'“Hey, cool it, Black. I was just playing around,” Paul retracted, shrugging his shoulders. He knew better than to mess with me when I threatened him with a real fight.'        Heh! At least he knows when to stop.        :-]

  'When the happiness washed over her, I could tell that the wheels began to turn in Emily’s head. She began to realize what circumstances had been in motion in order for this to happen. For that, I watched her expression sadden. “I can’t tell you how sorry I am for your loss,” she told Ellie in a soft tone.'         Smart woman.

  'You’re running out of time, and excuses, Black. You better come clean and do it quick. It’s only a matter of time before she finds out one way or another. When she does, you’ll be so balls deep in your own lies that it’ll just make everything that much worse, my mind kept screaming at me. Despite my better judgment, I ignored my conscience. I’d tell Ellie, but right now was not the time to do it.'        I agree that he has to tell her, the sooner the better.  But, if I was on his place... How do you drop a bomb like that?  "Hi, honey.  Guess what?  Your boyfriend is a werewolf.  Awooooooooo..."        P-)

  “We got word from Sam that they just returned from their honeymoon early, though no one knows why.”        “What do you mean no one knows why?”        “Give us a break, Jake; it’s like they’ve got the Cullen house on lockdown. Very rarely do more than one or two members of the clan, at most, leave the house to hunt. It’s like they’re guarding something; we just don’t know what yet.”        It must be Nessie.  But I'm confused.  I thought they already knew about her.        :-/

  'Quil shoved me hard, and I gritted my teeth, fighting back the growl in my throat. “Fighting isn’t going to solve anything, Quil. My imprint’s missing too!” I told him.         Wait, what?        My imprint, yes…Ellie was my imprint!'        Ah, finally!  A strange, subtle imprint, but it's good to see it confirmed at last.        :)

  'La Push wasn’t entirely safe from the bloodsuckers and with the rumors surrounding the Cullens and Bella, it only made things more dangerous. I didn’t trust any of them—hell, I wasn’t even sure if I could trust Bella anymore.'        Nonsense.  The Cullens would never invade La Push, much less do something awful (unless your AU is waaaaayyyyy AU).  But, then what the heck?  Nomads?  Or... Please, tell me Ellie didn't lost it and kidnapped Claire.  Okay, I'm on my toes.        :-P

Well I see Paul is being an ass!  Go figure!  I hope he isn't to rude to Ellie!  I'm glad Billie and Emily have been nice to her, she deserves it!

Hot, hot, hot! Can't wait for chapter 22. Paul and Ellie are going hit heads sooo hard. He's such a snarky bastard.

Great chapter.Sad,but things certainly are going to get very interesting. looking forward to chapter 21.

I'm so glad they are in La Push!  I can't wait to see how she handles everything, and Jake and Ell running into Bella!  I hope the pack is nice to her!

Take care, Dixie

  Whew!  Glad she decided to ignore Devan's suspicions.  Otherwise, Jake wouldn't have a chance to explain things to her.

  “El, you don’t get it. None of that matters. All I need right now, and all I’ll ever need, is you. My life wouldn’t mean anything without you in it”        I knew Jake wouldn't disappoint.        :)

  Things are set!  Their trip to La Push is coming.  But I don't see Devan giving up, not with something so serious as murder.  While I still think he tends to screw things up, I will allow that he cares for Ellie, and won't let her simply go with a potential criminal.  I'm anxious to see what Devan will do, and how Jacob will fix this situation.

  Almost catching up...

  'However, when I stood up on all four paws I couldn’t help but grin when I saw the rather large gash on Paul’s chest.'        Well, it is something, albeit short-lived.        P-)

  “Well, I sure hope you know what you’re doing. If things go badly, it will affect all of us. Your people will be the ones to pay for your impulsive behavior.”        And here I thought Imprinting was sacred to them.  I know the Pack is worried with the safety of the tribe, but was Sam seriously asking Jacob to abandon his imprint?  Geez...

  “Let me ask you something Black, do you really think I’m that fucking stupid?”        Weeeeell, I did.        :-P

  So, Devan is suspicious of Jacob...  Curious, I would expect Ellie to be the one.  But I guess she had too much on her plate.

  '“You have time, El. In a couple years, you could always have another kid. Hell, you’d be one heck of a mother,”(...)        She smiled a weak smile, and hesitantly muttered a “maybe.” It took me a while to notice the tear that had slid down her cheek.'        Hmm...  The time is coming for her to put this card on the table.

  Jacob and his supernatural lineage, Ellie and her sterility.  I'm kinda anxious to see what will happen when they drop on each other's lap their last secrets.        :-|

  'Sure, she had been my best friend and, in different circumstances, we probably would have stayed friends. However, she had chosen her lifestyle; she was a married woman and my mortal enemy out of her own free will.'        Hmpf!  So dramatic...

