An Occasion

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to SM.

A/N-thank you to everyone for reviewing.

Part Sixteen-Edward and Jacob

Bella was never very good at being told what to do. And Jacob may be taking orders from Sam, but there was no way she was going to.

"Come back tomorrow," he'd said. As if? If she wanted to see Jacob, she would damn well see him when she wanted to, and not at Sam Uley's behest.

Bella left La Push full of festering resentment. It wasn't like she didn't know what was going on. So why act so mysterious? Why shut her out? It wasn't like she was going to blab their precious secret to the world. And why couldn't she see and talk to Jacob? They were acting as if he was dangerous. It was utterly ridiculous. She knew him. He had a good heart. He could never hurt anybody. So, what if he was a wolf now? She didn't care about that. She just cared about him.

As she drove home, she wasn't paying much attention to the road that shimmered wetly in the sun. She was thinking about Jacob and planning her next move. Despite the overload, she was glad that she had made the decision to go and find Jacob. At least now she knew what was going on. And he needed her. And she was determined to be there for him, despite any barriers he put in her way.

It came out of nowhere. One minute there was nothing but bright highway in her rear-view mirror. The next minute, the sun was glinting off a silver Volvo right on her tail.

"Aw, crap!" Bella muttered.

This was the last thing she needed. She had hoped Edward had begun to accept the boundaries she had put in place, but in reality, his heartfelt letter had shown that he wasn't going to give up on their relationship so easily. Bella considered pulling over as the Volvo followed inches behind her. Edward was driving so close, his front bumper was almost touching the truck's rear one. She glanced in her side mirror and saw him motion for her to pull over.

"I'm getting sick of this." Bella declared to herself as she swung the steering wheel sharply and guided the old Chevy towards the grass verge. She parked up and switched off the loud rumbling engine. The silence was deafening. She sat in the cab of the truck and watched angrily as Edward parked up behind her and climbed gracefully out of the Volvo.

As Bella watched him draw closer, she was struck once again by his beauty. His marble features seemed like they were carved out of granite. His whole posture was tense. She wondered how long he had been waiting for an opportunity to capture her alone like this.

It didn't take long for Edward to reach her. He tapped his knuckles lightly on the driver's side window. Bella sighed irritably and wound the window down. "Hi." She finally said.

"Bella." Edward whispered. "Do you have any idea what torment you've put me in? I can't believe you risked going to La Push…."

"Where I go and who I choose to spend my time with is no longer your concern." Bella said too loudly, she was practically shouting. She worked hard to modulate the tone of her voice; she didn't want to show Edward he was getting to her. "You've got to stop being overprotective, Edward. We've broken up. My life is none of your business."

Pain lit up Edward's amber eyes, he ground his teeth together as his hands balled up into fists at his sides. "Did you even read my letter?" He asked balefully.

"I did." Bella answered curtly. She took a deep breath to steady her nerves. She was beginning to regret her hasty decision to pull over. She should have carried on going until she reached home. "The sentiments were lovely, Edward. But your flowery compliments had no impact on my decision. Its over. I ask you once again to just respect my decision and leave me alone." She made a move to wind up the window again, but Edward's long white fingers appeared over the lip of the sill, stopping her.

"What happened with Jasper rattled us all, Bella. He's very unhappy with himself. Its all so much more of a challenge for him, and he hates feeling weak." Edward pleaded. "He's very sorry and blames himself entirely."

"It's not his fault." Bella agreed sharply. "Its yours."

Edward flinched at her harsh tone. "Bella." He whispered in agony.

"Shut up and listen." Bella demanded. "None of that would have happened if you hadn't gone against my wishes and forced that stupid birthday party on me in the first place. And, as for Jasper, he shouldn't be around any humans at all if he loses control at a single drop of blood. What if that had happened at school?"

"Alice was always there to watch him…."

"Well, she wasn't watching him the night of the party." Bella cut in before he could carry on with his miserable excuses. "Jasper is a loose cannon. I can't believe that Carlisle would take such a risk of exposure by allowing him to attend high school. It has to stop, Edward. All of it. We're not together anymore. There isn't one single reason for you or your family to stay in Forks any longer. What happened at the party was the final push I needed to accept that I don't belong in your world. You said that yourself many times in the past. I just refused to see."

"That was before…."

"Before what?" Bella interrupted again. "I got a simple papercut and the next minute I wake in hospital with no idea how I got there. You staged another accident, just like you did when James attacked me. How ironic it was yet another vampire with the same initial J that tried to drink me dry? I'm sick of the lies, Edward. You weren't thinking of my welfare that night, you and your family were trying to cover your tracks…."

