Chapter 16

"There's no way I could try harder

I've sunk like a ship in your eyes.

I hold on tight to my sinking anchor

Useless, I've already fallen."-Wire Method

They ran quickly through the forest, each laughing at the release of stress. To think they had been avoiding each other all this time, only to find out there was a mutual attraction. It was like dancing under the aurora, or feasting on polar bear—unique, exciting, magical and fulfilling.

Easily dodging trees and overhanging branches, Tanya sprinted ahead of Fred, looking back and smiling impishly. As he caught up with her, he pulled at her waist, dragging her into the soft, deep snow with him. They both giggled while they sunk into the fluffy snow bank, their eyes connected, and both smiled softly.

"Hey," Tanya whispered quietly.

"Hey yourself," Fred murmured back, as his gaze became unfocussed. He couldn't help appreciating how lovely she looked with the snow crystals like diamonds scattered in her hair, her eyelashes, and blending into her shimmering skin. His fingers slid back a fallen lock of her hair, and her eyes fluttered closed.

"What is this?" he murmured. "I mean, I know it's something more...It's too intense..."

Tanya clenched her eyes closed, speaking carefully. "Vampires don't change easily. I'm sure you've already figured that out." She sighed softly and Fred nodded. "Whatever we were when we died, we bring with us, and that determines who we are for eternity. But, we continue to learn, if not grow." She opened her eyes and met his steady gaze. "When vampires find their mate, they fall in love-deeply, quickly and eternally. It changes us in a way nothing else will. A vampire can search for their mate for centuries...and never find them."

"We're…mates?"

"I knew the moment I met you." Tanya nodded slowly. "But just because I knew, didn't mean I didn't want to give you a choice. I mean, with what you grew up with, I didn't think you knew about vampire mates, and I didn't want you to think I was forcing you into anything. I thought it would be easier for you to come into it on your own terms."

"I...I think I've seen it before...with Bree and Diego," Fred said his eyes lost in memory of the two vampires' subtle reactions to one another. "They would've done anything to protect each other, I think. They had to hide it from the others though. I didn't spend as much time with Diego, but you could see it in Bree's eyes...when he was mentioned, how they would follow him, even though they were trying to be circumspect."

"From what you've told me, I wouldn't have been surprised," Tanya agreed but lowered her eyes. "I wasn't trying to hide it from you, you know. I just had never thought I'd actually find you."

Fred smiled and kissed the tip of her nose. "Exactly how long have you been looking?"

Tanya froze with concern. Not that she was ashamed of her age, but really-how do you tell someone you're a millennia old? What if it totally freaked him out?

Tanya clenched his fingers in his hand before responding, "I've been a vampire for just over a thousand years."

Fred's eyes widened. "You're. Joking."

"Actually, I was bit during one of the waves of the Black Plague in, what is now the Slovak Republic," Tanya said, laughing at his surprise. "The Hungarians ruled the area when I was still human. My family worked in a vineyard, between the Carpathian Mountains and the Danube River. "

Fred looked over her shoulder into the distance. "It sounds so different than how you are here and now. I can't imagine all you've seen." He paused, obviously rethinking her comments. "Wait, so, you're like a cougar!" Fred chuckled slightly in awe.

Tanya leaned back a bit, to look at his full face. "What does a big cat have to do with me?"

Fred laughed outright. "I suppose it's a modern expression. A cougar is an older woman who is after a younger man."

"So does that mean if you rub me right, I'm supposed to purr?"

Fred chuckled and leaned in, his breath brushing across her waiting lips. "Eventually."

His lips descended, pressing coolly against hers. Slowly, his fingers swept up her cheek through her hair, until his large hand was cradling her head. He groaned deeply as her tongue flicked out kitten-like to tempt his lips further. The sensation exploded in his conscience, and he pulled her body against his, wanting more, wanting everything.

Her hands were in his hair, stroking down his shoulders, over his chest, sliding along his waistband. With a gasp, he pulled himself away.

"I know...I understand we're mates, and I know I'm a vampire." He breathed heavily in frustration. "But my head is still full of these human ideas about what makes you a decent person." He met her amber eyes earnestly. "I want to get to know you, what makes you tick, what makes you…you. And as much as I want that deliciously hot body you're currently tempting me with, I want all of you. I guess I have old fashioned views on how to show respect to a woman, but that is part of who I am."

Tanya was hit with a flood of emotions. First, that someone was interested in HER, and not just her prodigious talents; that here was a vampire who fought his instincts to retain at least some of his humanity. The second part of her brain was just as rapidly processing that here was another Edward, who might not exactly appreciate how she spent the last millennium or so. She just hoped he got to know enough about her and fell enough in love with her before he found out that part of the story.

Tanya looked up into the hopeful face in front of her. In a sweet voice that belied her normal tone, she said, "What would you like to know?"