Disclaimer: All things Twilight belong to the wonderful Stephenie Meyer and not to me… sigh.I also don't own Sleeping with the Enemy. The book belongs to Nancy Price and the movie belongs to Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation.

Sleeping with a Monster


Previously…

"Jasper…" I began, but stopped, unsure of how to present my story. I searched for the right words and decided the best place to start was the beginning. I knew it would be the first time Edward would hear some of the information I was about to present. I was nervous but I plunged ahead anyway.

"Almost three years ago I meet a man named James Cook." I said.

Chapter 23 – Not My Life

"I had graduated from the University of Washington early – completing four years in three years time. Charlie, my father, was so proud. Back home in Forks; that's where I'm from – Forks, Washington. He would brag to anyone who would listen. I'm sure the guys at the police station were sick of hearing about me." I smiled as I remembered how Charlie's chest would puff out in pride whenever he mentioned me.

"I was teaching English at a high school in the suburbs of Seattle. I had good friends, my own place, a new career, a new car – things were going great." I stopped to take a breath.

"Wait a minute. I thought you were from Jacksonville." Alice interrupted with a wary look on her face. She was quick! I nodded in agreement.

"Well… yeah. The thing is, Alice. I'm not from Jacksonville. Like I said, I'm from a little town called Forks in Washington." My voice was a little nervous at the prospect of admitting to Alice I had lied to her. I was not nearly as nervous as I was to tell Edward, and we all know how that went. Therefore, I figured Alice's reaction had to be better. I held up my hand to halt Alice's protest when Jasper cleared his throat.

"Alice. Let Bella finish her story. I'm sure she has a good explanation for her deception." Jasper said as he looked at me pointedly. I felt Edward stiffen slightly beside me.

"She does." Edward immediately defended me against Jasper's comment. I gave his hand a squeeze and a small smile.

"Okay Alice. Let me get something out in the open. My real name is Isabella Marie Swan… Cook." I paused before adding Cook to my name, not wanting to acknowledge it was still a part of my identity. I glanced up at Alice to see her shocked face. I knew from here on out it was only going to get worse. So, I looked out the window, knowing this would be easier if I didn't meet anyone's eyes. I plunged a head with my story.

"So… As I was saying. I was teaching English, life was good. One evening after work, I stopped by a bookstore. While I was browsing, a man commented on the growing pile of books in my arms and we struck up an easy conversation. He was good-looking, polite, and well spoken – he seemed like a nice guy. He asked for a few recommendations for something good to read and then we debated some of the choices I had given him." A humorless chuckle escaped my lips at the memory of a much nicer James. He really could be charming when he chose to be.

"We didn't exchange names or phone numbers. He was just a random man flirting with me in a bookstore. But then I started to run into him around my neighborhood, at the coffee shop, the grocery store, the park where I liked to go for walks. When I teased him about it, he mentioned that he lived in the area and had just moved here from Cincinnati. At the time it made sense that we would see each other around, I guess." I knew Edward probably did not want to hear about how James courted me, but I needed to get it out there. I had a few suspicions and I wanted to see if anyone else saw them too. I looked down at Edward's hand wrapped around mine. I gave his hand a reassuring squeeze before I continued.

"A few weeks went by where we said 'hi,' waving and making small talk when we would find ourselves in line at a store. Eventually he got up enough nerve to introduce himself when he asked if he could share my table when we ran into each other at the coffee shop around the corner from my apartment. His name was James Cook. We talked for hours. He asked me out on a date and I accepted. You know at the time, his excuses for casually running into me around my neighborhood made sense, but now I'm not so sure." I murmured, almost to myself. I glanced over at Edward. His face held a grim expression and I touched his cheek with my fingertips. He looked at me and gave me a sad smile.

"Well, we dated for a month as friends before we became more serious, eventually dating exclusively. About 5 months after meeting James, he asked me to move in with him. I said no. I told him my father would flip and if he valued his life, he wouldn't mention it to Charlie." I glanced up at Alice's confused expression and smirked.

