"Harry is a great man." Sam said as he drove Bella to the Clearwaters' house. "He's good friends with your dad, too. Fishing buddies, I think."
"Everyone is friends with my dad. Why do we have to meet with everyone in person? Couldn't this just be a phone call?" Bella sounded whiny.
"Did you have plans today, Bella?" Sam asked, amused.
"Kim and I were going to give each other pedicures."
Sam's mouth gaped open. "I didn't know you had a foot fetish."
"You don't know any of my fetishes, Sam Uley, and I hope Emily doesn't ever tell you. Nevertheless, I don't have a foot fetish, but I'm pretty sure Kim does." Her cadence picked up speed as she talked excitedly. "I usually do some light massage and Sam, I can get that girl moaning. It is so hot."
"Does Jared know about these pedicures?"
"He watches." She grinned proudly. "He's going to be pissed that we have to reschedule."
"If you say so." Sam knew that Jared didn't get pissed about much. He stopped short as they approached the Clearwater's house. "Shit!"
"What? I can show you how to do the foot massage, but Emily isn't into it as much as Kim is. She just grunts a little."
"Leah's car is here." Sam was almost whispering, like he was trying to hide as he parked his car. "Harry said she'd be working."
"Ooh. Who's Leah?" Bella was always intrigued when meeting new women.
"She's my ex-girlfriend, the one I was with when I imprinted on Emily."
"Is she hot? Is she single?" Bella was excited now.
"Oh, she's definitely your type, Bella." Sam said with a snicker. "She's straight."
"We'll see about that."
"Bella, we're here to see Harry, Leah's father, so don't get distracted."
"You can talk to Harry."
"Bella," Sam said in a warning tone as they approached the house.
Sam knocked. A tall lanky boy opened the door. "Seth! Your dad is expecting us. This is Bella."
Sam gave the boy a fist bump. Politely, Seth said, "Hi Bella, nice to meet you. Come on in," Seth said to Sam. "He's in his office. You know the way."
Leah leaned on the doorway between the kitchen and living room, leering at Sam. Sam averted his eyes and went straight for Harry's office, expecting Bella to follow close behind.
Bella scanned the room until she saw the legs. Her eyes ran up them, absorbing the perfectly proportional hourglass figure on top. When she got to the pretty face that topped the flawless body, she froze.
Those eyes were linked to the core of her soul. Her pull toward them was stronger than gravity. The yearning for this woman was suffocating her.
She imprinted.
Her legs pushed her towards the girl who was watching her approach.
"I'm Bella."
"Beautiful," Leah said, almost breathless. Leah was mesmerized by the gorgeous woman who was standing in her living room for some reason.
Bella smiled.
"In Spanish," Leah corrected herself, trying to snap out of it. "Bella means beautiful in Spanish." Leah was blushing.
"What's your name?" Bella asked.
"Leah."
"Hi Leah, I'm Bella."
Leah giggled. "Yeah, we covered that already."
"Shit, I'm stumped. What are you doing after?"
"After what?"
"After Sam makes me talk to your dad."
Leah's face scrunched into a scowl. Now she had snapped out of her trance completely. "You're one of Sam's gang, huh? I'm busy after."
Leah turned and walked into the kitchen.
"Bella," Sam scolded again.
Bella followed him to Harry's study. With a huff, she sat down with Harry and Sam. The two men talked about the GED process. Bella thought about the girl on the other side of the wall.
Leah.
Sigh.
"Any questions, Bella?" Harry asked.
"Yeah, Sam, what does imprinting feel like?"
"He means do you have any questions about the GED process," Harry said with humor in his voice.
"Nope."
"So you understood it all?" Sam asked.
"It's a test, right?"
"Were you even listening?"
"Sam, a wise alpha once told me: don't ask questions you don't want to know the answer to."
Harry laughed. "Good luck, Sam. I'll leave you in charge of her."
Sam's voice had unwavering authority. "Actually, since she's tribe now, and pack with no immediate family on the rez, isn't she entitled to her own place?"
Bella was panicking. "Did I go too far with Emily? Don't kick me out! I won't hit on her anymore, Sam. I think I imprinted, so I really won't. I can quit cold turkey, I swear!"
