#jacobxoc

“Okay,” Jake said also skeptical and reaching around Grace to grab a muffin from the table. “Then what do you want me to do?” 

“Same thing as Grace. I want you to get a line in, start spending time with Bella, keep an eye on the situation. And then as the time gets closer if she progresses we’ll have two of ours on the inside, which will definitely buy us more time if we need it in the end.” 

“I think you’re jumping the gun on this one Sam.” 

“Well, I don’t. And I’m alpha so you’ll do as I say,” he said confidently before leaving the room. Jake and Grace were left alone in the kitchen and she dropped into a kitchen chair laying her head on her arms. 

“We’re not fucking secret agents. Bella knows that the pack is not thrilled about the pregnancy. They’ll be prepared for an attack.” Grace said into her arms. Jacob dropped in the chair across from her and put his hands behind his head. 

“Edward already texted me like a month ago.” Jake said casually. Grace shot up in her seat. 

“What?! He texted you? About what?!” Grace said surprised. 

“To have me come and talk to Bella and try to convince her she should terminate.” He said looking toward the door. 

“Did you...did you text him back?” Grace said. She couldn’t believe Edward had never mentioned it to her.

“I went and saw him. We met in the woods. I mostly wanted to rub it in his face that I was right. That I knew he was going to kill her one way or another. But…” Jacob looked at his hands and Grace rested her chin on her crossed arms. “It didn’t feel like I thought it would. He was...different. Broken.” 

Grace listened quietly and when Jacob looked into her eyes she concentrated. She could see the image in his head now, fuzzy and flickering but there. They had been practicing this every once in a while when they were near each other when Jake wasn’t phased. She only ever caught glimmers and echos, never anything as concrete when he was in his wolf form but it was something. She squinted her eyes trying to see it more clearly in her mind’s eye but it wasn’t working. 

“You get the idea,” he said, cutting off his gaze and moving it back down to his hands. 

“What are we going to do? Sam is definitely going to kill this thing but what if...what if it turns out to just be a baby? What do we do?” 

“There’s no way it’s just a baby, but I get your meaning….” he was at a loss and couldn’t offer her a way forward anymore than she could other than to say, “We buy as much time as we can so we can be sure.” 

“Right,” Grace breathed. 

January 

Grace walked into the study where Bella was getting another ultrasound, coming to the middle of her second trimester. Carlisle was diligently moving the wand across her belly trying to see if he could ascertain anything new. 

Grace put her hands in the backpocket of her jeans and smiled. 

“How are we doin’?” She asked nonchalantly. 

“Good, just seeing if I can hear anything new…” Carlisle said his eyes trained on the monitor. Bella smiled but her face was starting to look sallow, Grace noticed. Her color was off too. In her first two months, she was pink and flush with a pregnancy glow, but now she was turning a tinge of yellowish green. 

“I brought a present. Hope that’s okay. It was kind of big so I left it downstairs,” Grace said nodding over her shoulder. Bella smiled and Carlisle clicked off his machine saying “Nothing new,” with a tight smile to Bella. 

“Come on preggo,” Grace said, helping her up. She was definitely starting to show much more than a woman who was normally 4-5 months pregnant would show. She helped Bella slowly descend the stairs, noticing how thin her arms were becoming. 

“You feeling okay?” she asked quietly. 

“Yeah of course, just had a headache this morning I can’t shake. Where’s this monster present?” Bella asked jokingly as they rounded the corner to the living room. 

“It’s a good monster, I promise,” Grace said.

Jake stood in the center of the living room wearing his black leather jacket, tan shirt and jeans. 

Bella broke into a wide smile and shuffled quickly toward Jake to wrap him in a hug. He obliged and carefully closed his arms around with a smile Grace hadn't seen in a while as he said, “Hey Bells.” 

“It’s so good to see you,” Bella said as tears sprang to her eyes. Grace patted Bella’s back and looked up at Jacob’s face before saying, 

“I’m going to run some errands while you’re here with her. You good?” Jacob nodded without opening his eyes and Grace headed toward the front door. As she left she heard Bella say, 

“Your hair’s long again.” To which Jake laughed softly. Grace cherished that sound for a second before she moved to the treeline, focused herself carefully and recast the 56 miles to Port Angeles. When she reappeared, she leaned up against a nearby building and tried to catch her breath. 

After a couple of minutes, she relaxed and pulled her hood up against the January sleet and headed down the busy street. Edward and Carlisle had been hard at work trying to find information from anyone who could tell them more about what was happening to Bella. Alice and Jasper had disappeared for a full month before coming back empty handed. They left in shifts, not wanting to leave Bella unguarded for too long, but this time, their trips had overlapped with when they usually went to feed, so Grace had offered to meet up with a lead Carlisle had found who seemed promising. 

Grace had conveniently left this information out of the collective pack mind however, knowing that Sam would be furious if she was meeting up with a rogue vampire informant. So what Sam doesn’t know won’t hurt him. Not to mention that the alpha fatigue was starting to wear on her. 

Now that Jacob was back, the old tension between Sam and Grace resumed. He understood that the connection between Jacob and Grace might be more akin to the true alpha-Spirit Bird link but since Jake wasn’t interested in becoming alpha, he was trying to dictate the parameters of their connection as the true alpha. 

It was exhausting. Grace was usually given so much whiplash by Sam’s commands that she opted to just tune out as much as possible which caused clear divides amongst pack members. In their histories, the alpha and Spirit Bird were meant to work in perfect harmony, a balance, give and take. But with Sam and Grace it had been anything but. She found herself wanting to resist his alpha commands more and more, make decisions without consulting him, keeping him out of the loop when it came to what was happening in the Cullen house, anything to get some peace. She knew Sam was just trying to keep the pack in order, do his job, and keep everyone safe, but Grace felt like it was more of a father-child relationship between them than a mutual agreement to manage the pack. 

She and Jacob had mulled it over a couple of times in their collective mind, but stopped when Jacob was getting hounded by Sam for sowing discord. Grace was able to shield her own mind from the collective packs if she wanted because it was a choice to dip into their shared consciousness, but Jacob could not. 

Grace pulled herself out of her reverie as she turned down another alleyway, her footfalls splashing in the gathering puddles. She paused a door to her left, rechecking her phone for the address before she heard a light hiss above her. Grace tentatively looked up and saw the crouched figure of a man in a long coat on a fire escape. He quickly jumped from the immense height and landed across from Grace. She kept her face cool, hands in her pockets and spoke with purpose. 

“Alastor? I’m here on behalf of Carlisle,” the sleet slowed offering them a brief reprieve that neither of them really noticed. The vampire looked at her curiously, his eyes darting across Grace’s body, taking her in and relishing in the scent. Grace made a mental note, Black eyes, this might be a problem. 

Another low hiss came from the back of the vampires throat without him meaning it, like a reflex. “And you're the little mortal he sent to do his bidding?” he let out a soft, pleasing laugh. Grace didn’t respond right away, just shifted her weight a little and kept her eyes trained on the creature. 

