A/n: Oh my gosh! I am back. Sorry I was gone so long. Had to move kinda unexpectedly and life got in the way, so I apologize, but I am back and will be updating once to twice a month. the beta process is kinda lengthy sometimes. I want to thank my betas angelaluvs fanfic and ninaq. They rock and make me smiley face. Now enough with the annoyingly long a/n. Onto the story...
Bella woke up with a violent jolt. The room was pitch black, and she was lying on the ground. She remembered falling asleep on Emmett's lap while lying on the couch. "Emmett!" She yelled into the darkness. There was nothing but silence. She pushed herself into a sitting position. She realized that her wrists felt oddly heavy, and her movement was restricted. She touched her wrist and felt cold metal connected to a chain. She tried to pull her arms up to her chest and was unable to, the chain jingling. Starting to panic, she noticed she was in a dark, unfamiliar room, and was chained to what felt like the floor. Her legs were free, but that did not comfort her. Hearing rustling and a deep sinister chuckle, she felt fear skitter down her spine, and rest in her stomach with a heavy feeling. She wanted to ask who was there, but she was honestly scared of the answer. Bella closed her eyes, and hoped this was all a bad dream.
"Close your eyes all you want. It won't change anything."
She knew that voice, but she could not place it. Like looking through a foggy mirror, she could see the reflection but the details were gone. "What am I doing here?" She asked.
"Sorry about the confusion. I had to use enough GHB to keep you unconscious, but it can cause some short term memory loss."
Bella whimpered. She knew what that was. It was usually linked to date rape. As if he could read her mind, her captor assured her that he had not assaulted her. "I would want you to be awake for anything I did to you in that respect," he said, chuckling.
"You still haven't told me what I am doing here."
"Well, I would think that would be obvious, Bella."
She heard the sound of the chain clanking again, and suddenly she was yanked forward. Bella cried out when she was pulled forward again, the concrete biting into her naked shins. She looked up and was face-to-face with Felix. He looked at her, and for a moment she saw the man that she had fallen in love with, but then he smiled and the monster he had become was all she saw.
"No!" she yelled, and tried to pull with all her might away from her but he still had a firm grasp on the chain she was attached to.
He yanked her right up against him, and he grabbed her by the hair at the nape of her neck. "Let's see how tough you are when your bodyguard isn't around."
"Felix, please. You don't want to do this."
"No, I think I do. I love it when you beg and plead. Do it some more."
Bella would not give him the satisfaction. He wanted her to cry and scream, but she wasn't going to give him what he wanted. Felix pulled her forward by her hair, and the sting of the hairs being separated from her scalp brought tears to her eyes. He continued to pull her forward, and she saw that they were heading toward a padded workout bench. He forced her onto her knees and pushed her so she was lying over the bench. "I want you to count," Felix said.
"No." She struggled against the hand holding her down and kicked at him the best she could. She felt the sharp sting of him spanking her, and she screamed…
Bella woke up and sat bolt upright, screaming. Emmett swore and his arms circled around her. "Bella, it's okay. You are safe. We are home and everything is okay."
Bella started crying, more out of relief than anything else. She held onto Emmett for dear life. "I was so scared, Em."
"What happened, babe?"
Bella shook her head, the images too fresh and real to rehash them. "I can't. Not right now. It's still too raw, and I don't want to break down again."
Em started to rub her back in soothing circles. She loved anytime he was touching her. "I understand. It's okay; you can tell me when you are ready." He glanced at the clock on Bella's nightstand. It was seven o'clock. "Well, we better get ready. The courthouse opens in an hour."
Bella nodded and gave him another hug. She kissed him on the lips with a quick, chaste kiss and got up. "I'm gonna go hop in the shower."
"Do you need any help in there?"
"We only have an hour, Em. Any help you could give would require much more time than that."
Emmett got up off the bed and came over to where she was standing. He backed her up to the wall and trapped her with his arms on either side of her. "Is that an invitation for later, or is that a challenge, Miss Swan?"
"Both." She smiled wickedly. She ducked under his arms. "But that's for another time." She hurried out of the room to take her shower.
