A/N: Some clarification. Edward isn't worried about Bella having a job. He's worried that if she's going to a job, Alec and James can get to her. She's protected at the house - good security - but if she had a job, she would be out and about without protection. He just needs to make sure she's aware that they may be... around.

And for the record - she DID change her name when she got married. She is Bella Cullen.


"Bella, you are making this a lot more difficult than it needs to be." Edward watched the stubborn set of her jaw and knew she wasn't going to give in easily. "There's no need for you to get a plan of your own. It's more cost effective to simply add you to my plan."

"Cost effective for me, maybe," Bella argued. "I want to take over payments as soon as I have a steady income. If I'm under your plan, you're still paying the bulk - I'd just be responsible for what? The $10 fee?"

Edward shook his head. "I want to get you a smart phone. The data package is extra for that." He held up his hand in a placating gesture before she could protest. "I know you'll say it's unnecessary, but I want you to have data options - GPS, that sort of thing."

She gave a little growl that had him struggling not to laugh. "Fine. I'll pay for the excess then."

"Agreed," Edward said with a nod. "But I'm buying you the phone." He put a finger to her lips, stilling her arguments. "It's a gift. I haven't yet given you a gift. I get at least one, don't I?"

Frowning, she held up her left hand so her ring finger was on prominent display. She raised both eyebrows as if to say, 'then what do you call this?'

Edward fought a scowl. Their rings - which he had absolutely refused to let Bella pay for - were points of great contention for him. "I've told you before: these don't count. It's the principle of the thing. Sober, I would have bought something at a better quality. In fact, it's quite out of character for me not to have replaced these already."

"Don't start," she cautioned, jabbing him lightly in the chest with her finger.

Smiling, Edward closed his hand over hers against his heart. It was such an automatic reaction, he didn't fully realize the intimacy of the gesture until he'd already done it. Perhaps he should have let her go, but he realized suddenly that he didn't want to, and she wasn't trying to pull her hand back.

Wrapping his fingers around hers more tightly, he lifted his free hand, skimming her cheek. He really couldn't tell whose breath stuttered - his or hers - but he knew with certainty that he wanted to kiss her. He'd married her and slept beside her... and now he wanted to know what it felt like for her lips to move with his.

"Hello, folks. How can I help you today?"

They both jumped back, startled by the appearance of one of the sales associates who had been busy before. Edward chuckled, the sound thin and nervous, as he rubbed the back of his neck, trying to remember what it was he was supposed to be doing. "Yes. I'd like to add a line to my plan."

~0~

After they sorted out the cell phone situation, they met Edward's brothers and their significant others for lunch. Bella was surprised when they ended up at the mall's food court.

Faced with two pre-teen boys who were always hungry and rarely agreed, Carlisle and Esme had occasionally treated Jasper and Emmett to food at the mall. It was a novel idea that Bella could get behind. The food court was cheap and there was a variety so everyone could get exactly what they wanted.

When Edward told the story, Bella noticed his wistful expression. It was no wonder he readily agreed to the meeting place even though she knew damn well he didn't like much of the food. She'd noticed how some of the traditions that the other men took for granted meant a lot to Edward.

As they sat down for lunch - the six of them choosing food from four different places - Bella's new phone was a popular topic. Edward had shooed her away when he was buying the thing, so she had no idea how much he'd spent. Judging from how many doohickeys the boys went over, Bella thought the answer might be a lot.

"Give it here," Alice exclaimed finally, grabbing the phone from Emmett's hand. "It's her phone, not yours."

But rather than hand it over, Alice began pressing buttons. "You two!" she commanded, snapping her fingers and pointing to Edward and Bella. "Show me the love." She held the phone away from her, hand poised.

It took Bella a moment to figure out she wanted to take a picture. More specifically, she wanted to take a picture of her with Edward. It was reasonable to think that Bella might want a picture of herself with her husband.

Suddenly nervous, Bella looked over at Edward uncertainly. He gave her an apologetic smile, but lifted his arm as she scooted toward him.

Despite her frazzled nerves, it felt almost natural to put her arms around him, resting her head lightly on his chest as he curled her closer to him.

