a/n Thanks as always to my prereader GemmaH for all her help with this story and continued support. Special thanks and hugs to my beta tigerlilylace, for sorting out my awful punctuation and making it all pretty, when she wasn't feeling her best. Huge, huge thanks to those who are reading and especially to those who leave a review. I love reading them. I try and reply to all of them, but I can't if you have PM's disabled.

Disclaimer: SM owns everything Twilight related. I just make her wolves do very bad things.

Well it seems most of you guessed who nearly ran Bella over, so let's see what he has to say for himself.

Rescue, Reprimand and Reconnect

BPOV

"Oh, how rude of me," he said smiling, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "I'm James."

"Bella." I replied, still a little stunned at the fact that James might be a vampire.

"Bella..." he breathed. "What a lovely name, so... fitting."

He reached a pale hand up and stroked my cheek, while I stood motionless, unable to make myself move. His touch was ice cold, confirming all my fears, but where Edward's touch burnt trails across my skin, his just made me shiver. I looked up into his eyes, expecting to see the same golden color I'd become accustomed to, but was met with glowing ruby irises instead. I was confused, and as usual it was written all over my face.

"What's wrong sweetheart?" he cooed, pushing a lock of hair behind my ear. His tone was soft but far from soothing, there was something that felt off about him, apart from the obvious fact of him being a Vampire.

"Your eyes?" I whispered before I could stop myself. "They're red, not golden."

He barked out a laugh, his expression turning to one of understanding.

"Ahh, I see you've met the Cullens." His gentle stoking of my cheek, didn't seem quite so gentle any more. "I thought I recognized that stench, although the dog almost masked it entirely."

Dog? Did he mean Jacob?

"Do you the know Cullens?" I asked instead. Perhaps he was a friend.

"Let's just say our path's have crossed." From the way he said it, I got the distinct impression that their meeting had been less than friendly.

I frowned slightly, wondering what had happened between them, but let it go, asking again why his eyes were red.

"I have a different….. diet to the Cullens."

I froze, my blood running cold as I remembered something Edward had told me only this morning.

"I mean, we eat blood. We are vampires. Only we eat animal blood, instead of human. For the sake of our humanity, I guess you could say."

If he had a different diet, did that mean he didn't eat animals, but …...humans? I swallowed thickly, trying not to show that I'd just realized James was in fact nothing like Edward. I moved to step back away from him, but his hand slid down from my cheek to my shoulder, keeping me in place.

"Going somewhere?...Bella?" He leaned in slightly, closing his eyes and inhaling. "Mmmm... simply delicious." I shuddered at his words, but forced myself to answer his question.

"I..um.. I'm meeting someone." I manged to get out eventually.

His fingers tightened on my shoulder, the tips now painfully digging into my skin and he raised a questioning eyebrow at me.

"Out here?" he shook his head, his expression mocking me. "There's no-one out here... but us." He emphasized the 's', sounding like a snake, ready to strike.

I swallowed down my fear, which had been my constant companion for the last few hours, and took a deep breath. I'd gone through so much tonight, through no-one's fault but my own for acting so rashly, but I refused to believe that this was it. I searched the road, snatching a glance behind me, looking for any sign of Edward and Emmett, but I couldn't see anything. It was too dark. I knew they'd be here, Jake had promised, I just needed to keep James talking long enough for them to find me. It felt eerily like deja vu, except this time with a human eating Vampire instead of a human killing wolf.

I opened my mouth, preparing to stall him, but still no idea of what to say. His sudden movement surprised me before I could speak, snapping his head up and appearing to sniff the air, taking in a long pull of the cold night.

"Fuck," he said, his eyes boring into mine. "Seems we have company, after all." His voice turned hard and cold, his hand suddenly gone from my shoulder. .

Immediately I felt strong, cold arms surround me, the familiar and comforting smell filling my senses as I suddenly found myself being lifted and moved..

Edward.

