Late Night Indulgences with a Cirronian

by Fluffy Cat1

Mel can't sleep so she wanders into the kitchen for a late night indulgence. There's a Cirronian there and silly, dangerous things happen at three-thirty in the morning when you can't sleep.

Disclaimer: Fluffy Cat does not own or have any right to these characters or names or places, or anything else in her stories. Fluffy Cat just enjoys the characters Mel and Cole and likes to get them out in the world and play with them a bit. Fluffy Cat does not profit in any way from doing this, other than the pleasure of batting them around for a while.

Timeline: This story takes place after the episode, "Love, Cirronian Style." Fluffy Cat hasn't decided yet if this story stands alone or will lead to others of similar content.

WARNING: Fluffy Cat felt obligated to place an "R" rating on this story, rightfully so.

Late Night Indulgences with a Cirronian

By Fluffy Cat

Mel tossed the comforter off of her sleepless body and threw her arms down to her sides in acute frustration. "Argh…" She growled, rolling her head in the direction of the nightstand and catching the red digital numbers screaming 3:13 at her.

A second frustrated growl slipped past her pursed lips. Mel heaved a deep sigh and stared at the light fixture above her bed, debating whether she should continue to lie there with no hope of falling asleep or get up and find something productive to do around the apartment. It was hard to think 'productive' at 3:13 in the morning though. At least it was for Mel.

But lying in bed wide awake without someone beside her to entertain her so to speak, didn't excite her much either. Mel gave it another thirty seconds before her sheet went the way of the comforter and brightly colored toenails polished with Mat-adore Red sank into the soft rug decorating the floor beside her bed. The lacy hem of the sky-blue teddy she was wearing softly fell around her slender thighs as she stood up.

Slipping into her favorite robe, a soft green silk with a Japanese floral design, Mel headed toward the only option available to a single woman who finds herself wide awake in her own apartment at 3:13 in the morning with no lover around to distract her from her marked course.

Kitchen. Refrigerator. Ice Cream. Chocolate. Toppings. Cherries. And last, but by no means, least; Whipped cream. It wouldn't be the same without the whipped cream.

Not bothering to belt the robe, Mel padded softly and carefully through the dim apartment and into the kitchen where she knew she would find everything she needed to indulge in an almost indescribable pleasure. Running her hands through her tousled locks in an ever-losing battle to keep them out of her face, she rounded the counter and walked into the kitchen nook wearing the kind of anticipatory smile that only rich ice cream, delicious chocolate, or fantastic sex could give a woman.

Cole looked up when she bounced in. "Hello, Mel."

Mel came to a quick stop and swallowed nervously. "Cole!" She gave him a timid smile before continuing into the kitchen. "What are you doing up?"

Cole grinned at her. "I'm always up, Mel." He reminded her.

Chagrined at the stupidity of her startled response to his unexpected presence, Mel shook her head and gifted him with a sweet smile. "Right. I know that. I just didn't think."

Cole's dark eyes slowly admired her sleeping attire before returning to her beautiful face. "It's early, Mel. Can't you sleep?"

Making a face at his question, Mel shrugged her shoulders. "Apparently not, and it isn't for a lack of trying. My body seems to crave something else tonight." The admission popped out before she really thought about how it sounded. "Ice cream!" She rushed to say. "I decided an ice cream sundae was needed."

Cole gave her a thoughtful look. "It's almost three-thirty in the morning, Mel."

"I know."

"Ice cream at this hour?" The Cirronian asked.

Mel opened the freezer door and brought out the container of Natural Vanilla. "Of course." She sat the ice cream on the counter and proceeded to open the refrigerator and bring out the big guns; all the toppings to make that vanilla really sing.

Cole leaned back against the counter and watched her with interest. His eyes only occasionally darted down to the way her long legs brushed up against the lacy hem of her nightgown. When Mel turned around with a canister of whipped cream in her hands and caught him looking at her thighs, he quickly raised his eyes and gave her an innocent look.

Mel frowned slightly but said nothing. She surveyed the array of fattening items on the counter and decided everything was there.

Cole moved a few inches to her left, giving her room to make the sundae. "Do you always make ice cream sundaes in the middle of the night, Mel?"

"No." She looked up at him and grinned. "And since you are always awake, you know that."

He grinned back at her. "You could do it when I've gone out."

Mel looked over at his handsome face and shook her head. "You seldom leave me in the middle of the night, Cole. Even I know that. I know you've put off catching more than one alien because you don't like to leave me alone after the Watchfire is closed."

The Tracker didn't bother to deny or admit to her claim. Instead he looked over her shoulder at the amount of ice cream she had begun scooping into a bowl. His right eyebrow went up.

Mel caught the silent comment and raised her chin, giving him a warning glare.

The Tracker's lips twitched.

Satisfied that she had served herself the appropriate amount for the substitute-sundae-for-sex dish, Mel spun around and opened the freezer door to put back the ice cream before it melted. Living with a shirtless, sleepless Cirronian who looked like Cole pretty much guaranteed she would probably be making this type of sundae more often in the future. The stray but thoroughly honest thought had her smiling at the inside of her freezer.

The small lamp in the living room that provided their only light abruptly went out. Mel found herself standing in complete darkness with the cold air from the freezer blowing in her face. The suddenness of it altered her sense of direction. She hadn't had time to orient herself before all light disappeared. "Cole?" She called out in a shaky voice.

"I'm here, Mel." She heard the gentle baritone of his voice whisper the reassurance in her ear before she felt his naked chest against her back. His strong, warm hands came up around her shoulders to steady her. His palms braced her while his sexy voice provided her with a sense of where she was. "It's okay, Mel. The power has gone off. Even the lights across the street are out. There's no light at all coming in through the windows."

"Must be a transformer or something." Mel guessed, fumbling for the freezer door and shutting it. "It isn't storming, but I did see a truck from the utility company working down the street earlier this evening." Her voice was a soft whisper in the darkness. She turned back around and found Cole standing directly in front of her, his hands repositioning themselves on her delicate shoulders.

Mel still couldn't see him, but she sensed that his wonderfully broad chest was only a few inches from her lips. His chest radiated heat and the contrast of it with the cold refrigerator at her back was having a slightly erotic effect on her. Mel inhaled deeply, breathing in Cole's masculine scent. Okay, maybe not so slight, she admitted to herself. "There's a candle on the counter to the right and matches in that end drawer."

"I'll get them, Mel." Cole offered, his hands abandoning her.

"No!" Mel grabbed his waist. Her hands pulled him against her trembling body. "Don't leave me yet." She begged softly.

Cole stepped forward, his hands caressing her arms, his hard warm body pressed her back against the door of the refrigerator. "It's all right, Mel. I'm not leaving you. I thought you wanted the candle for light." He whispered softly to her. His lips were so close to hers that Mel could feel the rush of air when he spoke.

Mel wrapped her arms around his naked waist. Her cold fingertips instantly warmed when they touched his heated skin. "I do…" she stammered, "It's just that I am a little disoriented in this total darkness. Give me a minute before you walk away, okay?"

It was pitch black in the apartment, but Mel could have sworn she saw his quick smile in all that darkness. "Okay, Mel. I won't leave you until you are ready." His fingers skimmed up and down her arms, reassuring her that he was still there and not about to leave her. As if she needed anything else to remind her that his warm chest was only an inch away from her mouth. A shiver ran down her spine and Mel honestly had no idea if it had been generated by the cold against her back or the heat from the sexy Cirronian holding her.

Quickly giving into impulse, Mel pressed her face into his chest, splaying her hands across his back as she drew his hard body closer to hers and inhaled his scent.

The Tracker went quite willingly.

His strong arms folded around her, providing her with both comfort and a certain unadvisable degree of sexual excitement. Her hands, suddenly developing a will of their own, boldly traveled from the contours of his muscular back to the solid expanse of his marvelous chest. Feminine fingers trailed through his chest hair, loving the simultaneous feel of hard muscle and crisp curls. Mel raised her head and attempted to see his expression in the darkness. "Cole?"

"Yes, Mel." She heard his smile even if she couldn't see it.

"I'm sorry to be such a coward. It's just so dark."

"It's okay, Mel." He sensed her anxiety and tried to lessen it. "Does rubbing my chest help your fear?" He asked curiously.

She chuckled. "Well, yeah, it does, kind of." Mel was suddenly glad Cole couldn't see her face just then. She knew it must be a very bright red.

"Okay, Mel." His voice sounded unsure of why such a thing would be so, but in typical Cole fashion, he accepted it. "You can rub me as long as you wish, if it makes you less frightened."

Mel bit her lip and nodded. Then remembering he wouldn't be able to see such a gesture in the dark, struggled to bring a tone of calmness to her voice. "Thanks. I appreciate it, Cole."

"You're welcome, Mel. It feels good. I don't mind your hands on me."

"That's very sweet of you, Cole." She chuckled nervously and then patted his chest, knowing things were getting out of control. "But my ice cream is probably melting; maybe we should light the candle now?"

"Okay, Mel." Cole replied simply, stepping away from her and locating the candle and matches right where Mel had said they would be.

Mel immediately missed his strong chest and warm arms, giving into a little regretful sigh.

Cole heard it in the dark. "Are you okay, Mel?" He asked as he struck a match and lit the candle.

Soft candlelight flickered over his handsome face, allowing her to see his gentle concern.

Mel nodded; her answering smile was tender as she looked up into his dark eyes. "Yes, Cole. I'm fine."

He didn't look convinced and reached for her, pulling her into his loose embrace. "Are you sure, Mel?" Masculine hands lightly caressed her back. "Would you like to rub me some more?" He offered.

Her lips twitched as she actually considered the consequences of taking him up on his very tempting offer. Probably not the best of ideas at three-thirty in the morning in a dark apartment, she decided; at least not when Cole had made it clear recently that he couldn't become 'distracted' by her, Mel debated silently.

Mel put on a brave front and grinned back at him. "Thanks, Cole, but I'm better now. The candle helps."

"Okay, Mel."

He almost sounded disappointed.

Mel decided it must be her own disappointment coloring her perception of his response.

Mel looked down at her ice cream. "Oh, no, I better hurry. My masterpiece isn't half done and it's already turning soft."

"Your masterpiece?" Cole asked with a half-smile.

"Yeah, my masterpiece. Every sundae made in the middle of a night has to be a masterpiece, Cole, or there's no point in making it." She teased, as she took the chocolate syrup bottle and began to coat the ice cream in syrup. "Hmm…" She looked back up at Cole and grinned. "Yummy."

Cole watched her curiously. "That's a lot of chocolate syrup, Mel." The Cirronian pointed out like any other man who didn't understand the true importance of chocolate.

Mel grinned. "Yes, it is. That's the point." Mel pushed the spout back down on the bottle and replaced the plastic cap. Now coated in chocolate, Mel popped her sticky finger in her mouth and sucked. "Hmm."

Cole made no comment but his dark eyes watched her and his lips curved upward.

Mel smiled back at him. "Next is the pineapple topping. There are others of course, but pineapple is the best." She lectured as she reached into the silverware drawer, came up with a large spoon and generously began coating the ice cream with the topping.

Cole eyed the 'masterpiece' Mel was creating. "Mel, this doesn't look healthy. Maybe you should eat something else?" He suggested.

Mel rolled her eyes and frowned at him. "Cole, you never eat healthy in the middle of the night. It's a rule. All women know that."

"But you taught me to eat foods with nutritional value, Mel. There is calcium in this but the rest is more sugar than anything else." Cole advised her.

"I also taught you that although you need to eat foods healthy for the human body, part of eating is enjoying the pleasure of certain foods, remember?"

