Okay, here's another chapter. Let's see what happens between J&B in these unexpected circumstances. SM owns all. This is the way that I wanted things to go. Thanks so much to Goldengirl62, for your help, I do appreciate you hon, and thanks to Ladyofspain; you are wonderful friends of mine.

Chapter Fifteen: Jake

(Bella's POV)

All the color drained from my face when I saw Jacob. He was standing, devouring me with his eyes, his gaze traveling over me, ogling me. My face had gone from pale to bright red; it heated with the intensity of his gaze. I quickly looked at Angela, and then put my hand over my face in embarrassment.

"I never should have left my house today," I whispered to her quietly.

"Me neither," she replied.

This was a very uncomfortable situation for me; I felt incredibly vulnerable laying here in this bathing suit. I was wet and shivering, and I could feel goose bumps on my skin from the cold. Because of the cold, I know my nipples had hardened and could be seen through the top of my bikini. I felt practically naked sitting here in front of him.

I knew he hadn't moved from the spot where he was standing, or taken his eyes off of me; I didn't dare look to find out. Though we had dinner at my house a few days ago, and I felt comfortable in his company, in this situation I felt a mixture of embarrassment and nervousness. I was definitely aware of the admiration I aroused in him. I could feel his eyes on me, as if he were stroking me with the tips of his fingers that left a trail of fire that burned from within.

I pulled myself together and turned towards Leah. I couldn't sit here all day so I got up to greet her. "Hey Leah." Then I noticed the young boy by her side again. "Who is this?." I asked.

"This is my brother, Seth …" she replied. "… The one that was missing."

I smiled at him. "So you're Seth, eh?; A lot more people than you realize were very concerned about you."

He left Leah's side and gave me a kiss on the cheek. "Not too close," I warned him. "I'm still very wet."

"I finally get to meet you in person, Bella," he said excitedly. "You're the girl Jacob is always thinking about."

My face became red again at his comment and I didn't dare to even glance in Jacob's direction. I crossed my arms at my chest and began rubbing my arms with my hands to try and warm myself up a bit. I needed to find my towel so I started looking around for my things.

"Well, I guess you must be able to go into the mind of Jacob, so you know what he thinks," I replied nonchalantly.

All the boys laughed at this statement, but I didn't get the joke, so I just shrugged it off.

Seth grinned and said, "Something like that, but I know about you because he actually talks about you a lot, all the time, all day."

I looked to the side and noticed Quil smiling slyly, he yelled, "And all night."

Everyone laughed harder.

(Mike's POV)

Ben and I were leaving the water when we saw the Quileute standing around Bella and Angela. This could not be happening, not now. Just when I had all my time with Bella, here comes this hateful Quileute. How dare this Indian be so blatant, seeing in that way at Bella?.

"You see how Jacob is looking at Bella?". I told Ben. "It's shameful. Seems that this idiot won't give up."

Ben told me, upset, "Come on, man, I'm too busy watching my Ang and the guy beside her."

I knew that if Jacob was here, it would be difficult to remove him from Bella's side; so I came up with something so that Ben and I could get rid of those guys, and have more time with our girls. Ben agreed with my plan.

We walked close to where the group was standing and noticed Bella was looking for something—must've been her towel. "Bella," I called to her. "Take my towel." Then I walked over and handed it to her.

(Jacob's POV)

When Bella opened her eyes and looked at me, I felt rooted to the spot. I was unable to move or say anything. I watched as she walked over to greet Leah and all I could think of was throwing her over my shoulder and running away with her somewhere private to unleash all the love and desire I felt for her.

Sam tapped me on the shoulder to get my attention. "Calm down, Jacob; you don't want to scare her."

I turned and looked at Sam to show him I was under control, then turned back to look at my girl. This was the most beautiful view of her that I could imagine. I watched as Seth greeted her with a kiss on the cheek. He didn't care that she was wet; I wanted so badly to do the same thing. As I watched her, I felt my wolf on the surface, wanting to break free. My heart was beating so fast and hard, as though it would explode. Damn, my girl was about to give me a heart attack with that outfit she was wearing. I longed to touch her, but I dared not or I would give into the urge to lift her cave man style and take her somewhere we could be alone and where she couldn't escape. When she started looking around, I knew what she was searching for. But moments before, I had taken her towel, sweater, and pants, and put them over my shoulder. She was just too nervous to have noticed. I knew that in so doing, I would have the opportunity to be closer to her.

