Here I am waiting, I’ll have to leave soon
Why am I holding on?
We knew this day would come, we knew it all along
How did it come so fast?
This is our last night but it’s late
And I’m trying not to sleep
‘Cause I know, when I wake
I will have to slip away
And when the daylight comes I’ll have to go
But tonight I’m gonna hold you so close
‘Cause in the daylight we’ll be on our own
But tonight I need to hold you so close
Ooh whoa, ooh whoa, ooh whoa
Ooh whoa, ooh whoa, ooh whoa
Here I am staring at your perfection
In my arms, so beautiful
The sky is getting bright, the stars are burning out
Somebody slow it down
This is way too hard
‘Cause I know, when the sun comes up
I will leave, this is my last glance
That will soon be memory
And when the daylight comes I’ll have to go
But tonight I’m gonna hold you so close
‘Cause in the daylight we’ll be on our own
But tonight I need to hold you so close
Ooh whoa, ooh whoa, ooh whoa
Ooh whoa, ooh whoa, ooh whoa
I never wanted to stop
Because I don’t wanna start all over, start all over
I was afraid of the dark
But now it’s all that I want, all that I want, all that I want
And when the daylight comes I’ll have to go
But tonight I’m gonna hold you so close
‘Cause in the daylight we’ll be on our own
But tonight I need to hold you so close
Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, Main Chapel, Los Angeles
June 21, 2054
“Please try to get a grip, Franny!” Adrian Andrews begged the beleaguered woman as she cast a furtive glance around them at the surrounding congregation. “Your family – your children – need you to be strong, today, more than ever!”
“Mist! You ask too much of me, you foolish woman!” Franziska Von Edgeworth sniffled as another tear rolled down her cheek. “If you were in my position, surely you would also be in such a state! Or perhaps being married to the stoic Twisted Samurai all these years has made you even more repressive of your emotions than you ever accused me of being!”
The spectacled blonde, whose stolid spouse had conveniently excused himself from the waterworks display, citing a need to get some air, had no response to her best friend’s rebuttal. Instead, she stared helplessly at Dick Gumshoe with an expression that silently read: Help! I give up!
“Mein Gott, I have always known this fated day was coming, yet I am still not ready to let go,” Lady Von Whippingberg whispered tearily, pressing her knuckles against her mouth to stifle a sob while dabbing furiously at her eyes with the handkerchief that her one-time subordinate, now Chief of Police, had provided. “You always think it is going to happen to someone else. Not you! Never you!”
“The Lord works in mysterious ways, pal,” Gumshoe mumbled awkwardly with a pleading, sideways glance at his wife, who was seated on his other side. “We’ve always known this day was a long time coming – everybody knew it was the inevitable outcome in the end.”
“Try to see this as a blessing in disguise, if nothing else,” Maggey ventured to the sniveling, silver-haired woman. “Everybody who has ever loved you and Miles is here today for this event to give their love and support – even Hendricks made the trip!”
“He’s still driving Miles’s restored Alfa Romeo,” Adrian whispered to Simon, who’d returned to his spot beside her in the frontal pew, as he’d just finished vaping. It was their compromise of how to still quench his constant thirst for oral fixation, as she refused to let him put his ever-present feather in his mouth while in church. “You can’t miss that red sports car with the vanity plates: WAS HIS! I never did get the full story about how the cheeky Brit ever got his former employer to part with his prized possession! Surely there must be a helluva scoop behind that somewhere?”
“Knowing Edgeworth-dono,” her husband smirked, “it’s a mystery which was never meant to be solved – one could even say that would be a whole other story in itself!”1 (see chapter endnotes)
“Your old butler is in his 80’s now and he came all the way from his little villa in Napa,” Gumshoe added helpfully. “Doesn’t that mean anything at all?”
“Nein! It does not!” Another fresh wave of tears from the normally austere ex-Prosecutor. “Es ist mir Wurst how crazy I must sound right now … despite everything, I am always going to think he was too damn young! Why did he have to be the first? I wanted to have more time with him, and now it is too late!”
“There, there,” Adrian muttered awkwardly, patting Franziska’s shaking shoulder. “You’ll get through this, Franny. We’re all here for you.”
“If only Miles were here right now,” Maggey murmured anxiously into her husband’s ear. “He would know what to do! He’s the only one that could ever handle the Wild Mare!”
“I know!” Gumshoe sighed glumly. “I sure hope we can help the poor thing pull herself together already! The priest looks pretty anxious for the service to start soon!”
Holly Muh’Dar Mahal, Kingdom of Khura’in
July 12, 2026
“Morning whoopie … Proven to be more effective than coffee!” Maya was giggling as the couple headed down to the Babar Bar, which served as the hotel’s restaurant by day, many hours later.
“Speak for yourself!” Phoenix yawned. Altogether, he guesstimated they’d slept no more than three or four hours. For the rest of the morning, his insatiable sex kitten had ensured he was essentially worn down to a nub! “I’ve worked out muscles I didn’t even know I had! Additionally, I’m suffering from both jet lag and sleep deprivation – I’ll need at least a pot of coffee to get the pep back in my step!”
“Tee hee! You’ll need some better stamina if you’re going to keep up with me, Old Man! After all, you’re the one who unleashed this beast! I’m like a can of Pringles – once you pop, you can’t stop!”
“Maya Fey, you incorrigible minx!” He laughingly groaned. “You’ll be the death of me yet!”
“Guilty! But I didn’t hear you making any objections earlier! Besides, you’d at least die with a big grin on your face!” She tugged at his hand as her stomach growled. “Pick up the pace, Nick! I’m tided over for horizontal refreshments – now I’m beyond famished for some real food!”
Maya wasn’t the only one who was justifiably ravenous – she’d ensured that Phoenix had gotten the workout of his life, as well – at a price!
Naturally, the act of dancing in the sheets (despite having the best horizontal hustle partner of his life!) had nevertheless produced semi-disastrous results … as was the tradition with Phoenix Wright and Maya Fey!
At one point, while he was on top during the two-person push-up, the hobo’s sudoriferous forearms had slipped from beneath him, and he’d landed, smack-down, atop the necromancer. Neither had been hurt, but as he’d gone to unstick his fused, dampened abdominals from her sweaty belly, somehow, the suction between their stomachs had created an embarrassingly loud farting sound!
THPPTPHTPHPHHPH!
Before the horrified hobo could proclaim his innocence about the source of the noise, Maya had simply cracked up – so hard that she’d fallen off the bed.
Then, they’d both roared at that!
Whenever Maya laughed, it was as if a child lived inside her, waving through her eyeballs. God, he loved the sound of it. So easy. Straight from her soul. And that beatific beam of hers. It was so heartwarming. So lovely. He would have walked a million miles for one of her smiles.
The main thing to remember is that making love is at once the silliest and the most sacred act humans can perform, Phoenix reflected with amusement. Making Maya horny and making her smile is forthwith my two favorite things!
The other mishap had been when the pair had tried to try to roll over and change positions – while still joined together. Maya had thought by this point, she’d acquired the coordination skills to easily switch from riding Phoenix as though he was a rented mule, to making him take the reins and ride her like she was Seabiscuit! They’d both gone for it, but somehow had ended up rolling in opposite directions! His actions had only managed to send Maya flying completely off the bed, comically catching air before ending up on the floor – for the second time!
There’d been about a three-second silence before the couple had both just broken into gales of mirth…and about another nano-second before the frisky diviner had bounced back onto the bed, ensuring they’d gotten it Wright with the next attempt!
I think that was during round three? Or was it four? Phoenix idly stroked his chin. Regardless, all these hours later, the memory still makes me snicker!
Their existing friendship, plus the rueful acknowledgment that their lives together were predestined to be a comedy of errors, made everything seem funny rather than fatalistic. They knew they’d always share the mirth and laugh away even at the most mortifying times.
Some of the best moments in life are the ones you can’t tell anyone about.
“Leaping lizards! I could eat a horse and easily go back for seconds! I hope they’re still serving breakfast!”
“My love, it’s almost noon.” He rubbed his bleary eyes as they approached the doors of the eatery. “We’ll be lucky if they still serve brunch.”
“Well, I hope they at least have eggs! I could eat at least a dozen omelettes – I need me some mega protein to replenish my energy!” She leered lasciviously at him. “I seemed to have worked up quite the appetite!”
“No kidding! You won a gold medal in the bedroom Olympics, that’s for sure.” He bit back a smug grin. “The lady in the room next door was certainly cheering you on, my little banshee!”
