A/N: This installment is pretty much all about Jake and Nessie. Next chapter is going to focus more on the central conflict of the story and possibly take some very interesting little twists. Be warned: This story is a little bit X-Rated and will probably only get worse as I go. Keep reading and please review. I love to hear what people think even if it's not good.

Chapter 10 Running to Stand Still

Jacob stopped cold. "Whoa, wait" he said and set her down on her feet. He walked a few paces away as if that might quell the burning in his loins.

"What's wrong? Did I hurt you?" Renesmee was confused. One minute he was there with her and the next he was pacing the forest. Rain fell in a constant drizzle pattering on the leaves, dripping over her face. She knew she could be a little too strong for her own good sometimes and he was human after all. Jacob's nervous laughter pierced the awkward silence.

"Funny, I was just asking myself the same question" Jacob answered. Baffled and a little annoyed Renesmee gaped over at him and almost laughed herself.

"Vampire…I'm fairly unbreakable" she stated thinking he must have gone mad. The tingle of her lips was like a burn that itched to be soothed even now when he was making her crazy. He paced one way and then the next seeming to be having some sort of argument with only himself. Perhaps he had gone mad.

"I have to ask you a question" he mumbled finally standing in one place. He was only a couple of feet away. Renesmee thought she could easily close the distance and make him forget the whole thing but instead she just nodded. "Are you…I mean have you" Jesus he thought and rolled his eyes up to sky. "Am I the first?" So that was the reason for his insanity. He was worried about her virtue. She wondered if vampires even had any.

"Yes" she whispered and heard Jacob curse under his breath. "What difference does it make, Jacob? I mean…I know you probably have a little more experience in this area…" His full booming laugh cut her off mid-sentence. What a wonder she was. He moved to her now, his hands lying on her waist, his eyes tipped down to hers. She looked up at him totally bewildered.

"Never" he said answering her unspoken question with conviction. He reached up to trace her jaw with his thumb wiping the raindrops from her cheek. "There's never been another" Renesmee thought of a hundred different things she could say but she was just a little too baffled to form words.

"Oh" Simple, maybe a little too simple. Jacob chuckled softly and kissed her porcelain forehead.

"I guess…I've been waiting my whole life for one woman" he said quietly searching her glittering eyes "I want to do it right, for both of us" His words touched her in a way that nothing ever could and she had to agree with him. It was all moving just a little too fast.

"I think we should slow things down a little. I mean, technically I've known you less than a day" Renesmee laughed nervously and leaned back against the tree.

"Funny how things can change so quickly" he said echoing her thoughts. She leaned up and kissed him full on the mouth. "Hey!" he laughed his voice muffled by his mouth. "What happened to slow" It came out like mush with her mouth moving on his.

"Shut-up, Jake" she replied and joined her lips with his. He broke the kiss and leaned back to peer curiously at her. She let out a little growl of protest.

"That's the first time you've called me Jake in…forever" the warmth flooded him. Her mouth was set in a petulant pout and it was the sexiest thing Jacob had ever seen. With his thumb he traced her heavy bottom lip.

"Yeah, yeah" She returned "…but if you start calling me Nessie I'll have to torture you…slowly" she said huskily and wound her arms around his neck.

"Nessie" he challenged with a smirk on his face and in response felt her hand moving slowly down his belly. He met her haughty gaze fighting fire with fire. If he was going to burn he may as well have company. "Nessie, Nessie" he chanted teasingly and felt her fingers playing along the waistband of his cutoffs. He sucked in a breath and wondered just how far she'd take things. Never one to back down from a challenge Renesmee snaked her hand further down cupping the strained denim. She smiled in female appreciation and thought that when the time did come she was going to be one lucky girl. "Renesmee, Ness" he all but gulped out. "You win…for now" he murmured breathing just a little faster than usual.

"Let's see if I win now" she said. Her breath on his face was so intoxicating to Jacob that he didn't notice her dash across the field until she'd gotten a fair distance away. "Race you to the beach" she said with a giggle and a grin. Being the gentlemen that he was Jacob thought it only fair he give her a head start and counted to ten before leaping up in the air and phasing mid jump. He landed swiftly in the form of the wolf and tore off into the woods in search of a vampire goddess.

