way to a man's heart *CADEN*

[tamaya]

Tamaya stood next to the couch and was watching the food network as she folded some of the laundry that she'd done earlier. Even though Sam hadn't exactly been excited when Caden had imprinted on his younger sister and although Sam probably enjoyed blaming Caden for some trouble that Tamaya got into, even he had to admit that Caden had had a bit of a calming effect on Tamaya. Tamaya didn't go looking for ways to push her brother's buttons anymore and she rarely did anything that Sam didn't approve of because she knew that odds were pretty good if he didn't approve then Caden probably wouldn't approve. Although Tamaya still didn't spend all of her time at home, whenever she wasn't there you could pretty much expect to find her at Caden and Gabriel's home like she was that day. A lot of people said the transformation in the apartment had been amazing and it was hard to tell that two bachelors lived there.

After she'd gotten out of school Tamaya had headed straight for Forks and had used a key that Caden had given her to get into the guys apartment. Tamaya regularly did the guys laundry, although she was fairly certain they hid their underwear and did it themselves since she never found any sign of them. After throwing in the first load, Tamaya had started to clean up a bit, although the place wasn't really all that messy since the boys were rarely ever there and really only used the place to sleep. She'd then began to prepare dinner and after sliding the lasagna into the oven she'd gone to get the dry clothes and now found herself standing in the living room folding up the guys dark clothes. As Sam liked to tease her, Tamaya had become a mini Emily. To which Tamaya always faked a fainting spell before shaking her head and saying she never wanted to be Emily. All Tamaya had to do was deal with two guys with large appetites. Emily had to deal with an army of people with those same appetites.

Looking up when she heard a noise in the hallway, Tamaya set down the shirt she'd been folding then headed into the kitchen and opened up the fridge. A few moments later Gabriel appeared from his room and Tamaya handed him a small cooler looking bag that had a couple bottles of water, a container with some rice and another container with some of the beef and brocolli they'd had for dinner the night before. Tamaya knew that Gabriel wasn't her imprint and she'd heard about his imprint who made focusing on his work difficult when she was in the room, but that didn't mean Tamaya couldn't take care of Gabriel as well while she was taking care of Caden. Unless Gabriel had the night off, he normally had leftovers from dinner from the day before but he never really complained. Tamaya figured it was because the leftovers had to be better then the same fast food or hospital food he'd been having before.

After Gabriel left Tamaya glanced at the clock and saw that it was nearly four which meant that Caden should have been home soon. He normally got home around three thirty or four and Tamaya liked to have her mess put away before he got home. Hurrying into the living room Tamaya finished folding up the last few shirts really quick then took them into Caden's room and set his things on the foot of his bed before going into Gabriel's and setting his things on his bed. She knew she probably confused the clothes on occasion but she was getting better at identifying who's stuff belonged to who. She figured if she saw them on Caden then she put them with his things and the same went for Gabriel's stuff. Things she wasn't sure about she just guessed and let the guys sort them out later. There were only two of them so it wasn't like they wouldn't know who the things belonged to.

Moving back out to the living room, Tamaya walked over to her book bag which was on the floor near the door. Pulling out the book she had to read for English, Tamaya walked back to the couch then took a seat and tucked her legs up underneath her. Her white sandals stayed on the floor while her the light blue jeans she wore covered all but her feet. Her torso was covered with a light pink button up blouse over a white tank top. Her dark hair hung down around her face although she did brush it back over her shoulders and tuck it behind her ears as she began to read. Depending on what Caden had to do, Tamaya would either do her homework while he graded papers or she would hang out with her boyfriend then do her homework when she got home later that night.

Although it had taken longer then any other imprint relationship, with the exception of course being her brother and Emily, Tamaya and Caden were finally a couple. It was weird for Tamaya the first few times that she'd referred to Caden as her boyfriend but at the same time nothing else had ever felt so right. It felt like they were meant to be together and even if she hadn't known what imprinting was, she would have had to say that she'd found the man she knew she'd spend the rest of her life with. She knew he was made for her and she was made just for him, there was no way anybody else would ever feel so right.

Looking up about ten minutes later, Tamaya smiled when she heard the sound of a key in the lock and she slipped the bookmark back into her book. As she set her book down on the nearby coffee table, the front door opened inward and Tamaya got to her feet with a smile as she saw her boyfriend standing framed in the doorway. Making her way towards him with a huge smile, Tamaya wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips against his for a quick kiss.

