I'm in the middle of a faceoff as Edward stands pugnaciously in the midst of five burly men. If it comes to an altercation, it will definitely not be an evenly matched one. But Edward stands his ground unflinchingly; he has no intention of backing down.
"We should go." I pull at Edward, but he doesn't budge.
"I'm not going anywhere until I get what I've come for. Although he looks down at me briefly, his response is obviously directed at Jake.
"Well, you're going to have a long wait, because we've said all we're going to; that is, until the law demands that we say more."
Edward shakes his head and smirks faintly while staring challengingly at Jake. Neither man willing to give quarter as they lock stares. Tension and adrenaline is literally pulsating in the room. I wish we'd never come.
"Look, all I want to know is what James told Seth, and for you to hand over any evidence that he didn't destroy."
"That's what I was trying to tell you. I did…"
Jake quietens Seth with an impatient hand gesture.
"We can't help you. You need to raise any concerns you may have with the police."
"Jake!" Seth yells in surprise and pulls him to the side. "The police can't come here," he unsuccessfully tries to whisper.
They continue to talk quietly, and I take the opportunity to try and speak rationally to Edward.
"Listen, we don't need to stay here. I think we've learned enough to take to the police to get both James and Lauren."
"I'm not leaving, Bella. Your 'ex' just made this personal."
I scowl at him.
"So, that's what this is; a pissing contest between you and Jake? What about Josh? This is supposed to be about getting justice for him."
"It is. Nothing is more important than that."
"Then let's go." I raise my eyebrows and hold his gaze.
"Christ, you're so bad for my ego, Bella."
I know he's joking, but he reluctantly concedes and turns to leave. I'm right behind him.
"Bella, can I have a word?"
I turn back to see Jake watching us with a disgusted look. Edward looks at me skeptically, I can see that he doesn't like the idea.
"Give me a moment?" I say reassuringly, and lightly touch his hand.
He doesn't respond, but I know he won't protest. I walk over to the back of the garage, where I can speak privately with Jake.
"What is it?"
"I'm not here by accident."
"It's your cousins' shop. Why would it be an accident?"
"Paul called me after he went to see you about this James situation. I did a little digging and found out about the hit and run. When I realized it was Masen and his nephew involved in the accident, I figured he'd convince you to come here next."
"He didn't convince me. It was the right thing to do."
"To come here and harass my family was the right thing to do?" He's livid but he keeps his voice hushed. "I cannot believe you! One would think that our five years together trumps some ill-advised romp you're having with your patient."
"Are you finished?" I ignore his inference, knowing full well that we could go back and forth on this subject, but what would be the point?
"You get him to back off, Bella. Seth is a kid. He doesn't need this kind of trouble in his life."
"Are you asking me?"
"I'm warning you. You know me, I don't issue idle threats."
I know he won't do anything spiteful, but he would fiercely protect the people that he loves.
"Doesn't it matter to you that a little boy was nearly killed, Jake?"
"Don't even, alright, I'm not some heartless monster. Of course, it matters, but there was a better way to go about this. You could've come to me first. Seth is my cousin. You had to know I would be by his side in a second, to defend him."
"Then you do understand why Edward is here."
He glances over my shoulder at Edward, then pinches the bridge of his nose and huffs out a breath.
"You know what, you're absolutely right. I do get why he's here. What I don't get, is you, Bella. I don't even recognize who you are anymore."
"I could easily say the same about you," I fire back harshly.
"Either he backs off, or I show him that he isn't the only one who can throw his weight around. I've done my homework on him. I know all about the accident, and what he believes happened."
"Your point being what, exactly?"
"My point is, it would be nothing for me to put doubt in the minds of the police that this accident could have been carried out by any one of one of his random conquests."
I gape at him.
"Not much surprise there, huh? I know about him, Bella. He's bedded a good percentage of Chicago's female population, many of them married. What's to say that one of their husbands didn't get wind of this and then tried to off him, accidently hitting the kid in the process?"
