First Dates

Mara looked around the restaurant, thinking it was the right combination of cozy and fancy. It was more upscale that the BBQ place, but not stuffy. She glanced at Embry, once again surprised that she had agreed to go out with him. She had found herself saying yes without thinking when he called earlier, even though she knew that she had work to do. She still needed to write up the profile on victim No. 2 and wanted to look more into the other deaths and disappearances.

But she couldn't say no. She wanted to see him again.

"This is nice," she said as they sat down at a table and she began to look over the menu. "Wasn't expecting you to call so soon." She blushed slightly, taken aback by her comment. God, was she really flirting? Embry smiled.

"Thought maybe you could use a break from all the work," he said casually, seeming much more at ease with this meeting.

"I could use a break. My boss has been breathing down my neck lately," she said, returning her attention to the menu.

"He think you're onto something?" Embry asked, glancing at her.

"He's still on the fence, but I'm slowly bringing him around," she said. She then put down the menu and smiled at him. "But I'm kind of tired talking shop. How was your day?"

"Normal. Boring," he said. "Until now, anyway." Mara blushed slightly.

"How are things out at the reservation?" she asked.

"The usual," Embry replied. "Though we're still going out to hunt a bit more than often. I've begged off a bit so I can focus on getting ready for the move."

"Right, you said that you're transferring to UW. Happens to be my alma mater," Mara replied. Embry's face lit up.

"Really?" he said, as he heart sped up. "I actually planned to go there right after high school, but… didn't work out."

"Hmm, so we could have met years ago," Mara mused.

"Maybe. It's a big campus," he replied.

"True, but you could have had my mother as a professor. Still might. You planning on taking any history classes?" she asked as a server stepped up. They ordered and Mara turned her gaze back to Embry.

"Maybe," he said. "So, I should look for Professor Winslow?"

"Yea and sign up early. Her classes fill up quick. Oh, and be prepared. She's pretty tough," Mara replied, reaching for her water glass.

"You mentioned she was a writer too?" he asked, leaning towards her.

"Well, she's written papers and put out a few books on her work, but nothing that your average person would pick up. My grandmother was the successful author," Mara replied. "She used the pen name D.B. Winters." Embry's eyebrows shot up.

"The mystery novelist?" he asked. Nearly everyone had read at least one book by the prolific author. Embry had read all of them and still had the collection on his bookshelf in his room. Mara nodded slowly.

"That would be the one," she said. Embry chuckled.

"Seems you were born to write," he replied. Mara shrugged.

"So, it would seem. Grandmother's a famous novelist, Dad's a reporter. Guess it's just in my blood," she said. "What about you?"

"Well, like I said, I didn't know my dad, but my mom is a nurse at the local hospital. Guess medicine is in my blood. Spent a lot of time around a hospital growing up," he said.

"Hopefully not because of injuries," Mara said.

"Some… I was pretty rambunctious as a kid. But I'd go visit her too," he said. "And she did her best. I wasn't the easiest teenager to deal with." Mara chuckled.

"Forgive me, but you don't come off as the sullen, rebellious type," she said, studying him. Embry shrugged.

"I've managed to adjust, but I had my moments," he said, thinking back to when he first phased. The smile faded from Mara's face as she thought about what it would have been like growing up with just one parent. Without ever knowing her father.

"Couldn't have been easy for you guys," she said softly. "I don't know how Mom and I would have made it without my aunt and grams." Embry just smiled.

"It wasn't so bad. Growing up on the rez… there was always someone to look after me," he said.

"Seems you all are close," she said.

"Yea, we are… Though I'm closest to Quil and Jacob. They've been my best friends since before I can remember," he said. "Always hanging out. We used to spend a lot of time at Jake's place, fixing up cars and bikes."

"You ride motorcycles?" Mara asked, intrigued. "Always wanted to, but Mom never let me. She thought they were too dangerous. Though Dad snuck me out for a ride on a neighbor's Harley once when I was 12."

