Chapter 26:

AdPOV:

I had three shots of tequila while I listened to Quil's confessions. I was truly shocked and even repulsed by what I was hearing. I was trying to remain calm and stay fair minded. I knew it was taking a lot out of him to be this honest and straight forward with me. Guys don't share. It's one of those things we rarely do and when it happens it's usually about something we consider extremely important. This confession was making me sick to my stomach. The thought that he could actually sleep with, no wait fuck Jayden was beyond me.

"How could you stand it? She makes me cringe." I asked with a bewildered frown.

"Oh come on she has a sexy ass body. You know it. Look, you close your eyes and pretend she is someone else." Quil shivered as he picked up a shot glass and poured himself a drink.

"Like who?" I cried out.

"Anyone but her." He gulped down the drink and groaned as the drink went down.

"Quil I know you want me to give you some sort of absolution for what you did but it stinks no matter how you look at it. I know your heart was in the right place and I know that Rose twisted your brain into thinking it would help others by doing it but Jake is going to be pissed no matter what." I exhaled deeply as I watched Quil's face fall. I knew he was a good guy. Hell, I would trust him to watch my back any day. I knew this would never have happen if Rose hadn't put him up to it. Still, he made the final choice.

"I know. Should I tell him everything I mean, how Rose thought it up and how I did it in the past with her?" Quil asked his face pretty grim. I felt badly for him.

"I don't know. I would definitely tell him you were in that room and what part Rose played. I swear Jake is going to be furious as hell with her just as much as you." I lifted my shot glass letting him know I would need another drink.

"I hate to get Rose into trouble with Jake and all. I just don't feel it's fair for me to go down with the ship when I was not the only one aboard it." Quil poured himself another shot and we clinked our glasses and gulped down another drink together.

"I agree." I licked my lips as I began to wonder how Jake would handle Rose with this bit of news. He was already upset that she invited Paul and Jayden under the pretense that she just wanted to rub their noses in Jake and Bella's happy marital status. Jake knew now about the previous affair between Rose and Paul. He was going to be royally pissed that she was using his friends to get even with Paul. Oh yeah, there would be hell when he confronted her about all of this. I was definitely going to stay out of this one.

"So how are you going to tell Alice?" I asked as it suddenly occurred to me that once Jake knew then he would tell Bella. Bella in return would feel loyal toward her friend, Alice and confide in her. So Quil would probably be in the dog house with Alice. I hated to see this new relationship that seemed to be having a good effect on him go down the shitter in a blink of an eye.

"What?" Quil choked out the word.

"You have to tell her. I mean after you tell Jake." I warned him.

"Why?" Quil asked with a terrified expression.

"Jake will tell Bella. He will want to validate his honesty to her. He will want her to see that she can trust him. Then Bella will no doubt tell Alice who was in that room. They are best friends after all." I rolled my eyes as I explained the obvious reasons why it was important he exposed the truth to her personally.

"Shit! Double Shit!" Quil slammed his hand against the bar.

"Dude, you guys were not officially dating at that time right?" I ask hoping I was correct.

"No, we went out later that night." Quil revealed.

"Hopefully you didn't have sex with her after doing it with Jayden."

Alice would be furious to learn he slept with a slut like Jayden and then a few hours later with her. Girls got seriously mad and disgusted by that sort of thing.

"NO! We haven't done the deed yet." Quil replied as he flashd me a sheepish smile.

"Seriously. That's cool." I could not believe my ears. Quil had been hanging out with her for the entire week and had yet to make the move to screw her. This was definitely a first for the Quil I knew.

"You think so? I mean, not to sound gay and all but I really want to take my time with her. But now. Well, she probably won't even speak to me after this." Quil rolled his eyes and snorted loudly.

I could see that he was truly upset with his predicament but as I said before he had to reveal the truth to Jake and Alice himself or else it would make it harder for them to forgive him if it came from someone else's mouth.

"You won't know unless you give it a try. She will be upset. Give her some space and send her some fancy flowers. Girls like that shit. Then if she cares about you she will let it go and take your sorry ass back." I suggested.

"Thanks Aidan." Quil looked a million times better now that he had got it all off of his chest and realized what he had to do in order to make things right with the people it would hurt the most once the truth came out.