Cole gave her a serious look. "Pleasurable foods in the middle of the night; healthy foods in the day? Is that what you are saying, Mel?"

Mel considered that for a moment and had to agree. "Yeah, pretty much."

"And this masterpiece provides pleasure?" His skepticism was obvious.

A feline smile spread across Mel's lips. "Oh yeah."

"Okay, Mel, if you say so." Cole replied.

"I may have to prove it to you, Cole. Just wait. When I'm finished, I'll let you sample some of it. The proof is in the sundae." Mel giggled.

Cole leaned over her and reached for a banana. "I still believe you should eat something healthy, Mel. I have done some reading on what the human body should consume for optimum efficiency and what you are preparing doesn't really fit the criteria."

Mel made a face at him as she watched him peel the healthy banana and take a bite. "Only a man would lecture a woman about ice cream sundaes at four in the morning."

Cole swallowed his bite of banana and started to speak again when Mel plucked the banana out of his hand. "Give me that! If you want healthy, then we'll throw a banana in the mix. That should appease you." Mel laughed as she took a knife and sliced his banana into little pieces all over the ice cream.

The Tracker looked down at the remains of his banana and frowned.

Mel bit her bottom lip. "It's okay, Cole. You'll like it this way. I promise."

The look he gave her wasn't one Mel would call completely trusting.

Mel laughed again. "Let's see, chocolate syrup, pineapple, banana…." She grinned over at Cole. "All we're missing is the whipped cream and the cherries." Mel picked up the canister of whipped cream and began shaking it.

Cole looked curious again as he watched her.

"The trick to the whipped cream is to get enough of it on the sundae, but in a design that fits your mood."

"Okay, Mel."

Her hand gave the canister another shake. "I like to start at the outside of the bowl and circle counterclockwise all the way to the top."

"Counterclockwise? Okay, Mel. I'll remember." Cole answered her as if he were taking notes on how to avoid a nuclear holocaust.

Mel's eyes sparkled as she demonstrated the proper technique, finishing off the sundae in elaborate style. "Ta Da! Whipped cream skillfully applied." She announced proudly.

Cole grinned at her. "It doesn't look all that difficult, Mel. Just press the nozzle."

Mel's mouth fell open. "How dare you! I'll have you know it takes years of practice to get the whipped cream to go exactly where you want it." She teased. "A novice ends up with whipped cream all over the place in all the wrong quantity."

"I doubt it." Cole answered with an amused look.

"Oh… doubting the master during the creation of a masterpiece calls for retribution." Mel held the whipped cream can out in front of her and aimed it at the Tracker's chest.

Cole's smiled at her threat. "I move faster than you, Mel." He reminded her.

"That's cheating, Cole."  Her eyes were laughing at him while she taunted him with her finger on the nozzle.

"No, that is using my natural Cirronian abilities." The Tracker answered.

"Not fair. You should play fair at four in the morning when making a masterpiece." Mel lectured her roommate, her eyes shining up at his. "Time to pay the price for doubting me." She threatened, holding the whipped cream can only inches from his bare chest.

The Tracker looked down at where she was aiming the canister, his expression amused.

Mel's finger slipped and before she knew it, whipped cream sprayed all over Cole's chest.

"Oops!" Mel cupped her hand over her open mouth, her eyes wide with surprise.

Cole looked down at the white stuff covering his chest. He looked back up at Mel with bemusement.

She giggled. "I am so sorry, Cole. I didn't mean to."

Cole frowned. "You were aiming it at me, Mel."

"Yeah, I was." Mel gave a short laugh. "But I wasn't really going to do it."

"You said you were going to." He pointed out, still frowning down at the white mess covering his chest.

Mel giggled. "Yes, but it was an accident." Her eyes were bright with laughter.

"An accident you threatened to do?" Cole cocked his head, his expression doubtful.

"That happens sometimes, Cole." Mel giggled again. "Here, let me help you. I'll clean it up." Mel wiped a portion of the whipped cream off of his chest with her finger. With every intention of rinsing the mess off in the sink, Mel was so tickled over how silly her Cirronian looked with his chest covered in whipped cream that she forgot to stick her finger under the faucet and popped it into her mouth instead. "Mmm." She giggled, sucking her finger clean.

The Tracker's eyes followed every motion.

Still tickled, Mel reached around his large masculine frame for a kitchen towel to finish cleaning him up. "I'm really sorry, Cole. I was just teasing you. I really didn't mean to spray you like this."

The Tracker might have been more inclined to believe her if she hadn't been laughing so hard during her apology.

He lowered his gaze and followed her efforts to clean him up with the towel. "You are sorry, but you still find this humorous, don't you, Mel?"

Her bright eyes laughed into his. "Oh, yeah." Her smile was very tender though when she stepped closer to him. "But you have to cut a girl some slack, Cole. It's three-thirty in the morning and I've been up a long time and the power is off, and well, silly things happen at three-thirty in the morning when you can't sleep." She admitted softly.

"Silly things?" Cole repeated; his hands lightly came to rest at her waist.

Mel moved in closer and lifted her eyes from his chest to his handsome face. "Yes, silly things."

Cole studied her for a moment before his eyes dropped back down to his own chest. "You missed a spot, Mel."

"Oh… so I did." Mel smiled and reached for the dish towel again, but Cole took it from her and tossed it back into the sink.

He wiped the last of the whipped cream off of his chest with his index finger and brought it up to Mel's lips.

Mel froze; eyes wide.

His teasing brown eyes studied her warmly.

It was a dare.

Oh… this Tracker really didn't play fair.

Her lips twitched. Well, she had sprayed him with sticky whipped cream. He probably deserved the right to a little payback, she supposed. Acting quickly before she lost her nerve, Mel wrapped her hand around his fist and popped his finger into her mouth, her tongue doing a dance around it until all tasty topping was gone. She slowly sucked the length of his entire finger before pulling it out of her mouth.

Mel watched his eyes grow dark with something that looked remarkably like desire.

Suddenly nervous at what she had done and just what her innocent Cirronian might make of it, Mel commenced to babbling. "All clean. See, when I make a mess, I clean it up."

His hands returned to her waist and the Tracker slowly drew her slender body up against his. "I like to watch you clean, Mel."

She took a deep breath. What could a girl say to that? "Well, you weren't too keen on me making the mess, remember?"

"I didn't know it would feel this good, Mel." Cole told her, his fingers caressing her waist through the silk robe, coaxing some carefully buried forbidden thoughts to the surface of her mind.

Mel closed her eyes. She could feel his eyes studying her face. What did he see? She wondered.

"See…I told you that silly things happened in the middle of the night." She worked hard to achieve a normal tone of voice, hoping desperately that the desire and passion she was now experiencing wouldn't find its way into her voice.

She was pretty sure she had failed when she felt Cole's warm lips lightly brush against hers. "Oh, Cole! What are you doing?" She whispered in a worried voice.

"Kissing you, Mel." Cole answered softly. "You taste like whipped cream, Mel." He sounded surprised. "And something else?" He added, perplexed by the mystery of it.

"You." Mel answered softly, closing her eyes and accepting his embrace.

"Open your eyes, Mel." Cole instructed.

Her lashes fluttered open. Cole had just kissed the very devil out of her. At least, Mel felt like he had. Who knew for sure? Then again, the devil might very well still be in her? She was beginning to harbor more than one sinful thought that was for certain.

Cole held the ice cream sundae in front of her. "You haven't finished this, Mel."

Startled that he had so obviously changed the subject as well as the direction of their little late night encounter, Mel nodded at him and the unfinished sundae. It was for the best, she told herself. He had made his position clear a couple of weeks ago. "All it needs are the cherries. Then it's ready to eat."

Cole placed the bowl in her hands and picked up the jar of cherries. "These are like the ones in the bar, aren't they, Mel?"

"Yes, only they taste a bit different on ice cream as opposed to alcoholic drinks." Her smile was indulgent as she watched him set the lid down on the counter and dip his fingers into the sweet cherries.

"How many, Mel?"

"Oh, well, that's up to the sundae maker, but I usually prefer three or four." Mel admitted, slightly embarrassed at her love for the sweetened fruit.

Cole smiled at her. He dropped three cherries on top of the sundae and then took the bowl out of Mel's hands.

"Open up, Mel." He grinned at her, holding one of the cherries.

She shook her curls but did as he instructed.

Cole dropped a cherry into her open mouth.

She chuckled and chewed around the sweet fruit, removing the stem with her fingers. "You're supposed to bite off the cherry and not swallow the stem, Cole. I'll show you. Open up." Mel teased.

The Tracker did as she requested and found a cherry placed on his tongue. "Now, close your mouth. You bite down on the fruit; I'll pull on the stem. On the count of three; one…two…three!" She giggled.

He chewed the sweet fruit and watched her as she twirled the stem in front of him. "See, that's how it's done."

Cole swallowed the cherry. "Is your masterpiece ready then?"

Mel picked up the ice cream sundae, did a cursory inspection and declared it perfect. "Top notch if I do say so myself."

"So you eat it now?" Cole asked; his grin growing as he looked again at the size of the dish.

"Absolutely." Mel patted his chest and teasingly said. "And if you are a good boy, I'll let you have a bite or two."

Cole's expression was amused. "A good boy? I'm a man, Mel, well…a Cirronian adult male anyway."

"Man or Cirronian, it doesn't really matter. You are all boys when it comes right down to it." Mel dug her spoon into the masterpiece and took a huge bite. "Mmm…. heaven, this is wonderful." Her eyes sparkled up at his. "Want a bite?"

Cole eyed the bowl and frowned. "I don't know, Mel. It still looks like it lacks nutritional value."

Having just taken a second spoonful into her mouth, Mel got tickled at his words and almost spit it out all over his chest. "Okay, Cole, let's see if I can find a bite with banana in it just for you."

She looked up and found him smiling at her. "Here you go…a bite with a huge chunk of banana in it. It's a shame to let you have it instead of me but I suppose I must." She teased with a false air of self-sacrifice. Mel held the bowl under the spoonful to catch any dripping. "Open up, Cole. Banana on board."

Cole gave her a funny look but did as she requested and allowed her to shovel the huge spoonful of ice cream, chocolate, banana and whipped cream into his mouth.

The Cirronian discovered another item he could add to his growing list of things he really liked about Earth besides Mel and lap dances. Masterpiece sundaes with healthy bananas added to them.

Mel grinned at his expression while he chewed. "Good, huh?"

Cole nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, Mel. Very good. We should make these more often."

She laughed and scooped a second bite into his mouth. "We would gain so much weight we couldn't track anything."

Cole's expression softened. "But I like having you awake and up with me at three-thirty in the morning, Mel."

She shivered. Mel was going to put the blame on the cold ice cream instead of his words.

"Are you too cold, Mel?" The Tracker asked, noticing her slight shiver.

Stumbling for an excuse, she looked down at her bare feet. "It's just my feet on these floors. I'm not wearing my slippers and my feet are cold."

Cole looked down at her feet then back up at her. "Sit on the counter, Mel. Get your feet off the floor."

Mel sputtered at the suggestion. "I can't do that, Cole! I'll be fine. It's just cold feet." Mel rolled her eyes in complete disbelief that she had actually used that phrase. The irony was not lost on her.

Cole took the decision out of her hands when he scooped her up and plopped her down on the countertop behind him. He moved in closer after setting her there and grinned at her shocked expression. "Problem solved."

Mel's mouth hung open.

