I wasn't mad that Bella might have done something. However, Sara herself had basically said that Bella only agreed because of Quil's persistence. Something like this wouldn't be an easy fix if a few months from now, Bella realized it had been a mistake.

No one in the front room said a word as I pushed the doors open to find my imprint and the trouble maker. I could still hear Rachel give out an impatient sigh of annoyance and Paul get up to comfort her as I ignored them both. Claire and Sara were still giggling about wuss-man Quil.

The doors swung outwards only to encounter a barrier. Quil had shot up and was standing right before me, blocking entrance to the room.

"Hey, dude. Glad you could make it. How was your meeting?" He asked way too fucking jovial and concerned.

"Get out of my way, Quil. I need to see Bella." Taking another step forward, I was standing less than an inch in front of him. Normal protocol dictated he should step aside. Instead we began a game of crane and block. Every time I moved my head in a different direction to see around him, Quil mimicked me.

"Hey, don't worry." lean left, up, right "You'll see her in just a second." down, over, partial fake "I wanted to show you something," Quil said excitedly, still matching me move for move.

"Quil, there is nothing other than Bella than I want to see-" I stopped ranting and miming as it occurred to me that Quil was not only shirtless, his shorts weren't zipped up and there was dried blood along one of his leg inseams.

Since I had stopped trying to dodge him, he had stopped moving as well. Smirking, he realized what I was staring at and took a step back. Fate had its mouth hanging wide open, staring also.

"What do you think?" Quil asked, taking another step back, my eyes still locked on the rust-colored stain and a million thought racing through my mind: Wolves don't bleed like that. It has to be his blood, though. It smells just like him. I don't smell another scent. Could it be a combination and there's just more of his and not the victim?

"I'm thinking that Paul or Embry better have punched you hard enough in the back to make your kidney bleed. Otherwise, there is no valid excuse for the blood," I answered flatly, not the least bit concerned he might be hemorrhaging.

"Oh that. Yeah, that was just a mistake. I couldn't go through with it. This on the other hand…" with his left hand, Quil proudly pointed to his chest.

"I don't…Oh my god, Quil! You didn't?" Looking around to see if anyone else had heard me, I lowered my voice, just in case. "Do you realize what's going to happen when you have to change?"

"Relax, dude. It's fine."

"Quil, it is not fine! I don't care how many damn movies you've watched, we are not affected by silver. You will be stuck with that until the next time you shift. Then it's going to pop right off of your nipple."

"No, it won't. See, this isn't silver or even an alloy of it. This," he said, flicking the bar then flinching, "Is pure iron."

"Which means nothing, you dick! You sliced your hand on that scrap metal once and it still healed," I impatiently spat.

"Fuck yeah, it did and I'm glad of that. Can you imagine if I had a gimpy hand? That's not the point, though. We can heal from damage caused by anything and if the bar was silver, my skin would close around it. But not lead."

"Seriously, Quil, do you even know what you're talking about?" I groaned, wondering why I even tried to explain. Quil's nipples were not a topic an Alpha should ever be forced into discussing. Fate scowled, realizing it couldn't be added to the handbook.

"Listen. Paul mentioned a little something-something about your talk with Bella last night," he continued, too excited to see my temper flare again as my gaze dropped back to his pants.

"Quil, you better not have tried to 'show' Bella anything, especially if it has to do with wolves and mating." I was shaking, desperately clinging to the hope that Quil had kept his paws to himself.

"No, Jake, that's kinda gross. Why would I want to have sex with Cupcake? I mean, sure, I'd be more than happy to demonstrate for her with Claire but definitely not 'on' Cupcake."

"Your point?" I asked through gritted teeth causing Quil to snicker and lightly rub the pointed ends of his bar. The smirk faded as I failed to join in his humor and he finally sighed.

"I'm getting to that. Anyways, I was talking science shit with your girl and she made a comment about cell midas." I held up my hand for Quil to shut-up for a minute so I could translate what the hell he was saying.

The word 'midas' made me think of wizards, warlocks and a possible imposter known as Vatan and his furry fairy-ness. In looks, he looked more like a troll but the meaning was the same as far as I was concerned. However Quil and mentioned science which meant Bella's expertise and not any mythological mayhem she might be carting around.

Finally I just threw a term out there. "Cellular mitosis?" I asked, trying really hard not to remember last night's attempt of cellular meiosis with Bella. It had been a lot of fun at the end before I realized the condom disintegrated. I had to remember to buy a different brand. Fate galloped over on a horse.

