Chapter 3: Cheater, Cheater

A/N: So, here is chapter three. I really hope that y'all liked the last chapter. Let's see what those two are up to now, shall we? …Jacob gets in trouble in this chapter. Yay! Also, I just thought I would start putting the starting date of each chapter- so this one would be December 2!

'Cause when a woman's not watching
A man knows he can get away with murder
Thinkin' what she don't know won't hurt her
But he wouldn't deserve her
If temptation comes and he just can't resist
If every time she turns her back he steals a kiss
You'll see the man he is
When a woman's not watching

-When a Woman's Not Watching by: James Otto

. . . December 2 . . .

When Monday morning came, Edward woke up bright and early. After getting dressed, he walked down the stairs and made both him and Bella breakfast. Bella came downstairs a few minutes after Edward finished. She was fully dressed for her new job at the museum.

"I feel like I'm going to a funeral." Bella grumbled and grabbed the plate Edward was eating from.

"What the hell?" He complained.

"What's yours is mine." She smiled brightly and then walked towards the living room to watch the news.

Edward rolled his eyes and made himself another plate. He had a lunch meeting today, and it was being held at a restaurant where the owner likes people to pay out of their asses for only three grains of rice and grilled chicken the size of a quarter. He planned on eating a huge breakfast to hold him throughout the day.

He grabbed his briefcase and walked outside, making his way to his car. He sighed when he turned on the radio and there was Christmas music. He hated Christmas music. He wasn't a Scrooge by any means, but he just could tolerate the music that went along with the Christmas season. Edward flipped the station onto the rock music he liked and pulled out of the driveway.

The first half of his day drug on and he thought he would literally die of boredom. When eleven 'o clock finally rolled around, he quickly left his office. Edward made it to the restaurant in nearly twenty minutes, and he walked in right on time.

The hostess told him that it would be about a five minute wait, so he patiently waited near the podium at the front of the restaurant. As he was turning, something caught the corner of his eye. He turned and saw red. And only red.

There was Jacob, with another woman. The two of them were acting anything but professional. Their heads were tucked in close to one another and were softly giggling. Suddenly, Jacob rose and the girl with him followed as he walked to the door.

Fear flickered across Jacob's face when he saw the snare on Edward's face. Hook, line, and sinker. Edward thought and smirked at how scared Jacob looked. I'm nothing compared to wrath of Emmett or even Bella.

Jacob made it point to stop next to Edward and introduce his friend, knowing that if he didn't, Edward would run to Bella the moment he walked out.

"Edward."

"Jacob. Who's your lovely date?" Edward said and smiled gleamingly at the girl standing next to Jacob. She giggled.

Jacob glared. "It's not a date. It's business. This is my marketing representative, Vanessa."

"It's nice to meet you, Vanessa. I'm sure you and Bella must be the best of friends."

"Bella?" Vanessa asked and looked at Jacob.

Edward smirked and saw the hostess give a sign that the table was ready. "Have a nice day, Jacob." He said as he walked away to meet his business partner.

. . .

Bella walked into the museum, still thinking about the arrangement between Edward and her. She sighed. Edward was her best friend, and Bella knew that at the bottom of her heart, the end of that "marriage" would be the end of their friendship. The thought broke Bella's heart.

"Good morning." Her boss, the head curator, greeted her as she walked into her office and sat her vanilla latte on the desk.

"Mornin', Chelsea."

Bella loved her boss almost as much as her job. Chelsea Jenks was one of sweetest girls that Bella met. She was only twenty-seven, but she had made a huge name for herself in the art world. Every museum wanted her because of her drive and great bargaining skills, but she wanted to stay in Houston. It was her home.

Bella began to walk out of the room, but Chelsea stopped her. "What's wrong?"

"What do you mean what's wrong?"

Chelsea rolled her eyes. "I mean what I'm sayin'. Sit down and explain. I haven't got a meeting 'til noon. That gives us plenty of time."

Bella sighed and sat down at the chair that was in front of Chelsea's desk. And then Bella told her everything, beginning with her freshman year of college when she first moved in with Edward. She told Chelsea about how Edward was one of her closest friends and then about how she met Jacob. She then told her about the so-called marriage she was involved in. Chelsea listened intently and nodded every once in a while.

"I wish I had your life." Chelsea said longingly.

"What are you talking about?" Bella screeched. "Did you not just hear my story?"

"Yes, and I'm jealous. Don't get me wrong, Bella, but I got married when I was nineteen. Ten months later, I was pregnant with triplets. I never got to see the dating scene or have men fight over me. You're the luckiest girl in the world. You have not one, but two men trying to woo you... Trying to win your heart."