Cole quickly spooned a bite of sundae in it before she could start fussing at him. The Cirronian was learning how to deal with Mel when she was headed toward a lecture. He had given it some thought and had discovered that his options were somewhat limited when Mel was in the mood to lecture, but usually three things were left as possible solutions; feeding her, kissing her, or caressing her throat. The Cirronian found it amusing that all three solutions were equally effective.

Mel shot Cole a dirty look as she chewed. The Tracker smiled sweetly at her and placed his hands around her right foot, warming it with a small burst of energy. He repeated the process on her left foot while she struggled to swallow the huge bite he had shoveled into her mouth.

"Cole!" She finally sputtered, after successfully swallowing her food and not choking on the chunk of banana that had barely gone down.

"Yes, Mel?" He looked up at her innocently.

Her shoulders sagged. "Nothing. Thanks for warming my feet."

"My pleasure, Mel." He replied. His eyes dropped to Mel's smooth white thighs, conveniently exposed by the short teddy that had ridden up when he had unceremoniously plopped her down on the counter. "Are your legs cold as well, Mel?" He asked sweetly.

"My legs?" Mel frowned.

Strong, hot hands traveled up the tops of her thighs. "I could warm them, Mel." He suggested in a whispered baritone.

She watched, mesmerized as his talented fingers disappeared beneath the lacy hem of her teddy, leaving a trail of heat where they touched.

She wasn't wearing any panties!

She should stop him. Mel knew she should stop him. That little voice most people called a conscience was telling her to definitely stop him.

Cole's fingers, however, were telling her that he could make everything all better.

Mel's knees fell open as her head dropped back and her eyes drifted shut. "God, Cole." She mumbled in a soft whisper. Evidently his traveling fingers were more convincing than her little voice. That rueful thought painted a sensual curve on her lips.

The Tracker closed in on her when her knees allowed him the room, stopping only as his body hit the counter. Mel's robe slipped off her shoulders and fell onto the countertop as she leaned back, leaving her wearing little else except for that pretty blue silk teddy and an aroused look which seemed more alluring in the flickering candlelight.

Cole's smile grew as Mel wrapped one smooth thigh around his waist, slipping the slender leg down the back of his thigh.  Her teddy slid up two more revealing inches and Cole looked down at the soft white skin he was touching. His hands worked their magic on Mel's skin, treating her to delicious tingles of heat. As his fingertips approached the most feminine of entrances, he heard Mel moan softly. "Dear God."

Cole stopped.

Mel waited for those talented fingers to continue the sexy spell they were casting. They were so close, so very close.

Cole continued to wait.

After twenty seconds, Mel's lashes lifted and she focused on the handsome Cirronian leaning over her. "Cole?"

"Yes, Mel?" The deep rumble of his gentle voice produced shivers down her spine.

"What are you doing?" She whispered.

He gave her a puzzled look. "I'm waiting for you to finish, Mel."

Eyes grown wide with shock, she found herself sputtering. "I may need a little more help from you, Cole, before I….finish."

He looked even more puzzled by her explanation. "I don't pray to your deity, Mel. I wouldn't know how to help you."

Mel looked stunned for a moment before breaking into giggles. Her curls fell forward hiding her face as she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her laughter in his warm chest.

Bemused by her behavior, Cole put his hands around her.

The Tracker never minded holding Mel, and this time was no exception but he began to suspect that her laughter was at his expense. His mouth curved upward. He should be accustomed to it by now. He frequently tickled Mel with something he said or did. Of course it would have been better if she had gotten tickled after they had finished the things they had been doing; he thought to himself. He had enjoyed touching Mel and watching her reactions.

Cole's hands caressed her back, savoring the smooth feel of her silky skin. He patiently waited for Mel to stop giggling. One hand stroked down her back while he waited, long fingers dipping beneath her silk teddy to feel the smooth skin of her lovely back.

Her laughter began to die down.

The Tracker smiled, his other hand caressing her right thigh, his fingertips making the trek up her soft skin and once again past the lacy hem of her teddy.

With a sharp indrawn breath, Mel's laughter stopped.

The Tracker's smile was full of wonder at his effect on Mel. His fingers continued their erotic journey.

Mel arched into his caress and wrapped both of her thighs around his waist. Breathless, she said, "I see you don't really want to stop this either, do you, Cole?"

Cole's eyes explored the thoroughly appealing female spread before and around him before returning to her beautiful face. "No, Mel. I enjoy touching you and watching what it does to you. Is that wrong?"

Her eyes filled with tears. "No. Never wrong. But this is what can happen in the middle of the night when people should be sleeping and they can't. Sometimes they have ideas that don't seem so bad at four in the morning."

Cole thought about that for a moment then his smile returned. "Silly things?"

Mel shook her head and reached for his face, her fingertips caressing the strong cheekbones and down to his tempting lips. "No, silly things would be like whipped cream all over your chest. The things we're doing now…" Her fingers stroked down his strong neck, past his glorious chest to the waistband of his pants, toying with his zipper. "These things are more dangerous than silly."

"Dangerous? I would never hurt you, Mel." Cole's voice broke with an unspoken emotion as he glanced down at where her hand had stopped.

Mel's look was tender. "Not that kind of dangerous. The kind of dangerous I'm talking about is the kind that will change our relationship."

When her fingertips stroked his erection through his pants, it was the Tracker's turn to draw a needed breath. "Mel?"

"Yes, Cole?" She answered with a knowing smile and another bold stroke.

He watched her hand, amazed at her effect on him as she stroked him. "I really like having you awake at four in the morning." He confessed honestly before capturing her smiling lips for a much needed kiss.

Cole's kiss was thorough and heated. It carried that special Cirronian spark to it that Mel was seriously afraid she might begin to crave. Part of her already knew that another kiss by any other man would never be enough, not anymore, not since her favorite Cirronian had taken to kissing her. Cole had ruined her for other men and he didn't even know it.

So be it! Mel decided, tossing all caution to the four winds. She threw her arms around him and clung to Cole, kissing him as if he were the only man she would ever have again. She strongly suspected he just might be.

The Tracker was slightly taken aback by her fervent response but accepted Mel's sudden affection with an eager smile. His hands supported her on the kitchen counter. And he made no move to stop her when she scooted closer to him, arching her hips so that his groin rubbed against that mysterious place between her thighs that the human part of him had yet to fully understand.

"Please, Cole!" She begged softly, breaking off their kiss.

"Please what, Mel?" He gently asked her, his lips lightly brushing against hers, helping himself to another sweet taste of her.

She bit her lip but failed to stifle the nervous giggle destined to surface. Mel flicked her tongue over his left nipple, just below the spot where he had wiped off the remaining whipped cream.

He tasted good.

Cole flinched at the unusual sensation but never took his eyes off of her.

Mel gifted him with a very seductive smile, her eyes bright with desire as one hand rubbed his chest while the other found his erection and began unzipping his pants. "Cole, will you please let me have you?" She pleaded softly.

The Tracker watched her as she slowly unzipped his pants and stroked him through the white briefs he was wearing. When her eyes returned to his waiting for his answer, the Cirronian swallowed once and signaled his permission with a faint nod.

Her fingers reached inside the waistband of his briefs and found him.

She blazed a trail of tiny kisses up his chest to his delicious neck and on to his strong stubborn chin. She held him in her palm and squeezed. When she reached his mouth, she whispered against his lips, teasing him. "Say 'yes, Mel'."

The Cirronian was smiling when she kissed him.

A soft yellow glowing light illuminated the kitchen, the candle no longer the only source of light in the small apartment. Neither the human nor the Cirronian acted aware of it; or what it could possibly mean. Their entire focus was on touching as much of each other as they could get their hands on.

Mel had already staked out a pretty good claim on what she wanted to handle, but other attractive aspects of Cole's body kept calling to her at the same time, fueling her desire. In addition to those heated lips of his, Mel conceded there was a chest to die for. She didn't believe she would ever grow tired of feeling it. Of course, the male signature she was holding in the palm of her other hand was no small matter either!

And it was demanding a bit of attention too, she noticed with a wry twist to her smile, certainly willing to give it what it wanted.

Cole, unlike the experienced human wrapped around him, had no idea what to touch on Mel next or even how, for that matter, not to mention, for how long. His indecision regarding what was permissible wasn't perceptible to Mel at the moment though. At least it didn't seem to be, he thought to himself. She seemed to enjoy his touch wherever his hands landed on her. Cole was cognizant of the fact that Mel was vastly more aware of what he should be doing to her than he was; but she seemed content enough with kissing him and squeezing certain parts of his anatomy that definitely appreciated the squeezing, he hated to stop her long enough to ask her exactly what else he should be doing.

But the Tracker was beginning to develop a problem with his concentration. He found the situation disconcerting. He had a theory that Mel's hands were directly linked to his concentration difficulty.

Not that he was in any hurry for her to remove them, he quickly decided.

It occurred to him that perhaps his best course of action would be to concentrate less and allow Mel free reign with his body.

Evidently she possessed significantly more ideas than he did about what they were doing. Good ideas, the Tracker told himself, gasping when Mel's mouth latched onto one of his nipples and tugged.

He stared down at her, his eyes dark with innocent desire. "Mel?"

She kissed her way back up to his mouth and purred. "Hmm?"

"I want to….do…something." Cole explained while she kissed and nibbled on his ear.

Mel nodded. "I bet. I want to do something too, Cole." She pulled back and smiled at him tenderly.

"Let's do something together, Mel." Cole suggested softly, cupping her lovely face in both of his hands.

She paused, her roaming hands lightly resting on his shoulders. "This is a big step, Cole. I don't know if I'm really ready for it; but I do know that I want you so very much." Hesitantly and carrying more than one pang of guilt, Mel asked him gently. "Do you think you might be ready, Cole?"

"I feel very ready, Mel." The Tracker admitted with a quiet certainty.

Her lips twitched. "Yeah, I guess you do."

Cole leaned in and kissed her with a gentleness that stole her breath and easily dispensed with that pesky pang of guilt.

"There's not really enough room for this on the kitchen counter, Cole. We need more space." She sighed at the end of his kiss.

Cole wrapped his arms around her and easily lifted her off the counter, heading towards the living room couch. "Wait, Cole!" Mel called as they stepped out of the kitchen nook. "The candle! We can't leave it burning unattended."

The Tracker spun back around still carrying her, but stopped long enough to allow her to blow out the candle. "It's dark again." She giggled. "I should have kept it lit and taken it with us, I suppose."

"It's okay, Mel. There's another candle on the coffee table." Cole shifted her in his arms and headed back to the living room for the second time.

"Cole? Why the living room?" She asked softly in the darkness.

"It's close, Mel, and it has a couch that's softer than the kitchen counter." Cole explained patiently.

"I have a bed, Cole, that's softer and much larger. It's easier to do…something… on the bed than on a small couch." Mel suggested, keeping her voice light.

"The bed?" Cole stopped where he had her positioned directly over the couch. "That will work." He said more to himself than to Mel.

"Usually, yeah." Mel chuckled.

"I don't go in your bedroom very often, Mel." Cole pointed out as he shifted her weight again and began the trek back past the kitchen and into her dark bedroom.

"Well, that is about to change, I suspect. I mean if we do…something… then you will probably spend more time in my bedroom." Mel added, striving for a certain nonchalance in her tone.

"I will?"

"Probably." Mel replied as he gently set her down in the middle of her bed.

"Doing…something…again?" Cole's eager voice filled the darkness of her bedroom.

Mel smiled. "Yeah, doing… something… again and again, and again. If you like doing …something, that is." She clarified, reaching up and finding his chest in the darkness. Her hands began roaming the delicious territory she had discovered.

