Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended.

A/N: Bella POV occurs after chapter 11.

Love and squee's go to Mojo40, avidreader69 and ashley0125 for making sure that, you know, this wasn't total crap.

I'm a smart person. I did exceptionally well on my SATs, was in the top ten percent of my senior class and was accepted into the University of Texas.

I've always been known to make good decisions. I carry mace with me at all times (Charlie is annoyingly persistent), and the one time I went shopping with Alice after we each consumed a pitcher of margarita's (okay, not so much a good decision), I didn't purchase the mustard yellow skinny jeans she tried to convince me to buy.

Only ever having one serious boyfriend, and sleeping with less guys than fingers on one hand, I didn't consider myself inexperienced nor slutty. Let's just say, when it came to life, I had been known to play it safe.

That all went to shit the day I met Edward Cullen.

He gave good banter; it was just a fact. Good banter was hard to come by these days. But the thing that really got me was the jaw and the hair that fell into his eyes as he tried so hard to be a douche and the jaw. Yes, it's that good.

But even when he was being a douche, bragging to his friends about sleeping with girls and drinking Jäger like it was vital for his life, I saw past all of that. Even in the beginning, even when I knew he hurt people for the sake of getting what he wanted. What he thought he needed. Which, honestly, wasn't much.

It was true. Edward didn't ask much of people. All he really expected was for people to accept him for who he was, yet he didn't even know who he was. All of his Edward-ness just sort of consumed me from the first time I realized he was going to weasel his way into my life after he helped me jump my truck.

Now here I was, almost two months into this screwed up plan, standing in the bathroom, crying my eyes out.

What did I do? What the fuck did I do?

That was the stupid question I kept asking myself over and over again in my head. Okay, so maybe I shouldn't be asking what, but more why?

Why did I do that?

Another stupid question. I knew why I slept with Edward and I sure as hell wasn't going to admit it, even to myself.

I rolled a few sheets of toilet paper into a wad, blew my nose, and pulled my hair back. Even cold water didn't seem to help clear my swollen, tear stained face.

I couldn't let myself wallow too much; there was no hint of remorse in my tears. I wasn't one of those people who did things only to regret them later. The decisions I made in my life were my own and I owned up to them.

"Are you almost done in there?"

I jumped from Rosalie's voice and the sharp knock that accompanied her icy tone.

"Yeah," I mumbled before turning off the faucet and unlocking the door, hoping it would be dark enough in the hallway to hide my puffy eyes.

"What are you doing in here? You and Edward made sure to choose the bigger bedroom with the bathroom," Rosalie snapped. Even at three in the morning, the girl had attitude.

Staring in disbelief, I shrugged and tried to exit the bathroom. Rosalie stepped in front of me, blocking my path.

"Bella."

"The bathroom is all yours, Rosalie. Sorry for using it without your permission," I snapped, not wanting to put up with her shit.

"Why were you crying?" she asked in a weird tone.

"I wasn't," I lied.

She sighed as she stepped aside. "I knew you wouldn't last."

"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked, not making a move.

Rosalie stared at me for a long minute before speaking. "I just didn't think you had it in you, Swan," she said smugly.

"What?" I asked, smoothing my hair down with my hand. I obviously had that just fucked look going on.

Rosalie let out some sort of laugh that let me know she knew exactly what had just happened. "Actually, I guess you did last longer than any other girl."

"Do you realize what time it is? You can refrain from being a bitch right now. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone," I whispered harshly.

"No judgement. The Cullen charm is hard to resist. It's good to know you're not a lesbian; we were all getting a little worried."

"Again, you can refrain from-"

"Bella." Rosalie put her hand up to stop me from talking. "Let me just ask one thing: what are you expecting to get out of this? Besides the money."

I blinked. Apparently she did know everything, and not just about the sex. Well, fine. It wasn't exactly my secret to keep, anyway. Although, I did divulge the plan to Alice and Jasper. Sue me.

What are you expecting to get out of this?

That was an easy question, or so I thought. Yet, when I opened my mouth to answer, nothing came out.

"That's what I thought," Rosalie said, almost melancholy. "How could you let this happen?"

"Let what happen?"

"You're stupid for falling in love with him. You realize that, right?" Rosalie's voice dropped to almost a whisper.

"I'm not in love with him," I said with exasperation. "He's...an awful person who smokes way too much and only cares about himself. He doesn't even cover his mouth when he sneezes!"

"That's not exactly a deal breaker," Rosalie frowned. "He ate your burned toast."

"That was a fluke. He was obviously high or something and he...he's just not-"

"Who you thought he'd be, right?"