"What if I don't want to give my heart away? I mean—what happens if I fall in love with the wrong one?" Bella asked.

Chelsea gaped at Bella. "How do you fall in love with the wrong person, Bella? Honey, your heart knows. Sometimes, your heart knows more than your head. So, why don't you take this husband of yours to the gala tomorrow night?"

"Why don't I take Jacob?" Bella gritted.

"Because Jacob wasn't the man who took you in when you were fresh outta high school. You owe Edward this, Bella. Something is telling me that you don't want to go out with him because you're afraid that you're going to fall in love him."

"I'm marrying Jacob." Bella whispered.

"If you're so sure you love him, then you have nothing to worry about. I'm sure you and Edward have gone to museum together before. Friends do that sort of thing." Chelsea said softly. "But, only you know your heart. Don't do something that you'll regret later. Let the chips fall, Bella. It'll all work itself out in the end… Now, get to work. We have a gala that we still have to prepare for."

And just like that, the conversation was over.

Bella forced herself to forget about everything besides Picasso and Michelangelo and Da Vinci. The only thing that mattered was the art. She walked through the museum and passed by a statue that vaguely resembled David. She involuntarily sighed as she thought of the original statue's perfection. Jacob was like the knock off that she was looking at. It was still beautiful, but it just wasn't as fulfilling as seeing the real thing. Edward—Edward was David.

Stop it, Bella. Jacob is perfect. He's perfect for you. He's going to be your husband for goodness sake. Bella chided herself, shook her head, and walked right past the statue.

She was elbow deep in the filing cabinets when the phone on her desk started to ring. Bella groaned and slammed the drawer shut before going to answer the phone with the standard greeting.

"Hey, Bells, it's Jake."

She smiled. "Hey. Is something wrong? Why are you calling me on my office phone?"

"No, nothing's wrong. You just wouldn't pick up your cell." Jacob said, and Bella could hear the hint of annoyance in his voice.

"I'm sorry, hon. What are you calling about?" Bella asked as she looked at her cell and saw that Jacob had indeed called her twice and texted five times.

"I was calling to let you know that I have a business trip to take tomorrow. I'm leaving around lunch, and I won't be back until Sunday evening."

"Oh." That ruined her entire day.

"Is something wrong?" He asked.

"No… I just had this thing… Never mind, it's not that important. Have fun at those meetings." Bella joked softly.

She could practically hear Jacob roll his eyes on the other end of the line. "That's not likely. I'll see you Sunday, gorgeous. Love you. Bye." He hung up before Bella could even respond.

The rest of the day seemed to drag on. When five o'clock finally made its way around, Bella could not leave soon enough. She just wanted to go home and watch the sappy Christmas movies that had been playing on Hallmark since Thanksgiving. A small smile graced Bella's lips. Twenty-three more days until Christmas.

When she finally got home after waiting forty-five minutes in traffic, Edward's car was already there. As she walked into the house, she smelt hot chocolate and baked bread. That was her favorite thing to eat on cold nights like that one. She walked into the kitchen and saw Edward standing there in his slacks and his work shirt half-way unbuttoned and sleeves rolled up. She could see that tattoo he had of the Cullen crest on his forearm.

Suddenly, he looked up with a smile. "How was work?"

Bella shrugged and sat down at the peninsula, resting her head on her arms.

"Wanna talk about it?"

"There's nothing really to talk about… Um, I was wondering; we have this gala thing tomorrow night at the museum. I would like you to come. It's black tie. I know how much you hate wearing suits, so I understand if you don't want to go." Bella said softly.

Edward rolled his eyes. "Of course I'll go, Bella. Thank you for asking."

Bella smiled softly.

Edward turned and finished cooking dinner as Bella continued working on the finishing touches of the gala. She had been in charge of editing Chelsea's thank you letters since her boss's knowledge in grammar was lacking.

Once Edward was finished with dinner, he set the plates on the table in the dining room.

"Bell." He called softly.

"Kay." Bella answered, but continued to type.

"Bella." He called her again about two minutes later. He walked into the kitchen again to see her still typing. He smiled at how cute she looked with her thin, black rimmed glasses perched on her nose. He walked around to the other side of the peninsula and shut her laptop.

"What the hell? I was working."

"Twenty bucks says that you haven't eaten since breakfast. You need to eat supper." He scolded and proceeded to pick her up by her waist. He brought her into the dining room and sat her in a chair, pushing it in once she was seated properly.

Bella glared at him as he sat across from her, but still took off her glasses to eat.

"So do I have to wear a tux to this thing tomorrow?" Edward asked innocently as he took a bite of the grilled chicken he had cooked.

