A/N: Okay yes, I know…it has been forever! But don't hurt me or throw things at me! Just try to enjoy this new chapter. Thanks to those of you who have been giving me gentle nudges throughout my absence. You guys are amazing.

Han's alarm clock broke the peaceful scene in the back house on the ranch. Leia was curled up in Han's arms and he had his arms draped protectively around her waist. The five a.m. alarm, however, did not care how sweet of a picture they made.

"What is…" Leia started sleepily, lifting herself out of Han's arms in the semi-darkness and rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. Han reached across her and slammed his palm down on the alarm, making the beeping cease.

"That is the sound of all hell about to break loose. Shit, Leia. You are supposed to be up in your room!" Han said with panic etched across his features. They had both figured they would sleep for maybe a few hours at the most, but it hadn't worked out so neatly.

"Oh my goodness…" Leia stumbled out of bed, disoriented as Chewy woke up and started doing excited circles around Han's heels. This was the norm for them, but not only was it odd for Leia to be up before the crack of dawn, but to have woken up in someone else's bed was off-putting.

Han threw on his boots and opened the front door of the back house, looking out at the ranch and cocking a half-smile at the pretty country beauty he woke up to every morning. When Leia ducked under his arm and stood at the threshold with him, he smiled down at his second country beauty, who easily outstripped the first.

"Look, I'll help you sneak back in. Its early still and it should all be fine…" Han said confidently, as it truly seemed like their only plan. He certainly didn't want to be run off the farm with Mr. Skywalker shooting bullets at his heels.

He closed the door on Chewy and walked with Leia into the dawn, keeping close to the sides of the main house when they could until she was finally on the porch and no signs of life seemed to be stirring.

"I'm not done with you yet Leia, remember that. And don't go trying to avoid me alright?" Han asked her with a smile and she gave him a quick kiss before opened the front door as quietly as she could and snuck back into the house. Most everything was dark and she heard her father's snoring coming all the way down from the second floor, but she wasn't expecting anyone to be lingering in the kitchen just off the main hallway.

"Nice night?" Luke asked his sister as he took a long gulp of water and then turned the sink on to fill his glass back up. Leia immediately noticed that there were bruises and cuts on his face that had been covered in blood the night before.

"Don't start Luke, I was trying to help you. You can't exactly throw anything back on me when you almost got yourself killed last night!" Leia started arguing with him in a frantic whisper, not eager to wake anyone up until she figured things out. Luckily Luke's expression softened and for the first time since they had moved, he rushed towards her and embraced her in a long hug. She held her brother close to her, resting her head on his shoulder and without words tried her best to express to him that she was there for him, that she would do her best to keep him safe.

"Leia, I hate this town…" Luke said softly when he pulled away from their hug. She couldn't help but notice how sad his eyes looked.

"I do too but…"

"No, you don't understand. There's something about being here…about Dad running for Govenor that has changed so much. Don't you see that mom's not happy? Don't you see that Dad is acting like a total…"

"Luke…" Leia warned him, more out of fear that their Dad would walk down the stairs and hear anything Luke said out of anger. Luke huffed, but nodded.

"It's more than even that, though. It's about last night," Luke told her, walking over to the breakfast table by the window facing the porch and pulled out a seat for his sister. Both of the twins sat down and Luke started telling her the whole story.

"I was just trying to have a nice night with Mara. And I don't want to hear any teasing about it…but I really like her. She's a really great girl…"

"Clearly. I just like that she doesn't put up with your bullshit," Leia stifled a giggle at her brother's angry face and he reached across the table to shove his sister back by her shoulder, "Hey!"

"You asked for it Miss Sleeping With Our Old Ranch Hand," Luke rolled his eyes, all of his protective brotherly instincts on high alert.

"Oh please, he's not old. And I am an adult…now…back to the story…" she gave him a look straight out of their mother's repertoire and he continued.

