A/N: So sad to end this story. I never planned on it being longer than one chapter, the first one of Inappropriate Love. But all of you (and my beta, of course!) convinced me to keep going. And then this story came out of it. I'm humbled by this, guys, as I really loved the journey. More at the bottom.

Chapter 10

I sped home from the office; I had to get to Bella as quickly as I could. I had to make amends for messing everything up at work. Thankfully, our apartment was really close so I got there in record time, though I was later than I had anticipated. If I had been thinking clearly at all, I would have gotten flowers for her. I was so eager to get home to her that I really didn't want to stop.

When I got there, I rushed in, desperate to see her. I tossed my laptop bag on the ground and sped over to her, capturing her in my arms. I lifted her up, enjoying my arms around her, and set her on the counter in the kitchen. I just needed to feel her around me, as close as possible.

I rested my forehead against hers. "God, Bella, I'm such an idiot. I can't believe it never crossed my mind to tell them we were in a relationship." I felt like an absolute moron.

"Never crossed mine either, Edward." Bella smiled at me; I could tell she wasn't mad.

"I should have known better, though, that's the thing. I watched a manager be fired for that a few years ago. Although, he was sleeping with his assistant, so it was a different situation..." She kissed me, stopping my words, and I leaned into her enjoying her mouth on mine. There were always moments like this where I loved her with everything in me; and this was one of them.

She leaned back, separating our lips. "Neither of us were fired, it really could have been so much worse right?"

"Yeah, I know. But damn, when I was asked to go into the conference room and Sue was there...I was super nervous. And when she said we were waiting for someone and then you walked in? Damn, that shit was scary." I laughed then kissed her again, needing to feel her.

I pulled her even closer, realizing that I would never be as close as I wanted. I just wanted to crawl inside her, desperate for a further connection. She wound her legs around me, and I almost groaned. She was exactly where I needed her to be. I shifted a little so I could take her shirt off, not even bothering with trying to get us to the bedroom. When I saw her, all coherent thought left my body.

"Holy shit," I breathed, just taking her in. I had never seen her in anything so amazingly sexy. She was wearing a dark blue corset, pushing her breasts up. She was so enticing that she took my breath away. "Baby, please tell me you weren't wearing that all day." I thought back to the horrible day, and the image of her wearing that under her clothes almost killed me.

"No, Edward. I put it on when I got home. I wasn't sure how bad your day was after that meeting, so I wanted to...I don't know, give you a treat I guess." She laughed, tugging me a little closer.

"Fuck." I couldn't hold myself back any longer. The urge to be inside her was so great that I slammed my mouth into hers. She started to tug on my suit jacket and shirt, and I shrugged them off unable to move my mouth away from hers. I wanted her so bad I was straining against my pants. She reached down and started to tug my undershirt off and I separated from her for only a moment to get it off. Every time I was with her in this way, I wondered what exact kind of moron Jake was, not wanting her all the time.

Her hands were insistent on my pants, undoing them so they fell, pooling at my feet. I needed hers off also, so I wound my fingers around the hem and started pulling. I felt for underwear, but when I didn't feel any I glanced down again, only to be shocked. The bra camisole that she had one was strapped to a type of garter belt with no underwear on. My mind almost exploded in sensation; the sight went immediately to my dick, which got impossibly harder at the image in front of me.

"Holy shit." I tried to keep my breathing the same, but I had honestly never seen anything so sexy in my life.

"You keep saying that." Her eyes danced at me, but I could see the primal want behind them.

"You are trying to kill me again, baby," I said, taking in a deep breath. I fused my mouth back to hers, and pushed into her as hard and fast as I could. I just needed to be inside her, and I couldn't wait or take it slow. "Fuck," I said again, leaning my head against her shoulder. She felt even better than I had anticipated. I kissed her shoulder and neck, moving up to her ear. "I've been wanting to do this all day."

"God, me too," she moaned, tightening her arms around me.

Moving slow or cherishing her this time was not possible. There would be years to cherish her, and make love slowly. Right now was about being inside of her, hard and fast. I practically slammed into her with every movement. She moaned every time I pushed into her, and I could feel my release coming quickly. I brought my hand to her clit, wanting her to join me. I could tell she was close, the rush of the moment coming to a head. She arched into me, moving and moaning, coming apart in my arms. I couldn't stop myself at that point, and I buried myself in her deep, pulsing as my release came as well.