"I want a candle, Mel. I want to watch you while we do…something…" Cole hesitated, unsure of her response from such a request. "Is that okay, Mel? It is acceptable for me to watch you while we mate?"

"Oh, are we mating? I thought we were just going to do…something." She teased but immediately dissolved into giggles.

The Tracker relaxed when he heard Mel laugh. "Yes, Mel. We are mating. And I want to watch you while we do." He stated firmly.

"Gee, agree to mate with a Cirronian, and they suddenly go all demanding on you." She chuckled, tossing the comforter off the bed.

She heard the strike of a match and saw the flash of light on her dresser as Cole lit a small candle in front of the mirror. His face was beautiful when he turned around and smiled at her.

"You are very beautiful, Mel." His eyes were the softest shade of brown.

Her answering smile was tender and spontaneous. "I was just thinking the same thing about you, Cole."

He approached the bed and reached down to capture one of her strawberry-blonde curls. "When I first arrived here, I thought humans were the strangest-looking species."

She laughed. "Gee, thanks, Cole. You know how to turn a girl's head."

"But there was something about you, Mel that was more special than the others of your species. I felt it from the beginning. I have never stopped feeling it."

Tears filled her eyes. "You are amazing." She whispered.

"Thank you." He answered in his simple fashion, bringing a smile to Mel's face.

"Cole? We can do this, right? I mean you are human enough to do this?"

"I am Cirronian, Mel." He stated proudly. "But, yes, in human form, I can do…something." He grinned.

She chuckled and tossed her curls out of her face nervously. "I thought so, but just wanted to make sure there wouldn't be any problems…before we…you know."

"Actually, Mel, I don't know. Which may present a problem, but I assumed you knew enough about the process to give me the proper instructions. If it helps any, I do understand the basic mechanics of it, having studied human physiology and cable movies. However I assumed there was a certain protocol to the mating process that I will most likely be deficient in." Cole added honestly.

Mel shook her head. "From what I could tell in the kitchen, Cole, I'm not too worried about you being deficient in any area." She cleared her throat and smiled up at him.

"Thank you, Mel." His expression brightened.

She sat up on her knees on the mattress so that she was face to face with him where he stood by the bed. She placed her hands on his chest. "I'm a little nervous, Cole. The first time with someone is always a little uncertain, but knowing it's your first time…as a human…well…it puts some pressure on me. I mean I don't know anything about how you do it on Cirron, other than what you explained to me and I can tell you right now, it didn't sound anything like how we do it here on Earth, so I'm not really sure how you will respond to the physical aspect of mating…you know…in a human way… here…with me." She added softly, looking down at the sheets rather than directly in his eyes.

The Tracker chuckled, raising her chin with one finger so he was better able to see into her beautiful, worried eyes. "Mel…mating with you is all I want…and if only a small part of it feels as good as it did when we were in the kitchen together, then I know I will enjoy this human mating very much. I am very certain of that, Mel. And if it feels as good as when I kiss you or hold you, then I know I will want to do it again, Mel, many times."

Her confidence returning, Mel tossed him a very amused smile. "You liked it that much, did you, Cole? What we did in the kitchen?"

Beaming, he replied. "Yes, Mel. I liked what we did in the kitchen. I would like to do it again. Now."

Mel's arms tightened around his neck and she whispered inches from his mouth. "Cole, trust me, if you liked that tiny taste of 'something' that you were given in the kitchen, you are going to absolutely love the main course."

The Tracker grinned back at her. "Okay, Mel. But I want you to tell me how to touch you. I want you to experience pleasure as well. Will you tell me, Mel when you want me to touch you, and how, and where?"

Embarrassed, she muttered. "I'll try, Cole. But it's hard for me to express myself in that way, during…you know."

Distress was evident on his face as he began to argue with her. "But Mel, I don't know enough to do it without you telling me. I want you to enjoy this too. We are mating, Mel. That means we both derive pleasure."

She nodded. "You're right, Cole. And we will. I promise. It gives me pleasure just touching you and kissing you, and feeling you next to me. But I'm not worried about my pleasure right now. I think it's very important this time to concentrate on you. Understand, since it's so new to you?"

He frowned but nodded. "Okay, Mel. But you will learn to tell me what pleases you." It was a statement, not a question and Mel smiled at the confidence in it. Sometimes when dealing with Cole, because of his ignorance of this planet, it was easy to forget that underneath all that innocence and sweetness was a very intelligent and determined male who didn't accept defeat easily.

It was one of the things she had come to love about him.

"I will, Cole. But I'm not too concerned about it. You seem to pick up things amazingly fast."

"Thank you, Mel." Cole smiled, caressing her throat softly. "Can we mate now?"

She giggled. "About this protocol thing… we might have to work on your approach." She smiled indulgently at him.

He cocked his head at her.

"Yes, Cole. We can mate now." Mel reached up, captured the back of his head and brought his mouth to hers. "First, we kiss."

 "I like it already, Mel." He grinned.

"Hold onto your hat, buster." She warned teasingly before pressing her lips to his.

Cole enjoyed her kiss but broke it off soon after. "I'm not wearing a hat, Mel, and is 'buster' an endearment we will be using while we mate?"

Mel stared at him, her eyes bright with laughter. "No, Cole. Sorry about that. Forget 'buster.' Call me whatever you want," She tossed her curls in nervousness, adding on second thought, "barring 'hey, you.'"

"Okay, Mel" He kissed her again, his arms closing around her tightly, bringing her next to his hard warmth with fresh urgency.

Mel sighed as his hold relaxed and he ended the heated kiss.

Cole admired her beautiful face, sensing how she had gone limp in his arms. His lips curved upward. "Hey, you, can we mate now?" He inquired wearing an entirely too innocent expression.

She shrieked in false outrage and pushed him back onto the bed. He landed flat on his back looking up at her thoroughly amused by what she had done.

Mel straddled his hips, a triumphantly smug grin on her pretty face. "You have developed quite a sense of humor here lately, Cole."

The Tracker wore a broad grin across his face as he watched Mel climb on top of him. "I've always had one, Mel, it was just Cirronian."

Mel gave him a sultry look, her fingers charting a lovely trail down his chest. "Well, certain parts of you appear more human than Cirronian now." She wiggled on top of his erection. "Not that I'm complaining, mind you."

He closed his eyes and drew a sharp breath. "That feels good, Mel."

"Imagine that." She commented, leaning forward to kiss his lips. A curtain of silky curls fell forward around his face causing him to smile. Cole had a fondness for feeling Mel's hair against his face.

His arms came up to hold her in place on top of him while he kissed her sweet lips. One strong hand cupped the back of her head while his mouth indulged in the delicious taste of Mel. "You still taste like an ice cream sundae, Mel." He sounded so surprised that Mel chuckled at him.

"You do too, Cole." She informed him before leaning back down and flicking her tongue around his top lip. "Yummy. I love ice cream." She purred.

"And bananas." She added with an arched brow. She sat back up and leaped off of him. "Speaking of which, something is not right here." Mel stood at the side of the bed and contemplated how Cole looked lying in front of her. Placing her finger under her chin, she thoughtfully considered what the problem might be.

Cole sat up, wearing a concerned expression. "What's wrong, Mel?"

She gave him a reassuring smile. "I've got it! It's these pants you're wearing. Partially unzipped is nice and convenient for the kitchen, but I think we can do better than that in the bedroom. I think they are just going to have to go all together." She bent to finish unzipping them and before the Tracker knew what was coming, Mel had grabbed his pants by their hem and was tugging them past his feet.

She tossed them across the corner chair. "Okay. That's better. Not perfect, but definitely better."

Cole's eyes were bright with a mixture of humor and desire. He relaxed back on his elbows and enjoyed the view of a partially clad Mel leaning over him, carefully inspecting his body.

"Let's see…hmm…what else is wrong with this picture?" She posed the question aloud.

Cole's lips curved. "I think you are wearing too many clothes, Mel." He suggested hopefully, catching a glimpse of a gently curved milky white breast peeking out of her blue teddy at him.

She looked down at the skimpy little teddy she wore. "You think so?"

"Definitely." Cole replied, coining one of her expressions.

"Maybe." She conceded. "But I think there's another problem as well. Care to guess what it is?" She asked him with twitching lips.

Cole glanced down at the white briefs he was wearing and then back up at her. "I have too many clothes on?"

She grinned. "Definitely." Then she proceeded to make the Tracker laugh out loud when she jerked his socks off and threw them over her shoulders to land wherever.

"Now, let's see….hmm…..still not right." She frowned with exaggeration. "Cole! What are you thinking? Didn't I teach you it is tacky to wear briefs without socks? The briefs will have to go."

The Cirronian wore a huge grin as Mel's hands reached for the waistband of the only article of clothing he was still wearing and began to strip it off of him.

Mel removed them very slowly, her eyes watching his every inch of the way.

She finally got them all the way off and smiled tenderly down at him. "Perfect." Mel spoke softly. "You do know that I care for you, don't you, Cole?" They had not used the word 'love' out loud, although Mel was certain she and Cole both not only thought of each other in that sense but felt it as well. Still, she wasn't brave enough to say it first; at least not yet. Despite not voicing any deeper feelings, it didn't stop Mel from looking at Cole with all the love and tenderness she possessed for him.

The Tracker sensed her emotions and responded. "Come here, Mel. I want to kiss you again. I need to touch you." He confided.

She closed her eyes and nodded. "And I want to kiss you. And touch you." She straddled him again.

She felt his erection jump when she climbed on top of him.

Cole drew several quick breaths and Mel noticed his uncertainty about it. "It's okay, Cole. Remember, I told you human mating is very physical."

"Yes, Mel. I know. I just didn't think it would affect my respiration and heart rate to this extent. I'm in excellent physical shape, Mel."

"From where I'm sitting, you're not going to hear an argument from me on that." She chuckled, her eyes turning misty as she ran her seeking hands over the muscles of his chest and down to his abdomen.

Cole's hands began caressing her shoulders, slipping down the sides of her arms. They continued to travel down her body to where her thighs softly embraced his hips. "Please, Mel. Come here. Let me kiss you." His hands abandoned her thighs and began to stroke the base of her throat, returning to the Cirronian touches of affection he found familiar.

She meant to lean forward for his kiss just as he had requested, but his electric touch sent her head back instead, her eyes closed in pleasure.

She felt his hands drop to her breasts, gently cupping them through her gown. "Is this all right, Mel?" He whispered shyly.

She opened her eyes and watched the candlelight flicker over his handsome face. "Yes, Cole, anything you want is permitted. Touch me as much as you want. We share our bodies now. " She encouraged gently.

He flashed Mel a beautiful smile, his voice husky with desire. "Okay, Mel. I want to touch you a lot."

The feminine smile his words generated couldn't be withheld. "That's good, Cole. Would you like me to take off my gown? Or would you prefer to do it?"

The Tracker looked at her like she had offered him paradise. He spoke in a hushed whisper. "I want to take it off, Mel, okay?"

Lips curved in a very feline expression, Mel replied. "I thought you might."

She nodded her permission again when his hands hesitantly reached for the hem of her blue teddy and began to lift it over her head.

She raised her slender arms and allowed him to remove her last barrier to him.

"You are so beautiful, Mel." He whispered reverently as one hand caressed the smooth skin of her throat and the other carefully reached out to gently touch one bare breast. "Lovely, Mel. You are so lovely. You are as beautiful as Cirron 17."

Her eyes grew misty. She supposed that was a supreme compliment coming from a homesick Cirronian.

"Is this how we mate, Mel? With you on top of me?" She could feel him growing harder beneath her.

She shook her curls. "There are many different positions we could try, Cole."

