The day had been busy, and Noelle was ready for it to end with a beer in her hand and a baseball game. Crusty was passing out on his scratching tower and snoring while Noelle scurried around handling what she needed to. She had ordered a pizza and was finally able to sit down when the doorbell rang. She felt the weight on her shoulders she had just removed suddenly come back up. Stomach rumbling before she heard the loud knocking.

Jacob had waited all day for this moment. Though Aileen was no longer here after doing her laundry, and it was merely his imprint in her home. He knew her car was an easy fix; he was sure he'd be in and out in less than an hour, but it was a chance to be near her.

The entire morning, he had watched her type on her laptop, drink coffee like a maniac and finish some sort of house inspection on a video call. He couldn't help but stare at how she stuck her tongue out of her mouth when concentrating, a cute little expression with furrowed brows. Her groaning at some point and banging her head against her back porch table and he was fighting himself from heading towards her and making sure she didn't hurt herself. Yet, he couldn't find the words to speak to her.

Now he found himself standing outside her door, ringing her doorbell until he heard her locks turn.

Noelle opened the door slowly, peeking off the edge of the door until her eyes traced Jacob from the ground up.

"Jacob! I forgot you were stopping by. "Noelle's heart began to pound harder once she saw him standing there and she was sure she looked insane. The man was over a foot taller than her and looked like some sort of God. She didn't know how to focus when he was here earlier, fumbling dates about an auction because she was wondering how much he could lift. Wondering if his body was covered in muscles, even some x rated thoughts about what noises she could try to get him to make if she was able to ger her way.

Jacob was lost for words when she swung the door open. She wore the smallest of shorts that showed off thick and curvy thighs. Black painted toes scrunching against the wooden floors as she stood before him.

"I could come back." Jacob didn't know if he should go home, but his wolf was whimpering and wanting to touch her legs. To hoist her up in his arms and have his way with her. He couldn't move, it was like a daze was cast over him to lose focus. When his mind already knew that forever was this one girl. That the formalities should be thrown out the window. The wolf wanted to claim and own, and he felt like some sort of teenage boy pining over a girl.

"No, come on in! I closed the garage door from outside, but you can do it from inside. "

Noelle was nervous, realizing she was practically naked wearing small pj shorts and an oversized dodger t-shirt. Her hair was messy, and she thanked the heavens for letting her shower before he showed up. Her heart was beating fast that she could hear it echo in her ears. The guy made her nervous to mess up or look stupid. That alone made her angry because she swore, she'd stop caring what other people felt. And she did well for the last few years until now.

Jacob walked in and closed the door behind him, watching Noelle walk into her living room to lean against the couch.

"What were you watching? "he asked curiously.

Noelle leaned over the couch to reach for her cup of red wine. She needed it more than anything right now to not lose her shit. He stood close to her, as if he didn't feel how nervous she was fidgeting.

Heat radiated off the man and she wanted to throw herself into it.

"Baseball. "

Jacob could just groan at the idea of this being an everyday thing. Her in comfy clothes, pizza, and the game on. He watched as she chugged the glass and looked over at him.

"You hungry?"

Noelle didn't know where these feelings were coming from. With Mike it was a friendly thing that didn't make her feel ... obligated? She didn't know how it made her feel, but she did worry that a man as big as Jacob would be hungry. And there was a weird want to make sure he didn't starve. There was a weird need for her to care for him.

"I ate earlier. "He explained but the sudden grumble from his stomach made her giggle and raise an eyebrow at him.

"I'll grab an extra plate. Make yourself at home. "

Noelle disappeared into the kitchen while Jacob was left alone in her living room. He saw Crusty watching him, licking his paw, and never breaking eye contact. Aileen had said it was a weird cat, casually meowing and lurking around the home during the night. But oddly possessive of Noelle who didn't notice that the cat had claimed her to be its mother.

"Why haven't you sat down?"

Jacob didn't notice he was still standing in the middle of the room. Taking in the cozy living room with the giant TV and plants. She urged him towards the end and sat down next to him. Crusty took notice and leaped from his tower to sit by Noelles head never once moving his eyes off Jacob.

