Alpha Beta Imprint: Chapter Seventeen

Disclaimer: I am not Stephanie Meyer. I do not own Twilight.

Chapter Seventeen

Jake’s POV

“Damn it, Bells!” I grumbled, wiping my face for the hundredth time.

My girl just giggled, her paint brush hanging by her side.

“Thought the paint was for the walls, sweetheart,” Sam chuckled, the bastard.

He stood on her other side, paint free. For some reason, our girl decided blue was my color and was determined to cover me head to toe with the paint we’d bought for the bedroom.

“But doesn’t it look good on him?” Bella asked, giving Sam a brilliant smile.

I snorted, trying to get the paint out of my nose as I watched Sam melt under that smile.

“Try to get a little more on the walls before you cover Jake,” Sam suggested, leaning down to kiss her quickly.

“We’re almost done,” Bella exclaimed, indicating the walls with her brush and splattering everything else in the process.

“Watch it!” I yelped, diving for cover.

“Oops. Sorry, Jake,” Bella giggled.

“Good thing we moved all the furniture out,” Sam mumbled, smiling slightly.

“Who knew painting could be so much fun,” Bella grinned, going back to painting the walls.

“I agree. Jake, isn’t this fun?” Sam asked, not even bothering to hide his laughter.

“Oh, yeah. It’s fun-tastic,” I agreed sarcastically.

“Aw, Jake. I’m sorry. I won’t paint you anymore,” Bella promised, wrapping her arms around my neck and kissing me sweetly.

“As you get paint in my hair,” I pointed out.

“Oh! Sorry! I really didn’t mean to do that!” Bella cried, wiping the paint out of my hair.

Or rather, she tried to. She ended up just smearing the blue all over my head.

“It’s alright, honey. You’ll just have to help me clean up later,” I smirked, pulling her close.

“Deal,” Bella grinned, bringing her brush down my cheek.

I gaped at her as she twisted out of my arms, skipping back over to her wall.

“You’re going to regret that, Swan,” I warned, picking up my roller.

“Eek! Sam! Save me!” Bella squeaked, running behind him.

“Oh, no. You started this. I’m not about to get in the middle of it,” Sam insisted, laughing as he moved away from her.

“I can’t believe you aren’t going to help me,” Bella pouted, looking after him.

“You’re on your own this time, sweetheart,” Sam called, walking out of the room.

While she continued looking after him, I snuck up and ran my roller right across that delectable ass of hers.

“AH! Jake!” Bella yelled, jumping away from me.

“That’s what you get, Bells,” I laughed, waving my roller at her.

“I can’t believe you painted my butt!” Bella exclaimed.

“Blue looks good on you, Bells,” I told her, nodding at my handy work.

Bella gaped at me and I laughed harder as I turned to go back to painting the walls. I had just rolled on another line when I felt something cold and wet being dumped on my head and blue was suddenly dripping into my face.

I turned to see Bella smirking, an empty paint bucket dangling from her fingers.

“Oh, you shouldn’t have done that, Swan,” I informed her darkly.

“What’re you going to do about it, Black?” Bella challenged.

I charged her, grinning wickedly at her squeal. She tried to run for the door, but I grabbed her waist and brought her right up against me, rubbing against her.

“SAM! Help!” Bella screamed, laughing as she tried to get away from me.

His heavy footsteps came to the door, pausing as he surveyed the scene in front of him.

“I can’t leave the two of you alone for five minutes, can I?” Sam asked, shaking his head at us.

“He started it!” Bella claimed.

“Oh, no I did not. You’re the one who started painting me first,” I accused.

“You painted my butt,” Bella charged.

“You painted my entire body!” I fired back, laughing at her indignant look.

“Not your entire body,” Bella denied sullenly.

“Alright. Both of you in the shower. I’ll clean up in here,” Sam instructed, shooing us into the bathroom.

“Get, you,” I barked, slapping her ass to get her moving.

“Hey!” Bella yelped, glaring at me over her shoulder.

