Rooftop Rendezvous
By Lady of Spain
Disclaimer: The characters depicted in this story are the property of S. Meyer. No copyright infringement is intended.
Gosh darn it! There it goes again. I'm trying to study for crying out loud. What is that stupid noise up on the roof? I'm getting desperate. This has been going on far too long! Enough already. Watch out, you heartless creature.
Bella trudged out to the backyard. She spotted a bushy grey tail. It sported a distinctive collection of wide black rings. Ugh! How in the world did a raccoon get up there? She picked up a couple of rocks and chucked them at the beast. Being the uncoordinated rock-chucker that she was, the round, stony missiles missed their mark by a large margin. The animal looked in her direction—was it her imagination or was it smirking at her? It appeared to be the Cheshire cat, except it was a raccoon, for Pete's sake. "That does it—laugh at me will you? I'll have the last laugh, you miserable . . . raccoon, you. I'm getting the ladder out, so there!"
Pulling the ladder out of the tool shed, Bella dragged her wooden assistant toward the house. She leaned it against the wall and noticed it was a little bit short of her goal. No matter, it would have to do. The longer ladder was practically hidden behind the wheel barrow and the lawnmower, and piles of . . . stuff. It was way too heavy for her to manage anyhow.
She picked up a stick and carefully climbed up to the roof. As her head peeped over the top of the house, that arrogant animal just stood its ground as if to say, "Now what, silly human?"
There was a two foot gap between the rung she was perched on and the lip of the roof. She had to pull herself up the rest of the way. Just as she got her feet planted, the beast ran to the other side. Darn! There was no way she was going to risk scaling the peak of the roof. With her luck, she would wind up sliding down the opposite side and landing on her butt in the front yard.
Bella was an animal lover, but she was thinking if Charlie got home, maybe he could let a few bullets fly and chase Mr. Raccoon away. Charlie wouldn't be home for another hour though. What a predicament.
Well, this was a big waste of time. She turned her body, facing the roof and reached backward with one leg down toward the top rung of the ladder. Where was it? She couldn't feel it. She reached a little further. How far down was that rung? Fear seized her heart. I can't reach it. Good grief, I'm stuck here till Charlie gets home.
Chief Swan arrived at his home at the usual time, but not as usual, Bella was nowhere to be seen. Not only that, but there was the noticeable absence of his favorite scent—the scent of a meal cooking on the stove.
"Bells," he shouted. Where in the blazes is she?
A small voice answered—it was his daughter's voice—but it seemed so far away. He walked outside to the backyard and finally heard, "Up here, Dad."
Startled, he looked up at his daughter, sitting on the roof with a resigned expression on her face. "What are you doing up there, Bells?" he asked.
"Tell you later. Can you get me down, please; it's starting to get cold."
Charlie shook his head. That was his Bella, all right. She was always getting herself in the most ridiculous situations, but this one beat all.
He climbed up the ladder and motioned for Bella to come toward him. He put out his arms to help her as she reached back to feel for the rung again. "I can't reach it, Dad."
"It's okay, Bells. I won't let you fall. I'm your father, you can trust me."
"No . . . I'm scared," she whined. "Can't you find someone bigger? You're going to drop me."
"All right. I'll get Mr. Cheney."
"He's not that much bigger than you are."
"What do you want me to do, Bells?"
"Go get Jake!"
"Go get Jake," he muttered. "What am I, Pee Wee Herman?"
Bella breathed a sigh of relief as she heard the roar of Jake's motorcycle. It abruptly stopped as he parked the machine. The gravel in the driveway crunched under the weight of his footsteps. Before she knew it, Jake was at the foot of the ladder, smiling up at her.
"I havta ask—what in the world are you doin' up there?" His grin got wider.
"Didn't my dad tell you?"
"He just said there was an emergency, and you were up on the roof, needing my help."
"Jake, I can't get down. The ladder's too short."
"Don't you have another ladder?" That was a no-brainer.
"Yeah, but it's crammed behind a pile of junk. It'll take hours to get it out. Can't you just get me down . . . please?"
"Jake to the rescue, huh? I'm not good enough to visit every once in a while. But when you're in a pinch . . ."
"Please, Jake, I need to get down."
Jacob sighed in exasperation. "God, I'm such a sucker for you. I get you down so you can run off with that leech again, is that it? By the way, where is that pasty parasite? Why isn't he here to save the day?"
"His family went camping."
"Okay, I'm comin' to get ya. But this time, it's gonna cost you."
Jake climbed the ladder in three bounds and stepped onto the shingled platform. "I charge for saving damsels in distress you know. Rooftop rescues have an added fee."
"Five bucks?"
"More."
"Ten?"
"More."
"For the love of Pete, just tell me what you want, Jake?"
"I want a kiss—a real kiss—a kiss full of passion and heat and desire. I want a kiss that will make my toes curl. I want a kiss that says you really mean it."
