TITLE: Whispers in the Night

AUTHOR: LOTSlove®

CHARACTERS: Richard / Kahlan

RATING: R/M

WARNINGS: Author Chooses Not to Use Warnings

TIMELINE: Sometimes towards the end of S2

DISCLAIMER: I'm completely obsessed with the show Legend of the Seeker and all things Richard and Kahlan. I love to write about them even though they cancelled my show and now I'm fighting to get it back!

SUMMARY: Richard gets an earful when Kahlan talks in her sleep. Written from Richard's POV.

Whispers in the Night

Working my way through the shifting dark shadows of the woods, I can't stifle the yawn that struggles for freedom. It had been a long day and I am more than anxious to settle in for the night especially knowing who is there waiting for me.

I can't help the smile that meets my lips as I think about her, excitement pulsating through my veins to be travelling alone with Kahlan for a change. While Zedd and Cara would always be family, their constant help and support more than appreciated, I am beyond thrilled to have some time alone with the woman I love.

As much as I will always treasure our shared knowing glances of longing from across the campfire, the occasional lingering brush of a hand or the secret stolen kisses we share, I long for time alone with just her, wrapping my arms around her and holding her against me, kissing her breathless.

Just being near her without watching eyes, being able to absorb and enjoy each other's love without a string of interruptions seems like an unrealistic fantasy any more. But now, it is finally a reality for us, at least for a short time.

I know that it makes Kahlan a little wary being alone with me, fearful of giving into temptation and confessing me, but I hold no fear of her or her magic. Our love for each other is enough; my love is enough to protect me, shielding me from confession. I believe it, know it with every fiber of my being.

I don't know how I know; I just…know.

Whether it's the Seeker in me or my own innate instincts, I know that my love for her is enough. I love her above all else – even my own life, more than happy to lay it down for her without a second thought. I have been hers since the moment our eyes met that fateful, knowing even then on some subconscious level that I would love no other but her.

Entering our camp, I feel my face suddenly fall as I come to an abrupt stop, finding Kahlan already asleep by the campfire. I know I have no one to blame but myself as I just stand there staring at her, suddenly mesmerized by her intoxicating beauty.

She's lying curled up on her side on her favorite green blanket, the orange flames of the fire creating a warm ethereal glow on her beautiful face. Her raven locks are splayed over her pack that is her pillow, her long dark lashes softly brushing against her cheekbones like a butterfly's wings.

My breathing suddenly becomes a little more labored as my gaze caresses the delicate curve of her cheek and jaw, wishing it was my lips instead of my eyes on her now. I find myself aching to kiss her slightly parted lips, to run my fingers through her dark silken strands. My limbs suddenly feel so empty, wanting her to be filling up the emptiness that surrounds me, to feel her breath pulsating so sweetly against my face as I curl my body around hers.

With a heavy frustrated sigh, I slowly make my way to sit on the other side of the campfire, resigning myself to the fact that I won't be touching her until morning now. I can't really blame myself for her falling asleep, though.

We're both tired, all the traveling and searching for the last several months beginning to catch up to us. Besides, I took far longer getting cleaned up at the lake than I had realized, allowing myself to enjoy a leisurely swim in an effort to wash away the constant stress of our quest. It wasn't until I had noticed the sun beginning to set behind the mountains just how late that it was actually becoming.

I shift forward moving closer to the fire, adding a few more pieces of wood to make sure it will burn long into the night keeping us both warm. I can't help but pause to glance at Kahlan's sleeping form again. I wish I could slid in beside her so I can sleep next to her, her body molded firmly against mine as we sleep together like a normal couple for once, but nothing about us is normal.

With a huff of resignation, I pull my pack into my lap, digging out my bedroll when I suddenly hear my name. I pause what I'm doing to look across the camp fire at Kahlan who is still sleeping soundly.

I wait for a brief moment, watching her to see if it was truly her or just my imagination playing tricks on me. Her lips suddenly move subtly as she begins to whisper her secrets to me in her sleep. A smile tugs at the corners of my lips, warmth coalescing in my heart with the sudden thought of her actually dreaming about me.

