Disclaimer: None of this is mine, nor will it ever be (sigh). I like to play with the characters that Stephenie Meyers created and make them do pervy things or become angels with a bad attitude.

Chapter Six

BPOV

Edward hovered near me for the rest of the day and glowered at Riley. Hell, I glowered at Riley. Why he was here was beyond me? As Edward was putting the decorations away and pulling out the holiday decorations, Riley came over to me.

"Can we talk, Bella?" he asked, blinking at me and giving me his seductive grin.

"No. We can't. You've done enough, Riley. You robbed me blind and …" I growled, not wanting to say the other thing. My heart deadened and all I wanted to do was to take all the sleeping pills in the bottle and never wake up. "I think it's best that you leave."

Riley's eyes flashed and he moved closer to me. "Back off," Edward snarled, growing almost twice his size. "I don't know what you did, but obviously, Bella's not comfortable with you."

"Oh, the boyfriend," Riley sneered, his nose wrinkling.

"Right. The boyfriend," Edward said, twining his fingers with mine. "Why are you even here? You're the night custodian."

"Shawn called in sick," Riley chuckled, gazing at me and licking his lips. "I'll see you later, Bella. In more ways than two."

I shuddered, remembering that tone. Edward moved me behind him, clenching his hand into a tight fist. Riley took the hint and left my classroom. I released his hand, but Edward held firm until Riley was in one of the fifth-grade classrooms. "I'm not leaving you, Bella. He is truly evil," Edward muttered. He looked at me and his green eyes were glittering with tears. "He will … He will not stop."

"How do you know that?" I asked. "Can you read his mind?"

"No, but I know men like him," he choked out, pulling me into his arms. I felt a stronger connection around me and I felt so protected. A few moments later, Edward released me, cupping my cheeks with his hands. "I'll stay until you get ready to go bed. Okay?"

"Okay," I conceded.

The kids came back in just prior to dismissal and we sent them on their buses or parents. Angela left immediately after school, wishing Edward luck before she met up with her fiancé at the Port Angeles airport to catch a flight to SeaTac. Edward and I left shortly after that, driving to my apartment. "Do you want to go out? I mean, have some drinks or dinner?" Edward asked.

"I don't know," I shrugged. "I'm tired and I've got a migraine." Edward nodded and helped me into my coat. He gallantly carried my bags and helped me into my truck. He followed me back to the apartment. "Do you want something to eat?"

"I took the liberty of ordering some pizza," Edward said. "I figured out how this cell phone contraption worked and it's really quite convenient, yeah?" I giggled, seeing his expectant smile. We went inside, taking off our coats and sitting on my ratty couch.

"So, I have to ask. Why do you float from job to job?" I asked. "You're clearly college educated and compassionate. Why don't you just teach full-time? Are you some trust-fund baby?"

"I can assure you that I'm not a trust-fund baby," Edward snorted, taking a sip of the beer I'd offered him. "I just flexibility. I go where I'm needed."

"And thought that working in my building was where you needed to be," I said, poking his knee with my toe.

"It turns out I was right," Edward replied, grabbing my foot with cat-like reflexes and massaging my arch. I bit back a moan, reveling in how good it felt. "What about you? Did you always want to be a teacher?"

"I knew that I wanted to help kids," I muttered.

"Try to contain your enthusiasm, Bella," Edward teased, his hands moving up to my calf and relaxing the muscle.

"I do. I do want to help kids. You'd be surprised how much shit these kids have to deal with," I said. How much I had to deal with. "I wanted to be the constant, consistent feature in a kids' life. It was something that I never had as a child and I was bound and determined to do it for the future."

"Were you in the system?" Edward asked, his hand stilling and moving to take mine. "Foster care?"

"Yeah and I was placed with the assholes," I spat. I curled up, building the wall around myself and not encouraging any sort of contact. I couldn't stand to be broken again. However, Edward didn't seem to notice my clear boundaries. He moved closer and plopped me on his lap. "You know, when a woman curls up in a ball, that means she doesn't want to be touched."

