A/N: December passed like nothing. January has been...well...kind of terrible.

Thanks for being patient.

"Get me out of here. Please." Bella's voice was a thin, reedy thing, and she hated it. She wanted to stand up tall and walk out of jail like a woman who had no reason to be ashamed. But it had taken all of her strength to get through the ordeal in the first place. It had taken everything in her to control the shaking, the urge to weep. She was so scared and confused and desperate to cling to the shelter of Edward's arms.

Even the thought of letting go of him long enough to walk to the car—his bike?—seemed like more than she could bear, but she needed to be far away from this awful place more than she needed to breathe. Talk about scared straight. If she got out of this, she'd probably never so much as jaywalk again.

Edward ran a comforting hand up and down her back. She heard him swallow hard. "There's something I have to tell you first."

She clutched his jacket in her fists. "It doesn't matter right now. We can talk about anything later."

"There are a few reporters outside—"

"I don't…" She closed her eyes tightly, overwhelmed at the idea of facing those assholes with their intrusive, jarring questions. She took a steadying breath. "I can handle them." He must have thought she was too fragile. She made an effort to shake off her cowardice and stand up straighter. "I'm okay."

He pushed her hair back and cupped her cheek. "I know you can handle it." His thumb stroked along her jaw. "There's just something I want you to hear from me. No one else."

His words caught and focused her attention. She looked into his eyes. "He's not… Demetri isn't dead, is he?" Surely someone, her lawyer, somebody, would have told her.

"What? Oh, no. It's not about him. Well." He ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head. "I guess it is. A little." He took her hands and squeezed tightly. "He's not your soulmate, Bella. It's…" He laughed. "Christ, this is awkward. He's just… he's not your soulmate."

She eyed him. "Are you trying to tell me how to spin this?" As a politician's child, Bella understood the value of spin. The truth was subjective. That was how Demetri had gotten her locked up in the first place, spinning the attack his way.

But Bella hated to think about Edward getting caught up in the world of necessary evils. "Have you been hanging out with my dad?"

He huffed, a dark expression crossing his features. "Yeah, he and I have had words. But not about spin. This is about truth. The whole truth." His look gentled and he bent his head closer to her, speaking quietly. "Demetri knew your soulmate sentence before you met. He made sure they were the first words he said to you." He looked into her eyes. "You were set up, Bella. Set up to believe he was the one."

Bella blinked. "Wait. What?" Her brain whirred like a machine coming to an abrupt stop, all thoughts suspended.

"The truth is... You and I?" He squeezed her hands. "We've met before. That day in the hospital? Those words weren't the first words I spoke to you."

Bella turned the key in her mind but got nothing but clicking noise. "What?" she asked again. Had he changed the subject? And why?

"You were a baby when we first met. You wouldn't remember. I wish I'd remembered." He paused, and she could see the tense set of his jaw. "Your father remembered me. And he remembered the first thing I said to you." His eyes held hers. "I said it first, Bella. Your soulmate sentence. It was the first thing I said to you."

Despite the noise in the busy jail, Bella swore the only thing she could hear was her own heartbeat, loud and insistent between her ears. "What?" she whispered as though that one word had become her whole language.

"Your father lied. He lied by omission. He let you... He let us believe there was someone else out there for you. He fed Demetri those words and set you up. Not for this. Not to be blamed for this bullshit, but he wanted you to think Demetri was your soulmate."

Trembling, Bella dropped Edward's hand and took a small step backward.

"Bella." He held a hand out but didn't touch her, and she was grateful.

"I'm..." She didn't actually know what she was. Not okay. But it was a miracle she could remember any words at all. Her thoughts raced, questions and realizations occurring at a rapid-fire pace, zinging off her skull with almost audible pings. "Can we leave?" she asked quietly.

He only paused a beat, studying her intently, before he nodded. "Of course."

She let him tuck her against his side. There were only a handful of reporters outside, but they could be depended on not to understand the concept of personal space. She would much rather be in Edward's orbit than theirs. He led the way to a car. Bella got in, buckled up, and pulled her legs up onto the seat, hiding her face against her knees. With the rest of the world outside the tiny bubble she'd created for herself, she tried to think.

