I apologize for the wait. I know I always say that but it's true. I'm currenly on vacation and despite my free time it's very easy to get distracted. As a matter of fact I'm leaving to see The Nutcracker in like 20 min. but I couldn't withhold this chapter from you, like Edward withholding sex (you'll understand this when you read this chapter).

Two things: Jacob and Vanessa are NOT interested in each other and are NOT attracted. They will NOT be hooking up. Oh and my cousin was a Zeta so when you get to that part (if you were/are a Zeta or know one) please don't be offended. I meant no offense. I loved her sorority sisters.

Chapter Song: Body Language by Queen (it's very specific for a certain part in this chapter, and Queen just rocks - so yeah)

I don't own Twilight but damn! It needs to come out on DVD already so I can stop going to the freaking theater ;)

The subsequent weeks went on rather dismally and uneventfully. I had shaped my relationship with Vanessa into a schedule. We saw each other no more than 4 times a week and usually it consisted of dinner or some outing.

We hadn't had sex or really gotten anywhere near third base since that fateful night. I forced myself to resist her and set up boundaries. It would only eat me up inside if I continued to let her be that way with me. Even in the few instances when we were affectionate it felt completely staccato and uncomfortable. Vanessa seemed to be completely oblivious but I could tell I was shutting down and putting up a wall.

I hadn't spoken to Isabella since the morning in my office but that didn't stop my mind from wandering. I would wonder what she was doing; if she was smiling and happy, or what she was wearing; and if she was still running her mouth off at people. I would catch myself, staring out the window, thinking of her. She was such a distraction and I loved it.

It was now the day before Halloween and I was rather peeved. This time of year always gave us problems. Little shits thought they had a free pass to get crazy. I was lucky I didn't do patrol anymore but I still kept an eye out in the area on my way home. I wasn't above pulling over to the side of the road and shoving my badge in some little 15-year-old's face.

The local stores enforced the prohibition of selling eggs to kids during the week before Halloween but they managed to get them anyway. There was no way in hell I'd wake up the following morning to egg residue on my Volvo. And if there was, the little shit responsible for it better be sitting on the curb—toothbrush in hand—to clean it off. Sometimes I would wonder if this was Karma finally catching up with me.

Tonight I was lucky. Tonight was one of Vanessa's off nights. She'd used up her 3 passes to see me this week and I was pretty certain she wouldn't use up her last one when Halloween was tomorrow. We didn't have any official plans but Vanessa insisted on handing out candy. I wasn't sure if it was a way of showing off her costume to everyone who showed up at my apartment or not but I wouldn't dwell on it.

It was an outlet for attention—the exact attention I wasn't giving her these days. She tried getting me to dress up with her in a costume but I refused. I didn't dress up for Halloween. I was 31-years-old. There was no point.

Emmett and I had made little progress in Dylan Humphrey's case. His mother was surprisingly cooperative and not obnoxious. She didn't harass us and understood finding Dylan's killer would prove to be difficult, if we ever even found him.

The only person who was really a pain in the ass about anything was the Assistant Chief of Police but it didn't even really affect me. I wasn't sure how Richard Hirsch had ever made it to the position of Assistant Chief of Police because Charlie was a great man. And I just couldn't understand how he stomached Richard but it wasn't my place to say anything.

Apparently he'd given a few of my officers a hard time about Humphrey's case and was heckling Victoria, along with some of the other forensics team members, but when I saw him in the lobby tonight I gave him a stare that would ensure he'd behave. The man was over 20 years older than me but he was still intimidated by just one stare from me.

He knew I was heartless when I wanted to be and that I took my job seriously. He wouldn't dare cross me.

I drove out of the garage and made my way back to the apartment. I took a left instead of a right on a random street and took the scenic route. I wasn't actually planning on looking around. I just had a sick desire to see a certain someone's house.

I'd only done it 3 times since I found out where she lived but each time I did I felt strange. It was like I was a stalker or something. Why couldn't I just tell her I saw her or I knew where she lived?

