Author's Note: Wow...apparently 12 is the magic number. Twelve reviews is the point where I begin to shirk my real life responsibilities, in favor of writing the next chapter in this story. Seriously though...thank you to all the reviewers...it really is appreciated and the best motivator. This chapter is kinda 'M' ratings wise, but this will be an exception rather than a rule.

Excerpt from Chapter 12:

When he draws back to look at her again, Kara's wearing her most impish grin, and there's a sweet, if not patronizing, lilt to her voice, "I can't believe they bought that."

Chapter 13

"What!?!" Lee sputters on the word pushing her back to a full arms length.

Kara sighs deeply, "Lee, I knew the minute they walked me to the interrogation room that they weren't going to let me see you. I was a little surprised that the Old Man went along with Roslin's 'hard line' approach, but I can't fault him for being cautious." She takes a step back from Lee, but entwines her fingers with his, forcing him to move with her as she sits on the table.

"Kara how could you do that to him? He thinks that a woman he loves like a daughter is suffering and lost. Hell, I was watching through the glass and I damn near cried!"

He cups the side of her face frantically and she can feel slight scratches from his nails as he digs in to get a good hold on her. She places her hands on his hips and drags him closer to her body. Her senses are still reeling a bit, but for the first time, the sensory overload is a pleasant one...she's inundated with Lee Adama and it's the sweetest kind of torture. She finally moves one hand to cover his and bravely meets his desperate eyes, "Lee, it wasn't a lie. I may have laid the drama on a bit thick," she dons a humorless smile, "But there's a lot going on up here," she points to her temple. "Most of it has to do with all the different roles I'm supposed to be playing and that's why they couldn't help me."

Somehow his tone manages to convey both uncertainty and promise, "But I can?" She nods…and then…then she smiles. The first true Kara Thrace smile he's seen since they spoke on the hanger deck that fateful day. Lee is so overwhelmed by the warring emotions of loss, elation, anger, and frustration that he's literally struck dumb. He leans down and kisses her wildly, driven by the chaos consuming him. Kara is alive and it's a truth he needs to drink from her lips before he can believe. It's nothing like the relieved kiss they shared when she returned from Caprica. It's a passionate gesture that transcends the definition of a kiss and instead becomes a language to express 'them' where words have failed.

Kara pulls back a short distance, but she's unable to stop the tremble that wracks her body. "I needed that."

Lee chuckles deeply and proceeds to plant soft kisses along her hairline, "Is that why I was the only one who could help you?"

She glances at him curiously, "What if I told you it was?"

Lee smirks, "So let me guess, in order to become the Guardian," he kisses her neck, nipping at her earlobe, "you need my help to transcend to an 'enlightened' state of consciousness." She tenses beneath his lips and a distant, distraught look steals over her features. "Kara?"

Kara exhales slowly, knowing that little slip of control will cost her dearly. She seeks to divert him, "It's nothing," but the look in his eyes tells her to prepare for battle. Frak.

She's pulling away and building up her defenses and it stings like a slap to the face. After all they've been through and the ruse she just played; she thinks she's going to shut him out? "Nothing my ass." Although Lee strives to prevent the irritation from creeping into his voice, he can tell by her fiery glare that he's unsuccessful.

She leans back, "Alright, it's nothing I want to talk about. Is that better?"

"No. I don't even know what the hell just happened." The concern begins to edge out the anger, "What did I say to upset you?"

Unconsciously he closes the distance and begins to stroke the back of her arms, with a tenderness she's unequipped to resist. She bites her lip and just focuses on the sensation. She knew that Lee was going to want answers, but she was hoping for a reprieve; a chance to clear her head. "I need it!" Kara is unaware that she spoke those words aloud until the warming friction of his touch falters.

"What do you need, Kara?"

She opens her eyes and stands so that she's flush against him, "I need you." She kisses him softly, murmuring across his lips, "I need this." She encircles his waist with her arms, "I need to be me." Kara can see him struggling against the haze of lust and makes her final plea, "No Starbuck. No Guardian. Kara. Just me. Just us?"

'Vulnerable strength' seems like a contradictory description, but it's the best definition for the aura radiating from her. Lee finds that he can only respond by repeating the promise he made so many weeks before, "Whatever it takes."

Her head drops to his shoulder with a sigh and she lays down the rules, "Now…no history…no future…just now." He nods his assent to solely focus on the present, "And no questions. In fact," her lips twinge into a smirk, "it's probably best if we don't talk at all."

The challenge is implicit and Lee wants nothing more than to drive her to the brink, screaming his name, forcing her to break her own rule.

He takes her hand and splays them, palm to palm against his own, and so it begins. Wherever his hands go, his lips follow. The layers of clothing disappear and Kara doesn't know how or why. It doesn't matter because it's only the heat of his caress, the moisture of his mouth that can hold her attention. The cold specter of death is siphoned from her body by his ministrations and expelled completely when he enters her.

Lee doesn't need to remember her rules because he can think of nothing but now…being inside her, feeling her pulse beat around him, her panting breathes against his shoulder…so perfect…so…alive. Her nails carve a claim of owner ship across his back and he quickens his pace until she's clenching so tight, Lee thinks himself immobile. But she chooses that moment to sear him with her greatest branding tools. Her lips prompt his revival, but it's the sweep of her tongue against his that unleashes the madness within.

She's bathed in a fine sheen of sweat and it's a baptism into life anew. Kara breaks her vow and calls to the gods, because there's nothing holier than this experience. It's odd how fracturing the body can heal the soul, but as the thrum of their bodies crest and crash, she feels the truth of it.

In the moment she comes, Lee can see the creation of peace within her eyes, feels it fill behind his own, flooding over in scant tears of joy that she kisses away. "Kara?"

She smiles broadly in reassurance, "Yeah," she kisses his chest in thanks, and curls up against his side.

All the pieces have come together now that Kara has found her center again. It's a blessing for her sanity, but bears with it, a burden she can no longer ignore. Soon the questions will come and the Guardian will reweave the tapestry of their world.

Author's Note: Hope you enjoyed...for those of you who were in this for substance without any hint of romance, too bad! If it makes you feel better, I promise that the relationship is important to the overall story arc and it's not just plain smut. Again...I have no shame and I beg for reviews.