A/N: Thank you so much for your support and reviews. I read each and every one and truly enjoy your thoughts. I hope you'll keep letting me know what you think.

SMeyer owns all Twilight characters. No copyright infringement intended.

Here's the big showdown!

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7. The Senior Charade and the Junior Epiphany

##

EDWARD

Two weeks of hell. That's what I was living. Every night when I closed my goddamn eyes, all I could see were big, brown, soulful eyes and a pink, pouty smile. It was killing me. Let's not forget the gorgeous face wherein rested the beautiful eyes and inviting mouth that I'd kissed on more than one occasion. Yeah, hell was an easy term for what I was going through.

My dad had informed me that he had an interest in Bella Swan, and I didn't do a goddamn thing to dissuade him. I prayed that common sense would step in and he'd see that dating a woman half his age was a ridiculous proposition, but apparently, I'd gotten all of the common sense in the family.

He'd called to tell me he'd started dating her and she was completely lovely. Fuck, I knew that. I didn't like it, and I had to figure out how to stop it, but it wasn't really my place, now was it? I was about at the end of my rope when I got the last bit of information I wanted to get by way of a phone call on a Thursday afternoon.

"Edward Masen," I answered. Shirley was eating lunch at her desk, so I was answering my own phone while she was working on a document. I'd walked to the deli and picked up a sandwich to eat at my desk so that I could review the document when she finished. I had no desire for company from anyone, and Emmett had asked me to go to lunch every day for the past week. I didn't want to bask in his stories from his honeymoon and the continuing wonderment that was wedded bliss, so I told him I was buried in work and blew him off at every opportunity.

"Son, it's me. Look, I'm working from Bella's house today, but I've got a new case that I think you'd be perfectly suited to handle. I truly don't have time for it, so if you could stop by her house and pick up the file when you get done, I'd appreciate it," my dad ordered through the phone. It was the last thing I wanted to hear, and I immediately threw my sandwich in the trash and grabbed the Tums.

"Why are you at Bella Swan's house?" I asked sounding less than thrilled, I was sure. He'd told me he'd taken her to lunches and dinners, and I didn't like it in the least. When I talked to Jasper about it, he told me I should just sit down with my dad and talk to him, but I wasn't prepared to do it because what would I say? "I don't want you to date Bella because I have feelings for her, but I'm not sure I want to act on them." That didn't really sound like something I'd do.

"Oh, she's having plumbing problems and she had a hearing this afternoon, so I told her I'd stay and wait for the plumber. She's cooking me paella tonight, so I want to make sure that the plumbing is in working order. She's a hell of a cook," he responded.

Thinking about Bella cooking for my dad made me want to scream. There was also that word "stay" in there that made me wonder if he'd spent the night with her. I could feel the anger beginning to rise in me, and I didn't know what to do.

"That's nice. Mom was a great cook. Apparently that's something you value in your conquests," I snapped, hoping he'd take the bait and give me a clarification as to whether he'd already slept with Bella. If he had, I was doomed.

"Well, Bella's not a conquest…yet. I have hopes for tonight, though," he answered. If they hadn't slept together yet, it wasn't too late. I had to stop it, because she wasn't meant for him. She was meant for me. I could see it and I had to do everything I could to make sure she didn't sleep with my dad.

It was wrong on so many levels for Bella to be with my father, but the most important thing was that I had feelings for her. I didn't know what the feelings were at that point, but they were something I'd never had for another woman in my life. The idea of her and my dad was impossible for me to accept. I had to get there and stop it, regardless of whether or not I pissed off my dad.

I packed up my shit and quickly walked out to Shirley's desk. "I'm leaving. I'll be at a hearing in the morning and then working from home tomorrow afternoon. Leave when you want. We can work on that document on Monday. Have a good weekend," I told her as I left. I needed to get to Bella's house before she did, and I hoped I could provide a cockblock for anything that was going to happen between them because I had my own ideas for Bella Swan and none of them had anything to do with my father.

