Bounty hunting is difficult, Jet discovers, when both you and your partner can't stand Mars, she wants to avoid Earth, and you'd rather not set foot on Ganymede. Once he suggests they go round up some guys on Callisto, but the haunted look this brings to Faye's eyes is something he hopes to never see again.

All in all, they spend more time on Venus than is healthy for anyone, but they don't talk about it. He watches Faye look hopefully upward when the delicate, deadly flowers alight upon her lips and she always seems as surprised as he is when they don't get sick (neither of them would exactly call it lucky).

Today, they're fighting again. Same old song - Faye almost gets herself killed, and they lose their man. Jet yells at her for every reason he can think of, other than the one that's always weighing down the base of his tongue - she can't keep almost getting killed, or one day she'll succeed. And where will that leave him? Some sad old man with nothing but an empty ship and stories of his "glory days," whenever the hell those were.

He pushes her a little too hard this time, though. It seems to really set her off when he suggests that she could leave, like she always does. They both know she hasn't run off in months. Her share of their bounties has rested with his, repaired ships and bought food, rather than filling the pockets of her bookies.

Jet makes a silent step toward her as she storms toward the bay, and his left leg (the one where the limp has never quite faded) kicks Ein's food bowl, launching it scuttling across the floor, and sending him to his knees.

Faye hurries back and crouches down to check on him, evidently forgetting that she hates him. Her hands grasp him on either side, but he can only feel her on his right. That's okay, though. The pressure moving up and down his arm, tracing his bicep and tricep is almost too much for an old man like him to take.

She helps him up and leads him to the couch. As he sits down, her fingers ghost away, but he refuses to let it happen this time. She doesn't look as surprised as she should when he pulls her into his mouth, or when he almost shudders away again, he's so surprised by her warmth and her willingness. By then, though, she's taken control and he can fully enjoy the press of her lips against his, the insistency of her tongue skirting along his teeth, and the overwhelming perfume of her floral shampoo.

Jet's hands rub into her back, weave under her suspenders, and pull her onto his lap. He winces at the small explosion in his leg, but buries the pain in Faye's presence. It's about time for that sucker to heal, anyway.