A/N Some differences in the beginning, then the same :)
Words with Friends Chapter 54
"Edward? Edward, they know."
"Bella? What happened? How do they know?" His voice shot out at me and I could hear the fear there. I tried to focus, but it felt like all my energy was draining out of me. I wanted to curl up in bed and cry.
Focus. "I don't know. Rose and Emmett got arrested and I don't know where they are!"
"Why were they arrested? Baby, take a deep breath and tell me what happened."
That was a good idea. I breathed deep and then released the air. "Sorry. I'm sorry. I'm trying…"
"It's okay, baby. I know you're upset. Just tell me what happened so we can figure out what to do. Why did Rose and Emmett get arrested?"
"We were going to the museum. That was all." It was just supposed to be a fun day out, me and my best friends. "We stepped out of the hotel and the next thing I knew, people were yelling questions and crowding around." So much yelling, so many bodies, jostling, trying to get in my face. "I kept my head down, like you said, but they just kept coming and Rose called Emmett and told him to come down. Some guy stepped on Ali's leg and hurt her ankle."
"Is she okay? Bella, are you?" He was panicked. I needed to calm him.
"I'm fine. I didn't get hurt, just pushed and stuff." Just a scratch. "Some guy grabbed Rose and you know, she hit him. Then Emmett came out and heard that and he started throwing punches and yelling at me to get out of there. Alice and I are in the hotel. The doorman called security and the cops and they're all outside. Rose and Em got taken away. I don't know where they are." Where were they? I needed to get to them. They were helping me. They shouldn't be in jail.
"Bella, it's okay. Just go to the room with Alice. I'm on my way, okay?"
He was? I needed him. I needed him and then we needed to find them. "Okay. We should find out where they took Rose and Emmett."
"I'll take care of it. You just go to the room and wait for me. I'll be right there. I love you, Bella. Just remember that for me, alright?"
I would never forget that. "Of course. I love you, too." What should I do? I felt like I should be doing something. "I should call Dad or…"
"It's four in the morning over there, baby. Just wait."
Damn. I wanted to talk to my dad. Well, first I wanted Edward, and then I wanted to talk to my dad. "Oh yeah, I forgot. It's…" No tears, Bella. Keep it together for him. "It was frightening."
"I know, love. I know it was, but you're alright and I'll handle it, okay?" Yes, Edward knew what to do. I just needed him to be here. I needed to feel him and hold on to him, just for a few minutes. Then I could focus on what we had to do.
"Okay. Are you sure you can get here?" Fuck, he had a job to do. But I wanted him here.
"I've got a car on the way. I'll be there as soon as I possibly can."
"Alright. I'm going to the room now."
"Where are the paps? They didn't follow you in, did they? Do you know if they have your name?"
I thought about what I heard, what I'd been able to focus on as the shouts erupted. "No, I don't think they do. They kept asking who I was. I guess they just had my picture, or wanted it. Alice says they're across the street. The cops made them move. I'm not looking out. Alice said not to."
"Very good, baby. Yeah, you just go up to our room. I'm on my way. See you soon." He sounded relieved. Good. I didn't want to freak him out. I had to be strong for Edward.
"See you soon," I repeated. I disconnected and faced Alice. "We need to go up to the room."
"Yes, let's go." She took my arm and I tried to avoid all the stares I felt on me as we made our way to the elevator. Yes, I was the one that caused the disruption. It was crazy, but true.
Alice was limping and I changed our position so that I was holding her arm. We got in and rode in silence until we got to our floor. I opened the door to Edward's room, our room, and we went in. I felt better here, like I could breathe again. "Sit on the bed. I'm going to get ice for your ankle." Alice started to say something but I shook my head at her as grabbed the ice bucket and took out the lining bag. I went down the hallway and got ice for Alice. When I came back into the room, she was sitting back against the headboard and I put the ice on her ankle.
"Thanks," she said. "Bella, are you okay?"
