$GREED$

If there were a way to go back in time, Edward would instantly transport himself to the day Felix offered to take him to get his driver's license. He studied the book from cover to cover eight years ago, memorizing every code for license restrictions. He knew every right-of-way rule, and he could define every yellow warning sign with the quickest glance . . . but he never intended to leave the house on his own, so why bother with a license at all?

Big mistake.

Waiting for Felix to get back from Abilene, he went out of his mind. After the harrowing phone call he'd received, learning of some prank calls and the anonymous threat made to Isabella, he was desperate to put his eyes on her again. Even if she wanted nothing to do with him at the moment, he promised himself he'd be the one to help her if and when she finally gave him an inch.

Somehow, Felix convinced Isabella that he should stay with her until the prosecutors reviewed the evidence she'd turned over to the agents. Apparently, whatever it was that she had in her arsenal created enough of a stir that they told her she'd be transferred to a safe house the following morning. Edward had no idea what the next step was— Felix didn't want to discuss it over the phone. However, Felix mentioned he felt a little better once he saw two guards placed outside her hotel room door. He left only after Isabella promised him she'd keep him apprised of her next move.

Edward spent the next few hours trying to distract himself with work emails chock full of proposals from the different teams within Cullen Oil. He hadn't yet decided if he wanted to change the name of the company. The guilt that lingered heavy on his conscience pressured him to keep the name because, at the end of the day, Isabella was still a Cullen. She married the man willingly; he must've had some redeeming qualities. For as much as Edward knew of Isabella and her actions over the years – courtesy of the private investigator he had on payroll— all of that heartburn-inducing knowledge still hadn't given him the insight into the reasons behind them. Edward hoped that someday he'd understand the motivation behind all the choices she made.

The keypad beeping indicated Felix was on his way in. It helped Edward breathe easier, knowing he was at the cusp of getting the entire story in detail from his friend.

"Pack your bags, we need to leave immediately."

Edward froze. Felix's calm and collected appearance wasn't the cause for alarm; it never was. Felix didn't do irrational and erratic; that was Edward's modus operandi. His words, however, sent a chill down Edward's spine.

"What?" He jumped up, ripping his hands through his hair. "I—I don't have any bags!" His gaze darted wildly around the room. "I've never left! Wha—"

"I'll bring some up. Grab some clothes and pull yourself together." Felix pointed a commanding finger. "She needs us." He turned and headed back out the door, presumably to his apartment to pack.

The feeling of dread combined with Edward's nerves overwhelmed him; he collapsed into his chair, hanging his head between his knees.

"Oh, fuck. I'm gonna be sick." He felt like his body temperature just shot up ten degrees, his stomach suddenly a tangled mess ready to implode.

"Edward," Felix rushed back, pulling a chair up before sitting next to his distraught friend. "I know you aren't ready to leave your apartment again, and I know you usually need much more time to mentally prepare for being outside in the open air . . . but she needs you."

"Did she ask for me?" Edward gasped, fighting to regulate his breathing. "I mean, I want to be there for her, you know I do, but shit— did she specifically ask for me? Last I checked she couldn't stand the sight of me!"

"She asked for us."

Edward wasn't convinced. "Are you lying?"

"Not entirely."

Edward shook his head. "She's not ready . . . I'm not ready, Felix. I need to give her more time before I force myself on her, right?"

Felix got up, grabbed the remote and pushed a few buttons. Edward's entertainment unit came to life. The ordinary bookshelves slid to a new position as the wide screen appeared, the local twelve o'clock news already in progress.

"Right?" Edward questioned again.

Felix gestured to the television. "You tell me."

The blonde journalist was already mid-report.

"…news has learned today that Gianni D'Emilia, son of accused crime boss Giuseppe D'Emilia, has been brought in for questioning in connection with the political scandal involving Congressman Andrew Gimble and Senator Jasper Whitlock that rocked the capital of Texas all the way to Washington D.C. Viewers may remember that allegations have been hurled at not only these two legislators but also at the mayor of Dallas, Jackson Travis, and our own Governor McAfee. Authorities were tipped off to alleged illegal activity including bribery, blackmail and other charges along with suspected prostitution involving a young female staffer in Senator Whitlock's employ. Action News will continue to bring you the latest developments in this breaking story."

