A/N: Hi everyone! So, it's been a while since I last posted…we have seen a pandemic, lots of changes in my personal life, gained a few qualifications, and changed jobs…It's been a busy time! And I know that some people are wondering when I will get around to updating and completing my other fics (The Silent Cry Of A Swan…and Sleeping With The Enemy)…the truthful answer is I am constantly working on both of them, and have future chapters actually typed out an ready to go, but I've hit a roadblock on the middle part of both and I would rather work on them a little longer, than give you all a half-arsed version of something that I actually really care about! Both fics are special to me and the future chapters that I've written I'm actually really excited for you to read, so keep everything crossed that inspiration will hit me again soon.

So, please please please be patient…This fic you are about to read actually came to me in a dream, and I couldn't get it out of my head…mainly the party scene, but the rest of it was also part of the dream! So I figured why not make it into a fic?

I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it. And as a side note…I have no idea of the workings of bank vaults, coding, breaking and entering…so if there are any inconsistencies or things that seem made up – that's because they are! This was all down to my imagination, I'm not really a criminal!

Enjoy!

Partners…In Crime!

We all sat around the table, clearly thinking of ways to make money. Some boring, some impossible, some crazy, some not-so-crazy.

Emmett and I refused to take money from any of the other three, even though it was readily offered. This was mine and Emmett's responsibility and we would have no-one else paying for it. We Swans were proud people, if nothing else.

"I guess the bank would be a last resort then" chuckled Jasper. "But just so you know, I could easily hack into the bank's security system, and between my eyesight and Emmett's biceps, I'm sure we could at least swipe something of value. Just enough to pay off your Dad's house"

"Yeah, and with Bella's amazing driving skills, a getaway would be a piece of cake" said Rosalie, straight-faced and totally serious, as if she were truly considering it as a viable option. I looked at her through narrowed eyes as she spun her flick knife around, gracefully and flawlessly. I shuddered quietly and reminded myself to always keep in Rosalie Hale's good books.

I twirled my pen between my fingers absentmindedly, deep in thought.

We tried to laugh it off and come up with some more ideas, but every suggestion ended up with us being right back to the subject of stealing again. And even though every part of me screamed that it was wrong, I would think back to those times when my Dad supported Emmett and I when he was a struggling single parent, and he did it with the biggest of smiles, never grumbling about it even once.

So the plan was set...we would keep Emmett out of this one, because we needed at least one of us to stay out of jail if this thing went sideways. And no-one could rival my driving skills, so I definitely had to be involved. Alice would get in quickly, take what was needed, and get out to me before anyone noticed anything had gone missing. Jasper kept a close watch on the monitors that he had easily hacked into.

Except this wasn't a bank job. We started off with a small gala for the rich and disgraceful, who paraded around in finery and jewels that were more than likely paid for with taxpayer's money.

It was being held in a high society country club, and I laughed when Jasper first told us where he had needed to hack into. A damn country club! Could they have been any more predictable and unimaginative? Never the less, they had money to spare, and we needed some money fast!

Alice and Rosalie had gotten onto the waiting staff rota without any trouble, and scoped out the area one final time whilst handing out drinks. Luckily, they had attended the wait-staff training in preparation of the event, so they knew the place inside and out by now.

With a quick diversion planted earlier on in the evening, it made quick work of allowing the girls to grab the collected money from behind the bar. It was only going towards the upkeep of their precious country club anyway. Alice and Rosalie managed to make it out and into the car before the sprinklers had even shut off. It left a group of very wet and pissed off rich people wondering where their cash had gone.

And as Jasper had hacked into their security systems, neither the police nor the organisers could determine what had happened due to lack of evidence.

We made it back to Forks in record time, without being pulled over or caught, and when we counted the money, we had more than enough to pay off Charlie's house. We, of course, told him that Emmett had won some money on the state lottery and he wanted to pay off the house.

"Dad, I want to do this..."

"But that's your money Emmett" he argued, wheezing a little as he spoke. He was looking and sounding much better nowadays, but he would never be healthy enough to actually join the force again. And I knew that hurt him more than the actual illness ever would.

It had been hard for our Father to become weaker and more fragile over time, despite him getting better and stronger lately. But it had been equally as hard for my brother and I to stand by and watch him go through all of that, knowing there was nothing we could do about it. The doctors were doing all they could, and Dad was a fighter, but he was also no spring chicken anymore.

"Look, think of it as an investment then. After all, Bella and I will inherit the house someday, so I'm just making sure we keep it in the family until then" he smiled, knowing that our Father couldn't argue against that logic.

When he agreed, we were so relieved. Mainly because the house was safe, and we paid it off the very next day, securing our father's future, hoping to have paid him back just a fraction compared to how he secured our futures as children. But then another worry hit us...

"Now I just have to earn enough to be able to eat" he laughed, coughing as he finished talking. I rushed over and patted him gently on the back, whilst he waved me away and recovered himself. "I guess I can take that small job at the grocery store now, huh? Would be good to get back out in society again, and now that I don't have to worry about the mortgage, I just need to deal with the smaller bills"

But his expression told me that he wouldn't like that. To go from being the chief of police - a well-respected and authoritative position in the town, to bagging groceries...but he was doing what he thought was best.

And my brother looked at me with the same expression. The expression that said 'We can't stop now'.

So I told my father the biggest lie that I had ever spoken. "Erm...Daddy, I was wondering if I can talk to you about something?"

Emmett scrunched his face up in confusion, silently asking me what I was up to, as we always run everything by each other nowadays.

"Sure pumpkin, something wrong?"

I shook my head slightly, unsure of how this lie would sound on my tongue. "No, it's just that…I've lost my job at the garage, and...well, I'm struggling to pay my rent, so I am going to give up my apartment. I was just wondering if I could maybe move back home for just a little while, until I get back on my feet?"

"Of course you can baby girl, I'd love to have you home again" he smiled, and he pulled me in for a hug, holding me tight and making me feel safe. I enjoyed inhaling my father's scent of leather and clean soap as I pulled him in just as hard. It was a nice reminder of just why we were doing this.

My brother smiled at me from behind our Father's back, knowing now why I had spoken up. I couldn't see our Father struggling when I could easily help in a different way. One that he would believe.

I really didn't want to quit my job or give up my apartment, but Charlie would never allow himself to be treat like a charity case for anything. And if me moving back home meant that he would accept money from me for rent and food, then I would easily give up anything in order to make that happen.

Over time, I 'found myself a new job' so to speak, in the form of gambling with some of the money we took. I would sort the apartment side out at a later date.

I was very good with numbers and statistics, so I played with what we had and made a small profit most of the time. Anything that we didn't need for Charlie or my next bet went into a pot where we decided to buy more sophisticated equipment.

And so the better the equipment, the bigger the job.

Rosalie, like her twin brother, had a good eye for anything electrical. She knew the inside of a circuit board like the back of her hand, and easily understood the ins and outs of chips, bugs, wires and earpieces. She could always be found fiddling with wires and soldering equipment. I don't know where she learnt it all, but I was sure glad to have someone like her in our team!

She was also Emmett's girlfriend, having met 5 years previously. She was sassy, funny and took none of his crap. He worshipped the ground she walked on, and even though she would never let on, she felt the same way about him too. She was the beautiful blonde goddess that he had always deserved to have. Jasper may be her twin brother, but the way Emmett is fiercely protective of Rosalie is like nothing I've ever seen.

Jasper was also like his sister - smart, deadly and if they are quiet for long enough then you just know they are cooking up some scheme or another. His blonde locks were slightly duller than that of his twin sister's, but there was no mistaking that they were related. Jasper is what I would class as the strong and silent type. The complete opposite of my brother, which would probably go halfway to explaining why Rosalie was with him.

The last one to join our band of merry men is Alice. Tiny, fun, borderline crazy Alice. She simply appeared one day whilst I was waiting in line at the bank, depositing some money into Charlie's account, and she approached me about any work I may have going. At first I kind of looked around, thinking she was talking to someone else, but there was no-one else in line besides the two of us, and one guy waiting to be seen next. I still don't know to this very day how she knew about us, she just said she knew her next job would be here, and she had a feeling it would be me. When I told her I didn't know of any jobs, she wrote her number on my hand using the pen that was attached to the table, and said that she does yoga, can get into small spaces, she's fast, and then when she told me that she's very discreet and winked at me, I got a good feeling about her. We've never looked back since…after Jasper did a full background check on her of course.

So we went doing one small job after another, until our equipment and experience led us to bigger and better jobs. But one rule we absolutely had was that no-one gets hurt…not us, and definitely not anyone innocent.

Luckily, we preferred night-time jobs, where there was a lot less chance of others being around - it made the job itself much easier, as well as lessening the ratio of us getting shot!

"So, you want me to go in on this one?" I asked my brother sceptically. Because to be honest, I've never considered myself a thief as such, but I was one heck of a getaway driver. There wasn't anyone around who could drive like me. Just the feel of a fast and powerful car at my hands was enough to get my blood running. I loved the thrill of the chase, especially when I know those chasing us would never catch us...not whilst I'm driving.

Emmett nodded his head at me, with a hopeful yet nervous expression.

"I don't think so Em" I scoffed, resuming to fiddle with the earpiece I was currently attempting to fix. It had become damaged in one of our trial runs, and I finally had a little time to give it the proper attention it needed. I wasn't anywhere near as a skilled as Jazz or Rose but they were currently on a supply run and I had a little time to spare.

"Come on Bells, please" he pleaded, his big, beefy hands clasped together so tightly that his knuckles were turning white. "We kind of need to you to take one for the team here, little sis"

"Why? Alice goes inside on every job, what makes this one any different?"

"Because they know who I am" answered the very person in question, as she strolled through the door and placed various shopping bags in front of me. "I've been working there for a few months now, and if we somehow manage to mess up and they get hold of any CCTV footage, they will catch us straight away. I mean, I know we won't make any mistakes and Jazz and Rose will have every camera covered, but as a precautionary measure, we need a new face inside"

"You know this is insane right?" I asked, deadpanned.

"Bells, everything we do nowadays is insane" replied Emmett. "We have a brother and sister combo, who dragged their friends and partners into being a crime gang, a set of twins who are attached at the hip, as well as being terrifyingly and silently deadly when it comes to all things technological, and then there is-" and he waved his hand towards Alice, "Well, I just have no words for whatever Alice is"

"Good point well-made there" I shrugged. "But seriously guys, I can't do this"

"Oh, sure you can Bella"

"Really Alice? There is a reason we send you in y'know"

She smiled sweetly. "That's because I'm darned good at what I do. But whilst I have been working there - under a false identity may I add - I have been memorising codes, secretly checking floor plans, figuring out the best and easiest ways to not only get in, but to also get out"

"And you are the same build as Alice, as well as being just as agile and flexible Bells" added Emmett, trying desperately to convince me. "You will easily fit into air ducts, windows, vaults...you name it, and I bet you can squeeze into it"

I thought about it. Would I be able to do this? I guess I needed to in order to help my father. But what if it went wrong? I mean, we always have a fool proof plan to get out of any situation no matter what, regardless of if we have anything to show for it or not, but what if something went wrong and I got caught? I would never rat out the rest of my family.

I breathed in and blew out harshly. "Fine"

Alice clapped happily for a couple of seconds, before she began pulling out various black items from the bag.

I sighed deeply, scrubbing my hands over my face.

"I take it those are for me?" I muttered, eyeballing the offending garments.

She nodded eagerly, giving me a famous Alice Brandon 'I'm-going-to-get-my-own-way' grin. She already knew I would say yes. I swear, sometimes I think she is psychic!

"Hold up, we can't just have me going in, doing what needs to be done and then driving myself out of there. What if it gets a little hot, and I have to literally jump into a waiting vehicle? No, you need me at the wheel. None of you can drive like I can!" I protested, thinking I may have just been lucky enough to pull myself out of this without coming across as the worst team-player in history.

I didn't like the sneaky side eye that they both gave each other upon hearing my realisation.

"What?...why are you looking at each other like that?...oh no, what aren't you telling me?"

