CHAPTER 34
THE NIGHT BEFORE
It was the day before the wedding and Leah was with Sue going over everything to make sure that tomorrow would be perfect. She couldn't believe her luck with the weather . . . the forecast called for sunny skies with a high of 65! Not really common for December in Washington.
Paul had asked Jared to be his best man, and he was busy planning the bachelor party for tonight. Leah had already warned Paul not to get drunk at this party like he did at Sam's. Seth had filled her in on that story, so he promised her he would be good.
Paul had also surprised Tyler by asking him to stand up with him. "You know, Jared and I have been close since I moved here when I was 5. He's my cousin, but he's always been my best friend, too, so that's why he's my best man. But, you're my brother, and we're tight, and I'd like to have you there with me. So, will you?"
Tyler was at a loss . . . he had no idea what to say. Finally he smiled and said, "Well, I do look good in a suit, so . . . I guess I can."
Tyler smiled at Paul's hearty laugh and felt really warm when Paul pulled him in for a bro hug. "Good. You had me worried there for a minute," Paul told him as he let him go.
Paul asked Travis to be his "ring bear," and of course Travis said yes then asked if Claire could be the flower girl. "I'm sure Leah will ask her," Paul told him, and of course, she did.
Leah insisted on staying at her mom's tonight, as she wanted to hold to the tradition of the groom not seeing the bride before the wedding. Paul pouted about sleeping alone, but Leah wouldn't budge.
So, everything was set for the big day. Leah left Sue's and ran to Forks to the dry cleaners to pick up all the guy's suits, then she picked up the cake at the bakery, and the flowers at the florist. On the drive back, she had the radio on and was singing along to the music. She had never felt so happy and so free. The only sad thing about tomorrow was that Seth would be walking her down the aisle instead of her father. She and her mom had shed a few tears over that this morning, but she knew that her dad would be happy for her, so she put the sadness aside and decided to focus on how happy she was to marry the man of her dreams.
Leah pulled up to their little gray house in the woods, as she liked to think of it, and walked in to hear Noah screaming over the TV that was way too loud, and Tyler screaming at Travis to "shut up and leave me the hell alone!"
"Hey!" Leah shouted over all the noise as she laid the suits over the chair. She had to shout again to get Tyler's attention. "What the hell is going on here?" she asked, not hiding her anger.
Tyler grabbed the remote and turned off the TV as Leah took Noah from his car seat. "Where is Paul?" she demanded.
"In the kitchen getting a bottle for Noah," Tyler told her sheepishly. Travis just sat there on the floor not saying a word.
Leah quickly turned to stalk toward the kitchen. Paul was nowhere in sight, but the bottle was sitting on the counter. She picked it up and tested it on her arm then shoved it into Noah's open mouth. He accepted it greedily and she wondered how long he had been waiting for it. She was instantly pissed at Paul. How could he just take off and leave Noah hungry like that? She looked around and then walked to the back door to look outside for Paul. She saw him standing at the edge of the lawn, talking to Sam, who was wearing only shorts, which meant he came in wolf form.
"Shit," Leah sighed, hoping this didn't mean trouble. Fighting the urge to walk outside to find out what was going on, she decided that part of her just didn't want to know, while the other side of her was dying of curiosity. Instead, she just stood there staring out the door at them, waiting for Paul to come inside.
Noah was halfway done with his bottle when Paul finally turned and made his way to the house. Leah watched as Sam stripped his shorts then phased as he ran for the woods. She backed up so Paul could open the door and walk into the kitchen.
"Oh, hey," he said in surprise as he saw Leah. "When did you get home?"
"Just in time to keep Noah here from starving. He was screaming his head off, waiting for his bottle," Leah said angrily.
Paul ran his hand through his hair as he saw how pissed Leah was at him. "God, I'm sorry. Sam came, and . . . I didn't think, I just . . . "
"Yeah, you didn't think. Noah has to come first, Paul. When he's hungry, he can't wait." She turned away from him and headed to the living room to plop down in the chair.
Paul sighed and followed her into the living room. "Leah, look, I'm sorry. You're right. Is he OK?" he asked as he sunk down onto the futon.
"Yes, he's fine now," she said less angrily. She knew he didn't mean to make Noah suffer.
Paul looked around and noticed the boys were nowhere in sight. "Where are the boys?"
Leah noticed their bedroom door was closed. "Probably hiding in their room from me. They could see I wasn't happy when I walked in to find Noah screaming over the TV that was way too loud and the two of them fighting."
"Oh," was all Paul said.
