Cold drops of water from Olivia's long, wet hair collected on the ends, dripping every now and then onto her bare arms and abdomen. She sat rooted to the spot on the edge of Drew's bed, feeling a shiver go down her back as the cool night air brushed past her, making the little hairs on her body stand on end. She was dressed only in her NCR military provided bra and boxer shorts, her head rushing with the whirlwind of thoughts and images going through her mind, a combination of fear and lust that quickened her breath but left her confused. Her body wanted to flee, but her mind wanted to melt into his.

'He's not a Legionary', she told herself, over and over in her mind, 'He's Drew, he won't hurt you'.

Since Drew rescued her almost a year ago, she'd received continuous psychological support and coaching from the NCR doctors. They were extremely friendly and supportive of her needs and wants, and were vital in helping her acclimate to life in the NCR. Dr. Usanagi had been particularly helpful in her recovery and helped her build bonds and friendships with her colleagues. Drew was a constant person of interest in Olivia's discussions with Dr. Usanagi, so it came as no surprise when Dr. Usanagi, noticing Olivia's budding romantic feelings for Drew, encouraged her to explore that friendship. Afterall, Drew was the first man she'd come across since before she was kidnapped and forced to live in the Legion. After their date some weeks prior, Olivia felt her relationship with Drew changing.

Being apart from him even for a day felt uncomfortable and lonely, and she found herself yearning for their next dates where she would regularly spend the nights either lounging on the three seater reading interesting novels or comics they'd found and saved from being scrapped, or curled up on Drew's bed freely talking about their thoughts, dreams and desires until they both fell fast asleep. It was at one of these overnight dates they had that she had nervously admitted she'd been thinking about Drew – about being intimate with him. Although she fantasised on many occasions what hat would be like and knew she wanted to experience that level of intimacy with him, she didn't predict how resistant her own body would be to the act. When she had brought up the topic, and how she felt about him during one of their date nights, Drew didn't react with surprise, or dismissed her; in fact, he seemed relieved that she had brought it up first.

"Why didn't you tell me before?", Olivia remembered saying.

"Because when it comes down to it, I'm a coward who doesn't want to lose you", he replied nervously, "I'd rather be in your life, even if that means just being a friend, than risk losing you. And…knowing what women go through in the Legion, I would understand if you wanted nothing to do with me".

Now here they were in Drew's room, sitting beside each other trying to mend the scars the Legion had left on Olivia's soul.

Drew sat two feet away from her, almost naked except for his boxer shorts and saturated in the familiarly clean aroma of the military soap rations the NCR provided for every officer. He'd used it not half an hour ago in the communal showers to scrub himself clean – for her. Olivia could see marks on his shoulders, chest and toned abdomen where he had been too vigorous with his washcloth, the skin was flushed pink and warmer to the touch than the rest of him.

He tried leaning in again, slowly this time, relaxing his wide shoulders, eyes hooded but focused on hers. This time he didn't reach out to her with his hands like he had the first time; instead, he kept his arms firmly by his sides. The first time he tried to give her a light embrace, but that only made Olivia flinch away, making him realise he needed to slow things right down for her to feel comfortable and safe.

Though she still felt her guard up, Olivia didn't feel the same need to push herself away from him. She felt a bit more at ease and allowed the caress of his lips on hers, feeling herself gently lean into his soft lips. She felt awkward at first, unsure of what to do as she'd never kissed anyone before – at least, not like this.

A silent murmur radiated from Drew's throat. It was erotic in a soft and enticing way that made her core quiver and a warmth spread between her thighs. She caught herself leaning more into him and felt herself lose balance. Instinctively reaching out with an arm to catch herself, Olivia found herself in Drew's arms. Even with his mind swimming with desire, his lightning-fast reflexes stopped her from an awkward slip; but it was enough to cause her to recoil away from him again.

"We don't have to do this", Drew said in a concerned tone, instinctively pulling back his arms away from her and shifting away to give her some space, "You don't have anything to prove".

