Page 30 of Eclipse Bound
"I will remain," Eclipse promised, his energy field adjusting to provide both warmth and comfort.
As Rowan's consciousness faded into dreams, Eclipse maintained their connection, feeling the shift in her energy patterns as her mind entered different states of activity. It was fascinating, this human cycle of wakefulness and sleep, so different from the constant awareness of Twilight existence.
Eclipse watched the progression of shadows along the edges of the closed blinds, marking the passage of Earth's night. His thoughts turned to the complications that would need to be addressed when morning came. Milano's interest in their arrival created new variables in an already complex equation. Solar and Lunar would need to be informed, and greater precautions taken.
Yet as he held Rowan against him, her breathing deep and regular in sleep, Eclipse found himself unwilling to focus solely on threats and contingencies. The connection between them had created something unexpected, a joining that transcended mere diplomatic objectives or biological compatibility.
For the first time since leaving for Earth, Eclipse felt a purpose beyond the mission parameters. He had a reason to remain that had nothing to do with proving coexistence was possible between opposing factions. Rowan had awakened something within him that decades of diplomatic service had slowly eroded. Genuine connection.
As the night deepened around them, Eclipse made a decision. Whatever came next, whatever threats Milano posed, whatever complications arose from their unplanned arrival, he would protect this connection. Not because the mission required it, but because it had become essential to his own existence.
Outside, a meteor streaked across the sky, a brief flare of light against the darkness. Eclipse watched its passage, thinking of journeys begun by chance and destinations discovered by necessity. Perhaps being exiled to Earth wasn't the chastisement the council had intended. Perhaps, in their attempt to remove him from the equation, they had inadvertently guided him toward something far more valuable than political influence.
Balance. Connection. Understanding. The core principles of the Twilight Belt given new meaning through one human woman who saw beyond appearances to the essence beneath.
Eclipse settled into watchful stillness, his energy field maintaining its protective cocoon around Rowan's sleeping form. Tomorrow would bring new challenges, but for now, in this moment of perfect harmony, he had found his own twilight zone, a place of balance between worlds.
And for the first time in many cycles, Eclipse felt truly at peace.
Chapter
Nine
Rowan woke to the sensation of soft, humming energy caressing her skin. For a moment, she kept her eyes closed, savoring the impossible feeling of being wrapped in twilight. Her body felt different, like her nerves had been rewired overnight, each one now hyper-aware and tingling with lingering pleasure.
She'd had sex with an alien. An actual, honest-to-gods alien. And it had been transcendent.
She opened her eyes to find Eclipse watching her, his true form still unmasked, twilight energy flowing in mesmerizing patterns. In the morning light filtering through the blinds, he looked even more ethereal than he had last night, less solid, more like the embodiment of dusk itself.
"Good morning," she murmured, her voice husky from sleep.
"Your Earth greeting is accurate. The morning appears to possess positive attributes," Eclipse replied, his melodic voice vibrating through her more than just her ears.
Rowan couldn't help but smile. Even after the intimacy they'd shared, he still spoke like a scientific observer of human customs. It was oddly endearing.
"Did you sleep at all?" she asked, stretching languidly.
"My kind does not require unconsciousness for rejuvenation," Eclipse explained. "I maintained awareness while you cycled through your sleep patterns. Your delta waves were particularly harmonious."
"You watched my brainwaves while I slept?" Rowan propped herself up on one elbow. "That should probably creep me out, but somehow it doesn't."
"The resonance between us creates unusual acceptance parameters," Eclipse said, his energy field shifting closer to her. "Your tolerance for my alien characteristics defies predicted human responses."
"Yeah, well..." Rowan reached out to touch a swirling pattern in his twilight form. "After last night, I'm pretty sure we're past the point of being weirded out by our differences."
The memory of their connection sent a flush of heat through her. She'd never experienced anything remotely like the way his energy had flowed through her, illuminating her from within, creating sensations that shouldn't have been physically possible.
Eclipse's form brightened in response to her touch. "The harmony between our energy patterns remains strong even after rest. This is uncommon."
"Uncommon good or uncommon bad?" Rowan asked, suddenly aware of the larger implications. She'd known him for all of two days. Two incredible, mind-blowing, reality-shattering days, but still. This was fast, even by alien abduction standards.
"Uncommon in its intensity and persistence," Eclipse clarified. "Such resonance typically requires extensive exposure and intentional attunement."
"So what you're saying is..." Rowan traced her fingers through his twilight essence, "we've got chemistry."
Eclipse seemed to consider this human term. "An oversimplification, but not inaccurate. Though quantum harmonic convergence would be more precise."
Rowan laughed, the sound bright in the quiet morning. "Only you could make the fact that we're compatible sound like advanced physics."
