"What do you mean?" He said it in one big rush of air, and I knew it had taken an effort for him to even say it slowly enough for me to understand. His nostrils were flared and his eyes wide.

I put on e hand up in front of me, instinctively. "I just mean how are we going to present this… situation to others?"

"'Situation'? That's what you're calling this? Us?"

Crap.

"No, Edward… I just…" I sighed and propped my face in my hands. "I just got out of a 'relationship' with Mike, and while I am very, very attracted to you, I just don't know if now is the time to be… public about us. That doesn't seem like an issue to you?"

He cocked an eyebrow, obviously intoning, Uh, no?

"Okay, look. The deal is that I really want to be with you. Seriously. In a committed relationship. And, please don't overreact, but while I know about you, I just met you this week!" Edward's face had lost all expression, but I could see his jaw clenching and unclenching. "It's… it just seems a little fast paced is all."

"So… you want to do nothing," he said quietly, staring straight at me.

"No. I want to do something. I just want to do it privately until we figure out what exactly is going on here, and how it's going to work. Please?" I pleaded with my eyes. I didn't want to upset him further, but I needed some time to let this all sink in a bit. I couldn't walk around like I was in a dream forever.

He blinked slowly, taking in what I'd said, and his face softened. "Okay. I understand." He smiled sweetly at me, and pushed a bowl of macaroni and cheese at me. "Now eat before you die and I have to explain to Charlie how it is that you have suddenly disappeared after visiting a family of vampires."

After I ate, it was decided that I should probably go home for the time being, and that Alice should be the one to take me. Charlie would be nicer to a strange girl than a strange (beautiful) boy.

We hunted her down, and she agreed. Leading me back to the garage, she and Edward had a silent yes or no question discussion that obviously dealt with me and what I had said. When his face went neutral again, as it had in the kitchen, I knew she was on my side.

We stopped next to the yellow Porsche, and Alice hopped in the driver's seat, giving us a moment before I left. He pulled me up to his chest in a tight hug, burying his face in my hair. I leaned into him briefly enjoying the way his body forced mine to curve around it. I looked up at him, smiled and mumbled, "I'll see you tomorrow?"

His face lit up and he kissed me before taking me over to the passenger side door. "See you at 11?"

I grinned playfully. "Make it 10."

He laughed, "Goodbye, Bella." Shutting the door, he walked up to the door to the kitchen and lounged against the wall, watching us as the car pulled out onto the driveway. My last view of the house wavered through the trees, and then it was just a wall of green. I sighed and relaxed into Alice's leather upholstery, remembering then afternoon. It felt like I'd been here forever.

"So… What happened?" Alice sounded a little smug, and her pixie face was hiding a smile.

"Oh, please. As if you don't know." She broke into a wide grin and laughed. It echoed through the darkness of the car.

"Right. Well, I agree with you. About what happened in the kitchen." Her smile faded a little, "He kind of jumped right into this. I expected him to actually make friends first." I smiled at her, knowing that while she might have expected this, she also had hoped that he would do exactly what he'd done.

"I only have one thing to tell you in warning," she said, suddenly serious, "We, as creatures who stay in the same state of being forever after we are changed, don't have major changes of emotions very often. And when they happen, they are permanent." I glanced over at her, wondering where she was going with this. She sighed, "Basically, I'm warning you that if…when he falls in love with you… he's not going to fall out. Ever."

No pressure or anything.

The rest of the ride was spent in silence, but it was a thoughtful silence, not awkward. We were comfortable with each other. When she dropped me off, I waved and told her I'd see her tomorrow, and she waited until I had the door open and got inside before she drove away. I glanced at the clock. 5:30. Charlie would be home in a little while, and I had to act normal. I drew a deep breath and blew it out, put my game face on, and started gathering ingredients for lasagna.

I started assembling the sauce, contemplating how tomorrow would go after the mini spat we'd had today. The truth was, I was ready for whatever he brought on. But I doubted that anyone in town would understand why I had suddenly dumped the catch of the century for a pale lanky boy from Alaska, no matter how gorgeous he was. This town was basically one big family, and scandal was pounced upon immediately, as it was the main entertainment. The nearest movie theater was 50 miles away.

I was pulled out of this contemplation by the sound of a car door slamming shut outside. I pulled back the lace curtain above the kitchen window and smiled. Not Charlie.

"Jake! I haven't seen you in forever! What's up in La Push?" I bombarded the Native giant with questions and a hug. Jacob Black was one of the positives of living in Forks. His dad was the guy who'd sold me my truck, and he was the one who had told me the legend about vampires. He personally didn't believe it, and, considering Rosalie's reaction to my knowledge, I wasn't about to tell him. His hair was up in a ponytail at the base of his neck, like always, and tied up with a leather cord. Hi shoulders and chest had filled out majorly in the last few months, and were covered by smooth russet brown skin. He was wearing a plain white T shirt, grease stained jeans, and his signature bright white smile. It was really hard to believe that he was only 16.

"Hey, Bells. Billy sent me down to invite Charlie up tomorrow to watch the game, but it looks like he's not here yet… So what are you doin'?" He planted his long frame in one of the wobbly chairs that surrounded our kitchen table.

I waved a can of tomato paste in his direction. "Making some dinner. Want to hang around?"

"Nah. Thanks though. I'll just give Charlie the message 'n' head out. Actually, I could just leave it with you I guess…" He looked around for some paper and a pencil. I smirked and leaned against the sink with crossed arms. "Got a hot date?"

He looked up quickly and flashed another smile before continuing his search. "I suppose it would qualify as a hot date, yeah," he started scribbling down Billy's request on a lined yellow pad. "It's a tribe meeting thing up on the cliffs. Pretty much everyone shows up, and it's a chance for us to check up on the people we haven't seen in a while. Not much fun for me, but there's a ton of good food 'n' Quil and Embry will most likely come so I'll be in good miserable company. Just can't be late." He tossed the pad on the counter next to me and scooped me into a bear hug. I squeezed him tightly, because I knew he didn't get hugs often. His mom had died in a car crash when he was seven, and his older sisters had moved away for college, so it was just him and Billy.

"Well…" He trailed off, looking at me.

"Right. You go on to your meeting, and I'll get this to Charlie." I waved him out. "Don't stay out in the rain too long, or you'll all catch a cold! And you had better come visit me next week. Are you sure Billy's feeding you properly? You look skinny."

He laughed and kissed the top of my head in a brotherly sign of affection. "I'll be fine, Mom. I'll come by sometime next week and torture you with questions about Sophomore geometry."

"You better."

He shook his head, waving and smiling as he walked out to his car. I watched him drive away, feeling a little proud of him for some reason. I looked over at the yellow pad, just to see if his awful handwriting had improved any with age. It hadn't, and the message wasn't quite right either. I frowned, and I knew a little crease popped up on my forehead.

Billy wants to talk to you. Come up tomorrow. - Jake