~A/N Call me crazy, I'm updating again. If there was confusion at the end of the last chapter, let me clear it up. All canon imprints are the same minus the hybrid that doesn't exist in this story.

This fic has Billy Black as Embry's father, making him Jacob's half-brother and Embry hasn't imprinted.

"You can't fight the imprint, Jake. He'll do whatever he has to do to protect her." Billy speaking to Jake from the wolf's prospective. Jacob then admitted, the man and wolf are basically in agreement.

Chapter 14: A Woman Scorned

Jacob grumbled, but he had to get up. His day was going to be jam-packed, he couldn't afford to sleep another second even though he hadn't been asleep more than 90 minutes if he was lucky. He shuffled down the stairs and walked down the driveway, barefoot, wearing only a loose pair of ratty, sleep pants he found in the apartment. A shiny, graphite Infiniti sedan remained, parked partially on the damn lawn, as usual. Mack stayed all night. He probably insisted.

Jacob stepped down the steps to reach the front door. Dammit, he forgot his keys back in the apartment. He could go to the side door, since it had a code. Surprisingly, the front door swung open. Mack was letting him in his own fucking house.

"Jesus, Black. You look like shit." Jacob grimaced. Mack continued. "As you should. It does my heart good to know you are this miserable." Kaleigh looked like she got a little more rest than he did. She was wearing an ice blue silk robe, her blonde hair wildly cascading over her shoulders and down her back. He always loved that color on her. That's why he gave it to her last birthday. That was such a great night for the two of them. Had she worn the robe to remind him? She poured him a coffee. Mack went to the stove and started up an omelet. Jake saw two dirty plates on the bar. They'd apparently eaten theirs already.

Kaleigh's voice was coarse, "How was your baby?"

"Um, he was good. They were tired from the trip."

"I didn't ask about your whore. I only asked about the baby."

Jacob bit his tongue. This was how it was going to be. If he jumped to defend Bella anytime Kaleigh said something derogatory, she would only become more enraged. He was literally skating on the thinnest ice imaginable. If he moved an inch, it was sure to crack, swallow him whole and he'd drown looking through the clear sheet of frozen ground while all his mistakes taunted him from above.

For some reason, he pictured a hooded figure with his arm around Bella, his other hand holding a little boy's hand. Jacob pulled his fingers through his messy hair before slamming his fists down on the bar, barely missing his coffee. Never. That would never happen. Kaleigh and Mack were both glancing at him with puzzled expressions. He wasn't going to freak out, he had to keep going no matter what.

"Earth to Captain Crisis. You want this or not?"

"Thanks, I'm starving." Mack went back to cleaning up the kitchen. Jacob remembered they never ate, since they were fighting soon after he got home. "I'm sorry about dinner last night, Kay. I know you went to a lot of trouble to make it."

"Yeah, that's two hours I'll never get back. I trashed it." He was almost afraid to ask. Had she changed her mind? She was not a firm yes before he departed the house and judging how snarky she already was, he was almost certain she was rescinding the offer. However, she brought it up, "So, when are you going to get them? Today? Tomorrow? Don't expect me to lift a finger to make that place more comfortable or do anything to help."

"I won't and I was thinking maybe tomorrow, if that's okay. I needed to discuss a few more things with you." Jacob glanced at Mack washing up at the sink. He really didn't need an audience.

"Mack's staying, so whatever you need to say, just say it."

Jacob stuttered around, but finally explained how Bella didn't have a car anymore and that he doubted Kaleigh wanted him giving her rides everywhere she needed to go. "Um, I made some calls and I was going to pick up a lease this morning. I just wanted you to be aware."

Mack actually snickered, "You don't know when to quit, do you?"

Kaleigh clanked the rest of the dishes, sounded like something broke to him. "Really, Jake? You're buying her a car too."

"Leasing," he corrected.

