The Morning After

First I really want to thank everyone for the great reception everyone has
given me...and thanks for the rave reviews! I've really enjoyed reading
everyone else's stuff. Though, I will admit it's taking me a while to catch
up!

Here's the follow up to my first story "To the Rescue"...takes place
directly after Luke's drunken night with the boys.

Deserves an NC-17 because of one lone scene...

* * * * *

Mara rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she shuffled down the hallway. The
sun barely filtered through the crowded Corsucant buildings this early. The
smell emanating from the kitchen had tickled her nose until she finally got
up. There was a cup of caf in the kitchen calling her name. She silently
blessed the creator of automatic caf machines.

Her yawn turned to a lazy smile at the site of her living room. Luke lay
sprawled across the sofa, his face buried deep in the pillow and a bare leg
hanging out of the blue blanket. She scratched her head, thinking he
probably wouldn't wake for quite a while, considering how drunk he'd been
the night before.

Taking her first sip of the aromatic liquid, Mara turned back to the living
room. The tanned expanse of Luke's back froze her feet in place.

She'd been half asleep before, but walking passed him in the opposite
direction, Mara now realize that Luke must have shed his clothes completing
at some point in the night. The blanket covered all of one leg and most of
the other thigh. It barely draped across his ass, revealing the edge of a
naked hip. Luke's back lay completely bare.

She'd seen Skywalker in damn-near nothing at all on several occasions, but
normally it had something to do with patching up holes in him. The
definition of lithe muscles could easily be seen under his tan skin. 'Your
gawking, Jade' she reprimanded herself. 'Yeah, but look at him,' a voice in
the back of her mind sighed.

She knew she should go back to her room, but the little voice argued that
this was probably her only chance to ever observe him without being caught.
A sly smile touched her lips as Mara realized the skin of his hip was
several shades lighter than that of his thighs and back. She could easily
envision him running in the Yavin heat in nothing but his shorts. The thin
blanket perfectly outlined the curve of his ass, causing her hand to
involuntarily clench with the desire to squeeze.

'Hello, this is SKYWALKER you're thinking about,' she mentally shook
herself, almost embarrassed by thinking of Skywalker as sexy. That's when he
moved.

Luke rolled over in his sleep. The blanket moved with him to cover his other
leg, but it drifted down, exposing a tease of hair running from his belly
button down. With the movement of rolling to his back, his left hand came up
to stroke the growing erection barely hidden under the fabric. She swallowed
hard, but could bring herself to move.

He sighed in his sleep. Mara stared as his hand moved, slow and lazy, over
himself. She had the where with all to reach out a feel his mind through the
Force. He was sleeping alright, deep in REM sleep. Luke's mouth fell open,
as his tongue wet his lips. His back arched just a little as his pulled more
rapidly. A raspy, feral, noise rumbled from the back of his throat.

Mara watched, enraptured, thinking it was the most erotic site she'd ever
witnessed. His hand tightened around himself, as he sharply inhaled. As his
breath escaped in a moan, he turned again, rolling away from her . . . and
shocked her with a quiet, but clear, call of her name.

Mara nearly dropped her cup of caf, as his voice slammed her back to
reality. She took a nervous step back, nearly tripping on his discarded
clothes. It only took a few quick steps before she was hiding in the
solitude of her room. Mara pressed her back against the cool surface of the
door as soon as it closed. She slid to the floor, breathing shallow. Too
many thoughts fought for acceptance.

Logic told her to regain control. It was only a dream. She should be
embarrassed about watching him that way. She wasn't. It had excited her. The
warm moisture between her legs and the faint erotic scent stood as evidence
of that. But this was Skywalker. A friend. Her only real friend. She
shouldn't be thinking such things. It would only complicate everything
further. It wasn't worth risking that friendship. But there's nothing wrong
with just thinking. Fantasy was a normal function of the human brain. She
had to admit, though, it was more than thinking. It was feeling. A very
dangerous thing. No, she would not allow herself to feel such things. Still,
the images of him writhing in his private subconscious passion remained
permanently burned in her mind.

Absently, she wondered if cold showers really worked.

