Chapter 18: Miracle at The Jacob Black Love Shack

Disclaimer: S. Meyer owns Twilight.

Bella and Jake holed up in his bedroom, kissing and caressing each other, but it was late and Bella had to leave.

"I've got to go, Jake. I don't want Charlie to revert to his angry mood again. I'll see you tomorrow okay?"

"You better, 'cuz I can't climb that damn tree carrying a couple of crutches."

She tilted her head, and pushed into his personal space. "You are never climbing that tree again. Are you listening to me?"

He was mesmerized by the way her mouth moved as she pronounced each word. He quirked an eyebrow, and pursing his lips, made little kissing noises. "Yeah, your lips are saying, kiss me you fool."

"My gosh, you are a fool. Now will you quit foolin' around and kiss me goodbye."

That Jacob grin was making its appearance. "See I told ya. Those lips were startin' to cool off, and here I am—ready to rewarm them. Pucker up, honey! Let me lay my hotness on ya."

"Well hurry up then, I really have got to go."

Jacob winked at her. "Whew, be patient, grasshopper. I'm ready."

Bella grabbed a hunk of his hair, and shut his mouth with hers. "Bye, Jake," she whispered as she darted away.

"Hey!" he yelled before she made it out of the room.

She spun around to face him. "What?"

His grin faded, "I love you."

She bobbled her head and smirked. "I know!"

Jacob threw a pillow in her direction, but she dodged it, sticking her tongue out at him as she slipped out the door.

Charlie fell asleep on the couch waiting for Bella to return. He awoke as he heard the sound of the cruiser's tires crunching the gravel in the driveway, and was immediately alert.

As Bella entered the house, she spotted him getting up from the couch. "Oh my gosh … Dad, you didn't have to wait up for me. I'm a big girl."

Smoothing down his bed-head, he sheepishly replied, "Yes, I realize that."

She nodded, and started toward the staircase. Charlie stopped her mid-step. "Wait—don't go to your room yet. There's something I need to say to you."

Good grief, now what?

Staring at her, he crooked a finger motioning her to come closer. Charlie blurted, "Why are you standing way over there. Come over here, so we can talk."

She wished she could take up Jacob's offer and stand behind him right about now. Instead, she took a deep breath, and timidly walked toward her father. To her surprise, Charlie wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly. He pressed his cheek against hers and haltingly whispered through his tears, "I'm so sorry, Bells. I acted like an ass. Can you forgive me for being the worst father in the world?"

Bella pulled away slightly. "You're not the worst father; I'm the worst daughter."

"Don't say that. You're in love. You just got swept away and made a mistake." Charlie loosed her from his arms, and led her to sit beside him on the couch. "I was hurt. I just want so much for you. I seemed to have forgotten how much you and Jacob are hurting now too." He covered his face in his hands, and began to cry again. "It took me a trip to the hospital to understand how much he loves you. He could have broken his neck falling out of that tree. It's bad enough that his leg is broken, and all because of me. I don't ever want him climbing up that tree again. God, if anything more serious had happened …. that child you're carrying might have been without a father."

Charlie uncovered his face, sniffling. "You're my daughter, Bells. You know I love you, don't you?"

"Yeah, Dad, I know. I love you too."

"Will you let Jacob know that I care about him just as much as I care about you? He's a good kid, he just let those hormones run away with him. Jake's already like a son to me. And now, I guess he will be—officially."

Officially? What did that mean? She was beat, so she let the comment slide.

"One more thing—I know I said I didn't want anything going on under my roof. But since you two seem to be so inseparable, I'll turn a blind eye. So tell Jacob—no more Tarzan shenanigans. Just remember, I'm in the other bedroom, so keep it low, huh?

They both looked down at the floor, turning beet red at the inference.

Charlie finally regained his composure. "Oh, and don't worry about your mother. I'll take care of it. I don't want her upsetting you." He inhaled deeply. "Okay, then; it's all settled. Can you hand me a Kleenex?" He pointed at the box on the nearby table next to her.

She handed him a tissue, placing the box in front of him. He blew his nose loudly. "Now don't go telling anyone—and especially not Billy—that I blubbered like a baby. I'd like to keep my dignity intact, so let's just keep it between the two of us, all right?"

