Author's Note: Thank you guys so much for the encouraging reviews! They make me smile so much it hurts (seriously. but I do love them!). :3 Sorry this chapter is kinda short, I'm about to leave to go see a friend in the hospital. :( She's okay, so don't worry too much! I'll try to have another chapter out by tonight. I really have nothing else to do,lol. I'm not sure if I can get another one out tomorrow because I have to go to work but I'll do my best! Thank you again, I'm truly grateful! 3

Chapter 3

"Why do you look so angry?" Jake asked. Was that a small bit of fear in his eyes? The big bad Jake was scared of little ol' me? Then again I am pretty scary when I'm angry. I took a deep breath to calm myself down and tried not to look at him like he was stupid. It wasn't his fault he fell for Paul's idiocy.

"Jake, I'm not on my period. Paul just said that because he was mad at me," I sighed, running a hand through my hair.

"Oh."

A slight blush crept across his face and he smiled nervously. Once I had calmed down enough to see straight I noticed he was wearing only a pair of cut off jeans and tennis shoes. "Dude why are you naked?" I asked, twitching a little. Oh my mother. Letting some half naked guy into my room. With me. Alone.

Jake looked down at himself and grinned. "Like what you see?" I rolled my eyes. He has been hanging around Paul way too much. He seemed to have read my mind and chuckled, patting me on the head. "I was out running," he finally answered. I cocked an eyebrow at him and purposefully looked him up and down.

"What? Gotta keep up the physique," he said while flexing his arms. Holy cheese those things were huge. Not quite as big and creepy as those body builder guys but pretty dang ripped all the same. Paul's gang must secretly be a Steroids Anonymous group. They were all huge and ripped and incredibly strong. As I was driving down the highway to Port Angeles one day, I had seen them all emerge from the forest, panting and sweaty and clapping each other on the back with huge smiles on their faces. Maybe they actually participated in some kind of homoerotic workout session deep in the woods where they wouldn't be seen. An image of Paul and Jake flashed through my head and I shook it hard, trying to get rid of it. Blasphemy!

"What are you thinking about?" Jake asked. His expression was a mix of concern and is-this-woman-crazy-or-what.

"Um, nothing at all," I smiled and changed the subject. "Maybe you should lay off the juice a little, eh? You know there was a guy I saw on TV whose arms exploded because they got so big," I joked, poking him in his beefy chest. He laughed and grabbed my hand, stopping suddenly and staring at it. He ran a rough finger over my knuckles and sighed.

"What?" I said, snatching my hand away. His face looked gentle and he said, "Your skin is really soft."

I blushed. "Um…thanks? I guess…"

He suddenly got an evil grin on his face. I was a little worried but not too much, considering my mom was in the house still and would (hopefully) save me if he tried anything. He held out his arms and the smile got even bigger. "You know," he said, his voice getting slightly deeper, "you look like you still need a hug." I shook my head and ignored the impulse to fling myself into his waiting arms. No, Ina, I told myself, no he is not buff, no he is not the least bit cute, and no his voice is not deep and sexy!

"Are you sure? You look a little conflicted there," he smiled, holding his arms out to me. I glared at him but stopped, confused. However arrogant his smile was, his eyes were seemingly bursting with hope. It was like if I hugged him and then he died he would not mind a bit. I felt my body shaking a little, like it wanted to go to him. I gulped and shook my head again, trying (and probably failing) to look nonchalant as I looked anywhere but at him. My body seemed to have a mind of its own as I leaned toward him slightly, but I grunted and tried to pull back against whatever force it was pushing me to him. What the crap? I had just met this guy the night before and wanted nothing to do with him. So why was my body acting this way? I cleared my throat and looked at the shaggy blue carpet.

"And you, sir, look like you need to get out of my room," I struggled to say with some difficulty. I saw him shake his head in my peripheral vision. I felt warm hands on my shoulders and I wanted to both smack them away and get closer to him at the same time. Curse whatever it was that made me want him!

"Come on," he said, pulling gently. "After what happened last night a hug shouldn't be a big deal right? Please?" His voice got even deeper and huskier. What happened last night? I couldn't remember. My brain was in a fog and I couldn't really think straight. I weakly attempted to pull away from him but my body was having none of it, and suddenly I was crushed against his chest, warm arms circling around my shoulders. He sighed and buried his face in my hair. I felt comforted, at peace with the world as I breathed in his woodsy scent and snuggled my face into his shoulder. His skin was burning but I didn't have enough sense in me to ask if he was sick. Oh well, it didn't really matter if he was sick, just like it didn't matter that he had kissed me last night.

Wait.

I remembered. He had kissed me. With his tongue.

I struggled to get out of his arms but he was holding me tightly, too tight for me to move my arms enough to beat him down. "Jacob, get off!" I grunted.

"Why?" he groaned.

