The workday seemed to drag on forever. Every time the cell phone buzzed, Leah would grab it in a panic. Each time she checked it, she was instantly disappointed as she got no word from Hodie. He had told Leah that she would not hear from him. However, it did not keep her from hoping. By the end of the day, she was again exhausted and had no desire to sleep in her own bed. She walked from the garage to the house, practically tripping over her own feet.

Jogging toward her, Jacob yelled, "Sis, wait!" As he caught up to her, he said, "Sweetie, you're exhausted. Why the hell did you sleep outside last night, anyway?"

Leah complained, "I can't take my tiny fucking bed anymore. I have to get a new one and my own damn place. Plus, I was upset, and I didn't want to be there. I'm starting to hate that fucking room. There are just so many memories."

Jacob sighed and said, "I understand what you mean. That's why I was sleeping in the garage …"

Interrupting him, Leah said, "I'm glad you guys worked that shit out." After the dreams and the last few days, she did not want to think about the destroyed old couch.

Jacob said, "Well, I hope you work shit out too, Lee. I like Hodie. I hope he's safe."

Leah frowned, nodding. She asked, "What the hell was Paul so cheerful about this morning?"

Jacob grimaced and said, "Let's just say he and Rach are getting along really well right now. Plus, he was genuinely concerned about you."

Leah chuckled and said, "I've been hearing that a lot lately."

Jacob ushered her toward the door and said, "So? You need a new bed, huh?" They stepped inside and found Bella silently shedding tears in the kitchen as Emily was preparing to leave.

Jacob immediately rushed to her side. He said, "Hey, hey. Are you okay, honey? What's wrong?"

She groaned in frustration as she stood and buried her face in his chest. He wrapped his arms around Bella and rubbed her back to soothe her. When she didn't say anything, he looked up at Emily curiously.

Emily smiled at Bella sympathetically and said, "The house is ready. She is sad they're moving out."

Bella complained, "I've taken care of Ethan every day since he was born."

Jacob chuckled and said, "Honey, he's gonna be here every day while Embry is at work,"

Emily said, "I think she's just going to miss them being here, too." Bella nodded silently, her face still buried in Jacob's chest. Emily pulled her purse strap over her shoulder and gently squeezed Leah's hand as she passed by her. "Sam works tomorrow, and the babies will be here with me. Come see them?"

Leah smiled at her cousin and nodded in agreement. Bella sat back down as Emily left, and Jacob eyed Leah, smirking.

She asked, "What? You're cooking up some plans over there. I can see the smoke coming out of your ears."

Grinning, Jacob admitted, "I do have some ideas, but I would kind of like to see what we all sort of think … collectively. I'm still orchestrating a plan here, but..."

Leah laughed bitterly and said, "Round 'em up, Jake. I guess we should tell everyone else what is going on anyway."

Jacob said, "If Paul hasn't already,"

Sniffling, Bella looked up at Leah. She asked, "What's going on? What's wrong?"

Jacob said, "I'm going to go wash the grease off and make some calls." Bella watched him walk away before looking back at Leah.

Leah said, "Hodie's on the run from a vamp. He took off last night. I don't have a clue when I'll see or hear from him."

Incredulously, Bella asked, "Why the hell wouldn't he come here?"

Leah said, "Actually, if I have to tell everyone again later, can we just … do all of that then?"

Bella looked at Leah appraisingly and sighed. Sadly, she asked, "You're absolutely exhausted again, aren't you?"

Leah nodded, blinking back frustrated tears. She reached across the table to grab a muffin and tore it in half. "Starving, too," she said. "Jacob told me to come to get food this morning, and I should have listened. When lunchtime rolled around later, I was too anxious."

Bella got up and went to the fridge to retrieve a sandwich wrapped in cellophane and a can of soda. She slid both of them across the table to Leah, who smiled gratefully in return. Bella left the room to check on the kids, leaving Leah to eat in silence. Leah had just finished when Bella finally came back into the room carrying a happy Sarah. Bella handed Sarah over, and Leah said, "There's my monster."

The sound of car doors shutting outside had Bella up in a flash, looking out to see who it was. Bella warned, "I didn't know Jacob had already called everyone, but the cavalry has arrived."

Leah made a face at Sarah and said, "Ew. Boys."

