*clears throat* Um, hi! Chapter 28 anyone? I'm sorry for the whole wait thing again. Between my work schedule and my birthday, time just slipped. Hopefully it won't happen again. BUT I loved this chapter. Christa and Walker. Tricia and Embry. I'm really coming to like Tricia. I hope you like it, too.

*Disclaimer*

Please Enjoy!

ChristaPOV

A dull pounding sound woke me up, which added to my irritation. My dream had been a terribly good one. Walker and I making up and making out. Ugh. Couldn't my subconscious remember that we were pissed off with him? His disrespect of me, Embry, and Tricia, not to mention his racist statement about us "Indians"?

As the pounding on my door persisted as did the doorbell, I had the urge to punch him again while I got out of bed. Whoever it was leaned into the doorbell and I almost ripped the door off the hinges.

"What?!" I snarled.

With eyebrows raised, Walker took a step back. Speak of the devil.

I sighed. "What do you want?" I said in a less than friendly tone. For some reason, I had the insane thought that he may have come to apologize.

Instead, he checked his watch. "We have a patrol of Forks to get to."

"Shit." Leaving the door open, I went for my bathroom. "You know, next time, just call me to wake me up."

"I don't have your number. And no, that's not an invitation for you to give it to me."

The urge to punch him again pulsed through my arms. Instead of allowing my body to take over, however, I just grabbed some clothes and slammed my bathroom door. Taming my curls, scrubbing my face and teeth, and getting dressed only took about five minutes. When I came back out, I found Walker with my cell phone in his hands.

"What are you doing?" I demanded. My heart pounded even though I knew that I deleted all my texts last night. I did at the end of every day.

He briefly glanced at me before going back to the phone. "Getting your number."

"I thought you didn't want it?" I said as I crossed my arms under my breasts.

"I don't want it, but having each other's numbers in case we get separated and something happens is a necessity."

Of course, he was right. But I couldn't let him know that. So I changed the subject. "Why are you all of a sudden all about the patrols? I thought you wanted nothing to do with us now?"

He sighed and handed me my phone. "Christa, I don't want to fight with you. You're a cool person, but you showed me yesterday that you don't understand about me and Tricia. Besides, Jacob was right. I am a part of the weirdness now. If I can help protect you and your people, then I have to. Otherwise my guilt would eat me alive if something happened."

This time my sigh was in defeat. "You're a good guy, Walker. And I do understand about Tricia. Some part of you always knew she wasn't biologically your sister. But I also yelled at you because I'm like Embry. I worry about people. And Tricia seems like a good girl. I don't want to see her world crash because you were selfish with your feelings for her. Some things need to be let go. She sees you and loves you as her brother. That's painfully clear. I guess what I'm saying is that I don't want to see either one of you hurt. Life will take you on the paths you're supposed to be on, so don't force anything, ok? Let it happen."

He studied me for a moment, and then nodded. "I see your point. But let me ask you, does everybody know about my feelings for Tricia?"

I nodded. "Yeah, because we all also know about Embry imprinting on her."

"Everybody really thinks she'll choose him, don't they?"

I shrugged as I grabbed my jacket and locked the door on my way out. "Pretty much. I mean, it's never happened that an imprint didn't pick their wolf. Remember the life/path thing I just spouted? Embry imprinted on her for a reason. She thinks of you as her brother, Walker."

"Have you imprinted?" he asked suddenly.

Instantly, I snapped my mouth shut to keep from answering. We had walked a long way in a short amount of time. Our feet had already taken us past the turn off to the Cullen place.

"I'm sorry. That's too personal," he said.

Yes, it was. Terribly personal, but I had to say something. "Uh, yeah, I did."

He looked at me in surprise. I tried really hard not to meet his eyes in fear that he'd see the truth.

"Where is he? Or she? I'm not entirely sure that works."

I laughed. "No, it's 'he'. Definitely, he."

"Oh. Well, where is he?"

I took a deep breath to keep myself from saying, right beside me. "He's, uh, not around." My heart hurt at the lie, which was a surprise. I wasn't in love to him, just drawn to him. I guess what hurt was that I wanted him to guess that it was him, and for all this shit to work out.

"Oh," he said again. "Well, I'm sorry, I guess."

I swallowed hard. "Thanks."

Ok, we needed to get off this topic. I was terribly close to blurting out everything. But I had to go with the flow. The time would come when everything would come out, but today wasn't it. He had to get his eyes opened by the one person that could do that. Right now, it wasn't me. Maybe one day, it would be me. Hopefully.

"So," I said as we entered the outer edge of town. "I guess we start sniffing around. Seth and a couple others are on a patrol in wolf form around the town just in case."

"You think we'll find anything?"

"It's possible." I lowered my voice even though they could probably still hear me. "With our houses? I doubt they know." Hopefully he'd get it.

He nodded as if he did. "Yeah. Wait, won't my scent mess you up?"

I shook my head. "I know it. Everybody has a specific scent to them. You smell like clean, white boy."

He shot a look at me, and I returned it.

He sighed. "I'm sorry for that comment, ok? I was pissed. I actually still am, but I still shouldn't have said it. I'm not racist at all." When I looked at him, he shrugged. "She's not my sister and another guy is sniffing around her. I don't like it."

Shaking my head, I let it go and reminded myself that there would come a time when Tricia would tell him what's what.

"Come on. Let's walk around."

For about five minutes, we walked around the neighborhood streets until we got to the bustling stores.

"You know," Walker said, looking into the window of the diner. "With just two of us here it's a big town to patrol."

I glanced in the diner, too, and said, "But it's not just us. Seth and the others are around. Not to mention there are others walking around." Unfortunately with me being from the rez and running patrols on the rez, I wasn't familiar with Forks. So, I didn't know all the people the way Walker would. "See anything?" I asked with meaning.

He shook his head. "No, but I do smell something." Leaning in close to me, he breathed, "One of them was here."

Reveling in the closeness, I took a deep inhale of his scent before I backed up to let the breath out. And then I pushed my wolf to the front like Caden had taught us, and scented the wind as subtly as I could. Walker was right. The stench of the disease mixed with the scent of…pine?...floated over to me.

Leaning back over, I breathed just as quietly to him, "Can you follow it? I think you have it better than I do."

He nodded against my ear, and then started down the street. We pretended to be window shopping, but every now and then I saw his nostrils flair as his head moved in the direction of the wind. Eventually, we followed it to the grocery store.

We looked at each other. Giving myself a reason to touch him, I held my hand out.

He gave me a look like he thought I was crazy. "Uh, what?"

I made an exasperated noise. "We can't look like we're looking for someone. We gotta be as inconspicuous as possible. If they're in there, then they'd just think we need groceries," I hissed under my breath.

He sighed as I waggled my fingers at him. Rolling his eyes, he clapped his hand to mine and laced our fingers.

I leaned in. "We also have to play the part. Please, Walker."

With another sigh, he eased into an easy melt-in-your-mouth smile and the tension went out of his body. And then he pulled me into his side with an arm around my shoulder.

"You owe me for this," he gritted out into my hair.

"Duly noted, honey."

He barely contained the grimace. Seriously. Was there something wrong with me, my connection to him, my imprint? Bringing my wolf to the front, I subtly sniffed him. What I got was a surprise. A faint chocolatey scent. The same as what Jacob and Caden had described. Not strong enough to be qualified as love, but maybe…attraction? Experimentally, I squeezed his hand where it draped over my shoulder and moved into the crook of his body. The scent flared for a moment before it died down. Looking up, I noticed he was gritting his teeth.

