CHAPTER TEN

Edward's POV

I froze in the hallway, on the point of rushing to the kitchen to confront Bella, but realising quickly I may have a chance to find out more. I held my breath, trying to calm my racing heart.

"I'm sorry, Sam, I've been trying to call you..." Bella's voice sounded tearful. "I wanted to talk to you before it was in the paper."

"When did you sleep with him? You told me he hadn't been near you in months!" the man growled. "Was it when you went back for that party?"

"Yes, I thought...I guess I hoped maybe we could fix things. I didn't want to throw it away after nearly three years."

"This is just bullshit," Sam spat. "You told me you were in love with me! It seems like you tell everybody whatever it suits you to say at the time, to get the best deal, or whatever looks better in the press. Of course...your fans are all going to forget about you cheating if suddenly you're back together with Cullen and having his baby, aren't they?"

My phone rang and I cursed silently as I shoved my hand into my pocket and switched it off. I felt sick and now I had to deal with both of them at once. The one thing ringing in my head was that Bella had apparently told Sam she loved him, which meant there was no way it was a one-off heat of the moment romp. I took a deep breath and strode down the hall to the kitchen before either of them could emerge.

Bella was standing in the corner by the refrigerator, still looking untidy and tangled, her arms wrapped around herself and her eyes red and swollen. Sam stood in the middle of the room, fists clenched at his sides, facing me as I halted in the doorway.

"How much did you hear?" Bella asked in a small voice.

"Enough. I think the first part was 'you told me it was mine'," I said through my teeth. "Sam Uley, right?"

The man nodded and grunted my name. I didn't know quite what to expect, but he looked embarrassed and almost apologetic.

"How long?" I glanced at Bella and back at him.

"Three months."

Bella groaned and closed her eyes.

"Look...Cullen...um...I don't know what to say," Sam began, avoiding looking at me directly. "I'm sure I can imagine what you think of me and I doubt you'll believe anything I say..."

"Try me," I prompted grittily. I folded my arms and gripped my own elbows in an effort to stop my hands shaking. I hated confrontations, but I wasn't going to walk away from this one until I'd seen it through. At least the man didn't appear to be looking for a fight.

"I don't do this shit," he went on. "We hung out because of the movie..."

"Sam, for God's sake, Edward doesn't want to hear the details," Bella interrupted.

"Shut up, Bella!" Sam shouted.

"I think you should leave us to talk," I added. "Go upstairs."

"Edward..." She sighed heavily and then pushed herself out of the corner and hurried out of the room. I closed the door and leaned on it.

"You were saying?"

"Bella always seemed to be miserable off-set. She said she felt like she was losing you and that even the times you did get to spend together, you ignored her. She thought...she said she thought you and your family didn't think she was good enough for you, she was lonely, you were never home, she'd done everything she could to try and make it work...she said it was only a matter of time before you broke up. Maybe she just wanted a bit of fun, I don't know."

"Who knows what goes on in Bella's head?" I sighed. "Were you...together within thirty-six hours of the wrap party, either side?"

"Yeah, right after she got back." He grimaced and rubbed a hand over his face. "Before you ask, no, we didn't use anything."

"It could be your baby then. When did she tell you?"

"About a month ago. She started getting sick and did a test."

I wasn't sure whether to believe what Sam had told me or not. He seemed genuine enough; in fact he looked like he wanted the floor to open up and swallow him, but I'd been lied to enough by Bella and not inclined to trust someone I didn't know. Then again, what he had said about her had shown her in an even worse light, indicating she had made up a sob story in order to seduce him.

"I am really sorry, man," he said then. "I wouldn't have gone near her if I'd thought you were still in the picture. Stealing another guy's woman isn't my thing. I don't expect you to trust me, but there it is. I don't intend to see her again except for promoting the movie."

"What about if the baby turns out to be yours?"

"I don't know. I'd pay, I don't know about anything else."

"Well, we're going to have to wait until it's born and have a DNA test done. You'd be willing?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Of course, although it'll probably be fairly obvious if it's mine." Sam was a Native and a particularly dark one at that. "Can I ask what she told you? About me, I mean?" he asked.

I frowned and unfolded my arms, shoving my hands into my pockets. I certainly didn't owe him anything, but I supposed I would have wanted to know too. If he loved her, which he apparently had done, he must be feeling as lousy as I had when I saw the picture of them together.

"She said the photo of you was just a one-off, a spur of the moment kiss and nothing else. Later she admitted she slept with you one time and it didn't mean anything."

