A/N Okay, this is for all you that wanted me to get to the lemon. It isn't the lemon, but it does give some steam. I hope you all like it a little bit since I know I've been very wicked leaving ya'll with only one chapter last week. *Looks up with glittery puppy eyes* Please forgive me. This one will get a little more adult themed- citrus-y, so if you don't like that kind of thing just skip over the part starts with ~~~ and ends with~~~.

Christmas Eve found Marva, Maria, Anna, and Claudia in the kitchen preparing the enormous feast that would start tonight and the leftovers would hold them through Christmas day. Marva had many years of practice to prepare these meals for an entire ranch, but now she had the added challenge of feeding Saya, her family, and the members of the Red Shield as well. Two very large tom turkeys that Joey had brought back from a hunting expedition were prepared- one smoked and the other roasted. A spiral ham was coated with honey and roasting in the oven along with the venison sausage from the 10 point buck Hagi hunted down in November. Marva always wondered how he managed to bring down those huge deer with just a handful of daggers.

There was a traditional tray of tamales Anna made, and a soup with pinto beans and cilantro, and her spicy salsa complimented the enchiladas she made as well. They would have all the vegetable and rice dishes to work with next. There were pies and cakes cooling as they awaited the finishing touches.

Anna would eye the stealthy Lewis trying to sneak by and stir the soup or taste something every once in a while. He enlisted Lulu to try to distract the women from time to time while he made his move. Anna finally had enough of this and went to the front door calling out "Mr. Trudeaux!" Hagi knew that Anna was upset when she called him by his last name. He appeared almost instantly and Anna relayed the situation in Spanish. Lewis and Lulu didn't understand what was being said, but they knew from the chevalier's stone faced expression that there would be no more trouble from them today.

The women put the finishing touches on dinner as the sun was low in the sky. Hagi and Dan led the tour of the winery, pointing out the vats that were working and what was in them. They kept a slower pace so that Joel could keep up.

Mao held her growing belly every once in a while when her baby kicked. Okamura would whisper that she should sit down, to which she responded, "I'm only 6 months pregnant. Stop treating me like an old lady!" They decided that they would lay off the traveling, except for this occasion, until the baby was in school and could stay with Kai and Kaori in Okinawa during the school year.

Okamura took a job as a reporter for the newspaper in Tokyo where they now lived.

Kai and Kaori were planning to have a second child as well. They wanted a girl this time, but George wanted another boy to play with.

Julia and David surprised everyone when they showed up with Michael and a brand new little girl. She was only a month old. She was named Lisa by her birth mother. Julia and David had decided that they should adopt a child the way George had adopted his three children. There are so many children in the world that need a good home, so Julia and David decided to open theirs to the little girl.

Lewis had decided that working for the CIA was his calling in life and there was no room for private relationships. He now wore a black suit on the new, slightly slimmer body he was sporting, but he still remained the same jovial Lewis that played pranks and loved food. He was grinning from ear to ear when Lulu decided she was giving up the role of chiropteran babysitter to take on the new role of a CIA agent. Soon she'd be wearing dark suits and going on missions with her partner.

The twins had learned to handle their swords well and were begging Hagi and Saya to spar with them. Lulu smiled that she'd like to get in on the action as well. Saya gave a smile. She had been aching to have a real sparring match with her chevalier for some time now- especially now that he was so much stronger. Saya responded that it could wait until after Christmas.

Joel still had many things on his plate. He was the CEO of the pharmaceutical company founded by the Red Shield in order to get their cures out to the world, but he was also still president of the Red Shield. He gladly took time off to spend time with the families of the two chiropterans.

To him, it was no surprise that Saya had found a place with a family. Joel I's diary gave him the idea that she was very in touch with her human side, even during the war she showed quite a bit of human emotion.

Hagi was an enigma all together. In the diary, he was becoming a gentleman and possibly a perfect mate for Saya, but the war came and all the logs in the diary revealed him to be emotionless and cold. He wondered how this man had become part of a family. Marva seemed to be such a warm, caring individual and Claudia was like a brilliant spark in the dark of night- so different from the man. But he noticed that the stoic man was so relaxed around his family. Occasionally, Joel saw the man smile. It made him feel sad that maybe it was not the circumstances that had Hagi so cold, but rather the people that surrounded him.

Joel watched the stoic man wearing a hand tailored black suit- no doubt made by his sister, as he led the tour with his porcelain hands clasped behind himself. Occasionally he would turn his head to point out some interesting item and what it was used for. Joel could see the small smile that played at the corner of the man's mouth. Hagi was happy- he deserved to be happy. His long life had been nothing but pain and loss so far. Joel had to admit that wine making seemed to suit the chevalier well. He wondered what had possessed him to take it up.