As we walked into the store hand in hand, I held back my grin by force of will. It wasn't hard once the doors had closed behind us. The smell of the disease was sharp and distinct. Something about the imprint must have dulled the scent of Walker to me because I was standing right next to him and there was barely anything from him except the smell of a warm day and fresh cut grass. I'd have to ask Seth about Shelby.

When he sighed again, I looked up at him and grinned. "You hate this so much, don't you, honey?"

He glared down at me. "You know I do, sweetheart."

Going with the lie, I said, "It's just a little shopping and then we can go home."

"Amen," he grumbled. But he started moving, sniffing subtly as he steered me toward the produce and bread area. We stopped in front of a display of orange peppers when he said, "Didn't you put the list on your phone?"

When I glanced at him, he gave me raised eyebrows. It took me a second, but then I figured it out. The camera. If we saw who it was in the store, we could take a picture and show Caden later in hopes he'd recognize them. Hmmm, maybe we could get others to take a camera and take pictures around town. I'd bet Esme would love that.

"Yeah, I did actually," I said, digging my phone out of my pocket. Clicking through to my camera, I made sure to put everything on silent so that we could be as subtle as possible.

When I'd opened the camera, the most recent picture I'd taken was still up. It was of me and Morgan. She'd surprised me with it while I'd been making breakfast. She'd come up to kiss me on the cheek and snapped the picture. I smiled before dumping it into my gallery. With Walker's arm still wrapped around my shoulders and our hands still latched together, I kept the phone in my left hand between our bodies with my finger on the button just in case.

When I looked up to let him know I was ready, I found that he was smiling gently in a distracted sort of way at my cell phone. I also noticed that that chocolatey scent was back.

Containing my grin, again-just barely-I tugged on his hand where our fingers were laced. I knew he'd get grumpy if he caught me catching him off guard.

"Come on. Let's find everything before it all grows legs and runs away," I said cryptically.

Beside me, I felt him shake his head and square his shoulders as his chest expanded with a deep breath. Truth be told, this felt amazing, and it wasn't even a real relationship…yet. Just being this close to him, I felt calmer and protected. Which was nuts. He didn't feel that way about me. At least, I didn't think so. Scenting him again, that sweet smell was still there. He hadn't shut it down.

This time, his tug was on me. Since we were connected the way we were physically, I had no choice but to follow him with the camera ready. Luckily the dimmer was timed so that I had to look like I was looking at the "list" as we walked. It also helped our cover that Walker picked up a basket as we passed them, and as we followed his nose, he and I both picked up some random things to put in it, pausing to exchange a few words, nods, and looks.

He was pretty sure that we were getting close to whoever it was. And he was pretty sure it was male. As we made our way over toward the hamburger meat and packaged chicken, Walker nodded toward a normal-looking guy with pale skin and short, spiky dark hair. He was standing next to an elderly couple also looking at the hamburger. I could tell Walker wanted to get as close as fast as he could but I forced him to slow down. Our cover would be blown if he did that. Not to mention, the poor elderly couple would probably drop from heart failure if two werewolves went at it, snarling and growling, in the middle of the grocery store.

When he glared at me, I gave him a look. "We're about to pass the lunch meat," I said with my teeth gritted. Glancing back at the guy, I had the thought that, if he'd been there when Walker had been attacked, he'd know who he is. And just as the guy was turning, eyes moving toward us, I snapped a picture, and then whipped Walker around. "See? I need some of this, especially if you want those wraps that I make." I pointed to one of the packages. "No, we need the slow roasted roast beef. That's an important detail."

He rolled his eyes. "Ok, ok. I get it."

"Good." I grabbed the correct package of meat and threw it into the basket.

Pulling him around, I found that the guy was still at the hamburger. Apparently, the old couple had stopped him to talk. It struck me as odd that he seemed calm and at ease with them as if he could have stood there all day to talk. I gave a questioning glance to Walker, who shrugged. Normally, the bad guys who were attacking the townspeople would be in a rush to get out and not care about anybody else.

"You need another package?" Walker asked.

Glancing down at the picture I'd just taken, I nodded. It wasn't all that great. Caden may or may not be able to distinguish who it was, but it was worth it to try for another. Just as we were approaching the hamburger section and I started playing with my phone like it was malfunctioning, the elderly couple turned around as if they were going to continue their shopping. Instead they stopped and stared at us.

For one wild moment, I thought that we'd been wrong, that the scent had been them because it had gotten stronger as we'd gotten closer, but all they did was blink at us before the woman glanced with a smile at her husband. "Oh, Gerald. Aren't they such a beautiful couple?"

Walker and I shared a glance, and then I turned to her with a smile. "Thank you. We're fairly new."

She leaned in toward me. "You know, my father never liked Gerald, but my mother told him to hush because we looked beautiful together. And here we are, fifty years later."

The man, Gerald, came up to touch her elbow. "Emma, dear, leave the poor kids alone. I doubt they want to hear our old fogey stories."

She gave him a smile, and then turned it on us. "Just mark my words. The two of you will end up together. It's inevitable. I promise you."

Gerald led his wife around us as she kept smiling. "Dear, kids these days are not like us. They're all beautiful nowadays."

"Hush, Gerald. Don't be rude. Besides, my gut tells me that those two will end up together."

"Your gut also told you that the economy would get better throughout the year. It's August, nearly September."

"And it's still young, dear."

I tried to hide my smile as they bantered all the way to the checkout counter.

"Old and senile," Walker muttered. "Please kill me if I ever get there."

"I thought they were cute."

"Of course you did."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked as we finished our walk to the meat. The guy was still there, comparing three different packages, and the scent was burning my sinuses.

Walker shrugged. "You're a woman. Women think that sort of thing is cute. Not to mention she predicted we'd shack up together."

"No. She predicted we'd end up together."

"Exactly. That's what I said."

"No," I said again. "There's a difference between shacking up and being together."

"And that is…?"

Leaning over the glass, I held my phone so that the camera was facing the guy as I pretended to inspect the meat. I clicked several pictures before I picked up a package.

"The difference is," I said. "Shacking up means just meeting up to get your grind on. But ending up together is a relationship." I turned to him. "Don't you want to end up with me?"

He shrugged, finally getting into playing along. "Maybe I just wanna get my grind on."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "So you don't want to end up with me? Are you saying that all your wooing has been a lie?" I was baiting him, daring him to bust our cover when we were so close to finishing up our project.

But he didn't disappoint. Stepping into me, Walker turned us so that his back was to the stranger as he wrapped his arms around my waist, forcing me to wind mine around his neck. It was perfect. I could get a really good picture this way. Walker was tall enough that my camera was exactly on face level with the other man.

"Maybe I want both," he whispered in a sexy tone.

I knew on his end, he was just playing along, but my heart raced and pounded up in the vicinity of my throat as he leaned into me. I really wanted both with him. Walker was all-American male, melt-me-into-my-socks sexy. Well-built and tall making me feel safe here in his arms. And that scent. The smell of a fine chocolate just beginning to simmer that hasn't yet reached its potential and had a lot of ground to cover.

Or, my brain said in mutiny, maybe he's just trying to throw off that scent to make us more believable.

Shut up, I said to myself.

