Disclaimer: Nope. Not mine. I just like to play with the characters and make them do naughty things.

A/N: I wrote this chapter while working, so hopefully it makes sense. Lol. I kept getting interrupted. Nothing more fun than dealing with annoying people. So a bit of my aggression might have come out in this chapter. Hope everyone had a good New Year and was safe. I spent mine working. I got a full-time job so starting the week of January 9th, I'll be transitioning from 2 part-time jobs to one job, so the posting schedule might get a bit screwy for a week or two. Eventually, I think I'll get back to posting every Saturday as opposed to every Monday/Tuesday. Again this is un-beta'd. If anyone's interested in being a beta for me let me know since my current beta is unavailable for a while. As always, a big thanks to everyone who reads and to everyone who reviews.

Design For Life

"Show me a man with a tattoo and I'll show you a man with an interesting past."

Jack London

BPOV

A month had passed since the tattoo convention, and Edward and I had settled into a wonderful routine. Each night was spent together at either one of our houses. In a way, it seemed stupid to live separately, seeing as how often we were together, but at the same time it was nice knowing that we each had a separate place to go if we needed to. Every once in a while we would spend an afternoon or morning by ourselves, but other than that we were joined at the hip. Emmett thought it was sickening, but really, who cared what he thought? Since our dinner at his house, Rosalie seemed to have done a one-eighty, and it had me worried.

The first family brunch after the dinner had been odd to say the least. Rosalie was still a bitch to me, not that I truly cared, but she had started to be nicer to Edward. We'd been in the living room after eating Esme's wonderful brunch when Rosalie shocked the hell out of all of us.

"Edward?" she'd asked.

"Yes?"

"I wanted to apologize for my behavior toward you. It was rude and childish. I only hope that you can forgive me. I've had a lot going on, and while I realize that isn't an excuse, I had no right to take my anger out on you."

Edward glanced at me, and I knew we were both thinking the same thing. What the hell was she up to? Edward, being the sweetheart that he was, told her he would forgive her with time. I, on the other hand, wasn't about to forgive her for being such a heinous bitch to him and to me. Each Sunday brunch seemed to get stranger and stranger. It was almost as if Edward and Rosalie had begun a friendship, and I was truly worried. I voiced my worries to Edward the following Sunday on our way to brunch.

"I'm worried about Rosalie is up to," I said.

"I honestly don't think she's up to anything at the moment. I'm not saying that a leopard can change it's spots, but she does seem to have changed for the better. Perhaps Emmett and Mark's talks made her realize that she needed to become a better person."

"I don't buy it. I really don't. She's up to something. She may be all nice and buddy buddy with you, but she sure isn't with me," I told him.

And what he said next pissed me off. We'd never gotten into a fight. Never really had any arguments, so I guess it was bound to happen eventually.

"Well, maybe if you tried to be a bit nicer to her, she'd be nicer to you."

I was fucking floored. I slowed the truck down and pulled over on the side of the road, so that I could face him after putting the car in park.

"Excuse me?" I said, my voice cold. "Did you just tell me to make nice with Rosalie? The same Rosalie who has made your life a living hell since forever. The same Rosalie who was or is in cahoots with Laurent. I don't fucking think so! I can't stop you from being friends with her, but that sure as fuck doesn't mean I'm going to be."

Edward looked a bit taken back by my rant. "I'm sorry. I realize that Rosalie isn't the easiest person to get along with, but I was just—"

"You were just what?" I asked, angry that he was even suggesting that I be friendly with the bitch.

"You know what? Forget it. Forget I said anything. Let's just go. We're going to be late," he said, staring out the window, refusing to meet my gaze.

"Fine," I said, seething.

The drive to his parents' house was quiet and tense. As we pulled in the drive, it hit me. Our arguing was probably what Rosalie wanted. She couldn't get her family to side with her, but she could get Edward and I to fight. What better way to drive us apart? She knew that I couldn't stand her, and that I would have issues if she got close to Edward. I hated to admit it, but it was almost genius. Well, two could play that game.

"Fine. I'll be nice to her. I'll be so fucking nice that I'll kill her with my niceness."

He let out a sigh. "Bella. I know you don't like her. Heck, I don't particularly like her either, but I do feel she's trying to change. So, in the meantime I'll be nice to her. It can't hurt, is all I'm saying."

