Chapter 01
The decision to run away on her wedding day had been the best idea she’d ever had. Sure, she made a lot of people unhappy but her best friend Jacob had been right; she had to stop making other people happy and think of herself for once. Becoming a vampire was nice and all, a long lasting life, but what good would that have done if she was in a loveless relationship? Edward was obsessed with her, it hadn’t been love.
She happily took the bank card from Jasper with Edward’s money on it and ran as far as she could. The first plane out of Seattle took her to Paris – of all places – but she didn’t care. Bella was going to have fun and do everything that she hadn’t been able to do while she had been with Edward; be a real teenager for one, making the best of her last two remaining teenage years.
She found a hotel near the Champs-Elysées and dumped her suitcase before going back out again to the nearest restaurant and bar. Night had already fallen but the streets were still busy with people and it felt great to be part of the mass. Her high school French got her some French fries with a steak bigger than her hand and a flute of Champagne. Oh yes, celebrating her freedom with a nice glass of bubbly was certainly pleasurable.
She knew she had to feel terrible about it all; Reneé had been really happy and excited for Bella and even Charlie, who took some time to warm up to the idea that his baby girl was going to be married before she was twenty years old, had been happy in his own way. A lot of money had been spent on the wedding – but then again, the Cullens were comfortable enough to deal with the blow – and she had humiliated Edward in front of his family and friends.
Bella was well aware that she could have gotten out sooner. Jacob had been nagging her for months, he had been against her involvement with Edward from the beginning. Jasper had warned her that this wasn’t a good idea and even Rosalie forgot to be a bitch towards Bella one day and told her that she wished that Bella wouldn’t go through this as it’d ruin her life.
She had polished off three glasses by the time dessert came round and since the bar area looked quite entertaining, she paid for her meal and continued to drink at the bar. It was the best way to spend her first night, well, her second night, of freedom since she couldn’t get hammered on the plane.
“There’s a great pub down the street with much better alcohol.”
Bella looked up from where the voice came from and acknowledged the tall boy standing a few seats away from her. “Your English is good.”
“Because I’m American,” he snorted as he sat down and ordered his drink. “Best thing about Europe is is that you can drink when you’re 18.”
“Yep,” she replied, popping the ‘p’ and took another sip of her beverage. He looked kinda hot, at least he looked like a normal human being with normal human complexion. She wasn’t really in the mood for talking, really. All she wanted was to get so drunk, she had to roll back to her hotel room to sleep off the alcohol and maybe repeat it again tomorrow. She didn’t have to do anything anymore, she could do whatever the hell she wanted. Hell, she could even be so bold as to ask the boy if he wanted to fuck. Yes. She could. Did she dare? Sure, why not? “Wanna hook up?”
The boy almost spat out his drink and looked at her in shock. “Are you serious?”
“Yes. Do I look like I’m joking?”
“You look drunk,” he pointed out. “I don’t do drunk girls.”
“I’m not that drunk, I still know what I’m doing. Come on, I’m celebrating my freedom here,” she said as she drained her glass. “Are you seriously turning down a willing fuck?”
“Well… I’m not really into that kind of thing right now, but good luck on celebrating your freedom.”
“I said hook up. Not date, marry and have babies. Ew. No.”
The boy seemed to think for a moment, torn between his feelings and what he needed, really. She could see the hesitation in his eyes, but also that his eyes had gotten a shade darker and that had her interest peaked. She got up from her seat and planted herself next to him. God he smells so good, she thought as she ordered another drink. “No strings. I don’t want to do strings. I just want to have some fun and you look like you could use it.”
He let out a breath and nodded. “I’m kinda mourning my ex-girlfriend. She was involved in a… uhm… accident.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Bella apologized. Of course, he looked like a kicked puppy, she should have known something was off. “I totally get it.”
“It happened a few months ago, though. Her dad brought me here to spend some time with their family and he just left me here and I don’t have the funds to go back to the States.”
“Poor puppy,” she took a sip of her drink. She wasn’t really interested in exchanging life stories but what the hell. “Almost two days ago I left my ex-boyfriend in front of the altar because I realized I was being stupid and that he didn’t really love me.”
“Seems like we both have reasons to get drunk,” he replied after a beat, wondering if she could sense that he was something other than a human, but that would be impossible, wouldn’t it? Unless she was something special and she looked quite ordinary to him. It would be a fun way to figure it out though, if she knew and if she was something other than a human.
“You’ve been drinking for months, haven’t you?” Bella said with a smirk. “Drowning your sorrows. Thought you didn’t have any money?”
He shrugged as he took a sip of his drink. “I guess pretty girls pay for them?”
