Chakotay opened his eyes to the dark room and sensed it was early morning. The corner of his mouth lifted when he felt Kathryn's weight against his side. He knew that last night had not been a dream, because even his dreams had never come close to the raw emotion and passion he and Kathryn had shared when their bodies joined. He remembered the soft sheen of her pale skin, the flush that rose over her chest when she neared her climax, and the little moans and cries that voiced her pleasure at his intimate touch.

He'd given himself to her, body and soul, as they claimed each other, his need to feel the pulse of life within her fueled by conviction that no one would take her away from him. Two nights earlier, he had slept for the first time with his love in his arms; this night he had slept with his lover in his arms, and his heart was both infinitely freer and more completely bound than ever to this woman beside him, his Kathryn.

He pressed his lips softly to her forehead lying on his shoulder, only then noticing that his arm was tingling. He tried to ease his arm from under her head, and she sighed against his chest. He stilled and asked, "Did I wake you?"

"No, I've been lying here trying not to wake you. I've been thinking about everything that's happened."

"I was thinking about last night," he said as his fingertip trailed down the bridge of her nose.

"Mmm, that, too," she said, her voice husky as she reached for his hand to hold it to her cheek.

"It's still dark out. What time is it?"

"About 0400," she answered. "I couldn't sleep anymore."

"Neither can I. My arm is asleep, though."

She lifted her head so he could move it and rubbed her hands briskly up and down his muscles. "Is that better?"

"Mmm, that feels good. If I go back to sleep, will you rub me all over?"

She giggled and kissed his cheek. "I could, but I would prefer that you be awake for that."

He turned over to face her and pressed his lips to her forehead.

She tucked her head under his chin and snuggled closer. "Thank you, Chakotay."

"For what?"

"For loving me. For wanting me still and coming back to me. I didn't know how much I needed you in my life until you were gone."

"I've always wanted you, and I will always love you."

She slid her leg over his and rolled on top of him. She kissed him briefly and asked, "You know what else I need?"

He wrapped his arms over her and replied, "What do you need, my love?"

"Coffee."

He laughed and slid his hands to the small of her back. "I should have known that what I was thinking was too good to be true."

She giggled and kissed his neck. "I need other things, too, after I've had a few more hours to recover. I'm not young anymore, you know."

"Did I hurt you?" he asked with concern.

"No, love. I'm a little sore, is all. Don't tell me you're not?"

He chuckled. "Okay, maybe a little. I think I used muscles in my legs that I forgot I had."

She lightly traced the pattern above his brow and stared into his deep brown eyes. "Then I'll have to remind you of them again later."

He growled as he rolled her over and nuzzled under her ear. "One more reason to keep you alive," he said.

"And what are the others?" she teased.

He cradled her face between his hands and said, "I love you. I can't live without you. I plan to grow old with you."

"Those sound like serious reasons."

"I've never been more serious about anyone, Kathryn, if you'll have me."

"In my heart and in my life. Pursuing this relationship in the middle of a fight for our lives would not have been my first choice, but it seems like par for the course for us."

"When this is over, I'm taking you out on our first real date."

She laughed. "We went about this whole relationship thing a bit backward, didn't we?"

He combed his fingers through her hair and gently kissed her. "Maybe, but it feels right."

"Yes, it does," she sighed.

He gathered her in a hug, holding her tightly for a moment before sitting up. "Let's see how good that replicator is at making coffee," he said.

"I like the way you think, Commander Chakotay," she quipped as she stood up and stretched.

He chuckled and eyed the way her T-shirt tightened over her nipples with her stretch. "Satin, I think," he said.

"Excuse me?"

"Your new nightgowns. They should definitely be satin."

"Oh? What color should they definitely be?"

"Anything but black."

She winced at the memory of the deadly snake and then laughed at her own reaction. "Yes, anything but black."

They sat at the small table in the kitchenette to drink their coffee. As they were finishing, Kathryn said, "I wonder if anyone else is up?"

