SM owns all. This is the way that I wanted things to go. Thanks to Goldengirl62, for your help, I do appreciate you, and thanks to my beta, my talented wolf friend, Ladyofspain.

Jacob's Twilight; The Beginning

Chapter Nine: Lurking in the shadows

(Jacob's POV)

Bella looked up at me with her beautiful, soulful eyes—eyes I could easily get lost in and almost did. My gaze drifted from them to her mouth. I saw her lips moving but almost missed what she said. All I could think about was tasting them; to put my lips over hers and become acquainted with every crevice of her mouth.

"You can let go, I'm pretty sure I'm safe from falling now," she said, sounding breathless.

I didn't want to; having her this close to me was heaven. I could feel every curve of her delectable, delightful form. It was wreaking havoc on my senses, and my body's reaction to her was sweet torture. I wished we were alone in a place where there was only Bella and me, learning everything we could about each other. No worries, no stress, just us.

But that's not how it was. I couldn't stand here and hold her all day, even though I wanted to so very much. For one, she wouldn't let me. And two, I might end up embarrassing us both by planting my lips on hers and devouring her where we stood. So I slowly, with much regret, let her go.

She turned to face Leah. "I want you to meet my boyfriend, Sam. Sam this is Bella and the girl beside her is Angela."

He spoke to Angela first, then to Bella. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you; Jacob can't stop talking about you."

I was smiling from ear to ear.

"It is good to meet you too," she replied.

Then Sam turned to me, smiling. "You're right; your girl is very beautiful. Congratulations."

I looked at Bella and she was blushing. A bunch of confusing emotions seemed to cross her face at once. Poor Bells, she didn't know what was going on.

I looked back at Sam. "Thank you, Sam, I was just telling the truth—but Bella is not my girl." Then I turned back to Bella. "At least, not yet".

Her eyes widened at my words, probably thinking I was too sure of myself, which I was. I had no intention of losing my Bells to anyone else. I was feeling very happy and at peace just by being in her presence, then… it turned to annoyance.

Mike came out and put his arm around her shoulders trying to lead her towards the theatre. I was relieved when Angela intervened, saying they would buy something to eat first. Mike, Tyler and Ben decided to wait for them, while my friends and I went ahead into the theatre.

I was still annoyed at the way Mike was acting as though Bells was his. I wanted to rip his arm off, but I would be patient. My girl was already confused by the reactions of her body when I was near; I didn't want to cause her any unnecessary stress.

(Bella's POV)

As we walked into the theatre to find our seats, my mind kept going back to how it felt being in Jacob's arms. I had gasped and placed my hands to my chest trying without success to slow down my heart and body's reaction to being so close to him. Though I had the urge to place my hands under the shirt he was wearing and run them over the silky surface of his skin, tracing and kissing every muscle I found there, I held myself in check, desperate to get away from him.

I have no idea why I was feeling this way; it became more confusing every day. I had begun to panic, wanting to struggle out of his arms, but it would have been futile. I would have ended up much more closer in his arms than I was then. I couldn't let that happen, because the closer I was to him, the stronger these feelings were, and I just might have thrown myself into his arms, asking him to never let me go.

When I was introduced to Sam, the comment he made about Jacob always talking about me, made me feel the blush cover my whole body. I had glanced at Jacob and he was grinning from ear to ear, as if happy about what Sam had said. I wondered if he asked his friend to say these things to me, to get me to give into these feelings I had, because they knew the effects Jacob's nearness had on me. That seemed impossible though.

He probably just wanted to conquer the new girl, and asked his friends to help with this task. The thing that kept beating at my mind was: what if he was really my childhood friend… Jake. No, I wouldn't think that. I had a real fear of finding out, because if he was, it would hurt more than anything I could think of, if he was really that boy I loved so much. Don't think that, Bella, not now. I needed to stop thinking about it. With these mixed up emotions, I was just making myself crazy.

I shook myself out of my musings in time to hear Angela and Mike fussing about where to sit; it seemed he wanted us to sit as far away from Jacob and his friends as possible. He was really starting to irritate me with his actions, thinking he had some claim on me.

"That would be rude," Angela said to him. "We made plans to come with Leah and Kim, so we should find a seat near them."

I silently agreed with her, though I said nothing as we found seats in front of Jacob and his friends. I wanted to sit beside Angela, but Mike maneuvered it so he was sitting by me, which was a little irritating.

When we sat, I heard the kids moving around behind me. I glanced back and found Jacob was exchanging seats with one his friends to sit directly behind Mike and me. This was so not good. I tried to concentrate on the film, but with Jake sitting behind me and all the maneuvers of Mike, the stress was getting to me.

