A/N: Thank you so much for the great responses I've received so far for this story. It's very personal to me, as so much of it reflects what's going on in my real life at the moment. This story calls to me more than anything I've ever written. I hope you continue to enjoy it as much as I do.

This next chapter is Edward's version of how he and Bella met, and will explain a little bit about his intentions.

The song this chapter was named after is "Good For You" by Third Eye Blind.

SM owns all things Twilight.

Chapter 2 – Good For You

Edward

Alone. Alone, alone, alone. That word had been swirling around in my brain for as long as I could remember.

When Tanya left me, saying that our marriage was holding her back from her dreams, I felt like someone had ripped my heart from my chest. I couldn't understand how she could have had such little regard for the life we built together. I never stopped her from following her dreams of being on stage. Rather, I encouraged her and was her biggest fan. But in the end, it wasn't enough.

Of course, having Lily had thrown a kink into our carefully crafted life, but I always looked at it as a blessing. With Lily, there was simply more to love. At first, it seemed that our growing family made Tanya happy. She doted on our daughter, and for a time I thought she was perfectly content to let her career take a back seat to raising Lily.

As the years passed, however, I felt the subtle shift in her demeanor. I tried to convince myself that she was simply missing the stage, and that once Lily grew older, she would be able to perform again. But deep down I knew there was something more to it. For the longest time, I refused to accept the real truth. Tanya, for as good of a mother as she was, was dissatisfied with our life.

Given all our good fortune, it was difficult for me to understand her unhappiness. She never wanted for anything, and I took every opportunity to spoil her and Lily. It gave me such joy to see them receive their hearts' desires. But Tanya always wanted me to be more than just a music professor. She refused to accept the fact that I was content, even happy with the life we'd built for ourselves, and I soon found that we began to want very different things.

I was happy to live in our peaceful, comfortable home on a lovely street in my beloved Williamsburg, whereas she continued to push for a Manhattan co-op. I loved teaching, but she insisted I should be conducting orchestras instead of "wasting my talents" in the classroom. She had become someone other than the idealistic young artist I met eight years earlier right before my eyes, and I no longer recognized my wife.

I considered giving in. I had my family money, and could easily afford everything she wanted. But I truly hoped it was simply a phase she was going through, and that we'd find our way through it somehow. Obviously, I was wrong.

Tanya left me four years ago, and I'd been alone ever since. We divorced amicably, doing our best to remain friends for the sake of Lily, and we split custody equally. She moved to the Upper East Side of Manhattan and began a relationship with Laurent, a wealthy producer she met while working on an off-Broadway show. They moved in together and are planning a fall wedding. I liked Laurent, and recognized immediately that he was exactly the kind of man Tanya had hoped I'd become. I felt like I'd been kicked in the gut at first, but it helped me to see that Tanya and I never really belonged together in the first place.

Because of my crazy teaching schedule, it was decided that Lily would stay with me three nights a week and the rest with Tanya and Laurent. Well, with the live-in nanny they employed, truth be told. It killed me to know that my daughter was practically being raised by a stranger, but I didn't have the heart to take her from her mother permanently. Lily adored Tanya, and though their time together grew shorter and shorter each day, I wouldn't fight to pull our daughter away from her mother unless it got too out of hand. Until I could find a way to balance my work and home time, I knew I would just have to grin and bear it.

Of course, my family had a whole lot to say about the matter, stating that I should hire a nanny for Lily to take care of her while I worked, but that was not the way I wanted to raise my daughter. It was bad enough she lived that way four nights a week. I wanted to be a hands-on father, not someone who left the raising of my child to someone on my payroll.

My mother suggested I quit my job and take care of Lily full-time, knowing all to well that I wasn't really working for the paltry professor's salary I received. I'd considered it briefly, but I wanted my daughter to understand the value and satisfaction of a good day's work when she got older. I needed to be a father she could be proud of rather than someone who lived off a hefty trust fund and investments.

It was surprising to me that my brother, Emmett, was the one who thought of the idea to look for someone to share my apartment with me. He reasoned that it might be nice to have another person around to keep me company. The idea intrigued me, but I was obviously concerned about bringing a stranger into Lily's life. However, with my family's resources, I could always have them thoroughly checked out before agreeing to let anyone move in. After kicking the idea around for a few weeks, I decided to take a chance and placed an ad on Craigslist offering up my spare bedroom for rent.

In the days that followed, I showed the apartment to a parade of women I'd never choose to associate with, let alone expose my Lily to. I left to visit my parents for the Christmas holiday having pretty much lost all hope of finding someone. While in Chicago, I decided to give it one last chance and began looking through the "Housing Wanted" section to see if there was anyone that might fit in with what I was searching for.

I was excited when I read the ad that turned out to be Bella's. It was straightforward and honest, and she seemed to be looking for exactly the same thing I was. I sent her an email, fully apprising her of my situation and hoped to receive a response.

