CHAPTER 39

Leah POV:

"Embry is picking me up and we are going to Sam and Emily's for supper with Embry's parents." I stopped and thought about what I just said to my mom. I looked over at her strange expression and added, "Yea, I just said all of that with a straight face. "

She laughed at that. "I'm so happy for Sam and Embry. I never thought things would turn out like this for them. When you first told me what you did, oh Leah, I was afraid for you. I think you got lucky, girl. This all could have gone so horribly wrong."

"I know, Mom. I have apologized so many times to both of them. But, you have to admit, I was right." I gave her sly grin.

She rolled her eyes at me. "Yes, but you are supposed to be learning a lesson here. Don't meddle in other people's lives! Just because you got lucky this time, doesn't mean it will always turn out this way."

"Yes, mother. I get it." And I did. I had learned my lesson and I had promised myself no more meddling. The last couple of weeks had been brutal, and I didn't want to go through that ever again. "I need to run upstairs and get my shoes before Embry gets here," I told her. I turned and ran up the stairs and grabbed my shoes then heard Embry's truck pull up outside. I looked out the window and smiled. I wondered if my heart would always beat a little faster when I knew Embry was close.

I ran out of my room and bumped right into Seth, who had the phone to his ear. "Umph! Geez Leah! Slow down a little! Sorry, Ashley. My sister just about knocked me down. Yea, Embry's here to pick her up and she's flying down the stairs to meet him."

"Sorry!" I called behind me as I did just what Seth described to Ashley: I flew down the stairs just as Mom was opening the door for Embry. I halted at the bottom of the stairs and slipped my sandals on, and turned my smile toward Embry.

"Hey, baby, you look gorgeous, as usual," he said as he walked my way. I met him and he put his arms around me and kissed me. "I like this dress on you," he whispered. I was wearing the black halter sundress that I had worn on our first date. It was the same dress that I had untied when we were making out in the truck and almost made him have a heart attack. I thought maybe I might have to try that again later.

He was wearing his black shorts and a new white t-shirt. I pulled back and eyed him up and down. "You look pretty hot yourself." He gave me his sexy smile. Oh yea. This is my man. And he smells so good.

"Hey, do you know where my Pumas are? I would kind of like them back." I looked down and noticed he was wearing his black flip-flops.

"I'll bet you would," I said with a smile. "I'll go get them. Be right back." I headed back upstairs to Seth's room. I knocked and cracked open the door. "Seth?" He was lying on his bed with the phone propped on his shoulder and he was throwing a baseball up and catching it while he talked.

"Hang on," he said into the phone. "What?"

"Embry is here and he wants his Pumas back. Where are they?" He pointed over toward his closet, and I saw them lying on the floor. I nodded and walked over and picked them up. I couldn't help overhear his conversation.

"Sure, baby. You know I do. Do you think your mom would let me come over for a little while? Maybe we could take a walk, just the two of us . . ."

I shot Seth a look and put my free hand on my hip. He looked at me and gave me a grin with the shrug of his shoulders. I just shook my head and whispered, "Be good, little brother!"

He just grinned and said into the phone, "OK, baby. Give me a call back . . ."

I walked back out of his room and closed the door. What happened to my sweet, innocent little brother? He had matured about 5 years in the last 2 days! I made my way downstairs and held Embry's shoes out to him. "You should hear him on the phone up there! He's talking to Ashley and calling her 'Baby' and asking if he can come over and 'take a walk, just the two of us.' What have you done to my little brother?"

Embry smiled and put his head down. I could see his shoulders shaking. I knew he thought this was very funny.

"Yea, you hide your head and laugh. You're so proud right now, you can't stand it!" I said to him.

He looked up and me with his big grin and said, "Oh come on, baby. It would have happened sooner or later. Seth is a natural. I just gave him a little push." He had put his Pumas on and was just finishing tying them. He stood up and put his hands on my shoulders. "I'll talk to him and make sure he's treating her right, OK? I can keep an eye on him at school. I won't let him get too out of hand." He leaned in and put a light kiss on my forehead. "Come on, let's go."

"Mom! I'm leaving now," I called out. She was in the kitchen and she called back, "Have a good time!" I smiled as Embry held the door for me. He closed it behind us and he took my hand as we walked to the truck. He opened the truck door for me and I said, "My, what a gentleman. You're still in the doghouse, but you can keep trying."

