Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns Twilight and all recognizable characters and situations contained therein! All original content and characters as well as the Wolf Pack MC and the Pack's MC personas are mine! As always fic is rated M and is intended only for readers aged 18 and over.

**Bella POV from end of last chapter**

Sam has me wrapped up in his arms on the sofa and I actually start to doze off a little. I'm ripped from my half asleep state when my father bangs through the door followed by 3 of his deputies calling my name, "BELLA!"

I jump and Embry places his hand on my shoulder comfortingly as I raise my hand a little, "I'm right here dad."

He rushes over to me and takes my hand pulling me up off the couch and into his arms, "Shit baby girl, when Jake called me and said the car was all fucked up I thought you'd been in an accident! Then, when he said that Tyler Crowley and his boys had been hassling you and that I needed to come, I thought, well I thought the worst. Most of his gang is on serious drugs, they're extremely dangerous! "

He turns furious eyes on Embry and Sam, "Why the fuck were they here alone?"

Embry answers contritely, "I'm sorry Dad."

I cut him off, "Emb! You have nothing to apologize for! Dad this wasn't their fault! As soon as they heard there'd been trouble they came as quick as they could!"

He runs his hands through his hair in frustration, "I'm sorry. I know that neither of you could have prevented this. Your sister is right Son, you have nothing to apologize for, I've missed you around the house Kid. We should go fishing this weekend."

Embry nods and tells Dad that he'll be around and that fishing sounds good before Sam cuts him off. I'm surprised when he looks at me with something like annoyance, or frustration, "No, you were right the first time Chief, they shouldn't have been here alone. Bella told me that she and Kim were having girl time today and I assumed they'd either be at your house or at mine. If I had known they were going to the bar I would have told them not to come to this one, or at least to wait until we could join them. Nicky is a friend, but Crowley and his guys have made this their hangout. Though after tonight that's not going to be the case."

Nicky the bar owner comes in and hands a DVD to my dad, "Here's the security footage from the parking lot Chief Swan. I just want to tell you all how sorry I am that what happened, happened here. If Miss. Swan had come up to the bar and told me that she was Sam's Old Lady I would have set something up special for her and Miss Connors away from the scumbags that usually come in here. I'll co-operate in any way that I can with your investigation."

Charlie nods at him, "Thank you Mr. Gavin, I really appreciate it."

He motions to his deputies, "Why don't you 3 go help my godson Jake load my daughter's car onto his wrecker, and then just do perimeter sweeps until I call you back on the radio."

They leave the room, and Dad turns to Sam, "So aside from Bella's car being trashed, what happened here?"

Sam sighs, "One of Tyler Crowley's boys grabbed her. She maced him and then told Tyler that he had two choices, leave them alone and get out of the bar; or first she would shoot him, and then she would let me handle it because she's my Old Lady. Tyler backed off because underneath it all he's just a schoolyard bully. That new guy he's brought in to be his enforcer, he apparently thought Bella might be lying. Tyler told him that if he wanted to take the chance then fine but that I would take his balls off. He scared her bad. He, shit, he told Tyler that it might be worth it if he got to be inside of her before I took his nuts off. There's not going to be a police report Charlie, we'll file one for the car so that Bella can put through an insurance claim, but the guys aren't gunna charge her to fix it obviously so that's just money for her to have. I was planning on dealing with Tyler anyway, he crossed the line and had some of his guys dealing hard by LPH. He's lost his dealing privileges. From now until this is finished I promise you that wherever Bella goes one of the guys will be with her. From what Paul tells me, Embry spends most of his time at the shop helping them out with miscellaneous work, I'm sure they can spare him till this gets sorted out. He'll still get paid but he'll only do the detail work that he was hired to do."

He breaks off and I look up at him and I can see the fury on his face and it's clear in his voice, "I promise you, both of you, James is a dead man. He just doesn't know it yet."

Dad nods and rubs my back in a soothing fashion as he asks, "What about her car? You think they had something to do with that?"

Sam shrugs, "I think so, but Brady thinks it's too personal for what went on. He thinks Emily, or Leah Clearwater, or both of them together are the more likely culprits."

Dad looks surprised, "Leah? Harry's daughter? Why would she want to hurt Bella's car?"

Sam looks uncomfortable, "She's Emily's cousin, and I dated her briefly before I met Emily."

Dad's eyebrows raise, "Oh. Yeah that makes a little more sense, honestly I think Crowley probably got out of here as fast as he could the little pissant. What happened to her car probably took at least an hour to do, the whole driver's side was scratched to shit."

