Via maintenance ladders, Silver and Hannah descended through the elevator shaft to the third basement level. There, they gained access to the ventilation system through a grate. Along the way, Hannah disabled select sensors and rerouted the cameras using her cell phone. Eventually, they reached the point where technology could take them no further. They removed a grate from an air duct that was too narrow for any person larger than a child to enter.

"From here we travel on all fours until we reach central cooling," Hannah said, yanking her shirt over her head. Her bare breasts flattened as she raised her arms. Silver's mouth went bone dry. He stared for a few seconds and then averted his gaze.

His gut clenched. Fuck, but she was gorgeous. Deep in his heart, he'd always acknowledged that he wasn't worthy of her. As angry and hurt as he was at the moment, he still wanted her—the same as his lungs needed air and his soul craved music. He didn't think she'd leave him, but he feared the loss of her respect... and the demise of intimacy.

"Got it." He fumbled with his pants, working the fly, but sudden... swelling... impeded his progress. No man risked a zipper yank when his boys hung in the balance.

"From there we'll shift and bypass a cooling fan." Hannah turned and bent, stripping off her jeans, and lifted her tight round backside toward him. Silver's abs clenched with a visceral stab of desire and unzipping got harder.

A lot harder.

"Stop staring at my ass and pay attention!" Hannah flung over her shoulder without looking. Naked, she shoved her clothing into the knapsack that already contained their equipment.

"I wasn't staring." Truth—he'd been worshipfully lusting after her glorious gluteus maximus.

"Yes you were." She looked askance of him.

"Maybe a little," Silver conceded with a grin. He gave a good shake to clear his head and finished undressing. He thought about chastity and grandmothers to clear his mind, but in the end he had to replay a Nickelback song to wipe away the final clinging sexy cobweb. He withheld details of his dilemma and solution from Hannah. The wench would've been wholly unsympathetic. She'd laugh and might even belt out a few lyrics of "Animals" just to torment him.

"Are you ready?" Hannah's eyes glowed, casting an emerald radiance across her face. She tilted her head to the side and the hint of a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.

"Yeah." Silver shuddered. It'd take hours to rid himself of the final echo of Chad Kroeger's off-key caterwauling. He hoped the sacrifice was worth it.

They shifted to their animals and entered the ventilation system. Their nocturnal vision allowed them to see in the darkness. As a swift red vixen, Hannah dashed through the air ducts, her sharp claws clicking on the metal. Her claustrophobia never seemed to bother her while she was a fox. Silver had a theory about that, but he kept it to himself.

The cramped quarters hampered Silver's bigger coyote form far more but he managed, crawling on his belly. The burden of carrying the sack containing their gear fell on him. He managed by carrying it in his mouth with the bulk resting atop his front legs. It was inconvenient, but he and Hannah had discussed and rejected putting him in a dog harness. Doing so would've widened his girth and increased the risk of getting caught on something. Far more consequentially, any set of straps sturdy enough to hold up under the weight of the packs would've limited his ability to shape change. The prospect had filled Silver with dread, but he would've agreed if she'd asked. He suspected his mate sensed his reticence, because it'd been Hannah who insisted the harness was too dangerous and closed the conversation.

The journey through the air ducts lasted a while and involved several turns. After the first hundred meters, Silver stopped tracking distance and time and concentrated on moving forward. His sides heaved, panting, and it got hotter and dustier. He stuck to Hannah's tail, trusting her knowledge of the building's layout, because without her he'd have been hopelessly lost.

In the tedium, his thoughts returned to their fight back in the suite. His anger burned every bit as hot, but doubt set in. He second-guessed himself and wondered if he'd been unfair or overreacted to Hannah's deception. She might have reasons of her own for having kept her success from him. The thing was... his entire life had been a struggle to escape from the bottom. Other people assumed the worst of him—and he fell into the trap of doing the same.

Eventually, the conduits intersected a maintenance tunnel wide enough to accommodate a person on their knees. For a coyote and fox, it was positively spacious. Mechanized whirring came from the distance and grew steadily louder as they approached. A steady stream of air blasted through the ducts, a refreshing respite after the suffocating warmth of the other conduits. Eventually, they reached the source of the noise and current: the spinning blades of an enormous fan barred the way. They halted because going forward would've meant diced fox and coyote meat.