"He looks like a sommelier," Okamura commented lowly as he motioned to Hagi.

Mao laughed lowly and retorted, "That's 'cause he is a sommelier, stupid!"

Saya smiled from ahead of them as she overheard the conversation. She then heard Kai ask, "What's a som- whatever that was?"

Mao rolled her eyes and explained, "A sommelier is an expert in wines- gee I'm surrounded by idiots!"

Joel had to smile, too. He had thought that the dark haired man would have become some traveling musician, but instead, he was now the co-owner of one of the quickest growing and most popular wineries in the world. He wondered what Joel I would think if he saw the sight of a gypsy boy bought with a loaf of bread becoming successful, but he already knew the answer. Joel would be proud of him.

As the tour ended, they each were given a glass of either red or white wine- their preference, and they toasted the success of the winery. Mao opted to just watch rather than drink Kaori joined her and commented that she would not drink either, since she wasn't certain yet. She and Kai were hoping that she was pregnant. Saya walked over to them and they noticed her dodge a barrel that sat against the wall with a tube and some glass decoration on top. Mao remembered that during the tour that equipment was used to help the wine release air that was produced by the fermentation process. She wondered why such a small batch.

Hagi joined them as Saya grasped his free hand with hers and commented, "I like the red wine. There's a smoky sweet smell to it- like the smell of Jim's barbecue."

He smiled and responded to her with a wink, "That would be our secret ingredient."

She blushed as Mao pointed to the barrel and asked, "What is that one? I noticed it earlier."

He responded, "That one is a test batch I am working on. I am trying to create a very special blush wine."

"You are? I thought you and Dan did this together," Mao commented as she went to the barrel.

He joined her along with Saya and Kaori. Kai joined them to see what they were talking about.

"This is something I wanted to try," Hagi stated. His answer went no further when his cell phone buzzed in his pocket. Mao almost laughed when she saw the man that looked to be from a century long gone, pull a cell phone out and respond to someone on the other end. He closed the phone and motioned Dan over announcing, "Mom says dinner is ready. We should all head back to the main house."

The tour group came into the main dining area that was set up. Marva had to turn the living room into a large dining room for Lulu and the children. Mao and Kaori joined them with the new baby. They were given plates of food and drinks of their choices. The twins, of course, were set up with three plates and Lulu would retrieve more if it was needed.

Saya sat next to Hagi and just happened to be near the large tray of cranberry sauce. She had to stifle a giggle from the memory of Thanksgiving. She decided to help Marva in the kitchen and asked if she could help make the sauce. She had always wondered how they could get the tart flavored jelly to mold into a perfect cylinder. She was given a couple of cans, a can opener, and a white oblong tray. Looking at Marva with confusion she asked, "So what do I do now?"

Marva replied, "Just open both ends of each can and pour it onto the plate."

She did as commanded and was absolutely surprised when the sauce came out of the can in a perfect cylinder! She laughed until there were tears in her eyes. Marva came to her side and asked what had her laughing so hard. She responded, "I always thought that you had to make it like gelatin. I didn't know it came out of the can like that."

Marva laughed as Anna came up and responded, "The same thing happened to me the first time, too."

The entire group decided to relax after eating in the back yard as the hired hands, Jim, David, Lewis, and Kai watched football in the living room. The remaining adults sat on the porch while the children played in the yard on Claudia's old play yard and Michael opted to climb up to the tree house with Kanade and George. Saya held a glass of white wine in her hand. The porch light made the center stone of her ring flash in fiery brilliance.

Mao was sitting near Saya and leaned over to grab her hand. Saya smiled as she shifted her glass to her right so that Mao could admire the ring. "Damn, Hagi, It's beautiful! Where did you get this monster?" Mao asked.

"I had to search a long time to find it," he responded as Saya gave him a radiant smile that made her eyes sparkle.

Claudia added, "I've noticed before- it's a rose gold setting with a ring of white diamonds surrounding the center stone. The color of that stone is to pale to be a pink sapphire."

He smiled, letting the women guess. Marva looked at her son and knew what it was from the fact that she knew the amount he'd spent on the ring. It was the only purchase on his account that large, but he definitely had the money to give such an indulgence to the woman he loved. Marva smiled as she thought about what the center stone was. Rose gold was expensive, but not nearly as expensive as that stone.