Was I? "I don't know what I am, Alice." So much was swirling through my head. Fear, anger, guilt. Guilt was the strongest at the moment. "I'm so sorry you got hurt because of me."
Her gray eyes narrowed. "I'm sorry, were you the one who stomped on my leg trying to take your own picture? I must have missed that," she said sarcastically.
"It was because of me. You're hurt and Rose and Emmett are in jail because…"
"Because the press got tipped about you somehow. Jess, Mike, someone from last night, someone here at the hotel, who knows? But it's not your fault," she snapped.
It was, but I knew better than to argue with her. "I just wish it was different."
Alice shook her head. "What do you wish was different, exactly? Do you wish Edward weren't a famous actor?"
That had been what brought him to my attention. "Of course not."
"Do you wish you weren't with him?"
That was too ridiculous for words. I just glared at her. "I didn't think so. Do you wish you hadn't come to Berlin to be with him?"
God, no. "No. I want to be here."
"Do you wish you hadn't gone out last night, looking better than you ever have, to have a private, romantic date with him?"
I couldn't regret last night, not even if we'd been discovered because of it. "No."
"Good. Then shut up and tell me about the evening before I have to log on and read about it on People," she ordered.
So I did. I put aside all the worries I had and told her about the fancy restaurant, the weird but good food, the dancing, the limo and the cake in the bedroom. Alice giggled and clapped and reveled in our evening. "Well, it seems to me that you had a pretty damn fantastic night, Bella."
I smiled. "We did. He looked so handsome in his gray suit."
Alice laughed. "Just think. You haven't seen him in a tux in person yet. I bet you'll attack him and miss whatever event you're going to the first time he wears one."
"That's a bet I'm not taking." I smiled thinking about it. "Do you really think we'll be able to do that? Go places together?" After the response downstairs, I didn't know if it was possible.
"Of course! As sexy as the two of you are together, there'll eventually be someone else that has their interest. You're the flavor of the moment, but not of the year, you know? You just have to get through this."
Yes, eventually we'd be old news. I couldn't wait for eventually. The door opened and I was up and moving out of the bedroom before he said a word. "Bella?"
"Edward!" I ran into his waiting arms and he held me tight, squeezing me and feeling warm and solid and safe. He was what I needed and I finally felt better. Ali had helped, but Edward, with just one word, made me feel right again.
"You're alright, right, baby? They didn't hurt you?" he asked, pulling back and staring into my eyes.
"Yes. I'm fine. Just a little scratch. I'm just so glad you're here. I didn't know what to do. I didn't know it would be like that." Naïve. I'd been a naïve fool. He'd tried to tell me, but I just figured it'd be a few photographers here and there. This kind of stuff just didn't happen to me.
Edward held my arm out and looked grimly at the pink mark that was there. It was nothing. I hated the look of pain that was on his face. "I'm so sorry, baby."
"It's not your fault." Never his fault. He could hardly be blamed for being beautiful and talented, could he? I burrowed back into his arms and he held me. I could smell him. God, he smelled good. And he felt incredible. If I'd ever taken a moment with him for granted before now, I never would again.
"When did they see us?" I asked.
"Let's sit down and I'll tell you what I know." He put his arm around me and steered me into the bedroom, where Ali was waiting.
"Is it bad? Do you need a doctor?" he asked as he took in her ice covered ankle.
"Just twisted it. I don't think it's sprained, but it hurts a little. I'm alright. It was awful out there," Alice responded.
"I know. I saw them."
Oh shit! I hadn't thought about what he might face in getting to me. "Did they come after you?" I tried feeling him for cuts and scrapes of his own and he laughed and stilled me.
"No. The cops had them all across the street." He grinned boyishly. "I did flip them off before I came in, so I'm sure there will be some nice new pictures of me up soon."
"Edward!" I laughed, loving that he'd dared to do that, even though his mom and Kate were going to be angry.
"Kate's going to be pissed, but at least I didn't go throw some punches of my own. What in the hell happened with Rose and Emmett?"
