Right. So it's been a very long time. My apologies. Life has been busy. etc. Thanks for all the support and encouraging reviews and messages.

"And this must be your young man." He stretched his hand out and shook hands with Edward. "Good to meet you!"

Aro turned back to Bella. "I'm happy to see you've found someone to marry. I was afraid you'd take your sweet time about it. How long have you two been seeing each other?"

Edward arched a brow and cast a surprised look Bella's way. Oh, how embarrassing.

"Aro…I'm afraid you've misunderstood."

"Oh?" He leaned back against the front of his desk and gestured them to the two chairs before him.

Edward sat but Bella chose to stand behind her chair and rest her hands on the top. Better to keep from fidgeting. "Aro, if you'll remember, I just said I wanted to talk with you about the trust, not that I had a fiance. We're hoping that Edward will be able to buy or lease the property without us marrying. You see, his parents used to own it and he'd like to get back into the ranching business."

"Hmm."

Aro moved back behind his desk to sit and with the added distance that presented Bella chose to sit as well.

"Well now, that's a bit different than I expected. The terms of the trust are very specific you understand. There are provisions for leasing the property, but they won't be helpful for you. If a male of marriageable age and situation benefits from the lease in any way, he is required to marry Bella. The only way Bella can lease the property at all would be if it were to a married couple with very young children, or an elderly couple or a female. And even if you did find someone who fit those requirements, Bella, the trust would receive any moneys from the lease. You wouldn't be able to touch it. I'm afraid if that's all you came for I can't help you."

Bella sat back in her chair, looking at her hands in her lap. She felt so defeated. Edward sat quietly as well. She wondered if he would just walk out. Instead, he sat forward and spoke up.

"I had another idea, and I'd like to run it by you."

Aro looked intrigued. "Go on."

"Would it be permissible for me to use the land if we were engaged?"

"Hmm." Aro rubbed his chin and thought. "Now would this be a perpetual engagement or one with a time limit attached?"

Edward smirked a bit. "You tell me."

"Hmm….a perpetual engagement that never comes to fruition is the same as leasing for free; not permissible. An engagement with a time limit though, that will suit fine. Say, six months perhaps?"

"Six months to complete the engagement once the land lease begins. I think that could do."

"I'll need to be notified before you begin any activity on the property. Your six months will begin then. And at the end of six months you will either be married or you will pay the trust six months worth of leasing fees, which will not be cheap, and you will vacate the premises or be evicted with extreme prejudice."

"I think that will be agreeable if I decide marriage won't work out for me; but what if Bella decides she'd rather not marry? Life on a ranch is hard work and not for everyone. What would be the terms if she chooses not to marry?"

Bella watched quietly. He had thought this out. She was by turns flattered that he'd thought about her, and offended that he thought she wouldn't be strong enough to handle ranching life. She may not have done much physical labor before, but she wasn't a weakling and she could be a good worker. She knew the whole dressed up look from last week had made a bad impression, but honestly, shouldn't he give her a chance before just assuming she couldn't handle it?

"Same terms. Six months engagement. If it terminates you'll need to vacate the premises, but without prejudice."

"Moving a herd of cattle mid-season isn't done easily. Could we compromise and say that I'll vacate in one year, rather than six months?"

"Hmm…and one year's lease as payment?" Aro stroked his beard and gazed at Bella. She wasn't sure what he was expecting but she nodded that she agreed with Edward's proposal. "It's a deal."

The men stood and shook hands across the desk.

"Bella, it was good to see you again. You take care now and keep in touch."

"I will. Thank you for meeting with us on such short notice Aro. I appreciate it."

"Of course my dear. Any time." Aro came around the desk to give her a hug, gently this time, before opening the door for them.

Bella and Edward left Aro's office and made their way down the hall. Stilted silence surrounded them. Bella's mind was filled with questions, none of which was she ready to ask.

Did this mean he was really ok with marrying her? What about his girlfriend? Was Bella going to ruin their lives? Did this mean they were engaged now?

When would they go to Texas? When would she be free of James?

