A/N - Ok, go ahead and hate me. I wouldn't blame you! I've been kicking myself in the ass to get this chapter done for a few weeks now. Something always seems to come up... That, and I've been going back and forth trying to decide which way I should be going for this story...and it's driving me crazy!

Your PM's, kind reviews and follows have been so much appreciative to know that so far, I'm heading in the right direction. So, thank you so much for them! You have no idea how far a simple message of encouragement goes!

Jacob's fingers tapped casually along the steering wheel while he drove down the dark roads. Every so often, he stole glances over at Bella. Even though he hadn't seen her in two years, he could still tell when she was in deep thought. There was a pensive expression in her face. Her eyes seemed to watch the woods as they passed by, no doubt keeping an eye out for the wolves that Jacob insisted were there to protect them. Whether she believed him or not, Jacob wasn't sure. All the while, he inwardly debated whether he had said too much regarding the wolf pack. It was a general understanding that it was to remain secret beyond the elders and imprints. And Bella was not an imprint. Whether or not this...mystical bond or strange connection that they had between them gave him an excuse to tell her about the pack, he wasn't going to. It didn't matter that they had a child together. The truth of the matter was, he simply didn't trust her.

Two years ago, he would have told her everything; that he was one of the Spirit Warriors, about the pack...everything. But after all that time, Jacob wasn't even certain if he really knew Bella anymore. Sure, her telling him about the Cullen's had shocked the hell out of him but Jacob couldn't help but listen to that nagging voice in the back of his head, telling him that he still couldn't trust her. Surprisingly, for some reason he believed her when Bella had spoken about Daniel. Still, he had to see him for himself. Thankfully, he didn't have to ask if he could see Daniel. Along the way to Sue's, Bella offered, hoping that Jacob would want to see his son. By the look on Jacob's face, Bella was pleased to know that he was eager to meet him.

For Jacob, it felt surreal. Even as he pulled up in front of Sue's home and walked alongside Bella up to the front door, his heart was pounding in his chest. When she opened the door, his senses quickly categorized the smells that suddenly flew at him; his father, Sue, as well as Seth. The guy must have returned straight to his house after the vampire threat was over to ensure everyone was fine inside. It was clear that Charlie had been there, despite his cruiser no longer sitting in the driveway. Within all those scents, there was something else - something new, something inviting that pricked the curiosity of the wolf within.

Before Jacob could conclude what he assumed it to be, Sue came to them at the door and smiled. She held a flashlight in her hand and explained that they had gotten a call to say that power would be restored sometime within the next few hours. Jacob listened as Bella apologized profusely as she explained the car accident while omitting certain details that he knew he'd have to fill in later. All the while, he couldn't help but keep his attention on that unique scent in the house. Sue seemed to notice his distraction before she led them further into the house, speaking to Bella about how Daniel had cried for a while before he had finally fallen asleep.

As they rounded the corner, the aroma grew stronger and Jacob instinctively inhaled deeply. On the couch, he saw Seth sprawled out and fast asleep before he glanced over at Billy across the room. Across his father's lap, slept a little boy in a footed sleeper with a blanket draped over his midsection. Jacob simply stared with an expression of disbelief, while Bella made her way to Billy and gently picked up the baby, accidentally stirring him to wake. Daniel protested the movement and cried aloud at being woken, his soother falling from his mouth. But he quickly calmed upon realizing that it was his mother holding him.

While Billy passed Bella the dropped soother, Jacob's eyes instantly noticed Daniel's dark unruly hair and russet complexion.

"Were you giving your grandpa a hard time?" Bella spoke softly before rubbing her hand over Daniel's small back and tucked his soother back into his mouth. Daniel sighed, and rested his head against Bella's shoulder, cuddling his face up against her neck. Her gentle touch and soft words quickly lulled him back to sleep.

Jacob stood still, watching Bella as she swayed slightly with the boy in her arms.

"Daniel was fine," Billy explained, looking up at Bella beside him. "He just wasn't liking the storm. I don't blame him for it though. We haven't had one like that in a while."

He paused and smiled over at Jacob seeing his son's intense focus locked on his grandson in Bella's arms.

"It was pretty intense," Sue added, as she walked up beside Jacob. She smiled at him before looking back at Daniel as he slept in Bella's arms.

