Hi everyone! A big THANK YOU to everyone reading and reviewing this fiction. I know some of you were a bit shocked at Lucas's behavior in the last chapter. I do want to present him as a complex character and I think some of you caught onto that with the reviews I read. Could this be a foreshadowing of things to come? You'll have to wait a bit further along and see.

Enjoy!

Paulo's Welcome

Sarah and Sophia were sitting in Sophia's bedroom talking while waiting for their guys to return. Sophia knew that Lucas, Sean and Randy had left to go to Scott's house and deliver the necessary 'threat'. She felt terrible for Scott and she avoided a mind connection with Lucas this evening because she did not want to know what was done. Sarah, however, kept checking in with Sean and would grow quiet at times when she spoke with him. During these moments Sophia would look away. She didn't want to know because she knew that Lucas would be forced to act in ways she did not like.

It was true that Lucas had gotten into a lot of trouble before Sophia had any influence on him. He was young, powerful and self assured, a natural born leader. But he also was capable of being cruel and a bully. It was only the presence of Sophia that had tempered him and matured him. Yet those negative qualities were still there, ready to use when needed. He frequently told Sophia, "You make me a better guy."

After awhile Sophia heard her Dad's SUV pull up outside and two doors slam. When Matt entered the house he called out, "Sophia, we've got company."

Sophia and Sarah looked at each other and shrugged. Then they made their way downstairs. When Sophia reached the bottom and looked towards the kitchen she stopped in her tracks, surprise growing on her face.

"Oh! My! God!" she exclaimed, "Paulo!" A huge smile lit her face as she ran towards him for a hug.

"Sophia!" he cheered as he pulled her around in a circle. He then stepped back and took a look at her. "You're looking beautiful."

"Thanks!" she squealed in excitement. She couldn't believe he was actually here. Florence was so far away. "This is so great! I can't believe you're here!"

"Well I am," he laughed with joy. "I decided to surprise you."

"You did surprise me," she said happily. "You're staying aren't you?" Sophia looked at her Dad who had an indulgent smile on his face. She took that as a good sign.

"Yes, your Dad says I can stay as long as I wish," Paulo said. "But I'll leave if I start driving you crazy.

Sophia laughed. It was good to be with her cousin again. They had become close friends during her time in Florence. "You can never drive me crazy." She looked back to where Sarah was standing with an amused smile on her face. "Sarah, I'd like you to meet my cousin Paulo from Florence."

"Hi," said Sarah with a friendly smile. Sophia had told her about Paulo before and so she already knew a few things about him.

"Wow! Another pretty girl! Are all the women so beautiful in Wolf Lake?" Paulo smiled at Sarah in wonder.

"This one is taken already Romeo," Sophia told him with a laugh.

"Ah," said Paulo in disappointment. "I have been in this house less than five minutes and already my first heartbreak."

"Sophia, why don't you clear out your easel and paint supplies from the guest room and I'll go find some fresh linens for the bed," Matt said. Looking at how well Sophia and Paulo got along Matt was happy that Paulo would stay awhile. Perhaps Sophia would spend more time at home that way, Matt thought. And Paulo was a very friendly and polite young man.

"I will help," Paulo said as he followed the two girls upstairs. When they entered the guest room Paulo marveled at the paintings in which Sophia had propped against the walls and furniture. "You have painted these? These are really good Sophia."

"Thanks," Sophia said. "It's a hobby of mine."

Paulo noticed that many of the paintings were of the same guy and he asked, "Who is this guy you paint all the time?"

"Oh, that's Lucas," Sophia said as she began gathering the paintings in a neat pile.

Paulo looked at her and wiggled his eyebrows, "You like him?"

Sophia smiled and laughed, "No, I don't like him. I love him. He's my mate. Well, not officially, but we are engaged."

"Wow! But you are so young Sophia," Paulo said.

"It's the way of the clan Paulo," Sophia said. "Young males can get, well, dangerous if they go too long without a mate. It's o.k. in your early teens to not be attached to anyone, but the males grow more and more aggressive as they age. Without a mate to temper them, they can become a menace." Sophia immediately thought of Tyler Creed and how his wait for Ruby had made him do some pretty bad things.

