Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience. Annabelle watched the tv mindlessly. It had been about a week since she had seen Zephyrus Raincloud. And she missed him like crazy. She didn't know which way to turn. Here she sat on a Saturday night, watching tv instead of sitting in her favorite chocolate shop with her best friend. Well, that's what you get, she told herself, when you sleep with your best friend's younger brother. But she didn't regret her one night with Zephyr. She just missed him and his chocolate. She wasn't surprised when she heard the insistent knock on her apartment door. Walking over she looked through the peephole and saw the object of her thoughts standing in her hall, with a chocolate box in front of him. Damn, the man sure knew how to tempt her. She jumped when he knocked again. "Annabelle, I know you are home. Hestia told me she just got off the phone with you. Please open the door?" Zephyrus said through the door. Sighing under her breath, she unlocked her door and pulled it open. "Can I come in?" He asked quietly. "I don't know what good it will do, Zephyrus. We went over this last week." Annabelle said softly. "I'm not going to stop, Annabelle. I took your virginity and to me that means we get married." He said as he coaxed her back a few feet, giving him enough room to come in and shut the door behind him. "And I told you that I wasn't going to be married for that reason." She said softly. Walking over to the couch, she turned the tv off. Turning to around, she expected him to still be by the door. Instead she found herself face to face with him, only inches separating their bodies. The familiar burn filled her body at being so close to him. Meeting his eyes took all the will power she had. His eyes were the same color as the chocolate that he made in his shop. A dark deep brown. "I brought you something." He said handing her the box. "What?" she asked warily. "Open it." He ordered. "It won't bite you, I promise." Placing the box in her hands, he waited for her to open it. Slowly opening the lid, she peeked inside. In the box was her favorite chocolate goodies from his shop. "What's this?" She asked looking at him. "A bribe?" "No, you're winnings from last week. You never got your chocolate." He said softly. Frowning she looked again. "You're short." "Really?" He asked as he stepped closer. "Yes. Where's my extra chocolate at?" She said defiantly. "You'll get that when I get my three hours of paperwork. I figure for each hour you give me, I'll give you three pieces of chocolate." "What?" she growled. "I won those pieces fair and square." "And I won those hours fair and square." He countered. She glared at him. "I figure that I only have two hours left on that." She said. "I said paperwork, Annabelle," he said as took the box from her. Pulling her up against him, he continued. "The loving we did in my office does not qualify as paperwork." He stated firmly before leaning in to capture her lips with his. She stilled and then moaned softly before returning his kiss. When he finally came back up for air, they were both breathing heavily. "Damn, woman, you don't realize what you do to me. You make me forgot who I am, who you are and all I want to do is love you to death." "Zephyrus." She whispered softly. "I can't do this. Please." "The only thing you need to do is give yourself permission, Annabelle. I know that I'm Indian and it's a totally different culture than yours but I'm still a man. One that wants desperately to make you mine." He murmured into her ear. Pulling back from him, she smiled sadly. "I wish I could just throw caution into the wind, Zephyr but life don't work that way. Someone always ends up getting hurt in the end. What would happen if I did become pregnant after we got married? We would have a half-breed child, who would not be accepted in your world. I won't put a child through that. And I won't put myself in my mother's shoes." She said as she paced back toward the door. "What do you mean by that?" He asked as he grabbed her arm and spun her around to face him. "Haven't you figured it out yet, Zephyr?" When she saw his blank stare, she just shook her head. Walking over to the mantle, she pulled down her favorite picture of Joseph, her beloved nephew. Handing it to him, she watched him gaze at it. "How do you know this boy, Annabelle?" Zephyr asked as questions whirled through his mind. "He's my cousin. My father's, sisters' son." "That means that you're?" Zephyr said slowly as it started to dawn on him. "I'm half Indian, Zephyrus. My mother loved my Indian father to a distraction. Unlike you, my father didn't want to marry my mother. He wanted to sleep with her well enough but she wasn't the right race to become his wife. When my mother died, I was sent to my father, who didn't want me and then died shortly there after in car accident on his way to the next rodeo. The