Thanks for the time taken to comment :-)

For those reading Baby, that should be done for beta check before...Friday (crosses fingers) which means next week (crosses more fingers).


Chapter 15

Getting in a stall she rests her back against the locked door and breathes. 'He used me' Shutting her eyes and trying to block out the fake sex with him out of her mind because that is actually what is hurting a lot. He knew how she was and he still didn't stop it when he knew about the center and knew how she was about men. Wiping her hands over her face she breathes deeply. "Okay" She gives herself a pep talk. "Work, work, work"


Bella steps out of the restroom door, very straight and focused. Her eyes go around the room. She has a job to do; no man will take away this night for a good cause. Walking through the room she heads to the faux man made little stage, nothing like the one she will need to get in front of in a few moments.

Jenna watches Bella, with her head high speak into the mic. Smiling a bit, she doesn't know what happened with Edward, nor does she know why Bella went into the restroom looking completely besides herself, and came from the restroom with a new face. But Bella sounds great and confident, like she does when she works.


"Are you going to tell me how it went tonight?" Renee questions into the computer. She didn't expect a call from Bella so late, but the look on her daughters face tells her she needs to be as there as she can be now.

"I am just; I am ready to move back"

"Move back where to Forks?"

"Yeah" Bella nods stepping out of her shoes, before sitting down in front of the laptop again.

"Edward again" Her mother comments towards the phone that has rung four or five times. She yawns, it is after 10pm in Forks. She knows it is after 1am in New York. "Why aren't you answering him?"

"He is a liar, I can't even"

"What happened?" Renee has been wary of any guy her daughter gets with. But she was never keen on Edward Cullen her boss.

"I had sex with him"

"Bella"

"I know" She says softly. "And he is just, he is worse than" She doesn't even say it.

"Is that even possible?"

"Well he is so, yes"

"Start from the top, I am so confused and it is so late"


"I don't know what to say" Renee says softly to her extremely tired looking daughter.

"There is nothing to say" Bella whispers. "I shouldn't have slept with him, you just can't trust people like him, or" She shrugs. "Can't trust men in general"

"No, no, you can" Renee knows Bella was hurt before, but she doesn't want her completely jaded. She has such a wonderful relationship with Charlie. She wants that for Bella. Not all men are jackasses. Some but not all.

"Can I?" She forces a laugh. "I don't think so; they screw you then screw you over"

"Oh baby" Renee touches the screen like she would stroke her daughter's face of they were together now."It will be okay"

"I have to go and tell those people I couldn't do it, and live with the fact that I let, I let him, another man use me" She is guessing Edward was laughing it up the whole time. She didn't know him at all. 'How could he sleep with me?' She doesn't understand it. He took everything and she got left nothing. Shutting her eyes tightly.

"Just go to sleep"

"Yeah" Bella mutters.


Emmett is waiting for her with the car. He looks at her when she comes down.

Bella says nothing.

"Mr. Cullen would like you to take the car to the office"

"I'm not going in, but thank you, I'm sorry you are involved"

Emmett clears his throat. "I can take you where you want to go Bella"

"That is very kind of you, but"

"I can take you"

"Okay" she says carefully, and very slowly. "I am going to the community center"

Emmett says nothing he just opens the door for her to get in.


Glancing at his passenger glazing off into space he clears his throat. "I told him not to hurt you"

"Well he didn't listen"

"Mr. Cullen is a difficult man"

"He is just selfish there is nothing difficult about that" Bella mutters. "He needs to grow up"

"Forgive me Bella, but I think you were helping in do that"

"No" She shakes her head.

Emmett disagrees; he has never seen Mr. Cullen the way he has been since Bella started working for him. He is very different, not fully but he is more careful, and aware. "He didn't mean to hurt you"

"Yeah he did, he got everything he wanted out of me, and now it's over" The car comes to a stop. "You don't need to wait" She says getting out of the open car door. She faces Emmett.

"I'll wait"

Bella smiles. "Thank you"


"Harry" Bella says softly because the old man seems beside himself.

"I thought everything was fine"

Bella nods and shakes her head all at the same time. "I did also, things like this happen" She shivers. "I'm so sorry"

"Can't we fight this?"

"We could" She tells him.

"I don't think you would win, Mr. Cullen's company has a lot of money and clout…the judges would profit from this place being built, the hierarchy is just not in our favor" She knew this from the start, and that is why she made that deal with Edward when he asked her to work for him. "I'm so sorry" Bella says. "I just, I wanted this for your center" She bites her lower lip and looks at the man.

Harry Fellows smiles. "You really have truly been a blessing to us"

"No" She shakes her head. "I did fail you, I'm so sorry"

"No you made us actually believe there are good people out there"

Bella smiles at him. "Thank you" Hearing that right now makes her feel 10 times better than she was feeling. "I have to go"

"Thank you Ms. Swan"


Emmett glances at Bella. He can see she is crying, so he looks back to the road and says nothing.


Taking deep breath she walks into his office, he is seated at his desk like he is any other day.

Edward looks up at her. "Bella" He breathes. She is an utter vision. He can see the hurt and anger etched over her face. And he gets it. He hurt her, and in turn lied to her by omission. 'God I shouldn't have lied to her while sleeping with her' "I'm so"

"Mr. Cullen this is my two weeks' notice" She places a typed letter on his desk. She watches him pull it towards him and he stands looking at her. "I will makes sure that at the end of the two weeks your keys and phone are left with your assistant, all the funds collected at last night's charity event are presently in the new account for your company's charity fund, I am sure you will find someone to take that over if you so wish" Her voice is even.

"Stop talking to me like you don't know me!" He gets mad at her unemotional face and equally unemotional voice.

Bella blinks a few times stunned by his outburst. She feels rage towards him build. "I don't know you!"

"You know me" He slams his hand and the paper down on his desk. "And I know you"

"Don't" She warns him.

"I know you Isabella Swan"

"You have my notice" She tells him before turning.

"You still work for me, so I suggest you stop and wait because I have some instructions for you"

Huffing a few times before she turns to face him. Licking her lips she stares into his green eyes, the same green eyes that lied to her with his body a few nights ago.

Edward has nothing. "I need you to sit in a meeting with me"

Saying nothing she just looks at him. She hates that she has to stay here and work for him for two more weeks. Just hates it and she hates him.

"And that is at 3"

"Anything else?"

"Yes"

She waits.

"You need to go and meet with Andrew there will be some proposals on your desk shortly and they need to be reviewed and taken to Andrew, you can leave them with him, he needs to sign them as do you"

"Fine"

Edward looks at her. "Bella" He says her name softly. Stepping from behind his desk, he just wants to hold her like he has never held anyone before. "God" He curses softly under his breath lowering his head as he shuts his eyes for a few moments. When he lifts his head and looks at her she is gone. Rubbing his forehead he sighs and leans against the front of his desk.