A/N: Wow! I'm totally blown away by the response to the first chapter! I can't thank you all enough. I'm going to attempt to update every Wed or Thurs, but as we know, sometimes life gets in the way.

More Than Life

"Damn it, Bella! I've re-written this chapter fourteen fucking times! What more do you want from me?" I roared into the phone.

"I want you to send me something that isn't shit! This last chapter is garbage, Edward! Fix it and get it back to me by the end of the week!" she snarled before hanging up on me.

I glared at my phone before throwing it on my desk. I was in a foul mood and the last thing I needed was Bella's crap. I should've been in a good mood. My divorce from Tanya had been finalized a few days prior, a buyer for the house had been found, and I had moved into my new home. But I wasn't in a good mood. Why? Because I had fucking writer's block. I was on the last chapter of my novel and everything I wrote was shit.

I flung myself down on the cot that I had set up in the office of my new house. Groaning, I ran my hands over my face. Maybe I needed a break for a while. I'd been holed up in my office for two weeks, churning out page after page. Two weeks of writing, cursing, hair-tearing, drinking, and smoking. Taking a whiff of myself, I realized I smelled like a bar and probably looked like I'd been living in one.

Getting up, I headed toward the unfinished bathroom for a shower and a shave. When I emerged from the bathroom, I felt a bit more human. I walked back into my office, grabbed my phone, and headed downstairs. The kitchen was still being finished, as was the downstairs bathroom, and I'd discovered that I didn't mind working alongside the noise of hammers and saws. It was almost soothing.

Glancing at my phone, I noticed a missed call.

"Edward, dear. How are you?" my mom's sweet voice asked.

"Struggling with the last chapter," I told her.

"You need to take a break. Come have dinner at the house."

Like I could turn down a home-cooked meal? I told her I'd be there in a few.

I walked into my parents' house and found Charlie, Emmett, and his wife, Rosalie, there as well. After giving Rose a hug and Emmett a fist bump, we all sat down for dinner.

"How are things with your new editor going?" Dad asked while we were eating.

"Pretty good. She's tough, though. Won't let me get away with stuff that Marcus did."

"Good for her. She's got to be tough to keep you in line," Dad said with a smirk.

I rolled my eyes at him. The man thought he was funny, but he wasn't.

"Is she hot?" Emmett asked, ducking when Rose attempted to smack him.

"No idea."

"What's her name?"

I hesitated for a moment before saying, "Bella Swan."

Charlie's fork dropped from his hand and clattered against his plate. Emmett's eyes widened and his mouth formed an "O."

"Be—Bella? Isabella Swan?" Charlie asked.

I nodded, watching him carefully.

"Excuse me a minute," he said before he rushed out of the dining room.

I looked at Emmett and he appeared in shock.

"Em?" I asked cautiously.

He shook his head. "I need a moment."

I looked toward my parents for guidance, but they seemed just as shocked.

Finally, Emmett began to speak. "We haven't seen Bella in thirteen years. We used to meet up with her on holidays, but around the time she turned ten, she stopped visiting with us. I'm positive that Renee, our mother, had a hand in that."

I didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry, Em. I didn't know."

He waved my apology off. "Like you said, you didn't know. How does she sound?"

I opened my mouth to answer when Charlie walked back in. He didn't look good, but he told us he was fine, just shocked.

"She sounds good," I told them. "She's in New York and just graduated from college last year. According to Marcus, Bella was an intern with his office for a year and they hired her once she graduated. Then when he retired, he recommended that Bella be his replacement."

"That's good," Charlie said softly.

"Small world," I heard my mom murmur to my dad. Dad nodded before getting up to pour Charlie and Emmett a drink.

"Does she know that you live in Forks?" Charlie asked me after taking the tumbler of bourbon from my dad.

"I'm not sure. My bio just says that I live in Washington State. We don't tend to talk about personal things-mainly just my writing."

