They were near the woods. Jake was yelling at Sam, but she was too far away to hear him clearly. There were two other guys standing on either side of Sam too. Bella's eyes stopped on Sam. He seemed like he was trying to talk Jake down when all of the sudden the one on Sam's left started yelling...at her.
"What the hell is that leech lover doing here?!" he screamed, drawing all of their attention to her.
In a flash, Jake swung and the other man stumbled backwards. Sam grabbed Jake and pushed him back towards the house. Jake's eyes were fixed on the guy he punched. The guy looked like he was vibrating with fury.
"Calm down!" Sam commanded in a clear, loud voice that made Bella shiver. Good voice.
Both Jake and the other guy immediately stilled. It was a bit creepy and unnatural. Bella let her gaze roam back to Sam. Only this time, he was also looking at her. In the blink of an eye, he was standing right in front of her and staring into her eyes.
Before she could think to say anything, there was a violent movement behind him and suddenly instead of two overgrown men fighting, there were two enormous wolves fighting.
"Please stay here, Bella," Sam implored, his eyes begging her to stay safe.
She nodded and he took off towards the fight which was rapidly headed for the woods. As Sam tried to mediate, Bella was standing watching them and slowly realizing that she had fallen down the rabbit hole. The legends were true. Not just the ones about them, him, but also the other side of the story. Why had it never occurred to her before? Was that why he was so tall? They were all really tall. She was so curious and perhaps that was a flaw.
Sam came walking back up towards Bella. The two wolves and the other man had disappeared into the woods completely now. Her gaze shifted back to Sam and he was watching her cautiously as he approached. He looked as if he was waiting for something. Was she supposed to be freaking out? She was good with weird. He didn't understand that yet.
When he was standing in front of her once more, his hand came up slowly towards her face. Unlike earlier when Jake had reached for her, she kept perfectly still and watched his eyes. There was something about his beautiful eyes. They were brown and so warm. His hand finally touched her cheek gently. He was so warm.
"Are you alright, Bella?" he asked, his voice a sound she needed to hear again.
She nodded and ever so slightly leaned into his soft touch. His breathing hitched. She smiled and let her eyes close just enjoying the warmth she was absorbing standing so close to him. Without conscious thought, she found herself stepping closer. His hand left her face but both arms came around her. He held her tight and she was warm and safe.
She felt the tears coming back again, but this time she couldn't find it in her to fight them. He held her tight and she let go and cried. She cried until she felt drained. Sam moved to hook one arm behind her knees and picked her up as he had in the woods the night before. As he walked, she felt like she was being rocked to sleep.