Chapter 12

"Thank you for tonight, Edward," Bella said. "I loved the concert. Alicia Keys is one of my favorites."

"I'm happy you loved it," Edward answered and leaned down to kiss her. She didn't let him kiss her on her mouth but turned her cheek. He kissed the cheek, lingering as he brushed his nose against her jaw.

Bella felt the lust pouring out of him, and she was on the brink of giving in. She had enjoyed their night together on the boat, and as long it was only sex, she wasn't against asking him to her home to spend the night. The only problem was that she knew that it would be only sex for her but wasn't so sure about Edward. He'd been very touchy-feely all night, and it didn't feel like he was settling for hookups now and then.

She could feel his erection pressing against her abdomen when he pulled her closer.

"Bella," he whispered, and she shivered, feeling his breath fanning her ear.

"Bella?" she heard another voice, a familiar deep, husky voice that resonated throughout her body. She turned her head slowly, not believing her ears.

"Paul?" and just there a few feet away from her, he was, and he wasn't alone; Embry was with him. "Embry?"

They looked at her and then Edward and back at her. She felt Edward wrapping his arm around her waist, which annoyed her, but she couldn't move; she was too dumbfounded to do anything but stare at the two men.

"What are you doing here?" she was finally able to ask.

"We came to talk to you," Paul said. His eyes glued onto the arm around Bella's waist. She turned to Edward; his eyes were full of confusion.

"Thanks again, Edward. I'll talk to you later," Bella said and cringed, it came out a bit harsher than she meant to, but she was shocked to see Paul and Embry.

"But..." Edward started.

"You heard what she said," Paul said, coming closer. Bella could only stare at him, and then she moved her eyes to Embry, who was looking at her with an expression she could not read.

Why had they come?

"Bella, who are these men?" Edward asked, not letting her go.

"They are my friends," Bella said to him, but her eyes stayed on Embry's. She cleared her throat and turned to look at Edward. "They are my friends from La Push, Washington. I wasn't expecting them, but they are here now, and I want to talk to them. So, I'll see you later, okay."

Bella saw that Edward wasn't happy about the turn of events. He had probably sensed that Bella was going to ask him in and was getting upset. She hated herself for being rude to Edward, but she hadn't planned any of this to happen. She wanted to talk to Paul and Embry, and all her thoughts about a possible night together with Edward had vanished the second she'd seen them.

"But Bella, can't you see them tomorrow. It's late, and we..."

"Are you stupid or what? She said later," Paul said, his voice sounding threatening.

Edward's body stiffened.

"Who the hell..." he started, but Bella didn't want any of that.

"Please, guys, stop," Bella said, turning to look at Paul. Her knees almost buckled at his expression. It was so raw with emotion.

Forcing to look away from Paul, she said, "Look, Edward. I need to talk with Paul and Embry now. I'll call you later this week, Edward, okay?" And with that, she moved from Edward, but he didn't let her arm go. She saw Paul jerking towards them, but a quick look from her stopped him.

"Edward, let me go, please," she whispered, and he released his grip on her arm.

"I'll talk to you later," she said once more, and wanting to be less rude, she pecked him quickly on his cheek, and turned to Paul and Embry.

For a moment, they all just stared at each other. Bella still couldn't believe they were there standing in front of her.

"Bella, we want to talk to you. Can we come in?" Embry asked.

"I guess since you are here. I just don't understand why," Bella said, grabbing her keys from her pocket.

She heard Edward driving away aggressively, and they all turned to look at the receded lights of his sports car.

"Who was he?" Paul asked.

"A friend," Bella said.

"It looked a bit more than that," Paul huffed.

"Well, what it is to you?" Bella snapped. She was beyond confused about why they had come, and she was totally out of balance and didn't like how Paul talked to her. It wasn't any of his business who Edward was. But she felt instantly bad snapping at him.

"Sorry about Paul; he's being a jerk," Embry said, smiling his smile that always made her heart flutter as it did now.

Since when had Embry started to apologize for Paul's behavior? She was even more bewildered.

"Yes," she said, walking to her door and opening it. "After you," she said, and the guys walked past her to her home.

Bella's mind was racing. What was this all about?

"Do you want something to drink?" she asked as she walked to the kitchen and switched on the light.

"If you have some coke, that would be great," Embry said.

Feeling them both standing behind her, looking at her, made her nervous. She took two cans of coke from the fridge and turned to look at them, offering them their drinks.

She poured herself some water and went to sit by the table, showing them to sit down too. They moved to sit opposite her.

"Would you please tell me why you are here?" she asked, taking a sip of her water. Her hands were shaking a bit.

Embry and Paul glanced at each other, and Paul cleared his throat.

"We wanted to talk to you and make a suggestion."

"Oh, what kind of suggestion."

Paul looked anxious as he rubbed the back of his neck, glancing at her under his long lashes. God, he was still so damn sexy.