I almost cried with relief.

"Bella, are you hurt?" he asked softly.

"No," I whispered leaning my head against his back, wanting to feel that he was really there. My shoulder was tender where James had grabbed it, but I decided now was probably not the best time to mention it. I just really wanted to leave here.

"Good," he said, reaching a hand back to grasp mine, but remained facing James. "Go get in the jeep with Emmett, I just need to have a word with James." His voice was soft but had a hard edge to it.

I didn't even try to argue, I was so exhausted I didn't even complain when Emmett scooped me up and carried me to his car, instead of letting me walk. I was so relieved to be safe, finally, that I huddled up on the back seat, under Edward's coat that had been left there and closed my eyes, hoping to forget it all for just a few minutes.

-oxo-

EPOV

I stared hard into his eyes as I attempted to move past his mental block and read his thoughts. It wasn't the first time we'd crossed paths, so he knew all about my mind reading ability. The last time I saw him, he had been with his red haired, and equally vicious, mate and one other.

They'd arrived at a quiet town, where we'd been leading a peaceful existence for a few years. Unfortunately, their taste for human blood had caused us major problems and we'd been forced to leave. But not before a vicious fight had taken place between Rosalie and James' mate, Victoria. When James moved in to help her, I, being the fastest, reached them first and rushed to Rose's aid, pulling Victoria away and destroying her in the process. When the rest of my family arrived, James and his companion, Laurent, fled, but not before allowing me a last look into his thoughts.

They were filled with the promise of revenge for his lost mate. Although that had been 37 years ago, and we had never seen either of them again, until now, I didn't think for one minute that he had forgotten. Vampires never forget.

When Emmett and I had heard nothing from Jacob or Bella for over an hour, I'd begun to get worried. Despite Emmett's attempts to pacify me, by saying it was far too soon to fucking worry, I insisted that we checked further up and down the road, to make sure we hadn't missed her.

We'd left the jeep and started walking back up the road, and had my heart not already stopped beating over one hundred years ago, it would surely have frozen when I smelled Bella's sweet scent alongside his. I yelled at Emmett to fetch the jeep as I ran towards them, as fast as I was able, praying to every God imaginable, that I wouldn't be too late.

He'd had his motherfucking hand on her, but luckily for him, had quickly removed it when he sensed my presence. I'd had every intention of keeping my hands off her, not wanting to show him how much she meant to me. But when I was within touching distance, it was impossible not to wrap my arms around her. Judging from the vile images in his head, that he had so graciously allowed me to see, he knew exactly how much I cared for her.

Now, however, his mind was blank and I had absolutely no idea what he planned to do next.

-oxo-

"Well that was fun." Emmett's sarcastic remark met me as I climbed back into the passenger seat of his jeep, slamming the door behind me. "What did the lowlife motherfucker have to say for himself to get you so riled up?" He quickly started the engine and we pulled away, in the opposite direction to James.

"He didn't say much, just the usual crap; he's just passing through, won't cause us any problems." I caught Emmett's eye and he looked about as convinced as I did when James had fed me that bunch of crap. He hated our family and everything we stood for, believing our way of life to be an embarrassment to the vampire populace. He would gladly exploit any chance he had to make life difficult for us. It wasn't his words that had fucking terrified me and pissed me off though, it had been his twisted and depraved thoughts.

I glanced into the back seat and seeing Bella fast asleep, all tucked up in my jacket, made the venom pool in mouth as I thought about what I'd like to do to James for the vile things he'd pictured doing to her. I leaned back and closed my eyes, rubbing my hand over them as I proceeded to tell Emmett about my encounter with James' mind in graphic detail.

Bella bent over the arm of a couch, with James fucking her roughly from behind. I can hear her screams as he climaxes and sinks his teeth into her neck, draining her completely and throwing her body aside like a piece of trash.

