Chapter 14 - Uncharted Territories
Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, New Moon, or Eclipse. I just like having fun with the characters and world the wonderful Stephenie Meyer created.
A/N: I'm sorry I couldn't update sooner - I make and sell jewelry (link in profile), and was selling at a craft fair, so I needed to prepare for it and go. It sucks a lot of time and energy.
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Edward POV:
Bella put her head in my lap. Thank you, love.
I kissed her wolf's head. "Of course, Bella. I love you. Your happiness means more to me than anything else."
I can't believe I keep agreeing with you, Edward. thought Jacob. But what can we do? Bella can't stay here, she's been declared dead. Your family needs to leave, too. I can't leave the reservation, I'm needed here.
"There must be a way to keep her happy, Jake." I replied.
I could see tears welling in Bella's wolf eyes. Even if all that happens is this discussion, I want you both to know how much this means to me. I love you both so much, and listening to you work together to help me is wonderful. Thank you.
"Oh, Bella, of course. Ideally, I know I would love to have you to myself. I have a feeling Jacob would prefer to have you to himself, too." I could see Jake nod his head at this. "However, we both care most about your happiness. I know there is a way to work it out. We may not find the answer tonight, but we will work it out."
Yet again, I'm agreeing with you, Edward. Jacob replied, a little less reluctantly than before.
Bella lifted her head to look me in the eye. If both of you believe that we can work it out, then I will trust you. I love and trust you both so much. Edward, I'd like to run with Jacob for a little bit, do you want to stay here or meet me at your house?
"I'll wait here. It's pretty. And then I can run with you home." I answered, kissing her nose.
She'll be back in a bit, Edward. Thank you for being so accommodating. Jacob said.
I watched, schooling my expression to be accepting as the love of my life ran off with another man. Knowing she would come home with me was some comfort, but there was still a pang of jealousy as I watched her leave.
Bella POV:
I was astounded at how accepting Jacob and Edward were about the fact that it was impossible for me to choose between them. They were so different - like the sun and the moon. But I couldn't live fully without either one. There would be an emptiness inside me if either one was out of my life.
After Edward sweetly kissed my wolf nose, I ran with Jacob, delighting in the sheer joy of being together and running side-by-side. Jacob led me to a small shed, where he went in a wolf and came out as a man in a pair of cut-off sweats. I followed his example and found a t-shirt and cut-off sweats that almost fit.
"The grass is comfortable here, come sit by me." Jacob said, motioning me over to him.
"It's a beautiful night." I said, sitting next to him. "I feel so lucky to be out tonight with my two favorite guys. I'm so relieved and happy I can still spend time with you, even after the Change."
"Trust me, you aren't the only one who is relieved!" Jacob laughed. "I would miss you so much if you weren't a part of my life."
I smiled, embarrassed. If I had been human, I would have blushed. Jacob leaned over and kissed me. I kissed him back, relieved to feel in his intensity how much he wanted us to be together. While we kissed, I ran my hands over his hot muscular back, and he slipped his hands under my t-shirt and ran them over my cool, marbled back.
Before I could say anything about boundaries, Jacob pulled away gently. "I should let you go, Bella. I need to get a little sleep at least! Besides, we should talk about this more."
"I know. More talking. Yay. I'll let you go, but first I need one more kiss." I leaned over and kissed him, his lips sweet and warm on mine. We parted, and I went into the shed to phase into a wolf. Jake kissed my nose, as Edward had done before, and I ran back to the meadow.
Edward was waiting for me in our meadow, and we ran together back to the Cullens house. I could hear that Esme was talking to Carlisle about what where they should move, Emmett and Rosalie were having "fun", as were Jasper and Alice - I think it's likely that Jasper got "in the mood" when Emmett and Rosalie's lust ran strong. It was nice, though, to go up to our room undisturbed.
When we walked in, I saw that Alice had laid out pajamas for both of us, and Edward sat patiently on the bed waiting for me to phase and change into the pajamas. I obliged, but used almost-vampire speed. "Now it's your turn," I said, once I was changed and dressed.
"OK," he replied, startling me. Our iron-clad boundaries from before my Change were clearly, um, changing. Edward kept his boxers on while he changed, but seeing all of his muscular body at once was overwhelming. He was like a marble statue of Apollo, and he was mine!
"Mmmmm... So, what do you want to do for the rest of the night?" I asked, smiling.
