CHAPTER 8

GOOD DAY SUNSHINE

The next few weeks just flew by. Paul worked at the store and ran his patrols, and helped his Grandma take care of his brothers, but his free time was spent with Leah. Sometimes they just hung out at the house, watching TV or playing board games with Travis, who seemed to be smitten with Leah, begging her to play Candyland or Checkers every chance he got. Travis had also taken to sitting on Leah's lap and having her read to him before bed. Paul worried that Trav was bugging her, but she assured him that she really enjoyed it.

Tyler was still a little shy around Leah, but he started to open up a little more after she talked to him about what he wanted to do someday. "I don't know, I was kind of thinking about being an animal doctor, but I don't know if I'm smart enough. You have to do a lot of science and stuff and I don't do good in science."

"Do well, not good, and I used to think the same thing, but it's not as hard as you think. I wouldn't mind helping you with your homework if you need help," Leah offered.

"Yeah? Maybe . . . I guess." Leah looked at Paul and winked and he smiled. Man, she was good.

Paul liked that Leah fit into his little family so well. They took the boys to the beach and Leah and Travis would play in the sand as Tyler and Paul played in the surf. They joined Quil and Claire a couple of times and Claire loved playing with Travis. Leah watched both of them while the guys swam and somewhere deep inside her she found herself longing for kids, which really surprised her. She thought she had given up on that, knowing it could never happen, but, as she ran her hand over Claire's bouncy curls, she found herself wishing that maybe, just maybe, there was still a chance for her.

August was close and the boys were actually ready to go back to school. Leah always felt a little sad at back to school time. She had always dreamt of going off to college someday, but turning into a huge dog had taken that dream from her. Leah was frozen at 20, still dreaming.

Paul and Leah were walking hand in hand along the beach one evening after supper when Leah asked, "Are you going to back to school, Paul?"

"No. I decided to quit months ago, but I haven't told Grandma yet. She won't be happy with me."

"Why don't you want to go back?"

Paul looked at her and smiled. "I'm not a kid anymore, Leah. I'm 18 and I'm the man of the house. I have a family to provide for. I don't need high school anymore."

"Yeah, I get that. Have you thought about getting a GED? Maybe that would make your grandma happy."

"I've thought about it. I guess I could do that for her."

"Don't do it for her. Do it for you."

Paul stopped and turned to her. "Why do you care so much?"

"Are you fucking serious? Have we not spent enough time together for you to realize that I care about you? I want the best for you, you dork."

Paul smiled at that as he stopped walking to say, "I know. I care about you, too. Maybe too much," he added softly as he leaned forward to kiss her. Leah wrapped her arms around his neck and let him as she realized that maybe she was starting to care a little too much for him, too.

A week later, Paul walked into the living room and looked around. "Man, it's quiet around here. Where's Travis and Ty?" Paul asked his grandma, who was sitting in her chair, knitting a blanket for Travis.

"Tyler is with Brady and Collin," Ruth answered. "He said he would be home for dinner, and Travis is over at my friend Donna's. Her grandson, Jason, asked if Travis could come over and play."

Paul nodded. "Jason. Oh, the kid with all the Legos?"

"Yes. I told them we'd pick him up around six."

"I won't be home for dinner, remember. Sam is having a bonfire on the beach tonight. I guess I can leave you the keys to the car so you can get Trav. Is that good?"

"Sure. Bonfire sounds like fun."

"Yeah, I guess." For some reason, Paul was feeling a little out of sorts today. He wasn't really in the mood to be around a bunch of people. He wished he could figure some way out of it, but when Sam summoned you, you had to go. That's one thing he hated most about being a wolf - always being under the Alpha's thumb, or paw, as it were.

Paul was stretched out on his new futon, mindlessly flicking through the channels on the TV. This was his one Saturday of the month off, and like always, he wasn't sure what to do with himself. Since Ty had stepped up around the house, there wasn't anything for Paul to take care of. So, here he was, channel surfing, finding it hard to relax.

