So, I totally failed in review replies, but I asked myself…. "Self, would your readers rather have you reply to reviews or get another chapter up super fast?". And here's the chapter, so I hope I was right in assuming you'd rather have that ;)

I still don't own any of the recognizable characters. But if any of them ever showed up at my door I would totally lock them in my house and keep them. Would I technically own them then?

Chapter 4

Paul

She was avoiding me. Her daily phone calls were her way of keeping me at a distance. Sure, it was nice to talk to her, but I really wanted to see her. Fortunately for me, I knew what her distance was about… she was afraid. When I looked at her that morning at her dad's I could see the lust in her big brown eyes. Being close to me brought out a carnal reaction in her, the same thing her presence did for me. So I played the part of the good little boy and let her keep me away. Made her believe that I would let her live her life the way she wanted. It was only a matter of time before she would give in. She couldn't deny our connection if she wanted to.

That's not to say that my patience wasn't wearing thin. It was Friday afternoon and I was ready to see her. To hold her. To kiss her. Hell, just to be in her fucking presence. The only thing on my mind as I bid the rest of the construction crew goodbye was going home, getting showered, and heading over to the Swan's. Unfortunately, the very pregnant blonde amazon leaning against my truck looked like she would cause a delay in my plans.

"Do I know you, Barbie?" I asked, not even sparing a smile for her as I slung my tools in my toolbox.

"Nope, but you're sure as hell going to be glad that you met me." I rolled my eyes. Was I really getting hit on by a pregnant chick? I mean, it wouldn't have been the first time, but she didn't fit the usual profile.

"Look, you're hot and all, and I have nothing against pregnant chicks, but I'm sort of celibate." The blonde threw her head back and laughed loudly. It was a reaction I was used to when I told women that I didn't have sex. I guess I just looked like someone who fucked a lot.

"Unless the woman is a certain brunette about yay tall and goes by the name of Bella?" I snapped my head back to see her holding her hand up to her chin.

"What do you know about Bella?" The hair on the back of my neck stood up. If this bitch wanted to hurt Bella then she would have to go through me.

"Oh, I know lots about Bella. And I know all about her fiancé." She giggled when she said the last word while rubbing her large belly. Wait, was Bella's fiancé… No.

"What about her fiancé?" I spat through gritted teeth.

"Oh, just that her fiancé is my husband and this is his baby." Red. All I saw was red. I wanted to get my hands on the fucker because it was going to kill Bella and I had hurt her enough. I wanted her single and free to be with me, but not that way. Not if it meant her heart being broken.

"I can see the wheels turning in your head and before you go all feral I think there's something you need to know. Emmett and Bella are not engaged. Hell, they've never had anything more than an awkward kiss when they first hung out. If I remember correctly Bella said it was like kissing her brother." She chucked lightly.

"But why would Bella lie to me?" I asked.

"Really? Why are the pretty ones always so dumb?" She seemed to ask herself. "Think, Paul! Why would Bella create a fake fiancé?"

"To make me think she was taken. To keep me away from her. Sneaky little minx." I had to smile. My little angel really believed that would keep me away. I couldn't help the laughter that broke free. My little Bella… so naïve.

"You're not pissed. Damn, I was sure you'd blow a gasket."

"Bella's single, what's there to be pissed about?" In fact all I wanted to do was kiss the glamazon for clueing me in. So I did! No tongue, of course, but I planted a sloppy, loud kiss on her red lips.

"Well, I guess I just became your favorite person. But…" I hated that damn word, "you can't let on that you know. The only reason I'm telling you is so that you can prove to Bella that she is the most important thing to you. You have to make her think that you care enough about her to be accepting of her engagement."

"You know pregnant chicks shouldn't do drugs, right? Cause you must be high to think I'm not going to march my happy ass over there and kiss her senseless." She shook her head then spoke slowly.

"If you want her back, you have to prove to her that you can be supportive. That her happiness means more to you than your own. Gees, you men are all so clueless!"

"Why are you helping me?" I asked, because if she was Bella's friend why would she go behind her back. That didn't sit well with me.

