As a reminder, the M rating doesn't stand for anything BUT mature. ;-) If you don't like it, I suggest skipping the chapter. I'll leave a brief summary at the bottom. For everyone else, enjoy!

Reilly made her way back to Liebgott and Garcia, her feet moving on their own. She wasn't exactly scared about another SOE mission. Nerves were her biggest enemy at the moment. After Foy and such a long stretch since they called on her, she held a small sense of doubt in her ability to succeed.

Even though it probably wasn't her intention, the rude woman gave her something. Knowing that her efforts in Belgium were a success, the doubt began to fade as she contemplated this. The nerves began to turn into melancholy. She didn't want to leave Easy, but she knew she had to, hoping this was the last time.

Garcia was strolling up the lane, speaking to a jeep that was passing through. He was reading their travel papers. Liebgott was leaning against a building, smoking. He straightened when he saw her, but frowned when he read her face.

"What is it, Franny?"

Reilly tried to give him a smile. "I'm heading out again."

Liebgott cursed, throwing the butt on the ground and crushing it with his boot. "Jesus, does it ever end?" She knew he was thinking of the camp.

This time she succeeded and gave him a smile. "I hope so. For all of us."

He sighed before lighting up another smoke, leaning again on the building to get comfortable. "Go on, get outta here."

She raised an eyebrow in question but he smirked around the cigarette. "Go find Frank and show him how much you'll miss him." Her eyebrow raised higher. "The sexual tension in the air is killin' me."

Reilly coughed and sputtered, her eyes wide. "Joseph Liebgott!"

His smirk only deepend. "About damn time, in my opinion. I know you're a smart lady, Fran, but, Jesus, you sure are blind. He's been pining after you since you showed up in that skirt at the jump party. Glad you finally opened your eyes."

She blushed deeply, turning her face from him. "Jesus, Joe," she muttered, speechless.

He kicked her lightly with his foot, grinning. "Frank's a lucky man."

Reilly smiled softly, embarrassed, but the color was fading from her cheeks. "Thanks, Lieb."

"Not that I'd want you for myself," he added, blowing smoke up into the air.

She grinned. "Yeah, I ain't a nice Jewish girl with huge breasts."

"Damn straight, you're not. Plus, you're damn scary."

She knocked a hand against the back of his head but laughed. "Right back at you." She paused. "You sure you don't mind taking my patrol?"

"Get outta here before I change my mind. Damn woman."

"Thanks again, asshat."

Reilly nervously rubbed her hands on her pants, waiting for Perconte to show up. She found him at the mess, finishing up a late lunch with Luz. After giving him some sort of excuse on why she wasn't at patrol, he agreed to meet her on the outskirts of town once he brushed his teeth.

Perco missed his calling in dental hygeine, she thought, impatient. After a long and dirty winter in Bastogne, his obsession with keeping his teeth clean was only second to her shaving her legs daily, embracing her femininity once more.

The gift - for lack of a better word - from Wentworth weighed heavily in her pocket. It felt larger than a gun and seemed just as dangerous.

Cursing herself, she was about to turn away and forget it when Perconte showed up. His face lit up when he found her. "There you are. Damn if this town doesn't have so many streets and hidden corners." Looking over his shoulder, he found no one around. He leaned forward and gave her a quick peck on the lips.

To his surprise, Reilly blushed deeply, her thoughts already way ahead of her. Before he could ask what was going on, she took his hand and began pulling him down the lane and towards the hidden grove she found earlier in the day.

Laughing, he followed. "Where we going, Fran?"

She tried to keep her breathing even. "I wanna show you something."

As they walked, she slowly began to relax as they talked and laughed, falling into their easy routine. He made her feel so normal, yet special at the same time. She never had to be someone else with him.

Recognizing the trail, her stomach began to do backflips again and her heart raced. Calm down, girl. Just because you are bringing him here, doesn't mean anything will happen. Just a chance. Just a hopeful, scary, thrilling chance.

Perconte's eyes widened when they arrived, taking in the beauty of where they were. "Wow, how did you find this place?"

Reilly smiled shyly, watching him. She took off her jacket, suddenly warm, and scooted onto a low, hanging tree branch. "Got lost, actually. Found it by accident this morning."

He turned, his smile wide. He came over to sit next to her, instantly taking her hand, lacing their fingers. "It's beautiful."

Reilly was silent, her eyes on him, taking in his handsome face. When he turned to face her, she felt her heart thump when she saw his smile.

