Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the authors. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.

This story takes place in an alternate universe and begins almost fifteen years after chapter three of New Moon. When Charlie called Renée to come to Forks, Bella went back to Jacksonville with Renée.

Thanks to Alphie, Be My Escape and Bronzehairedgirl for their help and patience with this story. They were all so much more than beta readers.

The Competition

by silly bella

When I stopped by Bella's house that afternoon, Marietta was home. Not good. Not good at all. If I'd listened long enough to check first, I would have known. I'd been so eager to stop by after waiting most of the week for the flowers to arrive. I wanted to see if Bella liked them, which she probably didn't, in which case it was all a waste of time. Then Marietta answered the door, and I was stuck.

"Mom has a date," she stated, rolling her eyes. She made a face that showed her distaste for the situation. I hate him. He's such a loser.

Bella had a date? She hadn't mentioned it. She hadn't mentioned anyone. Surely she would have said something. Or maybe not. Perhaps, as far as she was concerned, it wasn't any of my business.

Inside, the house was filled with flowers. I passed a crystal vase with dark red tulips at the door. A potted paphiopedilum orchid arched over the mantle. On the other side of the mantle was a simple vase filled with daffodils. Deep blue irises with sweet peas, honeysuckle and jasmine erupted from a vase atop a bookcase. A lower shelf contained a crystal bowl of ranunculi. On the kitchen table was a ceramic pitcher filled with heliotropes, red heather, asters and white zinnias. A huge display of birds-of-paradise overwhelmed the end table by the couch. A potted violet sat on top of the television. A majolica bowl filled with potted pansies sat on a stack of magazines on the coffee table. A potted camellia held the back door open like a doorstop, allowing the fresh scent of the rain into the room through the screen. A creamy china vase on the counter held poppies. I couldn't see any of the roses, the second bunch of tulips, or the lilies-of-the-valley. She must have put them upstairs. Mission accomplished. At least she hadn't thrown them out. I was proud of myself.

"I think he's been sending her flowers all week," Marietta muttered. "They've been arriving at least twice a day, sometimes more often. They're in the bathroom, in her room, all over the house. It's disgusting. The cards are all anonymous and have mushy poetry that Mom recognizes, but they started arriving when he came to Washington." He tries to impress Mom with money. He thinks he's better than Daddy because he's some hot-shot engineer. I hate him. I hate his stinking flowers, too.

But I sent Bella the flowers. I didn't sign the cards because I didn't want to take chances on Marietta seeing my name the card. Bella thought the flowers were from someone else? Someone who was taking her on a date? I'd picked them out so carefully, putting together arrangements that would look pretty together and send the right message. Not to mention the time I spent matching up the poetry. After all of that, this guy was getting the credit for my effort? Apparently, I couldn't hide my shock.

"You look like you could use something to drink," Marietta said, being a good hostess. Bella had entered the room by then and laughed. "I was just telling Edward about your date," Marietta smirked. With the dweeb. Why did he come to Washington, anyway?

"It's not a date. When your thirteen-year-old daughter is there with you, it isn't a date. Trust me." Bella rolled her eyes.

I noticed that her hands, although still rough from the blisters, had no bandages on them. I hadn't seen her since she visited my family more than a week ago. Carlisle had treated her. It had taken a week's worth of flowers for me to manage the courage to see her again, and every moment away from her had been agony.

Marietta crossed her arms and gave her mother a sly smile. "Well then, what is it?" Because I would sure like to know why he's here when he should be back in Florida.

"It's your Uncle Gary." She used a different intonation when she said uncle. Was that good or bad? "He was in Seattle for a conference and wanted to come see us before he headed back to Florida." Bella sighed impatiently.

"Mom, I hate Uncle Gary." Scary Gary is more like it. I really wish he'd stayed in Florida. "Do I really have to stay for dinner?" She paused, eyed me speculatively and grinned, "Edward and I could go see a movie."

"You most certainly cannot." Bella's angry eyes flashed at me. Why did she think that was my fault?

"Then can Edward at least stay for dinner?" Then there'll be someone I can talk to while I ignore Scary Gary.

Oh, no. Not more chicken.

Bella thought for a moment. She caught my eye, but I didn't recognize her expression. It wasn't anger, so I must be moving up on her scale a little. Maybe dinner wouldn't be so bad. It would give me a chance to check out the competition. "Sure. If you'd like." She sounded nervous.

Maybe this wasn't a date, after all. "If you're sure…" I began.

