Dinner at Leia and Han's was a success.

Luke was impressed with not just with Han's cooking (which came as a pleasant surprise to all of them), but with the way Silre handled herself and some of the more intense questions Han directed at her. Because he was familiar with Han and his general demeanor, he knew that some of his mannerisms could come across gruff at times. Silre didn't seem to mind, even entertaining him in some of his wild claims and off-the-wall questions whenever it came to mechanics and flying. Even Leia exchanged a look of awe with Luke that let on how impressed she was.

In fact, as he sat next to Silre at the dinner table, Luke caught himself more than once losing himself in his growing affection for her. The animated way she spoke with her hands and the bubbly cadence of her accent captivated anyone who listened, but it was more than that to Luke. Even that first day on Florrum during the dust storm, he'd found it incredibly easy to talk with her. She had an openness about her that came so naturally, even despite how closed-off her aura had been when they had been just strangers. Now, Luke found himself staring at her with love. True and honest love.

"So...Jakku?" Han mentioned. He eyed Luke and Silre with skepticism. "It's a cold day in hell when I'm made aware of a planet I've never heard of, but it seems there's still at least one in this galaxy."

Silre's eyes found Luke's. "Jakku? Where is that?"

"That's the question on everyone's mind." Luke reached beneath the table to rest his hand on her thigh, giving it a comforting squeeze. "Jakku is what I was referring to earlier when we were in the hangar. It's a remote desert planet in the Inner Rim that no one knows very much about it. Leia received information that shows a possible connection between Jakku and what's going on at Kuat."

"Have you ever heard of it?" Leia asked. "Or ever hear anyone mention it in the Drive Yards?"

Silre scanned her memory, searching for anything that stuck out in her mind. Regretfully, she shook her head. "Doesn't ring a bell at all. You think the Empire's using it for something?"

"It hardly seems like a place that has anything of value to use" Leia replied. "It has no exports. No imports. No populated city centers. No hyperspace lanes. Nothing. It's a mystery to all of us."

"Two bounty hunters were overheard discussing the planet in front of one of our scouts" added Luke. "So you and I are going to check it out when we're done with our mission on Kuat. It's bit out of the way, but Leia's got a plan in place to make sure finding it is a success." With invisible fingers, he sifted through Silre's energy for any sense of fear or doubt. To his relief, there was none.

Silre gave an encouraging smile to both Leia and Han. "If there's anything I can do to help demystify this place, I'll do it." She glanced at Luke and clasped her hand around his beneath the table. "I'm guessing you already agreed to the plan?"

Luke couldn't hide the guilt in his laugh. "You bet I did."

"More like he jumped at the chance to do it," said Leia. She stood, taking her dinner plate as well as Han's with her to the sink. "I'm just relieved to see you're as enthusiastic for these sorts of endeavors as my brother."

Luke and Silre exchanged a smile. "We make a good team in more ways than one" Silre said.

Across from them, Han let out a light hearted groan. "Ya hear that, Princess? They sound like we did a few years ago."

Silre caught the look in Leia's eyes as she briefly glanced her way. Silre knew that look. The way Leia tried to shield the obvious sparkle in her eyes that appeared every time Han flaunted their relationship was something Silre understood. She found herself doing the same thing throughout the evening with Luke whenever he complimented her or looked at her in a way that made her feel like they were the only two in the room. It was a special feeling, one that Leia clearly shared in her relationship with Han.

Excusing herself from the table, Silre ruffled Luke's hair before bringing both their plates to the kitchen. When she began to help with the dish work, Leia stopped and put up a hand. "Please, you're a guest, Silre."

"It's no trouble at all," she said, placing the dishes into the soapy water of the sink. "You and Han opened your home to me. It's the least I can do." She watched as Leia began to tidy up the countertops. "You and Han...you two have a special connection. I see the love Han has for you. You're both so sweet together."

Leia lowered her eyes humbly, the corner of her mouth twitching. "That is kind of you. Thank you." When she looked back at Silre, she studied the dark haired woman a moment longer before speaking. "You know my brother is falling in love with you."

Her statement caused Silre to glance up from the dishes, though she remained silent. Her large eyes were expressive, her spine as straight as ever, but there was a question hidden in her stillness.

Leia simply nodded. "It's true. I can feel it whenever I'm with him. He falls more in love with you every day"

A bashful laugh escaped Silre. "Leia, it's only been a month-"

"-but I can feel it," Leia repeated, drawing those dark, expressive eyes up to hers once more. "Believe me when I say: Luke has never needed any length of time to be certain of his own feelings, no matter what it involves. Somehow, some way, he's always known exactly how he feels and he follows it without question."