He read the look on her face, his own mirroring hers, and the smile she so admired slid away. "You're beautiful."

She blushed again, embarrassed, but didn't look away. "Kiss me, Frank," she murmured.

With a grin, he obliged, twisting his body to capture her lips with his own. With one hand on her waist, another dug into her hair, pulling it from its knot. Reilly sighed happily, her nerves dissipating. She placed a hand on his chest, fingernails digging in when he deepened the kiss.

He gasped at the feeling, suddenly realizing that they were alone, truly alone for the first time. Encouraged by the slight moan when he began kissing her neck, he hopped down the the tree branch, quickly pulling her with him. She giggled knowingly, until they were both kneeling in front of one another, the soft moss of the ground hugging their knees. He shrugged off his jacket to allow her hands better access to him.

Perconte brushed his lips across hers softly before moving around her face, kissing her nose and cheeks, then her forehead, before returning to her lips. He pulled back to look at her, her green eyes blown wide, her lips parted.

With a soft smile from her and a nod, he kissed her once again and wrapped his arms around her, lifting her to come on top of his lap, straddling his hips as he sat back on his heels. With their chests wrapped tightly together, they both groaned together.

Her hands shaking, she slowly began to unbutton his OD shirt as he worked his lips up and down her throat. She had to stop often, the shivers he created forced her mind to wander from the task at hand. "Frank, God, that feels so good," she whispered.

He moved to her ear, tugging the lobe lightly with his teeth as his hands wandered, pulling her own shirt from her trousers. "You feel so good, sweetheart." His hands began moving up under her tshirt, grazing the soft skin of her bare back.

Reilly pushed his OD shirt from his shoulders, pulling it free and to the ground. Gripping the muscles of his arms, she arched back as his mouth traveled to the opening near her throat again.

Suddenly, she was nervous, something plaguing her. He pulled back when he felt it and frowned, watching the display. "What is it, Fran? Do you want to stop?"

Shaking her head, she gulped as she dug into her pocket. Squeezing her eyes shut in embarrassment once again, she pulled out the condom and left it sitting in her open palm for him to see. "Georgia sicced this on me."

Perconte stared at it for a long time and then he roared with laughter. Opening one eye, she watched him before giving him a mock pout. "Don't laugh at me! I don't know what the hell I'm doing."

Shaking his head in laughter, he reached into his own pocket to retrieve a few identical packages. Her mouth dropped open at the sight. He grinned, chuckles still brimming in his chest. "And George cornered me, right after you came to the mess. Jesus, they're relentless."

They laughed together, foreheads pressed, tears of humor in their eyes. And just as suddenly as the laughter began, it stopped. Their lips found each other once more, and the passion was reignited as if there was no interruption.

Lifting her, he pushed her back until she landed softly onto the ground, his body instantly on top of hers again, flushed against one another. His mouth traveled lower as he slowly undid the buttons of her shirt. At the bottom, he pushed up her tshirt to reveal her flat stomach. Unable to resist, he kissed her, nuzzling the soft skin.

Gasping at the new sensation, the familiar ache inside her came roaring back. "Fuck," she breathed, her fingers twisting in his hair. A cloud of guilt came over her, mixing with the pleasure. "Frank."

"Hmm?" He continued to push her shirt up, kissing along the way.

He found the clasp of her bra, lips along the edge of the cotton. She squeezed her eyes shut and cursed again. "Frank, I need to tell you something."

Pulling himself away, he met her lips once more. "What is it?" he said against her, refusing to stop the contact.

She sighed again when their hips met, realizing he was just as affected as she was. She hitched his tshirt up his back, frustrated when it wasn't cooperating and disappearing into thin air. Instead, she dug her fingers into the taut muscles of his hips. Taking a breath, she kissed him. "I'm leaving again."

At first, it didn't seem as if he heard her. And then the words sunk in.

Perconte wrenched his lips from hers, searching her eyes. "What did you say?"

Reilly sighed again, running her fingers through his hair, which stood up in every direction. "SOE called me today. I leave tomorrow night."

He stared at her a long time, waiting for the joke that never came. He scrambled off her and stood. He began to pace. She sat up and watched him. "Frank," she said again, but couldn't think of anything else to add.

He turned to her. "So what's this? A goodbye screw?" he spat out.

Her eyes widened at the anger in his voice. She stood and reached out to him but he pulled away. "Frank, no. Please don't be angry with me. I just…" She hung her head. "I wanted to be with you before I go. That's all," she added in a whisper.

