Title:Ship of Dreams

Author: Robin and Maggie

Fandom: seaQuest - 3rd season

Pairing: Lucas Wolenczak and Alexia Collington

Rating: PG-13( lang), later parts are rated R, due to lang,violence and sexual content.

Status: New

Archive: ask us first, please.

Email addy: cairns@irvens.freeserve.co.us or kittycat104@hotmail.com

Disclaimers:We don't own the crew of the seaQuest, but we do own Alexia Collington and the crew of the Oasis. Thank you to Karel and Maggie for their infinite patience. Hey Mags - how 'bout a cuppa?



Ship of Dreams
by RV/MC

Trying to conceal her look of awe, twenty-two year old Alexia Collington walked down the corridor. She was finally here on the legendary seaQuest. SeaQuest had just spent the past month undergoing repairs to damage sustained in a recent encounter with the Choadai. Lexi and the rest of the crew were shipping out in a few hours. Captain Hudson had requested that the Ensign report in an hour earlier than the rest of the crew, so that she could be briefed on past events. But as usual, Lexi was one step ahead of the game; she had read everything in the UEO data base pertaining to the ship. She knew exactly what she was in for. While she had been researching the seaQuest, Lexi had also tapped into Hudson's personnel file.

The Ensign could still hear McGath's words ringing in her ears when he'd told her that the transfer had been approved; "Don't let Oliver intimidate you..." Well, no one could have been less intimidating than the seemingly gruff Captain Hudson. They'd never met her cold hearted grandmother. She'd rather deal with Hudson any day. At least he wouldn't be at her day and night telling her, "That's not how well brought up young ladies should act," or "It is not appropriate for someone of your position to be enlisting in the military!"

The Ensign let out a small sigh, her grandmother couldn't harass anyone any more; the old lady had passed away while Lexi was stationed on the Oasis, in the middle of the Baltic Sea on maneuvers. There had been no way to get back upworld in time for the funeral, so Lexi had told the plethora of attorneys her grandmother always had on retainer, to just handle everything without her. That had been a little over three months ago. Now she was starting a new life. Now she, Alexia Katarina Collington, could control her own destiny.

*******

The transfer from the Oasis had not been a surprise to her superiors. Captain Mathias had a well known reputation, as being straight by the book. He was the type to avoid confrontation at any cost. As a *navy-lifer*, he was looking forward to a fat military pension when he retired. Until then,life on board his vessel was tedious at best. One could only do so many systems checks. Lexi had felt like she was wasting away. Life on board had been so mundane. She'd had plenty of time to finish her telecourses on the nex, and earn a second degree. This time, in Marine Biology and Biological Ecosystems. Someday, she hoped to carry on her father's research. Until then, Lexi was committed to serving out her commission.

Her desire to request reassignment was also the result of the discomfort Lexi now felt, whenever she had to be in the same room with Peter. X.O. of the Oasis, Peter Taylor had a huge reputation as a ladies man. Lexi, being inexperienced in these matters, had been easy prey. The X.O. had taken full advantage of the situation. She had been young and naive, and Peter had seemed to care about her. All she had ever wanted was someone to love, but in the end he had used her for his own purposes; taking her virginity and leaving her alone to deal with the humiliation. Alone. Funny that, she always ended up all alone. What was wrong with her? Well, in any case, she would never make the mistake of trusting anyone again, it was too painful.

"Oh, snap out of it, Lex," she told herself. "Wallowing in self-pity won't get you through this interview with Hudson, so pull yourself together!" She made her way to the Ward room, stopping periodically to admire different features of the ship. This was a dream come true. As a teenager she had heard so much about this ship - it's various scientific achievements while captained by Nathan Bridger; and then it's sad sudden disappearance and reappearance. Now that was a mystery; imagine a submarine appearing in the middle of a cornfield! It sounded like something right out of the science fiction novels Lexi was so fond of reading in her spare time - go figure!

Lexi paused outside the Ward room door for a moment, then proceeded to knock. The door opened and before her stood the illustrious Captain Hudson.

"Welcome to seaQuest Ensign Collington. I trust your time spent on seaQuest will be longer than your previous assignment on the Oasis."

Lexi could feel the embarrassment reaching her cheeks. Damn, she hated that! Thanks to her Slavic ancestors, it was always plain to see when she was even the slightest bit uncomfortable. First, she'd feel the warmth, then a few seconds later she knew that the flush would creep up from her neck until it reached her cheeks. Still, she managed to keep her composure. Lexi refused to let anyone see her weaknesses.

After an awkward silence, the Captain spoke,"Okay, well," said Hudson, looking up from notes he had made regarding her personnel file. "I see that you have managed to earn not just one, but two degrees with honors;just what I need on this boat, another genius," the Captain muttered to himself. Speaking out loud again he said pleasantly, "I'm sure we'll be able to use your expertise, Ensign Collington. Ah, am I correct in understanding that your mother was Katherina Rogers-Collington, the concert pianist? I myself, am fond of classical music. Do you play, Ensign?" the Captain asked Lexi.

"Yes Sir, but I prefer the guitar to the piano," she responded with a smile.

The Captain looked at his chronometer and motioning that the interview was over, stood up and walked her to the door saying, "Good luck and welcome aboard Ensign. Dismissed."

Lexi exited heaving a sigh of relief. "Thank God that was over!"

********

Following the directions that a crew member had given to her earlier, Lexi made her way to her quarters. She was unpacking her belongings, when she heard a loud crash. Dropping the pile of clothes she held in her arms,she opened the door to see what had happened. Sitting in the middle of the passageway,was a very annoyed looking young man, with papers strewn all around him. Hovering over him, looking quite distressed and murmuring apologies, was a huge GELF holding a mop. Both men suddenly stopped what they were doing and looked at Lexi in surprise. Trying not to laugh at the comical scene, Lexi suppressed a grin and held out her hand to assist the dishevelled person in front of her.

He slowly took her hand and suddenly, finding the humor in his predicament, began to laugh. It wasn't long before he had the Ensign and the GELF, both giggling hysterically.

Leaning against the wall, taking a moment to catch his breath, Lucas glanced at Lexi and said dryly,"Now that I've provided you with your belly laugh for the day, who are you?"

"I'm Ensign Collington; Alexia Collington, but all my friends call me Lexi," she said, extending her hand again.

"Hi, I'm Ensign Wolenczak - Lucas, and this is my friend Dagwood," said Lucas. "Wait a minute...Collington -- are you any relation to the Dr. Collington that worked on the Minoa/South Sea Project?" he asked.

"Actually, that was my father," she responded quietly.

"Your father! He was brilliant! His research in the field of Marine Ecological Systems opened the doors for so many colonies!" exclaimed Lucas enthusiastically.

"Yea, well too bad he never lived long enough to see the fruits of all that research," Lexi responded, her mood suddenly somber. She handed him the rest of the papers. "Well,thanks for the entertainment - here's your stuff. I'd better finish unpacking before my shift starts."

"Wait," said Lucas, "You're on third shift tonight, with me. Captain Hudson requested that I give you a brief orientation tour of the seaQuest and her systems."

Lexi glanced at her wrist looking at the time, it was already 1800 hours. "Okay, let me just finish up in my quarters," she said while moving through the doorway.

Lucas, curious now about this new person, followed her inside. The first thing that caught his attention, was the six string acoustic guitar laying on the bunk.

Seeing the curiosity in his eyes, she said,"Yes, I play. Wherever I go - it goes!" she added in a frosty tone, somewhat wary at the fact that he had just followed her into her quarters uninvited.

Lucas frowned, unable to understand the sudden change in her demeanor. Ignoring her uninvited guest, Lexi continued her unpacking. Reaching into a large box sitting on her desk, she pulled out a framed photo. The photo revealed the image of three happy people. Two adults and a child, sitting on a beach somewhere with diving equipment surrounding them. A handsome threesome. As Lexi turned back to the box, Lucas reached over and examined the photo.

"My parents," she said with a glaring look, as she grabbed her memento out of his hands. They're dead," she replied in answer to the look of puzzlement he gave her.

For the life of him, Lucas could not figure out what he was doing wrong; the temperature in Lexi's quarters seemed to have dropped considerably since he had followed her inside. Apart from that, the chip on this girl's shoulder seemed to be growing larger by the moment. It was going to be a long shift if this kept up. Before Lucas could ask any of the questions that were rapidly forming in his mind, there was a knock at the door.

"Great," thought Lexi, "Just what I really want right now...more company." Glancing over to the open doorway, she saw a young woman with a Lieutenant Junior Grade patch on her uniform, standing there smiling at her. Not noticing Lucas standing in the far corner, the Lieutenant moved purposefully into the room. Smiling, she held out her hand and introduced herself. "Hi, I'm Lieutenant Henderson, but please, call me Lonnie."

Starting to relax with another female in the room, Lexi shyly shook the older woman's hand saying,"I'm Ensign Collington. Lexi, please."

"Well, I see that I'm not the first to greet you," Lonnie said amused, watching Lucas check out the Ensign's computer set-up. "I just wanted to introduce myself and see if there was anything you needed, Lexi. My quarters are right next door."

Tony Piccolo was walking down the corridor of C-deck, when he noticed Lonnie standing in the doorway talking to someone. His curiosity getting the better of him,he strode over to see what was happening. He had been looking for her since she had left the Bridge for her break. He wanted to know if she had met the new crew member yet. The gossip he had heard, was that the new Ensign was a real knock out.

He was dying to meet her! Tony walked over to Lonnie. Speaking loudly, he said, "Who ya talkin' to, Lon,?" Peering into the room, he continued,"I heard the new crew member is a babe - ya met her yet? What's she like?" As the words tumbled out of his mouth, Tony moved further into the room, finally noticing Lucas and Lexi. Staring straight at Lexi, he found himself looking into the softest pair of hazel eyes he'd ever seen.

Lexi was mortified to feel herself begin to blush. Uncertain at how to respond to all of this unwanted attention, she began to fervently wish that a hole would just open up right now in her quarters, and swallow her up! It was starting to get a bit too close for comfort in here.

Lonnie, seeing the look of pure embarrassment on the young woman's face, was surprised at her reaction, but feeling sympathetic, decided to take matters into her own hands. Giving Tony an evil look that stopped him in his tracks, she said, "Warrant Officer Piccolo, meet that new crew member you've been looking for,Ensign Collington."

Smiling uncertainly, Lexi gave him a brief wave of her hand.

"Well, it took ya long enough ta give me an intro. Welcome to the coolest sub in the UEO," he responded.

Glancing over at Lexi, and finding her somewhat unnerved by Tony's approach, Lucas decided that a little levity was needed. As he moved closer to Lexi, he meant to place a reassuring hand on her arm, but she deftly avoided his attempt at personal contact, by moving across the room to stand next to Lonnie. Surprised by her maneuver and more than a little mystified, he turned to Lexi, and said sarcastically, "Forgive Tony's manners, he wasn't brought up like we were," adding with a snicker, "He's from Brooklyn."

"Heeeey," replied Tony.

Feeling more confident standing next to Lonnie, Lexi was finally able to greet Tony with a feeble, "Nice to meet you." Quietly deep breathing, and trying to relax a bit in the situation, she glanced hopefully at the other female officer, and said, "Look guys, before I get totally overwhelmed, could one of you please point me in the direction of the Mess." Eyeing her chronometer, she realized that they had been standing around trying to make small talk for over an hour. Quickly speaking up again, she said, "I haven't eaten since 0600 this morning, and I'm famished!"

"Now that's what I like in a woman; beauty and a healthy appetite!" replied the Warrant Officer, moving out of the door.

Sharing the same thought, Lucas and Lonnie both turned to him, and said in unison, "Oh shut up!"

Lexi couldn't help but smile to herself, observing the camaraderie amongst these friends. Starting to become more comfortable, she let Lonnie link her arm through hers, as the four of them made their way to the Mess.

**********

Standing in the serving line seeing the limited selection, Lexi bravely asked to no one in particular, "What's good around here?"

"Good is stretching it a bit, and by the way, I'm Tim O'Neill, Comm Officer," said the young man in front of her, turning to face Lexi.

Trying to be nice, and not wanting to repeat the awkward scene from earlier, she offered her hand, saying as she looked into his brown eyes, "I'm the new crew member, Ensign Collington, but everyone calls me Lexi."

They moved forward with the line. Lexi crinkled her nose, as she leaned closer to the counter, trying to get a better look at what might have once been fish in another life.

Standing behind her, Lonnie, amused by the Ensign's look of disgust at the fish, said reassuringly, "You can't go wrong with the chicken."

"Ah, but are you sure it's really chicken?" replied Lucas with an evil grin. He winked teasingly at Lexi.

"Well, never let it be said that I'm afraid of my food," Lexi countered, joining in on the banter. Her hazel eyes sparkled with a mischievous twinkle, as she placed the day's special on her tray. "They can't do too much to pasta,can they?" she asked hesitantly, then laughing as she caught Lucas' eye as he muttered under his breath, "You'd be surprised."

"Wanna blindfold with that? Or, maybe a drumroll?" Joked Tony, while butting in front of her in line, to grab a second helping of dessert.

"Will you guys just leave her alone!" said Lonnie, remembering Lexi's earlier discomfort at all the teasing. She pulled out a chair, and sat down next to Jonathan. Placing her napkin on her lap, she added, "Honestly, the way they're acting, you would think they had never seen a pretty girl before!"

"C'mon Lonnie, lighten up a little. They're just blowing off some steam, and having fun. You know how low morale has been since Freddie was killed," his voice trailing off as Lexi sat down next to Lonnie.

Looking over at the new comer to their table, the Commander smiled slightly as he watched the reaction this girl seemed to be getting from his subordinate male officers, especially Tony Piccolo. He made a mental note to keep an eye on the situation. Pretty girls on submarines could be trouble. After all, boys will be boys, and the testosterone level could get awfully high when they were in the thick of things. "So Ensign,what do you think of seaQuest so far?" he addressed her, trying to engage her in conversation.

"Well Sir, she's had a colorful career; I mean first as a research vessel and now as a military ship." Lexi didn't get the chance to elaborate further.

Suddenly, the mood in the room seemed to change. She observed as things literally came to a halt, as a tall, serious looking Asian woman strode into the room. Lexi watched almost fascinated, as this somber figure looked neither left, nor right; just walked up to the serving line, put her chosen meal on a tray, turned on her heel in precise military fashion, and proceeded to leave the Mess. Once the specter was gone,activity seemed to return to normal. Lexi regarded the others at her table; Lonnie watching the scene in front of her with what appeared to be pity; Tony, Lucas and Commander Ford appeared disinterested. Tim seemed to be the most affected by this mysterious person. Silently, his eyes caught hers. Lexi was startled by the raw emotion she saw there, but as quick as she noticed it, it was gone. The Ensign broke from the Communications Officer's gaze, uncomfortable at having been caught out staring. Lexi lowered her eyes discreetly to her plate, and began to tackle her dinner.

Lonnie leaned over slightly, and quietly murmured,"I'll explain later." Talking amongst themselves, the group finished their meals. No one made any mention of the earlier apparition. Standing up simultaneously, the Commander and Tim were the first at the table to leave, their dinner breaks ending at approximately the same time.

Lieutenant Henderson was next, she stood up, and giving Lexi a quick wave, said, "I'll catch up with you later. Good luck on your first shift!"

Tony, looking at the clock on the wall, slowly stood up and said with a grin,"Parting is such sweet sorrow," eliciting a giggle from Lexi, while Lucas just leaned back in his chair, and rolled his eyes heavenward.

A thought suddenly struck Lucas. "Hey, you haven't met Darwin yet, " he exclaimed.

"Let's go then, there's still plenty of time for you to show me the Moon Pool," replied Lexi with a smile. She continued, excitedly, "I've been dying to meet your dolphin since I came on board." Lucas smiled to himself reflecting on her comment. Darwin just might be the ice-breaker he needed with this girl.

Standing up and pushing her chair in, Lexi spoke again,"I'd like to see the vocorder you designed; I read the article you published a while back in the Journal of Marine Life, detailing it's program.

"You actually read that?" he commented, feeling flattered.

"Of course! Your invention advanced dolphin language studies by leaps and bounds! We've been able to learn so much because of your vocorder," she enthusiastically replied.

"We?" he asked puzzled. "I don't understand. The Captain said that the new crew member's background was in Computer Engineering and Systems Design."

"Well," said Lexi defensively,"I guess the Captain forgot to mention that like my father, I'm also a Marine Biologist." Beaming with pride, but speaking to Lucas curtly, she added, "I just finished my Masters while on board the Oasis." She moved away from Lucas,and without waiting, exited the Mess. Starting down the corridor, Lexi reached the maglev first, and waited for him.

Approaching her cautiously, Lucas could tell she was annoyed with him again. Why? He made a mental note to remember that this one had a short fuse. Whew! He sure hoped that Darwin could lighten her mood, otherwise it was going to be a long shift.

The maglev arrived, and they were on their way. Lexi gasped as her eyes took in the Moon Pool for the first time."This is incredible," she muttered to herself, the awe evident in her voice."I thought all the swim tubes built into seaQuest's design were cool, but this is amazing," she said as she followed the other Ensign to the edge of the pool and sat down. "Captain Bridger was truly ahead of his time with all of this," she added, gesturing around her.

Before Lucas could respond to her comment, Lexi pointed excitedly at the mammal swimming towards them. Picking up the vocorder, Lucas explained how his invention worked. Then speaking into it, he said,"Hello Darwin, I want you to meet a new friend of mine," not noticing the look he was getting from Lexi. "Meet Lexi."

After much clicking and playful splashing, the dolphin responded, "Hello Lexi. Lexi join seaQuest pod?"

Lucas reached down and rubbed the dolphin's snout. "Thank you Darwin," he thought to himself as he watched a smile break out on Lexi's face.

Sliding over to give her more room,he watched as she stood up, and leaned over the edge rubbing Darwin, and laughing as the dolphin started tossing his toys at her. Lexi picked up the vocorder, and speaking into it, said," Yes, Darwin, that's right. I've joined the pod."

"Lucas and Lexi play with Darwin now?" requested the dolphin.

"No, not now Darwin, we're on duty in a few minutes," stated Lucas, realizing the time. He turned to face Lexi, and said,"We should be going, you wouldn't want to be late for your first shift on seaQuest, now would you?"

Suddenly, feeling nervous, she gave him a faint smile, and said,"Let's do it!" as he turned to lead her to the Bridge.

**********

All in all, her first shift on board passed uneventfully. The usual Bridge crew, with the exception of Commander Ford, were not present. Rarely, if ever, did Senior officers even have to rotate to third shift. "Ah, the power of seniority," thought Lucas, though he wondered why the Commander had chosen to put himself on this rotation, since he had volunteered to orient the newcomer himself. Now looking over at his pretty companion, Lucas was glad that he had decided to be so charitable.

