`Lunch Break- Castle'

by Lt. Logan Castle

Chief Security Officer

Logan Castle rose with the rest and exited the Ready Room. He slid in right beside Eve Mallory, but he addressed them all as they stood before the turbolift.

"OK. We have five for poker. All we need, though more are welcome. Let's make it tomorrow night."

The turbolift doors opened.

"Everybody bring their favorite food or drink, but bring enough to share."

Castle fell silent as he entered the turbolift with some others. There were too many of them to all go on the first trip.

Standing at the back, Castle let his attention be distracted by Eve Mallory's hair. Like red gold, she kept it a medium length, but swept up in the back. He saw the little hairs at the nape of her neck and resisted the temptation to stir them with a warm breath.

But, then, he saw more than her hair. Her skin. Her ears. Castle paid very careful attention to all the details. He shrugged.

If Eve Mallory was an android, she made Commander Data of the Enterprise E look like an outlet store mannequin.

And it wasn't just the physical details. Her smell. The way she licked her lips. It was other things, too. He did not fail to notice the conspiratorial looks that Eve and Cara Hatcher had exchanged about him before the staff meeting. The `look' was a completely human empathic response. Both women recognized Castle for the type of man he was and they shared their mutual experiences with a look. A very human look.

Suddenly, as if sensing his scrutiny, Eve Mallory turned to look at him. Castle betrayed the barest shy smile. Eve raised her eyebrow in a dubious smile of her own, and faced front again as the turbolift opened.

<<OOC: I don't know if anyone wants to get into a dialogue over lunch, but I invite anyone who wants to, to just e-mail me. My response time is pretty good. Anyone?>>