"You're going to get in trouble," Lucy taunted, watching as Rosalie pulled her fair hair back behind her head, wrapping a rubber band around it so it was out of the way. "Mom and Dad are going to find out and ground you forever."

"Not if they don't find out. Which they wont because if they do, I'll tell Mom what really happened to her Venitian vase in the foyer last month."

Lucy gasped, covering her mouth as she lounged on Rose's large bed. "You wouldn't! Marcy got fired for that!"

Rosalie smirked at her sister. "Try me," she threatened, zipping up the back of her skirt. The dress from her surprise engagement party was hanging over the edge of her bed. If Rose had her way, she would have burned it the moment she took it off. Of course, her mother would have cut off her own hand before she allowed that. Rosalie had changed into a gingham blouse with a black pencil skirt and black pumps. She had no idea how she was going to sneak out in this outfit, but she'd somehow manage it.

Lucy crossed her arms in frustration, watching her older sister. Rosalie had always been the good girl, the one who did what their parents asked. She never talked back and she certainly never snuck out, especially not to see their gardener. "Does he even know you're going to see him?" Lucy demanded, her voice just above a whisper in an effort not to wake their parents.

"No."

"So why do you need to see him right now? He'll be here tomorrow. You don't even have a ride over to his house."

Rosalie shook her head at her sister, grabbing a jacket out of her closet. "I need answers, Lucy. They can't wait. Now, as far as Mom and Dad and Royce know, I was here all night," she reminded her sister, pushing her window open. She placed her left foot on the lattice, easing herself out of her window and making sure not to fall to the ground. Rosalie carefully climbed down, hopping to the ground when she was less than a foot away.

She glanced up, spotting Lucy still staring at her. Rosalie placed a finger to her lips, reminding her sister to keep her mouth shut, before she hurried off into the darkness, determined to get answers.

Apparently, walking in heels was a lot harder than Rosalie realized. She'd only ever had to walk a few feet and stand around in them. She made a mental note that next time she needed to do any amount of walking, she'd wear flatter shoes. After ten minutes, Rosalie slipped her shoes off and held them in her hands, opting to go barefoot for the rest of the journey. This would have been a lot easier if Emmett lived closer, but sadly he didn't.

After almost two hours of walking through the nicer part of town where people like she and Royce lived, Rosalie made it to the poorer area where Emmett and the rest of the people who worked for her family did. Rosalie had been brought up a certain way and around a certain type of people. In fact, her only real exposure to people who were different than her was through the servants who worked at her home.

Walking down the streets here, she really saw how the other half lived. Small shacks that were barely standing, no cars, rags hanging on clotheslines in the yards; this was all very different than what Rose was used to.

She made her way past the shanties and the families who were inside them, most of them asleep by now. She made sure to be quiet, not wanting to draw attention to herself by waking the whole street.

Rose came to a stop outside a small, rundown hut, slipping her shoes on before rapping the door three times. She heard movement inside, a chair dragging and a gruff voice mumbling "Liz, if you lost your key again, I'll kill you." The door swung open and Emmett stood there in all his wonderful glory. He was still dirty from the day's work but had changed out of his garden clothes, opting for a pair of boxers with no shirt instead.

He seemed stunned to see her standing there, having been expecting his sister. He never thought he'd see Rosalie Hale standing at his front door.

"Rose," he murmured, raking in her appearance. Normally, she was in looser-fitting dresses with tights. For the first time he could remember, she was in something more form-fitting, something that showed off her figure. He would have been lying if he wasn't aroused by the sight of her. "What are you doing here?"

"Mind if I come in?" she asked, twirling a lock of hair around her index finger.

"Uh, yeah. Yeah, come on in," he said, opening the door wider to allow her entry. Rosalie watched as he rushed around, quickly tossing dirty plates into the sink in an attempt to quickly clean his place before she had a chance to judge it too harshly. "What are you doing here?"

"Did you know?" she asked, getting right to her point. She hadn't even bothered with a hello. She wasn't wasting any time, not right now. If he knew that she was walking into the lion's den wearing a meat dress, he was going to explain to her why exactly he didn't have the decency to warn her.

"Know what?" Emmett asked, flopping down onto his couch. "What are you talking about?"

Rosalie held up her left hand, showing him the large and sparkling diamond on her finger, the one Royce had slipped on in front of hundreds of people. "Did you know I was unknowingly going to my own engagement party? Because if you did and didn't warn me, I don't know if I'll ever be able to forgive you for that," she said, her voice starting to break.

Emmett leaped to his feet, pulling her into his arms. He buried his face in her hair, holding her close to him. "Of course not," he breathed, inhaling her scent as he did so. "If I had known, I would have told you. Honest," he promised, his hand rubbing her back in a comforting manner.

