Here's another chapter for you all! Please if y'all read this, give me a review. I hang on every word! Thank you all so much for your support.

SM owns these characters, I'm just playing with them.

Jacob's POV

As soon as I reached the tree line, I threw off my clothes and phased. The clothes were certainly an annoyance, but I needed to stop phasing before taking them off... clothes cost money, and Billy and I were not rich. So I stashed them at the base of a tree, stretched my long wolf's back and legs, and howled into the night in pure joy and exhilaration.

Bella and I had just shared a VERY steamy encounter. I couldn't quite comprehend it yet, and my mind was swimming as I had not yet come down from the high of her kiss. I was starting to believe it would never happen, and at this point I was not fully processing that it actually had. It felt like an incredible dream that I would wake up from at any moment. I heard the roar of Bella's truck as she started it, and when she began to drive, I followed parallel to her just out of sight in the trees adjacent to the road. I would be here if that female bloodsucker tried anything funny.

Running through the forest in wolf form made me feel more grounded, and as the occasional errant branch swatted an ear, or my side, I became certain that this was actually real. This wasn't a dream.

I had been watching Bella just get by in a catatonic state for months... basically only doing what she could to keep existing. Sure I had seen an improvement recently, when she brought me those bikes and we started working in the garage together. That was when I really fell deep. But it never failed that whenever I began to think she was coming around, something small would trigger a major set back. Up until just days ago, even a casual mention of that leech had the light draining from her eyes. Her heart was so broken, and it seemed as though nothing could put her back together. But that didn't stop me from trying. Her misery broke my heart too.

Was our time together actually paying off? She had just told me she was ready. Just a month ago, she had insisted that she was too broken, that she would never work right. But now... she was ready. Could it really be possible? A part of me wondered if she was pushing herself too far too quickly, but I couldn't bring myself to care at this very moment. We just had the hottest make out session I've ever experienced in my life.

I could still feel her full, soft lips under mine, opening up to allow me to taste her... her little body, pinned between mine and the truck, squirming, obviously not knowing what exactly she was doing to me. Her captivating scent, fully surrounding me and blotting out everything else. My wandering hand... If I was already hungry with a desire for her, only having kissed her in my fantasies, now I was utterly ravenous. I had a feeling the floodgates had been opened now that I'd actually had a taste. God, she was so fucking sexy. I shook my head mid stride to clear my mind. I needed to get a grip before I made it back into range of the rest of the pack.

Of course, it was so much more than a physical desire for her. During the time we'd spent together, the love I had for Bella had grown and deepened and intensified more than I thought possible. I wanted more than anything to be the one to make her happy... to bring her back from the dead, and to keep her safe.

Those bloodsuckers were the worst thing that could've happened to her. Look at what they brought. This red haired female was stalking Bella at every moment, unsleeping, hell-bent on getting revenge for something the Cullens did. Their kind had given Bella nothing but heart ache. My blood boiled at the thought of them... They painted a target on her back, shattered her heart, and then left her to die. She didn't deserve any of it. She was too good.

As I began to hear the voices of my other packmates in my head, I tried my hardest to focus on my hatred of the Cullens and my determination to stop the female, anything other than what just happened. But you know the saying... if you try not to think of an elephant, you're going to think of an elephant. So obviously, it didn't take long for the scene of me and Bella embracing to flash into my brain for just a split second-

"Whoooaaah," I heard Quil exclaim. "Jacob's here, and looks like he's got some updates for us, boys!" A round of chuckles resounded throughout the group, as everyone saw the same thing that Quil did. There are no secrets among werewolves. Great.

Tonight, I recognized the presences of Quil, Embry, and Paul. Quil was one of the newest members of the pack, having phased just before Seth and Leah. He was just really excited to finally be a part of the club. Seth and Leah were still not through the worst of the fever, and hadn't actually run with the pack yet.

"Shut up," I growled internally. Willing myself to focus on anything else.

"No really man, we're happy for you," Paul said, in a more serious tone. He was the senior-most wolf of this particular patrol shift, and was more used to the dynamic of the pack's thought sharing. He had no doubt shared more than he was willing to himself at some point. "These doofuses just don't know how to show it."

