Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of Stephenie Meyer. The original characters are the property of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter 12

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Previously:

"Eddie, darling. You gave me the key when I started living here with you. I'm sorry that I had to go out of town, but I'm back now." Tanya was still standing at the door staring at us.

What did I get myself into? "Edward, what the hell? You live with her?" I pulled away from him and felt around for my clothes. The tears instantly running down my cheeks. I knew I shouldn't have let my guard down. I let it happen again. How stupid can I be?

.

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"Bella, NO! Let me explain. . . Please, stop. Please, baby . . . Don't." He grabbed the clothes that I had gathered and threw them to the other side of the room.

"Edward, I don't want to hear it." I fought with the sheet, trying to loosen it from the bottom of the bed to wrap it around myself.

"Bella, please, give me a chance to explain."

Every action that I made towards removing myself from his bed, and this situation, Edward countered with an opposite action, keeping me right next to him.

Turning to look at him, I almost screamed.

"Explain? What could you possibly say to explain this situation?"

Edward ran his hand through his hair quickly as he held onto me with the other. "Bella, she doesn't live here. She has never lived here. Tanya's father is my dad's partner in his practice. My parents talked me into allowing her to stay here for a couple of days when she had some job interviews a couple of months ago. I was mostly out of town when she was here so I didn't fight my mom on it and allowed her to stay here while she interviewed. I have never 'lived' with her. Honest . . . Bella, please, look at me." He took my face in his hands and looked straight into my eyes, wiping my tears away with his thumbs. "Bella, please believe me. I didn't lie to you. I could never lie to you. I know what this looks like, and what she said, but you have to believe me." Edward held on to me as if for dear life.

The most astounding part of this whole situation was that I did believe him. When I looked in his eyes, it was if I could see into his soul. We were able to communicate without words and were connected on a different level.

After witnessing the depth of his feelings when I looked into his eyes, I had no more hesitations about the truth of his words and his feelings for me. "I believe you," I whispered to him.

I reached up and cupped his cheek with my hand. "Oh, thank God. Bella, you are the most important thing in the world to me." Pulling me against him, he held on to me tightly and rocked us back and forth, placing small kisses on the top of my head.

Before I could get too comfortable, we were once again interrupted by her shrill voice.

"Eddie, Daddy is going to be furious that you are cheating on me. We are getting married in a month," Tanya shouted from the bedroom door.

"Tanya, we aren't getting married. I never asked you to marry me. We aren't in a relationship. We never have been. We never will be. Now, get the hell out of my house," Edward shouted back at her.

"If we aren't getting married why do I have an engagement ring?"

I looked over at her and she sure as hell did have an engagement ring on her finger that she held up in the air and waggled in our direction. I looked back at Edward, to see what his reaction.

"Bella, I do not live with anyone, especially not her."

His body visibly shuddered at the thought.

"If I did live with another woman, would I have left you here alone today or even brought you back here at all? I am not in a relationship with anyone but you. I have never slept with Tanya. We never even dated. I didn't ask her to marry me. She probably bought herself the ring. I did not buy her one. I have never bought an engagement ring." The words just poured out of his mouth in an unsteady flourish. He was frustrated and upset, as was I.

Edward glanced towards the door to see if she was still there, then turned to me again to look into my eyes. "I don't want anyone but you. Only you. And when we are ready to put a ring on your finger, it will be my grandmother's ring that my parents are holding for me."

Edward paused then added, "Unless you want something different."

I could see honesty and fear in his eyes. It wasn't fear of being caught with his hands in the cookie jar, so to speak, it was fear that I didn't or wouldn't believe him.

The manner in which that vile woman was behaving also reinforced my decision to believe Edward.

She was obviously delusional enough to believe her own story, but hadn't thought it through enough for others to believe it. I mean, what fiancé just stands at the doorway watching your soon-to-be husband in bed with another woman, without throwing things or yelling and screaming? The only thing she has done since we noticed her in the doorway, was just pace up and down the hall while waiting for me to get up and leave.

Yeah, right. Like that is going to happen.

Her accusations just didn't add up and the words she spoke screamed "lies".

I admit that at first I believed that she could be in a relationship with Edward but once I got over my initial shock, I saw the real picture.

"Bella, please tell me that we are okay. That you believe what I have told you," he inhaled deeply while closing his eyes for a moment. "You are my life now and I can't go back to the way I was a couple of months ago."

I cupped his cheek with my hand, leaned in, and kissed him gently on the lips to let him know I believed him. He started to deepen the kiss but I pulled away when I, again, heard the clearing of a throat from the doorway.

"I'll take care of her, if you don't mind. I would prefer she didn't get a look at your family jewels if you got out of bed." I lightly patted the sheet that covered his crotch. "This . . . is for my eyes only."

