Saturday morning dawned bright and sunny without the customary fog that the guests were getting used to. Emmett greeted the day with a grin and the clear blue skies meant he could put to good use the bait he had stashed in the pantry of the cabin.

Not nearly as hungover as he normally would be, and that he attributed to having Rose along the night before, he was up and ready with a clear head for the first time in as long as he could remember.

Emmett took the time for a quick stroll through the gardens at the front of the camp and as he bent to smell one of the last roses on a bush he took stock of the carpark. The usual vehicles were there and he was pleased that the little green coupe was missing. Rose had been absent from camp the two Saturday mornings prior and Emmett spent a few seconds patting himself on the back for having noticed.

He went to breakfast as normal and ate his usual fill. He smiled and joked, laughed and chatted with his friends and when the group split off to go their separate ways Emmett retrieved his backpack and headed for the crystal clear waters of the lake.

Bella was going in to town to buy herself another novel, having already devoured the two she'd bought on her first trip and that left Edward at a loose end for the morning at least. He watched Emmett walk down the path, a spring in his step, and wondered what he was up to now. Whatever was in the backpack at his shoulder was heavy because the bag sagged noticeably. Calling out to his friend before he got too far ahead Edward was a bit peeved to be ignored.

Emmett heard Edward as clear as day but did his best not to react to being shouted at. He kept his eyes straight ahead and put one foot in front of the other hoping his friend would forget he'd seen him and go and find Bella to play with.

Emmett only looked back once and that was only so he could make sure that Edward hadn't followed. He hadn't and Emmett sighed, pleased. He made sure he had gone far enough around the edge of the lake not to be seen too clearly from any angle at camp and then looked back down the path again. Still nobody. His walks had paid off he thought as he laid the backpack carefully on the ground and doubled back to collect one of the canoes tied up to the little jetty. He used the attached rope to drag the canoe through the water to where he'd left his bag. So far he was in the clear.

He unpacked his bag cautiously and set each item into the bottom of the canoe as carefully as he could. He donned the safety vest and was about to step into the little boat when Edward appeared on the path heading right for him. He'd come around the lake from the opposite direction. Emmett looked back along the path that way and noticed all the overhanging willow trees. Edward had managed to stay hidden almost all the way around the edge.

Emmett cursed long and low and threw his now empty backpack over the items he had in the bottom of the boat. Wishing he'd had the smarts to bring along an actual fishing rod he used the few seconds he had before Edward joined him at the water's edge to get his story straight.

"What are you up to?" Edward asked as he got close enough to be heard.

"I'm going fishing, mate," Emmett said as casually as he could.

"Fishing?" Edward asked sceptically. "Pretty difficult to catch fish without a pole," he chuckled.

"I've got a handline in there," Emmett nodded towards the canoe.

"I'll row then," Edward offered and made to move closer to the boat.

"No," Emmett said a little too quickly and a little too loudly. "Um, I mean, I've only got the one life vest, mate. It's not safe."

Edward raised his eyebrows and Emmett knew he was screwed before the guy opened his mouth. "You're worried about me being safe?" Edward scoffed predictably. "This from the guy who said we were perfectly safe making a still because I was wearing glasses and you had gloves on. Spill," Edward demanded.

Seeing his chance to salvage the operation Emmett dropped the rope at his feet and stood on it to stop the canoe from floating away. "Remember the other night, after the explosion, you and I were in the garden?" he asked a confused Edward who could only nod that he did remember. "Do you remember asking me what you should say and do about your part in the whole still thing and me telling you that you were just going to deny any knowledge of it?" Again Edward nodded. "This is one of those situations," Emmett said carefully. "If you hang around out here with me and something goes wrong you'll be right back there, staring down the barrel of having to deny shit. I don't want that for you. So best you turn around and head back to camp."

