A/N: Last chapter : ( BUT it turned out really really well and I love it : ) So I hope you enjoy it.

"Alice I'm sorry I don't know if I can do this. I'm freaking out here and I haven't even seen him yet." I was pacing back and forth in front of the window of my apartment. "I mean it's been what….four months since I've seen him. He hasn't tried to contact me once and then I'm just going to go hang out with him like nothing's happened."

"Bella you're the maid of honor you can't back out on me. It's against the best friend rules. And you have the rehearsal dinner tonight as a warm up before the wedding tomorrow. It'll be fine."

I bit on my nail nervously.

"But I mean what if he won't talk to me…God Alice what if he won't even look at me. I feel like I'm going to have a panic attack." I sat down on my chair, my leg bouncing up and down. I shouldn't be this nervous to see him, but I couldn't help it. It was Edward. How could I not be nervous?

"Listen to me Bella. I'm the bride, which means I call the shots. You're walking down that aisle with me tomorrow even if I have to drag you down there." I could just imagine the smile across her face as she spoke.

"Okay fine, but this rehearsal tonight is totally unnecessary. I mean how complicated can it be to walk down an aisle. You'll be the one in white dress and Jasper will be the one in the white tux. Standing next to Edward." I gulped hard. Breathe Bella.

Alice breathed deeply. "Okay. I will let it slide if you can't make it to the rehearsal tonight. But I swear to God if you mess up tomorrow I will kill you," she said sternly. "But if you change your mind you should come tonight because I miss you." Her perky voice was a sharp contrast to her previous tone.

"I'll try, but I'm not making any promises," I grumbled.

"Okay I'll talk to you later. Bye."

"Bye." I threw the phone on my couch and slumped down in the chair. The wedding invitation on the table in front of me felt like it was calling my name. It was unavoidable. Like the fucking plague.

I tapped my finger against my temple. It was only 2 o'clock; I still had three hours before I'd have to leave to make it to the rehearsal dinner. I had time to decide.

As four-thirty rolled around, I realized I hadn't moved an inch. I was still in the same chair, staring at the same wedding invitation, tapping my same temple.

"I'm being really stupid," I whispered to myself. "I can do this." I glanced up at the clock and ran into the bathroom to get ready. I was walking out the door at 5:10, after I'd changed my outfit five times and redone my makeup so much that my trash basket was overflowing with cotton swabs.

As the cab pulled up to the restaurant I froze. Panic started to set in again.

"Miss?" The cab driver said.

"Yeah just give me a second…" I said in a daze. Was he here already? I finally came up with enough courage to touch the door handle, but pulled my hand back quickly when a loud motorcycle rushed by the cab and came to a stop in front of us.

"Oh. My. God." I said slowly. I watched as the man on the motorcycle slowly pulled his helmet off, shaking his shaggy bronze hair free.

"Oh my God!" I ducked frantically behind the seat, praying he wouldn't see me.

The cabbie stuck his head out the window. "Hey buddy you can't park there!"

I lifted my head slightly and tried to peek through the cracks of the seats.

"I'm a cop man. Tow me." Edward smiled a crooked smile. Shit he looked good. Damnit.

My breath caught in my throat because I could have sworn that he looked right at me. Like he could see me trying to hide from him behind this crappy old cab seat. He smiled again, still looking in my direction and started towards the restaurant.

I let out a sigh of relief.

"You know that guy?" The cab driver said, gesturing towards the door.

"I guess you could say that." I ran my fingers through my hair nervously. There was no way I was going in now. I couldn't think a cohesive thought, let alone put one foot in front of the other to walk.

"So what's it going to be miss?"

"I'm sorry…can you take me back to my place please?"

The cab driver was just about to pull away when someone tapped on window. I sat still for a few moments, trying to decide if I was imagining or if that was really Edward tapping on the glass.

"You want me to get that?" The cabbie asked.

All I could manage was a squeak.

"I'll take that as a yes."

The window slowly rolled down to reveal his perfectly tan, stubble ridden face only inches from mine.

"Hello Bella." His voice was just as velvety smooth as I'd remembered it.

"Umm…I." I looked down at my hands. "Um."

"You don't have to say anything. I just wanted to talk to you before the wedding and let you know that it won't be awkward or anything. I'm over you and I think we can be friends now. Like it should have been. You won't have to deal with some crazy obsessive person or anything. It's done." He smiled a genuinely heartwarming smile. But my heart was breaking. He was over me. It was over.

