"Sure thing, Sabine. I'll have SW3-3T bring one of our best entertainment cribs to your suite." Lando keyed on his comm. "Now, you ladies go have some fun."
"Thanks, Lando. See you this evening." Sabine waved as she and Mara headed to the shops.
The Love Commander's mini-mall offered several clothing stores for a variety of budgets. Pulling her longing gaze from the Queen of Naboo Boutique's window, Sabine motioned to Dagobah Designs.
"I guess we'd better stick with our usual price range."
"Sabine." Mara waved her hand. "Husbands can't complain when you spend money on a honeymoon."
She strode into the Queen of Naboo Boutique. Sabine hesitated, then followed her inside. Both women gasped at the deep red velvet dress highlighted in the center of the store. The sleeves and neckline dripped with gold embroidery and lighted gemstones graced the full skirt.
"They don't even list prices." Sabine whispered, remembering her husband's complaints about her suitcase. "Ezra is not going to be happy when he sees the bill. Maybe I should go somewhere else."
"Pick the right outfit and he'll forget all about the bill." Mara nudged her towards the nightwear section. "Let's look at negligees, then I'm going to look at evening gowns. Which reminds me- we need to talk."
"Okay." Sabine eyed a lacy white nightgown. Needs more color.
"Do you know how to dance?"
"Just a couple of ceremonial Mandalorian dances. If you mean for the big dance night, nope." A pink nightgown caught her attention. She liked the design, but it was still not enough color. "I hear you're a great dancer."
"The only kind of dancing I'm good at, I shouldn't do with kids in the room." Mara snickered. "Or Eli Vanto. Thrawn and Ar'alani would be really mad. He always left Eli behind if I was going to dance at an Imperial party. But seriously, I'm Luke Skywalker's wife, not one of Jabba's dancing girls. I want him to be proud of me, not embarrassed by my dancing."
"You think the boys can dance?"
"You've seen them with lightsabers. With Luke's footwork, he's got to be a wonderful dancer."
Sabine pictured Ezra with his lightsaber, how the Force guided his movements in a smooth flow. Would he be that graceful as a dancer?
"Colors!" Violet-Meadows interrupted Sabine's thoughts, pointing at a nightgown. A swirl of rainbow colors in lace and chiffon. Mara was right. Ezra would forget everything when he saw her in it. They would be like newlyweds all over again, their love overflowing in a passion too deep for words, heighten by their long years of separation. A love that could also be expressed in dance.
"We'll just have to learn. Lando's got everything else on this ship. He must have a dance instructor somewhere."
"This is some kind of nightie." Ezra snuggled Sabine closer to him on the AI controlled bed.
Sabine chuckled. "So you've said." She really should have waited to show him, but a longing to see the adoration in his eyes had convinced her to put the nightgown on as soon as she returned. "You've got to let me up or we're going to be late for mealtime."
"I'm not hungry." He kissed her deeply, cutting off further protest.
"Ezra," she spluttered when he finally released her. "Luke and Mara are expecting us."
"Not if Mara bought one of these nighties." He tangled his fingers in her hair.
"We can continue this later." Sabine squirmed out of Ezra's embrace, wishing she could stay in his arms forever. "Don't you want to see what kind of dancing we'll be doing?"
"Five more minutes?"
"I need to get dressed and get Violet-Meadows ready." She pecked his lips, resisting the urge to surrender to him. Later.
He sighed and rolled to a sitting position.
"Your clothes are on the wall-hanger," she called over her shoulder.
She slipped into the evening gown she had bought in Capital City. It was much simpler than the dress Mara had chosen, but Sabine loved it for one special reason. She smoothed the full skirt and smiled before stepping back into the bedroom.
Ezra caught his breath when he saw her. "Wow. You're so beautiful. And your dress, it's the same color as…"
"The same color as your eyes. My favorite color in the whole Galaxy."
"Luke," Mara laughed, "we need to get ready. I want to show you my new dress."
"But I really like your new nightgown." Luke wrapped his arms around Mara. "If Sabine bought one, the Bridgers won't be ready for hours."
"Luke," Mara repeated, struggling to break free, "we'll have plenty of time later."
She should have waited to show him the negligee. Emerald green, it was the same style as Sabine's and guaranteed to make a husband's heartrate double. As much as she enjoyed her Farmboy's adoration, she needed to get to the Grand Dining Hall to see the other passengers dancing. Not only would she learn their level of talent, she would find out what dances she could expect on the evening of the dance contest.
"Not yet." Luke reverently kissed her forehead. "It's our honeymoon and I'm not going to rush."
Mara sighed. What a time for him to go full Farmboy on her.
"Sabine promised they'd be ready to go on time. And Lando's got your favorite ribenes tonight."
"Umm hmm." He nuzzled her hair, then drew her close for a kiss.
Shaking her head, she pulled out the last weapon in her arsenal. "If Eli tells Thrawn we didn't go with him to the Dining Hall, you know what will happen?"
Luke sat up. "But he's at a big, official conference. He's the head of the Empire of the Hand. He can't just leave and go on a cruise!"
"He's Thrawn." Mara shrugged. "What do you think?"
"I think that's a fast way to take the romance out of romantic cruise." Luke's eyes narrowed. "What's this all about?"
Mara smiled innocently. "I just want to scope out our competition. For the big dance, you know." She pushed herself off the bed. "I need to go put on my dress. Wait till you see it."
Fifteen minutes later, they met the Bridgers in the hallway, Mara in her emerald fish-tail gown and Luke in his formal Jedi robes.
"Isn't my bride breathtaking?" Luke linked arms with Mara. "I'm not sure I want other men looking at her."
"They'll be looking at Sabine." Ezra kissed his wife's cheek. "And Violet-Meadows."
Mara eyed the little girl in Ezra's arms. "If they can see her under all those ruffles."
"It's toddler fashion." Sabine clipped an giant bow into her daughter's dark hair. "And it's colorful."
Author's Note:
No Big Blue Guy yet. Just snuggles and kisses as promised. And, yes -Thrawn and Ar'alani are married in the Love Commander universe. :)