Bill Adama prided himself on his self-control. Laura enjoyed testing said self-control as they worked together in his quarters. They both preferred the warm, inviting tones of this space. With so much work to be done, the hour had grown late.

"It's a civilian matter," Laura replied with a coy smile on her face. Her teasing tone dared Bill to argue. Laura was in a feisty mood, reveling in the push and pull of their bickering as they worked. Bill noticed them verbally sparring over nothing and everything as the night wore on. It left him feeling warm all over.

She was also wearing that silky red suit of hers. He tried not to stare and ignored that tell-tale tingle below the belt. She was his president.

"These rationing policies affect the military, Madam President," he countered before taking a cool sip of water.

"What's the matter, Admiral ," Laura teased, and Bill tried not to dwell on how his title sometimes sounded like an endearment when it came from the smooth tones of her voice. "Can you soldiers really not function without a daily dose of coffee?"

"It'd be like trying to take cigarettes from Cottle. Sure it's possible, but the long-term repercussions might not be pleasant."

Laura snorted in laughter. Bill considered this a minor victory in tonight's ongoing war.

"I'll keep that in mind. For now, the rationing policy is staying as it is." Laura looked over her glasses at him. "Can the military survive occasionally using a cold shower to wake up?"

"We do serve at the pleasure of the civilian government," Bill said in resignation. He knew his way around a cold shower.

She gave him a small smile. "When you want."

Bill didn't know how to respond to her flirtatiousness; he refused to make a fool of himself by telling her exactly what he wanted. Best not to make her feel uncomfortable. Her green eyes gave him an intense look, waiting for him to banter back. After a moment, her features turned serious and almost sad as she looked back down at her reports. The tension built between them, and Bill wondered if saying nothing was for the best. Self-control.

Laura slid a report over to him. "Some of your pilots have been accused of 'buzzing' the civilian transport ships."

"I'll deal with it."

"What will you do?"

"Don't worry about it." Bill gave her a grin, melting some of the tension that had arisen between them. "It's a military decision."

"I thought you served at the pleasure of the president?"

His mind went on the fritz like a faulty circuit. Pleasure. Laura. He stared back down at the reports, pretending she hadn't gotten under his skin. She didn't need to know; it might cause her to stop being so open and playful; with whom else could she be so free? "The president agreed that military matters are dealt with by me."

"You enjoyed winning that round."

"I like to come out on top sometimes, Laura." His self-control prevented him from cringing at the innuendo.

"Who doesn't?" She asked, giving him a nudge with her toes under the table while tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

He imagined her on top of him, doing that same motion—brushing the hair away from her flushed face. Bill reached for his water, taking another sip of the cool water. Not gonna happen, Old Man, he chided himself. She's your friend. One of your best friends. Still...

"I think we are done for the night," Bill said, grabbing the reports from his side of the table. Holding the reports in front of himself, he strode over to his desk and sat down to file away what he needed. It also conveniently helped continue to hide his lower half from view.

When he looked up, Laura had strode over to his rack and laid down on it. She'd slept in his quarters before, stealing a nap on that same rack. It wasn't that unusual, and he'd never minded. Her fiery hair flowed over the military bedding, and he decided it was actually one of his favorite sights.

"I'm pretty tired after how hard we were working," she said.

"We got a lot done."

"Mmm," she hummed. Her green eyes pierced him when she looked over at him. "What do you want to do now?"

You!

That probably wasn't an invitation, he thought.

"You seem pretty tired, Laura. Why don't I call you a raptor and let you get a good night's sleep on Colonial One." His hand was already reaching for the comm before he finished the sentence. If Laura stayed here any longer, his self-control might snap. She clearly had no idea what she was doing to him.

"Thank you, Admiral."

She sounded rather irked.

…

Laura tried not to glower as Bill escorted her down to the hangar deck. Every time she felt his hand come up to rest against the small of her back, she sped up a bit so that he wasn't touching her.

You had your chance to touch, she mentally spewed at Adama. Sometimes she was sure he was interested. But he was Admiral Uptight and probably hadn't even looked at her sexually at all. Hell, half the night, he wouldn't even look at her. Maybe he was just stressed.

Still, she eyed the airlock as they passed it. Somehow the damn man made her want to kiss him and airlock him all at the same moment.

Maybe she needed a different approach.