Because that sounds creepy you jack-off, my thoughts reminded me.

And that's creepier than driving by her house in the first place, the less noble part of me argued.

It was a tossup. Either way it was wrong yet at the same time I had convinced myself that I was just checking to make sure she was okay. So it had to be right. If I ever saw something suspicious then it was worth it. What I was doing wasn't so creepy and strange. When I knew her house would be coming up soon, I slowed down. The area was rather quiet and thankfully no one was behind me.

Her truck was in the driveway along with his bike. I idly wondered why they never put their vehicles in the garage they had but I shook the thought away. I had a mission. I took note of the fact she had decorated her home for Halloween. That was nice. She wasn't one of those anti-Halloween, religious fanatic-types. Not that I ever expected her to be but still. It was nice to have the reassurance.

There were real Jack-O-Lantern's outside her house and she had a little scarecrow on her front door. Her living room window curtains had luckily not been drawn yet. The lights were on. I could see a bookshelf but that was about it.

I glanced at the clock on my dashboard. It was 7:32. I looked back at the window and he was standing in front of it, seemingly yelling something across the room. Adrenaline started to build up in my system. If he wanted to make it to Halloween he better have been just shouting. If he was yelling at her or arguing with her I would kill him without a second-thought.

I looked at him closely and finally noticed he had a tattoo on his body. He had a long, thick, black, vine-looking, Polynesian tribal tattoo running vertically along the right side of his torso. I wondered why he would have a Polynesian tattoo. He was fucking Native American, but I remembered what Isabella told me about his sister. She lived in Hawaii.

Jacob drew the curtains without looking and walked away. It took it as my cue to leave. I revved the engine lightly and drove off. The last thing I needed was either one of them to come outside or for her neighbors to realize she was being stalked. She would never know it was me and would justifiably freak out. Her anonymity was vital.

I parked my car and went upstairs. I grabbed a bottle of Tanqueray from under the sink and drank straight from the bottle. My throat burned with my relentless downing but it felt good. It was a good kind of burning. And the effects would make me feel better in a little while. I walked over to the living room and lay down on the couch. I turned the TV on and flipped through the channels. Nothing could hold my interest.

I wasn't sure when but at some point I had fallen asleep. I woke the next morning to my cell phone alarm clock going off. I reluctantly opened my eyes and looked outside. It was raining, of course. I took a shower and jerked off until I was sure I had no more time to kill and that I'd be able to stay cool during work. My nether-head was bereft these days and was finding the silliest, most innocent things to be completely erotic. It was actually rather pathetic how often it was taking up time in my schedule.

I went into the office but not before every secretary on my way in gave me some goodie bag with candy. I dumped the pile into my waste basket and turned my computer on.

I had to go to another precinct today and follow-up on some other cases I was responsible for. Today was going to be one of those routine days. Research suspects, look through call records, find any police records, follow up on leads etc. It wasn't my favorite part of my job but it kept me occupied. The day would pass by without consequence if I was lucky and that's how things should be.

Emmett and I met up for lunch and to my surprise Rosalie walked into the diner we were eating at. Of course, every man in the diner took notice but I was surprised when Emmett chuckled from across the table. I looked at him curiously. He was staring and smiling at her as she strolled over, gave him a deep kiss, and slid into the booth. She grinned at me and leaned into Emmett's side.

"Hey, Edward. Long time, no see," her perfect white teeth were glistening at me.

Rosalie was a burst of color and sunshine on a dreary Seattle day.

"Hey, Rose. You look great. How's school?"

"Fine. I just left my Statistics class."

Ouch.

"That sounds like fun," I muttered sarcastically.

"We were reviewing for midterms," she elaborated.

"Are you hungry, babe?" Emmett rubbed her shoulder.

"Yeah, what's that you're eating there?"

"A bacon-cheeseburger."

Like fucking magic the waitress appeared, pen and notepad in hand. Rosalie rattled off her order and the waitress disappeared behind the kitchen door. I continued picking at my fries while Rosalie folded her hands on the table and smiled at me.

