Forsaken In My Mind's Past
Chapter 48, "I Don't Care" ~ Apocolyptica
Jacob's POV

*A/N: I really have no good excuse other than RL and a shitty case of writer's block. The usual apologies apply. Thank you so much to those still reading and sending me love. I'm a lucky girl. ;-) I hope everyone that celebrates had a fabulous Christmas/Hannukah/Kwanza and Thanksgiving before that.

THEsnapcrakklepop beta'd this all by her lonesome and I love her sweet little ass hard. So, any mistakes are mine. *sighs* Hopefully I'll have fmneff and Love of Escapism back for next chapter. It's been a crazy couple months and I'm missin' mah team!

On a side note, I never intended to give 'Captain Douche' (as Docward says) his own chapter. However, I feel it's a necessary evil for you all to get into his head a little bit and see just how far gone he really is. He won't get another one unless it's an outtake. Prepare to get your feathers ruffled.

*I don't own it, I just throw fuel on the fire and watch it explode. The train-wreck below, nonetheless, is mine.

Song Link: http:/ www . youtube . com /watch?v=fDMiuMARLAs


"I try to make it through my life; in my way, there's you,
I try to make it through these lies, and that's all I do,
Just don't deny it; don't try to fight this, and deal with it; that's just part of it,

If you were dead or still alive, I don't care, I don't care,
Just go and leave this all behind, 'cause I swear, I don't care,

I try to make you see my side; I always try to stay in line,
But your eyes see right through; that's all they do,
I'm getting buried in this play, I got no room, you're in my face,
don't say anything; just go away,

If you were dead or still alive, I don't care, I don't care,
just go and leave this all behind, 'cause I swear, I don't care,
I'm changing everything 'cause you won't be there for me,
I'm changing everything, 'cause you won't be there for me!

If you were dead or still alive, I don't care, I don't care,
Just go and leave this all behind, 'cause I swear, I don't care…at all."


"I'm not going to talk about this, Dad," I hissed as I turned toward the door of the tiny, shoebox of a house he lived in. Funny, it didn't seem this small when I was growing up in it, nor this neglected. The red paint was peeling off the outside; the driveway was cracked a lot more than I realized until I showed up to shovel the snow off of it for him, and the damned shovel kept getting stuck. In the warmer months, grass grew up between the cracks. Guess I just never paid much attention. Not that it mattered much. The man never really drove himself anywhere anymore. It was always me. And the inside of the house was…well, my dad had definitely let it go. Mom would've rolled over in her grave if she saw the house looking like it did.

I hadn't been over here in a couple weeks. Not since Thanksgiving and the bullshit that came out of that debacle with the family…oh, and an unsuspecting illegitimate child of mine. And wasn't that just some wonderful goddamned news to get in front of everyone. I should've known Leah wouldn't be able to keep her mouth shut for long, but to betray me like that in front of my family? And to keep something like a kid from me for so long? Whatever; I wasn't sure I was even buying it. I didn't see the uncanny resemblance everyone else seemed to. I would've put it past that girl to come up with something like that to get a hold of me and/or my money.

Anyway, Dad had estranged himself from me because of that. I came over here because of my own need to help him…not because he asked me to. Because I was a good son and that was what good sons did. He hardly talked to me the whole time I was here, though, and it annoyed the shit out of me. When he did talk to me, he started saying some nonsense about how I'd lost Bella and needed to realize it. That I needed to let her go. I wasn't about to hear any of that.

Not. Happening.

"Jacob, wait!" He wheeled himself up behind me. "You need to listen to me."

"No, I don't." I turned on my heel and glared at him, one hand on the flimsy door knob. "She's my wife. Always will be. Not you or anyone else is going to make me think any differently."

He sighed and shook his head, looking defeated and sad. I couldn't imagine why. This wasn't any of his business anyway. I could take care of myself, of my family. I didn't need his approval. I didn't need his pity, and I sure as hell didn't need his advice. I knew what the hell I was doing.

"Oh, Jake. You have no idea what you've done, do you?" I just stared at him. He shook his head again, looking down at himself, then back up to me with remorseful, blackened eyes. "I suppose it's my fault. The way I raised you, your mom and I. I should've seen it. I should've given you better advice. I…I should've known Bella would be a stronger woman than Sue was in the end."

Anger flashed through me and I lashed out at him. "Don't you talk about my mom like that! What's the matter with you?"

"I never treated her right, Jake. She wasn't happy, she just…wouldn't leave."

"What the hell are you talking about?" I seethed.

"She was too stubborn or, or old fashioned, I don't know, but she…she deserved better than me, and Bella does too," he continued, basically lost in his own thoughts, all but ignoring my growing frustration. He wasn't looking at me now; his eyes were distant, fixed on his wringing hands.

"No. Stop! Mom was fine. How dare you talk about her like this? And as for Bella, she doesn't know what she wants." I was pissed. The audacity of him telling me what to do and talking about my dead mother had me shaking and clenching my fists so tightly, I could feel my skin tightened to the brink over my bones.

"Jake…" He looked back up at me. His voice was a mere whisper. "I watched it. All these years I watched things deteriorate between the two of you. The way you treated her…" he trailed off. My nostrils flared, heat creeping up the back of my neck. "I should've pulled you aside, talked to you. Like someone should've done to me. I was raised with the kind of values that hold no value anymore, Jake. Your mother was too, but she was different. She didn't want to conform. She wanted to be more independent. Just like Bella. But I wouldn't let her…and I lost her."

"Because she died! Jesus Christ, Dad! I lost her too!" I shouted.

"No, I lost her long before that, son. She wasn't the same girl I grew up with because I broke her. And you will do the same to Bella. You will kill her if you don't let her go."

"You don't know what the hell you're talking about!" My dad had lost his mind. Where was his loyalty anyway? Certainly not with his blood. All he had succeeded in doing by bringing this shit up was to piss me off beyond reason. He'd probably been talking to Charlie again, who Bella – and everybody else, namely my bitch sister-in-law – had successfully turned against me. Nevertheless, what the hell was he thinking telling me to give up the only girl I had ever, and would ever, love? I was beginning to think the old man was turning senile. Maybe a nursing home for incompetent people was in his near future. I made a mental note to look into it.

"I told you, I'm not talking about this." I took a moment to stare him down before I turned toward the door again. "You let me know when you're ready to be on my side of things, Dad. Maybe you could get Leah to come and clean up this disgusting house, since you seem to think she's so much better than me."

"Jacob!"

That was the last thing I heard – and ignored – before the screen door creaked and slammed back into place.

I was so mad; I didn't even feel the bitter cold air licking and swirling in my face as I stomped to my truck. I did, however, feel the block of ice I sat on, masked as a leather seat. I flipped on the ass-warmer right after the engine roared to life, and peeled out of my dad's decrepit driveway.

