Whew- this has been a hectic week. Life intervened more than once during the writing of this chapter, but I'm still reasonably happy with it. Writing from Jacob's perspective was different, but fun. I have a few more JPOV chapters planned for this story in the future.

I am loving all the great feedback that I've received so far on this story! Keep it coming :)

Stephenie Meyer owns all things Twilight.

Chapter 3- JPOV

I slept for shit the night after Bella Swan walked back into my life after ten years, mostly because I spent it dreaming about her. While quite a bit of the dreams centered around the seventeen-year-old Bella of my memory, parts featured my new vision of her from the day before. Judging by my sizeable morning wood, they weren't all innocent dreams, either.

I stayed in bed for a few minutes, disoriented, before I realized that I'd woken up before my alarm went off. It was only seven, and I didn't have to be at the shop to meet Bella until nine. I groaned and rubbed my eyes before swinging my legs over the edge of the bed. At least it would give me some time to get in an extra-thorough shower.

I stood under the warm spray, thinking back to the previous afternoon. Even after ten years, I still recognized her from the moment I saw her. She looked almost the same as I remembered- the same long, mahogany hair framing her beautiful chocolate brown eyes, her skin still pale and creamy-smooth. She'd always been thin and still was, but although I doubted she'd developed a love for sports over the years, she'd obviously spent a little time in the gym. Her body was more toned, and she'd filled out her curves in all the right places.

I wasn't sure at exactly what point my dick ended up in my hand, but I shrugged and went with it. It probably wasn't such a bad idea. After all, it wouldn't really look very good if I showed up to meet Bella with a raging hard-on. It also wasn't like she didn't already hold the top slot in my spank bank, either. She'd had that dubious honor since I was fourteen.

I finished quickly and got to my "actual" shower, taking special care to scrub around and under my nails, where grease always seemed to linger. I wasn't sure why the hell I was going to so much trouble. Bella had already told me that she had a boyfriend, and not just any boyfriend- a rich, successful one. Edward Cullen, head of Cullen Design- a fucking Fortune 500 company, for Christ's sake. Someone that I, Jacob Black, lowly mechanic from La Push, Washington, could never measure up to.

I wondered why Charlie had never mentioned Cullen on any of the brief occasions we'd spoken of Bella. Maybe he didn't like him very much. Maybe he was a complete dickhole. For a moment I chided myself for being petty, and then I remembered what Bella had said about him being a workaholic and not being home much, and I decided my assessment was probably correct. Any guy who would willingly stay away from a girl- a woman- like Bella Swan had to be a dickhole.

It was no secret to those that knew me best that I'd had a thing for Bella since we were kids. Even though I only saw her during her brief summer visits with Charlie, she had fascinated me as long as I could remember. It wasn't just that she was beautiful, it was everything about her- her warmth, her sense of humor, her completely unselfish nature. I'd never met anyone so determined to put others' happiness before her own. She had been my first love, and when I fell, I fell hard. Seth and his older sister Leah, my adopted siblings, loved to tease me about my infatuation with Bella, but even they didn't know deep my feelings ran. Only my dad really understood, and he had always wished that Bella was around more often. Even though Bella never paid me much mind back then, my dad seemed to sense possibilities between us. It had given me hope. Then he died, and the only person who ever believed I had a shot with her was gone.

I suddenly realized that my thoughts were turning pretty fucking morose, so I tried to shake it off as I finished getting dressed. I looked in the mirror, frowning at my shaggy hair, and tried slicking it down with water. I had it patted down and parted when I discovered that it just made me look like a complete tool. I scowled and ran my hands back through the thick locks until they were sticking out in every direction again. "Fuck it."

I locked up the house and ran through the light morning drizzle to my garage. It was basically just a big clapboard structure that held three cars- two junkers in various stages of repair, and my pride and joy, a 1970 Dodge Challenger that I restored myself and painted a sweet shade of yellow. Since I'd left Bella's truck at the shop the night before, I had the opportunity to roll up in style. I pulled out of my drive and headed for Forks. I couldn't help it- even knowing that she was taken, I was still excited to see her.

