A Second Chance

Author's Note: This is only part one – I'll be adding new chapters after Halloween is over. And I'll be back to the Fairy Tales at the end of the month as well, so keep checking for updates!

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Rose rolled on her side, gazing at her fiancé Keith and smiling softly. Six years together and the couple, now 22 and 29, were still infatuated with each other. And while Rose's family had been upset and skeptical at first, these days things were a little calmer.

"If you could come back as any animal, which one would you choose?" she asked him, tracing her fingers down his bare chest. He laughed, catching her hand and bringing it to his lips, placing soft kisses over every inch of it.

"You ask the strangest questions my love," he teased, leaning in to kiss her gently.

"Seriously Keith, tell me, what would you choose?" She watched him think, brow furrowed, long black hair flowing over his shoulders.

"A wolf I think, they're powerful, and I could protect you," he said lovingly and she smiled, snuggling against him. His comment made sense – in the middle of the clearing where their house was, it was a good ten minute drive from the main streets, a wolf would not seem out of place. The storm raged outside, the branches of a nearby tree scratching against the window of their third story bedroom.

With Halloween three days away, they spent the next day searching for costumes. Keith's company, of which he was the Vice President (though Rose had money of her own as a young but reputable vet), always had a massive party to allow their employees time to have a bit of fun before the Christmas season left them working twelve hour days, seven days a week. Rose was going to miss him, she always hated how busy they got and it never let up until the end of January. She tucked her arm through his as they wandered the streets, ducking into the various seasonal shops and even one small sex shop where Rose found a cat costume, laughing with Keith as he picked out a collar to go with the tiny latex top and shorts. The employee grinned, licking his lips as he watched her prance around, fishnets and knee high boots completing the outfit.

Keith chose a vampire's costume at the next shop and they wore their costumes that night to show off to each other. From the way Keith stared, speechless, Rose didn't even need to check her reflection in the mirror. He touched her cheek gently as she walked towards him, wrapping her in the long black silk cape and leaning down to kiss her lightly upon the lips. She leaned up into his touch, eyes bright with joy as she wound her arms around his neck.

Backing her into the bedroom, he tumbled her into the bed, a twitch of his wrist pulling the shorts down and off of her body and he entered her slowly, gazing into her eyes, one hand capturing her wrists gently above her head. He watched her eyes as she raised her hips to meet his, the motions slow and loving. Their climax's, not bone jarring or noisy, came in unison, deeply satisfying, slow and lingering and they lay enjoying the aftershocks in each other's arms as they drifted off to sleep.

The night of the Halloween party, Keith was running late. Rose called him twice on his cell phone and they ended up arguing when he said he might just go home and meet her there. Rose hung up on him and got herself plastered, trying to forget about how angry she was. She flirted too much and made out with a few strangers, a guy in a Zorro costume and some Egyptian who teased her about worshipping cats. She left her keys with Keith's friend Jake, figuring her fiancé would bring them home after work on Monday. She took a taxi home and crawled into bed at two in the morning, barely giving a thought to the fact that Keith wasn't home yet.

The phone broke through her sleep and she groaned, glancing at the clock. It was six am and a hangover ripped through her skull. She sat up, instantly regretting it as the room spun around her, reaching for the receiver and raising it to her ear.

"'Lo?" she mumbled sleepily, rubbing at her eyes.

"Is this Miss Jones?" a voice inquired, crisp, professional. She nodded, forgetting he couldn't see her.

"Yeah, s'me," she said softly, "Listen, I was at a party last night, can this wait until, say, noon?" she asked hopefully.

"Miss Jones, I'm afraid I have some bad news... last night there was an accident," the man's voice informed her, dangerously calm. Rose tensed.

"Keith..."

"Mr. Richard's car was struck by a semi," the voice said.

"No..."

"I'm sorry to inform you that he died on site, prior to the arrival of the ambulance," the man blinked as a loud crash echoed through the phone.

"Miss Jones? Miss Jones?"

Rose stared at the pieces of the phone on the floor opposite the bed. The man had to be lying... this couldn't be happening, she'd yelled at Keith... called him selfish, practically cheated on him to get her revenge.

Over the next few days there were papers to sign and a trip to the coroners office to identify Keith that left Rose shaken. They hadn't even bothered to tidy him up a little and bones jutted out of his blood stained face and chest, bringing the taste of bile to her throat. She'd been able to nod before rushing out of the room to the washroom down the hall and losing what little breakfast she'd managed to force into her stomach.

Time passed, as it will, and Rose began to draw away from her old friend, people who reminded her too brutally of what she'd lost. She bought a new house in a new town, desperate to forget. But she couldn't forget. Keith had been her whole world and everywhere she went, something reminded her of him.