Sarah was putting Sophia's paints in a box as she listened to Sophia explain their ways. It was strange to hear this being told to a human. But she remembered that Paulo and his family knew about skin walkers as they had helped Sophia through her first flip. She decided that if Sophia was so trusting of Paulo then she would be too.

Sophia heard a strong voice in her head all of the sudden.

Baby who are you talking too? Why is there an ungulate male in your house?

It's my cousin Paulo from Florence. He's come for a visit.

We're almost there. Love you.

I love you too. Can't wait to see you.

"The guys are almost here," Sophia said. "You'll get to meet Lucas in a few minutes."

"Oh, did you do that talking in your head stuff that you told me about?" Paulo marveled.

"Yeah," Sophia said as they carried paintings and supplies into the closet.

"That is so cool!" Paulo exclaimed. "And I bet it saves you money on your phone bill!"

Sophia laughed, "It's good to have you here Paulo. I've missed you."

"I've missed you too," he replied.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Lucas, Sean and Randy pulled up in front of Sophia's house. They had just finished crashing Scott Nichol's party and were ready to unwind at the rave with their own kind. Lucas and Sean didn't like the feeling they got when they sensed that their girls were with an ungulate boy. The fact that it was Sophia's cousin did seem to placate them somewhat, though not much.

The boys strode up the walkway of the house and as they reached the porch Matt threw open the door and stopped them in their tracks. He had sensed the mood of the boys when they drove up and knew he'd better intervene.

"Settle down guys," he warned. "You be courteous to Paulo or you'll upset Sophia. He is no threat to you or the girls."

Lucas glared at Matt and then let out a deep breath. The Sheriff was right. Sophia would get pissed if they scared Paulo. He nodded his head in acceptance. Randy and Sean noted Lucas's nod and settled their defenses as well. When Matt was sure the boys had changed moods, he let them walk by and into the house.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

For the next half hour the teens sat in Matt's living room and talked. Sophia sat on Lucas's knee as he held on to her possessively. He wasn't as friendly as he could have been but he did sit and observe the talkative boy. Lucas had to admit that Paulo was friendly and he seemed to make Sophia laugh a lot. He was having a hard time accepting that another male would be sleeping in the same house as Sophia even if he was a relative. He tried not to show his irritation at the situation for Sophia's sake however.

Lucas could hear Matt hovering around the kitchen nearby, listening for any sign of trouble starting. The Alpha teen was beginning to feel very anxious to leave the house. "Well," Lucas said as he interrupted the friendly banter, "we should get going."

Everyone stood up and Sophia said, "Paulo, you may want to grab a jacket. It can get very cold by the lake at night this time of year."

Lucas turned his head to Sophia with a disapproving frown on his face. "Sophia, I'm not sure it's a good idea for Paulo to come to a Hill rave. The others…"

"Will love him," Sophia finished the sentence. She stood straight and faced her moody mate with a determined look on her face. "I came to a few raves when I was still human."

"You were my guest, I invited you," Lucas said to her.

"Well Paulo is my guest and I'm inviting him!" Sophia stood her ground.

Paulo looked from Sophia to Lucas and back to Sophia again. "It's o.k., I can stay here tonight Sophia. I don't want to cause problems."

"No Paulo, I'm not leaving you here on the first night you're visiting! I'll stay here with Paulo if it's a big deal for you Lucas," she told her mate.

Lucas sighed in frustration. He took their disagreement private.

Baby don't say that. I'm not going anywhere without you.

Well then we have a problem, don't we?

Lucas shook his head and grinned.

Alright Baby, you won.

Lucas took another deep breath and turned to face Paulo. "It'll be cool Paulo. You'll be under our protection." He looked at Sophia's smile of gratitude and then back to Paulo again. "I know you are aware of what we are but I don't know how much you've actually seen. Sophia told me that she didn't flip after that first time while she was in Italy. Anyways, I'm just saying that if our ways freak you out, you would be better off staying here. We don't hold back out there and there is a lot of flipping and wolves running around."