Edward's reply came out of his mouth without him needing to think on it. "I feel bad that we damaged that storeroom," he said pointing back towards camp, "but making that still with you was the most fun I've had in my entire life," he said fiercely. "Whatever it is you're out here doing I'm in, life vest or not."

Cursing, Emmett threw Edward an exasperated look. "Mate, I'm being serious here."

"And I'm being serious right back," Edward insisted. "If what you've got going on here is anything to do with trying to make money to buy us beer and smokes then I want in."

Realising the guy was serious Emmett shrugged. "Alright, but if this goes wrong I don't want you whining that I didn't warn you, right?" he asked. Edward nodded frantically and agreed without hesitation. Knowing he was beaten Emmett retrieved the rope from the ground and pulled the canoe closer to the shore. He shucked his life vest and threw it at Edward and waited until he had it secured before telling him to get into the canoe but to avoid standing on the backpack and what was under it.

Edward took up the paddle and waited for his friend to climb into the boat himself, and then he paddled them out into the centre of the lake at Emmett's instruction. Judging the distance to be around halfway from any point of land Emmett told Edward to put the paddle at his feet and then he removed the backpack from the items in the bottom of the little boat.

Edward couldn't make sense of what he was seeing and said so.

"You ever seen one of these?" Emmett asked as he held up a black plastic tube-shaped object that had a round metal loop fixed into its top.

"Is that a grenade?" Edward asked incredulously. "Fucking hell," he muttered when Emmett nodded. "We're going fishing with a hand grenade?" he asked.

"Sort of," Emmett agreed as he fished around in the bottom of the boat for a few seconds and came up with another one. "They aren't filled with shrapnel or anything, they're concussion grenades. They just make a loud boom noise on land but under water they'll just shock the fish and they should just float to the surface," he grinned. "We'll scoop them into the canoe and shove them into these plastic bags and we'll be good to go."

"There's a whole lot of 'shoulds' in there," Edward commented. "Have you ever done this before?" he asked.

"Nope," Emmett grinned again. "But I know a guy who has. How hard can it be?"

"You said that about the still," Edward mumbled under his breath. "Where did you get them?" he asked when he was handed one.

"I know a guy," was all Emmett said. He set his own grenade down carefully in the bottom of the boat and got busy unrolling a large package of black plastic garbage bags. "Right. We'll throw them together on the count of three. All you do is pull the pin and throw, it's easy. As soon as you've let it go you've gotta grab onto the sides of the canoe and hold on tight. We might get a bit of turbulence," he chuckled. Holding his grenade out in front of himself he waited until Edward had done the same and then hooked his thumb through the ring on his. "On the count of three ready? One, two, three," he said and pulled the pin.

His throw was a good one and his grenade landed twenty metres away from the canoe and back towards the direction they'd paddled from. Edward pulled his pin at the same time, then froze.

"Throw the fucking thing!" Emmett roared as Edward sat staring at it in his fist.

Panicking Edward used his left arm to throw instead of his natural right and the grenade hit the water just two metres from the side of the canoe. Emmett shouted for him to hold on but his own grenade chose that very second to detonate under the water.

There was hardly a noise at all as the water rose up from Emmett's grenade. A slight wave less than half a metre high rocked the boat gently as fish began to float to the surface. Emmett was about to grin at his ingenuity when Edward's grenade detonated.

He'd thrown his late and it hadn't sunk quite as far as Emmett's had when it let its full force explode. This time there was a dull roar as a water spout five metres high made its way upwards directly beneath the canoe. With nothing to dampen its energy the water twisted the canoe at its centre point and broke it clean down the middle, throwing both men from it and into the freezing water.

The two pieces of the canoe landed ten metres away in opposite directions and both Emmett and Edward were thrown into the air as well before crashing back down into the murky depths.

Without a life vest Emmett sank further beneath the water than Edward did so it was a seriously panicked Edward who was screaming for his friend to surface when he eventually did. When Emmett got to the surface he was spluttering and breathing hard but he was intact. So was Edward. In shock and more scared than he'd ever been, but intact and breathing.