[caden]

with all my
best intentions

It had been a surprisingly long day at the high school, and Caden had never been happier to see his car. Being a science teacher wasn't exactly challenging, at least not in his opinion. He taught simple Biology, taking his students on fieldtrips as often as he could. It had taken some convincing to get Forks High School to hire him, but he came highly reccommended by Sam Uley, the local superstar even in Vampireville, so the board consented to his application. He was by far the youngest teacher in the place, just barely twenty. Coming from Ireland was quite an experience for Caden. Both he and Gabriel had finished their educations rather early, so it wasn't like they had to wait around much to leave home for favor of the United States. They both had the equivelent of College Degrees by the time they were 17, and after Caden had moved away Gabriel followed. The two travelled the states, Caden mostly just trying to escape from his sister while Gabriel went from one hospital to the next, stunning them with his experience and quick hands in the field of emergency surgery. Caden never would have expected his life to become what it was now. He had settled in Forks, gotten himself an imprint, and allowed his sister to finally track him down. Whatever happened to all those one night stands, lack of employment, and running from the Devil herself? What on earth had made Caden change?

Tamaya. It was that simple. He adored her, loved her with every part of his being. He didn't expect to imprint, in fact he had no idea what it was until he had moved to Forks and met Sam. The man was sent from the Gods, Caden swore by it. There wasn't another person on this planet who knew as much about werewolves as Sam did. He had explained to Caden the fundamentals of imprinting and how he would know when it happened. Who knew that days later Caden would run into his Alpha's little sister and she'd be the one. Caden figured it was a bunch of BS, that noone could ever feel feelings like that based on simply looking at a person. When it happened though, Caden was knocked backwards. Literally and figuratively. He had never seen a more beautiful woman in his entire life and he knew right then and there that Tamaya was the one he would love forever. Then again, those feelings were cut short by Sam's sudden burst of fury as the Alpha charged at him and pinned him against a wall. Now he was more accepting, rather glad that Caden was his sister's imprint. Both men knew that Caden would do right by Tamaya, that he would rather die than have any harm fall upon her. He hadn't been expecting his sister to come into town and he was less than pleased she had tracked him down, but it wasn't like he could go anywhere. His days of running were over, it was time for him to just confront her and get it all over with.

Caden sighed, pressing the automatic unlock button on his keys as he strode towards his car. The parking lot was virtually empty with the exception of one or two random cars. Caden had actually stayed rather late today, getting a start on the massive pile of lab reports he had to grade. The end of the school year was drawing near and Caden had never been more happy to get school over with. He had never really figured he'd go into the teaching field. He got his degree in it but only as a cover of sorts. He never really wanted to actually become a teacher. He had gotten a double degree technically, in Biology and in teaching. Funny how he had actually settled into the career. The tall werewolf slid into the drivers seat, glaring upward at the not so sunny weather. The clouds were beginning to thicken and the sky was slightly darker than it had been moments earlier. More rain, yay. He slipped the keys into the ignition and brought the engine to life, driving swiftly out of the parking lot and heading back towards home. He was looking forward to grabbing something to eat and just relaxing for a bit before grading more of those damn lab reports. Thats what he got for procrastinating. Then again he was doing a lot less of that since his sister had come into town. His life had started off as very uneventful. Work and patrol. Then it grew to work, patrol, and Tamaya. Now it was work, patrol, Tamaya, and Arianna. Such a wonderful mixture. Arianna wasn't stupid. She didn't put herself in positions where Caden could find her easily. She was playing games.

The drive was short and Caden pulled into the driveway, noting that Gabriel's car was there but his bike was gone, which meant he was either taking a ride to blow off some steam or he was at work. Normally he drove his car to work though since the motocycle was rather frowned upon. Caden's own motorcycle sat in the garage next to the empty place where Gabriels was. He contemplated taking a drive as well, but then recalled the rain and figured it would be smarter to just stay home. He grabbed the stack of papers from the passenger seat and shut off the car, dragging his feet as he made his way towards the front door. He could smell the familiar scent of his love and his heartbeat hastened, excitement coursing through him at the idea of her being inside, waiting for him. He loved when Tamaya was there when he got home. She had her own keys and Sam finally let her come down by herself. Caden really hated when she did and he especially hated her hanging out in the house alone but figured there was nothing he could really do about it. Tamaya did what she wanted, this he knew. Caden fumbled for the house key and quickly slid it into the door, twisiting it and pushing the door open. His eyes searched the room inside and fell upon the dark haired beauty seated with her back to him. She leaned forward, putting something on the table, and stood to face him with a smile. He grinned back at her, setting the keys and papers down on the hall coffee table.

Tamaya strode towards him, Caden watching the curves of her elegant figure as she moved. She was so damn gorgeous, it was ridiculous. His heart stopped as she drew closer to him, wrapping her slightly colder arms around his neck and kissing him gently. He pressed his lips hungrily to hers, wrapping his arms around her waist. Gently he pulled away from the kiss with a grin. "Hello gorgeous," He murmured, looking lovingly down at her. He gently tucked a strand of her dark hair back behind her ear, caressing her cheek as he pulled his hand back.