Sam put his hand on her shoulder. "I'm not kicking you out, Bella. I just want to get the ball rolling. The pack houses are dumps, no offense, Harry. So if we get you one now, it'll give us time to fix it up for when you decide you want to move out."
"Phew." Bella pretended to wipe the sweat of her forehead with the back of her hand. "I don't know if I could live without Emily's breakfast sandwiches."
"They're just eggs on toast."
She rubbed her belly. "And so good."
Sam rolled his eyes.
"If she's imprinted, she's entitled to a two bedroom like you, Sam. Otherwise she's entitled to a one bedroom." Harry turned to Bella. "Who did you imprint on?"
Bella looked nervous. "I'm not sure. That's why I wanted to talk to Sam, but I think I just imprinted on Leah."
A bunch of veins started popping out in Sam's neck. Bella touched one with her finger, pressing on it. It snapped back into place when she lifted her finger.
"Neat trick, Sam," she said casually.
Through gritted teeth, Sam asked, "What makes you think you imprinted on Leah?"
"Well I was checking out her hot bod and when I got to her face, her eyes were linked to my soul somehow and they were pulling like gravity and there was a feeling of suffocating, but in a good way, sort of, like choking during sex. I might not be explaining it right. No, that is right, like sex choking. Anyway, I hit on her and it was going great but it all fell apart when you came up in conversation, Sam."
Harry and Sam were looking at each other, not sure what to say.
"Two bedrooms it is, then," Harry finally said, looking at a notebook on his desk. "Sam, there's two houses available on Maple Road and another on Pine Street. If you want to take Bella, see which she prefers, then I can get started on the formalities."
"What will I eat, Sam?" Bella asked frantically. "How will I pay for electricity? I'm not ready for this!"
"Bella, it's covered, but I'm not kicking you out. Emily won't let me."
"Ha!" She crossed her arms over her chest. "And you still think she's straight?"
"Yes," he said firmly. "You can move out when you're ready, and only after we get a house ready for you."
"Fine. Can we go now?"
"To the houses?" Sam asked.
"No, I just want to leave. Leah just left and I want to try again with her."
"Go ahead."
Bella ran out of the house. Leah's car was still in the driveway. She ran around the house, searching. Leah was sitting in a lawn chair, reading a book in the backyard.
"Busy, huh?" Bella said, sitting next to her.
Leah kept reading. "Uh huh."
"Whatcha reading?"
Leah held up the book title for Bella but kept reading. "Midsummer Night's Dream. Are you a Shakespeare nerd?"
"No, I need this class to graduate."
"When do you graduate?" Bella had both elbows on the table. She was leaning forward to try to get a better look at Leah's face.
"In a few weeks if I can pass this class."
"I can tutor you."
Leah lowered the book a little. "Are you good at essays?"
"Fucking awesome." Bella was nodding proudly. "And I'm decent at Shakespeare too."
"Have you read this?"
"Yeah, but it's been a while. You want to watch it if you can."
Leah cocked her head. "How am I supposed to watch it? Go to Seattle or something?"
"The library has a DVD. We could have a study date."
Leah held the book in her lap, her finger acting as a bookmark. She looked into Bella's heart-shaped face and her heart fluttered. Building her courage, she asked, "Why do you want to help me? Did Sam put you up to this?"
"No! I just want to. I want to know you better."
Leah narrowed her eyes. "Why did you join his gang?"
"I didn't!" Bella shook her head desperately. "Sam doesn't have a gang. I just work for the council."
"How? You're not Quileute."
"I am, though." Bella leaned closer to Leah and whispered like she was sharing a secret. "There was an illicit affair involving my Gran. The council figured it all out, did the testing. I'm even getting a house."
Leah looked mad at the house news. "You're getting a house?"
"Because I work for the council. There is a room for you if you want. I'm getting a two bedroom."
Leah's teeth were clenched now. "You're getting a two bedroom house?"
"Sam says it's a dump but I think we can get it ready in a few weeks if I push the guys. You can have your own room if you want."
"What are you talking about? My own room?"
