Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction

Freedom

By BetterInTexas

Chapter 08:

BPOV

“How would I like to ride a wolf? I thought I’ve ridden a wolf several times over the last two days.” I told him with a smirk.

” how about it?” Crap he was serious.

“Sure I’m game.” I looked at Amber and she wasn’t looking at me.

“That okay with you Amber?”

“That’s up to you Bella. That’s what freedom is all about. I can’t make decisions for you anymore than he can.”

“Okay Paul. Let’s do this.”

I walked outside and saw Paul strip off his clothes. I would never get tired of that sight. It would be one thing I would definitely miss when I left. The way that man fucks me….

Oh shit. I had seen Paul’s wolf before but it never failed to stop my breath. He lowered himself on the ground and I climbed on to his back. I gripped his fur tight and laid my upper body down on his back.

“Giddyup.”

He snorted at me and took off. This was so much cooler than riding a vampire! It reminded me of those bikes in Return of the Jedi. Zooming through the trees dodging at the last minute. I was screaming, but they were screams of joy. I wish I had the guts to let go of his fur and reach my hands for the sky but I am pretty sure I would get bucked off. We stopped at the top of a cliff looking over the river. It was gorgeous. There must have been no one for miles. I saw him phase back and he was there in all his naked glory. It didn’t seem fair so I began taking off my clothes.

Paul POV

I watched her taking her clothes off and the sight took my breath away. Her hair was swept back from the trip up. The sun caught her nipple rings and her nipples were small and pink and hard. She was shaved all over. Not an extra hair on her. Her long dark hair hung past her shoulders. Despite the changes in her appearance one thing remained the same. Those chocolate eyes you could fall into and get lost in.

“What are you doing?”

She giggled. “I want to be as free as you.”

“Can I hold you?”

She appeared to think about this for a few seconds before slightly nodding her head. I walked up to her and she turned around to face the river. I wrapped my arms around her abdomen and pulled her close to me.

“What do you want in life Paul?”

“Besides you?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t know. I guess I want a home and children. A woman who is my world. I don’t need a lot of money. I’ve never had it so I wouldn’t know what I was missing anyway.”

“The things we own end up owning us.” Bella said quietly.

“Yeah I guess so.”

“People can get so wrapped up in things they forget about who they are. Even I was the same.”

That surprised me. “From what I remember, you were the least materialistic person I know.”

“You would think that but you never saw me around the Cullens. I let Alice treat me like a fucking doll. I thought if I let her give me the right hair and the right clothes I would be good enough. I didn’t trust that I was good enough on my own to be worth anything. I don’t know if I hate them as much as I hate who I was around them.” She looked around at the surrounding mountains. “This is really beautiful.”

“I come here a lot to be alone. After I had fallen in love with you I would come here dreaming about being good enough for you. Dreaming about bringing you here with me. Just like this.”

“When did you fall in love with me? When did you know?”

“I was over at Sam’s one day. Nobody was there but you and Emily. I heard Emily crying. She was in the bathroom. I was about to go check on her and I saw you round the corner and go into the room. You never saw me. The door was open and I saw Emily looking into the mirror and crying. You pulled her into a hug and let her cry on your shoulder. Then you kissed the scar on her face and told her she was the most beautiful woman you had ever met. The thing is I could tell you weren’t just saying that to make her feel better. You meant it. You saw past everybody’s scars, vampires and humans and werewolves and you loved them all the same. I had never known anyone with the capacity to love like you do. At that moment I knew. I would never love another woman. Even without the imprint nobody else would ever measure up.”

I heard her sniff and could tell she was crying. “Paul?”

“Yes Bella?”

“I can tell you the moment I fell in love with you.”

That was a shock.

“When?” I whispered, not trusting myself to speak to loudly.

“Just now.” She turned around and kissed me. She really kissed me. It wasn’t lust. She kissed me like she loved me.

Bella POV

What have I done? I have fallen in love with him. Dammit! I told myself this wouldn’t happen. As if I wasn’t addicted to his body enough I had to go fall in love with him. I rode him back to the house. We went slow. Not in any hurry. We reached the house and I saw Amber waiting for me. She had no expression on her face. I walked up to her.

“What’s wrong?”

“You love him?”

“Yes.”

“That was fast.”

“I know.”

“You love too much. You put yourself out there to get hurt.”

“What’s the alternative?”

“I don’t know baby B. I don’t know. We need to talk about something else.”

“What is that?” I asked curious.

“Alice fucking Cullen.”

“Your right. I want to know.”

“Paul?” He had been listening to my conversation with Amber.

“Yes Bella?”

“Would you do me a favor? I need Sam and Jake and maybe Embry and Quil.”

“Okayyy.”

“I need to go speak to the Cullens but I want backup.”

“Let me make the calls.”

Amber POV

I drove my bike up the long drive. Bella had agreed to let me handle this. And there was about to be hell to pay.

They of course were waiting on the front porch.

“Love have you decided to come back to me?” Stupid fucker.

