Chapter Thirteen
Weak sunlight streamed through the net curtains when I woke the next morning. The clock read 7:20am, and I sighed, wishing that I was able to sleep in for once. Jacob was still fast asleep beside me, one arm thrown casually over his face. I smiled and gently ran my fingers over his bare chest. He didn't stir.
I yawned and stretched, wanting to clear my head after the events of the previous day. Quietly I slipped out of bed and threw on some undies and a sports bra. I rummaged through my bag and drew out my leggings, tshirt and a large sweatshirt that had once been Henry's. I threw them on and plunged my feet into my old sneakers. I dug through my handbag for my headphones and switched on Spotify.
I looked around the room and found a complementary notepad and pen. I scrawled Jacob a quick note and quietly closed the door behind me.
The morning was misty and cold. I made my way down to the water. Only a few other joggers were out this early on a Saturday morning. I pressed the earbuds into my ears and picked up my pace, following the track along the waterfront.
It was a beautiful misty morning. The sunlight fought weakly to burst through the heavy grey clouds, and the dew in the grass glittered. The water was calm and grey, lapping gently on the stony beach.
My heart pounded hard in my ribcage and my breath came harder as I ran faster. My thoughts drifted back to last night and I couldn't help but smile as my insides twisted in excitement. I remembered Jacob's fingers and his hot breath.
I picked up the pace. Jacob and I had taken our relationship to the next level, but what was that? Were we in a relationship? These were all questions I needed to ask him.
And then an icy feeling swept through my chest and I slowed to a walk, panting hard. There was still the horrible possibility that one day, out of nowhere, Jacob would be walking down the street, see a girl he had never met before, and imprint.
I couldn't ignore that.
Dr. Kopner had always told me that I didn't let myself commit – that I held part of myself back in relationships. But how could I? How could I give Jacob all of myself when I knew that one day he might leave. He wouldn't choose to leave but he wouldn't have a choice. He'd have to.
Angrily, I sped up again, jogging and then running, trying to lose myself in the movement. It hurt so much to think of Jacob leaving me, but I had to think of it. He was trying to not be a werewolf anymore, but was that enough?
And what about the Volturi? What would happen when they returned? No one was safe with me around. Jacob would turn into a werewolf again to protect me and the Volturi would never let them survive.
I brushed at my face, realising that tears streamed out of my eyes as I ran. I'd reached the end of the path and I slowed to a walk, gazing out over the bay. The lighthouse stood tall and white in the distance, its light cutting through the fog. I leant on the railing and breathed in deeply.
What would Dr. Kopner say to me if she knew the truth? Would she tell me to trust those I loved? Or would she tell me to cut and run?
I had a choice, between protecting myself and protecting those I loved, and I knew what choice I would make – what choice I always made. Ever since that moment when Renee married Phil and I placed myself in exile.
I walked back along the path to the main street and saw Jacob coming out of a café, two steaming paper cups in his hand and a brown paper bag. His hair was tousled and he wore faded jeans and a dark grey jumper. He grinned a wide grin when he saw me.
I pulled the headphones out of my ears, stood on my tiptoes and leaned up to kiss him, his lips lingering hungrily on mine. When we finally broke apart, I couldn't help but smile back at him.
"I got you a latte," he said, handing over one of the cups. "And I got us some bear claws."
My stomach growled and Jacob laughed, kissing me again.
We sat on a bench, overlooking the beach and Jacob scooted closer until our legs were pressed against each other. He wrapped an arm around me and I nuzzled happily into him, sipping my coffee.
"I missed you when I woke up this morning," Jacob said as I bit into the donut. "I was hoping to wake up to a gorgeous naked girl."
I blushed. "Sorry," I mumbled through my mouthful. "I needed to stretch my legs."
His eyes met mine in a penetrating gaze. "How are you this morning? I didn't hurt you?"
I raised an eyebrow and smirked at him. "You think highly of yourself Jacob Black. No you didn't hurt me, and I feel fine this morning."
He hesitated, clearly nervous. "Was it ok last night? Did you…enjoy yourself?"
I laughed and ruffled his hair. "Yes, Jake. I enjoyed myself, couldn't you tell?"
He kissed me sweetly again, his lips warm against mine. I kissed him back fiercely, melting into him. I pushed my doubts and worries to the back of my brain – it was too hard to worry about vampires and werewolves when Jacob was kissing me.