Chakotay eyed her. "If I know the crew, a torpedo will have to be launched at us before anyone dares to knock on the door or comm us. Harkin did say he would contact us only when he had news. I don't like having to wait for somebody else to let us know what's going on or what they've found out."

"Neither do I. There were times on Voyager when I would have given anything to have the support of the Federation and Starfleet. Now that we have it, I want to tell them to butt out and let us take care of everything."

"At least we have some of our crew with us now and can make our own plans. Something tells me we're going to need our team."

"I think you're right. We aren't out of danger yet." She got up from the table. "Why don't we get dressed and have a look around? We didn't get to explore this place much yesterday."

He followed her into the bedroom and suddenly felt a bit awkward about dressing in front of her. Really, Chakotay? he thought to himself. You weren't nervous last night. He realized that after being by her side for almost eight years, they still had many firsts to experience together. He glanced at Kathryn and noticed she was looking a bit shy, as well. He grinned at her and they both chuckled. He deliberately remained facing her as he pulled off the shirt he had slept in and tossed it into the refresher bin.

"Right," she said and followed his lead. She turned to her bag and began taking out her clothes for the day, and he did the same. Within a couple of minutes, they were side by side in the bathroom, brushing their teeth and washing up. They flowed effortlessly around each other as they went through their morning routines, settling in seamlessly together as if they had been doing it for years. When they were dressed and ready for the day, he faced her and smiled.

"That went well," he chuckled.

"I think so, too," she said as she leaned into him for a kiss. "As well as we already know each other, it's the mundane daily routines we have to learn together. On the ship, and even on New Earth, we were careful to keep a lot of things private."

He trailed the back of his fingers down her cheek. "Yes, we did. I don't want that kind of privacy anymore, Kathryn. I want to share every part of your life, no matter how inane."

"Me, too, and we will form new routines together." She hugged him and laid her head on his chest for a moment. Straightening up again, she led the way to the door to explore the home and see who else was awake.

Chakotay and Kathryn walked quietly down the hallway, his hand on the small of her back, toward the sitting room they had been in yesterday. The lights had been left on dim throughout the estate so that people could find their way around. They continued through the empty lounge and peeked into the kitchen where Chakotay and Tom had replicated the food. Seeing no one about, Chakotay and Kathryn turned and went the opposite direction down another long hallway. He paused at one open doorway, and she stepped back to him.

"The library," she whispered, a smile lighting her face. They entered the room and looked around at the shelves lining the back wall, comfortable armchairs scattered about, and a wide double desk. Maps hung on each wall depicting everything from ancient mariner's routes to modern stellar charts. The room was an eclectic mix of old and new, with a charm that appealed to both Kathryn and Chakotay. He studied one of the wall maps of ancient Europe while she crossed to the shelves and took out a book of 17th Century Irish folklore.

He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, leaning his chin on her shoulder to see the book. Her hair tickled his nose, and he slid his hand up her side to her shoulder to brush the wisps away, grazing her ribs as he did so and discovering she was ticklish when she flinched. A low chuckle sounded in her ear, and she moaned, "Oh, no."

"I never knew you were ticklish," he whispered in her ear.

"With good reason. I hate being tickled."

He nibbled her earlobe and said, "I'll just kiss you then."

"Hmm, I think kissing is acceptable."

He suckled the sensitive spot under her ear and chuckled when she shivered. She turned in his arms, pulled his head down, and snaked her tongue into his mouth. He groaned and lost all thought of tickling her as he hugged her to him and lifted her off the ground. She blindly reached behind her back to lay the book on the shelf and then circled her arms around his neck as their tongues and lips danced together.

She lifted her head to breathe, and he licked her neck. "I do prefer kissing you to tickling you," he said.

"I was hoping you would," she moaned. He gently lowered her onto her feet and cradled the back of her head as he kissed her tenderly again.

"Shall we continue our exploration?" he asked.

"I think we'd better." She put the book back in its place on the shelf, and they returned to the hallway. "I would love to come here later," she said.

He rested his hand on the small of her back and replied, "So would I. I believe I saw a couple of volumes on Native American ruins."