Emmett shook his head, "I'm in love with a devil woman," he said, smiling. He made his way into the kitchen and got the coffee started. He started making breakfast sandwiches for them. When Bella wandered into the kitchen after her shower, Emmett noticed that though she looked refreshed, he could still see the circles under her eyes. He smiled at Bella, and she gave him a bright smile back.
"Look at you, being all domestic and stuff," Bella said, giggling.
"I know how to cook some stuff. No need to be mean about it."
Bella came up behind Emmett and put her arms around his waist. "This is so cute in the movies, but it really doesn't help when your boyfriend is almost a foot taller than you."
Emmett smiled and turned around to face her. "Is this better?" He leaned down and captured her lips in a kiss.
Bella pulled away before the kiss could be taken too far. "Much better. Let's eat." Em handed her a sandwich, and they ate in companionable silence. Once done they both silently got up, took their dishes to the kitchen, and then stood facing each other.
Emmett could see the hesitation in Bella's eyes. He reached over and cupped her face with his hands. "Hey, we will get this taken care of."
Bella inhaled and nodded her head. "I know, Em, but will it be enough? We are less than a week into this crap. I know Felix, and he doesn't give up. What if they deny my restraining order?"
He shook his head. "You have a good strong case, babe. They won't deny it. He could talk himself out of anything, I know, but not this. Not when you have proof. Come on. Let's do this; you know nothing can hurt you while I'm here."
He and Bella headed out of their apartment and to Emmett's Jeep. As Emmett was pulling out of their parking lot, Bella looked over to him. "What about when you are gone?"
"What?" Emmett asked, distracted.
"What's gonna happen when you leave? There will be no one here to scare Felix. You saw him last night. He's not about to get into a fight with you anytime soon. When you leave in July, it'll be fair game for him. He wasn't even scared of my dad, Em! He is not scared to go to jail; he can just get out on bail."
Emmett pulled the jeep over and put it in park. "What's up? This is not you, Bells. You have never just rolled over and taken it like this. What is going on? What was that nightmare about?"
"This has nothing to do with that," Bella denied, trying to stay calm.
Emmett just looked at her calmly. He turned the ignition, turning the Jeep off. He sat with his arms folded, facing her. Bella turned her gaze to her lap and started playing with her fingers.
"I can't. It is too hard. I'm scared of him, and while I know you'll do everything in your power to keep me safe, I fear what will happen when you're no longer here. I'm not the same Bella with him. He dominated me in every way imaginable."
Emmett reached over and grabbed her hands then pulled her chin up to look at him. "You are the same Bella. I've seen it. Uou may be scared of him, but you've stood up to him, and you're still standing. You don't have to give him that power anymore."
She nodded and smiled at him. He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss then let go of her hands. Bella looked out the window as he started the car and got back on the road. She knew that this needed to be done, if only to give everyone else around her some relief. It was the only legal recourse she had right now. She did not think it would do anything to deter Felix. If anything, she was concerned that this would only set him off more; he would take it as her challenging him, and he never backed down from a challenge. She closed her eyes and saw the menacing look he gave her from her dreams, and it reminded her of the night that he broke her. She whimpered and gasped, opening her eyes. Emmett looked at her concerned, but she was too lost in her own thoughts to register it.
They got to the courthouse, and Emmett had to shake Bella to break her out of her thoughts. She gave him a small smile and got out of the car. They walked into the courthouse hand in hand.
Bella walked into the front room, where Emmett was waiting for her, in her pajamas. She put her cell phone down on the coffee table and sighed. "So, Charlie is all up-to-date on the situation. He said to tell you thank you for 'forcing' me to go down and get the restraining order." She looked at him and smirked.
Emmett put his arm around her and pulled her close to his side. "Oh, it's cute he thinks I can force you to do things."
Bella laughed along with him. Sitting with him and not having to talk to fill the silence was one of the things she loved most about Em, but right now she had some questions and concerns to talk about with Emmett. "Hey, Em?"
Emmett looked at her and smiled. "What's up? I know that tone of voice."
Smiling, remembering she could hide nothing from him, she continued. "I'm worried about when you leave."
