Sorry for the delay, I have had very little time to write with my toddler running around. I will try to get updates but I also have a number of other stories that need updating. Hope you enjoy the chapter and please be sure to tell me what you think. Thanks to everyone who has already favourited, followed, reviewed etc.
BOOM! The crash echoed throughout the room; bouncing off the cream coloured walls and jolting both Paul and Bella from their sleep. Jumping up with a start, Paul cursed out loud as he stood tall and ready for a fight but still hazy from the unwelcome interruption to his slumber. Stumbling over her own feet, Bella hurried out of her room, ordering her house guest not to follow her, and down the stairs. She called out for her father but got no greeting in return. Wrenching open the door to the house she was momentarily blinded by the morning light and the blast of freezing cold air that smacked her in the face. She shivered as her eyes adjusted to the daylight and the blurry figures of her father and Billy Black eventually came into focus.
"Jesus, Dad, it's the crack of dawn. What are you doing?"
"Sorry, Bells." Charlie apologised sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "We didn't mean to wake you. Truck back fired." He explained, pointing to the black smoke coming from the exhaust.
Rolling her eyes, Bella ignored her father as he muttered another apology and only half listened when he spoke of leaving for a fishing day-trip. She gave him a half-hearted wave before turning her back on him and walking groggily back up the stairs. Her face hit the pillows on her bed with welcome force and she snuggled back beneath the warm covers.
It was a minute before she realised that her room was quiet. Too quiet. Calling out for her protector, she lifted her head only when she was received no response. The room was empty. The only evidence of Paul's presence were the crumpled blankets at the foot of her bed and billowing curtains from the open window she had shut the night before. The void left by his absence unsettled her and she forced herself to return to her slumber lest she focus too much on her uncomfortable emotions.
Beneath the open window, sat on a pile on brown and yellow leaves that had fallen from the tree that hugged the back of the Swan home, Paul sighed heavily and rested the back of his head against the bricks. He barely noticed the scratch of the unforgiving material on his bare shoulders and back. His heart beat rapidly and he silently thanked the Gods that he had not been discovered by Charlie; angering the Chief of Police of Forbes was not on his to do list. After all, he was not immune to bullets. Once he was certain that Bella had fallen asleep, Paul started his journey back to La Push. As soon as was safe, he phased and enjoyed the freedom from his restrictive human body and the feeling of the wind ruffling his fur as he sped back to his own home.
Slowing when he could see the border of sand that met the trees and signalled his arrival at First beach, Paul returned to human form and covered his nakedness with the cut-offs and canvas pumps he had kept in his wolf mouth; grimacing at the drool that coated them. Sauntering along the beach, he scufffed at pebbles and stray shells on the wet sand and followed his instincts all the way to the house that Sam, his Alpha, and his girfriend, Emily, shared. Plonking himself down at an empty seat at the kitchen table, he greeted the occupants with a smile; noticing that only Jared and Embry were present out of his fellow pack brothers.
"Where is everyone?" He asked through a mouthful of toast.
"Jake and Quil are just about to get off patrols. Sam's in the shower." Jared answered, swallowing down the scrambled eggs he had been chowing down on.
"Not an image I needed in my head." Paul bantered, screwing up his nose.
"Yeah, well, you'd be hope he stays there after stealing his beer. He's pissed."
"I wasn't the only one drinking it."
Shrugging, Jared cleared his plate and chugged down half a glass of water before finally responding. All the while, Embry watched the two best-friends with quiet amusement and tried not to laugh knowing what punishment was coming Paul's way and how the young man would have to suffer just as he and Jared had done earlier that morning.
"Yeah... but you're also the one who stole - and drank - all of the whiskey his favourite whiskey."
"Oh shit." muttered Paul, his face paling at the memory.
"'Oh shit' is right, Paul." Sam's voice boomed out as the man appeared in the doorway; his short hair already almost dry and fully dressed with a look of wrath on his face.
Before Paul even had a chance to react, Sam was upon him and his palm met the back of the younger man's head with a deafening crack. With a yowl, Paul jumped up and rubbed the tender spot. His anger was simmering and white noise filled his ears preventing him from hearing the rest of Sam's monologue until an off-handed comment caught his attention.
