It felt like a long week. I'd had six different cars to work on which was a lot for me. I could handle the repairs no sweat and I should have been happy for the income but it meant less time with Nessie. I'd been doing fairly well for myself since I started working on the cars in my makeshift garage. I'd added an extra bay and could now take two at a time. Embry and I were planning to open our own garage once we had the start up money. He would handle the books and I'd do most of the repairs. I was looking forward to going into business with my friend. It was also a big plus to be able to make our own schedules. Running patrol was a lot harder for some of the other guys' whose bosses couldn't know they were werewolves in their spare time. For now I was still living with Billy and saving as much money as possible. I wanted to be able to adequately provide for Nessie when the time came. Apparently I was running out of time to make something of myself. Billy joked that I'd overstayed my welcome in our family's home but I knew he was dreading the day I moved out. It was hard on him to lose Rebecca and Rachel at the same time so soon after our mother died. Having Rachel back had made us feel more like a family again and I knew Billy was going to miss her living with us after her wedding. Rebecca would be flying in from Hawaii for the big day so I kept reminding him that he'd have all three of us getting in his way again and he'll be begging for some peace and quiet.

I called Ness on Wednesday to see how her week was going. She acted a little shy on the phone that night. She told me about a Biology test she had taken and some gossip from the other girls about a new boy in their class. That part bothered me but she didn't pick up on my apprehension. She enjoyed attending Forks High School because it gave her something to do outside the Cullen's house. Everyone agreed it was time for her to go to school when she started looking about 15 years old. Until then she had to stay near the house so no one in town would notice her growth spurts. The fortune teller took her into Seattle and Port Angeles a lot, but like her mother, Nessie wasn't very interested in shopping. She had a few friends and would often spend time with them after school. She had a much easier time blending in since she could eat human food, her skin was warm, and she wasn't forced indoors whenever the sun peaked out from the clouds. She enjoyed watching school football games and studying with her friends. Edward insisted she get social interaction from more than just the wolves so the weekends became our only time to be together. I usually picked her up Friday night and we'd go out for her favorite meal, mountain lion. Friday nights she spent at my house watching movies or assisting me in pulling elaborate pranks on Paul.

It wasn't easy for me when Paul imprinted on my sister. For a while we'd just punch each other in the nose whenever we got on each others' nerves. The guy was at my house constantly. Rachel put her foot down after so many broken noses that Paul started developing a permanent crook. After that we settled on one-upping each other with childish pranks. About a year ago I was on patrol with Quil and Sam. Paul took the opportunity to get back at me for the Lost Dog posters with his description on them that I'd put up outside Embry's parents' store the week before. Only the guys in the pack understood the inside joke but it still made him really angry. So while I was out patrolling that night Paul phased to tell me I needed to get back to Billy's quick because something was wrong with Rachel. Little did I know he'd snuck into my bedroom and replaced all my sweatpants with lacey panties. I would have actually found it amusing if Nessie hadn't been sleeping over that night. I had phased back and jumped into my window naked while Ness slept in my bed. I hurried to my drawers to grab my pants hoping not to wake her up. So when I pulled out nothing but silky lingerie and g-strings I cursed out Paul so loud it woke her up. She got a quick glimpse of my rear end before I managed to run out of my room, down the hall past Rachel and Paul, and into Billy's room. Ness had achieved about a twelve year olds' maturity at the time and was more embarrassed by the stunt than I was. Also, Edward did not find it funny when I took Nessie home the next day and had to explain why his daughter couldn't stop thinking about full moons.

Wednesday, I promised Nessie I'd be at the house Friday night as usual and we could do whatever she wanted. She asked me to bring some movies and snacks which I agreed was a great idea. Finally it was Friday and I loaded up on junk food and some comedies I knew she hadn't seen and drove over to the Cullen's house. Bella greeted me at the door and invited me sit with the girls on the sofas.

"Edward's teaching Renesmee how to make Spanish omelets" she informed me. Just then Nessie came running out from the kitchen and gave me a big hug. "Hey Jake." "Hey, hun." I kissed the top of her head. She let go of me and smiled. "I'll be out in a few minutes. Daddy and I are almost done." No matter what was happening or how crappy a day I might have had one smile from that girl and everything was instantly better. "Okay" I said "But you better share with me. They smell amazing." She made a face at me and ran back into the kitchen.

Bella motioned her head for me to follow her so we stepped outside to the porch. Usually it was Edward who had these little talks with me. What had I done now?

