A/N: I do not own Twilight.

Thank you to my pre-reader jppc, and my beta Robobat. You take my words and beautify them. ;D

Thank you for all the alerts/favorites/reviews. I love them all. ;D

Chapter 4 – Smile for me

My eyes were still glued on the door Bella had just exited through. I was beyond irritated. I wasn't sure whether it was because of these inexplicable feelings that coursed through me whenever she was around, or because I was just too damn scared to admit the truth. This girl, who I had only known for a month now, was getting to me. She was too enchanting for her own good, and it seemed I was helpless to do anything about it.

I tried to maintain an emotional and physical distance with the hope my increasing attraction for her would wane. However, the longer I was with her, the greater my desire for her became. Every time she took my hand in hers, I could feel my skin tingle like something in a damn romantic comedy. If I was honest with myself, I loved having her skin touch mine, but I didn't want to get used to that feeling because I knew it was just temporary.

I had to tell myself this truth over and over again until I could believe it. Pushing aside my growing fondness for Isabella would be best for both our sakes. She had put her trust in me wholeheartedly; looking to me for the comfortable familiarity of a long time lover. She had no idea of the lie we were feeding her.

"She's gorgeous, dude," I heard Emmett say. I turned and saw he was also looking at the same door I was staring at.

I tried to act as if I didn't know who he was talking about. Nobody needed to know how conflicted I was with my growing feelings for her and my need to prevent further heartache for both of us, especially her.

Not yet. I wasn't ready to divulge any of it.

"Who?" I asked.

"Your girl," he smirked, knowing exactly what I was doing, and that was to act as if Bella didn't affect me.

"I'm not stupid, you know," he said, arching his eyebrow in challenge.

"She's not mine, Em. You know that," I replied. I couldn't keep the irritation from my voice .

"What the hell is your problem, dude? You chose to lie to her." His words were like a slap to my face.

"I know," I grumbled, feeling as if the whole world was against me.

"If I were you, I wouldn't have allowed Jasper's evil girl to influence me. But since it's over and done with, there's nothing we can do but accept it and go on from there." Something in the way he talked alerted me to the possibility of him knowing what I felt.

Shit! I tried to act nonchalant, still trying to hold onto the charade.

"I know you want something more with her."

"So now you're telling me that aside from you being so nosy, you're telepathic, too?" My sarcasm wasn't lost to him.

"I know you better than anybody else, man. Or did you forget I'm your best friend?" he asked. I remained quiet, hoping he would eventually relent from this inquisition.

"I'm certain you wish you had something more with her than this fuckery you allowed yourself to be a part of."

I groaned. He was right, absolutely right. I was so attracted to Bella it wasn't even funny. The reason behind the irritation she had witnessed earlier was because I liked the idea of her as my girlfriend and wasn't even ashamed to admit it to the public. It scared me and pissed me off at the same time.

"She's a nice girl, and I like her very much. And I think this was a mistake to start with-"

I started to open my mouth but he cut me short.

"But," he stressed the word, looking at me with a glint in his eyes, "this could be an avenue where you could use it to your advantage."

"Huh? Are you telling me I should take advantage of her?" I asked incredulously.

"No, dude. What I'm saying is you could make her fall in love with you if you wanted. That would lessen the blow when she knows the truth."

"That would be more catastrophic, Emmett, and you know that." I couldn't believe what I was hearing. The deeper we got into this charade, the harder it was for me to not get emotionally and physically involved with her. My growing feelings for Bella weren't making me feel any better, especially since the guilt was eating me.

He looked at me tentatively and said, "Then if you want her, just come clean. That girl doesn't deserve this kind of treatment, dude. Or maybe you just want to tap that, and then…" He trailed off, but not leaving any doubt as to what he meant. He even wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

The way he talked about Bella pissed me off, and I shoved him hard.

"Shit, that fucking hurt!"

"Don't talk about Bella like she's just some girl, because she isn't!"

He smirked before he slapped the table with one hand, shocking me. "Exactly my point, man! I think you like her." He had a triumphant look on his face, and I knew he would use this information against me later on.

I remained silent, but I could feel my face flush, giving away how I really felt about Bella.

"You're blushing, dude. This is a fucking first!" He chuckled, making me want to smack him. "Wow, she's really getting to you, isn't she? You were never like this, even with Heidi."

"Shut up or I'll make sure you'll never speak again, you moron."

"Oh ho! You like her!" He looked so smug, as if I had verbally confirmed it.

I snorted, still desperate to hide my obvious attraction to her. Somehow denying it meant I would also have enough time to sort out my feelings without the constant nagging feeling of guilt at what I had gotten myself into.