"If you did your homework as you say, then we both know that's not what happened, Jake."
"Maybe…maybe not." He arrogantly postures as he crosses his arms.
"Why would you do that? Why would you think about ruining the chances of the police–"
"You know where I stand. The choice is yours…or his. I really don't care. You convince him to leave Seth alone, or I'll publicly squash him." He brushes past me angrily and starts talking to Sam and the others.
I storm out, slamming the door behind me and join Edward, who's waiting for me in the car.
"Everything okay?"
"Yes…let's get to the police station."
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While Edward is informing the investigating officer of the new evidence, my phone rings.
"Hey, Dad."
"Hey, sweetheart. I've looked into that matter you were concerned about, and you don't need to worry. I spoke to Phil, the precinct captain, we go way back to our college days. He's a good friend of mine. He'll take care of you."
"Oh, that's great! Thanks, Dad."
"Are you all right?"
"I'm good…especially now. You're a lifesaver. Tell Mom I love her, and I'll call her soon."
"I will. Love you, hon."
"Love you too."
I head over to Edward who's waiting for the officer to return.
"Hey. I spoke to my father, he's a friend of the captain, and he assures me that the police are only interested in catching the people involved in the hit and run. They'll turn a blind eye to the auto shop if they turn over the evidence."
"That should make you happy."
"And you." I frown. Josh will have his justice, and we won't have to destroy another young kid's life in the process."
"He's hardly a kid, Bella. He's old enough to know the difference between right and wrong. You're just trying to keep everyone happy. Who gives a fuck about the smoke Jake was blowing."
"I know Jake, and he wasn't blowing smoke. He'll do whatever to protect his family."
"Well, he's got all the help he needs anyway, with you cheerleading for him on the sidelines."
"I'm here for you, Edward."
I know that he's upset and guilty about what happened to Josh, not to mention the recent discovery about the depth of Lauren's deceit, but he's being a jackass with his snide remarks and careless attitude.
"Are you ... here for me, or are you here to make sure I don't breathe a word about your ex's cousins' illegal automotive shop?"
"You know something…you're a gigantic ass, Edward Masen!" I poke him in the chest and stalk out.
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I adjust the speed on the treadmill and pick up the pace. I'm sweating profusely, my legs hurt, and my lungs burn, but I welcome the burn.
"Bad for his ego." I grumble. "What a dick."
"You're hitting the treadmill kind of hard aren't you, IzzyB?" Rosalie walks over and tosses a hand towel over her shoulder.
"Don't call me that!" I bite, keeping focus and not breaking my pace.
"Whoo! He must really have your thong yanked high."
I glare at her. She thinks she's funny.
"Shut up, Rosalie."
"I'm just saying." She sings with mock sweetness and starts up her treadmill.
"You're always just saying. No one asked your opinion, and you have a big mouth," I snap.
"Moi…what did I do?" She feigns ignorance.
"You told Leah about Edward."
"Uh, correction, I informed her about the accident when I went over to make sure your patients were cancelled, while you were dealing with that. Thank you, Rosalie. You're welcome, Bella."
Smug bitch.
"Thank you, Rosalie." I say icily, but I can't help but smirk. Her impression of me is humorous.
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"Where's Leah? I thought she was coming to the gym with you today."
We're at my apartment, having a wind-down cocktail as we catch up.
"She was. Mmmm." She sips on her drink, signaling her appreciation with a raised thumb. "She cancelled at the last minute, saying something about her dog being sick. Shame really. That dog humping on her leg is the only action she gets."
"Rose!"
"What! I'm serious. She's gorgeous. I'd kill for her skin alone. I think I'm going to hook her up with Riley. They'd make a cute couple."
"Riley the Pilates instructor?" I scrunch up my face.
"Yes, Riley. Why do you say it like that? He's cute."
"He is. I guess I'm just a little leery about you playing matchmaker." I joke.
