Keira looked down at her watch and sighed in slight exasperation. She was going to kill him when he got back.

"I won't be long" he'd said. Jerk. And on their anniversary too, the nerve.

She sighed as she stared at the freshly made dinner on the table. It was supposed to be a romantic night, just the two of them and it seemed like he was going to run that now by being absent. It wasn't like him to miss something this important; he knew the plans she'd made.

Or had he gone to get her something? Pretty late wasn't it? She'd gotten her gift an entire week before. She sighed, she was definitely going to kill him. She wasn't prone to overt, super expressive emotional outbursts. As a good leader, she had to keep her emotions in check, but Chayton knew how to get under her skin.

She had even out on a very flattering dress. That was not something she did often. She felt like getting the girls to clean the table, but she decided against it. He was only twenty minutes late after all. She rolled her eyes; she was overreacting.

The incantation she put over the food would keep it from getting cold, but she couldn't say the same for Chayton's bed this night if he didn't arrive on time.

A pleasant smell wafted into her nostrils, and she smiled at the scented candles lit at strategic positions in the room. She has picked them herself, and she knew Chayton would love them. His senses were more honed than hers, and she was certain that it would be a pleasant sensory experience for him.

Just then, the doors flew open and Chayton burst in. He was dressed in an excellently tailored suit which did nothing to hide his impressive physique. She could tell that he had jogged here from the ever so slight bead of sweat on his brow, but he wasn't winded, so she couldn't tell if he jogged all the way. It wasn't an easy feat to tire our Chayton, something most people found out the hard way.

"I am so sorry Keira. God, you look amazing" he said, admiring her as she stood staring at him. He sighed and took a step forward; she eyed him suspiciously,  

"Hey what's this?" he reached forward and seemingly pulled a rose from behind her ear and presented it to her, giving her his most charming smile.

She tried to hold herself from smiling, but she knew that there was no stopping it. It was the same move he had pulled when they met a year ago, at the Horny Wolf. It had been so goofy, the magic trick at a paranormal night club, and it hadn't been something she'd expected from a man as put together and collected as Chayton. But it had charmed the socks off of her.

Keira pursed her lips as the smile slipped past a little and she grabbed the rose and sniffed it. It smelled wonderful. Her earth based magic made her appreciate nature a great deal. Witches like her tended to live in seclusion, needing to be one with nature, but she was not like that. Plus, she had a clan to lead.

"It's nice." she said, and Chayton smiled his I'm-so-glad-you're-not-killing-me smile.

"I'm still mad at you for keeping me waiting," she said, pouting and he chuckled.

"Yeah. I know, and I'll explain why that was...over dinner."

He was already moving towards the table, staring at the food hungrily. He was a big man and had a corresponding big appetite.

They sat down, and she blessed the food and watched in amusement as he immediately dug in.

She had been trying to imagine what exactly it was that he could have been doing. Or what could have set him in such a ravenous mood? Granted, he had a huge appetite, but it was only this big after a battle. She wondered but decided to wait.

"Hey slow down," she said, laughing as he chugged down a glass of wine and was pouring another. He looked up sheepishly, and she couldn't help but marvel at how different he was with her. She had seen sides of him that she knew he would never show anyone else. It made her feel special like she alone possessed knowledge of how vulnerable the otherwise stoic Chayton Mercer could be. He poured another glass and sipped this time.

"Dinner's wonderful Keira. Your food seems to get better and better every day. What's the magic involved?"

She threw her head back and laughed.

She had no idea why she found it so funny when he referenced her magic in his jokes. When he was outside, addressing the rest of the clansmen, he hardly made jokes and even when he did, they were borderline scathing remarks that would make the person being addressed shrink back and fall in line.

"I knew that one would get you," he said and winked.

His almost grey eyes twinkled as he looked at her and she felt a warmth flow through her. She referred to it as 'almost grey' because, in actuality, his eyes were blue grey, but the grey held the higher percentage in the mix.

