AN: For the record, I'm not a big fan of repeating chapters from multiple POV's, but this was kind of necessary. We need to know what's going on in Paul's head. And it's the closest you'll get to citrus for a few more chapters at least ;)

Chapter 16

Christmas day

From Bella in Chapter 15-
I jumped as Paul jerked his head to the side and shot a glare off into the woods. He made a strange rumbling sound that sounded eerily like a growl. I was embarrassed by how much that sound turned me on.

Looking at the sky, I noticed it was getting darker. I knew Charlie would be worried about me if I didn't head back to Billy's house, so I stood up and brushed off my jeans to start back. "Uh, thanks, Paul." I wasn't sure exactly what to say, with him in such a strange mood all of a sudden. "I guess I'll see you around."

I made it three steps before his hand caught my shoulder and stopped me, and I looked up to see him standing much closer to me than I expected. "Promise me, Bella," he spoke quietly, but with a commanding tone in his deep voice. "Promise me you'll stay away from the Cullens."

Paul POV
I waited until she was out of my sight before I rounded on Sam. "What the hell was that? Why did you stop me from telling her?"

Sam stepped out of the trees with his arms crossed—a sure sign he was ready to do battle with me. "Tell her what, Paul? That there are vampires at her school? That you're a wolf? That it's a huge secret that no one can know, but you told her because…what? She's your mate?"

I clenched my fists and turned my head, the closest to admitting defeat as I would get. He was right. How could I warn my imprint, without telling her she was my imprint? When I raised my hand to my face and caught a whiff of her intoxicating scent, all my reasons for not telling her seemed a lot less important.

Sam sighed and reached for my shoulder, stopping just short of touching me. "Look, we'll keep an eye on her, okay? I can call a meeting with the leech doctor and let them know she's off limits. As your imprint, she's a part of the pack, a part of the tribe."

I jerked my head up at his words, and I realized he didn't yet know just how true that statement was. My Bella was a member of this tribe long before I was. I knew I would have to work extra hard to keep her secret safe from the pack mind, until she chose to reveal it for herself.

Leaving Sam on the beach, I headed home. There were two baskets of food on my porch—one from Emily, and one that I could tell by scent was from Tiffany. I guess she must have slipped over here while I was distracted by Bella.

Fuck, I couldn't even go five minutes without thinking her name. Her scent clung to my skin, my hair, and I knew I needed to go wash it off, but my wolf was not the least bit happy about that idea.

Overcome by the stress of the day, I bypassed the shower and went straight to my room. I tossed my shorts on the floor and fell back on my mattress with a frustrated growl.

I had decided to keep Bella close, but not too close. We could be friends, right? I was friends with Emily, so I knew that was possible. I could be friends with a girl.

I could be friends with a girl with big brown eyes that made her look so innocent, even while she was biting that fucking gorgeous bottom lip. That lip. Fuck, that lip…

It didn't matter that she had the most perfect body I'd ever seen—and I'd seen a hell of a lot of bodies. I could find a flaw in every woman I had fucked, but there was nothing wrong with my Bella. Her curves were made for my hands. My hand… my hand that smelled like her, that had touched her skin.

I groaned out loud when I realized that same had drifted down grip my painfully stiff cock. Pictures of Bella rolled through my mind in a continuous loop, making me even harder as my hand stroked furiously. I couldn't hold back a growl as I shot my load all over my stomach.

The relief I felt was short-lived as I realized that jerking off to thoughts of my imprint was definitely not the way to keep things "friendly" between us. I also really needed that shower.

~oOo~

I spent the next week and a half following Bella around between my patrol shifts. I was uncomfortable if she got too far away from me—I'd nearly panicked when Tiffany took her to Port Angeles one afternoon—and my wolf side wouldn't let me leave her hurting if I could help it.

She didn't seem to consciously notice that I was around, but she did turn toward me several times as if she were looking for me. Sam thought the whole situation was hilarious, but he was also happy that I wasn't getting in trouble now that I had something—someone—to hold my attention.

I was anxious as Bella's first day of school drew closer, and I had Sam get me excused from my own classes so I could keep an eye on her. I ran through the woods, easily following her obnoxiously loud truck.