"Never had anything as nice as a Harley. Mostly just dirt bikes," Embry said. "Sounds like you were close with your father." Mara's smile dimmed slightly as she looked down at the table, a few emotions going across her face.

"Yea, we were," she said, glancing up at him. "Being an only child and all." She paused as the server brought their food. "He used to take me to the newsroom when I was a kid. I loved it. All the noise and chaos. Everyone on the phone or… running around trying to make deadline. He lived for it."

"Seems you do as well," Embry replied.

"Yea. I always thought it was this magical place," she said, picking up her fork and starting to pick around her food. "And then when I got a bit older, I thought that being a newspaper reporter was the most important job in the world."

Her thoughts drifted towards memories of her father.

"What we do is so important, Mars Bar. It's our job to tell the truth to the people," her father had told her one visit. "You should always tell the truth… even if it's ugly."

"But what if it hurts someone?" she had asked. Her father paused.

"When it comes to writing articles, you can only tell the truth. The facts," he said. "If you want to do this someday, you have to be able to find the truth, no matter how scary it is. You have to be brave. People deserve to know. The families of the people who got hurt, they deserve to know the truth."

Something stirred in Embry as he watched her. She was looking down at her plate, her brow furrowed as she chewed on her lower lip. It was as if a deep sadness had come over her as she got lost in memory. Then suddenly she looked at up him, smiling slightly as she shook her head.

"Sorry," she said. "I don't usually talk so much about my dad."

"It's okay," Embry said, reaching across the table and taking her hand. Mara stared at it a moment, taking in her small hand in his much larger one. It was so warm and comforting, though she swore sparks flew up her arm. It was a much smaller reaction than when he had hugged her the day before. "You don't have to talk about it if it's too hard."

"It's fine," Mara said, looking up and meeting his eyes. "I… it's good to talk about him. The good times, at least." Embry offered her a comforting smile as he let go of her hand and slid his back across the table. Mara returned her attention to her food. "What's your mom like?" Embry chuckled.

"She's probably the strongest woman I know. We're pretty close, though I'm sure she probably wanted to throw me out a few times in high school," he said. "Had some epic fights."

"How does she feel about you going to Seattle?" Mara asked.

"It was tough for her at first, but she wants me to go. It's too good an opportunity to pass up," he said.

"That's good to hear," Mara said. It was on the tip of Embry's tongue to suggest Mara meet her, but at the same time he reminded himself he needed to take things slow. She wouldn't develop feelings as quickly as he did and there was a still a chance that she could reject him, though that had yet to happen in either pack. He didn't want to chance that he'd be the first. "The way you talk about her, she seems pretty incredible."

"She always told me that I could do anything if I worked for it," he replied. "Encouraged me to follow my dreams and all."

"Sounds like a good mom," Mara said, smiling. Embry nodded.

"So… what should I know about UW…"

Mara laughed as she leaned towards Embry, bracing herself against his shoulder to keep from falling off the stool. After dinner, they had moved down the street to a bar. It was busy, but not so loud that they had to yell at each. Though she had to admit that she enjoyed the excuse to get closer. She could feel the heat radiating off his body again. How was it possible for someone to be so warm?

"Seriously?! How did you get away with that?" she asked, looking up at him as her hair fell in her face. He reached out and tucked it behind her ear, sending another chill through her body.

"I'm pretty sure they knew we had snuck off," he replied. "But for some reason they let us off with it. And you're telling me that you never tried anything like that?" Mara shook her head.

"Dad was an investigative reporter, remember? Swear he was a human lie detector and had some sort of trouble radar," she replied, reaching for her beer. She looked up at him, noticing that he seemed completely in control, even though they had just gotten their third beers and had wine at the restaurant. She was already starting to feel a little tipsy. "Are you sure you should be drinking so much? You do have to drive back."