“You have information Carlisle asked for?” Grace leveled him with a solid stare. Surprisingly she wasn’t afraid, but as the time ticked on she felt like she was on a fool’s errand. Alastor looked like he hadn’t had a shower in decades. His blonde hair hung in oily strands around his round face. Patches of dirt adorned his perfectly marble like skin. He was dressed in a dingy, worn overcoat and gloves that left his thin fingers exposed. Grace grimaced a little. He gave her an unsettling smile and pulled his lips back a little too far over his teeth. 

“Right. This way,” he said as he walked off down the alleyway. Grace rolled her eyes and followed him internally thinking Shields up. He took her through dark street after dark street until the sun started to get low and he veered off to his left, pulling open two cellar doors that were sunken into the alleyway. He descended down the stone steps into the darkness and Grace groaned. She was walking into a vampire den, clear as day, and if Sam or Paul or any of the pack members found out, she’d be crucified. She followed after Alastor into the dark, damp cellar until she found herself in a worn and disheveled den. Literally. She had to almost stop herself from laughing at the irony. 

It was scattered with remnants of paper, old CDs, actual trash, and tattered linens with questionable stains. Alastor was rummaging through some dresser drawers on the far wall. 

“When Carlisle had told me of his little predicament, it had reminded me of this book I had come across centuries ago in a deserted library. It detailed the legends of bloodsuckers, the immortal way, and the children born from them.” Grace raised an eyebrow still taking in the dank surroundings as the bare bulb in the center of the room cast eerie shadows. “He was very interested in such a book, and lucky for him I nicked it some 300 years ago. Ah!” he cried pulling a slender, small book out from his drawer. He looked upon it lovingly, “It’s given me solace, to understand the monster that I am, how I’m perceived, and how legends tell us more truth about ourselves than anything else.” 

Grace didn’t respond. His eyes, black as ink, drew her in momentarily. She felt an odd tickling at the back of her neck. A warning? 

“But for all his goodness, Carlisle is nothing if not gullible to the real fault of humans,” he was on her now, terribly close and she careened back, her back slamming into the wall behind her. Her head hit the stone with a thud and she felt warmth trickle there. When she felt the back of her head, she pulled back a small amount of blood, but it was enough. Alastor’s hand was suddenly outstretched, closed around her throat and slowly crushing her windpipe. Grace, taken off guard, gasped for breath, gripping Alastor’s wrist with one hand as her other fought for purchase on the wall behind her to give her leverage. She was turning blue. 

Alastor’s eyes were gleaming, his mouth wide open in hunger and just as quickly, “Just a taste,” he teased cruelly. 

Grace squeaked out a suffocated, “I wouldn’t,” before bringing her free hand up, pulling her energy hard and fast, slicing down like a knife in front of her and severing Alastor’s outstretched arm at the elbow. She frantically pulled at the hand that still loosely gripped her neck and cast it aside with a clatter. Alastor let out a howl of pain and was momentarily thrown off balance. Grace leaned down to scoop up the small book and sprinted for the staircase. Once out in the cool, dark air, she wasted no time recasting back to Forks. 

Falling forward on her knees in the forest, Grace coughed and tried to regain her breath. She drew in ragged breaths, but the pain was excruciatingly sharp. It felt like someone had dragged glass shards down her throat. Grace checked to make sure she had the book pocketed in her jacket before pulling herself up with a groan and stumbling toward the Cullen’s. That was the last time she volunteered to meet up with one of Carlisle’s sketchy ass friends. 

As she broke out of the treeline and onto the Cullen’s driveway, she was starting to  wheeze. Coming down from the front steps was Jacob. Panicked, Grace tried to gain her composure. His face looked furious, dark, and he was lost in thought until he looked up and saw Grace coming toward him. 

“Hey,” he said quietly. Grace nodded thinking she was in the clear but as she got closer to brush past him his eyes went wide:

“Grace what the HELL!” He stepped in front of her and his hands went to roughly touch her neck. Grace flinched painfully and wheezed out: “Jake, take it easy.” Her voice was raspy and cut in and out like changing channels on a tv. 

“Sorry,” he breathed, his hands soft on her neck now inspecting the clear red welts of hand print there. “What the fuck happened?!” Suddenly he was taking a deep breath, the coppery scent clear now, and his eyes shot up to her head, “Are you bleeding?!” his eyes were roving up and down her body, desperately searching for where the smell of blood was coming from. 

“Jacob,” she whispered, trying to even her wheezing. “I’m fine, let me just—” she tried to move past him, but his hand was firm on her upper arm holding her in place. His other hand reached and softly touched the back of her head, pulling back wet blood. His eyes were wide with anger now, furious, and filled with absolute disgust. 

“Who did this?” he growled. His whole body was shaking and his eyes were alight with something she hadn’t seen in months. 

“Can I go inside please?” she asked, tired. She wasn’t losing a lot of blood, but the smell was starting to make her just a little bit dizzy. He nodded snapping out of it and wrapping his arm around her shoulders as he led her up the steps and into the Cullen house. 

Carlisle was there instantly trying to assess her, but Jacov’s reflexive growl told him to keep his distance.

“Jacob may I?” he asked politely. Jake wasn’t letting go and Grace had to gently peel his fingers off her shoulder to be released. His anger only ticked up as Grace sat down wincing as Carlisle gently parted her hair where the wound was. “Esme, please get my kit,” he said, lifting Grace’s chin up and looking closely at her throat. She was gone and back in an instant. “I’m sorry, I didn’t think Alastor would be in bad shape.” 

“This was for you?!” Jacob said, rage racketing up in him now. Grace gave Carlisle a warning look, upset that he had said anything. 

“Jake, I’m fine, really. Look,” she whispered, her voice raspy and weak. She held up her finger and followed her eyes as she moved her finger back and forth across her face. Jacob was not placated. He seethed, watching her with clenched fists as his chest rose and fell quickly with every passing breath. 

She reached in her pocket to hand Carlisle the book. “Thank you,” he said quietly as he took it from her and then deftly grabbed some tools to start working on cleaning, disinfecting, and stitching up Grace’s head. “Should just need a couple of stitches. Can you breathe alright?” he asked as he listened to her wheezing. She nodded even though it caused severe discomfort. As he finished the stitches and moved to look at her neck again, he gently pressed on the sides of her throat. Grace let out a soft, involuntary, whimper. Her eyes shot up to meet with Jacob’s and his face had changed. It was desperate, intermixed with anger—he couldn’t handle it, seeing her like that. Carlisle met her eyes and said “You’ve definitely got some swelling and bruising around the windpipe, but the muscle feels intact.” 

At this, there was a huge crash that caused Grace to jump. Rosalie was in the room now, having heard the noise, looking around quickly for the threat. One of the floor to ceiling windows that looked out over the forest in the living room was completely shattered. Jacob had thrown his wolf body through it and darted off into the forest. Grace braced against the chill that crept in. 

“Sorry about that,” Grace wheezed. Carlisle gave her a reassuring smile. 

“I’m sorry about this. I shouldn’t have asked you to go. I thought...It doesn’t matter,” he said. He dashed and was back with a warm compress from his study that he gingerly fixed around Grace’s neck. “This should help with the swelling at least until your healing kicks in. Let’s get you up to the guest room,” he said softly. 

