Author's Note:

Thank you for the comments and reviews, please keep them coming! Good or bad! As we get farther into the story, I might start holding polls to let YOU guys decide which major events should or should not occur. What do you all think? Yay or nay? Let me know in the comments. For now, enjoy another chapter of Dirty Los Angeles!

Xoxo

BPOV

Gross.

Did he really think that was attractive?

...I won't lie. It is a little attractive. And he's quite possibly the most beautiful man I've ever seen.

With skin too fair for someone who lives in California, covered in what looks like wild animal scratches. Maybe he wrestles lions.

He sort of looks like a lion, with that thick mane of rusty hair, almost crimson in the mid-afternoon sun. It stuck out like a flame on the beach. His body...I almost groaned aloud in appreciation. He had the body of an underwear model. He had a sturdy build, toned; he looked hard and soft all at once. The kind of body that belongs on a billboard high above Times Square. He exuded sex, and I suddenly felt like a dog in heat. I mentally smacked myself.

He just sat there, a satisfied little smirk on his beautiful lips, his sunglasses denying me a glimpse of his whole face. He stretched out like the lanky lion that he was and just laid there drinking his beer like there weren't about a hundred girls ogling him. Then there was his friend...Jessica called him Jasper Hale and promptly rolled her eyes. I didn't see anything wrong with him...he was almost as beautiful as Edward. Almost. He had the tall lean body of a surfer, shaggy blond hair and the most inviting set of lips I'd ever seen. He had soft green eyes and his smile sent shivers up my spine, far away as he was. He wiped out again and Edward cheered.

I sighed and played with the hem of my shirt, feeling out of place amongst the bronzed beauties that seemed to be preening and disrobing everywhere I looked. I was wearing a bikini top under my tee, but I cringed at the thought of taking it off. I wasn't the exhibitionist most people in LA apparently were. I pulled my cap lower over my eyes and drew my knees up, crossing my arms over them.

"You look like an undercover narc, Bella." Jessica giggled, yanking my cap off my head. "Show some skin, you're in California now. You're on Laguna Beach for crying out loud. You're way too white."

"I...burn easily?"

"Well no surprise there. Don't worry...we'll break you in. Every Sunday we come here to ogle the Cullen boys. Emmett's off somewhere with his girlfriend, otherwise he's a sweet eyeful too. Just you wait. And Jasper's Rosalie's brother...they're both like...supermodels or something."

"Dr. Cullen is a plastic surgeon." A girl named Lauren said, rather snottily.

"Yeah...so no surprise they're all fucking gorgeous. Look, here come Rosalie and Emmett."

I looked at the couple joining Edward and I almost cried. Rosalie was stunning. She had a cascade of soft blonde waves, a perfect fucking body, and a face like an angel. An angry angel. She caught me staring at her and scowled. I blushed furiously and busied myself with my drink.

"She's beautiful alright...but she's a total cunt. Don't cross her. This girl at school was flirting with Emmett on the football field one day and Rosalie came storming onto the field and just threw the poor girl down, grabbed a handful of her hair and uttered some pretty unladylike threats. It was all anyone could talk about for a month. She's crazy." Jessica gushed, as if she idolized the girl. I shuddered; she certainly looked intimidating.

I saw Alice in the water, and marvelled again at the fairy-like girl. She was so delicate, so cute. I wanted to take her home with me and show her off to Charlie. Sh's was in my English class and I had taken an immediate liking to her. She seemed fascinated by me, for reasons I couldn't fathom. She asked me about a hundred questions, where I was from, what Phoenix was like, what Forks was like, etc. When Mrs. Sinclair tutted at our incessant whispering we took to exchanging notes. She had invited me to the beach today, but Jessica and the girls had already included me in their plans. When I told Alice her face fell, but she perked up again and told me she'd have me over at the "pool house" soon so I could meet the gang. I hadn't known then that the "gang" clearly consisted of five freakishly beautiful people. I was terrified at the thought, what would I say to them? Surely we had nothing in common. And what was so special about me? I was plain enough to blend into the wallpaper, I was at Beverly Hills High for heaven's sake...the place was full of tall leggy gorgeous people. People with trendy clothes and perfect hair and nails. I looked down at my own unpolished nails and huffed.

"Guys, new girl needs more booze. She's bringing me down." Lauren sniffed. A girl named Angela handed me a can of beer with an apologetic smile. I liked her; she was shy like me, but tall, bespeckled and had an unconventional beauty about her. I made a mental note to get a manicure and pedicure, or something. I suddenly felt a little intimidated. My eyes crept back to the vision that was apparently Alice's cousin. My face grew hot at the thought of meeting him face to face. I had a tendency to be slightly maladroit around guys like him.

Well...around anyone, really. I think I tripped on my way out of the womb.

Alice came bouncing out of the surf and was towelling herself off when she spotted me.