It was nice seeing her dad get all emotional. Smiling, she responded, "Sure, sure, your secret's safe with me."

He stood, gesturing for her to leave. "Well, you better go on to bed. You need plenty of rest." He turned and pulled out another Kleenex. He wiped his eyes with it and took the box with him, following Bella upstairs.

A great weight had been lifted, now that she and Charlie were square again. The tension surrounding them just about killed her, and truth be told, her dad was dying from the bad blood between them too. She slid comfortably into her usual routine, getting up, dressing, making breakfast and going to work and classes. Now she could face her situation, head-on, no holds barred.

A week passed and Bella and Jacob took turns visiting each other's home. Jacob would come by her house, carrying on the charade with the crutches. He didn't really need them by day two. He was glad it was his leg and not his arm that got broken though. It would have really been hard to hide his fast healing process in that case. Plus, he didn't want anything limiting his tactile abilities, you understand.

They were at Jacob's house doing homework one afternoon. He was lying on his stomach on the lumpy old couch, reading his assignment; Bella was sitting on the floor sideways, her head parallel with Jacob's. She put her books down, reached over and began curling a lock of his hair around one of her fingers, then gently massaging his scalp, thoughtfully. "Mmn …" he moaned softly in contentment.

He gazed up at her, lifting his head from its perch on his propped elbow, as she said, "Now that your legs healed, do you think we could go out to your Love Shack one last time—you know, before it gets too dangerous for me to travel by motorcycle?"

He groaned. "Did you have to tempt me with that thought? I have to finish studying this. I have a test tomorrow." Dammit!

"I didn't mean right now, silly. I meant maybe sometime this weekend."

"Sure, sure, just don't distract me now, okay?"

Bella grasped a large bunch of black silky strands, rubbing it between her fingers. "How am I distracting you? I was just playing with your hair."

"Well, it's distracting me now, so just stop doing that, okay?"

She drew back her hand and covered her mouth, but the giggles escaped anyway.

Jacob sighed. "Why are you laughing?"

"It's like our roles have reversed today. You're telling me to keep my hands to myself. I can't believe it. But seriously, you want me to leave so you can study?"

Jacob dropped his book, grabbing her wrist. "No, no, no, no—don't you dare. If you leave, I'll wonder what you're doing, and I won't be able to concentrate."

Rolling her eyes, she commented, "So what do you want me to do then?"

His brown eyes bored intensely into hers. "Just sit there and look pretty, but don't touch me, okay? No touching."

"Geesh," she exclaimed. "Do you realize you said, okay like, about ten times now?"

He let out a puff of air. "Pfft! You exaggerate."

"Look who's talking … what are you studying anyway?" She nuzzled the hand that was still encircling her wrist.

He pulled his hand away. "Hey, stop that."

Just to get a reaction, he said. "For your information, I'm studying Custer's last stand."

He laughed at the look on her face. Then grinning, he added, "Just kidding."

Cringing, Charlie put out a long overdue phone call. Renee should be home, it was Saturday. She answered, and was shocked to hear Charlie's voice. Why would he be calling?

Oh, no—something's happened to Bella. Why else would he be calling? My god, she lived through a hurricane and meets with disaster after she gets home?

"Charlie," she yelped. "Is Bella all right? She's not hurt is she?"

He winced as he replied, "Well, not in a manner of speaking."

"What in the world is that supposed to mean? She's either all right or she's not. Which is it?"

He hesitated a beat. Renee chimed in again. "Charles Robert Swan—you call me out of the blue, and then act like there's lead in your tongue. I'm her mother. I'm entitled to know what's going on."

A loud sigh escaped his lips. "Sit down, Renee."

Now she was really in a tizzy. "I don't want to sit down. And stop talking in riddles. Now you tell me what's happened to her, before I get ugly."

Too late for that. He straightened his shoulders. "Jacob Black is what happened to her. They're in love and—"

Cutting him off, Renee shouted, "You get me all upset just to tell me that she and Jacob are a couple? I already knew that!"

He ran a hand through his hair, and leaned his back against the wall. "You didn't let me finish. So they really love each other, and well, you know things happen. One thing led to another."