"That little boy is so sweet. Charlie enjoyed holding him for a while until he was called into work about an hour ago."

Billy nodded. "We can't get over how much he looks just like you, son."

As he spoke, Bella turned and walked over to Jacob, all the while Daniel slept soundly despite resting upright against Bella's shoulder. Jacob watched him, hearing the baby's even breathing and heart beat flutter in his chest. Although his face was tucked against Bella's neck, Jacob could see the whisps of curled black hair along the base of his head and over his ear.

"He's beautiful," Jacob spoke softly, watching his son as he slept contently against Bella.

Almost timidly, Jacob reached out and placed his large hand over Daniel's back, feeling his small body rise and fall under his palm. When the baby began to cough, Jacob quickly pulled his hand back.

"Daniel's been sick recently," Bella explained as she gently patted the baby's back.

On the couch, Seth suddenly stirred upon hearing Daniel's deep coughing and instantly woke up.

"Wha...what's wrong? What's going on?"

"Don't worry, Seth," Sue quickly replied, alleviating the wolf's obvious concerns for those he was protecting within his home. "Everything's okay."

Seth sat up and looked over to see Jacob standing beside Bella as she held onto Daniel who continued to cough. Sue passed a sippy cup of water to Bella who brought it to Daniel's lips. The boy pulled out his soother and reached for the cup, taking a long drink. It seemed to do the trick. A few seconds passed before he pushed the cup away in favour of his soother and put his head back on Bella's shoulder.

Despite the dimly lit room, Jacob could still see the features on Daniel's face. The first thing he noticed were his thick feather duster eyelashes resting against his light russet cheeks as he closed his eyes once again. His black hair sat haphazardly on his head and his bangs were starting to come over his eyebrows. Jacob even noticed how his one hand was tucked beneath his chin as he rested against Bella's shoulder.

A smile pulled at Jacob's mouth as he watched the little boy suck on his soother, obviously not sleeping as soundly as he appeared.

"Is the little Danny-boy all right?" Seth asked as he suddenly appeared beside Jacob, his deep concern for Daniel's well-being evident in his face.

Bella smiled, running her hand over Daniel's soft hair.

"He's fine. But I'm sure he'll feel better after he gets some decent sleep."

Billy rolled himself forward towards where Bella, Jacob and Seth stood, the two younger men seeming to watch Daniel carefully.

"It is late. It's nearly midnight." He paused and looked to Jacob.

"Since it looks like Charlie may be working through the night, why don't you give Bella and Daniel a ride back into Forks? Seth here can help me get home."

While Bella agreed with the suggestion, Jacob could somehow sense her trepidation with the thought of being alone in Forks while Charlie was working. Truth be told, Jacob couldn't help but feel anxious about it as well. He offered to stay the night or at least until Charlie returned, to which Bella initially refused, feeling not only awkward about putting Jacob in that position given their past relationship but also not wanting him to feel obligated because of Daniel. When he insisted, Bella didn't argue.

Sue gathered up Daniel's belongings and handed Jacob the car seat to put into the truck. It didn't take him long and before long Bella was strapping Daniel into the car seat.

"You'll be okay here on your own?" Jacob asked Sue, grabbing a bag while Bella was settling Daniel in the truck.

She nodded.

"Seth should be back from Billy's anytime and I'm expecting Leah tonight too." Sue paused and glanced over at Bella as she tucked a blanket around Daniel who was beginning to cry with having to sit in his car seat. She lowered her voice. "Seth told me a little about what really happened with Bella. It's true? That vampire attacked her?"

"Yeah," Jacob replied with a sigh. "If Sam happens to call, let him know that I'll be calling him to let him know what's going on once we get to Charlie's."

The ride into Forks was a bit more cramped and noisier than before. Daniel wasn't the least bit impressed at having to sit in his car seat. There was a point where Daniel became so angry that he threw his soother onto the floor of the truck. Bella apologized profusely to Jacob for Daniel's behaviour, while Jacob insisted that it was no big deal.

He rolled down the windows slightly to allow for some fresh air, as it seemed that Daniel was getting sweaty from crying so hard. When a sudden acidic scent blew through the window, his eyes quickly scanned the tree line along the road and he pushed harder on the gas, eager to get both Daniel and Bella safely to Charlie's house. He was on his own and there was no way he was going to stop when he was alone and had Bella and Daniel with him.