LPOV:

"You know Seth you could call me more often." I teased my little brother as I stood on tip toes to kiss him on the cheek.

"Works both way sister." He replied back as he smiled tenderly at me.

"So I am going to go to town to pick up her prescription and then when I get back I am packing up so I can go home." I threw my hands up in the air as if I was praising God. Seth rolled his eyes and laughed at me as I walked out of the house.

The drive into town didn't take me long. I was flying like the wind. I couldn't wait to go back to Vegas to be with my friends. I was actually looking forward to even going back to my crummy job at the Casino.

I ran into the pharmacy. I was standing in line when I overheard Mrs. Newton trying to make an attempt to whisper to Mrs. Grey and was failing miserably. I could hear them practically across the room.

"It's so sad. They got her to the hospital just in time. The baby is fine but they had to remove her uterus. She won't' be able to have any more kids. I hate to say it but sometimes the lord works in mysterious ways." Mrs. Newton sighed heavily.

"I know. I just hope that Edward is doing okay. I heard he was nowhere to be found when they picked her up. Makes you wonder why he was not at home at three in the morning?" Mrs. Grey's eyes widen with delight.

I wondered if they were talking about Tara and Edward?

"There you go Leah. Tell your mother I hope she feels better soon." The pharmacist commented as I took the bag and walk straight over to the two old gossip windbags.

"What are you guys talking about?" I asked in a stern voice. I knew I was not showing my best polite side but these two women were often the reason many people suffered in this town with their gabby jaws a flapping.

"Well, I never!" Mrs. Grey gasped.

"Sure you have." I snorted but continue to stare hard at the both of them.

"Tara, you know that friend of yours." Mrs. Newton's eyes widen with an evil glint.

"Yeah." I replied tartly.

"She went into premature labor early this morning. She had to call 911 because Edward was not at the apartment. They had to operate to get the baby out in time and she was bleeding so badly they had to remove her uterus in order to keep her alive." Mrs. Newton continued.

"Damn. So she and the baby are okay?" I asked with more concern than I had thought possible.

"Yeah. I just wonder where Edward was when they rescued her?" Mrs. Grey nodded her head.

"He might have been out on a jog. He often took early morning jogs before his shift." I lied through my teeth. Not sure why I was protecting Edward exactly but just hated watching these women stir up more trouble for him. He was a dick head but he was also a human being who did not deserved to be gossiped about by these two judgmental old hags.

"Oh." They said in union and looked extremely disappointed by my lie. I wanted to laugh at them but knew it would be lost on the both of them.

"See you later." I waved at them and hurried out of the pharmacy.

I was going to go back home and pack up like I had planned but my curious nature just wouldn't let me. I drove to the hospital and went up to the nursery where I knew the baby and Tara would be.

I stood in front of the closed door for a few seconds trying to talk myself out of this insanity. I knew that it wasn't wise for me to see Tara. I was still furious as hell for what she had done to Bella. I had suspected eventually she would make a play for Edward in the past. I was stupid enough to think that Edward was smarter than most guys and that his love and loyalty for Bella was strong enough.

I knock on the door. I heard a groggy voice answer. I stepped inside and saw a bare room. As I walked further in the room I saw Tara laying in the bed. She looked seriously pale and her eyes were blood shot red as I approached her.

"Leah?" She whispered giving me a worried look.

"Yeah, it's me." I gulped hard as I stopped in front of her bed.

"Wow, I never dreamed in a million years I would see you again." She replied with a raspy voice.

"I know." I agreed with her. I knew this was a bad ideal but I couldn't seem to find the will to leave the room.

"So I hear you had a baby." I attempted to place an excited smile on my face.

"Yeah, apparently it will be the only one I ever have." Tara's voice crackled as tears slid down her face.

"I'm sorry Tara." I truly meant that too.

"Yeah, well you reap what you sow, right Leah." She chuckled bitterly as she angrily wiped the tears from her face.

"I guess." I wish she didn't look so miserable or I would have been able to say more than that to her. I was still angry and disappointed with her.

"So what did you have?" I decided to try and change the subject before I let my anger show its ugly head.

"A girl." She replied with a big grin on her face. I could tell she was pleased with that at least.

"What did you name her?" I continue to ask the normal questions people ask in this situation.