Bella, tied up, hands above her head as he tortures her. Tears rolling down her beautiful face as she sobs my name. "Edward can't help you now," he says, slicing open her wrist and drinking from her. "It's just us."

He saved the best til last.

Bella, running through the forest, again screaming my name as she looks round frantically searching for me. James leaps down in front of her, from the tree where he was waiting, and backhands her sending her flying across the forest floor. She slams into the ground, her leg snapping like a twig just below the knee and her scream is almost too real for me to bear. He advances on her and she tries to crawl away, but he's on her before she can move more than a few inches, grabbing her by the hair and yanking her head up.

"Look who's here to save you." He whispers to her.

Her eyes focus in the distance and she must see me because my name falls softly from her lips,

"Edward..."

"Such a shame he's too late." he hisses, snapping her neck as I arrive, seconds after.

He played these images like a film through his head while calmly telling me that he wasn't staying and wouldn't be any trouble. To the casual observer, it looked to be a fairly civil exchange between the two of us. But that was far from the fucking truth, we both knew he had every intention of carrying through with one of those scenarios, but I had no idea of which one, how he planned to get her or where he would take her. He'd been very careful to show me nothing but the actual act of killing. I'd wanted to tear his throat out there and then, but I'd sensed something in the woods and wanted to get out of there as quickly as possibly.

I heard fabric tearing and when I looked down I saw I'd been gripping the sides of my seat so hard, I'd torn right through the upholstery.

"Why the fuck didn't you just kill him?" Emmett asked incredulously, ignoring the fact that I'd just ruined another part of his precious car.

"I wanted to rip his fucking head off, more than you know, but he wasn't alone and I didn't want to start anything with Bella being so close by.

He raised an eyebrow at me, silently asking me to elaborate.

"There was another vampire in the trees over the other side of the road, Laurent I think. I didn't know if there were any others and couldn't take that chance."

"So, you think he'll come for her?"

"I'm certain of it." I replied, trying unsuccessfully to erase the horrendous scenes from my mind.

"Why the fuck did she have to go to La Push in the first place," I whisper yelled, not wanting to wake Bella up and have her see me like this. "She fucking promised. As if it wasn't bad enough to have the wolves after her, now we have that sadistic motherfucker to worry about!" I was furious at the situation we now found ourselves in, barely managing to keep my hands from inflicting further damage on Emmett's car. I didn't think he'd be as understanding a second time.

"I'm going to check in with Carlisle and Jasper when we get back, were going to need help dealing with James. Will you take care of Bella for me?" I asked, avoiding his gaze, I knew he'd have that questioning look again. I sighed, running my hands through my hair.

"I'm just too wound up, it would probably be a bad idea for me to be around her at the moment."

I knew if I had to talk to her now, I'd just end up shouting and that's not how I wanted things to go. I was beyond relieved that she was back with me, safe and sound, and I wanted nothing more than to disappear into my bedroom with her and never come out. But there was also a part of me that wanted to rant and rage at her for putting herself in so much danger. Until I could get that part under control, I needed to stay away from her.

He nodded in understanding and turned onto our drive, slowing down as we neared the house. I was out the car before we'd fully stopped and with a last look at Bella, still sleeping peacefully, I disappeared into the house, leaving her to Emmett.

-oxo-

BPOV

The slamming of a car door stirred me from my sleep and I struggled to recall where I was. As memories of my day burst to the surface I opened my eyes and tried to sit up, realizing as I did so, that I wasn't in bed like I'd assumed. I was in a pair of strong arms, being cradled against a very hard but comforting chest as I was carried up the stairs.

"Sshh, Bella." A warm, soft voice whispered next to my ear. "Go back to sleep."

My body instantly tensed, although I recognized the voice, it wasn't the one I'd been expecting to hear.

"Emmett?" I ask quietly, "Where's Edward.?" I was still wrapped up in his coat, his scent lingering around me, but I wanted the real thing. I felt Emmett sigh before answering me.