He laughed and closed the truck door and walked to the driver's side to hop in. He started the truck and pulled away from the house. "So, I hope this family gathering isn't as emotional as the last one. I don't think I could do that again," I said to Embry.

"Me either!" he agreed. "I can't believe I'm driving to Sam's for a bar-be-que with them and my parents. I keep thinking I've somehow been transported to an alternate universe or something. Or I'm having this really long, weird dream and I keep waiting to wake up."

I laughed at him. It was like that. Everything had changed so drastically for him in such a short time. We chatted a little more on the way about his parents. "They don't even try to hide it from me anymore. I found them making out on the couch last night when I got back. Talk about awkward!" He pulled up to Sam's and parked the truck. Embry's parents weren't here yet.

We got out of the truck and I said, "I think it's sweet. They have missed 18 years together, Embry. They do have some catching up to do!"

"Yea, but they can do it while I'm not around! Shit. I didn't mean that like it sounded." I laughed at the look on his face.

"They probably do!" I said. He shot a look at me. "Oh come on, Embry. What do you think they think about us? Do they know that we 'do it?' Don't you think they suspect it?"

"Well, yea, but we're young. We're supposed to do that. They're old." That really made me laugh. We had made our way onto the front porch and I heard Sam say, "What's so funny?"

"Embry caught his parents making out on the couch last night, and he is grossed out. He thinks 'old people' don't do things like that," I explained as Embry glared at us.

Sam laughed and said, "Well, I'll be doing it when I'm old, bro!" He looked at me then back at Embry and added, "And I suspect you will, too." That did it. He finally smiled.

We walked into the house and Emily was in the kitchen making hamburger patties. I walked over to her and said, "I'll help," as I washed my hands.

"Thanks," she smiled. "So what was so funny?" I filled her in as I dried my hands then dug into the hamburger and formed it into a patty. She laughed and said, "Well, I hope old people do it! I'm planning on it!" Embry rolled his eyes and said, "OK, enough you guys!" We all laughed at that.

"Embry, they aren't that old, you know," I said to him. "Your mom is only 36, and your dad is what? 40? They're still young enough to have babies! You might have a little brother or sister someday!"

The shock on his face was priceless. "Shit. I never thought of that," he mumbled. I looked over at Sam to see some shock there, too.

"Come on, bro. You can help me get the grill ready," Sam said. He and Sam walked down the hall to go out the back door.

"Maybe that was too much reality for them?" I asked Emily. She laughed and answered, "Yea, maybe."

"Is this as weird to you as it is to me? Having the parents over for a cookout? Is Sam really ready for this?"

Emily looked at me. "He says he is." She added another patty to the plate. "We talked quite a bit about it, and he accepts that Embry's mom and their dad are together. He knows they imprinted and that's something you can't break." I remembered what Embry told me last night about Sam trying to fight that imprint. I looked over at Em and wondered if she knew that. I just nodded and put my patty onto the plate.

We worked together until the hamburger was gone, and I washed my hands as she threw the container away. Just then we heard Josh's truck pull up outside. I glanced at Emily as she ran her hands under the water, and I dried mine. "Here we go," I said. I walked over toward the door as they came up onto the porch.

"Hey! Come on in," I said. They each had a pie in their hands. "You made pie! What kind?" I asked as I led them toward the kitchen counter.

"Cherry. I hope that's OK?" Angie asked as she looked over at Emily.

"Of course! Thanks so much for bringing them," she replied. Josh and Angie each set their pie down on the counter and Emily walked around to hug each one of them. "I am so glad you could come today! The guys are out back starting the grill. Leah? Why don't you go and tell them Josh and Angie are here."

"Sure! Be right back," I answered. I turned and made my way down the hall and out the back door. I stopped for a moment and looked out back at Sam and Embry. They were standing in front of the grill, flames shooting up from the coals. Sam was making some large gesture with his hands and Embry was laughing, really hard. I took it in and savored it. These two guys had meant so much to me. I had loved Sam so much, yet now when I looked at the two of them, all I felt for Sam was brotherly love. I knew now that Embry was the real love of my life. I smiled and opened the door.

"Hey, you two!" I called to them as I walked down the porch steps. "Are you trying to burn the house down with that fire?" I asked Sam.