I pulled out my phone and showed Jacob some of the photos of the bay I had taken on my run. I wanted to send them to Karin and Mel, but I had no signal. Jacob checked his phone and he also had no bars.
"Disconnected from the world," he murmured, putting his phone back in his pocket.
I grinned. "Just the way I like it."
ooo
Later that morning, after I'd showered and dressed, Jacob and I wandered along the beach, hand in hand. We rented canoes from the boat shed and spent a few happy hours exploring the bay and its inlets. We paddled out to a small island Jacob had visited as a child and spent many happy hours together, exploring the island and kissing in the cool sand.
When the sky overhead turned darker and the wind rose, we clambered back into the canoes and paddled fiercely back to shore. The skies opened and icy rain poured down in sheets. Our clothes were soaked through by the time the boats bumped up against the sand. We returned the canoes and jogged up the street on our way back to Martha's.
By the time we staggered onto the front porch, we were both dripping, shivering and laughing. Mrs. Bird came out to meet us with thick towels.
"Oh you poor dears," she fussed. "Go and get out of those wet things and I'll bring you some hot crumpets and tea."
When we got back to our room, we kicked off our soggy shoes and turned them upside down in the bathroom to drain. Jacob turned to me and peeled off my soaking shirt. I helped him out of his jumper and tshirt in turn, throwing them into a wet pile on the floor. He reached behind me and unclasped my bra then fumbled with the button and zip on my jeans.
Soon we stood naked and shivering in the bathroom, our mouths hotly kissing each other as we rubbed each other for warmth. Jacob led me into the bedroom and pressed me down on the bed. His kisses trailed down my neck, chest and stomach. His mouth followed the path his fingers took the night before and I gasped and moaned. The intimacy of what was happening threatened to overwhelm me. I was so exposed. I tangled my fingers in Jacob's hair, conflicted. Part of me wanted him to stop, it was too much. But part of me wanted him to keep going forever.
We spent the afternoon in bed, warming each other, drinking tea and eating hot crumpets drizzled in honey.
I took a long steamy bubble bath and laughed when Jacob slipped in with me and the water splashed onto the floor.
We had dinner at a tiny Thai restaurant and hurried through the cold night back to the hotel, falling happily into bed with each other again.
ooo
I woke the next morning to Jacob gently snoring. I grinned and rolled over to face him. Gently I kissed his nose, his face, his lips. He didn't wake up. Slowly, I kissed my way along his neck and down his chest. I pushed the blankets further down the bed, trailing my kisses down his well-defined stomach.
I took a breath to steady my courage and wrapped my lips around him. He woke up with a start.
After that, Jacob wasn't able to move. He lay in bed panting.
"Can we just stay here forever?" he asked me, breathless.
I smiled. "This has been the happiest weekend."
He sat up and kissed me. "Come on, let's go and get breakfast before we have to leave."
ooo
It was hard to face work on Monday. I woke up alone to the sound of rain lashing my windows and grumbled. I'd arrived back in Seattle to three voicemail messages from Henry. He was missing me, and wanted to know how I was doing.
I had made it so obvious when I left the UK that Henry and I were done. I couldn't understand why he was still phoning me. I knew I had to have a difficult conversation with him, but I wasn't looking forward to it.
I crawled out of my warm bed and padded into the kitchen, flicking on the coffee machine and making my oatmeal. The world seemed easier to face with a cup of warm coffee in my hand. I checked my phone again and saw a message that Jacob had sent me last night.
I miss you already. Goodnight my beautiful girl.
My heart skipped and I grinned like an idiot. I couldn't wait to see him again already. I got ready for work, donning dark stockings under my dress. The temperature had dropped quickly in the last few weeks and it felt more like winter than fall. I grabbed my coat and umbrella as I headed out the door.
Work was busy as always. The preparations for the gala were slowly falling into place but I still spent an hour on the phone to the caterers trying to explain the wide variety of dietary requirements for the night.
Professor Cole Callow popped his head in as I was about to go for a coffee break.
"Hi," he greeted me, pushing his dark blonde hair out of his bespectacled green eyes.
"Hi," I replied, sliding my feet back into my heels that I had kicked off under my desk.
He came in and perched on the arm of my sofa. A dusty book was gripped tightly in his hands. I recognised it as a volume of Chaucer's Troilus and Criseyde. He waved it at me.