"Emmett and I were high school sweethearts," she began, "he was all I ever knew. He proposed in college and I said yes. I've always loved Em, but I started thinking about the fact that Emmett would be to only man I would ever be with. I was young and stupid. I cheated on him. I was drunk and it was only once, but it broke his heart. He left me, and that broke mine."

I nodded telling her to continue. Tears filled her blue eyes but she pressed on.

"I tried everything to get him back, but he was just done. Said I had hurt him too badly and he couldn't trust me again. So I waited. And begged. And pleaded. And watched while he spent time with Bella. While she took my place. At least that was what I thought. It took time, and a lot of effort on my part, but he finally took me back. It took years, actually. Bella actually was a huge support… after she chewed my ass out for hurting him." We both laughed because while Bella was a sweet-natured person, she was very protective of the people she cared about.

"I bet she did."

"She just wanted Emmett to be happy. He was one of her best friends. When he and I got back together, I wanted to get to know the girl who had gotten so close to him. She didn't make it easy for me. When I finally asked her why she told me about you. About how hurt she was by what you did. How it ruined her completely. There was never anyone else, you know. She never moved on."

"Ever?" I was overjoyed that she hadn't been with anyone else, but I was also sad. I knew just how lonely that could be.

"No. Eventually she got to know me and now she's one of my best friends. The thing is, I've been on your side of this. And I know that you love her just like she still loves you. So, I want to help you two get back together. But I warn you, if you hurt her, I will cut off your balls and hang them from the bumper of my car."

"So what am I supposed to do?" I asked and she smiled, revealing her perfectly white teeth.

A couple hours later I was sitting at the diner in Forks, waiting for Bella and her fake fiancé to make an appearance. According to Rosalie, she hadn't even told Emmett what she was doing, so it was up to me to keep it that way. Even though I knew the truth, it still didn't stop the stab of jealousy that ran through my system at seeing her hand in hand with another man. The oaf was impressive in size, almost as tall as me, and a little bit thicker. I was still confident that I could take him. But Rose's words came back to me.

"Remember, stay calm, act like it doesn't bother you at all. Show her that you are her friend first and that her happiness is what's most important."

Yeah, I was still ready to rip his arms off when he wrapped one around her waist. I had to sit on my hands to keep from ripping the beefy arm in question from its socket. Bella gave me a questioning look and I smiled at her as genuinely as I could. She smiled back timidly and I could see her slightly pull away from the beefcake at her side. My smile got a bit more real and genuine at the small movement.

"So," I began, standing and holding out my hand, "you must be Emmett. Nice to meet you, man. I'm Paul."

Emmett gave Bella a look that said "the fuck?" but shook my hand anyway. The shock on Bella's face was priceless. I could see that she expected me to go all caveman on her and kick Emmett's ass before dragging her away and having my way with her. Not that the thought didn't cross my mind, but Rosalie swore the payoff on this would be HUGE. So I would play my part. When she suggested that I call Bella and ask if I could "meet her future husband" I thought she was insane, but from the look Bella was giving me I could see that she was a genius.

"Yep, I'm Bella's main man, her main squeeze, her love monkey," Rosalie was right, her husband couldn't act to save his life. Bella elbowed him in the ribs and I fought to suppress my laughter.

"Well, it's nice to meet you. I'm the ex." Emmett nodded and smiled before leading Bella into the booth.

"So, you must really miss Bella since she moved here, huh?" I could see that he wasn't acting when he said that he missed her. It was clear that he and Rosalie both adored her. I mean, who wouldn't? She was Bella.

"I don't know how you can handle it. I would lose my mind if my wife-to-be was so far away from me. Especially if her douchey ex-boyfriend was hanging around." Emmett smirked and I could see that he wanted to chuckle, but a stern look from Bella stopped him in his tracks.

"Well, it's tough, but so are we, right sweet lips?" Emmett was laying it on a bit thick with the nicknames just like Rosalie said he would.

"Sure thing, Em." Bella spoke through clenched teeth.

Lunch was fairly uneventful, except for the way Bella was constantly shifting her weight and biting her lip. She looked so adorably confused and I just wanted to kiss those pouty lips of hers. The conversation flowed easily between Emmett and myself and Bella remained fairly silent, just watching our interaction. Since I knew that Emmett posed no threat to my potential relationship with Bella, I found that he was easy to like. He was funny and a bit of a meathead, and I couldn't have picked a better friend for my Bella when she was relatively alone. I could see how much he cared about her, even if it was only platonic. I mean, obviously he cared as he was willing to fly thousands of miles to be there for her by pretending to be engaged to her.

