EMBRY
I sat on the couch in Becky's living room staring at the black text inside the novel in my hands, but not actually comprehending it. I was currently alone in the house and the silence was actually making it more difficult to focus than easier. Becky had left to run errands a few hours before and Jake and Lea had just taken off about fifteen minutes ago. Jake had been hungry, which was a seemly permanent state my Alpha was in and there hadn't been any food in the house. Jake had pointed this out to Lea and she in turn had gathered together her things and left with him.
They had both invited me a long for the trip, but for some reason today I just felt lazy. Maybe I was too focused on the party we were attending that evening and a further chance to get information from the lab tech I'd met at Lea's old precinct the day before. I had tried very hard to seem nonchalant about the entire thing, but really I'd seen a possibility I'd been quietly preparing for, since I'd become Beta of my pack; maybe even longer.
I hated the open ended quality of my life, so many unanswered questions, so much pain and wondering. I wanted to ask my Mom about my Father, I really did. It would be the easiest solution to everything, but I also knew it would break her heart. Since I was small I had without any words from her, known the shame she dealt with because of our situation. She bore it silently and I just couldn't bring myself to break that small, narrow wall she had built up.
That left me with only my wits, and figuring out someway to discover my answers on my own. Learning the truth about our DNA had been my first step. I couldn't reasonable test my own paternity in any way if it would expose the secret of our pack. Finding out our transformation was magical and not biological in one way opened a whole second set of questions for me, but the origin of what I was bothered me far less these days then how I personally had came to be.
Jake had been pissed to find out I had been hiding something from him and really I couldn't blame him. The structure of our pack was built on the foundation of the trust between Jake, Leah and I. He'd asked me about my curiosity again last night. I'd stepped up to the roof for some air, the girls had been laughing and watching a movie. Jake had followed me, which didn't surprise me and confronted me about the fact I'd betrayed his faith. I'd apologized and assured him that my motives had been purely my own desire for knowledge so I hadn't though it would be that important to him.
I was actually glad currently we were holding off from shifting, because I was pretty certain my Alpha would have been able to tell I was still holding back from him had we been in our wolf forms, as it was I could feel the displeasure from my own wolf inside me at the idea of betraying our Alpha's trust. Really I hated having to hide something from Jake. He was my oldest and closest friend. The one I always turned to when I didn't know what to do.
Jake was also one of the reasons I was doing everything I was currently working towards. I needed to know if there was any possibility that Jake could be my brother, if I shared the ability to shape shift with him because we had the same Dad. Maybe that's why my Mom has always encouraged me to spend time with Jake when we were small and maybe that's why I'd so easily stepped into the role of Beta. Maybe I carried a stronger wolf inside of me, just like Jake seemed to.
I couldn't bring myself to tell Jake all of this though. If I was wrong and I accused Billy of cheating on Jake's Mom with my Mother, Jake would be devastated. Ever since her death Jake's Mom had always been a touchy subject for him, he placed her up a pedestal and really considering how his life fell apart so thoroughly for so long after her death I really couldn't blame him. I had no reason to destroy the new love and respect Jake and Billy shared if all my questions turned out to mean nothing. I wanted to do this on my own and maybe if I had proof, then I would say something to Jake; or maybe just knowing would be enough. I would cross that bridge if and when I came to it.
That still left me needing to figure out what I was going to say to Harry Kim tonight. How to explain something so personal to someone I didn't really know, but I felt like this was an opportunity that had literally fallen into my lap and I would be an idiot not to take it. I sighed, feeling my wolf stir inside, wishing I could somehow make him understand why I needed to do this; or that I could at least shift and be able to focus on nothing but the feel of being free and wild. Neither seemed possible to me at the moment, though Jake had mentioned he had developed a better connection to his wolf lately. That was an entirely different subject I was also interested in, but currently I just had too many things to think about.
I heard the knob turning on the front door of the house; it was too soon for Lea and Jake to be back from the store so it had to be Becky. I felt a little odd sprawled across her living room couch like I was, but at the same time Becky had been so welcoming to both Jake and me since our arrival that I didn't' think she would mind me being here alone. I listened as she entered her home and closing the door behind her walked towards where I was sitting.
