EPOV

Leaving Lauren's building, I check my phone and see no signs of contact from Bella. I pull up her contact, calling her right away. It rings until the voicemail picks up. "Bella, we need to talk, I need to talk to you. Please call me? I'm stopping by the office to check on things, but then I'm heading to your place. I need to fix this. Please? Call me."

When I reach my floor and the elevator opens to reception, Irina looks shocked to see me. "Mr. Cullen?"

"Good afternoon, Irina. Any messages?" Stopping at her desk, I look for any sign that Bella might have stopped by.

"No, sir. I found my replacement. His name is Demetri. I think you'll like him; no nonsense and has no desire to rise any higher in the ranks here." She says that bit with a slight sneer, and I'm not sure if that's a barb on her behalf or Bella's.

"I trust your judgment. Have you seen or heard from Bella today?" No point in dodging the elephant in the room, whether Irina is aware of it or not.

"She stopped by this morning but left almost as soon as she came in. Did you want me to call her and patch it through to your office?" She bats her eyelashes, and I roll my eyes.

"You can stand down, Irina. Everything under control here?"

"I told everyone you had food poisoning. Explosive diarrhea. You could afford to take another day if you need it." She winks, and I can't help but laugh, even though I'm embarrassed.

"Thanks a lot for that." I move away from the desk back to the elevators when Irina calls out to me.

"Fucking fix it, Edward."

I don't even bother to turn around, just shoot her a thumbs up over my shoulder as I walk into the elevator and punch the button for the lobby. As the car descends, I whip my phone out again, but this time, I scroll to another name. Jane Marcus. I haven't spoken to Jane in almost five years, but the last time we spoke, she was moving to the East Coast to take some tech job.

She was happy and feeling settled. Jane had tried to be the very definition of the perfect woman for me, but that wasn't what I was looking for—from her or even at that time. We'd always said we'd parted on good terms, but after Lauren's "come to Jesus talk" this morning, I wonder if Jane has some similar feelings about me and our relationship.

Tapping on her number, I wait while it rings until a woman answers the phone with a curious "Hello?"

"Jane? It's Edward, Edward Cullen."

"I'm sorry, you have the wrong number. My name's Maria."

I pull the phone away for a moment before returning to the call. "I'm sorry to have bothered you. Have a nice day."

"You too." The call ends, and I'm confused again. I've been paying for this line since I met Jane. I always anticipated she would tell me that she no longer needed it, and I would get rid of it, but she never did. I never bothered to remove the line of her access to it. Why would I? If she needed it, I wouldn't take it from her.

I shoot off a quick text to Dwayne, telling him that I need him to track the number and Jane and that I'm heading to Bella's.

BPOV

I'm puttering around the house, tidying up, willing my phone to ring. I didn't hear a peep out of Edward all night. I'm not sure if I'm more devastated by the radio silence or the fact that he let me hang up on him without a fight.

That's not fair, I chastise myself. You gave him an ultimatum … then you hung up. Sighing, I flop down on the couch only to jump up when I hear a knock at the door. When I peer out the front window, I see Dwayne, waiting on the porch.

"What are you doing here?" I ask as soon as I open the door, and he doesn't greet me with a smile.

"Good morning to you too." He thrusts a cup and pastry bag into my hands. "I've already spoken to idiot number one, so now I'm here to speak to you."

"If you're about to call me an idiot, don't bother—"

Dwayne snorts. "Oh, you're an idiot, but you have reason to be. Edward couldn't be any denser even if he was made of osmium. But if you think giving him an ultimatum was the way to go, then you obviously have no idea who you're dating."

"Remind me to google osmium." Staring at Dwayne head on, I cock my head. "So you think I gave him an ultimatum too?"

"Uh, yeah."

"So does Rose. She left for work, grumbling about me not seeing things from his point of view." I take a long sip of the coffee he brought me. "She says he feels threatened."

"Uh, yeah."

"Who are you? Olaf from Frozen? Get it together. Edward feels threatened by me? Are you kidding? He's holding all the cards here." Leaning against the door frame, I sneak a look inside the pastry bag.

"If you really believe that, Bella, you're dumber than he is. He may be rich, powerful, and successful … but you broke his walls down in about three point five seconds without a second thought. You have more power in this relationship than you think."

"I don't want more power than him. I want to be his equal. I want for him to be able to discuss things rationally with me, not shut down completely. I want a partner, a willing one. Not someone who's going to throw NDAs and contracts in my face when he was the one who insisted we didn't need them!" I can feel the flush in my cheeks, and I know I'm breathing hard because I'm so upset.

"So, why don't you tell him all of this instead of me?" Dwayne shoots me a crooked smile, and I flip him off before shutting the door in his face.

A couple of hours later, my phone finally rings. I'm elbow deep in grout cleaning and can't take the rubber gloves off fast enough to answer it before Edward leaves a voicemail. Knowing that he's on his way over to "fix this" makes me nervous. I don't feel like I've done anything wrong, but I'm sure he feels exactly the same way.

Finding the middle ground is going to be difficult, but it's going to be even harder if we can't. We haven't been together long, but I can't imagine going forward without Edward in my life, and frankly, I don't want to.

