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“Oh, fuck,” Rey breathes out as her eye catches a familiar figure striding through the doors into the crowded bar.
She can’t believe this is happening. She’s here, sitting at a small booth with her friends, celebrating the bill they’ve worked on finally passing in the Senate with a wide majority.
It’s been a long time coming. The bill had originated in the senate committee that Rey served on, and which she had worked on alongside the other staffers, Rose included, for several long months before it even made it to the floor for a vote.
And then they struck pure gold when Senator Organa signed on as a co-sponsor to help get it through the final vote.
And if she got to work closely with Senator Organa’s staff to do so, well, she couldn’t complain. Finn has been one of her closest friends since the first day they had walked off the metro station and up to Capitol Hill as college interns together, almost three years ago.
And Poe, well —
“What is it?” Rose asks immediately, her face drawn in concern.
“It’s Ben,” Rey hiss-whispers back, eyes focused straight forward on Rose, even as she tracks Ben’s movements out of the corner of her eye.
Please don’t come over here, please don’t come over here.
Only Rose has the full details, but the two men both know that there was some sort of history between Rey and Ben, the kind of history that had her ducking around corners or into the women’s bathroom if she saw him coming down the hall.
“He’s here?” Rose whispers back.
Rey doesn’t have time to respond, because that familiar figured dressed in his customary all-black outfit comes up to their table.
“Hello, Rey. It’s a surprise to see you here.”
“Is it really a surprise though?”
Both Ben and Rey turn towards Rose as she smiles back at the imposing man.
If it wasn’t for the fact there was a little too much teeth in Rose’s smile, Rey would almost think it was real.
It seems Ben can’t quite get a read on it, or Rose’s question, either. “I’m sorry?”
Rose just smiles wider. “I said is it really a surprise? The bill passed the Senate as I’m sure you heard, and we decided to come join the party,” she says, gesturing to the crowd of senatorial staffers filling the dimly lit space. “Besides, it coincided nicely with our double date.”
Ben blinks a few times, visibly confused. “Double date?”
Rey sends a mental thanks that Ben seemed surprised enough that he remained focused on Rose a long moment before he turns back towards Rey, a questioning look in his eyes.
After all, it gives Rey enough time to recover from her own surprise at Rose’s statement.
As if seeing Ben hadn’t been surprise enough.
Two years ago, after college and before her most recent job on the committee, she had worked on Senator Organa’s re-election campaign, along with Finn. Senator Organa’s son, however, had at the time been working for a powerful New York businessman, gaining a lot of wealth and power in his own right in that job.
But with Senator Organa’s chances of winning re-election growing dim in the face of an opponent heavily financed by the wealthy (and apparently overtly corrupt) New York businessman, something had happened that led Ben to reveal his boss’s misdeeds to the FBI, which resulted in the eventual downfall of his former boss. Shortly after, Ben joined his mother’s campaign, and his last-minute decision ultimately helped push her over the edge into victory.
In retrospect, Rey doesn’t think Ben’s motives were altogether altruistic, even if his love for his mother (and Leia’s obvious love and hope for her son) were, and remain, obvious.
But Rey wasn’t thinking of all that on election night. Her emotions were already running high, the party already raging, when the race was officially called in favor of Senator Organa. Headquarters went crazy, and when she found Ben and herself pressed together in the crush of the crowd, she was suddenly swamped with gratitude for his help getting her hero reelected, and, feeling wild with the celebration, she kissed him.
It wasn’t her best moment.
And, ever since, he seemed to be following her around.
Really, could she never escape him? She doesn’t want this.
But at least Ben’s attention on Rose buys Rey a moment to hide her surprise, and she nods in confirmation of Rose’s statement.
Of course they were here on a date, her face says, her features carefully schooled.
Luckily her focus on controlling her expression made it easy for her to stay settled when Poe’s arm slides around her shoulders. Apparently, he and Finn were taking Rose’s machinations in stride, too.
