Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

AN: Hey, everyone! So just a quick note - we're nearing the end here. There are 4 chapters left (including this one) and an epilogue. Thank you all SO MUCH for your support and notes. Never thought this little "distraction", as I called it, would draw such an incredible response. I'm just blown away by it. Huge hugs to all of you!

Suggested Listening: "Long Journey" by Sarah Jarosz

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When Bella opened the door to her home, the first thing that greeted her was the aromatic scent of garlic.

Frowning in confusion, she stepped into the hallway, quietly closing the door behind her. Shrugging out of her jacket, she hung it up, craning her neck to see into the kitchen. Some little part inside her reminded her to be wary, considering she had no idea who was in her home or what was going on.

Still, she moved toward the kitchen anyway, knowing if someone had broken into her home, it was highly unlikely they stopped to cook a meal on the way out.

Reaching the kitchen doorway, Bella's frown dissolved, replaced by a curious smile as she leaned against the doorframe. As she was greeted by the sight of Quil standing in front of her stove, bent over it as he stared intently at a pan on the burner. Behind it was another pot, steaming as water rolled and boiled inside of it.

When Quil attempted to reach into the pan to adjust whatever was cooking in it, Bella's hand shot to her mouth to stifle the laugh when he pulled his finger back with a cry, the appendage falling victim to the hissing oil in the pan.

Bella took a deep breath. "What are you doing?" she asked softly through her fingers.

Quil threw a glance over his shoulder and was greeted by Bella's raised eyebrows and curious smile. "Cooking, woman. What's it look like I'm doing?"

Bella let her hand fall to her side. "You don't cook, Quil…"

"Ha," Quil barked. "That's what you think." He turned back toward the stove, thinking better that time as he grabbed a wooden spoon from the utensil canister next to the stove. "I may or may not be sneaking over to Emily's on the weekend, because rumor has it, women appreciate a man who can cook."

"You know, I think I've heard that, too," Bella responded, lifting one sly eyebrow as Quil offered her a bright smile over his shoulder.

It was then Bella noticed the absence of little feet, a pair she normally heard running up the hallway to greet her when she got off work and Quil was already there.

"Where's Maddie?" she asked.

"She's at Emily's," Quil responded quickly. "Figured maybe it could just be you and me tonight…"

Bella heard him, but her gaze was pulled toward the table, which was immaculately set with two place settings. Quil had even pulled out her good wine glasses, and there was an unopened bottle of red sitting between the two plates. Bella could feel her smile widen, her breath still managing to catch in her throat when her eyes fell on the last piece of the decorated table. On the glass vase holding a small bouquet of brilliant pink and white lilies.

Blinking in disbelief, Bella looked back to Quil, only to find him already watching her with a coy grin on his mouth.

"Are those for me?" Bella murmured, one finger drifting toward the flowers.

"Not sure who else they'd be for," Quil replied knowingly, still smiling as he straightened, wiping his hands on his jeans.

Bella swallowed, feeling that warmth in the pit of her stomach - one she'd been feeling a lot of lately. "Is this...all for me?"

Glancing quickly at the stove, Quil grinned proudly, watching Bella as she pushed herself off the doorframe, slowly making her way across the kitchen. Eyeing the table, the stove, and finally the man standing in front of her.

"Well, we didn't really do anything on your birthday, so I thought I'd make up for it by celebrating the fact it's Friday or something," he explained with a chuckle, his eyes lingering on Bella for a moment before he turned them on the stove. Before he motioned to the sizzling pan and boiling pot. "Hope you like Italian, Swan. Can't promise you it'll be worth much considering I've never even made spaghetti before...like, ever. But dammit...I'm gonna try."

Coming to a stop beside him, Bella leaned against the kitchen counter, eyeing the contents of the stove. "Looks like you're doing pretty good to me."

Quil chuckled, chest swelling as he appraised his limited handiwork. A few moments passed before he glanced down, meeting Bella's eyes. Before he let out a breath.

"Well, just in case…"

Bella missed it when he moved, unsure of what was happening before she felt a pair of warm hands on her waist. Until she felt her body turn, a surprised cry escaping her throat when her feet left the ground. She wasn't sure exactly how she ended up sitting on the kitchen counter next to the stove. Regardless, she was there.

And Quil was still standing in front of her.

"You can hang out right here and supervise," he murmured, his dark eyes dancing playfully. Bella realized his hands were still on her waist, the same moment she could feel that warmth inside her spreading. Growing exponentially with each passing moment.

"You know, just to make sure we actually have something edible by the time I get done here," he continued with a lift of his eyebrow. "Call it quality control."

Quil went to step away, but Bella's hand reached out, not waiting for the rest of her to catch up when it curled around his t-shirt.

"Hey…"

Quil's gaze pierced hers, the sound of her voice stopping him. She tugged, not even sure why she did, until he was back where he was. Until he was back in front her. Until his eyes lowered to her hand, which still held a fistful of t-shirt, before lifting back to hers.

"Thank you...for this," she said quietly, her gaze lowering swiftly to the stove, traveling over Quil's shoulder toward the table before landing once again on him. "I love it."

