After her encounter with Ben in a supply closet, Rey resolves to keep herself out of his orbit, but her lofty plans are blown to bits when Leia makes Maz an offer she can't refuse. Pulled relentlessly back into the glitter and glam of Ben Solo's world, will Rey be able to keep her heart in one piece? And keep her past from upturning all that she's worked so hard for?
Ready to get gorgeous and spend some time with Ben Solo for a good cause? You all know, we never have anything nice to say, but that changes today! Sources say that Ben finally caved and will be offering himself up as a prize for the Intergalactic Collective, a non-profit that helps… Well, does it matter? We've been told it's a good cause, and given that the prize is Ben Solo, that's good enough for us, babies!
Donate, donate, donate, but let us win!
Anyway, enough do-gooder goodies, and on to the gossip. A sexy little birdie told us that one Armitage Hux is also on the guest list for this event and that it's a charity the Governor has personally spearheaded. But how'd he get Ben to agree to this? Is Ben settling an old debt or is there more going on here?
Has the consummate bachelor, Ben Solo, finally been taken off of the market by an old flame? We hope not, but you can bet our eyes will be watching and our ears will be listening to what happens next. And, either way, with Armitage and Ben in the same room, you know the gossip is going to be good.
Stay gorgeous! And, as ever, if you don't have anything nice to say, send it to us first!
-GG out and donating to the cause—the 'Ben Solo date us' cause!
Rey didn't tell either Finn or Korr about the group of intruders, and certainly not what happened between her and Ben, though Finn was beginning to know her well enough that he could tell something was up during their flight back to Takodana.
"Wanna talk about it?" he asked from the captain's chair. That Rey'd not fought to fly was another dead giveaway that something had happened.
"Nothing to talk about. I'm just glad to be away from Coruscant," Rey hedged.
Finn shrugged before the Starbird slipped out of the Coruscant atmosphere and into space. "Your call, pumpkin."
And she thought that she was fine with it all. Random goons at a party? Fine. Hidden in a supply closet with Ben? Fine. Riding his leg until she climaxed against his body? Fine. Fine. Fine. But later, after reading the gossip holos? She was absolutely, a thousand percent, not fine. By the time she'd gotten back to Takodana, the mood had persisted.
So, Rey did the one thing that always made her feel better. Trudging out of Maz's castle, Rey headed for where the Starbird was docked and decided to work on some projects that she'd been putting off. And she wasn't the only person who wanted to get some work done on the ship. Rose was banging around inside the hull. Rose shot Rey a greeting without pulling her head up from the panel she was working on.
And that was that. Rey got to it and, for a little while at least, all thoughts of Aristos, and closets, and life slipped away, replaced by the familiar noises of tools and work being done. Rose, like Rey, seemed like she was happiest when she was working with her hands—pulling apart the Starbird, adding mods. Times like these, Rey and Rose were in their element.
But Rose, even more so than Finn, could easily tell something was bothering Rey. But, instead of asking directly, she went for the roundabout way. Which worked better because it took Rey off her guard a bit, especially when Rose shared bits about her life first.
"So, Paige and I, we got stuck on this freighter going to Arkanis—You ever been to Arkanis, Rey?"
Rey called from the cockpit. "No, hear they have lots of rain."
"So rainy," Rose agreed from the passageway outside of the cockpit. "Anyway, Paige got herself into some trouble with one of the other passengers," she continued while working.
"What kind of trouble?" Rey wondered as she took a minute to stretch and yawn.
Rose paused, peeked her head into the cockpit, and grinned. A warm glow colored her rosy cheeks which were also streaked with grease and grit and who knew what else. "The sexy kind of trouble," she said with a laugh before brushing a dark lock of hair out of her eyes with a wrench.
"Oh," Rey added before smiling and shaking her head a little. As far as she knew, Rose didn't have any superpowers, but it was uncanny how empathetic she was and how she just seemed to understand what was bothering Rey, without her needing to say it.
Rose ducked her head back around and Rey turned back to scrubbing at a patch of… something that was stuck to the captain's chair. The sound of a blowtorch reached her ears, so she gathered Rose was near finished with her work.
The tubing on a few wires was frayed, so Rose was doing a patch job until parts came in. Rey was detailing the cockpit. It wasn't like it was super dirty, but she didn't want it to get dirty. And, besides, cleaning her space always made her feel a little better.