"I…I have to go home now." I turned away from Edward and started straight ahead, waiting for the cab to take me away from this hell. Edward held his hand in front of the cab, a fifty-dollar bill in between his fingers.

That back stabbing cab driver rolled down the front window and Edward leaned in. "This should cover her cab ride here and back and all that time she was sitting here."

"Thanks man." The cabbie took the money and Edward leaned back out of the car and turned away.

"He your boyfriend?" I barely heard the driver speak. There were too many thoughts running through my head. I was so stupid to think that he still loved me after all these months. I think a part of me honestly thought that we'd see each other and instantly everything would be right again in the world. We would be right again. He just smashed that fantasy into a million pieces.

"Um. No. Not anymore." I shook my head.

"So you're single?" He glanced at me in the rearview mirror.

A tear started escaping down my cheek.

"Oh don't cry. I meant that in a good way. I was going to ask you out." He flashed a smile as he pulled up in front of my apartment. I smiled at him. He had to have been almost 80. Cutest old man I've ever seen. But he looked like my Grandpa and I'm no Anna Nicole.

"Sir. I'm a little emotionally retarded right now. I don't think you'd want to go out with me."

"Is it because of that schmuck back there?"

"Yeah." I cried. I started sobbing.

"Sweetheart. If he doesn't want you, he's a crazy bastard. You're a doll."

"Thanks." I smiled and wiped the tears away from my face and stepped out of the cab.

My phone rang at about ten o'clock; right about the time the rehearsal dinner would be finishing up.

"Hey Alice."

"Did you even attempt to come?" She sounded slightly annoyed, but not pissed.

"I was there, I just never made it out of the cab."

"Why not?"

"Because Edward just had to breeze on by in his super sexy motorcycle right as I was getting out. And then he proceeded to tell me that he was over me and that he wanted to be friends. So I'm sorry I tried. But I couldn't."

"Well gold star for effort my friend. You want me to come over? Have one last girls night before I'm a married woman?"

"Alice you don't have to do that. It's the night before your wedding. Don't you want to relax or something?"

"Honey there's no other place I'd rather be than hanging out with you. I'll call Rose."

An hour later we were watching chick flicks and eating a packet of cookie dough.

"That's all he said?" Rose took a bite of dough.

"Yep."

"He goes on some random ass emo road trip by himself for four months and then he comes back and that's all he has to say to you?" She took another bite.

"Yep."

"Bastard," she whispered.

"Well Bella," Alice said. She sounded like a therapist. "How do you feel about this development in the Bella and Edward saga?"

"Confused. Hurt. Sad. I don't know." I shook my head and tried to concentrate on Patrick Dempsey on the screen in the background.

"So does that mean you still love him?"

"Of course I love him. But that obviously doesn't matter anymore since he's moved on. He's moved on…" A terrifying thought suddenly dawned on me. "Alice is he bringing…a date tomorrow?"

"Not that I know of. There hasn't been anyone since you."

Phew. I wasn't sure if I could deal with Edward alone, but Edward with a date was a completely different story. They might as well carry me out on a stretcher.

"Well just get him back. Simple as pie."

"Is not!" I threw some cookie dough at her. It stuck in her hair.

"No assaulting the bride!" She threw her hands up.

"Okay fine. Speaking of that, we should go to bed, we have to get up in six hours to go get our hair done." I turned and flipped the light off before settling into my bed. Rose was snuggled up in my Lazy Boy and Alice was curled up at the bottom of my bed. I told them they could sleep on the pull away couch in my living room. But they insisted. I was lucky to have them as friends.

I was in a daze the entire next morning, while the hair stylist was pulling and prodding at my head trying to get my hair to look decent. Before I knew it, the ceremony was a mere thirty minutes away and Alice asked for some alone time before the ceremony. I walked outside and found a small pond, with tons of white swans floating around in it. I was kind of glad she decided to get married outside the city. It was nice to escape the noise for a while.

"Look at all the beautiful swans!" Emmett said sarcastically.

I turned to face him. He was already dressed in his tux. I pulled him in for a hug.

"Thanks Em. Do I really look alright?" I felt down my navy blue dress.

"Absolutely beautiful."

I sighed deeply. "Have you talked to him?"

"Yeah. Said he talked to you yesterday." He shuffled his feet back and forth.

I laughed. "Yeah he talked. I mumbled."

"Caught you by surprise huh?"

"What?" I looked up at him and smiled.

"How much you still love him."

I looked down again. "Yeah I guess. But it's okay. That's life. It's tough sometimes. But I'm glad he's happy."