Quil didn't respond. Instead, he only smiled - the kind of smile he didn't give anyone. One that was soft, sincere, and filled with a million words that probably wouldn't come out right if he tried to speak them.

A smile Bella swore she only ever saw him give to her.

And it was enough to make the warmth inside her multiply. To make her fingers tremble in a way she couldn't explain, even though she tried to temper it by wrapping them tighter around Quil's shirt. Even though it only got worse the longer he stayed where he was and the longer she looked into those eyes.

In the end though, she didn't have to move. She didn't have to let go, because Quil moved for her. He moved closer.

Because in a single moment, his hands were cupping her face and he was kissing her and he was everywhere.

Kissing Quil was nothing new. Since the night of Bella's date, there were less reservations between her and Quil. It was almost like that moment - where she held Quil and he let her - had created some kind of a need for touch. Boundaries had fallen, creating a need for some semblance of intimacy between the two of them. The attraction to it was strong, and Bella found herself fighting it less and less. Accepting his kisses just as eagerly as Quil gave them.

But this one was different. This one was like the first one they shared, that night in her kitchen two months earlier. It was one that could easily lead to more, if they weren't careful.

But in that moment - as Quil gently nipped at her lower lip, as his hands moved tantalizingly slow down her frame, as Bella felt his body nestled between her thighs - the reasons why it shouldn't be more were blurrier than ever.

It was easy to lose track, but she didn't. Blurry or not, she somehow took in everything - the way Quil's mouth moved eagerly against hers, the way his hands dug into her waist. How he pulled her closer to him, her body balancing perfectly on the edge of the counter as she let her arms wrap tightly around his neck.

She closed her eyes, lips parting against his, releasing a silent gasp when his fingers found the skin beneath her shirt.

God, she didn't understand...how every touch caused her skin to tingle and the heat inside her to intensify, escalating her need. Why it never did before. Still, a part of her didn't want to understand, because whatever it was heightened a desire she knew much too well those days - one every nerve in Bella's body made her completely aware of in those moment. Reminding her she felt it more than she realized, whenever Quil came too close. Whenever he kissed her.

Because all of it - all of Quil - made her feel alive, in a way she hadn't been sure she'd ever feel again.

Bella brought her hands up, taking Quil's face between them as she turned her own, recapturing his mouth. Taking his bottom lip between hers, Bella shuddered at the soft moan she swept away with her mouth. How she let Quil pull away anyway, tracing soft, heated kisses along her jaw until he reached her ear, his breath tickling her flesh as her hands dug roughly into his shoulders.

How three words inexplicably brought everything to a crashing halt.

"Be with me…"

He whispered them, so softly Bella wasn't sure she heard him right. Still, she knew she had in the way everything inside her inexplicably lurched, sweeping away the flames threatening to consume her. The finality of them knocking the breath from her lungs and causing her body to tense beneath Quil's hands.

But there was no pretending she hadn't heard him, because Quil had picked up on everything. Every reaction from Bella's body a single moment after he spoke them.

Pulling back, Quil's earnest eyes caught Bella's bewildered gaze.

How despite the way she probably looked on the outside, inside she had seen it coming, too.

Bella's cheeks were on fire, her hands still clinging to Quil's shoulders. "What did you say?"

Quil pulled in a deep lungful of air before releasing it, even though his chest still heaved, still breathless from moments earlier.

"Be with me," he repeated, leaning forward and capturing her cheek with the palm of his hand. "And I don't mean for a couple minutes, or just for tonight. I mean...all the time. For good, Bella."

Bella's lips parted, her heart suddenly pounding in her chest, unsure of how to respond to what Quil said. She knew what he meant - he didn't have to explain it to her. She could see it in his eyes, the certainty in them. How everything he'd done - every day in the past eighteen months - only reinforced the reasons why it made so much sense.

Bella knew - to an outsider, it wasn't a huge question. It wasn't a big segue from what they were doing in that moment to what Quil was asking of her.

But it was. To her, it was. Something about his request was bigger. More final than anything they had done before.

It meant more...to him, to her. To everything.

And no matter how blurry things got, no matter how much her insides burned, succombing to it completely meant something else.

Bella's gaze inherently fell, still holding her breath. Her heart still pounded, even as her eyes accidentally landed on the glimmering, dark green gem resting on the third finger of her left hand.

And in that moment, she knew exactly what Quil's request meant. What it signified beyond the words he spoke.

In that moment, it was enough to make her hesitate. To stop moving completely.

"Bella…" Quil's whispered voice brought her out of her head. "Say something."

Blinking rapidly, she glanced up, finding Quil's suddenly troubled eyes already watching her. She took a deep breath, trying like hell to smile even though she was sure the gesture was less than convincing.

"What happened to taking things one day at a time?" she whispered, the smile faltering when she finally spoke the words.

Quil shook his head, his eyes falling to her lap, his other hand still resting on her thigh. "I can't...I can't keep going like that."

Bella swallowed, leaning into his palm anyway. "Why not?"

Quil sighed heavily. "Because, Bella...the entire time I was doing that, I still hand one damn finger holding on to what we lost, and...I can't do that anymore, even if it's harder than hell to admit," Quil insisted. "I want to stop looking back. I want to move on."

