“But, what if one of them gets attracted to someone else?” Jim asks, one evening over dinner.

Bones sighs. “I think that between the werewolf mating bond and the Vulcan lifebond, the chances of that happening are exceedingly slim.”

“Yes, but… you mean they can’t be attracted to anybody else?”

“I think their attraction to each other would outweigh any fleeting attraction to someone else,” he says, trying not to sound as frustrated as he feels. He is far too familiar with this aspect of the mating bond, and since his mate is oblivious, he’s been having a very intimate relationship with his right hand for a while now.

“So they can’t have sex with anybody but each other?” Jim asks, shooting a glance over to where Uhura and Spock are sharing their evening meal.

“They could, theoretically, but it would never be as enjoyable as with each other,” he replies, wondering why the hell he’s still answering these questions – though a part of him, the part that wants Jim so bad he hurts, knows exactly why he keeps trying to explain it to him.

But then Jim says, guilelessly, “Wow, that has got to suck,” and breaks his heart into a million pieces.