"Hello?" I heard the tentative question in Becky's voice. She stepped into my view in the doorway to the room still looking around.
"Jake and Lea went to the store." I suddenly felt self conscious. Here I was sitting on this woman's couch in sweat pants and a tee shirt, reading a book I had borrowed from the vast library I had found in her computer room down the hall. It made me feel like maybe I was over stretching my welcome. Becky's face broke into a large, pleasant smile and it set my mind more at ease.
"Yeah, I'm not very good at getting groceries." I felt my own soft smile as the woman across from me let out a nervous giggle. "Most of the time, since it's just me I just grab take out from somewhere." Becky had flopped down in one of the arm chairs across the room from the couch. Dropping the bags she was carrying onto the floor next to her, letting out a deep breath.
"Are you lonely since Lea left?" It seemed an obvious question for me to ask, from what Becky had just stated. I thought about how strange it would be for me if Jake just left one day.
"I try to keep busy, but yeah a lot of the time I really wished I'd moved with her when she asked me too." I found it easy to talk to Becky and I think she felt the same around me. She much like Lea seemed very non-judgmental, only Becky also had this easy air about her, where she would simple listen and only offer advice if you seemed to want it. Lea was a bit more proactive then that. Which actually suited Jake really well, but sometimes I just needed someone to listen to me vent.
"Makes you wonder if things would have even turned out the way they had, if you would have moved with her?" I enjoyed playing devil's advocate. Would Lea had been so eager to open up her life to a whole slew of people she didn't know if she would have had someone so close to her there already? I couldn't help but wonder.
"I think so. Lea would move the Earth for Jake if he needed her to." Becky's expression was questioning, like she was trying to reason why I would even purpose such a thing. I felt myself smirk. I enjoyed exploring every scenario.
"Well that feeling is mutual between them, but it still could have made everything much more interesting I think had you come along with her." I felt myself cough lightly as Becky's scent changed. I knew from the moment we had all met in the airport that she was attracted to me. I was flattered; she was a beautiful woman, taller then Lea, with waist length straight brown hair and a slender build. I knew I could be charming, but mostly I was terrible at moments like this. I tended to over think every one of my actions and fumble around like an idiot.
Right now between the shifter and my own personal project I had so much on my plate I was trying not to allow myself to become distracted. Still her desire sometimes hung too clearly in the air. If I didn't notice it my wolf did and his need to dominate this attractive female that was enticing him was almost maddening at times; and if Becky put anything about herself personally in her books I knew she had probably a more vivacious appetite then maybe me and it had been so long since I had cared enough about someone to go that step with them.
I blinked, realizing Becky was looking at me with question. I'd become so consumed with my own thoughts that I hadn't heard her reply to my last statement. I sighed inwardly at my brain and the fact it never seemed to stop computing things. I cleared my throat giving her a sheepish smile and watched her cock her head curious.
"I thought I lost you there for a second, what were you thinking about? You had the oddest expression on your face." I flushed a little at her question. Jake who was bold and charming would have said just what he had been thinking about and then probably would have expected it to then happen. I on the other hand would rather shrug it off and hope I don't look like a complete asshole in front of someone I was growing to admire.
"Sorry started thinking about home. I have a lot on my mind right now I guess." I watched her expression grow tender at my confession, which was completely true except that wasn't what I had been thinking about at that precise moment.
"Did you just kind of get dragged along on this adventure?" Becky had settled back into her seat, ready it seemed to have a serious conversation with me. I weighed quickly just what to tell her and placing down the book that had been uselessly held in my hand answered.
"No I was happy to come here. Half because I love a good problem to solve and half because it's nice to get away from La Push for a while actually." I was surprised how not awkward it was to talk to Becky about some of my more personal issues.
"I don't always get along with my family either. I know they mean well, but they don't always approve of my choices. They think its good I'm a writer but they don't approve of what I write." She rolled her eyes and I felt a kindred-ship to her, nodding.