"I'm a good matchmaker. If it weren't for me, you wouldn't be with good ole Doctor Masen."
I nearly choke on my drink.
"How did you conjure this up in your warped mind?"
"Well, the way I see it; if I hadn't danced with him you would never have become jealous."
"I wasn't jealous." I scoff.
"Sure, you weren't. And if I hadn't called you out on your feelings for him, you would never have had the courage to face them; therefore never giving in to them and ending up where you are with him now."
"You're beyond delusional, and Edward is an ass."
"Today…right now, he's an ass; but I'm sure once he shows up, you'll feel differently. He is something else," she says suggestively as she stares off into space.
"Meaning?" I chuckle, bringing her out of her daze.
"Meaning he can be an ass, but, whew!" She fans herself. "I did get a little taste of what you're working with, and he's hot!"
"You are beyond inappropriate, Rosalie Hale. You're dating his brother," I laugh, as the doorbell rings.
"And I wouldn't trade him for anything. You want me to get that? I see how comfortable you are."
"Please?"
She hops up and trots over to the door.
"Speak of the devil." She turns to me and winks.
Edward is staring at me from the doorway. "Can I come in?"
"I don't know. Can you?" Rosalie asks snidely.
"You and my brother are perfect for each other, you know that?"
"That reminds me. I have a date, Bella. Gotta go."
"Bye. I'll talk to you later. Tell Emmett I said hi."
"Emmett…now there's a man who knows how to treat a woman," she sighs and rolls her eyes at Edward before she steps behind him and mouths, "hot!"
"You're hilarious," Edward replies as he turns to assist by closing the door.
I don't acknowledge him and get up and go into the kitchen to dispose of my drink. I can feel him behind me as I face the sink.
"The police are going to look for James."
"That's wonderful… for Josh."
"You're pissed off."
"And you're a bona fide a genius, Edward."
"This is going to be a lot harder than I thought," he mumbles as he follows me back into the living room.
"It sure is."
"Look, I can be a jerk sometimes, Bella."
"Correct again."
"Will you stop moving, so I can talk to you?" I stop and spin around angrily. I watch him go through each one of his little mannerisms, frustration, nervousness, resolve.
"I'm frustrated, Bella. I just want this to be over with, so we can all move on."
"I get that."
"Good." He steps closer and slinks his arms around my waist, but I pull away.
"But…it doesn't mean that you get to act like a jackass toward me. I'm on your side, Edward, but I'm not a doormat. I don't know who you have me confused with, but…."
He silences me with his lips.
"I'm sorry," he murmurs against my mouth. "I am a jackass. Let me make it up to you." His hands creep down into the back of my yoga pants, and he grips my ass firmly, pressing me flush against his hardness. I break the kiss and shake my head at him.
"No. You are not going to do this. I won't let you use sex as a way to pacify me. I accept your apology, now get out." I grab him by the arm and usher him toward the door.
"Wait…hold on a second. You're joking, right?"
"I'll tell you what, why don't you stand on the other side of that door while you figure it out. Have a goodnight, Edward." I push him out and slam the door in his face, as he starts to protest, then head upstairs to take a much-desired bubble bath.
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.
A couple of days pass, in which I don't see or speak to Edward; it's not for lack of trying on his part. I've been inundated with messages from him, at my office, on my cell phone; he's even resorted to leaving me messages at home. I've advised Leah not to put calls from him through, and each time he's called my cellphone, I've ignored him. And I've done the same thing at home, simply letting the calls go to voicemail and calling back anyone who wasn't him.
Part of me feels like I'm being too hard on him, but I cannot allow him to take his bad temper out on me, especially when I'm trying to help him.
"Bella, I have a delivery for you." Leah announces.
I huff, swinging my chair as I turn my back on her.
"Let me guess. It's from Edward.".
"I didn't read the card, Bella." She giggles.
