Present Time…
Bella woke to the sound of Charlie rushing about, his boots loud on the hard wood steps. Normally he left after her, so it was odd that he sounded like he was about to head out even before her alarm went off. Curious, she went downstairs to find him already dressed in his uniform and pouring coffee into a thermos.
"Everything ok?" Bella asked tentatively as she entered the kitchen.
"There was another body found up in Port Angeles, I was going up to help out, see if I could help locate the animal that's attacking people." He answered in his normal gruff voice.
She felt her heart drop. The idea of her dad trying to hunt down a pack of vampires frightened her. "Be careful, yeah?"
Charlie nodded. "Always am."
With a pat to her shoulder, he was off. Nibbling her lower lip in worry, she headed back upstairs to get ready for the day. When Edward pulled up, she headed out to his car and hopped in. The whole way to school she was busy fretting about her father's safety. It had only been a couple weeks since the last murder, which meant Carlisle had been wrong, they hadn't moved on to Seattle. She was so lost in thought, she didn't even realize they had arrived, or that Edward was talking to her until he snapped his fingers in front of her face causing her to flinch.
"Hey, welcome back to the realm of the living. What's up with you today?" Shaking her head, she grabbed her bag and went to get out, but Edward reached over and pulled the door shut. "Bella, what's wrong?"
Sighing, she turned to him. "Charlie is going up to Port Angeles to help with the murder cases, apparently there was another one so he's going as back up. I'm worried about him, Edward."
"Charlie is a smart cop, I'm sure he'll be just fine. They won't target him unless he's alone, and if he's going as back up, I'm guessing he'll have others with him as they search." Edward put a hand on her shoulder giving it a squeeze. "He'll be fine."
"I hope you are right."
Heading inside they went to class. She tried to remind herself that Charlie was Chief of Police for a reason and that he'd likely be in a group of other cops like Edward had said, so he should be just fine. Alice caught up with her between classes and reassured her that Charlie would be alright, as far as she'd seen, which helped relax her a lot and let her get through the day. It was still a huge relief when Charlie came home that night. He looked exhausted, but he was whole, that was the main concern.
Charlie continued to help in Port Angeles for the rest of the week, but they came up empty handed so he pulled back to focus on his duties in Forks, which Bella was happy about. At least here in Forks, the Cullens were around too, hopefully, discourage any hunting here.
Or so she hoped.
Things seemed to quiet down over the next week, and then it was February which meant Valentine's Day was coming up. Bella was sure Carlisle had plans for them, as he was being cagey about what they were doing for the holiday. A week before Valentine's Day, Bella woke to a single rose placed under her hand with a little note on it that read 'Happy Anniversary, Sweetheart.' Smiling, she brought the rose to her face and breathed in the gentle aroma. Setting the flower onto her nightstand, she went to get ready for her day with a little smile on her face.
She planned to surprise Carlisle that night with the new lingerie Alice helped her select. Alice had practically swooned when Bella had asked her to help her shop for the get up, and had to reign Alice in once or twice, but overall, she was happy with what they'd selected. When the day finally ended, Bella hurried up to her room to get ready and changed into the lingerie, complete with a sheer slip that went over top, and proceeded to lounge on the bed until Carlisle arrived.
A little gust of air was her only warning that he'd arrived before cold fingers touched her ankle lightly. Glancing up, she was met with Carlisle's hungry gaze as he stared down at her, taking in every detail. Setting her book aside, she held her arms out to him, spreading her legs and inviting him in. He wasted no time descending on her, their lips crashing together as he lowered himself against her. It had been weeks since they'd been able to do anything, and the few times they'd tried, someone always interrupted them.