As they ate, Chayton watched her in between bites. She looked beyond amazing in her dress, and he could picture himself taking it off later. The stirring in his pants caused him to adjust in his seat, and he cleared his throat as he went back to staring at her. She took careful, seemingly calculated bites and chewed carefully and contemplatively. He had long since given up trying to decode her thoughts. He was usually wrong and had discovered the secret to finding out what she was thinking - asking her

This time, however, he was fairly certain he could at least give an educated guess as to what she was thinking, and he knew it had something to do with his coming late. He hadn't told her of his rogue shifter suspicions. He knew that if he had, she would have insisted on following him, and he knew better than to suggest she stayed back while he checked it out, so it was better to keep her in the dark about it.

The shifter had been particularly strong, relatively speaking and he'd felt a begrudging admiration for him while they fought. But then again, he had never been defeated by another shifter in his long life, and he hadn't been about to pop his loss cherry on the night of his anniversary.

Keira locked eyes with him, and he winked, glad at the slight blush he noticed on her face.

"So, what happened?" she asked, dropping her fork and lifting her glass to her blood red lips. Chayton watched the lips softly clasp the rim of the glass and marveled at the look of enjoyment that shone in her eyes as the liquid made its way down her throat.

He cleared his throat. At this rate, he would take her here on the dining table if he didn't slow down he told himself.

"It was a rough shifter," he said simply, trying to keep his tone light, as though it was nothing to worry about.

Obviously, she didn't take it that way.

The glass made a slight clunk as it landed on the table.

"A what?"

"Calm down Keira," he said, lifting both hands and mentally patting himself on the back for making the call and not telling her about it before. She definitely would have gone with him. That was no way to spend an anniversary.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked. Her tone was sharp, but not mean or harsh. She genuinely wanted to know, even though she probably already had an idea why. It was pretty obvious.

"You know why. You would have charged along with me and you know I couldn't stop you even if I tried. You're stubborn."

Keira almost scoffed at the statement. Granted, she had her moments of strong will demanding feats, but when it came to sheer stubbornness, none was more so than Chayton. He was so hard-headed, it was infuriating.

"You shouldn't have gone alone. You know rogue shifters travel in small packs at times," she said quietly, remembering it was still their anniversary. This was not something to argue over. It was probably already too late for that even.

"Babe, it's me. I can take care of myself."

And that, he could. He had once single-handedly taken on a pack of four shifters once. Granted, he had been badly injured after, but he had triumphed. Sometimes she felt as though it was pride that inspired the stubbornness. He couldn't ask for help, so he did things himself. Somehow, that made sense.

"How many were they?"

"Just the one. He'd already umm, paid some unsolicited visit to the humans" He said, and she nodded in understanding. Neither of them was new to the concept of death. It was a grim fact of life that came with their world, and they accepted it whole heartedly.

For a minute, neither of them spoke. Chayton took one last bug bite, successfully cleaning out his third helping.

"Hope you made him regret stepping his dirty paws here."

Chayton looked up abruptly and smiled at Keira, nodding.

"You know I did." he said, gesturing the his empty plates and she laughed.

"I love you," she said then

"And I love you, Princess."

"Stop. Don't call me that" she said giggling and blushing.

Granted, she was the leader of a minority clan, but that didn't make her royalty did it? He usually used the word in a teasing capacity.

"Why yes your majestic princessliness. As you wish."

"Quit it pup."

"Oooh. You wanna go there?"

"No no no, I'm sorry," she said quickly as they both laughed. She rang a small bell, and a young witch came in to help her clear the table. It was largely a volunteer job as she was more of a hands on leader. But when they heard it was her anniversary, the others had decided that she wasn't to lift a finger.

"Thank you, Cindy"

As she left, Chayton reached into his jacket pocket.

"I got you something." he withdrew his hand to reveal a long leather box, with velvet linings.

Keira's eyebrow went up.

"Happy anniversary baby."

Keira grabbed the box and opened it, trying to contain her excitement and failing.