Sarah squealed back happily and laid her head on Leah's shoulder. Leah was surprised as Charlie and Sue walked into the house, followed by half of the pack. Sarah immediately sat up and shrieked for her grandpa, who immediately swiped her out of Leah's arms.

Leah laughed and said, "What am I? Chopped liver?"

Charlie beamed as Bella giggled and said, "She is a Grandpa's girl, for sure." It was another twenty minutes or so before everyone had arrived and gathered into the living room. Jacob looked up toward the door grinning at the sound of Emmett's booming laugh. Rose followed him into the room, silently pulling leaves from her hair.

Leah said, "You guys ran all the way here? We could have just Facetimed or something." Rose rolled her eyes and walked over to hug Jacob.

Jacob let Leah explain Hodie's situation and what had happened the night before. Charlie and Sue remained silent, nodding in agreement as Embry admitted he was suspicious of the timing. Jacob finally spoke up, informing them of a possible plan. First, he asked, "Leah, did you call to quit the club yet?"

Leah shook her head no. She had considered it multiple times throughout the day, unsure of what she should do. "I figured I would finish out the weekend. They will already be short-handed with Hodie gone. He's their best bartender. I was going to talk to Tom about it in person tomorrow. I really do like that job and the people I work with." Leah shot a dirty look toward Quil and said, "I don't want to fuck them over."

Jacob looked around the room cautiously and said, "Well ... I don't think you should quit just yet. If you can handle it, that is."

Quil asked, "What do you have in mind, Jake?"

Jacob said, "Well, Leah is going to be busier this month with the wedding plans coming together." Sue nodded in agreement, winking at her daughter. Jacob continued, "I'm thinking we can kill a few birds with one stone here. Leah needs a new bed, for one. She's not sleeping well. Hodie said he was worried about this vamp targeting her by her working at the club."

Incredulously, Quil asked, "You want to use her for bait, don't you?" He glared at Jacob angrily, shaking his head.

Jacob said, "Look, if this vamp is watching Leah or the club instead of chasing after Hodie, it buys him some time to run. If the vamp is watching Leah, it is reasonable to assume he could follow her to LaPush at any given time."

Emmett piped in, "But, we can all keep an eye on her. She can crash at the guest house to get some sleep when she works at the club, and if this fucker shows up, we can get him."

Jacob pointed at Emmett excitedly and said, "Yes! Precisely."

Quil asked, "What about the rest of their friends at the club? It will look suspicious as hell for one of us to be waiting around for Leah outside all night. Most of them will likely recognize at least half of us."

Embry muttered, "Uh, yeah. One of us, anyway."

Leah snickered as Charlie grumbled, "Don't start, boys."

Rose said, "We don't really have to do that. Alice and Jasper should be home from their trip in a few days. We all really liked the club, and Alice is friendly with some staff now. I doubt any of us would mind pretending to just enjoy the place for a few hours."

Leah smiled up at Rose gratefully. She had no qualms with this plan. She said, "I wish Hodie would have just listened. I told him we could do these same things to protect him, but he insisted it would not work. This particular vampire doesn't try to hurt him. It hurts his loved ones. To punish him." Leah turned back to her parents and said, "I told you guys. He's a good man. He ran this time to protect all of us, despite what he knows we can do to keep him safe. He's not worried about himself at all."

Jacob said, "Well, this is one more part of this plan that might make things a little… tighter around here." Everyone turned to look at him uneasily, and he let out a nervous laugh. "Seth is almost eighteen and needs some more responsibilities," Jacob said, making Seth groan. Sue smiled, patting her son on the back. She had been asking Jacob for months to find things to keep Seth productive. He had made some friends outside of the pack, and while he was good at keeping what he was a secret, he wasn't as adept at keeping himself above some of their negative influences. Sue hoped having more responsibility would give him less time to hang out on the beach with his new stoner crowd. She was afraid he would turn out like his father if he didn't. Charlie was none too thrilled about some of Seth's new friends, either, though he rarely interfered in what Sue decided was best for her son.

Jacob said, "Colin still has not phased, but he and Brady both are showing signs. I think Colin could honestly phase any day, and we will have even more pack members before we know it. The point is, I'm taking Leah off the patrol schedules. Effective immediately."

Seth, Paul, and Jared simultaneously yelled, "What?" Leah was speechless. She had not expected this suggestion at all.