Felix's stare met Edward's widened eyes. "What's she done now? I never got reports that she was with D'Emilia! So that's who's been calling her and hanging up? That's who sent her the text message?" His stomach continued to roll.

Felix shook his head, shutting down the television. "All your P.I. ever gave you was where Isabella went and who he saw entering or leaving a building. He might not've known who was already inside, Edward." He swallowed tightly, whispering, "There's a very good chance the D'Emilia family is behind the text messages."

"Messages? Plural? You only told me about one!" Edward sprinted to his bedroom and yanked several pairs of pants and shirts from hangers.

"That's what I needed to tell you." Felix's voice got louder as he approached Edward's closet. "While I was driving home, just in the last hour, she called me to say she got another message. Only this time the text also included a fucking picture of the hotel she's staying in. She forwarded me a copy."

Felix held out his phone as Edward's eyes scanned the screen and picture.

You were given fair warning, Mrs. Cullen. It's a shame that you chose this road. We'll be seeing you shortly.

$GREED$

The two men posted outside Isabella's door nodded as Felix and Edward approached. The taller one spoke up. "She's expecting you, Mr. Daniels. But I'm not sure about—"

The door opened and though he couldn't see her, Isabella's soft voice was a salve to Edward's rattled psyche. "It's fine, Matt, thanks."

Felix stepped forward first, before Edward passed through the entryway to join Bella further in the room where she'd retreated. Edward noticed all the lights were off and only the sheer curtain covered the window. A small part of him hoped she did it for his sake but he didn't bother to ask. He watched her pull out a cigarette and light it while Felix secured the locks on the door. Edward, whose stomach was in his throat, only stared at her, unable to find the right words or where to begin.

"When did you start smoking?" It was all he could come up with.

She shook her head, tossing her lighter on the desk. "When my life turned to utter shit." Edward watched her take another drag before she flicked a few ashes in the tray. Her discomfort— maybe even anger—simmered just below the surface of her flawless skin. "I'm surprised your detective didn't see me purchase them over the last several weeks and report back like a good little minion."

"I don't—" He cut himself off, knowing he deserved that jab. "He only told me where you were staying now. He hasn't worked for me consistently for a while."

Her eyebrows rose. "You mean ever since I was arrested?"

Edward nodded before his gaze fell to the floor.

"Poor, poor Edward." Her sarcasm dripped. "You must've been so bored for the last month. Can't live vicariously through me, imagining what life is like outside your four walls." Her hard stare pierced him. "I'm getting all misty just thinking about it."

"Bella . . . I—"

"It's IS-A-BEL-LA, Edward, and fuck you."

Edward snapped his mouth shut, turning his head toward Felix who approached her. "Cool it, Isabella. Your bitchy attitude can wait." Felix pulled a chair up to the couch she was sitting on. "What's the latest?"

Smoke flowed from her lips before she rested the cigarette on the ashtray. "Denali says they're moving me tonight. I don't know where . . . and I can't tell anyone. Not you, not my mom."

"For how long?" Edward felt flushed, the thought of her essentially disappearing for who-knows-how long sickening him further.

"Until the deposition, maybe even the trial, I guess. Now that I turned over all that evidence, every one of them is probably going up the river."

"And the D'Emilias?"

She shrugged, extinguishing the last of her butt. "I have no idea. I just torpedoed four major political careers, to say nothing of all the staffers who worked for them. Then I managed to tie some of it to a highly sought-after crime family?" She snorted, shaking her head. "I'll be lucky if I see my next birthday."

"Don't say shit like that," Edward boomed and then tried to compose himself again. "Please." He was in agony hearing her flippant attitude when her life truly could be on the line.

She huffed. "It's true though, right? How much of a life am I going to have after all this plays out?" She leapt up and stormed toward the window. "I'm gonna have the fucking mafia after me, Edward!"

He tore his hands through his hair muttering, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Why the hell are you sorry? You just screwed me out of money. The rest I did all on my own. I pissed off the wrong guy because I wouldn't fuck him." She guffawed. "The irony, right? The one guy I didn't sleep with is the one who derailed this crazy train."

"The other one who's been in the news? That Peter guy?"

She nodded, swiping her finger under her eye. "Doesn't really matter anymore."

"I need Chinese," Felix announced out of the blue. "Anybody else?"

Edward shook his head, the faintest grin appearing. "Subtle."

"Thanks," Isabella whispered, also smiling while reaching for a tissue. "Cashew chicken for me."

