Originally this was going to be chapter two but I decided to cut it. It didn't flow with the story like I wanted it to. But I still wanted to post it because it was different than all of the other chapters I've written. It's something I enjoyed doing because I wrote half of it from Leah's perspective and the other half from Embry's.

Outtake Number 4:

"Is my life some kind of cruel joke?"

I hate weddings. I hate everything about them. From the horribly hideous dresses to watching the bride and groom publicly make-out at the alter. It was a stupid traditional union that never lasted. Although, it was comical to see the happy couple promise to love each other forever when it reality they would hate each other so much in two years that divorce couldn't seem to come fast enough. In middle school I saw one of my friend's parents go through a bitter divorce. They fought constantly over who got to keep their stupid dog. Never-mind the fact that they had a kid. All they were concerned about was what the dog was going through. People are such selfish assholes.

"Leah, are you coming? We're going to be late."

"So what?" Oh, heaven forbid I show up late to another damn party thrown by Sam and Emily. Seriously, how many engagement parties did one couple need? I was starting to think that they were doing it just for the gifts.

It just seemed like marriage was the "hot topic" this week. Even though Sam and Emily's wedding wasn't for another six months I still felt like that's all we ever talked about in this town. Everyone in La Push needed a freaking life in the worst way.

And as if watching my ex-boyfriend marry my best friend wasn't going to be hard enough, there was another wedding that was happening in three days. Bella Swan and Edward Cullen. A moronic eighteen-year-old human and a hundred-something-year-old vampire who had never been laid. Though I didn't like the vampire I couldn't deny that being alone for so long must have sucked. That had to be very frustrating. The sexual tension alone would have been enough to turn me into a mopey depressed psychopath, too.

"Aw, cheer up. The whole pack is going to be there." Seth could see that my mood was less than happy.

"And that's supposed to make me feel better about this?"

The fact that my pack was going to be there was not a selling point. Paul and Jared pissed me off. I hated hanging out with them. They thought that just because they phased before everyone else that they were so special. "Oh, I'm God's gift to werewolves." I rolled my eyes.

Sam, the only boy I had ever loved - the same boy who had stomped on that love and sliced it into a million little pieces was not someone I wanted to be around either. In fact, it caused me actual physical pain to be in his company. That's probably why I was such a bitch when I was a wolf. I never did the "wah, poor me" crying pain. I did the "fuck the world, throw things at the wall" pain. When I got hurt, even when I was younger, I had a tendency to cuss rather than cry. I could hope that Sam wouldn't be there, but the fact that it was his party made the chances of him being there pretty good.

Jacob wouldn't be there. He was still somewhere in Canada. Probably smoking the legal dope and hunting for moose or some shit like that. His thoughts lately were very depressing, like morbidly so. He tried to hide it when we were wolves with him, but we could overhear how much he wanted the pain to stop. I told him if he was trying to kill himself that he should at least do something fun going out. I didn't expect him to take me seriously, but when I heard him contemplating about cliff-diving at Niagara Falls I realized that he was further gone than we'd all realized. I think if he followed through with it I'd miss him. Though Jacob and I didn't always get along we did have fun together sometimes. Our similar personalities clashed in all the wrong ways.

Hanging out with Seth wasn't so bad. He was annoying, but that's just because he was my brother. Usually when all of the wolves were together I would gravitate towards him...which annoyed the shit out of him. And that only made me want to be by his side more.

Collin and Brady were generally pretty quiet kids. They were new to the whole werewolf thing. I think they were still letting it sink in. I had to wonder how long it was going to be before they let the wolf-blood in them turn them into territorial assholes like the rest of the pack.

And then there were Embry and Quil. Jacob's buddies. Quil was a cocky self-absorbed character. Completely full of himself. Embry was usually much quieter than his friends. Occasionally he would come out of his shell a bit, but most of the time he just stayed out of everyone's way. I didn't really hate him as much as the rest of the mutts. I couldn't hate someone who wanted nothing but harmony among the world.

"How long is this going to take?" I frowned at my brother.

"Oh, come on, it should be fun." Seth smiled. "Emily made lunch. And then afterwards we're doing karaoke. Apparently it was an early wedding gift from one of Sam's old buddies."