  'Suddenly, my ties to the Earth ended.(...)  Gravity wasn’t holding me to the world anymore; she was the only thing that mattered, the only person that gave living any meaning.'        Geez, it sure took it's time in his case.        :-P

  Am I right in assume that the reason the imprint was so slow in his case was his trauma with Bella?

  'I looked down into the ditch to find the body of the vampire was nothing more than a barely recognizable skeleton. Whatever remained of him was a charcoal colored ash. He had disintegrated fast(...)  I then concluded that the spot where Vic’s body had fallen was in the exact spot of the sunlight, causing him to deteriorate quicker.'        Explanations, please?        :-o

  *Tsk*  Paul lost a good opportunity to shut up at the end of the chapter.  I wish Jake a good meal out of him.        P-)

  Sometimes I wonder why Paul is portrayed so stupid all around the place.  I mean, in the books, I think his problem was quick temper, not idiocy.  Just an observation.

  *rubbing hands*  La Push and disclosure closer.  Awesome!  Good chapter, CJ.

  'Though a voice in the back of my head kept echoing in my skull, I couldn’t get past the fact that she had lied to me.'        The way I see it, what Ellie did was not lie.  The thing with Vic was simply part of her story.  A very painful one, at that.  Hers to share when she deemed fit.  Until Vic crawled from beneath a rock, the only bad thing about her not telling is that the trauma of it was interfering in her relationship with the people around her.        :-|

  'I couldn’t help the grin that stretched across my lips. Gently, I pulled her closer to me, tracing my fingertips over every crevasse of her abdomen and hips. When my lips met hers, it was like fireworks. A foreign passion ignited within me, one that I didn’t even know existed. It was then that I realized, imprint or not,she and I could have a damn good life together.'        Heheh!  I think Jake's dream proves that his subconscious is smarter than him!        :)

    'After I processed his words, I knew in a way Devan was right. I began to realize that I was comparing her to Bella. Ellie had shown nothing but pure interest in me, never once played any games, and I completely shut her out. I was hiding a pretty damn big secret of my own, but then again, I planned on telling her, when the time was right.        Who’s to say she wasn’t going to tell you?'        Ah, finally!  Devan sort of made up for his part on this mess.        :)

  'You’d better watch out, Vic Sullivan, because I’m coming in there after you.'        Uh-oh!  Is Jake too late?  Damn, you are forcing me to read the next chapter!        :-P

  'That name was the last thing I heard before a blinding fury overcame me. It was so powerful that everything around me went black, and all I could hear was the shattering of bone underneath my fist.'        Here, I became confused. Wasn't Sullivan the vampire who registered at Jake's hotel?        :-/

  *Tsk*  I think Devan made another huge screw up telling Jacob about Sullivan.  It was Ellie's to tell.  He should learn to keep his mouth shut!

  Maybe I'm being naive, but what ticked Jacob so much?  I mean, first he says “So she has a kid, big deal”, and in the next minute it's "I’m done"?  Especially since it was years before he knew her.  His reaction seems out of proportion to me.        :-[

  The progression is fine so far.  I just hope it isn't many chapters ahead that I will see Jake and Ellie together again.        :(

Im getting so impatient!  Hopefully in the next couple of chapters?

Take care, Dixie

Author's Response:

It will happen in the next couple chapters Dixie, don't you worry! Ellie will find out about Jake in La Push, I can tell you that much

It's inyrtrsting that Devon suspects something about Jake.  I bet he would never guess in a million years.  I can't wait for Ellie to find out!

  'The possibility of having Ellie in my life made me desire all of the things I never wanted; a wife, kids...maybe a family dog.'       Kids?  Uh-oh!  I hope he doesn't get too disappointed.        :-|

  "Victor Sullivan, is that you? Never thought I'd see your face in town again"   Sullivan?!?  Uh-oh again, squared!!  The red-eyes are not an improvement!        :-O

  Sincerely, I didn't understand Jake's tolerance.  He knows "vegetarians" have golden eyes, right?

  Devan's text messages.  Hmm, he was acceptably civil.  More than I thought he would.        :-]

  "Well, not really. Only because my sisters are both older than me, and they live out of state, so it's hard to keep tabs on them."        Hmm, shouldn't Rachel be at La Push, with Paul?

  'I watched as she basically took over what was supposed to be my responsibility. I helped her elevate the tire, but she got to work removing the flat and putting on the spare, quite efficiently I might add. I could only stare dumbfounded at her expertise.'        Heheh!  It was funny to see Ellie take charge.        :)

  The date, the lake, the kisses...  Good stuff, CJ.  And now Jake wants her to go to La Push with him?  That sounds interesting.  If Ellie is half as perceptive as she seems to be...

  To go back to see Bella...  I imagine that, even in your reality, she is a vamp now, right?  And, with two years, Nessie must have grown a lot.