Flight of the Forbidden

A/N: Thanks for the feedback and encouragement! Hope I'm not moving too fast in this chapter. And lots of big things will be happening in chapter 3! Feedback (especially the encouraging kind) is very welcome since I'm still pretty new to this.

*****

Shara's mind was a tumbling mess that night. Whether awake or dreaming, cool grey eyes teased and taunted. The sliver of moon shining in through her window seemed like a blinding beacon blaring into her consciousness until it was too much.

She slid from her bed, quietly padding through the house to slip outside to gaze at the star-filled sky.

"It's so beautiful." A whisper startled her from the side of the porch. For a fleeting instant Shara thought it was a deep masculine whisper. But her mind cleared and she almost laughed. The woman Shara had always known as her mother was also gazing into the starry sky. Shara just hadn't noticed her before she'd spoken.

"Yes." She replied dreamily. "Yes it is."

"You were out extra late tonight." Her mother cocked her head at her, curiously.

Shara dropped her eyes. "Yes. I lost track of time. I'm sorry to have you worrying." She mumbled.

Leana smiled knowingly. "Hmm. Be careful with that heart of yours, my child. And bring him home to meet us when you're ready."

Shara's eyes shot up to meet hers before she realized that would surely be seen as admission. "But—I—what would make you think that?"

Leana smiled again. Only this time she looked a tiny bit sad. "I know that look of blissful distraction you wore on your face all too well. You're of age now and you're very beautiful. Any man in your path will have a hard time not being interested, whether you notice him back or not. Just don't settle for anything or anyone less than brings out the best in you."

Shara just nodded moodily, turning to gaze back into the stars.

Her mother continued. "I hadn't seen you so distracted and alive since the day you discovered that old junk yard last year."

Shara jerked her head to meet Leana's eyes.

Leana put her hands on her hips. "Of course I know what you've been up to. Just don't get caught. I can't afford to buy you out of the prisons."

Shara didn't know what to say to that. She just nodded dumbly. This whole time she'd thought she had mastered secrecy. And then Sterling waltzed in and shattered one wall and now her mother had just crumbled another. Surely the government would have already intervened if they'd had even an inkling of knowledge about what she'd been up to.

"Good night. I think I'll be able to sleep now." Leana told her, kissing her cheek before heading back into the house.

Shara was left alone with her thoughts and the soothing roar of evening crickets under the moonlight. She didn't have a clue what she was going to do if she actually did manage to get the plane to life; something like that was going to be hard to keep off the radar. She especially didn't know what to do with Sterling.

*********

"You're late." His voice taunted as she pushed through the creaky gate.

She met his gaze carefully. "I didn't sleep very good." She pouted.

His lip curved up knowingly. He swooped in towards her, his hands circling around her slender waist, drawing her against him. "I dreamed of you, too." He smiled against her lips before claiming them.

His arrogance almost pissed her off but she was already too wrapped up in the feel of his tongue pushing past her lips. She distantly felt him directing them somewhere until she was swept completely off balance when he leaned into her, making her fall back into something soft. She pulled away to gasp for air. He had led her to an old plane cab with a very nicely cushioned bench in the back. Its side door had long since been torn away.

"This." He said against the skin of her neck as he leaned over her on the soft seat. "This is what I was dreaming of." He slid a hand behind her neck, twisting it into her hair so she couldn't pull away as his other hand went to the bottom of her shirt, pushing it up as he caressed her ribs, his thumb sliding against the smooth skin of her stomach.

She gasped when his thumb reached the underside of her breast. He pulled back for a moment to read the uncertainty in her eyes. It didn't seem to deter him in the least. If anything he seemed more determined than ever. He slid his body lower. His mouth following where his hand had just been. He trailed hungry kisses down and back up along her torso, pausing as he pushed her bra up to expose her supple breasts to his eyes. She could feel his gaze on her, a mix of emotions washing through her. "Sterling, I-"

"Shh." He soothed just before she felt heat around her nipple. "Eek!" She squeaked at the unexpected sensation. She tried to pull back but his other hand was still behind her, keeping her in place. He massaged her breast with one hand and bit gentle kisses into her other, making her moan and writhe against him.

