Bella sat in the corner of the diner in a booth. She was wearing boot cut jeans, sneakers and a fitted purple tee. She was facing the door so that she could see Leah when she walked in, and so that Leah could see her. She arrived exactly eight minutes before their meeting time, not knowing if Leah was the type to be early or late. Leah had speed as a wolf, so she might be early since she hasn't had too much time to adjust to her new speed. But she is busy and brooding, so she might be late instead. Or maybe she was a perfect planner and exactly on time. She really didn't know Leah at all, even though they had known each other they're whole lives. She had seemed like a nice enough girl before she started phasing but had only been short tempered around her every time they saw each other after the phase. Maybe that was a wolf thing, the short temper. Or maybe it was because of Bella's association with the vampires. Or maybe it was because her dad died! Jeez, she needed to cut Leah some slack.
Then the door opened. Exactly two minutes before their meeting time, Leah walked in. The dress she was wearing was less ratty than the ones Bella saw her wearing on the rez. It was a forest green, loose fitting a-line dress. The color looked mesmerizing on her, but her flawless figure was buried. She had paired it with black. slide-on flats. Leah glanced around the diner until her eyes met Bella's. Then Leah froze for a full 30 seconds, standing still in the doorway. It made Bella feel strange, the way Leah was staring at her. It felt like there was a rope tying her soul to Leah's through their eye contact. What the fuck.
Then Leah stumbled backwards towards the door. Bella had never seen one of the pack stumble before. Leah opened the door and stepped out. Was she being stood up? Leah knew that Bella saw her.
Bella ran for the door. Leah was a few feet away from the entrance, vomiting in the bushes.
"You okay, Leah?" dumb question, she chastised herself.
"Shit Swan, yeah I'm fine." she spat one last time, then looked at Bella with a slight smirk on her full lips, 'I'm starving though. Do you think anyone stole our booth?'
"Umm, I left my purse on the table so I hope not." Bella smiled at her meekly.
"Oh, I'll make sure no one takes your purse, or our booth." She was already feeling protective of Bella. Leah put her hand on the small of Bella's back and guided her into the diner. No one had taken their booth or Bella's purse. Good. That meant Leah would not have to fight someone over her imprint, at least not yet.
When they approached the booth, Leah took the side facing the entrance. This would give her a good view of the diner, just in case of any danger. She wanted Bella to slide in next to her but that wasn't natural with just two people at the booth so Bella sat across from her.
"So…" Bella started.
"So indeed," Leah continued. Leah looked up at Bella's face, her eyes showing so much depth she could get lost in them for hours. And her cute little lips. She wanted to taste them. Where did that thought come from? Focus, Leah. You told her you wanted to talk to her.
"Are you ready to order?" the waitress interrupted Leah's obsessive staring.
"I am," Bella started, "I'll have a coffee with cream and sugar and the veggie omelet."
"Okay," the waitress jotted that down. "And for you?" she said, turning to Leah.
"I'll have the king stack of pancakes with three eggs over easy and a double order or sausage on the side." she said, "oh, and a coffee with cream and sugar," she smiled at Bella noting that they took their coffee the same way, "and a large orange juice."
The waiter was scribbling furiously. "Got it," she finally said, "your drinks will be out shortly." Then the waitress walked away.
"So …" Bella picked up the conversation where they left off.
Leah chuckled. "What did Jacob tell you about me?" She saw Bella flinch at Jacob's name. Okay, so that wound was still too raw. "Or what did any one else in the pack tell you about me? Did anyone tell you anything about my history before you moved here?"
Bella hesitated. All she had heard about was Leah being a bitch, but she didn't think that was what Leah was alluding to. "No, I mean, I've known you my whole life, so no one said anything about your life before I moved here. Should they have?"
"YES!" Okay, that came out too strong, calm down Leah. "And I should have too. I just didn't think of it, to warn you. I've been pretty caught up in my own sorrow lately and I'm so sorry about that. I should have warned you." She clasped Bella's hands, trying to convey her grief over this oversight. There was a warm electrical pulse shared between them when they first touched.
Bella blushed at the touch. Oh that blush, it warmed Leah's heart. Settle down tiger, she reminded herself. "Warned me about what, Leah?" Bella pleaded, not pulling away from Leah.
"Imprinting."
Bella's head swam. She had heard that term. Someone has said it about Sam but she was too caught up in Jacob to think much of it at the time. She remembered it sounded important but she didn't remember any other details. "What's imprinting?"
"It's a wolf thing. They say it is when a wolf locks eyes with their soulmate, their whole world shifts. The imprint is like gravity, all that matters to them. Everything else pales in comparison to the imprint. And the wolf will be anything the imprint needs, friend, sibling, lover. Some say that it is to produce more wolves for future packs. Other's say it is to keep the pack members grounded and motivated. I don't know about all that."
Leah continued. "What I do know is that I was seeing Sam Uley for over a year. We loved each other. We had given all of ourselves to each other. We were committed, talking about marriage and our future, a family. And then he imprinted on my cousin, Emily. I was dismissed and heart broken."
Bella was staring at her, mouth agape. She didn't say anything for a full minute. Leah gave her time. "Is that what… is that why… Jacob?"
Leah looked like she might cry. Bella wondered, why was this stone-cold bitch being emotional now? Was she still heartbroken over Sam? "I'm so sorry I didn't warn you, yes, that is what happened with Jacob and Jen."
"Leah," Bella clasped her hands tighter with Leah's. "It wasn't your responsibility." Why did she feel so protective of Leah all of a sudden?
"Two coffees and one large orange juice," the waitress interrupted. "And your food will be out in a few minutes." Leah nodded at the waitress in acknowledgement, then turned back to Bella.
Neither of them moved their hands away from the others. "But thank you for telling me." Bella shifted in her seat, still gripping Leah's hands, "is this still a sensitive topic for you, losing Sam that way?"
Leah grinned. That was a fun question to answer. "It's complicated. I was totally over Sam when my father died. I had even had a small crush at work for a while." Leah glanced at Bella to see if this bothered her but she couldn't read anything on the smaller girl's face. "But then when I phased, it was like the wound was ripped wide open again, only deeper. I saw all of Sam's thoughts and feelings about Emily through the pack mind. I even saw them together… in bed. It was pretty painful at first. But as a wolf, I heal faster. Even though that does not apply to emotional wounds, it felt like it did for this one. It was like, I already knew how to heal from this, so I just repeated the process again, but faster. So no, it doesn't bother me anymore."
"Oh," Bella was a little taken aback. "Why did nobody tell me this could happen before now?"
"Hmmm." This was a less fun question to answer. "As I said, I was a little self absorbed and I apologize for that."
Bella cut her off, "Why didn't Jacob tell me? Or Sam? I'm not mad at you! I'm grateful to know what's going on and so pleased to finally spend some time with you." She looked at Leah's beautiful face. She did enjoy being close to her. She hoped Leah didn't notice that their coffee was getting cold because she didn't want to let go of her hands.
It was Leah's turn to blush at Bella's words. And that look in Bella's eye, it looked almost like adoration. Stop it, Leah! You're going to freak her out.
"Right, Jacob and Sam. Sam wanted Jacob to tell you. He didn't want Jacob to be with you at all, knowing that this could happen. But he didn't want to make it an alpha order. He thought that was overstepping his role."
