A howl pierced the darkness over La Push, alerting the pack that their enemy was nearby. Jacob heard Jared's call, and kept in pursuit of Edward Cullen. The vampire darted through the trees, turning left and right as he led him through the dense forest. Despite all the erratic twists and turns, Jacob's sense of direction knew exactly where Edward was trying to head. He could smell it.
'He's heading back to Cullen land,' Jacob growled, feeling Embry, Paul and Sam's consciousness join with him and Jared.
'He won't get back in one piece!' Sam declared. The pack agreed with him and pushed themselves to move swiftly through the woods, in an effort to block Edward's path.
Ahead and to his right, Jacob could see Sam and Embry moving quickly towards them and Paul and Jared were approaching from the left. Just as they were about to intercept, Edward leapt into the air, jumping clear over the four wolves and landed gracefully ahead of the pack. They were all about to chase him once again when they suddenly realized he had safely landed on Cullen land - a place they could not go. While the pack of wolves bristled and paced angrily along the borders edge, Edward patted the dust off of his pants before smirking back at them. His eyes fell on the russet coloured wolf that snarled at him with his heckles raised.
"I never did get the chance to thank you for looking after Bella when I had left all those years ago," Edward said, looking directly at Jacob. "Mind you, I would've preferred if you had kept your dirty hands off of her...but because of that...event, you gave me a son that I would never have been able to have otherwise."
'Daniel is not your son,' Jacob hissed loudly in his head.
Edward scoffed and smirked, clearly hearing Jacob's thoughts as they were screamed at him in his head.
"Oh, but he is. Guess who held him after he was born? And whose arms he went to when he first learned to walk? I'm the one who stayed with him all night when Bella was exhausted from taking care of him all day. If there was a choice between you and I, he'd go to me if he was afraid or hurt. Daniel is my son and I will fight for him and for Bella."
While the pack was still trying to figure out how Edward was capable of responding to Jacob's thoughts when they hadn't been voiced aloud, two figures suddenly appeared behind the vampire. Edward didn't turn; he knew who it was.
"Edward, I think you should just go and leave Bella and her son alone to live their human lives," Emmett told him. "She doesn't love you like you want her to. You can't force that on someone."
Edward snorted and turned before walking towards them. "So, Carlisle called you two home. Why am I not surprised!?"
"He told us everything. He was hoping that we could talk some sense into you before you get yourself killed," Rosalie snapped bitterly as she crossed her arms.
"Those dumb animals can't kill me when I'm on this side of the border."
"And what if I suddenly decide to toss you across onto their land to let those...dumb animals have their way with you? Hmm? What then?"
Despite the insult, the wolves snarled loudly in satisfaction at Rosalie's suggestion. It was clear to them that this blond Cullen was more than displeased by Edward's actions towards Bella. Nothing would please them more than to have the opportunity to rip apart a bloodsucker. Edward had to wince at the sudden onslaught of comments and images flooding his head from the wolves behind him.
Knowing that the pack had heard his wife and were in full agreement with her, a small smile appeared on Emmett's face as he glanced at the wolves pacing eagerly at the border. As upset and confused as he and Rosalie had been when Carlisle had told them what Edward and Alice had done to Bella, once they had learned about her son, an anger had risen within Rosalie. Despite her hard exterior, the woman had a soft spot when it came to children and babies. Knowing that Edward had determined to keep the child as his own when it was clear that Bella wasn't wanting him angered her beyond anything Emmett had ever seen. He wouldn't put it past her not to throw Edward to the wolves then and there. Still, he was their brother and they assured Carlisle that they'd try to reason with him before giving him an ultimatum. Gently, Emmett placed his hand on Rosalie's shoulder.
"What we're saying is that you should just drop this whole damn thing," Emmett said to him, sincerity clearly in his eyes. "Carlisle said that Bella's kid is the biological son of one of those...wolves and that Bella told him that she loves his father. She's obviously happy. Why can't you just leave them be?"
Edward's eyes widened in shock.
"Leave them be? Are you crazy? I can't just 'leave them be'. Bella and Daniel are not safe! And I'm not talking about Victoria."
