Chapter 6 - Heat

He could hear his heartbeat in his ears, thumping blood through his veins with adrenaline the same way it always did whenever he felt threatened. He could taste it, his senses beating and pulsing, sharpening the muddy darkness around him.

Sliding the safety off, he willed his eyes to focus, drinking in any minute ray of light he could capture seeping through his window. Muscles twitching along his massive arms, pulled tight across sinew and tendon as he stealthily rose to a near-kneeling position.

As luck would have it, it was a dark night and the lights that were typically so bright it seemed like near daytime around his neighborhood were eerily dim.

He searched for the side lamp in the darkness, attempting to gain some resemblance of an advantage against the foe that had entered his home without notice, finally, pointing the G20 at the figure.

Then he smelled it.

Or, her

Blowing out the breath he'd been holding, he clicked on the light and removed his index finger from the trigger, pointing it toward the ground. He was met in the dim light by a pair of big brown eyes, slender shapely legs and chocolate near-waist-length hair.

"Fuck Bella, you scared the shit out of me!" His heart raced again, even after she had made herself known. Jake had told her a million times not to sneak up on him. He'd been jumpy as hell lately, what with his lack of sleep and general over-cautiousness after they'd killed that agent. The last thing he needed was an accident with his girl involved. He'd never forgive himself.

"E! Put that shit down!" Bella cried out, clutching her chest with fingers spread. "I'm serious Eli. You know I fucking hate guns!"

Jake's heart lurched a bit, as he put the safety back on and slid the firearm into his side table. He threw the sheet off his legs and met her where she stood near his bedroom door, reaching out to her, pulling her into an embrace.

"What the fuck, Bells, you know better than to sneak up like that! You could have been anyone."

"I know, I know, E. I... I left my parents house early, and I was on my way home, but bee-lined over here to surprise you," she explained wrapping her arms around his ribs and digging into the hard muscles of his back. "I wanted to see you. I missed you so much..."

He sighed, placing a kiss on the top of her head. God she smelled great. "Fuck, babe. Give me a heads up next time you want to surprise me, will you? You know I'm on edge these days," he said with a chuckle, softening his tone and placing a curved finger under Bella's chin. He tilted her head upwards and placed a sweet kiss on her peach lips.

His mouth lingered on hers, breaking just to apologize again.

"No, no, it's fine. I... I know better than that living with Edward, and all the shit that happens around..." Edward. The mention of his name on her lips made Jake's blood boil. He didn't deserve her; he never had. Jake was the one who took care of her, thought about her every moment of everyday, worried about her when she wasn't within eyesight. Edward was out dicking around on her every chance he got with whatever moved. He needed her to be his, and only his, but her ending it with Edward at this point, so close to the end, wasn't wise at all. He was torn.

Could he let Bella be put in danger for his own selfish desires, his own needs? Not to mention, put the entire case that he'd been working on round the clock for nearly two years in jeopardy.

Jake says yes. He'd protect her; he'd be her everything.

Eli says fuck no - he'd worked too hard for this shit. It was almost over anyway. See it through.

His face tightened; and he looked away from her, not even realizing his entire body had tightened under Bella's grasp. She did though, cooing and placing kisses on his neck and cheeks.

"No, no, Eli, don't do that," she murmured, pulling him closer. "He doesn't even compare to you, he's not even in the same ballpark." Jake's pride was a bit wounded, yes, but he loved this woman. He could never be angry with her. Especially holding on to the secrets and bullshit he was. He felt guilty not telling her the truth about all this, but he couldn't. He couldn't get her involved that way; he couldn't risk her telling Edward who he really was.

Fucking Miami PD.

So, as best he could, Jake - not Eli - kept her safe, gave her his heart, and poured himself out to her as much he could.

"E...do you understand me?" Bella continued, "I love you. You. Not him." She hated being in this situation, but she knew that right now just wasn't the time. Breaking up with Edward would be a huge change in the trajectory of her life that, while she was almost prepared fully for, she just needed more time to do. A month or two, and she'd have all her ducks in a row, and she could be with Eli for good.

"Yeah. Baby... I just hate this. All this sneaking around...but I know."

"Good," Bella pressed her lips against his again, pressing her body closer to his. They'd get through all this. It was a fucked up situation to be in, but she knew that this man was the one she was supposed to be with in her life. She loved him and trusted him and knew he was a good person, however intense he could get at times. She just wished she'd met Eli all that time ago, before Edward and his money and his drugs and women. She was so much different then, and she knew that being with Eli would have been the best thing for her.

Her parents were so worried for her when she'd visited today, and they stole questioning glances at her that made her more than a little uncomfortable. It didn't help much that they hadn't heard from her in almost a month and that Edward hadn't bothered visiting since Christmas, and that was after they'd insisted. They never wanted her to leave Jacksonville in the first place, especially to be with a "hood" like Edward. But she was young and impressionable, so just after graduation, she left the city she'd grown up in to live in his big beautiful house.