The nervous feeling in the pit of my stomach made me feel sick.

Emmett was wearing his 'she's-going-to-hit-the-fucking-roof' expression, and Alice found the items in the bags even more interesting than she normally would.

"Oh my gosh, you've actually replaced me already haven't you?...Emmett? Tell me the truth!" I demanded. "Have you, or have you not, already decided on who is going to drive my ass out of there?"

I was stood up now, towering over his huge form, with my hands planted firmly on my hips. Emmett looked up at me and nodded sheepishly, like a child who had just been caught doing something naughty.

"Who?"

"Look, just understand that we needed someone-"

"Emmett Charles Swan, you tell me right now"

"Edward Cullen" he blurted out.

And all of a sudden it was like I was back in high school again, remembering his sexy-looking copper hair, chiselled jaw covered in stubble and his dazzling white t-shirt that he just loved to team up with his ripped jeans, leather jacket and battered old Converse sneakers. He was my weak spot. In fact, he was every girls dream when we were high schoolers - the ultimate bad-boy.

I would often spend my time alone, reading when others were gossiping about boys or flirting with them. I could never be bothered with any of that, much to the relief of my very protective father, and even more protective big brother. But I would occasionally watch Edward from afar, as other girls would go up to him and attempt a conversation in the hopes of grasping his attention long enough that he would fall head over heels for them. But they, like so many before them, would walk away with their tails between their legs and their egos completely bruised.

Edward had been seen with girls in the local diner, or in the passenger seat of his beloved car, but only on his terms. He was a 'love them and leave them' kind of guy, and I don't think for one second that he had changed one bit.

Edward had been friends with Emmett throughout school, growing up together which meant that he was in my life on many occasion. The older we all got, the way I looked at Edward drastically changed. But I was not his type, especially being his friend's little sister.

After they graduated, Emmett went off to college, and Edward…well, he did anything he could to earn money, but as Emmett had moved away, he had no reason to come by the house anymore. And so the last I saw of him was their graduation party.

"Uh uh, no way!" And I turned from my brother, shaking both my head and my hands. "There is not a chance that-"

"He's the only one Bells, do you remember the way he used to drive in high school?"

Do I remember? Pfft, I think I had a wet dream about it once. Just the vision of him in his leather jacket, leaning out of the window of his Impala, with a cigarette hanging loosely from his luscious pink lips...

"Bella?" Said Alice, snapping her fingers in front of my face.

"Huh?" I shook my head slightly. "You are actually serious? Edward Cullen? Does he even live around here anymore?"

"Yeah, well, he will be. He's moving back to Forks soon enough" shrugged Emmett. He always knew that I had a crush on Edward but he never made fun of me for it, even when Edward would come by our house so he and Emmett could hang out. I would always hurry out of the way and back up to my room whenever he came round, but I'd always be sure to listen out for him, his low and deep voice carried to my room from downstairs.

"And you've already asked him, I take it?"

"Yeah, I said I would speak to you first, being our Captain and all, but he said if you are up for it, then so is he" said Emmett, awaiting my answer.

It wasn't lost on me that Edward had used that phrase to Emmett and I wondered if he thought about the double meaning of his words like I just did.

I sighed, not really seeing that I had much of a choice. The team needed me, and without even knowing it, my father needed me. The pressure was on, but I wasn't about to admit that I was nervous at the thought of messing this up.

"And you really think I can pull this off?"

"Without a doubt" replied Alice, confidently. "Now, come come, let's get you up to speed"

I arrived back at the loft with bags of fast food, pushing up my glasses and my hair thrown into a messy bun.

I hated when it was my turn to go get food, it was a pain in the ass getting all the way through the city traffic and wait for ages for the food to be ready, only to battle all the way back through that traffic again. The only upside of it being your turn was that you could pick what everyone eats. Tonight I had decided it was Chinese food. I needed something to get me out of this weird and sullen mood, because Edward was going to be arriving in a day to two, and we hadn't left things on the best of terms when we last saw each other. It's been years and he still makes my knees weak.

And even though I knew I would never have a chance with him, not really, I was going to pamper myself tonight, exfoliate, pluck, brush, condition and shave anything that needs it, in order for me to look hot! I wanted that ass to know what he passed up on!

"Grub's up" I shouted, holding the bags in the air with both hands as I made my way through to the kitchen. Jasper and Alice immediately followed me, Jasper sniffing the air like a dog as I passed, and Rosalie appeared from her bedroom.

"Bells, I-" started Emmett, but I really needed to pee. I should have gone when I was at the restaurant waiting for the food, but I stupidly decided to wait until I got home, and now I'm regretting it.

"In a min Em, go grab some food and I'll be right behind you"

"No Bells, I just wanted-"

"2 minutes Em, please? I need to pee and I have to get out of these clothes" I said, dancing from one foot to the other, in the hopes that the slight movement will ward off me actually pissing my pants.

I took the second of silence from my brother as my opportunity to run as fast as I could to my room & use my bathroom - what can I say, I like to have a little luxury, and having my own bathroom is one of those little luxuries. I redressed quickly in my yoga leggings and top, they are the comfiest thing I own, even though Emmett dislikes them because he always says 'I can see the shape of my little sister' and wrinkles his nose. I have no idea why he phrases it like that…of course I have a shape. I must admit, my 'shape' has gotten me free drinks and one or two steamy sessions in the past too.

"Well, he's just going to have to deal with it, food awaits" I told my mirror self, who currently looked cute in her glasses and messy bun. Not hot, but cute. Hot was coming once Edward arrived.

"You had better have saved me some" I chuckled as I entered the kitchen. I reached up into the top cupboard to grab a glass, and heard nothing…not a murmur…not a clink of a fork, or the scraping of a plate on the table…there was just silence.

"What?" I asked as I turned to face them, and I noticed everyone watching me. "What's with you guys? What have I missed?"

Emmett looked guilty. Rosalie was glaring at Emmett. Alice was grinning from ear to ear. Jasper was just eating – not a lot affected Jasper to be completely honest.

"Hi B"

I knew that sexy, husky, gorgeous-and-he-knows-it voice anywhere! And yeah, I'll admit I dropped the glass!

"Edward" I muttered, side eyeing my brother. I turned towards the voice, and it was as if the world was moving in slow motion.

First I saw the battered Converse, then the black jeans, the leather jacket…and finally those piercing green eyes that used to hold me like a tractor beam. I was powerless to them back then and it seems like I'm not so strong against them nowadays either.

Edward, however, stood slightly open mouthed, as his eyes trailed up and down my body. From my feet to my face, and all the way down again. It also sounded like a whispered "Wow!" came out of his mouth but I couldn't be sure, and I daren't hope.

I cleared my throat, and folded my arms across my chest. Edward seemed to snap out of whatever daydream he was in, but then his eyes automatically landed on my boobs.

Typical guy!

"Nice to see you again Edward" I said, extending the olive branch seen as though we would all be working together, and smiling at him to try to show how little he affected me. I suspect I was failing epically. Either that or I just looked constipated.

"Yeah it's certainly been a while B!" He replied, rubbing the back of his neck nervously, with his other hand shoved into his jeans pocket.

"I thought you were due tomorrow?" I asked sweetly, but glared at my brother at the same time. I saw Rose slap Emmett's arm, just for good measure. She gave me an encouraging wink.

"Yeah, I Erm…well I kind of got into town earlier than expected, and Em said it would be ok to crash here, but I can leave if it's going to be trouble for you guys…"

He seemed genuine and it surprised me that he was being so considerate, but when I knew him years ago, he was pretty considerate back then too right? Or was I remembering him through rose-tinted lenses? Maybe I was being too hard on him. People can change I guess.

I held up my hands, "No, it's no trouble at all, we have a big place here and there is plenty of room. Stay as long as you like" I said, before grabbing the dustpan and brush, and bending to sweep up the broken glass.

"Here" said Edward, taking the dustpan and brush out of my hands, and holding his hand out to me, "I'll do that, you be careful, you are barefooted" and he held my hand as I stepped over the glass and towards the seating area.

I thanked Edward, and proceeded to sit at the large dining table with my family, who were all staring at me - Emmett had a spring roll hanging from his lips in shock and Alice was not aware of the rice falling from her fork and into her lap.

I put some food onto 2 plates and opened 2 beers, placing 1 of each opposite me on the other side of the table for Edward when he had finished cleaning up the broken glass.

Edward eventually joined us and ate his food gratefully, whilst we all chatted about the upcoming job, bringing him up to speed. Very little was said between us other than the job in hand, andi tried to not get caught stealing small glances at him, but I would be honest in saying if I could get away with as minimal interaction with him as possible whilst he was here, then I was safe…

Because me being around Edward Cullen was dangerous for my heart and my head.

Over the next few weeks, we spent time memorising the layout of the bank, Jasper and Rosalie hacked files and stole codes, Edward spent time driving my car around the city in order to get used to the feel of it, and Alice helped me to become more limber, which I noticed Edward taking particular notice of. I made a mental note to warn him away from Alice, if he had his sights on her, Jasper would pretty much kill him in his sleep.

With preparations almost complete and the evening of the actual job upon us, I knew if I got out of this and didn't end up going to jail, I would never want to be on this side of it again! It's far too stressful. All I usually have to bother with is if there is enough fuel to get us back to the loft, and find out if there are any roadworks on our routes that might slow us down. I also like to memorise a secondary or alternate route too, just in case of any unforeseen circumstances.

Yeah, I'm definitely not doing this again!...

The window opened a fraction, less than I would have liked and I knew that Alice and her damn slender frame would have fit through it perfectly. Unfortunately, the shapely ass that I get the occasional compliment on is currently letting me down, and preventing me from getting an easy ride, right from the off.

"What the fuck am I even doing here?" I muttered to myself, rolling my eyes and shuffling through the small space.

"You're taking one for the team" came my brother's voice in my ear. His low chuckles made me want to kick him in the balls for talking me into this. I made a mental note to keep that in mind for when I next see him. I just hoped it wouldn't be behind prison glass!

Once inside, I heard the familiar beeping of the alarm system detecting my presence, and making my way over to the far wall, I punched in the code that Rosalie wrote on my wrist. The beeping stopped immediately, but I knew I wasn't yet in the clear. I had to make sure the rest of the detectors were taken care of if I had any hopes of getting out of here with the money and without a prison sentence.

I slowly but steadily made my way through the building, using the codes that Rosalie and Jasper provided me, so that I could move undetected and at ease.

"Bella, the cameras are going to be off for a while, then they will automatically reset. We have got a little time, but you're going to have to shift that ass of yours" warned Jasper, again, ringing in my ear.

"Ok Jazz. I'm at the main vault" I said, making my way over to the door. "Shit!" I muttered, and I could feel the panic setting in. "Shit! Shit! Shitty shit shit!"

"What's wrong Bells?" Asked Emmett, and I temporarily forgave him for his earlier jibe when I heard the worry in his voice.

"It's a fucking double lock! How the fuck did we miss that?" I hissed into my mic.

I could feel my heart beating hard, the thudding in my ears reminding me just how quiet it was in this room and how alone I was right now.

This was one epic mess up and I was right in the thick of it. If the cameras had a timer on before resetting again, I didn't have time to waste. Maybe I wouldn't feel as uneasy if I had done this before, but my job usually comes once Alice is out of the building with bags full of money.

"I don't know Bella, the double lock isn't on the plans…it must have been a modification that wasn't declared. They probably didn't even officially pay for it"

"That's great Rose, I feel so much better for knowing that" I added sarcastically, "but right now I'm royally screwed. What the fuck am I going to do?"

"Don't panic Bella, we've got your back" she muttered casually, and I could pretty much hear her rolling her eyes. "Jazz and I are already on it"

I waited for what felt like forever, chewing on my thumbnail and tapping my foot. I couldn't have felt more like a spare part if I tried.

"Ok honey, get ready! We're almost there" said Rose.

And within a matter of seconds, I was watching both red lights turn to green. I heard the faint click of the door lock.

"Thanks guys" I muttered, as I made my way inside the main vault. "What number am I looking for?"