Even with me showing up fifteen minutes early, she was already there, parked on the side of the building next to Seth's old F-150. I pulled up on her other side and she rolled down her window, eyeing my car with undisguised admiration.

"Wow, Jacob, that's an awesome car," she called. Then she paused, and looked slightly embarrassed. "I have to admit I'm not sure what it is, but I like it."

I laughed. "It's a Dodge Challenger," I told her as I got out and locked the door. "They don't make them like this anymore." I leaned down and passed her an umbrella through the window. "I brought you this just in case. I wasn't sure if you had one, and it looks like it's going to rain most of the day."

"Thanks," she replied, smiling her genuine, sweet-natured Bella smile, and I felt a funny tremor shoot through my stomach. Calm it down, Black, I cautioned myself.

"Let me get your truck, and we can head out." I jogged briskly around back and opened the garage door. Bella's truck was inside, cleaned up, gassed, and ready to go. I'd even changed the oil and refilled all the fluids, although that probably could have waited. Seth, of course, had to bust my balls about all the trouble I was going to for my old crush.

I pulled the truck out, closed the garage behind me, and then pulled around to Bella. I decided to let her go ahead of me, since I wasn't exactly sure where the car rental was. I made trips up there on occasion to look for parts, but I didn't know it like the back of my hand the way I did Forks and La Push.

Bella headed out of town, and I trailed her rented Nissan, wishing I could be with her on the drive. To fill the silence I turned the radio on to my favorite rock station. Before long I was drumming out the rhythm to Mudvayne's "Scream With Me" on the steering wheel.

It pissed and poured the entire way to Port Angeles, and I didn't hold out much hope for a return to the sun of the day before. I figured Bella was probably hating things right about now. She never did care much for Forks weather.

My suspicions were confirmed when we reached the parking lot at Enterprise. I watched Bella stick the umbrella through her car door and open it before getting out, an irritated scowl on her face. I laughed quietly as I watched her sprint to the front door, hunching down inside her light blue jacket.

She reappeared a few minutes later and hurried to the truck, clutching the umbrella for dear life. I had already slid over to the passenger side, and I reached over and opened the driver's side door for her. She dove in, shaking the umbrella out briefly before closing it.

"Stupid ass rain," she muttered, and I chuckled.

"Better get used to it, Bells," I said teasingly.

She whipped her head around to look at me. "What did you call me?"

"I called you Bells." I mentally smacked myself for using her old nickname. "Sorry."

"No, it's okay," she said quickly. "Really. It's just that Charlie's the only one who's ever called me that."

"That's where I picked it up from. I'm glad you don't mind."

"Not at all," she replied, smiling a little. "It's…nice."

We looked at each other for a minute, and I realized that I really didn't want our time together to end just yet.

"Are you hungry?" I blurted out.

"Starving. I didn't eat breakfast."

"Me either. Wanna grab something before we drive back?"

She nodded. "Sounds good." She turned the key in the ignition and prepared to pull out of the lot. "Where to?"

"I don't come up here much, so your guess is as good as mine. Let's just drive and see what we see."

So that's what we did, driving through the tourist area of Port Angeles until we spotted a little diner on the corner. Bella parked the truck across the street from it and we ran through the downpour.

The hostess seated us in small corner booth and handed us both menus. Luckily, they were still serving breakfast. I skimmed the choices, looking for the biggest selection I could find as my stomach growled in frustration. I made up my mind just as our waitress came by to take our order.

"What can I get you two?" she asked pleasantly, including both of us, although she made an obvious show of staring at me.

I tried to divert her attention by nodding to Bella. "You first," I said.

Bella glanced up and took in the way the waitress hardly looked at her. "I'll have the Belgian waffle and a coffee, please."

She scribbled quickly on her pad and took Bella's menu before turning back to me with a thousand-watt smile. "And for you?"

"I'll get the pancake combo, eggs sunny-side-up, with bacon. Oh, and an large orange juice."

"I'll put that in for you and be right back."