The moment they came to a stop at Charlie's, Bella quickly unclipped Daniel from his seat and pulled him into her arms. Meanwhile, Jacob climbed out of the truck, his senses on full alert as he deeply inhaled the air that blew around him while he scanned the darkness for movement.

Nothing.

Inside the truck, he could hear Bella speaking softly to Daniel as the crying settled into light hiccups.

"Hey, hey, you're okay. Momma's here."

Her eyes briefly met Jacob's as she climbed out and before he reached into the pickup to get the car seat. He followed Bella as she carried Daniel to the front door, all the while his eyes carefully kept their attention on the woods around the property.

Power had already been restored to Forks and Bella turned on the porch light the moment she got inside. She waited for Jacob to carry everything into the house before she locked the door behind him.

He followed her into the house, taking careful deep breaths to ensure that there wasn't any scents that shouldn't be there.

Jacob watched as Bella turned on a lamp in the living room before placing Daniel down on the couch. The little boy happily crawled along the couch and snuggled into an old afghan, a drastic difference than how he had been when he had been in the pickup a short few minutes ago.

Needing to grab his blanket from upstairs in his crib, Bella asked Jacob to keep an eye him for a moment while she went to get it. Daniel watched as Bella disappeared up the stairs, leaving him with someone whom he hadn't ever seen before that evening. Daniel's eyes briefly looked over at Jacob before he quickly turned and slid off of the couch. In a matter of seconds, Daniel was crawling across the living room floor towards the stairs, desperate to get to his Mom.

Jacob quickly side stepped and picked Daniel up off the floor before he even got a few feet from the couch. The baby looked at Jacob as he held him before he pushed against his chest.

"Hey Daniel," he said. "Your Mom's coming right back."

Still, Daniel struggled to get out of his grasp.

Thinking quickly, Jacob saw a picture of Bella sitting on a shelf near the television.

"Hey Daniel! Look at this!" Jacob said as excitedly as he could, as he picked up the framed picture. "Who is this?"

Daniel paused as a smile came to his face. His small index finger reached out and touched the image.

"Mammam," he stated.

"Yeah! That's Mommy!"

Wanting to keep him happy for a little while longer, Jacob's eyes scanned the photo's. When he saw another with Bella, he reached to grab it.

"And who is this?"

"Mammama!"

Jacob laughed, hearing his son's excitement in seeing an old picture of Bella. He snorted and shook his head in amazement.

"Seth and Sam were right," Jacob commented softly. "You do look like me when you smile."

Gently, Jacob placed the photo back on the shelf, his hand instinctively running over Daniel's head as he searched the photo's for another image that the little boy in his arms would recognize.

When suddenly, Daniel leaned forward and reached for an old picture of Charlie and Harry Clearwater standing in front of the boat that presently sat in front of Charlie's house.

"Bo!" Daniel exclaimed happily.

"You like boats?"

"He loves them," Bella replied, coming down the stairs and having obviously heard her son's words. She carried a folded up blanket and a pillow in her arms while a light blue blanket was slung over her shoulder. "We lived near a big fishing village and he would spend a good part of his day playing by a window, watching the boats come back and forth."

Upon hearing her voice, Daniel swung around, eager to get back into his Mom's arms. Bella placed the blanket and pillow down on the couch before reaching out to take an eager Daniel from Jacob's arms.

She spoke her thanks softly, meeting his gaze for a moment before she turned her attention back to Daniel.

"Was your Daddy showing you a boat?"

Daddy.

That label didn't go unnoticed by Jacob. He felt his heart leap in his chest at the foreign word. A pride settled there as he watched Bella sit down on Charlie's rocking chair with Daniel on her lap. Suddenly she paused, as her face flushed.

"Uh, I can nurse him upstairs if you're uncomfortable."

"Nurse?"

"Yeah, he's still breastfeeding."

Jacob shook his head, finding himself surprisingly at ease with the thought. If it was anyone else, he would have certainly made for the nearest exit, but deep down he found himself feeling protective of her and that relationship that she had with Daniel.

"No, don't mind me. You can nurse him here. Actually I have a few phone calls to make that I can do in the kitchen so I'm not disturbing you. I should let Sam know that I still have his truck before he freaks out about me not returning it."

