Not Alone
As Renesmee and Jacob neared the end of their trip they spent their last couple days whale watching and visiting some of the museums. Renesmee wanted to see the Alutiiq Museum and learn more about the local culture. Toward the evening after they returned to the cabin to pack their bags, someone knocked at the door.
"Wait here." Jacob said to Renesmee having no idea who it could be all the way out where they were. To Jacob's surprise, it was Akiak.
"Hello friend," he said as soon Jacob opened the door.
Tom was with him again, as well as very tall young man named Elan. They both quietly stood behind Akiak but looked in the door, curiously.
Jacob frowned at the sight of them. "Something wrong?" he asked anxiously. He was in no mood for any surprise visits.
"I'm apologize for the intrusion during your honeymoon but I was wondering how Renesmee was doing. Is she alright?" the burly man asked.
Jacob was a bit relived that he was only out there to check on his wife's condition. He figured the chaperones were for protection if needed and he was pleased to see only two of them.
Renesmee immediately heard her name from the other room and knew the voice. She scampered to the door to see her friend. "Akiak!" she ran up and hugged him.
Tom and Elan immediately panicked when she approached their father and they both stepped in closer towards Akiak to safeguard him. The old man held up his hand, ordering them back. Elan took a step back but Tom still looked agitated and ready for anything. He didn't trust vampires, not even half human ones. The entire situation really bothered him, despite his father's assurance that she was peaceful.
Akiak patted Renesmee on the back. "I'm glad to see you are well. How's the um…cramps?" he chuckled.
Renesmee blushed. "oh , ah…better thanks."
"So it was really nothing serious then? You're well?" It relieved Akiak to hear the news.
"Yes. I'm fine. We've been having a wonderful time since we last saw you. We even went to the Alutiiq Museum."
The old native was flattered that she took such an interest in his culture. "That's excellent! I have to admit though, it's not a very exciting honeymoon activity." He said with a wink.
Renesmee chuckled. "Oh well, it was my choice really . I don't get out as much as I'd like to so everything I'd been able to do and see here has been a great experience. I've learned so much!"
"As long as you're having a good experience then. Who am I to say, hmm?" he smiled.
"Thanks for coming back to check on me Akiak," she smiled back with her rosy cheeks.
"You're welcome. I was worried that you might've been seriously injured during our uh, misunderstanding, the other day. I'm glad that is not the case. And I also wanted to inform you, unfortunately… I won't be your driver tomorrow which is the second reason I came to visit you tonight. I knew I wouldn't get to see you again if I didn't come."
"That's very sweet of you," she commented.
Jacob was busy exchanging unpleasant glances with the other two men as Renesmee and Akiak acted like old friends.
"Thirdly… also came here to warn you."
Jacob was all ears now. "Warn us? About what?"
"There's been a slow but steady increase in the blood drinker's activities recently. The last several months have been the worst. Though we are more secluded out here, my other brothers and sisters of Canada have informed me they have also been very busy lately."
"What do you mean others?…There's more of you?"
"Of course. Many more. We have various tribes up here."
"Are they all bears too?" Renesmee asked.
"Some are bears, but there are also coyotes and eagles."
"Eagles?" Jacob was astounded. "Can they fly?"
Akiak let out a deep laugh. "Of course they can!"
A smile came across his face. He was amazed. The thought of being able to fly was astounding to him.
"They are our eyes. They see everything and track the blood drinkers for us. We have a whole network going up here Jacob. I'm surprised you are unaware of any of this."
"Well, our neighboring tribes aren't like us. We're the only ones in our region. In fact we're pretty new at all this. It all started only a few years ago when the uh…Cold Ones as we call them, came to Forks and we all started going through the change. Before that it was just a legend to us."
"We were also quite peaceful for the longest time. Not much activity going on until the last couple of years, things have really picked up and many more tribes have started going through the change. We've learned to work with them to take care of the problem and keep the humans unaware of our existence as well as theirs. We don't wish to create panic amongst our people."