“Can someone actually give me a ride home?” her mouth was dry and the pain in her head was slowly subsiding but she was worried about the pack, about Jake. 

“Of course, we’ll take you home right away.” 

Grace carefully climbed the steps to her front door and gave Carlisle a wave as she went inside, shutting the door behind her. She let out a sigh of relief and pulled the compress off her neck as she climbed the stairs to her room. She clumsily pulled off her jeans and grabbed at a loose shirt that was hanging from her closet door. After pulling off her sweatshirt, t-shirt, and bra, she pulled on the oversized t-shirt and revelled in it’s warm cedar-like smell before collapsing on her bed and passing out, her phone buzzing wildly in the back pocket of her discarded jeans. 

Early muted sun came in through her porthole window above the bed. Distant thunder roiled somewhere outside. Grace groaned and rolled onto her side, slowly opening her eyes. She let out a quick gasp as her eyes put together the figure of Jacob, sitting low in the chair next to the bed that was usually piled with laundry.

“Fuck, Jacob,” she said softly. Her voice was rough, but the rasp was gone and she pulled in cool, clean breaths with ease. She tentatively brought a hand up to her neck and gingerly pressed it. The pain was gone and only a dull ache like a bruise remained. She felt better, but didn’t try to get up, resettling her head on the pillow to get a better look at Jake. His face was dark, brooding. His eyes were alight with fresh upset but it didn’t feel solely directed at her. 

“What were you thinking?” he said, his voice filled with disdain. Grace let her eyes rove over him carefully taking in his shape. She hadn’t been alone with him in her room since before she broke them. The feeling was strangely intimate and Grace didn’t let herself settle in it too long. 

“We’re trying to figure this thing out and I want some answers. For Bella,” she said simply her eyes glued to his face now. He had a hand resting lightly over his mouth and Grace silently wished that he would drop it so she could stare at his lips and remember every shape they took. 

“Do you have a death wish? Sam is…” Jacob stalled, his eyes locking more concretely with Grace’s now as he silently tried to communicate with her. She got simple flashes, Sam on his hind legs, rocketing back, snarling and snapping, the rising of howls moving around the forest, a volley of commands that she couldn’t quite make out.

“Yeah well..” Grace sighed sitting up now. Jacob’s eyes moved down the length of her body not covered by the sheet. “What?” she said quietly. 

“You’re wearing my shirt,” he said with relief. As if the realization gave him something special, clarity that he wasn’t expecting. She was confused by his tone and looked down to pluck at the shirt with her fingertips. 

“Oh. I was out of it when I got back.” She rubbed her hands over her eyes and gave a low yawn. 

“Grace you don’t get it, he—” Jacob was cut off by a crescendo of howls coming through the forest, his eyes snapped up and Grace looked out her window alarmed. 

Get down here. NOW. 

Grace heard the clear command in Sam’s voice and quickly jumped out of bed, alarm bells ringing her head. Something was wrong. The howls were clearly pained, as if they pulled against the voice that dragged them forward. 

Jake had already phased and had dashed into the forest. Grace quickly dressed and recast to his location, realizing too late that she was barefoot. The cool earth pricked at the warm soles of her feet as she stood in front of the towering black wolf. 

Jake was mingled in with the pack, nipping at Seth and Quil to stay back. Grace steadied herself as she looked up at Sam and felt the heat of his anger rolling off his body. 

Time and time again, you put this pack on the brink. You put each of us in danger with your recklessness. Going out there alone and putting your life at risk on an errand for a bloodsucker?! The disregard for your own life means I can’t trust you to help protect this pack.

Grace’s heart rate ticked up. Thunder crashed just offshore and the hair on the back of her neck rose. Whimpering sounds from the pack echoed behind Sam. 

“I’m trying to keep Bella alive and keep a war from starting.” Grace said simply. Her hands felt that familiar pain and she clenched and unclenched them into fists. 

You can no longer be trusted to have good judgement when it comes to the Cullens or Bella. And the Cullen’s clearly have you compromised if you’re out there doing their bidding. I won’t let it continue and have one of ours end up dead because of your clouded judgement. 

Grace’s eyes darted around to the pack now, unsure of what to do.  But Sam wasn’t backing down. He padded toward her, his muzzle open in a clear snarl, all teeth. 

You will either come under heel and submit to Alpha orders like everyone else here. Or you will be cast out and we will come after you if you interfere with us taking care of the threat. 

Grace swallowed hard. “So you’re going to kill Bella then, that’s your plan?” 

I tell you that you have two choices to maintain your connection to this pack—YOUR DESTINY—and instead you ask about if we’re going to kill Bella. It makes me sick!

At this, Sam lunged at her, his mouth open in a clear attack. Grace pushed her body back as she pulled energy up in front her, eyes wide. She went crashing back into the woods and came to halt once she slammed against a tree. 

“ARE YOU CRAZY?!” Grace shouted as she scrambled to her feet and rushed back into the clearing. There was a squabble of fighting amongst the wolves behind Sam. Their dissent was quickly quieted with a swift command from him. 

Choose. I won’t ask again. Sam was livid. This was beyond insane. The weight of this alpha command was stronger than any she had felt before and her body begged her to obey, desperate for relief. She felt the strain of it in the back of her head, the muscles surrounding her skull tightening dangerously, willing her to submit. But she pulled against it. There was no way she was going to let her pack murder her sister and her unborn baby. They meant too much and the pack meant too much. She’d never let them become those kinds of monsters. She gritted her teeth and leveled Sam’s gaze. 

“No.” she said between clenched teeth. There was another round of howls, whimpers, snaps, and snarls at her defiance. Sam recoiled, his ears back in clear anger. 

Enough. Fan out toward the Cullen’s. Don’t stop. Sam said.

We’re going to kill her?! 

Sam, wait please. 

Grace don’t do this.

There’s no other way, we have to kill this thing. Bella’s made her choice. 

Jacob do something! Seth’s voice was loud and clear as Sam charged toward Grace. The pack was held back by their alpha orders. Grace pulled up her energy as a shield again, teeth still gritted, digging her feet in and taking Sam’s blows as he battered against her again and again, pushing her back shouting: 

YOU. WILL. LISTEN. TO. ME. 

Jacob felt a sharp ripple move through him as he watched Sam advance on Grace again and again. She wouldn’t push Sam back, she wouldn’t hurt him—Jacob didn’t know if she was capable of hurting them in their wolf form or if something in her held her back. Still, she wouldn’t return the attack. Jake could see that she would lose. There was no way she could keep this up for long. Not after multiple alpha commands dragging her down while trying to keep herself standing against his barrage of attacks.

A ripping growl grew in the back of his throat as he watched, the chaos around him was shredding his sanity into pieces. Sam wouldn’t stop, Jacob knew that. 

Sam thought that Grace was putting them in danger and that he needed to protect them. But Jacob knew killing Bella wasn’t the answer either, and bringing Grace under Sam’s heel would backfire, it’s not how Grace felt the bond worked. 

Every time he hit her shield of energy, the sound crunched louder and louder, intermixed with his snarls and snaps. The crescendo of wolf thoughts wouldn’t cease either as they all escalated into panic. Jake was boiling over and he just wanted it to stop. 

