by J Palliser
Delaara had gasped, and Jacen had stood there for a moment, not believing what he'd just heard. "Ambassador, it would be my honor to join your family, and I thank you for the blessing to marry Delaara." He'd bowed his head in respect to her father.
She replayed that memory over and over in her head as she cuddled with her fiancee. They'd been given the rest of the day off, and had chosen their clothing for the wedding. Jacen hadn't seen what Delaara was going to wear, as that would be bad luck, but she approved of his Dress Whites, complete with both of his new medals when they would be awarded. The Iron Cross and the Kriegsmarine Medal of Valor. In 3 months' time, they had won two of the Reich Ministry's highest honors.
Rachel had commed him to tell him that their Iron Crosses had been approved by Kriegsmarine Command, and would be pinned on their chests before the wedding tomorrow.
As they lay together on their bed, still cuddling in their flight suits, they heard the door chime. "Come in, we're decent," said Delaara with a naughty wink to Jacen. He grinned at her as Becker entered with a look on his face that Jacen had never seen before. His eyes were bloodshot, and he looked as if he had been crying. Jace and Delaara jumped up and sat him down on the edge of the bed.
"What's wrong, Rash?" asked Jacen. "You look like death warmed over."
"I just realized how I feel about Rachel, and it's eating me up, Ace," his best friend said.
Delaara smiled at him. "You love her, right?"
Becker nodded. "I'm scared, Delaara. I'm scared that if I tell her, she'll run for the hills." Delaara smacked him lightly across the face. He was stunned. "Do I have your attention now? Good. One thing I know is when someone is in love. I see the way she looks at you, Jacob. It's the same way I look at Jacen. You have absolutely nothing to be scared about, because she loves you so much it hurts."
Becker grinned at that. "You know, I thought she might feel the same way, but then...." "Then you psyched yourself out, Rash. You have a habit of doing that, you know," Jacen said, grinning. He checked his chrono. "She should be off duty by now, brother. Go to her."
Becker stood up. "You're right. If I don't tell her and lose her forever, that would be worse than telling her and losing her forever."
And with that, he was sprinting out the door and towards the turbo-lift. Jacen had an idea for what he wanted for their first dance after the wedding, and moved into the fresher for a moment. "I need to wash up a bit. I'll be right back."
"Ok. I'll be here." She smiled. He tapped his com-badge when the door had slid shut.
6
Five
Becker ran down the corridor to the turbo-lift. He punched in the code for the Captain's Quarters and rode it up. He stepped off and went to Rachel's door. He chimed, but got no answer. He entered her room and noted that she hadn't returned yet. He sat on the edge of their bed and waited. 'Our bed',he thought to himself. He had come to see it as their bed. The bed that they shared. He knew that this would be it for him. Either she loved him too, and they would find a way to make it work, or she would reject him and would be back to being just his Captain.
He heard the rush of the door opening and looked up with tears in his eyes as Rachel entered. She saw him and noticed the look on his face.
"What's wrong, love?" she asked, sitting beside him and wrapping her arms around him tightly, pulling him to her.
"I have something that I have to tell you, Rachel," he replied in a voice barely above a croak. He cleared his throat. He wiped his tears away and told her. "Rachel, you're my Captain. You are also the woman I've loved since I first saw you. I didn't even realize it at the time how much I was in love with you. When I first came aboard with Ace as a 'wet behind the ears' ensign, I fell in love with you the moment I saw you sitting in your captain's chair on the Bridge and stood to welcome us aboard. Your smile lit up my life from then on. When you promoted me to Lieutenant, and I had way too much to drink already, you changed my life when you said to go to your quarters to wait for you. When you showed up and we made love the first time, I knew that no other woman in the universe would hold a candle to you. I love you, Rachel Weiss, and no matter what you say now, even if you transfer me off this ship and I never see you again, it's how I will feel for the rest of my life." He sighed, finally. He had unburdened himself, and even if she rejected him now, he would know in his heart that he had not let her get away due to an inability to face his feelings for her.
