Hey people! =D Thanks so much for your support with this story – I appreciate it no end! Your comments make me SmilE =]

Sorry for the wait, has been playing up for me today - hope its not a virus =|!

Anyway, I hope you enjoy …

Chapter 11:

"I guess we better make a move then, huh" a reluctant Edward broke the silence, as they both lay on their sides on the bed, gazing into each others eyes.

"Yeah … I guess so" her lips without thinking fell into a disheartened pout, and Edward smiled at how truly adorable she looked. He tapped her lightly on the nose, and she scrunched up her face at him playfully.

With a resounding sigh Edward was the first to sit upright. He raked a hand through his dishevelled hair as he looked down at where she lay. A disinclined Bella then followed him up. It took a huge amount of effort though, she could have quite happily stayed there all evening… all night in fact, if it meant she could snuggle with Edward.

She kneeled on her legs before him, giving him a soft blushing smile, before leaning over to kiss his lips. He curled her hair behind her ear as he eagerly responded, cupping her cheek in his hand, whilst she latched onto his shoulders, her back curving as she bent forwards to touch him.

BANG!

The door unexpectedly shot open, smacking off the inner wall, the house almost shaking as it did. It was the abrupt sound that startled them first of all, the unforeseen thump of wood on wall causing them to break their heated kiss, before they registered the faces before them...

So the time had come...

3 months of secret meetings, late night rendezvous and sultry texts, had led to this very moment. And no matter how many times they'd played this over in their heads, the looks on their parent's faces, the disappointment in their eyes; it was never like the real thing.

No amount of imagination could prepare them for what was about to happen…

Time had stopped as the door swung open.

It was like a sudden flash of white light had struck the room, so bright, it had stunned everyone completely. Every sound in the house ceased to be, every movement came to a halt, like water turning to ice. And as their parents stared them down with horrified and disbelieving eyes, they knew that from that moment, nothing would be the same again.

Bella's face quickly fell, the previous rosy flush on her cheeks fading away and leaving a shade of sickly pale/green, whilst her brow puckered into a heartbroken frown of shame. Tears welled up in her eyes as she absorbed the pain and confusion on her fathers face. She'd never been at the receiving end of that expression before, and for every second his eyes bored into her, she felt nauseatingly ill, like she'd just degraded herself as well as the 'Swan' family name.

Shifting herself away from Edward she slowly sat on her legs, pulling the quilt cover further around her.

"Dad" the word slipped from Bella's mouth in a breathy whimper, as teardrops spilled from her eyes.

His head shook once, his mouth opening a jar, as if he was about to respond to her, but he couldn't, there was nothing to say, he'd seen too much, and he knew exactly what had gone on here. His vision then landed on Edward, and within the blink of an eye, any sadness or confusion Charlie once displayed was quickly replaced with something else; anger and betrayal. His fists visibly clenched as he stared at his soon-to-be-step-son, the previously hidden veins in his arms now bulging beneath his skin.

Charlie wasn't normally one to engage in confrontation, but then again, it wasn't everyday you caught your daughter in bed with her supposed step-brother.

"Charlie" Edward began cautiously, his tone a word of warning not to start anything. But Charlie's piercing and maddened glare never wavered.

"How could you!" Charlie's voice was a whisper of ferociousness. But Esme's hand on his arm caused him to stop. In the heat of it all he'd almost forgotten she was standing behind him.

"Charlie" she spoke to him gently, easing some of the tension. Glancing back at his fiancé he observed her pleading eyes. He sighed helplessly, hands and arms loosening up a little. She was right, violence wouldn't help here.

With one last look at Bella, his head shaking at her disapprovingly, he walked straight out, running down the stairs, through the door and out towards the car…

Bella's hand cupped her mouth in devastation, her sobs coming out in choky spurts.

"Bella" Edward touched her back in an attempt to soothe her; hoping to offer her some kind of reassurance. Not that he even knew how too himself. But she flinched at the contact, like she'd been subject to a dowsing of scorching hot water, before shifting herself away from him.

"Edward" he heard his mothers stern voice to his side, but his focus remained on Bella, and her reaction to his touch. Edward knew deep down there was no way he could comfort her now, but her reaction, the way Bella had practically cringed under his hands was enough to break his heart and make him cry. Charlie may as well have kicked him in the gut, because that's exactly how he felt now. He could deal with his mother's disappointment, he could even handle Charlie's anger, but no way could he face a rejection from Bella… not now anyway. "I want you downstairs in two minutes," Esme' ordered him. "Edward!" she raised her voice to shake her son from his trance. It worked and he flicked his eyes towards. He gave her a nod of understanding, before his head dipped in dejection.

Satisfied her son had got the message, Esme' left down the stairs, leaving them alone for a final two minutes.

