Disclaimer: I do not own anything, nothing significant at all. My net worth is a negative number. Nothing to sue here people. Move along. (imagine a hand waving).

"I don't suppose you would believe that was my stomach growling?" Max asked tentatively.

"That was not growling." Logan replied in awe. "That was purring." Logan's mind was racing, he had felt that! He tried not to imagine what that must feel like from inside her. It was so wrong for him to be imagining himself sheathed inside her body, her softly purring in contentment, the vibration reverberating throughout his . . . Dammit! He really needed to purge the idea of another man feeling Max like that. He needed to ease the apprehension he would see in Max's eyes, let her know he was OK with this. He had to say something. "I didn't know you could purr . . ." That's good Cale, that will make her feel better. No way could be worried about you finding out more of her genetic surprises.

"Me neither," she stated, very softly. Max seemed very uncertain, very unsure, very un-Max.

"What?" Logan's mind was trying so hard to not imagine her purring for another man, he missed what she said, with all of its implications.

"Me, neither" Max repeated slightly louder.

"What do you mean?" Logan's mind could not get over the idea of feeling her purr around him. Trying desperately to block out thoughts of her and anyone else.

"I didn't know I could purr, either." If Logan had been able to concentrate, the rising volume of Max's replies would have been a warning. Instead he just looked at her, not able to quite get his head around what she was telling him, and its implications. "Is English your native language?" she finally asked, in obvious irritation.

"Yes." he stated simply, not able to grasp the seemingly sudden change of subject, but glad his sassy Max was back. Did he really think of her as "his Max"?

Max stared at the man next to her, then sighed deeply. Poor judgment and lack of interest are classic signs of early hypothermia. It impairs mental functioning. Logan must be worse off than she thought. She should just take care of him now. It was bad enough she had used the cold as an excuse to snuggle up in his arms and pretend she was normal. "Never mind. It's OK. Here, we need to get you shifted. It's not good for you to stay in the same position for too long."

Logan was wondering how she knew that when suddenly he was on top of her. "Heat rises. You'll be warmer this way." she explained as she adjusted the blankets, making sure they were still covered.

"So . . ." Logan began, "purring… "

"You have a one track mind."

"I've heard it's common in my gender. Are you telling me that this … purring, whatever we decide to call it, has never happened before?" He asked, his face lighting up as the implications sunk in.

"That is what I was trying to tell you. Doesn't seem like it's sinking in though." she pouted.

"Oh, its sinking in." he said with a grin. "I am the only one who has made you purr. … Purring is good right?"

She laughed. "Yeah. It's good. I just never felt that . . . I dunno, "she let out a sigh as she searched for the right word. "Safe? Relaxed? … Happy? It just happened."

"You are happy? Here?" He asked with his huge grin.

"Yes." She looked into his eyes and had to smile. "You?" she asked playfully, even though the answer was obvious, she wanted to hear it.

"Yes. Max, I want . . ." he looked down, his grin faltering.

"What?" she asked, suddenly nervous but not sure why.

"I want you … to purr again." There was a small silence, and he was not sure if he had upset Max or not. "I'm sorry. I just can't help it. I want to …" he relented. "I'm sorry. I know that's wrong."

"Why is it wrong?" She asked. "I am trying. I just … I'm not sure which muscles do it." She frowned.

"Maybe I should …" Logan felt like an uncertain teenager again. "May I?"

"Yes." she whispered. "…Please…" As his gentle hands stroked her he was soon rewarded with a gentle purr and a soft "Logan." He lost himself in the moment, in Max. He ran his hands down her body, stopping tentatively when he reached her jeans. He looked at her for a sign and received a smile. The purr got louder as he ran his hand down over her jeans. All he knew was Max, exploring her to find where he could touch her to make her purr, where would elicit a soft moan, where would cause her breath to speed up. He was making out with Max, and it was incredible! The moans, the sighs, the gasps, the purring and the soft cry of his name, mingled to become the sweetest music Logan had ever heard.

Logan had just discovered that gently nibbling on her earlobe yielded a wonderful little "uhmmm" sound with a soft purr when Max said "and I used to hate my feline DNA."

"Why?" He asked innocently, truly not able to imagine anything wrong with his Max. Did he really think of her as 'his'? He knew it was a mistake the instant after he said it. Max went stiff in his arms and he could have sworn he could hear a record being scratched across the edge to a screeching halt. "Max?"

"None of your business."

"What?"

"Did you go deaf while I wasn't looking! Is there a stage of hypothermia that I am not aware of that affects your hearing?" She snapped.

Logan silently marveled at how he had gone from freezing to scorching and now back to cold shoulder so quickly. "I am sorry. I heard you. I just don't understand. If you didn't know you could purr, what is it about your feline DNA that you hate?"