But she can’t quite keep her features completely schooled when Poe tucks her in close to his side and presses a kiss to her temple. But she doesn’t think she really gives anything away, her surprise easily hidden as her mouth slides into a gentle smile and she melts into the embrace.
Granted, she can’t help the gentle flush of warmth that springs to her cheeks at it either, but it only seems to sell the story more, as Ben mumbles something and walks away.
But then again, Rose’s grin when she looks at Rey suggests that while their machinations fooled Ben, Rose understood completely what was going on.
Well, shit. Rey’s still screwed.
But she can’t really complain. Although the conversation at their little booth easily picks back up where they had left off, Poe’s arm remains wrapped around her, the warmth of his body against her permeating her skin through her work blouse.
She understands why they keep the façade up. Ben lingers at the bar, intermittently engaging in conversation with others around him, while staring at their booth far too often.
She’s not sure if he’s pouting, scowling, or outright glowering, or some combination of all three as he looks in their direction, but her friends keep her distracted enough that she almost forgets he’s there.
Soon enough she’s laughing so hard her cheeks and sides ache with it, and she feels Poe’s answering laughter rumbling through her too, as she stays pressed to his side.
Honestly, it’s less her friends keeping her distracted from Ben, and more the impossibly handsome man whose warmth she can feel through her clothes, his even, steady breaths beside her, the way he occasionally presses kisses to her temple or strokes some hair away from her face as they talk.
Not to mention he smells absolutely delicious, like warm leather and aftershave and something else, something indefinable, and her head practically swims with it.
Once, when Ben heads to the bathroom, his face turned towards their booth for far too long when he passes them by, she finds herself snuggling deeper into Poe’s embrace. She feels his breath hitch at her side, almost wants to apologize to him for further invading his personal space, but by the time Ben finally looks away and ducks out of sight, the moment has passed.
It’s fine though. She’s sure Poe understands, plus she thinks it would be difficult to speak with her heart in her throat.
They’re in the middle of a conversation about Senator Knope’s re-election campaign, when Rose gulps down the last few sips of her cocktail and nudges her boyfriend with her shoulder. “Ready for another drink?”
Finn glances down at his nearly empty glass and nods. “Yeah, I think so. What you drinking?”
“I think I may try something else. I’ll go with you,” Rose says, already scooting out of the booth after Finn. As Rose stands, she glances at Poe and Rey, and asks, “You two ready for another round?”
Both of their drinks were still mostly full — neither of them were big drinkers — so they shake their heads no.
As Finn and Rose disappear into the crowd though, it suddenly hits her.
Rose will pay for this, Rey thinks. She has no doubt getting her and Poe alone was Rose’s plan all along. Her friend is too diabolical by half.
“You still doing alright?”
Rey turns to look at Poe as he asks the question, just loud enough for her to hear it, but when she faces him, she realizes there is barely any space between the two. She can feel his breath on her face, and his soft brown eyes are looking into hers with a mixture of concern and . . . something else she can’t quite place.
It takes her brain a long moment to get back on track.
Her lips part, then close, then part once again, and she thinks his eyes briefly drop to her lips, but she can’t bring herself to hope, so she finally answers, “I am.”
And she is. She’s never been better, even if her stomach is swooping wildly as she looks back at him.
Neither of them look away, even when she becomes flustered enough to say, “I’m sorry about this. But I really appreciate it.”
“No need to thank me.”
“I did something stupid once. I let my emotions and the celebration get the better of me.” She sighs then, her eyes never leaving his.
“We’ve all been there.”
“Sure, but . . .”
“But what?”
His eyes are so soft and warm as he gazes at her, and she knows her cheeks are red, even as she smiles back at him. “But thank you,” she says, softly, before slowly leaning in to give him a kiss on his stubbled cheek.
