A/N: PLEASE READ: Okay, so I know it's been a good three weeks since I've updated, and I apologize. I've been getting a few emails that you guys think I'm not going to finish this – and that's not true. I WILL finish this because I can't stand when I start reading a story and it's not ended ever. But I've had a few things happening in my life – GOOD things, but things that take up a lot of my time. I think I've come up with a solution, but if not please bear with me because updates might be slow in coming for the next few chapters. I'm trying to get this wrapped up pretty quick – the last show in LA is less than two weeks away and most of the side stories are winding down. The final chapter will be the LA show, which I've already written. So probably seven to ten more chapters and we'll wrap it up. I thought about putting it on hiatus, but I can't do that to you guys. So, here's Ch 33, I'll answer all your reviews tomorrow or later today, and please bear with me. Love you all! Thanks for all the kudos, follows, favorites and reviews. Oh, and this chapter is a little short. Sorry about that!

Quick question – I've noticed an uptick in interest (follows and favorites) in the past few weeks. Any idea why?

Chapter 33

The airport scene lasted a little longer than just the one hug and kiss. I couldn't honestly get enough of her. She didn't have any luggage, so our hands were completely free to roam all over each other. I palmed her ass right there in the airport and dipped my knees so we were hip to hip, grinding into her like I'd just gotten back from six months at sea.

She giggled and pulled back from the lip lock we were engaged in. "Jake, this is doing nothing to help my horrible reputation," she murmured with a big smile.

I chuckled, grinning back at her. "Okay, baby, I get it. Come on. We can make out in the back of the Town Car."

She laughed as she allowed me to sling an arm around her shoulders and lead her outside. As we walked along, there were still a few gawkers, but I didn't even care. I grinned like an idiot as I led her away. She was back and that was all I cared about at that second.

We got in the car and I told the guy to take us back to the hotel. "Jake, do you mind if we go to a drive thru or something? I'm starving. I didn't have any money to buy anything to eat at the airport."

Shit. I didn't even consider the fact that she'd been at the airport for the better part of the day. "Sorry, Bells. I didn't even think. Where do you wanna go? There's probably not much open late on a Sunday night."

"I'm so hungry now I don't even care. Take me to McDonald's," she said, and I had to laugh. Like McDonald's was some kind of last resort.

So I told the driver to go through the drive-thru at Mickey D's. I even got a Quarter Pounder meal for myself, because I do love me a QP. I hadn't had McDonald's fries in a while either. And they're little golden straws of deliciousness.

Bella ordered a cheeseburger Happy Meal.

"Seriously, Bells?" I asked. "A Happy Meal? What are you, five?"

"I don't want a big greasy burger right before bed," she said.

"That's okay, baby, we can work it off," I said, winking at her.

"Uh…I don't think so. My monthly bill finally showed," she said.

Jesus, I couldn't believe how relieved I felt when she'd said that. I realized I'd been worried about it in the back of my mind and hadn't even recognized it. What a load off – and she didn't even have to take that stupid Plan B thing.

But wait, was that a thing? Not having sex because you had your period? I mean, I'd never once even thought about it, since I'd never actually had a girlfriend – and no gote had ever had her period as far as I knew while I was doing my thing.

"Well, that's a relief. Okay, you can have a Happy Meal, but at least get a sundae to go with it," I said. I made the driver order her a hot fudge sundae too. And watched with disgust as she dipped her fries in the ice cream.

"Oh my God, that's the most gruesome thing I've ever seen. Yechh," I commented as she stuck another chocolate covered fry in her mouth.

She laughed. "Jake!" she said. "It's the sweet-salty combo. I have my period. This is what I crave when I have my period. Sweet-salty. Mmmmmm," she moaned, jamming another fry dripping ice cream and chocolate sauce in her mouth.

I turned away, faking a gag. She laughed and dipped another fry in, then held it to my lips. "Try it right now and tell me it's not delicious," she said.

"Yuck! No way!" I said, but she slipped the fry in when my mouth was open.

Oh. Hm. That was interesting. I didn't expect to like it but she was right. Delicious. I glanced over at her and she was nodding with a knowing smile on her face. "Told you," she gloated.