"What the fuck, Em?" Edward was yelling.

"Keep your fucking voice down," Emmett hissed across at his friend who was flailing about in the freezing water. "You got all your bits and pieces?" Emmett asked, treading water and clutching for as many of the black plastic bags as he could.

"I'm alright, are you?" Edward coughed as he expelled the last of the lake water from his mouth.

"Yeah," Emmett said wearily. There was no commotion from the shore or from the camp so Emmett was hopeful they were still going to be able to salvage the situation without being caught. "We gotta collect these fish and get the fuck out of here before we freeze or someone spots us," Emmett called as he began to stroke away. "Grab as many bags as you can," he told Edward.

Twenty minutes later there were two very cold but very happy men dragging the two ruined halves of the canoe into the bushes at the side of the lake. They had four bags of stunned trout on the bank and were really, really looking forward to a hot shower.

Rose had spotted Bella walking towards the main road, probably to wait for a taxi, and offered her a ride to town instead. Bella was grateful and happily thanked Rose for cancelling her cab reservation before they drove off in her little sports car.

For Rose it was a good opportunity to find out how Bella was travelling. She'd sent the first of her 'reports' to the girl's mother and hoped it had done what Jasper needed it to, but it would be nice to add something truthful to the next one that was due in just a few days. The short drive to town could be useful she thought as she turned left onto the main road.

"Tell me about your week," Rose prodded as they drove.

"Oh, it's been wonderful," Bella extolled happily. "We've been to all the movies in the gym and I've been to town twice already."

That she'd used 'we' wasn't lost on Rose but she knew enough about Bella to know not to bring it up just yet. "What have you been filling your days with?" she asked instead.

"Reading mostly, that's why I'm going to town today. To buy books," she giggled. "The weathers been so lovely during the day that I've just sat outside reading most of the time, but at night we've been indoors."

Again with the 'we' thought Rose. "The bookshop is a good one," she agreed. "Pete, that's the owner, he owns the music store too, so if you're looking for something and can't find it go in and ask for Pete and he'll get it."

"I've never been able to read whatever I liked before so it would take me years to get through all the books he's got in there already," Bella giggled.

"Books are never a bad investment in my opinion. If you're anything like me you'll go back and read your favourites over and over."

"I can buy them here, while I've got money, but once I get home..." Bella trailed off.

Seeing the opening she was waiting for Rose pounced, discreetly. "What does your fiancé do for a living?"

Rose caught Bella's reaction out of the corner of her eye but said nothing. "He's a Congressman," Bella answered dully, "that's a politician."

Knowing what it was Rose wasn't offended at her answer. American politics and Australian politics were poles apart. "They probably get paid pretty well so you'll be able to buy books, won't you?" Rose asked as she steered the car into the right turn that would put them in the direction of town.

"I don't know yet," Bella replied despondently. "I guess I'll have a household allowance of some sort."

"Allowances can stretch if you spend them right," Rose laughed. "What else have you been buying here besides books?" she asked as she pulled into the carpark of the supermarket. Rose already knew what Bella had been buying. The locals talked and Rose was an expert observer.

"Alcohol, cigarettes and sweets," Bella giggled as she exited the car.

"Also good investments," Rose chuckled as she slung her handbag over her shoulder. "Which one of you has the sweet tooth?"

"Edward does," Bella answered without thinking then quickly covered her mouth with her hand.

Putting her hand on Bella's shoulder Rose smiled kindly, "From all accounts he's a lovely man," she told her furiously blushing guest. "I haven't seen either of you at any of the activities so I figured you've been finding ways to be alone?" she asked cautiously as the two women began to walk towards the shops that lined the street.

Bella hesitated just a second before answering. "He is lovely," she whispered. "Angela spends a lot of time with Ben and Emmett is always out," she said by way of agreeing.