She’s barely pulled her lips away from his skin when his eyes catch hers, and his cheeks look as red as hers feel, and there’s something indescribable in the look he’s giving her, and it’s magnetic, and they’re leaning in —
“We’re headed out, you two!” Rose interrupts, giggling as she approaches the table. Rey has half a mind to glare at her but then Rose is saying, “Rey, I’m going to stay at Finn’s tonight, you going to be okay getting home?”
Rey can’t talk, so she just nods, and then she’s waving at the two as they leave.
“Well, I guess it’s just us now,” Poe says, as his eyes return to Rey.
“I guess it is,” Rey says as she smiles back at him.
With their near kiss (and was that what it was or was that just some hopeful pipe dream of hers?) so fresh in her mind, and their friends now gone, she thought that their conversation might lull.
But then they’re talking about anything and everything under the sun, and before she knows it, it’s past midnight.
“You wanna get out of here?” she asks Poe, looking at the regulars heading out, while the late night/early morning crowd heads in (and she’s never been fond of that particular time in the bar scene).
“Sure,” Poe replies easily, already gathering their jackets and helping her slip hers on.
Even as they head out of the bar, their conversation continues, everything feeling bright and full of possibilities as they walk in the direction of Rey’s apartment.
As the arrive on the front stoop of her apartment’s entryway, illuminated under the bright overhead light, she turns to Poe, nervous and giddy in equal measure, and she doesn’t want to say goodnight —
So, she doesn’t.
“You want to come up for a drink?”
She understands the implications of her question, understands what she’s asking him for, you want to come up for a drink meaning I want to kiss you, do you want that too? and I need you, please say you need me too.
She sees his eyes darken and knows that he’s understood her completely.
She leads him upstairs to the apartment, Poe just a half-step behind her, and all the while she feels like she’s on a rollercoaster in the best of ways, her stomach swooping, her heading spinning, blood thrumming through her so hard she feels dizzy with it.
She unlocks the door and pushes it open and they step inside together, the moment stretching, lingering on, blood thumping through her ears —
She doesn’t really know who moved first, but suddenly, they’re in each other’s arms, and he’s kissing her, and she feels wild with it, both falling and flying at once, and then he’s pressing her into the wall.
Even with his body pressed tight to hers, she grasps at his broad shoulders, at the strong muscles of his back, wanting him still closer. His lips are soft, even as he kisses her like he’s starving for it, his mouth opening and tongue diving into her mouth. She welcomes him in, eager to taste him, has been eager to taste him for months, and she can’t resist nipping at his lip when he pulls back to adjust the angle.
He growls at it though, the sound of it alone sending a shock wave through her, and then his strong hands are skimming the length of her body until he can get a grip on the back of her thighs, and he lifts her, keeping her pressed to the wall all the while, as her legs wrap around his waist.
The position brings her core flush to his, and she can feel him hard and hot beneath her already, only a few thin layers of clothing separating the two. His lips return to hers and she’s moaning into his mouth, absolutely drowning in the sensation as they grind together.
When she finally has to pull away to gasp for air, his eyes stare into hers, dark and heady and full of desire, before he dives back in, his plush lips at her neck.
She’s wild with it, the feeling of his mouth against her sensitive skin, the way he seems to need her just as much as she needs him. She rocks her hips down harder, his cock hitting just where she needs him the most. She does it again, and again, pleasure thrumming up and down her spine, even as his lips suck at the spot just beneath her ear that has her seeing stars.
“I need you,” he pants against her neck, and she wants to crow in victory, and she does throw her head back on a moan. Her head thumps against the wall though and she wants to groan for a different reason as he pulls back to look at her, a concerned look on his face. “You okay?”
She barely dignifies that with an answer, too keen on keeping her hips working, writhing against him. He catches on that she’s okay when her hands dive into his hair, and his eyes darken even further.
He leans in, presses another kiss to her mouth, tugging at her lip gently as he pulls away, to breathe out a single question. “Bed?”
“Yes, but . . .” she trails off, too focused on the throbbing in her core, the way she’s just on the edge of the precipice, if only he doesn’t stop, please don’t stop . . .