I fumbled around for Edward's shirt, and quickly put it on, since he threw my clothes across the room.

Before I could get out of the bed and get rid of Tanya, she had pulled out her cell phone and was loudly reporting her findings to someone as she paced the hall, just outside of the bedroom door.

"Can you tell who she is talking to?"

Edward was shaking his head no when his cell phone started ringing on his nightstand. He reached over to answer the phone when Tanya came back to the door, with a devious smirk on her face.

"Mom?" Edward looked right at me. "So, Tanya called you. That answers some of the questions we had." He nodded in my direction. "Yes, Mom, Tanya is here in the doorway of my bedroom and yes, she is watching me in bed with a woman. No, not another woman, simply the only one that matters in my life." Edward reached over and held my hand.

"Mom, wait, back up. It sounds as if you have been misinformed." There was a pause. "MOM! Would you let me finish?" Another short pause.

"Thank you. Remember when you begged and pleaded for me to let Tanya stay here while she went on those interviews? That is all that it was. We never dated. We never got together. In fact, I was only here a few days at the time that she was here. I was out of town in New York, teaching at a conference, for most of her stay. I do not and never have had a relationship in any form with Tanya. Mom, I'll be blunt, she makes my skin crawl, and not in a good way. Bella is the only one that I am in a relationship with. I, without doubt, have no feelings for Tanya except perhaps now that I am completely pissed off that she let herself into my house uninvited and is making up all of these stories. I have never slept with her and there is no way in hell that I was ever engaged to her."

After another pause, "Mom, she bought her own ring. It didn't come from me." He let out a big sigh and ran his hands through his hair. "She is delusional. Do you really think that I would be engaged and not tell you? Mom, when I am ready to propose, you will be one of the first to know."

There was a lull on his side of the conversation as he listened to what his mother had to say. "Yes, I'll call you later . . . Love you too, Mom." Edward closed his phone.

I gave Edward a quick kiss on the lips. "Is it okay if I take the trash out now?"

"Yep, be my guest."

"Let's go Tanya." I walked out of Edward's room and pushed her along towards the front door. She started to drag her feet a bit, and I shoved her a little harder, not being afraid of getting into an altercation with her.

"Don't touch me you little whore." She tried to turn around and go back to the bedroom, but I wouldn't allow it. "Eddie, please, tell her the truth. Tell her how much you love me. Tell her, Eddie."

I grabbed her by the hair on the back of her head and yanked back slightly as I continued to push her forward at the same time. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way. First thing is first. Give me Edward's key."

She continued to scream for Edward and struggled with me, but made no move to give me the key, so I grabbed her purse and pulled it out of her hands. She flailed her arms around and the contents of her purse spilled on the floor. I shoved her away from me and the purse and then stooped down to see what had spilled, and was quite surprised at what I found.

She had gotten credit cards with the name Tanya Masen on them and quite a bit of Edward's personal information was in her possession. I dumped the rest of the purse on the floor.

Swiftly I picked up all of the makeup and related items that didn't have anything to do with Edward and shoved it back in the purse. Grabbing her keys, I knew exactly which key was to Edward's house because it hung from a large silver, script E that also had an engagement ring charm dangling.

After removing Edward's house key, I handed her the remaining keys and pushed the purse back into her hands.

Edward was going to keep everything else.

"Just wait until my Daddy finds out about this. You will be sorry for treating me this way. EDDIE! GET DOWN HERE AND TELL THIS PIECE OF WHITE TRASH THE TRUTH. I CAN FORGIVE YOU FOR CHEATING ON ME. GET DOWN HERE NOW."

I escorted her to the door and pushed her out.

"Shut up and get out you delusional, psychotic tramp. Don't ever come back." I slammed it in her face; a smug grin appeared on my face.

Edward came around the corner as I locked the door and looked at me with a satisfied smile on his face. "Remind me never to piss you off."

"That's right Masen, never piss me off."

He walked over to me and fastened his arms around my waist, bending down he gave me a tender kiss.

I slightly pushed him away. "Edward . . . Last chance. Any change in your story? I wouldn't be able to live through it if in a couple of months I find out that you lied to me."

"I have told you the entire truth. And there is one more truth that I would like to tell you. I really was going to wait until dinner tonight, but I want to tell you now."

"Bella. Look at me, please." He pulled me in so that our bodies touched and then lifted my chin with his finger. "Bella, I have never felt this way before about anyone . . . Bella . . . I love you."

I stood there for a few seconds with my mouth open, blinking quickly, then when it finally dawned on me what he confessed, I squealed and pulled him into a scorching kiss. Prior to him saying it, I was so afraid of those words. But, right now, after hearing them, I felt fabulous. It felt right.

"Oh, Edward, I love you, too."

He picked me up and swung me around, peppering me with kisses. We kissed for a short while, then just stood there holding each other, basking in our declarations.

