There's not a breath to take before Bella's in his arms and he's picked her up and is spinning her around, so giddy and blue-skied and he smells so good. She just wants to touch his soft hair, and look into those intense yet melting eyes that only ever look at her that way, and she feels a simultaneous desire to wrestle him onto the sand (which would end badly) and to kiss him until her lips are chapped.

She opts for the latter.

He's here!

His lips are so warm and giving, and soon they are lapping tongues and it's as if the rest of the world is completely forgotten, and never mind her injury, or the fact that half the beach is ogling them, Bella wants to pull him to the ground and take him there on the hot sand.

"How!" She laughs, breaking off from the kiss with shining eyes, stroking a chin that's just sprinkled lightly with stubble. "How are you even here? Do I have sunstroke?"

"It's a long story." Jacob smiles, that way she loves where he shows his teeth and she's nearly blinded by the whiteness.

"Have you seen Phil and Renee?"

"I went to the house, but there was nobody there, so I just dumped my stuff on the front step. Followed my nose and found you here…" He takes a strand of hair and wraps it neatly behind her ear.

"Are you two married?" A little voice pipes up. It's the wolf kid. She's standing staring at them like she's seen something at the zoo. Bella realises she's probably just put on an NC-17 show in front of a minor. Uh-oh.

"Is she your Princess?" The kid points her stick at Jacob, then gestures to Bella. "Cos if she is, you have to marry her. It's the rules."

Jacob and Bella look at each other. Jacob knowingly, smirking. Bella blushing a little.

"Can I come to the wedding? You could get married on the beach. I'll still be here tomorrow. My name's Cady. I'm a real good bridesmaid."

"I'm sure you are, little one," Jacob smiles, and reaches down to pat her head. "And if we do get married you'll be the first to know."

"Cool!"

As Cady runs off, Jacob takes Bella's hand, and they return to where the picnic was abandoned.

"Oh nice, I'm starving."

"Go for your life. Renee and Phil disappeared hours ago."

Bella watches as Jacob begins to stuff burgers and chips down his throat.

"Yawanthum?" he offers her a half eaten burger.

"No, I wasn't feeling that great earlier…"

"You're sthick?" Suddenly Jacob's voice is full of concern, his eyes blackberry intense. He swallows eagerly. "What's wrong?"

"I've been throwing up since before I left Forks. Hey, did you feel the Imprint go?" Bella remembers that awful feeling of separation.

Quicker than he should, Jacob has her face cupped in his hands and he's looking into her eyes, checking. "Are you okay? Did it…hurt you…to leave?"

"It was really strange. And not pleasant. How about you?"

"I couldn't breathe. Carlisle had to give me oxygen until I calmed down. Then when I realised you might be going through the same thing, he had to give me a shot, and then another shot because the first one wasn't strong enough." Jacob rolls his eyes, but Bella can see the memory of the pain there.

"Carlisle was there?…How did that come about? It's not like he does house calls to the res."

"Alice saw you were leaving, and figured that I'd be heading for your place and thought they had better check on me. Kind of sweet for a bunch of blood sucking monsters, don't you think?" Jacob arches his brow wryly.

"Um…yeah…" Bella looks incredulous.

"Only time I've ever glad to be flat on my back surrounded by a bunch of fangs. And then they offered to pay for me to fly here to be with you." Jacob adds, a little abashed. At Bella's astonished face he raises a hand in protest. "Honestly…It was probably easier than keeping me sedated for a week. Rosalie was very much enjoying making comments about keeping her doped up mutt in the dog house."

"I don't know how I can ever repay them." Bella shakes her head. The thought of Jacob in pain just repulses her.

"No, me neither." Jacob's voice is quiet. "I don't know why they want to help so much. There must be something in it for them. But the Doctor – Carlisle. He's a good person. I can see that. And Esme…she just looks at me like I'm due for some very serious mothering."

"I'll pay them back…I'll thank them," Bella insists.

"Well, they are here, so you won't have long to wait." Jacob says pointedly. "We checked in last night to the Ritz Carlton on Amelia Island."

Bella feels as if her eyes are bugging out of her head.

Vampires…In Florida? It's absurd.

"You know Renee and Charlie are going to kill me. I'm supposed to be staying away from you."

"Bella, she's dead. There's not a single reason in the world that I have to spend any time away from you ever again, and I don't plan on letting your Mom, or Charlie, or Sam, or an entire coven of vampires get in the way of that."