"Who the hell buys a karaoke machine for a wedding gift?" What happened to blenders and silverware?

"Why? Why'd you get them?" Seth questioned.

My jaw dropped. He actually thought I had cared enough to buy Sam and Emily a gift?

"Not killing the groom. That's my present." I shut the front door behind me.

"I made them a decorative candle." Seth proudly held up the box that he'd wrapped.

"You are such a girl." I rolled my eyes.

Seth rolled his eyes. "Liking arts and crafts doesn't make me girly."

"Sounds like something a lady-man would say." I teased him.

Of course, I knew he wasn't that girly. I'd overheard his disturbing male thoughts more than once. I'd heard that the average teenage boy thought about banging a chick every fifteen seconds. I never knew how true that was until I joined the pack. I hung around with a bunch of horny little brats.

Seth ignored me like he always did.

"Hey, can I drive? I need to get as much driving in that I can while I've got my permit."

I shrugged. "Sure. I'm not afraid to die." I tossed him the keys. Maybe we would get into a horrible wreck on the way and I would get out of going to the party by being dead. I could imagine the phone call I'd make to Sam from the beyond "Yeah, I won't be attending your stupid party OR your stupid wedding on account of me being dead and all. Suck it, Rin-Tin-Tin." Then I'd hang up on him.

No such luck. Seth got us to Sam and Emily's place safe and sound. When we arrived everyone else was already there.

Emily met us at the door, hugging me and thanking me for a gift that I hadn't gotten her.

"Your mother brought the vase by earlier. It's beautiful." She gushed about how my mom had stopped by to drop off my wedding present to them earlier this morning. "She said the store had to put the final inscription on it this morning." Which would explain why I hadn't brought it over myself. Wow, my mother had thought of everything. She was a devious little manipulator.

Emily and Sam had bought her story so easily. If it had been me I probably would have been more skeptical. I mean, why the hell would I get them a vase for their wedding present?

"Hey, we're all here. The party can officially start." Quil punched Seth in the shoulder playfully.

"I'm glad you guys could make it." Sam shut the door behind me.

I felt like he was boxing me in. I shuffled away from him and into the living room. Collin and Brady were sitting on the couch eating sandwiches and talking to Jared and Paul. Embry walked out of the kitchen with a cookie in his mouth.

"These are really good, Emily."

She frowned at him. "What's that, like your third? You better have saved some for everyone else."

Embry looked at the floor sheepishly.

"You're banned from sweets until I say otherwise." She said it almost as if she were his mother. I couldn't help but laugh. She might as well have said "You're grounded. Go to your room."

The other boys hemmed and hawed at him. "Ha, you got in trouble." Stupid male stuff. I pushed Collin off of the couch and sat down uncomfortably across from Paul.

"Leah, would you like something to eat?" Emily offered.

I had to play the nice little happy cousin so she couldn't see how miserable I really was.

"Oh, no, thank you. Maybe I'll grab a bite later. I ate a big breakfast." I forced a smile out.

Seth muttered under his breath, "Since when is a bagel considered a large breakfast?"

I shot him a warning glance. Shut your fucking mouth. I looked at Emily and could see that she was hurt by my lack of appetite. I frowned. I was going to have to force myself to eat her food poisoned by love.

"Do you have any muffins?"

The half of her face that wasn't paralyzed lit up with a smile. "Blueberry or Banana Nut?"

"Banana nut." I really didn't care, but that one was more fun to say. It was comical. Banana with nuts. That was funny.

She was quick to grab me a muffin. I faked a moan as I bit into it. "Wow, delicious." I took another small bite.

The phone rang and Sam went to get it. I heard him muttering in the kitchen. Emily followed him curiously.

When they were gone I shoved the rest of the muffin in my mouth so I wouldn't have to endure watching them stare at me as I ate it.

"Did you really enjoy the muffin that much?" Brady asked curiously.

I shook my head and laughed. "Of course not. I faked it." I paused. "I'm used to faking things when it comes to Sam..."

"Oh, nice one!" Embry was the only one who barked out a laugh.

After everyone ate we gathered in the living room and I watched everyone chatting happily. I was miserable but I tried my best not to let it show. I even summed up enough strength to sing a little bit of karaoke. Everyone watched me in shock.

