Chapter 2

"Angela!" Bella shouted to the girl who was waving at her. "Look, Tyler, it's Angela."

"Where?" Tyler asked. He hadn't been paying attention to his surroundings since they came here. He was clearly thinking of something he wanted to talk about with her, but so far, she had let him bide his time, hoping he would find his courage soon.

"There. Come one. Angela's with someone, and I think those are her brothers, oh how they've grown," Bella said, and taking her drink to her other hand, she pulled Tyler along with her. He grunted, not sounding pleased about the interruption.

"Hi, Angela! How are you?" Bella asked as Angela got up from her seat, and they hugged.

"Good. It's so good to see you," Angela said.

Bella waved to the boys. "Hi, Isaac and Joshua. Oh my gosh, how you've grown."

Angela giggled. "Yes, they are almost seven now. The last time you saw them, I think they had just turned four."

"Paul, these are Bella and Tyler. We went to the same high school," Angela said to the man sitting with them. "This is Paul Lahote, my boyfriend."

This Paul looked like he hadn't heard anything Angela said. Instead, he was staring at her. His eyes were dark, and there was some profound emotion in them she couldn't render, but it made her shiver. Bella tried her chin; if there was still some whipped cream left, she had just wiped away a moment ago. But no, no reason why he would be staring at her like that.

"Hello Paul," she said. No respond.

Why does the name Paul Lahote sound familiar? Oh, then she remembered; Jacob had told her about a man whore of the rez who had treated his sister Rachel poorly. But how could Angela, sweet innocent Angela, be involved with a guy like that?

"Paul Lahote from La Push?" Bella asked and couldn't stop a little incredulous laugh escaping her lips. She cleared her throat, trying to mask it, not doing a very good job.

"Yeah. Why?" Angela asked. This Paul person was still staring at her, not uttering a word.

"Oh, sorry, Angela. I just... no, sorry. I'm a good friend of Jacob from the rez, and I've just heard all sorts of things about him. Sorry, Paul, this is awfully rude of me." She glanced at Angela's boyfriend, who had the strangest expression on his face. She couldn't decide if he hated her or just the opposite. But why, he didn't know her. They have never met before.

He nodded and said, "that's fine. All of it is probably true."

Oh, he speaks.

Angela giggled, but she, too, seemed baffled by her boyfriend's behavior.

"But hey, it's great that you have been able to tame the player of the rez," Bella said, winking at Angela, hoping she hadn't offended her. But she did find it a bit odd that Angela was dating Lahote. "And you for sure have got yourself an amazing girlfriend."

Angela giggled again, kissing her boyfriend's cheek, who just kept looking at her.

"Yes. He's all mine," Angela said, squeezing Paul's hand that was clutching the table's edge the knuckles white.

"Please sit with us for a while. I love to hear a bit more. What brings you here? I didn't know you two were dating," Angela said as Bella and Tyler sat down.

"It's spring break, and we decided to come home to visit our families," Bella told her friend.

She felt Tyler wrapping his arm around her waist as he pulled her closer to him. Bella glanced at him. Tyler flashed his grin and kissed her on the cheek.

"Yeah," Tyler said, "needed to get away from Seattle for a bit. And I've come to take Mike out of the town," Tyler said. "He's always whining how bored he's here but never comes to visit when I ask him to."

"He's such a baby," Angela laughed. "Always complaining how he hates working at the store but doesn't do anything that would help him to get away."

That sounded the Mike Bella knew. Tyler was a good friend trying to kick some sense into his thick skull, but it seemed that Mike didn't want any change. Maybe he was afraid to leave Forks; who knew?

"How long you're staying? Could we probably hang out some more? That would be fun, right, Paul?" Angela asked, looking at him.

Paul didn't say anything but nodded slightly, and at least he wasn't staring at her anymore. Instead, he was staring at Tyler's arm around her waist. He was so weird.

"I'm leaving Sunday, " Bella told her friend. "Tyler stays longer. I have a big chemistry exam at the end of this month, and I need to study for it."

"You like UW?" Angela asked.