It would be hilarious if it wasn't her sex life being messed with, and she was almost certain it was starting to get to Carlisle as well. Though he was normally affectionate, he'd been more so lately. His hands were under the slip almost instantly caressing her body as they made their way up to her breasts. She moaned softly into his mouth as he cupped both her breasts giving them both a firm squeeze, his thumbs rubbing circles over her covered nipples as they hardened under his cool touch. Moving from her lips, he lightly nipped at her neck sending shivers down her spine, her hands gripping his shirt tightly and tugging on it trying to remove the item of clothing. He chuckled deep in his chest, pulling away long enough to toss the offending item aside before lowering himself back over her.
Running her hands down his chest, she reached into his pants gripping his already hardening cock and started stroking him. He groaned out her name in a gravely tone, his hips rocking slightly into her hand. His own hand reached down between them until they found her pantie covered slit, his fingers pressing against the thin material already soaked with her juices. Her hips arched up against his fingers, craving his touch, as his mouth left kisses along her neck, shoulder and chest. His fingers pushed aside the fabric of her panties, and two fingers slipped into her making her gasp.
For some reason, Carlisle stilled for a moment before letting out a frustrated sigh, his gaze meeting hers. "How upset would you be if I lied and said Charlie didn't just pull up?"
With a heavy sigh, she pulled her hand out of his pants, his fingers slipping out of her, as she moved to sit up. "I swear, everyone is trying to cock block us."
"I've noticed." Carlisle retrieved his shirt and pulled it back on while she grabbed her robe to go greet Charlie.
He reached the bottom of the stairs at the same time she reached the top and she gave him a smile. "Hey, how was work?"
Charlie gave a half-hearted shrug. "Same old stuff, how's school?"
"Good, it's good."
He nodded. "Well, night Bells."
"Night dad."
Bella grinned, their conversations were normally pretty short and sweet like that, but she didn't mind. She knew he cared by his actions, so even if he wasn't very good with words, he showed that he cared in other ways. Heading back into her room, she changed into her normal sleep wear and climbed into bed next to Carlisle, the two of them chatting well into the night.
Since Valentine's Day fell on a weekday this year, Carlisle had asked her if she was ok celebrating it a few days later so they could have the weekend. She agreed, as she really didn't care that much about the holiday. She still woke up to several roses and a box of her favorite chocolates on the actual day. It had made her smile that he just couldn't help himself when it came to her. There was a note letting her know they would be going to Seattle for the weekend. She was grateful for the heads up, since she really didn't care for surprises. That night he let her know he hadn't planned much other than some possible sightseeing.
This was completely fine with her. So, like last year, she told her dad she'd be at the Cullens for the night and headed over there to a waiting Carlisle. Once she'd settled into the Mercedes, they were off. The whole ride Bella munched on her chocolates and read while Carlisle drove with light music playing. It was comfortable. Several hours later, they arrived in Seattle. Bella tucked her book away as she watched out the window as Carlisle maneuvered around the city till they reached their hotel, a much more modest one this time, and they pulled in and handed the car over to the valet. Once checked in and at their room, Bella couldn't wait any longer.
For the whole car ride, she'd been eagerly awaiting their arrival to finally have some alone time with him and wanted him bare now. As soon as he opened the door and stepped through, she shut the door, locked it, and literally leapt into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist. The bags hit the ground with a thud as Carlisle easily caught her, their lips met in a frenzied kiss, both just as eager as the other for this moment. Carlisle carried her over to the bed, kicking his shoes off as he went, and laid her down pulling away only long enough to pull his shirt off.
Shedding her own shirt, she wrapped her arms around his neck pulling him back down to her as they continued their hurried make out session. Carlisle easily moved her up the bed, climbing onto it after her, as his hands trailed down her sides to her hips, while her own hands were buried in his hair. Finally, he broke the kiss, immediately moving to her neck and shoulder where he kissed, licked and sucked at her skin making her moan softly at the affection. Her hands traced his spine down to his pants, moving around to the front to palm the bulge in his pants before she started fumbling with his belt.
Just as she got it undone; his phone started to ring.
"Oh, come on." She exclaimed, with a huff.