"I love my Mom dearly, but sometimes, no honestly a lot of the time she tends to forget I am a grown man and that I need space." I could feel the scowl on my face; hear the light growl that left my chest. Becky just looked at me with consideration.
"Maybe you need to take that first step to show her that you're your own man now?" Becky tone wasn't judgmental or chiding. She was simply stating a fact for me to consider and I had to admit as much as I didn't want to there was merit in her words. My secret life didn't allow my Mom to really know what I did, and as far as she could see I was basically wasting my time on seemly trivial pursuits.
"I wish I knew how to do that." My eyes drifted around the room, not wishing to feel so suddenly weak. "I wish I knew how to get past my own personal bullshit and just get out there and make myself happy. However I can, but I feel stuck." I'd never admitted these feelings to anyone. My eyes glanced back over at the woman across from me and the warmth in her expression put my mind as ease for literally spewing out all my problems in front of her.
"I had to write a lot of books before a publishing agency finally picked up my first Mackenzie King story. What's important Embry is that you just keep working towards your goal, whatever it is. Sometimes everything can seem really overwhelming, but hopefully it will just make the end result more worth it." Becky's expression was earnest. I sat for a moment just thinking about her words. That really was my ultimate problem, past discovering my own past I didn't have any goals. Maybe I really wasn't as grown up as I thought I was. Maybe it was time for me to really start seeing the bigger picture of my life?
I sighed, knowing that it wouldn't be possible for me until I did know about my past. That it would continue to be this black cloud hanging over my life until I managed to dash it away. "Do you want to go sit on the roof with me?" The fresh air would help clear my head and Becky's companionship would stop me from brooding. The woman across from me smiled hugely at the suggestion and I found myself returning it.
"Let me throw this stuff into my computer room and I'll meet you up there!" Becky grabbed the bags she had carried in with her as she explained what she needed to do.
"I'll get us a couple of sodas to drink." I watched Becky walk away, rising myself to go to the kitchen. I grabbed the drinks, and realized I was still smiling. It almost made me want to laugh. I'd gotten so serious over the last few months, so caught up in my new position in the pack and my own inner turmoil. Maybe part of what I really needed was to actually treat this trip like a vacation and to stop being so gloomy almost all the time while I was here.
I could hear Becky moving back down the hall towards the doorway to the roof and I swung the fridge shut as I walked to join her. She grinned as I approached, I watched her eyes drift over my frame and I fought off a cough at the sudden assault of her arousal. I could feel my wolf's interest stir and I forced a smile across my face as I could feel myself start to get hard.
I allowed Becky to lead the way up; I couldn't help but devour the gentle sway of her hips as she climbed, maybe once I settled things at this party tonight I could allow myself to focus more intently on the growing feelings between us. I honestly couldn't think of a better way I would like to relax.
We'd all decided to just walk to Chris's house. Apparently he only lived a little over a mile away from Becky and the evening's weather was pleasant enough that it made the chance to see more of the city enticing. Jake and Lea walked ahead, hand in hand, talking in low tones to each other. I couldn't help but be amused when they'd returned from their shopping trip earlier with a ridiculous amount of food. Becky had been certain she had never had this much to eat in her house at one time. I informed her it was the penalty of living with so many large, hungry men around. Gentle teasing between the two of us was becoming more natural. I noticed Lea watching us with amused curiosity and I had the feeling she would be interrogating Becky soon, because Lea never really managed to just ask a simple question.
Becky was walking with me, but her arms were crossed in front of her and mine were at my side. We weren't really at the point yet were we were comfortable affectionately touching one another, though Becky's scent change was becoming sharper when we were close now. She was telling me about some of her favorite places to visit in the city, and suggested we all needed to go out exploring one day. I really hoped that Harry Kim could help me this evening, because I found the longer I spent talking to Becky the more I wanted to get to know her.