She picked up a pencil that was lying on her desk and started tapping it impatiently. "I'm not stupid, Charlie. I figured our little girl sooner or later would let some hormone ridled boy talk her into giving it up. I was so hoping it would be Derek though. He has so much more to offer her than Jacob. But—as long as she takes precautions, I'm not too worried."

"Renee," he said, his voice low.

"What?"

"She didn't." He pulled the phone away from his ear.

His ex-wife threw down the pencil. "Didn't what?" Good lord, more guessing games?

"Take precautions."

His remark met with complete silence. She began to speak, softly at first, then building to a crescendo. "Are you telling me that our Bella is—PREGNANT?"

"Yes, that's what I'm telling you."

The tirade started. "Why did you volunteer to tell me this horror story? Why didn't Bella tell me herself?"

"Now, Renee, calm down. I didn't want her to get upset. She's been through enough as it is, Jacob too."

"Oh, but it's just fine to upset me?" What am I supposed to tell Derek? I had such hopes for those two. What in the world was she thinking?

She was sitting down now. "How far along is she?"

Charlie looked down at his feet, feeling sheepish. "I guess I really don't know."

"That's just great. What kind of a father are you? You're never home. You leave Bella alone all the time. No wonder she got into trouble; she never gets any supervision from you."

On the offensive, Charlie countered with a punch below the belt. "You know what? At least she knows that I love her."

Renee burst into tears. "How dare you. She knows that I love her."

Charlie's ire was up now. "Does she?"

"Put Bella on the phone," she demanded.

"I can't, she's not here at the moment. And I'm warning you, Renee, you better be civil if you're going to be talking to her. I won't have you upsetting her. You hear me?"

"Loud and clear, Chief Swan," she responded sarcastically.

"All right then, bye." He hung up, the knot in his stomach started to unravel, and he went to the fridge for some Vitamin R.

The kitchen phone was ringing off the hook, then it would stop, then start to ring again. Didn't people realize that he was in a wheelchair? It took a bit for Billy to get to the phone. Jacob and Bella had left on their motorcycles a few minutes ago, darn it. He was alone in the house, just him and his chair and a stupid phone that wouldn't quit ringing.

He finally reached the annoying contraption. He smiled knowingly as he realized it was Renee on the line.

"Billy, how good to hear your voice," she crooned, smoothly.

"Hey, Renee, how are you," he replied politely.

"Fine, fine. Is Jacob there? I'd like to speak to him please." Charlie didn't say anything about upsetting Jacob, did he?

"Oh, you just missed him. He and Bella took off on their motorbikes a few minutes ago."

"Well, just tell him to expect a call from me tomorrow, then. Bye, Billy."

He hung up, looking at the ceiling. Jacob better have a bucket of water nearby the next time Renee calls. I have a feeling the line will explode into flames.

That Saturday, the starry-eyed lovers indeed went out to the Jacob Black Love Shack for the last time before their lives would change forever.

As she removed her top, Jacob let out a low whistle. "Whoa, Bells, you've really filled out some."

She turned scarlet. "You don't think I'm getting too heavy, do you."

His eyebrows rose about a couple of inches. "Hell, no! I like it. I didn't notice it as much before, 'cuz we always made love in the dark. We're gonna have to do this more often in broad daylight," he chuckled.

Their laughter continued as he tumbled with her onto the makeshift bed.

While they lay snuggled under the blankets on the air mattress, Jacob felt something flutter against him. "How did you do that?" he asked.

"Do what?" Bella answered sleepily.

He felt it again. "That."

"What are you talking about? I didn't do anything," she replied.

Suddenly, she sat up, jerking in surprise. "Holy cow!"

Jacob was now concerned. "What, what?"

"I didn't do anything, Jake," she reiterated. "But someone else did."

She took Jacob's hand and placed his fingers on her abdomen. He felt an obvious little movement quivering from within her womb. An expression of awe overshadowed his face, as he made the very first contact with his child.

He dropped his fingers, and taking her face in his hands, kissed her sweetly and murmured, "It's a miracle. I can't believe it. You're carrying my baby. He's mine—he's really mine," he choked.