His reference to the last sexual snafu was the most embarrassing of all! All morning, during their horizontal greased-weasel tango sessions, Phoenix had, (quite happily) discovered that his newly deflowered lover was a screaming siren! Their lovemaking had been so intense and passionate that they’d gotten entirely lost in one another other, mindless of their surroundings, until halfway through their final session of hop upon the wild pony, a neighbor suddenly banged on the adjoining suite wall by the headboard and shouted out: “Yee-haw! Get enough for me too, girl!”
After that, the duo had erupted into laughter for a long time.
“At least she was a good sport about it, and didn’t file a noise complaint with the hotel!” Maya dismissed breezily as they entered the restaurant. “You did say you wanted to make sure the neighbors knew your name, Wright? Well, you got your wish, so stop making such a big deal out of it! Whoop-de-doo – there’s now one other person here in Khura’in who knows what preternatural sack skills some random hop-on-pop named Nick has!”
“You’re right,” he agreed. “It was merely a silly one-off, and we’ll make sure to keep it down next time! It’s not as though our private business got broadcasted to the whole world, after all!”
Babar Bar, Holly Muh’Dar Mahal
July 12, 2026
The smiles died on their faces, however, as in the next instant, the gobsmacked pair was completely unprepared for what greeted them the second they stepped into Babar Bar.
The spiky-haired man was the first to notice the unwanted spotlight of every single diner upon them as they entered, and just as he was about to check to make sure he had all his clothes on, the patrons collectively proceeded to greet the lovers to a standing ovation … just as a huge burst of colorful streamers and confetti fell upon them!
It was almost like déjà vu, as the whole foofaraw was reminiscent of every time the anterior lawyer had enjoyed a victory in court. The only difference was that presently, in this far-away land full of strangers, there was no sign of the lovable Dick Gumshoe sprinkling celebratory decorations anywhere within sight! Instead, the gobsmacked couple appeared to have unsuspectingly meandered into a packed restaurant full of gawking, smirking strangers, some merely rubbernecking at them – but most sporting impossible-to-miss shit-eating grins!
As Maya tried to brush the streamers off her hair while Phoenix spat some of the misfired confetti that’d gotten into his mouth, the diners’ piercing whistles and shouts of encouragement commenced – in full-stereo effect!
“Huzzah!”
“High-five, bro!”
“Way to go, stud!”
“You go, girl!”
“Congratulations!”
There was a brief instant where both Phoenix and Maya’s faces washed blank with confusion like their brain cogs couldn’t turn fast enough to take in the information from their wide eyes as in the next instant, a huge banner suddenly dropped from the ceiling, reading, in two-foot-high, neon orange letters: CONGRATULATIONS ON THE SEX!
The resounding guffaws which ensued weren’t the sound of friends but more like a cackle of hyenas. Their coalescent howls of jollity come to the swains without end, playing like a track, looping back to the start with seamless ease. Phoenix closed his only to see their phizogs, full of glee, full of delight, with no trace of consideration for how hot his cheeks burned. If
anything, the sight only egged them on – his embarrassment, their tonic.
“Jumping jackrabbits!” The DILF’s voice came out as a strangled gargle, while Maya’s jaw dropped as she uttered an aghast, “Holy Schnikees!”
Then, as the icing on the cake, CzarThwomp, who still had his DJ station set up from the night before, suddenly snapped his fingers. He pointed at the awestruck twosome, frozen in shock by the entrance, as the unmistakable fraternity anthem, “I Just Had Sex” by the group Lonely Island, flooded the room.
“This goes out to you two lovebirds!” The MC announced grandly, flashing the peace sign. “As someone who was in the hotel room next door to yours last night, I got to ear-witness – although not firsthand eye-witness, unfortunately …”
CT coughed slightly and cleared his throat.
“Er, I meant, not eye-witness… fortunately! Hey – stop giving each other that side-eye! It’s not like I’m into that creepy voyeur sort of thing! The point was that hearing was believing! Therefore, based on what I heard from all those multiple times of loading the clown into the cannon, all I can say is … Mad fist bumps to both the Bedroom Olympians known as Phoenix and Maya!”
I just had sex, and it felt so good (felt so good)
A woman let me put my penis inside of her
I just had sex, and I’ll never go back (never go back)
To the not-having-sex ways of the past
The hobo wanted to drop dead, without delay.
I knew we should have just ordered room service!
Blushing would have been no problem, but what he did was go as red as a beetroot and radiate heat like a hot pan. A three-course meal could’ve been cooked on the pianist’s face. No one could have missed it. Beside him, Maya’s cheeks were so red that one could have painted her white and used her as a stop sign.
Have you ever had sex? I have, it felt great
It felt so good when I did it with my penis
A girl let me do it, it literally just happened
Having sex can make a nice man out the meanest
The disgraced pianist yanked his beanie over his eyes.
I want to drop dead, right here and now, at this very moment! Sweet simmering sauceboats! Now people are actually singing along?!
Never guess where I just came from, I had sex
If I had to describe the feeling, it was the best
When I had the sex, man, my penis felt great
Oh, hey, didn’t see you there, guess what I just did?
Had sex, undressed, saw her boobies and the rest
But sure nice of her to let you do that thing
Nice of any girl ever! Now, sing…
Holy cheese on whiz! Just. Kill. Me. Now…
“Mr. Wright! Miss Fey! Right this way, please!”
Hurriedly rushing up to the red-faced swains was Joe the bartender, wearing the same wind-defying, anime hairstyle as the night before, as well as the pristine formal attire of white button-down shirt, black vest, and a teal bow-tie. Bowing graciously, he ushered them to a table, shooing away the extended palms of the customers jokingly extending their hands to the couple for a high-five!
“Please, have a seat. I’ve reserved this special table just for you. Do feel free to order anything you want … it’s on the house! Well, sort of… I mean, it’s all been pre-paid for by your generous benefactor…”
“Is cyanide on the menu?” Phoenix buried his burning mien in his hands. “Because what I’d like as a starter is a side of sudden death!”
“Welp, people in hell would like ice water!” Maya hid her flaming mien behind her menu. “We could never be so lucky in either case!”
I just had sex, and it felt so good (felt so good)
A woman let me put my penis inside of her
Wanna tell the world…
At last, the harrowing song ended, and CzarThwomp let out a loud whooping sound as he spoke into the microphone again, the laughter evident in his tone.
“This loving dedication to the happy couple comes with a message I was told to relay only after that ditty was over! Ahem…”
He pulled out a piece of paper.
“Dear Wright. I am genuinely very happy for you and Miss Fey and wish both of you all the best. I shall come back to get you at the hotel the day after tomorrow so we may commence our court system research.”
Wright?! This whole message screams Miles Edgeworth! The startled Phoenix’s head shot up from his palms. As that Poindexter would cry out: Eureka! So, he’s the mysterious patron who has been footing the bill for all this…
“P.S.” Thwomp continued reading. “Effective immediately, Franziska has resigned from her post as vice president of your depraved Fan Club.”
“Franziska was vice-president of the fan club?” Phoenix’s jaw hit his chest. “I didn’t even know she was a member!”
“They’ll all forever remember your member!” Maya smirked knowingly. “I know I sure as heck will!”
…and he’s also the dastardly fiend responsible for my latest public humiliation! The pianist seethed; his shame slowly being replaced with silent rage. I swear, the next time I lay eyes on that so-called best friend of mine…
“P.P.S. Now, we’re even. That is all. Sincerely, Edgeworth.”
…I will commit the act of not so erotic asphyxiation on that bougie, petty, vindictive Frilly Dandy with his damn cravat, so help me God!
“Edgy?” Maya peeked up over her menu, sighing with relief when she noticed most of the diners had lost interest in them shortly after the song was done. “He’s the secret moneybags who’s been bankrolling this whole rendezvous for us?”
“Apparently,” Phoenix bit out through gritted teeth. “That’s Edgeworth for you! Otherwise known as the Pansophical Prosecutor who is all-knowing and all-seeing, despite not even being in the same country or time zone!”
“Yes … he does seem to rather enjoy the power of omnipresence, doesn’t he? How in Mystic Ami’s name did he find out about us, though?”
“Here you go, Mr. Wright, Miss Fey,” Joe cut in, presenting each of them with long-stemmed flutes. “I took the liberty of bringing you a couple of mimosas since…er… there’s much cause for celebration with you two!”
“This impromptu festivity has provided a much-needed excuse to consume alcohol this early in the day, if nothing else,” the pianist muttered darkly as Maya shrugged, plucked a glass from the tray, and took a long swig of the bubbly citrus mixture.
“You should try yours, Nick! It’s fabulous!” She beamed at the bartender. “What’s in a mimosa, anyway?”