* * *

Luke tried to swallow through the awful taste filling his mouth. 'This must
be what Jawa feet taste like,' he silently joked. The events of the night
before slowly solidified in his mind from foggy snippets. He was amazed his
head didn't hurt worse than it did, considering he couldn't accurately
recount how many Correlian brandy shots he'd drank. Looking around for the
first time, he scowled. He knew he would owe Mara a great deal for picking
him up.

He pulled the blanket tighter around his waist as he sat upright. Upon
seeing the pile of clothes on the floor, Luke tried to recall when he took
them off. Hazy memories of waking, hot and uncomfortable in his clothes,
clarified it. He'd never been able to sleep in very much, if anything at all
if he was warm.

The apartment was very quiet, but he did smell fresh caf. He reached out for
Mara, wondering if she was awake. He felt her very near, and when the
sensation of pulsating warm water hit him, Mara threw up her mental shields
violently. "Well, good morning to you too, sunshine." Luke muttered under
his breath.

Luke dressed quickly and went in search for something cold to wash the
hideous taste from his mouth. The smell of caf was tempting, but he needed
something else. Poking his head in the refrigeration unit, Luke was not
surprised to find it nearly empty. Thankfully, there was a half pitcher of
what looked like some kind of juice. He helped himself to a tall glass.

"Make yourself at home, why don't you?" Mara's sharp tone added to his
headache. "First you interrupt my shower and now you raid my food."

"Sorry," Luke looked a little embarrassed. "I didn't realize you were in the
shower at first."

"Whatever." She snatched the pitcher away from him harshly and retrieved a
glass of her own.

"Ah, as far as the food goes, why don't I buy breakfast. I owe that much at
least for the inconvenience."

"You owe me SO much more than that, Skywalker." She growled. "But," she set
her glass in the sink. "I'm not going anywhere with you looking like that."

"What?!"

"Whoa," Mara sneered with a wave of her hand. "Or smelling like that. Tell
you what. You go shower, brush those teeth, and meet me at the Freedom
Terrace in an hour and I'm ordering the most expensive thing on the damn
menu."

"Okay." Luke stood there trying to discover the source her morning
grouchiness and . . . turmoil.

"So go!" She pushed him towards the door. "Now!"

All the way back to his suites, Luke scourred his memory for a reason for
Mara's mood. He remembered laughing, even hugging her. It didn't seem to be
her work or an outside source, neither felt right. He didn't know what or
how, but something between them changed.

more to come!

"The Morning After"
Part 2

Luke easily saw the shimmering red hair over the back of the booth as he
entered the restaurant. He breezed past the hostess with little more than a
nod. No use in wasting time, especially considering the agitation radiating
off Mara. He ran his hand through still damp hair as he sat across from her.

"Your late." Mara didn't even look up from the menu.

He glanced at his chrono. "No. I'm exactly on time. Mara, what's gotten into
you today?"

She locked down her mental shields as her subconscious practically scream,
'You have!' The image of him from this morning would not go away. The
realization that he fantasized about her unnerved Mara almost as much as her
intense reaction to watching him had. It invoked conflicting feelings...making
her acknowledge things she didn't want to acknowledge.

Even now, she realized she noticed things about him that went beyond normal.
Like the fact that she knew today he'd used the cologne Jaina gave him for
his last birthday. A detail she never even realized she noticed. But she
did. She remembered the smell, liked it and knew whenever he wore it.

She also had to fight to not let her eyes drift over him, now knowing
exactly how his tan skin and tight muscles looked beneath that black Jedi
tunic. Mara could see the strong pulse at his throat. She fought the desire
to touch it, to taste him.

"Mara? Anyone in there?" He innocently waved his hand in front over her face
at her lack of response.

That hand, her mind tormented her, the hand that stroked himself to
satisfaction...in substitution of her in his dream state.

She hated to admit that it dominated her thoughts all morning despite her
efforts to eradicate it. Her control was better than that, and he was making
her act like a vamp in heat. Mara felt furious with herself as glared across
at him.

"Get that hand out of my face." She snapped.

Luke sat further back in his chair. "What's wrong?" He asked quietly. "If I
did something to make you upset, please tell me so I can make it right."