"Yeah, that shit." Quil assented, bringing me back to the present. "I was telling her how fucking cool it would be to get pierced or even inked. But our bodies would just swallow that shit up and blow it back out. In a normal person, though, their bodies just go around it and not on to it. Except for lead. Somehow whatever it's made of, the cells stop growing completely and it works for us too! Ta-da!" With a flourish, he half bowed.

I was far from impressed. There were no werewolf facts to attest to Quil's idea and the reprucussions sucked either way. If it was true, that just meant we now had two ways to die tragically: leech venom and lead. If it wasn't true, Quil would be a whiny bitch for the rest of our lives because he only had one nipple.

"Congratulations, Quil. You've just figured out how to give yourself a permanent hole by somehow involving my mate. You've also just given me the knowledge of how to painfully kill you. Now step your ass aside, so I can talk to Bella." With a hard shove, I pushed him to the side and approached her, tired of Quilisms.

"You're welcome, Alpha ass," Quil muttered as I flipped him off.

"Jake," Bella finally greeted me, crawling out of the only chair back here while wearily eyeing Quil's posture of poutiness and my struggling patience. I don't know if she heard the conversation between Quantum Quil and me but for whatever reason, she had remained seated until now. Fate poured me a new dose of dread.

"Hi, honey," I breathed, seeking out any scents of bodily harm she may have encountered. If we wanted to, a wolf was capable of searching out a blood trail from a couple of miles away. In a building this small, Bella's would have sent off an alarm in me. Nothing was noticeable -odor wise- but I could still make out a distinct bandage shape under her shirt as I engulfed her in a hug.

We stood there entangled as one, while I eyed her back. As a human, most would've missed it, but then again, most humans weren't taught to seek out something as simple as bent grass blades. The white material was thin and compared to her skin tone, the bandage all but screamed 'secret'.

"Did you have fun?" I inquired, my arms refusing to release her. It took everything I had not to lift her shirt and see what was hidden.

"Yes, I did," she mumbled into my chest before pulling back. "L.A. has a lot of interesting things to see. Tomorrow, we're going to visit the Le Brea tar pits."

"Uh huh, tar pits. Sounds like fun," I agreed, ignoring Fate wrangling with a wooly mammoth while all thoughts circled around the length and width of her band-aid. Three inches long, about two wide…what could it be? And oh shit! Did she get a piercing like Quil?

"Did you see what Rachel got?" She asked, pulling on my hand to lead me back into the front. "She had Paul draw out a majestic wolf and then got a tattoo of it on her shoulder blade."

My eyes stayed glued to her back and gait. She was walking normal but what the hell did I know? Quil wasn't limping. Fate poked me with a tusk, reminding me of what Bella had just said. "Wait, what? My sister got a tattoo?" Looking around, I realized that Bella had led me out of the parlor, casually strolling down the sidewalk.

"Yep, Claire too. Although, Claire's wolf looks more like an Ewoke than a wolf and has this funny pink curler in its scruff. Quil said his feelings were kind of hurt. He kept hoping she'd get a Sponge Bob picture. Everyone seemed to think it was really funny, but when I asked, no one would tell me why. Do you know?"

"Probably because Quil's nickname used to be crusty," I carelessly muttered before slapping my hand over my mouth.

Shit! Tell me I didn't just say that to my imprint?

"That's a little…odd," Bella stated hesitantly. "Was it really? How did he get that type of name?"

"It was from high school and maybe I could tell you later?" I asked, hoping that she'd forget and I'd never have to explain how 'crusty' was the nicer version as to what his nickname actually had been.

Quil had been fascinated with his dick since he was old enough to know what it was. In seventh grade, after he'd had his first wet-dream, he came to school and wrote all about it in his "What I did on my summer vacation" essay. He was suspended for three days after volunteering to read it out loud for the class. The only saving grace to the whole debacle was that seconds after Quil had read the title 'Crusty, my trusty cum-rag' the teacher had decided no one should ever speak again in his class and the rest of us were saved from sharing our mundane vacations. Who could have lived up to that?

"Okay," Bella agreed, failing to notice my wandering thoughts. "How was your meeting?" She stopped walking to look into the display window of a tourist shop.

"Boring. I would have much rather spent the day with you and that hot little bikini you wore," I answered. Casting a glance, I saw the rest of my brood trailing behind us. Paul caught my look and made eating motions with his hand which Bella saw.

"Well let's go eat and if you're lucky, I'll wear the new one Sara convinced me to buy today," Bella promised suggestively. Suddenly I was hungry for more than just dinner and happily I agreed.

