"Sometimes a little compromise isn't a bad thing. You don't need to be precious about it."

David Sylvian

Paul imprinted that November. Rachel had come down for a visit from College. Her school was out for Thanksgiving break, a holiday she didn't mind recognizing if it meant she got a week off from school. It came as a surprise that she'd want to spend it on the Rez. She only lived in Port Angeles, but her visits were few and far between.

I hadn't even thought about it; it wasn't as if the Tribe celebrated. I asked Red about her Thanksgiving plans and she'd given me the strangest look. "Quileute's don't celebrate, Sam." It said in such an aren't-you-a -special-snowflake tone, I couldn't bring myself to remind her she wasn't actually Quileute. She hadn't even thought twice about including herself in with the tribe; she felt righthere. I couldn't have been more thrilled. The color of her skin didn't matter, not to her, or to me. She was tribe, she was pack, she was family.

"Well what about Charlie?" He was family too.

"Oh uh, I think Sue actually invited him over for dinner or something. It's always just been him, so I don't think he really celebrates either. We just don't see the point. I mean, what's Thanksgiving about? Befriending natives? Being thankful? I think Charlie and I have that covered. I mean, I've pretty much married-" Her mouth slammed shut, cheeks pinking up instantly. "Uh."

The face I made couldn't be helped. She was too damn adorable. "You called us married. That's too cute. We don't even live together."

"And we have incredibly awkward sex thing going on."

"I don't know," I pulled her close, her feet dangling off the ground as I lifted her. "I think we've gotten much better at the sex thing." Red tilted her head up for a kiss, and I obliged, licking my way into her mouth.

Jacob cleared his throat. "Can you guys like...not do that in my kitchen. I mean, it's my kitchen. I spend a lot of time in here. It's bad enough I see that shit with my freaking sister. Seriously, gag me. Fuck."

Setting Red down, I did my best to at least look contrite. "Sorry Jake. Red just..."

"Embarrassed herself horribly," she offered, flushing straight down her neck. "Seriously, let's not talk about it."

"Aw, don't be like that." I ruffled her hair, looping an arm around our waist. "I think it's adorable that you imagine us married."

Jake choked, eyes going wide. "Bells...imagines you married?"

"Again, let's not talk about this." She shoved at my chest, both hands pressed firm against my ribs. "Hey Sam, want to go back to your place? We can do that thin-"

"She said she's already pretty much married into the Tribe."

"Huh." Jake made a face, and shrugged. "Bells doesn't believe in marriage. Like, at all. She is the marriage antichrist, or something. And don't even get her started on babies. She's like...afraid of them"

"I am not afraid of babies!" This statement came complete with a foot stomp. "Oh my god, shut your mouth, Jacob Black."

"You don't believe in marriage?" I blinked, frowning down at her. "Or babies?"

Yeah. That was going to be a problem.

Her shoulders slumped and she gave Jacob a look of pure loathing as he slipped out of the kitchen. "It's not that I don't believe in them. I know for a fact that they both exist; seen 'em with my own eyes and everything. I just...marriage is not for me. This really isn't the time to talk about this."

She wasn't wrong. We were standing in the Black family kitchen, half the pack shoved into the living room shouting over whatever game was on. Hell, even Charlie was in, beer in hand while he claimed the good seat.

"Alright." I sighed. "But I mean...I'm sorry, but I can't not ask. Do you want kids?"

The face she made would have been cute if it wasn't for the subject matter. "I'm twenty. I mean...babies are like...I don't know. They're all dependent and stuff, and I mean...Sam! I can barely tie my shoes without falling on my face. What the hell would I do with a baby? Why on earth would I want to endanger a helpless little baby by...you know, being its mother." She gestured wildly, stepping away from me. Six inches might have been six miles; the sudden distance was painful. "I mean...I don't know if I can handle something being dependent on me when I can barely get myself through the day. It seems like a pretty shitty thing to do to a kid. I don't want the thing to have to raise its self because I'm too busy failing at life."