Where to go…where to go. Home? To an empty house? Not likely. Bella and the kids were God knew where doing the-hell knew what. I couldn't really, in good conscience, drink myself into oblivion in the middle of the day as much as that appealed to me. Technically, I'd taken the day off to go and help my dad with the house, but since that had turned out just smashingly, looked like my office was my new destination. Yes, it was Sunday, but the holiday season was upon us and we were staying open seven days a week whether the ungrateful bastards grumbled around the place or whistled while they worked.

Tried to call Bells. It went straight to voicemail…surprise, surprise. She'd been avoiding my phone calls for days, not to mention the flowers I was spending my hard-earned cash on. Ones that she obviously didn't appreciate. Oh, but when she wanted something – like to lie to the kids and tell them Mommy and Daddy weren't going to be together anymore, and try and lay some bullshit on me like moving out and letting her and the kids have the house (yeah…not) – she was all over me.

Tried to call Vanessa and threw my phone in the floor board when that went straight to voicemail as well. She wasn't talking to me either. Not since the asshole clan made an unnecessary scene in the middle of a nice dinner I was trying to have with her.

Fucking traitors.

I really needed to blow off some steam. I needed to get laid, honestly. But since Vanessa was giving me the cold shoulder – not that she'd ever given it up to me anyway – and since Bella's pussy was obviously being occupied by a dick that was not mine, it seemed I was out of options.

I could feel myself getting more and more irritated as I stewed over every wonderful thing going on in my life and drove, trying not to honk and subsequently run over the morons on the road. Sunday…the shopping day for idiots. I even tried to occupy my screaming mind by categorizing the banes of my existence in order of most annoying to the least.

Wasn't working.

And, well, wasn't that just a toss-up these days anyway. Trying to figure out what the hell…in my life…pissed me off more. I chuckled humorlessly to myself as I thought about that. My mood these days was far, far over the cliff of annoyed; careening down, down, way past the point of livid, and rushing head-long into the dangerous waters of full-on rage.

What pissed me off the most? The answer I got when I thought about that was: Everything. Every single, solitary, goddamned thing.

Not only did my wife actually think she was leaving me, she'd gone so far as to take my kids and go to her bitch of a sister's house and then refused to take my phone calls. Had Alice screening her calls too, no doubt. It was bullshit and spending time by myself in this big house was making me twitchy. Bella was turning my friends against me…having Sam arrest me on the grounds of what? She was scared of me? Please. I wasn't hurting her. I wasn't going to hurt her and she knew it. So, one drunken night I lost self-control and now I had to pay for it for the rest of my life? Her melodramatics were starting to grate on my very last goddamned nerve.

Oh, and of course to top it all off, she was screwing someone I used to call my friend…behind my back. Who knew for how long? I really just wanted to kill that asshole. Thinking he could just barge into my life and take over my family. Not likely. Cullen had a rude awakening coming to him and soon.

Victoria was in town…to stay. She was getting herself settled and about to start her new job at Chicago General as a trauma nurse, or so she told me. James had hooked her up inadvertently – since the crazy asshole lost his job because of my wife, according to him – through a friend of his at the hospital. Said her name was Janie, or something. I didn't know for sure. Didn't care either. The only thing I cared about was the fact that Victoria was here, and would provide a much needed distraction for a certain home-wrecking piece of shit…and get him the hell away from my wife.

Because she was still my wife. Would always be my wife. Mine, not his. He blew his goddamned chance a long time ago, and why she was entertaining this ridiculous idea that she wanted to be with him again was beyond my comprehension. Was she delusional? Maybe so. Again, I didn't care. I'd keep her anyway she was, delusions and all. Hell, if she wanted to pretend I was someone else for the rest of her life, so be it. I wouldn't have been completely satisfied with that, but she was mine, goddamn it, and obviously she was going to have to learn that the hard way.

Edward Cullen was an idiot. He should've known I would keep her and my kids by any means necessary. And I didn't care whether he came out of this situation dead or alive, as long as I had my Bella. James, Victoria's nut-job of a friend and my apparent watch-dog, as I learned in one very unpleasant phone call with him, probably would've been just crazy enough to pull off such a job. I was hard-pressed to admit to myself that the only thing stopping me from requesting such a heinous act as to have my former friend killed was a simple lack of funds. I shook my head, chuckling humorlessly at myself once again.

Was that what I'd turned into? Was that what these people in my life had turned me into? A killer, or rather, a conspirator? In all honesty, I'd rather have killed the asshole myself. More honor in that I suppose. It wasn't like it had never happened in the history of love and love lost. Some of the most notorious murders in history were lamented with that famous phrase…a crime of passion. I understood that phrase now and resolved myself with the notion that if Cullen didn't leave my wife alone, well then I just might do away with him myself.

Was I really going to do it? Who knew, but it made me feel better. So sue me.

I blew through the doors of my office on the south side of Chicago like a hurricane, my foul mood no better, but no worse for wear. Melanie's blond head snapped up from her perch at the receptionist desk in response to my boots scraping against the thin carpet. Her fresh, nineteen-year-old face attempted a flirtatious smile, but my eyes couldn't hold hers long enough. Instead, they shifted down to the tight, perfectly round, fake tits pressed up firmly in her blue cashmere sweater and staring me right in the face.

Had I thought about it? Yeah, plenty, but for one thing, I didn't fuck where I worked. Even I knew that was a dangerous idea. And secondly, she only had green, dollar-sign colored eyes for her sugar daddy. Case in point, a brand new set of knockers to go with her bleach-blonde hair and veneer sheathed smile.

Not that I was interested anyway.

Her smile faltered when I grunted my disdain toward her and her fake appearance, and huffed. My aura seemed to exude a very clear 'do not speak to me' that even her dumb-blonde brain could comprehend as I stomped into my office and slammed the door behind me. I shrugged off my coat and tossed it on one of the chairs opposite my desk, plopping down in my own chair and pressing the heels of my hands into my eye sockets. It was a futile attempt at trying to gain control of myself. I felt a little guilty. Melanie was a good girl, for the most part, and I wasn't usually such a dick to her, but I simply wasn't in the mood for pleasantries.

Jesus Christ, if Bella would just pick up the goddamned phone when I call… If she would just give me a chance to make things right with her. This plan of distraction had to work. I was on the edge, hanging on by a quickly fraying thread that was – like me – about to snap. What seemed like mere minutes later, a soft knock sounded at the door, and my right-hand man, Paul, stuck his head in.

"Yo, boss man. I thought you weren't coming in today."

I leveled a cold stare at him and he shoved the door open a little wider, holding his hands up in surrender. "Okay, fine, don't tell me. But, you got a minute?"

I sighed. "Yeah, man, come in. What's up?" He shut the door behind him and plopped down in the chair opposite me, eyeing me with an odd expression. "What?" I asked, a little more annoyed than I wanted to. "Something happen? Are the shipments okay for tomorrow?" I made a move to pick up the phone and call the warehouse, fully prepared to rip someone a new asshole.

