Bella’s POV:

I woke up to Edward gently massaging my thigh. I sighed and sat up to escape the
slow torture. It was officially September now. The only definite plans I had today
were to see off Ben and Angela when they left for Seattle this afternoon. All the
freshmen were moving into the dorms this week. Unfortunately, we wouldn’t see each
other again until January.

“So you and Jasper seem to be getting along well,” Edward observed with distinct
suspicion. They were his first words of the day.
“Uh-huh,” I agreed as nonchalantly as possible.
“Now I just have to win over Rosalie,” I scoffed, trying to change his focus.
His forehead creased but he did not reply, so I retreated from the bed and headed
for the shower.

Who knew that one hug could cause so much Cullen family drama? Jasper was a good
guy and sometimes I think he felt left out. It was common knowledge that Emmett
was Edward’s favorite brother. There were many logical reasons for this: Emmett
was playful, funny, and Edward knew him longer. But I still felt bad for the
obvious preference. Not that I wasn’t playing favorites myself. I much preferred
Alice to Rosalie, but that was a little different because Rosalie loathed me back.
I smiled when I realized that I just considered myself part of the family.

In any case, even though I had a favorite sister, I didn’t have to choose a
favorite brother. Jasper probably thought that I already chose Emmett as my
favorite and in a subconscious way, I suppose I had. Emmett offered bone-crushing
hugs and Jasper offered nods. But that didn’t mean that he didn’t care about me.
Probably the opposite. He was being careful. And his family no doubt pressured him
to be overly careful.

And by family, I mean Edward.

I ran a towel through my hair to soak up any extra moisture before brushing it
out. I wrapped myself up and walked back into my room to retrieve my outfit.
Edward was still on the bed with a contemplative face. I withheld a sigh and opted
to get dressed in the bathroom like old times’ sake so I could avoid any more
questioning. After I was dressed, I was seriously contemplating blow drying my
hair to waste more time when Edward knocked on the door and I heard his rather
frantic voice.
“Bella? We have to go.”
___________________

Edward’s POV:

Bella opened the door immediately and the look in her eyes nearly crumpled me. It
was the look she had the night of the baseball game, the look in that Port Angeles
alley, the look when Jane was torturing me. The fear was palpable, and the worst
part is that I couldn’t do a thing to relieve it.

“The Volturi,” I breathed.

It all happened quickly yet impossibly slow. I grabbed her before she even had
time for a panic attack. Then we were at my house. Everyone was hugging Bella
which only made her more afraid. Then Esme babysat her in the kitchen while we
formed a plan in hushed whispers, a few rooms away. Bella yelled at us, demanding
to be included in the planning. But we all over the place. Alice’s vision only
showed them arriving: Demetri, of course, a blurry male, and two females that must
be their guards. There were no visible outcomes, even when we decided how we would
hide Bella. Of course, that was because of our escort choice.

“Jacob?” Bella called, walking out of the kitchen after she heard him greet us.
Her face was confused.
“Hey Bells.” Jacob shifted uncomfortably, knowing from the phone call what we
needed from him.
Alice was focusing all she could on the blurry male in her vision when she gasped.
“Alec,” she choked. “The fourth person is Alec,” she told no one in particular.
Bella looked concerned and confused by Alice’s reaction.
“What gift does Alec have again?”
“It’s unimportant,” I interjected. Great, just we need..
She scowled. “So what’s the plan?” she asked defiantly.
“Bella..” I started. She was going to hate this. “We’re going to hide you.”
“No!” she yelled. “I told you no hiding! I said that months ago.” And I never
agreed.
Demetri can’t track you or Jacob, so he’ll escort you,” I continued.
“I’m not going,” she said stubbornly. “Just change me! It’s inevitable anyway. It
will just speed things up.”
Carlisle shook his head and decided to step in.
“Bella, none of us are in favor of an emergency transformation if it can be
avoided. You decided to travel and attend years of college as a human and we have
every intention of making that possible. It’s unanimous among us.”
“Everyone?” she clarified, looking at Rosalie. Bella knew that Rose valued
humanity, but she probably expected a snide comment about her endangering the
family like always. Heck, I expected it. But she just nodded. Even her thoughts
weren’t offensive. Huh. Ice Bitch was melting.

“Well I’m glad everyone’s vote matters but mine,” Bella mumbled. I sighed and
continued my instructions.

“We acquired a modest house a few months ago that no one knows about. Jasper
bought it in cash with a false name in case we ever needed a hiding place nearby.
Jacob will take you up to the guest room where you will stay until this is over.
It’s the only room with a bed in it or seats at all, actually. We’ve only just
started to decorate the house. But there is some food in the cabinets that Jacob
can get you when you arrive.” I glanced at Jacob for confirmation. He nodded. I
left out the part about Jacob’s responsibilities after they arrived because that
really would not help to calm her.

After checking with me in her thoughts, Alice slipped behind Bella and gave Jacob
a set of handcuffs. She also whispered instructions in his ear. I’m glad we had
the cuffs laying around for some reason, even though it pained me to think of my
love restrained like a criminal. But Bella can be feisty when she is determined. I
know that better than anyone.

Bella was still shaking her head and refusing to go, completely missing the
exchange.

I was pleading for her to cooperate, but she was going regardless.

“There’s no point to this! I can’t live without you!” she yelled.

“I’m not dying today, Bella,” I said softly.

