Day 2

They wake still entangled on the couch, his cock still inside her. He squirms, his back itchy. He reaches his arm around and feels a growth on his spine. It feels like a fin. The predatory flash goes through him again and he thinks about hunting. He scratches her back, restraining himself from raking through her fragile skin.

Geneva shifts in his arms, “mmm, good morning.”

She reaches her arms around, intending to hug him, but her eyes go wide with shock as she touches his new growth, “What the fuck is that.”

“I don’t know.” He grimaces.

“Something is wrong, your nails… now this…” She trails off. She sits up and he sighs as his cock moves inside her. She looks down and realizes she’s been cockwarming him all night. She blushes. He feels the blood flow to his member. “Maybe we should go to different sites today.”

He realizes she looks frightened. Frightened of him. And he savors it. There’s something about her scent that morning that makes her intoxicating. He feels the urge to take her right then and there, fuck today’s observations. He is a predator; she is prey. But he dismisses the thought. She’s his colleague. Fuck buddy too, maybe, but still his colleague.

“We’ll get better data together.”

“I think it might be valuable to get two perspectives.”

“Do you not want to spend time with me?” She blushes and he can tell he hit on it.

“No it’s… I just think two perspectives is better.”

“It’s about this, isn’t it?” He gestures to the growth on his back.

“I… I just think you might be sick.” She looks genuinely concerned. “These kinds of things don’t just happen.”

“You’d be sick too, wouldn’t you?”

“I don’t know, maybe I haven’t been as exposed!”

“What have I been exposed to that you haven’t, Geneva? Think critically.” His voice drips with venom. If he can’t fuck her, he finds himself wanting to fight her.

“Don’t speak to me that way.” Her voice goes steely. “I’ll go to Site C. I think you should be at A.”

“Fine.”

He marches to the bathroom to wash off the smell of sex. When he returns he sees Geneva only brewed enough coffee for one. She finishes the cup and dresses silently. He decides to strike out and leave her be. Afterall, the smell of her fear might prove too much for him in the wild.

That night is one of the first nights in a long time that they don’t enjoy each other’s bodies. Geneva comes in later than he does and kicks off her boots in silence. She walks straight to her bedroom, freezing him out. He is disappointed. And he wonders what changes the next day will bring.