"Ah," Bella said knowingly. "I caught some strange looks from Sam sometimes, looks of disapproval. I asked Jacob about that. Jacob said Sam didn't want us together because I was white. So I thought maybe Sam was racist or something, but that didn't line up with how Sam treated me as a person. He was always kind and welcoming toward me. I only got those looks when Jacob and I were together, not when I was hanging out with Kim and the girls, so it didn't really make sense. But then again, I didn't think too much about it when I was with Jacob."
Leah was growling softly, but she didn't think Bella heard it. Or if Bella did hear it, she was polite enough not to mention it.
"That was really shitty of Jacob," Leah finally commented. "I'm not Sam's biggest fan but to make him appear racist just to cover up Jacob's own deceit? That's gross. I don't know how to say this right but Jacob didn't want you to know because he didn't want you to leave him. He knew that after Edward, if you didn't feel secure with him, you'd end it. And what bigger insecurity is there than suddenly becoming nobody to your boyfriend because the spirits have shown him his true soul mate and now he's obsessed with her?"
Leah paused, giving Bella a chance to ask questions or comment or anything. When Bella didn't say anything, Leah continued.
"Jacob also had a theory that since he was the true alpha, he would not imprint."
Bella started choking. What was she choking on? She hadn't taken a sip of her coffee. Bella pulled her hands free. The sudden absence of touch was actually painful to Leah. Bella grabbed her coffee and took a big gulp, forcing down the choking feeling. Then she grasped Leah's hands again before Leah had time to pull them away.
"True alpha?" Bella asked, not bringing attention to their hands. She didn't want to make it awkward but she didn't want to lose Leah's touch again.
"Oh, he didn't tell you that either? I thought he would since it might impress you or something." Leah raised one eyebrow at Bella. Bella shook her head. He had never mentioned it. "Ok Jacob is the direct descendent of Ephraim black, the alpha of the last pack. The Blacks are the chiefs of the tribe as well. Billy is the current chief and Jacob will be chief after him. So Jacob says that makes him the true alpha of the pack. But he still feels that he is too young to lead the pack. We all know Sam is only alpha because he is the first one that phased. They say that one day, he will step down and let the true alpha take his place."
Leah cleared her throat, thinking of how to phrase what she had to say, "Jacob's feelings for you were true. He loved you and he didn't want to imprint. He wanted to be with you. But then he did imprint and everything changed. I don't know why he didn't tell you when it happened. I guess it didn't seem important to him any more and that is so shitty, inexcusable really, but it was the same for me and Sam. I didn't know why he left me for Emily until the day my dad died."
Bella gasped. "Oh Leah," she was looking deeply into Leah's eyes now, trying to convey how much she cared with her look. She wanted to reach out and touch her cheek.
"One veggie omelet," the waitress said, wanting to place the plate down exactly where Bella was reaching across the table to hold Leah's hands. Their hands broke apart to make room. "And pancakes, eggs over easy, and double sausage on the side," she placed down the remaining plates in front of Leah.
Leah's stomach rumbled, loudly. Bella giggled. "Just in time." Bella then reached her hand across the table near the wall, hoping that Leah understood. Leah reached out and held her hand as they each dug in, one handed.
"So," Bella started between bites, "why were you sick in the bushes? I thought you guys didn't get sick?"
"Mmmhmm," Leah agreed, swallowing, "we don't. We still can throw up if we eat something bad, like a dog does, or we can throw up over an emotional reaction, like a panic attack."
"Ok," Bella was getting nervous, "so did you eat something bad or were you having a panic attack?"
Leah sighed. She rubbed her temple anxiously. "Promise you won't flip out? Everyone says you're good with weird and I'm counting on that ok. Promise?"
"Uhh… ok, I won't flip out." For some reason, she didn't think there was anything Leah could say that would make her want to leave the diner without her.
Leah closed her eyes tightly then opened them, looking right into Bella's eyes, trying to peer into her soul for guidance, reassurance, something. "I imprinted on you," she blurted out, "right when I walked into the diner."
Bella's hand loosened around Leah's but Leah gripped Bella's hand a little tighter, not letting her go. "And you were so disgusted by that, by me! That you threw up?!" Bella was raising her voice a little. Why was Leah still holding her hand?
"No, not disgusted! God no, I was overwhelmed. I had never felt anything so, oh God, I'm ruining it, please don't hate me, Isabella." She took a deep breath. Bella was still here, but she was quiet and even though Leah was grasping her hand firmly, not too hard she hoped, Bella was not holding her hand back like she was a minute ago.
"I had never felt anything so strongly before in my life. They say it is like gravity shifted. That doesn't describe it adequately at all. My equilibrium was all messed up, I was dizzy, like a roller coaster, but not disgusted, no, so happy. Jeez, Bella, it's all confusing and overwhelming for me, so I'm guessing that it is for you too, but I'm so glad that it happened, not disgusted at all."
She looked into Bella's eyes again, hoping for clarity but her own confusion was reflected back at her. She didn't think she was gay. But maybe she was gay for Isabella Swan. But that didn't mean Bella was gay for her. Bella just got out of a relationship with Jacob fucking Black, a true alpha and a male. Fuck.
Then she felt it. Bella was holding her hand again. She relaxed her hand and grabbed her coffee. This conversation was thirsty work.
"Ok." Bella answered, her eyes softening.
"Ok?" Leah was delighted. 'Ok' was not rejection. Her imprint had not rejected her! Not yet at least. Stop it, Leah! Don't be so negative. This is actually going really well. Except she was out of pancakes. She cut up her sausages. She didn't want to eat them in a way that was too suggestive. Instead, she ate them with her eggs. A minute later, Bella still had half of her omelet left even though Leah's plates were clean.
"Is the omelet good? I don't think I've ever ordered a veggie omelet here."
"This is what I always order when I have breakfast here." She paused, "It is delicious but I don't have much of an appetite."
"Oh," Leah's head lowered, maybe it was rejection already. Maybe Bella was only holding her hand out of pity.
"In general, Leah, I don't have a strong appetite in general, not because of what we've been talking about." She was getting nervous because Leah looked sad. "Some people have said I don't eat enough but my weight is stable. I'm not losing weight or anything. And I'm average height. My doctor isn't concerned about my weight. So I think I eat enough. It just isn't a lot compared to a wolf appetite, or a normal person either, I guess." She smiled at Leah. She was rambling but that's what she did when she was nervous. She hoped it didn't scare Leah off.
"Oh, I didn't mean to imply… you can eat as much or as little as you want." Leah chuckled nervously, "I was just afraid that you were disgusted by me this time."
Bella looked at her with all of the sincerity she could muster. "Never," she muttered under her breath. Leah smiled. "You want to try the omelet?" Bella asked.
"I thought you'd never ask." Leah took Bella's fork and cut a piece of the omelet. She held Bella's eye as she slowly brought it to her mouth and licked the fork, hoping to get a taste of Bella from it. Bella was mesmerized by the act. She had never seen anyone eat in a way that was so sexy before. Wait, what? Why was she thinking this way? Then she was distracted by Leah reaching over and grabbing another bite, moaning softly as she brought it to her lips. "This is delicious," she commented, not breaking eye contact with Bella.