The thing. She was referring to our non-existent children as 'things' and it...it made me mad.

For the first time in month I was inexplicably mad at Red. "I want kids. More than one. Maybe three. I'd settle for two. Red." I sucked in a deep breath, fingers curling tight at my hands. "I want kids."

I hadn't seen her jaw clench like that in a very long time. Her eyes hardened, arms crossing over her chest as she stuck out her chin and lifted her brows at me. "Well. I don't know if I do."

This was not the time, nor the place, but I couldn't get past it. I wanted children. I wanted to be a dad more than I wanted to do almost anything. I hadn't even realized it until that very moment, but it certainly didn't make it any less true. "I have responsibilities, Red. As chief and as a wolf. My line must be carried on. I have a duty to this tribe. This isn't negotiable." It wasn't; I'd give almost anything up for Red, but not this...I didn't have a choice. Just like every other wolf in my pack, we had to carry on the line.

Red's mouth fell open, and her hands fell to her side as she reeled. Licking her lips, she gathered her red jacket off the back of the kitchen chair and slipped it on. "Well maybe you should find someone else to help you do your dutySam."

I watched her go wordlessly, door slamming behind her. I watched her go without moving, even as the rumble of her truck faded into the nothing. I watched her go even as I lost sight of her. Someone pushed me onto one of the kitchen chairs, but by then the world had lost all its details, everything going fuzzy at the edges. When at last I'd given up watching her, I stared at the top of Jacob's kitchen table and wondered what the fuck just happened.

"Did Bella just leave Sam?"

"Oh my God, Seth! Shut up."

Oh God. Oh God. This couldn't be happening. This wasn't happening. Red hadn't...she couldn't...she wouldn't...

Did she?

"Everyone clear out." Charlie sank down in the chair opposite me, and shoved a beer into my hand. "Drink up, boy."

I did, body working on auto pilot. It went down without any kind of taste, settling in my stomach like lead. "Charlie."

"It's going to be okay Sam."

"Charlie." It wasn't okay. What the fuck just happened?

"Sam." His voice cracked like a whip. "Get your shit together or I'm calling your mom. Listen, this isn't the end. You just freaked Bells out, okay? I know you want kids, buddy, but one; you have to respect a woman's wishes. It's her body, and all. She'll do with it what she wants. And two, she's twenty years old. Now is not the time."

"What if she never wants them? What if she never changes her mind?"

Charlie gave me a look, pointing at me with his beer. "There are a few things you gotta know about Bella, Sam. She had shit for parents."

"Charlie, I don't-"

"No, shut up. I wasn't that much of a dad to her growing up. I didn't really have the chance. I did what I could when I had her, but that wasn't all that often. And shit, you saw how I handled that Cullen mess. I let it go too far because I didn't have a fucking clue how to deal with it. I let her slide on pretty much nothing. I ain't winning no parenting awards Sam, but I do love my daughter. Her momma wasn't much better. Renee was always...restless. She could never be still. And she was so damn flighty. She wasn't much of a mom. She was a friend, but that ain't what kids need. Bella damn near raised herself. It's what makes her so damn stubborn. It's why she has such a hard time asking for help." He sighed, sitting back in his chair. "She's probably afraid she won't be much of a mom either, Sam."

I didn't agree. Red was the worst kind of martyr. She was as selfless as they came. I knew without a doubt that would translate into motherhood. Red would be the best mom there could be; she'd put everything she had into giving her child the world.

"I don't know what to do."

Charlie shrugged. "You got me. I just thought you might want to know why she wouldn't be so keen on having kids. But that might change, you know? I know she's come a long way in a short time Sam, but she's twenty, she's a baby herself. You're twenty five, and when you're that young, five years makes a world of difference. Bella's still learning, still growing up."

Sighing, I dropped my head into my hands. "This is our first fight."

Charlie snorted, and I looked up to catch his wry expression. "Now ain't that a lie and a half. You two use to fight like cats and dogs, from what I've heard. Hell, the first half of your relationship was nothing but bitching and screaming."