##

BELLA

"Ed? Where are you?" I called as I walked into my house that afternoon. I'd received a text from him at 4:00 to get home as soon as I could because Edward was probably on his way to the house, and he was probably going to be pissed. Ed had actually come over at lunch time to fix my back door, and then he had the brilliant idea to work from my house while I went to the courthouse for a pre-trial conference.

I was still surprised that I allowed myself to be a party to the plan that Edward's father had put in play, but there I was walking into my house with Edward Masen, Sr., somewhere inside, and Edward Masen, Jr., on his way to my home to either tell me to go to hell or to toss his dad out on his ass and actually spend some time with me. I hoped and prayed it was the latter.

"I'm in here, Bella," Ed called. I found him in my kitchen rooting through my fridge.

"What's up?" I asked as I threw my mail down on the counter. He was actually a very sweet man, and getting to know him had been really nice. He told me so much about Edward, and he also told me about how much he missed Liz, Edward's mom. I told him that he should go to Chicago and try to fix things with her because I could tell he was still in love with her. He was actually contemplating it, but he said he wanted to be sure his son was on the right path before he left.

"Junior is on his way, and I promised him you'd make him paella. I was just checking to see if you had everything. Look, Bella, I really have enjoyed getting to know you, and I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you're exactly what my son needs. I know that the next hour or so will be uncomfortable for you, but I hope you know me well enough to trust me. This is what he needs, and after this, you two will figure it out. Just humor me and go with whatever I throw your way. I promise not to grope you too much, and I won't get any satisfaction out of it…well, not too much…because I know that you're meant for my son. He might punch me in the nose but I still have pretty good reflexes, so hopefully he won't do too much damage," Ed remarked with a laugh.

He reminded me of Edward so much in that moment that I didn't stand a chance. I hoped it wouldn't be too uncomfortable because I actually liked Edward's dad, and if things worked out, I hoped we could all be close.

I started cooking and ten minutes later, the doorbell rang. "Ready?" Ed asked me. I nodded and we walked to the door together, arm in arm. It didn't feel that weird, about which I was grateful. He looked at me and winked before he opened the door.

On the other side of the door was the handsome man with whom I was so besotted, and he looked like hell. He looked at the two of us, and the anger on his face reaffirmed what his father already explained. He had feelings for me, and he wasn't happy about the prospect of me dating his dad. I was very glad about that.

I felt Ed squeeze my shoulder, and I knew I was up. "Edward, it's good to see you. Come in. I was just making paella. I have enough for three," I chanted as I wrapped my arm tighter around his father's waist. I saw Edward cringe, and I knew exactly how he felt. I wasn't very comfortable with it either.

He brushed passed us without a word, and when I looked at Ed, he winked again with a sly smile on his face. We walked back into the living room of my house and saw Edward pacing in front of my couch. He was pulling at his hair and he looked like he was about to lose it, so I spoke first. "Would you like something to drink?"

The look he gave me wasn't one I'd ever seen on his face, and I couldn't imagine what he was thinking. He clearly had something he wanted to say but he wasn't ready. I stood by the chair in my living room and Ed sunk down into it pulling me to rest on the arm. He wasn't touching me, which was a relief, but to anyone who didn't know what was going on it could have appeared more intimate than it actually was.

Edward pulled off his suit jacket and tossed it on the couch. "This has to stop. You two are completely wrong for each other. Christ, Dad, you're twice her age, and it's just wrong," he complained. I didn't say anything. I didn't know what to say, so I stayed perched on the arm of the chair and waited to see what the two Masens had to say to each other.

"I gave you a chance to voice your opinion on this, and you didn't say anything. Well, actually, you said you weren't interested in her, though I can't fathom why. She's beautiful and smart, so I don't know what wouldn't attract you, but you said it was fine. So, here we are. We're together. You need to figure out how to deal with it because I plan on having Bella in our lives for a long time," Ed responded as he patted my leg quite innocently.

