Beverly shifted in her chair, rubbed her eyes and stared back at the computer displaying her current medical research project. A rogue virus had invaded the immune system of the Tzu people. The Enterprise was en route to the planet Tzu to lend whatever aid it could.

Shortly after arriving at Tzu, Beverly with Selar's help had discovered that the virus was not harmful to humanoid life forms. Proper inoculations would protect humanoids from even the most infinitesimal molecules of the virus. This being the case, Captain Picard had allowed for shore leave for the humanoid crewmembers. He had gone one step further and ordered the Senior Staff to take at least one day off for recreational purposes.

At the last Senior Staff meeting, Picard had made this announcement and then fielded the questions as to the unusual circumstances of this shore leave. He was not about to overlook a serendipitous situation when he knew they came few and far between.

******

Beverly shifted again in her chair and this time her eyes fell on a photograph of her and Jean-Luc after their last shore leave together. Jean-Luc had surprised Beverly then by asking her to accompany him to an outdoor cafe on the planet and then completely took her by surprise when he spread out a blanket in a nearby park and they spent the evening watching the stars appear on the indigo backdrop of space.

Beverly had not been immune to the nearness of Jean-Luc that night. All sorts of buried feelings began to surface in this intimate setting and she soon found herself with a squidgy. Of course this was perfectly natural lying next to this man, so near yet so far. She hated his restraint.

"It's so beautiful. I could watch the stars all night" he began.

"It is nice to see them from something other than the confines of a starship" she added.

They felt like two voyeurs eavesdropping on an intimate picture.

After some time Beverly spoke, her words barely audible, "I finally understand what drove Jack to space."

"Pardon?" He wasn't quite sure if the words were meant for him or not.

"The stars, Jean-Luc. I think I understand what drove Jack all those years we were apart. I think I hear their song."

Jean-Luc propped himself up and stared at her for the revelation she was making.

"Beverly, are you telling me that until this minute, you have never heard the call of the stars?"

"Yes."

"But you're in Starfleet. How..."

"Jean-Luc, you can be so dense." she teased him, "I was an orphan with my grandmother raising me. How was I supposed to afford medical school, a residency, and support Nana? Menial jobs on the side? I think not. We did quite well on my school stipend and I got my education free. Well, almost free and I get to see some pretty unique place. Besides, if it weren't for Starfleet, I wouldn't have met Jack... and his best friend." She added the last part quietly, like an admission of some kind.

Jean-Luc tried to look at her face, but her head was hung low so that all he saw was a sea of red. He gently raised her chin and saw the quiet passion below the surface. She was holding her breath and to his disbelief, he was too.

Jean-Luc had kissed her that night for the first time, not as a friend, but as a lover. Their continued liaison back on board the Enterprise had been difficult at first, but as time passed they became a little more comfortable with the crew seeing them together.

******

A clearing of the throat brought Beverly out of her reverie, and she looked up to Jean-Luc standing in the door way to her office.

Heightened spots of pink began staining her cheeks as she realized she was daydreaming, when she should have been knee deep into research. Then she realized as she was knee deep in research, she was off duty and the next day was her forced day off and she was probably late for the dinner she had agreed to with Jean-Luc.

"I... I... I'm sorry, Jean-Luc" she finally stammered out.

"That's ok, Beverly. I figured that you would still be here, so I came straight from the bridge to get you. Besides, I know your dedication to helping these people, so I figured that I'd have to drag you out of here anyway"

She gave him a wry smile, stood up and said, "Just give me 5 minutes to explain this mess to Selar." As she walked past him, in a hushed tone added, " Then I'm all yours, Captain."

A rogue smile passed over his face before he schooled it back to neutral. It wouldn't do anything for my image to be standing here like a leering fool for the entire ship to see.

True to her word, Beverly was gone exactly 6 minutes and then they left for her quarters.

******

On the planet Tzu, Picard had arranged for them to spend a quiet dinner for two near the rear of the finest restaurant. Candlelight, soft music playing in the background and the annoyingly bothersome waiter served to make the dinner an evening to remember.

As dinner was done, Beverly signed them into the hotel as Mr. and Mrs. J.L. McGinnis. Picard offered to do this, but Beverly had persuaded him that without facial alterations, they would suffer the same fate as dinner, should he be recognized.

They used the back entrance to the hotel and managed to get to their room without any further delays.

Beverly had to laugh at the absurdity of the situation. Here was the Captain and Chief Medical Officer of the Enterprise sneaking through the shadows like two common criminals. Picard soon joined in the laughing and soon they found themselves dangerously close to one another. All thoughts of merry-making were gone when Jean-Luc gathered Beverly in and planted a very passionate kiss on her lips.

"Eager tonight, aren't you?" she teased.

When he didn't respond, she prodded him further, "Are you just going to throw me on the bed and ravage me for you own selfish purposes?"