Edward pointed angrily towards the pack.
"Those dogs over there have no restraint on their anger." He turned and narrowed his eyes at them, pausing particularly long at Jacob before looking back at Rosalie and Emmett beside him.
"One wrong move and he could slash Bella's throat before she even knew what was happening. I don't even dare to think about what could happen to Daniel." He paused and glanced over his shoulder, his eyes narrowing at Jacob. "She doesn't even know that Daniel's father is one of those beasts. She has no idea how much danger she is in."
"Knowing that she was in danger certainly didn't deter Bella from hanging around you, now did it," Rosalie stated harshly. "How is this any different?"
"I would never harm her," Edward spoke darkly. "But now you know why it is so important that she stay away from those wolves."
"It's not your job to protect Bella," Emmett stated. "Honestly man, you gave that up the moment you left her in the woods two years ago."
"You know that I left her that day so that she could live a human life. It was the hardest thing I ever did," Edward sneered, before glaring over at Jacob in the darkness. "But I didn't leave her just to have her virtue taken from her by some dog."
"Irregardless, that was her decision to make."
"A dangerous one that I vow not to let happen again."
Edward sighed and lowered his voice as he looked earnestly at the pair in front of him.
"Please, I need your help. I have a plan. Once Bella is safely away from La Push, I have no doubt that her feelings for me will return. I'm certain if we work together, we can somehow get Bella and Daniel-"
"No."
Rosalie crossed her arms in front of her. Her interruption and declaration that she clearly opposed his intentions to help him surprised Edward.
"No?"
"That's what I said. I'm not going to stand by and let you manipulate Bella again."
Based on Emmett's expression as he stood stoically behind his wife, he agreed with her.
Edward snorted.
"You're serious. You'd further side with those mongrels, the very creatures that would kill you without a second thought rather than with me? Your brother?"
Emmett nodded.
"Man, you know we hate to admit it, but...yeah, we do. What you're wanting to do, it's wrong. And we're not going to sit by and let you take a child from its father, regardless of who it is."
"But you are right, Edward, you are our brother," Rosalie said solemnly. "That's why it hurts to tell you this, but as long as you're hell-bent on this stupid idea that you can somehow make Bella love you again by kidnaping her, you're not welcome here."
Edward scoffed. "You can't do that."
"But I can," Carlisle suddenly spoke, coming up from behind him. "As the original spokesman for our negotiations with the Quileute's, I can make an amendment to that agreement that I'm certain the wolf pack wouldn't hesitate to support."
It didn't take long for Edward to read Carlisle's mind to realize what he was implying.
"You'd banish me?"
"If that is what it takes to make you drop this whole matter."
Edward glanced over his shoulder at the wolves, still watching and overhearing the conversation with vested interest.
"You've already been conversing with the enemy, Carlisle."
"We knew you'd return sometime. We were ready, on both sides of the border."
Edward clenched his fists, as his anger and frustration rose.
"I'm sorry, Edward," Carlisle added. "I really hoped it wouldn't come to this."
"You can't be everywhere at once. You'll regret this," he growled, glaring at his family before sneering over at the wolf pack. In a flash, he raced off. While it appeared that Emmett was about to chase after him, Carlisle's hand on his shoulder caused him to pause.
"Let him go. Hopefully he comes to his senses and comes to realize that it's time to let Bella go."
With a sigh, Carlisle glanced over at the wolf pack as they stood on their side of the treaty line. He didn't say anything but gave a brief nod towards Sam before the pack turned to head back into the woods.
"Carlisle, you know Edward," Rosalie said. "He's always been obsessive about the things he cares about. He's not going to drop this anytime soon."
Carlisle hated to admit that Rosalie was right.
Jacob had become busier at the shop than he had originally implied. A few days had passed before he finally showed up at the Swan's door, looking exhausted from working through the day at his small business and sharing patrol rotations with the pack at night. Although he did have the assistance of Quil and Embry at the shop, they too, were burning the candle at both ends. When Jacob did show up one evening between his shifts to see Daniel and Bella, it was only briefly with a surprise he had been intending to bring over to Bella for over a week.
