A/N: I know, I know I know... I'm so sorry it's taken forever. But I wanted to get this right. This is the last chapter, and everything else will be wrapped up in the Epilogue, which I hope to post next week.

Thank you all for your support, your emails, your reviews. I've spent over a year crafting this story, and I can't believe that anyone else out there is reading it. I love you all.

Chapter 37

"Limpieza."

A light knock on the door woke me at ten the next morning.

"No, gracias. Vuelve más tarde."

Bella burrowed underneath her pillow and sighed. "Do we have to get up?"

I slid back down underneath the covers next to her, pulling her against me to warm her chilled skin.

"In a little while we do." I swept her hair up and planted small kisses on the back of her neck. She pressed back against me, and I felt myself hardening at her little hums of pleasure.

She rolled over to face me, and opened her eyes. "What do you want to do right now?" she smiled, and threw her left leg over my hip.

I lowered my lips to hers. "I have an idea or two…"

"Ready?" I asked.

An hour and a half later we were showered, dressed, packed up and preparing to leave.

Bella nodded. "I really don't have anything but this," she said as she handed me the small bag of toiletries that Alice had packed for her. "The clothes from yesterday... they can go into the garbage."

I hefted the duffel bag onto the bed and my cell phone rang.

"How's it going?" I asked Alice.

"Fine. According to plan, actually. Although I think Emmett was a little pissed that he didn't get to drive the Mercedes."

I laughed. "He understands. It's only until we clear the border, anyway. You two ready to go?"

"Yep. When can you be here?"

"I'm in the lot already."

"Come on up. And bring a bag."

Five minutes later, Alice was in our room, sitting on the unmade bed. She looked around and cocked an eyebrow at Bella.

"What?" Bella asked.

Alice shook her head. "Nothing." Her gaze slid to me and her eyes narrowed. "Nice going, Edward."

I feigned wide-eyed innocence. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Alice."

"Two people, two beds, only one used?" She shook her head again. "You decided to bang the hostage?" Alice ducked as Bella laughed and threw a pillow at her head.

"Don't blame him, Alice. He was trying his best to remain decorous. I was the one who couldn't keep my hands off of him." She smiled and moved toward me for a kiss.

Alice gagged and made a show of covering her eyes. "Knock it off, you two. Get a room. Oh, wait—you already did!"

The pillow I launched at her head made contact and sent her sprawling.

"Did you bring the bag, you old prude?" I asked.

She tossed a small backpack at me and gave me a dirty look before moving to the mirror to fix her hair.

"Don't be a hater, Alice," I laughed. "Your jealousy is completely transparent."

I unzipped the duffel and pulled out the small bag Alice had tossed to me last night.

"Hey, that looks like one of the bags that was in Jacob's truck." Bella leaned over and lifted it, and her eyes widened. "What the hell is in there, bricks?"

"Something like that." I opened the bag and dumped out the stacks of banded tens, twenties and fifties onto the bed.

"Oh my God! How much…" she trailed off as Alice organized the pile and did a quick count.

"Looks like about twenty-five thousand, give or take a few." Alice turned to Bella. "How many bags like this did Jacob have in his truck?"

Bella wrinkled her brow in thought. "I know there were at least four, maybe more?" she shrugged.

Alice nodded. "I counted eight bags; six of them had money, two contained boxes with vials of liquid. Hydro- or hyga-something."

"Hygetropin. Human growth hormone."

Alice raised an eyebrow. "I wonder what the street value is on that stuff."

I shook my head. "No idea, but I'm certain that he was acting as a courier. Why else would he run the risk of crossing the border with so much cash and HGH?"

"I think the better question is, How are we going to get back into the States with all of this money?" Bella dropped a stack of twenties onto the bed and stood.

"Customs allows up to ten thousand dollars to be brought into the country without having to fill out any paperwork. If we split it up between the three of us, we won't have any problems."

"Why do we have it at all?" Bella crossed her arms, her face contemptuous.

"Insurance."

"So, let me get this straight."