The sincerity in his voice doused some of her fury. How could she possibly
explain? He did he even remember his dream? It's not like she could hold him
responsible. She was the voyeur.

"Nothing, okay?" Mara took a deep cleansing breath. "Nothing is wrong."

Luke leaned closer. "Something is bothering you. I don't need to be a Jedi
to see it."

"I don't want to talk about it. Just let it go."

Any response on his part was interrupted by the service driod. They ordered
and true to her word, Mara ordered the most expensive item on the menu. She
knew it was way more food than she could eat, but she also knew Skywalker
would finish whatever she did not.

Mara attempted to deflect the conversation away from herself by asking about
the guys' night out. He knew what she was doing but humored her anyway. They
ate breakfast while Luke gave her the latest news about Wedge, Corran and
their families. She listened to him, commenting in all the right areas, and
did her best to keep her mind from wondering.

"So," Luke pushed his empty plate away. "What's on your agenda today?"

"Not much." Mara shrugged. "I have meetings all day tomorrow, but everything
is ready."

"Great. How about some lightsaber practice?" Luke knew she didn't want to
talk about whatever was bothering her, but he knew a good workout would help
no matter what it was.

"Okay." She agreed automatically.

That had been hours ago and now Mara was again cursing her stupidity.

They had the gymnasium all to themselves. She pushed Luke hard, but he still
managed to best her...again. It'd had taken a good deal of time. He knew
whatever bothered her must be serious, because she fought silently, without
a hint of her tension vanishing.

Resting for a moment, Luke went for a bottle of water while Mara caught her
breath. He took a deep drink on his way back to where she sat. He offered
the bottle to her.

Mara tipped her head back, downing the cool liquid with closed eyes. When
she finished, Mara's eyes opened to Luke wiping the sweat from his neck with
the shirt he'd just removed. Her breath froze in her lungs.

Luke opened up to the Force, drawing energy to ease the ache in his muscles.
The sweat dripped from him. As Mara took a drink, he slipped off the damp
shirt and mopped the sweat from his hair and neck.

A wave of emotion hit him hard, along with a mental cry.

He pulled the shirt away from his face, staring down at a wide-eyed Mara.
The feeling through the Force was gone in an instant, Mara's walls being
firmly in place. The look on her face took a moment longer to control.

"Mara? Wha..." Luke began, but the ex-Emperor's Hand and Trader dashed from
the room before he could finish.

Luke stood there for a moment, trying to ascertain what had just transpired.
He wasn't sure. Reaching out for Mara, he couldn't feel her at all. She was
hiding. The Jedi knew he couldn't find her if she was intent on hiding.

Sinking to a sitting position, Luke closed his eyes and focused his mind on
what he just felt. The cry had been little more than an exclamation of
surprise. But the feelings were intense, contradictory, and confused. He
slipped deeper into his impromptu meditation. Shock. Embarrassment. Fear.
Self-reproach. Desire. Luke's eyes flew open. That was the underlying
emotion, a deep, intense desire.

His eyes fell on the door from which Mara had just fled. Those strong
feelings escaped from Mara, feelings generated towards him. She knew he'd
felt it. That's why she ran. A tendril of worry imbedded itself in Luke's
stomach.

For the first time and very long time, Luke had no idea what to do.

(thanks to everyone for the wonderful comments. I'm trying to get caught up
on reading everyone's stories! More to come soon!)

Sorry this has taken SOOO long to post...RL has not been crazy lately.

Rating: R for language and adult situations.

The Morning After: Part 3

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

A heavy hand fell upon Luke's shoulder. He spun around instinctively, nearly
ramming an elbow into his brother-in-law's throat. Fortunately, he pulled
back just short of hitting him.

"Whoa! Kid!"

"Stars, Han." Luke took a deep breath to calm the sudden flood of
adrenaline. "You startled me."

"What's gotten into you? I can't remember the last time I was able to sneak
up on you, and I wasn't even trying." The smuggler looked worried.

"Just thinking." A furrow marred Luke's forehead.

"Yeah, and?"

"It's nothing." Luke mumbled.

Han knew better, but he was never the type to pry. "So, I, eh, talked to
Antilles about an hour ago." He conveniently changed the subject. "Sounds
like you guys had a great time."

