Renesmee casually flipped through a magazine and tried not to notice the hairdresser fawning all over her boyfriend.  Boyfriend.  She smiled at the thought of it.  He was all hers, but looking at him even now still gave her butterflies.

Jacob glanced at Renesmee in the mirror’s reflection.  When he saw her smiling, he winked at her and she blushed a little.  “I really just need the back and sides cleaned up,” he told the hairdresser. “Not too much off the top, please.”

“No problem.  We’ll get you all fixed up, sweetie,” she replied, smiling.

Jacob remembered what Renesmee had said about the way women look at him.  He looked over to see her watching and he wondered what she thought of this woman running her hands through his hair.  Her name tag said her name was Kira.  He thought she looked Quileute.  Her skin was dark like his and her hair was long and jet black.  She was pretty, but she wore more makeup than he was used to.  And she was nowhere near as beautiful as his Nessie.

He smiled at Renesmee again as Kira led him back to get his hair washed.  She scowled as Kira linked arms with Jacob and squeezed his bicep appreciatively.  Renesmee tossed her magazine on the table and sighed.

The young man sweeping the floor glanced at her and said, “Don’t worry about Kira.  She flirts with everyone.”

Renesmee forced a smile and tried to feign disinterest.  “Oh, I didn’t even notice.”

He approached her cautiously and reached for her hair.  “You’re hair is so pretty.  Can I interest you in a conditioning treatment?”

Renesmee shrugged.  “No not today.”

“How about a manicure...or a pedicure?  I could really use the practice,” he replied sincerely.

“Okay,” she finally agreed, glancing down at her fading toe nail polish and adding, “I guess I could stand a pedicure, if you have time.”

“Of course!” he gushed excitedly.  “Come with me!”  Renesmee beamed when he grabbed her hand and pulled her to the other side of the salon where the pedicure chairs were set up.  “I’m Tyler by the way,” he added excitedly.

“I’m Renesmee,” she replied, nodding as she passed Jacob on his way back to his chair.  He furrowed his brow when he noticed Tyler holding her hand.  But before he could investigate, Kira urged him to sit in her chair and began adjusting the height so she could cut his hair properly. “Now let’s see what we can do with this mop.”

Jacob frowned.  The way she positioned the chair, he could no longer spy on Renesmee, but he could hear her laughing.

“So how is that feeling so far?” Tyler asked as Renesmee soaked her feet in a small bubbling tub of water.  He reached for her foot and began to massage the balls of her feet.

Renesmee stifled a giggle. “Great...but it tickles,” she admitted.

Tyler applied more pressure and asked, “Better?”

“Mmm hmm,” she murmured.  “Just heavenly.”

“So…” Tyler began, nodding in Jacob’s direction.  “Is tall, dark, and handsome over there your boyfriend?”

Renesmee smiled proudly. “Yeah that’s my Jacob.”

Tyler gazed at Jacob with approval as he began removing her old nail polish. “He must be Quileute, like Kira.  Just beautiful people, aren’t they? That dark skin and gorgeous hair, it’s not fair, is it?”

Renesmee shook her head sadly. For a second, she looked at Kira and wondered how gorgeous their children would be.  That thought made her heart ache.  Then she glanced at Jacob, noticing that he wasn’t paying Kira any attention.  That made her feel a little better. “He’s really sweet to me,” she announced suddenly.  “I’m so lucky to have him.”

Tyler scoffed, “Girl, he’s lucky to have you!”  Then he handed her a card with polish color choices on it. “Pick one,” he instructed.

Renesmee carefully chose a baby blue shade that nearly matched her Mustang.  “This one will match my car,” she said, nodding to where it was parked outside.

“Nice,” Tyler replied, nodding in approval.  “Gift from Jacob?”

“Yeah...he completely restored it himself.  He’s amazing.”

Tyler raised his eyebrows.  “So...generous and good with his hands?” he commented suggestively.  “That is amazing.”

Renesmee blushed as she glanced at Jacob now.  He kept looking over at her, checking up on her and finally she realized how lucky she was that he cared.  His concern was never overbearing and his overprotectiveness was never meant to keep her from growing up.  It was love.  It was always done with love.  She felt stupid for never understanding that before.

Jacob strode toward her now, a small smile started to form at the corners of his mouth as he gazed at her.  “Almost done?” he asked before pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

Renesmee completely forgot about her pedicure. “Oh...I think so.  Tyler?”

“Just about…” he replied, concentrating intently at the task at hand. 

Jacob took a seat next Renesmee and immediately reached for her hand.  She smiled widely as he pressed a kiss to the back of her hand.  Tyler watched them interact and then sighed, “Omigosh, you two are so cute!”

“Oh wow!” Renesmee gasped when she saw her toenails.  “I love it!  Thank you.”

Jacob offered his hand as she stood and she leaned on him while she slipped her sandals back on, careful not to smudge the polish.  “What do I owe you?” she asked, reaching into her purse.

“I took care of it already.  My treat,” Jacob said, beaming.

“You are so sweet,” she gushed.  She pulled a few bills from her pocket, handed them to Tyler and pressed them into his hand. “Your tip, sir. You deserve it.”

Tyler was so excited.  “Thank you, Renesmee.  That just made my day!”

Renesmee gave him a quick hug, being unsure why she felt so close to him right now.  But somehow their short interaction had helped her realize how she felt about Jacob and she was grateful.  “I’ll definitely be back!” she called as Jacob wrapped an arm around her and led her to the front door.

“He was friendly,” Jacob commented as they began to walk down the row of shops.

“And so nice,” Renesmee added.  “Don’t my toes look great?”