I whispered my love to her, and she replied in kind. We joked before I set out to the bedroom to change. When I was grabbing my sweats, I saw the ring box in the back of the drawer but I shook my head. Now wasn't the time; hell, neither of us were free to get married regardless. But I knew it was there, and someday I would ask her to marry me. When the time was right.

When I went back out to the kitchen, Bella was serving up reheated lasagna. We chatted about the day, and I assured her that I would be fine. I knew she would worry more about me than herself; that was just Bella's way. It's part of why I loved her so damn much. She cared about others more than herself. The ringing of my cell phone interrupted our conversation. I glanced down to see it was my attorney finally calling.

"Hey Aro."

"Hello, Edward. We finally found Kate; she wasn't staying with her mother, so we weren't sure. She showed back up at the condo this morning."

"That's good news." Finally; I was afraid they would never get her the divorce papers.

"Well, we were finally able to serve her. I understand she was pretty pissed; yelled at my messenger, in fact." Aro laughed a little. "It's ok, though, he's a professional. Once she signed, he left. He said she sounded even more mad; like she had wanted him to stick around so she could yell at him some more."

"Yeah?" Why did that not surprise me? I glanced at Bella, who had an unreadable expression on her face. I still hadn't given her any insights into Kate's behavior, so I was careful what I said while on the phone.

"Anyway, Edward. I'll let you know when she counters. I'm sure she will, based on what you've told me of her. I'll call you when it happens and we can review it together, ok?"

"Sure, that's great. Thank you for calling."

"Have a good night, Edward," Aro said, and then ended the call.

I explained to Bella what the call was about, and honestly, she had seemed relieved. We had a relaxing evening together, and went to bed completely exhausted. I curled up next to her, enjoying her warmth. As was usual when I was in bed with Bella, I fell asleep fast.

The next morning was similar to the previous; Bella made us both lunches, and kissed me goodbye when she left. It was raining – what a shock in Seattle! – so she decided to drive in. As I watched her leave, I thought again how great it would be if we could just drive in together. I squashed the thought; I knew we couldn't do that yet. But someday it would happen.

The day turned out to be fine. Marcus and I met a few times regarding a new account coming in, and he seemed normal. We had chatted enough the day before, so he chose not to raise the conversation at all. We kept it to work-related items. Around lunchtime, I grabbed the soup that Bella had packed for me and ran to the lunchroom to heat it up. I saw Bella sitting at a table talking to someone I only vaguely recognized. We smiled at each other, but I didn't get any closer. I had to maintain my distance for now.

That night when I got home neither of us attacked the other. Instead, we set about making dinner together and marveled at our new found blissful life. Everything was really falling into place. The write up at work, the fights with Kate...all of it seemed totally worth it to get here. This was exactly where I wanted to be.

The rest of the week seemed to fly by. I desperately wanted to get to the weekend so that we could sleep in and make love whenever we wanted. Bella was happy through the week, and accepted when I asked if she would come to Rose and Emmett's for dinner. She told me that Rose had already invited her, and I was surprised to say the least. Rose was very standoffish to new people, and had really hated Kate. But maybe that's why Bella fit in so well?

By Friday, I was eager to just forget work for two whole days and spend them wrapped around Bella. I left the office late – although, considering I was starting to leave it every day around the same time, I guess I couldn't consider it late any longer. When I pulled into the parking garage, I saw her SUV, but the interior light was on. Intending to shut it off, I walked over to the driver's side and saw Bella sitting in it. Her face was covered in shock. I knocked on the window and she looked up at me, before turning to gather her things and exiting the car.

I was about to ask her if she was ok when I saw that she was on her cell.

"Edward treats me so good, Daddy," she said as she stepped into my arms. My heart soared to hear this and I hugged her tightly. She leaned back, staring into my eyes. "I've never been this happy in my life." I smiled, kissing her forehead. She ended the call and brought me up to speed on the conversation, before I started to tug on her to go inside. The air outside was getting even colder as the sun set, and I didn't want her to be outside for too much longer.

For the next several months, we happily went about our new life together. Jake was very soon out of the picture entirely, as the divorce went through without any problems. Kate had always been a live wire, and I knew for sure that there would be issues. When my attorney had called to tell me she was contesting, I put him on speaker so that Bella could hear also.