And she needed to feel better after she'd switched on her datapad to read the news. Okay, not the news, the latest gossip. And, much to her absolute fucking horror, she was featured in one of Galaxy Glitter's holos. Not by name, or description, or anything—but 'secret rendezvous in a closet'? Yeah, that had been her. She was so pissed with herself. She'd been worried about catching attention, and here she'd almost been outed in one of GG's blasts.
A little holo of Ben Solo as he'd looked during the Concordance day celebrations had stared back at her accusingly as she read through the gossip.
Damnit. Damnit it all to hell! She'd thought before heading to the one place where she felt safe and in control—the Starbird. Of course, it was also one of Rose's favorite haunts, but that didn't bother Rey.
Being around Rose was a kind of comfortable that she'd not realized was possible with another person. Rose was a friend who knew when to talk and when to listen and when to sit in companionable silence. It was… nice. And Rey was beginning to appreciate her friend from Hays Minor more and more.
Rose went on to describe how she and her sister, who was currently living on Arkanis, ended up sneaking onto the ship of some charming captain. And instead of getting off on the planet, they'd gone to work for the captain—and then some, for Paige. Now, her sister and the captain ran a shipping business and Rose visited as much as she could.
Rey asked her once whether she'd wanted to live with her sister, and Rose made a face and said, "The last thing I need is to live with a couple that disgustingly in love. It's great, and I'm happy for her, but it's just day in day out—lovey-dovey bullshit."
Rey had refrained from pointing out just how cute Finn and she were, but she also suspected Rose getting off of Arkanis had been more about striking out on her own than not wanting to live with her sister.
Rose, for the most part, seemed to have an easy time opening up to people. At least, once she got to know them. Rey wondered whether that came from having someone to rely on. It was hard for Rey to open up to people, but it was getting easier with friends like Rose. Still, every time Rey decided to open up, she had to ignore the feeling in her gut that told her opening up was a mistake, that it would only get her hurt or, worse, betrayed.
It was a visceral reaction, and one she felt whether it was warranted or not. She knew Rose was her friend and that she probably wouldn't use the information she shared against her, but growing up alone on Jakku kept trust from coming easy. Fortunately, Rose was a patient and caring friend. And, bit by bit, opening up became a little easier.
Taking a breath to steel herself, Rey paused in her scrubbing to ask, "You ever meet someone who just… was so wrong? And so right?"
Rose hummed thoughtfully from the other side of the partition. "Can't say I have. But I do think that love can be hard and wonderful. Doesn't have to be all one thing, you know?"
"It's not love," Rey started to sputter before realizing she was giving way too much away. Thankfully, Rose either didn't hear her or wasn't willing to press the issue until Rey wanted to talk about it.
"I mean, getting close to someone—when you've been through a lot. It's hard, right? To trust? I know, for the longest time, there was no one else in the galaxy that I trusted aside from my sister."
"So, you and Finn?"
"Gradual. We got off on the wrong foot. I shocked his ass the first time I met him."
"You what?"
"Shocked him. He was one of Maz's new hires and I'd been off-planet, so when I saw him rummaging around through the guts of the Starbird…"
Rey huffed softly. "Makes sense. When it comes to the ship, I shoot to kill."
"Naturally. Lucky for Finn, I'd set my blaster to stun. Maz sorted it all out between us, but for a while, we didn't get along."
"Can't imagine why," Rey joked.
Rose snickered. "Yeah, so sensitive, right?"
"Men, big babies. The whole lot of them," Rey commiserated before shifting to detail the console. "What changed?"
Rose laughed a little. "Well, he's handsome."
"Noted," Rey agreed.
"And, one night, we got really drunk and…"
"And?"
"And we ended up talking the whole night away in the kitchen."
Rey huffed out a little laugh. "Here I thought it was something scandalous. You two are adorable."
"Ahh, shut the hell up," Rose groused.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm glad, anyway. You two are great together."
Ben and I… We'd never be cute like that, Rey thought, glumly. And Rose seemed to be able to track where her thoughts had gone because she wasn't finished.
"Just because you might have something different with your someone," Rose lingered on the word and Rey knew she was curious about who exactly was causing her internal angst, but she wasn't going to press. "Doesn't mean it's not going to be good or maybe even better—what matters is that it makes you happy."