"Would I be in danger of getting eaten?" Paulo said with wide eyes.

Lucas shook his head, "Not while you're under our protection. And another thing, you can't discuss anything you see with any other human in this town. Not many of them know what we are."

"Don't worry, I won't," promised Paulo.

Sophia looked at Paulo with concern. "Are you sure you want to do this tonight? We don't have to go you know. We could stay here."

"Will Presley be there?" Paulo asked. Randy stiffened and glared at Paulo but Paulo did not notice.

"You know Presley?" Sophia asked in surprise.

"Well, yes, I met her at that diner you used to work at. She showed me to the police station," Paulo said. "She's really beautiful." Paulo turned his head as he heard a growl behind him. Lucas had moved his body in front of Randy.

"Oh, I see," said Sophia as she grinned at Sarah. "Well, I don't know if she'll be there but she usually is."

Paulo smiled, unaware of the drama going on behind him as Lucas turned to stare Randy down. "Then I'd like to go," said Paulo.

Matt came back into the room as everyone was heading for the door. "Lucas, I expect Paulo to have a good and safe time tonight," he reminded.

Lucas turned his head and grinned at the Sheriff, "Don't worry so much."

Then he looked at his friends. "Randy, you ride with Sean and Sarah. Paulo you come with me and Sophia."

"Good idea," mumbled Sean. He knew that they'd have to keep Randy as far from Paulo as they could tonight.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Sophia stood with her arms around Lucas's neck and her head resting on his chest as he held her close to his body. Lucas was talking to friends while Sophia shut her eyes and embraced him. She loved how right it felt to be in his arms, as if they were two pieces of a puzzle that fit exactly right together.

Everyone accepted Lucas's silent order to treat Paulo with respect. In fact it seemed apparent that many were beginning to like the friendly guy with the big smile. He spent almost all his time dancing with groups of females who thought he was adorable and fun to tease. Paulo didn't mind the attention at all and Sophia would smile whenever she watched him.

Lucas and Sophia had told him in the car on the way here that he had to be careful about paying attention to Presley as Randy already thought of her as his mate even though she had not accepted it yet. Presley and her friends however did not consider Randy at all as they sought out Paulo for dancing and flirting.

Lucas was keeping one eye on Randy the entire time as he did not trust that Randy had his emotions totally under control yet. A few times already he had to give Randy a warning growl when he began dancing too close to the area in which Paulo danced.

Sophia looked up into Lucas's face and said, "You're not very relaxed tonight."

"I feel like a babysitter," he complained.

Sophia sighed. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to leave him when he just got here. I think we should try taking him somewhere else tonight."

"I think I should just take you somewhere else tonight," Lucas smiled his sexy smile at her as he bent his head down for a kiss. When he lifted his head from the long delicious kiss he glanced up towards the dancers and had to do a double take when he could no longer see Paulo out there. Presley was absent as well. "Damn!" he said as he took Sophia's hand and pulled her towards Dawn and Krissy who were still dancing. The crowd moved away from the Alphas as they approached and many stood and watched to see what was happening.

Sophia's head was turning around quickly, trying to scan for Paulo as well.

"Where'd they go?" demanded Lucas of the two females. "Where's Presley and Paulo?"

Dawn pointed towards the tree line and Lucas and Sophia rushed into the forest. Lucas tried to contact Presley with his mental link.

Presley! Return with Paulo now!

He got no answer and realized that Presley had blocked anyone from contact. "Damn her!" Lucas swore. Lucas and Sophia stripped down while they hurried and transformed into their wolves. They knew they would be faster and more able to track down the scent.

When they finally drew near they slowed down and padded over to the scene which met their eyes. Paulo was backed against a tree, holding it from behind with a look of terror on his face. Presley stood in front of him half transformed as she growled and swiped at the large beige wolf that was baring it's fangs towards Paulo.

Lucas hoped that he wouldn't have to hurt Randy's wolf tonight as he ordered Sophia's wolf to stay where she was.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Sorry about the evil little cliff hanger. LOL Till next time…

Please send me your thoughts! Thanks!