Nevertheless, I grinned up at him before he bent down to nuzzle into my neck and hair. With my field of vision clear, I snapped some really good shots of the guy. What I really wanted to do was have some grind time with Walker, and I knew that I was throwing off a scent. I had to be. And I didn't want to hide it. If Walker smelled it and figured out what it was, maybe he'd start to leave Tricia alone.

"Um, excuse me," said a deep voice.

Walker pulled away from me to whip around. I quickly shut my phone down so the screen went blank. When the man in my arms moved, I saw the stranger behind him smiling at us.

"Sorry. I hate to interrupt but I gotta get where you are."

With perfect timing, I blushed. If Walker and I had actually been together and that passionate, I'd have probably let him take me to the floor, which was embarrassing.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. We were totally disgusting in public," I gushed as I pushed Walker out of the way.

The guy shook his head. "Not at all. I don't mind PDA. Why should anyone hide love, huh? It's rare to see true love anyway. Nowadays it's all infatuation and lust, not the kind of stuff where you'd do anything for somebody. The world should see the real thing."

Ok, either we were really good at this lying thing, or we had some subconscious attraction thing going on that everybody could see but us. And with that thought, I noticed that the sweet scent from Walker had seriously died down. I could barely smell it. But he did keep a hand at the small of my back.

"Oh, I'm sorry," the guy said. "I didn't mean to kill the mood."

Walker laughed an easy laugh. "Don't worry about it. I shouldn't have started anything here anyway. She can't really ever say no."

I glared at him. "And he has a hard time being humble." I turned a smile to the other guy. "But I suppose he's right. We'd best be getting out of here. We have to be somewhere in an hour," I said, checking the time on my phone. "Thank you for not giving us a hard time. Maybe we'll see you around sometime."

The guy grinned as we walked past him. "No problem. And hey, that old couple was right. The two of you are seriously for each other."

I smiled again. "Thanks. Have a good one."

"You, too."

With a hand still on my back, Walker took us down a few aisles, dropped our basket down out of sight and rushed me out of the store. When we got outside, he took a deep breath and stepped out of reach of me. I suddenly felt a little colder.

"Was it just me, or did he seem super nice?" Walker asked.

I nodded. "Definitely charismatic. And if he caught onto us at all, he didn't show it."

"Maybe he thinks we can't figure out who he is. If that's the case then he wouldn't care about pictures."

Checking my clock again, I realized that we'd only taken up a full twenty minutes in there. We still had another thirty on our patrol shift.

"Come on. Let's walk a little more. We have some time."

Walker nodded and led the way.

TriciaPOV

This house was suffocating. Mom and dad were still upset over Walker. I tried to tell them that he was fine, but they wouldn't listen. Their precious boy was sick and away from home. Mom's "mommy complex" was going through withdrawals from not being able to take care of her baby boy.

I rolled my eyes as I stepped into the backyard. Even though I knew there was something in the woods, the trees just didn't look all that ominous. Surely, I could go in just a little ways and have some peace and quiet.

Making sure to keep my eyes and ears open, I slowly made my way through the brush and sticks. There was a really good reading log a little more ways in. I was halfway there when I felt something skitter up my spine, almost like I was being watched. Twisting around to look behind me, I didn't see anything moving around, not even a breeze came by.

When I turned back around to keep going, however, I shouted and backed up, tripping over a root. As I fell hard on my ass, I went absolutely still. A very large, stupidly large, tan wolf was standing there in the pathway. He wasn't too close so I scrambled back a little until my back hit a tree. Watching me down his muzzle, he sat down and huffed.

Ooook, he wasn't coming after me, not attacking. Maybe if I just went back the way I came, he wouldn't follow. Just as I was about to scramble up to my feet, the wolf stood up and slowly walked over to me. Head down and ears down, I could tell it was an attempt not to scare me, nothing aggressive. How I knew that, I didn't know. But there was something odd about the look in those dark brown eyes. Something…human.

Going absolutely still, I barely breathed as the wolf rubbed his muzzle against my cheek and put his nose into my hair. A deep thrum reverberated in his chest, and it took me a moment to realize it was the wolf version of a purr. With a pull in my gut, I instinctively leaned into the touch. The wolf's cheek was abnormally warm and comforting. There was something about this interaction that just felt right and safe, but totally weird. I knew wolves didn't act like this, nor were they this large.

Behind me, I heard the squeak of the back door. "Tricia?" Dad called.

Taking a deep breath, I hoped that my voice wouldn't shake. "I gotta go," I whispered. "Ok?"

Slowly, the wolf backed up and sat down once more. Yeah, there was something seriously off with this animal. It knew what I was saying.

"Tricia? Are you out there?"

I cleared my throat. "Yeah," I called. "I'm on my way."

Getting up, I backed my way through the woods. I told myself it was too keep the threat in sight, but really, I just wanted to look at him. And he watched me. As soon as I reached the edge of the woods, he let out a bark and took off, loping through the trees. I did the same, only less elegantly.

As I approached the back porch, dad was standing there with his arms crossed. "You know you're not supposed to be in the woods right now. Chief Swan specifically warned us about that, Tricia."

I nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Sorry. I was just on my way back in. I got the creeps. But, dad, would you mind if I went to the library? I want to check out another book."

He arched an eyebrow. It was easy to tell where Walker got his good looks from. Mom was gorgeous but dad had been what Walker was: the cool jock that every girl wanted but who never dated any of them.

"Tricia, you've read every book in that library."

"True, but there's no crime in reading something again. Please? I just need to stretch my legs and I'll stick to the main roads. And I'll be home before dark. I promise."

He studied me for a moment. And then nodded. "Dinner will be on the table at six. Please be home before then."

I looked at my watch. A two hour walk. I could handle that. I might even go to the library. Dad followed me back into the house where I grabbed my jacket, pecked mom on the cheek, and went out the front door.

When I turned around from locking the door, I got the second shock of the day. Except this time, I didn't fall on my ass when I nearly ran into Embry.

"Ohmygod, you scared the shit out of me," I said clutching my chest.

He smiled. "Sorry. I didn't figure you one to startle. You ok?"

Swallowing my heart back down, I said, "Yeah. I was just-,"

"In the woods where you shouldn't be?" he finished with raised eyebrows.

Before what he said sank in I said, "Yeah, but…wait a minute. How did you…?"

Reaching toward me, he picked at my hair. Pulling his hand back, there was a leaf between his fingers.

He shrugged as he tossed the leaf. "Just a guess."

With a frown, I watched as it floated to the ground. He was lying. Something told me was. But…he wasn't in the woods. I would have seen him. The brush and such was sparse near my house. Looking up into his eyes, I had the weirdest thought of my entire of my life: maybe he had been there, and I'd looked into his eyes, his human eyes in a wolf body. Those eyes staring back at me held the same knowledge and understanding that the wolf had had. But that wasn't possible. People did not turn into wolves. However, I had told Embry that I believed in things that may not have a firm explanation. Maybe this was one of them.

"Tricia?" he asked worriedly. "Seriously, are you ok?"

I shook my head and laughed. "Yeah, yeah, I'm good. Walk me to the library?"

He gave me a look like he didn't believe I was ok, but he smiled. "Sure. I was just heading into town anyway."

"Really?" I asked suspiciously.

"Sure."

I crossed my arms and gave him a look. "Let me guess, guard duty?"

He opened his mouth as if he were going to answer, and then closed it and shrugged.