It was just a lot. Too much.

How many months had passed while she wondered what was wrong with her? Months of looking at Demetri, trying to feel something. Anything. That was expected. The norm. There was a lot to be said on the subject of soulmates-good, bad, and ugly-but what everyone agreed on was the strength of the emotion involved. It was always too big to ignore no matter the circumstance. That was what made it so destructive for some. It was always life-altering. That was the whole reason she hadn't let herself get wrapped up in Edward. The drama of her soulmate loomed somewhere in her future, and her present was precarious.

But when she'd looked at Demetri she'd felt frighteningly little. Not even friendship. She'd been so confused for so long.

Then, this attack. The arrest. The accusation that she'd hated someone enough she'd tried to murder him. The whole situation had left her frightened and bewildered. Of course she'd known there were people who could destroy someone's life without a second glance, but it had never happened to her. She'd felt nothing toward Demetri. Apathy. She never could have dreamt him capable of what he was trying to do to her.

And now this.

Was Edward trying to tell her that none of it had to happen? Her soulmate had made himself known when she was a baby? That meant even Jacob wouldn't have happened. Her son wouldn't have happened. None of it. None of this. Her life. What would her life have been if she'd always known Edward was her soulmate?

Edward was her soulmate.

And her father had known.

Her father didn't like her. She knew that. She'd accepted that. But the idea he'd actively hurt her like this...

"Can you stop the car?" The words came out in a tumble, too sharp around the edges. "Please."

"Yeah, of course. Hold on. Just hold on," Edward said too-quickly, his tone soothing. As though he was afraid she'd explode if he didn't move fast enough.

It was a possibility. Her mood changed by the moment. Her heart beat too fast, and her blood seemed to itch under her skin. She needed to move.

As soon as Edward pulled into a Target parking lot, she burst into motion. She was out of the car and around to his side so fast he seemed startled to see her. She didn't stop to think about it. She pushed him back before he could get out of the car and got in with him, settling on his lap facing him. It was cramped. Awkward. The steering wheel dug into her back, but she didn't care.

"You're mine?" she asked, cupping his face. There was so much she wanted to ask, to know, but this?

Yeah. This was important.

He blinked and then let out a breath in a whoosh, his lips turning up at the corners just a little. He brought his hands up to cover hers on his cheeks. "I thought you were mad at me."

"No." This came out tender, gentle. "No, of course not. Not you." She leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. "You're mine?"

His hands drew down her shoulders and around to rub her back. "Yeah, baby. I'm yours." He took her hands and pressed them to his chest. "You already knew you had my heart. Now you have everything else."

Elation overpowered all the other emotions vying for attentio. Her lips turned up. Wide. Wider. A grin full of teeth. Giddiness welled in her and she giggled, overcome with the force of it. She might have felt ridiculous, giggling like a schoolgirl, but his grin was just as wide, his eyes bright as he looked back at her.

Edward Cullen is my soulmate.

Thinking of Demetri as her soulmate had been trying to fit into clothing many sizes too big and not her style at all. Edward, though… He fit like a glove. The knowledge of him, that he was hers and she was his, settled into her being with a snug snick.

She took his face in her hands and kissed him soundly, already breathless. She kissed him again and again, laughing in between. He chuckled back, his hands warm as he pressed her close.

Gradually, they slowed, breathless kisses giving away to deeper, longer ones. There was a slow rhythm to the way they moved. Their hips rolled—waves tumbling onto the beach. His hands cupped her ass and her fingers tangled in his hair.

A sharp rap on the window sent them flying apart. They jumped again at the sound of the car's horn, and Bella winced. Damn steering wheel.

"The hell is wrong with you two?" an irate man with a toddler on his hip demanded. He shook his head, disgusted, and stormed off, the toddler waving at them over his shoulder.

Edward and Bella looked at each other. Bella presses her lips together but it was no use. She started laughing. He did too, and tilted his head to rest his forehead against hers.

"We should get out of here before we get arrested for public indecency," Bella muttered. That sobered her somewhat. It would be the story of her life to get marched right back to jail less than an hour after she left.

Edward pressed a soft kiss to her lips. "Plenty of time for us."