"Yeah I get that. We are just as careful with our secret as well."
"These new outbreaks we've been seeing are different. These blood drinkers are not like your kind. They are not civilized and cannot be reasoned with. They only wish to feed and they will stop at nothing until they do so. We deal with them accordingly."
They both understood what that meant. Renesmee looked at Jacob knowing exactly what kind of vampire he was describing – The new-born kind.
"Akiak, I don't think you should be talking about all this in front of the girl." Tom suddenly warned him.
Renesmee and Jacob both stared at the native with confusion.
Akiak sighed at his son's interruption.
"Forgive my rudeness…these are my sons, Tom and Elan," he said remembering to introduce them. "Tom is very uncertain about you. Elan however is extremely curious. He wanted to come meet you, in human form this time."
Elan stepped forward and spoke up. "I wanted to apologize for the attack. We thought…"
Renesmee interrupted him before he could finish. "I understand. I also accept you apology. No harm done."
Then she focused her attention on Tom. He still appeared quite unhappy to be there.
"Would you like to see what I showed your father Tom?" she offered, hoping she could ease his discomfort and take away his distrust in them.
He shook his head and diverted his eyes from her direction.
The other brother, Elan, perked up however. "I would," he said eagerly. "My father says you have an amazing gift. I would like to see for myself. I trust my father."
"So do I!" Tom said in an outburst. "I just don't trust blood drinkers!"
Akiak put his hand on Renesmee's shoulder and leaned. "His mother was killed by one of them many years ago. He has never forgotten."
"And you have?" Jacob asked.
"No, I will never forget the face of the one who killed my wife, but…since I've met Renesmee, I have very mixed feelings. There is good in her and my hope is that she and the peaceful ones will help put an end to those who only wish to murder and destroy life."
Jacob was relieved by his words but he couldn't tell if the other two shared his views. "I'm not so sure your sons feel the same way," he said.
Elan immediately responded. "I'd like to," he said.
At that, Renesmee stepped closer to him. His eyes widened, following her hand as it moved towards his face.
"Don't worry, it won't hurt." She said just before her fingertips touched his cheek. The moment her skin contacted his, the visions passed though him. Tom looked on curiously watching as his brother's face changed expressions over a dozen times as he saw image after image.
Finally when he was finished he let out a deep exhale and smiled at her. "Thank you. I understand what father was telling us now."
Elan had a much more peaceful spirit than his older brother Tom. He rarely displayed anger or hatred, even upon those who've wronged him. Tom's dislike for the vampires was on a very personal level though. Ever since he lost his mother when he was just a child, the tragic memory left him with only pain and contempt. Renesmee held his hand out to him again but he took a step back from her shaking his head. Renesmee dropped her hand feeling only sadness for the man. It's not the first time she's been rejected though and she knew it would not be the last.
"We should be leaving you now," Akiak said politely, not wanting to take up too much of their time. "I am so glad our paths had collided and I hope one day we will meet again."
Renesmee hugged her friend goodbye and watched as the three men reached the edge of the tree line and suddenly phased before disappearing into the dark forest.
Old Ghosts
The sun was still set behind the horizon at 4am. Seth was peacefully enjoying the warm comfort of his bed. He had only a couple more hours until Tara would come home from her hunt and wake him for work but his deep slumber soon about to be interrupted.
His body jolted when he was rude awoken by an annoying chime. With his eyes still closed he threw his hand over at the night stand to silence the alarm on his cell phone. The chime stopped but he then heard the sound of someone's voice coming from the phone now.
"Seth?...Hello?" someone shouted.
Still very groggy, he lifted his head and realized it wasn't his alarm going off but the ringer from an incoming call. He reached over and put the phone to his ear.
"Hello?" he grunted.
"Seth! Can you hear me? It's Alice!" her frantic voice shouted at him from the other end.