Bella smiled and nodded before Jacob left the room. He could hear Bella's soft voice as she spoke to Daniel while he grabbed the phone in the kitchen. The phone rang twice before he heard Sam's gruff voice.

Sam wasn't at all surprised to hear that Jacob was spending the night in Forks at Charlie's. He also didn't feign shock when Jacob explained what Bella had told him regarding the Cullen's.

"You heard it all, didn't you."

"With the ears in this pack, it's damn near impossible to have a private conversation anymore. But don't be angry with them. They're concerned about you, that's all."

"I'm not upset," Jacob said to Sam's surprise. It was more often than not that Jacob would've been angered beyond shifting if he had found out that the pack had been eavesdropping on his conversation. Perhaps Bella's presence back in Jacob's life was having a pleasant affect on him.

"So, is Bella sticking around?"

A small smile pulled at Jacob's lips. "Seems like it now. I think I convinced her enough that she's safe with the wolves out there to protect her from this Victoria."

Sam sighed and before he could say anything Jacob spoke again.

"And I didn't say anything that I wasn't allowed to."

"I know you didn't, but I've thought about it a little more." He chuckled. "Actually, it was Emily who made me think a little more about it all. I'd be willing to bet that Billy would give the go-ahead to let you tell Bella the truth. Old Quil may be a harder sell, but he knows about this connection you have with her and that may-"

"-Sam, it doesn't matter. Bella isn't my imprint," he said, lowering his voice so Bella wouldn't be able to overhear. "And frankly, besides being the mother of my child, we don't have a relationship going on where I'd feel even remotely comfortable telling her about me and the pack."

"You're absolutely right," Sam stated before silence momentarily passed between them.

"I am concerned about something though. On the way into Forks, there was a strong leech stench near the city limits. I couldn't stop to check it out -"

"-was there anything at Charlie's?"

"We wouldn't be here if there was. It wasn't the same as that red-headed bitch. This one was different. I'm wondering if maybe the Cullen's might have followed Bella here."

Sam sighed aloud.

"After hearing your conversation with Bella about the Cullen's and more particularly Edward Cullen, I sent Colin and Embry to patrol along the old boundary. I haven't heard from them, so I'm guessing it's all clear. But I'll make sure that they go out towards Forks when they come back to give an update in a little while."

"Thanks Sam."

He hung up the phone before heading back into the living room, finding the chair that Bella had been sitting in was empty. Tipping his head, he heard Bella's heart beating upstairs and the scent of lemongrass along with that unique smell drifting up the steps. Softly, he walked up the stairs and saw Bella's shadow as she gently laid Daniel down in his crib. The little boy shuffled slightly onto his side, getting himself comfortable while Bella covered him with the same blue blanket that she had in the living room. Jacob watched from the doorway of her room, his eyes noticing a familiar dream catcher hanging against the wall above the crib.

Silently, Bella gestured to the hallway and ushered Jacob out of the room before she softly closed the door behind her. They stood in the dimly lit hallway at the top of the stairs.

"Is everything all right?" Jacob whispered.

"Yeah, he was exhausted. He fell asleep on me within a minute. He should sleep all night now."

"Good," Jacob said, his eyes going towards the closed door as his ears listened momentarily to the steady rhythm of the baby's heartbeat coming from the bedroom. He turned back to Bella. "You should get some rest too. You had a busy evening."

Bella nodded, finding that Jacob was right. She took a deep breath as memories of the evening flooded back. Seeing the sudden anxiety flash on her face, Jacob reached out and took her hand.

"You and Daniel are safe here, Bella," he told her softly, keeping his voice low to prevent Daniel from waking in the room beside them.

Forcing a smile on her face, she felt Jacob's warm hand squeeze her own before she nodded. She gestured to the bathroom door behind him at the top of the stairs.

"I'll just quickly go to the bathroom and then I'll go to bed," she said, before pausing. "Are you going to be okay on the couch?"

"Perfectly fine," Jacob told her. With a small smile, he told her goodnight before turning to go back downstairs.

"Jake," she said, catching him halfway down the steps and causing him to turn. "Thank you."

He found a small smile pulling at his lips before he headed down the steps and into the living room.