Jacob said. "Hear me out, guys. Emily is back to work. There will be four babies here every day instead of two. More will be coming within the next several months. We all already have an agreement about this." He looked up at Leah and added, "Assuming you still want to help out with this little makeshift daycare this is going to turn into, around here."

Leah said, "I do, but that is not exactly safe with this thing watching me. Wouldn't it be safer for me to be out there with the rest of the pack?"

Emmett said, "You would be too guarded, then. Bait has to look vulnerable without actually being accessible."

Jacob chuckled and said, "It would be good for us to get used to you not doing patrols unless absolutely necessary. I planned to stop them soon anyway after the, uh, discussion we had a while back. You do a great deal around here as it is. Rather than add to your responsibilities, I think we can swing it so that you are basically trading one job for another."

Seth grumbled, "But I will be doing two more Patrol days in the meantime."

Paul barked out a loud laugh and said, "Honestly, Seth, what else have you got to do besides spending your free time playing video games and getting stoned on the beach with your new butt-buddies?"

Leah gaped in surprise as Quil smacked Paul upside the back of his head. Quil spat, "Don't fucking pick on the kid." Quil winked at Seth before looking over at Leah. She smiled back at him gratefully.

Fuming, Seth glared at Paul, crossed his arms over his chest, and slumped back against the couch. He hissed, "Thank you, Quil. Paul, you say some really offensive crap sometimes, you know that?"

Leah had to fight back another laugh. She was proud to see her kind, forgiving little brother standing up for himself more often. He was more open-minded and mature than the others gave him credit for. He always had been.

Surprisingly, Paul softened toward Seth and said, "Dude, you know I'm just kidding, right? I would never actually be mean to your friends." As Seth calmed, Paul laughed and teased, "At least not until I know them better."

Taking back the conversation, Jacob said, "So. Leah, you can phase when you want or whatever. You can patrol if you want, but you won't be scheduled for it anymore. And, if you are ready to stop phasing altogether, that is your choice. I would maybe wait until this situation is taken care of so you can protect yourself." When some of the other pack members began grumbling at the same time, Jacob said, "This is just an idea, guys. We are all here to discuss this shit. I think we should just test it out and see how it goes. I also want you all to consider the kind of mental and physical stress you would be under if your imprint was in Hodie's shoes and you had no contact with them at all."

His words brought instant silence to the room as numerous pack members looked around at each other guiltily. Even Quil looked depressed by the thought, despite how he felt about imprinting on Claire. Charlie and Sue, however, were smiling at Jacob with pride, happy to know Jacob had all of their best interests at heart.

Embry was the first to speak up as he said, "I'm for it. Let's kill this fucker and bring Hodie home."

Quil surprised Leah as he leaned over to place his hand on her shoulder and smiled down at her. He said, "I'll support whatever you want to do. It doesn't matter how I feel about you and Hodie. If Claire was in danger, you would protect her. I'll help protect Hodie for you."

Silent tears spilled out as she stared up at Quil gratefully and said, "Thank you."

Paul groaned at the sight of her tears and said, "Fuck it. I'm in." He pointed at Leah and added, "If it keeps me from having to worry about your dumbass doing stupid shit, I'm in. Just don't teach my kids to cuss me when they get here."

Leah brushed tears away as she laughed and said, "You will do that all by yourself, brother."

Nodding, Paul shrugged and said, "Shit, Rachel, too."

Jacob asked, "So, are we all on the same page? Everything is business as usual except Seth picks up Leah's patrol hours. Meanwhile, we all keep an eye out, just in case this vamp sticks around to cause trouble."

Leah said, "I also have another vamp acquaintance of sorts. He lives in the patch of woods behind the club somewhere. He's indigenous, and we have spoken briefly. I was thinking of asking him to keep an eye out for anything weird, too."

Suspiciously, Jacob glanced toward Rose and asked, "What's his name?"

Leah laughed and said, "I don't have a damn clue. But he crosses the parking lot walking home every night. His eyes are yellow, and I've never seen him so much as look at, let alone talk to anyone besides me when he walks through. He seems to really like being alone."

Quil piped in, "I have another idea." He grinned nervously as they all turned to look at him. "They are short a bartender and a bouncer right now. One of us could maybe..."

Firmly, Leah argued, "No. No way. I don't want the pack actually working there with me. No."

Quil huffed and asked, "Why?"