"No, everything's fine. The parts are headed out as scheduled, man. Chill."

I narrowed my eyes to a glare. "Then, what? I've got shit to do, Paul."

He returned my glare with a skeptical one of his own. "You're not even supposed to be here today, Jacob."

"So?"

"So, you need to get something off your chest, man?"

I clenched my teeth, biting back a growl. "Did you come in here for a reason, Paul, or just to badger me into talking about my feelings? Cut the shit. I'm serious."

He rolled his eyes and smirked. "Fine. I just came in here to give you your phone messages."

I was confused. "Alright, but why are you bringing me my messages and not Melanie. Isn't that her job?"

"Well, seems you scared the ever-loving shit out of her when you came in. The poor girl's too afraid to even knock on your door, so she asked me if I could give them to you. What the hell did you do to her? I doubt I need to remind you that her…boyfriend…is loaded and only uses you to buy his auto parts. You at least need to be nice to that one."

"Do not tell me how to run my goddamned business, Paul," I snarled, leaning forward on my desk. His sarcastic grin faltered, but barely enough to notice. He always knew when I wasn't directly pissed at him, and in those cases, he didn't give a shit how much he badgered me. "Besides, she doesn't need to be wearing clothes like that at work. It's inappropriate…and distracting."

His grin widened a little. "Is it now? I hadn't noticed."

"Shut up, Paul. Give me my messages and get the hell out of my office."

"Here!" He slammed the messages down on my desk and sauntered, like the cocky asshole he was, toward the door. "And take some Midol or something. Helps with the bloating and cramping."

"Don't be a smartass right now, Paul. You have no idea what I'm capable of."

He laughed like a hyena, finishing it off with a snort before he disappeared. I shook my head with an irritated sigh before I started shuffling through my messages.

Couple buyers for the parts shipping out tomorrow, no doubt checking to make sure shit was in order. I snorted to myself. Like things weren't always in order with Black Manufacturing. I made sure of that. One from someone simply named "Jim" and a cell number that looked strangely familiar, but I couldn't place. I set that one aside. The last one I came to made my jaw clench tighter and my hands curl into fists, nearly ripping the flimsy little piece of paper to shreds.

Leah Clearwater.

Why the hell was Leah Clearwater calling me at my place of business…twice? Think about it, dumbass. What better place to catch you off guard than here for some unfinished business, I chided myself.

The message was crumpled up and tossed in the trashcan before I let myself have a second thought about it. I had more important things to worry about than anything Leah wanted to talk to me about. I palm-scrubbed my face again and stretched my arms out before spending the next hour or so calling the warehouse, meticulously checking on orders for the upcoming week, and then calling buyers to confirm and reassure.

I called Riley Biers, my most lucrative client/buyer so far for more reasons than one – mainly because fate drew me a lucky card in the fact that he was Victoria's cousin and with her help, my plan was set into action – to check on his flight coming in the next day. I also needed to make sure his hotel was booked and ready for him. The damned place was one of the most expensive in all of Chicago, nothing he wasn't used to with the kind of money he was spending on his purchase, but this time it was my treat, along with showing him some of the hotspots in the city. The guy was giving me my life back and I had to pay him back somehow, even if it cost me a hell of a lot of green. And even if he didn't know the real reason behind it.

I mean, for fuck's sake – sorry, Mom – it wasn't like I hadn't seen it. For years I'd seen how Bella would blush furiously and stumble away when I or anyone else mentioned Edward's stupid-ass name. Pathetic, really, to think I couldn't tell she still wanted him. And then there was him, that son-of-a-bitch. He'd ask about her, or have one of the other assholes who I thought were my friends ask about her. How was she doing…what was she up to…none of his goddamned business as far as I was concerned. But I talked about her, like an idiot, because she was my wife and I loved her…and I didn't want to believe what I suspected. Guess they fooled me, huh? Until I met up with Victoria again by sheer luck. I mentioned my suspicions and bam! They couldn't fool me anymore.

In the middle of my call with the hotel, a soft knock sounded on my office door again. Distracted, and thinking it was Paul again, I hollered at him to just come in already. Imagine my surprise and abhorrence when I realized it wasn't Paul at all, but Leah goddamned Clearwater.

She looked apprehensive. Actually, she looked terrified…as she damn-well should have. I was sure the expression on my face showed I wasn't the slightest bit happy to see her. After the look of complete and utter shock wore off, of course.

"Come in," I muttered as calmly as I could, not wanting to cause a scene in front of the nosy receptionist – who was trying to pretend she wasn't gawking at us – and opened the door wider. Leah rolled her shoulders and nodded. She walked past me into my office, trying to replace her apprehension with a look of determined confidence, which she failed miserably at. When I shut the door a little harder than necessary, I noticed her body tense a little and smiled to myself.

Yeah, you're on my turf now, and you better not forget that.

"What do you want, Leah?" I said her name with contempt and she spun around to face me, scowling. Her features softened when she saw that my scowl matched her own, and she dropped her hands to her sides, sighing.

"I just came to talk."

I scoffed. "What could we possibly have to talk about now, Leah? Seems you pretty much said it all at Thanksgiving dinner with my family, huh?" I stalked past her and looked out my huge window before turning back to scowl at her some more. She returned my scowl with one of incredulity, her mouth opening and closing like a big mouth bass. That was precisely what she was. Big Mouth. I recalled the night we were together and dragged my tongue across my lips, watching a soft blush bloom across her cheeks. I liked her big mouth that night.

Now? Not so much.

"If you said all that to tip the scales in your favor… If your intentions were to break up my marriage with your fabrications, well, you were sadly mistaken." I growled out my words, making her body flinch and her eyes widen. I smiled ruefully, humorlessly.

"That's not what…I never wanted…" she stammered.

"You never wanted what? To have me all to yourself? Another lie!" I took a step toward her and she took one step back, like I was a predator. And she would be my prey if she pushed one too many of my buttons. She should never have come here today.

"I'm not lying, Jacob. Not fabricating anything and you know it! Seth is yours." Her words were coming out in breaths as she watched me cautiously, stepping back until she was against the door.

Nowhere to go now.

"So you say," I spat. "I don't believe it as easily as everyone else."

"But…he looks just like you." She was shaking her head in disbelief of my denial. I clenched my hands into fists, trying to control the sudden rage I was feeling toward her. The action wasn't lost on her as her eyes darted to my fists then back to my eyes. She knew as well I did that I could tear her in two if I wanted to and briefly, I wanted to.

"I don't see it!" I seethed, stalking toward her. She stiffened even more, but squared her shoulders and looked me right in the eye. I could see a conflict going on as I stopped a mere foot in front of her. Her pupils dilated, constricted, and then dilated again…fear, determination, back to fear.

"He's yours, Jake. I'm not lying."

"Right, Leah." I smirked. "How am I supposed to know how many guys you were with…before and after me? A girl like you? Wouldn't surprise me. You get what you want, when you want it. Isn't that right, Leah?"