"Is this your favorite, Mel?" He asked, his fingers heating a trail across her stomach.

"I like it. I think most men like it too. But we don't have to stay in this position if you don't wish to." She was quick to add, wanting him to have a choice as to how he wanted to mate with her.

"What are these other positions, Mel?" He asked curiously, reaching up and kissing her lips before she could answer. His arms embraced her, enfolding her in Cirronian warmth.

"This is one." Mel answered, looking at the way they sat facing each other before she nibbled on his neck and chin.

"I like this." Cole replied. "I liked the other one too, Mel. I liked you on top of me."

"Uh huh." She smiled at him. Her fingertips traced the outline of his handsome face before she treated him to another kiss.

On a certain track and not one to lose track, Cole was still curious. "What are some others, Mel?"

She gave into a short laugh. "Well, there is the tried and true missionary."

"Missionary?" Cole asked, his fingers back at her breasts, his eyes staring intently at her nipple's reaction to his touch.

"Yeah, missionary." Mel prattled a quick explanation. "Girl on bottom, boy on top."

His head popped back up. "How does that one feel, Mel?"

Her lips twitched with suppressed humor. "Well, it's rather nice too. It tends to make the woman feel either protected or possessed, depending on the male, I suppose. Usually the man just feels, I don't know…strong and dominant."

Cole frowned. "I don't know if I would like that one, Mel. I don't wish to dominate you."

"You're amazing, Cole," she spoke sincerely but felt it necessary to add for his benefit, "but you probably shouldn't rule it out without trying it. It is a favorite of many couples."

His frown cleared. "Okay, Mel. Lie down. I'll get on top." He ordered in a straightforward manner, typical of Cole.

Mel fell back across the mattress muttering to herself. "We're going to have to work on that protocol of yours."

Cole studied the naked Mel spread out in front of him for enough seconds that she was beginning to blush red when he suddenly stopped staring at her and covered her with his strong body. "Like this, Mel?" He asked as he shifted his weight to his arms and allowed her to breathe.

"Uh huh." She nodded, placing her arms around him while her hands began a tender exploration of his broad back. She opened her legs and allowed his hips to fall into place.

The Tracker's expression changed from uncertainty to one of wonder. "I like this, Mel!"

"Thought you might." She quipped, reaching up and bringing his lips to hers. "We can mate like this, Cole, if you want. Or I can get back on top of you? Whichever you would like."

Cole considered her words. "I like them all, Mel. Let's do them all. Are there others?" He asked eagerly.

She bit her bottom lip and stared up at him. "Well, yes, there are others," she admitted, her fingers playing with his soft hair, "but we can't do every position in The Kama Sutra tonight, Cole. We should choose one this time and then, later, we can try a different one."

She shifted her legs a bit more and he felt his erection press against her. Cole closed his eyes and swallowed. "All right, Mel. We'll mate like this, but later I want to read this Kama Sutra with all the other possible positions."

Mel tried hard not to laugh. She really did, but it was four-thirty in the morning and she was seducing a virginal Cirronian who wanted an in-depth study of the Kama Sutra; so all factors considered, it would have been a miracle if she hadn't given into laughter, she decided.

Cole gave her a puzzled expression when she started giggling.

She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him while her laughter played out.

At first the Cirronian was surprised she was giving him the same type of hug she did when he walked in after being gone tracking for a few days, but when he felt her soft body pressed full against his, Cole decided hugging while naked and on top of Mel was a very pleasant and enjoyable thing. "Hugging is part of mating, Mel?"

She looked into his eyes and answered honestly. "It is for us, Cole."

"Okay. I like hugging." He replied. "But Mel, I think I need more than hugging." He admitted, lifting himself up a few inches so he could glance down at his erection and then back up to her for a telling look.

She started giggling again. "Uh huh. Looks like it." She kissed him and reached down to caress him, guiding him into her. Her eyes sparkled up at Cole when she grinned and said. "Hey, you, can we mate now?"

Cole drew a deep breath when her hand touched him. His brown eyes returned her sparkle. "Yes, Mel." He whispered, kissing her lips as he felt his erection slowly enter Mel.

Instinct had him pushing all the way inside her, deep into the tight warmth of his chosen mate.

Mel closed her eyes and moaned softly, lost to the glorious feeling of Cole becoming such an intimate part of her.

"Mel?" Cole's husky voice called her as his lips brushed against hers again.

She opened her eyes and gave him a tremulous smile, wrapping her legs around his hips and letting him sink deeper inside her. "Oh, Cole, it feels good, doesn't it? It feels so right."

"You feel good, Mel." He agreed softly, his smile bright and quick. "I like this, Mel. Let's do it again."

Her lips kissed the base of his throat, the place he always caressed on her. "We're not through doing it the first time, Cole."

"We're not?"

"No… far from it, in fact." She whispered in a soft kiss, moaning again when she felt him move inside of her.

She was so focused on Cole and their new intimacy that it took Mel a moment to realize someone was knocking rather loudly on her door.

Eyes open wide, Mel suddenly broke off their kiss, her head falling back against her pillow. "Good Lord!"

Cole, who had just now figured out that this physical act of human mating felt even better when he withdrew almost completely from inside Mel before pushing back in, looked up rather desperately at Mel. "Please don't start praying now, Mel! Wait until we are through mating."

Mel stared back at him, speechless for the moment, before shaking her head in denial. "Someone is at the door, Cole."

The Tracker considered this news for all of one second. "They can wait, Mel." He said with absolute conviction, taking the opportunity to try that newly discovered 'withdrawing process' one more time. Yes, he quickly decided. That definitely felt good. That was the way of it, he was certain.

"Cole! They are still knocking. And it's four-thirty in the morning. No one would knock at four-thirty in the morning unless it was important." Mel pointed out with complete misery in her voice.

The Tracker shut his eyes and groaned. "Mel, we are mating." He argued.

"I noticed!" Mel snapped back.

Immediately feeling awful for snapping at her lover, Mel softened her voice and expression. "Cole, I don't want to stop either, but we have to see who it is. It is probably important."

Cole nodded and withdrew from Mel, falling onto his back beside her. He closed his eyes, panted twice, and covered his face with a less than steady hand. "Give me a minute, Mel. You go see who it is."

"I'm sorry, Cole." Mel apologized with a heavy sigh, her voice reflecting complete misery as she groped for her gown. Finding it, she scooted off the bed, threw on her teddy, lifted his hand, planted a soft peck on his lips before allowing his hand to plop back down where it had been as she hurried out of the bedroom, muttering four letter words all the way to the door.

The knocking grew louder and more persistent as Mel lit the candle on the coffee table, until finally a voice was added to the ruckus. "Mel! Cole! Open up! Someone please!"

An English voice; Jess.

Mel froze where she stood and contemplated the murder of the young English woman she thought of as a younger sister; but unfortunately for her sex-life, worry began to take precedence over her initial streak of violence. Why would Jess be knocking on her door at four-thirty in the morning? Any answer that came to her was not good.

Mel threw open the door and glared at the pretty blonde on the other side. "Jess, this better be good. I mean really good."

Jess rushed past Mel with a huge sigh of relief. "Thanks, Mel." She turned back around with wide eyes at Mel's appearance. "Wow! Pretty teddy. Love the blue! Why are you wearing it inside-out?" Jess asked as she unbuttoned her coat and tossed her purse on a chair.

Mel glanced down at her gown and groaned. "It was dark. I didn't notice."

"So the power is off here too?" Jess asked, not surprised by the news.

"Yeah. Your place?" Mel asked.

"The same." Jess replied. "I'm sorry to pop in on you like this, Mel, especially this late and all, but I was too scared to stay at my place without any electricity. You know there has been more than one break-in in my neighborhood and well, with the security system down because of the power outage, I just didn't feel safe. It's not the safest building in the best area of town when the alarm system works." Jess explained as she made her way into the kitchen.

Opening a cabinet and turning to the disheveled Mel who was following her, she added. "I know it is a bit of an imposition, Mel, but may I sleep here with you? The power is off, I know, but it's still safer here than in my neighborhood and they'd have to break into the Watchfire first before your apartment. More doors to go through, you know, bloody discouraging to your average burglar, I'm thinking." The blonde explained her logical reasoning as she filled a glass with some orange juice.

Mel watched Jess help herself to the contents of her refrigerator and dropped her shoulders in defeat. "Sure, Jess. You're right. Your place isn't in the best of neighborhoods. I wouldn't feel right about you staying there when the security system is down. You're welcome to sleep here." Mel added with a genuine smile. It was a small one but there none the less.

"Thanks, Mel. You're a love. I really appreciate it." Jess grinned back at her. "Where's Cole? In his room?" She asked curiously.

Mel opened her mouth to reply then promptly shut it. A frown appeared on her face as she considered her possible answers.

Jess spotted Mel's robe before she had to come up with an answer. "Why is your robe on the counter, Mel?"

Seeing the bowl of melted ice cream, Jess started to laugh. "Oh! One of those nights, huh? Ice cream sundaes? Having trouble sleeping, Mel?" The English girl waggled her eyebrows and gave Mel a saucy grin.

Giving up, Mel shrugged her shoulders and ran her fingers through her hair. "Yeah, a little insomnia and a sundae cure. I left my robe in here while I was making it."

Mel said a silent prayer that Jess wouldn't ask her why she had taken it off in the first place.

"Been there. Done that." Jess chimed sympathetically before taking another sip of her juice.

Cole appeared in front of the kitchen. "Hello, Jess." He greeted the girl with a gentle smile and a sexy bare chest.

Never one to let a handsome male go unnoticed, Jess grinned back at him. "Hey, Cole."

"What are you doing here, Jess?" Cole asked, getting straight to the point.

Jess frowned at the lack of hospitality in his question.

Mel jumped in. "Cole! The power is off at Jess' place too and her building isn't the safest place without a security system, so she came here. She was scared."

Cole nodded. "Okay. You are safe here, Jess." Dismissing the topic of Jess, Cole turned to Mel. "You should go back to bed, Mel." The Tracker ordered softly.

Startled by his suggestion, Mel stared at him, realizing by his expression that he fully intended to join her there. "Uh, well… we need to get Jess settled."

The Tracker nodded again. "Okay."

Jess piped up. "I can sleep on the couch, Mel. I don't want to put you out."

Cole quickly agreed. "Okay, Jess. I'll get you a pillow and blanket." He turned to find the necessary items. "Then after you are on the couch, Mel can go back to bed." He added as he opened the linen closet and rounded up a warm blanket and a spare pillow.

Guilt flooded Mel. Jess was like a sister, even if she did possess the absolute worst of timing. "No, I wouldn't hear of it, Jess. My bed is a double. You can sleep in there with me."

Cole turned back to Mel, his expression troubled. "Mel?"

She gave him an apologetic look. "The couch isn't very big, Cole."

"Neither is Jess." Cole argued gently. "She'll fit fine. I'll measure their lengths if you want me to, Mel." Cole added in a helpful tone. "Where's the tape measure?" The Tracker dumped the blanket and pillow he was holding on top of the counter and began opening kitchen drawers. "Mel, you should label what you keep in which drawers."

Mel rolled her eyes and Jess giggled.

"Cole, it isn't necessary to measure Jess. I know she'll fit on the couch. The point is she shouldn't have to sleep on the couch when there's a perfectly good bed in my room large enough to accommodate her."

The Tracker raised soft brown eyes up to Mel's. Simmering desire still radiated from him.

Mel drew a deep breath and gave Cole her most tender of smiles. "We want Jess to feel welcome, Cole, and I won't put her on an uncomfortable couch."