I laughed, sad and hallow. "I'm pretty sure Red wouldn't have spit on me if I was on fire. She hated me."

"Fine line between love and hate, ain't that what they say? Doesn't matter though; she adores you now. I'm honestly surprised she's still living with me."

"She wanted us to date," I explained, feeling helplessly sad. "To get to know each other before we did anything like that. I understood though. I mean it's like you said, the first half of our relationship was nothing but fire."

"Ah well, that was then. Days I manage to get her home, she's nothing but restless. I know she'd rather be here with you. She's crazy over you Sam. This isn't the end. You just...relationships are about compromise, you know? You just told her that you wanted three kids."

"Or two. Two would work."

"You told her all this after she told you she wasn't really sure she wanted them. She didn't say no Sam. Just that...right now, no."

"Well of course not right now. I'm not ready for kids either! I still practically live with my mother. I just...you know. One day. And I love Red, Charlie. I can't imagine anyone else having my kids."

Charlie grunted, and finished off his beer. "This is brokering in on territory that I am uncomfortable with, son. Just go find her, tell her that there's no pressure. That you're both young, and that...things will happen as they happen. Because, honestly, babies don't generally happen on purpose. I mean, I am sure some people are all 'look at all this free time I have, and all this money I don't need, and I sure would like to commit to dependent relationship of a minimum of eighteen years, but most likely a lot more'. No one says that. They say 'ooooh babies!' Most babies aren't...not accidents, but surprises. Bella was a surprise. Best damn one I ever got, but she wasn't planned. Didn't mean I didn't love her. These things just happen."

I stared for a moment, uncomfortable with what I thought he might have been telling me. I was pretty sure I was reading things wrong. "Are you telling me to eventually accidentally knock Red up?"

"Hell no." His mustache twitched as he ground his teeth. "I'm just saying it'll happen if it happens, son."

"I really am obligated to have kids, Charlie. I have to pass on the line. It's...I'd give a lot up for Red, anything really, but I won't leave my tribe unprotected." It hurt, but it was true. Red could ask almost anything else of me but...there were some things I just couldn't notdo.

Charlie stood, and heaved a long sigh. "I really don't think you have to worry, Sam. Bella will come around. She loves you, and she loves the Rez. And she'll love her babies. But she's young and stubborn. Go on, go talk to her. I think the guys probably want to get back to their game." And shit. I'd kicked Jacob out of his own house.

I hesitated. "You don't think I should give her some time?"

"This is Bella we're talking about," Charlie said, incredulous. "You can't let her stew. You let her sit around and think about just why she's mad at you and you'll never get out of the dog house, son. She'll find all sorts of new reasons to be mad at you and you won't even know what they are. You think you're fighting about kids but she keeps talking about the hand towels not matching the bath towels. You don't want to go there. No, you go on and cut her off before she works herself up."

Shoving up out of the chair, I nodded firmly. "Thanks Charlie."

"What the fuck do you want?"

It was so familiar, so reminiscent of our first few months, it made my chest hurt. "Just want to talk."

She licked her lips, defiant to the core. "Don't you have, like...a baby mama to find?"

"Red." I stared at her through the screen door, shoulders slumped. "You're the only woman for me, kids or no. I just...I didn't mean to put that all on you at once. But the idea that you don't want my children scares the shit out of me, Red. I just...you asked me once if there was anything I wanted just for me, something purely selfish, and I think that kids are it. But I'm not going to...going to make it like a stipulation."

Looking away, she fiddled with her shirtsleeve. "I thought you said you have to have kids. For the Tribe and stuff."

"I do." There was no way around it. "But I won't make you do it. There are people on the Rez, and even up in the Makah Tribe, who can't have kids, and equally, there are people on both Rez's willing to carry children as surrogate. It's happened in the past. I could help them have children. I have to carry on the line Red, but if you don't want to raise children with me, I won't ask it of you. That's not fair. I'm sorry if I upset you."

