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Luke and Mara were still not willing to risk going out the following day. Han and Leia woke up late and spent the day like real tourists. They bought souvenirs in all the shops, tried on all the funny hats, and even took an old fashioned cart up the coast.

They had dinner together that evening and danced pressed together until well after midnight. He walked her to her door and bid her goodnight, just as the night before.

When he made it to his room, Han quickly put on his sleeping pants and climbed into bed. He didn't feel like watching anything on the holo, so he tried to go to sleep. He tossed and turned for about half an hour when this comm rang. He reached to the bedside table for the device.

"Hello."

"Han," a soft voice murmured.

He sat up. "Sweetheart." He mimicked her tone.

"I can't sleep."

"Did ya try counting banthas?"

"No. My mind is rather occupied and I'm not really tired, so I wondered if you were still up?"

"Hum, well I'm actually sleeping and you're listening to a recording."

"Very funny. Do you like gin?"

"The drink or cards? Actually, doesn't matter. The answer is yes to both."

"Well I only have cards here, but if you can find another kind of gin, bring it over along with yourself."

He grinned. "See you in a minute."

He sat up in bed and slid into a shirt, a budding smile gracing his face as he did up the buttons. Cards would be nice. There was no way he was getting sleep any time soon, so they might as well pass the time. Never mind the fact that he wanted to see her again.

It was going on 2 in the morning as he walked out of his room. The sea air was chilly and he crossed the court heard to her room a few doors down. He knocked quickly pacing from one foot to the other, both from nerves and from the chill.

Leia opened her door and he quickly snuck through.

He gave her a sideways grin that never failed to get her heart pumping. "Hey, there."

"Hello, Han." She gestured for him to walk in further.

"Sweetheart, no wonder you can't sleep, you have all the lights on."

She followed him in. "Well aren't we in good humor tonight." She gave him a teasing glare. In truth, she was happy just spending time with him.

He gave her a once over. She didn't look sleepy at all, face flushed and eyes bright. She donned a purple silk robe which hit just above her knees He knew she had to have something on underneath, but it must have been completely hidden by the robe because he could see the skin of her chest all the way to where the robe met just above her breasts.

"Alright, the cards are over there." She set the deck up on the small chaise since there wasn't a table. And, good heavens, she would never put them on the bed.

They each sat on an end as he grabbed the deck. "Are you sure you don't wanna play sabacc?"

"Nope," she said immediately, crossing her legs on the chaise. "You've cleared out enough of the Alderaanian fortune over the years through our sabacc games."

He grinned and dealt them each 10 cards. "Do you want to place any bets on this game?"

Leia quickly shook his head again as she picked up her cards. "Hells no. I'm tired of losing to you."

He quirked his lips, placing down the draw pile. "If, I remember correctly you won the last bet."

She brought her eyes to him. "Oh I remember. One doesn't easily forget seeing you naked in the middle of the ocean."

He licked his lips to bring some moisture to his dry mouth. "Oh yea…"

She shrugged illusively as she drew a card and placed one down.

"And…" Han put his own card down as he spoke, slowly, hoping he could rile her up. "What would it take to get you out there, naked in the middle of the ocean?"

She chuckled with the confidence of someone with the winning hand. "Oh honey."

Honey, it slipped out.

She swallowed, taking her turn as she tried to concentrate on their game. "Not as much as you might think…"

He felt the temperature in the room go right to boiling. "I'll keep that in mind." He discarded again.

She took her next turn and noticed him shifting in his seat. "Are you picturing me naked in the ocean right now."

He caught her eye, his jaw slightly open as he answered. "What would make you think that?"

She held her cards down and turned her focus to her sparring partner. "Because I know you."

He lifted his eyes and started swatting his hand around his head. "Get out of my mind you sneaky Jedi."

She shook her head. "Don't have to. Your left eye twitches when you're concentrating on something."

"And who says I'm not concentrating on whooping your ass at gin?"

She squinted her eyes at him and shook her head. "I'm not even concentrating on the game anymore."

"Humph." She had him. He turned his gaze back to the mess of cards in his hand. Now that Han had a good look, he arranged them quickly. "Hey! Gin!"

"You're kidding! Really?"

He laid down his cards for Leia to see.

She quickly inspected. "You're right! How did that happen?" She laughed through her euphoric smile.

"Sweetheart," His laughter joined in. "I have no idea."

Their guffaws cut off when their eyes met. They were beyond their boiling point. Neither could breathe as the other's gaze seeped into their pores. Nothing had ever felt so right. Her eyes roamed to his lips and he needed no further invitation to lean into her. Their lips drew closer and closer together.

His warm breath was the first thing she felt. She drew in an audible gasp before his lips locked on her upper lip. He lingered there for a moment before he felt her lips open and close around his. He mirrored her actions, sinking deeper into their kiss and pressed a hand to her lower back, bringing them closer together. Their kiss was long and gentle, reassuring the other that this is what they wanted.