She shook her head. "No. It was, it was just you…only you, Jake." Her voice cracked and tears welled up in her eyes. Crocodile tears as far as I was concerned.

"I don't believe you, Leah," I said softly, closing the distance between us. Her body began to tremble as she looked up at me. Bingo. She wanted me and she was a lying piece of shit if she didn't admit it.

"It's…i—it's true," she mumbled softly as I pressed my weight into her. Spreading her thighs apart with my knee, I leaned down, brushing my lips over the shell of her ear. She shivered.

"You want me," I whispered.

"No."

"You're lying." I could feel the heat of her on my leg. "Tell me something then." I gripped her chin and pulled her head up until our lips were so close I could almost taste her. "If this kid is mine, and he looks so much like me, why would you bring him around my family, Leah? If you weren't trying to break up my marriage? Did you not think people, namely my fucking wife would notice?"

"I, I didn't realize…" she trailed off, gasping when I pressed my thigh into her pussy. I could imagine how wet she was, and her little whimpers were making me hard. I considered it, briefly, but I was too pissed to even think about banging her today. No, this? This was all about control.

"You're so full of shit, Leah, it's sad," I whispered into her ear again, watching her nipples harden through her shirt. I licked her ear and pressed my hard-on into her hip. "You want me all to yourself. You want me to fuck you like I did that night. Don't lie to yourself, and don't lie to me. I hate being lied to, Leah Clearwater." She whimpered again…and I considered it…again.

"Jake, please just stop." Her voice was weak, wavering, and I had no intention of stopping until she admitted what we both knew was the truth.

"Not until you admit that you're wet for me, Leah. I bet you're drenched, aren't you?"

"No. I don't…know, I don't…"

"You don't what? Know what you want? Shocking. Maybe you should've thought of that before you pitifully tried to ruin my life, huh?"

"No," she gasped again as I ran my hands down her sides and gripped her hips hard, grinding my cock into her again. "I…I mean I know what I want."

"Good girl." I grinned against her neck. "I knew you did." I trailed my lips up again to her ear and clenched my teeth, speaking through them in a low growl. "But I want you to speak the words. Just. Fucking. Admit it."

That was another thing. I'd been using that word way too often lately, thanks to all the assholes I had to deal with. Yet another reason for my poor mother to roll over in her grave.

"I don't want you." It was barely audible, and I smirked. Pathetic, really. Her attempt to deny what I physically could feel from her. Her skin was practically buzzing with want.

"Liar." I grabbed the back of her head and kissed her hard. Her lips were soft and warm, but not the right shape…not the right plumpness. Not the right lips.

Not the right…anything.

I clenched my jaw again, hit with a wave of guilt strong enough to knock me to my knees. All the things I'd done, all the mistakes I'd made strangling me to the point of suffocation, including the biggest one. His mother's eyes were staring back at me with disdain. In that moment, something shifted and I knew.

God, what have I done?

I was so stupid that night.

So stupid!

Why did I do it? Why? Realization had me stumbling backward like a drunken bum, away from Leah, away from my problem.

It's not my fault! She drove me to do it! I was warring with myself inside, but I knew I had to make it up to Bella. I had to… She couldn't leave me over this. She still loved me, as I loved her, with every goddamned thing I had in me.

"I don't want you either," I muttered quietly, not even recognizing my own voice.

"Good, because I didn't come here today for this," Leah hissed. She'd apparently collected herself, and the anger in her tone was palpable. It pushed me backward even further. I nodded and turned toward my desk, rummaging through the thin, middle drawer and pulling out the small, rectangular booklet. I grabbed the nearest pen and began scribbling her fucking name on it. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"I'm writing you a check," I answered blandly. "How much do you want, Leah?"

"A check? For what?"

"To leave me the hell alone. Now, how…much…do you…want?"

She shook her head. "No, Jacob. I don't… I don't want your money."

I ignored her and continued writing. "Five thousand? Sounds good to me." I finished it, scribbled my signature and stalked over to her, holding it out impatiently. "I'll send you more later…maybe." She just looked at me, shaking her head. "Take it!"

"No. I said I don't want it!"

The bitch was successfully pissing me the hell off with every second she stayed in my goddamned office.

"Then what the hell do you want, Leah? If I believe that you don't want me…which I don't, by the way, and you don't want my money. Why. The hell. Are. You. Here?"

"I thought, well, I just thought that we could talk about Boo-Boo, um, I mean, Seth…"

"What about him?" My goddamned patience was nonexistent at this point.

"I mean…" She wrung her hands and shuffled her feet.

"Spit it the hell out, Leah. I don't have all goddamned day."

"He, h—he needs a, um, a f—father. A man in his life, so I just thought—"

What?

"What?" I cut her off because was she kidding me? This conniving woman had officially…

Lost her…

Goddamned…

Mind.

I stopped for a minute, contemplating my next words carefully. Finally, I settled on telling her in a way she'd understand. "No can do, sweetheart."

Her mouth fell open. "What?"

Christ almighty, she can't be that stupid.

"Assuming you were talking about me being the father-figure," I air-quoted, "to a kid that you claim to be mine, and furthermore, who doesn't even know me, therefore putting my marriage at even more risk. I gotta say no. I mean, I've already got kids, Leah, who actually need my attention. And you've got your dad…and your brother. Go find another dude to play daddy, and leave me the hell alone." I shrugged.

Her expression changed from dumbfounded to pissed-the-hell-off in about half a second. 'Cause I know that particular emotion quite goddamned well, thank you very much.

"You're an asshole…and delusional," she hissed, glaring daggers. Wasn't going to change anything.

"I've been called worse," I retorted. "But delusional? I think not. Unlike you, Leah, I know what's real and what's not."

She stalked over to me and, initially I thought she was going to slap me or something. Not that it fazed me or anything. But instead, she grabbed the check I was holding and looked at it. "You are delusional, Jake," she said, still staring at the check. "At first I thought… But then I realized what kind of man you are." She looked up at me. "You think I haven't talked to Sam? You think I don't know the things you've done to Bella…to your marriage? I just stupidly thought maybe you'd be a man for once in your life and own up to your responsibilities. Your marriage was over anyway, Jake. With or without me. Your fault." She proceeded to rip the check in half and tossed it on my office floor. "But I don't. Want. Your. Fucking. Money!"

I looked at her for a minute, letting what she said sink in. And then I got…

Mother.

Fucking.

Pissed.

Sorry, Mom.

"Get out," I growled, low and threatening. She flinched, because the look on my face? Lethal.

"What? Wait, Jake, I…didn't mean…please…Seth needs…"

Yeah. Go ahead and backtrack now, Bitch.

About that time, my cell vibrated on my desk, but I ignored that shit. Waaaaaaaaaay too annoyed to even think about answering a business call at the moment.

