I thought I had known Coal. Apparently, I hadn't known him as well as I thought.

"You helped him steal the dragons?" I asked Phil. We had all relocated to the living room and Fox and Wesley sat on either side of me while Phil sat across from me.

Phil sighed. "I retired this year, and at work, Coal and I never saw each other. I was stationed here. He was stationed in Antarctica. It was easy for us to do it really. He stole the eggs and hid them with me the last time he was down. I hid them in places he told me to. We never saw each other face to face. It was all by text message, and we always deleted them shortly after the message was received."

"So Coal stole the eggs and you hid them for everyone to find?" I asked.

"Yes."

"Who's everyone?"

Phil looked between all of us. Syra had come back into the room as well. "All of you. You, Kya, Fox, Wesley, Syra. There are a couple of others, but you four are the main ones. I haven't had contact with the others."

"Exactly how many eggs did Coal take?" I asked.

"The first time?" Phil asked. "Five. However, before he was killed, he managed to take three more."

"My brother was a thief." I laughed. "He always seemed like such a goody two-shoes."

Phil shook his head. "Your brother honestly believed the prophecy about Deep Magic. He honestly believes you can save the world."

I looked at Larna, curled up on my lap like a cat, even as she looked at me. "Save the world huh? From what?"

He shrugged. "He never said. I'm not entirely certain he knew himself."

We sat in silence for a few moments. "So," Phil said finally. "Have your abilities started showing up?"

"How do you know..."

"Coal."

"Oh. I should have known," I replied. "Yeah, I guess they have - if you call making technology go haywire when a ghost appears an ability."

"You're the Guide, Kya," Larna decided to put in.

"So you've said. I'm sorry if I don't find it delightful to see my dead brother and have my teeth chatter from cold."

Now Wesley was looking at me strangely. Great. Just what I needed. "I see dead people."

"Have you seen..."

"No." I cut Phil off before he had a chance to finish his statement. "I haven't seen Rex. Coal is bad enough. If I saw Rex, I'm afraid of what I'd see. Would I see my Rex or would I see the Rex on his deathbed. That scares the crap out of me." Part of me wanted to see him either way though I would not admit it out loud.

"You miss him," Phil said.

"He's gone Phil. He's dead. Stop it."

"I miss him too."

"Stop it, Phil! He's never coming back. I see ghosts! I can't bring them back from the dead! No matter how much I'd love to return your son to you - bring him back to me - I can't! Don't act like it's not a big deal. To me, it is. If there's all this magic in the world. Magic we didn't even know existed, why did Rex have to die? Why did he have to leave me?"

"You're not alone, Kya," Phil said softly. I looked up at him. I hadn't even realized I had curled in on myself - hadn't realized I was curled up in a ball, trying to fight the pain that made my chest constrict so tightly. He was sitting across from me, his elbows on his knees as he leaned forward toward me, tears pouring from his eyes. "You were never alone."

"He left me," I whispered, broken. "He left me, and then Coal did too."

"I'll never leave you, little vixen," Fox said suddenly, and wrapped me in his arms. I pulled away and stood up. Larna flew up and landed on my shoulder.

"I think I'm going to go for a walk. I need some time alone," I said.

"Kya, please don't do anything stupid."

I looked at Phil and smiled. "I don't think I can," I told him. "Larna will stop me if I do." I reached up and ran a hand down her back.

He nodded, and I left, heading outside. I didn't know where I was going to go until I was outside. Then I saw Rex's barn and saw the loft we had once shared. I knew exactly where to go.

Climbing the ladder to the loft was no easy feat since I wasn't in a good mood and only half paying attention to what I was doing. Larna's tail kept slapping my face too, leaving marks on my face. I finally found my way to the top and sat down, looking out across the field as I had done so many times in the past.

I wasn't alone with Larna long. "Hey," Wesley said as he sat down beside me. I wiped the tears from my eyes quickly and looked at him.

"Come to kick me out?" I asked.

"No," he replied.

"Oh."

"I came to see if you were alright."

I looked at him. "I thought you hate me. I'm the bitch, remember?" I sniffed and looked at Larna, shrugging.

