Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of the characters. Story is inspired by the Mexican novela "Caer en Tentation"

Bella

The days that followed melted into weeks. Edward and I immersed ourselves into our own little world with our children. There was no Emmett, no Rosalie, no detectives, no case, no press. It was just us and our children. We did try to set a limit on the time we spent together so as to not confuse the kids even further. I went back to dropping off the boys at school on my own, our regular dinners together were cut down to just a couple a week and our weekend getaways were put on hold.

I had given myself the opportunity to start getting my things in order. I met with a lawyer, Mr. Clearwater, the week following our trip to the lake. However, as he explained, my options were very limited. I couldn't serve Emmett divorce papers while he was still in a coma. I couldn't pack my things and leave the house with the kids because I could be sued for abandonment and lose custody of my children. I needed to stay and wait for the day Emmett finally woke up if I wanted to walk out of this marriage with custody of my boys.

With Edward and I cutting down on the time we were spending together with our children, that meant the only time we really had together was when we were at the garage. And when the opportunity presented itself, we took it. We became insatiable teenagers who couldn't get enough of each other. It was a hunger that couldn't be satisfied. An addiction that couldn't be overcome. If it wasn't the office, it was the shower, it was on his bed and sometimes mine when the boys had gone to sleep and Lucy was with her grandparents.

We couldn't get enough of each other and we took advantage of that little time we had together. I loved that he made me feel things I didn't know I could feel. I loved the way he made my toes curl or the way I could still feel him every time I walked. I also loved the way I could make Edward Cullen lose his damn mind.

Everything was going perfectly fine, until the day my mother showed up at my doorstep. Out of all the days she could've shown up at my house, she showed up on the day Edward and Lucy were having dinner at my place.

"Mom? What-what are you doing here?"

Renee Dwyer-Young looked as remarkable as always. Her brown hair immaculate, her clothing expensive, and of course, you couldn't forget about the pearls adorning her slim neck.

Mom arched a brow at me.

"You've been dodging my calls, so I had to come and see what's kept you so busy you couldn't bother to fill me in on what's going on." She pushed in, dragging her suitcase behind her. I step aside quickly. "Seriously, Bella. Everything I know about the case comes from the news, and what's this about you being with that man-"

"Bella, is everything okay?" Edward walks out of the kitchen, cleaning his hands with a rag. He stops dead on his tracks when he spots my mother in the living room. "Oh, hi."

Mom looks at Edward and back at me. "Never mind, I see why."

"Mom-"

"Grandma!" Jaime called out, running in from the backyard. Both Noah and Lucy were right behind him. My boys hugged Mom and she responded with a quick kiss on both their heads before stepping out of their embrace. She then looked at Lucy, who hid behind Edward's leg.

"And who might you be?"

"Mom, this is Lucy, Edward's daughter," I said.

Mom forced a smile. "Figures."

An awkward silence fell in the room.

"How's grandpa Phil?" Jaime asked.

"Oh you know, busy as always. I thought I'd get away for a weekend and see how you were doing." She turned to me. "Bella, I'd also like to go see Emmett at the hospital this weekend. Will that be possible?"

Weekend? She planned to stay here for a whole weekend?

I tried my best to hide my distaste and forced a smile on my face.

"Sure. Whatever you say, Mom."

"You have been going to see him, right? You've not forgotten that you're still married to him?"

Edward tensed where he stood, his eyes briefly meeting mine.

"Of course not, Mom. How could I forget? You know what, take a seat, Mom. We were in the middle of cooking dinner so let me go help Rita. Then we'll get you set up in the guest room."

I left her in the living room with the boys and walked away. Edward followed me and stopped me in the hallway, just before we made it to the kitchen. Lucy followed us as well, the presence of my mother making her uneasy. She didn't do well around strangers.

"Hey, are you okay?"

"It's just-" I run my hands over my face. "I wasn't expecting her and she just showed up without calling, and you're here, which means I'm never going to hear the end of it-"

"Hey, hey." Edward rubs my arms gently. "It's okay. You weren't expecting her, I understand. Lucy and I can go home right now if that helps."

"No, no of course not." I look down at Lucy, who is playing with Edward's phone. "No, I don't want that. I just need to gather myself. My mother can be very exhausting."

"Okay, that's fine. It's just one weekend, okay? We can survive one weekend."

I sigh, nodding my head. "Yes. Just one weekend."

I pick Lucy up and walk back to the kitchen, sitting her on one of the high chairs. I let Rita know about my mother's arrival and she certainly looked shocked, but quickly gathered herself. Both Edward and Rita would not take their eyes off me as I tried to busy myself cutting the bread, but my aggressiveness rattled the board with every slice. Edward reached over and took my hand in his, giving me a reassuring squeeze.

I love my mother, I really do. But sometimes she makes it hard to love her and I try not to be so harsh on her. I know it must've been hard raising a child on her own after my father died, but I'd hope that after all these years and finding love again, she'd be able to find peace and, perhaps, give me peace in return. Peace of her passive aggressive comments. Peace from making me feel as if I wasn't good enough.