He was wrong though – she had everything to prove. The Legion took everything away from her, so much so she had to re-learn how to be a human being again and to trust others. And it wasn't that she thought she was less than human if she couldn't be intimate with Drew, or anyone else for that matter, it was that she knew she wanted to be with him in that way but was too anxious to let her guard down.

"I want to…", Olivia answered, voice quivering with frustration and upset, "I want to, more than anything, but I don't know how to let go".

"What can I do to help?"

"I don't know", Olivia shook her head, feeling tears well up in her eyes from frustration and an unfulfilled desire, "Maybe…. I don't know…maybe you just need to… To do it", Olivia's skittish eyes flitted between Drew and his bed. It took a moment for Drew to realise what she meant; and when the implication dawned on him, it perplexed and stunned him.

"No…no God no Olive", Drew answered, disturbed by the thought of her suggesting he use any kind of force with her, "I would never want to do that to you. I love you! Even the thought of…" he grimaced and shook his head vigorously, standing up on his feet and turning his gaze away from her.

"You…love me?" she asked, a soft smile spreading on her lips. Olivia knew that he cared about her deeply, he made sure to tell her often; but this was the first time he'd used those three words to describe how he felt about her. Though she could sense that Drew felt deeply for her, to hear him say he loved her out loud brought a sensation of comfort and security.

"Yeah", Drew turned around hesitantly, his gaze drifting to meet hers, "I've loved you since the day I saw you in the river through my scope. The first time you sent us a message; do you remember?"

"Of course I remember", Olivia nodded, the memories of that day coming back to her.

"Since then, I couldn't get you out of my mind. You were all I could think about, all I looked forward to see every day… I fell in love with you from across the river, and since then I knew the only person I wanted to be with was you".

A silence spread between them as Olivia absorbed his words.

"So, now that we both know how we feel about each other... what do we do?…Do we just… remain like this? Unable to touch each other without me flinching away?", Olivia asked in a whisper almost, shrugging her shoulders as she felt a sadness at not being able to move past her anxiety at the thought of not being able to be a normal, loving couple.

She sat herself back down on the edge of his bed and stared at the cracked wooden floorboards underneath her feet, a dark pit in her stomach threatening to swallow her.

Drew was silent and contemplative for a moment, the creases in his forehead deepened as Olivia observed him look around his room. After a moment he seemed to have an epiphany about their conundrum and set about quickly rummaging through his uniform and duffel bag.

"What…what are you doing?" Olivia studied him, confused by his actions.

"Looking for this", Drew pulled out a set of small keys from a pocket in his uniform, then two sets of metal handcuffs from his duffel bag, "I think… I hope I have an idea. You'll have to be the judge".

"I – I don't-"

"It's for me", Drew interjected before Olivia got any ideas of her own and moved to sit by the edge of the bed an arm's breadth away from her, setting the jingling small keys on the worn bedside table.

"What?" Olivia tried to repress a chuckle, "What are you going to do? Cuff yourself to the bed?"

"Yes", Drew answered with an air of determination, which made it all the more outrageous, "I'll secure my wrists to the metal frame so you won't have to worry about me moving around much".

At first Olivia thought he was being ridiculous with his suggestion, but when he was lying on the bed with his wrists firmly cuffed to the metal headboard and unable to move his arms much past a few inches, she surprisingly felt her mind more at ease.

"How's this?" Drew asked, looking up at her as she sat next to him.

Olivia chuckled, unable to wipe away the grin from her expression. It was odd, but surprisingly it did help her feel the closeness of their bare skin less intimidating.

"You should see yourself", Olivia chuckled, "What in the world made you think of doing this?"

"Sometimes the things we go through when we're fighting… It leaves an unseen scar with us", Drew began, weighing his words carefully, "Our minds and our bodies remember what we've gone through, and do their best to protect us…even when we know there's no danger", Drew answered honestly, "And, I figured - what you've gone through - you just need to feel like you're in control again".

Drew knew what it was like to fight for his life, and what that kind of violence did to the human mind. He knew Olivia experienced it too and was more than willing to relinquish his control so she could find hers again.

