The cops believed their made up alibi that they'd gone out to the woods together in her car to fuck. That was what Emily told them, as did Derek. On the way out of the police station, Derek took his mate's hand in his and laced their fingers together as they walked. Their hands hung loosely between them, some kind of physical link to keep her anchored.

"I'm losing my mind, Derek." She mumbled as he drove. Derek was taking her home, after approving it with the detectives. There wasn't anything to keep her there and Alex had no influence over her choices.

"Emily, you're not. Whatever happened to you, you're not losing your mind. I know you better than you know you." He said, glancing over at her and resting his hand on the soft skin of her thigh. She set her hand on top of his, stroking the back relaxingly. Her eyes were on the horizon as the Alphas sat in silence. They'd been in the car for hours. Emily fell asleep with her head against the window. Even in sleep, she was stroking his hand. He pulled into a small town, smaller than Beacon Hills, called Fayetteville, TS. It was what you'd think of when you thought about the countryside. Houses with the white fences and columns and wrap-around porches, bay windows. Things Emily told him she wanted for their house when they were older one night.

"Where do you want to go for college?" She asked him, as they were entangled underneath the sheets of his bed with her fingers tracing patterns on his chest. He was making shapes on the small of her back, chin on top of her head.

"I don't know. Wherever will take me, I guess."

"Derek, you're smart. And talented. You can go wherever you want for school." He smiled at the admiration in her voice.

"I want to go wherever you are, Em. Where exactly do you want to go?" Derek said into her hair. She rolled over partly, chin rested on top of her hands on his chest. Emily looked up at him with excited gray eyes.

"I've always wanted to move to Tennessee. Chris took me there for a college tour last year. It's beautiful. Besides, I want to raise our kids away from my sister. I don't think it's safe here."

"Our? You want to have kids with me?" He smiled broadly down at her.

"As long as all of them look like you." Emily replied, looking up at him with her bottom lip pulled between her teeth. He gripped both her arms to lift her higher up on his chest. She bursted out giggling as his sheet fell away from her bare chest.

"Wanna practice making a baby?" He winked at her and she dove in to kiss him.

He pulled into a small, dinky motel and moved his palm up her shoulder.

"Emily, wake up. Baby, we're at a hotel." Derek whispered, shaking her lightly. Her eyes flashed open, burning red, and she leaned in to kiss him harshly on the lips. He kissed back for a moment before he got out of the car, swung open the door and lifted the smaller girl into his arms. She wrapped both around his shoulders and allowed him to carry her up the stairs and into the room he'd called in previously. He about lost it when she started kissing his neck. Her mouth was open, tongue brushing hotly against the soft skin. Derek's knees trembled and he couldn't get the door open fast enough. The second they were inside the room, he slammed her up against the door, hands moving rapidly across her torso as he bit on her bottom lip. She circled her hips in reaction to him. Emily was overheated, as always around him. She felt like a bitch in heat, and it would make sense. Heat is basically what happens when a dog is ovulating.

"Wait. Derek, wait. My birth control pills…they were in the house."

"I'll pull out, I promise."

"I think I'm in heat." She whispered as he kissed along the curve of her neck, nipping and sucking on the skin.

"You do? When's your period due?"

"Two weeks from now."

"I'll pull out."

She nodded, reaching down and unbuttoning her shirt before throwing it to the ground. He grinned, dragging his stubble against her chest as he kissed down, leaving tiny cuts on her skin with his fangs. The mixture of his stubble and his fangs against her sent sensations rolling through her entire body as she pulled him into a kiss that made his knees actually give in. His body crashed against hers and flattened her against the door, his knees cracking against the metal. Derek's head was level with her chest, now.

"Baby, you okay?" She panted.

"I'm fine." He whispered. Emily lolled her head back when he trailed his kisses lower, continuing his stubble-and-fang kisses downward until he reached the button of her jeans. Derek pulled the button between his teeth and tugged, moving back up and flicking his tongue into her naval.

"Oh, shit!" She gasped loudly, biting the inside of her cheek. His eyes were darker as he looked up at her from her skin, pulling her boots off and setting them with a clatter to the ground. His palms moved up her calves and thighs to unbutton the denim and smoothly tug them down her long legs. His nose skimmed from one hip to the other.