"So? Are you going to tell me what Sam had to say?"
Paul didn't want to because he knew she would freak. She had been a little on edge about getting everything perfect for tomorrow. "Um, he wanted to let me know that he had given the Cullens permission to cross the treaty line tonight and tomorrow."
Leah's eyes narrowed as she asked, "Why would he do that?"
Paul took a deep breath. "Because he knew that all of us would be otherwise occupied with the bachelor party and wedding."
"So, is this just a precaution, or is something going on you don't want to tell me?"
"OK, it's probably nothing, but Sam wants to be cautious." Leah stared at him, waiting for him to finish. "A lone hiker was killed yesterday about 20 miles from here. Sam took Embry and Quil with him this morning to take a look around. They didn't catch any bloodsucker stench, but just in case, he wanted to put the Cullens in place to make sure everyone stays safe."
Leah sighed and leaned her head back against the chair. Why now? Why couldn't things ever just be perfect for her and Paul? Noah finished his bottle and Leah took it from him and then put him up on her shoulder to burp him. "Fine, whatever," she told Paul. "Tomorrow is our wedding day, Paul, and I am not going to let anything ruin it for us. I am putting this out of my mind, and we are just going to concentrate on us, OK?"
Paul smiled at her. "Sounds good to me. Oh, by the way, Charlie called today to let me know that the restraining order is in place. He also said I should think about becoming the boys' legal guardian."
"Yeah, that's a good idea. We should look into that after the New Year," Leah said in agreement.
Noah let out a burp and she pulled him away from her shoulder and held him out to Paul. "Now, take your son and put a clean diaper on him. He stinks." Paul took him as Leah stood up to announce, "I am going to take the cake and flowers over to Mom's. I'll be back in less than an hour. Can you please make sure the house doesn't catch on fire while I'm gone?"
Paul stood up and laughed at her. "Yes, boss, we'll be fine. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. How many times do you want me to say it?"
Leah finally smiled and leaned in to kiss him on the lips. "I guess that will do for now." Taking her keys out of her pocket, Leah walked out the door to the truck. As she started the engine she shook her head and smiled. She could never stay mad at any of her boys for very long. God help her!
Tyler was allowed to go to the bachelor party with Paul, but Travis wasn't. He pouted for awhile then decided it was OK when he found out that he could go with Leah and the girls. They were going to Forks to eat out at a real restaurant . . . something he never got to do! And he would have to be there to keep an eye on Claire, of course, so he said good bye to Paul and Tyler and then skipped out to Emily's car. Kim had taken Noah out to the car already to let Leah say good night to Paul.
Paul drew Leah into his arms and nuzzled her neck. "How am I going to sleep tonight without you?"
"You'll be fine. I left you a present under your pillow," Leah said with a wicked gleam in her eye.
"You did?" Paul asked with a grin. His curiosity was peaked now.
"Yes, but wait until you go to bed," she ordered.
Paul smiled and then bent to put a kiss on her lips. It was supposed to be a simple kiss, but thinking about whatever surprise she had left him under his pillow had him going. His tongue sought hers and he deepened the kiss as his hands started to slip towards her ass.
Leah quickly realized they were being watched and reluctantly drew away. "Um, Paul, we have an audience, you know."
Chuckling, he let her go. "Fine. Until tomorrow night . . . "
Leah smiled at that thought. Their fist night as man and wife. Paul had arranged for a room in a nice inn in Port Angeles. Leah wasn't sure about spending a whole night away from Noah, but her mother assured her he would fine for one night, so she gave in.
Emily honked the horn and Kim called out, "Come on, you lovebirds. Give us a break!"
Paul dropped a quick kiss on her lips and said, "I'll see you tomorrow, baby."
"Behave tonight, young man," Leah warned with a fake mad look.
"I will. You have fun."
Leah nodded then turned toward Emily's car, where she climbed into the front and waved as Emily drove away. Paul grinned and ran into the house straight to his bedroom. He knew he wouldn't be able to stand the suspense of waiting until tonight to see what was under his pillow.
As soon as he hit the bedroom, he lifted his pillow to find a small piece of black, silky material that he suspected were panties, although there wasn't much to them. He smiled and brought them to his face and caught her scent. She had worn them! God, he loved this woman! He could barely contain his excitement at the thought of them spending all night together, away from everyone and everything. Just the two of us . . .
Placing the panties back on the bed, he threw his pillow back over them then he grinned. He was the luckiest man in the world.