I'm pacing nervously when the doorbell finally rings, making me jump. I don't bother to check to see if it's Edward instead just flinging the door open to see him standing there, looking like he's seen better days.

"Can I come in?"

I nod, stepping aside for him and shutting the door quietly behind me. Edward hovers in the entryway, and I gesture to the living room.

"Make yourself comfortable. Do you want something to drink?" He shakes his head, waiting for me to take a seat. I'm still in my grubbies, and I can smell the cleaner all over me, but Edward looks at me like he's been on a deserted island for years.

"I have a lot I want to say, but first, and I think most importantly, I'm sorry about my reaction yesterday. Not only to the job idea, but to you not being at my place when I go home." He pauses, but I only nod, encouraging him to continue.

"You did remind me of Lauren and how she used to act. It made me … uncomfortable. I didn't like it." His eyes never leave mine, but I can feel the embarrassment rolling off of him in waves. "I'm sorry for making the comparison without words. I'm sorry for not being upfront about what I was thinking."

"Are you threatened by me? Is that what you felt yesterday, in your office?" I have questions I need answered before I can accept his apology.

"To some degree, yes. To a larger degree, no. I'm impressed by you, and I appreciate that you see things differently than I do. I just—"

"Wanted to be the one to have the idea?" I suggest, and he nods.

"Yeah, I guess. But, I didn't intend for it to be malicious. I wasn't trying to suck the wind out of your sails, Bella. I just … have control issues. Which is probably the basis for the types of relationships I have." He rakes a hand through his hair, finally breaking eye contact with me.

"Is this the first time you've realized this?" I ask gently, poking his shoulder so he'll look at me.

Edward shrugs. "I think so. Obviously, I like to be in control, but a lot of people do. I have a type A personality. That isn't a flaw."

"Of course not, unless you act like a jackass all the time." I stand to pace because sitting still is no longer an option. "Did you really think I was breaking up with you or leaving you last night? How far off base were you when you didn't find me at your place and insisted that I be at your beck and call?"

"I never said anything about beck and call, Bella. I simply said—"

"You said"—I cut him off with a death glare—"you expect me to be someplace when I say I'm going to be there. I didn't say I was going to be at a location, Edward. I said I would be here, as in around. It's an expression. Don't be daft; it's beneath you."

He sits in silence for a few minutes, watching me pace back and forth. "I know what you meant."

"What the fuck is your problem then?" I shout, making him jolt.

"You! You are my fucking problem, Bella! You waltz into my life and turn it upside down with your charm and your kindness. Your adorableness at drunkenly matching with me. You're unwittingly genius at making me fall for you so easily. All I can see is you, and I don't know how to deal with that."

Pausing, I turn to look at him. "Somewhere in there was a compliment, I think. Be pissed at me or be pissed at yourself, it can't be both, Edward. If you're impressed with me but you don't want me in your day-to-day business life, then say so and see me as an equal partner who can contribute with thoughts and opinions. If you want to get over being threatened by me … well, I don't know what to tell you because I won't ever work for you."

"Bella, I—"

"Maybe it was too soon. Maybe we should have kept our feelings to ourselves for a while." Continuing to pace, I think out loud. "Do you see a future with me?"

"Yes."

"Do you really love me? Or did you get caught up in the emotions and the whirlwind?"

"I feel like either way I answer that will be wrong." He smiles when I turn to look at him again. "I have deep-rooted feelings for you, and I've never felt this way in another relationship, but I'm wondering if it's love or lust."

"I can handle either one of those right now. Because right now, I'm not heartbroken, Edward. That tells me it isn't love … not fully." I sit down next to him and take his hand. "I'm not ready to throw this away, but I think we need to reevaluate, redefine."

"I don't want you to be my baby … not in my original terms." He says it quickly, like he's ripping off a Bandaid.

"What do you want?"

"Conventional. And maybe, some space? I've said from the beginning I'd be busy, but we've seen more of each other than I anticipated, and maybe that has something to do with the feelings. I think I'd like to miss you a little." He links his fingers with mine, squeezing gently.

"I'd like to miss you a little too. I have a tendency to take a mile if someone gives me an inch." Leaning back into the cushions, I take Edward in. "I'm going home for a little bit. A few weeks; I'll spend Thanksgiving there."

"That's good. You haven't seen your dad in a year, right?" I nod, and he smiles. "Then that's a good thing. I don't want this to be over, but maybe we need a little time."

"Thank you for apologizing. I'm sorry if I was pushy." I nudge his shoulder with my own.

"You really weren't, but thanks. You wanna work for me? Irina says she finally found a replacement, but if you want it, I'd rather have you there." His ears tinge pink, and I laugh.

"After we just agreed to some space? Absolutely not. Maybe I'll just let you keep me for a while." He laughs, and it's good to hear it again.

"I'll keep you for as long as you let me, Bella." We sit together in contented silence for a while before Edward tells me he should get going.

"Dinner? Before you leave town?" We're holding hands between us by the front door, and I nod.

"I'd like it. I'll let you know my plans, and we'll set it up."

Nodding, he moves to the door. "I'll talk to you soon. I promise."

"Me too. See ya."

I close the door behind him and wonder why this feels so much like a breakup.