"Do I have to have a reason?" I asked, fear quickly rising inside of me. I struggled some more and felt tears pricking at the corners of my eyes. I had to do something, and quick. I was not about to cry in front of this douche bag. I thought about yelling for my mother but she would probably just smile and lock the door to give us "privacy." There goes that idea. So I just did what any girl would in that situation and bit down on his shoulder, hard. He jumped a little in surprise and yanked me away, even though my teeth were still embedded in his skin, which caused him to bleed just a little. He stared at me in wonder, and it was not fear I saw in his eyes but something entirely different.

For the second time that day my door burst open, and this time it actually did come off its hinges.

"Jathan!" I screamed, leaping off the bed and running to him, the blasted tears finally escaping. He moved me behind him and glared at Jacob, who was looking between me and Jathan in confusion. Jathan was shaking in anger and he pointed an angry finger in Jacob's direction (a family trait, I might add).

"What were you doing to my baby sister?" he yelled. Jacob's mouth opened in disbelief and he immediately leaped off the bed. He had a good 5 inches or so on my brother, but my brother had aura of an angry grizzly bear, and the angry face to match it. I silently cheered him on.

"I repeat, what. Were. You. Doing," Jathan fumed.

"I was just trying to cheer her up!" Jacob stammered, holding his hands up in defense in front of him. Jathan glared and crossed his arms. "I don't believe my sister has low enough morals to hire a Chip 'n Dale's dancer to cheer herself up. My mother, maybe, but definitely not Ina."

"But I'm not!" Jacob protested.

"I don't care I want you out of my house, and don't ever come back."

"But she's my imp—"

"OUT!" Jathan roared, pointing to the door. Jacob's shoulders slumped in defeat, and he finally left. My mom looked down the hallway at us and back at the slamming door, question on her face. Jathan glared at the door for a few moments longer before turning to me to wipe the tears off of my face. I sniffled and looked down, embarrassed.

"Hey there, sis, it's okay. I'm here," he soothed, pulling me into a hug. I loved my big brother to no end at that moment. My mom chose to finally come check on me and ask what happened. I swear I could feel the anger radiating off of him, and saw my mom frown and walk out of the room. He led me over to my bed to sit down and I used my blanket to wipe my nose.

"Thanks Jaynini," I sniffled, using my childhood nickname for him.

He smiled at patted my back. "You want to tell me what's going on?"

I told him about work and Paul being annoying, what happened in the bathroom, the car ride home, Mom being weird, and then Paul's big evil plan. I didn't tell him about the kiss or the weird feelings I had when Jacob wanted to hug me, I think he was already angry enough. He frowned when I finished and looked thoughtful.

"You said his name was Jacob Black?"

I nodded.

"I think he works for Sam Uley. I could go talk to Sam if you want, let him know what's been going on. Paul works for him too, and they're pretty tight so I'm sure he could make them leave you alone."

I shook my head in disagreement. "No it's fine. I'll deal with it myself if they try anything again."

He frowned again but nodded. "Okay I'll leave it up to you then. You're smart, I trust you." He ran a hand through his shaggy black hair, and I noticed dark circles hanging under his eyes. "Have you been doing okay, Jay? You look like death."

"Um, thanks?" he laughed. "Yeah I'm okay. I got another job, so I haven't been getting that much sleep."

"Jay!" I chided, gently smacking his arm. He smiled, knowing I couldn't hurt him if I tried. Jathan was twenty one years old, and had moved out just last year to rent an apartment with his best friend. He got tired of Mom asking him when he was going to get married and settle down, he knew that wasn't going to happen anytime soon. He worked hard to pay off his college debts so that he could reach his dream of becoming a veterinarian, and I was proud of all that he had accomplished. Super smart with unbreakable will power and a heart of gold, I guess you could say that he was my role model. I definitely didn't want to be 40 and working at the local supermarket like Mom. I loved my Mom, but Jathan and I had always been extremely close. Some (meaning Paul) would say that I had a brother complex, but I didn't think I was that weird.

"I've missed you, Jaynini," I said finally, breaking the silence. His tired face cracked into a grin and he pulled me into a headlock, messing up my hair with his knuckles. We both jumped as a tortured howl rang through the air from somewhere behind our house. "Wolves?" Jay questioned, getting up to peek out of the blinds hanging on the window. I shrugged. "I hear them from time to time but never that close." His brow furrowed and I could imagine the gears turning in that giant noggin of his.

"Not that I'm not happy their numbers are on the rise again," he said, standing up, "but it's not good that they're living so close to the human population." I shrugged again. As long as they didn't hurt anyone they didn't bother me. Jay and I listened quietly as more howls broke through the trees.

That night as I was getting ready for bed a giant shadow flashed across my window. I quickly peeked outside but nothing except dirt and grass was out there. I turned off the light and climbed into bed, snuggling down under the covers. I looked up and the shadow was there again. My eyes widened at the shape of a giant, canine-like head sniffing the air at my window, and I shook my head to clear the image from my eyes but it was still there. It finally went away around two in the morning, the shape of a long body and a swaying tail moving past before it disappeared completely. I lay awake in bed for the rest of the night, staring at my window.