"I love you too, Jacob." He looked up into her smiling eyes. "It took me more than a while to fully admit it to myself, but I love you, Jacob Becker." He leaned close and kissed her with a tenderness she had never felt from him before. He gently undid her uniform jacket and slid it off her shoulders. They stood as she undid his flight suit, unzipping it down to his waist. He kicked off his boots and fell onto the bed, removing his flight suit the rest of the way. She stood there before him, reaching up and undoing her bra. He unbuttoned her pants and unzipped her, letting her pants fall around her ankles. He stood and sat her on the edge of the bed, kneeling and removing her boots and pants the rest of the way. She lay there in just her panties and he reached up and slowly hooked his hands in the waistband, pulling them down as she lifted up on the bed.
No words passed between them as they let their bodies communicate their feelings for each other. He spread her thighs gently, moving in and kissing the inside of her thigh just above her knee. He slowly licked and kissed higher, smelling her arousal. He knew she loved him, and she knew he loved her. When he finally reached her neatly trimmed pussy, he kissed her there, slipping his tongue into her. She gasped in pleasure, and he continued to drink from her nectar as he brought her more and more pleasure. Her gasps turned to moans as he licked and sucked her nub. And then she came, filling his mouth with her sweetness, giving him what he craved more than anything else in the galaxy. He moved up her body after she came, kissing her and sharing the taste he loved so much with her. She reached down and grabbed his hard cock, guiding it slowly into her.
Becker looked into her eyes and gasped as he entered her, as if for the first time. Their eyes never left each other as he moved slowly into her, filling her up completely with himself. They moved, feeling deep down that this is where their lives merged. She reached up and pulled his face to hers, kissing him lovingly, deeply, and passionately. He thrust deeper into her, quickening his pace as she began to moan again. She moaned deeper and louder, feeling his hardness swell and throb inside her. Her eyes closed as she came hard around him, clamping down with her muscles around his hard throbbing cock. He felt her coming and her moan into his mouth sent him off the cliff as he came inside her womb. "That's it, my love," she whispered to him. "Give me your baby."
Becker had come harder than he ever had in his life from that slow passionate lovemaking with the woman with whom he wanted to spend the rest of his life. He looked deep into her eyes as what she had said as he came finally registered on him. His eyes lit up and he asked "Do you really want to be the mother of my children, Rachel?" He had a smile on his face of pure love.
"When this tour is up, my love, I'm retiring from the Kriegsmarine. At that time, I would love to settle down with you... if you will have me as your wife." He grinned when he heard her say that, and she smiled as he moved beside her, pulling her into the crook of his arm. She rested her head on his chest.
"Rachel, stand up a minute, please." he asked her. Looking at him quizzically, she moved to the side of the bed and stood. Becker moved down to where his flight suit was crumpled on the floor, and dug into a cargo pocket. He pulled a small box from it and Rachel caught her breath. He stood and walked towards her, and there naked to the world and each other, he sank to one knee.
"Rachel Weiss, will you marry me?" he asked, opening the box containing the diamond engagement ring. Rachel was speechless. She had never before felt such love for anyone. The one other time she had been 'in love' had been nothing compared to this. She gasped for air for a moment, overwhelmed at her own feelings. As a tear rolle
d down her cheek, she said "Yes, Jacob. I will marry you, you beautiful man!" He slid the ring onto her finger and rose, kissing her lovingly. They moved back to the bed and slid under the sheet together, exploring each other as if for the first time.
*** Jacen woke the next morning alone, knowing that Delaara had awoken early and was preparing for their wedding onboard the Dönitz. He moved to the window and caught sight of the Dreadnought-Class battlecruiser just off theGraf-Zeppelinport side. It was a glorious looking military machine. Much more of a brute force testament to Kriegsmarine's military might than the previous Phoenix-Class incarnation had been.
Smiling, he turned back to the closet that contained his Dress Whites. He removed the uniform and set it on their bed, moving to the fresher to take a quick sonic shower.
After the shower, he dressed quickly, making sure his medals and rank insignia were perfect. He then sat and waited. As if on cue, he heard the rush of the door sliding open, and Becker, grinning ear to ear, said "Come on, Ace. Let's get you hitched!"
