"You're my mate, Kira."

His eyes changed, the color darkening as she watched, and some hair grew along his cheeks. One glance assured her that he also had some fine fur coming out of his chest and arms.

She lifted her legs, wrapping them around his waist. He was still inside her, their bodies intimately joined. "You're losing control."

"You're mine!"

"Lorn." She softened her voice. "Baby, I am yours. But don't bind me to you this way until we're sure I can walk in the sun. No one would accept you as their leader if you had a Vampire mate."

"I don't care."

It touched her deeply that she was his priority. He was also hers. "I care. You're strong, you're a hell of a fighter, but I won't lose you. Just about every member of the clan would want you gone. I won't let you put yourself in that position." She wiggled her hips, used the grip of her legs to move under him. "Fuck me but no biting. I want you, Lorn."

He snarled and closed his eyes, turning his face into his arm. He began to thrust his hips, driving in and out of her, keeping her pinned. Kira moaned and let herself be lost to the sensations of Lorn. She climaxed first, crying out his name. He came and released her wrists, collapsing on top of her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and held him tight.

"Am I too heavy?"

"No." She noticed that some of the fine hairs had retreated, only bare skin under her palms. "I love having you right here."

"I'm sorry." He turned his face a little, his lips brushing against her throat. "I just..."

"I know. It's getting harder to resist."

"Yes. You're my true mate. We both know it. Instincts can't be denied."

"They need to be for right now. I'm so sorry." She kept caressing, her legs locked around him. "I get to bite you but you have to resist doing the same to me. It's not fair, is it?"

He shifted his arms to the side and braced his upper body weight, lifting off her a little as he peered at her. "Was I too rough?"

"I like it when you go at me like that. Even being held down was sexy. I have no complaints."

Some humor flashed across his face. "I'll remember that."

"Good."

He sobered. "Damn. I almost bit you."

"You didn't."

He gently withdrew from her body by wiggling down the bed a little but he stayed on top of her. "I can't think when I'm inside you."

"You're strongly Lycan. It's how it is. I wouldn't want you to change."

"Speaking of, I damn near shifted."

"I know. You wouldn't have done a full-on shift but I think you were heading straight toward the middle ground."

"I'm so damn sorry."

The tormented look he gave her tore Kira up. She hated knowing she was the cause. "Don't be. I love you, Lorn. That's part of the package. Do you think it grosses me out? Didn't you hear me moaning your name? Did I look terrified just because you got a little excess hair? Actually, it kind of felt good rubbing against my nipples when your chest got furry."

He laughed.

"Not to mention, you're doing a Vampire. I can't seem to have sex without sinking my fangs into you. Did I take too much blood? I lost control a little too. It wasn't just you."

"I feel a little lightheaded but I think it's more from the inner raging battle of wanting to mate you and trying to resist. You're not big enough to need so much blood that it's going to really hurt me."

"Promise me that you'll let me know if I'm taking too much and it's causing you any problems. You need to be at your best while all this shit is going down with the clan."

"I'm not letting you bite someone else."

"We did okay with Lavos, if he's willing to offer up his wrist after the last time."

"I don't want to go through that again."

She sealed her lips, really not wanting to argue with him, but her temper changed that fast. "Do you know what I don't want to go through? Losing you. Especially if I know I was partly to blame because feeding me made you fight when you weren't in top form."

"Kira-"

"Don't," she ordered. "Blood loss, too much, would be a bad thing. You won't heal as fast. It can make you sluggish and lose your focus. What if you were to faint or something?"

"I don't faint."

She rolled her eyes. "Fine. Pass out. Is that a more manly term? You could get into another challenge fight, lose some blood, and boom. Down you'll go if you're already suffering because of what you gave me."

"I've increased eating and I'm taking in more red meat. I had three steaks before I came home to you. Garson is a good cook, by the way. I had him use the lodge kitchen to make me dinner."

The thought of a steak made her hungry. She imagined one on a plate and cravings hit. She clutched at Lorn.

"What is it?"

"I want food. Real food. It actually sounds good! Since this happened to me, the thought made me kind of nauseous but I actually want a steak." Hope flared. "Do you think that's a good sign?"

"Perhaps."

"I think I should try to eat something." She pushed at him. "Get off."

"No." He didn't budge. "Let's sleep first and we'll try it later. You just had blood."

He was right. She didn't want to risk throwing up if real food didn't sit well in her stomach and her body rejected it. His blood would come up too. "But I want a steak! Isn't that great?"

He nodded. "Yes. It's probably a good sign."

"But? I can see you want to say something."

"I don't want you to rush things and hurt yourself. Vampires aren't meant to eat food."

"I'm not meant to be a Vampire."

He leaned forward and brushed his mouth over hers. "You're my Kira. It doesn't matter if you remain this way."