"Alice?" he mumbled barely awake, wondering why she would be calling him at such an ungodly hour.
"Where's Tara?" she yelled very panicky.
"Um…" He paused trying to think. "Probably still hunting…why?"
"You need to find her right NOW! She's in danger. Someone's going to kill her!"
Alice's words hit him like a bucket of ice water send shivers down his spine. His body shot up out bed, fully awake now and his heart pounded rapidly as he listened to Alice continue.
"She's at the mountain's ledge by the large water basin." Alice cried. "You have to get to her fast!"
He knew the exact area she spoke of. Without any more hesitation, he dropped his phone and ran as quickly as he could out the door, phasing in mid-air when he leaped. He stopped for a split second and howled a warning into the air for the others. Then he bolted like lightening, disappearing into the woods.
Tara usually hunted very early in the morning when the elk came out before sunrise to get their breakfast, knowing their predators would be hunting for food as well. She normally let Seth sleep in on weekdays, allowing herself enough time to hunt and return home in time so she could leave for work with him. She hoped she would spot a mountain lion this time since she hadn't been having much luck finding them recently. Edward warned her not to pick off too many of the same animal too often. He advised her to mix it up so the wildlife would have a chance to populate itself, thus providing them with more to hunt for a certain period of time.
Her plan was to traveled far up the mountain and heading to a large water basin where she knew elk would be gathering at this hour. Her feet barely touched the surface of the ground as she traveled, making no sound to be detected by animals. She rarely bothered to cloak while hunting as she was amply faster than her prey. The chase was the best part of the hunt. The scent of adrenaline and the rapid beating of a heart amplified her excitement as she chased her victims through the woodlands. Bears and mountain lions were even more of a treat because they tended to put up a fight. Hunting animals gave her all the thrills without the guilt of taking a human life. She missed the taste of human blood but it seemed a good trade.
When she arrived at her destination, she quietly climbed to higher ground above it to search for predators, hoping they would be too busy to notice her since they would be distracted by their own meal. She climbed up into a tree and patiently waited; watching as the elk huddled around the body of water, drinking and chomping on the shrubs that surrounded it.
Finally she spotted what she came for. She grinned when she saw the large cat perched in a tree other side of the creek. It was eyeing its food as well. Tara decided to wait until it would for it to make its move on the elk. Once the feline was distracted with its own meal, she would move in for the attack.
She sat motionless, waiting…..
Then within a few minutes the cat was on the ground and the heard took off in a scatter. This was her moment. She readied herself for the leap but the instant she began to spring forward, she noticed something was wrong. Really wrong. Her feet felt like they were weighted with lead and as she propelled herself from the tree limb, her body barely made any distance toward the cat and fell strait down on the hard surface below, knocking the wind out of her. The mountain lion bolted when she impacted the ground with a thud.
Tara let out a groan. A sharp pain shot though her entire body when she landed. She barely managed to crawl to her knees but in a daze she looked down at the palms of her stinging hands, gasping when she noticed the abrasions. An eerie feeling came over her as she realized something was happening to her body. She felt so vulnerable… breakable… weak. She felt… human.
Before she could muster the strength to stand, a cold breath hit the base of her neck and it sent a chill down her spine.
"Hello Tara." The voice hissed from behind.
It was a voice of a ghost from her past - one that made the hairs on her body stand straight up. It ached when she turned to see who it was. Her golden eyes widened with absolute horror upon seeing his face. The man's crimson eyes glared at Tara.
"Surprised to see me?" he smiled wickedly as though he enjoyed seeing her in pain.
Her body started to tremble. "It can't be… I killed you," she squeaked.
"Mmm, not quite my dear…you didn't finish the job. Never burned my body. I regenerated," he shrugged with a smirk.
A sinking feeling came over her. She remembered now. She didn't take the time to finish the job. Her only intention was to escape at the time so she left his body in pieces, not thinking he would recover from such a state. She knew she was in immense danger and that he would make his revenge a slow and painful one.