"Good. I was tired of waiting," he said and rose, walking towards his best friend. They exited and headed down the hall towards the turbo-lift. "So, how'd it go with Rachel last night?"
"Better than I could have dreamed, brother. In a few years, we're getting married. By the way, would you be my Best Man?" he asked, grinning like the cat that ate the captain.
Jacen grinned along with him. "Do we just have a thing for older women, Jacob?" he asked with a mock scowl on his face.
Becker thought for a moment. "I would say so. My lady is 44, and yours is 60." He shrugged. "Yeah, but my lady looks 25. Yours looks 34. So yeah, I'd say we have it bad." They laughed at that and entered the turbo-lift, on the way to transporter room 2.
"Where are you taking Delaara for your honeymoon?" Becker asked. "Well, I considered Eden, but that's been done to death. I was thinking Lake Walker, since I still own the old house. We fell in love watching the sunsets on NZ8, and the sunsets off the Nevada coast are just as wonderful." Jacen was smiling.
Jacob had been there, and knew what the sunsets were like. "Good choice, brother. Now, here we go," he said as they stepped out and into the transporter room.
Lieutenant McCain was behind the console, and said "Good luck, Ace. You broke a lot of hearts today."
"You're just jealous, Elske", said Becker with a wink.
She laughed as she said "Energizing. I'll be watching from Officer's Lounge." They dematerialized and rematerialized onboard the Dönitz. Waiting for them was Rachel, flanked by Ambassador Savik and Captain Paul Ascher. They stepped off the pad and approached. Rachel winked at Becker and stepped forward to Jacen. "Lieutenant Commander Jacen Kruger, it's my great honor today to present you with the Kriegsmarine Medal of Valor." She took the box from Captain Ascher, and pinned the medal on his chest next to his Centuri Crescent and Luftwaffe Starpilot Wings. Stepping back, she said. "For valor above and beyond the call of duty, you have been awarded this medal with the highest appreciation of Kriegsmarine Command and of the Reich Ministry."
She then took the second box from Captain Ascher and turned back to him. "Lieutenant Commander Jacen Kruger, it's my great honor today to present you with the Iron Cross." She pinned the medal next to the Medal of Valor and stepped back. "For coolness under fire and extremely competent leadership skill, you have been awarded this medal with the highest appreciation of Kriegsmarine Command and the Reich Ministry."
Jacen saluted and said "Thank you, ma'am."
Rachel returned his salute just as crisply. "Thank you, Ace," she said with a smile. "Now, let's get you married and let Delaara make an honest man out of you!"
*** Jacen entered the chapel and saw Captain Ascher behind the podium. He noticed Ambassador Stovral and his wife, Ambassador T'Sha. His new in-laws. Ambassador Savik sat next to them, smiling broadly. The entire command staff of bothGraf-ZeppelinandDönitzwere there, as well as the entirety of Condor Legion. He stepped forward, Becker slightly behind and to his right.
As they stepped up and took their places, the Centauri Wedding March began playing and he saw Ambassador Stovral rise to his feet, turning and stepping towards the back of the chapel. As he held out his arm, a vision of loveliness entered. Her face was veiled, and her body covered with a gown of the deepest cobat blue. It shimmered in the light, and the V neck showed off the tops of her breasts stunningly. The gown fit every contour of her shape, and the short sleeves showed off the ahtletic musculature of her arms. Delaara took her father's arm and they marched slowly down the aisle together.
As they neared the podium, Ambassador Stovral smiled, guiding her hand to Jacen's. He felt her palm against his as she stepped up beside him, and couldn't take his eyes off her for a moment.
She looked at him, and they both turned to face Captain Ascher, their hands still touching palm to palm. "As a Star-ship Captain, I have many duties," said Ascher with a smile, looking around the room and finally at the bride and groom. "One of the hardest duties in my career was having to inform a young Kriegsmarine Cadet that his parents had been killed, and that I wasn't fast enough to save them. That Cadet showed more bravery, honor, compassion, and forgiveness than I thought I deserved. The most pleasurable duty I have is the one I'm performing now. To bring that Cadet, now a Lieutenant Commander in Luftwaffe Fighter Command, together with his one true love."