Noelle could already tell Crusty started acting out. His nails started pawning at the pillow and she heard the shuffling. Though she ignored him hoping he didn't start swatting at Jacob like he had done at Mike. It took a good month for the deep scratch on Mike's face to fully heal.

"don't be shy now. "She said. Propping open the pizza boxes and handing him two water bottles.

"Shy? I'm scared the cat's going to attack me. "he explained setting the bottles of water on the coffee table.

Crusty hissed and Noelle shushed him by Leaning back to tap her head to his. Crusty immediately began to lick her forehead while she laughed and licked his nose back.

"don't be scared. He's just not used to people. He was wild for a while. "

Noelle allowed Crusty to rub his cheek against hers. Jacob watched as she slowly and softly did it back. He could only assume this is why the cat was protective of her, she was mimicking its love language right back. And he found it insanely cute how she babied voice the spoiled cat.

"You like cats only?" Jacob asked while taking a bite of his pizza while adverting his eyes from her and to the game. Noelle had stopped playing with Crusty and began to eat, tucking her legs underneath her. She watched as Jacob hand engulfed the entire slice of pizza like it was a miniature toy. Noelle liked how he sat too, Wide legged and leaned back. Casual and sexy and super manly, she was feeling insanely into it.

"No, I like dogs too. "

As stereotypical as it was, he had hoped she did like dogs. He himself was somewhat like that. The wolf in him was pretty dog-like, if it wasn't the whole mythical essence of his life.

She steered her gaze away from his body and watched as another inning ended.

"You don't have a dog? "Jacob stated that more, and she knew it meant this debate was back in her life. She never had any cats growing up. Mainly dogs and big dogs at that. Now her parents were owners of tiny dogs and a few cats. It took aging to get them to get the smaller breeds, but Noelle had a list of puppies she wanted.

"It's harder to move around with a dog. Cats are easier and I promised myself once I got settled that I'll get myself a puppy. But… life has a way of getting in the way of some things."

And that was on her vision board for the year. A cute little puppy, but life just was easier without one.

Jacob wondered how she even got here. He knew Aileen was left field and Embry only met her by heading to a dentist's appointment where she had started working only a few weeks before.

"Why did you move here?" he asked curiously.

Noelle thought about it for a moment. Wondering how to even say there wasn't even a real reason besides her need to keep her life moving. The last time she allowed her life to be stagnant she ended up getting her heart broken and letting all her inner magic die. A magic she was so sure she'd ever find again. So, day by day she tried and hoped that a spark would ignite that old passion she'd have.

"I lived in Seattle with my friends, and Aileen moved here because of her work. And we came down to visit and .. idk. I liked it a lot. "

She couldn't say that she was under the influence of an old herbal friend and somehow the trees in the neighborhood spoke to her. But she liked the small town, and she enjoyed how quiet it seemed.

"You don't know?" he teased. Wiping his mouth from pizza sauce and giving her one giant smile.

Noelle loved his smile, loved how he even had canine looking teeth. Big white teeth so perfectly aligned she was jealous. They had to be veneers or at least a very good orthodontist.

"I had gotten high with Matt, and we came across this open house flyer for this neighborhood, and I just bought it on a whim. I loved Seattle but it didn't feel like it fulfilled me like it did when I was younger. The change of pace was too much so I toned it down. "

Noelle didn't know If he'd be turned off by the smoking. But she had gotten rid of that shameful attitude. Even though she did feel that small bubble of insecurity creeps its way back.

"you've been here before? "

Jacob was more interested in her. Seeing why she somehow made it to Forks after living on the west coast her whole life. He couldn't see how he managed to get her in his life.

"Not forks, a small town near Seattle. Near Tacoma. "

Jacob had thought for a while, wondering if there was a town, they both possibly been in together at some point. Where they could've crossed paths and maybe have saved him the last couple of years from dating all the other girls.

"Really? "he asked trying to get more from the girl who didn't seem to mind his questioning.

"I played traveling softball and we got to play at some park that was hosting a tournament. I love Washington! "She explained. Giant grin on her face.

