~A/N Thanks so much for all the reviews, follows and favorites. This one ended up being a little more serious than I planned, but it lays the groundwork for the other chapters, so I felt it had to be this way.

Copyright disclaimer: Twilight belongs to Stephanie Meyer.

Chapter 4

It felt like old times with the exception of no Jacob when Bella sat around the fire. Emily had been extremely nice, as usual. She'd let Bella use her shower and found her a sundress to wear. She felt a little self conscious in the dress. She didn't wear them very often but Paul told her she looked nice earlier.

She smiled in return. He even reached out and touched the strap on her shoulder softly.

"Hey, does that hurt? Bella looked at what he was talking about. She thought she felt warm because of the hot shower, but he was right. She was sunburned, perhaps worse than she realized.

Paul went into the kitchen with Emily and she gave him some aloe vera gel. He told Bella she better start putting it on. She went back to the bathroom so she could get all the spots. The gel was cold and she felt some relief using it.

Paul knocked on the door. "Hey, I wanted to see if you want me to get your back."

She hesitated. She reluctantly agreed to let him spread the aloe on her back. The heat from her sunburn with the cool aloe and the warmth of his touch produce a lot of different sensations.

"Is it bad?"

"I don't think it's terrible but it might bother you a few days. Those bloodsuckers are gonna notice."

One more thing to add to the list she figured Edward was working on. Even though she felt stressed for a little while after that, when the bonfire got under way, she essentially filed it away in the back of her mind.

It was nice to see how much the pack had relaxed since Victoria was forever gone. They were back to their carefree selves. Quil kept her entertained most of the night. Paul shoved him and told him to get lost eventually. He brought her a fresh bottle of water and he had some brownies on a plate. She'd helped Emily with those since she had her hands full making the rest.

"Want some?" he asked.

He meant the brownies, but when he asked it that way, her voice got stuck in her throat. She shook her head yes instead of replying with her stupid nervous voice. Paul took a seat next to her and held out the plate. She took one brownie and he had the rest. Paul made noises while he ate them, "So good, Blue." He looked around and lowered his voice, "Yours taste better than Emily's."

"Shhh," she doubted that was true and she didn't want him to insult Emily. She'd done far more than her getting the food ready for the party. She poked him in his ribs, but when she pulled back her hand, he grabbed it. Bella looked around to see if anyone was paying attention to them, but they weren't. Paul turned her hand over and placed it over his open palm. He seemed to be studying it more than trying to hold it like she originally feared.

"You've got the smallest hands. They're so delicate and soft." He rubbed her skin between his fingers. So many things were running through her mind. Surely, Paul wasn't becoming confused about their new, however brief friendship. She then thought back to bumping into him in the water. NO! she internally screamed to herself. She swore she'd never think about that again. He said it was only a bilogical response. He wasn't seriously thinking something more was going on. She was engaged, but she hadn't retrieved her hand yet.

Finally, she came to her senses and calmly pulled away. "I have normal hands for a girl, yours are just freakishly huge."

He smirked. "Freakishly huge, huh? Anything else about me, that you find freakishly huge?" He moved his eyebrows up and down. She was stunned that he so freely said such a thing. His boldness still caught her off guard. He looked like he was about to say a little more, but Seth saved the day. She didn't want to go anywhere near the question he'd asked.

"Hey Bella, I've been meaning to come over and talk with you."

"Hey Seth, how are you?"

"Good, I wanted you to know, I talked to Jake today."

"Oh my god...is he okay? What did he say? Did you tell him I'm worried?" she let the questions fly without a pause. Before Seth gave his answer, Paul said he had something to do and he quickly walked away.

"Slow down. I'm sorry, I don't have a lot to report. He only let me in briefly. He's okay, that's all I know. I tried to tell him that you've been checking on him, but as soon as I said your name; he must have phased back. Sorry, that's all I got."

She told Seth she appreciated the update, but felt rotten that the mere mention of her name, made him retreat. He must still be so furious with her. She sorta felt her mood fall and thought it might be the right time to leave. Quil and Seth looked like they were cooking up something near the fire. She stood up and dusted off her dress. Paul approached her again.