“Alright, hotshot,” Bella laughed. “Your drink is on me.”
“I’m Isaac, by the way.”
“Bella.”
The silence between them wasn’t that uncomfortable as they both retreated back to their thoughts while sipping their drinks. Once Bella was finished with hers, she paid what she owed and got off the chair, deliberately bumping into him, feeling his well toned physique underneath his shirt and loved that he didn’t even feel cold to the touch. He felt like a real human and then some. Almost like Jacob. “Huh,” she said as she gently caressed his arm over his shirt. “You work out, I like it.”
“Thanks?” Isaac was surprised. He never had girls come on to him like she was coming on to him right now. But she was filled up with alcohol, surely it had something to do with that, right?
“So, I’ll be heading to my hotel room now. Do you want to come?”
When she started to bat her eyelashes at him and licking her lips at the same time, blood started to rush to parts of his body that he hated because they were a clear indicator that he was indeed, interested. “Oh fuck it,” he muttered as he downed his drink. “Yes, I want to come.”
~o~o~
She could name dozens of people who would disapprove of this and that’s why she wanted to do it. She wanted to have sex with this gorgeous boy, have him fuck her to oblivion and then some. Maybe rinse and repeat until they were both well spent. Have breakfast after a good sleep and then do it again. And again. Until they got tired of each other. No strings. It could end any time. She made it clear to him in the elevator to her room and he seemed to like the idea very much.
Once the rules were set, she pulled him down for a kiss to get a taste of him, feeling brave. She knew it was the alcohol but that was the intention to consuming alcohol. Isaac was the first one she kissed like this after Edward and Jake, and boy, Isaac was a damn good kisser – or that could be the alcohol talking too. She really had to shut her brain down. She didn’t need it for what she wanted.
When the doors pinged open, she broke off the kiss and walked towards her hotel room, she could already feel that she was wet in anticipation. She was going to have sex. She gave herself a stern talking to that she was not going to back out of this and just let it all happen. That was a good thing, to let it all happen. She fumbled with the room key for a moment and felt victorious when it opened, leading him into the suite.
“Wow, you have money to burn or something?” Isaac let out a breath. Was this girl loaded? Was she just an unhinged rich brat with daddy’s credit card? Ah, who cared? He was going to get laid tonight and maybe that would make him feel better. The alcohol only worked for so long.
“Or something,” Bella said with a shrug. “Basically severance money from my ex-boyfriend, I can do whatever the fuck I want, whoever the fuck I want.”
“That works,” he said with a nod and a shrug. “Are you sure you’re not too drunk?”
“Would you like me to do a sobriety test, officer?” She asked playfully and started to unbutton her jacket. “Because I can walk in a straight line, you know.”
“Yep, I want you to prove it.”
“Well, I won’t,” she said as she discarded her jacket and kicked off her shoes. “Look, I just ran from an overbearing, manipulative, son of a bitch who wanted to marry me and turn me into a stepford wife. I haven’t had any freedom for the last two or three years because he and his family controlled most of my life.” She pulled off her shirt, revealing the big, noticeable scar on her wrist. “I want to do something for me, live life to the fullest and yes, picking up a random pretty boy from the bar is exactly what I want because it’s my choice. It’s definitely a plus that you’re not French so there’s no language barrier here.”
Poor girl, he thought and let out a sigh. “Alright, fine,” he stopped her from undressing herself and instead kissed her hard while his fingers ran up and down her arm. “Allow me to give you those warm and fuzzy feelings you’re after.”
“I just want to feel alive after feeling as cold and dead as he was,” she replied as she stared up into his eyes.
“He sounds like a real charmer,” he caressed her hair out of her face and guided her backwards toward her to the bed. Once at their destination, he gently pushed her shoulder so she fell back on the bed with her hips dangling over the edge. “You’re beautiful,” he muttered as he leaned against the bed with his knees and started to undo her jeans. “It would have been a shame to see you with someone who’s cold and dead, wasted potential right there.”
“I’m skinny,” Bella snorted as she nudged him with her knee after he got rid of her jeans. Heat radiated from him and he wasn’t even that close to her. “Are you a space heater or something?”
“No,” he huffed as he undressed to his boxers and crawled on the bed and followed her as she crawled her way towards the headboard. “That would be impossible, wouldn’t it?” The way she was moving was definitely not that of a drunk, but of a girl who didn’t know what to do. Of course, a virgin on a freedom rampage and he had to run into her. He started to kiss her neck as his hand roamed over her body, taking his time with this as he had promised her to feel those warm and fuzzy feelings she wanted so badly.
