A/N: This is my first attempt at a Dark Hunter story. It has my favorite characters in it. But it is about my favorite couple Vane the sexy Arcadian Were Hunter and Bride, his sexy big beautiful woman. Of course, I own nothing from the series. Sherrilyn Kenyon has blessed us with such wonderful characters to play with. Thanks S.K.

Holiday Contentions

"Alright Fury, I want you to behave yourself when we go to my parents house to eat. And do me a favor and leave Cujo home because we won't have room for him in the car with the baby things and everyone else. And don't let my dad talk you into taking another animal home this year."

"Alright; alright Bride, I doubt if I can get away with it anyway between you and Lia. Who is going to be there?" Fury asked smiling, probably thinking about Mrs. McTierney's mashed potatoes.

"The usual; Mom, Dad, Deidre, Patrick and Maggie is coming this year too," Bride answered him nonchalantly.

"Must we be forced to sit down with the 'Queen of mean' during this time?" Fury asked the obvious question concerning her sister. "It is supposed to be the holidays; you know happy times, etc."

"Now Fury, you know better than to take that attitude toward family," Bride chided him playfully, reminding herself as well as her brother-in-law. "We all have to see past our family's faults in order to move on and enjoy each other's company."

"Yeah, but if she insults my mate or you again, I am not to be held responsible," He warned remembering the last Thanksgiving he attended. "I think Angelia would probably kill her herself if she gets too riled during this pregnancy."

"You and Lia will so busy eye-fucking each other, you may miss the mashed potatoes you love so much," interjected Vane flashing into the room laughing.

"Yeah, and there is nothing that should come between Fury and my mom's mashed potatoes. And you watch your language in the house, mister. Remember we have kids that live here now, not just the pack," laughed Bride, engulfing her husband in an awe inspiring kiss.

Several years and two kids later and they still behaved like honeymooners. This was the year the Kattalakis family joined the McTierney family for celebrations. They switched up each year. Everyone was either excited or nervous.

Angelia, heavy with Fury's sons was a wreck, emotionally with her hormones going crazy. And she was nervous about meeting Bride's father since she was involved with what happened to the lion pride before she and Fury became mates. Fang and Aimee were hosting a celebration at Sanctuary, which they would be attending later in the evening.

"Anything else we need before we leave?" Vane asked as everyone else piled into the Expedition that Vane had acquired for transporting his family to the McTierney's. It looked like your basic Ford Expedition but the thing was fully loaded; humanly and magically. Vane was adamant about taking care of his wife and kids.

Later that evening after dinner –-

Bride and Deidre were helping their mom by cleaning up and folding some laundry while the men and Lia checked out the new pets Dr. Paul was housing in the back. Patrick and Maggie had left to go to her folk's house and the kids were napping in one of the guest rooms.

"So how many more kids do you think you and Vane may be having?" Deidre asked innocently as they closed the door to the room the kids were sleeping in and headed to the back bedroom to fold laundry as they had done so many times growing up as kids. Once again Dee's kids were with their father and his new pregnant wife.

Bride watched her suspiciously. She answered her honestly though. "We actually thought we would hold off for a while. Two rambunctious boys are quite enough for right now and Trace is getting ready to start school in the fall so we're going to wait a couple of years before we try for that girl again."

"That's good thinking," she mused carefully biting her bottom lip as she folded another towel. "You know Bride, since you are done with having kids for a while you should consider going back on your diet and getting rid of some of that baby fat before you lose that hot-bodied husband to someone else."

"I beg your pardon! Surely you are not implying Vane would ever cheat on me; because he would never." Bride snapped a sheet so loudly she paused to see if she had awakened the kids.

"I mean really. How often do you look in a mirror?" Deidre continued unabashedly. "Sure you are the same size as before, but don't you think your husband deserves your commitment to his happiness?"

"My husband, I'll have you know, is very happy with me just as I am." She continued folding the sheet.

"At least Taylor tried to help you along; getting you those spa classes and gym memberships. He acted as if he cared about you. Vane is just gonna let you blow up and then leave you with your two kids." Bride picked up a towel and put it down. She had had enough of her sister.

"Just like Josh left you Dee? Look, I know you are still hurting, but seriously, you need to look at the facts here. You married the man for his money. I don't know why his realizing you never loved him was a shocker for you. And then look at yourself. You claim to have all these assets a man would want, yet you have no one else. Who are you to give me advice?"

"I'm just trying to help you keep your husband!"

"I don't need your kind of help. Your kind of help got you to a place I don't care to be; an unhappy, jealous, divorcee who can't stand the idea that her chubby little sister has a better life than she does."

