Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended.

Mojo40 & Ashley0125 preread & promised I don't suck. Ashley might be biased though, since I accidentally flashed her on Saturday.

Chapter Fourteen

Five cabs passed by as I sat on the curb, contemplating the most epic case of word vomit I had ever suffered. Maybe it wasn't considered word vomit, because I knew what I was saying. I was just an asshole, borderline douchebag.

I more or less called Bella a prostitute, and I insinuated that she was only interested in Pleather Prick for his bank account, which couldn't have been too impressive considering he was wearing fucking pleather. I had made her cry, and fuck, I wanted to beat the shit out of myself for that.

Don't get me wrong, I was no stranger to witnessing hormonal women. It had never worked on me before because the tears were usually used to manipulate for one reason or another. But the look in Bella's eyes was not one of manipulation or a result of a monthly uterus attack; she was hurting, because of what I said.

There was no doubt in my mind that I had to fix this. There was no way I was going to be able to go home, let alone fucking sleep, knowing that Bella was upset. Pulling the beanie off my head, I ran a hand through my greasy hair and jumped to my feet. I could only hope she would hear me out.

Halfway to her apartment, I pulled out my phone and dialed her number. I knew she wouldn't answer, but I had to try. For once in my fucking life, I had to try. Slipping the phone back in my pocket, I noticed a familiar face walking towards Bella's building. I wouldn't go so far as to calling it fate, because that just sounded fucking ridiculous. It may have been a coincidence, but I'd go with luck.

"You're the girl from Facebook," I said out loud, catching her off guard.

She stood on the steps, crossed her arms and scowled. I wouldn't say it was intimidating, but it definitely left me feeling unsettled.

"You must be the idiot who fucked my best friend, literally and figuratively."

"Guilty," I sheepishly admitted. "You're Alice, right?"

"Yes. I'm going to be honest, I'm not sure if I like you yet, Edward," she confirmed, which made me chuckle.

Welcome to the fucking club.

"Understandable," I muttered, more to myself. "Is she okay?"

Raising an eyebrow, Alice asked, "Cut the bullshit. Do you know why Bella even considered going out with you in the first place?"

Nodding, I said, "Yeah." But I wasn't about to tell her the only reason that Bella was putting up with my shit was because she was getting a generous amount of money. I had no fucking clue if Bella had told any of her friends about this, and it wasn't my place to-

"Before the money, you moron," Alice interrupted. "Do you know why Bella started hanging out with you before the money was ever on the table?"

Shit.

She gave me some sort of satisfied chuckle and asked, "Well?"

Well, no, I honestly had no fucking clue why Bella agreed to this. She claimed it was because she shopped a lot. Unlike Ben, I'm not hyper aware of female clothing brands. Not that it was his fault; he used to spend his summers working as a brand rep for Abercrombie and Fitch, spritzing unsuspecting people with nauseating cologne. I'm not blind though, so I found Bella's claims of being a shopaholic hard to believe, seeing as how I never saw her wear more than two pairs of jeans and the occasional dress.

It wasn't a brain buster, but I still had no answer to give. "I honestly don't know."

"Bella has never been one for spontaneity," Alice said matter-of-factly. "I've always given her a hard time about it, but she shrugged it off as me being the bitchy friend that I am. Then you came along." She smirked and I waited, having no doubt she had a lot more to say. "Spontaneous for Bella means eating a tuna sandwich on a Wednesday instead of her normal Tuna Tuesday. Yeah, she fucking names the days of the week after what she eats for lunch."

"What's Wednesday?"

"Wasabi Wednesday. There's this place about a block from where I work that has an awesome happy hour and-" Alice's eyes lit up for a second. "What I'm trying to say is this is probably all my fault."

"What is your fault?" I couldn't figure out how Bella, wasabi, and tuna were connected, or how any of it was Alice's fault.

"I talked her into going out with you. She mentioned you a few times, telling me you were hanging around the bar, brooding, helping her with her truck. I was the one who convinced her into giving you a chance before you offered to pay her. She was hesitant, but went for it," Alice explained. I felt like there was a faster way she could explain this. Preferably with less words and more of a point.

"There were multiple times when Bella wanted to back out of this, because she's been so out of her element," Alice rolled her eyes. "I talked her into going on a date tonight to make you jealous. Which apparently worked, so I don't see how she can be too mad at me, even though it kind of backfired, but it worked!" She released a long breath as if she was coming up for air. I was both surprised and grateful to see her mouth was no longer moving.