Sam crashed into Grace in one final blow and her shield fell. She was pushed back up against a tree and slowly slipped down the trunk. Sam raised himself up on his hind legs to bring himself down upon her again, a paw raised with claws extended. An echo screamed through Jacob’s head, long forgotten and buried deep in his psyche. He felt pushed forward by unseen hands as his body sprinted toward Grace. 

Once he had rocketed toward her, the cries and shouts of his brothers went quiet as he launched himself at Sam’s broad back. 

His jaws grabbed around Sam’s shoulder. H was caught unaware and in his panic, Sam threw his head back snapping wildly to try and toss him off. But Jacob was strong, stronger than he thought, and he pulled him backwards onto the ground. Sam twisted out his grip and Jake moved his body in front of Grace as she pulled herself up, her breath quick and sharp. 

“Jake, don’t.” Grace said softly. He growled and widened his stance, blocking Grace from Sam’s view.

Get out of the way. Sam growled.

No. Jake shouted back. Sam’s ears went back and suddenly at his tone. Startled, Jacob realized he couldn’t hear anything, just his own quick breath as Sam narrowed his eyes on him again. 

What did you do?! Sam screamed.

You gave me no choice. This is not who we are, Sam. This is not who you are. 

What did you DO?! He lunged for Jacob and as Grace cried out. Jacob shook Sam’s muzzle off of his neck and beared down on him, crushing his ribs under his paws. Sam yelped as Jacob dug in and chomped harder, the other wolves pacing frantically behind him. 

I won’t let you hurt her. She’s under my protection now. SAY YOU UNDERSTAND! The command was clear and Sam yelped again, struggling harder against his tightening grip. 

I understand! Sam finally yelled out. Jacob released him immediately and Sam retreated to his pack. 

You’ve made a mistake, Jacob. You’ve destroyed this pack. We can’t come back from this. 

Jacob had had enough. He turned to give Grace a look that she acknowledged and she recast away deeper into the forest. Jacob would find her soon enough. 

The other pack members whined, confusion clear in their eyes. Jacob took one last look at them and took off as desperate howls rang out.

He ran in the direction that Grace went, knowing she’d be waiting for him. He saw her ahead in the clearing and quickly phased, pulling on his jean shorts before walking into the clearing. He let his eyes fall to the ground, realization sinking into him. His pack, his brothers, Leah, they were lost to him. Grace spun around, her eyes wild in shock:

“Did you just become alpha?!” Her voice was strained, shattered. He raised his eyes to her and in that moment everything stopped. A hush fell over the forest, unnaturally void of the chirps and rustling of the in its floor. The light seemed to glitter around them and the air grew thick and heavy despite the January cold. The thunder that had sounded off shore, clattered around them, lacing the air with electricity that splintered out and set their nerves on fire. 

Grace pulled in a sharp breath. The dangling thread that had snapped in her when Jake had left suddenly reacted, shooting down through her body like a steel cable and snapping to the forest floor. She felt grounded, tethered to the earth, but more than that, she felt tethered to him. The rushing noise was already washing through her, the immense pressure building and finally exhaling around her. The pull in her stomach rejoiced in an exalted sigh of pleasure as it said, Yes, it’s you. Finally. 

Jacob was stone in front of her, his eyes wide with understanding. It was her. The soul that had been calling out to him all this time had been hers and deep down he thought he always knew. It was like finally turning over a stone and revealing the glittering life beneath. Like pulling a relief of air into a stifling room, the cool rush of understanding washing over his too hot body. His mind buzzed with recognition: Grace, his imprint. 

Like a magnet, her pull begged her to move closer, but all Grace could get out was a soft, “Oh.” as they stared at each other. The sound suddenly returned to the forest, teeming with life and becoming all too loud. Tears welled around the bottom of her eyes as she became overcome with joy. The ancestor’s hadn’t forgotten about her. 

She held herself in place, waiting for his cue. His mouth opened and closed before he finally said, “Grace.” Calling her to him.

Jacob let out a snapping noise and turned his body to hurdle towards the Cullen’s place. He was right to have Embry tail her after all. But he didn’t want to be right. Grace was the most infuriating woman he’d ever met. Every time he tried to pull her in a direction, she’d push in the opposite. She’d tell them to go and then they’d stop. He literally had to order her to stay put just to keep her away from her sister now turned potentially bloodthirsty newborn. She careened toward danger like it was an amusement park. And when he’d catch her around the waist as she tried to jump off a cliff into the arms of yet another conflict, she’d kick and scream as he pulled her back from the edge. 

Do you want me to check and see if she’s there Jake? I’m close! Seth offered after listening to Jacob’s raging thoughts about Grace. 

No, stay put, I don’t want you near the Cullen’s place right now in case Bella’s awake. 

Edward had only somewhat been keeping Jacob in the loop as it seemed like things were touch and go for Bella. She was definitely transitioning into a vampire but it was taking longer than they had anticipated. Carlisle thought it might be the fact that they pulled her back from the brink of death at the last minute. But still, there were no definitive answers. He knew Grace had been having nightmares about it and he knew half the time she wasn’t sleeping anyway. He’d find her awake sometimes, downstairs, on the couch, arms threaded through her legs as she stared out the door over the moonlit cove. 

It broke him to see her so torn up but he kept the words Ti’Hal had told him at the forefront of his mind: 

“She is the protector. And as her alpha, let her lead with her heart. She will know how to guide you….but as her imprint you must keep her safe. She is the Spirit Bird, strong-willed and connected to the sky and sea. But she is also just Grace Alo, a woman finding her way into love and life with you. You must find the balance.” 

Balance wasn’t easy. Ti’Hal had a knack for providing answers but never actually giving you the clear way forward. As Jacob crashed through the clearing of the Cullen’s property, he scanned his eyes quickly over the quiet facade of the home. No movement. He sniffed the air tentatively. No trace of her. That was odd. He knew her scent anywhere, but it was nowhere to be found here. Could Embry have been mistaken? 

Grace? He called out to her. No response. Weird. 

Did you find her? Leah broke through. 

No, not yet. Embry, you’re sure she came here? 

I don’t know man. One minute she was going to the truck and the next she’s walking past me toward the woods. Where else would she go? 

Is the truck still at Ti’Hal’s? 

Yeah, she left the keys in the driver seat. 

Jake backed into the trees, but not before he saw Rosalie step out onto the front porch with the swaddled Renesmee in her arms. Jake tensed. This was the reason Bella was gone from them forever, never to be her true human self again. He had mixed feelings to say the least, but mostly, he just wanted to get the hell away from here. It frustrated him that Grace was so adamant about wanting to be here. They were supposed to be totally in sync as imprints, right? 

So then why did he feel like they were on opposite sides of the field? 

Jake turned and bolted back through the trees toward the house. 

Maybe she went to Charlie’s. Seth go swing by and see if you can pick up a scent. I’m going back to the house real quick. 

You think she went home? Embry said skeptically. 

Maybe… Jacob wasn’t too sure, but it didn’t hurt to check. 

