It's Almost Normal

RIIING

RIIIING

RIIING

"Ugh." I muttered, ignoring my screeching phone as I snuggled deeper into the bed, I pulled Bella's sleeping body closer to mine and turned into her brown hair. When my phone stopped ringing, I was more than happy to lay there in quiet. I knew I had to be at work, but it was so much harder waking up in the mornings than it was before.

Because she was always here with me, so for the first time in I don't know how long, I was actually sleeping.

Bella didn't move in by any means, but she basically should have at this point. We were here most nights, or sometimes we went to her place. Sometimes Angela stayed over in the guest bedroom the nights she worked at the office. We had fallen into a nice little routine Bella and I. I waited for the stresses that came with dating someone that I worked with, but it never came. We were able to separate work life and our dating life for the most part.

KNOCK

KNOCK

KNOCK

KNOCK

"Ugh what!" I yelled at my bedroom door. Angela pushed the double doors open, she was standing there looking tired as she held out her cell phone toward me. Bella groaned and pulled the pillow over her head but said nothing as I took the cell phone to my ear.

"Hello?"

"It's me! Get to work now! You have six meetings and everyone is driving me crazy where the fuck is Bella!? And where are you?" Renesme yelled into the receiver.

"It's my day off." Bella groaned from beside me.

"I don't care!" Was all she said before she hung up the phone. I jumped a little at her tone and dial tone that came when she hung up the phone. I handed the phone back to a half dead Angela and she walked out of the room half asleep.

"You have three meetings with energy productions today you gotta go." She mumbled into my skin.

"I'd really rather fucking not." I said as I held her, her dark brown sex hair was glorious as she sat and passed her hand through it, the diamond that I gave her shimmering, it was enough to grab anyone's attention and that's what I wanted. We weren't married.

But she was fucking mine.

No one was taking her from me. Maybe it sounded a little caveman, a little possessive but I didn't care. I was a man possessed.

"You have to, you have to drive Ang to school remember." She said falling back into the bed and hugging her pillow. I envied that pillow.

"Alright, Alright." I whispered getting up and placing a little kiss on her shoulder before I went into the bathroom to get ready for the day. I showered, shaved threw some cologne on. Looked dapper as usual. When I was done getting ready Bella was still laying in bed, dead to the world.

"Don't be late for our dinner," I warned her knowing she had this tendency to be late. Bella was late every day for work, all our meetings, all our work dinners. I always told her not to be late but we both knew she'd be late. She drove me fucking nuts in the moments that I'd be waiting for her but then she'd burst through, a whirlwind of "sorry I was late" and would grab everyone with her charm and whit.

"Yah." She mumbled still in bed. I snapped my watch on as I left the room and went downstairs to find Angela waiting for me in her schoolgirl uniform that was too short, because I knew she also had a tendency to roll it up. Whenever I dropped her at school it was an argument. Bella and I were basically raising this annoying ass teenager and there were times I worried so much about her and what she was doing I had to remind myself that she had parents. But then I'd remind myself that they were just about nowhere to be found half of the time.

"This is the style." She argued.

"Go roll it down I'm not even in the mood to argue with you today." I said with a no nonsense tone. The last thing we fucking needed was her bringing home another married fucking teacher. I still couldn't believe that's what brought her and Bella together and when she told me the situation, I almost filed a police report against the idiot, how dare he take advantage of this teenager? Bella convinced me to keep quiet though, the last thing we needed was putting Angela through that.

"Whatever." She said going into the powder room to fix herself up, I locked up and the both of us made way to the underground parking lot where the vanquish was ready for us. It was one of my favorites.

"How many cars do you even have?" She asked as we got in and I backed up out of the spot.

"A lot." I answered walking around and getting in the drivers side. Angela yawned and read through her textbook as I sped to the school.

"I'm not coming in today, I'm going to cotillion rehearsal and then I'm going to a beach party so I won't be home till Sunday." She informed me as she read her textbook.

"Did you tell Bella?"

"Yeah, she said to just make sure one of you knew where I was at all times." She rolled her eyes. Not taking her eyes up from that book, I said nothing not really comfortable with her going but I didn't say that. Again, there was that nagging voice in the back of my head that reminded me that Bella and I were guiding her but we were by no means her parents. We couldn't stop Angela from going anywhere. There was a part of me that wondered why I even cared so much, but I guess it was an attachment I had to not just her but to all of them. Like I said, it was kind of always just Renesme and I. I had never had that extended care with more than one person. We kind of all looked out for each other and it was… nice. Nice to belong to a family kind of thing. When I got to the private school that I myself attended many years ago, I watched as the curious teenagers stared at Angela in envy. I knew she was pretty popular before we came into her life, but the constant rides she got in this car or the convertible probably spiked her already high popularity.

