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You Don't Know Me and If You're Not the One

Chapter 3: Pinch Me; I Must Be Dreaming

Leah POV

Seth was going a million miles per second. He went from talking about the pack meeting I missed last night, to stalled vehicles, food poisoning, and then imprinting.

"Seth!" I was able to finally cut in.

He stopped pacing in my living space and looked up at me oddly, like something was wrong with me for not putting together all the missing pieces.

"Don't say another word." Seth started to open his mouth, but I shot up my hand, signaling him to stop. "Take a long deep breath." I watched my brother inhale deeply and then breathe out slowly. "Good," I smiled victoriously. "Now I want you to start from the beginning and try not to leave anything out this time, okay?"

"Okay." Seth nodded. "Mother Moonflower, you remember her, huh?" My brother asked, taking a seat on the edge of my bed.

"Of course." How could I not? "She was like a second grandmother to us." She was so much more than just that. A much honored member among our people, a spiritual counselor, and a caretaker to all of the grade school children of the tribe. She never met a person who disliked her. She had an aura about her. Anybody that had the pleasure to be in her presence could feel it; sense it, even. It was a great sadness to us all when we lost her ten years ago.

Although Mother Moonflower was known as a great nurturer among our tribe, she didn't have the same luck with her own kids. Her son, Tim ran off many years ago after his twin sister, Florence committed suicide. No one knew why she did it and a suicide note was never found.

"What does this have to do with you imprinting?" I had no clue where Seth was going with this. I took a seat beside him.

"Last night, Embry got a phone call from his mom. She told him that there was a stalled car a few miles from the rez. Guess who was in the stalled vehicle?" I shook my head, threw up my hands, and waited for his answer. "Mother Moonflower's long lost granddaughters!" Seth all but shouted. "Tim's kids."

"No shit?" Tim had kids? I had no idea.

"Yeah, I know." Seth laughed. "Anyway, it turns out that one of the girls was pretty sick." I watched my brother tense up a bit. The sick one must have been his imprint, given the sudden change in his demeanor. "I mean, what are the odds, Lee? Out of all the people that could have stopped to help them, it was our mom and Tiff?" Our mom is the rez doctor and Tiff is her nursing assistant. "It's like – like divine intervention or something," he mused. "Anyway, Ester. She's seventeen."

"She was named after Mother Moonflower?" I was a little dumbfounded. That sort of shocked me, given the fact that the gossip was, that son and mother parted on bitter terms.

"Apparently." Seth shrugged as he continued on. "And even though I never saw Florence in the flesh – I've just seen her in pictures like the rest of us – Ester looks like her mirror image. Just a little paler, if you ask me."

So this Ester Moonflower must be gorgeous. The Moonflower women were said to be some of the most stunning women among our tribe. I saw photos of them because they were kin to Billy and Jake. They had a lot of albums with the Moonflowers. Even in Mother Moonflower's old age, she was a nice-looking lady.

"The sick one," Seth swallowed hard and took another deep breath, "is Abigail. She's fifteen. She's my imprint." He shut his eyes for a moment. "And I love her, Leah." He sounded so sure of himself.

"Of course you do," I snorted. That's what imprinting did. Made you fall in love within seconds of meeting someone. I felt and saw it through my pack brothers' eyes.

Seth went on talking as if he didn't hear me, but I know he did. "Abigail has food poisoning. Mom got her started on some antibiotics," he exhaled. "She's so beautiful, Leah. She has the most incredible set of eyes. They're brown, but they look almost golden," he smiled at me. "Mom referred to them as brandy-colored."

I watched the faraway look spread across his face as he went on to describe his mate.

"Light auburn hair; she has the fairest, softest-looking skin." There was so much love in his voice. I felt jealous for just a brief moment. Not because Seth found his mate, but because I wasn't sure if I would ever feel that way about someone or have someone feel that way about me. I had that with Rich. But phasing took it all away.

Suddenly, something caught my attention in his description of Abigail. "Did you just say she had fair skin?" Seth nodded. "Like white?"

"Yeah," he replied quickly, getting up and walking into my kitchen. I got up and followed him, still stunned by what I heard. "It's obvious their mom wasn't Native American. Abigail must have taken after their mom, while Ester looks more like the Moonflowers. Honestly, they look nothing alike." I guess that makes sense, I really didn't care if the chick had polka dots all over her body, as long as she treated my brother right. "I need to borrow your crock pot. I wanted to make Abigail some of mom's famous homemade soup." He started rummaging through my cabinets.