He paused for a moment, refocusing on Delaara. "When I first met Commander Delaara, she stood before me as an enemy pilot during a time of war. It was with great incredulity that I had read both reports of what had occurred above and on the surface of planet NZ8-257. The young Commander was genuine in her motives, and had fallen in love with the young Cadet I knew so long ago. I've never, in all my years, seen a love so pure as possessed by these two exceptional individuals. It is my greatest duty today to join Lieutenant Commander Jacen Kruger and Lieutenant Commander Delaara in the bonds of Holy Wedlock. If there are any here who object to this union, let them speak now, or forever hold their peace." Nobody uttered a word, and the Condors were looking around for anyone who would screw up their friends' happiness.
"Jacen, do you take Delaara to be your lawfully wedded wife? To have and to hold, to love, honor, and cherish, in good times and bad, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"
"I do," answered Jacen with all his heart, slipping the wedding ring onto her finger and setting it against the engagement ring she already wore.
"Delaara, do you take Jacen to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to hold, to love, honor, and cherish, in good times and bad, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"
"I do," she said with all the love she had for him, slipping the wedding ring her father had given her onto his finger. "Then by the power vested in me by Kriegsmarine Command, the Reich Ministry, and the privilege of being a star-ship Captain, and I now pronounce you Husband and Wife in the name of our Holy Lord." He turned to Jacen. "You can kiss her now, son."
Jacen turned as if in a dream. He lifted her veil and gasped at the beauty before him. He slipped his arms under hers, pulling her to him as her arms slipped around his neck. Their lips touched, and parted, kissing slowly and tenderly, eyes closing in rapture at the feel of each other.
After what seemed an eternity, they broke the kiss and turned to their friends and family. Cheers broke out as they walked back towards the rear of the chapel and out to head for the reception in Officer's Lounge, aboard Dönitz.
*** Becker, drunk as usual, stood up to give the first toast to the happy couple. "To Jacen and Delaara! Let your love continue to grow, and let your sex continue to be kinky!" He sat down and promptly passed out.
"Bloody hell, not again!" said Rachel, smiling as she nudged him gently. The whole crowd laughed at the toast, most of them knowing what Becker was like.
"Now, for the first dance of the night. Jacen and Delaara, this is for you," said Commander Reiger, clicking the button. Jacen rose and held out his hand for Delaara. She grin
ned widely as she heard the song start to play and he led her to the dance floor. She molded her body to his in a slow dance, her arms around his neck as his hands rested on her waist.
"Beautiful music." She whispered in his ear. "I know. It's almost like it was written for us. Two souls that will always find one another, even if separated." He kissed her ear, sending a small shiver of pleasure up her spine.
As the song ended, Jacen led her off the floor. Next, the Maid of Honor and the Best Man, who had woken up stone cold sober, made their way to the dance floor for their song.
Jacen had picked a good one for them. The song was slightly upbeat, but they danced slowly together, her arms around his neck and his hands on her lower back.
"You look so beautiful, Captain." Becker whispered to his fiancee. "Why thank you, Lieutenant. I must say that when you aren't passed out drunk, you're quite dashing." She said quietly, smiling and carressing the back of his neck. He pulled her close, and she rested her cheek against his shoulder. Nobody there would say a word about it, and they even shared a soft kiss as the song ended.
While Rachel danced with Becker, Jacen was talking with Delaara's parents. T'Sha said "I'm so glad you two found each other, no matter what the circumstances." She smiled warmly at him, and he smiled back. He decided he liked his new mother-in-law.
"Thank you, Ambassador." He smiled at his new family. Stovral was a bit more gruff. "You have redeemed my son, Jacen. I had my doubts, but after seeing you two together, I know that I was wrong. Please accept my apology for judging you before we even met."
"It's understandable, sir. It was my hand on the trigger that caused your hatred of me in the first place. If I could turn back time..." Jacen's voice trailed off.
"You would have done the same thing, son. It's alright. Merik died a hero's death. He died with Honor." Stovral said this in a gentler tone.