Silre paused and removed her hands from the sink. This much was true, and she'd only known Luke a handful of weeks. His dedication extended not just to his life as a Jedi, but to those he loved and the things he believed in.

"I've always envied Luke's ability to be so convicted" Leia confessed with a shake of her head. "With me? I think too much. I run things over and over in my mind a thousand times before I decide what is to be done. Even then, I am never entirely sure I make the right decision." She thought of the discussion she and Luke shared about their father earlier that morning, and a familiar pang of guilt wedged its way into her chest all over again.

Next to her, amusement danced in the color of Silre's eyes. "It sounds to me like you and Luke are the perfect balance of emotion and thoughtfulness."

"One might argue I have too much emotion sometimes" Leia confided, tossing her chin in the direction of the dinner table where Han and Luke remained chatting. "But you're right. We do complement one another in our differences."

The women fell into a pensive quiet as they finished straightening up the rest of the kitchen. No more was mentioned on the topic of Luke's love for Silre, but she didn't easily forget what Leia had told her. Their conversation turned to more everyday topics, such as Silre's maintenance work and Leia's relief missions. At various times, both Han and Luke made separate attempts to offer their help in assisting the women, but the truth was that both Silre and Leia genuinely enjoyed one another's company and were finding reasons to keep them in the kitchen just so they could talk more.

When they could linger no longer and wrapped up their time in the kitchen, they wandered back out to join Luke and Han in the living room. Upon seeing Silre, Luke stood and gave her a look that signaled his desire to retreat for the night. "We should probably head out soon" he mentioned. "It's been a long day."

Han stood and clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Thanks again for pretending my meal wasn't terrible."

They all shared a laugh in between hugs, thanking one another for the time spent together that evening. Leia and Silre shared a look of understanding between them as they hugged, and Silre thanked her once again for everything. It had been the kind of evening she had always looked forward to; the chance to get to know Luke's family more while also feeling like she was truly accepted. Not just as someone fairly new on base, but as someone new in Luke's life. And, if what Leia had confided was indeed true, she had more to smile about as her and Luke exited their home.

As they walked back, Silre gave Luke a nudge. "That went really well, don't you think?"

"It did" he agreed. "It was nice to spend the evening relaxing together."

His smile was genuine as he looked at her, but Silre caught a simmering intensity to his gaze. The usual sky blue of his eyes had darkened like a storm, his pupils wide as he stared at her. There was a hint of a smirk on his lips; the kind that always elicited a surge of heat from the center of Silre's body.

"As nice as it was, I was anxious to get out of there." His hand traveled the length of her spine to her neck, gripping it with needful strength. "Not sure if you could tell, but I had to hold it together for most of the night just to keep from thinking about my promise to you."

Silre's breathing increased at the feel of his fingers sliding into her hair near the base of her head. "Don't worry, you weren't the only one." Without looking at him, she knew he was staring at her with pride.

"My place or yours?" he asked.

"Yours."

They were quiet the rest of the walk back to Luke's place. Silre could feel her and Luke's bond rippling with energy; a live wire of passion growing tauter by the minute.

When they arrived, Luke opened the door for Silre and allowed her to enter first. She stepped within the dim apartment and turned to face him, half expecting to be immediately scooped into his arms in a feverish embrace. But Luke met her gaze, he made a subtle motion with his chin and Silre was shoved backward into the nearest wall. He pinned her in place by use of the Force, keeping her totally still as he walked towards her. His eyes traveled the length of her body, assessing her greedily. "Tonight is about you. All about you."

Silre's breath shuddered in her chest, exhilarated by the promise and the invisible grip he had over her. She tried to move her arms to touch Luke as he stepped into her, but she was frozen in place by whatever Force trick he was using. His attention traveled to Silre's neck, eyeing the spot he knew always garnered a response from her. He flicked his tongue softly over her heated skin before kissing the slight dip in the center of her throat. "So, since tonight is all about you..." He drug his mouth to just below her ear. "...I'll be happily doing all of the work..."

A shiver of pleasure coursed along Silre's spine. She closed her eyes and focused on the calculated movements of Luke's tongue as he continued teasing her.

"It's been a while since we've focused on your pleasure only" he uttered, teething her ear lobe gently. "You're always so giving. So attentive. But tonight, I'm going to take my time and make sure I see my girl cum more than once."