She shuddered, closing her eyes briefly. With a charge of attempted murder hanging over her…

"Hey." Edward squeezed her, rubbing her back. "It's going to be okay."

"Yeah." She held onto him for another moment. "Sure."

She got out of the car reluctantly and made her way back to the passenger seat. She was more centered now, grounded. The thoughts singing around her head came in a more cohesive jumble. She even had room for a few more.

"What the hell car is this?" she asked, brows furrowed as it occurred to her that Edward didn't have a car.

Edward scoffed. "Your dad's." He rolled his eyes as he started the car. "We argued about… Well, everything. He wanted to come get you, but I told him he could fuck the hell off." His voice was rough, and he shook his head. "He said the least I could do was not put you on my death machine."

"Then we should really pull over somewhere private and have sex in the backseat."

Edward choked and sputtered, doing a double take as he looked in her direction. He laughed,a highly pitched sound, and he shook his head as the light they were stopped at turned green.

~0~

Bella took a deep breath as the gate that protected her father's opulent home rolled back. One hell to the next, she supposed. It couldn't be overstated how much she didn't want to be here.

Her father's lawyers would be here in half an hour.

Bella worked her jaw, wondering if she hated the jail or this house more. "Why am I still so scared of him?"

"Habit. Muscle memory."

"I'm in trouble again...but it's his fault this time." Bella huffed. "I don't even know what to say to him. I don't know what I can say. If I tell himself he can go to hell, will he still pay for my lawyers? Fuck." She rubbed the heel of her palm into her eye. "I hate that I need him."

"You deserve to be angry." Edward's fingers traced a gentle pattern against her neck. "I'm with you. You don't ever have to face him alone again if you don't want to. I have your back."

With his words, some of the tension in her shoulders eased. A sense of well-being settled in her, smoothing out some of her more ragged edges. He was good for her. She'd never understood the meaning of that phrase until right then.

She tilted her head up, inviting. His lips twitched at the corner, his eyes somehow both tender and just a little wicked. He pressed his lips just briefly to hers, teasing. She laughed under her breath, cupped the back of his neck and brought him down to her.

It was a slow, serious kind of kiss. They had half an hour, after all. They'd been cheated out of the sweet bliss of brand new romance not once but twice now. Never any time to revel in what they felt for each other. She reveled now in the taste of him, the feel of his stubbled chin on the sensitive skin of her palms, the delicious sound of the little noises he made.

The console between them quickly became too much. She needed more of him. She wanted to be on his lap again. Maybe she would pull him into the backseat with her.

She turned to the car door to do just that and screamed.

Her father was standing not five feet away, glowering with disapproval. He shook his head. "I see what's most important to you even in times of crisis." With another shake of his head, he turned and went into the house.

Bella bit her lip, shame washing over her. Why was she forever stepping in it?

Stepping in what? A voice whispered in her ear. What, exactly, had she been doing that was so wrong? Kissing her boyfriend? Basking in the adoration be showered her with? Feeling good, wanted, loved if only for a few minutes?

Kissing her soulmate.

She pressed her lips into a thin line, trying to keep her cool.

Failing.

She got out of the car and was up the steps to the front door before poor Edward could react. She heard him call her name but didn't stop. She powered through the door and caught up with her father in the front entryway.

"You don't get to look down on me anymore," she said to his back.

Her father gave a long-suffering sigh as he turned around. "This whole situation is dramatic enough. If we could do this without theatrics, that would be preferable."

Bella heard Edward's footfalls and then the warmth of him in her personal space. He put a hand on her shoulder, and she put a hand on his. She took a deep breath, squaring her shoulders as she stared her father down. "No."

"Excuse me?" he said.

"I said no. You don't get to do this. I didn't fuck up this time, Dad. You did. You don't get to make me feel like the tantruming kid because I'm pissed off. Theatrics? Your god damned theatrics almost got me killed. They may still get me tossed in jail for the rest of my life." She scoffed. "Maybe that's what you want. It'd be a relief not to have to deal with me anymore, right?"

Her father's stern face fell, and for once, he looked like a human being, a normal father. "No. That's not… That's not what I want. You're my daughter. How could you think that?"