"Hey, let's take a walk. These guys are about to get crazy. They are going to start one of their juvenile games of truth or dare."

"Oh, yeah...I don't think I'd enjoy that very much. Sounds embarrassing. I think I should go."

"Wait, just a short walk, come on it's a nice night." She eventually agreed. It still confused her why she found it so difficult to say no to him. They quietly headed away from the festivities. The moonlight on the water gave off the perfect amount of light to guide their way. He might not have needed it to see, but she didn't want to be walking around in total darkness.

"You had fun today, right?"

"Yes, lots. I can't believe I stood up."

"More than once, you're a natural."

That was a laugh, she wasn't a natural at anything, but she decided not to argue. Bella wondered why Paul didn't want her to stay around and witness the game. She really didn't want to play. Who knew what kind of stuff they'd get into.

Paul was quiet for a change. "Hey, you okay? Do you want to get back to the pack? I'm probably boring compared to them."

"No, don't say that. You could never be boring to me." She was glad it wasn't so bright any longer, because she felt her cheeks heating up. "Um...hey, would you be interested in playing our own version of the game? Don't look so worried, I meant only tell a few truths, no crazy dares. I won't be asking you to skinny dip with me...at least, not tonight." He said it would be a good way to get to know each other a little better. Paul said the rules would be each of them could ask a question about something they were curious about.

She let him go first. She was wondering if he'd ask silly questions or serious ones.

"Do you really love Jacob?"

Not what she was at all expecting. "Um...yes, I love Jake."

"I don't get it, you claim to love him, but you love the bloodsucker more? How is that?"

She stopped him, "Hey, so not fair. That's more than one question. My turn." He stopped her and led her over to a broken down pier so they could have a seat. She asked what she wanted to know, "What do you do for a living?" She really wanted to know. Jacob said everyone had jobs, but she'd never heard what Paul did. Of course, she and Jacob had rarely talked about him. She really wanted to know if he did something that he loved or if it was just a job.

"Wow, you really ask the tough ones." He laughed. "I'm an aspiring mason."

She looked confused.

"A brick layer. I work for Jared's dad and I put the bricks on...does that makes sense now?"

"Oh wow...I would have never thought. That's interesting, but there aren't a lot of brick houses around the reservation. Where do you work?"

"That's another question."

He'd used her words against her, so she let him go next. He picked up the question about Edward again but he changed it up a little. "Make me understand. Bella, I know we've only hung out a few times, but you seem so alive to me, what is it about him that you could possibly love?"

How could she answer that question? She knew why she loved Edward, but putting it into words was another story. She felt very uncomfortable all of the sudden. He was staring at her with his very dark eyes.

"I just do, you wouldn't understand because you hate him so much. Edward is exactly what I was looking for; he protects me and he loves me unconditionally even though I'm just a plain, clumsy human girl."

Paul just shook his head back and forth almost like he was telling her no that he didn't believe it, but thankfully he didn't say anything else. She had originally planned to finish asking more about his job, but he'd asked her the tough questions, so she fired one back at him. "What's the deal with you father? I know my dad knew him growing up, but I get the feeling there some deep dark secret there?"

"Oh damn...you never cease to amaze me. I thought you wanted to know where I built houses, but now you're getting all personal and shit. Alright, my rules...I'll answer you and I'll even give you a free one. I mostly work off the reservation, but the council has an agreement with a developer, we're about to get a contract to start building some higher end homes at the edge of the rez. I'm just an apprentice right now, but Jared's dad says I'm a natural talent and some day, I plan to be a master craftsman."

She felt excited for him. He seemed very proud talking about his work, but she still wanted to know the story about his father. "That sounds great, but now answer the question."

He went on to tell her the whole story. She started regretting making him recount his life story. It seemed to make him pretty sad. His mom ran off on his dad when he was only 8 and his sister was 12. He seemed to love his father, but he really hated his mom for what she did to them. He said he got one sorry postcards in all those years, but he ripped it to shreds. Paul's dad tried his best to raise them alone, but he started drinking excessively to combat his depression. "So that's the story, he's a miserable drunk. I finally gave up trying. I can't be around him anymore. My sister moved off at 17, she worked her way through college and she's working on her master's in psychology. She wants to be a counselor and help young kids from broken homes. She and I talk a little but she never visits...too many bad memories."