Whitebears took me in and loved me like their own daughter. But other children can be cruel. Even vicious at times." "I didn't know, Annabelle." He started. "I know. I'm half Indian, and I look like my mother. Not one ounce of my Indian blood shows. So do you see why this can't happen?" "No. I'm sorry about how your father treated you, Annabelle, but I am not him and you're not your mother. We are two different people in a totally different time than when your parents tried to make a go of it. Take a chance on us, Annabelle. You won't regret trusting in me." He insisted as he pulled her close to him. He sighed as her body settled against his. The need to claim her was still there but had been pushed aside by the tenderness that had always consumed him when he was near her. "I just don't know." She said softly. "Think about it." He whispered back. Hestia waited until her brother had walked back into the house that they shared, before she pounced on him. "How did it go?" She asked. "A little better than I expected. Did you realize, Hestia, that Annabelle is half Indian?" "Annabelle? Are you sure?" "Yes. As a matter of fact, she's Joseph's cousin." He said wearily as he slumped on the couch next to her. "Well, maybe you can find help from her family. Surely they know her well and might have some insight into her that even I don't have." Hestia urged. "Just like if she wanted to know anything about you she could call me." "If she wants to know anything about me, she'll ask me." He said hotly. "Just think about it, Zephyrus. It's worth a shot." "Yeah, I'll think about it." He said before rising to his feet. "Good night, Hestia." The next morning, Zephyr told his sister to go ahead and open the shop. "You not feeling good?" Hestia asked, immediately concerned. "I'm feeling fine, Hestia. I just have a few things that I want to do today before I come in. I got everything ready last night as usual, so all you have to do is put the merchandise in the cases and open the front doors." He said quietly as he leaned over and tied his shoes. Straightening he brushed a kiss on his older sister's cheek. "You aren't going to do anything rash, are you?" Hestia asked hesitantly. "You mean like kidnap Annabelle until she says she'll marry me?" He asked in a joking voice. "You've asked her to marry you?" Hestia squeaked. "You didn't tell me that!" "Yes. I asked her but before you say anything, she turned me down." "What! She's crazy about you." Hestia protested. "But not enough to marry me." He stated his discontentment showing on his rugged face. Then it changed, and a determined light entered his eyes. "But I'm going to change her mind." "That's the brother I know. Determined to the end." Zephyr walked up the sidewalk to Joseph's house. The young man would be at school, which was fine. He wasn't here today to play the big brother, even as much as he enjoyed it. He was here to talk to Annabelle's aunt and uncle. He needed some way to get through to her. And maybe her uncle and aunt knew by what means he could unlock Annabelle's heart and slip inside. Stepping onto the porch, he pasted a smile on his face before knocking gently on the door. When Joseph's mother answered, she was surprised to see her son's friend at the door. "Zephyrus, hello. I'm sorry to say Joseph is at school right now." "I know he is. As much as I enjoy his company, I'm not here about him. I've become involved with your niece. And I came to talk to you both since I understand that Annabelle's parents are both gone now." "Come in Zephyrus. This is quite startling to say the least." Joseph's mother, Kira, urged., standing aside. "Thank you," He said as he crossed the threshold. "Let me get Christopher." Kira said referring to her husband. Zephyrus kept the smile pasted on his face as Christopher and Kira joined him in the kitchen. They were sitting at the table and Kira had just served coffee. "How's the chocolate business going?" Christopher asked. "Well. Even better since I turned my paperwork over to your niece." Zephyr said as he sipped his coffee. "That Annabelle is a whiz with numbers." Kira said with a chuckle. "Yes, she is. But the reason I'm here is because I'm trying to court her. And she's being a bit resistant to me. Is there something I need to do or not do to make it easier for her to say yes?" He asked with the carefully worded question. There was no way that he was going to tell her adopted parents that he had slept with her and that he was going to marry her the first chance he got. "Are you sure that she wants to see you?" Christopher asked with concern. "Yes. I've already taken her out to a mini golf course and we had a ball. But she closed up after that. Something about her skin. Which I find nothing wrong with. She's a wonderful woman, no matter what color her skin is." He stated firmly. "It has to do with her childhood, Zephyrus. Her mother and father never married." "Yes, I