Taking her hands and insisting that she keep her eyes shut, Jacob led Bella down the wooden porch steps and into the driveway. Of everything she had imagined, Bella wasn't expecting to see her old red truck. As happy as she was to see it, it unfortunately invoked many memories that weren't as pleasant. Sensing her apprehension, Jacob opened the front door and insist that she get inside before he quickly darted to the passenger seat. The first thing Bella noticed was how the entire dash had been redone. The hole where she had pulled out the stereo system that Emmett had gotten for her for that fateful birthday was long gone and a simple CD player and radio combo fit between the odometer and the glove box.
The seats weren't the same either. The bench was a dark blue colour that Jacob explained he had found at an auto wreckers a year ago when he had been planning on detailing the entire truck. He sheepishly went on to explain that he was intending to paint the truck in a further attempt to make it look like a completely different vehicle, but couldn't bring himself to do it. As silly as it sounded to him at the time, it was his only connection that he felt he had to Bella. Only recently had he finally installed them, knowing that she and Daniel would be needing something to get around since he'd have the VW Rabbit.
"I can still get it arranged to get painted."
"No, no! It's fine like this. It looks exactly how it was when my Dad bought it off of Billy all those years ago."
"Except for the seats and the dash," Jacob corrected, while Bella shrugged.
"That's not a big deal. That was a needed improvement." She ran her hands over the steering wheel before glaring playfully at him. "Don't you dare paint it."
Jacob chuckled and held up his hands in mock surrender before he reached into his pocket.
"So...you wanna take her for a quick test drive around the block? See if she still feels the same?"
"I can't. Dad's not home right now and Daniel's in bed upstairs. He needs all the rest he can get right now. He was coughing a lot last night and it was keeping the both of us up. I really hope his pneumonia isn't coming back."
Jacob's smile fell as his eyes glanced up at Bella's bedroom window. His ears listened carefully, not picking up anything either than Daniel's deep breathing. It didn't sound unusual to him.
"Maybe it's just the cough still hanging on."
"I hope so."
Jacob nodded in understanding.
"A rain check then?"
"Of course. We could all take the truck on a road trip somewhere."
Jacob winced. "I don't know if I'd trust it out of the county. Cosmetically, she may look great, but I haven't done more than an oil change and ensure that she passed the safety to be on the road."
"But it's okay for around town here or back and forth to La Push?"
"Oh yeah, but keep a cell phone with you just in case anything happens."
Heeding that warning, Bella climbed into it the next morning with Daniel in his car seat beside her, the little boy eager to get out of the house. Despite the cloudy day that looked like it was going to rain at any moment, Bella brought him to a park and took along a ball, allowing Daniel to run around and play. All the while, Bella's eyes were on the wooded area surrounding the park, looking for any sign of bright red hair within the forest. No matter how many times Jacob could assure her that she was safe in Forks, she couldn't help but worry. As much as she was happy to be able to get out into the fresh air with Daniel, her mind would constantly be on the possibility that Victoria was watching them.
As she sat on the grass, watching Daniel squeal loudly while kicking the ball at a seagull, she heard a deep chuckle come from behind her. Bella felt her heart clench in her chest.
"Never in a million years could I have ever imagined you as a Mom," Emmett said, causing Bella to quickly glance up behind her. A smile appeared on her face as she stood to her feet. "But, it suits you."
"Emmett," Bella breathed, relief in her voice. "I heard you were in town. It's good to see you."
He reached forward and hesitated, silently asking for a hug. With a smile, Bella nodded and was suddenly engulfed by the muscular vampire's arms.
"Don't squeeze her too tightly now," Rosalie's teasing voice floated from behind him. "She's human, remember?"
Emmett smiled apologetically and released his hold on Bella.
"And I'm glad to see that you chose to remain human too."
Bella nodded, looking over at Daniel to ensure he hadn't wondered off on his own.
"I guess you can say that I finally realized the things I would have missed out on. As crazy as it is some days, I love being a Mom."