"Edward named her." She bit down on her upper lip as she glanced away for a moment before she met my eyes again.

"Well, what is her name?" I prayed that it was not a name that he and Bella had considered when they were discussing their future children. I knew they had played that game once when Bella thought she might have been pregnant. It was a false alarm thank goodness.

"Elyssa Esme Cullen." She stated as her eyes filled up with tears.

"That is pretty." I was being honest but I could tell my response was not helping her much. Tears streamed down her face.

"Thanks." She answered as she wiped away the tears again.

"Where is Edward? Is he with the baby?" I ask hoping that was why he wasn't present at the moment. From what the old hags were saying he was up to something last night. I didn't know why I cared since it was none of my business and anything that happen between him and Jayden should be of no real concern to me but I was curious.

"Yeah." She shook her head and then covered her face with her hands.

"Shhh…Tara what is wrong?" I reach out and pulled her hands away from her face.

"He is leaving me. He told me that he is having a blood test ran on her to prove if she is his or not. If she is his then he ….well…he is going to take her from me." Tara sobbed loudly.

"Why? I mean what happened that suddenly made him react this way?" I was dumbfounded. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Why was Edward suddenly doubting the paternity of this baby and more importantly why was he taking her away from Tara? Something was up? Something was not right. My gut instincts warned me to find Edward as soon as possible.

"I don't know. I mean, sure we were not getting along smoothly these last few months but …I don't know." She cried out as I handed her a tissue.

"You need to focus on getting better and then you should talk to Edward about why he feels so strongly about separating you from your baby." I advised although a part of me wanted to puke for being so kind to her. I couldn't explain it exactly but my heart truly ached for her. I knew she had been a horrible, selfish, and back stabbing bitch but no one deserved to have their baby yanked away. Especially if this was the only child she would ever have. It just didn't sound like the Edward I knew.

"I will. Thanks Leah." Tara reached out and squeezed my hand. I wanted to flinch from her touch but I knew it would just throw her into another crying fest. I didn't have time for that.

"I got to go. I got to catch a flight to Vegas." I mumbled as I pulled my hand away.

"I understand. How is Bella?" Tara looked at me with honest sincerity as she asked.

"She is good. She has moved forward with her life." I replied swiftly. I did not want to discuss Bella with Tara.

"Good. I miss you guys." She gulped hard as she flash me a smile.

"Yeah, well get better." I didn't have it in me to lie to her and tell her we missed her too. I had been kind enough for one day.

I walked out of the room and went toward the nursery. I found Edward leaning his forehead against the glass window as he watched the nurses handling a baby.

"Edward." I reached out and touched his shoulder alerting him to my presence.

"Oh! Hey." Edward flashed me a pleasant smile.

"Is that her?" I asked as I pointed to the baby with the nurses.

"Yeah." He smiled proudly.

"So hey I just saw Tara and she told me you were going to take the baby from her. What's going on?" I watched his face changed instantly. He went from proud dad to extremely pissed off in a blink of an eye.

"I'm sorry Leah, I really don't wish to discuss that with you." Edward frowned as he pressed his lips together. I sensed he wanted to tell me but something was stopping him.

"Look, you know I am not a big fan of Tara's. In fact I truly despised the girl. Still, as a woman and future mother someday I am baffled by your behavior toward her especially since you know she can't have any more children." I replied.

"Let's be honest here Leah, Tara would not make a good mother. She is irresponsible, selfish, and downright a bitch." Edward answered with a harsh tone.

"Okay you knew all of this but you still laid with her and conceived this child with her." I pointed out his stupidity for falling for her in the first place.

"Maybe, maybe not." Edward shrugged his shoulders and turned back toward the baby.

"What the hell?" I frowned at him.

"Bella's friend, Jane Wood came to see me last night. She told me that Tara was sleeping with two other men while with me. It could be anyone's child." Edward confided as he banged his head against the window.

I stood there frozen. What the hell? Who was Jane Wood? Bella had no such friend that I knew of and how would she get this information?

"I don't know any Jane." I informed him.

He looked at me with a startled expression.

"Well, she knew about Bella and I. She said that Bella got married Leah. Why didn't you tell me about that?" He asked with a hurt look on his face.

"Why? Well, because it was not my secret to tell you." I sighed loudly.