"It will to the clan, and you're their new leader. I won't have you killed because they won't accept me the way I am right now."

"I'll stabilize the clan and we'll take things from there."

"What do you mean?"

"Lavos could hold the clan once we weed out all the troubled ones and gain the loyalty of more enforcers who would follow him."

Kira gaped at him.

Lorn met her gaze. "It could take years to get them to come around to tolerating someone who's so Vampire. I'm not willing to hide you for that long. I've been talking to Velder...and I believe he'd allow us to move to his clan. I never really wanted to lead but it's fallen to me, considering how bad Decker was. My brother could take over once we get enough support behind him. Right now, the threat of facing off against us both has been a deterrent. Plus, I have to say that Garson and Kar can fight a hell of a lot better than I gave them credit for. They hid their skills to remain under the radar."

"You're the new clan leader. You can't give that up."

"It wasn't my ambition, Kira. It became necessary to protect the weaker ones so I stepped up. I'm still a VampLycan and it's my duty to keep them safe. Once all the dust settles and more enforcers have sworn in, I'd be happy to step down."

"I won't let you do that. You'll make an amazing leader, Lorn. You have the heart that Decker lacked."

"So does Lavos."

"I won't allow you to give up everything because of me."

"You're all that matters, Kira." He cupped her face. "It's going to take some time so nothing is decided yet."

"I'm going to walk in the sun."

"We'll sure try to get you there but I'm looking at all the options."

"I'm determined, and you know me."

"You're as stubborn as hell." He grinned. "But I have a backup plan. That's it. Now let's get some sleep. I'm worn out."

She nodded. He needed to rest, and she curled up to him as he settled on his side. While Lorn fell asleep fast, she couldn't.

He couldn't give up leadership of the clan for her. It wasn't right. He might not have ever wished for the position but it did suit him. He'd always been a natural protector. He'd done it for her all her life. Now he wanted to protect her again if feeding didn't make her strong enough to withstand the sun.

Lorn woke when something inside his den creaked. He tried to tighten his arms around Kira but she wasn't there. He sat up and caught site of her opening the door that led to the lift.

"Where are you going?" He climbed off the bed.

"You know."

He had her pinned to the wall a heartbeat later, rage beating at him. "The sun is up! Are you crazy?"

"No. I'm testing a theory."

"You'll burn!"

"Maybe not."

"I forbid it. What in the hell were you thinking?"

"That I want to help you and I'm a hindrance right now, stuck here."

"The only thing you can do for me is stay where you're safe."

Kira sighed. "You need help and I'm your mate. Not officially yet, but I could be if I can handle the sun. That's going to be the biggest tell of how this drinking-your-blood plan is doing. I'm going up there."

"I think we should wait a few days." Lorn worried it wouldn't work and she'd be seriously injured. The sun could kill her.

"I'm awake during the day. I want to try."

She'd always been too damn obstinate for his liking. It was possible she'd attempt it on her own when he wasn't around in the future, or actually sneak out while he slept. Once the lift was raised to ground level, she'd be completely exposed to the sun if he wasn't there to help shield her. A horrific image of her screaming, burning, helpless as she died, flashed through his mind.

"Two more days. We'll attempt it then."

She frowned, jutting out her chin. "Now."

"Damn it!" He let her go, took a step back and ran his fingers through his hair, frustrated.

Her expression softened. "Every day I'm down here puts you at risk of the clan figuring out you're hiding me. I might not need a babysitter. This is something we have to know."

"We can give it a bit more time."

"You took the clan. That means you need everyone you can trust at your side. I do a lot of paperwork for my father, and you're going through Decker's office. Guess who could be a big help there? Me. Plus, you'd gain two people. You keep making Kar babysit me at night when you're gone."

"It's too soon."

"Time isn't on our side, Lorn. You know some are just waiting for a chance to strike once they evaluate the situation. Make it harder for them. I want Kar at your side if you're attacked, not sitting on a log bored shitless because you don't want to leave the den unprotected while I'm in it."

She was right, and it pissed him off. "Fine. But I'm going to yell if you get hurt in any way. I'll warn you now."

"I feel strong even though it's daylight up top. I'm wide awake. That's promising, isn't it? I think so."

"You've always been hopelessly optimistic."

"You've always been too grumpy and cautious."

"I am when it comes to you," he admitted.

She spun away, crossed the room to the bed, and scooped up the comforter. "I'll wrap up good and you'll block most of the sun. I'll just slip a hand out once we're up there. Worst case, I'll get a little sunburn and jerk my hand back under the blanket."

"Or lose a damn arm if it bursts into flames and ashes."

He regretted the words as soon as she looked at him. He hated seeing fear on her face. "I'm sorry."