It was all such a blur. "Some guy grabbed Rose while trying to get me, I think," I told him, thinking hard. "She told him to back off and when he didn't, she punched him. Emmett came out just as that happened so he charged right in and told us to get out of there."
"Fists were flying, not just Rose and Em's and the first guys," Alice supplied. "I looked back as we were heading in and there were several guys smacking on your brother and Rose was kicking one of them. It's not good."
Edward sighed and tightened his hold on me. "Well, Kate was calling Mom so it's only a matter of time before she's on the case."
This sucked. "How did this happen? When did they see us?"
Edward frowned. "It was outside the hotel when I helped you out of the limo and we hugged. I haven't seen it yet but Kate said it's a beautiful picture anyway." Well, at least there was that. I smiled as Edward took out his phone. He showed me the picture and it was beautiful. I was looking at him like he was the handsomest man in the world, which of course he was, and he was smiling at me and his gaze was full of love. Alice let out a shriek when she saw it.
"Jeez, Alice," I said, elbowing her. "It's not a good thing, you know."
"I know, but look at you! Look at him! Look at him and you looking at each other! Think about it. You could have been outed wearing sweatpants with ratty hair and half awake when he left some morning but instead you look impossibly gorgeous. Nobody who sees that picture is going to wonder what he's doing with you like that stupid cow Jess was. Look at you!"
She did have a point. "Yes, I guess I'm glad that I don't look like a hag."
Edward pulled me back against his chest and kissed the top of my head. "You could never look like a hag, baby."
Alice snorted. "It must be true love. Have you seen those pictures of celebs without makeup on?" She stared at him. "Hey, you're wearing makeup right now!"
Oh yeah, he was. Edward huffed and got off the bed quickly. "It's part of the package," he told us, as he hurried in the bathroom to take off his makeup. His phone rang as he came back. I looked at the Caller ID.
"It's your mom," I told him. She was up and at it early. Of course she was. One of her sons was in jail.
Edward sighed and answered. "Hi, Mom."
He listened for a moment. "Bella's fine, she's got a light scratch on her arm, but that's it. Alice has a sore ankle, she's icing it but she's okay. I don't know about Rose, since she's in jail."
Jail. Just the thought of that made my stomach roll. Edward shook his head at something his mom said and gave me the phone. "Hi, Esme."
"Are you alright? Those damn cockroaches! I'm going to crush every one."
I had to grin at the outrage in her voice, and her threat. "I'm fine. Yes, it was scary but I didn't get hurt and Emmett and Rose protected me while Alice got me out of there. I'm worried about them."
"Don't you worry, Bella. I'm going to handle it and I'll make those German police sorry they arrested my son and future daughter for defending my other future daughter."
She did make me feel better and I laughed. "Somehow I don't doubt that you will. I'm going to have to tell my dad."
Esme actually laughed then. "That will scare my son far more than being arrested ever could."
I giggled. "You're so right. I bet Emmett's shitting his…oops." I can't believe that I said shitting to Edward's Mom. I blame it on the trauma.
"He is! Charlie will make him pay!" She sounded delighted about it.
"Well, he did promise not to get any of us arrested, but technically Rose threw the first punch. I'm going to have to defend him on that one."
"Yes, I'll defend him, too. I can't blame him for this one, unfortunately. The pictures on TMZ make it pretty clear what went down."
Edward smiled when I laughed. Good. I wanted him to stop looking so sad and worried. "Are they really? Rose wanted to be on TMZ, so she'll be thrilled once she's released." Rose would be famous, in her own way. She'd love it.
"You stay safe and try to keep your chin up for my son. I know he's worried about you. Can I talk to Alice?"
I would. I wasn't going to let him feel bad about this. It wasn't his fault. "Yes, okay. Here's Alice."
I gave Ali the phone and Edward hugged me to him. "I'm so glad you're okay."
"I am. I'm sorry I called you when I was upset but…"
"Hey," he silenced me with a kiss. "I'd be mad if you didn't call me when you were upset. I'm so sorry you got blindsided. If we hadn't gone out last night, this would never have happened. It's my fault."