Felix nodded. "You got it. Your usual, Edward?"

"Yeah." Edward got up and followed Felix to the door. "Thanks for giving us some time on our own," Edward murmured to his friend.

Felix jerked his chin toward his shoulder. "At least she didn't stab you in the eye or anything. I figured since you survived the first few minutes, you both will make it till I get back within the hour."

"Thanks again."

With a dip of his chin and a wish of good luck, Felix walked out the door.

Edward took a deep breath; his anxiety had reached new heights today. Too bad he couldn't squeeze in a last-minute session with Dr. Banner before he left Austin. He'd pop a Xanax if he didn't need to keep his wits about him. He turned to face Isabella, who was sitting on the sofa with her head tipped back, staring at the ceiling.

"So, uh . . . cashew chicken is still your favorite?" He reached the couch and pointed down. "May I?"

She nodded, her eyes holding none of the bitterness she'd greeted him with earlier. "It's not like it's been a dozen years and my tastes have changed."

"I know," he sighed. "But it feels like it."

"Yeah . . . I guess it does."

Somehow he dug deep and found his nerve. "Tell me what to do Be—Isabella. I can't—" he rubbed his hands over his face, his fingers circling his eyes. "Can't stand the thought that you despise me."

After about ten seconds of silence she shook her head. "I don't think I could ever despise you, Edward."

A mild sense of relief washed over him, but he couldn't leave well enough alone. "Buuuut . . ."

Isabella shrugged, her sad smile a window for Edward to peek into her damaged heart. "But what do you want?" She cleared her throat of emotion. "Why are you even bothering with me anymore? Didn't we hurt each other enough?"

"I was jealous," he blurted. The truth felt freeing. "It gutted me that I couldn't have you all to myself."

"You had me more than anybody else did, if that makes you feel any better."

"Somehow I doubt that." Edward flinched after hearing his words. "I— I didn't mean it like . . ."

She sucked in her cheeks. "Hey, if the thong fits, right?"

"Isabella, please. You know what I meant."

"Yeah, and you know what I meant, too. You're a smart guy, Edward." She tapped her temple. "Think I consistently spent one weekend a month with any other guy on the planet, for the two years since we graduated, without walking away with twenty grand? I wanted to be with you. We were friends . . . best friends. And don't forget, you were the one who ultimately kicked me out that morning. I know I said I was leaving, but you handing me that cash pretty much sealed our fate."

"Why did it always have to be about the money?" His temper flared. "I have more money than you could ever possibly need! I came clean and told you how I felt about you that night. Didn't that mean anything at all?"

"Edward? What do you want me to say? I'm a whore!" she shouted. "Was a whore, whatever. Yeah, I'm smart too, but I used everything I had and that included spreading my legs. It got the job done. I made a helluva lot of money and things were great."

He raised his eyebrows. "Really?"

She reached for another cigarette. "Well, I was happy. But then it all unraveled. Jasper left me at the first sign of trouble."

Edward couldn't stop himself. "But even without all of that . . . you really think he was going to leave his family and start a life with you? In D.C.? That you two would ride your political red carpets all the way to the west wing?"

She sucked in and smiled facetiously. "Well, I guess we'll never know."

The air conditioning unit kicked in with a whir, breaking the awkward silence.

Edward closed his eyes, sighing. His snarky comebacks were poisonous. This wasn't the direction he meant to take. "I just want to know how I can fix this. I can give you your company back. I don't even want the thing." That wasn't exactly true. He was a businessman and it was a smart investment, but he wanted her more, and that was his bottom line.

She laughed out loud. "Umm, thanks for the generous offer, but I can't do shit with a company if I'm about to go underground. Even after the deposition, I'll owe all my community service time."

He listened intently, oddly excited that she was offering information instead of having to pull it from her. "Is that what the prosecution is offering?"

"Yeah. I posted the bail almost immediately, so it's just time already served, three hundred hours of community service and probation."

"Wow."

She lifted one shoulder. "Better than spending it in jail, I guess." Silence fell again before she turned to him. "And I never meant to hurt you. You were my best friend, you knew me better than anyone on the planet."

"Exactly," he implored. "So why was it so difficult for you to just open your eyes and see what was right in front of you?"

