Chapter 11: Love Is in the Air
Disclaimer: S. Meyer owns Twilight
"I can't wait" she had said. He couldn't get those words out of his head no matter how hard he tried. It couldn't have been stated more clearly. Bella Swan loved him body and soul, and damn ... she blatantly declared that she wanted him.
He thought about what he could do to prepare himself. He'd already bought protection, so he was ahead in that respect, and the how he gleaned from his talks with Billy. And then there were the explicit scenes he witnessed from the pack mind. But what about the where?
It was obvious he couldn't make love to her on his lumpy little bed, or her bed either for that matter. How romantic would that be? The Taj? Too dirty. The forest? Too many little creepy crawly things—besides that closely resembled the meadow. Ugh—too chancy. The beach? Too much sand in your pants. A motel? Nah, that just made it seem so ... cheap. Where then? Maybe Embry or Quil could help him with a few ideas.
He decided to talk to Embry. Quil had a big mouth, and he wanted to keep this as private as possible. It would come out eventually, but until that time came about ...
Embry pulled up a chair. "What's up, my man? I kept looking over my shoulder to make sure I wasn't followed. You made this sound kinda clandestine"
"Where do you get these big words?"
"I read a lot. You should try it some time."
A young, attractive waitress came by. "What'll ya have guys?"
Handing the menus to the girl, Jacob responded, "Two cokes, and a couple large servings of fries." He then turned his attention to Embry.
"I need your advice on something. I know you haven't had much experience with girls—"
"Gee, thanks. Rub it in, why don'tcha."
"Hey, I'm with you on this."
"Listen, Jake. If you want help in the love department, then why are you talkin' to me? Get Quil or Paul to help you."
"Well, if you must know, Quil will blab it all over La Push. And Paul? Phft! Let's just say, he can get waaay too kinky. I want to love her physically, not scare her to death, besides, that's happened once already—the scared part, I mean."
The waitress left the food and drinks on the table, and winked at Embry. He blushed profusely, and looked away from her come and get me gaze. She smiled and walked off to wait on another customer.
Jacob grinned. "I saw that. Looks like your luck with girls might change after all."
Embry chomped on a French fry. He wiped his hands on the napkin, and noticed a phone number written on the back. He folded it and slipped it in his jeans pocket. He pivoted his head slightly and saw their waitress staring over her shoulder at him, nodding her head.
He nodded back, and with a goofy smirk on his face, said to Jacob, "Okay, so, get to the point already. What the hell do you need me for?"
"Picture this, Em. You're with the woman of your dreams. She whispers in your ear, Embry, I want you."
Embry threw a fry at his buddy. "Hey, not so loud. People might get the wrong idea." And one person in particular.
"Who cares? My question is: Where would you take her, so you could be alone?" Jacob took a big gulp of his coke, and leaned closer.
"That's easy."
Jacob nearly fell off his chair. His friend didn't even bat an eye. How'd he come up with an answer so fast?
"Uncle Omni has a cabin out by the creek. He never uses it anymore since he's gotten so old. Anyway, he said I could use it anytime I needed to. You can use it if you want. It needs to be cleaned up a little though. Seth and Harry were the last to use it right before he died. The mattress is practically new, and the fireplace still works. Not much furniture, but you and Bella will be too busy to notice."
Shaking his head in amazement, Jacob blurted, "Em, I could just kiss you."
Embry drew back slightly, in mock disgust, "You do, and you won't be kissing anyone for quite awhile. I'm not that attracted to you."
"So will you help me fix it up? I want it to look really nice for her."
"Sure, we can pick up some stuff at the thrift store. We can get on it tomorrow."
They finished the fries and drinks, and got ready to go.
The chair got pushed back as Embry stood, but instead of leaving, he walked in the opposite direction.
Jacob jerked his head toward the front of the Burger Hut. "Where you goin', idiot? The exit's this way."
"You go on. I'm gonna talk to that waitress." Embry waved goodbye, and swaggered over to the girl.
The next day, Embry and Jacob were at the Frugal Finds thrift shop picking up some lacey fabric for curtains, a small nightstand, a braided rug, and a set of double sized sheets. Amazingly, the sheets were brand new with the tags still on them. They also found a mirror, two pillows, and a comforter. They happened to be there on half price day, so the total came to less than twenty bucks. He probably would have spent that and more for one night at a sleazy motel.
