A/N: I am so so so sorry this update is extremely late. I had intended to get this up a few days ago but I've been so busy. I can't even believe how busy I've been this week. But I hope you guys forgive me, I promise the next update won't take as long. I feel awful for making you guys wait.

As always, thank you for the reviews. They make my day, I literally freak out when I get an inbox telling me I've got a review. You guys are the best.

Anyway, without further ado.

Chapter 18: Into The Wild

The definition of imprint; The involuntary mechanism by which shape-shifters find their soul-mates.

Jacob described the feeling as intense. That the moment he set eyes on me, he felt as though he was being pulled towards me, while a glowing heat filled his entire body. Nothing mattered to him anymore unless it involved me. I was his everything. And he was left with a deep need to fulfill my wants.

Love hadn't played a part for him in the beginning. All he was aware of was the fact that he couldn't stand to be away from me, and that he had to get to know me as soon as possible. But that was all it took for him to fall in love with me; hanging out and getting to know each other made him devote himself to me completely. The love so strong.

However, being a lover to me wasn't what he had to be. It depended on what the 'imprintee' wanted. If I wanted him to be my friend or my protector, that's exactly what he'd be for me. Anything to make me happy. Anything I wanted.

Though, Jacob admitted that if he had to be just a friend, there'd be much sorrow on his side.

"Did I ever tell you about Isabella Swan?," he asked, his back to me as he stared out the window.

Resting my head against the headboard, I replied. "No."

I'd heard about her, but he never spoke of her.

"I knew her since I was a little kid, she used to visit us, but she hung out with my sisters. They were her age," he started, still staring out the window. "She lived in Phoenix with her mom for a long time, but her dad Charlie missed her, so three years ago, she came back to live with him and guess what I did? Fell for her. Hard.

"I rarely saw her, just now and then whenever my dad went up to Charlie to watch a game on his flat screen. She wasn't really interested in hanging out or anything, but that all changed when her boyfriend left her. Sam Uley found her laying out in the middle of the woods, and she became a shell of herself. Charlie was thinking of sending her back to her mom. She'd been in such a bad way for months.

"So one day she came to me, with two beaten up old motorcycles for me to fix up." Jacob turned around, an unreadable expression on his face. "That was the beginning of everything. We became best friends and slowly she began to open up again. I helped her get over him and soon enough, I fell in love with her. She refused to admit she loved me, even though it was obvious… and then that day came. The day she left me for him."

I raised my eyebrows up in shock. "He came back?."

"No." he shook his head. "She went to save him before he exposed his true identity to the people of Italy and got himself killed."

"I'm confused?."

He chuckled darkly to himself. "Of course you are, he was a bloodsucker. Or a 'cold one' as you refer to them as."

My jaw dropped. "You.. you're kidding me?."

"Oh he was a bloodsucker alright, had his hooks in her so deep. She literally couldn't live without him. I don't know how many times she almost got herself killed, just to hear his voice in her head as she got an adrenaline rush. It was crazy."

"Jacob I don't know what to say..."

Walking across the room, he took a seat at my desk and spun on its wheels to face me. "Long story short; No matter how many times she hurt me, I always went back. And no matter how many times he hurt her, she always went back. It was a pretty intense love triangle."

Staring over at him, I wondered how any girl could reject his beauty, inside and out. "Why didn't she give you a chance?."

"Because she didn't love me enough, and so I was always a friend to her. Nothing more," he told me, eyes piercing mine in the darkness. "And now that I've imprinted on you, the love I feel is nothing compared to what I felt for Isabella. Nothing. You're my world Nina, and if you made me be your friend… that'd destroy me. Because if I wanted more than friendship with Isabella, then you can't imagine how much I want from you."

A blush crept into my cheeks at his last words, and I quickly diverted my gaze down to my lap. Not wanting him to notice. "Jake, you know that I wouldn't want you to be anything less than you are to me now," I said quietly. "You know I see you more than just a friend right?."

Rejection was something I always feared. I hated the idea of somebody refusing my affections, not because they didn't have a right to, they did, but the mortification wasn't something I'd be able to handle well. So when it came to Jacob, and my undying love for him, I was afraid of telling him exactly how I felt. The fear of him rejecting me always in the back of my mind.