Charlie nodded sadly. It was almost as if he'd aged twenty years in the past half hour. And Emmett-the light had gone out of his eyes. He seemed just as sad and as lost as Charlie.

Dinner ended not much later, and I felt horrible as I watched them leave. I had a feeling that I'd just ruined their lives.

"Fuck," I muttered. Dad came up behind me and squeezed my shoulder. I turned to look at him.

"What do I do now?"

"Nothing," he said, a sad look on his face.

I scowled. "What do you mean nothing? Don't Charlie and Emmett deserve to know why she stopped seeing them?"

"Edward," Dad began with a sigh. "Whatever happened between them is their business. If Bella wanted to talk to Charlie or Emmett, she would. Leave it alone."

But I couldn't. I couldn't leave it alone. I'd known Charlie and Emmett most of my life, and it killed me to see them so upset. I wanted nothing more than to call Bella and demand to know why she had abandoned her father and brother. My phone was in my hand and my thumb hovered over the call button before I even realized it.

Sanity reared its head at the last minute, and I quickly locked my phone and shoved it in my pocket. Dad was right; it wasn't my business, but I was determined to find the answers one way or another.

The doorbell ringing broke through the bubble of silence I was in. Scowling, I shoved my chair back and headed down the hallway. I threw open the door and found Tanya standing on my porch.

I crossed my arms over my chest and glared at her. "What the fuck do you want?"

Tears shimmered in her eyes as her lower lip wobbled. "I miss you, Eddie!"

"Don't. Just don't. We're divorced, Tanya. Get the fuck over it. I have nothing to say to you that hasn't already been said. Come here again and I'll have you arrested," I told her, slamming the door in her face and locking it.

I was fucking pissed that the bitch had the nerve to show up at my new house and whine about how much she missed me. Yeah, right. She only missed my money.

"Eddie!" I heard her call out as I stomped my way back down the hallway. Refusing to acknowledge her again, I slammed my office door shut and threw myself back down on my chair.

"God fucking damn it! Stupid fucking bitch," I muttered as I stared at the blank document in front of me.

I was supposed to have the final chapter of my novel turned in to Bella by tomorrow, and I'd yet to write a fucking word that wasn't garbage. I hadn't been lying when I'd told her that I'd written in fourteen times. I was now starting on the sixteenth attempt, and it wasn't going so well. It shouldn't have been that hard. I typed the words "The End" onto the page and thought about just sending that to her.

Six pots of coffee, three packs of cigarettes, and half a bottle of whiskey later, I was done. I sat back in my chair and read over what I'd written. It was pretty fucking good. Not my best but certainly not my worst. I glanced over at the clock and saw that I had managed to finish with fifteen minutes to spare. Saving and copying the file, I attached it to an email and sent it off to Bella.

I had no doubt that she'd call me tomorrow and bitch about it, but at the moment, I couldn't care less. As I stood up and stretched, I realized that I was starving. The contractor had finally finished the kitchen so I made my way to the fridge. Opening it up, I stared into the vast emptiness. Fuck. There was nothing but a rotting orange inside. Slamming the door shut, I decided that a burger and a beer were in order. Taking my phone out of my pocket, I gave Jasper a call.

"Hey, Jas. Want to grab a burger and a beer at Dooley's?"

He let out a sigh. "Oh, man. I'd kill for a burger from Dooley's, but I can't. Alice is cooking."

I couldn't contain the bark of laughter that emerged. My sister was known for creating interesting dishes which usually didn't turn out so well.

"Have some sympathy, man. She's got some weird concoction in the oven. An okra casserole or something," he said, gagging slightly.

"Enjoy. I'll think of you while I'm scarfing down a double bacon cheeseburger, chased by a cold beer."

"Bastard."

I hung up, laughing. Poor fool. Grabbing my keys, I opened the door and walked out onto my porch. And then I stopped. What the fuck? Slowly, I walked down the steps and toward my car. My eyes narrowed as I took in the long scratches across the silver paint. They went from one end to the other. I let out a growl. There was no doubt in my mind that Tanya had done it.