"It's fine." The words were no nonsense. There wasn't much I could possibly read into them.

I nodded. What did it mean if she was nervous? That could be good or bad; I wasn't sure. Marietta smiled. I hate Scary Gary. I hate being here. But it can't be all bad if Edward gets to stay. At least she was sure about how she felt about it. I still had no idea how to deal with her crush, but I needed to do something to correct that. Soon.

"So, what's for dinner?" I asked, already planning of ways to dispose of it without having to eat it all like the last time.

"Mom's making my favorite – chicken piccata. You'll love it. She's a great cook," Marietta offered enthusiastically. Perfect. It was more chicken. Bella chuckled softly. At least my future discomfort seemed to take her mind off her nervousness.

"Why don't you set the table, Mari Alice?" Bella asked.

"Yes ma'am," Marietta murmured as she began to take the dishes out of the cabinet.

Charlie's old table and mismatched chairs were gone. When Bella had moved in, she'd brought a few bits of furniture. A table and matching chairs had been one thing that was new. Bella gestured to them and said, "Have a seat, Edward. It won't be long."

I noticed both of them were wearing jeans and simple cotton tee-shirts, so it clearly wasn't a formal event. I watched Bella carefully. Why had she decided to invite me to stay? Was it to persuade me to back off because there was someone else? Was it to rub him in my face to show me that she could move on? Who was I kidding? She still thought I returned Marietta's interest. She refused to believe that I cared for her and her alone, and that I always had.

Then the doorbell rang. I could sense the tension in the room ratchet up about one-hundred percent. Marietta frowned. Bella took a deep breath. The doorbell rang again. "Would you like me to answer that?" My voice was low. I really didn't want to. Bella smiled and nodded. Marietta flashed me a nasty look. Traitor. She had no way of knowing that I wanted him here even less than she did. The doorbell rang again.

So, very much against my will, I opened the door. He looked me directly in the neck. I felt some grim satisfaction that I stood several inches taller than he did. Whoa. Who's the kid? He's too old for Marietta. Are his parents here, too? I was looking forward to being alone with Bella. Or at least just having the kid here. The girl will have to get used to me, anyway, if things work out like I hope they will. They'll have to come back to Florida though.

"Hi. I'm Edward." I smiled and held out my hand. It might have appeared cordial and polite, but it wasn't. Not really. His hand shot out automatically, surprising me, since humans instinctively shy away from my kind. This yahoo must be pretty sure of himself. I narrowed my eyes and squeezed his fingers tightly. Certainly not as tightly as I could, but tight enough to make him wince.

Damn. What a grip. Must be an athlete. "Gary," he nodded politely. Where's Bella? Whatever she's cooking smells good.

He was dressed in khakis and a collared knit shirt. He had, in his left hand, some vegetation in a plastic wrapper. Something about them smelled… off. Was that an undertone of gasoline? He'd stopped at the gas station to buy a gift for her? It would have been more romantic to stop and pick something from the side of the road. At least they wouldn't smell like petroleum. He stepped inside and glanced around the room. Who sent all these flowers? How many guys is she seeing? Is that why she moved here to Washington? Some old boyfriend? Or boyfriends, from the looks of things. He grinned weakly. "I guess she likes flowers," he whispered to me conspiratorially. I shrugged. Bella's stance on blooming cornucopia around her was still to be determined. If it was good, I was ahead of Gary and his gas station bouquet – if she knew the other floral arrangements were from me. If it was bad, well, maybe she didn't know they were from me. Or maybe Emmett was right.

Bella appeared in the doorway. I wish she'd worn something with a real neckline. She's got a nice rack. How dare he? I clenched my jaw audibly, forming a severe line with my lips. I knew my eyes would be black with anger. Gary swallowed then smiled nervously. "I brought flowers."

"Those are lovely. Let me get something to put them in." She took the flowers and headed back into the kitchen. Gary watched her walk away, his gaze a little too low for my liking. I'd tap that. He was even more vile than Mike Newton. I wanted to kill him. Not to feed on him, just to kill him. As painfully as possible.

Bella whispered to Marietta, just loud enough for me to hear, and Marietta appeared at the doorway and said, "Hi, Uncle Gary." She certainly didn't seem happy about it. Why are you here?

"Hi, kid," he spoke casually. He nodded to me. "This your boyfriend?"

Marietta glanced at me and grinned. I'm working on that.

I had to say something to dissuade her. "Our families are old friends. I just happened to stop by."