"No. That can't happen. You can't do this to me. Bloody hell. This is wrong on so many levels, but I'm just going to blurt it out there and figure it out later. You can't date her because I have feelings for her, okay? I think I might actually be in love with her or falling in love with her or something. I don't know what the hell that even means, but I can't stand by and watch this. Bella, you can't have feelings for him. I know how we are together, and I want to find out what that means. This…this can't happen," he ranted as he continued to pace my living room. I was stunned, but apparently, Ed wasn't.

"Finally! Bella, dear, I want to thank you so much for being sweet to me and reminding me of what I was missing in my life. Now, I have a flight to Chicago that I need to catch. Junior, don't be stupid. If I was twenty-years younger and not completely in love with your mother, I'd have given you a run for your money with this one. I'm going to be gone for a while, so I'm leaving the firm in your capable hands. Don't run it into the ground while I'm gone, son," Ed responded as he kissed my cheek and left. Edward and I stood looking at each other completely unsure of what to do next.

A lot of things had come to light in a very short period of time. First, Edward Masen, Jr., had mentioned that he might be in love with me. I didn't think…nor believe…that the man actually had the first inkling of what love really was, but the fact that he'd held out hope for Carlisle and Esme gave me hope that maybe, just maybe, he had the capacity to feel love. Did I? That was the bigger question.

Not knowing what else to say during the awkward silence, I offered, "Hungry?" It was the only thing that came to mind. He sunk onto my couch and closed his eyes for a minute. When he opened them, he smiled at me.

"Yeah. I'm starving, actually," he replied with that damn sexy smile on his face. I took his hand and pulled him into the kitchen with me. It felt like a beginning of something, and I wasn't sure what it was, but I was sure that I didn't hate it. Beginnings were good, or so I'd been told by my mother, Esme, and Rosalie. Hell, I had only one thing to lose…my heart.

##

EDWARD

Little did I know that life would lead me in a direction I never thought possible. On the race to Bella's house, I ran every red light that was in my way. I couldn't believe my dad was there with her and he had planned to have sex with her that night. If they'd slept together, there'd never be anything between Bella and me. I'd never be able to get that image out of my head as long as I drew a breath, and I just couldn't let that be the end of us, so I had to stop it.

As I blurted out everything I was thinking and feeling within the first ninety seconds I was inside her house, I looked at Bella's face to see if there was any reaction whatsoever. She looked shocked, but then when she smiled at me, I knew I wasn't alone in whatever was surfacing between us. She felt something too.

I was never as relieved as I was when my father told me not to be stupid before he left and that he was going to Chicago to try to work it out with my mom. It was then that I realized that it had all been a set-up, and I wasn't sure I was happy about it. I'd been played by my dad and the beautiful woman sitting on the arm of the chair across from me. When I opened my eyes and saw her gorgeous smile, I realized I didn't really give a flying fuck how it had happened, I was just glad that it had.

"Hungry?" she asked. I had so many hungers raging in my body at that moment that I didn't know which one to satisfy first. After a quick run through of the events that had just transpired, I decided that eating might be the safest thing until we figured out exactly what we were going to do with my proclamations and the newfound place where we found ourselves.

"Yeah. I'm starving, actually," I responded with so many meanings of the words circling my head on a constant loop. She took my hand and pulled me up from the couch and led me into her kitchen.

The house was really great, and I remembered pulling up in front of it that Friday night in the cab and how freaked out I got by my thoughts that I could actually be at home there. That was what caused me to bolt that night…it felt too comfortable and I wasn't ready to accept it at all.

We had a lot to talk about because my desire to be anywhere she was outweighed the fear I had at the realization. For whatever reason, I couldn't see myself without her in my life, and it scared the living shit out of me.

"So, I believe you mentioned paella. What can I do to help?" I asked as I took off my tie and rolled up my sleeves on my dress shirt. I watched her go to the stove and lift the lid off a pot and frown.

Apparently in my tirade, she'd forgotten that she was cooking and burned it. It didn't matter to me. Peanut butter sandwiches would have been fine. We needed to talk, and as soon as we could hone in on a meal, we could get on with the inevitable.

