A/N: Thank you for the well wishes, everyone! I'm excited to start my new position on Friday. I'll be doing social work for the public defender's office. I'm excited.

For a day, Bella had to keep her head down and work. She did her best to put Edward out of her mind so she could turn the next draft of her dissertation in to her advisor. She even made sure to double-check her sent folder to be sure the email had gone out with attachment intact.

Everything else being equal, Bella should have been obsessing over her work, second-guessing her conclusions, and trying to imagine what her advisor would say. But no. Instead, the moment the paper was out of sight, it was out of mind. And that was exactly what Bella was: out of her mind.

She was wrecked over the bearded bastard who had kissed her senseless and then ran out the door as if his ass was on fire. She second-guessed just how into that kiss he'd really been? She replayed his breathless voice and hectic expression.

She couldn't have imagined that, could she?

Jacob sat beside her on the couch, rubbing her back while she groaned into a pillow.

"Think of it this way, Bella, who's he going to ask for your number? Mrs. Cope?" Jacob chuckled. "Can you imagine that conversation? 'Hello, woman who's paying my bills. I need the name of your hot renter for… reasons.' See? It wouldn't work. He couldn't get your number without looking like a total perv."

"I've seen He's Just Not That Into You, Jake. If a guy is interested, he'll make an effort. He could have told her he left his goddamn hoodie here." She tugged at the hoodie, which she was, of course, wearing. "And it's not like he doesn't know where I live. We have a doorbell."

"Hmm." Jacob let a few beats pass before he had more to say. "It isn't like you to be so torn up, Bells. I mean, you're twisted up about something with him every other day."

Bella raised her head to glare at her friend. "You're telling me? He drives me crazy. No. That's not fair. I drive myself crazy. This—" She gestured at herself and the clear state she was in. "—isn't because he hasn't called, it's because of how crazy I am that he hasn't called. The way I am around him? Because of him. Ugh." She covered her face with her hands. "He makes me feel so foolish."

Jacob hummed, and when he spoke again, his voice was more serious. "You know, jumping the hot construction worker with the daddy beard is a fun fantasy. That's all this has been to me—fun. So, if I missed the signs about him, I'm sorry."

"Wait. What?" Bella let her hands drop to her lap.

"When we met when we were eighteen, you were kind of indifferent about boys. And by the time we graduated, you were always confident whether you wanted someone or someone wanted you. This is not you, Bells. And if he does this to you, makes you so unsure of yourself, maybe that's a red flag."

Bella furrowed her brow. "You make it sound like he's doing something to me. He's not doing anything to me. I mean…sure, telling someone you're going to call and then disappearing for two days is kind of a dick move, but everything is so… I don't know. This is just not how it's done. It's not like he pursued me in the first place. He was just trying to do his job, and I'm over here stroking ceramic cocks."

"Whoa, you did what now?"

"Oh." Bella grimaced. "I guess I left that part out. Why he kissed me in the first place. Ughh. Seriously, it's not him. It's me. He was minding his own goddamn business, and I got him all riled up. Who could blame him if he started thinking with his dick for a minute?"

"Hey, he's a grown ass man. If he started thinking with his dick, that's his own damn fault. And none of it means he gets to be a dick to you."

"That's not—"

They were interrupted by the key turning in the door and Maggie coming in, juggling a number of bags in her hands and a baby in her arms. With a dramatic huff, she dropped her bags and set the baby gently on the carpet. She looked over at Bella and Jacob on the couch, her eyes darting back and forth as she read the emotion in the room.

Her eyes settled on Jacob. "What's wrong with you, then? You've a face like a bulldog licking piss off a nettle."

Jacob stared at her, his head tilted like a confused dog. Bella pressed her lips together, trying not to laugh and failing miserably. She guffawed noisily while Jacob repeated the words slowly.

"He's just being the overprotective BFF," Bella explained when she'd caught her breath.