Bella shook her head. "Slacks, a nice shirt, tie, and jacket."

Edward groaned. "I hate suit jackets."

Bella rolled her eyes. "It's cold. You'll need one anyway."

Once the two of them were finished eating, Bella went upstairs and into her room. She pulled out her phone and saw that she a text from Jacob that had been sent five minutes prior.

Trip got extended. Won't be back til Monday night. Sorry. Love you. –J

She didn't even bother to text him back. He wouldn't respond back to her. He was probably still at the office. She sighed and tossed her phone on her desk before going to take a shower.

The next day, Bella went into the office in a horrid mood. Jacob made a round at the museum before he left for the airport, but the visit was short. He had given her a quick kiss, whispered an I love you and an I'll miss you, and then walked right back out.

Chelsea watched the exchange and sighed. She may have gotten married extremely young, but she and her husband still had more flame than Bella and Jacob. She only glanced at their interaction for a few moments, but she had already pegged the kind of man Jacob seemed to be. She only hoped that Bella would figure it out soon enough. Based on what her employee had said, multiple people had given her multiple warnings. Why isn't she listening to them? Chelsea thought before ducking back into her office to finish up what had to be done.

By Friday, Bella was a mess of emotions. Between Edward's kindness and Jacob's short and simple phone calls, she didn't know what to do with it all. Everything was starting to go haywire, and she had no idea to even try and get control of her life again.

The museum closed at lunch time because of the gala, so Bella went home to start getting ready. She took a long shower before blow drying her hair. She had just finished when there was a knock on the front door. She went down to answer it. Once she opened the door, Rosalie walked in with a bright smile.

"Good afternoon, sunshine." She said and kissed Bella's cheek.

Emmelie, Rosalie and Emmett's five-year-old daughter, walked in behind her mother and hugged Bella's legs. "Hey, Aunt Bella." She greeted.

"Hey, my love." Bella answered and picked her up to kiss her cheek.

"You ready to get beautiful?" Rosalie asked.

Bella nodded and lead Rosalie up to her room. Twenty minutes later, Rosalie was still working on Bella's hair as Emmelie played dress up in Bella's closet. When her hair was finally done, Rosalie did airbrush make up on Bella and backed up to make sure everything was perfect. A few smidges of eyeliner and sprays of hair spray later, and Bella was finally perfect.

"Okay. I'm done." Rosalie said.

Bella turned around and looked at herself in the mirror. Her makeup was perfectly done, making her nearly glow with beauty. Her hair was pulled into a curly side pony tail. It was neat enough to be worn at a black-tie occasion, but messy enough to be trendy.

"Okay, let's get you into your dress." Rosalie said and led Bella into her bedroom.

Emmelie was sitting on the bed when they walked. "Wow. You look pretty, Aunt Bella."

"Thanks, Em."

Bella pulled her dress from the closet and Rosalie helped her into it. She put on her jewelry and her glittery, silver peep-toe heels before walking towards the mirror. The girl looking back at her was so beautiful. Bella knew that she was pretty, but she also knew that she wasn't the most gorgeous person that walked the earth. She saw herself as just a step above average, but looking at herself then, she felt like near perfection.

Her dress was midnight blue. The top had a plunging, sweetheart neckline with spaghetti straps. The silk clung to her in the all the right places before flowing out at mid-thigh. There was a slit in the front, and the back was open.

"Someone's going to break hearts tonight." Rosalie smiled and hugged Bella.

There was a knock on her bedroom door then and Bella called for whoever it was to come in. Edward walked in, looking down, trying to tie his tie. Bella laughed. He was so used to his zip up ties. She walked over and tied it within a minute.

"Tha-," Edward looked up. "Woah. You look… beautiful."

Bella blushed.

"Well, we'll just be leaving. Have fun." Rosalie sang and gave both of them a hug. Emmelie followed suit and walked downstairs, holding her mother's hand.

Bella then backed up more to see what Edward was wearing. He was in his black slacks, white button-down shirt, black tie and a black vest. He was still wearing his boots.

"You ready?" Edward asked lowly, still in awe of what Bella looked like.

Bella nodded and grabbed her coat from her bed and silver clutch before following Edward down the stairs. He grabbed his coat from one of the kitchen chairs before leading Bella to his Camaro.

Thirty minutes later, they were pulling into the museum parking lot. Edward went around and opened Bella's door. He offered her his arm. Bella took it and let him lead her to the entrance of the museum. Once they walked in, someone took Bella's coat. Every eye in the room turned towards her.