There were more people at Chris's then I'd actually expected. Introductions took quite sometime and I was lucky if I would remember half of the names Lea had just told me as she went around the room. I shook my head as Jake possessively hung around his girlfriend as various men she had worked with came up to talk to her. Becky had been snatched up by Chris's wife Deanna who was asking her a million questions about her last book. Becky seemed to thoroughly be enjoying talking about her characters, so I took the chance to wander off and look for Kim.
He had been present during introductions, but had broken off and went into the kitchen as everyone had started to mingle. Using my heightened senses I scented the area around me. I could clearly recall the aftershave Harry had been wearing the day before and tried to pick it out now. I could weakly follow it to the deck out back. Stepping out through the door I saw Kim was standing and talking to a young woman who had been introduced as another police officer Lea knew. Harry saw me and for the first time I felt awkward. I'd expressed interest in asking him more questions when I'd seen him the day before, but now I was uncertain how to actually approach him.
Thankfully Kim almost seemed to be able to read this. I watched as he excused himself from the woman he was speaking to and crossed to me, hand extended in greeting. "It was Embry right?" I felt a little bubble of nervous energy grow inside my chest. The seriousness of what I was about to ask this man for looming over me.
"Yeah." I suddenly felt a little tongue tied. I swallowed hard, my mouth feeling dry.
"So what did you want to talk to me about? It seemed like maybe it was something other then the case?" Kim looked at me curiously, I sighed trying to decide just what I wanted to say.
"I was hoping you could help me with something." I looked around us trying to judge if any of the other people on the porch were within earshot. Harry looked at me a little skeptically.
"Is this something legal?" He didn't know me so I really couldn't blame Kim for not blindly trusting me. I moved us closer to the one side of the porch were it seemed quieter. Thankfully Jake, Lea and Becky still seemed tied up as none of them had come looking for me outside yet. I felt fairly safe to continue my conversation.
"I think it is. I mean I don't know why it wouldn't be." I was shuffling between my feet, feeling young and uncertain and maybe even a little scared. Harry studied me for a long moment before I watched his features soften.
"Look whatever you say here, it will stay between you and me. I took this job so that I could help people, it's something I take really seriously and if I can I would be happy to help you." Part of me privately wondered if this guy was really that altruistic or if he was just trying to appear that way. My thoughts then turned to Lea and the fact she actually was and Harry seemed to be inline with the people she associated with so maybe he was this giving.
"I'm trying to figure out who my real father is." Somehow the confession seemed much easier once I actually got it past my lips. "I've never known who he was, other then I think it was someone in my village. I would ask my Mom but it's a really touchy subject for her and it means a lot to me to know." A weight lifted off my shoulders, regardless of what Harry told me now I had said my piece, and I felt braver for having been able to at least make this effort.
"How do you want to try to find out?" Kim was looking at my curiously and I was happy to see he hadn't just written me off at my question.
"I think it might be Jake's dad." Now there was hesitation in my tone. I wasn't certain how Harry would feel about me wanting to test something from my friend.
"Your friend you're here with?" His brows rose in question, I nodded my head silently as he let out one long breath." Wow that has to be very convoluted and complicated for you." I watched his mouth screw up in though as he leaned against the porch railing for a moment. "Does Jake know you want to test him for this?" It was the question I was dreading.
"No. He's had kind of a rocky relationship with his father until recently. I hate to bring the subject up when I have no proof other then a gut feeling and cause more strife between his family and any between us." I could feel heat creeping into my face as guilt washed through me. I hated lying to one of the most important people in my life, but my need for the truth outweighed all my other negative thoughts.
"I know labs were you can get paternity tests done for a few hundred bucks." Kim looked thoughtful, "but are you sure you want to chance your friendship, if Jake finds out what you're doing?" Harry was studying me. I think he could read how much this really meant to me and that's why he was willing to go an extra step to give me the information I needed. The money would be tight, I could crash into some I had squirreled away in the bank for an emergency, but it was worth it for answers.
"I'm hoping he won't find out. Honestly I'm not even certain I want to tell him if the results come back saying we're brothers. I just really want to know for myself." I knew just not having this gigantic mystery hanging over my head would be enough, thought privately I also wondered if it would be possible to keep from Jake. I could feel the wolf inside of me even as he was being fairly dormant. Somehow I don't think he would allow me to keep such a serious secret from my Alpha forever.