"So are you guys like actually a thing now, or was that just one of your fantasies again?" Embry joked. Immature asshole.

By now, I was within a few miles of them. They needed to get their jabs in now before I could get close enough to one of them to wrestle their amusement out. "I'm warning you. Shut up," I growled again.

"Yes, shut up," a commanding voice interjected. It was Sam, having just come into range of his pack. This was an alpha command. All joking and desire to giving me a hard time ceased immediately and with finality. "What have you all been doing for the past several hours? I just took a wide perimeter before coming here, and caught fresh scent of the female leech. She's still here, and appears to have attempted to test our defenses. You all need to get your heads out of your asses," he bellowed. At hearing this, I glanced at Bella through the trees, still driving. She obviously had no idea of this new development. I wished sometimes I could keep her in the dark, but I had resolved to always be honest with her. She trusted me to be honest with her. I would tell her next chance I got.

Jared appeared in the edges of our awareness shortly after Sam. The next patrol shift was getting here. The three of us would be relieving Quil, Embry, and Paul. Lately we'd taken to alternating 12 hour shifts, but Harry Clearwater's death had complicated that even further. Sometimes we were down to only two wolves at a time, and we were all getting tired.

But first things first. We needed to discuss this. We were all converging on our established region around Bella and Charlie's house. Sam took some time to explain to us where he smelled the female, about 12 miles northeast of the house. He had taken a large circle and intersected with her trail, following it inward in case she had actually attempted an attack, but he found she had turned back around and backtracked the way she came. Maybe she had smelled too much wolf for her comfort. He guessed she was there roughly 2 hours ago, and therefore he had missed the opportunity to follow her scent back out. He was alone and was too far to call the rest of the pack. 10 miles was about our maximum range to communicate with another wolf. A group of us would chase her if we caught a recent enough scent, but it was too dangerous for one wolf to go alone, even the alpha. We didn't know what kind of tricks she might pull, or if she had friends.

"We're stretched thin. Three wolves at any given time, spread over a large area. Even when Leah and Seth join us, they'll be even greener than Quil, and we should NOT let our guard down. Especially now," Sam said.

At this point, Bella had reached the house, oblivious. As she got out of her truck, I trotted to a halt just behind the cover of the trees. She walked to her front door, and then looked back, her eyes scanning the forest. She was looking for me. I wanted to speak to her, but I couldn't phase back now. I would lose the connection to the rest of the pack, and like she had told me... I needed to keep my head in the game. We're hunting vampires.

Bella's POV

I slept in that morning, after having dreams that I never wanted to wake up from. Dreams that included Jake, and his large hands, and those hands doing amazing things to me...

I was glad it was still Spring Break, and I was free to spend a lot of my waking hours daydreaming about him undistracted from pesky schoolwork for a little while longer. I wondered how his patrol went last night, and whether he accidentally revealed anything to the pack. If it was me, I would have no hope of keeping it out of my head. So I was sure all the wolves knew by now. This lack of privacy was something I would have to get used to, especially as Jake and I progressed into... other things. I blushed at the thought.

Jake hadn't swung by when his patrol was over. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little disappointed, but I knew he had so many responsibilities right now. Still, I was sad I hadn't gotten to see his beautiful face this morning. How had I fallen so deep so quickly? It was as if a switch had been thrown that day after jumping from the cliff, and suddenly everything in my life made sense. I finally saw what was right in front of me all along, and maybe in a way I was making up for lost time. I should've fallen for Jake a long time ago.

This morning was Harry's Quileute funeral, the portion that we couldn't attend. Charlie and I planned to go to the celebration of life reception later this afternoon, so I spent the morning with Charlie, making him breakfast and trying to keep him in good spirits. I knew it would be a tough day for him.

I got ready for the reception after lunch. I showered, curled my long brunette hair, and put on a little bit of makeup... just some mascara and lip gloss. Luckily I had a black dress that fit. My mom had bought it for me for a middle school choir production, and it was way too big for me at the time. Now I was pleased to find that I filled it out nicely. I looked myself up and down in the mirror, taking in the curve of my hips under the fabric, the hint of cleavage peaking from the V-shaped neckline, and the way the heels I wore made my legs look longer. I looked elegant... pretty even. I hoped that this was something Jake would find attractive. Then I admonished myself for the selfish thought; I was going to this reception for Harry. This was not about mine and Jacob's hormones... that could wait for later.

