I watched a small fight break out between the boys named Quil and Paul. I had a feeling they had been talking about me because every few seconds, someone's eyes would dart to me and then back to their little circle. I didn't really care since I had another thing on my mind.

Jacob's hands were burning hot. It was like he'd left them on the grill for several minutes. When he took my hand I felt like an electric current ran through my body, making me feel like I was on fire. It kind of felt good, though.

Jacob was also extremely good looking. He had to be about a foot taller than me, he was so tall. He had short messy black hair and the darkest brown eyes I'd ever seen. I could tell that his russet skin was stretched tightly over mounds of muscles because his arms showed off everything even though the rest of him was covered in a t-shirt and jeans. His lips were full and set nicely in his strong jaw line.

Billy let us know that dinner was ready and I sat down next to Bella once we got our food. I wasn't surprised that all the grown ups seemed to be congregated at one table, leaving the rest for the kids. The boy named Paul took the seat on my other side as everyone else took their seats, too.

"So, Lexi," Paul said, looking at me with a cocky grin. "Do you have a boyfriend?"

I didn't miss the glare that Jacob shot at him or the snorts from Quil and Embry when Sam kicked Paul's leg under the table, but I answered anyway. "Um, no, I don't. Why?"

Paul shrugged. "Maybe I could take you out sometime."

I glanced at Bella, who gagged. I suppressed a laugh, covering my mouth for just a moment to hide my amused smile. "Um, no, I don't think so. Thanks, though."

Paul mumbled something angrily under his breath as he stabbed his fork into his plate. I suppressed another giggle and looked over at Jacob who had a slightly relieved smile on his face. When his eyes met mine, I looked quickly back down to my food.

"Where's Emily?" Bella asked the boy named Sam.

"She had to work," he responded before turning to me. "Where did you move from, Lexi?"

I cleared my throat. "Manhattan."

"So you're a city girl, then."

I nodded. "Lived there my whole life."

"You probably hate it here, huh?" he asked, honestly interested in what I had to say.

I shrugged and glanced at Jacob again. "It gets better every day," I told him with a small smile. Sam gave me a knowing look, like he knew something I didn't and I quickly turned my gaze to something else.

"Why did you leave New York if you liked living there?" Embry asked suddenly.

I stared at my food. I hope this question didn't come up, but I knew it would eventually. I just knew I wasn't ready to talk about all the horrible things I'd done to myself. I could feel my hands start to shake and Bella's hand slid into one of mine, calming me slightly. "Its ok," she whispered. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

"I'm sorry," Embry said quickly. "I didn't know it was a sensitive subject."

"It's ok," I mumbled, knowing everyone's eyes were on me. "I think I need some air," I mumbled even though we were outside already. I stood quickly and walked down the thin path to the beach that sat right behind the Black's small house.

I sat down on a huge rock and hugged my knees to my chest, only faintly aware of the tears that rolled silently down my cheeks. I stared out into the ocean as I let the memories of the last year float through my head. I just couldn't believe how badly my life changed just a few short months ago. I really didn't understand why it happened now when the reason behind it happened when I was really little.

The sun was starting to set, turning the clouds a light shade of pink with gold outlining them. I sighed, wiping the last of my tears away. It was the first time I'd cried in over three years. I used to cry all the time, but one day I just decided to stop and now it was all rushing out at once.

"You ok?" Bella asked, sitting down next to me.

"Yeah," I said shakily. "I guess it just hasn't hit me yet that my life is changing so much."

"That's a good thing, though, isn't it?" she asked, rubbing small circles in my back.

I shrugged. "I suppose it is since my life was going down an ongoing spiral that would have eventually killed me."

Bella smiled sadly at me. "If it makes you feel any better, I think you made almost all of those boys drool all over themselves."

I laughed. "Well, that makes me feel loads better. Which one should I pick to make me forget everything?"

Bella thought for a moment. "Sam's taken. Paul's a moron. Seth is too young. Quil's imprinted on someone else. That only leaves Embry and Jake."

"What's imprinted mean?" I asked.

Bella's eyes widened for a second but she quickly composed herself and cleared her throat. "It's just some silly term they use so they don't have to say they're in love."

I knew she was lying, but I didn't want her mad at me again for pressing an issue so I just stood up and followed her back to the small house. When we got back, the only people still sitting around the tables in the backyard were Billy, Charlie and Jacob. Charlie stood up immediately, placing his hands on my shoulders.

"Are you ok? I was worried about you," he mumbled so only I could hear. "Do you need your medicine?"

"No. I'm fine," I told him, smiling weakly. "Sorry I made you worry." My eyes landed on Jake when Charlie backed away. He had an unreadable expression on his face that Bella seemed to understand.

"Jake, can I talk to you?" Bella asked him. "In private?"

Jake nodded and followed her down to the garage not too far away.

"We'll be waiting in the car," Charlie called to them.

As soon as they were both in the tiny garage, Bella whipped around to flash her angry eyes at Jacob. She pushed him hard and he bumped into a shelf behind him, knocking several things to the ground. "What is wrong with you?" she screamed at him.

"What are you talking about?" he asked, confused.

"I'm talking about you imprinting on my cousin!" She pushed him again, this time making him stumble over something and fall into the door they'd just come through.

"It's not that serious," he mumbled.

"Yes it is!" Bella screamed, moving to push him again.

Jacob grabbed her arms to stop her from pushing him into something else. "It's not like I could control it!" he yelled at her.

Bella wrenched her arms from his grasp. "You stay away from her Jacob Black!" she said sternly, shaking a finger at her.

"You know that's not possible, Bella," he mumbled, staring at the floor. "We've been through this."

Bella sighed, calming herself. "I know, Jake. But why? Why her? She already has enough stuff to deal with in her life. She doesn't need a werewolf imprinting on her."

Jacob sat down and put his head in his hands. "Bella, I can't just forget about this. I'll die very slowly and very painfully if I stay away from her."

"I don't get it," she said, sitting next to him. "You barely know her."

"I feel like I've known her my whole life," he mumbled. "Just think about how you feel about Edward." He paused while she thought. "That's how I feel about her. That's what imprinting does to us."

Bella sighed. "What do I need to do?"

"Just bring her back over here," he pleaded. "Soon."

Bella nodded. "If you hurt her, I'll kill you," she said seriously.

Jacob just nodded before Bella finally left to go home with her father and cousin.