“But if anything did happen to me..yes, you can,” I said evenly. “And you will,” I
added firmly. “People care about you.” I nodded my head over her shoulder, toward
Jacob. “I care about you. I need you to exist, even if I’m not there to witness
it. Promise me.” She can’t ever harm herself. Not my angel.
She shook her head bitterly. “What if I want to be a coward? I’m sure it’s my
turn. It’s only fair.”

“Bella,” I warned.
“Jacob needs to take her now. We don’t have time for this,” Alice said sadly.
‘Don’t worry, Edward. I wouldn’t let her do anything stupid,’ Alice assured me in
her thoughts.
“Alright, just let me say goodbye,” I murmured, moving toward Bella.

She backed up slightly. “No.”

“What?” I whispered.
“I’m not saying goodbye to you,” she declared as she brushed by Jacob’s shoulder
and headed toward the front door.
“Wait!” Alice exclaimed, throwing herself at Bella to form a hug before kissing
her cheek.
Bella looked at her pixie sadly before turning her body to face the rest of the
family, giving them a weak wave. Jacob pulled Bella out the door as she whispered
“I love you all.”

After the door shut, the family started pacing or strategizing. I, however, had
not moved a centimeter since she refused my goodbye. I definitely had new
motivation to get my family and I through this. I had to be able to make amends
after this was over.
_______________________

Bella’s POV:

Jacob ushered me into his Rabbit and took off as soon as my seatbelt was in place
and my wrist was attached to the center console.

I was furious to say the least. I’m not a child. They can’t keep making these
decisions for me, putting themselves in danger for me.

“You know,” Jacob said, breaking the silence and running his fingers over the
handcuffs, “It’s too bad these aren’t fuzzy.” He smirked at me, trying to lighten
the mood.

“Can it, Jacob. Unless you want me to repeat that comment to a certain blond Yale
wannabe.” I was in no mood for his antics.
Jacob scowled in reply.
“You could be nicer. I left her in the middle of a fucking date for this and
she’ll have to find a ride.” His harsh words lacked venom.

I felt a little bad for Jacob but I quickly pushed it away. I had to keep the
anger inside of me for as long as I could. Because once I let the sorrow take
over, I knew there was no coming back from it. I swallowed.

“Where did they get the handcuffs anyway? Why did they have them already?” I asked
to distract myself. I would have totally blamed it on a certain sexed up couple in
the house, but I knew Emmett or Rose could snap them off with a flick of their
wrist.

“I don’t know why your bloodsuckers do half the shit they do, don’t ask me.”
I sighed. Maybe the silence wasn’t so bad.

His phone kept buzzing every 5 minutes and it was starting to get annoying. But
every time, he just looked at the Caller ID and winced.
We were driving for about 30 minutes before we arrived. We pulled onto a street
called Maple and soon after, we were in the driveway of a yellow house. I took in
my surroundings briefly. It was a nice house. Much smaller than the Cullen’s main
house, but still bigger than Charlie’s. I was gawking at the embarrassing mailbox
when Jacob tugged me toward the door.

He led me upstairs and opened a few doors until he found the bathroom.
“Go now, you won’t get another chance,” he warned. I hesitated and he sighed.
“I’m in a hurry. As soon as you’re settled, I have to go back to help the pack. So
no funny business, okay? You have 2 minutes or I’m coming in there.”
He pushed me lightly through the door. I was bummed that my stalling would do
nothing but humiliate myself, so I hurried the best I could.

I heard him through the door, talking to someone on the phone.

“We’re here. Yes. Bye.”

When I left the bathroom, he pulled me into what must be the guestroom and placed
his phone on the dresser. Then he locked me to the bed’s metal headboard once I
was sitting comfortably. Luckily he kept his fuzzy handcuff comments to himself. I
was already on the verge of blushing.

“Jacob?” I asked timidly when he was done.

“Yeah?”
“Is Sam going to help the Cullens if things turn ugly?”
Jacob looked at me sadly.
“I don’t think so, Bells. We’re probably just going to guard La Push and Forks in
case they decide to go hunting. Alice is advising us to lay low. And I imagine Sam
will agree and say that he refuses to sign us up for a suici--”

I flinched and Jacob reached out to pet my hair. I felt a tear trail down my cheek
despite my best efforts to stop it. He wiped it away with his blazing fingers.
“I’m sorry,” he breathed.

His phone’s vibrations interrupted us and he immediately answered, but kept it an

inch or so away from his ear. Judging by the booming voice I could hear from the
other end, that was the correct instinct.
“I’m sorry. I’m leaving now and will run there so you guys can catch me up on the
way.”

He hung up and frowned nervously. “Alice filled the pack in as soon as we left so
they wouldn’t be surprised. I had to ignore them until I got you here safe, so
they couldn’t talk me out of it.” He wasn’t looking at me when he said this; he
seemed to be a world away.

Then he removed the contents of his pockets, probably worrying about losing stuff
in the woods. It would be bad enough to carry jeans in your mouth as it is, or
whatever the hell he does with them while he is furry.

He sent me one last apologetic look and a promise to come back, and then he was
gone. I finally let the sobs overtake me, crying even harder when I remembered
that no one was here to make me stop.
_______________________

Edward’s POV:

For a moment my family stared, tensely silent, at the visitors in our living room
until Alice thought that I should do the talking. Had she gotten another vision? I
was so focused on the Volturi’s fruitless thoughts that I might have missed
something. I would have to play better attention to her and accept this advice in
the meantime.

“Hello Demetri. Alec,” I said as politely as possible.