"Bella doesn't have a thing for the Pleather Prick?" I asked, because that was the only information my brain was able to gather from her little speech.

Alice's eyes lit up as she asked, "Ooh, what's a pleather prick?"

"The douche you made her go out with!"

"Wait, Riley wore pleather?" Alice looked both shocked and disgusted. "That's almost worse than liking LMFAO."

"No," I said sternly. "It's the equivalent of liking LMFAO. I wouldn't doubt his theme song is "Party Rock Anthem"," I said with disdain.

"She doesn't have a thing for Riley. In fact, I had to get her drunk off shitty vodka to agree on going on a date."

"Ah, so shitty vodka is the secret." I feigned pain as Alice slapped my bicep. "You're right, this is all your fault," I teased. It was partly a joke, because it wasn't Alice's fault I blew up at Bella. It was definitely Emmett's fault, though. Whiskey always puts me in Hulk mode.

"I'm kind of a bad influence on her."

"I'm gathering that." I chuckled and glanced up at Bella's window, noticing the light was still on. "Good to know she wouldn't actually date a guy with blonde hair."

"James is blonde."

"James? Who the fuck is James?" I didn't mean to snap, but I couldn't help it. Alice wasn't phased by my Hulk mode outburst.

"Oh, I see you two haven't had the ex talk yet."

Pouting, because who the fuck was James, I asked again, "Who the fuck is James?"

"Down, boy. James was her ex-boyfriend. They dated for, I don't know, two years. Anyway, he fucked her over. Big time." Alice gave me a pointed look.

"I would never-"

"But in the back of her mind, you will. It's not like you've proven otherwise," Alice explained and, yeah, okay, she was right. I wasn't exactly the poster boy for monogamy. "James cheated on her, got the girl pregnant, and he's like, mentally unstable or something because he still expects Bella to forgive him. He had the fucking nerve to send her an invite to the baby shower."

"Ouch."

"Tell me about it. Bella was sick for weeks. It was awful seeing her like that. There's only so much tequila and cupcakes you can force a person to consume to make them get over a break-up."

Rubbing the back of my neck helped with the tension I was feeling as I thought of Bella being upset. "So, are you here right now because she called you?"

"Of course. I must say, I'm surprised you fucked up. It was a rather foolproof plan."

I scoffed. "Apparently the one thing I'm consistently good at is fucking things up."

"You're a guy who smokes weed, wears beanies and probably still eats pop-tarts. You're allowed to fuck up, but you're not allowed to hurt my best friend."

This Alice chick was pretty spot-on. She was also very fucking helpful. Not that I enjoyed standing outside at midnight, listening to Bella's friend tell me about her past, but any information that helped me better understand Bella was, well, much appreciated.

"Why are you telling me all of this? Aren't you supposed to hate me or something?"

"I already told you I don't know if I like you yet. But, I know Bella, and I know she feels something for you. I also know that she is scared and, well, I don't want her to ruin this because of her fear of getting hurt." Alice stared at me for a second then asked, "Are you sorry?"

I focused on my shoe scuffing the pavement a few times before I answered. "More than she'll believe."

"Were you jealous?"

That question made me wince, which made Alice smile, which made me scowl. "Yeah, I was."

"Are you in love with her?"

Who the fuck goes around asking people they just met if they are in love with someone?

"I..." had to look away. "It's...I don't really-"

Alice interrupted me, and said, "Eight, five, nine, three."

Looking up from the ground, I asked, "What?"

She rolled her eyes and said, "That's the code to get into Bella's building. You have five minutes and then I'm coming up."

"Thanks, Alice."

"Five minutes, I swear to God! You tell her whatever you have to say to make this better!"

I punched in the code, swung open the door and paused where I was standing. What the fuck was I going to say to her? How was I going to make this okay?

"Just tell her the truth," Alice said, somehow reading my mind. Or maybe she was just good at reading body language; that seemed more likely.

Of course, I'd just tell her the truth. That's easy. I could definitely tell her that I was, you know...was I in love with her?

Why did I suddenly want to puke? Oh, fuck, fuck, fuck. Why did I drink so much earlier? What was I trying to accomplish with binge drinking on a weeknight? Emmett is definitely taking the blame for this.

"The fuck are you doing, Edward?" Alice called from the sidewalk.

