EPOV
It was my third day in Vegas for a medical conference and all I could think about is how much I wanted to go home. I live in a small town in Washington that is quiet and everyone knows everyone and that's what I like about it. A big city like this so full of nameless people doing God knows what with God knows who wasn't where I wanted to be. But I didn't get to pick the location of this conference and someone from the hospital had to come. I did enjoy a couple of shows so it was not altogether horrible.
"Cullen, come out with us! We heard about a great club," offered one of the doctors I met named Garrett Johnson.
"No, thanks, that is not really my thing," I answered quickly.
"Come on, all work and no play makes a dull guy," said Garrett.
"Maybe tomorrow, have a great night," I said before heading toward the room with the indoor pool. It was the quickest way to the elevators without going through the casino. I opened the door and began walking through the door. I expected to find the room empty, but there was a girl in a blue sundress sitting with her feet in the water. When she heard me enter the room she turned her head and gave me a small smile.
My world suddenly turned on its axis. She was the most beautiful women I had ever seen, and all at once I understood what it felt like to find love at first sight. In that moment I knew she was it for me.
"Hi," I managed to say. I needed to know her but I did not think declaring my undying love would go over too well.
"Hi, I'm Bella," she said with a small smile.
"May I ask what you are doing?"
"Just thinking it is very quiet in here."
"May I join you?" I asked trying not to sound too desperate.
"Sure, but you never told me your name."
"Edward," I answered kicking off my shoes and sitting next to her, "so are you here for business or for pleasure?"
"A little bit of both," she answered, "I am here with the 'Make A Wish Foundation'. A girl with terminal cancer wanted to meet me."
"Are you famous?" I asked very impressed with her already.
"Not really, but I am writer. I use a pen name so no one really knows who I am."
"May I ask your pen name?"
"Charlie Renee, I made it up using my parents' names."
"They must be really proud of you."
She averted her eyes for a second, and got a sad look on her face, "I hope they are, but I will never know for sure; they are dead."
I opened my mouth to say something, but she stopped me, "Please don't say you're sorry because I really hate when people say that. I mean you had nothing to do with it, and you didn't know them. Come to think of it you just met me so you probably don't even care. So any sympathy you give me is just because you're nice and feel bad that you brought it up. But you shouldn't feel bad about that because it was a very normal topic to bring up so you couldn't have known. In fact I kind of brought it up more than you did so I should be sorry for bringing up something so personal when we are just having a normal conversation, and now I am rambling on and on about it because when I am nervous I ramble and you just need to stop me or I will just keep going on and on and not stopping so you just need to make me shut up before I make this even more awkward then it already is because…"
I placed my hand on her arm to stop her and said, "I was just going to say I bet they are proud of you and I would never tell you to shut up."
"Thanks," she answered, the smile returning to her face.
"Would you like to go somewhere and talk some more?" I asked, going for broke. I really wanted to keep talking to her.
"Where would you like to go?" she asked shyly.
"I don't know maybe a bar or something?"
"I don't drink," she said giving me an apologetic smile.
"That is fine," I answered quickly, "how about ice cream?"
"I love ice cream," she said standing up and putting on her shoes. I stood up and followed suit then asked, "May I ask why you don't drink?"
"Well, for two reasons, because my mom was killed in a drunk driving accident and secondly, I am not legal yet."
Both answers startled me, "How old are you?"
"Twenty, I will be twenty-one in a few months though."
"You seem a lot older."
"My mom always said I acted thirty when I was three," she said with a sad smile leading the way out to the lobby.
"How old were you when she passed?" I asked taking a big risk and sliding my hand into hers. She smiled a little more brightly and squeezed my hand in response.
"Seven."
"That must have been really hard."
"It was but my dad was really great. He made it okay," she said going back to the sad smile.
Then she lost him too, I thought sadly to myself. I would be inconsolable if I lost my parents now and I was twenty eight. I led Bella over to the concierge desk because I had no idea where we could find ice cream. I got the concierge's attention.
"Could you tell us where an ice cream parlor is around here?" I asked him.
"The closest one is Café Gelato. You can walk from here," he answered giving me directions.
"Thanks," I said leading Bella out of the hotel.
"So what do you do?" she asked.
"I am a doctor," I said happy that I had a good job with which I could impress her.
"That is so awesome," she said, "I wish I had a job where I could help people like that."
"You do, you helped that little girl by making her wish come true."
"That is not exactly the same thing, I didn't save her life."
"You never know. Meeting you might have made her so happy that she will be stronger fighting her disease."
"You are really sweet," she said looking up at me through her eyelashes.