"Yeah, you're right," Rey agreed. So, she was fucked when it came to Ben because there was no way she'd ever be happy with him, right? He was too different, and his background was just too dissimilar to her own. It was all just such a mess. And yet, the attraction remained between them and curiosity. And that feeling of there being something more running under the surface… Just waiting to be discovered.
"I'm almost done here, how are you doing?" Rose asked, cutting into Rey's thoughts.
"Yeah, I'm about done with all of this. And starving."
"Same. Let's go get some food?"
"Read my mind."
It wasn't like she had to worry about seeing Ben again, anyway. Right? There was no rational reason why they'd end up in the same space, so she was worrying over nothing, which was something of a specialty of hers.
So, as she and Rose finished up their work, slipped off of the ship, and walked back to Maz's castle, Rey tried to forget about boys or Ben Solos or anything other than the soft rustle of the breeze, and the dewy feeling of the warm air on her skin. For now, she would stick to the plan—get some credits, save up, and then get gone. And her plan worked, for a couple of weeks, anyway.
For about two weeks, Rey was able to pretend that grinding Ben's leg in a supply closet wasn't going to have any lasting repercussions for her life. Truthfully, it wasn't the grinding that had complicated her life, but Ben's curious interest, which his ever-watchful mother had noted.
Rey had been right to suspect that the Senator didn't miss anything, and whatever she'd seen in Rey and Finn, she'd liked. And, on a perfectly normal morning, before Rey had even gotten her first cup of caf, Maz got the order that would change her life. Again.
Sitting there in Maz's kitchen, she'd taken the datapad that detailed their new assignment without really looking at it. Rey was more content to eat her way through her piping hot meal, but when she'd finally looked at the kriffing thing, she had half a mind to throw it right back at Maz and refuse.
"What the actual fuck, Maz?"
Maz had turned her head slowly, as if she couldn't believe that someone would have the nerve to swear at her in her own castle. Maz fixed that ancient gaze on Rey, adjusting her glasses as she stared. With a smile, Maz assured Rey that she knew what she was doing.
"Since when do we do regular bodyguard work?" Rey growled.
"Since it pays better than running," Maz said slowly, as if she was talking to a child and, truthfully, Rey was acting a little childish. But she was not okay with doing more bodyguard work for Ben Solo.
"And this says Leia is paying. Does Ben even know about this? Do I even get a say in any of this?"
Maz's eyebrow raised, the lines in her citrine-colored forehead crinkling as she fixed her stare on Rey. "My dear," Maz drawled, enunciating her words slowly as Rey waited for her to reveal the rest. "You were requested—personally. And if you check the payment amount, it was considerable. I cannot, in good conscience, let you make horrible financial decisions just because you find Ben Solo irresistible."
Rey blanched. "What have you heard?"
Maz's smile widened. "Nothing, precious child. But your reaction just confirmed what I've suspected. You need to learn to control your emotions better, Rey. Your face is like an unencrypted datapad sometimes. Whether Ben knows is immaterial. You're being paid for a job unless you'd like to look for work elsewhere…?"
Rey huffed. "Of course not. But I don't see why I have to do this alone."
"It's not just you. Finn got the job offer too, but he's out on a run, and I need him where he is. Now, you get to step up and show me what you're made of."
Rey rolled her eyes. "Haven't I already done that?"
"Of course, but now I get to see whether you've retained any of what I've taught you."
Rey just barely kept herself from telling Maz that she'd already learned everything that she needed to know before she'd landed on Takodana because she knew Maz was baiting her. The smug smile Maz gave her when she managed to stay silent all but confirmed it.
"Good. I know this will be a challenge, but Leia always pays her debts, and it'd be worth it to get into Ben Solo's good books. He has many powerful friends," Maz reminded Rey. She seemed to be internally working through how much money this would inevitably make her.
Pirates, Rey thought mercilessly, but credits were at the top of Rey's mind as well. As much trouble as she seemed to get into with Ben, at least the money had been good. Maybe this was a subtle push in the right direction by the galaxy? Another step in her plan to save and get the hell out of the smuggling business?
And so, Rey found herself placed as the sometimes-bodyguard of the one man in the galaxy that she didn't want to see, and also the one man in the galaxy that she wasn't able to keep out of her head.
