A/N: I changed the rating to Mature because that's the way the story is progressing. Enjoy!
As they came closer to Bella's house Paul wasn't sure what to do. He doubted Charlie would appreciate a naked man waltzing through his house with his daughter latched to him. He paused just inside the tree line and consulted Bella.
"Honey, your dad?" he softly questioned.
"He's on a weekend fishing trip, he won't be home until late Sunday night," she said against his chest.
He sighed in relief and couldn't help the smile that graced his lips. He would be able to spend the night with her, if she wanted of course. It was highly plausible that she would want nothing to do with him now.
He looked around to make sure no one was outside, thankful that Bella lived without many neighbors, and dashed through the back door in the kitchen.
He took Bella upstairs and lay her on her stomach, across her bed. "Stay here, baby, I'll be right back," he whispered in her ear as he kissed her temple. He took it as a good sign when she didn't shirk away from him.
He went to the bathroom, grabbed a washcloth and wet it as he ran a bath.
He walked back to the bedroom and sat lightly on the edge of the bed. He brushed her hair from the side of her face and bent down to look in her eyes. "I have to clean your back," he said solemnly. "It might hurt."
She winced in expectation and nodded her head. He knew she was in pain when he removed her arms from her torn shirt, tossing it aside and she didn't protest about being just in her black lacy bra and jeans.
He assessed the damage once more. She had many shallow scrapes, and only one that was slightly deeper. Her shoulders and lower back had welts on them while everything was beginning to turn a shade of purple.
He sighed and lifted his hand to began cleaning her back.
"I'm so sorry, Bella," he said, voice breaking, when he was finally finished. Thankfully there wasn't much debris because her sweater was thick.
She cleared her throat, "Paul, no. It's not your fault. I'm clumsy, a danger magnet. I shouldn't have been that close. Please, don't blame yourself. I can't take it," she tried to fight her tears, but lost.
"Let me sit up," she said as she cried. He moved so he wasn't hovering over her and helped her into a sitting position on the edge of the bed. She held her hair in her hand so it didn't lie on her back.
"Can you grab me that hair tie?" She pointed to the dresser beside the door and he quickly retrieved it. She brushed his hand when she took it, faintly smiling at him.
She hissed when she raised her hands above her head to put her hair in a messy bun to keep it out of the way.
He stood helplessly until she was finished, then he grabbed her hands, kneeling down between her knees. "Why aren't you afraid of me?" he whispered.
She sighed. "I guess I do really well with weird," she said shrugging her shoulders.
He was so thankful for her. He let his love fill with the admiration he felt for her. She let out a small gasp when she met his eyes.
"I'm really glad you are," he said leaning down towards her. He was still slightly taller than her while he was kneeling and she was sitting.
She tilted her head up and their lips met in the softest and sweetest of kisses Bella had ever shared with someone in her life. It was like pure electricity was jumping from him to her and her to him.
He pulled back slightly to look in her eyes. With their foreheads still touching, she openly breathed him in. In a second his lips were crashing back to hers, he was careful not to touch her back as his hands ghosted up and down her arms, and legs.
When they broke apart they were both panting. "Come on, baby, let's go soak your back."
He laughed at her shocked expression. "Relax, neither of us are getting naked, yet," he raised his eyebrows at her lecherously and she burst out laughing.
"Easy there, loup," she said smiling.
He looked at her questioningly. "You're not the only one with foreign language skills," she said teasingly as she walked towards the bathroom, unbuttoning her pants.
He picked his jaw up from the floor and followed her.
He looked at her jeans lying in the hallway and his eyes bugged out of his head.
"Uhh, Bella.. did you lose something?" he asked curiously. He heard her giggle from inside the bathroom.
"Come in, Paul, I'm not naked," she laughed again. It seems she had tapped into the same confidence that got her drunk and on stage the night before.
He walked in to see her standing in front of the tub, in only her black lacy bra and boy shorts. His breath hitched and she blushed crimson.
She moved as if to cover herself, but he was in front of her in an instant. "Bella, you're beautiful. Never cover up in front of me," he whispered huskily in her ear as her hands dropped to her sides.
She tilted her head up and he kissed her once again. She opened her mouth and allowed his tongue to slide along her own. He moaned at how good she tasted.