"You know… I've been searching for you for all these years and you actually kept hidden quite well. I thought I almost had you when you were in the east when the news reported all those blood banks being robbed…but when it all suddenly stopped, I was at a loss again. It wasn't until I heard rumors of what you and those Cullen's did to Aro. I couldn't believe it until I returned to Italy and saw it for myself. I immediate started searching for you in Forks thinking you lived with them but I was wrong. Thinking you were on the move again I searched everywhere on the northern west coast until I finally picked up on your scent and discovered your feeding habits had changed."
He stared at her golden eyes.
"I never would have believed you would give up the taste of human blood for a bunch of filthy animals, not until I saw it with my own eyes."
Tara's lip quivered. She tried to bargain for more time, hoping the pack might've sensed his presence and followed his tracks. "Please Derek, just let me be. It's been decades."
He leaned in close to her. "Now, that's what I like. The smell of fear, the pleading…. It's my favorite part."
"I have nothing you want. Just leave me in peace."
"Oh no but that's not true. You betrayed me and left me for dead. I've been waiting for this for a long time Tara. You owe me your life and now I've come to claim it." Then he leaned right in her face. His cold breath chilled her lips when he spoke. "And payback's a bitch," he hissed.
Tara knew this was it. She had only seconds till her true death. Her only thought was of Seth and the pain it would cause him to lose her. She wondered if he find would her mutilated corpse when he came looking for her or what if he never finds her body at all and thought she left him again. Either way, his heart would shatter into a million pieces.
It didn't make sense to do it but it was the only thing she could think to add more time to her life. As quickly as she could, she got up and began to run. Her feet felt like she wore iron shoes. It was like a dream where you try to run but barely move. She felt clumsy and off balance too, tripping on branches and rocks below.
Amused by her efforts, Derek allowed her to run for a while, knowing she'd tire easily in her weakened form. She only made it about thirty feet when suddenly something stopped her abruptly as her body slammed into something solid. She never saw it anything in her path seconds ago, but it was there now - Derek's arm. He'd leaped in front of her and swung his out arm like a bat into her rib cage shattering her bones making her frail body crumple to the ground.
"Ooh! That had to hurt." He chuckled.
She couldn't stop herself from sobbing as she lifted her body again and crawled, trying not to think about the agonizing pain in her chest. Before she got very far he grabbed her by the hair and turned her face towards him. She screamed as he slammed her body into the ground. It was pure enjoyment for him to watch her suffer. When she grabbed his arm, futilely trying to fight back, he noticed something shiny on her finger. He pried her hand from his body, examining the ring on her left hand.
"What's… this?" His tone was icy. "Married? You took another mate?"
"You were never my mate. I hated you," she hissed.
He ignored her denial. "That must be what the horrible smell is all over you. Who is he? Or should I ask, what is he?"
Her hand made a cracking noise as he snapped it and she screamed again, still refusing to say Seth's name. Her stubbornness angered him. "Tell me!" He growled.
"Go to hell!" She spat in his face.
He laughed at the suggestion. "Oh…I will, but not before you. It's no matter who he is…I'm sure he'll come looking for you eventually. I'll just leave him a little present to find on your dead body." He grabbed her jeans and began to rip them and then she felt the pain as he sunk his teeth into her neck. She shrieked in pain, struggling to fight him off but it was no use. She squeezed her eyes trying not to think about what was to come next.
I love you Seth, she thought. She prayed for it to be over soon but she knew he would force her to endure his torture for hours before he would eventually become bored by her begging and screaming and finally end her misery. When she heard the sound of his buckle being removed, she braced herself for the worst to come but before he could touch her again she suddenly realized he was no longer on top of her. There was a fierce growl that started from behind her and then she felt a gush of wind travel across her body.