"Shit. I burned it. There's no salvaging this. How about…uh…my grilled cheese? Do you like pears?" she asked as she emptied the burned paella into the garbage and chucked the pan in the sink.

"Sounds good to me. Tell me where you want me," I told her. She turned around and looked at me with a smoldering smile that told me exactly where she wanted me. Oh, I wanted to be there too, but we definitely needed to talk first.

"Mind out of the gutter, Miss Swan. I'm happy to help with the meal," I responded. She giggled and I, in turn, laughed like a girl as well.

"Why don't you open the wine and have a seat at the island. We can talk while I cook. I think we agree we have a lot of shit to talk about," she suggested. I walked to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of chardonnay. She handed me an opener and pulled down two wine glasses from the cabinet. I uncorked the bottle and poured us each a glass, walking around to the other side of the island and pulling up a stool.

I wasn't sure who should start first, so I took a drink of the wine and then jumped off the bridge head first. "How'd this come about?" I asked as she pulled out ham, cheese, a pear, Dijon mustard, and butter from the refrigerator. She was working on the food and I wasn't sure she heard me, so I cleared my throat as I prepared to ask again.

"I heard you. I'm just trying to think about how to answer you because I don't actually have the whole story. Somehow, your dad and Esme got together and came up with this little con. Ed called me a couple of weeks ago, after the whole Chelsea pregnancy thing, and asked me to lunch. I thought it was because we were going to be opposing counsel on a case, so I went. He told me that he believed you had feelings for me and that, basically, you needed a come-to-Jesus call. He asked me if I had feelings for you, and eventually, I told him that I did but I didn't actually know what they were or what to do about them, and he came up with this. It was very underhanded of us, and I'm sorry about that," she responded as she sliced the pear and began assembling the sandwiches.

I couldn't let her feel bad about the "how" of it, because I wasn't upset at all about that part of it. I was upset because it took my father to point it out to me before I ever saw it for myself. "I had dinner with him the Saturday night after our Friday night date. I asked him to tell me how to get over you. I told him that I wasn't the relationship type, and I didn't think you were either, and he came back with 'don't end up fifty-six and alone like me.' That really got me to thinking.

"Then, he called me and asked me if he could date you, and it sent me into orbit. I had every intention of coming over here and beating the crap out of my own father, if necessary, to get him away from you. I have to ask you one question, though. How, uh, physical did things get between the two of you?" I asked. I prayed nothing had happened, but if anything had, I had to know what it was to see if it was something with which I could live.

"What? Whoa. No. What you saw here, tonight, is the most your dad's touched me in the five times he and I have had lunch and dinner. He's always been very respectful, and he never acted like he wanted to be anything more than my friend. You have nothing to worry about," she assured. I finally felt myself relax.

"Thank God. I don't know what I'd have done if anything had happened. So, now what?" I asked. She looked at me with the same lost look on her face as I was sure I had on mine, and we both laughed.

I raised my glass, and she picked hers up and lifted it. "Here's to the blind leading the blind," I toasted. She touched her glass to mine, and we both took a sip. At least we both knew it wasn't going to be a walk in the park. We were going to have to do a lot of work to figure out how or even if we wanted to be together in a relationship.

The rest of the evening went by pretty easily. We ate dinner and cleaned up together. We sat at her kitchen table and tried to get to know each other, each asking questions about the past and school and college. I assumed it was what everyone did. We had to see if there was more to it than just physical chemistry…because we definitely had that down. At 10:00 PM, I remembered that I needed to go home because I had an early hearing.

We'd agreed that we should figure out the dating thing before we added sex into the mix. That was going to be very hard, but she was right. If we really had nothing in common, then fucking would definitely be a bad idea, though as I stood at her front door that night looking into her eyes and holding her hand, I couldn't recall why it was a bad idea.

"So, can I take you out tomorrow night?" I asked. It seemed like the natural progression of things. I had pulled off a date or two along with way, so I was pretty certain I could handle it.