"And wrangled an invitation to dinner?" Gary winked at me. I know how it is. When they're that much younger than you are, you have to take what you can get when you can get it. Once you have a few more years, age doesn't matter so much.

I wondered how this guy knew Bella. He watched her greedily when she returned to the room. She still looks hot. Almost as good as when she and Tony were dating. An image passed through his mind. An image I had mixed feelings about. It was Bella, on a boat in the sun. She wore a bikini, skimpier than anything I'd ever thought she'd wear. While I enjoyed the view, I didn't like it in his head. I felt the growl rising in my throat and coughed to hide it.

Bella carried the vase of flowers back into the room. She sniffed them and her face screwed up as if she'd tasted a lemon. Obviously, she'd noticed the gasoline smell. She rolled her eyes as she set them next to the daffodils on the mantel. They looked kind of sad sitting next to the arrangement I'd chosen for her. I think she'd noticed the gasoline smell, too. She glanced at me and smiled before she looked away. She knew the rest of the flowers were from me. She knew, and she didn't seem to be angry. She seemed to be amused.

Dinner was ready, so we sat at the table and Bella served the food. This time she didn't give me a 'growing boy's' portion of chicken. The four of us in the tiny kitchen made for close quarters. I didn't mind, as it meant I was close to Bella. I glared at the loathsome wretch across from me. What was the little twit saying? "Don't you have anything stronger than this iced tea?" Bella shook her head. "I was looking forward to a good drink. You sure you don't have anything?" Who is she trying to fool? Maybe she doesn't want alcohol around the kid.

Again, images passed through his mind. Still Bella on the boat, but this time, she'd clearly been drinking and had graduated to sharing body shots with someone I could only assume was Tony. I shut my eyes tightly then realized that wouldn't make the image go away because I was seeing it in my mind. Bella glanced at me and frowned, her expression questioning. I swallowed and shrugged. Gary's lewd memories were more excruciating than eating chicken. I wasn't sure how I was going to make it through a whole meal. Did she really like this jerk? He was so much worse than your garden variety pervert.

Marietta wasn't talking. She picked at her food. Her mind voiced a steady barrage at Scary Gary: I hate you, I hate you, I hate you…

"Bella, I was hoping to take you to dinner while I was here." And have some time alone, just the two of us, Gary finished to himself. "So how about it? Dinner and movie tomorrow?" Maybe the kid will be busy. I'd be more than happy to float this guy some cash to take her off my hands.

What made this cretin think I needed his money? I wasn't the one buying flowers from the gas station.

"Ed, isn't it? You have something planned with Marietta for tomorrow?"

I hated it when people called me Ed. Number five-hundred-and-seventy-two on my list of reasons to despise him. "It's Edward, not Ed." I paused. Hope filled Marietta's eyes as she waited for my response. Anger filled Bella's. Marietta bounced anxiously in her chair. I can cancel my babysitting job. "I have other plans tomorrow. Tonight was a last-minute invitation."

Gary nodded. "What about you, Bella?" I guess I'll have to include the kid. "Marietta?"

"I'm babysitting for the Newtons," Marietta offered quickly. I hate you. I hate you. I hate you…

"So, I guess it's just us, then, isn't it, Bella?" YES! It's a date. I wanted to rip the smirk right off the rodent's face. Right before I shoved this barbarian headfirst through the wall. Dinner and a movie as a date? What was he, fifteen? Of course, this boor was going somewhere with Bella and I'd be home without her. I couldn't say much.

Bella smiled. I couldn't read her expression. Was it merely polite? Could she really be looking forward to a date with such a boor? I felt the familiar frustration. I'd have given almost anything to read her mind.

"So, Ed, you said something about being old family friends. Does that mean you've always lived in Forks?" I've sealed the deal. May as well make polite conversation.

"I really prefer to be called Edward," I enunciated slowly and clearly for the idiot. I noticed Bella lowering her head to hide a chuckle at my expense. "And no, I haven't always lived in Forks. My family has moved around quite a bit." The lout didn't really care about my response, just as he didn't care about most of the conversation. All this inhuman wretch seemed to care about was ogling Bella.

For the most part, dinner was uneventful. Scary Gary flashed me several more disturbing images. Marietta became more and more sullen but kept up her pattern. I hate you. I hate you. I hate you. Bella remained unreadable. Eventually, the dolt figured out my name was Edward. That may have been the best thing about the evening. Bella looked like a teenager, her daughter was a teenager, and Gary acted like a teenager. It felt a lot like I was in high school again.