"Edward, as we expected, Kate has contested some of the terms of the divorce," Aro had said when I answered his call.

"What does that mean, exactly?" Bella asked, curling up next to me. We were sitting on the couch, our movie paused. I glanced at her in concern.

"It means that we need to discuss her counter and decide if we contest it, or if we accept the new terms."

"What does she want, Aro? I gave her the car and the condo, with no monthly payments other than the HOA/maintenance cost. I gave her half of our savings...what else could she possibly want?"

"She's asking for 50% of your inheritance, and a substantial amount in alimony each month. She's also demanding that you pay the HOA fee each month."

I balled my hands into fists. Bella reached down and slowly eased my hand open, filling it with hers. "Aro, I'm not giving her any more of my inheritance. She's already gone through about the amount she's asking for."

"She can't get that, Edward. You had it before you got married. The HOA and the alimony costs would be difficult though."

I sighed and looked at Bella. Her face was passive, leaving the decision up to me. "Aro, the alimony and HOA is fine. I'll agree to it as long as it's a reasonable amount. I never required her to work while we were married, so I understand that would be harder to fight. But," I took in a deep breath. "I refuse to give her any of my inheritance. None of that will go to her, period."

"I understand, Edward. That makes it easier. I will draw up the papers to counter approving the alimony and HOA fees; this kind of arrangement ends when she is married. Unless you want to provide other stipulations?"

I sighed again, slipping my hand into Bella's. She squeezed it, smiling up at me. "No, that's fine."

After that, Kate became a mere blip in my life. Emmett helped me find an accountant to handle the payments, so that I wouldn't have to do it myself. I didn't want to see her name, let alone write it on a check or wire into her account. She tried to fight on the inheritance, but after a call with her attorney, Aro said that would be dropped.

Bella and I went into summer blissfully happy. We went on vacation, my family joining us toward the tail end. I loved how Bella got along with all of them, slipping into my life with hardly any effort. I was grateful for her humor and caring nature, as that went a long way with my family. She made an effort to hang out with each of them, call them each week, send cards for birthdays...she was quickly becoming the backbone of my entire existence as a result.

Summer also brought with it meeting Charlie for the first time. Bella and I had gone to pick him up from the airport, and while I was nervous, she was giddy. As soon as she saw him, she took off running, jumping into his arms. He blushed slightly, but put his arms around her as well. They stood there for a few minutes before Bella leaned back, kissing him on his cheek. I made my way over to them, but hovered in the background.

"I've missed you, Daddy," Bella said, sniffing a little.

"Missed you, too, Bells. You need to come visit your old man more often." His eyes shot to me, narrowing slightly. He turned a little, keeping his arm around Bella, sticking his other hand out to me. "Edward?"

"Chief Swan?" I swallowed my nerves, holding out my hand to shake. He had a firm grasp, and his eyes cut into mine.

"Thank you, son." He smiled hesitantly at me.

"I, um, for what?" I stammered. I really hadn't expected him to say that.

"For getting her away from Jake. For making her happy. For everything you've done for her."

I saw Bella about to protest, but I quickly stepped forward. "I just gave her a little incentive, sir. She was the one who made the choice to leave and find a new life. I'm just the lucky bastard she decided to have that new life with."

Charlie chuckled, picking up his bag. We started walking to the hourly parking and he kept his arm around Bella. "Well, I'm just glad that's over now. That kid didn't know what a good thing he had. He's lucky I didn't kill him."

"Same," I muttered. Charlie glanced at me, smirking, but I don't think Bella had heard.

The weekend with Charlie was great, honestly. He was a funny man, and enjoyed a lot of the same things I did. We had great conversations while getting to know each other. Every time we laughed, I saw Bella out of the corner of my eye just smiling. I knew that Jake hadn't really tried to befriend almost anyone in her life, but I thought he and Charlie had gotten along. After that weekend with him, I couldn't see anyone disliking the man.

As Bella had suggested, I took Charlie out fishing the day before he had to leave. Out on the water, I realized that Charlie was even more amazing than I'd originally thought. He was quiet and contemplative, but always had a smartass thing to say to just about everything. I could see where Bella got her personality from.

"So, Charlie," I started, reeling in some seaweed just to toss it overboard. "Tell me about your conversation with Jake."