"Do you have a cell phone?" Kim looked like he was considering everything I'd said to him. I nodded pulling my phone out of the pocket of my jeans. "Let's exchange numbers. I'll contact a friend I have at one of the labs and see when she can best get your test in. Then we can meet up and you can give me everything and I'll drop it off for you. Now you realize you will need something of Jake's, some hair, his toothbrush, in order for us to be able to complete the test? Are you certain it wouldn't be easier to just tell him what you want to do?" I could feel that Harry thought it was better if I did, but it just really felt wrong to me to upset Jake without any real proof.
"I'll get you something to test, thank you." My avoidance told him the answer to his second question. He nodded in silent understanding, I guess feeling it wasn't his place to push me with questions anymore. We exchanged numbers and I felt that then it might be smart of me to excuse myself. I could explain away us talking about the case if any of my friends had seen us, but I felt better having my business conducted and no one being able to trace my activities back to me.
I walked back into the house. The first person I saw was Lea, she was standing engaged in an animated looking conversation with the man I remember being introduced to as her previous Captain. I was surprised Jake wasn't with her, glancing around the room I was even more curious when he wasn't within eyesight of her. I would never describe Jake or Lea as co-dependant. They were both strong, functioning individuals; but they both I'd noticed felt more comfortable and relaxed when they were near one another and most of all when touching. With Jake at least I knew it was the canine part of him, because I could get to be the same. We like regular wolves felt most secure when we had our pack mates near us.
Lea smiled at me and I returned the gesture, still studying the room. I finally noticed Becky; she had a small gaggle of woman surrounding her. I took a few steps closer and fought the grin that tried to cross my face as I realized they were all drilling Becky on what her next book was going to be about. I figured I should probably go rescue her as I could scent her unease at the intensity of her fans inquires. I walked closer noticing her drink was almost empty in her hand, I stepped up next to her seeing my in.
"I'm going to grab some more refreshments, if I could break you away from your conversation would you like to join me?" The women around me glared daggers at me. I felt my wolf stir inside at the open scent of their hostility. Becky on the other hand flashed me a grateful smile as she politely excused herself from the small crowd.
"Wow that was more intense then most of the book signing I do." She let out a short laugh, an expression of comical disbelief written across her face.
"Women are scary." I smirked at her as I made the comment. She paused walking to look up at me for a moment before bursting out laughing.
"Some of us really are I guess." Her bright mood I found influenced my own, and the apprehension I had been feeling since entering the house finally started to dissipate. I grabbed myself a beer and taking Becky glass refilled it with some soda after we approached the drink table. As Becky and I lapsed back into a comfortable conversation I finally scented Jake. I turned to see him leaving the back area of the house were I knew the bath room was. It finally made sense to me why he had left his girlfriend like he had then.
As he attempted to cross the space in front of him the living room and dining area seeming to fill up with even more people as the evening drifted on, I watched Jake getting stopped by a younger woman. She was Chris's oldest daughter, but for the life of me I couldn't recall her name even though Lea had just told me it about an hour before. I didn't think much of it at first. Becky had started telling me an amusing story of an interesting individual she had seen on the subway a couple of days ago. I was enjoying her smile and the gentle laughter of her tone when glancing around her expression changed.
I followed her line of eyesight to see Jake was still talking to Chris's daughter. I could easily tell Jake was standing stiffly and politely. Trying to be gracious to the child of his host, but the girl was leaning forward, skillfully pressing her body against his. Trying to entice him, which I could easily see was making him uncomfortable. I was starting to wonder if I would have to go over and save Jake when Becky suddenly made a soft concerned noise.
"Lea!" Becky broke away from me without a word. I glanced one last time at Jake, watching his mouth drawn down into a thin impatient line as I took off after Becky. She had gotten about halfway across the room before she had stopped. Her hands hung at her sides as her head dropped a little, lightly shaking. "That's not good." I felt my brow rise looking around at what she meant.
