Just a quick a/n... I'm worried that I'm making Edward out to be a really nasty guy and I swear those aren't my intentions! Remember this is all Bella's POV so far and she is prone to think the worst and take the worst from things. I promise he's not that OOC! You'll see more of what I mean in the next chapter, which may or may not be in his POV.

Also, thanks for the reviews! They really gave me the boost I needed to keep on writing.

Jacob and I sat in comfortable silence on the way back to the Cullen's. I could tell his eyes were on me but I couldn't bring myself to look over. I knew I was blushing; the situation was slightly uncomfortable for me.

"So," he sighed, leaning over to flick off the radio, "what's the deal with you and Cullen?"

I jumped and my head whipped up fast. "Excuse me?"

He could tell something was going on by my reaction. He smirked. I suppressed the urge to groan and smack my head repeatedly on the dashboard. I really was an open book.

"He all but pissed on you when we were walking out of the apartment," he snorted, stopping at a red light. His dark eyes drifted over to mine and held my stare.

"He's just… protective of me. That's all. I'm his best friend's sister." I sighed and looked away. "He thinks of me as his sister, too." I couldn't help but whisper the last part out, noting the sad tone of my voice. Jacob noticed it, too.

"It's none of my business," he said softly, speeding up when the light turned green. "You just seemed jumpy after everything, that's all."

"I've had a rough few months. I'm always jumpy."

He nodded.

We were silent for most of the rest of the drive, which was very nice. Not only did I have to sort out my tangled thoughts, but I genuinely enjoyed being in his presence. I hardly knew him and yet I was completely at ease with him, something that was always difficult for me. I never reacted well to strangers. And yet here I was, feeling almost… happy.

After a while, he struck up a conversation with me.

"How come you're spending Thanksgiving with Edward's family, if you don't mind me asking?"

"My parents had plans I wasn't necessarily interested in. Plus, Alice wanted me with her. She wanted to cheer me up."

Jacob looked over at me. "Why?"

I laughed and shook my head. "Long story."

"We've got a couple of minutes."

"Long, embarrassing story," I clarified.

He dropped it, thankfully.

"What are you doing today?" I asked, not only because I was intent on steering the conversation away from me but because I was genuinely interested.

Shrugging, he smiled at me. "Popping a few frozen dinners into the microwave and watching football with my dad."

I felt a pang of pity in my chest. The emotion found its way to my face, of course, and he winced.

"Don't feel bad for me, Bella. That's the way we like it." He grinned at me.

I forced a smile but felt bad, regardless. I decided to fill up the car with useless chatter until we got to the house.

He chuckled at a joke I made as we pulled into the driveway and then went silent. He stared off into the distance, looking gloomy all of a sudden.

"What's wrong?" I asked, startled at his mood change. We had been getting along so well!

"Cullen is glaring at me from the living room," he muttered, nodding to the house. "He must have decided to come straight here, after all."

I blinked and looked over, surprised to realize that Edward was, in fact, staring at us through the living room curtain. His jaw clenched before he stepped away.

The expression on his face caused my heartbeat to quicken with something resembling fear. The thought was ludicrous to me, and had I not felt afraid, I would have laughed. Edward wasn't a scary guy; I'd never been frightened of him before. I was scared of feeling for him and scared he would find out, sure, but I had never felt something like this. He'd looked hungry… furious… dangerous.

"That was weird," Jacob stated, bringing me out of my reverie.

I shook my head and looked back at him. "I know."

"He's probably mad because I took so long."

My eyebrows rose out of confusion. He smiled sheepishly and looked down. "I kind of took the long way here."

It took a second for it to click but when it did, I blushed.

He smirked at me. "You look cute when you're confused."

"Thanks," I said sarcastically. "And thanks for driving me back here. Even if you took the long route."

Jacob smiled and appeared to be a little embarrassed. "I wanted to get to know you."

"Same here." It was true. He'd interested me from the first second I laid eyes on him. I was glad to have had a chance to chat. His next move, however, took me completely by surprise.

"Do you think I could have your number?" He looked at his hands on the steering wheel as he asked. His face was kind of squished together, as though he were bracing himself for impact. He looked adorable.

"Of course," I said without thinking.

I really wasn't into dating anyone right now but I definitely needed a friend. I gave him my number quickly and stood, slightly flustered from the day's events but pleased nonetheless. I had dreaded the band practice, with good reason, but I'd met someone special. I knew that much.

"It was great meeting you, Bella," he said earnestly.

I smiled and nodded. "You, too."

Then I sighed and walked into hell.

I hadn't even taken off my coat before Edward was on me.

"What the hell took you guys so long to get back here?"

I looked at him, completely confused. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I live ten minutes from here, Bella. It took you guys almost twenty-five minutes," he practically growled out.

Whoa. What the hell was going on here?

I didn't know what to say so I continued putting my coat on a hanger. He ripped the hanger and coat out of my hands and threw them onto the couch.

"Answer me, Bella!"

"Jeez, bro, what's your problem?" Emmett asked as he came into the room, looking almost as confused as me. He walked over to me and put his arm around my shoulders. "What are you yelling at Bella for?"

