"Thank you," I said. "Even if it does kinda sound like you're giving me away to other guys."

He leaned back, frowned at me, and said, "That's just bullshit, Z."

"Well, you just said that it's cool with you if I'm with--"

"No!" He shook me a little. "I didn't say I was cool with you being with other guys. I said I wouldn't let it break up what we have."

"What do we have?"

"Each other. For always." "That's enough for me, Stark." I twined my arms around his shoulders. "Would you do something with me?"

"Yep, anything," he echoed my answer, making both of us smile.

"Kiss me like you did before so that I can't think."

"I can handle that," he said.

Stark's kiss started out as slow and sweet, but it didn't stay that way for long. As his kiss deepened, his hands began to explore my body. When he found the bottom edge of my T-shirt he hesitated, and it was during that tiny moment of hesitation that I made my decision. I wanted Stark. I wanted all of him. I pulled away from him so that I could look into his eyes. We were both breathing hard and he automatically leaned toward me, like he couldn't stand not being pressed against my body.

"Wait." I put my hand flat against his chest.

"Sorry." His voice sounded gruff. "I didn't mean to come on too strong."

"No, that's not it. You're not coming on too strong. I just wanted to ... well..." I hesitated, trying to make my mind work through the fog of desire I was feeling for him. "Ah, hell. I'll show you what I want." Before I could get shy or embarrassed, I stood up. Stark was watching me with an expression that was curiosity mixed with heat, but when I pulled off my shirt, undid and stepped out of my jeans, the curiosity went away and his eyes seemed to darken with the heat. I lay back down within the safety of his arms, loving the sensation of the roughness of his plaid against the smoothness of my naked skin.

"You're so beautiful," Stark said, tracing the pattern of my tattoo that wrapped around my waist. His touch made me tremble. "Are you scared?" he asked, pulling me closer.

"I'm not trembling because I'm scared," I whispered against his lips between kisses. "I'm trembling because of how much I want you."

"You're sure?" "Totally sure. I love you, Stark."

"I love you, too, Zoey."

Stark took me in his arms then, and with his hands and his lips, he blocked out the world, making me think only about him--want only to be with him. His touch banished the ugly memory of Loren, and the mistake I'd made giving myself to him, into the mists of the past. At the same time Stark soothed the hurt inside me left by Heath's loss. I would always miss Heath, but he had been human, and as Stark made love to me I understood that I would have had to say goodbye to Heath eventually. Stark was my future-- my Warrior--my Guardian--my love.

When Stark unwrapped the MacUallis plaid from around his body and lay naked beside me, he bent and I felt his tongue first against the pulse at my neck, and then a brief, questioning touch of his teeth.

"Yes," I said, surprised by the breathless, unfamiliar sound of my voice. I shifted my body so that Stark's lips pressed more firmly against my neck, while I kissed the strong, smooth slope where his shoulder met his biceps. With my own wordless question, I let my teeth graze his skin.

"Oh, goddess, yes! Please, Zoey. Please."

I couldn't wait any longer. I nicked his skin at the same moment he bit gently into my neck, and with the warm, sweet taste of his blood my body was filled with our shared feelings. The bond between us was like fire--it burned and consumed, almost painful in its intensity. Almost unbearable in its pleasure. We clung to each other, mouths pressed against skin, body against body. All I could feel was Stark. All I could hear was the pounding of our hearts beating in time together. I couldn't tell where I ended and he began. I couldn't tell which pleasure was mine, and which was his. Afterward while I lay in his arms, our legs twined together, our bodies still slick with sweat, I sent a silent prayer to my Goddess: Nyx, thank you for giving Stark to me. Thank you for letting him love me.

***

We didn't leave the grove for hours. Later I would remember that night as one of the happiest of my life. In the chaos of the future, the memory of being wrapped in Stark's arms, sharing touches and dreams, and for that moment in time being completely, utterly content, would be something I cherished, like the warm glow of candlelight on the darkest of nights.