"You … you can finish it," Bella stuttered, wide eyed. How had she not noticed how sexy Leah was when she was eating her ten pancakes, three eggs and double order of sausage ? Maybe she was only sexy when eating Bella's food. No, that doesn't make any sense. Why did she keep thinking Leah was sexy? Oh yeah, because look at her. Damn.
Bella was staring at Leah while she finished the omelet, mouth ajar. Leah loved it and didn't break eye contact the whole time. When the waitress put the check at the end of the table, Leah grabbed it with her inhuman speed.
That got Bella to snap out of it. "We'll split it," Bella announced.
"Ha!" Leah chortled. "I ate all the food." She was pulling out her wallet.
"We can go Dutch." Bella pleaded.
"Maybe next time," Leah suggested, knowing damn well that the same thing would happen next time.
"Does that make this a date?" Bella asked, an innocent look on her face. Leah froze. She wanted it to be a date. She hadn't thought about it, but that is what she wanted. What did Bella want though?
"It is whatever you want it to be," she answered. Shit. That was a cowardly answer. "I mean, if you want it to be a date, that would be great, but if you don't, I understand, ok?" That was better. She was firm about how she felt, what she wanted, while still giving Bella choices. Maybe this would work out. But what if Bella didn't want a date? What if she never did? What if she wanted one of those sibling or friendship imprints? Groan. This is so hard
"Then it's a date." Bella said, smiling and squeezing Leah's hand. Leah sighed. She really needed to calm down.
"Awesome." Leah beamed. "Can we go somewhere else, a walk or something? I'm not ready for this date to be over."
"Yeah, Forks or La Push?" Bella asked.
Leah's hand reached for Bellas again and she intertwined their fingers. "As much as I want some privacy from the rest of the pack, I think La Push would be safer. The red head has been really persistent lately."
"Uh huh," Bella pondered, "what do you mean you want privacy from the rest of the pack? Like you want to keep me a secret?"
Leah smiled, "Yeah actually, I do. Once it gets out that I imprinted on you, the pack mind is going to be full of erotic fantasies and I'm just not ready for that. Like at all."
"Oh shit. I don't want you to have to go through that, like ever. How can we keep it a secret?"
Leah looked sheepish. "I don't know if we can, but we can buy some time. I don't know that I'll be able to go a whole patrol shift without thinking about you. I don't even know if I want to try. Shit Bella, this is probably really intense and scary for you. I don't want to scare you off. But I don't want to be dishonest either. My next patrol isn't until tomorrow at noon, so I think we have that long, at least.'
'I'm not scared, Leah. Yeah, it's intense but in a good way," Bella blushed, "like a strong orgasm." Oh my God, did she just say that? But yes, that was exactly what it was like. Leah was in a daze. Bella stood up, still holding Leah's hand. "Come on, let's go."
Bella walked Leah to her truck. Bella got in the driver's seat. Leah got in after her, pushing Bella to the middle. "Faster reflexes," Leah explained. "Sorry, I don't know that you'll be able to drive much when I'm around. I already feel very protective of you." Leah paused, "let me know if that gets annoying and I'll try to back off in areas where the wolf lets me."
"Where the wolf lets you?" Bella inquired.
"Did Jacob never talk about that either?" Leah looked at her. Bella shook her head. "Ok, there is this dichotomy, the man and the wolf, and they both want control. We've all got to balance the needs of the man and the wolf. I can already see that both the man and the wolf are protective of you, my imprint, but the wolf is more feral about it. The wolf can be difficult to reason with and I've learned to choose my battles. But still, I'm too close to it all. I'll need open and honest feedback from you. What feels natural to me might make you uncomfortable but if you don't tell me, I won't know how to fix it and god, I'm rambling…"
"No, that's all really useful information to know. Thank you for being honest with me."
"Oh," she smiled down at Bella, so close in the middle seat of the cab, their thighs were touching. Bella smelled so good. Leah started the truck, got out of the parking lot, and then reached down and held Bella's hand, not saying a word about it.
Most of the drive was silent. "Where are you taking me?" Bella asked as they pulled into the reservation.
"I thought we could go to my house, maybe walk in the woods or sit in the backyard." Leah answered. "Or we could go to the beach for a walk. That is more date-like," she squeezed Bella's hand, "but it is more likely that we'll run into one of the pack there."
"Ah, yeah, to your house then." They continued in silence until they pulled into the Clearwater's driveway. It wasn't an awkward silence, but Leah did worry that they might not have much to talk about.
Leah held Bella's hand as she jumped down from the truck, making Bella blush again. That blush made Leah melt a little. Leah walked Bella around the house and they sat at the picnic table.
"So is Sam the only person that you dated?" Bella hoped that wasn't too personal a question, but she really wanted to know.
"No," Leah smiled, "I also dated Tyler Widdis for three weeks in seventh grade."
"Oh," Bella hesitated, but she had to spit it out. "So you've never been with another woman?"
Leah's breath caught in her throat. She knew they were going to need to discuss this. Why hadn't she thought of what to say? They were side by side, on the same side of the picnic table, holding hands but turned toward each other.
"No, I've never been with another woman. How about you? Did you date anyone other than Edward and Jacob?" Leah swallowed.
"No," Bella sighed, "no one ever paid attention to me in Phoenix. Not that I had time for that anyway. I had to work and take care of my mom."
"Oh, was there something wrong with your mom?" Leah wondered if that was a bonding factor with Bella and Jacob.
Bella laughed, "No, not physically at least. She was just really… flighty… irresponsible… immature… kind of useless as a parent. I've had to raise myself for years, and it felt like I was raising her too. It wasn't until she got married that I felt I could leave her. With Phil taking care of her, I didn't have to anymore." Bella sighed. "Charlie is a much better parent. I have time to live my own life now."
"Yeah, Charlie is a good guy. He's been alone for as long as I can remember so it makes sense that he can take care of himself." Leah commented.
"Don't get me wrong, I still cook, but only because I'm better at it than him. I don't want spaghetti or fish every night. But he picks up after himself, does the dishes before I can get to them. And I never have to worry about the finances with him."
"Wait! Did you have to pay the bills with your mom?" Leah was indignant.
"Well, sometimes, but it was more like I had to make sure she paid the bills. I had to make sure she didn't spend all her money on frivolous things before the bills were paid. We didn't have to break into my piggy bank too often when I was little, though. But it was easier when I was old enough to work. I didn't have to stress about what she was doing so much because I knew I could cover the bills if she messed up. And while I was working, she met Phil, so it all worked out for the best."
Leah didn't like that one bit. Why hasn't anyone taken care of this girl? But she wanted to get the conversation back on track. "So you haven't been with a woman either?" She smiled shyly.
"Oh, no, never," she looked up into Leah's eyes again.
"Is it… is it something that you're open to?" Leah's heart was beating so hard, so fast, she was sure that Bella could hear it.
"Yeah," Bella whispered.
"Okay, because you know the imprint can be whatever you want, sisters, friends or lovers. The ball is in your court."
"Yeah, I know," Bella glanced at their hands, still clasped together. Leah's hand was larger and darker than her own, but nothing like Jacob's. It was large, but still dainty and feminine. It was soft as silk but strong and reassuring. "I think I know what I want, but I'm hesitant about the whole imprint thing. I don't want you to be forced to do anything you're uncomfortable with. Or even anything you would not want to do if there were no imprint."
