We Touched the Sun
"Holy shit, this is the place?" Paul said as Jared pulled up the drive to the large house nestled among the trees. Already, tons of cars lined the drive and Paul was beginning to wonder just where Jared intended to park.
That and he had seen the McLaren house before when it was an abandoned dump and he almost couldn't believe this was the same place. How the hell had they been able to fix it up as quickly as they did? Must be really rich. Like, richer than the Cullens rich.
Thankfully as they pulled up into the driveway in front of the large house, there was enough room, though Paul felt like his eyes would bug out. It was just as big as the Cullens', but seemed grander in a way, appearing more English manor than a house.
"I know, right? Who thought you could fix up the McLaren place?" Jared said with a chuckle as he parked and the two got out.
To the left was a large detached garage that connected to the main house by an awning with more cars parked back behind it. Paul could feel the thump of bass and while the front of the house was lit up, it seemed like there were strobe lights or something going on inside.
"Right, well… let's see what Embry and Quil are getting on about," Jared said with a grin as he pushed the door open. "And maybe find your imprint…"
When they walked in and stopped at the edge of the room for a moment, Paul thought he was in a club. Just in front of them was a large, open space that seemed to have been cleared of the furniture just for the party. There were flashing lights, pumping music, and far more people there than he thought even lived in the area.
Apparently these parties were popular.
For a moment, Paul felt the same tingling he got at the shop come over him. His eyes roved through the crowd of dancers, searching for the source. But before he could spend too much time looking, Jared had thumped him on the chest and motioned for him to follow.
They made their way along the edge of the crowd, Jared finding a bar off to the side in front of a large fireplace.
"Shit, how much alcohol do you think is here?" he asked, looking back at Paul.
Paul took in the numerous bottles of everything from tequila to rum and vodka, and then looked around the room, seeing nearly everyone with a cup in hand. There were obviously others around elsewhere.
"Rich people," he said dryly as Jared turned back to the bar and quickly poured Coke for himself and made up another drink for Paul, holding it out to him once he was finished.
They then turned back to watch the party, Paul sipping at his drink. He didn't recognize a lot of people and assumed most were from Forks, though he saw plenty of others from La Push. Though, where were Embry and Quil?
"When did you guys get here?!"
Paul looked over, seeing Jacob walk up, looking as though he'd rather be anywhere else. Great. Of all the people to run into here. Already he felt the mood sink as he took in Jacob's scowl and the suspicion in his eyes.
"Where's Embry and Quil?" Jared shouted over the music. Jacob rolled his eyes, looked over and pointed towards the crowded dance floor.
Paul looked over, finally finding Embry through a break in the crowd, his hands roaming up the mostly bare back of some girl with red (at least he thought it was red - the lights, man), wavy hair tucked over her shoulder and a large tattoo of fairy wings on her back.
While he normally would snort at that, he found it hard to look away from her, the tingling getting stronger.
He then took a drink, and forced himself to look away, but found his eyes being drawn back to Embry and the girl. There was something about the way she moved with the music that was entrancing. He noticed there were other guys watching her as well, a few moving closer, as though they were waiting for the second that Embry let her go. A spike of possessiveness hit Paul, which he didn't understand. He didn't know her - hadn't even seen her face - so why was he suddenly feeling so protective?
Unless Jared was right. And Embry currently had his paws all over his imprint. The desire to walk over to them and push the younger wolf away from her was almost too strong to ignore.
She currently had her arms wrapped around Embry's neck and went up on her toes and said something into his ear. He laughed and looked down at her as though she walked on water. He then looked over and saw them. Looking back down at her, he said something and then they were walking over.
Paul looked over at Jared, finding he was still watching Embry with an amused look.
"I mean, I know he didn't imprint on her, but it's hard to tell with that goofy look on his face," he replied, looking over at Paul. He snorted in response.
"He's probably drunk," Paul replied, looking back at them, finding the girl was hidden behind Embry as he walked up, which wasn't all that hard. While she was tall in her own right, Embry was easily 6'4 and towered over even Paul.
"Finally you got your asses here. Now, may I introduce our hostess… Roisin," he said as he stepped aside and pulled the girl up.