Whenever we pull off a job, we make sure to never steal from anyone that would miss it. We only take from those who have screwed others over in order to gain their fortune. A little bit like Robin Hood and his bank of merry men – who rob from the rich and give to the poor.

And the lucky winner tonight is the owner of a local building company. He had recently been investigated for shoddy work resulting in multiple lawsuits for neglect and failure to keep up with building codes. The victims of his shitty work had been injured and some even maimed after his extensions and structures had come down around them, Unfortunately for the victims, the claims never held up in court, and it was well know but never proven that the dickhead had paid off various members of the juries and judicial system to look the other way.

Well, unfortunately for this particular parasite, we are hitting his safety deposit box and clearing it out. We have no connection to this scumbag at all, other than despising what he has done to others, so he would never be able to trace the job back to us.

"It's 412 Bells, clean it out and get out of there. Put everything back as you found it…"

"Yeah yeah Em, put it back so that we don't raise suspicion and it takes them weeks to realise anything has happened, I'm not fucking stupid. I know what I'm doing" I snapped, and I could hear him chuckle down the line.

I also heard a second chuckle, a throaty laugh that I would recognise anywhere. "You can shut the fuck up too Edward"

I made quick work of sliding the pick into the lock, fiddling around until I felt the click of the barrel, and turned the pick, hoping that it would work. I had practiced it over and over again on various locks we have back at the loft, and as luck would have it, it actually went pretty smoothly, and I pulled the large box out. The weight of it told me that there was little room left for anything else in there, and I felt a sick wave of satisfaction knowing that Mr Caius will one day go to his safety deposit box and find a typed note inside telling him what he can do with his shitty building work.

"Hurry B! You only have a few more minutes" said Jasper, "We can't take the cameras out again once they reset, it will override our loop, and our fake feed will drop out". I could hear him frantically typing away, clicking here and there, doing whatever it is that he and Rosalie do. I never did understand their level of skill with anything technological, but then again, I didn't need to when those two were around.

I quickly opened my duffle bag, emptying the entire contents into it. I replaced the box back to where it should be, simply containing the note, and locked it again. I slung the bag over my shoulder, pulled the door shut tight and made my way back through the corridors, knowing that those green lights on the vault door were probably red again by now.

I could feel the rush of adrenaline at the thought of how well off my father was going to be after tonight. I didn't know the full extent of what Mr Caius had in his safety deposit box, but I know that Emmet had wanted to target this guy in particular, as his friend, Demintri, had been one of his victims. Choosing Mr Caius was easy! I also know that he's an untrusting asshole and would keep money in various places, not just in his bank account. Hopefully he's left a nice little nest egg for Daddy Swan! And Demitri may find a few thousand hitting his bank account anonymously too.

In my haze of happy thoughts, I had only realised I'd taken a wrong turning when I heard the wail of a siren ringing loudly in my ears and making my chest rattle.

I threw my hands over my ears, and knew that the guys back at the loft would never be able to hear me asking what the fuck happened, but I could certainly hear them.

"Shit, Bella you took a right instead of a left. You tripped one of the alarms in the side rooms"said Jasper, and the panic set in for me. I knew enough about break-ins to know that even a faulty tripped alarm needs to be investigated, and someone would be here soon enough to make sure everything was as it should be. "Get out!" came Jasper's voice in my ear, and he didn't have to tell me twice.

My feet picked up their pace, as I shut doors behind me, and left everything as I had found it. If they couldn't see anything out of place, they may just chalk it up to a faulty alarm system, and hopefully be none the wiser, but if I'm being honest, I planned to be well away by that point anyway.

My heart was hammering and I could hear it in my ears, thudding away as a reminder of the small amount of time I had left to get out of this building undetected, as if counting down like a clock. We all made a pact that if we are ever caught, we never reveal our accomplices.

"C'mon Little Swan" said Edward from outside, "I'm waiting" he teased.

"Well, you can just keep fucking waiting" I muttered to him, finally making it to the last room. I jumped up high, throwing the duffle through the last window, before making my own way through it.

"Oh I intend to" he chuckled.

I rolled my eyes at him being an idiot, and tried to concentrate on getting myself out, but my stupid heart was beating faster than ever, and I know it had nothing to do with adrenaline at that point.

Edward Cullen knew what he was doing, and he knew he could do it very well.

Shutting the last latch, and jumping down onto the trash bins in the alleyway, I picked up the duffle bag, threw it over my shoulder, straightened my clothes, and ran like my ass was on fire.

As I ran to the vehicle, the purr of the engine low in my ears, I held onto the bag tightly as I yanked the door open, and placed my ass in the smooth leather seat.

"Drive!" I commanded, and Edward expertly pulled away, before my door was even fully closed.

The sound of the alarm began to grow faint in my ears, and I allowed myself a minute to slow my heart rate and get my breathing under control. The rush of adrenaline was mind-blowing, and for a second I could totally understand why Alice loved this aspect of the team jobs.

"You ok Little Swan?" Smirked Edward beside me, like the cocky son of a bitch that he is.

"Fine, just keep driving" I snapped. Something about him just irritated me sometimes, but if I was being completely honest with myself, it was simply the fact that even after all these years, Edward Cullen is still the one guy in the world who had the ability to absolutely turn me inside out. He muddles with my thoughts, makes my heart beat just that bit faster and makes me feel like he would eat me alive if he had the chance.

"You're the boss" he chuckled, putting his foot down, and forcing the car to pick up its pace.

I glanced out of the window as we drove on our pre-planned route, before pulling over at the outskirts of a nearby forest.

I jumped out of the car, taking off at a run into the trees and shortly coming up for the Impala.

Edward was quickly behind me, helping me pull the tarpaulin and camouflage of branches and leaves from the vehicle. We bundled it up in the back seat, and I threw the bag of money in after it.

"Bella, what are you doing?" Hissed Edward, as he got in the driving seat, and watched me walk back to the car we had just abandoned.

I said nothing, there was no time to explain. I simply grabbed the small bottle of lighter fluid from my jacket pocket, pulling the cap off with my teeth, spitting it on the floor at my feet, and spraying the contents of the bottle onto the upholstery and floor of the car, before taking out a lighter, lighting it and throwing it in. The car immediately set ablaze.

Once I was satisfied that the fire had spread throughout the car, I ran back to the Impala as fast as my legs would allow.

"Fuck, that was hot!" Said Edward, his wide eyes roaming up and down my body as I got in the car.

"Yeah? Well it's gonna get really fucking hot if we don't get out of here now" I replied, knowing exactly what context he was talking about, but refusing to believe that something I did could turn Edward Cullen on.

He sobered up immediately, starting the engine and I heard the squeal of tyres as he pulled away from the forest and back onto the road.

After a couple of minutes or so, we had entered the next town over.

"Slow down Edward, we are going to look suspicious if you drive like that" I said.

"Sorry, guess I'm just used to going fast"

I smiled over at him, because he really had done a great job tonight, before looking back out of my window. The less time I spent looking at Edward, the less chance I had of falling in love with him. Again! And having him back in my life after all this time made me realise how easy that would be to do.

"Shit!"

The car sped up, whizzing through the small and sleepy town, darkness engulfing is besides the faint glow of the streetlights and the glaring headlights of the Impala.

"Edward, what's wrong?" I asked, grabbing onto the sides of my seat for stability.

"We've got company" was all he said as he wound through tiny streets and small alleyways.

The car behind us was fast, impossibly it was able to keep up with us, as if he knew which turning Edward would take. As if it had our route all mapped out.

"Edward, take the next right" I commanded.

"But Bella-"

"Just do it!" I shouted, knowing exactly what was happening now.

The glare of the headlights behind us made sight a little harder, but seeing the long dark hair of the driver made me realise what - or who - we were up against.

Edward took a hard right, smoke coming off our wheels and shadowing the car behind for a split second. Once the smoke has dispersed, I saw the car drive straight ahead, not expecting our detour.

"Bella, what the fuck is going on? Who is it?"

His hands gripped the wheel, and his knuckles were white, but Edward's eyes didn't leave the road.

"Next left" I said.

Edward did as he was instructed.

"It's Black"

"Black? You mean that Jacob guy? What the fuck does he want with us?"

"Take the 2nd right, and then take the road off to the left. We might just have a chance of losing them completely" I said, pulling out my phone and shooting off a quick text to Emmett.

'Job done, Black on our tail, heading west to 14th...trying to lose him'

"Shit, he's back!" said Edward.

I looked up from my phone, to see Jacob's car heading right for us. We were face to face, and getting closer by the second.

My eyes frantically scanned the streets ahead of us, but there were no turns, no alleyways...no escape.

And as we were almost head to head, my heart skipped a beat and my veins went cold as I saw the glint of metal underneath a passing streetlight.

Jacob leaned out of the driver's window, a deadly expression on his face and his gun aimed right for us.

And then everything seemed to move in slow motion.

The shot rang out and echoed in the small and quiet street. I opened my eyes, which I didn't realised I had squeezed shut, and checked myself over. I felt no pain, there was no blood. I breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe Jacob had missed? But then again, if he had missed, why wasn't he coming back for a second shot.

"Bella" croaked Edward beside me. "Bella..."

I turned to see him still expertly handling the car as we raced in through the streets, but I could see in the glow of every streetlight that lit up the car, he was pale.

He held the steering wheel with one hand and his shoulder with the other. A dark liquid poured through his fingers, turning an angry red under the passing lights.

"Shit, Edward..." and my hands fumbled in mid-air as a million thoughts ran through my head within a split second. I wanted to help him, but I didn't want to hurt him...I knew we had to keep moving in case Black came back, but Edward looked like he wasn't fit to do anything right now...I wanted to hug him and envelope him in my arms and will him to stay with me...

Just as I was about to place my hand firmly over his wound to stem the bleeding, the car slowed as Edward's head lolled forward. He had removed his foot from the accelerator as he lost consciousness. The car came to a crashing stop as it collided with the nearest tree, throwing us both onto the dashboard.

"Edward! Edward!" I screamed, my voice ringing in my ears and seeming to be louder in the small interior of the car. "Fuck! Edward, wake up!"

I held his head up, gently hitting his cheek in order to hopefully wake him up.

"Edward, please! Please wake up. Don't leave me!" I shouted, tears streaming down my cheeks, I hadn't even realised I was crying. "Edward, wake the fuck up, please!"

He coughed and opened his eyes slightly, the look of intense green hit me hard.

Please don't let this be the last time I see these beautiful eyes looking back at me.

"Little Swan" he croaked. "I don't-"

"Shh, stop talking" I told him, with my finger over his soft lips. "We need to switch" and I began unbuckling us both from our seats.

"Bella, you need to go. They might be back..."

"I'm not leaving you, you fucking moron. We're in this together...As if you got shot" I chastised him, rolling my eyes in frustration and worry. The relief at having him conscious again was overwhelming. "We are switching seats, and I'm getting you the fuck outta here, ok? I'm in charge, and what I say goes!"

He nodded weakly, his eyes closing again.

"Hey" I said, slapping his face lightly, "you need to help me so I can get us back. Can you make it out?"

I didn't wait around for his answer. I jumped out of my seat, swinging my door wide open and ran around the front of the car. I did the same with the door on the driver's side and pulled Edward's arm around my neck.

He groaned loudly at being jostled against my body, and I was surprised at just how strong I was right now, the adrenaline and panic coursing through my body.

I made quick work of throwing him into the passenger seat, quickly apologising when he groaned again, holding his shoulder.

His arm dropped from his shoulder into his lap, as he once more fell into unconsciousness.

I quickly leaned in and kissed his forehead, praying that he would be ok, before strapping him in securely and closing the door.

"Bell, what's happening?" Asked Emmett frantically, as I jumped behind the wheel with my phone pinned between my shoulder and my ear. I knew the car wasn't damaged to the point where it wouldn't start, but I really wasn't sure just how fast it would actually go.

I turned the key, hearing the car splutter to life and silently thanked whoever was watching over us right now. I pulled away from the offending tree and was back on the nearby road in seconds.