He couldn’t help but to use his special power to take away a little of her hurting, he could sense how broken she was on the inside. No matter her bravado, she was a work in progress, in need of fixing. She visibly relaxed under his touch, which would make it easier later on when he was going to fuck her. Oh yes, she may be broken, but he was going to get what she had promised him too. She was definitely not going to be a virgin anymore once he was through with her.
She felt her body tingling, she could even feel it in her toes with the way he touched her. Gently, but also reaffirming that she was alive and really feeling this. Oh, he really didn’t need to find out she was a virgin. He’d stop and he’d leave, and she didn’t want him to. Her body involuntarily pressed itself into the bed or against his upon his attentions and she already felt as if she was flying.
When Isaac was satisfied enough that she was indeed relaxed, he asked for permission to remove her bra, running a gentle hand over her breasts as he kissed her. He wasn’t really taking all the time in the world, his body was demanding a release as well. It would be just as cathartic for him as it would be for her and he didn’t want to wait too long. She had known what she was getting herself into; she should feel grateful that it was him with her right now and not some horny Frenchman.
What the fuck? He scolded himself. Why would he care if it had been a horny Frenchman? It would have been her own fault, wouldn’t it? With her promiscuous behaviour and all that.
He didn’t even ask for permission to remove her underwear because the kiss was simply too good to break off right now and while she was distracted, he could use his strength to rip it and hide the evidence in the trashcan with one well aimed throw. He had been able to smell her once he had undressed her, but he hadn’t realized how wet she was, how good she smelled, causing the blood in his body course even faster through his veins. The wolf in him wanted her so bad, it had been a while since he had to reign him in.
She had missed this connection, this human connection, human touch. Warm touch, and it felt so good. She knew that Isaac didn’t have to take his time with her but he did, and she felt as if she was in heaven. She gasped when he put his hand on her down there, and her body involuntarily arched into him when he inserted a finger inside of her. “Oh, fuck,” she moaned after the gasp had broken off their kiss.
“Just relax, beautiful,” he said calmly. “It’ll be okay, l promise.”
“I know,” she breathed as she managed to look at him with a big smile on her face. “I was just surprised, that’s all.”
“Liar,” he laughed as he used the moment to insert another finger into her and started to open her up a bit for him. “It’s okay, you know, I don’t mind.”
“Mind what?” She asked impishly as she firmly took hold of the sheets beneath her as it felt as if he was trying to put his fist inside of her.
“Okay,” he said with a shrug, removing his fingers from her and pulled down his shorts, revealing his erect cock. She didn’t have to be honest with him, why would she? They were strangers and both in need of release. He wanted to now, even if she wasn’t ready for him. It was her own fault. She invited him, not the other way around.
Isaac repositioned himself on the bed and grabbed one of the pillows to put underneath her ass to elevate her hips a little bit for easier access. He lifted up her legs so they were in a triangle and pushed them to their sides so he could slide himself into her. “Now, are you still sure you want this because I won’t stop.”
“Yes,” she nodded as if she was a bobblehead toy and bit her lip as she looked at him through hooded eyes.
“You’re so sexy, you better stick to your rules about what you said… sticking with me until you get tired of me or I get tired of you,” he said with a low growl near her ear. “Because I think you’re delicious.” He started to kiss her neck as he guided himself into her, feeling her body tense as he gently pushed inside of her, already feeling guilty that he had lost his patience for that moment.
Could he do both? Slowly push himself inside of her and take away some of the uncomfortable feeling? He’d never tried that before. He placed one of his hands on her stomach, to make sure she didn’t move as he slid into her and felt how her uncomfortable feeling flowed into him, causing her to moan in pleasure. The wolf inside of him roared with impatience. “Don’t hold back, beautiful,” he whispered in her ear.
She felt overwhelmed and it felt amazing. His body heat continued to radiate towards her, warming her body underneath him. It was that werewolves were rare and that he didn’t look Native American, otherwise she’d have sworn he was one of Jake’s people. If she felt uncomfortable because he was basically trying to break her in half on his cock, it ebbed away as if it hadn’t been there in the first place.
Her hands had somehow ended up on his shoulders and she ended up scratching him when he pushed through some resistance in her body. It was hard to stay relaxed, she knew it was the best thing to do, she had read about it so many times, but to actually experience it was something else. It felt heavenly and agony at the same time.
He gave her little time to get used to him being inside of her once he was fully in and he started to thrust inside of her, causing her mind to shatter in bliss, unable to let out anything coherent and Isaac loved the delirious look on her face. He paused when she spoke. “Are you a werewolf?”
“A what?” He stammered, trying not to lose balance at the sudden question. How did she know?