Jacob furrowed his brow.  “I think he likes you.”

Renesmee just laughed as she playfully slapped Jacob on the arm.  “Oh stop…”

“Nessie…” Jacob said seriously.

Renesmee stifled a giggle.  “Honey, no.  He wasn’t interested in me at all.”

“Yeah right,” he scoffed.

She stepped in front of Jacob and tilted her head.  “I’m serious.  All he did was ask about you.”

“Why?”

“Well...since he called you ‘tall, dark, and handsome’ then I would say it was because he has the hots for you,” she explained.

Jacob’s eyes opened wide in disbelief.  “I’m honestly shocked.”

Renesmee smirked and added, “So if it wasn’t bad enough that I have to keep all these girls away from you, I guess now I have to watch out for the guys too,” she replied, her head bobbing back and forth with attitude.

Jacob laughed as he pulled her to him and pressed his forehead to hers.  “Sorry I was jealous...and that I have no gaydar,”  he said sincerely.

“I forgive you,” she breathed, “on one condition.”

“Name it…”

“Kiss me?” she purred.

“Oh yeah,” he growled before crushing his lips to hers.

“Mmm…” she murmured when he finally pulled away. 

“Ready to go?”

Renesmee glanced around and spied a shop on the other side of the street she wanted to check out.  “Almost.  Let’s go over here,” she ordered as she pulled him to the curb.

Jacob grabbed her by her waist as she started to step into the street.  A car driving too quickly sped past them and honked.  Renesmee nearly jumped out of her skin.  “Oh God, that was …way too close.”

He pulled her into a tight hug.  “You’re okay, right?”

Renesmee tried to catch her breath.  “Yeah...I’m just shook up.”

She tipped her head back and gazed up at him.  He looked absolutely terrified and she could feel his heart pounding.  “I’m sorry.  That was stupid,” she confessed.

“You didn’t do anything wrong,” he reassured her, smoothing the hair away from her face.

“I’m really okay,” she promised.  “Come on.”

Jacob nodded as he slid a protective arm around her shoulders, looked both ways, and guided her across the street.  He frowned when he saw the storefront.  “Why are we going in here?”

Renesmee began browsing.  Jacob looked terribly uncomfortable.  “I just want to get your opinion,” she replied happily.

“I have none,” he answered grumpily.

“Oh come on,” she urged, holding up two garments for him to choose between.  “Are you really gonna make me guess?”

In one hand she held a white lace nightie with matching satin robe.  In the other hand she held a red sheer teddy complete with garter and stockings.  “So what do you think?”

Jacob swallowed thickly and shrugged.  “Can we just go?”

Renesmee furrowed her brow.  “No...you still haven’t told me which one you like better.”

Jacob blinked, still frowning.  “Neither.”

“Don’t be such a spoil sport!”  She put both selections back and chose a hot pink matching bra and panty set.  “Is this better?”

“I don’t know,” he grumbled.

“You’re not being any help to me, Jake.  How am I supposed to know what you like…”

He clenched his jaw.  “I have no idea what I like...and I’m ready to go.”

Renesmee scowled at him as he grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the store.  He led her back across the street and held the passenger door open for her.  She opened her mouth to protest, but when she saw the cold look in his eyes, she thought better of it.

Jacob drove to their favorite spot at the beach.  It was a grassy spot overlooking the water, not as high as the cliffs but high enough that the water looked as if it when on forever.  A perfect spot for watching the sunset.

He turned off the car and gripped the steering wheel tightly.  His jaw clenched and unclenched as he breathed deeply.  Renesmee knew she had done something really wrong, but didn’t have a clue what it was.  After several moments of silence, she got out of the car and started walking.

She looked out over the water and scowled.  Then she felt him.  She didn’t hear his footsteps or smell that wonderful scent that could only be described as Jacob.  She felt the heat of his body and they weren’t even touching each other.  He was always so warm, but if he was hot enough that she could feel him without them touching, then he must be blazing mad.

Renesmee didn’t turn to face him.  She lowered her head and whispered, “I’m sorry.”

He sighed deeply.  He hated that she thought he was mad at her.  That wasn’t even it.  He still couldn’t articulate his feelings right now, but he had to let her know he wasn’t mad.  Jacob moved a little closer and let his fingers rest on her hips. 

She sighed as she leaned back, letting her head fall onto his shoulder.  She turned her head slightly and breathed against his neck.  “Tell me what I did wrong...please?”

He turned his head toward her, his hot cheek pressed against her face.  He sighed into her ear and then took a big breath, his nostrils filled with the scent of her hair and skin.  “I’m not mad.”

“Don’t lie.”

Jacob gripped her hips roughly and spun her around so quickly that he had to catch her before she lost her balance.  She gasped as she pressed her hands to his chest.  The anger was in his eyes again.  “I’m not lying to you,” he growled.  “I would never do that.”

His arms were at his sides and she missed the feeling of them on her hips.  “Then what’s wrong?”

He searched her face.  He knew that he should be able to tell her anything, but...this was so hard to say.  “Nessie, I…”

Jacob clenched his jaw tightly and turned to walk away.  She reached for him, but it wasn’t quick enough.  “Please talk to me,” she pleaded, her hand still reaching for him.

He froze, the muscles in his back tensing.  He shook his head quickly and sat down on a large boulder.  He slumped, defeatedly, still refusing to meet her gaze.  “I just can’t tell you this…”

Renesmee went to him now, suddenly panic stricken at what this could be.  Her normally sweet and happy Jacob looked so storm cloudy that it scared her.  She knelt before him, gazed up at him and breathed, “You can tell me anything.”