Sorry guys, I know I have been slacking a bit on the updates and on the details of the chapters. I will try to pick it up. Thank you to all those who have stayed and still read and review.

Kalin's POV

I stared at my Bride, seeing the shock and hurt on her face, the tears filling her eyes, and I regretted my words. Could I have lied to her? I don't know, all I knew is this male, even if not her past lover, was very important to her, and it hurt her to know she could not have done anything. Was this not a good thing? From the look on her face, I guess the knowledge was not a good thing to her. My people always tried to follow a code of honesty and truth, but I quickly finding out that humans did not always appreciate the same.

I was at a loss myself. This female, my female, had just admitted to me that in some shape and form she had loved another male, and even after all of these years he still had a strong hold on her heart. If I could not get her to let go of him, she was never going to be able to love me. The dilemma struck me hard, for I did not know how to work around it. What did humans do? I didn't know, I had been stuck in a mad stupor with no way to pick up on the modern ways.

They dated, right? I was still finding new foods and places, and now that the idea was open to me I could see a few places that I think Becca would like.

But could I win her? Could I take her out on dates and give her gifts? Could I make her laugh and smile like I had seen so many others do? Would she allow me? She had been mad when she had first found me here in her home, but she had eventually just let it go and had even seemed to relax. Until I had tried to keep a casual conversation, and failed horribly, might I add. How did I manage to pick the one kink in her armor? The major kink, at that. Never let my sister say that communication via speech was one of my strong points.

I gently reached out and touched under her chin, feeling the heat of her skin compared to the coolness of mine. My heart beat several beats slower than the average humans per minuet, and as a result I ran a few degrees cooler, which of course saved me on heating costs during the winter. But just being near her like this made my heart beat just a little faster, but I still managed to remain cooler than her. I didn't know what I was doing, I was just acting on what my body was telling me to do, what my genetics were telling me to do. Which, unlike my brain, were programmed on how to handle these kinds of situations with my Bride when I found her. That, and I also had a little practice in calming down my sister.

But that was so long ago.

She did not react to me touch, she did not even seem to register me in the room anymore. So leaned down, so close that I could have kissed her, and blew cold breath into her mouth, breathing her name on a soft whisper of love and affection.

"Becca," I whispered softly, my lips barley even moving to form the word. She blinked, whether from the cold of from the sensation of our closeness I wasn't sure. I gently smoothed her hair away, caressing her face, bringing her back to me little by little. I gazed at her with everything I felt, until I could tell by the look in her eyes she was no longer being swallowed by the memories of the past, but here with me in the present. My body was tight with want, being so close to her after so long. But my mind openly rebelled. Becca needed me right now, my Becca, the Becca that could not harm a single thing without feeling some sort of pain over it.

And I knew she felt pain over leaving me when her eyes welled up with tears once again and she spoke to me, not pulling away from out close proximity to each other.

"Why are you so good to me?" also whispered, more like choked out on a strangled breath, and it pulled on my heart.

"Because I love you."

"But why? Why? I left you behind, with no explanation or anything. You may have never seen me again." Simple facts, but true. But they were not important.

"Becca," I said softly, my eyes holding hers when I could tell she wanted to look away, uncomfortable with the intensity I was unleashing. "I would have kept hunting you until the day we both died."

"Kalin . . . I . . ." gently, ever so gently, I laid my fingers across her mouth. I wasn't pushing, I knew she needed time, she didn't function like me. I had fallen in love with her the moment I met her. But I had known everything she would be to me. I knew she would be my life and my salvation. But to her, I had been a weird stranger, and then a good friend. And then I had skipped a step and become a lover. A lover that had showed her what she could have, but only with me.

Did she really resent something like that, the idea of only being able to be with me?

I had been drifting off in my own thoughts, I hadn't noticed the subtle changes in Becca's body. But when I felt her body tense, my eyes snapped back into focus on her face, and what I saw made my heart stutter for a second.

You know how they always say 'and the next thing I knew we were kissing'? They lie. There are a series of little hints and steps, and nothing every just happens so spontaneously without your body knowing ahead of time. And I knew, we were going to kiss, her eyes were focused on my mouth, and half of me told me to remember what she had said about no kissing, and the other half of me thrilled in the idea of being able to taste her again. Just a small taste. No harm, right?

Wrong. God damnit!

"Becca," I began, intending to pull away, to end this before it got to a bad level and she kicked me out because she was so pissed at me.

"Please, Kalin." I blinked at the plea, looking back to her face, finding her lifting her gaze to mine. "I need this. I don't love you, I am sorry. But I do want you. Can that be enough, for now? Please, I need this." Could it be enough for now? No, I didn't think it could be, I would always want it all, would always need it all, just having her care about would never be enough. But was a small kiss worth the anger she was sure to feel when she had fully righted herself again?

Maybe?

"I won't hate you for it. I know what I said, and you were right. Just being near you makes me want to kiss you, and right now I am not strong enough to resist." then she gave a small laugh that blew warm air across my cheek. "Hell, when am I ever?"

Her admission sent hear spiraling through me, and it awoke a deep animal instinct. The Thorian instinct. To claim.

"You should never have said that." I growled, but before I could even make the first move, her arm came around the back of my neck and pulled my mouth to hers.