"Yes?" I raised my eyebrows.

"So what's this I hear about you withholding sex from Vanessa?" she barely maintained her straight face.

"I'm not withholding sex. I'm just confused about a lot of stuff right now and sex just blurs the lines. I really need to take things slow."

"So you deny yourself sex? Are you crazy, Edward?" she laughed.

Emmett laughed next to her and shook his head. I couldn't even be mad at him for telling her. She was my best friend too. She always knew what was going on. Besides Emmett only told her things he knew he was allowed to. We had an unofficial understanding of things that stayed between us.

I shrugged my shoulders and took a bite of the chicken sandwich I was eating. The waitress came back with Rosalie's order. She ate in silence while Emmett and I discussed work stuff. Rosalie took a sip of her Coke before interrupting.

"What are you doing for Halloween, Edward? Is Vanessa spending the night with you?"

"We don't have any plans. She wants to hand out candy though at the apartment. What are you two doing?"

"Rosie was invited to a Halloween party by a classmate of hers. We're just gonna stop by and then go home. I have work tomorrow and she's got a paper to write. The party could end up being pretty lame too. I mean I'm fucking 28 after all. The Zeta house isn't as entertaining as it used to be."

I chuckled at that. I didn't know Emmett in college but if he was anything like what I pictured him to be I'm sure he'd never expect those words to come out of his mouth. Rosalie rolled her eyes and took another sip of Coke.

"Maybe we'll stop by tonight," Rosalie added.

"Sure."

"What are you dressing up as anyway?" Emmett inquired.

"I'm not dressing up. And Vanessa won't tell me what she's going to be. It's supposed to be a surprise or something," I rolled my eyes, "what about you two?"

"Emmett is going to be a firefighter for kicks," she smirked while Emmett winked at me, "and I'm going to be a race car crew member."

"Emmett's going to be a firefighter?" I laughed.

Cops and firefighters were basically sworn enemies despite the fact we worked together. It wasn't that they were bad people but we just didn't mix. It was comparable to Army vs. Navy. We kept it friendly, but it didn't go past that. Emmett shrugged his shoulders and grinned. He always liked to be a shit about things.

I paid for our lunch and headed back to the office with Emmett while Rosalie went back to their house. As I sat down at my desk and checked my messages I was let down once again when none of them were from her. I was almost paranoid when I was out of the office that I'd miss her call or miss the chance to see her. It was absolutely sick.

At 3 in the afternoon, Vanessa called me and asked me to pick up some candy on the way home. She was still stuck in the studio with her agent. On my way home I stopped by the store—as requested—and bought $20 worth of candy. It was a bunch of random crap that I wasn't even sure if kids liked or not but I couldn't bring myself to care.

Vanessa's Jetta was parked outside my house when I pulled in. I let out a heavy sigh and decided not to delay the inevitable. I was suddenly in front of my apartment door. I cocked my head to side. There were little pumpkin decals on it and we had a Halloween wreath on the door. When the fuck had that happened?

I shook my head and unlocked the door. Vanessa was sitting in the couch in her costume. Her costume which was a sexed up version of a police officer's uniform. Great! Just go ahead and mark your territory, why don't you?!

"Edward!" she squealed and strolled over to me. She kissed me chastely, wrapped her arms around my neck, and smiled at me.

I gave a tight, short smile, untangled myself from her, and walked into the kitchen. I found a pot and dumped all the candy inside. Vanessa's eyebrows furrowed and she glared at the pot.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"A pot, Edward?"

"What? It's the biggest thing I have."

She sighed and grabbed the pot from me. Vanessa set it on the dining room table and turned back around to face me.

"You haven't even said anything about my costume," she murmured.

I rolled my eyes.

"Are we seriously going to do this? You're a beautiful girl, everyone knows you're beautiful. I don't understand why you need reassurance. Trust me if there was something wrong with the way you look I'd point it out. You know just as well as anybody that I don't have a filter," I walked into the bedroom and pulled my shirt off.