"My father was the police chief back home. He has some old-fashioned ideas, especially about his little girl. Charlie never really connected with James and I would not have put it past him to threaten James with his gun. I felt it would be easier in the long run hoping that Charlie would come around sooner if he wasn't reeling from me moving in with James." Alice nodded in understanding at my statement.

"Your dad is a cop?" Jasper said his voice clearly surprised.

"Yes. He was." I said with a wry smile.

"Bella, I think I know where this is going." Jasper added.

"Well I don't! So stop interrupting! Go on, Bella." Alice said clearly enthralled by my story as she gently slapping Jasper on the arm. I gave her a grateful smile, knowing this story would be easier to tell in the order it happened, rather than fielding random questions and leaving some of the subtle details out.

"He was a little hurt that I wouldn't move in with him, but he seemed to get over it. It was about this time that James took to calling me by my middle name Marie. He originally told me it was his pet name for me; he like being the only one who called me that. A month later, he asked me to marry him. He really was charming and charismatic. He treated me wonderfully, was very protective of me and was a complete gentleman towards me. At the time, I loved him and could see our future together." It was not until after I admitted that I had loved James, that I considered how it might make Edward feel. I looked down as I played with our fingers tangled together as I continue, sure I was hurting Edward with every word that painted James as the good person I thought he was.

"But James started to change almost immediately after I accepted his proposal – not drastically, but subtly. He started to get jealous if other men even looked in my direction. He never accused me of anything or even got mad at me. He would direct the affects of his jealousy towards the other person, whether their behavior warranted it or not. I wrote it off as stress due to planning a wedding together. James took an unusual interest in every aspect of our wedding." I commented. At the time I was grateful for his involvement, not being one for all the pomp and pageantry of a wedding, but now I knew it was a control issue for him.

"Soon, my friends stopped calling, finding excuses to cancel their plans with me. I had not been available as much since I started dating James. Occasionally we would get together with them, but James would find an excuse to leave early. He told me he could sense my friends' reluctance to be around him and that he did not feel welcome. Occasionally we would get in fights, if you could call them that, when I wanted to go out with my friends. James never raised his voice to me or accused me of anything, but still – I felt bad. I wanted the relationship to work, so I stopped doing as much with my friends. Who was I to judge how he felt. They were my friends and I figured he was feeling a little insecure with how close we all were." I glanced up at Edward.

"Angela and Ben were part of that group of friends, you know." I whispered to Edward.

"Really?" Edward looked surprised. I searched his face to make sure he was okay with all the new information he was learning about me. He gave me a comforting smile and nodded his head for me to continue. I turned back to Jasper and started again.

"I could tell that my friends didn't like James and one of them even tried to warn me. Even my own father tried to warn me, but I would not listen. Once my mind was made up, I usually followed through sticking to my commitments. My relationship with Charlie suffered the most. The few times I brought James out to see my father, Charlie would be stiff and distant. I thought my father was just contemplating losing his daughter to another man. Charlie always told me that there would never be anyone good enough for me in his eyes." I smiled at the memory of my Dad trying to get me to promise him I would not date until I was 35 years old.

"I just thought Charlie's reaction to James was due to his insecurities about how James would affect our relationship. You know… would I still be daddies little girl – that sort of thing. However, when I announced my engagement to my father, he nearly flipped out. He was upset with me, telling me I did not know what I was doing. He did not trust James and he did not think James was who I thought he was. I defended James and our engagement. I told my father that I was a grow woman and could make my own decisions. I was marrying James whether he liked it or not and if he would just have to accept it if he wanted to be apart of the wedding and my life with my future husband." I felt the tears start to prick at the corners of my eyes as I recalled the worst fight I had ever had with my father.

