Jacob glanced down at Renesmee as she knelt in front of him. Her eyes were pleading with him as much as her words had.

You can tell me anything.

Jacob wanted to believe that was true. But somewhere in his gut he doubted she would feel the same way for him if she knew the truth. "I don't think I can tell you this, Nessie," he replied honestly.

As if she could read his thoughts, she said, "It won't change how much I...how I feel about you," she corrected.

He smiled just a little as he pulled her up from the ground and set her in his lap. She sat sideways, resting her butt on one of his muscular thighs, her long legs between his. One of her hands wound around his back and up to his neck, fingers tiptoeing through his now short cropped hair. She frowned. "I miss your scruffy hair."

He narrowed his gaze at her and playfully replied, "You're the one who wanted it cut...dork."

Renesmee gasped. "Dork? You don't call me a dork...I call you a dork," she informed him.

He laughed a little as he tightened his grip around her waist, pulling her impossibly closer as she snuggled against him. She pressed her palm to the side of his face and his head flooded with her memories, flashing by like a mini movie in his mind. So many conversations between them over the years. In each one, Jacob lovingly explained things to her or calmed her down when no one else could. When it was over, she stared deeply into his eyes.

"You've always treated me like I matter," she began. "Even when I was little, you were honest with me. Why can't you do that now?"

His heart ached with want for this girl. Did he dare believe what she said? She smiled softly at him, her eyes gleaming with...love? Just the thought of it gave him some much needed courage.

He stared down at their hands, fingers intertwined, her thumb rubbing small circles on his skin. "When we were in that shop, I guess I kind of freaked out."

"Okay," Renesmee nodded her head slowly. "Do you wanna elaborate on that or..."

"I don't know why...it just seemed like you were trying to get a reaction out of me," he blurted quickly.

"With lingerie?" she quizzed.

Jacon shook his head. "No, not that."

"I don't understand...."

"It's just the way you're acting now," he clarified. "It's like you're not you anymore!"

Renesmee took a moment to process this, then proceeded carefully. "This is me. This is who I am. I've grown up and I can't pretend I'm that same little girl I once was. And if that's what you want me to be...then I don't know what we're doing."

Her face hardened when he didn't respond. She pushed off of him, moving to stand, but he held her in place. "I know you're not a little girl any more. And I had to get used to you changing and growing on almost a weekly basis for the past seven years, but..."

"I haven't had a growth spurt in over a year. Grandpa Carlisle says this is it." Renesmee stared down at her hands and sighed. "I'm sorry I'm not what you imagined I would be."

Jacob placed his hand under her chin and raised her gaze to meet his. "You're everything I ever wanted you to be. Even more than I could have ever dreamed."

"But?"

He stroked her face softly now. "But you don't need to wear sexy lingerie to get my attention. You already have it. I am already having so much trouble with my self-control with you. I just feel like you're trying to shock me now...get some reaction from me."

Renesmee cocked her head thoughtfully, turning her eyes away from his intense stare. "Maybe I am. I just want...to feel like you want me."

"You don't?"

"I never seriously considered you would ever want me. How could you? You've witnessed every moment of my life, all my mistakes, all the embarrassing experiences. That's why even though I had a massive crush on you, I never let myself believe you would be mine."

"You had a massive crush on me?" he echoed as a small smile started to form.

She cocked her head and gave him a pointed glare. "You knew. You had to know how crazy I was about you. You were all I ever talked about."

Jacob shrugged. 'Yeah...until a year ago. Then all you ever talked about was Seth."

"Because I thought I couldn't have you," she blurted. "That's why wanted him to be just like you. So I could have my dream come true without the fear of rejection from you."

"I didn't know that."

"It just seemed so silly, to think that you could really ever want anything with me other than friendship. I thought that was all we would ever have, so I gave up hoping. And I put all my effort into being with Seth."

"I wish I had told you how I felt sooner. I'm not good at this stuff, Nessie. I've never even had a real girlfriend before. I've never..."

She searched his gaze and realized what he meant. "Never had sex?"

Jacob cringed as he looked away from her. "That's why I said I don't know what I like. I really don't. And while you're worried that I don't find you attractive...which is crazy by the way, I'm over here trying to figure out how to tell you how inexperienced I really am," he told her honestly, finally looking at her.

"This is a good thing," she admitted, smiling.

"How is this good?"

"We both have the same amount of experience and I don't have to worry about you comparing me to anyone you've been with before," she replied softly.

"You were worried about that?"

"Of course. Like that hairdresser today, she was so pretty. And I got jealous just thinking about what beautiful babies you two would have, you know because she's Quileute like you."

Jacob laughed heartily and he encircled his arms around her and held her tightly against his chest. "Why would you ever think I would want to have children with anyone other than you?"

She shrugged, her arms still wrapped around his waist. "I just figured the council would prefer you be with someone like that, to preserve the heritage, you know?"

Jacob pulled back from her so he could look into her eyes. "Actually the council is quite pleased that I imprinted on you."

"I'm surprised by that," she admitted. "I come from a family of vampires after all."

Jacob reached for her hair, smoothing it down softly with his fingers as he spoke. "It's not because of your family, it's because of you. They know you have a long life expectancy, you may even be immortal."