"He's checking in with Carlisle and Jasper. He's still a little on edge" He replied with a chuckle. "I'm sure he'll be up to see you when he's calmed down." he said, pushing open the door to Edward's room and walking across the room to depositing me on the bed.

"Get some sleep, Bella. It's been an interesting day for you, hasn't it?" he said grinning at me.

"You could say that." I managed to smile ruefully. Now that I was here, safe, none of it seemed real, more like a nightmare I'd finally woken up from. But the fact that Edward was still too angry to be close to me, was a harsh reminder of how real it was.

"Is he very mad with me?" I asked Emmett as he reached the door to leave.

Turning round slowly, he looked me in the eye and offered me a small smile.

"I'd be lying if I said no, Bella." my breath caught I at his words, and he came to sit by me on the bed.

"You need to understand that Edward's never felt like this before. He was frantic when Jake phoned saying that Sam had taken you. He wanted to drive into La Push and get you himself, the only thing stopping him, was the threat of Sam probably killing you if he did.

I shuddered at the memory of Sam wanting to use me as bait. I hated to think what would have happened had Edward come to get me himself.

"He didn't know if Jake would be able to get you out alive, and Bella, if you had died, Edward would have been right behind you."

I couldn't help the sob that escaped me, the thought of Edward killing himself was more than I could bear. My near death experience had forced me to realize that I wanted him, no matter what he was. I didn't care, I just wanted to be with him.

"Oh God." I sniffed, wiping my eyes with my sleeve. "I never thought how he would feel, I was just so mad at Sam and his gang."

"Hey, I get it Bella." he winked, "you wanted some revenge. I think its kinda hot that you ran off into La Push with guns blazing!"

"Emmett!" I admonished him, slapping him on the arm. Although I hardly knew him, having met him only once before, and the sheer size of him alone would normally have scared me shitless, I felt oddly at ease in his company.

"Just give him some time." He said, getting up and playfully ruffling my hair. I stuck my tongue out at him, thankful for his attempt at lifting the tension. At the mention of La Push though, I suddenly thought of Jake. I had no idea what had happened to him after I ran and I felt yet more guilt at my apparent lack of concern until now.

"Has anyone heard from Jake?"

"No, nothing yet, but I'm sure we will soon, don't worry." He answered, trying to reassuring me, before turning to leave.

I watched as he disappeared through the door, closing it softly behind him. I snuggled down into Edward's pillows and drifted into a deep sleep, the strain of the day finally taking it's toll.

-oxo-

The next time I woke, it must have been morning, because I could make out the sun shining around Edward's heavy black curtains. I opened my eyes and stretched, wincing slightly as I felt my shoulder pull. Edward was beside me in a second, causing me to jump as I'd not heard him come in.

He leaned in to kiss me, but stopped before his lips reached mine, his nose wrinkling in disgust and his face darkening.

"What?" I asked him, wondering what could possibly be wrong. I know I hadn't cleaned my teeth yet, but .surely it wasn't that bad.

"You smell." he said through clenched teeth.

Oh, perhaps it was that bad. I immediately covered my mouth with my hand.

"No, Bella. That's not what I meant." He said, a small smile tugging at his lips. "You smell of them."

Oh.

While I was relieved that my morning breath hadn't offended Edward, I hated the though that I smelled bad to him.

"I can't be near your when you reek of their scent, it reminds me how close I was to losing you." He snapped, standing up and pacing back and forth across the room, tugging at his hair.

I was out of a bed in a matter of seconds, offering to go shower right away. I couldn't stand to see him like this, especially because of me. He nodded in my direction but didn't stop his pacing. I all but ripped off my clothes in an effort to get in the shower as quick as humanly possible. Figuring since we'd already slept together, I shouldn't feel shy about being naked in front of him and ignoring the niggling pain in my shoulder, I took everything off and scuttled off towards his bathroom.

"What the fuck is that?" he roared. His thunderous voice stopping me dead in my tracks.