Charlie suggested that we drive separately to La Push, just in case he wanted to do something with the guys after the reception. So we made our way there, me in my truck and him in his police cruiser.

The reception itself was held at Sue's house, and of course there was prevalent sense of grief for Harry, but there was also a strong and inescapable feeling of community and support surrounding the Clearwaters. I spoke with Sue a bit to offer my condolences, and she gushed about how delicious the food that Jake and I brought her was. She said that the kids especially appreciated it. Leah and Seth were here, but they didn't seem very appreciative. I had noticed them earlier, together and keeping to themselves in a corner of the living room. They both looked quite uncomfortable, like they just wanted to be alone... or with the pack, I imagined. I couldn't blame them.

Speaking of the pack... for some reason, they weren't here. Including Jake. In the first few minutes, I thought they may have just been late to show up. Werewolves are not very punctual, I've found. But the longer the reception went on, the more their absence began to worry me. All of the wolves don't patrol at the same time, I knew that much. So I figured at least a few of them would be here. Certainly Jake, since his shift should've ended this morning. Now with all of them no shows, I was more than a little concerned. Had something happened?

Time went on and the reception began to wrap up. Charlie had already left, having been invited on an impromptu evening fishing trip with his and Harry's mutual friends. I was just deciding to hop in the truck and drive to Jake's house to look for him when he stepped through the door alone. He was wearing a black suit, white shirt untucked, and tie hanging loosely from his collar. I would've began drooling over him immediately if I didn't notice he was also wearing a troubled expression on his face. We locked eyes and stepped toward each other as a few other attendees trickled out of the door. He didn't say anything, but when we reached each other, he grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the entryway and into an empty hallway. He looked so serious, like he was on a mission.

"Jake, what's going on?" I whispered.

"Bella, the pack is all together. They allowed me to break away to come to you. You need to know what's happened." His face looked so grim. I listened with baited breath and squeezed his hand that was still holding mine, encouraging him to go on. "Well, last night Sam picked up on the female's scent. We think she was testing our defenses, and this confirms she's still in the area. And still trying to get to you." As he said this, he reached up with his free hand and brushed a strand of hair behind my ear.

I took a deep breath. "Is everyone okay? No one's hurt, right?" I asked.

"No, everyone's okay," he replied. He looked down.

Something wasn't right. "Jake, this has happened before. We knew she was around, and had seen no indication that she was going to give up." He didn't respond, and seemed hesitant to meet my eyes.

"Jake," I whispered, placing my hand on his warm cheek and turning his head to face me. "Something else happened, didn't it?"

He looked so discouraged when his eyes met mine. "Yes," he replied. Before he said anything else, he put his arms around me and pulled me in for a tight embrace, like it was the last one he'd ever get. I squeezed him back as tight as I could.

After a few tense moments, he let me go and spoke again. "One of the bl- ... one of the Cullens showed up. This morning at dawn."

I felt my stomach twist violently.

"What?" I whispered. My mind went blank for a few moments, trying to process what Jake just said. Why would they be back here? And the more important question, the one I was afraid to ask, but needed to know the answer to... "Whi-" My voice broke, and I had to clear my throat. "Which one?"

"The one called Carlisle," Jake replied. His expression was very hard to read. I wondered what he was thinking.

"Why?" I asked breathily.

"He made contact with us intentionally this morning. He was looking for you. For all we know, he may have just been attempting to glance through your window and make sure you were alive, might have never planned to be seen by anyone. We told him that you were safe, but Sam refused to let him through the perimeter. We broke and agreed to meet again at the same place this evening, and that... we would bring you to him if... if you wanted to speak to him." Jake said all this in a monotone that sounded strained. He obviously was not happy about this.

"Jake, what are you thinking?" I asked putting my hand soothingly on his shoulder. "What's wrong?"