know. She told me about them. I want to convince her that I am not like that. That I want to be with her." "And I see that you are trying to sugar coat it for my aunt and uncle." Annabelle said frostily from the open door. "Annabelle." He said quickly, rising to his feet. "What he isn't telling you, Aunt Kira and Uncle Christopher is that I took advantage of him and now he feels honor bound to marry me." She said as she walked farther into the room. "Please Annabelle." He pleaded with her. "I don't have secrets from my aunt, Zephyrus. She would have known as soon as she saw me." She told him. "Hello." She told her uncle and aunt. Uncle Christopher had a stunned look on his face while Aunt Kira had a satisfied look on her face. "It's about time, Annabelle, that someone came along and knocked you off that shelf that you have placed your heart on." "Your heart?" Zephyrus whispered as a few things snapped into place. "Don't worry about, Zephyrus. It's nothing of great concern." Annabelle said as she opened the door to the fridge and walked over to the cupboard with a carton of juice. After pouring herself a glass she turned to find her aunt and uncle gone and left her alone with him. She drew a startled breath as he backed her up against the counter. "Don't worry, Annabelle, I won't take you here with your aunt and uncle so near by. But I intend to have a kiss. Unless you can tell me that you don't want it, I'm going to kiss you til you can't think about anything other than marrying me." He whispered against her parted lips. "No." She gasped, fighting herself and him. Her body was claiming that this man's arms were home and it didn't want to leave. Even though she wanted to agree with her body's response, she knew that it was a dangerous path to journey. "Yeah right." He whispered back before slowly thrusting his tongue into her warm mouth to tangle with hers. When he finally lifted his head, he brushed a kiss across the tip of her nose. "Give us a chance." He coaxed. "I promise you won't regret it." "I can't." She said as she pulled out of his arms. Already she felt the disappoint of leaving the warm haven of his arms. He looked and smelled delicious. "We can do this one of two ways, Annabelle. My way or your way. Which way will it be?" He finally asked her. "Huh?" "Doing it your way, we'll try the dating thing, and we take it one step at a time." "Okay and what's your way." She asked softly. "My way? Well that's easy, Annabelle. I'll just seduce you every chance I get until you give in and marry me." He told her. "And I can tell you what my choice would be, so decide." Annabelle gasped softly as he backed her up against the counter. "I don't know." She said uncertainly. "Decide before I do." He told her as he braced his arms on either side of her. "I can't." She whispered. "Fine. My way it is." He whispered, giving her another kiss. Annabelle groaned softly. She could smell Zephyr's cologne. She was sitting in his office working on his paperwork. She had thought to come over when she knew that he was going to be with Joseph. In fact the last two times that she had come to work on his paperwork, it had worked perfectly. She had Hestia time her comings and goings and give them to Zephyr. This was to be her last time. She had put in three of her four hours that she had promised. Now if she could wrap this up, she could get out of here before Zephyr came back. It seemed that Hestia had a million reasons to interrupt her today. She had a feeling her friend was trying to stall her until Zephyr came back. No chance in hell was she going to chance that happening. She had been lucky so far but she didn't want to push her luck. Zephyr put a finger to his lips to show his sister he wanted her to be quiet. Arching an eyebrow, Hestia, silently asked why. Standing close enough for just her to hear, he explained. "I know she's here. And I don't want her running off. Which she'll do the moment she realizes that I'm back. So I want you to lock us in together. I'm going to give you my key. And hopefully by the time that morning comes, we'll have worked all this out and you'll have a new sister." "So now you want me to lock you in together?" Hestia hissed. "Would you make up your freaking mind?" She groused as she took his keys from him and grabbed her coat. Making her way to the door she shook her head. Her brother was damn near impossible these days. So if locking those two in together would fix what was ailing him, she would lock them in and throw away the key. Annabelle placed the last piece of paperwork in Zephyr's out box and gave a sigh of relief. The end was in sight. She had just finished working on his books and everything was in place. Now it was time for her to escape. Standing up she pushed the chair away from his desk and grabbed her purse and coat. Walking through the kitchen, she paused before going through the kitchen door. It was