“Champagne and chilled orange juice,” the barkeep replied, looking pleased with himself as Phoenix reluctantly took a sip of the drink and mumbled that it was indeed, pretty good. “May I get you anything else to drink while you look over the menu?”
An impish glint suddenly twinkled in the Master’s mocha eyes.
“Just to confirm … we can order anything we want on the menu at all?”
“Yes, of course, Miss Fey. I was informed that price was no object, and to ensure your visit was as comfortable as possible.”
“These mimosas are so delicious, Joe …” Maya smiled sweetly at the dark-haired young man. “That Nick and I would like to order a round of them … For every single person here at the restaurant! After all, there’s no fun in celebrating alone! Heck, I don’t know if you’re allowed to drink on the clock, but why not get yourself a glass, too, cutie?”
The young man blushed furiously.
“Thank you, Miss Fey. That’s most kind of you … Just to confirm … You wanted to purchase a glass for every single patron here in the restaurant?”
Phoenix stared across the table at the love of his life, and realized that although it had seemed impossible for him to love her more than he already did, had there been a clergy present in that instant, he would’ve married her right there on the spot!
He’d wanted to kiss her practically from the moment he’d met her. Now he wanted to kiss her senseless and make her smile and hear her sweet laughter, just as much.
His anger completely evaporated now, he flashed an indolent grin at the barkeep.
“I’ll have a cup of your best coffee,” he told the mixologist. “Maya will have a green tea, and since we are rejoicing such a commemorative occasion, we may as well go the whole 9 yards… Ensure your finest champagne is mixed into those mimosas … Dom Pérignon if you have it!”
“Hee!” The psychic cackled gleefully at this outrageous addition to her instructions, and her eyes were twinkling as she reached for her boyfriend’s hand after Joe had left. “You’ve got some serious cojones of steel, Nick! Edgy is going to kill you!”
“No, he won’t,” Phoenix chortled as he cracked open his menu. “Because now … we’re even again!”
The sudden reverberating of Maya’s mobile came through at the same time the opened laptop Joe had left on the table in front of the ex-attorney, that’d gone unnoticed until then, chimed as well. Each of them was receiving a video call at the exact same time on both devices.
“Hi, Pearly!” Maya chirped at the sight of her beloved cousin’s visage on her phone screen. “How are you? I miss you bunches!”
Phoenix Wright and Larry Butz
Babar Bar, Holly Muh’Dar Mahal
July 12, 2026
Phoenix hesitantly answered the Skype video chat on the computer – and saw the smiling face of Larry Butz – wearing a pointed party hat and blowing a rolling/unrolling streamer horn on the screen!
“Larry?!”
“Nick, you sly dog you! Looks like Trucy’s not the only one to call you ‘Daddy’ anymore, huh?” The children’s illustrator leered at the camera as he blew a loud tooting sound on his horn. “I knew you had it in you! Congratulations on finally getting Maya to come over and watch porn on your flat screen mirror! After all, a real woman is her man’s private porn star, am I Wright?”
Before the flummoxed poker champion could demand to know how the Butz, of all people, knew about his personal affairs, Larry snapped his fingers at someone off-screen.
“Hit it, Schmoopsie-Poo!”
“Gah!” Was all Phoenix could get out as the pulsating beat of “Closer” by Nine Inch Nails began coming out of the laptop speakers.
You let me violate you
You let me desecrate you
You let me penetrate you…
“Sizzling soupspoons!” Phoenix’s jaw dropped. “Larry, what the fucksicle?!”
“Sweet sweating sailors!” Larry clapped a hand to his face. “Wrong song, Lovey Yummers! I repeat! Wrong song!”
“Oopsie!” A man, presumably Jacob, tittered girlishly in the background. “My bad! Sorry, Snuggle Puss!”
Before the poleaxed beanie wearer could react, another song, with even more objectionable lyrics, began to play!
The bitch is hungry, she needs to tell
So give her inches and feed her well
More days to come, new places to go
I’ve got to leave, it’s time for a show…
The normally mild-mannered hobo was seeing red now. It was one thing for someone to poke fun at him, but he drew the line at blaspheming the virtue of the woman he loved. Moreover, insinuating he’d been whoremongering and that Maya was merely some common trollop who was like a doorknob, with whom everybody got a turn, was an unpardonable sin!
“Lawrence Achilles Butz, you toilet-kissing, snot-spitting, douche canoe!” He exploded wrathfully. “I’m not sure how you have your foot in your mouth, head in your ass, and nose in my business but here we are … you goddamned, multi-talented wizard!”
“Urk!” Despite being thousands of miles away, the artist feared for his life right then – the former Rico Sauvé’s expression was downright murderous! “Mooky-Pooky! You did it again! That’s not the right song either!”
Larry’s eyes filled with tears, as if on command, as he faced the camera again.
“Nick, I’m sorry, man! I swear, this was a big mistake!” The goateed man seemed genuinely stricken. “My Sugar Tush has mistakenly been playing you the mood music from our personal Bruising The Beef Curtains mixtape …”
Ngrk! Barf me a river, fartbag!
“Annnnd … there goes my appetite!” Phoenix dragged a hand down his face, now more disgusted than affronted. “Larry, that’s way more information about you and Pennis the Menace than I ever needed to know!”
“Sorrryyyyyy!” Jacob trilled as a more mellow, soothing ballad began playing in the background. “Third time’s the charm, Butter Buns! Here you goooooo!”
And can you feel the love tonight?
It is where we are
It’s enough for this wide-eyed wanderer
That we got this far
And can you feel the love tonight?
How it’s laid to rest
It’s enough to make kings and vagabonds
Believe the very best…
“Aaaaah! Now that’s what I’m talking about!” Larry winked and flashed a big thumbs up as he blew into the noisemaker again. “Hail to the king, baby! It’s about time you Simba’d her Nala!”
Maya Fey and Pearl Fey
Babar Bar, Holly Muh’Dar Mahal
July 12, 2026
Meanwhile, Maya was having an equally bizarre conversation with Pearl.
“I heard about you and Mr. Nick finally becoming Special Someones, Mystic Maya!” The teenage spirit medium was gushing to her guardian, looking all starry-eyed. “This is the bestest day ever! I’ll be flying out to visit you next week and then you and I can start the wedding planning, in person!”
“Holy frijoles!” The astonished psychic’s hand flew to her chest. “What do you mean, you heard about me and Nick? How?! And… what’s this about wedding planning…?”
Pearl proudly held up a pink notebook with a heart on the cover, inside which there was a picture of Phoenix and Maya from a decade ago, taken from when the Master had first become his assistant at Wright and & Co. Law offices. Written in childlike scrawl, in red crayon, were the words: Mistur Nick and Mistick Maya Fourever!
“I’ve been working on this project ever since I was nine,” she confessed to the dumbstruck necromancer, putting down the notebook and clapping her hands to her cheeks. “Ever since we got the Internet here in Kurian village, and I finally learned how to read, I went and got myself ordained so I can be your justice of the peace! That way, you can save money for your honeymoon! By the way, I think you should visit Japan since that’s where the Fey family roots are from – I’ve taken note of some really pretty hotels! This way, you don’t need to worry about hiring somebody to do the ceremony! I know Mr. Nick won’t have a lot of extra dollars until he gets his badge back … But that sort of stuff doesn’t matter, because all you need is love!”
“Pearly, you’re making my head spin!” The newly deflowered woman exclaimed, trying to hose down the girl’s burning enthusiasm. “Nick and I … Indeed, we’re together right now, but they’re so many other details we need to work out before we can even think about marriage! Let’s back up a few steps and tell me how you even found out about the two of us in the first place?”
“From Trucy!” Pearl enlightened her. “Uncle Scruffy – er, Uncle Gumshoe, and Aunt Maggey took me down to the city a few times over the years to see her perform at The Wonder Bar. They explained to me that she’s Mr. Nick’s adopted daughter – don’t worry Mystic Maya he didn’t cheat on you and have a baby with another lady! Anyway, she and I became good friends and we email and talk a lot on the phone. Uncle Gumshoe told her the news, and she told me that she’s finally getting a New Mommy!”
Pearl nervously bit her thumb.
“Was this supposed to be a secret, Mystic Maya? Because, um … lots of people know about you guys already, including Mr. Eh-ji-worth, since he’s the one who told Uncle Gumshoe …”
“Mr. Edgeworth?” It all came back to the all-knowing, all-seeing prosecutor again?! “How did he know about this?!”
