CHAPTER TWELVE

(BPOV)

There was a feeling I couldn't shake. A sense of dread that had taken me over, making me more aware of the fact that I was being watched. I quickly scanned the large parking lot of the local grocery store, taking note of every vehicle that passed me by as I paused there at the crosswalk. I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up as a man in a black leather jacket and matching shades causally climbed out of his BMW, his profile tall and sleek with a shaved head and short beard. He headed my way and I felt my skin begin to crawl.

My arms were trembling as I began to jog to the Aston, the heavy paper bag full of groceries, making it harder for me to pick up the pace. I cussed aloud when I dropped it, while my hands fumbled nervously for the keys.

"Can I help you?"

The low baritone made me shudder, as I spun around to see the tall bearded man from before now leaning down to pick up the several items that were sprawled out on the wet pavement.

"I- I uh-" I stammered, pressing my back firmly against the car when he glanced up at me.

"They should make these bags a little more sturdy if you ask me." He sighed, before handing over the few cans of chili and two bags of chips.

"Yeah... they probably should." I countered, reaching out and taking them from him with the best fake smile I could muster at the moment.

"This your car?" He suddenly asked, his peaked interest in my ride making my stomach drop, as I hit the unlock button and tossed the grocery items into the back seat.

"Yes."

"She's a real beauty. Can't say that I've ever seen something so fancy around these parts. My BMW is six years old and here I was thinking I had some of the hottest wheels in town. You definitely got me beat there. What do you do for work?"

"It was a gift." I explained, scrambling for the right words as my throat began to feel like I was slowly being choked.

"Sweet gift. I bet she can really fly! That's a lot of power for such a little thing like yourself to handle."

I swallowed hard as his hand reached out to touch the hood, my body shaking with nerves that made my head spin.

"Guess it's a good thing she doesn't handle it alone." Jacob suddenly quipped from behind me, his presence seemingly unknown till then. I watched as the mans hand left the car immediately, his posture changing when he took in Jacobs height and intimidating size.

"Good thing." The man nervously countered, reaching out to shake Jake's hand. "I'm Tony."

"Jacob."

The two of them stood eerily still while they firmly shook hands. Jacobs stature rigid with visible tension as he eyed the man cautiously.

"I was just telling your girl here how awesome that car is. Such a prize."

"It fulfills it's purpose."

"I bet it does. Well, it was nice to meet you. Maybe I'll be seeing you two around." Tony sighed, as he turned on his heel and headed inside the store. Jacob watched him till his figure disappeared and I braced myself further against the car, my body pumping hard with fear and adrenaline.

"You alright?" Jacob asked, moving a stray lock of hair away from my face. "I thought you were waiting for me at the exit?"

"Sorry... I got distracted."

We climbed in and headed back to his grandmothers house just as the pounding late September rain began to fall in buckets. I stared out my window, seeing the trees blur by as Jacob picked up his speed, his hands wound tightly around the steering wheel as he went.

"I called Billy again when I was at the checkout. Told him we were staying with gran for a while. He informed me that Sam has kept Paul and Embry out on watch by Charlie's place."

"Good, I don't want dad getting caught in the crossfires of this."

"Sam's been running border patrol every night since I told him about Damien. He's been on top of things. Says he'll let me know should anything come up."

"Thank him for me... please." I replied, crossing my arms over my midsection as Jacob rounded the corner that led us to the street where Doris was.

"I will."

"I know he's not my biggest fan."

"He cares for you and your safety because I care for you. Pack loyalty kinda works like that."

"The last time I saw Sam he could barely even look at me."

"That was before-" Jacob began, but seemed to catch himself.

"...Before?"

"It's nothing. Come on, lets head inside before it starts pouring again."

His sudden shift in conversation left me jolted as I reached out for his arm.

"Wait- what are you not saying?"

Jacob shook his head and retreated to my side, grabbing the groceries and taking me by the hand as we ran toward the house. Once we were in the doorway, I pulled my hand away and saw the confused expression he wore in response to my jerky movement.

"Bells-"

"I don't want to be lied to or kept in the dark about things. If there's something you're not telling me then-"

"Look what the storm brought in." Doris interrupted with a welcoming grin for us. "It is really coming down out there, isn't it?"

Jacob nodded to her and continued to carry the groceries into the kitchen. I stared after him, feeling my blood begin to boil and the shivers now on my skin. He was keeping something from me. It was written all over his face. I took off my coat and walked in after him, hearing Doris ask if he knew how to fix the leaky sink she had been dealing with for months now. He offered her a sincere smile that damn near melted my heated temper from the sight of it, and hunkered down under the cabinets, his arms drawn taut as he tore apart the pipes in mere minutes. I watched as his muscles flexed and bulged when he had to strain to rip out the last rusty connecting pipe line, his concentration unbroken when he asked me to get him a wrench.

Doris fetched her toolbox from the closet, admitting that she had only opened it once since purchasing it for some of the household repairs that needed to be done around here.

"It's okay, gran. I'll take care of some stuff while we're here." Jacob assured her, his hand reaching blindly out and brushing my thigh when he took hold of the wrench from me. I felt the rush of heat that settled in my stomach, as my hand lingered on his, and my gaze wandered to his low slung jeans. The position of his arms causing his white t-shirt to rise and reveal the smooth tan skin of his lower abs, the hem of his black boxers barely showing above his jeans as he moved himself further under the sink. I drew my bottom lip into my mouth, unable to tear my eyes away from the trademark V shape that appeared when he positioned himself more to the right. His hands turned the wrench over and over, making his t-shirt rise a bit more. I wet my lips as the warmth in my stomach slowly headed south, my eyes trained on that deep V and my mind filling with the kind of heated kiss Jacob and I had come so close to having before I left for New York and everything changed.