I cringe and Dad puts a comforting hand on my shoulder, "I'm sorry baby girl, I forgot you hadn't seen it."

He sighs, "I'm working nights for the next two weeks Bella, I really don't want you to be alone at night. I wasn't exaggerating when I said that Crowley's guys are dangerous, a man can do some very despicable things when he's high on meth, dope, and crack, and this new guy is the most dangerous of all because he doesn't even need the drugs to do despicable things. I know you're mad at your Aunt, but if you could please just put it aside for now and go down and stay with Kim…"

Sam cuts him off, "Charlie, I don't mean to make you uncomfortable or anything but maybe I could stay with Bella, or she could stay with me down in La Push."

Dad blushes faintly, "Uh, I guess that'd be okay. For her to stay down with you, I mean."

He abruptly changes the subject, "So uh, did you want me to send this security footage over to you when I'm done with it?"

Sam coughs, "uh, yeah, that's fine. Or we could watch it over at the club, if you wanted to come down."

Dad shakes his head, "I have to log it in at the station. Chain of evidence and all. Once I've reviewed it I can copy it and bring the copy down to you though. The original will go into evidence storage until we file a charge."

Sam nods in understanding. I yawn, "Can someone give me a ride back to the house? If I'm going to be staying over at Sam's I need to pack a bag and grab my stuff."

Sam gets up and puts an arm around my shoulders, "Let your dad check with his deputies, once they give the all clear we'll head out. I rode my bike though and your car is out of commission so just take what you need for tonight and I'll run you over for the rest tomorrow in the truck okay?"

I nod, and Dad radios out to one of his deputies, asking him what the situation is. The deputy radios back, "All clear out here, Chief. No sign of Crowley or any of his guys."

Dad hugs me tight, "Be careful baby girl. I love you. I'll see you tomorrow."

The rest of the Pack had sat quietly through this whole exchange. Sam turns to them, "J man, I'm sure you can get Kim home safely. Paul if you could text Jake, let him know I want everyone back at the clubhouse in 45 minutes, we need to plan. Brady man I'm sorry, I know Sophia's been on you about not being home, but…"

The one who gave me the soda earlier cuts him off, "It's not a problem Sam. I'll tell her there's been an emergency and that I'll be home later. She'll deal with it. She'd want the same if it was her who'd been threatened."

Sam looks at him gratefully, "Thanks bro. Embry you're with us, you'll stay with Bella at my place until I get back. I'll see the rest of you in 45 minutes."

I hug my dad again and let Sam lead me out to his bike. He gives me his helmet and I balk, "Sam, you nee…"

He cuts me off as he slings his leg over the bike and settles into the seat turning on the engine, "Damn it Bella! Don't argue with me right now!"

I shut up and put the helmet on as I settle in behind him on the bike. He revs the throttle and I wrap my arms tight around his waist as Embry pulls up alongside us. Sam nods at him and calls back to me, "You ready?"

I squeeze a little tighter, "Yeah."

He revs the engine again and we're off, I had ridden on Embry's bike a bunch of times when he first got it, and also Paul's bike a couple times in the time we were together but both of those occurrences were a long time ago. I forgot how free it makes you feel, it's probably the closest a human can get to flying but still be on the ground. The throbbing pressure between my legs isn't bad either.

I lean into the turns with him and soon enough we pull up in front of my Dad's house. He cuts the engine and I climb off. I take the helmet off and hand it to him, he starts to say something, and I cut him off, "I have one in the house. Embry got it for me after he got his bike so I could ride with him."

He puts it on the seat and follows me up to the porch. Embry pulls up and comes up and stands on the porch looking out down the street like a guard. I unlock the door and Sam follows me in. I go up to my room without a word to him because I'm frankly a little pissed at the way he's been snapping at me tonight.

I grab my backpack and throw in a tank top and panty set to sleep in, my robe, and an outfit for tomorrow along with a bra and panty set, and a pair of heels and a change of socks if I decide to wear my boots instead.

I go into the bathroom and grab everything I'll need for tomorrow before zipping up the bag and heading back into my room. I sit on the bed just trying to digest everything that's going on.

I'm basically moving in with Sam, my boyfriend of not even a week, what the hell? Is anyone thinking? And what is with his attitude? I mean when he first got to the bar he was doting and attentive. By the time my dad got there he was mad at me, like I had ASKED Tyler and his friends to hassle me. I wasn't even dressed provocatively! I hadn't DONE anything!