"Oh yeah. I love it, and after this year, I can apply to med school." Tyler nodded and nuzzled her neck. Bella almost shoveled him away from her. It wasn't Tyler's normal behavior to be so handsy when they were around other people.

"It will be a tough year, but all worth it," Bella continued.

"I'm sure it is," Angela said.

Bella wondered what had happened to her plans to leave for college. Did she go? They lost touch after Bella moved to Seattle.

"So, what it is that you do?" she asked Angela.

"Isaac, don't do that," Angela scolded her brother, who had just wiped his messy hand on his jeans. "Use this napkin here."

Isaac took the napkin and wiped his hands and then his face. He was such a cutie, as was his twin brother. Bella smiled as she watched the boys. She noticed that Angela's boyfriend was staring at her again. It was starting to make her nervous. What was up with this guy?

"Sorry about that. Um ... I'm taking some courses in community college," Angela returned to the topic they'd discussed. "I hope to become a preschool teacher someday."

"Oh, that is lovely. You are great with kids, and you've always wanted to become a teacher."

"Yeah. But so are you. How are your plans for becoming a pediatrician coming along?"

"Long way to go, but I'll get there," Bella smiled.

"What about you, Tyler? I've heard from Eric that you're studying law."

"Yeah," Tyler answered. "It will take a few years, but that's the plan."

"What a couple you make: a doctor and a lawyer, and you two look so good together, don't they, Paul?" Angela sighed and nudged Paul's side, but he only grunted something. Had someone killed his cat? Jesus, what a grump.

"You are pretty doctor," Isaac piped in, saving them from an awkward moment. "See this." He showed her a small scar on his elbow. "It was a girl doctor who put stitches in here," he said, "but she is not as pretty as you are,"

"Oh, thank you, Isaac," Bella smiled and ruffled his hair.

The boy flashed his adorable grin at her. "Will you treat me next time I need stitches?"

Bella laughed. "You will be a big boy by the time I can be your doctor."

"I can wait. I like you,"

Angela and Bella laughed. Tyler chuckled too, but Paul's expression remained impassive.

Joshua moved and climbed to Paul's lap. "Paul, look at this card," Joshua said and showed him a wrinkled card that looked like a Pokémon card. The little boy seemed to sense that something was off with his sister's boyfriend and tried to have his attention—cute little thing.

"That's cool, Josh," he said, hardly glancing at the card or the boy. Now he was staring out at the window. His jugular in his neck was visibly pulsing rapidly, and he seemed to be highly agitated. Why was he so nervous?

"So, how did you two meet?" Bella couldn't help asking. They seemed such an unalike pair.

Angela glanced at Paul with such adoration, but Paul was staring at her again.

Angela frowned and took his hand.

Paul finally seemed to notice that Angela was trying to get his attention and gave Angela a slight smile that looked forced.

"Oh, Paul is my knight in shining armor. He saved me from two men who were trying to hurt me."

"Oh my god. That's terrible," Bella gasped. "I mean terrible that you were in danger, not that he saved you."

"It was something that anybody would have done," Paul said through gritted teeth.

Seriously what was his problem? Had she offended him in some way? Just as she was going to ask him, he bolted up.

Paul could not take it anymore. He needed to leave, or he would do something fucking stupid. He could not sit in front of his imprint and watch another man pawing her. Paul had seen how this Tyler person tried to make his claim on her. It drove him mad with jealousy. Fuck, this imprint was a mind fuck; he didn't even know her. How the fuck could he be jealous of someone touching her!?

Paul faked that he got a message. It was possible since he never had sound on his phone. Angela was always nagging about it. He moved Joshua from his lap and got up.

"Hey, Ang, I have to go. You can take my truck and drive yourself and the boys home. I'm sorry. Something came up, and Sam is coming to get me. I'll call you later," he said and left the car keys for Angela.

"But what about our lunch?" Angela shouted after him, but he didn't reply. He needed to get the hell out of there.

He ran toward the parking lot and the forest behind it. Luckily, the cars were parked behind the building, and no one saw where he went. He ran to the woods and, not caring about his clothes, phased, ripping his favorite denim jacket.

And ran.

And he ran and ran. He needed to get as far as possible and soon. His every instinct told him to run back to her and take her from that fucker. So, he ran faster.