"I'm sure there are better parts in this world. Especially fewer cold parts of the world." He explained. Jacob wished he could travel the world. Live somewhere else and experience different parts of the world.

Noelle shook her head and understood where he disassociated to. She was once there as well, and it took her a full mental breakdown to escape her town.

"I grew up with over 100 degrees of hot sunny weather, I rarely saw the cold and I don't think the reader in me ever would have wanted to not experience Washington. "She explained. Jacob watched as she sat in front of him, legs crossed on the couch and staring straight at him. Messing damp hair, clean face, and soft smile on her face.

"so you move here completely?" he asked bewildered by the leap of fate.

Noelle took a deep breath and finally realized that her decision to move far away from home was much more insane. She was always a drive away from home, never 3 hrs. away and now she needed to take a plane to at least make it home within a day. She hated that her parents weren't so close on those rough days, but she liked having them vacation at her own home.

"Yupp, me and my own ambition. " she giggled .He could see that the wine was growing more apparent in her demeanor. She looked less tense, more expressive with her hands.

"how old are you?" he asked

"27, you? "

"31."

She scrunched her face disgusted, and Jacob laughed and poked her nose.

"what's wrong with that?" he questioned.

"you're old." Noelle cracked up when he pushed her shoulder playfully.

"Have you always lived in La Push?" she asked.

Crusty had now crawled over and laid himself between the small gap between Jacob and Noelle. Noelle knew it was his way of making sure her attention stayed on him. His soft meows were only letting her know he wanted belly scratches.

"Yeah, born and raised."

"Aileen told me there's a great hiking trail by the beach. "

Jacob knew which one she was talking about immediately. It was hard to do for an inexperienced hiker but worth it.

"Yeah, there is. By first beach, you want to go. "He asked hopefully that she'd say yes and make it easier on him to find ways to hang out with her.

"I do, no one ever wants to go and Aileen is knocked up until next year. "

"ill take you. I've done it countless times. "Jacob wasn't lying, he ran up there to the cliff to see the sunset thousands of times. Many times, he see kids and couples making out and even some proposals. The view was beautiful, and he didn't blame any tourist for making that part a monumental part of their relationship. Hell, maybe it would be one for him and Noelle. From looking at her plump wine-stained lips, he would want nothing else.

"You gloating?" she teased busting him out of his daydream.

"I mean, look at me?" he motioned to his body with his hands and watched Noelles eyes look at him up and down. Soft blush creeping into her cheeks as he swore, he was able to smell something much more seductive suddenly appear. A small hint that his wolf perked at the slightest change.

Noelle couldn't stop her reaction to imagining herself on top of him.

"How tall are you?" she asked.

Jacob knew, a question he was asked too many times by too many girls. And it was always a key indicator that girls were physically into him. And from the smell of her sudden arousal and the question Jacob knew physically, she was into him. And he couldn't deny that her scent was making his mouth water and the wolf whimper for a taste. And he hated thinking of it that way when she was talking to him and looked so innocent.

"You want to guess?" he asked.

"6 foot 4 ?" she asked

"Not even close, 6 foot 7."

Noelle nodded and picked up crusty to coddle him in her arms. She held him like a baby and kissed his nose.

"you're so tall." She explained.

Jacob knew that was a fact, he was taller than the guys and he was lucky he had stopped growing. He was hitting the roof off most places.

"Very. Is this your natural hair color? "

Jacob reached over to grab a damp green hair before a furry little paw swatted at his hand.

"Crusty…. Be nice." Noelle warned, reaching for his paw and removing it away from Jacob's hand.

"no sadly, just a look. You don't like? "

Jacob couldn't deny that something about her look attracted him more. He never dated girls who looked like her. Colored hair, glasses, and dark eye makeup.

"I love it." He explained, truly meaning it. He found her intoxicating and even without the imprint he would find her beautiful with the dimples and cute smile.