"Alright you got everything?" I asked.

"Yeah." She said opening the door. Before she left she turned to look at me and smiled, that bright smile I'm sure she got from Bella, cause Bella did it all the time. "I promise I'm going to be okay… don't worry about me too much." She said knowing I was holding back on voicing my concerns. I just smiled at her before she bounded off into the school, and when she thought I couldn't see rolled her skirt back up before she walked off with her friends.

OOOoo

"Okay so I just want to let you know that this contract is one hundred percent exclusive to us, you can definitely take it look it over have your people call my people. I know you're being head hunted right now but I want you on my team you have great talent." I said to the young writer that was in front of me who I was trying to get to sign my contract. Bella found him online, he was making waves in the YA online fiction market. He was a trailblazer, I could tell. The blonde-haired kid looked up at me skeptical.

"The last guys legit tried to rip me off."

"I genuinely don't doubt it." I said leaning back in the chair. "That's why I'm giving you full time to look over everything, with a lawyer of your choice you can come back to me you can change things. It's going to be a mutual beneficial agreement-

"Edward." Said Renesme walking into my office. I held my hands out in annoyance, she knew I hated to be interrupted. She knew way better than that.

"I know." She said to my aggravated look. She said nothing as Embry appeared beside her dressed smartly in a suit. I quirked my eyebrow looking at him curiously. "I told him you were in a meeting. He didn't listen." She said through gritted teeth. I looked back at my client.

"I can leave, I gotta look over this stuff anyways I will definitely be in touch." He got up hastily shaking my hand before getting his stuff and leaving the room followed by Renesme who was repeating apologies to him. Embry walked in and closed the door behind him, I leaned in my chair.

"Very nice renovations on this place… you're like on top of the world here." He said as he walked around my expansive office. He went to the large floor to ceiling windows with his hands shoved in his pocket.

"Yeah, what do you want?" I asked cutting to the chase, not in the mood to be nice and cordial, especially with him.

"A guy can't come and see an old friend?"

"I would hardly call us that." I answered. The both of us stared each other down for a few seconds before he sat in the chair across for me. His eyes zeroed in on the picture of Bella on my desk and I looked at him. "What are you doing here Embry." I asked the man I grew up with but could barely look at now.

"You know that despite everything that I have done, I care about you?"

I just stared, leaning in my chair. He knew I wasn't going to take the bait.

"Your girlfriend, Bella."

"What about her?" I asked defensively, quickly, daring him to say anything out of order about her.

"Can you trust her? Tanya and I both agree we think she's off."

"You? ….Think she's off…? And I'm supposed to just listen to you? You don't even know her."

"Neither do you." He shot back.

"Where is this coming from?"

"I saw her talking to Alec Volturi at the party, they seemed very chum chummy and what does a girl like her know about Alec Volturi-

"A girl like her?"

"Look I'm not here to judge anyone, but it's no secret she's not exactly you know…Elite like the rest of us."

"Not that it's any of your business but she went to Stanford and that's where she met Alec Volturi. They were chum chummy because they used to go to keggers together when she was a college student." I answered to his guilty looking face.

"Now if you're done insulting my girlfriend, I think I can see you out." I said getting up. He turned to look at me.

"Edward…. I know we've said this a million times but look we never meant to hurt you, and I would hate it absolutely hate it… if you got hurt again after everything you've been through… after everything we put you through." He said softly, before he left the office and I let out a breath going to my desk and sitting back in my chair. Of course, I had always known that there was going to be people that did not approve of us, I didn't even approve of us at first due to my own superficial notions. But people didn't understand, she was different… this was different. More different than I had with anyone I've ever been with. It wasn't just nice to come home and someone be there, I craved her at the end of each day. I needed her and her stupid sloppy joes. I started this relationship off in the dumbest way possible but it wasn't my intentions with her anymore. I wasn't trying to use Bella… I loved her. Renesme came barreling through the door holding both the company phones in her hand.

"What the hell did he want?"

"To be an ass." I answered going to my desk and sitting behind it. "He doesn't trust Bella."

