Author's note: This chapter is kind of a short one. And there's a bit that may seem a little OOC, but it felt right. Please don't hate me for it. I hope you like the rest of this. Please review and let me know.

Happy reading!

Chapter Eighteen

I anxiously awaited Adrian's plane's arrival. They had been delayed in Pennsylvania due to bad weather. He had told me to just wait in the car and he'd meet me. I dozed behind the wheel. It had been such a long day and all I wanted was to just curl up with my fiancé and sleep until Monday.

Then I saw him walking toward me. I stepped out and he quickened his pace. He dropped his bag and his arms came around me. He held me to his chest in a crushing embrace.

"God, I missed you so much, Sydney." He said just before his lips closed over mine.

I opened my mouth for him and he slipped his tongue along with mine. He moaned and moved his mouth away from mine and kissed across my jaw.

"I missed you too." I sighed.

The fingers of one hand tangled in my hair as the other continued to hold me close.

I slid my hands down his back. I rested them on his bottom.

He chuckled and raised his head. He rested his forehead against mine. "Your hands are on my ass."

"They are." I said softly, brushing my lips across his. I slipped my hands up the back of his shirt and rested my palms on his back. "Your place or mine?"

"Yours. I like your bed."

"Even though it's in a small room?"

"Yes. Even then."

"My car's at your place."

"You can drive me back home tomorrow morning before you go to work and I'll get it back to you."

"I don't work tomorrow. I already took off. We have a three day weekend." I kissed him and dropped my arms. "Let's get going."

He picked up his bag and walked around to the passenger side. "You're still driving, right?"

"Of course. Unless you want to."

He shook his head and opened the door. "Might as well be your car." He threw his bag in the back before sitting down.

I leaned over the center of the car and kissed him before I turned the engine over and headed down the road.

Adrian spent a long time in the bathroom. I knew what he must have been doing in there. After almost a week of being surrounded by loving couples, coming back to me and no sexual contact had to be difficult.

He climbed into bed with me, his arm draped over my waist. "Hi."

I smiled. "Hi. Are you okay?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

"Good." I watched him for a while before turning toward him. "In two months we discuss it again."

"I thought we decided on it already." He brushed hair away from my face.

"I want you just as badly as you want me." I pointed out.

"But are you sure you're ready?"

"I don't know." I admitted softly.

"Like you said, we still have two months. We'll talk about it then." He kissed me softly. "You need to get some sleep."

"I already took the day off. I can sleep in."

"But you must be exhausted after working all week."

"I am." I yawned unexpectedly.

"For God's sake, go to sleep." He smiled. "I'm here. I'm not going anywhere for a while."

I yawned again. "I really like it when you smile like that."

"Like what?"

"Like you're not hiding anything, including your fangs." I reached out and spread his lips. "I used to be so scared of them."

He closed his lips around my finger. He opened his mouth and took my finger inside it, swirling his tongue around it. He scraped his fang along my finger as he removed it. "I could compel you, you know."

"Yeah, you could. But you would feel just as guilty about doing it like that as I would about having sex before the time was right. We'd end up hating each other. Hating ourselves. That's not anything to build a marriage on."

He kissed the tip of my nose. "I know. And I know when I use Spirit it freaks you out. So I won't ever use it on you. I promise."

"Unless my life depends on it?"

"Right." He nodded. He brushed his lips across mine. "Roll over."

I did as he requested. I slipped my hand under the pillow and curled my fingers into his. I threaded the fingers of my other hand into his and he pulled me close.

"I love you." He whispered into my hair.

"I love you, too."

I slowly drifted off to sleep to the gentle movement of his chest against my back.

I woke up cold and discovered the blanket was no longer over me. I looked around. Adrian was curled on the other side of the bed with the blanket cocooned around him.

"Hey." I croaked, tugging on the end of it. "Give me that back."

He grumbled and batted at my hand.

"Adrian, come on." I pulled harder. "Don't be a blanket hog."

He opened an eye and gave me a disgruntled glare. "What?"

"Give me some of the damn blanket."

"Oh. Sorry." He untangled himself and pulled me into his side. "I'll warm you back up."