Bella feels herself collapse against Jacob. Now he's said it, it's finally real.

"She IS dead. I saw it Jake. Emmett just broke her head right off her neck. It was over in a second. I didn't even know it could be so easy for…them." Her voice wobbles as she remembers Victoria's red eyes.

"It's okay. You are safe now." He brings his lips to brush against her hair, and Bella feels herself instinctively shiver. But it's not from fear, it's just him. He's electric.

"Jake...when the imprint went...did you still feel the same about me?"

Jacob's eyes are wide.

"Of course. You know how I felt about you even before I was a wolf, right?"

"It's just...there's always been this...doubt...in the back of my mind. What was the imprint, and what was real. I thought I'd never know...I'd decided it didn't really matter...but now. Well, I know how it feels to be away from you, and not feel the imprint..."

Bella trails off, shrugs.

"And?" Jacob prompts her, eyes concerned.

"All I wanted was to have it back, to feel US again."

with this admission, Jacob grins, then in one sweeping motion, he picks her up in his arms to carry her, and she has the pleasure of having her good arm slung around his neck while her strapped up fingers touch gently against his burning chest.

"You know there is one problem I'm struggling with," Bella admits.

Jacob looks at her quizzically, raising an eyebrow.

"It's Florida. You're so hot we're going to need a hell of a lot of air conditioning."

In response, Jacob gives her a look of absolute and supreme lust, scoops up the beach paraphernalia with one hand and takes off running easily down the beach. Past sand dragons and castle forts and racetracks, moats, giants hands and half buried parents.

A low growl escaping from his throat.


"Bella are you home?" The worried voice cuts through the house to where Bella and Jake are sitting on the sofa, holding hands, waiting in anticipation of the breaking storm. Bella feels like the little kid she never was – the naughty one caught standing on a kitchen stool, raiding the snack cupboard.

Jake hears her heart hitch, squeezes her hand.

"It'll be okay," he says reassuringly.

Renee walks into the room, Phil at her heels. She's carrying a plastic bag from the pharmacy and looks like she's been crying. When she sees Jacob sitting there on the couch, her eyebrows crawl up her forehead.

"Well well," she says darkly. Folds her arms.

Jacob rises, towers over Renee. Extends a brown palm to shake her hand, but Renee just glares at him. Instead, it is Phil who steps around his wife and takes Jacob's hand in a firm grip.

"This is my boyfriend, Jacob Black." Bella's eyes plead with her Mom.

"Jacob, do you want to get a cold drink in the kitchen with me?" Phil says amiably, shooting a sideways glance at Renee.

"I'm all good," says Jacob, sitting back down and taking Bella's hand.

Renee sighs, sits on the chair opposite and puts her head in her hands.

"Oh Bella. How could you. You have always been a smart kid. What happened?"

"This wasn't Bella. She didn't even know I was coming. Friends of the family were coming down to Florida, and they offered me a plane ride down. I'm staying with them over on Amelia Island."

"Well, it's just as well he is here, right Renee?" Phil nods. "I'd like to hear what this guy has to say for himself."

"Um…sorry?"

Bell and Jacob look at each other, confused.

Renee and Phil look at each other, sharing a silent message.

"You are right Phil, she doesn't even know." Renee looks pained.

"Oh honey," she says softly to Bella. "Do you think there might be any chance that you are pregnant?"

There is a moments silence, then Bella laughs crazily. "No! God Mom."

"Then you won't mind taking a test?" Renee reaches into the plastic bag and pulls out a slim cardboard box.

"Mom, this is ridiculous." Bella doesn't move.

"Can you swear on it? That you've been safe?" Renee demands, her eyes flickering to Jacob, who has paled slightly, sits forward, lips parted and on edge.

He exhales, then turns to Bella. "There was our first time…" he says softly. "We weren't exactly…careful."

Bella turns to him, red blush suffusing her face.

"No! Don't you start siding with her!" She jumps up, grabs the test and heads off to the bathroom. Better get this ridiculous carnival over and done with. She's never been so utterly mortified in her entire life.

Phil takes off his baseball hat, adjusts the brim and replaces it.

"So Jacob, what do you do for a living?"

"Uh…I'm in school." Jacob looks blankly at him.

"What college?"

Renee throws her hands up. "He's in High School, Phil. He's seventeen. I already told you."

Phil looks Jacob up and down, baffled. "Sorry, I kinda forgot." His tone of voice says what Jacob has so often experienced since he phased: You don't look seventeen. What is it? Steroids? Native American drug riddled skank kid.

