A/N: A quick note to my Must be Love readers: this little madness is what kept me busy these past few weeks. We'll be back to MbL tomorrow. :)

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Chapter-4: From Knight to Thief

Every day since our initial interaction, I say hi to Isabella. And every day, all I get in response is a quick nod of her head.

"Why are you so interested in her?" Emmett asks me during snacks break in the middle of our wii tournament on my day off.

I shrug. "You won't understand until you've met her, man. She's just…"

He holds one hand up to stop me. "I have seen her photos. Thanks to Jasper's nosy ass," he tells me. "She isn't like your regular choices, Ed."

Nodding, I agree. "You're right. She's different. Maybe that's the reason why I like her."

His eyes narrow at that. "Dude, I understand that you want a different flavor or something like that, but she's an amateur for Christ's sake! She's doing this gig to support her family."

This is news to me. "What?" I ask dumbly. While I guessed that Isabella Swan has never done major roles in any movies, I never suspected that she was wanting for anything.

Emmett nods sadly. "Rose asked me to have Alec check her out before she quit the project. She wanted to make sure that you'll be in good hands when she left."

"And?" I prompt, impatient to know more about Isabella.

"She's from nice middle class family. She went to Julliard and everything, but didn't get to finish her degree when her dad was shot in the line of duty."

When he sees my eyebrows pull together, he explains. "He was a cop. After his death, the family sort of broke down. Her mom fell ill and she started doing small gigs and stuff to keep them both fed. I think that's one of the main reasons why King gave her a chance. He wanted to be the one to 'discover' Isabella Swan."

I swallow back the lump that's formed in the back of my throat, unable to fathom how hard life must have been for her. "Wow," I say quietly. "I never would've guessed."

Emmett looks me dead in the eyes and says, "That's why I'm telling ya, Ed, leave the poor kid alone."

"Don't pity her," I snap at him before I can stop myself. Trying to keep my voice level, I continue, "I'm not trying to get into her pants, Em. I like her because I'm awed by her strength. There's a fire inside her, man. I can feel the heat of the spark from beneath the surface. I just… I want that fire to bloom and be there with her when it does."

He looks at me in surprise before asking slowly, "You really like her, don't you?"

My mind goes back to the way she tried to defend herself from the asshole named Newton the other day and I feel a smile tug on my face. "I really do," I reply.

I'm about to get my ass beaten by Emmett when the phone call comes.

My first instinct is to let it go to voice mail because damn it! It's my day off. But when I look at the unknown number flashing across the screen, something makes me slide my finger across the little green sign.

"Hello?"

For a moment, there's nothing but the sound of breathing from the other side. And then a voice whispers, "Edward?"

A smile comes across my face when I hear her say my name for the first time. "Isabella? Hey. How are you doing?" I greet her.

"Um… hi." There's something in her voice that makes my smile disappear. She sounds worried… scared almost.

"Isabella, are you okay?"

I wait for her usual response to my daily 'how do you do' question, but it never comes. Instead, she says in a barely audible voice, "Can you help me, please? I didn't know who to call…"

Trying to keep my voice calm, I ask her, "I'm here, Isabella. Can you tell me where you are?"

When she answers, I detect a slight tremor in her voice, and that makes me forget anything other than the girl asking for my help. "I'm on my way," I say to her before hanging up.

As I'm walking out of the door, I hear Emmett say something about being whipped, but I can't bother to stay and respond to him; all my mind can think of is Isabella.

The bell set on top of the door jingles as I push it open.

Looking around the bookstore, I spot a lone storekeeper and no one else. Peeking between bookshelves, I call softly, "Isabella? It's Edward."

For a moment, there's no response. When I'm wondering whether this was her idea of a prank, I see someone run toward me and then feel two arms wrap around my chest. My arms come up on their own accord to hold the girl hugging me tightly.

The simple action gets a sniffle out of her as she keeps her face buried in my chest.

Rubbing her back soothingly, I ask, "Isabella? What's wrong? Are you hurt?"

When she lifts her head to meet my eyes, I see tears welling up in her eyes, as if ready to spill over at any moment. Something in my chest squeezes hard at the sight of her like that—afraid, anxious and distressed.

I take her chin in between my fingers and urge her, "Tell me, please."

Finally, she opens her mouth and starts speaking. "There's a man outside. I've seen him follow me from the set every day in the last week," she says in a hushed voice. "Today, I came to this bookstore in hopes of shaking him off, but he's still out there. I just…" she stops to lick her lips before continuing. "I just didn't know who to call."

"Shh…" I say to her, running a hand up and down her back to calm her down. "I'm here. I'm here."

Holding her to me, I look through the window of the store. True to her claims, there's a man in his mid-thirties standing on the other side of the street, his eyes trained on the door.

"Do you know him?" I ask quietly.

I feel her shake her head against my chest. "No, I don't know him. When I worked at the Broadway, he'd be there to watch my plays, but I never thought more of it. Now though…" she trails off, making me pull her back a little to see her face.

"Now what, Isabella?" I prompt.

Her voice quivers a little as she answers, "Now, he's been following me every day. Most days, he leaves after I leave the set, but not today. Today he tailed me here. And I…"

"Hey," I call her, nudging her chin with my fingers. When those big shiny brown eyes find mine, I smile at her. "I'm glad you called me. I've got you."

I take her hand in mine and place a hand on the doorknob. Her fingers close around me tightly, the panic on her face plainly visible. "What if he's still there?" she asks anxiously.

"Then we'll get rid of him," I say simply before opening the door and stepping outside, pulling her with me as I do.

The man watches us from across the street, his eyes immediately zeroing in our hands and then to her face.

He's one determined stalker, I realize.

As I'm standing there, contemplating whether I should get the police involved or not, the sound of harsh breathing reaches me. "Is he g-gone?" Isabella whispers to me.

"No …" I turn my head to look at her as I start speaking. One look at her face and I lose my train of thoughts. Standing in the middle of the night, with her eyes closed and her face free of any makeup, she looks heartbreakingly beautiful.

Unbeknownst to me, one of my hands rises up to hold her face, and before I can think of the repercussions of my actions, I'm pressing my lips to her forehead.

Her eyes snap open to look at me. The questions in them make me cup her face between my hands. I keep my eyes on hers as I lean in, unable to hold myself back. Her eyes flutter close as she tilts her head infinitesimally up, and that's all the signal I need to finally give into the temptation and pressing my lips to hers.

Her sharp intake of breath is what makes me realize that I've just stolen her kiss without asking for permission.

Isabella Swan, you just turned this knight in shining armor into a kiss thief. What else are you going to do to me?

A/N: Poor Kiss Thief Edward!

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See you in an hour. :)

Take care.

Ann