She looked so damn delectable herself that I was suddenly sort of bummed that she had her period. I wanted to take her right then and there. We were already back on the road and the stoplights and streetlights were lighting up her face periodically and I just couldn't resist a little something. I leaned in and kissed her. She tasted like chocolate. Damn, I truly loved this girl.

We finished our burgers and were back at the hotel shortly thereafter. I pulled her by the hand to the elevator and continued the makeout session we'd started at the airport, pinning her against the back wall of the elevator and jamming my tongue down her throat. She moaned in response and I felt my cock harden against her thigh. Shit.

I mean, what's the deal with this period thing? You can't fuck? That couldn't be, could it? Did the whole world just stop fucking for a week? I mean, what's the big problem? So things get a little messy. Who cares?

"Bells, really?" I panted against her neck. "We really can't have sex?"

"Gross!" she exclaimed, twisting away. But that was just what I'd thought with the ice cream fries.

"What's so gross?" I asked, genuinely curious. "So it's sloppy. So the fuck what?"

"Come on, Jake. The candy store is closed for a few days. Just deal with it."

Uh, you don't just tell me no, baby. Especially when you've been gone for over 24 hours. I missed her, I wanted to claim her, and she wasn't going to deny me. I mean, I'm not a Neanderthal, but I was at least gonna make her try it. She made me try the fries, and look how well that had turned out.

I leaned in just as the elevator stopped and the doors opened, letting in a suburbanite middle aged couple. "Up, right?" the guy said, checking out the control panel. "Oh good, same floor," he said, turning around to face the front of the elevator like every normal person does.

We only had two floors to go, so I leaned in and whispered in her ear, "We're gonna try it, baby, and I promise – if you don't like it I'll stop."

The clean cut dude glanced fearfully back at us and I realized that I wasn't exactly whispering – it was more like growling. He'd heard me, and I don't know what he thought, but he seemed a little worried about Bells. The wife moved closer to the guy without turning around and I grinned down at Bells.

She hid a giggle as the elevator stopped at our floor and the couple practically ran out. "So what did they think you meant?" she asked with a sly grin.

I shrugged, pulling her toward our room. "I don't really give a shit," I said. "In fact, I hope they get off on it." I smirked at her as I slid the key card into the slot on the door.

"You're terrible," she laughed.

As we entered the room, she went straight for the bed, pulling out the crappy phone from her pocket. "Do you mind if I have a drink? I think I need one," she said.

"Sure, baby. Whaddya want?" I asked. Might as well get her a little happy before I tried to take her menstrual virginity.

"Um, I'll have a diet and Ketel. Is that okay?" she asked timidly.

"Whatever you want," I said, pulling the stuff out of the minibar. I made her a quick drink and handed it to her, asking, "Did you happen to call your dad?"

"No!" she said, suddenly adamant. "Why would I? He doesn't deserve a call!"

I thought about it. When I hadn't been able to reach Bells, I went crazy. I couldn't even imagine what her father was going through.

I mean, yeah. The way he acted when he showed up in Austin and how he went about taking her back with him was questionable at best. But I knew what it was like to worry, and I felt kind of bad for him. Plus, well…let's face it. I was a bad influence. Charlie might not know all the details, but since Bella met me, she'd been wearing overtly sexy costumes in front of big crowds, witnessed blatant carnal knowledge all over the green room, lost her virginity, had her ex call her out and humiliate her in front of a bar full of people, and had a pregnancy scare. Not to mention hearing my sewer mouth on a daily basis.

"Bells, you should call him." I said as I sipped my own drink.

"He didn't let me call you! He wouldn't even let me send you a text. I'm not calling him."

"Baby, he's your dad. He's probably worried sick. Call him."

She let out a big gusty sigh. "Let me finish my drink, and I'll think about it," she finally said. I wondered what happened to the sweet, loveable girl that she'd been before her little trip back home. She'd changed.

Maybe it was for the best. She needed a little bit of a backbone. My little virgin needed some rock and roll in her blood.

But not toward her dad, of all people. Even I had seen my mom at her request, and she'd done a pretty shitty thing to me as a kid. It'd be different if her dad was being completely unreasonable, but he had a point. And I knew he had to be worried.

"Please, baby. For me. Call him, just tell him you're safe. That's all he really wants to know anyway." I said.