Emmett smiled for a moment and then reached behind him. "I almost forgot. This is for you." He pulled a white lily out and presented it to me.

"Wow that's beautiful, thank you."

"Don't thank me, it was nothing." He took a step forward and placed the flower in my hair, right behind my ear. "But we should probably get back, I think we're on in about ten."

"Okay." Emmett offered his arm to me and we walked back towards the place. He kissed my cheek and went to go line up.

Alice was primped and ready to go early, of course. She was so in control of everything, even though four months ago she thought this day would never happen.

"You ready Al?"

"I was born ready to marry this man. Let's get on with it!" She smiled and walked with Rose and I down to our spots. The music started and Rose stepped out in front of me, the curtain closing behind her.

"I love you Bella."

"Love you too Alice. Let's get you married." The curtains opened again and it was my turn. I stepped out into the sunlight. My eyes squinted at first into the blinding light. As they adjusted, I surveyed the faces in the crowd. I didn't know most of them. I saw Carlisle and his wife Esme. And Charlie was here too. I finally looked up at the altar. There he was. Standing directly beside Jasper with a wide grin on his face. And he was looking right at me like it was our wedding day. I felt selfish for pretending that it was for that moment.

I maintained eye contact with him as I came to my place and turned to wait for Alice. I heard the crowd stand and the music change, so I forced my eyes away from his and shifted them towards the aisle, where Alice was starting to make her walk. I smiled at her and looked over at Jasper. I've never seen that look on anyone's face before. A look of pure adoration, of pure love. Until I looked at Edward again. Was I imagining this? Was it all in my head? Edward looked at me just like he did when we were us. Before everything went to shit. When it was just us. And right then it was again. Just us.

"Alice, would you like to say your vows?" The minister said.

Alice took a deep breath and began.

"Jasper. I never knew this kind of love even existed in this world. And you've shown me that it does. I could never explain to you how much you mean to me and how much our life together means to me, but I'll spend the rest of my life trying to." She giggled and slipped the ring on Jasper's finger.

"Jasper, would you like to say your vows?" The minister turned towards him.

"Actually sir, I'm just going to say ditto because I can't wait another minute to be married to this woman."

The crowd broke out in laughter, even the minister. "Well then I now pronounce you husband and wife, you may kiss your bride."

Alice squealed and jumped up into Jasper's arms. He twirled her around as they kissed, in what only could be described as the most perfect wedding kiss.

The music started playing and down the aisle they went. An arm was offered to me and I absentmindedly took it. I realized half way down the aisle whose arm I was attached to.

"Are you going to say more than umm this time?" Edward said.

"I don't know."

He laughed. "Fair enough."

He released me when we made it to the end of the aisle and disappeared. In fact I didn't even see him again until the reception. Emmett either. I wonder what they were up to.

"May I have this dance?" Charlie said, offering his hand to me and pulling me out on the dance floor.

"How are you doing Dad?" I smiled at him as he twirled me around.

My relationship with my dad was still a little strained, but it was definitely better.

"I'd be doing a lot better if you'd reconsider my job offer? You really want to be working at Starbucks for the rest of your life?"

"Dad not here. I'll find another job on my own. Just leave it alone."

"Okay fine."

The music changed to a song that sounded familiar, but I couldn't put my finger on what it was. I looked towards the band that was performing in an attempt to figure out what the hell it was.

"Hey Charlie can I cut in?" I closed my eyes as Edward tapped Charlie's shoulder.

Charlie bent down to my ear. "You alright sweetheart?"

"Yeah."

"Okay Edward. She's all yours. I still owe the bride a dance." He smiled and searched the dance floor for Alice.

"I asked them to play our song…" Edward winked at me.

"What?"

"Dirty Diana," he said quietly.

"Oh. Oh!" I gasped, finally recognizing the slower version. "I knew that it sounded familiar."

"Yeah." He looked down at his feet.

"So how have you been Edward?" I attempted to make small talk. This is what friends did right?

"Um. Good I guess. I went on the road for a few months. Sold my car, bought my motorcycle."

"Yeah I saw that." I smiled.

"I'll have to take you for a ride sometime…"

I stopped dancing and stared at him. Why was he doing this? Acting so…incredibly sweet. It wasn't doing my heart any good.

"What's wrong?" Edward said, his face full of concern.

"Nothing…" I looked down at the ground. I knew the tears would start flowing if I looked up into his eyes again.

I felt his finger slip under my chin and tilt my face up. Uh oh. Bad news. I couldn't stop them now. The tears were streaming down. I turned away and hurried off the dance floor, leaving Edward alone and confused.

