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Edward crawled out of bed at half past six the next morning, or later that morning, seeing as he was out until one making a deal with Bella that he still wasn't sure was the right deal to make. Logically, what she said made sense: they could pretend to date, and maybe keep people off their backs, giving them more time with their lovers. But he worried what Carlisle would think about the arraignment, and it had been too late for him to call him back the night before. He had already hurried off the call when Bella texted him, something he knew he would have to explain sooner rather than later. Edward was never the one to end their phone calls, especially when they were having phone sex. Would Carlisle understand why he had agreed to be Bella's boyfriend? It was an ends to a means, right?

Sighing, he quickly dressed in jeans and a Forks High School T-shirt and grabbed his phone off his nightstand. He scrolled through his pictures, stopping at a selfie of him and Carlisle sitting in front of a large campfire. They'd snuck away together for a few days at the end of the last school year, and headed up the mountain to go camping. It was the first time Edward had taken him into his mouth, and it hadn't been the last. It was that night that Edward knew the man would always own him: body, heart, and soul. But he was married, and married to a woman. A woman, who apparently did things with her tongue that Bella liked.

He was still staring at the picture when a new text came in, this one from Carlisle that simply said: Good morning, babe. I'll see you soon.

The few words, as innocent as could be, sent a shiver through him and he replied almost immediately with: I can't wait.

Edward shoved his phone into the back pocket of his jeans before shrugging on his letterman's jacket and grabbing his backpack from next to this bedroom door. He quietly made his way down the hallway, not wanting to draw his father's attention, but stopped suddenly, when he found his mother standing in front of the kitchen sink. Elizabeth Masen turned and looked at him, dark bruising circling her brilliant green eyes and her lip red, shiny, and puffy.

"You're up early," she said, turning away and pulling open the refrigerator door. "Sit down and I'll make you some eggs."

"I'm in hurry." Edward paused before asking, "Was he drinking again?"

"No, no, of course not." She lied. She always lied, but the bruising and busted lip clearly said otherwise. His father was an asshole when he was sober, but add alcohol to the mix and he turned into a violent asshole. "Why are you in such a hurry? It's not even seven."

"Mom."

"I'm fine, Edward. Just . . ." Elizabeth shook her head before looking back at him. "Are you sure I can't make you something to eat?"

"Yeah, I'm sure." Edward walked over to her and kissed her forehead. "I love you, Mom."

"I love you, too."

Edward left his mother in the kitchen and hurried out to the old, silver Volvo he had brought a few months ago. He'd been saving for the better part of two years, and finally had enough to buy the car with his own money. His father, of course, hated it, told him it was a piece of shit, which it might have been, but it was his piece of shit, something he owned, something his father couldn't take away from him.

He pulled up in front of Bella's house a few minutes later, but had just reached for the handle to open the car door when the front door to her house flew open and she came hurrying out, yelling, "Just leave me alone, Dad! I said no!" and rushed down to the car. Edward reached across the seat and pushed the door open just as her father stepped out onto the porch, yelling, "This ain't over, Bella!"

But Bella didn't reply as she scrambled into the car, slamming it shut with more force than was necessary, but Edward didn't comment. He could see the tears in her eyes, the tears she was struggling to keep from falling.

"You okay, Swan?"

Bella sniffed, nodded, and looked out the window as she said, "Just fucking dandy, Masen. Just drive, please."

Edward threw another look at her father, who was standing on the porch with his arms folded in front of him before he shifted into reverse and backed out of the driveway. As he made the two mile drive to school, he could hear her sniffling, and every once in a while, she would reach up and wipe a tear off her face.

He parked in his usual parking space, next to Emmett's large, oversized red jeep, and Jasper's black pick-up truck, but when Bella reached for the door handle, Edward found himself reaching for her arm, causing her to sigh and look over at him.

"He just makes me so mad, Edward. Like why can't he just accept that I don't want to go out with Jacob fucking Black?"

"Did you tell him about me?"

She rolled her eyes. "Not yet."

"Why not? Aren't I supposed to be your deterrent to him pressuring you into going out with Jacob?"

"Yeah, but last night, before I went to meet Esme, he was riding my ass about dating Jacob and I told him that I didn't need a boyfriend. I can't very well tell him that I suddenly have a boyfriend in the matter of like five hours, could I? He would never believe me and would probably have me engaged to Black by night fall."

"That's fair, I guess," Edward said. "Are you going to tell him?"