I looked over and felt guilty that I'd gotten mad at him. Letting out a sigh of my own, I told him, "I'll attempt to be nice to her. But I promise nothing."

"Fair enough. Thank you," he said, reaching over and giving my hand a gentle squeeze.

Ugh. I couldn't stay mad at that cute face. Channeling all my acting skills, I climbed out of the truck, and we walked up to the door. Once the door was opened, I was wrapped up in Esme's wonderful hug. She must have noticed that something was off because after hugging Edward, she pulled me aside.

"Is everything okay?" she asked, her eyes filled with worry.

I gave her a forced smile. "Everything's fine. I'm just worried about something, but it's no big deal."

"You know you can always talk to me if you need to. You know that right?" she asked.

I gave her a hug. "I know, Esme. This is just something I have to work through on my own, but thank you."

I followed her into the house and found Edward, Rosalie, and Emmett talking. Emmett had apologized profusely for the cake debacle and since then, had been nothing but nice to Edward. Sure, there wast he occasional picking on, but Edward was starting to give back as good as he got, and I don't think Emmett could have been prouder. I sat down on the couch next to Edward and gave Rosalie and Emmett a smile.

"How are you guys?" I asked them, focusing mainly on Emmett. He was easier to be nice to.

"Fine. How about you, Bells?" Emmett asked me.

"Doing good," I replied before turning my attention to Rosalie.

"How are you doing, Rosalie?"

She gave me a glare. Apparently, she wasn't a fan of my playing nice.

"I'm fine. Thank you," she said through gritted teeth before continuing. "So things are going well with the two of you?"

Edward beamed a brilliant smile. Our tiff in the car forgotten or at least put on the back burner.

"Things are fantastic," he said, planting a gentle kiss on my lips.

I had a feeling that wasn't the answer that Rosalie was looking for. Jasper and Alice arrived a few minutes later, and I wasn't surprised when Rosalie and Alice took off together to do some "girl talk." I guess I wasn't enough of a girl to be included in their talks. Whatever. I was fine with that. I spent some time in the kitchen with Esme, enjoying what I had come to think of as mother-daughter time despite the fact that we weren't related. I was closer to Esme than I was to Renee, and I hoped that one day Esme would be my mother.

"What are you thinking about?" Esme asked me, pulling me out of my thoughts.

I blushed slightly, which only egged her on. Finally, I relented and gave in.

"I was just thinking how I hope that you'll be my mother one day," I said, quietly, not really looking at her.

She wrapped me up in a tight hug. "Whether you marry Edward or not, I already think of you as my daughter."

I blinked back the tears that were threatening to fall. Edward chose that moment to walk in. He saw the tears in my eyes and was at my side immediately.

"What's wrong?" he asked in a panicked voice.

"Nothing," I said, reassuring him. "They're happy tears. I promise."

He wrapped his arms around my waist and rested his chin on my shoulder before asking what the tears were for.

"I was just telling Bella that I think of her as another daughter," Esme said, giving us a smile.

"Of course Mom thinks of you as another daughter. You're family," Emmett boomed from the entry way to the kitchen.

Brunch was delicious as always and after it was over, I found myself cleaning up along with Rosalie and Alice. The two of them kept up an endless stream of chatter in which I wasn't included. It annoyed me, but I did my best not to let it show. All it really proved to me was that Alice and Rosalie were immature. Once the table was cleared, we started cleaning up the kitchen.

"So things with you and Edward are going good?" Alice asked out of the blue.

I looked up from the dish that I was washing. "Things are great. He's wonderful and sweet, and I love him so much," I told her, honestly.

"That's just cause you're in the honeymoon stage," Rosalie said with a bit of scorn. "I'm sure it'll change in a few months."

I gritted my teeth, repeating to myself that I was playing nice. "I guess only time will tell. Personally, I think things are going to be just as wonderful then as they are now."

I finished washing the dishes and headed back into the living room to find Emmett and Carlisle in the middle of an arm wrestling match.

"What in the world?" I asked, sitting down next to Esme.

She rolled her eyes. "Emmett was bragging about how strong he is, and Carlisle decided to try and show him up. Sometimes, Bella, they never grow up."