Rose knew that too. Deciding to give Bella a tiny little shove she offered some information. "There's a path, through the trees beside your cabin. It leads out across a field. At its furthest edge there's what used to be a small vineyard. Its derelict now but the vines are still there and so is the pressing shed. It's not locked but you have to use the side door, not the front. There's no power connected anymore but there's candles, blankets and pillows in the storeroom in the back. There aren't security cameras anywhere, even at camp, so nobody would you know you're there."

Bella listened carefully but said nothing about the information she'd been given when Rose was finished. She thanked the director for the lift and for the chat, said that she'd make her own way back to camp at some point and then went into the bookstore, her head filled with visions of grape vines and candlelight.

Rose chuckled to herself as she went into the pharmacy. It was true that Rose hadn't seen either of her guests at any of the planned activities but she'd still seen them elsewhere. Cuddled up to one another in the gym watching the movie, hand in hand on Bella's porch and in the dining hall too. It wasn't her place to pass any kind of moral judgement on the pair, and she wouldn't even if it was her place. It was true that Bella was engaged but she also knew that that wasn't Bella's choice and if what her friends Jasper and Mary Alice had told her was true – and she had no reason to believe otherwise – then Bella having a little fling with Edward Cullen wouldn't do her any harm anyway.

"How's business Rosie?" Louise asked across the chemists counter.

"Blossoming," Rose told the teller as she handed over her request slip. "I love Spring," she told the woman with a wink, "Spring at Crossroads always means love."

Nobody approached the two drenched boys as they made their way back to the cabin, garbage bags in hand. They took turns showering and when they were both clean and dressed in warm clothing they packed up some supplies and took the bags to the main road to wait for the taxi Emmett had called to pick them up.

It was only when they were in the taxi that the laughter began. The grenades had been overkill Emmett conceded. The mild hypothermia a minor aggravation they laughed. The canoe had been collateral damage and had given up its life for a good cause they both agreed.

The taxi driver was their first customer and he bought two fat juicy trout for his dinner before wishing them luck and driving away from where he'd left them on the side of the road leading away from town.

Emmett had picked the spot for their 'stall'. It was the busy intersection where traffic came up the mountainside and then branched off in three directions towards the three small towns at the top of the plateau.

On the leftover cardboard from the first slab of beer Emmett had scrawled the words 'fresh fish $5 each' in Sharpie. He ripped that morning's newspaper in half and stacked the pages neatly to wrap the fish in. Slitting open one of the four bags they laid the black plastic out onto the grass verge by the side of the road and spread out its contents for inspection by potential customers. And there were quite a few.

Cars filled with women on their way to do the weekly shopping stopped for a bargain and men returning home after Saturday morning shifts stopped to buy their catch so they didn't have to go fishing themselves.

They both had pockets filled with cash by the time they emptied what was left in the last of the four bags out onto the ground and were feeling pretty impressed with themselves. They had only twenty six fish left to sell and then they could split the money up and enjoy spending it they mused as they put the plumpest fish on the top of the pile.

They'd been selling two and three fish at a time so the idea that they only needed another half a dozen or so cars to stop made them both giddy with excitement.

Edward was confused when Emmett began to curse a blue streak. He thought he was pissed because it was beginning to rain.

What Edward didn't know was that the tiny little emerald green car that was pulling over was Blondie. What Emmett knew for sure was that they were fucked if she worked out where the fish had come from. Well and truly fucked.

Rose saw the sign first and recognised the two guys second. She pulled over to the side of the road just beyond them and looked in the rear view mirror to try and make sense of what she was seeing.

The sign said fresh fish, and that was both fine and ingenious in an entrepreneurial sort of way. She had no idea where they'd gotten the fish but knowing Emmett he'd 'know a guy'. Edward had probably been dragged along for the ride as far as the roadside venture went.