"That's not why I brought it up. I just…you barely even notice me these days. I thought you'd like my idea."

I sighed, walked to my dresser, and grabbed another random t-shirt. She put her hand on mine and I stopped moving. She was standing on my left now while I held the t-shirt in my hand. Her big blue eyes looked up at me pleadingly; just pleading for attention and appreciation, pleading for me to listen to her and just go along with what she wanted. My jaw clenched and I looked down at her small, tan hand on mine.

"I'm sorry," I whispered.

And I was. I was sorry for more things than she'd ever know. Her other hand slid up my forearm, past my tricep, and sat softly on my bare shoulder. Her fingers brushed my hair absentmindedly. They barely made contact and it tickled a little.

"It's okay, Edward. I'm just trying here. I wish you would do the same. Don't shut me out," she whispered back.

I nodded silently and dropped the shirt.

"I have a favor to ask," her voice was only slightly louder but still low.

I looked back at her and waited.

"Can you wear your uniform, please? It's not even a costume. I just…it would mean a lot to me. You can't wear regular clothes on Halloween," she smiled.

I groaned and she giggled quietly.

"Please, Edward," she pled again.

And I couldn't deny her because I was already destroying her. I couldn't comply with her one request of dressing up on Halloween? I really hated submitting to her requests but my conscience wouldn't let me upset her for a very specific reason. I was overwhelmed with this nagging feeling that things with Vanessa and I would be ending soon.

That tonight would mark the beginning of the end. I wanted to delay the inevitable because I was a coward so I agreed. She smiled and hugged me tightly. And she laughed when I told her the damn uniform felt like a costume anyway.

I got dressed quickly—my peaked cap as the final touch—and made it in time to open the door with Vanessa for trick-or-treaters. It was a lot of children that came by but occasionally we'd get some teenagers or couples. Everyone was pleasant and the teens never crossed the line. They ogled Vanessa freely, as did many of the men that came with their girlfriends, but I couldn't even be bothered.

I had no claim to her anymore. The fact we were matching felt more like a coincidence rather than an intentional decision made by two people in a relationship. I was sitting on the couch with Vanessa, watching an old Halloween horror flick when I heard a group of people outside. They were laughing and talking loudly. The bell rang and Vanessa came along to open the door.

I opened the front door and was shocked when a large group of guys were at the door. One was dressed up as Wolverine, another was The Joker, and a smaller one was Batman. I filled their shopping bags up when two girls came over. They were both Native American as I noticed the other three guys were.

The smaller girl was dressed as what I assumed to be Lois Lane, while the other wasn't dressed in a costume at all. I filled their bags when suddenly I heard a giggle. My insides began to warm up and my head got dizzy. My body tingled as the sound got closer. I glanced over to my right and connected the sound to the person.

Her red hair was curled into loose waves while it hung over her shoulders and glided down her back. I let my eyes wander. Her brown eyes were still full of life and fire as always. Her full lips were accented with some sort of lip tint. She didn't need it. They were perfect as is.

Then I continued my descent. Her collarbone was exposed and it drew my attention to the prominent cleavage she was sporting. Her toned and petite body was covered in shiny black leather. It was the kind of thing that usually turned me off and I found tacky but damnit I was getting excited already. This was the most comfortable and exposed I'd ever seen her and my body was responding.

She had beautiful hips that had a gold belt sitting on them and the tiniest waist to compliment those exact hips. I looked back at her face and she smiling in surprise. She was sex on fucking legs. My mind was wandering to places it shouldn't be. Like how I would peel that suit off of her. There would be no words, just sounds, and stares.

Another body began to obstruct my view of her and I glared. The man was tall and covered in a Daredevil costume. He looked like he'd walked straight off the movie set. I wanted to be impressed by how authentic the costume looked but I was distracted by the fact that this body was, too, familiar. I wanted to growl. He didn't even have to take off the mask. I knew it was him. He pulled the mask off and smiled.

"Lieutenant Masen," he grinned and left his hand out.