With a sigh, Bella went into the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. She did look exhausted. The events of the evening had no doubt reflected in her eyes. She only prayed that she would get enough sleep to get her through the day tomorrow. Turning off the light and making her way back into her bedroom, both she and Jacob were unaware of the ears hiding just beyond the tree line behind the house that had overheard their conversation.

For as far back as Bella could remember, Daniel had always been her alarm clock. Although her idea of waking up at 1am, 3am and then again at 6am for months on end wasn't fun, her only consolation was that she got to spend those sleepless nights with someone who meant the world to her. There were days when she'd put Daniel down to sleep, only to have him wake an hour later. As frustrating as it was and as much as she simply wanted to cry, those toothless grins that Daniel gave her, warmed her heart. Those were nights that she would cherish, as horrible as they were at the time.

To suddenly wake up on her own and when the sun was clearly in the sky was a rarity. It was so unusual that Bella sat straight up in her bed, and her eyes went straight for the empty crib. Confused and slightly concerned, she climbed out of bed and made her way into the hallway. The smell of coffee met her on the stairs before she came into the living room. The couch that Jacob had occupied the night before was empty and the blanket and pillow had been folded neatly on the coffee table. Sunlight streamed in through the open front door while the sound of conversation and Daniel's giggles came through the screen door.

Curious, she pushed open the old wooden door to see her father and Jacob sitting side by side on the porch step. While Charlie was holding onto a half empty coffee mug, Jacob held onto a partially eaten banana. Within the small fishing boat in the driveway, Daniel stood and held a stick over the side, pretending to fish onto the gravel driveway below.

"What's going on?"

Jacob smirked, having heard Bella the moment she had gotten out of bed. Charlie glanced back at his daughter behind them, while Jacob kept an eye on Daniel.

"Mornin' Bells. We were wondering when you were going to get up.

"Why didn't anyone wake me?"

"Well, considering your night last night, Jake and I thought it best if we just let you sleep. I took Danny-boy out of the room when I heard him starting to talk."

"When did you get in?"

"Shortly before 1."

"And Daniel's had breakfast?"

Charlie nodded.

"He's been fed, changed and Jake here got him dressed," Charlie stated, clapping Jacob on the shoulder. "This isn't my first rodeo, Bells. I helped raise you and it's not something that you easily forget."

He paused and looked over at Daniel as the little boy played inside the boat, blowing raspberries to mimic the sound of an engine.

"And he's been having a great time out here."

"Oh, I know. I'm not surprised that you guys took care of him, it's just a strange feeling to suddenly have all this help. I never had it before."

"Well," Jacob said, pushing himself up off the step to stand, "get use to it, Bells."

She watched as he called Daniel's name. The little boy smiled, seeing Jacob as he peeled the banana further and held it up towards his son over the edge of the boat. Daniel simply opened his mouth and took a bite.

Charlie chuckled. "That boy loves his food. I have no idea where he packs it."

He paused and looked up at Jacob. "He must take after you, Jake."

Jacob forced a smile on his face, never having considered how much Daniel would take after him - did he inherit the same gene that had been passed down to him? Would he be forced to carry the burden of being a protector as he had?

When the phone suddenly rang inside, Charlie jumped up, eager to see if it was Gus - the man who was to do a refit on the boat engine. After having earlier discussed with Jacob on the porch about the engine, Charlie had called Gus to arrange for him to pick it up as Jacob willingly offered to redo the engine himself. Charlie was pleasantly surprised by the offer and had a suspicion it had something to do with his daughter's return. While he never voiced his suggestion to Jacob that he try to make amends with Bella, Charlie had hinted towards it.

No one spoke while Charlie had gone inside. Bella simply watched as Jacob interacted with Daniel, allowing the young man to develop a relationship with his son. She found it amusing to see the tall man duck out of sight around the boat, before popping up, startling Daniel to the point of giggles.

Bella smiled, finding herself starting to laugh at her son's joy when Charlie came out on the porch once again.

"Hey Jake, the phone's for you. It's Sam."

With a smile to Daniel, he walked up the steps, passing the partially eaten banana to Bella before disappearing inside.

He walked into the kitchen, seeing the phone sitting on the table beneath it.

"I need you to meet me at the eastern boundary in ten minutes."

He heard the gravity within Sam's words.

"What's going on, Sam?"

"Some of the Cullen's are back. Jared ran into the doctor and his wife. They wanted to talk with you. They say it's about Bella and Daniel."