Rosalie smiled warmly, despite feeling a twinge of jealousy course through her. She was simply satisfied that Bella had come to her senses.
"I'm glad."
Bella turned to her, more than a little surprised by Rosalie's reaction. She knew very well that the blond never liked her when she had been with Edward. Rosalie averted her eyes and looked over at Daniel, watching him as he played with his ball in the grass.
Bella cleared her throat.
"So, what are you guys doing here?"
"Rosie and I were in the area and we saw you and your kid," Emmett replied. "We thought we'd say hi."
Bella shook her head.
"No, I mean, back in Forks."
Emmett looked to Rosalie who answered.
"Carlisle called us asking for help. He told us about you and Edward as well as what's been going on here with Victoria. We came back when we heard about your son being involved in all of this."
She paused and looked over at Daniel as he walked towards them with his arms wrapped around the ball. A rueful smile broke on Rosalie's face. She couldn't help it. Despite Daniel practically being the spitting image of his father, she was a sucker when it came to babies.
"He's innocent and helpless on his own. We wont let Edward near him and if Victoria makes your son a target, we'll destroy her before she would even lay a hand on him."
Bella was speechless. Never would she have ever guessed to hear those words come from Rosalie's lips. For a brief moment, Bella could imagine Rosalie as the loving mother that no one dared to challenge. If circumstances had been different for her, Bella was certain that Rosalie would have been a wonderful mother.
"I appreciate that. Thank you."
She smiled just as Daniel pulled on her pant leg, the ball at his feet long forgotten. Bella picked him up, all the while Rosalie's eyes twinkled as she watched the little boy smile before he timidly hid his face against Bella's neck. Bella put her hand on Daniel's back.
"Daniel, can you say hi?"
The little boy turned his head slightly, and waved his hand from under his chin as he smiled bashfully before he suddenly began to cough.
Bella pursed her lips and patted him on the back as the coughing fit continued. All the while, she explained to the two vampires that the little boy had been up in the night coughing.
"Bring him over to see Carlisle at our house," Emmett suddenly suggested before Rosalie glared daggers at him. To have Bella come over to their house was one thing, but to have the son of one of the wolves was an entirely different matter. Still, Emmett continued, ignoring the gaze that Rosalie was giving him.
"He's home right now and he could take a look at the little guy and make sure all is good."
Bella considered that option and smiled before she agreed.
It wasn't until Rosalie and Emmett were driving ahead of Bella's truck that Rosalie voiced her concerns.
"You know, the Quileute's will find out about this. They wont like it."
Emmett shrugged. "We're not doing anything wrong. We're helping her out and looking after her, just like we agreed to."
"You never ran this past Carlisle before offering to Bella that he'd be willing to take a look at Daniel."
"You know Carlisle. You've seen the way he talked about Daniel. He loves the kid. He wont turn them away."
Emmett was right.
Not only was Carlisle surprised to see Bella and Daniel walk into his house with Rosalie and Emmett, he was happy to see them. He wasn't the only one. Esme apologized for not having anything to eat for either Bella or Daniel, but offered them water to drink. She smiled at the little boy and sat beside Carlisle as he examined Daniel while the little boy sat on Bella's lap.
Daniel watched the people around him, a smile coming to his face when his eyes locked on Emmett. Wondering what he suddenly found so funny, Bella looked over at the large vampire to see him playing peek-a-boo from behind where Rosalie sat, reading a magazine.
Rosalie looked up, a smile on her face to see the little boy chuckle at Emmett's antics behind her.
"His lungs are clear," Carlisle said, running his hand over Daniel's small back. "It's probably just a lingering cough that will eventually go away on it's own. It just needs time."
Bella sighed, relieved to get that assurance.
"Thank you so much. And sorry for just dropping by like this, unannounced."
Carlisle smiled. "No apologies necessary. In fact, it's probably I who should be apologizing to you."
Sensing his tone, Esme put her hand on Carlisle's. He squeezed it.
"First and foremost, for Alice and Edward's behaviour towards you and your son. For all their lies and deception...if I had known sooner-"
"Wait, deception?"