The women each guessed, but finally Claudia gave a knowing smile and commented, "I knew you were crazy about her but I didn't think you'd completely lost your mind! I know that stone is a half carat- at least. It has to be a pink diamond."

Saya's eyes went wide. She looked at the ring and then to him as the women all collectively let out an, "Ooo!"

He admitted, "Yes, it is a diamond. It was hard to find the right shade, but the man who made it for me called it vivid pink."

"Aren't pink diamonds really rare?" Mao asked as she admired the ring.

"Not as rare as blue," Joel commented as he came up and admired the ring as well, "but this shade is highly sought after and very pricey." He then smirked at Hagi, "You just had to go over the top and have it set in rose gold."

"Of course," he commented as he looked at the still surprised Saya who was now staring at the ring on her hand. She had no idea that the ring was so rare or valuable.

She finally looked at him. She wanted to tell him how much she loved him, that he didn't need to go to such an extreme, that she'd love him even if he had only given her a plain gold band. She became lost in his eyes as she now understood just how much he really loved her. He was willing to die for her and had actually done so on more than one occasion. The ring's value was nothing compared to what he had given to be with her. She felt her heart could burst at this moment. His eyes were drawing her to him, but she didn't move. There were too many eyes here when all she wanted at this moment was to be alone with him. She vaguely heard him making his apologies as he lead her through the living room and back to her room.

When he shut the door, she looked at him and began to speak, "Hagi, I would lo…"

She was cut off when his mouth pressed hard against hers. His arms went around her as she snaked hers around his waist and closed her eyes. They parted for a moment to breathe. He smiled as he explained, "I have wanted to kiss you all day, but we have been so busy."

She returned his smile and said, "You didn't have to get me such an expensive ring. I would love you even if you gave me a plain gold band, Hagi."

His finger traced her bottom lip as he told her, "I want to show you how much I love you."

She moved closer and breathed, "You already have." Her mouth pressed against his. Her tongue rubbed around his as they held each other close. She squeezed him closer to her before she felt him pull away. He had that look in his eyes that made her quiver all over.

He had to look away from her to regain control. He asked her, "How have I shown you how much I love you?"

She turned his face to hers again. The look was still there as she answered, "When you went to get the lilies for me, the countless times you took an attack that was meant for me, and when you woke up from a coma just to kiss me." He kissed her forehead and then her cheek. She looked into his steel blue eyes and added, "You've shown me constantly throughout the decades just how much you love me, but I was just too blind to see it." Her eyes danced with sincerity, "I'm sorry. I wish I could have seen it sooner, maybe I would have realized that I was in love with you, too."

"There is noth…" he tried to say, but Saya pressed her mouth to his, cutting him off. She thought, There is no way I'm letting you say there's nothing to apologize for when there clearly is! I won't let you do this anymore and I'm going to make it right by you.

Her kiss was unexpected, but welcome. Hagi closed his eyes as he felt himself sitting down on the bed along with her. He wasn't certain how it happened. She was now opening the collar and pulling it back. His brows furrowed as he thought she had a transfusion a few days ago. But his mind wanted this- his body wanted this. She pushed him back as he waited for the feeling of sharp fangs breaking the skin and releasing his life force, but that didn't happen. He felt her warm lips against the sensitive skin just above the collar bone. He hissed a sharp intake of air as she ran her tongue along the same spot. A heat burned through him as he tried to move away, but his body remained still, entranced by what she was doing to him.

~~~~~~Citrus ahead~~~~~~~

She knew what she was doing to him. She had noticed that when her hands ghosted across his neck, he would try to hide the way he trembled. It had made her wonder what would happen if she kissed him there. She heard him let out a low moan as his head went back, allowing her better access to his neck. Taking advantage of this, Saya traced his neck to his jaw with small kisses that barely touched the skin.

Please stop, he thought as his body screamed for her to keep going. His mind whirled with fantasies of what she could be doing to him and what he wanted to do to her. He tried his best to hide the evidence of his thoughts as he broke away from her and headed to the restroom.

Ever since Claudia had revealed 'the look' to Saya, she found that she could see not only his current state, but the years of yearning to be loved- to be touched. She felt sorry for what she had done almost immediately. It was true, she wanted to tempt him, but she was hoping for him to give in and let her touch him. She wanted to bring him some satisfaction after all the decades of longing.

He was panting as he let the memory of her tongue and lips against his skin play in his mind. The skin she had touched still burned with the memory. His left hand gripped the edge of the sink as he gasped and his right hand stopped moving. It took moment before he began to clean up after himself and then immediately thought of what excuse he was going to give for such an abrupt departure. He leaned against the sink and groaned as his palm went to his forehead- how did he let it go this far?