[tamaya]

Tamaya smiled as she pulled back from the kiss and looked up into Caden's eyes. As his fingers brushed over her skin to tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear, Tamaya closed her eyes and enjoyed the electrical jolt that seemed to race down her spine at Caden's barest touch. He meant everything to her and if this was how she felt she could only imagine what it felt like from his end. She knew her feelings for him were strong but there were times she wondered if her feelings for him could even begin to compete with his feelings for her. Emily had done her best to describe the feelings to her from what she'd been told by Sam but both knew that it didn't even begin to scrape the surface. She could only tell her what she saw in the way Sam acted around her and the information that he'd given her but both knew that it probably didn't accurately describe what the werewolf felt. Tamaya knew that she could ask her brother, Caden or even Gabriel but it just seemed like too awkward a conversation in her mind. She probably would have talked to Gabriel about it before but ever since he'd also imprinted it was one subject she didn't want to bring up. Even if he was her imprint, Tamaya didn't want to hear exactly how Caden felt about her since she knew that knowing her she might get embarrassed. It was for that same reason that she didn't ask Sam or Gabriel about imprinting because she didn't want to hear them gushing over their imprints either.

"Welcome home Caden. How was your day?" Tamaya asked as she stayed in her place in Caden's arms and let her arms rest lightly against his chest while the fingers of one hand gently gripped the back of his neck and the others gently brushed over his cheek. She knew if she had her way she'd be in Caden's arms all the time. All day and all night but there was one very large roadblock to that idea in the form of her brother. He may have accepted the fact that Caden had imprinted on his sister but something told her that hell would freeze over before he'd let them share a bed night. Even though she knew that things wouldn't necessarily be physical with Caden if they shared a bed, she knew that Sam would prefer they were married before they took that step. Of course he and Emily were sharing a bed before they married and if Tamaya wanted to point that out she knew she could but for the time being Sam had not only his own personal beliefs but he also had the law on his side. With Tamaya only being seventeen she was a minor and Caden wasn't. Tamaya knew Sam wouldn't necessarily press charges but if anybody else found out it would be Caden as well as his career on the line. Not her. That was the only thing that made her go home every night and leave Caden behind.

Tamaya had actually considered attending Forks High so she could spend even more time with Caden but Emily had been the one to quickly squash that idea. She told Tamaya that it wouldn't look right for a teacher to spend so much time with a student and if it was discovered they were dating Caden could lose his job. This way at least nobody in Forks knew her age even if they did see them together. For all they knew she was eighteen, nineteen or even twenty. So Tamaya continued to attend the high school on the reservation and only went to Forks afterward so she could spend the afternoon with Caden unless they'd made plans for him to head over and see her or she had a huge pile of homework. Like it or not she was still in school and still a minor so unless she kept her grades up and did all her homework, Sam had said that he'd put more of a restriction on the time she could spend with Caden which Tamaya did not want to see happen.

[caden]

with all my
best intentions

The house which had been purchased by the two brotherly werewolves was quite a nice one. They hardly needed to actually buy a house since neither of them really wanted to stay in Forks permanently. Gabriel was worried that the ER wasn’t going to be busy enough to satisfy his operating needs. Caden on the other hand just wanted some answers about his Dad and then he wanted to get gone. The last thing he needed was to get cornered in Vampireville by none other than his wicked witch of the west sister. But god forbid anyone actually rent apartments in Forks. Oh no, you had to buy. It was the towns way of saying you might not like us now but you will stay. And the sad thing was that they were totally right. Caden and Gabriel had no intention of staying in Forks longer than a few months and yet here they were, living in the town for almost a year. Maybe even more than that, who knew anymore? Caden had locked himself a solid position at Forks High School despite the influx of Vampires pretending to be high school students. That must have been a popular age to get turned or something since Caden was pretty positive late teens and early twenties was the median. Then he found himself joining the local pack with Gabriel, that was back when they were hardly any people at all in it, and now he was locked down even harder because he had found his soulmate. He had his best friend, his brothers, and the love of his life all concentrated in one place. Now it would be impossible for him to leave. Gabriel was in the same boat. He had gotten an impressive job in the Forks Hospital ER, working as one of the head surgeons. He joined the pack as well and even became werewolf doctor. Then he found Klara. What more did the two guys need?