So why was he mad at me? Why was he annoyed at me about going to the bar? He hadn't contacted me today either. I spent almost the whole week with him! I was trying not to be clingy girlfriend. Maybe that's what he wants though. I'm sure Miss Emily was one of those clingy insecure types. And he yelled at me! He basically told me off when I only wanted him to be safe too!

Maybe he's fixated on me because of who my dad is. No that's stupid…my dad already worked with him, it's not like he needs me to get dad in his corner. Maybe he finally realized that we were moving way too fast, but then why did he suggest me staying with him? Surely Embry could have just stayed with me up here if he didn't want me around.

Does he blame me for this? Does he think I instigated this to move in with him? I don't even know how I would have done that but maybe he thinks that?

All these thoughts rolling through my head, I'm so confused by the whole thing. The door bangs open, "Bella! What the hell! Are you ready? What have you been DOING up here?"

I look up at his face which is taut with frustration, and the damn breaks and I break down sobbing, "Why are you YELLING at me, AGAIN?"

He runs his hands through his hair, "Damn it, I don't have time for this shit right now Bella! I have too much going on…"

I cut him off, "Then fucking GO Sam! Embry will stay with me here, I have my gun, we'll be fine! I'm sorry that I'm INCONVENIENCING you! I wasn't the one who suggested me staying with you! I also WASN'T the one who texted you guys to come to the bar!"

The silver-grey of his eyes is frosty, and his tone is harsh, "That's exactly the fucking point isn't it! YOU didn't text ME! YOU didn't even THINK to suggest that you stay with ME when your dad didn't want you to be alone! YOU didn't CONSIDER ME! We're supposed to be together but you don't share a damn thing with me unless I drag it out of you! You didn't think to tell me where you were going tonight, and as a result I'm going to have to spend GOD KNOWS how long cleaning up a mess that could have been completely avoided had you just ONCE thought of SOMEONE besides YOURSELF! Oh, and even though we've sat down and talked about you and Paul and how it ended, you never once mentioned that you had a complete breakdown after he left you for Rachel. Just one more thing that you didn't think I needed to know about you. Well Paul got his nose all out of joint at me in front of everyone but Jake and EVERYONE now knows just how in LOVE with PAUL you were! Christ, I had to hear from EMBRY in front of everyone about how he found you most of the way through a bottle of vodka drunk off your ass and having a breakdown over Paul leaving you!"

I feel the blood drain out of my face, and I'm just done, "You need to leave."

He glares at me, "I don't fucking think so. Your father expects me to keep you safe, and I don't intend to let him down. Now, let's go."

I raise an eyebrow at him, "and if I say no?"

He takes a deep breath and picks up my bag, "not an option. Get up."

I stay perched on the edge of the bed my legs crossed and staring at the wall, "No. I'm not arguing with you. I'm not asking for your permission to stay in my home. From this moment on I am no longer your inconvenience. I have taken care of myself pretty much my entire life, I don't need your help! Now, get the fuck out of my house. I'll deal with my father, and if it comes down to it, I'll DEAL with Tyler or any of his guys that come at me."

He's about to say something when Embry comes in, "What the fuck is going on you guys?"

I turn accusatory eyes on him, as far as I'm concerned this is all his fault, "You want to know what the fuck is going on Embry? How about Sam is pissed at me for the very PRIVATE things you told him and the rest of the guys about how I was after Paul left me for Rachel. How could you Embry? You swore to me that you wouldn't tell ANYONE about that night providing I didn't make it a reoccurring incident! So THAT'S what's going on! Do you have any other secrets of mine you'd like to tell him? Maybe some embarrassing personal anecdotes from our shared past? No? Good. He's leaving, and you're going to go downstairs, sleep on the couch, and leave me the fuck alone!"

Embry's gaping at me like a fish out of water but I just don't even care right now. I'm tired, frustrated, scared, and sad. I honestly had been starting to believe that Dad was right, that Sam was it for me. We fit together, we had fun, but that's all that it was. I barely knew this man. Obviously I didn't even know him as well as I thought I had.

Sam exhales angrily and gets up in my face, "You listen to me, and you listen good. You are going to get up off of that bed, drop your shitty ass attitude, get on the back of my bike, and go back to my house and STAY there! I'm not asking you girly, I'm fucking TELLING you! You wanna be mad, fine. You want me to sleep on the couch, fine, but so help me God, you're going to do what the fuck I say."

Embry steps between us, "Hold it! Sam, don't fucking talk to my sister that way. I know that you're angry at her because you feel like she isn't opening up to you but did you ever stop to think that this is the most open she's been with ANYONE aside from Dad, and me, in years? Just by staying the night at your place she's been more open with you than anyone in her life in a really long time. Look I'm sorry that that story blindsided you. We're all tired though and I think we should all just stop before we say something we can't take back."