"Oh, I don't know, Charlie."

Bella turned her head at the sound of her mother's voice. Renee gave her a sad smile and reached out to take her hand. She turned back to her ex-husband. "I know you better than your daughter does. He does love you, sweetheart." Renee squeezed her hand. "It's just that he thinks love means fixing the world to look exactly how he thinks it should be. It's why he did what he did to me too."

"Renee." Charlie sounded tired. His wife, Sue, had come to stand beside him.

Renee chuckled. She stroked Bella's cheek lovingly. "Your father is good at making sense. And if he thinks you don't, he's good at making you feel foolish." She sighed. "I owe you so many apologies, sweetheart."

Bella cocked her head, confused at the turn in the conversation. "Mom?"

"When you were a child, when we were fighting for you…" Renee shook her head. "It's not like I didn't understand what he was saying. I was young. I'd literally run off with a man I'd met five days before." She laughed, the sound sad. "I destroyed our little family. So I got it. Of course he thought I wasn't good for you, that I'd only hurt you again. So he fought as hard as he could to make sure I had as little access to you as possible. And, of course, he had the money to do it very, very well."

"Renee," Charlie said, sounding gruff now, but Renee wasn't done.

"It's not an excuse, Bella. I shouldn't have given up. I shouldn't have thought he might be right, that he could give you everything you needed. I'm sorry for so many things."

Her eyes had gone glassy. She stroked Bella's cheek and sniffed hard. "I should have been here all along. When your son died…"

Bella shuddered, pulling back and meeting the comfort of Edward's chest. He put a hand to her waist, holding her. "You didn't... I was okay,"she whispered.

"That's what you always said. You were doing okay. I thought your father was right. You didn't need me even then, but I was wrong. I shouldn't have believed either of you. Of course you weren't okay."

"Mom," Bella said, but she was at a loss what she was supposed to say next.

"Don't worry. I'm trying to say, I got this one." She patted Bella's cheek in a strangely...well...motherly way. Then, she turned to her ex-husband with her hands on her hips and a none-too pleased expression on her face.

"You know what your problem is, Charlie? You have this picture about what life's supposed to look like so stuck in your head, you forget to just live your life. Good or bad, you have to live with all of it.

"You were allowed to make mistakes with your life. Like me. You and I were a mistake. I was too young for you. Too different. But you know the difference between you and me? I don't regret you."

Charlie studied her with furrowed brow, and Renee rolled her eyes. "Well, you were a big bag of dicks about the whole custody thing."

Bella choked on a laugh and she felt Edward's chest rise and fall in a chortle.

"But regret?" Renee shrugged. "You were a life lesson. You were what I needed, coming out of the life I had when I was a kid. And you needed me too. You needed some lightness with all the dark you brought on yourself. Besides all that, we got a beautiful daughter out of what we were.

"The point is, we learn from our mistakes. They make us who we are. I understand what you were thinking when Edward came back into Bella's life. An ex-con. And she's still so young. I see what you saw."

Bella bristled. Behind her, Edward let out a soft huff. She could almost feel his shoulders slump.

"But if he's a mistake? He's Bella's to make. Her life, Charlie. Your job is to be there for her, not to control her."

"I'm not—" Charlie started, but Renee shook her head.

"Shut up. I'm the adult right now, because you fucked up."

Charlie glanced at Sue who arched an eyebrow right back.

"I can see the lawyers just got here," Renee said, nodding toward the front of the house. "You have just enough time to apologize to your kid, tell her you're going to get her out of this, and get it through your head now she doesn't have to forgive you."

The silence that fell over the house was thick. They all jumped when the doorbell sounded. Her father started to turn toward the sound but Renee grabbed him by the arm, turning him back.

Charlie grimaced. He stepped forward, reaching for Bella. She stepped backward, further into Edward's sheltering embrace and Charlie nodded. "I am sorry, Bella. I never expected it to end up like this."

Bella stared back at her father, stone-faced. He didn't get it. How he'd expected things to end up wasn't acceptable either.

Renee rolled her eyes. "Okay. That sucked, but we don't have time." She pointed at the door. Let's do this."

A/N: Thanks again, my duckies. See you soon.