"Um, yeah…sure. I think that would be fun. Should we meet somewhere or what?" she asked as her thumb stroked the back of my hand sending sparks straight to my cock.

"No. A proper date requires that the man picks the lady up at her home. If we're gonna do this, I'd like to do it the right way. Look, it'll be a first for both of us, more or less," I offered. She smiled and nodded, and I leaned down and brushed my lips gently across hers, remembering how good it felt to kiss her. She put her hand on my bicep and deepened the kiss, and God, it felt good.

I traced the edge of her full lips with my tongue taking in the taste of her, and she opened her mouth and sucked my tongue inside. I let go of her hand and wrapped my arms around her waist without much thought, and it felt completely right. Her arms wrapped around my neck, and her fingernails gently scratched the back of my head as I pulled her tighter against me. I knew she could feel how hard I was through our clothes, but that was going to be a fact of life, so the sooner she got used to it, the better off we were going to be.

After several minutes of heated kisses, she gently placed her hands on my shoulders and pushed back breaking the kiss. We were both breathing hard, and her face was flushed in the most attractive way. "So, do you want to send me a text about what time?" she asked.

"A text? No. I'll call you tomorrow. Thanks for dinner. It was delicious. Good night, Bella. I'm looking forward to tomorrow night," I told her as I released the hold I had on her. I didn't want to, but I needed to leave before I succumbed to the desire to haul her over my shoulder and find her bedroom from where we wouldn't emerge for days.

"Good night Edward," she told me as she opened the door to go back inside. I leaned down and gave her another quick kiss and left. For once in my life, I didn't want to go home. That had to mean something, didn't it?

##

BELLA

"So, Bella, you've been quiet about this long enough. What's going on with you?" Rosalie asked. We were having lunch at a little restaurant near her shop. She was backed up at work after having been gone for her honeymoon and things hadn't slowed down at all since her return. Apparently, a '68 Shelby GT-500 KR that Rosalie had worked over had hit the papers, and people were crawling out of the woodwork to get her to work on their cars. She'd hired another mechanic and two body guys, but they were still behind. I knew if she was taking time to have lunch with me, she was dying of curiosity.

"Well, I'm not really sure how to explain it because I'm still kind of in shock. I, uh, have a date with Edward Masen tonight," I began. I should have timed it a little better because she choked on her water. Once she regrouped, I steeled myself for the barrage of questions that were coming my way.

"Bella, you don't date. Not since we got out of college have you ever had a real date. I can't believe that your first plunge into the dating pool as an adult, you're going to date another non-dater. This won't go well, you know," she determined. She was probably right, but I certainly didn't want to hear it.

She was supposed to be one of my best friends, and there she sat beating down my shaky confidence that it was going to work out. I was ready to call him and call it off after her announcement. He hadn't called me yet, so I was certain that he was having second thoughts, too. I pulled out my phone to send him a text when it rang.

I looked at the caller ID and saw it was Edward. I swallowed hard and answered, "Hi." I started to get up and excuse myself when Rosalie grabbed my arm and shoved me back into the chair. I didn't want to get dumped sitting across from her, especially after what she'd just said. I started to get up again, but she gave me her infamous "bitch look," so I sat back down.

"Hi, Bella. I'm sorry I haven't called before now. I had a custody hearing this morning, and then as I was getting ready to leave court, I got assigned a pro bono case by Judge Murphy. I just got out of a meeting with my new client. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that I'm really looking forward to tonight. I'll pick you up at 7:00, if that's okay. I thought we'd go to Volterra across from the Bell Tower. I mean, if you like Italian. If you don't, then we can find another place," he offered. He actually sounded excited, so I felt a lot better about it. I wasn't about to allow Rosalie to ruin it for me.

I looked at Rosalie and stuck out my tongue. "That sounds perfect, Edward. I can't wait. I'm just having lunch with Rosalie right now," I responded.