For dinner, Bella chose a normal place that sold pound-sized hamburgers and was set up like a 1950's diner. There wasn't anything overtly special about the restuarant, although Quil did mention to Bella that they sold peanut butter flavored ice-cream and would she like a side of it for her burger. After a lull in conversation about the weirdest things seen so far on the trip –Vatan's eating habits—I finally got enough nerve to ask about the bandage. Fate let me sweat it out for a bit, as everyone stopped talking to stare while Bella blushed. She finally admitted that she was going to get a tattoo of Van. The fact that it would be on her back, and no one would really be able to see it, changed her mind and the bandage was only covering the outline until she could wash it off since she was wearing a thin white shirt.

When Bella turned her attention back to something Rachel was saying, I made my threats to Quil. Assuming his nipple didn't pop off, I was going to attach wax stripes to his hide the next time he phased. When he changed back to human, the fur would rip off rather than recede. It wasn't much, but it'd be a start.

88888888

TGIF had to be the sweetest words I had heard in a long time. The meeting would be over today, we could fly back to Washington and by Monday, Bella would officially be living with me on the reservation. The day got even better. At eleven thirty, the meeting wrapped up and every division had a green light to go. I wanted to be mad at Chris since my presence hadn't really been needed at all. Somewhere around ten, I had briefly explained the concept behind my prototype and few had anything to dispute about it.

Chris was just saying good-bye when David Gothall walked over to where we were standing.

"Jacob Black, I'm excited to have you join in on this project," he gushed, reaching out to shake my hand.

"I'm honored, Sir," I replied in kind, grasping his hand. Despite my peon title here, David clinched my hand tightly in a silent battle of 'who's manlier'. Not wanting to be a dick to the man who was about to pay me a fortunate, I only squeezed with a tenth of my strength; watching the realization dawn across his face that not only did I have muscle, but I also knew how to use it.

Quickly releasing, David began speaking about certain requirements the team needed to make this a success. My phone began to buzz and I tried to pay attention to David while also seeing who was calling. The I.D. said Paul.

"That sounds great, Mr. Gothall. Would you excuse me for a minute? I need to take this." David smiled and continued rambling to Chris while I stepped away to answer.

"Hello," I answered curtly, praying this wasn't one of the guy's usual obscene calls. Fate helped me out with that.

"Fuck, Jake, we got trouble!" Paul growled into the phone. "Embry was going to get something from the car for Sara when he smelled them."

"Around the vehicle?" I asked, confused as to what might be going on. It was ninety degrees outside and a cloud hadn't been visible for days. Any vamp in the area wouldn't be able to conceal themselves properly without looking like terrorist, draped head to toe clothing.

"No, he didn't even make it outside. He picked up their scent in the lobby. They're somewhere here in the resort."

"Where are the girls?" I asked worriedly, looking for a wall to support myself against.

"We have them outside right now, at the beach," Paul explained. Fate jumped out with an inflatable rubber ducky raft. The scary part was that the damn duck had teeth!

"Why are you still there? Get in the car and leave!" I demanded to Paul who just tsked.

"And go where, Jake? They might be dumb as shit, but no vamp is gonna waltz out onto a beach in broad daylight and take someone."

"So what, you're going to wait 'til evening when they can just grab a snack and go?" I asked, trying to ward off Fate's helping hand.

"No. Embry went back to the suite to pack. Once he has all the shit together and a change of clothes for all of us, we'll leave and then someone can come back to get the suitcases since there isn't enough room. Bella still wants to go to that tar pit park and its outside so we'll wait for you there."

"If you have a plan, why are you calling me from the Villa? Shouldn't you already be on your way?" I asked, glancing around for Chris and David. They were still talking animatedly, not paying me a bit of attention.

"Bella doesn't want to go." He said it slowly and mean. As if I could control the situation from here.

"You just said she still wanted to see the tar pits. What the hell is the problem? Fuck, Paul, take her wherever she wants to go as long as it's nowhere near a leech."

"She's flipping out a little bit," Paul groused. It must have been an Alpha trait; when a pack mate used a certain tone, my anger came online full force.

"You fucking told her? How could you be so careless; of course she's gonna flip out. You could have at least had enough common sense not to mention why you guys were leaving until after the fact."

"Yeah, well, you're the one who got the brainiac imprint. She figured it out not two steps onto the beach and Quil had to carry her out to where Rachel set up a blanket for them to lie on. Once she told the others what was really happening, everyone was a little freaked."

"Let me talk to her."