Sam stood up after a while and kissed Emily on the top of her head. "I've got an errand to run." He looked at us. "You all feel free to stay here as long as you want. I shouldn't be gone long."

And hopefully I would be gone before he got back. I didn't feel like sticking around here much longer.

Emily stood up to walk him out. They shared a loving embrace. I threw up a little in my mouth. He took her hands in his and squeezed them happily.

It took all the restraint I had not to spit out, Why don't you shove it in my face a little more, you horsefucker?

My hostility softened when I saw the engagement ring on her finger. I sighed, That should have been me. My heart broke into a million pieces - yet again.

"You want me to come with you?" Jared asked.

I got sick and tired of watching Jared act like Sam's little love slave.

Sam shook his head.

"No. You all stay here."

It almost sounded like an order. Now I was curious what Sam was up to. He walked out the door.

Before Emily could sit down the phone rang again.

"Look who's Mr. and Mrs. Popularity today," I muttered quietly.

Emily had to take the call. It was her sister. Claire was apparently not feeling well today. Quil was the first one to leap up. He followed Emily around, desperately asking questions about what was wrong with his little angel. Emily disappeared into the backyard, but Quil followed her.

"Wow, Quil really loves Claire." Collin pointed out.

What was your first clue, jackass? I thought harshly. "He imprinted on her." I looked at him like he was an idiot.

"I know. But I guess…I just never thought about it like that. I mean, I see Sam and Emily and how much they love each other. And then there's this guy - who's always doting on Kim…" He shoved Jared with a smile on his face. "It's just different for Quil."

"Why? Because his girlfriend is massively underage?" I questioned. "It doesn't work like that." As much as I hated imprinting I knew that there was nothing sexual about it. Imprinting was a lot of nonsense about destiny. But seeing it through the guys' eyes I understood that when they imprinted on someone they were basically just telling that person, "Hey, I'm here for you. You want me to be your best friend, that's fine. If you need someone to talk to, call me. I will be whatever you want me to be."

In my opinion I thought imprinting was just a way to sell yourself into slavery. It almost seemed desperate, "Love me! Please love me! I crave your attention!"

"She's right." Paul had trouble agreeing with me. "It doesn't." I had almost forgotten that Paul had joined the IIC: The Idiot's Imprinting Club. I originally wanted to call it IA: Imprinter's Anonymous, but I liked the acronym "Ick" better.

"You know...Jacob's going to kick your ass when he finds out you imprinted on his sister." It had only been three days since Paul imprinted on Rachel. They met on the beach and it was love at first sight. Gag. Right out of a god damn romance flick.

Billy was beyond freaked out. It's a good thing that Jacob wasn't in town because if he was then Paul would be dead. None of us had phased lately so Jake hadn't overheard it in our thoughts...yet.

"How is he going to kick my ass from Canada?" Paul rolled his eyes.

"He'll be back sooner or later." Embry broke his silent streak.

"Yeah, right." Paul laughed. "Face it. Jacob's never coming back. He took the coward's way out."

"He's just sorting through some things. He'll come back," Embry said surely.

We watched the boys bicker back and forth. I hadn't seen Embry this passionate about anything in a while. The last thing that got him riled up was when Jared was giving my brother hell for something. Embry liked to defend those who couldn't defend themselves. Yeah, a regular freaking saint.

"You know what's ironic? He's all pissed off that Bella is abandoning the people she loves for vampires but he's doing the same damn thing. I see how much Rachel and Billy miss him every day. I have no sympathy whatsoever for him."

"Yeah, because sympathy means you have to have a heart. Which...you obviously don't," Embry growled. "You have no idea what he's going through."

"And you do?" Paul questioned. "Because you've obviously been in love so many times before," he snarled sarcastically.

"Just because I don't have someone doesn't mean I don't understand what he's going through."

"Whatever. He's ignoring the real world because he's not man enough to face reality. He's a pussy."

"Not if you look at things from his perspective. I can relate."

"Well, then you're a pussy, too."

I'd heard enough. Paul was really being a dickweed and he was getting on my nerves.

"Blow it out your ass, Paul."

"Excuse me, I don't recall inviting a bitch into this conversation," he snapped.