"So, let me get this straight. You're going to give her a place to live, provide her with all life's necessities and shell out money every month for a car as well. In case you don't remember, we actually have a budget and this doesn't constitute as miscellaneous."

"The lease is only a few hundred, we already keep the utilities going for the apartment. It won't be much more, I'm sure."

"Well, you were adamant that we not use my family's money. We are mortgaged out the ass for this place. Looks like you need to rouse up some new projects or get a raise if you intend to support a second family because none of my commission checks are going toward that home wrecking bitch."

Jacob already knew he was screwed, his wife was pointing out things he hadn't spent much time thinking about. He certainly didn't have enough free time to devote more hours to work for more money. He tried to downplay the expenses further. "Bella will find a job eventually. I'm sure. It's just, the baby's really little. You know this set up is only temporary." He wasn't putting a time table on Bella's stay, but he knew there was no way the situation could be permanent. He had to figure out the vamp problem first, that's why he needed them close.

"I'd advise she get on the job hunt sooner rather than later. What is her skill set by the way?" Jacob was about to answer that question, but she had one more dig. "I mean, other than what she does flat on her back with her legs spread for men that don't belong to her. Although, there's probably money to be made there as well."

"Kay... "

"Don't. I can't listen to any more of this crap. Why don't you get a shower? Clean out your things while you're in there. The guest room is your room for now. You have to earn your way back to our bed, remember."

Jacob headed to the master bedroom, he grabbed a change of clothes and took a long hot shower. He turned up the radio in there and let the music drown out all the voices inside his head. He got dressed, grabbed an armful of things and walked them to the guest room. He was pretty much expecting these reactions from Kaleigh, but it didn't make it any easier seeing that much hurt and pain behind the callous mask she was wearing.

He dumped his belongings on the bench at the foot of his new bed. His appointment at the dealership was only half an hour away. He needed to get the car to Bells, and then meet with Alice and Jasper. He also needed to tell Bella what was up with the spies, but he was putting that off until he got her back to his place. Jacob had several calls to make: Seth, his father again, most definitely Carlisle, possibly all the other guys. Leah would tell him to piss off. He was pretty sure, she was the only one that would not come back without a firm order.

He stopped at the door because he couldn't help hearing Kaleigh and Mack talking.

"You sure you know what you're doing, Kay?"

"I have no choice."

"Like hell you don't, throw him out."

"I still want to believe we have a chance. He said he wanted me, not her."

"I get that you don't want to make a rash decision about marriage, since you took your commitment seriously, but why let him bring them here under your nose? It's fucked up."

"I know, but the adage has never been more relevant. 'Keep your friends close, but keep your enemies closer.'"

"Girl better watch her back. My cousin's on a mission."

"Damn straight. She has no idea who she crossed."

"Woohoo, there's that alpha female I know and love." Jacob couldn't help but shake his head at that ironic statement by Mack. Those two didn't know the first thing about what an alpha female truly was. Her cousin calmed down a bit, but he still heard him clearly, "Don't be pissed at me for saying this, but I met her and she doesn't seem that bad. I think she's just trying to do what's best for the kid. I really don't get the vibe she's a barracuda or anything remotely similar. She's probably not coming here to steal your man."

"You're damn right she's not. I won't let her."

Bella started watching the fourth cooking show of the morning. Atticus stretched and yawned after his catnap. There was nothing to do. For the life of her, she forgot why she actually agreed to this whole shenanigan.

Atticus made buzzing noises with his lips. Now she remembered. "Cuz you and Daddy need each other." Her son smiled and she bent down to kiss his cheek. A knock at the door could only mean one visitor had arrived. She scooped up the baby and peeked out.

"It's me, Bells."

She opened the door. Jacob came inside, took Atticus from her and hugged him tight. She could see him taking deep breaths against his cheek. "Hey buddy. I missed you so much. How'd you sleep last night?"