He began to tremble ever so slightly, his breath coming in and out faster through his nose. "What happens if they come back?" I hesitated, not knowing how to answer his question. "I don't know," I replied honestly. "I don't know what they want-"

"No!" he interrupted. Then he said, "What happens to us if they come back?" He was almost snarling, and he was trembling more noticeably now.

The realization of what was truly bothering him hit me like a ton of bricks. Jake thought that I would leave him.

And it seemed he had himself so convinced of this, that he was already angry, and was trying very hard to contain that anger. I knew that this was his wolf blood getting carried away. Jake had explained to me that werewolves can be set off by strong emotions like anger, and sometimes even lose control and phase accidentally. That's what happened with Sam and Emily. I needed to do something to show him how wrong he was.

So without thinking I just grabbed his head with both hands and pulled him down to me, going up on my tip toes and kissing him hard. This was the best way I knew how to show him how I truly felt, and have him believe me. I wasn't going anywhere. For the first few seconds of the kiss, he was very tense. But after a moment of me moving my lips against his, he got the message. His trembling ceased, and his arms wrapped me up and held me close. He kissed me back eagerly.

When I felt he had gotten the message, and before we could get too carried away in another direction, I broke the kiss and locked onto his eyes with mine. "If they come back, I'll be very curious as to why. It may even hurt me a bit. But I'm not going anywhere. I'm not leaving you."

"Thank you, Bella..." Jake said, catching his breath. "I'm so sorry, I was starting to lose my grip. I just... the thought of losing you is too much."

"I can't go back now. I won't," I said reassuringly. "I'm yours now, Jake."

We held each other for several minutes then, just relishing the feeling of being in each other's arms. Finally, Jacob spoke. "Have I told you how beautiful you look?" My heart fluttered. "Thank you," I replied softly.

Then he released me. "We told Carlisle that we would meet him again in about half an hour, and that we would bring you, if you were willing. Do you want to go?" he said.

I took a deep breath, really letting it sink in that I was about to come face to face with a Cullen. I thought that would never happen again. But I didn't hold anything against Carlisle, in fact I still thought of him fondly if I was being honest with myself. On top of that... I could use a little bit of an explanation. "Yes, I'll go."

"Okay," Jake said. With the reassurance that I gave him, he led me outside and to the nearest tree line behind Sue's house. When we were both in the cover of the forest, he started to untie his tie, remove his suit jacket, take his shirt off, take his shoes off, then remove his pants-

"Whoa!" I exclaimed as I clasped my hands over my eyes and spun around, as an involuntary knee jerk reaction. It's not like I hadn't been fantasizing about what he looked like naked, but this caught me way off guard.

"What, you don't want a preview?" he said with a devilish tone.

"I just didn't expect you to start stripping, that's all!" I replied, cursing my embarrassment. He just chuckled.

"You get to ride a werewolf today, Bella," he said. "It's better than a dirt bike, I promise." Then I heard a very odd, loud noise, almost like ripping. I then felt a large, wet nose touch the back of my arm. When I turned around, Jake wasn't human anymore. He was an enormous russet colored wolf, intimidating in size, yet not threatening as he should be because... he was Jake. I could see it in his eyes. I was amazed. This wasn't the first time I had seen him as a wolf. Back in the meadow, the day the pack killed Laurent, Jake was there. But I didn't know it was him at the time. This was the first time I really saw him for what he was. He was absolutely magnificent.

I walked around the side of him in awe, placing my hand on his fur. It was full and wiry as I ran my fingers through it, and I could see Jake watching me with one eye. As an experiment, I reached toward his head and gave him a scratch behind the ear. He closed his eyes and let out a contented, low growl and leaned into my hand. I laughed. There was a rolling noise from his chest too, one that was reminiscent of a chuckle.

With that, he crouched down with all four legs to lower his body to the ground, and met my eyes. Well, here goes nothing. I kicked off my heels and clumsily swung myself up onto his enormous back the best I could, adjusting my black dress. I held on tight to the fur on the scruff of Jake's neck as he began to run. Fast.

There it is, another chapter! Disclaimer: I did my best to research all I could find about twilight werewolves, as I'm trying to keep things accurate to the books. But I couldn't find anywhere what their range of telepathy was. So I apologize if I got that wrong, but I decided to make up my own rules. Just go with it ;)

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