I swear, I wanted to scream and slap the crap out of Mike. His excuse to find a way to touch me, putting his arm on the same arm rest as mine, placing his arm behind my chair, letting it graze my neck, was making me crazy, and not in a good way. If he kept that up, I was going to rip off his arm and beat him with it.

I needed to calm down and just make it through the rest of this film. Taking a deep breath, I did just that, but with great difficulty.

(Jacob's POV)

I closed my eyes for a minute to breath in the scent of my Bella, sitting in front of me, when I felt someone nudge me; I opened my eyes and realized it was Angela, she was pointing at Bella and Mike. Mike had his arm on the back of Bella's chair, and was trying very hard to flirt with her. I became angry, but calmed down quickly when I realized Bella was not flirting back at him; in fact, she was doing her best to ignore him.

I sat back, relaxed, knowing my girl wouldn't be falling for any of his maneuvers or tricks, and it now seemed her friends had come over to my side in making sure Mike didn't get his way. Did I say relaxed? Well, as much as I could with Bella's scent surrounding me and my wanting to get closer to her, place my nose at her neck to fully breathe her into my being.

After the film, we were standing around preparing to leave, when I noticed Bella having trouble closing her jacket.

"I'll be there to help you in a minute; I have to run to the rest room," I heard Mike tell her. But as soon as he was gone, Bella was still struggling with her jacket while talking to Leah and the other girls.

I made my move.

As soon as I was standing in front of her, I asked, "Can I help you with that?"

She didn't reply, just nodded as if she was incapable of words. I knew it was the effect of my nearness to her, but she still didn't understand. This was something that began when we were kids and before I became a wolf.

The height difference was making it a little difficult. Then, I noticed a bench by the wall.

"Let's sit over there," I suggested. "It will make it easier."

She shrugged. "Okay."

We walked over to it, sat, and I began to zip up her jacket, which seem to take forever. Being so close together was wreaking havoc on my senses; the air around us sizzled with tension. I took the edge of the jacket in my hands to put the clasps together and noticed my hands were right at the edge of her pants. Her shirt had risen up, and gave me a tantalizing view of her soft creamy skin.

I gulped, my fingers itching to lightly brush across its surface. Damn, I was in trouble. My hands began to shake as the air around us cracked and sizzled with my need to touch her. I had to put my hand into a fist and pull it back for a minute, because I found my hands slowly moving towards the exposed skin at the edge of her pants.

Taking a deep breath, and with hands slightly shaking, I finally got it zipped, knowing I would need a cold shower when I got home—well, maybe a bath with lots and lots of ice.

As soon as I was done, Mike and his friends came out. He walked over to us, helping Bella to stand and put his arm around her shoulders—an arm which I wanted to rip off.

"You ready to go?" He asked her.

"Yeah," she replied, though she looked uncomfortable with his arm around her.

"Thanks for your help," she said to me, then she and her friends left. We left soon after. Quickly we jumping into our cars to follow them. I wanted to make sure Bella got home safely.

(Bella's POV)

It was pure hell having Jacob so close to me. When we sat and he bent over to zip up my jacket, I could not help noticing the width of his back, the powerful strength in his arms, and his warmth. It felt so good to be close to him; his scent was also wreaking havoc on my system. I needed to get my body's reaction to him under control.

I felt shaking and looked down. That's when I noticed his hands were trembling and slowly reaching out to touch where my shirt had risen up and had some of my skin exposed to his view. My eyes widened; was he really going to touch me?

I was relieved when he pulled back and began working on my jacket again, though his hands were still shaking slightly. I was even more relieved when Mike came out and was ready to go. Who knows what would've happened if I had to sit so close to Jacob a minute longer. Oh God, at that time I didn't trust in my body's reactions.

We were now in Tyler's van again, but Mike was driving and he was going very fast. I didn't know why. Then all of a sudden, he slowed down.

"Why are you driving so slowly now?", I asked.

He glanced through his rear view mirror. "I wanted to check something," he answered suspiciously.

"He's checking to see if Jacob is following us," Tyler added.

I thought that was a little paranoid of him.

"They have enough girls of their own; I don't see why they keep messing with ours. If he keeps bothering you, I would be happy to put a stop to it once and for all," Mike said irritably.

I didn't know what he meant by that, but I was sure I didn't like his tone—not one bit.

"I don't know what you mean," I explained. "Jacob and I are not friends, but we do share a friendship with Leah, Kim and Claire."

"That's not fair," Angela defended him. "He already said he was sorry, more than once, you should give him some slack."