"Yeah," Luke had to smile. "I haven't cut loose like that in a long time. It
was fun."

"So what time did you get home?" Han flashed him a sly smile. He already
knew something of an answer. Leia had let Anakin com Luke's apartment early
in the morning, thinking it would be funny to wake up a hung-over Jedi.
However, no one answered the com and, as Leia soon discovered, Luke never
came home last night.

"I left around 0200."

"Didn't answer my question. What time did you get home?" Han ask with more
emphasis.

"I stayed at Mara's"

He didn't know what answer he expected to hear, but Han was certain that
wasn't it. A slow grin spread across his whole face, "Really now?"

"M-hmm." The Jedi buried his hand in his pockets and leaned against the
marble planter beside him. Suddenly his boots were very interesting. Luke
wasn't even sure why he'd said anything. It just popped out.

It didn't take a talent with the Force for Han to see the radical change in
Luke demeanor. "So what happened?"

"Nothing," Luke shrugged. "She picked me up and I slept on her sofa."

"So what's the problem?"

"Don't know." Luke's frown deepened.

"What do mean, you don't know?" Han placed a brotherly hand on Luke's
shoulder. "Com'on tell me. Something's up. What happened? You're walking, so
she can't be that mad at you."

Luke couldn't help the grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Yeah, I'm
walking. I'm not sure what happened. Last night everything was fine. We
talked and even laughed for a while. Then this morning she was wound as
tight as a vornskr on Yavin. I even bought breakfast to try to smooth things
over. Then..."

"Then what?" Han prompted when the younger man's words faded away.

Luke considered just how horrible the repercussions would be if Mara ever
discovered he had discussed this with anyone. Still, he wasn't finding any
solutions on his own. "Han, you can't tell anyone about this. Mara will
actually kill me this time if you do."

"Sure, kid. Whatever you say." Han leaned a little closer.

"I suggested a little lightsaber practice to burn off some tension, you
know? She pushed real hard. After a while, we took a break. She downs a
bottle of water. I'm sweating like a Hutt, so I wipe down with my shirt.
That's when," Luke fought to find the right words. "I felt a...a leak...an
emotional burst...just for a moment...from Mara."

"Okay, so?" Han couldn't imagine what would obviously anger Mara so much,
and make Luke turn as red in the face as he was now.

"It lasted only a moment, but she knows I felt it...It was a wave of intense
desire...towards me." He almost whispered. Luke's embarrassed face turned hard
when Han burst out laughing. "This isn't funny, Han. She's really upset. Ran
from the room. She's completely masking herself, hiding. I can't feel her
anywhere."

"I'm sorry," Han stopped the laughter, but the smile wouldn't go away. "I
was expecting something awful, that's all."

"Han..."

"Okay, okay. The way I see it, you've got two choices. You either lie and
pretend you never caught on to her feelings, or you find her a let her she's
not the only one feeling that way and enjoy letting nature take it's
course."

"I can't lie, Han. You know that." Luke stated miserably.

"Kid, I don't see the problem. You can't tell me you feel any different. I
may not be a Jedi, but when you're together, brother, I can see it."

Luke once again studied his shoes.

"So, go find her. You're both adults."

"You don't understand." Luke found himself wanting to believe Han was right,
that it could be that easy. However, nothing was ever easy in regards to
Mara Jade. "She my friend. One of my best friends." He finally looked up
into his brother-on-law's eyes. "I don't want to risk that. I don't want to
screw up."

"Luke, did you ever consider that maybe she's thinking the same exact thing
and that's why she ran."

It was early evening before Luke finally tracked Mara to a little cantina
down in the lower levels. It'd taken a great deal of concentration and more
than a little faith in his hunches to find her. Her Force sense was still
held tightly in check. She sat bent over a table towards the back, with a
half glass of ale and an empty shot glass.

Luke had almost made across the room when she looked up. She scowled hard,
threw a few credits on the table and dashed towards the back. Cursing to
himself, he instantly took off after her.

"Mara, wait!"

She'd already made it into the narrow through-way behind the cantina. A few
vagrants sat against the walls, but there was little other pedestrian
traffic. He pushed out the back door at run, trying to catch her. She almost
made it to the end of the building where she could disappear into the
crowded street.