"He was up more than normal, new place, different bed." Bella took a long hard look at Jacob and asked, "How'd you sleep, Jake?" Jacob would be gorgeous under any circumstance, but she could see the bloodshot eyes, dark circles and worry lines across his forehead. He wasn't in the best shape.

"I didn't."

"I could kinda tell."

"Thanks. Look, I have to be someplace, I'm already late, but I got you something." He jingled a set of keys off his finger. "The guy followed me over. I thought he was bringing it this afternoon, but he had some time now. It's already down there in the lot."

"A car!" she exclaimed.

"Yeah, so you can get around, but we need to talk about that a little more in detail when I get back."

"What kind? I mean, you certainly didn't need to do that, Jake. I'm pretty sure you shouldn't have."

He smiled. "It's blue, but way better than your last car." He winked. Jacob held Atticus high and made him giggle. "And it's got one of the best safety ratings this year, because that stuff's important, isn't Ace?" He kissed him a few more times.

"Okay. Thanks, so what is it?"

"Turns out, VW's still a sound choice. I'll be back... soon. Take it easy, buddy. Bye, Bells. Why don't you two take a nap or something?"

She was surprised he didn't make it red, but Bella assumed that would be way too nostalgic. They were trying to move forward, not get bogged down in the past.

Jacob left. She didn't want to take a nap. She wanted some fresh air. She was tired of staring at the same four walls. She knew Jacob wanted her to wait for him, but if she kept doing every last thing he said, he was going to let it go to his head. She moved to be near him for the baby's sake, but he wasn't going to control every aspect of her life.

Bella put her son in the portable crib with some toys and pulled it close to the bathroom. She left the door open and took a quick shower. She got ready, then got him ready. She double checked the diaper bag, made sure he was fed, changed and content. Bella made a list of nearby baby shops. She circled the top one because it was the closet. She punched the address into her phone, got Atticus strapped in and headed out, pushing the stroller. She wasn't sure where Jacob parked her new ride, but it was blue and it was Volkswagen, shouldn't be too hard to find. She pointed the key remote around until she heard a beep.

"There it is," she told her son. She liked it. It was a shiny blue, metallic Jetta. Jacob was always full of surprises. She needed a job, like yesterday. Bella was not going to sit around and watch cooking shows everyday. She had to make her own money. Jacob insisted on taking care of his son, but she intended to take care of herself.

The shop was a baby wonderland. She was never much of a shopper, but shopping for Atticus was pretty fun. He was growing out of most of his clothes, so she picked out several more appropriate outfits for Washington in a larger size. Jacob gave her a credit card and she did have some of her own money as well, but she was trying to be frugal. She picked things off the sales rack. An associate asked her if she needed help, so Bella asked about choosing a few things for delivery. The woman told her they could set all that up at the register. She found the crib and swing she liked. She was going to take the bouncy seat with her for the hotel. Barry would be sending Atticus's bedding because it was her favorite, she didn't want to change it, but she needed a couple more blankets, a new bathtub and another changing table. She might as well grab a new box of diapers since they were on sale combined with a large pack of baby wipes. She tried to hurry, but it was similar to starting from scratch. She had to take a break and take care of Atticus once, but he was sleeping soundly by the time they got to the register.

She knew Jacob wouldn't care how much she spent, but she'd already made up her mind as soon as she got a job, she'd pay him back half. They were both his parents, so they should be splitting everything 50/50. The only item that was a true splurge was the dark walnut crib. It was really pricey but it converted into a toddler bed, so it would last a long time and she really loved it. It was so much nicer than the second hand one she had in LA. Bella nervously chewed her lip while the lady rang her up. Maybe she'd gone a little nuts in this shop after all. She probably should put a few things back but what, he needed all of it.

They started the paperwork for the delivery items. Thank God for Google, she actually knew Jake's address. She was shocked they said they could deliver by six the same day. She wasn't sure if that was okay, but if she waited, Monday wasn't available and she didn't want to have to wait until Tuesday if she was actually moving in before then.