Just as she was beginning to feel something building but still way beyond each, he pulled away, leaving her chest exposed and cold. She moaned in protest, but stopped short when she realized why he'd moved. He had undone his pants and was urgently struggling to undo her own jeans. She had a vague idea of what he was doing, but was completely inexperienced and soo not ready. "Sterling, I can't. Not so soon." She whimpered at him apprehensively.

He looked at her and his grey eyes were nearly black with a hungry need. He shook his head and growled his frustration at her. But he stopped. Pulling her shirt back down and leaving an empty void where he had just been so warm a moment before.

Shara laid there for a minute, regaining her composure and getting her clothes back into place.

When Sterling spoke again his voice was smooth and even, the essence of control. "I think I know a few of these old ships that should have enough of the tubing." He was gutting a wicked looking war ship, pulling clear tubing from it as he went.

Right. That's what they had come for. Snap out of it Shara. Why are you letting him have such an effect on you? The thing was, though, she didn't think she had any control at all in the matter. One look, one touch, one fiery kiss and her body was ready to submit to him. He is quite nice to look at, too. She reasoned with herself. So tall, with that strong, lean figure and amazing hair. And those eyes. He had the most amazing eyes she'd ever seen. She shook her head in frustration.

There had to be a usable core in at least one of these ships, she thought, forcing her thoughts back to the task at hand. She got her tool belt out of her back pack and started digging through the debris. By the time their stomachs were grumbling for lunch, she had removed three cores that looked like they held some potential and Sterling had a full stack of tubing. They smiled at each other's find approvingly. We make a good team. She thought to herself. She wasn't ready to admit that to him though.

"Get these back to your shop and I'll grab us some food and meet you in a few." He told her after helping to load everything onto the bike trailer she'd brought.

"Thank you." She said softly.

He just raised a brow at her in playful challenge. Damnit, he was making her blush again, but he was already gone, on another route towards food.

They sat in comfortable silence as they shared lunch. It was an unfamiliar dish for Shara. A tasty combination of sweet, spicy and just a tad salty and she was pretty sure the meet was chicken. "Is this pretty common in Avraria?" She asked.

He smiled and nodded. "Like it?"

"It's really good!" She admitted enthusiastically, licking the juices from her fingers before she saw the way he watched her. She grabbed a napkin instead, fighting another blush. He didn't make any sudden moves to devour her though. In fact, for a week straight after that, he still hadn't made any more moves. Nothing more than a light brushing of his lips against hers before they parted ways. Their time was a lot more limited though, once the weekend had ended and she'd had to get back to work.

Sterling, she had learned, had other junk yards to manage and protect so he wasn't able to come by till late a few of the days anyways.

They had attached the tubing to all the proper places so all that was left was the core. Shara was holding a meter to the one that seemed the closest to being active. Watching for any change in power while Sterling pumped and prodded it with other various sources of power. So far there wasn't even a flicker of change.

Watching his handsome face scrunch in frustration, her thoughts drifted to other things. Like the way his lips had felt so warm and soft when they'd been crushed against hers. And the way his hands had tingling as he'd moved them over her skin. His mouth on her nipple. She felt heat building in places she'd never even thought about until just recently. Until him. And why hadn't he kissed her like that again? She was sure he hadn't given up. But she had told him to slow down.

"This isn't working." She said in irritation, putting the meter down.

His eyes shot to hers. "You're giving up?"

She shook her head. "Of course not. But this" She gestured towards the inactive core in front of them, "obviously is not the way to do it. I think I need to get to the library. If there's a way to reanimate a core to a new life source, I need to do some more digging to find out how."

"Maybe we can hack into the system databases. There's gotta be blue prints out there." He said, pulling a device from his pocket.