"Secret? Why is her marriage such a secret?" he gave me a suspicious glare.

"Her parents don't know yet. At least not as far as I know." I admitted flashing him a guilty look.

"Why would Bella not tell her parents about that? They would be tickled pink. Especially her mother." Edward rolled his eyes sarcastically.

"Because her marriage is a little complicated right now." I decided to give him a little bit more of information that was probably not wise of me but hey I was on a roll.

"Does he beat her?" Edward asked as his eyes stared coldly at me.

"What? Hell no." I cried out furiously.

"Well, this Jane girl made a few comments saying that she did not think Bella was happy in this marriage." Edward informed me.

"Look, I don't know who this Jane girl is but she is a liar and no doubt a fraud. Bella does not know any Jane Wood." I replied with a stern look on my face.

"Well, is it possible that Bella hired investigators on Tara so that she could help me out of this mess? I mean maybe she did and did not tell you guys because she knew you would get upset with her?" Edward looked hopeful.

"I doubt it. Bella has enough going on in her life without trying to fix your love life." I laughed bitterly.

"All I know is that when I mentioned the names of Tara's other two lovers she did not denied it. This mystery woman, Jane, found this out. I've been made a fool of by Tara again. I can't stand the thought of her raising my daughter. She sickens me." Edward let out a long groan as he fought to hold back his anger.

"I think you should consider giving her visitation rights at least Edward. It's not fair to her or that baby." I warned him.

"Maybe." He shrugged and I saw the tired look in his eyes.

"Edward, don't do anything stupid. I mean it. I've got to go. I hope for your sake this baby is yours." I patted him on the back and swiftly left the hospital. On the way home I kept thinking about this Jane Wood character. Who the hell would have come to Washington to stir up shit for Bella with Edward? I knew it was impossible to believe that Bella hired an investigator behind our backs. She would never be that brave. She rarely made any choices without telling or asking us our opinions.

I realized suddenly that I had not asked Edward what this Jane Wood even looked like. I would call him once I got back in Vegas. In the meantime I had to hurry and pack or I would miss my flight entirely.

BPOV:

I hated to leave. I wanted to stay here in our own private paradise for at least another month. I had experienced so many different things while here. I got to do some incredible things that I would have never done back home. I had grown closer to Jake. I was starting to feel as if we were truly husband and wife in the way that mattered the most to me.

Although he hadn't spoken the words that he loved me again since that night he fell asleep I could see in his eyes that he was also growing closer to me. He was often asking me for my opinion or asking me questions about myself. He seemed to be absorbing every detail I shared with him. I felt so respected by him. I also felt as if we were equals. I did not feel inferior to him like I had with Edward.

I felt like I could be myself and that thrilled him. He actually liked me, Bella, just plain old Bella. It was such a refreshing feeling. To know you could be completely honest with yourself and the other person and know you were not being judged for it.

Jake had also showed me that sex with him was beyond anything I could ever imagine. I seriously doubted any other man would even come close in comparison to him. I would never tell him this but it was true. He had ruined me for any other man.

My heart swelled with pride when he was by my side. I saw the way other women eyed him when were out and about. I knew they envied me. Jake was incredibly sexy as hell. He could charm the pants off of Satan himself. He was funny. He had a knack at making me laugh even at myself. He was tender. He knew how to touch me in a way that was so gentle but drove me insane with desire. He was compassionate. He was giving. He was everything to me.

I seriously did not want to even consider my life from a year now. I couldn't walk away from this man not even for a million dollars. Yeah, I had fallen madly and deeply in love with Jake Black. It was too late. I had let my wall down and was totally his. Now all I had to do was hope that I could make him see how I felt about him without openly saying the words out loud. I was too scared to do that yet. What if his feelings were not reciprocated? What if he actually wanted to end this marriage? My heart sunk to the ground. I felt tears stinging my eyes.

"I know how you feel." Jake whispered in my ears as he wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me closer to him.

"You do?" I asked with a frown on my face. Was it possible that he did know that I had fallen in love with him?

"I hate to leave this place too. But hey we can come back soon." He offered as he planted a kiss on the tip of my nose.

"Yeah, we can." I agreed as I gulpped hard. My secret was safe for now. I just was not sure how much longer I could keep it.