At the end of the evening Mara and Luke had two exhausted little boys on their hands. They had played nonstop until dinner. After their meal Mara put in a children's holo into the projector for the kids to watch. Less than halfway through the film she discovered both boys asleep.

She went to the galley and found Luke drinking a hot chocolate. "They are both asleep. I set up the second bunk in Darik's room for Ben. Can you help me bring them to the cabin?"

Luke smiled brightly. "Sure." They went to the recreation room and each picked up their sons slowly and gently so not to awaken them. They were carried to the room and tucked into their bunks. Mara made sure the nightlight was on and softly closed the door. She turned to see Luke staring at her with a besotted look on his face.

"What?" she asked.

Luke's smile widened. "I am just amazed at how good of a mother you are."

A teasing smile touched her lips. "Are you amazed because you didn't think a former assassin could be loving, or did Darik astound you with stories about my incredible parenting skills." She chuckled as she turned and walked toward her cabin.

"Definitely the latter…I always knew you were loving." Luke proclaimed as he followed her. " In fact you are the most lovable former assassin I know."

She turned and gave him a faintly amused expression. "Skywalker, are you flirting with me?"

A surprised look crossed Luke's face…as if he just realized that was exactly what he was doing. "I'm sorry Mara. It's been a while since I had a good day."

She laughed. "Don't be sorry, you turn such a cute shade of red when embarrassed."

A wide smile bloomed across his face. "Darik said you thought I was cute."

She looked at him in stunned disbelief. "He said what?"

Mara didn't think it was possible, but Luke's grin grew wider. "He told me you said he was cute like his father…I assume you were referring to me."

The color deepened in her cheeks as she shook her head. "What else did he tell you, or do I even want to know?"

He looked up at the ceiling in thought. "You may not want to know." He then burst out in laughter.

Mara tried to be mad at the man, but she couldn't. It was good to see him happy again. Her features soften and she laughed with him. "Come on in," she gestured to her room. "Let's talk."

.

Luke and Mara sat on opposite ends of her bed swapping parenthood stories. Although Luke knew it was probably not a good idea, Mara had brought out a bottle of wine that they were now sharing. He hesitated to take the alcohol for a moment remembering what happened the last time they were alone drinking together, but then he realized he really didn't mind what happened. In fact, he wouldn't mind if it happened repeatedly.

Mara's head flew back in laughter as one of Luke's comments. "You were Mister Mom in your household?"

Luke shrugged. "As a baby, Ben seemed to have a propensity to vomit on Callista whenever she held him. She didn't find it as endearing as I did."

Mara smirked. "I find Ben puking on Callista very endearing."

"I meant I didn't mind it when Ben did it to me." Luke said with a chuckle. He took another sip of his wine and then looked at his beautiful companion over the edge of his glass.

He loved the way she looked when she laughed. Her reddish gold hair would move around her shoulders seductively and the heave of her breast was intoxicating. He remembered their one night together; it was burned into his memory. She held nothing back from him and he was brought to heights of pleasure he didn't think possible. The intertwining of the Force senses between lovers was powerful and electrifying…and it something he never shared with his soon-to-be ex-wife, Callista.

She was a total void in the Force. Sex with her wasn't like making love to a non-Force user. Gaeriel Captison wasn't a Force sensitive, but Luke could still feel her feelings and emotions when they were together…but with Callista there wasn't even that. She was a complete blank; he imagined it was like making love to a human replica droid.

Since Callista left him he found himself thinking about that night in Mara's arms more and more. He wondered what his life would be like if she had stayed. Would he have left her to marry a pregnant Callista? If he didn't know about Mara's pregnancy, he might have felt pressured to do so. Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru raised him by a strict moral code. He would have felt duty bound to provide an intact family for his unborn child. But despite his upbringing, he probably wouldn't have been able to tear himself away from this beautiful redhead.

He didknow he would have immediately proposed to Mara if he found about her pregnancy first…and not just out of a sense of duty. The trouble was…he wasn't sure she would have agreed to marry him. She was more pragmatic. She wouldn't rush into marriage as foolishly as he did. Still, he wondered what prompted Mara to make love to him that night so long ago.