It was October 31st and Rose was driving home from work. Her mind had begun to wander when a wolf darted in front of her pick-up. She screamed and slammed on the brakes, but not before she hit the animal and watched it fly off the side of the road. Cautiously, she slipped out of the car and searched around. A soft whine alerted her to its presence and she grimaced when she saw it lying in a ditch, one leg visibly damaged, twisted at a cruel angle. Other than that, it seemed to be alright and she slowly approached it, whispering soft soothing jibberish and holding her hand out. She figured it would growl and attack her, but instead, in a moment that was decidedly domestic, it sniffed her hand, and then nuzzled at her arm. Shocked, she gently stroked its massive head, then jumped out of the ditch and backed her truck up to it. As carefully as she could manage, she maneuvered the wolf up the side of the ditch and, one half at a time, moved it into the back of the truck. It was impulsive, but seeing it had reminded her of Keith's words and since it seemed so friendly, she was determined to help.

She drove carefully, glancing over her shoulder constantly to make sure the creature was still comfortable. It was a beautiful wolf, fur so white it seemed to glow in the moonlight, ears perked as the bright blue eyes gazed around intelligently. It seemed resigned to this adventure and it didn't protest when she parked the truck and fetched a flat dolly she used for moving furniture, easing it onto it and rolling it into the house.

Making sure it was comfortable by the fire, she searched for some gauze bandages, thankful that she kept a bag of supplies on hand in case one of her patients called in an emergency. She walked back into the living room but the wolf was gone. In its place... was Keith.

He looked... perfect. His dark hair was impossibly soft and shimmering softly in the light of the fire, icey blue eyes gazing into hers. She could feel the joyful tears running down her cheeks and she gasped aloud before rushing to him. Enfolding her in his arms, he held her tight, pressing his lips against her head.

"H... how?" she sobbed, looking up at him in shock.

"It's Halloween Rose, remember? The one night I can return to you... once a year, change from that wolf form to my own." She was shaking, grief and happiness overwhelming each other until she felt she might collapse.

"Keith... I'm so sorry... I did... I did terrible things, I was so angry with you..." she choked. He pressed a finger to her lips, smiling that smile, the one she'd fallen in love with.

"Hush... I know..." he whispered. She felt his fingers glide down her body, unbuttoning her dress along the front and sliding it off her shoulders, letting it glide to the floor before leaning down to kiss her, running his fingers through her long waves and down her back. One hand undid the clasp on her bra, the other moving to rest on her cheek as she wound her arms around his neck, praying that she wasn't dreaming.

She undid the buttons on his white silk shirt, pushing it off of him and sliding her hands down his firm chest, never letting her lips leave his. He slide his hands under the straps of her bra, easing it down her arms and dropping it to the side, hands coming back up to her chest, fingertips teasing along her breasts, nails grazing across her nipples. She moaned against his lips, running her fingers along the waistband of the white dress pants, fumbling awkwardly with the button until she felt she might scream. His hands grasped hers and brought them back up his chest

"Slow darling, don't worry so," he whispered before capturing her lips again. She traced patterns along his skin, working her way down and feeling the tension ease out of her. When she returned to the button, it came loose and she pushed his slacks down slowly until they pooled at his feet and he stepped neatly out of them, laying her back on the faux-fur rug and kneeling between her legs. She bit her lower lip lightly, wrapping her arms around him when he leaned down to kiss her. His fingers eased her white cotton thong down her legs, gently stroking at her skin as they passed. When they were off, he flicked them away and leaned down to kiss her again.

She felt him position himself at her entrance and she quivered, taut with anticipation. For the first time in a year, he entered her, the only man to do so, and they both gasped with the tightness. Her wetness eased his passage as he pressed into her and he paused when all eight inches were sheathed within her. She wound her legs and arms around him and he slowly began to move, though the steady pace drove them both insane and soon he was lurching into her erratically, drawing loud moans from her full lips.

He reached his completion with a loud howl, eyes flashing silvery in the moonlight and she followed his climax with her own, shuddering long and hard and letting out soft little noises, incoherent words. She could feel his juices flooding her insides and it left her deeply satisfied. Snuggling close to him, she closed her eyes.

"I love you Keith," she whispered softly. Just before she fell asleep, she heard his voice.

"I'll always love you Rose..."

When she woke he was gone, and the wolf was gone. Concerned, she searched the house, calling his name. When she couldn't find him inside, she wrapped herself in a jacket, heading out into the crisp fall air. No matter how much she searched, the wolf was gone.

She went into the doctor's office three weeks later, complaining of nausea. The doctor ran some tests and came back into the room, smiling knowingly.

"Congratulations Rose," she said, beaming, "you're expecting