I find myself fantasizing about my beautiful Confessor almost every night in my sleep, passionate heated dreams that fully allow me to express my love for her like I have so badly wanted to the last year and a half. I would often wake then, my breathing shallow and heart pounding, my body fully aroused without finding the release that I so desperately crave deep within her.

Staring at her now, I had never stopped to think that maybe Kahlan ever dreamed about me as well, her sleep filled with thoughts of me, doing things with me that I have longed to do with her for so long now.

The soft sigh of my name on her lips brings me out of my steadily growing heated thoughts. I feel a warm flutter erupt in my belly as I wait with bated breath to see if she might say something more to me. Just hearing her say my name in her sleep alone is awakening my deep-seated need for her, breathing new flames into it.

With a throaty moan, Kahlan shifts her leg forward, the slit in her skirt falling open revealing even more of her gorgeous thigh. Having cleaned up before me, she hadn't put her boots back on before going to sleep, allowing me a very generous view of her long legs.

I am growing more and more anxious to touch her, to run my fingers along her creamy thigh and caress her soft skin. I ache to be embraced between those beautiful strong legs of hers, to feel her thighs gripping at my hips as I make love to her.

"Richard," she softly moans, sending a shiver up my spine.

My name is growing more breathless, more sultry with every pass by her sweet lips, my hunger for her intensifying with every rapid beat of my heart. Kahlan's chest begins to rise and fall a little faster, the tops of her breasts spilling over her corset and tantalizing me even more. I long to kiss her, to taste and to tease every inch of her with my mouth.

I don't remember ever hearing her talk in her sleep quite like this before. There was an occasional, indecipherable murmur or a breathy sigh, but nothing nearly as pronounced as this. It's heating my blood as I anxiously wait for her next word, the next sensual hum that will escape her throat.

Kahlan suddenly moans, an absolutely sinful drawn-out sound that causes my heart to stutter in my chest. I'm afraid to move, to even breathe for fear it will break the blissful spell that she holds me in at that moment.

"Richard…"

The drawn out sound of my name is so tortuous, so wanton that I find myself breathing harder as I lean forward, my fingers wrapping tightly around my pack suddenly forgotten now in my lap as I watch her growing flush with the sensual dream that has invaded her sleep.

My tongue subconsciously darts out to wet my lips, my heart pounding wildly with excited anticipation, my gaze locked solely on her. I don't know what arouses me more now – the fact that she is having an erotic dream or that I'm the one she is dreaming of being with.

Nothing else exists in that moment except for me and Kahlan as I watch her, the flames of the fire separating us now beginning to envelope me. The fact that she has even chosen to fall in love with me still never ceases to amaze me, leaving me in complete awe. It's beyond imagining that the powerful Mother Confessor would ever love a simple woods' guide from Westland. It doesn't make any sense that she would love me and yet she does.

"Yes…yes…Richard…yes…" she softly pants, her head tilting back, a raven lock of hair falling across her beautiful face.

My throat goes dry like a desert as she slowly curls her long fingers into her green blanket, fisting the material tightly as her teeth rake along her bottom lip. A low groan fills my ears and I suddenly realize that I am the one making that sound this time.

I squeeze my eyes closed for a brief moment in a futile attempt to tamp down on the heated arousal that sears through my entire body now and yet I don't want to miss one single second of the breathtaking display unfolding before me now.

Opening my eyes, I find my knuckles are white from the death grip I have on my backpack. I uncurl my fingers from my pack before setting it aside. My entire body is coiled tight with fiery need, arousal throbbing painfully through me and settling low in my pelvis.

"Please, Richard…don't stop…please…"

Her breathless moaning plea for me as she slowly rolls onto her back, her leg bending up is almost my undoing as I grip my thighs tightly, my breathing growing more ragged by the moment. If I don't touch her…kiss her soon I feel as though I'll go mad.

Another gasping moan from her is the last that I can take as I suddenly leap to my feet with a throaty growl. I make my way to her, kneeling down beside her, my hand gently coming to rest against her rosy cheek.