Oh no, he wasn't taking that on. "Edward Cullen, don't you dare say that! I loved last night. Didn't you? Would you really want to take it back?" Alice was right. We couldn't let this ruin what had been a perfect evening. I wouldn't let it.
Alice reached between us and handed Edward her phone. "Mom."
Edward listened for a moment. "Mom, I don't know. I wasn't there. He got taken in too, I think." The guy that started it? I nodded in case that's what he meant. "So you can find out."
Edward rolled his eyes. "I will, Mom."
He made a face at something she said. "We'll talk about it, Mom."
He nodded. "I don't think that's going to be a problem."
Edward laughed. "I bet he's thrilled that you called him before five AM."
He made an adorable guilty face. "You saw that already?" Ha, I bet she saw him flipping the bird. He was too cute when he was getting chastised.
"So we'd bring the girls into your life?" he suggested.
"I will, Mom. Love you. Bye."
He hung up and I gave Alice the look. I needed some time alone with him. I could tell he was taking this on himself.
Ali stood, carrying her ice bag. "I'm going to head back to my own room and take a nap. I'll see you guys later, okay?"
"Dinner's on me. We'll do room service and you can have anything you want," Edward told her.
Alice smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "Sounds good. " She whispered something in his ear before hugging me and limping her way back to her room.
Edward picked up the hotel phone and dialed a number. "I need to arrange for a masseuse for room 532. Find someone who will come and bill it to me, please? I'll send down the tip when I get confirmation that they're there."
He paused. "Thanks."
What a wonderful man he was, taking care of my friend. "That was nice of you to do for Alice."
"Least I can do," he said softly, that pained look back on his face.
No, I was not allowing this. "No, it's not." I took his face in my hands. "You have gone above and beyond for me since the moment I walked into my bedroom and you were there, even though I lied to you." He tried to deny that but I silenced him with a finger over his beautiful lips. "It's true. You've made my wildest dreams come true and I don't want you to apologize for this. So there's one part of being with you that's not all sunshine and rainbows. I don't care. It's your life. It's my life now. I can see that you're taking this on and I'm not letting you, okay?"
A look of relief flashed over his face and he held my hands. "I don't regret it, Bella. I could never regret last night. It was a fantastic and long overdue first public date. More public than I intended, but everything else was just as I wanted it. I do regret that this happened today, though."
"But it's not your fault. You see that, right?" I asked.
Edward sighed. "I know. And I can't say that I'm sorry that everybody gets to see us looking at each other like we are in that picture. You took my breath away in that moment." He kissed me softly. "I love you, so much."
"I love you," I replied, moving into his open arms. They were always open for me. How lucky was I? Enduring that shit downstairs was nothing compared to what I got here with him. "I guess we have some things to figure out, presswise." It was time, apparently.
He kissed the top of my head. "Later. Today we're holing up and we'll let Kate take control. It's what she's good at anyway. She's on the way." He cleared his throat. "Um, she's going to call that woman that interviewed me for Rolling Stone. I kind of promised her that when we came out, she'd be the first to know. Kate's setting us up to do an interview, if you want. I can do it alone…"
"No." I released him and looked up at him. "I want to do it with you. We're in this together."
He smiled. "Yes, we are. Always."
"So, bring it on. We're ready." I smiled back at him. "I can do anything as long as I have you."
"You do."
Need surged through me and I shoved him back on the bed and straddled him. "Then prove it."
He grinned at me, finally a true smile that reached his eyes. "Happily." And we connected again, fully, something we both needed.
Xoxoxoxoxox
"Where are they?" I demanded. I couldn't sit still so I kept walking around the living room of our suite.
"He just texted twenty minutes ago, baby. It takes time," Edward reassured me.
"I know! But I need to see them with my own eyes so I can make sure they're alright."
"Em said they're fine. A bit pissed off, but fine." Pissed off was understandable.
"I know! But I still need to see them." Rose had gotten arrested. For me. Because of me.