"I didn't know for sure," he admitted, causing me to gaze back over at him. "I've been through a lot with Isabella over the past three years, and if there's one thing I learned, it has to be acceptance. Like I said, I knew she loved me, but I couldn't accept the fact that she loved him more. I was convinced that she was the one for me, that I could make her happy. That I could give her more. But I was wrong. She didn't want me that way, because she wasn't meant for me."

Jacob raised up from the seat, and started walking towards me. A darkness in his eyes that sent my heart into a frenzy. The bed creaked once again under his weight, and before I knew what he was doing, I was laying on top of him. My cheek pressed against his bare chest as his hand smoothed over my hair, whilst the other ran up and down my back. Filling me with warmth.

"You're meant for me, Nee. That's why we're together now. Imprinting.. it's just leading us in the right direction, but if I weren't a shape-shifter we'd still end up together. I know it."

"How can you be so sure?," I wondered, trailing my fingers over his large bicep, the muscles twitching beneath my touch. "Maybe I'd just be the new girl and we'd never end up speaking, and I'd eventually leave for college and you'd get on with your life. We'd marry other-"

The movements of his hands stalled on my back. "Nonsense. That would never happen, you'd never.. I'd never… we'd never be with anyone else. This is our destiny."

"But maybe-"

"There's no buts Nina," he said firmly. "I love you."

I sighed, moving to rest my chin on his chest so I could look up at him. "Jake, that's not-"

"You love me? you still love me right? This imprinting thing, you haven't changed your mind? You're okay with it?," he asked quickly, panic stricken. "Believe me, this is the way things are supposed to be. You and I, we're made for each other. Nina-."

"Jacob!," I hissed, a small smile on my face. "Lower your voice."

"I'm sorry, I just-."

"I love you, Jake. I'm in love with you. I understand how imprinting works, I do. I was just wondering whether if we didn't have that magical pull towards each other, would we have ever ended up together."

Heaving a sigh of relief, Jacob touched his forehead to mine. "Sure we would, you're in my English class after all."

"But why do you imprint and ordinary people don't? there's got to be a reason," I said thoughtfully.

"There are many possible reasons as to why," he murmured, warm breath hitting my lips due to the close proximity. "So I can't give you a proper answer."

"What are those reasons?."

Pulling away from me slightly, he stared up at the ceiling. "My dad believes that it makes us stronger."

"How so?."

"That's the question." He smirked. "I have no idea."

Sinking my head onto his broad shoulder, I closed my eyes. Tiredness overtaking me. "What's the other reason so?."

"Oh um…" he started awkwardly. "They're not important honey, just people's ideas. Like my dad's. Nonsensical."

For some odd reason, I felt Jacob was holding back on the subject. There was obviously something he found uncomfortable talking about, and I wasn't going to urge him on. Besides, he'd already told me a lot.

Wrapping my arms around his waist, I snuggled into him. "Tell me a secret," I whispered, my voice heavy with sleep.

"I'm not the only shape-shifter around."

Much to my shock and surprise, it turned out Embry, Quil and the rest of the guys I'd seen at the bonfire that night were all shape-shifters. Including that one girl named Leah. Yes, a girl. Unbelievable.

I realized that there were so many things I still didn't know about Jacob. And that in itself upset me. The need to know every single detail about him and his life was strong. Very strong. But there would be another time and another place for those revelations. I was way too tired to discuss them at that stage.

"Sleep, Nee," he said softly, rolling us over so that I lay next to him. "I'll stay until sunrise."

The last thing I remembered was falling asleep, curled up against his side.

"They hate me," he said, leaning against a tree-trunk, buck naked. "They'll never forgive me."

"They don't hate you," I replied, walking towards him. "They just dislike you."

Rolling his eyes, he looked away from me. "I hate it when you lie."

"I hate it when you don't believe me," I shot back, standing directly in front of him.

"Touché."

Growing irritated with his behavior, I began to walk past him but he caught my wrist in his hand. "Let go."

"I bought a tux last night," he told me. "It's decent."

