CHAPTER FOUR

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          His eyes were so intense, Genevieve had to hold her breath for a moment. It was as if time had stopped and the people around them had disappeared and it was just the two of them. Just Genevieve and Paul. The girls mouth opened as if she wanted to say something, but nothing came out. The cherry muffin she held between her fingers fell onto the kitchen table and bounced off and onto the wooden floor.

Paul seemed to snap out of his daze and let out a growl, literally. Genevieve furrowed her eyebrows when his shoulders tensed. It had come from deep within his throat. He tore his dark eyes away from her own and stormed out of the house, slamming the door so hard it almost came off its hinges. Gen flinched, and felt as if something in her stomach sunk and she slumped further into her chair, unable to tear her eyes from the spot he had stood.

Quil jumped up, chair shrieking against the floor and he stormed after Paul with a shout about killing him.

"Well," Embry clasped his hands together, trying to hold in a chuckle like the rest of the boys. 

"Did I do something?" muttered Genevieve.

"No," Jacob shook his head, turning towards her. "That's just Paul. You'll get used to it, nothing personal. He's a bit of a hothead."

Sam Uley had gone after the two boys not long after they had disappeared outside. Genevieve sat quietly as Jared and Embry joked around, whispering to each other while glancing out the door every now and then, as if they were betting on something. Jacob tried to hide his amusement but was unsuccessful as he laughed at them. 

"Are they always this weird?" asked Genevieve, reaching down to grab her muffin and putting it on the table before her.

"Define weird." he snorted. "More like a pain in the ass."

Gen chuckled and agreed with him before glancing back at the door. "Where did you think they went? Are they okay?"

"Probably just out back or something," Jacob shrugged, following her line of sight. "or, at the beach, there isn't much else nearby. You know Paul probably left because he noticed Quil. They had a fight at work, but nothing to worry about. They'll get over it. Eventually."

"Alright," she sighed just as Quil came back through the door, still in a bad mood but he gave his sister a small grin as he sat down. "Did you make up?"

"Huh?" he frowned, distracted, before Jacob gave him a pointed look as Quil said, "Yeah, we'll get over it."

Moments after Quil had entered back into the home, Sam came through the door and headed straight for his fiance, planting kisses all over her face. The old floorboards creaked and Gen averted her gaze back towards the entrace. His dark eyes found hers again and he glanced away. Paul sat down, as far away from her as he could with a glare on his face. How welcoming.

Genevieve bit the inside of her cheek, feeling hurt as she focussed her attention on Emily who had started putting lunch on the table. There was a lot of it and Gen wondered how they'd finish it all. The group of boys inhaled the food and she raised her brows. 

"Leave some for us girls, will you." retorted Emily.

Paul peered down at her from the corner of his eyes every now and then, watching her eat while his plate was still empty. How on earth could he have imprinted. He had always known that he would never imprint, it was pretty rare for any of them to find their imprint. He didn't deserve it. He had already planted that into his own mind. He didn't want it. But now that he did, he felt torn and angry. He couldn't wipe her face from his mind and it bothered him. Didn't he have free will anymore? Was she now all that he was supposed to care about?

He had felt the connection the moment their eyes had met. He felt this sense of protectiveness wash over him when he imprinted moments ago. Sure, he didn't want this. He was going to try and ignore it. The twenty three year old let out a sigh and turned to face the table, filling his plate with various sandwiches. No, he didn't want to have an imprint. 

Paul felt her eyes on him and he clenched his jaw. He glanced up to tell her to piss off, but then their eyes met and the feeling of anger melted away. Her eyes were widened slightly as she looked at him curiously. He felt the nerves radiating off of her. She shot him a tight lipped smile and he felt himself smile back. Fuck.

"I'm Paul,"

He didn't know he had spoken until the group had fallen silent to watch their interaction. He sobered up and glared at them.

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The sky had almost turned as black as the sea was behind the house. The rain had stopped and there were crickets heard near the windows. Genevieve's mother would be home by now and she told Quil she wanted to head home. Her eyes were burning from the lack of sleep the past few weeks. 

"Shit," Quil cussed under his breath. "I have pa - work." he muttered, correcting himself but Genevieve was too tired to even notice. "I forgot I have a double shift today."

The brunette sighed softly and took out her phone, to ask if her mother could pick her up. She didn't fancy a walk through the forest in the dark. Sam stopped her with a soft shake of his head and turned to Quil. "It's fine, i'll cover your shift."

Quil seemed surprised. Apparantly, Sam didn't do this very often because the rest of the boys looked at the oldest of them with the same expression. Sam knew what it was like to lose a family member, so he decided that it was okay for him to skip one night of patrol. Quil never complained like the rest of them did, so he deserved a break for the night.

"Thanks," Quil nodded gratefully.

Paul got up from his seat and said, "You're dropping me off, too." He didn't bother to look at either sibling and wandered outside. Quil clenched his jaw and followed after the hothead. Jacob whispered something underneath his breath with gained a loud laugh from Embry.

"It was lovely to meet you, Genevieve." Emily smiled as she pulled the girl into a tight embrace. "Please, don't be a stranger."

"It was nice to meet you too, Emily." Genevieve said, feeling grateful for her hospitality. "Thank you for today. Have a great night."

"See you, soon." Sam smiled.

Genevieve said her goodbyes to the rest of her new and old friends and left the small home. Quil was already in the drivers seat whereas Paul was leaning against the car, jaw clenched and arms crossed. Gen felt intimidated as she tried not to look at the man. Paul forced a smile when he saw her and waited for her to get in the passenger's seat before sliding in in the back. 

Quil revved the engine and the car spluttered to life. He began to drive down the dirt road, glancing at Paul from the rear view mirror.

The silence was awkward and you could cut it with a knife if that was possible. Genevieve had no idea why the two friends had been fighting but since she didn't know Paul she thought it was polite to start a conversation. "So, Paul," she began, getting his attention as he let out a hum. "Do you work with Quil as well?"

"Yeah," he slid towards the middle, leaning forwards slightly so he could see her better. Gen turned peering up at him. Warmth radiated towards her and she wondered if they all naturally ran hot. "We all do."

"Do you like it?" she asked.

Paul barked out a laugh, which seemed to rumble deep from within his chest. Genevieve swallowed and turned to look out the window on his left. "Not really, but it's a family business, you know. I'm kind of forced to work at the shop."

"You can always do something else on the side?" she suggested, frowning. "Something that makes you happy."

Paul let out a huff and shook his head, his face turning sour. Genevieve didn't move her gaze from him and he leaned back before sending her a small smile. She did the same. Gen smelled good, he noted, like oranges and spices. It was a significant smell, one he was sure he couldn't erase from his mind even if he wanted to.