Should she finish out the fall semester? It was kinda late to back out now. Better to finish and leave over Christmas break. She could finish the rest of her classes somewhere else. Everything would transfer...right?

Was she really going to marry Edward? For how long? She knew very little about the man across from her. What was his favorite color? Favorite food? What were his likes and dislikes? Did he have a temper? Could they learn to be friends? Did he want to stay married to her for years and years? Did he want children someday? with her?

The thought took her breath away but the thought that followed froze her in her tracks as she walked with Edward toward the elevator. She stopped about 6 feet from the doors as Edward kept walking and pushed the down button. The gentle ding of the doors opening was at odds with her rushing thoughts. Edward entered and held the doors. Noticing her distance her gave her a curious, thoughtful look. She made her legs walk into the elevator but stood on the side opposite him, her hands gripping the rails behind her and her eyes averted to the numbers above, though she couldn't help stealing a glance at him. His eyes met hers and held them.

Her thoughts continued to crash though her mind. Would he expect to have sex with her? Would she be having sex with a stranger? Would he be gentle or rough? Would he be kind or callous?

Bella wrenched her eyes from Edwards and stared at his shoes as she swallowed past the hard lump in her throat and tried not to cry. She could feel her breathing speeding up as the numbers counted down. She knew Edward was watching her curiously but at the moment all she wanted was OUT! When the doors opened on the ground floor she sprinted out, across the foyer, and through the doors outside. She wanted to run so very badly. She was shaking.

"Hey!" Edward's voice was raised to catch her attention, but seemed more surprised than angry. "Where's the fire?" he said at a more normal volume as he caught up to her.

He stood next to her and placed his hands on her shoulders, turning her to face him. "Are you ok? You don't look so good." His brows were furrowed in concern.

"I'm just...I feel...do you know somewhere around here where I could have a good run?"

He gave her a little smile. "Yeah, let me see what I can find on my iphone."

He pulled out his phone and started tapping the screen. She looked up into the dark sky, bouncing on her toes with nervous energy as she was lost in her thoughts.

"Ok! I've got directions. Do you want to ride with me or follow in your car?"

Typically she'd go independent, but a quick look at her shaking hands made her think the better of it. "With you, if that's ok?"

"Sure." He led her over to his car with a gentle hand on her back and moved to open her door. "Here you go."

She sat down and buckled herself in as he walked around the car and got in. She closed her eyes and tried to breathe deep. She liked the smell of his car. Something masculine but not overpowering. Pleasant even. As he started the car, light strains of piano filtered through the air. She smiled and surreptitiously wiped away the few tears clinging to her lashes. He let her think in peace and not many minutes later they pulled up to a well lit public park with the trail outlined in lights and a pond with a fountain in the distance.

"Will this do?"

"Yeah, it's perfect." She opened her door and he asked, "Mind if I join you?"

"That's fine." She stretched just a little before taking off, Edward keeping pace at her side. He let her run herself out, obviously in better shape than she was. When her limbs trembled with exhaustion, rather than with nervous energy, she sat on the grass beside the lake and fountain, automatically stretching her legs again. The cool evening air quickly dried the perspiration from her forehead and as she calmed down, she looked at the man beside her, wishing she knew him better.

"Are you feeling better?" he asked.

"Yeah, just feeling kinda panicked at the idea of marrying an almost total stranger."

"That just hit you now did it?" His grin held good natured teasing.

"Pretty much." She smiled shyly back at him.

"Well I'm not gonna lie, I can't say I'm real comfortable with the idea either. Do you still want to do this?"

She nodded slowly, but firmly. "Do you?"

"Honestly? I don't know yet. That's part of the reason why I thought an engagement would be a good idea. We have the intent settled, but if it turns out we don't suit, we can still back out. No harm done."

"Ok, that's something I need to know. Are we going to be engaged and just go on with life as usual while getting to know each other, or ..."

"If you'd prefer, you can come stay with my family while we're deciding. That would work better from a getting to know you standpoint...and from what I can tell, you'd be safer that way. Am I right?"