"I don't trust him…. He's a fucking slut and a liar and a homewrecker." She said childishly as she took a seat. I said nothing as I leaned into my chair again.

"This is what I didn't want."

"What? People judging her and tearing her apart you knew this would happen. But if you care about her… fuck em." She said It was silent for a while and I finally decided to voice how I feel.

"I think I love her Renesme." Said quietly. My eyes met hers and she smiled softly, slowly..

"Edward… that's great." She said quietly. "If there's anybody that deserves this its you. You deserve to be happy." She croaked quietly. Just then the door bust open and there she was in a red sundress, hair in a ponytail looking as beautiful as ever.

"What are we doing?" She asked as she danced in, throwing her bag on the couch. I got up and took her into my arms. I kissed the top of her head.

"I just finishing up work, before we go out to eat. Look at you surprisingly on time." I said sarcastically. She threw her head back and laughed she shoved me a little. Renesme got up and ushered us out of the office.

"Your car is downstairs anyways. You guys have to go." Was all she said before she closed the door behind us and we left the building.

OOOOo

"I'm telling you, you two are definitely the only two I will ever see work so seamlessly together my ex-wife and I most definitely got divorced because we just couldn't pull it off." Tyler Crowley said as we sat in an intimate candle lit dinner at a private reserved area of the restaurant. Bella looked at me amusement dancing in her eyes.

"Its not easy but I wouldn't have it any other way." I joked.

"He lied its easy I'm a walk in the park." She assured him. He laughed and as the waitress filled our glasses he got down to business.

"You know as fun as this has been I'm here to discuss the future of the relationship between Crowley Inc and Cullen Inc and I genuinely love what you have done with your company Edward I foresee amazing things." He said.

"But-

Bella edged with a little smile.

"But can I trust you two with the public handlings of this relationship. It's not just your company it would be mine and I know how much a first movie can flop. A production company is a lot this is more than just FanFic here… we're talking Hollywood you don't think the two of you are way in over your heads here?"

"Definitely not… I know Hollywood like the back of my hand trust me… I can handle it Edward and I can handle it we just need the support of Crowley Inc." Bella reasoned softly.

"Well if that's the case… I would need one of you in LA off and on for the next year. For this to work I'd need that from the two of you." He said. Bella stiffened and I felt the air grow tense because she didn't say anything, but after a few moments she nodded.

"Done." I answered.

"Good." He said closing the deal, leaving Bella pale and me confused.

OOOOoo

"Do you plan on telling me what the problem … is?" I asked Bella confused as I watched her walk around her apartment, cleaning nothing.

"Problem? Why would there be a problem we just closed a huge deal."

"Problem you're doing that thing."

"Thing?"

"Yeah, whenever you're hiding from me you pretend like everything is okay but you meticulously clean nothing." I pointed out.

"Did you check on Angela?" She asked as she sprayed the countertop that she previously sprayed five times.

"Yes, I did she's fine. Pretending she's not drunk but she's fine." I said taking her cleaning supplies and placing them on the counter. I took her face in my hands and made her look at me.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"I…. can't go to LA…. I can't be the one that goes there."

"Okay that's fine do you want to tell me why?"

"… It reminds me of when I lived there… when I went to Stanford."

"It brings back painful memories?"

"Yes… and other things."

"Bella, look…. I love you." I said regretting the minute I said it because it made her look sick but she didn't throw up or anything. She just stood still. "I put a ring on your finger as a symbol of how serious I was about you and us. How committed I was to moving on from my past." I said. She just nodded.

"I know."

"And I don't think you've done that. I don't even know your past… I know more about the mail guy who comes into the office than I know about you and I'm in love with you… I'm not going to push you on why you seem to be terrified of going back to a city that you're not even from, but I am going to push you to fix your issues because it's the only way you and I are going to build a life. I need to know who I'm building with. I'm not going to continue to be in love with a ghost." I said in a soft tone. She had tears in her eyes and crossed her arms but didn't say anything. I took her into my arms gently and kissed her forehead and then kissed her hand. I got up promptly and with one last squeeze left her apartment and left her alone to think about the ultimatum I just gave her. Hoping that if she had to choose between our future and her past, she chose me, because I'd choose her a million times over if I had to.

OOOOoo

Sorry about taking so long to update… life. I also fixed the last chapter I noticed for some reason there were not scene breaks so it just seemed like one run one chapter …. Don't know why or how that happened but its fixed. I'll be posting again soon. Don't forget to review, thanks so much.

OOOOo