"I said I'll think about it," she said, but she took the nasty out of her words by smiling at me from under her lashes. Which made me hot and caused me to forget all about her dad.

I set my drink on the nightstand and put my hands on the bed, crawling across the mattress toward her with a predatory look on my face. She stared at me skeptically.

"I told you we're not doing this," she said.

I didn't stop. In fact, I moved closer, getting my face right up close to hers and planting a kiss on those luscious lips. "And I said we were gonna try," I told her stubbornly. "You made me try the fries. And I loved em. Maybe you'll love this."

"It's not even in the same category, Jake," she said – but I could tell she was relenting. Because she was kissing me back.

I grabbed the back of her hair in my fist and kissed her hard and long, and although she was a little shy at first, she turned it around pretty quick. So I decided to go full caveman and be a little domineering tonight, only because she was letting me. See, that's the irony. You can't dominate sexually unless the woman gives you permission. So really, in the long run, she's the one with the power.

But I put that to the back of my mind, gently pressing her back in the bed until she was lying under me. And then I fumbled at the button of her jeans, finally getting my hand where I wanted it - around back. I palmed a cheek and growled into her ear, "Tonight this ass is mine, baby."

She let out a little mew of acquiescence, and my cock responded by standing right up, proud and stiff. I slid my hand around toward the front and when I was just about where I wanted to be, kissing her all the time, there was a pounding on the door.

Fuck. Cockblocked again. I didn't move except to pull my mouth away from hers and shout, "What?"

"Jake? Is Bellar back? You were supposed to let me know when she arrived!"

Of course. Of course it was Edward, panties all in a twist, freaking out over nothing.

"She's here, Edward," I replied, irritation evident in my voice.

"Well I have some papers for her to sign that I've been sent from Legal. Open the door."

Goddamn, that guy was persistent. I closed my eyes, willing him to go away, but it didn't work. Bella had a little grin on her face. She was actually enjoying my frustration.

"Tomorrow, Edward," I said.

"No, Jake, tonight," he corrected me. He banged on the door again for good measure.

"Son of a bitch," I spat, rolling off the bed and not even bothering to try and readjust my boner. I opened the door, and I knew my expression was furious.

He didn't even look at me. His eyes swept right past me into the room until he saw Bella on the bed, and then he strode right in without even acknowledging me. "Bellar! Are you alright?"

Her eyebrows met, forming that little line between them. "Why wouldn't I be? I was with my father, Edward. Not some serial killer." I laughed. I loved the way she could just talk to him like that, no worries whatsoever.

"That's exactly what I need to talk to you about. I have some legal documents here." He held up a sheaf of papers, binder-clipped together. "We need signatures on these forms." He thumbed through the papers until he got to the last ones, all of which had those little "Sign Here" tabs on them.

"What are they?" she asked.

"The main thing is your contract. Legal is concerned that you don't exactly understand what you signed. They've included a simpler version…"

She cut him off. "I'm not an idiot, Edward," she said, her tone snippy. "I know what the contract says; you don't have to dumb it down for me. This was kind of beyond my control, okay? My dad basically hustled me out of Austin before I even knew what was happening. That's not going to happen again."

Wow. Bells on the rag was…well, kind of a bitch.

"And this will prevent it from ever happening again. Fine, I understand that you're clear on the contract. But there's another document in here as well. It's a restraining order, barring your father from coming within 500 feet of you."

"What?! I am not signing a restraining order against my father, Edward!" she said. "That's ridiculous!"

"Edward, seriously?" I said. "You're kidding, right?" But he had this official looking pile of papers and he was looking at us both like we were insane.

"First of all, it's temporary. When you don't appear in court, because you'll be in another city, they'll drop it. All it does is warn him. He'll receive a summons that he has to appear in court. He won't know you won't be there, and he's required to be there, or at least send a proxy."

I interrupted him. "Are you aware that he's a cop? I'm sure he's pretty well-versed on restraining orders and shit like that," I said.

He stared at us, his mind clicking away. "No, I didn't know that," he said, sounding disappointed. "But, Bellar, we have to prevent this from happening again."

"It's not going to happen again," she said.

"I know better than to leave her alone with him now," I added.