It was like earlier that day, when they'd been buying her phone. There was a moment when she found herself closer to him than she expected to be. There was a warmth to the air - a heat that was comforting and titillating all at once. That morning, she got the odd feeling that he wanted to kiss her.

Then, as now, it wasn't a matter of keeping up an act, a false pretense. She slipped, for one moment, and forgot she was an interloper in a life that didn't belong to her. As his arm tightened around her and she felt his nose nuzzle her hair, it seemed like she was in the right place and time.

Alice looked at the result with a satisfied sigh, clicking a few more buttons before she handed the phone back to Bella. When Bella looked, she saw that Alice had made the new picture her background.

Bella's breath caught, her stomach fluttering. It was a beautiful picture of a couple she didn't recognize. She looked bashful but happy, tucked under his arm. His eyes and smile matched, and the way he looked down on her, his expression seemed to indicate she was precious to him.

Looking up, Bella found Edward's eyes on her. They held for a beat before they both untangled themselves from one another, quietly turning their attention to their plates.

"Bro, while we're all here, we should go take a look at tents," Emmett said in between huge mouthfuls of the Mongolian BBQ he'd bought. "Are we going to get two tents to fit the four of us? We could get one of those huge motherfuckers instead."

"Tents?" Edward echoed, furrowing his eyebrows.

Emmett frowned. "For the camping trip? Remember? It's only a month away." He glanced at Bella and back at his brother. "Or has something changed?"

"You're going camping?" Bella asked, pressing her lips together to keep the smile from her face.

Edward saw and tilted his head at her. "Emmett, Jasper, Dad, and I, had planned to. What's so funny?"

"You just don't strike me as much of a camper," she teased lightly.

"That's what I'm looking forward to!" Emmett said jovially. "I want to see the crowned Prince of Chicago catch a fish." He looked at his brother with a grin. "You know you're going to have to gut it yourself, right?"

Jasper scoffed, elbowing Edward in the side. "Don't worry about that, Edward. You'd have to catch one first. I think you better stock up on the jerky."

Seeing Edward's features tighten, Bella immediately regretted teasing him. She wondered again at the way his brothers acted toward him.

But Edward came back easy enough. "Don't count on it." He leaned back in his chair, and Bella almost jumped when he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "See, I have a secret weapon. Bella's father just happened to be a champion fisherperson, and he taught her everything he knew." He looked at her, smiling widely. "You'll teach me all your secrets, yes?"

Bella tempered her laughter, nodding with mock seriousness. "Consider it done."

"But it's still boys only, right?" Emmett asked, again side-eyeing Bella.

"Camping is not my thing," Bella answered, waving a hand.

"As for the tents, it will have to wait," Edward continued, dropping his hand back to his side and resuming picking at his lunch. "Bella and I still have a few places to go to."

"Like where?" Alice asked.

"I just need an outfit. Something nice I can wear to interviews," Bella said quietly.

"You're getting a job?" Rosalie - who hadn't acknowledged Bella at all except to nod a greeting - interjected.

Bella didn't answer right away, trying not to feel defensive right off the bat. She reminded herself that they all had every right to be suspicious. "Yes. I have no intention of being a housewife," she affirmed, hoping perhaps that would help to dispel any thought that she just wanted to be lazy, mooching off of Edward's money.

"And you're taking Edward as a shopping partner?" Alice snorted. "Oh, honey, no. Edward, why don't you and the boys head down to look at your tents or whatever. Rose and I will take care of Bella. Won't we, Rose?"

The other woman looked less than pleased, but she nodded. "Sure. Fine. Whatever."

Alice gave her a pointed look but otherwise ignored her, looking to Edward and Bella. "What do you say? It'll be fun."

On the one hand, Bella was more than a little nervous at the prospect of being alone with Alice and especially Rosalie. On the other hand, she didn't see why Edward should be subjected to wandering through women's clothing stores. It was nice that he was planning a get away with his brothers and father. She didn't want to interfere with that. "That's fine with me."

"Are you sure?" Edward asked, looking at her carefully.

Bella had to smile, knowing that if she gave him the right look, he would make any excuse he needed to get her out of going with the other women. "I'll be fine," she assured.

