I spent Wednesday writing another chapter which will come after this. in these two chappies I wanted to explore a little of Bella and Edward's relationship (which we will see in itself, has some issues they are overlooking in their new chance to be together) and which will also include a backstory for Jake's history in that triangle. So here's a little Leah and Bella action for ya!

I do not own Twilight

TWENTY

Leah was more than surprised when she got a call at the office from Bella Masen. She was invited to meet after work to "talk." Leah didn't know why the woman would want to meet her without Jacob, but at the same time she did. It was about Jacob. It had to be.

Tugging at her burgundy pencil skirt and off-white silk blouse, Leah walked into the hotel lobby and made her way to the bar where sure enough, an immaculate Bella Masen was waiting. She wore a dark blue dress with matching sapphire colored heels, her long hair flowing down her back. She was dripping in diamonds and frankly, reminded Leah too much of herself when she was married to Sam. Bella looked like a doll, a trophy wife and she seemed happy to be just that. She was married to the man of her choice now, so why shouldn't she be?

Leah took a deep breath, fighting down the annoyance she felt as a result of her protectiveness of Jacob's heart. She wasn't sure she could ever see Bella as anything more than a traitor, but she'd try, to be fair and all that. "Good evening Bella," she said with a forced smile.

"Hello Leah, thanks for meeting me." Bella gave her a quick once over before signaling to the hostess, and they were immediately seated at a table for two. She ordered them a bottle of red wine and breadsticks were placed on the table. Leah couldn't help but notice how comfortable Bella was taking charge.

"I hope you don't mind the location, Edward owns this hotel – well, we own this hotel - and I was already here meeting the interior designer." Bella blushed and flipped her hair back off of her shoulder. "I'm still getting used to everything, being Mrs. Masen."

Leah bit back a nasty remark and the last statement and chose to be pleasant instead. "Oh, are you remodeling?" It was now super obvious that Bella was indeed in her element. Leah took a better look around the place, appreciating that it was actually very nice and luxurious.

"Yes, Edward has given me the go ahead to spruce up the place. I'm easing my way into business, so to speak."

"Wow, that's great for you," and Leah did mean it in spite of the circumstance through which Bella came into this position. She was impressed that Bella wanted more than simply enjoying the perks of a millionaire husband. It was good to see that Leah's first impression hadn't been quite accurate. It was at least one point of good standing for Bella.

"I love being a mom, but I don't want to stay home all day. I want to work too, and really be part of Edward's life." Leah nodded, glad that the wine arrived so that she could take a large gulp of it. She needed alcohol for this conversation they were about to have. Bella watched her carefully, a small, pleasant smile on her face which Leah wasn't sure to be genuine. "Leah, I asked you to meet me here because I don't want you to think of me as the enemy."

Leah almost choked on her wine. She gave Bella a look that said, "Really?" instead of saying "Oh Bella, I don't think that!" Like the woman probably hoped she would have.

"You need to understand that I did love Jacob, just not in the way he deserved. He was my best friend but never the love of my life. That was Edward, it will always be Edward."

"I think we all got that by now Bella – after all you divorced Jake, married him and ran off."

Bella shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "I know it looked bad, what I did. But I just wanted time alone with Edward. It's been so long, I wanted a chance for us to get to know each other again before bringing Nessie into the picture."

"You got married first before taking the time to get to know one another and making sure that Nessie was comfortable with the changes. That doesn't sound like you needed time for anything but newlywed sex. Admit it Bella, you left America so that you could pretend that you and Edward were still teenagers in love, you wanted to remember what you had BEFORE getting pregnant."

"I don't need you to judge me Leah. I'm sure you're not perfect either," Bella snapped, her face flushing red at being so openly admonished.

"I don't claim to be perfect. If I was, maybe I'd still be married, maybe I'd have kids of my own," Leah shrugged, not letting Bella's ire get a rise out of her. She felt oddly satisfied as she watched the other woman glower. Maybe Sam was on to something whenever he'd meet Leah's anger with passivity.

"Maybe if you had kids you'd understand why I did what I did," Bella struck back. "I want to give Renesmee a stable home after what happened with Jacob. I just needed time."

Leah paused before taking another sip, donning her "resting bitch" face. "You did what you thought was best, fine, I get it." (But Leah'd never believe it) "But forgive me if I think you have a history of doing what you thought was best, when it really wasn't. I mean, did you really think that what was best was to lie to Jacob and make him think he was Nessie's father? You didn't need to trick him like that. That's not what best friends do to best friends. It's unforgivable, Bella."