I had to phase back to my human form when I reached the school, since the treaty didn't allow for us to be in wolf form away from our territory. Of course, I was willing to argue that anywhere my mate was—uh, my imprint—was automatically my territory.

It was obvious that Bella was the talk of the school, and I stifled a laugh at the people who thought she and Embry were secretly fooling around now that they lived together. If they only knew… Of course, when Embry blurted it out that she was his sister, no one thought much of it.

I dug my fingers into a tree trunk when that nerdy bastard came up and offered to walk my girl my class, but it was nothing compared to the feeling when I realized she was in the same room as one of the undead freaks.

I stood right outside the window for the solid hour she was in biology, mentally daring the bastard to lay one finger on my mate. He kept shooting me glares, but when he ran outside after the bell rang he didn't even give me another glance. Asshole.

I nearly blew my cover when the other leeches were talking about her as she walked out to her car. I stepped forward enough to catch their attention and let out a warning growl. Bella looked my direction and I had to jump back into the trees before she caught me watching.

My frustration grew as I followed her home, and by the time she stepped out of the truck, I was furious. I asked one thing of her—just one fucking thing—and she couldn't even listen. She just sat her cute little ass down at the table with a blood sucking demon. Fuck.

I slipped up behind her, taking a minute to breathe in her scent. I needed that small bit of comfort just to keep my shape together. Of course, I didn't think about the fact that her scent was now tainted. The cloying scent of death clung to her clothes, her hair, her fucking skin.

I was sure my face was betraying my anger when she finally looked up to face me after giving me a rather thorough once-over. I couldn't even appreciate the scent of her arousal because I was too worked up over her betrayal.

Those big brown eyes were looking at me in question, but I only had the patience for a few words. "I told you to stay away from the Cullens."

With my last bit of control, I pulled myself away from her and ran out of sight so I could phase. I wanted to run straight home, but I didn't want to leave her unprotected, now that she had caught the attention of the local coven.

Paul? What are you doing? Sam's words opened the vault, and my memories of the day washed through the pack mind. I pawed at the ground and growled in frustration when I replayed the view of that bloodsucker sitting right next to my girl.

His voice was smug when he finally spoke. So she's your girl now, huh?

~oOo~oOo~oOo~oOo~oOo~oOo~

Charlie POV
I didn't want to admit it, but I was more than a little worried about Bella's first day of school. I'd actually had a small breakdown when I realized I'd never once taken my daughter to school, or even been to her schools before in the past. School was something Renee handled. Summers and holidays were my thing.

Taking Bella up to register was a poor substitute for missing out on the past decade of her education, but I guessed I had to make do with what I had. She just wasn't that little girl anymore.

Tiffany held me that night as I went through a dizzying array of emotions. I was furious with my ex-wife, resentful of the whole situation, and guilty about not trying harder all those years. I mourned the things I had missed, now that I could clearly see them, and I tried to hold onto my happiness that she was here now, and I had another chance. It was a long night.

The house was quiet when I left for work the next morning, everyone sleeping soundly when I checked on them. I double-checked the gas in the truck, and made sure her tires all had air. This was another thing I'd missed out on. Phil bought her a car in Arizona, and I'm sure with his salary it was probably a lot nicer than Billy's old truck.

Shaking away those thoughts, I turned my attention to my work. I had a pile of paperwork waiting for me on my desk—the holidays were always a busy time, and it took an extra week or two to catch up on all the documents that needed my attention.

Something was niggling at the back of my mind as I sorted the forms and signed the appropriate boxes, but it wasn't until I processed a group of minors for possession that it hit me. I hadn't seen Paul since that night Bella showed up.

Just as the thought that he was keeping out of trouble hit me, guilt followed closely behind. I'd been so caught up in my daughter that I forgot to check on him over Christmas break. A glance at the clock showed me that I still had hours to go before he would be out of school, but I made a note to go check on him as soon as I could get a break.

It was nearly six before I could get away from my desk, and I knew that my family would have supper waiting for me. I was eager to see Bella and hear about her day, but I still wavered when I put my key in the ignition, unsure which direction to go.

With a glance to the west, I shook my head and turned the car toward my house. Paul would still be there tomorrow. I could check on him then.