"They're on the way. You should probably call your dad now." Edward looked like it was the last thing he wanted me to do.
No, not until I had some answers. "Not until Rose is here." I shook my head. "He'll be full of questions and it'll be better if I can answer them and not put him off."
He nodded. "Well get back over here and sit and wait, Bella. Your pacing isn't going to get them here any faster."
"I know." I sighed and sat next to him, letting my legs lie across his lap. "They got arrested because of me," I told him, letting go of a little of the guilt I felt. Tears pricked at my eyes for the first time since I'd talked him on the phone.
Edward shook his head. "Hey, didn't you tell me not an hour ago that I wasn't allowed to take the blame for what happened?"
"Yes, but they were protecting me." It was different.
"They could have protected you without punching people, Bella. I'm not sorry that they did, so long as they're not in too much trouble, but that's on them."
I sighed and rested my head on his shoulder. "Still, it wouldn't have happened if…"
"If we hadn't gone out last night, which you told me I'm not allowed to regret. So you're not allowed to either."
He had me there and I kissed his jaw. "Okay, you're right. I just need them to get here."
He laughed and moved a hand down my body. "I could always distract you."
I giggled, though I was sorely tempted. "Again? I don't think they'd appreciate getting out of the slammer only to find us having a good time in their absence."
"They'd understand."
Rose sure would. "True." I kissed him and he pulled me fully onto his lap. Just as I started to sink into him, a knock sounded on the door. "They're here!" I yelled, hopping off him and running to open it.
"We're free, bitches!" Rose yelled as all three of them burst into the room. She looked perfect, as always. Emmett had a bloody lip and some bruising on his face but he wore a big smile so it couldn't be too bad. Thank God.
"Rose! I'm so sorry!" I threw my arms around her and Rose hugged me tight.
"Please, that's the most fun I've had with my clothes on in years! Did you see me take down that skinny fucker? I broke his nose and his camera. Jackass thinks he can touch my ass? I kicked his to teach him a lesson." She was my Rose, fierce and awesome. Nothing could change her, not even an arrest.
Emmett laughed. "That's my girl! Eddie, I wish you'd seen her. She throws a better punch than Alec, I swear."
"Looks like you took a few," Edward told his brother. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just superficial shit. I've had worse." Emmett shrugged. "Most of them were sucker punches while I was taking down someone else. Fucking cowards."
"What about you?" Edward asked Rose as I released her. Edward hugged her gently.
"Swollen knuckles and a bruise on my thigh. I'm good."
"Thank you for protecting her," he told Rose, releasing her. He turned to Emmett. "Thank you."
"That's been my job for four years now. Not a problem," Rose replied, wrapping an arm around me. I finally felt completely better, now that we were all together, where we belonged.
"You know you don't have to thank me. I was doing what big brothers do." I threw my arms around Emmett and he held me tight. "You're alright, aren't you? They didn't hurt you, did they?"
"I'm fine."
"She's got a scratch on her arm," Edward interjected. "But it's not bad and no doubt would have been a lot worse if it weren't for the two of you."
"It was fun," Emmett told us.
"You're such a thug," Alice said, poking him. He let me go and picked her up.
"Saved your ass, didn't I, little one? And now I'll carry you everywhere until your ankle is properly healed."
"You will not! Put me down!" She smacked his chest lightly.
"I'm your hero, damsel in distress. You should be kissing me, not hitting me."
"Fine." Alice puckered her lips and kissed his bruised cheek. "Thank you. Now put me down." He did as she asked, putting her on the bed and propping her ankle on a pillow. He was sweet when he wanted to be. "I can handle this," Ali said with a smile. "Thanks for the masseuse, Edward. He did a lovely job."
"No problem," he told her.
Emmett sat in one of the seats and Rose sat on the arm of his chair. I joined Edward and he immediately pulled me against him. He was as touchy feely as he'd been the first week we had together. I leaned into him.
"So, do you have a trial date or what?" Edward asked his brother. That was a damn good question. We probably should have checked out the judicial system before we came over, knowing Emmett.