“Werewolf.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he grunted and started to move again, he had been so close and now he had to start all over again. This was frustrating. If she was going to mention it again, he’ll just say she was making things up, there was no way that she could know about his condition.
“It’s okay, you know,” she said with a moan and arched her back into him. “My ex was a vampire.”
“Yeah, you’re delirious,” he said with a snort and gently brushed her lips with his to silence her. She was funny, he had to hand it to her. She was really something interesting and he hoped she’d keep him around for her time in Paris.
“You feel great inside… big… but…” she moaned as he hit a tender spot. “So good…” she breathed and instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist, causing him to slide in even deeper, surprising them both.
“Fuck,” he grunted and thrust harder, wanting to feel the same feeling again but he could feel that her body was almost there, it had started to contract around him, softly at first, but the longer he was inside of her, the more active her body got. He slipped his hand between them and started to rub her clit, causing her to clamp down on him and come with a loud moan. “That’s it…” he whispered as he kept moving, adamant that she’d ride out her orgasm, but knowing that it would probably wouldn’t end that way. “Beautiful, so beautiful.”
“Oh…” she managed to let out and let her head fall back into the pillow as she was seeing stars. Bella tried to catch her breath but he kept pounding into her and rubbing her, keeping her on that high for what felt like an eternity before he came inside of her.
“Fuck… please tell me you’re on the pill,” he breathed as he flopped beside her in the bed.
She looked at him, trying to focus on his words and on his face as she tried to steady her breathing and shook her head, biting her lip. “I was dating a vampire. I was set to marry him.”
“Vampires don’t exist,” Isaac huffed as he used the sheet to clean them off. “You’re insane.”
Sighing, she held up her arm and pointed at her scar. “What do you make of this then?”
“Looks like you got bit by an animal and it didn’t properly heal.”
“Oh, come on,” Bella smacked him on his chest. “Vampires are real. My best friend is a werewolf and you’re one too. Different, I guess, but you’re one too.”
“Nope,” he shook his head and got off the bed to dump the sheet in the hamper. “Not to worry though, I’ll hop by the pharmacy in the morning to get you a morning after pill. My mistake, my costs.”
Bella blinked as she watched him gather his clothes and getting dressed. “Fine, I don’t care. Whatever.” She crawled underneath the blankets that remained on the bed. “If you want to leave, go ahead and take my room key so you can return in the morning and you’d better bring me breakfast along with that pill.”
“Yeah, maybe. Maybe I won’t. I’m just trying to be responsible here.”
“Yeah and maybe I was wrong in picking you because I don’t want to be responsible, Isaac. Life’s too short to be responsible.”
“So you want the chance of a rugrat running around? Thanks a lot! That’s a lot more responsible than I’m interested in dealing with…”
“Dude, it was just this once. Lighten up.”
He scowled as he turned to face her. “Haven’t your parents ever told you all it takes is one time? Trust that you don’t want another one of me walking around.”
“Yeah, fine, get that pill in the morning. Like I said, I don’t care. If you’re so hung up about it, then I’ll take it so that you can rest your pretty head and not worry about any puppies running around,” she rolled her eyes and settled down in the bed.
“I’ll be back in a couple of hours,” he said as he took her roomkey from the dresser and held it up. “I’ll be taking this.”
“I told you to take it,” she said before she grabbed a pillow and threw it at him. “Good night, Isaac.”
~o~o~
Isaac made sure that he was first in line the next morning at the local pharmacy to get the morning after pill for that crazy person in the fancy hotel. He’d been stupid not to ask her before hand, not to carry a condom on him. He had vowed never to have children because he was afraid to turn into his father and his father had been one crazy asshole. Sure, his father was all he had left growing up, but Isaac was afraid that he’d grow to resent his child just like him.
And to risk impregnating a random girl he found in a bar? No. Absolutely not. On top of that, she was insane. After getting the pills, he went straight for the hotel, opening the room with the key that she told him to take and found the suite empty. The bed was disturbed, but her suitcase was gone. Her ripped panties were on the bed and a note was beside it.
His eyes grew large as he read through her scrawled handwriting. He let the notecard fall from his fingers as he looked around the room as he debated his next move. “This girl is going to be the death of me…”
Thanks for the great night, Isaac. I truly enjoyed myself and had big plans for you until you started to freak out. I decided it was safer for me to leave than to deal with you, but hey, if you want to find me and still give me the pill, go ahead and sniff me out. I’ll mark wherever I go. Surely it mustn’t be that hard? I’ll be heading down south next. xoxo Bella
He didn’t have to go after her, he could have easily forgotten about her and just move on with his life, but if he had to be honest with himself, the thrill of the hunt, the thrill of adventure made him follow her. It was something Isaac had missed. He had been passive for far too long and it was indeed time to start moving on. How long did it take to get over your dead girlfriend anyway? He didn’t mourn this long for his own father!
