Once parked in the beach parking lot, Bella grabbed the bag at Quil's feet and placed it in his lap as she realized he wore the same clothing as the day before. "I got you some snacks."
Despite his emotional state, he laughed. "Thanks," he mumbled. "That's what I went to Mom's store for, but I left without them after seeing Embry."
He ripped open a box of Zebra Cakes and immediately tore open a package. He handed one cake to Bella, who accepted without complaint. They ate as Quil slowly calmed beside her, and the redness of his face gradually faded back to normal. He tossed the wrapper into the bag as Bella reached for her door handle and pushed it open. Quil followed in silence, climbing out of the truck. Once reaching her side, he tossed his heavy arm around her shoulders as they walked toward the beach.
Bella was unsure of what to say. She wanted to tell him about Jacob, but he was already upset. He needed to know, but she didn't want to set him off again.
"Thanks for the snacks," he said, finally breaking the silence.
Bella said, "You're welcome. I was going to just drop the bag off. I didn't expect to see you walking."
He huffed. "Yeah. Crying like a big fucking baby."
She smirked, glancing up at him. "It's okay, you know? Men cry, too. You get to keep your man card."
Quil poked her in the ribs, and Bella jumped away as she squealed. He chuckled as he followed, tucking her back under his arm. "So…" He looked around awkwardly as if scanning the beach for something. "What were you upset about?"
She asked, "What makes you think I was upset?"
"Well, the black streaks on your cheeks are kind of a giveaway," he teased, and Bella groaned.
I really need to buy waterproof eyeliner. Ugh. Bella laughed as they stopped walking. Quil tried to wipe the dark streaks from her cheeks.
"I think I made it worse," he said and snickered. Bella licked the tips of her fingers and rubbed her cheeks as he laughed. She wiped the black residue on her jeans as he nodded his approval.
"Better," Quil said and slid his arm back over her shoulders. "So, talk to me. Maybe dealing with whatever you're upset about will take my mind off Embry."
"Honestly, I doubt that," she admitted. "It's about Jake…"
Quil frowned as they resumed walking and glared toward the water. "What happened?"
"He's sick… supposedly."
Quil nearly stumbled as he faltered, immediately understanding what she meant. Embry had supposedly been sick, too.
She took a deep breath and confessed, "I stopped by there earlier with some food for him and Billy. Sam was there. They wouldn't let me see Jacob… Sam and Billy. Twice, Sam told me to trust him and that it was for my own good."
Quil's face began reddening again as another shudder coursed through him. Trembling, he pulled away from Bella and clenched his fists at his sides. "It's happening again."
Unsure if he meant the weird body shakes that accompanied his temper lately or the situation with Sam, Bella asked, "What is?"
Taking another step away from her, Quil yelled, "Sam Fucking Uley!"
He bent down to grab a rather large rock from the beach and hurled it toward the water as he roared. The heavy rock flew quite a distance before falling into the ocean with a loud 'plop.' Bella looked over Quil's massive form, impressed by his strength.
Yep. Football. Or Pro-Wrestling. Bella didn't know Jack Shit about wrestling either, but she bet Quil could give The Rock a run for his money.
Despite the slight distraction by her thoughts, she couldn't keep her tears from resurfacing. Quil wasn't wrong, and she couldn't blame him for being angry. Hell, she was angry, too. Her intuition had screamed at her for two days now that change was coming. Suddenly Sam is up Billy's ass while Jacob is quarantined?
Bella said, "I tried to make it clear to Sam that he will not keep me from Jacob. I told him it was bad enough that he'd already taken Embry from us."
Quil met her gaze in surprise. "You did?"
" Yeah, I fucking did," she said, nodding for emphasis. She looked across the water, unable to tell where the gray sky met the surface. The rolling clouds above them felt almost ominous, mixed with the anger palpitating from Quil's trembling fists as if one was silently feeding the other somehow.
Bella gave Quil the best playful grin she could muster and said, "Sam doesn't scare me. I've faced meaner than him."
Quil smirked at her in disbelief and laughed.
Okay, so she was bluffing somewhat. Sam made Bella's temper flare and heart race, and maybe he scared her… a little. But she'd be damned before admitting it. "He's got nothing on James," she muttered.
Quil asked, "Who the hell is James?"
Bella cringed and clenched the hem of her t-shirt to keep from facepalming herself. God, Quil, and his mutant hearing. "James is… a long story better left for another day."
Quil glanced toward her wrist and asked, "Is that whose teeth marks are on your arm?"
Bella gaped at him and stumbled back a step. The mere reminder of the scar made it burn, and she instinctively pressed it against her jean-covered hip, rubbing it against the rough material to ease the sensation. "Y-yeah," she stuttered. A sudden cold sweat broke out across her skin as the memory of his teeth sinking into her wrist slammed her.
Quil rushed over and engulfed her with warm arms. Bella swayed on her feet, and it took her a second to realize he was holding her upright. She slowly got her bearings, becoming more aware of herself, able to step away.
"Jesus, Bells. Did you just faint on me?" Quil kept his forearms under hers, gripping her elbows to ensure she wouldn't fall. "Bella?"
She felt everything come back into focus as she met his worried gaze. "What?"
"Come on, honey, let's have a seat…" Quil walked backward, guiding her toward some driftwood, and carefully eased her onto it. "That scared the hell out of me, Bells. All the color left your face, and I swear to God, your eyes crossed. Was it my fault? Because I asked about the scar?"