He turns to me, "Bella if you would rather ride over to Sam's with me that's fine but I promise you little sister, even if I have to call my mother, dope you up, and put you in the back of her car, you're GOING to Sam's."

The threat of Embry's mother coming out here definitely gooses my attention. I hate that bitch almost more than my own mother, and I certainly don't want to hear anything she has to say about my brief relationship with Sam. I stand up and grab my bag out of Sam's hand, "Fine. I'm riding with Embry."

I grab my helmet off the back of my closet door and wait for them to leave. Sam is taking deep heaving breaths and I guess he's counting to 10 or something. In this moment I don't really care. I just want to go to sleep and cry some.

He turns and goes down the stairs and outside as I grab my purse and the extra clip for my glock that I keep in my dresser and I follow Em out of the house. Locking the door behind me I put my helmet on and get on behind Embry. I close my eyes and try to relax and enjoy the ride but I feel as if all the joy has been sucked out of life.

It feels like seconds later when we pull up in front of Sam's. He's nowhere in sight but I won't give in to the desire to ask about him. I get off the bike and unlock the door with the key Sam gave me only a few days prior. Taking the key off my key ring I slap it down on the table by the door and continue straight through to the bedroom.

I slam the door behind me and put my bag on the bed. I open it up and change quickly into my pajamas and climb into the bed. I don't even want to be here, Sam's scent envelopes me, and I feel the first tears begin to slide down my face.

I hadn't DONE anything! It wasn't my fault that him and my dad didn't even bother to ask me where I wanted to stay. Dad suggested Kim's and he cut him off and told him I could stay with him, where did I have an opportunity to put my preference in? Even before that he was being short and snapping on me! What did I do to deserve that? I was trying to be a good girlfriend, all I ever hear from my guy friends is 'damn this girl is up my ass, we haven't even been dating for a minute and she wants a detailed account of where I'm going and who I'm with, it's fucking ridiculous.' I was trying NOT to be THAT girl! I ask why he's snapping on me and HE's the one who 'Doesn't have time for this shit'. Admittedly I got upset, but only after he had already snapped on me 3 times already.

I let the sobs overtake me as I bury my face in the pillow and after a while I fade into sleep.

**Sam POV**

After my fight with Bella I go straight to the club, I don't even acknowledge Embry as we ride down the road. Bella's eyes are closed and I can see the sadness in her face, but there's just not a hell of a lot I can do about it, I don't have time.

As I ride towards the club I go over the night in my head. Everything was fine, we were connecting, and then Charlie got there and I don't know what the hell happened. The accusatory tone in his voice, 'Why the fuck were they here alone?'

What was I supposed to say to that? 'Sorry Chief she almost got herself assaulted because she couldn't be bothered to send me so much as a simple text to let me know what she was up to.' Even in my head that sounds ridiculous. Why did it make me so crazy? We haven't been together that long, does she really need to give me an accounting of every minute of her day?

Of course not, but a simple text to say, 'hey baby I'm going to the bar with Kim.' Could have saved us all a LOT of trouble. Shit, I'm an asshole! I had snapped on her repeatedly tonight, the first time when I got my nose out of joint about her not letting me know where she was going, then again when she started to give me lip about the helmet, and again when I felt she was taking too long to pack her bag. God that fight we had in her room…

I'm surprised Embry didn't knock me the fuck out, I was such a dick! I yelled at her, and made her cry, and my response was 'I don't have time for this shit.' What the fuck? I basically told her she was inconveniencing me by being attacked, I screamed at her, I basically told her that the only reason I was staying with her now was because her father expected me to keep her safe, I then proceeded to throw PAUL in her face! Christ! No wonder she hated me!

Fuck, all of that because I was SCARED to lose her. Scared that some fucking junkie psycho like James could take her away from me in the blink of an eye. Scared that she'd wake up and see just how much better she could do. Being an Old Lady is a lot different from being a girlfriend, not that I'm such an expert or anything. The only girl I was ever serious about before now was Emily. Shit. I can't even go home and tell her how sorry I am.

I pull into the club and take a deep breath to calm myself and I put on my Alpha game face as I go inside. The guys are already there, around the table waiting for me, Seth stands in the corner on the far side of the room. I go in and sit down. Paul asks, "How's Bella doing?"

I shrug, really I have no clue how she's doing because I was too busy being a huge throbbing dick to her to ask, "She's fine, Embry's with her back at my place."