"Yeah, so, as far as comfort, the only thing I'd be uncomfortable with is you walking away, never speaking to me again. I never dated women but I have to believe, I mean if we're soul mates, I would have come around to that, and we would have ended up together anyway. This just sped up the process for me."
"Ok, but is that what you want?" Bella questioned.
"God yes, so much!" she blurted out. She unconsciously reached up to stroke Bella's cheek. Then she second guessed herself. Calm down, Leah, you're going to scare her off!
Then Bella brought her hand up and placed it over Leah's, leaning her face into Leah's hand. Oh my God! Was this really happening? It felt like time was slowing down for Leah and she wanted it to.
"Ok," Bella said, nuzzling her face into Leah's hand.
"Ok like you're ok with me wanting that? Or okay like you want it too?" Why was she asking this? Why was she pushing her imprint?
Bella looked up at her, peering through her eye lashes. "Ok like I want it too," she answered, her voice a little husky. Leah melted, and her panties were a little damp now.
A howl rose from the woods, not too far away. Their eyes locked. "Get in the house and lock the doors," Leah instructed. Bella hustled to the door.
Leah stripped and phased, not caring if Bella saw her naked, only caring that Bella was safe.
Leah saw in the pack mind that Jared was chasing the red head. She started running and quickly picked up the scent. They were close to her house, to her Bella.
Then she saw Victoria less than 100 meters away and running straight toward her house. Jared was on her heels, pushing Victoria even closer to her imprint. Leah slowed down.
JARED, CHANGE YOUR ANGLE! YOU'RE CHASING HER TOWARD HOUSES! She knew she had no authority over him but she hoped Jared would see the sense in the instruction.
Jared veered to the left and Victoria started turning right. Great. Leah picked up her pace. Victoria was really close now, less than ten yards away. She picked up the pace even more. She is the fastest of the pack and this was her chance to protect Bella.
As she caught up to Victoria, she lunged and grasped the leeches right foot in her jaws. Victoria stumbled and fell. She kicked Leah in the head with her left foot. But Leah would not let go. She twisted and the foot snapped off. That was too easy. Then Victoria was scrambling back. Leah lunged again but Victoria was on her remaining foot. Victoria crouched down and propelled herself into the air with inhuman force. She grasped a tree branch and started to swing herself from branch to branch.
FOLLOW HER. She instructed Jared. I'LL TAKE CARE OF THE FOOT.
Just then, she felt Sam phase in so she phased out. She hoped her thoughts of Bella were guarded enough that Jared didn't catch on, but she didn't care right now.
She ran back to her yard, foot in hand, not bothering to dress. Her back yard was surrounded by forest. She ripped all of the toes off of the foot, placing them in a large flower pot. Then she grabbed the lighter from the grill, placed the foot on the ground and set it on fire. She tossed in all five toes, one at a time, enjoying their sizzle. It all went up fast, plumes of purple smoke rising from the small member.
She phased back, knowing that she would be able to catch up with Jared. She saw in the pack mind that Victoria was still swinging in the trees. She wasn't moving as fast. The loss of the foot didn't slow her down too much. The trees themselves were thinning and she had to be more careful with each swing.
SHE'S HEADING FOR THE CLIFFS! Leah warned.
NO SHIT, SHERLOCK. Jared sarcastically quipped.
She saw that Sam was at the cliff, waiting. She picked up her speed, she could wait at the cliff too. She arched around where Victoria was swinging, making it look like Victoria had an opening between herself and Sam. Victoria was out of trees and as Leah arched around, her escape path was dwindling. The redhead flung through the air. Leah could see where she was going to land and moved to head her off. Victoria changed direction as she approached the ground and crashed right into Leah. Leah crumpled under the blow, hitting her head hard against the ground. Victoria did flips, almost as fast as her usual run, and flew off the cliff into the water below.
LEAH! She heard in the pack mind, then she succumbed to the darkness she used to long for.
o.~*~.o
Bella didn't know what to do while waiting for Leah at the Clearwater's house. Neither Sue nor Seth were home. She wouldn't know what to say to them if they were. At first she sat on the couch, but she couldn't sit still. She perused the book shelf in the living room. A few cook books, some fishing guides, a few Quilieute history books, but she didn't have the patience to read those now. Maybe another time.
She started poking around the kitchen. Is this intrusive? Maybe, but she didn't think Leah would mind. They had all of the ingredients for peanut butter cookies. She hoped Leah liked peanut butter cookies. What if she was allergic? Well, they probably wouldn't have peanut butter in the house if she was. Relax Bella, take a chance. She'll probably love your peanut butter cookies. They even had a stand mixer, something she had wanted for Charlie's kitchen for a long time. She quickly mixed up a batch of peanut butter cookies, put them in the oven, and set the timer. She looked out the back window. There was no sign of Leah or Victoria or any of the other wolves. There was a strange purple haze over a small ash pile near the barbecue. Weird. She went back to the kitchen. Maybe she should make a second batch. Leah was probably working up an appetite out there. As Bella was placing the third batch in the oven, she heard a commotion in the backyard. She looked out the window to see Jared and Sam carrying an unconscious Leah toward the house.
"Oh my god, Leah!" she sobbed as she opened the back door for the boys. Sam gave her a questioning look as he passed her.
"Bella, go see what they have for first aid supplies in the bathroom." They placed Leah on the couch. Sam went to the freezer to get a bag of frozen peas. Bella brought out a large basket filled with first aid supplies. Then she noticed Leah was naked. She was so beautiful, lean but with strong curves. Her breasts were full, fuller than Bella would have assumed given the shapeless dresses Leah had been wearing lately. Under them, her chest was bruised, badly bruised. Sam placed the frozen peas in the middle of the bruise.
"Hold this here," Sam instructed Bella. He probably thought it was better for Leah's modesty for Bella's hand to be so near Leah's bare breast than for Jared's. But Bella couldn't even think about that right now. She just wanted Leah to be ok.
"Jared, find some blankets, then some clothes for Leah." Jared was off, finding the items that Sam requested. Sam started rummaging through the first aid kit. He found a long roll of bandages. Sam instructed Bella, "Put the peas back in the freezer and call Sue's cell. We need her to come home. Her number should be on the fridge."
"Okay," Bella got up, found the numbers on the fridge, then found the phone on the wall.
"Hello?" Sue answered.
"Sue Clearwater?" Bella gasped.
"Yeah, who is this?"
"It's Bella, Bella Swan, you need to come home, now! Leah's been hurt."
"Okay, I'm on my way now. Can you tell me, who is there with you?"
"Jared and Sam."
"Okay, can you put me on speaker phone so I can talk to Sam?"
"Yeah, I'm bringing you over there now." She walked over to Sam. He was tightly wrapping a bandage around her chest. Leah made no noise or movements but Bella could see her chest rise and fall steadily. Bella was so grateful for the long cord on the wall phone. "Okay, Sue, you're on speaker phone."
"Sam, what happened?"
"A vamp launched herself into Leah. There was a lot of force behind it. The vamp launched out of a tree. Leah's ribs are at least cracked, if not broken. And her head hit the ground pretty hard."
"Ok, did she phase back? Is she conscious?"
"She phased back automatically but she hasn't been conscious since it happened, maybe 15 minutes ago, maybe 20, I'm not sure."