"Are you nuts? She's gonna pull out the imprint card and then we'll all end up dead. No, what I need you to do is tell me how we can wrangle that damn cat into its box. Bella said we can go wherever we want and she'll come along too, but only if squishy-face is with us. We can't risk her going inside and both Embry and I have tried to get him. He's like a fucking extendable. I almost had him in when he somehow stretched out his body and legs and refused to budge. He also tore up my Nickleback tour shirt to shreds in the process."

"There is only one solution here-" I tried to explain without shouting. I could see Chris and David wrapping up their conversation and both would expect me to say good-bye. Paul didn't want to hear it

"And princess already said Fuck No. She's not going to leave here without that hideous pet of hers."

"Paul, just listen," I tried again, rolling my eyes. There was no way Bella had used the word 'fuck'. "I'm not asking you to leave without Vatan. You take Quil's spot on the beach and have him go get the cat. Vatan will follow him anywhere and actually like it."

Paul just scoffed. "Yeah, but Quil won't like it and neither will princess."

"Bell-a," I said slowly, enunciating her name, "may not like it, but she will understand Quil is the only option available to us at the moment. As for Quil, his fucking furry ass better do it the moment you tell him to! This isn't the time to be fucking around; people's lives are on the line. He can be in and out in less than two minutes then all of you can go to the park. I'll meet you there. Have Embry put the suitcases in the lobby and ask a staff member to transport them to the airport. We are leaving tonight."

"Alright, Big A, but when this plan fails, it's your ass."

Sighing, I pocketed my phone ad got ready to bolt out of there. Leave it to Fate to trip me up.

"Jake," David called, waving for me to join him and Chris. "As I was saying, we are all very excited to have you on board for this. Would you be so kinda as to spare me a few more moments of your time? There are just a few details we should probably cover before you leave."

Damn it! At any point in time, David could have spoken to me, but he chose now? I couldn't afford to stay here and shoot the shit about press appearances and charity balls, both of which I had no doubt were on his mind as a way to lure in the next future share-holders.

"I, uhh, I kind of need to leave. Family emergency," I explained, trying to inch my way closer to the door.

"Oh, well, of course. Families always come first. However, there is a client you must meet and he's only in town for the day." With a pointed look, David took a step closer to me. "This client is presently thirty-four percent invested."

My tongue nearly fell out of my mouth. If David wasn't exaggerating then this unknown client easily held the favor on who stayed and who left the team. To say "no" would not only end me here, but probably anywhere else as a designer.

"My family will be okay for a little bit longer without my presence. I'd be happy to meet them," I lied. Please, oh please let it be some ninety-five year old man with one foot in the grave.

"Excellent," David all but cheered before turning to Chris. "I assume you'll be here throughout the weekend?"

"Where else would I be?" Chris joked. "I have that Senators dinner to attend tomorrow evening."

"Perfect. I'll find you tomorrow and we can plan our golf game. Have a good day," David stated, effectively dismissing Chris. With a small smile and shrug, Chris left.

Shit! Why wasn't I that lucky?

"Come, Jacob, let's head up to my office where we can be more comfortable. These board rooms can be so stuffy."

Trailing behind at a brisk pace, I fervidly prayed this would be a short meeting and not a three hour gossip and whiskey drinking affair. By the time we got to his office, I had surmised the quickest way to get through this without losing my temper. Fate threw those plans out the window for me as soon as the office door had closed.

"I understand you've participated in other projects similar to this in the past?" David inquired as he made his way to the other side of a desk. The damn thing could have easily sat twelve werewolves with elbow room to spare.

"A few, but none as grand as this," I answered as I sank into one of the leather chairs David gestured to. He took his time as he also sat down, crossing and uncrossing his legs and I kept looking around, waiting for this mysterious client to appear.

"Relax, Mr. Black," David requested, sensing my apprehension. "I apologize for my ruse, but the fewer who know of this, the happier we all can be."

"And the client?"

"Part of my fib. There really is an investor that heavily involved with our plans, but he is not presently here. Perhaps at the party you'll get to meet him."

"Sure, okay," I hedged, not caring either way. "What else was on your mind then?"

"You are aware of the confidentiality clauses that we insist upon?"

Surprised by this topic, I stared straight into his eyes as I answered. "Very much so, Mr. Gothall. To be, or do anything less would end my career. I have no intentions of selling out, if that's what you mean."

"Sort of, Mr. Black," David hinted. "I've studied your plans extensively and even brought in some other engineers to bounce a few ideas."