His eyes flashed. "You're about to leave and maybe get yourself killed this time. And you brought me here to say goodbye. Say it."

Tears filled her eyes. "It's not like that." She took a deep breath. "Maybe it is goodbye, you know? Who knows what will happen in this damn war. Hitler is fucking hiding, refusing to surrender, and still we fight." She stepped up to him, encouraged when he didn't pull away this time. "I could only think of being with you."

The pain on his face turned from anger to sadness. He grimaced before stepping back again. "I can't do this right now." Grabbing his shirt and jacket from the ground, he walked away, leaving her to her thoughts.

Reilly sat in the crook of that tree for what felt like hours. Her tears had long since dried, and she was left cursing herself instead.

She didn't blame him for being angry. Hell, if the situation was reversed, she'd be livid with him as well. But his leaving still hurt.

Before she could make out what made the sound of twigs underfoot, Perconte was there in front of her. Without a word, he lifted her from the branch and pinned her body to the tree trunk with his own, hands locked underneath her. He brought his lips to hers in a searing kiss.

Finally coming up for air, his eyes were flashing again with anger, but also something else mixed in. He punished her again with another hard kiss.

"Do you know how much I love you?" he said, his voice low and raspy. He moved his lips to her neck, scraping his teeth against the skin. "And I'm not talking about being your goddamn friend," he added in her ear. "I'm in love with you, Fran. I've been for some time."

Reilly gasped at the sensation of his lips and teeth back suddenly on her skin, her fingers twisting in his hair, pulling him closer. At his words though, she composed herself enough to pull back to meet his eyes. When she saw a touch of fear in them, unrelated to her leaving again, her heart ached. She leaned in and gave him the sweetest kiss she could muster. "I love you, too, Frank."

And before he could open his mouth, she kissed him again, allowing the passion to resurface. Against his lips she added, "And definitely not as a goddamn friend. I have Lieb for that."

This time it was Perconte that pulled back. He studied her eyes for awhile before grinning. "You love me, huh?"

She rolled her eyes but smiled back, her patience evaporating. Wrapping her legs around her waist, she adjusted her body until it was flush against him, causing him to groan, his smile fading. "Yes, I love you. And if you love me, you'll kiss me again."

Yes, ma'am.

Without her even feeling it being taken off her back, he took both OD shirts in hand. He laid them down onto the ground before lowering her on top of the makeshift pillow. Scissoring their legs together, his weight bore down on her, the friction from his knee between her legs was almost too much to bear.

Pulling away from the kiss with a sigh, Perconte sat up, removing his tshirt up and over his head, only leaving his dog tags behind. Before he could lean down once again, she surprised him by sitting up as well, grabbing his hips to steady.

Unable to resist, she brushed her lips across the smooth skin of his chest, causing him to close his eyes at the sensation. Eskimoing her nose into the soft hair there, her fingers moved into the crevices of his stomach, teasing and soft.

His hands clenched tightly around the fabric of her shirt. Cocking an eyebrow when she saw the look on his face, she couldn't help herself. "I think this is the part where you take off my shirt, Perconte."

Shaking his head at her sharp tongue, he obeyed and wrenched the tshirt up and over her head. Pushing her back onto the ground, he resumed his travel of her chest, this time moving south, down the strap of her bra on the right side, pushing it away.

Reilly sighed happily, fingers lost in his hair once more. She froze when she felt the clasp of her bra pop open, but then became even more ridgid when his lips moved, teasing her skin into stiffness. She cursed.

Perconte took his time, teasing, kissing and sucking his way over her body, marveling at the way she reacted to his touch. Her fingernails scraped at his scalp, and her moans made his own body shudder.

Finally, he made his way to the top of her trousers. Looking up, his heart thrummed hard in his chest at the sight of her flushed and naked body above him. Taking a breath, he kissed his way down her thigh, willing the thick fabric of her pants to go away, his hands working her belt open in the meantime.

Unlacing her boots, he pulled them and her socks off. With another tug, her trousers followed, leaving her nothing but her underwear. Sitting back on his heels, he took a moment to study her again, hands circling her calves. "So fucking beautiful."

To his happy surprise, her skin blushed all over and he couldn't help but kiss her again, groaning when their bare chests pressed against one another.

Reilly's patience was evaporating as quickly as her nerves had. The ache inside her was hungry. Pushing her underwear down and away while he kissed her, her fingers reached next for his belt. His hand stopped her.