His hands continued to turn the heavy wrench until the pipe finally gave way. He pulled himself up with a sigh and tossed the rest of the rusty parts onto the floor in front of us.

"These are too old and worn to salvage gran. I'll head to the hardware store and find replacements for them." Jacob offered, his gaze meeting mine, as he reached over me to retrieve the car keys from the kitchen table. I felt his body press against me when he snatched them in his hand and I stilled there, my breath hitching and my skin feeling heated from his mere closeness now.

Jacob seemed to sense the shift, his eyes meeting mine once again before dropping his knowing gaze to my lips. I felt almost dizzy as he leaned in to me, his mouth lingering so close to mine that all I could think about was how I wanted to feel his lips hungrily claim my own.

"I'll be right back, honey."

I managed a nod and tried to take my eyes from his mouth when he pulled back and threw on his jacket for appearances sake alone. We both knew he sure in hell didn't need it but pretended to for onlookers in the neighborhood. The less we drew any kind of attention to ourselves, the better.

Jacob was nearly to the door before I found my voice and went after him, his hand reaching out for mine when he heard me coming.

"Maybe I'll tag along?"

Doris smiled to us as we headed back out into the rain. We were soaked in seconds and by the time we reached the hardware store in town, the rain had picked up to a downpour. I listened to the heavy pounding on the roof of the car as Jacob pulled up to the front of the store and put it in park, his eyes widening some when lightening lit up the darkened sky above us. I jumped when the thunder began to rumble loudly over us, as Jacobs warm hand reached out and touched my thigh.

"I won't be long. Lock the car and honk if you need me."

"Okay." I replied, watching him dash out of the car and jog into the store. I hit the lock button and turned on the radio, scanning through the various stations and laying my head back against the seat while the storm raged on outside. The second song had barely finished playing before Jacob was running back outside with a bag, his clothes clinging to him from the soaking rain when he jumped back in the drivers seat. He tossed the bag in back and turned over the ignition. Water dripped down his face and neck, his jeans hugging his muscular thighs and his thin white t-shirt now transparent.

"They had everything I needed to fix that leak for her." He commented, putting the car in reverse and soon pulling back out onto the main road to head back. Butterflies filled my stomach as his hand came to rest on my knee. I bit down on my bottom lip as the warmth from before came back and settled itself over me. I kept my eyes on his hand, feeling desire pool between my legs from just the simple weight of it resting there.

The silence between us suddenly became so loud as he slowly moved his hand on my inner thigh, placing it just a few inches above my knee, his thumb coming to caress the top of my leg when we were forced to stop at a traffic light. I drew in a steadying breath and tried to get ahold of myself but the longer we drove, the heavier the desire became for me. The pull to him was disorienting, and I struggled to keep my breathing even when he took a left instead of a right, ignoring the turn that would have led us back to his grams.

"Did you forget something or-"

"Yeah..." He replied, taking another sharp left.

His hand gently squeezed my thigh and I had to stifle the breathy moan that wanted to leave me.

This was insane... he hadn't even touched me yet...

Jacob drove until a small boat landing came into view and I noticed that we were the only ones here on a day like this. Thunder rolled as the car came to a stop and I felt my body shiver, but not from the cold when he threw it in park and switched off the engine.

"Bells...-" He whispered, as his dark eyes met mine and I knew he could sense it. I could see it there in his gaze. The warm brown hue had been replaced with a midnight glow and I felt my skin heat from the sight of it.

He unbuckled and leaned over the center console, my breath hitching again as he reached up and touched my cheek. The simple touch from his warm fingertips made the heavy ache between my legs impossible to ignore. Like a magnetic pull that grew stronger with every passing second, I couldn't stop myself from reaching for him. I took his face in my hands and kissed him the way I should have months ago. The way he had wanted to long before I ever left for New York without him. My lips molded to his effortlessly and when his tongue languidly brushed mine, I fought against the seat belt that restrained me so I could get closer to him. As soon as I had unbuckled, Jacobs strong hands were guiding me into his lap. The taste of him alone made me lose all sense of time and place.

Another round of thunder rolled over us as I straddled him in his seat. A low groan left him and he pressed me closer when my hands moved up his chest and found there way into his hair. My skin began to blaze as he held me securely to him and I tried to remember a time when I had felt this safe or this secure ... I couldn't. Tears stung my eyes as I thought of all the times I had given myself over to Damien purely out of fear, feeling dirty and used when he was done with me. His touches were never like this... they were never strong but gentle at the same time. Never seeking to hold me closer, but instead looking to control me.

How many times had I pictured Jacobs handsome face just to survive some of the torturous moments with Damien? How many nights had I clung to the memory of his sunny smile or his laughter just to pull through one more day?

I wrapped my arms around his neck and deepened the kiss, feeling his tongue move with mine in a way that left me drunk from it. I basked in his strong caresses and I ached for him to hold me like this and never let go.

A/N: Hello my awesome readers. I am sorry this was delayed. I'm still dealing with some ongoing health issues. A new chapter will be posted soon. As always... thank you for reading and please tell me your thoughts in a review. Till next time...