Jared returned then with blankets and clothes. "She hit her head before, too, or the vamp did. Leah ripped off her foot and the vamp kicked her with the other foot. This was a little while before the launch attack. So there might be cumulative damage between the two attacks."
Bella was trying to control her sobs. She had a tea towel over her face so that she wouldn't disturb their conversation too much. Sam kept on glancing at her, curiously. Why was she here? He wondered.
"Beep beep beep beep. Beep beep beep beep." Oh my god, the cookies! Bella got up and ran to the kitchen. She turned off the timer first. Then she turned off the oven and pulled the third batch of cookies from the oven. She felt so silly. Leah was badly injured and all she had to offer was cookies. She scrambled back to the living room, embarrassed. Jared winked at her. That didn't make her feel any better. She felt laughed at.
"I'm almost there," Sue was saying on the phone, "please, everybody stay there. I might need help when I get there." Bella wasn't planning on going anywhere.
Click.
"So, Bella," Sam began, "What were you doing here with Leah?"
Shit. What was she supposed to say? "Visiting?"
"And making cookies." Jared offered.
"Those are for Leah!" Bella barked.
"Ok," Jared flinched, "I thought maybe you'd want to share, since we helped Leah."
"Jared," Sam growled. "Don't listen to him, Bella. Leah will be thrilled to have those cookies when she wakes up."
Bella was already getting two plates from the kitchen. "It's okay," she muttered. "I made three batches." She brought each of the boys three cookies. She vowed to be extra protective with the rest.
"Thanks," Jared grinned at her.
"Yeah, thanks," Sam added sheepishly. "These are delicious, Bella. So do you want to tell me why you were really here?"
"Well, Leah didn't want you guys to know yet and I don't want to go against her wishes, but I guess it doesn't matter now. Hey, how long until she'll be conscious again?"
"We don't know, it could be days, weeks, even." Sam answered.
At the same time, Jared said, "Just an hour or two probably. We heal fast." Sam elbowed him in the ribs for that one.
Bella lowered her eyebrows into a scowl. "You know what, I'll let Leah tell you when she wakes up. It's not mine to tell anyway." For the first time, she didn't feel like she could trust Sam.
Just then, Sue walked in the door. She walked right over to Leah, first placing her hand on her forehead, then checking her pulse. Nothing in her face showed alarm or fear. She lifted the blanket. The boys must have put a dress over Leah while Bella was tending to the cookies. She firmly grasped Leah around her chest, feeling every angle for broken bones or unusual movement.
"I don't think anything is broken, or at least not anymore. You did a good job wrapping the chest, Sam."
Sam beamed. He had always seen Sue as a mother figure and her approval was valuable to him.
"Jared, can you show me where she was kicked in the head?" Sue didn't see any bruising or damage anywhere on the face.
"It was above her left ear. She was in wolf form as it happened, of course, so I'm not sure where that translates to."
Sue felt around the left side of her head. Nothing was off. "Okay, I expect she'll be up in a few hours, conscious at least. Will one of you stay with her in case something comes up? I have to return to work."
"I'll do it!" Bella and Sam said in unison.
Sam turned to her. "Bella, we can't ask that of you. You don't know the protocol to make sure she's ok and you wouldn't be able to move her if she needed it." Bella's face fell.
She considered what Sam was saying and he was right. "Okay, you can stay, Sam, but I'm not leaving."
Sam grinned. "I can stay? Well thank you, princess, that suits me just fine." Jared chuckled.
"All right, two pairs of eyes are better than one. Just be nice." Sue warned, and then she was off.
"Can I take some cookies for the road?" Jared asked, heading for the kitchen.
"No!" Bella screeched. "Those are for Leah!" She cut him off as he headed toward the kitchen. She knew Jared could overpower her and take all the cookies, but she hoped he wouldn't.
"Ok, sweety, I was just teasing." And he turned for the door. Bella returned to the living room. She didn't want to leave Sam alone with Leah. She would hate for Leah to wake up and think she had left her with Sam, even if just for a second.
When she got there, Sam got up. "I'm going to run to the bathroom." He announced. Bella took his seat. It was the one closest to Leah's face. She wanted to hold her hand. What would be the harm? So she did. She held it in her lap and stroked Leah's face.
When Sam got back, he was startled. He'd lost his place to Bella Swan. What was going on with these two? He hoped Leah wasn't telling her pack secrets. He liked Bella all right, but who knew when those Cullens were going to weasel their way back into her life? Especially now, since she and Jake broke up.
Sam took the next closest seat, closer to Leah's feet.
"So, what's the protocol?" Bella asked. "What are we supposed to do until Leah wakes up?"
"What? Oh, that. Every 20 minutes, we check her pulse and temperature. Sue's done this so many times, she can do it by touch. The rest of us should use tools." He pulled out a thermometer and oximeter from the first aid kit. "The oximeter goes on her finger," he pulled Leah's hand out of Bella's and put the oximeter on, "Like so. And the thermometer goes in the butt."
"Are you serious?" Bella spat.
"Dead serious. Sometimes that wakes the wolf up, it depends on how close they are to waking up on their own anyway. You might not want to be too close when I do it in…" he glanced up at the clock on the wall, "15 minutes."
Yikes. But Leah would never hurt her. "No, I can do it." she assured him.
He laughed heartily, "Are you suicidal or something? Is that why you guys are friends?"
"What does that mean?"
"Nothing, forget it."
"No, tell me. Are you saying that Leah is suicidal?!"
"You clearly don't know her at all. What are you doing here?" Sam demanded. Sam was starting to get mad. This was his Lee Lee. What was this leach lover doing in her home? Was this a set up? Was Leah not planning on waking up from this attack? He had hoped those thoughts were behind her, but now he was not sure at all.
Bella cowered. "I already said, it is for her to tell you. It's not mine to tell."
"I will not let you endanger a member of my pack!" Sam bellowed.
Oh, now Bella was mad. "Endanger? You think I'm endangering her by making her cookies and spending time with her?" Bella scoffed. She glared at Sam and he was vibrating. Why was he vibrating? He clenched his jaw and closed his eyes. He needed to calm down. He was too close to Leah. The vibrating slowly subsided.
"Sam, are you ok?" He turned away from her.
"No." He spoke through clenched teeth. "I need you to tell me why you are really here. I'm getting angry and I don't want to hurt you but I need you to tell me."
She bit her bottom lip. Yikes. "Can you keep a secret?"
He chuckled, disarmed by her question. "Yeah, that's kind of my thing."
"Ok, she wanted to keep this out of the pack mind for as long as she could but I know she would rather it got out than you hurting me. I think that would make her really mad. In fact, I know it -"
Sam interrupted, "You're rambling, I don't want to hurt you, just spit it out."
"She imprinted on me." She looked at his face, trying to read his reaction. Over the span of a few minutes, she saw confusion, disbelief, pain, confusion again, then a calm acceptance.
"Oh." He finally said. Then there was silence.
A few minutes later, he got the oximeter out of the first aid kit and placed it on Leah's finger. He waited for a solid reading, then started rolling her over, thermometer in hand.
"I can do that," Bella volunteered. "She won't hurt me and I think she'd be more comfortable with me doing it than you."
Sam kept moving Leah's body as if he didn't hear her. "No, please wait against the wall while I do this." Bella huffed, but went to the wall. "I'm her imprint. She won't hurt me. She's very protective of me."