"You know I can't do that; why are you being so mean?"
"I'm being mean? You're always mean to me. You won't even let me touch you. And don't say, 'I don't feel that way about you, Jake', because I know you do. Deep down inside, you feel something for me."
Bella frowned.
"Okay, if that's the way you want it, you can stay up here all night!"
"Jacob Black!" she yelled in frustration. "Are you Blackmailing me?"
Jake pushed his tongue against the inside of his cheek, giving him a self-satisfied expression. "I never thought of it that way, but yeah." She wanted to smack him; he looked so smug.
"I can't believe this. You win; I surrender," she retorted in desperation.
"Well, whaddya know? You're finally being sensible. Now, put your arms around my neck, and wrap your legs around my waist."
Bella complied. She laced her tiny hands at the base of his head and pressed her cheek against his. Her long legs encircled his torso, bringing her body close to his quivering abdominal muscles. Damn, Jake nearly lost his focus due to her close proximity. He breathed out heavily to regain his composure. This girl did funny things to him—things that nearly drove him insane.
He could have leaped down from the roof. It wouldn't have required an ounce of effort on his part, but then he would cut short the time that he had left to feel the excruciating closeness of Bella clinging to him.
He stood there for a moment, pretending to readjust her weight. Then he took each step down the ladder, slowly and carefully. Jake reached the last rung and stepped off, hating the lawn as he felt it tamp down under his feet.
"You're safely on the ground, Bells," he mumbled sadly. "Well, in your case, you're on the ground—I'm not too sure about how safe you'll be."
Bella unwound her legs, but left her arms encircling his neck. She was reluctant to let go. Holy cow, his warmth felt wonderful, and she needed to get warm. His cheek against hers sent the comforting heat straight into her bones, filling her with his ever-present sunshine.
She pulled back and looked at him. "Gosh, do you think you could you put your arms around me? I'm so cold."
"Hell, yeah—you owe me that kiss anyway." Jacob placed his arms around her shoulders, pulling her close to his heat-radiating body. Bella looked at him thoughtfully. "Well?" he urged, his eyes shining brightly.
"Just wait a minute. I have to psych myself up first."
"Jeez, if you have to put that much effort into it, then forget about it!" His irritation was extremely evident.
"I will not! I never welsh on a deal. Now pucker up, you idiot."
She sighed once and moistened her lips. His mouth was eagerly awaiting her initial move. She looked up at him and pulled Jake's head down to her level. When their lips met, she was surprised at her own intensity. Holy cow, his mouth was so soft and warm, so different from the stone-cold lips of Edward. She liked the feel of it. What did that mean? She was almost ashamed to admit it, but boy, she could get used to this.
Bella was starting to get into it; one of her hands burying itself in his glossy black hair. The other fisted the neck of his tee shirt, yanking his body no more than a hair's-breath away from her own. Good grief, her body nearly melded into his. He was so . . . so . . . pliable?
She was used to Edward holding her against his rigid torso; it was like hugging a rock. How could she compare the two? Jake molded to her every curve. It was like putting two pieces of a puzzle together. They fit together perfectly. She couldn't deny it any longer—they were a matched pair.
Jacob could sense the increase in her heartbeat and the rate of her breathing. "That's right, honey," he murmured. "C'mon, Bells, let yourself feel. Don't fight it . . . let it flow through you and into me." He moved her hand and placed it over his heart. "You feel that? Our hearts are beating in time with each other. This is what was meant to be. Two hearts beating as one."
His intense brown eyes bore into hers; and all at once, Jacob became the aggressor. His mouth crashed down on hers. Every little move he made, Bella duplicated. My gosh, he was making her knees weak. His touch burned trails on her back and waist. Uh-oh, his lips were on her throat and behind her ear. "Jake . . ." she moaned, as he drew her bottom lip between his teeth.
He broke the kiss and was immediately rewarded with a disappointed whimper.
"Told ya so," he taunted.
A couple of gunshots rang through the air, startling the two of them. "There he goes!" Charlie shouted.
Bella explained, "There was a raccoon on the roof. I was trying to get it to leave. Looks like Charlie succeeded where I failed."
"Oh, now I wouldn't say that," Jake responded with a seductive look in his eye. He gazed at Bella one more time. "I guess I better be leaving before he sees us together and points that gun at me."
Seven days went by and Jake was surprised by yet another phone call from Charlie. "Jacob, I hate to bother you, but Bells needs your help. She's stuck on the roof again."
"Jeez, Charlie, that's the third time this week."
"I know. Say, what are you and Bells up to anyhow? This is starting to sound like a rooftop rendezvous."
Jacob smiled knowingly. "You can say that again. Tell her I'll be there in 20, and say hello to the raccoon for me."
A/N: This actually happened to me. My husband had to get the next door neighbor to get me down. Too bad Jake wasn't around, huh?