I run my hands through my hair, as Brady asks, "What the fuck do we do about Crowley's gang, Sam?"

Clenching my jaw for a minute I think I have a semblance of a plan, "Okay, here's the thing. Ultimately, Crowley and his boys are NOT the problem, the one who grabbed Bella WILL be handled. I'll see to that. In order to get to James though we need Tyler's help. For now he gets a pass on the dealing down here only because he doesn't know that we know about it. I'm going to call him down for a conference, I'll tell him that we need to talk about the percentage. He's just naïve enough that he'll believe that Bella didn't tell me anything about what happened if I use the right tone. We need to find out about James, where he came from, and who he really works for before we do anything. This isn't going to be a melee attack you guys, we need to use our brains, we're smarter than them, now is the time to prove it. After we deal with James then we take Tyler's organization out for good. Anybody have anything to add?"

Brady looks unsure, "I dunno, Sam. Work with Crowley? I'm not sure that's a good idea. I admit James is the main problem, the man doesn't belong around decent human beings, but most of Crowley's guys are like that. I think if we take out Tyler the rest of them will go back to where they came from."

Paul cuts in, "Brady, most of them come from FORKS. Tyler is definitely a problem, he was the first one to start using hard, the first one to bring it back with him from Cali, the first one to start making it, and the first one to start selling it, but this isn't a vampire movie where if you kill the head dope-fiend the rest fall down dead after him or go back to being upstanding citizens. Yeah Tyler gets his DOPE and COKE from the Denali, but the meth, he makes that shit himself. Breaking up his organization isn't going to do shit, KILLING it is the ONLY way! When it comes down to it, we use Tyler to get to James, after that's taken care of we set up a meet with them at their cook house, tell them we're interested in the money we could be making, make it seem like WE want IN, tell them we need to know who all is involved in the cooking, and how they do business. Then we blow the whole thing sky high with them inside! That's what I think."

I know it's a good idea, in fact it's probably the best idea, but my first instinct is to slam it. I push that instinct down because I know it has nothing to do with the issues at hand. I need to stop looking at Paul as a rival, if he and Bella had truly wanted to be together they would have been. She was with me, not him. I feel the pang in my heart as I realize that WAS is the operative word. She WAS with me. Chances are that was over now.

Either way, I would protect her to the best of my ability because the whole truth of the matter is that I love her. I'm IN love with her, have been since the moment I locked eyes with her in the bar. Maybe if I hadn't been such a coward I would have told her to her face instead of waiting for her to pass out after sex. Christ, how could I fix this?

I snap myself out of my haze, and put my Alpha face back on, "Paul man, that's why you're the enforcer. That plan is perfect. I think we can call it a night tonight guys, let's all get home. We're still having that party tomorrow, but lets make it here instead of my place, and 5 instead of 3. Sound good?"

They all nod the affirmative and we go our separate ways. I stop Paul on his way out, "Hey, Paul, can we talk?"

He nods and comes over to the bar with me. I wait for the rest of the guys to leave and when I hear the last bike clear out of the lot I grab 2 beers and hand him one, "I lied to you before."

He quirks an eyebrow in question, "About?"

I run my hands through my hair, "Bella. She's not fine, and it's my fault that she's not fine."

His eyes narrow, "What do you mean she's not fine? What did you do to her?"

Putting my head in my hands I sigh, "we had a fight."

I look up and he's fuming, the fury etched on his face, "Did you lay hands on her?"

I gasp, "Fuck no! Of course not! We just, I dunno, it started when Charlie got to the bar. I snapped because I was mad that he was blaming me for what happened. I was frustrated that she didn't even bother to let me know where she was going or what she was up to. I assumed she was at home, or at my place, or Kim's. When Kim texted Jared, not even before the trouble with Crowley's guys started, but after they were already gone, I can't even tell you how fucking terrified I was that she was hurt. How frustrated I was that the whole thing could have been avoided if she had just taken a minute to text me and let me know where she was planning on going."

I'm surprised when J steps in from the shadows of the kitchen area, "Dude! I thought you left."

He looks down at the floor, "I figured if you and Paul were going to get into it I should stay behind to break it up. Look Sam, it's my fault the girls were there without protection. I didn't even think."

I cut him off, "You knew they were going there?"

His posture has that defeated look to it, all hunched over and guilty looking, "Yeah, Kim texted me. Told me they were heading out to the bar in Forks. I assumed Bella would have shot you the same thing, and that you would have told her it was a bad idea. I didn't want to be the bad guy again, I'm always telling Kim where it is and isn't safe to go, I figured you'd take care of it for me this time. I forgot that Bella hasn't been an Old Lady for very long, and that you've never had one before. I guess I didn't realize that neither of you would have a clue how this thing works, I would have thought that Kim would have told her, but Brady and I should have told you."