I fell silent, my thoughts drifting back to last night when Edward told me about his parents. "What game are you trying to play here?"

"No game, Bella." Rosalie smiled, like genuinely smiled and said, "I don't even know you but, for some reason, I don't want you to get hurt."

Whoa, what the actual fuck? Blondie was giving me whiplash.

"Okay. Thanks?" I wasn't too sure how to respond to that.

"I'm a bitch, sure. I just don't take the time to get to know Edward's friends because they don't usually stick around for long."

Rosalie stopped talking as we heard footsteps approaching down the hall.

"Babe, what are you doing?" Emmett asked with sleep in his voice. He looked pretty shocked to see me standing in the doorway of the bathroom. "You're playing nice, right?"

Rosalie slapped Emmett's bare chest, and said, "Of course!"

He and his brother really were built so differently. I preferred Edward's long, lean stature. The way his jeans hung off his ass. The way his-

"She giving you a hard time?" Emmett asked me, cutting off all thoughts of his brother's body.

"Nah, Rosalie? Never."

Emmett's throaty laugh was infectious, causing me to give him a tiny smile.

"What'd my brother do this time?" he asked seriously.

Rosalie and I exchanged a glance. It wasn't friendly or even anything really noticeable. Just my silent plea to make sure she didn't open her big mouth about just having slept with Edward. I was shocked that she caught on. Blondie was perceptive.

"Your idiot brother is in the bathroom, so Bella had to use this one," Rosalie said with a roll of her eyes.

Emmett, who isn't as dumb as he looks, stared at me for a second in the dim light of the hallway. "Make sure he gets you back to Austin safely, okay? I need to pee, so..."

We did some awkward tango until I was finally out of the doorway. Once the bathroom door was safely shut, Rosalie shook her head.

"I realize this situation of yours isn't ideal," she whispered so Emmett couldn't hear. "Can I make a suggestion?" she asked, then began speaking before I could answer. "Just finish this thing out and get the money. Edward is an idiot and I don't see you not getting hurt."

"Right. Because he's an idiot," I repeated.

"Exactly. Not that I think any of this is fair. Whatever, Edward is an idiot for even agreeing to pay you."

"Actually, it was Emmett's idea to have Edward pay me," I pointed out.

Apparently, Rosalie didn't know this little bit of information. She shrugged, trying to play it off. I knew she'd give Emmett hell once Edward and I left.

Standing in the hallway, fatigue overtook me and I realized I was on the verge of tears. Forcing myself to not regret any of this was becoming harder by the second.

"Thanks for the advice," I said coolly, my voice never faltering. "I'll definitely take all of this information into consideration."

"No problem." She gave me a tight-lipped smile. "I'm sorry if I was ever rude to you or something. I just don't see a point in getting too close, you know?"

Was this girl for real?

I gave her the same smile she gave me and said, "No need to apologize. It really doesn't suit you."

This made her laugh. "You're funny. Way too nice for your own good, but you're funny."

"See you tomorrow," I said before practically running back to the bedroom.

I quietly shut the door behind me and crawled into bed next to a sleeping Edward. Sleep would have been awesome, but I don't really think that was an option for me. Especially not after the conversation I just had with Rosalie.

What was I expecting to get out of this?

Money was definitely the main reason. I knew with that kind of money, I could finish paying for school and could help Charlie with the cost of my Gram's assisted living. I would never actually admit that to anyone though; none of them would understand.

If I was being honest with myself, which was becoming harder and harder these days, this plan seemed flawless in the beginning. I thought I would occasionally hang with Edward, go to a few family functions and then, eventually, get my money. But somewhere along the way, things changed and, fuck, Rosalie was right. I was going to get hurt.

Rolling over to face Edward, I waited for my eyes to adjust to the dark so I could stare at him. It was a lot less stalkerish than it sounded. He looked so nice and normal while sleeping. In reality, he could have been the devil.

He had issues, obviously. Who agrees to pay someone that much money just to pretend to date them? Then again, who agrees to be paid to pretend to date someone?

I had my own issues, too, and I hoped Edward wouldn't realize I was as broken as he was.

As I drifted off to sleep, James' face kept interfering with any peace I almost had. I realized I had lied to myself; I did feel regret.

Regret that I let Edward kiss me earlier; regret that I pretended to not notice he had started looking at me differently; but most of all, regret that I had let part of my wall down, allowing myself to eventually get hurt again.

I got about an hour of sleep before I had to get up and call Alice. I felt horrible with it being almost five in the morning, but I knew she'd understand.