"It's okay, Mel. Your couch will be fine." Jess assured them, puzzled by the strange undercurrents she was sensing from both Mel and Cole.

Cole turned back to the blonde and smiled. "No, Jess, Mel wants you to sleep in her bed. Why don't you lie down now and fall asleep? Mel will join you later, won't you, Mel?"

Mel covered her smile and shook the unruly curls that had fallen into her eyes. "Cole…"

He had gone back to digging in the kitchen drawers.

Distracted by his actions, Mel watched him. "What are you doing, Cole?"

"Looking for something." His answer came in an uncharacteristically vague response.

"Okay." Mel answered with a confused look.

"Mel, maybe I should go sleep at my girlfriend's place? I just thought you were closer and in a better neighborhood." The blonde hesitated during her explanation, watching Cole rummage through the drawers.

"No!" Cole and Mel both shouted in unison.

Mel turned to Jess. "We won't hear of it. You are staying here."

Jess gave Cole a bewildered look that had a touch of hurt feelings in it. "Cole doesn't seem too happy about it, Mel." She tried to keep the hurt out of her tone. She had always thought Cole was fond of her but he didn't seem to want her there at all.

Cole's head popped back up at her words. His smile was tender and sincere. "Jess, you are staying with us. I'll keep you safe. I don't mind you spending the night in Mel's bed." He stated firmly. Looking back down, he mumbled, "there are other places."

Not hearing his last words, Jess relaxed and her cute smile returned to her pretty face. "All right, if you really don't mind?"

"We don't mind." Mel assured her, grabbing her robe off the counter and putting it back on.

"Found it!" Cole shouted, his hand holding the tape measure.

Jess laughed and Mel's curls tumbled around her shoulders as she giggled at him. "Cole, it isn't necessary to measure Jess."

"I'm not." Cole denied.

He began to measure Mel.

Jess laughed at the amusing sight while Mel closed her eyes and shook her head from side to side. "Cole? Why are you measuring how tall I am?"

Cole looked back up at her and hesitated before stating, "I need to know for…something." His eyes sparkled at Mel.

Giving Mel a secret smile, he turned and began to measure the length of the kitchen countertop.

Realizing his intent, Mel's blue-green eyes grew round with disbelief.

"Is Cole thinking about remodeling your kitchen, Mel?" Jess asked, her attention more settled on how good Cole looked without a shirt as he bent over the counter than on his actions.

"No!" Mel shouted the denial then softened her tone. "No, Jess. He isn't. He is just distracted by this project he started this evening and won't get the chance to finish." Mel said loudly for the benefit of the occupied Cirronian.

"I am going to finish the project, Mel." Cole said without looking up at her.

"Not tonight, Cole." Mel told him gently.

The Tracker looked up at her. "Yes, Mel, we will be able to finish the project tonight." Looking back down at his measurement, he shook his head. "But not here. Too short."

Cole headed into the living room and studied the couch for a minute before shaking his head and looking around at the floor surrounding it.

Jess and Mel placed their elbows on the too-short countertop side by side and watched him from the kitchen. He moved the coffee table over and began measuring the open space left by its previous location.

"Is Cole rearranging your furniture, Mel? Is he always this active in the middle of the night?"

"Looks like it. I'm usually asleep at this hour. But yeah, he tends to be pretty active at night."

When the Cirronian walked back to the counter, grabbed the pillow and blanket and began arranging them on the floor in front of the couch, Mel started to chuckle. "Cole…"

"Does Cole plan on sleeping on the floor, Mel?" Jess asked. "He has his own room. Why would he want to sleep on the living room floor?"

Mel tried to come up with an excuse for the determined Cirronian's behavior that would make sense. Finally she settled on, "He thinks he can protect us better from there rather than in his room. He'll be able to hear if someone tries to break in."

Jess considered that. "Oh, makes sense. But I feel bad about him sleeping on the floor, Mel."

Mel turned to the pretty English girl and chuckled. "Don't be, Jess. I can assure you that Cole is looking forward to lying on that blanket in the middle of the floor." She worked very hard to keep the amused smile from spreading any further across her lips.

The Tracker finished arranging the blanket and glanced up at the two women watching him. "Jess, it's late. You should go to bed. You look tired and humans need rest. Mel will be in later. We have to finish discussing…something….about this project." He watched them with a pleased expression.

Humans need rest? Still puzzled, Jess turned to Mel and whispered. "He's being more 'Forrest Gumpish' than usual, Mel. Is he okay?"

Another smile tugged at Mel's lips. "Yeah, he's fine, Jess. You know Cole. When he gets something in his head, it's hard to distract him or dissuade him."

Jess shrugged and headed toward Mel's bedroom. "If you say so, Mel, but I've never seen a man so fixated on finishing a project at four-thirty in the bloody morning."

Amused, Mel added. "Well, he was really getting into it, Jess." She cleared her throat and looked back at the handsome Cirronian standing in her living room beside his newly constructed 'love nest.'

She grinned at his expression and turned back to the retreating Jess. "Good night, Jess. Just make yourself comfortable. I'm going to speak to Cole for a few minutes then I'll be in there."

"Okay, Mel. Night, Cole! Good luck on your project." Jess called over her shoulder as she opened Mel's bedroom door.

"Thank you, Jess." Cole grinned.

Mel hurried over to the Tracker. "Cole…" She didn't get a chance to finish her sentence before his arms wrapped around her and his lips claimed hers with a heated kiss.

Stunned by the sizzling kiss and the flood of new desire all that heat had created, Mel just stared up at him.

The Tracker gave her a not so innocent smile as he leaned in and whispered against her lips. "Missionary, Mel?"

Still stunned, Mel stammered. "What?"

Cole watched her with eager eyes. "Girl on bottom. Boy on top."

Mel blinked at hearing her own words thrown back at her. "Cole…we can't."

Frowning, Cole replied. "You're right, Mel. The floor is hard and would not be comfortable for you. I'll be on bottom and you can climb on top of me like we did before." His frown disappeared and was replaced by a very eager smile.

Mel closed her eyes and swallowed the growing desire his words had given her. The memory of straddling Cole was not an easy one to erase or discard too quickly. "Cole…Jess is in the other room, just a few feet away. I'm sure she's still awake. We can't." She cried softly.

"Why?" Cole innocently asked.

Mel stammered, "Well because she might hear us or walk out and see us."

Cole considered that for a moment, his expression puzzled. "You don't wish for Jess to know we are mating."

"Making love." Mel corrected without thinking how he might interpret it. "And it's not that I don't wish for her to know, it's just that it is a private matter between us. I might tell Jess later," Mel nodded and then rolling her eyes added, "probably, okay, yes, Jess will know eventually because she is a friend to both of us, but that doesn't mean I wish for her to hear us or open the bedroom door and find us rolling around on the living room floor."

Finished with her rambling explanation, Mel looked back up at Cole to gauge his mood and discovered him grinning at her. "We are making love." He stated, obviously pleased with the wording.

Mel smiled back at him. "Yes…I would say that what we have been doing should be classified as making love."

"It is more than mating." Cole elaborated, his look slightly questioning despite the fact he had pulled Mel back into the warmth of his strong arms.

"Yeah, Cole, it is more than just mating. I mean mating might mean more on Cirron 17, I don't know, but here on Earth if you possess feelings for the person you are mating with, then it becomes making love; something more than just sex."

His lips curved into a gentle smile as his eyes adored her. "Yes, it is making love then."

The Cirronian kissed her.

His hands began to caress her throat.

Mel closed her eyes and melted.

"Will we be rolling around, Mel? We didn't roll in the bed."

She laughed. "Well, no, we didn't get a chance to roll, but rolling is a possibility, especially if you wish to change position; you know, flip."

"We'll be flipping?" His expression was almost comical.

Mel giggled. "Maybe we should just wait until you have a chance to understand a bit more about it?"

"I'm ready, Mel." Cole told her, drawing her next to him and placing her hand on the front of his pants.

Mel groaned, knowing what he wanted would be impossible now with Jess in the apartment, but she stroked him anyway, giving him some satisfaction. "Cole, whether we call it making love or mating, we still can't do it with Jess only a few feet away."

Cole frowned. "I can roll quietly, Mel. I can probably flip quietly too."

Mel covered her mouth with her left hand.  Her eyes were bright.

"Cole, we will finish this, I promise, but I don't think it will be tonight."

"I'll cover your mouth with my hand, Mel if you have trouble being quiet." He suggested, rather pleased with his idea.

Mel shot him a dirty look. "I can be as quiet as the next person, Cole. That's not the problem. There's no door between the living room and my bedroom that we can lock so Jess doesn't walk out and find us." She wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head against his chest. "I'm sorry. I promise we will make love soon, when Jess is gone and the apartment is just ours."

The Tracker held her quietly in his arms for a few minutes, then suddenly took her by the hand and began leading her to his room. "Come on, Mel."

She stumbled over one of her shoes she had left out but Cole kept pulling her along behind him. The Tracker seemed quite determined.

He stopped in the kitchen long enough to grab the candle and box of matches and then proceeded to his war room still towing Mel.

Once they entered the room, he positioned Mel next to his computer, set the candle down and lit it, then turned on his heel and abruptly left her there.

Mel watched the flame from the candle throw strange shadows across his equipment.

What was he up to? She asked herself.

She didn't have to wait long for her answer. Cole returned with the pillow, blanket and two additional cushions from the couch tucked under his arm.

But the most prominent thing he carried into the room was an air of extreme satisfaction.

That same air became more evident when he reached behind him and locked the door to the war room.

Cole tossed the cushions on the floor in front of his desk. The blanket and pillow soon followed.

Mel had a sneaking suspicion that she would be the next thing tossed into the pile.

She had to give him credit for determination and creativity. "Cole?"

His eyes shone brilliantly in the candlelight. "Yes, Mel?"

"I've lost this one, haven't I?" It suddenly occurred to her that this is how the fugitives must feel when they look up and find the Tracker standing in front of them.

His grin was tender and triumphant. "Yes, Mel."

She heaved a rueful sigh. "So, all my plans for waiting to do this when we have a big bed with satin sheets, and soft candlelight and romantic music playing in the background are at this stage of the game a mute point?"

Cole nodded.

Mel studied his face in the flickering candlelight. "I've been looking at this from a human standpoint, haven't I? I have put emphasis on all the things that I assumed you would want and need to make this special. Things I think of, not you."

He nodded again. His eyes grew darker with desire.

"You don't really care whether there is music playing, or soft sheets, or even a bed, do you? The candlelight doesn't matter." Mel stated with renewed certainty.

"I want candlelight, Mel. So I can see you." He argued gently. His eyes shifted to the small candle by one of his monitors. "And I have that."

"None of those other things matter to you." Mel stated firmly.

Cole shook his head. "They would have been nice, Mel. The bed was very nice and the sheets felt good. But they are not the most important thing." He took three steps over to her and pulled her into his arms. "All I really need is you, Mel. That's all I want. I don't care where or how or even what position we do it, as long as I get to become one with you again. I just want to mate…make love…to you. I only need you, Mel. That's all I've ever really needed."

Tears flowing freely down her freckled cheeks, she cried, "And I almost made a mess of it and denied you." Mel shook her head at her own stupidity. "I'm sorry, Cole. I wanted our first time to be special."

"It is." He declared softly, his hands gently stroking her throat.

Her lips curved upward and her hands ran through his chest hair. "Well, it will be unique; making love on couch cushions on the floor in front of a computer in a war room surrounded by my iron that doesn't iron anymore but picks up sound waves instead, and my microwave that does everything but heat up a burrito."