They both laughed and Sam explained, "Embry didn't think there was enough lighter fluid on there so he squirted a little more on and WHOOSH! He about burned my eyebrows off!"

I shook my head and laughed at the two of them. "Em sent me out to let you know that your parents are here. And Angie brought pie. Cherry pie!"

"Oh man, my mom makes the best cherry pie, bro. You'll love it," Embry told him. I watched Sam and noticed he had sobered quite quickly . Maybe I shouldn't have said, 'your parents.'

He looked at me and I gave him a small smile. He said, "Well, better go and greet my guests."

"I'll come with you," Embry said as he looked at me. I took his hand and we all made our way back inside.

Sam walked into the kitchen to stand by Emily and as he put his arm around her, he said to Josh and Angie, "Hey, glad you could make it." Josh was beaming he was so happy to be here.

"Thanks, Sam, for inviting us. We're very happy to be here," he said as he put his arm around Angie's shoulders. She looked at Sam shyly and added, "Yes, thank you for inviting both of us." He nodded.

"This is a great house you two have here," Josh said.

Emily smiled and said, "Thanks. We're really happy here. Would you like me to show you around?"

"Sure, I'd love to!" Josh accepted with a smile. He joined Emily as she showed him the kitchen and living area then as they were about to make their way down the hall, she said to Angie, "Come with us and see the baby's room!" She quickly made her way to them and they walked down the hall.

I looked over at Sam and noticed he was fiddling with the spatula that was in his hand. "You OK, Sam?" I asked.

His eyes met mine and I could see the hurt that he was trying so hard to hide. "Yep. I'm good. I better go back out and make sure the yard isn't on fire." He looked over at Embry and smiled then made his way down the hall. This was really tough for Sam, but he was really trying. I could see he loved his dad and was genuinely glad he was here, but he wasn't quite ready to be as forgiving as Embry.

I put my arms around Embry's waist and said, "How about you?" He put his arms around me and answered, "I couldn't be better. Unless you were kissing me," he added with a smile. He bent his head and I put my lips on his. He was rubbing my back where my bra strap usually was. I guess he remembered that I didn't wear one with this dress! I heard Emily talking and knew we were about to be interrupted, so I pulled back and stood beside Embry. He smiled down at me.

"We have a couple of rooms upstairs that I keep for storage, and one as a guestroom," she was saying. Embry's parents were nodding their heads and listening like they were really interested.

"Thanks for tour, Emily. The baby's room is going to be really nice. I would like to see it again when it's done," Angie said.

"Sure! You're welcome anytime," Em said.

"Hey, Dad. I'm heading out back to check on Sam. Want to come with me?" Embry asked.

His dad looked over at him and said with a big smile, "Yes, I would. Let's go." I smiled at Embry he led his dad down the hall to the back door. Angie looked over at me and raised her eyebrows and sighed. "It'll be OK," I assured her.

Embry POV:

I walked Dad out the back door and into the backyard. Sam was poking at the coals with a stick to spread them out over the bottom of the grill. "Hey Sam," Dad said as we walked up to him.

Sam looked up and answered his greeting, "Hey Dad." He was trying his best to sound friendly. It sounded a little strained to me, but at least he was trying.

"Emily just gave us a tour of your home. You have a real nice place here," Dad said. Sam accepted the compliment with a, "Thanks. We like it."

"You boys did a good job painting the baby's room. It looks real nice," Dad said. We both nodded and then it was quiet.

Sam put the grill top back on the grill and said, "I think these coals are about ready. Bro? Go ask Emily for the burgers, will ya?"

"Yea, sure. Be right back," I answered. I turned and went up the back porch steps. I hated leaving the two of them alone. Not because I was afraid Sam would deck Dad again, but because they both seemed so awkward with each other. But, they would have to get over that, I guess.

I walked into the kitchen to find Mom slicing onions, Leah slicing tomatoes and Emily stirring up the lemonade. They were chatting about maternity clothes. Mom was saying, "I didn't really start wearing maternity clothes until I was almost 6 months along. I was so young and skinny back then, and I didn't have much money, so I wasn't eating as well as I was supposed to." Wow. That was hard to hear. "Maybe that's why Embry's so skinny!" She patted me as I walked by her.