On the way back home, Jacob spotted a stuffed loveseat, a coffee table, a vase and some artificial flowers sitting in a pile by the road. There was a sign laying on the loveseat that read: Free! What a break.
The two pals roped the loveseat securely to the roof of the Rabbit, and the coffee table on top of that. The rest got stowed in the car.
As they approached the cabin, Jacob realized he'd seen this place before, but never knew who owned it and didn't care to find out. They unloaded all but the coffee table. It needed a little work, so Jacob left it on top of the Rabbit. He'd bring it back to the Taj for stripping and varnishing later.
He and Embry made up the bed, swept the floor, and pulled the cobwebs down from the corners of the ceiling. There were a few tools and other cleaning supplies in a hall closet. Jacob found some nails, and since he had no curtain rods, he nailed the material he bought over the four small windows. His friend busily brought in an armful of wood for the fire, stacking it neatly by the hearth.
When they finished, they both grinned and gave each other a high five. The place was cozy and neat and pretty as a picture. Jacob had his fingers crossed. He hoped she would like it. Even if she didn't, he knew she'd appreciate the thought and the hard work that went into it. That was who she was.
The following time was spent, stripping, sanding, staining and varnishing the little table.
It had been a few days already, but Jacob was still not finished. He was tired of being covered in sticky varnish. Was he ever gonna get done? It was only a tiny little table for cryin' out loud.
His friend waltzed into the Taj while he was standing there bemoaning the fact that he only had another week to get the freakin' thing over to the cabin.
"Oh man, are you still workin' on that? I thought you'd be done by now."
"Well, if the damn rain would ease up some, maybe the coats of varnish would dry faster. Jeez, it's taking forever."
"What's the big deal? You don't have to put this particular piece of furniture in the cabin. It's not like Bella's gonna miss something she's never set eyes on."
"I don't care. I want everything to be absolutely perfect. Do you blame me?"
"Damn, you're gonna blow a gasket or somethin'. You gotta calm down. You're scaring me."
"Look, Em, I've waited three long years for her to choose me, and now that she has, I don't want anything to ruin it. Understand?"
"Well, if you ask me, I think as long as the sheets are clean, you got nothin' to worry about."
"Yeah ... well I'm not asking you."
"She loves you, Jake. I'm telling you, she won't care if that stupid little table is missing in action."
Embry sat on the stuffed chair, throwing a leg over one of the arms. "This isn't about the table is it?"
Jacob slumped back into the wall. "No, I guess ... All right ... I'm just nervous, excited, scared ... you name it."
"Hey, I hear you. But you know when you have her in your arms, everything will be okay, right? Anyway, don't forget—she'll be nervous too. Things didn't exactly go perfectly last time. Just concentrate on her, making her comfortable. If you forget about yourself, I guarantee that'll put your mind at ease at the same time."
Rubbing his chin, Jacob asked, "How'd you get to be a love expert all of a sudden? Did you and that waitress ...?"
Embry wiggled his eyebrows. "What do you think?"
A light rain was falling, but Bella and Jacob remained glued to their driftwood bench; their mouths were also glued—to each other. They were oblivious to the wet drops, anyway it's not like they weren't used to this type of weather. Jacob had her pretty much protected from the elements too. He had on a windbreaker that he didn't need, and it was wrapped around his girl. She was pressed against his warm chest, snug as a bug in a wolf-fur-rug.
Jacob sighed as his lips unpeeled from their willing partners. He spoke softly as his nose drifted along her jaw. "I thought we could go on a picnic this Saturday. The weather forecast says it's supposed to be partly cloudy that day. Wanna come?"
She looked up at him, a smile forming on her lips. "Only if I get to bring the food. I've seen your work in the kitchen."
She felt his tight abdominal muscles shake as he laughed. "I knew there was a reason, I like to picnic with you." He kissed her forehead.
"Dress warm; we're gonna be taking the bikes."
It was already four days past the five week period, and Jacob was antsier than ever. Getting that table over to the cabin didn't help one iota. He'd been there yesterday, sweeping and dusting. He even arranged the flowers in the vase, setting them on the now beautifully restored piece.
He hated to be counting the days like some horndog, just waiting to get her into bed. Okay, so he was counting off the days, but he didn't want her to know that. He hoped she knew that he loved her to the moon and back, and that wanting her was just a part of that—a great big part of that. God, the anticipation was driving him insane. Saturday couldn't get here fast enough.