"Sam's a follower; a yes-man. Always has been. Mr. Perfect." I snarled. "But he doesn't know as much as he thinks he knows. He's always been jealous of me." How dare he tell her any-goddamned-thing about my life with Bella. Did he not see I was trying to keep my family together? Did that son-of-a-bitch not see what Bella had done to me also? Seriously.

Everyone could bend over and kiss. My. Ass.

"And obviously," I continued, "he's as much of a liar as you are, Leah. He doesn't know shit about my marriage other than what people have told him. We both know you shouldn't believe everything people tell you, isn't that right, Leah? Leave." And…wow…she just continued to stare at me, deer-in-the-headlights or some shit, brainless, nonetheless. My cell vibrated one more time and I picked it up, more or less to distract myself from entertaining the idea of laying this chick out.

And by 'laying' out, I mean the goddamned unconscious kind…not the…never mind.

"I said get OUT. Now."

Nothing. Did she go deaf all of a goddamned sudden?

I checked who the call had been from, and seethed a little bit more in seeing it had been from Bella. "You're wasting my time, Leah. You see this?" I held the phone up. "My wife just called me and I missed the call from my wife, who obviously still wants to talk to me, because of you."

"Yeah right." She scoffed. "Doesn't mean she still wants you, Jacob. You're such an idiot."

"I'm an idiot because I've put up with your ass too long today." I shook my head at her. "Go find some other schmuck to be your baby-daddy. I've got things to do. Like calling my wife back, for starters."

"Fuck YOU, Jacob Black!"

I chuckled and tilted my head to the side. "Been there, done that, and I gotta be honest. It wasn't that great." She gasped and clenched her hands into fists, but it did nothing to deter me. "If you were nicer, though, I might've considered it. Seeing as though you're just a bitch looking to ruin my life…I'll have to pass. Now, get the FUCK OUT!" I roared.

She jumped and grabbed for the door handle. But of course, my temper didn't stop her from spitting out, "You'll…you'll hear from my attorney, you asshole!"

"Goodie." I gritted my teeth. "OUT!" Finally, she left. Jesus Christ, I thought I was gonna have to physically pick her ass up and toss her out the door. I just stood there for a few minutes, stewing over this bullshit. I let out a frustrated growl and raked my hands over my face as I walked over to the door that Leah'd left wide-goddamned-open. "Melanie!" I shouted, even though she was sitting twenty feet away. She jumped up out of her chair and turned to me, wide-eyed and trembling.

"Y—yes, Mr. Black?"

"Hold. My. Calls." She nodded quickly. "And next time I have messages, I expect YOU to bring them to me! Paul's busy. Got it?" She nodded again and I didn't even wait to see her waterworks start. I slammed the door. Hard. And slammed my fist against it. "SHIT!"

I took a few moments…paced around my office…picked up my phone…put it back down again…several times…just trying to calm myself enough to call Bella back. I really didn't need to lose my shit and deal with more female drama today. Hell no. When I finally decided to call her back, after the pounding in my head subsided a little, I picked up my phone. I did notice I had a voicemail, but decided not to listen to it.

I should have.

Because then, I would've been prepared for the shit-storm she handed to me once I got her on the phone.

"Hello?" Wonderful, she sounded exactly how I felt.

"Hey Bells!" I tried to sound chipper. "How are y—"

"Hold on," she interrupted me. Very goddamned rudely, I might add. That was when I heard some muffled voices that sounded like the twins and then, "Be nice to Edward."

Edward.

Edward?

She was kidding me, right? She had to be fucking kidding me with this shit! Sorry, Mom.

She had my kids…my kids…and they were all just hanging out with Edward-cock-sucking-Cullen.

Fan…TASTIC.

But I decided to be coy. Act dumb. "Bella, who was that? Who are you with?" Because if I didn't act like I wasn't ten shades of pissed-the-hell-off, then she would know I was instantly ten. Shades. Of Goddamned. Pissed. Off.

"Nobody, Jake!" Nice. Okay, fine. So it was possible that, by the tone of her voice, Bella may have perhaps surpassed me on the whole 'ten shades of pissed off' thing. Although I'd never quite heard this level of pissed off coming out of her. It was in her tone…shaky, almost panicked, but I could almost taste the venom. And it did not taste good, let me just stress that. Well, I couldn't blame her for the anxiety. I mean she was with Edward Cull—

"It's pretty fucking obvious to me that you're low enough to have some crazy piece of shit following me around, Jake, but I never thought you'd stoop this low!"

"What? Bella, what are you—"

"I was at the park today, with the kids, but you probably already know that!" Alright now this, I didn't really appreciate that much. Yes, I'd had someone following her around…actually, Victoria had someone following her around, but that asshole was only supposed to let me know when she was with Cullen and not let himself be seen and definitely not, for the love of all secret covert operations in the world, interact with her. But of course, this guy, James, didn't necessarily walk to the beat of everyone else's drum, now did he? Besides that, I didn't appreciate her tone anymore.

"Nope, but now I do, and it sounds to me like you had a little tag-along, huh Bells?" I heard her huff. The chipper tone I had when I first called was diminishing at an alarming rate. I couldn't help it. "So now you're letting my kids just hang around him and you while you're playing your little girlfriend/boyfriend routine?"

"Shut up, Jacob! It's none of your business what I do!"

Oh, here we go. I'd had about enough of this shit. "When it comes to my kids, it's sure as shit my business, Bells!"

"Oh really? Really, Jake? Is it your business to have some motherfucking psycho try to kidnap your own daughter, Jake?"

I wondered if she knew how trashy she made herself sound talking like that. "Jesus, Bells, your language is…" And then it hit me, what she said. "Wait, what? Someone tried to—"

"YES! Someone tried to take Krissy, Jake! Like you don't know that."

Can I get a word in, here? "I don't!"

"Right, that's why the douchebag you have following me around told our daughter he was going to take her to see her daddy!"

"WHAT? Bella, I don't know what you're ta—"

"Don't even give me that shit, Jacob! Who is it? 'Cause it sure as shit isn't Sam. Is it another cop? Is it…is it J—James?"

Whoa! Hold the hell up, here. How…what the… Someone…tried to take… James…tried to…

Take.

My.

Little girl?

Holy shit. I mean, I couldn't necessarily say, Why yes, Bella, actually it is James. You know, the guy you have a restraining order against because he allegedly tried to attack you and, for which, you got him fired. Let me just add that I'm pretty much believing that he actually did attack you after this bull-goddamned-shit. Could I?

Talk about the hammer dropping, right down on top of my head. SHIT.