"After that, Charlie was even more distant. I know he did not accept the fact that I was marrying James. However, I think he decided it was not worth ruining our relationship over, so he didn't bring it up. I felt sick, but I thought it was just Charlie having a difficult time accepting that I had grown up. About a month before the wedding, James received a promotion along with a transfer to Miami. I didn't like the prospect of moving across the country, away from my father, my friends, a job I loved; Washington was the only place I had ever lived. James eased my fears, telling me I could visit my father and friends whenever I wanted and that they were welcome anytime they wanted to visit us. I could always find a job in Miami and this promotion was a big step in his career. So I agreed to the move. Charlie was not pleased, but he didn't push it." A small sigh escaped my lips as those memories flooded my mind.

"Bella?" Jasper said, cutting into my ramblings. "What does James do for a living?"

"He's an Investment Banker; a very successful one at that. I had no idea until later." I said, shaking my head ruefully. There was an uncomfortable, charged pause. I decided to plunge ahead.

"Well with the wedding only a month away and school in full swing, I didn't have a spare moment to consider where we would live and where I would work once we moved. James took care of everything. He bought a house, furnished it, bought me a car, even bought me a wardrobe. At the time, I thought it was very sweet and considerate of him. I reminded him I already had a wardrobe and teased him about buying me new clothing, but he told me all he did was buy me clothing appropriate for the warm humid climate of Florida." I said ruefully, now knowing that James bought the closes to reinvent me the way he thought I should be.

"The wedding went off without a hitch. James was charming and every bit the gentleman. He even made a serious effort to get on with Charlie and I was encouraged that they might be able to have a better relationship one day. Charlie walked me down the aisle and was even teary-eyed. It was the closest I had ever seen my father come to crying. James took me to Aruba for our honeymoon. He continued to be ever charming and sweet. When the honeymoon was over, we went straight to Miami. I had only seen pictures of our house, so I was excited to see it in person. The house really was incredible. It was around Biscayne Bay, set on the beach and rose straight out of the sand like a glass monolith. The view of the Atlantic Ocean was breathtaking. It was then that I started to realize how wealthy my new husband really was. I know it sounds naïve, but I never really questioned how much money James made. I knew he made more than I did, I just didn't know how much more. Of course, it was never an issue or a deciding factor for me. It didn't change how I felt about him or make him more attractive because he was rich." I continued to plunge ahead, trying not to think about how this was sounding to Edward. If I did, I would never get through the story.

"That first night in our new home, James was distant. I thought he was just fatigued from traveling. The airport had lost my luggage and he was in a rotten mood because of it. He snapped at me, saying that he was tired and went straight to bed. It was the first time he had ever raised his voice to me. I didn't know what to think." I paused for a moment. I knew this was the point that my story would change drastically. Up until this moment, I was just giving them a history – setting the stage for the real story. I could sense Edward could tell where it was going from here on out and I suspected Jasper had an idea. As a police detective, he had probably heard this story countless time. I was concerned that Alice was going to be blind-sided. Edward must have sensed my reluctance to continue because he broke through the silence.

"Why don't we take a break for a minute – let Bella rest her voice? Would anyone like a drink?" Edward said as he rubbed soothing little circles across the top of my hand. I was not even aware of my tense posture until I started to relax under Edward's simple touch. He released my hand and stood up to play the part of the gracious host while he gave me time to collect my thoughts and check my emotions to ensure I would be able to continue.

"I'll have water." Alice chirped. Yep, she was oblivious to the direction my story was going to go. I thought, unsure if I should say something to prepare her. However, Jasper put his arm around her and pulled her in tight to his side before he glanced up at me and gave me a smile.

"Beer, if you have it." Jasper added as Edward walked towards the kitchen.

"I'll help you." I said, jumping up off the couch, suddenly feeling small and exposed in the absence of Edward's warm body next to mine. A glance at Alice's curious expression confirmed that she had a few hundred questions and I did not feel up to answering them right now.

"Bella? What can I get you?" Edward asked sweetly. As much as I wanted a beer or something infinitely stronger to drown out the shame that was sure to well up when I dove into the worse parts of my story, I decided I needed my wits about me.

"I don't know. Let's see what you have." I teased as I opened his refrigerator and peered inside, trying to lighten the mood in the room. Edward wrapped his arm around my shoulders as he leaned past me and grabbed a couple of bottles of beer and a water bottle.