“It was posted on something called the Phoenix Wright Fan Club website.” Curious doe orbs peered into Maya’s stupefied ones. “I don’t understand what the club is about though – there’s a picture of Mr. Nick shirtless on the front page, with a big banner over his lap. And in the background, there’s this really weird song that goes: ‘you and me baby ain’t nothing but mammals, so let’s do it like they do on the Discovery Channel…’
Maya’s eyes nearly bugged out of her head, but Pearl didn’t appear to notice as she was struggling to remember all the bizarre details from her investigation.
“Also, it asked some very funny questions, such as how far you have gone with Mr. Nick! I’m so confused! How can he afford to travel anywhere, when he doesn’t make lawyer money anymore? Trucy told me they’re always broke, that’s why she has to work so much!”
“Holy shish kebabs!” Maya spluttered on her cocktail. She’d made the grave mistake of taking another swig of mimosa, in hopes to get a small dash of Dutch courage to help get her through this all too discomfiting conversation with her mercifully still naïve little girl. For her, this call was 10 times worse than even the humiliating standing ovation/serenade they’d gotten upon entering the bar! “Pearly, please tell me you still aren’t trying to go on that site!”
“No, I can’t access it anymore. I’m not old enough to look at that website. It asks you to enter your date of birth. But when I entered my birthday, it told me since I’m not 18, I can’t become a member and it blocked me.” There was a confused expression on the girl’s doll-like visage. “But I do remember one of the other funny questions it asked under the heading of ‘Why you think you should become a member?’ Mr. Nick doesn’t have any money, so he probably still doesn’t drive, right? So why would somebody try to give him a Hummer?”
“Guaaaaah!”
Mercifully, Joe had arrived with their hot beverages just then and managed to whack the spirit medium on the back just in time as she nearly choked on her large mouthful of green tea.
Phaya and Larry Butz
Babar Bar, Holly Muh’Dar Mahal
July 12, 2026
“Sweet Samarian sandals! The news about me and Maya was on my Fan Club site?” Phoenix demanded incredulously. “Are you freaking shitting me?!”
“Nick, trust me on this one – I’m the president of the Fan Club, and have to approve and reject all attempted membership applications!” Larry exclaimed. “The news got posted today by the same person over there in Khura’in who told Edgy. He told Detective Badd, who told Gumshoe, who told Trucy, who told Pearl … who, incidentally, tried to unsuccessfully become a member of the club! But, of course, I’m not a complete idiot! Naturally, I blocked her, so the poor kid wouldn’t get traumatized!”
The artist known as Larris Deauxnim scratched his goatee.
“Ya’know, I also had to clean up that membership list for other reasons. Some random weirdo was trying to join from an untraceable location … so he was flagged and blocked, too. It caught my attention because aside from me and Jakey, we don’t have too many Representative Weiners trying to join! He couldn’t be a conquest, as, after all, you made it clear you don’t swing that way, much to the dismay of me and my Snuggluffagus! Therefore, I was keen enough to notice when a dude tried to get Gold Member status named … David Krisler?! His avatar just reeked of sketchiness! I mean, in this day and age, who really wears a trench coat, a bowler hat, and a fake mustache?”
“Larry, if you’re at the top of the ladder, and the person behind this whole operation, is it possible for me to fire you?” Phoenix pinched the bridge of his nose. “Or at least beg you to shut down that accursed site already? It’s me and Maya for good … and mark my words! There will not be any new members, henceforth!”
Maya had wrapped up her conversation with Pearl and had overheard the last bit of this exchange.
“Tell Larry that I am the one firing him and I’ll be taking over that Fan Club, thus renaming it the PENIX Wright Fan Club, and I will be its sole founder, member, and lifelong president!” She got up to stand over Phoenix’s shoulder and waved at the camera. “Larry … hi! How’s it going? Do you care to regale us about how the website got updated when Nick and I are in a remote West Asia country that’s barely on the map?”
“Joe Mama!” Larry crowed.
“What?!” The couple bemused chorused, in unison.
“That’s the name of the guy who posted about you two, and was the one who called Edgy with the news that you were making the earth move and waking up the neighbors on your floor and the one beneath it!” Larry pulled up the name of the poster on his cell screen, which he held up on the webcam. “See? Joe Maa’ma!”
The lovers swiveled their heads suspiciously towards the bartender, who’d begun stealthily tiptoeing away with their empty champagne flutes the second he’d heard his name.
“Joe?!” Maya scowled at him. “You were the one who finked on us?! How could you?!”
“I’m so sorry, Miss Fey, but I was under strict instructions to keep Mr. Edgeworth posted on all your activities … and after three straight hours of hearing about how well your reunion was going from other sleep-deprived guests, it was obvious the matchmaking endeavors were going swimmingly!” Joe hung his head in shame. “Also, the prosecutor was the one who instructed me to update the site, and to give the orders to the MC about the planned enthusiastic greeting for you when you entered…”
“Don’t worry, we forgive you, Joe,” Phoenix sighed wearily. “You were just doing your job. How about you get me and Maya two orders of blueberry pancakes and Western omelets?”
He paused for an instant, then beamed broadly, as though a thought had just hit him.
“While you’re at it … pay for every diner’s meal tab too, will you please? It’s the least Maya and I can do for robbing them of their sleep!”
“As you wish, Mr. Wright.” Joe bowed obediently. “You are most benevolent. I hope you and Miss Fey enjoy the rest of your stay here at the Holly Muh’Dar Mahal!”
Humph! Take that, Edgeworth! Phoenix mentally flipped his middle finger at his childhood friend and smirked. I’m not even sorry, you emotionally constipated, sadistic, autocratic … Duke of Doucheberry!
“Yes, and add two side plates of bacon, sausage, ham, waffles, and fruit cups to that order, but have it all sent to the penthouse, please,” Maya added, casting an uneasy glance at her lover. “Um, Nick … we need to talk.”
Presidential Suite, Holly Muh’Dar Mahal
July 12, 2026
After they got back to their room, they undressed each other quietly, patiently. They made love the same way, immersing themselves in the desire, steeping themselves in the experience, savoring the tenderness. Gentle touches. Soft, deep kisses. Caresses as sensuous as silk. A joining of bodies and two scarred souls. Straining to reach together for a kind of ecstasy that would banish shadows. A brilliant golden burst of pleasure. Trying desperately to hold on as it slipped away like stardust through their fingers.
Phoenix made love to his woman the rest of the morning until neither of them could move. At times, he briefly forgot to be mindful of the comparable differences in their sizes and collapsed heavily on top of her, his large body fully covering hers as he pressed her even deeper into the mattress.
She never minded his weight or the dampness that stuck between them, not when she could wrap her arms around his back and simply hold him.
And when it was over and the spirit medium lay asleep in his arms, Phoenix stared into the dark and wished with all that was left of his heart that he wouldn’t have to let her go.
The lovemaking was bliss, but holding Maya close as she passed out was what sealed the deal for him. He wasn’t going anywhere, and the poor thing would have to physically eject him from her life if she thought otherwise. She’d fallen asleep quickly, but he’d lain awake for hours afterward, watching her. He couldn’t stop himself from kissing the side of her neck or brushing the hair from her face no matter how hard he tried.
As you fell asleep, I fell in love with the softness of your breathing. And I want to whisper to the quiet, “where are you going?” And, “can I come to?” I want to say, “wherever it is that you’re headed, can I come with you?” In my dreams, I am kissing your mouth and you are whispering, “where have you been?” And I say, “I’ve been lost but I’m here now. You’re the only person who was ever been able to find me. Let me stay for one more night, okay? We can make this work.” She sits there quietly. “Okay,” she says, letting her head rest on my chest. Tomorrow, I will have nothing left but the taste of blood orange mimosas lingering on my lips, but for now, she curls up in my arms and kisses my neck before falling asleep.
“We could make this work,” he whispered; as if trying to pervade her dreams. “I promise, we really could.” He wanted to hold onto her forever.
The news she’d given him after her phone call with Pearl had brought things to a head, and now he was restless; brought back to the terrible reality that threatened to burst the bubble they’d been in.
All those years of being apart from her come crashing back in. I was strong in those moments only because I had no other choice. I have no clue how I’m going to live without her. Today’s been one of the best days of my life. The feeling of having her move against me, and not only keep up but take me to new levels of pleasure is addictive. I need to give her the world, to support her financially, emotionally, and physically … but who knows when I’ll be able to do that again? Or if I ever will? The way she handled my cock and the way she fit me like a glove leaves me no doubt Maya needs carnality in her life as much as I need it in mine. She is beyond precious with her need to be my girl. How unfair that she’s willing to forgo having someone else ravage that delectable body her for at least two years … or more. Who knows what obstacles we’re up against?