"Em, don't talk, just listen!" I commanded. His silence allowed me to continue. "Black and his crew tailed us. We didn't see it coming, he seemed to have our route memorised. He shot at us, Edward's been hit"

"The fuck?"

I ignored him and continued. "We are a few miles away, but we needed to change the route. Get Volturi to the warehouse, I don't give a fuck if you have to physically drag him out of bed yourself. Cullen's losing a lot of blood"

I glanced over at Edward, his head rolling from one side to another as I manoeuvred the car through the streets.

"Be there soon" I added hastily, before ending the call, and throwing the phone on the dashboard.

I glanced over at my passenger once more, and picked up his limp hand. I brought it up to my lips, and kissed the back of it, and placed it gently back into his lap.

I swiped away angrily at the tears that were once more flowing, and put my foot down, passing houses, shops and red lights. I didn't care what, I wasn't stopping or slowing for all the money in the world.

I only realised now just how much Edward means to me once I thought that he might not make it. The blood I was currently sitting in was testament to just how close he was to no longer being here, and I couldn't let that happen. I couldn't lose him.

My hands slipped slightly on the blood slicked steering wheel, and I pushed all thoughts out of my head that it was Edward's blood on my hands.

Within minutes, we pulled up in front of the warehouse. I cried out loud in relief for a split second, seeing my brother and Jasper waiting for us out front.

Stopping the car abruptly, I switched it off, not bothering to take out the keys.

Emmett ran over, pulling Edward's door open and taking off his belt. Within seconds he had Edward slumped over his shoulder, with jasper under his other arm. Together, they dragged Edward's body into the warehouse, with me following closely behind.

"Bella!" Cried Alice, pulling me into a tight hug as we made it up the stairs and into the main room. I watched over Alice's shoulder as Emmett and Jasper made their way through to my bedroom and placed Edward on my bed.

"The bag is in the back of the car..." I said, almost robotically, never taking my eyes from Edward. The blood was flowing and his face was ghostly white.

"Leave it with me" said Rosalie, as I pulled away from Alice, and pulled my T-shirt over my head. I didn't care that I was in nothing but my bra as I bundled it up tightly, and made my way into my bedroom and over to the bed. I asked Emmett to help me lay Edward down, and I pressed the T-shirt to his wound, holding it securely in place in a vain attempt to stop the bleeding.

Edward winced at the pain, and cracked his eyes open again.

I smiled to myself as his gaze dropped straight to my chest, and a weak grin spread across his face.

"If I knew taking a bullet would have gotten you out of your clothes, I would have shot myself ages ago" he chuckled, before croakily coughing again.

"Shut up you idiot" I sniffed, still holding the T-shirt in place.

I could hear commotion going on behind me, but I couldn't take my eyes away from his face. He was so beautiful, even now. His sharp features were even more pronounced with the lack of colour in his cheeks.

"Little Swan" he started, pulling his hand up and gently placing it against my cheek. His thumb stroked my lips, "If I don't make it-"

"Stop" I said, pleading him to not take my thoughts in that direction. I know I just wasn't strong enough for that.

"No, please listen. I know I might not get another chance to say...that I absolutely would follow you to the ends of the earth and if these are my last moments, then I would like them to be with nobody but you"

I let the tears fall, and I placed my forehead against his chest, still holding the -now-damp T-shirt securely in place.

"I saw you all those years ago you know, like really saw you..."

He bent forward, and kissed the side of my head.

"Please don't leave me Edward" I whispered.

"Bells, move out of the way" said Emmett, pulling me by my arms. I tried to fight against him, knowing that I couldn't take my T-shirt away from the wound, kicking out in order to try to free his hold on me.

I thought he had relented, but he explained that Dr Volturi had arrived and I moved aside reluctantly, knowing he would be able to do much more for Edward than I could.

"I can't leave him" I cried as Emmett pulled me from my bedroom and closed the door. I wasn't even embarrassed that my big brother was manhandling me whilst I was wearing only a bra. "Em, I can't leave him alone in there. I need to be with him"

He dropped my weeping form into Rose's arms.

"What if he doesn't make it?" I sobbed on her shoulder as she held me tightly. "I can't lose him Rose, I just can't lose him"

"Shh shh, calm down Bella. Dr Volturi is going to do everything he can" she cooed, but it wasn't lost on me that she didn't say Edward was going to make it.

That's the one thing I always admired about Rosalie...she won't say something unless she is 100% sure she is right. And right now, she wasn't confident.

I managed to stop crying after a while, it felt like Dr Volturi had been in my room for so long.

Rose walked back into the quiet room. "I put the car in the garage, it's pretty bashed. I also removed your phone and the money and covered the car up. If Edward see's it in that state, he will flip the fuck out" she muttered, scrubbing her hands over her face. She looked tired. They all did.

Alice found me another shirt to wear, not that I really cared at this point, but to save my brother and Jasper from any further embarrassment, I quickly pulled it over my head.

I looked down at my hands that were stained pink, with Edwards's blood and felt the cold take me. I sat and silently sobbed to myself, allowing the tears to flow freely as those around me gave me some space. They knew me well enough now to know that I don't like to be coddled when I'm upset. I need time to sort my thoughts out, but no amount of time alone was going to help me right now.

All I could think about was how much I loved that idiot in the next room, who had to come back into my life and my heart.

The idiot with the beautiful green eyes and crooked smile.

The idiot who made my heart flutter with every throaty laugh and his wicked words.

The idiot who I loved back then and still love now.

After what felt like forever, the bedroom door opened and Dr Volturi emerged, tense looking and covered in Edward's blood.

"Please tell me straight Doc" I said, standing up and rushing over to him. "How is he? Is he going to make it?"

He closed the door gently behind him, allowing for the soft click, confirming it was closed fully.

"Miss Swan..." I eyed him. He rolled his eyes, knowing I hated when he was formal with me. "Bella," he sighed. "Mr Cullen has lost a lot of blood. Now, I was able to remove the bullet and I've set him up in there, but you will need to monitor him closely over the next few days. But if it wasn't for your quick thinking, and even quicker driving, he wouldn't be alive right now" and he smiled at me like a proud parent. "You should be very proud of yourself, you saved a life tonight. I'll come back in a couple of days, but I'm confident that with your care, he will be just fine"

He placed a comforting hand on my shoulder.

I hadn't realised that Emmett and the others had gathered around us until my brother spoke up.

"Doc" he started, holding his hand out and giving the good doctor his unofficial fee, "we can't thank you enough for tonight. We're sorry for dragging you out in the middle of the night"

"No need to apologise Emmett. I'm always here for you guys whenever you need me. Just stay safe ok? If I wasn't your father's best friend, I would tell you to give up on what you do. But I understand...so you can always count on me to be here when you need. Oh, and Edward is asking for you Bella. Now, I'm going to go back to bed" he chuckled, and with a quick goodbye, he left.

Before anyone could say anything more, I was knocking on my own bedroom door, and not even waiting for a reply before I bound my way in and closed it behind me.

Edward was laid in the bed, soundly asleep. His chest rose and fall gently as he breathed, and I shocked myself with how much that sight pleased me. To know that he was in my bed wasn't lost on me. Teenage Bella would have been amazed by this sight alone!

"Trust you to go get shot you idiot" I whispered, as I made my way to his side, and sat in the chair that Dr Volturi had been previously using.

I took his hand and looked at his face as it was illuminated by the bedside lamp. He seemed so peaceful, so I sat in silence for a while, just listening to his breathing. It was a wonderful sound, considering that I never thought I would hear it again.

Edward really was gorgeous when he was sleeping peacefully.

"God, to think you almost died" I finally spoke, just barely a whisper, as I wiped away the falling tears once more. I felt like all I been doing tonight was crying. "You nearly gave me a fucking heart attack. I don't know why, but to think about you not being here hurts so badly. You know, I remember that stupid party back at Newton's all those years ago, you laughing and joking with your friends, all getting drunk and smoking joints. You were so cool back then, and I never in a million years thought that you would notice me. So, when you did, you made me look like a fool...it broke my heart, and made me hate you for so long. I know you would never be attracted to me, but I would take unrequited attraction, over not having you around at all..." I cried.

"I remember that night well" croaked Edward, and he smirked, but kept his eyes shut.

"Fuck, I thought you were asleep" I muttered, feeling my cheeks heating up at the realisation that he had heard everything I'd just said.

I let go of his hand, and quickly wiped my tears away, just as he opened his eyes.

"So, how are you feeling?" I asked a little louder, hoping to change the subject.

If Edward has heard my previous admission, he didn't let on and I was thankful.

"Sore...a bit high...I guess I can thank the good doctor for that. I take it he's flying under the radar for tonight's work?" He asked, with one eyebrow raised.

"Yeah, he's an old family friend. He and Dad have been close for years, but Dad knows nothing about it"

"How many times has he helped you out?"

I thought back. "A few times. Emmett broke his arm once, Alice has taken a huge shard of glass to the thigh...almost bled out. That was the first time he helped us. We nearly lost her"

"Sounds like you've dragged me into a dangerous world Little Swan" he chuckled, and winced as he sat up a little higher on the soft pillows. I ached to put my hands on him and help him, but I didn't want to do anything that would remind him of what I had just been saying.

"Anyway, the doc said you wanted to speak to me" I said.

"I did" he nodded. "I wanted to thank you"

"What for?"

"Saving my life. And for letting me see you in your lingerie...but mostly for saving my life" he chuckled. "I could have died tonight, and when I get better, I'm going to finish Jacob fucking Black...but for now, I just wanted to say thank you. I cannot ever begin to repay you"

"It's not a problem, you would have done it for me, right?" I shrugged.

"I would Little Swan" he said sincerely, taking my hand gently and kissing the back of it, mirroring what I had done to him in the car. "And even though I was in and out of consciousness, I felt this" he added, holding my hand up. "And my forehead"

"I'm sorry-"

"Don't be" he cut me off my apology, "I'm happy that you did. It might sound strange, but I felt better knowing that you were there for me"

"Yeah, you mentioned that before the doc arrived"

"Really? I don't remember much after arriving here to be honest. I just remember Em and Jazz dragging me up the stairs, and then you in your bra staring down at me. I actually thought I had died and gone to heaven for a minute there"

"Ha ha, very funny" I said sarcastically. I pulled my hand away and sat back in my seat. "So, the doc said that you need to be monitored over the next few days, so that means staying in bed, resting and nothing too strenuous. Got it?"

"And to think, the first time I get to be in your bed, and I get told to take it easy. You're killing me here Bella" he moaned.

That moan did something to me, and coupled with having Edward Cullen in my bed, I knew I needed to get out of here and get my head straight.

"So, do as you're told smartass and we won't have a problem, ok?"

"Yes ma'am" he replied, mock saluting me. "But I do have one request, seen as though you are going to be my carer for the next few days" he asked in a too-innocent voice.

I stood up, placing the chair back against the far wall. "Yeah, what's that?"

"Can you possibly wear a barely-there, sexy nurse's uniform?" He smirked. "You know, just to aid my recovery"

I rolled my eyes at him, as he laid there smirking up at me, proud of his comment. "Yeah right, I'll get right on that then shall I?"

"Hey, a man can dream Bella" he sang at me.

"Oh yeah, right...your dreams involve me wearing a skimpy nurses outfit?" I scoffed. But a part of me really hoped it was true.

"The best ones do anyway" he chuckled, wiggling gently in the bed to get more comfortable.

His words made me smile to myself.

He was stiff in his movements and I was wanting to ask him if I could see what the doc had done to him, but I was already making my way out of the room...and how would you even ask someone something like that anyway? 'Hey Edward, so I'm glad you didn't die tonight...how's about you show me your wound huh?'

"So, how's the patient doing?" Asked Emmett, as he leaned against the kitchen worktop, eating his favourite Chilli Doritos.

"Resting" was all I replied as I walked past him to grab a glass of water. I was tired, and wary...and there was a gorgeous 6ft god sleeping in my bed...and not for the right reasons! My head was in a strange place right now.