After awhile, Paul wondered what Leah was doing. He smiled as he remembered that first Saturday she had come over and asked him if he meant what he said about being her friend. He was really glad now that he had said yes, instead of telling her to take a hike. He decided to give her a call and see what she was up to. Maybe he could hang out with her.

Paul pushed himself off of the futon and walked to the kitchen where he picked up the phone and dialed Leah's number. "Hello?"

"Hey, Seth. Is Leah there?"

"No."

"Do you know where she is?"

"No."

"When she'll be back?"

"No."

"Are you being an asshole on purpose or what?" Click. Paul just stood there and stared at the phone after Seth hung up on him. Ever since Seth found them in Leah's bed, he had been treating Paul this way and he hated it. He had always liked Seth and he felt for awhile they might be better friends. Not now.

Paul sighed as he stepped over to the fridge and opened the door. Nothing really jumped out at him so he closed the door and walked back into the living room.

"Leah not home?" Grandma asked.

"No."

"You look lost, Pauly. What's going on?"

Paul sat on the edge of the futon and shrugged. "I don't know. I just feel . . . weird today. I don't know what to do with myself."

Ruth smiled at him. "That's because you're always so worried about taking care of me and the boys. You never think of yourself. Go do something YOU want to do."

"Yeah, but I don't know what that is."

Ruth laughed at that. "Well, I have a feeling whatever it would be, it would involve Leah."

Paul looked over at his grandma. "What do you mean by that?"

Her eyes twinkled as Ruth replied, "Oh, come on, Pauly. I may be old, but I'm not blind. You've got it bad for that girl."

"We're just friends, Grandma," Paul insisted.

"Yeah, I know. That's what you keep telling everyone. But deep down, I think you're afraid of what you feel." She looked at him over the tip of her glasses that rested on the edge of her nose to advise, "Dig deep and work through those feelings before she gets away."

Paul sighed deeply and leaned back. "I know I don't want to fall in love. I don't want to give up what little bit of freedom I have. Between school and work and being here for all of you . . . I don't have the time or the energy to give to one more person."

"Oh, honey, of course you do," Ruth said as she laid her knitting into her lap. "We all need love in our lives. And you don't plan for it . . . it just finds you." A smile crossed her face as she said softly, "I remember when I met your grandpa. I was working at a little grocery store, just like you. My father was out of work at the time, and we needed what little money I brought home to help us pay the bills. I was just 17. Anyway, Ben came into the store to buy two cans of pork and beans. He smiled at me as he paid for them, asking, 'Do you have the time?' I remember I stammered and finally looked at my watch and said, '7:30.' He looked me in the eye and said, 'That means I have 30 minutes to waste before I come back at closing time to pick you up.' Then he left the store." Ruth smiled and closed her eyes for a moment to relish the memory as she sighed, "He was so handsome."

Paul waited silently for her to go on. "I was completely in shock! No one had ever tried to pick me up before. And I could tell he was older than me. I didn't know what to do!"

"So, what did you do?" Paul asked. He was surprised she had never told him this story before. He had never known his grandpa . . . he died before Paul was born.

"Well, I worked until we closed at eight, then I walked out the front door and there he was, leaning against an old pick-up truck. He smiled at me, and I just melted. I took a chance, and I got in that pick-up truck, and I never regretted it."

"Grandma! He could have been some psycho killer escaped from prison or something!"

Ruth laughed heartily at that. "But, he wasn't. He was a very sweet, gentle man who loved me until the day he died." Then her smile faded. "I still miss him everyday." She spent a few minutes lost in her thoughts then she gave Paul a small smile. "So, see? If I had gone out the back door that night and run home, I would have missed out on the true love of my life. I jumped in with both feet, Paul, and so should you."

Paul sat there and thought about that as his grandma picked up her knitting again. She made love sound so easy, but he still wasn't quite convinced. A knock on the door brought him out of his thoughts. His grandma started to get up until Paul said, "It's OK, I got it."