And yet the idea of anyone but him touching her left Phoenix with utter despair and possessiveness unlike any he’d ever known. The thought of never feeling her beneath him, or tasting her sweet body, left his heart shriveling in his chest. Because there was nobody he needed more. No one who would ever fill his heart – and soul – the way this adorable woman in his arms always had.
Somebody who betters you. Somebody who inspires and encourages you in love and in life, who pushes you towards dreams and goals you’d otherwise ignore. That’s sacred. Hold on to a love like that. That’s … my Maya.
He shifted a little and kissed her lips, wanting to see those twin topaz jewels open and have her know that he was there with her. Maya was the woman of every man’s dreams, and yet there she was … in Phoenix’s hold.
“Hi,” she whispered as her captivating dark orbs blinked open. Instinctively, she snuggled into his naked body.
He moved in for a long kiss, not caring about anything but her being in his embrace. “Morning, my love. You sleep okay?”
“Better than I have in years.” She kissed him again and nestled beside him. The soft press of her breasts against his side as her legs wrapped around him caused him to harden, though he had no clue how. It was almost evening now, and when they’d returned to the hotel room from the restaurant, they’d ravaged each other throughout the afternoon, taking their time to enjoy each other in every way possible.
You hold a ticking time bomb in your arms, Phoenix, but you’ve also never felt safer or more at home. Tomorrow. Tomorrow. Let’s not worry about that.
“I’m not sure sleep was the right word, though.” He chuckled, experiencing a lightness in his spirit that he’d coveted for ages. “It was more like a nap than actual sleep.”
“I’d take it over eight hours of sleep anytime.” She brushed her hand over his chest and pressed her lips to his neck. Her tongue laved the spot on his shoulder where she’d bitten down into a tendon as she’d come apart in his arms for the umpteenth time. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.” She looked stunned by what she’d done to his skin. “I’ve never done anything like that before.”
“I’m unbreakable, remember?” He deadpanned. “Don’t sweat it. I didn’t feel a thing!”
“I couldn’t help it – you were so freakin’ hot last round. Like my wildest fantasies come to life.”
“Worth the wait?” He turned to face her and pulled her back against him so he could run his hand over the curve of her hip and give her butt a good squeeze before they had to get up, as suppertime beckoned. Maya tended to get ravenous after two hours without food, and it’d now been closer to five.
“God, yes. Though I don’t think we should wait seven years again.” She smiled, but he couldn’t muster up a positive expression to return. Instead, his expression was solemn as he regarded her.
“Speaking of…” Phoenix brushed her hair back from her face and leaned down to kiss her a few times. “You said you’re not coming back to LA with me. That you’re going remain here for training for a least another few years with that priest and his wife…”
“Yes, Pearly and the village elders set me up with Tahrust Inmee, the high priest of the Kingdom of Khura’in, and his wife Beh’leeb, during the rest of my stay here.”
“That’s the thing, though. Until I get my badge back, who knows when I’ll have the funds to come back and visit?” His voice was filled with lament. “I can hardly keep relying on Edgeworth to keep bankrolling me – or even still speak to me once he gets that restaurant bill for two dozen meals and mimosas! It may easily be another few years before we see each other again. I don’t want anyone but you … however, it’s also not fair to expect you to be waiting for me.”
“That’s not your call.”
She kissed him once more and rolled over, moving to sit at the edge of the bed. His view of her was stunning, and he once again questioned how a hobo bum like him had captured the heart of such a breathtaking beauty; one bearing both prestige and lineage.
“Besides … who’s to say that I can’t steal away from training here and there? I’ll have the funds – as Master I get a cut of the Kurain budget, and we’ve not only made a lot of money over the years with the channellings, but my mother was a very wealthy children’s author, so my inheritance is pretty sizable! That means I can always send any money that you might need until you’re back on your feet – I owe you big time for all those years you kept me in burgers and Ramen!”
“You’re offering to be my Sugar Mommy, are you? I’m a lucky man – although I hope I won’t need to take you up on your generosity for too long, if at all. Trucy and I get by OK for now.”
“As you like it, Nick. The offer is non-retractable and has no expiration date.”
Her offer won’t ever expire … but will we? Does this relationship have a “best before” date?
Tomorrow he would pack his bags and say goodbye. It would almost be like the two of them had never shared a thing. Somewhere, somehow, he’d always feared this – that this haven they’d created was only temporary.
In moments like these, I wonder if it would’ve been better if I had never met you. To never have loved you. To have never learned your secrets, your happiness, your ambitions, your sins. To have never witnessed your triumphs and celebrated them with you. Or witnessed your failures, your uncertainties, to have been there through them too. I wonder if my heart would have been left fuller if I had never felt the warmth of your presence, to know after my departure that I would never feel a love like that again. The truth is that fear of an eternal emptiness is much worse than the pain of a present absence though that abyss is wide enough on its own. I wish I could tell you all of this without holding you hostage. Without exposing you to guilt like nuclear waste. There is much in the crevices between what is felt but never said. Despite knowing this, I still love you too much to say it.
And it was because the mere idea of life without her in it made it feel like shards of glass were piercing his chest that letting her go after he left Khura’in was simply not an option.
To love somebody is to learn to sing the song in their heart and sing it to them when they have forgotten it. Whenever I hear that voice of her, I will always think ‘that’s my song.’
He had to keep the faith. Believe in his love for her, and hers for him. Believe in them … with the same unwavering faith that he’d always had in his clients.
I have learned not to worry about love, but to honor its coming with all my heart.
Phoenix moved to get a better view of her as she got out of the bed and walked towards her suitcase so she could find something to wear for dinner. His gaze moved along her, and he felt a twinge in his chest.
“You’re so beautiful, Maya. Did you know that?”
She glanced over her shoulder and smiled coyly. “I feel beautiful when I’m with you.”
“That’s all you, my love. It has nothing to do with me.”
He moved up to a sitting position, not wanting to miss one moment that he might have to watch her get dressed.
If we end up together in the end, I’ll have to make watching her get ready a part of my morning routine. She is too gorgeous not to lay around and salivate over her. She’d never let it happen, but I can dream.
Except it was more than her surface appearance. It was the way the air changed whenever she was around, almost like it became charged with electricity. And even more, how the current had sparked and jumped into him, making his fingers twitch and his heart beat faster.
I’m the luckiest man on earth because she is so damn beautiful, but her looks never stood a chance compared to how breathtaking her soul is.
Sa’Cred Tray’Ning Falls, Kingdom of Khura’in
July 12, 2026
After dinner, Maya insisted on making the most of the warm summer night by taking Phoenix around and exploring the town. The priest and his wife wouldn’t be home for another couple of days, so she couldn’t show him their home where she’d be staying, but she did have access to the secluded waterfalls where she’d be training, in an area so remote, that as the sunset fell, they would have total privacy.
Phoenix was mesmerized at the serene splendor of Khura’in. In the distance, amid the green of the forested hills was a reflective white strip that could only be the waterfall the locals had mentioned. Their spirits soared and they set off toward it.
Located in the lush and overgrown forests, the amazing waterfalls were nearly 200 feet and had more tiers than a wedding cake, creating an aesthetically pleasing hillside path of mini-waterfalls for the water to cascade down. Up close, the waterfalls were a force of nature, making the whole picturesque area look like the cover of a long-lost copy of National Geographic. Tranquil from a distance but deafening up close.
It was as if the cascades of water conjured rapids of equally powerful emotions in his brain and took his breath away. It was simply spectacular; the most magnificent sight Phoenix had ever beheld.
They stood in awe.
From a distance, the waterfalls had been like a silent white stream cascading over the rocky outcrops. As they had drawn closer, the noise had increased steadily until they were only a few hundred meters away. They could no longer even shout to one another over the deafening roar of the water. Closer still they drew until they were in the plume of water vapor that hung over the plunge pool. Within minutes, they were as wet as they would have been in any rainstorm. Their hair clung to their heads and around their faces, but no matter how wet they became, it could not dampen their spirits.
Maya was grinning as she lay back on the dewy meadow and beamed up at him.
“It’s like getting a fully clothed shower, Nick. I feel so clean …” A wicked gleam came into her eye. “But there’s something about being all wet around you that just makes me want to get dirty.”
The hint was not lost on him, and Phoenix’s clothes were already shucked off him by the time he rolled on top of her nude body on the grassy hill.
For once, he wasn’t worried about being al fresco while in the buff – not when he was in a gated waterside park where Maya had needed a key to enter!