My prayers were answered in the form of an eloquent and funny email which truthfully charmed me more than I should admit since it came from a total stranger. When she joked about not being above buying the love and devotion of her niece, I actually laughed out loud, having been in that situation myself with my daughter many times. I was also thrilled to learn that she was a fellow Chicagoan, knowing that there was serious potential for us to have a lot in common. The fact that she wasn't averse to sharing a space with a man who had a child was what really sealed the deal for me, though.

I almost didn't bother to have Jenks investigate her before scheduling an appointment with her to view the apartment, but it would have been irresponsible of me not to. I provided him with her name and email address, which was plenty enough information for someone as good as Jenks to start with. It's amazing what kind of things you can learn about someone when you've got enough money to buy it. Jenks's service may have cost a lot, but he was the best at what he did and was known for his discretion.

Within hours he had come back with several details about her that pleased me to no end. She grew up in a suburb on the south side of Chicago, where her mother and father still lived. Her mom is an elementary school teacher and her father recently retired as the chief of police of the small town she was from. She had no criminal record...not even a parking ticket, and I suppose that was due in no small part to the fact that her father had been a cop.

Her credit report came back clean, as well as her employment history. The only real piece of the puzzle missing was where she lived the past three years. Her last known address was on the Upper West Side, but her name wasn't on the property. Rather, it seemed she lived there with a man named Mike Newton, who apparently owned the apartment she lived in. I found myself wondering how she went from living in such an expensive neighborhood to staying in Queens in such a short period of time.

I began to feel like a scumbag for digging through her personal life, but I reasoned with myself that I was doing it all for Lily's safety. I couldn't imagine how anyone would fault me for that. However, if Bella did end up moving in, I would eventually have to come clean about it, and I hoped she would understand why I did what I did.

I also Googled her, feeling like a cyber-stalker and a jackass, but she intrigued me and I wanted to see if there were any photographs of her on the web. I found several of her at various events that I assumed were related to her work, and I was stunned by just how truly beautiful she was. I clicked through picture after picture of this lovely woman, completely taken with her long dark hair and bright smile. But it was her eyes that captivated me most. There was an innate kindness in them that was palpable.

There was a large part of me that worried I wouldn't be able to contain my intense attraction to her. However, logic prevailed in the end. From her emails, I could tell she was desperate to get out of the situation she was in, and I wanted to be the one to help her do it. Any feelings I might have formed for her were nowhere near as important as getting her in to a better place in her life. So, I pushed my personal feelings for her aside and asked her to see the apartment the Tuesday after I returned from Chicago.

When I got back to Brooklyn on Monday, I picked Jake up from the boarding house and then made my way home to clean the apartment. I scrubbed and dusted like a madman because I so badly wanted her to like it, doing anything I could to increase the odds of her moving in. I barely slept that night knowing that the following morning, I'd finally meet the woman who had nearly captivated my every thought.

I woke up absurdly early the next day, completely exhausted from tossing and turning most of the previous night. I showered and shaved, spending just a little more time on it than I usually would, wanting to look my best for Bella. I tried to tame my crazy, jacked-up hair, but as usual, I failed completely before giving up and getting dressed.

I took Jake for his morning walk – or I should say, he took me – and then grabbed a cup of coffee and a newspaper before heading back home. I still had three hours to wait before Bella would arrive, and I paced the floor nervously as Jake looked at me as if I were totally insane.

I tried to play the piano to calm my nerves, but that didn't help either. I realized then I was really in trouble. If my music couldn't calm me down, nothing would. I found myself cursing at the air and wondering how a woman I'd never met could have such a profound affect on me.

By the time eleven o'clock came around, I was a nervous wreck. When the doorbell rang, I nearly had a full-blown panic attack, but before I could succumb to it, Jake had taken off towards the door, leaving the typical trail of destruction in his wake. He managed to knock the coat rack over in his haste to attack the door, and I cursed at him, hoping Bella hadn't heard me on the other side. I grabbed Jake by the collar so he wouldn't jump all over her and opened the door.

My breath left my body with an audible whoosh when I first laid eyes on Bella. None of the pictures I saw did her justice. She was even more extraordinary in the flesh, and it took every ounce of strength I had in me to compose myself. In all my life, I had never seen a woman more beautiful than Isabella Swan.

We said hello, and when I shook her hand, the warmth that spread through my body momentarily stunned me. I shook it off and attempted a smile so she wouldn't think I was completely out of my mind.

When she walked through the door, Jake immediately stuck his nose in her crotch, and I was equal parts pissed at his abominable behavior and jealous of the furry bastard for getting so close to her. I apologized profusely and she graciously accepted before reminding me that I hadn't told her about him. I felt like a total jerk for forgetting something as important as having a large, ill-mannered animal in the house, but I hoped like hell that it wouldn't deter her from wanting to move in. I was relieved by her reaction to him, and when she let out an adorable giggle, I relaxed almost instantly.