Cole grinned at her. "Do you want me to turn off the iron?"

Mel giggled and threw her arms around his neck, treating him to another warm hug. "I want you to make love to me." She softly whispered in his ear.

Cole arched one eyebrow and said. "Well, I have it on good authority that first we kiss."

"I like it already." Mel quipped.

"Mel, I remember how to get us started, but you will have to tell me when to roll or flip."

She grinned before kissing him again. "I'm not worried about it. I've recently discovered that you can be quite determined when you set your mind to…something."

"Mel?" Cole pretended to survey her clothes. "Something is not quite right."

"Let me guess; I'm wearing too many clothes." Mel laughed, untying her robe and allowing it to slide to the floor.

Cole stopped her when she started to remove her gown. He shook his head 'no' at her. She watched him slide the spaghetti straps off her shoulders, allowing her gown to slip to the floor.

Nervous, she tried to stand still under his close scrutiny, but he seemed to take forever as he slowly admired her nude form.

She finally broke the silence with nervous prattle. "Well, I never dreamed I'd be standing in the middle of your war room stark naked."

Cole's eyes returned to her face. "I have often thought of you here, just like this, Mel."

She looked at him with shock. "You have?"

He watched her with amusement. "Why does that surprise you?"

"I don't know…it just does. I mean you always seem so wrapped up in your work, I just didn't think you thought of things like that."

"I am a male." Cole pointed out.

"Right." Mel's curls bobbed around her shoulders. "You are male." Her eyes dropped to the fly of his pants. "Very much so."

"A male who has been living with a very beautiful female for several months." He added as he began to caress her throat. "Such closeness inspires thoughts of mating."

She grinned up at him. "Tell me about it. Why do you think I was making an ice cream sundae at three-thirty in the morning?"

He looked puzzled before realization set in. "Ah…you were thinking of mating, so you made a sundae?"

"I'm not the first woman to do that, you know." She felt obliged to tell him. "Substituting ice cream or chocolate for sex is quite common."

"Why didn't you just ask me to mate with you?" Cole asked curiously.

Mel stared at him with her mouth open. She started to speak then shut it again. Finally, she just gave up and shrugged. "Beats me."

Cole gave her an odd smile. "Mel, you are such a strange creature."

She gave him a small laugh. "Not the thing to say to a woman when she's standing in front of you completely naked, Cole."

His lips curved. "A very beautiful strange creature."

"Better." Mel advised him.

He cupped her face with both hands and brought her lips up to his, gifting them with a tender kiss. "Mel, I want to be inside you again."

She swallowed the nervous lump in her throat and smiled back at him. "I know." Taking a deep breath, she slowly exhaled and began to unzip his pants. "I don't know if you remember or not, but it works much better with these off."

He grinned and watched her. "Yes, Mel." When the pants were unzipped, he took over the task and quickly dispensed with them, tossing them over his computer monitor.

Mel offered up a small prayer of thanks for the amazing man standing in front of her; the amazing and very well endowed man standing in front of her. It took her a minute to realize that he had been naked under the pants. "Cole? Where are your briefs?"

He pulled her into his arms, bringing her slightly chilled body next to all his hard warm Cirronian heat. "I didn't bother putting them back on, Mel. They are somewhere in your room."

Mel dropped her head and groaned. "Jess! Jess is not one to let a pair of your white briefs go unnoticed, Cole. She'll know you had them off in my room."

"It's okay, Mel. She will find out about us anyway." Always logical, Cole didn't seem to have a problem with it.

"She'll give me hell for days over this." Mel groaned at the same time she was laughing. "She'll never let me live it down. And she'll want details, Cole. Jess is very big on wanting details." She warned him.

Mel didn't think Cole understood the gravity of the situation. He seemed more concerned with heating up every inch of her chilled skin with those amazingly hot fingers of his.

She shivered in his arms.

"Lie down, Mel." He urged gently, helping to lower her to the cushions. He came down on top of her.

God, he felt good on top of her, Mel thought.

Cole held her face in his warm hands, treating her to another one of his heated kisses, with added sizzle, if she wasn't mistaken.

When the kiss was over, he grinned down at her. "I really like this, Mel. We should do this every day."

She laughed at him, spreading her legs so he knew the invitation to enter her was offered. "Every day?" She teased, caressing his handsome face with her soft hands.

He picked up on the invitation and immediately took advantage of it, penetrating her slowly since she wasn't helping guide him this time.

When the entire length of him was deeply imbedded inside her, a masculine groan slipped past his lips, surprising him more than her. "Yes, Mel, every day, several times a day, I think." He added.

She chuckled and wrapped her legs around his hips, drawing him even deeper inside her. "Several times?"

Cole's breath was coming faster and harder. "Mel?"

She kissed his mouth, shushing him at the same time. "It's okay, Cole. What you are feeling is normal. Think of it as a pursuit."

"What are we chasing, Mel?"

"Happiness, Cole." Her lips covered his in a passionate kiss. Her breasts arched upward to press against his hard chest.

The Tracker groaned when her soft breasts rubbed against him. He dropped his head and kissed one.

Mel moaned softly when he did.

The Tracker noticed. He promptly kissed the other one.

That elicited a soft sigh of satisfaction. "Yes, Cole. Oh yes."

"That is something that pleases you, Mel?" He whispered softly, one hand softly stroking the base of her throat.

She closed her eyes and nodded.

The Tracker grinned. "I told you that you would learn to tell me what pleased you."

She opened her eyes and gave him a sultry look. "And I told you that we needed to focus on what pleases you tonight." Mel ran her hand down his chest. She clenched muscles Cole didn't know existed and watched his eyes widen with surprise and desire.

"Mel! That feels good."

"Uh huh." She agreed, squeezing him a second time while her nails lightly raked his back, just enough to make his nerve endings tingle in a delicious way.

"Mel!" He moaned, thrusting into her, breathing hard.

"I'm still here, Cole." She smiled up at him and brushed a lock of dark hair off of his forehead, kissing him on the lips.

He gave her a sweet smile. "I want you, Mel. You are so beautiful."

"You have me, Cole." She whispered to him, arching into his thrust.

The Cirronian closed his eyes with a masculine moan of pleasure.

The human beneath him wore a feminine smile as old as time.

Cole pulled back and thrust into his mate again, "Mel…," his voice was an awe-filled whisper. His hands held her face still so that his lips could cover hers. He pushed into her, his breath shaky and his kiss off center.

He heard her chuckle. She lifted her hips, pulling him deeper inside her. "Come to me, Cole." She urged softly.

Slightly breathless, the Tracker set a steady pace of penetration and withdrawal.

His eyes never stopped staring into hers as his body invaded her feminine warmth time and again.

Mel continued to give him a reassuring smile of tenderness and devotion as he watched her so closely while his hard body rocked against hers.

Tears began to fill her eyes as the emotions passing over his face and the ones she was experiencing began to overwhelm her.

Cole stopped, his arms braced above her, his eyes revealing deep concern. "Mel? You are crying. I am hurting you?"

She hurriedly shook her head, denying the possibility immediately. "Never, Cole. You are not hurting me. I am just emotional. It is part of making love sometimes."

Relief replaced his fear. "Tears. Crying. It's what happens when you care." He recited softly, his thumb brushing away the moistness sliding down her soft cheek. He remembered learning that lesson when he first met Mel as he leaned over her in a field beside the road.

The Tracker had not known then what this beautiful creature would come to mean to him.

He did now.

She gave him an encouraging smile and reached up to kiss him. "Please, Cole. I still want you."

The Cirronian nodded gently at her and entered her again, more confident in his rhythm this time.

She had been right, Mel congratulated herself silently. He had a way of picking up new things amazingly fast.

Totally absorbed in making Cole's first time everything it could be, Mel hadn't even considered the possibility that the Cirronian currently on top of her just might become skilled enough in his first attempt at lovemaking that he could actually bring her to climax.

So it came as quite a surprise to Mel when her own breathing began to escalate and she suddenly experienced that telling desire to stretch her body up and against his, tightening and flexing her muscles in her own pursuit of what the French referred to as 'the little death.'

Shocked at this turn of events, Mel tightly shut her eyes and began to pant, "Yes, Cole." She mumbled, her hands eagerly seeking the feel of his heated skin and broad chest. Her grip on the strong arms braced above her became demanding.

Enjoying the physical act of intimacy with Mel, Cole had begun to pace himself, accurately sensing that this was the way of it with this mysterious human mating ritual. Mel's behavior had indicated that it was. But Cole had been watching Mel very closely, not just because he was mesmerized by her and always enjoyed watching her, but also because he was determined to pick up on any subtle signals she might be sending to him that would instruct him as to what he was supposed to do next.

Cole didn't want to miss the signal for when to roll or flip.

When Mel's breathing changed and she stopped watching him, Cole grew uneasy. "Mel?"

Panting harder now, Mel nodded at hearing his voice but didn't reply.

She did push both of her heels against the cushion and lift her hips into his, eagerly meeting his thrust. "Yes, Cole…," she moaned.

He didn't stop, her thrusts back at him felt too good to do that, but his concern did grow. "Are you all right, Mel?"

A short chuckle answered his question and she managed to open her eyes long enough to look at him. "Oh, yes… I'm better than all right, Cole. Don't stop."

"Okay, Mel." Cole gave her a half-smile, still concerned that she wasn't acting the way Mel usually acted.

She closed her eyes again. "Cole!" She cried softly, her hands dragged his lips down to hers for a passionate kiss.

Cole treated her demand with a generous dose of sizzling Cirronian heat.

"Good Lord!" Mel cried out when he broke off his kiss.

Cole eyed her warily. He did not wish to stop mating so that she could pray. It only took a moment for him to realize Mel didn't have any intention of stopping, she was clinging to him. "Yes, Cole, yes…oh…yes…"

The Tracker's expression grew more puzzled, but the mating process was too enjoyable and compelling for him to question her remarks just then.

Cole felt Mel's body grow taut, developing a degree of tenseness about it that he had never sensed from her before, even in her most distressed of times.

"Cole!…Cole!" she called through rapid breaths.

"Yes, Mel?" Cole answered, his own breath a bit labored. Mel's reactions were beginning to have an effect on him as well.

"Cole!" Mel uttered his name in fast pant. "Cole! Cole!"

"Yes, Mel?" Cole watched her, his face concerned.

She threw back her head and arched the rest of her lovely body up into his hard thrust. "Cole!" She cried, "Cole! Cole!" She cried again, her voice rising with each shout of his name.

"What, Mel!" Cole demanded in a firm voice, stopping all movement but remaining sheathed inside of her.

"Cole!"

Mel gave one final shout of his name and fell back against the cushions, suddenly and completely limp beneath him.

It was then he felt the waves generated by her climax squeezing him repeatedly. Instinct took over and his body began to thrust into hers again.

"Mel?" He asked, breathless himself now.

Wet lashes fluttered open and her smile greeted him. "Yes, Cole. It's okay, it's supposed to be like this." She whispered; loving hands caressed his handsome face as he stroked inside of her.

"It is?" He managed to ask, his voice breaking.

Mel wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her aroused nipples against his chest. "Yes, Cole. It feels good, doesn't it?"

"I don't know, Mel."

She smiled and urged him to continue. "It will feel even better in a little bit, Cole. Just keep doing what you are doing."

"This is very strange, Mel. My body wants something my mind doesn't understand." Cole told her, his breaths rapid and uneven.

From the little Mel had come to understand about Cirronians, she realized they were an intelligent species who always considered the consequences of any action they might take. It suddenly occurred to her that sex might not be as pleasant for Cole as she or he had predicted.