Carlisle sighed.
"Bella, when you left Forks two years ago, Alice knew you had a relationship with Jacob. She believed...and still believes that you and Edward should be together...that you two can be in love again. Alice tricked you, in order to convince you to leave with her and Edward."
Bella shook her head, remembering the letters that Alice had left on her behalf. She let her hand run absently over Daniel's dark hair as he sat on her lap.
"But..." Bella breathed, her mind racing, trying to make sense of it all. "Laurent came and said that Victoria was coming back to kill me."
"While that may be true now, at the time Laurent had been staying with some friends of ours in Alaska. He was trying to adapt to our type of lifestyle."
Bella snorted. "He wasn't succeeding. He tried to kill me."
Carlisle nodded, having been aware of that event. "But I don't believe he had any knowledge of Victoria's whereabouts."
"Are you sure about that, Carlisle?" Rosalie asked, sitting down on the chair across from them. "I had spoken with Irina shortly after he disappeared, and she had told me about a woman who would contact him every so often. Laurent assured her that it was nothing and so Irina dismissed it, until he didn't return to Alaska."
Carlisle thought for a moment.
"So, there was some truth to it all. But it still doesn't excuse Alice and Edward's behaviour." He turned back to Bella.
"The moment they knew that you were pregnant with Daniel, they should have sent you home rather than continue their charade. When Daniel had been born, I knew something was off between you and Edward. He had always depicted your relationship as loving and I accepted it as that. I never questioned it. I'm sorry."
Bella reached out and put her hand over Carlisle's.
"It's not your fault."
"Perhaps not directly, but I was aware of how obsessive Edward could be; we all knew it. I needed to get you and Daniel away from him. That's why I had to lie to you about Victoria being dead in order for you to return back to Forks. I feared you wouldn't if you knew she was still alive."
Bella sighed. "So, you guys haven't been searching for Victoria all that time?"
She looked up at Emmett and Rosalie and met their sympathetic expressions. Rosalie shook her head.
"We were in Europe."
"And Esme and I were travelling around the world for a season," Carlisle added softly. "I'm sorry that I had to lie to you. You don't know how relieved I was to know that you had arrived safely, especially knowing that Victoria seemed to be waiting for you to return."
Bella took a deep breath and looked down at Daniel resting against her.
"None of this was your fault," she said. "Edward had been acting strangely quite a bit when we were in Nova Scotia. He would avoid me when I was pregnant and then spent as much time as I'd allow him with Daniel after he was born. I made a mistake in trusting him. I shouldn't have."
"You don't have to worry about Edward anymore," Emmett stated, with a smirk.
Bella looked from the large vampire to Carlisle who explained how he was not allowing him on Cullen land until he chose to leave her and Daniel alone.
"And what about Alice? Where's Jasper in all this?"
Carlisle sighed. "I'm assuming we'll see her sometime. As for Jasper, he's loyal to her. We can assume that where she is, he isn't too far behind."
He paused and smiled. "But don't you worry. You're safe while you're in Forks and in La Push."
"I'm guessing you know about the wolves," Bella assumed.
Carlisle nodded with a smirk. "Of course. We know enough not to venture onto Quileute land. That's how I also knew you'd be safe when I sent you home. While you're in La Push, you and Daniel would be protected."
While he spoke, Emmett had caught Daniel's eye. Emmett smiled at him and then covered his face with his hands before then slowly hid behind the chair that Rosalie sat in. Boldly, Daniel slid off of Bella's lap and slowly walked over to Rosalie's chair.
"I think he's coming to find you," Rosalie warned, a smile on her face as she watched Daniel toddle over towards her.
Emmett didn't respond, but waited until Daniel came around the chair, holding the side for balance. Startled, he squealed when he saw Emmett and quickly turned to run back to Bella, but tripped on his feet. Before he fell to the ground, Rosalie had leaned forward and caught him, placing him gently on ground. Without skipping a beat, Daniel crawled across the floor to Bella's feet.
The moment he reached her, Daniel glanced back at Emmett to find him following after on his hands and knees. Daniel giggled as he climbed up onto the couch beside Bella.
