Allura's eyes widened with shock at the feeling of Keith's mouth against hers, but for once she allowed herself the momentary weakness. Her arms wound around his neck of their own accord, and she felt herself pressing against him, wanting to be closer. His own arms tightened around her waist as the kiss deepened. She lost herself in the taste of him as she clutched at his silky black hair. It was longer than when she'd first met him, but not much, and she reveled in the feeling.

Keith could hardly believe that she was kissing him back. Her soft lips underneath his were like heaven, and for a woman he'd always believed had never had much experience kissing a man, she was doing a very good job of it. Or maybe he was just biased. He memorized the way her body felt against his, the way she smelled. No fancy perfumes--just Allura.

They didn't know how long they stood there, aware of only each other and the growing heat between them, until Keith's communicator beeped. Slowly, they emerged. Allura's blue eyes were languid and her lips were swollen from his kisses. She stared at Keith blankly for a moment, before her eyes widened and she stepped back...too quickly because she nearly fell. Keith reached out and steadied her. She put a hand on his arm, her grip tight as if she was afraid he'd disappear. They stared at each other as he answered the communicator.

"Porterfield," he said, his voice hoarse.

"Keit, I vas vondering eef you could help me out vid someting," Sven asked.

"Later," Keith said, distractedly. "I'll find you later..."

"Are you alright?"

Keith looked down at Allura. "Yes...perfect."

He turned off the small device, never taking his eyes off her face. She was pale and her eyes seemed huge in her face as she looked right back at him. He'd never seen her look more vulnerable...or beautiful.

"I don't know what to say," she murmured. "I didn't expect that."

"I did," he replied, putting a hand on her cheek. "I always knew it could be like that between us, Allura."

She put a hand over his. "Can't ignore this now, can we?"

"I know I can't."

She leaned her forehead against his shoulder. He could feel her trembling against him, and he took the hand she'd placed on his arm, pressing it to his chest as he pulled her closer with his free arm.

"What are we going to do now?" she whispered.

"What else is there to do?" he asked, confused.

She pulled away slightly to look into his face. "What do you mean?"

"I know I'm just a commoner, Allura..."

"That's not even an issue," she said with a small laugh.

"It will be for Coran and Nanny. What then?"

"It's not them I'm worried about."

"Then what is it?"

"It's us I'm worried about," she said earnestly. "I care about you too much, Keith, and I admit that I need you more than I should. What if this doesn't work out...what if we get so sick of each other that we never want to see each other again...what if we have a fight to end all fights..." She looked at him with worried eyes. "I don't think I can survive that."

He leaned against the couch behind him, grasping her upper arms and holding her at arm's length.

"Allura, couples have fights but that doesn't mean that bad things happen every time," he explained carefully. "We patch things up and move on."

She looked at him incredulously. "But Keith, this is not just any couple. It's us. Do you not remember the fights we have?"

He conceded that point to her. When they battled, there was never any holding back. At the look of acquiescense on his face, she seemed to gain more steam.

"I need you with me, Keith. Especially now. I can't imagine not having at my side when something happens."

"Allura..."

She put a hand over his mouth. "I have to ask myself if our partnership is more important that what could happen..."

He removed her hand, his eyes seeming to freeze over in a second. "And it isn't, is it?" he shot back.

"I didn't say that," she returned tightly. "Don't put....see what's happening already?"

He let her go and began to pace the room. "Why can't we just let this happen? Why can't we just, for once, listen to our hearts?"

"Listen to yourself, Keith. We have so many responsibilities between the two of us that if you added them up, we'd easily beat Alliance HQ just with the sheer amount of paperwork."

He took a deep breath and she saw that he was beginning to agree with her. She was surprised to find that it hurt. She almost wanted him to argue with her, to allow what was happening between them grow. But the intense emotion that had filled him seemed to have left and when he looked at her again, she saw the controlled commander that she respected--and now hated because she'd seen another side of him that she liked more. The side that viewed her as a desirable woman.

"You're right," he said, sounding beaten. "In other circumstances this wouldn't be a problem, but too many people are relying on us. Especially now with the situation with Lotor and Pollux. Our relationship would be a distraction." His eyes burned through her and for a moment she saw the man who had kissed her. "Because you know how good it could be, don't you?"

She nodded, speechless at the intensity of his gaze.

"Then, it's settled," he said, as if they'd just agreed upon a color scheme for the rec room.

He turned to go. But just as he reached the door, he stopped, and turned slowly. Their eyes met and simultaneously, they moved towards each other. Almost roughly, Keith pulled her against him and their lips met. This kiss was different from the first. Instead of it being gentle and searching, this one branded. Selfishly, they took all they could from the other, hungrily and without hesitation. When they finally broke free, they were both breathless. Allura's hands clutched at the shoulders of his flightsuit and his were caught in her hair, freeing it from the pins that bound it.

"What about Alderain?" he asked breathlessly.

"How can you ask me that?" she demanded, indignantly.

He smiled without humor. "Just wanted to make sure."

Then without another word, he turned on his heel and left the room. And she watched silently as the first man that had ever touched her heart walked away from her.