He felt the power of lust building inside of him, but he was able to hold it back until her tongue snuck through and tentatively explored his mouth. Without any more hesitation, he snaked his arms around and pulled her body into his, both of their mouths locking in a deep caress.

Cards be damned, he used his weight to press her into the back of the chaise, cards falling and bending under their combined weight. Her arms traveled up his chest, around his broad shoulders, and to his thick, tan hair where she tugged him even closer. He let his weight rest on top of her and moved his hands to fondle any part of her he could touch.

The feeling of him over her, his weight, his hands, his mouth, made her short of breath. She turned her head to the side and tried to bring oxygen, or sense, back into her brain. He continued to burn her with his kisses down her jaw, neck, and chest.

"Oh Han," she gasped. "What happened to us?"

She flashed back to the moment they first met, 10 years ago when she was ordering him into a garbage chute, taking over her own rescue. From their time bickering all through Hoth, to their first kiss on the Falcon. Their wartime adventures and their wartime romance. They were inseparable, sharing a bed, a life, dreams of the future.

Han brought his kisses back up to her face. "I wanted to be with you, Sweetheart. So much."

"I wanted you too," she whimpered, eyes boring into his.

Her confession made him stop his ministrations and he propped himself to hover over her. "Leia, I came to you, I wanted you so badly I could taste it. And I find Isolder at your feet." He felt bile rise in his throat at the memory. "And you didn't say no to him."

She sat up, not at all agreeing with that recollection. "I did no such thing! I said nothing to Isolder." She tried to speak evenly, but Han's accusation hurt.

"That's not what I remember." He stood up, now feeling agitated and needing to move.

"Then what do you remember?" She questioned, folding her arms from her seat perched on the edge of the chaise.

He turned to her. "I remember you being enchanted by him, everyone was! He was a prince after all. A perfect match for the New Republic's prized Princess!"

"Han I was upset." She interrupted, trying desperately hard to regulate her temper. "I didn't want him, he was pushed down my throat. I didn't want him."

"Then why not take me!" He was breathing heavily. "I asked you to come with me…"

"And I couldn't run away with you like some thief in the night." She wished she would have chosen other words as she saw his stung reaction. "I asked you to wait…"

He paced through the entire room before interrupting. "What that the real reason you turned me down? Was I not good enough for you? Could I not provide a luxurious lifestyle for you? Was I not good enough for your public charade? Why Leia?"

She yelled back, with fury in her eyes. "I was torn…."

"Ha! You're never scared of making a decision."

"Oh, but I was!" She continued. "I was scared of the future, scared of making the wrong decision for this fragile government." She paused. "And I couldn't run away…"

"What? That's ridiculous."

"I tried to explain how I felt. We were still rebuilding an entire government structure, with an unstable future." She swallowed before continuing. "And you and I… we were so… passionate. Gods I couldn't think straight. We kept out relationship such a secret… I don't even think Luke had a clue."

Han thought for a moment and nodded. The number of people who had known the extent of their relationship was very limited, and Luke was probably none the wiser.

"The entire republic wanted me to do one thing and I wanted to do the other…" She couldn't think of all the reasons that had been running through her mind back then. "I couldn't just run away and leave my responsibilities! I needed to work through this."

Han couldn't make sense of anything anymore. He turned to her. "I asked you to marry me…"

"And I asked you to wait for me." Their voices calmed as they stood opposite each other.

"Really, Leia?" His eyes turned from fire to water. "Because I would have waited." Instead, he ran, alone. He left her.

She nodded her head sadly, still short of breath from their kiss and their fight. "When you left…" she paused. "I had no reason not to accept Isolder."

He let that sink in before his own confession came out. "I ran away…" he admitted slowly. "I left for Corellia where I found Qi'ra. She got pregnant and I felt like I had to marry her." He shook his head. "It was a sorry coincidence that my major clients are now based out of Coruscant." He thought about his nagging dilemma, asking himself if he could bear to live that close to her. "I couldn't stand to see you with him."

She shuttered, turned to the window. "We've both been so angry with each other." She let out a frustrated huff. "I was so angry with you that I almost forgot how much I loved you."

Han exhaled. "You loved me?"

She turned around, not sure if she was ready for that to come out of her mouth. "You know I did… so much," she eventually admitted.

He stepped cautiously closer to her. "And how do you feel now?"

"I think…" She looked into his eyes coming closer and closer. She was helpless to the feeling he stirred inside her. "I think I am falling in love with you all over again."

He heard her words and let them wash over him, like a salve to his soul. Feeling his eyes sting, he reached out a tentative hand and wrapped it gently around her waist. "I think…" he brought his other hand to her cheek, briefly running his thumb down her cheek. "I think my love for you never died."

And each were lost in the other's caress.

Their lips met in a warm kiss full of deep affection. It was as if time lifted. They went back 6 years, before they were married, before they met their spouses. They were just Han and Leia, one, together.

Love never dies. Love never falters. Once it has spoken, love is yours.