The glitter didn't last long though, and soon, she was left alone and spent more nights by herself in their California King than she'd like to count. He'd say he was working, or that he was with Jasper or Emmett, and that she should go out with her friends or buy something pretty. It broke her heart again and again, until there was little left for him to break. There was armor there initially, just to help her make it through that lonely time, but soon came the indifference.

Eli helped change all that though. She'd almost fell in love with him the moment she laid eyes on him, but now she knew that that was all really lust. He was so much more, and their relationship had grown so much since then. He was amazing and caring and made her feel safe, which was pretty fucking difficult with his job and what he did with Edward and his family. He managed it though, and he had her heart.

Her mouth moved along his, teasing, nipping, placing soft pecks along his bottom lip. Her hands slid along this bare chest, hot and smooth under her fingers, and she couldn't stop her mouth from finding his neck. She stood on her toes, pulling him by the neck down to her, and placed open-mouth kisses along his jaw, neck and collarbone.

Jake licked his lips, running a thumb over her nipples straining against that blue sleeveless shirt, running the back of his hand over the swell of her breasts. His fingers expertly began unbuttoning her shirt, quickening when he felt her rub him through his shorts with all the ownership of someone sure he belonged to her. He was hers.

"Eli, baby," she whispered lovingly, allowing him to slide her shirt to the floor, "it's always you... don't forget that. This shit will be over soon, then, it's you and me, no one else."

Jake sighed. Eli. What he wouldn't give to have her say his real name.

Jacob. That would be orgasmic.

He looked into Bella's eyes and in that moment wanted to give her the world. He wanted to give every piece of himself to her. It was overwhelming and raw; he needed her.

"Bella...I love you..." he murmured against her lips, striping off her jeans as she ran her fingers through his hair.

"I love you too."

He covered her lips with his, every emotion he had him expressed in that kiss, moving with Bella's like so many times, but this time was different. He needed her to know that he was the only one and believe it. He needed to make her feel things she'd never felt, so, when he was away, and alone with her thoughts, they only man in her mind would be him.

He dragged his teeth over the skin of her shoulder, unhooking the front clasp of her lacy bra and looping his thumbs under the thin panty straps on her hips. Bella trembled as he roughly turned her around to face the wall, gasping in surprise. She dropped her head to the left to expose the tender skin of her neck to him, her heart soaring with excitement and need. His lips found her neck at the same point his eager fingers lightly slid from her breast, down her flat stomach, between her thighs.

"You feel so good Bells..." he whispered running his index and middle fingers along her slit, teasingly, with not nearly enough pressure. She was slick and wet already, as she arched her back toward him, leaning her head against his chest, and placing a palm on the wall to steady her weakening legs.

Her pants urged him on; Bella knew she would die if he didn't give her what she needed in that moment. "Please..." she whined, bending her knees and attempting to squeeze her thighs together to release some of this pressure. This teasing was excruciating.

"...so impatient," Jake chastised. "Okay..."

He slipped both fingers past her clit, burying them deep inside her. Her moan escaped, as did a new wave of wetness onto his fingers. His hand was slow, methodical, sliding inside her, Bella wanted more of him.

Jake sensed her impatience, his own peak was mounting as well, so he slid his right foot between her legs, yanking her feet further apart.

"Don't move," he commanded. His shorts were a pool on the floor in a moment, as he gripped his stiffened cock, stepping forward to rub it against the slickness between her thighs. Bella's breath caught, then a moan escaped as she rocked her hips against him, willing him to slip it inside her. Not sure either of them could take this game any longer, Jake placed a hand on her hip, the other, guided his massive erection into her from behind. After several shallow strokes, to fully coat his cock in her wetness, he slid fully into her. It was too intense, he filled her up too much, she couldn't even find the sound, so her pouty lips quietly gaped open in surprise at the feel of him stretching her. Even now, it felt like new, it always seemed like the first time with each of them, hot and fervent and passionate.

"Ohhh," Bella groaned, finally finding her voice. Allowing her hips to rock back, she took the entire length of him. His hands captured her waist, pulling her toward him, to ride his cock. She was so tight, so wet; he could feel every ridge of her stroking him, teasing him. Her gasps and moans came in time with his thrusts, and then Jake's hands where all over her.

Her breasts, her hair, her neck, her ribs, her waist, finally settling on her hips; guiding them over toward him, sliding her slickly over his cock. Bella rode his fingers on her clit, completely lost on every other sensation but the feel of his hands on her body, him buried within her.

Jake was insatiable that night, he couldn't get enough of her or her body on his. When she'd collapsed from exhaustion two hours later, his face was between her thighs within seconds. Not that she'd ever deny him, she willingly fell over the edge of the last of countless releases brought by his mouth that night.

