Disclaimer:

Embry: Donna does not own Twilight.

Me: Could you be any more blunt?

E: Donna will never own Twilight.

M: I give up.

AN: I wanted to mention that there is a song that goes along with this chapter. The song is called 'Linger' and it's by the Cranberries. It's one of my favorite songs.

AN2: Sorry, this one is different from the first one. In this chapter you will find an Egotistical Embry and an Aggravated Bella. As you know, these two do not mix. You have been warned.

Bella had her reservations about going to Jacobs. She told herself that it was for a good reason and that she needed to toughen up. They hadn't spoken in days and she hadn't seen him since he told her how he felt about her.

She got out of the truck seeing Mae's car already in the front yard. Sandra was pulling up as she walked through the yard. She stopped at the bottom of the stairs and waited for Sandra to walk up to her.

"Hey stranger." Sandra said as she slung an arm around Bella's waist.

"Hey Sandra." Bella said letting the older woman lead her into the house.

They walked in without knocking. Voices could be heard from the living room and kitchen.

"I'm gonna get the boys to bring the stuff in my car in." Sandra said before letting go of Bella.

Bella walked into the kitchen seeing Mae, Sue, and Emily already at work.

"Hey Doll." Mae said as she looked up.

"Hey. What hasn't been done yet?" she asked looking at the list on the counter.

"He said that he wanted your scalloped potatoes. I bought everything you need. You can make the green beans too if you want." Sue said looking over Bella's shoulder.

They worked in silence until people started to arrive. Charlie came in and said hi to all of them before heading into the living room. A girl with shoulder length curly brown hair came in with a box and sat it on the table.

"Let me see it." Mae said wiping her hands on a dish towel.

The girl opened the box and Mae hooted in laughter.

"Bella, come here." she said in between a fit of giggles.

Bella came to stand next to her and she wrapped an arm around her waist.

"I'm Claire."

"I was wondering when I was going to meet you."

"I know; things have been crazy lately."

"Yeah, Quil said that your mom just had a baby. And your dad got sick, so you were taking care of your entire family."

"It's all calmed down now. It's good to finally put a face to the name."

"I know."

"Doll, look at the cake." Mae said finally pulling herself together.

Bella's body shook with laughter as she looked down at the cake. 'Happy 39th Birthday Grandpa' was written across the cake. Rebecca had recently given birth to Billy's only grandson. He had been shell shocked about it for weeks.

"Whose idea was that?"

"Rachel's." Sandra said from across the room.

"She's here?"

"Just for the weekend." Sandra said with a nod.

Bella felt someone's eyes on her so she looked over her shoulder. Her eyes met Jacobs and he smiled at her. She gave him a small smile before someone called her name from the living room.

She stood in the doorway as Quil Sr. asked her how she had been doing. Quil draped an arm over her shoulders as she answered his granddad.

"I need to talk to you." he said once her attention was on him.

"Okay."

They were sitting on the back steps less than a minute later.

"This isn't my business, but you need to know. E and Jake aren't talking right now. It's been like this for two weeks now."

"Why?" she asked slowly, already knowing the answer.

"You." he responded, not able to look at her.

"I knew this was going to happen." she said with a sigh.

"Don't blame Embry, okay? He's tried to talk to Jake at least half a dozen times."

Bella nodded as she took a slow, steady breath. The back door opened and Bella was pulled up by her arms.

"Hey little sister." Rachel said engulfing Bella in a hug.

Her eyes met Quil's over Rachel's shoulder. She gave him an encouraging smile before hugging Rachel back.

"How have you been?" Rachel asked, pulling away a few inches.

"Okay." Bella said with an indifferent shrug.

"Okay? You've got two guys after you. I'd be more than okay if I were you."

"Technically there are three." Quil said closing the door.

"Who told you?"

"I am the knower of all things. Have you forgotten?"

"Did Jacob tell you?" she asked with a sigh.

"Don't be mad at him. I practically had to beat it out of him. Sullen does not work on my kid brother."

"Bella!" Alice called from up the hall.

"Oh no." Bella said before clenching her eyes shut.

"This can't be good." Quil said under his breath.

"Hey Alice." Bella said with a smile.

"Hi." Alice said brightly.

"Alice, this is Rachel. She's Jacob's sister."

"It's nice to meet you." Alice said politely.

Rachel nodded before looking at Bella.

"Alice and her brothers go to school with me."

"They came to play football with us not long after Bella got back." Quil said.

Rachel nodded again before letting go of Bella

"I'm going to go wish my dad Happy Birthday. I haven't done that yet."

"I'll see you later." Bella said with a smile.

Rachel's eyes met Bella's before she turned to walk away. She gave her a sympathetic smile before walking away.

"Emily asked me to come and find you. She needs you in the kitchen." Alice said once Rachel had walked away.

"I'll be right there." Bella said with a nod.

Alice walked away and Quil came to stand next to Bella.