For her first assignment, she was going to Arkanis, and Rey knew to expect rain. This meant she had to borrow some clothes from Rose as, while Takodana did get its fair share of rain, Rey had never really gotten around to preparing for it by purchasing adequate clothing. Besides, Takodana was a temperate planet, and Rey loved the feeling of warm rain against her skin.
Still, Rose was a lifesaver and had exactly what Rey needed. "This jacket should fit you. And I think your normal boots should be fine for Arkanis. I have an umbrella, but it's a combat umbrella. Will that work?"
"Do I need to ask how you managed to get your hands on a combat umbrella?"
Rose grinned. "Probably better if you didn't right now. It would take too long to explain, but I'll sum that story up with treasure hunting and a bit of raiding."
"I'll take it." Rey reasoned that you never did know when a combat umbrella would come in handy.
"You going to need anything formal this time around?" Rose asked while digging around through her dresser drawers.
Her little room was similar to Rey's except for the fact that Rose had spent the time to make it look a little more hospitable—a framed picture of Rose and Paige sat on a small bedside table, which was piled high with books. Art and artifacts from Rose's travels lined the walls. And, best of all, an incredibly thick and fluffy blanket lined her bed. Rey couldn't resist running her hands against it every time she was in Rose's room.
"I hope not," Rey replied. "The last thing I need is a formal event without Finn or you there to help me get my shit together."
Rose threw a smile and a wink over her shoulder. "What are friends for? And, besides, you always help me out whenever I need another blaster."
That was true, not that Rose needed Rey's blaster hand very often. Just a few tense standoffs, but they'd managed to get their goods and get paid. Rey and Rose didn't accept defeat easily and, together, they were practically unstoppable.
Still, it was weird to have someone who considered her a friend—both her and Finn. It wasn't something Rey was used to. It was nice to have friends, but not entirely comfortable. Life, for Rey, felt like a lot of waiting around for the other shoe to drop but, so far, things with Finn and Rose hadn't panned out like that. It was more like their shoes were firmly planted at her side while Rey stood around and tried to think of what she'd done to deserve friends at all, let alone friends she could rely on.
Rose tossed Rey some thick socks. "You'll thank me later. Arkanis isn't cold, but the damp feeling seeps into your bones at night."
"Thanks," Rey replied. She was grateful for Rose's insight and she really hated having cold feet.
"So, Ben Solo," Rose said out of nowhere, catching Rey off guard. And here, she'd thought she'd get away with not talking about him to Rose.
"And?"
"He's the only Aristo I've met that I can stand."
"So?"
"So, he's super hot and somehow you just keep managing to… run into situations where you two are on the same planet?"
"How do you know him, again?" Rey deflected, but Rose didn't take the bait.
"You know we met through my sister. It's fine if you don't want to talk about him, but I expect a full report about the event when you get back, deal?"
Rey sighed. "I'm sure it'll be just as boring as all the other Aristo events I've worked."
"Yeah, but you've never been to one where they auction off dates. I need to know how it happens—and not from a gossip holo. First hand."
"Yeah, yeah. I'll do my best."
"Good. And say 'hi' to Ben for me. It's been a while since he saved my life," Rose said, as dramatically as she could.
"I don't think someone running interference on an annoying sentient quite qualifies as life-saving," Rey drawled.
"But it's pretty close," Rose assured her. "You've never been accosted by Arkanian glitterati before, so you have no idea."
Rey did have some idea what it was like to be accosted by an Aristo, but she wasn't about to admit it. Instead, she settled on, "Thanks for the advice. I'll keep my hands to myself and, hopefully, so will everyone else."
Ben included… Rey added mentally.
With an armful of clothes from Rose, Rey wiggled her hand as best she could to say goodbye before stepping towards the exit. "I'll comm once I've landed."
"Fingers crossed it's an easy assignment for you. Oh, and Rey?"
"Hmm?" Rey paused and turned back to face her friend.
"Don't do anything I wouldn't do!"
Rey rolled her eyes. "Yeah, well. I've seen your daily routine, so I don't have much to worry about."
"Ha-ha. I have more fun than you, and we both know it," Rose called as Rey headed towards her quarters.
Rey had enough 'fun' the last time she'd gone on an assignment that ended up with her being near Ben. She was having a hard time not having 'fun' with him. That was part of the problem. Ben was fun. Too much fun. And lived a life that was so wildly different from her own that there was no way she could get in and out of 'fun' situations with Ben, without leaving a little piece of her heart as payment.