Emmett grinned widely. "Nah, the charges were dropped."
Holy shit! "Dropped?" I asked in disbelief. "How in the hell did that happen?"
Edward chuckled. "Mom."
Emmett nodded. "Yeah, I don't really know what she did, but I know that all four of the guys we beat on, who were more than happy to point the finger at us as they were hauling us in, decided not to press charges after they made their phone calls."
Edward leaned forward. "She got their companies to turn on them?"
Emmett shrugged. "God only knows what she did but you know Mom gets shit done. She must have wielded her power and scared the piss out of the tabs these guys worked for."
"She was pretty worked up. She was all about self-defense."
"Yeah, well, we're free to go, although we've been warned not to get in anymore trouble." He grinned at Rose. "They don't know us very well, clearly."
Rose snorted. "I was more or less joking about you getting arrested without me, but I'm glad we went together."
"And you're on TMZ," I informed her, which made Rose scream and grab the laptop.
She typed on the keyboard and then shrieked. "Look at you! Damn, no wonder they were all over our asses this morning. You two look like you're about to rip those pretty clothes off."
Edward grinned at me. "Not too far off," he murmured in my ear. I laughed. So very true.
"There we are! Damn it, look at my hair. I look like fucking trailer trash. That son of a bitch girly man pulling my fucking hair. Em, you look hot. All enraged and sexy." Rose was fascinated by the pictures. I knew she would be.
Emmett went to check it out. "I do. So do you, baby. You look like you do when you ride me…"
"Hey!" Edward yelled while Alice and I both shouted, "No!"
Emmett just grinned. "Well, she does. And what is this? Is this my baby bro flipping the bird at the press? Will wonders never cease?"
Edward shrugged. "Mom already gave me a little shit for it. Kate sent me a text asking if I was channeling you in that moment."
Emmett laughed. "Nah, if you had been you would have waded in and thrown some more punches. I know you wouldn't show them your ass, that costs a few million doesn't it?" Edward tossed a pillow at him as he chortled. "I'm glad you didn't just turn a blind eye to them, Eddie. They need to know that they crossed a fucking line."
"Yeah, well they pissed me off."
"Do we have a plan?" he asked, taking his seat again.
"Kate's en route and she's having Bree from Rolling Stone come over to interview us. I'm going to have Garrett hire some bodyguards for the girls and see about finding a new place for us to stay, with security so they can't get near them again."
He was? "You are?" I asked.
He looked guilty as he took my hand. "Yeah, if you're okay with it. I want you guys to be able to go out and the best way is if you have someone with you and if they can't get close to you. They still might be able to catch up to you when you're out, but that's what the bodyguards are for."
I exchanged glances with my friends to see if they were cool with it. I could tell that they thought it was for the best and God knew I didn't want to sit in a hotel for two months. They nodded and I turned to him. "Okay, Edward. But I don't want you going to a bunch of expense just because of this."
He shook his head. "There's no amount of money I wouldn't pay to make sure you were safe." He glanced at Alice and Rose. "All of you. I promised Charlie I'd take care of you and that's what I'm going to do."
"Charlie!" Rose gasped. "Have you talked to him?"
I shook my head. "I was waiting until we knew what was up with you before I called him. He must not have been on TMZ yet today."
"Or he has and he's waiting to see how long you'll take to call him," Alice warned me. I got out my phone and made everybody laugh. Edward looked like he was on edge, though.
"Cut it out, Edward," I told him. "This is not your fault. It's theirs, remember?"
"Right." He didn't look as if he believed me.
"Em?" Edward asked. I glanced over and saw that Emmett looked pale and nervous as hell.
"He's going to kill me. Rose got arrested. I promised him. Don't call him yet, Bella. Rosie, pack your shit, we need to go on the run. We'll go to Siberia. It's hard to find people there."
"He'll understand, Emmett." I called Dad and put it on speaker. I wasn't going to let Dad crucify him for defending me.