"What happened?" I couldn't see what had Becky concern. The smaller woman sighed deeply, turning her attention once again to me.
"Lea took off." Her tone was plain and much more matter of fact then her comment made me feel.
"What do you mean took off?" My eyes shifted swiftly around the room, realizing I didn't see the other woman anywhere now.
"She looked over to see Melissa with her boobs practically shoved into her boyfriend's face and Jake just standing there. I can't honestly tell you what emotion hit her, but it must have been bad, because she left." Becky had pulled out her phone and I could see she was already trying to text her friend. I felt a slight panic hit me at the fact my best friend's girl friend had just taken off on him and he didn't seem to know yet.
"Why would she do that? I mean even I can tell Jake isn't flirting with that other woman?" I followed Becky as stashing her phone back into her pocket, she traveled back across the room to where Jake was still standing, though he had slowly started to attempt to back his way out of the current trap he was in.
"Melissa get lost." Becky shoved her frame in-between my friend and the young woman who wouldn't seem to leave him alone. Melissa's expression grew hostile and I think she would have said something nasty except Jake took the sudden interruption as a chance to escape. He was already swiftly striding back towards where Lea had been talking to her Captain just a short time before' when he paused. I could see him scenting the air, his body growing ridged at the fact he couldn't smell the woman he loved anymore.
Becky glared at Melissa one last time, before she turned to me. I could see she wanted me to initiate the conversation with my friend. I knew this was not going to make him happy. The two of us crossed to were he was standing looking around with a lost expression on his face. "Where's Lea?" I saw hope fill his eyes at our approach that we would be able to tell him.
I cleared my throat, trying to word just what I wanted to say. "She, um, left Jake." I awkwardly stumbled over the confession to my friend. Jake's eyes widen and felt his sharp smell of fear.
"What do you mean she left?" A shiver ran over Jake's frame and I got blasted by the scent of wolf. My eyes narrowed a little. It didn't seem like Jake was about to transform, but I could plainly tell the canine inside of him was pushing at its barriers.
"You know her better then anyone Jake. You have to know at this point when Lea gets overwhelmed with something she tends to take off until she can get her emotions worked out for herself. She hates being out of control of how she is acting." Becky was looking down at her phone again, still frowning and I realized she wasn't actually texting but watching something on the screen.
Jake's eyes downcast and I got the distinct impression that he knew just what Becky was talking about. "But I wasn't doing anything, I swear! I was just trying to be polite; I didn't want to look like an asshole in front of all of Lea's friends." I felt for my Alpha. He really had been thrown into a bad spot.
"How would you feel if you looked up suddenly to see some attractive guy with his body crushed against Lea and she was just standing and talking to him?" There was an edge to Becky's voice and I think she was judging Jake's reactions to everything. I fought the need to justify what Jake had done, because I knew defending him right now was not going to solve the current issue.
"I would probably beat the living shit out of him." Shame flashed across Jake's expression as he answered honestly. "Truthfully Becky it didn't even cross my mind what we probably looked like because I seriously was not thinking about Chris's daughter that way." Becky suddenly patted Jake's shoulder and it made me realize she wasn't angry and in fact was just trying to make him see the entire scope of the situation.
"Come on." Becky tugged on both our arms pulling us towards the front door. We both followed her, all of us stepping outside and tromping down the front stoop to the sideway below. Becky took a deep breath of fresh air. "That's better I didn't feel comfortable having this conversation in front of everyone." I could see her relax a little, unlike Jake who was getting more tightly wound by the moment.
"So now you have to decide Jake, we can all go back to the house and wait until Lea returns; or you can go after her. I can't guarantee that is what she'll want you to do though, because Lea usually leaves like this because she wants some time alone to sort out her thoughts." Becky was giving my friend a considering look and I got the impression she was silently waiting herself to see what he choose.
"I can't just sit and fucking wait, even if she's angry with me for it I need to find Lea and explain to her so she isn't so pissed at me." Jake started to pace back and forth. He was definitely the most powerful member of our pack, but I even questioned Jake's ability to track his woman without being able to transform.
