Hey, lovely readers. Thanks for sticking through so far. As always, SM owns the twilight universe. I'm just a Jacob fan.
Bella woke slightly sore but well-rested. She sat up and gasped at her reflection in the mirror on the back of her bedroom door. Still, in nothing but the underwear that she fell asleep in, she stood and walked toward the mirror slowly.
She didn't think Jacob had been that rough.
Well, he had been a bit rough.
But, she liked it.
Her hair was wild, bruises from his fingertips spotted her hips and thighs. There were even a few on her shoulders where he had pressed her into the closet door. He had managed to put back the hickey above her collarbone, though it was not as bad this time.
Hell, even my lips are bruised. My iron must be super low.
Bella put her hair up and dressed before heading downstairs. She then dumped out Charlie's coffee from that morning and made a fresh pot. Wanting to get it done before forgetting, she called her Doctor's office to ask them about the bruising. As she was hanging up with the nurse, Leah made her way through the back door.
"Jesus, Swan," Leah said, wide-eyed.
"My iron is low, I think," Bella said, blushing.
"I'll say. Charlie is gonna think Jacob attacked you or something," Leah said, chuckling.
"Ugh. Is it really that bad?" Bella groaned.
"Let's, see? Your lips are bruised, I can see bruises on your side when you lift your arm." Leah said. Bella looked down at her side, raised her arm, and cursed.
"Yeah, we need to find you a different shirt today. Something baggy that might cover that hickey, too. God damn, Jacob has a big mouth," Leah laughed. Bella blushed again and trudged up the stairs with Leah on her heels.
"So, I need to talk to you before your mom gets here if that is alright," Leah said softly.
"Oh," Bella teased as she searched through shirts in her closet. "We're being quiet. This is a secret."
"Yes, it's a fucking secret. God damn, Swan, how much clothing does one person need?" Leah said, eye-balling the overstuffed space.
"Alice thinks I need a department store or something," Bella said. "Feel free to raid any time. I'll honestly never wear most of it, I'm sure." Leah grinned at her and sat in the rocking chair.
"So, Jacob caught us last night," Leah said. Bella dropped the hangers she was holding and peeked around the door at Leah.
Bella said, "He didn't say a word about it. What happened?" She began picking up the dropped items and was able to grab the shirt she was searching for.
"Well, he didn't see me. He just saw Quil. I screamed and ran out of the garage before he turned on the light," Leah admitted.
"I knew it was you two," Bella said. "He thought it was Paul and Rachel at first and said if it was his sister, he didn't want to know."
Leah laughed. "I'm sure he's relieved to know it wasn't Rachel, at least." Bella chuckled.
"Quil asked him if he saw the person he was with. Jake said no and that he didn't want to know," Leah admitted, laughing. "We got so fucking lucky, Bella."
Bella asked, "Do you want to be with Quil, Leah? Like, for keeps?"
"And wait for him to imprint on some other bitch one day and break my heart like Sam? No, thank you," Leah said bitterly.
"It doesn't stop you from caring about him, though," Bella said as she changed her shirt.
"I know," Leah admitted. "It will have to stop eventually. It can't keep going on like this, Bella. We are going to get caught."
"Do you want me to talk to Sam, Leah?" Bella asked. "I'd do it for you."
"No, Bella," Leah said a little too quickly. "Why would you do that for me, anyway?"
Bella was taken aback by the question. "Because you're my sister now," she said as if the answer was obvious. "My dad is head over heels in love with your mom. You're my sister now. End of story," Bella teased.
Leah grinned back at her. "Thank you, but please just … leave it alone. I'll figure it out. You have enough going on."
As Leah stood, Bella yanked her into a hug. "Leah, look. If you two end up getting caught or decide to be together, I will have your back. If you decide you want to end it, I will have your back. You deserve to be able to make your own choices."
"So, if Sam went apeshit over this situation and it meant you would be in the middle of a fight with him and Emily, you would still support my decision?" Leah asked.
