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Suggested Listening: "My Blood" by Ellie Goulding

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The entire pack was over at Emily and Sam's when Bella pulled up to the house. Shutting off her car's ignition, she held her breath before letting it out in a swift rush. She was there to pick up Maddie but instead she waited, fingers curling tighter around the wheel as she counted to ten, hoping maybe she'd get lucky and everyone would leave for a training or something that wouldn't allow them to stop and chat.

She was in a foul mood, and a larger part of her really didn't want to explain to them why.

Her mother was in town.

Her mother was in town and she wanted to have dinner that night.

Bella's stepfather, Phil, was in the minor leagues and apparently the two of them were in Seattle for two weeks for some kind of training. Bella thought it was weird since it was June, and she always thought baseball training started in the spring. Regardless, she also never claimed to know much about sports and she still had yet to figure out a way to avoid seeing her mother during the fourteen days she'd be in Washington.

It wasn't that she didn't want to see her mother - it was more the fact Bella knew her much too well. Her mother was off living some grand life in Florida, traveling all the time and sending back postcards from places Bella would never go nor had any desire to see, so she'd barely seen her over the past nine years.

Still, much like Bella, her mother was a worrier. The only difference was she worried in a much more overbearing, condescending way.

And she knew her mother would want to spend two hours talking about things Bella had already dealt with and put behind her. She knew she'd be filled with suggestions Bella didn't want or need, but ones she'd give her anyway.

And frankly, Bella would rather avoid it than face it head on.

And she didn't want to talk about it because it made her feel stupid.

It made her feel weak, like maybe she hadn't taken quite as many steps as she thought she did.

Blinking, Bella realized she'd counted to thirty and the front door had yet to open. With a heavy sigh, she pulled the keys from the ignition, trying to steel her features before climbing brusquely out of the car.

Nine bodies were packed into Emily and Sam's kitchen, which meant eighteen eyes found her the moment she walked entirely too quickly through the door without so much as a knock. Emily afforded her a glance over her shoulder, smiling softly from where she stood in front of the kitchen sink. It took Bella everything she had inside her to smile back, letting it sweep over the others before it automatically fell from her mouth, dissolving beneath the weight of what was to come later that night.

She hadn't even said she'd go, but she hadn't said no either, but Bella already knew there was a larger part of her that wouldn't be able to.

Eyes landing on Jacob, who was standing at the head of the table, Bella watched as he tightly crossed his arms in front of him. Holding her gaze for a moment, he smiled at her too before letting his eyes fall to the pack, each of whom were scattered in various spots around the kitchen.

"Alright, you guys can all head out, if you want."

Nine voices erupted all at once as chairs were pushed back and bodies brushed past one another toward the door. Sam lingered back, giving Emily a swift kiss on the cheek before heading toward the back door. Bella stepped off to the side, hitching her thumbs in her pockets as Brady, Collin, Jared, and Leah disappeared past her and through the front door. Seth offered Bella a warm smile as he too left the house.

Releasing a deep breath, Bella turned her gaze back to the kitchen, where only three people remained. Emily had went back to the kitchen sink, which left only Jacob, who was still standing at the head of the table, and Quil, who was seated at it, hands clasped tightly in front of him.

Both were watching her carefully.

Almost like they both knew something was wrong.

"Where's Maddie?" she asked quietly, inwardly cringing at how cold and hostile her voice sounded, even though it had nothing to do with where she was or who she was talking to.

Coming to life, Quil made a rough noise in his throat as he cleared it. "Napping, last time anyone knew," he replied, rising effortlessly from his chair. He offered her a wary, careful smile. "I'll go get her."

Bella gave him a tight-lipped smile. "Thanks," she murmured.

Yet Quil didn't make it from the room before a whirlwind dressed in a bright pink sundress came tearing out of the hallway leading to the bedrooms, her hair in disarray and a wide smile on her face, despite the groggy look still resting in her eyes.

"Oh, there she is!" Quil exclaimed as Maddie ran into his legs, wrapping her arms around them and peering up at him raptly, the grin still attached to her features. "She's apparently too fast for her uncle Quil." Bending at the waist, he scooped her up, squeezing her with a theatrical growl as giggles erupted from her throat. "Although she sleeps like the dead," Quil continued, not really talking to anyone in particular. Pulling back for a moment, he leaned back in, leaving a swift kiss on her cheek. "She sleeps through a pack meeting and wakes up the second everyone leaves. Makes sense."