Edward could sense her discomfort and walked over to her, once again looping his arm though hers and led her down the marble stairs. Chelsea met her once she got to the bottom step. Everyone once again turned back to the art and started to engage in conversation again.

"You look beautiful, Isabella." Chelsea said and gave her hug. "I would like you to meet my husband, Jay."

"It's nice to meet you, Miss Swan. My wife is so much more relaxed now that she has you."

Bella laughed. "Well, I'm glad she gave me the job I wanted so badly." She said and smiled before turning to Edward. "Chelsea, this is my… this is Edward." Bella stammered softly.

"It's very nice to meet you, Edward." Chelsea said and shook his hand.

"It's nice to meet you, too." Edward answered smoothly.

Bella almost rolled her eyes. He was going into flirty-and-charming-business-man mode. He truly had no idea how he dazzled the women and even some of the men around him.

After a few moments of conversing, Edward and Bella left Chelsea and Jay to look at some of the art and to mingle.

Chelsea observed them for a few minutes, noting the way that Edward looked at Bella. She sighed. That was the way Jay looked at her. She just wished that Bella would see what she had right in front of her.

Bella talked effortlessly to the people were around her. She spoke of the art, asked about their family, and complimented even the most hideous of dresses. Edward followed behind her, only speaking if spoken to. He was not ashamed of admitting that he knew nothing about art. The closest he had ever come to being an artist was in his high school art class, and to the present day, he still thanked the heavens above that the class had been graded on effort.

At around nine, Bella walked outside to the balcony, needing to get some fresh air. Edward followed her, but he traveled to the opposite end of the balcony.

"Having a good time?" She whispered, so low that Edward barely heard her.

He nodded and turned to look at her before walking closer. "What's wrong?"

Bella shook her head. "I just… Jake should be here. I'm happy that you're doing this for me, but you're not my fiancé or my guardian. You shouldn't have to be around to pick me up every time I fall. That's not your job."

Edward smirked, shaking his head. "You make it sound like you're so pathetic."

"Aren't I?" She asked him, wiping one escaped tear.

"Isabella Marie Swan. You are one of the strongest women I know. You're anything but pathetic. Don't sell yourself short, and don't listen to anyone who tells you anything different than I'm telling you now." He chided. "Come on, let's go back inside. It's cold out here."

Bella stopped Edward just as they were walking through the doorway. "Thank you, Edward. For everything. I really appreciate it—all of it."

"I know you do, Bells." He said and led her inside.

The two of them spent another hour or two at the gala before finally calling it a night. Bella had offered to help clean up, but Chelsea insisted she go home and rest until Monday.

Once Bella got into her room, she shed her dress, put on her pajamas, and went to bed.

When she woke up the next morning, she could smell the scent of coffee floating through a crack in her door. She got out of bed and stumbled down the stairs. Edward was sitting at the peninsula, drinking a coffee and reading the paper.

Bella walked past him and got a cup of coffee before grabbing an orange from the fruit bowl.

"Angela called you on your cell. She's coming over in about an hour." Edward said as he handed her the cell phone. She had forgotten it downstairs before she went to bed.

"What time is it?" Bella asked.

"Nine."

Bella nodded and quickly finished her orange and coffee before walking up the stairs to change into clothes for the day. She ran a brush through her hair, brushed her teeth, and put on a light coating of makeup before going back downstairs. The doorbell rang just as she reached the final step.

"Hey, Bella." Angela greeted and walked in.

"Hey, Ang. What's up?"

"Well, I thought that you and I could have a girls' day. The kids are here, though. Is that okay?" She asked nodding towards the kids who were playing in the front yard.

Bella nodded. "Of course."

Just then, the back door opened, and a grumbling Edward walked in.

"What's wrong with you?" Angela laughed as she poured a cup of coffee.

"Marcus Volturi. That's what. He's such a jerk. I thought old men were supposed to be nice and sweet. He obviously didn't get the memo." Edward grumbled as he thought back to his grouchy old neighbor.

Just then, Bella got an idea. "You know what will make you feel better?"

"What?"

"Baby-sitting." She smiled.

Angela tried not to choke on her coffee. She knew exactly what Bella was trying to do. Angela loved her kids, but they could be real heathens.

"Ang and I were going shopping. You think you could watch the kids for a bit?" Bella asked.

Edward shrugged. "Sure. I don't mind. Go ahead. Have fun." He said and went into the living room.

"You are evil." Angela laughed.

Bella giggled and grabbed her purse. "I know."

. . .

Edward had never seen kids who were as sneaky as Ben and Maggie. At first, the two of them were cute and sweet. Then, they were little jerks. However, he learned their game. It was not long before he had them hanging on his every word.