"You ok?" He asked quickly, without taking his eyes away from what he was eating. I knew it wasn't because he loves his food, it was because Emmett and I don't do any sibling hugging, or talk about our feelings with each other. Our way of taking care of each other is we will fuck up anyone who messes with the other!

I remember when Emmett was 23 years old and was dating a girl called Jessica. She was all fake hair, fake boobs, lip fillers, orange tan and no brains. Emmett usually goes for smart, pretty girls who won't just be arm candy for him, he likes his women to challenge him. Jessica was just a distraction from what was happening to Dad, but I could see that Jessica was doing nothing more than using him when he was at his most vulnerable.

She would often get him to pick her up from her home under the guise that they were going to hang out, and then ask him to drop her off at a friend's house instead. He fell for that one more times than was considered to be embarrassing. And the amount of money he 'loaned' her was another whole problem. But when she cheated on him and broke his heart, I'd had enough.

So I went to New Moon, a local nightclub I knew she would be at, and waited for my moment. Knife in hand, I sauntered across the dance floor, various bodies moving all around me in all sorts of gross and provocative ways...I had my target in sight and my knife cleverly hidden...I could see her with a too-tight red dress on, her blonde hair flowing down her back in long plait...her arms were slung around a male that was completely the opposite to my brother and the way they were moving was all the proof I needed that this scumbag is the guy she is cheating with...

My movements were slow, calculated. I was careful with every step I took, kept my eyes cast downward and my shoulders relaxed...and as I reached them, I raised my knife, slashed as quick as a flash, simply making it look like I was trying to get to the other side of the dance floor...and I stashed it away as quickly as I had used it...I smiled as I made my way off the dance floor and out of the front door just as I heard the screaming...Jessica's wails bounced off the walls...

And as I walked to my truck, I looked down at the object in my hand and smiled...getting in my truck, I started it up, hearing the roar of the engine, as I threw Jessica's long plait on my dashboard and drove away laughing my ass off!

"Yeah, I'm just tired that's all" I replied to my brother. I mimicked his leaning against the work surface, and I took a sip of the water, feeling the cool liquid slip down my throat and making me realise just how warm I was. I took my hair tie off my wrist and pulled my hair into a messy bun in a vain attempt to cool myself down somewhat.

"Did we get enough?" I asked, hoping that Dad's house was finally paid off after all of this.

"Yeah, I think so, Rose is going through it now. You did great tonight Bells" he added, slapping a huge arm around my shoulder. "We are sure you got enough to sort Pops out for good, and possibly have some left over for our troubles too"

"That's good then. I won't lie, I was scared and nervous, but the rush was unbelievable. Until Black turned up that is. The thing I don't understand is, why didn't he chase us again after he took his shot?" I asked, not wanting to remember that part of the night, but I was genuinely confused. "I mean, it took a while for me to get Cullen out of the driver's seat, bundle him into the passenger seat, and then make it back to the driver's seat myself...surely it would have given Black enough time to come back for a shot at me too?"

"Jasper sent a text to Jacob from Quil's phone, telling him that you guys were both dead and that the gunshot had attracted attention. Stupid fucker must have believed it" laughed Emmett, his laughter making my body shake along with him.

"What? How did Jazz know Quil wasn't with Jacob in his car? That was a risky move don't you think?" I could feel the thudding of my heart in my chest and hear the rush of blood through my ears. What if they tried it again? Edward said he was going after Jacob when he was better, what if Jacob got the drop on him first?

"You're kidding right? Bells, Jasper Hale knows where everyone is before they even know. He had a tracker on the Impala, and knew that Jacob's car was on its way to you, he just couldn't get a message to you in time. But once you had been hit, he used surveillance cameras to see Black and his minions drive around, obviously hoping to circle back to you, so he shot Black a fake text message and then watched them all head back home so they couldn't be blamed for a murder" he said, indicating the word murder in speech marks with his fingers.

"Clever bastard" I laughed. "But hold on, Jacob's going to know we're not dead after a while. He's going to come searching for us"

I could feel the panic setting in at the thought of Jacob coming after Edward with a gun again to finish the job he started.

"Don't worry your pretty head little sister" replied Emmett, as he kissed the side of my head, and made his way out of the kitchen. He turned back to me before he reached the door. "All I'll say is, we are lucky we have Jasper and Rosie on our team...those two are seriously scary. Jazz is currently creating a fake police file stating that your bodies were found, all leads were followed up unsuccessfully and it's now a cold case. Rosie arranged with the Doc to get fake death certificates created, and they are splicing CCTV footage of Jacob and his guys knocking over some other places, then they are going to mash it with the CCTV from the bank, and send an anonymous copy to the police. You and Edward just have to lay low for a while, and the whole thing just goes away"

"Fuck, I knew they were good, but that's bloody brilliant" I said, a bit gobsmacked to be honest. The Hales were absolute geniuses and I knew without a doubt that even if you were the most innocent and angelic person in the world, they could pin something on you before you even had time to blink. They were able to find people, get into bank accounts, hack into security systems and have been known to get most of their money by blackmailing bad people for getting caught doing bad things.

I shuddered at the mere thought of their impossible reach.

I smiled at my brother, before pushing off from the counter and slowly making my way back through the room and into my bedroom. I saw that Edward had fallen to sleep and even though the sofa was comfy enough to sleep on, I just didn't want to be so far away from him right now. I mean, I know that we are just friends - if that's what you could even call us - but he needed someone with him at all times right now, and none of the others we're willingly offering. It wasn't that they didn't worry about Edward getting better, it was just that they knew I would do it and he was in my room after all.

Trying to make as little noise as possible, so not to wake Edward, I took my thick blanket out of my wardrobe, having not needed it in the recent warm months, and curled up on the reading chair that I had beside my window. As I glanced over to make sure Edward was still fast asleep, I realised that even after all these years, he really was the love of my life, he just never knew it at the time. And now here he is, he's laying injured in my bed, after being on a highly illegal and jail-worthy job that my brother and I orchestrated, in order to help our sick father.

I quickly swallowed the guilt that was threatening to surface as I closed my eyes and tried to relax enough that I would allow sleep to take me, even if it was just for a couple of hours.

I awoke a short while later slightly groggy and tangled in the blanket, with a pain running down my neck and across my shoulders. Whoever invented the bed totally had the right idea!

As I reached for my phone on the nearby nightstand to check on what time it was, I was startled by a pair of beautiful green eyes, watching me silently. Edward had a strange look on his face, one that I had never seen before, and it made me want to crawl inside his head and find out exactly what was going on up there.

"Jeez Edward, you scared the shit out of me! What are you doing?" I said, holding my hand to my chest. I could feel my heart thumping underneath.

But as I asked the question, I realised that he could actually have been trying to wake me up as he needed something.

I swung my legs over from the arm of the chair, untangling myself swiftly as I did, and was knelt on the floor by his side in seconds.

"Are you ok?…Are you in pain?…Do you need the doctor back here?…" I asked in quick succession, not really giving him time to answer, as my hands roamed over his body and his face, in a vain attempt to examine him myself. The panic flew through me in waves.

A smirk played across his beautiful features.

"Bella, as much as I love your hands all over my body - and believe me, I really do - I'm fine. Please stop worrying. I just woke up and…" he trailed off.

I reluctantly removed my hands, because I think I enjoyed touching him as much as he enjoyed it. "Woke up and what?"

He looked down at the duvet, playing with a loose strand of cotton.

"Edward? Woke up and what?"

"Well…I woke up and…and you were asleep, and at first I was trying to be quiet so I didn't wake you, and you looked really peaceful, and I figured that you deserved for me to leave you in peace, because you basically saved my life…"

"Ok?" I said, not quite knowing how to reply, or what he was actually getting at.

Edward's cheeks tinged slightly pink, and I could see he was biting the inside of his bottom lip.

"And…?" I urged him on.

"And the more I looked at you and thought about you saving me, as I watched you, the more you looked like an angel. My very own personal angel, who saved my life and kept me safe. One who is amazing, and strong, and beautiful and fearless. And it made me think of what happened the last time we saw each other…"

Wordlessly, I sat back on my heels, unable to take in such a huge compliment from someone who unknowingly held my heart in his hands.

As the beat of the music thumped through my chest and rang in my ears, I held the red cup in my hand, sniffing it and wrinkling my nose.

"Oh come on B, it's not that bad!" Laughed Angela, as she took a sip from her own cup, and shuddered.

Her sparkly top was shimmering from the coloured lights that were part of the sound system and was proceeding to blind me every now and again, in a succession of patterns that accompanied the beats of the songs.

I had chosen something a little less glitzy, and gone for my red strapless dress, that hugged what curves I did have and stopped at my thighs. I teamed it with my black heels and black clutch bag. I felt like it was party worthy, but not too flashy that I would stand out or gain any unwanted attention. I kept my hair in loose waves, because as much as I could control my outfit, I have absolutely zero control over my hair.

"Not that bad huh?" I laughed, "What's in it anyway?" I asked, taking a second sniff, and definitely deciding against drinking any, when I detected a strong hint of whiskey. I was happy to get merry and relax tonight, but not to get plastered out of my mind.

"A little something from every bottle on the top shelf of Mr Newton's liqueur cabinet. All the good stuff, it's called a 'Top Shelf Challenge' or so I'm told" she winked, but judging by the odd way her eyes looked, I quickly deduced that it would not be wise to take even a sip.

"Well, now that you have tried it, how about I get these away from us, and go grab us a couple of beers instead?" I suggested, taking the cup out of her hand before she could argue. I turned on the spot, and managed to pass them off to a couple of frat boys, who happily took them off my hands.

As I smiled gratefully at them for relieving me of the offending beverages, I turned back and one of them took the opportunity to smack my ass, right in front of the whole room, which included my very large and overly protective brother, before high-fiving his friend and laughing his drunken ass off.

Emmett had been stood in the corner of the room, chatting away with any girl that would dare talk to him. He was a kind and sweet guy, but didn't really have time for a girlfriend. He played every sport imaginable, and was top of most of his classes. He was the all-round, good wholesome American guy that fathers would be proud to have as their son, and our father certainly was.

And where Emmett was, you would always find the other half of him. All green eyes, sex hair, leather jacket and a hint of danger - Edward Cullen was every girls fantasy. He never played by the rules, was always in trouble for something, but never seemed to care about the consequences. He was the polar opposite of Emmett and I often found myself wondering how they had even forged such a strong friendship.

Edward Cullen had known my brother since they were little kids, and I remember Edward was often at our house, hanging out. He would tease me about my outfits, or call me a bookworm when I was doing my homework. The sort of stuff a brother would do. Maybe that's why Emmett never bothered teasing me, because he knew Edward teased me enough for the both of them.

I always secretly hoped that the teasing was because he liked me, but when I considered myself and Edward as boyfriend and girlfriend, it seemed ludicrous. I mean, him and me? He was way out of my league, and the line of equally gorgeous girls he took out on dates just proved that as the years went by. I would never be the kind of girl he would look twice at, he only saw me as Emmett's annoying little sister.

But no matter how much teasing he did, he treat me the way a brother would. Whenever I came down in a short skirt or a low cut top, he would tell me that I should put on something else, with a look on his face like seeing any part of my exposed flesh was offending him. And when I brought my last boyfriend Tyler home to meet my father, Edward pretty much had the poor guy running for the hills before my dad even got home from work. Not that I was really that into Tyler that much in the first place, but I knew that when I brought the next boyfriend home, he would drive that one away too.

I think he just enjoyed seeing me miserable sometimes. It must amuse him I guess.

As the sting on my asscheeks probably matched the redness on the cheeks on my face, I saw a huge figure move from the shadows in the corner of the room. And as Angela's eyes went to the very same spot, and she gasped, I knew I had to act fast before this turned into a fight.

"Hey!" I called to the moron I had given the drinks to.

He turned back around, with a stupid smirk plastered over his face. Without giving it another thought, I swung my arm as fast and as hard as I could, and landed a punch clean in his stomach. It sent him staggering backwards, finally landing on the floor, and the contents of his cup all over the front of his shirt.