As he came to the treeline just outside of the cove, he quickly phased and pulled on his shorts jogging up to the front door. He heard the sound of movement in the house, a clattering of dishes as if someone was pulling out pots and pans. He strode through the front door. 

“Grace?” he called out. A head peeked up from behind the kitchen island. Jake let out a sigh of relief. “Jesus, I’ve been looking for you.” 

“Hey.” Grace said nonchalantly. 

“Embry said you recast outside of Ti’Hal’s and left the truck there. I thought you….went to see Bella,” he said. 

Grace paused, setting a pan on the stovetop and deciding her next words carefully. 

“Yeah, I was going to. But then...I thought about what you said,” she paused, looking at him, “And I realized that what you were asking for was as much for me as it was for you. And…” Grace looked down at her hands, “And I’m sorry. I can be patient.” 

Jake’s face had broken into a smile, “You? Be patient?” he joked. Grace laughed as she rolled her eyes. 

“Yeah, well, only for you, I guess,” she replied, still wary that he might be upset with her.

“Come here,” he said confidently from his place across the living room. Grace walked out from behind the counter and then sprinted toward him, crashing her body into his. He caught her easily and planted a kiss on her. “Thank you.” 

“That’s how this works, right? Compromise? Listening...Trust.” Grace offered in between his peppered kisses across her lips, down her cheek and neck. Jacob made a soft noise of agreement as he continued to press his lips to her. “I need to apologize to Embry, I was kind of a jerk.” she murmured. 

She hadn’t even realized Jacob was steering her toward the couch until the back of her knees collided with the arm of the sofa. She sat down on the arm as Jacob brought his hands to either side of her face to kiss her softly. Grace placed her hands on either side of his scorching torso and tried to keep her head clear. This was the danger with Jake—it was always easy to slip into this euphoria with him, one where if she just let herself go, she could get lost. And she so desperately wanted to get lost with him. 

She brought her hands up to circle his wrists and gently tugged at his hands so she could pull her face away from his. 

“Are you hungry?” Grace asked in a quiet voice her eyes were heavy with desire and he looked across her face. 

“Starving,” he breathed. Her breath hitched in her throat and Jacob took it upon himself to lean his head down again to hers pressing harder against her. Grace’s body responded of its own accord this time as she arched her back into him and pressed her hips to meet his. Jake’s arm instinctively wrapped down around her back pulling her closer as their mouths became more frenzied moving over one another. Everything in Grace pulled her toward Jacob and inside she was rejoicing. But, annoyingly for Grace, something made her stop. 

“Wait,” she said, as his hands pushed up under her shirt spreading wide across her bare back. 

“You okay?” He said, perturbed. Jake couldn’t put his finger on why she always made him stop. It couldn’t be that she wanted to move slow, that had backfired per their last go at a relationship. And they lived together, they were in a clearly defined relationship. He was ready to take the next step but she always stopped him. 

“Yes, I—” Grace hesitated, a blush clearly forming on her cheeks. He placed a hand under her chin and pulled her face up to look at him.  

“What’s wrong?” He said, concern clear in his eyes. Grace shook her head. 

“Nothing it’s...it’s me. I just...Oh god this is kind of embarrassing,” Grace said closing her eyes tightly. The right side of Jake’s mouth pulled up in a lopsided grin that made Grace weak. 

“Tell me,” he said easily. Grace let out an exasperated huff and a laugh. 

“It’s dumb, it’s so dumb, you’re gonna laugh.” 

“Good thing I like it when you make me laugh,” he said, bringing the hand that was cupping her chin to her jaw and stroking his thumb across her cheek. Grace’s blush deepened. “I like that too,” he said softly as he let his thumb glide across her reddened cheek. 

“How do you do that?” 

“Don’t change the subject now,” he laughed. “Tell me what’s wrong. Why do you always stop me?” 

“I just—” Grace shook with frustration, “I just want it to be perfect!” she blurted out. She turned her head into his wide hand and cringed. 

“What?” Jacob said not connecting yet. 

“With you, I mean. I want it to be perfect. Everything.” She looked up at him, standing up and placing her hands on his chest. “I want it to be...special,” she cringed again, “God it sounds so lame but I do. I messed everything up so bad the first time and I don’t want us to be bogged down with all this….stuff.” She locked eyes with his and she saw the laughter twinkling in his eyes as he tried to take her seriously. 

“You don’t want to have sex yet because you want it to be perfect when our lives aren’t a tangled mess fit with other people’s problems?” Jake said to sum it up. Grace looked at him, mouth agape. 

“Uhh, yeah.” She said feeling stupid. “When you put it like that though,” Grace shifted uncomfortably and he placed both of his hands on either of her arms holding her in place. 

“I get it. We don’t have to take it to the next level right now. But Grace, I gotta be honest with you,” he paused running a hand through his shaggy hair. Grace couldn’t help but adore it. She missed his long hair and hoped he never cut it again. Still, she braced for the worst of what he was about to say next and bit her lower lip in anticipation, “I don’t know if there will ever be a time where we’re not ‘bogged down’ by all this ‘stuff’,” he used air quotes around her words and Grace looked at the ground dejectedly. 

“I know it’s stupid, but...I just want our first time to not be on the couch, or in the back of the Rabbit, or in our bed after you’ve had an exhausting night of running rounds, while I’m worried that my sister is lost forever, and yo’re worrying about everyone else. I want it to be...World Series Level stuff,” she concluded as she looked back up at him. He had an eyebrow raised and sarcastically said:

“Have you and Embry been binging 90’s movies again?” 

“Jake, come on,” she groaned, but she couldn’t help a smile playing on her face, “Just a couple..” He laughed and took her hands in his. 

“Okay. We’ll shoot for perfect,” he pushed a piece of hair behind her ear, “But I’m telling you right now, it’s not going to be easy.” 

“Why? Cos you wanna jump my bones so bad?” she joked. He shrugged. 

“Basically, yeah. Even if it’s not just the imprint, everything in me wants you all of the time.” He said a little lick of desire hung on the edge of his words. Grace watched him carefully, as her heart fluttered uncontrollably. Everything in her wanted him all the time too. 

“So...no more seeing me naked for awhile then?” 

“Probably for the best, just for now until we find our moment.” He brought his hand up and rubbed his thumb across her lower lip. 

“We won’t have to wait long...promise,” Grace said as she turned her head and bit at his thumb playfully. Jake laughed at that. 

“Deal. Thank you for not going rogue today. Now if you’ll excuse me, I still have rounds to do,” he leaned down and kissed the top of her forehead. “I love you.” 

“And I love you,” she nodded. She turned toward the kitchen and Jake took the opportunity to swat at her butt with the back of his hand before jogging out the front door before he could be volleyed with too many protests.

Later that night, Grace was startled awake by the same nightmare—the hand that reached for her was just skin and bones now, and Bella didn’t even look like Bella anymore, she was just skeletal remains and decayed dripping skin. Jake had become used to the nightmares at this point and squeezed her gently into his body before falling back asleep. Grace laid there for a second, getting her bearings as she bit the tip of her thumb. When Grace heard her phone buzz on the nightstand, she carefully pulled out of Jacob’s arms and rolled to her side of the bed, that she rarely slept on when Jake was home, and flipped it open. 