They nodded while their guards stood behind them, unmoving.
“So to what do we owe the pleasure?”
Alec laughed lightly without menace. “I’m sure Alice told you. That’s why your
Bella is no where to be found. We tried to stall making a traceable decision, but
alas..We have her home address of course, but I’m sure you came up with a more
original hiding place.” He paused.
“So I guess you did not change her? I smell human all over this place,” he mused.
His face had an odd expression on it that I couldn’t place.
“And how do you know it’s her scent?” I challenged without hope.
“Come on..you don’t think I could forget freesia, do you?” he smiled.

I cringed internally. If only I hadn’t been a suicidal wuss, they would have never
even known about Bella. At least she’s safe at the moment.
__________________

Bella’s POV:

I finally slowed my sobs and looked around the room helplessly. There wasn’t much
in here except for a dresser, the bed, and the things Jacob left behind.

The things Jacob left behind.

Holy shit.

I reached for his cell phone on the dresser but the arm closest to it was the one
handcuffed, so I had to turn my body the best I could and try to grab it with my
toes. If the family could see me now..

My toes don’t exactly have much grabbing power, but I was able to push it off the
dresser, onto the bed. I grabbed it and dialed 911. I asked for the fire
department to bring something that could cut through handcuffs. I was going to ask
the police but considering that these handcuffs look a lot like Charlie’s, Alice
might have snatched them from the station. I didn’t want them to recognize the
brand or something. Plus, I really didn’t want my dad to hear about this through
the grapevine.

“So there is no fire, correct? Your cell’s built-in locator shows that you are on
Maple Street but do you know the house number?”
“No I’m sorry, it’s not my house. But the house is yellow and it has a really
stupid cat mailbox.”
I could tell the operator was stifling a laugh. “Alright, they can still find you
from the coordinates if they need to, don’t worry.”
“Okay thank you, bye.”

I told the operator that there was no foul play, but I knew the firefighter would
want some kind of explanation. How could I get out of here without anyone getting
in trouble? Well there is one way-- No! Too embarrassing. But when is my life not
embarrassing? I sighed and started to undo my pants with one hand.

I saw the truck pull up outside a few minutes later. Slow fire day, I hope.

“Up here!” I called when they barged through the door. I could already feel myself
blushing. A man in his 20s walked in the room with a pair of super cutters. Damn,
he was cute, too.
He looked at me, alarmed. Of course, how else should he look when I’m handcuffed
to a bed with only my shirt and underwear on? I didn’t let myself answer that.
“Did someone hurt you?” he asked immediately as he rushed over to me.
“No. No one did anything wrong.”
He cut the chain connector between the cuffs and took my wrist is his hand,
raising an eyebrow.
“What happened, then?”
He dug in his pocket and pulled out a key. Thank God; I didn’t want this dangling
on my wrist.
“Umm my boyfriend and I got a little carried away with the whole bondage thing,” I
choked out. The fireman’s lips twitched. “And he uh lost the key and had a family
emergency, so he gave me the phone to call.” I coughed.
He unlocked it and freed my hand.
“Thanks,” I smiled.
“No problem. We keep a variety of generic keys at our disposal. Surprising as it
seems, we get quite a few calls about handcuffs. Though most involve kids locking
themselves up.” He was unable to stop the small chuckle that came out of his
mouth. I blushed more as I grabbed my pants and got off the bed.
He was gentlemanly and looked away as I pulled them on.
“Well thanks again. I better get going.” I grabbed Jacob’s keys and paper with
directions while he stood up.
“So you’re okay? No need to press charges?”
“No,” I said quickly. “I’m fine.”

“Do you want to--” he cut himself off and shook his head. I heard him mutter
something like “bondage boy.”

He smiled and settled on “Have a nice day” before walking out the door. I left
immediately after him, hoping I could get there in time. For the first time in my
life, I sped.
____________________

Edward’s POV:

Empty pleasantries were coming to an end when I was suddenly focused on a new
vision from Alice. In it, Bella was driving Jacob’s car, speeding toward Forks. I
bit back a growl. Then her vision showed Bella approaching the house but our
visitors were already gone, thank God. I would track her down on the road right
now, but I can’t. Why can’t she just listen for once?

“Well we have good news for you,” Demetri told us. I raised my eyebrow. When does
the Volturi have good news?
“We’ve decided that Bella can stay human after all. She seems to be keeping the
secret well enough, for which we are thankful.”
I gaped at him for a moment.
“Thank you, but why?” I asked hesitantly.
He shrugged and Alec interrupted. “Can’t we do something nice?” He was trying his
best to sound offended. I looked in his mind but could not see any reason why. But
he did let one thought slip through.

‘I’m glad we got here in time. Aro wants nothing but peace right now.’

Relief. So that was the expression I could not place earlier.

____________________

Bella’s POV:
The trip was agony. All I could think was ‘I can’t believe that I didn’t say
goodbye. I’m such a terrible person. If anything happened to him--’

I drove even faster once I was on the secluded roads. When I pulled into their
driveway too quickly, I didn’t even care that Edward looked pissed as he stood
near the door. I was just glad that he was standing there at all, whole.

I got out of the car and wrapped my arms around his stiff body. He pulled back
after a moment.

“Bella!” he scolded. “What have I told you about running off to meet with sadistic
vampires?”
“Are they gone? Is everyone okay?”
“Yes, but--”
“Then shut up and kiss me,” I demanded.
He complied. But when he did it was angry. It was impatient. It was desperate.
Like he was trying to teach me a lesson with his mouth. But all it made me do was
want more. I bit his lip and he growled. I could tell that he wanted nothing more
but to bite me back this time.

A throat cleared beside us. I really didn’t care and they seemed to leave after a
while. When we finally pulled away, his eyes were still scorching.