"Oh…right…well, what color flowers are they…red? Oh, no, he'd probably send white." I scoff.
"Well, it's not flowers, and I'm definitely curious." She comes around to stand in front of me and holds out a white paper bag. I frown and take it, peeking inside.
"Pretzels and Gelato." I chuckle and open the card that's taped to the bag.
"I thought of roses, but then thought this would be so much better. PS. Look in the bag again."
I do as the card instructs and pull out a golf ball.
"A golf ball?" Leah says in confusion.
"It's a Pro V1." I smile.
"Oh…well, I guess this makes sense then." She holds up a golf club adorned with a red ribbon. "There's a card with this too."
I laugh as I take the club and open the card.
"I hope you like it. Lessons start in one hour at the Beverly Country Club." It reads.
"Cocky son of a bitch." I purse my lips then smirk, as I admire the golf club.
"Looks like you're going to play golf." Leah states the obvious.
"Looks like." I dip a pretzel rod into the gelato and take a bite.
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I arrive at the Beverly and look across the field to see him strapping on his gloves. I head downhill, and when I reach him, I drop the golf ball at his feet.
"I'm ready for my lesson, Doctor."
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We play a few rounds and then have lunch…
"I've missed you."
"Me too."
Then we end up at his place…
"Do you forgive me?" His eyes burn into mine.
In his bed…
"Yes." I'm breathless when he finally thrusts into me. Right now, there isn't much that I wouldn't forgive him for.
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.
"Hello?" he rolls over and answers his cell, while I draw silly patterns on his lower back.
"I'll be right there."
Tossing off the sheet, he shoots out of bed like a rocket and heads into the shower. I hear the water running almost instantly.
I assume that it's either the hospital or news about the investigation.
The shower ends almost as fast as it began, and he reenters the room, roughly drying his hair.
"That was the investigating detective. He wants me to come down to the station right away." He pulls on a pair of jeans. "They say there's been a break in the case."
I hop out of bed and head into the shower.
We're anxiously waiting for someone to come and tell us what's going on.
"What the hell is taking so long?" Edward whispers to me agitatedly.
Finally, Chief Uley comes over to us, and we stand immediately. He smiles at me warmly, before turning to Edward.
"We found James Drummond. A couple of officers are bringing him in."
We hear a commotion as they burst through the door with James, cursing loudly.
"Obviously, it was against his will," Chief Uley deadpans, as he looks over his shoulder. Edward starts over to them, and I block his path.
"Be smart about this. I know you want to tear him apart, but think first."
He clenches his jaw, but I feel his body relax.
"We picked him up at that automotive shop in Cicero, Chief. He says he only went there to see about getting his car fixed." One of the officer reports, as steers a handcuffed James.
"I keep telling you that's what I was there for!"
"Only, we caught him in the back, trying to pay off one of the workers; a kid. We overheard him asking if he got rid of the car. We assume that it was the vehicle in question."
"Where is the car now?"
"It's back at the shop. We waited for forensics to show up, Chief. They'll be sending a follow-up report."
"All right, good work. Take him into room one. I assume he's lawyered up?"
"The minute we put our hands on him."
"Perfect. Take him back."
James smirks at Edward as he passes. I brace for the altercation, but Edward surprises me. He doesn't make a move on him at all.
"You're finished, Drummond."
"We'll see about that."
The officers break up their little reunion by pulling James along and into an interview room. Before they close the door, they make another admission.
"Oh, we brought the kid from the shop in as well. He's here with his lawyer."
I turn to see Jake walk in with Seth. He's dressed in his work attire. I recognize that look; he's all business. I turn back to Chief Uley.
"I thought he wouldn't be implicated?"
"Look, I'll do what I can as a promise to your father, but would you rather I sacrifice this case in order to protect your friend?"
"No…we wouldn't." Edward jumps in and stares me down.
"Listen, depending on what evidence forensics sends us, anything that kid has to tell us will be used accordingly."