Bella took a deep breath and held her hand up, silently begging Quil to give her a moment. She hadn't fainted in so long that she had forgotten how disorienting it was. Until the day Bella met James, only Edward's kisses or the smell of blood made her faint. The last time she fainted was the day Edward left her. The day Sam found me in the woods and carried me home… She shivered, and Quil rubbed her back to soothe her like she often did for him.
Bella said, "I don't talk about James. No one knows that wasn't… there. Long story short, he tried to kill me, but I survived it. He left a scar, and he paid for what he did. He can't hurt anyone else ever again."
Quil stiffened beside her, and his hand stopped moving as he gaped at her in shock. Bella expected to feel his hand trembling again, for his face to turn red in anger, or for him to move away. She assumed he wouldn't believe her, and why would he? Bella had never told her boys about James. She couldn't. Charlie didn't even know the truth. Everyone just thought she was accident-prone. Bella Swan bearing stitches was just another Tuesday.
She blinked back tears as she turned her back toward Quil and pulled her knees up to her chest. Bella had so much unmanaged rage for the Cullens, for vampires, and for all the unnecessary pain she'd survived. She flinched as Quil's warm arms wrapped around her from behind, his hands engulfing hers around her knees.
He put his chin on her shoulder and asked, "Are you okay?"
Three softly spoken words and her tears fell. She leaned back into Quil's chest and shook her head no. No, Bella wasn't okay. She hadn't been okay in over a year but only recently admitted it, thanks to Charlie's goading.
Now, with a bit of happiness finally in her grasp, Sam Uley threatened it all. And for what? What could he possibly be responsible for that was powerful enough to control other people? Was he taking Jacob away from her at that very moment? Was Quil going to be next? He was already ampler than the rest of them. Why wouldn't Sam want to recruit Quil, too?
Unaware of her mental rabbit trail, Quil said, "We all wondered about the scar, you know? But no one was brave enough to ask. We figured you'd tell one of us, eventually. If I'd known you'd faint, it sure wouldn't have been me."
Bella laughed and shoved his hands away to wipe the tear streaks from her face. She groaned as they became blackened and again wiped them on her jeans. "Sorry," she mumbled as she turned back toward Quil. "You have a little responsibility now, you know? You keep that tale to yourself."
"Why?" Quil shook his head. "You're a badass, Bells. Fuck, you survived someone trying to kill you. You can't get much more badass than that."
Bella barked out a bitter laugh. "I didn't take the guy down or even get in a good punch, Quil. I got lucky someone got there in time to save me. It's not… it was partly my fault, and it's just not a moment I'm proud of, okay?"
Quil leaned back and hesitated before asking, "He didn't, like… you know? Right?" He glanced down to show what he meant.
Bella's cheeks burned as she snorted. "No. Thank God, but no. He didn't want… that. He just wanted to kill me."
"Oh, that's all," Quil mocked, pulling a genuine laugh from her.
"Yeah. That's all ." She shoved his knee and teased, "You know, I feel kind of naked now. Thanks for that. You should have to confess something, too."
"Oh, should I?" Quil grinned as he gently shoved her back. "I don't have any secrets that big, Bells. I've been here all my life." He gestured toward their surroundings, and she chuckled. "You seem to have plenty of secrets, though… Like you and Jake."
Bella's face fell as, again, she thought of Sam Uley and the possible impending decimation of her friendship circle. Instead of denying it, she nodded. Only yesterday, Bella had wondered over the chemistry between herself and Jacob - of what they could have together. "Yeah, I guess."
Quil teased, "And I guess now you're worried that Sam…"
Quietly, she interrupted, "Will steal my best friend and maybe more, too?"
Quil's eyes narrowed at her, and he looked away. "Uh-huh."
Bella said, "You can talk to me, you know? I'm not- I would keep it to myself." Tentatively, she grabbed his hand and asked, "Is that what you and Embry fought about that weekend? Because of Leah?"
Quil squeezed her hand once instead of answering and swallowed hard as he blinked.
Bella said, "I hope all this bullshit is worth it in the end. I hope you get your man." She grinned as he snorted out a laugh at her unexpected choice of words and glanced toward her.
"You too. If that's what you want, I mean."
"Honestly, Quil…" Bella sighed. "I don't know what I want, but if it's Jacob… I don't want to regret letting the opportunity pass by without trying. You know?"
She took a deep breath and let her words settle, absorbing them. Maybe the threat of losing Jacob's friendship had pushed her to this realization. She couldn't say that for sure, but she already knew the curiosity and chemistry existed - that her feelings had changed somewhat, and Jacob's appeared to be changing, too.
Quil nodded. "Well, hopefully, that works better for you than it did for me. I confessed my feelings to Embry, and he hasn't spoken to me since."
Bella squeezed Quil's hand in sympathy. "Unrequited love sucks."
"Yeah, it does," Quil grumbled. "At least you don't have to worry about your family freaking out over Jacob. Not so sure how my Grandpa would feel about me bringing home a guy."
Bella teased, "What's with that, anyway? You're always chasing a different girl. Is that just a front or something?"
Quil laughed. "Nope. I still like 'em. Just like Embry more."
Bella smirked. "More than like, I reckon."
"Ha. Reckon!" Quil grinned. "Yeah. I reckon, too."
Thunder rolled overhead, showing it was time to go. Bella and Quil ran for the cover of her truck, hoping to get there before the sky opened up and drenched them both. They made it just in time. Laughing, Quil pulled out another package of snack cakes, again handing Bella one first. They listened to the radio until the rain slowed, and Bella drove him home.