"Bottom left," I commented. "So I guess this means I won't get a chance to see Abigail for a bit," I added, trying not to sound too disappointed. Apparently, our wolves really went into territorial mode when our mates were sick and we didn't want other wolves around them. It's our job to take care of them and no one else's. Everyone was a threat.

"I don't think the same rule applies to you, Leah. I don't see you as a threat. You're my sister," Seth replied, clutching the pot. I nodded in understanding. "There's one more thing I need to tell you about Ester," Seth said, agonizingly slow. There goes that damn look again! "Embry; he imprinted – on Ester."

"This shit just keeps getting better," I mumbled, walking towards my closet. I needed to be at Jake's shop in the next hour.

"Leah, please don't be like that," Seth groaned, following me. "This is a good thing. Imprinting only makes our pack stronger. We have something more worth fighting for." My brother was right and no matter how much imprinting got on my nerves, it did strengthen our pack. "Just give them both a chance." Seth was standing in front me, giving me his best puppy brown eyes. "Please?" I could never say no to the puppy eyes.

My little brother had a way with me. I always felt a need to protect him because next to my mom, Seth was all I had left. "Fine," I conceded.

"Thanks, Lee!" My brother hugged me tightly.

"I just hope they aren't too timid." I can't stand timid bitches.

"Trust me, they aren't. Abigail spent most of the night trying to make me laugh in between puking her guts out, and Ester – I don't think she likes me very much." I pulled back and stared at my brother peculiarly. "She threatened me already over Abigail." She did what now? No one threatens my little brother. "Called me a wolf in sheep's clothing, too." I would think her choice of words was funny, had it not been my brother she was threatening. "She said Abigail didn't need any distractions like boys. She said she would be watching me." Oh, is that right? Well, I will just have to let this Ester chick know I'd be watching Abigail, too. "I should really get going. I have to still make the soup, then shower and head back."

"Okay. I gotta get myself ready and head to the shop." Seth gave me a quick nod and headed towards the door. "Hey, Seth." He whipped around. "Congratulations. I'm really happy for you." And I truly meant it.

"Thanks, Lee." Seth's face was filled with so much relief and I couldn't help but smile.

~XOXOXOXOXOX~

Rich POV

"Are you sure you're ready to do this, son?" I could hear the unsettled tone in my grandfather's voice on the other end. "Coming back to Forks? Sometimes it's just best to leave things in the past. It took so long to get you back on track. Do you think reopening healed wounds –?"

"See, that's where you're wrong, Gramps," I cut him off. "The wounds never healed. I've just gotten better at hiding my pain." I heard a long sigh on the other end of the phone. "How can I possibly move on when I haven't had the chance to get the closure I need from the person who caused it all in the first place?"

There was a long silence before Gramps spoke again.

"And you think confronting Leah is going to make everything alright?" I wasn't really sure, but I had to see her. How could Leah tell me she was falling for me one night, and then never speak to me again only a few months later? "I mean, I get it, son. She didn't just walk away from you; she walked away from us, too." The hurt was so evident in his voice. "We loved Leah like she was our own. We miss her, also."

"I know, Gramps." I exhaled sadly. "Which means you, of all people, should understand why I must do this. I need to come back to Forks and track down Leah. I deserve an explanation." The familiar pangs in my chest began to lessen already. Something in me screamed that this was what I needed to do.

"This is what you want?" Gramps asked once more.

"It's what I need," I told him.

"Alright, fine. We'll support you in this. As you know, your grandmother and I are out of town. You still have the spare key?"

"Of course I do," I replied, looking down at my key chain.

"Call us when you land safely."

"Yes, sir." Just as I hung up, I noticed Matt and Sonya standing in my doorway. Matt had an apprehensive look on his face, while Sonya looked utterly pissed. She wasn't a Leah fan. She got a front row seat to my self-destruction after things ended so badly between us.

"The front door was unlocked," Matt explained. "Besides, it's almost like a second nature to waltz in." This was the same house my grandparents rented for me when I was in college. After graduating and renewing my publishing contract, I used my sign-on bonus to buy the place.

Yes my grandparents were very well off, and so were my adoptive parents. They could have easily bought the house for me, but I wanted to do it for myself.

"We came to help clean up," Sonya added as she continued glaring at me, folding her arms across her chest.

I slowly rose from my desk. "I know what you're thinking, Sony, –" I used her nickname hoping to get a little bit of leniency.

"Oh, you don't wanna know what I'm thinking, chico," she huffed, marching into the living room. Her accent always got thicker when she was pissed. "How many times huh? Cuantos?" she hissed. "How many times did Gi-Gi, Matt, Donte and I have to literally pick you up off the damn floor, drunk off your ass, reeling over what that la bruja did to you?"