awfully quiet. Maybe Hestia had locked up already. When she came around the counter, she was enveloped in a pair of warm arms. Warm, naked arms she corrected. And by the familiar tingle in her abdomen, she knew exactly who the culprit was. Inwardly she groaned. Damn it, she had been too slow. But maybe she still could escape. Glancing around she looked for Hestia. But her heart began to beat faster when she saw the open sign had been switched off. "Please tell me she didn't lock us in again." She pleaded. "No I did. And we're not leaving until we get this settled for once and all, you little hot head." He said softly against her ear. "By the end of the night you're going to tell me that you love me and are going to marry me. Or we can stay locked in here for the rest of our lives. Because I won't live without you." He told her as he backed her up against the glass case that held his goodies. "I won't." She gritted as she fought the natural rise of desire that flooded her whenever they got within touching distance of each other. "Yes, you will." He said arrogantly. "Yeah, right." She mumbled before trying to squirm away from his powerful embrace. Sitting her on top of the case, he spread her legs and stepped in between them. He smiled wickedly when he felt her squirm against him "Untie my hair." He told her as he leaned against her. "I want to feel your little hands running through it. He growled happily when she obeyed without thought. Annabelle herself tried to keep herself from responding to his closeness because she didn't want him to know. Zephyrus trembled as he felt Annabelle's warm little fingers run through his midnight colored hair. Capturing her gaze, he slowly and methodically peeled off his clothes. By the time Annabelle realized what danger she was in, Zephyr was standing naked as the day he was born in front of her and was reaching for her buttons. "What?" She gasped as she got an eyeful. Immediately she looked away. It wouldn't matter that she had only gotten a brief look. His masculine beauty would be etched in her memory forever. "Look at me, Annabelle. I want you to see me." He ordered huskily. "And my body's expression of my love." "Love?" She whispered. "Yes." He said before lifting her chin up and kissing her gently on the lips. "I may have forgotten to mention this Annabelle Whitebear, but I am head over heels in love with you." If a joy-filled hug and passionate kiss were what Zephyr was expecting when he finally declared his love for her, he was sadly mistaken. "You idiot, you jerk!" Annabelle growled. "You tell me you love me, now!" "Little One?" He said softly shocked at her response to his declaration. "Don't you `little one' me, Mr. Chocolate Man. I can't believe that you have put me through hell the last few weeks, when a simply `I love you' would have solved everything." She shouted at him. "You mean to tell me that you would have said yes, if I would have told you that I loved you." He growled. "Of course!" She shouted. "Men!" Turning, she intended to stomp into the kitchen. She was surprised when he grabbed her from behind and pinned her, face first against the display case. "What are you doing?!" She exclaimed, not frightened in the least. Her Indian side loved the savagery that laid under Zephyrus Raincloud's civilized veneer. "I'm going to love you til you can't walk and then in the morning we're going to fly to Vegas with our parents and get married." He hissed in her ear as he hauled up her skirt. "You're not serious." She squealed as she felt him strip her panties down her legs. "As a heart attack." Zephyr stated as he toyed with her pubic hair. Sliding his fingers through it, he found her nubbin and slowly rubbed it. When she gasped in pleasure, he smiled wickedly. Annabelle groaned softly as she saw the look on his face in the mirror behind the counter. "We can't do this here." She gasped. "People will see." She tried reasoning with him. "I don't care. Let them watch. They will only see two people deeply in love." He whispered against her ear. "And I'm right, aren't I? You love me just as much as I love you, don't you, little one?" "I can't believe you call me `little one.'" She gasped as he worked his other hand under her blouse and captured one of her stiff little nipples between his thumb and fore finger. Giving it a slight squeeze, he toyed with it until it became even harder and more sensitive to his touch. "Don't you?" He asked again, then emphasized with a hard enough squeeze that she moaned loudly and withered against his restraining hold. "Zephyrus." She pleaded. "Answer me!" He growled as he slipped two of his calloused fingers inside her sheath and fluttered them back and forth. "Oh, yes, I..." she stuttered as she raced along the edge of an intense orgasm. "That's it, little one, come all over my fingers." He growled against her shoulder, before leaning in and fastening his mouth around