She picked up on the fourth ring. "Bella?"

"Alice. Sorry it's so early," I said quietly, hiding in the bathtub behind the closed curtain. I wasn't sure how light of a sleeper Edward was and I couldn't have him walking in, thinking I was some freak who likes to chill in bathtubs while wearing pajamas.

"You slept with Edward," Alice accused before I could say another word.

"You're evil," I whisper-yelled. "How do you do that?"

"Jasper owes me ten bucks. He said you wouldn't have enough balls to sleep with him until y'all made it back to Austin."

"I hate you both so much." That obviously wasn't true, but it was still a little rude to have my two friends betting about my sex life.

"How was it and why are you calling me at five in the morning from a bathroom?"

"Seriously, what the fuck?" I said out loud this time. "How do you know I'm in a bathroom?"

"I can hear the echo, you freak." Alice laughed, a little too cheerful for it to be so early. "Now spill or I'm hanging up on you."

"We slept together," I began, even though Alice probably knew every detail, down to which condom brand he used. "We were kind of drunk but...not? I don't know. I didn't feel too out of it. I definitely knew what I was doing." I paused for effect. "He definitely knew what he was doing."

I could hear Jasper mumbling in the background for Alice to shut up. Yes, she was squealing. No, it was not cute.

"Sorry, sorry. Go on."

"I don't know, Alice! I'm freaking the fuck out! Am I a prostitute? Please be honest. These are the types of things a girl needs to know!"

"Why would you be a prostitute?" Alice asked. I could hear her moving around, so I assumed Jasper kicked her out of bed. "You both obviously like each other and you agreed to this arrangement before sex was even involved. Nothing here reeks of Pretty Woman, okay? So chill the fuck out."

Sighing, I said, "Okay, jeez, sorry. I can't help it though."

"I know."

"I'm just...scared," I finally admitted. It was easy to admit that to my best friend while I was sitting in the dark, in a bathtub, two hours away.

"Bella, why? You have got to get over James," she said a little softer this time.

"I am over him," I said harshly. "I've fucking been over him for quite some time now."

"Okay, maybe I phrased that wrong. You have to get over what he did to you. Not every guy is a James."

"Easy for you to say. You have sweet Jasper with a cute grin and pretty cheekbones. Jasper who adores you and would never cheat on you or get the girl he's cheating on you with pregnant."

Alice sighed and I suddenly felt bad for making her relive this with me. But if not her, then who?

"My boyfriend does have freakishly pretty cheekbones," she agreed, throwing me off. "James fucked up, yes. But he's been out of your life for almost two years. We need to get to the bottom of this."

"How? I'm fucked up. And how am I ever supposed to trust Edward? This whole thing started as a lie! We were lying to everyone," I explained in exasperation. "Oh, but most of them now know. Blondie knows."

"Yeah, but do his aunt and uncle know?"

"Doubtful, but at this point, I wouldn't be surprised." That would be pretty awful, but maybe it would be for the best. I wondered what would happen if Edward didn't need my help to get his money. "He was acting weird during sex."

"Weird how? Did he ask you to suck on his toes or something? Wear a strap on?" Alice asked greedily. Kinky fuck.

"No! He was kissing me and staring at me and...I don't know, it freaked me out."

"So, he was making love to you," Alice deadpanned. "That's not weird, you idiot."

"Making love?" I squeaked. "Shut the fuck up. He doesn't love me."

I could practically hear Alice rolling her eyes. "Maybe, maybe not. Stop freaking out over nothing. Let things take their natural course. If he wants you to wear a strap on, just say yes, okay?"

Dropping my head to my knees, I said, "Oh my God. Just go back to bed."

"I love you and you deserve to be happy. From what I've seen, Edward makes you happy-"

"Thanks for the pep talk," I cut her off. I couldn't hear any more of this. "Sorry for waking you up."

"I don't care. Just stop being so guarded. You'll thank me!"

"Yeah? You get to buy me Chipotle with that ten bucks you earned with my promiscuity."

"Deal. Text me when you get back into town."

"I will. Night," I said before hanging up.

Washing my face helped calm me down a bit before crawling back into bed. Edward was still sleeping soundly. So soundly that I let my hand hover over his chest to make sure he was still breathing.

Once I was assured I wasn't sleeping next to a dead body, I closed my eyes and thought about Alice's advice on letting my guard down.

Now, to figure out how to do that without getting hurt. Because one of us had to get hurt. It was only a matter of time.

A/N: There you have it. Now you might be able to understand Bella and her motives a little better. Definitely in over her head, dontcha think?

Thanks for reading :)