Alice and I were in the process of explaining to Bella exactly what had transpired over the last 48 hours in a little diner ten minutes from the airport. She chewed her eggs thoughtfully as she attempted to piece together the details of the story.

"Billy Black was pissed off that you were moving in on his business ventures, so he had Jacob kidnap me to draw you to Mexico so that they could beat you up and get you to back off?" She shook her head. "That seems ludicrous. Why would he care? And how would he even know that we had a connection?"

Our waitress stopped to fill our coffee mugs, and I waited until she left to continue.

"It's bigger than that. We started poking around and found out that he's been screwing with the purchase prices on his properties in order to evade paying property taxes, he's been funding Jacob's little anabolic steroid side business, and he's had some shady dealings with a few of the county supervisors." I took a drink. "As to how he was able to make that determination… I think it was Jacob's idea. I don't think it was a very well thought-out plan, and I think we called his bluff when we showed up to collect you."

I stabbed at my eggs and took a bite.

"But the tax thing?" Bella continued. "I don't understand."

I put down my fork. "If you buy a house, your property taxes are based on your purchase price. The higher the purchase price the higher the property taxes. Billy found a way around this by offering to pay the seller a large percentage of the purchase price in cash. They report the purchase price as one third of the actual payment; the seller doesn't have to pay as much in capital gains taxes, and Billy Black's paying one third of what he would have on his taxes."

Alice spoke up. "Let's say you have a house that's valued at one hundred thousand dollars. Not that there are any homes in LA that are that cheap, but I digress…" she waved her hand. "Now let's say you're paying four thousand dollars a year in property taxes on that house. If someone offers you one hundred thousand dollars, but wants to pay seventy-five thousand cash, and list the purchase price as twenty-five thousand, that drops the cost of your taxes immensely."

"It seems like an awful lot of trouble to go through just to save a few bucks."

I nodded. "For the average homeowner? I agree. But not when you're dealing with million-dollar properties. And the tax structure is different for different types of properties; for example, the tax bracket is higher on commercial properties than it is for residential properties. And since Los Angeles County doesn't do market assessment on commercial properties like they do residential properties, it's easier to fly under the radar."

She nodded, and we ate in silence for a few more minutes.

"What about Sam?" Bella stared down at her plate, and I knew what she was asking. What about the man that Alice had killed? I met Alice's eyes, saw her grimace at the reminder.

"I don't think we have to worry about that, Bella," I said, as gently as I could.

Alice dropped her voice and leaned forward. "I had Jasper do some checking last night, and Sam Uley is – well, was—one bad dude. Jasper did a little unsealing of juvenile records and learned that he was in and out of juvie eleven times between thirteen and seventeen. Everything from drug dealing to armed robbery. At fifteen he was listed as a 'person of interest' in a convenience store shooting in Lynwood." She scrolled through her BlackBerry, ticking off items related to Sam's history. "Oh, that's nice."

"What?"

"GSI on a thirteen year old when he was fourteen."

Bella's face was blank. "'GSI?'"

Alice's mouth drew to a thin line. "Gross sexual imposition. Basically, rape."

Alice's phone beeped. She checked her text, and started laughing. "Remember yesterday, after we got Bella out of the motel, I asked Emmett to wait a second so I could send a text?"

Bella and I nodded.

"I was texting Jasper the license plate and description of Jacob Black's Hummer. He flagged his ride in the U.S. Customs database, so that when Jacob tries to cross the border, he'll be searched."

I grinned at her. "And?"

"And… Jasper just texted me that there was a hit on the plate. It seems our friend Jacob Black is going to be getting a cavity search soon from our friends at the U.S. Customs!"

Bella laughed. "That'll be the first action he's gotten in a long time."

I laughed. "I owe Jasper big time."

"Don't you forget it!" Alice beamed.

We made small talk for several minutes, and I turned to Alice. "Have you heard from Emmett?"

"Yep. I dropped him off at the border last night; he rented a bicycle for five bucks and breezed through the bike lane in five minutes. They checked his ID but didn't search his backpack. He took a taxi from there and stayed at a hotel just outside of Otay. After I cross the border I'm going to pick him up and head home."