Bella chewed her bottom lip a bit and nodded, pulling her knees up and wrapping her arms around them.

"Do you need to move in with me right away?" he asked quietly.

"I think...I'd like to finish up the semester. College classes aren't cheap and I'd hate to waste the money just because I couldn't stick it out."

"Are you sure you'll be safe?"

"I think so. James plans to marry me after I graduate, which isn't for another 3 semesters, so I've got time. So long as I don't...rock the boat, I should be ok."

"So, the other night when I called..."

Uh oh. Looks like they were going to finish that conversation after all.

"Was that the consequence of you rocking the boat?"

She looked at him cautiously, seeing concern and not a little anger in his eyes.

"I thought I explained that. I'm just clumsy sometimes."

"And I thought I told you that you were a shit liar and that I don't like liars."

Yeah. He was mad. Her eyes welled with tears and she turned her face away from him, looking out at the fountain. She loved the calming sound of water falling.

"Bella." He groaned. "Come on. Talk to me. Did James hurt you?"

Her answer whispered across the night air. "Yes."

"Was this the first time?"

The second answer was a quiet as the first. "No."

The picturesque waterfall and willows were replaced with his face as he knelt in front of her.

"Why Bella? Why would you let him do this to you?"

She shook her head, declining to answer. "Why haven't you reported him?"

Her voice shook with unshed tears. "He said if I did he'd go public about the dowry. That I'd never be able to know if the person I was dating wanted me or my money. That I'd be in every major newspaper in the country..." her voice lowered to a whisper, "and he threatened to hurt Alice."

"Who's Alice?" he asked gently.

"My roommate. My best friend. The sweetest, happiest, perkiest girl you'll ever meet. She just got engaged. She doesn't deserve for James to mess up her life too."

"And in spite of all this, you still want to finish the semester?"

"I can't afford to waste the money..."

'I think your well-being is more important than the money."

"I just...I want to finish out the semester at least. And I'm not ready to leave everything behind yet. I'd like a little more time to get to know you."
She could sense his frustration and he turned away from her, running a hand through his hair harshly.

"If anything, and I mean anything happens, you know you can come to me right?"

Did she know that? She nodded slowly, glad he wasn't pressing the matter further. His offer was comforting though.

As he drove her back to her car, they set up a phone date for a few days from now, deciding that Bella would be the one to call each time, and that they would just prearrange the phone dates. She would erase the phone log of the call when they'd finished. He also gave her his address just in case and she allowed him to have hers though it was understood he was only to come when invited, which wasn't likely due to circumstances, or in a dire emergency with Alice's permission.

The next few weeks went smoothly. Bella managed to avoid angering James and continued work in her classes.. She began to anticipate her phone dates with Edward and wore a smile on her face far too often. James began to get suspicious. One Friday afternoon, when Alice and Jasper were out for the three day weekend, James used the key he'd had made to sneak in and listened to Bella talk on the phone to Edward. He was livid. The engagement had thankfully not been mentioned, but just the fact that she was talking and laughing with another male was enough.

When she finished talking she moved to place her phone on the table and was shocked when James grabbed it from her and threw it at the wall across the room where it broke apart. She was sure it was shattered. And then he started in on her with his angry words and his fists. His voice blended in with the roaring in her ears as he took his anger out on her. His first two blows across her face took her by complete surprise. She curled into a ball in the bed, grabbing her head as his fists flew. When he tired of that he dragged her by her hair and her belt, throwing her on the floor to use his boots instead.
When James had finished with her she was a mass of bruises and tears. He demanded that she marry him over thanksgiving break. She couldn't do anything other than agree. He spat on her and said she'd made Alice fair game now. He made some harsh crude comments about how he couldn't wait to get into her and stormed out.

Her first thing to do once she could think, was to crawl across the floor to the pieces of her phone. With shaking hands she replaced the battery and prayed it would work as she pressed the on button. She stared at the cracked screen, but it wouldn't light up. Fresh tears burst from her and she knelt on the floor, burying her head in her hands and trying to calm down because the sobs made her ribs and back ache even worse. She cried herself to sleep on the floor, in too much pain to do anything else.

