http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4872200/1/Not_Meant_To_Be

Official Description: Over-sexed Bella meets a married man named Edward. What she anticipates to be a one time fling turns into an affair that stirs feelings she is blindsided by. The battle between heart & mind leaves them both struggling to do the right thing. AH,sex,taboo

Don’t miss NMTB Extras, which provides some much needed EPOV.

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JuliaMine says: I stumbled on this story one night while surfing through friend favorite’s, and from the first chapter alone I was done. Not only am I a sucker for a sexy tatted Dilfward, but something about forbidden love affairs is a guilty pleasure. This story is chock full of incredible, drool worthy lemons. Though, to be honest, at times I felt the need to take Bella over my knee and give her a good spanking, this story is addictive. I found myself sitting at my computer for hours reading chapter after incredible chapter wondering if it was possible to have the author slip me into one of the chapters to take over one of Bella’s bed buddies. SweetDulcinea is a talented writer with many titles to her name, and with the incredibly sexy nature of Not Meant To Be, her fics are a must read.

Karaoke? Check. Sexy red boy short panties? Check. Hooking up with married man? Check. Few of us can checkmark this whole list, but SweetDulcinea’s Bella can, all in one night. What starts as an introduction to the world of Bella in the first chapter, ends with a satiated Edward and a Bella smug in her sexuality. The power she draws from her sexuality is fierce and we learn this quickly.

“My sexuality was my power, something I had lost with James. Something I now thrived on. I was finally in control and living my life for me, no questions asked, and I felt happy in a way I hadn’t been in many months.”

The story starts off with Bella, who is BFF’s with Rosalie, dating controlling and overbearing James. He is possessive of Bella and keeps her separated from her friends and family. Finally, Bella dumps James and finds herself in the welcoming arms of rebound Jacob, who is more than happy to take care of her physical needs. She and Rosalie, dubbed “double trouble”, find themselves at a bar on karaoke night. In walks the sexy, incredibly good looking Edward and she just can’t take her eyes off him. And can you blame her? Yes, he’s married, but it can be just about sex… Right?

Rosalie acts as her cheerleader throughout this story, egging on her affair with stories of her own affair with the once married Felix. She wants Bella to be happy and, to be honest, is the kind of best friend I would want. She doesn’t make Bella feel bad for making decisions she makes, but instead stands by her and helps her see the positive.

This story takes us on a journey as Bella changes from a smug mistress proud of her conquests, to something so much more. Yes the storyline is centered on a potentially scandalous affair, however beyond that it’s sexy, confident Bella that is win. I want to tell how it ends, and I want to tell you all the in between. But I can’t, that would be unfair of me to ruin the fabulous story for you. Know to come read this when you’re in the mood for a sexy, confident Bella who offers us lust filled monologue, and uniquely a different perspective from the mind of the mistress.

Kassiah says: About two months ago, Maylin rec’d this story on UU. Since practically everything she recs is win, I decided to check it out. I don’t necessarily have an aversion to infidelity fics, but I know some people do, and that’s why I haven’t rec’d this story until now. I wanted to wait, to see how it would play out and if I could take the ending. Read this story. Right now. It’s almost complete, and oh so worth it.

SweetDulcinea is an amazing writer. She so accurately captures the tumultuous feelings that Bella is experiencing. This story is hot, but it’s so much more than that. It follows Bella as she traverses the path from a strong, self-sufficient, and confident woman who knows and goes after what (and who) she wants to someone who allows self-doubt and emotion to creep in. That’s real to me.

Like Juliamine said, tatted-up-sexy-as-hell-DILFward? Yes, please. There are moments in this story that are just. so. fuckhot. There’s sweetness. There’s also bitterness and anger.

I don’t want to give the story away, but I will say that Sweet does not idealize having an affair. Edward tells her up front that he can’t be with her in any capacity, except sexually. I honestly was worried throughout this entire fic, knowing that I am an E/B shipper all the way. I just didn’t see how it could work out without everyone being hurt.

“Lose me?” I couldn’t hold back my maniacal laughter. What a ridiculous thing to say! “Lose me? You never had me!” My laughter continued.

“You know what I mean,” he replied softly.

“Obviously we’re seeing things differently then, Edward, because you and I are nothing to each other. We had sex a few times, but come on.” My tone and my words were harsher than what I really felt, but part of me knew he deserved it. I wanted him to feel awful, the way he had made me feel. If I could make him mad, maybe he would stop all this. Allowing him to hurt me meant that I wasn’t in control. I refused to get caught up in another James situation, even if I felt that Edward was completely different from my ex.

“Now you’re the one fooling yourself,” he snapped back quickly. It wasn’t mean, but definitely firm. He was trying to make a point. His tone softened as he continued. “We may have only been together a few times, but we were both there. You know there’s something between us, and I miss you. It may sound stupid to you, but I’m sure that if you w
ere honest with yourself you’d see it too. I want us to stay friends, Bella. I’m not giving up on that.”

I was floored. Absolutely speechless. If you were honest with yourself you’d see it too. His words rang in my ears and repeated over and over in my mind, leaving me reeling. Friends. Friends? Any attempts I made to convince him – and myself – that there was nothing between us but the sex were futile. He obviously wasn’t going to accept less than what he sought.

Aside from realistic dialogue and great descriptions, I love that SweetDulcinea has given us glimpses into so many different types of relationships: Friends, Friends with Benefits, Lovers, Best Friends, Best Friends who become Lovers. It is all so multi-faceted and layered. Another thing that I really love about this story is that Edward’s wife, who we know very little about, is an original character. Edward barely mentions her, and not having a preconceived stereotype bias against her made me feel sympathetic for what she must be feeling. If she were Tanya or Skanktoria, I know without a doubt I would somehow be trying to place the blame for Edward’s indiscretions on her. Instead, having a character that we know nothing about forces me to place the blame on him, something I am not used to feeling.

Not Meant to Be is not for the faint-hearted; this story has angst. I’m not going to lie about it. I cried more than once reading it, but you know that I am emo about everything. There are some Jacob-moments that were hard for me to stomach, but absolutely necessary to understanding Bella. It’s amazingly well-written and a very grown-up fic and does not romanticize infidelity. Really, what I most want to tell you is Not Meant to Be should not be missed, and I hope that you’ll give it a chance.