Renesmee looked confused so he continued, "Most wolves imprint on humans. They may continue to phase for 15 or possibly 20 years. But once they settle down to raise a family, they will stop phasing and begin to age normally. That way they won't outlive their mate."

"Oh," she replied, finally understanding his meaning. "So since I won't age, you'll keep phasing forever."

"And not to mention their ideas on what our children will be like. You're gifted and strong. They expect that our kids will be some sort of super wolf breed."

Renesmee stood now, wrapping her arms around herself. "So all this has been talked about by them, decided by them?"

Jacob stood to join her, wrapping his arms around her. "No! This is just what they talk about." He spun her around to face him, her face etched with worry. "We decide what our future holds. The council isn't making our choices, understand?"

She swallowed thickly, raising her hands to his face. When she pressed an open palm to his cheek, he saw her memory. It was from a few months ago when Carlisle told her and Bella that he wasn't sure if Renesmee would ever be able to conceive. He had no manual on her human/vampire hybrid body, so there was no way to tell for sure.

When Renesmee saw the concerned look of Jacob's face, tears welled up in her eyes. "What if I can't give you what you want?"

As tears began to spill down her cheeks, he sighed, "All I want is you. Children would be a bonus but not a necessity," he clarified. He began kissing her tears away, praying that she believed him.

She pulled away from him, still looking defeated. "Let's go," she said softly as she turned away from him.

He gathered her carefully in his arms, "Don't do this," he begged, holding her closer.

Renesmee broke down completely. "I just hate thinking I'm not enough for you," she sobbed.

Jacob sighed as he lifted her off her feet and cradled her in his arms. He carried her back to the car and gently set her in the back seat. Then he joined her, pulling her close to him as she continued to cry.

When she began to calm down, he pressed a kiss to the top of her head and asked, "Are you done?"

Renesmee sighed, "Don't tease me, Jake."

He pushed her hair aside, searching for her eyes. "I'm not trying to. I just want to talk to you and I figured there was no point if you hadn't calmed down yet."

Renesmee glared at him and crossed her arms over her chest. "Go ahead, I guess," she huffed.

He took a deep breath in and then looked into her eyes. "I just wanted to say...that I love you," he paused when she opened her mouth to respond. He pressed a gentle finger to her lips, his eyes pleading to let him finish. She nodded slowly, so he continued, "I wasn't going to tell you that right away, because I wanted to give you time to figure out how you felt about me. And I've been keeping a wall up around me, not showing you how I really feel because I didn't think you were ready. That was wrong."

Renesmee furrowed her brow, but didn't interrupt, so he went on. "My feelings for you have been so incredibly strong since the day you were born. From the very first moment, I have been willing to lay down my life to protect you and that has never changed. And now it's so much more than that. I want to be with you every second, showing you how much you mean to me, but as you have pointed out, I can be overbearing. So I have been holding back and keeping myself in check, but please don't ever doubt how much I want you."

"I don't want you to hold back from me anymore, Jake. I can handle it, I swear," she vowed, pulling his hand to her chest and holding it against her heart. "Do you feel that? My heart is bursting with all the love I have for you."

Jacob smiled widely. He pressed his forehead to hers and used to free hand to wind his fingers through her hair. He was shaking slightly, feeling as though he would burst too.

"No holding back, you promise?" she reminded him.

He nodded slowly as his breathing sped up. He grabbed a fistful of her hair, be careful not to hurt her as he angled her head and planted a searing kiss on her lips. She returned the kiss with so much passion and heat that she wondered if they both might spontaneously combust.

Her hands explored his body, fingers lifting the hem of his shirt, snaking around to his back. He moaned into her mouth when he felt her fingernails raking across the tight muscles in his back. He scooped her roughly and placed her in his lap, needing more contact. He buried his hand in her hair, afraid to explore any other part of her body.

She pulled his hand from her hair and placed it on her own thigh, silently begging him to touch her, as if she had read his mind. He gripped her tightly, resisting the urge to tear at her clothes. "I gotta stop now," he gasped, trying to dislodge himself from her embrace.

"You said you wouldn't hold back," she reminded him as she attacked his neck with kisses.

He gripped the seat tightly, praying he wouldn't have to replace the white leather later. "I know what I said but..."

Renesmee pulled back from his neck and looked deeply into his eyes. "But what?" she asked, chest heaving as she struggled for air.

"I'm starving," he admitted, giving her puppy dog eyes.

She considered giving him a sexy comeback about eating her instead, but she had made a promise to herself not say things just for a reaction anymore. He more than proved he wanted her, that should be enough. "Okay," she replied easily, moving to stand and climbed into the driver's seat.

Jacob furrowed his brow as he watched her get up. "Well, that was easy."

She shrugged as she slid into the driver's seat and turned the key. "Will you be joining me up here or should I change my name to Jeeves?"

Jacob laughed heartily as he tried to stand, ignoring the way his erection was straining against his jeans. She seemed to notice and suppressed a smile, but said nothing about it. She didn't want to embarrass him, but it made her feel good to know she did that. She turned him on.

He stepped out of the car through his open door and climbed into the front seat with her. He leaned over to buckle her seatbelt and softly brushed his lips against hers while doing so. He broke off the kiss quickly but she didn't protest. Neither one of them had anything to prove anymore.