CHAPTER TEN
(BPOV)
I awoke to the sound of Jacobs laughter, my body still sweltering hot from his closeness through the night. I sat up and threw off the comforters, my eyes struggling to adjust to the brightness of the room as the sunlight poured in from the small opened window. I drew in a cleansing breath and basked in the feeling of momentary freedom as the breeze blew in around me. The air was clean here and my body felt more relaxed then it had in months. I closed my eyes and smiled as the suns rays touched the ivory skin of my cheeks, my newly cut locks blowing in my face from the wind.
I couldn't remember the last time I had felt like this...
"You're awake."
I jumped at the sound of Jacob's husky baritone. His casual form now braced against the open door frame. I felt a shiver run up my spine when he smiled the kind of sunny grin that always made me forget where I was. I tried to form a reply, but settled on a returning grin for him instead. He kept his warm gaze on mine and I marveled at how well he knew me. As if he could see right through me with one piercing look.
"It's nice isn't it?"
"Sure is." I replied, getting to my feet and taking the cup of coffee he handed to me.
"What time is it?"
"Eleven."
"Really?"
He nodded, placing a kiss to my forehead as his hands came to rest on my hips.
"You needed your rest, honey. There's breakfast on the table. Gran cooked a pretty big feast this morning and there's plenty left over for you."
"You mean you didn't finish it all off?" I lightly teased in return.
"No, she cooked enough for an army or-"
"... a large pack of wolves." I chuckled, moving out around him to wander out into the house. He caught my hand before I could get far, his gaze growing more serious than before.
"...I'm not sure if she knows and you know how tight I'm bound. I can't tell her if she doesn't know. Not yet anyway. The timing isn't right with us suddenly showing up here and all."
I nodded and raised myself up on my tip toes to place a soft kiss on his cheek in response to hearing the clear worry in his tone now.
"I won't say a word, Jacob. I promise. You know your secret is safe with me. Have you told her anything else? About why we're really here?"
"No, not yet. I plan to later on."
"What do you think she'll say? Maybe she won't want us here?"
"You're worrying for nothing, honey. She'll want to help. I know she will."
"Putting her in the middle of this makes me worry."
"I know it does and I'd be lying if I said it didn't make me concerned, too. But I'll be here and trust me, I'm not taking any chances with either of you."
He pulled me into a tight embrace and led me out to the kitchen. I was stunned to see the large display of food placed on the table, my eyes widening when Doris put a plate in my hands and told me to eat up.
"You really did cook a feast!"
"My family always believed in food bringing everyone together. Growing up, it was thought of as how we got to spend some quality time together at the end of a long day. My Sarah was a great cook as well. I'm sure Jake and Billy have told you that before." Doris replied to me with a smile.
"Yes, they may have mentioned that a time or two."
"You need some nourishment, dear. You're awful tiny."
I blushed at her comment, and felt Jacob playfully nudge into my side with an agreeing grin, as he placed a stack of pancakes and some scrambled eggs on my plate for me.
It was true that I had lost some weight since meeting Damien and that most of my jeans needed a belt in order for me to comfortably wear them. But I hadn't realized how very thin I had become until I caught Jacob observing me more often with the same concerned look he used to wear whenever he saw me after Edward had left.
I took a big bite of the fluffy pancakes and saw Jacobs wide approving smile in response, his whole face lighting up enough to give me butterflies.
"That's more like it." Doris beamed. "If you need anything more, you just let me know, alright?"
"Thank you, but I think this will be plenty." I replied, seeing her radiant smile to Jacob from across the table.
"I can't believe how much you've grown since the last time I saw you. Doesn't seem possible." Doris sighed to Jacob, her features now showing her regret of the time they had lost together.
"I wish I had come to you sooner, Gran. It's been far too long." Jacob sorrowfully admitted to her in reply.
"Things changed a lot when your mother died. She was what held all of us together. I haven't heard from Rachel or Rebecca in over two years now. They used to write to me every month or so, but now it seems time has slipped away from them, too. How are your sisters?"
"They don't check in with dad the way they used to either, but the last time I heard, they were doing okay."
"Is your fathers health any better?"
"He has his moments, gran. But overall, he's doing alright." Jacob replied.
I couldn't help but notice the sadness in his tone when he spoke of how little his sisters called back home. I reached over and took his hand in mine, before taking another bite of breakfast.
"I'm sure they are just busy and caught up with everything going on right now in their world. With kids and College... all of that takes up a lot of time throughout the days."
"It's no excuse." Jacob sourly interjected. "The least they could do is call. Just like I should have. I'm truly sorry, Gran."
"Don't you worry yourself about that now. It's alright, Jacob." She graciously replied. "I hope the two of you stay here a while. Truth be told, I've missed the company."
Jacob glanced toward me with apprehension clear in his dark gaze, his hand slipping from mine when he scooted closer to Doris.
"I hope we can stay a long while, too. But I have to be honest with you... There's a reason why Bella and I came here like we did."