Security. That was kind of a big issue what with some psycho killer ex girlfriend slash sister on the loose. She had found them, just as Caden knew she would. She had been right on his tail for all of his life. Once he stopped moving, it was only a matter of time for her to arrive. So far Caden had only run into her once. He met up with her in the forest with Gabriel, Sam, and Tamaya and things had been left unsettled. Unfortunately for him, she still roamed somewhere in Washington state. Thankfully, Sam had guys checking up on Tamaya all day. Those who had imprints kept tabs on their own loves but those who didn’t were assigned to watch out for others. Sam had a huge pack and they were all kept very well in check. Everyone helped everyone. La Push couldn’t be safer. Which was a problem for Caden since he lived in Forks. When Tamaya came to visit, she was putting herself in danger. She was surrounded by a huge amount of Vampires. One of which, some witch by the name of ‘Gabriella’ lived just one street over from the boys. It was nerve-wracking to think that Tamaya was at risk of being captured by Arianna. Caden would fight to the death to keep Tamaya safe, but he’d rather just have her kept safe regardless. If only she wouldn’t be so headstrong as to travel up to Forks on her own. If only she’d wait for him to get out of work and come pick her up so they could spend time together and he would know for a fact she was safe. In Sam’s house, she had a whole bunch of wolves around. At school, she had a whole bunch of wolves around. At Caden’s, she had no one 99% of the time. But try telling her that. Try convincing her to stay at home. You will fail.

Tamaya’s smile was enough to light up anyone’s day. It was one of those contagious smiles, the kind that made you instantly shine your own grin just because. Caden lived to make her smile. Sometimes it wasn’t hard at all, but other times she got into one of her moods and Caden had to really work to see that dazzling grin. "Welcome home Caden. How was your day?" Tamaya asked, her arms resting lightly on Caden’s chest. Her skin was slightly colder than his own and it felt nice, even through the fabric of his shirt. He desperately needed to change out of work clothes. But he also didn’t want to let go of Tamaya. “Ugh, same old same old.” Caden mumbled, rolling his eyes for effect. He gently kissed Tamayas forehead before stepping reluctantly away from her. He knew that his slightly dampened mood would linger if he didn’t get more comfortable. And loafers, dress pants, and a button up shirt were not his idea of comfortable clothes. He made his way to the stairs and quickly climbed them, slowly trudging down the hall to his room. Once inside he walked straight to the closet and began searching for some clean clothes.

[tamaya]

"Your day sounds about as interesting as mine was." Tamaya said with a laugh before she closed her eyes and leaned forward a bit so that her boyfriend could place the light kiss on her forehead. Even if nobody had told her about vampires and werewolves, which she was willing to bet would have been the case if Caden hadn't imprinted on her, Tamaya would have known that she was destined to spend the rest of her life with Caden. Just from the amount of time that they spent together and the way they felt about each other, Tamaya couldn't imagine ever being with anybody else. Caden made her feel complete and the more time that she spent with him, the more certain that she was he would be the one she spent the rest of her life with. Even though she used to tease Emily and her brother about the looks they would give each other, Tamaya knew that she was probably guilty of the same thing now. Any time she and Caden were in the same room she couldn't take her eyes off him, let alone be on the other end of it. She wanted to always be with Caden and she knew that it was a bit of a problem for her brother and even Caden to an extent.

Tamaya knew that both Sam and Caden didn't like the idea of her running off to Forks as soon as she was done with school but she couldn't help it. Once she was done she would hitch a ride with a friend or get a werewolf from her brother's pack to drive her into Forks. She knew that her brother didn't like them giving her rides but he hadn't actually forbidden them from doing it and even though she felt bad about it, she did manipulate them into doing it for her. It basically came down to facing one angry werewolf or another angry werewolf. Tamaya would normally tell them and when they would ask how she figured that she would tell them it was simple. Sure Sam would be upset about them taking her into town but Caden would be upset if they upset her and/or made her cry. At least with Sam, Tamaya had Emily on her side and Emily could calm down Sam. If Caden found out that one of his pack brother's had made his imprint cry it probably wouldn't turn out very nice. Tamaya knew it was a stretch and Caden would much rather keep her in La Push but as long as none of the werewolves brought it up around Caden she was safe. She could keep manipulating them into giving her rides and nobody would be the wiser.

When Caden pulled away from her and headed upstairs, Tamaya went into the kitchen to check on her lasagna. A quick peek into the oven and she knew that it was just about done. Turning to the fridge, Tamaya pulled open the door and began to pull out the things she'd need to make a salad. That day it was a simple meal of salad and lasagna but it should end up being enough for the two of them. Whatever was left over would be put into the fridge and the boys could have it for lunch the following day. In Gabriel's case it might end up being dinner too but who knew. If their wasn't any when Tamaya got there the following day then she could whip up something really quick for Gabriel to take to dinner.

With the salad ready, Tamaya carried the glass bowl over to the table and set it down along with the bottle of dressing. She then moved into the kitchen and began to get out a couple glasses, plates and utensils so she could set the table for their meal that night.