As soon as Paul locked eyes with her, he knew it was game over. And that Embry was going to be pissed as hell.
Even though she had an arm wrapped around Embry's waist, he saw the slight widening of her eyes - which were the color of the summer sky. Her mouth dropped open slightly and Paul could almost feel her heartbeat pick up. Or maybe that was his. For a moment all he saw was her. And the future before him. Protecting her. Being with her. Kissing her. Holding her. Comforting her. Whoever this Roisin was.
For a moment, Paul swore the heat in the room picked up. In a manner of seconds, he already felt a bit sweaty and the desire to pull off his shirt was strong for some reason. But that was quickly replaced by the image of her body pressed against his. Kissing her. Ripping off all their clothing.
He yanked his eyes away from her at that point, wondering just what the hell had come over him. Yea, he was no saint and all, but this was next level. And he was pretty sure when the others imprinted, it hadn't been like this - the sudden and intense rush of desire for his imprint. Even if he had somehow managed to hide it while they were phased, Jared definitely would have mentioned something. The man overshared on a regular basis.
Or maybe this was just how it was for him. Paul had always been a ladies' man and gotten around before all the leech shit put a stop to it by forcing him to focus on that. And he was more hot-blooded, impulsive and quick-tempered than the others. In that regard, he supposed it made sense that he would have this immediate reaction to seeing his imprint for the first time. Didn't help that she truly was gorgeous with legs that went on for days, a slender, yet curvy build and lips that were begging to be kissed. God, he really wanted to touch her right now.
"That's Paul and Jared," he heard Embry say.
"Nice to meet you," he heard a breathless voice as sweet as honey reply.
Oh shit. He was really a goner. He needed to get out of here. Preferably with her, but even though he couldn't care two wits about Embry's love life and they were in different packs, he knew it would only make things worse if he grabbed her and ran off, then fucked her brains out while Embry was in the other room.
Paul took a deep breath, somehow calming his raging hormones, and managed to look back over, finding she was still watching him, a curious look on her face. He took another deep breath and was overwhelmed by the smell of honeysuckle as his mind filled with images of the summer sun going down over the ocean. Fireworks. He could almost feel the summer heat on his skin.
He was vaguely aware that the others were talking, but all he could do was stare into her eyes.
Suddenly, she let go of Embry and stepped towards him. Before he could register what was happening, she grabbed his arm - shit, she was strong - and pulled him towards her, leading him back out onto the dance floor.
Paul couldn't help but feel overwhelmed. He wished he could blame it on the alcohol, but he had only had a couple sips and could tell that Jared had made a weak drink. The next thing he knew, she had wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer and urging him to start moving with her to the beat of the song.
"So… why didn't you come to the last party with Embry?" she asked. Paul blinked a few times, trying to remember how to speak.
"Didn't know about it," he finally said.
She smiled up at him - a beautiful smile that made him think of a summer sunset. He found he couldn't look away as his cup dropped to the ground and he placed his hands on her waist, finally giving into the desire to touch her.
She seemed to like that as her smile brightened.
"Roisin… right?" he said, enjoying the feeling of her name on his tongue. It was strange, like nothing he had ever heard before. She nodded.
"And… Paul?"
He could only nod, finding all of his senses completely flooded with her. He pulled her closer a bit rougher than he intended to, though she only chuckled in response. As they continued to dance, he completely forgot anyone else was around them as he buried his nose in her neck, inhaling deeply. Fuck, he couldn't get enough of her smell.
He was suddenly incredibly glad he came to this damn party tonight.
OOOO
"Fuck! Are you kidding me?!" Embry shouted as he watched Paul and Roisin walk off. "This is the second time. I swear to god, there is something wrong with me…"
"How were you supposed to know that Paul would imprint?" Jared asked, laughing. "Though, I mean… you obviously hadn't, meaning she's fair game…"
"But, we had a thing," Embry said, on the verge of whining which was hilarious considering his size.
"By thing, if you mean occasionally making out with her, I think that's over. No way Paul's letting you anywhere near her now," Jared said, still thoroughly amused by the situation, though part of him did feel bad for the guy.
