Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. Story is rated M for language and lemons.

Chapter 14

EPOV

I had no idea why I was torturing myself, but I couldn't seem to stay away from her either. I'd seen Bella around a few times when she first moved in with Charlie last summer, but since she was hired at Forks Hardware, it was so much worse.

Bella's exactly what I wanted in a woman: smart, funny, gorgeous, and she wasn't afraid of hard work. She sat at the register with how-to books on home repair so she could help customers better, and it made me want to bring her along on small handyman type jobs as an extra set of hands, or bring her back to my house so she can help me fix it up.

But that was never going to happen.

I loved my job and my life, and I knew it would be a struggle during my first couple of years after graduating college, but once I'd worked as an apprentice of Riley Biers in Seattle, I was ready to start my own business. In my first two years, I wasn't doing too badly, as most of the contractors around here were specialty workers – electricians and plumbers.

James was the only other big General Contractor around here, but he preferred new construction, as his degree was in architecture, so he'd referred me some renovations, and I'd give him a heads up on new construction jobs. We'd even teamed up on two bigger projects of his so that he could stay within the time constraints of the job.

The only thing that pissed me off about him was his relationship with Bella. I had no idea if they were dating, fuck buddies, or friends, but he made her smile more than I liked.

It should be me.

Emmett interrupted my wallowing as he slammed my Vitamin R down on the table. "She thinks you hate her, numb nuts."

I turned my stare to Emmett, but he didn't say anything else. "I don't hate her, I just…"

"Just what?" He pushed. "Want to make her feel like shit? Because if that was your goal then mission accomplished. She can be having a great day and you come in and act like you do and everything good just gets erased. If you weren't my best friend, I'd kick your ass. Hell, I still might if you don't pull your head out of your ass."

"Whatever, I'm sure James makes her forget all about me," I said, chugging half of my beer.

"Okay, now I know you're huffing glue. James and Bella are just friends; he's dating a chick from Sequim. She hangs out here on weekends."

I looked back at Bella's table where James, Jasper, Kate, and two of her friends from school were sitting. They were joking and laughing and I wished I could be sitting there beside her.

"Why don't you just go over there and apologize for being a dickhead, then?" Emmett asked and I realized I must have said that last part out loud.

"Because she deserves better than I can give her," I muttered.

"Horseshit!" he hissed. "You're a business owner who's making a profit when most people can't support themselves. I know for a fact that she's attracted to you, and she's probably the only woman who would drop her panties at the sight of your house. Get your shit together and ask the girl on a date."

"Shut up, asshat," was my great comeback as I noticed that I wasn't the only one watching Bella. "What the fuck is he doing here?"