I laughed as I followed her into the bathroom, shedding my clothes as I went. I closed the door behind us, leaning against the counter as I watched her strip, obvious to me watching her.

Her arms, legs, face, and hair all had blue paint on them. I knew I didn’t look much better, but the blue looked good against her skin.

She leaned over, arm reaching out to turn on the shower. I bit back a groan at her ass on display for me. She was still too tender for anything, but my cock swelled just the same. I ached to be inside her again, thrusting in time with Sam as we brought her pleasure.

“You gonna stand there staring or are you gonna get in here with me?”

I shook my head and noticed Bella was already in the shower, giving me a sultry smirk as she held out back the curtain. I jumped in and immediately wrapping my arms around her waist, bringing her as close as possible.

“You know I love you, right?” I asked, nipping at her lips.

“I know,” Bella smiled, nuzzling into my neck.

I reached behind her for the soap, squirting a liberal amount into the rag before lathering her body in the sweet smelling suds. The blue paint washed off easily as the rag passed over her skin.

“I was thinking, when you’re not so tender, I want to try something,” I told her softly, focusing on my hand traveling down her arms.

“What’s that?” Bella asked.

“Well, it would definitely involve chocolate syrup,” I grinned, moving down to her legs.

“Really now? You’re peaked my interest. What exactly would we do with this chocolate syrup?” Bella asked, smiling down at me.

“I was thinking we could see just how good you look in brown,” I told her, lifting my brow suggestively.

“And what if I want to see how you and Sam look in brown?” Bella questioned, giving me an innocent look.

“Far be it for me to deny you your curiosity,” I winked, standing up.

She took the rag from me and began scrubbing the paint of my body, paying extra attention to my thighs, despite the fact that there was no paint there. I was panting by that point, my hands gripping at her hips.

“Mmm, I wonder how you would taste with chocolate here,” Bella hummed, her fingers gripping my cock.

“Shit,” I hissed, thrusting into her palm.

“I should probably taste you beforehand. You know, to make sure I can tell the difference,” Bella decided, blinking up at me.

“Probably a good idea,” I agreed thickly.

Bella gave me a devilish look as she dropped to her knees, her hand still pumping my dick. I threaded my fingers in her wet hair, guiding her lips to the head. I groaned when she coated her lips with the pre-cum leaking from the tip. She licked her lips, smacking them together as she hummed her approval.

“Tasty,” Bella grinned.

“Fuuuck,” I moaned as she licked the head.

“Very tasty,” Bella amended.

“Suck me, baby. Suck my dick, please,” I begged, guiding her forward.

“I have to make sure I can tell the difference, Jake. Patience,” Bella insisted.

I growled when she licked me base to tip, her hot breath fanning across my skin.

“Salty,” Bella noted, looking up at me.

“Please, Bells,” I panted, my hips moving on their own accord.

“Oh, alright,” Bella relented.

I groaned loud and long when she finally took me in her mouth, going down as far as she could. Her tiny hands worked what she couldn’t fit, gripping me firmly. My hands fisted in her hair, trying not to pound into her face.

I shuddered when she moaned around my cock, the vibration going straight to my balls. Her free hand came up and lifted them in her hands, her thumb nail scratching lightly.

“Fuck, Bells,” I gritted, snapping my hips forward.

Her tongue pressed against the underside of my dick, pushing against the vein. I knew it wouldn’t be long, my muscles tightening in anticipation.

Bella dropped her hands, using only her mouth, and moved them to grip my ass, digging her nails into the cheeks.

“BELLA!” I shouted, thrusting hard into her mouth.

She swallowed everything I gave me, sucking me like a straw until I was completely spent.

“Shit, honey, I love you,” I murmured, lifting her up my body.

“I love you, too,” Bella grinned, kissing me sweetly.

“Let’s dry off and go make sure Sam doesn’t need some relief after hearing us in here,” I suggested, stepping out of the shower.

“Mmm. I should probably make sure I know what he tastes like,” Bella nodded, her grin wicked.