A moan loosed from Silre but it was captured by Luke's mouth. His lips met hers with authority; his kiss full of the controlled strength she'd come to know him for. She still couldn't move, but she didn't need to. Luke had her body memorized at this point, and her pleasure was his pleasure. Knowing where and how to kiss her, where to lick her, which areas drove her crazy and which ones nearly sent her over the edge - he knew them all. Silre knew he would use every trick in his book to make good on his promise and the anticipation only made her arousal heavier.

With his lips hovering just out of reach of Silre's, Luke brushed the pad of his thumb over her lips. He parted them gently before pushing past and into her mouth and in turn, Silre began to suck on his thumb, sending a jolt of fire deep within his abdomen. Her dark eyes never left his as she swirled her tongue around him in a way only he knew; the way she'd done on other parts of his body. He saw the corner of her mouth form the faintest of smirks around him and he clenched his jaw.

Gods, she was beautiful.

And gods, was he ever hard.

Keeping his invisible grip on her, Luke pushed out of her reach and left her rigid against the wall. He grabbed two pillows from his bed and positioned them further down the mattress before undressing. He kicked off his boots and tossed them in the corner of the room, then peeled off his shirt and sent it onto the floor with his boots. When he finished, he motioned for Silre with one finger.

Silre felt her entire body go loose. Realizing she was free to move again, she walked over to where Luke was sitting on the edge of the bed and stood in front of him, his eyes locking onto hers as his hands moved to unbutton her pants. He tugged them over the curve of her hips and then down the length of her thighs, taking a moment to appreciate their slender shape so close to his mouth. He dotted her skin with light kisses, eying the thin black material covering her center like a predator. He hooked his fingers under the band and slid them down, seeing for himself just how turned on Silre really was. He met her gaze, one eyebrow arching smartly.

Silre smirked. "Don't act surprised."

The desire in Luke's eyes became mixed with amusement. "Not surprised." He placed a kiss to the pane of flesh below her belly button. "Impressed."

Silre sunk her hands into Luke's hair, caressing its softness as he teased around her center. She hated this and loved this all the same. She was impatient when it came Luke. More impatient than she ever was with previous lovers, yet she'd been spoiled by his painstaking attention to detail. No one else was able to tease her until she felt like she would see stars if she didn't find her release. Even now, as she felt the warmth of Luke's breath dangerously close to her core, she cursed him inwardly. Every time she thought she was about to feel the sweet relief of his mouth over her, he moved to her thighs to continue his slow teasing.

A pitiful whine surfaced from within Silre's throat.

Luke smiled against her thigh. It was fun for him to prime her like he was, but he also didn't like to keep her waiting. He looked up at her, nuzzling his nose along her hip as Silre removed what was left of the clothes above her waist.

He indicated with his chin to the spot behind him. "Bed" he ordered, his voice hoarse with arousal. When Silre settled onto the bed on her back, he shook his head. "On your stomach."

Wickedness bloomed in Silre's eyes how easily giving orders came to him. She rolled onto her stomach, and Luke positioned the two pillows beneath her hips. He hiked her hips upward, setting them just right so that she was fully presented to him. He couldn't resist leaning in and kissing the curve of her bottom, the heady scent of her arousal like an elixir. "You're utterly perfect" he told her, kissing along her thigh.

Though Silre couldn't see him, she felt Luke's every move and then some. His words wound their way into her lust-filled brain, flattering her at the same time his mouth continued to work across her skin. The cool air that played at her exposed center contrasted the heat of his presence behind her, shifting and moving around her as he did. When she felt Luke's tongue take that first languid lap along her folds, she outright cursed.

Luke steadied her with an arm draped across her lower back, keeping her still as he enjoyed her. She had a habit of squirming anyway, but he wanted her to relax and feel everything he was doing even if he had to hold her in place to make it happen. He used his other hand to spread her wider, giving him more access to her dripping center as he worked his mouth over her. Silre's breathy whimpers filled the room, and he had to focus to keep his attention off the painful throb in his pants.

"Luke..." Silre uttered, his name coming out as a pitiful moan.

"Mmm?"

"Don't sto-" The word caught in her throat when she felt him push one of his fingers inside.

"I don't plan to."

Eyes snapping shut, Silre clutched at the sheets as her hips began to rock in time with Luke's finger and mouth. She knew her tiny mewls sounded pathetic, but she didn't care. She didn't care how wet she was, how much of a mess it was, how much of a mess she was, she didn't care about anything but the sensations coming from the man working her between her legs.

Luke hooked his finger inside her, reaching that special spot that took her to a different level. Silre arched her back in response, her breathless moans growing louder as he massaged her from within. He licked his lips, kissing her trembling thighs as he worked her. "That's it, Silre. Let go."