Putting the car into park she grabbed her purse and her coat and walked back to the little stall. Another car had pulled over in the meantime so while Emmett talked with the woman about the fish Rose greeted Edward.

"Is business good?" she asked as she approached.

"Not bad," Edward replied.

He looked nervous Rose thought as she bent to inspect their catch. "I'll take these two," she said as she pointed to two of the smaller fish. They'd make a nice dinner for herself she thought as she got out a ten dollar note.

"Um, you don't need to pay," Edward stammered. He was horrified that Rose was about to purchase fish they'd stolen from her lake. He was saved from having to explain his comment by Emmett who finished his transaction with the woman in the other car and practically ran over to rescue him.

"Hey Blondie," he said as casually as he could to Rose. "Wrap those up, we'll head on back now," he told Edward with a wink that only he could see.

Edward didn't need to be told twice. He got down onto his knees and started scooping the remaining fish into the bag as soon as Emmett had finished speaking to him.

Em led Rose a little way away and spoke quietly. "We're friends," he hedged. "You don't need to buy those, you can just have them."

"That's silly," Rose argued. "I don't mind paying. They look great by the way. Really fresh."

"They are," Emmett mumbled but still insisted she didn't need to pay. He asked Edward to wrap up a couple of them in some of the newspaper and while his friend did that he grinned his best dimple filled smile at Rose. "We could throw those on the barbie for dinner one night?" he asked cheekily.

Smiling back Rose said that sounded like a nice idea. She accepted the fish from a nervous looking Edward and said a genuine thank you when both boys refused her money. "Put your stuff in the car," she told them as the rain began to fall a little more heavily. "I'll take you both back to camp if that's where you're headed?" she asked after pushing the alarm button on her keys.

The two boys looked at each other before both shaking their heads minutely at one another. "Um, thanks for the offer," Emmett said as he took the bag from Edward and set it down in the boot of Rose's car. "I'll be grateful if you take those back to camp, but we're heading in to town before we go back."

"Suit yourselves," she called from her window. "I'll put them in the coolroom in the kitchen," she told him and then waved as she took off down the road.

The two guys were silent until her car disappeared around the first bend and then they both bent over at the hips and dragged in a long, steadying breath. "Jesus Christ," Emmett muttered.

"I'm guessing the best days don't end with Jesus Christ," Edward chuckled as he straightened.

"Damn right," Emmett laughed as he reached out his fist for Edward to bump. "Come on, town's only a click up the road."

It was two in the morning when Bella heard the boys approaching their cabin. She'd been watching for them all night, missing Edward's company and worrying where they'd gotten to.

They were laughing and joking quite loudly and as they came into view she could see why. They were both drenched and each had an arm around the others shoulder for support. They were very obviously rolling drunk.

Pulling her coat collar up around her ears in defence against the cold wind and rain she ran down the path to greet them. "I don't think I need to ask where you two have been," she giggled when she got close enough to smell the fumes coming off them.

"Not mush point," Emmett slurred as he let Edward go and made for the cabin on his own. He only got two paces further along before he had to stop, bend over at his waist and dry retch into the bushes. Thankful he hadn't actually thrown up, but feeling as though he might try again pretty soon, he put a bigger effort in to getting to the cabin. "I'm going to bed," he announced even though it was obvious that he'd be no good for anything other than sleep anyway.

"Hey beautiful," Edward thought he whispered but really shouted right into her ear as he put his arm over Bella's shoulder. "I'm drunk," he announced groggily.

"I figured," Bella giggled as she tried her best to hold him up. "Come on, you need to drink some water and then I'll get you into your bed," she told him, shoving him with her hip to get him moving again.

"Mmm," Edward hummed in her ear. "Take me to bed, Bella," he smirked.

"Stop it," she giggled. "You need water and sleep."

"I need to hold your hand," he slurred and tried to take his arm down off her shoulder.

"Keep it there," Bella begged as he swayed. "You'll fall over otherwise."