"Anyway, I was meeting some of Mara's friends, introducing myself and all of that…and some hicks overheard my name and decided to come over and cause trouble. They started saying all of these lies…that they had seen Dad down at the strip club at the edge of town in the middle of the day, and that he was cheating on Mom. And that he was embezzling money given to him to fund his campaign…apparently trying to cheat against his opponent…which is ridiculous…." Luke didn't seem sure of himself even when the words came out.

"Ridiculous because he's running against one of his friends…" Leia mused, trying to figure it out. Being Governor of Texas would be a huge deal for their dad, but such a position didn't come without competition. His biggest opponent was former Mayor of South Carolina, Ben Kenobi. He was a bit older than their father and they had gone to college together. He had stopped by for dinner anytime he was in Savannah. So far, it had seemed like a friendly enough race.

"But why would some random strangers make this stuff up?" Luke wondered.

"To start a fight. They were probably looking for one, and you were an easy target," Leia tried to make up an excuse, but the whole thing seemed very dodgy. Her father was much more withdrawn lately and it was no lie that their beautiful mother was upset most of the time. Competitiveness was a trait that ran in the Skywalker family, but neither of Anakin's children ever dreamed he would take something that far.

"Maybe there is bad blood between him and Ben now, I don't know," Luke was off in his own pensive world, trying to reason it out. His fingers found one of his cuts on his forehead and touched it tenderly, wincing.

"Those look like they hurt," Leia said softly, getting up to grab some ice from the fridge and wrap it in a kitchen towel for him, "I can see why you weren't eager to tell Dad. If you can keep yourself out of sight until we can heal those up a little, I won't say a word."

"Thanks Leia, and consider the whole Han thing water under the bridge, okay? But only if he can give me a lift downtown to the bank? Those guys took all of my stuff last night after the fight…" Luke shrugged sheepishly and Leia promised he would. After a few more moments, Luke and Leia crept back upstairs and feigned sleep until their parents woke.

~o0o~

Leia was brushing down Princess with Chewy lying lazily in the shade of a nearby tree when the cloud of dust coming up the long driveway signaled that Han and Luke were back from town that afternoon. She gave Princess a loving pat on the nose before setting the brush down and running over to the truck as it pulled up by the barn. Luke hopped out first, and she noticed his longer blonde hair was pushed over his forehead in such a way to hide some of the bruising. She also was glad to see that Han didn't look too pissed having had to spend his afternoon running errands.

"All taken care of boys?" Leia asked, hoping they hadn't bitten each other's heads off during the process.

"Mostly. Got a replacement for my ID and convinced him to stop by Mara's so I could apologize…"

"Boy's whipped," Han rolled his eyes but gave Luke a very brotherly glance as he sauntered over to Leia and took her in his arms, "I've had as much as I can take of you today Luke…" he said over his shoulder at her brother.

"I see when I'm in the way," Luke laughed and with a snap of his fingers and a whistle, had Chewy following him back up to the house. Han put his arms around Leia's waist and picked her up with ease, setting her down to sit on the trestle fence.

"Now, where exactly were we?" he grinned and kissed her slowly. She leaned into him and enjoyed the sweet way they connected, blushing when they pulled apart.

"I think we were realizing how complicated all of this is. I also think you mentioned not wanting me to leave…and I'm still reeling that I lost my virginity to someone like you," Leia replied with playfulness in her voice.

"Me? What's wrong with me?" he laughed.

"You are just a rogue who will fall out of love with me in an instant," she smiled up at him, but the slightest bit of doubt in her heart had compelled her to say it.

"Not a chance, princess. Now, let's get the other Princess saddled up and take a ride. I think we could both clear our heads after what Luke told me about your Dad," Han suggested, helping her down from her perch and walking into the barn. Although Leia was happy that Luke had opened up to the older man and knew Han could probably help shed light on the situation, she had hoped for a more carefree day with the guy she was falling for.

A/N: Short, I know, but reviews are always welcomed!