"I, ah, gotta high tolerance. Don't worry about it," he replied before taking a sip, though he made sure it was a smaller one. Thanks to the wolves' high metabolism, he burned through alcohol much faster than humans and it was rare that they could get drunk. But he reminded himself that Mara still had no clue about what he was. He needed to get better at hiding it from her, though he didn't want to. He found he wanted to share everything about himself with her. He waved down a bartender and ordered a water, if anything to appease Mara. "Now, I don't believe for a second that you were the perfect child or teenager," he said, looking back at her. Mara chuckled.

"I mean, I got grounded a lot for not cleaning my room. Oh, and I did get into trouble in high school while working on the newspaper. But my parents were more proud than upset," she replied.

"What did you do?" Embry asked.

"Well… I was convinced the vice principal was misappropriating school funds, so I launched my own investigation into it," she said, her face serious.

"Wait, seriously? How would you even do that as a high school student?" Embry asked. Mara burst into laughter.

"I didn't," she admitted. "No, it was my columns that got me in trouble the most. I was pretty opinionated, and it ruffled a few feathers. My newspaper advisor loved it, though the principal and vice principal, not so much. Suppose my series on what they were putting in the school lunches didn't win me any favors either."

"So you were a rebel," Embry said, smiling in pride down at her. Mara shrugged.

"All in a day's work," she replied. "Just trying to live up to the very large shoes that my father left."

"What's been your favorite story?" Embry asked, leaning towards her again. Mara looked off, thinking for a moment.

"I think… it was… when I first started on the gen news desk, I got assigned to write about this after school center in one of the poorer neighborhoods in Seattle. They had some festival going on and at first I thought it was just going to be a boring fluff piece. But then I got there and they let me interview some of the kids…" she stopped for a moment, a soft smile coming across her face. "These kids… some of them had some pretty hard shit in their lives, but they were… so hopeful." She looked up at Embry. "I'll never forget that piece. I actually started volunteering there… I do a junior reporter class and help them put out a monthly newsletter."

"That's pretty cool," he admitted. Without thinking, he placed his hand on her knee as it bumped into his again. Mara shrugged, trying to keep from smiling too big at the touch.

"I do it for them," she said, reaching for her beer again.

"Mara?"

Both Embry and Mara turned, seeing Mike and another one of the deputies standing near. The other deputy seemed a bit amused, though Mike wore a look of surprise. "Suppose this is why I didn't hear back from you."

Mara sputtered on her beer a bit as Embry frowned, sizing up the other man. He couldn't help as his protective instincts took over.

"Mike! Oh my god, I'm so sorry. I totally forgot again," she said, putting her beer down as she glanced over at Embry. His hand was still sitting on her knee. "I was just working on the story… and then Embry asked me out as a last-minute thing."

Mike looked over at Embry and nodded.

"Not sure if we've ever officially met, Mike Newton," he said, holding his hand out.

"Embry Call. And I've seen you. You work with Chief Swan," he said, shaking his hand firmly. Mike winced slightly, though tried to cover it up.

"We met when I was out at La Push yesterday," Mara said. "And Mike's been helping me out with the case."

"I see," Embry said, still not taking his eyes of the blonde man.

"Well, we'll let you guys get back to your date," Mike said, offered Mara a tight smile before they walked off. Mara turned around to face the bar, glancing at Embry out of the corner of her eye. She wasn't sure why she was so concerned about what he thought. She was single. Mike had only been helping her with the case.

It's not like they were together or she had any reason to explain anything.

"Really, he's only been helping me out. He's the one that took me out to the first accident scene," she said. Embry looked over at her, willing himself to calm down. He could sense that she was telling the truth, though he hadn't liked the way Mike looked at her. He offered her a smile.

"No worries," he said, reaching for his beer.

"Honestly, there's nothing there," Mara said before she could stop herself. Seriously, why was she so concerned about this? She shook her head and looked at her beer.