“Insatiable little thing,” I chuckled, kissing her temple.

“All your fault,” Bella accused, walking out of the bathroom, completely naked.

As long as it Sam and I were the ones helping her sate her desire, I didn’t mind taking the blame.

Bella’s POV

I was grinning like a fool as I walked into the hardware store the Monday after we painted the bedroom. Al was behind the counter and looked up when I walked in.

“Back already?” Al asked gruffly.

“We may have run out of paint before all the walls were covered,” I told him, blushing slightly.

“Hmph. Don’t want to know,” Al insisted, holding up a hand.

“Anyway, I need another can of Viking,” I requested.

“You know where it is,” Al nodded, punching in the amount.

“Are you always so grumpy?” I asked lightly, walking to the paint section.

“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” Al frowned.

“You don’t smile and you always seem impatient. I bet you even growl at your customers, scaring them off,” I accused.

His frown deepened and he grunted as I placed the paint in front of him.

“It would probably help business if you smiled a bit,” I said thoughtfully.

“Folks wouldn’t know what to do with themselves if I started smiling,” Al denied.

“At first. But then they would get used to it, just like they’ll get used to me,” I grinned.

“Now listen here, tsidá wisatsu'upat. This tribe isn’t going to just roll over and let you scratch their bellies for them. You’re gonna have to work to earn their respect. It won’t be easy and you’re going to have a lot of people threatening you. Already, I’ve heard people discussing ways of getting rid of you,” Al informed me.

“What do you mean?” I asked, a little worried.

“Folks round here don’t like change. You’re bringing bout change in a big way,” Al shrugged.

“I don’t want to change anything. I just want to be with Jake and Sam,” I claimed, biting my lip.

“I know, tsidá wil. But the tribe will see it as a white woman coming to rule over them,” Al explained.

“But I won’t have anything to do with tribal decisions. That’s all Jake and Sam,” I insisted.

“They’ll see that over time. You just have to be patient,” Al soothed, patting my shoulder.

“I hope you’re right,” I sighed, picking up my paint.

“You’ll see, tsidá wil,” Al assured me.

“Thanks for the help, Al. See you later,” I waved, backing out of the store.

I turned to walk to the Jeep, eager to get back home, and ran smack dab into another body, knocking them down in the process.

“Umph!”

“I’m so sorry!” I exclaimed, reaching down to help them up.

“It’s fine,” the woman grunted, waving my hand off.

“Are you alright?” I asked, looking her over.

“Fine,” she snapped.

I looked up, wondering why she was being so short with me, and realized who exactly I’d run into. Emily Young glared down at me as she straightened out her shirt.

“What are you doing here?” Emily asked, glaring at me.

“Getting paint,” I answered, indicating the can in my hand.

“What? They don’t have paint in Forks? You have to come here and run me over?” Emily sneered.

“I’m sorry. I wasn’t looking where I was going,” I apologized, not answering her question.

Without waiting for her to respond, I moved to walk around her.

“Stay away from Sam,” Emily called.

“What?” I asked, turning to glare at her.

“He’s mine. I don’t care what this imprinting thing says. He didn’t choose to be with you. If it hadn’t been for that, he never would’ve looked twice at you. I mean, look at you. You’re not exactly his type,” Emily derided.

“And I suppose you are? Funny, Sam’s never said anything about going for a girl in four inch heels,” I said mockingly, not letting her see how much her words hurt.

“You’ll never satisfy him. Not the way I can. And I don’t have to work for the tribe to accept me. I’m Quileute. They would welcome me with open arms as the chief’s wife,” Emily smirked, arms crossed in front of her.

“He sure wasn’t complaining last night,” I grinned coldly.

I laughed gleefully on the inside as her superior look faded to be replaced by pure rage.

“You little bitch! You’re just his fuck toy! He doesn’t care about you! He always comes back to me!” Emily shrieked.

“Hold your breath for that,” I shrugged, moving to get into the Jeep.

