AN: I'm a writing demon guys. . .actually I just really want to finish! I've posted the first chapter of The Accidental Kiss and Chapter 2 should go up on Monday so go check it out!

Songs are on my profile and thanks to my beta, CallistoLexx for being super speedy and to Angel & the Twinster for reassuring me that NO, this is not too short.

EPOV

I stared at the door to the girls' townhouse and tried to tell myself that really, I didn't need Jasper's words of luck. It would be fine. It had to be fine.

I renewed my determination and knocked firmly on the door; even if it scared the shit out of me, I would make it fine.

Holding my breath while I waited for someone to come to the door, I prayed that it would be Rosalie. Not Bella. Anyone but Bella.

Of course, the door opened and there she was, standing on the other side.

"Hello, Bella," I said stiffly, and all the blood drained from her face. She looked tired and something else I couldn't place for a second. Finally it dawned on me, as we stood there, staring at each other. It was her eyes—they were terribly, unbearably sad.

She didn't recover from my unexpected presence very quickly, and when she did, she asked in a tight voice, "What are you doing here?"

"I need to see Rosalie."

I'd known what my words were going to do to her, but I knew that at this point, there wasn't anything else I could say. It wasn't time yet for us to talk. I had to fix my mistakes and apologize before I could possibly confess to her, but I still hated the way she froze, like I had physically slapped her.

"Rosalie?" she managed to croak out.

Rose, who could probably hear her name if it was being uttered on the other side of the universe, came walking into the entryway.

"Did someone say my name?" she asked the stone-still Bella, who was gaping at me in abject shock.

"I did," I offered, and unobtrusively managed to shove my foot into the doorway before Rosalie could slam it closed and I never managed to talk to her.

"You," Rosalie growled, appearing next to Bella. "What do you want?"

"I need to talk to you," I said as politely as I could, forcing my temper back in check.

"Me? Don't you mean you need to tell Bella what the hell is going on?"

So the lioness had come to defend her cub. Bella opened and closed her mouth, clearly torn as to what she wanted to say. Finally, she flung at me, "I'm sure Edward has nothing to say that I'd want to hear."

"And I feel the same way," Rosalie declared haughtily. "You need to get off our property."

I felt desperation rising inside of me. "No," I insisted. "I need to tell you about Lauren."

That got Rose's attention fast. She still didn't want to talk to me, but she was curious now.

A single tear trickled down Bella's cheek and I wanted to grab her and insist that even though it looked like I was there for Rosalie, really I was there for her. But before I could, she turned abruptly and left.

I tried to focus, and not on the woman who I wanted to follow with every molecule in my body.

"Can I come inside?" I asked hopefully.

"No," she snapped. "You can tell me right here, right now."

"Okay," I told her calmly, taking a deep breath and hoping that Bella would take me back even if I was seriously maimed and without balls. "It was my fault that Emmett kissed Lauren in high school."

The truth, surprisingly, seemed easy enough to say when it came down to it. However, I was sure that hearing it, especially out of the blue and after all these years, wasn't that easy.

RPOV

My heart was beating so hard that I could barely hear Edward's words—barely, but I did hear them, and then I couldn't have forgotten them even if I'd wanted to. They echoed in my head, pounding their significance into my brain.

Edward was the reason Emmett had kissed Lauren? Somehow I could not wrap my mind around this idea.

How could it not be Emmett's fault?

What would that change if it wasn't?

I didn't even have to really ask the question to know that it would change everything.

"Tell me," I demanded. "Tell me everything."

Edward sighed and I wanted to shake him hard and make him talk faster, because I had never wanted to hear anything more than I wanted to hear this.

"I was young and foolish and I guess a bit jealous. . ." he said, and I knew I was gaping.

"You had a crush on me?"

He nodded, and stared at the mat in front of the doorway. "Yes. Well, and no. I wasn't necessarily just jealous that Emmett had you, but I missed having my older brother around. I didn't think that it would matter so much if you broke up. I didn't even think of the consequences. I bet him he couldn't do it, and of course, I knew how to push his buttons so he'd do it even if he didn't want to. And, Rose, he didn't. Not at all."

I let out the breath I'd been holding. "You," I whispered, feeling my knees get weak with the possibilities of this revelation. "You told me that Emmett wanted to see me."

"He didn't. He wanted you as far away from that room as possible. He wanted to be as far away from that room as possible."

My knees finally gave out and I slumped down in the doorway, the reality of the situation hitting me hard. "Why didn't he just tell me?" I asked, almost to myself more than Edward.

"Honestly, I don't know. I think maybe he blamed himself for taking the bet. And I wouldn't be surprised if he still does."

"He tried to tell me," I said, feeling the tears rising in my throat. "He tried to tell me."

"You should have let him," Edward said kindly. "But really it was me—Emmett never would have kissed her if I hadn't done everything in my power to make him do it."

"I know. I mean I guess I've always known." The tears were coming hard and fast know, and I had to gulp in the cool evening air to get the words out.