Leah said, "Because it just crosses too many lines. I can't even imagine you guys getting all psycho because I have to wrestle some asshole out the front door. That's why I like this job. I don't get treated like I'm weaker because I'm a chick. I don't have you, Sam, or hell, even Jacob knocking me out of the way instead of letting me hold my own."

Quil said, "Look, it was just a suggestion. I - we are all going to worry about you, you know?"

Emmett laughed and said, "Bro, seriously? You think we can't protect her?"

Quil laughed and shook his head. "That's not what I'm saying at all, man."

Paul teased, "Quil is just afraid Leah might fart without him waiting around to smell it because he loves her."

There was collective laughter among the rest of the pack, and Emmett teased, "Oh, is that all?" Leah covered her face in embarrassment and groaned as her mother glared at Quil.

Putting an end to the meeting, Jacob said, "So, we have a plan, then? You guys can head on out. We are gonna have to play it by ear from here."

All but Emmett, Rose, and Quil left immediately. Embry went over to quietly speak with Jacob and Emmett as they began laughing conspiratorially in the corner of the room. Leah followed her parents outside and waited for them to leave before sitting on the picnic table and lighting a cigarette.

Quil asked, "Still won't smoke in front of your mom, huh?"

Leah looked up as Quil sat down beside her. She said, "Yeah, she doesn't like it. Dad's heart attack and all."

Quil chuckled and said, "She would shit if she ever caught Charlie." Leah looked over at him suspiciously. Quil said, "I've seen you two out on the porch late at night a few times. Drunken father-daughter bonding time."

Leah stuck her tongue out at him and said, "Nice. You're such a snoop."

Quil laughed and said, "Please, like you're not?"

Leah shrugged and chuckled through her cloud of smoke. Quil reached over to hold her hand, threading her much smaller fingers through his. Leah looked down at their clasped hands and back up at Quil suspiciously. Soft green eyes stared back at her affectionately, the dimples beside his smile nearly her undoing. As usual, the following pang of guilt slammed her as she thought of Hodie. She could not seem to be around Quil without feeling guilty anymore. She turned away from him, frowning.

Quietly, Leah asked, "Quil, what are you doing?"

He said, "You already know how much I care about you. Right now, I'm just trying to be your friend, Leah."

Despite the honesty, she could read on his face, his choice of words irritated her. Leah scowled at him and said, "You said you don't want to be my friend. Remember?"

Quil said, "You know that isn't how I meant it, Leelee."

Looking away from him, Leah asked, "Is that what you were doing when you sent that shit to Charlie? Being my friend?"

Quil said, "Believe it or not, yeah. It was. I care about you and your safety. What would you do if I started seeing someone that was a potential killer?"

Leah said, "We are killers, Quil. Vampires are still people. I mean, the Cullens have proved that to us, over and over again. Some vampires are psycho, just like some humans are. It's like," Leah paused as she tried to think of the best example. She said, "Not every Pitbull will be violent just because some of them are raised to be violent. We're the fucking Pitbulls, Quil. Look at fucking Emily."

Quil quipped, "Are you calling Sam a bad dog?"

Leah put out her cigarette and laughed. If the woods could talk. She asked, "What the hell was I saying?"

Quil teased, "I don't know, Leelee, I tuned out somewhere around 'we are killers." Leah leaned into him, laughing. She was so tired, she felt damn near giddy. It was nice to be having a peaceful moment with Quil, in any circumstance. Those moments had been few and far between for too long.

The back door swung open as Jacob, Rose, and Emmett emerged. Emmett grinned at Leah and said, "I hear you need a bed, babe." Rose cleared her throat, and Emmett grinned at her sheepishly. "Sorry, Babe," he muttered. Leah turned her face into Quil's shoulder, laughing. It was either that or cry. She couldn't look into Emmett's face any longer when all she could see in it now was Hodie. Emmett said, "So anyway, what size bed did you want?"

Leah glanced up at him in surprise and said, "Huh? You guys just got me a car. I can buy a bed. What I need you guys to do is build me a house back here in the woods so I can just walk my ass to work." She grinned as the others burst out laughing.

Quil let out a surprised laugh and nodded. "I had a similar thought," he admitted. "Get the hell out of my mom's."

Leah teased, "You? Pay bills and give up your freebies from the store? What?"

"Ha. Ha," Quil said sarcastically and nudged her with his shoulder.

The swaying motion it caused made her dizzy for a moment. Leah rubbed her face and said, "Fuck, guys. I'm so goddamn tired."