"Bells, I told you. You will be safe. Now that it's in the system, he can't get away with harassing you—"
"That's not what I'm talking about," she interrupted. "I mean with you and me. You said that you'd basically be busy until February if things went well with the season. I love you, but that is a long time to not talk to you, see you, and once we have sex I'm sure that I'll want more of that too. What are we gonna do?"
Emmett looked at her, concerned. "What are you saying Bella? Do you—"
"No, god no, Emmett!" she interrupted again. "I'm not breaking up with you or saying that I don't want to be with you, so don't even go there."
"Oh, good," he said, looking relieved. "Bells, I told you this is gonna be hard. This is my job and what I love to do. We'll Skype, you can visit me, come watch me play. Text me, email me, send smoke signals, hire a skywriter."
Bella laughed and smiled, causing him to laugh as well. "We'll talk, I promise. And believe me the no sex thing will kill me too, but it'll make it that much better when we are together. We can do this," Emmett encouraged.
Bella knew that he was right, and she realized that she just needed to hear how sure he was of that fact. "I know, Em. I'm just sad that it is coming so fast. We wasted so much time being stupid, and now that we are finally together, you are about to leave."
"But you are coming with me. You can stay with me in Seattle until school starts if you are so inclined. I'd rather you stay forever, but you have school you need to finish."
"True, and yes, I am coming with you."
Emmett pulled her closer to him and started kissing
r neck. "And when we go to Seattle, it'll be just you and me. No Rose, or Edward, or Alice. I will have you all to myself," h
e whispered in her ear. "What will we do with that time?"
He lightly bit her earlobe and Bella moaned. She turned her face to catch his lips in a kiss. Emmett leaned into the kiss, and Bella let him lean her back until she was lying on the couch. He hovered over her, and she put her hand on his lower back to pull his hips closer to hers. She ground against him, and he groaned. Bella pushed against his chest until he sat up and she straddled him and pulled his shirt off. Kissing her way down his chest, she licked his nipple and he hissed in surprise. She smiled to herself and continued her assault on his chest. Emmett was about to take Bella's shirt off when the phone rang. "Son of a bitch." He groaned.
"Just ignore it," Bella panted.
Emmett shook his head. "I can't. I was supposed to call Alice back, and I never did. I bet that is her." Groaning again, Emmett got up and went into his room to get his phone. Bella could hear him quietly talking. She turned the TV on to distract herself while he was on the phone. After one syndicated sitcom and ten minutes into some crappy TV movie, he returned. He flopped on the couch next to Bella. "I told her you invited Rose, she was wary but she will behave."
"She better."
"Well, I'm beat. You ready to go to bed?"
"Yeah, but I want to sleep in your room. It smells like you, and it is more relaxing to me." She asaid, putting her arms around his neck and leaning her head against his shoulder.
"Your wish, babe." He picked her up bridal style. She smiled, turning off the TV flinging the remote on the couch. Emmett put her down so she could head to his room while he locked up. Bella got in the middle of the bed, and then Em came in and turned the lights off and got in bed. She put her hand on his shoulder and laid on his chest. "I love you, Isabella."
"I love you too, Emmett." With their promise still in the air, they fell asleep in each others arms.
Bella woke up at 8 a.m. the next morning to the sound of Emmett swearing and stomping around. "What the hell, Em? Why are you trying to give me a heart attack at 8 a.m.?"
"Sorry, but I stubbed my toe on the way to the bathroom."
Bella broke out into giggles and got out of bed.
"It's not funny," he pouted.
"Oh, yes it is. You guys tease me for being clumsy," she declared. She kissed him chastely on the lips. "It's my turn now, love." She sashayed past him into the bathroom, closing the door and locking it.
"Come on, Bella. I gotta go."
"So do I."
"Yeah, but I heard if a guy holds it, then it can become hard to get and keep an erection."
Bella opened the door so fast it was comical. "Are you serious?"
He shrugged. "Are you willing to take that chance?"
She motioned for him to go first. He smiled and kissed her on the cheek. Bella shook her head and went to go use the guest bathroom. Two hours later, they were both finally ready to go floating with Alice, Jasper, Rose, and Edward. They took Emmett's Jeep to Alice's house. Alice and Jasper were the only ones there so they all talked and caught up for half an hour until Rose and Edward showed up. Bella introduced Alice and Rose.