~0~

Bella had never been a big fan of shopping. She was trying to be appreciative - the women didn't need to go out of their way to include her - but it was difficult to be patient.

"I don't need a dress, Alice," Bella insisted, trying to sound firm. "One, maybe two nice slacks and a couple of nice shirts should be all I need."

"Do you own a nice dress?" Alice challenged.

"No," Bella admitted. Back in Forks, she had a skirt, but she hadn't owned a dress since she'd gone to the prom with Mike a couple of years previous. She couldn't recall if she'd ever owned a more casual dress. "But I don-"

"Did Edward tell you that there's a luncheon on the third weekend of August?" Alice challenged.

Bella shook her head, biting her lip.

"Well, they have a summer get together every year. I know this because last year, he took me," Alice said with a smile. "I'm studying business law, you see, and it doesn't hurt to have contacts."

"Then you should go again. I don't mind," Bella rushed to assure her.

Alice actually laughed. "Edward would mind. And you should mind. No one else should be at that party at his side. That's your place."

"I'm just not a party person," Bella murmured, feeling self conscious.

"It's a really nice party. Very tame," Alice assured, holding a long, pretty spring dress up against Bella.

"Lame is a better word," Rosalie said scathingly. "All of those assholes are so impressed with themselves."

"Rose," Alice warned warily. Rosalie crossed her arms but was silent. "They're not that bad. Honestly, their cousin and his wife are the worst. Felix is more of a braggart than anything. He's very full of himself. Jane on the other hand..."

"She's a bitch," Rosalie said flatly.

A few minutes later, Bella emerged from her dressing room to find that Alice had disappeared. She cleared her throat, feeling as intimidated by Rosalie as she had been initially by her oversized fiancée. "There are buttons on the back of this dress Alice wanted me to try," she explained, trying not to feel so self-conscious. She squared her shoulders, standing tall under Rosalie's cool, calculating stare.

The blond woman stepped up behind her, helping her slowly.

"So I couldn't help but notice, you're wearing the same thing you were wearing the day we met," she observed, her tone neutral.

"Oh. That's a coincidence," Bella lied. She didn't own very many changes of clothes at all. Fleeing suddenly had that effect.

"So I'm just curious. You said your mother lives in Washington."

"That's right."

"So presumably, you lived on your own in Las Vegas."

Bella looked into the mirror, catching the other woman's eye, nervous and more than a little irritated about where she was being led. "I had a roommate."

"So you did have your own place, and yet you came here with nothing."

"How do you know what I came here with?" Bella challenged.

Finished with her task, Rosalie stepped away. "Deductive reasoning. You didn't get on a plane with enough things to move across the country."

"I didn't own anything I couldn't stand to leave behind."

"I guess not," Rosalie said, scoffing. "Edward could replace anything you owned easily enough."

Bella bristled. "Look, I don't know what you're trying to get at-"

"Yes, you do," the other woman countered, crossing her arms. "Even if you are as innocent as you're trying to appear, you'd be stupid to believe we could all trust you right off the bat."

For a moment, Bella was silent. She stared down at her feet, trying not to let her irritation get the better of her.

"Well, let me not beat around the bush," Rosalie continued. "Something doesn't make sense here."

"This isn't a difficult story to understand," Bella said evenly. "We met, we enjoyed each others company, we," she swallowed hard, "got a little foolish. We got married."

Rosalie starred, her gaze calculating. "Funny. You never said anything about love."

Bella turned away, ready to go back into the dressing room, but the other woman caught her by the arm. "Look - it's not like Edward to carry on a booty-call type relationship. If he did it, it's not like him - he's so g'damn meticulous - I can't believe he would be so careless as to knock you up. But okay, that can happen to anyone, right? But why marry him? You don't love him. He would have supported the baby no matter if you married him or not. It's not like him, so yeah, I don't trust you. Something doesn't add up."

The two women stared at each other for a hard beat. "I would never hurt him," Bella finally said. It was the truth as simple as she could make it.

Rosalie let go of her arm. "I really hope that's true."