Turning to look at him, I was no longer in the woods but in a shower. Staring over at the bathroom door as it creaked open and Jacob stepped in, clad in a pair of black boxers. The feeling that overcame me when I saw him wasn't pleasant.

I wanted him to leave.

"I don't regret it." He stepped over to the sink, looking at his reflection in the mirror. "It's nature, I don't care what my dad thinks or what you're parents think. You shouldn't either."

A surge of anger burst through my veins, and before I knew what I was doing, I threw the shampoo bottle at him. Unfortunately, I missed. "Get the hell out of my bathroom!."

He laughed, looking at me over his shoulder. "I thought you liked the idea of imprinting? Have you changed your mind?."

"Imprinting has nothing to do with this! Now leave, before I…" I trailed off, my mind coming up with nothing.

He spun on his heel before stomping over to me. "Are you threatening me? huh?."

Gulping, I turned my back on him and closed my eyes, pressing my hands against the tiled wall as the water ran over my body. "Please Jacob."

"I can't leave you, Nee," he whispered against my ear, suddenly behind me. His arms wrapping around my shaky body, a hand pressing against my abdomen. "Even if I tried."

When I opened my eyes again, I was in the backseat of his rabbit. A sheet wrapped around my underwear clad body. His musky scent lingering in the air, stronger than ever before. Yet, he was nowhere to be seen.

"I'm afraid," I whispered.

The following week passed by rather slowly; Jacob was busy with 'things', mom and dad were ignoring each other, Kara was sick with a cold, and I spent my days studying and avoiding Nick as much as possible during school hours.

I worried about my brother Joey and how he was dealing with all the divorce drama. It was much of a surprise to him as it was to me. But for a kid as young as him, things from his perspective must be awful. Perhaps scary even. And I wished that there was something I could do to make things right again.

Jacob had invested in a mobile— finally. So to make up for not being around, he phoned me at least four times a day. That would be considered odd amongst most people but to me it was incredibly sweet. I lived for those calls.

Something was definitely up with him though; any time I brought up questions as to why he was 'busy', he avoided answering them. Like the imprinting thing, I wasn't going to push him on the subject but I expected him to tell me what was going on, sooner or later.

On a very quiet Saturday afternoon, I was indulging myself on some Ben & Jerry's ice-cream when mom sat down across from me at the kitchen table.

"I'm just going to get straight to the point and say I'm sorry for being a horrible mother to you and Joey lately. I've been going through a hard time with your dad, and I know that's a bad excuse, I'm just so stressed out at the moment. Forgive me?" she gave me a pleading look.

Staring at her with raised eyebrows, I pushed my ice-cream tub to the side. "There's nothing to forgive you for mom, you and dad need to sort things out. I understand."

She smiled appreciatively at me. "You've always been a good girl Nina. I'm sorry for giving you a hard time these last few months, and I'm sorry for.. what I'm going to have to say to you next."

"What is it?," I asked cautiously, searching her eyes. "Tell me."

"It's about us moving," she said. "To Seattle."

"Oh."

I couldn't say I didn't see this coming. I did. I'd been dreading the moment we'd have to discuss it, and at times I told myself that it wouldn't come to this. That my parents would come to some sort of agreement and mom would stay here. For Joey's sake. But life wasn't that easy, was it?

Reaching across the table, she covered my hand in hers. "I won't let you down hon, I promise. I'll let down my guard a bit, give you more freedom with your friends and all. You can get a part-time job wherever you like and I'll help pay your college fees. I know it's hard to believe right now but I just need you to trust in me. Please."

"Mom I do believe in you," I said quietly. "But I've got school here-."

"Yes, you do," she interrupted. "That's why we'll be moving after you graduate. It'll make things easier for you and your brother."

In all honesty, her plan was fair. Very fair. And I would've been smiling if there was no Jacob in my life. However, there was and I couldn't stand the thought of leaving him. Ever. We were in love, he imprinted on me, leaving was out of the question. Mom wouldn't understand though, no one would. I felt so alone.

Sliding my hand out from under hers, I rested it on my knee. "That's great mom.. very considerate."

"Is there something wrong Nina?," she asked, narrowing her eyes at me. "Did you have something different planned for us?."