When she woke again it was dark. She slowly crawled to the kitchen and climbed her way up the counters to get to the pain meds. Alice's vicodin. She got migraines sometimes. Alice wouldn't mind. She shared everything with Bella. Bella took one with some water and moved slowly to the fridge to grab the two ice packs and the couple packages of peas and corn. She turned and contemplated her next move. Bed? Too far. Couch then. Good thing they had a nice one. She walked to it slowly and place the packs where they might to the most good. Mostly her back and one on her face. The pack came away bloody. Her lip must have split. That's right. He'd gotten a few good hits on her face before she'd realized what was happening. He always stayed away from her face. Guess it didn't matter anymore.

Now what would she do. James said they had to marry over Thanksgiving break. So much for finishing the semester. Alice! He was going to hurt Alice. But she was with Jasper far away from here. She'd call and warn...broken phone. Fabulous. How had James gotten in? The door was locked. She eyed the door from where she was on the couch. No sign of damage or force. Did he have a key or get in through a window? DIdn't matter, she decided. James somehow got in and she wouldn't be safe there. The Vicodin kicked in and she nodded off. When she woke a few hours later it was still dark. She looked at the microwave clock. Two am. She stood up. She wasn't safe here. But fortunately, she did have one place left to go.

She moved slowly to her room and grabbed her bag from the closet. Then she packed some clothes and a few other necessities and peeked out the windows, holding her bag by the loop on the top. Her back was far too tender even with the meds. It was pitch black and three in the morning. James had come over around four yesterday afternoon. She didn't see James or his car, but that didn't mean he wasn't there.
She got in her car, drove an hour until she was sure James wasn't following her, filled up her tank, and then drove some more. When she reached New York it was nearly six am. She parked in the garage of the apartment where Edward and Emmett lived, tears running down her bruised face. The vicodin had worn off and she could barely move. She tried to pick up her bag and couldn't hold back the groan. Fingers trembling, she left the bag where it was. She was thankful for the hoodie she had on and she pulled it up and let it shade her face. She didn't want to think about what she looked like. She exited the car and entered the building, finding the front desk. Apparently this was one of the higher end complexes where you could not enter without approval of the residents. Avoiding meeting the eyes of the person at the front desk, she asked softly if they could ring Edward Cullen's room please.

He cleared his throat and she couldn't imagine what he was thinking. "There's a woman down here to see you sir." He covered the phone and whispered, "Your name please?"

"Bella Swan."

"Bella Swan sir."

"Very good sir." He hung up the phone.

"He'll be right down miss. If you'd care to wait over there?" He gestured to a bench off to the left by the elevators.

"Thank you." she whispered and walked slowly to the bench, trying not to cry in the middle of the lobby.

She sat silently, looking at her hands clasped in her lap, hoping Edward had meant what he said. She couldn't take it any more. She didn't want to be hit anymore. She'd had enough.

She felt herself beginning to shake and closed her eyes, rocking slightly, trying to keep herself from falling apart. Her knuckles turned white. And then warm hands covered hers. She opened her eyes to see a pair of beautiful green ones peering up at her in concern. His eyes flew over her face before returning to hers.

"Oh Bella! What happened?" The tenderness in his voice was her undoing. She could have held it together had it not been for the caring and compassion directed her way. Her tears broke loose and her body trembled violently.

Edward leaned forward and picking up her white knuckled fist, he lifted it up and over his head to hang behind his neck, then wrapped his arms firmly but gently around her. Her back was on fire and she cried out. He let go in surprise, then brought his hands to rest softly on her hips.

"I didn't have anywhere else to go." She whispered against his neck as her tears fell like rain.

"Then I'm glad you came to me." He answered.

For the first time in a long while, she finally felt safe. Safe, in Edward's arms.

Thanks Aimee for the Beta help...years ago I guess. I'm sorry for the long long break. I don't have any news about what you can expect from me, but I had this chapter nearly finished and I wanted to put it up.