"Really, Mara. It's okay," he said, his voice soft. Mara looked over at him, noticing that he was calm, offering her a reassuring smile. "But… it is getting late and I promised I'd have you back by a decent time."

Mara glanced at her watch, noticing it was nearly 11 pm. She didn't want the date to end, but she knew he was right. She would have to get up early the next day and didn't want to be hungover.

"Suppose you're right," she said with a sigh before finishing her beer and putting the bottle back down on the bar. She then grabbed her purse and slid off the stool, looking up at him. "Let's go."

A dreamy smile came across Mara's face as she sighed happily and leaned against the door after arriving back at the motel. Embry had walked her up to the door and just before he left, she had quickly kissed him on the cheek. She was still blushing furiously, but the grin on Embry's face left a warm feeling in her stomach.

She was so caught up in everything that she didn't even check the caller ID when her phone rang.

"Hello?" she said breathlessly.

"Mar? What the- you went on date," Katie declared. Mara quickly shook her head as her eyes widened.

"It wasn't… er… shit. It was a date," she said, tossing her purse in the chair next to the table.

"Shit, it was a date. Okay…" Katie said. Mara rolled her eyes, though she couldn't help but smile. "Spill. Now. Which hottie was it?"

"His name is Embry," Mara started. "From La Push."

"You're giving me a name? You must be feeling a little somethin-somethin for him," Katie said.

"I, well, it's strange," Mara said, glancing towards the window as she started pacing in small circles. "I mean, I literally just met him yesterday, but… there's some sort of… connection, I guess? I don't know. It's like I've known him forever, but I haven't. And I've never felt like this before. I've never fallen this fast for someone." She stopped. "Am I crazy for feeling like this?"

"Oh, sweetie. I think it's great," Katie said.

"I mean, I've been telling him things that I never tell anyone I've dated. I've talked to him about Dad," Mara said. "And he's not running away screaming. In fact, he just gets closer."

"Mar, how many times have I told you, it's okay to open up," Katie said gently. "The right guy will understand. And it seems like this Embry could be the right kind of guy."

"He's moving to Seattle," Mara said. "Finishing up a pre-med degree at UW, then going for med school." Katie squealed, causing Mara to hold the phone away from her ear momentarily. There was the Katie she was expecting.

"Okay, you need to tell me everything about this guy. Right now," Katie demanded. "And the first time he comes to visit, you're bringing him right to me. I need to suss him out. Make sure he's good enough for my Mara."

Mara rolled her eyes.

"Protective, much?" she asked, though she couldn't help but smile. She liked the idea of introducing Embry to Katie. And her mother. Perhaps Richard too.

"Seriously, Mar! I can hear it in your voice. You are happy about this guy," Katie said.

"But isn't it strange that it's all so fast?" Mara asked.

"Pssh, sometimes it happens like that," Katie said nonchalantly.

"Yea, in movies and books. Not real life," Mara shot back.

"Sometimes it does happen in real life," Katie urged. "For whatever reason, it's happening to you. What did I say about going with it?" Mara sighed.

"Suppose you're right," she conceded as she sat on the bed. "Okay… so about Embry…"

Embry was still smiling as he walked into his room and sat on the edge of his bed. Outside of the run-in with the deputy, everything about the night had been perfect. The more he got to know about Mara, the more he found himself falling for her.

She was all the things every guy said they wanted in a woman – smart, funny, beautiful. And then there was her passion for what she did. An openness that seemed to appear the more time they spent together.

And yet, there were things she was still holding back. Though, he wasn't so concerned. They had time to learn everything about each other. And he was still keeping a rather big secret from her. He glanced over at his open laptop as an idea entered his head. He wanted to hear the story from Mara, but his curiosity was getting the better of him as he pushed off the bed and walked to his desk.

The more she spoke about her father, the more he wanted to know about him. He was the reason Mara went into journalism after all. And he could tell that even though he had been gone a long time, he still had a large effect on her.