"You are easy to be sweet to." I answered giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. She blushed and it was the most adorable thing I had ever seen and in a flash I saw a little girl with that blush and my eyes. This woman was it for me, now I just had to convince her that I was it for her.
"So where are you from?" she asked with the biggest smile on her face. I gave her that smile and I couldn't be happier.
"Oakville, Washington," I answered.
"Really, I am from Forks, Washington," she said then got kind of sad all of a sudden, "Well, I used to anyway."
"Where do you live now?" I asked hoping it was still in Washington.
"Nowhere, actually."
"What do you mean?"
"After my dad died, I just couldn't stay in that town where everyone knew what happened and kept looking at me with such pity. So I left and tried to find somewhere else to call home, but I haven't found anywhere yet," she said sadly.
"Have you ever thought of going back and seeing if it is better?"
"No, even if people got over what happened it just doesn't feel like home without my parents there."
We had arrived at the ice cream parlor by now and it wasn't too busy so we ordered and found seats. Bella got peanut butter flavor and I got mint chocolate chip.
"So do you just go from hotel to hotel wherever you have business?"
"Pretty much."
"When did you start that?"
"I left not long after my father passed, I was sixteen."
I was shocked by how young she was when she started to be on her own.
"How did that work, I mean you weren't really old enough to care of yourself, legally anyway."
"I got emancipated and then got my GED so it was all legal."
"I am really sorry you had to go through that," I said squeezing her free hand, "What did you do for money, had you already published a book?"
"No I got a really big settlement from my dad dying. He died in the line of duty."
"He was a police officer?"
"He was the police chief, actually. Whenever I say that people always give me a look like I knew that was a possibility that he would get hurt, but nothing ever happened like that in our town. Nobody saw this coming."
"How did it happen?"
"My dad was at a gas station filling up his patrol car when he saw someone trying to rob the place so he tried to intercede, but the guy was strung out on drugs and just flipped out and shot him. The prosecutor found out that this wasn't this guy's first offense and his father had paid off the police in Seattle several times so he found a lawyer for me and they put together a wrongful death settlement. I didn't really have to worry about money after that," she said and I could tell she was trying to be modest.
"And now you are a published author," I said.
"Well I don't keep any money from my books. I just donate that to charity."
"Really, I think that is wonderful that you do that, most people aren't that generous," I said glad that she was turning out to be the wonderful person I felt she was when I first saw her.
"Well I just didn't want all that money to deal with. So do you have a lot of family close by?"
"Yeah, I have my parents and my brother and my sister they all live in the same town with me, it's where I grew up and I always want to be there."
"That is nice, that is what I want."
"You'll have it someday," I answered giving her hand another squeeze. I knew I was telling her the truth because I was going to give her a home, no matter what it took I was going to make her happy.
"So what does your family do?" she asked.
"My father is a doctor like me, I work at his practice. My mom used to be a teacher, but she retired a few years ago. My sister, Alice, and brother, Emmett both followed in her footsteps and became teachers too."
"It sounds like you are really close are your brother and sister married or anything?"
"My brother is engaged to one of the nurses at our practice named Rosalie, she is planning the wedding of the century."
"I would never want a big wedding, I would just rather something quick and easy."
"So would Emmett but he says as long as Rosalie is happy then he is."
"That is really sweet it must run in the family."
"My dad always taught us that if we were lucky enough to find the perfect woman then you should give them whatever they want and do whatever it takes to make them happy," I answered thinking of my father sitting Emmett and I down for that conversation.
"So why are you so nice to me?" she asked blushing again.
"Because you are the perfect women."
"How could you know that we just met?"
"Sometimes you just know," I answered her with a smile. We had both finished our ice cream by now so I knew I had to convince her I was worth getting to know . "You ready to head back?"
"I guess," she answered rising from her seat. I took her hand in mine and led her back towards the hotel and she asks for my full name.
"Edward Anthony Cullen," I answered her, "What's yours?"
"Isabella Marie Swan."
"That is a beautiful name," thinking that it was perfect for her. "Can I see you tomorrow?"
"I would love that, but I am not ready for tonight to end just yet."
"Well where would you like to go next?"
"How about my room," she suggested and then her eyes widened a little, "but not for anything like that. I just mean to talk some more, not to do anything bad. Not that having sex with you would be bad, I just mean I don't do that kind of thing this fast. Well, to be perfectly honest I have never done that ever, but that isn't something you should tell someone you just met. I just mean…"
I silenced her with a soft kiss and said, "I understand and I don't want to rush things either, but I would love to come up and talk."
"Even after that long inappropriate little speech," she asked shyly.
"I thought it was cute," I answered giving her an encouraging smile and leading her towards the elevator. I was so happy that this night wasn't ending yet because I knew this was the first day of the rest of my life.
