BPOV

"Edward is definitely pissed," Tanya says, as she watches the show from her window. "So, she just showed up when you guys were waking up?"

I feel my face heat because we actually fucked before we were fully up.

"So, she possibly saw you two banging?" Tanya asks, wiggling her brows.

"I have no idea how long she was out there," I say with a huff.

Seeing Kate in person was definitely way more intimidating. She was statuesque and beautiful up close, which she was in her photos but to see her and Edward standing together was almost too overwhelming.

"She's stomping away and now Edward is coming into the house," she commentates.

"Thanks for the play-by-play," I say dryly.

"I can't believe my Gramps caught your walk of shame into the house," she says brightly. "One time, Maggie tried to sneak back to the guest room and he caught her, but at that time he had no clue she was my girlfriend."

"He asked me if everything was okay," I told her.

"I can't believe she stalked him all the way out here."

"We don't know if she's stalking him," I say.

"I guarantee you she used the P.I. Gramps has on retainer to find him. He told my mom about a month ago the calls and texts weren't letting up, which is odd since we know what we know about her and Uncle Ed," she explains, clearly not reading my discomfort. "What's wild is that her dad works for Gramps too."

I sigh, letting Tanya drone on about the drama that was Kate. I didn't think she was dramatic at all; she showed up looking confident and self-aware. She might be horrible, but people like her know how to survive and excel.

A light tap at Tanya's door finally makes her stop, we both look to the door and see Liz.

"Breakfast is ready ladies," she announces. "Bella, I was wondering if I can talk to you before you head down."

"Uh yeah, no problem," I squeak out.

Tanya laughs, shaking her head before she leaves.

Liz is smiling warmly at me so I assume that's a good sign.

"I'd like to apologize for last night, you must think I'm a horrible drunk," she says, taking a seat next to me on Tanya's bed.

"No, I understood why— I mean Edward explained that you were in rare form last night," I fumbled.

I close my eyes for a second before opening them.

"Rare form was him being nice," she says with a light laugh. "I was nervous about having to tell him about Kate and his father."

"That's understandable," I say with a nod.

She's quiet for a moment. "You know he is so much happier here in Washington. I always thought he was happy in Chicago but I was so very wrong."

"Oh."

I could tell that she was probably handling me with kid gloves. Edward told her some of what happened to me so she knew I was filled with trauma.

"Edward was chomping at the bit to get up here to you, I think he's mad I told him to stay downstairs."

"I knew seeing Kate must be upsetting for him."

"It is, but I understand he is more upset that she's scheming her way into his life. She only wanted him to talk to his grandfather so she could get her internship back. Her sob story is she has lost her place at the law school," she explains with a slight edge to her voice.

"She asked that of him?" I asked in disbelief.

"I think the only reason Kate pursued anything with my ex-husband is that she was trying to climb the ladder at my father's firm, what she didn't know was Ed was still employed there because of how good of an attorney he is and well he's Edward's father," she tells me.

I nod.

"I'm a child of divorce," I tell her suddenly.

"You live with your dad, right?"

"I do, it's just us two. Renee didn't want to be a mom," I explain.

It was true she never wanted to be my mother. The way she rebelled about it with her drinking and cheating only proved that.

She gently cups my cheek. "Your dad must really be something," she says with a smile.

"I think I'm pretty lucky, especially with what I've put him through over the last year. He really loves Edward," I tell her.

We talked for the next half hour about my life in Forks and Edward's. Liz is warm and kind which Edward told me she was, but last night there was a flightiness to her. She was upset for her son and had every right to be.

"Hey," Edward says, knocking on the door.

"He could only be held off for thirty minutes," Liz announces, as she looks at her watch.

"Forty-five minutes," he corrects.

"Yeah, yeah," she sighs standing from her seat next to me. "I'll see you both downstairs."

Edward moves forward holding his hand out to me. His hair is very disheveled, probably from him running his hand through it.

"So," I said, taking hold of his hand.

"Kate has been dealt with," he says immediately.

"Was she trying to woo you back?"

"Sadly, she only wanted me to talk to Gramps on her behalf," confirming what his mother told me.

"Did you?"

"Oh, I told my Gramps alright, but I want her nowhere near his law firm," he says, pulling me up from my seat on the bed.