~0~

As they bade goodbye to the others, Edward slipped his hand into hers. Bella tried not to smile, tried reminding herself that he was just playing his role in front of his siblings, but she couldn't help the little rush of pleasure she felt when he held her hand.

So she noticed when he didn't let go when they were out of eyesight.

"Did you have a good time today?" he asked quietly.

Bella snickered. "I don't know if I could ever put shopping and good time in a sentence together, but it wasn't bad, really. Alice is really nice."

He pursed his lips, tilting his head at her and raising an eyebrow. "And Rosalie?"

She bit her lip. "Well, she's got your back. I can't really fault her for that."

"Did she-"

"She didn't say anything that the rest of your family shouldn't be thinking," Bella assured. She looked down at their joined hands, smiling slightly. "I told her I didn't want to hurt you."

He stopped, putting two fingers under her chin and tilting her face up to look at him. "You're not hurting me," he said quietly. "You know that, right?"

She blew out a breath, but nodded. He held her gaze for a moment, as if gauging if she was lying.

Apparently satisfied, he reached into his pocket, releasing her hand. "I have something for you."

"Oh, Edward," she groaned. "Not again. It's bad enough that I had to borrow money for the things I bought today. I don't need anything else."

"Humor me on this," he said with a gentle smile, holding up a cylindrical tube. "All things considered, you should have no reason to use it, but I'll feel more comfortable if you have it."

Bella took the tube, realizing instantly what it was. To her frustration, tears pricked at her eyes, and she looked down quickly, trying to hide them.

"Bella... are you crying?" Edward asked, sounding horrified.

"Ugh. Yes. But it's not..." She huffed. "It's hormones, that's all. It's... This sounds stupid, but pepper spray reminds me of my dad," she explained, wiping at her eyes. "He um... He always made sure I had some." She sniffled, laughing through her tears. "When I went to prom, he put one in the stupid little purse I had."

Edward laughed lightly with her. "Yeah, I don't blame him. It's a dad's job to look out for his pretty daughter." He brushed her wet cheek with the back of his hand, the movement tender, and Bella felt her skin warm where his fingers touched.

"Did you... Did you find a tent?" Bella stumbled, feeling awkward and all too aware of how close he was standing.

"We found a tent, yes," Edward said, beginning to walk again. He kept his hands to himself this time. "I'm unsure about going, though," he began.

Bella sucked in a breath. "The reason better not be about me."

He paused at his car, opening the passenger side door for her to get in.

"I'm just not sure about leaving you alone," he said as he got in the car.

"Look... Al-" She closed her eyes, willing down the irrational terror she felt when she even thought of him and his friend. "One of them is on parole - he can't leave the state. The other has his sister, his responsibilities tying him to Forks. They're not going to come after me." She tried to smile, waving the tube he'd given her. "And besides, I have my pepper spray. I can handle them."

His answering smile was wane. "Well, that's certainly a point, but it's not my only concern." He started the car, tilting his head at her. "They couldn't argue, you know. My brothers and my father would understand if I didn't want to leave my pregnant wife home alone."

Bella shook her head emphatically. "You're not putting your life on hold for me," she said firmly. She smiled at him, tilting her head so he would know she was teasing when she spoke again. "Besides, you can't tell me you don't want to go. A camping trip with your family? The great outdoors? No electricity? Four guys who can't cook trying not to die of salmonella poisoning from frying up the day's catch?"

At that he did laugh, a smile breaking across his features. "You don't typically catch salmonella from fish."

"No? Well, the name is misleading then." Bella frowned. "What do you get when you eat bad fish?"

"Sick."

Bella laughed, and Edward clucked his tongue. "And here you're supposed to teach me all you know about fishing. Emmett and Jasper are going to win that bet."

"Well, yeah, that's a foregone conclusion. I told you my dad taught me all he knew about fishing, what I didn't tell you was that I didn't listen to a blessed word he said." Bella shook her head sadly. "I'm afraid you're screwed."

"Who knows. Maybe we'll go bear hunting instead," he said with a wink. He chuckled at her startled expression, grinning as he backed out of the parking spot and drove toward home.


A/N: Thank you so much to GinnyW, barburella, and jfka06.

And all you pretty people. I can tell you that your frequently asked questions will be answered. In time.