"What?"
Rolling his eyes at the 'deer caught in headlights' expression plastered on Paul's face, Sam slowly repeated himself. "I said you're spending all day helping me in the garage and to put on a goddamn shirt."
It was then that Paul remembered that he had left his black t-shirt on the floor of Bella's bedroom in his rush to leave and avoid any possible confrontation with her father. A grin began to form on his lips when he realised that he would have a legitimate reason to visit the Swan girl once more.
"So who is she?"
"Huh?" said Paul when he felt Jared elbow him gently in the ribs as the two young men and Embry all followed behind Sam as they walked to the garage that was sitauted on the outskirts of the reservation on the border between Forks and La Push.
"Oh c'mon. I know that smile. Is that why you had no shirt this morning? Left it at some chick's house?"
Embry chuckled, joining in. "She must have been desperate to go with Paul."
"Or blind." Jared countered as Paul sulked in silence.
"Or dumb."
"Or maybe she was just easy."
The words left Jared's mouth just as the four men entered the run-down red brick garage. The laughter that came from him was carefree and ultimately short lived when he found himself pinned against one of the shelves that held various mechanical tools; Paul's face a dangerous shade of crimson and his eyes burning black.
""Shut your goddamn mouth before I shut it for you!"
"Paul" yelled Sam. "Let him go!"
It was an order not to be disobeyed and with great reluctance, Paul did as he was told and released his friend; throwing a warning look Embry's way who held his hands up surrender, having no desire to receive a beating.
"You have no idea what you're talking about."
"Sorry, man." Jared said sincerely as he eyed his best-friend suspiciously whilst climbing into a set of overalls.
The four men worked in a majority silence for the next couple of hours. The occasional ordered was barked by Sam and as the day continued to wear on, the silence slowly began to fizz out as joking remarks and good-natured ribbing filtered into conversation. When the day had finally ended and Sam permitted them to leave, Jared, Paul, and Embry walked back to their respective homes at a leisurely pace despite the drizzling rain that was falling from the ugly grey sky.
"Yo, Paul, as much as I don't want to get my ass kicked you gotta be straight with me."
"Jared, cut the 'Mystic Meg' crap and just come out with it."
"Who's the girl?"
"There ain't no girl."
"So I almost got my head ripped off because...?"
Before they had even turned the corner he smelled her. The wind had blown her scent his way and if Embry or Jared noticed they did not comment on her arrival until all three had rounded the corner and saw her waiting, sat hunched over on the porch that was attached to the front of Paul's home. It was a small, quaint house with wooden shutters on the windows and a patches of wildflowers dotte about the tiny excuse for a front lawn. Suddenly self-conscious about his home for the first time in a long time, Paul rushed forward and left his friends behind even though he heard them follow him. Bella noticed him as soon as he was at the bottom of the path that led to the porch stairs and she blushed when his eyes met hers. The grin that dominated his features did nothing to sat the burning of her cheeks, nor did the tinge of genuine happiness that lined his voice when he said her name.
"Well, if it isn't Bella Swan. Was I a really good boy this year or did I just pray to Santa too hard?"
"Dude, you're on Santa's permanent naughty list." chuckled Embry as he waved hello to Bella.
"Bella, did you get lost or something? Blink twice if you're here against your will." Jared joked as he grinned incessantly at his scowling best-friend.
Faltering for just a second, Bella composed herself as she stood to her full height before not missing a beat and speaking with unknown confidence.
"I came to lend you that book you asked about."
A smirk played on Paul's lips as he closed the distance between himself and Bella and he noticed how her cheeks flushed even more pink as she lied through her teeth to all three of them. He was impressed at how truthful she sounded though he knew that her inherent aura of innocence helped her immensely.
"What book? Paul doesn't read." Jared remarked.
"Can he even read?" quipped Embry.
"Pride and Prejudice." Bella lied once more, smirking herself when she aw Paul roll his eyes at his friends' jokes.
