Ɓen opened his eyes slowly, he could feel something heavy on his chest and stomach. He looked down to see Rey laying on him. Now he remembered her coming to him in the middle of the night. He was surprised that she wanted to sleep with him, he hoped that she hadn't had a nightmare or something.

It had felt so wonderful, so comforting to hold her all night long. Deep down he hoped that they could sleep in each other's arms every night after this, but he didn't want to ask that of her. He had made a promise not to rush her or push her into anything that would make her feel uncomfortable. He had decided to let her come to him in her own time.

She had her hands on either side of his rib cage, holding him tight. Ben smiled, it felt wonderful to be so close to her, to hold her all night long. Their bodies were so close together that it felt as though they had become one person. Their chests were pressed together as though their hearts were beating as one. His arms were wrapped around her, and his hands were rested on her back. He moved his hands, he began gently rubbing her back and stroking her long hair.

Rey mumbled and he felt her move slightly. He wrapped his arms around her again, afraid that he would wake her up, he didn't want her to wake up just yet. He wanted to hold her in his arms as long as he could.

"Ben?" He heard her whisper.

He moved his hands across her back again. "I'm here," he said softly.

She sat up slightly and looked into his eyes. She seemed embarrassed and was barely able to hold his gaze. "I'm sorry..." she trailed off, before moving to sit on the couch next to him. She put her head in her hands, covering her face as if she was too embarrassed to look at him.

Ben smiled affectionately. He sat up and looked at her, gently rubbing her back. "For what, darling?" he whispered.

She lifted her head from her hands and looked at him. "For waking you last night," she answered shyly.

"Rey, you don't have to be afraid," he whispered. "I'm your husband, you can sleep with me whenever you want. You don't have to worry about waking me up, I promise I'll never be angry if you do. If you need to talk or something in the middle of the night, just wake me and I will listen."

She nodded.

"Was something troubling you last night?" He moved his hand across her back in slow circles.

"I..." her eyes fell to the floor.

"You can tell me anything, Rey." He gently moved her hair away from her face and neck, so that he could look at her. "I will always be there for you."

She looked up to meet his gaze. "I... I just missed you."

Ben smiled and laid his head on her shoulder. "I missed you too," he whispered, then he placed a single kiss on the side of her neck.

Rey sighed and closed her eyes as he kissed her. His lips against her neck felt even more wonderful than she had imagined. She didn't want him to stop, but it was over as quickly as it began and she felt him move away from her.

"Are you sure that nothing was troubling you?"

She nodded. "I was going to ask you to come to bed with me. But I was too nervous, I'm sorry."

"Don't be. Besides, I liked you sleeping on top of me."

She blushed, her eyes focused on the cracks between the stones on the floor. "So did I."

Ben smiled at her before placing a tender kiss on her cheek.

She turned to look at him. "I love you, Ben, " she whispered, then she leaned closer to him to place a soft kiss on his lips. She cupped his cheek in her hand, gently moving her thumb across his face.

After a moment, he pulled away from her reluctantly. He gently pressed his forehead against hers. "I love you, too, " he answered affectionately.

He looked into her eyes for several moments. "We have to get ready to leave," he whispered at last. He sounded a bit reluctant to interrupt the intimate moment they were sharing, but Rey knew that he was right. Unfortunately they couldn't just spend the whole day sitting together, talking and kissing. If only she'd fallen in love with him sooner, the days she'd spent idly around the castle could have been spent with him in this way.

Ben placed one last kiss on her lips before he stood. He reached his hands down to her.

She looked up at him, her gaze landed on his beautiful dark eyes and she smiled. She slowly placed her hands in his, as always she marveled at how they were both strong and gentle. Her hands felt warm and secure in his, and she knew that she belonged with him. She felt as though they had been created to be together.

He gently pulled her to her feet.

"I'm sorry that it took me so long to admit how I feel about you. I was scared," she whispered, looking up at him.

"Of me?" he asked a little sadly. "You know I would never try to rush you into..."

"Not of you, Ben, " she interrupted. "Of losing you. Every since my..." she trailed off not wanting to mention her father's death to him. "Every since I was a child I have been afraid of becoming attached to others because I thought I would lose them. But Rose was right, if I lost you and I never said that I loved you, I would feel guilty. Not saying it wouldn't change how I felt about you. It would only rob us of being happy."

Ben pulled her into a hug. "I understand. I was scared too, but for a different reason. I was afraid to marry you, because I thought that I would be a bad husband."

Rey squeezed him gently. "You're a wonderful husband. I am glad that your parents chose me to be your wife."

"So am I, " he answered. He kissed her one last time, before he slowly released her, then they left to get ready.