"Yes," Bella said firmly. "I care about them both, but I believe who you want to be with or fuck around with is your business. Honestly, I think Jake would be supportive if he knew. He thinks of you like a sister, too, Leah. He always has."
"Yeah, I know," Leah huffed awkwardly. "Look, thanks for the support, but I'd rather things stay as quiet as possible."
"Okay," Bella said as she led the way back downstairs, "My lips are sealed."
She headed for the kitchen to start making the crust for Leah's Pie.
"What kind of cake are you making me," Leah asked her, grinning.
"Pie, Leah. You said pie," Bella reminded her.
"Bitch, I said also pie. Both. Always both," Leah said.
By the time Leah's pie was in the oven, the doorbell was ringing. Leah bolted out the back door. Bella had every intention of letting her pie cool in the open window just to drive Leah nuts. Chuckling to herself, she was surprised to find Emmett at her front door.
"God damn, sis, did you get beat up?" Emmett teased her.
"My iron is low," she said.
I have a feeling I'll be repeating that one a lot today.
"Well, that's fine, but maybe Jake should take it easy," he teased her further.
"Emmett," Bella said softly, "No." He roared with laughter as her face turned pink.
She stepped outside to hug him just as Renee pulled up into the drive. Bella groaned.
"Bella, is that your mom?" Emmett asked.
"Yep. How could you tell?" Bella grumbled sarcastically as her look-alike mother climbed out of her rental car.
"Psst," Emmett whispered, "I see your hickey." He chuckled as she adjusted her shirt collar, blushing.
Renee's step slowed as she approached the porch. She looked from Bella to Emmett cautiously.
"Good morning, ma'am," Emmett said.
"Bella?" Renee asked calmly, though Bella could hear the tremor in her voice. "Who is this?"
"This is Emmett. Edward's brother," Bella said. "If you'd like to go on inside, I'll talk to him outside for a moment."
"That's okay, I was just coming by to tell you the garage will be done by Sunday. Good news, eh?" Emmett said happily. He leaned over to kiss Bella on top of her head. "Come see me later if you're not busy, sis."
"If I do, I'll call first," Bella said as he slowly jogged to his jeep.
Renee shook her head and made her way inside.
"What?" Bella was instantly on edge. Renee had her reasons for not liking vampires, she now knew, but anyone not liking Emmett was ridiculous.
"I can't believe how comfortable around them that you are," Renee said as she made her way to the kitchen table.
"They're people. Emmett is like a brother to me now," Bella said as she walked over to check on Leah's pie.
"Cooking again?" Renee was observing her, smirking.
"I love people with food," Bella huffed. She took a deep breath and forced a polite grin at her mother. "I owe Leah a pie. I made fresh coffee for you if you'd like some." Renee's eyes lit up.
"Ah, yes," Renee chuckled, walking straight for the cabinet the coffee cups were in. She snickered as she opened the door, reaching toward the back.
"Your father kept my cup," she said and snickered again as she doctored her coffee. Bella grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and sat at the table.
This is absurd. Why did I agree to this?
"I'm not really sure where to start, Bella," Renee said as she sat back down. "I'm sure after yesterday, you have probably come up with numerous questions for me."
"You know," Bella said, "I did. I can't remember them all now, but I do want to know one thing."
"What's that," Renee asked her after taking a sip of her coffee.
Bella asked, "Why didn't you tell me any of it before?"
"I wanted to. The longer I waited, the harder it got to even bring it up. The last year we lived together, you barely spoke to me. You yelled at me in your head a lot, but I knew you hated me, Bella. You didn't have to say it out loud for me to know," Renee said sadly.
"Why did you keep me from Charlie?" Bella asked. There was an edge to her voice, she knew. She was trying to control her emotions, and it was only making her madder. Bella wanted to cry. She didn't know the woman in front of her at all, and she loathed the one she knew.