"Yes Bella!" Whooped Angela, as a few others around hooted their approval at what I assumed was my boldness, but was probably more likely because there was a hint of drama at this party now.

"You bitch!" He called as he quickly made his way to his feet, wiping his hands down his front and strode his way towards me. I stood my ground, but wasn't quite feeling as brave this second time around.

"Touch her again and I'll break your throwing arm, quarterback!"

Much to my surprise, the figure that emerged from the corner of the room was not Emmett.

Edward stood behind the guy, towering over him and breathing heavily. His chest rose and fell in an almost dangerous manner, and for those who knew Edward well, like my brother and I, we knew that the rage was bubbling just under the surface.

"Did you fucking hear me asshole?" He asked, as the guy stood facing me. He was too busy eyeballing the 5 foot 5 inch girl who had just punted him across the room in front of all of his friends to respond to Edward, who stayed in his place and showed no intention of backing down.

By this point the room had gone pretty silent, apart from the music which was travelling through from the main sitting room of Mike Newton's mansion sized home.

"Get the fuck away from her, and never bother her again, or you and I will have to have a quiet word elsewhere" he said menacingly.

"Brady just leave it" the other drunken frat boy said, who had clearly sobered up quick, and was recognising who his friend was messing with. Obviously Edward's reputation was far reaching. Frat boy number 2 tried to grab Brady's arm, in order to coax him away, taking hold of Brady's sleeve, and tugging harshly.

"This isn't over" sneered Brady too close to my face than I would have liked, but I jutted my chin out stubbornly, and raised my eyebrow at him.

Before I could get in a snide remark of my own, Cullen yet again treat me like a child.

"Yes it fucking is!" And he grabbed Brady by the back of his neck, dragging him out of the room, and past Emmett who had just re-entered from, I could only guess, outside.

I knew Emmett didn't have a clue what had just happened, mainly because he looked so very confused as to why Edward was frog marching some guy out of the front door, but also because I'd like to think he would have been there before Edward had he witnessed it himself. Although something tells me even Emmett wouldn't have beaten Edward's speed this time.

I looked around the room at all of the faces staring back at me, feeling self-conscious and ready to head off home. Even if it was to a dark, empty house, it's got to be better than being gawked at by my whole school.

But before I could decide, Emmett appeared by my side with a cup of beer for Angela and me. "Here's to my badass little sister!" He shouted to the crowd, who all erupted in applause and cheers, before continuing on with the party acting like nothing had ever happened.

"You ok kid?" He asked quietly, once everyone else had gone back to their own business.

"Yeah, of course" I replied, much more brazenly than I was feeling.

He nodded at my response, but wasn't buying it for one minute.

"Em, where's…"

"He's taking care of it" was all he said, cutting me off, not needing me to finish my question. He didn't elaborate any more than that and I knew that it meant not to ask any more questions, and I wouldn't be given any more details.

Emmett gave me a troubled but thoughtful look, as he was clearly thinking things over in his head. Could he be regretting letting Edward deal with this situation? Could he be annoyed at the trouble his little sister had caused, despite what he said to get the party in full swing again? Was he embarrassed by my actions?

I always wondered if Emmett really knew how I felt about Edward. When we were younger, he used to be Emmett's annoying best friend. Then as we got older, I would find myself hiding from him when I had a spot on my face, or I hadn't washed my hair, for fear of him seeing me and being mean. But recently, I was sure he had caught me looking at Edward in the same way that every other girl looks at him, and I wouldn't be surprised, because that is exactly what I was doing. I was completely falling for Edward's charm, good looks and hint of bad boy that every girl craves deep down. I just couldn't do anything about it because Edward would have laughed in my face - and I wouldn't have blamed him either.

As the night wore on, I didn't see Brady or his friend again, and I wondered if Edward had warned them to stay away from the whole party, not just me.

Edward came back to the party a little while after sporting two sets of scraped knuckles and his hair was an even sexier mess than it usually was, but he said nothing as he gave me a wink and a small smile that said 'I'm ok' and took the cup Emmett was offering, before commencing with the party.

I decided that I was not a fan of any other type of alcohol that evening especially after hearing some of the questionable concoctions being offered around, simply sticking to beer, and trying to get some water down the neck of my extremely drunken friend.

We sat in the corner of the room, on the loveseat, chatting animatedly amongst ourselves, giggling at everything and nothing, and enjoying having some girl time together. The occasional guy whose names I never remembered would come over and ask one of us to dance, which we declined, and a couple even sat and had a chat with us, asking our names, and if we wanted another drink. I recognised a few of them, mainly from English class, but a few others I knew were Emmett's age, so were a couple of years older.

I could see that Edward was still in the same corner of the room, watching us from behind his cup, scowling. He drunk whatever it was back in one gulp, before stalking off towards the kitchen for what I could only assume was a refill.

"Uh oh, the fun police have been watching you Bella!" giggled Angela, her hand in front of her mouth in a vain attempt to hold back her laughter. For a slight second I actually wondered how on earth she could still see that far after all of the empty cups sitting beside our chair.

"Yeah, I can see that Ang. I swear, he hates me sometimes!" I replied, as I took a swing from my cup and I realised it was empty.

"He does it when you are talking to new people! I bet he thinks you are going to start fighting with someone again" she said, waving her fists comically in front of me like an old time boxer.

"Probably wondering which poor guy he's going to have to rescue from me next" I muttered, knowing that Cullen was obviously pissed off at having to step in earlier on and stop Emmett's stupid kid sister from getting her ass kicked in front of the whole school. "Hey Ang, I'm just going to go to the bathroom, will you be ok for a second?"

"Absolutely!" She said, giving me an exaggerated wink, and two thumbs up.

"Right…yeah…ok, I'll be back in a minute" I said smiling, rolling my eyes at her and I stood up, making my way to Emmett and quickly asking him to sit with her whilst I went to the bathroom. He happily agreed, and made his way over to her, shouting "How's my future wife doing, eh?"

I smirked at him, as I heard Angela giggle like the drunken girl she was, soaking up all of my idiot brother's charms.

I made my way through the crowds, swaying slightly and realising that the cups of beer had hit me harder than I thought. I silently berated myself for not eating anything before we arrived, but I guess it was too late now. The odd pat on the back, and "Way to go Bella!" greeted me from some people I knew, and others who I didn't as I passed through the crowd and made my way to the bathroom.

I was offered another cup of beer on my way back. "Why not?" I laughed, as the jock who gave it to me 'clinked' cups in celebration.

"About time someone stood up to Brady!" Was all he said before he disappeared into the throng of bodies, throwing some questionable dance moves as he went.

I carried on walking, but in the distraction of getting another drink and the buzz I was currently feeling, I actually couldn't remember which way was back to the main room.

I took a left and found the closet, quickly closing the door with a mumbled apology to the couple who didn't stop kissing in order to see who was entering.

I also ended up in the games room, and refused to join in with a game of darts, noticing that when people play drunk, there tends to be a lot more holes in the surrounding wall.

I figured I was still going the wrong way when I went through a door and ended up in the pool room. The eerie quiet was made so much more eerie by the morphing reflection of the calm waters on the ceiling. The music was muffled as the heavy door closed behind me, and the silence engulfed me for a second.

As I spun towards the door, I heard him speak.

"Having a good night Bella?"

I turned back to see Edward sat on the edge of one of the many sun loungers. His elbows were resting on his knees, and he was hunched forwards, inspecting the contents of his cup. His voice was calm, but there was a tone of sarcasm, or it could have been anger?

"Erm, yes thanks. Are you?" I replied, uncertainly. I took a step towards him and a flash of something I didn't quite recognise changed Edward's face, but stopped myself from going any further, remembering that he has been giving me the stink eye all night.

"Oh yeah, I'm having an absolute ball sweetheart" He took another sip of his drink.

Yes, he was definitely being sarcastic!

"Edward-" I started but he cut me off.

"You know Bella, I used to think you were a smart girl. Always so clever in class, getting good grades, Charlie's perfect daughter, always kind to others…I really did think you were smarter than this"

I could feel my face flush at his insinuation. I shuffled from one foot to another, and wondered why the heck I wasn't just leaving his sorry, drunken ass here to wallow in whatever he was wallowing in. But I quickly reminded myself that he had helped me tonight to get out of a situation that I might not have been able to get myself out of otherwise. Alright, I wouldn't admit that to him though. So I decided to try to smooth over whatever was up with him.

"Look Edward, I know you think I'm an idiot for hitting that Brady guy, and maybe I was, but he had it coming!" I said, jutting my chin out and standing firm. "He slapped my ass"

"Oh don't I know it!" He said, taking another swig of his drink and chuckling humourlessly to himself. "You think I don't know what he did to you?"

"Then why do I feel like I've done something wrong?"

When Edward didn't answer, I shook my head and huffed, turning on my heel a little too quickly and giving myself a bit of a head rush. I grabbed at the door handle to steady myself, but a large pair of warm hands beat me to it, as they rested on my hips, holding me upright.

His hands felt heavy on my body, like they were moulded specifically to touch me, and I closed my eyes at finally having Edward touch me in a way I've always dreamed about. It felt like an electric current was running from his fingertips straight to my body, as his hands held me tight.

"Steady there Little Swan" whispered Edward, as I felt his breath fan across the side of my face and to my ear. I could smell the whiskey. "I might not always be around to keep you safe"

He rested his forehead on my shoulder, warm against the chill that was laying on the surface of my skin…and that is when it dawned on me.

I spun around once more, to face him, with my cup in hand and a thunderous look on my face.

"Seriously Cullen? That's what you are pissed at me for? That's what all of this fucking attitude has been about tonight, huh?"

I took a step back from him, and could see that he didn't like that, his eyebrows pulled together and his nostrils flared momentarily, before he caught himself, and regained his usually cool composure.

"I have no idea what you are talking about Bella, and don't call me Cullen! I don't like you calling me Cullen!"

"I'm talking about the shitty looks you have been giving me all evening since Brady took a tumble, and you just had to begrudgingly wade in like my fucking white knight!" I spat back at him, my voice echoing around the pool room. "You hate that you feel like you have to watch out for me, like I'm some stupid little kid. Well, I've got news for you Cullen,' I said, childishly using the name he asked me not to use, ' I can take care of myself"

I jabbed my finger into his chest, and watched as an expression of shock ran over his face.

"I am more than capable, and you constantly underestimate me"

A dark look flashed in his eyes, like fire, challenging me to walk through it and see if I would get burned.

"You think I'm pissed because I had to save you?" And the cocky bastard threw his head back and laughed. "Did you think I even had a choice tonight? I couldn't not save you, could I?"

"Don't bother, I know what you think of me…"

"Oh I don't think you do!" He muttered, finishing his drink and throwing the empty cup to one side, not caring about messing up a room that was clearly off limits to any party goers.

"You have absolutely no idea what I think of you Bella. So please don't pretend you do"

"So you haven't been staring daggers at me all night for fear of having to save my ass again then, have you? You haven't just kicked some guy's ass because you felt the need to look after Emmett's little sister whilst he was out of the room?"

He took a step closer, and his breath fanned across my face.

"That's not why I've been watching you all night" and he placed each of his hands beside my head. Between Edward's hands, and my back against the cool tiled wall, I was caged in.

My stomach knotted up and my legs felt weak at the closeness, and the implication I heard behind his words.

He paused in front of me for what felt like the longest time, his eyes squeezed shut so tightly.

The silence in the room was so profound, but the thudding of my erratic heart was loud in my ears.

"I just can't…with you…I just…" he finally paid, in a strangled voice, having an internal battle with himself. He pulled his hands away to wind them into his hair, pulling in frustration. "I can't do this…he said…he told me…for fuck's sake!"

Edward took a step back and I figured that it was either now or never. I could either take my opportunity now, whilst I was feeling brave and whilst Edward was hinting at what I have been wishing for since I first saw him…or I could let him go, back to the endless line of gorgeous girls he could 'fuck and chuck', not giving a shit about all of the pent up sexual frustration he has caused me all these years.

He reached for the door handle, and as he did I threw my own drink down, and made my move.