Rosalie's chest heaved as she let out a sob, her face buried against him. "Oh god, I thought you knew. It seems like everyone except me knew what I was walking into, and no one had the courtesy to tell me." Emmett led her over to the couch, pulling her down so they were seated beside one another. "Suddenly everyone was looking at me and expecting me to say yes when Royce held out this large ring for me. I didn't want to. I wanted to throw my champagne in his face." She stared down at the ring on her finger, hatred surging through her body as she did so. "I feel sick every time I see it on my hand."

"So you're going to marry him then," Emmett said, his voice flat.

"I don't see what choice I have. My father expects me to, my mother would never speak to me again if I broke our engagement, and Royce would never let me live if I left him. I'm trapped, Emmett. There's no way out anymore." Her hands were placed against his chest, her eyes searching his for some kind of answer. "I don't know what to do."

"Just say no. It's your life, Rosie. You can do whatever the hell you want."

Rosalie felt her cheeks turn pink at his name for her. No one, not even her father, had ever called her Rosie before. It was either Rose or Rosalie. Secretly, she liked the new nickname for her. It made her feel normal for the first time in her life. "It's not that simple. You don't understand."

"Explain it to me, then."

Rosalie let out a sigh, taking his hand and holding it in her lap. "My parents, this marriage will do everything for them. They'll be high society. They'll be invited to all the best parties, introduced to all the right people. I'm their ticket to the life they've always wanted."

"I still don't understand. You should do what you want, not what they or anyone else wants."

"But I'm a woman. We don't get to do what we want in life."

Emmett cupped her face, placing a kiss on her lips. "Yes, you do. Everyone deserves the happiness they want. So tell me, Rose. What do you want?"

Rosalie looked up into his brown eyes before relaxing against his chest. "You," she breathed, her eyes closing. "I want you. I don't want Royce or his money or parties at the governor's mansion. I want a life with you. I want a life where I'm going to be happy, where I'm going to wake up next to the man I love and have beautiful little babies with him." Her fingers traced over his collarbone as she pulled her head back, smiling up at him. "I could never have that with Royce because I've never truly loved him."

"But you love me?" he asked.

"Of course I do. You're sweet, charming and wonderful. You treat me like a person, not the porcelain doll everyone seems to think I am. You call me out on my shit and don't cave into my demands just because I'm some silly little rich girl. You're the first person who's ever treated me like an equal. And because of that, I've fallen hard and fast for you."

Emmett cupped her cheek, placing a kiss on her forehead. "I've fallen for you too. You're beautiful, and not just on the outside. On the inside too. You're a good and lovely person. Any man would be crazy not to treat you like the treasure you are."

Rosalie leaned in, wrapping an arm around his neck, her lips on his. She didn't know what they were going to do, how they were going to be together, but she did know that she didn't want a future if Emmett wasn't by her side.

"Hey Em, Vera and a bunch of others are going to the lake this weekend and they were wondering if we wanted to-oh my GOD!" Lizzy had walked through the door, finding her brother sitting on the couch with Rosalie Hale on his lap, the two of them locked in a passionate embrace. Emmett and Rosalie quickly pulled away from each other, Rosalie rising to her feet with an embarrassed look on her face.

"Rose, why don't you wait outside? I'll bring you home," Emmett said, nodding towards the door. "Give me a moment with my sister." Rosalie followed his instructions, slipping her shoes on before heading outside.

As soon as she was gone, Lizzy turned to him, fury on her face. "Are you out of your damn mind? Do you ave a death wish or something? She's engaged to Royce King. If he knew you were necking with his future wife, he'd chop off your balls and feed them to his dog!"

"Liz, shut up. It's not like that."

"Not like that? I just caught her sitting on your lap while you had your tongue down her throat. Explain to me how it's different than that." Emmett looked embarrassed, not saying anything. "Don't be an idiot, Emmett. Is this girl really worth losing your life over? Because if Royce finds out she's sleeping with the gardener, that's exactly what will happen."

"I...I don't care. I love her, Liz. Whatever happens, it's worth it." With that, he gave his sister a kiss goodbye, heading outside to where Rosalie was waiting for him.

Emmett hopped on his bike, waiting as it roared to life. He smiled over at Rosalie, nodding at her to hop on. She climbed on the back, her arms wrapped around his waist. Emmett pulled away from his house, making the drive back to hers.

It was a quiet ride, neither of them saying anything. By the time Emmett reached her driveway, the sun was starting to come up. She'd been out almost all night, meaning today was going to be a very long one for her.

Rosalie climbed off the bike, tussling her hair a little to get some of the knots out of it. "Thanks for the ride," she murmured, leaning against the handles. She looked into his eyes, placing her hand on top of his. "Look, if this is too much for you, if you're worried about what Royce might do..."

Emmett cut her off with a kiss, pulling her face close to his. "I don't care. You're worth the risk, Rosie. You're worth everything." He smiled at her, kissing the top of her head. "We'll figure it out," he promised. "Somehow, we'll get away and live the life we want, together. But in the meantime, you got plans Saturday?"

"No. Why?"

"Well, I'll show you what a real party is like."