When Mike came over and offered his towel to Bella, I stepped in front of him. "Here's your towel Bella," I told her, but she didn't seem to hear me. Leah brought it to her attention.

"Bella, Jacob has your towel."

Mike was insistent that Bella use his towel. "That's okay, I'll use this one," she replied to her, taking the towel from Mike.

He walked closer to her and told me, "Allow Bella to cover herself. I don't like the way you're looking at her."

How dare he tell me how I was looking at my imprint?. I growled, glaring at him with all the anger and jealousy I was feeling—my hands shook with it. I knew my friends noticed and were worried about me loosing control. I turned to them and whispered, "Don't worry, I'm under control and won't do anything stupid, as long as that boy doesn't get any closer to my woman."

I turned around just in time to see Bella approach me. I handed her the towel. "Please take your towel, Bella," I said to her.

(Bella's POV)

As I approached Jacob, I noticed how stiffly he was standing. His hands were tight fisted and he was looking at Mike with pure hatred. I felt these two boys, involved in this kind of argument, trying to mark their territory around me. Though for some unknown reason, I felt a force in my heart that made me feel safer with Jacob, so I returned the towel to Mike.

"It's okay, Mike, I'll use my own towel," I said to him. "Please keep your distance," I then told him.

It didn't seem as if he would listen, but I looked at him in a way he knew that I meant what I said, so he would not try to push the issue. When I thought he got the message, I turned and took the towel from Jacob's hand.

"Bells, your lips are turning blue," Jacob informed me.

Until he said that, I hadn't dared to look at him, but I did now, and boldly I saw how he was looking at me. After taking his eyes from my lips, they traveled the length of my body, caressing me with their gaze. I quickly covered myself with the towel and wanted the earth to swallow me up; but I couldn't deny, that deep in my heart, I enjoyed the admiration I saw in his eyes. When he looked at me in that way, my heart beat a mile a minute and so loud I was sure he could hear it.

To cover my nervousness, I looked around and noticed Angela gathering her things together. Embry was watching her intently. Mike and Ben were dismantling the tent. I didn't see my clothes where I left them.

"I don't see my jeans and sweater," I said to Leah. "I could have sworn I left them right next to Angela's." Then I heard Jacob calling me. Instead of looking towards him, I looked at Leah. "Don't tell me I have such bad luck, that Jacob has my jeans."

She grinned at me. "You have bad luck."

I turned and walked over to Jacob. He seemed calmer; the pleasure I noticed on his face brought a lump to my throat. His eyes were filled with such love and desire, and it was for me. I took the jeans from him and walked closer to Leah to put them on. Since my skin was still damp, I felt as though I had to do a belly dance maneuver to get them on.

"Hurry and get dressed, Bella," Leah advised me.

"What do you think I'm doing?". I replied.

"Leah… with hundreds of miles of beach to take a walk, you just had to come to this one." I mumbled so no one else could hear me.

But I couldn't help laughing with her at the situation. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have taken my frustrations out on you. Today, I shouldn't have even left my house."

"I think not," she replied. "But you have made one Quileute very happy."

I covered my face with my hands in shame, but we both smiled at her comment.

(Jacob's POV)

I felt like I was increasingly on the verge of madness. How this woman didn't know that she was causing havoc to my system, was beyond me?.

"Jake, stop watching her so much. It's like you want to crawl into her skin," Quil said jokingly.

That relaxed me a little, and eased the pain in my pants. They felt increasingly tight, and I felt the urge to mark my mate. I let out a shaky breath, closed my eyes and prayed to get my hormones under control, so I could be near her without my arousal becoming evident and scare her. That was what would have happened when I approached them on the beach. If I had not been frozen to the spot, I wouldn't have been able to hide my desire for her.

Bella was now dressed in her jeans and had put on her boots. I knew she would need her sweater next. I called her over to me.

(Bella's POV)

"He has my sweater, doesn't he?". I asked Leah. She didn't reply, just nodded. I walked over and took the sweater from him, then finished dressing. When I was done, we all walked back to where we parked the cars. Mike sauntered toward me.

"Ben will go with Angela," he informed me. "He needs to finish talking to her, so I'll drive you home. Okay?".

For some reason, I started to panic. There was no way I was going with Mike; I felt very uncomfortable with him. Angela then approaches me.