When he explained the situation to Chris Argent’s cousin Patrick, he slapped Isaac on the shoulder with a huge and encouraging smile and handed him the keys to his car. Apparently they had been waiting for him to become pro-active and stop wallowing for a long time now and they more than gladly saw him get on with his life.
In all fairness, Isaac had been pathetic, he knew this. He never should have allowed Chris Argent to take him to France and leave his friends behind because Isaac really needed them. He needed his pack, his alpha, even if they didn’t want him around. Surely Mrs. McCall wouldn’t have mind having Isaac stay over again?
But this whole mystery. This Bella. It had fired up his synapses and all of a sudden he felt like himself again. He just wanted to catch her now and see what would happen. He didn’t care whether or not she’d take the pills or not. He was a predator and he was going to catch her.
He wasn’t sure where she went though, all she said she was going south. He took the south exit out of Paris and had to laugh when there was indeed a ‘mark’ along the E5. Good job pup, can you count to six? He wasn’t quite sure what she meant by that, but a short drive later, he saw the A6 and headed on that.
Isaac knew one thing; the girl was insane. She probably left just after he did – it looked like in her own car and had even had time to make cardboard signs for him. Yes, she ran away from her own wedding but had the relationship be that bad to do this to her or was this who she truly was? Was this just an amplification of her freedom?
This excited him. This was awesome.
After two hours of driving, he decided to take a small break to get some feeling back in his foot and to get a bite to eat, in all the excitement, he hadn’t made time for breakfast yet. It was funny how Bella’s scent lingered in the small gas station, almost as if she’d stopped there as well.
“Excusez-Moi, are you Isaac?”
Isaac looked at the man behind the till and nodded. “I am.”
“I didn’t believe that you’d show, but the woman seemed determined.”
“Woman? Bella?”
“I didn’t ask for a name. She said she’ll meet you in France’s third largest city at one of the museums because you’re a doll and would fit right in. You still have time to find her but if you’re late, you’ll have to continue looking.”
Isaac blinked at the man as he tried to figure out what the hell Bella was up to. “Third largest city? That’s Lyon?”
“Correct. You should be on your way. If you wish to put petrol in your car, it’s already been paid for.”
“Thanks,” he said confused. He didn’t need to fill up his car just yet, he had left with a full tank and there was barely anything out, but he topped it up anyway before resuming his trip to Lyon. It was probably going to take him another two and a half hours. Isaac was thinking about maybe contacting Scott, tell him what he was up to in case things would happen, but then decided against it. The Argents knew and if something would happen, they’d contact Chris Argent. It felt a bit silly to feel so attached to someone who wasn’t even his own father. Was it out of loyalty? Probably.
He still hated him for leaving him without his friends though.
He could call Scott later. He wanted to catch up to Bella and see what crazy idea she had planned for him next.
~0~0~0~
She had spent a couple of hours at the hotel in Lyon after having taken a nap at the hotel for a couple of hours. She knew that Isaac wouldn’t be at the hotel in Paris before 9 am so it was safe to nap until around 1 in the afternoon before heading to the museum. Bella loved museums, she loved to learn about the history of a place – it was a shame that she hadn’t done so in Paris, she wanted to see more, but the idea to try and tease the boy into following her had been more appealing.
This museum just happened to have a huge doll collection as well and that was a little bit creepy. They reminded her of the Cold Ones. Motionless. Expressionless. Fucking Edward.
There was a coffee shop nearby where she ordered a coffee and something to eat before taking a seat on the steps to the museum where she could see anyone enter or come out. She still had the feeling that her dealings with the Cullens – and the Volturi – were far from over, seeing as the deal was for her to be turned or to be killed because she knew too much. And maybe it had been a stupid idea to come to Europe – France in particular – as it was so close to Italy and Volterra, but on the other hand, wasn’t the best way to hide from someone right under their noses?
She was wearing her favourite jeans and a short sleeved top and the sun was warming her skin, she loved it. She loved the feeling of it. She had never liked Forks that much. The humidity was horrible for her hair, but great for her skin. She preferred the heat, even though it was simply too hot to do anything active right now. Bella had to come up with another idea on where to go, where to get the boy to chase her next, that is if he was coming in the first place.