Seth had arrived just in time, barreling into the vampire and knocking him to the ground. The sight of the massive wolf stunned Derek when he was faced with mass of teeth that snarled at him in. The vampire's hand reached up and touched the side of his face where Seth ripped open a wide gash. In a panic, Derek began to crawl backwards in the dirt as the colossal beast came towards him in a rage. He realized this creature could possible destroy him if he wasn't careful. Seth lunged for him again but the vampire was much faster, eluding his attack. Derek sailed over him backwards and landed on the wolf's back. Seth thrashed, trying to get the vampire off but it gripped his shoulders tightly. The pain nearly took him down but he knew he would lose if he gave in. He bucked and rolled trying desperately to force it to let go. When he felt its hands reaching around his head, he knew he was in serious trouble.
Just before Derek could snap his neck, something knocked the both of them over, and Seth was freed from Derek's grip. Edward collided with the vampire, knocking him off Seth's back and slamming him into a tree. The trunk split in two as soon as they crashed into it and then it buckled, falling to the ground. Edward instantly read Derek's mind to scan his abilities. "Bella, shield me! Now!" he shouted to his wife in a panic.
But when Derek struck back, Edward's body went sailing in the air. In an attempt to come to his aid his four companions motioned in his direction at a laggard pace. Bella attempted to run to his side but she clumsily tripped over his body and fell over him. He groaned when she kneed him in the abdomen.
My feet won't move! Something's wrong with me! She thought, but Edward couldn't hear her. His mind reading ability was gone also.
"Shield Bella!" He yelled at her in frustration.
"I'm trying!" She screamed.
Jasper and Alice both charged at their enemy not yet realizing what was happening.
"Jaz, no!" Edward shouted when he saw his friends heading for the vampire. It was too late though. As soon as Jasper was close enough, Derek grabbed him by the throat and lifted him off the ground by his neck. Alice tried to strike him but Derek simply swatted her off like a fly. Alice landed flat on her back with tremendous thud. She felt her bones pelvic bone crack when it rammed into the hard ground. Derek grinned victoriously. His abilities worked on the Cullens rendering them powerless.
"What's happening?" Bella cried.
"It's him. He's able to make us vulnerable; weak as a human."
Seth was the only one still functioning at full strength and was already back on his feet, ready to charge. As soon as Derek spotted him barreling in his direction he hurled Jasper's body straight at him and the vampire collided with Seth, stopping him in his tracks. Jasper bounced off the wolf and fell limp to the ground. He was still conscious but confused about what was happening to him. Seth exchanged quick glances with his injured friend who nodded, signaling that he was alright. Seth knew he was the only one able to stop Derek now.
"Guess it's just you and me then," Derek jeered.
Seth looked around at his friends, all of them too weak to defend themselves. Tara still lay in the same spot, motionless and silent. He wanted to run over to check her condition but he didn't want to take his eyes off her assailant. Suddenly a low growl came from behind the thick of the trees and Derek spotted ten glowing eyes fixated on him and out of the darkness came five masses of muscle and fur, all bearing their jagged rows of sharp teeth. Upon realizing he would be greatly out-numbered he decided to bolt from the scene.
"Don't let the blood sucker get away!" Paul thought. The others agreed, eagerly desire to make a kill.
Seth started to chase his friends as they disappeared into woods but he stopped and turned, remembering his wife and friends that all remained in their positions trying to make sense of it all. Only Edward seemed to have any knowledge of what caused their sudden deficiency of power and strength.
Seth's priority became his wife. He ran to Tara's side and hunched over her wincing. He'd never seen he look so crumpled and frail as he did now. With little concern for modesty, Seth phased to human form so he could touch her. His body crouched over hers and he pulled her body into his lap, cradling her in his arms.
"Tara?" he softly touched her face. "Please…please be okay." His eyes started to well up with tears as he remembered her assailant violating his wife. He only hoped he wasn't too late to save her.