"And you'll learn that I'm a stubborn son of a bitch," he said, grinning cheesily. "I wanted to give you comfort."

"I'm fine," I replied blandly. Though, having his arms around me, I felt comforted, protected, loved. Edward rolled his eyes, snuggling me to his chest and without my permission, melted against him. "You are a softie."

"Really?" he deadpanned. "Thanks to my work in construction, I have an eight-pack." I laughed quietly, my hand moving down to his belly to feel his rock-hard abs. He was right. His fingers toyed with my ponytail and leaned his cheek against the crown of my head. "How did you end up in foster care?"

"Mom overdosed and I never knew my sperm donor," I said. "I was placed in a group home first and then with several different couples until I turned eighteen. However, my time with my foster families was ugly. It was a never-ending circle of abuse." I didn't want to get into too many details about my past. It was ugly. He didn't need to know about the foster daddies who used me as their sex toy. He didn't need to know about how my foster mommies beat the shit out of me because their husbands liked to fuck me more than them, or how they starved me out of retribution. "I was lucky that I had a rich grandmother, my mom's mom, who allowed me the opportunity to go to college."

"If you had a living grandparent, why didn't you live with her?" Edward asked, tightening his embrace.

"She was senile and living in a nursing home," I answered. "Or so I was told. I had to go through some pretty significant hoops to get my inheritance, but I received it and managed to pay for four years of college, but I still had to take out student loans. Not as many as I'd believed when I was a foster kid with no prospects, but my loans were manageable. Until Riley."

"What did he do?" Edward questioned.

"He stole from me, among other things," I grimaced. "It's why I have to live in this apartment above the coffee shop, working to pay off some of my rent. He cleaned me out of all my savings and gave my name to his bookies. I was threatened daily until I spoke to one of the goons. They stopped after that, since I was not the one who owed them money." I left out how I gave the goon a blowjob, after he threatened to …

God, my life sucked.

Edward was about to say something when there was a knock on the door. He hugged me, moving to the couch and paying for the pizza. He put it on the cocktail table. "Bella, from the way it sounds, you've had a rough life. I am hoping that we're going to be friends. As my friend, I'm vowing to you that I'll do everything to keep you safe."

"You can't be here all of the time. That's just weird," I quipped, trying to make light of the situation.

Edward's cheeks flushed. "I'm just a phone call away, Bella," he whispered. He took my hand, squeezing my fingers gently. "Now, let's enjoy some pizza and relax for the rest of the evening."

We did, watching some television and polishing off the family-sized pizza. Edward ate most of it, but somehow coaxed me to eat at least three slices. As the movie continued, I eventually drifted and that warmth I felt before enfolded me. I sighed snuggling closer to Edward and feeling at peace.

xx OOTD xx

I woke up the next morning and I was in my bed. Next to the bed, there was a note from Edward.

Dear Bella,

I hope you didn't mind that I tucked you into bed. I stayed with you until about midnight and then I left. I had to attend to my dog, Felix. You remember him? Anyway, I'm still just a phone call away. If you need anything, just call.

I'll see you on Monday at school. Please be safe.

Always,

Edward

I smiled, feeling much more rested. I got dressed for my shift at the coffee shop and focused on my job, but having Edward as a friend, such a protective, handsome friend made me blush. However, I didn't know if he could handle my past. I was tainted goods. My foster fathers had ruined me and Riley instilled a deep level of distrust of any man. Edward, however, seemed inherently good, but would he break me as much Riley?

"Nice of you join me, Swan," Rose griped. "You've turned into a slacker since that weekend you were supposedly attacked. And yet, not a single bruise."

"Believe what you want, Rosalie. I was attacked and almost raped, gang raped," I snarled. "I could just quit and pay the full amount for my rent. Then, I wouldn't have to deal with your judgmental attitude."

"No, I'm sorry," Rose sighed.

"You say you're sorry a lot. It wouldn't mean all that much if you actually stopped the behavior you're apologizing for," I said, speaking to her how I'd speak to her fourth-grade students. I tied her apron around my jeans, taking my spot as barista. Rose was flummoxed, but stayed away from me for the rest of the day. Toward the end of my shift, I was making a café americano when Riley walked in. I shuddered, keeping my face impassive. "How can I help you?"