Stealing periodic glances at Lexi, Lucas couldn't help but be intrigued by her. Not a chatterbox in the least, he had found her to be strangely quiet. He didn't know what to make of this. It was evident that she was highly intelligent. Lucas had been pleasantly surprised, when after taking the better part of only two hours to tediously explain the ship's level one functions and systems designs, she had been able to complete a full diagnostics on all ship's functions without any coaching,or assistance. He had been a little wary about cutting her loose, remembering the time when he had ordered Tony to do it, and the Warrant Officer had set off every alarm on board. What a nightmare! It had taken him almost three weeks to manually complete the task; another learning experience a la Captain Hudson. Lucas shook his head at the memory. He would never make that mistake again!

His thoughts strayed back again to Lexi. Lucas sighed. He knew he didn't stand a chance with her. He just wasn't good at coming up with witty lines like Tim, or the off-color jokes like Tony. Although, he had already witnessed both of his friends try their best to capture her attention and fail miserably.

Lucas turned again to nonchalantly glance in Lexi's direction.Maybe he would give it a shot. After all, she had apologized in the maglev for snapping at him earlier. Yes, maybe he would give it a try.



PART TWO

Lexi tossed in her bunk unable to sleep. Thoughts of Lucas kept invading her mind. She just couldn't seem to get him out of her head. She turned to the illuminated swim tubes that ran along the wall of her quarters and gave a deep sigh.

"Keep this up Lexi my girl, and you'll be given a nice transfer - right out the docking bay doors, and upworld to a shrink!" she thought to herself. Seeing Darwin watching her, Lexi reached up and touched the glass. He seemed to nod at her reassuringly before swimming away. She let her hand drift down to her side again,then getting an idea, reached behind her pillow and pulled out her portable disc player. next to her guitar; it was probably her most cherished possession. Pulling the headphones on, Lexi hit the play button and lay back against the pillows. The quiet mellow tones of the new age music she was listening to, helped Lexi begin to relax. Aine Minogue was one of her favorite new age musicians. The lilting sound of the strings made her hum along to the tune. It wasn't long before Lexi fell into a deep and restful sleep.

The alarm went off at precisely 0700. Lexi started to roll out of bed and grimaced. Yesterday's workout with Lonnie had taken it's toll. Stiffly, she donned her robe and headed for the showers. She moved through the door marked,*ladies* and smiling at the other girls, proceeded to set the controls for her ion shower. Closing her eyes, Lexi reflected on the past four months. Had she really been on seaQuest that long? It hadn't taken her much time to settle into a daily routine. She was a creature of habit. Although recently, this was becoming a problem.

From the first, she had gravitated towards Lonnie. The older woman had made her feel more than welcome. Lexi was beginning to feel like Lieutenant Henderson was the sister she had never been blessed with. The others were okay. Tim was very quiet and pretty much kept to himself. Dagwood was childlike, so naive...Tony,...well, Tony was Tony! He could be loud and obnoxious one moment, and sensitive and kind the next. After consistent rejection on her part, he had stopped trying his pickup lines on her. Lexi did have to admit though, Tony did have a way of growing on you; like a fungus! She smiled to herself.

Then there was the potential problem - Lucas.

Lexi told herself she needed to vary her routine a little more. He had figured out her current one, and this being a sub, she had only so many places to hide to avoid him. Why all this effort to evade him? Questions. Questions Lexi knew he was dying to ask her, when he could trap her alone long enough to talk to her. That had been the whole key; to never let him be alone with her. She could play this game; she had done it before and was good at it. Lexi couldn't do anything about the fact that they shared the same shift rotation, without causing suspicion. She had thought about going to Commander Ford on the side, and requesting a switch. She actually preferred the third shift; the one most people hated, but it was her personal preference. Going to the Commander would make things too obvious. Lucas wasn't blind; Lexi had an inkling that he was beginning to realize that she was hiding from him on purpose, although he was clueless as to her reasons.

***********

She finished in the shower and went back to her quarters to get dressed. She was standing in front of the mirror adjusting the collar of her jumpsuit, when she heard Lonnie's knock. "Right on time," Lexi thought to herself, as she tucked her PAL into her pocket and joined the other girl in the corridor.

Lonnie looked at her and murmured a sleepy, "Good morning."

Lexi, responded in kind. Since neither of them were morning people, their trek to the Mess was a quiet one. They desperately needed some caffeine. They got their very necessary coffee and sat down. Lexi began to eat her treat for the day, a vanilla marshmallow filled doughnut.

Lonnie sat still for a moment holding her coffee, then made a face and said,"Agh,...Lex, how can you eat that so early in the morning?"

Lexi just looked at her companion, and continued to chew, stopping to lick the stickiness from her fingers.

"Do you realize how many calories you just ate there?" said Lonnie, and then muttering to herself, "Not that the would show on you anyway."

"Approximately 180, with probably at least 2 grams of fat, I think," said Lexi mischievously. "Besides Lon, what difference does it make? You'll work it off me in the gym."

Lexi meant that Captain Hudson had recently ordered all female crew members, to log in a certain number of physical training hours each week. They also attended a newly added personal defense class. Yesterday, they had attended the class, and this morning both of them were feeling a bit stiff. So much for obeying orders! They finished their coffee and headed for the Bridge. Lonnie begged off walking. She gave her friend a quick wave, and headed towards the maglev. Yesterday's class had been especially brutal, and today Lonnie could barely move. Lexi, on the other hand, decided to walk, hoping the short distance would help her loosen up a bit, before spending the day sitting at her station.

*********

At first, the activity on the Bridge was bustling, as Lexi entered and went to her station. Then she saw Captain Hudson standing over Tony. It was evident that the Warrant Officer was receiving a dressing down. It was only 0800.

"This is not a good sign," thought Lexi. She sat and picked up her headset. Adjusting the microphone, she placed the apparatus on her head and waited.

Except for Tony's confrontation with the Captain, the Bridge activity had died down. Feeling a presence next to her, Lexi turned slightly to see Lucas watching her. She returned his stare, her eyes turning a dark emerald green. She watched in satisfaction as he lowered his gaze and turned back to his panel. Focusing back on her own console, Lexi asked herself,"Why do I let him get to me like this?"

Looking down at his console,Lucas sat back frustrated."What did I ever do to her, to be treated like this?"

As he thought more about this, his frustration started to turn to anger. He had to get off the Bridge, away from HER - somewhere where he could calm himself, and think more clearly.Turning his wrist over, Lucas saw it was time for his break. The Commander nodded at Lucas, as the Ensign caught his eye and left his post.

As her thoughts wandered momentarily, Lexi looked up from her station suddenly startled to see the Commander standing in front of her.

"Ensign Collington, I want you to take over on tactical."

Nodding her compliance with his order, she took off the headset she was wearing and moved over into Lucas' chair.

*********

Lucas leaned over the washbasin and splashed cold water on his face, then dried himself with a towel. Feeling calmer now, he left the head and went back down the corridor of C-deck to his quarters, passing Lexi's cabin on the way. For some reason, his feet stopped outside her door. An idea began to form in his mind. Glancing around and seeing no one to incriminate him, Lucas leaned against the metal door and quickly punched a code on the keypad. As expected, he heard the click of the lock as it released and glancing around one final time, slipped inside.

"What am I doing?" thought Lucas. "This is insane!I'll be in the brig for sure, if I get caught!"

The artificial light emanating from the swim tubes was enough to allow him to see inside her quarters.Intent on his purpose now, Lucas quickly moved to her computer.It took only minutes for him to hack into her system, download all the file, and then reroute them to his computer. As quietly as he entered, he left. Walking quickly back to his quarters, he passed Dagwood with his mop, moving along slowly. Lucas failed to notice the look of puzzlement on the GELF's face as he watched Lucas pass.

********

Lucas sat down at his computer, and after entering his password, secured the files he had downloaded. Taking a deep breath, he tried to control the hammering in his chest. Lucas knew that what he was doing was wrong. "Okay," he thought to himself, "Just delete them. She'll never know, no one saw you...just forget about her." He reached over and picking up a bottle of aspirins, swallowed a handful to counter the headache that he knew he would feel soon. The clock in his computer told Lucas that if he didn't get back to the Bridge in a few minutes, he was going to be the Captain's next victim. Standing up he took another deep breath, then turning out the light, shut the door and ran for the maglev.

When Lucas got to the Bridge, he noticed Lexi covering his station. With determination, Lucas walked up to her. He could see that she was thoroughly engrossed with conducting a sensor sweep, and was totally unaware of the fact that he was standing beside her. Lucas carefully tapped her shoulder. Lexi, turned slightly and seeing him there, handed over the headset. "All quiet on the western front," she said pleasantly. Then, in a softer tone, she added,"Good thing you're back from break. Hudson's mood is getting uglier by the moment."

Just as Lexi finished her statement, Captain Hudson's voice boomed,"Mr.Piccolo!" Everyone on the Bridge cringed. The two Ensigns quickly shifted into their seats, trying to look busy and keep a low profile. Poor Tony, today just was not his day.!

The rest of the shift passed without incident.Lexi noted that ever since Lucas had returned from his break, he had seemed a bit jumpy.She wondered if something had happened."It's none of my business," she thought,"But all of a sudden he really looks like hell. Boy, this is a switch, I'm actually starting to feel sorry for him!" Trying to be nonchalant, she glanced towards his station and his eyes caught hers briefly, then he quickly looked away."He does have pretty blue eye she thought."

His shift finally over, Lucas went straight to his quarters. Not stopping to change out of his uniform, he proceeded to read Lexi's files. He didn't find much. Basically, after spending two hours reading the information he had downloaded, Lucas didn't know any more about his subject, than when he had started. Leaning back in his chair, Lucas stretched, then stood up. His head was beginning to pound and his eyes were tired. Lucas needed a break and he needed someone to talk to. Changing into comfortable clothes, he decided to o visit Darwin. When he was stressed, being around the dolphin always seemed to help. As he got ready to leave his cabin, he thought for a second, then with a heavy hand, deleted the files.

*********

"Lexi give Darwin fish," chatted the dolphin animatedly.

Lexi laughed,"You have to toss that ball to me first, Darwin!"

The Ensign had gone back to her quarters after their shift had ended, and then had impulsively decided to go see Darwin. They were having fun playing catch. She was even trying to teach him a couple of new games.

Lexi had discovered that the dolphin was a quick study. She was thinking that she might make him the subject of another scientific article. Lexi made a mental note to contact her father's research foundation and talk to the Head of the Committee about it. Lexi supposed she would have to discuss her idea with Lucas, but that could wait a while. She knew her father's old friend Dr. Malcolm Lansdowne, would want to be included as well.

As Lexi was going over the idea in her head, she didn't see Lucas enter. Lucas, so engrossed in his own thoughts, didn't notice Lexi. She was partially hidden from his view as she stooped over a small bucket containing fish for Darwin. As a result of their earlier play, the area around the Moon Pool was precarious at best. Water lay in puddles here and there. As she stood up, the two Ensigns collided.

Lucas literally caught Lexi in his arms, as she lost her footing on the slippery surface and began to fall. A few minutes passed as the two lay recovering in a heap on the deck platform. Then, realizing she was laying in Lucas'arms, Lexi panicked. Struggling to get free, she knocked the bucket containing Darwin's dinner into the pool.

Lucas felt like he had just caught a tiger by the tail. Not understanding her reaction, and thinking she might be injured, he anxiously asked her,"Are you alright?" his eyes filled with concern, looking her over.

Shaken, but unharmed, she answered him, "I...I'm fine, I think," she stammered. Satisfied that she wasn't hurt, Lucas released his grip on her. Immediately, she moved away from him. Cautiously, Lexi stood up. "Thank you," she said gratefully and offered him a hand to get to his feet.

Suddenly, she began to giggle, then howl with laughter. Looking at her warily and wanting to be in on the joke, Lucas asked,"What's so funny?"

"We are!" she gasped. "Look at us - we're a mess!" Leaning on the edge of the pool for support, Lexi continued to laugh. Lucas realizing that she was right, began to laugh with her. He moved closer to her. On impulse, he reached out his hand to brush a stray lock of hair from her face.

As she felt his touch, Lexi froze for a second as panic threatened to overwhelm her again. Lucas sensing her fear, let his hand linger soothingly. Backed up against the pool now, Lexi had nowhere to run. Taking a deep breath, she tried to calm herself so she could remember the things she and Lonnie had learned in the self defense class. Just as Lexi was about to inflict serious harm on Lucas, he gently lifted her chin up so she was looking directly into his eyes.

She was caught off guard as those intense blue eyes captured hers. Like a deer caught in a headlight, she froze. Closing her eyes, she felt his lips brush hers with a soft kiss. His hands slowly moved to her waist, as he held her gently. A million thoughts raced through her mind, she couldn't think straight.

Then, the encounter was over. Lucas slowly pulled away and quietly said,"You better get some dry clothes on, you're shaking."

Lexi just looked at him and unable to answer, nodded her head. He gave her a warm smile, then turned and left. Lexi, feeling unsteady now, sat down on the deck platform. Breathing heavily, she didn't know if she was shaking because of fear, or because of shock. She supposed it was a little of both.

Lucas leaned against the wall outside the Moon Pool. He was feeling a bit unsteady, not only from the earlier collision, but also from the kiss. He couldn't believe what he had just done. Taking a few deep breaths, Lucas closed his eyes, trying to compose himself, then, he made his way back to his quarters, beginning to feel the chill from his wet clothes.

************

Just as he finished dressing for the second time in less than an hour, he heard a knock at the door. Looking up, he saw Dagwood standing there. Nodding at the GELF, his friend entered.

"What's up, Dag?" Lucas asked curiously.

Shifting back and forth on his feet uncomfortably, the GELF hesitantly asked, "Umm, Lucas, why were you in Lexi's quarters?"

It was a good thing that Dagwood couldn't see his face. Lucas sat down on his bunk, trying desperately not to look guilty. Hating to lie to his friend, but not able to think of any other way out of this situation, Lucas turned back to the GELF and quickly replied, "I was so preoccupied yesterday, Dag, that I didn't notice until I was there, that I was in the wrong cabin! Pretty stupid of me, really," he added, hoping that Dagwood believed his excuse. Lucas laughed, "Guess I should pay more attention to where I'm going, huh?"

Dagwood looked at Lucas a minute, then stood up to leave. The GELF paused as if to say something, then, thinking better of it, shrugged his massive shoulders and left.

Lucas heaved a sigh of relief. He felt incredibly guilty at having to lie to his friend. Now he could only pray that the GELF wouldn't mention his covert activities to Lexi. His mind racing again, Lucas sat back down at his computer and started doing what he did best.

Hacking into the UEO's data base, he got into Lexi's classified file. A blinking ACCESS DENIED message appeared on his screen. He tapped a few more keys - same result, ACCESS DENIED. Frustrated, Lucas banged his fist down. Then, suddenly, the message on the screen changed - UEO CLASSIFIED PRIORITY CODE ACCEPTED. ACCESS GRANTED TO LEVEL 1 SECURITY CLEARANCE FILES. "Level 1? Why would she have a Level 1 clearance?" He thought to himself. "Just who are you, Lexi?"

Scrolling through the file, he paused to read information here and there. After an hour, he had learned that Lexi's parents had died when she was a child. She had lived with someone; a partner of her father's, for a couple of years, and then, for some reason, she went to live with her maternal grandparents. There was no mention of her father's family. Reading further, he leaned back in his chair and whistled. Upon the death of her grandparents, Lexi had inherited a substantial amount of money. To be blunt, she was an heiress, having inherited not only her grandfather's Wall Street interests, but also her grandmother's family business; one of the largest wineries in the United States Confederation.

"WOW!" He thought to himself. "So why, if she's a rich, society girl, is she so secretive about everything? And why in the world would an heiress chose to enlist in the military?" She had him thoroughly intrigued now. The more Lucas learned about Lexi, the more questions began to form in his mind.

He scrolled down further, searching until he reached the section entitled UEO SERVICE HISTORY. Lucas read that Lexi had enlisted not too long after her twentieth birthday. Her first assignment had been at UEO Headquarters. There was no further mention of what her post, or position had been at the time, though. "Well, that's a mystery," he thought to himself. Her most recent assignment prior to joining the seaQuest, had been as Tactical/Computer Specialist aboard the Oasis. Lexi had only been there a few months before requesting an immediate transfer.

"Hmm," he thought again. "How odd, there's no mention as to why she asked for the transfer, just that McGath had handled the matter personally. Looks like you have friends in high places lady!"

Rubbing his eyes he looked at his chronometer, which read 2300. Yawning, Lucas realized just how tired he really was; it had been a long day. Logging off his computer, he set his alarm and climbed into his bunk. Laying there, Lucas closed his eyes. His thoughts drifted, fleeting images flickered through his mind; Lexi's hazel eyes, the way she felt in his arms. He sat up abruptly, and breathing heavily, ran a shaking hand through his hair. Her hazel eyes; he remembered the look of fear in her eyes and how frightened she had suddenly become.

Slowly, a horrible thought began to form in his mind. He jumped out of his bunk, and turning his computer back on, proceeded to hack back into the file he had just been viewing. Quickly, scrolling through the file, he clicked on the section entitled, PSYCHOLOGICAL PROFILE. Lucas hesitated, then with a heavy heart, began to read: *Subject suffers from an anxiety disorder resulting from a traumatic experience that occurred in her early teens. Since Ensign Collington was a minor at that time, the report filed by Dr. India Davis was sealed and will remain so.*

Typing the name *Davis, India* Lucas hit the enter key and waited while the computer searched. *Dr. India Davis, Ph.D., Psychiatry. Well known specialist in physical/sexual abuse and rape crisis management.*

Lucas sat back in stunned silence. No wonder Lexi had freaked out on him when they were at the Moon Pool! It was all starting to make sense now; the avoidance of any physical contact, not wanting to be alone with him; it was all too clear now. With his past experience, he of all people, should have recognized the signs.

Preoccupied with his emotions, Lucas failed to notice the warning message flashing at the bottom of the computer screen, as he went back to his bunk.

WARNING! UEO SECURITY BREACH! He had been tagged!



PART THREE

Lexi was sitting in the Mess with Lonnie. Their shift had ended a little while ago. The day had been long. Lexi yawned. Lonnie was talking to her, but she couldn't tell what had just been said. She had drifted off momentarily. She hadn't slept well last night. In her mind she kept going over the scene yesterday with Lucas. Lexi just couldn't stop thinking about him; the way he had held her gently as he kissed her..."Stop it Lex," she told herself. "You don't need this; remember what happened on the Oasis. You're supposed to learn from your mistakes, not repeat them again," she thought. "Alright, I admit he's good looking, handsome and.."

"Lexi? Lexi? Are you okay?" Lonnie asked her, finally realizing that her friend wasn't listening to a word she was saying.

"What - oh, uh...sorry," said Lexi sleepily. Embarrassed, she lowered her eyes and picked up her coffee. Taking along swallow, thoughts of Lucas began to invade her mind again.

Seeing the far away expression on her friend's face , Lonnie spoke again, concerned, "Lexi, is something wrong? You haven't been yourself all day."