He took another glance back to Bella, but her face was turned away from him, her chin tucked in the quilt covers as the material threatened to get a drowning from her tears.

Shuffling over to the edge of his bed Edward leant down for jeans. He barely had any energy left for putting them on. And not because he'd spent a good hour or so entertaining Bella's needs, but because the fall out and consequence of their revelation had been exhausting.

Sighing hard he forced himself to stand, pulling his jeans on and zipping them up.

He blamed himself for this. If only he'd just spoken to her like he'd meant too, using his head instead of his heart, this probably wouldn't have happened, and the feelings of everyone involved could've been spared.

Who knew what would happen now. He only hoped this wouldnt ruin his mother's chance for a future with Charlie. Only time would tell he supposed.

Glancing back towards Bella he felt an overwhelming feeling of powerlessness. He was supposed to shield her from getting hurt. If not as a partner, then as a friend and family member. But now, as her body shuddered, her back hunching as she brought her legs up to her chin and wrapped her arms around her frame for protection, he knew he'd let her down. This entire debacle had been his idea in the first place. He'd been the one to kiss her, to proposition her, to seduce her day in day out, and now look where they were.

"I'm sorry" he mumbled down to her from where he stood beside the bed. He waited several tedious seconds for her to acknowledge him. And although it took her awhile, she eventually did, and her head rose, turning just enough for him to see her.

No words passed between the two after that. Their gaze just locked, and a resounding sense of sadness and regret consumed the air between them. When Bella finally looked away, recoiling to her previous position, he chose to walk away, grabbing his t-shirt as he went. Doing as he was told, he made his way down the stairs, ready to face the music...

…………………………………

"Were leaving," declared Esme' as Edward took his final step down the stairs. Frozen in time like a statue, he stood rigid at the bottom of the stairs, needing a moment to process it.

"What?" his voice quivered; heightened with emotion.

"I'm going to take you home, you're going to stay there, and I'm going to come back and sort this out with Charlie," she told him directly, before she headed into the living room to grab some things.

He followed her in impatience, "But, mom…"

"Edward, you can't be here now" she turned to him with a sigh. "You have to think of Charlie. And I'm sure Bella would rather talk to her dad alone, than with you here".

He stared at her with eyes of ambivalence, torn between arguing back, caving in and just bursting into tears. He wanted to say something, but was finding it virtually impossible to formulate a sentence in his head; everything was so screwed up.

He exhaled a long soundly breath, knowing she was probably right, whilst he walked inside and took a seat on one of the couches.

Esme' fumbled around mindlessly grabbing her things, but she stopped mid-way, like she'd suddenly been hit with the knowledge of what had happened. She frowned, struggling to come to terms with it. "What happened here Edward?" she turned to him; his mothers eyes failing to show that usual sparkle of pre-wedding excitement he'd gotten so used too. "What were you even thinking?" She was trying desperately to understand.

He shrugged miserably, eyes on his lap in avoidance. "It doesn't matter now".

"Of course it does. She's practically your sister Edward" she declared incredulously.

At that, something inside of him popped; his temperature rising, like a thermometer exploding in heat. There wasn't much more of this brother/sister crap he could take.

"No mom! She's not my sister," he retaliated, raising his voice. "She's the daughter of the man who you just so happen to be marrying. We're not related in any way, you know that. Just because you're marrying her dad doesn't make her anymore related to me" he looked at her with determined eyes. "And you know what! While were at it, how about you stop acting like a total hypocrite," she was knocked for six at that. "We both know you already knew this was happening. You've known ever since you found her clothes in my room that day, so don't go acting like this is a sudden unexpected revelation, because its not, not for you anyway," his accusation boomed at her through the living room walls, and Esme's face flared ready to bite back. But she forced herself to remain in control; she knew these flying accusations of Edwards were merely the consequence of his upset. And truthfully, he wasn't completely wrong; after all, she would be lying if she didn't admit she'd had her suspicions.

"It crossed my mind" she finally confessed. And Edward scoffed, flashing a mock 'I told you so' smile. "But I never for a second thought you'd be sleeping with her!" she went on, "I mean, what even is this Edward? Are you using her or something?"

"What!" he spat back, disgusted that she could even question him of such a thing, "No, of course not!" he was quick to insist.

"Then what! What is it! Help me understand!" she pleaded with him.

"I … I don't know". How could Edward help his mother understand, when even he was having trouble getting his head around it. "It wasn't supposed to turn out like this" his voice softened in helplessness.

"What did you expect Edward?" her voice mimicked his tender tone, and she shook her head at him hopelessly. Neither wanted to fight over this, in all of their 19 and a half years of being mother and son, they'd barely had a raised word.

He put a hand to his head in distress, as the tears started to brim in his eyes. A moment later and they were swimming like a stream down his cheeks. "I'm sorry, ok," he cried, knowing he'd let her down, but his sobs were also partly for Bella's broken heart, he'd let her down too.