"I'm sorry," Sam said again with a sigh and I found myself shrugging.

"I can't really bring myself to be pissed at you, if what you say is true and it does seem to make sense."

The man nodded and relaxed slightly. "I'm gonna get out of your way."

I stepped away from the door and he exited quickly. I hadn't seen a car and I supposed he would have to face the press at the gate while he hailed a cab. I stayed where I was, thinking. I felt drained and sad, strangely unsurprised by the extent of Bella's lies and much less hurt than I expected. I was well on my way to being over her and this latest news had been like a bucket of cold water over what remained of my feelings. I walked out into the hall and found her on her way down the stairs.

"Edward..."

"Don't say anything. I don't want to hear any more."

"You're just going to believe whatever he told you?"

"I'm not going to discuss it. I'm going back to the hotel," I said decidedly. "I don't want to hear from you. If you have anything to tell me, you can call Leah and ask her to pass a message on."

"But..." Fresh tears spilled down her cheeks and I wondered at her ability to switch them on like a tap whenever the occasion called for it.

"That's all I have to say."

"What about the baby?"

"When it's born, there will be a DNA test regardless of its colouring. Then we'll decide what happens from then on."

She didn't answer and I walked out, grimacing as I remembered I had arrived in a cab. However, Marcus could be seen at the side of the property polishing the Limo and I had him drive me in one of the other cars.

As I sat in the back I pulled out my phone and discovered that the call I had cut off had been Jacob and I immediately tried to call him back. I hadn't been able to talk to him since before the scan and I longed to hear his voice; hoped that the photograph hadn't upset him or made him doubt me. I reached his answer service and left a message, asking him to call me back again as soon as he could. Then I remained in the hotel room, waiting for his call and in the meantime talking to Dad, who called me to discuss the article about the scan.

"How much of that is true?" he asked.

"Virtually none. She is pregnant, but as for whose it is...she was having an affair with Sam Uley for three months; we're going to have to wait until it's born and get a DNA test."

Dad swore under his breath. "So the part about you two fixing things is garbage."

"Totally. There is no point in you or Mom trying to persuade me otherwise now. There wasn't before, but..."

"Edward, we both thought Bella had simply made a small mistake. Frankly, if you decided to take her back now I'd be advising you otherwise. It will be in your best interests to support her though, at least until the baby is born."

"You mean spend the next seven months pretending we're together and that I'm happy about it? That is not going to happen. I can't even believe you'd suggest that after what I just told you."

"Edward..."

"No, Dad, for once, will you listen to me? I have no intention of seeing Bella again unless I find out the baby really is mine and then it'll only be if I decide I want to spend time with it. I am sick of trying to do what everybody else wants; what will show me in the best light; what the fans expect. It's all bullshit. There is one thing you were right about and that was that I made a mistake signing that contract. If I'd thought about it longer I would have had Leah call a press conference and quit!"

"Edward!" Dad exclaimed. "You're not seriously thinking of walking away from everything you have?"

"What do I have?" I asked. "Parents who support me only as long as I'm going in the direction they want; a cheating ex-girlfriend who doesn't even know who the father of her baby is; people all over the world writing shit about me, speculating about every little thing I do and say? I don't want it! I don't want any of it. I'm sorry if that sounds ungrateful, but I didn't ask for a life like this, I was born into it. If you and Mom had been regular people with regular careers and a small house in the suburbs, the last thing I would ever have chosen to do is get into show business. I probably would have gone to college, been a teacher or a lawyer or...hell, I don't know, but I would have been able to walk down the street without anybody giving me a second glance and I would have been happy!"

I hung up before he could answer me. I hadn't meant to say any of that, but I was upset, angry and my mind a turmoil. I desperately wanted to escape from everything, but it was hanging over me and would continue to do so at least until next March, probably longer by the time I finished promoting 'The Chains That Bind Us'.

My phone rang and I snatched it up again, assuming it would be Dad calling me back, or maybe my mother. I didn't check the called ID, but simply answered.

"I haven't anything else to say right now!"

"Edward!" It was Jacob's voice. "What's going on?"

Jacob's POV

I hadn't known what to expect when I called him. I'd actually been steeling myself to do it all day after the latest article in the Globe and had left my phone off while I thought about it. I knew I shouldn't believe any of their shit, but it was the photograph that made my confidence waver. They looked close, she was smiling up at him, wearing his shirt as they came out of the clinic. Apparently the scan must have given them the date of conception which proved it was his and the longer I thought about it, the more I began to wonder if he had changed his mind; decided that he wanted to be with her and be a father. Now I heard sobs at the other end of the phone and my heart leaped into my mouth, my own fears immediately leaving me as I listened to his pain.