"Huh? No...I mean I don't know," Lexi stammered uncomfortably. Taking another sip of her drink and trying not to appear too eager, she asked the Lieutenant, "How long have you known Lucas?"

Lonnie smiled knowingly. "Ahh, I get it now," she thought to herself. Out loud Lonnie responded, "Want me to put in a good word for you?" Just as she said this, the Lieutenant happened to notice Tony and Lucas enter the Mess. They each picked up a tray and joined the serving line. Looking around the room, and seeing the two women sitting alone in a corner, Tony nudged his companion, pointing.

"Well," said Lonnie with a twinkle in h her eye, "If you're so interested in Ensign Wolenczak, why don't you talk to him yourself?"

Before Lexi could stop her, the Lieutenant motioned for him to sit at their table. This being the dinner hour, the Mess was filling rapidly, so seating was becoming limited. Lucas, seeing Lonnie beckon to him,glanced around the room. He looked over at Lexi, but she averted her eyes. It was just his luck, there were no other seats left, Tony had just taken the last one.

Unless Lucas wanted to eat his meal standing, he had no choice, but to join the two women. He walked over to the table. The last available seat was directly across from Lexi. Lucas felt slightly uncomfortable as he sat down and his eyes met the other Ensign's. He hesitated for a moment, caught off guard. Had he just imagined it, or did she just smile at him? Lucas took this as an encouraging sign and proceeded to eat.

Lonnie amused, observed the interaction between the two. "Something is happening here!" She thought. "Yup - they're definitely attracted to each other. Well, three's a crowd..." she muttered to herself. Standing up to leave, Lonnie said her goodbyes and left them staring after her.

*********

"Well...," started Lexi

"Sooo...," started Lucas, just as tongue-tied. "No you first," he said with a smile, looking into her eyes. Seeing her discomfort, Lucas opened his mouth to say something else, but was quickly silenced by the ringing tone of Lexi's PAL.

Taking the device out of her pocket, she spoke into it,"Collington here."

"Ensign," replied the Captain's voice, "I need you in the Ward room now!"

"Yes Sir, on my way Sir!" she acknowledged. Glancing up at Lucas, she shrugged and murmured a good-bye.

Silently he finished his meal.

*********

The Ensign made her way to the Ward room, feeling trepidation. hesitating, she paused for a moment, then knocked. Taking a deep breath to steel herself, Lexi entered the room. The grave look on Captain Hudson's face caused her anxiety level to rise. Moving into the room, she became aware that Secretary General McGath was present via vid link. The Secretary General did not look happy.

"Sit down please, Ensign,"intoned McGath, his manner businesslike.

"Ensign," said Captain Hudson sitting down next to her, "We have a serious problem."

Seeing her expression of confusion, McGath spoke up," Alexia, I've been informed by the security team here, that someone has hacked into your UEO file."

Lei paled. "What, but how could that happen?" she stammered, then continued, "I mean, I have a Level 1 security clearance. That means my file is encoded to prevent this!"

hearing the increased anxiety in her voice, McGath tried to reassure her by saying, "Rest assured Ensign, we will be able to trace the person who was responsible for this security violation. The new system that you developed during your assignment here should be able to track the hacker, even if they used a sweeper," McGath responded in a fatherly tone.

Captain Hudson seemed somewhat surprised by this information. Looking intently at Lexi, he said, "You're the one responsible for the UEO's new security system?" Looking up at the vid screen at McGath, he asked his superior,"Why wasn't I informed about this,Sir?"

"Oliver, that information is considered classified; it involves Section Seven. All I can tell you," he said, glancing over at Lexi,"is that Ensign Collington was assigned as my attache."

Knowing that there would be no further explanation, Hudson changed the subject. "So in the meantime, what do we do about the security breach?"

"Wait it out," was the short reply. "We'll wait and see what the security device you designed will catch," McGath said firmly, addressing both Captain Hudson and Lexi. Then he cut the vid link.

Lexi looked back at the Captain. McGath's advice had done nothing to erase her feelings of foreboding. She gave a deep sigh.

"Alright, Ensign, I'll keep you informed," said Captain Hudson dismissing her.

Lexi gave him a brief salute, then left the meeting. As she continued down the corridor, Lexi's mind raced. "Who - better yet, why - would anyone want to hack into her UEO file?" she asked herself, as she walked to her quarters.

***********

It had been a long day. Lexi desperately needed to relax. Moving over to her bunk, tired now, she leaned back against the pillows. Drawing her knees up to her chest, Lexi wrapped her arms around her legs, and rested her head on her knees thinking.

She was startled out of her thoughts by a knock at the door.Getting up, she opened the door. Seeing Lucas standing there, Lexi narrowed her eyes at him, and said to herself,"Now what?" Sighing, she invited him into her quarters.

Trying to be nice, Lexi smiled at Lucas, and asked him,"So what can I do for you?"

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay. When you got that call from the Captain you seemed upset. Is everything okay?" he asked sheepishly.

"Yea, I'm fine. Thanks," Lexi responded, her tone sounding colder than she meant it to be. Aware that her short answer had dampened his enthusiastic start, Lexi changed the subject and tried again, "What kind of music do you like?"

Thinking a bit, Lucas replied smiling, "I listen to a lot of alternative stuff and I like 80's stuff too, why do you ask?" he answered, curious that she was interested, but also noticing that Lexi had changed the topic of their conversation.

Lexi gestured to a large case sitting in the corner by her bunk. "I have a lot of music discs, you're welcome to look through them to see if there's anything you want to borrow."

Lucas walked over and knelt down in front of the case. With a smile he removed the lid and began to examine the contents. "This is really cool," he said, reaching inside and pulling out a handful of discs.

Lexi moved across the room, standing by his side she looked at the discs he picked. "This one is good," she said reaching over his shoulder, then handing him a Savage Garden disc. As Lucas took it from her, his hand brushed against hers, sending a jolt of electricity through both of them.

Suddenly, he felt uncomfortable. Maybe it was the fact that he was starting to feel guilty for invading her privacy by hacking into her files. Maybe it was because he felt so attracted to her.

Abruptly standing up to leave, the discs in his hand, Lucas said, "Thanks for the discs, I'll bring them back soon."

Bewildered by his quick departure,Lexi followed him to the doorway saying,"Keep them as long as you like."

***********

As she closed the door to her cabin, Lexi just happened to glance at her computer. Noticing the URGENT message flashing, she rushed over, and sat down. Frowning, she clicked on the box. A more detailed message followed: TAG SEARCH ENDED. IDENTITY OF HACKER IS ENSIGN WOLENCZAK, LUCAS. UEO - SERIAL NUMBER: CIV - 07 - 2000 - ZZZ2.

Lexi stumbled to her bunk in shock. "How could he do this to her, why?" she asked herself. "Just when I was beginning to trust him." She felt betrayed and also angry; but more than anything, she felt violated. Jumping up, she ran over to her computer, quickly running her security program for her own personal files. Bingo! The message read the same. Lexi had caught him again! "Now what am I supposed to do?" she said to herself. Lucas didn't seem the type to be malicious. Lexi realized with a sinking feeling, that if she went to Captain Hudson now, she would have to file chares. Did she really want to destroy Lucas' military career?

The information he had obtained had been classified, yes, but nothing that would be crucial to her safety as a UEO officer. Lexi knew that her best secret still eluded him. The record of what had happened to her nine years ago, was permanently sealed. The only people who probably even still remembered her case were small in number. Three people to be exact: the Psychiatrist, Carlos and of course Lexi. Unwanted memories came flooding back to her. She sat down on her bunk, the tears starting to form in her eyes. Lexi lay back and closed her eyes, letting the tears roll down her cheeks. In frustration, she beat her fists into her pillow, sobbing. As she rolled over onto her side, she saw Darwin.

The dolphin watched her for a moment, then he swam away.

***********

Lucas was laying in his bunk listening to the music discs he had borrowed from Lexi. He felt terrible about what he had done. Now that he knew more about her, what was he supposed to do with that knowledge? Lucas had made a terrible mistake. He knew what it felt like to be unwanted, unloved and abused. He had lived it for so many years. Lucas understood now why she didn't talk about herself - he shared those same reasons. Sighing, he rolled over and faced the swim tubes, coming face-to-face with Darwin. The dolphin began to nod at him - his signal to Lucas to pick up the vocorder, that was always kept nearby.

"Hi Darwin, what's up?" said Lucas with a smile.

"Lucas, Darwin's friend. Lexi, Darwin's friend," the dolphin answered him.

"Yes, Darwin. Lexi and I are your friends," said Lucas perplexed.

The dolphin spoke again,"Lucas, Lexi's friend too?"

"Yes, Darwin. I'm Lexi's friend too," replied Lucas growing tired of the dolphin's word game.

"Darwin, is something wrong?"

His friend answered, "Lexi sad," then swam away.

Lucas sat up, turning the disc player off. What was Darwin trying to tell him? What had happened? He thought for a moment. Should he go see if she was alright, or would Lexi just think that he was harassing her? Should he go get Lonnie to check on her?

Quickly deciding on a course of action, Lucas stood up and left his quarters. Standing outside her door, he hesitated. "Come on Wolenczak," he said talking to himself, "You're here, don't stop now. She needs to talk to someone and it might as well be you." He knocked, then waited.

Lexi opened the door absently wiping a hand across her face. It was plain to Lucas that she had been crying. The telltale redness of her face and her swollen eyes, gave Lexi away. Standing in the doorway, he said concerned, "Lexi, are you okay?"

She started to speak, trying to choke out a positive answer so her unwanted guest would leave, but the response came out of her mouth as a pathetic whisper. Turning her back to Lucas so he couldn't see her face, Lexi gestured to him, saying in a too quiet voice," This...isn't a good time,...okay...," the summoning the last of her inner strength, bluntly told Lucas to leave, and turned to shut the door. No sooner had she gotten the words out of her mouth, the tears began to flow once more. "Damn!" she thought.

Lucas heard the pitiful response to his question. "She's really upset about something," he thought. Lucas walked into the room and closed the door. Turning around again, he heard Lexi sob, and quietly moved to her side to comfort her. Wrapping his arms gently around Lexi, Lucas was unprepared for the blow she delivered to him.

Angry at herself for letting him see her cry, and livid at Lucas for hacking into her file, Lexi pushed away from him. Spinning around, she saw his look of shock gradually change to one of pain, as he clutched his abdomen.

Unable to stand, he said angrily, "What was that for?"

Breathing heavily, Lexi replied, "I told you I don't want company right now, Wolenczak. Just leave me alone!" her voice getting louder.

Lucas had finally lost his patience with this woman! He was really angry now. Finally able to straighten up, rubbing his abdomen, he walked up to Lexi and proceeded to grab her firmly by the shoulders. Angrily shaking her, he yelled, "What the hell is your problem lady!"

Wrenching herself from his painful hold, she gave him a hard shove away from her, yelling back,"YOU ARE!...YOU BLOODY BASTARD! - YOU HACKED INTO MY UEO FILE!"

Instantly, the color drained from Lucas' face. He froze, her words still hanging in the air. It was as if she had just slapped him. Lexi knew! How could she have found out. Did Dagwood tell her?

"How...How do you know it was me?" he stammered, trying to buy some time to think.

"Don't lie to me, Lucas. The security system tagged you!" she replied, thoroughly disgusted. "When you came out of stasis and were retrained, didn't anyone mention that the UEO's computer data base had been revised?" Shaking his head no, she continued on coldly, "I was responsible for designing the new program. It was part of my first assignment after I joined the UEO - but then you read my file, so you should know that." Looking at him sadly, she spoke again, "I was beginning to trust you, Lucas. You could have asked me..." Lexi turned away from him again, she didn't want him to see the tears that were threatening to start flowing. "Damn him," she thought confusedly, "This would be so easy if only I didn't like him so much!"

Lucas was trying to think. A sick feeling was starting to come over him. If he had been tagged and Lexi had been notified, had she reported him to the Captain? His little *mistake* was getting bigger by the moment. He couldn't believe how stupid he had been. He had ruined everything! Looking up at her, he swallowed the lump in his throat and said,"What are you going to do?"

Lucas was inwardly praying that this wouldn't wreck his UEO career before it had even begun; to doubt his own wisdom in enlisting was one thing, to risk a dishonerable discharge was quite another.

Lexi watched with satisfaction, as Lucas struggled with his emotions. Deliberately brushing past him as she walked over to the door, she said coldly, "I'll save your ass this time Wolenczak; I've already disabled the reporting mechanism on the electronic tagging system. No one else will receive notification. The new message just says that it was an unidentified random hacker." Watching him squirm under her hard, icy stare, she added, "You owe me big time for this!"

Opening the door, she was surprised to see Tony standing there, his hand poised to knock. He peered through the doorway as he said, "Oh,...uh, is everything okay in here Lexi? I thought I heard you shouting at someone." He stopped in surprise as he saw Lucas edging around Lexi toward the door.

"Thanks Tony, everything is just wonderful - Ensign Wolenczak is just leaving," she said sarcastically, gesturing at Lucas and pointing at the door.

Tony looked first at Lexi and then at Lucas. Both looked pretty miserable and were doing their best to hide it, though Lucas looked as though he was loosing the battle. Amused, Tony nodded and stepped aside for Lucas to pass.

As he moved through the doorway, Lucas stopped to glance back at Lexi. Their eyes met for a brief second and the look of sadness in her eyes was enough to make his heart constrict. Then quickly, she turned her back and closed the door. He jumped back slightly as the door slammed shut in his face.

His friend still standing there, tried not to laugh.

Annoyed, Lucas turned to him saying,"What are you looking at?"

"You Luke. You certainly have a way with women, Ensign Wolenczak!" laughed Tony over his shoulder as he walked away.

Lexi was still agitated, and paced angrily back and forth in her cabin. "I wonder what secrets our Mr. Wolenczak has in his file?" she thought out loud. Then, moving over to her computer she tapped a few keys. Getting into his file had been a snap; her Level 1 security clearance allowing her unquestionable access to all UEO files. Scrolling through, she read that Lucas had been born in 2003, so theoretically he was seven years older. He had a genius level IQ, and had graduated magna-cum-laude with a degree in Applied Principles of Artificial Intelligence from Stanford. "We're both computer geeks, I wonder if he feels threatened by that," pondered Lexi. "Does he see me as competition? Maybe that's the whole problem right there."

Lexi just laughed at that thought. She wasn't normally a competitive person, but she did have strong survival instincts.

She scrolled down further; his parents were both scientists. Dr. Lawrence Wolenczak having been declared missing, then dead during the time the crew of the seaQuest had been in stasis. The Wolenczaks had divorced when Lucas was very young. Cynthia Holt had remarried.

"Ahhh..., what's this then," Lexi said out loud, as she read that there had been many Emergency Room visits for young Lucas. Searching further, she was horrified to read that there had been allegations of physical abuse. She thought back to his actions earlier, had his whole purpose been just to comfort her? Lexi stopped. She suddenly felt sick.

Reading on, she was shocked to read that the new Mrs. Cynthia Holt-Anderson had thirteen year old Lucas admitted for a *longterm* inpatient stay at Snow Hill. Lexi had heard about Snow Hill. It's founder, Dr. Charles Snow, had almost lost his license to practice, because of his unconventional methods of treatment. She shuddered at the thought. From what she had read about the good Doctor, he made the Marquis de Sade look like a fun date! Unable to tear herself away, Lexi continued to read.

Apparently, there had been a suicide attempt - an overdose of antidepressants had been the trigger for this admission. While a patient in the facility, he had attempted suicide again, this time by slicing his wrists with a plastic knife. The documentation also noted that during the year he was confined there, Cynthia Holt-Anderson had only seen her son once - the day she brought him in for treatment. Upon discharge, he was released in the care of his father.

"Oh, Lucas," Lexi thought to herself, "The despair you must have felt. All the constant rejection you went through; all you want is someone to love you."

She sat back in the chair, thoughts racing through her mind. "Why are you doing this, Lex?" she asked herself. "To get back at him? Hurt him? From what you've already read, he's been hurt enough..." Lexi sighed and read further.

An hour later, Lexi logged off. Her head was pounding and she felt ill at what she had read. Feeling guilty, she admonished herself,"I should never have blown up like that - I must have really hurt him..."

*********

Lucas made his way over to the Moon Pool. He needed to go some place and just think. Entering, he walked over and picked up the vocorder, but Darwin was nowhere to be found. Looking up at the clock, Lucas remembered that the dolphin had just been let out to hunt. Releasing a deep sigh, he sat down and leaned against the wall closing his eyes. Running a hand through his hair, he sat there and let his mind drift. "Good job Lucas," he said sadly to himself. "So much for any type of relationship with Ensign Collington. Working on the Bridge together is really going to be fun now."

Lost in his own thoughts, Lucas didn't notice Darwin until the dolphin playfully splashed him, thoroughly saturating his clothes. Shaking himself, Lucas stood up and said sarcastically, "Thanks Darwin, I really needed that!"

Darwin clicked and whistled excitedly. Picking up the vocorder, Lucas listened as dolphin spoke, "Lucas want to play with Darwin?"

"Well, I'm already wet, " he thought. "Yea, sure Darwin, let me change."

Not wanting to go all the way back to C-deck to his quarters, Lucas went over to the wall, and grabbing a wet suit, slipped into the locker room to change. He climbed into the water and bean to swim with his friend.

Lexi, deciding she too needed some space, had headed for the Moon Pool. Walking through the doorway, she heard the playful activity. As she came closer, Lexi watched Lucas playing in the water with Darwin.

Not wanting to intrude on their fun, she quietly turned to leave, but the dolphin called out to her, Lexi play with darwin and Lucas?"

Lexi stopped and turned around. The look on Lucas' face was ambivalent. Lexi knew that she should apologize for her behavior. Suddenly shy, she wasn't sure how to approach him. Just as Lexi moved closer to the pool, Darwin splashed her, saturating her clothes. She glanced up at the clock on the wall. It was getting late and she had to get up early tomorrow. Before her shift on the Bridge, the Commander was going to do her performance review. Smiling at the dolphin, she shook her head, saying," Sorry Darwin, some other time," and left.

Lucas just stared after her, wondering if she left because of him.



PART FOUR

Lexi was nervous. Today was her first performance review, since she had come aboard seaQuest. She had taken extra care with her appearance this morning. Now, standing in front of the mirror, Lexi pulled her shoulder length blonde hair back with a metal clip in the shape of a dolphin. She'd had this particular hair ornament since she was a child. It had been a gift from her parents for her eleventh birthday, shortly before their untimely death. Strangely, the trinket had always brought her luck, and Lexi hoped that today it's magic would not fail her.

Glancing at her wrist and seeing the time, she quickly turned out her light and closed the door. Then,jogging down the passageway, she headed for the maglev. As the doors opened, Lexi bumped right into Lucas.

"Sorry!" she said, and proceeded on her way. Turning around, he followed her into the maglev, and sat down. Taking the opportunity while she still had the courage, Lexi looked over at him, and said, "Look, Lucas...I'm really sorry about blowing up at you yesterday. You caught me at a really bad time,..." her voice drifted off as she glanced up at him.