My stubborn nature was fighting really hard against these feelings I had for her. Becoming vulnerable because of a girl never happened to me, and I was scared to start now, especially since the outcome of this lie was something I knew I wouldn't like.

Why the heck did I agree to do this in the first place? It could have been easier if she knew I wasn't her boyfriend and then pursued her. At this moment, I wasn't really sure whether her reaction to me was due to the fact she thought I was hers or because she truly liked me.

Dammit!

"You know what? Deny it all you want, but it's obvious that you do," Emmett said, cutting through my thoughts.

He waved for a waitress to take his order before turning his attention back to me.

"So what are you going to do?" he asked, looking at me questioningly. He was scrutinizing me and it was making me uncomfortable.

"Dude, I told—"

"I'm gonna kick your ass if you keep on denying it, you fucko! Pretty face or not, I'm gonna do it. You know I will!" he threatened, cutting me off.

I sighed, knowing however much I denied it, he would still not believe me. Determination etched all over his face, telling me it was futile to keep on refusing him the truth.

I palmed my face; irritated that I was becoming so vulnerable where Isabella was concerned. Alice was the one to blame here!

"What am I going to do, Em? She thinks she's in love with me, and even though I like her…I'm so worried she just likes me because she thinks I'm already her boyfriend."

"I know. But it's also your fault, dude. If you hadn't agreed with that crazy pixie, then you wouldn't have to be worried about anything. As I said earlier, what's done is done…so let's just talk about what your best options are."

"I don't even wanna know what your suggestions are. You're a fucking perv, McCarty."

He laughed and I pushed him hard.

"I'll try to reserve some of my best moves for later, when you two are already shacking…you know what I mean?" He waggled his eyebrows and I groaned.

"Why do I have such moronic, childish friends?" I thought to myself, hiding my face in my arm.

xxxxxxxxxxx

I leaned on the wall, trying to appear casual and not like the nervous idiot I was. I was waiting for Bella, hoping her class would be dismissed soon. My head was spinning from all the things I wanted to tell her, including the apology I really needed to make.

Students who milled out in the hallway stared, maybe wondering what the hell I was doing out here. It was not as if I had a class in this particular building.

As the minutes passed, the stares increased, making me more uncomfortable. Having a well-known father and playing sports made me popular, but it didn't mean I liked it. It had some advantages, but most of the time all the attention annoyed me. It would have been better if the title Big Man on Campus was awarded to Emmett. He loved being the center of attention, and would love nothing more than to be the most popular, especially amongst the girls. If only it could be that easy to transfer all this unwanted attention to him. Similar to the girls' reactions earlier in the restaurant, I received numerous glances and flirtatious smiles from girls. Some were coy, but most of them were so obvious, clearly hoping I would show some interest in them. If only they knew who I wanted.

I was still musing when I saw students filing put of the classroom. My heart started to race, afraid to face Bella especially after she got pissed at me at the café an hour ago.

Armed with Emmett's advice, I had marched over here intending to apologize for acting like a petulant child earlier in the restaurant. My growing fascination with Bella and my inability to rectify what I had gotten myself into pissed me off, and I had taken it out on her. Instead of wooing her, like a good doting boyfriend should, I also managed to piss her off.

I heard a few guys from my fraternity call my name and gave them the customary nod of the head. Yeah, I was the freaking president and needed to be somewhat accommodating to them.

Bella was taking too long, and I was impatient to see her. As the seconds passed and she didn't come out, the more agitated I became. I wondered if she attended this class; I wouldn't be surprised if she ditched it.

Just as I was about to go check, she came out…with a guy beside her. She was smiling and the way the guy was staring at her and engaging her in conversation pissed me off.

It took me a moment to compose myself. There was no need to show them the irritation I felt that stemmed from Bella's companion's mere presence. I took a long, deep breath before I walked towards them.

They were still so engrossed with their conversation they didn't notice I was there. It was obvious that the guy Bella was talking to was enjoying taking up her time and attention.

The urge to announce I was her boyfriend rushed through me, and I couldn't say I felt guilty about lying to this guy. I wondered if he knew she had a boyfriend…err pseudo-boyfriend. Let us find out.

"Babe," I said, walking to close the gap between us. Bella looked surprised, while the guy seemed uncomfortable all of a sudden. He tried to mask his unease but I could see the worry reflecting in his eyes. That meant he recognized me, and I felt smug. This was one of the times I liked being popular.