Hannah initiated the change back to human. A mystical shimmer enveloped the red fox and then faded, unveiling the naked woman. She extended her arm behind her, hand grasping. Silver shoved the bag's straps, now soggy with his drool, into her grip and she hauled it toward her. While Hannah disabled the fan, he shifted back to a man, even though it meant things got a lot more confined for him. He wanted to be ready.

The motor stopped, and the fan slowed until they could distinguish three distinct blades. In the distance, other operational fans continued to generate a steady din.

"There. It's on a two-minute delay." Hannah shoved the tools into the sack and tossed it through the gap between the fan blades.

"I'll go first." Silver pulled himself forward. Things got tight with two of them packed into the same space, but they were used to working in close quarters.

"That's not necessary." Hannah huffed and tossed her long hair.

"We don't know what's on the other side." Silver was entrenched in a stubborn determination to take the lead. He might not have what it took to be a good father, but he sure as hell would prove his worth as a protector.

"We do—central cooling. But fine. Go."

He went, sliding through the gap. The metal edges scraped his skin, but he made it without any mishap. On the other side, he dropped to a crouch and scanned his surroundings, searching for threats. The area contained several more central air conditioning and heating units, a Super Mario world of pipes, and no surprises.

"It's clear." Silver scooped up the knapsack off the floor.

A soft rustle signaled Hannah's leap. She swung through feet first, and landed squarely. Silver started to turn away, but her sharp cry brought him back around fast. The acidic scent of her fear flooded the air.

Her piercing keen echoed through the vast basement. Shit. If anyone passing through the area heard her...

"What's wrong?" Adrenaline surged through Silver. Like a flipped switch, his primal aspect took over and he went straight to fight. With an unidentified threat to his mate, flight didn't even cross his mind.

The moment he lay eyes on her, all concerns of getting caught vanished. Hannah had her neck stuck between the fan blades, which suddenly assumed the sinister aspect of a guillotine. She twisted and turned, but somehow was stuck. Her raw fear assailed him through their mate bond. Her reaction upset and confounded him. In all the time he'd known Hannah, she'd always maintained a level head. No, that wasn't entirely true. She'd panicked once, briefly, when they'd first met. Silver had left her handcuffed at the scene of the crime. But after the initial burst, Hannah recovered quickly... He expected her to do the same now.

Silver rushed to her. He caught her shoulders, "It's okay. Hold still for a second—"

When he touched her, Hannah cried out and jerked away from him, smashing her skull against the metal. It opened a gash on her scalp and the coppery scent of blood wafted into the air. In a heartbeat, she jolted from a bad anxiety attack straight into pure panic. She thrashed like crazy, and her elbow caught his chin.

The blow staggered him, but Silver rolled with it. He didn't understand what'd happened, but he had to stop her before she hurt herself. He lunged, coming at Hannah from behind. He caught her arms and pinned them behind her back.

Hannah released a rabid growl. She stank of fear and tears. He didn't have a clear view, but he imagined terror contorted her face. She kicked back, and her heels connected with his shins several times, but only glancing blows. More proof of her unthinking terror. In her right mind, Hannah could handle herself in a fight.

Alarm clamored through his head, making it near impossible to think. He clung to reason by his fingernails. He had no idea how much of the two minutes remained until the fan switched back on, but the sands were running.

"Stop fighting," Silver said between clenched teeth. In a fit of frustration, he gripped hard enough to leave bruises. She whimpered, and he winced. He transferred his grip on her wrists to one hand and thrust his arm through the gap. He meant to free her even if he had to lop off a hunk of tangled tresses with the business end of his claws.

Hair grew back; heads didn't.

Silver reached across Hannah. He caught hold of the tangled skein of red locks. With a low snarl, Hannah chomped down on his forearm and broke skin. Silver grunted in discomfort. Throbbing pain spread through his arm, but he kept groping for where she was caught.

Tenaciously, Hannah held onto him with locked jaws. Unease filled him, to the point where he feared she'd take a chunk out of him. A nasty injury could cost him the use of fine motor control exactly when he needed it most.

The cooling unit's motor sputtered as it awoke from its nap.

