Dean pulled her limp and supple body against his as they lay in bed, both more overcome with exertion and release than either would admit. He could have stayed in bed with her all day, he thought. It wouldn't solve their immediate problems but hell, it was too much fun to really came. He pressed his nose into her fiery hair. She smelled like soap and shampoo but not the subtle, herbal, or sweet undertone she usually had. It reminded him that she didn't have whatever gear and supplies she normally traveled with. And he knew she was a little too worried to let her wild side out for long. A day in bed was probably not in the cards for them.

Mae didn't let herself enjoy being with him, not past the sex. The sex, which was unexpectedly explosive, was a release. Letting him wrap his strong, muscular arms around her and resting her head on his chest as his heartbeat returned to normal was an indulgence. It would have been too much and she too easily felt herself slipping in the idea that they were together, really together.

This wasn't relationship sex. This was...something else. She was certain. Maybe it was a hook up, maybe it was just for comfort. It didn't really matter. They were already too familiar with each other. Once, she had told him she couldn't do this in fits and starts, that she couldn't neatly keep her emotions out of a physical relationship with him. She knew that was still true and knew she would be lying if she told herself she wasn't just as in love with him now as she was months ago, years ago.

He had made it clear that...well, it wasn't entirely clear what he wanted but it seemed like they no longer wanted the same thing tin. Except during sex. That brought them together in a single-minded pursuit of need and pleasure. This morning had been glorious, exactly what her body wanted, what it needed. Sheer will power, drove her from his warm embrace while her body still quivered in ecstasy, while her legs were still rubbery and unsure.

Trying to hide the tremble in her body she rolled away from him, stood, and tried to grab her frantically discarded clothing and pull them on. Dean blinked, taken aback by her rapid motions, that by the time he could form rational thoughts, she already had the sweatpants back on.

"Babe, what are you doing?" The words rolled out of his mouth with the honeyed laziness of a well sated man.

"We've got to get to work," She tossed over her shoulder.

Dean reached out, snaking a hand around her waist, and pulled her back to sit on the edge of the be. He propped himself up and leaned in close enough to kiss her hip and up the curve of her waist. "No, stay in bed. Rest up for round two."

God, she thought, it would have been so much easier, so much nicer to join him back under the covers. Her mind refused to follow orders to slip out of his relaxed grasp and instead focused on how wonderful in exploring hands would feel as their calloused warmth smoothed and excited their way around her body. How hot and wet his mouth would feel as he kissed her flesh and the zing that would run up her spine when he'd place a well-timed and positioned nip somewhere.

She wanted this to be just sex but could only lie to herself so much. Now, she had thought too much about it. "Knock it off, Dean. We can't just spend all day screwing."

"Sure, we could. Sam's going to check out the dudes in the hospital, see if they experienced anything like he did. See if there are any details they can share. You can't do that, not if they recognize you. The only other thing we could do is talk to the cops and see if there's any other dirt on these guys that might give us a clue to the motive of this...kitsune." His fingers played at the skin just above the band of her pants, pushing the fabric down more. Shifting, he sat up and brushed her hair away from her shoulder, kissing her skin again. "But it's still early."

For a moment, she gave in and relished the scruff of stubble against her shoulder, the soft lips, one arm tight around her middle, the other hand stroking down her other arm. He made some sense, although that could have been her libido talking, she thought and it was harder to fight the instinct than it was to give in. But no, this wasn't the right time for this. She cleared her throat and shook her head. "No, better to start fresh, maybe get something to eat, and certainly getting me some real clothes.

"Mmm," he said, nipping at her ear, "I like what you have on right now. Except for the bottoms. You could definitely lose those."

"C'mon."

"Spoilsport." He tossed back at her. But he let her go with one last kiss to her neck.

She missed the warmth of his body but finished dressing before she really did crawl back into bed with him. "What the hell were you thinking?" She finally asked, turning back to look at him.

Dean frowned, tossing back the covers, boldly displaying his nudity, as he collected his clothes. Mae refused to either stare or look away, not sure which would goad him on more. "Really? We just had a pretty fantastic, fun time. We're going to fight now?"

"Not a fight. It-something that may or may not have been me kissed your brother and tried to suck the life out of him so your first thought was to have sex?"

"Not my first thought," he said, a twinkle in his eye while he tugged his jeans on, "And I wouldn't say no to you sucking me-"

"Dude."

"I wasn't...it started out as a test, to see if you were...not you. I thought maybe if there was something really using you that maybe it would take me as a viable candidate. Maybe it didn't get enough of a meal since it couldn't finish Sammy. But you're just you. I'm pretty sure. The rest...just happened."

She sighed, admiring his smooth, well defined back when he sat on the edge of the bed to put his socks and boots back on. "It was still a stupid plan."

"I'm an expert at stupid plans. Besides, you and me...nothing has seemed anything like what Sam described. Don't get me wrong, I'm attracted to you and I'll go along with just about anything you want to do to me but that's not unusual for me."

"Good, it would make the sex awkward otherwise."

"You could have said no at any point."

"I know. I didn't want to say no. I wanted…"

"What did you want?" His voice was low, sexy.

She shrugged a bit to keep from visibly shuttering, her system still too attuned and receptive to him. "Exactly what happened. It wasn't bad, just careless."

"Kinda our M.O. babe."

"Regardless…"

Dean pulled his shirt over his head and turned back to face Mae, waggling his brows. "It was still fun."

She didn't hide the light chuckle or the satisfied smirk this time. "Yeah, it was."

After the pair dressed, Mae insisted Dean check in with Sam, and make regular check ins. She was still worried about him out on his own. Her problem was that she wasn't sure how to convince either man there was safety in numbers when that had failed so far. Not to mention the awkwardness of tiptoeing around Sam's discomfort. She didn't share Sam's recollection and so far, most of the weird moments, she had with Dean. But it was a touchy subject for Dean in general and Sam in particular. Her best bet, she thought, was to let them sort it out and take on whatever risks came along with it.

