All I can say is thank god for inspiration. Without it, you guys would not be getting two new chapters tonight {Yes, there are two!}Thank you guys so much for your reviews, I appreciate them so very much! Now, I hope you enjoy!
The rest of the morning went swimmingly. Jake and I ate breakfast with Billy and Charlie, and they were too tired to really ask or care what the sleeping arrangements had been the previous night. We were extremely lucky. I was brewing a pot of coffee to further wake our two dads up a bit, when I heard a knock at the door. I stuck my head around the doorway, and Jake left my side to go and get the door.
He opened it slowly, and I saw his back tense, and his arms were quickly folded.
"Cullen." He said as a greeting, barely keeping a level tone.
"May I see Bella?" A smooth tone inquired. "It's quite urgent." It was Edward. I quickly started the coffee, wiped my hands on the dishtowel, and quickly made my way.
"Yes?" I said, slightly confused as to why he was here. "Is something wrong?"
"We need to go. Now." He grabbed my arm, and began to pull me forward, but Jake stopped him; pulling me back to him.
"What do you think you're doing?" Jake asked hotly, slightly shaking. Charlie and Billy looked on curiously, unsure if they should interrupt or not.
"Um guys? Should we maybe settle this outside…?" I asked, not wanting to cause a possible battle in front of Charlie. While Billy might be able to guess why there was so much hostility, Charlie would not. Jake just nodded, and we went outside, tightly shutting the door behind us.
"Would you like to tell me what the hell just went on?" Jake said bluntly, his grip tightening on me, but his shaking slowly. He was getting it out, and having me safe at his side was hopefully helping as well.
"What just went on?" Edward asked icily, "I'll tell you. You were an idiot and possibly just endangered her life even more. She needs to get out of Forks. Nicole's done with toying with her; she's searching now. She showed up at our house, but we were unable to catch her due to her eluding us." Jake clutched me to him, breathing slowly, trying to stay calm. "She needs to go somewhere safe; where she'll be free of Nicole, and under more protection. Nicole wouldn't be such a problem if we actually knew what the hell was going on in her mind. Alice can't predict anything because she changes her mind too frequently, and I can't access her mind. It's a total blank, so we need to take greater precautions." His gaze narrowed, "So, if you don't mind, I'll be taking her now." Jake pushed me behind him.
"There are other solutions to this," he snarled. "And there's no way I trust her in the care of someone like you." Edward laughed coldly.
"Imbecile dog," he remarked. Jake's shaking began to increase, quicker and quicker. I threw myself in-between them, hoping to get their testosterone to stop flowing and to get them to calm down.
"Just wait you guys," I said, hoping to get a more…reasonable solution to the problem at hand. "Edward, explain it more in-depth and don't provoke Jake." He glared.
"Let's go to the house then." He said, "Don't want to possibly cause a scene." His gaze went to the house, where I presumed Charlie'd be watching. I sighed.
"Okay," I conceded. "I'll drive." I turned away and started making my way to the house. I called to Charlie. "Dad, we're going to the Cullens. I'll see you in a few hours." He nodded.
"Okay Bells, just be careful." I noticed there was an edge of worry to his voice. I tried brushing it off; hopefully Billy could calm him. I went back out, and saw Edward was already gone. Jake just stood there, looking distraught and silent. I ran to his awaiting arms and he sighed, burying his head in my hair.
"What are we going to do?" He murmured. I looked up to him.
"We'll figure it out. And it'll be okay." I gave him a quick kiss, and he smiled. "Now come on," I said. "Let's get going so we can make a plan." We drove to the Cullens slowly, and when we reached the house, Jake got out of the car and opened my door. He helped me down, and put an arm around my waist, holding me close to him. He wasn't shaking anymore. We walked up to the house, and Carlisle held the door open for us.