"I do hate you," he said. "At least, I want to. You piss me off so much." He gritted his teeth and growled. "Part of me hates your guts. Part of me would love nothing more than to push you off this loft and hope you die."

"Thanks a lot," I said.

"Then there's the other part. The part that's firey jealous when you and Fox are together, especially the way he holds you sometimes. The part that wants to hold you and kiss you and damn it all to hell, I want to fuck you here and now. You make me hard as hell, especially when you're mad at me."

I laughed. I don't think I was supposed to, but I did. "So you hate me, but you really want me in your bed."

He shook his head. "No, not in my bed. Right here. In this loft."

I shouldn't have found this conversation appealing, but as I looked at him and he strugged to explain himself, I felt my heart speed up in my chest and I couldn't help but imagine what sex with Wesley would be like. I imagined it would be rough - fucking instead of lovemaking - as it was with me and Rex. "How romantic," I said.

He grinned at that, that little half smile that exposed a single tooth. "There's no romance in wanting to fuck someone's brains out," he said. "I hate to admit it because I really do hate your guts, but I want you. I want to make you forget Rex - at least for a few minutes - and see what you could have with me."

"And that is?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I'm not even sure yet, but I'm willing to try."

And maybe because I was too caught up in my own daydream of what sex with Wesley would be like, I didn't realize he had come closer to me until he had caught my face between his hands and was kissing me.

There was nothing soft or sweet about these kisses. They were harsh and heavy and rough. He bit my lip as he continued his onslaught and I gasped, allowing him access to my mouth, which he accepted without hesitation.

My blood boiled with desire and I suddenly wanted nothing more than this moment. I wanted Wesley's mouth on me, wanted his hands on me, wanted him inside me. I'd never felt that way with anyone since Rex. I didn't know how I felt about this.

His hands moved down away from my face as I offered little resistance to his advances and slid down to my waist. "You taste like an angel," he said in a low voice, deep and husky.

"I doubt that," I replied as I looked at him. "I fell from grace a long time ago."

He chuckled at that, even as he tugged at my shirt and pulled it over my head. He whistled as he stared at my torso. "Now that, is a good looking body," he said. I looked down at myself. Size B bra, but a thin waist. There wasn't an ounce of fat on my waist yet. "Please," he begged suddenly. "Please say I can touch you."

"I didn't think you were going to ask permission," I replied. My hands were still around his neck, where I'd put them once I got ahold of myself and started responding to his advances.

"It's generally the nice thing to do," he replied even as he waited. I could see him trembling with the effort, as if it was difficult for him to restrain himself.

"Let me do one thing first," I told him.

His eyes were pitch black orbs burning with fire as he looked at me, and I watched him grind his teeth hard as he forced a quick nod.

I sat forward on my knees and got close to him, tugging his shirt up and over his head. He helped me out, yanking it off the rest of the way so that he stood before me on his knees in just his jeans and his shoes. He was a good-looking guy, I had to admit, and football was a great sport for that. Thanks to the training he'd been doing, he was fit and damn if I didn't start drooling just looking at him. He was definitely a perfect speciman of eye candy.

"Kya, please don't look at me like that. You're making self-control really hard right now." His voice was a rough and husky. Sexy.

I smiled even as I moved closer, putting my hands on his chest and pushing backwards. His eyes widened even as he fell backwards in the loft and landed with a small oof among the hay. I straddled him, putting both hands on his chest as I slid down lower until I was sitting with his dick pressed hard against his own jeans and up against my own. "Self-control isn't the only thing that seems to be really hard right now," I whispered against his chest, making him groan as he arched his hips up against me.

I smiled knowingly, and let my mouth drift down, scattering kisses on his skin as I went. Then I reached the center of his chest and instinct took over. I remembered some of the things Rex and I used to do, and I had the sudden urge to do one of them with Wesley. I had no right to do so, and I knew it, but I wanted to. I leaned closer to the left of his chest and opened my mouth to pierce my fangs into his skin just above his heart, as I had often done with Rex.

Blood trickled down Wesley's chest, and I lapped at it like a puppy at a saucer of milk. He moaned and arched his back toward me before reaching up, grabbing my arms, and flipping me over so that I was on my back. I moaned against his mouth as he kissed me, mouth wide as his tongue dove into my mouth and sought my own for a tango.

