Chapter 14 – Adrienne
June 2010 PART FOUR

I sat cross-legged on Embry's bed, flipping through the photobook I had gotten him for his birthday in January, smiling at the old memories. The times were simpler then, when we were foolish enough to believe that werewolves and vampires were myths. He was in the shower and I was trying my best to keep my mind occupied at that idea.

My ivory skin looked so strange constantly smooshed between three Native boys, but each of us were wearing bright smiles and we all looked so happy. I let my mind wander back to that first day when I had so bravely introduced myself to the three boys who were obviously talking about me.

Embry had been so shy that day – as he usually was – and I'd barely heard him speak at all until I left the beach. It took weeks for me to break him out of his confined space where he didn't talk and I saw a light crimson come across his cheeks. He was sweet in a way that most guys weren't and that's what had always intrigued me about him. His demeanor made it easy to fall for him and I'd suddenly become obsessed with getting his attention.

I wanted him to do something out of the ordinary. I thrived on watching his perfectly white teeth flash when I said something he liked, or the way his eyes lit up when I brought up his hobbies rather than Jacob's. His laugh was rough but comforting and his touch had never been anything but gentle.

The door opened then, a light breeze coming into the stuffy room. Embry was dressed in nothing but a pair of red basketball shorts. His hair had grown out slightly, hanging around his ears, and he was rubbing the towel through it.

You would think that after hanging around him without a shirt on would make me immune to the reaction that most girls get, but it never eased up. His stomach was perfect, the contours firm, and his torso was long. He was leaner than Jacob, but more muscular than Quil. He looked strong and healthy and sexy like he always did.

I felt my heart speed up as I eyed the waistline of his shorts. He turned to look at me, his eyes wide with fear, and I silently cursed myself. Of course I had to feel this way about a werewolf, who could hear every time my heart beat sped up or my breath caught. He could sense when I felt uneasy and it had been incredibly hard to fight those feelings.

"Are you alright?" he asked, throwing the damp towel over his desk chair and coming over to sit by me. My heart launched again and I quickly focused back to the photo album.

"Yes, I'm fine," I assured him. "Just…Reminiscing."

He didn't push any further, instead he flipped to the next page of the album. I grinned happily at the photo that I'd snapped of the three boys wearing elf hats at our small Christmas party. Leah had been there, too, and we'd opened presents and eaten so much food that it probably should have been illegal.

"Are you hungry?" His breath hit my face in a desirable way as he asked the question and I fought back a shiver. I shook my head, afraid of a shaky voice if I spoke. "Is there anything specific that you'd like to do? We can watch a movie or something."

"I'm actually pretty tired," I admitted, closing the album and pushing myself closer to the wall.

He looked disappointed but nodded anyways, always trying to please me. "Okay, I'll see you in the morning then," he stood and began walking toward the door.

"Where are you going?" I practically yelled in panic.

He threw a confused look at me. "To sleep on the couch?"

"Why don't you just sleep in here?" I tried not to give anything away by my voice but I was unconvinced. "It's kind of cold, and you keep me warm."

His eyes locked with mine almost instantly and I felt my insides ignite in a good way. His eyes were filled with desire, but they had a certain softness in them. He nodded carefully and strode over to the bed. I tried continuously to tame my wild heart but there was no hope.

We settled together under the blankets, my head on his chest and his arm wrapped securely around me. I closed my eyes, reveling in the moment. I had never felt as safe as I always did with him. I listened to his rapid heartbeat and let it calm my nerves.

I wasn't even sure why I was so nervous. He loved me and I loved him. We just had never said it out loud before. His breath was starting to draw out, his body starting to relax, and I knew that I needed to do or say something now.

"Embry?" I asked quietly, part of me hoping that he'd fallen asleep.

He stirred for a moment before replying. "Yeah?"

I took a deep breath and pulled back to look at his face. There wasn't a single feature on his face that wasn't beautiful, which made it hard to focus. "Do you love me?" My voice was barely above a whisper and I watched the mix of emotions flicker across his face – confusion, curiosity, and hope. "I mean, I know that you want to protect me and take care of me and I just wanted to know if this… this thing between us – whatever it is – is like how it is with the others…" I trailed off, not sure what else to say.

"Like what others?" his voice was cautious and I closed my eyes for a moment, gaining composure of the emotions I was feeling.