"Okay, that's fine. Bella gave them both hers and Jacob's numbers."

"That comes to 1897.28. How will you be paying?"

Goodness gracious. That crib really knocked the bill up. Bella handed the platinum card over. The lady swiped it on the register. It made a funny noise. She tried again, same thing. Bella kept staring at the screen to come up for her to sign, but the saleslady picked up the phone without a word.

"Is there a problem?"

The woman held her finger up, while she listened with the receiver tight against her ear.

Maybe Jacob had a daily limit set up. She knew there was no way he'd give her a card that didn't have enough money, but then again he probably never imagined she would practically run up two grand the first day.

The woman kept standing there shaking her head only saying a few, "uh huhs." Then another employee came over and they started whispering. The longer it took, the more she regretted going out at all.

"I'm sorry. Should I put something back? I could wait for the crib, I guess."

"Ma'am we're going to need to see some ID with a charge this large."

"Oh, yeah sure." Bella pulled out her license. She knew there was going to be a problem when they examined it.

"This is expired, Mrs. Cullen."

The woman looked at the old ID and the credit card. Bella never renewed her license. Edward gave her some fake stuff when she got into school, but she didn't want her name to come up in the system if Charlie was ever searching. It was so dumb of her not to get a proper license once the truth came out.

"We can't let you make this purchase."

"Okay, I'm sorry for the trouble." Maybe she should ask them to hold everything, go back to the hotel and wait for Jacob to come back with her. Bella held her hand out for the ID and credit card.

"No, you can't have these back. My manager called the police. They're on the way."

"The police! Why? I'm sorry. I know I need a new license, but did you honestly need to get the police involved?"

"Ma'am, this card was reported stolen two hours ago. We take credit card fraud very seriously."

"Stolen? Well, I assure you, I didn't steal it. My son's father gave it to me to buy what I needed."

"So, you're Mrs. Black?"

"Um, well... no."

"Then Mrs. Cullen?"

"No, actually, I'm Ms. Swan, but I don't think I have anything that says so." Way not to sound suspicious as hell. "I'm telling you the truth." Bella looked down at her sleeping son.

The woman seemed slightly sympathetic, but her manager acted like she was on the ten most wanted list. He sent a security guard to stand at the door in case she tried to flee.

"Miss, is there anyone you can call? I've seen what happens. They call a social worker in for the child, but if a responsible person shows up, you might be able to avoid that extreme."

Bella fumbled with her phone. It felt like she was dreaming, her finger kept hitting the wrong buttons. She hoped Jacob answered immediately, but she had no idea what he was doing.

Did she honestly resemble a criminal? Who shoplifts or steals with an infant? Why would they call the cops so quickly? It was a total nightmare. That remark about social services coming for Atticus scared the hell out of her. Jacob was going to flip if she let some stranger take him.

She saw an officer step inside, followed by two more. Her heart quickened. The impending turmoil woke her son. Atticus started fussing. Bella didn't hesitate to get him out. Perhaps that would dissuade them from wanting to cuff her immediately. She was still trying to pull her messages back up with her free hand when the door swung open again.

"Bells!"

She looked up. "Jake!"

Her eyes must be deceiving her. Alice, Jasper... when did they get to town?

The officer stopped Jacob. "And you are?"

"I'm her... um, I'm Jacob Black, the father. What the hell is going on?"

The manager butted in. "Mr Black. Do you have some ID?" Jacob pulled out his wallet and produced proof of his identity.

"Oh, well there's been been a misunderstanding then. You authorized the use of your card?"

"Yes, of course."

The police quickly retreated and left the store manager to sort it out. They talked about what happened and they managed to get the credit card company on the phone right away. Bella knew what the issue was even before she heard Jacob on the phone. His wife had reported the card stolen. Well, fucking great. She guessed she might deserve it, but the idea that Atticus was put at risk or in a stressful situation did not bode well with her. Bella had much more to say about that, but she focused her attention on Alice instead.