No matter what he'd done though, and no matter how bad things could get, Edward was still Esme's son, and it didn't take her a moment of hesitation as she wrapped her arms around him hugging him tight.

As she held him in an unyielding embrace, her hand stroking his hair, she thought back to Bella, who was devastated and alone up the stairs, whilst her father was off god knows where. Was it really too much for Charlie to have hung around to talk it out? Clearly it was, but she would be having words with him later on, Esme' thought silently to herself, as she attempted to nurse her sons broken heart back together.

…………………………

"Bella?" a soft voice called to her from where she was curled up on the bed. Thinking it was Charlie she sprung up, alert from her foetal position, eyes wide and hopeful. But at the image of Esme' standing before her, she sighed, her features flattening out. "Oh … I thought you were dad" she weakly confessed.

Esme' offered a small sympathetic smile. "He's not back yet" she admitted cautiously. "I've called him though, and he said he's around, he just, needs some time to himself". Bella nodded back understandingly; the events had been a mouthful to digest, and Bella knew that. "He also said, that you might want to stay at Alice's tonight".

Her face frowned even more. She'd never felt so unbelievably alone. "He doesn't want to see me" she concluded with shaky lips, grief-stricken. The true extent of how much she'd hurt him was starting to hit her.

"It's not that," Esme' walked over to sit beside her soon-to-be daughter-in-law, sensing Bella was on the verge of another breakdown. A girl who just desperately needed her father. "He's just, having a hard time accepting it" she ran a hand over her back, trying to soothe her. "Maybe, if you give him a night to come to terms with it, he'll be better focused by tomorrow. And it wouldn't hurt if you had a break yourself. Come back, refreshed tomorrow morning, and you'll be able to talk things through" her hand ran through the strands of Bella's hair, and Bella's eyes fell heavy at the warmth of Esme's mothering touch; she'd never been at the receiving end of a mothers comfort before… it felt nice. Different to what she was used too.

After a few seconds of contemplation, Bella resolved that it did make sense. A good night's sleep could often work wonders following a dramatic event, and who knows, maybe tomorrow things wouldn't seem so bad? "Ok" she nodded weakly, "I'll grab my things."

"Alright. I'll drop you off at Alice's before we take off."

Bella pulled back. "Take off?" that caught her attention, and her eyes searched to meet Esme's. "You're leaving early?"

A meek smile spread across Esme's face; but it didn't touch her eyes. "I think it's for the best".

Bella nodded back again slowly. There wasn't much to be said after that. Esme' left the room then, and Bella began packing her bag. It took longer than it usually would have. Mostly due to her wracking thoughts and the fact that she kept having to reach for tissues to blow her nose and wipe her teary eyes. But following a change of clothes and her bag on her back, she made her way down the stairs.

"Right, let's get going shall we".

Reaching the foot of the stairs, Bella went on to grab her shoes. But a dark figure to her right caught her eye. It was Edward, who was sat on the couch in the living room, he was leant forward, his arms resting on his thighs, but at the sound of a creak from the staircase his head turned to look at her.

Bella paused on the spot at the sight of him; taking a deep breath. She tried to smile, but it took far too much energy to crack her frozen face. He looked so pale, his eyes noticeably blotchy, and his hair was all disarray.

It was strange to see him so broken. He was usually so confident, with a 'nothing fazes me' attitude to life. But the Edward she looked at now was quite different; he looked small as he sat on the couch, shattered, with his eyes distant and uncertain. It most definitely wasn't the Edward she was used to. And apart of her so desperately wanted him to snap out of it, to be a man and put a brave face on.

But the most she got was a small, barely visible nod. A nod as if to say, 'I'll see you Bella', before his head turned away from her, his eyes finding the carpet at his feet.

At that, the tears pooled in her eyes. Her emotions getting the better of her. She was suddenly thinking all sorts of irrational and paranoid thoughts. The worst being, what if that's the last time I'll ever see him?

Her heart thumped in her chest in a panic. And she wanted nothing more than to tell him, right then and there, that she was in love with him. Because she was, she'd known it all along, even if she hadn't really wanted to admit it beforehand. But at the thought of declaring her love for him, the words practically on the tip of her tongue, her father's sorrowful face of disappointment flashed into her mind.

It was blinding almost, taking up her entire field of vision. And confronted with that image, and the memory of his pain, she was powerless to do anything. She couldn't talk, and no longer look at him. Even breathing became a struggle.

As if her heart could break anymore, it did, shattering into millions of tiny splinters at the opposing thoughts of Edward being taken from her, and the hurt she'd subjected her own father to.

The next thing she knew, she was being helped into her shoes by Esme', ushered out the door and into the truck, and then into an awaiting Alice's arms...