The next day, it was my turn to face the press. Mara had come over to my apartment to give me a 'pep' talk, which mostly consisted of warnings that all members of the press were evil-worshippers and creatures of the Dark Side. Finally, exasperated, I jokingly told her that any more warnings and she was coming with.
"Oh, come on Luke, I know you wouldn't do that to me!" she protested, her eyes sparkling with the joke.
I raised an eyebrow. "Wouldn't I?"
"You'd better not, Farmboy. I've already been worked over once."
I grinned, and pulled her in for a deep kiss. //You think once is all they'll settle for? They're going to want to talk to both of us more than once.//
//Too bad for them,// she replied firmly.
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Mara was waiting in my apartment when I got back from the interview. I wasn't upset the way she'd been, but to be fair they'd pulled a very mean stunt on her. Darth Holoreporter hadn't been quite so mean to me. But I was well and truly exhausted.
She wrapped her arms around me as soon as the door closed. "Hey Farmboy," she said softly, "how bad was it?"
"Tiring," I said honestly. "Tiring, annoying, and mostly pointless. As far as I'm concerned, that is."
"Oh really?"
It was getting very hard to concentrate on what she was saying, since she was now kissing her way down my jawline, and I found my mind heading off towards more important matters than a couple of nosy reporters. Namely, the exceptionally beautiful woman I was going to marry.
My arms had found their way around her waist, and I drew her in close, relishing in the feel of her body against mine. "I love you, Mara. Know that?"
She smiled. "Definitely know that. I," she stopped to press her lips to a sensitive spot under my ear, and I shuddered, "know just about everything you do, Farmboy. Don't forget that."
"Works two ways, Red." I kissed the base of her throat gently. She rested her head against my shoulder as I stroked her back gently.
"I wonder if we should go dig up a newscast on the tridee just to see how badly they've mangled what you told them yesterday," I said, half-jokingly.
Mara smiled at me, a smile that reminded me that I was marrying an ex-assassin. "We could also blow up the tridee. Bets?"
I laughed. "This is going to be an interesting marriage."
She pulled me into a passionate kiss. //It's also going to be a very happy one. I love you, Farmboy,// she sent to me over our bond, //and I can't imagine living without you.//
//Love you, Red.//
//Love you too.//
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"I think we need to get away from the press for a little while," I said the next day, over lunch. "Leave Coruscant, head out for a while. Leia's heading the wedding preparations, and she's got strict instructions for small and dignified, so we could be able to get away for a few weeks without causing any damage."
"You don't think the holoreporters will follow us off Coruscant?" Mara asked.
"I don't think they have to know we're leaving until we're gone," I replied. "There're no laws that say we have to tell them."
She laughed. "Devious, Farmboy. I didn't think you had anything other than all-out farmboy honesty in you."
"I must be spending too much time around devious Miss Jade," I joked.
"Well, devious Miss Jade isn't going to exist pretty soon," she replied. "She'll be devious Mrs. Skywalker."
I grinned, and reached across the restaurant table to hold her hand. "I can't wait."
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