Sam scoffed at her words. "Is that what she told you? That imprints can't be hurt by their wolf?"
"No, she didn't say that exactly, she's just already very protective of me and I know that she'd never hurt me."
"Hmmph," Sam said. After he got a good temperature reading, he rolled Leah back over and waved to Bella to return.
"Is everything okay?" Bella asked. "Were her readings normal?"
"Yeah," Sam sighed, and they waited in silence, both gazing at Leah with love.
Three hours passed like that, with little movement and no conversation between them. Bella wrapped up the cookies so they wouldn't dry out. She grabbed a book on Quileute history. She couldn't concentrate, couldn't absorb any of it, but it gave her something to do.
Finally, Seth got home. "What happened to Leah?" his face looked panicked when he saw Leah unconscious on the couch.
Sam gave him a synopsis of today's events, skipping the part about Bella being Leah's imprint. Maybe he could keep a secret.
"Ok, well, I can take over from here, Sam. Thanks for staying with her." Sam stood, nodded at Seth and left.
They both watched Sam leave. Seth turned to Bella, "So," he started, "what do you have to do with all of this? Besides being live bait, I mean?" he chuckled.
"Leah and I were hanging out in the yard when Jared first howled for help." Bella explained. She always liked Seth. He was kind and fun and a genuinely good kid.
"You and Leah… were hanging out… in the yard?" Seth was dumbfounded.
"Why is that so surprising?!" Bella did not mean to be short with him but she was agitated after sitting with Sam all afternoon.
Seth chuckled, "It's just, you're a nice girl, Bella, and Leah doesn't always play well with others. How was it that you two were hanging out?"
Now that was actually a question she could answer without talking about the imprint. "She called me yesterday, wanting to get together."
"She did? Why?" Seth still didn't understand.
"Uh," how to word this delicately. Fuck it. "We were both heart broken when our boyfriends imprinted on someone else. She thought she could help me out, that we could commiserate together."
"Wow, that was generous of her. Yeah, Bells, we all feel terrible about how Jake handled that, but none of us felt like it was our place to talk to you about it. I guess Leah has the biggest balls of us all, going behind Jake's back to tell you about that."
"Yeah, that sounds about right." Bella agreed.
"So did it help? Talking to Leah, did it help you?"
"Actually, yeah, a whole lot."
"I'm glad." He touched her arm with genuine kindness. "Well, you can go. I understand you not wanting to leave Leah alone with Sam and I appreciate that. I appreciate that a whole lot. But you don't need to wait. We have no idea how long this is going to take."
"Oh, no, I'll stay. I don't want to intrude on you guys, but I don't want to leave Leah until I know that she is fine. I'll make supper, do whatever, just don't make me leave." Seth was silent as she frantically got up and grabbed a plate. She put six cookies on it. She needed to win his favor. "See? I already made cookies. I'll do whatever, just let me stay."
Seth happily grabbed the cookies. "Thanks, I wouldn't have made you leave, but your offer of supper sounds great." He popped one whole cookie in his mouth. "These are perfect! How did you know peanut butter cookies were Leah's favorite?"
She smiled. "I didn't, but now I do." She realized she could have skipped all of the groveling. She just was desperate. She needed to be near Leah. She needed Leah to know that she was everything to her. Wait, when did that happen? Probably when she saw the boys carrying her back and she thought Leah might be dead.
Seth turned on the TV. Why hadn't Sam done that? It would have made the time much more pleasant. He and Seth watched a little bit of an afternoon talk show, then Seth offered, "Wanna play Mario Kart?"
"Sure," Bella answered, "But I probably won't be any good at it."
"More wins for me, then!" Seth cheered.
Seth continued checking Leah's heart rate and temperature every 20 minutes. Nothing was alarming.
"I'm going to see what you guys have for supper. Any idea when your mom comes home?"
"I think she comes home at 10 tonight. And you don't really have to do that. We still have some casseroles in the freezer. We can just heat those up."
"No, I want to make something. If Leah wakes up, I want her to have something fresh and made with love, not one of the casseroles that you guys weren't desperate enough to heat up yet."
Seth chuckled at that, remembering the casseroles that were left. None of them sounded too tempting, but he would eat anything, of course.
Bella found everything she needed to make an alfredo sauce from scratch. There was no chicken breast in the fridge or freezer but there was a pork roast. It was a cheap cut, so she didn't think Sue would mind if she used it. She cut it up and cooked it on the stove, just as she would chicken for alfredo. She added loads of broccoli and three boxes of penne. It was a triple batch so the Clearwaters could have some leftovers when they didn't have time to cook.
"Wow, that smells amazing," Seth called in. He still didn't understand why Bella was still here but he wouldn't complain. She could stay as long as she wanted.
"Oh, I should call Charlie soon. Can I just tell him I'm spending the night? I think that will lead to the fewest questions."
"Yeah, sure, does that mean you'll make breakfast, too?"
"Yes, Seth, I will do that. Thank you."
"No, thank you." He answered. He didn't want to take advantage of Bella's kindness, but he also did want to. She was a stellar cook.
Charlie was fine with Bella staying the night, although he didn't remember those two being friends. Maybe Bella will be a good influence on Leah, he thought, remembering Leah's temperamental moods after Harry's passing.
When dinner was ready, Leah still wasn't awake, but her vitals were strong. Seth and Bella sat down to eat. Seth had five servings and she gave him three more cookies. She could always make more cookies if Leah stayed down for much longer.
They settled back in the living room, Bella defaulting to holding Leah's hand. She was watching Seth play Mario Kart when she felt a gentle squeeze of her hand. She turned and Leah was looking at her.
"Bella," she whispered hoarsely.
Seth's head snapped around. "Leah! You're awake. It's been three weeks! We were so worried about you."
Leah looked terrified. "Three weeks?" she asked hoarsely. Bella moved to get her some water but Leah would not release her hand.
"Seth, get her some water, please." Seth hurried off to do that. "No, Leah, we just finished dinner. It's only been a few hours. We saved you lots of leftovers and I made cookies. How are you feeling? Are you hungry?"
She smiled softly, "Starving."
Bella took the water from Seth. "Do you need help sitting up? Or should we get you a straw?"
Leah sat up, beating her chest with her fist. "I'm fine. I'm a little sore but fine. But I need to pee. Seth, can you help me to the bathroom?"
After she returned, she asked, "Seth, am I allowed to take these bandages off?" Leah felt constricted.
"I don't know, do you want me to call mom?"
"Bring me the phone. I'll call her. Then Seth, can you please make me a plate of dinner. And bring some of the cookies, too. Thank you." She smiled at him warmly as he handed her the phone.
"Oh, I told my dad I'd be staying the night." Bella interjected. "I didn't know when you'd wake up. Can you check with your mom to make sure that's fine?"
"Oh, she won't mind, but I'll be sure to mention it to her." She called her mom, gave her an update on how she was feeling and who was still there. Sue told her it was fine to take the bandages off. Sue sounded grateful that Bella had taken care of dinner and was happy to have her stay the night. It had been years since Leah had a friend stay the night. She hoped this meant Leah was becoming friendlier and less angry in general.
Seth came back with two plates, one with the pork alfredo and one with a stack of cookies. Leah pulled Bella onto the couch with her before taking the plates. She put the cookies on Bella's lap and the alfredo on her own lap. She picked up a cookie and bit half into her mouth. "Mmmmm, these are amazing."
