Paul was seated comfortably in the small circle surrounding the bonfire. He was feeling warm now- and it wasn't from the flames. He downed his fourth cup of cranberry and vodka, and threw the red cup with precision at the garbage can that was more than 20 feet away. He opted for a beer this time, now that he had a comfortable buzz going. He was wearing a black T-shirt and cargo shorts, although the weather probably called for something warmer. The breeze off of the water was chilly, and he was sure that if he were a normal human he would be freezing right now. That was one thing he loved about being a wolf. No weather restrictions. He cracked open a cold can and sat back down on the huge mossy log. He sighed, leaning back against a bigger piece of timber, and stretched his muscled legs out. Embry and Jared were blabbering on next to him, trying to talk Jared's imprint Kim into cliff diving. She was young, 17, but she had accepted the imprint with little coercion and now Jared and her could live happily ever after. Whatever.
The rest of the group were conversing around the fire also. Sam with Emily (as usual), Leah and Quil, and Seth, Jacob and Laila. Everyone was at ease. Relaxed. It was a rare thing for this group. Especially rare for Sam. As second in command, Paul knew that it was tiring being in charge of six immature wolves. And also training a brainless baby to one day lead them all.
He was glad he came out, he needed to wind down a little even if it meant drinking an entire gallon of vodka. Even if this whole gathering was centered around some stupid girl.
He glanced up at her then, and saw her leaning into Jacob with a warm smile. Jacob played right into it, throwing an arm around her shoulder. Pathetic. How could he be so happy to be placed firmly in the friend zone. The kid needed to man up. What got him the most was how Jacob thought of her. The way his thoughts would wrap around the girl possessively, like he owned her. The memories he would ponder over, his obsessive internal monologue... god it made Paul want to puke. He hated sharing thoughts with Black. The kid was such a pussy.
Laila glanced up at him, narrowing her brown eyes slightly. Paul didn't flinch. Her eyes hardened and she lifted her chin a fraction of an inch. So she wanted to play stubborn then? There was something wrong with this girl. Any normal human could take 1 look at Paul, and visibly shy away from fear. Even Kim shied away from him and she was a goddamn imprint! Their human instincts told them one thing: dangerous. So why was this girl sitting here, purposely pushing his buttons? Did she really believe someone like her could make him submit? The thought was ridiculous. He glared back menacingly.
At that moment, Emily blocked his view from her deep brown eyes, and he was thankful. Another second of that and maybe he would've shown her exactly what she should be afraid of. He downed the rest of his beer, and got up to get another. He didn't have work tomorrow, and he didn't have patrol either. 2 days off in a row was a complete blessing.
'Fuck it,' he thought, pouring himself another strong cranberry and vodka, 'May as well do it up.'
"Alright, who wants to do some shots?" Laila beamed, wiggling a bottle of cinnamon whiskey in her small hands. The chattering amongst the group stopped.
"How about we play beer pong, and for every shot you miss, you have to take a shot?" Jared smirked, playing on her obvious lack of hand-eye coordination. At that rate, the girl would get absolutely belligerent.
"How about no," Leah chimed in, saving the girl from eminent alcohol poisoning. "I'll do a shot with you, Emily and Kim come here!" Emily bounced off Sam's lap, gave him a peck, and joined the circle of girls at the picnic table. Kim was more shy, only joining when Laila coerced her and Jared insisted. Paul snorted. The girl needed to grow a backbone if she was going to handle being an imprint.
"Something funny, Lahote?" Jared demanded after Kim was out of earshot. Paul finished off his 6th drink. Being drunk made his usual half-filter evaporate; out came Paul in his full asshole glory.
"Yeah, actually," he looked over to Kim, who was now taking shots of liquor with the other girls. She was quiet, and not in the strong quiet confidence like Emily. She was reserved. Insecure. Mousy. He could sense it. Not even Laila's assured and spirited personality could bring her out of her shell. How could a wolf imprint on somebody like that? "Just wondering if I'll ever hear more than two words outta her mouth," he laughed again. Jared was instantly fuming.