She couldn't help it. He was charming, practically irresistible, and worst of all, kind to her. It felt like he saw her as no one else did. Something was running between them that was more than just attraction, it almost felt like a compulsion and one that Rey had to fight against. But maybe Rose was right. Maybe she should have a little fun and open up a little. Not too much, but just enough, trust just a little bit, and let Ben show her all the ways he knew how to enjoy life.
Rey sighed as she pressed the panel for her door. It was a long trip to Arkanis and Leia was sending a transport, so she'd have plenty of time to think about Ben, the galaxy, and what was about to come next for her.
Here's hoping the credits roll in and I can buy my way into a new life.
And that was the thing about hope, it was small, but it burned bright in Rey's heart, despite all that had happened to her, despite how much it hurt to dream. But somehow, a feeling echoed back to her, and she wondered, not for the first time, if this was what it felt like to be walking down destiny's path.
Breaking through the atmosphere of Arkanis was strange. Rain pelted the large transport and, though she looked out one of the viewports, she couldn't see anything other than puffy clouds and streaking water.
The captain had to circle the ship around for a half an hour before getting landing clearance and, by the time they settled onto the docking bay, Rey was really ready to get off of the ship. She didn't do well with being cooped up for long, despite being a pilot who frequently went on long trips herself.
Somehow, being a passenger was way worse than flying on her own. At least, when she was in the captain's chair, she had things to distract her from how slowly time was passing. And given that she was alone in the cabin, aside from the service droid, the trip had been uneventful, to say the least.
Gathering her stuff, Rey made her way toward the back of the vessel and waited for the ramp to disengage from the side of the ship. Which, again, took longer than she'd hoped. She was practically hopping by the time the ramp cracked open with a hiss, hydraulics slowly working as the ramp descended.
Rey had been instructed to wait for a pickup at the dock. She'd expected an aide, someone like Korr or a transport droid. What she got was Ben Solo and she didn't know whether her surprise was happiness or annoyance.
He looked good because, of course, he did. Rey resisted the urge to smooth back her hair, which had been pulled into a messy braid for the trip. She was dressed casually—dark work pants, a long green poncho for the rain, work boots. Meanwhile, Ben looked like a prince.
It seemed like his day-to-day dressing was more subdued than how he dressed for events, though he suited either look. Brassy buttons gleamed against a navy, double-breasted jacket, which was left casually unbuttoned. A deep red colored shirt popped from beneath the dark fabric, while soft-looking pants flowed around his legs, almost giving the impression that he was wearing a skirt.
A wide, black and gold belt was cinched tight over the red of his shirt, and matching shoes gleamed against the duracrete ground. His hair was side-swept, left long, and curled enticingly against the collar of his jacket. Ben's eyes were lined with kohl and his lashes shimmered in the light as he stared down at her, a quizzical smile on his otherwise unadorned face.
Rey cursed herself for not bothering to put on even a little makeup, but she'd not thought that Ben, of all people, would be the one to get her from the port. She'd thought to have at least a little time before having to face him again.
That's a big fucking nope.
As she stepped down the ramp, she could feel Ben's eyes on her—not that he could see much, what with her covered up with a poncho and all. But somehow, he made it feel like he could see right through what she was wearing—like he knew exactly what she looked like without anything on at all.
It was a thrilling and possessive sort of look, felt a bit like a claiming. With anyone else, Rey would have bristled indignantly and reached for her blaster, but with Ben… Warmth suffused her body and she realized it was going to be harder than she realized to keep things professional.
Ben held out a gloved hand towards her, long fingers outstretched as she stepped off of the ship and right into his dangerous orbit.
Author's Notes! I had a shitton of work for the beginning of the month, but I have been working on this, so the next few should go up faster than this one (I promised I would work on this and I absolutely did lol). Hux is going to be in the next chapter and, while he and Ben did have something in the past, that's where it stays for this story (in case anyone was concerned, I also don't write about cheating, which I think I said in the earlier chapters, but just as a reminder—HEA only because that's all I got in me). But definitely after some sass, drama, and a DASH of unforeseen circumstances. Anyways, hope you enjoyed. Thanks for reading and for the lovely reviews. Definitely sustains me during this super weird and stressful time. Hope you're all doing ok through all of this! 3
