The Bonds Between Us • E.Cullen x Fem oc x B. Swan

Chapter 30

A silver Volvo pulled up to the Swans house, the chiefs car no where in sight. "Bella!" The red head shouted excitedly as she lept from the vehicle. "Lia?" Bella asked looking around for the bronze haired man who seemed to always be by her side, only for him to be invisible. "You drive?" Bella asked, before Cori could answer a loud thump was heard from the top of Bella's truck.

Looking up a startled gasp left Bella as her brown eyes flitted towards Cori. Edward had skillfully climbed into the tree, jumping onto the truck, scaring the girl.

"Could you act human? I mean, I've got neighbors." Bella said as Cori chuckled walking forward, grabbing ahold of the girls hand. Bella looked down at their combined hands with a soft smile. Remembering what Edward said, she squeezed a little bit, and from of the corner of her eye she could see Cori smile.

"Yeah Spider-Man, put back on your mask." Cori told him and Edward side eyed her with a chuckle.

"I'm gonna take you to my place tomorrow." Edward blurted out, effectively making the brunette speechless for a moment. "Subtle Eddie." Cori said, but Edward messed up her hair a bit making her glare at him.

"Wait, like with your family?" Bella asked as Edward popped out the dent from the trucks fender. "Yeah, and Cori will be there." "What if they don't like me?" Bella asked and Cori scoffed. "What it's a legit question." Bella huffed. "If they don't they'll have to go through me." She told her and Bella chuckled.

"So you're worried not because you'll be in a house full of vampires, but because you think they won't approve of you?" Edward asked, a chuckle coming from him. "I'm glad I amuse you. What I mean is they have dealt with Lia for two years." Bella said and Cori's scattered head picked up, glaring playfully at Bella. "Hey! Those are tooth paste words!" She said. "Tooth paste words?"

"They don't go back in the tube." Cori and Edward said at the same time, Edwards version much more rehearsed than Cori's. Bella smiled as she looked at him. "Why do I have a feeling you know the definition, is because you have used toothpaste words too much?" She asked him and Cori snorted. "Because he has."

Before he could say anything to defend himself, his head turned, listening, though nothing was there. "Edward?" Cori called softly, her hand resting on his arm. He continued to listen as Bella realized something was happening. "What is it?" "A complication." He told Bella as he wrapped his arm around Cori, kissing her forehead. "We'll pick you up tomorrow." Edward told the brunette, but Cori wasn't ready to go.

"Can't I stay a bit longer?" Cori asked. "I don't think you want to love." Edward told her and she looked at him. She could see he was being truthful, but she wanted to stay, to bond with Bella more. "Please. I'll text you to pick me up?" She asked and Edward nodded. "If anything happens, call me. I'll be right there." Edward told her, and she nodded. "I love you." Cori told him and he smiled. "I love you more." He told her back. And with a quick kiss to the lips, he was inside the car.

"What was that all about?" Bella asked and Cori shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know."

But as Edward drove away, a familiar cream and black pick up truck came down the street, and it was then she realized why he didn't want her to stay. Billy Black and his son Jacob were on their way.

The Volvo braked for a second, the two drivers making eye contact when Cori said out loud, yet quietly, "I'm okay." "What?" Bella asked as she heard her mutter something but didn't catch it. "What?" Cori asked as she looked at the brunette girl.

As the truck pulled in, the two males spotted the second girl, both knowing who she was.

To one, she was a traitor, a human that with her own knowledge of the cold ones, still decided to date one, though with her still being human the shifters job was still to protect her, no matter what side she chose.

The other he knew her as Bella's friend, maybe more than that, as he saw how their hands were locked together, but he then remembered how she had visited Sam and Emily and was possibly a part of their cult.

Bella had realized how uncomfortable the presence of the Blacks made her, taking Cori's hand in hers, she stepped slightly infront of her, allowing the persona of protection.

"Hey. Come to visit your truck?" Bella asked in a teasing manner, hoping to lighten the uncomfortable air that seemed to surround all four people. "Yeah, it looks good. Got that dent out." Jacob smiled at her and Cori didn't like that. Not that he was smiling, but the way he was smiling at her. Stepping out from around Bella, Cori put on a fake smile. "Yeah."

"Jake you remember Lia from the beach or Cori as most people call her." "Yeah. Hey." He said with a little wave. "And this is Billy. Jake's dad. Billy this is Cori, my girlfriend."

Billy tried to keep his facial expressions neutral, but wasn't doing a good enough job as Jacob elbowed him and Cori's eyes narrowed. "It's nice to meet you Mr Black." Cori said stiffly and Billy nodded. "You too. We actually came to visit your flat screen. First Mariners game of the season." Billy said his attention back on the brunette. "Plus Jacob here keeps bugging me about seeing you again." He said making the boy blush and Cori's good mood from earlier, sour. "Great, Dad. Thanks." Jacob said and Cori smirked at his embarrassment. "Just keeping it real son."

A door to a vehicle closed, making Cori's eyes flash up, their blue hue catching the Chief coming from his cruiser, two 6-packs in his hands. "Vitamin R." Charlie said as he approached the group. "Well done, Chief. Harry Clearwater's homemade fish fry." Billy said holding up the brown paper sack that Jacob had placed in his lap earlier. "Good man." Charlie said already able to taste the fish.

Looking up, he realized there was two girls instead of one. "Mae , how are you?" "I'm good Charlie. And yourself?" She asked. "As good as an old man like me can be." He said making her smile. "You staying for supper?" He asked and she nodded. "Good! The more the merrier." He said.

Setting the beer in Billy's lap, the girls scooted back, allowing the wheelchair to pass and still be on pavement.

"Any luck with that Waylon case?" Billy asked, looking at the two girls as he asked the question. Bella furrowed her brows as Cori glared at the older man. "Well, I don't think it was an animal that killed him." "Never thought it was." Billy said with a smirk on his face that neither of the girls could see, but Cori could hear it in his voice.

"So, spread the word out at the rez, huh?" Charlie asked, "keep the kids out of the woods." "Will do. Don't want no one else getting hurt, do we?" Billy said looking straight at the girls, Cori's eyes were like daggers, and Bella's eyes were on the ground. "Taking of the Rez, Cori, Sam says hi." Billy told her and Bella looked at him, then her, as Cori's eyes filled with tears, their last conversation going through her head.

This time the brown eyes of Bella were glaring at the older male, and he was surprised at the protectiveness. As soon as they were inside, Bella drug Cori up to her room, one place the Austin girl hadn't been, and she was surprised to see so much purple.

"I'm sorry about him." Bella blurted as soon as the door was closed, the tears now freely falling from Cori's eyes. "It's okay." "No, it's not. Not if it makes you cry. What was he talking about?" Bella asked. "I don't really wanna talk about it." "What did you tell Edward? No secrets. I want it to work the same way with me. No judgement. I promise." Bella told her and Cori stuck out her pinky finger. "Pinky promise." "Pinky promise." Bella said locking their two fingers around each other.

"The day at the beach, when I had went off to see a friend, it was Sam and his girlfriend Emily. I told them about you, and what you would mean to me and Edward. He said that it wasn't right or natural. I told him it was and we fought. Words were exchanged, some we can never take back. So I left. And I haven't been back since." Cori told her. "Oh, Lia." Bella said sadly as she hugged her.

"Are you sure you want to stay. You don't have to if they are gonna make you uncomfortable." Bella told her. "I think I'm gonna have Edward pick me up."

A/N: This was a long one. Over 1500 words! Hope you guys enjoy it!