God, it killed me to be nice to this asshole.

"I'd like to talk to you, Bella," Riley said, his eyes sweeping over my body. "I want to apologize."

"No amount of apologies can erase what you did to me," I said. "Do you want some coffee? I promise not to spit in it."

"Come on, Bellini," Riley murmured, his face curling up into a friendly grin.

"Don't call me that," I snarled. "You lost that privilege when you stole all my money and …" I trailed off, gulping down bile. "You're no better than those monsters who were my foster fathers." I pinched my nose and stepped back, only to have Riley grab my arm. "Hey! That hurts."

Riley's eyes changed and they glowed evilly. "You're important to me. To us," he said, his voice deepening. "I know you have someone protecting you, but he's not what he seems."

"Riley," I hissed, trying to pull my arm away. "Stop it!"

His eyes darkened, a color darker than black and there was a low rumble. "You'll come back to me, Isabella. You were mine all along. You're not his."

As Riley growled this, Edward stormed in. His hair was windblown and his clothes were disheveled. He strode over to the counter and went to remove Riley's hand from mine. However, he recoiled, his eyes widening as he looked at my ex-boyfriend. Riley released me on his own, pushing me back and sending me into the wall with surprising force. I yelped as my wrist snapped. Rose came out, holding a baseball bat. "Both of you, get out," she snapped at Edward and Riley.

"Rose, Edward was just trying to help. Riley was causing the problems," I whimpered.

Rose narrowed her eyes at Riley, pointing her bat his head. "I see your ugly mug again, I use your head for batting practice," she growled.

"You'd lose, bitch," Riley said, turning on his heel and stomping out. With a flick of his wrist, Edward groaned and fell to his knees. "A taste of my powers, Edward." He twisted his hand and Edward collapsed, moaning lowly. With an evil cackle, Riley left.

"What the fuck happened?" Rose asked. "Bella? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Check on Edward," I said as I saw the man who effortlessly carried me up to my apartment writhe on the ground. Rose nodded, crouching down next to Edward as I stood up. My wrist was already swelling and I knew it was broken. Edward pushed away from Rose and rose shakily. "Let Rose help you."

"I'm fine," he gritted out, crossing to me. He went behind the counter and took my broken wrist into his own cold hands. He furrowed his brow, but growled in frustration. "We need to get you to the hospital, pretty Bella."

"She needs to finish her shift," Rose argued.

"Her wrist is broken," Edward sneered. He groaned, leaning heavily against the counter. I could hear bones cracking in him and he was sweating. "Come on, Bella."

"You leave, Bella, and you're fired," Rose snapped.

"And you'll be sued," Edward snapped back. "She was attacked while working in your establishment and you're denying her care." Rose huffed, but took my spot behind the counter as Edward guided me out of the coffee shop. "Do you have your car?"

"In the back," I said. "My keys are in my pocket." Edward nodded, putting his jacket around me. He reached into my pocket and led me to parking lot behind the building. He turned over the car and drove us to the hospital. He was rubbing his chest and angling his body away from me. "Are you okay? What did he do to you?"

"I'm okay. I'll be okay," he said. He looked over at me and his green eyes were dull. "Let me just worry about you."

"He said something to me, Edward. He said that you're not what you seem. What does he mean?" I asked, cradling my wrist against my body. He blew out a breath, glancing at me as he gripped the steering wheel. "Will you hurt me like Riley?"

"Never, Bella. He's truly evil," he answered. "Don't doubt me, please." His voice cracked and a tear fell down his cheek. He blinked over to me, his eyes still dull and his face drawn. "I won't hurt you." He turned into the hospital and parked the car. "Let me take care of you."

"But you're injured, too," I whispered.

"I'll be okay," he said. "Let me focus on you, pretty Bella." He leaned across and caressed my cheek. "You'll always be my first priority."

A/N: Riley just couldn't leave well enough alone. And what did he do to Edward?