Jacob said, "You know where the bed is. Go to sleep."

Rose reached out to support her for a moment as Leah stood uneasily and said, "Fuckin' A." After saying goodnight to the others, she walked into the house. Leah paused to kiss Bella's cheek as she passed her in the hallway.

Bella asked, "Staying here?"

Leah said, "Yep." She sought out clean sleepwear, walked back to Billy's room, and shut the door behind her. When she finished changing clothes, Leah glanced up at the mirror. The memory of Hodie in this room with her slammed her, followed by overwhelming grief. Leah's body began to ache, a pain so deep that it stole the last of her energy. She suddenly felt very, very heavy and weak. The flood of tears was instant as she released a broken sob. Leah crawled into bed and buried her face in a pillow to muffle her cries. She was curled up in a ball, still sobbing a while later. She was so lost in her grief that she barely heard the door as it slowly opened and someone entered the room. "Who's there," she croaked, unwilling to open her eyes.

"Darlin?" Leah sat up quickly, her eyes wide as Hodie stood in the doorway. She wanted to jump up and run to him, but her body still felt so weak. The blanket across her legs weighed down on her like lead as she struggled to push it away. Hodie waited patiently, giving her a smile that made her melt on the spot. A figure appeared out of the darkness behind him, its face hidden under a hood.

Leah yelled, "Hodie, move away!" To her horror, the figure behind him reached for the sides of Hodie's head. Hodie's eyes widened in alarm, and his arms shot forward, reaching out for Leah. He gasped just before his head was whipped sideways. Leah screamed at the sound of cracking bones as his neck snapped. There was fear on his face and a gurgling in his throat. His arms dropped heavily to his sides, and he collapsed to his knees. Leah watched the life leaving his ocean eyes as he fell face-first to the floor, dead. Leah screamed for Jacob and fell out of bed, wailing with grief. She looked up toward the cloaked figure in fury as she scrambled to pull Hodie's body against her, embracing him. His lifeless head rolled back in her arms. The blue of his irises grew lighter as he stared at nothing. Leah wanted to cradle him against her, to hold him until the warmth left his body. The figure stayed hidden in the shadows of the hallway, pointing at her as she screamed again for Jacob. Suddenly, the room was dark, and Leah was back in bed. Her face was wet from the tears she had cried, either before falling asleep or during the horrific nightmare Leah just had.

I don't even remember falling asleep, she thought groggily. Leah sat up and wiped the tears from her face. She looked down at the floor where Hodie had died in front of her, struggling to keep it together. Leah got up to check her phone, hoping he had at least let her know he was alright. She was disappointed to find nothing and made her way to the bathroom. Leah was crawling back into bed as someone knocked on the door. She covered her lower body up quickly and said, "Come in."

Quil hovered in the doorway, looking concerned. He asked, "Are you okay? You were crying in your sleep. I heard you get up and just wanted to check on you before I go home."

Still trying to wrap her mind around it, Leah said, "I'm fine. I dreamed Hodie died. Right here, too. It was so real."

He gaped at her in horror for a second and asked, "Are you sure you are okay?"

Leah lied, "I'll be fine. I just have to try to go back to sleep now." After a dream like that, she feared it would not be easy despite how exhausted she felt.

Quil asked, "Do you want me to stay with you until you fall back to sleep?" Leah looked back up at Quil in surprise, and he gave her a sympathetic smile. His offer was genuine, without an ounce of patronizing or teasing behind it.

Hesitantly, she asked, "You really wouldn't mind?" Though it was probably not the wisest idea, the thought of laying there alone and thinking about Hodie's lifeless body on the floor made her stomach churn. Quil took off his shoes and shut the door behind him. Leah laid down and got comfortable on her side before Quil laid on top of the blanket facing her. Leah buried her face against his chest and whispered, "Thank you."

Quil leaned to lightly kiss her forehead before hugging her against him and said, "Anytime." Leah was asleep almost as soon as she closed her eyes.

Leah woke later and instantly groaned over her aching head. She walked to the bathroom, rinsed her mouth out, and washed the sleep from her face. Her eyes were red and sore, swollen above with dark circles underneath. Upon closer inspection, Leah spotted light bruising on her throat. While she had not particularly cared about her appearance the day before, she was surprised that no one had said anything about them then.

Surely, they had been much darker yesterday, she thought. Leah dressed for the day and walked into the kitchen. She was greeted with a wide smile from her Alpha.