"Where do you think you're going?" I demanded, grabbing his shoulder and spinning him round to face me, so that our roles were reversed. His back was against the wall now and I felt like I had the upper hand. I felt strong and determined. It could only go one of two ways after all. He could either embrace it, or he could reject me.

"Stop with this playing around Edward, it is not necessary - if you want me, then tell me"

His beautiful green eyes were wide with shock, and I decided it was now or never. I stepped forward and crashed my mouth to his, moving forward so that I had him pinned against the wall, my body flush with his.

We fit so well together.

My mouth moved against his in a desperate attempt to coax some movement, some sort of validation that he felt even just a fraction of what I felt for him. I wound my hands into his hair, pulling slightly, earning a groan from him.

Just as I thought that I had made a horribly, irreversible mistake, the statue that was currently Edward suddenly sprang to life, winding his arms around my waist and pulling me in impossibly closer, before kissing me back with more passion and want than I could ever have hoped.

His hands were everywhere - on my hips, on my breasts, scooping under my ass.

I silently praised myself for wearing such a form fitting dress tonight.

Edward must have felt bold because the next thing I knew, I was being lifted up by my butt, and as I wrapped my legs around him, he spun us both around and pinned me up against the very wall I had the upper hand with just moments before.

"My god, you are so beautiful Bella" he said breathily, before resuming our heated kiss.

Hands were grabbing at clothes.

Teeth were biting at skin.

Breaths were taken in heavy and desperate bursts.

The room was so quiet except for our frantic encounter.

"Hey Mike? Mike? You in here buddy?"

The voice of one of the party goers broke up our clinch, and Edward let out a frustrated breath before giving me one more chaste kiss on my lips. He placed me back on my feet gently, and pulled my hair back into some sort of respectable order, whilst I made quick work of straightening my outfit.

"Mike? Oh sorry dude" said the guy who unknowingly interrupted the single most amazing experience of my entire life.

Edward just waved him off, and turned to me.

"I'm so sorry Bella, I don't know what I was thinking. Please forgive me"

It was as if my whole world had stopped and the air had been sucked out of my lungs.

"Hold up, you are apologising? What the fuck Edward? Don't apologise like that was wrong"

I was beyond angry now, he had just kissed me and groped me within an inch of my life, and decided on hindsight that it was probably not a good idea. Fuck that!

"I'm sorry-"

"No, you don't get to apologise" I interrupted him before he could ruin the moment even more, "You wanted that as much as I did, so stop apologising and acting like it was a mistake"

"It was a mistake Bella, can't you see that. You are Emmett's little sister…"

"There is 2 years between us Edward, how is that so wrong?"

"Because as of the end of this party, Emmett has left school, therefore I have left school" he replied, waving his arms around like it suddenly helped everything make sense. "You are still in school"

"So I'm just some little kid, am I? Wasn't such a little kid when you had me pinned against that wall though, was I?"

His silence was making me angrier. Why wouldn't he fight for us? Did he really think I was some stupid school kid? One that can be picked up and tossed back down when he felt like it?

"Bella, I-"

"Forget it Edward, and forget about me too…because I will certainly forget about you! You don't want me, then someone else will!"

I turned on my heel and away from him, leaving him in that damn pool room and all alone. My heart broke into a million pieces and I doubted I'd be able to put them all back together again.

The rest of my night was taken up by getting Angela home safely, going home and crying until I felt sick, and having a splitting headache, then sleeping until the late hours of the next day.

I had 17 missed calls from Edward over the space of 24 hours, 3 voicemails all begging me to call him, 12 text messages asking the same thing, as well as various Facebook messages of a similar variety. I blocked all of his numbers, his Facebook account, Instagram account and anything else where he would try to contact me by, but before I did, I sent him one final text message:

'Edward, please don't try to contact me anymore, I get the message and don't worry, I will never tell Emmett what happened. I hope you take care of yourself, but please leave me alone. Bella'

I avoided him when he came to the house over the next couple of weeks, and once Emmett finally went to college, Edward was no longer a part of my life. My heart grew smaller every passing month, until I simply fucked someone for release, then never went back. I guess you could say Edward Cullen was my one true happy relationship, even though he was never truly mine in the first place.

"That was a long time ago Edward, we have all grown up and moved on since we were kids"

"It was only 6 years ago Bella" he said, not looking me in the eyes.

"Like I said, it was a long time ago. Look, let's not talk about this right now, eh? You need to get some rest and get yourself better. Do you want some water or something?"

"Or something" he replied.

"Ok, what do you need?"

"I need you Bella…Right now, I just need you". The expression on his face was one of sincerity.

"Edward…"I warned, moving from my spot on the floor beside the bed, but he grabbed onto my hands so quickly that I missed it at first.

"Please Bella, I need to explain to you about that night"

I shook my head. "You really don't"

"Yes I do!" he insisted, "because that night, when we were in the pool room was the best night of my life. I had wanted you for so long, but I couldn't"

"Because I was a stupid kid back then?"

"No, it was because you were Emmett's sister. Technically, it didn't mean anything to anyone else, but to me it was important. Emmett told me to stay away from you when he would catch me watching you cooking in the kitchen, or humming to yourself when you were hanging out the laundry, and you thought no-one was looking. And I think he was actually serious about it. He was so worried that he might have to choose between his sister and his best friend if anything ever happened and it suddenly went wrong"

His hands held mine tightly, but he also held my attention. I had not seen this vulnerable side to Edward for a long time. Not whilst he was conscious anyway.

"But I failed him as a friend because I fell for his sister big time, and I tried my best to stay away from her, even standing by whilst dumbasses asked her to dance at a party one night, and brought her drinks, when that should have been me. I should have been sat beside you that night Bella. I should have asked you to dance, I should have been the one to make you laugh. But instead, I did what I always do, and I made someone else happy instead. I promised your brother that I would leave you alone - in that way anyway - and I couldn't break a promise to him Bella, not to Emmett of all people. He was my best friend"

"Edward, I..I…I had no idea" I stammered, a little lost for words. "I thought you stopped that night because you thought I was too young and inexperienced for you. I didn't think you really saw me like that, I thought you were just drunk and you realised you had made a mistake"

"The only mistake I made Bella, was letting you walk away from me" and he lifted one of his hands, and placed it on my cheek. I leaned into his touch, before pulling his hand away.

"But you told me not to call you Cullen anymore. You really couldn't have felt that way about me, but as much as you think you did"

He smiled, and I felt myself transported back 6 years. Was he about to humiliate me and break my heart again?

"I told you not to call me Cullen, because that is what all of my friends would call me. Do you know that you were the only one who I ever let call me Edward?"

I shook my head.

"So when you called me Cullen that night, it just didn't feel right. You weren't a friend to me Bella - you were so much more than that"

"I called you Cullen tonight" I challenged, my eyebrows raised at him.

"Yeah, well I thought I was dying, so I'll let that one slide" he chuckled.

We were silent for a while, each of us seemingly deep in our own thoughts.

I had no idea what was going through Edward's head, but mine had me 6 years in the past. At a party. Reliving the glances, and words, and gentle touches…I could see now that Edward was watching me for a totally different reason to what I thought at the time. And he wasn't pushing me away because I was a little kid to him, he was pushing me away in order to be loyal to his best friend.

"You're quiet, I wish you would say something" he practically pleaded to me, taking one of my hands and enveloping it tightly in both of his, with no way to escape. Not that I would try even if I could.

"I was just thinking…"

"About?"

"Us. Back then. What do you think would have happened if you hadn't made that promise to Emmett - who I'm going to slap really hard, by the way" I added, silently plotting against by big brother for making me almost lose Edward for good.

"Well, I know exactly what I wanted to happen that night, and it almost did - with, or without me promising that turd that I would stay away from his fuck-hot sister" he laughed, and wiggled his eyebrows at me. He winced slightly and sucked in a breath through his clenched teeth in pain.

"Careful Edward, you're still not recovered yet" I warned, worrying that he had done something to jeopardise all the work the good doctor had done on him.

He laid back again, and I shook my head at how laid back he was in life too. The only time I had ever seen him under pressure or stress besides tonight, was that party!

"I'm not sorry I made that promise though Bella- just let me finish-" he added defensively, holding his hands up in front of him upon seeing my expression, "If anything would have happened between us, I think I would have ruined you…"

"Oh yeah?" I asked, smirking.

"Not like that!" He chuckled. "I was not a good person in those days-"

"You were to me"

I looked down at my feet, a little embarrassed for some reason at my admission.

"I always wanted to be good for you, but when I made that promise, I realised that I couldn't have you, so I just thought 'Fuck it' and did whatever I wanted. That's probably why I ended up getting arrested a couple of times, or why I went through girl after girl after girl - it was all because the girl I wanted all along was well out of my reach. I could see her, but I couldn't hold her. I could dream about her, but I couldn't touch her"

I hadn't realised I was crying until he reached forward and gently brushed the tears away.

That was enough to make me clear my throat as a distraction and I moved away from him, wiping angrily at the tears that had escaped.

I hated to come across as weak, and I knew that that had all started with Edward. I never wanted him to see how he affected me back then, certain that he would use it against me, and break my heart. So I slowly but surely built up this high wall around my heart and desensitised myself to most emotions in order to be smarter, stronger and more independent than the old Bella had ever been.

"Hey, don't leave" he said quietly when he saw me move back. "I finally poured my heart out, and yes it was probably quickened by the fact that I had a near miss tonight, but fuck, Bella as soon as I stepped through that door a few weeks ago, I knew I was going to tell you everything. I have been thinking about you for 6 years, and that may sounds creepy and like I'm a stalker, but I don't care. I…"

"What?" I urged, hoping he would say what a desperately needed him to say.

He remained silent, but I could see the battle that was going on in his head, the uncertainty behind his eyes that stopped him through fear of misjudging our whole relationship and ending up having his heart broken.

But what he didn't realise was that I was having the very same battle as he was. I mean, sure, he told me that he liked me, and there was no denying the attraction we had for each other, but he was yet to declare himself, as was I.

"Bells? How's the patient?" Whispered Emmett from behind the cracked door, it literally only fit his head through, like he daren't open it any further.

"Alive and kicking, brother" chuckled Edward, sitting up further and wincing, but trying to mask it. I don't think Emmett noticed, but I sure did, and it was then that I realised just how well I had gotten to know this guy back then, and how much I still know about him.

"I'm going to get some fresh air" I announced, standing up and offering Emmett my chair. "I'll see you later Edward" I added, and the confused, desperate look on his face broke my heart, but I couldn't concentrate on that. I needed to get out and get in my own head space again, instead of being in the 'Bella-Edward' headspace that I had found myself back in. That was a confusing place, and I needed time to think independently.

Plus I needed to get out of Emmett's reach before I kicked his muscly ass!

I made my way into the kitchen and poured myself a fresh glass of water. I held the cold glass in one hand as I pushed open the doorway onto the fire exit with the other feeling the breeze instantly hit my face, and I sat myself on the top step.

The night air was cool and crisp, it immediately caused goosebumps to erupt all along my exposed skin.

I placed the glass at my feet and scrubbed at my face with my now-free hands, letting out a deep sigh.

And that's when I let the tears fall. Freely and fast, they kept on coming as I quietly sobbed to myself.

I cried for Edward. Who could have been with me for the past 6 years, if not for a stupid promise on his part, and a big misunderstanding on my part? For the life we could have had together. I cried a little harder at the prospect of having almost lost him tonight too.

I cried for my father. The brave, kind and loving man who just wants to get back to being a proud and dutiful Chief of Police, but his health won't allow him to do his dream job anymore.

And I cried for myself - because if it wasn't for the stealing and the lies, I have no idea where I would be right now. I had a lot of aspirations when I was on school. I wanted to be a counsellor…or a writer…or a doctor…or a vet…I just wanted to be something. Something good, and I wanted to be someone worthy of a sweet, funny and protective guy like Edward.

My breathing became more and more rapid, and I knew I was beginning to let my emotions get the better of me. I recognised it as a sign that I was exhausted, completely spent and I could envisage a major headache on its way.