He had to kiss her then, to tell her without words that today had been the best one of his entire life. The kiss was carnal from the first. Burning hot. Frankly sexual. He traced his tongue slowly around the inner edge of her lips, then slipped deeper, probing, exploring. Maya tried to catch her breath and caught his instead, hot and flavored with the taste of grape juice.
“Mmm, you didn’t have this much scruff when you were kissing me last night.” She rubbed her cheek against his. “It’s so rough, so rugged.” She nuzzled against him. “I like it. Kiss me some more, Nick.”
Lord, how he loved the way she talked to him. She never weighed her words or spent so much as one second calculating her gain or his response, the way all the other women had.
He kissed her good and long to demonstrate to her how enjoyable it felt when his stubble scratched over the sensitive skin on her neck, her breasts, her stomach, and the patch of slick, heated flesh between her legs. He took her up to the heavens once with his mouth, pressing it to her swollen flesh as he began to torment her with fierce intensity, and then again with both his fingers and tongue when he couldn’t get enough of her taste.
She was trembling slightly beneath him as she came back down from the climax that seemed to have shaken her to the core. By the time he kissed his way back up her luscious curves, he couldn’t wait to feel her surrounding him, couldn’t think about anything but being inside her again, when she whispered, “I want to touch you, too.”
He gasped a little at the feel of her hands, so cool and soft, gliding back up his chest.
Maya explored the smooth, hard planes and ridges of his body, marveling at the strength there; at her response to his fever-hot skin. She couldn’t get enough of touching him, wanted to press into him and feel that strength and heat against the length of her and absorb it through her skin. When he reached out to cup her breast in his hand, the sound she made in her throat wasn’t in protest, but the eager anticipation of pleasure as she moved into him, what was left of her breath vaporizing in her lungs as her breasts flattened against him.
Phoenix growled low in his throat as he kissed her. Like a sculptor admiring a work of art, he traced his hands down her back, caressing, exploring, interpreting every graceful curve, every plane, and hollow. Lifting her into him, he pressed her hips to his, pressed her into his arousal, letting her know how badly, how urgently, he wanted her. He felt her tongue dip into the hollow at the base of his throat, and the flames of desire licked at his sanity.
When she reached down to cup him in her hand, he nearly lost it right then and there as she stroked him.
“You’re so hot and so hard.” There was wonderment in her voice, along with infinite curiosity. “I was dreaming last night of holding you like this. And tasting you.” When he pulsed again in her hand, she made a hungry little sound. “I want so badly to make you feel as good as you just made me feel.”
When she slid down his body to kiss her way down his torso, it was as close to an out-of-body experience as he’d ever had, the first tentative swipe of her tongue over his erection nearly enough to hurtle him over the edge. Then, when she went all the way from base to tip the second time, he knew that if he didn’t yank her up within the next five seconds, it was all going to be over.
But before he could pull her back up his body, her mouth came fully over him. Oh Lord, it was good. So good that he couldn’t do anything but thread his hands into her hair to pull her closer and push even deeper between her lips.
Once, twice, three times he gave himself over to her before he made himself break free from her incredible mouth and rolled onto his back, pulling her on top of him so she was straddling his hips, looking down at the man who had managed to find a heart so deeply buried she hadn’t even known it was there anymore.
Phoenix was so much more than her knight in shining armor.
He was her own personal miracle.
Happiness flooded her alongside the incredible pleasure as he gripped her hips and drove into her. She clenched herself around him and she loved the sound of his almost-helpless groan as she began to move.
“I love you, Nick.”
She exulted in the way he moved with her, the feeling of hard muscles rippling beneath her fingertips as she braced herself on his chest and stomach while she rode him. His entire body was as taut as a bowstring, his midnight blue orbs glittering as he ran his hands over her back, chasing shivers, setting off new ones, sliding lower. Desire swelled inside her, pushing aside sanity, blazing a trail for more instinctive responses. She arched against him, losing herself in the moment. She reached down and tangled her hands in his hair. His hands slid over her buttocks, and now digging softly on the flesh of her behind, kneading, stroking. She reveled in the feel of his big hands caressing her flesh, the way he seemed to know exactly where to touch her to elicit even more sighs of pleasure.
His hips bucked beneath her, pushing in as deep as possible with every thrust so her inner muscles could ripple around him while she lifted, then sank back down on him. She rocked against his rigid length, back arching when he pulled her down enough that he could catch one of her breasts in his mouth. That was all it took to have her teetering at the edge, and increase the tempo of her gyrations. He gave a hoarse shout of purest joy as she undulated against him in a perfect, harmonious rhythm that had them both mindless with pleasure.
Right then and now, Maya didn’t care that she had bound herself to a man who carried more emotional scars than she. She wasn’t thinking at all about the wisdom of loving someone unable to make any definite promises about their future.
She just knew that she was meant to be there, at that exact moment, and that one way or another, Phoenix was her future.
“I love you so much, Maya.”
In the end, it was the look of love in his eyes – a love that promised forever, a love that would never, ever let her down – that pushed her all the way over the edge, and they came together in a dance of desire that was hotter, wilder and yet more tender than ever before.
Wat’Suthat Temple Parapet, Kingdom of Khura’in
July 13, 2026
Maya insisted that there was no way he was allowed to leave the Khura’in the next day without doing some exploring of the country; aside from their frolic by her future training waterfalls the previous evening, Phoenix seemed content to spend every single moment holed in their hotel suite and ravaging her. She was at the point where she was sure she wouldn’t be able to walk any longer without some sort of cane!
Finally, they compromised. He acquiesced that sightseeing in any touristy market or areas with the unwashed masses was out of the question, but spending the day lounging in their room, then venturing out in the evening to explore rock-cut cave complexes and ancient ruins would be fine, as long as they were alone together.
While trekking up the hill to see the ruins, they’d passed by some giant rock-cut sculptures in the hills lining the road, and once they got to the top, there was a wondrous panoramic view of the country. Above those emerald mountains, kissed to their heady blush by the setting sun, were clouds that moved in shoals, while the sky was equal parts blue and a chorus of greys, streaked with silvers and golds.
Maya was filled with admiration as she explored the artifacts and stone monuments atop the riverside elevation area.
“Some say this is just cave dwellers’ paradise, but just past all these religious formations is an ancient temple!” She pointed excitedly to the crumbled rock formation of a statue that looked like it once might have been Buddha. “Let’s go inside!”
Phoenix, never a big fan of heights, was relieved to get away from the elevated metropolis view. It reminded him just how high up he’d allowed Maya to rope him into climbing, so he gladly went inside to see the pagoda in question.
The crumbling temple was deserted, its decay the only marker of time in a place of uncounted days. Light shone in, illuminating the relics and precious secrets of the mountain. A diffuse bluish light was beaming through the pillared alley, which made an eerie contrast with the white halo of moonlight beaming from the rock sculpture on the central altar. The spiritual journey was about to begin, and Phoenix was slowly experiencing his old consciousness retreating into the abyss of his subconscious mind. This was not a world of fantasy, everything he could see around him was so real, so material, so substantial, and yet so impenetrable.
After some time had passed, he was done reflecting, the atmosphere now becoming too dense and heavy, and he knew he had to move on and get out of this sacred building, yet felt a bit foiled by not having completely deciphered the holiness of the place.
I seriously need Maya to teach me how this meditation thing works, so that I can have a more Zen experience for times like this!
“It’s getting dark out – do you want to get going?”
“Come out here!” She called, from one of the doorframes that overlooked the outside. “The stars are already coming out!”
He found Maya leaning against a heavy pillar, her raven hair billowing around her visage in the gentle night breeze while she placed her hands on the stone ledge in front of her, lids closed as she absorbed the tranquillity of their surroundings.
The moonlight was a diffuse ocean above them, lessening the inky blackness of the night, but not so bright as to dull the stars that speckled and glittered in the heavens above.
Standing there, with the moonbeams cascading down on her, Phoenix thought Maya had never looked more resplendent. The moonlight splashed down its watery white-silver glow onto the city, bathing them, illuminating them. And in the distance, the trees were silhouetted against the deep velvety sky.
The night air still held some of the warmth of the day, but it was cold enough that he could feel it slide across his overheated skin. It felt good, like a splash of sense. Moreover, it was all very romantic. It also made him want to make the most out of the said quixotic atmosphere, here in this secluded haven where it was only the two of them, on his last night in the Kingdom of Khura’in.
As if sensing his thoughts, she turned around and treated him to a long, lingering look, relishing the way he stood before her, bathed in the moonlight. Wearing only a t-shirt and shorts tonight, Phoenix seemed quietly confident in his raw masculinity. Of course, he was. Any man – any person – so unbelievably gorgeous should be.