"No." I shook my head. "I'm fine, really. I just need to get used to the idea."

"I know moving away from your father will be hard, after all these years, but he'll visit. And you can spend your summer with him."

Obviously, she thought I was upset over dad. "Is that what you both agreed to?."

She half-smiled. "Yes, and besides, your summer won't be as dull as it is here. California will do you good."

"California?," I gasped, jaw hitting the ground.

"I meant to mention that to you before, your father is going to stay with your uncle over there temporarily. Until he gets his own place." she explained. "It's very far, I know, but he'll be getting a job transfer."

This was unreal. "A job transfer all the way over there? is he serious? Like… I'm speechless."

Nodding, she ran a hand through her hair. "It is crazy isn't it? I'm sure you understand why we've been arguing a lot lately. It's hard to get through to him."

"But why would he want to move? La Push may be small but it's beautiful, and the people." Jacob. "Are wonderful."

"He's not in his right mind at the moment hon, he's very angry and depressed. Going to California to stay with his brother might comfort him a little, hopefully bring him back to his usual self. It'll take him a while though.. to get used to these changes." She sighed.

"So… after graduation? It feels like we've only just moved here."

"Time flies," she remarked thoughtfully. "But I promise you it'll all turn out good, I won't let you or your brother down. Anyway, I won't keep you here, you're heading into Port Angeles right?."

Raising myself up off the wooden seat, I nodded. "Yep, no point in sitting around on Saturday."

"Window shopping?" she smirked.

I rolled my eyes. "Probably."

Truth was, I was heading into Port Angeles to buy Jacob a present. Christmas was only a week away and his birthday followed soon after that by three weeks. The problem was, I had no idea what to get him.

There was also another problem; I didn't know how to tell him I was moving away.

Life was seriously going downhill.

Christmas came as quickly as it went. My parents tried their hardest to make the day special for us. Buying Joey and I extra gifts, which we both appreciated. However, I couldn't help but worry about Jacob.

I hadn't heard from him or seen him for a week.

Before I knew it, New Years Eve had arrived and yet still, I hadn't had any contact with him. I was so tempted to go up to his place. To find out what was really going on. But I'd promised Kara I'd spend the day at hers, and I wasn't going to let her down.

That night, I lay awake, staring up at the ceiling. Wondering where he was, what he was doing and why he was avoiding me. A million possible reasons popped into my mind, but I knew wholeheartedly that none of them were true.

That he wouldn't just up and leave. After all, he'd imprinted on me, that'd be impossible.

But two more weeks had passed, and I started to believe that he had indeed abandoned me. The unbearable pulling in my heart subconsciously telling me that he was far away. No longer within reach. And I started to feel sick. Very sick.

So on his birthday, January 14th, I forced myself to pay the Black household a visit.

It was pitch dark outside. The trees swaying in the wind as droplets of rain fell from the night sky. Reminding me of how cold it must be for Jacob to roam around the woods in wolf-form. I knew little about what he did as a shape-shifter, but I could certainly tell he spent a lot of time in that form. Wandering La Push.

Embry, Quil and the others must too. Watching over their people. Protecting them from… the cold ones. Whether there were vampires—as Jacob once called them— out there, I didn't know. What I did know was that I hated thinking of them. They scared the life out of me.

Pulling up across the road from Jacob's. I stayed put as I took a moment to gather my thoughts. To prepare myself for the rejection I was anticipating. Fear was making its way up my veins, and I knew that it was time to get out. Time to find out what was going on.

On wobbly legs, I sprinted across the road and up the path that lead to the front door.

Before I could knock, it was pulled open by… "Jacob?," I gasped.

There he stood before me, looking years older than the last time I'd seen him; gone were the long locks that cascaded over his broad shoulders, chopped off hastily. Leaving him with a messy cropped look. His already muscular body had double the amount of muscles it once had, and on his right bicep, a tattoo had been engraved.

Not to mention his face had matured. Eyes as wise as someone who had lived many years.

"Come in," he said, his voice deep and steady.

In my shocked state, I unconsciously stepped inside while he closed the door behind me. Everything looked the same, except there was no sign of Billy. I didn't know how to feel about that.