"Well I can see my advice is falling on deaf ears! You'd think those size 16 ears would appreciate some good intentions!"

"Dee, you can take your good advice and shove it up your ass!" Bride screamed at her sister, having had enough of her snide remarks.

Bride was furious. She never cursed and her own sister was bringing out the worse in her. She was ready to pounce on Dee and bash her head in when Vane and Dr. Paul crashed into the room.

"Okay Doc, I think it's time I took my wife and family home now," he turned his back toward them and pulled Bride into a protective stance away from her sister. "Can you please ask Dee to leave us alone for a minute, Doc? I need to get things calmed down before control is lost."

He sent out calming magic to calm Bride down and held her in his arms while she breathed him in deeply. Dr. Paul understood the nature of the were-hunter before him. He was holding onto Bride to keep from attacking her sister. Were-hunters are very protective of their mates and Deidre just made his mate very upset; making Dee a threat to his family. "Deidre, come with me now!" he admonished his daughter.

After she was calm enough, Bride apologized to her parents for her outbursts and even her sister who had suffered a serious chastisement from both her parents and her brother over the phone. They hugged and promised to keep in touch more although they both knew they would not. The ride home was quiet except for Trace and Uncle Furry teasing each other.

When they arrived home and passed the kids on to the nurse, Vane pulled his wife aside into their bedroom.

"Baby, talk to me. What's on your mind?" he asked taking in her morbid mood and sad expression.

"Do you really want to know what I want, Vane?" she asked. "Well I will tell you even though I know it won't make a difference. I want to be thin. I want to be skinny and beautiful instead of big and beautiful."

"Bride, honey, I don't like skinny women." Vane breathed out sadly. He knew she was still reacting to her impression of society's ridiculous standards and her recent argument with her sister. "I never have. I love you exactly as you are. Can't that be enough for you?"

"Can't you understand that I am not happy like this? I want to be sexier and more attractive for myself. I want you to do it Vane. You have the power. Make me skinny, baby, please." She pleaded sadly, knowing what her husband's response would be as always.

"NO! Bride I don't want that. I don't want you changing at all." Vane answered trying to avoid a fight with his beautiful wife. He hated that her sister did this to her nearly every year.

"Then you are selfish." His wife countered with tears in her beautiful eyes. God he hated to see her cry. It made him want to go out and kill someone or buy her something expensive again, which she has banned him from doing until Christmas.

"You want what you want for yourself. You're not concerned at all about how I feel about this." She sniffed.

"Oh God, Baby, don't cry." His Arcadian heart was breaking at his wife's tears. "Can we table this conversation until after we get back from Sanctuary? Fang and Aimee will not be happy if we don't show up."

"We don't have to argue about this anymore. We both know neither of us will change our minds on this subject. Besides, I am tired tonight; perhaps you can find one of the guest rooms comfortable when we get back."

"Bride, you are not putting me out of my marriage bed because you are still pissed off at your pig-headed sister." He blanched aghast at the unfairness of it all.

He loved Bride with all his heart and soul. Her size was what he like the most. He absolutely hated skinny women. He preferred the women pattern after the Greco-Roman times and Bride, his beautiful wife, was a perfect example of that beauteous time. He wished he could get her to understand.

"No Vane, I am upset with my pig-headed husband. Now let's go." Yep, he figured, he was doomed to the couch as Kyrian had once admitted to him he was, when he made a stupid comment to Amanda about how beautiful her hips were after having their daughter Marissa.

He flashed them to Sanctuary and immediately headed for the bar. This was going to be a long night. He leaned against the bar and watched the crowd. Everyone was here: Amanda and Kyrian; Sunshine and Talon; Valerius and Tabitha; Wren and Maggie; and even Zarek and Astrid. There were Ursaline and Lykae as well as lion and tigers and dragons, oh my! Vane laughed at his own joke.

Bride was in a booth with a very irate Tabitha and Zarek, a new god on Olympus, while his wife, Astrid and Zarek's brother, Valerius danced. Tabitha was fuming because her husband would not allow her to go Daimon hunting on a holiday. Zarek was, of course, encouraging her. Anything to give his little brother a hard time, Zarek was up for it.

When Tabby left for the bathroom, Zarek asked Bride what was wrong. She informed him she was getting ready to start a new diet and was not looking forward to all the work it would take to lose the weight she wanted to lose.

"Why not just get Vane to do it for you?" Zarek asked.