Some sort of wheezing sound escaped from my throat as I tried to speak. Was I having a panic attack? Why was I thinking so clearly? Or was this not thinking clearly? What is one supposed to think about to know whether or not you are thinking clearly? What the fuck does that even mean, thinking clearly?

I felt a presence behind me, then Alice slapped my face. Twice.

"Fuck," I gasped. She raised her hand again and I winced. "No. I'm good. I swear," I said, raising both hands as if I were pleading innocent.

She eyed me for a second. "Chill the hell out, okay? I wasn't telling you to get on your fucking knees and promise her a lifetime of kittens and Starburst's. Just apologize to her. That's all she'll want, anyway."

"Right. No Starburst's, just apologies." I nodded. "Okay."

Alice sighed and said, "You're hopeless." Reaching for my shoulders was a task, seeing as how I was more than a foot taller than her, but Alice grabbed and spun me around in the right direction. "Now, go forth and don't fuck this up."

Don't fuck this up was my mantra as I took each step slower than necessary. Of course, her building didn't have an elevator, not that I would have taken it anyway. I needed time to prepare what I was going to say. Except when I finally made it to her floor, I wasn't prepared at fucking all.

Lightly tapping her door with my finger, I cleared my throat and said, "Bella. It's me. Please open the door."

The silence was deafening, but I knew she was in there. I knew she was upset. I knew I had to fix this.

Don't fuck this up.

"Bell, please just talk to me. Please," I practically begged. I'd get on my mother fucking knees if I had to. With both arms on either side of the door, I dropped my head and was about to apologize to the door, when I heard the soft click of the deadbolt.

My head snapped up and I stared into Bella's bloodshot eyes.

"Bell," I murmured, dropping my arms by my side to stand up straight. It took everything I had not to grab her and pull her into me.

"Where is Alice?" she asked quietly, rubbing her eyes.

"She's downstairs." I glanced behind me. "Listen..."

"Why should I?"

"Just listen. Please." She ground her teeth together and motioned for me to continue. "Bella, I'm sorry. Christ, I'm so fucking sorry."

"Yeah, that was pretty screwed up." Her voice wavered. I felt like a dick.

Don't fuck this up.

Reaching for her face, I stared down into her eyes and swallowed. "I was upset. I wasn't thinking clearly." I half laughed at that. I was certainly thinking clearly now.

"Why are you apologizing to me?"

"Because-"

"Stop."

"Why? I realize I overreacted. You don't deserve to be treated like that."

"Maybe we should just talk tomorrow or something. I'm exhausted and, honestly, your mood swings are giving me whiplash."

"My mood swings? What about yours?" I accused a little too loudly.

"Leave my hormones out of this, Edward!"

"So, your hormones didn't tell you to go on a date tonight?"

"No!"

"Oh, so was it the shitty vodka that convinced you, then?" I was half teasing, but I also wanted to hear her admit that she was trying to make me jealous. I wanted her to admit she felt something for me.

"You..." Bella seethed with fury. "You talked to Alice? Don't you dare talk to my friends!"

"She talked to me."

"I don't care!"

"You obviously do care if you're willing to get my attention by enduring a night with someone who wears pleather."

"Pleather is totally underrated, anyway. Besides, I don't want your attention."

That was lame, even for her, and she knew it.

"Were you trying to make me jealous?" I asked, taking a step closer.

"No..." she lied. She was lying to me and for some reason, it made me smile. Maybe because I knew she was only lying to protect herself and to keep her pride. I was pretty sure all of my pride was out the fucking window.

"Bella." I gave her a tiny smile. "Were you...trying..." one step closer, cornering her between my body and the door frame, "to make me...jealous?" I breathed the last word, gauging her reaction to me being close.

"Maybe." She exhaled, looking everywhere except at me.

"Look at me," I demanded. Leaning my head closer, I asked, "Why were you trying to make me jealous?"

She shook her head, refusing to answer, and released a soft moan as I blew warm air against her neck. My lips crashed into hers, and her hands instantly pulled down on my neck, trying to bring me closer.

"Fuck," I breathed with my eyes closed, mouth hovering over her soft lips. "Fuck you for doing this to me."

"What?" She pulled back and stared innocently at me with her lust hooded eyes. She knew exactly what she was doing to me.

"I just fucking want you so bad..." My hand traveled to her waist as I pushed into her hip with my thumb.

Bella laughed and pushed her hips forward to meet the bulge in my pants. "I hate you, too."