On padded feet he was fast and free. He thought about those first few weeks after he'd learned what he'd become and how angry he'd been. He hadn't wanted the change; he'd despised everything about it. He'd used it to his advantage when necessary but until he left Forks the first time and found that he rather enjoyed living as a wolf he had simply hated it. He quickly learned that it was a freedom like nothing a human life could provide, a gift. The thought that Renesmee would indeed live forever whereas Jacob's continued longevity depended on him staying in wolf form as much as possible was a reminder he decided to push away for another time. He would do whatever it took to be with her he decided as he spotted the somewhat blurred image of his girl streaking just ahead of him. Jacob took off to run at full speed and matched her neck and neck. He wondered if maybe this little race was something she may have remembered them doing years before. Their competitiveness with one another had started from the day he had first taken her hunting. She hadn't wanted to hunt animals and had wrinkled her nose in disgust. He'd made a game of it, Jacob remembered telling her to see if she could kill more than he could and that was that. Stubborn little Renesmee had been off and killing deer like a pro. Their races were legendary most often ending with Jacob winning as he intended to do now. He broke out in front of her moments before they reached the cliff they'd met on only hours before. Jacob headed for the woods off to the side that would lead him down the path to the shore. He didn't realize she wasn't behind him until he glanced to his flank and saw Renesmee leaping straight off the cliff. She dove headfirst, somersaulting and had Jacob speeding even faster toward the beach his heart pounding in his chest. Was she trying to kill herself? Or just kill him by giving him a heart attack. The beach was just too far away, there was no way he was going to make it down there in time to catch her but he pushed himself as hard as he could to try. He leapt over the last grassy rise and hit the beach sand hard. Whipping his snout up he saw her standing on the beach still crouched from the impact of the jump. She stood just outside the mouth of the cave her hair whipping in the wind, eyes full of laughter and could have killed her.

"I win" Renesmee called triumphantly. She'd been around the wolves before but this time was different. It was Jacob. He was different from the rest of the pack, larger and the color of his fur was a distinct reddish brown. His eyes were just as piercing as when he was in human form but they were brighter, ferocious. God, he was majestic and pissed off she realized sheepishly. Her little stunt had obviously upset him. Renesmee hadn't taken that into account when she'd decided to jump; her only thought had been her desire to win. Still he sauntered over with his tail high and nuzzled his snout into her hand whining softly. He dashed into the cave before she'd had a chance to apologize. She looked up and saw Embry, Leah and Seth standing atop the cliff peering down at her and sighed heavily. Jacob must have called to them after she'd jumped. With an apologetic look she turned and walked into the cave. The sight of Jacob standing just inside the cave bare-naked stole the words from her lips. He'd just pulled a pair of shorts out of a backpack when he must have heard her approach. He half turned revealing enough to make her mouth water and the venom sting the back of her throat. The look he shot her was smoldering caught somewhere between a scowl and a pout. His eyes were nearly as fiery as the wolf's. Jacob slipped the shorts over his legs but not before Renesmee saw nearly every inch of his golden skin, his perfect ass and the muscles that had her fighting back a quiver. He looked delicious and all she wanted was a taste.

Jacob watched her gazing back at him apologetically at first and then with a hunger that sent a shiver down his spine.

"I'm sorry" she mouthed an instant before she pounced on him. He grabbed her and took her down to the floor with him. Jacob's playful growl ripped out of him before he'd had a chance to think about it. He never could be mad at her why should today be any exception. Deftly, he rolled over her until he was peering down at her and placed a reverent kiss to her brow.

"I thought I'd lost you back there. Don't you ever do that to me again" he murmured. Though she felt bad for frightening him Renesmee refused to play the naïve little princess who needed constant protection; not with Jacob.

"I'm not so easily broken, Jake" she replied softly. "I'm a whole lot tougher than anyone gives me credit for" her hand reached up to stroke the side of his face "I am sorry I scared you, though" and she meant it wholeheartedly. "However" she said biting her lip to fight the grin "I did beat your ass"

The smile that spread across her face was all conquest. He contemplated telling her he'd given her a head start and then figured it was best if he let her have this one. "Yeah, yeah rub it in some more" he teased and swept her up into his lap. His arms came around her in a fierce hug that made every part of her sing. Nobody had ever held her quite like this and Renesmee clung to him eagerly. She had so many questions for him about the past, about where he'd been for the past four years, why he'd left. She decided now was as good a time as any to ask.