"What happened?". I asked her. "Why this change now?''

She took me to the side, away from everyone. "Ben insisted that we speak now," she replied. "He won't wait another day to make clear his feelings for me. He doesn't want to spend another day out of my life. He even threatened to go talk to my parents about details of the relationship we use to have—details I don't want my parents knowing."

My eyes widened in alarm. "Don't tell me that you and Ben… once."

She turned red and interrupted me. "For the love of God, of course not, but that didn't stop us from sharing some intimacies, and I fear that he will lie to my parents and enlarge on something that never happened." She took a deep breath. "I'm sorry Bella; I have to end this now."

(Embry's POV)

The boys and I heard everything that was said, and I wanted so much to crush Ben's face with my fist. How dare he threaten her?; But I refrained.

"Calm down, Embry," Jacob cautioned me, although I knew he was just as annoyed, like me, by the way Mike approached Bella.

"I want to follow her…"; I told Jake. "… to ensure that Ben doesn't try anything with her, taking her to his home." I knew Ben was desperate to return with Ang; it was logical, Ang was wonderful, and the most good and sweet girl I knew. Ben wouldn't give up easily, and I feared that he would try to do something, while the two were alone. I had to take care of my girl.

Jacob agreed that I follow Ang. "But you carry Quil with you. His presence will help keep your cool," he suggested. Yes, that was a good idea, I knew how to keep under control, but if Ben did something I didn't like, at least Quil could stop me from crushing the head of that fool.

(Jacob's POV)

I heard how Mike wanted to take my Bella, while Ben could go with Ang. Embry was responsible for seeing that Ben didn't try to take advantage when he would be alone with Ang, but it was better that Quil went with him. I didn't want Embry to be dominated by rage and jealousy and make a mistake. Wow, as if it were easy to control the jealousy. To control the jealousy I was feeling, was a slow and painful torture.

I listened to how my Bella was surprised when Ang told her that they couldn't go together in Ang's car; I could feel her panic. My beautiful girl touched her stomach as a sign of helplessness and anxiety. I could feel her stomach twisting. If Mike thought he was taking my baby anywhere, he was completely crazy. I approached Leah, to ask her help.

"Could you help me get rid of Mike?.'' I asked her. "I'm not going to allow him to drive her back home. The only person she will be leaving with is me."

(Bella's POV)

I felt so powerless in this situation and started to panic a little. I felt as though Mike and Ben were trying to trap us, making up any excuse so they could get each of us alone and vulnerable. My stomach twisted and hurt, trying to find a solution out of this situation, but I could think of none. Just before I truly began to panic, Leah walked over to me.

"Bella, how about you coming to my house with me, so I can give you those books I promised you?." She suggested.

I felt such relief; I could actually have kissed her. She was truly my logistical support at this instant. "Okay, that a good idea," I replied, sighing in relief.

I looked over to tell Mike, when I noticed he was about to say something. I knew he wanted to voice some objection, but I stopped him. "Mike, I appreciate your offer. But I'm going with Leah. She'll take me home after."

I saw the disappointment at this setback written on his face. He turned and looked at Jacob in disgust. I was sure he thought it was Jacob's idea that I go with Leah, but frankly I could care less what he thought. After his maneuvers when we were in the water, I was just relieved to get away from him, no matter where. Also, right now all I cared about was getting rid of Mike, and then I would see how to get out of any other mess.

(Jacob's POV)

I was smiling from ear to ear; I couldn't help it, or prevent the satisfaction and happiness from showing on my face at this turn of events. Knowing I would be on the reservation with Bella, filled me with such joy, it was hard to contain. This would be my opportunity to talk to her, to explain to her all that was happening between us. But Mike still wasn't giving up.

"I can drive you to Leah's house for the books, and then take you home," he tried to insist.

This guy didn't seem to know when to give up and I was becoming angry, but I visibly calmed myself down. If I got angry here, I would scare Bella and that is something I didn't want to do. I had tried not to intervene since we arrived, but enough was enough.

"Bella is not going anywhere with you," I said to him calmly. "She will leave only with me… and Leah of course." Mike's eyes showed pure hatred, but my eyes definitely showed more. He tried to insist, but my Bella stopped him.

(Bella's POV)

"Mike thanks for the offer," I told him. "But I'm going with Leah."