Lucas looked at her, and then turned away feeling ashamed. Shaking his head, he said, "No, I'm the one who's sorry. Lex, I owe you an apology. What I did was wrong. I should never have hacked into your file."

Lexi, reached out her hand, and touched his cheek. She could see the sincerity in his eyes. He really did look miserable. Smiling faintly as she stroked his cheek, she said,"Look, lets just forget this ever happened, and start over, okay?" Just then the maglev came to a stop. Lexi flashed him a grin as she moved through the doors. Lucas sat back, a smile starting to spread across his face. Maybe things would work out afterall.

***********

The performance review went well. Lexi inwardly gave a sigh of relief when there was no mention about the security breach. Her intervention in the matter must have worked.

At the end of their interview, the Commander handed her a box saying, "Congratulations, Collington; you've been promoted. Effective immediately, your rank is Lieutenant Junior Grade." Grinning, Lexi opened the box. She pulled off her Ensign's rank patch, and proudly replaced it with the Junior Grade star and bars patch. Saluting the Commander, she turned on her heel, and headed towards the Bridge.

**********

Lucas lanced up as Lexi made her way over to her station. "Something about her is different," he thouht to himself. When she passed his chair, he realized what it was; she wasn't an Ensign any longer, she had been promoted to Lieutenant Junior Grade. Now she outranked him!

***********

SeaQuest was on it's way for a scheduled stop at the Cadman Underwater Colony to pick up supplies. One of the last colonies left in this area of the free-zone, it was only a few meters from the border. This made it susceptible to occasional unprovoked Macronesian raids. As they approached the trading colony, Captain Hudson ordered lexi to run a scan of the area. She concentrated on the readings she was receiving from WSKRS, interpreting the data.

Frowning, she looked up from her console, as she spoke quietly into the microphone of her headset, "Lucas, what do you make of this?" indicating the peculiar readings on her screen.

Glancing over at Lexi, then staring at his own screen, he replied perplexed, "It looks like some kind of magnetic disturbance."

Nodding her head in agreement, equally perplexed, Lexi said, "It seems to be coming from the colony itself, but that's impossible..." Her response was cut off, as a high pitched screetching noise pulsed through the Bridge crew's headsets. Lexi, clenching her jaw, ripped off her headset as she cried out, "Captain, the sensor array just went off-line!"

"Wolenczak! Collington! Someone, tell me what's going on!"

Looking up, Lexi could see the Captain glaring at them. Suddenly, the ship rocked with an explosion.

"What the hell was that?" shouted Captain Hudson, caught totally off guard. Not waiting for a reply, he continued, "Mr. O'Neill, go to full alert!" as the alarms began to sound.

"Captain, we've strayed over the border - we're in Macronesian territory! The sensor problem. We're off-line, so we have no way of knowing where the boundaries are..." Lucas called out.

"What? How...? Damn it! Well, let's get our butts out of here. I don't think the Macronesians will understand that we just, *wandered* into their waters!"

Activity on the Bridge intensified as people scurried to their stations, ready for battle. Lexi suddenly called out from her station, saying, "Captain, I've got six Macronesian fighter subs. They're fully loaded for battle, Sir." Then, before anyone could react, she added in a tense voice, "We've got incoming torpedoes!"

The command, Evasive manuevers!" rang out. "Strap in everyone, this ride's gonna get rough," said Captain Hudson grimly.

Tim's voice could be heard tensely intoning the countdown for the incoming projectiles.

"Mr. Piccolo, fire intercepts on my mark," said the Captain.

"Aye, Sir."

"Now!"

Tony snapped, "Intercepts away, Sir!" as he pushed the button, firing the torpedoes from A, B, and C tubes. The ship rocked again, the intercepts having failed to destroy all the Macronesian torpedoes.

"Engineering, report!" Commander Ford ordered, as they all heard the whine of seaQuest's straining engines. He then turned to Lonnie barking, "Get down there, and see what you can do to help!"

"Aye, Sir!" replied Lonnie as she hurried off the Bridge.

"Sir, we've got a mess down here!" came Lieutenant Coble's voice from Engineering. We're losing power Sir...!" then, his voice was drowned out by the crackle of static. SeaQuest's lights flickered, and then dimmed, before returning to full power again.

Lonnie's voice came back over the Bridge monitor saying, "We're losing stability in the reactor's containment field. The magnetic anomaly is destabilizing the fusion core! I'm trying to reroute power through another source to get us out of here!"

"And I've got a mess up here," said the Captain, seeing his crew trying to assist one another. "Do the best you can people!" he said calmly, with more confidence in his voice than he felt, as the whine of seaQuest's engines grew louder.

Lexi, glancing around the Bridge, noticed that one of the crew was having a difficult time trying to bring his console back up, after the power fluctuation. Slipping out of her chair, Lexi gave Seaman Torres a reassuring smile, as she made her way over to help him.

"Captain, we're being hailed by an *Admiral Bates* of the Macronesian Alliance. " Lieutenant O'Neill called from his station.

"Thank you, Lieutenant. Put it on screen."

As the vidlink was established, the crew could see the image of a harsh looking, grey haired man with piercing eyes. Staring back at them, the image on the screen spoke, "SeaQuest, I am Admiral Bf the Macronesian Alliance. Your presence here in this quadrant violates the Macronesian - UEO Peace Treaty. You will surrender your ship, and agree to all terms, immediately, or you will be destroyed."

The vidlink cut out abruptly. Everyone on the Bridge just looked at one another.

"Lieutenant henderson, how's that power rerouting coming along? We need emergency speed ASAP!"

"I'm working on it, Captain, but I need more time. I think we've come up with a way to neutralize the magnetic anomaly's effects on the containment field..." Lonnie answered, as static once more over-powered her transmission.

Suddenly, Lucas called tensely, "Sir, we've got more incoming torpedoes. They're giving us all they've got!"

Thinking out loud to himself, Captain Hudson angrily muttered, "That SOB!" before ordering, "Fire remaining intercepts, Mr.Piccolo, we're not gonna go down without a fight!"

"No time, Sir! said Lieutenant O'Neill, fervently fingering the cross he wore around his neck, as his lips moved in a silent prayer. "Estimated impact in 10...9...8"

"Everyone strap in!" called Commander Ford.

"7...6...5"

Lexi and Seaman Torres, had continued to struggle to make his console operational. Seeing that it was hopeless, she signaled for him to strap in, and turned to move to her chair.

"4...3...2"

Lucas glanced quickly over at Lexi. As their eyes met, she could see how unnerved he was; his hands white knuckled, gripping his console. He could see the fear in her eyes. She was fumbling with the strap to her chair - her hands were shaking so badly, that she couldn't seem to get the safety lock to close.

Just as Lucas was about to unbuckle his own strap and help her, the Captain's voice rang out, "Brace for impact!"

Lexi closed her eyes and said a brief prayer.

"1..."

As the first volley of torpedoes hit their mark, massive explosions went off on the Bridge. Despite being strapped in, the crew were forcefully jolted, the impact rocking the ship brutally.

Sparks flew from the computer consoles. Lucas was knocked half-out of his chair, hitting his head on the edge of the console. As seaQuest felt the impact of still yet another explosion, Lexi's belt gave way. She was slammed against Seaman Torres beside her, and then thrown over her console, as a further explosion smashed at the boat, causing seaQuest to list violently.

Seeing her crumpled near where he lay, Tim crawled over to see how badly she was hurt. Cautiously, he reached out his hand, and sighed thankfully, as his fingers detected a weak pulse. Waving for a medic, Tim slowly got to his feet.

Captain Hudson moved around helping where he could. The destruction complete, the Bridge slowly became alive again. Designated crew members raced for fire extinguishers, while others saw to the injured.

"Damage report!" called the Captain, as he assisted an unsteady Commander Ford to his feet.

The anxious voice of Lieutenant Henderson came back with, "Sir, I think we have enough power to get us out of here to the closest port for repairs."

"Well then, let's haul ass, Lieutenant!" growled Captain Hudson, taking in all the damage.

Lucas dazed, fumbled at the release catch of his strap. He reached out to the edge of his console and slowly began to pull himself to his feet. His head was pounding. Feeling something wet and sticky, Lucas ran his fingers through his hair, and realized he was bleeding. Starting to feel dizzy, he let the darkness take him.

Tony, seeing Lucas swaying on his feet, reached him just as he fell. "Hey, I need some help over here," called the Warrant Officer, glancing around, and spotting a medic.

The medic hurried over, and together they got Lucas onto the stretcher. Looking around the Bridge, Tony saw Tim and Commander Ford helping a medic with Lexi. Movin over to them, and catching Tim's eye, he asked concerned, "How is she?" Noticing for the first time, the large bleeding abrasion over her right temple.

The medic glanced up at Tony, and replied, "She's had a nasty fall. Besides a head injury, I think she's got a couple of broken ribs." As they started to lift the unconscious girl, the medic called out, "Watch that right side!" and proceeded to take her to Medbay.

**********

Lucas' eyes slowly opened. Carefully, he tried to sit up, and immediately lay back down again, feeling sick and dizzy. He reached a hand up and felt a small bandage on his head - his head was killin him, and he felt really woozy. Looking around the room, Lucas recognized the clean, sterile environment of Medbay. Now he remembered. SeaQuest had been engaged by a pack of Macronesian fighter subs. Unfortunately, from the way Medbay was overflowing with patients, it looked as if seaQuest had lost the battle.

Tony and lonnie walked into the crowed Medbay. Looking for their friends, they finally spotted Lucas, laying on a stretcher parked in a quiet corner of the room. They waited for the nurse to finish her tasks, then made their way over to him.

Hearing them approach, he opened his eyes and looked over at them.

"How ya doin', kid?" asked Tony, checking out the bandage on Lucas' head.

"I guess I'm okay. Is everyone else alright?"

His two friends looked at each other, then back at Lucas. Lonnie spoke up saying, "Well, Tim's okay, just shaken up a little bit, but Lexi..." her voice trailed off, as she looked back over at Tony, who was looking anxiously around the room for something, or someone.

Lucas looked at both of them expectantly, "What happened to Lexi?" he asked them, growing concerned when neither of them would answer his questions.

Lonnie, quickly looking over at Tony again, put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, saying, "She's hurt. Dr. Perry's in with her now, but I'm sure she'll be just fine."

Lucas struggled to sit up, but the pain in his head forced him to lay back down. Lonnie, seeing his pleading look, said with a smile, "Why don't I go check on Lexi. I'll tell her you're asking about her, be right back," called the Lieutenant over her shoulder as she walked away.

Making her way through the crowed Medbay, Dr. Perry saw Lucas and came over. "Well Ensign, we can let you go back to your quarters now. Effective immediately, you're on medical leave." Peaking under the dressing on his head, she asked, "Hurt?"

Lucas grimaced as he carefully tried to nod his head.

"Still feeling dizzy, and a little nauseous?" Again, he nodded carefully. "Well, that's to be expected, Lucas, you have a mild concussion. I can't give you any heavy pain medication. You'll have to settle for a few apirins for the first day or so. I'll check you tomorrow, and we'll go from there."

As she turned to go, he anxiously grabbed her sleeve, "Dr. Perry?"

Turning back to him in surprise, she tiredly responded, "Yes, Ensign, is there something else?"

"Is Lieutenant Collington okay?" he asked worriedly, his eyes searching hers for an answer.

Seeing his concern, the doctor said matter-of-factly, "I don't know yet. The Lieutenant has serious injuries, and she's still unconscious. If there's no improvement in her condition durin the next few hours, lucas, I'll have to send her upworld for treatment.

Unable to hide his feelings, he sighed deeply, saying, "Can I see her?"

"I don't see why not, but then I want you to go straight to your quarters to rest, Lucas. You shouldn't be up walking around right now, okay." She placed a maternal hand on his tense shoulder for amoment, then walked away to finish her patient rounds.

As Dr. Perry left, Lucas noticed Lonnie heading towards him. The look on her face, told him everything he needed to know. Smiling, trying to hide her tears, Lonnie said, "I found Lexi." Then dissolving into tears, she cried, "Lexi's unconscious, Lucas. Dr. Perry is running some Neurological tests, but I think she's going to be sent upworld soon; she's not responding to treatment."

As Lonnie wiped her face with the back of her hand, Lucas started to get up off the stretcher. Swaying for a moment on his feet, she grabbed Lucas firmly by the arm, and pushed him back down on the stretcher. Struggling against her to sit up again, Lonnie put a hand on hios chest to stop him, saying," Wait! Did Dr. Perry clear you to leave Medbay?" Seeing his cautious nod, she said sternly, "Okay. But let me go get Tony, and we'll both help you to your quarters."

"No. I want to see Lexi; Dr. Perry said it was okay, " he said, determined.

Lonnie gave Lucas a quick look, but then deciding he wouldn't lie to her, slowly nodded her head in agreement. Looking around the room, she waved at Tony to grab an unoccupied wheelchair. Pulling it over next to the stretcher, they helped Lucas get in, then Tony pushed him over to Lexi's bedside.

Starting to walk away, but turning on impulse, the sight that Tony witnessed made him smile. He watched as Lucas took Lexi's hand, and tenderly caressed her cheek, speaking to her in a soft voice, while suppressing a gasp when he saw the large bruise over her right temple. Shaking his head, the Warrant Officer said softly to himself, "Way ta go Luke." Then, feeling uncomfortable at observing the intimate scene in front of him, Tony quietly walked away.

*************

Lucas held Lexi's hand in his. "She looks so angelic, almost like she was asleep," he thought to himself.

A while later, Dr. Perry came by making her rounds. Leafing through Lexi's chart, she frowned slightly. Then moving to the bedside, she took a pen-light out of her lab coat, and proceeded to shine the light into the unconscious girl's eyes watching the response of Lexi's pupils. Rubbing her chin in thought, the Doctor murmured, "I don't understand, she should be awake by now."

Turning to Lucas, Dr. Perry said gravely, "If she's not awake in another hour, or so, I'm going to contact a Neurologist upworld." Still rubbing her chin in thought, she walked away.

Lucas sat down on the bed next to Lexi, and took her hand in his again. Squeezing it gently, his anguish apparent, he said pleadingly, "Okay, Lex, it's time to wake up... now...please..." He closed his eyes, fighting against the fatiue that suddenly threatened to overtake him. Too tired to fight, he let sleep envelope him.

Lexi moaned, stirring slightly, and jarring Lucas' hand, instantly waking him. Gently laying his hand on her cheek, he watched as her eyes slowly fluttered open.

Somewhat dazed, she blinked, then wiped a hand across her head, wincing. Slowly, things started to become focused, and Lexi realized that she was in Medbay. Carefully, turning her head, she saw the look of pure relief on Lucas' face.

Seeing the recognition in her eyes, he smiled, and muttered a quiet, "Thank God!" to himself. As the smile reached his eyes, Lucas brought the hand he was holding up to his lips, and softly kissing it said, "Well, sleeping beauty has finally decided to wake up."

Reaching her hand up, and gently brushing the hair away from the small bandage on his head, she said with concern, "You're hurt."

Lucas shrugged saying, "It's a slight concussion. You're the one we've been worried about."

Just as he finished that statement, Dr. Perry returned with a nurse in tow. "Well, Ensign, I think now that your friend is awake, it's time for you to go to your quarters to rest."

Smiling at Lexi, then glancing back at Dr. Perry and catching her stern expression, Lucas stood up carefully, saying, "I'll see you tomorow. Get some sleep, okay."

Wincing in pain as she tried to return his smile, Lexi waved faintly as he left.

***********

"Lieutenant, you've had us worried. You've been unconscious for several hours," Dr. Perry said, as she examined her patient.

Lexi, not wanting to stay in Medbay a minute longer than she had to, asked tiredly,"When can I get out of here?"

The Doctor laughed at her, and replied, "What, you want to leave us already? Well, Lieutenant, in lieu of the fact that you sustained a serious concussion, a nasty chest contussion, and two broken ribs, I think it would be wise to keep you, at least overnight. We'll see how you are tomorrow, and if you promise to stay confined to your quarters and rest, I might clear you."

Lexi sighed in defeat. Closing her eyes, she willed her body to relax. She didn't know what hurt more, her head, or the rest of her body. Looking up, she saw the nurse standing there with some mild pain killers. "Oh well, it's better than nothing," she thought, obediantly swallowing the pills. It wasn't long before she drifted off into an exhausted sleep.



PART FIVE

Shortly afterwards, seaQuest put in to port at San Diego Island. Extensive repairs were needed after the skirmish with the Macronesians, and it would take at least three weeks of around the clock shifts to get the boat fully functional again. In the meantime, her crew was placed on rotation for shore leave, leaving only a skeleton crew on board. Injured crew members like Lieutenant Collington and Ensign Wolenczak, were placed on medical leave, and excused from duty until further notice. Lucky crew members, Warrant Officer Piccolo and Lieutenant O'Neill, were stuck on the first rotation.

"Tony, how do we always get so lucky - being on first rotation really stinks!" said Tim mournfully, as he observed the others leaving the boat.

Tony smirked as he looked over at Tim, "Hey, it could be worse! We could have double shifts - you know the mood Hudson's in..." They both turned back to their work, as the captain approached.

"Good morning gentlemen!" boomed Captain Hudson, as he came striding on to the Bridge, followed by Commander Ford. Glancing around, they watched as seaQuest's crew began the difficult task of completing the necessary repairs to get the boat underway again. It was going to be a long three weeks!

*******

Lucas made his way down the corridor. Stopping outside of Lexi's quarters, he knocked on the door. When she called, he opened the door and saw the lieutenant sitting on the floor in the midst of what looked like utter chaos. Amused, Lucas watched her rummage around in her closet, and then through the disorganized piles of clothes scattered around the room, obviously searching for something. Glancing around at all the clutter, he laughed, and asked her, "Ever hear of traveling light?"

Looking up from her position on the floor, Lexi smiled and triumphantly held up what looked like a sheaf of papers, "Found it!" she cried, relief evident in her voice.

Trying to stand up, she winced suddenly, holding her right side. Lucas saw her discomfort and quickly moved to her side. Carefully, he helped Lexi to her feet. "Thanks!" she said, breathless.

Watching her with concern, Lucas frowned, "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine...really - just a little sore," she said, still holding her side.

Moving a pile of clothing aside, Lucas sat down on her bunk, and watched her pack. "Do you have any plans for shore leave?" he asked her curiously.

Handing him the bundle of papers she had just been searching for, Lexi responded, "Actually, yes. I'm meeting with my father's research team about a new project proposal."

Lucas glanced through the document. Looking back up at her, he said, "This is impressive. Who are you discussing this with?"

"Oh, a couple of old family friends," Lexi quickly responded. She paused for a moment, then turning to look directly at him, said, "Dr. Malcolm Lansdowne, and ...Nathan Bridger." At the mention of the former seaQuest captain's name, Lucas' head snapped up.