His friends looked at the exchange curiously while Isabella moved forward and smirked at me. I reluctantly shook his hand and glanced at Vanessa. She was grinning excitedly. I'm sure she was curious as hell about how I knew Jacob.

"What are you guys doing here?" I spoke.

It was a collective question but I was only looking at Isabella. And she was the only person I wanted to hear from.

"Well, we live pretty close by and decided to trick-or-treat around the area," she responded back.

I nodded and glanced at Jacob.

"Aren't you going to introduce us to your friend Lieutenant," Jacob gestured to Vanessa.

I fought back the urge to roll my eyes. I never wanted Vanessa in this close proximity to Isabella ever and now he was insisting.

"This is my…friend…Vanessa," I replied in a monotone voice.

Vanessa shook hands with everyone and smiled brightly. She was always great at the hostess shit and being friendly. I was the opposite. I was good at being a prick and I was always able to effectively convey the feeling of "unwelcome" to people.

"Who are your friends, Edward?" Vanessa spoke up.

"Um, this is Jacob and Isabella."

"It's so great to meet you two. Who are the rest of your friends?" she smiled.

"That's Paul, Seth, Leah, Emily, Sam, and this is Jacob's sister, Rachel," Isabella pointed everyone out.

From what I understood, Sam was The Joker, Seth was Batman, Paul was Wolverine, Rachel was Lois Lane, Leah wasn't dressed up, and Emily was some super heroine I didn't recognize.

"Why didn't you dress up?" I chuckled and spoke to Leah.

"I just got off of work," she shrugged.

"Apparently you didn't dress up either," Isabella giggled.

That giggle ignited a fire through me.

"I wasn't planning on dressing up but someone insisted," I pointed to Vanessa mockingly.

"Well, you guys look great! A really great couple's costume," Jacob added.

"Oh, it's not like that," I responded without even thinking about it.

I wanted to curse myself for doing it as soon as it happened. The least I could fucking do was pretend for two seconds and appease Vanessa. It was true. We weren't really a couple officially or anything but what was the point of jumping the gun to explain?

My conscience was tightening the noose around my neck. Next thing: putting foot into mouth. Everyone shifted kind of uncomfortably and Vanessa continued to smile superficially as if I hadn't just been a total ass.

"Well, um…we better head out. We've got plenty of apartments and houses to still hit up," Jacob grinned.

I nodded my head. One part of me was doing a happy dance that this douche bag was finally leaving and the other was dying on the inside, knowing that that meant she had to leave too.

"Why don't you guys go ahead? I'll be over in a second. I have to talk to Edward really quick," Isabella spoke.

Everyone nodded and waved goodbye as they journeyed down the hallway to the elevator. Jacob turned around once to make sure I wasn't dropping my pants already or anything while Vanessa just went into the bedroom. I looked over my shoulder and leaned forward once Vanessa closed the door.

"Is everything okay?" the words came out rushed. I was so anxious to be with her—alone with her.

"Everything's fine. I just…I got a call this afternoon and I was going to call tomorrow morning to set up a meeting but I guess I can just do that now," Isabella smiled.

"Yeah, of course." I'd give you anything.

"Good, well…how does Saturday afternoon sound? Do you have to be in the office?"

"No, Saturday's fine. I'll call Emmett and set it up."

"Are you sure? I know its a little short notice I just think we should talk soon."

"No, I promise. It's fine."

"Okay. Can I call you tomorrow and make sure we're still good for the meeting?"

"Absolutely. I'll be there all day. Do you need my cell phone number?"

"Yeah sure," she pulled out an archaic-looking cell phone, "Don't laugh! It's one of those pay-as-you-go craps. It was the most basic phone they had. I can't deal with all that touch and keypad stuff. I just need numbers and the send and end buttons," she grinned.

"No laughing," I held up three fingers for scout's honor.

She rolled her eyes and opened the phone.

"206-555-3492."

"Edward Masen," she dragged out my name while she typed.

"Is that it?" I asked.

"Yup," she smiled.

"It was nice seeing you. I really like your costume."