Carlisle's head dropped to her shoulder as he mumbled. "God all mighty, give me strength." Pulling away from her, he sat on the edge of the bed pulling out his phone. "What is it?"
He listened for a bit, before sighing. "Ok, keep me updated."
With that, he hung up and tossed his phone onto the armed chair near the bed before running a hand through his hair. Curious, she came up behind him on her knees and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pulling him into a hug.
"Everything ok?"
"Another body was found, Jasper and Emmett are heading up to Port Angeles to take a look around, see if they can't ferret out whose encroaching on our territory." Carlisle turned to face her. "Likely their presence will scare these nomads off once they realize this area is protected."
"And if it doesn't?" She inquired laying her head on his shoulder.
A little smile tugged at his lips. "We'll have to have a talk with them, I'm sure they can be reasoned with."
"I hope you are right." Bella pulled her arms back, moving down to wrap around his middle, her hands finding the buttons to his pants. The news that there was another dead body had been a shock but had not dampened her mood and she was determined to fulfill their purpose there. "Now, where were we?"
Carlisle's smile widened as her hands undid his pants, a hand slipping down the front of his jeans to palm him. "I think I remember."
Turning in her arms, he laid her back on the bed as they worked together to shed his pants. He leaned in trailing kisses from where he left off on her shoulder down between her breasts, and over her stomach until he reached her pants. Popping open her jeans, he shimmied them off her leaving her in just her underwear. Normally, Carlisle would take his time undressing her, wanting to touch every inch of her with both his hands and lips. Having already been interrupted once, he opted to skip that step and quickly removed her under garments, unceremoniously tossing them to the floor behind him along with his boxers.
A laugh bubbled out of her at his eagerness, pulling him into a kiss as he positioned himself between her legs. She felt him press against her opening, and a moment later, he slid inside her. Bella let her head fall back onto the bed relishing in the feel of him deep inside her, a small moan slipping from her lips. Carlisle held still for a moment to let her adjust to him, kissing her neck, careful to keep his weight off her. When he started to move, her body arched at the wonderful drag of his cock on her insides.
Carlisle was normally a gentle lover, careful with his thrusts and put her pleasure first. Bella wanted more this time. Grabbing a handful of his hair at the back of his head and gripping it tightly, she arched up into him. "Harder, Carlisle…fuck me."
Lifting himself so he was hovering above her, braced on both arms, he gave her what she wanted and started to fuck her harder, until she was crying out in pleasure from their frenzied love making. She never thought of herself as a vocal lover, but she couldn't seem to stop the moans spilling from her lips, her cries of pleasure filling the room and mixing with his own. The bed creaked and groaned and she was sure anyone in a neighboring room could hear them, but she couldn't care less at the moment.
Glancing up at him, she smiled. In that moment, she almost forgot that he was several centuries old, his youthful face twisted in pleasure, his golden eyes almost black as he stared down at her with love and passion, his hair hanging loosely around his face. Her heart swelled slightly at the sight of him, knowing she would only ever be the one to see him like this. To see the young man that he truly was deep down, who had been lost for so long and now found a home with her. Reaching up, she brushed his hair back only to have it fall back down, a grin spreading on his slightly parted lips.
He was so gorgeous.
"So beautiful." He murmured under his breath.
Chuckling, she pulled him down for a kiss. "I was thinking that about you."
He hummed into the kiss, one hand gripping her hip as he continued to thrust into her, tilting her hips until he struck against that spot inside her that made her eyes want to roll back. Arching under him, she cried out as he struck against that spot over and over until she came, clinging to his shoulders as she writhed in pleasure. He groaned deep in his chest, his hips picking up speed until he too, cried out as he came, spilling his seed inside her.