Olivia suddenly felt somewhat flustered, not knowing what to do with Drew now sprawled out on the bed, unable to even roll over. She felt her gaze drift from his and slowly travel down his neck, muscled chest and abdomen where it focused. The last time she'd seen Drew shirtless was when she was helping tend to his injuries after the battle at the Dam; but then, she took on the role of a nurse to help him recover and regain his strength. This was different, more intimate and sensual. She watched his abdomen rise and fall as he breathed steadily.

Hesitantly reaching out with her fingertips, she tenderly touched the area just above his navel. The connection made Drew's abdomen twitch slightly and Olivia noticed an audible change in his breathing. She traced her fingers up the slight dip in the middle of his abdomen, the line that separated his toned muscles until she reached his chest. Lightly pressing her palm on the middle of his chest, she could feel his heart thrumming beneath his ribs.

Olivia noticed that his eyes never left her – just as she was studying him, he was absorbing her every detail. Despite his mind swimming with desire for her, Drew willed himself to remain as silent and as still as he could.

"This is gonna sound silly", Olivia finally broke the silence, her eyes flicking back to Drew's, "But… Now that my mind isn't panicking…I don't know what to do" she smiled.

"You can do whatever you want", Drew smiled with her, not wanting to offer any suggestions so he couldn't influence her in any way; it was up to her to figure out what she wanted to do - with or without him.

After a moment of contemplation, Olivia realised she wanted to get closer. Shimmying down slightly so she could be in the right position, she reclined on her side next to Drew and rested her head on his chest, listening to his quickening heart.

Feeling the warmth of his body on her own intensified the warm sensation that was concentrating between her thighs. She breathed in, catching his scent that was intermingling with the clean smell of the soap and let her hands roam over his torso. Although Drew was doing his best to keep as still as possible, Olivia could sense the effect her touch had on him. He closed his eyes, lips parted as he tried to regulate his breathing and steady his heart, and even though he was warm to the touch his body shivered every once in a while.

Olivia lifted her head from his chest and gazed at him, absorbed in this newfound intimacy. She leaned forward and kissed the side of his strong and defined jawline, eliciting a deep sigh from him.

Drew opened his eyes and turned his head slightly to get closer to her lips, wanting to feel her flushed lips on his again. He could feel his core tightening and his breathing change as she explored his body with her fingertips. He wanted more than anything to be closer with her, and in that moment it seemed that nothing short of melting with her would do the trick to satiate his need for her. But he waited patiently, wanting her to guide his moves.

It was as if she could sense his desire and leaned into him, pressing her chest on his side as her lips touched his.

Parting his lips, he lightly reached out with his tongue to caress her lips. The act made Olivia pull her lips a breath away, hesitation in her mind and an uncertain expression in her eyes, but Drew waited to see if she would reciprocate. After a moment, she leaned back in for a kiss, this time parting her own lips for him. Drew sighed with a combination of relief and pleasure, and allowed his tongue to gently explore her lips and tongue.

Her breath hitched as he tenderly stroked her tongue and lips with his, and Drew could feel her heart thrumming against his side, her hips beginning to gently rock back and forth.

"I want you, but I don't know what to do", she breathed, eyes hooded with lust and face flushed with desire. Drew knew that although he was tied up for the time being, he needed to offer some guidance if she wanted to do something different.

"You could use your fingers to caress yourself", Drew suggested, but after a moment considering his suggestion, Olivia shook her head.

"It feels too distant… too disconnected from you", she replied, wondering if she should take the chance and uncuff him.

"I have another idea. It may be…bold", Drew added, and began to explain his thoughts. He suggested he remain in his current position, but that Olivia could get on top of him, placing herself between his lips. The idea of it shocked her.

"I… I'm not going to sit on you!", she replied, eyes wide with surprise, "It could hurt you".

"You're not going to hurt me", Drew grinned, "I've been through some dangerous situations, and I promise, you sitting on my face is far from putting me in any kind of danger".