"Why did you leave me, Jake" she mumbled against his warmth and hard muscles. Jacob pulled her back and for the first time since he'd come back realized that even though she didn't remember she could still be hurt by the knowledge that he'd left. Looking into her eyes he saw the hurt she was desperately trying to hide.

"I had to go, Ness. Things just got too complicated and we…I mean I decided it was best for me to go away for a bit" he corrected himself quickly but not quickly enough. Renesmee was more confused now then she had ever been before.

"We" she echoed and then it dawned on her vivid and clear. Edward. "I knew it" she yelled with a hiss. "Edward sent you away didn't he?" she was bright with fury. Jacob started to deny it and thought better of it.

"It was my decision, Renesmee but I'm not going to lie to you. Your father was part of it" Of course he was Renesmee thought a fresh wave of fury sweeping over her. The man was forever trying to control her life. Her dark eyes closed. She sighed heavily trying to put the anger away for later and there would be a showdown with her family later.

"They took you away from me, Jake. Your pictures, your memories, they erased you from my life" a tear slipped out the corner of one closed eye. "Where were you?" she demanded tearfully. Jacob had never been good with tears and it was especially hard for him to see hers.

"Here and there" he said trying to lighten the mood and simply sighed when her golden eyes opened and stared blankly at him. He should have known he wasn't going to get off that easy. "I mostly drifted around a lot. The first year is still a bit of a blur. I spent a lot of time in wolf form just living like an animal. I let my baser instincts take over so I wouldn't have to think, or feel so lost. The next few years I worked construction in different places. I'd just pick up a job and quit when I felt the urge to be the wolf again. The last year I took a job in California working crappy labor on a construction site. The contractor was a real nice guy. He showed me the ropes and taught me a lot, enough to build my own home" he gestured to the land that rose just over the beach. "I'm going to build a house right there" Jacob said his eyes going faraway and dreamy.

"You're going to build a house…by yourself…on the beach?" Renesmee repeated slowly. He saw the doubt in her eyes and saw it as a challenge.

"Hey, a man's got to have a home. I can't live with Billy my whole life. Besides I was kind of hoping when it was finished it might be our home" he paused and bit his lip waiting for her reply. It had been bold, Jacob knew that but dammit he felt bold today. Renesmee's eyes went wide and then she laughed and leaned into him again.

"Didn't we just agree to take it slow and now you're building us a house" she chuckled and saw from the look on his face that he was dead serious. "Wow" it was just amazing "Nobody's ever built me a house before" she was floored. As gestures went this one was a biggie. "Well if you're going to build us a house then the master suite must have windows that face the ocean and I want a little library with a fireplace" Jacob's smile could have lit the dimming cave up like the sun.

"…and of course it has to have a huge kitchen and at least three bedrooms for all the babies we'll have. I'm thinking four would be nice. Two of each…"

"As long as they all have your eyes" Renesmee interrupted and suddenly noticed the cave had so much…stuff in it. Jake's backpack was slung in the corner next to a lumpy looking air mattress covered in a sleeping bag. There was a lantern on top of the desk now along with an assortment of snack foods. He'd put down a furry rug next to the fire pit and moved the bench over to the wall. On it were a stack of papers that looked a whole lot like architect's drafts, blueprints. So he was serious.

"Are you living here now?" she asked jokingly. Jake nodded.

"It's convenient" he shrugged "and it's close to where I'll be working plus I won't have to deal with my sister and her brood, especially Paul. Idiot" Jacob watched Renesmee wrinkle her nose. "It may not be comfortable but its home for now" He said noticing for the first time that the sky was darkening. Renesmee noticed it too and frowned.

"There's a meeting, back at the house" she murmured quietly "I think we should all be there" It was the expression she wore that worried Jacob. There was something behind her eyes, anger smoldering like a burnt out coal and a touch of fear. He knew they were going to want an explanation for what happened earlier with the bursting vision thing she'd performed. Nobody was going to hurt her tonight he vowed silently even if he had to kill the lot of them.

"It's going to be okay, Ness. We'll all be there with you" When she turned to look back at his face she believed it with all her heart.