Edward looked defeated. "I wish I would've known this before I notified Legal," he said. "I've had them working on it all day."

I still had my mind on Bells – getting busy with her and busting that myth that we couldn't fuck while she was on her period. Making her enjoy it. So I wanted Edward gone. "Well, it's taken care of, so you can go back to Legal and tell them thanks anyway," I said dismissively.

He gave me a dirty look and turned to go. I heard his phone ring but thought nothing of it, because I was already liplocked with Bella – even though it was almost midnight and a phone call at that hour, even for us, is never good news. And then I caught the conversation.

"What? Say that again, only slower," he said, his voice going all high-pitched and panicky. There was a pause. "And he somehow is blaming the band? How does he make that connection?...Ohhh." Edward glanced at me, and if I thought the look was dirty before, it was nothing compared to this one.

Fuck. This had to be about Riley. I thought I'd told Diego to make sure the fucker didn't talk!

Edward continued to fume as he talked on his phone. Bella looked up at me questioningly, and I watched my evening of possibly messy sex melt away. There was no way we were getting out of this one without a long diatribe from Edward.

Finally he was finished with his call, and he stuck the phone back in his pocket. "Well, Jacob, it seems that merely one day away from Bellar and you're back to your old tricks," he began furiously.

Okay, the only thing to do here was deny, deny, deny. Too bad my acting skills sucked. "What?" I said, like I had no clue what he was talking about.

"Riley," he said. Bella looked at me, her eyes huge with worry.

"What about him?" I asked.

"Well, he's ended up in the hospital. Broken elbow and clavicle. Numerous facial lacerations and two black eyes. Possible broken nose. He's blaming the Wolves."

"And you're accusing me – why?" I asked, pretending to get pissed.

"Who else has a bone to pick with him?" Edward spat. "Of course you're behind this."

I held up my hands in surrender. "Dude, you're completely wrong on this one," I said.

"Are you sure you don't know anything about this?" demanded Edward, testily pacing the floor.

"How could I?" I asked. "I've been here the whole time!" Fuck, if Edward found out the truth, I was dead meat.

"Well, he's making noises like he's going to sue," Edward said.

"Why is he claiming the band has anything to do with it?" I asked, trying really hard to maintain an innocent face. I knew I shouldn't have left this to anyone else. Now I really wanted to kick Riley's ass.

"He doesn't have any real proof, but he says he recognized the guy from the band. You're saying you didn't have anything to do with this?" Edward asked.

"Edward, come on!" I protested. "That's the weakest reasoning I've ever heard. He recognizes the guy from the band? Where did this happen?"

"In Miami, of course," Edward answered.

Okay, so this Biers character was grasping at straws. He had no proof, and the guy who wrecked him had nothing whatsoever to do with the Wolves. No one would believe him. Our marketing people should be able to squash this before it came out, judging from the amount of money we paid them. They were supposed to be pros.

"He's running a smear campaign," I said dismissively. I thought I was actually going to be able to pull this off. "How could a guy from the band be in Miami when we're in Albuquerque? No one is missing from the band, are they? The roadies are all present and accounted for, aren't they? So how'd a guy from the band get to Miami?"

Edward stopped pacing and chewed on that one for a minute or so. "I suppose you're right," he said finally.

"I know I'm right," I said. "Think about it, Edward. This guy is a volatile son of a bitch. You met him; you know! He was picking a fight in the bar in Miami before any of us even knew who he was. He got drunk, picked another fight - with the wrong person this time - and now he wants to milk it. He wants money and he wants to smear the Wolves because he's still pissed over the Jane incident."

Edward was silent, thinking. Finally, he said, "If that's really the case, then we'll be forced to bring a slander case against him to shut him up."

"Threaten it," I said. "A threat would probably be enough." I thought about it for a second too, looking at it like I actually didn't have anything to do with it. Like I believed my own performance. "And would a legit media outlet even listen to this joker? He has no proof whatsoever. Whoever roughed him up can't possibly have anything to do with the band. What if it was just a really rabid fan that beat the shit out of him? Someone who didn't like what the asshole was saying?"

Uh oh. I'd gone too far. Edward looked up at me quickly, narrowing his eyes. "Are you sure you didn't have anything to do with this?" he asked again. "Because that's a stretch, even for you." Sometimes Edward was really creepy, almost like he could read my mind.