Looking at him had become a favorite pastime. It was hard to believe that it was all coming to a close, so soon.
Fortunately, he’d already swooped down on her, and his mouth descended on hers just then, sending her morose reflections into flight.
She hadn’t thought he could kiss her better than he already had. Oh, how wrong she was.
This kiss was hotter, went so much deeper, and was so much more dangerous than any that had come before.
She couldn’t breathe, didn’t even care that she was quickly losing her hold on reality as her sole focus centered on his mouth, to the way his tongue found her most sensitive spots, to the way his teeth knew just where to bite, just how hard to tease her. And then, oh God, he was doing just what he’d done before, running kisses across her cheek, then down to her neck, to the hollow of her collarbones.
The anticipation of what he was going to do had her trembling even before his tongue slid against her skin.
She held her breath, only to have it come gasping out as he made contact.
“My love.” His seductive praise was a whisper just below her earlobe and she shivered with unrepressed delight as his teeth found her there and lightly pressed into the sensitive flesh. His fingertips moved to her shoulders where the silky straps of her sundress were. Slowly, deliberately, he slid those straps aside. “Lift your arms for me.”
She was already in the throes of losing herself in heady anticipation.
Moving her hands and arms, she slipped free from the straps of her dress, she lifted them and shimmied as he pulled the garment over her head.
A second later, he had her backed into the stone ledge, one hand in her hair, the other on her hip. They’d been like this enough for her to recognize the way he liked to hold her.
“Have I ever told you,” he murmured huskily. “That one of the millions of reasons I knew you were the right woman for me, was the fact that you don’t normally bother with cumbersome bras? Never did master the art of getting those pesky things off!”
He ran the fingertips of his free hand over the swell of her breasts and she arched into his touch. One broad fingertip began slow circles over her skin. Slowly, way too slowly, he came closer to the tightly puckered skin that was so desperate for his touch.
“Nick,” she moaned when he was right there and instead of giving her what she needed, he turned his attention to her other breast.
“Mmm?”
He didn’t look up from the torturous circles he was making on her flesh. She felt hot needles of desire sear through her.
“Please,” she begged, “I need—” She bit her lip on another moan as he came almost to the tip, then backed away and ran his finger down in the hollow between her breasts.
He paused his hand there, right in the center of her chest, where her heart was beating so hard for him, then leaned forward before she could get her brain to kick into gear, and kissed her softly.
Thoroughly.
Possessively.
At some point, he’d yanked off his shirt, so the hardness of his bared chest teased her breasts, driving her even crazier than she already was.
And then, before she could shift or blink or beg, he lowered his head and took one eager peak into his mouth. She needed to lower her arms so that she could steady herself by holding on to him so that she could grip the back of his head and hold him there – oh yes, right there! – while he gave her the gratification she’d been craving.
Everything narrowed down onto the lash of his tongue upon her, the coiling heat inside her belly, his warm breath against her bosom. Maya lost all track of time as he laved her breasts, as he loved every inch of her torso – the peaks, the curves, the hollows, the shadowy undersides, the spaces between her ribs. And then he was moving lower still, dropping to his knees, sliding down her panties and holding her waist with his large, strong hands, holding her there for him to devour.
His breath was heated against her as he nudged her legs open wider, before covering her with his mouth, and she was holding onto him for dear life, knowing she’d never make it through this decadence, that it was too big, too all-encompassing, far too sweet to be real.
She thought she heard the words, “You taste like heaven,” and then his tongue was going deeper, and like a man possessed, he licked and sucked at her aroused flesh. Already, he knew he’d never get enough. He was already addicted to the taste of her; wanted to greedily savor every droplet of her desire.
His tongue and lips and teeth held no mercy as he destroyed her soul, and recaptured her heart all over again, one inch of skin at a time. Pleasure zinged through her veins and molten, liquid heat pooled in her feminine place. She bucked against his mouth as he laved the center of her arousal.
A split second later, he had to use his hands on her hips to hold her still as she began to cry out and quiver beneath his mouth, rocketing off into an impossible orgasm as she shattered against his mouth. Waves of pleasure rolled over her, going on and on like the sea, dragging her out with them until she was doing no more than bobbing in and out of them trying desperately to catch her breath.
Maya’s legs were like cooked spaghetti now, and they began to wobble from the force of her release, threatening to give out from under her, but Phoenix was already there, holding her steady.
Not letting her fall.
Later she would marvel at the fact that she’d been standing stark naked on temple ruins with a man’s face between her legs, crying out so loud that anyone who could have ventured on the property could surely hear – and had to know exactly what was going on!
But now, tonight, how could she possibly care about any of that? Not when all that mattered was carnal bliss.
No. That wasn’t what mattered. Not really.
It was Phoenix.
He was what mattered.
The thought nailed her straight in the center of her heart just as he shifted, standing up. His hands were still on her hips when he kissed her. She tasted herself on his lips, but more than that, she tasted him. Tasted his hunger. Tasted his need.
Tasted just how much he cared about her.
Loved her.
He had her, body, mind, and soul.
Leaning down, he brushed his lips across hers again, just a whisper of skin against skin, a warning of what was to come. Her breathing slowed, her eyes closed, and her pulse accelerated even more.
“I’m not waiting any longer.” That was her only warning before his mouth claimed hers, instantly branding her, letting her feel his unmitigated hunger.
Desire, unlike anything he could remember feeling, shot right through him, his body already hard, solidified to the point of pain. Releasing her hands, he cradled her head in one palm so he could angle it just where he wanted, while the other moved down the soft curve of her waist and gripped her lusciously firm backside. His tongue sought entrance into her mouth, and when she opened to him, a shudder passed through him while he pressed his arousal into her, and he cursed his lower body attire, wishing nothing was blocking him from sinking deep inside her.
She responded by wrapping her freed hands around his neck and tugging him closer, her lips seductively moving across his mouth, her body pushing upward, seeking what he was offering. This wasn’t a tentative first kiss. This was a kiss of lovers who knew each other intimately, and he was ready to take her right there, not caring where they were or who was around.
This much hunger couldn’t be denied.
He knew he was almost past the point of no return; he knew he could have her right here and now. Yes, her body was saying she wanted him, but he wanted to hear her say those lusty words he’d never tire of hearing.
“I need you, Nick,” she gasped as his lips moved down the side of her neck and sucked the skin above her pounding pulse. “Take me – now!”
She heard the quiet swish of his remaining clothing being discarded, then felt his burgeoning rod pressing against her bare heat.
“Turn around, my love.”
Moments later, she was facing the moonlit ruins and he was placing her hands on the cement ledge. “Hold on,” he said softly, seductively. “And don’t let go.”
She turned her head, a light breeze taking her hair with it as she looked at him over her shoulder.
“Nick.”
He positioned himself at her entrance, so hot and hard she could hardly believe it.
“I love you, Maya.”
She held her breath, waiting for him to drive into her and stretch open not just her body, but her heart, too.
But he remained still, his zaffre orbs on hers.
“Always.”
She gasped at the word, and when he surged inside her, so fiercely that she would have fallen headlong if he hadn’t been holding her so firmly in place, her breath whooshed out of her.
“Forever.”
Her head fell forward and hung down as she gripped the ledge and took what he was giving her, as she pushed back against him just as hard. His hands moved from her hips up over her waist as he took her, and soon, his palms were full of her aroused flesh.
Never. She’d never done anything this decadent. This sinful. This delicious.
This exquisite.
It should have been impossible for them to deepen their connection while having sex standing up, on a rocky parapet. It should have been inconceivable that she would feel even closer to him while he had her bent over the stone edge with her breasts in his hands while he was thrusting hard, deep, into her.
If ever there was an act that should be just sex, it was this, a man and woman who had been almost strangers just days ago, mating like animals.
And yet somehow, it was so beautiful that her eyes were damp.
And her heart was fuller than it had ever been.
In perfect unison, he squeezed her stiffened nipple, while at the same time, he slid the fingers of his other hand between her legs, right in that sweet spot, causing her to whimper softly.
He was still stroking her when his other hand released her breast and cupped around her hip to hold her tightly, had to hold her closer as he drove deeper inside her warmth, coming closer and closer to heaven with every stroke of hard flesh against soft as their bodies sparked and charged together.
In the next sweet, perfect moment, Phoenix’s name was falling from her lips like a benediction as he stilled inside her, then pulsed long and hard with his powerful release, which fuelled her own. She gasped out his name again as they went over the edge together, and as their combined cries of ecstasy rang into the night air, the sounds of unbelievable pleasure blurred with pure love and became one and the same.