"Bella, I swear to you I didn't—"

"I. Don't. Believe. You!" she shouted. Great. This was not the way I'd seen this phone call going. "Do you have any idea what that was like for me? Do you even give a shit? I thought I'd lost her forever!" Her voice cracked and felt my heart start to pound in my chest because I'd kill anybody that… No, I couldn't go there. I was pacing again, squeezing the phone and hoping it wouldn't break in my grasp, 'cause I really didn't need that shit to worry about right now. I started to try and console her, soothe her somehow. Until… "Thank God Edward was there to help me find her…calm me down! I swear to God Jake…"

"Oh yeah, he's a real PEACH!" I pulled the phone away from my ear and clenched my teeth, squeezing my eyes shut and trying to breathe evenly with my other hand balled into a tight fist. Suspicions confirmed, I felt my grasp on sanity slipping. What next? Were they gonna just move in together and play house with my goddamned kids? I couldn't help the acid that spewed out in my next sentence. "What, were you too busy making out with him to keep an eye on your kids, Bells? How is this my fault that you almost lost my daughter today? Maybe you should pay more attention to them than you do your boyfriend!"

"I WASN'T DOING THAT, YOU SON-OF-A-BITCH!"

And that was when I heard the sobs start. And that was when I felt like an asshole. Only a little bit, though, because she probably should have been watching her better. Shit. Time for groveling. I really didn't want her this upset around the kids. Even though they were being subjected to that ass-goddamned-hole, Cullen.

"Bells…I'm sorry," I said, trying to keep my voice steady…rein in the hate. "Is she okay? I swear to you on my life that I had nothing to do with this. I swear to you."

Silence. Lovely.

"Bells? I'm sorry I said that. You're a…" I grimaced, even though she couldn't see me. "You're a good mom, I know that. It's just that…I hate him. His intentions are not what—"

"Yeah?" Tears stopped, fury returned. God…damn. "Well, you better tell that motherfucker if he ever…and I mean EVER comes near my kids again, I will shoot him in the fucking pencil dick he has, and then in the face. You got it?"

"Bells, I told you, I don't know—"

"GOT IT?"

Jesus, this woman was hell on wheels when she wanted to be.

"Yeah…sure, sure…I got it." I bit back the sarcasm I wanted to insert here. And as soon as I said that, she hung up on me. I stared at the phone for a few minutes before I tossed it on the chair, grabbed a handful of hair and walked over to the nearest wall, grinding my forehead into it and trying not to unleash a string of curse words loud enough to rattle the entire building. I started thinking about Krissy and nearly fell to my knees. I would die if something happened to one of my kids. Die. Bella had to know that. She had to know that I wouldn't have asked anyone…even someone I trusted…to do that to her. I hadn't heard from James, so I didn't know if… And anyway, why would he have tried to take my little girl? If he had, I swore I would…

And then I remembered one of the messages that Paul had handed me.

From 'Jim.' And the familiar, yet unfamiliar phone number.

I grabbed my phone and searched my desk for the message, which had gotten knocked to the floor during the Leah debacle earlier. I studied it for a few seconds, turning it around in my fingers a few times…like an idiot…and then dialed the number. I didn't get any pleasantries. I didn't even get a proper greeting when the line was answered. And I knew immediately upon hearing his voice that it was the psycho.

"Took you long enough to call me back, Jacob Black." He said my name like it was a disease on his tongue. Knowing this guy…or even not knowing him…there probably was a disease on his tongue. I shuddered.

"Yeah, well, I've been busy today, James whatever your last name is." His name held the same disgust as mine had.

"Oh, I'm sure." He chuckled. "Looks like you may have just gotten your ass reamed by the little Mrs., huh?"

Seriously. What an asshole. Obviously he was still on her tail today.

"Well, I guess you're thorough, aren't you," I practically snarled. I just couldn't stop thinking about this twat trying to snatch up my little girl. I tried to control it to no avail as the prick's chuckling turned into incessant laughing. "Tell me something, dickwad… You try and kidnap my daughter today? Because if you did…" I stopped, because what difference was it going to make with this guy?

"Kidnap? That's kind of a harsh word. Don't ya think, Jake?"

"If the shoe fits," I retorted hatefully. I made a mental note to let Victoria know again, just how much I hated this asshole friend of hers.

"Let's get one thing straight." His tone changed from amused to ominous suddenly. "You're paying me to follow her around and thus ultimately help you in getting her back…not that you deserve it. Am I correct?"

Don't think I didn't hear that last part of his bullshit statement, even though he said it barely audibly, but I ignored it for now and grunted my response.

"Speaking of which, I think I deserve some 'good faith' pay, don't you?"

What?

"What?"

"Don't play dumb, Black. I know you gave Victoria a nice little chunk of change when she got into town…and I know you're gonna be taking that little bastard cousin of hers all around town, wining and dining, if you know what I mean, and I'm feeling a little left out here." The amusement was back. Such an asshole, this guy.

"First of all," I seethed. "Victoria's got a big goddamned mouth. Secondly, she was supposed to give you half of what I gave her. The money's not the issue right now, James. You need to stay away from my kids."

He laughed.

Again.

"Oh, it very much is the issue. See, that's the problem with putting your faith in untrustworthy gold diggers like Victoria, you idiot. And it's not like I was really going to take your precious little girl…"

"Then what…" I started, but was quickly interrupted. Honestly, what the hell was it with people not letting me get a word in edgewise today?

"Don't interrupt me, Black! I wasn't going to take her today, but I could have, had I really wanted to. If I don't get my money, I can make that happen. Have you got my fucking message, partner?" His voice was chilling, calculated and eerily calm, and it made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

"Loud and clear," I all but whispered. I hated that this bastard had me by the balls.

"Of course, we could always just call it quits," he continued. "I mean if you'd seen what I saw…" Then the son-of-a-bitch trailed off, like he was holding some huge secret back. Guess what. It pissed me the hell off and I felt every muscle in my body clench with rage.

"What? What did you see? You better fucking tell me, James!" I hissed.

"Calm down, good buddy," he mocked me. "Just seems you've been replaced in a big way, if you catch my drift."

Son-of-a…mother…fuck! Sorry, Mom.

I spouted off a string of rage-induced curse words at the mental images that assaulted my brain of Bella with him and paced around my office. This was, of course, enhanced by the fact that James found this shit funny as hell.

"You know what, James? It doesn't really help me when you bring this shit to my ATTENTION after the fact. You couldn't have called me AT. THE. TIME?" I was yelling and spitting on my goddamned cell phone.

"Listen, motherfucker. If you know what's good for you, you'll watch your tone with me."

Ten times out of ten, I wasn't scared of anyone…or anything, but in that moment, something in his tone sent a chill down my spine and had me acquiescing immediately. When he realized I was no longer freaking the hell out, he chuckled.

"Speaking of advanced warning, I have some information you might be interested in knowing, partner, but it's gonna take a little monetary advance if you catch my fucking drift."

I agreed, and then waited. Patiently. Until I thought my head was going to explode. Literally. Finally, he explained to me that his friend Janie, or whatever, from the hospital told him her cousin, Felix, or whatever, had just gotten a job as a bouncer at Moonstruck. I cringed thinking of that place and what had transpired there what seemed like forever ago. Apparently this Felix, or what-goddamn-ever had been excited about some band playoff thing, or something, at the club coming up in a week.