"I was desperate and scared at seventeen. I didn't want to ruin things for Edward-"

"So you chose to ruin Jacob's life instead?!" Leah cut in, her temper quickly rising to the surface with the heat on her skin. The nerve of this woman!

"I needed help! And I knew that he would never turn me away!"

"What was so special about Edward's situation that you let him off the hook?" Leah asked, trying to keep her voice level. She really wanted Bella to give her the full story since Jacob couldn't.

"Edward had a lot to live up to. I knew he wanted to be with me but he'd get so excited whenever college came up – he wanted to go and I knew I could never follow him – not to Harvard. He was going to study business. He's a legacy and his father would never have allowed him to give it up to marry me and have the baby. His father didn't even approve of us being so serious at seventeen. I spent a lot of time at their home but I was never really welcome. When I got pregnant I knew that I couldn't ask him to choose me over what was best for him – over what he wanted most. He loved his family and taking over the company was his dream. I didn't want to be the reason he gave it all up. I knew I would never be enough and it would ruin our relationship. To bring a child into that didn't seem like a good idea."

"So you just went to good ole dependable Jacob and faked feelings for him?" It was impossible for Leah not to think that Bella'd thought that Jacob loved her more than Edward ever would and took advantage of that.

Bella sighed and shook her head, then took a long sip of wine. "I didn't really fake them. He's easy to love but it wasn't easy to lie. Not at all. I felt sick to my stomach over what I was doing, but I wanted my baby to have a real family. A father and mother who would love her and make her a happy home. Jacob gave us what we needed. He's always been good to me and I appreciated that."

"You could have gotten his support without lying. Jacob would have helped you as a friend, he could have been an 'uncle,' didn't you think of that?" Leah pressed. In her gut she knew Bella didn't want the disgrace of being a teen mom. She didn't want to be looked down upon by people – by people like Edward's family. Leah understood that, but still, what she'd done to Jacob –taking away his options for higher education - shouldn't have been the only plan Bella came up with. Jacob had his own responsibilities to his father and their tribe. It wasn't fair to him at all. Leah found her to be weak, selfish and insensitive.

"I wanted him to help me raise a child that I thought at the time, could never know it's real family. I wanted Jacob to be the baby's family, I knew he'd make a great father. I didn't want the baby to grow up with such an important person missing in her life. I didn't think that Edward would ever be in my life again. I had no intention of ever seeing him. I told my father not to tell him where I was when he tried to contact me and eventually he stopped."

"And then you moved here?" Leah prompted.

"Yes, for Billy. And I saw Edward in the newspaper and everything just went to shit. All the feelings I'd buried came rushing back and I just wanted to talk to him, to find out about his life….We had lunch a few times and then he confessed that he still loved me and wanted me back. I didn't expect any of that. Even after I told him about Nessie. He wanted everything I thought we could never have together and I couldn't resist."

Leah sighed and finished the breadstick she'd been nibbling on while Bella poured her heart out. "I think that you already know how much you fucked up, right? I think you know that what you did to them both was totally wrong," Leah started. Bella's eyes narrowed but before she could respond Leah held her palm up. "But that is in the past, Jacob has me now and he's finally happy. So, I'm over it." Leah waved her hand in dismissal to prove her point before continuing. "But what I can't just turn a cheek to is the fact that you're trying to cancel him out of Nessie's life now that your fairytale came true. Moving to Canada? Is that REALLY necessary? After ALL that Jacob's done for you over the past seven years, is this really how you repay him? You know how much he loves her don't you?"

Bella sat back and played with her wedding ring, a movement which caught Leah's eye and made her shift in her seat as she remembered her own habit.

"Of course I know, the bond between the two of them was sealed the day she was born and he held her for the first time. I watched him fall in love with her, and knew it was stronger than what he and I shared. It was amazing to see, to watch over the years, but then it began to be too painful when I saw how much she looks like her real father. But Edward's starting new projects that will require him being over there for a while – going back and forth is pointless. He doesn't want us to be apart from each other or from Renesmee. It's the only solution, to take her with us."

"It's cruel."

"It isn't cruel. It's sad or inconvenient but it isn't cruel, Leah. It won't be forever either. We don't plan to live in Toronto permanently, but it will be over a year – maybe two. Jacob needs to accept that things have changed and it's never going to be what it once was. He'll always be Renesmee's father, but so will Edward. Edward has had to live without his daughter all this time, he deserves his chance to be her parent."

Leah couldn't help but feel like Bella was the only one in this whole situation who never had to make any real sacrifices. She was like a chess master, moving the pieces on a board to suit her plans. "You can just pick and choose who'll be Nessie's father today or tomorrow huh?" Leah mumbled, unable to help herself. Whatever man suited Bella's needs was the one she gave her loyalty to. Leah was sickened by the thought.

