Cara watched her husband's fingers as they traced delicate circles over her flat belly, savouring the way her body erupted into goosebumps at the sensation. His smile, the first she'd ever seen from him, had taken her breath away when she looked up and saw it, before he had explained to her what the tests revealed. The wide grin had lessened to a soft lifting at the corners of his lips, but at last every time she looked at him there was the semblance of a smile on his face and her heart lifted at the sight.
Hux's mind was suddenly occupied with so much inner turmoil. This was what he wanted after all, to breed her and send her home to concentrate on his work, so why did he feel so listless at the thought of having her return to Naboo? There was no question of what he must do—he was a man of order and regardless of his feeling he would never jeopardise his position so she must be sent back as soon as possible, perhaps even tonight.
Still, his hands moved of their own accord drawing shapes across her stomach, caressing the flat plane where his unborn child now grew. He propped himself up on one arm as he continued and Cara's eyes followed his fingers before finally looking back at his face, noting how softened it looked—more so than ever before. He seemed enraptured with the news and she lay there peacefully, letting her fingers reach up to stroke his hair and idly wondering if their child would have his locks or hers.
Finally he peeled his eyes away as though broken from a trance and looked at her with such poignancy she felt her whole body squirm in delicious anticipation of something she couldn't quite place. She took a chance and leaned up to kiss him, gripping his bright red hair in her hands in an effort to pull him down to her. Knowing that they had succeeded, knowing she was able to do her duty by him as his wife—both of these thoughts left her jubilant and desperate to feel him against her, like an acknowledgement that this was real. Suddenly his hands were both in her hair, his body atop hers and grinding into her hips with frantic desperation. If she thought he would tire of her once the task was complete she was mistaken, indeed learning of his success only seemed to increase his fervour and before she knew it he was sliding the robe off her shoulders and suckling at her breasts ravenously, using one hand to slip his boxers over his hips.
Her husband's lips kissed a trail down to her bellybutton, lathing themselves over the skin where his fingers had been trailing and pausing to leave one chaste kiss directly over her womb, looking up to meet her eyes before bringing his mouth lower.
Cara's legs were spread, his hands holding her ankles as he worked to pleasure her sex more than he ever had. Her husband's tongue slid through each fold individually, taking his time but keeping a steady pace before allowing the appendage to delve inside of his wife, coating her walls with spit to lubricate his coming intrusion.
That wasn't enough though, he wanted to make her cum for him this way, to show her how grateful he was, how happy that she was the one he had been tied to, who would bear his children for the future Hux dynasty. He felt her wetness seeping out of her and increased his pace, concentrating on her clit while his fingers snaked inside her one at a time until she cried out, arching her back and pushing against the headboard for something firm to hold onto.
Her mews and low moans only fueled him to continue, releasing the grip of his remaining hand on her ankle and wrapping his arms around her thighs to hold her steady against the oncoming climax. Cara's hips shook with the intensity of it and he planted soft kisses on the inside of her thighs, feeling her wetness coating his face before he attacked her labia again.
This time, he sucked the pearl of her clit into his mouth and worried the nub with his tongue so torturously that she bucked her hips against him and cried out, thrashing with her body's inability to handle this.
"Hold still," he growled, tightening his grip on her legs and the words were enough to send her over the edge with the underlying threat – I'm not done with this until you cum.
Cara screamed with the veracity of her climax, hands fisting his hair and continuing to emit a string of increasingly softer groans as she rode out the sensation, her body falling limp around him—helpless against the reactions he drew from her.
Smiling again (how had she gone so long without seeing him smile like this? It was breathtaking) he crawled back up to lick from her pubis to her womb again up her stomach then to both of her breasts, massaging and fitting each into his mouth one at a time as he rubbed his erection against the damp heat between her legs, desperate to be inside her.
"P-p-please," she stuttered, but wasn't sure what she was pleading for; only that he could provide it and she needed whatever it was at all costs.
Slowly, ever so slowly he slid himself inside her, his limbs on fire at the sensation of her white hot walls encasing him as she gasped at the intrusion. She was always so tight, so warm and ready for him; how could he ever bear to send her away?