Before too long the items scattered on the floor caught our attention once again, bringing us back to the issue with Tanya.

"What do you have there on the floor?" He looked at the remaining contents of Tanya's purse.

"It appears that Tanya was a step ahead of the wedding and got credit cards with your last name. You better check your statements and make sure you didn't authorize an additional card on your account. Do you have an attorney?"

"Yeah, I do. I guess I should give him a call right away. I'll need to call my parents again and find out what else they know." Edward took a deep breath. "I want you to meet them. I want them to meet you. If you think it is too soon, it can wait." He fidgeted as if he was nervous.

"It would be nice to meet your parents." I took his hands in mine. "Please tell me that is the last of the stalker women. I don't think I can handle any more drama this early in our relationship. I'm going to be completely honest and tell you that this whole thing scares the crap out of me."

"Please don't leave me." He held onto me tightly. "I can't live without you."

We kissed passionately. I wanted to convey through that kiss what I couldn't bring myself to say. If this relationship were to end, or if he was lying to me, I don't think I would be able to recover.

I pulled from his lips. "You've got a lot of calls to make. I'm going to jump in the shower and get ready for our date."

"Can't I join you in the shower?"

"Nope, call your parents, your attorney, your credit card companies, your banks, and a locksmith."

"Locksmith?"

"Yes. If she had one key, she probably has another copy somewhere."

"I didn't think of that. Until they get here to change the locks, we can use the security system. I never gave her any codes and if she got one herself, I can reset it. If she tries to get back in, the alarm will go off and the police will be called immediately." He headed to the code panel at the front door. "Bella. What code number do you want to use?"

This was a huge step. I gave him a number that was easy to remember. Then I walked upstairs to start my shower with a smile on my face.

o ~ O ~ o

EPOV

One minute I was in total bliss, the next minute I saw my life flash before my eyes. Bella was crying and it ripped my heart out to see even one tear on her face let alone a constant stream of them coming from her beautiful brown eyes. I had to make this better. I had to fix it.

What the hell was Tanya doing here and who let her in my house? What the fuck. I had to get rid of her immediately.

Ever since we were kids, I tried to keep my distance from Tanya. Even before we were teenagers, when I was forced by my parents to be in her presence, I would stick by my mother so that Tanya wouldn't try to kiss me. My dad would tell me to stop being such a mamma's boy and go socialize with the other kids, but that girl scared me.

After we got a little older, being in the same room with her made me sick to my stomach because she was constantly grabbing me and forcing herself on me. Sometimes I even wore my sports cup just to keep everything protected. The few times that she would be able to get close enough to me to cop a feel, she actually thought she made me hard, when actually she got a hand full of my cup. My private parts were tucked so far away that she would never have been able to get to them due to a turtle reflex from fear of her nearness.

Just the thought of going to a function when she was going to be there would make me vomit. Luckily, I was able to get out of a lot of the visits because I would become physically ill and my mother would let me stay home.

My parents just didn't understand why that girl repulsed me. She really wasn't bad to look at, in fact, most men thought she was pretty. To me, she was a walking billboard for STD's and I wouldn't touch her with a ten-foot pole. She had no personality, couldn't love anyone as much as she loved herself, and was a complete spoiled brat.

She was nothing that I was looking for in someone to spend my time with.

A couple of months ago, my mother begged me to allow Tanya to stay at my house while she interviewed in LA for a few days. Unfortunately, I can't tell my mother no. Mom pulled the old gilt trip and I relented. I had decided that if Tanya got a job in LA, I was moving, or changing my name.

My parents had given Tanya my cell phone number and address before she came down for the interviews. She called me continuously for two weeks.

I was under the impression that her interviews were all supposed to be within a couple of days of each other and that she would only be around for three or four days, max. When I got back from my conference in New York, she was still there and five days after that, she was still there. I had to physically kick her out of my house after two weeks when she started having her personal mail sent there.

During the time that we were in the house together, I spent most of my time either in my home office or in my bedroom with the doors locked. When she would knock, I wouldn't answer and she would finally stomp off in a huff.

I slept on the floor of my walk in closet behind locked doors. Not only did I lock my closet door, I also locked my bedroom door. When she finally left, I had a new bed delivered. Just thinking that she may have slept on my mattress while I was gone gave me the heebie jeebies. It still makes me shudder just thinking about it.

After I finally got rid of her, she called me at least 20 times a day. No exaggeration. I was forced to change my cell phone number and I told my parents that if they gave it out to anyone without my approval first, I would change it again and not give it to them. I didn't tell them that it was because of Tanya, simply an overanxious patient. No wanting to embarrass Tanya, I hadn't discussed her with my parents. A decision that I now regret.