Olivia laughed at the thought of it, the picture in her mind made it seem ridiculous. Then Drew reminded her how nice it felt when his tongue explored her lips and mouth, and she considered what that might feel like when he explored her inner lips and opening. The thought alone sent a quiver of pleasure through her, and she agreed.

Removing her underwear and getting into position took some shimmying and manoeuvring on both their parts, but once things lined up and Drew first began with some gentle kissing around her inner thighs, Olivia felt the tension in her body and mind melt away. Resting her arms on the metal headboard, she relinquished herself to Drew, too distracted with how good her body was feeling to give the anxiety that had plagued her earlier a chance to interfere.

Drew took his time, kissing the soft skin of her inner thighs, slowly and surely making his way to the lips at her entrance. He took a gamble and allowed his tongue to gentle press and lick her lips, running his tongue all the way from her entrance to her clitoris. The gamble paid off as he watched Olivia's back arch, and a surprised moan escape her lips. Her hips jerked forward when the tip of his tongue rubbed her clitoris, so he reduced the pressure a little until she was comfortable with it.

Taking turns switching from a forward and backward motion to side to side, round her now aroused clit, and licking her from the base of her parting to the top, Drew concentrated on his task of pleasuring Olivia without letting it overcome him. He could feel his own heart thrumming in his chest, his member throbbing in the confines of his underwear with every moan and whimper of pleasure that escaped her lips; he had to make conscious effort to stop his hips from rocking along with Olivia's .

The sensation of Drew's warm tongue and breath between her legs was electrifying, so much so that she caught herself moving her hips in rhythm with his tongue. The sensation he was giving her with just his tongue was all-consuming and euphoric to the point where Olivia couldn't think straight. Her mind swam with images of Drew picking her up and laying on top of her, the weight of his body on hers, the way his muscles rippled under his skin. Then, something shifted in her body.

Her breathing hitched and she found herself holding her breath in, the warmth between her legs building to an unbearable level, causing the walls inside her to flutter, craving to be filled and caressed by him. Her toes curled under Drew's shoulders and her entire body shook.

Olivia gasped for air, the warmth and tension in her core exploded and filled her with pulsating ecstasy that had her inadvertently reach down and grab Drew's cropped wavy hair. She lost all sense of self and control over her body as she rode and came down from her high; all she could do was hold on to the metal headboard to keep her quivering body from collapsing on Drew underneath her.

When she finally caught her breath and looked down to see Drew, she was almost taken aback. His gaze was transfixed on her, a craving in his eyes that she's never seen before. It was nothing like what she'd experienced when she was taken by the Legionaries, their eyes were all hungry for her body with greed and wrath; but Drew's was different. There was a yearning in his gaze, a desire to please and a wonder of her reaction to him.

"I can carry on if you wish", he said eagerly after a few moments when Olivia regained her senses, his bedroom eyes looking up at her expectantly.

Olivia smiled and noticed him doing his best to refrain from wriggling underneath her. She shifted her position and, though the invitation to carry on sounded wonderful, her legs were cramping and she needed to stretch them. It wasn't until she turned round to hook her leg out from under Drew that she noticed his member standing to attention, struggling against his cotton briefs. It gave her pause and she found herself wanting to entertain her mind's curiosity.

Once she got into a seated position by his side, she let her fingertips roam over his body again, though this time Drew was having a harder task keeping his composure. Whenever her fingertips strayed past his navel, his breathing quickened and she could see his heart racing in his chest, struggling to be free.

Biting her lower lip, she carried on down to the edge of his briefs, following the border of the cloth to either side before lightly pressing her fingertips to his skin so she could explore underneath.

Drew's breath hitched and his hips jerked up slightly when Olivia gently pulled the briefs up and over his erect member. She watched him as he desperately tried to remain composed, pressing his eyes closed and trying to control his breathing, before turning her attention back to his erogenous area. With the lightness of a feather, she trailed the tip of her index finger from the base of his member to the top, watching as it twitched and throbbed at her touch. Once she reached the tip, she gently wrapped her fingers around his member and pulled in a slow and controlled downward motion. A muted groan escaped Drew's lips as he tried his best to control himself.