Shaking my head, I walked past him and started down the street. "I really wish you guys would tell me what the hell is going on. Walker's sick but not sick. There's something in the woods that shouldn't be. And the Cullens? They're gorgeous with eyes the color of butterscotch. And Caden, too, but somehow he's different than the Cullens."

After a moment, he caught up to me. "So, tell me, what do you think is going on with your brother?"

"Well, he's definitely more aggressive."

"Has he always been like this?"

"I mean, he's always been protective and whatnot, but this is over the top. More so than when mom and dad told us I was adopted. After that day, he started being overbearing. Now, it's like he's primal."

"Well, he is a big brother."

I gave him a look. "Come on. I know you see how he acts around me, It might be creepy, but he thinks he's in love with me and has since mom and dad told us I wasn't related to him by blood. Ever since that day, things have gotten tense between us. That's why I keep calling him my brother. Maybe he'll get the hint."

"Maybe you should actually talk to him about it. Seriously, how are you going to have a life with him breathing down your neck when you don't feel for him that way? How are you going to be able to talk to other guys or hang out with them or...date them?"

The last he said as if he were in pain about having to say it all.

I smiled and jumped of a metaphorical cliff. Bumping his shoulder, I said, "I am right now, aren't I?"

He jerked in surprise and stared at me. And then swallowed hard. "You know I meant guys that you're into and want to have in your life."

Blushing, I bumped his shoulder again. "And again, I say, I am, right now, aren't I?"

Suddenly, he stopped and gripped my wrist, his thumb rubbing over the top of my hand. He looked around at our surroundings. We had stopped on a stretch of road that was situated between neighborhoods which meant that we were basically alone in the woods. There was a small break in the trees that he focused on. Looking back and forth across the street, he tugged me by my wrist over there.

"What are you doing?"

"You really want to know what's going on, right?"

"Well, yeah."

"Then, trust me. I know you don't know me, but trust me. I won't let anything happen to you, ok?"

I nodded, realized he couldn't see it, and said, "Ok. I trust you." And I meant it. I didn't know what it was about him, but I trusted him instinctively.

Embry pulled me through the trees, and when we came to a stop, I looked back. I could still see the hole in the trees at the road so that if something happened, I wouldn't get stuck in here. I wasn't sure if he'd done that one purpose but I was still appreciative of the fact.

Turning to face me with my hand still in his, he said, "Stay here, ok? I'll be right back."

I gave him a confused look to which he brought my fingers to his lips. And then he was gone, moving toward a large tree. When he disappeared behind it and there was no more noise from him, I hugged my arms around my torso. Ok, he was being mysterious, but I could handle that. There was some weird stuff going on around Forks. And somehow I knew that Embry wouldn't hurt me. The sincerity in his voice always threw me off because he'd been right; I didn't know him, but I wanted to.

A rustle of leaves brought my attention back to the clearing. Checking my watch, I realized it'd been a good five minutes of me just standing there.

"Embry?" I asked.

When there was no answer, I took a step forward. I was mid-step when the leaves rustled again. I froze as I felt more than saw something large shift around the back of the tree.

"Embry," I called again, more of a demand for him to answer than anything.

I got nothing. Except another shaking of brush. Another step, and I froze again as that something large moved around the tree.

My hands flew to my mouth in a breathless gasp as the giant tan wolf came toward me. The same wolf from earlier came toward me slowly, his ears down, tail between his legs, and head lowered. There was nothing threatening about the gesture. It was as if he were trying not to scare me. How I knew that, I didn't know. It just felt right.

My eyes went to the tree and then back to the wolf. "I'll be right back."

The wolf lay down instantly, belly to the ground and head on his paws. Keeping an eye on him, I inched around his massive body until I got to the tree. Looking behind it, I found a neatly folded pile of clothes: Embry's clothes.

With my heart in my throat, I went back to stand in front of the wolf. He had his eyes closed as if he couldn't handle seeing whatever emotion was in my eyes if it was negative.

"Embry," I said in a breathy voice. He didn't open his eyes, so I cleared my throat to make it stronger. "Embry, look at me."

Those eyes opened and stared up at me, and instantly, I knew them. Definitely seen those dark chocolate eyes before, staring at me from a human face. Sinking to my knees a couple feet away from his nose, I reached out a tentative hand. When he didn't snap at me or pull away, I stroked my fingers up between his eyes.

Grinning, I stayed like that for five minutes before I noticed a sound coming from him. It sounded like the wolf version of a purr. Those eyes closed in ecstasy. I leaned forward to press a kiss to him muzzle. I wasn't sure why I did it, but he and I both were surprised by it. His eyes snapped open to stare at me, but I just smiled.

"I have so many questions. You know that, right?" I whispered.

He closed his eyes and purred again. Pausing for a moment, I took a deep breath and did what I'd been wanting to do since I sat down with him. Turning my back to him, I scooted back between his paws so that my back was against his shoulder. He froze for just a second in surprise, but got over it quickly because he rested his head on my shoulder, cuddling his face to my neck.

It was so warm here surrounded by him. And that's how we passed the time. There was no telling how long we actually stayed like that. All I knew was that the clouds came and went, hiding and revealing a little sunlight. But eventually, darkness started to fall around us.

I was leaning my head back against him, feeling sleepy and safe, when he went on alert. His head and ears went to attention, whole body stiffening.

"What is it?" I asked him, even though he couldn't answer in his current form.

Even though he was on red alert, he gently pushed me up so that he could go back to the tree. As I was brushing the dirt from my jeans, he came back around fully clothed. For some reason, he wouldn't meet my eyes as he took my hand.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

He shook his head. "I don't know. I heard something that was bigger than a deer, so I want to get you out of here."

He'd misconstrued my question. I actually hadn't been asking about his sudden change in mood, but his awkwardness now that he was back to his human form. Instead of correcting him, I just went with it and nodded, squeezing his hand. He squeezed back and motioned me ahead of him to start walking for the road.

Ten minutes later, we made it back to my house with his eyes searching our surroundings. If he'd been in wolf form, I had no doubt his ears would also be perked up, listening.

Finally, he looked back down at me. "So, I guess I'll see you tomorrow. I-Jake put me on your guard duty."

I gripped his hand and swallowed hard. "Why?"

He shrugged but didn't meet my eyes.

"Ok, well, why don't you stay?"

That got his eyes to snap to mine.

I shrugged. "Stay for dinner. Or I'll just sneak out to meet you tonight. I have questions, Embry. And I can't wait til tomorrow." I could tell he was about to say no to all the above, so I put on my best puppy dog eyes. "Please? Come to dinner with me. Mom and dad have been pestering me anyway about Walker."

His face positively melted as he sighed. "Ok, fine. I'll come in. But are you sure it's ok with your parents?"

I said through my grin, "Of course. You can feed them some comforting crap about my brother."

He rolled his eyes as I pulled him toward the house. "Great. You're gonna put me in the spotlight."

"Hey, at least my dad likes you."

"And you don't think he'll notice something between us?"

That brought me up short to spin around and look at him in surprise. "What?"

He gave me a look and a soft smile. "Come on, Tricia. I can smell your attraction to me. And...I'm not exactly repulsed by you. Not to mention, we totally had a moment back in the woods, didn't we?" He stepped closer and spoke the last in a low tone.

I swallowed hard and nodded. So he wasn't repulsed by me, and he'd liked the cuddle session back in the woods.