I snickered. Emmett beat Carlisle pretty quickly, but it was fun to watch, and Carlisle was a graceful loser. Emmett then challenged Edward to a match, but Edward refused. Pouting, Emmett got Jasper to wrestle with him. I watched as Edward got up to head into the kitchen. A few minutes later Rosalie followed. I frowned, watching her movements. She was up to something. After a few minutes, I excused myself to get some water. I walked toward the kitchen and propped myself up against the entryway as I listened to Rosalie spew her lies.

"I don't know what to do anymore, Edward. I tried to be nice to her, but she won't even try. I realize that I was a complete bitch to both of you, but I've apologized. I'm trying to make amends, but Bella refuses to be nice to me."

Edward looked doubtful. "Bella told me she'd try to be nicer to you. She wouldn't lie to me."

"Look, if you don't believe me, you can ask Alice. She was in here when I was trying to talk to Bella."

"Perhaps you can refresh my memory, Rosalie? I don't remember being mean to you earlier. As a matter of fact, we only spoke a handful of words since you and Alice were busy talking," I said from my spot.

Rosalie's eyes went wide when she saw me standing there. I walked over, gave Edward a kiss, and grabbed a glass from the cabinet.

"I just came in here to get some water. I'll be gone in a few and you can continue telling your lies to Edward," I told her, turning the tap on and filling up my glass.

True to my word, once my glass was full, I left the kitchen. A few moments later, Edward was sitting down next to me.

"Have a good conversation?" I asked.

He gave a sigh. "She's adamant that you didn't even attempt to play nice."

I rolled my eyes. "I tried, but honestly, it's not worth my time. Ignoring her seems to be a better solution."

"I had thought she was changing, but now it just seems like she wants to get you in trouble with me."

I raised an eyebrow. "You think?"

He gave me a gentle shove. "Yeah, yeah. I know. I'm still going to be nice to her, but I'll be keeping an eye on her," he said.

"That's fine," I told him.

We spent a couple of more hours at the Cullens' house before heading back to my house. We were both a bit surprised to see Mark waiting for us when we pulled into the drive. It had been a month and we hadn't heard much about anything.

"Hey, kids," he said as we climbed out of my truck.

We greeted him and led him inside my house, where we all took a seat.

"What brings you by?" I asked.

"I've got bad news," he said.

Immediately, I grabbed Edward's hand, holding onto it tightly.

"What?" I asked softly.

"We found Laurent. He washed up on First Beach early this morning."

Huh? What does he mean washed up? That makes it sound like he's dead.

"He's dead?" I asked quietly.

"Yes. I'm sorry."

My brain was having a hard time comprehending what I was being told.

"How—how did he die?" I asked, not wanting to know the answer, but needing to.

"He was murdered."

Holy fuck! Did that mean I was a suspect since we'd been having issues?

I asked Mark, and he was quick to let me know that I was not a suspect. He asked for names and numbers for Laurent's next of kin. I gave him what little information I had. Mark thanked me and told me he'd keep me informed as best as he could. Edward walked him to the door, then came and sat down next to me.

"How are you?" he asked me, rubbing his hand over my back.

"In shock," I replied. "It's not like we were close the past few months, but we'd been together for quite some time. And while, I wasn't feeling very fond of him, I had at one point. I'm upset, and angry, and confused."

And then the tears began to fall. I tried to hold them back, but they started to pour out, and I couldn't stop them. Edward gathered me up in his arms, rocking me gently, and letting me get it all out. I didn't know how long I cried, but the tears finally stopped. Sitting back, I wiped my eyes, and blew my nose with the tissue Edward handed me. He smoothed my hair back from my face and gently wiped away the traces of tears.

"Ugh. It's so stupid to be this upset," I muttered more to myself than to Edward.

"No, it's not. He was your boyfriend at one point. Things might have ended badly, but he was someone you cared about and his life was cruelly ripped away. You're allowed to be upset."

The next week passed by slowly. Laurent's murderer was still in the wind, but his body had been sent back to Arizona for the funeral. I sat down and talked to Edward about going to the funeral. I wanted to go. Felt that I should, and Edward agreed. He couldn't get the time off to fly to Phoenix with me, so for the first time in months we were going to be separated. Jake and Seth had been fine with me leaving on such short notice and they told me to take a week off. I booked my flight and was a teary mess when Edward dropped me off at the airport in Seattle. I really wished he was coming with me.

