Lost in Translation
Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to Stephanie Meyer.
Part One-Jacob
Bella saw Jacob sitting on the steps leading up to the porch as she parked the truck. She switched off the loud engine and the resulting silence was deafening. Jacob was leaning forward, his elbows resting on his knees, as he waited for her to get out of the truck. She sighed a little before pushing on the heavy iron door and climbing out slowly. He didn't come running to meet her, just continued to sit in the same position; a contemplative expression on his handsome face. "Hey." She greeted him warily before sitting beside him on the bottom step. "You followed me, didn't you?" She should have guessed that he would be nearby, making sure that she was safe. Edward would have stopped her going. He had disabled her truck once. But Jacob hadn't stopped her, he never would. Instead he made sure she was safe from a distance.
"Yeah, I followed you." Jacob was silent again for a moment before he glanced up at her. His face had changed, he now looked tense, and very worried. Bella had the urge to reach out and smooth his furrowed brow. She hated seeing him so down, especially if she was the root cause of his fears. She saw him swallow thickly before he continued. "Why did you go back there, Bells? Its nothing but an empty shell now. There is nothing to see...I know the family meant a lot to you." He paused again as if trying to find the right words. Bella knew he could not understand her former attachment to the family. In his eyes they were the enemy, cold skinned vampires, and nothing more. He had not seen them as she had, spent time with them, grown to love them despite what they were.
She put a hand on his arm and his eyes immediately followed it. He quickly placed his over hers, the warmth from his touch calmed her, soothed the frazzled edges of her nerves. "I never meant to go." She confessed, her voice was like a whisper in the wind, and if it wasn't for his enhanced hearing, Jacob would never have heard her. "But something happened today, something I wasn't expecting."
Jacob rubbed the back of her hand with his fingers. He loved the feel of her smooth skin as he caressed it. It wasn't often he got to touch her like this, she had withdrawn from him a little since the Cullen's had been decimated. He couldn't pretend that he was sorry that they were gone. But he felt her pain, and it made him sad on her behalf. He just wanted to hold her and tell her everything that was in his heart, but she wasn't ready, not yet, maybe never. He laced his fingers with hers and held on tight. "What happened? You could have come to me. I always listen."
Bella's eyes were full of tears as she looked at him. Her sorrow ran deep and she wasn't able to hide it from him. That was so Jacob to say something like that. He had listened to her so many times, listened without judgement or blame, as she expressed her deepest fears and confessed her hidden secrets. He knew everything that had happened between her and Edward, she had hidden nothing from him. "I know, Jake. I know." A tear spilled down her cheek and she felt him squeeze her hand a little tighter. "It was a spur of the moment thing. I had to see the house one last time. There was something I needed to clarify in my mind." She shifted awkwardly as she pulled the crumpled letter out of the back pocket of her jeans and passed it to him.
Jacob took it from her wordlessly and scanned the contents; his dark eyes widening in shock as he read the huge figure that was written in bold black letters. "Fuck." Was all he could think of to say.
"Fuck is right." Bella wilted as she took the letter back from him and stared at it. "What should I do?" She begged him suddenly. "What should I do?"
"I can't tell you, honey." Jacob dared to put his arm around her. He waited for her to pull away from him and was surprised when Bella buried her head in his chest. He felt her shaking a little and his skin became damp from her tears. It hurt him to the core to see her so distressed and he couldn't stop the bitter thought from leaking into his head that once again Cullen was still causing chaos, even from beyond the grave. "Just know that I'm here for you, Bella." He said instead as he banished the thought from his mind. Bella wouldn't want to hear what he was really thinking. "Perhaps you should just ignore it."
Bella twisted her head around and glanced up at him. His jaw was tight, and she could feel the tension in him. The arm he had around her clamped her to his hot body, and even though she knew he was doing his best to hide it, she sensed his anger. And rightly so. Edward had done enough damage to Jacob and his friends. To land this on her was just another thing he was probably adding to Edward's selfishness. "Perhaps I could donate it somewhere?" She suggested hesitantly. "To a charity or something."
Jacob touched her hair briefly with his free hand. "There would be questions, Bells. Lots of them Do you really want to draw attention to yourself like that?"
"No." Bella felt weary. She closed her eyes and tried to fathom what on earth had made Edward put her down as his beneficiary. What the hell did he think she would do with the money? She didn't want it, any of it. "You're right. I'm going to ignore it." She said firmly.
"I think its for the best." Jacob felt relieved that she had agreed with him so easily. Having so much money land in her lap would cause nothing but trouble, and Bella had been through enough of that to last a lifetime. He couldn't stand to see her suffer anymore. Her pain was his pain, and vice versa. They had always been each others rock, both now and in the distant past.
Bella scrunched up the letter again until it was a small ball of paper in her palm. Edward was gone, she certainly didn't need his money. It was blood money and could only bring her nothing but trouble.