She tried to soothe him. "You are supposed to let it happen, Cole. After this first time, your mind will know what your body is striving for. It won't feel strange again. Just relax your mind and focus on joining with me." She advised softly, her hands brushing the fallen locks out of his face.

He stared at her trustingly. "Okay, Mel."

She pulled him closer and raked her nails down his back again.

He shuddered and closed his eyes.

"Harder, Cole," she whispered against his lips. His eyes flew open.

She nodded at him to assure him he had heard correctly.

He pushed harder into her. The look he gave her was one she couldn't read, but he repeated the stroke with the same intensity.

She smiled up at him with misty eyes. "Faster, Cole," she urged softly, kissing his lips in a gesture of affection as light as a feather as she whispered the instructions.

He gave her another look of uncertainty, but did as she suggested.

Mel's left leg remained tangled with Cole's long torso, but in a surprising move, she brought her right leg up and allowed her ankle to rest against the sexy Cirronian's left shoulder.

His head turned and Cole stared at her foot, almost disbelieving that she had positioned herself in such a way.

When she rocked back on her pelvis and allowed him to experience exactly how good it felt for her to open herself to him in such a fashion, the Cirronian broke into a huge grin.

Mel gave him a very sultry smile. "Harder, Cole. Faster, Cole." She reminded him while Mat-adore Red toes played with the ends of his dark hair.

"Yes, Mel." He chuckled, leaning down to kiss her, gasping because he hadn't counted on the sensation feeling as good as it did with her leg raised like that.

He groaned in delight as she welcomed his last thrust.

"Mel!" He shouted.

She lifted her head and kissed him on the chest. "Hmm?" She hummed with a knowing smile.

"Mel..." Cole stammered, his hips rocking against hers with more force than they had been.

She brought his head down to hers and kissed him on the lips.

"Faster, remember, Cole?" She urged with a trembling smile.

"I don't want to hurt you, Mel."

"You won't. Trust me. Go with what your body is telling you."

His expression was a pained one. "Okay, Mel."

Still, the gentle Cirronian wouldn't give into his desire.

Mel's eyes filled with tears. "Cole, human mating is very physical. Remember? You won't hurt me. I'd tell you if I became uncomfortable, okay?"

He nodded, his eyes wet and his breathing ragged.

Mel withdrew her leg from atop his shoulder and wrapped it around his hips, arching up into his thrusts and running her palms down his back to cup that part of him Jess so elegantly referred to as his 'bum.'

It truly was a work of art.

His eyes watched her, his expression so uncertain, so troubled.

Mel urged him with her hands. "I want you inside me, Cole, as deep as you can go, please?" She pleaded gently.

Her hands squeezed his bum at the same time other parts of her squeezed him.

His restraint shattered. Cole drove into Mel with a deep stroke that took her breath away, but true to her words, did not hurt her.

She gasped though and his eyes flew to her face in concern.

Quick to reassure him she was not hurt by his actions, Mel pleaded, "Yes, Cole! Like that. Keep doing that, please."

His lips began to curve into a smile. "Okay, Mel. Like that." He nodded and began an assault on her senses that left him breathing hard and fast and Mel, amazingly enough, on the verge of her second climax.

Stunned, she just held onto him.

Mel knew she had tears in her eyes, produced by all the heightened emotions surging through her, so when Cole seemed to carry a soft yellow glow about him as he made love to her, Mel dismissed the strange effect as just a trick of blurry eyes; blurry eyes and flickering candlelight. That's what she told herself, although a part of her did wonder if Cole could 'glow' at times. He certainly possessed other abilities; some even stranger. Actually if he did 'glow' a little, Mel thought that might be the one ability of his that she could rapidly develop a fondness for. He was spectacularly handsome when he glowed, especially when he glowed and kissed her at the same time. "You're losing it, Porter." Mel told herself with a mental shake designed to return her mind to its senses. Glowing? Get real.

Mel tried to watch him as he penetrated her time after time, stroke after stroke, but when she felt another climax coming, a disbelieving little laugh escaped and she reached up to claim Cole's mouth for a much needed kiss.

Mel's second orgasm was what finally sent the Tracker over the edge and into his first.

She heard Cole shout "Mel!" just once, but very loudly before he collapsed on top of her and buried his face in the crook between her neck and shoulder.

He was heavy.

She felt him pulsing deep inside of her, releasing his semen as she tried to calm her own breathing.

She had just regained a measure of her normal even respiration when the thought of his 'semen' threw her into a stunned panic, effectively taking her breath away again. Images of a dark-haired, dark-eyed adorable little toddler who never slept and liked to zip around her apartment in hyperspeed slammed into her, abolishing all hopes of normal breathing ever again. "Good Lord!" She shouted.

She felt the Cirronian smile against her neck. "Do all human females pray during and after mating, Mel?"

"I'm not praying, Cole." She muttered, silently thinking to herself that she damn well better think about it, considering she had just engaged in sex and had failed to take any precautions whatsoever.

Thinking back to the date of her last period, Mel began to feel a tiny bit better. It really wasn't a fertile time, she deduced.

Her fingers stroked the soft dark hair cuddled next to her.

He felt so right like this.

Mel closed her eyes, putting away her fears of fast sleepless Cirronian toddlers for the moment as she realized she had been awake almost twenty-four hours and was bordering on complete exhaustion. She petted the gentle Cirronian nestled against her. He was smothering her with his larger frame but it felt too good to complain.

He felt wonderful. Her lips curved upward. 

"Cole, are you all right?" She whispered.

Again, she felt his answering smile against her skin. "Yes, Mel." There was wry humor in his voice.

She hugged him tighter and began to drift off to sleep, content to just hold this amazing man.

"We mated and made love, Mel." She heard him whisper in awe.

"Yes, we did." She agreed softly, gently raking her nails up his back.

He shuddered and she felt that wonderful smile once again. "That feels good, Mel."

"I know." She chuckled.

Cole braced himself on his elbows and raised his head to stare down at the beautiful female under him. "We made love." He repeated; his eyes filled with wonder.

Sleepy, Mel's lashes barely lifted. "Yes, we did. And we did it very well too, I might add."

Pleased that she thought so, Cole grinned. "Did we?"

Mel grinned. "Do you feel wonderful?"

He nodded quickly.

"Me too," she agreed.

"When can we do this again, Mel?" Cole innocently asked, eagerness marking his words.

"Uh…well….when we're ready, Cole. When you're ready, it takes a while for the body to….recover."

"Like hyperspeed?" Cole asked.

"Sort of, but not exactly, the girl can bounce back quicker than the male. It takes a period of rest before you will be able to…perform again."

"Really?" His tone seemed doubtful. "Are you sure, Mel?"

"Yes." She answered, shifting beneath his weight.

Her eyes flew open and she stared up at him.

Cole was grinning down at her. "I'm ready, Mel. I've rested. It's been three or four minutes."

He was hard again. He was still inside of her.

Mel groaned but her mouth curved upward. "Oh My God!"

Cole shot her a dirty look.

She caught it and started to laugh, hugging him as she did. "I promise I'm not about to start praying, Cole."

"That's good, Mel. You can pray when we are through mating…making love." He corrected himself with a happy grin.

His hand came up to stroke the base of her throat in his sweet fashion. "Mating…making love is very different from how Cirronians do it, Mel. There is much more to it than what we saw on the couch at the seminar, isn't there?" His hand continued to caress her soft skin and Mel's lashes fluttered shut as she absorbed the gentleness of his soothing energy as well as the intimacy of his position.

He felt so right inside of her.

She had never wanted another man with this degree of desire before.

But she was so exhausted.

"Cole…I haven't slept in almost twenty-four hours. It's almost dawn. I want to make love to you again but I'm so tired, I can't even think straight. You wouldn't believe the things my mind is coming up with." Her eyes filled with tears when she spoke.

Cole studied her in the soft candlelight and then nodded sweetly, starting to withdraw from her. "You look exhausted, Mel. It is past time for you to get the rest humans need."

When Mel felt him start to pull out of her, she clenched him tightly. "No! I know I've got to sleep, Cole, but…," she tossed her curls against the cushions and gave him a rueful smile. "I still want to feel you inside me. It feels right…somehow. I love the intimacy of us being…joined like this. Please, can I just fall asleep with you still a part of me?" She asked hesitantly, wondering how he would respond to what he must consider a very strange request.

His dark eyes watched her tenderly before his lips curved into an understanding smile. "I don't mind, Mel."

She kissed him, closing her eyes with a soft smile afterward. "Wonderful. I just need five or six hours sleep, Cole and then we can talk about…well…us mating. I know you must have more questions, but I'm just too tired tonight to give a sensible answer. Okay?"

He kissed the end of her cute nose. "Making love, Mel. It's called making love, not mating." His fingers stroked her skin.

She opened her sleepy eyes. "I know." She wiggled under him and frowned. "Cole, you're too heavy on top of me, we should flip, so I can sleep."

He grinned. "Boy on bottom, girl on top?"

She grinned back at him. "Yeah."

"Okay, Mel."

The next thing Mel knew, she was flipped and on top of him, her head securely held against his throat. He was still sheathed inside of her. His hands were rubbing warm circles down the sides of her arms.

A little unsettled that she didn't remember the flip or the repositioning, Mel shrugged her shoulders and snuggled into his warmth. Her lips pressed against his masculine throat. "I keep forgetting how fast you Cirronians can be." She mumbled without true complaint.

Cole grinned. "I not only rolled and flipped, Mel, but I did it quietly."

She chuckled and nodded. "Cole, I want to talk to you, but I really can't stay awake another minute."

"Go to sleep, Mel. We'll talk when you wake up, after we make love again."

It was now Cole's turn to feel her smile against his throat. "Hmm… what have I created?"

"What do you mean, Mel?"

She sighed. "Nothing, Cole, I was just teasing you. It used to be you could only find time for tracking fugitives, now you talk as if you have plenty of time to make love to me."

Cole considered that. "I don't sleep, Mel. That gives me an advantage. I can track while you sleep and make love to you when you are awake."

Mel bit her bottom lip to keep from laughing out loud, not wanting to hurt his feelings. "Cole, we still have the Watchfire to run, you know. I can't make love all day."

"I know, Mel. But there will still be many opportunities in the day and night for us to make love. Fortunately, your business doesn't always have many customers. We can come upstairs and make love during the slow periods, Mel. Some days it is slow all day." He happily answered, quite pleased with his new strategy for making love to Mel and chasing fugitives.

"I never regarded those days as good ones, Cole." She remarked drolly.

"Now you can, Mel." He replied in an extremely pleased baritone that had an erotic effect on her, proving to her that he was probably right in his assessment. If Cole planned to make love to her all day long when business was slow, she just might find herself sliding into bankruptcy with a supremely satisfied smile on her face.

"That's one way of looking at it, I suppose." She quipped, covering her yawn with a delicate hand.

"Sleep now, Mel. We'll make love in the morning." The Tracker ordered softly.

"Hmm." She hummed, snuggling into his warmth. "I love you, Cole." She mumbled in a low whisper just before she fell asleep.

Tears filled his dark eyes.

Cole held his new mate in his strong arms, smiling at the way her soft curls tickled his nose when he breathed in the alluring fragrance of her shampoo.

Mel.

She meant everything now. He would continue to do his job and he would keep her safe. He would love her. He would make love to her. He would tease her.

The Cirronian had developed a love for teasing the easily excitable Mel. He grinned as he considered the first words he would say to her when she woke up in his arms.  'Hey, you? You finally awake? Can we mate now?'

The End

(well, maybe not….)