She expected that he would. He had shown a thirst for adventure, like her, he needed to get out of his head and do something insane. Like chasing a girl through France because they had unprotected sex. The dear. He was such a cute pup, it was almost too cruel to let him chase her. Bella opened up the maps option on her phone and looked for the next place she’d go to. Marseille looked wonderful. They could meet on top of the mountain with the cathedral or something. Drive him insane and make him have sex with her again.
The thought alone excited her. The previous night might have been her first, but it had felt so good to just connect and float and she had the feeling that if he hadn’t freaked out like that, he’d have shown her so much more pleasure.
Marseille it was. Maybe not have actual sex at the cathedral, but somewhere else, a waterfront hotel perhaps, but yes. Water. Sun. Sunbathing. She needed to go shopping for swimwear. Definitely.
“Gotcha.”
Bella looked up to him with a grin. “Well done, you’ve found me,” she said as she got to her feet. “Now what?”
“I think I deserve a reward,” Isaac said boldly as he pulled her against him and kissed her hard before letting her go and smirked. “And you owe me dinner.”
“What? So you can slip that pill into my drink?”
He shrugged. “I hadn’t thought of that, but yeah, why not.”
“Ha, no.” Bella shook her head. “I’m not taking it.” She turned around to grab her bag off the floor and swung it over her shoulder. “Your reward will be dinner with me, yes. At the hotel. Then we both get a good night’s sleep and we’ll see what we’ll do after, deal?”
“I didn’t just drive four and a half hours for just that.”
“At least one of us slept properly last night,” she said with a smirk as she started to walk towards the hotel, swaying her hips as she did. “But fine, if you want to sleep in your car tonight, don’t follow me.”
“Did you know that legend says that the Virgin Mary saved Lyon from the Plague?” Isaac said as he fell in behind her. “A statue was erected in her name.”
“Erected?” She countered playfully. “How erect?”
“Is that all you can think about? Aren’t you sore?” He snorted as he put his hands in his pockets as he followed her. If there was one thing he liked about France, it was the architecture and the colours. For some reason, it fascinated him. “When I drove into Lyon, I couldn’t help but notice that cathedral on the hill. Looks pretty, want to check that out?”
She stopped and turned around to face him, intrigued by how he wanted to go exploring and with her. “Are you religious, Isaac?”
“Oh, no I’m not but imagine the view from there.”
“And you want to go with me?”
“I don’t see anyone else. Maybe this could be an opportunity to get to know each other better.”
Bella huffed.
“Or not,” he said with a nod. “Fine. But can we go up there?”
“You can go on your own,” she said as she thought she saw a glimpse of a Volturi robe pop around the corner. This was ridiculous seeing as the sun was out, but it was definitely a robe of some sort. Maybe a sun blocking one. To go on a tour of Lyon sounded great, but it’d also mean more exposure.
“Yeah, but you might leave again and I’d have to follow your breadcrumbs, again.” Where did that come from? She seemed to have liked the idea, somewhat, and now she was acting like a cold person all of a sudden. Was it him?
“So?” Oh, she really shouldn’t have thought about the Volturi earlier when she was waiting for Isaac to finally show his face. She knew she’d have to go to them eventually, but she wanted to go out on her own terms. See the world a little and experience freedom at least a little before they’d kill her. Or worse; they could turn her and she’d be stuck with them forever. That would suck.
“I’m asking nicely. Come on, we’re here. Strange new city to explore. You lead me here.”
“Yeah, because you decided to follow me,” she pointed out and saw a flash of the robe again. Surely it was in her imagination? She didn’t want to die. Maybe there was a way to get out from under her deal with the Volturi, what if she’d promise not to tell anyone? Would that work? Probably not. “I just want to go to the hotel and get some sleep. Maybe get drunk first.”
“Okay, but you’re missing an opportunity here.”
“You can go by yourself, how’s that?” She smiled up to him. “I’m staying at a small hotel in a street next to this one. Feel free to come whenever you’re ready.”
“I want to come with you. I want to come.” She seemed spooked for some reason, he realized, and even though he had denied being a werewolf, if she was spooked, she’d be safer with him. Maybe she was just crazy. He needed to get to know her better.
“Okay, good,” she let out a breath of relief, grabbed his hand and started to pull him with her towards the hotel. “You can have anything you want for food, drinks or whatever. It’s on me.”
The street they were walking through was filled with café’s, restaurants and bars and there were a lot of people in the streets and he could understand why she preferred that, if someone really was out to get her, she could easily get lost in the crowd. But was someone out to get her? “What are you afraid of? Who?”
