyond washing his hands. "Hay, high heels," he said, "you think you could slap a band-aid on this, or something?"

[Incandesa]

Natasha raised a sarcastic "really?" eyebrow at him. The scrapes were barely there, and would likely be a waste of bandaging, considering how little she had. The doctor pretended to think about it for a bit before saying, "Nope!" in a cheery teasing kind of way. There was a slight mischievous smile on her face as she returned to counting inventory, taking very good care not to look at him.

[Marjorie]

Raf laughed at his respite and gave a suffering sigh. “I thought doctors weren’t supposed to let people suffer,” he teased, “If my fingers fall off or I get gangrene I’m going to blame you.” He smirked at her, then headed off to wash his hands. When he returned he’d had a shower Andrade changed into fresh clothes. He also had his jacket on, but but it was open and he still wasn’t wearing a shirt. They were all dirty actually, he needed to throw his clothes in the wash.

“So,” He Asia, “where were you thinking of heading next? You want to set up shop somewhere... or...” he kind of trailed off not really sure what he was getting after. “I mean you could just stay on the lam with me, but I imagine a fancy girl like you would want to put down roots somewhere, or at least find a way to sell your doctor skills, so you could keep fashionable.” Was he rambling? He was rambling. 

[Incandesa]

Natasha giggled a bit at her shipmate's rambling. It was cute seeing a gruff man like him seem flustered. She thought about it for a moment before answering somberly, "I wish I could set up a proper clinic, but as it stands, I think any roots I could put down right now would only lead to my death." It was something she was sadly coming to accept now that she learned that her own father was trying to kill her.

"If I ever become too irritating, I'm suppose you could drop me off at some underground syndicate or shady side corner. Doctors are always in demand in those circles..." Now she sounded as if she were trying to convince herself. In truth, she didn't know where she would go. The good doctor had gone from a luxery penthouse to homeless in less than a week and Mr. Raf was the first to take her in.

[Marjorie]

Raf nodded. “That’s probably true,” even if you got yourself a new identity with good credentials and really changed your appearance, they’d probably find you eventually if you staid in one place long.

He listened as she kept talking. “You’re not wrong, they pay well too... but syndicates, gangs, and mobs tend not to let assists go once they’ve acquired them. You’d be better off keeping on the move and just doing freelance work.”  He shrugged. “The kind of work I do, it’s always nice to have someone around can patch up bullet wounds and such.” It was a vague offer for her to stay with him, at least for a while.

[Incandesa]

Natasha looked at him with raised a surprised eyebrow. She could understand taking in a stranger for a while in a panic, but hardly a freeloader. "And what kind of work do you exactly do, Mr. Raf?" she asked. "If you do not mind me asking of course."

It was better for the good doctor to know at least partially what she was getting into. For all she knew, staying with Raf was more dangerous than running on her own.

[Marjorie]

Raf flashed her a grin. "I'm a pirate," he proclaimed with pride, "a fallen soldier from the side of a war that lost, and a professional scoundrel by trade." Well, none of that was a lie, but it was a bit short on the details. "I take jobs that allow be to shove a middle finger up Adelios' ass for free," he shrugged, "and I am sometimes a smuggler, sometimes a thief, sometimes a strong arm for a pretty lady in need." He grinned, teasing, flirting.

[Incandesa]

Natsha gave a giggle. Was he flirting with her? The instincts of her old life screamed 'yes,' but it seemed so outrageous with all of her clearly robotic prostetics. He was likely just having casual fun. Still, casual or not, she missed having a man's attention and the back and forth banter of flirting. "Oh? A pirate, my aren't you the bad boy. And have there been many pretty ladies in need?" she teased back.

[Marjorie]

“Oh, just a one or two,” Raf replied. He moved a little closer to her and leaned against the wall. “Do you like bad boys?” He asked. Rich girls sometimes liked a little fantasy. Small escape from the fairytale into reality. His reality could be actually dangerous though, and so could hers now, so he guessed they had that in common.

[Incandesa]

Natasha moved a bit closer as well and began playing with her hair a bit. It was already a mess of corkscrew curls, so it was fairly easy to get one to dance in her fingers. "I don't know, it's been a long time since I played with a bad boy. Probably not since before med school. They were too... distracting. Especially since I was busy being a bad girl myself, going and becoming a doctor." She playfully lifted up the stethescope she was wearing for emphasis. "Daddy wasn't exactly thrilled with his little girl being more than a pretty paperweight."

[Marjorie]

Raf leaned in just a little closer, enough that he could feel the tickle of her breath and the warmth of her skin without touching her. "Would you like to?" He grinned, "I've never desired a pretty paperweight... and I rather like the idea of one who doesn't follow the rules." He brushed her cheek lightly with his fingertips. 

[Incandesa]

Natasha pretended to think on it for a moment. "You make a very tempting offer, Mr. Raf," she purred. She placed her cold metal hand on his chest and very slowly slid it down. "However, I'm a little too jaded to jump into bed with the first man I see anymore." That wasn't to say she wasn't extremely aroused by his advances. Already her biomechanics were warning her of increased hormones and temperature. It was all very clinical for what was a very intoxicating experience. But that was good. It kept her from doing anything rash. "Maybe a bit of a trade could work out. You keep my father from killing me, I provide free medical care for your 'exploits,' and we can shamelessly flirt for a while. After we know each other a bit better, we can talk again."

She gave him another sly smile. "Of course, we can always make it a game if you wish..."

[Marjorie]

Raf laughed. “So you’re just a tease then?” he said in good humor.

“As far as a business relationship goes, those are certainly agreeable terms... as for making a game of things... well I think we’re already playing it.” He brushed his fingertips against her cheek boat and drew them in a light trail to a stray bit of hair he tucked behind her ear. “But if you’re not ready to take it to the next level, that’s ok.” He smirked and then turned away from her before the growing bulge in his pants became too evident.