"Hi, Dad," I said when he answered.
"Hi, Bells. How's Germany?" he asked.
I glanced at Edward who shrugged. Here we go. "Uh, well, it's been better."
"What happened?" he demanded. "Who's in trouble? If it's Emmett, don't even bother to tell me."
Emmett groaned and looked like wanted to die while Rose laughed at his ass. "Wellllll," I started.
"What did that boy do?" he asked, interrupting me.
"Um, well, you know that Edward and I were going out last night, right?"
"Yes, and I told you it was a dumb idea. The odds are…wait, you got caught, didn't you?"
Yes, he knew, of course. "Apparently. They were lying in wait when Alice, Rose and I left this morning and they came at us, surrounding us and yelling and taking pictures."
"Are you alright? Are Alice and Rose? What happened?" he asked. He was starting to get agitated, I could tell. Dad's words always got faster and more clipped when he was worked up.
"We're all fine for the most part, Dad."
"What does for the most part mean? Spill, Bella."
"I have a twisted ankle and Rose has sore knuckles and a bruised hip and Bella's got a scratch on her arm, Charlie," Alice supplied.
"Sore knuckles? Rose, are you there?" he wondered. Of course he was suspicious of the sore knuckles.
"Right here, Chief Daddy," she said with a shit eating grin on her face. "And before you ask, yes, they're sore because I beat the shit out of a guy who thought he could go through me to get to Bella and cop a feel while he was at it."
Dad groaned. "How much trouble are you in?"
"Well, Emmett and I got arrested," she announced, making Emmett slump even further in his chair while my Dad yelled, "What?"
"Yeah, we got taken in but all charges were dropped."
"How did Emmett come into this?" He didn't sound too pissed off, thankfully.
We all glanced at Emmett. "Rosie called me when they were being attacked. Attacked, Charlie! They needed me so I came down and some guy had a hold of Rosie so I was forced to get him off her and get Alice and Bella out of there."
"Uh huh," Dad muttered. "And why I am seeing reports of you beating on at least four men?" Uh oh, he was on the web.
"Because they were beating on me?" Emmett asked, his voice cracking. "What was I supposed to do Charlie? Let them trample the girls and accost my Rosie?"
There was uncomfortable silence while we waited for my dad to say something. "No. You protected the girls, which is the most important thing. We'll discuss you getting Rose arrested at another time."
"I got myself arrested, Charlie," Rose told him, sounding very impressed with herself. "Cuffed and shoved in the back of a police car." She shot me that look she always shot me when she was going to say something inappropriate about my father. "It made me wonder about…" I threw my own pillow at her to shut her up. "Nothing," she said, laughing her ass off.
"Kids," Dad complained. "And where was Edward when all this was going down?"
My poor boyfriend cleared his throat. Sweet Edward. Dad better not blame him. "I was filming, Charlie. But I came as soon as I got Bella's call. My publicist is on her way here and a reporter I trust is coming to interview me and Bella. We're out, now, so we're going to talk. She'll be calling you, I'm sure. You might get tracked down and asked some questions."
Dad grunted something or other. "I'm sorry," Edward told him. "I never wanted any of this to happen. I'm going to hire some bodyguards and we're going to move to a more secure location. I'll do whatever I can to protect them."
"Did you tip off the press so they'd know who Bella was?" he asked angrily.
Edward looked stunned. "No, of course not."
"Then I don't know what you're apologizing for. Did Bella have a good time on your night out?"
Edward smiled at me. I didn't even need to answer that. It should be obvious. "Yeah, she did."
"Well, then, I guess it was worth it since none of my girls were harmed overly much. And it wasn't your fault. How'd they get the picture?" Good damn question.
"We weren't followed, so either somebody ratted or a reporter just got lucky and ducked around the building at the right time. They do hang out here. My publicist has her people on it."
"I suppose. You look beautiful in this picture, Bella," Dad said, the anger fading from his tone. "I'm assuming this speculation about you getting married is incorrect."