"Edward? I'm here, tell me what happened."

"Sorry...um...I've been trying to call...I thought...did you see the news?"

"Never mind that; why are you so upset?"

"It's not just one thing, I guess everything just built up..." He sniffed hard and I could hear him drinking something. "When I couldn't reach you, I thought maybe you believed the story...that picture..."

"I went out on the boat," I said. "I called to tell you, but your phone was off at the time and I figured I'd just call later, find out how the scan went, but I got caught in a storm. It cut my signal out and I had to wait it out or I could have gotten swept onto the beach. Then...yeah, the photo did throw me," I admitted. "I needed some time to think."

"The whole of that article is complete bullshit," Edward said. "Including the picture. The scan pinpointed the conception date to a three-day window and it's true it could be mine. I was kind of shell-shocked when we came out and she was hanging onto me. She swore the baby's mine, but she started off saying it was only a kiss with Sam, then suddenly she slept with him one time...I told myself not to believe it until I had actual proof."

"I'm sorry." I inwardly heaved a sigh of relief and cursed myself for letting the press make me doubt him. I had enough experience of how much they twisted everything.

"I talked to Sam," Edward went on.

"What? When?"

"I went to the house and he was there. They didn't hear me and he was yelling at her about the news - apparently she told him the baby was his and they'd been having an affair for three months. He admitted they slept together right after she got back to Vancouver so it's possible that it's his. He actually apologised; said she made up a story about how she was losing me, that I never paid her any attention any more and she was lonely and sad, needing comfort and so on. He says he wouldn't have gone near her otherwise. Whether that's true or not, I don't know. He seemed genuine enough, but I don't really care either way. I told her to communicate with me through Leah from now on, until we can get a DNA test."

"I'm sorry I wasn't around when you called," I said.

"It's ok. I'm ok really, I guess it just all got to me for a minute. I talked to my Dad just now; pretty much told him I'm going to walk away from all this. I didn't mean to, but they're so fucking determined for me to portray the right image, even now. I should be seen to support Bella until we find out for sure. I mean, what the fuck?" he spat suddenly. "What kind of parents don't give a shit whether their son's happy as long as he looks good in front of the world?"

"They might come around, you know, when they get used to the idea that this isn't for you any more," I told him.

"Yeah, well I won't hold my breath."

It was no surprise that Edward was so angry and bitter after the brief period of upset passed. He was having to face too much all at once and it was only set to get worse with the looming tour with his father and then the filming of the movie. I knew he was particularly dreading the love scene he said was in there, although I hadn't read that part of the script and didn't know exactly what it involved. Paul Lahote was a bit of an asshole and I hoped he wasn't going to make things even more difficult for Edward when it came to it. There was nothing that I could really do to help except promise to be there for him any time he needed to talk to me. Several times the idea of flying to LA had crossed my mind, but so far I had dismissed it. My sudden appearance would only create more trouble for Edward in the press and I knew I was just going to have to keep my distance until he could come to me.

We talked until both of our phones began to run out of power and for the second time, Edward ended by telling me he loved me. I hadn't expected to hear it from him yet, even though he'd almost said the words before he left Barbados. I'd felt he had too much to deal with already and I hadn't wanted to hope, or fall too deep and then have him realise he made a mistake, but I had to admit to myself it was too late for me. I was too much in love with him to care if I got hurt later and hearing him say what he felt made my heart flutter and long to be with him.

The following day I was up early as was often the case, drinking coffee at the table on the decking and trying to write. My inspiration seemed to have deserted me just lately with my mind constantly being on Edward and I gave up after an hour of repeatedly deleting the few words I typed. I poured another cup of coffee and began searching for the latest news articles. It would still only be around five-thirty in LA, but today's stories would be online by now. The first headline I came to was of course about Edward and I cringed as it flashed up on the screen.

'Bella's Baby Dilemma - Who's The Daddy?'

It was Stars Weekly's newest edition and the front page indicated that there were six pages of Edward and Bella in the magazine along with the very latest news. Usually Seth Clearwater was the journo who obtained the interviews or stories, but on this occasion he had actually written the article himself and I began to scowl at the screen as I read.