the crook of her neck. Biting down hard enough for her to feel, he squeezed her hard clit between his thumb and the fingers inside of her, rubbing against her sensitive wall. "Oh my god!" She gasped as her orgasm burst over her long and hard. "Damn it, yes!" he growled as he bent his legs slightly, pulled his fingers out and replaced them with the tip of his engorged manhood. When she arched back against him to recapture his wonderful fingers, Annabelle was surprised and could only moan louder as she empaled herself on him. At least she wasn't the only one moaning, she thought with a small part of her awareness. Zephyr was behind her and buried deep inside of her clinging sheath. She could only moan as he began the rhythmic thrusting designed to drive them both over the edge. "Damn, little one you're so hot and wet, I could stay inside of you all night." He gasped as he surged in and out of her tight sheath. Annabelle could hear the sound of their flesh slapping against each other and feel the wetness that was leaking from between her thighs. She breathed raggedly as she drew closer to her next orgasm. Pushing back against him she tried to break his hold, but found she couldn't. Zephyr had resumed his pinning hold on her. With his mouth attached to her neck, one arm wrapped around her waist and other squeezing her tight nipples, all she could do was be used like a rag doll for his pleasure. And hers, she thought dimly as she neared the edge. When he felt her sheath tightening around him, he growled. Moving the hand from her waist he found her hard nubbin and started rubbing it firmly. And it was all Annabelle needed to explode violently against him. "OH MY GOD!" she screamed and threw her head back. "That's it!" he growled as he continued to pound in and out of her. Locking his knees, Zephyr knew it was only moments before he exploded inside of her. "Do you want me to pull out, little one?" He gasped harshly. "Or do you want my baby!" he demanded. "Yes." She gasped, as she started tensing again. "Yes, what?" He panted still thrusting. "Baby or no baby..." He gritted as he skated dangerously close to the point of no return. "Baby...." She panted, her eyes closed tight and her legs tensed, preparing for their mutual climax. "Baby, it is." He growled as he let go. Pushing her harder against the case, he pounded his way through one of the most intense orgasms of his life, aside from his first mind-blowing one with her. Annabelle screamed as he pulled her over the edge with him. For the next few minutes, the shop rang with their harsh cries, slapping flesh and the sound of the display case squeaking as it protested it's unintended use as a bed. When the air finally cleared, Annabelle found herself draped over the display case that she had spent many hours salivating over, using her delectable chocolate man as a blanket. Zephyrus was the first to break the silence. "I hope you meant it, little one." "Meant what?" she whispered softly, not wanting to move. "That you wanted to have my baby because I come from a long line of fertile men. I'm the youngest of eight." "No one said anything about having a tribe." She groused. "Then why did you tell me to stay." He whispered back. "The chocolate made me do it." She sassed as she looked at the scattered pieces of chocolate that were under her in the display case. Epilogue Annabelle stood beside her uncle and waited impatiently for the music to start. She couldn't believe that it had only been twenty-four hours since, Zephyr had locked them in together. True to his word as soon as his sister had let them out the next morning, he had packed both of them and her aunt and uncle on a plane to Vegas. In route he had called his mother and asked her to make the four hour drive from Sun City, Arizona to Las Vegas. She had agreed immediately. By the time that their plane had touched down in Vegas, his mother had been waiting. She had taken immediately to Annabelle. "Are you ready sweetheart?" Her uncle asked as the traditional wedding music filled the small chapel. "Yes." She whispered. "You love him?" He asked. "Yes." "And he loves you?" he prompted, smiling when he noticed her tapping her foot. "Yes." "And are you going to give Kira and me, some grand babies to love on?" He asked. "Yes." She said impatiently. "When?" He asked teasing her. "Eight months from now." She hissed. "Now can we go?" "What!" he exclaimed. "You're pregnant." His shout echoed off the walls of the chapel and found the stunned groom, who was standing with preacher. "Pregnant?" His mother exclaimed. "Grand babies." Her uncle said as he started down the aisle. Handing Annabelle off to Zephyr. "I don't know what happened to her." He said as he went to stand with his wife. "The chocolate made her do it." Zephyr said with a smile as he looked down at his glowing wife to be. "You betcha." She whispered as they turned to face the preacher.