Page 2 of Star Cruise Captain's Story

Getting off smoothly at the right floor, he led her to his room. Once they were inside, pent up desire overtook them both and she was in his arms, eagerly participating in a soul deepkiss. Gil kicked the door shut because the automatic function wasn’t cycling fast enough for him and Maeve was already yanking his jacket off and tugging at his shirt. They stripped right there in the entrance to his room and staggered into the bedroom still exchanging kisses.

He lifted her naked body onto the bed, savoring the feel of her silky skin and the beauty of her form. Maeve drew him to her so his cock lay in the vee of her hips, nudging at her folds. He’d done this in shared dreams a number of times but the reality of actually being with her was overwhelming. Gil tried to slow the pace a bit.

“There’s no rush,” he whispered. “We have hours. We should enjoy this moment properly.”

“I’ve waited so long to have you in my arms,” she replied, hugging him tightly. “Patience isn’t in the forefront of my mind right now.”

Gil gave in to her eagerness, but made sure she was ready for him with gentle caresses and touches. He’d had a small fear things might be awkward between them, knowing Maeve’s body had been created for her by the Mellureans, but his heart only understood she was the woman he loved and now she was skin to skin with him, hot and wanting, and his shaft ached.

“I’m real,” Maeve said as if sensing his doubt. “I’m a woman in every sense of the word. Our friends know what they’re doing.”

Although she was creaming for him, Gil took his time, positioning himself carefully and entering her silken folds an inch at a time, allowing her to adjust to him. “You’re so tight,” he said to her, nibbling at her ear lobe. “Feels wonderful but it’s going to be a challenge for me to last any time at all here.”

“Good.” Maeve’s laugh was sultry and satisfied. “I love the way this body has such an effect on you. And we have hours to repeat the experience.”

“This may hurt,” he warned as he encountered a barrier. Gil wished the Mellureans had been a little less faithful to the specifications of a human woman. Inflicting any pain on Maeve was the last thing he wanted to do.

“I asked V’terre to let me have the full experience,” Maeve said as he paused. “Does it bother you I’m a virgin? I understood from all the entertainment media I’ve absorbed, men liked to be the first for their lover.”

Hearing doubt in her voice, Gil gave her a deep kiss, long and involved, their tongues dancing. Then he stared into her eyes to reinforce the truth of what he was going to say. “You’re perfect for me in every way. We’ve shared so much over all these years and proven how much we mean to each other. Never doubt my total commitment. However you choose to be, I’ll love that woman, no reservations, no doubts. Being your first—your only—is an honor. All right?”

Eyes glistening with tears, she nodded. “I love you.”

“And I love you.” He captured her lips for another kiss and at the same time pushed through the thin barrier blocking his path to the warm, wet depths of Maeve he so desired to enter. She flinched in his arms but then as he stroked in and out of her body, she matched his rhythm with only a small hesitation and Gil drove them both toward climax. Her murmurs of his name and the tiny kisses she placed on his body reassured him she was totally with him. Reaching down to the place where they were joined as one, he rubbed his finger around the tiny bundle of nerves hidden in her folds and Maeve screamed in pleasure as she climaxed with him at her core, urging her on with his voice and his touch.

Gil released his iron control and allowed himself to find release as well and they clung together, both a bit dazed but happy. Maeve drew in a shaky breath and made a satisfied, humming sound. “So much better even than I ever imagined.No wonder the humans in the soaps spend so much time in bed doing this.”

He was about to reply when the first tremor ran through her body, cradled in his arms. This reaction was no afterglow or lingering orgasm. The sensation waswrong, organic and powerful. “Maeve?” Flashing back to the scene in the landing bay of theGalatea, so long ago, he tightened his hold. “Are you all right? Should we contact V’terre?”

“I—I think I’m fine.” She brushed her hair out of her eyes. “You made me feel such amazing sensations, how could I not be fine? I’ll be ready for more the minute you are.”

Gil kissed her but he wasn’t entirely convinced and all he could do was hold her as she arched her spine in another convulsion.

With her next breath she dissolved into a shower of glittering silver particles, flowing out of his arms and rising to the ceiling in a mad whirl before disappearing with a small popping sound.

Swearing in frustration, Gil rolled onto his back, arm over his eyes. After a few minutes of silent despair, he rose and walked naked to the bathroom, where he took a long, cold shower. Toweling off he picked up the scattered pieces of his uniform, gathering Maeve’s dress and lingerie as well, which he rolled into a small bundle and stuffed into his carryall. Returning to the bedroom, he dressed in his uniform, pausing to study himself in the mirror briefly. There were no outward signs of the emotional trauma of having Maeve and losing her yet again. Gil was practiced at keeping his face expressionless and giving away nothing of his inner thoughts but tonight the task was more difficult than ever before.

Once he was ready to leave he walked out into the main room of the suite, to find Lady V’terre calmly waiting for him, seated in a chair and contemplating the view of the mountains out the window.

As he walked in, she turned her head to meet his gaze. “She’s made progress.”

A headache pounded in his temples but he kept his tone civil. “Tell me you weren’t out here the entire time.”

“I can assure you, I wasn’t, although I was close by in case there was a problem.”

The last thing Gil had any desire to do was discussing his situation in detail with the Mellurean Mind. “How is she? How’s the ship?”

“Both are fine, no problems. She found the physical sensations you shared today too overwhelming for her cortex. She has no built-up history of touch or even of being in a body to ground her.”

“So, too much too soon?” he asked. “Again? Will the situation ever get better?”

“Each experience helps her to be prepared for doing more the next time.” V’terre studied him, her lavender blue eyes narrowed. “We warned you this project wouldn’t come to fruition on a human time scale. Do you regret the effort?”

“No, how could I? I’ll always be grateful to your people for getting her transferred to theNebula Zephyrinstead of terminated.” Gil tried to translate his concerns into words calculated not to offend his powerful alien ally. “These tiny bites of the apple of what could be between us are not enough. Better than the dreams we’ve shared but I know these moments leave me aching and sad and they must be having a similar effect on Maeve. I can’t ask you to keep putting her through all of this, not for me. I’ll deal with it. I can cope with us never actually being together outside of our dreams.”

“It’s not your decision, captain. Whether to continue or to stop rests entirely in Maeve’s discretion and she very much desires to go on working toward maintaining a corporeal form,in order to be with you as more than a disembodied voice and dreams.” The Mellurean’s voice was stern.

“Don’t give her false hope is all I’m asking,” he said.

---