"I had no idea that they were coming." she said her eyebrows furrowed in worry.

"Maybe it's just her." Quil said trying to sound reassuring.

They walked up the hall together and she looked into the living room seeing Emmett and Leah talking. Jasper was talking to Sam. And in the corner by himself Bella's eyes met Edwards. She sucked in a ragged breath, dreading the night ahead.

"I need your opinion on something. I'll bring her right back Quil." Emily said putting a hand on Bella's shoulder.

Embry came in a few minutes later. He looked around the living room and paused when he saw Edward. The person next to him put a hand on his shoulder making him tense up.

"Are you okay?" The girl with him asked.

"I'm fine." he said, brushing the person off.

"You don't look fine."

"I'll be alright." he said with a sigh.

"I'm gonna go find Billy." They said before walking away.

He turned around and saw Bella leaning into the fridge. She straightened and her eyes met his. She waved with a smile and he returned the gesture. Sandra's head came around the corner and she beamed with pride.

"Hey Ma."

"Come here you. I haven't seen you all day."

He let her pull him in for a hug and Bella watched from a few feet away. The girl who he had brought came into the room and headed straight for Bella.

"I'm Kelly. It's nice to meet you." she said holding out her hand to Bella.

"Kelly, you're gonna scare her." Mae said from next to them.

"I know who she is; unless Embry has more than one bracelet." Kelly replied never taking her attention off of Bella.

"It's nice to meet you too." Bella said smiling nervously but shaking her hand.

"Embry, Quil, and Jake have told me a lot about you." she said pushing her straight raven black hair over her shoulder.

"None of them have ever mentioned you." Bella said laughing nervously.

"I can imagine why. You haven't met many of us. Only Amanda, right Em?" she asked looking over her shoulder.

"Yes." he said in a flat tone.

Bella glared at him over Kelly's shoulder before moving around her. Kelly went after her. Embry moved to go after her as well, but Kelly stopped him.

"I put my foot in my mouth. Let me fix it."

She found Bella sitting in the recliner so she sat on the floor next to her.

"I need to explain. I shouldn't have just blurted it out like that. Embry and I haven't slept together in over a year. We stayed friends."

"I'm sorry I overreacted." Bella said, not meeting her gaze.

"You're all he talks about." Kelly said with a light laugh.

Bella looked back into the kitchen to see Embry watching her. She sighed before turning her attention to Kelly.

"He hasn't been with anyone in almost a month."

"He hasn't?" Bella asked as she stared at her with shocked eyes.

"Not since he told you."

"I did not know that." Bella said shaking her head in wonder.

"Well our entire school knows. There are a lot of heartbroken girls at La Push High." she said teasingly.

"He's always been a heartbreaker. He doesn't have to try most of the time." Bella said with a smile.

"You've more than likely seen 'the look'." Kelly said with a laugh.

"It makes my heart stop, every time." she said shaking her head again.

"You should think about why that is." Kelly said with a pointed look.

Bella nodded as Kelly stood. She looked down at her hands, all the while fingering the bracelet. She didn't notice that someone had taken Kelly's spot until the person nudged her leg. She looked down to see Edward watching her with curious eyes.

"Hey." he said with a smile.

"Hi." she said breaking eye contact with him.

"We haven't talked in a few days."

"I've been looking for a job." she explained.

"Have you found one yet?"

She shook her head as Embry continued to watch her. Kelly stood next to him, watching Bella as well. Apparently the guy who was talking to her couldn't see that she didn't really want to talk to him. She was being nice to him, but she was practically detached.

"We had a good talk." she said breaking the silence.

"What did you say to her?"

"I'm not going to tell you. But I will say that she understands you more now. She's not as confused." she said sympathetically.

"Thanks." he answered with an appreciative smile.

"No problem. Who is he?" she said gesturing to Edward.

"The fourth person in the love square." Alice said from behind him.

"What?" Embry asked turning around.

"Relax. She doesn't like him like that." Emmett said from next to Alice.

"Does he know that?" Kelly asked.

"Yes." Alice said with a nod.

"So, he's choosing to ignore it?" Rachel asked from the table.

"That son of a…" Embry said as he balled his fist.

"Embry don't make a scene. He said that Bella doesn't like him like that. Remember?" Kelly said putting a hand on his arm.

Embry took a deep breath, trying to calm down. He knew that he shouldn't be jealous, he didn't have the right. Every time Edward was brought up his defenses went up. The guy had been rubbing him the wrong way since the day he had met him.

XXXX

Everyone was outside eating a little while later. Bella came out of the house, combing the yard with her eyes. The picnic table had one seat left. At the other end of the yard there was a huge patch of grass open for anyone.

"Bella!"

She looked across the yard before she saw Kelly staring at her from the picnic table. Sandra and Embry sat with her. Bella made her way across the yard as Embry silently thanked Kelly. She smiled at him with a wink as Bella sat down next to Embry.

"We saved you a seat." Sandra said with a smile.