A warm hand slipped into mine and lead me down the hall, towards the bedroom. For a second, I panicked at the thought of going in there with him. Alone. Then I remembered that I'd been in there before. That I had nothing to be afraid of.

But he was different. He wasn't the same.

It didn't matter what I thought though. Because by the time I'd stopped my thoughts from going any further down panic road, I was inside the tiny room. Jacob locking the door behind us…

"You don't have to do that," I whispered carefully. Sitting down on the edge of the bed.

Turning away from the door to face me, he said. "I do."

"Okay," I squeaked. Feeling completely helpless.

Jacob walked towards my weak form, falling to his knees in front of me. Our eyes level with each other for once. The expression on his face unreadable. As though he was trying to hide his emotions.

"Are you afraid?," he asked.

Staring at his tattoo, I decided to be honest. "Yes."

"Why?."

"Because-." My gaze drifted back to his eyes. "You've changed."

And you locked the door.

He nodded. "I have." Reaching for my hand that rested on my shaky knee, he brought it to his lips. "For you."

I shivered at his sudden show of affection. "H-How?."

"In so many ways," he murmured, kissing each finger.

"Jacob you disappeared," I said. Getting to the point.

Lowering my hand to place over his chest, his heart jumped at the contact. "I went away," he corrected.

Sighing, I snatched my hand back and crossed my arms over my chest. "You didn't even tell me Jacob."

"For your own good." His hands ran up and down my thighs. "And for mine."

"Jacob stop." Uncrossing my arms, I pushed his hands away. "Please."

"I've missed you, Nee," he whispered. "I need you."

A fire burned in his eyes. The intensity of it taking my breath away. And I realized that he was no longer hiding his emotions. He was showing them to me. Powerful and needy. His parted lips almost looked… hungry.

Letting out a shaky breath, I leaned backwards slightly. "We need to talk Jake."

"Nee," he whined, leaning in to place a kiss over my clothed tummy. "I love you."

"Jake, please. You need to stop."

Then I felt cool air on my stomach, and soft lips beneath my bellybutton. "Your skin-."

With a gasp, I pulled my shirt back down and backed away from him until my back hit the headboard. "You need to cool down Jacob, g-go for a run or something."

Jacob's behavior both scared and worried me. He'd never been this wild and untamed. Wherever he'd been had obviously effected him in some way. As though he'd been deprived of something for a long period of time…

My eyes widened at the sight of him crawling up onto the bed and literally ripping his extremely tight t-shirt off. His muscles had most definitely doubled in size. Smirking over at me, he flexed them, before grabbing my ankles and pulling me downwards to lay beneath him.

Moving to hover over my tiny body, his dark eyes zeroed in on my lips. "I can give you more than any other man could. Protection, loyalty, honesty, devotion-." Grasping my hip in his large hand, he molded our lower-halves together. "-Children."

Oh. My. God. This was not happening.

"Jacob, j-just leave this for some other time. We need to talk."

There was so much that we needed to discuss. First thing, was whereabouts he had been and why he hadn't told me he was leaving. But in his dazed state, I doubted we'd be doing much talking.

"Yes, we do need to talk. I've got so much to tell you." He smiled, gazing into my eyes. "But first-."

"No." I cut him off. "Talking comes first."

"You don't understand." Bringing a hand up to my face, he cupped my cheek. "I really need you, Nee."

"What do you mean?," I asked. Hoping he wouldn't notice the fear in my eyes.

Leaning in, he pressed his lips to my forehead. "I just want to be with you. To love you. I missed you so much. You were all I ever thought about."

"I missed you too," I whispered.

I knew that there would be a time when Jacob and I would take our relationship to the next level. That we'd share more than just our hearts. Our bodies. And that it would probably be one of the best experiences of my life.

But I wasn't ready for that… It was too… soon.

"Do you love me?," he asked quietly, inching his fingers up my shirt.

My hand twitched to stop him but I decided to relax. To just go with the flow. For now. "Yes, I love you. Of course I do."

Leaning backwards slightly, he narrowed his eyes at me. "Is it enough?"

"You're not really making any sense Jake."