"I'm so sorry, Paul." She knew what it was like to be from a broken home, but she hadn't had any experiences like he'd described. It was terribly to think his mom never came back. What kind of a woman did that to her kids?

"Since you've totally bummed me out, I guess I should take you home now." She apologized again and told him there was no need. She could easily drive herself home, but he insisted since it was late. Bella was debating on what she truly had the urge to do. She hadn't exactly been forthcoming with her answers, but Paul had literally poured his heart out to her. She knew it definitely went against his nature to appear so vulnerable in front of another person. She stopped analyzing the situation and did what she wanted to do. She put her arms around him and hugged him from the side. He returned the hug. She should have hugged him and let go, but she didn't. They stayed in an embrace for a long time next to the shore. The night had become dimmer since that moon hid behind a cloud. He dipped his head down so it was closer to her face. Both of them appeared to be breathing heavily. She looked at him again. Did he think her hug was an invitation for something else? He started moving his face even closer, and she couldn't look away. If she didn't know any better, she was asking him with her eyes to do what he'd set out to do. One of his hands reached up to her neck, and pushed her hair to the side. He held her there and kept approaching her. If she didn't react soon, he was going to kiss her. Why had she not stopped him already? He literally got his mouth millimeters from hers before she finally got her it together and turned her head at the last possible second.

He let out a frustrated sigh, "I...I can't. I'm engaged. You know that, I just told you how much I love Edward."

He completely released her. "Sorry...I wasn't trying to force it, but if you love him like you say; then why are you out here with me? You know you lied to be with me today, and why was it so hard for you to say no to the kiss?"

She adamantly denied that, but he shrugged it off and started walking back. She hurried to catch up to him. Neither of them said another word. Bella went back and told everyone thanks and good night. She got her things and started walking to where she'd parked her truck. She opened the door to climb inside, but Paul came out of the darkness and told her he'd promised to drive her. She was done arguing with him, she slid her bottom along the bench seat and he got behind the wheel. Her bag was on the seat, so she never completely moved across the seat. She ended up sitting kinda close to him for the drive back. They pulled in the driveway. Paul cut the lights and the engine. "You're leech is up there. I feel like I should go in to protect you."

"I don't need protecting from him. He's my boyfriend, I mean my fiance."

"He's kind of a creepy stalker, don't you think? What does he do up in your room while you're gone? Sniff your panties?"

"That's absurd, he wouldn't do such a thing."

"He's got all the characteristics of a controlling and abusive boyfriend."

"No, Edward would never abuse me."

Paul tapped her forehead, "It all starts up there first. He's probably been mentally abusing you for a while now. Sorry, if I sound like a public service announcement, but my sister use to make me help her study."

She denied that. "I'm sure he's very concerned and hurt that I lied. You better go."

"Okay...but first I have one more truth to get off my chest. Today in the ocean, I said it was only a male reflex. I lied, I'm not some horny tween that can't control himself. It was because of you. I haven't been able to stop thinking about you since I bandaged your bottom. I don't expect you to admit you feel the same way. You aren't even honest with yourself, so I don't expect you to be honest with me. I just want you to be clear with my intentions...I want you and I'm not going to let up until I get you to realize that you don't want to marry the bloodsucker anymore." He got out of her truck and took off to the woods before she could set him straight.

She regretted not thinking of a better excuse for her behavior for the day. Bella was thankful Paul listened and left her. The last thing Charlie would want to see was a vampire and wolf tearing up the house while they tried to kill each other. She slowly opened the door but didn't see him. She picked her phone off the bed. 47 missed calls and text. Holy crap. That was a little crazy. She wondered why Paul thought he was in her room, maybe it was an old scent.

She didn't really feel like reading all the messages or listening to the voice mails. She was so tired. She only wanted to collapse in her bed. She grabbed some sleepwear and headed to the bathroom. As soon as Bella walked in, a cold hand clamped over her mouth and pushed her against the door. She pushed and squirmed. He'd scared her half to death.