I must have looked guilty for a second, because his face changed then and he started in on me. Swears and all. "Goddamn it, Jake! This kind of thing is what ruins our public image! If anyone finds out…"

I cut him off. "No one will find out," I said, completely forgetting that this kind of statement was a bona fide admission of guilt. "It's rock solid, man."

"So you were behind it," he said triumphantly. "I knew it! Who was it? Who did you send to Miami?"

I shook my head. "I'm not admitting anything," I said.

"You've already admitted it! Is there any way that they can link this to the band?"

"Calm the fuck down, shit!" I spat, getting pissed. "Of course there's no way they can link it to the band. What am I, a fuckin idiot?"

"What exactly did you do, Jacob?" he asked menacingly. But Edward being menacing was like an angry little mouse. So I rolled my eyes accordingly.

"It's Jake, Eddie," I said, correcting him first and foremost. "And I took care of a problem that you dumbasses weren't solving. Now I'll guess I'll have to have someone pay him another little visit, if he's gonna continue to talk. And it'll be over one way or the other."

"You can't continue to handle it like this, Jake," he said, visibly trying to calm down. "Obviously it's not working. It's backfired on you twice already."

"Twice?" I asked. "What are you talking about? I did this once, this time, today."

"What about at the Miami show? Didn't you have something to do with the Jane incident?"

I'd told him I hadn't at the time. What the fuck? I wasn't a liar. Why did he insist on continuing to ask me that? "I told you I didn't," I said evenly, my voice low and angry. "If I had, you can bet it wouldn't have been fucked up. That cocksucker woulda been quieted down by now. Because I woulda shut his ass up for good."

Edward stared at me for a second, looking a little scared. He recovered quickly, though, and muttered, "Sometimes I forget what a thug you are." I had to laugh, just a little, to myself.

"Look, Edward, if I thought you guys were doing anything worthwhile, I would leave it up to you and your marketing geeks. But whatever you're doing isn't working. And it's causing all kinds of trouble now. It's gotten out of hand. This is why Bella's father kidnapped her. It's the reason behind the bad press for the band. I won't have my life ruined because Bella wouldn't sleep with some butthead at the prom."

"And now you think sending this person who roughed him up back to finish the job will end it once and for all?" he asked. He wasn't being sarcastic; he actually seemed to think that it just might work.

"It can't hurt," I said. "Well…maybe it can, but not the way I'm planning. Ever see The Godfather?" I grinned. "Maybe it's time for a little horse's head action. Or something along those lines. If we can scare this idiot, make him think we can get to him no matter where he is, he'll shut up. I guarantee it."

Now Edward looked scared and didn't even bother hiding it. "Jake, you can't," was all he said.

"Obviously I'm not planning on cutting off a horse's head and putting it in his bed. But I will come up with something to scare the ever lovin shit out of him. Hide a guy in his shower with a gun or something. And tell him to shut the fuck up."

"Gun?!" Edward said, getting all wound up. Shit. I forgot he's British. Petrified of guns. What is it with the rest of the first world? It's just a gun. For crying out loud, you can use a hammer as a weapon and inflict almost as much damage and you don't hear everyone calling for hammer control.

"Calm down, Edward. I'm just brainstorming. Something that will scare him is all I'm saying."

"He is terrified of guns," supplied Bella. I'd almost forgotten that she was there. I turned to her.

"What?" I asked.

"Something happened to him as a kid, something he didn't talk about much. An incident in Miami after a baseball game. His uncle was held up at gunpoint by some gangbangers. I mean, nothing happened to his uncle except he got robbed, but it scared Riley silly. He was only little and it gave him a lifelong fear of guns."

"Perfect!" I grinned, turning to Edward. "See? It works on so many levels," I said.

"No!" Edward said unequivocally. "That is not an option."

"If you come up with something better, I won't do that," I said. "But if you don't, that's the only thing that will work with this asshole. I mean it, Edward. I'm not pussy footing around anymore. The fucking marketing people suck. They need to get a clue."