I had a thought, and it made me not want to meet his eyes as I asked, "So, if you're not repulsed by me, what was all that stuff about dating other guys and whatnot?"

He laughed, but it wasn't that warm sound that I was used to. It sounded like broken glass. "I was trying to tell you that just because I might very well be attracted to you, you do have other choices."

Feeling brave again, I kissed his fingers just like he had mine. "What if I don't need choices? What if I've decided?"

When he didn't say anything, I thought maybe I'd crossed a line. But when I met his eyes, he was smiling gently at me. And then he stepped away from me two seconds before the front door opened.

"Tricia?" mom said. "Dinner's ready." And then she saw Embry. "Oh, hi. I didn't know we were having company."

"Mom, you remember Embry. He came with Charlie Swan and Jacob Black."

She smiled. "Of course, of course. Come on in."

"Are you sure? I don't want to interrupt family time."

I reached back to pinch him. "Ow," I heard him hiss.

Mom's grin widened. "No worries. We have plenty of food. And you can tell us about our son." She turned down the hallway, leaving the door opened for us to follow.

I looked back at him in time to see him roll his eyes. Smiling, I reached back to take his hand in mine. After I located the spot where I pinched him, I pressed a gentle kiss to the skin.

"Sorry," I whispered.

He squeezed my fingers. "It's ok. Now, let's get dinner over with, shall we?"

When we were all settled at the table, Mom and Dad moved in like sharks on Embry about Walker.

"So, Mr. Call, how's my son?"

Embry cleared his throat and wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Um, Embry, please. But Walker? He's doing great. He's very close to the point that he can come home."

"Tricia tells us that she's seen him. But is the sickness contagious? Is she in danger of getting it?" Mom asked after a sip of sweet tea.

Embry shook his head. "Absolutely not. He was quarantined. All that's left is for him to heal up with some antibiotics."

Dad frowned. "Then why can't he just come home to finish up the medicine?"

Embry never hesitated. "Just to make sure it's gone when he's done taking them."

"What was the illness, exactly?"

Embry choked a bit on his drink. I patted his back and smiled at Mom and Dad.

"They told me it was a rare virus," I said. "Very rare, so they had to call to other specialists to figure out what to do for it."

"Oh," Mom said and took another sip of her drink.

Embry smiled at me in gratitude, but I felt eyes on me. Looking over, I found Dad watching us.

He cleared his throat and gave Embry "the eyebrow". "So, Embry, how old are you?"

"Dad-," I started.

Embry touched my arm. "It's ok," he said to me, and then turned to my dad. "I'm twenty-six." The look he gave my father was a challenge because we all knew what was coming.

Both eyebrows rose at that. "Twenty-six? Don't you think that's a little old to be ogling my seventeen year old daughter?"

Embry smiled but not like he thought it was funny. Calmly, he wiped his mouth and placed the napkin beside his plate. I took his hand under the table and was surprised to find that he was shaking.

"Sir, let me explain something to you as politely as I can. Pertaining to your daughter, I haven't known her long, but I do care for her. We get along and we're friends. I would never push her into anything she didn't want to do. Ever. As for the age difference? She was the one who told me not to worry about it because, as you probably wouldn't believe, I had actually mentioned it." Squeezing my fingers, he let go of my hand and stood up. "And I don't appreciate the fact that you're insinuating that I am a man that would ever hurt or take advantage of a woman when you know nothing about me." He looked over to my mother, and smiled genuinely. "Dinner was amazing. Thank you for letting me join you." Then he reached down to bring my hand to his lips. "I'll see you later, ok?" His eyes were full of hurt, but also a hidden meaning that his words didn't betray in the least.

And then he was gone. We all listened as the front door opened and then closed sharply.

Mom glared at Dad. "David, that was hardly necessary."

He didn't seem ruffled in the least. He just shrugged and picked up the sports page he'd been reading before dinner. "He's ten years older than she is, June."

Glaring at him myself, I stood up and threw my napkin on the table. "You are such a hypocrite," I said. When they both looked at me in shock, I pointed a finger at him. "You're eleven years older than mom."

He gave me a look that told me he pitied me. "Honey, that's different."

"Why? Because mom was twenty?" I demanded.

"Well, yes, but also you have no experience with relationships."

Mom cleared her throat. "I didn't either, David. You were my first."

He turned a glare on her to which she shrugged.

"See, Dad? Embry's a good guy. He didn't deserve that."

He rolled his eyes. "Tricia, honey, you don't know the man. He-,"

I pointed the finger at him again. "No, you don't know him. I'm the one who talks to him. I'm the one who interacts with him. You have no right to question my judgement when you haven't even talked to him for longer than ten minutes."

He put down the paper and glared at me. As I shook my head and turned to go for the door, I heard, "Now, young lady, where do you think you're going?"

"Enough, David," Mom said in a stern tone. "She has a point."

That was the last I heard as I slammed the front door. Running out into the road, I looked left and right. He was already gone. And as a wolf, he could have gone anywhere, but I had to try. Choosing to go right because that was the direction the reservation and Cullen house was in, I made my way in the chilly wind and damp air. The clouds were back and looking like they were about to dump a shower on us. Picking up my pace, I jogged a little to warm up. I was almost to the Cullen turn-off when I saw his broad shoulders hunched over.

"Embry!" I yelled.

He instantly turned around. He stuffed his hands into his pockets, straightened his spine, and waited for me. I ran to him.

"What are you doing, Tricia?" he asked as his eyes searched the woods.

"I'm...sorry," I huffed out. As soon as I stopped running and slowed down, I got cold. Shivering, I wrapped my arms around myself and instinctively stepped closer to him. Again, he took off his button down shirt and wrapped it around me. "Thanks," I said, cuddling down into the warmth. It was kind of hard not to stare at him though with him just standing there in a white ribbed tank top.

"Answer the question. What are you doing? You shouldn't be out alone. It's not safe."

His voice jolted me out of my staring escapade. How embarrassing.

Through my blush, I said, "I couldn't just let you walk out without coming after you. Couldn't let you think that I was just going to let him say those things to you." Reaching my arms through the long sleeves, I gripped his hand. "I support you, you know."

Smiling at me, he used his other arm to wrap me in a hug. "Thanks. Now, let's get you back, ok? Don't want your dad to call Charlie."

I clutched at his shirt. "I still have questions, though."

"We always have tomorrow."

I sighed as he tucked me into his side and started walking. I was forced to keep up with him. It didn't feel like he was about to let me go, and I was perfectly ok with that.

Eventually, we made it back to my house for the second time. When I started to take off his shirt, he shook his head.

"Just keep it. I'm sure I'd just be giving it back to you."

"I would offer for you to come back in, but I don't want Dad near you. He's an ass and he needs to cool down after I yelled at him."

Embry's eyebrows met his hairline. "You yelled at him? Why?"

I shrugged and blushed. "Like I said, he shouldn't have said what he said. And he tried to tell me that I didn't know you."

"Well, you don't. Not really."

I glared up at him. "I know enough. I know more than he does. I know that I really like you and that I really want you to climb the tree in my backyard to get into my window so you can answer my questions. But clearly you would never do that because I don't know you."

My anger was childish and frankly had no base, but I was tired of people telling me what I did and didn't know, and how I did or didn't feel. Lately, that had been everybody's goal in life. And the fact that Embry, the guy that totally made me blush, was now doing it, just ticked me off even more. But it also hurt. So, keeping his shirt, I turned around and went into the house.