He removed his hand.

"Edward, what the hell?"

He still had her pinned. "Don't move. I'm not releasing you until you explain yourself. Why do you keep lying? We're about to start our lives and now I can't trust anything you say." He pulled back a little to give her some breathing room. She stuttered over her explanations. It all sounded pretty lame. "You smell disgusting." He held a lock of her hair to his nose. "The combination of smoke, the sea and wet dog is repulsive on you. Go take a shower." She shook her head and refused. She only wanted to go to sleep.

"I'll be over first thing tomorrow and I'll tell you everything. I'm sorry for lying. I've felt pressured the past few weeks."

"Why didn't you carry your phone?"

"I forgot," Edward grabbed her again on her upper arms. It really hurt. He'd never held her so tightly, and her sunburn made it worse. "Edward let go," but he didn't. She thought his black eyes looked dead for the first time ever.

"I bought you the phone so I'd always know where you were. It serves no purpose if you don't keep it with you." He squeezed even tighter.

"Edward don't...I mean it. You're hurting me, let go or I'll scream for Charlie." He let go after her threat. She looked at the damage, she was going to have terrible bruises. She had bright red finger impressions in her skin. She looked at him completely bewildered that he'd briefly lost control.

He saw the marks and immediately starting apologizing. "See what you made me do, I was so worried about your safety...I forgot my own strength. Please forgive me, love and I'll forgive you for lying."

She wanted to, it wasn't like him at all. She'd just defended him to Paul. She swore he wasn't abusive. What would happen if Charlie saw or the Cullen's? What if Paul saw? He said he wanted her. She didn't recall anyone saying those exact words to her before. She had felt butterflies in her belly at his admission.

"Go, Edward! We need some time apart, I don't want you here tonight." He reluctantly agreed and said his apologizes again, "I'm so sorry Bella." Edward jumped out the window. She stood in front of her mirror. Maybe it wasn't as bad as she first thought, but she took a good look and it was worse, not better. Her arms looked like she'd been mauled. How would she ever cover it up?

She heard taps against the glass. Had he come back? No, Edward never threw rocks at the window. That was Jacob's signature, but there was no chance it was him. She reached in her drawer and grabbed a long sleeve Henley and put it over her tank top. She looked out and saw his darkened shadow under the tree. She hadn't shut the window yet.

"Bella are you alright? I saw the bloodsucker run off. Did something happen?"

She shook her head and told him she was fine.

"I'm coming up, you're afraid I can sense it." Paul had probably seen how Jacob came up several times before. She didn't try to prevent him. He came through and landed quietly on her floor. He was right she still felt afraid of the way Edward had looked and how he'd hurt her. She ran into Paul's arms and cried.

He soothed her. "You're safe with me, but if he hurt you; I need to know what happened in here."

Even though it was going to cause a huge problem, she still couldn't refuse Paul. Bella pulled off the long sleeve shirt and let him see for himself. Paul started shaking and growling. She made excuses again, "He didn't mean to and he apologized," were repeated a few times. Paul insisted he go talk to Sam. "It's my fault for lying."

Paul was furious at her denial. "How's it your fault? You already sound like the classic battered woman. Fiance or not, we can't ignore this." Paul was going to jump back out the window, most likely preparing to go to war with Edward.

"No Paul, don't leave. I can't be alone. Will you stay til I fall asleep?" She took his hand and led him to her bed. "Please if you want to protect me then stay by my side, don't go after Edward alone."

"Okay for now, I'll stay with you." Paul got into her bed with her. She knew having him in her bed would further complicate things, but for some reason his presence was all that she craved at that moment. Paul wrapped his arm around her rib cage and she leaned into him. The next morning was going to difficult. Bella planned to talk to Carlisle and Paul was insistent on speaking to Sam. She might have rebuffed his attempt at kissing her less than two hours before, but when he held her side with his freakishly huge hand; she'd never felt more safe. Bella took her small hand and laid it over his. He spread his fingers and she put hers through the spaces before drifting off to sleep. She was thinking she was already asleep, so it might have been a dream; but a low voice whispered in her hair, "Mine."

~Thanks for reading.