"Don't say that," I scolded, kissing her again.

Smiling against my lips, she whispered, "Come inside."

Not a second after she closed the front door, I pulled her body against mine. Frantic and needing and, fuck, it was good to be with her this way. It felt natural and so good.

"Why do I want you so bad?" I questioned, not expecting a response.

"Mmm..." She hummed against my cheek, pushing her body closer to mine.

I considered that as confirmation to take her; to pull her shirt over her head; to unbutton her jeans. My hand slid down her soft stomach and into her jeans as a moan escaped her lips.

"You like that?" I asked as I let my fingers roam, pushing her underwear to the side. "Fuck. You're so wet, baby."

We fumbled backward until her back was against the front door. Sliding two fingers inside her at a painfully slow speed, she bit her lip and weaved her fingers through my hair, pulling my head down to meet hers.

Bella murmured, "Shit, shit, shit."

My smile was smug before I covered her mouth with mine. My lips traveled to her ear as I pumped faster, rubbing her clit with my thumb, hoping I knew what would push her over the edge. It was different this time; this was about her.

"Good?"

"Too good."

Unhooking her bra with my free hand, I leaned my head down to her breasts and began sucking, lightly biting, anything to make her squirm. She moaned louder, so I pushed harder, rubbed faster.

"Edward, fuck...fuck."

"I want to make you feel good," I admitted, feeling my dick get harder with each moan she egged me on with. "Tell me what makes you feel good."

"You do," she panted. "You do."

I was the one making her come undone, making her feel this way, making her moan my name.

"I don't want you to be with anyone else," I blurted out. It was too easy to get caught up in the moment. The thought of her being with anyone else like this was enough to make me lose my fucking mind.

"No one else," she said with closed eyes. "No one."

"I'm serious," I whispered in her ear before slowly grazing her neck with my teeth. She had to know I was serious.

"Don't stop," she whispered, causing my dick to ache.

"Never," I said, curling my fingers to hit her spot. I wanted to know every little thing that made her quiver in ecstasy. I wanted to explore her body and learn what every facial expression meant. Hitting that spot again, I watched in awe as she bit her lip. "Right there, baby?"

"Fuuuuuck, yes. Oh my God..."

She was slowly coming undone and I loved watching her face, hearing her pants, feeling her convulsing beneath the touch of my hand. I brought my mouth to hers as she came, and she kissed me back, hard, breathing my name against my lips.

"That was...wow." Her head fell back, creating a thud against the door. I breathed her in for a second as she caught her breath.

"Hey, ya jerk!" Alice screeched from the other side of the door. "I said five minutes!"

Bella gave me a tiny smile as she smoothed her hair out of her face and buttoned her jeans. Picking up her shirt from the floor, I narrowed my eyes and gauged her reaction and the way she avoided my stare. Noticing her shirt in my hands, she mumbled thanks and reached for it. I held it above my head, out of her reach.

"I was serious," I whispered so Alice couldn't hear. "I don't want you to be with anyone else."

"I heard you."

"Yeah, but do you believe me?"

She nodded slowly and pointed at the door. "She's waiting."

"So am I." I handed her the damn shirt and ran a hand through my hair, not wanting this conversation to be over with just yet. "Look, I fuck up. A lot. I say the wrong things, I do the wrong things, but it's because I'm not used to...feelingthisway," I blurted out.

"What way?" Bella questioned, voice softer than mine.

"I think about you too often," I admitted lamely.

Three knocks on the door and a "Dear God, people! It doesn't take that long to put on clothes!" tore Bella's focus from me and my almost-declaration.

"We can talk tomorrow?" she asked with wide eyes. "I don't have work, but I have class until four."

"I'll bring stuff over to make dinner?" Which meant I'd pick up take-out and hope that it would be good enough.

"Yeah. Six. That works. And...thanks." Bella blushed, which made me laugh.

Tucking a piece of hair behind her ear, I said, "See you tomorrow, Bell."

Alice lightly punched my arm immediately after I opened the door. I mouthed thank you to her before walking away.

Now all I had to do was find a way to convince Bella I wasn't the same guy she had met two months ago. I figured I could start with PF Changs, because nothing said I'm sorry quite like spring rolls and Kung Pao chicken.

A/N: Seems like Edward is making progress, huh? I mean, he was all about the giving in this chapter. Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: I do not condone wearing pleather, nor do I believe it is underrated. Pleather is not, and never will be, okay to wear. Thank you.