"I think Alice wants us to go to bed," Edward said, with that adorable crooked smile on his face.
"That might very well be a good idea."
We found a copy of one of my favorite movies, "The Princess Bride", and laid down on the bed to watch it on the TV opposite us. Edward put his arm around me, and held me tightly to him. Soon, I maneuvered into his lap, and he was holding my hand, teasing me with gentle strokes on my palm and fingers while my hand played with his beautiful bronze hair.
When the ROUS attacked in Wesley and Buttercup in the Fire swamp, I wrapped my arms around him tightly, and hid my head against his chest. I could feel him shaking with silent laughter, but then I looked up at his face, and he looked down at mine, and we kissed. Suddenly the movie disappeared from my consciousness.
I was worried it would be awkward to kiss Edward after having kissed Jacob, but it wasn't. The kisses were so different, and the men so different. Jacob was filled with fire and intensity. Edward was cool and gentle. Now that I had been Changed, our rigid boundaries had changed as well.
Edward's lips parted, and his tongue gently parted mine. After what seemed like an eternity of closed-mouth kisses, I felt euphoric playing with each others tongues and exploring. Eventually, Edward left my mouth, and kissed down my neck to the hollow between neck and collarbone, licking gently along the way. I shivered with delight, then pulled his mouth back to mine, moaning into his mouth.
We maintained many boundaries as we spent the rest of the night making out, not wanting to hurry anything, wanting to enjoy every millimeter of each other. Our kissing, caressing, and exploring felt so special, and we both reveled in being able to spend so much time together without interruption or threat of Charlie coming into the room.
Jacob POV:
After kissing Bella, I phased back and ran home. The run helped clear my head, all I had wanted to do was continue kissing her until the world ended. However, if we were going to make this relationship work, I couldn't only think of myself. It rankled me to be fair to a bloodsucker, but since he was being fair to me, I couldn't in good conscience play dirty.
The run succeeded in clearing my head. As I moved farther away from the meadow, I started to think more clearly. When I was close to my house, Sam called to me, so I detoured to his home. Thankfully, he keeps some shorts on his back porch for situations like this!
"Jake." Sam said, when I arrived.
"Hi Sam. You called to me - is everything OK?"
"Everything is fine here. I have something important to ask you about, and I needed to do it when the rest of the Pack wasn't around. I was happy to find you running alone tonight." Sam looked serious, very Alpha Wolf, not the usual playful side he showed when we weren't fighting.
"Of course. I'm here and curious to hear what you need to say." I replied.
"I got a call from another tribe. They have the old legends about the Spirit Warriors and the Cold Ones too, but no one remembers the wolves. They had heard about our group from some other tribes, and are asking us for help."
"I'm happy to help them, if that's what you need and they want. They must be having trouble if they don't have anyone to guide them!" I said, startled at the idea.
"Yes. The young werewolves are a bit out of control, plus the tribe's big business is cattle ranching, so a gang of young, out-of-control werewolves isn't a great idea. I'm going to need you to move there. You're an Alpha, and if you move, you can be Alpha of that Pack. You won't always be happy as second-in-command, Jake." Sam looked at me, and it felt like he could see inside me.
At first I was nervous. And then excited. And then proud. Then sad and worried. Such a mix of emotions. I could be an Alpha without fighting Sam! I could leave the reservation, giving me a chance to be with Bella long-term! I would have to leave Billy and all my friends, though.
"You're the Alpha, Sam. If you tell me it's best for the tribe, I'll do it. I want to help them, and I'd like to be Alpha. I worry about Billy, though. I'm sad to leave the Pack, as well. But who am I helping? And where are they?" I blurted everything out at once, knowing Sam would weed through my thoughts and distill it down.
"The Pack will make sure Billy is fine. You should invite him to come with you, but I know he won't. It's possible that you could visit us, or we could visit you when things settle down, plus there are other ways of keeping in touch. You could never lose your friends from the pack." Sam replied.
I realized he had skipped two questions. "Who am I helping? You didn't mention where they were, either."
"Oh, yes. Well, this is a tribe that was merged together when the reservations were formed. The portion of the new tribe that has werewolf blood is the part that was once called the Kapota tribe." Sam replied.
"Where will I be living?" I asked, yet again.
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A/N: Thanks for reading! Please review if you have a minute!
