I want to thank all of you for your very kind reviews. It makes me very happy to have this story be so well received. I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as you have enjoyed the previous chapters.

Chapter 3

Anakin Skywalker was sleeping, truly sleeping, for the first time in months. There were no dreams to plague him and instill fear in his heart. There was only a deep sense of peace the likes he had never known. Beside him Padmé shifted closer, her arm tightening around him as she tossed one graceful leg over his, a tiny sigh of contentment leaving her parted lips. Nothing could bother them as they lay wrapped within the cocoon of their intertwined limbs and warm blankets.

And then the insistently shrill chirping of Anakin's comlink disturbed the silence, muffled as it was beneath the layers of his clothing.

Anakin stirred first, accustomed to waking to the sound, and started to move towards it. He froze and came fully awake when he heard the soft murmur of disappointment that came from Padmé's lips as her arm refused to let go of him. Awareness came crashing into him and he found himself wondering just what he had done to be blessed with this moment.

"Ani," she mumbled her voice still thick with sleep.

He felt his heart clench in his chest at the wonder of it all and the sound of his name on the lips of the woman he loved, the first word she uttered in her transition from sleep. As carefully as he could he moved out from under her, letting her curl up in the warmth he left behind on the sheets. Another disappointed murmur left her lips as she tried to get comfortable again.

He moved from the bed and dove for his clothes, rummaging through the pile until he found his belt and fumbled with the pouch that held his comlink. "Skywalker here," he finally answered, his voice hushed.

"Master Kenobi has come out of his healing trance and is requesting your presence Padawan Skywalker," the voice on the other end informed him.

"Is he all right? How are his injuries?" Anakin asked quickly, and then he grimaced at how loud his voice sounded.

"I will speak with you when you arrive to see your Master. If you would please hurry, Master Kenobi's conscious state will not hold for long, he still needs more time immersed within the Force."

"Of course," he answered already pulling his pants on. "I'll be right there."

From her place on the bed Padmé was enjoying the unintentional show Anakin put on in his haste to get dressed again. She would have had to be blind not to find him strikingly attractive and she felt her cheeks heat at the sudden wave of desire that swept through her. She forced herself to take a deep breath in an attempt to stem the tide and in the process drew his attention back to her.

He stopped midway through pulling one of his boots on, his tunics on but hanging open and his belt swung over one shoulder. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you," he said.

"It's kind of hard not to wake up when your pillow is taken away," she teased as she sat up, clutching the sheet to her chest.

"Sorry," he mumbled again and she felt certain that if the lights had been on she would have seen his cheeks blush. He finished pulling his boots on and started straightening his tunics enough to wrap his belt around his waist and hold them in place.

"Obi-Wan's awake," she said, taking pity on him and changing the topic.

"For now. He's asking for me so I have to get down there before he gets put under again," he said.

"I understand," she said.

"I doubt I'll be gone long," he said. "But you should try to go back to sleep, I'm sure the healers would agree that rest is the best thing for you right now."

"Of course," she agreed, then with a laugh she added, "You sound like my mother."

He smiled in the dark though he knew she couldn't see it and leaned over to kiss her sweet lips briefly before he left the room. He hurried through the halls of the transport and made his way to the medical bay in record time, or at least he wanted to say record time.

Barriss Offee emerged from the room Obi-Wan was being kept in when she felt Anakin's presence enter the medical ward. He looked utterly exhausted and she regretted asking him to come down to see his Master, she should have just let him sleep. But as he drew closer to her she sensed something different about him, where he was usually a jumble of confusing emotions now he was surprisingly calm, almost centered.

"I am sorry to bring you down here," she said when he finally reached her. "He was asking to see you and I did not think about the possibility that you were sleeping."

"It doesn't matter," he said dismissively, silently praying that she didn't feel Padmé's presence surrounding him the way he was certain it was. "How is he?"

"He will be fine given time and rest," she said. "The burn damage to his leg can be healed once we return to the Temple and the burn on his shoulder is already healing."

"Good," he sighed, running an agitated hand through his hair.

"Your own injuries have been treated I trust?"

"Yeah, I saw a droid an hour ago, it said there was nothing to worry about."

"You're bleeding."

"What?"

"Your head, it's bleeding," she said, reaching up with a swab of gauze to wipe the blood away. "You hit your head on the rocks in the cave, I believe I am correct. They did not heal that wound."

"I'll be fine, it'll heal on its own," he said dismissively. "I'd like to see my Master now, that's why I was called down here after all."

"Of course. He is on a heavy sedative, it was the only way we could get him to stay still long enough to begin healing his wounds. Your Master is as cooperative as you are," she teased

"Where do you think I get it from?" he shot back, a small grin playing at the corners of his mouth.

"Go, just do not expect him to be himself right now."

He nodded his head and made his way into the small sterile room that Obi-Wan occupied. His Master was sitting up but his head was listing to the side and his eyes were drooping. He cautiously stepped closer to the bed, not sure how to make his presence known in this situation.

"Anakin," Obi-Wan said, his voice was thick and slightly slurred.

"How are you feeling Master?" he asked, stopping at the foot of the bed.

"Like I faced a Sith Lord," Obi-Wan tried to joke. "I trust that you went to see a healer while I was under?"

"I did, but I suffered only minor injuries."

"And the Senator?"

"She has gone through a bacta treatment to begin healing her back and is resting in the quarters provided for her."

"I apologize if you were resting."

"I would have come no matter what I was doing Master," he said, praying that his Master didn't suspect that he had been sleeping in the Senator's bed. "The Senator was kind enough to offer me the couch in her quarters. She wished to have someone she knew close by after everything."

