Despite her initial misgivings about her new partner, Artemis could not deny that she was intrigued by him.  It may have been his sheer size, it may have been the power that radiated off him.  It may have even been the way he resembled his hybrid animal even more so than any other modified human on the base.  Whatever it was, she felt a pull in the pit of her stomach.<br/><br/>All of a sudden the catsuit trapping her around the legs was bothersome.  He was unpredictable and she wanted the ability to move freely around him.  She couldn’t explain why exactly; it just seemed dangerous to be trapped by an article of clothing around this beast of a man standing before her.<br/><br/>Her deep blue eyes never left his face as she lowered herself to sit on the seat behind her.  One booted foot lifted to rest on the edge of the seat so she could unlace it then pull it off.  The other boot quickly followed suit.  Artemis paired them up and set them under the seat.  Unlike Acheron, military discipline had been drilled into her.  Everything in its place and a place for everything.<br/><br/>Small yet capable hands slid down her calf to ease the garment down her ankle and over her foot.  And then, like the boots, the actions were repeated on the other leg.  She stood up slowly, always watching his face.  Something told her breaking eye contact with this predator would be a big mistake.<br/><br/>The three feet between them simultaneously felt like the Grand Canyon and mere millimeters.  How could she want someone to back up and yet come closer at the same time?  Her head was spinning and she couldn’t make sense of the mixed up feelings.  She knew his reputation.  She knew he took care of his partners but had no qualms about shedding the ones that did not live up to his expectations.  On top of that, she did not even want to be his partner.  But yet something about him was alluring.<br/><br/>Her nostrils flared as she inhaled his scent.  He smelled like the outside - cedar, pine, sandalwood, other scents she couldn’t readily identify.  All this on top of the saltiness of his sweat from his workout.  Artemis didn’t have to step closer to hear the rhythmic beating of his heart.  It was low and it was soothing.  Her breathing soon took on that same rhythm, her chest rising and falling with the sound of his heart.<br/><br/>There was another smell that lingered on his skin.  One she recognized but couldn’t place.  Blue eyes stayed locked on golden ones as she gauged his reactions, always watching him.  He wanted her to come closer, she was sure of it.  He wanted her to explore him so he could freely explore her.  Most hybrid women would have gone straight for the monster between his legs, thinking that it was the way to show their submission, their willingness to acquiesce to his demands.  But not Artemis.  She wanted to figure out what that scent was that clung to his skin.<br/><br/>Three feet was the distance of one step, maybe two.  Steps that she took as she invaded his personal space.  Her hands rose, palms facing him, showing him that she wasn’t going to attack him.  Instead, she was going to smell him.  Those blue eyes, eyes like deep water pools, closed as her nose hovered in front of his chest.  One deep inhale followed by a slow exhale.  The scent swirled through her brain as her mind worked to process it.  The mystery scent’s identity was just out of reach.  She turned her head so that her nose was in front of the tattoo in the center of his chest before she pressed her nose directly against the bottom of the ink that decorated his skin.  A few short inhales were taken as she allowed the scent to flood her brain once more.  Then she knew.  She knew what he smelled like.<br/><br/>“You smell like the sun,” she spoke with surprise.  Her hands remained aloft as her nose slid across the skin of his chest, taking deep inhales.  Why did he smell like the sun?  Was he allowed outside?  Did he even care to go outside?  Questions ran through her mind unanswered as she continued to inhale his essence.  It wasn’t enough though.<br/><br/>His words flitted through her mind - if she undressed him, he’d undress her.  But that wasn’t what she was after.  Ignoring the growing bulge in his boxers, she grabbed him by the waistband of said underwear and tugged.  He just had to take one step, that was all she needed.  Moving backwards, she stepped up onto the seat behind her.  The added boost put her more at his height which made it easier to do what she did next.<br/><br/>Artemis reached forward to rest one hand on his chest.  While she was still conscious of his reaction, she didn’t care as much.  They were getting to know each other now, starting to build some sort of bond that would allow them to function as a team.  Once his scent was imprinted in her brain, she would be able to find him anywhere.  Her hand slipped up his chest and along his shoulder, tracing the edge of the ink that started the sleeve of tattoos down his left arm.  Fingers danced along his shoulder on their way to the back of his neck to grip just tight enough to hold him still.  She knew it was highly unlikely that any other female had dared to be so bold with him  but she was intrigued.<br/><br/>Her fingers tightened ever so slightly as she leaned in to bury her face in the crook of his neck.  A barely audible sigh slipped from her lips as she took in more of his scent, practically nuzzling into him.  Her nose trailed along the side of his neck to his ear, her warm breath washing over his skin.  Fingers tightened on his neck to get him to tip and turn his head so she could sniff along his hairline.  A smirk formed as she found his scent concentrated in his hair.  He didn’t smell artificial like the humans did with all their perfumed toiletries.  Most of the hybrid refused to use that stuff, finding the cloying perfume headache-inducing.<br/><br/>By this time her hands were no longer stationery.  Searching fingers of her free hand traced the defined muscles of his chest and down his stomach before dragging back up to trail down his right arm.  The smell and feel of him was overwhelming her sense to the point that she needed to do one more thing.  Unable to restrain herself, she tasted him.  A long, slow lazy pass of her tongue up the side of his neck.<br/><br/>It was then that reality smacked her full in the face and she realized what she had just done and who she had just done it too.  His retribution would be swift as he meted out justice, of that she was sure.  Slowly, as if she had to will them to move, her fingers opened one by one and released the back of his neck.  Artemis pulled back and away from him, her eyes moving over his face before finally locking with his once more.  She would not let this beast intimidate her.