Chapter 5

Danny was still awake when Kate came in. His mind was spinning, trying to find some way to tell her what had happened today, and what was going to happen to her soon. His feelings were decidedly mixed. On the one hand he wanted Kate and Grace to be safe. To not have to deal with the general poverty of their situation. To just be free to come and go as they saw fit. Grace didn't know what life was like without barbed wire and guards, and that wasn't right. But on the other hand, the idea of watching them leave, of actually sending them away was gut wrenching. They were his everything, more a part of his life and heart than Evelyn ever had been. Maybe even more than Rafe.

Danny knew he had no power in this situation. The lawyer had already found Kate. He could have taken her away without telling Danny. There was nothing he could do about it. They couldn't escape. He couldn't hide them, even if he had wanted to. In the end it came down to one thing - their safety. Now he just had to convince Kate.

The creaking of the front steps interrupted Danny's thoughts. Soon Kate was sillohuetted in the doorway.

"Hey," he whispered softly so as not to startle her.

"Hey," she whispered back, shutting the door and plunging the room into total darkness. "Why are you still awake."

"Thinking." Kate paused in her slow progression across the room. He could sense her sudden fear.

"Regrets?" she asked.

Danny smiled in the darkness, she obviously didn't understand how much she meant to him. "None," he reassured her. "You?"

"Nope."

"Good," Danny told her. "How'd everything go? You weren't gone very long. Is everyone okay?"

"Everyone is fine," Kate replied. Danny could hear the rustling of clothes as she got ready for bed. "Julie and Frank have a little boy. Frank Jr," she made a mewling noise, obviously not liking the choice of name. "Junior was pretty small, but that's to be expected. Had a set of healthy lungs, that's for sure."

Danny laughed softly. "That's good, I'm sure Margret and Lionel are relieved." Margret and Lionel were Julie's parents. They had been against the marriage of their daughter, but once it became obvious that Julie was pregnant they had reluctantly given in. That was life in the camps.

"Yeah, but they're still not really talking to Frank."

"Can't blame them."

Kate stopped moving. "Why?"

"Well," Danny paused for a moment, thinking of how he would feel if Grace were in the same situation. "He impregnated their daughter. She's 18. Life in here is hard enough without risks of being pregnant and poorly fed. If it was Grace....I'd have killed the bastard."

Kate smiled at his protectiveness towards Grace. It was obvious that he considered himself her father, even if biologically she was someone else's. "Women have been having babies for a long time, Danny," Kate pointed out. "There are always risks. Now isn't any different."

"Well of course there are always risks," Danny countered, "and when the risks are high then the couple has to be respondsible. To think hard about what they are doing."

"What about love?" Kate asked.

"What about it?"

"They're in love. There is nothing wrong with expressing that."

Danny laughed. "They're not even 19 years old! What do they know about love?"

"You sound like an old man, Walker," Kate kidded. Danny could hear her as she brushed her hair.

He smiled. "Maybe. I'm just saying that people have to be respondsible. Having a baby here is risky, for the mother and the child. If Frank really loved her, he - or they - could have figured something else out. Or tried to time it better."

"Scoot over," Kate told him as she pulled back the covers. Danny obliged. "I don't want to have this conversation now."

"Okay," Danny replied. "Why not?"

Kate climbed into bed and pressed her body against his. Danny couldn't hold back his gasp as he felt her bare breasts press against his chest as her leg slid over his. His body reacted immediately, hardening almost painfully. It had been a long time.

"Because," Kate almost purred in his ear, "I want you to make love to me tonight and I don't want you worrying."

Danny let out a groan as she pressed her lips against his, her tongue flicking against his lips, willing them to open. Without conscious thought Danny pulled her on top of him and deepened their kiss. Worrying was the last thing on his mind.


Kate gave a little sigh as she snuggled against Danny, her head resting on his chest. She could hear the rapid beating of his heart and taste the sweat from his body. She had never felt so gloriously alive and so wonderfully satiated. She began to play with his dog tags, suddenly shy.

"I didn't know it could feel this way," she whispered.

Danny gave her squeeze and kissed the top of her head. "Yeah..."

Kate looked up at him, searching his face. "No regrets, Danny," she told him.

He leaned and kissed her softly. "No, just worries," he replied.

Kate sighed. "Danny," she began, but he interrupted her.

"I love you," he told her. "I love you more than I have ever loved anyone."

"I love you too. You are the only one that I have loved."

Danny nodded as he gently stroked her face. "And I don't want to do anything that could hurt you."

"You worry too much, Walker," Kate tried to joke.

"And you don't worry enough," he countered with a smile.

Letting her hand wander down his chest, Kate smiled. "So, you're never going to make love to me again. To protect me. Is that it?"

Danny felt himself hardening again as Kate's hand began to fondle him. "I didn't say that," he bit his lip as he reached down to stop her motions. "I just think that the possibility of you getting pregnant is something to worry about. Not here, not right now. It's too dangerous to you."

"I'm young. I'm healthy," Kate pointed out. "I'm better fed than a lot of women in this camp. It's not that risky."

Rolling over so that he was poised above her, Danny looked down at her. "Do you really want to bring a child into this world? Into a life like this?" he asked seriously.

Kate shook her head. "No, but if it happened it wouldn't be the end of the world. That's all I'm saying. I love you and I want to be with you in every way possible. We can be careful. The rhythm method works."

Danny smiled slightly, raising an eyebrow in question. "Does it? I seem to recall you pointing out to Julie and Beth that the only safe way was abstinence. That because of a poor diet women's cycles could be irregular and unpredictable. And Julie just gave birth."

"Nothing's perfect, Danny, but I'm willing to risk it," she told him as her hands began to roam over his chest.

"And if I'm not?" Danny asked, though there was a smile in his voice.

"Then you better start thinking of some 'other'methods, because I'm going to make your life a living hell." She grabbed his dog tags and began to pull him closer. "I think I like sleeping without a night gown. It's so.....freeing."

Danny laughed as he captured her lips. He knew that he was only going through the motions of arguing with her. Making love to her was addictive and when she was so open and responsive he couldn't deny himself or her. To know that she loved him, to be able to say the words to her and to tell her with his body was more powerful than he had expected. He hadn't known that it could be this way, either. He hadn't known that they could reach such heights of passion and such depths of satisfaction. He had never felt so connected to another person. And their days together were numbered, he knew. He wanted to take advantage of every moment with her that he could; to save and store for the months ahead without her.

He only hoped that Kate didn't notice the bittersweetness in their lovemaking. Danny was storing up all the memories that he could.