He pulled back once more. "You should probably get in the tub before it is ice cold," and before you see how incredibly turned on I am right now, he added in his head.
She turned to the tub and stepped in; she put her hands on the edge of the tub as she sank into the water. She hissed slightly as the water hit her back.
He moved towards her, unsure what to do to help.
"I'm okay," she said. Then she pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and tilted her eyes up to meet his. "It is a little cold though," she said while blushing.
"Okay," he said as he moved to turn the hot water faucet on. He stopped short when he realized she was still blushing. "OH," he said, his breath leaving him in a rush when he realized that was his invitation to join her.
She scooted forward so he could sit behind her. He pulled his shirt over his head and reached for the button on his jeans. He looked at her questioningly and she nodded her head, giving him the okay.
"I-If you keep them on, you won't have anything to wear later," she stuttered out, justifying him losing his pants.
She turned her head slightly as his jeans hit the floor. He was thankful at the moment because without jeans his erection was blatantly obvious.
He stepped in behind her, sliding into the tepid water. She leaned back against him and froze when she felt him lying against the small of her back. He chuckled aloud at her reaction and simply pulled her back against him.
"Is your back okay?" he asked, concerned he was hurting her.
"It's perfect, thank you," she said.
"So, the stories…" she continued. "They are all true?"
He lifted the tub drain to release some water and turned the warm water spigot on with his foot before answering her.
"Yes, they are. Does it bother you that I'm a werewolf?" he asked, genuinely concerned.
"No," she stated simply. "It really doesn't," she paused. "Is that why Jacob… left me?"
Her voice betrayed her when she spoke his name.
"Yes," he began. "Because we're so young, it's hard to stay in control all the time. As soon as we phase Sam makes us sever all ties with the humans we know. He's worries that one of us will hurt a friend the way he hurt Emily."
"Emily?"
"His fiancé, they were arguing one day and he couldn't control himself, he phased and she was too close. She's healed now, but will live with the scars forever," he sighed.
"But, isn't Emily human?" she questioned.
"Yes, but there's another story I wasn't able to tell you earlier, before…" he left the sentence hang in the air, unfinished.
"Do you remember how I told you Taha Aki lived for three lifetimes because he kept phasing?"
She nodded her head and rested it back against his warm, muscled chest.
He used his foot once more to plug up the tub and turn the spigot back off before continuing.
"When he met his third wife, he knew she was his soul mate. He imprinted on her. It's one of the things about being a wolf that I used to really hate. Fate picks who we should be with, who we should love. We really don't have a choice in it. When you see that girl, the earth stops moving.
"It's really hard to explain, but it's like everything that you had before holding you here… your friends, your family, your job, and even your girlfriend if you had one, don't matter at all anymore.
"That's another reason that Sam makes us cut all our ties to humans. When he phased he was engaged to Leah Clearwater, when he met Emily, Leah's cousin, she was it for him. He broke Leah's heart, but couldn't do anything about it."
He paused, but she had no encouraging words to offer. He couldn't see her face to gauge her reaction to his words, so he continued.
"When you see that girl, all those ties are severed. She's the only thing that matters anymore. Like a million steel cables are holding you to the Earth, only for her. You'll be anything she needs you to be. A friend, a brother, a lover. Anything.
"He will become her perfect match, she could refuse him, but it would be difficult. She would feel some sort of pull also, not as strong as his, but still there. She would be free to find someone else, but she would be it for him."
She breathed deeply, letting him know she wanted to speak. "If he would be made for her and for her only, she would be crazy to ever want to leave," she said softly, knowing he would hear every word as if she were shouting.
"Exactly, they would be perfect together, it would be as easy as breathing," he said, twining his fingers with hers.
She looked at their legs in the tub, smiling at the drastic difference in skin tones.
"Paul," she began hesitantly, worried at his reaction. "Did you, ah, have you… imprinted yet?" She heard his intake of breath and shut her eyes, afraid of the answer.
"Yes," he began. He shifted her slightly to the side so he could see her face. "Open your eyes, Bella." When she did he lowered his mouth to hers and whispered against her lips, "On you."
A/N: Eek! They finally got their moment. In a bathtub yet to boot. I hope you liked this chapter! I can tell you're enjoying this story by the amount of followers and favorites that bombard my inbox after every chapter. I'm thrilled! Thank you so much! Review if you'd like! =]