I cut him off, "Yeah, you should have, but it really doesn't matter anymore. I've lost her J. I was such a fucking DICK to her tonight. I snapped at her because I was angry at myself that she was in a position to get hurt, I snapped on her again when she tried to give me lip about riding without a helmet. When we were at her house she took a good 20 minutes up in her room and I go up and she's just sitting on the bed and I snapped at her again asking her what the fuck she was doing and what was taking so fucking long. I made her cry man, she broke down sitting there asking me why I was yelling at her again, you know what my response was? I looked her straight in the face and said, 'damn it Bella! I don't have time for this shit!' That's when shit really got fucked, she told me to go, that she was sorry that she was inconveniencing me but that she didn't ask to stay with me, and she didn't ask me to come to the bar. I flipped on her man, I just went off, I basically told her she was selfish and inconsiderate, that the whole point of the matter was that she didn't consider me when she needed a place to stay, didn't consider me when she needed help. And if that wasn't bad enough, I threw that whole fucked up thing Embry told us about how she was after Paul left her in her face."

Paul's eyes widen, "Oh shit, you did not! Are you fucking insane? For real Sam, are you jealous?"

I sigh, "Yeah, I am. I mean she told me from day 1 that it wasn't like that with the two of you, she eventually admitted that it kind of was, but she downplayed it like whoah."

He cuts me off shaking his head, "Of course she did! No girl wants the next guy to know how torn up she was about the guy before! Look Bella has spent her LIFE around guys, the only female friends she's ever had were Kim, and some chick up in Forks named Angela who died of a drug overdose a couple years back. She has no idea how to act like a normal chick, Cullen spent a year and a half telling her what to do, how to act, who to BE! Then there's Quil, he couldn't control her because he was so fucking scared of Jacob kicking his sorry ass, so he cheated on her, continually. It was bad luck for him when she came home early one night from work and caught him in bed with Jessica Stanley. Then there was me, and Emb was right tonight, about ALL of it! I loved her, I did, but she was safe because she wouldn't tie me down. No matter how much I claimed to WANT more from her, if I really had I wouldn't have let her continually push me away. You're mad because she didn't text you tonight? How many nights has she stayed with you the past week?"

He waits for my answer, "Almost every night, I think maybe one night she said she had to stay with Charlie but she ended up coming over late and leaving early."

He smiles sadly, "You wanna know how many nights she ever spent with me?"

I shake my head, but he replies anyway, "Not a one. Not one night in the whole just about 16 months we were hooking up did she EVER spend the night wrapped in my arms. It was too personal for her, it made her feel too vulnerable. The texting thing? She was trying to be a good girlfriend, you asshole! All she ever heard from Embry, and Jake growing up was 'Damn this girl is up my ass, why does she want to know every minute of my day where I'm going and who I'm with? We've been together for a minute, fucking chill girl.' She always vowed not to be that girl, not to be like the clingy whiny twats who have to know every single second of the day where their man is. Seriously Sam, if you want that kind of girl why didn't you just stay with Emily?"

I sigh, "it gets worse man. I basically told her the only reason I was protecting her was because Charlie expected it from me and I wasn't going to let him down. I got up in her face and told her to get up, drop the shitty attitude, and move. I basically told her she was going to do what I said when I said it so help me fucking God. The only reason she's even at my house right now is because Embry threatened to call his mother, knock her out somehow and put her in the back of the car himself"

Paul just shakes his head, and Jared is looking at me like I'm some kind of alien creature, "I know! Okay I know! I fucked up, and I fucked up huge. I hate to admit it but all of this is because I'm fucking scared! The thought of what could have happened to her tonight fucking terrifies me! I was scared that some junkie piece of shit could take her away from me in the blink of an eye, I'm scared that she'll realize just how much better she can do and she'll walk away from me, I'm fucking terrified because I'm so in love with that girl that I just don't even know what to do anymore. I'm in love with her and I never got to tell her because I was scared that she'd hear those words and that would be the end of it. So I've been waiting, and I tell her after I've fucked her into a coma and she's passed out."