"Damn," he whispered. "If we're this hot for each other with clothes still on, I can only imagine how sex between us would be baby." I shivered at the use of the endearment, making him smile against my mouth. He probably hadn't meant anything by it - probably called all the girls he beded baby, but that didn't mean it didn't affect me just as badly.

He lowered his head to my neck, nipping gently before moving further down. He yanked my bra down with his teeth and captured my breast in his mouth, sucking on it hard, his tongue wrecking havoc on the hardened pebble. I gasped and thrashed beneath him, growling even as I arched my back.

It had been so long since I had been touched, and even Rex had been gentle with his lovemaking. He'd never hurt me. This hurt, but it felt so damn good too.

All of a sudden, he released my breast and moved over, kissing the hallow between my breasts briefly before his mouth latched onto the other one.

I snarled in frustration and bucked against him. "God, Kya. Fucking you's going to be so much fun," he whispered against my fevered skin, "if watching you writhe like this beforehand is any judge."

"Stop. Teasing." I snarled at him and bucked again. I could feel the pressure of his hardened dick straining against the material of his jeans and pressing into my belly.

He chuckled. "So impatient."

"Damn it Wesley!" I was down to wimpering as he attacked my breasts again. I was wet; I could feel it. Whenever he had decided he had had enough teasing, I was more than ready for him.

All of a sudden, he released me and yanked my pants down as well as his own. A condem appeared out of nowhere, although it probably came from his pocket when I wasn't paying attention, and he put it on quickly before yanking my hips up and ramming into me.

I was so shocked at the speed everything happened, I screamed. God, it felt good - especially when he started with those hard, deep thrusts - but I was shocked too. Never before had I been taken in this manner. Never before had I not been asked if I was ready. Wesley knew. He knew I was ready. He knew, so he wasn't going to ask. He wasn't gentle. No, not by any stretch of the imagination, but that was OK. I didn't want him to be. Wesley was tough during daylight hours when everyone could see; it was only natural that he was the same in bed.

With each thrust, he pulled me closer to the edge. I didn't know how much more I could take before I came. He released my hips and put his hands on either side of my shoulder, riding into me deeper than before. Still, it wasn't enough.

I growled and leaned forward, sitting up on him so that I straddled him once more. He slid in deeper once I freed my legs from my jeans and wrapped my legs about him. He let out a groan to match my own at that, and then his hands were back at my hips, guiding me as I rode him hard.

"God, baby, you're fucking amazing."

Wesley put me back on my back, forcing my legs to remain wrapped around him as he pounded into me. I was so close, so close.

"Come for me, baby. Come with me," he said in my ear.

It was as if that's what I had been waiting for. With one final thrust, he and I came together, tipping over that mountain and spiraling down together. We were both panting hard and slick with sweat.

"That," I said, trying to catch my breath, "was fucking awesome."

He laughed and gave me that half grin of his. "If you'd like, you can continue coming to my bed, and I can show you more."

I wasn't certain if he was serious or if he was kidding, but I took it to heart. "I thought you hated me," I reminded him.

"Oh, I think I could learn to like you. Don't you hate me?"

"No. I wouldn't have had sex with you otherwise."

That seemed to take him aback, and he sombered up for a moment. "I'll take that as a compliment then." He kissed me, this time with less harshness than before, and I responded to it in kind.

"Is this how humans reproduce?"

We both looked up to find Larna watching us with her head cocked to the side. I started laughing uncontrollably even as I stood and dressed again.

"I guess you could say that, although humans tend to have sex for fun too."

"Fun?"

"Meaning they don't have to, but they like it, so they do."

"And are you two planning on having sex again for 'fun'?" she asked.

I looked up at Wesley and saw the hungry expression on his face as he devoured me with his eyes. "I'm not certain, Larna, but I have a distinct feeling I won't get a choice in the matter."

"No, baby, you don't. Not in this. You made your decision when you said yes the first time."

Part of me still didn't like Wesley, but after that, there was no way I'd be able to tell him no either. I was spiriling toward hell, and enjoying every minute of it along the way.