Jacob rises to his feet. Starts to move toward the bathroom door.

"Sit down," Phil grumbles at him.

Jacob swithers and sighs. Sits back down. His mind is racing with the possibilities. Could it possibly be true? It would be a chance in a million, surely. The sort of thing that happened to…well other teenagers. Like Dawn Lacey on the res, who was pushing a pram at age fourteen. Or Darren Lightwater, who was a year older than Jacob, but already had a wife and two kids. And a drug problem.

It can't possibly happen. Not to him and Bella. She's got her whole life ahead of her.

Plus Charlie would actually shoot him. That is if Phil doesn't get him with a baseball bat first.

The minutes pass and stretch out like chewing gum. Everyone is trying not to look at each other. Eventually Phil puts the TV on and starts watching a baseball game.

"So are you ready to be a Dad, Jacob?" Renee eyes him.

"No." Jacob shakes his head. "But if we are going to be parents, then we'll do our best." Renee looks at him sceptically.

"I love your daughter. I know this is way too soon for you to hear this, and you must think I'm some total scuzzball, but Bella and me were going to be forever anyway. This was going to happen. Just not yet."

Renee is silent after his little speech.

Then there is a knock on the door.

"Oh God. Not now. Whoever it is, can you tell them to go away?" Renee turns to Phil and he strides over to the kitchen door, opens it halfway.

"Can I help you folks?"

"Hello. We're friends of Jacob and Isabella. I'm Carlisle Cullen, and this is my wife, Esme."At the sound of their voices, Renee has joined them and is gawping at the glamorous couple. Carlisle is dressed in chinos and a button down blue striped shirt, white Esme wears a pale yellow sundress and vintage sunglasses on a necklace around her neck.

"Carlisle…Esme…" Jacob feels like he's been thrown a lifeline. "Is it okay if they come in? –"

He looks hopefully down at Renee and Phil, and the latter pulls open the door. "Sure. Although you find us in a bit of a…situation…this evening."

Esme and Carlisle enter the kitchen, instantly making the flamingo magnets on the fridge and Renee's collection of rattan pot plant holders look hokey rather than homely. They emanate the otherworldly glamorous aura of Hepburn and Grant.

"I know this must be a terrible inconvenience Jacob showing up like this," Carlisle says, and his tone carries a full acknowledgement of the emotional burden Phil and Renee are carrying.

"Well, it was rather a surprise," Renee says lamely, taking in the movie star good looks of the couple in front of her.

"Jacob is just so devoted to Bella, and when she left without even saying goodbye – well, I'm sure you know how it works with young love." Carlisle puts his arm around Esme and chuckles, and Phil and Renee unconsciously echo their movements.

The air is full of charm.

Jacob looks between the two couples, the penny dropping. Damn. They are good. Go crazy mind controlling seductive vampires. Do your work!

Before Renee really knows what is happening, Esme and her are sitting on the couch talking about painting, while Carlisle pours glasses of red wine he has brought for medicinal purposes. Jacob notes with distaste that a bottle of Shiraz is served to Phil and Esme, while Carlisle quickly pours from a second unseen bottle or red he has brought with him to serve to Esme.

Red what?

While everyone is occupied, he slinks down the hall and knocks on the bathroom door.

"Bella?"

There is silence. Then a shuffling. Then the lock slides open.

He waits a moment, then pushes the door open to find Bella sitting on the toilet with her head in her hands.

"It's positive, huh?" He says stupidly.

Bella's head whips up. She's been crying.

"Yup."

"Well, Carlisle and Esme are here. They've got your Mom and Phil so bedazzled that they've pretty much forgotten you are still in here."

"Is that all you have to say?"

Jacob unfolds from his great heights and gathers her up into a hug. He holds her, hearing her heartbeat, listening so carefully to see if he can hear a tiny little heartbeat. There's nothing. But he knows it's there, nonetheless, the little life that he and Bella have created.

"It's okay, Bella. Whatever you are feeling. It's okay. I can handle it. I know it's a bit of a shock, but it's also pretty…wonderful."

Jacob looks at her hopefully.

"I thought you'd be scared…or mad at me. I am. I'm scared and I'm really mad at myself." Bella looks up at him.

Jacob laughs. "I think we'd be crazy to not be scared. But this is US. Bells and Jake. We just have to figure out how to make it work, that's all…now let's get out of this bathroom. There's a couple of vampires in the den drinking blood and glamoring your Mother."