Before I could climb in, she flew at me, nails flying. I put my arm up, hoping to block her, but her nails raked across my face and I could feel blood running down my cheek. She grabbed hold of my arm, her nails biting into my flesh. I cried out at the pain, knowing she’d broken skin again. She raised her fists and began beating on my back as I tried to twist away from her.

“He’s mine!” Emily screamed, continuing to hit me.

I fell to the ground, trying to escape her fists, but she started kicking me in my ribs. I tried to crawl away from her, but she didn’t stop coming after me. She pulled back her foot, ready to smash it into my face when I rolled quickly, hitting the wheel of the Jeep.

“Slut!” Emily spat, moving for me again.

“What the hell is going on out here?” Al shouted, coming out of his store.

Emily ignored him, still coming towards me. I winced back against the tire, scrambling to get away from her. Thankfully Al grabbed hold of her around the waist before she could kick me again and jerked her away from me.

“Calm down, damn it!” Al demanded, struggling to hold onto her.

“I’ll kill you!” Emily screeched at me.

I collapsed against the Jeep, breathing heavily and wincing at the pain in my ribs.

“Get out of here,” Al grunted at me, pulling Emily towards his store.

I nodded jerkily, struggling to breathe as I climbed slowly into the Jeep.

As I drove away, I looked in the rearview mirror to see Al still restraining Emily as she continued struggling to break free and go after me. I managed to hold onto my composure until I got to the house. I even managed to make it inside the door before I sank to the floor and cried.

What scared me was the absolute madness in her eyes as she went after me, her intent to severely hurt me, and her threat to kill me.

My cheek stung as tears fell across the cuts her nails had left, but I was too shaken up to care much about the pain. I could handle a vampire coming after me. He wasn’t allowed on La Push land and if he so much as stepped a toe inside the boundary line, the wolves would take care of him. But how could the wolves keep me safe from someone they were born to protect? They were supposed to protect humans from vampires, not humans from other humans.

So, I stayed lying down on the floor in front of the door, trembling as I waited for the sounds of high heels clicking on the porch. I wouldn’t put it past her to come here after Al let her go.

The passing of time didn’t enter my conscious mind as I huddled against the door, waiting. It wasn’t until I heard footsteps coming up the porch stairs that I realized lying in front of the door probably wasn’t a good idea.

Scrabbling to my feet, I hurried into our bedroom and barricading myself in the closet. I backed myself into the closet, trying to control my breathing. My ribs were protesting after being on the hard floor for so long. I wrapped an arm around them, wincing from the pain. For such a small woman, she’d done a lot of damage.

I shivered as I heard the footsteps walking through the house.

“Bella?”

I sank down, leaning against the wall as the voice came closer.

“Bella, where are you?”

I covered my head with my hands, whimpering softly as I waited for her to find me.

“Bella?”

I heard the closet door open and screamed, vaulting up and running past her. A tan arm wrapped around my waist, pulling back against her chest.

I continued screaming bloody murder, thrashing against her.

“Jesus! Calm the fuck down!”

Her arms wrapped around mine, pining me to her body. My legs kept kicking, hitting her shins often.

I needed to get outside and find the wolf watching the house. They would protect me from Emily, surely. Why weren’t they coming? Couldn’t they hear me screaming?

“It’s me, Bella. It’s Leah.”

I paused in my writhing, turning my head slightly to catch a glimpse at the woman holding onto me. I collapsed against her when I took in her short cropped hair and concerned brown eyes.

Sobs came unbidden as I lost control of my legs and fell to the floor, Leah kneeling with me.

“Shh, I’ve got you. It’s okay. I’ve got you,” Leah soothed, running her fingers through my hair.

The noises coming from me were scary in their anguish. Leah continued to murmur soothing words to me as she rocked me slowly.

“You’re okay,” Leah cooed.

The pain in my ribs doubled from all my sobbing and I was crying out as they expanded and contracted with my gasps.