Seth barely noticed the when the others had gotten up rushed to his side, anxiously watching. Tara finally opened her eyes. They fluttered rapidly trying to regain focus on the object in from of her. Suddenly she realized her pain was gone and she wrapped in Seth warm muscular arms.
"Seth!" She gasped, cupping his face in his hands to make sure he was real. "Are you okay?"
He exhaled with relief. "Yes! I'm fine…are you?"
Tara's had slid to his bare chest, realizing he had no clothes on. "You're naked." She smirked.
"Run out without your pants again did you?" she joked as she immediately clothed him, though only in illusion.
"Thanks, but that's the last thing on my mind. Please tell me if you're hurt," He waited impatiently for an answer.
"I'm fine, now that you're here."
She sat up feeling completely back to normal again. All her injuries were completely healed now that Derek was gone.
Derek! she suddenly remembered in a panic. "Where is he?" she said looking around.
"He's gone." Seth assured her. "But… who is he? Why did he do this to you?"
Tara's face hardened. She couldn't speak at first but she didn't have to. Edward heard every thought and Bella spotted the grim look on his face. "What's is it? She asked.
"He's her maker." He answered.
Seth scowled. "But…you said he was dead."
She looked down shamefully. "So I thought. I never had time to destroy his body. I left him in pieces and ran. He regenerated apparently. I had no idea he would still be looking for me this long."
"Well what did he do to us?" Jasper asked, feeling rather perplexed.
"He has the ability to expunge our abilities. Not just gifts, but all strength, speed, even our impervious structure. Once his victims are in a weakened state, can inflict pain them like he could any human being, making them an easy kill. He's extremely dangerous, a deranged psychopath. Like me, he was turned accidently. Aro initially planned to destroy him until he decided he would serve his purpose better if he could control him. So under the restraint of Renata and Jane, they kept him there until he properly adapted."
"And then he created you?" Seth asked.
She nodded. "Yes, and then I became the new toy."
Seth's body started to tremble. He tried very hard not to phase from the anger that was swelling up in side.
"It pleased him to have a companion and I couldn't object. My desire for blood made me do anything he wanted, anything they wanted. I couldn't control myself, at least not for many years later. When I finally made the decision to leave, I cloaked so he would never see me coming. I made my attack and then fled as quickly as I could. I was sure I had destroyed him since I had left him in completely unrecognizable pieces." Tara grinned slightly embellishing the memory. There was no doubt she took pleasure in eradicating the monster who took her life and killed her family.
Edward became distracted again as he heard more voices approaching. "The wolves are back." He said.
"Did they get him?" Seth asked hopeful.
Edward listened for a moment. "No…." he frowned "He got away."
The wolves continued their search through the night to find the vampire but Seth stayed behind to protect his Tara. She rode on Seth's back the entire way back to reservation so to , keep her scent off the ground as they traveled. She also kept them cloaked just in case.
When they arrived at the house Seth opened the door and then turned, kicking it shut with his foot. Then he gently set her down. Tara stood quietly for a moment staring blankly at her surroundings. It felt good to be home but she couldn't shake the memory of her recent calamity. , thinking. Seth waited patiently for her to speak.
"I need to wash up." She said, barely looking at him. "I can smell him all over me," she grimaced in disgust.
He watched her walk into the bathroom and turn the water to the hottest setting. Then she removed what was left of her clothing. She showed little emotion as she peeled off her mud stained shirt and threw it in the trash can until she suddenly caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and gasped, not realizing how horrible she really looked. Then, remembering what he had done to her, she pulled back her hair to examine the scar at the base of her neck. Everything started sinking in now as the memories flashed through her head. She realized how close she came to being raped and killed.
Seth went to the bedroom to grab some fresh pants. He found a pair of jeans on the bed from the night before and pressed them to his nose. They were good enough for now he thought and slipped them on. He thought to give Tara some privacy but upon hearing a few choice curse words and what sounded like objects being slammed about in the bathroom he decided to check on her. When he peeked his head through the door she was still standing in front of the mirror.