"Tricia? We need to talk," Dad called from the sitting room. He still sounded mad.

Sighing, I turned to my left and went into the room. He was sitting in his favorite recliner while Mom sat on the couch with her knitting needles. A friend of the family was about to have a baby. Usually, she was very calm and humming while she knitted. Tonight, she was knitting rather furiously, the needles clinking hard and fast. Apparently, they were both still angry.

I perched on the edge of the other recliner, preparing to flee quickly once this was over. Dad's expression turned angry as he scrutinized the shirt that had been on Embry just a few minutes ago.

"Tricia, I know you think you like this-this man, but you don't know him. And neither do I. If he was from Forks, I would know him. But, honey, I've been where you are. And so has your mother. You're a teenager."

"But, dad,-"

He glared at me. "No 'buts', Tricia. I don't want you around him. He's too old for you. The world and people are different now than they were when your mother and I were young."

I threw up my hands. "Then let me get to know him. Heck, we just established today that we like each other. I know couples these days don't actually date anymore. They just declare they like each other and then, bam, they're in a relationship. But he's not like that. Don't forbid me from seeing him. Please." I grasped at one last straw. "He's our link to Walker for now."

He sighed angrily. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw mom grin.

"You're only to see him regarding Walker."

Well, that was more than I'd been hoping for. Nodding, I got up and went for the stairs. I kept my eyes down on the floor, even when I went through the door to my room. I did that when I was deep in thought. It was like looking at anything else would divert me from what I needed to figure out. Sighing, I leaned against the door after I closed it and stared at my toes. I'd taken off my shoes in the foyer.

"He still doesn't like me, huh?"

I let out a little yelp as my heart threatened to spill out of my mouth. My jaw hit the floor as I looked up to see Embry sprawled on my bed, leaning against my headboard with his hands behind his head.

"Embry!" I hissed as I locked my door. "What are you doing in here?"

He shrugged and gave me a look with a sly grin. "You told me to climb the tree and come here. So I did. Are you telling me you want me to leave?"

I shook my head as I bit my lip to hide my grin. I rushed over to the bed and hopped onto it, landing on my knees. Moving around, I buttoned up his shirt and tucked my knees up into it, wrapping my arms around my knees. The shirt smelled of crisp autumn leaves. Though we didn't have those here, I had visited Tennessee once in the fall. It had been gorgeous, and the leaves had a different scent as they turned colors and fell to the earth to crunch under foot. It also smelled vaguely of dirt, of the forest. I guess being a werewolf, he was in the woods a lot. It made sense.

He reached over to play with the sleeve that was covering my fingers. "You said you had questions. I suppose now would be a good time."

I grinned, but didn't know where to start. First off, Embry was in my bedroom! And he looked good here. But also, I had no idea where to start.

I decided to state the obvious. "So, you're a werewolf," I whispered.

He grinned at me. "Yeah, I am." The grin faded and his eyes dropped away. "Is...is that ok?"

Ducking down, I caught his eye, smiled and nodded. "Are there others?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Jake is our pack leader. Therefore, he's pretty much the chief of the rez."

"Wow, but to tell the truth, I kind of knew there something about him. And is Nessie one of you?"

Frowning, he cleared his throat and shook his head. "No. But you were right. The Cullens are different. I just can't tell you. It's their rules."

"Um, ok. Well, can you tell me what's really going on with Walker?"

He took a deep breath. "I can, but you kind of need some background info, I guess."

I leaned forward, craving the knowledge. "I got all night."

He shifted so that he was lying on his side facing me, propped up on his elbow. "Ok, so let's start with my type of werewolf. I won't tell you all the legends right now, but basically, our type is genetic. And it's triggered when a certain...enemy is close to us. Back when I was sixteen, the Cullens moved back to Forks...and I phased."

My eyes bugged. "The Cullens are your enemies?"

"Not them specifically, but what they are. The gene didn't discern the who's who of them, ya know? But anyway. There is another type of werewolf. They're known as the Children of the Moon. I'm sure you've heard of lycanthropy, right?"

I nodded.

"Well, that's what they are. It's a disease that they have...and it's spread by a bite or scratch, by an attack." He looked up at me from under lowered lids.

I gasped as what he was saying clicked. "Walker?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Caden is one of them. He's from Europe. He's helping to train Walker so that he can control himself and not shift."

"But why all the guard duty?"

He took a deep breath. "Tricia, there's a war going on right now. The beings that the Cullens are have leaders that are like royalty, and right now, they don't like the Cullens. So they recruited a pack of dominant shapeshifters to help destroy the Cullens and my pack. A member of that pack attacked Walker in hopes of recruiting against us from our own turf. They know we have Walker. And they're in the town searching to recruit. We have to protect you and your parents. We're training Walker, and getting trained ourselves by Caden."

Thinking about everything, I pulled my hands out of the long sleeves to play with his fingers. "So, you're protecting me?"

He laced his fingers with mine. "I put myself on your patrols. Jake agreed."

"Why?" I whispered.

Swallowing hard, he pressed a kiss to my fingers. "If I tell you, you can't say anything to Walker, or your parents. Each for different reasons."

"Tell me the reasons first." I wanted to know before I agreed to anything.

"Walker because of how he would react. He probably wouldn't understand. And he thinks he's in love with you. Until the two of you resolve that, it could cause problems. And your parents? If we do this between us, it needs to be slow. Like you said, dating. I need to prove to your dad that I'm not a pedophile or rapist."

"So, hypothetically speaking, I'd have to sneak around my brother's back with you, and tell my dad that you asked me out? Dad talks to Walker, Embry."

"Slow, Tricia. We don't have to 'date' just yet. Hang out and stuff. I'll walk you to town when I see you come out or something."

I took a deep breath. "Ok, we're talking about dating and it sounds like you want to ask me out, but why the interest in me in the first place? I saw how you were the first time we met. That was more than just initial attraction, wasn't it? Why go to the length to protect me the way you have?"

He wouldn't meet my eyes when he swallowed hard and ran his thumb over my knuckles. "I'm just gonna jump right in. It's called imprinting and it only happens with my type of wolf."

"What is it?"

"Well, there are a lot of theories that we've come up with. The best genetic match to carry on the gene. Soul mates. Stuff like that. It isn't exactly love at first sight, but it's...extreme attachment at first sight."

"What are you saying?"

He took another deep breath and let it out slowly. "I'm saying that the moment you and I locked eyes, it was you holding me to the planet. It was you who turned into my gravity. It's now my job to become anything you need me to be." When I gave him a look, he continued with a thoughtful expression. "Let me use Jake and Ness for example. When Nessie was a baby, that was when Jacob imprinted on her. She was his gravity, but it wasn't romantic ties. As the wolf who imprinted on her, it was his job to be whatever she needed. So, at first it was protector. As she got older, it was more brotherly. Then, friend into best friend. Eventually boyfriend. Now, lover and fiance."

I frowned. "But...you encouraged me to see other guys?"

His fingers tightened on mine. "The imprint always has a choice. If you didn't want me, I would have let you go. Your happiness is all that matters to me."

"You don't have a choice?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I guess I do. But I couldn't imagine being attracted to another woman. It just...doesn't compute to me, the thought of dating someone else or looking after someone else."

Holy. Cow. He was serious, and I didn't know how to wrap my head around it.