"I mean, yeah, but I don't know when, Masen. Gotta give it a couple days, make it seem like you just won my cold, hard heart, or some bullshit," she scoffed, shaking her head and looking over at him. "Have you told him? Coach Cullen, I mean? Did you tell him about our arrangement?"

"Not yet," he admitted, and her eyes widened, he added, "When I got home, it was really late, and, well, it doesn't seem like the kind of thing I should tell him through text message, does it?"

Bella sighed, but nodded. "Suppose that make sense."

"Did you tell her?"

"No," she scoffed. "I'll tell her this afternoon."

"Are you worried about what she'll say?"

Bella laughed. "Not really. It's not like you and I are really going out, Edward. This is all pretend. Why? Are you worried about Coach Cullen?"

Edward shrugged his shoulders. "A little."

"Why?"

"I don't know." He looked out the window. "What if . . . what if he decides that I'm not worth going through all of this? I love him, Bella. I love him so much."

"Is he worth it?"

"Yeah," Edward breathed, smiling. "He's . . . He's so worth it, Swan."

"Then be honest with him. We're fighting for the loves of our lives, aren't we?"

"We are." He lobbed his head in her direction. "Are you ready to go in now?"

Bella laughed and nodded. "I am."

"Okay, don't open the door. Imma do this right, Swan."

She snorted and put her hands up in front of her as Edward threw the driver's door open and climbed out of the car. He grabbed his backpack from the backseat before walking around the back of the car and opening the passenger door. He held his hand to her. Bella smirked as she placed her hand on his and 'allowed' him to help her out of the car, like she was some damsel in distress, but seeing as everyone — and he did mean everyone — stopped and stared at the two of them, their point had been made.

He kept his hand wrapped tightly around hers as they walked across the parking lot, past Mike Newton, Tyler Crowley, Eric Yorke, and James Masters, all of whom gaped at them with their jaws on the ground. When they walked into the building, Edward's attention was immediately drawn to the man at the end of the hallway, standing outside of his classroom.

Carlisle glanced in their direction before looking away and immediately snapping his eyes back to Edward, dropping to their clutched hands, and back to Edward, his jaw tightening before he turned and walked into his classroom. Inwardly, Edward groaned, but outwardly, he tried to keep himself together, especially as Jessica Stanley turned and looked at him and then at Bella and then at Edward again, before bursting into tears and running down the hallway and into the women's restroom.

"Oh, wow, that was . . . a bit of an overreaction, don't you think?" Bella murmured as the two walked down the hallway, watching as everyone parted way like they were naked, or some bullshit.

"No shit." Edward stopped at Bella's locker, leaning against the one next to hers as she undid her lock and shoved her books inside. He glanced back down at Carlisle's classroom. "What class do you have first?"

"Spanish. You?"

"History."

"Oh," she laughed, turning so that she faced him. "I have history second period."

"Should I walk you to class? Is that something straight couples do?"

Bella looked around before shrugging her shoulder. "I don't think we have to go to that extreme, do we?"

"Nah, I don't think so." Edward pushed away from the locker. "Lunch, though, right? Straight couples always sit together at lunch. I'll meet you outside the cafeteria."

"Yeah, okay. I'll see you then."

Bella shut her locker before she turned and hurried in the opposite direction, so Edward turned and walked down to his history classroom. When he walked in, he saw Carlisle sitting behind his desk, his hands folded in front of him. His eyes shifted to Edward, his jaw tightening, but only someone entirely too in tuned to him would notice the difference. His heart was racing, but before he could reassure him that there was an explanation, that he was madly, passionately in love with him, Emmett and Jasper pushed their way into the classroom, the first laughing and slapping Edward on the back with so much force, he was pushed forward.

"You and Swan, Masen? Who knew you and Swan would be getting it on?"

"Shut up, Em," Edward muttered before he shrugged the boy's hand off his shoulder and walked to the far back corner of the classroom and slid into his desk, doing everything he could to keep from looking at Carlisle.

"What? I'm just saying it's about time you got laid. And hey, Swan's hot. Tight ass, nice tits."

"Shut the fuck up, Emmett!" Edward snarled.

"Masen, language like that is not acceptable in my classroom!" Carlisle groused, pushing out of his chair and standing up. "See me after class."

"Yes, sir," Edward gritted out through a clenched jaw as Emmett and Jasper snickered under their breaths and sat in the two desks next to him.