He wanted her! He'd know from the moment he'd laid his eyes on her, or maybe even before seeing her, that she was the woman for him. But he didn't want her like this. He didn't want to do anything with the fucking imprint. The compulsion he'd seen in his pack brothers' minds. The compelling need to be whatever the imprint wanted ... It was sick.

His wolf raged inside him, demanding him to return to his imprint, but the man was who got to decide, and he kept running away.

He could run away from her, but he could not stop seeing her in his mind. Those big deep, and sparkling brown eyes with thick long lashes. Her high arched perfect eyebrows frowned when she tried to understand why he behaved like a stalkerish dick. Oh, how he had wanted to kiss that frown away. Trail his lips down her straight nose to her high cheekbones and kiss that little scar on her chin before devouring those pink and moist lips.

Mine, his wolf growled.

Fuck you. She's not yours.

He would not accept the imprint. No matter how gorgeous and alluring his imprint was. He would never want her because of the imprint. He would never want her to want him because of that mind fuck.

Mine!

What was that? Came Sam's voice.

Fuck! Paul had been happy that no one had been phased, but he hadn't blocked his mind soon enough. Sam hadn't seen much, but he'd seen enough.

Paul, You imprinted!

There was no reason to decline.

Yes.

Fuck Paul! That's great. Who's the lucky lady?

Fuck you, Sam! It doesn't matter. I won't accept it.

That bad?

Paul's wolf growled and flashed Bella's face to their mental link.

Whoa, take it easy, lover boy, she's hot. Is that... holy shit, is it Bella Swan, Jacob's Bella?

Fuck she's not Jacob's.

No, she's yours.

Fuck she is. I won't accept the imprint.

You don't have a choice, Paul. You know it.

Fuck you!

But you want her. I can feel that you SO want her.

I don't want the imprint.

You're not making any sense, Paul. You can have her. What the fuck does it matter if it's an imprint?

It's not real.

It is real Paul.

Hell, it is.

Paul had to get out of Sam's head. He'd come across a deep river and phased out. He waded into the water and dove under the surface. He needed to clear his head, which was full of Bella Swan's beautiful face.

He got out of the water and laid down on the ground. Fuck he was confused. This was what he had feared and hoped would never happen, yet he felt thrilled and so fucking ecstatic about finding his match. His dick was rock hard, and he fought the urge to grab it and jerk off thinking of her. Those moist lips around his dick, him fucking her long and hard against the tree...

"FUCK!" he shouted.

What the fuck had Sam meant by Jacob's Bella? Bella had mentioned that they were friends. Was it possible that Jacob had been crushing on Bella before he imprinted on that Amanda girl? Paul tried to remember if he had ever seen Bella in Jacob's mind, but Jacob had always been excellent at shielding his mind as the rightful future alpha of the pack should be. So, if he had fantasized about her, Paul hadn't seen it. And thank fuck for that; he didn't need his wolf wanting to rip his future alpha's head off. It had taken all control and strength he had to keep him from killing the Tyler prick at the café.

What the fuck was he going to do?

He laid on the ground, his eyes closed, settling his breathing and trying not to see Bella. But it was no use; all he saw was her.

Then he decided he wasn't going to do anything. He would show his wolf and everybody in the fucking pack that he, Paul Lahote, would not give into imprinting. Oh, he wanted Bella; he could feel it deep in his bone marrow. But not like this. And the last thing he wanted was Bella to feel obligated to want him because of this magic shit. Because that's what the fucking imprinting was all about: free will taken away. He didn't give a damn if some ancient spirits were right, and the person pointed to you was your perfect match. He was going to fight it and get the girl as regular guys did.

But now he was dating Angela, which was precisely what he continued to do because that was what he chose to do. Fuck the rest.

His wolf crawled inside, but he didn't care. Angela had become less tempting even for the man, and he could not remember her face because all he could see was Bella. But it was Paul Lahote who decided who he was dating, nobody else.

With that thought in mind, he phased back and ran home. He had a late lunch date to catch up.

AN:

Thank you so much for your comments, favs, and follows. It is great to hear that you want to read more.