Shara's eyes lit with excitement. "You have one of those? They're so expensive now, since the war. "

He went to sit against the shed wall and Shara followed. Sitting close beside him so she could see. He handed it to her so she could navigate the device while he slid his arm behind her and nuzzled her hair. Shara's heart raced but she couldn't stop herself, she turned her face up and found his lips with hers. She set the digital pad gently on the floor beside them as Sterling pulled her into him. He pulled away to gaze at her. She tried not to be afraid. But she swallowed nervously under his darkening eyes. He lunged back into the kiss, his hands were everywhere. He pulled her onto his lap, her legs straddling him while keeping his lips on hers, his tongue thrusting needily against her own. He stood abruptly; still holding her straddled around him, and carried her over to her ship where the cab had been left open. He set her down, turning her around until she was lying on her stomach on the seat. She felt his wait above her, pressing against her as kissed lightly against the back of her neck making her shiver.

Shara whimpered in nervous anticipation as his hands slid under her shirt, pushing it up. He massaged her back and she felt a hard pressure from between his legs pressing against her bottom through her jeans. She tried to squirm forward a little but he only pressed himself harder against her. He slid his hands up under her bra, cupping both her breasts, massaging until she moaned and writhed for him.

He stepped away from her and she heard a zipper and fabric moving but when she tried to turn to look back at him, he held her down. He gently folded her arms under her chest and then held her tightly with his arm so she couldn't pull away. He roughly pushed her pants down, kicking them the rest of the way off with his feet so he didn't have to release her.

She squeaked in shock as he slid a finger inside of her. She had never felt that before. He was sliding it in and out, pressing against something that felt amazing if she could just get past the embarrassment of being so exposed. She tried to move away. Panic had kicked in and she needed room to clear her head. "Shh" He soothed, adding another finger and thrusting them harder into her and forcing rational thoughts from her mind. "Not this time, baby, shh, just relax, I promise I won't hurt you." He pulled out and began rubbing circles against her clit, making her cry out. He groaned in response. She felt something warm and smooth and much larger than his fingers pressing against her now. He squeezed her torso tightly with his restraining arm and he pushed into her. Partway in he felt the resistance from her lack of experience. He was going to claim her innocence. He reached between her legs with his free hand, rubbing her clit until she started moaning again and then he thrust into her with full force. Breaking through the barrier. She felt a sharp pain and cried for him to stop, but he only shushed her and continued his steady thrusting. She felt so impossibly full with him inside her. "It gets better, love, so much better." He showered kisses all over her back, everywhere he could reach from that angle. His hips thrusting in and out combined with his pressure on her clit was starting to override her pain, ebbing into a disorienting pleasure.

"Oh God, Sterling." She cried out as his thrusting grew more frenzied and he rubbed faster on her clit.

"Come on Shara." He murmured into her back, and bit softly into her skin, "Come with me now."

He thrust harder and harder, the pleasure building and building until Shara exploded in wave after wave of pleasure. She saw stars that gave way to waves that pulsed through her over and over again as Sterling's own release shot deep inside her.

They stayed like that for what felt like decades with Sterling breathing heavily against her back. As reality slowly filtered back into view. She wanted to be mad at him for not giving her the space to think this time, to know this was what she had wanted, but she was so lazily sated, she just wanted to curl into him and purr like a cat. She was too relaxed, trapped in his arms as she still was, to even care that she had just compared herself to a silly housepet.

"God, you're beautiful." He said as he pulled away, letting her arms free. She didn't move. She was still too sated.

She felt his softening bulk as he slid out of her. She couldn't help but writhe back against him. Her body remembered the pleasure and yearned for more already. Wow, Sharla, her inner voice piped in. One round on the man stick and you're a freaking insatiable nympho already. Get a grip on yourself.

He chuckled darkly as he felt her push back towards him, her body silently begging him to take her again and again. He pulled her up instead, turning her to sit with her face him so he could taste her lips again. She sighed lustfully, parting her lips eagerly, sucking at his insistent tongue. His hands winding up into her hair, caressing her scalp felt amazing. She was shocked when she felt his hardness growing again against her thigh. She looked down nervously; slightly afraid to look at the part of him that had just torn apart her innocence with such violent pleasure. He smiled knowingly. "You can touch it." He said in encouragement.

She gulped, reaching out to grasp his hardness in her hand. She was amazed at its silkiness.