"I…" he trailed off awkwardly, his face turning crimson with embarrassment. "Your love for me? is it enough? Or could you love another person more?"

"Jake love is love, and my love for you it's… only for you. I'll never feel this way for anyone. You're my-." Biting my lip, I decided to just say what I wanted. "-my everything. I never want to lose you."

Unexpectedly, Jacob buried his face into the crook of my neck. His breathing shallow against the scar his bite had left behind. Then, as cold as ice, I felt tiny droplets run down over my skin. And I realized he was crying.

His sobs muffled against me.

Wrapping my arms around his waist, I ran my hands up and down his back, soothingly. "Why are you crying?," I asked softly.

Tonight, he was nothing but emotional. Every feeling inside of him left raw for me to see. Showing me how fragile a gigantic man like him could be. My heart swelled with the love I had for him, and the need to stop him from crying never overcame me. Instead, I wanted to let him cry. He was better off letting it out. No matter how depressing it was.

Shifting above me, he pressed his cheek to my shoulder. Sniffling like a little boy. "I-I've waited f-f-for… for t-this-"

I hushed him, his inability to speak at that moment evident.

Though I wondered where he'd been, and why it had affected him this way. Not to mention it had changed his appearance; newly cropped hair, a strange tattoo and a body more muscular than it'd ever been. Even his smell had changed slightly, yet I couldn't put my finger on what it was.

He said he'd gone away for me, and that he hadn't told me he was leaving for my own good. The whole situation confused me to no end. But I was willing to wait for an explanation. I wouldn't force him to tell me when he wasn't ready. I loved him too much.

"You'll never lose me," he said suddenly, his voice strained. "I'll never leave you. Ever."

It was my turn to shed a tear, the droplet running down my cheek. "I wish I could say the same."

"Huh?," was his response before he pushed himself up on his hands, placing them on either side of my head, staring into my face confusedly. "W-What?"

"It's… my mom…" my throat constricted, and the words I needed to tell him wouldn't make their way out of my mouth. ".. the divorce."

Leaning downwards, he pressed his burning forehead to mine. Our noses brushing lightly over one another. Breaths intermingling. "Don't tell me you're leaving. Don't."

"After graduation," I blurted. More tears escaping my eyes.

All blood had drained from Jacob's face. Leaving him pale with noticeable dark circles under his eyes. "No. I won't let you. Not after graduation.. not again."

"Jake I-."

"No! You're mine. You belong to me. I won't let you leave. I swear."

My heart picked up its pace, hammering in my chest. Fighting to break free. "I'd give myself to you if it were possible, and you could keep me," I croaked, brokenly. "But life ain't that easy."

Fisting his hands into his sheets, his body began to tremble. The bed creaking beneath us. "Don't you dare give up that easily, Nina! Who said life wasn't that easy huh? No one. You have to make the effort. You have to make this work with me."

"Jake, my parents won't allow me to stay here… our house is going up for sale."

"You'll live here with me. Simple as," he said firmly. Eyes hard.

I smiled up at him sadly. "You know that's wishful thinking."

"It's not." He shook his head. "Especially after my journey! Nothing and no one will stop us from being together. I've felt things Nee, I've made a lot of decisions. All for you. For us."

"What journey? Jake-." My eyes widened, hands gripping onto his broad shoulders. "Ah…"

His mouth attacked my neck, suckling on the scar he'd given me. The sensations it sent throughout my body, mind-numbing. As though we were connected somehow, and he could do things to me that no one else could.

"Mine, mine, mine," he chanted, before his teeth grazed my skin.

In my love-drugged state, I'd gripped onto his shoulders so tightly that he collapsed on top of me. Every inch of our bodies pressed together. "Jake," I murmured. "J-Jake, what… journey?"

Grinding his hips against me, his plump lips moved lower. Pink tongue darting out to lick along my collarbone. "Love now, talk later."

"But… journey… Jake… I love you," I whimpered, nothing making sense to me anymore. All thoughts flying out of my head except for him. Jacob Black.

"Yes, Nee," he panted, warm hands sliding under my shirt. Fingers trailing over my sensitive skin. "Love me."