"Hey," Jacob said affectionately before taking a drink of his coffee. Quil and Embry sat across from him at the table, looking as tired as Leah felt.

Quil asked, "How are you feeling?"

Leah complained, "Uh, like hell frozen and reheated a few times." Her mouth watered as she poured herself a cup of coffee and the smell invaded her senses. She said, "My head is pounding. Where is Bells?"

Jacob said, "She's in bed." Leah sat down with her coffee and snagged a muffin from the ever-filled bowl on the table.

Quill snickered and said, "I ate two of those this morning already."

Leah glanced out the window at the low morning light. She turned back to Quil and asked, "How long have you been here? Did you get any sleep at all?"

Quil said, "You don't remember?"

Leah said, "I remember you staying until I fell asleep again, but I figured you left at some point."

Quil glanced at the others and back to her cautiously and asked, "Do you remember the nightmare?"

Leah's face fell immediately. Of course, she remembered. It felt so real, not unlike the memory dreams she was prone to having. Leah nodded silently, shoving another chunk of muffin in her mouth.

Quil said, "You kept having it, I think. You woke up frantic when I got up to leave. I laid there a while longer to let you get into a deeper sleep. I got up and was walking out the door when you started screaming."

Leah gaped at him in surprise before turning to Jacob and Embry apologetically as she said, "Guys, the kids. I am so sorry."

Jacob held his hand up to quiet her. He said, "You don't need to apologize. No one can control that shit, Sis."

Embry said, "Honestly, it's not like everyone around here isn't used to Bells screaming from nightmares once in a while. Last night was the first time she has been the one woken up by someone else doing it, though."

Leah sighed and said, "Poor Bells."

Jacob chuckled and said, "I think she finally understands why I get so clingy when she wakes up screaming. I had to drag her back to bed. Bella was damn near ready to kick Quil out and cuddle you herself."

Leah laughed and asked, "Why does that not surprise me?" She turned to Quil and said, "Thank you. I don't remember anything after you laid down by me the first time. I'm sorry I kept everyone awake."

Quil said, "Well, it kind of makes sense, I think. You have memories in that room with Hodie, and you are worried about him."

Embry teased, "You actually have a point there, numbnuts. I'm proud of you."

Quil laughed and said, "Shut the fuck up, Embry."

Jacob nudged Leah with his elbow and said, "Emmett is buying you a bed today."

Leah asked, "Seriously? Where the hell am I gonna put it? My room is a closet."

Embry grinned and said, "In our old room. Angie and I are moving out this weekend."

Jacob said, "We decided to put a bed for you in that room so you can stay when you want and not have to worry about being in Billy's room. When you get your own place eventually, you can just take it with you."

Leah reached over to squeeze Jacob's hand affectionately. She said, "That is really fucking awesome of you guys, Jake. Thank you. Can I at least pay someone back for the damn bed?"

Jacob laughed and said, "You're basically a Cullen now, Leah. You might as well get used to it."

Embry asked, "So what happened in the nightmare?" The others turned to stare at him, and he shrugged. "What? I want to know."

Leah scoffed and smiled despite herself. She said, "I dreamed I was sleeping in that room, and Hodie appeared at the door. Before I could get out of bed, this figure showed up behind him and snapped his neck. Hodie was on the floor … Then he was just dead in my arms. I felt so fucking angry and helpless. And then, this creepy fuck that killed him points at me, and I woke up."

Jacob said, "I gotta say, Lee, I'm not really thrilled you dreamed that fucker was in my house. When Bella has dreams like that, they're warnings."

Leah said, "Well, maybe it means we are on the right track with our plan."

Quil said, "Maybe it means that Hodie is too, though. If he comes here now, someone could end up hurt. Even him. We gotta find this fucker and kill it first." He reached across the table and squeezed Leah's hand affectionately. She did not let go.

Leah said, "Quil, I know this can't be very easy or comfortable for you, and I just want to say thank you for being supportive right now."

"I'm not doing it for Hodie," Quil said honestly.

"I know," Leah said and stared down at the table, unable to meet his stare. She finally let go of his hand and sighed before standing to clean up her mess.

Jacob said, "You can go back to sleep if you want. We're opening the garage late today, and you are going to need to be alert at the club tonight." Jacob turned to look at Quil and said, "You, too. You both can just skip work today and sleep."