Jacob lounged on Bella's bed as he waited for her to get out of the shower. Charlie was already at work, probably continuing his fruitless investigations into the mysterious fire at the Cullen's. It had been deemed arson and now a team of experts had been brought in to comb the place. So far no clues as to the Cullen's whereabouts had been found. Charlie would never know that the family were now just ash. No bones would ever be discovered. Jacob was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard the shower turn off. He should have waited downstairs, but he was so used to using the window as a doorway to her house, that he had unthinkingly entered that way. He was early. Bella didn't know he was here yet. As the bathroom door opened he called out to alert her that he was in her room. A few times in the past she had walked in barely dressed not knowing he was there. It had been mortifying for Bella, and he had felt a little guilty catching her unawares.
Bella sidled into the room, a towel wrapped around her long hair, and dressed in a thick robe. She smiled at him as he sat up on the bed. "You're early." She said stating the obvious. "Or am I a little late?" She looked at her alarm clock to satisfy herself that she wasn't running behind.
"No, I'm early." Jacob smiled at her, a little shyly for him, and it made her heart ache. He could be so sweet. It was a big day for him, and he was allowing her to be a part of it. Normally only close relatives and of course the pack were allowed to witness the young protector taking up his birthright. Sam was stepping down and Jacob would officially be sworn in as Alpha. "To be honest I needed to get away. Being in the spotlight is a little overwhelming."
Bella unwrapped the towel from her head and began to comb through the wet strands vigorously. "I bet." She smiled at him again as she sat in front of the mirror. "Are you sure it's alright for me to be there? I mean I know it's usually only wives and imprints that are...well invited as well as family. And I'm neither." She heard the bed springs creak as he got up and stood behind her. She saw his image reflected in the mirror and the look on his face took her breath away. The naked longing in his eyes was blatantly obvious. It both scared and drew her to him. Edward had never looked at her the way Jacob was right now.
"I want you there." Jacob said huskily. He cleared his throat as he gently took the comb from Bella's hand and took over. He skilfully untangled her hair, having once had long hair of his own, he had become an expert. After he had finished he braided it for her and smiled. "There, once its dried you can let your hair down and you'll have the loose curls you wanted."
"Thanks." Bella returned his smile weakly.
"You're welcome." Jacob handed her back the comb. Their fingers touched briefly and both jolted in surprise as they felt the same spark ignite between them. "Bells?" Jacob whispered as she stared wide eyed at him in the mirror. "Did you...?"
"I should get dressed." Bella quickly stood up, walking around him and avoiding his eyes. "Do you mind waiting downstairs?"
"Sure sure." Jacob stepped back, his eyes troubled as she turned away from him completely and began to rifle through her closet as a distraction.
As Jacob reluctantly descended the stairs he caught sight of a thick, creamy envelope on the doormat. He picked it up on his way to the kitchen and glanced at the addressee. He drew in a sharp breath when he saw Bella's name and who the sender was. The name SMYTHE, PEARSON AND ASSOCIATES jumped out at him from the top of the letter and his heart beat erratically in his chest. It was barely two days since Bella had received the first letter from them, and they were hassling her already. His first instinct was to rip it apart and hide it. Bella was still in a fragile state of mind, and he didn't want anything to distract her, not today of all days. Today he wanted her full attention. He needed her mind to be on him for once, only him. He didn't want Cullen intruding on his special day. It wasn't fair and wasn't right.
Jacob almost went through with his intentions, but he stopped himself. He wasn't Edward fucking Cullen, he wasn't controlling, and hiding secrets from Bella, for her so called own good. Jacob felt bitterness consume him as he chucked the letter on the table and pulled out a chair. It was like a bomb had been lobbed in the house, and the timer was ticking, waiting for the right moment to explode. He sat rigidly staring at the creamy envelope until he heard Bella's light footsteps come down the stairs.
"Jake." Her sweet voice pierced his dark mood and he turned suddenly, his whole attention diverted from the letter as he looked at her. He had never seen anyone as beautiful as she was right now in that moment. His eyes travelled over the pale blue dress she was wearing. It came down to rest on her slim calves. The scooped neck showed her pale skin off to perfection. She was wearing the silver necklace he had given her on her last birthday and the wolf charm he had carved dangled from it, resting discreetly in the dip between her breasts. The bracelet had broken months ago. That's why he had bought her the chain. She was wearing minimal make up, just a slight touch of mascara and lip gloss. Bella was a natural beauty, she didn't need any enhancement.
"You look beautiful." Jacob's words were so heartfelt and honest that they made Bella blush. Normally she would have immediately refuted such a statement but instead she smiled at him shyly and dipped her head. Jacob was having trouble taking his eyes away from her. He had the urge to touch her again, couldn't in fact stop himself from doing so. He reached out and pulled the band from her tight braid, letting her long, silky hair free to fall around her shoulders. It had curled into long waves just like he knew it would.
"You don't think this is too much?" Bella checked, even though the look on his face told her she was more then fine.
"No." Jacob had to clear his throat a few times. "You're perfect."
Bella flushed a little and flashed him the same shy smile. "We should go." She said for something to say. The sexual tension was rampant and she was having trouble handling it. She thought it best they get outside in the fresh air. She was having trouble catching her breath with Jacob so close.
"Yeah." Jacob had completely forgotten about the letter. His whole attention was focused solely on Bella. He gestured for her to go ahead of him and she gently teased him about being a gentleman. "As always." He agreed weakly. God, he was having trouble containing himself. He took a few deep breaths before following her out of the house.
A/N-thank you for reading!