"Um…you okay?" he asked.
Her eyes panned up at him slowly with a pained expression. She nodded but it was a lie.
"Do you want to be alone?" he asked.
She shook her head in reply.
Seth stepped though the door and stood next to her.
"Stay with me," she said in a whisper.
He gently caressed her hair. "I'm not going anywhere."
In an instant her arms were wrapped tightly around him, trying as hard as she could to hold back her pain but she buried her face in his chest and faintly sobbed.
It pained him to see her this way and he worried about what really happened to her before his arrival. "Tara, did..did he…?" Seth choked up before he could even get the words out. It sickened him to think that monster had even touched her in such a way.
"No," she whispered, realizing what he was asking. "You were just in time." She added to ease his fears.
He exhaled with relief.
When she regained her composure she started to remove the rest of her clothing but then Seth thought of something and had her wait. He switched the shower to the faucet and closed the tub drain so it would fill.
"Um…what are you doing?" she asked.
"Filling the tub."
"I see that but why?"
"I was gonna draw a bath for you."
"A bath?"
"Yeah, don't tell me you've never taken a bath before."
"Well yeah, I think, when I about five."
He chuckled. "Trust me." Then he grabbed some candles from off a shelf on the wall lit them before dimming the lights.
Tara smirked at him when he pulled a hair tie from a drawer and gently started pulling her hair off her shoulders; running is fingers through her silky hair. The tranquil mood he created caught her off guard, completely forgetting about the mark on her neck but the second Seth exposed it he let out grumble, clenching his teeth together rigidly. She threw her hand up over it and tensed up when she saw his expression.
"Did he …bite you?" he teeth.
She nodded looking away.
"Why?" he said angrily. He didn't understand the point of it since she was already a vampire.
She hesitated for a moment and the finally answered. "To mark me," she said in a low tone. "He saw my ring. He didn't like that I took a mate."
Seth's eyes filled with over whelming rage. He tried to pry her fingers off hee neck so he could get a better look, Seth kept trying to look at the scar but she wouldn't move her fingers.
"Don't," she said. "Don't make yourself more upset. It means nothing." She was thankful it was the only thing he managed to do to her, knowing it could have been worse.
"This is what matters." She held up her hand showing him her wedding band.
The tub was almost full. She reached down and turned the knob to the off position. She could feel the steam rising up. Tara removed her undergarments stepped into in the hot water and sat down. She looked up at Seth who just stood there in a daze. He shook off his anger when she spoke.
"Wanna hand me the sponge?" she said.
Seth looked down at her. Even after being scuffed through mud and dirt she still looked beautiful to him. His mood softened and he grabbed a sponge from the shower rack and sat down on the floor. Then he dipped it in the water and lathered it with soap and began to wash her back, letting the sponge roll over her shoulder and down her arm.
Tara tucked her knees in and rested her cheek on them. "Mmm, okay I see what you mean now."
"Close your eyes he said to her."
She obeyed but as he continued to caress her body with the warm soapy sponge her nerve endings all seemed to come to attention at once.
Her eyes popped open and she lifted her head when his lips touched her arm.
"You're not very good at this whole relaxing thing."
"It's impossible to relax when you're doing all that. It's like the opposite of relaxing for me."
"Oh sorry." He frowned. "I hoped you'd enjoy this."
She leaned over putting her arm on the edge of the tub and resting her chin on it. "I didn't say I wasn't enjoying it." She smiled. "Maybe you should join me. I don't take up much room."
He grinned. "There's clearly not enough room for me in there. I barely fit in the shower myself."
Unable to resist her strength, she suddenly grabbed him and pulled him into the tub with him, clothes and all.
"Hey!" he protested.
"Hmm, I disagree. I think you fit just fine," she grinned.
He pulled her on top of him and she giggled just before he kissed her.