"You didn't have to do that."

"It was nothing. I never get to talk to you anymore. This one monopolizes all the Bella phone time." she said gesturing to Embry in a teasing manner.

"He does have a way of doing that doesn't he?" Bella asked with a smile.

They talked and laughed until Rachel and Jacob brought out the cake. Billy's booming laughter drowned out everyone singing Happy Birthday.

"I'm going to go get a piece of cake. Do either of you want any?" Kelly asked as she stood.

"I'm good." Embry said as he shook his head.

"Not right now." Bella said before Kelly walked away.

Edward watched them from across the yard. He didn't have anything against Embry. The guy had a grudge against him just because he had the nerve to like Bella too. It was obvious that Bella felt something for Embry too, so he would bow out gracefully. He would rather be her friend than not in her life at all.

Embry stood from the table as he was talking to Bella. She nodded before he walked away. Edward stood and made his way across the yard. He stood next to her as Embry watched from the coolers.

"Can I sit down?"

"Sure." she said giving him a small smile.

"Are you having a good time?" he asked returning the smile.

"I am. We do this for Billy every year. I'm glad I came back." she said with a nod.

"As opposed to being sad and lonely." he observed seriously.

"Yeah." she said with a nod.

"So how has your weekend been?" he asked changing the subject.

"Good."

"Here" Embry said handing her bottled water.

"I should go." Edward said standing.

"You don't have to." Bella said shaking her head.

"If he says he has to go don't force him to stay Bella." Embry said gruffly.

"Embry, don't be rude."

"Why is he over here?" he asked with a sigh.

"He has every right to sit here. Can you sit down? You hovering like that is making me nervous." she asked raking a hand through her hair.

"Fine." he said pulling up a fold out chair.

"Thank you. Edward, we need to talk. And maybe since I'm saying this in front of Embry, he'll leave the subject alone." she said turning her attention back to Edward.

"Alright." Edward said, sounding unsure of himself.

"You know that we are just friends, don't you?" she asked giving him a questioning look.

"Yes." he answered.

"And you understand that nothing can happen between us?" she asked, still watching him with questioning eyes.

"I understand." he assured her.

"You're a good guy. Any girl would be lucky to have you liking them. But I am not the girl for you." she said putting a hand on his arm.

Edward nodded, not trusting himself to speak.

"I'm sorry for being honest, but the situation called for it." she said apologetically.

"You're apologizing?" Embry asked with a laugh.

"Shut up Embry." she snapped at him.

"Can I go now?" Edward said breaking into the conversation again.

"Yeah." she said with a nod.

"I'll see you Monday." he said politely.

Bella nodded before turning to look at Embry. She waited until Edward walked away before talking to him.

"I hope you're happy." she said giving him a pointed look.

"I am." he said with a nod.

"You're an asshole." she said as she stood from the table.

He put a hand on her wrist to stop her.

"What now?" she asked in an acid tone.

"Thank you." he said looking up at her.

She nodded as she pulled her wrist from his grasp. She walked into the empty house to collect her thoughts. She had just insulted him, and then he had thanked her. For what? Setting Edward straight? For getting angry with him? This was one of the many times that she didn't understand him.

She heard the back door click shut as she gripped the kitchen counter. The person walked into the kitchen and stood behind her. She looked over her shoulder and sighed when she saw Edward.

"I wanted to see if you were alright." he said in concern.

"I'm fine; just confused." she said with a sigh.

"He likes messing with your head, doesn't he?" he asked, crossing the room.

"Sometimes I think he enjoys it a little too much." she said shaking her head solemnly.

"I really am sorry for the way I've been acting. I'm not normally like that, I swear." he assured her.

"It's okay, just don't do it again." she said giving him a feeble smile.

"I won't. Can I ask you something?" he prodded.

"Sure." she said with a nod.

"How do you feel about Embry? Be honest."

"It's complicated. I'm still figuring it out. He holds back so much." she said sigh again.

Edward nodded in understanding. She looked down at the bracelet for the second time that night.

"Can I give you an outsider's opinion?" he asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I guess." she said shrugging her shoulders.

"I see the way the two of you are with each other, the way that you look at each other. There is something there, something more than friendship." he said with concern.

"There you are! We're ready to leave." Alice said coming into the room.

Edward let Alice pull him out of the room. Bella called his name as Alice opened the front door. He looked up, meeting her gaze.

"Thank you." she said with a nod.

He smiled in response before walking out of the room. Bella took a few minutes to compose herself and get her emotions in order before going to find Charlie. Little did she know that Embry had come into the house to talk to her around the same time Edward did. He was in the living room and had heard their conversation.

He needed to be honest with her, he knew that. Once he came clean, things would be easier for them. It was going to be hard, a lot of yelling would be involved and tempers would flare. But Bella was worth it. If they made it through that, then they could make it through anything. She had stood by him for this long; most people would have given up already. That had to stand for something.