He set the pace high, barreling into her but trying to be gentle for the sake of his child floating inside of her now, blissfully oblivious to the activities of its parents. Her pussy tightened around him as it prepared itself for another climax and he felt his body tense with the building pressure, almost ready to blow his load into the receptacle which had already made much use of it. The friction was building between them so highly he felt like a tightrope ready to snap and knew she would be right behind him as he did.
When he came it seemed to pull out every bit of energy his body had, erupting inside her at the feeling of her walls clenching around him as she screamed through another heavy climax. He could have sworn he came buckets inside her, enough to father a planet while he groaned above her, mouth hanging open—trying to keep his full weight off of her until she was finished.
Cara felt sure she was dead, there was no way a body could handle so much and survive she thought as her husband rolled onto his back and brought her light body with him, his cock still inside her as it gradually softened with the release. Instead of panting his exhaustion and falling asleep like he wanted to, he kissed her hard on the mouth again; finding himself almost roused to go for a another round, so inexplicably hungry was he for her body even more than usual. She was the one who pulled her mouth away, eyes so glazed he knew she could not handle it again for several hours so he relented. Soon he would have to rise for work, but he would send a medic back to run several more tests and then he would pick a day to send her back to Naboo. Probably not tonight he decided… he didn't think he could part with her after something like that without enjoying it a few more times. Perhaps tomorrow… or the next day… next week…
His wife's gentle breathing on the planes of his chest alerted him that she had fallen asleep, his now soft appendage finally slipping out of her with a slurping sound and he felt the result of his efforts leaking out of her onto the mattress and seeping beneath him. Yes, he would need a shower first, and then hurry to dress and get down to the bridge.
Carefully, he slid her off of him to her side of the bed, a low moan of "Nooooo," his only indication she was cognizant of anything after such an explosive ordeal. Quickly he bathed in the fresher and dressed himself, grabbing the datapad on his way out and shutting the bedroom door behind him, admiring her exhausted, sleeping frame draped across the bed peacefully. How he wanted to let her stay here, for some inexplicable reason he loved the thought of watching her grow from day to day, month to month, her belly becoming round with his child. He was aroused at the thought of her breasts beginning to leak milk and the staff on board seeing his wife periodically in her progress of growing a baby inside of her—each one knowing what her husband had enjoyed and the fruits of his labour.
Outside their chambers in the hallway he shook his head at the thought, those were foolish musings, she was here for one purpose and now that she had fulfilled it the time had come for her to go; back to the tranquility of the villa and the safety of Naboo. Her servants would care for her much more attentively and to her liking there, unlike the harsh, reserved people aboard the Finalizer. Of course, he remembered as he typed out a quick missive for the medical bay to attend to his wife for more tests, she would also be away from Kylo Ren.
This time Cara woke to the sound of knocking, but she felt so tired it was almost like hearing it from underwater. The knocking seemed to be coming not from the main hallway, but from her own bedroom door. No sooner had she sat up to try and get herself out of bed than the door opened, admitting the same medic from earlier this morning, walking in to find Lady Hux sitting up in bed, bare breasted and facing him with the shiny evidence of her earlier excursions still glistening on her stomach and chest.
"Oh! Your Ladyship!" the medic panicked and looked immediately down, terrified that he would be sent to the bowels of the ship for presuming to walk in and find the General's wife in such a state of undress.
Cara grabbed at a sheet and quickly covered herself; cheeks flushed bright red with humiliation that anyone save her husband had seen her body in this kind of way. "Can I help you?" she asked meekly, too ashamed to meet his eyes either.
"My Lady, the General sent me by to withdraw some more blood for testing, he wanted to make sure you and the baby are both in good health."
She cleared her throat, trying to remember that in this situation she was the affronted party as well as the wife of one of the most powerful men on this ship and should not be intimidated by a careless medic. "Please wait in the living area and allow me time to refresh and dress myself," she found her voice and spoke with authority she didn't know she had.