Leah asked, "Quil is coming with me tonight? Are we sure that's wise?"

Jacob said, "He's going to hang out with Emmett and Rose for a while and then keep an eye on the place from a distance. I know the situation with you two has its hiccups, but Quil obviously comforts you in a way most of us can't. If anything happens tonight, it could be best if Quil is with you. For the first few nights, at least."

Leah said, "What am I supposed to say to the people there that already know who he is?"

Quil said, "You don't have to say anything, Leah. You should probably just ignore me, in fact. Let them think I came of my own accord. You can even drop me off around the block or something so that no one sees me arrive and leave with you if you prefer."

Leah groaned and said, "God, I wonder what they're all fucking saying already. He quit yesterday. They are probably all wondering if I will even show up tonight."

Jacob said, "Well, all the more reason for you to go. They need to know Hodie taking off didn't have anything to do with you."

Leah asked, "Doesn't that defeat the purpose of what we're trying to do? We want this vamp to come for me, right?"

Jacob said, "Be suspicious and follow you, maybe. Not come directly for you, Leah. We need to do this carefully to keep Hodie safe, too. We have to do this in a way where he can effectively get far away, too. You know if he found out something happened to you, he might risk himself coming back here. We don't want that until he's safe, so you have to be very careful."

Quil grumbled, "Plus, if you get hurt on my watch, Paul will definitely kick me in the dick."

Leah huffed and asked, "Why the hell is he so worried about my well-being all of a sudden?"

Quil chuckled and asked, "You really still don't understand Paul at all, do you?"

Leah admitted, "No, I don't. He's an asshole to me most of the time. It's almost been like culture shock for him to be so fucking nice lately. It feels like I'm in some alternate universe." The others all laughed at her admission, nodding.

Quil said, "He is a dick to people he actually likes. He cares about you a lot, Leah. Paul just doesn't know how to really show affection. It comes out snarky instead. You two sort of have that in common."

Leah scoffed and asked, "Since when are you the Paul expert?"

Quil said, "Eh, he felt bad after busting up my face since Sam beat my ass, too. We have been hanging out a bit more lately."

Leah teased, "What the hell would you and Paul even do together besides chase skirts on the beach."

Quil smirked and said, "We find shit to do."

Jacob cleared his throat awkwardly and stood to put his coffee mug in the dishwasher. "I'm gonna go nap by Bells for a bit," Jacob said happily. "Before our little monster gets up."

Embry asked, "You just drank like four cups of coffee. How the hell can you possibly be tired?"

Jacob chuckled and said, "I drink coffee all the time. I'm just used to it now. See you guys in a few hours, I hope." He sprinted down the hallway toward his bedroom.

Embry muttered, "Nap my ass. Gonna go fuck the shit out of Bells is what he's doing." The sound of Jacob's radio turning on had them all trying to control their laughter as he nodded smugly. "Those two have sex so much, I'm surprised Bella doesn't squeak when she walks."

Leah was coughing, choking on her laughter. When she finally calmed down again, she sighed. For a moment, Leah felt more relaxed than she had in days.

Embry grinned as she told him, "I really needed that laugh. I guess I'll go try to sleep again," she said and yawned. She was hesitant, however, to go back to the bedroom alone. Leah looked down the hall toward Billy's bedroom anxiously.

"Come on," Quil said softly, grabbing her hand.

Leah eyed him suspiciously but followed him as he led the way to the living room. He let go of her hand to lay down on the couch. Once he was comfortable, he held his arms out for her to join him. Leah hesitated again, looking back toward the hallway.

Quil said, "I know it's not our couch, but maybe you'll sleep better out here for now." Her heart fluttered in her chest at the mention of their couch. It had been their favorite place to be together, where she had slept in his arms for the first time. Leah worried about the message she might be sending. She had already spent nearly every minute since Hodie left at Quil's side.

How the hell will that appear to Hodie when I eventually see him again? She tried to push her selfish, guilty thoughts aside and wondered where Hodie was now.

Softly, Quil said, "It's just sleep, sweetheart. You are not doing anything wrong." It was as if he had plucked the worry straight from her mind. Leah took a calming breath and carefully crawled onto the couch next to Quil. His arms wrapped around her securely as she buried her face against his neck. It wasn't long at all before Leah was sleeping peacefully. This time, she did not dream.

Thoughts? Please review! Pretty please?