Before leaving, I pulled Angela to the side. "Ang, don't let Ben to drive you back—you drive. Please, go straight home and don't allow Ben to intimidate or threaten you," I said urgently. "I bet that asshole, Mike, put him up to this. I swear, I never thought that Ben was so, but he is a coward. You have nothing to fear, hon."

"Yes, I know my friend," she replied. "I'll cut him off once and for all. I won't be threatened by him or allow him to lie."

I smiled at her. "Call me if you need anything, even if you just need someone to punch that fool," I said with meaning.

We both laughed at that. "Have you ever given someone a combo?"; she asked, still laughing.

"Nop… that might hurt my little hands. I would borrow the baseball bat from my dad, to hit him. Although, I might have to use something else, because Ben might try to sue me, with the Forks police chief, for abuse."

We both laughed harder and heard Jacob and his friends join in. We stopped and turned to look at them. Then looked at each other confused; we weren't that close to them, and besides, we were speaking low, so that no one could listen.

"That isn't possible," Angela commented in disbelief. "Not unless they had super human hearing."

We laughed at the absurdity of that, but I couldn't help being puzzled by the fact that they must have heard us.

"You do realize you're going to La Push with Jacob, don't you?"; she brought to my attention. "I'm sure he has been dying to take you there."

I stared in silence for a moment. "I'm actually, not going to La Push… I'm waiting for Mike to leave, then I'll take the bus back to Forks." I turned to the boys, and felt like they were attentive to what Ang and I were saying, as if they could hear us. But I was sure they couldn't hear us from where they were, right?

Ang looked at me, surprised. "How will you prevent that?; Do you think Jacob will leave you?''

"If you mean will I get out of their car kamikaze style—not exactly, but I won't go to La Push. Going to La Push would be like going to enter into… the mouth of the wolf."

(Jacob's POV)

The boys and I broke out into loud laughter at hearing what Bella and Angela were saying. I looked at my mate with all the tenderness I felt. Poor Bells, if she only knew just how true that statement was; she will be entering the mouth of this wolf, not now, but soon, I thought to myself. I was brimming with happiness, finally after all this time, I will have her with me. I watched as the girls said goodbye to each other and Angela got into the car with Ben, and then took off. Immediately Quil and Embry went into the woods to phase so they could follow them.

Mike got into his car, but was unable to hide the disappointment he felt that Bella was not going with him. The rest of us got into the van and Bella ended up seated between Seth and I. Sam was driving, when we were coming to the street, Bella asked him to drive a little slower. I noticed her watching Mike's car, and as soon as he disappeared around a corner, she asked Sam to stop. As soon as he did, she grabbed her bag and tried to get out of the van.

She turned back towards us and said, "Thanks for the offer of a ride guys, but I'll take the bus back home."

Bella got up and tried to leave the van, but I quickly grabbed her around the waist. "Where do you think you're going?".

(Bella's POV)

As soon as his arm went around my waist, I felt weak in the knees and tried to get away, but he held firm. This was not what I had planned; I was desperate and turned to Leah.

"Leah, please, you know I wouldn't go to La Push. I said that just to get rid of Mike. Right now, I'm freezing, I want to go home and take a long hot shower, then wrap up in my robe and drink a cup of hot chocolate." While talking to Leah, I tried unsuccessfully to free myself of the arms of Jacob, but he wouldn't budge an inch.

"Bella, you can do all those things at my house. I'll lend you some clothes to wear, you can take a long hot shower, and I'll give you a hot chocolate to drink. Besides, a while ago I invited you over and you said you would come. Now is the time," she replied.

I tried to get away, but Jacob wouldn't let me. "Mike will probably be at your house later looking for you. So you might as well come with us, at least for a little while," he reasoned.

I calmed down, and turned to look at Jacob, his face was at same level as my face. That can't be, he's taller than me, I thought. That was when I realized I was sitting in his lap and he had a firm hold of my waist. My face turned red and I tried to break loose of his grasp again, but it was no use. I gave up.

"Okay, I'll go to La Push with you, but please, Jacob, let me sit in the seat."

At my request, he slowly let me go to sit by his side. I have to admit being this close to him, his legs touching mine was wreaking havoc on my system. During the trip I watched the scenery go by through the window on Seth's side, but I knew Jacob was gazing at me; I felt the intensity of it without looking.