Embry had been dating Kim for a few months before they all started shifting and Jared imprinted on her. At least this time it hadn't been that serious.
Embry continued grumbling to himself as he stepped over to the bar and started making up a new drink. Jared looked over at Jacob, finding him watching the two on the dance floor, a stern look on his face.
"Dude. Lighten up. You're far too serious for a senior," Jared said. "And we should be happy for him. Maybe this will finally get him to calm down. Don't know about you, but I could use a break from the constant, random fights."
Jacob glanced at him and looked back at the two, who had started making out. He sniffed in disapproval.
"I don't know," he replied. "Didn't you feel a bit… off… when you got here? Even more so whenever she came over?"
"I mean, I thought she was really hot, but that's about it," Jared replied casually.
"Hot? She's gorgeous. The most beautiful girl I've ever seen. And her eyes… and…" Embry trailed off, getting a bit starry-eyed. It then transformed into a glare as he looked back at Paul and Roisin.
"Embry! Where's Ro?" a blonde girl shouted as she bounced up to him. She then stopped, a bit stunned, when she saw his friends. Quickly a sly smile came over her face.
Jacob stiffened as Jared began smiling.
"Hi, Jake. And who are you?" she asked, holding her hand out to Jared.
"Jared," he replied, shaking her hand as a bit of a stunned look came over his face. He then shook his head and took another drink, the moment - whatever it was - passed. An odd look came over her face that Jared missed, but Jacob didn't.
"This is Mae. Roisin's cousin," Embry explained to Jared, who nodded.
"Nice house," Jared said.
"Thanks. Our guardian has a bit of an expensive taste," Mae replied, looking around the dance floor. Her eyes widened slightly as she saw Roisin and Paul before she giggled. Turning back to Embry, she placed a comforting hand on his arm, a look full of sympathy coming over her. "Come on. Dance with me, Em."
All traces of his previous bad mood disappeared as he let the small girl lead him away.
"Seriously, something is off here," Jacob said again. Jared raised his eyebrows as he looked over at him. "I mean, these are parties you only see on TV and in movies. They don't actually happen in real life. Especially not here. And their uncle is just… completely fine with it? I mean… I don't even think most of these people live around here. How did they find out?"
"Where is the uncle?" Jared asked, finally starting to see what Jacob was talking about.
"I don't know. I didn't meet him," Jacob said, his eyes scanning the crowd. "They've only been here a few months. How do you meet this many people in just a few months? Establish this kind of reputation to even get this many people here?"
Jared looked around the room again and sighed.
"Are you serious, Jake? It's called social media. And I thought you were hip with all the kids' stuff," Jared joked. Jacob glared at him.
"It's more than that-"
"Can't you just lighten up a bit? I think being alpha has gone to your head," Jared replied calmly.
"As Sam's beta, shouldn't you be a bit more serious about this?" Jacob countered.
"Hey, I'm DD," Jared said, holding up his cup. "Nothing but soda in here. That's my responsible deed for the night. Besides, I had a feeling that was going to happen." He pointed towards Paul and Roisin.
Jacob looked over at the couple and then back at Jared, a confused look on his face.
"What do you mean?" he asked, stepping closer. Jared just laughed.
"Apparently she and Mae went into the outdoors shop while Paul was working. He didn't see her, otherwise it would have happened then, but he felt it," Jared replied easily. "That was pretty much the only reason I talked him into coming tonight."
Jacob rolled his eyes.
"Fine, I'm going to try and keep an eye on the others," he grumbled before walking off. Jared just shrugged and continued watching the party.
Just because Jacob was in work mode didn't mean he had to be.
OOOO
Roisin tossed her head back, feeling Paul's lips against her skin and the heat radiating off his body as he held her close. She wasn't sure if it was the party or her, but it felt a lot hotter than usual and a slight sheen of sweat was starting to appear on her brow. But she didn't mind. Whatever this was, it felt good. Really good. So much more intense than anything she had ever felt before.
Paul pulled back from her neck, his eyes slightly dark as a sly smile came over his face. She was suddenly incredibly happy that she had discovered Forks.