"I'm glad to see that your son inherited your clumsiness," Emmett teased, pushing himself up to stand.
Bella looked over at Daniel, watching as he smiled broadly at Emmett.
"At least he got something from me. When I look at him, all I see is Jacob."
As they were suddenly reminded of whose son Daniel was, Carlisle apologized and explained that they needed to head out to hunt. While it wasn't entirely false, he wasn't wanting to face any repercussions of having Bella and Daniel in their house any longer than necessary.
The Cullen's were well aware that Bella hadn't been informed about the true identity of the wolves that protected La Push. While Carlisle was surprised that Jacob hadn't told her, he agreed to keep that information to himself, leaving it up to the wolf's discretion as to when or even if they'd tell her.
Still, if she had known about them, it would've been so much easier to explain why he was suddenly pushing her out their door. Carlisle only hoped that it didn't come across as being rude.
Bella had smiled, stating that Daniel needed to get home to nap anyways. Before she did leave, Esme leaned forward and hugged Bella while Emmett ruffled Daniel's hair before he balled his fist. Smirking, Daniel reached out with his own fist and bumped it into Emmett's.
Bella thanked them before she climbed into the truck with Daniel and headed back home.
Somewhere along the way, the little boy had fallen asleep, his head leaning to the side in his car seat as he slept. After pulling into the driveway, Bella gently carried Daniel into the house. With one hand she pulled off the boy's shoes and dropped them on the floor before she stepped out of her own two shoes.
Carefully, she made her way up the steps and placed Daniel in his crib. With a sigh, Bella sat back on her bed beside the crib and stared at Daniel as he settled to sleep. She had so much to think about on her way home from the Cullen's; the truth about what Edward and Alice had done. An anger had filled her. They had purposely kept her and Daniel away from Jacob when they fully knew how much she loved him and wanted to be with him.
Tears came to Bella's eyes as she tightened her fist. Clenching her jaw she laid down on her bed and watched Daniel, angry for the two years that Edward and Alice had taken from her; for those first few months of Daniel's life that Jacob missed out on. If she ever saw Edward Cullen again, it would be too soon.
Pulling her cell phone from her pocket, she turned it on vibrate and closed her eyes, willing the anger to melt away as she fell asleep.
Three hours had passed before Bella was awoken by the sound of someone pounding on the front door. She sat up and ran her hand through her hair, before she looked over at Daniel. Quietly, the little boy sat dazed in his crib, his hair sitting haphazardly on his head as he rubbed his eyes. With a sigh, he grabbed the soother that had been found in his bed and shoved it in his mouth.
"Who could be at the door?" She spoke aloud, standing up from the bed and reaching into Daniel's crib to pick him up. Glancing at her cell phone that she had abandoned on the bed she saw the long list of texts and unanswered calls all from one person; Jacob Black.
Afraid that the door was about to broken down, Bella quickly made her way down the stairs with Daniel in her arms. She rounded the corner and could make out Jacob's profile behind the curtain. With a sigh, she unlocked the door and swung it open.
"Why haven't you been answering your phone? I've been..."
He paused, as the intense scent of vampires hit him in the face like a brick wall. Jacob couldn't help but stagger back slightly at the aroma. The wolf within took a deep breath, quickly considering where the threat was coming from. It wasn't coming from inside the house; it was coming from Bella and Daniel themselves.
"I'm sorry," she said with a smile. "Daniel was exhausted when we came home so he had a nap and I fell asleep with him. I put my phone on vibrate so no one would wake him."
"Bella, where did you go today?"
"The park. Daniel had a great time. He-"
His eyes narrowed.
"Where else did you go?"
Bella scoffed at his rude interruption. "I was just going to tell you that I went to the Cullen's house."
"The Cullen's...". Jacob took a deep breath. "Bella, you can't go there...and you never called to tell me..."
After everything she had learned today about what Edward and Alice had done, she was in no mood to deal with this.
"I'm sorry, Jake. I wasn't aware I had to tell you everywhere we go."