"Dammit Jade!" Luke bellowed. "Don't you fucking dare run away from me
again!"

Mara stopped in her tracks...partly because she was shocked and partly because
it pissed her off. She'd never heard Skywalker use such language or tone
with her. She turned around, walking toward him with a dangerous bearing.
"What the Sith did you just say?"

"I said don't run away from me again."

Luke stood his ground, warily watching her approach. He knew he was treading
into dangerous waters, but the effort of finding her only to have her run
left him instantly frustrated. A small part in the back of his mind
appreciated the grace in which she approached, and it ignited his own
passions. If he was going to take this risk, he was not going to hold back.

"I will do exactly what I want, when I want. You got that, Skywalker?" She
practically growled.

"You lie."

She was only a few paces away when she stopped. "I don't know what's gotten
into you. But you are really making me angry. I am not lying."

"Yes. You. Are." He closed the gap between them, taking a step with each
punctuated word.

Mara almost bolted again. There was an intensity in his eyes that frightened
her. It wasn't anger. Anger she could deal with, but this was different.
Very little in the universe scared her, and whatever was happening,
building, between them scared her to death.

"No," She did not move even though he was now close enough that she could
feel the heat generating from his body and feel his breath upon her face. "I
do what I want, when I want."

His hands came up faster than she could block them, grabbing her upper arms
in a vice grip. "Then why did you run? It was too late, I know what you
really wanted but you ran instead." Luke voice lost the harsh edge, but did
not lessen in intensity.

Mara swallowed hard as he pulled even closer. She felt like she couldn't get
a deep enough breath. "Luke, let go."

"No." He tried to search her green eyes, but she would not meet his gaze.

"Please. Don't do this." It was barely a whisper. She finally let her eyes
fall into his.

"Why, Mara?" Luke whispered back, holding her locked in place by more than
just his hands. "Why not?"

"I can't." She struggled weakly against his grip. "I want..." She could not
finish.

"What, Mara? What do you want?" Luke kept her planted in place. She often
forgot how powerful he could be when he wanted.

"I..." The words just would not come out.

"What?" He nearly shook her. "Tell me."

The words may have been blocked by her throat, but the images and feelings
hit Luke so hard he took a physical step back. It only took a fraction of a
second for him to see.

The sight of himself lying in her living room, stroking his strained
erection. The sound of his voice moaning her name. Intense, overwhelming
desire. Her pressed against the hard tiles of her shower. Her fingers buried
between her thighs. A shudder of ecstasy.

With a low growl, he pulled Mara tightly against his chest, crushing his
mouth to hers. There was no preamble. Their mouths instantly opened to each,
fevered. She clutched the front of Luke's shirt, twisting her fingers
painfully into the fabric, afraid to let go.

His hands released her arms only to have his fingers dig into her hips.
Coherent thought disappeared. The only thing in existence was the feel and
taste of each other. They pressed harder together. Luke shuddered hard when
Mara's teeth nipped at his lower lip. She felt her legs shake as he pulled
her closer, pressing her into his hardness.

Flood gates opened when Luke's mind instinctively reached for hers. Where
one left off and where the other began crashed together like violent waves
of a riptide. Emotions were unguarded, raw. They were more simple than
friendship or respect. They were based in need, lust, and belonging.

The kiss broker. With their foreheads resting against each other's, Luke and
Mara took giant gulps of air. Finally, he opened his eyes and ran gentle
fingers through her hair. Luke couldn't seem to touch her enough. The
silkiness slid past his skin and he wanted to feel it everywhere, not just
on his hands.

"Why did you do that?" Mara asked in a small, quiet voice. She still had not
opened her green eyes to him.

"Couldn't help it." Luke answered, brushing his lips against the flushed
skin of her cheek.

"But," Mara bit her lower lip, not wanting to continue, not wanting to face
what came next.

"What, Mara?" He cupped her face with both hands. Silently urging her to
open her eyes.

She did. "But what do we do now?"

Luke gave her a smile so bright and full of optimistic joy, that it vanquish
all her fears. "We let nature take its course."

More to come...