"Well, we... me and Embry have become friends since we last saw you."

"That's great. But what it has got to do with you coming here?"

"Well, we have been having a bit rough time and …"

"We want to know if you still love us," Embry piped in. "If you would be willing to consider having us both. As being in a relationship with us both."

"What the hell, Embry?" Paul said.

"WHAT?!" Bella shrieked. What did she just hear him say? Had she heard right?

"Good job, dumbass," Paul huffed and swatted Embry at the back of his head.

"Fuck off," Embry hissed, throwing him a murderous look.

"Guys, stop it! What did you just say, Embry?"

Embry glanced at Paul, who was looking at her intensely. Embry cleared his throat, clearly feeling very nervous too.

"We want to know..." Embry started and cleared his throat again, "If you still loved us and if you could think of being with us both. I mean, we both still love you, and we have tried to move on, but we can't. We both want you in our lives," Embry said, looking at her with such heartbreaking vulnerability she felt her heart lurch.

Bella covered her mouth with her both hands. She could not stop tears filling her eyes and spiling on her cheeks. She didn't know what to think. Was this really happening?

She didn't know what to say, so she just stared at them.

"Please say something," Paul pleaded.

"I don't know what to say," Bella whispered. Her heart was hammering out of her chest, and she felt her head spinning.

"Say that you think about what we asked from you, please," Embry said quietly.

"Are you serious about this?" she asked. Of course, she knew there were people having relationships with more than two people in it, but she had never thought of herself being in one. Could she consider it? Have a relationship with them both?

"Absolutely," they said at the same time. "We've been thinking this through a lot," Embry continued, "and it's the only way we would want our lives to continue; to have you in it. And since you said you cannot choose, we are willing to share, so you don't have to."

"How..." she started, "how could I possibly be enough for you both?" she voiced her biggest insecurity around this idea. In front of her were the most virile and sexiest men she had ever met, and they said they would want to have her, only her.

"I mean, you could have any woman you wanted as many as you wish. Why me?"

"You really don't see yourself clearly, do you?" Paul said. He got up from the chair and walked to her. He crouched in front of her takingh her hands in his.

"You are the most beautiful woman I've ever seen, and no one is as sexy as you are. You are so damn smart and fun to be with; I loved spending time with you. And how you are proud of your work and this place you own... all that just blows my mind away." Paul lifted her hands on his lips and kissed her fingers.

"You turned my life upside down when I met you, and I've been lost ever since you ended what we had. I've tried to forget you, and I don't lie; I've slept with many women, but nothing can erase you from my heart. And I know you have a big heart. I know that you have space there for us both. And what is the most important thing; you are perfect for us. Please say yes."

Bella couldn't believe her ears. Paul's words made her heart skip a beat. She had never thought that she could have them both. Not in her wildest dreams. Things like this only happen in movies, right?

Bella lifted her hand to Paul's cheek, and he leaned into it, closing his eyes. He looked so lost and vulnerable, nothing like the self-assured a bit of a smug Paul she remembered him to be.

She moved her eyes to Embry, who had been watching them silently.

"Same goes with me, Bella," he said as he too got up from his seat. He pulled a chair and sat down his knees touching her thighs. He placed his other hand on Bella's cheek, brushing his fingers over her skin.

"You are the best thing that has ever happened to me, Bella. I fell in love with you almost the moment I met you. Having you in my life made it purposeful, and every day was worth living; even if I couldn't see you often, knowing you existed was enough to lighten my every day. After you were gone, I couldn't function. I was a mess. I am a mess."

Oh. My. God. She was speechless.

"Bella, please say yes," Embry said.

Embry was holding his breath while he watched Bella. He could see her mind racing, and she didn't know what to say. She looked at them both, moving her eyes between them, opening her mouth, then closing it again. Her big eyes welled up with unshed tears. She was biting her bottom lip, which made him almost moan. Even under such vast emotional stress, his body reacted to Bella, and his cock twitched in his jeans.

"I... I don't know what to say..." Bella whispered.

"Do you still love us?" Paul asked.

Bella was silent for a moment. "Yes."

Embry let out the breath he'd been holding.

"Well, that is the only thing that matters," Paul continued. "We love you, and you love us. It's all we need, right?"

Bella was silent. Embry felt his nerves going on overdrive. His head hurt, and his heart was hammering out of his chest. This was the moment he'd been waiting for and dreaded. She could shatter his - their - hope with a single word. Please say yes, he chanted in his mind. Please say yes.

His heart was aching for her. She looked so incredibly beautiful, even more so than he remembered. He'd been staring at her pictures for days, weeks, months, but having her so close, being able to touch her... It was almost too much. He thought he would lose his mind if she said no.

"Can you guys give me some time to think this through?" Bella asked.

Embry sighed. It wasn't a no, and that was all that mattered at this point. He hadn't been expecting anything else. It was enough that she hadn't said no.

"Of course," he said. "That's all we could ever ask from you. We know this must be a little bit of a shock."