Olivia buried her face in the crook of his neck and hugged him tightly, feeling his member twitch and throb inside her and Drew's fingers lovingly running up and down her back. Despite having an unexpectedly rough start to their planned evening, Olivia was overjoyed; romantic intimacy was a point that not long ago she would never have entertained. It was a topic that frightened her and the mere thought of it made her feel physically unwell; but then, she hadn't imagined being with Drew.

It made sense in a way – that she would feel more at ease with Drew than anyone else – it was simply a matter of allowing her body to catch up with her mind. Understanding that Drew wanted to put her needs first, even if it meant not being able to share a physical affection, flipped her perspective like a switch.

"You alright?" Drew asked, a soft sigh escaping his lips as he felt himself regain some semblance of control. He felt Olivia nod her head in the crook of his neck and pressed her closer to him, one arm under her head for support and wrapped around her shoulders, the other on her thigh and buttock helping to keep them connected. He began to lightly rock his hips back and forth, feeling himself caress her and her walls fluttering in response.

"I'm sorry Olive, I'm not gonna last long", he admitted, once again feeling the tension within his body building.

"Don't be sorry", Olivia pulled her head back to look into his eyes, "We have all the time in the world to be together".

Olivia moved her hips with Drew and listened as his breathing quickened. She felt his body tense, muscles rippling and straining against an invisible force. She gazed into his eyes and watched them change as his pupils dilated and a hazy expression washed over him. He leaned in to kiss her and, as he did, his pace quickened.

The tension in his core was building to an uncontrollable level. Tried as he might, Drew couldn't contain the pleasure building up within him. He hadn't been physically intimate with anyone in years, and the fact that he was with Olivia, a woman he loved more than his own life, was like his deepest dreams and longing come true. His hips moved with hers, quickening in speed until he felt like he was ready to succumb his mind to the bliss.

Holding tightly to her quivering body, he heard Olivia's moans and whimpers of pleasure next to his ear, urging him on until the tight knot in his core released, sending a burst of pleasure in waves to course through his body. He cried out in pleasure, suddenly surprised at hearing his own voice break through the music of Olivia's pleasing moans as he repeatedly thrust back and forth, riding the pulsing waves to a satisfaction that made his whole body tingle with warmth. He felt Olivia's fingers parting his hair and opened his eyes again. In the throws of ecstasy, he hadn't realised he buried his face in the crook of her neck, and that he was panting as though he'd run the length of the Mojave desert and back again.

"You alright?" Drew asked, suddenly conscious and worried of how tightly he'd been holding onto her, "I didn't – did I hurt you?"

Olivia shook her head and stopped him from shimmying away from her to see if he had been too rough.

"You didn't", she smiled with a satisfied sigh, wrapping an arm around him to pull him back to her, "I'm alright…in fact, more than that".

Drew nuzzled her nose and smiled with her, content that he was able to make her feel happy and fulfilled. They lay together in Drew's bed, absorbed in each other in a way neither of them thought would happen so quickly. Their limbs intertwined like the roots of a tree, tenderly caressing each other and talking about the future until dawn's first light peaked through the window.

"It's a good thing we both have the day off", Olivia smiled drowsily, "I can't imagine going to base, having to spend the day working and not being with you".

"Hmm, me too", Drew sighed, tenderly running his fingers through her dark hair.

"You wanna do anything today?" Olivia asked, shifting her position slightly, "We could go to the Strip and play some cards, or get dinner at the Ultra-Luxe?"

"We could", Drew mused, a smile spreading on his lips, "But I've…kind of got dinner reservations already".

"Oh, really?", Olivia chuckled, "Where?"

"Right here", Drew answered, making a gesture to the bed they were laying in, "That is, if you'd be up for a second round of what we did last night?"

Olivia's eyes sparkled with sultry mischief as she pulled herself up on her elbow and leaned into Drew, pressing her soft bosom against his chest.

"In that case, why wait until dinner?"