"You're in it, aren't you?"

"Why don't you run along and help Emily in the kitchen or something?" Paul questioned.

"You're the one who likes to cook fish every night. I think the only reason you cook all the time is because you're trying to cover up the smell of your fishy vagina. Seriously, how long has it been since you cleaned out your delicate little woman area?"

That comment got to him. I saw him start to shake and smiled a little in satisfaction. He was so easy to piss off. I liked a challenge. I missed Jacob. He was much harder to piss off.

Since he was already livid I figured I would throw everything I had at him.

"Tell me something - does Rachel have your ass completely whipped yet?"

Everyone sat in silence waiting for Paul to bail to find some place to phase. I leaned in closer to Paul to show him I was not afraid of him.

Bring. It. On.

Embry's POV:

Paul was shivering in anger. I was actually surprised that he'd been able to hold it together for this long. Leah was good at getting all of us to lose our temper. She could be more vulgar than all of the guys put together. Never in my life had I met a woman who had a mouth dirtier than mine. She was something. I bet that right now Paul was wishing Jacob was in town kicking his ass, because Leah was harsh.

I know that she was hoping for Jacob to go all "Rambo" on Paul for imprinting on his sister, but the truth was that he was too brokenhearted to care at the moment. I had spoken to Jacob yesterday about Paul and Rachel, but he was still so upset over his loss of Bella that he didn't react like I thought he would. I would have placed money down that Jacob would come back to town just to rip Paul to shreds. I would have lost that bet. He still didn't seem to be shifting his path. It sucked. I missed having my friend around. He, Quil, and I used to be best buds. But since Quil imprinted and Jacob ran off I've pretty much got nothing left - except watching my pack argue amongst themselves.

"What did you just say?" Paul hissed at Leah.

I glanced in Leah's direction. What would she say? Would she use Rachel to piss him off? Would she accuse him of being a girly man? Would she make fun of his hair? It did look like crap lately.

"Aw, you're so touchy today with your irrational mood swings. Are you manstrating?" Leah spurted.

I couldn't help but laugh. Even though she had a mouth like that of an Army Sergeant, some of the things that came out of her were downright hilarious.

I hadn't meant for this to turn into an argument. I just figured that since Jake wasn't here to defend himself that someone should speak up for him. I knew it was either going to be me or Seth. Seth was too busy chatting with Collin and Brady, so the chore had fallen into my lap. Curse my caring nature.

"You are without a doubt the saddest case of a pathetic unhappy wench I've ever seen. You're just jealous because you're going to be alone forever," Paul snarled hatefully.

Even though Leah was good at hiding her pain around us I could still see a hint of anguish in her eyes. Paul had hit below the belt on that one. It was wrong to use Leah's past against her...especially since she hadn't gotten over it yet.

I felt compelled to defend her but I didn't know what to say. Whatever I said wasn't going to take back Paul's words. He was such a fucking douchebag sometimes.

Leah didn't change her attitude as she snapped back at Paul, "You're just pissed because you've never been able to please a woman with your miniscule baby cock."

And she was back in the game. Leah never was one to stay out of a fight, especially if it was with Paul. She was the only one of us that would call him on his shit. Sam spent most of his time playing the kind father figure to try and keep Paul calm when he lost his temper. It obviously didn't work, but I sure as hell wasn't going to tell my Alpha that. And since Jacob had taken off Leah was the only one with enough guts to spar with Paul.

"Like you would know." Paul rolled his eyes.

Leah snorted, "I think Rachel's exact words were 'that's it?'"

She and Rachel hung out from time to time. I guess they did the whole "girl-talk" thing with each other. I shuddered trying to get the image of Rachel and Paul boinking out of my head. If there was boric acid around I would be pouring it directly in my brain at the moment.

Paul looked like someone had just castrated him. I laughed my ass off.

"What are you laughing at, Call? You've never even been with a woman," Paul snapped.

I looked up to reply, but the only thing I could see was Paul sitting on the loveseat bare-ass naked. I wanted to fight back but all I could see was Rachel and Paul together.

Arg! Paul's penis, Paul's penis, Paul's penis! Why couldn't I get that damn image out of my head?

