Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

Five years ago…

T he wedding had been in full swing for hours now. Captain Gil Fleming didn't know the bride or the groom but he'd brought the groom's sister safely here to Xcelon Four aboard his luxury cruise liner the Nebula Zephyr at the request of powerful friends. There'd been a few problems along the way but he and his crew had made sure the sister made it on time and as a result he'd been invited to attend the festivities. It wasn't his usual practice to get drawn into these things but he'd made an exception this time. As weddings and receptions went it hadn't been a bad experience. He'd met a few famous people, which although in his role as a ship's captain, he often met celebrities and hosted them at his table in the ship's dining room, meeting Nick Jameson, hero of the Nebula Dream disaster, was a rare privilege, worth going any distance to achieve. Nick was a Sectors-wide hero, revered for saving all those lives, including the groom and his sister, who'd been children at the time.

Gil was wondering at what point he could gracefully depart from the reception. He'd had a few glasses of the high end feelgood, had resisted efforts to draw him onto the dance floor, had enjoyed a good conversation or two with interesting guests like Jameson, and now he was thoroughly done. Pulling at the high collar of his dress uniform, which chafed, he reached for his handheld, to alert the pilot of his private shuttle he was ready to return to the Nebula Zephyr , high above in orbit.

"Care to dance, captain?" The voice was sultry and the hand on his shoulder was delicate, her touch bringing sparks of electricity to his nervous system. Her perfume wafted delicately past his nose, putting all his nerve endings on the alert.

It couldn't be.

Turning in his chair, Gil caught his breath at the vision before him. She was almost as tall as he was, beautiful platinum hair caught up in an elaborate arrangement, perfect face alight with happiness and mischief lurked in her deep blue eyes.

"Maeve?" His voice cracked in sheer disbelief. How much of the damn wine had he drunk?

She extended her hand, palm up. "I don't think we should waste this opportunity, do you? The Mellureans worked so hard to give it to us."

He rose and swept her into his arms as her chiffon skirts swirled around his legs. They moved onto the dance floor and smoothly integrated into the flow of the dance. Gil was on autopilot, relying on lessons drilled into him decades ago at the Space Navy Academy, while he tried to absorb the fact she actually was here in his arms. The delicate floral fragrance he associated with her in his dreams tickled his nose and she pressed as close to him as she could while they danced.

"Are—are you really here or is this a dream?" he asked finally, reluctant to break the spell but not entirely sure he wasn't in a feelgood-fueled hallucination. He was afraid to let his hopes soar.

"I'm here, I promise." She kissed his cheek as the song ended and the guests waited for more music. "Lady V'terre thought this would be a good opportunity to test my ability to manifest as a human—well, a close approximation of one anyway—and hold the form, unlike the last time. I've been working with the Mellureans every chance I get." A frown swept over her face and he wanted to kiss the troubling emotion away for her. "The ladies weren't kidding when they said the solution to my problem wouldn't be on a human time frame."

"We've made it work," he said, retaining his hold.

"I always wanted to dance," she said as the next song began. "It looks so beautiful in the soap operas. There's one historical show I watch where the most interesting things occur in ballrooms and on the dance floor. So romantic."

"I'll show you romantic," Gil promised as he swept her into the proper steps. "So this is only a test run then? Not the actual transformation?"

"I'm nowhere near ready yet." She closed her eyes and followed his lead. "We all know that."

"Is the ship okay then?" he hated to ask but the Nebula Zephyr and all the souls aboard her had to be his first concern, above his desire for this woman in his arms.

"Lady V'terre is monitoring the situation." Now Maeve peeked through her lashes at him and smiled. "Part of me is here on the planet dancing with you and the rest of the cortex is busy running the ship. I promise, everything is fine."

As Gil maneuvered her through the crowded ballroom, marveling at how right she felt in his arms and how well she responded to his every move, he decided to allow himself to enjoy this experience as long as it lasted. Maeve was literally the woman of his dreams.

She was also his ship's Artificial Intelligence.