The stiff line of her shoulders fell, and she took a step back, letting me open the door. "God Sam," she breathed, looking at me with an expression I just couldn't name. It made me nervous. "You are just...you're such a bastard."

"What?" What the hell had I done now?

She looked like she wanted to throw something at me, but at the same time, she looked like she wanted to cry or laugh. "Why do you have to be so damn...awesome. You're like totally perfect, and it makes me fucking sick."

I reeled a little where I stood, standing before her as she fumed. I was completely bewildered. What had I done? I had no fucking clue. "Red! What the hell are you talking about?"

"You!" She stormed off across the living room, huffing. "You just told me that you want kids more than anything else in the world, but you're willing to give that up for me. God! You're such a jerk! You can't just...you can't just give up what you a want because I'm being a selfish bitch! You can't do that Sam!"

"I...what?" I was flying blind. I had no idea why she was mad at me. Charlie was right. "I'm not...I don't think you're selfish, Red. It's your body. If you don't want kids, it's your decision."

"But you want them! And I want you! And that's not fair of me to ask you to give them up just because I suck. God, I am so selfish. How can you even freaking look at me? You're willing to give up you're fucking children for me. And you? You would make such an awesome dad. Our kids would hate you and love you at the same time because you'd always do what was best for them and be right about it and it would drive them fucking nuts. You're a jerk." To my horror, her eyes were shining, tears threatening to fall. "And I am pretty much asking you to give that up. To let someone else raise your babies. You are so much better than me, it's not even funny."

"I...I have no idea what I did or what I'm supposed to say here." Apparently everything I said was wrong. It was a damn trap, a mine field of things I shouldn't say. "Red, I'm not trying to guilt you into having my kids."

I let the throw pillow hit me in the face; her aim was getting a lot better. "Of course you're not! You wouldn't even think of doing something like that! Ugh!" She threw another pillow at me and scowled. "Stop letting me hit you, you jerk!"

Three strides and I was standing before her. I gathered up her shaking hands into mine, and held her against me. "Red, please stop okay? Please? I don't know what I did wrong, but I love you. That's all that matters. I'm sorry if I...well, I don't know what I did. But I'm sorry."

"Of course you are," she grumbled, pressing her forehead into my chest. "I'm sorry to Sam. I just...kids do scare me. Jacob wasn't wrong. But...I don't know, the idea of letting you give that up, to just...hand off your sperm or whatever, I don't like it. But I mean, I don't know how I feel about kids, so I should be okay with it, but I'm not. I'm really not. And that you'd do it just because I asked makes me feel like an asshole." Sighing, she looked up at me, pretty brown eyes still a little teary. "I'm sorry I suck."

"You don't suck, Red. You're just...look. You're twenty. You're young. Honestly, I understand okay? Kids were the last thing on my mind when I was twenty. In fact, I hadn't really thought about it until today. It's just...I would like it, and even outside of that, it is my duty. But it's not yours, and I understand that too." I wiped the pad of my thumb across the apple of her cheek, pushing away her tears. "But...just keep an open mind, okay? I'm not asking you to start spitting them out next Spring, just...there is no one I would want to raise a family with more than you. You're the mother to my children, and I don't even have any yet. There will never be anyone else. If I have to...do the other thing, well. I will. And I won't love you any less for it."

"Give me some time? Because...I don't know. I don't want anyone else to have your babies, but...I'm not ready. I just...I'm a mess, Sam. I mean, I'm less of a mess than I was, but I'm nowhere near ready to take care of anyone that isn't me." She laughed, fingers curling into the loops of my jeans. "I'd make a horrible house wife, you know?"

I couldn't have rolled my eyes any harder. "Are you kidding me? You're already doing the wife thing, Red. Sometimes it scares me how wonderful you are. You do my laundry. I wake up, and all my towels are clean and all I can think of is how amazing you are. You clean my fridge, and you make me dinner. Last week I caught you dusting."