“Are you mental? I may have some psychiatric issues but the one thing I am positive about is not wanting to be with you. If you can’t live without me I’m sure one of my furry bodyguards in the woods would be glad to help you with that problem.”

“Alice Cullen I would like to have a word with you.”

“Yes Bella?”

“Bella isn’t speaking to you. She pretty much hates you. We have arguments all night over which of us hates you more. But there is something we need to have cleared up so we can get some closure.”

“Of course, Bella.”

I didn’t bother to correct her. It wasn’t worth it.

“Phoenix.”

“Yes?”

“How was Bella able to sneak away from two vampires?”

“Jasper and I had gone to check out.”

“Exactly. The entire time I was in that hotel one of you was always with me. Why didn’t you see James calling me pretending to have my mother? Why did it take both of you to check out?”

Silence. Just like I thought.

“You knew Bella was going to meet James. You knew what would happen to her.”

“Bell..”

“Don’t fucking lie to me”

“Yes”

I heard gasps form the crowd. I guess not all the Cullens were in on this little charade.

“Why?”

“I knew Edward would feel guilty about turning you. I knew you had to be turned for us all to be together forever. I saw that if you went, James would bite you and Edward would save you just in time. I never saw him decide to suck the venom out.”

“You set Bella up to be frightened. To think her mother was in danger, to be terrified by a sadistic vampire, to have her leg broke and thrown all over a ballet studio, all so you could have her turned without making Eddie feel guilty? You gave her nightmares for months, you didn’t give her a chance to say goodbye to anyone. You just decided to play God with someone who trusted you for protection. I got all that right?”

“I loved you Bella, I would do anything to keep you.”

“Even hurt her.”

“Stop talking about yourself in the third person! You are here. There is no one else! Why won’t you let Carlisle and the family help you?”

“Like you did in Phoenix? What little accident are you going to cook up to change her now to save Eddie from his guilty conscience?”

BPOV

I had some questions of my own. I tapped Amber on the shoulder and she smiled at me. “Alice?”

“Yes Bella? Have you decided to talk to me?”

“I have a question. How did you not see me getting a paper cut when you decided to throw me a party?”

Silence. Silence was getting old.

“That was your second plan wasn’t it? Get your mate to do it for you?”

Rosalie looked pissed. Jasper looked shocked.

“Is that true Alice? Tell me you didn’t set me up for that.”

“It had to happen. I’m sorry Jazz. And now that she hasn’t been turned look what has happened to her. She has lost her mind.”

“Edward how much of this did you know about?”

“I didn’t! I never would have put you in danger. You know that.”

“I believe you Edward. But I think you should be able to appreciate that I don’t want to be a vampire. I don’t want my soul to be damned, even if it already is. I don’t want to become a beautiful god like creature who develops a god complex like your sister here. So I am asking for the last time that you leave me alone. That you stop being selfish and leave me alone.”

Edward POV

I didn’t know what to say or feel. I am so angry at Alice. I understand why she did it. That’s the truly horrible thing. I think a part of me is grateful for her actions, even if they didn’t pan out. She is right. We do have a god complex.

“Bella I love you. Please believe I love you.”

“I do believe you Edward. But I don’t love you. I loved who I thought you were but I don’t even love that anymore. The Pack would appreciate your help with Victoria since this was a problem you all caused. Every life that is being taken to make this newborn army is on you and your family. I thought it was my fault for a while but I was played. I was played by you and your family. I won’t be played any longer.”

I was really losing her. I doubted even if she ever came to her sanity she would take me back. And I had no one to blame but myself.

Sam POV

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I had no idea how damaging these vampires were. They may not eat humans but they certainly destroy lives. I looked over at Paul. He was seething.

“You okay there Paul.”

“I can’t believe these fucking bastards. When we are done with Victoria…”

“I know. If they don’t leave, fuck the treaty, we attack. As far as I’m concerned the treaty is over.”

BPOV

Back at Paul’s house I felt like passing out. For the first time though I didn’t feel like getting high. I didn’t need to get high to deal with this. I felt liberated to get this out in the open. All my suspicions were confirmed. I felt Amber kiss my cheek and say she was going to bed. I couldn’t remember a time when she ever went to sleep before I did. I felt Paul walk up behind me and put his hands on my shoulders.

“So what now?”

“What do you mean?”

“You faced some pretty big monsters tonight. Fought some old demons. What do you feel like doing next?”

“I’m not leaving if that is what you’re asking.”

“I’m not. Just wanted to know what was on tap for tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow I am going to a beauty salon and getting my hair back to it’s natural color. I’m going to take my lip ring out. And then I am going to have dinner with my father. I’m doing this because it is what I feel like doing. Not because I think I need to be something different for him.”

“Can you keep the nipple rings?”

“You really like those don’t you?

“I like flicking them with my tongue.”

“Practice makes perfect wolf boy. Amber is in bed for the night. You wanna practice?”

“God do I.”

Paul lifted me up into his arms and carried me to bed. I lost myself in him and he lost himself in me. I was starting to realize I didn’t have to be alone to be free.