"Are you one of those weirdos that sexualize girls like me?" she asked suddenly. Wondering if Jacob was like the other guys she met online or at the gym that flirted with her merely for her looks. She knew she wasn't a girl door next door nor was she some sort of saint sister. She rebelled against everything she grew up with and found a happy medium when it came to her looks. Despite her father hating the hair dyes and dark makeup, her mother loved the never-ending changes as long as no tattoos and piercings touched her body.

"Girls like you?" Jacob was curious but also understood. The amount of filth Collin and Brady shared on the group chat was enough for him to understand what she meant. She was short and curvy, the pale skin with he dark makeup tended to attract a certain group of guys.

"I've seen enough porn to see that I either fit in a weird discord server or I'm being slut shamed off reddit. "

Jacob was caught off guard and had to laugh while reassuring her it was not what he meant.

"no no. I love your hair and you look beautiful without and with makeup."

Noelles skin instantly turned red and she fought every urge to not tell him she loved him because hearing that she was beautiful was like some sort wish fulfillment. Like he didn't seem like a guy buying her a shot and trying to sleep with her. It felt incredibly nice to hear that after the last few weeks of feeling like shit.

"Thank you." Jacob could see the way her eyes softened that she felt some way about what he said. A sincere closed mouth smile with that dimple appearing made him see it was much more emotional behind what she thanked him for.

"You bought a whole house on your own ?" he asked astonished.

Noelle put Crusty down as he meowed and ran off to his porch.

"yeah and we fixed it up and I hope to sell her once I get a new property." she explained. She loved this home but she was already outgrowing it personally.

"Property? You flip houses?" he asked curiously.

"Kinda, so I was able to buy a duplex house back in Arizona with my savings. And I paid that off and I started just buying properties and renting them out. And it kind of became my job. "

"that's a lot of savings…" he explained.

Noelle laughed bitterly because it was hell how she came up with the first round of savings money.

"I was dating this guy and he lived in a different city, and I saved a shit ton of money working 2 jobs to move to the city with him."

It pained him to see her reach a furrowed expression and that she refused to look at him. Her breath got shallow and Noelle could feel the lump in her throat. But she couldn't cry in front of Jacob.

"Here in Washington?" he asked.

Noelle shook her head.

"I was 18 when we met, we broke up when I was 22. He lived in San Diego, and I lived in Arizona. I never made it to that town. "

Jacob could tell it was still affecting her at some sort. And it pained him to think she was hurting for a deadbeat.

"kinda glad you didn't. "

Noelle's eyes finally looked up at Jacob and she swore this guy was written out of a book. Something about his deep voice saying these things made her feel better. Maybe it was the attention he gave her or maybe it was heart finally healing from the shit show her ex threw on her.

"me too. " Noelle knew that after the breakup that it was meant to happen. That she'd find peace with him not being in her life anymore. And as the years went by she did see that she did love him but purely for the experience that he had given her. The experience of first love that had no bounds to anything.

"You like your job. "he asked wanting to get her out of a sad mood. And she happy obliged

Noelle only nodded because she couldn't deny it. She loved what she did, despite the stressor of making more and having reliable tenants.

"Do you like yours?" she asked him '

"I love mine. Cars are just amazing. "

Jacob went on a rant about it all. And Noelle felt like she saw a boyish side of Jacob who seemed excited to talk about cars and his friends. He was passionate about every little thing and she couldn't help but really be mesmerized by him.

"i like the way it smells too. "

"Car oil? Gas? "He asked skeptically. Unsure if he heard correctly.

She adjusted herself on the couch to stretch out her legs.

"It reminds me of my dad. I don't know, it makes me feel safe. "

She had a better relationship with her dad now that she was older. But she does remember him by the smell of car fumes and gasoline. It was a comforting smell for her.

"I like that you smell like coconut and cinnamon. "Jacob blurted out the words not knowing what else to say besides thank you.

"Thank you?"

Jacob felt stupid and shook his head. He had hoped it didn't weird her out since her face was also in shock and not really showing him some sort of fondness to his comment.

"I'm sorry. "

"no, its okay." Noelle bit her tongue hoping she didn't look weird or uncomfortable. Practically dancing in front of him because she was thanking the universe for this sudden flow of confidence. That and the fact that she was really enjoying talking to Jacob. As weird as he seemed at first he was starting to really relax in front of her.