The man nodded and hurried to exit the room, closing the door softly behind him and she could see the terror in his eyes. He must be afraid I'll tell the General, she thought, and then considered the likelihood that he would spread the story of his discovery of a lady of noble birth, naked in bed covered in her own juices in the late morning. No, it would not do she decided in the shower, washing her body clean of the evidence from her husband's attentiveness and toweling her limbs dry. After she donned a light purple dress and robe, sweeping her wet hair over her shoulder she emerged to find the panicked medic sitting at the table, twiddling his thumbs nervously like a man on death row.
"Ahem," she cleared her throat again, "I believe you said you still have some tests to run?"
He stood abruptly, eyes traveling everywhere in the room but her face, and she decided to take the hard approach. "I doubt my husband would approve of you walking in on me undressed, but I suspect he would be more apt to punish you if he found out you spread news of it throughout the ship. I am willing to keep this between us if you can be trusted to do the same. Know that if word of it travels though it will undoubtedly meet my husband's ears and then I will have to receive an earful, and your punishment will likely be far worse. I suggest you forget what you have seen and hurry to comply with his instructions." She felt composed, powerful even as she spoke to him like the noblewoman that she was. For the first time she felt like the lady she'd been brought up to be. Calm, dignified, and aware of her position and ability to keep people's mouths shut through intimidation, especially when it was in both their best interests.
He finally met her eyes and nodded, pushing back his seat and urging her to take it as he began to unpack his medical bag for the 2nd time that day.
At the bridge Hux was so distracted by thoughts of that morning he failed to notice Kylo's approach until the tickling of his brain announced that he was too late to change his course of thought and keep the news from him.
"Congratulations," he said in mock excitement, clapping a hand awkwardly onto Hux's shoulder, "You've succeeded at last General."
Hux looked both ways to ensure they were out of earshot before replying through gritted teeth, "This is a private matter Ren, something with which you seem incapable of understanding or respecting."
The man ignored him, "Have you informed the Supreme Leader Snoke? I believe he will be most interested to learn you've achieved your goal with your brood cow at last."
The General closed his eyes and counted to 5 to prevent his hand from lashing out without thinking and attempting to strangle the man before him.
"I have not told him yet, but then you already know it so why ask?"
Ren shrugged his shoulders, "Just curious I guess," his mask turned away from the General and surveyed the rest of the bridge as if already bored of this, absently picking through the minds of his subordinates for anything of interest.
Hux paused before offering, "I plan to tell him at our meeting this morning," he spoke as if offering some news of little consequence instead of something so important. Ren didn't fall for his nonchalance though.
"And then you'll be sending her away?"
Damn him for reading minds! "Correct," Hux replied testily.
"A pity," Ren sighed dramatically, "She is nice to look at—should be even more so when she starts showing. Too bad you're likely to miss all of it."
The roiling of Hux's stomach gave a violent lurch at the reminder and his face burned with the indignation of it. "That's my concern," he snapped, turning on his heel, "Not yours."
When he arrived for his meeting with Snoke there was no need to tell him. The holographic image of the man was still powerful enough to read minds and before he had even completed his walk down the metal bridge of the throne room the Supreme Leader's gravelly voice applauded him with muted interest, "It seems your efforts have paid off General, I must offer my congratulations."
He came to stand at the foot of the throne, his posture rigid as he bowed to the shimmering image atop it. "Thank you Supreme Leader."
The grisly mouth moved again, forming the words, "So what do you plan to do with her now?"
"I will be sending her back to Naboo within the week to remain for the rest of her pregnancy there."
"Indeed," Snoke mused, "But is that what you want General? Truly?"
Hux was taken aback, "What I want my Lord is to be a dedicated servant of the First Order free of encumbrance or distraction. Your good graces allowed me to bring her on board for the express purpose to which we have succeeded. There is no need to detain her any longer."
Snoke's gruesome face broke into a hideous smile, "Good."
It wasn't until the end of the day when he was heading back to his chambers and his wife, eager for a repeat of this morning that he was approached by one of the ship's doctors. A man in a white lab coat with a close buzz cut on an already balding head met him as Hux was turning the corner to vacate the bridge and make his way to Cara's arms causing him to pause in his course, irritated at the interruption. There wouldn't be many more times to enjoy her company and he wanted to make use of every free moment.