"He doesn't believe in it," Bride shrugged. "I don't think he believes I can do it either," she confided. "Truthfully, I will probably fail again but I will still try," she sniffed.

"Don't worry about it," Zarek proclaimed, "it will be done."

Was she hearing right? Did a God just proclaim her dieting done? It would be just like him to do something like that, but Z was unpredictable and sometimes very scary.

"When you wake up in the morning, you will have your heart's desire. No stress to you or your husband."

"What do you mean, Zarek?" Bride asked cautiously, not trying to get her hopes up.

"I mean, you will have no trouble with your diet anymore."

Suddenly, the jukebox rung out a chorus of "Sweet Home Alabama" and in saunters Ash and Simi with Tory clasped between them. Simi and Tori headed to the buffet table while Ash headed straight to their booth.

"Zarek, Bride it's good to see you both," Acheron addressed them directly, narrowing his eyes on Zarek. "Z what kind of trouble are you up to now? You know sometimes the best intentions are not always the best ideas."

"Oh, here we go with the oracle and his clueless clues again. I'm an outie," Zarek answered impatiently. Ash follows him and pulls him off to the side.

Bride watched the two interact and shrugged her shoulders. She might as well commit to her diet, starting tomorrow. She watched Tory, Ash's wife, as she is trying to get Simi, their little Charonte demon, to eat something healthy and suggested that barbeque sauce is not a salad dressing. Bride looks up as she feels a kiss on the back of her neck. Vane is laughing at something or someone.

"What's so funny?" she asks Vane as he sits next to her in their booth setting down their drinks. "I was laughing at poor Zarek he has done something to get Astrid mad at him and she has asked Sasha to escort her back to the hotel to pick up their son Manecaeus. I got two words for the man…dog house."

"Well now it seems you two have something in common," Bride reminded him of their little disagreement earlier.

"Aw come on, sweetness, are you really gonna stay mad at me on a holiday?" Vane asked her. "Bride I am happy with you as you are. I fell in love with you as you are. I want you to stay just as you are."

Despite herself, Bride couldn't help but smile. "Vane, so help me, if you break out and start singing Barry White, I swear I will leave you here and get a ride home with someone else. I am just that mad at you, right now."

"Astrid, baby come on, let me take us home," Zarek pleaded to his outraged wife. "What did I do? Talk to me Princess, come on. Leave Bob with your sister and let's enjoy this evening. I was just teasing with Tabby. You know how stoic my brother can be…"

"Oh my goodness, what did he do that quickly? He was just here talking to me,"

Bride mused thoughtfully; so much for giving her a wish of an easy diet.

"Knowing Zarek, who knows?" Vane answered. "Now honey, are you still mad at me?"

His wife blew out a resigned breath. "No, I'm not still mad. I'll just get even somehow. I will get to my dream size, Vane, and you will just have to learn to love me regardless."

"I will always love you, Bride," he answered solemnly. "It's just the way I am. I can't help but to love my Bride."

"Oh that's a good one," she laughed at his attempt at a puppy dog face. "Can't think how many times you've said that to me."

"Am I forgiven?" Vane asked hopefully.

"Well… I suppose I would miss you, a little," she smirked knowingly.

Vane took the bait to start their playful banter, again, "Just a little?"

"A mere smidgen, perhaps…you know. Like an itch that I am used to scratching but it's no longer there?" she answered nonplussed.

Vane growled sexily, "Oh, I am so gonna scratch that little itch, wife. You won't be missing anything when I am done with you." He arched his brows in the challenge.

They were interrupted by someone clearing his throat. "Vane, you have a request from your parents."

Vane turned his head and looked at Acheron as if he had two heads, "My parents? I don't have any parents, Ash, you know that."

"Well, Bryani and Markus, then," he continued. "Something about the island is missing something they need for the holidays."

"I'll see to it," Vane answered slightly peeved at Ash's untimely interruption. "Let's get you and the others home, Bride, and we'll talk later, okay?"

"Talk about what? Itching and scratching?" she rolled her eyes playfully until she felt her husband's hand cup her at the apex of her thighs and give a little scratch. "Ah!" she gasped, then smiled widely. "Okay then, later."

"Fury! Get Lia, it's time to bounce."

A/N2: There you go. This is chapter one and I have at least one or two more to add to it. Please tell me what you think. Are the characters on point? Give me something you like. Let me know if I'm doing a good job. Thanks. Oh, and reviewers get teased!

Thank you to my beta, Dollybigmomma, for helping me to fix up this story. However, I added some stuff after she checked it out so any mistakes found is probably after she looked it over.