“No one,” Bella replied as she kept walking, ignoring the people around them. She had felt safe in Paris because no one could have known she was there, but her presence hadn’t gone unseen. Surely someone at the wedding could have yapped to the Volturi about her leaving Edward at the altar and could have said that she took the first plane out. It was only a matter of time before they’d find her, wasn’t it? Jasper may have helped her get away, but his mate, Alice, had always insisted that Bella would become one of them. She’d actively search for Bella.
Oh great, she didn’t have just the Volturi to worry about, she also had to hide from the pixie. She hated to feel this paranoid. Alcohol was going to take care of it, she was sure of it.
“Bella…”
“What? I don’t have to tell you anything I don’t want to. Part of our arrangement, remember? Same with you. You don’t have to tell me anything.” She said as she picked up her key from the front desk of the hotel and pulled him with her, too eager to get her face off the street. “But I want to add another rule to that.”
“Can I object to the rule?”
“Sure, but then your adventure will end here in Lyon and you can go back to Paris,” she said as she climbed the stairs. “Because I think that by now, they’ll know I’m not alone.”
Paranoid. Check, Isaac thought. He needed to get this girl some help, what if there wasn’t a fiancé back in America? Maybe he should call Scott. No, Scott would just ask Stiles to look into it, it was better to call him even though Scott was his alpha. Oh, decisions were hard. “What’s the rule?”
“Don’t make any decisions.” She pulled him into the hotel room and closed the door before jumping in his arms and kissed him. “Can you do that?”
“Yes.”
“Good, you can stay,” she smirked as she gently pat his head as if he was a puppy before ruffling his mahogany hair. “For now.” They were so not going to Marseille next.
“Goodie,” he snorted as he kissed her and walked them to the bed.
~0~0~0~
“Bitch,” he groaned as he woke up and didn’t find Bella next to him. Isaac rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and focused on his surroundings, finding breakfast on the bedside table with a note attached to it.
Fun, wasn’t it? I kinda like this game, don’t you? Have some breakfast and come find me. You can pick up your plane ticket at the desk downstairs. Upon arrival at your destination, there will be a car for you waiting. xoxo Bella. ps: I’ve decided not to wear any underwear today.
“Oh, so small decisions are okay, huh?” Isaac snorted as he took a bite out of the croissant and headed into the shower to freshen up. Afterwards, he wanted to do a quick search on his phone but without knowing her last name – wait, how did she know his? She must have looked in his wallet when she bought the plane ticket! – and knowing where she was from, this would be a very difficult task. Not even one he could bring to Stiles. Although, maybe he could since his father was in law enforcement after all. On top of that, the guy likes puzzles.
Sup, Stiles?
Is that really you? Glad you’re not like… dead.
Are you better?
Am I better? Of course, I am better. I’m fixed. Seriously. It’s been months. Where are you?
Still in France but could you do me a favor?
Am I going to like this?
It’s a puzzle. Or maybe not so much if you can ask your father for recent missing persons.
… I’m not going to like this, am I?
Easy. Name is Bella. About 5’6”, between 18 and 22 years old, brown hair, green eyes.
Send me a postcard if I get the information you need, so I can show Scott you’re still alive. He’s worried about you.
I’m fine.
Isaac shoved his phone in his pocket as he finished the croissant and drank the cold tea before picking up his plane ticket to Caen. He had to scratch himself behind his ear for that. Why go to all the trouble of going to Lyon and then back up to Caen? It didn’t make any sense. His flight wasn’t for another couple of hours and he didn’t have to go to the airport just yet, so instead he went up the hill and visit the church that overlooked Lyon.
Once he was up there, he had to agree with himself that the view was absolutely breathtaking and snapped a few pictures with his phone to share with Bella once he found her again. Isaac couldn’t understand why they had to travel alone, there wasn’t much chasing to do if he’d only followed where she went. That was a little bit of a letdown, to be honest.
The memories of last night flooded back to him and he couldn’t help but smirk widely. He had allowed her to explore his body – mostly because she demanded it – and her touch had been so gentle, so sweet. He dared her to do whatever came up in her head and that had been heaven. Bella proved to be very creative for a virgin.
He couldn’t help but get impatient at one point and returned the favor, covering her body in kisses and gentle caress and he hadn’t been able to help himself but to get a taste of her, lapping up her fluids before making her come on his tongue and later on his cock.
Isaac had developed another theory, the one where Bella grew up in a cult where it had been prohibited to be touched, to touch and where sex had been out of the question. It would explain the cold, dead boyfriend she left at the altar. It would explain yesterday’s weird behaviour.
She hadn’t mentioned anything about him being a werewolf or anything about vampires so maybe it had been the alcohol talking when they first met. Vampires were the stuff of legend, weren’t they? So were werewolves but Isaac became a believer when Derek turned him. He still loved being a werewolf. It had gotten easier not to shift during the full moon and fully control himself. The heightened senses were something he could live with, even with the added intensity during it.