**********

Her hand on his cock had him instantly rock hard again. Her lips parted in curious amazement and a bashful hunger. She had felt so good around him; he knew he could take her again and again and still be left wanting. She was becoming a drug for him and though he knew it would only grow stronger, he had no desire to quit her just yet. He moved himself back and forth in her hand so she could get the idea. She was a fast learner and was pumping his shaft enthusiastically. He longed to guide her to her knees so he could thrust into her mouth, pushing into her until he was fucking her throat, but she wouldn't be ready for that just yet. The thought of her lips on him instead of her delicate hand pumping away was almost too much. He almost climaxed again just thinking of it. It would be worth the wait, he had no doubt. He pulled her mouth back to his, thrusting his tongue into her and then pulling back to suck on her pouty bottom lip. She was insanely delicious.

He kept one hand in her hair since she seemed to like that and slid his other hand down to her waist, teasing her with feathery touches of his fingertips tracing circles along her skin until he slid lower, finding her folds still dripping from his seed that he'd pumped into her. That thought had him bordering on the precipice. Not that he wanted kids just yet, but the thought of his seed laying claim inside of her got his blood pumping furiously. He rubbed against her clit for a few minutes, feeling the firmness of her arousal. Finally he thrust his fingers back inside of her. He smiled darkly as he watched her pretty green eyes cloud with desire. He found that spot that seemed to excite her the most and he rubbed over and over it while she pumped her hand harder and harder on his shaft. If he was going to take her again, now was the time, before she pulled it from him with that hand of hers. He pulled her hand off and aligned himself with her entrance, pausing to watch the desire in her eyes war with nervous hesitation. Her hesitation only made him crazier with need and he thrust roughly into her. She cried out in pleasure.

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

He was inside her again. Making her feel things she'd never even dreamed. And she loved every second of it. Her body was arching to meet him thrust for thrust; in and out he slid his hardness over and over, until she felt the building pleasure reaching the explosive point again. His hands were busy massaging her breasts, and pulling her nipples.

"Please, Sterling." She cried, not even recognizing her own voice.

He claimed her mouth hungrily and found her clit with his fingers, pinching and rubbing it. "Come for me again, my little doll." He breathed against her lips and her body reacted to his words, her world exploded into intense pleasure. Even stronger than the last time, and it just kept going as he drove into her again and again until she felt him shudder and join her in the tidal waves of thoughtless sensation.

A faint golden light danced for Shara, following the rhythm of the waves slowly easing from her pleasure. But even when the pleasure had fading to a tingling memory, the light continued to dance and her mind fought to understand it. "Sterling! The core!" She exclaimed as realization came to her in a rush of excitement.

He followed her look, pulling away from her in a sloppy mess to go look at the core pulsing with energy.

He reached out a finger to carefully touch it and a surge of silver light pulsed into the gold, and the two colors of molten light swirled inside, growing brighter with his touch. Wherever he touched it, silver streaks appeared, darting trails into the swirling mass and back to his fingers.

Shara pulled her pants on over her sticky legs; she'd definitely need to shower when she got home; and went to stand by Sterling. She reached out her own hand tentatively towards the core, gasping in amazement as the gold swirls reacted to her. She could feel small pulses of energy flow in through her fingers and on into her arm and tingle through her body. Not unlike the pleasurable waves of sensation Sterling had just given her.

"That's it?" He said in disbelief. Still mesmerized by the glowing cylinder. "That's what fuels it?" He put both hands on it, closing his eyes as his dark hair blew back softly with an unseen wind. "Raw energy." He whispered. After a long moment, he let go, turning to meet Shara's curious eyes. "You are a pilot." He said more in amazement than disbelief. "Why aren't you assigned?"

She looked down at her feet that were still bare. "My family is in the work force. We're simple laborers. My blood parents must have been pilots but they didn't have me documented. They left me as an infant with the only family I have ever known."

"You need to start asking more questions, little doll." He chided, tilting her chin up so she was looking into his eyes again. She scowled slightly at the nick name. She wasn't sure she liked it. It made her feel small and weak, neither of which she had any desire to be.