Silre felt herself coming apart at the seams. When Luke inserted a second finger and angled it just right, she cried out again as her body shuttered at the feel. When he used his thumb on her swollen nub and felt the slight sting of pain as he nipped at the mounds of her bottom, she fell apart completely. Her orgasm tore through her, hips stuttering despite Luke's firm hold. She bit the sheets when he wouldn't let up; the flat of his tongue lapping and sucking at her until she had nothing left to give. When her body finally came to rest, Luke left her in breathless in a pool of her own desire.

As she lay there trying to catch her breath, she felt the bed shift beneath her. The scratch of a zipper accented her labored breaths, and then the weight of Luke's body settled against her back. Two taut biceps blocked her view as he pressed his chest against her shoulders.

"You're so beautiful when you cum." His breath was hot against her ear, his mouth still damp from her pleasure. "I can't wait to make you do it again."

He drove his full length inside her, and Silre sucked in a sharp breath. The angle of her hips against the pillows allowed Luke to fill her even more deeply, more than satisfying her every need to feel him inside her. The muscles of his arms flexed as he lifted himself off her back, allowing him more leverage as he began a steady, relentless rhythm. He gazed down at the delicate curve of Silre's spine as she rocked beneath him in time with his thrusts, and he bent to kiss the space between her shoulder blades. "So beautiful" he praised. "My beautiful Silre."

His words swam in Silre's head as she took the full brunt of his movements, his paced grunts mixed with the sound of his hips snapping against hers. Her insides clenched around him; milking his length as he buried himself inside her time and time again. The pillows beneath her rubbed the already sensitive junction between her thighs and caused her body to become quickly overwhelmed by sensations. It wouldn't be long until she was falling apart for him all over again.

The next time Silre felt the bed shift, Luke's weight had lifted completely off of her. Her brain was too deep within its own pleasure fog to respond, but she was quickly lifted off the pillows, which were then tossed off the bed altogether. Luke braced his hands behind her back and lifted her onto his lap so that they were facing one another. With Silre perched atop him in a seated position, she could see the heavy passion in his eyes as he pushed inside her once more. The depth in which he took her made her head fall backward, allowing him to claim her exposed neck. He sucked at her skin, leaving colored markings that would be there in the morning, his arms still clutching her back as their bodies moved as one.

When their eyes met again, they shared a loving smile. Silre pushed back the dampened hair that had fallen over Luke's face and admired him, truly admired him, for all that he was. Those eyes that stared up at her like she was the sun that his soul revolved around, the finely honed muscles of his shoulders and chest moving and shifting with each of his thrusts, the natural pout of his lips still puffy from the pleasure he gave her earlier, the strength of his jawline and that fatal smirk that transformed his entire face in the most handsome of ways. In this sensual position, where their sole focus was the love they shared for one another written in their expressions, both Silre and Luke took the time not just to feel the pleasure of their joined bodies but to see the vulnerability in one another's eyes and appreciate the bond they had with one another; a bond that extended beyond the physical one they shared at the moment.

Needing to feel his lips on hers, Silre dipped her head and enclosed her mouth over Luke's. When she pushed her tongue into his mouth, they were completely joined. Luke filled her entirely, and Silre accepted him wholly. Their bodies rocked in perfect rhythm as Luke found a faster pace once more; one hand braced behind her neck, the other wrapped tight around her back. He held on to her as his body was swallowed by Silre's warmth, her insides drawing his orgasm out of him with a harsh groan from deep within his chest. He buried himself inside a final time, his release spilling within her and taking every last ounce of his energy in the process. His breathing came in ragged pants as he rest against Silre's breasts, her arms cradling his head.

"My handsome Jedi" she breathed.

Luke heard this and lifted his gaze. He caught the smile that extended to Silre's large eyes and felt his heart ache with the love he'd developed for her. He wanted to tell her then...to say the words he'd been feeling for a while now...but he held off. Instead, he expressed what he could in the caress of his lips; their slow dance more languid and lazy after the frenzied embrace of their coupling.

He would tell Silre soon. He promised himself he would.
And he always made good on his promises.


Luke and Silre lay together in one another's arms, their sweat-slicked bodies still coming down from their shared pleasure. Luke lay on his back, his arm draped around Silre's body as she lay tucked in the crook of his shoulder. With her head resting on his chest, she drew lazy shapes along the rippled pane of his abs. Very few thoughts came to mind in those quiet moments as they lay resting, but it was a peaceful, satisfied kind of quiet. Silre was completely content, as was Luke, who ran his fingers through her hair absentmindedly as he felt his heartbeat finally lower to a more normal pace.