Dinner wasn't any easier.

"So, Edward, what do you do?" She asked as picked over her salad.

"I'm a mechanic. I own a shop about twenty minutes from here," Edward said, from his seat next to me. "Your daughter has been helping me on the administrative side of things."

"He is very good," I said. "Recently he has been getting more business."

My mother's mouth twitched and it wasn't a smile. "A mechanic, that's cute. I suppose it brings enough to sustain a life."

Edward nods, not at all faced with my mother's sarcastic comments.

"It sure does, Mrs. Dwyer."

"And now that your wife is gone, I guess my daughter watches over your daughter now."

"Mom," I snapped.

"We help each other equally," Edward said.

"That is until her husband comes back."

"Mom, that is enough."

I'm just saying with the case still open-"

"We don't discuss the case in front of the children," Edward said, still maintaining his friendly tone. "For their sake."

I look at the children, who have been watching the exchange between us like a tennis match, and give them a tight smile. They have no idea what we're talking about and I hate keeping them in the dark. But how do you explain something like this to them? When I look at my mother again, she's looking at the food on her plate with a sad smile.

"For their sake," she whispers, almost to herself. "I know that too well."

Needless to say, the rest of the dinner was spent in silence.

After we are done eating, Edward takes the kids to the backyard to play with them as we help Rita clean up the kitchen. I'm watching them from the window by the sink as Edward plays soccer with the boys and Lucy plays cheerleader, more often switching teams to cheer for.

"You two could be more discreet," my mother said from beside me.

My smile disappears

"What do you mean, Mom?"

She rolls her eyes as she dries a plate with a cloth. "Please, Bella, I am not stupid. You two act like two love struck teenagers. If not for the press, then do it for the children. They're already as confused as they are."

This woman cannot be fooled, I thought.

"We'll do better," I said, sarcastically.

Mom shakes her head again, looking out the same window I was.

"I don't like him."

"Mom, you've said the same thing about Emmett when you met him."

"And it turns out I was right," she muttered. "There is something off about him, Isabella. The way you two act around each other isn't normal. The moment he walks in the room, your whole center shifts. He moves, you move, like magnets. And the way he looks at you." She shakes her head again. "Like he's ready to jump in and take a bullet for you."

"Is that so bad?" I ask, defensively.

"It is when you don't know what his real intentions are," she said. She sets a plate and the cloth down and crosses her arms over her chest. "Bella, I think you should forgive Emmett."

Rita gasps, turning away from the stove. "Renee, you've got to be joking."

"Look, I'm not saying what he did was right. Of course it wasn't! But we're human, we all make mistakes, especially if we're overwhelmed. I don't blame Emmett for looking for stress relief in someone else. Hell, even I needed a break from time to time."

"A stress relief is going to the bar and drinking your stress away, you don't fuck another person for five years!" I snap.

"Bella, you have no idea how overwhelming it can be and I tried to warn him before you married him, but he said he could do it, and I foolishly believed him. I should've intervened more. I should've stopped this when I had the chance and maybe if I had, you wouldn't be playing house with a stranger and would instead be with your husband, where you belong."

At that moment, Edward walked in from the back door, leaving the kids outside. His eyes immediately sought me out, but I was too wrapped up in what my mother was saying.

I slam the plate I was holding into the sink, shattering it. The room goes quiet and not a single person moves as I turn to my mother, who is stunned at my outburst.

"Did you think this was easy for me? Did you really think this whole thing has been a walk in the park, Mom? That I don't care about what my husband did and decided to jump into bed with the first man that offered it, is that what you think is happening here?

"You know what, I'm glad that you're finally coming around liking Emmett, after years of me begging you to get along with him. I also want him to get better, believe it or not. I want my children to be okay, I would love for this case to be resolved, but you know what I would love above all else? That my mom would think of me for once. Just once, it might be nice. My entire marriage you gave Emmett the cold shoulder, you would hardly acknowledge him and now you care about him? Now you're telling me you tried telling him how stressful marriage could be before he and I were married?"

"Not marriage, Bella. You. I know how it can be with Dr. Wyatt and then with your episodes-"

"Renee!" Rita snapped. "Shut up!"

Not marriage. You. Not marriage.

You. You. You.

You are the burden.

You caused this.

You should forgive Emmett because this is also on you.

My eyes welled up with tears.

My mother just confessed that she tried to warn my husband about me before we got married. Convince him not to marry me because she knew the stressful toll my anxiety would take on him. She didn't see him as a bad guy, as a cheater and liar, no. My mother saw him as a guy with a stressful wife.

"Bella, Bella, hey look at me." Suddenly, Edward is standing between my mom and I, cupping my face in his hands, wiping my tears away with his thumbs. "Bella, stay here with me. It's okay, you're okay."

I try to push him away, but he doesn't want to budge. I tear his hands away from me and glare at my mother through the tears. He steps aside, but keeps his arms around me.