Many times before and after she left, I, in no uncertain terms, told Tanya that I wasn't interested in her. She even offered to be just fuck buddies and then she told me that 'once you get a taste, Eddie, you won't let me go.' The dry heaves descended upon me right in front of her. But after I thought about it, she could be right and her statement might be true because STD's are often hard to get rid of.

Evidently, my mother thought we were an item. In fact, more than an item, engaged to be married. This is the information that she got from Tanya and her mother.

I spelled out everything for my mother in my second phone call with her today. She was completely shocked with what I had told her, and I was equally as shocked at some of the stuff that she told me about Tanya and our impending nuptials. With the details that my mom gave me, it appeared that Tanya's parents were shelling out massive amounts of money on a make believe wedding.

I was glad that the only money that my mother spent on my non-existent wedding to Tanya was on a dress that Tanya insisted she buy. Fortunately, my mother could use the dress at one of her Charity events.

When my mom had told me that Tanya had spent several weekends at their house so that they could bond, and slept in my old bedroom, I asked her to burn the bed and take an inventory to see what was missing. I also asked if she could send someone over to Tanya's apartment to retrieve any of my stuff that she may have stolen. During that part of the conversation, I realized that I was going to have to hire a private investigator to see what else she added my name to hers on.

My dad suggested I get a restraining order and he was going to have a talk with his partner about having Tanya go through some psychological testing to see if she is a threat to either me, Bella, or herself. He also suggested that I alert my staff that they are not to give any personal information to anyone, especially after I move to Seattle and to be safe, in Seattle, I shouldn't put an apartment in my name, but instead in my attorney's name until things settled down.

I would have to introduce Bella to my neighbors and ask that they keep an eye on the house when I am not home.

After a lengthy conversation, I was starting to feel more comfortable with the assistance my parents were providing.

We left the topic of Tanya and started talking about my new job, relocating, and Bella. My mom instantly offered to go to Seattle to find me a place to stay. I told her that wasn't necessary that I would take care of it. Deep down, I was hoping that Bella could help me with finding a place that could perhaps be for both of us, but I couldn't tell my mother that before I talked to Bella about it first. Luckily, Mom let it drop quickly when my dad asked what I was going to do about my practice in L.A.

I requested a rain check on that topic when I noticed the time on my kitchen clock, and was reminded that Bella and I had reservations for dinner.

Ending the conversation with my parents, I promised them that I would call them again soon. There were still three calls I needed to make, a PI, my attorney and a locksmith. I had already called the credit card companies and my banks. Fortunately, none of those had been tampered with yet, by Tanya, but I ordered new account numbers and cards just to be safe.

O ~ O ~ o

BPOV

I finished my shower and dressed in one of my new outfits, then headed downstairs to see where Edward was on his list of calls to make.

Just as I reached the bottom of the stairs, I heard the tail end of his conversation. I waited at the bottom of the stairs as to not disrupt him, and if I'm being honest, to eavesdrop a little bit. This afternoon's drama still left me a little hesitant and insecure.

"Yes, Mom, once I figure out where I will be living when I get to Seattle, I'll let you know. You can still reach me on my cell phone, or call my answering service and they will get a hold of me." He paused, apparently listening to his mother. "I haven't given it much thought yet. I suppose I will rent until I get a chance to figure out more of the city and where everything is located before I buy a house. I am keeping my place here because my contract with Seattle Memorial is to allow me to have six consecutive days off a month in order to come down here to keep my practice going for a while during the transition. I have a lot of regular patients that I don't want to give up just yet. The extra income from the practice will help with what I make in Seattle, so the pay cut won't be quite as drastic." Another pause. "Yes, Mom, just wait until you meet her, she is more than worth it, and I love her. Sorry, Mom. I have to go. We have reservations for this evening. I'll talk to you soon. . . Love you, too."

When I heard him ending his call, I resumed walking towards the kitchen to hide my eavesdropping. "I'm ready when you are."

"You look beautiful. Let me get a quick shower and dressed, then we can go." He started for the steps then turned around to me. "Bella, are we spending the night here or at your hotel?"

"I hadn't given it much thought."

"I'm not spending it without you, so what would be easier?"

"Do you mind my hotel? Then I won't have to worry about how to get to the airport in the morning."

"Sounds good. I'll pack a bag for work in the morning. Do you want to hang your new clothes up in our closet or are you taking them with you?"

"Well. Another thing I hadn't given any thought. If I left clothes here, wouldn't that come across as me staking a claim on you and your life or something?" Edward came over to me and encircled me in his arms.

"Bella, please do. I am yours, and that means what's mine is yours, which includes my heart, my life, my closet and my possessions."

"I think I am starting to believe that. Now go, get ready." I gave him a light swat on the butt, following him up stairs to hang up some of my new clothes in 'our' closet.

o ~ O ~ o

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A/N: Thank you for reading. Reviews make me write faster - let me know if you like it.