"I like the way you smell to. "

Jacob was astonished that she didn't call him a weirdo. A sigh or relief when he heard the words leave her mouth along with a giggle. He had swore he needed a new bottle of cologne after how much he put on today. Even Billy had said something about the house smelling like a cologne ad.

"thanks, I didn't want to smell like sweat."

Jacob and Noelle sat and talked for an hour. Watching the rest of the game and he soon realized she knew the team well.

"It's cool that you know the game but you're a dodger fan?"

Noelle was disgusted with Jacob and shook her head.

"I mean, at least they win …"

"If cheating counts."

Noelle shook her head before standing up after hearing crusty mowes. She threw the pillow at Jacob who confidently catched it and set it down behind him.

"I should finish ur car."

Noelle had forgotten completely

"Oh yeah , I'll finish cleaning up here."

Noelle wasn't clean by all means. She wasn't a neat freak despite how organized her home was, but she was a control freak . And she could control how clean things were and that was the best therapy so far.

So Noelle cleaned and right now felt like a great time to clean cause she couldn't help but think back at all the dumb jokes she made or how crazy she probably looked eating. And even when she quintet her eyes after washing the lash dish she couldn't get the image of her softly burping out of her head. Why did she do that you ask? Because for a split second she got comfortable and forgot he was there . Luckily she didn't fart like she would if she was really alone.

Time went by and Noelle was already finishing the last load of laundry when Jacob popped back in after having a conversation with Embry about some engine. Jacob wasn't having the best of luck with his truck and was thinking about turning her in for a different model.

"Okay, it should be good to go. " Jacob handed her the keys with he giant black fur ball.

"You okay in there? "she asked watching as she wiped the sweat off his brow.

"Oh yeah, I need a new engine so I'm kind of stuck without a car for the next week cause the part is on backorder."

He was stressed and didn't know how hed be able to get his stuff together for the week. The truck was a big part of his job. It allowed him to travel to other cities and hit the junk yards for repurposed parts.

"And my car works?" she asked.

Jacob wasn't so sure if maybe his imprint came with a defect since she skipped right past his ordeal. Or maybe she just didn't want to hear him whine.

"Oh yeah…"

"Then use my car. "she explained handing him back the keys. The giant fluff ball made it funnier when it was held in Jacobs hands.

"Wait, what? "

"I won't be here for the next few days. Maybe the week depends on the trip. "

Jacobs heart was shattering at the idea of her being away.

"trip? "

"Yeah, holiday week and my family is heading down to Mexico and I cant miss out on that. " Bitterly did those words come out because Noelle didn't want to go. Nor did she want to spend so much time with family members who judged her by her looks and if she was married. But it was a chance to see her parents and siblings.

"Mexico?"

"yeah. What do you think I am?"

Jacob didn't know what to say because she couldn't have been fully white nor did he think she was native like him since she lacked color in her skin.

"a mutt?" she finished his thought and smirked

"im Mexican. "

"And white?" he teased

"my dads light skinned but if you see my mom youd see theirs some sort of indigenous blood in that. Don't judge a book. " she poked his stomach and grinned.

"so, short and Latina? "

She practically cringed and chuckled. Shaking her head as she stared up at him waiting for the stereotype.

"And? " she coerced him to finish that thought. Because she already knew that once people heard or found out that she wasn't white it became a thing. Not many Hispanics in forks

"Is it true? Are you toxic and crazy. " he asked hoping she understand he was joking.

"wouldn't you like to know? "she teased

FOR SOME REASON THIS CHAPTER TOOK ME FOREVER TO WRITE BECAUSE I HONESTLY DIDNT KNOW WHAT TO WRITE OR HOW. WHAT I HAD WRITTEN FOR CHAPTER 3 BECAME CHAPTER 4 AND I NEEDED TO FILL IN FOR CHAPTER 3 AND THATS WHAT KIDA KEPT ME FROM POSTING.

PLEASE REVIEW AND LET ME KNOW HOW YOU GUYS FEEL SO FAR.