It would be easier if I would just come out and say it, if anything I could always go crash with Leah tonight. "Am I your imprint?"

I surveyed his reaction carefully. The first emotion that I saw was surprise, which was followed by worry and then determination. He didn't say anything for a while and I waited, rather impatiently, for him to finally say something.

"If I said yes, would that scare you away?"

"I just learned that vampires and werewolves are real," I admitted. "I don't think much can scare me at this point."

"Okay," he smirked at my choice of words but didn't go into any detail.

"You didn't answer my question," I pointed out, laying my head on the pillow so our faces were level.

He raised an eyebrow. "Why do you want to know?"

I averted my eyes, focusing on his left earlobe. I snorted inwardly, even his ear was cute. A blush crept onto my cheeks then and I met his smoldering eyes again.

"I'm just…afraid of being disappointed if," I paused for a moment, searching for the correct words. "If you end up imprinting on somebody else."

He furrowed his eyebrows together at the words. "Disappointed," he repeated.

"I mean…if you imprinted on me then it would just sort of prove that we were meant to be together, right?" I let my eyes fall to my hands and I bit my lip slightly. "If the world was the way it was supposed to be, without all this weird magic shit, then you and I would have still been together. Which means that we made the right choice back in February…we were it for each other."

"We are it for each other," he whispered. His voice was solemn and I could tell by the emotion in his eyes that he was thinking hard. He always wore his emotions in his eyes, no matter how composed his face would be. When his eyes met mine, they smoldered darkly and I almost lost my breath. "It's always been you, Adrienne."

My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest at the same time that his hand came up to brush my cheek lightly. We were only inches apart and I felt like everything in that moment was in slow motion. He pressed his lips to mine, softly. This kiss was nothing like the ones we'd shared before. Those had all been rushed and lust-filled. This was gentle and could be described as absolute perfection.

He pulled back and I could tell that he was nervous. His eyes were searching for something in mine, as if the kiss hadn't been confirmation enough. I wasn't ready to speak yet, so instead I trailed my fingers along his chest. They fluttered up his neck, around his cheek, and just barely touched his lips, tracing around to the back of his neck.

My pulse quickened and I pulled him to me with as much force as I could. He obliged, our lips colliding in perfect harmony again and I let my eyes close on instinct. Our kisses were careful but natural, and the warmth from his skin made my face flush embarrassingly but I didn't care. Nothing in the world mattered at all except for this moment. All I knew was Embry.

Our bodies pressed against each other tightly and a soft moan escaped his perfect mouth, heightening my senses by a thousand. My hands fisted his hair as my legs tangled with his. We rolled so he was on top of me now and my breath caught as his tongue found mine, wrestling for dominance.

I pulled back, wanting to taste more of him. I placed gentle, open-mouthed kisses at the corner of his mouth and along his jaw, finding the sensitive spot just below his earlobe and flicking my tongue out. A lust-filled growl emanated from his lips, his hips grinding into mine, and I couldn't help the throaty laugh as I trailed farther down his neck.

I was content here with him, knowing that there was nothing that could ever separate the two of us again. He was my protector, the person that would be there through each trial and tribulation in my life. He left once with no choice and he still hated himself every day for it. He needed to know that I was okay now and that all was forgiven.

I pushed away all my fears, the myriad of kisses seizing at the area that connected his shoulder and neck. Instead, the tip of my nose found solace there and I breathed deeply, inhaling the pine scent that I was so accustom to, before speaking. "I'm in love with you, Embry," my voice was small and breathless but I knew that he would hear me.

He froze for just a moment and pulled his head around to face me, his dark eyes filled with an endless amount of adoration. His forehead rested gently on mine and he flashed a breathtaking smile at me. "I'm in love with you, too," he admitted. A wave of relief washed over me in that moment before I pulled him back to me, never wanting to let go, and realizing that I really never had to.

…

AN: Hey guys! I just wanted to let everyone know that I decided to end the story here. I feel like this is the perfect place for me to end it – Adrienne was finally able to completely forgive Embry and they've confessed their love for each other. I also wanted to let you know that this is gonna be a stand-alone story. I'm working on a few others right now and they sort of mix together and for future questions I just want you all to know that this is not included. Thank you guys so much for hanging out with me while I created Adrienne Collins and her part of the story. – J.