'Shock for Edward Cullen yesterday as the happy news of Bella's pregnancy was marred by the discovery that the baby may in fact be the result of her 'error of judgement' with Sam Uley. A source tells us that Bella's indiscretion was rather more than a kiss, but a three-month affair, leading to speculation about the identity of the baby's father. It seems that the scan, intended to confirm a healthy pregnancy, also showed the timescale could put either of the two men in the picture as Daddy. So far neither Edward nor Sam have been available for comment, but it goes without saying that after Edward and Bella's recent reconciliation, this new shock won't be doing Bella any favours. Will Edward continue to stand by her, or is the extent of her infidelity too much for even our much-loved, generous-hearted star to handle? At this point, nobody would blame him for turning his back...'

I skipped through the rest of the article, which was only more of the same. For once the majority of it was actually true and I wondered if this was Sam's doing. I didn't know the man, but from what Edward had said, he had been taken in my Bella's lies just as much as Edward himself and if he'd cared for Bella, he was most likely hurt and rather than stay quiet and ignore it the way Edward did, he wanted to humiliate Bella to pay her back in some way. The news was noted more than once as having been obtained from 'a source' which could quite easily have been an anonymous call or email from Sam or a friend of his.

I took a brief look at the other pages of the magazine, basically all of the last week's news crammed into one issue - Edward's return to LA after visiting me, a brief speculation on what I was to him besides a 'family friend', then more on the photograph which had caught Bella out, then Edward punching Seth, which Seth candidly admitted was his own fault and finally the supposed reconciliation and the scan. The rest of it was about Edward's new movie, the storyline noted only as being a 'poor little rich boy breaking out of the life he hated'.

My phone rang and I snatched it from the table, answering before its first peel had ended.

"Hey, Edward."

The next week followed much the same pattern; constant news relating to the 'triangle' of Edward, Bella and Sam and Edward calling me every day. Mostly he took it all in his stride, exasperated, but realising there wasn't much he could do about it except rise above it and refuse to be drawn into making any comments. For once even Bella had maintained silence and the social media were calling her every name under the sun while sympathising with both Edward and Sam. Bella was due to begin the promotional tour for her movie any day and it was clear she was going to be bombarded with awkward questions in front of Sam, who would be present as well.

Meanwhile Edward met with Rosalie Hale and some of the cast for his movie. He was relieved that at least his friend Jasper was part of it and although he had been somewhat anxious about seeing Bella's uncle, Charlie Swan, who was to play his father in the movie, the man had quickly reassured Edward that he was appalled by Bella's behaviour and that the months they would spend working together wouldn't be awkward in any way. He completely supported Edward and was more of a help to him than his own father.

I didn't know anything about Rosalie Hale; in fact I'd never even heard her name before the announcement that Edward was to star in her directional debut, but Edward reported that it was clear she was going to do a good job. She was a bossy, no-nonsense type of woman who knew exactly what she wanted and intended to get it, but at the same time she had a soft heart and had already pulled Paul Lahote into line at the first meeting when he used the opportunity to comment on Edward's situation. Edward seemed to feel that the filming wasn't going to be as difficult as he expected, but this was three weeks away and in the meantime, his tour loomed. The LA premier was that day and then he flew to New York with Carlisle and from there London, Paris and a list of other places all crammed into the space of eighteen days.

"Call me, whenever you get the chance," I reiterated.

"I'll have the chance every day when I'm in the hotel in whichever city we're in," he said. "The time differences are going to be a bitch, though."

"Don't worry about it. Just call when you can, it doesn't matter what time it is here."

"I don't want to call at three in the morning or something and wake you up."

"You mean you don't want to talk to me when I'm in bed, dreaming about you?" I teased.

"It'll make me wish I was with you."

It was the first time we had referred to what could happen between us in the future. Since Edward left Barbados he had faced constant pressure and stress with everything that had been going on and I hadn't talked about us much at all, only repeatedly telling him I loved him, but now I figured a hint was only going to make him smile.

"I wish I could see you," I added.

"Well, I don't, my face is red," he chuckled.

"You have a laptop, right?"

"Yes and an iPad."

"I should have suggested this before actually; we should Skype."

"You wouldn't have wanted to see me, the last week or so," Edward said wrily. "I'll take the iPad with me on the tour though. If you have one, they have their own version of Skype."

"Ok." I didn't have an iPad, but I planned to head into Bridgetown and buy one before he landed in New York.

"I better go, I have to pack," Edward sighed. "We're flying out at six tomorrow so I won't have time after the premier."

"Have a safe flight," I finished. "I love you."

"I love you too."