I turned to face him, hesitantly, a trickle of fear creeping up my spine as I remembered what Emmett had said. He was on me before I could face him fully, cool fingers surprisingly gentle on my shoulder. I should have known he'd see it and I kicked myself for not undressing in the bathroom,

"I'm sorry," he said, noticing my wide eyes and frightened expression. "I didn't mean to scare you, but you need to tell me who the fuck did this to you." His voice wasn't loud anymore, but still full of anger. Thankfully I now knew it wasn't directed solely at me.

My eyes were drawn to where he was touching me, his cold hands feeling remarkably good against the soreness there. I gasped as I saw what had gotten him so mad. There were five, long and angry looking bruises in the shape of fingers, attached to a larger bruise, in the shape of a palm. It looked like James had been holding me harder than I'd realized at the time. The bruises were starting to merge so that soon my whole shoulder would be one big purple mess. He looked up at my face, waiting expectantly for my answer.

"It was James." I muttered quietly and I heard him hiss under his breath. "He grabbed me when I tried to get away." A long, low, growl emanated from deep within Edwards chest, his fists clenching at his side as he struggled to contain his temper.

I paused, not sure whether we were finished or not, shifting from foot to foot, my arms attempting vainly to cover my nakedness. Seeing my embarrassment, he reached out to grasp my chin, with a soft and gentle touch.

"Go shower, Bella. I'll be waiting when you come back out."

I didn't need telling twice and almost ran into the bathroom closing the door behind me, breathing a big sigh of relief and thankful to be on my own for a minute. I rested against the door for a second, my heart eventually returning to normal after it's mini scare by Edward. Hearing a crash from the bedroom I decided that the sooner I smelled like me the better, and hurriedly turned on the shower, not waiting for the water to warm up before stepping in.

After the initial splash of cold that nearly made me scream in shock, the water warmed up pretty fast and I was soon relaxing under the soothing spray. I reached for Edward's shower gel, smiling at the thought of smelling just like him. Squeezing some into the palm of my hand, I closed my eyes and began to rub the gel over my body.

"Let me help you with that." His voice was rough, startling me, having been unaware that he'd even entered the bathroom, let alone the shower.

His icy lips ghosted over my neck and I breathed in sharply, Cool hands enveloped mine, both of us now rubbing the foaming gel all over me.

"Fuck, I'm sorry Bella." He said, a hint of anger remaining in his tone. His mouth trailed cold kisses down my neck and across my shoulders, paying particular attention to my bruises. "It's just the the thought of James laying one fucking finger on you makes me want to break something; preferably him."

I could feel the tension in his touch as he struggled to reign in his temper and his need to protect me, I shivered in anticipation of what was to come. I'd never seen this side of him before and although I should feel bad because he was only worried out me, I couldn't help the waves of excitement and desire that coiled deep in my belly.

His hands made their own way back up my sides, barely brushing the underside of my breasts. My head fell back, settling on his chest as a contented sigh escaped my mouth.

"He's a very, very dangerous vampire." he murmured, nibbling at my skin. "Especially to you, Bella."

His hands slid up and over me, cupping my breasts firmly and stroking my nipples with each thumb. He stepped closer, pulling us flush against each other so I could feel him, hard against my ass.

"I would never forgive myself if anything ever happened to you." He whispered almost harshly, rubbing his length between my cheeks, and moaning at the friction it awarded him.

I was positively panting now, my body begging for his touch, everywhere. As if reading my mind he squeezed my breasts once more, rolling my nipples between his fingers and thumb, causing me to gasp at the delicious pain before moving his hands further south, his skin never leaving mine as he sought out my aching center. He ran his fingers back and forth through my wetness, but never ventured inside.