Panting heavily, she let her body go lax, a thin layer of sweat coating her body. Carlisle lowered himself over her, his cool skin feeling heavenly against her burning flesh, his forehead gently pressing against hers. Her hand cupped the back of his neck, holding him there against her, enjoying this moment with her eyes closed. They often did this after sex, just basking in each other's presence while the bond hummed pleasantly between them. After a while she began to get a bit chilled from his cold skin and lightly kissed him as she shivered.
"Want to join me for a shower?"
Lifting himself off her, he nodded. "I'd like that."
He helped her up and they headed to the bathroom to shower, where she ended up pinned against the wall, legs wrapped around Carlisle's hips as he brought her to another release. They finished their shower and dressed before heading out into the city. Since they had no plan, they mostly just wandered around, eventually ending up in a park where, at one point, stopped at a railing on a little bridge over a walking path and just took in the beauty of the park. Carlisle stood next to her, his hand in hers, as she smiled completely content.
After a while, they picked up some food for her and headed back to the hotel. That night she slept peacefully in his arms. In the morning, after they checked out of the hotel, they did a little sightseeing, going to the Space Needle and exploring all that that had to offer before they started home.
The rest of February passed uneventfully, though the Cullens were still clearly tense about the nomads roaming around their territory. Jasper and Emmett's trip to Port Angeles had turned up nothing other than the knowledge that there were three vampires, but they'd been unable to track down where they were hiding. Whoever it was causing the ruckus, were also running the police in circles. Charlie was so busy with search parties to track them down that the man was late coming home every day now. He tried to work on his days off, but Bella had insisted on him using his days off to try and relax a little and visit his friends on the reservation.
Billy ended up texting her the first Monday of March asking her to come over, as he planned to make his famous fish fry for them in an effort to help ease the burden on her caring for Charlie. So, after school she headed down to the reservation and picked up the food, thanking Billy nearly a dozen times for the thoughtfulness of it. It had started raining while she was there and by the time she left, it was an absolute downpour and visibility was limited.
As she made her way back her windshield wipers stopped working suddenly. Panicking, she tried turning them off then on again, nothing, then banging on the windshield, nothing again. Deciding to just pull over as best she could, though she could barely see, she signaled to do so a moment before the wipers started working again. Breathing a sigh of relief, she glanced over her shoulder to make sure no one was behind her as she got back on the road, and when she looked back a deer ran out in front of her.
Swerving to miss it, she ended up in the ditch, slamming into a tree. Her head hit the steering, the air bag not going off, and she blacked out. She woke slowly, her vision blurred and her head spinning and throbbing painfully. Lifting her head, she was met with glowing eyes staring at her. Her first thought was it was a bear, as it was big and black and moved on all fours. A part of her brain laughed, she hung out with vampires that eat bears, yet here she was about to be killed by one.
A muffled voice called out, but she couldn't quite make out the words. Her eyes were heavy, and she just wanted to close them and go back to sleep. Suddenly the door was wrenched open and cold fingers gingerly ran down her neck. Confused, she turned towards the person and grinned.
Carlisle.
He laid her back against the seat so he could unbuckle her, her instincts told her to latch onto him while her head was still foggy and throbbing. Then, out of the blue, she remembered the bear and gripped his shirt as he lifted her out of the truck.
"Carlisle, careful, there's a bear." She mumbled, trying to think straight but it was so hard for some reason.
"It's ok, Bella, I've got you." Carlisle spoke softly as he easily carried her.
Something growled behind him and when she turned to look, it was a giant black wolf, baring its fangs at them. Bella felt her whole body tensed as the wolf stared them down. A second wolf appeared from around her truck joining the second as Carlisle continued to walk towards his Mercedes. She couldn't understand why he wasn't worried when the wolves looked ready to pounce, her own body trembling as she tugged on his shirt.
"Carlisle?" Her voice sounded tiny and frightened.
"It's ok, they won't hurt you, it's me they don't like." Carlisle explained calmly, setting her into his Mercedes and buckling her in. He turned towards the wolves. "Thank you for allowing me to help her. I'll bring her down to the hospital to be checked out. We'll arrange for someone to tow her truck later."