"Well, yes... I haven't seen or talked to you in six months, and you show up asking me to be with both of you. Yeah, it's a bit of a shock," she looked at them, and her cheeks flushed. "But I've missed you both so much," Bella confessed with a breathtaking smile.

"But you've been dating?" Paul said. Embry shoved his elbow at his shoulder. He would ruin this with his jealousy. Not that he wasn't jealous as fuck too. When he'd seen Bella with that guy, seen how he wrapped himself around her, Embry had wanted to rip his head off. But they were the last people to say anything about dating. Although they hadn't dated anybody, they'd been fucking around for months.

"Yes, but I've only seen Edward a few times. He came to the shop couple of months ago wanting to buy it. And after I refused, he just kept asking me out before I said yes," Bella told them.

"You love him?" Paul asked.

Fucking Paul. He really wasn't letting the thing go.

"What? No! It's just for fun."

"I think that he thinks it's more than just fun." Paul pressed.

"He might, but I made it clear that I wasn't looking for a relationship with him, and he said he understands."

"Do you want to continue seeing him?" Paul asked.

"Lahote, knock it off; you are being a jerk now," Embry said. He was scared shittles that Paul's possessive behavior would scare Bella off them.

"I don't know what I want. This all is quite sudden. I'm sure you understand," Bella said, looking at them both. She moved to get up from her seat, and they let her. She was probably feeling a bit crowded. She walked to the sink and leaned against it, facing them.

"How..." she started biting her lip again, "how you think we would do this?" Bella asked. "I mean, would you want to … together..." her cheeks flushed, and Embry's dick throbbed.

"Would we want to have sex with you together at the same time?" Paul offered.

"Um... yeah," Bella said.

She was so damn cute Embry wanted to kiss her silly.

"I think we eventually would like to try, at least if it's something you want," Paul confessed. They had been talking about making love to Bella at the same time, and the idea was equally disturbing as it was hot as fuck. The disturbing part would be seeing each other aroused and naked. They've watched some threesome porn videos, and they were full of shit. They would never treat Bella like those fuckers did in the videos. Paul had fucked two women a few times, at least that is what he's told, but never one woman with another guy. Embry has never been in bed with more than one woman.

"Right," was all Bella said.

She turned around and leaned against the sink. Paul got up and walked to her. Embry was shaking his head, mouthing "no", trying to make him stop, but he didn't.

He touched her shoulder, and Bella turned around, looking at Paul. The same confusion was still evident in her features.

"We give you as much time as you need but remember this," Paul said and leaned down to kiss her.

Embry's breath hitched, and he closed his eyes. He was equally worried about his reaction as Bella's. When he opened his eyes, Bella was motionless for a while, but then she moaned and tugged her hands in Paul's hair. They both moaned, and Jesus fuck, Embry got hard. He didn't feel jealous; he was turned on. They were kissing like there was no tomorrow, and his mouth watered.

Suddenly Bella wretched her mouth off Paul's, who moved to kiss her neck. Bella looked at him with a startled look in her eyes. Paul turned, so he was standing behind Bella and continued to kiss her neck, his hands roaming on her hips.

Embry locked his gaze with Bella's and moved slowly toward her. Her eyes darted between his mouth and eyes, and she licked her lips. Embry closed the distance between them, crashing his lips against Bella's, and he was instantly in heaven. Bella pulled him closer, tugging his hair, and she kissed and nipped and licked, teeth clashing, lips bruising and he wanted to cry. Embry couldn't stop his hips from starting to grind against her, and he did feel Paul's hands on Bella's breasts, but it didn't bother him. All he wanted was to have this kiss, and he wanted it to last forever.

But then Bella stopped. And pushed him a little. "Stop. We need to stop," she said, panting. "I can't think when you kiss me like that," she breathed heavily. It took a little while for Embry to get his brains working again. He let her move as Paul removed his hands from her body too.

Bella moved away from them, taking the space she needed.

"Sorry, Bella," Paul said. "I just wanted you to remember how we were."

"That's alright," she said, rubbing her face.

"Have you booked anything?" She suddenly asked. "There is a cancellation, and upstairs is free. If you're not uncomfortable sleeping in the same bed, you can go there."

They actually hadn't booked anything. All they had been thinking was to get her and see where it took them.

"We haven't booked, but we can find something," Paul said, not clearly wanting to intrude.

"No, don't. I would ask you to stay here in the spare rooms, but I think I need a bit more distance from you than that."

"Okay. If you're comfortable us being up there, that's great," Paul said.

Embry agreed. The bed was big enough to sleep in it without feeling awkward.

"Good, the door is open. Now go."

They left Bella's apartment and climbed the stairs upstairs. They didn't say a word. It was as if they didn't dare to speak. Embry's heart was hammering out of his chest.

She hadn't said no.

AN:

Wheels are rolling. I almost - almost - feel sorry for Edward.