Opening the door, Paul found Leah standing there in a yellow tank top and khaki shorts, her black hair blowing in the breeze around her shoulders . . . she took his breath away. A big smile broke out on his face as she said, "Hey, Paul. I thought maybe we could hang out at the beach. Want to?"

Paul could feel the grin spread over his face as he replied, "Yes. Yes I do. Come on in and I'll get my trunks." Leah nodded and walked past him to the living room where she greeted his grandma.

"Leah! We were just talking about you," Ruth said as she winked at Paul.

"Be good, Grandma," Paul warned her as he turned to walk to his bedroom to rifle through the drawers looking for his swim trunks. He finally found them and slipped them on then went to the bathroom to grab a towel before walking out to find Leah and his grandma laughing. "OK, what's going on out here? You two are having way too much fun."

For some reason, that made them laugh again. "No worries, honey," Ruth finally got out. "Just get out of here and have some fun! You deserve it."

Paul leaned down and kissed his grandma's cheek. "Thanks. I'll see you later."

Leah stood up and said, "Bye, Ruth."

"Bye, Leah. You come back soon."

They walked outside and Paul closed the door behind them then asked, "So, what was that all about?"

"Girl talk. None of your business," Leah answered flippantly.

Paul made a grab for her, but she ducked and ran for the car where she jumped inside and slammed the door. He grinned and walked to the car, climbed into the driver's side and looked over at her as he started the engine. "OK, have little secrets with my grandma."

Leah surprised him by leaning over and kissing him. "What was that for?" Paul asked her.

"For being such a good grandson. It's very sexy, you know."

"Hmm, I'll have to remember that." And with that, he put the car in gear and drove them to the beach. Once he parked, they got out and walked onto the public beach and looked around. It looked like everyone was taking advantage of the rare sunny, hot day.

"Wow. Talk about everyone having the same idea!" Leah observed. "Let's walk down this way." Paul nodded and followed her to where the crowd finally thinned out enough for them to find a spot to spread out the blanket Leah brought.

Paul plopped down on it and said, "Man, I haven't seen the beach this packed in a long time."

"Yeah, me either."

As Paul stared out at the waves, he suddenly thought about the night they had come here for a swim, and they ended up having sex. Glancing at Leah, he decided he better think about something else . . . anything else right now. He looked down the beach and noticed Embry and Quil with Claire. He elbowed Leah and pointed them out to her.

"Awww, isn't that cute. Quil and the little wifey playing in the sand," Leah commented.

"Ooh, gross. Don't put that image in my head. She's a little kid!"

Leah just laughed. "I know. But when you run with him, all you feel is such . . . adoration from him. He ADORES that kid. It makes me sick, really."

"Yeah, I know. It's the imprint thing. It's the same with Jared and Sam. I can't fucking stand it. Man, I don't want that. Not at all. Is there a way you can prevent imprinting? Like maybe a spray that you can use to repel it? Like bugs?"

Leah laughed really hard at that. "I don't know, but maybe you should invent that."

"Yeah, you laugh. You don't have to worry about it." Then Paul thought about that. "Or, do you? Do girl wolves imprint?"

Leah shrugged, "I don't know. I doubt it."

"Why?"

"Because, Paul, I'm a genetic dead end. Imprinting is all about making stronger wolves for the pack, blah, blah, blah. If I were capable of that, don't you think Sam would have imprinted on me instead of Emily? Then I became a wolf, the only female werewolf ever! How would that work with me being pregnant? How would I phase? And since I phased, I don't have periods anymore, so obviously my lady parts aren't working like they're supposed to, but it's not like I can go to a doctor and have them checked out." Leah sighed as she laid back on the towel and looked at the sky. "I'm pretty much destined to be alone, I think."

It killed Paul to hear her talk like that. He loved watching Leah with Travis . . . she was so good with kids. There had to be a way for her to be a mother someday. Paul turned to his side and propped himself on his elbow to look down at her. "I don't think so. So your body is frozen right now, but it doesn't mean it will always be. And besides, you'll always have me, buddy."

Leah smiled up at him, very grateful for his reply. "Thanks, buddy."