"Is there somewhere more quiet?" he asked, leaning down to speak into her ear, his breath tickling her neck. He was still shouting a bit to make himself heard over the music. She smiled in return and nodded.
Turning, she led him through the gyrating crowd towards a door to the left of the large fireplace that was almost invisible, blending in with the white wall around it. Glancing back at him, she winked before turning the knob and walking in, leading him with her.
As soon as she shut the door, the sound of the music died down exponentially and she quietly turned the lock, not wanting to have any sort of interruptions. Granted most people probably completely missed the door to the master bedroom.
Paul whistled as he took in the large room and massive windows, now covered in blue curtains, hiding them from view of anyone that might be on the verandah. A lamp on her nightstand cast a warm glow on the room. Roisin leaned against the door, taking a moment to fully appreciate him. She had thought Embry was handsome, but Paul… he was next level. Broader, more muscular, but not too much. Way hotter and alluring than any of the mortal boys at Forks High. Or anyone she had ever met - mortal or fae. He turned towards her, smiling slightly in a way that had heat pooling in her core.
"This is a pretty big house for just you," he said. Roisin shrugged.
"It's just me, Mae and Sean, but he's a sucker for big houses in rural areas," she replied easily.
"And he's okay with these parties?" Paul asked.
Roisin chuckled and ran her fingers through her waves. The last she saw Sean he was on the verandah, trying to stay out of sight and chatting with some of the solitary fae, probably trying to keep them entertained so they didn't get bored and mess with any of the mortal guests.
"Sean… understands," she replied. "As long as the police don't get involved, he's cool with it."
Paul's eyebrows rose slightly, as though he was a bit surprised. He glanced around the room again and she could hear the heavy beat of the music from the other side of the door. There was a reason they chose a house that was so secluded. No neighbors for miles to make noise complaints.
Roisin pushed off from the door and started walking towards him slowly.
"So… Paul… what brings you here tonight?" she asked playfully. For a moment, the thought that she had never been this reckless crossed her mind, but she quickly pushed it aside.
He chuckled, a deep sound that sent chills up and down her spine.
"I wasn't sure at first, but well, now I think it was you," he said. Roisin's eyes widened slightly as he shook his head, almost as though he hadn't meant to say that. Must be the effect she was clearly having on him. He quickly recovered, smiling at her again. "Embry and Quil wouldn't shut up about the last party, so though I'd check it out."
"Well, I'm glad you did," she said, now standing just in front of him and lifting her chin slightly so she could look into his eyes.
"Yea, me too," he breathed just before his hands grabbed her waist again and he pulled her against him roughly, his lips descending on hers again.
Roisin swore she had felt fireworks the first time he kissed her, but this was even more intense, all rational thought completely leaving her mind as she wrapped her arms around his neck. There was heat in the kiss and for a moment, she thought she might explode as his hands began wandering everywhere.
She could feel something building inside her. Something strange and foreign, but not completely unwelcomed. Paul reached down, his hands squeezing her ass before he lifted her up and she brought her legs around him. They turned and Paul walked over to her bed, somehow managing to lower her down gently. He started to pull away, but Roisin wouldn't have that, pulling him back towards her and taking his lips in another heated kiss.
He had nearly crashed down on top of her, but managed to keep himself hoisted up on one elbow as his free hand roamed down her side and then to her back, searching for a way to get her top off. Roisin arched up towards him, wanting to feel their bodies touching as much as possible.
His lips left hers, but before she could whimper in complaint, they reconnected with a sensitive spot on her neck and she gasped. She could feel him smile against her skin before continuing.
She was then slightly aware that someone was knocking on the wall, but ignored it. Paul did as well, his fingers finally making their way up to the clasp at the base of her neck that held her top together. But then the knocking came louder, more urgent.
Paul growled, pushing away from her as he glared at the door. Roisin found herself even more turned on if that was possible. When the knocking sounded again, he pushed off the bed and stalked to the door. Roisin sat dazed on the bed for a moment, before managing to push up and follow him.
He unlocked the door and yanked it open, the person on the other side jumping slightly in surprise. It was the guy from earlier - Jared.