"Hanging out with Jacob now, are we?" Alice shrugged. "Somebody needs to start talking."

Bella heard them tell Jacob he would have to pay a different way because the card was already turned off. Alice dug in her bag, but Jacob said absolutely not. He pulled out a different card and told the woman to run it.

Alice overhead the amount. "Way to go Bella. I actually taught you something. Only the best for this little cutie pie."

Jacob didn't bat an eye, but she explained herself. "The crib. I needed the mattress too and it's a really good one."

"It's fine, Bells. Are you sure you got everything?"

"Yes."

They exited the store. She would probably never show her face in there again. That was humiliating to the worst degree. Jacob pushed the stroller, Alice and Jasper got the bags. They met outside by her new car.

Alice gushed over Atticus some more. "He is so adorable and puppy smells so much better than full grown, wet dog."

Jacob growled at her. "Stop smelling my son, bloodsucker."

Alice stuck her tongue out him.

Bella was curious what he smelled like to Alice. "He smells like sweet milk and lavender. It's refreshing. Can I be his godmother? Please, can I?"

Jacob shook his head as he lifted the carrier off the stroller. "That sounds so sacrilegious."

Bella had a compromise. "How about Auntie Alice?" Jacob continued to grumble.

"Of course, I like the the ring of that." Alice said she and Jasper would talk more with her later, but Jacob told her she needed to give Alice her room key. Apparently they had stayed directly above her last night. She knew there was a story behind all this. She didn't plan on moving so soon either. He said tomorrow and now it was immediate.

"I can get our things."

"No, they'll do it. We need to talk." Alice hugged her before they headed out, leaving her alone with Jacob and their son.

Jacob pointed to a corner cafe and asked when she ate last. "Last night, I ordered a sandwich from room service."

"It's almost noon, shouldn't you be eating better, since you're feeding Ace?"

She had lost her appetite, since reuniting with him again, but he was right. She wasn't doing herself or her son any favors skipping meals. It just made her feel run down.

They had a seat and ordered fairly quickly, so they could get down to business.

"What happened?"

"Bloodsuckers at the airport."

She closed her eyes and felt weighted down all of the sudden. The burden followed her. She should've known.

"Does Alice know if they followed me?"

"Yes, they were outside the hotel last night."

"Did they get away?"

"Hell no, not on my watch. I ripped them apart."

"Them?"

"There were two males."

Jacob told her the Cullens thought, they weren't important, just spies for Aro.

"Damn, I bet he's angry I didn't alert him about the move. I'll make contact tonight."

"No, absolutely not. You will not communicate with him anymore. His way ends right this second. He isn't in charge of your life."

"And who is, Jake? You?"

"Um, well... no, of course not. I assume you're in charge of your own life, Bells. I'm just not going to allow you to bow down to a bloodsucker and be his strange amusement with our son in the next room."

"Allow?"

"Dammit, Bells. Quit picking apart my words. I brought you both here to protect you."

"I can't believe you're willing to work with the Cullens."

"Desperate times, but we are going to do something about that and soon."

She couldn't help it, she asked another one word question, "We?" He told her about inviting Seth over. She sighed. "Jake, this is exactly why I didn't want to come back. Isn't Seth engaged?"

"Yeah."

"I won't ask him. He already lost part of his childhood. Let him be."

"You won't have to. I will, but chances are he'll volunteer before I do. That's how he is."

"I should go back east."

"So, you'll let them protect you, but when I try, I'm being a dominate prick?"

"Jacob, your wife just tried to have me arrested. You are unable to do it all. It's obvious, you're in way over your head. Is it truly safe for us to move in? Aren't you concerned about bringing more Volturi spies, possibly to your own front door?"

