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***Leah's POV***

"Good morning." I smile as Josie's voice comes into the room. I open my eyes, blinking. Looking over to Christian's side of the bed, I notice he is gone. I smooth the sheet with my hand taking in the cool temperature of the fabric. It gives no indication of how long he has been missing. He isn't warm either way.

"Morning." I answer the beautiful vampire as he stares at me with his sweet face.

"Christian went to the hospital. Someone else called out. He said it should only be a few hours. Would you like breakfast? Tony is down stairs cooking." Josie enters the room fully before sitting down elegantly on the bed.

"I will hunt. It's been a while." I stand to stretch my bones. A run would be good for my limbs. I like eating naturally.

"That should be fine. Just please don't go outside of the perimeters of the forest. Christian will kill my beloved if you don't come home safely."

I nod at Josie as he walks out of the room. I am more than capable of handling myself. They all tend to forget that. I am not exactly a damsel in distress. Well, I mean, they did rescue me. However, I can tend to myself.

I transform into my cat as soon as Josie leaves the room. Running down the stairs, I go through the kitchen to the open door. Tony nods as I pass. I exit the door, staring at the gorgeous snow that begs to me tousled by my paws.

When my feet meet the spun ice, I take off. Everything becomes vibrant as the scents and sights of nature send thrilling waves of freedom through my system. My speed creates the most alluring breeze that caresses my fur.

My ears perk when I hear the solid thump of a forest creature padding over the damp earth. Under a canopy of trees, where snow doesn't have a chance to settle, I see the sheep as she makes her way slowly across the terrain. Checking my surroundings, I watch to see that no lambs are following. I would hate to kill her in front of her offspring.

When I see that she has separated from a larger herd, I give myself permission to hunt. She sees nothing and hears little as I lurk behind her, stalking the full bodied mammal. The sound of her pulse makes my mouth water. With defined skills, I spring forward, landing above the animal as she falls helplessly to the ground.

A screech of terror leaves her mouth before my canines cut off her shrill, piercing call for help. As her body becomes limp beneath me, I begin dragging my meal up into the nearest tree. Her blood coats my tongue before flowing into my grumbling belly.

Consuming the large animal takes time. It becomes exhausting as I pick her carcass clean of all the meat. Her dirty coat falls below me. I can't be bothered with eating the thick skin. Instead, I watch as the other forest carnivores scurry towards my scraps.

When my belly is full, my eyes become heavy. Before allowing myself a nap, I climb farther up the tree. Settling into the limbs of the large Spruce, I relax against the bark.

When my eyes open, the sun is warming my fur incessantly. Stretching out the stiff muscles of my limbs, I make my way down the trunk with ease. After a small walk, I decide to explore. I don't bother watching for any danger, I shouldn't have an issue acting fast if it becomes necessary. My instincts are extremely reliable. If they fail, my reflexes are above average.

My stroll is slow. I really have nothing to occupy my time aside from waiting on Christian to come home. My days have been less chaotic since finding my mate. They actually border on boring. I don't mind the mundane. I just wish I felt a little more purposeful.

Watching the animal scurry away from me brings me a sense of pride. It's a good thing that they are weary of my presence. Although I hunt only rarely, it is always for food. However, others of my species are not quite as thoughtful. It is probably the human side of me that has compassion on the animals that I share the forest with.

When the sun begins to fade, bringing cooler temperatures, I realize I may have explored a little longer than I intended. Remembering that Christian will be worried, I hurriedly make my way back to the house. When I arrive, it is to a very quiet home.

Instead of shifting, I just slip through the door that Josie undoubtedly left open for me. That guy is beyond precious. He is so thoughtful. It's hard to think about how he came to live with my mate. I can't imagine anyone raising a hand to bring him harm. The idea makes me want to seek out his abuser, bring them harm.

I purr to myself. If I have pegged my mate correctly, and Tony, I doubt that piece of shit exists. I'm late to the game. Hell, it's a wonder I showed up at all. Goddess knows that I avoided being mated as long as possible.

My thought on mates has never been exactly positive. Watching my mother and father together gave me some pretty twisted ideals concerning family. I must admit that being at the Manor has slowly been doing good for me. The way Christian, Tony and Josie interact gives me hope that maybe one day I will fit into this family with a little bit of effort.

The truth is, Christian is so amazing that he makes it hard to deny our bond. I almost don't want to deny it anymore. There is a small part of me that is still protesting our relationship. I'm trying though. I just hope that I don't fail at this.

It has been ingrained in me that I am useless. A large part of me knows this not to be true. The small part of me that is self-conscious can be louder than a crowd full of supporters. I'm trying my best to silence that part.

My paws hit the stairs as I climb to our room. I like having a place to call ours. It's nice to have somewhere that feels like home.

I curl up on the bed to get comfy. Christian hasn't been home yet. His scent is faint. If he were here it would saturate the room. Christian's scent is so alluring. He smells clean like sunshine and cotton. It's extremely comforting.

The creak of the front door brings me hope. I perk up, watching the door to see if my mate will come through. When his scent wafts into the room I feel little flutters in my tummy. I think I am excited to see him.

