The sun was setting for the last time for a week. I felt like crying. Marcus learned last year what this day meant for me. I did my salutation to the sun while dressed in black. My class would have laughed at me, but I didn't care.

Our house was finished. It had three bedrooms although we only used one. One, the one I was in, was completely bare. It was perfect for my yoga practice. The third was converted to an office. I was completing my degree through correspondence and tended to work in there. I should have my degree in a few months after flying out to take the exams.

Since finishing the house, Marcus had been working more and more on his crafts. He had built a myriad of pieces and all had been bought within weeks of posting the pictures on the internet. He was being sought by many for commissioned work now.

Our relationship was still new. There was so much about him I didn't know, I couldn't guess at. I often felt simple compared to him. He was so old. He had done and seen so much. I was just a reservation girl who had barely set foot in a real city. He was still fascinated with me, although I would never understand why or how.

I held my hands in prayer, watching the red fade from the sky. I would watch until it was gone, until the sky turned purple in endless night.

There was a knock at the door. I came down the stairs to find Marcus already at the door in the arms of a blonde vampire. Her long hair was braided simply, but her clothes were elegant.

"Leah, Leah, come. You have only met her once, I think. She has come from Denali to see us. This is Chelsea."

He still had his arm around her waist and the familiarity bothered me. Her smell was burning my nose. My sun had just disappeared for an entire week and now this? "Hello." I turned to the kitchen and flicked on the tea kettle.

I heard them whispered in the other room. "I wish that you had told me you were coming. Tomorrow would have been a better day."

"I came in the dark; that was easiest."

I breathed slowly, trying to calm myself. Chelsea. She was the one that had held Marcus for so long, tying him to Aro. I closed my eyes to continue my practised breath. Her eyes were bright gold, so I had no quarrel with her. She had come from Denali and was plainly abstaining from human blood. Marcus obviously had no quarrel with her. I'd have to talk with him about that later.

I felt cold arms around me. Quiet as always, I hadn't heard him slip into the kitchen. Cold lips met my nose. "I'm sorry she came today. Why don't you take a hot bath and I'll show her around?"

"Thank you, but I think I'm feeling better now. Even a few hours later would have been better." I sighed. I liked to watch every hint of light recede. It was gone now.

I came around the corner to find Chelsea admiring one of Marcus' chairs. "I apologize. I wasn't prepared to meet anyone today. I'm Leah." I held my hand out to her.

"It is wonderful to meet you, Leah. I am so happy for you and Marcus." Her voice had the expected musical quality. It was very high as well, not quite nasal.

I smiled at her, but it was a bit forced. Marcus was okay, but other vampires still put me on edge. "What brings you?" I asked.

"Well, I had heard you were fully settled and found myself missing Marcus. We have spent many years together. I thought I would bond with the ones who escorted me into this new lifestyle, but, with the exception of Tanya, they all have mates. I find myself unable to tie myself into their family." I quirked an eyebrow. Certainly Chelsea could tie herself into any family. That was what her gift did, didn't it? "I meant a natural tie, of course. I was hoping to find a place here. Or, if not, with Suplicia or Renata, drawing on the older bond we have." She smiled at Marcus and his smile was warm in return. I tried not to scowl.

Marcus squeezed my arm and I reminded myself that he was mine. She was looking to join our family, not take mine from me. I thought about myself here without Marcus. I hadn't been lonely in Seattle, but I was certainly lonelier. Here, I would probably go mad. Could I really blame Chelsea for leaving a group of friends in search of a real family? Could I really welcome her into mine? I wasn't sure. I needed to try, for Marcus' sake if nothing else. It was obvious he was glad to have her here.

"Of course. You can stay with us." I stuttered a little as I said it, betraying my true thoughts. I remembered the smell when Esme Cullen came to visit, the smell of the Cullen house, the smell of the Volturi castle. Was I really willing to have that in my house? All the time? I took a deep breath and forced a smile.

Marcus was surprised by my statement. "Leah?" he asked, looking a little worried.

I met his eyes and my smile warmed. What wouldn't I endure for this man? I decided not to answer that; I'd be frightened by the result. "I'm not thrilled, obviously. But I have a home and a family. I was taught that we open these things to those who need them."

Chelsea was timid. "I appreciate your offer, Leah. I will certainly impose for a little time. I would like to spend time getting to know you. I also want to reacquaint myself with Marcus. I haven't seen this side of him in a very, very long time." She smiled at him again. She was referring to the time when Didyme was still alive, well around.

