AN – I do not own the characters in Twilight. They belong to Stephanie Meyers.

Chapter 7

Third person POV

After breakfast, the girls, sitting at the table enjoying muffins and juice, hear feet on the porch and very soon, Sam, Jacob and Quil walk through the door. Sam and Jacob go straight over to their imprints to say good morning to them. Quil stands by the front door and Tia just looks away, slightly embarrassed. After a moment, Emily tells them that the "girl time" has been extended into a shopping trip that morning.

QPOV

Geesh…I never gave any thought to the nerves. My date with Tia is 8 hours away and I feel like I'm going to be sick.

I walk over to Tia to help cover the fact that we were the only ones in the room not kissing passionately. "I'll stop by at 5 pm to pick you up. Is that ok? I was thinking that we could grab dinner and a movie in Forks." I smile.

She smiles her reply. "Ok, looks like Emily and Bella plan to keep me busy between now and then. I'll be ready by 5."

I walk out the door to get ready for my patrol with Sam.

TPOV

We loaded into Emily's car and started on our way to Forks. Emily talked about what kind of clothes I should wear for my date while Bella was considering which movies we should go see. I'm not used to this kind of chatter so I let them continue as I watch the scenery zip by out the window. At one point, I could have sworn that I saw some large brown thing moving in the forest alongside the car but I dismissed it as being just a bit tired from last night's movie fest.

Finally, we make it to Forks and wander into the two clothing stores. Bella had me try on a couple of different outfits but she and Emily decided that they wouldn't do. We'd just have to trek over to Port Angeles. Around 10 am, Bella drug us into a coffee shop for a latte before hitting the road again. While we were waiting for her coffee, I decided to give mom a call.

"Hey mom, how are things?"

"Pretty good, what are you up to today?" she sounds somewhat distracted.

I explain that I'm out shopping with a couple of friends for clothes and that I had a date that afternoon.

"Really, a date?! So what's he like? What do Sam and Uma think of this young man?" she perks up.

"Quil is a great guy. He's kind of quiet, super smart and ….really cute. Sam and Uma are ok with us going out." In the background of our conversation, I hear voices, the sound of glass crashing to the floor and cursing.

"T, I'm going to have to run. I have to get to work soon anyways. Give me a call tomorrow. I want to know how your date goes. Love you." She hangs up.

Confused, I look at my phone. She sounded excited for me one second and then just hung up on me. I sigh as I notice that we had just entered the edge of Port Angeles.

As much as I don't care to admit it, shopping with Bella and Emily was fun. We all giggled over outfits that were obviously over the top for my first date, especially that pair of skin tight leather pants. Emily finally decided that a new pair of jeans with a cute button up shirt with ruffles and a pair of ballet flats was perfect, pretty and demure. It was just about lunch time. Bella suggested a little café around the corner. We found a table and ordered salads. Emily was talking about makeup, a topic that has always eluded me. I started thinking about my strange dreams and what they could possibly mean. I was considering going into the bookstore next door for one of those dream interpretation books, when Bella's face dropped. She had been staring out the window of the café. Distracted, she said that she needed to go to the restroom before we started the trip back to the Res.

BPOV

I walk away from the table trying not to panic. I reach into my purse for my cell. The second I get inside a stall, I hit speed dial for Jake.

"Bells! How's your shopping trip? Buy anything sexy for yourself?" I can just see him wiggling his eyebrows as he asked that last question.

"Jake, I saw him." I whisper.

"What?…wait, who did you see?" his tone changed immediately.

"We're at the café next to Thunder and Whale bookstore. I was staring out the window just a moment ago and I swear Jake, I saw Edward watching us from across the street."

"Bella, don't move out of that restaurant. Stall if you have to. Also, when you leave, make it quick. Emily needs to get her car out into the main traffic as fast as she can. He won't attack if you are surrounded by so many people. I'm calling the pack and we'll be waiting to escort you home as soon as you hit the Port Angeles city limits."

"Jake, I'm scared."

"We're coming for you. Give us about 20 minutes." He hung up. I could tell from his voice that he's shaking and about to phase.

I return to the table with a small plan. Along the way, I make a detour that would take me into Emily's range of vision and just out of Tia's. She glanced my way and I gave her my best "Something is up." look. I sat down at the table to see that our salads had arrived. I picked up my dressing cup to pour it on my salad and then, oops! I pretended that the cup is slippery and managed to sling the dressing over both myself and Emily.

"Dangit! I'm so sorry Emily. No! Don't move Em. You're going to get it all over your pants too. T, could you go get us some napkins to clean this up?" I ask her with a guilty look on my face.

She hops up immediately to go up to the café's counter as I had asked. I lean over to help Emily clean more dressing off of her and her chair. Under my breath, I say "Em, I saw Edward outside in the street watching us just before I went to the bathroom. I called Jake while in there. He's getting the boys to come in phased as close as possible to Port Angeles. We need to wait about 20 minutes before we need to start leaving."