"General," the doctor addressed him formally; "I have the lab results from the tests you requested."
Something about the way he said it gave Hux room to pause and he narrowed his eyes at the doctor, "And?"
The doctor thrust out a manila folder he'd been holding to the General and lowered his voice to explain, "Your wife has a concerningly low platelet count for how early she is in her pregnancy. Although she and the fetus are not currently in any danger I would strongly advise she go on bedrest immediately so we can continue to monitor her condition. It's rare to see this so early but within a couple of weeks or months her body should likely bounce back and she will be fine."
"My wife is returning to Naboo shortly," Hux bristled at the news, scouring the results for something that might indicate the doctor was exaggerating although he would have no idea what that could look like.
"Oh!" the doctor exclaimed in mild alarm, "With all due respect sir I would strongly advise against travel for her at this stage. Who would be her medical staff on Naboo? Who could she keep on hand to help her should her condition deteriorate? The best case scenario for her and your child is to keep her here indefinitely where she can be well-looked after by our medical staff and ensure she and the baby are getting everything they need."
Hux felt like the floor had been ripped out from underneath him and he was about to tumble over the edge of some unseen precipice, his stomach tightened inexorably at the doctor's words.
"How long?" he snapped, refusing to let his emotions show.
"We estimate she is 2-3 weeks along sir—"
"No," he spoke impatiently, "How long does she need to stay here?"
The physician sputtered at the question, "Um, well General at least through her first trimester, roughly another 2.5 months. After that we could reevaluate whether it would be safe for her to travel so far away from medical help." His voice trailed off in such a way that it was obvious he did not consider the idea very safe, but upon seeing Hux's glare he held up his hands in a conciliatory gesture as though admitting defeat.
"Very well—I appreciate the information you've brought to me. You're dismissed."
With a salute to his superior officer, the doctor turned and left the way he came, leaving Hux standing a dozen steps away from his door with a lump in his throat. Cara would go along with whatever he said most likely—but how would he explain this to Snoke? Especially after this morning's conversation? Then the unwelcome image came to him of the chief reason he wanted her off this ship, Kylo Ren.
Inside he found her resting on the couch, fire blazing in the hearth and reading a weathered red hardcover book he'd managed to scrounge from somewhere in the bowels of this ship. She smiled when she saw him and held out her hands to him, indicating he should come closer.
He bent down to kiss her forehead. "Hungry?" he offered, prepared to go and ring for dinner even though his stomach still felt too unsettled to eat.
"Tired," she answered him with bleary eyes, rubbing circles on the back of his hand with her thumb comfortingly. He kneeled next to the couch and she stroked her fingers through his hair, sighing in contentment.
"How do you feel?" he asked, his right hand moved to her womb without a second thought, already accustomed to checking there, waiting for the day he might feel his son or daughter move.
"Tired," she repeated with a light chuckle, "A little nauseous, but lying down helps with both."
The General returned her smile and her heart felt like it was soaring. There was a tension to his shoulders though and a shadow seemed to cross over his face as soon as the smile appeared.
"What's wrong?" she asked him.
Her husband looked at her long and seriously—so much so that for a moment she worried he would say it had all been a mistake and she was not pregnant, that there was no baby and she was still as barren as she feared she might be. Instead he took her hand and squeezed it, another wholly uncharacteristic show of affection from the normally aloof one she'd married.
"One of the physicians says that you have a low platelet count and they want you here to monitor you and the baby closely until it rises, just as a safety precaution," he finally told her.
Cara's eyes listened as much as her ears did, looking for any indication from him that she should be worried. Then it dawned on her what this was really about.
"You don't want me to stay onboard the ship, do you?"
His gaze turned from his hand on her stomach to her face suddenly and he looked almost stricken, "Yes and no. I had hoped to send you back to Naboo and safety. A warship is no place for a noblewoman, especially in your condition now."