"Rosalie," Edward said, crouching down towards me, "I've honestly never been sorrier about anything in my life. It felt wrong then, and it's felt worse and worse every year. I even had to watch him make the worst mistake of his life when he married Tanya."

My head snapped up at her name. "Tell me about her," I demanded.

He shook his head reluctantly. "No," he said and there was definitely finality in his voice. He might feel guilty but I couldn't push him to tell me about this, no matter how I cranked his conscience.

"You need to ask him," he continued. "I'm not going to tell you. I had no part of that."

"Okay," I said in a small voice, too full of questions and conflicting answers to argue the point.

"You should talk to him. Really. Because he's not going to come to you. He thinks you deserve better."

I shot to my feet. "That is a bunch of crap. Total shit."

Edward smiled. "Go tell him that."

Ten minutes later, as I drove up to Cullens' townhouse, I tried to tell myself that this was a mistake. That I shouldn't be doing this. I shouldn't be trying to talk it out with Emmett.

He'd been married and hadn't told me about it. He'd left me on the side of the road.

Of course, I argued with myself, I'd asked to be let out. He'd simply been obeying my request.

I gritted my teeth together and turned the car off and got out.

A raindrop hit my nose and I grimaced. Great. Rain. A perfect end to a perfect day.

I went up the steps and banged on the door with determination. He would answer my questions. The least I deserved from him was some sort of explanation.

The door opened and Jasper was standing there, looking at me with little to no surprise. Clearly Edward had told Jasper that he was divulge the truth.

"Is Emmett here?" I asked hopefully, childishly crossing my fingers behind my back.

"No," Jasper said, and I could feel my face and heart falling.

"But," he added quickly, "he just went for a run. He should be back soon. Do you want to wait inside for him?"

Did I want to wait inside and make small talk with Jasper? Definitely not.

"Thanks, but I'll just wait out here."

"Um," Jasper hesitated. "It's beginning to rain."

"I know. It's fine." I settled down on the steps to wait, and Jasper closed the door with one last incredulous look in my direction.

Ten minutes later, I was soaking wet, the rain dripping into my eyes as I scanned the dark streets in front of me for Emmett's returning form.

I'd just about given up hope when I finally saw him, momentarily passing under a far-off street light.

I got up and half-walked, half-jogged to meet him.

I knew the second he saw me because he stopped dead in his tracks, his expression totally unreadable, the rain dripping down his face.

"Why?" I yelled. "Why didn't you tell me?"

The only sound between us was the patter of the raindrops hitting the pavement.

"You saw Edward," he finally said, and his voice was totally empty.

"Why?" I demanded again walking closer and pushing him hard, the anger boiling up inside of me until I didn't think I could hold it back any longer.

He just shrugged.

"Why?" I screamed, the sobs coming hard and fast and the salt of my tears mixing with the water dripping down my face.

"I didn't deserve you," he finally said. "You deserved someone who wouldn't betray you."

"You didn't," I screamed, my voice harsh in the silence of the neighborhood. "You made a silly, stupid mistake, and I've spent every moment since wishing that things between us had ended differently. Didn't you think that I should get a say, too?"

"You should have," he whispered. "But I'm not the good guy, Rosie. It's not me."

I grabbed his hands and stared into those dark blue eyes that had haunted me for the last seven years. "That's not true. I love you. I've always loved you. You're the only man I want. Good guy or no," I insisted. "I should have let you tell me before. We wastedall these weeks fucking when we should have been talking."

Emmett pulled away and turned to go. "No," he said hoarsely. "You were right to tell me you didn't want to know. I knew you deserved better."

He'd tried this once before—now I knew why he'd left me on the side of the road. I'd asked and he hadn't really believed that I wanted him. That's why he had driven away and not looked back. I had to make him believe now that I wanted him and only him. That I wouldn't run.

"Tell me, why did you marry Tanya?" My voice was now dead calm, the anger washed away with the rain. I couldn't let him get away. I had to get him to admit he loved me. That he was worthy of my love.

He turned. "What else was I supposed to do? I couldn't have you. I should have told you, I guess, but god, Rose, it was so meaningless. She never meant anything to me. She was just a poor copy of you and six months into the marriage it was over because I'd realized I could never love anyone but you." He sounded despondent and hopeless.

I realized we'd been in the same place the whole time; we just had been too pigheaded and stubborn to realize it.

I walked up to him and pulled his head down until our noses were nearly touching. "Emmett," I whispered, "I love you. I only want you. I don't care if you married Tanya or a million girls. And Lauren? I just want to forget about her. She's ruined our lives for long enough."

"Are you sure?" he asked and his voice was still hesitant.

I nodded. "You're it for me. So you can either admit that you're the right man for me or I'm going to be alone forever. It's up to you."

Emmett paused for the longest second of my life. And then he kissed me.

"Smart boy," I murmured, and then I kissed him back.