"Well, I hate to cut this short, but I need to head home. I have an early day tomorrow." Bella looked at me curiously.

"But tomorrow's Saturday," Bella interjected, ignoring the look Emmett was giving her.

"Well, I am meeting someone early. Plus, you two probably have better things to do than hang out with me." Emmett barked out a laugh before quickly trying to cover it up with a cough.

We all said our goodbyes and I walked out of the diner with Bella hot on my heels.

"What was that, Paul?" Her tone showed just how affected she was by my calm behavior around Emmett. She wasn't used to it and had no idea what to think.

"Look, Bella, I heard what you told me. You want us to be friends. You're happy with him and that is what means the most to me. Your happiness. I'm trying to be a good friend to you. Isn't that what you wanted?" Her mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water.

"So, you're telling me that you're okay with this? With me and Em?"

"No," I answered honestly, because even if it was fake, I hated it. "But I want to show you that I've changed. That I can be whatever you need me to be."

Tears collected in her eyes before she threw her arms around me and sobbed. I had no fucking clue what to do. I hadn't meant to make her cry! Stupid fucking Rosalie and her stupid fucking ideas.

"I'm so sorry I've been such a bitch, Paul! I just…" She cried even louder into my chest.

"Shh, it's fine. I screwed up and I have to take responsibility for that. I'm just happy that I get to be in your life at all. Now you better get back in there to your man. Call me when you get a chance, okay?" I kissed the top of her head and smiled at the blank look on her face before getting in my truck and driving away.

Bella

I just stood there like a moron as he drove away. I was in such a state of shock that I couldn't even form a coherent sentence. Had that been Paul? My Paul? The one that lost his shit if another guy even glanced at me in his presence? He had been kind and even pleasant to Emmett. When he told me that all that mattered to him was my happiness I couldn't help the tears that came. I just needed to hold him in my arms. He really cared about me. I felt like a piece of shit for lying to him about Emmett then rubbing him in his face. Paul broke my heart years ago, but if I was in his position there would be no way that I could have just sat there and watched him with someone else.

"You okay, Bells?" Emmett asked as he slipped a meaty arm around my shoulders.

"Yeah, just a little shocked."

"Me too! I thought for sure he was going to try and kick my ass! He was actually pretty cool." I rolled my eyes. Of course Em would think that. "And people can change, Bella-boo. Look at my Rosie. Getting back together with her was the best thing I could have ever done. Just think about it, Belly."

And think about it I did. I thought about it all the way home. I thought about it while Rose and Em talked to Charlie about everything that was going on in their lives. I thought about it as I laid in bed and tried to sleep. And I thought about him when the clock struck 2 am and I was in my truck driving to LaPush. And I definitely thought about him as he opened the door to my incessant banging in nothing but a pair of flannel pajama pants.

"Bella?" He asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. I didn't say another word. I just launched myself at him. His surprised "oomph" was the only sound he made as I jumped as high as I could to wrap my legs around his waist and pressed my lips against his. He didn't hesitate to open his mouth to me and if the loud moan he let out was any indication, the feel of our tongues dancing together was affecting him as much as it was me.

We stayed there tangled up in one another until I needed to pull back for air.

"Not that I mind, but what was that for?" He asked as he peppered my face with feather-light kisses.

"I'm tired of fighting this. I just want to be with you." I sighed as his tongue slipped out to trace my pulse point.

"I have waited so long to hear you say that." His lips attacked mine and he kicked the door closed before carrying me to his bedroom for what I hoped would be a very long night.

A/N: So, what did you guys think? Like I said, I am super sorry for my fail on replies, but I read and loved every one! You guys never fail to astound me! I mean, the response I am getting to this is unbelievable! I love you all hard! And of course I have so much love for my bestie, pre-reader, and partner in crime, Nostalgicmiss. She pre-reads everything I send her and is just all around awesome! I love her!

I will get you guys another chapter ASAP! You all rock my socks off!