We stand looking at each other, he leans down giving me a kiss. "I'm sorry our morning went the way it did," he apologizes.

"Not your fault," I tell him.

"Well in theory it isn't," he teases, resting his hands on my waist.

"What are you going to do now about these new revelations?" I ask, holding onto his forearms.

"I need to talk to my father," he says, letting out a long sigh. "I think our relationship is irrevocably broken."

"I'm sorry," I tell him.

"I'm not," he says, pulling me closer into his hold. "The more time I've spent with your dad, I see the kind of influence a father is supposed to have in one's life. My father always saw me as competition and now even with Kate this is proven to be true."

"That's just – gross," I say, scrunching my nose.

He laughs, kissing the tip of my nose.

"It is," he murmurs. "My father now needs to realize the talk we need to have might be our last."

I feel sad for him, but I understand where he is coming from. That's how my relationship is with Renee, nonexistent.

"We better head down before Tanya accuses us of defiling her room," Edward says with a smirk.

I laugh.

This wasn't at all how I thought my morning would go, but the more time I spend with Edward's family, the more I feel myself falling in love with him. They are warm and welcoming just like he is. I felt better about Charlie and I spending Thanksgiving with them tomorrow.

Once I do leave the Cullens' house I get a text from Angela asking me if I could come over. I get slightly nervous about how her conversation with Rosalie went. I knew she wouldn't be calling, it wasn't important.

"Are you leaving again?" Charlie asks from his chair.

"Angela needs to talk to me in person," I explained.

"You are very popular these days," he says.

I roll my eyes.

"I'll be back to make dinner," I call going out the door.

My walk to Angela's house is short; she lives three streets over from us. She is waiting in the doorway when I climb her porch stairs. She grabs my hand when I get there and leads me up to her room.

"Where's the fire?" I ask.

She closes the door behind me once we're in her room.

"She wants me to be there when she talks to Detective Diaz," Angela mumbles.

"Wait, she's going to give her statement?" I was surprised.

"She's been talking to Emmett McCarty," she says, taking a pause. "He encouraged her to come forward."

"Emmett?"

"His parents live next door to her. Brady must have said something to him about that night because he knew details."

"Huh," I say slightly amazed that it took Emmett saying something.

"She said you talked to her but she—"

"Hates me?"

"Well, I think Royce brainwashed her about you… Homecoming wasn't the first time he, uh, forced himself on her. He used to say you did a lot of things to satisfy him."

"Yeah, that never happened," I told her.

"I told her that," Angela murmurs. "She would talk about you a lot when we were friends. I always thought it was odd, it was like she was studying you."

"That's creepy," I grumble.

"Her mother used to try to rile her up about how you were the daughter of Forks because the town loves you so much."

"Her mom has had this weird thing with Renee from when they were in school. I don't know much about it, only that it bugs my dad that she tries to put me in that same pocket as her and Renee," I say trying to make sense of their rivalry.

"I think Rose's grudge is because her mom has been in her ear about how perfect you are and that you lived up to your legacy," she says making a face.

"To be honest, my parents were Prom King and Queen, but they both hated stuff like that, my dad thinks high school politics get you nowhere," I explain.

It was one of the things that made me want to get out of this town. I wanted to make a life of my own in Seattle away from the Swan and Higginbottom names.

"So Rosalie didn't want to speak up because of me?"

"She thought Royce loved her," she mumbles.

I want to scream at how ridiculous it all sounded.

"You agreed to be with her when she gives her statement?"

She nods.

"Good, I wouldn't wish it on anyone to go through that alone," I say.

"I'm surprised that she asked, but I didn't think it was right to turn her away," Angela explains.

I want to say it's because she is a good person. I found myself lucky to have Angela as a friend and thought Rosalie was crazy to let her go as she did.

"When is she planning on giving her statement?" I ask.

"Friday," she breathes out.

"If either of you needs anything let me know," I tell her, reaching over to give her hand a squeeze.

"Thank you," she says.

This is one more thing I need to survive this week.

A/N: Check out Twi Fanfiction Recs website, a couple of my stories finished in 2021 are nominated for their Top 10 Fics Completed In 2021. Voting is open until Friday, February 25th, 2022. Thanks to all of you for reading and supporting my fics!