"I was so angry with you for going to La Push." he hissed against my ear, nudging my legs apart with his knee. He fisted a hand in my hair, urging me to lean forward, and brace myself on the shower wall in front . My legs trembled as I waited in position. I knew that this was going to be nothing like our first time. It wouldn't be slow or sweet, there was too much pent up energy and tension on both sides. It would be hard and fast and I couldn't fucking wait.

"I know." I replied, pushing my ass back and grinding against him. "I'm sorry."

He stopped stroking me and I almost cried out at the loss. Wrapping his hands around my hips, he slid his cock between my legs, it now taking the place of his fingers.

"You lied to me, Bella." His hands tightened on me, holding me in place as he continued to move. It wasn't nearly enough and I whimpered at the exquisite torture. "I told you everything, all my secrets and yet you lied to me. You almost got yourself killed." His voice faltered on the last word, my heart ached for the pain I could hear in his voice.

"I'm so sorry." I breathed. My brain couldn't form a more appropriate response with him still moving against me like that.

"What the fuck were you thinking?" he asked, his voice rising and I could feel his anger building again.

I whirled around to face him, catching him off guard, so that when I pushed him him back, he actually stumbled.

"I don't fucking know!" I yelled, the passion I'd felt only moments before, morphing into anger that now matched his. "I'd just found out that those fucking wolves had murdered my father and Alice. I was hurt and confused, I just wanted to know why!" I slapped my fists against his hard chest, breathing heavily as we both stared at each other.

I barely had chance to register him moving, before his mouth was on mine. The kiss was hard, demanding and I gave into it willing, slipping my arms up round his neck and grabbing onto his hair. He hooked his hands under my thighs, lifting me up and slamming me roughly against the wall, angling my body so my uninjured shoulder took the brunt of the impact. I wrapped my legs around him, pulling him towards me, not giving a fuck about my shoulder.

"I want to be inside you." he whispered against my lips, leaning back slightly to look at me.

I could feel him there, begging for entrance.

"I thought I'd lost you and I just... fuck Bella... I just need you."

"Then take me..." I breathed, forcing his mouth back to mine, pouring everything I had into the kiss to show him that I was his.

He thrust into me without further warning and I screamed out loud at the feeling of his cock filling me so completely.

"Oh fuck!" I cried, my head falling back against the wall.

"Never..." thrust, "leave me..." thrust, "again."

I shook my head.

"Never."

His eyes locked with mine, all traces of anger gone.

"Promise me..."

"I promise..."

His thrusts continued relentlessly, harder, faster, pinning me to the tiled wall as I felt the tell tale signs of my impending orgasm. I hung on for dear life as he plunged into me again and again, setting a punishing rhythm that I could barely keep up with.

"Oohh... so... close..." I moaned breathlessly.

His mouth took advantage of my exposed neck, his tongue lapping at the delicate skin there, while one of hands snaked between us to rub my clit.

"Come for me, Bella." he urged almost desperately, willing me to let go.

"Fuck...Edward!" I screamed, as his dirty words and his ice cold touch on my most sensitive parts sent me tumbling over the edge. I clung to him tightly as I rode out my orgasm, kissing him wherever I could reach, and soon he was coming too, yelling out my name and spilling deep inside me.

He nuzzled my neck, holding me close while I recovered from what was quite easily the best sexual experience I'd ever had. As my breathing returned to normal, he walked us both out of the shower and lowered me gently to the bathroom floor, pausing only long enough to dry us both off before picking me back up and carrying me to his bed.

He climbed in after me, tucking me into his side and pulling the comforter up around us. I relaxed into him, truly content for the first time in weeks as I closed my eyes and breathed him in. I knew that things were far from finished with the wolves and possibly James, and there was still the Alice situation to get my head around, but for now I wanted to avoid the outside world and just enjoy the feeling of being safely wrapped up in Edwards arms.

-oxo-

a/n So, nothing really bad happened to Bella this chapter *gasp*, in fact I think she had a great time in this one. No cliffy either. Reviews are better than angry shower sex with Edward! (well clearly not, but leave one anyway.)