“I’m sorry I didn’t say goodbye,” I whispered after I caught by breath.

He nodded in an unforgiving manner. “Me too.”
I looked down at the ground.
“Carlisle wants to fill you in on what happened,” he informed me as he tugged my
hand in the direction of the house.

We walked into the living room and five pairs of golden eyes were on me. The other
two were having a silent conversation. No one was talking so I decided to ask the
first question.

“So..why did they leave so easily?”

“Why don’t we start with why they came here to begin with,” Carlisle suggested.
Edward nodded. “They came to tell us that you are allowed to stay human,
indefinitely.”
“What? Why? And why would they come all this way just to deliver a message?”
“They don’t exactly trust the post office with important messages,” Carlisle said.
His voice was kind but I still blushed.
“And they wanted to know for certain if you were still human.” Edward added.
“I don’t understand. They said they didn’t care if I stayed human.”
“Not exactly. They said that you could stay human. Which means they want you to.”
“Why? Am I that much of an embarrassment? Not worthy enough to be immortal?” I
asked, hurt.
Edward chuckled despite himself. “No I’d say it was quite the opposite. They must
be scared of you. Of what you could become.”
I stared blankly at him.
“Your gift,” he clarified. “Your blocking ability is already quite strong. I’m
sure they don’t want it to get stronger, unless you join them of course.”
“Oh,” I whispered.
Carlisle spoke up again. “I’d say this was good news at the moment. You’ll be able
to finish college without any problems from them, it seems.”
“But after?” I whispered. “They didn’t prohibit me from changing, did they?”
Edward shook his head. “But they probably thought that would have the opposite
effect, curiosity and all that. Besides, they knew how against changing you I was
in Italy. They might think I won’t allow it now that there is a choice.”
“We’ll just have to figure that out when the time comes,” Carlisle said calmly.
I nodded solemnly. The Volturi better not screw up my forever.
“Of course, this is all just my theory from what I witnessed. The..visitors were
not thinking of why they want you to be human. My guess is that the Volturi didn’t
tell them on purpose so I wouldn’t know it. They probably weren’t even supposed to
act relieved when they found out you were human, but they slipped up.”

It was silent for a long moment as everyone mulled over their thoughts.

“Thank you all for caring about me,” I said after a moment. “I obviously didn’t
agree with the methods today, but I still appreciate it. I didn’t mean to seem
ungrateful.”
“You’re welcome, sweetie,” Esme smiled.
Edward’s phone buzzed and he growled when he saw who it was.
“Hey Jacob,” he said coldly.
“Yeah, we have her. How the fuck did you let her get away?” he spat. I flinched.
There was a long pause as he explained.
“Whatever. We’ll talk about this later,” he said before hanging up.
He turned his glare on me. “How did you get out of handcuffs, anyway?
I blushed lightly as I remembered. “Funny story, actually..”

He cracked a small smile at my recollection, while the rest of the family was
shaking with laughter. But Edward was still not really talking to me by the time
we arrived at my house.

“I was supposed to say goodbye to Ben and Angela today,” I offered, trying to
spark some form of communication.
“I’ll drive you to Seattle sometime this month to see them,” he answered flatly.
I nodded. “Are you coming in?”
I knew that either way, he would be watching over me.
He looked at me like it was a given, and I was a little relieved.
“Do you want me to?” he asked.

‘I always want you,’ I heard myself say intensely in my head. Trying not to cringe
at the memory, I willed it away so I could finish the conversation.

“Of course,” I answered instead, honestly.

He headed to the kitchen after we went inside and started to rummage through
cabinets. What he was searching for, I had no idea. He turned his head toward me.
“Jacob didn’t get you food, did he?”
I shook my head slowly. He nodded and turned back to the canned goods.
“He probably forgot, just like he forgot to keep his phone out of arm’s reach,” he
said with reproach.

Foot’s reach, actually, I amended to myself.

I crossed my arms and answered in his same tone. “I don’t really enjoy eating with
just one hand anyway. Besides, you’re lucky he helped you at all. He left Aubrey
and risked his pack’s safety and trust to get me out of there in time. They’re
probably kicking his ass right now.” I frowned at the thought.

He didn’t answer. Instead he stirred the soup on the stove and stuck a poptart in
the toaster. I bit my lip. If he’s willingly serving me so much salt and
preservatives in one sitting, he must be distracted.

After the food was warm, he set it on the table and pointed to a chair.
“Eat.”
I looked at the bowl and focused on the tiny chip in it.
“I don’t really have an appetite,” I muttered truthfully.
“Eat,” he repeated.
We stared at each other for a few minutes until he started breathing deeply.

I just wanted to go to sleep and forget this terrible day. But I didn’t want to
waste any more time standing here, and he’d probably force feed me if he needed
to. So I sat down and ate, not really tasting anything. The soup may have burned
my mouth. I didn’t notice.

I trudged up the stairs and plopped onto my bed, shoes and all. Charlie was
working late today so he didn’t have to know that I was going to bed at 7:00.
Edward pulled off my shoes and pants so he could put my sweatpants on me. I was
out a few minutes later.

I woke up at 5:43 with my head resting on Edward’s chest. I turned on the dim
light next to my bed so I could see him better. Luckily, his face was softer.