The necklace inside took her breath away. And what was more, she recognized it.

She had commented on how nice it was once when they'd gone into town together. She hadn't even known he'd been paying attention. She looked up at him as he stared at her as though her ear-to-ear smile was not enough indication that she absolutely loved it.

"Come help me try it on."

Chayton got up and went to her. He retrieved the necklace from her, and she turned, moving her hair to the side as he put the necklace round her neck, locking in in place and placing a light kiss on the back of her neck.

She whirled round, smiling up at him. For the moment, everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. She wasn't bothered about checking to see if the necklace looked good on her. Everything she needed to know, was fully displayed in his eyes.

He was looking down at her, smiling that enigmatic smile that somehow held so much meaning - more meaning that she could hope to comprehend. The smile she recognized as the one he had on whenever he couldn't verbally express just how in love with her he was.

She had a smile of her own on. It was a different kind of smile, and Chayton interpreted it perfectly.

Moving down towards her, he captured her lips in his. After one year, their lips were fiercely familiar with each other, so it was always a bit of a pleasant surprise every time they kissed and still felt the sparks fly as though it was the first time.

A tingling sensation coursed down her spine as he grabbed her and pulled her closer. She couldn't feel close enough to him. Their bodies were closely melded to each other and yet, it felt and though there was a wide girth between then. They made up for that girth with the intensity of their kiss. Her arms snaked around his head and drew it in closer as their mouths and tongues engaged in a fully erotic dance that was playing games with their individual senses.

His tongue tasted her bottom lip tentatively, and she shivered, allowing her lips to part, allowing him entrance, demanding it even. But he failed to oblige. Rather, he kept up the tease, tasting, but not lingering. Meanwhile, her tongue sought to taste his, without luck.

She could feel frustration well up in the pit of her stomach, but the effect of his tease was more than apparent in the pool of moisture that now lubricated her womanly folds. She pressed her thighs together and went on tip toes, pulling him closer.

Finally, his tongue delved into the inner recesses of her mouth. There was no denying that the wait had been worth it. His tongue tasted and teased still, giving and taking and all the while, making her want more. Making her need more.

All the while, the kiss had distracted her from the nagging concern that was the continued presence of clothing between them. She longed to feel hot naked flesh on hers. A naughty thought crossed her mind, deepening her desire. It was an image of herself with nothing but the necklace on. She knew it was bound to drive him crazy.

So with all the self-control and practiced patience she has mastered as a leader, she broke off the kiss and grabbed onto his jacket, leading him into the room - that had been her intention at least. Chayton, in a rare show of impatience, suddenly picked her up, causing her to shriek in surprise and excitement, then he carried her towards the bedroom.

The bedroom was not very big, but one got the sense that it belonged to an important person. It was not to be taken wrongly, however, because Keira was as down to earth and in touch with her people as any leader who ever was. Her private chambers were accessible to anyone at any time, and hardly ever restricted to those on her council. She visited the people under her care every day, and no one could remember every day they had not had a chance to express their grievances to her. It was how she'd come to be aware of one of the most grievous concerns.

Chayton plopped her on the huge Queen sized bed and removing his jacket, joined her. He reached for her and pulled her close, and she crossed a leg over his, moving closer to crush the thigh of his other leg to her center, rocking against it slowly as he pushed in.

Their lips found each other again. They kissed, teased, nibbled and gently bit as they totally consumed each other.

Chayton reached behind her and fumbled for the zipper behind the dress. His hand eventually found it, and he peeled it off her as she lifted herself up to assist him. The dress was tossed aside, and Chayton moved back, noticing that she had on new underwear.

He had never wanted more badly, to take off some articles of clothing in his life. He reached forward, and she knocked his hand aside and got on her knees. She straddled him and began unbuttoning his shirt, which she tossed aside. Then she reached for his pants and within seconds, sent them after their upper torso counterpart. She marveled at the sight of his raging erection struggling against his boxer shorts, and she reached forward to free it, but he held her hand. It was his turn now.