"What?" Bella snapped. "How dare you!" she hissed, trying her best to keep her voice low.

"How dare I? How dare YOU! Jacob told me Edward thinks he sent you away. And I can't figure out how he could be alright with you two going off and leaving your daughter behind. You're both selfish, and you don't deserve to have full custody of that child, not when she's disposable to you."

"I already explained to you what happened and if you can't agree then so be it but don't insult us. Edward and I love Renesmee more than anything!"

"No you don't - you love each other more than anything!"

"I suggest you shut your mouth!" Bella threatened, her face a deep shade of red, clashing with the dark blue dress.

"No I won't shut my mouth! You wanted to talk, we're talking! You owe Jacob your life Bella! He saved you! You can't just shut him out now because you've found someone with more money!"

"He's not someone with more money, he's my love and Renesmee's FATHER!"

"No, he's not! Not yet at least! Jacob Black is Nessie's father! The only man who ever was because that's what YOU decided! So you need to make it work with Jacob, meet him halfway on this, don't brush his needs aside like it doesn't mean anything! Don't demonize him to Edward – lying to everyone may have worked for you before but it won't work now. Because I assure you, you'll make Nessie sad too. You're not factoring in HER feelings in all this. ONe day she's going to grow up and hate you for what you did. She loves Jacob and Billy so much that you'll break her little heart if you keep them from seeing her."

Bella took another gulp of wine, her pale skin reemerging as she calmed down. It seemed her daughter was the only thing to make her think twice. "I do know she'll be upset, but her new life will make up for that. She'll have so much she's never had before and there will be so many things that will bring her happiness."

"Money doesn't fix everything," Leah groused. She hoped that Nessie wouldn't be so easily swayed by "things."

"She'll be happy," Bella insisted. "I love my daughter and her happiness will be top priority. She won't hate me." It sounded like Bella was trying to convince herself more than anyone.

"What did you really ask me here for Bella? Because I feel like we're already enemies in this," Leah asked frankly, her patience with the woman lonnnggg gone. She wasn't about to sit here and argue over Nessie anymore. It wasn't right.

"Obviously. It's pointless now, but I wanted you to help. I wanted you to keep Jacob from over-reacting all the time, he just won't be reasonable, he always acts on impulse and it isn't helping. You clearly know how to handle him. Edward and I were very impressed with how you handled things at the market and restaurant. We thought that you'd be the one who could make this entire process more peaceful for both sides, but obviously you're just as bad as him."

Leah snorted, then threw her head back and laughed in disbelief. She didn't care one iota that she was causing a scene. Bella had literally broken her back with the last straw. She grabbed her purse from the table, not caring that the chair made a loud raking sound against the marble floor as she pushed it back. "I wasn't 'handling' Jacob, I was backing him up and keeping him from making a scene in front of his child and the public. I don't give a flying fuck about making things 'peaceful' for you. I'm not your mediator but you should take my advice: Meet him halfway Bella, because I'll be scouring this entire state to find a lawyer who will make you. You're not the only one with money. Remember that."

Leah threw one more hateful glance at the woman before standing and walking away, her hips swaying a little more than necessary as her heels clicked loudly against the floor.

When she got home Leah filled the tub, put on some jazz and poured herself another glass of wine. Dinner would have to wait. She just needed to relax and clear her mind, decompress. After pouring some lavender oil into the tub Leah sank her body into the hot water, and exhaled deeply as the calming scent took over her senses. As the warmth caressed her muscles, the tension finally eased.

But Leah's relaxed state didn't last long. She couldn't believe the nerve of Bella. Did she actually think that she would side with her? That she would somehow fall for that shit story? Bella had used Jacob in the worst way possible and then broke his heart to pieces. And she was going to do it again by taking his daughter away. There was no way on earth Leah would ever convince Jacob to just "give in" and make things easier for Bella. Bella was avoiding giving Jacob what she owed for her deceit and it was wrong.

No, Bella Masen had forgotten an important detail, or maybe she didn't know at all – but either way, Bella hadn't considered the one thing Leah and Jacob had in common, what had brought them together. Like Jacob, Leah knew what it was like to be cut down to second place in a spouse's life – and then removed altogether. And for that, Bella would always be a foe, not a friend. Leah could never help Bella, no more than Jacob would ever help Sam. It was utterly ridiculous. At the end of the day, all that mattered was that Nessie got to keep Jacob in her life, that's the side that Leah was on, and would always cheer for.