Edward rubbed at his eyes tiredly and sighed. I noticed the purplish rings underneath them and worried that he wasn't getting enough sleep.

"I'm not yelling at Bella, Emmett," he said in a restrained voice that just hinted at the rage beneath the words. "I'm merely asking her a question."

"You sounded like you were yelling," Emmett challenged, clearing disbelieving Edward. I didn't blame him for not believing him; Edward had sounded more than enraged when I'd come in.

"What's going on here?" Alice chirped, thankfully walking into the house before any more drama could happen.

"Edward's being a douche," Emmett said simply. "He was practically screaming at Bella about something."

Alice looked from Edward to me a couple of times before slipping her tiny hand in mine. "Whatever, Edward's just being Edward. Let's go up and get you freshened up, Bella!"

I would have groaned had I not been so confused and alarmed. Edward was glaring at me, seething in anger. I couldn't grasp what I had done wrong. I turned my head, blushing furiously, grateful I was getting out of his sight. There was something about his gaze that scorched me and made me feel so small. He looked like I'd betrayed him or disappointed him somehow.

Alice pushed me into her bedroom and started re-applying my makeup. I was shaking badly, fear and confusion bombarding my thoughts. I hadn't done anything wrong!

"Don't mind him, Bella," Alice said quietly. "All things will reveal themselves in time."

I shook my head at another one of Alice's infamous cryptic sayings. Normally I would have harassed her and badgered her into telling me, though she never relented, but I was just too tired. I let her continue her work, humming and murmuring things to me occasionally.

"I'm glad Jasper sent me back here ahead of him," she laughed, putting some more eye shadow on my face. "If I hadn't come back, Emmett would have kicked the shit out of Edward. He hates it when guys talk down to girls."

I nodded, remembering a couple of occasions in the past. Emmett didn't have the best control on his temper when it came to guys disrespecting women. I remembered with a shudder a few of his violent fights.

"Anyway, what do you think of Jacob?"

I smiled, though it was slightly strained, remembering the sweet kid I'd just become friends with. "He's nice."

"I think so, too," Alice nodded. She finished putting mascara on my lashes and stepped back. "Well," she sighed with an appraising look, "you look fabulous. I'll let you brush your hair yourself as I get ready."

"Gee, thanks," I muttered, combing through my endless knots.

Alice slipped out of her beautiful outfit and shimmied into yet another. Why didn't she just model? I could feel her watching me as I brushed my hair. It was starting to get unnerving.

"Bella," she called nonchalantly from her closet. Her tone of voice immediately alerted me that something was up.

"Yes?"

"Could you come here a sec?"

Alice usually only called me into her office for "conferences" as she called them. We were less likely to be overheard in there.

I stood up and walked over slowly. Something told me this wasn't going to be good.

She was standing over her shoes, a hand to her chin in contemplation. At first glance, I thought maybe she was going to ask me my opinion. The more we stood in silence, however, the more I gave it some thought and realized Alice never, ever asked my opinion about fashion. Why would she? There was something more going on here. The air crackled in tension and I felt like I was going to burst soon if she didn't say something. What could it possibly be about? Hadn't I had enough drama going on lately?

Finally, her beautiful face lifted and her sparkling eyes met mine. She looked amused but there was also a tint of sadness in her eyes.

"I'm hurt, Bella."

"Why?" I breathed. What had I done?

"Aren't I your best friend?"

I nodded vehemently.

"Don't love you love me as I love you?"

Again, I nodded.

"Don't you realize that I expect the two of us to be able to tell each other everything?"

I nodded passionately once more, the point of all of this escaping me.

Suddenly she pounced on me and squeezed her bony hands into my shoulders so tightly it hurt.

"THEN WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME ABOUT EDWARD?"

My heard felt like it dropped a thousand feet. She knew. It was all over her face. Had he told her? Had she seen us leave together as I'd feared? Had she just guessed by our strange actions today? I felt the blood leave my face as I thought maybe she was really furious with me. Maybe she was pissed I'd played around with her brother. I thought had the situation been reversed, I would have been a little upset, too. It was not only awkward but just somehow… wrong.

She was staring at me expectantly with a blank look on her face.

I searched my brain for something, anything, to say. Anything to explain my actions and somehow make them acceptable.

Then she cracked a smile.

"Did you honestly think I didn't know, Bella?"

I said nothing. I was frozen, petrified, like prey in the path of a predator.

Then she burst out laughing. My expression must have been ridiculous because she started howling.

She sobered up a little but continued laughing. "I'm not mad at you, Bella. I just thought you'd tell me. I wanted to talk about it and I've been waiting for you to get up the nerve all day."

My hands were still shaking. "I'm sorry," I finally whispered.

"What for?"

"It was wrong."

She shook her head so fast it made me dizzy just looking at her. "It's fantastic! I'll admit that it's not exactly the way I pictured things happening but it's definitely going to speed things up!"

"What are you talking about?" I asked slowly. She'd lost me.

"I always knew the two of you would get together. I thought one day Edward would wake up and realize how irrevocably in love he was with you or that you'd get up your nerve to confront him about it and make him realize it. I didn't think it would start out with a drunken night of sex." She started giggling again. "Did you have a good time, at least?"