(Jacob's POV)

When we got to La Push, Sam didn't drive straight to Leah's house, he went a round about way; this way, Bella would not be able to find her way back alone. I looked in the rearview mirror at Sam and smiled. I noticed Bella watching him through it also and confusion clouded her eyes. I knew Sam was doing it to help me, so I could have some time with Bella. She was very elusive. And if she knew the way, she would get out of here as soon as we parked.

When we reached Leah's house, Kim, Jared and Claire were there waiting. When Claire didn't see Quil, she asked where he was. Leah explained that I sent him with Embry to watch out for Angela. Bella looked confused at her answer.

"Embry didn't like Ben's attitude towards Angela and wanted to go take care of her; Jacob sent Quil with him to help," Leah explained.

"Embry is going to take care of Angela?." Bella asked. Leah nodded. "If so, I'm glad… but how is it that Jacob ordered Quil to accompany him?; Perhaps Jacob is the boss?.''

Leah smiled at her. "He'll explain, just have patience—he'll explain everything, very, very soon."

"Okay," Bella replied. "But now I want to bother you about the things you said I could do here—like take a shower. Please, I'm frozen." Her teeth began chattering.

Leah smiled at her. "Okay, let's go to my room."

Before they went up, Leah walked over to Sam. "Keep Jacob distracted for a while," she whispered to him. I had to smile. It's not like I couldn't hear every word she said.

Everyone looked towards me and started to laugh. "You're really nervous, aren't you Jacob?; No worries, everything will be fine. Bella is just as nervous as you."

I was nervous all right, nervous and on edge, but not for the reasons they thought. Having Bella just a few feet away from me, and not being able to hold her close, to kiss her lips and learn every crevice of her delectable mouth with my tongue; hell, I couldn't even hold her hand. Now she would be here, right upstairs, taking a shower and that thought, brought a whole lot of erotic images to my mind…. Damn… now I needed a shower, a very, very cold one.

(Bella's POV)

As Leah and I made our way up to her room, I had to admit I was on edge. I never thought in a million years, that this day would turn out as it did. Going to the beach, having Mike make a move on me—that was not welcome or wanted. Then, it just got better from there, with Jacob showing up and seeing me in that bikini. Lie… by God, he was staring at me, as if he was trying to burn through my body. Yeah, that was great... Not! I'm a nervous wreck.

Now I was in La Push, with Jacob, at Leah's house. I had no desire to be here, at least not under these circumstances, but there was nothing I could do about it now.

"Do you have your underwear?.'' Leah asked when we reached her room.

"Yeah, it's the only thing that's still dry."

After Leah loaned me a clean set of clothes and a bath towel, I entered the bathroom and quickly took off my soaking clothes. I couldn't wait to stand under the shower and did just that. I sighed at the feeling of the water on my skin; it was pure bliss after feeling so cold for what seemed like forever. I stood under it for a minute and allowed the hot water to melt and warm my freezing skin, before soaping quickly, and washing my hair. After I was done, I dressed and went to join the girls in the bedroom.

Leah was recounting for the girls, what happened at the beach, and the suffering of poor Jake. Though my face became red for the hundredth time today, I did join in their amusement.

"Bella, you have no idea how happy we are that finally you came to La Push," said Kim.

"Well... it was not my idea to come here, in these circumstances, but I don't deny that I'm just happy to be here. Besides, I love my time with you girls." It was true, I liked spending time with them; they were becoming good friends to me. I wished that Ang was here too, but if Embry was to look after her, no doubt she would be fine.

(Jacob's POV)

Sam, Jared, Seth and I were sitting in the den, talking about nothing in particular. I knew what they were doing. They were trying to keep my mind off Bella being naked in Leah's shower, and it almost worked, until I heard her sigh. I had to physically hold myself in place to prevent from running upstairs and joining her. I stopped listening to what they were saying and paid more attention to the sounds coming from upstairs. I was just on the edge of madness… when Sue, Leah and Seth's mom entered.

"Hello boys," she greeted us. We replied in kind.

After a little talk, she went upstairs to check on the girls. As she left the den, I couldn't sit still anymore; I got up and started pacing. I couldn't take it for another minute; I needed some air.

"I'm gonna go outside for a few minutes," I told them, making my way to the door.

But Sam stopped me. "I would rather you're here with us, where we can keep an eye on you. I have a feeling if you leave this house, you'll try to enter the bathroom through the window." They all laughed at that.