Renee said, "One reason was that I wanted you to be with whoever you chose to love one day. I didn't want you being conditioned to end up with Jacob just because it was a possible outcome. It didn't matter, though, did it? You found each other anyway. You truly love each other, don't you?" Renee was looking her in the eye tearfully.
"We do," Bella said, nodding. Thinking of Jacob, she could not help but grin. "He was my best friend. He brought me back to life when Edward broke my heart. He's kind of perfect for me, actually. We had a pretty good rough patch for a second, but things are better. It's as easy as breathing most of the time."
Renee gave her a beautiful smile. "Well, I'm happy for that, baby."
"So what's another reason," Bella asked her.
"Vampires. Like I said last night, I didn't want to bring them here, and I feared that we would," Renee said. "Judging by your company these days, I can see I wasn't wrong."
"You know, Emmett was a singer, too," Bella said.
"And someone turned him? That's a shame," Renee said.
Bella scoffed. "His wife is Rosalie. She found him already dying. He'd been mauled by a bear. She carried him almost a hundred miles to save him."
"So she had him turned," Renee said.
"He has no regrets," Bella defended. "They're really good people."
"I'm glad they're good vampires, Bella, but they are still a risk to you," Renee said. "I truly never wanted that kind of fate for you. I am relieved you were able to break away from Edward. When I met him in the hospital, I was worried I would never see you again. He seemed ...possessive."
Bella snorted. That was one word for it.
"Why didn't you come back?" she asked Renee.
"To the hospital?" Renee asked.
Obviously.
"Phil wouldn't let me. I flipped out over Edward and his father being vampires. Phil thought I was having a psychotic break and sent me to a hospital," Renee huffed.
Bella gaped at her in shock. "How did you convince them you weren't crazy?"
"By pretending that I was crazy," she said and laughed. "I told them I had a mental breakdown seeing you all torn up. I said that vampires weren't real, that I had no idea why I had reacted that way, and I was released."
Bella was silent for a moment as she carefully considered her words.
"I need you to know that your reasons for dragging me all over the countryside don't absolve you for all the pain you caused me," Bella said. "I understand now why you made certain decisions, but some things aren't forgivable. I find it very hard to believe that your intentions had ever been to protect me. Not when I went to bed hungry and had to fight your drunk male friends off of me in the middle of the night."
"I know I made bad choices, Bella …" Renee began to cry.
"You made dangerous choices," Bella said. "You wanted to mention my recklessness last night. What about yours? I spent my formative years doing homework in the dark corner of whatever bar you worked at. Do you remember how many men you dated that treated me like trash? I had to put headphones in every night to sleep because if it wasn't your loud drunk friends keeping me awake, it was the sound of you having sex in the next room."
"Bella," Renee shook her head. "I am not excusing the mistakes I made, but I don't think you truly understand how much I was dealing with."
"I remember a great deal of what you were dealing with. Forget the vampire bullshit, okay? Wipe it from the table and look at the situation again," Bella said hatefully. She stood to check on Leah's pie and pulled it from the oven. Renee remained silent as Bella opened the window. Bella couldn't help but chuckle as Leah poked her head out of the trees, glaring at her.
She's definitely calling me a bitch right now.
Bella returned to her seat and waited for Renee to talk. She watched Renee brush away a tear, though she seemed to have nothing to say.
"Renee, do you understand that I was in more danger living with you than I would have been here?" Bella asked her softly, feeling herself give in just a little. "I'm not saying these things to be cruel," she continued, "but I was going to bed with a knife at my side by the time I was twelve. I couldn't trust anyone you brought home. Honestly, I couldn't even trust you. After all of this time, I sure as hell don't know how to do it now. I don't even know if I can believe half of what you've already said."
Renee's head snapped up angrily. "I know I've been disappointing, Bella, but I was honest about my truth."
"Well, excuse the hell out of me for not being able to tell the fucking difference," Bella snapped.