"Oh yesshh, but if I fall over you'll fall on top of me," he sniggered drunkenly thinking it sounded like a very nice idea.

"And then we'll both get hurt," Bella huffed and tried her best to make him walk by half prodding half dragging him. "You need water before you puke," she told him when he balked at putting his left foot in front of his right.

"I need to kiss you," he argued but did start walking when she huffed at him. "I had lots of water today in the lake," he slurred. "I went fishing," he said proudly as they came to the porch of the cabin. "I sold the fish and got some money. I bought you a book but I think I lost it," he sighed.

"That's alright," Bella laughed at his sad little boy pout. "It's the thought that counts."

"Shhh," he slurred into her ear. "Don't tell anyone but I think lots. I think about things I'm not supposed to. I'm thinking about you putting me to bed right now," he chuckled. "You'll see my pyjamas."

She doubted that she would because she had no intention of undressing him so he could put them on, but the thought of doing just that made her tingle all over. "Hold still," she grumbled when he began to lean a little too heavily on her. "I can't hold you up," she laughed as she pushed the door open.

"I think you're drunk too," he slurred. "I can't hold you up either."

She giggled all the way into the cabin and stood him in the living room. She shut the door and got back to Edward's side before he toppled over the back of the sofa. "Come on," she told him as she tugged on his sleeve to get him to go into his bedroom.

She didn't have to work too hard to get him to lie down; he did it himself by falling flat on his face onto the mattress. She tugged off his shoes and got a blanket down out of the top of his closet for him. She left him there and collected a glass of water from the kitchenette.

On her way back she checked on Emmett who was already snoring loudly. He too had fallen face first onto his bed shoes and all so she put the glass down and went in to tidy him up first. She stowed his shoes to one side and covered him with his own blanket.

Nudging Edward's shoulder hard when she got back to his room she was pleased when he did roll over but he stared up at her with glazed eyes. "You need to drink this before you go back to sleep," she told him and held out the glass.

Sitting back on his elbows Edward made a grab for the glass but missed, twice. "Can't," he mumbled and flopped back down onto the bed.

"You'll be sorry in the morning," she giggled and set the glass on the bedside cabinet.

"I won't be if you kiss me goodnight," he chuckled and tried to reach for her. She dodged his hand and was relieved when he gave up and closed his eyes once again.

"Goodnight Edward," she said softly and wiped his hair off the side of his face.

"This is good Scotch," Judge Charlie Swan says, tipping his glass forwards and back and watching the amber liquid coat the fine crystal.

"Aged twelve years," Retired Senator Billy Black confirms as he pours two fingers into his own glass. Taking a seat opposite his friend he raises his glass in salute and takes a hearty sip. "This place you've sent Isabella," he begins carefully, "they'll send her back in good order, yes?"

"Definitely," Charlie assures. "Renee and Mary Alice checked it out thoroughly and I can assure you that she'll be back fit and healthy and ready to become Mrs Black."

Sipping thoughtfully Billy considered the words before replying. "Good, good," he nods as he sits back and stares at his friend pointedly. As he raises his glass to his lips he muses as though to himself, "It would be an awful shame for this development deal to fall at the last hurdle. You've got an awful lot of personal money invested in this one, haven't you?"

Stiffening at the insinuation Charlie gets the point and leans forward himself. "You know I have," he said as calmly as he could muster. "But I know that you have too, Billy. I'm telling you now, and you know I'm a man of my word, that my daughter will return and marry your son."

Not at all appeased Billy took another sip of the very good Scotch. "And I'm telling you now, Charlie, that if she doesn't, the permits you've pushed through will be held up in so much red tape that it will be Mary Alice' grandchildren who are the first to see the profits of this development."

The threat was clear. If Isabella didn't marry Jacob Black as promised then the real estate development deal Charlie had been banking on to see him into retirement would never see the light of day. He'd known Billy Black his whole life, Carlisle Cullen too, and they'd done business together since they'd graduated college together, and in all those years never had so much been riding on something Charlie couldn't personally contain.

