2brown-eyes reads.

No song so…

Wicked Game—Chris Isaak

"What are you doing here?" Edward asks, eyes shifting from me to Bree. "What's going on?"

Bree looks to the ground, and I squeeze her hand. "We should go inside."

Edward's eyes narrow at me, but I give an imperceptible nod. He looks like he's about to say more, but he doesn't. With a huff, he turns and leads us up the steps and opens the door for us to pass.

I can feel Bree shaking, and it causes that weight her news lifted to reposition itself on my chest. Knowing Edward, he's about to lose his shit, but I hope that he'll see reason, that he'll realize we, me and him, unilaterally decided to upend Bree's life. She could see it simmering for longer than I could, so this one day of heartache she caused is nothing in comparison.

"Bella," Esme says, pausing in the foyer, her brows puckered as she looks between the three of us. "What on earth are you doing here, doll?"

"It's complicated," I hedge, trying to convey with my eyes that it's about to get rough. "Bree and I need to speak with Edward, if that's all right."

"Bella." Carlisle appears from the living room, his face pinched. "What in the hell is going on here?" His disapproving gaze shifts between Bree and me before landing on Edward.

"Your guess is as good as mine," Edward says, puffing out his chest like he's preparing for a confrontation with his father. "But it looks like it's between them and me, so if you'll excuse us."

Carlisle puts his palm on Edward's chest. "Hold on, son…"

"He's right," I say to Carlisle. "This is between us."

He shifts his glare from his son to me, his eyes narrowing even further, before focusing on Bree. "I hope you know what you're doing," he says, moving aside for Edward to pass. "Because I'll expect an explanation."

"I'm fine, Doctor Cullen," Bree says meekly as I guide her past him. "I asked Bella to come."

Carlisle doesn't say anything else as Edward leads us out onto the patio and pulls the glass doors shut behind us, but I can still feel his stare burning the back of my neck. It's nothing compared to the one Edward levels us with after turning back to face us.

"Not to sound too much like my father or anything," he says, crossing his arms. "But what the fuck is going on here?"

"Why don't we sit down," I say like a peppy waitress or something. "The weather is perfect out here."

I pull out Bree a chair and then move around to grab one for Edward, but he stops me cold with a firm grip on my arm. "Bella." His voice is low and rough, and it makes me want to scream the good news, but I don't. "Please tell me what the hell you're doing here."

I tug my arm from his reach, and motion to the chair. "Sit." I grab the one between the two of them and settle into it myself. This seems to appease him some, so I smile. "Bree has something she'd like to share."

His gaze shifts to her, and his brows knit together. "Bree? What's going on?"

She doesn't meet his gaze, and that's okay. She picks at her French manicure, the skin around her thumb red and raw. "I lied to you," she says and it's barely a mumble.

"Huh?" Edward shifts his eyes to me, looking to understand her words. "What did she say?" I pull my lips between my teeth and shake my head, my eyes going from him to Bree. He gets the picture and focuses back on her. "Can you repeat that, a little louder, please?"

"It's okay, Bree," I encourage. "Everything is going to be fine."

This time when she says it, she lifts her head and stares him dead in the eyes. "I said I lied to you," she spits, tears filling her eyes. "I was just so desperate to hang on to what we had. I thought that if I could just get you back to Hanover things would go back to the way they were."

"Wait, go back," Edward interrupts, his body tense. "You lied to me about what exactly?"

"I'm not pregnant," she cries, burying her face in her arm and sobbing loudly into the tabletop.

Edward's reaction is slow.

His expression shifts a dozen times.

Before it settles on happiness.

His gaze snaps to mine.

I smile, nodding.

"Holy shit."

He's up and out of his chair and I'm in his arms. He holds me tightly against him and buries his face in my neck. His body quakes, his relief palpable. But then I feel the exact moment reality robs him of his joy.

He slowly sets me to my feet, spinning to face Bree. "You lied to me?"

She's a hiccupping mess, so I move to her side. "She did lie," I say, drawing Edward's ire. "But it was a last-ditch effort to hang on to something she loves dearly."

"That's not good enough, Bella," he grinds out, his jaw tight. "She made me think … that I was going to be a father." His eyes get watery, and I nod because she did do that. "It would've ripped apart my entire life and I lived a whole day in that reality."

"I'm sorry, Edward," Bree squeaks out. "I wasn't ready for us to end."

"And you thought that would change things?" He's barely tamping down his anger.

"It makes sense," I say, my gaze intent on his. I hope he'll think back a few years and how he was ready to throw it all away for our would-be baby. "You're a stand-up guy."

"I never thought in a million years that coming here would lead to us breaking up, Edward," she says softly. "I did everything you asked of me, and it still wasn't enough. Did you bring me here to make Bella jealous? Is that why you asked me to come?"

"No, I wouldn't do that," he says, and the horror is clear on his face. The idea that he might have done exactly that terrifies him.

Tears burn my eyes. "At this point, we've all made mistakes."

"But I'm the only one who's left to deal with it on her own," Bree says, and it's an intentional dig, but I'll give her that.

She's right.

I have Edward.

He has me.

She has nothing to look forward to but a lonely plane ride.

*sighs*

I know we could dig into this and stretch it out for several more chapters, but it's all out there, and I'm ready for Bree, as nice as she is, to exit stage left.

I see some people wondering/upset about Edward, and tbh, I believe you can love 2 people at the same time. No personal experience, and maybe it's only settling, but people get in relationships where they love someone less than whoever it is that has a hold on their heart and it didn't work out for whatever reason.

See ya tmr :)