"So to you everything Emmett has done is justified because I'm overwhelming? Because you even needed a break from your own daughter!"

"Bella-"

"Don't you fucking think I've ever needed a break from myself! That I wished I could leave and not deal with the shit inside my head!" I shout at her. "Do you have any idea of the hell that is inside my head, Mom? Have you ever stopped and wondered what it has been like for me? But I can't just walk away from it, Mom! I don't have that luxury to just leave and find a stress relief like you and Emmett. Maybe I should've apologized to him every time I got overwhelmed, maybe then he wouldn't have fucked everything with a pulse. Maybe then he wouldn't have had a child with another woman so close to me losing a baby. I'm so sorry that I've been so fucking overwhelming to you, Mom! I'm sorry Dad was so miserable by your side, I'm sorry he couldn't stand you so much so he put a gun in his mouth in front of me. I really am sorry! Maybe it all would have been better had he just shot me before shooting himself, maybe that way you wouldn't have had to deal with such a stressful daughter, you fucking bitch!"

I storm out of the kitchen and run to my bedroom, Edward hot on my heels. As soon as I walk in my room, I throw everything off the nightstand, throw the lamp against the wall, pure rage fueling my 's arms come up from behind me, pulling me tightly against his chest. I fight him, I fight his hold, but he is too strong for me to fight off. He sits on the bed, my body nestled between his parted thighs as he squeezes me tighter.

"Let me go!" I cry.

"It's okay. It's okay," he said against my ear. I cried harder. Edward took my hand in his, placing out joined hands over my chest. Our hands rose and dropped with every breath I took. "You're okay, Bella. I got you. I got you, love. I'm right here. I'm right here."

I don't know how long we stayed there, his arms secured around me, head pressed against mine. It was long enough for my breathing to calm down and my tears to subside. Enough time for me to digest what my mother said.

My mother could hardly stand me, I knew that since I was a child. I always thought it was because of the stress of raising me on her own, I never thought it was because of me. I never thought that the reason why she hardly showed any interest in my life, hardly sought me out was because I was the disease plaguing her life. And to her, everything my husband did was justifiable because it was my fault as well. My husband found me so overwhelming, so stressful, he cheated on me our whole marriage.

Was there really not one person in my life that cared about me? That loved me unconditionally? That saw me as more than a burden?

"I feel… I feel so small," I said, my voice hoarse. "So insignificant."

"No, Bella. Don't say that," Edward whispered against my ear. "You're a wonderful person. A beautiful woman."

"Yes, that's why I got cheated on and abandoned," I said, my voice breaking. "Because I'm such a wonderful person."

"He did that because he's a fucking idiot," Edward said, kissing the side of my head. "He didn't know what a prize he had, he didn't know how to appreciate it."

I shook my head, tears spilling again.

"I'm alone, Edward. My mother hates me and my husband cheated on me. My children deserve so much better than this. They deserve better than me."

"No, Bella. The boys love you. They adore you, you are everything to them," he said, rocking us back and forth on the bed. "You are the first person they look for in the morning. The only one who they want to give them a kiss before bed. You are not alone, love. You have them, you have Rita, you have me. I'm right here, love, and I'm not going anywhere. You are not alone. You're not alone."

A sob escapes me, but I muffle it with his arm. Edward pulls my hair from my face and kisses my tear streaked cheek, whispering over and over again, "You are not alone."

I don't know what exactly happened after or when I dozed off to sleep. When I open my eyes again, I'm laying on my bed, my covers pulled up to my waist. Emmett is at the door with Dr. Wyatt. The room is dark, the only light coming in from the hallway through the half open door where they stood.

"There's something you're not telling me," Emmett said to him, low enough to be a harsh whisper. "What exactly is wrong with Bella?"

But when Dr. Wyatt spoke, he wasn't Dr. Wyatt anymore. He was my mother and in Emmett's place was Edward.

"Please, Edward, let me talk to her."

"I think you've said enough, Renee. I got you an Uber and he'll take you to the airport."

"She's my daughter," she cried. "I-I-"

"Your daughter who you called a burden. Bella has been fine these last couple of weeks and here you come and break her in the matter of hours," Edward snapped. "And in front of her children. Seriously, Renee, you better not be here when she wakes up."

And with that, he shuts the door in her face. I close my eyes again, pretending to be asleep as he walks back to the bed and climbs in behind me. He wraps his arms around me, pulling me close to his chest as he starts to play with my hair with his free hand. The room is quiet with the only sound coming from our breathing.

It's comforting. After everything that he saw and heard, it was nice knowing he was still here. It was nice knowing my mother hadn't scared him off as she tried to do with Emmett. It made me feel more secure about him.

So when he leaned in and whispered, "I'll never let anybody hurt you," I believed him.

Author's Note:

You guys are not ready for the next chapter! I'm telling you, I wasn't ready myself.

Chapter Twenty Preview -

"Hi baby."