Eventually, I was able to calm down enough for Leah to move me to the bed. I clung to her as she reached for the phone, dialing numbers faster than my eyes could follow. Her face was guarded as she looked me over and I suddenly remembered my face was probably bloody.

“Sam, get home. Something’s happened to Bella,” Leah said shortly after dialing the phone.

She hung up almost immediately after telling him and began dialing again. I listened as she relayed the message to Jake before hanging up on him as well. I shuddered as I buried my head in the pillow, waiting for my wolves to come and make it better.

“They’re coming, Bella. They’ll be here soon,” Leah promised, stroking my hair.

I whimpered, moving closer to her as she sat beside me. I rested my head against her hip, still shaking from the adrenaline that had taken over when I’d heard her coming up the steps.

“Who did this, Bella?” Leah asked, her voice soft.

I closed my eyes tightly, trying to erase the images of Emily coming at me, screaming as she beat me to the ground. I burrowed further into Leah’s leg, still crying as I tried to subdue the terror.

“BELLA!”

I jerked at the sound of my name, clinging tighter to Leah as I waited to see who it was. Heavy footsteps pounding towards the bedroom and I shook as Leah rubbed a hand down my back.

The door was flung open and I sobbed in relief when I saw Jake standing there, looking murderous. In the blink of an eye I was in his arms and he was murmuring soothing words into my hair.

“It’s alright. I’m here. You’re safe. I won’t let them hurt you,” Jake promised, his voice broken as he held me tightly.

I cried out when his arms constricted around my ribs and he immediately loosened his hold.

“What happened, honey?” Jake asked quietly, his hand cupping the back of my neck as he looked me over.

“Emily,” I whispered, but no sound came out.

Jake’s expression darkened and a growl rumbled through his chest as he pulled me back against his chest. I clung to him as if he were my last lifeline, slowly calming down as his warmth invaded my senses, reminding me that I was safe in his arms.

“Wh-where’s Sam?” I stuttered, shivering from a chill deep within myself.

“He’s coming. I hear him now,” Jake assured me, stroking up and down my back.

When I heard his thumping feet coming up the back steps, I broke away from Jake and ran towards him.

“Bella!” Sam breathed, capturing me in his arms.

I began crying again as I wrapped my legs around his waist, holding on tightly as he leaned against the wall. I felt Jake come up behind us and shuddered when I felt his hand on my back, rubbing softly.

“Her ribs are sore,” Jake murmured to Sam.

“What happened?” Sam asked over my head.

“I only got who did it,” Jake replied, his voice hushed.

“Who?” Sam growled, his chest vibrating against mine.

I whimpered, burying my face into Sam’s neck and holding on tighter. I didn’t hear Jake answer, but from the way Sam’s body tensed and his growls stopped dead, I figured he’d either figured it out or Jake had said her name too quietly for me to hear.

Sam’s hands went to mine around his neck, trying to pry them apart.

“No!” I cried, tightening my legs and arms around him.

“Bella, let go,” Sam requested, his voice lacking inflection.

“No! You can’t leave me!” I insisted, my voice thick with tears.

His entire body seemed to deflate and his arms wrapped around my waist loosely.

“I couldn’t leave you even if I tried,” Sam told me softly.

“We should probably clean her face,” Leah suggested from behind us.

Sam nodded and began walking towards the kitchen. I held on, even when he sat me down on the counter.

“Sweetheart, I’m not going anywhere, but you need to let go so we can clean you up,” Sam insisted.

I let go enough to grab his hand and hold it between both of mine. His thumb stroked across my knuckles, sending shivers down my spine. I looked away from his face to see Jake scowling at my face. I winced, turning my head so I could hide the scratches behind my hair.

“Honey, don’t. Let me see,” Jake soothed, brushing my hair away.

He turned my head back towards him, his thumb brushing under the cuts.

Leah walked in, handing the first aid kit to Jake before moving to my other side. I gave her a weak smile as Jake opened the kit and took out the peroxide and gauze.

“This is going to sting,” Jake warned, pressing the gauze against my cut.