I felt Bella clutch my hand like she was drowning and I was in the only boat in sight. I glanced down at her and saw her face was flushed and her bedroom eyes were staring up at me adoringly. Hot damn. Little virgin was getting turned on by Badboy Black. Yesssss.

Now I needed to get rid of Eddie, but he seemed to only wanna talk about the Riley plan.

"Please, Jake. Don't do anything rash. I can talk to Marketing. Charlotte will take care of it."

"You goddamn well better." I said. Yeah, I was kinda enjoying the adoration from Bells so I was definitely throwing in a little extra in the way of badassery. "Because if you don't, you know I'm gonna fuck him up. And then I'm gonna fuck him up some more just for fun."

"It won't come to that," Edward assured me. "Just sit tight and don't do anything we'll all regret."

I leaned toward him and pointed a finger at his chest. "Let's get this straight now. I won't regret it. I'd fuckin love to knock his head off his shoulders."

Edward took a step back. "Fine, Jake, calm down. I told you, we'll take care of it."

"Good," I said, my tone just as shitty as I could make it. "Now if you don't mind, I'd like a few minutes with my girlfriend who's been gone for two days." Okay, it wasn't two whole days, but it sure seemed like it. Longer, even.

Suddenly Edward seemed a little flustered. "Of course; I'm sorry," he stammered, and made for the door. "We'll talk tomorrow." He finally left.

As soon as he was gone, I attacked Bella like I'd wanted to since I laid eyes on her coming down that passenger walkway at the airport. I pinned her back down on the bed and smashed my lips into hers, taking what I wanted in an especially forceful kiss.

"Fuck, baby, I missed you," I panted, grinding my hips into hers.

"Jake, seriously," she breathed against my neck. "I feel weird. My period..."

"Ask me if I give a shit," I groaned, thrusting harder. "Because the answer is no."

"Can't we just do, like, some other thing?" she whimpered. "I feel uncomfortable."

Fuck. She had to use that word. Now I couldn't push her. That right there was the one thing I'd never go past - the 'u' word. If a chick was ever 'uncomfortable' then I stopped. I don't know why - it was like it was in my DNA. Dammit.

I sighed heavily, pulling away from her and lying back on the pillow. "Okay, Bells. What 'other thing' did you have in mind?"

"How about if I just, um...go down on you?" she asked tentatively.

Goddamn. She was so fuckin sweet. But, even though I was Jake fuckin Black, conquering rock star and man whore extraordinaire, I didn't feel like that was exactly right. I shouldn't get to enjoy myself if she wasn't getting to. I pulled her close again, settling her head on my chest where it belonged. I bent my neck and kissed the top of her head.

"Thank you, baby. But that doesn't seem right. If I'm having fun, you should be too."

She smiled like she had a secret. "I will be having fun," she said, all sexy.

I laughed, just a little chuckle. "I still wouldn't feel right. Tell you what: we'll go to sleep now - you've had a shitty day anyway. And tomorrow, we'll wake up early and I'll let you call the shots, okay?"

"Okay," she said, somewhat reluctantly. But I knew she was beat, and fucking would only make it worse. To be honest, I was tired myself. Not too tired to fuck, I'd never be that tired. But I hadn't slept at all the previous night, and I hadn't had a chance to sleep during the day either, what with arranging Bella's travel, talking to Diego, and hanging out with the Wolves. It would be better if we waited until morning. And maybe then she wouldn't be so uptight about trying to do the horizontal bop while she was riding the cotton pony.

She got up to do whatever it is girls do in the bathroom before they go to bed. While she was in there, since I was feeling especially rebellious, I looked up flights to Miami on my phone and actually booked one for Friday night out of Phoenix. I knew it was a few days away, because first we had the Albuquerque show and then a two nighter in Denver followed by a two nighter in Phoenix, but I was giving Edward that long to fix this and then I was gonna take care of it myself. I could always cancel it if he actually took care of it. But I didn't think he would, and this was my insurance.

Honestly? I was hoping he wouldn't. I was itching to get my hands on that cocksucker. I wanted to tear him apart, fame and celebrity status be damned. I didn't even care at this point. Because now it was pretty fuckin personal.

Bells came out of the bathroom and snuggled down into bed with me, and I was happy I'd booked that flight. Whatever I could do to take care of her seemed like it was worth it to me.