It had been a very long time since Han Solo had woken up with a woman beside him. His body became aware of her soft warmth long before his brain caught up and he shifted in his sleep, pulling her closer, fitting her slender body more closely to his own. Silken strands of her hair, loose and tangled between their bodies, danced in rhythm with his breath, tickling his nose with a faintly floral scent.

His hand settled, instinctively, on the curve of her breast, cupping the warm softness in his palm. The firm swell of an erect nipple rose up against his thumb, through the thin fabric of her shirt, and the answering pull of desire in his own groin brought him fully awake in a hurry.

He was in bed with Leia. And they were both wearing clothes. What was that about? He'd had an awful lot of the Ewok ale the night before, and his head had been throbbing even before his mind had begun racing backwards, recalling all that had happened the night before.

Tears. There had definitely been a lot of tears. She'd been upset. But not at him. He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to shake off the headache. Kriffing Ewoks. He hadn't been this hungover since the blurry binge-filled weeks that had followed his court-martial.

They were both wearing far too many clothes for this to have been his idea. She'd asked him to stay, but sex had not been on her mind.

It had been on his mind, all right. But the truth was, he'd been tired, too. Deep down, bone-wrenching tired. And he'd agreed to... what? To take things slow. What the hell did that mean? He guessed it meant that it would be up to her.

At that moment, a small hand found his beneath the covers. "Han?" She said his name, in a sleepy mumble, wriggling back into the curve of his legs, and he turned to look down at her.

Without thinking, he gathered her close against him, an arm securely around her waist. He bent and brushed a gentle kiss against her forehead and whispered, "Shh. It's all right, Leia. I'm here."

"Mmm..." she sighed, drowsily, and her eyes never opened. Her lips curled upward in a soft smile, parting slightly as she breathed.

Leia Organa. Lying here, beside him. Smiling. He'd made her happy, just with his presence. Wow.

An unfamiliar emotion slowly crept over him and it took him some time to separate it from the physical longing he still felt for her.

Until this morning, he'd never imagined that another person's happiness could be so utterly essential to his own.

As much as he wanted to make love to her, to touch every centimeter of her skin, to taste it beneath his lips... he realized, quite suddenly, that there was something he wanted more. Han Solo wanted every morning of the rest of his life to begin the way this one had - with the woman he loved beside him, in his arms.

Not since he'd been a very young man had he admitted, even to himself, that anyone had this much power over him.

And never, ever, had he minded it less than he did at this moment.

If only her eyes would open and meet his own, would light up with love and laughter.

If only he could fill the empty places within her. Perhaps he could surround the loneliness in his own soul with her warmth. Perhaps together they could find the peace that eluded them separately.

He knew she was frightened and upset and confused by the events of the last few days. Everything she'd thought was important to her, everything she'd held dear, had been taken from her. Her past had been rewritten and she was questioning the future she'd thought lay ahead.

He didn't know what dreams of the future she'd had to abandon, along with her past. What he knew was that whatever future there was for her now, he wanted to share it.

As he looked down at the woman in question, her eyes opened and he saw the surprise flicker across her face before she remembered where she was, and why. She smiled up at him and a slender hand reached up to touch his cheek, wonderingly.

"Good morning," she whispered softly. "You're really here, aren't you?"

"I am," he assured her, brushing a long strand of loose hair away from her face with a gentle finger. "And I'm not going anywhere. Not as long as I can lie here and look at you."

Her fingers were cool against the stubbled line of his jaw. "As long as I get to look at you, too, you have a deal."

"I love you, Leia," he said, gruffly, his voice catching in his throat as emotion threatened to overwhelm him. "More than I can say."

"I love you, too."

"C'mere," he growled, his mouth closing over hers. The kiss went on for a long time, and his hands had wandered beneath her shirt when he heard the approaching sounds of life outside the hut and, reluctantly, released her.

Han had never been crazy about having an audience, and he didn't relish the thought of being interrupted by a band of curious Ewoks at a critical juncture.

Hell. Why couldn't their first night together have been in a suite on Ord Mantell, with a door that locked, and a bathing tub big enough for two? And room service? Another time, he thought. For sure. His princess deserved it and one day... well, one day they'd have some time alone.

For now... he drew back gently and said, "Let's go find some breakfast, sweetheart."

She sighed but nodded her agreement. "I guess we should."

Rolling off the sleeping platform, he held out a hand to her and pulled her up to stand in front of him.

"Thank you, Han. For everything."

"Anything for you, Highness-ness. Anything."

She blushed and went up on tiptoe to wrap her arms around his neck and kiss his scratchy chin. "I love you, nerfherder."

He caught her around the waist and spun her around in a dizzying circle. "I love you, too."

["Did I hear someone mention breakfast?"] A large furry head poked through the doorway and Han set the princess back on her feet.

"Count on a Wookiee to hear food mentioned from a quarter mile off," he said, dryly.

"Let's go," Leia laughed, taking his hand. "I'm starved." Chewbacca growled his agreement and soon they were following him to a large hut that appeared to be the de facto dining hall.

While they were eating their breakfast, the Princess received a comm call from the command ship and she agreed to call back from a more private location in a few minutes to join a conference that was taking place high above them. And before he quite knew how it had happened, he and Chewie were readying the Falcon for a trip to Bakura.

Han had a suspicion Bakura wasn't going to have room service, either. He guessed he'd have to just hope for locks on the doors, at least.

A/N Thanks to all who've reviewed and I hope you've enjoyed this story. Stay tuned for the sequel!