"Captain Bridger? You know Nathan Bridger?" he asked amazed.

Sitting next to him on the bunk, smiling broadly, she said "I thought you would be interested. Why don't you take this copy, read it through completely, and we can discuss it later. Maybe over dinner. My place - I'll even cook."

Looking at her intently now, somewhat unsure, he said hesitantly, "You mean, a *date*?"

Lexi raised an eyebrow at him, and returning his stare, responded slowly, "Yea... A *date.*"

Lucas gave her a shy smile, as he replied, "Well, I was going to ask if you would like to get together during shore leave sometime." Sheepishly, he continued, his eyes searching hers, "I'd really like to spend some time with you Lex, alone, away from the boat."

Lexi hesitated a moment, but then, reaching over, and picking up a pen, she quickly wrote something down on a piece of paper. She handed it to Lucas, saying, "Here's my number - call me."

As Lexi went back to her packing, Lucas stood up; slowly walking towards the door, he paused, saying, " Can I drop you somewhere? We could share a cab."

"Thanks, that's really nice of you to offer, but my ride is probably already waiting. I'd better get going" she said zipping her carryall closed. Picking it up carefully, she followed Lucas out the door.

Following Lexi outside to the dock, he was startled when suddenly, a young man with dark hair called out to Lexi, running over to her. The man was smiling and speaking rapidly in a mixture of what sounded to Lucas like broken English, mixed with Spanish. He watched as the man enveloped Lexi in a bear hug, and his heart sank, as he saw her smile broadly, and kiss the mysterious stranger's cheek. Lexi and her escort chatted, and gestured as they walked the length of the dock, to where a dark blue sports car waited, the engine still running. Lucas sadly looked on as Lexi, chattering animatedly to the stranger, got into the car and drove away.

*******

Turning to her dark haired companion, Lexi smiled and said, "Thanks for the lift, Rickey. It's really sweet of you."

Enrique turned to look at Lexi and replied, "I wouldn't think of letting you call a cab!"

Parking the car in front of a large but modest beach house, Rickey turned the engine off, and helped Lexi out of the car. Taking his hand, she suddenly winced in pain and grabbed her side. Noticing for the first time the bruise that had previously been hidden by her strategically styled hair, he reacted with instant concern, "What happened to you! Are you alright? " Putting his arm around her, Rickey carefully helped Lexi out of the car. "C'mon, I'll help you," he said observing her growing discomfort.

"SeaQuest had a little run in, I'm fine...really." Lexi protested. Then, feeling suddenly very dizzy, she put her hand to her head and reached out to steady herself, as a wave of dizziness passed. Rickey muttered something unintelligible as he picked Lexi up, and carried her into the house.

Placing her gently on the couch, he positioned a pillow behind Lexi's head, then leaning away, Rickey looked directly at at her, raising one eyebrow. In return, she made a funny face at him. Rickey just shook his head, then broke into a toothy grin, saying off handedly, "You know, your face could freeze that way," sending Lexi into a giggling fit as she held her side.

He went back out to the car and retrieved her bag. Once back in the house he joined her on the couch.

"I've missed you, Lexi. Things just aren't the same when you're away."

Reaching for his hand, she gave him a tired smile. " I missed you too, Rickey. And thanks for taking care of everything while I was gone," she gestured around her.

"So, how long do you get to stay this time?" he asked.

"SeaQuest is in her berth for at least the next three weeks," she replied, playing with the pillows behind her back, trying to find a more comfortable position.

Rickey watched her struggle for a moment, the look of disapproval on his face growing. Then, handing her another pillow he said dryly, "I just hope you live through your enlistment."

Squeezing his hand, then pulling him into her arms, Lexi gave Rickey an enthusiastic hug. "What would I do without you to worry about me, hmm?"

Cautiously returning the hug, he gave her a brotherly kiss on the cheek saying with a sigh, "Yea, I worry, but maybe that's because you're all I have."

"Rickey, thanks - for everything." Lexi said smiling warmly, as she pulled away from his embrace.

Rickey got up off the couch. "Get some rest, love," he said kissing the top of her head. Walking slowly towards the door he turned to her, "I'll check on you tomorrow.

"Bye."

"Adios!"

**************

Lucas stood on the balcony of his hotel. The view was breathtaking, but he hadn't noticed. All he could think about was the man he had seen Lexi with the other day, and the way she had responded to the stranger.

"She never mentioned that she had a boyfriend," he thought to himself. Lucas absently ran his hand along the balcony railing; it was smooth, just like the feel of Lexi's skin... He turned away, the thoughts running through his head only making him feel more confused.

"Don't get your hopes up too high, Wolenczak - What did you expect? After all, Lexi's a very attractive woman, why would you even think you had a chance ?" the voice in his head continued sadly.

With a sigh, Lucas closed the balcony doors and moved over to the entertainment console, turning on the radio. It was just his luck that at that very moment, the D.J. had decided to play the perfect song to reflect his disappointment. Lucas sat down on the bed, laying his head back against the pillows and closed his eyes. The words to the song washing over him:


What could a guy like me ever really offer?
She's perfect as she can be, why should I even bother?
Cause she's so high
High above me, she's so lovely
She's so high, like Cleopatra, Joan of Arc, or Aphrodite
She's so high, high above me

Cause somehow I can't believe
That anything should happen
I know where I belong
And nothing's gonna happen

Cause she's so high
High above me, she's so lovely
She's so high, like Cleopatra, Joan of Arc, or Aphrodite
She's so high, high above me...

Reflecting on the words to the song, Lucas realized he had never felt more lonely than he did at this very moment. In frustration he jumped up, shutting the radio off. "Well, now I really feel better," he thought sarcastically to himself.

His thoughts focused on Lexi, an idea gradually began to form in his mind. Reaching into his duffle, Lucas pulled out the piece of paper with her number written on it. Purposefully, he picked up the hotel key laying on top of the television, and went down to the lobby to use the vid phone to call Lexi.

***********

Lexi was in her bedroom cleaning out her closet, when she heard the beeping tone of the vid phone. Dropping the clothes in her arms, she dashed into the den, grabbing the remote control for the screen as she dived onto the couch, cursing loudly as she hit her side on the edge. Breathless, Lexi said,

"Hello?"

"Um..Hi Lexi," answered Lucas quickly, then continuing shyly, "Um, I'm not disturbing you am I?" observing her slightly disheveled appearance.

Wondering why he suddenly seemed so agitated, she smiled faintly, "No you're not disturbing me. What's up?" Then, catching the strange look on his face, she said with concern, "Lucas, are you okay?"

Not answering right away, he paused a moment and ran a hand nervously through his hair. Once he finally felt in control of his emotions, Lucas replied, "Yea, I'm fine. I was wondering if we could get together tomorrow night to discuss some of the points you made in your project proposal. I've read it through and I'm very interested in helping out, if you'll let me."

Smiling widely, Lexi enthusiastically responded, "Great, tomorrow's fine. What do you want for dinner?"

Picking up on her enthusiasm for an evening together, he started to relax. Grinning back at her, he said, "Surprise me!" As an afterthought asked, "Is there anything that you want me to bring?"

"Well," she thought for a moment, watching the expectant look on his face, then continued, "Bring a change of clothes and a bathing suit. I'm ocean front, so we can swim and there's a hot tub as well."

His doubts abating, Lucas said exuberantly, "I'm looking forward to it - is four-ish okay?"

"Super!" responded Lexi and then she proceeded to give him directions to her house.

*************

Meanwhile, back on seaQuest, those who had been on the first rotation were just ending their shift. Tony Piccolo strutted down the corridor of B-deck, whistling as he walked to his quarters. SeaQuest was all but deserted and he was in a hurry to leave the boat. He had his shore leave all planned out: first he would check out Eddy's, a hot little bar a few blocks from here. Then, it was on to check out the girls hanging out at his favorite place - The Fun House. Thinking about some of his previous escapades there, the smile on Tony's face grew, as he hurried his pace. Just as he reached for the door, his PAL began to beep startling him out of his daydream.

"Ahhhh...Geeze!" he moaned. "Now what!"

Pulling the device from his back pocket, he answered rudely, "Yea. Piccolo here!"

A not so soft femine voice answered him, saying, "Mr.Piccolo, this is Dr. Perry, I need you to report to me ASAP!"

Muttering a few curses to himself, Tony replied, "Yes Ma'am. I'm on my way!"

Dr. Perry looked up from her paper work just as Warrant Officer Tony Piccolo entered Medbay. Walking up to her desk, he gave the doctor a quick salute, "Warrant Officer Anthony Piccolo reporting as you requested, Ma'am."

Dr. Perry stood up, walking around her desk to face Tony. She was tired and it showed. The past few days had kept the Medbay staff very busy patching up the personnel injured during the recent skirmish with the Macronesians. Medbay was empty now, the last patient having been discharged earlier this morning. Dr. Melba Perry would have left the seaQuest hours ago, except she had received a priority message from Secretary General McGath first thing this morning regarding the warrant officer. After meeting with an overwhelmed Captain Hudson, it was decided that she would be the appropriate person to talk to him. This was after all, a potential serious medical problem.

"At ease, Mr.Piccolo. I have been advised by UEO headquarters, that there have been some problems recently with the *experimentals* used for the gill-lung transplant project. You are being ordered to report to New Cape Quest to the UEO Biological Research Institute for routine testing." Smiling reassuringly, she continued, "It's just a precaution, it shouldn't take more than a day or two, and then you can begin your shore leave."

Tony looked at her and sighed. "Great, just great.This is really how I want to start my shore leave!" he thought to himself, as he gave her another salute and left Medbay.

As Tony got in the maglev, his PAL beeped again. "Piccolo here," he responded.

"Mr. Piccolo, I need to see you in the Ward room on the double!" boomed Captain Hudson's voice.

"Yes Sir, on my way, Sir!" Tony snapped, as he stepped out of the maglev, and jogged down the hallway. He reached the Ward room, knocking on the door somewhat hesitantly. Captain Hudson opened the door and motioned for Tony to sit down.

The warrant officer casually regarded his superior. The captain looked exhausted. Absently rubbing his tired eyes, the captain spoke, "Mr. Piccolo, I have been informed by Secretary General McGath that there has been a change in your orders. Effective immediately, you are to report to New Cape Quest, to the UEO research facility there, for routine testing." From the tone of his voice, it was quite obvious that Captain Hudson was not pleased by this unexpected turn of events.

"Yes Sir, Dr. Perry just spoke to me about it, Sir," replied Tony.

"Good. McGath informed me that your escort to the jump jet should be here within the hour." Looking up at Tony, Captain Hudson added, " Good luck, Sailor! Dismissed!"

**************

As dusk fell, Tony left the shuttle and shuffled along the dock at San Diego Base. The past few hours had been a blur. His day had ended with a summons from Dr.Perry, ordering him to UEO headqurters for medical tests - tests that everyone had assured him were routine. So, if this was all so routine, why did Tony have the feeling that something was not quite right?

This had happened once before, when another gill-lung experimantal had gotten sick. The project team had recalled all *experimentals* for tests. That had been right before seaQuest's disappearance.

Up ahead he saw a UEO Officer emerging from an official looking car, with three Military Policemen; the men were heading straight toward him.

"Warrant Officer Anthony Piccolo?" asked the stern looking lieutenant.

Tony replied,"Yea, that's me!" Then, seeing the look of distaste on the officer's face, he quickly snapped to and gave a salute.

Gesturing towards the vehicle, the lieutenant said, "We're to accompany you to the medical facility, wouldn't want you to miss your flight."

"Since when does a routine physical require an escort?" asked Tony, slightly nervous, looking warily at the lieutenant and the MPs standing beside him. Ignoring the warrant officer's question, the lieutenant nodded at the MPs, who took hold of Tony's arms, leading him as he protested loudly, to the waiting vehicle.

************

Meanwhile...

Rickey, stop it!" said Lexi, angrily smacking his hand as he picked at the salad she was fixing. Glancing nervously at the kitchen clock, she snapped, "Don't you think you should be going now? I really don't want you here when Lucas shows up.

"Why? Are you ashamed of me?" he asked, but with no menace in his tone.

"No, it's just that I don't want to give him the wrong impression - so leave!" Lexi glared, the agitation evident in her voice.

Just then, the doorbell rang. Sending her grinning companion a look that would have melted a polar ice-cap, Lexi opened the door. She invited Lucas in, turning distractedly to check on Rickey. Lucas, curious about what had semed to so quickly divert her attention, placed the flowers he was carrying on the table in the hallway, then followed her into the kitchen. Something smelled absolutely wonderful, reminding him of how hungry he was.

As they entered the kitchen, Lucas noticed Rickey standing quietly in a corner smiling at him. Almost stopping in his tracks, he watched with a sinking feeling in his stomach, as the stranger went over to Lexi, put his arms around her and proceeded to give her a big kiss on the cheek.

Lexi giving Rickey another dirty look, pushed him away annoyed. The look of blatant discomfort now registering on Lucas' face upset her. Lexi watched as the man she regarded as her older brother eyed Lucas up and down. She'd had enough of his obnoxiousness, this just wasn't like Rickey - he was jealous!

The angry tone in her voice made both men jump, as she said in a parental tone, "Enrique! That's enough!"

She felt positively livid, as Rickey started to chuckle at her outburst. Lexi was embarassed, she could feel the hot blush starting to creep up to her face. Turning to her dinner guest, she said apologetically, "I'm really sorry Lucas. You probably have the wrong impression," she paused, gesturing to Rickey, "about us." Taking a deep breath, she continued, "Enrique...Ricky and I are...well, family - I mean biologically we're not brother and sister, but for a while we were raised together in Argentina. His father was my guardian."

Lucas just stared at her, trying to digest the information she had just told him. Rickey smiled as he looked over at Lucas. Holding out his hand to Lexi's friend, he said, "I'm Enrique Rivera. Rickey, please."

Lucas, looking tenatively at Rickey, shook the hand offered to him, responding cautiously, "I'm Lucas." Still confused, he wasn't quite sure of how to react.

Rickey, looking back and forth between the two, realized that he had pushed Lexi far enough. Backing out of the kitchen, he glanced quickly at Lexi, and seeing the dark look in her eyes, gave a nervous cough, saying, "On that note, I guess I should leave you two alone now." Starting to feel some remorse, he added as an afterthought, "I'm sorry if you got the wrong idea about us, Lucas. It was never my intention to make you feel uncomfortable."

Rickey quickly moved into the hallway. As he made for the door, he spied the flowers laying on the table. Looking at Lucas he handed them over, saying in a tone too low for Lexi to hear, "I think these are yours?" opening the door as he spoke, then with an apologetic smile, was gone.

Lucas holding the flowers behind his back, turned to Lexi shaking his head. Obviously perplexed, he narrowed his eyes at her and said, "Okay, let me get this straight; he's not your boyfriend, spouse, or significant other?"

Lexi smiled warmly, "No to all the above!"

Lucas released a deep sigh of relief and returned Lexi's smile. "In that case, these are for you," he said presenting her with a beautiful bunch of flowers. Murmuring her thanks, she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, thinking that maybe the evening was not going to end up as a disaster afterall.

***********

Dinner went well. Most of their conversation was about the project proposal that Lexi had written. It was clear to Lucas that Lexi was very passionate about her work. He observed the light in her eyes as she explained the history of her father's work. He liked her ideas. Settling back in his chair, Lucas spoke, "I'd really like to be a part of this. When are you going to talk to the others?"

She was quiet for a moment, then responded, "Any type of bioacoustics research with cetaceans is a pretty hot topic right now. You could come with me, I'm sure sure both Nathan and Malcolm would enjoy catching up with all your news."

Moving away from the table, they went outside to the deck. The ocean breeze was starting to cool the air, as dusk fell. Lucas stole a glance at Lexi; she was dressed casually in a t-shirt and denim shorts. Her blonde hair was loose about her shoulders, moving slightly with the breeze. She was relaxed. Almost all traces of her injuries were gone. Even the bruise on her temple had faded considerably. Lucas couldn't take his eyes off of her.

Extending his hand to her, he asked, "How about a walk?"

Smiling, she kicked off her sandals. Hand in hand, their fingers laced together, they strolled down to the beach. As they walked, Lucas looked over at her sheepishly, saying "Your friend Rickey really caught me off guard."

Lexi apologetically responded, "I'm really sorry about that. Rickey's very protective, and I think that was his way of checking you out." She paused for a moment, looking down at the sand reminiscing, then looking back up at Lucas, said, "We"ve been through a lot together. He was there for me during a very difficult time in my life."

Lucas couldn't help noticing the sad look that seemed to wash over her. Changing the subject, Lexi turned to Lucas saying, "Okay, enough about me. Tell me about Lucas Wolenczak."

Lucas quickly glanced at Lexi. She could see that he seemed to be suddenly uncomfortable now that the conversation had focused on him. Looking away from her, he quietly said, "There really isn't anything to say."

Lexi sat down on the sand. She was silent for a moment, watching the tide come in and the seagulls swooping down into the surf. "I take it, life hasn't been a bowl of cherries for you either."

Taking a deep breath, then releasing it, Lucas plopped down next to her. He was silent for a moment, then realizing his companion was looking at him expectantly, he sighed.

"I know what it's like to be alone. When I was only sixteen, my parents *dumped* me on seaQuest."

Lexi looked over at him in disbelief. Lucas could see the question written on her face.

"Why? Who the hell knows! My parents were divorced; maybe I cramped their style."

Lucas looked down, letting his fingers brush through the sand. Bitterly he continued, "My father thought it would be good for me - build character, make me a man. The truth is neither one ever had any time for me."

His eyes caught Lexi's. She could see the pain reflected there.

"While I was in stasis, my father was presumed missing."

Closing his eyes, in a cold voice devoid of emotion, he continued, "A few months before you came aboard, seaQuest was ordered to Orpheus Base. Our mission was to help my father's research partner transfer the data archives, and pack up the base. It wasn't safe there anymore due to increased seismic activity in the area, and the threat of a possible Chaodai attack.

During our first day, there was a seaquake. It must have opened up an undersea cavern, because the log recorder from the Orpheus, my father's ship, was discovered. His partner believed that if the log recorder had survived, then maybe my father had too.

Anyway, things went wrong and then the captain wanted to scrap the mission, because of safety. I couldn't let that happen - not without knowing for sure if my father was alive, or dead, so I took Captain Hudson's sidearm."

Lucas paused seeing the look of astonishment on Lexi's face. He shook his head and with irony in his voice said, "I wasn't going to hurt anyone. I just wanted the captain to help us. In the end, we had to abandon the base because of the threat of a Chaodia attack, so I'll never know for sure."

Pausing again, he wiped away the tears that had started to slip out from under his closed eyes.

"My mother couldn't have cared less. Before we went to try to recover the ship, I tried to talk to her..." Stopping, he looked over at Lexi, his vision clouded by tears and said, "She told me that she had made her peace with his disappearance and mine. My mother had written him off, but I couldn't do that, despite everything he was still my father! If I had to do it all over again - I would!"

