Thirty-One

E

There's a vast difference between Jacob Black and myself. Whereas I'm tall, somewhat toned from lugging kegs, and pale, he's about a head shorter than me and built like a linebacker with tan skin and blinding white teeth.

He's smiling at Bella, but even I can tell it's strained.

Bella stands up and asks him what he's doing in her bedroom, and his smile falters.

"Your mom said you were here." He eyes me up and down, his face void of emotion. "She asked me to come tell you that the food is done."

"Oh, thanks. We should get down there. Jacob, this is my boyfriend Edward. Edward, this is Jacob."

I hold out my hand. "Hey, man. Nice to meet you."

Jacob stares for a beat, and then shakes my hand. Unlike Charlie, he's for sure trying to get a reaction out of me. His hand is like a vice, but I remain passive, not giving him the satisfaction until he eventually lets go.

Bella steps forward and wraps her arm around my middle, giving me a squeeze, and I throw mine over her shoulder, pulling her close.

"It's good to see you, Jacob." She grins. "You cut your hair ... and got a tattoo. Nice."

He eyeballs the ink that covers my arms and nods. "Got it last spring."

"Oh, that's cool. Well, I'm starving." She looks up at me with a mischievous grin. "We skipped breakfast."

She takes my hand and leads me downstairs without looking back, but I know he's following us. His steps aren't light, and he's a mouth breather.

"There you two are!" Renee exclaims when we join everyone out back. "I was starting to worry you got lost."

Bella smirks and lets go of my hand to grab a plate. "Come on, baby. Mom's potato salad is amazing. It'll blow your mind."

Renee's face flushes. "Oh, stop it. It's not at all special."

Bella insists that I'll love it, so I get a big scoop and fill my plate with meats and sides. She wasn't kidding that we missed breakfast. Again, it's her fault.

We take a seat at a picnic table with Bella's parents and Billy, Jacob's dad. Jacob eventually joins us, sitting the farthest away from me and Bella, but I catch him staring. Renee watches intently while I get a spoonful of her potato salad and take a big bite. She claps her hands excitedly when I groan.

"Bella was right. This is amazing, Renee."

"Thank you," she gushes.

I turn to Bella. "Baby, tell me you've got the recipe for this and promise me you'll make it often."

She nods. "I do, and you know I'll keep you well fed."

I kiss her cheek and dig into my food.

"If you haven't gotten much of a chance to experience it, your girl's an amazing cook," Charlie comments. "An even better baker. She's won awards. I'll show them to you before y'all head home tomorrow."

Bella blushes, and Jake stands up abruptly.

"I'm going to get another beer," he mutters. No one acknowledges him when he returns.

We eat in silence until Charlie pushes his plate away. "So, Edward. Tell us about Rebar. What's it like owning and running a bar?"

I wipe my mouth. "It's certainly not all rainbows and sunshine. Starting out, I didn't think it was going to thrive."

"But it did," Bella adds. "We're slammed on the weekends and business is steady on the other days."

I cover her hand with mine, and she turns it over, lacing our fingers.

"It helps that I have the best and prettiest barhand. Bella makes things easy, and I'm forever grateful to have her."

"I'm grateful you took a chance on me. I truly love Rebar."

"I love you."

Bella grabs my chin and pulls me in for a sweet kiss. "I love you, too," she whispers against my lips.

Renee gives a happy sigh and starts clearing the table. She tries to refuse our help, but Bella and I insist.

Once the food is cleared away, Renee pulls a massive cake out of the fridge and tells Bella to get the candles.

"Fifty-six individual ones would probably burn the house down. I figured the numbered ones would work better." She giggles. "Edward, would you do the honors?"

I light the candles and hold the door open for her and Bella, then follow with a gallon of ice cream.

Charlie is gracious for all the attention when we sing Happy Birthday to him. He blows out his candles, and Renee and Bella are quick to start cutting and distributing cake while I scoop ice cream.

"Hey, babe," Bella says when everyone has their dessert. "The cake has pineapple in it, so just stick with ice cream. I'll do the same. You know, cross contamination. I want to be able to kiss you without killing you."

"What a way to go though," I joke.

We take our ice cream to the fire pit, but there's only one seat left. Bella just tells me to sit down and parks her ass right on my lap.

"Is this okay?"

I bounce her on my leg. "More than okay."

I'm so lost in my girl I don't notice the glares we're getting from across the yard.