On the other side of town in the very exclusive Country Club to which he was a Platinum member, Carlisle Cullen was reclining in a similar button backed chair sipping a very good aged Scotch of his own.

"Tell me what your plan B is, Jake," he asked as he swished his Scotch around in his glass.

Grinning smugly Jake drained his glass before answering. "I'll be at the altar regardless," he began, "if she shows I'll have a perfectly pliable and rather lovely wife to parade around the campaign trail. If she doesn't I'll be pitied as the poor, broken hearted man who gave all of his heart to a girl who so callously tossed it aside under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Either way I can't lose."

Leaning forward Carlisle spoke very quietly, but very firmly. "Your father and hers too I might add, stand to gain a lot from your union. Personally I don't give a shit if she shows up. As you said, marriage or not you win. I have nothing to gain whether you take the plunge or not. My only concern is that the project goes ahead as planned regardless."

Nodding thoughtfully Jake too leaned forward as he spoke. "I understand what you're saying, Carlisle. Right this very minute my father is having a chat with Charlie Swan and I believe he's being made aware that if his daughter doesn't, shall we say play the game by the rules that have been set down, that the development deal may find itself negotiating some rather hostile political waters." He reached for the bottle on the table between them and added another inch to his glass, sipped it then sat back in his chair.

"My stake in this project should not be tied up with your ability to seal the deal with Charlie Swans daughter," Carlisle hissed across the table.

"In principle I agree. I understand the amount of money we're talking about here and I'd hate for five years of your work to be simply cast aside by the actions of a silly, air headed little girl," Jake conceded.

"Name your price," Carlisle said calmly as though he were negotiating with a roadside vendor on the price of a scarf.

Jake smiled then. He liked Carlisle, always had. He was ruthless and unforgiving and he understood the way the world worked. "For a five percent stake in future earnings I'll guarantee your permits, and the land zoning that goes with them, whether she shows at the church or not."

"Future earnings?" Carlisle asked, hardly able to believe his luck. He'd been willing to go to eight.

"I can't have my name attached to the project until after I win this election," Jake said simply. "Doesn't sit well with the voters if I'm seen to be pushing through a huge real estate development in my states own backyard simply because I've got a stake in it myself. So yes, five percent of future growth earnings or the equivalent in managed capital. I don't mind which. Agree to that and the permits are yours whether she plays the game or not."

"Done," Carlisle said firmly and shifted forwards to offer his hand.

"Excellent," Jake grinned as he shook the hand offered. "Personally I hope she shows," he chuckled. "I do so love watching them cry when their virginities are taken."

As useless as Edward was proving to be right then Carlisle was, for the first time, pleased he'd had a son and not a daughter.

Rose had stalked the hall outside her office all afternoon waiting for the two guys to get back to camp. She'd barked at the receptionist and she'd all but screamed at a male staff member who'd offered to clean out the boot of her beloved car.

She had her dinner in her cabin as usual then went to the dining hall hoping to see a glimpse of one of the pair and only got madder when she was told they hadn't come back in time for the meal.

She kept the front door of her cabin open all night, despite the freezing wind, and slammed it shut at midnight when they still hadn't returned.

She fell asleep seething at the two men, but mostly at Emmett.

The drive between the fish stall and the camp was ten minutes at the most on a good day, but that day hadn't been a good one. The pelting rain had filled the potholes in the dirt road to capacity and she'd had to go slower than usual to make sure her tiny vintage sport scar didn't bottom out in one of them.

With the heater cranked up as far as it would go to keep the windscreen from fogging up Rose was sweating by the time she pulled into her usual parking space at camp.

Luckily for her she was out of the car when the fish exploded.

Luckily for Emmett she'd already gone to bed by the time he'd come back too drunk to be yelled at effectively.