She nodded, understanding his reasoning, but her eyes burned with unshed tears at the thought of leaving him here alone again, just to return to her seclusion in the mountains and not see him for months or even years. "I don't want to go," she finally told him, her resolve firm.
The General closed his eyes like he had been expecting her to say that and heaved a sigh, "I know, but this is not a safe place for you. There are threats both outside and inside that I would protect you and this baby from. When the time comes that a doctor clears you to leave you must be willing to go, understand?"
An briefly intense stare-off occurred then with neither backing down, their gazes boring into each other waiting for the other one to relent, but finally Cara blinked and the moment was broken, as was her determination to win. She didn't answer him, but he knew by her expression that the argument had been won in his favour.
He stroked her hair with the other hand and pressed gently on her stomach as he leaned in to kiss her. It was inexplicable the feelings that coursed through him for her but they had come on so gradually that he hadn't considered the implications of it until it was too late. He cared for her; deeply. Finding out she was carrying his child finally showed him that even though most of his previous actions already had. As he climbed over top of her on the couch, careful not to displace too much weight on her womb especially, he kissed her tenderly and felt her melt into it—her tongue swirling against his lazily as if she had all the time in the world to enjoy this and wanted to take her time.
Hux felt an ache in his heart when he looked down at her, eyes bright and beautiful as he dropped his hands to the waist of her pyjama pants and slid them over her hips, unbuckling his belt deliberately slowly as his wife bit her bottom lip in anticipation. Her own hands lifted the hem of her loose black shirt over her head to reveal the soft mounds of her breasts, their peaks firm and making his mouth water at the sight.
This time he didn't attack her—this was not business as usual. He wanted to take her slowly, torturously as he enjoyed every moment of it instead of barreling forth until they both reached a climax. Fingers parted her folds below and languorously explored her sex as he had dozens of other times, but never like this.
Cara's head fell back against the sofa cushion as she rode her husband's hand, desperate for faster friction which would bring her over the edge but he would not have it. He teased her walls and curled his fingers inside her, adding an additional one after each minute until he had sheathed 3 and could watch as she threatened to come undone.
"Please," she begged, the telltale moisture in her eyes threatening to spill over with the depth of her need, "I-I-I can't.." her voice trailed off and lips remained parted as his fingers reversed course and began spinning counter-clockwise inside her.
"You will," he spoke authoritatively, as in control as ever.
She whimpered as she rode his hand and his mouth encased her nipples, but he always took care not to touch the pearl at the apex of her thighs. He wanted to allow the pleasure to build up to such a peak that she never recovered from it when it finally crested. He needed to see the look in her eyes that she always gave after he made her cum—the one that spoke of satiation and bliss, of agonising anticipation and release.
A low growl in his throat emitted when she tried to buck her hips against him to get friction and he knew she was almost at her breaking point. Cautiously he left the three fingers inside her, gyrating at an increasing rhythm while his other hand lifted her hips up, thrusting onto his cock immediately after his digits were removed.
Cara screamed with the intrusion like she had the first time he took her on their wedding night, but he knew by the way her lips were parted and her heart beat wildly against his chest that the feeling for her was nothing like that night.
"Cum for me baby," he whispered in her ear as he began to thrust slowly, massaging the pearl between her legs at last as he watched the pleasure begin to peak.
"Oh oh ohhhh," she moaned out, eyes tightly closed against the feelings coursing through her and he increased the tempo of his thrusts, eyes locked onto her face so he could see that moment she came to completion.
When she finally did it was so strong, so violent in its intensity he felt the walls of her quim clench around him so ferociously tight that he came immediately, a roar in his ears like a steam engine as he pumped each drop into her until there was none left to give. It was a few minutes before he felt like he could move again, but when he did he bent his damp forehead down to press against her own as he basked in her. This woman. His wife. The mother of his children. The propagator of his future dynasty. She had unraveled him in every way possible and he was now completely undone.
There were words on the tip of his tongue as he watched her expressions range from exhilarated joy to utter exhaustion, but he swallowed them when she turned to kiss him again—gently, then closed her eyes as if she couldn't keep them open another minute.