"So? What's that got to do with me? Specifically, what's it got to do with me and Bella?"

"Well, I dunno. Papa needs a new pair of motherfucking shoes, Black," he deadpanned. "You pay up? I'll sing like a birdy."

And so I did. I paid that son-of-a-bitch enough to get him to tell me that Janie had oh, so nonchalantly eavesdropped on a phone conversation between Doctor Carlisle Cullen and his wife, Esme about Edward cock-sucking Cullen's band reuniting for said band playoff at said club.

Oh Jesus. She wouldn't be that stupid, I mused to myself. Going out in public with him? With people she knew? And then I remembered the goddamned park-date she had with him…and our kids. Shit! She is that stupid.

~*fOrSaKeN*~

The following week, I was reminded of just how stupid my wife was – and a shitty liar to boot – when she called me up, playing nice and asking if I wanted to take the kids a night early instead of the usual Saturday pickups we'd arranged since she left me. Which, by the way, pissed me right off to even think about.

I asked her what she was doing and she stuttered for a few seconds before she blurted out that she and Alice, the bitch, were having a – and I quote – girls night out. Right. I'd just fallen off the goddamned turnip truck, hadn't I? I declined, saying I had to work late, and that I'd see the kids on Saturday per the usual. Soon as I hung up with her dumb ass, I called Victoria and Riley to get the plan in action. Riley was oblivious, thinking we were just going to hang out for drinks and check out the local up and coming bands, but Victoria knew the deal.

Distractions, distractions…they were a wonderful thing.

That was Victoria's job. Distract the asswipe trying to steal my wife long enough for me to get Bells far, far away from him. I mean, hell, he'd fallen for it once before, and I had confidence in my old friend that he'd fall for it once again.

By the time we reached the club that night, I was already in a piss-poor mood. Not only did Victoria keep Riley and me waiting, earlier that day I was caught off guard by an asshole in a courier outfit. Turned out the packet contained none other than a Petition for Dissolution of goddamned Marriage.

I couldn't believe she'd actually gone through with it. The words that came out of my mouth were enough to scare the shit out of my entire office staff, including poor Melanie, who broke down in tears. Not to mention, there was a hole the size of my fist on my office wall, which I now had to worry about repairing before I entertained any more potential clients in there. Fantastic.

When I pulled into my driveway, I encountered a car I didn't recognize. A little weasel-looking dude jumped out of it, asked my name and when I confirmed, shoved yet another package into my hands. The prick jumped back into his piece of shit and sped off before I had a chance to strangle him just to make myself feel better. The new package? A goddamned Order for Child Support from none other than Leah bitch-ass Clearwater.

I threw that shit in the trash.

Screw.

Her.

I didn't have time for that bullshit. The illegitimate thorn in my side was just going to have to wait.

As Victoria, Riley and I walked up to the doors of Moonstruck, the line was still ridiculously long and the natives seemed to be getting restless. The guys were trying to act cool, as if they weren't freezing their balls off, and the ladies were huddled up in their coats, bare legs exposed to the frigid cold and faces scrunched up as the bitter wind licked at their skin. I cursed to myself because I hated waiting in line for anything. I didn't see Bella as I scanned the crowd outside, so I could only assume she was already in there…with him. I needed to get in there.

Victoria shot me a knowing smirk and a wink as she sauntered past the poor freezing bastards, one arm linked through mine, the other linked through Riley's, straight to the doors. Girls hissed in her direction and the men – whether they were with said girls or not – were openly gaping at her tight ass in a red leather mini skirt and outrageously high stilettos. The bitch knew she was as hot as she was ten years ago and she used it to her full advantage.

The bouncer waiting for us at the door, holding the velvet rope and eyeing Victoria like he was a tiger staring at a fresh steak, was…Jesus Christ, he was huge. Had to be well over seven-foot tall and just massive. I was pretty sure the dude had his own zip code for shit's sake. Victoria pursed her bright red lips and gave the Herman Munster-looking dude a wink for good measure and cocked her head to the side, looking up at him and oozing sex from every pore of her body.

"You must be Felix," she purred. The guy was a goner instantly. His mouth popped open and he cleared his throat a couple times, trying to avert his eyes from her low-cut blouse and perky tits. Yeah, they were nice. Not gonna lie.

"You Victoria?" he asked with a slight quirk of the eyebrow. I chuckled to myself, because the dude sounded like Herman Munster too.

"The one and only." She smiled wickedly. I watched the guys Adam's apple bob and rolled my eyes. The vixen act was annoying as hell to me. Unfortunately, it wasn't really an act. "You're so much bigger than I imaged from your cousin's description." Her voice was pure seduction. Hell, even my dick was getting a little hard listening to it. I could only imagine the discomfort she was putting this poor guy through.

"You know Janie?" he asked lightly.

"We have a mutual friend," she purred, to which Felix nodded. "This is my cousin Riley," she gestured toward him, "and this Jacob Black. He's come to retrieve something that belongs to him." She smirked as Felix nodded toward Riley, then me, eyeballing me for a moment. "Have you seen the woman I described to you on the phone?" He nodded again.

Articulate, this one was.

"Yeah, she's here. I'm pretty sure it's her. She's, uh, with one of the guys from a band we have booked tonight, Eclipse."

I felt myself bristle immediately and balled my hands into fists, clenching my jaw so tightly I thought it might snap in half. Sensing my agitation, Felix eyeballed me again.

"Hey man, you better keep the fists of fury at bay," he warned me with an eyebrow raise. I sucked in a breath, ready to let this asshole have it, jolly green goddamned giant or not, when Victoria squeezed my arm with her own, warning me in her own way.

"Oh, he'll be fine," she said, smooth as honey. "It's those guys in that band you might want to keep an eye on. I hear they like to fight." As Felix's eyes widened in surprise, she pulled my arm again and whispered in my ear as I bent down a little. "Keep your shit together." Felix nodded again, duh, and waved us into the club, much to the dismay of the other potential patrons who pissed and moaned their protests. Victoria turned back to the ogre just before we entered. "See ya in here, Felix. You help us out tonight and I will be very…" She licked her lips and glanced at his crotch. "…grateful." Then she winked at him again, and I swore I could hear a whimper come out of the tough guy's mouth.

"You are such a whore, Victoria," I chided with a chuckle, shaking my head once we found our way inside.

"Shut the fuck up, Black," she retorted with her wicked grin. "I got us in, didn't I? That's more than I can say for your aggressive ass. Besides, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do. And I'm a nurse now, fuck you very much."

Yeah, and you're a fire crotched bitch too.

"Hey, Vickie, what were you talking about out there?" Riley asked innocently. Yeah, it was a dick move to bring him completely unaware of the situation, but he was a big enough guy, I figured I could use his muscle if shit went down with cock-sucker Cullen and gang.