"Beer?" He said offering me one of the bottles. But I shook my head no.

"No, although I have a feeling I might need one of those later." I chuckled darkly as I continued to shake my head before I grabbed a Sprite and closed the refrigerator door. Edward set the beers and water down on the counter before he grabbed my Sprite and placed it beside the other drinks. He then wrapped his arms around me in a comforting hug.

"This is hard for you, isn't it?" He question was more of a statement.

"Yes." I mumbled into his neck. I sighed before I looked up at him.

"But I think I need to do this. I am more worried about how this is affecting you – especially the next part of my story. It will not be pretty and it is filled with nothing but heartache. It's not going to be easy to hear." I whispered, not wanting the others to hear our conversation.

"Bella" He sounded a little exasperated. "Please don't worry about me. I can handle it. I already have a pretty clear picture of the physical abuse he was inflicting on you – I was there that night, remember?"

"As grateful as I am that you were there to help me last Spring, I can't help but regret that you saw me like that. It's not something I wanted anyone to see." I said dropping my eyes to stare at his chest instead, but Edward would have none of it as he lifted my chin until my eyes met his.

"Bella. I love you and nothing you say is going to change that." Edward said his voice low from emotion. Then he kissed me; his lips moving soft and slow with mine.

"Hey you two! Where are those drinks? We're thirsty." Alice demanded playfully from the couch, causing us to break out of our kiss. We smiled at each other before we grabbed the drinks and walked over to Jasper and Alice. Edward handed them the drinks before we settled back down on the couch. Edward had his arm around my shoulders as he pulled me back against his chest, and I relaxed into him, trying to draw strength from his comfort.

"So… What happened next?" Alice said a little too excited for the rest of the story I was about to unleash on her. I glanced over at Jasper, who looked just as baffled as I did at the strange pixie's reaction. I had dropped enough clues as to the impending change in James behavior, but she seemed clueless all the same. I just shook my head and continued.

"James didn't speak to me the rest of the night; he just went to bed. The next morning he woke me up and told me to fix his breakfast. I was a little put off at the demanding tone he used, but I played it off – thinking it was from the stress of starting his first day at work in his new office in Miami. I went downstairs and made him a simple breakfast of scrambled eggs, toast and juice. I'll never forget that." I mumbled the last sentence to myself.

"James came downstairs and looked me up and down with a disgusted look on his face. He proceeded to tell me how awful I looked first thing in the morning. I was completely taken aback, but that was nothing compared to what he did next. He looked at what I had made him for breakfast, walked over and threw the entire plate of food at the wall before he turned around and slapped me." I heard Alice gasped and glanced up at her. She wore a shocked expression as he covered her open mouth with her hand. I knew she finally understood where this story was going and I shook off her reaction before I continued.

"If you think I laid down and played dead, you're wrong Alice. I was a college-educated woman, the daughter of the police chief. Charlie taught me how to defend myself. I considered myself smart enough not to get involved with an abuser, or so I thought. However, that first blow caught me off guard because I could not fathom that the charming man I had married was suddenly insulting me and breaking dishes. My reaction to his slapping me however was swift and precise as I slapped him back. I then told him no man hits me and gets away with it, especially unprovoked." I let out a dark humorless chuckle as I shook my head at the memory.

"James did not take too kindly to that. He grabbed me by my throat and slammed me up against the same wall that was smeared with eggs and had bits of porcelain from the plate imbedded in it. I was still reeling from the change in the man I loved. His blue eyes were ice cold when told me that if I ever hit him again, he would kill me and to prove his point, he tightened his hold on my throat cutting my air supply until I started to see black spots. I struggled to get free, but it was not until I stopped struggling that he finally released me. I learned something in that moment – if I didn't fight him, it would be easier. So, I started to plan. I would wait for him to leave for work and then I would leave. But, James was one step ahead of me that day. He took my keys, wallet, phone – he even disconnected the house phone and the internet. I kept waiting for him to leave, but he did not, he stayed. He demanded that I clean up my mess from the breakfast he had smashed on the wall. I cleaned it up, silently seething at him. However, I knew he was angry right then and in a physical contest, I would lose. James was 6 foot 3 inches tall, 225 pounds, and all of it muscle. There was no way I would last, especially if he didn't hold back."