"They were probably better when they were fresh but it took you so long to wake up," Bella teased.
"Sorry to keep you waiting," Leah retorted. "How many cookies did you have while you were waiting, Swan?"
"None," Bella answered honestly. "I made those cookies for you."
"Oh," Leah swooned, "all of the cookies are for me? How many did you make?"
"Well, I made three batches but I had to give some to Sam and Jared as a thank you for helping you and then I had to bribe Seth with some of the remaining cookies so that he'd let me stay. But there are still more than two batches remaining, all for you, Leah."
"Yeah, she's been like a cookie cop all day, denying cookies to everyone. 'Those are Leah's cookies' was her mantra."
Leah's eyes sparkled. "No one has ever made me cookies before except my mom and hers aren't good." It was funny, but Leah was dead serious. This woman must be her soul mate.
Bella giggled. "I won't tell her you said that."
Leah leaned down and touched her forehead to Bella's. "Thank you. Thank you for the cookies and thank you for staying."
Bella's heart rate picked up. "It was my pleasure."
Leah started digging into the alfredo. "This is good. Seth, was this behind all of the crap casseroles or something?"
"No, Bella made that too."
"What?" Leah almost choked on her food. "You did?" Leah looked down at her adoringly.
"Yeah," she whispered, "I had to promise dinner so that Seth would let me stay. But I would have done it anyway. I wanted you to have something fresh when you got up."
"Wow," she sighed. "I could get used to this."
"So could I," Bella agreed, content to be snuggled up against Leah on the couch.
"Here, have a cookie," Leah lifted a cookie to Bella's lips.
"Oh I don't need one. I made those for you. They're yours."
"Yeah, I agree. They are mine. And I want you to have one."
Bella opened her mouth and took a bite. Leah held the cookie near her face while she chewed. She fed Bella the cookie bite by bite, waiting patiently, savoring watching her girl eating out of her hands. So hot.
Seth was a little confused by this display. Clearly Leah and Bella were closer than he'd expect after hanging out for a few hours. It made him uncomfortable, watching his sister be so affectionate with his friend and Jake's ex. He decided to go to his room and give them privacy. He had stuff to do anyway.
Leah had three plates of alfredo and several stacks of cookies before she was content. Then she and Bella snuggled into the couch together watching TV. Bella drifted off to sleep, feeling so secure in Leah's arms. She awoke when the door opened. Sue was home.
"Oh, Sue," Bella stood up so fast Leah didn't have time to hold her in place. "I made dinner, Alfredo, and Leah might share her cookies if you ask nicely," she smiled at Sue.
"Oh, thank you Bella. I already ate but I'd love a cookie if Leah will share one."
Leah scowled, then remembered this was her mom. "Of course mom, help yourself… to ONE cookie."
"I wouldn't dream of taking more, sweety." Sue leaned down and kissed Leah's head as she passed. Leah didn't remember the last time her mom had done that but it felt nice.
Bella went with her into the kitchen, showing her where the cookie container was and where the leftover alfredo was in case she wanted some. "You must have made a lot for there to be leftovers."
"Yeah, I did," Bella looked embarrassed, like maybe she had overstepped. "I used up the pork roast too, because I couldn't find any chicken. I hope that's okay?"
"Oh, that's fine. I didn't have plans for it. The price was just too good to pass up. Thank you for taking care of my kids, Bella," Sue pulled her into a quick hug. "These cookies are delicious. Did Leah tell you about my cookies? They always come out terrible. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. I always follow the recipe. But these are great."
Bella smiled but didn't utter a word about what Leah said about her mom's cookies. "Thanks," she said, heading back to the couch with Leah. "Leah, should we get ready for bed? It's past ten?"
"Is that when you usually go to bed, Isabella?" Leah teased.
"Yeah, actually it is," Bella yawned. "Do you want me to sleep on the couch or is there a place in your room for a sleepover?"
"There's a place in my room. I'm guessing you didn't pack night clothes or a toothbrush or anything?"
"No, I didn't think I'd need it for our breakfast date." Bella smiled.
"Alright, let's see what we can find you." Leah started to stand.
"Whoa, Leah, are you ok to walk? Do you want me to get Seth?"
"Oh yeah, I'm fine, I've just enjoyed you waiting on me tonight. I hope you're not too mad?" She looked down at Bella, hoping it was fine. "Now, before anything else, I really need to pee."
Leah trotted to the bathroom and was back before Bella finished folding up the blankets they had been snuggling under.
"Should I bring these blankets to your room?"
"Yeah, they came from my bed so they should probably go back."
"Oh," Bella nodded, "That must be why they smelled so good." She looked up at Leah's slack jawed expression and giggled. She enjoyed making this strong, beautiful woman feel good. It made her feel powerful.
"Come on," Leah put her arm around Bella's shoulder, "let's see what we can find for night clothes and a toothbrush."
Leah led Bella into her room. It was sparse but tidy. It had a full sized bed, required for someone Leah's height. Leah wasn't as tall as the guys, but she was at least 6'. A small desk was nestled in the corner. There was a bookshelf on one side of the closet and a dresser on the other. She opened the second drawer. "This is where I kept my nightgowns and pajamas before I phased. I've thought of refashioning some night gowns as dresses but they all look too pajama-y. See if there is anything in there you'd be comfortable in, then meet me in the bathroom across the hall."
Bella rummaged around the drawer and picked a silky green nightshirt that hit her mid thigh. She hoped this was ok. She slipped into it, folding her old clothes and placing them onto the desk chair. Across the hall in the bathroom, Leah was brushing her teeth. She had pulled out a toothbrush, still in the package, and put it on the counter for Bella.
"Oh, I don't want to take from you guys." Bella protested.
Leah spit into the sink. "It was a dentist freebie. We've got tons of them but we prefer these from the store." She held up her purple toothbrush. The one in the package was red. She saw a green and blue toothbrush in the holder, and one empty spot where Harry's used to be. "You can leave that here in case you stay over again." She pointed to the empty spot in the toothbrush holder.
Bella started brushing her teeth. She needed it. She didn't usually eat sweets after dinner and it made her mouth feel weird. After her final spit, she said, "I don't want to take that spot in the toothbrush holder. Why don't I put it in a ziploc bag and leave it in a drawer with the other free toothbrushes. Then it will be here for me if I need it."
"If that's what you're comfortable with, that's fine. I don't want to push you."
"Thanks," Bella stood on her tippy toes and kissed Leah's cheek, then darted from the room in search of a ziploc bag.
They met back in Leah's room. "So where is the spot in here for me to sleep?" She thought maybe there was a pullout bed or something.
"Oh, I'm sorry," Leah's eyes were glued to the floor, "I was hoping you'd snuggle with me tonight. It's just, after the vampire attack, knowing that she was after you, it scares me so much and I just don't want to stop touching you. It's the only way I'll know you're safe and be able to get any sleep. I'm sorry I wasn't clear about my intentions earlier. If you want to sleep on the couch, or I could sleep on the floor in here, maybe. I'm sorry, I should have said something earlier."
Bella reached up and put her finger over Leah's lips, making the 'shhh' symbol on Leah's lips. "Leah, that's fine. I was kind of hoping we wouldn't have to separate. I was actually dreading it. It brings me a weird sense of peace that we are feeling the same thing. Is that normal for imprints, do you know?"