I checked my watch. "Are you heading out as soon as you drop us off at the airport?" I asked.

Alice nodded. "I'll call you as soon as I get through."

The plane ride from Tijuana International Airport to Houston was uneventful, but as we began our descent, Bella started fidgeting. I placed my hand on the small of her back, rubbing gently. She leaned over and whispered, "I'm worried about the money."

"When the Customs agent questions you, tell him you're returning from vacation, traveling alone. If they ask you about the money, you tell them you had a lucky streak at the casino. It's only ten thousand, so you don't have to declare it. He'll stamp your passport and you go on through. No big deal."

"What if they search my bag? A tourist coming home from vacation would have a bathing suit, some extra clothes, a camera… I don't have any of that." She bit her lip, and I could tell she was getting nervous.

"Relax, Bella. You're going to be fine."

The terminal at George Bush Intercontinental Airport was busy, and we walked silently through the terminal, dodging tourists on our way to Customs. I gave her hand a squeeze before letting go and slowing down, allowing a few travelers to move in front of me as Bella queued up in the line.

For the first time, I felt the prickles of nervousness at the back of my neck. Bella was a terrible liar; what if they took her aside? Would she be able to explain the money satisfactorily?

I tracked her movement through the line, being careful not to make eye contact with her, and busied myself with checking my email on my BlackBerry. A text from Alice:

Well?

I texted back: In line customs

I knew I was being overly careful and cryptic, but I'd dealt with the U.S. Government enough in the past to err on the side of caution.

Bella was standing in front of a Customs agent, turning her passport end over end. I wished that I could send out a message to her telepathically; don't fidget. It's a tell. She handed her passport to the Customs agent and promptly put her thumb into her mouth to chew her cuticle. Inwardly I winced, and felt my heart rate start to pick up.

She's going to lose it…

I was watching Bella intently when I felt the man behind me tap my shoulder and point to an available agent. "You're next, bud."

I nodded my thanks and took my time picking up my bag, stowing my BlackBerry and moving down the line, trying to keep Bella in my line of sight.

"Name?" The Customs agent barely glanced at me as he thumbed through my passport.

"Edward Cullen."

"Are you a U.S. Citizen?"

"Yes."

"Reason for trip to Mexico?"

"Pleasure."

"Do you have anything to declare?"

"No."

He flipped through my passport again before directing me to place my index finger on the digital reader, then showed me where to stand while they took my picture. The official record of my trip back into the United States was unnerving, especially considering the lengths that I had gone to in order to make certain that we left no paper trails in Mexico.

"Welcome back to the United States, Mr. Cullen." The agent handed me my passport and I thanked him, craning my neck to locate Bella.

As I passed through the exit, I saw an agent escorting Bella towards the secondary processing area.

Oh, shit.

I felt the panic rise in my chest and I struggled to keep it at bay.

Please, God, don't let her say anything…

Thirty minutes later, after two phone calls to Alice and one to Jasper, I was pacing near the Customs exit. Our flight to Los Angeles was supposed to board in less than thirty minutes, and we had two concourses to cross.

Jasper had performed his magic and confirmed that there was not a Customs flag on either my or Bella's passport. But the fact that Bella had been selected for a secondary screening was suspicious to me, and I couldn't help the fear that was pricking at my nerves.

I had pulled out my BlackBerry again, preparing to call Alice, when I saw her. Her bag was slung over her arm and she was scanning the crowd for me. I moved toward her and her eyes locked on mine. She looked away, cutting her eyes over her right shoulder, and I watched as a uniformed Customs agent watched her moving away from the processing area.

Bella passed me purposefully, and I continued to stand, rooted to the spot. I thought quickly, and scanned the passengers who were heading my way. One of them, a young blond woman, was replacing her passport into her shoulder bag.

"Excuse me." I smiled at her and she stopped, returned my smile. "I think you may have dropped something out of your wallet." The words were coming out of my mouth without benefit of a brain filter. I bent down to search for the imaginary piece of paper, and glanced up toward the Customs agent. He was watching us with detached interest.