Paul and Tyler pulled up to the beach and the bonfire was in full blaze. Sam and Jared had come early and had everything ready. There was a spread of food on the picnic table, and burgers on the grill. Paul spied two coolers and suspected that Sam had brought some beer along with the pop. He would have to be careful to limit himself tonight, although, he was in a much different mood now than he had been at Sam's bachelor party. He was on top of the world tonight.
Collin and Brady were already there, and they pulled Tyler away to play a rousing game of extreme Frisbee. Embry joined in when he arrived and soon Seth joined, too.
Paul tensed as he caught a whiff on the breeze . . . vamp stench. He quickly looked over at Sam to see if he caught it, too, then he remembered that the Cullens were skulking around the rez keeping an eye on things for them. It felt unnatural and . . . just plain wrong.
Sam could see by the look on Paul's face he was pissed about something, so he made his way over. "Paul? You OK?"
"It's the stench. It's not right, Sam. They shouldn't be here," Paul told him angrily. It was all he could do to rein in his anger and not pop out right there to chase them off.
"Yeah? Well, what else would you have me do? I can send them away and start patrols again. You know, after this shin-dig, they go away and we patrol tonight and tomorrow until the wedding."
Paul sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Yeah, I know."
"Look, I don't like it either, but in a way, I guess, I'm kind of glad they're around. We've always had the treaty with them, but after working with them during all the shit with the newborns . . . well, it just helps to know we have some back-up."
"I just hate to think of fucking leeches as our back-up."
"So do I, bro. This one is your call. I can get a patrol together right now . . . " his voice faded as he waited for Paul's decision.
Paul looked up and around at all of the guys. It was great for once to see everyone relaxed and having fun . . . "No, it's cool. Let's just relax for a few hours."
Sam clapped him on the back and smiled. "Come on. Let's get a beer."
Jared, Paul and Sam stood around the fire, nursing their fist beer, just watching the younger guys. Quil joined them and said, "Aren't they cute? It's like watching Claire play with her little friends at the park," which made them all laugh. The only one missing was Jake. Paul asked Quil about him and he said, "Uh, yeah. He'll be here, but he may be late."
Sam turned to him and asked why. Quil kind of stuttered around until Sam said, "Out with it, Quil. What the hell is going on?"
Quil sighed then said, "He got a call from Bella. She's in town at her Dad's. First time in over a year. So, you know him . . . she calls and he goes running to her like a dog in heat."
"Which is what he is," Paul commented.
Sam just shook his head. He knew he could Alpha order him to get his ass over here and away from her, but he didn't. This was something Jake had to work out on his own. He just wished it wouldn't take so fucking long.
Sam took the burgers off the grill and they all dug into the food. Tyler was amazed to see how much food a pack of werewolves could put away. After most of the food was gone, the younger guys pulled out the sticks and marshmallows. As they all sat around the fire, Tyler asked Sam if he could share some of the legends with them. Sam looked at Tyler in surprise then he remembered what Paul had told him about his father's visit the other night and how Tyler was upset because he didn't understand anything about the wolf charm his father had given them. He smiled at Tyler and said, "I guess I could do that, if it's OK with everyone."
No one objected, so Tyler sat down between him and Paul and listened as Sam told the legend of how the tribe descended from wolves. Tyler was completely enraptured by Sam's story. He was amazed that the story was actually true . . . all these guys sitting here, could actually turn into wolves! And that he might, someday, too.
Once Sam finished, Tyler said, "Thanks, Sam."
Sam clapped him on the shoulder. "Sure, Ty."
Tyler looked at Paul as he pulled the chain with the wolf charm on it out of his pocket. He had been carrying it around with him since his father had given it to him. "You think you're ready to wear that now?" Paul asked.
As Tyler stared at that little wolf charm, he finally understood just what it meant. How important it was to be a part of this tribe, this family . . . he slipped the chain over his head and looked down at the charm. Yeah, he was ready. Paul smiled at him and put his hand on Tyler's shoulder. "Welcome to the tribe, Ty." Tyler smiled back and nodded.
Jake finally showed up just as Sam was nearing the end of his story telling. He looked like someone had just kicked him in the gut as he plopped down on a log beside Embry. Embry leaned over and whispered something to him and Jake just shook his head. Paul couldn't tell if he was upset over something or just in shock.
After Sam finished, Paul noticed Embry and Quil close ranks around Jake. He couldn't take the suspense any longer, so he worked his way over to them. "Hey, Jake. Thanks for coming," Paul started.
Jake just nodded. "Hey, dude. You OK?" Paul asked.