And boy, was I wrong.

This was not some small kiss. This was liquid fire, sending hot shivers all across my cool shiver, rending every limb in my body useless, making my mind completely blank out. Her lips were satin, her tongue hot silk that stroked every inch inside my mouth, dancing and dueling with my own tongue. Her teeth nipped at my lips and I found myself giving a small growl in the back of my throat and responding in kind.

Dancing, kissing, wonderful bliss, not just a small kiss as I had presumed. It was mindless bliss, wonderful, perfect . . .

And everything I didn't have.

The thought awoke that primal instinct even more. It made my hands inch to take this hold I had on her waist and pull her against my body to feel the possession. It also had the bad side affect of making my fangs extend and ache with the need to pierce her throat.

I pulled away so fast not even I was expecting it, and I stumbled and fell to the floor. Becca was surprised as well, her arms still frozen in place from where she was holding me, and I could actually now feel the place her nails had dug into my skin. But the pain of the impact with the floor helped me clear my head, and I quickly got to my feet. But I was shaking, and my fangs wouldn't retract.

I had to get a grip on myself.

"Um, ice cream." I said quickly, the words slightly obscured, and I fled the room. I had just spilled my surprised to her, but I didn't care, I was just trying to put distance between us.

Date her? How could I date her when the very smell of her made my mouth ache and water and my Thorian instinct rise with a harsh vengeance? I had chased her away once, I didn't want to do it again.

With shaking hands I finished scooping the ice cream I had bought for Becca into a bowl, and went to open the fridge slash freezer to put away the rest of it and froze. Sitting there on the shelf of the fridge, was a bag of her blood. I swallowed heavily, forcing myself to slowly put the ice cream carton on the bottom freezer section and slowly shut the doors.

"You can take it, if you want." her voice startled me, and I spun around to look at her, the very sight of her making me want to kiss her again. Her hair was still a bit of a mess, and her cheeks were still flushed with color. But her eyes were calmer, and it helped me ground myself just a little bit more.

"Why? I don't need it." I said stiffly.

"You don't?"

"No, I can survive without it."

"But isn't it harder?" so much harder. "And doesn't it help quell the need?" So friggin much.

"But why would you offer it to me?"

"Because I am not cruel. I can tell why you pulled away, and I have to say I don't think any other guy would have, especially when I can tell the need is so strong. Just take it. If I am going to be hanging around you more then my blood will be high enough that Philip will be able to draw another pint when I meet him and he wont even have to know what I drew a pint myself, or that it is unaccounted for." she shrugged.

"You haven't told your Philip about me?" I had to admit, I was a little surprised.

"No, I thought he would know, especially with how much he and your sister seem to hang around each other."

"Have you seen her lately?" I had to ask the question. I wasn't ready to see my sister yet, not until I could atone for what I had done to Becca.

"No," she said eying me. "But I am sure she would love to see you."

"Yes, I will have to thank her for filling you in when I failed too."

"You didn't have time, Kalin. Things flew out of control so quickly I don't even know where one thing starts and another thing ends. With my brother, and then the kidnapping, and then, ugh, I don't even know."

"You forgot the sex." I said mildly, the very idea making my mouth ache again.

"Yes, well, I cannot exactly say the sex was bad."

"I am sorry about your brother." It was a late apology, but one that was deserved. I saw the twist in her features, but then she took in a deep breath and shrugged.

"To be honest, I am not all that sorry. He abused me repeatedly, and I cant seem to pull up the remorse to care that he hasn't woke up yet." she fidgeted for a minuet, then said. "Look, Kalin. I am sorry I ran out on you, but I just wanted a chance to see if I could live my life without giving up everything I had and everything I was. I wanted to see if I could marry someone who didn't have the hold of me you did, and have children, and just live my life. I guess, though, I knew you would find me, so I never really tried." I tried to hide my expression at the thought of her trying to have children with another man, but it must have been written all over my face. She blushed and looked away, and then muttered. "I do want children one day, Kalin."

"I know. I just don't think you understand what you being my Bride really means."

"I know, your sister explained."

"I don't think she explained the children part."

"She said you guys can only have one child. Well, the women can only have one. Something about a gene or something."

"Yes, but I guess she didn't mention that the sexual excitement that is linked to me, well, having children is the same." she paused for a moment, both of us taking in the silence. Then she spoke again.

"Are you saying I can only have children with you?" there was shock in her voice, and horror. I guess to her I had just tied her down in the worst and last possible way. I had complete control over her body. And yes, she did hate it.

"Yes, I am afraid I am."

"So, you are saying no matter what, I can never have a life without you." she spat bitterly.

It hurt.

"Is the idea of being with me, having children, being completely sexually pleasured, happy with life, having a husband that will love you for eternity, and living for several hundred years a bad thing?"

"It is when it is with a man I don't love!" she screamed, tears running down her face. She then fled back into the bed room and slammed the door. I had once again said something I shouldn't have. I had nailed the last nail into the board. Told her her being with me was inevitable, no matter what she did.

Damn this, I was trying!

I opened the fridge and grabbed the bag of blood, then I hunted down a piece of paper and pen. I was agitated, but I scribbled out my note as legible as I could and then left, leaving the door open so I wouldn't slam the damn thing.

Women were complicated.