"Don't insult her!" I spat. Sonya knew I drew the line when it came to bashing Leah. Yes, she hurt me badly, but I wouldn't allow any of them to disrespect her.

"Well, technically it wasn't an insult," Matt spoke up. "La bruja means sorceress and it's obvious to us all that Leah somehow bewitched you a long time ago, because here you are, still under her spell," he mused sadly, shaking his head. "You never get involved with serious relationships," he pointed out. I never stayed with one girl long enough for any of them to meet my friends or family. "They were never good enough."

"They were never Leah Clearwater," Sonya mumbled as she started gathering empty beer cans and tossing them in a large trash bag.

"But," did I hear a 'but' come out of Matt's mouth? "I think this is a good idea."

"Are you serious right now?" Sonya glowered at her husband.

Matt held up his hands defensively. "Just hear me out, babe!" Sonya raised one brow and waited impatiently for her husband to plead his case. He walked up to his wife and placed his hand on her barely visible baby bump. "We love one another," he stroked her cheek and instantly her face softened, "and if all of a sudden, you just disappeared on me with no explanation, I'd want answers, too." My friend turned his attention to me. "Go to Forks. Find your girl."

"What about you, Sony?" I stared at Matt's wife. She pivoted her weight on one foot before looking me directly in the eyes. "Are you okay with this?" I could tell she was internally struggling with her answer.

"No, I'm not," Sonya, answered honestly. Of course she wasn't. I didn't blame her, either. "But," another 'but' this sounds promising, "I understand, and if or when she hurts you, I will be here. We will all be here. Just make sure you're back in time for Donte's wedding." It was still four weeks away.

"I'm the best man. Of course I'll be there," I grinned.

Leah first. Wedding second.

Flashback

"Come on, Leah! Give it back!" I chased her around the table.

"Hell, no!" she cackled as she dashed into the living room. "I'm keeping this picture." She dangled my future blackmail in her hand. "You look so adorable with your little hat," she cooed.

"It's a Yamaka!" I tried to snatch the picture out of her hand, but she was too fast and she ducked and slid between my legs. "Come on, Leah. It was my Bar Mitzvah." I went running after her as she raced upstairs.

"Bar what? How old were you back then, ten?" She made it to my room and tried to slam the door shut, but I slid my foot out just in time.

"Thirteen," I corrected her, pushing the door open. "It's a Jewish religious ritual and family celebration where a boy is deemed personally responsible for fulfilling all the commandments," I added, playfully snatching the photo from her grasp.

She gave me a mischievous pout, only making her that much more sexy. This was our second summer as friends and we were closer than ever. But I messed up. I told Leah I didn't see her romantically anymore. I told her my crush had died.

I lied. I was deeper in love with her now than I was before. I just didn't want any awkwardness. I felt that by telling her I just saw her as a friend, our friendship would be easier. I also convinced myself that if I told her I didn't see her that way anymore, maybe someday I wouldn't. Shit wasn't working.

"Do you really want to keep this picture, Leah?" I walked over to where she was standing by my bed looking out the window, obviously pretending like she really didn't care. "Just say yes and it's all yours," I teased, waving it in front of her.

"I don't know," she stared down at her nails, "doesn't really matter."

"Doesn't matter?" I repeated. "Well, I guess I can just toss this in the trash." I started walking towards the wastebasket. Within seconds, I felt Leah jump on my back.

"You better not, Richard Faust! I swear I'll kick your ass! Give me my damn picture back!" She tried to reach for the photograph, but I had my hand extended farther away from her.

"Your picture?!" I laughed hysterically.

"Yes, mine!" She laughed back. I flung her on the bed and did a belly flop beside her.

I couldn't stop marveling at her – how strikingly beautiful Leah was. Her skin was a flawless shade of copper; she had the longest eyelashes I had ever seen, and behind those eyelashes were the most amazing set of smoky black eyes. I loved watching them dance and dart whenever she was experiencing a higher level of emotion. She had sexy curves in all the right places and she already stood at almost 5'7" now. If I were to take her back to California with me, she'd be mistaken as a model or be offered a contract right on the spot.

After finally shaking my head out of my Leah-induced haze, I tugged at her long, jet-black hair and then handed her the photo. "It's yours, Leah."

"Thanks, Rich." She smiled at me and held the photo to her chest.

I wasn't even talking about that damn picture anymore; I was referring to my heart.

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