“I’m sorry that I was so cold earlier. I was just frozen with worry.” He paused.
“Why didn’t you listen?” He asked with pleading eyes, all anger gone.
“Because I should have a say in things, too. I’m sick of feeling like the Cullen
family pet!” I whispered harshly, my frustration returning.
“You’re not! We just were in a rush and we didn’t really have time to talk.”
“Even if we did, you guys would have done the same thing,” I mumbled.
He didn’t deny it. Instead he stared straight ahead.
“Bella..we all miss our mortality so much. We just couldn’t let you throw yours
away in a rush. You deserve all the time you want.”
“I understand that, but you shouldn’t be taking these risks. It could have turned
into a disaster.”
“But it didn’t. Aren’t you glad that we used my plan?” He had the nerve to sound a
little smug. “You would be burning up with venom right now, otherwise, for
nothing.”
I frowned.
“You were just really damn lucky that your plan worked. Because logistically, we
were screwed.”
“Fair enough.”
“Just..let me give some input next time, please.”
“Next time?” he asked wearily.
“There is always a next time with me,” I concluded grimly.
He sighed. “I’ll try.”

A silent moment passed before I thought of an earlier question.

“Hey, what’s so special about Alec, anyway?”

Edward hesitated for a moment. “He..can immobilize people, like Jane. But a group
of people all at once. Painlessly.”
“What! Are you crazy? You just walked into that? They could have easily killed you
all,” I said too loudly. He shushed me.
“But if they did that, they would have never found you. And you are who they
wanted.”

I suppressed a shiver. “But you would have refused to tell them and they would
have been pissed. They might have killed you off one by one until someone told,” I
choked out.

“I don’t think they would have. They don’t like to upset large covens
unnecessarily. And they don’t like to kill them off completely, either, when there
is another large coven to avenge them, like in Denali. And if they off’d too many
of us, it would gain negative attention for them. All that destruction for one
human who never even told a soul? Plus, Carlisle knows them, and Aro wouldn’t want
to destroy Alice or I because he wants our talents someday.”

“Still..shit.”
He chuckled lightly. “Shit indeed.”
His momentary humor died and he looked pained.

“Of course, Aro is interested in you as well so I doubt he would tell them to
destroy you. The more likely outcome probably would have been them trying to take
you with them and change you themselves as punishment or something. It’s the one
time they might get away with completely forcing membership. Most vampires are
eager to join, or they persuade them however they can.”

I was horrified by the idea of being taken, especially as a human. Being the
Cullen family pet is much more preferable than being the Volturi family pet.

“You really think they would?” My voice shook. “I thought that they would just
change me when they saw me; that’s why I rushed home. It seemed like a simple
solution. I didn’t think they would kill me, either,” I said softly.

“Honestly I don’t know, Bella. Maybe not, since dedication and loyalty is
necessary for them.”

“And if that was their goal, wouldn’t they have made sure to find me this time or
in the near future?” I fidgeted.

He paused.
“Maybe they’re watching you like a tropical storm. They want to know right away if
you become a hurricane. Every member of the Volturi is a hurricane, able cause
massive destruction.” I shivered at his detached tone as he continued. “Tropical
storms can usually avoid attention in the early stages. Flying under the radar if
you will. But they require frequent checkups once detected.” He looked at me
pointedly.

“So they’ll check on me, but they don’t want me before I’m changed,” I guessed.
“Unless they need a hurricane right away,” Edward concluded softly. “But Aro wants
peace with us for now.”

For now. I fought for my mind and body to remain steady.

______________________

Edward’s POV:

I know I scared her by talking about my theories, and I wished I hadn’t.

“You don’t have to worry about it,” I tried to assure her. “I won’t let them take
you. But I would appreciate some cooperation in future..plans.”

She nodded sheepishly.

I felt a pain in my chest when I realized her other option.

“Or you could choose to stay off the radar of course. But you’d have to stay away
from all hurricanes for that to work.”

She shook her head fervently before excusing herself to the bathroom. I sighed in
both relief and defeat.

Bella returned from her human minute and snuggled against me, seeming more
cheerful. But she leaned away a moment later. I raised my eyebrow in question.

“No shirt, no shoes, Mr. You know the drill.”

I laughed in a whisper and pulled my t-shirt over my head.
“Much better” she murmured before returning back to my arms.
I felt fiery kisses trail down my chest and sighed contentedly.
“You aren’t tired?” I asked reluctantly.
“I slept 11 hours, Edward.” She sounded amused.
She pushed her hand against my stomach and I groaned as quietly as possible.
“Bella, your father is home.”
“Uh-huh.” She continued the path with her mouth.
“Bella, stop,” I said half-heartedly. She did but leaned up to whisper in my ear.
“No service?” she asked innocently.

Oh hell. I grabbed her waist and attacked my lips with mine. Then I tugged on the
hem of her shirt and moved my lips to her throat, drinking in her scent.
“You’re breaking your own rule,” I whispered before pulling it off and unhooking
her bra.

I palmed her breast and she moaned loudly. Too loudly. So I put my finger to her
lips. She took it in her mouth and sucked it. Sucked it! I was unsure whether I
should get an award or be sent to hell for corrupting such a beautiful creature.
It didn’t have much time for debate though, because Charlie decided to come check
on Bella after hearing a noise from his room. So I grabbed her discarded clothes,
covered her up to her neck with the blanket, turned off her light, and hopped out
the window within a second.

While Charlie checked on her, I looked down at the clothes I was still holding. In
my haste, I guess I didn’t pay much attention to the undergarment she was wearing.
It involved several shades of blue but the amount of material was not very
generous. I swear, Alice is trying to kill me.

“Edward,” said a whisper from upstairs after Charlie entered the bathroom to get
ready.

I sighed. Alice will have to get in line.