"Derek. Oh, God, Derek." Emily moaned, her hips rolling toward his face. He smirked, using one hand to hold her still. She hissed through her teeth, eyes burning red into his now. His fingers moved up her legs again until he grabbed either side of her panties to tug them off as well. Her bottom half was bared to him and she trembled before she shook off the nerves. His eyes widened when he found himself pressed against the door with his shirt off and her lips attached to his neck and sucking like a vacuum. Derek growled as her hand slid up and down his sweat-sheened skin. When she was satisfied with the nearly black hickie on his throat, she left another behind his jaw. Since she was an Alpha, they would take a few days to heal. The sight of his girlfriend dropping to her knees and undoing his jeans made his heart stop.

"No. I don't…I don't want you to do that." He murmured into the quiet, dark hotel room.

"Why-?"

"Tonight's about you, Emily. When we get back, we can't do this as much. My beta lives with me." He replied, tugging her to her feet and backing her up until he felt the back of her knees hit the bed. Derek pushed on her shoulders and moved with her. He was hovering over her, caressing her jaw with the back of his hand. Her eyes closed contentedly, head leaning back on the hard mattress.

"I love you." He whispered, kicking his jeans the rest of the way off along with his boxers. Derek's palms were splayed out on either side of her head, moving his lips slowly against hers—building the heat by drawing out the movements of their mouths. Her fingers gripped his shoulder-blades as his hips pushed forward—into her. This wasn't fast and frantic, like it had been in Georgia. He wanted to move slow, to show her how grateful he was she was alive and that she forgave him. She moaned, moving her hips at his slow pace to keep up with him. Emily leaned up and skimming her lips against his neck, his jaw, his cheeks, his nose, finally back to his mouth.

"Cum, Em. Please. I need to see you." He said, voice rough as he stared down at her with glowing eyes. Hers were the same deep red shade and knowing that he was making her this way sent a shiver up his spine. Her eyes clenched shut as she cried out underneath him.

"I love you." She murmured, "I will always love you, Derek Hale."

The use of his full name was enough to cause him to rear back, sink his elongated teeth into her shoulder as he came. She followed, for a second time.

They curled up together under the sheets together.

"I'm scared to sleep." Her voice was child-like.

"Why?"

"What if I wake up and I try to kill you?" She sighed, sitting up and drawing her knees to her chest as she leaned against the headboard, "What if you don't wake up in time to stop me?"

"You won't. I know you won't. You've had plenty of opportunities in the past 8 years to kill me, and you didn't. You could've let your sister kill me that first night we met. You could've killed me at school. You could've killed me all those nights we spent in the woods alone together. After you shifted, you could've. When you woke up, you could've hunted me down and done it. You could've let those Hunters kill me. Emily, you've fought for me. You won't do anything to harm me. The only thing you could do to hurt me is walk out that door and tell me to go to hell." He said. She rolled on top of him and kissed him passionately, only for a few long moments before he moved them onto their sides again. His arms were tight around her waist as he held her close to him.

"Tell me a story." She said, smiling up at him. He smiled in response, widely.

"I could tell you about my beautiful red riding hood again." He responded.

"Or you can tell me about what you and Laura did in New York."

Derek talked for less than ten minutes when Emily fell asleep, her head tucked under his chin. He waited, a long while, before he kissed her forehead and drifted away.

Deucalion smirked over at Kali as he heard the man's steady breathing. She grinned in reply, ushering the small, thin girl forward. She was fair-skinned, couldn't be older than fourteen. She cocked her head to one side as she stared at the window to the two Alphas' bodies entwined.

"Her body hasn't recovered yet. I cannot make her submit to my will until she recovers from the first." Delaney said, "I am sorry, mother."

Kali nodded slowly, kissing the top of her head. In all reality, Delaney wasn't hers. After she killed Julia, Kali took her child. Delaney Baccari was raised by this Pack she loved so much, stronger than her mother. She possessed skills that Emissaries could only dream up. They retired to their hotel room at the end of the building. They'd try again. Soon. Aiden and Ethan, were older mentally than their physical bodies. Mentally, Ethan was around twenty. Aiden was around twenty five. Aiden was the last to head to his room. He wanted her. The thin, fair-skinned Alpha he hadn't gotten out of his head since Duke took interest in her. The true Alpha turned killer. She was feral, like him. She had that spark of power he'd only ever felt inside of himself.

"Aid? You coming?"

"Yeah." He shook it off and followed his younger brother into the room.