Fragments of the Dark

Chapter Thirty Two

Din couldn't get enough of Celene.

But this was different.  This wasn't the adrenaline-fueled, rough passion they had shared on Sargon.  This was slow and Din intended to take his time with her, to learn every curve and apex of her body.  To feel her beneath him, to touch her.  

Piece by piece his Beskar hit the floor of his chambers, each one with a clash louder than the last.  He unwound Celene's hair from the knot she wore at the nape of her neck, letting it fall over her shoulders.  He kissed her again, slowly, fighting against the urge he had to just take her right then and there.

No, he wanted to savor this.

He drew lazy circles down her jawline, and neck with his tongue and across her chest until she was breathless.  Each gasp she took made the fire in his veins burn brighter and he gently pulled her shirt up and over her head, careful of her bandaged knuckles and the stitched wounds on her back and side.  

Celene went to remove the bands she wore around her breast but Din didn't wait, flicking open the small knife he had tucked in his pants, he cleanly cut through the cloth, right where her sternum sat.  

"You're paying for a new one," She said breathlessly, mouth pressed against his ear as he hoisted her up and gently onto the bed.  

"Gladly."  His shirt was tossed off and he leaned over her topless form, teasingly licking first one nipple then the other.  She moaned, pressing herself against him as she closed her eyes and he continued, feather-light kisses across her chest and down the toned planes of her stomach.  

He unbuttoned the top of her pants, keeping his mouth occupied on her chest while he reached down between her legs, groaning with satisfaction at the wetness he found there.  She dug her fingers into his shoulders as he started making slow, lazy circles with his finger.

Din kissed down her stomach, withdrawing his hand to remove her pants completely.  He lowered himself on his stomach, hooking her legs over his shoulders, and then dipped his mouth between her legs.  

Celene cursed him, gripping the blankets tightly in her hands as she arched her back off the bed.  And when she came, Din gripped her thighs tightly as she moaned his name loud enough for half the galaxy to hear.  She fell back against the bed, panting as he withdrew, wiping his mouth.  

She gripped his biceps, pulling him on top of her and pressed her mouth to his, fingers swiftly undoing the belt to his pants.  She tugged them off and Din nudged her hips up gently before settling between her legs. 

The first feeling of her was so euphoric he almost came right then and there.  He shuddered, gripping the edge of the bed hard as he withdrew and entered her again.  

Every inch of her was exquisite, every detail was perfect.  He told her as much and she smiled, a real smile, one he had never seen before.  She wrapped her legs around his waist, urging him to go faster, harder.  

And he obliged her.  

And this time when she fell into the abyss of pleasure, Din went with her, her name on his lips as they both lay gasping for breath.  "Fuck," he said. 

"Yeah."  She brushed the hair from her face.  "Fuck."  

Neither of them moved, Celene's leg thrown across his waist, the blankets in a twisted mess around them.  She reached out, threading her fingers through his and looking at their entwined hands for long enough that Din wondered if she'd ever laid in bed like this with someone.

He certainly hadn't.  The previous sexual escapades he'd had were quick and efficient.  Little feeling and emotion involved.  

It was a new experience.  Something different and raw.  They didn't say anything else, just laying quietly in the still darkness, until Din drifted off to sleep.  

When he woke again, Celene was still in the bed, her head pressed across his chest, hair splayed across the pillow like a starless night.  Her eyes were closed and Din realized she was asleep.  

He tried to rack his brain for the last time he'd actually seen her rest and came up empty.  There was a chill in the air that came with flying through the depthless void of space.  

A soft ping sounded throughout the ship and Celene stirred.  She sat up slowly.  "That's the hyperdrive.  We're coming up on Nar Shaddaa."  She slipped from the bed, the mass of scars across her back almost glowing in the faint light.  

Din cracked his neck and followed her, picking up his discarded clothes.  "I'll grab Grogu."

Celene nodded, yanking on her pants and disappearing through the door.  It was habit for him to reach for his armor and helmet but he hesitated.  

Then, leaving the pieces where they were, he stepped out into the corridor and to the neighboring room, which was Celene's.  

It smelled like her, like a starry night and jasmine.  Grogu was wrapped in a blanket, fast asleep on the bed. 

"Come on, little guy."  Din scooped him up gently.  Grogu blinked his enormous eyes open and yawned sleepily.  Din tucked him under his arm and started for the cockpit.

"Buckle up," Celene said by way of greeting.  "We're about to drop out of hyperspace."

A minute later the stars racing past around them slowed and a planet loomed before them.  Celene switched the controls, guiding the ship down.  "It hasn't changed a bit."

Din was inclined to agree, the surface of the planet was still a dusty orange and populated by the cities that covered its entire surface.  Even from here, he could see the non-stop air traffic that flooded the atmosphere at all times.  

Celene requested landing permission at one of the docking bays and they slowly descended past the levels of buildings.  The Falcon rocked gently as she set it down.  She turned to face Din.  "Let's get this over with."