"Hey there pretty girl." Christian smiles as he sees me laying in my feline form. I'm about to shift when he sits down, patting his lap. I crawl into his lap and curl my tail around his waist. Christian runs his fingers through my fur eliciting a purr of divine pleasure. I roll over to let his fingers work over my belly, stretching across his lap like a house cat, a rather large one.

"This is new." Christian's eyes sparkle as he smiles at me. I rub my head against his hand. My purr gets louder as he rubs my head. I allow the deep rumble in my chest to let my mate know that I accept his affection.

"It's odd talking to you when you can't respond." Christian looks at me questioningly. Honestly, I like not having to carry any part of the conversation.

My mate stands up as I move to his side. He bends down to take off his shoes before he slowly walks to the bathroom. I stretch out with my paws in front of me. Watching him undress, I drink in his gorgeous body. As far as mate's go, mine is definitely easy on the eyes.

Christian throws me an incredulous look. He chuckles while I keep my eyes trained on him. When he gets in the shower, I quickly transform. I stand up in all my nakedness. Slowly I take the path to the shower.

As I step inside to join Christian, a very sexy grin forms on my mate's face. I don't say a word. I kiss his back as I grab the soap from his hands, lathering it to suds in my own hands. My fingers shyly float across his skin as I cleanse his flesh.

"This is new as well." Christian spins to face me. His soft cock lays between us. I trail myself eyes down his torso before I fumble my hands between us. When I teach his member, I slowly stroke the flaccid flesh. Christian eyes my movements before I squeeze with a small amount of pressure. His eyes flutter shut while I wash his hardening erection.

"That feels so good." A husky whisper leaves my beautiful mate's lips.

My fingers work over his dick. I run my finger nails over his chest. When he shudders, I step closer allowing our chests to brush against one another. Christian parts his lips to breathe or say something. Instead, I press mine against his mouth. I have not been the aggressor in our courtship since the first night when my feral side ravaged my mate. A thrill of excitement rushes through my veins.

My hand slides away from Christian's erection. I put my arms around his neck, kissing him deeper. Christian slides his hands down my waist. I jump up into his hold as he lifts my thighs. Christian turns me towards the wall, pressing my back against the warm pillar.

"You're gorgeous." Christian pulls back to look at me. He brushes the wet strands of hair out of my face before kissing me gently.

I accept his kisses as they press down my neck.

We don't move to connect farther from the intimacy of kissing and touching. I'm satisfied with just being so close. Christian moves in small steps as he kisses my skin. I feel his hands as he washes my flesh.

After we are both clean, we exit the shower. I feel completely turned on yet, I don't feel the urge to consummate our relationship at the moment. Instead, I focus on the small touches that keep me on the edge of my emotional sanity.

Christian keeps me close as he leads me to the living room. Once there, he pulls me into his favorite recliner. I land in his lap with a hum of approval.

My mate doesn't turn on the television. I hear the soft beat of a ballad as it floats through the air. Christian curls his body around me and cuddles into me.

My fingers play through his hair as he begins telling me the play by play of his day. It should be boring seeing as I know nothing of the large words he uses to describe ailments and diseases that I could only imagine are significant in his field. It's not. The way he passionately rambles on tells me that all of these things are important to him. They make up a part of who he is.

The conversation shifts to my hunt. Christian chuckles as I try desperately to excuse the fact that I mercilessly slaughtered an animal. I realize that Christian probably finds my explanation futile. After all, I am a predator just as he is.

Our bonding continues throughout the night with no end in sight. My afternoon nap provides me with an ample supply of energy to keep up with our time together.

As every moment passes I find myself full with adoration for the man who has me in his lap. He softly plunders my hair. Delicately, he steals kisses. His fingers grip my body possessively. I have grown to learn that I love being possessed, by him.

When Tony and Josie finally join us, it becomes a time filled with laughter. Josie theatrically describes every minute of a walk through the forest. When he excitedly giggles over a bird that chased Tony through the thick trees, I find myself holding my side in laughter. A snort leaves my throat. This only causes a round of chiding from both Christian and Tony.

It appears to me that falling for this lot is inevitable. The way we mesh makes it hard not to want to continue on this path of learning what love is. Although it is an exact contradiction to all I ever knew, I can see that it is right. The odd pairing of a feline with a vampire seems only odd in my own eyes. These boys treat me as though I am just a beloved, a friend. There is no difference between our species.

It's just another lie that I must learn to sift through. When I was younger, my parents explained mating. They gave me the details of how the Goddesses choose who should be fated to one another. I never found it odd that they automatically kept each sex with its opposite. It did not come to my attention that they only ever kept the cats with the cats, the wolves among the packs and the vampires among their own.

As I watch Tony with Josie, who was a human when their love became exposed I see that my parents were a bit biased. Prejudice might even cover it. They never exposed me to the possibility that love could be so intense between two men. Being around them cultivates love in my heart for my own mate. They ooze perfection in their adoration for one another.

Christian. I can't even begin to explain what the person, whom I was taught to loathe because he is a night walker, has already manifested in me. His love is healing me slowly. It's a very long road until I am the mate I now want to be. The fact that I am even on this road is the real miracle.

In short, this is new. For me.