His fingers were trailing the length of her cheek, and Bella found herself once again holding her breath.

"And...I want to move on with you, Bella," Quil continued, his eyes intense and sure. "I want to be with you...like, all the way with you. Every day. I want to hold your hand in public and kiss you in front of the pack and maybe sleep with you in your bed sometime instead of just falling asleep together on the couch," Quil pushed on, his features warm but filled with resolve. "Because...I think I love you, Bella. And I know that's what it is because I've never felt this way about anyone, ever, and I want to be next to you. I want to be here, with you and Maddie. All the time...forever...or at least as long as you'll have me."

Bella blinked, feeling an inexplicable burning in her eyes, her lungs refusing air as she watched Quil. As she let what he said sink in, seeing every single emotion behind his words playing across his expression, reinforcing the truth in his words.

Proving to Bella he meant every single one.

I think I love you, Bella...

How her heart sank just a little bit, unsure if she could give him the same in return. At least not in that moment.

How, in the exact same moment, her heart was filled all the same.

When her silence became too much, Quil shook his head again. "You don't have to say it back, because I know I'm kind of springing it on you. Even if you don't, I'm not sure I could even walk away from you and Maddie at this point. I really don't. But if you do…" He paused, and Bella didn't miss the flicker of hope and certainty in his eyes. "If you think you might, or that someday you might be able to, I'm asking you to trust it," he pushed on, holding her gaze. "That if you want to let go, too, Bella, I'm promising you it'll be okay."

Bella waited several long moments before she answered, unsure of whether or not she should say anything but knowing she owed it to Quil to at least be honest, no matter what.

"I don't know if I can," Bella whispered, hating the way the words sounded. Hating what they meant in the face of what Quil was offering her.

What he could offer her family, and what he had already given them.

Even if he was already a part of it. Even if he had been for a long time.

"I don't know if I'm ready…"

Quil nodded, looking down but not quickly enough to hide the spark of disappointment in his eyes. "I get it," he breathed. "You still love him. I get it, and that's okay if you do." He looked up, that disappointment gone, replaced by another firm sincerity, one that held Bella in place. "But I think you should remember...that just because you might love someone else now doesn't mean you'll love Embry any less, Bella. It's different, the way you might love me compared to how you loved him. It's not the same. Just like it's not the same as Jacob loves Anna, or Paul loves Rachel. It's all different, and so am I. I've never tried to replace him, Bella, and this wouldn't be any different. I can promise you that, too."

Bella took a deep breath, her mouth offering him a smile despite that single strand of reluctance holding her back. How her hands lifted anyway, one finding a home on his cheek while the other pushed through his disheveled hair.

"I know," she whispered. "I just need...a little more time." She clung to him, her eyes widening beneath her plea, trying to reassure him that a little time would make a difference. That it would make it easier for her.

Quil nodded again, his gaze falling to the counter beside her, his lips pressed into a thin line. Releasing a heavy breath, Bella hated herself for making him look that way. She hated the ache inside her, the one she still felt when Quil mentioned Embry's name, and the way it still managed to hold her back.

How that one little strand still tying her to what they lost refused to let her fully embrace who was standing in front of her.

She just needed a little more time…

Reaching up, she again took Quil's face between her hands, urging him to look at her. Surprised at how easily he complied, she tried to smile - she tried to reassure him - as she leaned forward, pressing a single, soft kiss to his lips.

Hoping maybe the simple action would speak louder than her words possibly could.

And he lingered, drawing it out. Breathing her in, even when Bella pulled away. Even when he leaned forward again, stealing another kiss. Hanging onto that moment and hoping she would allow it.

She did.

But before she could think differently, Bella heard the distant ringing of her cell phone.

Groaning, Quil dropped his gaze to her lap just before shooting a withering glance toward the hallway.

Smiling, Bella let her fingers trail down the length of his jaw until he finally looked back.

"Can you grab that for me?"

Returning her smile, Quil nodded, pushing himself off the counter and swiftly disappearing into the hallway. In the handful of moments he was gone, Bella lowered herself from the counter to the floor, straightening her shirt before turning to the stove, realizing the pasta was probably overcooked at that point.

She had just grabbed a fork from the drawer and was pulling a noodle from the pot to test it when Quil returned, offering her the still-ringing phone.

"It's Emily," he offered, and Bella was thankful for the smile he gave her when she turned to take the phone.

"Thanks," she said, popping the noodle in her mouth just as she answered the phone. "Hello?"

"Bella? Oh, thank god, you answered. Bella, listen to me…"

Placing the fork on the counter, Bella took a step away from the stove, something in the tone of Emily's voice demanding her attention. Immediately putting her senses and her body on high alert. As she turned away from the appliance, she could see Quil's face, realizing he could probably hear the other woman.

Realizing he looked exactly how she felt.

"Emily? Slow down. What's wrong?"

Emily's voice was borderline hysterical, the words she said next turning every ounce of blood in Bella's body to ice.

"Bella, you need to come. We're on the way to the hospital. Maddie's already there. There's been an accident."

TRUST ME!

Aside from the obvious cliffy...thoughts?