"Not everything about me is automatically your business!" She stated.

"You can trust me, Max." he tried to coax answers out of her, sensing that this was important. Logan was saddened by her shutting him out, and from the way she phrased that response, he was afraid that he knew exactly why.

"I do, but this isn't any of your business."

"Max. I want to help you. If there is something you need, I want to give it to you."

Max let out a whimper and buried her face into his shoulder. Her arms wrapped around Logan so he could not pull away.

Logan knew he was on the right track, but could not imagine why she was shutting him out. So he continued, "Max, please, talk to me. Tell me what's wrong. I though that you knew you could tell me anything. If this is something like the Tryptophan that you need then I want you to tell me so I can make sure you have it. Max." Was she laughing? No, couldn't be.

"You have no idea what you are asking for." she said, but her face never left his shoulder.

"Max, you can tell me…anything." he coaxed.

"Like you tell me everything?" she accused.

He knew exactly what she was talking about: Going behind her back to see Dr Vertes, and lying to her about it. "No. I'm the man, I have to hide any weaknesses." he tried what he hoped was his cutest smile.

She moved to glare at him with what she hoped was her fiercest scowl. .

Well, at least she is looking at me now. "I am sorry, Max. You're right. I should have told you what was going on with my legs but … I didn't. I wanted so much to be whole again. I didn't think you would tolerate Dr Vertes, and that was before I knew that you knew her personally. It was more than I had any right to ask of you."

"You didn't have to ask." she looked at him with concern. She remembered his pain, and her fear.

"I know. I still can't believe you did all that for me." His hand caressed her check.

"Logan," she sniffed, her eyes glistening with moisture. "How dense can you get? Didn't putting up with Vertes clue you in? I would do anything for you. Anything!" she made a halfhearted attempt to put her face back into his chest, but he stopped her.

"Why?" He cursed himself for asking. He suspected he knew, but wanted to hear it. He needed to know for certain.

"I love you," she stated simply. When she looked up at him the doubt was back. Her dark brown eyes sparkled with unshed tears as she searched his eyes. "Do you think that there is any chance, maybe, you could love me?" She could not believe she asked that. How needy and pathetic could she get? Apparently Logan Cale was just the man to find out. Damnit, she would NOT cry. She definitely would not cry.

"Max, I can't." Tragically he had shut his own eyes and missed the pain in hers.

She would not cry. She probably would not cry. She thought about running, she really did. She could not believe how stupid she was to have asked that when she couldn't bail. As bad as this hurt, she knew that Logan freezing to death would hurt way more. "Why?" a very small voice that sounded like hers asked, and she again cursed herself for being so many kinds of stupid.

"The bad of a blown out spinal cord, Max. Nothing below the waist works. I am sorry." He was too enveloped in his own pain to notice Max. Until she exploded!

"DAMNIT! Logan Cale, even I have figured out the difference between love and sex! I have had sex! Do you mean to tell me all time I spent wondering what the hell was wrong with me because you are hung up over your …whatever-you-want-to-call-it… not working?" she shouted.

Logan's mind was reeling. For all that he missed his parents; he had once had people that loved him unconditionally. Max had never had that, never known what love could be. He could not believe that he had been so self absorbed to not realize this before. He desperately needed to fix this.

"Max," he took her face in his hands and looked into her eyes glistening as tears escaped. "I do love you. I just didn't think."

"Damn straight!" she interjected.

"I didn't think I had anything to offer you. Max, I'm … broken."

"You dork!" she laughed and wrapped her arms around him.

Logan marveled at the sheer speed with which she could change her mood. It shouldn't be surprising considering how fast she can do everything else, but jeez! "You are the most amazing woman I have ever met. You really do have the most singularly beautiful face I have ever seen. Max, I love you. But, Max, the reality of the situation, of my situation is that I may never be able to …" he searched for a way to say it, and failing settled for "give you more than kisses. What if we never find a cure?"

"For your blown-out spinal cord or my seizures?" She asked mischievously.

"Max, your seizures don't matter to me!" How could she even think such a thing? She hadn't, he realized belatedly as she stared at him looking like she just ate a canary. "Max, I am serious. What if … kisses are all I am ever able to give you?"

There was such insecurity in his eyes that Max chose to forgo her glib response and answer sincerely. "That will be more than enough, Logan. Maybe high-society women like Valerie or Daphne expected 'the works'; house, 2.5 kids, dancing, jewelry, whatever… But I am the last person on the planet to take anything for granted and certainly not you. You do give me so much more than just kisses. Logan . . ."

She looked into his eyes, pleading, and he knew what she wanted. "I love you, Max." He kissed her and she began to purrrr.

To be continued . . .