I hissed as the alcohol burned my cheek. Sam squeezed my hand in silent support as Jake began dabbing at the dried blood.

“What happened, Bells?” Jake asked as he worked.

I shook my head, closing my eyes against the pain, not wanting to hurt Sam any more than he was already.

“Tell us, sweetheart,” Sam encouraged.

I shook my head again, tears forming behind my lids.

“I promise, I won’t get angry,” Sam murmured, nudging my unhurt cheek with his nose.

A sob shook my body as a tear escaped, trailing down my cheek. He kissed it away, his lips lingering on my skin.

“I… I went to pick up paint to finish the bedroom. When I was leaving, I bumped into… her. She started saying things about how you didn’t really want me and the imprint was the only thing keeping you tied to me; that you wouldn’t have looked twice at me if not for the imprint. She… she said that you would come back to her… that you always went back to her. I told her to hold her breath for that and she… she freaked. She scratched my face first and then… I turned away from her and she started hitting my back. I was scared and trying to get away, so I dropped to the ground to crawl away and she started k-kicking me. I couldn’t get away and… and I was so scared. She kept screaming things at me. Al finally came out and pulled her off me. He told me to get away and I drove straight home,” I told them, all while Jake was applying medication and bandages to my face.

Sam was trembling by the time I finished, growls erupting out of him as he struggled against phasing. Jake’s jaw was tense, but his hand was steady as he continued to care for me. I locked my eyes on his, silently thanking him for not losing control. Leah was growling and her fists were clenched at her sides.

“I need you to take off your shirt, honey,” Jake requested, stepping back once he’d finished with my face.

I bit my lip and nodded, lifting my arms slightly. The move pulled on the skin around my ribs and I winced at the tightness.

“Easy. Put them down. We’ll just rip it off,” Jake soothed, lowering my arms again.

I grabbed onto Sam’s hands again, nodding at Jake to rip my shirt off. He deftly ripped the shirt down the middle, easing the sleeves off my shoulders. Sam and Leah helped pull it the rest of the way off, all three of them making noises of distress at the sight of my ribs.

In the time it had taken for Leah to find me and my wolves to come home, my ribs had turned a dark purplish-blue color. I winced automatically when Jake reached forward to gently touch them.

“I need to make sure they aren’t broken,” Jake murmured, pressing a little harder against the bruises.

I gritted my teeth against the pain, gripping Sam’s hand harder until my knuckles turned white. He growled gently, the sound much like a cat’s purr, and nuzzled my neck, distracting me from Jake’s fingers.

“I don’t think anything’s broken, but you’ll have to take it easy for a few days. They’re going to be tender for a good while,” Jake frowned.

I nodded, leaning against Sam’s shoulder and reaching out to twine Jake’s fingers with mine.

“We should probably file charges,” Jake mused, squeezing my hand.

“No. I want to talk to her first,” Sam insisted.

“You can talk to her all you want, but I’m not going to let this happen again. She could’ve killed Bella,” Jake glared.

“I agree that action needs to be taken, but I want to talk to her first,” Sam agreed.

“Can you press charges, Bella?” Leah asked gently.

I nodded, feeling tired now that I knew my wolves were going to take care of me.

“Why don’t I help her to bed and you two can discuss what you want to do?” Leah offered, her voice barely above a whisper.

“We need to take pictures,” I mumbled tiredly.

“Pictures of what, honey?” Jake asked, kissing my hand.

“Me. For evidence,” I sighed.

“We’ll take care of it after you take a nap,” Sam promised, kissing my head.

“Come on, qahla. Off to bed,” Leah chimed, helping me off the counter.

“I love you,” I whispered to my wolves.

“Love you, too, honey,” Jake smiled, kissing me quickly.

“You’re my everything,” Sam told me, bringing me close and kissing me thoroughly.

“Alright, enough. She needs sleep,” Leah insisted, pulling me away.

As soon as Leah pushed me into the bed, I was out, my body too tired to stay awake a minute longer.