His eyes study her face for a long moment, and then he grins wickedly. “You going to come for me, darling?”
She can’t pull her eyes away from his, her breath coming too fast to speak, and it’s all she can do to nod quickly, she’s so close now . . .
He bites that plush bottom lip of his between his teeth and she can’t help but stare at it hungrily, even as his hands tug her even closer, both their hips working feverishly.
“That’s it, come on, I want to see you come for me, sweetheart,” and then she does, her hands tugging at his hair as she shakes apart in his arms, his moan answering the one that feels like it’s punched out of her from the force of her climax.
When the aftershocks pass, her eyes open to find Poe staring back at her, his mouth open as his eyes sweep over her face, from her eyes to her lips and back up again.
When he sees that she’s come back to herself, his gaze turns wicked once more. “Feel good?”
She’s still pressed to the wall and she can feel him hard beneath her, knows he’s probably aching with it.
“It’ll feel even better when we’re in bed,” she responds with her own cheeky grin, though the statement itself comes out far breathier than she intends.
“Your wish is my command,” he says, smiling, and then she’s laughing as he pulls away from the wall but not from her, her legs still wrapped around him as she guides him down the hallway to her room.
Her bed is unmade and there are dirty clothes in the corner and stacks of papers and books all around her room, but she doesn’t think he sees them, since he doesn’t take his eyes away from her, not even as he sets her gently on the ground, his hands coming up to gently cradle her cheeks.
But then their lips crash together again, and they’re kissing with renewed passion and her hands are drifting down his chest, deftly unfastening the light blue button-up of his that drives her absolutely batty with how good he looks in it.
But she expects he’ll look even better out of it and she’s pushing it off his shoulders even as he tugs the sweater over her head, and the rest of their clothes fall off before she knows it, their hands and fingers shoving aside pants and undergarments until they’re bare before each other.
Everything already feels so good, but then he’s picking her up and depositing her gently on her bed and stretching out above her, and there’s so much warm, bare, golden skin to touch and feel and kiss . . .
She’s got her lips on his collarbone and she tugs him closer until his cock brushes against her heated core, her hips bucking up in an attempt to get him even closer.
At the same time, one of his hands brushes down her torso until it reaches her center, and both of them moan as he brushes a finger through her slit.
“You’re so wet already,” he breathes out as he gazes down at her body to where his clever fingers find their way inside of her.
“Please, Poe,” she pants out, already needing him so badly again. His eyes quickly move back up her body, his teeth once more biting down at his lip as he stares at her mouth when she says his name again. Not to be outdone, she wraps her hand around his cock, rubbing her thumb around the sensitive spot just beneath the head.
That gets a moan from him, but with the way he had reacted just a moment ago . . . “Poe, I need you,” she says again, and she thrills with pride knowing she had been right, as his eyes flutter closed and something akin to a growl rumbles in his chest.
“Poe,” she breaths out, right into his ear, and his head drops to her shoulder.
“You ready?” he asks, his voice sounding absolutely wrecked.
“Yes,” she breathes again, and he takes himself in hand, leaving her hands free to stroke up his back, over his shoulders, letting herself appreciate this man she never even imagined she’d get to touch.
For his part, he looks at her much the same, as he works the tip of himself over her, the head nudging against her clit causing her to roll her hips up into him.
His mouth opens and closes wetly, a small little motion, and something passes in front of his eyes before it clears.
“Poe,” she moans again, and then he’s notching the tip just into her opening.
Then he’s sinking into her until she’s so full, so complete in a way she had never known could be true, and for a long moment they remain still, just relishing in the sensation.
Their eyes meet and something passes between them, and then she’s hooking a leg around his hip as his hand comes to her thigh, and they begin to move, everything between the two of them feeling so warm and powerful and right.