"Bellsy has told me about you. It's nice to meet you," Alice said, shaking Rose's hand. "I love your swimsuit."
Rose's eyes brightened. "I like yours too. Did you get it here in Bellingham?"
Alice laughed. "Oh, god no! I got it when I went to Seattle. I won't shop here for clothes."
Emmett and Bella looked at each other and smiled. She grabbed his hand and held it. "I knew they would get along," she bragged.
Alice and Rose were animatedly talking about fashion when Edward pointed out the problem.
"How do we get them to stop? Don't we need to go soon?"
"Maybe she can ride with them," she said to Em and Edward. "Hey, Alice. Don't we need to go?"
"Oh, yeah. Hey, Rose, why don't you come with us so you don't have to be cramped in that Jeep?"
Rose looked back at me. "Is that ok, Bell?"
I nodded. "Yeah, that is fine. It's only a short drive, and you guys can finish your conversation."
Rose nodded, gave me a sassy salute, and got in Alice's car. Em, Edward, and I all got in his Jeep and pulled out, then waited for Alice to follow him.
"I have literally never seen Rose warm up to anyone that fast."
"I told Rose that Alice was my best friend, so she had to be nice. Plus, I knew they had a lot in common. Rose is like Alice, but with a much tougher shell. Her boyfriend also sounds a lot like Jasper, so they have that in common too."
"Yeah, Riley is really cool," Edward commented.
They made their way to the park that marked the get in point to float the river. They rented a six person raft, which really only fit four people and a cooler, and got two tubes. The guys inflated the rafts and tubes, and then Emmett put the raft in the river and held it while Edward and Jasper tied the two tubes to the side of the raft. They all got in and situated and Em let go of the dock and they were off. Edward was in front rowing and Emmett was in the back with the other oar. Bella and Rose were in the middle and Alice and Jasper were in the tubes on the side. They all floated in silence for a while until Rose broke the silence.
"So, did you get that stuff taken care of yesterday, Bella?"
Bella looked at her a little surprised. Being friends with Rose was still new to her, so it was weird for anyone other than Alice to be concerned about her with the whole Felix thing. Bella nodded. "Yeah, Em and I went down and filed the paperwork. We have our court date on Thursday, so not looking forward to that, but hopefully it'll be over after that."
"Good," Alice chirped. "That asshat needs to finally be held responsible for his harassment of you. You know this is gonna piss him off, though."
"Yeah, I've already braced myself for that tantrum."
"Am I the only one that realizes a restraining order means he can't contact you?" Emmett asked, clearly annoyed.
"The minute you get a restraining order does not mean you get an armed guard following you around twenty-four seven. Yes, it helps if he does try to contact her, but the fact that her father is the Chief of police and he still assaulted her means that he doesn't fear the law. He can still hurt her, Em." Rose finished.
Bella was a little surprised because Rose had just voiced her concerns in a way that Bella had never really been able to. While Bella couldn't see Emmett's face, she knew by his posture that he was freaked. Bella looked over at Alice, concern written all over her face. Alice nodded her head. Bella reached forward and put her hand on Emmett's back and started rubbing in soothing motions. Alice nodded again after looking at Emmett and gave Bella a thumbs-up. Bella continued rubbing until she saw him visibly relax.
Being the most empathetic in the group, Jasper changed the subject. "So are we still doing the camping trip this year? I know we usually do but Em is leaving in the middle of July."
"We should have the time. At the very least we can do three days and then do the whole week if we have the time." Alice advised.
They all continued to talk about the activities they had planned for this summer, and they invited Rose and Edward along as well. By the time they were done floating, they were still partially wet and starving. They took the shuttle back to their cars and followed Alice home to change into clean, dry clothes and then grilled hamburgers and hotdogs. Alice had made fruit salad and potato salad earlier before they went floating.