"It's a two bedroom."
"Yeah, you said that," Leah said tersely.
"Right. So I can get that DVD from the library and we can watch it together tonight."
"Watch a Midsummer Night's Dream? Is that what we're talking about now?"
"Yeah, dinner and a movie."
Leah shrugged. "Where? Seth's having a sleepover so he'll be playing video games."
"I'm guessing you don't want to go to Sam and Emily's…" Bella looked around the backyard, trying to think of a solution. "Paul's! He'll let me use his living room."
"Where are you living?" Leah asked, suspicious of why Sam and Emily's house was even brought up as an option.
"With Sam and Emily," Bella said sheepishly, "but only until I get the house set up. And I'm getting a house with space for you."
"What are you even talking about: space for me?"
"It's a two bedroom, Leah. If you don't want to sleep with me yet, you can have your own bedroom."
Leah giggled. Bella fucking loved it.
"Why would I get your second bedroom?" She looked at Bella's lovely face, waiting for a response that made sense.
"Because I want you to."
"Why me? I just met you."
"You're right. I shouldn't just ask a girl to move in with me just because she's irresistibly hot. We can take it slow. So how about dinner and a movie at Paul's tonight? Paul won't be there. I'll kick him out."
"Paul is one of Sam's gang." Leah stated it like it was an irrefutable fact.
"There's no gang, Leah. Paul works for the council like me."
"I don't know. I don't want to be sucked into Sam's world."
"I won't invite Sam to our date," Bella promised.
"Date?"
"Dinner and a movie. A date. We can do it as just friends but it might make the kissing part awkward."
Leah laughed again. "I really don't know what to make of you, Bella."
"You can call me Beautiful. I liked that too."
"Maybe after the kissing part." Leah said, looking down with a slight blush. She looked up at Bella under her long eyelashes to see her reaction.
Bella gaped at Leah's beauty, so excited for the kissing part. Then she snapped back to herself. "I've got to go tell Paul I'm ruining his night. I'll pick you up at 6:00, ok?"
"Sure." She watched Bella gracefully stand from her chair, almost like a dancer. Leah asked, "What should I wear?"
Bella looked up and down Leah's body. It made Leah feel tingly inside and a little aroused. "This is great, but wear whatever you want."
Bella kissed the top of Leah's head, breathing in her scent. Cinnamon and pine. "6:00," she whispered.
Bella burst into Paul's house moments later, since they lived in the same street as Leah. Rachel was straddling his lap on the couch but they were both mostly clothed.
"I need your house. I have a date." Bella stated.
"Why do you need my house? Why can't you kick Sam out of his?"
"It's a date with Leah Clearwater."
"Ah shit, Bella. She's straight." Paul was shaking his head.
Bella stood in front of Paul's surfboard, her hands on her hips. "You know I don't believe in straight girls."
Paul sighed. "When is your date? Does she know it's a date?"
"Tonight. 6:00." Bella grinned while saying, "I told her we could do it as just friends but it would make the kissing awkward."
"She probably thought you were kidding!" Paul exclaimed.
"I don't think so," Bella said confidently. "She smelled aroused when I was checking her out. Also I need your car."
"Ugh. Does Sam know?"
"Yeah, when I told him I imprinted the veins on his neck all popped out. It was really cool."
"You imprinted!? Bella, you can't fuck her tonight!" Paul said almost harshly.
"What are you talking about? I'll wash the bedding. I'm civilized."
"Does Sam know you have a date? Does Sam know how many straight girls you fuck?"
"They're not straight if they fuck me, Paul! I'm a woman! And I need your car. I need to pick up dinner and a movie."
"Just a minute." Paul put Rachel on the couch next to him. "We'll have to finish this later."
Rachel nodded understandingly.
Paul went to the phone and dialed Sam. "Emergency pack meet, my house, you bring Jared."
"No one wants a pack meet for my date, Paul. None of you are even invited. I don't want to take my truck, but I will."
"The pack meet will be in my car." Paul was getting his keys.
"Good. I'm driving."
"Fine, when they get here. There's a lot you don't know, Bella. The imprint feels what the wolf feels. It's going to be complicated with Leah."