As I showed her around the apartment, I couldn't help but study her face. There was a sadness behind her eyes that told me she had gone through something difficult, and I couldn't help but think that it was the reason she was now standing in my home. I hoped that when the time was right, she'd want to tell me about it.

We entered the kitchen and watched carefully as she took it all in. I sincerely wanted her to like it, and found myself wanting her approval tremendously. When she told me she'd love to cook in my kitchen, it thrilled me to the core. I wanted her to feel comfortable, and her smile gave me hope that she would.

I was so wrapped up in images of her baking cookies that she surprised me when she asked me where the bedroom was. Being a red-blooded male who hadn't felt the touch of a woman besides his mother in years, my mind immediately went straight into the gutter...the very last place it should have been. I struggled to shake myself out of my lust-filled fog and mumbled something about the room being the reason she was here in the first place.

Once I recovered sufficiently, I told her about the bathroom and my willingness to rearrange things for her if she needed more space for her toiletries, and she responded by saying that she didn't need much. Before I knew what I was saying, the words "No, I can't imagine you do," slipped out, complimenting her on her obvious natural beauty.

I watched as a blush rose over her neck and face all the way to the tips of her ears, and in all my life, I had never seen anything more endearing. We looked at each other then and for a moment I thought that maybe, just maybe, she might have been as attracted to me as I was to her. My heart skipped a beat at that thought, but then nearly stopped when I asked her what her verdict was and she asked for more time to make up her mind.

I could feel the smile on my face fall, and she must have noticed it, because she rushed to reassure me that she only wanted to review her budget and be certain she could afford it. Of course I immediately told her I would drop the price, knowing full well that I would let her live here for free if only she asked. I was already far too taken with her. I knew I was behaving irresponsibly by allowing myself to live with someone I was so attracted to, but I couldn't help myself. I wanted to know her.

When she accepted, I nearly jumped out of my skin. I could barely contain my excitement, and I'm sure I looked like a kid on Christmas morning. I waived off her offer of references, and told her I trusted her, which I truly did. I also added in the fact that she could move in as soon as she needed to. I didn't want to wait another day for her to live here, let alone an entire month.

It was also important to me to let her know that I wanted her to feel that the apartment would be her home as well, instead of just moving in to a room in "my house." I told her there wasn't anything I wouldn't share with her, and I meant it.

We chatted for a few more minutes about Lily, move in dates and logistics before she pulled out her wallet and wrote me a check for the deposit. Of course, I had no intention of depositing it, but she didn't need to know that right away. She handed the check to me and a beautiful smile graced her lips.

"Thank you again for everything, Edward. I'm honestly totally excited about living here. I really think this situation will be good for me."

"No, thank you," I replied. "I think it will be good for me, too."

She looked at her watch and jumped up from the chair she was sitting in. "Oh my god! I can't believe I've been here this long. I'm sorry, but I need to get to work."

"No problem," I said in response. "But before you go, may I ask you a question?"

"Of course. You can ask me anything," she said softly.

"I have Lily with me tonight," I began nervously. "Would you like to join us for an early dinner? I think it would be good for all of us to get to know each other a bit. What do you say?"

She looked a bit shell-shocked at first, and I momentarily thought I might have pushed it a bit too fast, but she recovered quickly and smiled at me.

"I think that would be a great idea. I'll get out of work around six. Would that work for you?"

I sighed, grateful that she accepted. "Six is perfect. How does City Crab sound to you? It's right around the corner from Gramercy Park, and Lily can't get enough of the crab legs."

"You've got yourselves a date," she replied with a grin. "I'll meet you there."

I walked her to the front door and said goodbye, watching her walk away until I could no longer see her. I closed the door and flopped down on the couch, replaying the events of the morning in my mind.

She was everything I hoped she'd be, and yet so much more. I was surprised at the intensity of my attraction towards her, and though I knew it could be potentially disastrous to harbor feelings for a roommate, I couldn't stop myself. Of course, I wouldn't push it, but the more I thought about it, I couldn't find the harm in slowly planting a few seeds and waiting to see if they grew.

There was something special about Bella. Of course I felt it when I touched her, but it went deeper than that. She was kind, gentle, smart and funny, and the sadness that I sensed in her made me feel like I wanted to protect her and take away whatever pain she was suffering from. The only other person in the world I felt that strongly for was my daughter, and that was something not to be taken lightly. I didn't know exactly what that meant yet, but I was looking forward to finding out.

I was thrilled that she accepted my invitation to dinner. I had absolutely no doubt in my mind that my daughter would adore her and I prayed that Bella would feel the same about Lily.

For the first time in twenty-four hours, I began to relax. I kicked my feet up and placed a pillow behind my head. As I drifted off to sleep, one thought repeated itself over and over in my head and I smiled.

Masen, she could be so very good for you.