"Isabella, I am still your mother," Renee snapped back.
There she is.
"You're not, Renee," Bella said calmly. She might as well have slapped her by the look on Renee's face. "The woman that I knew as my mother is not someone I want to be around. If you have changed, then I need to see it."
Renee scoffed and shook her head. "Bella, that's why I'm here."
"I'm going to tell you right now, I am not the person that put up with bullshit two years ago. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think I'd like to get to know who you are now. Maybe to bring myself peace, if nothing else. If you start trying to manipulate me, use me, or talk to me like dirt, I will cut off contact again. I know the woman I was raised by, and I do not want my daughter to meet her," Bella said. She couldn't believe how bold she was being and suddenly wished that Jacob was there.
He'd have been so proud of me.
Surprisingly, Renee sighed and said, "I think that's fair. I can't argue with your reasons, either." She looked over at Bella and chuckled. "You are your Grandma Swan all over, no matter how much you look like me."
"That is not the first time I've heard that," Bella said.
"From the looks of it, you cook like her, too. You certainly didn't get that from me," Renee said. Bella laughed.
"I enjoy it. I like cooking for Jacob and the pack. I hope to do more of it once we move," Bella said.
"Move? You're moving?" Renee asked her, "Where are you going?"
"The garage Emmett mentioned being finished? It's Jacobs. We'll have our own house on the far side of the same property but behind the business. It will be a fully functional repair and maintenance garage. If the business does well, he hopes to provide jobs for the pack," Bella explained.
"Where would you guys even find the funds for that? You are kids," Renee said skeptically.
"It's a loan," Bella said. "It's going to take a long time to pay off, but it will give us a decent start."
"Do you plan to go to college?" Renee asked.
"I begin some online courses soon so that I can help with things like payroll, ordering, and scheduling for the garage. Emily and I will sell bakery items in the lobby for the waiting customers. Since the house is behind the garage, I can be home with Sarah while I cook for Billy and the Pack. Jacob will eventually take over Alpha and Chief one day. It's a group effort, for sure," Bella said.
"Alpha and Chief? Wow," Renee said, smiling at Bella affectionately. "I really do hope you succeed. I thought you wanted to be a writer one day."
"I can still do that," Bella said. "I've got time. Our family has to come first, and I'm okay with that."
"You've always been more mature than others your age, Bella," Renee chuckled.
"Jacob, too," Bella said. "We've decided he's 43. I'm about 35."
The two calmly made small talk for a good hour, with Renee finally announcing she had to go. Despite everything, she wanted to be able to, at least, get along with the woman who gave birth to her. That didn't mean she had to trust her. Bella shut the front door behind Renee just as her back door slammed shut.
"Well, I was going to come to snatch my pie, but your house smells like a leech, Swan," Leah said.
"Sorry, ladies."
Bella grinned in surprise at seeing Jaspers bowed legs appear at the top of the stairs. "What the hell are you doing?"
Leah walked over to open the back door, leaning against the frame. Jasper winked at her and chuckled.
"A little birdy told me your mom was coming today," Jasper said and leaned forward to kiss the tip of Bella's nose. "I know how much she upsets you. I thought you could use a boost."
"Jas! Damn it," Bella pouted. "I was proud of myself, too. I was calm and focused …"
Shit.
"I can't even be mad," she said and chuckled. "I said what I needed to, so thank you. Next time, ask me first. That conversation was supposed to be private, sir."
"Pffft. You had Leah here," he argued, grinning.
"Speaking of which," Bella turned on Leah. "How did you not know he was here?"
"Oh, I knew," Leah grinned. He ran to the back of the house while Emmett distracted you at the front door."
"Leah!" Bella crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at her new sister.
Leah said, "Hey, he told me his plan, and I thought it was a good idea. It worked, right?"
Bella sighed and grumbled, "Yes. Seriously, though, guys. Next time, fill me in. I'm not a guinea pig."
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