A/N: Yes, two chapters in one day! I couldn't leave you hanging now, could I?

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns all thing Twilight.

Chapter 35 – Mr. October

The Mr. October shoot came around all too soon. Bella had tried to pull herself together as best she could, preparing herself to not only see Edward again, but to work with him without collapsing into tears. He'd texted her the day after the party: "I HOPE THINGS AREN'T GOING TO BE WEIRD BETWEEN US AFTER LAST NIGHT. X" She'd deleted the message in disgust and didn't bother to reply. Her stomach twisted every time she thought about his body entwined with Tanya's. Tanya running her fingers through Edward's tousled hair. Tanya kissing the lips that Bella herself had been kissing just hours before. She tried not to think about it, but the mental image kept creeping back in, sordid pictures added to the graphic sounds she'd heard coming from Edward's room.

She managed to remain professional throughout the shoot, despite her skin crawling at Edward's attempts at forced geniality. He's trying to pretend like nothing happened, she thought. Even Alice picked up on the awkwardness between them, asking Bella if something was wrong. "I'll tell you later," Bella reassured her, as she directed the model, Laurent, into position.

The photo shoot was over almost as soon as it had started. Bella was so focussed on her work in an effort to stop thinking about Edward and Tanya, and this - combined with Laurent's professionalism - meant she got the shot she needed within the first few frames. Desperate not to be in the studio with the cause of her pain for any longer than absolutely necessary, Bella called it a wrap and sent everyone home. Alice hovered for a while, waiting for her friend to make good on her promise of telling her what was wrong, until Bella told her she'd call her later and Alice skipped off to meet Jasper.

Much to her chagrin, Edward lingered as Bella scrolled through the shots on her laptop. "Bella, can we talk please? Your silent treatment is killing me." She stared at the screen, unable to meet his eye. She didn't want to be having this conversation, but at the same time she felt she couldn't put it off any longer. Undeterred by her silence, Edward continued: "Look, I know you're clearly feeling awkward about what happened at the beach house. I was worried this would happen."

"You were worried?" scoffed Bella in a flash of anger. "Then why the hell did you do it, Edward?"

"I'm sorry, I knew almost as soon as I'd done it that it would come back to bite me on the ass. We were both drunk. I just couldn't resist it any longer…"

"Oh, my heart bleeds for you, Edward," she snapped with her roll of her eyes. "I've heard enough. You should go."

"Bella, it was just a kiss! There's no need to be so mean about it." Edward's beautiful face was contorted with concern and hurt. Even though she was so mad at him, Bella couldn't help feeling like a bitch. But his words were like a twist of the knife. How could he be so blasé about everything? Did he really not think he'd done anything wrong?

"Just a kiss, Edward? Don't lie to me! I heard you both! There was more than 'just a kiss' going on in there!" Hot, salty tears escaped from her eyes as she recalled her painful discovery.

"Wait- what? Bella, what are you talking about?" Edward stepped closer and gripped Bella gently by the shoulders, his thumb brushing away the tears from her cheeks. She knew she should push him away, but his tender touch felt like a soothing balm.

"You and Tanya. I heard you, Edward. When I came back from calling my mom. I went straight to your bedroom and I heard… noises."

Edward laughed, more from shock than mirth. "What the hell? Tanya?" A look of slow realisation spread across his face. "Oh my god, Bella. Shit…" He covered his face with his hands, dragging them down to look her directly in the eye. "Bella, you were gone for a really long time. I was worried sick. I tried calling you a couple of times but I couldn't get through. I guessed you were still on the phone to your mom. So I grabbed my coat and went out to look for you. I guess I must have gone in the opposite direction to you or something, because I walked for ages and still couldn't find you. By the time I came back to the house, everyone had gone to bed. I went straight to your room to check if you'd come back and there you were, tucked up and fast asleep. You looked so beautiful, Bella. I didn't want to wake you. So I went back to my own room… only to find Tanya in my bed fucking Dmitri." He paused, letting the information sink in.

A flood of emotions crashed over Bella as she processed the news of her mistake – relief, embarrassment, guilt. The tears flowed harder, as she realised the revelation that should make everything all right between them had probably blown everything apart at the same time. How could Edward forgive her for thinking the worst of him? "Oh Edward…" she sighed. "But why was she in your room?"

He shrugged. "I guess she'd planned for me to walk in on them. I think she wanted to make me jealous."

"And were you?"

"Seriously, Bella, you have to ask that? Of course not. I left them to it and found another bedroom. I almost came back to sneak into bed with you, if I'm being honest."

"Then why didn't you?" Bella asked pathetically, wishing she could turn back time.

"Like I said earlier, I was worried you'd feel awkward in the morning. About the kiss. Our kiss. I thought you might have just kissed me back because you were drunk. And then when you were weird with me the morning after, and you didn't reply to my text message, I thought my instincts had been right." He looked sad, distant. Bella was terrified she wouldn't be able to close the gaping chasm that had opened between them. Edward swallowed and looked away. "And now I find out it was just because you thought I was such a dick that I'd hooked up with my ex-girlfriend just hours after kissing you. Thanks for having such faith in me, Bella."

"Edward, I'm so sorry…" She stepped toward him and reached out, but he brushed her hands away. Bella could see the anger slowly building inside of him.

"Save it, Bella. I've had enough of your apologies to last a lifetime. I'm leaving." With that, he picked up his backpack, pulled on his baseball cap and headed towards the door.

"Edward, wait!" Bella called after him. "I just want you to know… I didn't regret our kiss. Not one second of it." He looked back at her, his golden eyes brimming with hurt and disappointment. He hesitated for a moment, and she hoped upon hope that he would stay. But he turned back without a word, opened the door and stepped outside, taking the last of Bella's hopes with him.

A/N: Thanks for the reviews - I'm glad to see most of you have more faith in Edward than Bella did! But has she blown it with him now? Or will he forgive her one last time? Stay tuned to find out!