"According to Rachel neither have you." Leah quickly came to my rescue. God, she was going to think I was a total pussy if I didn't start fighting my own battles.

I doubted Leah's comment was true. Even though Paul and Rachel had only been together for three days it's like they had been husband and wife for years. I think this is the first time I'd seen Paul away from her since the day he'd imprinted on her on the beach. I had witnessed the idiot's tongue falling out of his mouth like he was in some bad cartoon or something. He salivated so much that I called him Pavlov's freaking dog. He didn't get it. Of course he didn't get it. He had a GPA of negative 2.4. But even if he had gotten it he wouldn't have cared. Because all he saw, all he heard, and all he cared about was Rachel.

I had often wondered how Billy was going to keep the fact that Jake was a werewolf from Rachel when she moved home. It certainly wasn't an easy lie to live. My mom was constantly yelling at me for sneaking out. I'd gotten used to it. I understood the importance of keeping the werewolf thing a secret. It was a lot for people to handle. It was hard on Leah and Seth's dad. Hell, it killed him. I didn't want my mom to suffer a heart attack like Harry Clearwater.

"I just feel bad for her. I mean, for the next fifty years the girl is going to have to pretend you're pleasing her." Leah shrugged. "Oh, well. At least she'll have time to perfect her acting skills."

Again, even if Leah's statement wasn't true it was still hilarious to see Paul huff and puff like a little three-year-old. I think this argument was going to go on for a while. It always amused me to watch Leah verbally kick Paul's ass.

"Not everyone is as loose as you, Leah," Paul snapped.

"Apparently, your mom is because you're here." Leah grinned.

Paul let out a low growl and Jared stood up, intervening. I guess he thought that since Sam wasn't here someone magically voted him the Alpha in the room. I frowned.

This election was rigged! I want a recount! I would have never voted Jared as Alpha.

"Leah, leave Paul alone." Jared frowned.

Of course he would defend Paul. I took a moment to sympathize with Leah. She was the only female among us. I don't think any of the guys took into account how hard it had to be for her to try and keep up with the boys. Not that she wasn't good at it. Hell, half the time she far surpassed a girl's expectations. If anyone was tough enough to be a wolf, it was her.

"Wow, I'm surprised you were able to speak, what with your mouth being so full all the time. I'm touched that you would take the time to remove Sam's dick from your mouth for half a second." Leah didn't even flinch at Jared's warning.

Jared snarled at Leah as well. He and Paul were both trembling now. Without Sam around it was going to be really hard to keep them from phasing and lunging for Leah. But that was one thing about her...she was really good at getting a room to shut up and pay attention. She'd make an awesome school teacher some day…if she wasn't such a foul-mouthed hateful person.

I looked over at Collin and Brady. They didn't look as terrified as I thought they would. They were leaning forward in anticipation.

Seth was the only one brave enough to muster up a response.

"Leah," he softly said to his sister, "maybe it's time for us to go."

"But things were just getting interesting." Leah laughed.

She didn't look afraid. Sometimes I thought she was suicidal. I cringed thinking about a time after Sam had broken up with her that Leah did get all Emo and depressed. If Seth and I hadn't found her when we did…well, I didn't want to think about it.

Finally I broke my silence, "Eh, come on, let's get out of here." I stood up. "You mind giving me a ride home?"

"Sure. Whatever." Leah stood up. She never took her eyes off of Jared and Paul.

"I'm just going to let Emily know we're leaving." Seth walked towards the back door.

I followed Leah out the front to their mother's car.

She leaned against the car and let out a sigh, "Paul is such a fucking douchebag."

I laughed uncontrollably. I had just thought that to myself two minutes ago.

"He's definitely a nuisance," I agreed.

She let out an aggravated grunt.

"I just…I want to break his god damn dick in half."

"You can borrow my tweezers to do it," I offered.

She let out a boisterous laugh. It wasn't that "fake" laugh that she'd been doing for the past year. It was a genuine chuckle of amusement. I had never seen Leah smile. Something about it drew me in.

I glanced up from the ground. I'd always been kind of a shy guy. I formed a habit when I was a kid of averting my eyes from actually making eye-contact with everyone else.

"Hey, thanks for having my back in there." It really was nice of her to come to my defense.