"I know, Sweet Girl. I wish I was able to go with you as well," he told me, pulling me into a hug.

"A week is a long time to not be with you," I said, burrowing myself in closer to him.

"It sure is, but we'll make it work. I love you. Don't forget that."

"I love you, too."

Five hours later, I was stepping off the plane in sunny, warm Phoenix. I heard someone calling my name and turned to see Renee coming toward me. I threw myself into her arms, enjoying the hug. While Renee would never win mother-of-the-year, she was still my mom, and I loved her. We spent the car ride to her house talking about everything.

"So you and Edward finally said I love you?" she asked as we turned down the road to her house.

"Yep."

"Well? Tell me! I want to know the deets!" she exclaimed.

"Did you just use the word deets? Really, Mom?"

"You're stalling. Tell me. Don't make me beg," she whined.

I rolled my eyes. Renee could be so child-like.

"We were at his brother's house, and he and his sister were talking. She was giving him some bullshit about how I was going to break his heart—"

"What? Why would she same something like that? Does she not know you?" Renee interrupted, appalled that Alice could think that about me.

"She's a bit immature. That's all I can figure. Anyway," I continued. "He told her that if I broke his heart than it got broken, but that he loved me. I can't tell you what hearing those words did to me."

Renee gave a girly squeal. "I knew you were in love. I just knew it! Anytime you would talk about Edward, there was something in your voice. Oh, honey. I'm so happy that you've found someone as wonderful as your Edward."

"Me, too."

As I got settled into my old room, we talked about Laurent and his funeral. She asked me how I was feeling about it all, and I told her. She and Charlie were going to the funeral with me tomorrow since they had known Laurent as well.

The next morning was bright and sunny. A contrast to the event that was happening. There was a small gathering at the funeral. Mainly, Laurent's family and a few friends. I saw the Denali sisters staring at me and whispering to each other. I had a feeling that they were going to try and talk to me. I had nothing to say to them. My gaze was pulled away from them, when Laurent's sister, Victoria approached me. We'd gotten along okay when Laurent and I were dating, but I was unsure of where we stood now.

"Hey, Bella," she said softly, her voice hoarse.

"Hey, Victoria," I told her before giving her hug.

She clung to me, and I held her as she cried. Once we parted, we talked softly about Laurent and how she was holding up.

"It's so hard to believe that he's gone. Who would do this to him?"

"I don't know, but you can bet Chief Hunter will find out."

After I got done talking to Victoria and giving my condolences to Laurent's family, I headed toward Renee's car. Renee and Charlie had gone ahead as I talked with Victoria and her family. I was almost to the car when I was accosted by the Denali sisters. Irina and Tanya were tall, anorexic blonds with attitudes a mile wide.

"Bella," Irina said.

I gave her a nod. I didn't feel like wasting my breath talking to her.

"We were surprised to see you here after what you did to Laurent," Tanya said.

Ignoring her, I kept walking toward the car. I was almost there when Tanya reached out and dug her acrylic nails into my arm. Fuck! That shit hurt. I grabbed her wrist, applying as much force as I could to it as I yanked her claws off of me.

"Don't fucking touch me!" I hissed at her.

"Don't act all high and mighty with me, Swan! How the fuck you can even show your face here is beyond me! You broke his fucking heart!"

I had no idea what she was talking about and frankly, I didn't care.

"Not that it's any of your fucking business, but Laurent broke up with me. Not the other way around. Perhaps, you should get your facts straight before you go spouting off shit you know nothing about. Now is not the time or the place for you to go about making a spectacle of yourself," I told her before heading toward Renee and Charlie.

The funeral and the confrontation with the Denali sisters had worn me out. When we got back to the house, I crawled into my old bed, and called Edward.

"Hey, Bella. How are you, Sweet Girl?"

"Exhausted," I told him.

I filled him on everything and then we said goodbye. I was missing him more than ever and really wished he was there with me. I ended up taking a nap for a couple of hours before Renee woke me up. Charlie had grilled out steak, and we spent a relaxed evening together.