"I'm going to take you up on that bath idea," I told Marcus. I walked into the kitchen to make a cup of tea to take with me. "If you'll excuse me," I said climbing the stairs.

I was able to listen to their conversation while immersed in warm water. I didn't even turn on any lights, wallowing in the dark with my chamomile.

"You look so happy, Marcus. She is obviously good for you."

"She is perfect for me. How can someone so different from Didyme still match me so perfectly?"

"I was wondering the same thing. She is nothing like Didyme."

"It is good to see you again, Chelsea. I have missed you."

"I know. I think it must be an after-effect of tying you for so long. I seem to be permanently tied to you now."

"But no longer artificially. I hope Leah is sincere about opening our family. You are like a sister to me."

"Yes. And so, brother, I must ask. How are you coping with this diet? It seems I err at every opportunity! That was the other reason I came. The Denali clan were happy to accompany me, but inadequate or unwilling to stop me when I took a bad turn. I came through the empty tundra in order to avoid any human contact altogether. I was thrilled to find so few people here."

"That's a small reprieve, I'm afraid. Tours will start up again when the sun returns next week. It is difficult. Leah hunted with me for a time. She was certainly willing to stop me." I heard him chuckle. I snickered too, thinking of how many times I'd sunk my teeth into his marble flesh when my head in his gut didn't turn him from his tracks. That was only the first few months though. I didn't even hunt with him any longer. I'd gone a few times since the winter had come, but as his companion, not his watcher.

"Would she be willing to accompany me? Could you and I hunt together?" Chelsea asked.

"Certainly. Well, I speak for myself, but I imagine Leah would see it as her duty to safeguard the people here while you learn. She takes her inherited duty very seriously. She lives to protect human life. I have not tasted human blood since I met her." He said it with a note of pride. I wondered if it was pride in himself or pride in me. I smiled and sunk a little lower in the water.

"Are you still tempted?" Chelsea asked.

"All the time! But my love for her stops me long before it becomes unbearable. I could never hurt her by betraying her trust that way. She doesn't always hunt with me anymore. A month ago, I chased a tourist back to his bus. He narrowly escaped me. I was so ashamed that I didn't tell her. Yes, I am still tempted."

I sat up with a splash. He'd chased a person? He hadn't caught him, though. I tried to relax. I had a lot to talk with Marcus about.

Their conversation turned to older topics. "Do you miss the others?" Chelsea asked now. "I find myself looking for Aro and Caius all the time."

"I am happy to say I don't miss those two. No, it's really only you I miss. And Didyme, but I'll never stop missing her." His voice was empty. I felt his pain despite the fact he had never shown it to me.

"Even though you have Leah?" Chelsea asked on my behalf.

"Not when she is near, no. When she is with me, I don't look for anyone else."

"How do you stand the smell?"

I laughed out loud, giving myself away.

I heard Marcus snicker. I had always wondered the answer to that question, but now I probably would never get an answer.

"I think someone is listening." Marcus' voice was filled with humour.

"Indeed. Well, I can't thank either of you enough for opening your home to me. If she can stand my smell, I will happily endure hers."

I laughed again. "I'll do my best," I called.

Chelsea's laugh tinkled back to me.

The week of darkness passed and Chelsea stood with me in the yard watching the new sun rising in the south. She echoed my movements in the salutation. "This feels odd," she said.

I laughed as she started to sparkle in the first rays of dawn. "It looks a little odd, but I do too. We're barely clothed and it is freezing out here." We went back into the house before anyone could notice. She followed me into the office and picked up one of my books.

She had been looking through my coursework and thinking that she might like to do something similar, but focusing on families rather than addictions. She had already ordered the introductory course materials for her own correspondence degree.

It still surprised me how quickly Chelsea had fit into our paired routine. I had accompanied the two of them on a hunt in wolf form and taken Chelsea down when she tried to head for an ice fisherman.

"Yes!" she said happily as she rose. "Thank you, Leah." She patted my head and I snapped at her hand. "Sorry," she apologized and then took off after the bear she had been hunting originally.

Since then, she had joined my yoga class, dazzling all the men brave enough to join, and doubling the testosterone quotient as more men signed up. She feigned complete ignorance when Marcus stole off with me up the stairs or into the yard. He only tried that once. The frostbite had been terrible. And now she was looking into taking correspondence classes with me.