Maggie threw herself down in the armchair. Ciara crawled over to them, bypassing her mother and heading to Jacob. She grabbed onto his pants, hauling herself up and clambering onto his lap.

He grinned. "Tell your mom some jack…er. Some old man is bothering Auntie Bella."

"Old man." Bella rolled her eyes, crossed her arms, and hunkered down on the couch.

"Old man?" Maggie said, looking at Bella now.

Bella focused her eyes to the ceiling as she summed up the situation. "Really long story short? I made out with the guy who's been building our shelves. It was ridiculously hot. But he made a run for it, supposedly because he was late to pick up his niece. He said he would call. He hasn't." She swallowed hard against the lump in her throat. "But he doesn't have my number either, so…"

When Bella tilted her head down, she saw Maggie gaping at her. "Really?" the other woman said, drawing out the word. Her shock turned into a wide smirk. "Our Bella and The Ride. A kiss from him is a good leap up from that Paul shitehead. Go'wan, ya good thing."

Bella's cheeks flushed, but she had to grin. That was one way to look at it. A very thorough kiss from Edward was better than all of what Paul had to offer combined.

Maggie cackled. "Lookit ya, pure scarlet, so ye are. Are you sure it was only a kiss? How far did you go, really? I got a proper look at that fella and I'm guessing he's…" She made a gesture with her hands as though she were cradling an eggplant and suddenly that emoji made a lot of sense. Maggie waggled her eyebrows. "Amirite? Eh?"

"Maggie." Jacob shook his head.

"What? You've been talking about those boys since they showed up. Don't try to tell me you're not curious."

"Of course I want to know, but that's not the point. The point is he took off and hasn't been heard from again."

Maggie sobered at that. "Oh, that's right. I see." Maggie cocked her head. "Maybe he's been hit by a bus."

Bella sucked in a breath so hard she almost choked.

"I hope he was wearing clean underwear," Maggie said thoughtfully.

"That's not… He didn't… It's—" Bella sputtered.

Maggie's grin came back full force. "Simmer down, hun. I'm sure no harm's come to him." She laughed. "My goodness. He's got you twisted up, hasn't he?"

"Exactly," Jacob said. "That's what I was trying to say. This was all fun, but Bella isn't acting like herself."

Bella groaned, embarrassed all over again and wishing she could refute Jacob's claim. She banged her head against the back of the couch, throwing her arms over her eyes. "He's right, but he's blaming Edward. Edward didn't do anything. It just happened. We never talked about anything. I have no idea why I'm so…extra about all this. I'm driving myself crazy, and I don't know why I'm like this right now."

"Well, that's fair obvious, ain't it?"

"What?"

"Oh, hon. You're cracked about him—it's plain as day, like. Oh, don't make a face. Love makes eejits of the lot of us." She glanced at her daughter with a wistful smile on her face. "There's nothing to be done about it."

"But that's…" Bella shook her head vehemently. "That's ridiculous. I barely know him."

Maggie snorted. "As though love gives a flying fuck about that." Her expression grew serious. "I can only speak for myself, and god knows I've been knocked on my arse in a big way before, but it's been my experience that it's one of life's great adventures—to love recklessly and foolishly."

Bella didn't have time to think on that before someone's phone pinged. All three of them dug their phones out of various pockets and purses.

Jacob scoffed. "Speak of the devil."

"What?" Bella leaned over, trying to look at his phone. "What are you talking about? Did he text you?"

Jacob readjusted Ciara so she was between Bella and the phone. He held the phone at arm's length. "No. He airdropped a note to me with his number, though. He must think this is your phone."

"Airdrop?" Maggie made a noise of pure delight. "That must mean he's nearby then." She was off like a shot, headed right out the door.

It took two long seconds for Bella to process what was about to happen. She gasped and threw herself off the couch, into a run.