Taking the opportunity to stake my claim on Bella, I wrapped my arm around her shoulder. I felt her tense, and I knew she was still pissed at me from earlier.

"What are you doing here?" she asked tightly. I leaned down to kiss her hair, before I turned to face the guy she was talking to.

"Are you alright, Edward?" I heard Bella say. It was then I realized I was scowling directly at the guy.

"Yeah, I am," I replied. I removed my hand around her shoulder, enough to extend my hand toward the guy. "I'm sorry, I'm Edward, Bella's boyfriend." I wanted him to know I was on to him, and from the look of panic that crossed his face, I knew he got my message.

"Ahhmm…I'm Jeff. I was just telling Bella about our group project…and…and..." he stuttered. I was enjoying his discomfort because I was pissed he was interested in my girl. Not that he knew she wasn't really mine, but I didn't like him making small talk with her in the hopes of something more.

"Jeff, I'm sorry. Edward is just is being an ass. I'll call you, okay?" She gave him a smile, and I hated this Jeff even more. I had to make sure I found out more about this guy.

Jeff blushed, making me want to smack him even more. I could say I was a pretty decent guy. I didn't push my popularity or name around to bully other students, but it seemed where Bella was concerned, my patience was tested and I could become easily annoyed.

Bella was a beautiful girl, and I was certain she was everyone's type. I knew because I was one picky fucker when it came to girls. Even Emmett noticed she was gorgeous.

Bella walked ahead of me, ignoring my presence. I followed her, intent on apologizing. It would be hard to explain, and I didn't know where to begin.

"Bella, wait," I said, grabbing her hand. I held her wrist, stopping her completely. She looked at me, her pretty brown eyes held all the irritation she felt.

"I'm not in the mood to be near you right now, Edward."

"Please," I begged softly. "I'm sorry about earlier, I didn't mean to be an ass."

She frowned, as if she was debating what to do. I gave her an exaggerated grin, in the hope she would relent.

"Please, Bella. I promise I'll be good." She was quiet for a whole minute before she sighed.

"At least you know you were being childish," she grumbled. She was walking again, but this time I had her hand in mine. I carefully intertwined our fingers together, loving the warmth of her skin.

"Yeah, I know," I replied chirpily. I smiled and her frown faded.

"So are we okay now?" I couldn't help but ask.

She glanced at me and nodded. The relief that coursed through was so strong, making me wonder why being on good terms with her was so important to me. I squeezed her hand, and she squeezed right back. This action was repeated several times, and by the end of it, I was grinning stupidly. She gave me another glance, smiling shyly in the process, taking my breath away. Her dimples were adorable, I almost leaned down and kissed her. I caught myself before I could do it. I had to remind myself she still had memory loss, and it was not a good idea to take advantage of her any more than I already had.

"Uhmm, where are you going, Bella?" I asked when she started to disentangle her fingers from mine. I didn't like the feeling of loss I felt when her skin wasn't touching mine.

"I need to go buy some books. There's no other time for me to go but now," she said, looking at me under her lashes.

I wanted to go with her, but was afraid to invite myself in the fear I might crowd her.

She was looking at me tentatively, her lower lip between her teeth. I almost groaned out loud because she was killing me. The lip biting was turning me on, and I couldn't afford to be turned on right now.

"Edward?"

"Yes?" I was still staring at her lip, wishing it were my teeth biting the soft skin.

"If you wanna come…" Her voice trailed, cutting me out of my lustful thoughts.

"Okay," I replied, my heart suddenly racing. I liked the idea of spending more time with Bella. I liked it a lot.

Bella reached upward, giving me a quick kiss on the lips, showing yet again how easily she trusted. I was so screwed!

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Bella was reading a book, her face scrunched up, and she looked so cute. I had been staring at her for quite some time now. I knew she was unaware she was taking too long inside the bookstore. If it was another person, I would have been more than irritated. I never wanted to be kept waiting long. But for her, it seemed I could wait forever.

I was leaning on the wall, just enjoying this free show. I liked looking at her as she scanned the books. There was something mesmerizing about her facial expressions while she picked out the books she wanted.

I must have been staring at her intently, because she turned and saw me. I felt the air gush out of my lungs, as if someone punched me. The vision in front of me-Bella with her face flushed, looking oh so beautiful and smiling at me as if I was the only one who could make her happy-gave me an epiphany.

I wanted her in my life, not as the temporary boyfriend, but as the real one. I wanted Isabella Swan to be mine.

Edward just had an epiphany. I say good for him. ;) Let's just hope Bella won't be as angry as we think she will be when the time comes.

Review please. =D