"Shut the fuck up, douchebag. You'll never understand because you'll never find anybody that would put up with your bullshit." Jared spat, and lurched himself off the mossy log. He went over to the group of girls, who were getting louder as time went on, and kissed Kim vehemently. A chorus of whistles and 'Oooh!'s erupted around the couple, and Kim blushed, hiding her face in his shoulder.
Paul rolled his eyes. Yuck.
"You know, you might be more considerate..." Embry chided, staring into the fire. "You really don't understand what it's like to imprint. You can't say shit about it, really."
"I understand enough about it to know he doesn't belong to himself anymore. He belongs to her." Paul stated simply, eyes still on Jared as he was staring at Kim like she was an angel on earth. "When have you ever known Jared Cameron to be a cuddler? Or wear matching shirts with someone? Shits laughable. He's a fucking marshmallow now."
Embry considered that for a moment. He then grabbed a skewer and plopped his 8th hotdog on it, preparing to roast it over the roaring fire.
"Okay, so when's the last time Jared had to be talked down from phasing out of anger? The kid would phase at the drop of a hat. His anger is totally in check now. Love changes people. For the better." Embry concluded with a nod of his head.
Paul scoffed. "Love. Yeah, right. You can't just look at someone and be in love."
"Yes you can." Embry disagreed, shaking his head "Look around you. It's called imprinting."
"Whatever." Paul shrugged. He was just glad it was a rare thing, and that his eyes would most likely never be clouded by the weight of an imprint. The girls had filtered back in the circle, sitting down in their original spots. Paul stood, and made his way to the picnic table, heading for the last bit of vodka he was determined to polish off. Something in the distance caught his eye. Who was sitting by the shore, in the dark all alone? He grabbed the bottle and headed in that direction. It was certainly colder outside without the heat from the fire, he could feel the temperature change every step further from the circle of friends. He got closer to the figure, recognizing the scent before the long braided hair.
"Come to be my space heater?" Laila guessed, turning around with a dimpled smile. Only as soon as she recognized who it was, her smile fell and she turned back around. Clearly it wasn't Paul that she had expected. Who none other than the baby alpha would be at her every beck and call?
"Sorry, looks like your little puppy dog is distracted at the moment" he sneered, and she looked back to the group who were now playing an extreme game of beer pong. She glared at him again and huffed, taking a sip of whatever was in her cup. She shuddered, and pulled her flannel closer to herself.
Paul sat next to her with a big thump, and she had to use both hands to balance herself on the driftwood.
"Is there something I can help you with?" She growled, annoyance thick in her voice. Yet she made no attempt to move away from him, as close as he was sitting to her. Interesting. He took a long drag from the bottle he held, inconspicuously moving closer, and offered it to her. She shook her head, gesturing down at her own cup.
"Are you even old enough to be drinking, pipsqueak?"
"I'm 22." She was curt. "Again, is there something I can help you with?"
"Yes, actually. Make me understand." He stared into the side of her face at a freckle on her cheek until she turned to look at him, her face inches away. Feeling too close for comfort after a moment, she moved away. He smirked. I win.
If there was one thing he knew about this girl, it was that she always put up a fight.
"Understand what?" She glowered at him again, her full lower lip hitting out just slightly, and he could smell the liquor from her breath. He could also smell the vanilla and honey suckle scent that was naturally hers wafting from her and swimming around his head. It was divine. Get it together you drunk idiot.
"Understand why you're here if you hate it so much."
She was taken aback. "I do not hate it! You don't know anything. Why the hell are you even talking to me?"
This time he was the one who was taken aback. Why was he sitting here, talking to this stupid little girl? He considered that for a moment, taking another drawl of the liquor, and put the bottle back into the sand between his legs. She copied him, taking another swig of her drink, and stared into the water with indignation. She smelled of Sam, and for some reason this fact made him almost want to growl. The hell? Before he could answer, she spoke.