"I, uh, I'm sorry Bella. I don't know much of anything about imprints. I always tuned out when the guys started talking about their imprints. Sometimes I would phase back to human so I didn't have to hear it. I've even walked out of meetings if there were too many imprint related topics. In some ways, I'm just as guilty as Jacob. I didn't think it would happen to me either, so I didn't prepare for it at all."
"What? Why didn't you think it would happen to you?" Bella asked, getting into the covers, waiting for Leah.
Leah hesitated. "I always sleep naked, Swan. I didn't think this through. I can put on a sleep shirt but I might overheat. What do you want me to do?"
"I want you to be comfortable, especially after your injury. I can handle you naked. I promise not to do anything you're not comfortable with." Bella grinned at Leah.
"That's my line!" Leah declared. Bella giggled. "Ok, turn around and scoot over." Bella obeyed. A moment later, she felt Leah's warm body slide in the covers behind her. Leah wrapped an arm over Bella's waist, resting her hand on her stomach. She moved Bella's long hair up on the pillow so that she could rest her head right behind Bella's. "Is this okay?" Leah asked, her lips right next to Bella's ear.
"Yeah, it's perfect," Bella sighed. Her body fit against Leah's like a glove. "So why didn't you think you'd imprint?"
Leah sighed. She was hoping Bella forgot the question. "Well, for one, they said imprinting was rare. Second, I'm a girl. There have never been any female wolves in our recorded history. Therefore, there were never any female imprinted wolves. Third, I was always bitter about imprinting in general. I knew it took Sam away from me and I saw it take away the choice of mate for several of the guys, including Jacob. Until I imprinted myself, I only ever saw downsides, so I didn't want to imprint. Finally, because of the belief that imprinting is to have pups. I knew I couldn't have pups, so I didn't think I'd imprint." Leah giggled. "Although now that I've imprinted on you, I think that whole pups theory is probably bullshit."
"Wait, why can't you have pups?" Bella sounded concerned.
"Well, I haven't had my period since I first phased. At first I thought it was the stress and the shock, but I don't think that anymore."
"Does it bother you? Not being able to carry children?"
"Kind of. I'm not sure I even want children. But not having that ability, like I have all these powers from being a shifter, but I don't even have the most basic ability that all healthy women should have. It makes me feel almost like a failure in a way. It makes me feel broken, I don't know, incomplete maybe, if that makes sense. Jeez, you must think I'm a total sap. Don't tell anyone I said that, Swan. Promise?"
"Of course not! I would never share that. And on the bright side, now we don't have to worry about birth control." Leah belly laughed at that unexpected quip. Then Leah pulled Bella tight against her, breathing in her scent deeply. Bella asked, "So how can we learn about imprinting? Who has imprinted?"
"Well you know about Jacob and Sam. Jared imprinted a while ago on Kim and Paul just imprinted a few weeks ago on Rachel, Jake's sister. Jared and Sam are probably the two best to talk to. We could even have a sit down meeting, the two of us, the two of them, and their imprints."
"Really, that won't be awkward because of you and Sam?"
"Oh no, it will be awkward as hell, but we both need to know about this stuff. The only other option is Old Quil. He has read every historical text about former packs. But I'm not sure he'd be too accepting or helpful with us. He's very old fashioned, stuck in his ways. He didn't believe I was actually a wolf until Sam ordered me to phase in front of him at the library, so humiliating."
"Oh, that reminds me, speaking of humiliating," Bella cringed. "Sam and I were watching you together this afternoon before Seth got home. Sam demanded to know why I wanted to stay. I didn't want to tell him about the imprint because you said you wanted to have more time to keep it out of the pack mind. Well, he got really worked up about me being here. He said he was afraid for your safety with me around and that he was getting angry and he didn't want to hurt me so I needed to tell him… So I told about the imprint. I know you didn't want it to get out but he promised he'd keep the secret until you were ready." Bella felt Leah roll away from her. Oh no, why was she leaving? She turned around to see Leah's naked body slide off the bed and then a giant wolf was in her place. The bed shook. The wolf lowered her head, almost like she was ashamed. Bell reached out and touched her muzzle. The wolf looked Bella in the eyes, and then disappeared.
Leah climbed back into bed, scooping Bella into her arms and holding her closely. "I'm sorry about that, baby. I didn't mean to scare you by turning into a wolf."
"What? Scare me? No! That was magical. Thank you for trusting me enough to let me see your wolf. But why now, in the dark when I couldn't see it so clearly?"
"Oh, Bella, I didn't mean to show you the wolf right then, but I'm so thankful that it didn't freak you out." Leah paused her confession and took a deep breath. "Sometimes when we get angry, we phase into the wolf involuntarily. When that happens, I need to have some distance between us or else you could get hurt, like Emily."
Bella was a little confused. "I'm sorry I told Sam about the imprint. I didn't know it would make you that angry. I'm sorry, okay?"
"Oh, Bella, baby, I'm not mad at you for telling Sam about the imprint. I'm mad at Sam for threatening you. Please don't be scared of me."
Neither of them said anything for several minutes. Leah thought maybe Bella fell asleep but her breathing pattern hadn't slowed.
Finally, Bella cut through the silence. "Are we moving too fast? We keep having these fearful misunderstandings. Maybe we need to step back, take more time as friends and get to know each other."
Leah froze. "Is that what you want?" she whispered.
"No!" Bella turned around and hugged Leah fiercely. "We just, we don't know each other at all. We don't trust each other either. We just have these deep feelings of commitment, protectiveness, need… love? But we don't even know each other. It feels like putting the cart before the horse times 100. I'm sleeping in your bed, clinging to your naked body and we haven't even kissed yet!"
She buried her face in Leah's chest and let a tear roll down. Damn, this was soft, comfortable, like home. Leah slowly scooted her body down. Bella hoped that she hadn't been over stepping by burying her face in Leah's boobs. Oh well, too late now. Better to ask forgiveness than permission, maybe. No, that wasn't a healthy relationship mantra. Then Leah's face was almost level with hers. Leah had her hands around Bella's back, comforting her, rubbing up and down on her silky sleep shirt.
Without warning, Leah's mouth crashed on Bella's. She had been wanting to taste those lips all day. Bella did not resist. Leah pulled Bellas lower lip into her mouth and padded it down with her tongue. She released it, then she pulled in Bella's smaller, upper lip, and ran her tongue along the Cupid's bow. Bella opened her mouth wider, inviting further exploration. Leah did not hesitate. She wanted to know everything about her imprint. Their tongues met in the middle, a little shy at first, then more enthusiastic in their exploration, just like the rest of their relationship so far. This felt so nice, Bella thought. Bella was careful to breathe through her nose so that she wouldn't have to pull away. That seemed like it would be awful, pulling away. She wanted to stay like this rubbing her tongue against Leah's, feeling Leah's soft, supple lips pressed against her own. Too soon for Bella's liking, Leah's tongue retreated and she pulled away.
"There." Leah started. "Now you can clutch to my naked body without feeling weird about it."
"Oh fuck." Bella whispered. Leah grinned as she shimmied up the bed so that Bella's head rested on her chest again. They were both exactly where they wanted to be. For the second time in one day, Bella fell asleep cuddled against Leah.