As his hips press into hers, his strokes quick and powerful, she comes alive with the sensation, her back arching as she feels the pleasure build at the base of her spine. She doesn’t know how, but as her moans keep escaping her lips, their volume growing louder as her pleasure increases, his pace moves even faster.
She can’t take her eyes off him, his chest flushed and heaving, breathes being punched out between his lips, sweat dripping from his hairline, a droplet running down his neck that she can’t resist leaning up to lick off him.
All the while he’s staring at her, his eyes wide and lips parted, and she never wants to forget the look on his face, how he’s looking at her as if she’s something beautiful, something wonderous —
And now that she knows what it feels like to have him look at her this way, how can she ever go back to the way things were?
He’s mumbling praises to her too, about how sweet she is, how beautiful, how she feels so good, so perfect, and it’s with that heady look in his eyes, his words echoing in her ear, the way he’s thrusting into her even as his fingers dip down to circle her clit, ramping up her pleasure until she’s barreling towards the crest at lightspeed —
As she comes, his body arches over hers and he kisses her so deeply, his mouth and body pressed to hers, until she can only think, can only feel, nothing but Poe and pleasure.
Even as he works her through her aftershocks, she can’t help but want to make him feel as good as he’s making her feel, and with her hands tugging at his hair, and her legs tugging him even closer, he’s groaning, loudly, something wordless but maybe also something like her name, and she can feel him as he comes inside her.
Then he collapses in the aftermath of his own pleasure, and even as he moves to roll off her, there’s a part of her that wants to keep him clutched to her, not wanting this to end, knowing that this likely won’t ever happen again.
Eventually they move to stand and clean up and she heads to the bathroom. If any of her (admittedly few) one-night stands are any indication, he’ll be long gone by the time she finishes cleaning up.
She comes out and, while his pants are back on, Poe’s holding his button-up in his hands, staring at it, looking almost . . . forlorn?
That can’t be right.
But he smiles as he sees her, though it’s not the full, bright Poe Dameron smile she’s so accustomed too.
She can’t help but ask, “You okay?”
He nods and clearly tries to brighten his smile, but it doesn’t work. “Yeah, of course,” he mumbles. And then he laughs, but it’s not a happy sound, but it’s not bitter, either. It’s some mix of the two, something almost . . . self-deprecating.
She doesn’t know what to say, but luckily Poe, ever the talker, beats her to it, but what he says has her jaw dropping in shock.
“I guess I just never imagined it would happen this way. I never wanted a one-night stand with you,” and her heart twists and breaks at his statement. But then he continues, “And clearly I’m not the best at them. I just . . . don’t do them. I mean, one-night stands aren’t my thing. And especially when it comes to you, I just always imagined that I would take you to dinner, maybe a movie, or a walk along the river or something? And I would hold your hand and kiss you and woo you and maybe if I was really lucky . . .” he trails off, shaking his head as that laugh bubbles up again.
She hates that sound. “I don’t do one-night stands either.” She takes a hesitant step forward towards him, then another. “And I don’t want to have one with you.” And then her own laugh bubbles forward. It’s a little bewildering, almost incomprehensible, that maybe her feelings are returned.
“Poe,” she asks, his name sweet in her mouth, and his eyes soften as he finally meets her own once more. “Would you like to stay? With me?”
She doesn’t say tonight.
She thinks forever might be implied.
The smile that blossoms across his face is bright, wild, beautiful. That’s the smile she knows. That’s the smile she loves.
She doesn’t tell him tonight, but she feels the words building in her chest. They’re just on the tip of her tongue. She knows they’re gonna spill forth sooner rather than later, words she’s never had reason to say to someone she was actually in love with before.
She sprawls out on her bed and reaches her arm out to him, inviting him into her bed and into her life.
That smile of his only grows as he walks back towards her and her bed, his fingers stumbling at the button of his pants until she nods with approval, and then he’s shedding his clothes again before joining her in bed, no longer anything separating the two.
As they drift off to sleep, she’s never looked forward to a sunrise more, when she gets to see him beside her again.