Sure enough, Maggie had her head stuck in the passenger window of a car parked on the street in front of their house. She was short enough that Bella could clearly see Edward's face—all wide eyes and mouth forming an O of surprise.

"Just what do you think you're doing here?" Maggie was yelling at Edward. "You're some bollocks for treating our Bella like that."

"I'm…sorry?" Edward's eyes darted to Bella and back to the crazy woman in his window.

"That you are, ya gobshite. You could have at least gotten her off before you legged it. You left her in a right state, so you did."

"Maggie, for fuck's sake!" Bella grabbed her friend by the arm and gave her a firm tug.

Maggie straightened up. She looked at Bella, gave her an angelic smile, and then turned back to Edward. "Fix it. Amadán."

With that, she turned on her heel. She grabbed Jacob—who had followed them outside, the baby on his hip—by the wrist and dragged him back into the house, making Bella instantly forgive her.

"Omadan?" Edward repeated.

Bella turned back to him. She wrapped her arms around her torso, heart pounding as she stepped up to the window. "Amadan."

"What the hell's an amadan?"

Bella's lip twitched. "I don't think either of us wants to know."

They were both silent then, awkwardness settling in now that Maggie wasn't there to distract them. Bella hugged herself tighter, Maggie's talk of love bouncing around in her head, tangling up her thought process even more. She was thrilled to see him, unreasonably thrilled to have him right in front of her, but it was also a case of be careful what you wish for.

He was there; now what?

Edward rubbed the back of his neck, the look on his face somewhat abashed. After another long moment, he leaned over, reaching a long arm out so he could open the passenger door. Bella took the invitation, sliding into the car beside him.

"So, a Volvo, huh?" she said, trying for a lighter topic. Nothing about this felt light, but she was well aware of the difference between feelings and reality. "You don't have a truck? I didn't think they let you do what you do for a living without a truck."

"Oh, they don't. It's against the law to be on a construction site without a truck." He chuckled softly. "The truck's at home. This is my personal use car. I help out a lot with Emmett's kids, and I can fit more of them here in the SUV safely than I could with most trucks."

Bella's lip twitched. "You're a family man, aren't you?"

"Hmm." Edward let out a slow breath, nodding as he did. "I guess that's pretty accurate. I work with my brother. I see my parents several times a week. There's dinner with everyone—my brother's family, my sister and her husband, and our parents—usually once a week. Yeah. Family is important to me." He glanced out the window.

"That's where I've been the last couple of days, actually." He shifted in his seat, one arm propped on the steering wheel as he looked at Bella. "I did have every intention of calling you that day, Bella. Then I realized I didn't have your number, but I know I don't have to tell you the end of the semester is a busy time. The kids have a lot going on. I had to finish up construction for Lily's school play. And then there was the play. A choir concert. There's a band thing tonight." He waved his hand.

"That's sweet." Bella's heart ached. "And serious. You sound like a serious kind of guy."

"Ah…yeah. More often than not. Emmett usually tells me I'm too serious about most things, but coming from him that doesn't mean much." He cleared his throat, as though recognizing he was babbling. "Is that a bad thing?"

"No. No, of course not." Bella's heartbeat picked up an erratic rhythm. She breathed in through her nose, reminding herself she was a grown ass, mature woman. She could be direct, and she wasn't going to fall apart no matter what his answer was. "It just makes me wonder."

She turned her head, finding his eyes intent and unreadable on her.

"What do you wonder?" he asked, voice a low rumble.

Bella pressed her tongue to her cheek, making sure she could speak evenly before opening her mouth. She gave him a small smile. "What's a serious guy like you want with a woman like me?"

He exhaled in a gust and faced forward. Bella's heart dropped to her stomach as he ran a hand through his hair.

This was going to be bad.

"I've been going over and over it in my head, trying to figure out how this could possibly work out," Edward said, his voice soft.

Tears sprung to Bella's eyes against her will. She blinked fast, trying to keep them at bay.