Jake looked up at Paul and said, "I don't know, man. Bella called me and asked if I could come and see her at her dad's house. It's been a fucking year and a half and, so I went and she looks . . . a little older, a little more mature, but still so beautiful. I hugged her and she still smelled exactly like she always did. She was warm and . . . alive." Paul could see in his eyes how much he still loved her. He had seen that look in his own reflection many times over the last year.
"So why do you look like she kicked you in the balls?" Embry wanted to know.
"She left him," Jake said in awe.
They all looked at him like his hair was on fire. "What? Are you fucking serious?" Embry asked him.
Jake just nodded like a bobble head. "She told me that she left him and she wasn't going back. She's moved back in with her dad and she wants some time alone to think things through, and then . . . she wants to talk again. She just wanted to let me know that she was home."
Embry and Quil looked at each other with a grin. Embry hollered out, "Thank God! Maybe now we'll get a rest from all the mopey shit that goes on inside your head."
"Yeah, now grow a pair and don't let her get away this time," Paul told him. "Remember what we talked about, bro. Get her alone."
Jake laughed at that as he remembered how Paul had told him to "plant his seed." "I will sure as hell give it all I've got."
Sam came over and handed all of them a beer and proposed a toast to Paul. "To Paul, who is FINALLY making an honest woman of Leah and ending all of our misery." All the guys joined in that toast.
Then Paul held up his beer and said, "And to Jake. Who might actually lose his virginity before he turns 30!"
"Here, here!" Embry called out as all the guys laughed.
From there, the younger guys decided to go back to Collin's and play X Box, while the older guys sat around the fire, drinking beer and swapping stories. Jake was pretty happy, and he downed three or four beers before he even realized it. Since he arrived late and all the food was gone, it went straight to his head. He and Embry were laughing their asses off at anything anybody said, so Sam said, "Alright boys, time to go home."
"No, come on. We just started having fun," Jake whined.
"Yeah, I can see that," Sam said with a grin.
Jake stood up and swayed back and forth then slurred, "I think I'm a little drunk." That made Embry laugh hysterically and the other guys all joined in.
"You think?" Jared asked him. Then he turned to Sam. "Man, Sam, Billy is going to kill you."
Quil looked at Sam. "Since you brought the beer, you have to help me get the two of them home."
"I guess that's fair. But they ride in the back. I'm not cleaning puke out of the cab of my truck."
Jared and Paul half carried Jake to the truck. "Come on, guys, I don't want to go home. I want to see Bella again," Jake slurred. "Take me there will ya? I want to kiss her, and hold her . . . "
"Yeah, Jake, I don't think she's ready for that right now," Jared said. "Didn't she say she needed a little time? And, well, you're drunk, dude. Drunk guys can't get it up, you know what I mean?"
"What?" Jake stopped and stared at Jared with his mouth wide open. "You mean I can't get a boner? Here, let me try."
Jared and Paul were both bent over laughing watching Jake as he stood there with his eyes squeezed shut, straining his body to get an erection. Then he would open his eyes, stare down at his crotch and not seeing anything, he would try again.
"OK, OK, stop," Paul finally got out. "You're going to hurt yourself, dude."
Jake opened his eyes and looked at Paul like he was going to cry. "I can't do it, Paul. It's broken."
Paul just patted him on the back and started walking him toward the truck again. "It's OK, Jake. It'll be back first thing in the morning, I promise."
That made Jake smile. "Good, that's good."
Sam and Quil loaded up the grill then stuffed Jake and Embry into the back of the truck. "See you tomorrow, Paul," Sam said as he climbed into the driver's seat.
Jared and Paul waved at Sam. "Good luck, bro!"
"Come on, let's get you home. You need your beauty sleep," Jared told Paul as he elbowed him.
"Please, dude. I'm prettier than you any day," Paul retorted.
Jared snorted and climbed into Paul's truck. Paul dropped him at home with strict orders to be at his house no later than eleven. The wedding was set for two, and Paul wanted Jared's help at getting the boys ready. "I'll be there, I promise." Then he sat there and looked at Paul. "Man, I can't believe it's finally happening. You and Leah. I never would have imagined it. Good for you, bro. Good for you."
Paul gave him a shit-eating grin. "Thanks, J. I'm glad you'll be there with me. A few more weeks, I'll be there for you. Then we'll both be old, married farts."
Jared met his grin. "Yeah, but happy old married farts."
"Definitely. See ya in the morning." Paul watched Jared walk up to the house then he drove away, the grin still in place.