I couldn't sleep. Hobbie had no such problem. His softly breathing form lay beside me in my bed, his bare chest raising and lowering rhythmically.

I lay quietly against him, greedily absorbing the feel of his skin on mine. My cheek rested on his shoulder; my arm hugged his chest. His well muscled arm held me tightly, even in his sleep. Legs entwined, I could feel the full length of his body against mine.

The last week had been a whirlwind of activity. I had spent my days at my post on the Imperial base gathering as much information as I could from the inside and setting up several hidden back doors into not only Maar's files, but also as many Imperial systems as I could access. I knew they wouldn't all last because the routine security sweeps would disable many of them, but I figured the more I could get done, the greater chance the Rebels had.

Hobbie and Wes had spent their days surveilling the Fabritech facility and helping Sgt. Oepoono prepare for their faux raid.

The evenings were mostly spent together. We visited the Rebel safe house twice. Each time, Spike took the opportunity to improve her hand to hand combat skills under the tutelage of Sgt. Oepoono. Wes joined in as well, proving once again that he and Spike were perfect for each other.

Sark asked me to take a look at some codes they were working on, which I gladly did. I was able to break one but the other was a 28-bit hex code that was going to take quite a bit more crunching power than I had available.

Every night we ended up back at the apartment, basking in our time together. I hadn't allowed myself to think about the future. I was trying my hardest to "savor the moment" as Hobbie did so well. Each night, rather than become familiar and comfortable in our routine, the intensity and urgency only built, propelled by the rapidly looming spectre of an end to our time. We didn't discuss what would happen after the mission. I don't think either of us expected anything other than separation.

Now, here we were, on our last night together. Tomorrow we would be sneaking into Lapier's office and the faux raid would take place.

"You could come with us, you know." Hobbie's voice startled me in the darkness. I hadn't realized he had awoken. His hand grasped mine tightly to his chest. "The Alliance could always use a good slicer. Rogue Squadron could help you with your missions." His tone was hopeful; wistful even.

I nodded and buried my face against his chest. "Five days was not enough time," I whispered hoarsely.

He drew me in tighter, forcing me to settle directly on top of him. "I know," he whispered. "We've had some wonderful moments, but I admit I want more, too."

I inhaled his scent deeply, trying to sear the memory on my brain. My fingers traced the outline of his jaw and cheeks and entwined their way through his hair. We lay there, our breath intermingling, simply holding each other.

"Will you ever come home?" I asked finally.

He didn't answer for a while. "When Ralltiir is free, I will visit as often as I can."

I lifted my head. "You don't plan on returning permanently?"

Hobbie's hands were rubbing my back. "Maybe when I retire."

I dropped my head silently into his shoulder.

"Won't you consider joining the Alliance, Nya?" Hobbie's hands extended their caress to my shoulders.

My heart clenched as I struggled to maintain perspective. I ached to say yes just so I could be with him but I knew I couldn't disappoint my father that way. My mission was important to him. It was important for all of Ralltiir. "Maybe when Ralltiir is free." I finally offered.

With one adroit twist, he rolled me over and spread his body on top of mine. His hands pinned my wrists to the bed, his knees separating mine. The unexpected maneuver shocked me, jarring my nerves with a surge of adrenaline that ignited my blood and sent sparks of electric sensation to pool deep in my abdomen. Our eyes met, speaking words neither of us could say out loud. Silently, he claimed me in a joining full of both anguished regret and fierce exultation, searing me with an indelible memory of sensation and passion and the experience of loving a Rogue.