"After cleaning up the mess and the remains of the meal preparation, James sneered at me to get cleaned up for the day. I started to protest that I was hungry and wanted to get some breakfast, but James threatened to come at me so I retreated up the stairs quickly to avoid another confrontation. I found it difficult to reconcile the old James who courted me tenderly with love with the new James who seemed to hate me and did not mind physically hurting me. As I showered my mind was racing trying to figure out what went wrong, wondering if it was something I did, wondering if James was on medication and had forgotten to take it, wondering if I was trapped in a nightmare unable to wake up or if James had been taken over by aliens. It's funny some of the ideas I came up with trying to make sense of his behavior." I looked down for a moment, realizing that it still baffled me.

"I was still confused when I finally emerged from our bedroom, showered and dresses – but on my guard as well. I had a visible welt on my cheek and bruises on my neck from where James had choked me. I pulled my hair back and wore a shirt that did nothing to hide what he had done, hoping it would make him feel guilty or wake him up to what he had done. It didn't work and he told me as much. He told me he had no sympathy for punishing me for my laziness and imperfections. James started to outline all my flaws and mistaken ideas, informing me of what he expected of me in our marriage. He never game me specifics, just generalities. When I tried to ask for more specifics he told me to shut up and never interrupt him again. It was all I could do not to scream at him, but I held it in, waiting for the moment I could leave or a least for him to calm down and be reasonable. He never left that day. Instead he schooled me to how he wanted our home to be cleaned and then proceeded to lord over me as he insisted I clean the entire place from top to bottom. I felt like nothing more than his maid." Edward rubbed my upper arm, comforting me.

"By that evening I decided I was done with this little charade. I tried to be nice, asking what had brought his change in behavior. James said he was done trying to be someone less than he was meant to be just to please me. James then said it was me who needed to change and he was going to help me become worthy of him – he would help me attain perfection. I told him I just wanted the man I married not the one I was faced with now. He told me that was not who he was. I was broken hearted at the realization that James did not love me, that he had played me. He wasn't who I thought he was and there was not way he returned the love I felt for him, not with how vicious he was towards me. His eyes held nothing but disdain for me." I said sadly. Even though I could honestly say I found James to be disgusting having lost all feelings of love for him long ago, it still hurt that he never loved me for me.

"At that moment I knew I had to get out. There was no saving this marriage. James was nothing more than an abuser, a monster. I told him I was leaving him, getting a divorce. I would not stay married to him and I would not be a willing participant in his plans for our life together. I had no idea his reaction would be so swift and cruel. He lunged at me and started to hit me. With every blow, I flew around the room like a rag doll. The whole time he outlined his threats in detail the things he would do to those I loved – most of all what he would do to Charlie. James controlled everything – my finances, my freedom, my identity. With every blow, he drove home how much power he had. The pain from the beating I was enduring was more than I could bear. Just before the final blow that rendered me unconscious, James told me in no uncertain terms that if I ever left him, he would find me and kill me."

"I didn't wake up until the next night. I was in our bed. The thing I remembered the most, more than the pain and the heartache, was the hopelessness I felt. The reality of the situation I found myself in was unimaginable. It was the stuff horror movies were made of, not my life. And the worst part was that I had no one to blame for this but myself." Edward tensed beside me and I glanced over at the fierce look on his face as he shook his head at me in disbelief.

"My God! Bella! How can you say that?" Edward said, appalled.

"You are not to blame for what that creep did to you!" Alice yelled at me as she jumped off the couch, visibly shaking with emotion.

"Alice, honey." Jasper said as he reached for her, trying to calm her down.

"Alice. You don't understand. Charlie, my friends, they tried to warn me that James was not who I thought he was. But I was stubborn and I refused to see what they saw." She was not buying my explanation.