My hands shook uncontrollably as they massaged his shoulders. His skin on fire beneath my palms. The musky scent of his skin along with something equally strong invading my nostrils. Causing every part of me to tingle with love and lust. My legs wrapping around his thick, jean-clad thighs automatically.

I hadn't realized that he'd undone my shirt until I started shrugging out of it. My mind and body no longer connected. Whatever he had done to me by sucking on my scar had made me do anything he wanted. Anything he pleased.

But this was wrong… this… "You're so hot," I hissed out, squeezing my eyes shut as his naked torso pressed against my almost— save for my bra— naked one.

Dragging his tongue upwards, he reached my ear, pressing his lips to it. The words that left his mouth didn't make any sense to me, all of them spoken in his native language, Quileute. But the very last thing he whispered was very clear to me. "Kwop Kilawtley."

And then, as I opened my mouth to speak, I was silenced by a kiss.

That was all it took for me to lose myself completely.

"Jacob!," a voice boomed into the room. His bedroom door flying open, the handle falling to the floor. Broken.

Growling against my lips, he snapped his head back to look over his shoulder. "Get out. Now!."

"If I leave, you'll regret it," the man replied. Dressed in nothing but a pair of brown shorts.

"Sam, don't make me order you to leave," he warned, before turning to look at me again. "Come here."

Wrapping his arms around me, he held me against him. Shielding my barely clothed body from Sam's eyes. "J-Jacob, I'm scared."

"Shush, don't be," he said in a hushed voice, soothingly. Running his fingers through my hair.

Sam took a step forward into the room. "Nina, Jacob isn't in his right mind at the moment. He's been out in the wilderness for weeks, he needs time. That's why he hasn't been up to see you. Coming here was a big mistake. Now for your own good, go home."

To my own shock, Jacob completely ignored Sam and leaned in, placing kisses all over my face. However, his magic wasn't working on me anymore. Sam had broken the spell by intruding, and I couldn't believe that I'd let things go this far.

"Jacob." I shoved against his chest. "Jacob stop! Let me go."

He made a disapproving noise in his throat, before smashing his lips against mine. Hungrily.

"I'm sorry I have to do this," Sam said. "But he's not going to listen."

Three more guys appeared at the doorway, making their way into the room and grabbing Jacob. Tearing him away from me. Suddenly, the room was filled with shouts, screams, growls and hisses as Jacob fought against their hold.

An angry faced man turned his stare onto me. "Leave. Now!."

Stumbling off the bed, I grabbed my shirt and held it against myself. Mortified. None of them seemed to care though, and before I had the chance to leave, Sam grabbed my wrist, dragging me out of the room.

Billy was by the door, wide eyed.

"Nina?," he said, before glancing up. "Sam? What's going on?."

Sam opened his mouth to speak but Jacob started shouting curse words at his friends. Creating an awkward silence.

"I'm scared," I repeated for the second time. My mind a jumbled mess.

What was up with Jacob? He was out of control.

"Nina, listen to me," Sam said, taking me by the shoulders and staring into my eyes. "You go home, everything will be okay. Jacob's.. he's been on a sort of journey, and he spent a lot of his time in wolf-form. He only made it back here two nights ago, so he needs to relax. To adjust to things again. He'll explain everything to you soon, when he's feeling better. But I suggest you leave now, the Alpha of the pack is hard to keep tamed."

Jacob was.. Alpha?

Trying to make sense of what he was saying, I nodded. "O-Okay."

"Nina," Billy said, reaching out to give my hand a squeeze. "Don't you worry about him. Things will go back to normal in a couple of days."

Giving him a small smile, I mumbled my thanks to both him and Sam before making a beeline for the front door. Still holding my shirt against my barely clothed torso, I sprinted across the road to my car. Keys already in hand.

What I hadn't realized as I entered the car and started the engine, was that Jacob had escaped his friends hold and was already hopping into the passenger seat. A wild look in his beautiful dark eyes.

I gasped. "Jacob, what-"

"Drive," he ordered.

"But-"

Grasping my thigh, his eyes gazed into mine. "Nee, trust me."

"I-"

"Please," he begged.

And without a second thought, I pressed down on the accelerator.

Wondering whether I was making a mistake… or not.