From his position slightly above her, Luke watched as Silre walked her index and middle finger across his abs, past his belly button, and over to one of the scars that adorned his torso. He smiled, especially when Silre cast her gaze upward to catch the gleam in his eye.

He planted a tired kiss to the top of her head. "Silly."

Silre snuggled against him closer, continuing to walk her fingers along his skin. "It's moments like these that are my favorite" she replied. "The moments when it's really just us. With nothing between us, no one needing us, nothing required of us." She walked her fingers up the center of his pecs to the cleft in his chin where she tapped him. "It's just us. Luke and Silre."

A dreamy kind of euphoria filled Luke's tone. "I like the sound of that."

"When I say our names together?"

He nodded. "Just sounds right."

"You're biased."

"Clearly." He glanced down to see that, despite the sleepiness that had begun to tug at Silre's eyes, they still shined in the low light of the room. He lay his head against hers and closed his eyes. "But really - I do like when you talk about us. In the together-sense."

"As opposed to what other sense?" she teased, shifting so she could see him better. When he gave her a guilty but bemused look, Silre laughed. "Who's the silly one now?"

Luke gently palmed her head back down onto his chest. "Fair enough."

He laced his fingers between hers as their hands relaxed atop his stomach. They lay like this for a while, feeling content and comfortable. The stillness of night beyond the window had settled over the forested landscape, though some of that tranquility had found its way within Luke's bedroom where darkness had taken over.

As they lay there, Silre studied Luke's robotic hand as it remained laced inside her own. She idly brushed her thumb across the skin, feeling how real it felt. How alive it felt. It touched her the same as his flesh hand did. It wielded his saber just as well as his flesh hand did. It truly was a marvel.

She lifted his hand to her mouth and kissed the knuckles. "I have a random question."

"Hmm?"

"Can you...turn your Force abilities off?"

Luke remained quiet for a moment. "What do you mean?"

"Can someone who is Force sensitive hide their ability from others?"

The same hand Silre had holding now tipped her chin so Luke could see her. "Are you worried someone will hurt you?" he asked seriously.

"No." It was the truth, but Silre couldn't help but think of their mission to Kuat and the risk in going there. "I just never heard you speak of anyone who tried to hide their abilities."

Luke's dimples surfaced, the soft light in his eyes replacing his look of concern. "That's because those who are gifted with the Force can't hide it. They can manipulate it to work for them in a way that protects them, but they can never hide something that is so deeply a part of who they are - whether they tried to or not." A question slowly formed in his expression. "If something's bothering you, you can-"

"-Shhh." She leaned in and silenced him with her kiss. "I know I can talk to you, Luke. I know I can tell you anything. And I will, once I figure all of this out."

The line that had tightened between his brows finally eased. "If that's what you'd like to focus on first, I'll show you what you need to know to protect yourself."

"I would" she confessed. "Even though I know that as long as I'm with you, I'll never have to worry for my protection. But...I've never been one who needed to rely on anyone before. I need to know I'll be able to wield whatever this is inside me correctly, so that I never jeopardize myself or others I'm with."

"You have nothing to worry about then." He drew her in and kissed her forehead, his hand coming to rest on the back of her head. "I'll make sure you feel certain that what you've been gifted with is used in the best way possible."

His words lingered in Silre's mind as she nestled in against his chest once more. She knew very little about her intuition other than it had helped her so far, even when she'd been using it subconsciously. Of all the things she learned in the past several days, the truth of her Force sensitivity had left her with the most apprehension. She could handle the repercussions of the Empire trying to fight their way back into relevance. She could handle missions she agreed to in order to help the New Republic. She knew herself well enough to know she could handle herself in any situation. But of all the things she knew she could handle, it was the unknown threats that came with her Force sensitivity that worried her.

Another worry for another day, she told herself. She hugged her arm across Luke's torso and sighed tiredly. As his hand began to gently stroke her head, the comfort of his touch lulled her the rest of the way to sleep. For now she was protected. The worries of her mind could wait another day.


Author's Note: Hello everyone! Apologies for my somewhat-lengthy absence. My personal life is rife with travel these days, so the chapter updates will continue to come at a slower rate...but I hope you stick around. After this chapter, the fluffy-sexy-happy times are about to dwindle significantly as we get into the meat of what happens with our beloved couple. And as we all know with Star Wars: happiness never really lasts forever, amiright? Thanks again for reading this far, and hope you all continue to enjoy the story! -Winter