"You're right Ang … he did … But.…" I didn't know what to say. "Can we change the subject? I don't want to talk about this now." I started feeling uncomfortable with the conversation. Then I turned to Mike. "Could you please hurry up, I'm tired and would like to get home."

We all agreed to stop this conversation and Mike sped up again.

(Jacob's POV)

We heard everything that was said in their car and I wanted to wring the boy's neck that was in that van with her. At least I had Angela on my side.

Sam noticed my agitation. "Be patient, Jacob," he said calmly. "I noticed how your nearness affects her, and it is more than just the imprint. I feel it is stronger than that … It's incredible. It is natural and always meant to be. Soon she will accept you, and she will be part of us and the people of La Push." He rested his hand on my shoulders. "Just be patient, it will happen soon."

"Yes it will, Jacob," Embry added. "We all heard and saw her reaction to you; it is very strong."

"He is right," Sam commented. "I have never seen a connection stronger than the one between you and Bella. It's like your wolf chose her before it let itself known to you. The wolf and the boy fell in love with her at the same time."

"It was just meant to be, Jacob," Leah said softly. "There is no denying that, and by her body's reaction to you, she won't be able to deny it too much longer."

Their words calmed me, and I was happy to know that I was right. That connection Bella and I had was stronger than any other; I just had to make her see it. As much as Mike tries, he would never have her. The only thorn in my side was Edward Cullen, and he was not any competition. I could tell how creeped out she felt around him. Maybe her subconscious was warning her of the evil that resided in him.

"You know, I'm happy that we haven't seen any nomads in the area for awhile, so I don't have to worry about that, though we still have to make sure she is protected. All I have to really worry about is Edward thinking that Bella would be a perfect mate for him."

"Don't worry about that, Jacob," Sam informed me. "We will remain diligent in our protection of her and her home."

"Yeah, I know. Thanks, Sam."

I was sad when we reached the turn off to La Push, and Bella and her friends kept going on to Forks. Mike had better keep his hands to himself.

(Bella's POV)

When I got home, my dad was sitting in the den watching television.

"Hey, dad," I greeted him.

"Hey, Bella, you enjoy the movie?"

"Yeah, I did," I replied. "Did you find the dinner I left in the refrigerator for you?"

"Yes I did, thanks, hun." He smiled.

"Well, I'm tired; I'm going to turn in."

"Okay, I'm going to retire myself soon."

"Goodnight, dad." I said as I made my way upstairs.

"Goodnight, Bella, sleep well"

I took a quick shower and dressed for bed, feeling a sudden fatigue as my head hit the pillow.

(Edward's POV)

I was at her house, waiting for her to get home. Standing in the shadows, I listened as she spoke to her dad. When I knew she was fast asleep, I walked over to her truck and opened the hood, removing a vital piece so she would not be able to drive it in the morning. She would need to take the bus; but I would make sure I was here to give her a ride. Alice would just have to drive with Rosalie and the guys.

My attraction to Bella was strong and I wished I could use the powers of my kind on her, to get her to my side. Because of her mental shield, that would not be possible. So I would have to make her love me as a man, on my merit alone, which was something I haven't had to do for many decades, fighting to win a woman's heart as any ordinary man would. I had been able to have any woman I wanted ... but I just wanted this girl.

I was not really worried, though she had a lot of admirers; none of them was any competition, well, except Jacob Black. I knew she felt the imprint, but she did not understand what was happening to her. It was not just that either. Their connection was much stronger, because they fell in love as children. They would have probably been together now, if it wasn't for Jacob's unkindness to her on her first day; but he has not given up. Jacob was fighting hard to win back her heart, but I intended to fight just as hard, if not harder.

I was about to leave, but could not resist seeing her before I did. I climbed up into the tree that stood under window, just to get a peek.

She was sleeping soundly and looked so peaceful and beautiful. The pajamas she was wearing, though not sexy in style, looked that way on her. The moonlight filtered through her window and made her skin look pale and translucent. It looked so silky and soft, I wanted to touch her. I had the urge to go in and take a closer look. I gave into that urge.

Scanning the area around me, I quickly climbed through her window, wanting to leave before the wolves started their patrol around her house. I walked over and looked down on her face. It was fascinating to watch her sleep—something I had not been able to do in decades. I was struck by her beauty and pale skin again. I could not wait for the day when she joined us; I would fight for that day. She was stunningly beautiful. I could imagine how beautiful she would be, if she became a Cullen.

Taking another long look at her, I decided to leave before I could no longer resist the sweet scent of her blood and I did something I would regret. But before I could move, she woke up.

(Bella's POV)

I didn't know what it was—a movement, a sound or something else that woke me up, but when I did and looked towards the end of by bed, I was shocked to see Edward Cullen standing there … watching me.