I run my hands through my hair again and Paul puts his hand on my arm, "Look, Sam, you definitely fucked up, but more than anything else Bella is a chick with a HUGE fucking heart. If she lets you in you're in, that chick is fucking fierce when it comes to those she loves. I think you need to go home and talk to her about all of this. You need to tell her everything that you just told J and I and you for sure need to hammer it home that your relationship with her has NOTHING to do with her dad. Right now she's probably thinking that the only reason you started up with her is because of Charlie and who he is to the club. Don't let that thought fester in her head or it WILL be the end of you guys as a couple. Tomorrow, after the party, you, Bella, J, Brady, Kim, and Sophia need to sit down and talk about what being an Old Lady means and the things that are expected. For obvious reasons Rach and I can't be a part of that. She knows it's different than being a girlfriend but I don't think she understands just HOW different it really is. It's even more than being a wife, it's a whole different culture."

Sighing in frustration I know he's right, I've never had an Old Lady, and I can't tell her what the rules are, hell I don't even know what the rules are for being an Old Man. We're both just out there winging it at this point and that can't go on. We need to stop being afraid of the other's reaction and start really communicating if this is going to work out.

J pats me on the back, "it'll be fine man, if she's anything like Kim you'll get home and she'll be waiting on you to come to bed, no matter how bad the fight was."

Paul scoffs, "don't think it'll be that easy man, she's got Chief Swan's stubborn streak in her, if she's mad at you she'll be mad for a couple days. I really think you'll have to grovel on this one a bit."

I sigh, "Yeah, I probably will. I'm gunna have Embry bring her by the auto shop tomorrow to get what she needs out of the car."

He nods and we make our way out to the parking lot, I stop both of them before we get on the bikes, "Hey, thanks you guys, if we could keep this discussion between the three of us I would really appreciate it."

They nod, and Paul answers, "Yeah, of course man. For what it's worth, I hope you guys work it out, there's really no one else I would trust to take care of her and to let her take care of herself when she needs to do that."

I give him a grateful look and hop on my bike, starting it up I head back to the house.

Pulling into my driveway I kill the engine and take a good long look in all directions before heading up to the door. Crowley would be expecting that if Bella had said something I would already be in contact, the trick would be to wait till Monday when I was back at work to call him, and then to keep my tone totally normal.

I was just happy that all of Tyler's guys were white, none of them ever spent much time if any down on the Res, they didn't know where we lived, who was important to us, with the exception of Bella they had no way to get to any of our loved ones.

Letting myself in the front door I find Embry sprawled out on the couch watching some old rock star hunt deer on TV, "Hey, everything okay over here?"

He nods, "Sort of, Bella was crying earlier, I think she ended up crying herself out. Look man, all due respect, I'm not happy about the way shit went down tonight. That's my sister in there, I love that girl more than my own mother, I don't like the way you went at her at my dad's place. I'm telling you for real, you ever treat her like shit in front of me again, or lay hands on her ever, and Alpha Wolf or not, I will fuck you up, and I won't stop till one of us is in the hospital. Fair warning."

I sigh and nod at him in understanding, "Alright. For what it's worth man, I'm sorry for how I treated her tonight, I was just I dunno, scared I guess. I love her, now I just need to tell her that and convince her that what went on tonight will not be a reoccurring incident. Do me a favor and be back here around noon tomorrow okay? I need you to run her over to the auto shop to get what she needs out of her car."

Embry nods, "aight, good luck man. You'll need it, I'll see you tomorrow."

He lets himself out and I go to the fridge and pull a beer out. I pop the top and drain half of it in one gulp before dumping the rest down the sink. My bedroom door is shut, shit, should I wake her up? Which would be worse? Letting this fester till morning? Or chancing that she'll be pissed if I wake her?

I lock the front door and sit on the couch. Finally I just can't take knowing that she's in there, in my bed, and that she's sad, and I get up and go to the door. I knock and there's no answer so I twist the knob, grateful that I never put a lock on it.

I push the door open just lightly to see if she'll yell at me for coming in. When all I hear is the sound of her breathing I step fully into the room. She's laying on her back, but every so often she kicks out fitfully in the grip of a dream, she's mumbling incoherently but I can't make out what she's saying.

Her face is puffy and tear stained and I feel the dagger in my heart twist just a little knowing that I'm responsible for her tears. Going into the bathroom I grab a wash cloth and put some warm water on it. I go back out and kneel down next to the bed, and reach out and caress her face lightly as I whisper, "Bella."

She stirs but doesn't wake and I take the washcloth and gently wipe down the left side of her face, as I call her a little louder, "Bell? Honey wake up for me please?"

Her eyes open with a gasp and she recoils from me as she sits up, and my heart cracks just a little bit more, "Bella, it's just me. Please, just, let's just talk for a minute. I'm sorry I woke you up, but this couldn't wait till morning."