"Well, you work hard." She shrugged, blushing beneath my hand. "You deserve to come home to a clean house and a warm meal."

"That's kind of what wives do," I informed her quietly, smiling when she scowled. "But Red, marriage? I can live without marriage; that's not a hardship. Being with you is enough for me. Knowing that we're committed to each other, that you love me, that's totally enough."

I thought that was the end of it. I was wrong.

It was some days before the subject of marriage came back to hit me in the face like a forty-pound sledgehammer. Red was staring at her salad like it had all the answers to the questions she just wouldn't fucking spit out. I dropped my fork the fourth time she sighed.

"That's it. What the hell is wrong with you?" It came out a little harder then I intended, but that was just worry. Something was wrong with her, and again, I had no idea what.

"Nothing." She shoved a mushroom into her mouth and looked away. "Just tired I guess."

"Red, if something is upsetting you, you should tell me. Did I do something?" Narrowing my eyes at her, I frowned. "Is this the kid thing? Because I thought we worked it ou-"

"No!" Her eyes went wide as she set her fork down on her plate. "No, not the kids thing. That's...yeah. We're good on that. It's currently a non-issue. It's just that...I was just...I mean-"

"Red! Spit it out!"

"Why don't you want to marry me?"

Thoroughly derailed, I simply stared. "What?"

"I know what you said, that it was enough to just...but, I mean, does that mean you don'twant to marry me?" Her eyes were so worried, so earnest and open. "Is it because I'm not your imprint?"

And there it was, like a slap in the face. Sometimes I honestly forgot that she didn't know. That she didn't know that she was it for me, the end-all-be-all of my heart and soul. It occurred to me that this was my chance, my chance to tell her. I could tell her she was my imprint; that she was the reason I woke in the morning, the reason I bothered to breathe. I could tell her that marriage didn't matter to me because she was already more than my wife. She was my everything. I could tell her-

"Because I know imprints are like made-to-order wives. They're all perfect and probably don't freak out about having babies. I mean, they're like made to have babiesright? Perfect candidates or whatever. They're pretty much obligated to spit out a few babies-"

If she didn't stop saying babies like that, like 'three headed testicle monsters', I was going to gag her with the garlic bread.

Obligated?

Obligated? God, if she only knew. But if that's what she thought... Just tell her. You can tell her. Tell her Sam.

"-I mean, I'm not calling them, like Stepford wives, but I mean okay, it all seems a little Stepford to me. Like, they're built to perfectly compliment their wolf. What does that mean? How? What makes Jared and Kim compatible. Or Paul and Rachel? All they do is fight and fuck!"

All we did was fight. God, she was either a complete and total idiot, or really that clueless. But if she felt that way about imprinting, like it was a burden, or just another curse...well. How could I tell her? I'd never know if she was playing the martyr, and staying for my sake, and she'd never know that I truly loved her. For her.

How could I tell her?

I couldn't.

"Imprints aren't obligated to have children. It's just...the wolves have to, Red. We can't leave the tribe unprotected." Taking a shot in the dark, I guessed at what the heart of the matter might be. "Are you worried about me imprinting?"

"What? No. No I'm glad we're not imprinted. I mean...sometimes I see Jared and Kim and I wonder but...but I mean, we love each other. I think I'd love you just the same without an imprint. Why? Are you? Should I be?"

I'm glad we're not imprinted.I didn't even know what to do with that. "No, you have nothing to worry about. I was just...you seemed freaked out about imprinting." But possibly not as freaked out as she would have been, had I told her.

"No. I mean...Jacob promised me you wouldn't. And...he wouldn't lie to me. He clearly knows something I don't."

"And you don't want to know?" That sounded painfully unlike her. "That doesn't bother you?"

She huffed, mouth curling into a smile. "One of the first things you ever said to me was that if I kept digging for answers, eventually I'd find them. It's enough to know that you're mine, Sam. I don't...I'm afraid of asking questions that have answers I'm not sure I want. You're mine, right?"