"Patience, sweetheart," he murmured. The chocolate in his eyes swam with need, but he knew she needed to be prepared first. He wanted her to feel good before he could.

She huffed. "That's not exactly my strong suit, Frank."

He smiled, but his mirth grew when she felt his fingers travel to between her legs. Brushing the inside of her thighs at first, he had the pleasure of watching her shut up and gasp. "Something to work on then."

"Frank," she whined, wiggling her hips. She didn't even know what she was begging for, but had an idea when his fingers found her center, and the ache inside her gained a pulse, a life of its own.

Not knowing what else to do, she stole his lips with hers, her fingers grasping onto anything she could find, finally settling onto his chest and in his hair. His fingers continued their torture, finding a hidden bundle of nerves with his thumb. His other fingers one by one entered her, and his own groan left his mouth.

She began to pant; it was becoming too much to bear. She gasped his name, fingers digging into him. The pulse grew, and the ache was somewhat satisfied.

He nuzzled his face into her neck, crooning love into her ear, attempting to keep her hips from bucking. He was relentless.

After what seemed like ages, a white light unrelated to the sun burned behind her eyelids. The pulse erupted, but still his hand remained in its place, until her body slumped into the soft ground, her spine jelly.

Reilly felt Perconte leave her side, and she attempted to pull him back, but her arms refused to lift. "Frank," she murmured, the delicious fog beginning to lift.

He stood in front of her, his hands shakily working on his belt until it was finally open. He couldn't look away. After quickly ridding himself of his boots and socks, he kicked away his pants and boxers, and he slid on the damned condom. Kneeling and moving his body up hers, he was unable to stop touching her. She began to wake from her daze when she felt him lean his body against hers.

He was in between her thighs and she took in a deep breath, preparing herself. Hitching up her legs with his hands, he pressed his lips against her ear. "Relax. Just relax." She bit her lip and nodded. Gently, he connected their bodies, inch by inch.

She felt an unfamiliar pain, a slow burning, but the ache inside her was finally satisfied once he was flush against her. He stilled, trying to catch his breath and allowing her time to adjust. "I'm sorry, baby. I'm so sorry," he whispered to her as he began to move.

The burn was still there, but it was slowly fading. As her gasps of pain dissolved into pleasure, he moved his hips faster, unable to help himself, knowing it wouldn't be long. Years of dreaming up this moment wouldn't allow him to stretch it out.

Wrapping her legs around him, she moaned when his lips found her neck again. Raking her nails up his back, she knew now why sex was so important to others, why they sought it out.

She felt him tensing. She hugged him closer, pressing him against her, eager for the friction. Her lips found his ear. "Please, love. Don't stop."

He didn't think she could have said anything else that would have caused him to finish faster. At her words, he grunted, collapsing against her. "I love you so much, baby. God, I love you so much."

She murmured words of love back to him, softly caressing his back as the ache inside faded, and the burning came back, although soft and manageable. He kissed her neck once before pulling up to look her in the eyes. "Jesus, Fran."

She grinned, brushing the hair back from his eyes. "I quite agree, Perco."

He ducked his head into her neck again as they giggled together until he finally sat up. She groaned at the loss of his body against hers, but blushed when she saw him gently brush his strewn tshirt between her legs.

"You just ruined your shirt."

He gave her a smirk before throwing the shirt to the side. "Worth it." He watched her shiver, but thought it was because she was cold. Pulling her to sit up, he wrangled his jacket around her and helped her put her underwear back on, grazing her legs with his thumbs in the process.

"I'm not a goddamn child, Frank," she mumbled as he laid down next to her, his own boxers back in place. He pulled her to his side.

Perconte grinned. "That was my attempt to both warm you up and an excuse to touch you again."

Reilly giggled, settling against him, breathing in the scent from his jacket. "For the record, you don't need an excuse." She hooked her bare leg over his hips.

He sighed in happiness and closed his eyes as her fingers played with the hair on his chest. "Good to know." He pulled her closer to him.

As the day turned into night, neither spoke about what would happen tomorrow evening when she left him again. Instead, they focused on being together, staying up most of the night, exploring one another and giggling as long and as loud as they'd like.

To summarize:

Liebgott kicked Reilly from patrol so she could be with Frank

They start to get it on

Instead of telling him first thing, she stupidly tells him in the middle of it that she was leaving again

He gets mad and leaves

He comes back

They actually get it on this time

the end!