Quickly, I called Charlie.

"Hey, Edward. What can I do for you, son?"

"You can have my ex-wife arrested for damage to personal property."

"What did she do?"

"She fucking keyed my car," I said, almost whimpering.

"Oh, hell. I'll be right over," Charlie said. He knew how much I loved my car.

Twenty minutes later, he pulled into my drive and got out. He looked tired and there was a sadness in his eyes that hadn't been there before I'd mentioned Bella's name.

He let out a low whistle when he saw the damage to the Volvo. "Jesus, Edward. You picked a real winner of an ex-wife."

I rubbed a hand over my face. "Tell me about it. She showed up yesterday, whining about how much she missed me. I slammed the door shut in her face."

Charlie shook his head. "Just be glad the two of you didn't have kids. It makes it that much worse. When Renee and I divorced, she took the kids to live with her in Phoenix. I was furious, but the judge agreed with her when she told him my job was too dangerous as a cop, and he granted her full custody."

I frowned, slightly confused. "But Emmett lived with you."

"Not until he was six. He came for a visit and didn't want to go back to Phoenix. It took a lot of arguing, but Renee finally agreed."

"What about Bella?" I asked as Charlie began to take some pictures of my car.

"Bella didn't like Forks, so I would always meet her somewhere else. California, Florida, or wherever. Around the time she turned ten, she wanted nothing to do with me. I have no doubt that Renee was behind it. Eventually, she stopped returning my calls, and I stopped trying."

"I'm sorry, Charlie."

He gave a shrug. "That's life, I guess. All right, Ed. I'll write up a complaint about the damage done to your car. I doubt we'll be able to prove that Tanya did it, but we'll certainly try. Don't forget to call your insurance and let them know."

I thanked him for coming out, then climbed in my car and headed to Dooley's bar. I desperately needed that beer.

I pulled into the parking lot and managed to find a spot near the door, which was a miracle in itself. Dooley's was always crowded, no matter what night of the week it was. The place had the best burgers I'd ever eaten, and everyone within fifty miles seemed to agree.

I made my way inside and found a small table at the back.

"Hey, Edward. What can I get you?" Asked Jonie, the cute blond waitress asked as she leaned against the table, giving me a view of her ample chest.

I flashed her a grin and watched as her eyes darkened. She flirted with me every time I came in, but I'd never flirted back. Unlike some people, I'd taken my marriage vows seriously.

"My usual," I told her.

"Anything else?" she purred, eyeing my ringless hand.

It was tempting. I hadn't gotten laid in forever, and Jonie was easy on the eyes.

"Nah, I'm good. Thanks."

"Sure," she said with a resigned sigh.

"Man, I'd have tapped that ass," said an unfamiliar voice on my right.

I looked over and saw a man with blond hair tied back in a ponytail.

"James Hunter," he said, holding out a hand.

"Edward," I replied, shaking it and quickly letting go.

If he noticed that I didn't give my last name, he didn't let on. I didn't have anything to say to him, so I fiddled with a napkin on the table.

"What's good here?" he asked.

I told him the burgers were fuck-awesome.

"Nice. Hey, sweetheart," he sneered to Jonie as she dropped off my beer, "I'll have a cheeseburger."

"Sure thing," Jonie said, rolling her eyes as she walked off.

The guy was irritating. He spent the next twenty minutes asking me question after question about myself and Forks. Something about him bothered me, so I kept my answers clipped. No need to give the guy a ton of info.

"Hey, babe!" he shouted to someone, and I watched as a tall redhead made her way over. She was generically pretty, but she reminded me a little too much of Tanya.

"Babe, this is Edward Cullen. Edward, my wife, Victoria."

I gave her a nod as it hit me that he had used my last name. The last name I hadn't given him. My eyes narrowed. It could be he was a fan, but I doubted it.

"Nice to meet you, Eddie," she said in a pathetic attempt at a seductive purr.