Edward stood in the shadows and smirked as he watched the kids quietly creep up to Mr. Volturi's front yard. They giggled and rang the doorbell before running back over to Edward. The three of them crouched behind a bush as they watched Marcus walk out, scream at nothing and then walk back into his house.

The three of them were tossing around a baseball when Angela and Bella came home a few hours later.

"Holy shit. How is he still alive?" Angela asked, awestruck.

Bella shook her head. "You have got to be kidding me. Those kids even had Jacob near a hospital visit."

"Well, maybe Edward is just better with kids."

"Edward hates kids." Bella grumbled as she got out of the car and trudged towards the front yard. "Have fun with Edward, guys?"

"Yeah! We ding dong ditched the neighbor. It was awesome. And then we had ice cream." Ben said and tossed the baseball to his little sister.

"So you bribed them?" Bella asked low enough for only Edward to hear.

He rolled his eyes. "Bribed has such a negative connotation. I like to think of it as a premeditated reward for a job well done."

"I guess we'll be leaving. I'll see you around, Bella. Bye, Edward." Angela called from her car as she helped the kids in.

"Bye!" Edward and Bella called to her in unison.

Edward turned to Bella then. "So, you know how I went to a work thing for you?" Edward asked with a smile.

Bella sighed. "Yes."

"Would you mind terribly coming with me to a business meeting with my latest target Wednesday night?"

"I suppose it's only fair. Dress code?" Bella asked as she walked inside.

Edward followed in behind her. "Business-y, I guess."

. . .

"Surprise!" People shot up from behind sofas as Bella and Edward walked into the house after shopping with Emmett and Rosalie all day Sunday.

Bella looked and saw a sign on the wall that read 'Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Cullen'. She growled. Whoever was behind this would be dead.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me this, Bells!" Alice shouted as she gave her older sister a hug.

"Alice, what are you doing here?" Bella asked, her anger momentarily forgotten as she held tightly to her baby sister.

"Christmas break." She said and hugged Bella back. "I missed you so much. And when Jasper told me, I knew a party had to be thrown. This is so exciting!"

"Alice, there is no reason for the excitement. Nothing is going on, okay? This is just another one of their ploys to keep me from marrying Jacob." Bella grumbled.

Alice's face fell. "Marrying Jacob? I thought…" Alice shook her head as she looked down at her older sister's engagement ring. "It's beautiful." She said, tears forming in her eyes. The tears were not from happiness, but Bella did not need to know that. She's making a mistake, was all Alice could think at that moment. "Well, then, let's celebrate your engagement then." Alice said softly and smiled at Bella.

Just then Marcus Volturi pulled Bella in for a hug. "I'm so glad. I was worried you two would realize it after it was too late." He whispered in her ear before pulling back with a grandfatherly smile.

Bella started to shake her head, but then allowed him his happiness. It was the first time since she had known him that she had seen him crack a smile. "Thank you, Mr. Volturi." She answered.

After another two hours or so, everyone was gone. Bella fell back onto her sofa and sighed. Edward sat next to her.

"I'm sorry, Bella. For everything."

Bella shook her head. "I think it's a bit late for that, don't you, Edward?" She asked angrily. "God, I was just beginning to finally grow up—become who I wanted be. I don't want anyone taking care of me—not Emmett, not Jasper, and definitely not you."

Edward was exasperated. "Is that why you're with that low-life now? Because it's like he isn't there in the first place? Is that what you want for the rest of your life? For someone to ignore you and leave you be. That's not marriage, Bella."

"How would you know? It's not like you've gotten any closer to marriage than I have." Bella accused.

"Maybe that's because I'm looking for the right person. I'm not settling for the first person that shows even the slightest bit of attraction towards me. Why can't you see how bad Jacob is for you?" Edward asked her angrily.

"Jacob isn't bad for me. He knows what I want. We have the same goals—the same values." Bella insisted before sighing and running her hand through her long hair. "I can't do this tonight. I'll see you in the morning." Bella said and rushed up the stairs to her room.

Her phone rang after she got out of the shower.

"Hello?"

"Hey, gorgeous. How was your day?" Jacob's deep voice came through the receiver.

"Interesting. And yours?" She asked and fell back onto her bed.

"Boring and dull without you."

Bella smiled.

After another few minutes of talking, Jacob got off the phone claiming that he had to get some rest. Bella did not know, but Jacob was nowhere near being ready for bed. No, he had seen a haunting pair of bright blue eyes across the bar room. He paid the bartender and walked over to the blonde haired beauty.

Am I the only one who really hates Jacob right now? So, tell me what you think! REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW! I would really love it if I broke my record… just sayin'. Until next week!

-Layn