"Bella," the man questioned as he stood at the door in shock. I stared back at him quizzically until I recognized that he was Jacob.
"Jake," I shouted, getting up and running to give him a hug.
"Hey, Bells," he chuckled. "It's great to see you. It's been too long."
"I know," I smiled before going to sit down again. "Would you like something to eat?"
"Sure, Bells, any of your beautiful cooking sounds great," he smiled. I just shook my head with a smile before getting a plate for him and handing it to him. He stared quizzically at my face, as if he was trying to figure something out.
"You alright, Jake," Billy questioned. "If you take a picture, it would probably last longer."
"Right," Emmett chuckled before budding knuckles with Billy. "Bella, I never knew that you had such a cool godfather. You just keep getting better and better!" I giggled with the rest of the girls while Edward wrapped his arm around me.
"Hey, Bells," Jacob questioned, catching my attention. "Where did you get those bruises?" He was looking down at his food in anger, and I knew it was because of the overprotective behavior that he had always shown towards me, especially when he was my only friend when we were younger.
"Oh, um, well, that's a good question," I said nervously. "Now Jacob, I don't want you to overreact—."
"Just tell me the goddamned answer, Bella," he growled. I felt Edward's arm wrap tighter around me.
"It was James," I said quietly, waiting for the explosion that was sure to come. He slammed his fists on the table before storming out the back door.
"Well, I think that went—," Billy was interrupted by noises coming for the garage, "well, until now."
"I better try and calm him down," I sighed, getting up and walking out the door, signaling for the others to stay there since Edward was starting to get up. Once I was out and the garage, and managed to dodge a wrench that was thrown my way, I started towards him. He turned just in time before I pulled him in my embrace. I felt the tears of his starting to land on my shoulder, and I rubbed his back soothingly, just like I had done many times before whenever he was captured by his anger.
"Jacob, you wouldn't have been able to do anything during the time that I was adopted by them," I whispered, trying to get my point across.
"I should have been able to protect you," he growled. "For years, I thought that you just abandoned me, until my dad explained it after I graduated. I didn't think it was true until I saw you once again. And now I find that he was telling the truth, and I didn't do anything for at least three years. Even when I was in high school, I might have been able to do it with my friends' help. And now, there isn't that chance. I should have—I should have—"
"Jake, James is a lunatic. He's got everything to make sure that he doesn't go to jail. Even if you had wanted to, you wouldn't have been able to."
"What makes it so possible now that you were able to get away," Jake growled.
"I gained persistent friends," I smirked. "And you and I had pulled away before that even, you know that. So don't you worry about anything. What's in the past is exactly that. Now, instead of trying to hit me with a wrench, why don't we see what you are working on now."
"Motorcycles," he stated, going over to his work area. "I had finished the rabit a few years ago, and then I was able to find some bikes that were going to be thrown away, so I just took them, and I decided to rebuild them."
"Sweet. You'll have to teach me sometime," I smiled, and he smiled back at me.
"It's a promise," he stated.
"Good, now let's go back into the house before our food gets cold," I stated, as I walked out of the garage. He followed behind me, eager to eat. As soon as we came inside, Billy smiled at us, and I took my seat next to Edward.
"Everything okay," he questioned.
"Yeah," I smiled. "Everything's great." He nodded, and we started to eat once again.
"Bella, Bella, Bella," Emmett stated, hoping in his seat.
"What, what, what," I mocked.
"You've gotta give me seconds! This shit is good," he yelled.
"Shit is never good, Emmett. It's called food," Rosalie stated. "And you better be glad that Esme isn't here to listen to your foul language. We all had to laugh at that.
"So, what's the plan," Billy questioned, knowing that we were trying to find a way to capture James.
"We came to La Push because James has his 'friends in high places' in the other stations around the area," I stated.
"So you think that if we arrest him, he won't get away," Jacob questioned.
"That's the thought of it," Angela stated.
"I have a plan, but you aren't going to like it very much," I stated.