By the time Friday rolled around, I was going through serious Edward withdrawal. I missed him so fucking much, it hurt. I was lying on a chaise lounge in the backyard enjoying the warmth of the sun on my face when I heard Renee holler for me. I got up, slid my shoes back on and headed into the house. I heard Renee talking to someone so I headed toward the front room.

"Edward!" I yelled when I saw my beautiful boy standing there.

I threw myself into his arms and held on. God, I'd missed him something fierce. His arms wrapped around me and held me tight as I pressed kisses all over his face. Completely ignoring the fact that my mother was standing right there, I brought Edward down for a long, hot kiss.

I vaguely heard Renee clear her throat from behind me.

"Are you going to introduce us?" she asked with a smirk on her face, once I'd peeled myself away from Edward's lips.

My face heated a bit, but it was nothing compared to the blush covering Edward's. Letting out a small giggle, I grabbed his hand and introduced him officially to Renee.

"Mom, as I'm sure you know this is Edward. Edward, this is my mom."

"It's wonderful to meet you, Mrs—"

"Renee. Just call me Renee. And it's wonderful to meet the young man my daughter's in love with," Renee said, giving Edward a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

Refusing to relinquish my hold on him, I dragged him into the living room and sat down next to him.

"What are you doing here?" I asked as I snuggled up next to him.

"I managed to get the weekend off so that I could be with you. It's hard being away from you for so long," he admitted shyly as his fingers played with my hair.

Resting my head on his shoulder, I told him how very glad I was to have him here.

"You'd better not be thinking about getting a hotel room while you're here, young man. You can stay in Bella's old room with her," Renee said after Edward revealed that he was there for the weekend.

"I don't want to inconvenience you," he started to say before she shushed him.

"Bella, dear? Why don't you show Edward your room, while I let Charlie know that Edward's here."

I grabbed Edward's hand and noticed him pick up a small duffel bag before heading up the stairs. My room hadn't changed in the time I'd been gone. I pushed open the door and watched as Edward took a good look around. In true Bella fashion, the room was a mess. All of my clothes were thrown around the room and there were books piled up on every surface. He dropped his bag on the overstuffed chair in the corner before flopping down on my bed. He looked good there. Crawling onto the bed, I curled up next to him.

"Thank you for coming down here."

"I couldn't stand being away from you any longer. Besides, I needed a change from the cold, dreary weather. Maybe you can show me around while we're here."

"Of course. We'll soak up as much sun as we can," I told him while tracing circles across his shirt.

His hand came up and grasped mine before he brought it to his lips for a kiss. He let my hand go and rolled onto his side so that he was facing me. He brushed a lock of hair out of my eyes before leaning down and giving me a slow, hot kiss. God, I'd missed his kisses. My lips parted and his tongue delved in, tangling with my own. Slowly, he pulled away, nipping at my bottom lip before attacking my mouth again. For a while we got lost in the sensation of our kisses, but we were quickly brought back to reality by Renee's hollering for us to come downstairs.

Quickly, I ran a brush through my hair while Edward attempted to fix his. It was hopeless. He had sex hair no matter what he did with it. Grabbing his hand, we headed downstairs where I found Renee waiting for us.

"I thought we could meet Charlie for dinner. He has to work late tonight, but I figured we could meet him for his dinner break at Black Angus Steakhouse if that's okay with you guys?"

We told her that was fine and a few minutes later we were in her tiny ass Mini Cooper. I hated that fucking car, and I could tell Edward was a bit cramped as well. Twenty minutes later, we pulled into the parking lot of the steakhouse and parked next to Charlie's cruiser. He was waiting on the deck of the restaurant for us.

"Hey, Charlie," I said, giving him a hug. "This is my boyfriend, Edward. Edward, this is my step-dad Charlie."

Edward stepped forward and held out his hand. "It's nice to meet you, sir."

Charlie looked Edward up and down before shaking his hand. "Nice to meet you, too. Bella's told us a quite a bit about you."

Thankfully, dinner wasn't awkward. I'd been afraid that Charlie would interrogate Edward the whole time, but he didn't. As a matter of fact, they seemed to get along really well. After dinner we said goodbye to Charlie and headed back to the house. I asked Renee if I could borrow her car the following day to show Edward my favorite places in Phoenix.

"Sure. I'm on Spring Break this week so that works out fine."

"Are you sure?" Edward asked. "We don't want to put you out."