They heard a shuffling noise from the direction of the main sitting room and quickened their pace. They rounded the corner and saw Tom and Ayala heading for the kitchen. Ayala turned and smiled at them. "Good morning, Admiral, Commander." Kathryn raised an eyebrow at him. "Uh, Kathryn, Chakotay."

"That's better," she said with an affectionate smile. Ayala had proven himself to be a trustworthy and adept officer on Voyager, and since their return to Earth, Kathryn had been able to spend a little time around him outside of official duty, particularly at the Friday night gatherings. She genuinely liked him as a person and understood why he had always been Chakotay's friend as well as crewman.

"We were just going for coffee," Tom spoke up. "Would you like to join us?"

"Yes, thank you," she answered. "We've been in the library. It's a wonderful room, Tom."

"I didn't spend nearly as much time as I should have in there as a kid," Tom said. "My parents are very fond of it, though, and have almost doubled the collection. If B'E and I stay on Earth long enough, I'm going to ask my mom to help me put together a small kid's library for Miral."

"That's an excellent idea, Tom. I can contribute a few favorite volumes from my own childhood."

A computer alert sounded and all four of them stopped in their tracks. "That's the secure channel," Tom said looking at Kathryn. "You can take it in the study."

She hurried to small office where she had met with Harkin and Paris the night before. She entered her security code, and Harkin's worried face appeared on the screen. "Admiral Janeway," he acknowledged, his voice strained. "The Cardassian has escaped."

Her command mask effortlessly slipped into place. "How long ago?"

"Twenty minutes at most. We were tracking his biosignature, but he disappeared from sensors seven minutes ago. He was heading toward the coast."

"So he could be crossing the Channel soon," she said, more in statement than question.

"Yes, that's what we're afraid of. We have everyone on the lookout, but he could be anywhere."

"Understood, Commander. We'll take it from here." She ended the link and returned to the others. "Security lost the Cardassian. Tom, get everyone up and in here in five minutes. Where is B'Elanna?"

"She's in the Flyer. She and Harry have been using the sensors to keep an eye out for unwanted guests."

"Good. Chakotay, get Andrews, gather all the weapons we have and start handing them out. Ayala, double check and secure all access points." She tapped her combadge. "Janeway to Torres and Kim." Almost immediately, the answer came from both of them. "B'Elanna, Harry, we may have company coming. Make sure the preflight check is done in case we need to get the Flyer in the air."

"Consider it done," B'Elanna answered.

Kathryn ended the comm link and gazed around as Chakotay and Ayala left the room to carry out her orders. "Tom, where is the passage entrance in here?"

He went to the far wall and touched the door on a painting of an ancient stone cottage. The painting swung inward, and the part of the wall below it dropped into the floor.

"Clever, Mr. Paris," Kathryn remarked. Tom grabbed the bottom frame of the painting and pulled it toward him until it clicked, and wall panel rose back into place. She nodded to him and said, "I don't want to use it, but I'm glad to know it's there if we're left with no choice."

"It will get everyone to safety if necessary," he replied.

Within minutes, 23 crewman were gathered in the sitting room waiting for instructions. Kathryn filled them in on the report from Harkin, then pointedly looked at each of them. "I know you're all here for me and Chakotay, and I thank you for that. I do feel that I have to inform you that you are not obligated to stay. This situation is dangerous, and we have no idea how many of the Terran Guard may be coming this way, nor what weapons they have at their disposal. I'm no longer your captain, and you aren't obligated to me anymore. There will be no ill will toward you if any of you should choose to leave."

Jenkins spoke up. "You'll always be my captain. You're also family, and I take care of my family."

A chorus of affirmatives and pledges to stay echoed through the room. Kathryn was deeply touched and swallowed the lump in her throat as Chakotay smiled at her. "Alright then," she said. "Most of you just woke up, so the first thing on the agenda is a quick breakfast if you want one. I, for one, need some coffee."

Titters were heard from around the room as Tom led the way into the kitchen. Chakotay moved to Kathryn's side as they followed their crew, their worry tinted with relief that something, anything, was finally happening that could bring an end to the assassination attempts.