Emily's eyes went wide with understanding. Tia returns with the napkins. We finish up our salads, pay and begin to head out the door. I walk behind Tia to give Emily a glance as we are leaving. We need to stay together and make quick work of getting our car out into traffic so that we minimize our chances of being attacked by Edward, if that is what he has on his mind. The fear and concern are evident on our faces.

JPOV

I immediately head out of my house with a fierce look of rage on my face. My dad caught a glimpse of me as I ran through the living room where he sat watching a game. I didn't have time to explain. My Bella was in danger. I head out into the field behind my house and phase.

SAM! Quil! My mind is screaming as I run as fast I can towards Port Angeles. I don't wait for their reply. Instinctively, I know that they will understand my anger and fear as I replay my conversation with Bella for them.

Damn, we're right behind you, Jake. You know where the forest edge hits Ponder's Creek Rd and the highway to Port Angeles. We'll meet you there.

I can hear the fear in their minds as they are racing to catch up with me. We will stop at nothing to protect our imprints.

TPOV

Lunch was…strange, first the incident with the dressing and then the need to get out of the café and into the car as fast as possible. The ride back to the Res was tense to say the least. Bella was playing with the radio looking for good music and texting a lot. Emily was driving faster than she did on her way in to Port Angeles, very focused on the road in front of her. I guess that they've been away from their men too long. The ball and chain is pulling them home.

I'm staring out the windows as we're headed back. It had begun to sprinkle rain and I could tell that there would be fog later tonight. I pull my IPod out and pop my ear buds, hoping that my music will help me relax amid the strained atmosphere in the car. Suddenly, I notice movement again in the woods not more than 30 ft from our car. Is there really something out there following us? If there is, it must be big because the brush looks like it's being mowed down. Whatever it was, it was just far enough into the forest line that I couldn't get a good at it. Now my nerves are on edge as well.

Pack POV

There's Emily's car. Quil says as soon as he can make it out. The questions run through our pack mind. What the hell is that leech doing back here? What did he want? Was he going to hurt them? What's our plan? We are all snarling and growling quietly as we try to get a handle on the panic running through us all. We run alongside the car as we head back home, keeping our noses to the wind.

Third Person POV

The girls make it back to Emily's and the mood changes among them the second the car comes to a stop. A feeling of relief shows on Bella and Emily's faces but there's still the underlying fear of what had happened. Quil, Sam and Jacob run around to the back of the house to phase and get dressed.

TPOV

We hadn't been in the house even a minute when the door opens. Sam and Jacob walk in going straight to their girls. Strong arms pull them into a quiet embrace. The strong emotions that seem to be pouring out of them are making me self-conscious. I look away from them to see Quil walk in. He has a look of unease in his face as he comes toward me.

"Hey T, how was your trip to Port Angeles?" he asks but I can tell that something is not right. I just can't put a finger on it. He seems distracted as he stands in front of me. He opens his mouth about to say something but instead he looks me in the eyes.

"It was fun." I answer nervously. "Look, are you sure that you want to go out with me tonight? I mean, I would totally understand if you wanted to go out some other time."

"I want to go out with you tonight, T. I have a couple of things that I need to do but I'll be here by 5 like I said earlier. Be thinking about what you want for dinner." He smiles into my eyes.

I feel a bit of today's odd tension slip away. I wonder what it would be like to spend all of my time with him. I mentally shake myself. Like that could ever happen…

After Sam finishes his embrace with Emily, Quil walks over and says something quietly to him. They both walk out the back porch.

QPOV

"Sam, what do I do?" I let him hear the concern in my voice. This date meant a lot to me. I needed some uninterrupted time with Tia but the appearance of Edward was going to make this rough. I can't phase during the date if he should reappear.

He looks out into the forest behind his house lost in thought for just a moment. "Quil, I'm going to ask Paul and Embry to escort you two to keep an eye out. I'm thinking that the leech was after Bella so Tia should be safe on your date."

"Is it always this hard? I could barely control myself when Jake first told us about Edward earlier. I felt like my heart was breaking at the mere thought of losing her." I dropped my head looking at my feet as the emotions bottled up inside of me from early start pouring out. I'm shaking slightly.

"I wish I could tell you that it gets easier but that would be a lie. Any threat to our imprints is hard on us. It is our job to push past the fear to focus on doing our job which is protecting them." He continues to stare out into the woods. "Come on, we need to call a pack meeting."

Third Person POV

Emily and Bella convince Tia that she should get ready for her date at Emily's house, saying that they could help with makeup and hair. Emily calls Uma inviting her down for dinner. They spend the afternoon sharing stories about outings with beaus, making them giggle and sometimes blush with the memories. Tia felt any remaining nerves melt away as Emily brushed out her hair.

"There! I think you are ready." pronounced Bella as she put the last touches on Tia's makeup. She looked into the mirror to see her hair falling in gentle curls around her face, smoky eyes and soft rose colored lips. The grandfather clock in the living room struck five.

It was time.