Kahlan slowly turns her face towards me, relaxing into my touch even in her sleep. "Richard…" she murmurs. "I love you…"

Her words cause me to freeze. I know that she loves me and I love her with all my heart but neither of us has ever said the actual words yet. To hear them now murmured so passionately in her sleep sets my entire body aflame with the want for her that is already pounding through me.

I need to be with her now, to feel her soft skin beneath my touch, to be buried deep within her wet molten core. Nothing else but her will ever satiate the fierce desire inside of me.

I lightly run my fingers along her hairline, tracing her beautiful face as my name leaves her lips in an airy rasp of pleasure. I find myself suddenly torn between watching her in the fierce grip of her erotic dream and waking her so I can be with her, relieve the heated state I now find myself in.

I either need to make love to her now or go for another long cold swim. Either way, I have to do something to relieve the painful throbbing in my pants that's begging for release.

I am determined to make her believe me, to at last help her let go of the fear of confessing me and finally just surrender to our love for one another. The thought of creating a child with her only intensifies my need for her, my hunger demanding to be sated despite the risk of confession which I do not fear.

I move to straddle her, keeping the majority of my weight off of her as I lean in to press my lips softly against hers. She moans softly against my lips and I kiss her harder, my hands slipping into her hair. I feel her begin to return my kiss and I pray that she won't push me away, not this time.

I need her like I need the air that fills my lungs for she is more than my Confessor, my best friend. She is my heart, my life. Without her…I don't want to live.

Kahlan's hands are suddenly in my hair, pulling me closer as the kiss grows more passionate. I open my eyes and find hers still closed, but I know she is awake. I can feel it in her body, in the way that she shifts beneath me, her legs opening to welcoming me.

I lower myself even more over her, unable to keep from grinding my hips into hers. She breaks the kiss to gasp at the sudden feel of me so hard against her and I immediately capture her lips again, desperate for so much more.

I swallow her throaty moan as she parts her lips for me, my tongue tangling with hers in a heated duel that I am more than happy to surrender to her. The feel of her tongue in my mouth is electric and I can't help but need to feel more of her.

My hand quickly leaves her hair and searches for the clasps of her jacket, the urgency to feel her skin against mine growing more uncontrollable, more tangible as she helps me remove it from her body. I am even more insatiable in my heated assault on her now that she's awake, encouraging me as she raises her hips to roll against mine.

Her hands work my shirt free and we pause only long enough to remove it before I kiss her again – hard, rough, desperate. I know I should slow this down, but my body - my need for her won't allow it. And by the way she's frantically tugging at the laces of my breeches, I can tell that Kahlan doesn't want me to slow down now. She wants me as much as I want her.

I can't get enough of her no matter how much I kiss her. Every touch, every kiss, every breathy moan leaves me quivering inside, desperate for more of her. Every breath she draws in is mine and I find myself growing even harder with the thought.

Her hand is suddenly inside of my breeches, her fingers wrapping so gently around me that it causes my breath to catch in my throat. She hisses with the feel of my hard heat in her hand and I press my head into her shoulder as she begins to gently stroke me. It's all I can do not to fall apart right there.

"Spirits, Kahlan…" I rasp and I'm at a complete loss for any more words as she loves me.

My head is spinning now, my breathing ragged as she begins to kiss my ear as she teases me with her lips as well as her long fingers. Her velvet touch is so loving, so erotic I can't help the tears that are suddenly pricking my eyes now.

I can't believe that this is really happening, that I am making love with my beloved Kahlan, sharing something so intimate and special, something that I have craved to do with her for what feels like my whole life.

I kiss along her collarbone, doing my best to focus on her and not the pleasure that she is bringing me with her fingers for fear that I'll come and it'll all be over before we've really begun. She suddenly tightens her grip on me and a strangled unrecognizable sound escapes my lips. I bite down on her shoulder, sucking hard and knowing that I will leave my mark on her fair skin, but I don't care.

She is mine and forever will be. She will never belong to another. Never.

A sharp gasp fills my ears as I nip at her throat, her fingers beginning to move faster. Unable to bear it any longer, I gently grasp her wrist and pull her hand free from my breeches, crushing my lips against hers in gratitude and undying love.