Damn, I thought to myself, they know me too well. "That's a tempting idea, and although I'm tempted to do so, you know I won't," I said grinning. "Because finally I have my Bells here so close to me, and I won't ruin things with her. I'll take her to my house, I want her to see my dad… and I want to be reunited with my best friend from childhood."

There were cheers and words of encouragement from my brothers, which warmed my heart.

"I'm sure you'll be fine," Sam encouraged me. "I could see her body's reactions to you, she has strong feelings for you, maybe not as strong as yours, because she struggles against the imprint, and you have given yourself totally over to it. It's only a matter of time now. Have confidence, this girl will be yours soon and we will have our Luna here in La Push with us."

I'm sure he would have said more, but Jared stopped him. "Now I'm going to get Kim before Jacob rips this house apart trying to forcibly take our Luna."

Laughing, Sam said, "Don't go, Jared; we might need help containing our Alpha here."

I went and sat back down. I had to admit they had done a great job calming me.

(Bella's POV)

We were still joking about what happened on the beach when an older woman walked in. She must've been Leah's mom I thought, and I was proved correct.

"Who do we have here?';' the woman asked with a friendly smile.

"This is Isabella Swan, but likes to be called Bella," Leah replied. "Bella this is my mom Sue."

"It's nice to meet you," I said in greeting.

"You too," she replied. "I've heard quite a lot about you," she informed me with the same friendly smile.

I was confused about that for a minute, but I figured Leah must have told her about me.

She sat on the edge of the bed. "So, what have you girls been up to today?'.'

We all looked at each other and began to laugh

"What… what's so funny?'.' Sue asked, grinning.

"Let's just say Jacob had a rather… interesting time at the beach today." Leah said.

"Bella, can I offer you something to drink?''. Sue asked. "Coffee or soda?".

"Coffee would be great, thanks," I replied.

"Okay, follow me to the kitchen."

But Leah held me back. "She'll be right there mom, I want to tell her something real quick."

"I'll go and start the coffee." Then she left, to the kitchen.

"I just wanted to make you aware that Jacob wanted to take you to his house with him, his dad would love to see you… and he wanted to tell you about a few things."

"No," I said suspiciously. I distrusted myself more than him—distrusted my reactions to being so close to him. "I don't want to go to Jacob's house with him; you invited me here."

"Please, Bella, just give him a chance," Leah pleaded. "He's waited for you for a long time and has a lot to explain to you."

Oh God, there was a struggle between my mind and my heart... but my heart won out. "Okay, I'll go with him."

Although I said that I would go with him, I was not altogether okay with it. I hated the way my body reacted around him. Being with him alone, who knew what might happen? I was now a nervous wreck again. Well, thanks Leah, I thought sarcastically, as we all went down to the kitchen.

(Jacob's POV)

We heard everything that was said. Bella's nervousness of going to my house with me broke my heart, not because it hurt me, but because I wished she realized how much she meant to me. I would never allow anyone or anything to hurt her, not even me. I knew her fears really stemmed from how her body reacted to me. Her heartbeat would quicken and her breath hitched with each sight of me or just being near me. Those sounds were music to my ears. I wished she would realize that she had the same effect on me, but even more so.

"I hear you'll be going to Jacob's house with him," Sue said when she reached the kitchen. "Would you still like a cup of coffee?''.

She showed confidence on her face at the mention of going to my house again, but by the sound of her heartbeat, I knew she was nervous. I walked over, stood in front of her, and almost got lost in her intoxicating scent.

"Bells, don't be afraid of going to my home with me," I tried to assure her. "I've desired for a long time to take you there, please trust me… my dad will be there also."

She might be thinking this was a trick to get her alone. I knew she was tense, but so was I. I would never do anything to frighten her away, or disrespect her. She was my future, according to the law of the wolf, the most powerful law of our people. But not only that, she was the girl I had been in love with since I was a child.

"Don't worry, Bella," Seth said. "His dad is always at home."

"How do you know he didn't go out today?"; she asked suspiciously.

"No, Bella," Seth replied. "It's difficult for Billy to go out alone… he's an invalid."

She became frozen and stared off into space at the information Seth just gave her. Then it seemed as if she began to tremble and without responding, walked back up to Leah's bedroom. When she came down she was carrying her backpack. She hugged the girls and Sue gave her a kiss on the cheek. I said my goodbyes to my brothers.

Bella then walked over to me, looked me in the eyes, and said, "Let's go home… Jake."