"Welcome," He said as warmly as possible. "I'm sorry that you have to visit under these circumstances however. Come in, come in." He brought us to the dining room, where the rest of the Cullens were waiting. Rosalie looked angry, and Emmett just seemed wary of her mood. I didn't blame him; Rosalie angry was not a pretty sight. Alice seemed frustrated; despite Jasper's attempts to calm her. Esme had a look of stress on her pretty face, but it eased as Carlisle made his way back to her side. Edward was furious. I didn't even have to look at him to know it; I could sense the tension seeping into the room.
"So what should we do?" Jake asked, his eyes casting a stare over all the vampires. Rosalie snorted.
"Isn't it obvious? We get her out of here. She's not safe, and neither are we." She said, looking at her nails. Edward nodded quickly.
"I agree. I'll take her out of the country. She'll be safe then." He said
"I'm not so sure that would be a good idea," Esme said, casting a disapproving glance at Edward.
"And why not?" he said, defensively. "I'm more than capable of taking care of her." Rosalie crossed her arms.
"No you're not." She stated. "You're too in love with her to do anything of the sort! If Carlisle and Esme hadn't stopped you from holding her while she was sleeping here; unaware that you were even doing it, who knows what else would have happened?" My eyes widened.
"Excuse me?" I said, in shock. Edward's face was to the floor; Carlisle and Esme were shaking their heads, along with Jasper and Alice, while Emmett just stood by Rosalie, running a hand through his hair. Jake began shaking.
"Yes. What. The. Hell?" He said, his voice rising in anger. He was making one-word sentences, and I could tell he was trying to calm down, breathing in through his nose and out through his mouth furiously.
"There is no explanation." Edward said quietly. "Other than the fact I got consumed by my emotions. Bella had no knowledge of it."
"The hell I didn't!" I cried angrily. I was beyond shocked; now there was a small fire of fury brewing. "Edward, I tried to be understanding and thoughtful when I knew you liked me. But to defy what you know would upset me, I'm sorry but that's ridiculous. I can't believe you!" I was seething. Jake just shook his head.
"Cullen." The word was cold, harsh, and somehow furious. "You've crossed the line. In fact, you've gone far past it. Consider yourself nonexistent when it comes to Bella. Interject yourself into her life again, and I promise, you will deeply regret it." He took a deep breath. "I literally want to rip you apart right now. But I know that it's not an accurate solution to this problem. Leave her alone Cullen. You don't want to hear from me again." His shaking had subsided at this point, and he swooped me up in his arms, and brought me out of there. We got in the truck. "Drive." Was all Jake said. I did as he said, and we quickly got off the Cullens' property.
I drove to the high school parking lot; which was deserted and far away from their house. I cut the engine. It was silent.
"I'm sorry," I stammered, feeling angry tears rise to my eyes, and making my voice shake. "I had no clue, or I would have…" I shuddered. I still couldn't believe it. The audacity to do that. The mere nerve to even consider…it just angered me each time I thought about it.
"It's alright," Jake said, wiping away a tear that had fallen. "It's not like you wanted him to do something like that. It's not your fault." He pulled me closer to him. "I don't want you talking to him again though Bella. I didn't trust him before, and I sure as hell don't now." I nodded.
"Believe me, I don't trust him either." I shook my head. "I just can't believe that he would do that."
"It's alright," he crooned. "I'm not happy that it happened, but it's over now at least. Nothing we can do but move on and learn from it." I looked at him.
"When did you become so mature?" I said, staring into his eyes. He laughed gently.
"Since I fell in love with such an amazingly mature woman." He kissed the tip of my nose. "And while I'm pissed at the guy, I can't blame him for liking you. I'm lucky as all hell to have you." I blushed.
"It's more the other way around," I teased. "But there's just one problem with defriending the Cullens. What do I do about Nicole then?" Jake's brow furrowed in thought.
"Only one simple solution, in my opinion." I raised an eyebrow. "Well it's simple," he continued. "Get out of Forks."