"Yes, of course I am, but I can protect all of you better in one central location. I've got Queen Pixie and her mate for now, hopefully some of the guys will phase sooner than later. I never wanted to merge the supernatural in Kaleigh's world, but I have no choice. It's found me again."

"Only because of me, because I answered that phone."

Atticus made some noise and patted the table in front of him. He was perched up at the table like a big boy on his father's lap. Jacob looked down at his son. He looked at her. No matter how crazy things got, she at least knew, neither of them would ever regret their child.

"Scratch that. I'm glad I came back to life, but still. What about this credit card snafu?"

"Kaleigh isn't dangerous or a psycho like Barry suggested. She's not herself right this second for good reason."

"Oh, so you eavesdropped. Why am I not surprised?"

"No, I hear without trying. You know that."

That meant he heard all that broken-heart stuff. She should've known better than to discuss him with Barry while he was over. How embarrassing.

"A social worker was going to come for Atticus if you hadn't shown up. Thank goodness for Alice, I guess she saw something."

"Yeah, she said there was a list and you were distressed. Strange, how I said to wait for me and you took off anyway. Some of my recommendations might actually be the right thing. You think."

"Well, Mr. Control Freak, if you would've told me the whole story last night, then I might have listened. Stop keeping secrets from me, Jake. Isn't that what you like to fault me for?"

"Sorry, I didn't want you to panic."

"I can understand that, I suppose. You think, if I panic, I'll run. I won't do that, I won't ever go without you knowing. You need to know where your son is, I accept that. You have my word. Listen, about that huge charge. My shopping got out of hand, I feel like a gold digger."

He laughed. "You're not a gold digger. I'd bought the whole damn store out if I'd been there. I don't ever want him to want for anything, Bells."

"Well, we shouldn't spoil him."

"Why not? My son will never worry if there's enough food to make lunch for the week or tape the bottom of his shoes to make them last a few months longer. I don't want him to ever know some of the burdens I suffered growing up. I'm not whining, Billy did what he could under the circumstances, but it wasn't always easy."

She hated he had so many hardships growing up. Bella was far too self-absorbed to notice some of that stuff when they first met. Jacob did such a good job of hiding it too. He always had that bright smile on his face and a sweet, sunny disposition. Her teenage heart ached for those two dumb kids sometimes. Their adult versions were a lot less carefree and easy going.

Bella told him Kaleigh had a every right to be furious with her. She was a grown woman and she could take it. If she wanted a face to face, she was fully prepared for that, but Atticus should not be caught in the crossfire. "I'll steer clear of your wife, but she better not test me when it comes to our son. I mean it Jake. You better make that clear. What happened today was not cool, at all."

Jacob said he'd have plenty to say about the credit card stunt. That was going too far. Bella could see the fury behind his eyes when she mentioned the social worker and her potential arrest. She didn't want to appear weak. She needed to toughen up, but this is what happened when she reverted back to her old ways. Why was it so easy for her to allow men like Edward and Jacob dictate to her?

"Thanks for getting there so quick. I honestly thought some cranky social worker was going to come out and take Atticus to a separate location while they grilled me. He likes people, but he would've gotten so scared when I wasn't around."

She quickly wiped at her eyes. Jacob grabbed her hand, they held hands in the middle of the table.

"I won't ever let you be scared like that again. I swear."

Jacob wanted to make her lots of promises lately. She assumed he was making all sorts of promises to his wife as well. He couldn't possibly be telling everyone the truth no matter how much he wanted it to all be true. The two of them sat and stared a few minutes longer. From the look in his eyes, Bella suspected the biggest lie of all was the one he kept telling himself.

~Thanks for reading.

Time frame check: Jacob only found out one week ago, he has a son with Bella. Obviously, everyone is still acting and reacting in a state of uncertainty and panic. Each story is a process, as is character growth and development. No one is perfect in this story, except maybe Barry. I already miss him. Don't forget Bella's roommates, I'm not finished with them.