So, I sat quietly, focusing on taking my mind off the bad, and focusing on the good - such as, Edward surviving tonight's ordeal. Such as hopefully having enough money to help my father for good. Such as Jacob Black and his crew could soon be in jail where they belong, because yes, we steal, but we would never hurt anyone in the process. Not like they do.

"Hey Bells" said Alice, as she stepped into the night, closing the door behind her and sitting herself beside me on the step.

I quickly wiped at my face, feeling the warmth of my hands against the cold tracks on my cheeks that were made by my tears. I know that she saw me, but she was considerate enough not to say anything on it.

"You doing ok sweetie?" She asked kindly, looping her arm through my own and resting her head against my shoulder.

I nodded, but remained silent. I knew I was kind of ok, but I couldn't find the right words.

"You know, if it wasn't for you and your quick thinking tonight, Edward wouldn't be alive"

I nodded again, not because I agreed with her, but because the alternative made me feel sick to my stomach.

"He's very lucky to have you back in his life Bella" and before I could stop myself, I chuckled humourlessly.

She pulled her head up, to look me straight in the eyes.

"You don't think so?"

"No Ali, I don't. I think if Edward hadn't have come back into my life, he wouldn't be laid on bed watch, with a hole in his shoulder"

"Don't be so silly, you think an idiot like that wouldn't have gotten himself shot at some point, all on his own" and she rolled her eyes in true Alice fashion. "I read people well, as you know. And I read Edward the second he stepped into the apartment and set his sights on you again. He was lost before this Bella. Totally and completely lost. And then when he saw you again, I noticed a sparkle enter his eyes in an instant, like he had life in them again"

I shook my head a little, and resumed to look back out into the night sky.

"Yeah right, who's being silly now, eh Ali?"

"Fine, don't believe me…but I've seen a difference in you too, you know!"

She gave me an all knowing expression, with her eyebrow raised and wearing a shit eating grin, and I hated when she did that because more often than not, she was bloody right.

"I will admit, I have missed him over the years. He was such a massive part of my life when we were younger, that I never imagined it without him. And he hurt me Alice, even though he didn't mean to, and it was actually just a really messed up situation…but I still hurt anyway"

"You really liked him didn't you?"

I sighed heavily. "Of course I liked him. Fuck, I was in love with the man for so long. And when he left, I couldn't find it in me to try to have a normal relationship with anyone after that, so I just fucked any guy I wanted in the hopes that I could forget about the loss for just a little while. Then when my Dad got ill, it gave me a purpose. I slowly focused more and more on the cause of why we do this, that it numbed the pain. Then my brother had to drag him back into our lives, and drag all those old feelings up again, didn't he?"

I turned to face her, seeing her looking at me with sympathy and sadness.

"And how do you feel now? Now that he is back?"

For a moment I didn't actually know how to answer that.

Sure I was happy that he was safe and on the road to recovery, but was I happy to have all of these old feelings back in the front of my mind? Was I happy that the memories of feeling rejected were as raw now as they were 6 years ago? But I remembered how sweet Edward had just been moments ago, and knew that I would take those old feelings and emotions any day if it means I could spend time with him. I didn't want to sound like a needy girl who would go to stupid lengths to just be in the mere presence of a guy, but I could admit when I knew a good man with a pure heart. He's not the kid he used to be, but even that kid he used to be was still pretty great deep down.

"I'm happy he's back, I missed having him around"

"That's the only reason that you are happy he's back?" She asked, her voice travelling an octave higher than normal.

"Well, he kind of admitted to me that he likes me, and I like him too…but I just can't be sure until he says it…"

"Have you said it?" She challenged.

I shook my head sadly, because I so wanted to tell him how I really felt, how I had always felt.

"Why not?"

I knew that Alice wasn't being nosey, she genuinely loved each and every one of us, we were her family, so she would hurt when we would hurt.

"He hasn't said it, and I worry that if I say it first, and I've gotten the wrong end of the stick, we will never be able to come back from that. I mean, I got the wrong end of the stick 6 years ago when thought he was rejecting me, and we haven't spoken since, so if I say it and he doesn't feel even a fraction on what I feel…"

"If you say what?" She asked knowingly, prompting me to take the first step.

"That I'm in love with him. Absolutely and completely in love with him. That tonight I thought I was going to lose the only man I could ever see myself being with. That when I used to see how the girls would hang off him back then, I hated myself more and more because I couldn't physically make myself be like them, so that I might have had a shot with him. I can't tell him that he's the most beautiful, frustrating, sweet, caring and funny guy I've ever met. And I can't tell him that the love I feel for him, even at this very moment makes my heart feel like it's going to burst"

"Wow" was all she replied, after hearing me pour out my heart, "I knew you loved him, but to hear you say it like that…"

I wiped at my wet eyes once more, and felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders. I had finally said it out loud, even if it wasn't to Edward himself, and it was now off my chest, I could make my peace with it and move on. He would never have to know, and I wouldn't risk making a fool of myself.

"But you can't tell Edward Alice, he can never know, because if I'm wrong, I'll never come back from that" I warned her, my face showing how serious I was.

"Oh Bella, of course I won't tell him" she replied calmly, "but I think you should take this" and she handed me her phone.

"What?" I asked confused, but as i turned it over in my hand, Edward's name was lit up on the screen, with an active call showing at over 5 minutes long. "Oh Alice, what did you do?" I whispered, more out of shock and embarrassment than actually trying to keep my voice down.

"I didn't do anything Bells, I just took a call from Edward, and just happened to not hang up. But now you have made the first move, or at least a part of it…you need to finish it…because you might not believe in your own worth, but I do. And I know a man not too far from here who certainly does"

And with a gentle kiss on my cheek, she left me sitting in the night air, clutching the phone and watching the numbers increase as the call continued on silently.

I prayed with everything I had that Edward had fallen asleep or dropped his phone, so that I didn't have to face him, but I had no such luck.

"Little Swan" he said, using the nickname I secretly adored, "You will freeze that gorgeous ass off if you sit out there much longer. Please come inside" he pleaded, and I knew that even with all of the warring emotions that were rushing through me at this very moment, I would still go to him. Because it was him.

It was Edward.

It's always been Edward.

I ended the call without another word, picked up my glass and made my way inside, depositing my water on the kitchen worktop as I went.

I threw Alice's phone on the sofa, because that was a sneaky trick on her part, but I didn't want to break it because deep down I knew someone had to make the first move, and it obviously wasn't going to be myself or Edward. Not intentionally anyway. I wasn't angry at Alice, I was more envious at her having the balls to do something that I didn't dare do before now.

I slowly walked through the dark apartment, hearing Emmett and Rosalie in their room chatting to one another.

There was no sign of Alice or Jasper, so I guessed they were either in their own room, or had gone out.

And so every step I took was like lead. Heavy and slow.

As I reached my bedroom door, I raised my hand and knocked gently.

I heard Edward from the other side. "Seriously?" He chuckled.

Seeing him laid in my bed would never get old, and it made me smile internally, because…well…Edward Cullen was still in my bed!

"How are you feeling?" I asked, making my way around the bed, to sit in the chair I had vacated previously.

"Much better" he smiled, his green eyes shining bright, as if he had had a thousand year sleep.

"That's good, the doctor said you should heal up well…"

"Bells, I don't want to talk about tonight, at least not about my getting shot…or about the robbery…or about anything other than what you just said"

I nodded and looked down at my battered but reliable Converse.

"Hey" and he placed his fingertips under my chin, and gently lifted my head to look at him. "I couldn't believe what I was hearing just then. I wish I could listen to that over and over again…obviously, not the part about you fucking other guys, because that just snapped something in me" he clarified, changing from sweet and mild, to stern and serious, the jealousy in him now in full swing.

"The thought of you having been with another man makes me insane, but at least I truly know how you feel now. And I was so afraid to admit it to you, because you have the power to hurt me worse than any bullet ever could, but I love you Isabella Swan"

I looked up at him in shock as he pulled my hand towards his mouth and ghosted the gentlest of kisses on it.

"You love me?"

"I love you too baby. Don't think it's not just as wonderful and crazy for me too, to know that you feel the same way"

"But…but you actually love me?" Yes, my very slow brain could not quite believe it just now.

"Baby, the second I laid eyes on you years ago, I knew you were different to all the other girls who flocked around me every day. You challenged me, you stood up to me, you even tried to fight back when I teased you and tickled you…it was adorable"

I threw my head back and laughed at the memories, at the good times.

"And then when we got older, you stopped being the girl I was curious about and protective of, and you suddenly became the woman who I was falling for. I would watch you happily stroll down the stairs when you were on your way out of Charlie's house, and I would drive myself crazy wondering if you were going to meet a guy for a date, or just go out with Angela. And when you were cooking dinner, I would watch you move gracefully around the kitchen, completely at ease, and wish that you were in our kitchen, cooking dinner for me. And I loved every second of the teasing once I could tickle you against those beautiful curves of yours…I just never dreamed you could ever look at me as more than just your brother's best friend" he explained.

"I've always seen you Edward, I always wanted you to notice me, but I never thought I had a chance with you. I had no idea the promise you made to Emmett, and I'm truly sorry for not giving you the chance to explain yourself back then"

He nodded at me in understanding and forgiveness.

"But Emmett is…"

"We spoke Bells" he said, cutting off the sentence I really didn't want to utter. The sentence that would break both of our hearts, because Emmett is still my brother, and he is still Edward's best friend.

"You did?"

He nodded. "When you walked out earlier, he came to speak to me about that promise he had me make years ago. And he said that he couldn't see our connection before because he didn't want to see it. It wasn't the thought of his best friend being with his sister that bothered him…well, it did I guess, but what worried him more was that if I messed you around like I did other girls in my past, then he would have to choose between two of the most important people to him, and he didn't want to lose anyone"

"And he's just suddenly changed his mind?" I asked, a little disbelieving if I'm being honest.

"Not until tonight he didn't. You helped him change his mind. You see, he's always known about my love for you, because I told him years ago how much I adored you, and how much you absolutely owned me, heart and soul. And I was obviously out of it for most of tonight, so I can't confirm myself, but he told me that the way you were frantic to get to me back to the apartment, and the way he struggled to pull you away from me when the doctor arrived, just confirmed that you felt exactly the same way for me as I have always felt for you"

The room was silent, aside from our breathing.

"He said that he has never seen you so determined to be by someone's side, since Charlie was taken ill. That you rushed over to the doctor the second he opened the door, and demanded to know how I was. He said that he realised his sister was beyond friendship at that point, that he knew I owned her heart and soul too"

I felt my cheeks flush at Edward's words.

"So, where do we go from here?" I asked. Edward had linked our fingers together, and I smiled at the attention he was giving me. 15 year old Bella did an internal happy dance!

"Well, that really depends on you Bella"

"How so?" I responded with a smirk, seeing the playful look across his face.

"Well, we could go our own separate ways again for another 6 years…wasting our time on meaningless tasks, lonely nights alone and wishing that we were together…or we could actually make up for lost time and get back 6 year's worth of date nights, kisses, getting to know each other…and soooooo much more"

He kissed the back of my hand and smiled sweetly.

"I mean the past 6 years have been a real ride for me…"

"I can give you a pretty good ride if you would let me!" he drawled, wiggling his eyebrows at me.

"Is that so Edward?"

His eager nodding made me laugh, I felt like I was so much lighter than I had been for years.

"Well, why don't we actually get you better, and then take some time away getting to know each other? Emmett said we will have to lie low for a while anyway now that we are supposed to be dead"

"If I have to lie low with anyone, I will always want it to be with you Bella!"

A/N: Thank you for reading…thank you for getting into such a fun story to write…and thank you for leaving a wonderful review! (Ok, so that last one was a thank you in advance…hint hint!)

As I said before, I am still working on my other 2 fics and I hope I can find my muse again soon. Hopefully uploading this fic will get my creative juices flowing again!

Please please let me know what you thought of this fic…it's been rattling around in my brain for soooo long now, I'm so happy to get it down on paper (so to speak)!

Until next time!

WhitlocksBoo xxx