Carlisle. 

Grace sucked in a sharp breath and answered. 

“Hello?” she said quietly. Jake was awake again, now rubbing his hand sleepily across his face. 

“Grace. I’m sorry for calling so late, did I wake you?” Carlisle’s smooth tone was comforting but that didn’t stop Grace from searching for any kind of worry there. 

“No, no. How’s Bella? Is she—” Grace didn’t know how to continue. Jake had pulled himself up at the mention of Bella’s name and rolled over to be behind Grace, putting a hand on her lower back. 

“That’s why I was calling,” Carlisle continued. “I thought you’d want to know as soon as possible, since we knew how worried you’ve been. The transformation was successful. She woke up a few days ago and is still getting the lay of the land, but…” Carlisle stopped. 

“But?” Three days ago!? They couldn’t call and tell her that Bella had made it three days ago? 

“She’s asking for you, and she seems to have some cadence of control. If you feel comfortable, you should come by tomorrow.” Carlisle said, “When you’re ready, of course.” he tacked on quickly at the end. 

“Yes! Thank you!” the excitement filled Grace to the brim, “I’ll be there in the morning.” Grace glanced at the clock: 4 a.m. She could make it to 7. Vampires don’t really keep time anyway, this was just a formality. 

“See you then,” Carlisle said confidently before hanging up. Grace clutched the phone to her chest. 

“Grace,” Jacob said slowly, the concern clear in his voice. 

“He said she was okay. She’s okay. Oh god,” the flood of emotions was coming now. She had missed her so much, and while she hadn’t realized it, Grace had started to resign herself to Bella’s death. The relief at her just being...alive was overwhelming. Jake was off the bed and kneeling in front of her, his hands on either side of her thighs as Grace let tears of joy fall from her face. “Jake,” she said through a smile, “She’s okay.” Jake watched her carefully and Grace suddenly realized that he didn’t look happy. “What?” she said, almost annoyed. Jake’s grip on her thighs tightened. 

“I’m happy she’s okay...but Grace,” he paused. 

“Jacob, no. No ‘But Grace!’ Carlisle said she was fine and that she’s been asking for me!” 

“I know, I just...need you to be careful. She’s still a newborn and I think if we just gave her some more time to ...even out,” he said softly. 

“This is bullshit,” Grace huffed, the tears of joy evaporated and now all she was was frustrated. 

“You said you were going to be patient,” Jake said. 

“Carlisle said it was okay!” Grace held the phone up as proof and then faltered. “But you don’t?” 

“I just...need you to be safe. And I don’t think this is the best idea right now. Why don’t we start with calling her tomorrow morning and then we can go from there? That way we don’t walk into the lion’s den unprepared.” 

Grace’s eyes darted around his face, he was calm, his voice filled with concern, and his eyes were pleading. She closed her eyes tightly and heard the echo of words from teacher’s long ago that she had had as a child describing her to her mother: Impulsive, bratty, hot-headed, doesn’t think things through. 

Grace let out a hard breath and narrowed her eyes while looking at Jacob. A twitch of a smile was itching at his lips as he watched her. “Okay...we’ll call her first.” She said, her hands gripping the phone tightly. 

“Thank you,” he said leaning up to plant a kiss on her nearly pouted lips. “Let’s go back to sleep.” He said, the exhaustion returning to his eyes as he moved around her and collapsed on the bed again. 

“I’m not tired.” 

“Of course not,” he yawned. 

“I’m going to take a shower, you sleep,” she said as she crawled over him, making sure to press a knee into his abdomen as she made her way over his side of the bed to the bathroom instead of getting up and walking around. He humored her and made a loud groaning noise as she did this, but she knew it didn’t actually faze him. 

Grace shook out the pain in her hands as she tried to quell her frustration. He was right, she knew he was right, but she just wanted to see Bella...and Renesmee again. She needed to know they were alright. 

Grace shot up in bed, gasping for air, as the late morning light filtered in through the porthole window above her bed. She tentatively touched at the skin around her neck as she tried to pull in clean breaths to her lungs. Sweat dotted around her hairline and she looked around her. She was alone and had kicked off the sheets during her nightmare. Off to her right in the bathroom, she heard the shower running. Grace pulled her knees up and rested her chin on her knees trying to shake the dream. Her eyes darted to her cell phone lying open on the nightstand. She could tell by the lack of blinking light that she had no new messages. 

It had only been 5 days since Renesmee’s birth and Bella hadn’t woken up. Carlisle thought that they had made it in time to have the venom take hold and for the change to happen, but she had yet to wake up. After the second day of staying by Bella’s bed without sleep, Jacob had ushered Grace out of the room against her will and taken her home. Grace had fought but sleep won out. He had held her tightly to him in bed until she had fallen asleep, the tears still staining her cheeks as he tried to whisper soothingly to her. 

After coming home, Jake had told her it would be best for them to wait for Carlisle’s word before heading back over. 

“Why?” she had said angrily. 

“If she has turned, it’s not going to be immediately safe for us to be around her. You’ve fought newborns. She might not remember us right away,” Jacob said as he had gently pushed the hair out of her face. Grace was not having it. 

“She asked me to protect Renesmee. I should at least be able to see her to do that, don’t you think?” Grace folded her arms in front of her taking a step back from Jake. He let out a hard breath. He was nothing if not patient with her. 

“Yes, but you’ve done that. The threat is gone. Sam’s retreated, and we have a second to breathe until Bella comes back. Let’s just let the Cullens take care of Nessie for now and we’ll go back when we know it’s safe.” He pleaded. 

“Nessie?” Grace raised a skeptical eyebrow. 

Despite Jake’s efforts, Grace hadn’t been sleeping well. She was constantly woken up by nightmares and the rest of the time she spent pacing the house, too worried about Bella to let herself settle. She was constantly irritated, not at Jake, but at the situation in general, and she wasn’t able to think straight. Everything felt thrown in disarray despite the obvious calm that had fallen over the pack. Quil had even been by to see how they were doing. But for all that, Grace still couldn’t let herself calm down and her moods were unpredictable. 

“You nicknamed Bella’s daughter after the lochness monster?” Grace had let out a huff and turned toward the door. 

“Babe, please don’t make me chase you,” Jake said as Grace clambered down the front porch steps ready to recast. 

“I just want to see her Jake!” Grace spat, her voice got loud as she spun around to look at Jacob standing at the top of the steps, his arms by his side. He stared at her, concerned but frustrated. “I’m going.” She said with finality and Jake shook his head, a light laugh coming out of his mouth. 

“No. You’re not. Stay here.” He said, the alpha command clear and easy in his voice. Grace immediately felt her entire body tense up and the anger in her had tripled. 

“Excuse me?” she said through gritted teeth. Jacob was in front of her now, hands on her waist as he turned her and guided her back into the house. 

“Let’s go take a shower, maybe a nap, watch a movie. Carlisle will call us soon. But for now, I need you to stay put,” Jacob said with certainty. It was a gentle tone, but firm. Grace had seethed, bolting up to her bedroom and slamming the door behind her. Jacob had taken the hint and stayed downstairs, now reassured that she couldn’t go anywhere.