"Oh my God, Eli…" Bella whispered breathlessly. Jake couldn't stop the please smile that crossed his face in the darkness of his bedroom. He could actually go another time, but he'd let her catch her breath, she did just drive 3 hours from her parents house. She rolled onto her stomach, resting her chin on his chest as he stroked her naked back, eyes closed in satisfaction.

Then, as they both drifted off to sleep, Jake remembered that she'd come back home early, that Edward wasn't expecting her until late the next day. This would be one of the few times she could not only stay the night, but sleep in late as well.

His smile widened.

Bella kissed his nipple, mostly because it felt so good beneath her lips, because God knows she couldn't take another round like that, at least not without a protein shake and more lube.

"I love you, Bella. So much." Jacob whispered, running his fingers through her sex-mussed hair.

"I love you."

In the midst of their coke dealing, Edward and the rest of the family decided their next logical move would be to enter into black market firearms sales. They had a distributor out of southeast Pennsylvania that conveniently had a surplus in merchandise, which resulted in just the opportunity they'd been looking for. After internally shopping around for a bite, Ness seemed to be the perfect contact for this secondary stream of income. They trusted her, and she them, so it was an almost perfect pairing.

Ness's team decided they would meet a few days later at a secluded spot not too far from the dock familiar to the Cullen team. It would be a quick appointment, and Jake, as usual, was placed in charge along with Emmett of getting the guns to the location. It wouldn't be hard, though, they'd already had the nondescript crates stacked and waiting the day before their initial conversation.

Jake informed Jenks and Seth about the change and J just about creamed himself at the thought of this addition to the already mounting charges against the Cullens. In the shadow of 9/11, the constant threat of terrorists the possibility that they could get a hold of weapons like this with no particular problem, he was sure that there wasn't a jury from here to Timbuktu that wouldn't lock every one of them under a federal prison for a long, long time.

This was something that both excited Jake and brought about quite a bit of guilt that he was sure was all part of the undercover game. He really had become fond of Emmett, and well, Jasper wasn't too bad, and Carlisle was a good guy. He didn't give two shits about Edward, but overall, he had some positive attributes, and he really was just trying to take care of his family by all means necessary.

Jake saw himself in them, however minute, and well, this type of shit you just can't let go of. The more he thought about it, the harder the thought of a betrayal such as this was for him to swallow. He knew they trusted him; that was the point. He really started to understand what Leah meant about going native. Kinda like those women who were kidnapped and started to understand why their kidnappers did what they did. What made them tick. And, after a while, they even began sympathizing with them. What was it? Stoll-something.

...ah. Stockholm's.

He sure as shit hoped he didn't have that.

The longer he stood there, the more he wanted Ness to hurry the fuck up. He was getting more and more nervous about maintaining his cover with every buy, every deal, every piece of illegal shit he was a part of. Well, Eli was.

Ever prompt, Edward, Emmett, Jake and Carlisle waited casually, a little more than fifteen minutes early, around the warehouse for Ness's arrival. Jake hadn't eaten since that morning, so he just wanted to get the fuck out of there and get a burger; Emmett lit up a cigarette, as he was prone to do when he was on-edge, as Carlisle glanced out the dirty window impatiently.

"Cool it, will you C? Geez, you're making me fucking nervous," Edward mumbled, sensing Carlisle's mood. "She's a woman; you know they are, and she still has…" he glanced at his wristwatch, "four minutes until I'm pissed off."

Edward could appreciate Carlisle's guarded demeanor, but fuck if it wasn't making the anxiety rise within him, where previously there was none. He shifted, glancing around at the other men around him, and was momentarily appeased. This would go well, this all wouldn't take longer than a couple hours, max, then he could go on with his fucking day.

"You know I hate this fucking shit, Ed… I don't see why we couldn't do it at the house," Carlisle said pacing, then finally grabbing a cigarette from Emmett. That bitch made him fucking nervous. He knew her late husband, and if she did business anything like he had, she was cut throat, and he wasn't in the mood for any funny business. It was too fucking hot for that shit.

"Relax, okay? We know her; she's good," Edward assured, straightening his crisp shirt. "'Besides, her business is dirtier than a French whore. She won't pull any funny stuff."

Emmett chuckled looking at Jake, "Well, let's hope not, huh? She has a little thing for Eli there."

Jake laughed, shooting Emmett the middle finger. He couldn't help his wayward thoughts as they flickered to her, and his dick stiffened immediately.

Hmm.