Lexi felt terrible for stirring up such painful memories. Wanting badly to comfort him, but unsure of how he would react, she placed her hand on his arm giving it a gentle squeeze. Her eyes full of compassion.

"Lucas, I'm so sorry."

Smiling faintly, he continued, "They Court Martialed me. McGath decided that there were extenuating circumstances, so they were lenient. I was demoted a half rank and won't be eligible for promotion for one year." He gave her a wry smile as he continued, "It looks like I'm going to be an ensign for a while."

Lexi honestly didn't know what to say to Lucas. She hadn't been prepared for such anguish. Glancing over at him, she noted that his face had become a mask. She couldn't tell what he was feeling.

Lucas was quiet, staring straight ahead, watching as the last sliver of sun sank beneath the horizon. Lexi looked on, feeling his pain. Those incredible blue eyes held nothing but grief and sadness. She blinked back the tears that had started to fill her own eyes. Moving closer, she placed a hand sofly on his shoulder. Their eyes met as she leaned in closer, then kissed him. All the emotions Lucas had been trying to suppress were suddenly released. Wrapping his arms around Lexi, he pulled her closer, deepening the kiss. She felt his hands move slowly up her back, holding her tight against him. Lexi returned his kisses enthusiastically, running her hands through his hair.

Slowly, he pulled away, his eyes searching Lexi's, as if looking for an answer to an unspoken question. Reaching up, he caressed her cheek affectionately with his hand. She took his hand in hers and softly said, "Lucas, I really like you, but I need to go slow with whatever this is between us."

Nodding slowly, he linked his fingers with hers, saying in a voice hoarse with emotion, "You feel it too then?" Lucas looked at Lexi, then continued, "I wasn't sure if you were interested. I mean - I thought maybe there was someone else in your life, like Rickey."

Lexi gave Lucas a hard look, then moved away from him. She shivered slightly, wrapping her arms around herself, the ocean breeze becoming chilly now. Realizing that she was cold, Lucas reached out to put his arms around her, his eyes full of questions.

She sighed deeply, turning back to him to say, "Before I came aboard seaQuest, I was in a relationship with someone. It ended badly." As her eyes met his, Lucas could see the pain there. "He really hurt me. So if I've been sending you mixed messages Lucas, I'm sorry. It's just that I'm a little gun-shy." Lexi turned to face him straight on, "This, whatever it is between us, chemistry? It frightens me. I've never felt like this before."

Thinking she had said too much, Lexi abruptly stood up. She quickly brushed the sand off of her shorts, and started back towards the beach house. Lucas, running to catch up with her, grabbed Lexi by the shoulders. Standing in front of her, he lifted her chin up and gazing into her eyes. "I don't care about your past. It's all ancient history, What matters is now." He pulled her closer, his eyes searching hers, saying "I care about you Lexi; I don't know where this is going, but I think we should give it a chance." Then, putting his arms around her, Lucas kissed her, letting all of his long suppressed feelings feed his passion.

As the kiss ended, Lexi took Lucas' hand, leading him back to the house. Passing through the doorway, he pulled her into his arms again. Offering no resistance to his overtures, Lexi felt herself being swept away. She let him slowly ease her down onto the couch. Finding the remote to the disc player, Lucas pushed the button, allowing the sound of soft music to play in the background.

The two lay in each other's arms listening to the music. For the first time, in a very long time, Lexi felt safe. The fact that Lucas had admitted that he had feelings for her frightened Lexi, but for some odd reason, her heart was telling her it was okay to trust him.

Relaxing against him, she felt Lucas brush the hair away from her neck. His lips were soft as they made contact with the skin there, sending chills down her spine. Lexi closed her eyes breathing deeply, enjoying the sensations she felt coursing through her body, as his lips slowly made their way across the back of her neck. Lexi felt a shudder go through her body as his lips moved to her ear. Then his mouth was on hers again. Lexi could feel her passion building, her pulse quickening as his hands continued to explore her body.

Lucas trembled slightly, as Lexi's hands strayed under his t-shirt and connected with his warm skin. She could feel his heart beating rapidly, like her own. Her hands traveled up his back sensuously, while her mouth explored the sensitive area between his neck and shoulder, eliciting a low moan from Lucas. Then, she felt him move, slightly shifting so that she was underneath him. His hands were shaking with desire, as they found their way under her shirt, and gently caressed her breasts. Lucas kissed her; his mouth hard on hers, silencing her moans.

Lexi, feeling herself about to loose control and give in to her to her passion, suddenly pushed him away, crying out, "No Lucas!"

Breathing heavily, they both looked at each other for a moment unable to speak. Lexi's gaze dropped to her lap, unwilling to face the look of hurt in his eyes. Still trying to compose himself, Lucas continued to stare at Lexi in stunned surprise.

Then, raising her eyes to meet his, she said in a shaky voice, "It's not you - it's me. I'm just not ready for this yet."

Lucas ran an unsteady hand through his hair, as he slowly sat up. Glancing at Lexi, he could see her eyes were wide with what he first thought was fear, then confusion. Trying to comfort her, he reached out and gently lifted her chin up so that he was looking directly into her eyes. He desperately wanted to understand what he had done to upset her. "Do you want me to leave?"

Lexi shook her head no, but Lucas could sense the uncertainty in her response.

He reached out and gently pulled her closer. Holding her firmly, he whispered, "It's okay. I just want to be with you, Lex." Lucas felt her give a deep sigh, as she placed her head on his shoulder, and returned his embrace.

They stayed like that for a while, listening to the music discs that they picked out earlier. Gradually, the music began to have a calming effect on both of them. Relaxing completely, it wasn't long before the two drifted off to sleep while laying together on the couch.

Stirring, as the disc player shut off, Lucas opened his eyes. The sight that greeted him brought a smile to his lips. Lexi was fast asleep, curled up next to him, her head resting on his chest. Lucas closed his eyes and wrapped his arms protectively around her. Then, with a contented sigh, let sleep reclaim him.

************

Lexi was dreaming. In her dream, she relived the horror of that night nine years ago; her agitated movements waking Lucas. As he tried to wake her, he heard her murmur in anguish, "No, ...please... - Stop!"

Lexi's movements became more frantic now, as she mistook Lucas for her unseen attacker. They struggled for a moment, then suddenly she was awake; she sat up hyperventilating, momentarily disoriented, not understanding where she was, or who she was with. Breathing heavily, heart pounding, her eyes darted around the dimly lit room. Slowly, realizing where she was now, Lexi muttered an embarassed apology. She unconsciously pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. Tears were beginning to trace their way down her cheeks.

Cautiously, Lucas moved to her side. Murmuring soothing words in her ear, he held Lexi tightly as she buried her face in his shoulder sobbing - the tears flowing freely now. His worse fears from reading her UEO file had just been confirmed. Closing his eyes against the tears starting to form, he could still hear the terror in her her voice as she dreamed. Now he understood her earlier actions all too clearly.

As he held her, Lucas silently cursed the man responsible for her distress. Still holding her tightly, he whispered with conviction, "I won't let anyone hurt you ever again," as tears began to run down his cheeks.

Some time later, feeling emotionally drained, Lexi slowly pulled away. Wiping her eyes with the back of her hand, she choked out a hoarse, "Sorry." Her eyes were downcast, and she felt a mixture of mortification and shame, at divulging her darkest secret like this. Feeling suddenly chilled, Lexi shivered; she felt totally exposed and vulnerable with Lucas.

Wiping the tears from his own eyes, Lucas reached out to her, pulling a trembling Lexi back into his arms. He stroked her cheek, tenderly wiping the last of her tears away; the look in his eyes saying more than any words could ever convey.

Slowly, in a voice thick with emotion, Lexi finally spoke, "When I was eleven, my parents died. My grandparents were out of the country, no one could find them; so the attorneys appointed a guardian for me. I spent the next two years living with complete strangers, because my only living relatives didn't want to have to cope with an adolescent girl.

Carlos Rivera was the financial backer for the Minoa Project. He was also the Governor of the Confederation of South American Nations. Looking back on it now, I'm sure he only signed the papers so he could get his hands on the Trust Fund established for my care. You see, his campaign funds were running low - he needed more money for bribes and such," her voice trailed off as she wiped her eyes.

Taking a deep breath, looking at Lucas she started again "So, I went back to Argentina with Carlos. At first it wasn't too bad - he was hardly ever around, too busy with politics. The servants were very good to me; Maria, Constanzia and Juan. Carlos' son Enrique - Rickey, was also kind to me. Rickey basically showed me the ropes and taught me the language. Carlos wasn't the best parent, he ignored Rickey and me; only trotting us out for State occasions."

Looking away she said, with a bitter twist to her lips, "Technically, according to the UEO, since I'm Carlos' ward, I'm considered to have Diplomatic status, can you believe it? My grandparents never cared enough to change my status - I'm a Diplomatic citizen."

"Anyway, at first it was all just verbal abuse. Nothing I did was ever good enough. I was at the top of all my classes, but it didn't matter; to Carlos I was just a stupid girl - nothing of importance to him. The beatings came later." Lexi looked away, lost in the memory.

"That first summer when I went to visit my grandparents, my grandfather saw the bruises, but he never asked what happened." Lexi's tone became bitter, as she remembered her past. "Yea, they didn't want me to live with them, but I made a pretty conversational piece to trot out at their society functions. Oh, yes! Be a good girl Lexi, and smile for the cameras. Remember, the Rodgers family reputation is at stake. Looking back on things now, I understand why my mother didn't often mention her parents - they had treated her the same way."

Glancing back at Lucas, Lexi saw the empathetic expression on his face. He gave her hand an encouraging squeeze as she continued almost apologetically, "I was afraid to tell anyone about what was happening to me. As the Governor, Carlos had many connections, he had threatened to hurt them if I ever said anything, so I kept my mouth shut. One of the other house maids felt sorry for me and tried to report him to the Argentinian officials. Carlos had her removed from the household." Lexi shook her head sadly, "After that I never thought about telling anyone;I just dealt with it."

"Things pretty much went on like that for almost two years, then he found out that Rickey was gay. Carlos went balistic with rage. It would destroy his political career if any of his enemies found out - it would have caused a scandal. You see, it wouldn't do to have the potential political leader of the country have a gay son, so he sent Rickey away to boarding school. I had no one to protect me then. The servants were all afraid of him; he could make people disappear."

"The month I turned thirteen was a bad one politically for Carlos. There had been several coups trying to oust the current dictator, Juanito Ramirez. Rickey, who had been away at school, came home and wanted to celebrate my birthday. He smuggled me into a disco with his friends."

Lexi paused, smiling faintly at the memory, "It was all innocent fun, but when I got back HE was waiting for me."

The tone of her voice changed suddenly and she shuddered remembering. "There had been a party; the bottles were still scattered all around, the maids hadn't had much of a chance to clean up yet. Carlos was drunk, so trashed he could barely stand up. I didn't see him when I went to my room - he must have been hiding behind the door...I remember starting to get undressed. Suddenly he grabbed me and slammed me into the wall. I couldn't move, he held my arms up above my head and was leaning against me, pressing me into the wall...I couldn't breath....Then, he backhanded me aross the face, screaming at me, Slut! Trash! Where the hell have you been!" Lexi paused her voice starting to shake as the tears formed in her eyes.

"He hit me, then threw me on the bed. I tried to fight, but it only made things worse. I guess I must have blacked out, because the next thing I remember, he was getting up off the bed. Carlos said he would kill me, if I ever told anyone what had happened. I never saw him again after that. I must have been really messed up, because the next day when I didn't show up for breakfast, Rickey and Constanzia came looking for me. They called for a doctor, but when the doctor found out who we were, he wouldn't come; he was too frightened that Carlos would somehow retaliate. The maids cleaned me up. Rickey didn't know what to do, so he called my grandfather. I left Argentina that night in a private jet."

Lexi's tone turned bitter, as she vehemently wiped her eyes and continued, "My grandfather took me directly to a private hospital. Grandmother was afraid that there might be a scandal - it was all hush-hush. According to the admission notes I was catatonic. I spent seven months of hell at the Marlborough Institute, in intensive therapy with Dr. India Davis."

Lexi sighed deeply. "It's taken me nine years of therapy to try to let go of this and I still blame myself..." her voice trailed off, as the tears streamed down her face.

Lucas, lifting her chin up and looking into her eyes said firmly, "It wasn't your fault, you were only thirteen for God's sake! What kind of man does that to a child?"

Lexi, unable to answer, sadly shook her head.

Taking both her hands in his, Lucas gently said, "He can't hurt you anymore, Lexi" and hugged her close. She clung to him murmuring, "I'll just settle for learning to feel safe again..."

Lucas carefully, gently, eased her down on the couch and held her protectively, listening as her breathing finally indicated that she was asleep. He lay there, turning her words over and over in his mind. It was frightening how much they had in common. Lucas had thought that the abuse he had endured from his stepfather had been a nightmare, Lexi's life hadn't been a picnic either. He could only hope that she believed how much he really cared, only now, he thought, it's gone way beyond that - for Lucas had realized that he was falling in love.


***************


Lexi had set the auto-timer the evening before, and woke to the sounds of freshly brewing coffee. Opening her eyes, instantly recalling the events from the prior evening, she glanced uncertainly at the sleeping form of Lucas beside her. Sound asleep, he held her snug against him, his arm draped over her waist. Taking care not to wake him, she cautiously slid out from under his arm and went creeping quietly out of the room. Once in the kitchen, she poured herself some java, then quietly opening the sliding doors to the deck, went outside to greet the new day.

Sitting in the porch swing, she tucked her feet up underneath her and sipped the hot liquid. Looking out at the ocean, she reflected on last night. Lexi still felt confused about Lucas; she wanted to trust him, but a part of her still felt uncomfortable about getting close to someone again, after her devastating experience with Peter.

She thought about how understanding he had been last night, about everything. Lexi didn't know what had happened, why she had suddenly panicked. It had all felt so right and then she just overreacted. Why couldn't she just accept the things that had happened to her and forget the past?

Preoccupied with her thoughts, she didn't notice Lucas until he came over and sat down next to her. Determined to put up a good front, she smiled at him, saying, "Good morning," though in reality it was closer to afternoon. Leaning over, he gave her a kiss, which she reluctantly returned. He pulled away watching her, looking for any lingering sign of last night's dream. Lucas was surprised to find that this morning, Lexi seemed almost unaffected by everything, although there was a certain hesitancy about her. "No," he though, noticing the way she seemed to be avoiding eye contact with him, it's got to be an act and I'm not buying it." Running a hand through his hair, he decided that the subject deserved some discussion. She did owe him that much.

As he turned to speak to her, she said, "Can I get you something to eat? Coffee?"

Lucas smiled, then yawned sleepily. "I'll get something in a minute, Lex, but first I want to talk to you about last night." He watched as she suddenly turned away, Lexi's body language telling him that she had put up her emotional walls again.

Lexi turned to face him, her mask in place. Speaking in an even tone, she said apologetically, "I'm really sorry, Lucas. I never meant to lead you on, or hurt you." Then, she stood up and headed for the kitchen with Lucas following close behind.

"I just want to make sure you're okay. I'm not upset."

Leaning against the counter facing her, Lucas continued softly, "When it's meant to, it will happen."

Handing him a ceramic mug, Lexi said, "Thanks for being so understanding about everything."

As he took the mug from her, Lucas grabbed her wrist, giving her a dark look.

"What?" she asked him, her eyes meeting his. Lucas could hear a noticable edge of fear in her voice, for a second she was almost cringing, even backing slightly away from him.

"Lexi, are you alright?" Lucas asked with concern, sitting the mug back down on the counter. "I mean, that was some nightmare you had last night."

Giving her a thin smile, he rubbed his jaw. "You have one hell of a right hook, too!"

Smiling slightly at his comment, she replied, "Yea, I'm fine. It was just a nightmare, okay." Lexi walked over to Lucas and reached out her hand, gently tracing the outline of his jaw, as she began to chuckle. "Next time, duck!"

He roughly brushed her hand away, observing her reaction of hurt, then surprise reflected in her eyes. "I don't think this is funny, Lex!" snapped Lucas, as he reached for his mug and poured himself some coffee. The room was suddenly quiet, as he added some creamer, then heaped a couple spoonfuls of sweetener into his drink. Thoughtfully, he stirred the mixture as he watched her wander aimlessly around the kitchen ignoring him. Lucas knew he shouldn't push any harder, but he couldn't let it go either. He cared too much to see something like this ultimately destroy Lexi. So, he tried again.

Glancing at her sideways, he casually asked, "Do you have many nightmares like that?"

Lexi stopped, hesitating, as she started to open the sliding door to the deck. Not bothering to turn around, she replied, "Last night was the first one I've had since I left the Oasis."

She walked out on the deck and sat down on the steps leading down to the beach. Digging her toes in the warm sand, Lexi ignored Lucas as he sat down nearby in a chair, propping his legs up on the deck railing.

She let a few minutes pass, then, in a tired voice said, "I appreciate your concern, Lucas, but this is really not your problem. There isn't anything that you can do for me, that nine years of therapy hasn't done already, so please..." Lexi looked over at him pleadingly, "Just let it drop." He started to open his mouth to speak, then seeing the look on her face, quickly closed it again and reached for his drink.

Glancing at his chronometer, Lucas frowned when he saw that it was already past noon. Looking over in Lexi's direction he asked, "What do you want to do today?"

She stood up, smiling at the change of subject and answered, "How about a swim?" moving closer to Lucas.

"I was hoping that you would say that, but I'm going to have to get another change of clothes, so that means going back to my hotel." Lucas replied apologetically, looking up at Lexi, shading his eyes from the hot glare of the sun.

Looking at him intently, still shaken by her nightmare, an idea came to her. Without thinking, she opened her mouth and the words came tumbling out, "You know, you could stay here for the rest of our leave." Then, as she heard the words she was speaking, beginning to blush furiously, Lexi quickly added, "You could stay in the guest room."

Lucas noticed the heightened coloring of her cheeks. Starting to shake his head no, he stood up and looking into Lexi's eyes, asked her quietly, "Are you really sure about this?"

Returning his steady gaze, she nodded, watching as a huge grin spread across Lucas' face.

*******************

The pair made breakfast, then headed to the hotel to collect Lucas' things. As they came out of the building, she tossed the car keys to a surprised Lucas. Lexi had seen him checking out her car earlier.

"I take it you want me to drive?" he asked trying to hide his eagerness to get behing the wheel of the machine parked at the curb in front of him. He eyed the blue Miata, almost drooling with lust.

Biting the insides of her cheeks to keep from laughing, Lexi watched him ogle the car. Curious, she asked him, "You do have a license, right?"

Grinning, he waved his wallet in front of her face. "Okay, well then, home James!" she said, returning his grin as he held the passenger door open for her. As Lucas drove, Lexi went through her music discs.

"Rickey's been taking care of the house for me, so that usually means he's been driving the car too."