He quickly went to Google and stopped, thinking about what to search first. He didn't know her father's name but figured he could start with looking up Mara.

He typed "Mara Winslow, reporter." The only thing that came up were her stories, both from The Times and The Daily at UW. There was no mention of her father anywhere. Frowning, he went to the UW website and started searching for "Winslow" in the faculty records. He then found her mother – Trudy Winslow. Going back to Google, he started to search her and found an article headlined "Times reporter found dead".

Clicking on it, he started through the article, his heart dropping the more he read. This wasn't what he was expecting to find.

"Long-time crime reporter Harry Carpenter was found dead in his home Tuesday night due to a gunshot wound. Police believe it was suicide, though are currently still investigating. Johnson was found by his 15-year-old daughter and his wife Trudy Winslow, a history professor at the University of Washington… Carpenter was working at The Seattle Times at the time of his death but previously worked with The Los Angeles Daily Times… he won a Pulitzer as part of the team that uncovered a corruption scandal in the LAPD…"

Frowning, Embry stopped reading and sat back in his chair. Her father wasn't just a crime reporter - he was a Pulitzer winner. And he hadn't died of natural causes like he had assumed. Suicide. What's more, Mara didn't go by her father's last name. A plethora of questions began running through his mind.

He wasn't sure how long he sat there in his thoughts, though a knock on the door brought him back to reality. He looked at the time, noting that his mom was still at the hospital working a night shift.

"Come in," he said. Jacob pushed the door in, smiling.

"Wanted to see how the date went- What's wrong?" he said, coming into the room. Embry sighed and looked at his laptop.

"Found out how Mara's dad died," he said. "Killed himself. And apparently, he was a big reporter. Won a Pulitzer."

"She told you that?"

"No… I looked it up. She goes by her mother's name for some reason," he said with a sigh. "His name was Harry Carpenter…"

"Wow…" Jacob said. "Thought maybe it was heart attack or something…"

"Me too. I can't imagine what it was like for her… seeing something like that at 15. She said she was really close to him," Embry replied. Jacob was silent a few moments.

"What is it with reporters and tragic life stories," he muttered to himself, causing Embry to look over at him.

"What do you mean?" he asked. Jacob shook his head.

"Nothing. Just… not the first reporter I've met with a tough life," he replied.

"You mean the latest vampire that joined the Cullens. The one that's with the Volturi tracker? Wasn't she an investigative reporter?" he asked. Jacob nodded.

"Cecily. And it got her killed… well, sort of. The Cullens saved her," Jacob replied. Embry felt his heart clench. Would Mara always be in danger because of her work? "But I'm sure Mara doesn't do stories like that… Cess focused on corruption in the government and some seriously powerful, dangerous people."

"And Mara is going to write about murderers and serial killers," Embry replied.

"I'm sure it's not as dangerous as it seems. Cess seemed to be overly involved with her stories. More than the average reporter and she always worked alone," Jacob said quickly. "From what I can tell, they don't typically do that. Besides, Mara's got you to look after her now."

"I'm beginning to feel like it's going to be a full-time job keeping her safe," Embry replied. Jacob sighed as he walked over and put his hand on Embry's shoulder, squeezing.

"It's not going to be like that," he said. "But if you're worried, just ask her. I'm sure she'll tell you." Embry nodded.

"Yea," he said. "And… even though it worries me, just seeing how much she loves doing it, I'd never try to talk her out of it." Jacob offered him a smile.

"You'll figure it out," he said. "Outside of that, how was the date?" Embry chuckled.

"Good. Really good," he said, looking up at his friend. Jacob smiled.

"See, things are going to be fine," he said. Embry nodded.

"I hope they are."

Huge apologies for not updating for a bit. Got dropped a lot of work the last week and I'm still struggling to catch up. But hoping to get back on schedule with posting.

Thanks for reading and following!