I giggled. "Thanks, Dad. Rose bought me the dress. And of course we didn't get married!" I hadn't seen that speculation yet. Someday. Yes, someday.
He laughed. "I thought as much. He knows better than to marry you without me being present." Edward looked petrified at the thought. "Edward, you do what you have to do to keep my girls safe. If there's anything I can do, any police I can contact, you let me know."
"I will, Charlie," he promised.
"Emmett!" Dad yelled, causing the big guy to jolt.
"Yes, sir!" He saluted the phone even though Dad couldn't see him.
"Don't you throw any more punches unless my girls are in danger, you got me?"
"Yes, Charlie. I swear I won't get in any fights unless it's to protect our girls."
"My girls," Dad corrected. "I'm giving you a pass on this one since the story here says that Rose threw the first punch. Damn, girl, don't you know better?" he asked
"He grabbed my ass, Charlie." Rose grinned, knowing exactly what that was going to do. I sighed.
"Who? What was his name? Who does he work for?" Dad started yelling as everybody else laughed.
"I handled it, Charlie. What did you think of my picture?" she asked, giggling.
"Uh, you look like you've been brawling," he stammered.
"But do I look sexy?" she asked. I groaned.
"Ignore her, Dad."
"I will, Bells. You're sure you're alright? I don't want you to be upset about those reporters. If any of them call me, I'll give them hell for going after you."
He would, too. Such a good dad. "I'm fine, Dad. Edward's going to take care of everything."
"I believe that, which is why I'm not on my way to the airport right now." Thank God. We were of a like mind there, because Emmett let out a huge sigh of relief that made Dad laugh. "Damn right, boy. I've got my eyes on you and I'll hold you responsible if it happens again, even if Rose throws the first punch. You got that?"
"Yes, sir, Chief," Emmett replied.
"Good. I have to go to work, but you all stay out of trouble, you hear me?"
"Yes, Dad. Love you," I told him.
"Yeah. Love you, too. We'll talk soon." We disconnected and I breathed a sigh of relief. He'd taken it pretty well, all things considered.
Emmett collapsed into his chair. "Thank God that's over."
Edward shot him a sunny smile. "Have you talked to Mom, yet?"
"Don't even joke about that. She got me out of jail," Emmett pointed out. "She can't be too pissed."
"Well she was pissed at the paps, but now that you're out…" Edward laughed when Emmett threw the pillow back at him. "Just saying."
"I'll call and thank her later. For now I think we should order room service and porn."
"I don't think so!" Alice yelled.
Emmett chuckled. "I was talking to Rosie. Seeing her fighting and cuffed got me worked up."
"Gross," Alice decided, but Rose clearly disagreed, getting to her feet.
"So true. I have some adrenaline I need to release. We'll see you tomorrow." Emmett was up, yelling for joy and hustling her out the door without so much as a glance back.
"Well, that was interesting," I decided.
"I'll say. But Em had it right," Edward declared.
"Ewwww," Alice grumbled. "I guess I'll go then."
Edward shook his head. "I meant room service and a movie, a non-porn movie. How does that sound?"
"Less fun than porn," I whispered, kissing his ear and making him groan. "Sounds good," I said for Alice's ears.
"Get out the menu," he suggested to me. "We'll see about the porn tonight," he whispered. I giggled. I could see it now. Cullen Porn Addiction, story at eleven. Well, we were news now, why not be interesting news?
A/N Oooh, Kate's coming to Berlin! Emmett and Rose are safe. I like to imagine Esme on the phone with some chancellor or German big wig, but who knows who she called or what she did? That's the power of the Esme! Charlie isn't going to kill Emmett, thankfully, and getting arrested makes the jailbirds horny (big surprise). Looks like we have a joint interview coming up, along with the answer to "who ratted them out?" that many of you have been asking. We can't know until they know!
RLB1024 wants to play Scramble! Make a new friend, if you will!
Pretty sure we have 4 total chapters left, unless I get wordy or sidetracked. Nearly there! Thanks for going on this ride with me :)