"Of course." Reaching out, I took her hand. "And Red, I never said I didn't want to marry you. I said that it didn't matter. You'll always be way more to me than a wife, you know? You're more than just...just a baby-mama, or a homemaker. But you know, if you ever want to tie the knot, I'm all over it, okay?"

She gave me that little glare again, but at least she was smiling. "Shut up. Stop being perfect. It seriously sucks."

"I'm not." Giving her hand a squeeze, I pushed up from the table, retreating to my room. I brought the tacky gift-shop box out and set it on the counter top between our dinner plates. "I think about marrying you all the time. Don't think that I don't." Pushing the box forward, I held my breath as she opened it. "But a big white wedding? That's not me, that's not you. I'd like nothing more than to tie us together forever, but I don't need the bells and whistles to do it."

Red's fingers smoothed over the butter-soft leather, eyes bright with curiosity. "What is it?"

"A commitment band," I explained, lifting it out of the box. "They were like wedding rings way back when. Those etchings on the front are my family markings. This one is special though, it's for the wolves in my line. I...it belongs to you Red. But I won't ask you to wear it. That doesn't make it any less yours, though."

Her eyes were glue to it, and she bit her lip. "No wedding."

"There's a ceremony," I admitted, remembering the one Quileute commitment ceremony I'd attended when I was very young, between Billy and Sara Black. "It's not done often. Traditional weddings are simpler, and they offer tax benefits that the ceremony doesn't. But...as the chief, it's expected of me. Not for a while of course." I grimaced. The ceremony was another thing I was obligated to do, no matter how much Red didn't want it, another thing I didn't want to ask of her, even when I reallydid.

Withdrawing her hand, she frowned. "So I can't wear it unless we do the ceremony?"

"No you can. The band is just...it's saying you're mine. For as long as you wear it. Just like a wedding ring, when you take it off...it loses its meaning. The ceremony though...it's like a wedding, Red. It public and it's...it means a lot. If you wear this..."

"But not now." She looked up from the band through her lashes, mouth pursed.

"No. Not for a while, I suspect. I mean, there's no deadline." The feeling that rushed through me was like a mini-imprint all on its own. "You'd want to? Red, it's like a wedding ring. It holds all the same connotations to the Tribe. You'd really want that?" Heart pounding, I fought to keep my fingers from shaking. It had nothing to do with phasing and everything to do with keeping her forever. "You put this on and you're basically telling the Tribe you intend to be my wife."

"Yes." Smiling softly, Red looked at me and shrugged. "I realized you'd give up almost anything for me Sam, things you believe in, things you care about and...and I realized I can, too. Marriage is not for me, but youare. I'm willing to make sacrifices...to compromise too, Sam. It's not always about what I want. I want you to be happy."

"I'm not asking you to marry me."

"Well neither am I. I think it would look weird if got on one knee." She laughed, laying her hand over the leather band in my outstretched hand. "I'm not talking marriage. I'm talking you, and me, forever. I'll do the ceremony for you Sam. Not...not soon. But I will."

"Red..."

"Put it on me?" She flipped her hand palm-up, expectantly.

"It goes on your ankle." I blinked as she stood, pulling at the leg of her jeans. "Red..."

Propping her foot on my thigh, she smiled. "I want it, Sam. I'm not lying. Not about this. You'd do anything for me, and I think...well I think I'd do anything for you to. And that's why I can do this without being scared because I know that you'll never hurt me. That when you say it's forever, you really mean it. I do too."

"This is an extremely heavy conversation to be having over spaghetti."

"My spaghetti is awesome." She wiggled her toes, digging them into my thighs. "Come on, Sam!"

Shoving the band into my pocket, I grabbed her by the wrist. "Not...not here. Grab a coat and put your boots on. We're going out."

"It's November, Sam!" Red squawked as she jammed her feet into her boots. Waiting impatiently for her to tug her jacket on, I had her by the hand and out the door by the time the zipper was up. "Where are we going?"

"I'm not going to lie. It's a bit of a walk. It'll be faster if you let me carry you."