"Jacob, I just wanted to let you know that Nessie was really upset after your little talk the other day..." She kept her voice real low. Had there been any humans around they would have thought we'd just been staring at each other moving our lips. "I know, Bells, I didn't know what to tell her. How bad was it?" I whispered back running my hand nervously through my hair. "It's okay, Jake. I wanted to let you know I had a talk with her and she's much better now. I convinced her to just enjoy having a crush on you for now because when you do fall in love with her it will be strong, intense, and forever. None of her friends at school have serious boyfriends and she sees that she fits in with them better the way things are now." I hadn't thought of it like that. Once we got together there really would be no turning back. "So she's happy?" Bella nodded her head and smiled. "Yes. And for the record, you two have my blessing. I know Edward will fight this to the end but honestly, there's no one we'd rather see her with than you Jake. I mean it." "Thank you, Bells." I hugged her despite the vampire stink. We went back inside so Nessie wouldn't notice our absence.

"So Blondie, I picked up some movies in your honor. What do you want to watch first, 'Legally Blonde' or 'Dick.'?" Rose gave me the finger. I heard Edward chuckle from the kitchen. I must say, the blonde vamp had started to grow on me over the years. I still hated her of course, but it was closer to the type of relationship I had with Paul. The one thing we had in common was our desire to dote on Nessie and spoil her rotten. "I figured you were bringing over 'Cujo'" she spat back. "Are you two ever going to get over this sibling rivalry?" asked Bella. I stuck my tongue out at the both of them and slumped into the nearest chair.

Nessie and I ate the omelets at the coffee table while the rest of the family watched television. Then we grabbed my bag of movies and went upstairs to Edward's old room where there was now a big screen TV and blue ray player. I was grateful when they moved that wrought iron bed out of the room. I may not have romantic feelings for Bella anymore but that bed still gave me the creeps. And this was Nessie's favorite room of the house so it was nice not having it in the way anymore. We sprawled out onto the floor and started sifting through the movies. She picked one she wanted to watch and popped it into the player. I went over to lie on the leather couch and Ness came to snuggle up against me. I was still worried she might feel awkward around me but she really did seem to be her old self again.

"Are you guys planning a bachelor party for Paul?" she asked after the first movie ended.

"Yeah, Sam is setting something up. We're probably going to play poker and have a few beers. No strippers." I could only guess as to why she was asking. "Oh." I felt the warmth rushing to her cheeks. "Renesmee, are you blushing?" I teased. "Nooo" she crooned back at me. She knew I could tell she was despite the lights being off in the room. I tickled her ribs a little and then hugged her closer. "Why do you ask?"

"I'm just curious" she answered. I changed the subject. "So are we watching another movie then?"

She agreed and we put on the only romantic comedy I brought. About halfway through I must have fallen asleep because I was awoken to a sofa cushion whacking me in the head. "Hey" I yelled out. She only giggled and did it again. "You fell asleep at the best part" she complained. "Excuse me if it's past my bedtime and you've got me watching a Sarah Jessica Parker movie."

"What's wrong with her?" Nessie challenged.

"Nothing except there's very little to hold my interests. No car chases, no explosions, and no beautiful women" I counted out on my fingers. "You don't think she's attractive?" I laughed. "Nessie, she doesn't hold a candle to you." She smiled at me and leaned a little closer to me. I suddenly felt like I had said something wrong. How had she interpreted that comment? Crap. What have I done? She leaned in a little closer before her smile became a wide grin. She pulled back swiftly and clobbered me with the cushion again. I jumped up and declared war. "Oh, you are going to get it, Nessie." She laughed and took a defensive pose on the sofa. I raised my hands up so she could see my fingers wiggling. I pounced at her as she squealed and held her down on the sofa tickling her ribs and stomach. She cried out for a truce and I swiped the cushion away from her just in case she got any funny ideas. I heard Edward clear his throat from downstairs. "I better get home, it's getting late" I said after our breathing had returned to normal. "But we always have a sleepover on Friday nights" she protested. "I know, but we're usually at my house. I don't want Edward listening to my dreams all night. I'll come back first thing tomorrow." "He's gonna go back to the cottage with Mom, he won't be listening to you… trust me." Gross. "Fine, ask him if it's okay though." She called down to Edward and Bella even though I knew they heard every word we just said. Bella called back up to us. "It's fine Renesmee, just leave the door open." Nessie clapped her hands and went to retrieve some blankets and pillows from Alice's closet so we could lay them out on the floor. We started another movie and before the opening credits were over Nessie was asleep in my arms. I watched her face as she slept for an immeasurable amount of time. I could lay here with her forever. Soon enough I fell asleep too, perfectly content lying next to my girl.

Hey everyone! Thanks for reading my book! Please comment, like and share! Talk to you next week!

~Love Nisha