"Hey, enough of this. Let's go for a swim," Paul suggested as he pulled his t-shirt off and stood up to hold out his hand to her.

"Fine, whatever." Leah took it and allowed him to haul her to her feet. She slipped her shorts off and pulled her tank top over her head and stood before Paul in a bright orange bikini. The orange stood out against her dark skin, and the bikini top fought to contain her breasts. Paul struggled to breathe as she shook her hair out before gathering it up into a pony tail and securing it with the elastic band. Suddenly his heart was beating just a little faster.

"OK, let's go," Leah said lightly as Paul just stood there, gawking at her. She waved her hand in front of his face. "Hello? Paul? Let's go."

Shaking his head, Paul mumbled, "Yeah, OK," and tried again to breathe. Leah had no idea how sexy she was right now, and that just made her all the sexier. Paul felt himself growing hard and decided he better get to the cold water fast. He took off running for the water and Leah followed.

Paul dove into the waves and started pulling himself through the cool water. He was feeling a little better as he came up for air and treaded water as he looked around for Leah. Suddenly he felt a tug on his shorts, but he made a grab for them a little too late. He laughed out loud as Leah surfaced with a triumphant smile on her face.

"Aha! Payback is hell, my friend!" Leah shouted.

"Come on, Leah. When I did that to you, there was no one here. You can't expect me to walk out of the water naked in front of all of these people? You want me scare all of the little kids?" Paul whined.

Leah was still laughing as she started to swim away from him. Paul immediately went after her and caught her around the waist, his huge hands resting on her bare skin. She turned to face him and her smile faded as she gasped when she looked into his eyes . . . they were dark with desire and . . . something else. Before she could speak, his lips captured hers and she was lost. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he pressed his hardness into her stomach.

Leah opened her mouth to his tongue and as it gently explored, she felt her excitement building. Paul broke from her lips to whisper in her ear, "You have no idea what you do to me, Leah. Seeing you in this bikini almost killed me."

"Can you get us to a place where you can touch the bottom?" Leah whispered back.

Paul pulled back to look her into the eyes and seeing the desire there, quickly nodded then moved through the water toward the rocks to give them more privacy. As soon as he could touch bottom, he took his bathing suit from Leah's hand and whipped it behind her so she could lean back against the rock as he lifted her into his arms. Leah surprised him by reaching down and wrapping her hand around him and giving him a tug and as Paul gasped, she smiled. He again captured her lips and as he kissed her, she moved her bikini to the side enough to allow Paul access. He pushed inside and found her so tight in the water that he was filled with an ecstasy he had never known.

The feeling of him inside her with the water moving all around them was such a turn on. "Oh, Paul . . . fuck . . . you're so hard." Their mouths devoured each other as Leah squeezed her legs tightly around Paul's waist. He had his hand inside her bikini top and was running his thumb over her nipple and it made her whole body sing. Leah threaded her fingers into Paul's hair and pulled as he pumped her over and over. "Fuck, Leah . . . I'm going to cum already," he groaned.

"Don't stop . . . not yet," she commanded as she moved with him then finally, she burst free and felt both of their bodies shake. "Oh my God, Paul. That was fucking amazing," she panted.

Paul leaned back to look into her eyes and he smiled as he struggled to catch his breath. "I've never done that before. I have no words to describe how that felt."

Laughing, Leah held up his bathing suit. He took it from her as he pulled out of her and set her down. "Can you touch here?" he asked. Leah stretched her legs out and nodded as her toes hit the sand. Paul slipped his trunks back on and then dunked under the water. As he broke the surface, he shook out his hair and wiped his hand over his face.

Leah watched him and thought she had never felt so happy and free in her life. All the shit she had been through in the last few months . . . losing Sam, her dad, turning into a giant wolf . . . she hadn't realized how heavy it had all been to carry. And now, she felt lighter, freer.

"Leah? You OK?" Paul asked.

A huge smile come to her face, as Leah answered, "Yeah, Paul, I am. I feel better than I have in a very long time."

"Me, too," Paul grinned. "I never thought I could ever be this happy."