Instead, they settled on taking care of their more immediate needs. First breakfast and then new clothes. Because Dean had let Sam take her car, she was currently without her fake ids. Dean had only shrugged at this hitch, suggesting he and Sam had plenty. She let the issue lie for now. Fighting with him over the difference in their preparations styles was pointless and she knew he wouldn't change in this aspect. There was a part of him that would always fly by the seat of his pants. That worked better when you had some sort of backup, she though, but perhaps this is how he took things on solo too.

They found breakfast at a 24-hr diner, where it didn't matter that it was just shy of 6:00 am. Maybe because there was plenty to discuss but none of it seemed as if they'd end up with an answer both would be happy with, they kept quiet. They both enjoyed what turned out to be quality coffee, black. Dean scanned the building ideally, not sure what he was looking for but finally feeling on edge. He couldn't put a specific reason behind it but knew enough to not disregard it. There was still nothing he could do about it.

His breakfast companion didn't seem to sense it. Or, if she did, she didn't react. He couldn't read that in her. The only thing that made him thing she might have the impression that something was off too was a subtle tension in her body, the stilling of her eyes as she 'read' the menu. And then it was gone.

With a short, crisp sigh, Mae announced that even though she knew it would be cooked in more butter than needed, she'd have an egg while omelet packed with mushrooms, green peppers, and tomatoes. After a moment, he followed her lead. It was steak and eggs for Dean. The feeling, whatever it had been, didn't return while they ate nor did things return to normal.

Despite not flirting with a waitress, and just then realizing he hadn't noticed any other woman but Mae, he left a generous tip. He didn't even let Mae argue with him over paying. Their next stop was a big box store, the sort where a person could buy groceries, clothes, furniture, and tires all at once. Nothing was particularly high in quality but she would be glad to make due. Besides, everything she needed to hold up, her boots and her weapons were intact and as durable as ever.

As they entered together, Mae felt that odd feeling again and a chill that tried to creep up her spine. She stopped and stiffened. She recognized the feeling, at least a little. She had felt it in the motel the night before. At the time, she attributed it to insufficient insulation but she was beginning to think it was her body responding to the kitsune. Or it could have been paranoia. She knew something but she didn't know enough.

Still, she looked around, not sure what she was looking for yet. It would have been easy if she saw a fox...or something. There was nothing. Nothing that clicked for her. And then it something felt like electricity against her hand, jarring and unexpected. What had her head swiveling in the direction of the source in what felt like slow motion was that it felt comforting at the same time. She blinked, looking down at her hand far too long as Dean's curled around it. Wide eyed, she looked back up at the man. Judging from his expression, he felt it too.

"You okay?"

Mae filed away the sensation for later when she could think more about it and try to make sense of it. "Yeah. I just...let's wrap this up, okay?

Dean only nodded, and while she tried to pull away and march into the store, he kept a hold on her. He needed to, although he couldn't figure out why. She didn't fight it and he knew they just looked like a normal couple. She questioned it silently when she took a cart and he still kept his hand on hers. Those strange feelings, both the one from her and the one of being followed dissipated in minutes. Their hands slipped apart as Mae navigated to the clothing section.

He didn't follow her suggestion to find something more interesting to do while she shopped but gave her a little more space. Quickly and efficiently, Mae grabbed new jeans, t-shirts, a long sleeve button down, an affordable pair of black slack, a matching blazer, and white dress shirt. It was enough, she thought to get through this case and deal with most situations they might come up against.

She hoped Dean would give her a little space to pick out socks and undergarments but he was most excited about that. She tried to make her way through the racks quickly, looking for a couple bras in her size that would serve their purpose until she was back home.

"What about this one?"

Dean held up a green decidedly sexy bra. It looked like almost any movement would disintegrate the lace to dust. Her nose crinkled at the mere whisper of fabric but then she smiled.

"It'll look great on you, really brings out the color of your eyes."

He laughed, "C'mon, not everything has to be so...functional."

His eyes cast judgmentally towards the two basic, white bras in her cart and the tone of his deep voice on the word 'functional' made it clear that he lacked her desire for practicality over style. Had he noticed the value 5-pack of cotton briefs, she was certain he would dislike them for similar reasons. But this was not an outing for fun undergarments.

"It does when you're in the functional business, rather than whatever that is for."

Dean shrugged. It had been unlikely that she would have eagerly accepted his selection. He had hoped for at least a lighthearted smile from her. He hung the undergarment back up on the rack and moved to idly peruse other garments, waiting for Mae to finish up.

Once his back was turned though, she checked the tag for the size. Her brow arched up, noting that Dean had selected the correct size but no sure if it was intentional or random. Either way, now that he wasn't looking, she took the bra, tucking it under the other clothing she was getting, along with the nearby matching panties. Hell, maybe things would take the turn for the fun again. After all, she thought, once this was over, he would probably go back to his assessment that they couldn't hunt together anymore so fun opportunities might be limited.

After making her purchase, she changed in the bathroom. Not ideal, she thought but better than borrowed clothing, though she still wanted her familiar, broken in jeans and the softness of her flannels that smelled like the detergent she liked. All the same, she felt better in clothes of her own. As close to her own as she was going to get here, she thought wryly.

When she came out, Dean let his eyes survey her, hungry. The clothes made her look more like herself, less like she was his, he thought. She'd changed into the suit, so he knew she meant business. But even the trim suit looked good on her and his gaze lingered on her ass as she walked by him.

"C'mon, let's get on with it," she threw over her shoulder.

"Yes ma'am." Dean offered, with a mock salute.