I ran into the dark dressing room and curled up in the corner, pulling my knees to my chest. I wasn't strong enough for this.

There was a knock on the door. I tried to control my sobs.

"Bella it's me," Edward said.

"Go away," I whispered.

He came in anyway of course.

"What did I do?" He said, crouching down to my level.

"You're being you Edward. Why are you being so nice to me?"

He tilted his head to the side. "I'm…sorry. I wasn't…" He shook his head, struggling with what to say. His hand reached out and caressed my cheek. "I wouldn't want to do anything to hurt you." His eyes stared into mine. "Not anything." He looked down at my lips and his face started to inch forward. His lips only touched mine for an instant before I stood up and forced myself passed him.

"This isn't okay Edward!" I gestured to the air between us. "I thought you were over me? Why are you doing this?"

He shook his head and looked down at the floor. And then he smiled. He fucking smiled. Why was he smiling right now?

"Come and take a ride with me?" He held out his hand.

"No!" I stomped my foot.

"Please."

"Why?!"

"Because I asked you to."

"Well…just…fine!" I crossed my arms and stomped out of the room.

I went right out to the parking lot and easily found his motorcycle. It took him a few more minutes to get out there. By that time I was stomping my foot up and down.

"A little impatient are we?" He smiled slightly. It made my heart beat faster. Traitor heart.

"Why are you so calm right now?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because we're fighting!"

"Are we?" He laughed and titled his head to the side as he picked up his helmet. "Put this on." He threw it at me.

I pushed it on my head as he climbed on the motorcycle and kicked his foot down to start it. I involuntarily licked my lips. How can he still do this to me when I'm mad at him?

"Get on." He nodded to the back of the bike.

I climbed on and wrapped my arms around his waist. It felt good to hold him close again, if it wasn't going to last.

We drove for a few miles and came up to a small clearing. It was the edge of a rocky cliff, overlooking a deep valley below. I stepped off the bike and bent down to pick a few purple wildflowers that were scattered along the roadside.

"Bella I lied." I heard him take a step behind me.

I stood up and turned around. The wind blew a few stray strands of hair around my face. "About what?"

"I'm not over you." He took another step. "I'm still in love with you." Another. "And I'm sorry." He was right in front of me now. He wrapped his arms slowly around my waist. "I want to be with you."

I searched his eyes for something, anything that could tell me if his emotions were true.

"I..." His lips interrupted me as they crushed against mine. I lost control of all thought, all feeling except for him. My arms reached up around his neck and I knew he was telling the truth.

He pulled back, set his forehead against mine, and reached in my hair to grab the lily that Emmett gave me. "And I gave you this. Emmett was just the delivery boy. I didn't know if you wanted to see me or not."

I smiled and pulled his face back to mine. Right back where it belonged.

"So we have one small apartment, no money, and no jobs. What do we do now?" Edward said.

My head went back in laughter. "I think I have an idea…"

Epilogue

We both sat outside my Dad's office, legs and arms crossed, waiting very patiently. Emmett kept sneaking glances over at us and laughing under his breath.

"Chief Swan will see you now," Charlie's secretary said. She gestured into the office.

"Thank you," Edward and I said in unison. We both got up and he held the door open for me.

"Dad." I said as I sat down.

"Charlie." Edward sat down in the chair beside me.

"What can I do for you two?" He finished up his paperwork and finally looked up at us.

We both leaned forward, folding our hands in front of us.

"We have a proposition for you." I said smiling.

"Okay?" Charlie sat back in his chair and crossed his arms. He was going to love this.

"You still want me to work here right?"

"Right."

"So I will, on one condition."

"And that is?" He started tapping his pen on his desk.

"We're a package deal." I nodded towards Edward.

"You want her?" Edward pointed at me.

"You're getting him too," I said.

"Now guys I can't…I don't have that type of power."

"Bullshit Dad."

"What?"

"Bull. Shit."

"You pretty much run this place Charlie. We know you can make it happen." Edward laughed. "I don't want to spend another minute away from Bella. So if you want her to be here then you better make a spot for me too." He put his feet up on Charlie's desk. "And I'll take that Detective title as well."

"Watch it bub." Charlie said through his teeth. His eyes went between the both of us several times. "Fine. Anything else I can do you for today?" His voice was mocking.

"Yeah." I said. I smiled in Edward's direction. "I want him as my partner."

Updated A/N: The sequel to this story, Domestic Disturbance, was pulled from ff for having "bitch fit" in the summary . There is a link to the story file on my profile at the top. Thank you!