Disclaimer: All things Twilight belong solely to Stephenie Meyer. I intend no copyright infringement.

A second disclaimer:

I'm not a professional writer. I write Twilight fanfic simply because I love this fandom.

I apologize in advance for any errors.

AN: Thanks to Fran, K, Kay, and Gail.

Chapter Three

The Road Trip

Day One

Cumberland College, Williamsburg, KY

BPOV

In all honesty, I had been surprised by Edward's suggestion to visit Cumberland. Alice had agreed to stop for a short visit, but I had felt awkward asking Edward to do the same. What was even more surprising was the fact he had remembered me talking about my alma mater and how much I had wanted to return.

Maybe Cullen wasn't such an asshole after all.

As we drove down I-75, I stole a few glances at him out of the corner of my eye. The early morning sunlight streamed into the car, highlighting his profile, which featured a chiseled jaw, straight nose, and square chin. His rusty, brown hair flopped carelessly onto his forehead making him appear younger than his twenty-nine years.

"Are you checking me out, Swan?" His mouth curved into its trademark grin. "Because it sure feels as if you are."

Heat filled my cheeks at being caught looking, but I most definitely wasn't checking him out.

I changed my stance; Cullen was most definitely an asshole.

"Ugh! As if," I said with a huff, crossing my arms against my chest.

"Whatever you say, Cher." He chuckled.

"Well, well, well. Did the mighty Edward Cullen allude to a movie?"

"I do watch films," he replied with a scoff, "and don't change the subject, you were totally scoping out my goods."

"Did you hit your head? Who even talks like that?" I said before repeating, "scoping out my goods."

Cullen released a good-natured laugh before pulling onto the exit ramp.

"That was quick," I mused as I pulled down the visor to check my hair and face.

"You look fine."

"Wow, you really know how to make a girl feel special," I teased as I powdered the shine off my nose.

He shook his head. "Gorgeous. Is that better?"

I rolled my eyes. "You don't need to go to extremes and lie either."

He mumbled something I couldn't quite make out before saying, "Now, where to first?"

XXX

After parking next to the student center, we walked across the viaduct toward the dormitories. Even though the college was small, the campus was beautiful. I had always appreciated its quaint charm with its picturesque views of the Appalachian Mountains.

"There are only five women's dorms," I explained to Edward as we strolled past the set of residence halls.

"So no co-ed living at Cumberland?"

"Are you kidding? Guys weren't allowed in our rooms unless it was at a monthly open house, and even then, we had to have our doors open and feet on the floor at all times." I laughed at the memory.

"Berea offered co-ed options to the upperclassmen, but not during freshman year."

"Oh, that's right. I forgot you went to Berea. I did a college visit there, but it didn't seem like the right fit for me."

He ran his hand through his hair. "It wasn't my first choice, in all honesty, but their financial aid program was too good to pass. I also wanted to be close to home." With a melancholy smile, he added, "Even though she argued with me about it, I liked being able to help out my mom on the weekends."

At the mention of his mother, his expression had become solemn. Esme Cullen had passed away shortly after Edward had graduated. He had never known his father, so it had only been the two of them. Even though it had been several years since her accident, I knew her death still profoundly affected him. I reached over and wrapped his hand in mine. "Are you okay?"

He blew out a breath. "Sorry. I still miss her."

"Of course, you do," I said, giving his fingers a tender squeeze. "I was only eight when my mom passed, and not a day goes by that I don't think of her."

He skimmed his thumb along my skin. The tiny gesture caused a series of shivers to erupt down my spine. Confused by the sensation, I released his hand and pointed to the building before us. "This … this is where I stayed during my last two years."

"Do you want to go inside? I can wait out here since I'm a forbidden male," he joked.

"No, that's okay. I don't have any desire to see my tiny, old room. Let's go check out the bookstore instead."

"Sure, whatever you want." He gestured with his hand. "Lead the way."

XXX

EPOV

As we searched through a pile of sweatshirts to find the size Bella was looking for a voice called from across the room. "Isabella, I don't believe it. Is it really you?"

"Fuck." I heard her curse as a man made his way in our direction. He had neatly cut, sandy, brown hair and wore a dark, gray suit and red bow tie. Black-rimmed glasses framed his curious, blue eyes.