After she was gone, Bella looked at me and smirked. "She wasn't too subtle, was she?" she asked, clearly amused.

"I guess not." I shrugged. "I'm not sure why."

She stared at me, open-mouthed. "You're joking, right?"

Really, I wasn't. I never gave much thought to my appearance or how it affected the opposite sex. Honestly, with my shaggy hair and generally grease-stained clothes, I figured I looked like a scrub. I did acknowledge that my body was pretty toned, but I hit the gym mostly for the stress-relief, not because I gave a shit about my looks.

"I equate female interest in me to a lack of other options," I joked. "Why, are you saying you think I'm attractive?"

I meant it to be humorous, but Bella blushed beet red and was suddenly very interested in her silverware. I felt a thrill of hope shoot though me, and tried to smother it.

Boyfriend, remember, Jake?

I suddenly remembered seeing Edward Cullen on the cover of Architectural Digest a few months back, looking more like a GQ model than an architect- a well-dressed pretty boy with hair that was meant to look messy but that probably took a least half an hour to style every morning. If that was the kind of man Bella Swan was attracted to, then I couldn't imagine what she would see in someone like me.

Bella was still blushing furiously and toying with her fork. I reached across the table and lightly touched the back of her hand. She jumped.

"I didn't mean to embarrass you," I said, still wondering about the strength of her reaction to what I'd said.

"I know," she mumbled. Then she laughed softly. "I find it hard to believe that you can be so humble, though."

I stared at her for a moment, mystified. Apparently she really did see something she liked, boyfriend or not. It was the kind of thing that could easily go to my head if I wasn't careful. I was going to have to do my best to remember that she belonged to someone else.

********

Surprisingly, it wasn't raining when we left the diner. There was a small break in the clouds, the feeble sunshine trying to make the most of what little time it had. Bella glanced briefly at her truck, and then back at me.

"You mind taking a little walk? I saw a bookstore a few blocks down, and I have a feeling I'm going to need some new reading material while I'm at Charlie's. I doubt he's going to let me get any use out of the TV." She rolled her eyes.

I grinned in response. "Probably not. It's baseball season."

She groaned dramatically. "Baseball. Blech."

We walked side by side on our way to the bookstore, sharing a comfortable silence. Unlike most people, Bella didn't seem to feel the need to fill every second with meaningless chit-chat. Even though I loved the sound of her voice, it was also nice just to be in her presence without conversation. It gave me a chance to really study her.

She was so beautiful, and the best part was, she had no idea. Bella thought I was humble when it came to my looks, but she was ten times worse. She was in plain denial. I didn't understand how she could look in the mirror every day and not see how gorgeous she was. I wondered what she would think if she knew how badly I wanted to bury my hands in her thick dark hair and kiss the hell out of those perfect lips. Fuck Edward Cullen and the horse he rode in on.

We reached the little bookstore and Bella went immediately to the fiction section, while I lingered back, looking at the non-fiction. I wasn't a huge reader, but when I did crack a book it was usually either historical non-fiction, or something on cars. I found something on World War II that looked interesting, and started skimming through it.

After a couple of minutes I looked up to see what Bella was doing. She had her back to me, and was kneeling down to look at some books on a low shelf. Her jacket had ridden up her back a bit, exposing a band of smooth, pale skin. As she leaned over further, her jeans slipped an inch or two, revealing a strip of light pink fabric.

I'd be damned if Bella wasn't wearing a thong.

I hadn't figured her for a thong kind of woman. The clash between that and her casual, dressed-down jeans and t-shirt was enough to get me instantly hard.

Except that I wasn't being entirely honest with myself. Yes, that combination alone was hot, but if it had been any other woman, I would have taken a gander and then moved on. But this was Bella, the girl I'd been fantasizing about for the last ten-plus years. Everything about her got me excited- this was too much.

I stared, unable to look away as she stretched again and the thong rose higher out of her jeans. I knew she had no idea, or she wouldn't still be bent over. Bella wasn't the type to flash someone her underwear. I kept telling myself that I should look away, but I didn't. My cock strained painfully against the constriction of my jeans as I imagined how her ass would feel under my hands. Cool off, Jake, I told myself. What was I, fucking fourteen? This was beginning to get ridiculous.