He carried her to the bed, seeing the stains they had left on the sofa and making a mental note to have one of the custodians clean that up later. For now all he wanted was to lie next to her and watch her sleep peacefully, his child alive inside her.
A few months passed and Cara's team of physicians –the General had seen to it she had several—all agreed she was showing signs of improvement; however, they still needed her to stay here longer before they could be sure.
Snoke had taken it well, all things considered. His grave appearance was not altered one way or the other by Hux's admission that Cara needed to remain longer than anticipated. He merely waved his hand as though faced with an irksome insect and agreed that she might stay as long as the doctors deemed necessary, so long as it did not interfere with the First Order's plans going forward.
Ren continued to be a nuisance, but with the doctor's recommending strict bedrest Hux was glad he had another excuse not to allow her to leave their chambers for any reason. His high position meant that the doctors came to them, not the other way around, and so each day he was able to leave the room feeling confident that Cara was in the best care possible, and being kept far away from the biggest danger to her he could fathom. That thought left him free to work without encumbrance, and thus they continued on as they had since Cara's arrival on the Finalizer. In the mornings Hux would steal away while she slept and return before dinner. Her hours were now mostly occupied with meals, reading and visits from the doctors who came in 3 times a day at her husband's behest.
Her stomach began to pooch out just slightly around the 4 month mark. It was almost indiscernible to anyone except Cara, but she stared at herself in the mirror for hours turning each way to see it from different angles whenever she wasn't with the doctors or bent over the toilet.
The General was even more attentive as time went on—ordering things from other parts of the galaxy he heard might help with her morning sickness and purchasing small gifts to be delivered every few days. Their nights were still filled with passion, but it was of a different kind now—a sort of relaxed feeling that they had accomplished their goal and could now simply enjoy the act itself. She had worried he might no longer desire her once she was with child, but that proved to have been a vain concern. If anything he wanted her more often than ever, though more gentle in his treatment now, not that he had ever been anything less before. Still, there was more tenderness in his touch now, more adoration in his eyes as he brought pleasure to the woman he had not even known 6 months ago. Yet when she lay beneath him and felt his shaft gradually deflate inside her after finishing she felt a joy in her heart that was separate from her joy over the baby.
It had been several months in the making, but one morning as she heard him shuffling around the room in the darkness to prevent waking her before leaning down to kiss her forehead, she felt the words bubble up inside her so quickly they almost escaped.
I love you.
Cara's eyes opened wide but the door shut behind her with such careful precision she knew she hadn't spoken out the words out loud. Even so, she rolled onto her back and felt her hand absently begin stroking her stomach while the other gripped the sheets like she might fall off the bed otherwise. She loved him? Yes, she did, of course she did. It was all so obvious now. Her reactions to him, the fact that she never tired of his advances, the way her heart lifted when he came in the door at the end of the day and the way it sang when he pulled her into his arms… all of it was impossible to deny and she wondered how she had gone so long without seeing it.
What of him though? The General—how would he feel to know her foolish young heart had attached itself to him in such a way that he could never return? Her parents had told her to expect neither fidelity nor affection, yet to her knowledge she had received both from him thus far. Perhaps the faithfulness was hard to prove but the affection was undeniable—or was that paltry in comparison to what two people who loved each other really experienced? Her head swam with questions as she lay there until she couldn't stand being sedentary any longer and got up. She had taken no more than 3 steps from the bed when she felt it—a quickening inside her that left her gasping. It couldn't be, could it?
An exhilarated laugh bubbled up in her throat and she held the bump with both hands; grinning down like a loon and trying to will the sensation to come a second time.
"C'mon love, do that again," she tried coaxing, but after 10 minutes she relented and headed for the fresher.
After she was clean and relaxed Cara summoned breakfast and ate in relative silence save for the crackling of the fire to warm the otherwise chilly room on this freezing ship in the middle of space. She chewed thoughtfully, waiting to see if any particular food incited the baby to move again and resisting the urge to com her husband and make him leave the bridge to come see her.