The moment the words left his mouth, I didn't know if I was more angered or shocked. Any blueprints would have been patented and Mr. Gothall would find himself hard-pressed to explain using my design with another engineneer's name attached. I was still somewhat of a small fish though and had to tread carefully. "Were you not satisfied with the intended project? I can assure you, I am more than capable of producing several models for you and even giving a brief lecture to those who will be operating the finished project."

"I believe you, Mr. Black and have no doubts as to your ability to succeed without failure. Tell me, would you be willing to change a few things?"

"I…don't understand. If I were to change anything, you will be left with an engine unable to achieve its desired performance. Am I mistaken or were you not intending to reach Mars with this?"

"No, it's going to Mars. The problem is, with your present set-up, it won't be able to get back," he replied, his words causing me to lean back in shock.

"You're aware of the rocket capabilities. Once it has left, the majority of the fuel source has been used leaving enough to attain a respectable speed and navigate any of the gravitational fields on approach to Mars. In order to leave the planet, you would have to not only double the cargo of fuel but have a couple of people on board to prepare the launch. What am I missing?"

"If given a different fuel source, could you reconfigure the project to accommodate a plutonium core?"

"What? You're talking about heavy modifications; to the point of starting over completely," I sputtered, wondering why none of this had been mentioned sometime in the past three days. "Not to mention that the government will not allow a nuclear engine based on past launch failures. The critical period of launch is within the first three minutes. There is no way NASA will allow that."

"Correct, Mr. Black," David agreed without a care in the world. "As you are aware, NASA lacks the proper funding to continue space exploration on its own. While they retain the name, most of the money and ideas come from private investors who cross the red-tape and bend some rules. But you strike me as the type of fellow who would prefer the plausible deniability option." He paused studying the desk top before returning my gaze. "I'm happy to answer your questions, if you wish, but perhaps this would go smoother if we just stuck to you answering mine?" Quietly, he reached down to retrieve a cylindrical tube, obviously containing what he really wanted.

Taking the case, I opened it slowly to reveal a set of plans, easily recognizing the majority of my own work twisted to fit Mr. Gothall's needs. Someone had been a very busy bee and I had seconds to decide how to proceed. If I put up a fuss, the project would go on anyways and I'd be left out of the glory. Whatever the team was doing to get this project off the ground really wasn't any concern of mine.

"Yes," I finally answered, meaning more than just the reconfiguration question. "With specific modifications, I can readjust the project. I'm assuming I should do so immediately and build the prototypes to handle it. Of course, I have no intention of actually testing it and my contract will waive off any liabilities that could feasibly occur."

"Of course, Mr. Black, I have them right here." Opening his desk drawer, David removed a heavy file and slide it across his desk to me. Without even opening the folder, I picked it up and shoved into my attaché, grabbing the new plans too before standing up.

"Thank you again, Mr. Gothall. I'll browse through the file this weekend and have the new contract signed and sent over by the end of the week."

"Thank you, as well, Mr. Black. Chris was telling me earlier you had company with you on this trip. She must be quite the catch."

"Yes, she is," I answered, my hand on the door. I was ready to run to the other side of L.A. to make sure my imprint was safe. Nowhere did this plan include shooting the shit with this man.

"Would I know of her family?"

"I don't think so. She is a talented veterinarian and her family is of no importance in the business world," I offered. Her family really wasn't important at all but that would've seemed a little crass to admit. Pulling open the door, I stepped out with a final glance over my shoulder. "Good day, Mr. Gothall."

"Same to you, Mr. Black," he replied as I shut the door.

Walking as fast as I could without raising suspicion, I made it to the stairwell. With the office being located on the 34th floor, I figured I could run as fast as I wanted to and no one would notice. Thank god for lazy, overweight American society.

I made it to the ground floor without incident and nearly vaulted my way across the parking garage. I had left the windows open to help rid the vehicle of Quil's stench but refrained from diving through one. Fate buckled up into the seat next to me as I peeled out of the garage and onto the closest road. Dialing Paul, I honked and cursed the noon rush hour traffic as the phone rang and rang.

Cursing, I threw it to the floor board, ignoring Fate who was tugging on my arm. Stomping on the gas, I swerved past a blue-haired old lady, driving fifteen under the speed limit in a Kia.

"Jake?" A voice questioned from behind me. Completely surprised, I slammed on the brakes, my body rising a few inches up in the air before crashing back into the seat. I turned around, staring in horror at the passenger I had somehow acquired, but missed entirely. Fate simply mumbled "I told you so."