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B'Elanna Torres glanced across the room and nervously bit her nails. Not ten feet away from her stood the most beautiful creature she had ever encountered: Tom Paris.

She exhaled, her breath coming out in a long whoosh. When exactly had she started feeling like this? It was hard to tell. She just knew that when she saw his bright blue eyes, sexy smile, and heard his husky voice, she had all the needed ingredients needed for a heavy duty crush.

"B'Elanna?" Harry asked, snapping his fingers in front of her face.

"Hmm?" she asked, her eyes still focused on Tom. Then she realized Harry was impatiently waiting for her to accompany him to the mess hall. "Oh, Harry! I'm sorry. Yes, I'm ready to go."

"Good. Now tear your beautiful brown eyes away from Paris and let's get going," he teased. B'Elanna felt her face flush, but she complied. They approached the mess hall and entered.

"Hi there, B'Elanna!" Neelix cheerfully greeted, waving his beefy hands. "Want something to eat? I'm having Frailee!" he gleefully told her, gesturing to a pinkish-purple mound on a plate. Her stomach lurched.

"Um..no. I'm not that hungry. Or desperate," she choked.

Unfased, Neelix turned to his next victim. "Ensign?"

"I'll pass on the food poisoning for today, thanks."

"Another time, perhaps!"

"Um..maybe," B'Elanna lied. She pulled Harry over to a table and they sat down. "That was scary."

"Tell me about it."

"I thought for a minute it was going to reach up and bite me!" she cracked. Harry laughed and then suddenly his head popped up and his eyes brightened.

"Tom!" he called. "Come join us!" Harry invited, pointing at the empty seat beside B'Elanna. She whipped her head around and shot Harry a withering look.

"No!" she hissed. "No! N—Hi Tom," she smiled stupidly. He smiled at her and pulled out the chair. Sitting down, he said, "hey, B'Elanna!"

He looked at Harry a moment, then gazed around the hall. "Uh..Harry. I think there's a matter in..you know..the place. And it needs your immediate attention," he hinted.

"What place? I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes you do."

"Oh! Oh! The place, okay!" he said suddenly, standing. "I'll go take care of that now!" B'Elanna mouthed the word ‘no', but he didn't pay her any attention. "Later!" he gave them a wink before leaving.

B'Elanna had never really felt like this before, and she didn't know how to take it. For the first time in her life, she was at a loss for words and her palms were sweaty. Her breathing was quick and shallow. The smell of his cologne and aftershave combined was enough to transport her into another realm of thinking.

"Hey, uh, B'Elanna, if you breathe any heavier, you could supply enough oxygen for the whole world," he cracked uneasily.

"Pig."

"Ah, you can talk!"

"You're still a pig."

"Would you like to dance?"

"What?"

"Dance."

"You wanna dance with me?"

"I thought you'd never ask." He laughed at the confused expression on her face and grabbed her hands.

"But—but there are people in here!" she protested lamely, looking around.

"Then we'll give them a show, won't we? Computer, play soft 20th century jazz music," he ordered. The music began and Tom pulled her to him. He wrapped his hands around her waist and pulled her to him, closing the space between them. He reached for her arms and guided them to the back of his neck. She laced her fingers around his neck, loving the feeling of his skin on her hands. His arms draped down to the curve of her hips, and his hands rested on the swell of her buttocks.

His breath was warm on her forehead and he brought his hands up to caress the soft skin of her cheek. His thumb brushed across her lips. He returned his hands to their original position and they began to sway. Their hips brushed and fingers played on bodies as the dance turned more intimate.

B'Elanna quickly forgot where she was as he lowered his mouth to her ear. "There's something I have to tell you," he said, his breath tickling her ear.

"Well, then get on with it," she said, her voice shaking slightly.

"I've wanted this since the first moment I saw you," he admitted, his voice a soft whisper.

"So have I."

He looked at her, slightly shocked. He smiled slightly. "It takes a lot for a woman like you to admit something like that."

"A woman like me?" she asked, somewhat indignantly.

"Yes. But—don't take it like that. I meant a—"

"Tom?"

"Huh?"

"Shut up and kiss me."

He chuckled softly, but leaned in slowly, his lips stopping centimeters before they touched hers. He cupped the side of her face and lowered his lips to hers the rest of the way in a gentle kiss. It increased in passion, and she felt him hesitantly slip his tongue into her mouth.

Her first instinct was to bite it, but fought back the urge. She returned his kiss with equal passion, surprising them both. When they broke apart, the room whistled and applauded loudly. B'Elanna giggled softly, turning her head slightly to see all eyes on her and Tom. "Let's `really` give them a show," she said, pulling him back to her for another earth shattering kiss.

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© Copyright September 1999 by Alicia Torres on all original story content. Not meant to infringe on copyrights held by Paramount or any other copyrights that may be infringed on. Please do not reproduce any part of this story without written consent from the author. Any and all comments can be sent to J0J0_77@hotmail.com