_______________

Bella’s POV:

Edward refused to touch me until Charlie left for work at 7:15. So I sent him to
the rocking chair so I wouldn’t be liable for jumping him. I stared at the clock,
cursing the current system of time. Edward’s eyes were closed. Maybe it had
something to with the fact that I left my shirt off. Oops.

As soon as Charlie’s cruiser was driving down the street, the rocking chair was
empty and my sweatpants were a distant memory.

“That wasn’t very nice of you,” Edward murmured against my chest. “Maybe now is a
good time to find out where to mark you.”

My heart stuttered as he sat up to gaze at me. His scorching eyes raked in every
inch of my pale skin.

“Hmm..here?” He kissed right above my left breast. “Or..” he kissed right under my
ribs. I took a deep breath. “Roll onto your stomach,” he requested as he barely
brushed over my belly. After I complied, he swept the hair away from my back and
trailed his pointer finger down my spine. I shivered. He kissed my hip right above
my underwear, letting his lips linger.

He pulled me onto my back and trailed his fingers up my leg slowly. Then he pulled
my legs apart and kissed my inner thigh. I whimpered so he took the opportunity to
suck lightly. I squirmed and begged without words for more direct contact.

He pulled back and sighed.

“I guess that’s not right either. I’m looking to pleasure you, not torture you.
Well..mostly,” he smirked.

Edward trailed his hand under my belly button before landing in the small indent
next to my hip bone. His eyes lit up and he brought his lips to the soft skin. I
sighed at the contact so he started sucking, harder than before. I moaned as my
hips jerked slightly. All too soon his mouth released me, leaving a mark in its
wake.

Edward smiled and kissed it. “Mine,” he breathed in a way that managed to sound
loving.

I sat up and pulled him to me, our lips meeting urgently. My arms gripped his
shoulders while his wound around my waist.
I pulled back to stare into his darkened eyes. “Yours.”

After he looked into my soul for what seemed like hours, he kissed my neck and
brought his lips to my ear. “Which part is mine, Bella?” he asked with his velvet
voice.
My breathing was ragged.
“Every..part,” I surrendered before scratching my nails down his back.
He hissed and silenced me again with his lips. Then suddenly he pulled back and
cursed.
“What?”
“Jacob,” he spat.
“What about him?” I asked, trying to bring him back on top of me. Maybe he really
was going for torture after all.
“He’ll be here in a minute to talk to you,” he complained.
I groaned as he moved away of me, getting clothes for me to put on, including new
underwear. Bless him.

After I was dressed, the doorbell rang repeatedly and Edward growled in annoyance.
What the hell?
“Stay here, I’ll be back up soon,” I told him with a kiss on the cheek.

I opened the door to greet (or yell at) Jacob and gaped.

He looked like hell and was wobbling a bit.

“Jacob? Are you drunk?” I asked in disbelief. It was 7:30 in the freaking morning.
“Aubrey and I had a fight.”
Ah, the universal reason for a drunken, unannounced visit. I stepped aside so he
could come in.

We plopped down on the living room couch.

“What happened?” I asked gently.
I told her why I just disappeared yesterday, and she was pissed that I was with
you. Thinks I’m cheating on her. As if I would tell her I was with you, if I
really was cheating,” he scoffed.
“I’m sorry. It’s my fault.”
“No it’s not. You didn’t ask for me to kidnap you. Quite the opposite.”
We sat there for a minute, both fumbling with our hands before he spoke.
“I-- I’m not sure that she’s my imprint.”
“What?” I gasped.
“Maybe I imagined it..forced it. We’re no Sam and Emily.”
“Maybe you just need time.”
“No, it’s different. Sam and Emily would go crazy if they lived 30 minutes away
from each other and usually only saw each other on weekends. But we survive. I
think about her all the time but the distance is bearable. I think I’m making
myself think of her.”
“Why?”
“Isn’t it obvious? I was tired of being alone,” he chuckled darkly.

He held his head in his hands.

“I’ll never find a girl like you,” he mumbled.
I meant to reply faster so I sounded believable, but I was pretty taken aback.
“Sure you will, Jake. I’m really not that special,” I laughed weakly.
“Don’t worry, Bella. I know you’re happy. I won’t encroach on that.”
Encroach? I should talk to drunken Jake more often if his vocab is this stellar..

“I know, Jake,” I whispered. “But you must have liked Aubrey, to pick her out of a
crowd. And she must like you back.”
“So? There was nothing behind it like I told myself.”
“So what?” I asked belligerently.
“Huh?”
“So what if it wasn’t some ‘love at first sight’ crap. How does the rest of the
world find their mates, Jake? Maybe you just have to do this the normal way.”
“Like..date?” he asked skeptically.
I nodded.
“Date who?”
“Well you could start with Aubrey.” Duh. “There must be something there. Win her
back.”
“How?”
“You’ll figure it out. You should give yourself more credit. Like that CD you gave
me? Girls love that shit.”
“Okay, I’ll give it a shot,” he stood up but I pulled him back down.
“Please tell me you walked here, Jake.”
He nodded.

“Do you wanna crash for a little bit? You’ll want to sober up before you try to
impress her or form a plan. And you’ll definitely want to shower,” I said,
laughing lightly.
“Good idea. Thanks Bells.”
“Anytime.” I patted his shoulder and stood up.

“Oh and Jake? You know I’m not a big Aubrey fan so I’m only suggesting her because
it sounds like you like her. So if you realize that you don’t like her after all,
just get back out there and I’m sure you could find a nice girl. Preferably one
that doesn’t hate me,” I added with a grin. “But I’m here for you either way.
Oftentimes, you can’t help who you fall for. That’s true even without an imprint.”