I reached into my pocket and withdrew a business card. "Here it is," I smiled and handed it to her.

The young woman frowned slightly and shook her head. "I… don't think this was mine. I don't know an--" she peered at my name on the card, "Edward Cullen."

I smiled again, turning up the wattage, trying to give myself time to think. "Well, actually, I just used a little ruse to get your attention. I noticed you and wanted to figure out a way to meet you. I knew as soon as you walked by me out of Customs, I'd never see you again." I turned, moved slowly away from the screening area toward the terminals, and a quick glance showed that the Customs agent was busying himself with harassing a man just off a flight from Syria.

She shook her head and laughed. "That's a pretty clever ruse, Mr. Cullen." She pursed her lips and held the card out to me. "But I think my husband would take issue with me chatting up such a handsome young man." She winked, and held out her hand to shake. "But I must say, it was certainly a pleasure meeting you." She tossed her hair, and with one last parting smile, she was off, cutting a swath through the terminal with the air of a woman who has just been complimented on her beauty.

"Nice one." Bella materialized beside me, and I jumped. I looked down at her and smiled. She turned her back and started walking, her bag slung over her shoulder. I caught up to her and took her arm.

"What happened?" I asked.

"From what I could see, you were dazzling that poor woman." She shook her head. "You never have played fair, Edward."

I laughed. "No, Bella - what happened at Customs?"

She shrugged as we stopped in front of one of the arrival/departure boards. "They told me I'd been selected for a secondary search. I did what you told me; kept my answers short and to the point. They asked me about the money and I told them I won it playing slots. He didn't bat an eyelash." Bella bit her thumb as I scanned the board for our flight to L.A. and checked my watch.

"Our flight's been delayed. We have plenty of time. Are you hungry?"

She shook her head and continued. "The Customs guy asked me if I was traveling alone, and the first time I remembered to say 'yes' but the second time I said 'no.' I could tell he got all suspicious, so I said, 'well, I've been traveling alone, but I'm meeting a friend and we're flying to L.A. together.' I guess they bought it, since they let me go. But when I walked away, I knew he was watching, and I couldn't stop, in case they called us both back. Besides, I wanted to give you a chance to hit on that blond."

I smiled as I wrapped my arms around her, kissing her carefully. "You did wonderfully. Perfectly."

My BlackBerry buzzed in my pocket. I checked the display and texted a reply to Alice letting her know we were through and that our flight was delayed, and laughed at her expletive-riddled response.

I slipped an arm over Bella's shoulder as we made our way towards our terminal.

The plane trip from Houston to LA was uneventful, and a scowling Alice had picked us up once our plane landed. Emmett complained that he was starving to death, so they dropped us off at the apartment before going to get dinner.

"Edward, something has been bothering me since this morning," Bella began.

We sat on the couch together, reveling in the quiet. Bella had spent the last hour on the phone; first with her mother and father, then with the detective at Missing Persons to confirm that she was, in fact, found. He pressed her to come in to discuss what had happened, but she begged off, offering to come in tomorrow. I told her not to worry; we'd contact an attorney before dealing with the police.

She had wanted to go home to her apartment, but I didn't know if the landlord had had her door repaired, or if the crime scene cleanup crew that Alice had hired had taken care of it yet.

I handed her a glass of wine and waited for her to continue.

"Do you remember when Jacob said something about 'taking away the only thing that meant anything to him'? What was he talking about?"

I frowned at the memory. Jacob had been on the verge of losing control, waving a gun around and screaming at his friends. "When we went to see Billy, we told him what we knew about his business dealings; the tax evasion, the bribery, the drug trafficking. I said that we would not go to the authorities on two conditions. One, you were unharmed. and two, that he had to sell Core Fitness to you."

Bella's eyes went wide, her fleeting smile chased away by a frown. "That's really great, Edward. Problem is, I can't afford to buy it. Not on my strippercise salary."

I shook my head. "No, Bella. He's agreed to sell you the club for one dollar."

She turned to face me and blinked, unbelieving. "Is that… really? He can do that?"