"Oh hi, Bella!" She waved a small hand at me. I waved meekly back and gave her a shy grin. Edward turned lazily towards me to see who Alice was waving at, and again I was struck by the sheer sexuality of him. No wonder every woman (and a couple of men, might I add) within a thirty yard radius looked horny. Between him and Jasper the beach was rife with pheromones. I quickly lowered my eyes, afraid my body would betray me. I pulled my cap back on and adjusted my blanket. I picked up a book I had brought and hastily opened it to the bookmark, the words blurring into hazy black squiggles as I fought off images of Edward on top of me. With a shock I realized I was holding the book upside down. I grew about ten shades of red, righted the book and stuck my nose in it. Lauren chuckled.

EPOV

"Who's the nervous recluse?"

Alice laughed and snapped open a bottle of SPF 60 sun tan lotion. "Oh, that's Bella, the new girl. She just moved here from Forks, Washington."

"Hmm." I couldn't help but feel sorry for the poor girl. She probably had hideous scars or bad acne to have to cover herself up at the beach like that. "Hey Alice, get me a hot dog? I'm fucking starving."

"Get it yourself, your majesty."

"C'mon Alice...I'm wounded. Would you send a wounded man to his tired feet, in search of food and nourishment? Send him to face hoards of pre-teen valley girls making cow eyes at him? I'm only a man, Alice. A tired, hungry man-"

"Oh for god's sakes, Edward. God forbid the valley girls eat you alive." She snarled, abandoning her lotion and grabbing her purse.

"I love you, tiny dancer!" I called. I could hear her muttering as she left and felt a surge of love for the girl who had become like a sister to me.

I was about to flip over to let the sun work my back for a while, when I felt a cold shadow creep over me. Oh lord, it's the succubus come to waggle her tits in my face.

"What, Lauren?" I said, without looking up.

"Edward!" She breathed, standing over me with a distinct lady-leer plastered on her snooty face. "Can I interest you in a rubdown?"

I cocked an eyebrow at her, raised my sunglasses and gave her my best blank stare. She waggled a bottle of suntan lotion at me.

"Thanks, but I'm not interested."

She sighed dramatically. "I meant me, Edward! Please rub some lotion on me?"

"Why, do your friends all have broken wrists?" I sneered at her, put my shades back on and cracked open another beer.

"Edward!" She simpered. "Please? I like how you do it best. You've got incredible hands, and you used to rub me so good."

I couldn't help it – my cock twitched. But I wasn't having it. I felt itchy just standing near her, and I swear she had a cold sore on her lip.

"I know I did, baby. But I'm afraid I might catch something. I don't have my rubber gloves on me." She huffed indignantly, grabbed my beer out of my hand and promptly upended it on my head. I relished the cold frothy stream down my face and chest, although, what a waste of beer. I heard a chorus of giggles from the bod squad. I looked over and flashed them a lopsided grin, and was about to resume sun ripening my glorious back when I heard a commotion at the food stand. I looked over and saw Alice jabbing furiously at some guy's over pumped chest, sounding peeved. The guy, who was about the size of a small Volkswagen, reached out and snaked one of his beefy arms around her shoulders, holding her in place as she squirmed and tried to flail him with her tiny fists. I didn't wait to see what would happen next. I leapt up, strode as casually as I could manage to him, and as he turned around I cracked my fist against his nose. Someone screamed and I felt rough arms grab me from the behind and wrestle me to the ground.

"Don't you even fucking look at her! You touch her again I'll kill you mother—"

I felt a shattering blow to my head and heard Alice scream. I could hear angry shouts around me, and all I could see were white spots in front of my eyes. I reached out blindly to grab one of the assholes who surely wouldn't live to take his next steroid injection. I lunged and this time connected my fist to the second guy's skull. I heard another punch being delivered, and this time I saw the asshole who hit me go down with a dull thud. My eyes cleared and I saw Emmett standing over him, his fist cocked, his eyes murderous. The other guy had already turned tail and ran.

"Try it again, you sorry motherfucker." He snarled. The guy held up his hands, blood running down his nose.

"Ok man, ok. It was just a misunderstanding. He hit me first. I was just trying to get the bitch's number."

I reared back and threw myself over the guy, ready to break my fist on his face. Emmett pulled me off and pushed me roughly to the side.

"Let him go, Edward. There are kids around..." The guy growled, shoved himself off the ground and stood there clenching and unclenching his fists for a moment, and then lumbered off. I watched him leave, resisting the urge to go after him. I looked over at Alice and saw the stricken look on her face.

"I'm fine." I growled. Emmett clapped me on the back and handed me a wad of tissues from the food stand, which he told me to press to the side of my head. Only then did I feel the warm trickle of blood down my cheek. I swiped at it angrily and noticed a dozen or so girls standing around us, mouths agape, looking terrified.

"I think it's time to head home." Alice whispered in a shaky voice. Before I could argue the others were packing up the blanket and beers and heading back to Emmett's car.