The first full moon after Allison died, however, he had given into the shift as he was in a forest anyway and had howled at the moon, crying for her and it had felt great to get it out of his system that way. Then the Argents told him that it was better to control himself for the next full moon because there were other hunters in the area who had not adjusted to the ‘some werewolves are good’ code and they didn’t want anything happen to him.
When he arrived at the airport of Lyon, he received a text back from Stiles, confirming that Bella had been given up as missing. Her name was Bella Swan and she lived in Forks, Washington. Theories were that she had been kidnapped or that she had hurt herself, but Mr. Stilinski had told his son that Bella was deemed to be unstable. Stiles then demanded why he was asking after Bella, asking if Isaac had seen her, but he made up an excuse that one of the shamans he had befriended in his time in France had had a vision about her. Not being able to see Stiles’ face he wasn’t sure if he bought it, but it bought him some time.
He wasn’t sure why he had done that if he had to be honest. If Bella was unstable, she needed medical attention, but they said that Lydia was crazy too, and she definitely wasn’t. Lydia was Lydia. A banshee. Could Bella be a banshee or was there really more to the story?
Isaac wasn’t even sure if he should confront Bella with what he had found out, that they were looking for her, she seemed to enjoy herself and wasn’t hurting anyone, so what was the harm in that? He could keep an eye on her, but that meant he’d have to find her again.
The car at the airport of Caen came with another little note from Bella.
I’m at the beach near a restaurant called the factory. Head to Lion-Sur-Mer and use your nose. When you find me, I’ll give you a Scooby snack. xoxo Bella.
She knew, there was no doubt about it that she knew that he was a werewolf. How? How could she have known? Yeah, she had mentioned something about her best friend being one but different. So how could she have known? Were there really other kinds of werewolves? He hadn’t found evidence of any in the Argents’ bestiary. He would have remembered if there were other types of werewolves out there.
He used his phone for navigation; they were in Normandy now and there weren’t any big cities nearby and he didn’t want to miss his exit or a turn. He wanted to go to her now. Make sure she was alright.
There was a small parking lot at the Rue du Général Gallieni and it was only a short walk to the beach from there. He could smell her. She had only just left her scent on one of the walls, not just any scent though. It was the scent that made him delirious for her; it had driven him insane in Paris and then last night in Lyon. It then hit him that she had written that she wasn’t wearing any underwear today and his cock pressed against his jeans in an instant.
Swallowing hard, he followed the scent almost blindly and found Bella sunbathing in a pop-up beach tent. She seemed to be asleep, the top half of her body – she was wearing a bikini top – somewhat shaded in the tent and her legs covered underneath a towel, her bikini bottom laying next to her, strategically placed for him to see. She was gorgeous. Hot.
He dropped to his knees and kissed her eagerly when she opened her eyes and looked at him with a big grin on her face and lust in her eyes. His hand immediately went underneath the towel where he could feel her wetness for him.
“You like your Scooby snack?” She muttered as they kept on kissing, using the kiss to stifle a moan that escaped her mouth as he pressed his thumb against her clit. “I do…” she moaned again as he repeated the motion.
He wet his fingers on her and slid one inside of her which was quickly followed by a second. This was hot. This was crazy and it was hot, there weren’t any other words for this, and he was determined to have her come on his fingers. He wanted to take her right there in the sand, but seeing as it was a hot day out and still quite early in the afternoon, the beach was filled with people, a family of four just a foot away from them.
He admired her bravery, her boldness, as she wasn’t afraid of showing what she wanted. Making her come in public was going to be amazing, how quiet could she be? He knew she could be loud, but could she be quiet too?
Bella’s back arched into him as he kept working her, only briefly breaking off the kiss to allow the both of them to get a little bit more oxygen into their bodies. She pulled his head back to her to kiss him to stifle another moan and bury her hands in his hair. Isaac had the idea that she wanted to pull him inside of her, she was pulling that hard on his hair, and he couldn’t help but laugh.
“Don’t stop,” she breathed, begging. “So close.”
“You’d better be quiet,” he whispered as he kissed her cheek.
Bella huffed as she tugged on his shirt to create some space for her and pulled him down even further so she could kiss his neck and – oh, she was so close – his collarbone before clamping down on it as she came.
Shit. He hadn’t expected her to bite down on his clavicle. He almost forgot that they were in a public place and managed not to let out a low growl, instead it turned into something throaty, something that piqued Bella’s interest as she was coming down from her high.
“I’m telling you, you’re a werewolf.”