No, this was the kind of thing she must keep to herself until he returned at the end of the day, but as the hours wore on and she roamed their quarters listlessly, she found it increasingly difficult to wait.
By the time she looked at the clock and saw that it was within 20 minutes of her husband's usual arrival time she pushed herself from the couch with a huff and hurried to ready herself for him. Cara had barely been in the fresher for 5 minutes before she heard a knock. She paused in pinning her hair, confused as to why someone was knocking on her door when her husband would just let himself in and they weren't due to have dinner brought for almost another hour.
Grabbing a robe that hung next to the fresher door, she slipped her arms into the sleeves, wrapping the fabric around her and tying the belt just over her slightly pronounced bump.
At the door she listened, wondering if she had imagined it when another sharp rapping against the metal startled her, and she eyed the key pad next to it which would allow her to admit them.
When she pressed the button and the doors swung open, she almost fell back in shock as Kylo Ren's intimidating black persona strode through confidently, a flick of his fingers and the button pushed again of its own accord and the doors shut.
"Hello Cara," he spoke with the gravelly mechanical voice of his mask. In spite of her terror, she found herself wondering what his face looked like beneath it before she remembered he could read minds.
She backed away from him as slowly as she dared, trying not to let him see how nervous she was; whether he was reading her thoughts or not he didn't acknowledge that particular query, instead standing with feet shoulder width apart and his hands at his sides. Every part of his body looked as if it were poised for some action—like he was forever prepared to defend himself against an unseen (or seen) enemy. His stance spoke of tension and trauma, though Cara had a feeling that he was more than used to inflicting trauma himself, especially as he towered over her and began to approach closer while she struggled to put distance between them again.
"I hear you're to be congratulated, I'm sorry I've not been by to offer my regards sooner, but I have been… busy" his voice trailed off suggestively and she bit the inside of her cheek to keep from replying that she was more than happy he had stayed away.
"My husband will be back soon," Cara offered feebly, hoping the words would act as a deterrent to Kylo Ren staying any longer.
He continued walking towards her, keeping a lazy pace that suggested he had her at his mercy and there was nothing she could do about it. A quick glance behind her reminded Cara the wall was only a couple feet away and soon there would be nowhere else to go.
"Yes," he murmured, "Your husband should be back soon—but not yet… I planned this time so we could speak freely without having him standing her acting as an encumbrance."
Cara could feel herself shaking again like that night of the dinner and she tightened the belt across her bump, hands instinctively reaching down to cover it protectively. Kylo Ren paused in his trek towards her, the distance between them small now.
"Remember I said you have nothing to fear from me? I have not come to distress you. I merely find you curious and to break the tedium of my daily life I like to sometimes dig around inside the heads of others—including your husband. You don't mind, do you?"
Her mouth agape Cara stared at him struck dumb by his words. The General had told her once after a particularly vigorous round of copulation that Kylo Ren was adept at mindreading but usually needed to be close in proximity to a non-Force user in order to use his gift. Those others who were bound by the Force were easier to communicate with over distances but it brought her no comfort as he began to come closer again.
"I see how he thinks of you Cara; how he yearns for you even when he think he's succeeded in putting you from his mind, or tried to think of something else so I won't see… I always do. It was subtle at first but now it's chronic, his every thought is of you—your face, this body, those breasts," he paused, "Your baby."
Startled Cara backed up against the wall, trying to put space between them but he only closed the distance again, resting his thick gloved hand on her shoulder dangerously close to her throat.
"P-Please," she spluttered, her throat feeling so tight with fear and her eyes pricking with tears.
The man surveyed her impassively, there was no way to judge what he was thinking but she felt him in her thoughts, sifting through everything—memories, hopes, dreams. She flinched as he opened her mind like an encyclopedia and perused it at leisure, taking his time to pause on certain pages of interest like her wedding night and the day her husband rushed to Naboo after hearing no response from her.
"Interesting," he ruminated out loud, "Very interesting."