"Your welfare is my only concern." Edward insisted. "If the w…" He paused, his expression closing down and becoming indecipherable.

"The what, Edward? Were you going to say wolves? I know about them. I know that Sam Uley was the black wolf who chased you off the night of the prom." Bella revealed hotly.

"You have no idea of the danger you're putting yourself in by fraternising with them." Edward argued. "Bella, we are what we are. I can control myself, but I doubt they can, especially…. him."

"So, you know about Jacob?" Bella accused.

"He is very young. He has no control over himself. He could unintentionally hurt you very badly if he gets upset and I cannot tolerate that." Edward glanced away from her, staring intently toward the trees lining the road.

Bella followed the direction of his gaze, her brow furrowing slightly. What was Edward staring at so menacingly? His amber eyes were fixated on a point somewhere across the road. The trees were denser there, anything could hide in the shadows and not be seen…even something as ginormous as a wolf.

"He's here. Jacob is here." Bella guessed. Her breathing began to come out in rapid bursts as she realised a confrontation was looming. "You better not hurt him, Edward. I swear I'll…."

Edward's fingers flexed slightly, leaving imprints in the metal seal of the window. "I would try…. very hard…. for your sake…. not to do that."

"Dammit!" Bella was panicking now. She slid across the bench seat away from Edward and pushed open the passenger door. She jumped clumsily to the ground. She couldn't believe Jacob was here. He must have been following her all this time. Was he in his human form? Was he a wolf? She didn't know.

Tears sprang, smarting in her eyes, they were tears of frustration, of fear. Without conscious thought, she launched herself toward the trees on the other side of the road, calling Jacob's name. She didn't get far before Edward caught her around the waist, stopping her.

"Let me go!" Bella screamed, fighting his suffocating grip on her waist. Her head throbbed with anxiety.

"Bella, please, calm down." Edward pleaded. "You're just inflaming the situation."

Jacob chose that moment to make his appearance. He wasn't in his wolf form. He was still very much human. Human and vulnerable. His face was hard and bitter. He looked at Bella, and then at Edward's arms wrapped around her waist. His dark eyes glinted dangerously and he stood on the balls of his bare feet, leaning slightly forward, with his trembling hands clenched into fists. He would tower over Edward if they stood next to each other.

Seeing him like that reminded Bella of the last time she had seen him, with tears in his eyes. She wanted so badly to reach out to him, but Edward's arms were anchoring her in place. "Jacob, please be careful." She begged him. "Don't turn this into a fight."

Jacob winced, and his eyebrows pulled together, but he didn't answer.

"He's struggling to control himself." Edward warned, explaining the thoughts he saw racing through Jacob's mind. "He's afraid he might hurt you."

Jacob's eyes sparked with hate as he glowered at Edward.

"Jacob, you could never hurt me." Bella sobbed. "I trust you. Why can't you trust yourself?"

Jacob's eyes flashed back to her, longing and fear clouding his vision. "Bella?" He whispered hoarsely, speaking for the first time.

"He is still not in control of himself, Bella." Edward began to retreat, pulling her back with him toward the verge of the road.

"Let her go!" Jacob snapped.

Edward didn't answer.

Jacob shuddered once, and then gritted his teeth as hard as his fists. "I was warned about your…. abilities." He said through his teeth. "So, you must already know why I'm here."

"Yes." Edward agreed warily. "We can talk but let me take Bella to a place of safety first."

"As if I would trust you to keep her safe!"

Edward's Adonis like features morphed into an impassive mask. Bella struggled uselessly in his tight grip. She saw one of Jacob's hands reach toward her, his fingers outstretched like he wished they were long enough to close the distance between them. Like they were connected, the echo of his pain and anguish twisted inside her. She knew he was holding back out of fear she would be caught in the cross hairs if he attacked Edward.

"Jake…" Bella risked taking a step toward him anyway. She wanted to wrap her arms around his waist and erase the expression of misery on his face. She wanted to see him smile again.

Edward pulled her back again, his arms continuing to restrain her.

Bella reluctantly tore her gaze away from Jacob in order to look up at Edward. "It's okay." She promised him. "Jacob won't hurt me. I want to go to him. You need to let me go."

Edward's eyes remained unreadable; his face expressionless. Cold. "No, it's not."

"Let her go." Jacob ordered. "You heard her. She wants to come to me." He took two long strides forward, a glint of anticipation in his eyes. His chest seemed to swell with every breath he took.

Edward wasn't listening. He pushed a protesting Bella behind him, wheeling to face Jacob.

"No! Edward, stop!" Bella cried desperately as he launched himself at Jacob.

A/N-thanks for reading!