"I'll be fine. You kids should go have fun tomorrow before heading back to Forks."

Later that night, we climbed into my old bed together. I snuggled up as close to Edward as I could, draping my leg over his, holding him close.

"I love you so fucking much," I told him a bit fiercely.

"I love you so freaking much," he replied, making me giggle.

Very rarely did my Edward ever swear. Come to think of it, the only times I'd really ever heard him swear were when we were getting busy. And that gave me an idea. I wondered if perhaps I couldn't get him to swear while he was in Phoenix with me. He was lying on his back, arms crossed behind his head as he watched me move around. I got on my knees then straddled his body. Automatically, his hands went to my waist to steady me and hold me to him.

"What do you think you're doing?" he asked me quietly.

I gave him a wicked grin. "Well, I've come to the conclusion that you only swear during or after the throws of passion, so I'm making it my goal to get you to swear while we're here."

I saw him bite his lip and his eyes widen. "I ... uh—is it okay to do that in your parents' house? It just feels wrong," he said.

Leaning down, I nipped the bottom lip he'd been biting. "That's part of the fun. You'll have to be quiet so we don't get caught."

He raised an eyebrow at me. "I'll have to be quiet? What about you? You're the screamer."

I gave him a smirk. "I can be quiet if I have to be."

He looked like he might object yet again, so I effectively silenced him by thrusting my tongue into his mouth at the same time that I pressed my lower body to his. His hips jerked in response and he let out a low groan.

"Shh," I reminded him.

His hands moved up my torso, pushing my tank top over my head, leaving me bare to his gaze. One of his hands roamed over my hip and down to my ass giving it a gentle squeeze, while the other squeezed my breast. I arched my back, stifling the moan that wanted to erupt. The hand on my ass began to slowly move toward my front, and I felt his warm hand cup me gently. I let out a soft sigh and rocked against him causing him to let out a low, quiet moan.

I felt him tugging at my panties, so carefully, I lifted my body up and helped him remove it. Once my panties were gone, he rubbed his fingers up and down my slit. My hands were gripping his shoulders, my eyes closed, and I was completely focused on the feelings he was causing. He grazed my clit with his finger, causing me to jump a bit before he slid it lower and into me. A few thrusts later, and I was a gasping mess sprawled out across his chest.

"I need you," I told him in a slightly breathless voice as I cupped his thick, hard erection through his boxers.

Immediately, he began to tug them down while I pressed kisses over his chest and then on his lips. His mouth opened and I thrust my tongue into the welcoming heat.

"You drive me crazy, Bella," he said in a whisper as he rolled us over.

"The feeling is mutual," I told him, loving the heavy feel of him between my thighs.

The head of his cock pressed against me, and I spread myself a bit wider, allowing him to slide home. We both let out sighs as he filled me to the hilt. His thrusts started off slow, and soon quickened. His mouth pressed hungry kisses to my throat, my breasts, and every other bit of skin he could find. I wrapped my legs tightly around his hips, meeting him thrust for thrust, my heels digging into the back of his thighs. His thrusts were becoming harder and more erratic and he hit a spot inside of me that had me seeing stars. I let out a strangled cry that he quickly silenced with his mouth. It only took a few more thrusts before we both came, groaning into each other's mouths.

Gently, he rolled off of me and flopped onto his back, attempting to get air back into his lungs. I got up and went to the bathroom adjoining my room to quickly clean up, then came back and curled up against him.

"I've missed that," he said, pulling me into him. "Well, not just sex. I missed you as well."

I let out a small giggle. "I knew what you meant. I've missed you and sex with you. I'm so happy to have you here."

"I'm very glad to be here. I love you, Bella Swan," he said, his voice drifting off as his eyes closed.

"I love you, Edward Cullen. Get some sleep because tomorrow we're going to be busy," I whispered before placing a kiss on his lips.

"I can't wait to spend the day with you."

As I lay curled up to him, on the brink of falling asleep, I realized that my life was pretty fucking fantastic.

a/n: So this chapter kinda got away from me. I'd always planned on Laurent dying although the person who killed him has changed from who I originally had planned it to be. That's the way it goes though. My stories never go as planned. More fun that way. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it. Leave me some love or whiskey. Maybe a party favor or two.