Friends with Benefits

Chapter Twenty-One

Things I own: my sanity, not enough time to write and incredible friends and family!!

Things I don't: Twilight, Edward and Bella (Damn. It.)

Chapter Twenty-One

BPOV

"Is what she said true about the apartment?" I asked. "Do you pay more in rent than me?" Edward's eyes widened and his ears tinged pink. Those were two of his big tells that he wasn't telling the truth or trying to spin a lie. Angrily, I hopped up, smacking his arm. "What the fuck, Edward? When I moved in, I said I wanted to chip in, fifty/fifty!"

"Damn, woman, you've got some power," Edward mumbled, rubbing his arm. I smacked him several more times, causing him to hold up a pillow to block my blows.

"I'm going to punch something a lot more valuable, Cullen, if you don't start talking," I growled, tugging on the pillow.

"Okay! Okay! Yes, I pay more but I also make more. The rent you pay is the equivalent of what I pay, based off our paychecks," he explained.

"How do you know how much I make, Cullen?"

"I did your taxes last year, Bells. I know your salary," he answered simply. I punched him again. "Seriously, I'm going to be a shade of purple if you keep punching me."

"I want to pay the same as you," I spat.

"Bella, it would be an entire paycheck for you. I know how you scrimp by, even with the modified rent," Edward said, his eyes softening.

"I'm not some fucking charity case, Edward," I snarled. "I mean, really!"

"Bells, I never said you were. I thought I was being fair," he mumbled, leaning forward on his knees. "I know that you have to live in the city for your job. I also know that getting your own place is not financially feasible. Having you live with me, it's the best of everything I can offer you. I don't want you living in some craphole apartment just because you're proving a point. We live in a great neighborhood that's safe and secure. We have a beautiful apartment, because of you and your attention to detail. Be mad at me for trying make it easier for you, but I'm not changing what you pay in rent."

God, I'm a bitch. Rosalie is right.

"I suck," I muttered, my tears starting anew.

"Bells, you don't suck. Come here," Edward said, reaching for my hand. I bit my lip, staying just out of his reach. With a huff, Edward took my hand and pulled me into his lap. "There's a difference between sucking and being proud. You didn't know that I was paying more. Frankly, it's because I wanted to avoid this argument. How Rosalie knew is beyond me, and it honestly pisses me off."

"She called me a whore. In a way, I am. I'm whoring my cooking skills so I can live with you," I growled.

"I'd rather you whore your cooking skills than your body," Edward quipped. I punched him again. "Ow! Look, I'm sorry for not telling you, but the cost of the apartment is far more than what you can afford."

"You can afford it," I mumbled.

"Lawyer," he gestured to himself. "Teacher, who doesn't get paid nearly enough," He gestured to me. "Bella, I don't care about the money. I really don't. It's not like I don't have it. Grammie Cullen left all of us huge trust funds. Yes, I always say that it's not my money, but I'd rather spend it on people that I care about, rather than myself."

"Have you touched your trust fund?" I asked.

"No and I don't intend to. But when I do, it'll be to help out my family or my friends," he smiled crookedly, pinching my cheek. "Bells, I'm truly sorry. I only had the best intentions at heart. Please forgive me?"

"I'll forgive you, if you show me how much I would have to pay if you weren't footing the bill," I challenged.

"Get up for a second," he said. I got up off his lap. He pulled out his phone before tugging me back into his lap. Logging into his bank account remotely, he pulled up a spreadsheet. "This is our rent. I have it automatically deducted from my account since it's simply easier. I'm not usually home to deliver it to the management company."

"That's why I just pay you?" I asked.

"Yeah. I put that into the same account that our rent is drawn from," Edward explained. "Our monthly rent is over $4000."

"WHAT?!"

"But, the reason why it's so high is because I could take the option to purchase our apartment as a condo, Bells. Relax. The rent is covering a down payment," he said, arching a brow over his glasses. "So, if I asked you to pay half, it would be just under $2100. Could you afford that?"

"No," I grumped. "That's what I make in a month. How would I be able to make my student loan payments? Cell phone? Utilities?"

"Exactly. So, me being the nerd that I am, figured out the ratio that worked and that's what you're paying," Edward said. "When you're able, you can pay me more, but until then, I'm grateful for what you do contribute. I could ideally, live there and not charge you a dime."

"And you would not have a penis," I quipped.

"And I do like my penis. I'd like to be a father one day," Edward snorted. "This is the best option that I came up with. Yes, I should have told you. I'm sorry for not doing so earlier. Do you forgive me?"

Edward took off his glasses and gave me the puppy pout, complete with wavering lip and crocodile tears. "Yeah, I do, but stopwith the face," I snickered, throwing my arms around him.

"The face works every time," he laughed, rubbing his hands along my back.

A/N: You all know that face...it gets me to crumble. More Thanksgiving when we return! Leave me some!