Unluckily for Emmett it was her face he saw when he stepped out of the cabin just before breakfast the next morning. He'd had no idea why she was so angry and she refused to tell him until they were seated in her office.

"I hope you two made a profit on those fish," Rose sneered once she'd taken her chair.

"Some," he laughed, "We drank most of it last night though," he admitted, holding his head with one hand to ward off his headache. "If this is going to be a lecture about my drinking habits save it," he moaned. "I'm a big boy and I can drink if I want to."

"I don't give a shit how much you drink," she snarled. "That bag of fish you put in my car exploded!" she shouted.

"Christ woman, stop yelling, I'm right here," Emmett moaned at the ear splitting tirade. "My fucking head'll crack open if you keep it up."

"Too bad," Rose hissed. "I'll be sending you both a bill for my car cleaning."

"Fair enough," he sighed.

As per Emmett's usual form he'd done no research on his latest adventure before rushing ahead. He'd had no idea that fish caught using the concussion grenade method would be forced to fill with water and air as the shockwave occurred beneath the surface. He didn't know they'd bloat if they weren't gutted close to when they'd been killed and he didn't know that if they weren't they'd explode if they got warm enough. He knew now though. The smell of fish guts coming from Rosalie's stunning little car could be smelled from as far away as the sporting fields.

"My car smells like a pack of lesbians had an orgy in it!" she screeched, making him wince again.

"Is it a pack of lesbians or a murder?" he chuckled too quickly to realise she wasn't going to laugh.

"I'll fucking murder you," she hissed. "That's a classic car, Emmett," she raged. "It's forty four years old and it's never had a fucking mark on it until now! If the interior is ruined permanently I'll ruin you permanently," she warned over her pointed finger.

"I get it," he moaned as her angry raised voice penetrated his eardrums. "I'll have it cleaned, I promise."

"I'll have it cleaned," she argued. "By professionals. Not some guy you met down the pub."

"Alright," he whined. "I get it. I fucked up. I'll pay for the cleaning."

He looked so sad she didn't have the heart to berate him further. He looked like shit and he'd agreed to pay for the cleaning so she left it at that. Telling him to go and clean himself up and to behave himself she watched him amble up the path to his cabin.

She still had no idea where he'd gotten the fish, and the little stall had done good business if the reports from the locals were anything to go by, but the memory of the exploded fish in her boot made her mad as hell at him. There would be no nice, intimate barbeque fish dinner, that's for sure.

Emmett was happy he'd copped the brunt of her anger but didn't keep the details of their discussion from his roommate when he finally surfaced at midday.

"She's pretty pissed," Emmett confided as Edward downed his third cup of strong black coffee. "You might want to steer clear of her for a bit."

"We had no idea they'd explode," Ed griped.

"I told her that too," Em chuckled. "She's not exactly in a very receptive mood."

"How much cash is left? Is there enough to have the car cleaned properly?" Ed asked as he flopped down on the sofa dramatically, clutching his head.

"Yeah, don't sweat it," Emmett told him as he pulled his wallet from his pocket. "We caught a hundred and twenty eight fish and sold nearly all of them. We spent two hundred bucks last night. If we leave aside a hundred for the cleaning we've still got about a hundred and forty each. Here's your cut," he said as he slapped the notes onto the coffee table.

Edward took the hundred but left the forty there. "That's yours, you had to pay for the grenades," he mumbled as he stuffed the rest of the notes into his own pocket. "I'm not drinking for a week," he moaned as he lay back against the arm of the sofa. "My fucking head's pounding."

Sniggering at how quickly his roommate had embraced bad language and bad habits Emmett got up and made for the door. "I agree," he told Ed as he slipped on his coat. "A week off the sauce'll do you good. I'm off to get some lunch. You might want to go and find Bella and apologise," he chuckled.

It wasn't lost on Edward that Emmett hadn't said he'd take a week off drinking himself.

A/N: Thank you for reading.

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