What the fuck was going on with me? I didn't do compliments and insignificant observations. My conversations with women were more along the lines of:

You're beautiful (even if they're really not)…let's fuck.

"Thanks," she blushed.

It was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. And I really and truly meant something for once in my life.

"What are you supposed to be?" I wondered.

In reality I didn't care. Anything that had her dressed up in leather was incredible but I was curious.

"Black Widow. She's a Marvel Super Heroine."

"Oh," was my eloquent/intelligent response. I had no fucking clue who Black Widow was so I really couldn't do much better than that.

"By the way I still don't think you dressed up," she smirked and pointed at me.

Isabella laughed and pushed off the door frame. I rolled my eyes and slammed the door shut. I could hear her laughter disappearing down the hallway. It was just like her to ruin a good moment. I shook my head and closed my eyes. I leaned my back against the door and sighed. What was this girl doing to me?

I smiled as I thought of that blush again and the way she looked absolutely fuckable in that skin-tight black leather. My groin was nodding in agreement. I opened my eyes and Vanessa was standing in my bedroom doorframe, her arms were folded over her chest, and she had an expression that was a mixture of sadness and anger. My lips parted to say something, anything but she walked back into the bedroom.

I walked over to the bedroom, preparing myself to face reality. This was it. Tonight would tip the scale in some direction and it'd be a resolute action. When I walked into the room, Vanessa looked up and her eyes turned fierce. She stood up and stalked toward me while yelling.

"Who the hell is that, Edward? I thought you said you were serious about this! You tell me you want to see me and for weeks you ignore me, push me away, get distracted! I'm sick of it! Sick!"

"Vanessa calm down. She's nobody. Just a friend," I spoke in an even, calm voice, trying to get her to be the same way.

"No! I will not calm down! This is a fucking joke!"

"Look, Vanessa I don't know what you want from me. I'm doing the best I can. Right now is just not the right time for a relationship."

"You could have realized that sooner instead of wasting my time!" she snarled.

"Excuse me?" I hissed. I was angry now, "Are you joking right now? You're the one who kept insisting and making me feel guilty. I told you before we even began this that I was the wrong person to be dating. Right now what I'm giving to you is the best I've got and if you can't appreciate it well then don't let the door hit you on your way out. I'm through!" my arms were waving with my tirade.

"Fuck you, Edward! I thought I loved you but I guess I was wrong," was her pitiful retort.

"No you weren't wrong, just fickle. You think you love me but you're just like all those other girls: obsessive and crazy. Every time you're with someone for more than a week you think you're in love."

It was a low blow to call her obsessive and crazy because in all seriousness Vanessa did have issues. It was a part of the reason she used to be dependent on drugs. Her prescriptions from the psychiatrist as a teen were the gateway to a bigger arena of problems. It wasn't the doctor's fault, of course, because there was no way of knowing she'd become dependent but it was a terrible truth.

Vanessa stared at me. We'd gotten progressively closer during our argument. She had tears rolling down her cheeks—which were flushed from exertion and anger—and her eyes were empty and sad. I'd hurt her in the most personal and cruel way ever. There was no forgiveness or taking back of what I'd just said.

We stared at each other for a long moment. In an arrogant attempt to maintain my appearance, I kept my expression cool and composed. It would do me no good to seem apologetic. If I maintained my callousness I at least had a shred of dignity in these final moments.

After what seemed like hours had passed by, Vanessa grabbed her car keys off my nightstand and walked out. I heard the front door shut and I let out the breath I was unconsciously holding. I undressed from my uniform and crawled into bed to face the demons that liked to come out and play in my moments of solitude and self-doubt.

Hale Yeah I left you guys with a cliffhanger...

(wow I just said Hale yeah, I need to stay away from Twilighted, lol)

So did Vanessa and Edward really break up? Find out next chapter...

...which I promise will arrive soon cause I already started working on it ;)

Oh and thanks to Steph and Frazzled for the birthday wishes (it was on Tues). Come play on the forums. I promise we don't bite...hard.