Bella hadn't meant to smile, but she did anyway when Quil finally set the little girl back on her feet.

"Something up, Bells?"

It took Bella a second to register Jacob was talking to her, lifting her gaze from Maddie, who had instinctively walked toward the front door - knowing the drill as she plopped onto the floor, reaching for her shoes. Blinking rapidly, Bella tried to clear her head - to ignore the concerned way Jacob was regarding her as he made his way around the table, approaching them both.

"I'm fine," Bella replied quickly. A little too quickly, because Jacob's frown deepened the moment she spoke.

"You're kind of a bad liar, Bella," Quil said from behind Jacob, lifting one eyebrow as he crossed his arms in front of his chest. "You storm in here like you can't wait to get out and that smile looks like it might literally be hurting you."

Bella rolled her eyes. "I'm fine," she insisted, ripping her stare away from both of them and concentrating on Maddie instead, who had one shoe on but appeared to be distracted by the metallic design on the other.

Glancing back up, something inside Bella sank when she noticed the restrained, knowing smirk fighting the corner of Jacob's mouth. When she realized he was about two seconds from calling her out on whatever was eating at her and forcing her to talk about it. After eight years, she could pretty much time it by the way he lifted his eyebrows. By the way his lips parted, because the same thing always followed.

Making a noise, she squeezed her eyes shut and lifted up her hand to stop him. She shook her head, waiting a handful of seconds before opening them. Heaving a resigned breath when she saw Jacob and Quil were still staring at her expectantly.

"My mom's in town," she muttered between clenched teeth.

Jacob expelled a long breath, both eyebrows lifting quickly in acknowledgement before his gaze dropped to the floor. "Well, that explains it…"

Bella sighed, taking a step away until she felt the door at her back. Releasing that last bit of hesitance to talk about it when she reached up and pushed her hair from her eyes, letting her arm fall bereftly to her side.

"And she wants to have dinner in Port Angeles tonight."

By the time Bella looked up, Quil was standing beside Jacob, letting his eyes pass back and forth between the two.

"We don't like your mom, right?"

Groaning softly, Bella shook her head. "It's not that, it's just...I haven't seen her since before…" Her voice drifted off, peering down once more at Maddie, who had finally pulled on her second shoe and was already on her feet, eyes trained on something else as she contemplated running off somewhere that would require her mother to go looking for her.

"And she's kind of an overbearing bitch," Jacob muttered under his breath, glancing at Quil out of the corner of his eye as he said it.

"Language!" Bella exclaimed without missing a beat, scowling at Jacob before he and Quil could both lower their eyes to floor, thoroughly scolded.

Pulling in a deep breath, Bella was already giving them a compliant look by the time they both glanced up.

"It's pretty much the truth though," she conceded, ignoring Jacob's astute half-smile and how Quil nodded in understanding. "She's going to spend the entire dinner wanting to talk about things I've already dealt with and telling me how I should deal with them because she thinks the way she lives makes her worldly and knowledgeable or something, when in reality, it just makes her sound selfish and out of touch. And it's just...I don't need her for this. I'm not interested in it…"

"Mommy, my picture." Bella felt a little hand tug at her over-shirt.

"Oh, I'll get it!"

Bella had almost forgotten about Emily, who was still at the sink in the kitchen. Abandoning the dishes, Emily wiped her wet hands on her pants before offering Bella a sympathetic smile, confirming she'd heard every word regardless of pretending to be occupied with other things.

"So is your mom really that bad?" Quil asked curiously, taking a step forward.

Reaching out, Bella stroked Maddie's dark hair, pushing a few loose strands back from her face. "She can be. It just depends...I'm just afraid of how she's going to be with all this. We're figuring it out. We're making do, and I know my mom. No matter how she means it, she'll spend the entire night convincing me I'm not okay."

Bella didn't miss the deep frown on Quil's face, even when Emily re-emerged from the bedroom hallway, carrying a piece of construction paper between her fingers. "She drew this today before her nap," Emily explained, offering Maddie a wide grin as she handed it to the little girl.

"Thanks, Emily," Bella murmured.

"Mommy, look!"

Anticipating the big reveal, Bella glanced down at her daughter. "My picture," she announced, holding up the piece of construction paper on which she'd created her latest work of art consisting of colored shapes, filled in after Emily had drawn the figures for her.