"Um, Sam is ready for the burgers," I said. Emily said, "I put them in the fridge to keep them cold." I nodded and walked to the fridge.

"Well, I am wearing maternity pants already! And I'm only 4 months," Emily exclaimed. I pulled the plate of burgers out of the fridge and quickly made my way out of the kitchen before they started talking about other girl stuff I didn't want to hear.

I walked out the back door to find Dad and Sam actually having a conversation. As I walked up to hand the plate to Sam, I heard Dad say, "I hope it goes well. I have no idea what kind of questions they will have, but I will answer them all honestly. I want to live here, if they'll let me. I want to try to lead a somewhat normal life, if that's possible." Sam nodded and began putting the burgers on the grill.

"Hey, Dad? Is it OK if I come with you tonight?" I asked. "I really want to be there for you." He looked over at me and said hesitantly, "I don't know, Embry. Sam? Do you think that would be OK?"

Sam looked at me, thinking about it. "Yea, I think so." I smiled and said, "Thanks." He gave me a nod.

While Sam grilled the burgers, Dad told him about our fishing trip yesterday. He told Sam how he wanted to spend some time alone with me to get to know me a little more, and he was surprised when I agreed to go fishing. "I remember going with my Grandpa Levi when I was a kid. I don't know if you remember, Sam, but I took you once when you were little."

Sam glanced over at him and said, "I don't remember that."

"Well, you were pretty little. We didn't stay long. You wanted to be in the water instead of fishing. You loved swimming when you were little. I remember taking you out to the beach and you always made a beeline for the water! It always scared your mom to death," he said with a chuckle. "I would chase you down and bring you back to her, and as soon as I set you down, off you would go. You were such a little rascal." I laughed at that as I remembered Quil doing that same thing with Claire. I looked over at Sam and saw a small smile.

"You'll be doing that soon with your own little boy or girl. That's hard for me to believe," Dad said in amazement. He was watching Sam turn the burgers on the grill and I could see how much he had missed him. I wished that Sam would turn and look at him now. I willed him to in my mind, but he just kept flipping burgers.

Finally, Sam turned to look at Dad. He gave him a smile as he said, "Yea, I know. Hard for me to believe, too."

Just then I heard footsteps on the back porch and turned to see Leah walking down the steps. She came up beside me and automatically reached for my hand. It still amazed me how we automatically reached for each other. It was like we were two magnets, always drawn to each other. "Hey Sam, Emily wants to know how much longer on the burgers?" she asked Sam.

He looked up at her and said, "About 10 more minutes," he answered.

"OK, I'll tell her. Smells good!" She squeezed my hand then let it go as she turned to go back inside.

Dad watched her walk away then looked at me and smiled. "I'll go see if they need any help putting the food out." He turned and made his way back into the house.

I went to stand beside Sam and I gave him a look. He looked over at me and said, "What? I'm being good!"

I laughed and said, "Yea, I know. Loosen up a little, bro. He's trying really hard."

He hung his head and said, "I know. " He turned a few more of the burgers. "It seems like the two of you are doing OK. You even called him 'Dad.' That didn't take long."

I shot him a look. Is he fucking kidding me? "What? Does that bother you?"

He looked over and said quickly, "No, no. I didn't mean to . . . no it doesn't bother me. I guess I'm just surprised that you accepted him so quickly."

"Hey, I've been waiting for 18 fucking years to know my dad. I just decided I didn't want to wait any longer."

He smiled at that. "Yea, I get that. I'm glad, Embry. Here," he said as he handed me a big platter. "Hold this for me so I can put the burgers on here." I took it and held it while he piled the meat onto it. "OK, let's go eat."

We walked into the house and made our way to the kitchen. "Burgers are ready!" Sam announced. He set the platter onto the counter with the rest of the food. Then he walked over to Emily and gave her a big kiss. She smiled at him and told everyone to grab a plate and help themselves.

I pulled Leah over so we could be the first in line for the food. I filled two plates and sat down at the table. Leah followed with one plate and sat down beside me. Everyone else filled their plates and joined us at the table. Mom and Emily were talking about recipes for lasagna, and Leah joined in on how she found a good one on some internet site. Dad, Sam and I just sat there, shoveling in our food. The Uley men really needed to work on their communication skills!