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Bella opened the door and skipped to the car.
"Sam, you have shotgun. Jared, sit behind Sam." Paul didn't usually order the guys around but everyone complied. It was clearly an emergency.
Paul got in behind Bella and dropped his keys on her lap.
"What's the emergency, Paul?" Sam asked.
Bella started driving into Forks.
Paul began the meeting. "First, Jared, Bella imprinted on Leah Clearwater."
"Shit," Jared breathed.
"Second, I feel like Bella has been hiding some of her special talents from you guys. Bella, when you go clubbing, on average, how many girls do you get with who are virgins."
"I don't ask them that!"
"I mean, virgins to lesbian sex."
"Oh, I get at least one per night, then, depending how it went, I might go for one more that is experienced. Then I see who's left in the club and go from there. I basically have to squeeze a week's worth of sex into one night."
"No one's judging you, Bella." Paul reassured her. "I just wanted the guys to understand your, uh, talents. How often do you get turned down by girls?"
"It doesn't work that way, Paul. I can tell if a girl is willing before I approach her." She glanced at him in the rearview mirror. "You remember how to do it."
"She's got a date with Leah tonight, at my house."
"Don't worry guys," Bella said. "New girls can get me off, they just need a little education and guidance. I'm sure Leah will be fine."
Jared tried not to laugh. "No one is worried about whether or not you'll get an orgasm from her tonight, Bella."
Sam was in shock. When he snapped out of it, he exclaimed, "You can't sleep with her, Bella!"
"You dumped her, Sam! You don't get to decide who she sleeps with!"
"Sleeping with her means she accepts the imprint," Sam explained, trying to remain calm. "If you sleep with her without telling her about the pack and the imprint, you are tricking her into accepting the imprint."
Bella drove in silence for a minute. "Oh," she said quietly.
Everyone just waited for her to come around. "But Paul had his whole arm up Rachel the night he imprinted. Had you already told her about the pack, Paul?"
"No! But I didn't put my dick in her until she was ready to accept the imprint."
Bella thought for a few minutes. Then she pulled into Charlie's. "Wait here."
She ran into the house and came back out less than a minute later with a book. She put it in Sam's lap.
"So I can do everything but scissoring," Bella declared confidently
"Scissoring?" Jared asked.
Sam and Paul both did the hand motion for scissoring.
"Yeah, I know what scissoring is!" Jared said, a little annoyed. "But Bella, why do you think you can do everything but scissoring?"
"Scissoring is clit to clit, genital to genital. If that was Paul's restriction, it's mine, too."
"I'm not sure that's right," Paul said.
"I will not be held to a double standard!"
"No one wants that, Bella," Sam said gently. Bella pulled into the library parking lot and ran inside. She came out a few minutes later with a DVD.
She had one more stop. "What kind of sandwiches does she like, Sam?"
"Chicken Parmesan is her favorite. She also likes meatball subs."
Bella went into the sandwich shop. She emerged fifteen minutes later with a bag that smelled great.
"Anything else, guys? I need to get ready."
"Bella, how often do you do scissoring?" Jared asked.
"Only like, once or twice a month. I will do other tribbing if I find a girl with the right anatomy."
"What's tribbing?" Jared asked.
Sam and Paul both shrugged.
"It's like scissoring but in different configurations based on the girl's anatomy. It's clit to clit. I won't do that with Leah until she's ready, ok?"
"And you can abstain?"
"Of course! Who do you think I am? I abstained that whole time I was a missing person. And I can still fuck her in other ways. I'll be fine."
"Have you thought about how you want to tell her about the pack?" Sam asked.
"Nope."
"When do you want to talk to her about it?"
"No idea."
"That's something to think about," Sam said, sounding defeated. He was.
Bella pulled into Sam's driveway. She tossed the keys for her truck to Paul. "When I bring your car back here, I'll be done with my date and you can have your house back."
Bella went into Sam's, showered and got ready for her date. She wore a knee length sleeveless blue dress. It was flirty but not over the top sexual.
She brought the sandwiches to Paul's and put them in the warming drawer under the oven. Then she drove to pick up Leah.