He didn't know if it was the liquid courage affecting him, but he suddenly blurted out a question that was burning in his mind all day. "Did you tell Darik you loved me?"

Mara stopped laughing and sat silent. She closed her eyes and grimaced. "He told you that?"

"Yes."

She looked up at Luke. "You have to understand, he was asking about his father. What should I have told him?"

He stared at her. "Was what you said true?"

She got up off the bed and put her glass of wine away on her desk. "Luke, it's getting late." When she turned around Luke was only centimeters from her.

"Mara, tell me. Is it true?"

"Your drunk, Skywalker." When she pushed him towards the door something in Luke snapped. He scooped her up in his arms and kissed her. She resisted for a moment but then melted into his embrace and returned the kiss. When they broke apart he looked at her expectantly, hoping above all else that she didn't reject him.

She shook her head. "Luke, you may have signed the paperwork, but you are still officially married until the Magistrate makes the final decree. I am not going to get involved with a married man. Anyway, the ink isn't even dry on the divorce papers…you're on the rebound."

Luke nodded sadly. "That's true, but my marriage was over a long time ago. She's abandoned Ben and me and has been gone for two months. Before that she was distant and always out of the apartment. More than a few times I found Ben home alone and she was nowhere to be found." His head drooped dejectedly. "I guess she was with him…she always had an excuse and I always believed her like the naïve farmboy I am."

"It's not naive to trust your spouse. That's the one person you should trust." She looked at him sadly. "Luke, I'm sorry you're hurting, but we can't jump into a relationship to escape reality. We have to look at the big picture. This situation involves more than just you and me. We have children to consider."

Luke felt a bit embarrassed. He was thinking of himself and not how a relationship with Mara would affect Ben. "You're right. No matter what's transpired, Ben will probably always hope his parents will get back together."

"Darik will probably be thrilled to learn you are his biological father, but when it comes to the future, he is going to be torn as to who he wants to be with. He has spent five years bonding with Talon. He may not be the father, but Talon loves Darik. We need to consider his desire to stay connected with the boy he helped raise."

Luke massaged his temples with his fingers. "Gods Mara, this is going to be more complicated than I thought."

She put her hand on his shoulder. "Not if we go slow and let the children adjust. As for the adults…we need to find out if Callista is going to change her mind and request joint custody. We would need to find a way to keep Talon connected with Darik." She gazed into his eyes. "Luke this is going to be a very slow process."

Luke's spirit was buoyed by the fact that Mara was talking about their future. She was correct though. Why should Luke think that Ben would be happy at all about somebody replacing his mother? And no matter how much Ben got along with Darik, he was bound to have some jealousy issues when it came to sharing his father with anybody else. They would have to proceed cautiously.

"Now get out of here, before we do something we'll regret." Mara opened her cabin door and pointed down the hall. "Your room is the last cabin on the left."

Luke turned to her and smiled. "You never answered my question."

Mara's eyes narrowed and Luke could feel her agitation through the Force, but then something loosened within her and she gave him a relaxed grin. "It's slightly true."

He couldn't help but smile. "You love me a little bit."

She smirked and held her finger and thumb apart about 4 centimeters. "Just a little." She averted her eyes nervously. "You are the father of my son, I can't help but have some feelings." She looked up at him her green eyes gazing deeply into his blue. "We will always be connected through Darik and for some bizarre reason, I think we have a connection through the Force. It's like it's always pushing us together."

Luke felt a powerful upwelling of emotion. He reached out to her wanting to feel her in his arms again, but she held up her hands warning him off.

"When your divorce is final, Luke. What's gotten into you?"

He reached out and grasped her hand bringing it to his chest. "You got into me. You've found your way into my heart."

He was a bit crestfallen when she laughed out loud. "I'm sorry Luke, that is just the corniest line I have ever heard." She stopped laughing and looked at him sincerely. "When you are a free man we can continue this conversation."

He reigned in the overpowering reactions she produced within him and gave her a gentle smile. "Thank you Mara…and I love you too…at least this much." He held out his hands about twenty-five centimeters apart.

She laughed as she pushed him out the door. "You're incorrigible."

"I know," he chuckled as he reluctantly turned and walked down to the cabin assigned to him.