"What?" Paul growled.
"Sorry. I didn't want to do this - I swear - but something's wrong with Embry," he said.
Just that line was enough to shock Roisin back into full awareness. Something was wrong? Shit. They didn't need any issues.
"Let Jacob take care of it," Paul said, starting to shut the door. But Jared's hand shot up, blocking him.
"No, this is serious," he said, his face conveying just how bad it was.
Roisin's heart stopped for a moment. Shit. Shit. Shit. She knew they shouldn't have let the other fae stay. And that she should have stayed out in the party, not gone off in some sort of lust-induced haze. What the hell was wrong with her?
"What's wrong?" she asked, pushing Paul aside slightly. Jared looked over at her and shook his head.
"I'm not sure. Think maybe he had too much," he said, though there was an odd look on his face. As though he didn't think that was possible. "Did he have a lot to drink before?"
Roisin shook her head quickly. There wasn't even any alcohol at the party to begin with, though she wasn't sure how to explain that right now. There was still a bit of a fog over her that made it difficult to come up with a logical, scientific reason for why they had something that tasted like alcohol, but really wasn't.
Think, Roisin, she urged herself.
"We… it's all been watered down. But even then, I didn't see him drink that much. Unless he brought his own. But… we should check on him," she said, already walking out of the room. "Where is he?"
OOOO
Paul followed Jared and Roisin through the party towards the other side of the house. They made their way down a hallway past the kitchen and came to another door that was slightly open. Roisin rushed in ahead of them.
He was still a bit dazed from the powerful reaction he had with Roisin and the imprint. And slightly pissed at being interrupted. But the worried look on Roisin's face had him seeing sense. And just made him that more attracted to her, seeing how much she seemed to genuinely care.
He was fairly sure anyone else would have blown it off as not their problem.
As he walked into the room, which looked far more masculine and darker than Roisin's despite the lights being on, he saw Embry on the bed, looking absolutely miserable. An older guy stood nearby with a woman clad in black leather, covered in tattoos with purple hair, watching on with concerned looks. Jacob and Quil were next to the bed, Quil holding a bucket.
"What happened?" Roisin demanded as she pushed them aside and dropped to her knees next to the bed, pushing the hair back from Embry's forehead. "Christ, he's burning up."
"He always runs a bit hotter," Quil said. Roisin looked up at him and then back down at Embry, who was groaning. Paul walked over to the end of the bed, Jared following, watching them closely.
His emotions were warring inside him. Part of him wanted to pounce on Embry for stealing Roisin's attention away, but the other part was touched to see her so concerned. He wasn't completely sure anyone else would have taken the time to check on someone they barely knew while at a wild party. And it was obvious that whatever was going on with him, Embry wasn't faking it.
A look of realization came over Roisin's face as she looked back at the older man.
"Did someone give him something, Sean?" she asked. Ah, this must be the uncle.
The man's expression didn't change at first, but then Paul noticed a slight hardening of his eyes that made him appear far more menacing than before. But only for a split second. It happened so fast that Paul wasn't completely sure he had even seen it to begin with.
What the hell was in his drink?
"Last I saw, Mae was giving him something to drink," he said.
While Paul wasn't completely sure, he felt as though he was saying something more than just that. Wait, did this Mae drug Embry? Whatever it was, it clearly set off Roisin as her eyes widened and a look of pure fury came over her face and he swore he felt a striking heat blast through the room as hot as the Sahara.
He took a step back, shaking his head slightly, but when he looked around, it appeared that Quil, Jacob and Jared hadn't felt anything. What the hell was wrong with him? Was this the imprint too?
"Ro," Sean said in warning. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, getting herself under control. "I gave him something. He should be okay in a few hours, but… someone should watch him."
"We can take him from here," Jacob said, turning to glare at Sean.
"I'm not sure that's a good idea," Sean said, maintaining his calm expression.
"Forgive me, but you don't know shit about us. We're taking him home," Jacob said. He then looked over at Quil, then Paul and Jared. "Come on, we're going."
"If he gets worse, bring him back here," Roisin said, standing and reaching out and grabbing Jacob's arm with a worried look.