Only the fear of Bella turning around and catching me pitching a tent was enough to make me look away. I quickly strolled into another aisle and faced the rows of books, trying to think of something- anything- to make my erection subside. In my head, I started reciting the correct way to flush a radiator. Ah, much better.

As soon as I got myself together, I rejoined Bella. She had two books in her hands and was on her way to the register.

"Ready to endure game nights at Charlie's now?" I asked, trying to keep my voice light and my thoughts away from what I'd just seen.

"Yeah. Now I won't have to pretend to give a crap about the Mariners."

I waited while Bella paid for her books, and then we hurried quickly back to the truck. The clouds were already closing back in, and I knew Bella wouldn't want to be caught without her umbrella if it started raining again.

We made it with time to spare- it didn't start sprinkling again until we were back on the highway. Bella turned the radio on, and smiled when she took note of the music playing.

"I'll have to keep it on this station. All I found on the drive up was country or top forty stuff," she said.

"Really? I didn't think you would like rock."

"I love it. Edward can't stand it. He's more of a classical person. I like certain songs, but not to the extent he does. So we usually just don't listen to music together."

"That sucks," I said honestly, before I thought better of it. "I mean, it just seems like you guys don't have much in common."

Bella frowned. "We don't, really."

"I'm sorry," I replied, and I really meant it. As much as I might have wished that Edward Cullen would jump off a cliff, I hated to think of Bella being unhappy. From the things she kept telling me, it seemed like that might be a distinct possibility.

Bella sighed, and then turned to look at me briefly, her brown eyes speculative. "Thanks, Jake." The she looked back at the road, and said, in a softer voice, "You're so easy to talk to."

I felt that little thrill shoot through me again.

We were quiet after that, once more enjoying comfortable silence as we listened to the radio. The drive back to Forks was over way too soon. I would have been happy spending the entire day with Bella, but I knew she'd be heading back to Charlie's.

We pulled into the shop's parking lot, and Bella parked in front this time. I collected my only belonging in the vehicle- a half empty bottle of Vitamin Water that I'd brought with me from the house that morning. I quickly chugged the rest of it, noticing that Bella was looking at me with an amused smile.

I lowered the empty bottle and replaced the cap. "What?"

"Vitamin Water? How can you drink that stuff? It tastes like piss."

"It does not," I muttered. "Plus, it's good for you. Essential vitamins and minerals, and all that."

Bella guffawed. "Are you serious?"

"What? I'm sorry I'm not drinking some homemade herbal crap. Way to stereotype, Bella," I retorted, trying to suppress a grin. I couldn't believe she was actually trying to bust my balls about my beverage choice.

"You're right, I'm really sorry," she said, still giggling.

I rolled my eyes good-naturedly. "Sure, sure."

She calmed down, though her eyes were still bright with humor. "It was really good seeing you, Jake."

"You too," I replied, a bit more earnestly than I intended. "Don't be a stranger while you're here."

"I won't." I saw her hesitate for a second, as if she was debating what to do next. Then she suddenly leaned over and put her arms around me.

I reacted instinctively, folding my arms around her for the brief embrace. Her soft, silky hair brushed my cheek, and I was assaulted by the sweet smell of strawberries- her shampoo or something. She felt soft and warm in my arms, and I hated that she pulled away so soon. She held my gaze as she did so, and her expression looked confused.

"I'll see you later, Jacob," she said softly.

"See you." I hopped out of the truck and closed the door, stepping back so she could pull out of the spot. I watched her drive away, replaying her impulsive hug over and over again in my mind, and I knew then that I was completely and utterly fucked.

Because Edward Cullen or no Edward Cullen, I was falling hard for Bella Swan, all over again.

So, we now know that the reason Jacob was acting a little funny in the last chapter is because he's always had strong feelings for Bella. And, as you can tell, Bella is having her own doubts about her relationship with Edward. Now is when things start getting good. ;)

As always, please review if you liked this chapter!