"That's very pretty, honey," Bella acknowledged. "Should we put it in your bag?"

Maddie's eyes lit up, her own idea forming behind the bright gaze. "Can we take to Daddy?"

Letting out a breath, Bella couldn't help but smile.

It was a simple reminder that more than a year later, Embry was still on his little girl's mind. That her heart had not come anywhere close to forgetting who he was and what he meant to her.

And Bella knew...she had to believe that no matter what her mother would try to tell her - no matter how hard it was to hear or bear - they were doing okay.

"Tomorrow, honey, I promise," Bella whispered, stroking the little girl's hair one last time. "Grandma Renee is gonna be in town tonight and I have to go see her."

Bella thought she might be home free - that her little girl was going to accept that explanation at face value - until she saw the lower lip come out. Until she saw those big ebony eyes turn liquid in front of her own.

And she almost took it back.

She almost said yes, already coming up with excuses in her head she could give her mother. Releasing a pained sigh, Bella's features drooped as she tried to come up with something to say that would cut the tears off before they started.

However, the words were lost on her tongue when she suddenly felt a large hand on her shoulder.

She hadn't realized Jacob was standing behind her, watching the entire scene with a smile on his face.

"You need to go," he whispered. "Just get it over with."

Chewing on her lower lip, Bella reached up, covering his hand with hers. "I know."

"I can take Maddie," he continued, and Bella didn't miss how the clouds covering her daughter's features dissipated completely with four little words. "I haven't been by to see him in awhile either..."

Even though she bit down harder on her lip, Bella smiled, squeezing Jacob's hand tighter.

"Come on, honey," Jacob piped up, his voice rich and jubilant. "Looks like you get to hang out with your uncle Jake tonight…"

"Yay!"

Stepping around Bella, Jacob gave her a swift wink before taking Maddie's outstretched hand and snatching up the bag Bella always sent along when she dropped her daughter off at Emily's. Standing there for several moments, she watched them both make their way on foot toward the end of the driveway, Jacob's pace slowing to compensate for Maddie's.

Bella had barely missed the warmth beside her before it was replaced with another - one that had become just as familiar.

"It's only two hours," Quil whispered softly, his voice and presence right next to her. "Just...order the most expensive thing on the menu. At least make it worth it."

Bella couldn't help the chuckle that slipped through her lips, tightening her grip on herself. Quil's words comforting her in some odd way, so much so she wished she could just hang onto it until the end of the night…

Maybe she could keep it there…

"Come with me?"

She barely realized she spoke the words until she felt Quil move next to her. Until she swallowed and processed the fact they had come from her mouth. Taking a deep breath, she glanced up, meeting Quil's eyes. Realizing they were already watching her.

"Maybe if you come, it'll distract my mother," Bella grasped, trying to smile. "It couldn't hurt, right?"

Bella didn't miss the flicker of disappointment as it raced across Quil's face, disappearing a moment after it appeared.

"Shit, Bella, I would, but…" he replied, his shoulders sagging beneath the weight of something Bella could tell he didn't want to say. An answer he didn't want to give her. "I promised my grandpa I'd stop by his cabin tonight." Frowning, he lowered his eyes, staring at anything but hers before he continued. "There's a leak in his roof and he just...can't get up there like he used to, and I told him I'd come by tonight…"

Bella was thankful she reminded herself to smile when Quil finally glanced back to her.

"It's okay," she assured, trying to convince him as well as herself. "Your family is more important than my stupid insecurities."

"Bella," he murmured, "they're not stupid...and you're my family, too."

Closing her eyes, Bella ignored the way her stomach twisted beneath the words, in a way she couldn't quite place. Still, she shook her head. "Yeah, but that's more important."

"I'm sorry, honey. I wish I could...I really do."

"It's okay," Bella reassured once more, projecting every ounce of sincerity into her voice. Meaning it, and hoping it somehow came through in her words. "Seriously. It was just an idea. I'll be fine." Smiling, she was inwardly grateful when Quil's features softened and he offered her one in return. "LIke you said...it's only a couple hours."

Quil lifted one eyebrow, brushing his shoulder comfortingly against hers. "Most expensive thing on the menu."

Bella smiled, tucking her lower lip between her teeth. "Steak and lobster," she agreed. "My mouth is watering already."

Boooo, Quil...

Thoughts?