As he leaves, Edward puts his hands on my shoulders and looks at me seriously.
"I won't barter. I can't afford to."
"I know." I sigh and bite my lip, looking over at Seth and Jake. He nods at me. It's a gesture that lets me know he wants to talk. I walk over, and Edward follows.
"Against my judgment, Seth has agreed to tell the cops everything they want to know. In exchange, I want no mention of what goes on in the shop."
"You're bargaining in a police station, in front of a bunch of cops?" Edward scoffs.
"Take it or leave it, but I can assure you that if you choose the latter, I will be forced to use other methods."
"The police are going to question your cousin, no matter what. Why would I make a deal with you?"
"You mean your girlfriend didn't tell you why?" he adds sarcastically, and I want to throttle him.
"Jake, don't." I plead, and Edward frowns at me in confusion.
"Don't what? What's he talking about?"
"Bella and I discussed this at the shop the other day. I told her that if she did not get you to back off, then I would drop information about your extramarital affairs to the police, which raise questions about suspects, and paint you as the moral bankrupt that you are."
"How's that?" Edward snorts.
"It would give the police a ton of other suspects to look at other than just your wife and that James, moron."
"And you would want to protect them, why?"
"I don't. They can fry for all I care. My concern is for my cousin."
"You're so fucking smart, but there's one thing you haven't thought about in the midst of all of this." Edward shakes his head at Jake disdainfully.
"I assure you I have, but just for entertainment purposes, what is it that you believe I haven't thought about?"
"Evidence. There was an actual car that tried to hit me, and the car was still on your family's premises, despite knowing the implications of it being there. No matter what, Counselor, you can't just erase the evidence."
I need to stop this because it's not going to end well. I'm sure of it. Neither of them is backing down, and the next word out of either of their mouths may be what sets the other off.
"You're right." Jake laughs and steps closer to Edward and whispers "but you see, I don't care about the evidence. If anything ruins my cousin, I. Ruin. You."
"Okay, stop it. Jake, you're way out of line."
He shrugs at me but takes a step back.
Edward reluctantly walks away, glaring back at Jake. I grab his hand and lead him over to the waiting area, and we have a seat.
"Bella…hey." Seth comes over quickly while Jake is on the phone. "Listen, I know my cousin just wants to protect me, and I know some weird thing is going on between the three of you, but I'm going to tell the police everything about James. I don't want to be an accessory to anything."
"That's a wise choice." Edward states blandly.
"Thanks Seth. We'd really appreciate that."
"How old is your nephew?"
"He's five, why?"
"Is he going to be okay?"
"Yes…he is."
"That's good to know." A relieved smile tugs at the corners of his mouth, and he walks over to the police chief just as an officer calls out that they're ready for him and his lawyer.
"This will be over soon." I lean over and whisper to Edward. He nods and wordlessly laces his fingers through mine.
"One down and one to go." Edward says with satisfaction as I get into his car.
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It's been two days since we'd left Seth and Jake at the police station. They've traced the car back to James and matched skid marks from the park to the tires on the car. With the help of Seth's information, James is being held on two counts of attempted murder and a slew of other charges. He's waiting in custody until the pre-trial hearing which will determine whether he will be let out on bail, pending trial and whether, if he is granted bail, he will be able to return home or remain in Chicago until the trial.
I don't know exactly what transpired, but I do know he implicated Lauren, because we've been informed via Chief Uley that they are about to serve her with a warrant.
He looks as if a huge weight has been lifted, as he glances over and smiles at me. His eyes crinkle at the corners and it makes me smile.
"Where to now?"
"To my sister's house to let her know the news."
"Do you mind?"
"Not at all, let's go. She'll be happy to hear it from you."
He places his phone in the docking station and presses the speaker button. He dials and waits for her to answer. The call goes to voicemail and he leaves Alice a message, saying he's on his way over. Finally, we'll be able to give her and Jasper some peace.