She scowled. "Are you fucking serious? Alright. I'll bite. Why are you dragging me out into the middle of the woods in November? This seems a little off the subject base, you know? How did we go from eternal commitment to early-winter hiking?"

"It's still Fall, and it's totally relevant." With little warning, I picked her up, pulling her close against me. Her thighs came to rest around my hips in a well-practiced manner. I carried her as I spoke, the light from the back porch dimming as we trekked deeper into the woods. "It's just...I can't explain it. But if that thing goes on you, it has to be out here."

Pouting, she gave a long suffering sigh. "This is a weird wolf thing, isn't it? One of the freaky instincts you just can't ignore? Like the meat thing and the way you curl your hand over the back of my neck all the time? I'm not a fucking puppy by the way. Don't think I don't know what you're doing when you do that." I did it to all the guys. It was a dominant gesture, and instantly calming because of it. I didn't really like to analyze the momma-wolf comparison too deeply.

"I hadn't realized you noticed that. But yeah, along the same lines. I don't know, I can't explain it. But I just...if you're going to let me put that on you, it has to be out here." I left out the other stipulation. She certainly wouldn't be pleased.

Where we stopped was in no way particularly special. It wasn't a clearing, or even particularly scenic. But it was dead silent, save for the cacophony of nocturnal life, the chirp of night birds, and the occasional scuttle beneath the underbrush of whatever animal hid there.

There was nothing but nature here. It was as it should be.

When she looked at me expectantly, I nodded with all the resolution I could muster. I was nervous. She might not have seen it the way I did, but this would forever be myweddingnight. How the hell had that happened? How did we go from fighting to this in a matter of minutes?

But that was just Red and I. It was just the way we were. I couldn't imagine it any other way.

"Right." I swallowed, and looked up at the sky, the peek of stars shining through the high branches. "Now take off all your clothes."

"What!" The screech of her voice startled not a few birds from their perches overhead. "November, Sam! It's November! It's cold! I am not getting ass-naked in the middle of the forest in November."

"Red," I wheedled, backing her into a tree. "I promise to keep you warm, okay? I wouldn't ask if it didn't matter but it...it does, okay? The first time I see my mark on you, it's going to be the only thing you're wearing."

"Right." She gritted her teeth, looking up at me through narrowed eyes. "So I have to be naked in the middle of the woods. You're not going to like...pee on my leg or anything weird, are you? Don't give me that look. You're asking me to get naked in the middle of the woods, in the middle of the night, in the middle of the winter!"

"It's still autumn!" Really, it was only November. And I'd keep her warm. "We can wait till spring if you want, I just...this is how it has to be done. It isn't like there's a rule book!" There was though, a red one in the cupboard above the fridge. I'd read it. This is how it had to be done. This was the way it was meant to be. Man and woman in nature. "I'll be naked too."

That seemed to ease a little of the tension in her shoulders and I knew I won when she huffed nosily through her nose. "The things I do for you."

"You do this for me and I'll owe you forever," I whispered, pushing her against the tree again, her little body crushed between the bark and my body. "Forever, Red. You know that right?"

Grumbling, she tugged her zipper down. The coat fell to the ground, and when she shivered, I crowded closer against her. The clothes came off, piling at her feet, and I kicked them away, shamelessly. "You too," she murmured, fingers tugging at the buttons of my plaid shirt. "Fucking cold."

When I was as naked as her, nothing but the soft leather cuff in hand, I dropped to the ground, fingers sliding down her thigh and calf. Red tipped her leg forward, bending at the knee. It fit around her ankle like it was made for her, the leather thongs pulled tight and laced neatly. It was unfathomably dark against her moon lit skin.

Just her and I, surrounded by nature, wearing nothing but moonlight.

Exactly as it should be.

"I'm going to fuck you against this tree now."

She swallowed, fingers carding through my hair. "Is that uh...part of it."

"No." I nuzzled at her hip bone, nipping. "I just want to."

"Well...okay then."

tbc