"Bella, remind me again why I am doing this. I have just read finished reading One Mind, One Heart, One Purse: Integrating Friendship Traditions and the Case of Troilus and Criseyde, by Garrison and I am about to go cross-eyed I am so bored."
I grinned at him sympathetically. I had studied parts of that text when I was at university and it had put me to sleep every time.
"All for the greater good," I told him. "I'm going for a coffee break, want to join me?"
Together we strolled over to the Starbucks across the road and discussed other works we'd read in common as we walked back to the library. I left him in the stacks and returned to my office to find Mel sitting on my sofa, flipping through a stack of picture books.
'Good morning," I greeted her, kicking my shoes off under my desk.
She snapped her book shut and grinned at me. "How was your weekend?" she demanded before I could even sit down. I grinned and felt myself blush.
Mel raised her eyebrows. "That good, hey? Tell me everything."
"We went to Friday Harbour," I said, taking a sip of my coffee. "And stayed in this gorgeous little bed and breakfast."
When I didn't elaborate further, Mel prompted, "And?"
I shrugged. "It was a very romantic weekend."
Mel shrieked, leapt off the couch and hugged me. "Oh Bella, finally! Chris and I have been placing bets on how long it would take you two…so you finally…you know."
"Finally what?" I asked with a grin.
She rolled her eyes. "Oh Bella, finally hopped into bed with the gorgeous man, that's what!"
I sipped my coffee and surveyed her over the lid of my cup. "Oh yes," I replied nonchalantly. "Yes we definitely spent a lot of time in bed."
Mel laughed brightly then scraped her long red hair back into a ponytail. "Well Bella, I thought you would be very proud of me – I have finally cut off all conversation with the married man."
"You and MM are done?" I asked, raising my eyebrows in happy disbelief. "Mel that's amazing!"
She grinned and bit her lip. "Well, Chris and I are starting to get really close, and it's made me realise how I should be treated. I don't need MM in my life – he's never going to leave his wife and I deserve better."
I couldn't help myself, I squealed and hugged her.
ooo
The week passed slowly in a grey drizzly haze. Jacob had been busy with work. They were being audited and he had to stay back late nearly every day to help with the paper work, so I hadn't seen him since getting off the ferry on Sunday night.
When Friday evening finally rolled around, I couldn't get out of the office quickly enough. I popped my head into the stacks to say goodbye to Cole, who still had his nose buried in a book.
"Go home!" I told him with a laugh. "Chaucer will still be here when you come back on Monday."
He laughed, a rich deep throated laugh. "Don't remind me!"
I bumped into Mel as I was leaving. She suggested lunch with the boys on Sunday and I agreed happily.
I splashed home and arrived at my apartment, shaking the rain off my umbrella and kicking of my Wellington Boots. Mrs Gizariatos was checking her mail and I waved at her.
"Oh Bella, honey, how are you?" she asked.
"I'm well, Mrs. G, how are you?"
"Oh the arthritis plays up in this weather," she moaned. "But I can't complain."
I mentally rolled my eyes. She certainly could complain and she would if I let her. I quickly made my excuses and headed upstairs.
My phone rang as I let myself into the apartment. Karin flashed across the screen. I hit the talk button and set the phone to speaker, setting it down on the counter as I pulled off my wellies and took off my raincoat.
"Darling!" Karin called down the line. "How are you? I was worried you'd fallen off the face of the earth, I've been trying to get in touch."
"Sorry," I replied, flicking the switch on the kettle. "Work is killing me. Only one week left until the gala and I'm up to my eyeballs organising it all."
She laughed. "Well, sorry to throw a spanner in the works, but you're going to need to add an extra person to the guest list."
I turned to stare at the phone, my face screwing up in confusion. "What?"
"I've booked a flight!" She yelled down the phone. "I handed in my thesis last week, and I've booked a flight, I'll be there on Saturday!"
I gaped at the phone then shrieked in excitement. "Are you serious? Oh my god, Karin that's amazing!"
We went through the details and when we finally hung up, I was grinning ear to ear with excitement. I hurried into my bedroom, pulling off my work clothes and changing into comfy leggings, a thick sweater and slippers. I heard the kettle whistle and bustled into the kitchen, making a pot of tea. I had a new book from the library that I couldn't wait to start and I was just making myself comfortable on the couch when someone knocked on the door.
Grumbling, I marked my place, shuffled over to the door and yanked it open.
Seth stood on my doorstep, a large duffel bag thrown over one shoulder, dripping with rain.