That couldn't fair well at all for his relationship with Bella. Really, he'd never been this fucking sexually attracted to any other woman besides her. He'd previously tried to figure out what it was about Ness that gave him such instant boners. It couldn't be the fact that she was beautiful; he came across beautiful women everyday in Miami, and easily managed to keep his shit together. After much contemplation, Jake only came up with the fact that she looked at every man in her life like she's be just as likely to cut, choke, or shoot them as she would be to snort coke off their dicks and fuck them senseless.

Go figure.

"Is that right, E? You been boning Miss Dwyer, Miss Platinum Pussy herself?"

"No…but it's not for lack of trying," interrupted a decidedly feminine voice. All eyes in the room looked toward the door where Ness entered quickly, with 3 equally stunning women following, removing her large designer sunglasses. Jake allowed his eyes – along with every other man in the room – to wander over her shapely body in her cream colored slacks, her breasts bouncing slightly, barely restrained in her chic blue silk halter.

"Ness…how are you?" Edward said with a smile, mouthing "right on time" to Carlisle before reaching toward her.

"Hello boys…I'm excellent. I'd be even happier if we could speed this along, eh?" She kissed Edward lightly on the cheek, her eyes drifting over Jake from head to toe. "I've uh, got another engagement in about an hour. Shall we?" She smiled at him, for no other reason than to unnerve him. And, as he saw him shift from one foot to the other, she realized she'd had the desired effect on him.

She thought it curious that she was this interested in this particular man. She could pretty much have anyone she wanted, but him? She couldn't figure out why she had such a particular interest in this man. She had to know more. More than she was able to collect in the light snooping she'd had her assistant do on him. Thanks to Jenks and his contact in central records, Jake's record was perfect; he held just enough weight to have criminals recognize and respect him, but didn't delve too far. That, of course, would lead them to his time at the academy and, of course, to learn that he was a cop.

For the most part he was squeaky clean, save for his work for Edward. A couple of contract jobs in Philadelphia with some well-known dealers in the area a few years back, but nothing that he could be directly linked to. She loved this about him, he was respected, and a man with respect among his peers was something sexier than any pretty face.

And his face was oh, so pretty.

Yes. He was a quandary though. A question that she was determined to answer first hand. Just when the time was right. Her eyes darted back to Edward.

"Of course, Ness, it's all over here." He carefully placed a leading palm against the small of her back, leading her to a large table just in front of the stacked crates.

"Fabulous," she replied happily. She glanced over the fire arms, stopping to take each one, squinting an eye and aiming them at various points in the room. Cocking several of them, uttering various pleased sounds, smiling, and allowing each of the women she'd entered with to do the same, she had seen enough.

"So?" Emmett said looking at her, eyebrow cocked.

"So," she responded, glancing at each of the men, "very nice. We'll take everything you have – seventy-five grand for the handguns, another fifty for the others. Get me more by the end of the month, there'll be a finder's fee in it for you, plus the same per-unit."

In that moment, two of the women set two cases on the table, snapping open the locks to reveal several stacks of cash. Edward walked closer, thumbing the stacks of cash, nodding and smiling.

"Very nice Ness, should we make arrangements for delivery?"

"That won't be necessary Edward," she said as half a dozen large men entered the front of the warehouse. "I've brought my own little…UPS, shall we say?"

In less than twenty minutes, the crates were stacked neatly into a large 18-wheeler and driven away. Jake and Jasper took the cases by the handle, resting them on the floor beside them. Ness placed cordial kisses on each of the men's cheeks.

"A pleasure as always," Ness murmured with a lingering gaze in Jake's direction. "Eli…you have a good day, huh?" she said with a mischievous twinkle and wink. She turned on a heel and was just as fucking amazing going as she was entering the room. Her shapely ass rolling in her slacks, swaying a song that was singing directly to Jake like it was fucking Barbara Streisand herself.

Bella.

Bella.

Bella!

...must remember her.

Jake glanced at Emmett, whose eyes were exactly where his had been two seconds before, and he had to chuckle.

Ness sure did have a way with the opposite sex.

Well, pretty much all sexes.

"Okay, let's get the fuck out of here," Edward motioned. Jake immediately snapped the cases closed and strode toward Jasper's Mercedes, loading them in to be counted more closely and stashed away. After quick goodbyes to the group, he settled into the plush tan leather of his car, with just one fucking thing on his mind.

Food.

He needed the biggest fucking tacoburgersteakhotdog in the world at this point. The angry rumbling of his stomach reminded him yet again he hadn't eaten all day. As he was leaving his favorite whole-in-the-wall burger joint he remembered.

Jake pulled his untraceable pre-paid cell from the glove compartment and once out of sight where there were no Cullens or anyone that could even remotely recognize him, he dialed.

"Seth. We need to talk. Meet me at the spot in 30."

.

A/N – Not much to say this chapter. Er…Thanks to my beta team, and thank you for reading my little fic.

Come find me on Twitter, I've got candy. ArtBeatsandLife.