"Oh, nothing, Ri. Why don't you go and get us a round of drinks and we'll look for a table," she replied so sweet it made my teeth hurt. He nodded and I noticed him look at me out of the corner of my eye as I scanned the club for my wife.

"Jacob?"

"Oh, uh, bourbon, man. Straight up," I answered. "Thanks." And went back to scanning the crowd incessantly. For what felt like a year, I searched and searched, not seeing anyone I recognized. Finally, after the third or fourth round of drinks – who's counting – I turned to Victoria with a huff of annoyance. We'd listened to at least three bands play, and there was still no sign of them.

"Goddamn it, Victoria. I don't see them! If she's not here, I'm gonna be so—"

"Chill the fuck out, Jacob, she's here. She's probably just back stage with the guys right now."

A feral snarl ripped through my teeth and my hands balled into fists. Victoria smirked and I wanted to wipe that shit right off her smug face.

"Well, if I wouldn't have had to wait on you and your little fuck session with James, we might have gotten here a little earlier and gotten this shit over with!"

She shrugged. "What can I say? He knows how to welcome a girl to town."

"Whore," I muttered through clenched teeth.

"Fuck you, Jacob," she spat with an eye roll.

"No thanks," I spat back. "I'm taking a fucking walk. I gotta piss."

"Yeah? Well, you're missin' out!" Victoria called after me as I stalked off. Dime store slut.

I continued to scan the crowd as I walked to the restroom. I was feeling twitchy and irritable as all hell. Knowing she was here somewhere with him not being able to see her, find her, take her ass away from him at the moment was eating away at my brain like a goddamned parasite. When I got back to our table and let yet another bourbon burn its way down my throat, I heard them announce cock-sucking Cullen's band. I made a move to jump from the table, but Victoria grabbed my forearm and looked at me pointedly, shaking her head.

I groaned and slammed my ass back onto the high-top chair with a huff, like a scolded child, and glared at the asshole patrol on stage. I listened to them play a couple songs. They sucked ass. It made me want to vomit, honestly, and when I heard a loud cat-call and saw Emmett – that dicktwat – point, saying something about sexy ladies, I followed his extended arm to a table full of…

There she was.

And goddamn it, she looked amazing. I couldn't believe how incredibly gorgeous she looked. It wasn't like I hadn't seen her recently, but I definitely hadn't seen her like that. She had this general glow about her and the biggest smile on her face that made the room light up. I couldn't help but smile myself, until my brain took control again, shaking the shit out of me and making me realize…she wasn't smiling at me like that. She was smiling at him like that. I made to stand up again to go and get her, but Victoria stopped me. Again. I was about to kill this bitch if she didn't let me just go get my wife already.

"Jake, listen to me," she whispered in my ear. "It's probably best to wait until they're leaving and grab her. I'll distract Edward long enough for you to leave." I nodded, grinding my teeth and throwing back some more liquor as Victoria sipped on her Patron. Straight. Patron.

But, when that asshole sang some sappy bullshit love song debacle to Bella, I had to go outside for a few minutes. Of all the unbelievable, fucking ridiculous, asinine bullshit… I swore right then and there, I was gonna rip the motherfucker's head off his shoulders. I paced in the arctic fucking weather and pulled at my fucking hair until I wanted to fucking scream. I can't apologize this time, Mom.

When I finally made it back inside, their gay-ass band wasn't playing anymore. I looked over at their table and started counting heads. I saw a girl with mousy brown curls – Bella's friend, Jessica – sitting next to (I had to chuckle) the weasel punk I knocked the shit out of last time we were here. I saw Garrett Donovan snuggling up to - holy shit, was that Tanya Denali? As in, Cullen's ex-girlfriend, Tanya Denali? Jesus, these people were fucked up. I saw Emmett, the dumbass, picking up a girl that was – wow – stunning, and kissing her. My eyes stopped on that one for a while. She was gorgeous, and reminded me of Vanessa, only a little bit taller. My Ness was a little thinner than her also—

Focus, goddamn it.

I saw my bitch-of-a-goddamned sister-in-law sitting on the lap of none other than Jasper "the gentleman" Whitlock (barf) and sticking her tongue so far down his throat, she could probably taste his dinner. Fucking gross. But, no Bella…and no cock-sucking Cullen.

"I don't see Bella. Where did she go?" I turned to Victoria, who looked at me a little cross-eyed. That's enough Patron, bitch. I took her drink and slammed it on the table, seething. "You were supposed to keep an eye on her, Victoria! He probably fucking LEFT with her or something. GODDAMN IT!"

"Jesus, quit whining like a bitch," Victoria slurred. Not so sexy anymore, are we? "She's probably on the dance floor or something." She waved me off.

Oh. Hell. No.

"Oh, that's just GREAT, Victoria!" I turned and stormed toward the dance floor, a half-drunk and completely useless Victoria right on my tail. I stopped dead in my tracks, Victoria running smack dab into the back of me, when I saw them.

And suddenly, the entire club melted away. Only three people remained…me, Bella, and him, and I was shaking with rage from the top of my head to the soles of my feet. There was a ringing in my ears, my heart was slamming against my ribcage, my lips were curled into a nasty snarl and my eyes were boring holes into the head of the motherfucker that had his arms around my wife from behind. She looked so serene and peaceful with her eyes closed and her head leaned back on his shoulder, it made me want to vomit on the spot. All I could do was stare…and seethe…and stare…and rage within myself.

"Jake, what… Oh," Victoria said as she came around and saw what I was looking at. I started to make a move and she tugged on my arm.

"WHAT?" I roared at her. Unfortunately it was barely audible over the music.

"Okay, fine," she conceded. "We're doing this now, then. Don't worry about Edward. I'll get a hold of him quickly. You just get her and go." I could hear the distaste in the way she said her, but I couldn't stop to kick a bitch's ass over it.

"Yep," I stated mechanically with a nod, and pushed my way through the crowd, focused on one thing.

Getting my wife.


*Chapter end notes: *cringes* Are you gathering your pitch forks and torches? Hopefully for Jacob and not me…right? *laughs nervously* Well, um, at least he cares about his kids, right? *SMH* Okay, yeah, he's a complete and utter dick. Now, NEXT chapter, I promise, will be right where Docward left off. Aaaaaaaaaaaand, I'm working on it.

I'm also working on an outtake for the reviewers of this chapter. I don't have it done, BUT, I have a 4 day weekend, so… I promise I'll get it to whoever leaves me love (or not love). It's Bella's pov of the lovin' in the restroom before the concert.

I hope everyone has an amazing New Year! And, yep, I'm still gonna be working on this monster in 2012.

One more thing… I'm posting the story I wrote and submitted to the Our Season of Discontentment contest, "At Any Moment." Sadly, it didn't place at all, but meh, I guess I'll share it will y'all. Look for it soon. Author-alert me if you want to be reminded that way.

Until next time… *smooches*