"Sure. It's cool. Any chance to fight with Paul is fun for me." She shrugged and paused for a moment. "Plus, you're the only one in this pack I give a flying butt-fucking fart in space about." There was her trademark naughty language again. I laughed. "You're worth defending."

That was kind, especially for Leah. I looked at her and she smiled at me. We locked eyes. Her smile made me feel really warm. And her eyes were softer than I'd realized. I had never taken the time to stop and look at how pretty she was. I felt something strange jolt my body and my eyes widened with realization.

Jesus, Mother of the Frickin Lord. I was in love with her. Had I just…imprinted? On Leah Clearwater?

Leah Clearwater? The same girl who gave me hell for not knowing who my father was? Leah Clearwater? The woman who swore she would never love again? Leah "I hate the world" Clearwater? But that didn't make any sense. I thought the "imprinting" thing was supposed to be this whole "love at first sight" deal. The first time I'd seen Leah was when she beat me up when I was four and she was seven. I had offered to share some of my pudding with her at a get together at her parent's place. She'd told me that she didn't need someone to take care of her; that she could get her own pudding. She then proceeded to dump the pudding over my head, pushed me down, and ran away.

Even after we were wolves I never gave her a second glance. She was just Leah and I was just Embry. Besides, if we were meant to be together then why had she not imprinted on me? My head was spinning.

"You okay, Embry?" Leah questioned.

Wonderful, I hadn't been very skilled when it came to hiding things. I had to play it cool.

"Fine." Freaking the HELL out!

Thank God Seth came bouncing out the front door. "Ready to go?"

But even as Seth came outside, I couldn't take my eyes off of his sister. I had to wonder if I was drooling like that moron Paul. I smiled stupidly at Leah but she didn't seem fixated on me at all. In fact, she wasn't acting like anything was different. But I knew it was. I felt it. And if I didn't play this just right this was going to work out to be a complete disaster.

Riding home in the car probably wouldn't be a very good idea. I had to talk to someone about this. Someone who knew about what it felt like to imprint. Not Paul...and I wasn't exactly friends with Jared, either. That only left Sam. I glanced at the house. I had to stay here and wait on Sam to get back.

"You know, it's probably still too early for me to head home." I was going to have to lie through my teeth. I hadn't really had practice thinking on my feet like this. "This is the first time I've gotten out of my house in a while." I forced out a laugh. I love you, Leah. I shook my head. Get a goddamn grip, Embry. "Maybe I should take advantage of that."

Leah just shrugged as she tossed her brother the keys.

"Suit yourself."

I breathed a sigh of relief. She had bought it. And Seth was so stoked to be driving that he hadn't noticed my erratic behavior either.

"Later, Embry." Seth couldn't crawl behind the wheel fast enough.

Leah smiled at me one last time.

"Hey, since you're staying get in a few more jabs at Paul for me."

"Will do." I nodded. Just leave before I grovel before you and tell you how much you mean to me!

She climbed in the car and I suddenly felt a twinge of sadness. I really didn't want her to go. I frowned as I watched their car pull away. I wanted to be with Leah. I stood in silence for a moment before heaving out a sigh.

A voice from behind me startled me.

"You decided to stay?" Emily had about given me a heart attack.

I caught my breath. "Yeah. I need to talk to Sam about something."

"Is it something I can help you with?"

It was sweet of her to offer. But what would she know about being in love with Leah Clearwater? Yes. Leah Clearwater. I thought her name in a much softer tone now.

"Any idea when Sam will be back?" I questioned.

"Well, the phone call that Sam took earlier was Billy. He had an update on Jacob. Seems that he phased long enough to let his dad know that he was okay and that he wanted to talk to Sam alone. So I don't know how long it's going to be." She smiled sweetly at me. "Are you sure there's nothing I can do to help you?"

Not unless she was a licensed psychiatrist.

"No. I'll just hang out until he gets back." I wasn't going to tell her what it was about.

I followed her back in the house, where the guys were singing karaoke again. I sat down on the couch and buried my hands in my face as I listened to Collin and Paul belting out some Rolling Stones song.

I was going to have to sit here and endure Paul's really crappy impression of Mick Jagger while waiting to talk to Sam about the fact that I had imprinted on his ex-girlfriend.