The sarcasm was thick and Jacob could taste it. He could also feel the anger rise within him. He shook his head and let out a breath.
"Of course you don't. But it's important that you don't go to see the Cullen's again."
"Why not? You told me that you went the other day. Besides, they're friends of mine."
Jacob clenched his jaw, the scent becoming too powerful for the inner wolf to ignore. Sensing it on Bella was hard enough to bear, but knowing it also covered his son caused Jacob to fist his hands at his side in an attempt to keep control of the wolf.
He took a deep breath, forcing that anger down.
"You know what they are."
"And I know that they wont hurt me. Daniel and I, we're fine. In fact, Dr. Cullen said that Daniel's cough is nothing to worry about."
Jacob paused.
"You went to see him about Daniel?"
Bella nodded, looking at her son in her arms as he watched Jacob carefully.
"He listened to his lungs. They're clear. He says the cough will resolve itself on its own."
"Really? What else did he say?"
"Nothing more about that. He did tell me about Edward and his motives behind taking me out of Forks two years ago. Things like that."
Jacob nodded silently, his anger slowly dissipating despite the strong stench coming from Daniel and Bella.
"I'm sorry," he said, between clenched teeth. "I was worried when I tried to call and there was no answer and then to find out that you went to the Cullen's house...I guess I thought the worst."
Bella smirked. "You know, I can take care of myself, Jake."
At that moment, Daniel pulled his soother out of his mouth and smiled at Jacob before reaching out towards him. Despite the putrid smell, Jacob took him into his arms.
"Da-yee! Bo?!"
Jacob paused, the words his son spoke taking him a moment to process in his mind. The stench coming from Daniel suddenly didn't seem so important.
"Did he just say-"
Bella was already nodding, a broad smile on her face. "Daddy? He did."
Holding his breath for a moment, Jacob leaned in and kissed Daniel on the cheek. "You want to go sit in grandpa's boat with your Daddy?"
Daniel nodded, pointing towards the small outboard sitting on the trailer in the driveway. Jacob placed Daniel into the boat and before he was able to climb in, Daniel was already sitting in the driver's seat beside the motor and was pretending to drive.
"Wave bye to Mommy!"
With a big smile, Daniel waved, his head barely visible over the edge of the boat.
"Here we go over some big waves," Jacob announced just before he shook the chair which Daniel sat upon. The little boy giggled as he held onto the seat.
Bella chuckled at her son, but found her eyes watching Jacob as he interacted with the little boy. A few seconds passed before Jacob could sense her eyes on him. When he looked up, he caught her staring, an expression on her face that he hadn't seen in years.
Two more days until the weekend, he thought happily knowing that he'll finally be able to spend an afternoon alone with Bella.
"You were right," Edward groaned into the reciever as he leaned against the payphone. Night had arrived in Port Angeles and he had found a payphone near the wharf. "Carlisle called Rosalie and Emmett and they've kicked me out of Cullen territory."
'I told you he would,' Alice stated. 'You should have listened to me before running in there.'
Edward rubbed his forehead in frustration and sighed.
"Have you seen Bella's future yet?"
'Unfortunately not. I'm guessing she's been spending more time with the Quileute's lately.'
"More specifically, one particular Quileute that I'd be happy to eliminate if I had the chance."
'You will, in time.'
"Alice, I can't do this anymore. I can't wait for one day where there is a possibility of being with Bella again. What if that day never comes? What if, what if she never does love me again?"
'She will, Edward. I've seen it before. I'll see it again. In the meantime, I want you to come Jazz and I in Seattle. You can't stay in Forks on your own.'
"I can't. At least not yet. Bella and Daniel aren't safe here since Victoria has been around. I don't trust Carlisle, Emmet, Rosalie and Esme to be able to be able to protect her and I certainly don't think those mutts have any talent other than licking themselves."
'Victoria is up to something. I just don't know what yet.'
"I'll call you again in a few days."
'Okay Edward. Be safe.'
He hung up the phone and looked out over the dark coastline. With both his family and the wolves on the lookout for him, Edward knew if he was going to stay close to Forks, he'll have to be careful.