"It's Edward," I told her coldly.

The way she said Eddie was eerily familiar to the way Tanya had said it. Taking another glance at her, I realized that she looked sort of like Tanya, and that sent chills up my spine. Excusing myself, I went to the bar and paid my tab.

As I drove home, I racked my brain trying to remember if Tanya had a sister. I was positive she didn't have one, but that woman, Victoria, looked so much like Tanya. They had to be related.

Saturday afternoon, I was awoken by the sound of my phone ringing. I grabbed it and barked out a hello.

"Good afternoon to you, too," Bella's voice said.

Rolling onto my back, I scrubbed a hand over my face.

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered, feeling a bit of anger at her rolling toward the surface.

"I was calling to let you know that I got your email," she began as I interrupted her.

"Well seeing as how it didn't bounce back to me, I assumed you did," I snapped.

"What the hell is your problem, Cullen?"

"Nothing. Just—nothing."

"Well whatever is, get the hell over it. I was calling to tell you that I really liked the chapter. It was a great ending. Of course, there are some minor issues. You'll be getting the revisions soon. I want the them done and back to me by Monday."

"Monday? Are you fucking kidding me? Jesus, woman! Can't I have a fucking day off?"

"Originally, I was going to give you until the end of the week, but you pissed me off," she replied before hanging up on me.

Scowling, I tossed my phone back on the side table. Fucking bitch.

I rolled out of bed around three and made my way to my office. I brought up my email and found the email from Bella with the proposed changes. Angrily, I opened it and looked through the changes that she wanted made. As much as it galled me, she was right. The changes she suggested were brilliant. Not that I was going to let her know that.

Knowing that I wouldn't be able to get anything else done until I finished the revisions, I dove into them. Surprisingly, it didn't take as long as I thought and I was done by ten. I sent them off to her with a quick apology. My anger toward her had abated as the day wore on, and I realized that I'd been a total ass.

Moments after I'd sent the email, my phone rang. Glancing at it, I saw that Bella was calling.

"Hey," I said wearily.

"Hey. Thanks for getting that done so quickly. I'll print it off first thing Monday morning, and we'll get it ready to go."

"Okay. Look, Bella, I'm sorry. I was out of line today and had no right to be such an ass."

"You were out of line. What is going on with you? Marcus raved about you from the minute I met him. He was always telling me how you weren't just a talented writer, but a nice guy as well. But I've yet to really see this nice guy side of you."

She was right. I hadn't really been nice to her. My mom would be ashamed of me.

"You're right. have tons of excuses if you'd like to hear them."

"Such as?"

I smiled as I sat back in my chair. "First, I was pissed at Marcus for retiring. I knew he needed to for his health, but I was furious that he was sticking me with a newbie. Secondly, I was dealing with a divorce and the ex-wife from hell."

"But you're divorced now, right?" she asked, her voice warm in my ear.

"Yeah, but that hasn't stopped the crazy bitch from coming around and harassing me. She fucking keyed my car yesterday! My beautiful baby is all scratched up. It's gonna cost me a pretty penny to get the paint fixed."

"What a bitch," I heard Bella murmur.

"She is that. My last excuse is that a good friend of mine is hurting." I paused for a moment, unsure of how to explain it, or even if I should. Finally, I decided to just put it out there and see what happened. "See, there's this guy who's been like a second father to me, and it turns out that I know his daughter. He hasn't seen or spoken to her in a long time, and he was shocked to find out that I know her. Now, he's upset and it's my fault because I brought up in the first place."

There was quiet on the end of the phone for a long time before she finally spoke. "I'm sorry that you've been having a rough time of it, but there was no reason to take it out on me."

"I know, and I'm truly sorry for that," I replied, noticing that she didn't even touch on the last excuse that I'd brought up. "You seem like a reasonable person, Bella. So let me ask you something."

"Okay," she said, sounding a bit weary.

"It goes back to my friend and his daughter. Would you let her know that you know her father or would you leave it alone?"