"The thought had crossed my mind, but I thought tonight we would be unhurried. Make love slow and long and be swept away on the tide of passion"

Beverly lay on the bed, stretched her muscles, lengthening her spine, and inhaled sharply. She then patted the unoccupied side of the bed and Jean-Luc moved to join her.

His touch, lightly at first served to heighten her responses, soon became more erotic, more focused, more demanding. Beverly felt as if her nerve endings were going to explode every time he touched her. Her pulse was throbbing in her head, and she couldn't wait to get him inside of her. Now! Her mind screamed, I need him in me NOW!

True to his word, Picard was making slow process at ridding Beverly of her clothing. Beverly could tell he was as aroused as she was, but his concentrated control was infuriating. How can he be so in control at a time like this? she wondered.

The standard deviations for the kinetic energy output from the warp core with the new gel packs is 5, 16, 21 and 32% above those of the conventional matter/antimatter reactors and the same rates of flow at warp 2, 3, 5, and 7. Her blouse was now unbuttoned and the satin bra she wore beneath was soon shed. He looked at her breasts. So perfect, down to the small freckles making a square beneath the left one. He kissed all four corners of the square, making her moan in the process.

"Jean-Luc" she gasped breathily.

"Yes, Beverly" his voice not betraying the inferno of passion raging in his own body.

"I need you... inside of me... NOW" It was an order and he knew it.

Still, he was enjoying the battle of wills with this redhead. He would pay for it later, but that didn't matter. He was in control now and that was almost as intoxicating as the woman squirming beneath him. He kept the math computations going in his head, The y-axis must equidistant from the x-axis if the ship is executing a 90 degree roll, but if the maneuver is less than 90 degrees then then you will cross the x-axis before can correct the mistake and you will run into the warp field of your own ship and be adrift for no less than 30 minutes.

"Jean... Luc!" She was oh, so close and he would let her release come.

"Yes, darling" he whispered, forcing her to concentrate on something other than her need.

"Please..." She begged, all coherent thought was almost.

"Soon, my love." She had no choice but to writhe under him until he gave her what she wanted.

Beverly moved a hand down to her clitoris, trying to give herself what she wanted, but a firm grasp moved it away and held it tightly to her side. Jean-Luc moved slowly downward and the trail of fire left by his tongue served to make Beverly writhe even more.

YES! thought Beverly as his chin passed over her pubic hair and continued downward.

He nuzzled her outer folds, nipped her inner thighs and finally when Beverly thought she would pass-out, he brought his moist warm mouth to her pulsating nub and with a flick of his oh-so-talented tongue, gave her the release she was looking for. Beverly cried out as the orgasm ripped the breath from her lungs and sent all of her nerve endings into overload. She bucked and writhed against Jean-Luc, who was still worrying her nub with his tongue, as a second orgasm sent her into a heavenly blissfulness.

Beverly collapsed as her body responded to the stimulus overload.

When she awoke, Jean-Luc was cradling her, stroking her face and hair.

"Welcome back", he said quietly and kissed her forehead. "Rest now"

Beverly closed her eyes, settled back into his arms and slept more contentedly than she had since first receiving the call to help the Tzu.

******

Earlier than either of them would have liked to have been awake, the incessant knocking at their hotel door, stirred them into consciousness.

Picard, wrapped in a towel, answered the door. The hotel concierge was staring back at him.

"My apologies, Sir, but a very insistent woman named Selar, said that I should deliver this message at once. He handed a hand written not to Jean-Luc and left.

Jean-Luc handed the note to Beverly and waited to be informed of its contents.

"Dr. Crusher,

Your experiment has been completed and the Enterprise is currently replicating the proper dosage of the anti-body necessary to stave off the virus.

Selar"

 

Beverly let out a whoop of joy and showed the note to Picard. 30 minutes later, Jean-Luc and Beverly, having eaten and showered, beamed back to the Enterprise. Day off or not, Picard knew he couldn't keep Beverly out of Sickbay.

She promised to have dinner with him and, after placing a quick kiss on his cheek, strode off toward Sickbay.

******

Picard was in the third chapter of Andorian Anthology when his door chime rang.

"Come"

Beverly Crusher strode in, her lab coat pulled tightly around her.

"Beverly?" Picard asked, "Are you alright?"

"A little tired, but ready for dinner." She kicked her shoes off.

Picard closed the book and asked, "What's you pleasure then?"

Beverly let her lab coat open and moved toward Jean-Luc.

Jean-Luc openly gawked at the lace teddy and sheer stockings Beverly was wearing.

"Jean-Luc, close your mouth, dear.

"Beverly?!?!"

"Yes, Jean-Luc." She wriggled over to him, placed a foot on the coffee table and began to peel the stocking from her leg.

Picard collapsed back onto the couch as Beverly continued her disrobing.

When the stocking had been removed, she tossed it in the general direction of Picard. It landed on his shoulder.