And they were in love, mind to mind, although in all the years the two of them had sailed together, first on the battleship Galatea and then on the cruise liner in orbit above, they'd only met face to face once, for a quick kiss before tragedy struck. Dreams were all either of them had, and long conversations, a passion for an old board game of strategy he carried in his battered rucksack and their shared experiences as captain and ship roaming the galaxy.

The Mellureans were an incredibly ancient alien race, who owed Gil and Maeve a debt stemming from an action taken years ago. Ever since the grateful aliens had been making sporadic attempts to assist Maeve in becoming a ‘real' person, housed in a biological body, not a spaceship. Not unexpectedly there were numerous challenges and problems inherent in the effort but Gil was patient. He trusted the Mellureans to make the dream come true at some point. He selfishly hoped it would be before he died. Maeve of course was eternal in her current incarnation as an AI.

They danced and danced, talking a little, but mostly enjoying the sensations of being in each other's arms. Gil ignored the people in their vicinity, as he was determined to squeeze every ounce of enjoyment out of this interlude and build memories to keep him going once he and the woman he loved returned to their proper places in the galaxy.

"Lady V'terre insisted I book a room in this hotel," Gil said finally, unable to ignore his surging desires or the way Maeve fit herself against his body whenever the dances allowed such closeness. "I didn't understand why at the time but now I can think of a very good reason for us to have a private place. Have you danced enough?"

"I don't think I'll ever get my fill of dancing," she replied. "It's so much better to actually be in the midst of a ball, in your arms, than to see it on a soap opera holo."

His heart fell at her answer but he was determined to give her whatever she wanted in this brief span of time she could spend as a human, rather than an AI embedded inside a giant starship. "Are you hungry at all? The buffet was huge and I'm sure there's plenty of selection left. The bride's family spared no expense for this celebration."

Maeve gave him a look full of mischief. "Yes, I'm hungry but not for food. And there are other kinds of dancing—at least from what I've seen in my soap operas. Your room would be a perfect place to experience that. Lady V'terre is certainly a wise woman, suggesting you needed a private place to retreat to."

"Say no more." He led her off the dance floor, reveling in holding her hand after all the years of longing. The two of them were a perfect match mentally and personality-wise and he was positive they'd be equally in harmony in bed. After all, he had years of erotic dreams shared with her to go by. "How long do we have?"

"Lady V'terre said until dawn," Maeve replied as she entered the gravlift to go to his room. "Sounds so romantic, doesn't it? Like a fairytale." She rubbed her arms and glanced at the silvery antigrav stream. "This tickles—I never knew what riding antigrav actually felt like before."

Gil watched her as he ascended towards his floor next to his dream woman. Physical sensations and inputs had overwhelmed Maeve on the only other time she'd been in a corporeal form so he was a bit wary but she seemed to be coping fine with all the stimuli. It was reassuring to know the Mellurean was monitoring the situation from somewhere close at hand. He didn't want any harm to come to Maeve, not in either form.

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

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

"There's no rush," he whispered. "We have hours. We should enjoy this moment properly."

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Eyes glistening with tears, she nodded. "I love you."

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

As he walked in, she turned her head to meet his gaze. "She's made progress."

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

"I can assure you, I wasn't, although I was close by in case there was a problem."

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

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

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

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

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

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

"Don't give her false hope is all I'm asking," he said.

"We made a promise and we intend to fulfill it." Now V'terre smiled and calm washed over him. Gil was sure she was exerting the famous Mellurean mental powers to influence him but right now he didn't care. The relief from his bleak depression was welcome. He needed to be in the right headspace when he returned to the ship and spoke to Maeve again—what he'd shared with her today was special and she didn't need him tarnishing her joy with doubts.

V'terre leaned closer. "I give you my word the feat will be accomplished before you're too old to enjoy the victory."

He had to be satisfied with her declaration because in the next breath the Mellurean Mind winked out of existence. With another curse he left the suite and called his pilot. Time to get back to the Nebula Zephyr and his crew and passengers and stop living in a dream world. Commanding an interstellar cruiser, even a civilian one, required him to be at his best, not wallowing in possibilities and dreams.

V'terre's reassurances were all well and good and to his knowledge the Mellureans had never failed to deliver on any promise made to humans, but he had to live in the real world, in the here and now, and make the situation work for himself and for Maeve.