"I'm here to be near family. I don't know what makes you hate me so much, but honestly I don't give a shit. You should just stay away from me." And at that, Paul had to laugh out loud.
"Ha! Like I ever could. You don't think I've tried? Sams got me on babysitting duty now, so you're stuck with me, sweet cheeks. Trust me, if I could drop kick you back to Texas, I would."
She didn't reply, as she stared out at the water and for a moment he wondered what was going through her head. He felt more than heard Jacobs loud and quickening footsteps coming closer to them, although she couldn't with her lousy human hearing.
"Your puppy dog Jake is coming over to rescue you. Hopefully you stop leading him on and show him a good time tonight."
"You're a disgusting excuse for a human being!" She snapped, glaring at him. He laughed again. He was thoroughly enjoying pissing her off. She wasn't scared of him at all. A fighter.
"Hasn't anyone told you? I'm not a human being."
They sat there for a moment, glowering at each other before Jacob made it over to them.
"What's going on?" He demanded, regarding the two sitting on the driftwood together. Laila finally stood up.
"Nothing, I'm kind of tired Jake. Could you drive me home?" Paul gripped the bottle a little tighter as Jacob threw his arm around her and pulled her closer. Stupid puppy dog.
"Of course Laila, lets go. It's getting cold out..."
Laila and Jacob walked away, and Paul leaned back, staring at the cold, grey clouds that were blocking the stars. 'Finally alone' he thought, closing his eyes. 'Like always.'
Laila closed the front door behind her, glad to be rid of Jacob and his annoying persistence. He was her very best friend, no doubt. Yet there was no getting around the fact that he did have some feelings for her that would sooner or later cause issues. And there was nothing she could do, really. What would she say? 'Hey Jake. Can you stop having a crush on me? But still give me all your time and attention.' Exasperated, she kicked off her sandy converse and headed toward the fridge. Her stomach was rumbling, she was a little dizzy and for some reason her mood was off. She grabbed a bottle of water, and decided she could use some Tylenol to get ahead of the impending hangover that was sure to come. Her footsteps were noisy, and for the first time since stepping foot in the house, she realized it was quiet. Way too quiet. Almost eerily. She glanced to the hallway, almost expecting to see a ghost or robber. It was empty, save for the small bookcase and dozens of pictures hanging on the yellow wall. 'Stop being ridiculous' Laila rolled her eyes at herself, and popped the two pills that would save her from a headache in the morning.
Still, she couldn't shake the feeling that she wasn't completely alone. She decided she could use some sleep, and headed for the stairs that led to the guest room. Her weird mood was probably from her less than pleasant conversation she had earlier with a less than pleasant person. What was Paul's problem with her? Sure, most of the time she wasn't the friendliest with him. But how could you be with someone who had FUCK OFF stamped to their forehead permanently? He was entirely different that Jacobs sunny personality, Embrys caring nature or Sams calm demeanor. He was just an asshole to put it plainly. Why did the assholes always have to be good looking? She couldn't deny the effect he had on her. His thick, red-brown arms...The way his dark eyes could hold hers, even if they were filled with hostility... 'Jesus Laila, shut up!' You could hate someone and still think they were attractive, right?
She reached the top of the stairs, and immediately paused, glancing down the dark hallway that led to Sam and Emily's room. The hair on her neck bristled, and goosebumps raised on her arms. There was nobody there... she was all alone. So why was her body suddenly alarmed? She felt nervous, yet there was nothing to be nervous about. She started towards her room, and realized it was completely silent in the house again. It felt deliberate, like a child playing hide and seek.
She opened her door, and sighed in relief. It was empty. She had such an overactive imagination. The window over the small wooden desk was ajar, and a cool breeze whipped around her hot neck. It felt so good, she closed her eyes and let it gust lightly around her. She just needed to relax. The window creaked slightly, startling her. She opened her eyes, and gasped. Outside in the dark, a pair of curious red eyes were staring back at her.