I sighed and melted into his side. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." He yawned. "I was just having this really lovely dream where I was playing with an adorable little baby. He had chubby cheeks and beautiful amber eyes. You called him a name and I don't remember now what it was." He kissed my forehead.

"A baby, huh?"

"I know we decided it wasn't something up for negotiation any time soon, but I can't help that I want it."

"I'm not saying I don't ever want babies with you, but I can't… You know why I don't want kids."

"I do. And I'm not going to push you, honey. I just want you to see my side of it."

"I do see it."

"I was just a dream." He closed his eyes. "Just some silly dream."

"It's not silly. I just want to be your wife for a while before we even discuss the pros and cons of having a baby with all our issues."

"They're not issues—"

"But they are. For me."

He combed his fingers through my hair. "We'll talk about it at a later date."

"All right." I snuggled closer.

"Where would you like to go for our honeymoon?"

"Somewhere I won't feel guilty for wanting to stay in bed all the time."

He laughed. "What do you say to somewhere sunny? A beach?"

"And what about you?"

"I'll taste the sun on your skin when I kiss you all over." He kissed my forehead and continued to move his fingertips over my skin. "There are beaches that can be used at night, too."

"So pick somewhere. I'll go with you all over the world, Adrian." I kissed his jaw. "How's that painting coming along?"

"It's going well. Did you peek when you were at my house?"

"No, I'm better than that. I was tempted. But I've got plenty of temptations I'm foregoing. What's one more?"

He chuckled and flipped me onto my back. He leaned down and kissed me softly. "I love you."

"And I love you." I pulled him in for another kiss.

He pressed a kiss to my neck. He moved his mouth back to mine slowly, scraping a fang on my jaw.

I took in a shuddering breath and tangled my fingers in his hair. "Bite me." I begged suddenly.

He raised his head and looked down at me in concern. "Are you sure?"

"I-I think so."

"Sydney—"

"But not on my neck. Can you do it somewhere else?"

"I can heal you—"

"No. I'm already risking my conscience enough."

"Okay. Are you sure?" He asked again.

"Y-yes." I stammered and swallowed. "Where are you going to do it?"

"You have to trust me."

"I do."

He pressed a soft kiss to my lips. "One more chance to change your mind."

"I won't change it."

He pulled the blanket away and lowered himself down my body, kissing every few inches on top of my clothes.

He lifted my leg and indicated a spot on my thigh. "Here. Is that okay?"

I nodded. "Yeah."

He pressed a kiss to my skin and breathed me in. "This will hurt at first." He opened his mouth and closed it on my thigh, breaking the skin with his sharp fangs.

I cried out in the initial pain, but then melted as the enzymes in his saliva flooded into my veins. It was delicious. No wonder people got addicted to this. I know I could. I felt myself floating, falling. It was glorious. I never wanted it to end.

And then it did. All too soon. My eyes were cloudy as I watched Adrian lift his mouth from my leg. He lapped up the blood that still leaked from the puncture wounds.

He made his way back up my body and looked down at me. "How do you feel?"

"I'm trying to figure it out." I whispered.

He kissed me softly.

"I don't think that can ever happen again."

"I know." He brushed hair from my face. "I didn't take a lot. But if you're feeling a little woozy, you should drink a soda. Not a diet either, but a real honest-to-god sugar-filled soda. There should be one or two in your fridge."

I felt myself nod. I was suddenly exhausted. "That was great." I fell asleep within seconds.

I didn't want to. Not completely. The thought of sampling Sydney's blood was always so intriguing to me, but I never asked. I knew she would feel obligated and then guilty.

I could see in her eyes as she fell asleep that she was starting to feel the pangs of it. She fell asleep beside me. I stayed awake and watched her. I ran my fingers over her smooth skin. I hoped that I could convey my love to her through the touch.

Her brow furrowed. She rolled into me and clutched at my shirt. "Adrian." She whimpered.

"Sh." I rubbed her back. "I've got you."

"Don't let me go." She begged.

"I won't, baby. I won't."

After a little more soothing, she relaxed. I relaxed myself and rested my forehead against hers.

I didn't sleep well. Every time Sydney so much as twitched, I woke up. She kept her arms securely around me the rest of the night.