"No Bella, James allowed you to see only what he wanted you to see. He probably was not as careful around the others. Remember, you were only looking at him through the eyes of love, unable to look at him with skepticism. Even while you sit here and tell us about how he courted you, you have only good things to say about his behavior towards you." Jasper said and I immediately felt ashamed that I still saw the old James that way.

"I guess I have never been able to reconcile the nice James with the cruel James. I woke up one day and found myself married to a monster and the memory of how he was before has never allowed me to believe that they were one and the same person." I admitted as I covered my face. Edward wrapped his arms around me as my shoulders started to shake with my sobs. Soon, another pair of smaller arms wrapped around me as Alice hugged me. My cries subsided after a few minutes and Alice pulled back to look at my tear streaked face.

"Ugh!" I said. "I'm so ready to be done crying over that fiasco of a marriage. So, where was I?" I said, trying to lighten the mood a little. I knew one of the hardest parts would be reliving that first and worst of the beatings James had given me. Alice retreated back to her seat next to Jasper.

"Are you sure you want to continue?" Edward said, incredulously as he wiped away the tears on my face.

"Yes, but I don't think I ever want to tell this story again as long as I live." I said letting out a mirthless laugh through the remainder of my tears. Edward hugged me before he relaxed his hold on me, keeping one arm around my shoulders, pulling me into his side. I sighed and turned back to Jasper and Alice.

"That night he beat me to unconsciousness was the only time James went that far. I think it was more to drive home the threat so I would not doubt him. And I still don't doubt it to this day that he still means it." I could hear the fear in my voice and hoped the others in the room did not notice it.

"When I woke up, I didn't realize I was alone in the house until James came home. I was still in bed, unable to get up. Everything ached from my head right down to my feet. I had been smashed into enough of the furniture and walls to be certain everything was sore. I was sure I had a couple of cracked ribs on top of it. When I heard James come in the house, panic overtook my system at the thought of what he would do to me next. He came into the bedroom, looked at my appearance and scowled. He turned on his heel and went downstairs. I heard him in the kitchen and after a while, he returned with a tray that held a bowl of soup, a glass of water and a few saltines. It was the last time he did anything decent for me. He told me when I finished my soup, I would have to take my tray downstairs and clean up the kitchen. I just looked at him with my mouth open, aghast as he disappeared down the hall." My voice was devoid of emotion as I tried to keep the sadness I felt at the time from welling up again.

"I finished my soup before I made an attempt to get out of bed. I stumbled into the bathroom and looked at myself in the mirror. The only mark to my face was the now fading welt from that first slap. But when I started to examine the rest of my body I was horrified. My arms, legs, back, stomach, breasts, hips, and neck were black and blue from the aftermath of the beating I had received at the hands of my husband. I winced when I found a cut on the back of my head and long with some new bumps that were tender to the touch. I did not recognize the bruised and swollen body before me. I sobbed at the sight and collapsed on the floor of the bathroom. I gasp as the pain from my ribs shot through me in response to my crying. I felt nauseous, but fought it down, knowing it would cause my already aching ribs to explode with unbearable pain. James came in and called me a cow, telling me to get my fat ass up off the floor and do as I was told. He grabbed my arms and I cried out in pain as he gripped my bruised limbs in his vice-like hold, pulling me up off the floor. He released me and strode out of the room grabbing the tray on his way out. I staggered out of the room and down the stairs." I automatically rubbed my upper arms at the memory of the pain and I felt Edward wrap his arms around me in comfort.

"Are you okay?" He whispered in a calm voice, but his breathing had pickup signaling that he was not nearly as calm as his voice suggested. I looked at him and touched his cheek.

"I am now." I said kissing him lightly. I turned back around and continued.

A/N: Now, when I started this chapter, Bella's story got so big and took on a life of its own, I had to split the chapter in two! LOL But no worries. Because of this I already have the next chapter written and will post it in the next couple of days!

And now it's time for the praise! I have the best reviewers on the planet! 44 for the last chappie! You guys are AWESOME!

Thank-you! – SavageWoman