Just. My. Luck.

When Sam got back from talking to Jacob I was quick to rush him outside so I could talk to him about what was going on. He laughed as we walked out on to his front porch.

"I know Paul's singing is bad, but was it really worth running out of the house?" Sam asked. Paul was now howling a Motley Crew song. I let Paul's terrible impression of Vince Neil answer Sam's question for me. "What's up, Embry? You're more spastic than usual."

"Something happened and I'm not sure how to handle it." I was jabbering nervously. I was not looking forward to telling him that his ex-girlfriend was the girl of my dreams. Why did I have to fall for her? Why couldn't my life be easier than that?

"What is it? What's wrong?" I had Sam's full attention.

"Um…there's a bug over there. Look at it." I failed miserably at an attempt to distract Sam. My plan had been to distract him long enough for me to get a head start in running for my life and yelling "I love your ex. Sorry!" Why did it have to be Leah Clearwater? Why couldn't it be some other girl? Hell, at this point I would just as soon have imprinted on a dude. Sam was going to kill me. I wasn't ready to die.

"Embry, what is going on?" Sam was starting to get impatient. He wasn't very nice when he was impatient. Crap, you're pissing him off before REALLY pissing him off. Just stop being a pussy and tell him!

I held my breath and then exhaled sharply while saying, "I kind of imprinted…"

"Wow, good for you, kid."

"Here's the part you're going to be kicking my ass for…" I swallowed a knot in my throat. "Please go easy on the face." Let the killing commence in three…two… "It's Leah."

"Leah who?"

"Come on, man. This is a small town. We only know one Leah."

"You don't mean…"

"Yes, your ex-girlfriend." It was hard for me not to yell at him, I know you're not that dense!

"But that's impossible."

"Nothing is impossible." Didn't growing up watching the Disney channel teach him that?

"You've known Leah for years. And you've both been wolves for a significant amount of time. It would have happened way before now…"

"I don't know what to tell you, Sam. I looked at her today. I mean I really looked at her…and she is the only thing I saw."

"It certainly sounds like imprinting. Perhaps we should phase and you could let me see it from your point of view?"

"No!"

I didn't want the entire pack to know about this. I didn't want Leah to find out about it. Sam was right about one thing: We had known each other for years. And one thing I knew about her is that when it came to relationships…you sure as hell better have a good plan in store or else she would punch you and run away.

"Is there any way to keep this between the two of us? I want to work my feelings out."

Sam stifled a laugh. What a dick. He cleared his throat and furrowed his brow.

"I think maybe you're just experiencing a crush. I doubt it's the real thing." His tone had a hint of mockery. Like it was impossible for someone like me to end up with someone like Leah?

"That was your relationship with Leah. Not mine."

Fuck. Had I really just said that out loud? He was going to pummel me. I saw a look of rage in his eyes and I took a step back. Sam grabbed me by the collar of my shirt and lifted me a couple of inches off of the ground.

Great job, Embry. Now you're going to die before you get the chance to romance Leah. I braced for the hit. To my surprise he let me go and shoved me backwards.

"Damn it. I can't hit you."

"Why not?" That was one of the stupidest things I had ever asked. I was basically inviting him to beat the shit out of me.

"If you two were truly meant to be together and Leah is meant to one day imprint on you that would make you her imprintee, and the law says you can't ever hurt a werewolf's imprintee."

I had never been so happy for a law's existence. I grinned when I realized that I could use that against him in the future. I could be the biggest douche in the world to him and he couldn't do a damn thing about it.

"Wipe that smug grin off of your face. People break laws all of the time." Sam slapped me. I was a bit surprised when his palm made contact with my face.

"Did you just bitch slap me?" Made sense. He could be the biggest bitch in the world.

"Imprint or not…Leah is my ex-girlfriend." He grunted in frustration. "You're lucky I like you, Call."

"Look, I'm sorry. I couldn't control…"

He held his hand up and shook his head in understanding. He wasn't in the mood to hear the 'I lost control and imprinted' speech. He was the king of that speech.

"Are you certain that you imprinted?"

"Considering that I've felt the strength of imprinting through your thoughts, Jared's non-censored sexual relationship with Kim in his mind, Quil's blabbing about Claire's adorable unsuccessful attempts to put on make-up, and Paul's pussy-whipped obsessive Rachel-centric mind I'm pretty sure that I know what imprinting feels like."