Marcus poked his head in the door. "Come and see," he urged.

I smiled and pushed away from the desk. Chelsea followed us to the workshop. There was a wooden bed frame carved to resemble the sloping back of a wolf. Where had he been hiding this? I hadn't seen him working on it. "Marcus! It's amazing."

"You like it?" he asked, putting a hand to one of the ears on the huge head. It wasn't a big bed. It probably fit a single mattress or a child's.

"It's beautiful," I continued to gush, walking around to look at the tail. I laughed when I saw it swung on a hinge, letting it wag.

Chelsea chuckled too. "How sharp are the teeth on this one?" she asked, looking at the head. The white painted fangs were dull of course, but the tongue lolled out on one side.

"Who commissioned this?" I asked.

"No one. I made it for us," he answered.

I laughed loudly and Chelsea joined me. "We won't fit on that bed, Marcus."

"No, but our child might."

I choked on my laugh. Was he serious? I looked to his face. He was serious. I tried to form words, but none came. Chelsea threw her arms around his neck. "What a wonderful idea, Marcus!"

He hugged her and smiled. "You think so? I know Leah would like children. I'm sure I can find somewhere to store it."

I couldn't see them properly. "Leah?" Chelsea asked. "Are you all right, Leah?" She put a cold hand on my arm, shaking me gently. "Why are you crying?"

I put a hand to my cheek. I was crying. "Just – overwhelmed. One thing to have the faintest dream of a thing. Another to see someone actually planning for it." I leaned on one of the wolf's flanks for support.

Marcus came and cupped my cheek. "I know it can't be soon. We're making demands on your nature again. But it will happen, one day." He kissed me. "I'm certain of it."

I'd had one period in the past year, just before Chelsea joined us. That was when he started work on this, I realized now. That was when I had started to hope. How had he known? I looked up to his golden eyes and they sparkled with love. He put cold fingers under my chin, lifting my lips to his.

His kiss was gentle. His sweet, but not quite piercing smell filled my nose. My lips tingled with the chill. I threw my arms around his neck. I clung to the father of my child and refused to let him let me go. I didn't see Chelsea anywhere as he carried me up to our bed.

"I love you, Leah," he whispered as his lips trailed down my neck. The line of ice made me gasp and I tightened the hold my legs had on his hips. "I want to give you that child. I want to make you my wife. Can you bear to wait with me for that day?" He pulled my shirt over my head, his hands soft and barely touching my skin. The coolness raised goosebumps and set my heart pounding.

"Yes. Don't wait too long to make me your wife, though." I growled into his ear as my arms wrapped around his neck again. I grabbed the top of the back of his shirt and pulled it over his head.

"That wasn't my intention." He put his lips to my breast as he pulled my shorts down my legs and released his own pants.

I panted feeling his icy tongue circle my nipple, his lips curling to suck it into his mouth. The tingling spread down into my belly and thighs. I wrapped my legs back around him as soon as my shorts were off. I wanted him just as much as he wanted me.

Or perhaps I wanted him more. He slid his hand between us, curling his fingers into me. I tightened reflexively, squeezing his fingers in me. They were freezing me, and I was melting them. I remembered the frost bite I had suffered in the yard, but this was more burn, less bite. His thumb rubbed me and I arched with a scream. "Yes."

My nipple was pulled from his mouth and I felt his kiss along my stomach. His tongue in my navel. I kept pulling him to me with my legs. His hand felt divine, but I wanted him.

"Not what you are looking for?" he asked as he curled his fingers to rub the sensitive knot inside me. I bucked against the pillows, convulsing.

"No," I moaned, still throbbing around his hand. He stroked me again, and I felt myself rippling at his touch, my muscles following his fingers in and out of me. "Oh my god." I murmured.

"Let me love you, Leah. Let me love you forever."

"Yes, please." I begged as he continued to rub me to a climax. I pulled his mouth up to me and he climbed onto the bed beside me, meeting my hungry lips with his own.

I moaned against them, rocking my hips against his grip. My grip tightened and slackened. I fell away from his lips gasping for air.

He moaned now and pulled me toward him. His lips were at my neck again and he buried himself in me. I screamed at the sudden icy flash he sent through me. Then my body took over again, my hips swirling on him. "Leah," he murmured into my skin. "You are perfect."

"Never stop loving me." I didn't want to imagine a time or place without him, never again. I wanted him at my side always. I wanted his children. I wanted his heart.

"Never," he agreed.