Charlie turned to face me, laughing. "Bells tell you about that, huh? Not much to tell. Just gave him a lesson on the law. He was good after that."

I laughed with him for a moment before I sobered. Bella knew that I was going to have this conversation with him, and she had given me her blessing. I just wanted to make sure that I said it correctly.

"It wasn't just the fact that he hit her, Charlie." I swallowed. He needed to know. Charlie shifted fully to face me; concern written on his face. "He verbally abused her for years. She still has meltdowns some days."

"What do you mean?"

"He called her names, yelled at her for the smallest things, and made her feel like everything she did was wrong." I told him about the story of the coffee mugs and how she reacted. His eyes grew wide as he listened.

"Those are all the actions of an abuse victim." Charlie swore, removing his fishing hat. "I knew that jackass was no good, but I never knew he treated her like that. Dammit, why didn't she tell me?"

I shifted to face him, too, my fishing pole forgotten. "She didn't even admit it was happening to herself. When she got to me finally, I was able to convince her of what he had really been. She's been seeing a counselor for a few months now."

Charlie closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, his eyes were teary. "I keep having to thank you for helping her, Edward. Thank you for keeping her safe, and for getting her into counseling. It was the best thing you could have done."

"I love her, Charlie. I want her to be happy, and until she puts the past behind her she won't be. I even go with her sometimes."

"Why are you telling me all this and not her?"

"She's still a little embarrassed about it, I think. I offered to tell her from my point of view and let you know she's been seeing someone that's helping her. She knows we are having this conversation."

"You really do love her, don't you?" It came out as a question, but Charlie didn't look like he was confused at all. I stared into his face, willing him to believe me.

"More than I thought possible."

Our relationship had a turning point on the boat that day. Charlie and I grew close in our shared love of Bella and wanting her safe, and that conversation had proven to him that I really did just want what was best for her. After that, I counted him as one of my friends. He would call me after games that included our favorite teams, or just to chat about how things were going. Obviously, he called Bella more, but I was happy that he would call to talk to me as well.

Bella's mother...well, there's really only one way to describe her: crazy. She is a whirlwind of activity and hecticness. It was honestly hard keeping up with her. She would change topics of conversation in the middle of a sentence, but somehow Bella seemed to keep up. Renee would forget everything, all the time, including why she stood up just moments before. I was honestly getting worried about her for a moment, but Bella assured me that's just who she was.

I got along with Phil all right. He was a nice man, but I hadn't had much in common with him – other than the fact that he was closer in age to me than Renee. It didn't seem to bother either of them, so why should it bother me? They seemed happy together. And though he was younger, he did seem to ground her out a little. I mostly chatted with him about baseball, since he seemed to be fairly singularly focused on that anyway.

As we narrowed in on the Christmas party, we both decided that we were ready to let our relationship out to our coworkers. Bella was nervous, but I couldn't stop smiling about it. No more hiding. Keeping everything bottled up hadn't done either of us any favors in our previous lives, so it was not something I enjoyed doing. Rose had been great at keeping our secret, though she did tease us quite often outside of work. Her and Bella got along great; working together very seamlessly. It seemed that everything was working out.

I kept waiting for something to come up. Something bad to break the bubble of happiness that I was in, but it never came. Every day was better than the one before. Bella and I were perfect for each other in every way. Even going to counseling had been great. We found someone who specialized in spousal abuse, and I went with her every other session. The counselor helped me in how to respond to her when she freaked out, and on the individual sessions helped Bella realize it wasn't her fault, and how to adjust to her new life without the threat of emotional abuse. She saw the therapist weekly for almost a year, then felt comfortable in lessening the visits.

I laid down on my bed every night thankful for her, even if it hadn't been an appropriate start to a relationship. It had been the absolute best decision I had ever made in my life. Being with someone that made me feel consumed with love was all I would ever need in my life.

A/N: Man, I almost cried writing the final chapter. So sorry to see these two go. Which is why I am prepping my next story. Look out for something from me in the new year.

Thank you so much to everyone reading and reviewing this story. I love each and every one of you! I hope that you enjoyed our journey together with this couple.

The biggest thank you goes to my beautiful and amazing beta, zombified419. I wouldn't be writing without her encouragement, and keeping my grammar in line. Thank you dear, I love you to death!

Happy new year friends! I hope next year is WAY better than this year was for everyone!