"I want you, Bella. I do. So much so that I considered, really considered, trying to be someone I wasn't for the sake of having you."

Bella exhaled heavily and quickly turned away, looking out the window, confused and hurt, but determined to hear him out.

"But that's not fair. Not to either of us, right?" The question was clearly rhetorical. "There's a lot of variety out there, and I accept that. I embrace that, but for myself? I'm a monogamous guy. That's just how I'm programmed."

Wait. What?

Bella's head snapped to Edward. "You have a girlfriend?" she asked, automatically furious.

He furrowed his brow. "What? No. I was talking about you. I don't want to share you."

"Share me?" Bella's fury melted quickly into utter confusion. "With who?"

Edward tilted his head, looking just as confused as she was. "Anyone? What I'm trying to say is I don't think there's anything wrong with polyamory or swinging or whatever it is you have going on here, but it's just not for me."

"It's not for me either."

Edward stared.

Bella stared back. "You think I'm polyamorous? Why?"

"The two boyfriends thing?"

"Paul was never my boyfriend. We never got past a few dates. Who else…" Bella's eyes went wide. She turned again in her seat, angling her body toward him so her back was pressed against the door. "Wait. Jacob?" she guessed. "You think Jacob is my boyfriend?"

Now, Edward was flushed, clearly flustered. "The way you touch him…" He gestured helplessly.

"Oh." Bella had to think about the interactions Edward had witnessed. The tit-cup had been explained, but it had clearly stuck in his head that she was comfortable being semi-naked in front of Jacob. And then there had been the time Jacob was carrying her around thrown over his shoulder like a Neanderthal.

Bella pressed a hand to her mouth, but it was too late. A giggle escaped. It was just too damn funny, imagining herself as a swinger or in a polyamorous relationship with Jacob. "Jake is gay."

Edward blinked. "Gay?"

"Like, very, very gay. Knew it when he was seven gay." Bella shook her head, still smiling as she looked down at her lap. "We're close. I'm comfortable with him, and he's a very physical kind of guy, but that's all."

"Gay," Edward repeated, as though still stunned. Then, he groaned. "Oh, my god." He slapped a hand over his eyes and slumped down in his seat. "I need… I need you to get out of the car."

"What?" Bella asked, the grin slipping from her face.

"I need to drive myself into the ocean. Jesus Christ."

Bella couldn't help but be smitten. He sounded like her—moaning and groaning about her own foolishness not ten minutes ago. "I'd really prefer you didn't."

"You can't tell me you're still interested in this." He smacked his chest with the hand not covering his eyes. "After I said you had multiple boyfriends?"

"Like you said, there's nothing wrong with polyamory. It's just not for you." Bella pressed her lips together, trying to quell this giddy feeling rising inside her. "And it's not for me. So now that we've established that we only want to see one person at a time, maybe we can see if we're compatible in other ways." Now, she did giggle. "We can't possibly be more of a hot mess than we've already been."

Edward lifted his hand away from one eye, squinting at her. "You're really still interested?"

Grinning like a fool now, Bella only nodded.

Edward straightened up, his green eyes on her. "I'll do you one better then. How about a do-over?"

"A do-over?"

"Forget all this…whatever the hell it is we've been doing." He shook his head with a rueful smile. "I'm not usually this much of a train wreck when I'm interested in someone." His smile turned up at the corner, just a hint of danger. "I can be charming."

"Can you?" Bella said, but the words came out a little too breathless to be truly challenging.

"Mmhmm." He reached out and took her hand in an easy grip. He merely held it, looking into her eyes as he traced the lines of her knuckles. "So maybe we can take it from the top? A date?"

"A date." Bella nodded, feeling lightheaded from the sparks his simple touch sent zinging through her.

"Is that a yes?"

"Yes. it is."

A/N: Many thanks to Ciara for helping me bring Maggie to life. She cracks me up.

Sooooooooooooooooooooo.