Now as she sat with her arms wrapped around her legs, she felt the cold ache settle in her once more. Carlisle hadn’t called with word but Edward had sent a text saying that Bella might be waking up soon. He also sent Grace a picture of Renesmee who was sleeping peacefully in Rosalie’s arms. That must have been at Jake’s request and she made a note to thank him for his kindness when she was out of this funk. 

The faucet turned off in the bathroom and Grace turned her head toward the bathroom door. As steam pushed its way out around the massive figure blocking the door, she smiled. 

“Hey, come back to bed for a bit would you?” Grace said softly to him—a peace offering. She knew she had been difficult the past few days but her heart hammered with worry. 

“Don’t mind if I do!” Embry’s tall imposing figure, with a towel wrapped neatly around his waist launched toward her on the bed. 

“OH GOD!” Grace cried out in shock as the massive frame landed next to her, Embry’s arm pulling her back onto the mattress as she flailed. He made loud, exaggerated kissing noises and shook his wet hair out over her, sprinkling her with warm water. “EMBRY!” she cried pushing against him. “Get off!” she was laughing now, “Enough! You’re getting me all wet!”

“If I had a nickel for every time a girl said that to me,” he said wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. 

“Alright, get off her.” Jacob’s voice came clear through the doorway and Embry looked over his shoulder with a grin. 

“What? Can’t take a little competition?” Embry said as he hopped up out of the bed. Grace scrambled out of bed and righted herself. 

“As if you could compete with an imprint.” Jacob said. He gave Grace a nod and she felt her whole body swim with warmth. As if on silent command, she quickly padded across the room to him, a smile breaking across her face as she slipped into his outstretched arm that winded around her waist. 

Jake was settling into his own as alpha. He beamed confidence in his movements, his commands (but not orders, he tried to stay away from using the alpha tone with everyone as much as possible), and in how he led the pack. Grace felt magnetized to him. Sam and Jared had always made it seem like when you first imprinted that that was when the bond felt the strongest, as if you couldn’t breath without the other person there. But Grace had only felt the feeling grow in her as Jake came into his own and maybe as she did too. 

She still hadn’t entirely forgiven him for the alpha order to stay put, but felt no need to fight against it. Jacob’s hand gripped her waist as he pulled her into his side more, cupping a hand to her jaw and leaning down to place a gentle kiss to her upturned face. He let a thumb slide across her cheek and Grace felt the wild swing of emotion pull through her again. 

“Sleep okay?” he said softly, his eyes roaming around her face to take her in. Grace’s breath caught in her throat. How did he do the intimacy thing so well, even when someone was standing in the room half naked behind them? She swallowed a lump down in her throat and gave a nod. He gave her a signature Jake grin before letting his hand drop from her face to wrap around her and pull her into a hug. 

As she buried her face into him he said to Embry over her head, “What are you doing in our bathroom and waking up my girlfriend for anyway?” Grace’s heart fluttered and she let out a quick laugh as he rubbed his hands down her back. 

“Ran through a particularly nasty mudslide this morning on my way back. Seth pushed me into it so, if you want someone to blame, blame him,” Embry said. 

Grace pulled out of Jake’s embrace and slipped off downstairs as she heard the bickering start between them. 

“You’re going to be cleaning out that shower if you left it a mess dude.”

“Who died and made you Mrs. Doubtfire?!” 

“I swear to god, Em.” 

“Suddenly, he gets a house and he’s all Jonathan Taylor Thomas in Man of the House.” 

“Can you stop naming 90’s movies? It’s 10 in the morning.” 

“You’re Clueless.” Grace could hear a scuffling upstairs now as Jake clearly tackled Embry. 

Grace stumbled into the kitchen and pulled out some pans to start breakfast as a distraction from the growing worry building in her now. After a few minutes of cracking some eggs into a bowl and cooking up some bacon, Jacob descended the steps, running a hand through his tossled black hair. Embry followed close behind, pulling on a black shirt and rotating his shoulder. Jacob came up behind Grace and put his hands gently on her arms, leaning down to kiss her neck before saying softly, “Need any help?” 

She gave him a small smile and shook her head, letting out a “Mmm mm.” He leaned up and let his hand run down the length of her back. 

“Kay, I’m going to go check on Leah and Seth. Let me know if you need anything,” he said tapping his temple as he headed toward the door. Embry crashed down onto the couch flicking the TV on. Jake high fived him as he went past. 

I need you to let me go see Bella. Grace’s inner voice muttered involuntarily. 

“Yah, I heard that,” Jake said, not stopping as he jogged out onto the beach, shedding his shorts and phasing out of sight. 

Later that night, Grace was wrapped around Jake in bed listening to the rise and fall of his chest as she stayed wide awake. Her heart hammered in her chest still. 

“Jake?” she said softly. He stirred and readjusted his hand to rest under her shirt on her covered hip. 

“Hmm?” he said sleepily. Grace bit her lip. 

“I want to go see Ti’Hal.” She leaned up, pressing on his chest, her weight not making a significant dent on his hard body, as she watched his face in the moonlight. 

“Okay,” he said casually. Grace’s eyes widened. 

“Really?” 

“Of course, Grace. You’re not a prisoner. You can leave and go see Ti’Hal,” Jacob said quickly. She immediately felt the weight of the alpha order lift from her and she exhaled a shuddering breath. Jacob suddenly realized what had happened: “Oh God, the stupid fucking alpha command. I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize, I was just trying to keep you safe.” 

“I know,” Grace breathed trying not to belabor the conversation. “Thank you.” She leaned down and kissed him. He held her there for a  moment, his other hand placed on her back. Grace shivered and felt goosebumps erupt along her body as he deepened the kiss. 

She felt guilty for not being more present with him, but the constant worry of Bella’s life hanging in the balance made it hard for her to focus on much, and the distance from her only made it worse. While he was just trying to keep her safe, Grace couldn’t help but feel controlled. And just like in her early life, whenever she felt like someone was trying to control her, she rebelled against it. Jacob was hers though, and he only wanted the best for her but sometimes, she felt like he still didn’t trust her completely. Whether that was the imprint filling him with anxiety over her safety or the alpha in him, she wasn’t entirely sure. 

She let him roll her over onto her back as he fitted his knee between her legs, his lips never leaving hers. His hands roved under her shirt, tugging it up to expose her breasts. Grace tangled her hands in his hair and as he pulled away to kiss down her neck and collarbone, she let out a heady breath. Her knees trembled and she felt heat rising in her. 

Jacob ducked his head hungrily to take her right breast in his mouth and Grace pushed her head back into the pillow letting out a satisfied sigh. Jake’s left hand gripped in her waist as his right slithered down her waist. He dipped a tentative finger under the waistband of her lace underwear and traced the line of her hip to her lower stomach. His hands were deft and knew just where to go to make everything in her feel weak. As he slowly moved his hand down, Grace whispered his name in the form of a question. He knew what it meant.