Verging on panic, Silver shifted his hand to a claw and wrenched free of her bite hold. It probably hurt, but the pain got lost in a red rush. He took a rough, blind swipe and his nails cut through a through a section of strands.

The hub started to rotate. The edge of the blade turned, connecting with the side of Hannah's neck. Silver pressed his shoulder against the metal, determined to hold it back, but immense torque built in the hub. He took another swing and cut through more of her hair.

Hannah came free.

Silver released Hannah's wrists. With his forearm still stuck in her bite hold, he wrapped his free arm around her waist and hauled her clear. The blades spun, rapidly gaining speed.

Silver collapsed to the ground, taking Hannah with him. With a startled cry, she smacked facedown across his legs. For a second, they stayed like that, sprawled and stunned, panting for breath. His arm hurt where he'd been bitten, but the injury had already begun to heal thanks to his accelerated regeneration. The immediate threat dissipated, but toxic levels of adrenaline remained in his body. Violent tremors shook him.

He'd almost lost her. It frightened him senseless.

When Hannah pushed herself upright, he fully expected her to assault him again. Anger roared through him, obliterating the remnants of fear. He locked his hands about Hannah's hips and hauled her to him. Her back pressed flush against his chest and her legs rested atop his thighs.

"Silver! What the hell—" A startled cry flew from her lips. Hannah jerked her head back, emerald eyes flashing. Wetness glistened on her cheeks from the tears that hadn't yet dried.

"Shut up." A snarl tore from him, and Silver smothered her mouth with the hard press of his own. Her protest got muffled, but he didn't care what she had to say, only about claiming her. He pressed her lips apart and sank his tongue into her depths.

She tasted like salt and blood... life and death. The single most important thing in his whole fucking universe and he'd nearly lost her because of a random, stupid accident. Silver couldn't wrap her in a heart-shaped box and keep her sheltered and safe, but he sure as hell wanted to try.

When she raised her hands, he caught her wrists in an iron grip. Hannah rocked her head from side to side, attempting to unseat him. She bucked and thrashed; her tasty little ass squirmed against his crotch. Abruptly, he hit immediate and urgent arousal. He throbbed so hard he couldn't have walked straight.

Violent need rampaged through Silver, transforming him into a creature he didn't know or necessarily want to be. A beast. It became all about him... taking her. Silver longed for nothing more than to bury himself in Hannah's depths, to pound into her and claim her.

He needed to own her.

No. This wasn't right. Gasping, he broke the kiss. He tore his mouth off hers and gulped air, only to have Hannah seize hold of his fingers.

"No, don't stop. Please don't stop." She chased him, trailed hungry kisses along his throat and nipped at his vital pulse point.

"Hannah, this isn't right. I almost hurt you." Bile filled his throat; the sour taste of shame and recrimination.

"Like hell you did." Hannah narrowed her eyes, but her eloquent snort proved impossible to argue with. His nausea eased. When his mate placed her wrists against his palms, he obliged and closed his fingers around them.

"What do you want?" Silver buried his nose in her strawberry-scented tresses. The corkscrew curls tickled his lower face. The gash on her scalp was already healing. His stiff erection endured insanity-inspiring constriction, trapped between Hannah's cheek and his thigh.

"You know what I want." A charming flush crept along her face and throat. The flush even swept over her breasts and touched her areolas. So damn pretty... His mouth watered for one of those pert nipples.

"I want to hear you say it." He needed to be certain he understood her wishes before this went any further. Their love life involved a pill mill, roly-poly tumble through the playground of bondage, dominance and submission. They switched roles, positions, toys... Sadomasochism wasn't part of the equation, but just about everything else was fair game. And as crazy as making love during a break-in sounded, his objections wouldn't have filled a thimble.

That inconvenient bout of conscience hadn't vanquished the beast entirely. An uncharacteristically sadistic streak reared its ugly head on the hydra of his psyche. When Hannah pulled away, he let go.

"Why?" Hannah asked, all achy and exasperated. A frustrated moan worked her whole throat. She thrashed her head, banging against his sternum. Restless, she wriggled around on his lap, her sex slick and warm against his skin.

"Because I get off on hearing you beg." He chuckled with more than a touch of malice. He inhaled, drinking in the intoxicating odor of her mounting desperation. "And you get off on begging."