After stuffing themselves full of food, they all gathered in Alice's living room and watched a movie. An hour into the movie Bella was feeling tired and her eyes kept fluttering shut, so Emmett took that as his cue to get them home. They gave Alice their thanks for the fun day and said farewell to Jasper, Rose, and Edward. The ride home with Emmett was pretty quiet and Bella could tell he was thinking. Bella let him sort it out himself, because with him he usually just needed time to process it in his own way. She knew that Rose's words earlier had affected him.
When they arrived home, Bella put her hand on the door handle to get out of the car, but he put his hand on her shoulder to stop her. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"I didn't know how to tell you, Em. I didn't know what I was trying to say, but then Rose said what she did and I just knew that is exactly how I felt."
"You're not staying here when I leave. You're coming to Seattle."
"I know, we already agreed I am. 'Til the end of the summer."
Emmett shook his head. "No, you're staying. You're not coming back here without me."
"Emmett, be realistic, I have school I have to finish and don't you dare tell me I don't have to finish." Bella chastised, knowing he was opening his mouth to say that. "I know you're Mr Big Shot football player, but we are going to be equals in this relationship. I'm not gonna sit at home while you are off working hard."
"You don't have to. You could write or do any number of things you have wanted to do."
"Emmett, I don't want to have this conversation out in the parking lot of our apartment, or this late at night. Now, I am going to go upstairs, take a shower and crawl into our comfy bed, half naked. You can either join me or stay out here and sulk," Bella said and opened the door, got out of the car, and shut the door loudly. She was walking to the apartment when she saw a figure waiting in the shadows by her apartment door upstairs. She immediately turned around and saw Em getting out of the car. She put her finger to her lips and pointed to the figure. Em rushed to her side and they climbed the stairs. Bella saw as they got closer that it was not Felix, but Jacob.
"What the hell? Is this my week to be bothered by my ex's?"
"Don't be like that Bells," Jacob said, smiling.
"What do you want?" Bella could tell Emmett was hovering behind her, not knowing her history with Jake.
"I got a warning for you. Paul still runs his mouth around me, not realizing that I will tell you. I hate him, and you, well I've got a soft spot for you." Jacob said, eying Emmett to size him up.
"What is the warning?"
"Felix got served the court papers for your restraining order. He is planning something not so good before the court date."
"Shit, I figured. Come on, come inside." Bella opened the door for Jacob, and he stepped inside. Emmett pulled her back. Bella shook her head. "Don't worry Em. Jake never hurt me and never would. He is scared of my dad and his father is Charlie's best friend. We just didn't work as a couple."
Emmett nodded, and they headed inside. All three of them sat down at the dining room table.
"So, give me a rundown of what this plan is," Bella demanded.
"I don't know what the exact plan is, Bell. I'm not exactly friends with them."
"Well, I dated the asshole for a long time; I could tell you he was going to retaliate."
"What the hell is going on? What did he do to you?" Jacob asked. Bella could tell he was getting angry. "I can only imagine—"
"Oh, believe me, Jake," Bella interrupted. "It's so much worse than you can imagine. You're not that twisted."
"Just tell me that you will be careful," Jacob asked.
"Nothing will happen to me with Emmett around," Bella assured him.
"And I'm not going anywhere without her," Emmett promised.
Jacob nodded and got up. "I better go. Nesse didn't know where I was going, so she'll be getting worried soon."
"Thank you, Jake. I appreciate you looking out for me."
Bella and he embraced. He put his hand out for Emmett to shake. "Keep her safe."
Emmett took his hand and shook it."Always."
Jacob left and Emmett locked the door after him. Once he was done locking up, he headed back to his room and found Bella standing in front of the bathroom mirror just staring at her reflection. Emmett made sure to stay out of the mirror's reflection so he could see what she was doing. Bella stared at herself for a few minutes and then started crying. She looked down at the sink and then back up at the mirror. That was when she started getting angry. Emmett walked over to her, knowing she needed some kind of comfort. Bella lost it when his arms went around her. She started pounding on him with her fists, but after a few hits she gave up. Emmett started crying as well, and they fell to the floor together.
A/n: Awww! Bella has finally hit her breaking point. Things are about to escalate, so stay tuned. Let me know what you thought, I love each and every review I get so please let me in your brain. Next update will probably be in 2 weeks, a week to write, and a week to beta. see you then lovelies!