He smiled and nodded. Then he lay down on the couch and I made my exit.
When I got back upstairs to my room, Edward was still on my bed, looking
murderous.

“What the hell was that?” he spat.

I pointed to the window and put on my shoes. “You’re not the only one with great
hearing,” I hissed.
He grumbled but picked me up almost roughly and we jumped out onto my lawn.
We walked at human pace, not touching, until we reached the forest’s curtain. Then
I was clinging to his back again. Before long we reached a unfamiliar little
clearing. I had barely climbed off before it started.

“I can’t believe this. He still wants you!”

“Edward, he’s drunk--”
“A drunk man's words are a sober man's thoughts,” he informed me.
“That’s not always true. I would know,” I said wryly.
He ignored my sad attempt at a joke and kept fuming. But we were both sexually
frustrated so I just let him vent.
“And I locked you up in a house with him! I gave him handcuffs for God’s sake!
What if he tried something?” He paused and looked even angrier. “Did he try
something?”
“Jacob would never attack me, Edward, be fair. He’s my best friend.”

“I can’t believe I ever bought that ‘friend love’ crap you guys sold me. He’s
always been in love with you. He never stopped. He fooled me by filling his head
with Aubrey. And now that he mentioned it, it makes sense that she was never his
imprint. He was obsessed but not nearly enough. I saw other pack members’ minds
that night at the diner. A few had real imprints that I can compare now with
Aubrey. They must have been afraid to say something to him, to crush him.”

“Why do you care if he’s in love with me? I’m with you.”
“Are you in love with him?”
“No! How could you ask me that?”

“Were you ever in love with him?” he asked quietly.

I thought that over for what seemed like forever. I shook my head.
“I don’t know. Maybe when you were gone. He wasn’t quite a friend but he was no
you either so I don’t have a name for that.” I looked down at my feet.

The silence between us was deafening. I sat down on the grass and held my legs
against my chest, afraid to look at his face. Damn me and my honesty.

“I just want him to be happy,” I whispered as I cried silently. “But you should
know by now that he won’t find that with me. I know that. Even he knows that.”

Edward sat down next to me and rubbed my back.

“I’m sorry I yelled. It’s not your fault that you’re so desirable.”
I laughed breathlessly, even though there was no humor in his voice.
“And it’s not his fault either,” he sighed. “I like Jacob, I do. I just freak out
at the thought of losing you.”

He wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed my forehead before settling his
face in my hair. The strawberry scent always seemed to calm him.

“Edward..”
“Hmm?”
I took a deep breathe. “Nothing,” I whispered.
He lifted his head. “Bella, you know I can’t stand that.”
“It’s just..it meant a lot that I chose to sleep with you. I wouldn’t have done
that if I wasn’t thinking of forever. God forbid you ever lose me, it won’t be
from my doing. How else can I prove that to you?” My eyes were stinging.

“Oh Bella.” He held me tightly to his chest. “It meant the world to me, too. And
you don’t have to prove anything. I know you love me. I just have insecurities; I
still can’t believe I’m blessed enough to have someone amazing like you.”
“Time, I suppose, will be the way to convince you,” I said with a small smile.
He laughed. “I believe I have heard that before.”
I reached my neck up to kiss his cheek and then locked in his eyes. “It convinced
me.”

I moved to plant my lips on his neck. “And,” I murmured against his cold skin, “I
do believe we do have an endless amount of it.”
“Bella?”
I let my teeth graze his skin. “Hmm?”
“Do you think our meadow would be offended if we cheated on it, just this once?”
“No,” I kissed his lips softly and moved off his lap so I was on the ground in
front of him. “Our meadow is very forgiving.”

He grabbed my hair greedily and brought my face to his for one heated second. “I
completely agree,” he murmured before he yanked off my shirt.
______________

Edward’s POV:

Sadly, sex glow does not last forever. For human girls like Bella, apparently it
only lasts a few hours until the brooding returns. I mean shit. Doesn’t she know
that I’m the brooder around here?

It was the day after our romp in the meadow, and we were driving to Port Angelus
for lack of something better to do. It had been completely silent the whole trip
so I flipped on the radio.

/ What’s the point of the map we’ve been given

When the lines and the dots are all hidden
Follow me leave your blindfold behind you
Sharpen your senses else we’re all gonna get screwed
Who can you trust when your shadow’s been cheatin’
Making shapes of unfamiliar people
There’s nothing left so let’s hope for a new one
When all else fails we can plant one and grow one
Buckle up ’cause this ride’s getting faster
Like a train on a path of disaster /

Bella turned the radio off roughly, then jerked her head back toward the window.

“He’s going to be okay,” I said softly.

She looked at me with wide eyes. Like she thought for a moment that I got inside
her head. But I just had lots of practice reading her. Not that reading her right
now would be very difficult for anyone. Her eyes were back to their previous
sadness now, having figured that out. She was staring straight ahead.

“Good things happen to good people..and werewolves,” I insisted without humor.

She made no response, aside from turning back to the window. I sighed.

“Bella?” I asked less than a minute later.

Nothing.

I slammed on the brakes so we were stationary on the empty road. She gasped.

“Get out of the car.”

“What?” she asked, exasperated.
“Get out!”
“That’s not going to make me talk to you. Or feel better.”
“I don’t care. As long as it keeps you from looking out that god damn window! Now
GET OUT OF THE CAR!”
She looked at me, bewildered. Then finally she reached for the handle and stepped
out.