Chayton pulled her down towards him and captured her lips once more. She moaned into his mouth as her pleasure centers came to life with every flick of his tongue and every caress. His hands found her breasts and massaged them through the fabric of her sheer lace bra. She sighed in pleasure mixed with frustration, wishing he would just rid her of the fabric already. It was as though he read her mind and before she could rationalize what was happening, the cold air brushed against her already hard nipples, making them even harder. She wondered lazily when he had taken it off, but then her mind turned to mush as his mouth covered one rosy bud.

She gasped and grabbed on to his head as his tongue flicked against the nipple while his other hand worked the other breast. He licked, flicked and sucked the erect nub until she felt as though it would fall off if it got any harder. His erection struggled against his boxers, and she longed to grasp it in her hand and feel the hot, velvety flesh in her hand. But his assault on her mammaries was slowing down her thoughts.

He switched and moved to the other breast, replacing his mouth on the other one with his hand. He was multitasking in ways designed solely for her pleasure. She pushed his head down, increasing the pressure as he kissed the areola tenderly, avoiding the nipples, just before diving in and sucking hard once more.

When his mouth left it, she opened eyes she did not remember closing and looked down to see her panties flying off to join her other clothes. Her sensory perception was all over the place, and she couldn't keep track of her surroundings.

Once that was done, he began to plant feathery kisses down her torso, stopping at her belly button to run his tongue over and around the innie. He had discovered early on that she loved it when he did that. It was the sensation of being tickled and the intimacy of the act that did it.

He moved lower slowly, taking his time now, despite the manner in which every bone in his body - especially the one that was not exactly a bone - was telling him to hurry things up. He ignored their directives. No, this had to be drawn out and savored. It would be their first and last one year anniversary as a couple; it had to be special.

Her waist seemed to be lifting of its own accord, and a hand had found a way to his head, subconsciously guiding him to the place she knew he was headed and where she needed him most. She sucked in her tummy in anticipation and was biting on her finger as she urged him further down.

Despite the pressure and encouragement from his partner, Chayton took his time, kissing every inch of flesh as he made his way down. He avoided the focal point as he breathed in her heady musk. Even when he was not in dire wolf form, his sense of smell was very good, and he breathed her in with fervor.

He could see the effect of what he was doing to her and a small moisture pool was gathering on the bed sheet beneath her waist. He smiled to himself as he placed tentative kisses around her core, avoiding the erect nub that now peeked out at him, urging him down.

She grabbed on to his head - this time with both hands- as sue needed a tether of some sort to keep her grounded in reality. She needed something to keep her from soaring higher than she intended. Or at least, she felt she did.

He ran his tongue along the entire stretch of her engorged lips, and she gasped, clutching his head harder. He knew what he was after, and his tongue located it quickly.

By now, she was crushing her hips against his face, making repetitive thrusting motions as his tongue massaged her essence to a frenzy.

She could feel her climax coming, and she knew there was no stopping it. As she thrust against his face, her body tensed up aggressively as she went over the edge.

Keira screamed as she came, completely engulfed in a world of pleasure and Chayton saw his cue.

Jumping up, he rid himself of his boxers and in one fluid motion, he entered her.

She screamed once more as another set of waves crashed into her, rhythmically following his time and hasty thrusts. Her hands grabbed at his buttocks and urged him harder into her.

Their eyes locked and it was as though, through the intense look of concentration and wanton pleasure, their souls were connecting on a seemingly cosmic level. She couldn't look away, neither of them could.

Chayton's thrusts were gradually increasing in speed, and she could tell that he was close to his climax as well. Good.

She lifted her hips in time to his thrusts, meeting him halfway. She could feel the onset of another orgasm and her body tensed in anticipation.

They were wild, they were uninhabited, and there was no holding back.

Suddenly, Chayton tensed and, though she could not imagine how, increased speed. Her orgasm came fast as did his.

Soon, they were both riding the orgasmic waves to completion, clutched in each other's arms.