"Because you were hidden. Yeah, you might've been there for me, but I couldn't see me living in the shadows like you. I was meant to be out and about." She threw her hands up. "That's who I am. I wanted to be seen. I wanted to be the center of attention."

Edward nodded, resigned. "Well, I guess you got your wish. You headlined every news report for two weeks straight, and I'm sure you'll be right back out there again once all this shit goes to trial." He folded his hands, resting his head on his fist. "I need to shut up. I'm saying everything wrong. I don't want to hurt your feelings like this."

"There's not much more that can be done to me, Edward." Her voice was strained. "I just don't know what you want me to say. I know I hurt you. And I hate that it happened. But at the time, my focus was on something else . . . a bigger prize. I can't change what I was striving toward at the time. I can apologize, but I can't change it."

"I hate that I wasn't enough for you. I know I lead a strange life by others' standards. But . . . I tried. However short I fell, I did try a bit for you."

He watched her dab at her eyes with her knuckle. He didn't mean to make her cry. This was such an emotional upheaval. He needed to splash some water on his face to try to calm down a bit.

When he got to the bathroom door, she called out. "Did you really mean what you said at Cullen Oil that day?"

He stepped back closer to her. "Regarding what?"

Her eyes met his. "The lamp . . . my light, I mean. You said you hadn't turned it off since I left." She cleared her throat. "Were you serious?"

He nodded, running his hand on the back of his neck. "It was— it was all I had left of you. The way that I sent you away that morning . . . it was like I punctured a lung when I walked away from you, and I've been doing everything I can to breathe again." He shook his head, thinking of how ridiculous he must've sounded to this woman. "Keeping that lamp on was the only way I could keep our connection. Yeah, I got mad and sad and vengeful and lonely every time I thought about you . . . about us. But I needed something of you . . . anything. And that was it."

He watched her absorb everything he said, and he hoped she kept an open mind while listening. Edward knew there was no way to expect that she'd wrap her arms around him in a hug, absolving him of all the wrongs he did to her. But the fact that she listened right now seemed to be enough.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be the girl you needed, Edward."

"And I'm sorry I couldn't be the guy to sweep in and save the day. I know I'm not what you ever pictured at your side. I realize I projected all of this onto you, and it wasn't fair. I've just . . . well, I've always cared. Since the first day you showed up in my dark hallway, you started to bring me out of my corner of solitude."

"And look at you now," she said through a giggle. Inside he was cheering for her shift toward levity. "An impromptu car ride from Austin to Abilene. How are you feeling?"

"Like I could vomit at any given moment." He rolled his eyes at himself. "But I'll make it. I needed to be here for you." He inhaled sharply, his eyes closing, grasping for his nerve again. "I'd do anything for you."

Isabella stared silently, the faintest smile gracing her lovely face. "Thanks," she whispered. "I know my manners are piss poor right now. But you being here does help. And thank you for sending Felix to stalk me. If it weren't for his persistence, I don't know where we'd be."

Edward chuckled. "He's the best guy around. I don't think either one of us would've survived these last few years without him."

"You're definitely right about that."

Edward walked into the bathroom, feeling a little more solid about the microscopic truce he and Isabella had forged. It was a start.

Felix came back to the room a while later with their dinner. The three of them kept the conversation to a minimum; light and playful chatter seemed superfluous considering the circumstances of the moment.

"So why did—" Isabella was interrupted by a loud knock at her door.

"It's Detective Denali, Mrs. Cullen." After walking through the doorway, the detective's eyes zeroed in on Edward and Felix. "It's time to go. We need to transfer you within the hour." She turned toward the men. "And you are?"

Edward stood as Felix crossed the room to shake her hand. "Felix Daniels. This is my friend, Edward Masen."

Denali turned toward Isabella. "And who are they to you?"

Both men looked at Isabella, wondering what her answer might be. The choices seemed colorful to say the least. Former study partner, best friend and one-time lover? Escort-gig driver? Company-stealing life ruiner?

"They're ummm . . ." She looked at them and sighed before turning back to the detective. "They're pretty much the only family I've got."


A/N: Much love to the GREEDy Team Cabana: Hoodie, Lay, Born, Cejsmom and Momo. My crew, my posse . . . we should get leather jackets . . . or something. Anyway, heaps of thanks and love to my readers and especially those who take the time to leave me their thoughts. I wouldn't be able to do it without your support!

Thanks for reading . . . see you Sunday!

xo, Jen