Mike, Tyler, Jessica, and Lauren Mallory were the last four to trickle into the classroom just before the bell rang. Jessica looked over at Edward, her chin wobbling before she turned away. She was crying over him. He'd never given her any type of encouragement that he was interested in her in any kind of way, so why was she crying? All he could think was girls were fucking weird.

—S&S—

As the bell rang, Edward stayed seated and watched as everyone stood and walked out of the classroom, Emmett and Jasper giving him a look first. In fact, he stayed seated as Carlisle stood from his desk and walked over to the door and pulled it closed, turning the lock on the doorknob. He placed his hands on his hips before he turned and looked at Edward, his eyes filled with a look that had Edward on edge.

"Is she blackmailing you? Is that why you were holding her hand this morning? Did she threaten to tell people about us?"

"No."

"No?"

Edward shook his head and stood up, grabbing his backpack. He walked over to him, placing his backpack next to the door before he reached for Carlisle, who wrapped his fingers around his. "This isn't the place to get into the details, but she's . . . Well, she's gay, too, and her dad is pressuring her to date someone she doesn't like, a boy, and, well, I'm pretending to be her boyfriend to get her dad off her back. And, she's willing to cover for us in return. It's a win-win, right?"

Carlisle smiled. "Seriously?"

Edward nodded. "She's, um, kind of seeing someone, a woman, and well, she said it's complicated, because she's married and older," he hinted without coming out and telling him. "A doctor."

Carlisle's eyes widened. "Oh. So, she's the girl my wife is seeing, isn't she?"

Though, he felt weird telling his boyfriend about his wife's girlfriend, he simply nodded.

"I see, I see. Esme told me she had met someone, but that she wasn't ready to make it public yet."

"You know your wife is a lesbian?"

Carlisle grinned. "Of course I do."

But before he could push for more information on his marriage, someone tried to open the door to the classroom and Carlisle quickly released Edward's hand and took a huge step backward. "We'll talk later. Just make sure she knows that every part of you belongs to me, Edward. From that sexy, tight ass to your long, hard dick, to your hot very talented mouth, understand? They are mine, just mine. I'm a greedy son-of-a-bitch, and I don't share."

"I am all yours. One hundred percent yours."

Edward picked up his backpack and stepped past him, turning the lock, opening the door and finding Alice Brandon standing there with James, Eric, Victoria Sanders, and Tanya Denali behind her.

"And I don't want to hear that kind of language in my classroom again, Masen. Got it?" Carlisle quipped, his tone harsher than before.

"Yes, sir."

Edward bypassed Alice, James, Eric, Victoria, and Tanya (all of whom were snickering about him getting in trouble) and started toward his next class. He spotted Bella in the hallway with a very irate Jessica Stanley in her face, but before Edward could hurry over and defend her, help her? He wasn't sure which, Bella laughed and pushed the girl away from her and started walking down the hallway toward him. Jessica made like she was going to jump Bella from behind, but Lauren Mallory grabbed Jessica's arm and dragged her away.

Bella looked up and saw him, smiling as she stopped in front of him. "That bitch is crazy as shit, Masen. She thinks she's in love with you. Honestly, this was worth it just to make that skank cry."

Edward laughed. "That's mean, Swan."

"Yeah, well." Bella tilted her head to the side and smiled. "You okay? You look upset."

Edward grabbed the back of his neck before he looked back at Carlisle's classroom, finding him watching him, watching them. Though he wasn't glaring at Bella anymore, he wasn't happy they were talking, either. "I'm fine. I might have, kind of, told him about you and Esme."

Her eyes widened, flickering past him before landing on him again. "You what? She wasn't ready for people to know," she hissed, glancing around to be sure they weren't heard. "What the fuck were you thinking, Masen?"

"He already knew. I just, kind of, confirmed what he already knew about her."

She sighed and dragged her hand over her face and through her hair. "This is all fucked up."

"I'm sorry," he muttered.

She waved her hand in the air. "It's . . . it's fine. I just wanted to tell her myself. I think the four of us are going to need to sit down and talk some shit out."

"Yeah, me too." The warning bell rang, so Edward gave her a look before saying, "But that will have to wait, I guess."

Bella laughed and gestured for him to go to class before she hurried down to her turn in Carlisle's classroom. When Edward looked back, he saw Carlisle tilt his head in her direction and then look back at him, giving him a subtle wink. Though he wasn't sure what that wink meant, or what was going to happen, Edward knew, he was going to fight for Carlisle Cullen. No matter what, or who, it cost him.

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