~~~~~~~~Citrus ends~~~~~~~~~~

She was laying on the bed with her back to the restroom, when he came out. He fumbled through an excuse as she sat up. She didn't look at him but welcomed him to her side. She asked, "Why do you want to wait until our wedding day? Times have changed, why can't we change with them?"

"Times may have changed, but I have not. I want this to be right," he answered.

She turned to him and reassured, "It would be right with you- whether we're married or not."

He looked at her sadly and explained, "Joel would have wanted us to be married."

"Hagi, I know he would, but…"

"Please," he pleaded, "to honor his memory."

She nodded. "We've waited this long- what's 10 more months?" She gathered her courage and took a breath before she asked, but was interrupted by a sharp knock. "Come in, Claudia."

Claudia entered with her hand over her eyes and asked if they were decent or if she should come back in 30 minutes. Hagi shook his head as Saya laughed and told her to stop playing.

She looked at them and commented, "Well, sorry, but from the way you two left, I thought there'd be fireworks and creaking bed springs for the next hour or so." She laughed as her brother's face grew pink from embarrassment, proving he was feeling guilty about something. She decided to leave that alone and stated, "Mom says we need to get ready for church. If you're going- you have 1 hour to get ready."

Hagi chuckled as he informed Saya, "If we do not go, Mom will not let us open presents."

Saya sighed, "Oh, no. Then I won't be able to see what you got me. I guess that means I should get dressed."

Claudia asked, "You gonna stick around to watch her Big Brother?"

He rose to leave as he commented, "No, sister, I am a gentleman."

"Even a gentleman can have a moment of weakness-" she commented and then added. "especially one that has waited as long as you have!" Knowing she hit a nerve she took off as fast as she could. He followed as Saya shook her head at the pair. Claudia certainly was in high spirits lately, but Saya had seen her when she thought she was alone. Tears would streak her face. It was obvious she missed the baby very much, but her family surrounded her with love and happiness. Saya wondered if the woman would ever find someone else to be with her.

Saya looked to the restroom where a nice hot bath waited for her. She smiled as she thought of all the times during the war that she was given the rare luxury of Hagi drawing a hot bath for her to relax in. Her mind relived the moments one by one. In each one, she could see his eyes averted, but a look of complete sadness. She knew it was because he wanted to tell her, but couldn't.

Hagi stood by his car in his black suit and polished black boots as he waited for Saya. Claudia had shouted for her to hurry or she and Hagi would leave without her. His breath caught as she emerged from the house wearing a flowing, pale pink gown that shimmered in the moonlight. She had decided to grow her hair out, so her bangs were pinned back from her eyes with glittery barrettes. Her eyes sparkled as she came up to him. He felt himself finally let out his breath and whispered, "You look beautiful, Saya."

She turned her face down and blushed as she said, "Thank you."

The effect of her pink cheeks against the gown was dazzling. He let her in the car and came around to the driver's side. As he got in he asked Claudia and Saya, "Did you bring a coat in case the weather turns cold. Claudia patted the space next to her where a red coat and pink jacket rested. He nodded and he started the car.

"At least it's not raining, Big Brother," Claudia teased.

"Do you wish for me to lock you in your room again, Sister?" he retorted with a small glimmer in his eyes.

Saya put her hand on his knee, bringing his attention to her as his eyes remained on the road, "Hagi, you look handsome tonight. I should tell you more often."

Claudia snorted out a laugh and responded, "Saya, if you say stuff like that he's going to blush and then I'll never stop laughing."

"Do not make me stop this car, Claudia," he scolded. Saya began to laugh at the exchange. They were acting like two teenagers.

During the service, Saya noticed the stares of other women so she made certain to pretend to move a hair from her face, bringing up the hand where the fabulous diamond engagement ring rested. She was going to make certain they knew who he belonged to. She didn't understand this jealous side of herself, it was plainly obvious these women did not even come close to turning his head. Yet, she couldn't help but feel she had to make her claim to him very clear- maybe it was some chiropteran instinct.

She listened to the readings of the scriptures, but exhaustion was making her eyelids heavy. Hagi had to carry her out when service ended. He looked at his beautiful queen sleeping in his arms as he carried her to the car. She nuzzled closer to his chest in her slumber and breathed in his scent with a lazy smile and a blush.

He took her to her room as soon as they arrived at the house. He kissed her forehead before Claudia changed her for bed.

Just wanted to give a shout out to all of you that have been talking me through this difficult week, especially TykkiMikk for letting me bend your ear for a bit.