Holding up a disc, she asked, "Think you can handle Latino?" Watching the road, he nodded. "Well, this is one of my favorites," she replied, popping a disc into the player. Immediately, the sounds of a sexy Latin beat could be heard in the car. As Lucas drove, his eyes strayed over to Lexi. She was grooving to the beat and singing softly along with the words. Looking back over at him, she smiled and said, "I told you my taste in music was diverse!"

*****************

They reached the beach house a half hour later. Taking his bag out of the trunk, Lucas followed her into the house. She guided him down the hall to the guest room, then headed to her own room to change. When she finally emerged, Lexi was wearing a tasteful, one piece bathing suit that showed off her shapely figure. Smiling and trying with difficulty not to gawk at her, Lucas thought to himself, "Man, those mandatory fitness classes pay off!"

Catching him staring at her, Lexi began to giggle. Playfully, she shoved him aside and bolted for the door to the deck yelling, "Last one on the beach cooks dinner!" Grabbing a towel, Lucas took off running after her. He caught up to Lexi as she stopped to kick off her sandals. Almost knocking her over, he scooped her up off of her feet and threw her over his shoulder. Hanging upside down, she screamed, "Don't even think about it, Wolenczak!" as she squirmed in his arms, while her captor made his way determinedly for the shore-line.

Struggling valiantly, Lexi continued to scream as Lucas carried her out into the surf. Glancing down at her, with an evil twinkle in his eye, he said mischievously, "Time to get wet!" while trying with difficulty to release her hold on him. But Lexi had her arms firmly wrapped around his waist.

Distracted by his captive, Lucas turned his back to the waves, only to hear Lexi's panicked call, "Watch ou!" as a huge wave crashed into them, knocking him off balance. As the wave rolled over them, they both surfaced laughing.

They spent the rest of the afternoon playing in the surf and just lying together on an old blanket talking. As the sun set and the air grew chilly, they packed up their things, moving indoors.

***************

While Lucas was in the shower, Lexi made a vid call to Nathan Bridger. Enthusiastic about her project, he agreed to meet with her the following day, but only if she promised to stay and visit for a few days. Thinking of Lucas, she asked Nathan is she could bring a friend; she wanted to surprise him, knowing that he hadn't seen Lucas in months. Nathan raised an eyebrow intrigued, and assured Lexi it wouldn't be a problem - the more the merrier! Hearing the shower stop, she ended the vid link with a quick goodbye.

Lexi smiled as Lucas strode into the den. His hair was still damp and he smelled faintly of soap. As he drew nearer, she could feel her pulse quicken. He looked so good! The light color of Lucas' t-shirt set off his tan and deepened the blue of his eyes.

Standing up she said, "Well, we're all set for tomorrow!"

"Great! I'm really looking forward to seeing Captain Bridger again."

Still smiling, Lexi started to walk down the hall, calling over her shoulder, "Make yourself at home, while I get cleaned up."

Lucas stood where he was for a moment, then glancing around the room, he went over to the entertainment unit. Opening the doors, he found a wide selection of both movie and music discs. Taking his time, he chose a few discs and popped them into the player.

Next, he wandered into the kitchen and found a bottle of white wine in the refrigerator. Lucas opened cupboards and searched until he found two long-stemmed glasses, then poured some of the olden liquid into each one. As he was putting the cork back into the bottle, he saw Lexi standing in the doorway watching him.

She was wearing a pair of comfortable jeans with a loose fitting blouse; the collar was like a man's shirt, but the short row of buttons ended in a knot tied just above her waist. As his eyes met hers, Lexi turned away shyly, looking out at the deck and the shore-line beyond it. He smiled and offered her a glass. As she twisted sideways to take it, he watched as her shirt rode up over her abdomen, revealing a small gold hoop in her navel. Watching as she moved to look out into the twilight, Lucas sipped his drink, letting his eyes travel over her. Although she had not dressed provocatively intentionally, Lexi was pleased with his reaction and moved closer to him. She smiled up at him a she asked, "What do you fancy for dinner?"

Deciding to have Chinese food delivered, they phoned in their order and sat out on the deck to wait. Looking out over the ocean, the sun was already low over the horizon and a light sea-breeze was beginning to stir, gently lifting Lexi's hair from her shoulders.

When the food arrived they carried everything out to the enclosed deck, where they could enjoy the evening breeze without being observed from the beach. Lucas brought the big bottle of wine out with the meal; it was still almost three-quarters full.

Lexi had Lucas in stitches at her disastrous attempts to use chop-sticks. The prawns that she had ordered seemed to slither away as though they were still trying to escape. They both laughed, gulping their wine, as she chased the prawns around her bowl, trying to use the chop-sticks two-handed, like a knife and fork. She cheated by catching some between her right chop-stick and thumb, bringing up her left hand with that stick held at an angle as though it had contact with the food and easing the prawns to her mouth two-handed.

"Not like that!" Lucas said through his laughter, "you look as though you're knitting! Hold the sticks in one hand like this..."

He tried to demonstrate and almost upset Lexi's drink. She caught it in time, giggled and emptied her glass. Lucas took her hand and tried to show her how to hold the chop-sticks. She finally managed to lift one large and elusive specimen almost to her mouth, then the prawn dropped headfirst into the neck of her blouse. Lexi leaped up, blushing and giggling, as she tried to fish the thing out without revealing too much. After a moment, she turned away from him and from her gestures, untied the knot at the hem of her blouse. Lucas suddenly needed a distraction from the uncontrollable reaction that seemed to possess him, and quickly re-filled their glasses, without taking his eyes off Lexi for more than a moment. The prawn hit the ground and she kicked it away, giggling and almost tripping.

She clumsily retied her blouse in a tight, too bulky bow, lost her balance and sat down beside him again, rather heavily. Her arm caught the end of one tie and the bow started to unravel. This time she turned away while seated, tied the blouse in a tight double-knot and left the ends trailing. Lexi was determined to use the chop-sticks and this time she picked them up one-handed, as Lucas had done, but almost managed to upset the bowl. She reached for her glass with her other hand, and a prawn landed daintily on the lower edge of her collar, perching for a moment as though surveying the terrain, before slipping off unnoticed.

Finally, unable to take it any more, Lucas reached over, laughing as he took the sticks from her. He proceeded to try to feed her the rest of her dinner, sending them both into hysterical laughter. Lexi leaned forward, trying to bite the food that Lucas held with the chop-sticks. She ate several prawns, but it was difficult to co-ordinate and she suddenly realized that two or three had fallen and were caught in the tie of her blouse. Swiping at them ineffectually, she half-rose and shook the ends of the tie, scattering the prawns on the ground before she slipped and thudded back solidly, this time upsetting her glass.

Giggling, Lexi leaned hard against Lucas. He closed his eyes as he caught the scent of her perfume. Then, before he realized what he was doing, Lucas dropped the chop-sticks and pulled her towards him as he brought his mouth down to Lexi's, kissing her passionately. Her lips tasted of sweet and sour sauce as she melted into his embrace, holding him tightly. The kiss ended and he moved away. Lexi looked up at him as she reluctantly released her hold. His eyes captured hers, sending little shivers down her spine when she saw the raw emotion reflected there. Lexi returned his gaze. Lucas felt like he was drowning; for a brief moment he could see something there, that nearly took his breath away.

Lexi abruptly lowered her eyes to the ground, fearing she had let him see too much. She stood up to brush the remnants of their meal from her clothes. Seeing that she was still quite giddy, Lucas quickly got to his feet and placed a steadying arm around her, edging her back to her seat. Then, he found a stiff broom at the side of the deck and started to sweep the worst of the mess that they had made out from under foot. Lexi was stacking the bowls when she suddenly turned to him laughing, holding up a small carryout box which had somehow been over-looked.

"It's the rice, we forgot the rice!"

"We could still eat it now - we'd be less likely to have hang-overs in the morning..."

Lucas reached towards Lexi's abandoned bowl and gestured as though to hand her the chop-sticks. She started to giggle again.

"Oh no, there's no way that I'm trying that - no..."

Re-filling their glasses with the last of the wine, Lucas handed Lexi her glass, then took her by the hand, leading her over to the porch swing. The night was warm and clear, with the stars just starting to show in the darkening sky. The scents of the sea and the shore were blended on the breeze. The sound of the pounding surf had a soothing effect on both of them. Lexi settled back against Lucas, as he put his arm around her. They stayed that way, peacefully rocking in the swing together, needing no words to communicate.

Holding a quiet Lexi in his arms, he fully understood for the first time, what Dr. Westphalen had really been trying to tell him, when they'd had that little talk about intimacy. As he felt Lexi's heart beating against his, Lucas began to think that maybe it was possible for him to find happiness.



PART 6

The next morning came all too quickly for the pair. Lexi and Lucas had stayed up half the night talking, and cuddling on the porch swing, watching the stars shine over the ocean.

Earlier in the evening, while browsing through the multitude of books and nick-nacks in the den, Lucas had noticed an old fashioned sextant and compass. The brass had a soft, mellow glow and somebody had placed the compass where the rim threw back the gleam of the sunlight. At the time, he had thought they were just ornaments and conversation pieces. Later he was pleasantly surprised when Lexi told him she knew how to use them. While star-gazing together, Lucas had discovered that his companion was well versed in this skill - Lexi had been almost offended when he had called it a hobby.

She explained to him that, as a child, she had accompanied her father on many research dives, and had picked up quite a few handy skills. He had also been keen on sailing, and had taught her the rudiments of navigation, explaining that this ability was well worth learning and could even save the life of a hiker. He had been a good teacher and she had been eager to please, and had gone on studying until she could map the night sky's constellations. She was pointing out Orion when she realised that Lucas was dozing. She gently shook him awake and indicated his room before drowsily heading for her own.


*********


Lucas woke to find the warmth of the midday sun streaming into the small room. He groaned, sitting up carefully and remembering all the wine he had drunk as his stomach lurched and he felt the beginnings of a nasty headache. Turning his head, he was thankful to discover a bottle of Nopayne and a glass of water sitting on the table next to the bed, thoughtfully placed there by Lexi. He opened the bottle and carefully shook out one of the hangover pills, tossing it into his mouth and washing it down with most of the water. He put the bottle back onto the table in front of the clock, and then closed his eyes for a moment and groaned when he noticed the time. If they were going to make it to Captain Bridger's Island in time for dinner, they should get going.

As he was scrambling to get dressed, Lucas heard Lexi coming down the hallway humming. He bravely tried to smile as he answered her soft knock.

Lexi was dressed in UEO sweats, with an old walkman tucked into the waist band and the earphones hanging around her neck. Her damp hair was gathered up into a ponytail and she looked as though she had just returned from a morning run on the beach. She greeted him with a smile and a cheerful "Good morning!" as she thrust a steaming hot mug of coffee into his hands and gave him a quick kiss. Looking closely, he could see that she too looked a little rough around the edges this morning.

Handing her the bottle of pain relievers, he smiled faintly and murmured a quiet, "Thanks."

Nodding sympathetically, she deftly backed out of the doorway, as she called over her shoulder, "You might find that a shower helps, but be as quick as you can," then, reading his mind added, "the shuttle is all ready to go."

Quickly downing the rest of the water, he picked up his shirt and slung it over his arm, carrying his coffee in his other hand as he hurried to the bathroom. He was suprised to see the blouse that Lexi had worn the previous evening crumpled inside the waste basket, but when he touched it curiously he saw that the ties were still tightly knotted together. Strands of frayed material protruded where Lexi had picked at the double-knot with something sharp, but she had cut the blouse beyond the tie - presumably to get the stained garment off. Lucas felt obscurely relieved; it was difficult not to resent someone who recovered from a tipsy evening as quickly and completely as she had seemed to. He turned to the mirror, shaved as quickly as he could and then threw his razor on top of his duffle before showering.

A little while later, Lucas came into the kitchen, carrying his duffle and running his free hand through his damp hair. Lexi was making a quick vid call to Rickey, to let him know where they would be for the next few days. After a brief discussion with her amigo about using the car in her absence, Lexi said goodbye, cut the vid link and picked up her small overnight bag; then they were on their way.


***********


The bright sunlight reflected off the azure water. Lexi closed her eyes as she emerged from the shuttle. The Mexican heat and humidity were just peaking at this time of day. She could feel the moisture already beginning to saturate the back of her shirt. Glancing over at Lucas, she pulled her sunglasses down over her eyes, draped the overnight bag across her shoulder and followed him down the pier.

As they approached the house, a figure appeared in the distance, moving steadily towards them, waving. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a small boy came running down the pier to greet them. He was followed by a large, stout woman, with hair that was greying to salt and pepper; she was clearly having trouble keeping up with the boy in the extreme heat.

"Lucas!" "Lexi!"

Lucas dropped his duffle only a split second before five year old Michael hurled himself into Lucas' arms. Smiling widely, he hugged the boy, lifting him high into the air, and spinning him around a few times, before depositing him back on his feet. Then it was Lexi's turn; before she could say anything, Michael flung himself at her as he stood on his toes and gave her a big bear hug around the waist nearly knocking her off balance.

"You're back just like you promised! What did you bring me this time, Lexi?"

"Michael, you know that's not nice - at least let them get to the house first!" scolded Nathan, who had watched the seige take place from behind them, and was now looking curiously back and forth between the couple.

"Well, look what the cat dragged in," Nathan said as a huge grin began to spread across his face. "When you asked if you could bring a friend, I never thought..." and he pulled Lucas into his arms, giving the young man a big hug.

As the two men greeted each other, Lexi backed away and turned to face the familar figure moving hesitantly towards her. Brushing away the tears that had started to form in her eyes Lexi smiled, calling out to the matronly looking woman in Spanish. The two women embraced, speaking rapidly in Spanish, and broken English; both had tears in their eyes. After a few minutes, Lexi gently led the older woman over to where Lucas and Nathan were standing watching the reunion.

"Lucas, I'd like you to meet Constanzia Gonzales. She was with me in Argentina." Lucas returned the older woman's smile, knowing at once what she meant to Lexi.

"Hola, Lucas."

"Hola, Constanzia," he said taking her weathered hand in his.

After their greeting, Nathan explained that during Lexi's last visit, Michael's nanny had taken ill and could no longer take care of the boy. Lexi had helped out for a few days, but was due to ship out, so after a few vid calls she was able to locate Constanzia.

"It's been a match made in heaven ever since," laughed Nathan.

As the adults all laughed in response to this comment, they didn't notice Michael coming back down the pier towards them. Stopping in front of Lexi, hands on his hips, he grinned up at her, "Can I help you with that?" He said, reaching up to pull at the straps to her bag. She glanced quickly over at Nathan, who just shrugged.

"Okay, thanks! But be careful!" Lexi giggled as she watched the boy make a great show out of transferring the bag to his own shoulder. Biting her lip to keep from laughing, she turned back Nathan and winking at Connstanzia, said, "He's quite the little ladies man, isn't he?" Then, proceeded to follow Michael and Constanzia down the pier.

Chuckling at his grandson's antics, Nathan gave Lucas a quick jab in the ribs with his elbow. As he saw Lucas' startled reaction he said dryly, "Kiddo, I think you've got competition." Amused, Lucas watched Michael moving down the pier, catching the look of absolute adoration the boy was giving Lexi.

Lifting his eyebrow, Lucas turned back towards Nathan, and rubbing his side, snorted, "Let's see what he can do with a computer." Then, shaking his head, snickering, he picked up his bag, following the others to the house.


*********


Guiding his guests down the hallway, Nathan pointed to the first room saying, "Lexi, you're in here."

Then continuing on, opening another door to what was obviously Michael's room, said, "Lucas, you'll be bunking with Michael." Lucas, looked over at Nathan as the older man studied him for a moment. Just then, Michael came tearing by.

"Hey! Come see what me and Constanzia found!"

Smiling, Lexi came out of the guest room, extending her hand to the boy.

"Okay, so show me!"

Taking her hand, Michael excitedly led her outside to the beach, with Lucas and Nathan in tow. He lead them over to his discovery - a small hermit crab. Kneeling down next to him, Lexi patiently explained the basics about the little crustacean, while Michael listened - his attention momentarily captivated, seemingly oblivious to the others present.

Nathan smiled, amused by the effect Lexi seemed to have on his grandson. Turning to Lucas, he chuckled to himself. It was obvious to Nathan that Michael wasn't the only male here totally enthralled with the pretty blonde.

Nathan sighed as he glanced over at Lucas and saw the look in his eyes. For Nathan, it suddenly brought back memories of the incident with Sandra. Lexi was certainly no terrorist, but ever since her parents had died she'd had an air of vulnerability about her. Perhaps in a paternalistic way, he should keep an eye on things between the two.


*************


Excusing himself to take a vid call, Nathan rejoined his guests for one of Constanzia's wonderful meals. Over dinner he informed them, that due to a crisis at the Aquatic Center, Malcolm would not be able to meet with them anytime soon. So, if Lexi didn't mind, Nathan was more than willing to present her project proposal, since funding for the project would not be an issue.

Then, pouring all the adults a glass of homemade sangria, and complimenting Constanzia on its quality, Nathan made a toast,

"To good friends, good company and working together."

As the meal ended, Lexi got up to ask if Constanzia would like help clearing up. She was promptly escorted right back out of the kitchen again by Michael, who was begging her to play with him. Glancing over at Lucas, Lexi could see that he was deep in conversation with the former seaQuest captain. Knowing that it had been many months since the two men had been able to talk, she turned back to the child and followed him outside.


**********


Nathan pushed his chair away from the table.

"So, kiddo, how's military life?"

Lucas smiled wanly, saying, "Its been a *real* learning experience!"

Not missing a beat, Nathan countered the young man's remark with another question.

"Of all the things you could do with your life Lucas, I never would have guessed you would ever have enlisted in the Navy. Why ? You're a scientist - not a soldier!"

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Lucas started to speak, but then changed his mind and closed his mouth firmly, looking away. Nathan's comment had not been meant to wound and, although it had hurt him anyway, he didn't want to return the pain and he did not quite know how to respond.

"That's a really good question," he thought to himself. "Why did I enlist?"

He sighed deeply. As he stood up to leave the table, Nathan grabbed his arm, saying, "It was to stay on seaQuest, wasn't it?" knowing full well just what the boat represented to Lucas. Their eyes locked for a second; an undeniable understanding passing between them. For a fleeting moment, Nathan saw before him the teenager he remembered - before their world had changed. Then, the moment passed. Lucas turned and walked away, leaving Nathan with his memories and a feeling that could have been regret.


***********


Lucas walked outside to the spacious deck surrounding the house. Leaning on the rail, chin in hand, he watched as Michael instructed Lexi on the finer points of making a sand castle. Giving Michael a playful salute, she set about her task, walking down to the shoreline with a bucket to get some water. On the way back to the chosen construction site, Lexi happened to glance up towards the house. She waved at Lucas, signaling for him to come down. Waving back at her, he kicked off his sandals, then set off down the beach to join in the fun.

