Chapter 22

2018

Nathan waited for an answer, but Kristin was silent. He still stood behind her, and since he was standing across the room, he walked closer to her. As he went closer, he noticed Kristin's shoulders shaking. He suddenly realized she was crying. Had it not been for her trembling shoulders, he wouldn't have known for it was the type of sobbing so painful that it's silent. Nathan walked in front of her and kneeled before her.

"Oh, Kristin," he said softly as he wrapped his arms around her, "Please don't cry."

Kristin was torn. She found herself once again torn between her heart and her head, and the feeling was too overwhelming. Her head told her to run from Nathan's room-to get away-to lock herself in her room and cry herself to sleep until she could compose herself. Then, she could push all her feeling inside as she had done before; no one would know the difference. But, her heart told her that Nathan would. She knew he wouldn't let it go if she ran; she couldn't hide from him, especially on a submarine. She submitted to him, finally thinking with her heart, allowing his arms to encircle her as she cried into his shoulder. Yes, she wanted this, needed this. He'd hurt her so much, but he was the only one who could heal that, the only one who could take that hurt away. She wrapped her arms around him as he held her.

"It's alright, Sweetheart," Nathan soothed as he rubbed her back, "I'm here. I'm yours, and I'm not going anywhere. I know I've hurt you so much, and I am so sorry. Please let me heal you, Baby. Let me love you."

Kristin willed herself to stop crying enough to be able to speak. She pulled away from Nathan enough to look at him. Nathan reached out to touch Kristin's face and wiped the stray tears from one of her cheeks.

"Nathan, I forgive you," Kristin whispered through her tears, "I'm yours, and I've never stopped wanting you either."

Nathan gently kissed her forehand at this news with tears coming to his own eyes. He couldn't believe this angel had been sent to him, but he vowed to never be so careless with her again. He kissed her eyes. He'd lost her once, and he was a fool for doing so. He wasn't going to let that happen again. He kissed her cheek, and then he captured her lips in a gentle kiss, which Kristin gratefully returned.

Nathan broke the kiss and held Kristin close to him as he whispered, "I'm so lucky to have you, and I'm never letting go."

Kristin moved her head so that she was looking at him. She smiled through her tears and said, "Oh really? What about when we both have to go to work?"

"You know what I mean," Nathan said releasing his hold on her so that she could wipe her eyes. Nathan stared at her, and he suddenly realized why the shirt she was wearing looked familiar.

"Hey, that's my shirt," he said to her.

Kristin laughed. "Possession is nine-tenths of the law, Captain," she said coyly.

"We'll just see about that," Nathan teased as he tried to get the shirt away from Kristin, but she moved. Nathan proceeded to chase her around the room as Kristin tried to avoid him from catching her. However, Nathan did catch her.

"I think this," he said pulling at the shirt as he slid it off her shoulders, "is mine."

Kristin pouted, "I thought it looked better on me anyway."

Nathan laughed, "Well, you do have a point there, Doctor. However, I promise you'll get it back." And with that, Nathan let the shirt fall to the floor. He then kissed Kristin passionately.

She returned the kiss while her hands encircled Nathan's neck. Then, Nathan trailed light kisses along her jaw and down her throat eliciting soft moans from Kristin.

As Nathan continued his assault, Kristin pulled Nathan's denim shirt off as well.

Slowly the couple made their way to Nathan's bunk, leaving a trail of clothing behind them until there were no barriers between them.

Nathan gently lowered Kristin down on the bunk, and he showed her how much he loved her holding nothing back. Kristin reciprocated, giving Nathan everything she had. As bodies entangled, cries of pleasure filled the air until both found release. They collapsed breathlessly into each other's arms.

Nathan held Kristin close as he kissed her forehead gently. "I love you so much, Sweetheart."

"I love you too," Kristin said.

"Are you tired?" Nathan asked.

"Not really," Kristin replied.

"Something on your mind?"

"I was just wondering where we go from here."

"What do you mean? We're here together. I'm not going anywhere, Kristin. I told you that, and I meant it," Nathan said.

"No, I mean, what are we going to do? Isn't this against the rules? Isn't this fraternization?" Kristin asked worriedly.

"Oh, I see what you mean," Nathan said, thinking for a moment. Then, he replied, "Well, technically, since you're a civilian, it isn't full fraternization. Still, perhaps we should keep our relationship on the down low for a while, just to be sure. I wouldn't want either one of us getting thrown off the boat, would you?"

"Over my dead body. I just got you back; I'm not about to lose you again. I can be discreet. Didn't I do a good job of that earlier?" Kristin asked.

Nathan nodded, "That you did. Besides, I think it's kind of exciting sneaking around. I think we can get creative with stealing kisses when no one is watching. Does that sound like fun?"

Kristin laughed, "It could be interesting."

"So you're on board?" Nathan asked.

"As long as I'm with you," Kristin answered.

"Always, and I'll never let go," Nathan promised as he captured Kristin's lips in a passionate kiss, and he meant it.

The Beginning

A/N: Well, I hope you enjoyed my first fanfiction story. I am kind of sad to see it be over, but I am working on another already. I feel the need to explain that I have a theory that Nathan and Kristin were intimate almost the whole time during season 1, even if we didn't see it. It could have happened, and for the readers who think it unlikely...in my story, it had been twenty years...I thought it was about time.

Thank you to all those who took the time to review; it helped boost my confidence and compelled me to finish the story. To those of you who read but did not review, thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed it. And, to those of you just discovering this fic, feel free to review. I want to know what you think, even if you tell me it's the worst thing you've ever read. Anonymous reviews are enabled, so please tell me what you think.