"Hey now, don't let her shake your confidence in me. I talked to Emmett this morning before I left for court, and he told me that they have a bet on whether or not we'll work out. He's betting we will, and she's betting we won't. I told him to go fuck himself and get a damn hobby. I'd suggest you tell Rosalie the same damn thing if she starts in," he reported. I laughed.

"That's interesting and very on point, Counselor. I'll do just that. I'll see you tonight," I replied. We said good-bye, and I flipped my phone closed.

I looked at Rosalie and smiled at her. "Go fuck yourself," I told her. She looked shocked for a second, and then she started to laugh. It was loud enough that everyone turned around to stare at us.

"Fine. You're onto us. Okay, just know you've been warned. When this goes south, I'm going to be the first to tell you that I told you so. Emmett's convinced that the two of you are meant to be, but I think he's crazy," she answered. Our food arrived, and I changed the subject, or so I thought. That was until she saw someone come in and another topic occurred to her.

"Out of curiosity, how are you going to handle it when you or Edward happens into a former fuck buddy? You know, it's going to happen because you both got around. How are you planning to handle it?" she asked. It was so far out of left field that I was actually stunned silent. Just then, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up and saw what had sparked the topic of conversation. Eric Yorkie.

Eric was a guy who Rosalie fixed me up with a couple of years ago. He was a very nice guy, and we went out for drinks one night after she coaxed me to go. One thing led to another, and we went back to his house. We had sex…or at least we started to…and in the middle of it, he went soft, collapsing on the bed next to me and proceeding to cry like a little girl.

After I dressed, I asked him what was wrong. He confessed that he thought he was gay and that he wanted to have sex with a woman at least once to figure it out for himself. I kind of popped his cherry, and he came out of the closet to his family a week later. Not my proudest moment, but I was happy he'd sorted out his little conundrum.

"If it isn't the only woman to have sampled the Yorkie goods? Bella Swan, you look absolutely radiant. Is that a Jil Sander? Only you could pull that off. So, listen, I'm glad I ran into you. How've you been?" he asked as he pulled a chair from another table to join us uninvited.

"Hello, Eric. I'm well, and yes, this is Jil Sander. How are you?" I asked. He was a nice enough guy. Since coming out, he'd become extremely flamboyant, but he was still a sweet man which was why I actually went for drinks with him in the first place.

"I'm good. Listen, I have a little legal matter that I'd like to talk to you about. Do you have a card?" he asked.

"Oh, um, sure. Are you sure it's something in my field? I handle family law and divorces. If it's something else, I can give you a referral," I offered.

"No, no. You're exactly what I need. My boyfriend and I want to register as a domestic partnership. We need someone to guide us through it. Do you know anything about it?" he asked. I actually didn't, but that was because no one had ever approached me to handle one before.

"I don't have any experience, but I can certainly help you. Give me a call, and we'll set something up," I suggested as I handed him my card.

"Now, how ironic is this? You popped my cherry, and now I'm going to pop yours…domestic partnership wise. This is delicious. Rosalie, I need to bring Trent in to see you. His car is in serious need of a makeover. I'll call you. Gotta toddle, ladies. Take care," he chanted as he left us. Once he was gone, we both laughed. He was something else that was for sure.

##

As I pulled on a DKNY white ruffled V-neck blouse and long, taupe silk skirt, I thought about what Rosalie had mentioned at lunch about running into former fuck buddies. It was inevitable, and it was likely something we should talk about.

I tied a black silk belt around my waist, slipped on a pair of red peep-toe pumps, and checked myself in the full length mirror on the back of the closet door. I looked good. I'd pulled my hair back in a low ponytail and skipped jewelry because the blouse had a lot going on, and I didn't want to look overly made up. It was dressy enough for dinner, but not too dressy that he'd feel compelled to take me somewhere fancier. It was just right for Volterra.

Just as I was walking down the stairs to the living room, the doorbell rang. I looked at my watch and saw that it was 6:59. He was a punctual guy, and I liked punctuality. I opened the front door, and there he stood, looking as gorgeous as ever.