He leaned his head up and the cool air that brushed across her exposed nipple made her shiver. “Okay.” He said, as his eyes connected with hers. Grace was frustrated with herself. Despite everything in her begging her to continue, something always stopped her from taking the next step with him. Jake had always said he understood even though she never offered an explanation, but she still felt unending guilt about it. He was her imprint, they were clearly in love, so what was the problem? What was she so afraid of? She couldn’t even bring herself to answer the question, not now, not with everything happening. Grace only knew that she just needed time to process whatever it was that was holding her back. 

He rolled off of her and pulled her into him, planting a kiss on her forehead as she wrapped her arms around his body. 

I love you. 

“I love you too. Get some sleep. For me,” he replied out loud Grace was flush with fresh regret at his overwhelming kindness and she burrowed her head into his neck to hold back the tears. 

Before Grace left the next morning to see Ti’Hal, Jake had taken her face into his hands. “I’d feel better if you took the truck instead of recasting.” Grace’s face fell. So, he thought she’d recast to the Cullen’s house anyway. The truck was easier to keep tabs on her with.

“Is that an order?” She said, sadness instead of anger threaded in her voice. Pain flickered across his face and he let his hands fall, taking her hands in his. 

“No. It’s not. I’m just asking you to take the truck instead. Can you do that for me?” He watched her carefully. Grace paused, letting her eyes connect with his and feeling the weight of the imprint pulse through her. The feeling was familiar, calming, safe. 

“Okay.” He let out a breath he’d been holding at her answer. 

“Thank you.” Jake pressed his forehead to hers and Grace closed her eyes. 

Please, just trust me. 

“I do, Grace. I just need to know where you are. I’ve already had too many close calls with you for one lifetime. Just do this for me as a favor. Please,” he said pulling back and ducking his head to meet her eye line. Grace nodded in understanding, putting a hand to his face. He kissed her and pulled her into a hug breathing a thank you into her hair before he left. Grace looked at the keys on the counter and hesitated before scooping them up and heading to the truck, pulling her hood up against the rain, her face set. 

The drive to Ti’Hal’s was peaceful as the rain splattered against the windshield. Grace felt calmed by the fact that she was fulfilling Jake’s request and also that she was able to leave the house. She believed him when he had told her he hadn’t intended to make her a prisoner there. And if Grace had asked to go anywhere other than the Cullen’s sooner, he clearly would have agreed to it. 

As she pulled into Ti’Hal’s muddy driveway, she let out a sigh of relief. The wafting smoke from her crooked chimney set Grace at ease and as she pushed the truck into park and hopped down, she felt a sense of renewal wash over her. She bounded up the short steps to the front door and as it swung open at her touch she beamed at the crouched figure of Ti’Hal working away at making tea. 

After two cups of tea and walking Ti’Hal through the events of the past six months, Grace kept her eyes trained on the fire as she mustered the courage to ask the question she’d been wanting to ask since she got there: 

“Did I do the right thing? Protecting Bella and the Cullens, I mean?” Grace’s heart felt as if it beat in her throat. Ti’Hal paused before saying, 

“Do you feel it was the right thing?” 

“Is this a trick where you answer every question with a question?” Grace met her eyes now, but Ti’Hal just smiled gently at her. After a beat, Grace let out a sigh and said, “It felt right. Mostly because I knew I couldn’t let Sam lose himself like that, or lead the others to do something like that. Plus, he was asking me to destroy my family. I couldn’t—” Grace choked a little on her words and couldn’t seem to continue. 

“Sam is also bound by his idea of family. And in the same way, you both were trapped in what you thought was right. He came around eventually though.” 

“So then...I was right?” 

“You were right to hold your own. But when it comes to protecting family, there is no right or wrong way, there is only love that guides us. And love can make us do things we normally didn’t think ourselves capable of.” She said pouring herself some more tea. 

“Yeah, like give your girlfriend alpha orders to stay in the house like Rapunzel locked in a tower.” Grace grumbled. Ti’Hal watched her carefully and let out a chuckle. 

“Young Jacob is quickly understanding his power as alpha. He’s bound to make a mistake or two along the way. You’d be wise to forgive him some of those mistakes. And he’ll forgive yours too.” 

“Even premeditated mistakes?” Grace said offhand. Ti’Hal didn’t answer right away, and Grace wasn’t even sure she had even heard her at all until she said, 

“You both will make mistakes with each other, in the name of love for one another and for others. What matters is how you come back together.” 

Grace leaned back onto the floor and splayed her limbs out around her trying to ground herself in Ti’Hal’s warm living room. But her decision was already made as soon as she scooped up the keys and walked out the door this morning. 

As Grace said her goodbye’s to Ti’Hal, she tread carefully toward the truck and opened the door before placing the keys on the driver side seat, closing the door and turning on her heel. Just as she turned and was about to recast, Embry caught her eye, leaning against a tree in Ti’Hal’s front yard with his arms crossed and without a shirt. 

“Jesus Em!” Grace started, clutching a hand to her chest. 

“How was your visit with Ti’Hal?” he said nonchalantly, a knowing casualness to his voice as he stayed planted next to the tree. Grace took a few deep breaths to steady herself before she leveled him with her eyes. 

“It was good. What are you doing here?” She asked knowing the answer already. 

“Ah, well you see, Jake asked if I could swing by and keep an eye out for you. Didn’t want you getting lost on your way back into town or the rez. He’s perceptive like that.” Embry smirked. 

“So, he’s assigned private security to me now? Why not just give an alpha order and call it good?” She was irritated now. He had the audacity to have Embry keep tabs on her in case she bolted for the Cullens? “This is absolute bullshit, Em.” She said her voice raising slightly. Embry put his hands out in front of him in surrender. 

“Hey don’t shoot the messenger. I’m just here to do the job I was assigned. So, where to next? Charlie’s? The diner? We could swing by and see Sue, I’m sure she’d have some grub.” Embry was invested now, excited for his Spirit Bird day out. 

“I don’t need a chaperone, but thanks anyway,” Grace said as she walked away from the truck toward the treeline. 

“Uhh, truck’s that way, Gracie-poo,” Embry said, raising his eyebrow in confusion. 

“Yeah well, if alpha overlord Black thinks I’m going to recast and break the rules anyway, what’s the point in sticking to the plan, right?” Her frustration was boiling over into anger now. She clenched her hands into fists as she trudged forward. Embry jumped out in front of her. 

“Or, you could be totally chill and not get me in trouble and we could just go somewhere that is definitely not the Cullen’s place. And you can yell at our overlord later!” Embry almost begged but Grace pushed past him. “Grace don’t do this! You know I’m going to have to tell him right away after you recast anyway and it’s going to end in a blow out.” 

“Fuck off, Em!” Grace said. 

“He’s just asking you to wait! Just a little longer until they know it’s safe. Can’t you just wait!?” 

Grace stopped in her tracks and thought about it for a moment. His ask was not entirely unreasonable. Was she just being impatient? Was she being impulsive? Or was it just that she pulled so hard against any form of control, done in the name of protection or not, that was a holdover from her childhood? Grace wondered all at once if she was just being selfish. He pleaded with her this morning to just take the truck, a way of asking for her to promise not to go to the Cullen’s without the pressure of actually asking it. And she had agreed. So why couldn’t she just stick to the plan?