"I don't remember any of it," I said distractedly. I still didn't know what she was talking about. Edward was not in love with me.

"Oh," she mumbled, slouching her shoulders disappointedly. "That sucks. After everything…" Then she brightened again. The woman was bipolar; I knew it. "But at least it happened! It happened, Bella! You had sex with Edward!"

"Could you keep your voice down?!" I hissed, heat flaming up in my face. "And it doesn't change anything," I whispered.

"Oh, Bella, I'm afraid it does," she grinned. "Just take what happened downstairs as Exhibit A. He got jealous just because Jacob took you home. Do you realize how great that is?"

I looked at her blankly. I didn't see greatness in that at all.

She shook her head and laughed in frustration. "You're utterly clueless, Bella Swan, but that's part of your charm."

"Alice… you don't honestly think anything will come of this, do you?"

She nodded excitedly. "Yes, I do. Something definitely is going to come from this."

I bit my lip. "You're wrong, Al. You should have seen him this morning. He couldn't get me out of his apartment fast enough."

Alice shrugged. "He was just nervous; it happens when commitment-phobic guys end up having sex with girls they care about. They run. He's not running anymore, though. Bella, he's going to be all over you until we get back to school... and probably long afterward."

"He has Tanya," I reminded her.

"Forget her," she scoffed, shaking her head. "He doesn't care about her at all. Trust me."

"He cared about her this afternoon…"

Alice gazed at me for a few moments before looking down. "I'm not proud of what he did today. As a matter of fact, I plan on giving him hell for it. I didn't realize my brother was that much of a man-whore."

I giggled at the term being applied to Edward. Sure, he'd had his share of girlfriends but he wasn't exactly a player.

"I mean it," Alice said seriously. "That was completely disgusting. He never should have paraded her around in front of you."

"He doesn't think it means anything to him, Alice."

She shook her head. "Even if he thought that, Bella, it was still wrong. When you sleep with someone, lines get blurred whether you want them to or not and things get awkward. I'm sure it was unbelievably uncomfortable for you and I'm sure that on some level, Edward knew that. It was just wrong. Not to mention it was wrong of him to do that with any of us there."

She was right. "I'll give you that. I wouldn't want to very obviously have sex with a room full of people just outside."

"Exactly. He can be such a pig. But I know he'll come around, Bella. Just be patient and wonderful a little longer and ignore the hurtful bullshit he pulls until then."

Biting my lip, I put the brush down. "But that's not fair, Alice. I like him a lot but I'm no masochist. At least I try not to be."

She nodded. "I know, Bella, I know. But I just have this feeling that the two of you are going to be something great. You and Edward are my most favorite people in the world, Bella. I just want to see the two of you happy."

"That doesn't necessarily mean we'd be happy together," I pointed out.

She nodded again. "I know that, too. Edward is an asshole ninety-nine percent of the time. You're too good for him, even if you can't comprehend that. I know things seem hard and impossible right now but I'm dead serious when I tell you that I can see the two of you together. You complement each other in such a bizarre way… That much is apparent to me now."

"Have you turned into a fortune-teller now?" I asked, forcing what I hoped looked like a smile on my face. My attempt to lighten the mood failed; she soberly shook her head.

"I'm not pretending to know for sure Edward will clean up his act. As a matter of fact, everything in his past points to his inability to mature. I should be shooing you away and protecting you. But you forget that I know Edward, almost as well as I know you, and I know that he doesn't act like how he acted downstairs for nothing."

I blushed at the thoughts swirling around in my head. I didn't want to say them but I figured my ideas to be right and I wanted to emphasize my point to Alice. "Uh… well, did you think that maybe it's just because we… had sex together? Maybe, without really wanting to, he formed a sort of attachment to me? Some sort of primeval territorial macho thing that has no real 'love' behind it?"

She was shaking her head before I finished. "No, Bella. Just… no. Usually if Edward has a one-stand- which is remarkably rare, by the way- he's quick to ditch her. Do you know how many girls he used to try and fling at Jasper? Poor Jazz. He forgets sometimes how lucky he is to have me."

I smiled at her and she smiled tentatively back. "I know you're done talking about this but I just want to say that if Edward continues to act like a prick, I will back you up and help you to forget about him… and I'll kick the shit out of him, too. Just for good measure."

I laughed at that. Little tiny Alice was certainly no match for someone like Edward, whose subtle muscles belied the strength behind them. She giggled too, guessing my thoughts and shrugging at them.

"Girls, dinner!" Esme's smooth voice called upstairs.

The amusement in the air faded and was replaced with trepidation and fear. I was afraid to face Edward again. This was getting silly! But his face earlier had terrified me, more than I cared to admit. It was almost like he hated me and that was a thought I couldn't bear. Especially considering how I felt about him.

"Let's go," Alice said softly, wrapping her arm around mine. "Let's face Edward together. And follow my lead… I know just what'll do the trick."

She grinned mischievously and I swallowed involuntarily; the look on her face told me all I needed to know. Trouble was coming.