They finally made it back to the shore where each of them flopped down on the blanket and spent the rest of the afternoon lazing on the beach, Paul even napping for awhile. As Leah watched him sleep, she tried hard to push down those feelings for Paul that were starting to surface. Protecting her heart was her main priority here. When she first starting hanging out with Paul, she never thought this would be a problem. But she didn't think he would turn out to be so funny and sweet and so, so sexy. Leah sighed as her eyes fluttered closed. She was scared as hell, but she wasn't going to let that stop her from being with him. She was finally happier than she had been in so long, and it felt good.

After his nap, Paul suggested they spend some time with Embry, Quil and Claire, so they made their way over and Leah sat down next to Claire. "Hey, Claire. Can I help?" Leah asked as she picked up a shovel and stared digging sand. Claire nodded and handed her a bucket.

Paul watched Leah with Claire and thought about what she had said earlier about her not being able to have children. He found himself hoping that wasn't true. Seeing her smile and play with Claire, and knowing how good she was with Travis . . . he realized she could be a really good mom. Better than his for sure.

While Leah and Claire built their castle, the guys played in the surf. Quil made his way back and Claire ran to him yelling his name. Leah smiled as Quil scooped her up and tickled her. For some reason, it made her wonder about Paul and what kind of a father he might make. She loved watching him with Travis. If that was any indication, he would make a great dad someday. Why was she thinking about kids and Paul together? Get a grip, Leah!

"It's getting late, Leah. We better go." Paul said as he walked up behind her. When she didn't move, he said again, "Leah?" then squatted down beside her and touched her on the arm and smiled as she jumped. "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you." Turning his head, Paul realized what Leah had been watching so intently. Oh, Claire.

"What?" Leah asked.

"You ready to go?" Paul asked again softly.

Smiling, she nodded, "Sure."

The little party broke up and Paul walked Leah went back to his car. Once they were on the road, Paul said, "Hey, Leah?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't give up, OK?"

Leah squinted at him. "Give up on what?"

"On having kids. It could still happen someday. All this wolf shit . . . none of us really knows exactly what's going to happen to us. Just . . . don't give up." His hand rested on Leah's knee and she smiled as she laid her hand on top of his.

"Thanks. That's really sweet."

"Oh God, don't tell anyone else that. Especially Jared. He'll never let me hear the end of it."

Leah snickered. "You just keep amazing me, Paul. You can act like such a jerk with everyone, but with me . . . you're so . . . different." Her eyes softened as she promised, "I'll keep your secret."

"You better," Paul grinned.

"What about you? Have you ever thought about kids? Oh wait, you're a confirmed bachelor. No wife, no kids, I forgot."

Glancing at her, Paul surprised himself by saying, "Oh, I don't know. I never thought I would want kids, but . . . now with the boys living with us, and spending time with Trav . . . sometimes, I have to admit, I kind of think about it."

That made Leah smile. "Good. Keep thinking about it."

Paul smiled back and wondered why they were talking about kids. It was making him a little uneasy.

Leah decided she wanted to shower before she went to the bonfire, so Paul drove to her house. After he parked the car, he turned to her. "I have to leave the car at home for Grandma, so, I guess I'll meet you at the bonfire?"

"Yep. See you there," Leah answered then she just sat there and looked at Paul for a moment. "I had a really good day at the beach. Thanks for going with me."

"Me, too. Thanks for asking me." Paul leaned toward her and kissed her gently on the lips then she touched his face and kissed him back. As Paul stared into her eyes, he asked, "What's going on here, Leah? With us?"

"I don't know," she sighed. "I try not to think about it. I'm afraid if we analyze it and pick it apart, we'll ruin it. I just want to be and to feel, OK? Let's not think."

Paul smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I agree."

"OK, see you in a little bit," Leah said as she opened the car door.

"See ya," Paul called out then he watched Leah walk to the door and disappear inside. Taking a deep breath, he put the car in gear. This thing with Leah was scaring the hell out of him, and yet . . . he found it more exciting every day.