She had no way of knowing how long it went on for. Her shaking limbs felt like limp noodles and her knees were knocking together. In a haze, she felt her body struggle to stand but something, probably the man in front of her, was holding her steady and scrutinised her every thought. Then just like that it was as though the book of her life was slammed shut and she could move again. It wasn't until she saw his hand withdraw from her face that she realised he had been pressing two fingers to her temple. A faint tickling of her brain still lingered as he pulled away.
"You love him," he stated simply, like the idea was a foreign concept to him.
Cara breathed heavily, still trying to readjust from having her soul bared like an open book to a complete stranger, stared at him unblinkingly.
"There's no need to confirm or deny it, I can see that it's true," he shrugged his shoulders and she looked away, embarrassed that someone knew. She had known this for hours now but spent the whole day telling herself the General's feeling for her only extended as far as her duties were concerned. Cara was an amusement to him, a diversion when necessary and an obligation until her end of the bargain was achieved. Whatever warmth or affection he showed to her was not out of love but duty and respect—something she reminded herself to be grateful for considering the alternative she could have wound up with.
What now though? What if he told the General and for the sake of her emotions he sent her away or made her take up residence elsewhere in the ship? The news that his wife had managed to fall in love with him could not be a welcome revelation in any sense to a man of such discipline and order.
"I will not tell him."
Her head snapped up to look at him again, hoping to discern if he was being truthful but it was impossible with that mask covering his face.
Kylo Ren could see that she didn't believe him though, watching the flames of disbelief flicker across her mind and he reassured her, "Truly. I have no quarrel with you and no wish to cause distress, especially in your delicate condition."
Cara's hand flew to her stomach again at his mention of her baby and she felt the tears finally begin to spill from her eyes. What if he was lying?
The Knight sighed, "There is no way for you to deduce my truthfulness without waiting to see it for yourself, but take what assurance you can from me in knowing this: I will not tell the General of your feelings for him. Only you can do that."
Watery red eyes stared him down suspiciously, but there was no more time to discuss before the doors slid open and her husband walked through, fury suddenly blazing across his face.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN HERE?" he demanded, approaching the man in black with such vehemence that Kylo Ren thrust out his arm to hold him back, projecting a shield with the Force that easily stopped Hux in his tracks.
"I was only having a discussion with your beautiful wife here, isn't that so, Cara?"
Hux's feral eyes shifted to her abruptly, noting how she wouldn't look back and instead stared at the floor, holding her stomach in her hands. It made his body boil even hotter with the desperate need to punch Ren.
"WHY. ARE. YOU. HERE?" he spat, still frozen where he was but obviously straining against the unseen binding that held him.
"As I said," Kylo Ren spoke calmly, "I was merely speaking to your wife. Idle chit chat and so forth. She was telling me about the baby. Well," he tittered, "Not telling me precisely, more like showing me." He let the words hang in the air with their suggestiveness as the muscles in her husband's neck and face throbbed with the exertion of trying to break free.
"Anyways, I should really get going. No need to walk to the door I'll see myself out," with that Kylo stepped around the table, passing directly by her frozen husband and almost brushing against him, yet retaining his hold until the doors opened and he passed through. The words she heard in her head were dim, like a barely discernable whisper: I told you I would keep your secret.
When the doors shut with a loud hiss Hux finally gasped as his body was freed from its hold, "THAT BASTARD!" he yelled, rounding on the door, "I'LL—" he never finished the statement though because as he went to punch the code letting him leave the room he heard a thump and looked behind him to see his wife unconscious on the floor.
Author's Note: Woohoo, at least I didn't wait as long as last time, right guys? I'm going to put this on the backburner for a couple of weeks though because I really REALLY need to work on my original fic (which will be available to read on my Wattpad account: yddraig318 for those who are so inclined (and wonderful) to read it :) I'm waiting until I have the first 5-6 chapters done before I upload it there but I will definitely make an announcement on here for all my wonderful followers when I do (one of the characters is based of Domhnall Gleeson if that piques your interest more)
As always please please review and lemme know what you think. Special shoutout to PushToShove whose message yesterday was the kick in the pants I needed to finish the last small bit I had been procrastinating on with this chapter. to all of you lovely readers!