The big black wolf nodded its head and turned and ran into the forest, the smaller grey one following. Carlisle closed her door and climbed into the driver's side. His cold fingers gently inspected the cut on her forehead for a moment before pulling a U-turn and taking off towards town. Bella wanted an explanation on the wolves, and if her head wasn't pounding, she'd have demanded it. Since it was throbbing, she opted to close her eyes as Carlisle drove as smoothly as he could.
Thanks to the fog still plaguing her brain, the next few hours all blurred together as she was checked out at the hospital, and released with the diagnosis of a concussion, and a few stitches on her forehead. Carlisle took her home, explained her diagnosis to Charlie as well as why he was the one that found her, stating he'd been helping Edward search for her, and bid her a good night after Charlie thanked him and led her inside. Charlie helped her to bed, and she fell asleep before Carlisle could arrive to check on her.
Charlie had her stay home the next day, wanting to make sure she was healed, which she didn't argue as her head was still throbbing, though not as bad as the day before. The first half of her day she spent sleeping, which thankfully helped with the throbbing headache, and when she just couldn't sleep anymore, she lay in bed reading one of the books she'd pilfered from Carlisle's study. She'd been wanting to ask about the wolves all day, and she planned to, once Carlisle showed up that night.
Edward dropped her homework off for her, which she thanked him for, and Charlie arrived home shortly after, having been worried about her all day and wanting to check on her. When she managed to convince him, she was feeling a lot better, they ordered a pizza and watched TV until she headed up to her room. Carlisle checked her stitches and helped her change the bandage before she was allowed to question him.
"So, the bear sightings were actually giant wolves? Why didn't you tell me? And why do they not like you?" She blurted out.
Carlisle chuckled softly. "Yes, most the sightings were the pack, I couldn't tell you because of the treaty we have with the Quileute's, and they don't like me because I'm a vampire."
"The Quileute's? You're saying they are members of the tribe? Like, werewolves?"
"Yes, the black wolf is Sam Uley and the other was Paul Lahote. They can phase into a wolf at will, or when they get angry, and they are a vampire's natural enemy. However, I made a treaty long ago, that we'd stay off their land if they didn't reveal what we were. Now that we're back, the next generation is phasing thanks to our presence."
Nodding, she thought about Jacob, would he be forced into this too. "What about Jacob Black?"
"It's likely he'll phase too. It's in his genes; his ancestor was the one I made the treaty with."
Bella wrapped her arms around her middle, feeling guilty like it was her fault this was happening. "It won't, hurt him, right? He'll still be able to live a normal life?"
Carlisle chuckled. "Yes, as normal as a man who changes into a wolf can. He'll be able to marry and have children and all that if he so wishes."
Placated Bella leaned against him, resting her head against his shoulder. Her mind wandered back to the crash, replaying everything from when she woke up to now, and she realized she'd overlooked one thing. There had been a great deal of fear, but it hadn't been hers. "I'm sorry for scaring you."
He tensed for a moment, before his cool lips pressed a kiss to her forehead careful of her wound. "It's not your fault; you didn't intend too. Though, if at all possible, let's avoid crashing again, and if you must, please do it off Quileute land. I nearly broke the treaty trying to get to you."
Laughing, she took his hand in hers. "I'll do my best, on both parts." Sitting up suddenly, she remembered her truck. "Oh no, how am I going to fix my truck?"
Carlisle gently pulled her back against his shoulder, lifting her legs so they laid across his lap. "Rose is already working on it. We had it towed to the house, and she's been busy fixing it up. Sounds like it took less damage than you did."
Breathing a sigh of relief, she let herself relax against him. "I'll have to find some way to thank her."
He hummed, his hand lightly stroking her hair. Without meaning to, her eyes drifted closed. Being in his arms like this was a little too comfortable, and despite all the sleep she'd gotten earlier that day, she found herself drifting off in his embrace.