Beverly wriggled a little closer to Jean-Luc and when close enough, she placed her still stockinged foot in his lap. Gently caressing his bulge as she began to rid herself of the stocking. Picard reached up and began to remove the stocking himself. He lingered longer than necessary over her inner thigh, behind her knee and on the ball of her foot. He brought the now limp stocking to his nose and inhaled deeply. He drank in the erotic musky scent of Beverly mingled with... somewhere in the back of his brain the words formed... Lily of the Valley. Lily of the Valley and Beverly. Oh what a heavenly combination he thought.

Picard felt a tug on the stocking and opened his eye and hands just before Beverly ripped the stocking from his face. It landed, who-knew-where.

Jean-Luc started to reach up to encircle the waist before him, but Beverly beat him and with her foot on his shoulder, pushed him gently back down into the sofa.

"Tonight, " she announced, "I return the favor"

Beverly bent down and seized his lips with hers, crushing them, bruising them. Then she smothered his head and face with wet kisses. She even managed to put one on his smooth crown. Slowly she slid her lips close to one ear and whispered something for lovers only into his mind. She lingered over this throat, feeling his Adams apple bob up and down. She smiled. She knew the fight within him would soon have to be released.

She rid him of his shirt in short order and continued her exploration with a renewed sense of purpose. She brought her warm moist mouth over one of his nipples and it immediately rose to erectness. Somewhere lower on her body, she felt something else strain for erectness against the confines of his trousers.

Jean-Luc moaned at what this woman could do to him. She was driving him slowly mad with her excruciatingly slow progress toward his release. Picard tried mentally to list the steps needed to restart the warp core after an emergency shutdown, but could only get as far as "Run level 4 diagnostic to check for systems malfunction" His sure fire way of maintaining control would not work for him tonight.

Meanwhile, Beverly had begun a gradual descent to his waistband following the vertical, now horizontal, line of graying hair. She lingered over his navel a bit too long causing Jean-Luc to laugh out loud at being ticklish. He felt her smile, this discovery would be used against him at a later date, and a slight teasing hear his ribs from her fingertips caused him to curl up on himself.

With Picard's movement, Beverly was displaced from her position, so she bade him to join her in his bedroom.

A quick stop at the replicator and Beverly ordered a glass a cold water.

In Picard's bedroom, Beverly placed her glass on the bedside table and began her ministrations anew, beginning with Picard's pants and briefs. As he stood before her nude, she made a quick mental inventory of all the times she had seen his form on one of her biobeds, broken, and how she always felt a great relief when he was whole again.

She moved to take his hands in hers, tenderly working her thumb over his palm as she kissed his other hand and brought it gently to her face. "I love you, Jean-Luc Picard."

These words were music to his ears. Just a few short years ago he would have thought himself incapable of this kind of love, for a man cannot serve two mistresses. He returned a kiss to her hands and mirrored her words. "I love you too, Beverly."

Jean-Luc pulled her back onto the bed with him as he laid down, kissing her as their bodies made contact. Beverly was soon leaving a trail of fire down his chest and belly making Jean-Luc hang on for the ride.

She poised her lips just above the head of his penis, paused, looked up at his face to see the look of concentration. Just as his eyes fluttered open, she spread the moist heat of her mouth over him.

Jean-Luc moaned in pleasure.

If that were not driving him mad enough, Beverly reach down and began to massage his balls. Gently cupping them, squeezing them, kneading them. Soon Picard was writhing as wildly as Beverly had the night before.

Jean-Luc's breaths were coming in short gasps. Didn't this woman have any idea what she was doing to him? his mind screamed.

For a little extra pleasure, Beverly gently guided one finger inside of Picard as her thumb gently rubbed his perineum. Just enough friction was created on his prostate gland that Picard thought he might die of extreme pleasure. Shooting stars formed behind his eyelids as he screwed them shut, concentrating only on the pleasurable sensations Beverly was creating.

"Beverly... pleeeeeeeeease" he moaned when the pleasure was on the verge of turning to pain.

Beverly released the head of his penis and ran her tongue over the underside of it, feeling the engorged veins, tracing their paths, licking it as if it were an ice cream cone.

The multiple sensations were threatening to overwhelm Jean-Luc. He tried to speak, but his mouth had gone dry minutes before. Beverly noticed a bit of glistening fluid on the tip of his penis and reached down to her own crotch, which was ready to take Picard in, undid the snaps there and in one fail swoop, removed her finger from him and securely ensconced him within her.

Jean-Luc let out a horse cry of joy as Beverly finally gave him what he had been searching for. He began bucking beneath her and cried out as the orgasm swept him into the sea of ecstasy.

Beverly kept right on riding him through the orgasm and only paused a moment to reposition herself as a cramp developed in her calf muscle.

Jean-Luc began to come down from his thrilling ride and caught Beverly off guard as he reversed their positions by rolling over.

"Next time" he panted, "we go together." He took another breath. "Promise me."

"Promise"

*****

Sometime during the ship's night the Captain and Chief Medical Officer made good on their promise to each other.

The end