I rested my head on my steering wheel for a moment before following suit. I went
around the car so we were five feet from each other.

“Look, we have been through so much crap to get here. Do you honestly expect Jacob
to get his happily ever with no work or trouble? Well I’m sorry, but it just
doesn’t work that way. Not without an imprint, anyway. He needs to suck it up and
get Aubrey back somehow. And then they’ll still have trouble. That’s love. It’s
wonderful and terrible and maddening and raw. And if someone can’t take that, they
have no business asking for it. Jacob will be fine. Your sulking won’t help a bit.
Do you plan on actually doing something to help or not? If so, get back in the car
and don’t stare out the window again.”

She hesitated before finally climbing back in.

I put the radio back on, daring her with my eyes to turn it off again.

/ How many times have I told you

Never forget who you really belong to /

Fucking Jacob. He’s very close to getting knocked off my speed dial.
_________________

Bella’s POV:

It was silent for a bit while the trees whizzed by. Well I assumed that the trees
were whizzing by, but I’m not allowed to look out the window. Sometimes vampires
can be real freaks.

“Call Jacob and tell him to meet us at your house. We have things to do.”

Jacob was there as promised, waiting on my porch. We went inside but none of us
felt like sitting down. I was tired of sitting and trying to take things in
stride. Standing wouldn’t make things better either, but it somehow felt more
proactive.

“Jacob, you need to apologize to Aubrey. And we can help,” Edward told him curtly.

“Right, I’m sure you’re great at apologizing. You’ve had to do it so often,” Jacob
muttered.

Any cordialness between the two of them had slipped away when Edward scolded Jacob
on how poorly he “contained” me. Then there was the whole love triangle thing..

Edward growled before speaking.

“Do you want Aubrey back or not? I feel for you Jacob, I really do. And I still
consider you a friend. So I want this to work out for you. I would have let you
figure this out on your own, but it’s upsetting Bella and I’m sick of it. So I
want to fix it right away.”

“What do you have in mind?” Jacob asked flatly.

“Well I need to know something first. I know you still wish you were with Bella,
but Bella seems convinced that you know it’s not going to happen. Is that true?”
“Yes, I’m not going to try anything. I’m trying to get Aubrey back, remember?” he
spat.
“I know. But my plan won’t be very easy for you if you’ve still got feelings left
for Bella here. So you’ll need to try to let them go.”
“What’s the plan?” Bella interrupted with suspicion clear in her voice.
“Well it involves a lot of PDA.”
“You’re not saying that I have to make out with Jacob, are you?”
“Of course not! I’d rather shoot myself. No offence.”
“None taken,” Jacob scowled.
“No, Bella. We’ll be all over each other in front of Jacob and Aubrey. Jacob will
act all cool with it, knuckle punch me and whatnot when we leave suggestively.
Then she’ll think that it doesn’t bother him that you’re taken.”
He turned to Jacob. “Of course, I know it will still bother you a little. But if
it bothers you a lot, Aubrey will notice and then this will all be for nothing. So
can you do this?” he asked him.

“Sure, I can do it. I’m not sure about Bella, though. She’s a terrible actress,”
Jacob grinned. “Leaving suggestively might be too much for Bella to fake,” he
teased.
Neither of us replied to that. Jacob looked at us and his eyes widened.
“Don’t tell me..ugh you guys have had sex?!”
“Jake, that’s none of your business.” My blush was probably covering my whole
face.
“He could have squished you!”
“Well he didn’t.”
“You’re supposed to be letting go, Jacob, remember?” Edward sighed.
“Still, I don’t need to know all the details. God.”

“Can we get back to the plan, please?” Edward asked.

“Sure. I’m not sure about the knuckle punch. Those are for cads,” I said.
“I am a cad if you haven’t noticed,” Jacob countered.
“I’ve noticed,” Edward muttered.
I sighed. “How is this going to help anyway? She’ll just think I’m a whore. She
probably already does.”
“No she doesn’t,” Jacob disagreed.
I rolled my eyes. “Oh that’s right, only you do.”
“I didn’t mean i--”
“Alright children, that’s enough!” Edward yelled.

“Fine. If this flawed plan somehow manages to work, it will prove that me and
Jacob don’t have relationship plans. But what about casual sex or making out?
She’ll have no way of knowing that we haven’t done those things.”
“Are you opposed to faking an STD?” Edward asked me.
“Edward! No way.” Wasn’t he supposed to be protecting my honor?
“What about mono?” he asked.
“I see where you’re going with this but it won’t work. I don’t get sick,
remember?” Jacob interrupted. “So the absence of a fake illness won’t prove
anything to Aubrey. Besides, she wouldn’t notice an STD,” he mumbled.
“Wait..you guys haven’t..?” I trailed off.
“No. We just started dating and she wanted to wait a while,” he said defensively.
“Well that’s perfect. I can make virgin jokes and we all win,” I said wickedly.
“You could be lying,” he argued.
“True. So I hope you blush as much as I do. They never lie.”
“I’m not sure I like this plan,” Jacob muttered.
“I do,” Edward said cheerfully. “I’ll help you come up with jokes, love.”
“Well make sure they are only directed at me. Aubrey’s still a virgin too and
offending her won’t help any.”
I nodded. “No worries.”

I glanced at a smirking Edward. This was going to be fun.

======
Note: Just to clarify, Aubrey and Jacob are in love, but she is not his imprint.
If she was, he would not have been able to ditch her on their date to go help
Bella. I didn’t see it going this way at first, but everything worked out this
way. And once again, there are no hybrids in this story, so no Renesmee.