I nodded. "He has to do that. Otherwise, we'll go to the authorities." I grinned at her as she absorbed the news. I watched her smile overtake her entire face, and she glowed with excitement. "All we have to do is have an attorney draw up the papers."

She squealed and reached toward me, throwing herself into my arms and hugging me so tightly I couldn't breathe. "Oh, Edward, this is so exciting! I can't believe it! What made you think to do this? Why me?" she trailed off, and I could see her mind racing.

She leaned against me, and I smiled at her effusiveness. "I don't have any evidence, but I suspect that when Billy purchased the club, he intended to use it for money laundering. As an added bonus, it kept Jacob busy – and out of Billy's hair. But when you showed up, and your classes started making money, which meant the club was turning a profit, it wasn't worth it for Billy to hang on to it. And since he knew about Jacob's little side business, and figured that the accountants would be nosing through the books to see if everything added up… he figured it would be safer if he just sold it to us.

"Problem was, Jacob got angry when he found out; he didn't want Billy to sell the club, since it was his base of operations for his drug running. Billy had to retract his agreement since Jacob was such a loose cannon, and nobody knew what he would do. Turns out, he kidnapped you and took off to Mexico. Even Billy didn't know about that."

Bella nodded thoughtfully. "So, when did you decide to approach him again?"

"When we knew that Jacob was the one who had taken you. We held all of the cards, and it was something Billy wanted to do, anyway. He wasn't too thrilled with the price, but he's getting out from under the business."

She shook her head in amazement and leaned forward to put her glass down. "I still can't believe it! I'm going to own my own fitness center." The smile on her face was infectious, and I leaned over to kiss her lips, stopping myself only barely.

"I'm sorry, Bella. We haven't discussed this…" I faltered, unaccustomed to not knowing exactly what to say. How could I tell her how happy it made me be able to do something for her? How easy it would be to take her into my arms, how comfortable it was to have her nestle against my chest. My arms ached to hold her, but I didn't want to assume anything about our newly-rekindled relationship.

She reached out a hand and rested it on mine. "I think we 'discussed' this last night, Edward. I love you. It's only been you since the moment I saw you. But I had a lot to work through; I needed to learn to let go, and you had to learn to love. I know that I've grown and changed, and it's obvious that you have, as well." I let her turn my hand over, and closed my eyes at the feel of her finger tracing the lines of my palm.

I opened my eyes and turned to face her, my smile wan. "I put you in danger, Bella. I involved you in this deal that could have killed you—"

"You saved me, Edward."

"I wanted to see you. I wanted to know what you were doing, who you were with, if you were happy…" I trailed off and shook my head, angry with myself. "I orchestrated this entire thing out of selfishness. What if Emmett, or Alice had been hurt—"

"You took care of them, Edward. And they took care of you. They love you."

Despite the guilt that weighed on my shoulders, I felt a buoy of hope in my heart. Was it even possible?

"I drove a wedge between Alice and Jasper, and who knows if they'll ever be able to reconcile?" The confessions continued to tumble out, the joy I felt just a few moments ago darkened by the pain that sat just beneath the surface.

She smoothed away my anguish with her hand, absolution in her caress. "If you're going to blame yourself for things, how about if you make it things you have control over? Blackmailing people, yes. That was wrong, and you paid the price for your actions. But what happened between Alice and Jasper wasn't your fault. And Rosalie…" Bella shook her head. "Well, she made her own decisions. She offered to help you out, and you were wrong for agreeing; you have to acknowledge that." Her eyebrows knit together, and her voice softened. "Rosalie got herself into trouble for more than just taking naked photos, Edward. She was on a path to self-destruction. And she succeeded."

She fell silent, and I absorbed the weight of her words: She loved me. She didn't blame me.

Was it possible? Could it be that this amazing woman, who had been through more with me than just about anyone else, who knew my weaknesses and my pain, my courage and my doubts… could she?

Bella leaned toward me, eyes shining with emotion. She smiled, and I closed my eyes, wanting to remember her like this… filled with joy and promise and devotion.

I felt her whispered breath in my ear. "I love you, Edward."

I smiled. "I love you, too, Bella."