Jacob pinched his eyes shut, feeling the heat of his anger licking up his spine.

"I can't leave them unprotected here."

"It's already taken care of. Sue's borrowed your Dad's truck and is on her way over with Seth. You'll just have to come up with a reason to take off right away."

Jacob sighed.

"I'll figure it out. See you in 10."

It wasn't exactly a lie.

Sam's truck was still at Charlie's and there was no doubt that he'd be needing it sometime soon. Jacob simply implied that he was needing it right away.

He headed towards La Push before veering off towards the east on a dirt road. When he came across an old lane way into the woods, he pulled into it and ensured it wasn't visible from the road before climbing out. He locked up the truck before tucking the keys into his shorts pocket and wrapped it all up within his shirt. Having found a tether cord under the front seat of Sam's truck, he wrapped the bundle to his ankle before taking a deep breath.

This wasn't a meeting he was looking forward to. Just the thought once again caused that insatiable anger to ripple over his spine. Within the matter of seconds, his skin tore and was replaced with a russet coat. His mind was flooded with the thoughts of his brothers, all equally unimpressed with having to come face to face with a Cullen once again.

'Only Jacob and I are to meet with them,' Sam relayed through the pack. 'The rest of you are to remain hidden and aren't to approach unless absolutely necessary. They don't need to know how large the pack has become.'

Jacob met up with the black Alpha wolf, both of their coats disappearing in a shimmer of energy. Neither said a word as they pulled on their shorts. Their thoughts were the same; let's just get this over with. The nauseating stench was already drifting towards them, indicating that the Cullen's had already arrived and were waiting.

Side by side, Sam and Jacob walked towards the small clearing marking the eastern boundary. Within the shadows of a large tree, the pair of vampires stood side by side, watching them as they approached. Esme took ahold of Carlisle's hand, no doubt sensing the hostility coming off of shape shifters in waves.

"Thank you for agreeing to meet with us," Carlisle said, smiling pleasantly once Sam and Jacob were standing in front of them.

"It wasn't by choice, believe me," Jacob grumbled. "The only reason I'm here is because this has something to do with Bella and Daniel."

The smile on Carlisle's face faded. "Unfortunately, it does. I'm concerned for their safety."

Jacob growled under his breath, causing Sam to put a hand on his shoulder.

"Their safety isn't your concern," Sam stated. "Daniel is Quileute and both he and Bella are under our protection."

"I understand that," Carlisle explained. "I thought that it would be best if I could explain how Bella and Daniel came to return to Forks. Esme and I weren't aware of Edward and Alice's deception until we came to visit Bella and Daniel last week. We felt compelled to send them back to Forks, knowing that they would be where they belonged and that the wolf pack would protect them more so than Edward ever could."

"Deception? What deception?"

"They told her that a certain vampire named Victoria was alive and determined to kill her."

Jacob snorted.

"That's not too far fetched. We know that bitch quite well."

"Yes well, they convinced Bella that our family was tracking down Victoria for the past two years in order for her to be able to return to Forks."

Sam crossed his arms in front of him.

"And let me guess, that was a lie."

Carlisle nodded.

"After Edward broke up with Bella two and a half years ago and forced us to relocate, I hadn't heard more than a few words from them until one day Alice called me out of the blue to inform me that Bella and Edward had run away together to Nova Scotia. I was surprised to walk into the room to find Bella in labour. It wasn't until Esme and myself came to visit her last week that she asked about how our search for Victoria was going that I realized that something was going on. Esme and I convinced Bella that Victoria was dead in order for her to return to Forks. I knew that her maternal desire to protect Daniel is strong. She wouldn't have come back any other way."

Jacob clenched his fists at his side, feeling the heat lick up his spine once more.

"So, you sent her back, knowing that she could have been killed?!"

"It was a risk, yes," Carlisle admitted. "But I knew that if they made it back here, they would be safe, from Victoria and from Edward."

Carlisle gripped Esme's hand and looked at her before turning back to Jacob.

"Our concern is that Edward will stop at nothing to get to Bella and to take Daniel from her. He isn't the same man anymore. He is determined to take them back. We've been keeping watch, anticipating his arrival. He may already be here, waiting. We want to let you know that if he does show up, we will work with you to do any and everything in our power to keep him from Bella and Daniel."