hackedhisheart:

Unexpected

McSombra Valentine’s exchange, here’s me at the deadline frantically trying to finish one of the lovely prompts from @navochao ! But I did a thing!

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She looked down at their hands, fingers casually slotted together as though this were the sort of thing they did every day. The copper of her skin almost glowed against the tan of his, her palm fitting quite neatly in his own. He didn’t even seem to be paying any attention to the fact that he was holding her hand, almost oblivious in that country-charm way of his. He just kept walking, and she could either disrupt foot traffic by stopping or just go along.

She went along.

She wasn’t entirely sure about him, not yet. Jesse McCree was still a bit of a mystery, even after all these months and apparently at the point of allowing herself to be dragged to a farmer’s market. She was beginning to feel a bit foolish – he had said he needed her help with something, and she had assumed it had something to do with…well, you know, information.

She had learned a little about him, true. He favored southwestern food, liked a little bit of spice. He had a good eye for produce, a skill she herself had never quite been able to develop. And he was friendly. Well, sure, he was an approachable enough man in the daytime, all broad muscle and laughing eyes and the rogueish tilt to his cowboy hat, but this was different. Knowing some of the stall vendors by name, asking after others. ‘Jake’, it would seem, was a regular.

She’d have been blind to miss the inquisitive glances at their hands. He seemed oblivious to the fact, gesturing with the prosthetic well enough, his voice never faltering.

He must have been a much better actor that she had initially figured.

When they approached the outskirts of the market, she seized his arm, dragging him to an alleyway. To his credit, he merely followed along, letting her back him against a wall and entirely nonplussed when she glared at him.

“Darlin’, if this is some kinda shakedown…”

“This would all be much easier if you just told me what you were looking for already, you know.”

There was a slight twitch upwards at the corners of his mouth. “I did say I needed help with a couple things, didn’t I?”

An irritated sigh, as she crossed her arms under her chest. “Sí, and here you are, worrying about produce. This is some kind of cover, right?”

“Well, all right, then. There is someone I’m watching. But I’m pretty sure they’d notice you watching them.”

She bristled a little at that. “I’ve probably spent more time doing surveillance than you have, I bet. What’s the target?”

He reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone. He fiddled with the screen for a moment, before offering it to her. She grabbed it out of his hand, torn between continuing to give him a dirty look or to actually see what it was he was after. Finally, her eyes darted down to the screen, her brow knitting as she scowled at the phone. “It’s just the front camera. What is it, like the first picture or something?”

“Depends on whether or not you take one, I guess.”

She gave him a bit of a puzzled look, though the warm hand curling under her chin to tilt her face up nothing if not forward. He tasted faintly of cigar smoke, though he’d considerately refrained from having one during their afternoon together. His beard was coarse against her skin, but she found it not entirely unpleasant, the touch of his mouth against hers hard enough to be assertive – yes, this was indeed what he wanted to do – but she knew if she were to step away, she would be completely free.

Instead, a hand threaded its way into his hair, determined to not let him have his way with this moment, kissing him back with no small amount of interest. She may have started a bit when the heavy metal of his prosthetic slid onto her hip, but she moved to him, not away from him.

She never admit to being a little bit breathless when he pulled back, and certainly never acknowledge the flutter of something small and hopeful inside her. The hand in his hair drifted down, to rest against his chest, if only to satisfy her curiosity. It was nice to know her heart wasn’t the only one beating a little face. Still, she found herself unable to look up at him. “…where does this go, vaquero?”

“Well…” He leaned back against the wall, fingers tweaking the brim of his hat upwards, letting him look at her. “Doesn’t have to go anywhere, I reckon, but I was thinking dinner might be a start.”

She huffed at him, looking up to see a smirk on his face. “That’s not what I meant, and you know it.”

“Why’s it always have to be about something with you? It was a nice moment, one I wouldn’t mind trying again sometime, but only if you’ll let me.”

“I bet your friends would make a big deal out of it.”

“Yours probably wouldn’t be too thrilled, either.”

She shrugged slightly, taking a step away from the warmth of his body. “I’m not sure any of them are ever really happy.”

“You could be.”

She laughed, the sound unexpectedly bright. “I’m beginning to see why they call you a charmer.”

“Only just now?” He sighed. “Must be losing my touch.”

“Maybe I’ll let you practice on me sometime.”

A grin, slow and steady, settled onto his face. “Pretty sure I’d like that, darlin’.”