"If it's true then you have to tell her."

"To hell with that. I don't want her to kick me in the nads!"

"Embry, we can't censor our thoughts."

"Then I'll stop phasing."

"Don't you think you're overreacting?"

"Do you think you could order me to not be in love with her?" At least until I figured this out.

"Believe me, I would if I could," he muttered. "I'm not thrilled about this."

"Yeah, heaven forbid Leah wind up with a guy who can make her happy." I rolled my eyes. Sam decked me in the stomach, forcing me to double over and catch my breath. I exhaled a gust of air and then stood back up. I had deserved that one. I really wished Jacob was here. I did not want to be talking about this with Sam. "You broke the law." I heaved out a cough.

"It's a misdemeanor." He shrugged. This banter was getting us nowhere. It was time to act like an adult.

"I…I love her." I flinched, afraid that he would punch me again. He didn't, so I continued, "What should I do, Sam?"

He stood in silence for a couple of minutes. His eyes were distant as he let his thoughts run wild.

"I wish I could tell you what to do." He finally broke the silence. "But I can't. When it comes to matters of the heart you have to decide for yourself." He paused and a weak grin washed across his face. "Plus, do you really think that I'm the best guy to ask for advice when it comes to Leah Clearwater? She hates my guts."

"Nah, man. Her hatred for you has…lessened." I was a terrible liar.

"She called me a ball-sucking jizz-licker earlier today."

"Yeah, but she said it with love." I had a nervous grin on my face. Sam rolled his eyes at my attempt to patronize him. Something suddenly occurred to me. If she ever saw this conversation in our thoughts she was going to throw a fit. "Is there anyway to delete or erase this conversation?" I begged hopefully.

"She'll be pissed if she ever sees the replay." Sam knew my concerns. He sighed, "If you're not ready to tell her I suppose I could teach you to channel your thoughts about her when you're running as a wolf."

"We can do that?"

"It's not easy. And don't make the mistake of assuming it's the same thing as suppressing thoughts. It is only a way to distract yourself in thought. It might buy you a few weeks."

"So this…distracting thing will keep her off of my mind?"

"More or less."

"When do we get started?"

This form of super A.D.D was my only shot at keeping Leah in the dark about my feelings for her. I needed some time to figure out what I wanted to say to her. I wanted to do this right. It was an imprinter's duty to assure the happiness of his imprintee. How in the world was I going to bring happiness to the most miserable angry she-wolf alive? I was screwed. I sighed. I had my work cut out for me. I saw an image of Leah in my head and smiled.

She's worth it. She was. She really was. Sam saw the smile on my face and a sneer formed on his. He ground his teeth and then let out a sigh. He'd figured out that it was the real thing. Leah was who I was meant to be with. And even though he had Emily…that hurt him. I couldn't believe that he duped me into feeling sorry for him.

"I'm sorry," I said sincerely.

What he said next astonished me.

"I could have settled for her, but we wouldn't have been happy. I couldn't stand the thought of knowing she was meant for someone else." He got lost in thought for a moment. "But I'm glad that it's you, Embry. I know that you'll love her more than I ever could."

I was so stunned that I couldn't speak. I opened my mouth without thinking and didn't filter my thoughts at all.

"Dude, you're a hell of a lot more mature than I ever gave you credit for."

The front door busted open and Jared came running into our conversation.

"Embry, Sam…you guys gotta see this! Brady is going to belt out Whitney Houston!"

Sam and I glanced at one another. We couldn't miss this. This whole Jerry Springer love triangle would have to wait. A teenage werewolf rendition of 'I will always love you' was something that we had to see. As we raced into the living room I thought about the lyrics in the song. It made me realize that Leah wasn't the only one who had suffered a broken heart at the end of her relationship with Sam. Sam had once believed he was in love, but when he realized that he wasn't he had to set Leah free so she could find her true love. And as that person, I was thankful.

Great. Now I was going to tear up like a pussy. So much for mocking Brady. They were going to call me a bitch and ask me if I was taking hormones. But I didn't care. I thought of Leah and I couldn't help but smile.