In spite of the rain, Jared and Embry stood completely still as they processed the new information before bursting into a fit of hysterical laughter that earned them a rather suggestive and derogatory hand gesture from Paul.
"Oooooh, Pride and Prejudice! How fancy!" cried Embry.
"Get lost, losers." sulked Paul as he turned his back on his still giggling Pack brothers and ushered Bella into his home.
Alone and sheltered from the wet weather, Bella and Paul stood quietly and stared at one another until Bella broke the silence with a clearing of her throat and then buried her head in the backpack that Paul had failed to notice until now. Watching her with interest, he stayed mute until she popped her head back up and readjusted the now newly fastened back pack and held out her hand to him. In it, he saw, was a long scrap of black material and it took him longer than he liked to admit, as he stared at it quizically, to recognise it as his missing t-shirt from the night before.
"You left it on my floor. I didn't want my dad to find it... too many questions." she offered up as way of an excuse or explanation; which, Paul was not sure of.
Thanking her, he took the shirt from her; purposely grazing her fingers with his own and humming as electricty ran through his body. He balled up the shirt and threw it over Bella's shoulder and it landed on the grey fabric sofa.
"Paul LaHote, pick that damn shirt up off that sofa before I come over there and swat your ears so hard you'll be hearing church bells ring for a week.
Snapping around at the sound of an unfamiliar voice, Bella's mouth formed an 'O' shape when a woma appeared infront of her. Small in stature, she was smaller even than Bella herself but she was the spitting image of Paul; same raven black hair though hers was long and in a single braid that fell down her right shoulder, same hazel brown eyes, they even had the same dimple on their left cheek. As she continued to stare, she noticed more about the unknown woman. Like how her eyes had faint lines of wrinkles around them when she smiled and that the roots of her hair where dotted sparingly with silver.
"Sorry, Mom." he apologised, moving immediately to remove the dirty article of clothing.
"Sorry about that." Paul's mother said giving Bella a warm smile as she dried her hands with a kitchen towel. "I swear I did raise him with manners but he clearly seems to have forgotten them so I'll introduce myself."
Sighing, Paul interjected. "Mom, Bella. Bella, my mom."
"Clara, please." The older woman said, taking Bella by surprise with a hug.
Hovering close by, Paul fiddled with the bunched up shirt in his hand and rubbed the back of his neck with the other. He towered over his mother but his respect for her was evident, and Bella found herself amused by the thought of such a tiny woman hurting the big bad woolf before. Then she began to wonder just how much of her son's life Clara was privy to.
"Bella... not Bella Swan?"
"Erm, yeah. Why?"
"I've heard a lot about you." Clara continued. "Paul is always talking about you."
"Mom, shut up." groaned Paul; hos own cheeks beginning to redden from embarassment.
"What? I can't help it that you talk in your sleep." she laughed.
"Oh my god, Mom. That's enough. Time to go, Bella." Paul stormed forward, breaking his mother and Bella apart even as his mother admonished him for his behaviour and invited the young girl to stay for dinner.
"Bella has to go, Mom."
"Paul, you're being rude." Clara scolded him.
"It's okay. I'm used to it. Besides, my dad is at Billy's and he's my ride home so I'm just going to head over and hang out with Jacob for a bit. It was lovely to meet you."
Bella heard a faint hint of a reply as Paul pushed her through the door and closed it behind both of them. It was like watching the transformation of a magical creature. Almost instantly, Paul's demeanor changed. His embarrassment had been relaced with cockiness and a mischevious glint in his eye.
"You know, the offer of me checking out your ass again still stands. You know, just in case you find hanging out with Black too boring."
Resisting the urge to smile, Bella bit her lip and shuffled from one foot to the other and made a choice not to engage Paul in his games.
"I'll be fine with Jacob."
"Okay." Paul bid her goodbye reluctantly. "See you later, Peach." He called after Bella as she walked down the path.
Turning back, Bella shouted. "Goodbye, Mr Wickham."
"Who the hell is Mr Wickham?" Paul yelled out confused.
With her own sly smile, the young woman decided to be brave and shouted back as she parted ways. "Look it up."