I'd only ever seen him in suits, which fueled many fantasies, but damn if he didn't look completely edible in more casual clothes. He was wearing khakis, a blue and white striped button-down shirt, and a navy sport coat. He looked good enough to fuck, that was for sure.

"Hello," he chuckled as I stood blankly staring at him. I snapped out of my musings and stepped aside to allow him to enter.

"Hi. What's with the "Whole Foods" bag?" I asked as I closed the front door and followed him down the hallway to my kitchen. He placed the bag on the island and turned to me with a sheepish smile on his face.

"Well, I determined flowers were too trite, so I decided to go in another direction. Even though the paella was ruined, it still looked really good, so I wondered, if I provided the ingredients, could I get you to invite me over sometime and make it again?" he asked as he placed the meat and seafood in my fridge. I laughed. It was a unique offering, and I liked it a lot. It showed balls, which I could respect.

"Don't you want to see how this date goes before you harness yourself to another one?" I asked as I put away the remaining ingredients. As soon as I closed the cupboard door, he pulled on my wrist and pulled me into a hug.

"I can't imagine anything that would happen that would cause me not to want to see you again. I thought about you all day," he told me and leaned down and gently kissed my lips. Oh, man, did he kiss me. The man was very good at damn near everything he did, but kissing…if it was an Olympic sport, he'd have been the gold medalist.

After several minutes, he pulled back and relaxed his hold on me, and after I took a deep breath, my brain actually engaged. "I thought about you, too. So, should we go?" I asked noting it was nearly 7:15 and the fact that I didn't know what time was our reservation. I was in North Queen Anne, so it could take a little time to get there.

"We should. You look stunning, by the way, though I'd have expected no less," he complimented as I pulled on my raincoat. There was a chance of showers…just like every other day in Seattle…and I wanted to be prepared.

The car ride was nice. We listened to music, and he told me about the pro bono case he got assigned by Judge Murphy. It didn't surprise me. She had a habit of hitting you with something like that when she ruled in your favor. His new case was a paternity suit.

"I mean, the guy knows he had sex with the woman. That's not even in dispute. He claims that she tricked him and got pregnant on purpose, and now, she wants to go after him for child support. My client, the young woman, is all of eighteen and says that he's the father because he was the first guy she was ever with. Then, the son-of-a-bitch takes off on her.

"I don't exactly feel comfortable meeting with her by myself, so I had to get Judge Murphy's law clerk to sit with me. I don't mind representing her, but I'm going to have to get someone to second chair it for me," he explained. I could see the problem for him immediately.

He was a very good looking guy and she was a young girl. Hell, I was into the guy and I was a jaded twenty-eight year old woman. A naïve, younger woman wouldn't stand a chance at not falling for the man.

"You know, I wouldn't mind helping you with that, in the interest of the greater good. I've done a few of those at the Women's Law Clinic. I'm busy, but I'd be up for helping you out with it, given the fact that you feel uncomfortable. You'd be lead counsel and take care of the paperwork, but I wouldn't mind helping with the meetings and any court appearances," I volunteered. I may have been a little jealous. His dad liked younger women, and I didn't need a younger woman coming in and infringing on my territory. And, yes, he was definitely becoming my territory.

"You'd do that? That would be fantastic. I'll set up a meeting with her next week. She's still in high school so it would have to be later in the day, but I think you'd like her. Her name is Bree Tanner. She seems like a sweet girl, and she only has her mom. I don't know where her dad is, but they don't have a lot of money, which is why she was assigned to me. I'd love it if you'd help me. I'll e-mail you all the stuff tomorrow," he replied as he pulled up in front of the restaurant. He helped me out of the car and handed the valet his keys. The feeling of his hand on my back as he guided me into the restaurant was incredible. I was going to have a hard time keeping my panties on when he took me home.

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E/N: Of course, Eric and Trent wouldn't have to register as a domestic partnership any longer because Washington State just pass gay marriage legislation, but at the time when this was written, that option wasn't available to them, so please bear with it.

Please let me know what you think!

Till next time…xoxo