"I'd leave it alone. They obviously have reasons why they aren't talking," she said in a tense voice.

"But what if he doesn't know what went wrong? Don't you think he would deserve to know why she doesn't want to see or talk to him?" I pressed.

"I think it's none of your business," she snapped. "Leave things alone, Edward."

"But-"

"Leave. It. Alone. Do you think I'm stupid? That I wouldn't know you were talking about me and Charlie? I know you live in Forks. I'm not an idiot; I've done my homework. It's none of your fucking business what happened between me and Charlie, so back off!"

Well, fuck. That hadn't gone well. So much for trying to be subtle about it.

"He's my friend, Bella. Emmett, too. They were devastated to learn that you were my editor. They didn't even know what you do for a living!"

I heard her take a deep breath on the other end. "I will tell you one last time, Edward. Leave it alone, or you can find yourself a new editor."

"Fine," I said, backing off. "I won't bring it up again." At least, not for a while.

"Good. I'll contact you in a few weeks to let you know about your book tour schedule."

She hung up, and I sat there looking at my phone, feeling like even more of an ass. Dad was right. I should've left it alone. Not only were Charlie and Emmett sad and upset, but I'd gone and pissed Bella off again. Sighing, I ran my fingers through my hair. It looked like I owed her yet another apology.

Turning off my computer, I got up and headed to the living room to watch some TV. Sadly, there was nothing to watch on a Saturday night, and I quickly gave up. It was a little after eleven and the night was still young, so I figured I'd hit up the bar.

There were several bars in Forks, but Dooley's truly was the best place. There had a pool room in the back, and I found myself in the mood for a good game of pool. I was greeted by Jonie as I walked in the door.

"Just couldn't stay away, could you?" she asked me with a wink.

I just shook my head at her and made my way to the bar. After ordering a beer, I headed to the back room and found several guys from the local reservation hanging out.

"Ed! How goes it?" Jacob Black hollered to me over the music of Bad Company.

"Not too bad, man. You?" I asked as we gave each other a fist bump.

"I'm all right. Got engaged a couple of days ago."

"No shit? Congrats, man. How is the lovely Leah?"

"Hot as sin. And pregnant."

My jaw dropped. In all the years I'd known Jacob and Leah, that was the last thing I expected to hear. Leah wasn't exactly the maternal type.

"Holy shit, Black! I take it that's a good thing, by the grin on your face?"

"Yeah, it really is. Leah was scared shitless at first, but now it's all good. We're pretty happy about it, and Dad's over the fucking moon."

I let out a laugh. I'd bet he was. Billy Black had been bitching for years that by the time his kids made him a grandfather, he'd be too old to have fun with them.

"Well, I'm happy for you guys. Tell Leah I said 'congrats'."

"Will do. You up for a game?" he asked, making his way over to the open table.

"Hell yes."

The next few hours were spent getting my ass handed to me on the pool table. It wasn't that I was bad, more like I was shitfaced. By closing time, I was as drunk as a motherfucking skunk. Although, I wasn't sure what that meant, because honestly, did skunks get drunk?

"I don't think they do, Ed, but I could be wrong," Jacob answered.

I nodded. "Could be. I wonder what they would get drunk on?"

Jacob shook with laughter. "I don't know, man. Want me to call someone to come get you?"

"I can do it myself. I got fingers. They can push buttons on a phone."

"All right, then. I gotta head home or Leah will kick my ass. Come down to the rez sometime soon. We miss seeing your ugly face out there."

I told him I'd see him soon and watched as he stopped to talk to the bartender before leaving. Staring at my phone, I eventually managed to get the stupid lock to slide over. I didn't remember it being that difficult before. I scrolled up and down my contact list, fascinated by how fast it could slide before I realized I was supposed to be calling someone for a ride home.

I found the number I wanted and pushed the little green call button.

"Hello?" answered a soft, sexy, feminine voice.

a/n: Thanks so much for reading! Let me know what you thought!