"Of course."

"Is that all, Master?"

"I want you to know how proud I am, Anakin," he said. "You did very well today and you proved to me yet again how much you have grown in the years I have been teaching you. I will speak to the Council and request you be granted permission to take your trials."

"Thank you Master."

Obi-Wan smiled but the drugs were already beginning to take effect again. "Get some rest Anakin," he said softly as he closed his eyes and settled back into his bed.

Anakin left the room feeling better about everything now that he had been granted Obi-Wan's vote of confidence. He made his way back to the quarters he was sharing with Padmé and quietly let himself in, pleased by the silence that greeted him. He undressed quickly and slid back into the warm bed, pulling her compliant body against him as he spooned himself around her. With a soft kiss against her bare shoulder he settled in and let sleep retake him.

She felt him against her back, his warmth seeping into her as he held her close when she woke again. This time it was the throbbing pain in her back that had pulled her from her peaceful dreams. She flexed her fingers against his where their hands lay intertwined near her chest above the blankets. She didn't want to move but her back was demanding attention.

"Anakin," she said softly, squeezing his hand. He mumbled softly and then settled even closer to her. "Anakin, wake up." Still nothing. Taking a deep breath she rolled over as fast as she could and came face to face with a peacefully sleeping Anakin.

She watched him sleep in the dim light of the room, marveling at how innocent he looked. She had always thought he was handsome but in that moment she admitted to herself that he was beautiful. A tentative hand rose to trace the surprisingly graceful lines of his face before she could stop it. He was temptation itself brought to life in the body of some young god. He stirred at her touch and then slowly opened his eyes.

"Padmé," he mumbled, "Am I dreaming?"

"No love," she replied with a smile. "This is very real."

He smiled in awe and then leaned in to kiss her sweet lips, finding an impossible amount of joy in the freedom to do so. "I can't believe it," he said softly.

"Ani," she said gently, her hand curving along his jaw as she looked into his eyes. "The healer told me to replace the bandages on my back every few hours and I was hoping you would help me with them."

"Of course," he said quickly.

"I had them bring some bandages up from the medical ward before I went to find you," she explained. "They should be in the fresher."

He kissed her again for good measure and then leapt from the bed to retrieve the supplies, using the Force to illuminate the room again. She wondered fleetingly if anyone had ever made a pair of undershorts look so good. And then he was returning, offering her generous view of his wonderfully sculpted torso, all rippling muscles and golden skin. The sight made her ache with longing but she was determined to wait until she could have him in a proper bed where they weren't surrounded by numerous Jedi.

He smiled shyly at her as he sat down beside her and she rolled onto her stomach as he nervously pushed the blanket down until it rested over the small of her back. He held his breath as her back was revealed to him, marred as it was by the long strips of bacta patches that covered it. In all honesty the dress she had worn when he first kissed her had revealed far more skin but this time it was different in every possible way.

She gasped softly when he gently touched her shoulder, warm fingers ghosting over her shoulder blade and down her back until he reached her first bandage. He pulled it up as gently as he could, using the Force to keep it from hurting her too much. His throat constricted at the sight of the long angry gash. He proceeded to remove the other bandages until she lay there with all of her back exposed and he could see just how truly close he had come to losing her.

His hands were steady and gentle as he applied the fresh strips after he cleaned the wounds, smoothing them over her skin with a reverence she had never experienced before. When the last one hand been applied and smoothed out she felt him leave her side to return the supplies to the fresher. She didn't move and smiled again when he rejoined her on the bed.

Suddenly she gasped sharply when she felt his lips on her tender flesh, kissing his way along the wounds he had just tended to. In an instant his act of tender caring had turned into unexpected seduction.

"Anakin," she breathed, intending to warn him gently and instead it came out as a breathless sigh.

"I love you," he whispered into her ear, his warm chest hovering just above her back.

She turned her head just enough to meet his lips, sighing her pleasure as they moved together so perfectly. His hands found their way to her should and began a slow kneading of the tight muscles there, working out every knot with skilled fingers. His hands were warm and calloused against her skin, making her burn with every touch.

"I want you," she whispered against his lips.

"I thought you said…"

"Keep touching me like that and to hell with what I said," she replied.

And then his hands were gone and he was pulling away from her as if she had burned him. She opened her eyes to find him sitting on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands and his back turned to her.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled dejectedly.

She moved as quickly and gingerly as she could, pressing herself to his back as her arms slipped around him. "There is nothing to apologize for Anakin," she told him softly from where her chin rested on top of his shoulder.

"I shouldn't push you."

"You aren't pushing me," she insisted as she kissed his cheek. "We desire each other and it is never easy to hold off what we desire."

He sighed heavily and hung his head. "I don't want to disappoint you."

"Ani." Her voice was warm and gentle. "Being with you could never disappoint me."

"But I've never…"

She smiled at his innocence. "I've never been with a man."

"Really?"

"I've never wanted anyone the way I desire you."

"But you're so beautiful…"

"So are you," she replied, smiling at the blush that tinged his cheeks at her compliment. "I've never felt this way with anyone else."

He glanced at her, growing nervous again. "You want me to be your first?"

"And preferably only," she said. "Now come back to bed, its hours still until we reach Coruscant."

He let her pull him back under the covers, smiling when she curled around him. He pulled her closer to his side and she sighed contentedly against his chest. Her hand moved to rest over his heart and he placed his own over hers to keep it there, wanting nothing more than to never move from this spot again.