I quickly begin to remove her corset, needing to finally taste her skin, to fully reveal to me her breasts, the tops of which have teased and taunted me for months now. I kiss along her chest, her back arching as I take her into my mouth. The throaty cry she releases only urges me on as her fingers find my hair again, twisting it in her fingers and tugging.

I growl against her soft flesh, my hands caressing her sides and working to remove her skirt. I need to be inside of her now, to feel her wet heat welcoming me, embracing me, gripping at me. I long to feel her muscular thighs clutching me to her, keeping us connected as one.

She helps me remove the rest of our clothing and I pray that this is not just a dream that I'm going to wake from any time soon. But I know that this isn't a dream because nothing that I've ever dreamt about being with her could ever compare to the reality of this fiery dance, this passionate demonstration of our love for one another.

I pause to gaze into her brilliant cobalt eyes, to caress her face. I press my forehead against hers, sensing her sudden nervousness, her fear. "I love you, Kahlan," I murmur to her, softly kissing her nose. "Trust me."

"I do," she softly pants against my face, the love for me shining in her eyes taking my breath away. "I love you, Richard."

I force myself to move slowly, gently easing into her as I caress her thigh, further bending her knee up. She gasps and I pause to kiss her lips again, doing my best to absorb the pain that I know that I'm causing her. I continue to press further into her and I feel her body so tense around me that I can't help but gasp.

I pause again, gently caressing her sides with my hands, giving her time to adjust to my intrusion. Her breathing begins to even out again and her hands find my backside, kneading my flesh and urging me on.

I moan into her mouth as I kiss her hard, fully finally sheathing myself deep within her and I know with all my heart that I am finally home where I belong. We both break the kiss, relishing in the euphoric sensation of the moment, of finally being joined as one flesh with the one that owns our heart.

I begin to move, unable to hold on much longer. This is my beautiful Confessor, my beloved Kahlan that I am making love to and it's all I can do not to come right there with the blissful thought. I know her magic could rise up and snatch me at any moment and I am not afraid. In fact, I welcome it. I am more than ready to do battle with her deadly powers and prove myself true to her.

Kahlan begins to move with me, her hips rising in perfect rhythm with me and it feels as if we had been created for one another, made for this dance together. Sweat trickles down my back and glistens on our bodies as she rakes her fingernails over my muscles causing me to move faster, harder.

The feel of her soft skin against mine, her thighs clutching me tightly between her legs is even better than I had dreamed and I further press her knee against her chest, allowing myself to sink even deeper within her.

Our mingled cry of ecstasy fills the night air and I can hold back no longer as I drive into her. She clenches around me, her magic rising like a fiery phoenix within her and I grab hold of her face with one hand to gaze directly into her eyes as she comes for me.

Her magic sweeps through me like an intense gust of wind, rushing through me only to suddenly dissipate in a gentle breeze just as quickly as it had come. Her eyes swirl to black before returning to blue, crushing her lips to mine as I pound into her over and over again, my release coming in a fierce rush of sweet erotic bliss.

I collapse on top of her, boneless and trembling violently as she wraps her limbs around me, protecting me in her sweet embrace. I kiss her slowly, my heart hammering wildly in my chest as I fight to recover my strength.

"My Richard," she chokes out as she strokes my hair, staring into my eyes with tears in her own.

"I knew my love would protect me," I tell her, reading the silent question in her eyes.

She smiles softly in response, tears in her blue eyes still clouded with rapture. "My dream came true," she whispers, an expression of pure wonder and awe lighting her face still aglow from our fierce love making.

"I want to make all your dreams come true," I reply, kissing her swollen lips which I'm surprised aren't bruised from my passionate assault on her.

"You already have," she smiles my special smile that lights my entire world and I feel myself already growing hard once more.

I smile as I kiss her again, my lips brushing softly against hers as she suddenly rolls me onto my back. I look up at her breathtaking beauty as she straddles me, overcome with the emotions pounding through me. She's all mine…always, forever.

She begins to make love to me now, my eyes falling closed with the passion she is stirring within me all over again and I can hardly believe that our freedom to love one another had begun tonight with a whisper of my name.

THE END