He looked down at her hand and then back up at her, still glaring. Paul started towards him, wanting to shove Jacob away and punch him, but Jared stopped him.
He looked over at his best friend and Jared gave him a short shake of his head, silently imploring him to get it under control. Paul took a deep breath and looked back over, seeing Jacob still glaring down at Roisin.
"If he gets worse, we're taking him to a hospital," Jacob nearly spat before yanking his arm out of her grip and walking to the bed. "Help me, Quil."
Paul watched as they picked him up, Embry groaning, and then carried him out of the room.
"Promise me, if it gets worse, let me know," Roisin said, now suddenly at Paul's side. He nearly jumped, but then nodded.
"Sure," he said.
"I'm serious. You need to watch him closely tonight," she said, her eyes holding a certain desperation to them. Once again, Paul was conflicted. But he then nodded.
"I will," he said, though the last thing he wanted to do tonight was watch over a sick Embry. He wanted to stay here with her. Pick up where they left off even though the mood was pretty much over. Roison seemed to relax slightly, though there was still a lot of concern in her eyes. "Before I go… I should get your number. So I can let you know how he is."
Roisin looked back at him, her eyes wide a moment before her brilliant smile returned and she nodded. She reached into the back pocket of her jeans and pulled out a silver Razr, flipping it open and handing it over to him. He quickly put in his number and called it, feeling his cellphone buzz in his pocket before he ended the call.
He then handed the phone back to her, everything inside him wishing he didn't have to leave.
"Get home safe," she said. He nodded and started to walk away before stopping and pressing a quick kiss to her lips.
He then turned and walked away, but not before noticing the blush painting her cheeks and the small smile on her face. As he stepped out the door he heard her telling Sean to end the party now and send Mae to talk to her. Along with the order, he felt a surge of power coming from behind him that almost had him stumbling, but he continued on, not saying anything until they had stepped out the front door. It was gone almost as soon as he felt it.
"Did you feel that?" Jared asked. He looked over at him, his eyes wide.
"Yea," he replied, but then turned to look for Jared's car. "Weird."
"Tonight was all sorts of weird," Jared said. "Alcohol… it doesn't affect us."
"I know," Paul said, just now coming to that realization on his own. "Come on, we should follow them. Hopefully they don't take him home. His mom is going to be pissed."
"So, we're not going to talk about the fact that you just imprinted?" Jared said, a hint of laughter in his voice. Paul stopped and looked at him across the car.
"Not yet, but yea, later."
OOOO
Oh man, I have had A LOT of fun coming up with how the imprint affects both Roisin and Paul. Really. And how fae affect the wolves in general. Still working out how this is going to factor in with the vampires, though. Since they are not mortal and technically not living… yea, I should start thinking about that more deeply before I start writing their appearance…
Anyway, just a quick explanation – in case it's not clear, though if it's not, I'm probably doing a bad job at writing this. Granted more of this will come out as the story goes on but wanted to make sure everyone is on the same page – so fae are naturally very alluring to normal humans. This is a common theme in a lot of fae stories and even folklore. But since the wolves aren't completely human, it affects them differently. The wolves are a bit more sensitive to fae, being not completely human themselves, as in they can see/feel things around the fae that humans don't. The allure most affects non-imprinted wolves (as seen with Embry) and not so much with imprinted wolves (as seen with Jared and Jacob – both were able to just shake it off or weren't pulled in at all). As Paul as imprinted on Roisin, he's going to see and feel even more than the others, though at the moment, he's chalking everything up to the imprint. But yea, that intense "HOLY COW I REALLY WANT TO HAVE SEX WITH HER RIGHT NOW!" that's a combination of the fae allure and the imprint. In case it wasn't obvious and all… And it's going to affect Roisin in different ways as well until they both startling adjusting and settling into it, but we'll get into that a bit more in the next chapter…
And, I feel like I should apologize for Jacob coming off as a total ass so far… I don't usually see him that way, but it is coming from Paul's perspective, so… don't blame me, blame Paul? (God, that's a weak argument… but whatever… this is how he is for now…)
Thanks for reading and following!