Wat’Suthat Inner Temple, Kingdom of Khura’in
July 13, 2026
Afterward, as she lay back in his Phoenix’s arms, using their clothes as a bed on the stone floor inside the ruins of the temple, Maya snuggled tightly against him, his exhausted sex kitten.
“Hey, Maya?” He whispered drowsily.
“Mmmm?” She pressed a kiss against his neck.
“Do you think we’re going to go to hell because we just screwed each other’s brains out on what used to be on sanctified holy grounds?”
“It’s not a temple anymore,” she reminded him judiciously. “It’s now just ancient, abandoned ruins of what used to be a temple.”
“I just don’t want your soul dammed because of me,” he chuckled. “After all, you’re the one who has to live here for another few years. I can’t help but wonder if what we did was blasphemous in such a place where religion and the Holy Mother are so sacred.”
“Oh, we’re fine there!” She snickered. “Nothing is sacred about sex in this country. Have Faitah Inmee on this one! I’ve seen the deviant Queen’s Deliverance-inspired sex tape!”
“If there’s anything I’ve learned from all of this,” he said, brushing her hair back from her forehead. “Is that hell … is the distance between our lips. And paradise … is the taste of your kiss.”
“You say that now…” She swallowed back a sudden lump in her throat. “But what happens after you leave, Nick? What happens to us?”
She stared at him, her eyes now like two liquid pools of chocolate, as uncertain as a child’s. Despite all she’d been through, an aura of innocence still clung about her like a fading perfume.
“I try to get my badge back, don’t even dream about any other woman, and wait for you to come home to me, where we pick up right where we left off.” Phoenix’s answer was simple but direct. “Until then, to the rest of the world and anyone who asks, we’re just friends, but you and I both know different. This will be the Holy Mother of all secret, long-distance relationships, and we are going to have the hottest phone sex imaginable between now and when we meet again!”
Maya leaned up on his chest so she could stare into his eyes, wanting to tell him what was in her heart.
“When I think about you, I don’t think about all the things keeping us apart. I don’t think about the distance. I don’t think about the oceans, the mountains, the roads. I don’t think about the miles between us. I think about the feeling of your hands and the imprints they have left on my skin. I think about the poetry in your soul. I think about last night when I fell asleep to the sound of your breathing and felt as close to you as I have ever felt to anybody. I know that distance is an inconvenience. But love has never been for convenience. It has always been more. You are more. To me, you are everything. I’ll wait for you, Nick. Forever, if I have to.”
Her visage was full of so much emotion as she gazed at him that his throat clogged just looking at her.
“Maya, listen to me, tomorrow won’t be goodbye. Goodbyes are only for those who love with their eyes. Because for those who love with heart and soul, there is no such thing as separation.”
His cadence was filled with tenderness as he stroked her cheek, resting his hand there as he spoke. He could feel her heart beating, thumping against his as he pulled her against him. She held her breath and counted the beats, her gaze on his, wondering what he’d say next.
“If you ever need me, call me, and no matter where I am, I’ll move mountains to ensure I get there to be by your side. And wherever you go, whatever you do, I’ll be right there, waiting for you, too. I’ll be your lighthouse in any storm, steady here on the rock, so you will always know the way home.”
Phoenix’s gaze was intense now; he needed her to acknowledge the truth of what was between them.
“There are two people you’ll meet in your life. One will run a finger down the index of who you are and jump straight to the parts of you that pique their interest. The other will take their time reading every one of your chapters and maybe fold corners of you that inspired the most. It is the third that you’ll never see coming. The one who not only finishes your sentences but keeps the book. That’s why nobody will ever compare to you, Maya. You are irreplaceable in my life, my heart.”
He gently traced her lips with his fingers.
“Even though we’ll be in different countries, on different continents, and in different time zone, I will continue to love you in your absence, and down every memory trail. This, I hope you will not forget. I will love you time after time. I will love you, again and again.”
“I understand, and I feel the same way about you, Nick. You are my home.” She kissed his fingertips as she nodded bravely. “Home is not where you are from, it is where you belong. Some of us travel the world to find it. Others find it in a person.”
The reverence in those simple words made his heart soar, a sensation she continued to bring in him repeatedly.
Again and again, Maya amazed him.
Humbled him.
Her playfulness and her willingness to take a risk despite her romantic inexperience and rough past. He knew she’d wanted to prove to him that she was enough for him compared to all the others he’d known, which was why these last few days she’d become even wilder and wanted to try something different. To be daring.
Sex in the hotel had been staggering.
Wet sex by a hillside waterfall had been mind-blowing.
Sex on temple property, watching her grip that stone wall so hard her knuckles turned white, watching as she gave up control and bucked against his hips to drive him deeper inside … there wasn’t a word for what that had done to him.
Well, maybe there was.
“Love.” He whispered it against her cheek. “You’re the love of my life, Maya Fey.”
He would have been perfectly happy if the only place they ever had sex was in bed. Well, not perfectly happy, but the fact was, regular sex with Maya was a million times better than crazy sex with anyone else.
Only, the truth was that Maya was a woman who liked – who needed, who craved – fun and adventure. He wasn’t sure she realized it yet. But he did. And he wanted to live those undertakings with her. Beside her. Within her. For now, and for always.
All life is just a progression toward and then a recession from one phrase – “I love you.”
The wonderous realization was almost overwhelming, and he felt a slight stinging behind his lids, which he tried to subside by squeezing his lids shut and pressing a lingering kiss on her lips.
“When did you fall in love with me?” Maya leaned back in his arms after the kiss. “Do you remember?”
“I woke up with it the morning after I awakened, totally hungover, at the crack of dawn, to find a note saying that you were leaving me to go back to Kurain, prompting me to chase after you like a madman and beg you not to leave me.” He sat up then and leaned back against the stone wall, pulling her towards him, laying backward, and putting her light body on top of his own. The script was now obvious. Trite in its lines but sincere in its spontaneity: “And you, have you always been so beautiful?”
First, she tittered. She was above him, both her elbows resting on his chest, looking down at him, into his eyes. The laugh abruptly stopped.
“What’s wrong, Nick? Why are you crying?”
“I didn’t know I was.” It was true. He hadn’t known the stifled tears had rolled out of his eyes until she told him.
I just realized all this time, you weren’t trying to make me love you. You were trying to make me love me. There is more to loving someone than just making yourself happy. You have to want them to be happier than you are.
The sweet smell of her breath, mingled with the scent of her hair and skin, coupled with the look of loving concern made another tear slide down his cheek.
“It’s OK to be sad. Nobody is expected to be happy all the time,” she soothed, wiping the liquid bead away. “If you were happy every day of your life, you wouldn’t be a human being, you’d be a game show host!”
“I’m not sad at all, my love. I’m crying because I’m happy. For the reason that … I’ve never been so happy,” he told her, trying to explain the stray droplets that continued to fall. “Because you make me happier than I’ve ever dreamed possible, Maya.”
She pushed her lips against his ear.
“I’ll always love you, Nick. And I promise to always be by your side. Or under you. Or on top.” Her dark orbs glimmered mischievously. “You’re the reason I get up in the morning. That, and I need to pee.”
And it was at this minute, amid one of the most achingly poignant moments of his life, that Phoenix burst out laughing.
It was laughter that he could feel in his lungs, so hard that it took his breath away. The lack of oxygen didn’t matter. All the anguish of the past few years melted like snowballs in a microwave. This laughter created a small vacation, a blessed relief from all the distress that shoved its way into his brain. For a single moment, the lack of money to pay the stack of bills did not matter. He lost the tightness in his chest. The muscles in his neck relaxed. After all that had occurred, he felt hope. And hope felt good. With hope came the thought that “things would turn around,” that somehow, “Someone in the great Somewhere” had stepped into this arena as his champion.
And that someone was his Maya.
Phoenix Wright and Maya Fey stared deeply into each other’s eyes then, each weighing in on the other’s ardent declarations – and that was when everything fully sank in, and in that
instant and they realized the defining truth: Months, years, distance… nothing could truly separate them. Because they both knew. This was right. This was real. And it was meant to withstand the test of time.
They made love again after that, right there on the temple floor. Two explosives writhing atop their strewn, disarrayed clothing. Nothing could deactivate them. Nothing could cool the fire in them. Nothing else mattered. Just two rapidly beating hearts. Light meeting dark in an endless fight. So poetic, so combustive, and so right…
Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, Dressing Room
Los Angeles
June 21, 2054
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