"So, if I picked another guy, you'd-what? Turn into a brother figure, and make sure he's good enough for me?"

"Something like that."

"Has any imprint chosen someone else?"

Leaning forward, he pressed his lips to my knuckles again and shook his head. "Not in my lifetime. I don't think it's ever happened, because the wolf is whatever the imprint needs them to be."

I lifted his hand to my lips, brushing the back of it. "I don't think I'm going to be any different, then."

While he stared at me in surprise, I reached over to my bedside table to for the remote that went with my ceiling fan. After I turned out the light, I used our intertwined hands to maneuver us so that my back was pressed to his front and his arm was around me.

"What are you doing?" he asked in a choked voice.

"I like you. You like me. And I know that you'd never hurt me. I feel safe with you, and I want you here with me tonight."

His breathing became fast and heavy, but eventually, with us just laying there, he calmed down. The tension in his body slowly eased away.

"It's ok. They can't get into my room from the outside. I have to unlock it. And don't worry. My closet it big enough to stuff you into it."

After a moment of silence, the bed started to shake. He buried his face into my neck and I heard him laugh in fits.

"Good deal," he managed to get out.

Smiling, I gripped his arm tighter around me and fell into the warmest sleep I'd ever had.

JPOV

Where the hell was Embry? No calls with updates on the patrol or telling me where he was. He'd checked in with me at the cabin before heading over to Tricia's, but I hadn't heard a word from him since, and that had been hours ago. The next time I saw him I was going to beat him into the ground for worrying me.

"Jacob, I'm sure he's ok," Nessie said from the couch. She had her knees up to her chest with Leila laying on them.

Leila was playing in Nessie's hair which was down around her shoulders. She'd taken a shower earlier and let it air dry, which made it a frothy mass of curls. Sam was on his way up for his daughter as I paced the living room.

"That's not the point, Ness. He should have called me for an update by now."

A moment later, there was a knock at the door. I opened it to reveal Sam, Emily, Christa, and Walker. The last two looked angry and very carefully didn't look at each other. Their jaws were set and eyes far away from the other.

I mentally sighed as I let Sam and Emily in. Em went straight for the couch while Sam stayed with me and watched our girls interact. Christa and Walker stepped off the porch and went in separate directions. Geez. They were like elementary school kids with "cooties". Really?

Sam clapped me on the shoulder as I closed the door. "They'll all figure it out, Jake. I heard about Embry."

I nodded. "Yeah, perfect timing and everything. And Christa with Walker?" I shook my head. "Thank God, this house is soundproof. I've been ranting for hours."

"He really has," Ness said.

I gave her a look. She just smiled and went back to being a godmother. She got up from the couch to start gathering Leila's stuff. Toys, pacifiers, clothes, diapers, and bottles were scattered everywhere. Even though she was just three months old, that tiny butt had been all over this house. Well, I'd pulled her all over. She hadn't wanted to stand up with my help so I'd just used her butt as a broom. She'd enjoyed it, giggling all over the place. We had to wash that outfit afterward.

"Hey, Sam, have you heard from Embry today?"

He shook his head. "I don't really hear from the pack these days what with everything going on."

"Sorry."

"Don't worry about it. Once this mess gets taken care of, we'll all be able to rest easy and visit. Right now, you really don't have the time to visit. You gotta make plans. I understand, Jake. Don't forget that I was Alpha for a long time. And you're doing a great job. If you listen to anyone, let it be me because I've been in your shoes. They haven't."

"Thanks, Sam." And I meant it. Hearing that from him made me feel like I wasn't a complete failure to my tribe.

They didn't stay long and soon the house was quiet and significantly cleaner. And then I had a thought to call Craig. He was on patrol of Walker's house so more than likely, he could tell me where Embry was since Embry wouldn't answer his damn phone.

"Hey, what's up, Jake?" he answered. He sounded vaguely out of breath.

"Have you heard from Embry? He hasn't called with an update for hours."

"Uh, yeah, actually. He, um, he's in Tricia's room."

"What?!" I nearly shouted.

"Yeah. Uh, he shifted for her, and then told her about the wolves and imprinting, and the light just went off. So, I'm assuming he's not coming out. But I don't hear anything. I think they're just laying down. Honest. Also, her dad doesn't like him."

I felt hands wrap around my waist and move under my shirt. Nessie's hands and nails lightly traced over the skin of my stomach as she kissed my spine through my shirt.

With Nessie wrapped around me, I was more calm than I would have been otherwise. "How did she react?"

"Over all? Pretty well. She stayed calm. He told her that he wanted to go slow and date her so her dad would be less angry. But he told her not to tell Walker about the imprint because Tricia and Walker had yet to talk things out. That's what Embry wants, but it seems that she thinks Walker's going to just go with it if she keeps calling him her brother. What Embry didn't tell her was that Walker already knows about it."

"What?" I asked. "How?"

There was a sound over the phone like he was shrugging. "Christa phased and I got the conversation. She told him, but he doesn't quite grasp how binding the imprint is."

Sighing, I pinched the bridge of my nose. It was getting kind of hard to think with Nessie's hands on me. Her fingers had splayed out under the edge of my jeans, barely brushing the head of my ever-growing erection. It was a tie on whether or not I was glad I didn't wear underwear all the time.

"Alright. Well, we'll deal with this later. The four of them need to settle this whole love...square on their own. There's only so much we can do. I'm assuming nothing happened on patrol, right?"

"Not a damn thing otherwise I would have called you."

"Good. Now get home to your son."

"Absolutely. Good night, Jake."

I hung up to get lost in Nessie. Craig was a good guy but we all felt sorry for him. He'd lost his imprint in childbirth. She'd come to me when she'd found out she was pregnant to tell me if something happened to her, she didn't want her husband to stop phasing if their child survived. She'd had a family history of women not making it on the birthing table. She'd also had it put in her will. It was a fear we all had.

Nessie had unbuttoned my jeans, but not unzipped. Just enough room to maneuver. When I tried to turn around, she gripped my hardness tight to let me know she didn't want that. I inhaled sharply as her hand stayed around me while the other roamed up over the muscles of my stomach and up to my chest, slowly lifting the shirt. When both of her hands went to my shirt, I sank down a little and lifted my arms so she could take it off of me. I felt her breasts rub up my back before she breathed into my ear.

"Come make love to me," she whispered.

And a moment later, I was standing in the middle of the living room alone with my pants unbuttoned and my erection pounding. Turning around toward the bedroom, I stalked her slowly. I wanted her, but more than that, I wanted to make sure she knew that I loved her. I was tired of fast, always going, never savoring. Tonight I wanted to savor.

I took the stairs down to our bedroom slowly, one at a time. Mentally, I was preparing myself for whatever I would find. Either she was naked on the bed or there would be something else for me to salivate over.

And sure enough, I found her lying in the bed, her back against the headboard. But she wasn't naked. It looked like a nightgown, but silk and strappy. It was sexy as hell. The black made her alabaster skin glow as bright as a full moon and her hair shine like fire. The top was so tiny that her full breasts were barely covered, and the hem so short that if I strained my eyes hard enough, I could see what was under it in the shadow.

I finished taking off my jeans and crawled up over the foot of the bed while she grinned at me in the most sexy way. It wasn't a girl's grin, but the grin of a woman who was aroused and saw the perfect way to fulfill her craving. She'd painted her toenails a deep black after she'd gotten out of the shower. It matched the outfit perfectly. Which made me pause.