"Hey, Riley. How have you been?" she said as she rubbed her palms nervously against her jeans.

"Couldn't be better. Wow, long time, no see. What are you doing here?" he asked before acknowledging me with an offered hand. "Riley Biers."

I shook his hand and introduced myself.

"We're just passing through," Bella said before turning toward me. "Riley and I went to school together. He's a professor now."

"Actually, I'm head of the department," he said with a hint of smugness.

"That's great," Bella replied. "Congratulations."

Chin held high; he replied, "I knew it was only a matter of time. Speaking of which, how long are you in town? Angela and I would love to have you over for dinner." After reaching into his jacket for his cell, he said, "Let me give her a call."

Bella placed her hand on his forearm. "Oh, I'm sorry, we can't. We were actually just leaving."

"Shoot. I wanted you to meet the twins. They just turned two, and we found out last week, that number three will be arriving in March." His chest puffed with pride.

"Wow, that's terrific. Please send Angela my best."

"I will," he said before adding, "What about the two of you? Do you have any little ones?"

"Oh, no." Bella stammered. "Edward and I are just coworkers."

At her description of our relationship, I felt like I had been punched in the gut. A glint of relief, however, flashed through Riley's eyes.

"I don't know why I even assumed ... you were always so against marriage," he said with a chuckle. "I guess some things never change."

With a dry laugh, she agreed. "Yeah, I suppose you're right."

XXX

A few moments later, Riley excused himself, stating he needed to head to some important meeting.

My lip curled as I watched him exit the building.

Turning to face Bella, I said, "Do you want me to ask the clerk if they have any more sweatshirts in the back?"

She shook her head. "Can we please go? I'll order one online."

"Whatever you want," I said, noting the abrupt change in her demeanor. The lighthearted playfulness from earlier this morning was gone; replaced with a quiet withdrawnness.

After sliding into the seat of the car and starting the engine, I leaned over and tugged on a loose tendril of her hair. "Hey, are you all right?"

She lifted her head to meet my gaze. "Riley was more than a friend while we were in school. We dated for almost three years," she explained. "Seeing him again dredged up some unpleasant memories."

I gulped at her words. "Why? Do you still have feelings for him?"

Her eyes widened. "Oh, God, no. It's just; he's always had a way of making me feel like I wasn't enough. We broke up because he wanted to get married right after graduation and start a family. I wasn't ready for that since I wanted to spread my wings and have a career."

"There's nothing wrong with your plan, Bella. As a matter of fact, it sounds pretty normal."

"I guess. It's just when I told Riley, he broke up with me, and the next day started seeing my roommate, Angela."

"Wow. That was pretty shitty on both their parts."

"I know, and when I confronted him about it, he said, 'Why waste time on a lost cause?"

With clenched teeth, I turned off the engine and opened my door.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm going to have a word with that prick. He owes you an apology."

She grabbed my arm. "Edward, don't. It's fine. Really. I'm fine."

I shut the door and ran a hand through my hair. "Well, even though I only talked with the guy for about five minutes, in my opinion, you dodged a serious bullet by not ending up with that loser."

"Oh, I know." She bit her lip. "The conversation just fed into some of my insecurities."

"Insecurities?"

"About marriage. Sometimes, I can't help but wonder if I blew my only chance at having a family."

"Well, that's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. There's someone out there for you, and I guarantee it wasn't Riley Fucking Biers."

The gold flecks in her brown eyes glittered with emotion. "Thanks." After clearing her throat, she picked up the itinerary and gave it a quick glance. "So, what do you say? Are you ready to head to Knoxville?"

With a wink, I replied, "Sounds perfect." After leaving the parking lot, I attempted to put a smile back on her face and said, "And we're off like a dirty shirt."

AN:

So, who knows what movie the last line of the chapter is from? It's one of my favorites.

Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed my birthday one-shot yesterday. I'm always worried people won't get my weird sense of humor.

Kay posted the last chapter of Daddy's Girl this week. If you haven't read it yet, head straight over there and check it out. You can find it along with all of her other fabulous stories under Ghostreader24.

Finally, I cannot wait to see all of you who will be at TFMU next week!

Until next time,

HE