Doris took a sip from her steaming coffee mug and met his intense stare with peaked curiosity. "Jacob, you're a lot like your mother and she was never good at hiding her feelings from her expressions and neither are you, dear. I knew when you showed up here last night that there was a reason why the two of you drove all this way. Not to mention you didn't call before coming and your father would have called had he known you were showing up here."
Jacob nodded and took her hands in his, the sight of his care for her making me lose all interest in the rest of my plate, as I thought of the many dangers us being here could bring her way.
"I don't want to keep anything from you."
"So, tell me then, dear? What is it the two of you are running from?"
Jacob went mute at this, his surprised gaze meeting mine as Doris looked at us expectedly.
"Gran-..."
"I hope you're not in some kind of legal trouble. You were always such a good boy when you were younger. So kind and giving."
"No, it's nothing like that." I abruptly assured her, before she jumped any further to the wrong conclusion.
"Oh good." Doris sighed to us in relief. "I was beginning to worry that the fancy car out in the driveway was stolen."
"It's mine." I quickly replied, feeling my skin heat up from the embarrassment of her assumption.
"That is an awfully expensive car for someone so young like yourself to have. Was it a present?"
"... sort of-" I shamefully lied, looking to Jacob for a bailout.
"Gran, the car is hers. For now. She... borrowed it."
"Borrowed it? From who?" Doris hedged, her disapproving gaze looming over me as if she thought I had somehow hotwired it myself and drove away with her grandson in the passenger seat as my hostage.
"She had to take it. To get away from someone." Jacob hurriedly explained to her.
I watched the expression on her face change from accusatory to concern in record time when she heard this.
"You're running away from someone? And that car out there is his, isn't it?"
"Yes." I softly admitted.
"Who is this person?"
"His name is Damien."
Jacob looked my way when he heard the emotion in my tone.
"Damien? And you left him? With his car?"
"I met him in New York, Doris. He has a lot of money. He could care less about the car." I replied, adverting her knowing gaze.
"... and he hurts you? Is that it?"
I glanced over to Jacob when she asked this, my shocked expression something I couldn't hide.
Doris only nodded to us as she swiftly refilled our coffee, her eyes full of sympathy before she spoke more of her mind.
"Men with money like that are seldom gentlemen or made of honorable character. Growing up with such a sense of entitlement and having all the money they ever needed at their fingertips makes them feel as if anything they want shall be theirs. Even if the other party becomes unwilling at some point. They can be cunning and experts at making things appear a certain way. But one has to remember that all things that may shine or sparkle are not diamonds or gold. Take it from an old woman like myself, dear. I suspect this is what happened to you?"
I nodded shamefully in reply and felt Jacobs arm wrap around my shoulders, as I thought of how this was the second time I had fallen for exactly what Doris had just described.
"You must have been through an awful lot to run the way you did and I suspect my grandson here helped you get to me?"
"Yes... I owe Jacob... so much... for everything he's done."
"Jacob, you know the risk this entails for you by getting involved and I hope you have told your father the truth about you being here?"
"I sent him a message. He knows where we are."
Doris went silent then, her gaze becoming distant as she folded her hands in front of her on the table.
"We don't have to stay here if-" Jacob began.
"Nonsense." She harshly interjected. "Being here is safer than out there on the road. Jacob was smart to come here with you. It's no bother, really. I assume you have some sort of plan in place?"
Jacob nodded and proceeded to tell her about what he did with the car, and how he hoped to throw off anyone who may be in pursuit of us by changing the paint and some of the detailing.
"You're welcome to stay here as long as you need to. The both of you."
"Thank you, Gran. We really appreciate this."
"Of course, but please tell me you've called Same Uley back home? He is your Alpha after all and he needs to know what's going on, Jacob. Leaving him in the dark on all this wouldn't be smart. You need all the eyes you can get."
Jacobs face paled before me when she stated this so casually to us. As if it was something she had known for years.
"How did you-"
"Your father wrote me a lengthy letter about four years back, telling me the truth about what he used to be and what you've become. I'm sure you are a great member of Sam's pack."
"He is." I replied, seeing the proud look Doris wore now. "Jacob has saved me... more times than I can count."
I offered to help her clean up after breakfast and she informed us that she had to make a run into town so she could stock up on groceries for the house. We offered to accompany her but she insisted that she would be okay. Jacob was less than enthusiastic about the idea but didn't want to make her feel like she needed to be chaperoned everywhere she went.
"I had no idea she knew, or that she's known all this time." Jake sighed.
"I know. Your dad must have felt she needed to know the truth."
"But he should have mentioned it to me." He countered.
"You should call him and let him know how long we plan on being here."
He nodded and placed a kiss to my cheek before heading outside to ring Billy back home. I could only hope that we would be able to keep hidden here without Damien discovering our whereabouts and putting Doris in danger. It felt as if there were a pair of eyes on us no matter where we went and it made my skin crawl. I couldn't be sure how many people Damien had out hunting Jacob and I down, but I knew they were already out there tracking us.
A/N: Thanks for reading and please review. I'm sorry my updates haven't been as regular, I am dealing with some health issues. Another chapter will be added soon. Feel free to tell me your thoughts and thank you.