Part 10
By Tekhne
"What's up, Bells?" Jacob whispered as he came in the front door. He leaned down to kiss me, his lips warm against mine. Charlie coughed, and Jake pulled away with a chuckle and grabbed my hand. "Hi, Charlie," he grinned as we walked into the kitchen.
"Bella cooked," Charlie assured him.
Jacob laughed. "That was kind of obvious, Charlie. There isn't any smoke in the kitchen." He sniffed the air. "Mmmm…smells good."
"I looked up the recipe on the computer. I keep trying to think of new things to do with fish." We had enough fish to feed a small army for a year, thanks to Charlie. It helped with the grocery expenses, but sometimes it got a little dull.
"So whats new about the fish tonight?" Charlie said, nervous. I'd been cooking for him for more than a year, but he still remembered my mother's experimental cooking. I couldn't blame him for his skepticism about new recipes.
"It sounded interesting," I explained. "It's sort of like a pot roast, but with fish instead. And instead of using water, you use a cream sauce with dill as the stock. If it doesn't taste good, we can always order pizza."
Charlie looked relieved.
"It smells too good to taste bad," Jacob declared with certainty. "If Charlie doesn't like it, I'll eat his portion."
I felt certain about that. In fact, knowing Jacob was coming, I'd doubled the recipe and added a couple of extra pieces of fish on top of that. I didn't want to send him home hungry.
"Can I help with anything?" Jacob asked.
"You can set the table. And Dad, you can pour us each some milk while I get these muffins ready." The nice thing about this meal was that everything but the bread was in one pot. It would be easy to serve.
Jacob knew his way around our kitchen and had the dishes and silverware on the table in no time. Charlie placed a filled glass near each plate. Jacob appeared beside and whisked the basket of muffins out of my hand and grabbed the butter from the refrigerator on his way to the table. "You can both have a seat. I'll bring the fish."
But Jacob was already there, pot holders in his hands. "Let me get it."
I grabbed a serving spoon and a ladle for the sauce and he followed me to the table. Charlie grinned broadly as he watched Jacob settle the pot on the trivet in the center of the table and remove the cover. He raised his eyebrows, evaluating the food. Apparently satisfied, he held out his hand for Jacob's plate, heaping it full with two pieces of fish and digging under the fish for large helpings of vegetables. Jacob took the ladle and poured copious amounts of sauce over everything. Charlie finished serving and watched while Jacob took a bite.
"Mmmmm…" Jacob closed his eyes. "Bells, this is really good." He couldn't talk anymore because his mouth was full.
Charlie nodded agreement, all skepticism gone. Both of them were grabbing second helpings before I finished my first. I wondered if they'd slow down enough to talk before the meal was over.
"I guess I'll have to save that recipe." I was glad. It was something different and easy.
"Bella, you're the best cook I know. Even better than Emily," Jacob murmured. Charlie eyed us both.
I hadn't told Jacob yet about the scholarship. I'd planned to do it tonight. I would miss him so much. But I wanted college, too. California was really my only choice right now.
Jacob, as observant as ever, must have noticed something in my expression. "What's wrong, Bells?"
"It's not really something wrong. It's good, mostly." Except for being away from you.
"If it's good, then why don't you seem happier about it?" Jacob's gentle voice urged me on.
I shrugged. "Mostly good, I said. I got a scholarship. I was a little surprised, since I hadn't applied, but Mrs. Burke at school nominated me for this program."
"That's great, Bells!" Jacob smiled, clearly proud of me. He reached across the table to squeeze my hand. "What's the downside?"
"The scholarship is to UCLA." I waited for the news to sink in.
Charlie watched Jacob. I knew he was concerned that Jacob would worry about the same thing he had: Edward. But Jacob knew what Charlie didn't: the Cullens had never gone to California. He understood that the real downside would be missing him.
"It's not the end of the earth, Bella. You'll be home holidays and summers." He held my gaze, the emotion fueling his voice. "I'm not going anywhere. Unless it's a road trip to California to visit you."
I watched the tension ease from Charlie's shoulders. He grinned first at me, then at Jacob.
"College is important, and a scholarship is great." Jacob tugged at a strand of my hair. "Besides, I like smart girls. Being smart is almost as important as being a good cook." He chuckled as he filled his plate for a third time.