Seeing Lucas approach, Lexi stood up to greet him, brushing the sand off of her clothes. "Want some help?" he asked, smiling at her. He reached for the small plastic shovel that Michael seemed to have discarded when he had left Lexi and the sand castle project to go and investigate something further down the beach. Lexi took Lucas' outstretched hand in hers and pulled him closer, quickly looking around to check on Michael. Satisfied that her small charge was not busily amusing himself with something that could cause him harm, Lexi tilted her head up towards Lucas, anticipating a kiss. She didn't have to wait long. His lips were warm and soft against hers. Lexi closed her eyes and relaxed, resting her head against his chest and listening to the sound of his beating heart. Lucas held her tightly, breathing in her scent mixed with the sea air, both of them lost in the moment.

Constanzia, seeing the two young people in a romantic embrace, smiled to herself and discreetly began to make some noise, calling out to Michael to come back to the house. Waving back at her, the boy ran past the couple, startling them out of their intimate moment. Pulling apart, but still holding hands, they turned to face Constanzia. Blushing with embarassment, Lexi looked at Lucas. He smiled faintly, gently giving her hand a reassuring sqeeze. The gesture did not go unnoticed by the older woman. Hustling the child along, she turned to face the couple saying, "It's such a beautiful evening. Perhaps you two would enjoy a walk together, no?" Then, as she reached for Michael's hand, her eye caught Lucas'. Smiling broadly she gave him a quick wink, then went on her way.

Shaking his head in bewilderment, Lucas directed his attention back to his lovely companion. Catching her gaze, he brought the hand that he was holding to his lips, softly kissing the palm, sending chills down Lexi's spine. As he felt her pulse begin to quicken like his own, Lucas said, "I like her idea," then pulled Lexi back into his arms for a lingering kiss.

They walked slowly along the shoreline, arms draped around each other's waists, stopping here and there to kiss. The air was still sultry, adding to the heat they were feeling for each other.

Finding a secluded spot, they sat on the sand, Lexi snuggled against him. Lucas was quiet; in the back of his mind he couldn't stop thinking about Nathan's comment - about why he had enlisted. It had made him think about other things as well; what did he want for the future?

Sighing, he held Lexi tighter, resting his chin on her shoulder. He liked the way they seemed to *fit* together so well; like the pieces of a jig-saw puzzle. Lucas thought about the past two weeks and how good it had felt being with Lexi. To just reach out to someone - to her, and know that he wouldn't be pushed aside. In just two weeks they had both managed to break down the emotional walls that had taken so many years to build.

Lexi had noticed that Lucas had been in a strange mood, ever since she had left him alone with Nathan after dinner.

But, she knew him well enough to know that he would talk when he was ready; in the meantime, all she could do is let him know that she was here for him. During the two weeks that they had spent alone together, Lexi had begun to realize just how much she really cared about Lucas. She knew he cared about her too; she could feel it whenever he touched her and she could see it in those blue eyes that reflected whatever he was feeling at the time. Smiling, she relaxed in his arms, increasingly unafraid of her feelings for him.

"Lexi?"

"Hmm..?" she replied dreamily, lost in her own thoughts.

"Why did you enlist?" he asked hesitantly, in a quiet tone.

Turning around to face him, she could see the uncertainty in his eyes. She took a few moments to consider the question, then responded, "I guess it does seem a bit odd for someone like me to *sign their life away* for four years in the military." Laughing, she added, "Consider my enlistment a temporary lapse in what little sanity I possessed at the time!" Noticing, that the faint smile that played around his lips didn't reach his eyes, she gently placed her hand over his, smiling slightly.

"Had enough of the Navy already?"

He shook his head, "No, but do you ever feel like maybe it was a mistake?"

"I've probably had my moments of regret, just like you, Lucas. But for me, at the time, it was the only choice."

The sudden change in the tone of Lexi's voice, told Lucas not to press her for any further explanation. Looking up over her shoulder, he saw Nathan walking toward them. From the expression on their faces, Nathan had the distinct impression that he was interrupting something. He also thought he saw an expression of relief cross Lexi's face as he approached.

"So, here's where the two of you disappeared to. Michael is requesting that you both come and tuck him in for the night."

Lexi glanced quickly at Lucas, then smiled warmly at Nathan.

"Sure, any time." She stood up, reaching for Lucas' hand.

"C'mon." Then, linking her other arm in Nathan's, the three walked back to the house.

Nudging a tired Constanzia out of the room, Lucas and Lexi proceeded to try to get the excited five year old to wind down for bedtime. After dealing with the usual stalling techniques that children use, Lucas began to read Michael a story.

Standing unnoticed in the shadow of the door, Nathan observed the couple's role playing, a bemused look on his face. A sudden feeling of deja-vu washed over him and he quietly turned and walked away.

As Lucas finished the story he was reading out loud, he glanced over at Lexi, and then at Michael, who was finally down for the count. Carefully, they moved out of the room. Following Lucas down the hallway, Lexi looked up at him with bleary eyes. Stopping outside the guest room, she said in a tired voice, "I think I'll turn in, too. It's been a long day." Placing his arm around her, Lucas bent his head, kissing her softly. Then saying good night, he headed back down the hall to Michael's room for the night.


********


Lucas tossed restlessly in the top bunk in Michael's room. He could hear the light snoring of the sleeping child in the bunk below. He sighed and rolled onto his back, staring up at the white stucco ceiling. His thoughts returned obsessively to the pretty blonde in the next room, the one who had recently stolen his heart when he wasn't looking!

Smiling to himself, Lucas closed his eyes and let his mind put together fragmented images of Alexia...Lexi. Other sensory stimuli began to come to him as well; the smell of her perfume, the light touch of her fingers against his cheek, the sweet taste of her lips and the way her pulse seemed to quicken when he... "Stop it , Lucas!" he thought to himself. "You'll just drive yourself crazy this way."

He sighed and sat up. There was no way he could sleep right now; the confining, almost clausterphobic smallness of the bunk, combined with his aroused state, only made him more restless.

"I have to get out of this room for a while," he muttered softly to himself, as he swung his legs over the side and crept down the ladder.

Moving carefully through the room so he wouldn't wake Michael, Lucas quietly pulled on his shorts, then opened the door and moved out into the hallway. Taking a few steps, he found himself standing outside the guestroom. He was pleased to notice that there was a light showing under the door. He tapped lightly, then waited. A surprised Lexi opened the door. She smiled, then, catching a glimpse of the expression on his face whispered, "Is everything okay?"

Moving inside the room he turned to face her."Yes...No...I don't know," he whispered back, shaking his head as he sat down on the bed.

Lexi came over and sat down next to him, her hand absently brushing against his, as she tossed aside the paperback she had been reading. The touch of her hand instantly sent a small tingling sensation through his body, causing Lucas to move abruptly away from her, his heart racing. Unaware of his inner turmoil, she looked at him questioningly as he struggled, trying to maintain control.

"Lucas, what's wrong?"

Avoiding her eyes, he stood up and began to pace the room restlessly, frustrated with his sudden inability to express himself to her.

Sensing that Lucas wanted to talk, but seemed to be having difficulty, Lexi took matters into her own hands. She patted the space beside her saying, "Come over here..."

Giving her a faint smile he complied, feeling like a total idiot for acting this way with her. But for some reason he couldn't seem to control his emotions. Maybe it was the Mexican heat and the walk on the beach earlier, or...maybe it was what she was wearing...for Lucas had just noticed that Lexi was wearing a thin over-sized t-shirt that was beginning to make his imagination work overtime.

Swallowing hard, he sat down next to her again. She moved closer to him, gently touching his shoulder.

"Relax," she said, frowning at how tight his muscles felt under her fingers. Lucas closed his eyes, breathing deeply as Lexi kneeled behind him and began to massage his shoulders.

As she leaned against him, he could feel her thighs pressed against the back of his arms. Unable to take anymore of this torture, he pulled away, turning to face her, then gently placed her hands back on his shoulders. As she resumed the massage, Lucas closed his eyes again, enjoying the sensation of her hands on his body. Tentatively reaching out to her, he felt his own hands gingerly brush against the soft skin of her legs.

Lexi felt Lucas start to relax as she continued the massage, her fingers kneading his shoulders. As his hands slowly worked their way up her legs, she smiled and closed her eyes. She had wondered how long it would take him to make the first move. The tension between them had been high all evening - Nathan had been unrealistic to put them in separate rooms.

Lexi leaned hard against Lucas as she felt his fingers begin to stroke the tops of her thighs. Then, he suddenly turned, pulling her into his arms. Holding her tightly, he bent his head, kissing her hungrily.

Lexi wrapped her arms around his neck, ardently returning his kiss. Urged on by her passionate response, he slowly laid her down on the bed, his hands warm against her silky skin as they roamed over her body.

As the kiss deepened, Lexi could feel Lucas' hands move underneath her t-shirt, his gentle touch exciting her, causing her to tremble slightly. She closed her eyes as he softly kissed her jaw, then moved on to her chin.

Breathing deeply, Lexi's pulse started to race faster as Lucas began to ease the t-shirt up over her head, kissing her breasts tenderly, then blazing a trail to her navel, teasing the gold ring she wore there with his tongue.

Just as Lexi reached out to embrace Lucas, they heard what sounded like a cry, then whimpering. Startled, they froze, looking at each other in disbelief.

"It's Michael," whispered Lexi, moving slightly away from Lucas, concern in her voice.

Then, as the whimpering sound grew louder and was punctuated by the occasional sniffle, they heard a knock on the door. A child's voice called out anxiously, "Lucas? Lucas, where are you?"

"Oh, no," whispered Lucas into Lexi's shoulder, closing his eyes cursing.

Biting her cheek to keep from laughing at the irony of this turn of events, Lexi turned away from Lucas and reached for her t-shirt. Pulling it over her head, she leaned down and kissed him, saying with a small sigh, "We should go and check on him. He sounds frightened."

Lucas lay next to her for a moment, then slowly sat up to run an unsteady hand through his hair. He looked over at Lexi, groaning in frustration, "I'm sorry," then adding in a defeated tone, "I'll go put him back to bed."

Sharing his frustration, Lexi climbed under the covers, sighing, "I'm sorry, Lucas, but maybe we should just call it a night," she said quietly, trying to stifle a yawn.

He smoothed a blanket over her, then leaned down kissing her tenderly. As he pulled away from her, Lucas could see the yearning in her eyes.

"Goodnight, Lex," he whispered, making his way towards the door. He paused in the doorway as she quietly called out, "Goodnight, Lucas."

When Lucas stepped out into the hallway, he met a sleepy Michael coming out of the bathroom carrying a glass of water. Obviously distressed, the little boy said, "Where were you, Lucas? I had a bad dream. Some pirates were chasing me, and when I woke up and couldn't find you, I got scared."

Feeling a tug at his heart, Lucas sighed and hugged Michael, making a mental note not to read him any more pirate stories. Then putting an arm around the little boy, Lucas gently squeezed his shoulder reassuringly and led him back to bed.


********


They spent the next few days relaxing on the Island, soaking up the sun and playing with Michael. A very frustrated Lucas soon realized that he and Lexi were not going to be left alone together for any length of time, or so it seemed. "It's probably just as well, anyway," he thought to himself. He couldn't hide his feelings from her for much longer.

After much hugging, and with a few tears thrown in, they left with the usual heartfelt promises to keep in touch with their old friends. Nathan agreed to contact Lexi as soon as he had presented the research proposal for her.

Then, they were off - on their way back to San Diego Island



PART 7

As they disembarked from the shuttle they were greeted by cool, damp air. The breeze blowing inland carried the promise of rain later. Lexi glanced out over the ocean, taking in the dark ominous looking clouds just hanging off-shore. Sighing, she picked up her bag and followed Lucas to the house.

Exhausted from their journey to see Captain Bridger, they headed straight for their own rooms. Lexi began to unpack after getting more comfortable by changing into her favorite sleep shirt. Further down the hall, Lucas collapsed across the bed in the guest room, enjoying the coolness of the air. It wasn't long before sleep overtook them both.

Outside, menacing blue-black clouds slowly moved ashore, sending periodic flashes of lightning to brighten the otherwise darkening sky. Rain poured from the heavens, as the storm blew in from the sea.

Lexi woke, heart pounding, to the booming sound of thunder, while lightning crashed all around. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes, trying to slow her hammering heart. Shivering with the drop in temperature and hearing the rain beat against the window, she lifted the covers and got out of bed, reaching towards the closet door for her robe.

Again, the lightning crashed, illuminating her room. Lexi, deciding that some peaceful new age music might help her get back to sleep, started to make her way to the den where she had left her portable disc player earlier. Moving into the dimly lit hallway, she cried out as another peal of thunder vibrated through the beach house, and she collided with an equally startled Lucas.

"Hey...hey, easy...It's just a storm," he said soothingly, pulling her into his arms. Feeling her begin to tremble slightly with the next roll of thunder, Lucas hugged her tightly to him.

"I...I'm sorry," she stammered a little embarassed, "you must think I'm such a baby..." almost jumping out of her skin as the hallway lit up with lightning.

"No,...no. You're not being a *baby,*" he said, gently caressing her cheek with his hand. "Come on, I'll tuck you back in."

He led Lexi back to her room. Once inside, she took a few hesitant steps, wrapping her arms protectively around herself. Unwilling to be left alone while the storm continued to wildly rage on outside, she turned to Lucas. "Stay with me,... please?"

He heard the pleading tone in her voice, and his heart skipped a beat. More than anything, Lucas wanted to stay, but was afraid of what would happen if he did as she asked. He didn't want to take advantage of the situation, pushing their relationship to a level that neither one of them seemed ready for; he didn't want to mess things up between them, and if he spent the night in this room, Lucas was almost positive that he would end up telling Lexi just how much she really meant to him.

Reading the reluctance on his face, she walked slowly toward him. Lucas, seeing his feelings reflected in her eyes, opened his arms, and gathered Lexi into his embrace. Carefully they made their way towards the bed, pausing to kiss a couple of times along the way.

As she lay back on the bed, Lexi pulled Lucas down beside her, her mouth seeking his. Her lips were soft against his, and she felt his hands against her back, holding her tightly.

His hands moved over her firm body; her skin smooth and silky under his fingers. Pressing his lips hard against hers, Lucas felt as if he was sliding off of a mountain; he couldn't stop all the feelings that were rushing through him. His body started to tremble with desire as her hands slid under his t-shirt, exploring his body.

Lexi broke the kiss long enough to help Lucas pull his shirt up over his head, then toss it to the floor. Her hands were warm as she lightly stroked his chest, her fingertips sending little jolts of electricity through him.

Outside the storm raged on; the thunder and lightning continuing to crash all around. But inside, the lovers were oblivious, creating their own tempest.

Lucas was on fire; the intense feelings he was experiencing were beginning to overwhelm him. He was breathing hard and his heart was racing, but he pulled slightly away from Lexi. Lifting her chin, he gazed into her eyes searchingly, suddenly unsure of himself. Looking into his eyes, Lexi became lost in those depthless blue orbs. She felt her mouth opening of its own accord, and heard her own voice saying tenderly, "I love you."

She closed her eyes as he kissed her passionately, then whispered in her ear, "I love you too, Alexia."

While Lexi's hands uninhibitedly roamed over Lucas' body, slowly moving down his back, he fumbled frustratedly with the buttons of the sleep shirt she wore. Driven by desire, he pulled the garment over her head, letting it drop to the floor as he carefully unhooked the clasp of her bra.

His hands gently caressed her breasts, the nipples hardening at his touch. Releasing an almost inaudible moan of pleasure, Lexi continued to move her hands sensuously down Lucas' back, brushing his skin lightly with the tips of her fingers. As her hands slowly strayed to his abdomen, he suddenly shivered, moaning into the curve of her neck. While one of her hands struggled with the zipper of his cutoffs, the other massaged the growing bulge there.

Reaching down to assist, Lucas gently pushed her hands away, and eagerly shed the rest of his clothes. Running his hands down Lexi's body, he hooked his thumbs in the waist band of her panties, tugging them off to join the growing pile of clothes on the floor.

Hugging her naked body to his, Lucas kissed Lexi tenderly, then nuzzled her ear, nibbling on it gently, driving her wild. Kissing his way down her neck, he began to blaze a trail with his tongue, stopping several times to kiss the tender area at the base of her throat before continuing down to her breasts.

Lexi felt herself start to lose control, her head spinning, moaning, as Lucas took a rosy pink nipple into his mouth, teasing it with his tongue, sending waves of pleasure through her body. She reached down, her fingers tangled in his hair, as he lingered a few moments, encouraged and excited by her moans; letting her passion build, then wickedly continuing his descent down her body with his mouth.

Deftly dodging her attempts to grope at him, Lucas positioned himself between her legs, licking and kissing his way up her soft thighs. Lexi's hands clutched tightly at the sheet underneath her, having given up for the moment on trying to catch any part of Lucas. Her moaning grew louder as the sensations coursing through her body threatened to overtake her. She began to pant, her breathing coming in short little gasps as his mouth moved between her legs, and she shuddered violently, arching her back as the force of the orgasm washed over her.

Suddenly, Lucas moved his body up over Lexi's burying his face in the sensitive curve of her neck, aching with need, unable to wait any longer. He gazed down at her lovingly, saying in a voice thick with emotion, "I love you Lexi; I love you so much." Then, he carefully entered her, gasping at the sensation. Lexi began to move in rhythm with his thrusts. Her hands massaging his back, slowly moving down his body to stroke his firm ass. As her stroking increased, so did their rhythm, until finally she felt Lucas shudder uncontrollably, crying out her name and pushing her over the abyss. Breathing heavily, Lucas collapsed beside her, pulling her against him, not wanting to let the moment end.

They lay there together, bodies entwined, emotionally and physically spent. Lucas nuzzled her shoulder, his lips moving slowly across the back of her neck. Leaning back against his chest, Lexi released a deep sigh of contentment. She didn't have a single regret; it had all felt so right.

Smiling hesitantly, she turned to face Lucas. He was so quiet that she started to wonder if maybe this wasn't what he wanted after all. Lexi looked up at him, searching his face for any signs of regret. His eyes held her gaze for a moment, then he leaned over, softly kissing her. Returning her smile, he said quietly,"I don't think I've ever been this happy - if this is a dream, I don't ever want to wake up."

Lexi reached out and gingerly traced the outline of his jaw saying, "This is *real* Lucas," snuggling closer to him and laying her head on his chest. She felt him relax, gently wrapping his arms around her as they both drifted off to sleep.

The morning came and with it, the last day of shore leave. Lucas opened his eyes and smiled, as he turned his head towards his bedmate. Lexi was sound asleep, her hair fanned out on her pillow, softly framing her face. Quietly, he lay there, watching her sleep peacefully beside him as he replayed last night's events again in his head. Lucas knew that no matter what happened between them now, he would never forget their first time, or the time that they had spent alone together. Last night had only served to prove to him what he already knew - he had found his soul-mate. "Now," he thought to himself, "I just need to convince Lexi."



~*~*~* Look for the upcoming sequel...~*~*~*