"I was hoping you would say that!" Both myself and Jake were surprised turning to look at the expression of approval that crossed her face at my friend's answer. "What Lea needs the most is some common sense knocked into her hard head. She still doubts her ability to keep you Jake, she thinks, mostly because of her age I figure that you will eventually move on to the proverbial greener pastures. I love Lea but she can be a complete idiot." Becky shook her head. I watched Jake absorb everything Becky had just said to him.
"I'm just not certain how I'll find her." Becky words seemed to have just made Jake more resolute, I think the realization he wasn't entirely at fault for his predicament at the moment was a relief to him.
"Take my phone." I felt my brow knit as Becky offered her device to Jake; he stared down at it blankly like he wasn't completely certain what it would do. Looking at the screen it suddenly finally clicked with me what Becky had been doing all along.
"You two have GPS tracking on one another don't you?" I realized what the small screen Becky had been watching was.
"Yes, Lea insisted on it in case either of us was ever in trouble. Now you can use it to help you figure out where she has gone." Becky was smiling at Jake and blinking he took the phone studying it for a moment until he started to get his bearings about where he needed to go. Jake had also always been an excellent map reader.
"Thank you." Jake looked at the woman at my side with a grateful expression. "I'm going to go fix everything." I watched the determined look slip into his eyes.
"You do that!" I realized Becky was no longer concerned, she had seemed more apprehensive about Jake's reaction and what he was going to do about this situation then what was actually happening. It appears in her eyes he had made the right choice and now she felt not only that everything was going to work out alright, but I think Jake had met some kind of approval from her. "You should also give her a spanking for being so pig headed!"
I watched Jake freeze to just stare blankly at Becky for a moment like he couldn't quiet believe what she had just said to him. Becky was grinning fiercely and I realized she was teasing Jake, trying to set his mind at a bit more ease. Slowly the smallest smile spread across his face.
"Maybe I'll do that." Jake took a few steps, before turning back to us again. "Will you tell everyone we're sorry and that Lea and I had to take off?" Question in Jake's face, Becky nodded as she replied.
"I was already planning on it. See you both when you get home." The assurance in Becky's voice I could see made Jake feel more confidant. He nodded firmly, before turning on his heel; Becky's phone raised staring at the small map on the screen as he strode off.
"Do you really think everything will work out okay?" I looked down at Becky, posing the question as Jake finally got out of earshot of us.
"I think Jake is just what Lea needs. She has spent far too much of her life fighting to be alone, now she can fight to stay with him." I tried to feel the self-assurance Becky seemed to have, it was odd realizing there was so much of Lea I still didn't know, even with as close to all of us as she had grown. I looked down at Becky wondering if she had as many varied layers I would have to peel away and realizing she had to, because we all did. Some of us just hid them better.
"Come on let's go inside and try to figure out what to tell Chris, and then we can head back to my place." Becky held out her hand to me, I stared at it for a moment before I took it within my own. Maybe Lea wasn't the only person who needed to reassess which battles she was choosing to war for herself presently. Becky and I walked back towards the front door of the house.
AN: Just in time for Christmas a new chapter! :D I also want to try to get the next chapter up on some timely kind of fashion even with the Holiday this weekend. We finally really get a clue of what Embry is up to and what personal demons are haunting him here. It always bothered me that Meyers had this sort of tease with Embry's back story about his paternity but then never had him face it in any way. I think something like that would really shape a person and to me that always seemed like it would be Embry's "big issue" kind of like I always felt like after everything with his Mom and Bella, Jake would have an abandonment complex.
Also Chris is based on Elliot Stabler from Law and Order: SVU so anyone that guessed that congrats ;) I just adore that show so much and the character and he just kind of wormed his way into my fan fiction though I'm really enjoying writing interactions between him and Jake.
DayAnnKnight, Fanatic22, DragonBby and Princess Aria Romanov thank you for the GREAT reviews! Also a lot of favorites and story alerts this week so welcome to all my new readers!
I hope everyone has a great Holidays and a very Happy New Year!