Her eyes ice over and she sits there impassively as I wipe the tear stains off the other side of her face. I use the dry end to wipe the water from the washcloth off her face and I toss it into the hamper. She arches her eyebrows at me, "Well?"

I take a deep breath, "Bella, baby, I'm sorry. I know that I acted like a first class dick tonight, and I'm sorry baby. You have to know that it wasn't about you, it was about me. When Jared stood up in the clubhouse and said 'We need to go right now, Tyler and his guys are messing with Bella and Kim' I didn't know what to think, I was scared, and furious that anyone would fuck with you."

She looks unimpressed, "I snapped on you because I was mad at MYSELF that you were in a position where you could get hurt. I was mad at the assholes who threatened you but I was madder at myself that no one was with you to protect you, and I know that you can take care of yourself, but I promised you that I would take care of you, and I've already failed! I was also fucking terrified to think that some junkie piece of shit could take you away from me in the blink of an eye! Baby I'm so sorry that I made you cry, I never should've taken my anger and frustration out on you! Embry completely blindsided me with that story about you after Paul got with Rachel, I was upset that you hadn't told me, that I had to hear it from him. I realize now that it was a stupid thing to be mad about. It's my bed you sleep in, my arms that are wrapped around you in the middle of the night, I'm the one who's name you breathe out in your sleep. I let my jealousy get the best of me, and I'm so sorry baby."

Her eyes have softened slightly, but there's still that guarded distrust, "You really upset me tonight Sam. The reason I didn't text you was that I didn't want to bother you, I knew you had your meeting, I didn't think it was a big deal for Kim and I to go out to the bar. I didn't know that it was dangerous, I hardly ever hang out in Forks. I know about Tyler's gang because my dad warned me about them, but I didn't know that they hung out there. If I had I promise you I would have gotten in touch with you and seen if you guys wanted to come out with us, and if you didn't I would have thought of something else to do. When you first got to the bar you were so supportive, and then my dad got there and it all went to shit. Why did that happen?"

I lay my hand on her cheek, "I guess it just all caught up to me when your dad asked why you guys were there alone. The anger at what happened, the fear at what could have happened, and the frustration that I thought you were shutting me out. Look I need you to know something Bella, and I know that it's going to sound crazy, I know that we've only known each other for just over a week and that this is really fast but I'm in love with you Bella. It has nothing to do with owing your Dad something or him expecting something of me. From the moment I met you in the bar, the minute our eyes met, you were it for me. I've been telling you every night after you fell asleep, but I need you to know it now because if we keep going on the way we're going on this isn't going to work. We need to communicate Bella, we need to be honest with each other, we need to TALK to each other. I love you, and I'm NOT going to lose you over something so fucking stupid as a communication problem."

She looks at me skeptically, "Do you really want me to be one of those girls who reports her every move to you, and expects you to report yours to me?"

I sigh, "No, I don't, but we don't live in the mainstream world Bella. Sometimes we have to do things that don't make sense to people who don't live in our world. So even though I don't want you to have to report your every move to me, I need a general overview of where you're going to be and who's there. I know things about Forks, and La Push, that you don't. I know who the bad elements are, and where they hang out. I made you a promise Bella, I promised you that I'd take care of you, and I don't intend to break that promise. I love you."

She gulps a little and I don't know if it's fear, sadness, or some other emotion. I sit there with my hand on her face for what feels like an hour but is only maybe 2 minutes. I feel her small hand on my face as she tilts it up so that I'm looking in her eyes and I'm a little overwhelmed by the emotion there, "Sam, I heard you. Every time you thought I was passed out, but I was really only halfway there, and I heard you tell me you loved me. I understand that things are different for us, and I need you to know, that I love you too. I just need to know that the fight we had tonight is not going to be the way things are for us. I can't continually go through that!"

I grab her and pull her against me into my arms, "I promise Bella, if I feel myself getting to a point of anger and frustration, I'll talk to you instead of bottling it up till I explode. Do you really feel the way you say you do? I know I'm putting you on the spot, and if you aren't ready to say it back yet it's okay, I'm not saying it to you because I expect something in return, I'm saying it to you because I truly feel that way."

She wraps her arms around me and snuggles in against me, "I do, I love you Sam Uley, I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it. I love you, I love you, I love you!"

A/N: Whew, this was a roller coaster of a chapter. I wanted their relationship to have some realistic conflict, they really barely know each other, but they live in this world that doesn't conform to the social norms of society. An Old Lady is practically a wife, in some ways it's MORE than a wife, and they're both still learning to navigate the ins and outs of that relationship.