"This is what Alice dropped off, isn't it?" I asked. My voice had dropped down to a bass rumble, almost a growl, with lust. Alice had come by earlier with a bag and a meaningful look at Nessie. I had thought that it was for the wedding. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised.

Nessie nodded slowly and lifted her foot so that her toe could run circles around my nipple. Closing my eyes, I enjoyed it for a few moments before I gripped her ankle gently and lifted her foot to face level. I kissed the top of her foot and moved to the inside of her ankle. Gentle, butterfly kisses all the way up her leg. She arched her hips up as my lips barely brushed the hem of the silk. She groaned when I moved back down the bed to start on her other foot and leg. I kept my hand on the leg I had just ravished as I gave my attentions to the other. There was a spot on the inside of her thigh that if hit just right would make her groan and grip the sheets. I gently grazed my teeth over that spot on her right leg and she arched up off the bed. With my teeth still set into her skin, I rolled my eyes up to watch her breasts strain against the thin fabric. If it was possible, I got even harder, a second heartbeat below my waist.

This time though, I didn't take my mouth off of her or stop at the hem. I nuzzled it up until it was around her waist. And I got the shock of my life. A thin strip of cotton barely covered her core. I looked up at her in surprise.

"Is that a-?"

"Thong?" She nodded. "I bought it before we got together. In fact, I have a few of them."

"And why haven't you worn them?"

She shrugged and it pulled the silk over her breasts again. "I was going to, but every time we make love it's fast. We just rip each other's clothes off."

I grinned and put my mouth over the cotton, over her core. Her head flew back into the pillows as her eyes closed and her breathing became fast and shallow. For some reason tonight, her breasts just did it for me. The way the meat looked against the dark material just made me hungry for her. And now I knew what lingerie was for. This hunger was dangerous in a lust-filled setting.

I sucked her and the fabric of the thong into my mouth and tasted sweet rain. She was more than ready for me. But tonight, I didn't want all the extra bits. I just wanted to make slow love to her. So, with one last lick, I finished nuzzling the gown up until it was like a bulky bra around her. I kissed the skin between her breasts and she arched for me again. Her hands gripped my head to her, nails scraping my scalp. I put my mouth over her nipple through the fabric, sucking it all into my mouth. The most seductive sigh slipped through her lips. I moved to her other breast and did the same thing with the same result.

When I went to pull the underwear off, she stopped me. "Leave it on," she said in a breathy voice. With a smile, she said, "It never hurts to experiment, right."

With a soft growl, I surged up to plant a gentle kiss on her lips. "I love you," I whispered against her lips.

"And I love you, my Alpha."

Rumbling with a purr, I gently reached down to push aside the slim cloth and positioned myself at her entrance. As I started to push in slowly, I rested my weight on my elbows and met her eyes. Her hands smoothed up my arms, and her mouth opened as I sank inch by inch into her so slowly that we both could feel everything. She was wet but tight, and her body fisted mine, pulling me in deeper.

"I don't think I tell you enough that you're so beautiful."

She smiled. "But I know you think it."

I shook my head a little. "I should say it more. Everything about you is beautiful. Your smooth skin. Curly, copper hair. Chocolate brown eyes. Your smile. That special smile that you give to only me. I love that smile. I love that it's mine."

And there it was. That smile shined up at me as I reached the end of her. For a moment, we both just paused to study each other. She stroked my face and then her thumbs traced my cheekbones. She leaned up to kiss me.

"Move for me, Jacob. Make love to me slowly."

And I did. I started with slow, dragging strokes so that all of me felt all of her, and our lower stomachs slid over each other. Sweat had started to pool between us from our bodies being pressed to each other and my body heat. The thong added an extra rubbing sensation as I moved in and out.

A low purr had started in her chest as she held me to her. I buried my face in her neck and started to thrust faster, making us rock back and forth. I wanted to go deeper but I needed a different angle. Sliding my hand down her side, I went for her thigh and hitched her leg up over my hip as I did a one-arm push-up over her. There. That was it. I sank in deeper and she groaned, pushing her other leg up over my thigh so that her heel hooked around.

My hips, without my permission, started swinging up and back on their own. Over the past month or so, We'd done fast and hard, which meant I hadn't really gone as deep as I could have. It was all a means to an explosive end, of mixing ourselves together. But tonight? Tonight was all about the connection and being as close as we could. Tonight, I hit the end of her over and over, which made her move on the bed.

With an erotic groan, she reached up to grip the headboard as my hips hammered into hers. Though her feet were locked onto my thighs, her legs were spread as far out as they could go from her hips. Her body took mine in all the way to the base of me. We had never done that before.

She called out my name in different sighs, moans, and groans. Every single one of them made my erection jerk inside of her which made her moan again.

Since we'd started making love, I'd come to the realization that I'd know when she was about to orgasm. But not tonight. The only warning I got was the squeal of the headboard as her arms tensed and the tightening of her legs around my waist. The scream of my name helped, too.

"Jacob!" she shouted as her body convulsed, squeezing down on mine like a vise.

Her body clamping down on mine brought on my own orgasm from out of nowhere. Immediately, it was as if my body was determined to keep up with hers because this was going to be the only release tonight. One shot. My stomach clenched up hard and my lower back screamed as I threw another thrust into her, a thrust that was damn near painful because her body was trying to keep me inside her to milk me for all I was worth.

"Nessie," I whispered as everything in me spasmed, releasing into her.

She let go of the headboard to wrap her arms around my neck. I sank back down onto my elbows as our bodies did their thing.

I knew Nessie was done when her body went from rigid tightness to loose as a wet noodle. Her legs dropped from around me, but she managed to keep her arms locked around my neck. With my body finished emptying itself, I settled my weight on top of her, remembering her telling me that she liked the weight of me.

I buried my face into her neck and hair again. Her nails gently slid through my hair and over my scalp. Happy tired. That was exactly what I was.

"Mmm," she mumbled, her chest vibrating with the sound. "Slow. I like slow."

That made me laugh. Slowly, I pulled out of her. The sensitivity of both of us was astronomical. She involuntarily convulsed with the feeling as I hissed.

"Where are you going?" she asked sleepily.

"I need to clean you up," I answered as I wobbled off the bed. I was really not in any condition to walk, but I couldn't let her sleep in wet panties and wet thighs.

I made quick work of the clean up with a damp cloth. She was loose and on the verge of sleep as I undressed her all the way, throwing the silk and cotton over in the corner with the washcloth.

As I scooted in behind her, she frowned. "You've been doing all the work in bed lately."

I laughed softly and moved her hair back so that I could kiss her bare shoulder, neck, and back. "Don't worry. I don't mind. I love knowing I can satisfy you."

That grin of hers came again. "Oh you do. But I need to take care of you, too."

I kissed her behind the ear and wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her back against me. "Stop thinking, Nessie. You'll come up with something, but tonight, just enjoy the afterglow."

She cuddled back into me. "Mmmm, ok. Love you."

"Love you, too, sweetheart."

So? What did ya think? Am I going too fast with Embry and Tricia, or do you think it's going right? I feel it's right. Now, Walker and Christa are an entirely different story. Those two...*shakes head*...like Jake said, Really? So please Review! I LOVE reviews. They make me happy when I'm grumpy. Love my fans! xoxoxoxo