Disclaimer: No, I do not own Twilight. Reviews are always greatly appreciated. This is my first Twilight fan fic so tell me what you think…
Edward smelled her as soon as he walked into the room. He hadn't seen her in fifteen years, but she still smelled exactly the same. His eyes searched the room for her and finally settled on her. Her back was to him and she wore a white dress with a red satin sash. A man was standing next to her with his arm wrapped around her waist. Her head rested gently against his shoulder and she had an arm wrapped around him as well. She leaned up on her tip toes to whisper something in his ear and then slipped away from him.
It was the annual Christmas party for the hospital where Edward was working. He had left the Cullens ten years before and was currently posing as a recently graduated med student. The party was semi-casual, so Edward was wearing a pair of dark jeans and a gold silk button down shirt. Alice had taken him shopping several months before and had forced the shirt on him, insisting that it was almost the exact color of his eyes. The lighting in the room was dark; the harsh fluorescent lights turned off and oil lamps and candles casting off their soft glow. A very large Christmas tree was set up in the corner with piles of presents underneath for all of the doctors and nurses.
He walked toward the man and said hello. "Edward, it's great to see you. I thought you said you couldn't make it?"
"I was able to get tonight off from the hospital," Edward explained. "So, did I get to meet the wife you never stop talking about Dr. Peters?"
"She just went to go freshen up," Dr. Peters replied, his eyes lighting up at the mention of his wife. "She'll be back in a few minutes. I just hope she doesn't call the baby sitter again. This is the first time we've left all three kids with one sitter and she's a little nervous."
Edward's breath caught in his throat when she approached. She seemed ten times more beautiful than the last time he had seen her. Her dark curls caressed her white shoulders and the strand of pearls around her neck made Edward long to kiss the tender spot at the base of her neck. "Andy, are you sure I can't call the sitter?" she pleaded as she approached Dr. Peters and then stood on her tip toes to kiss him on the cheek. "I just want to see how the kids are doing. I won't keep her on the phone and grill her over every minute since we left…"
"Bella, the kids are fine," Dr. Peters replied. "Cheryl has both of our cell phone numbers and she will call us if something goes wrong. Now there is someone I would like you to meet. Edward, this is the wife I never stop talking about, Bella. Bella, this is Edward Cullen. He recently graduated from medical school and is working at the hospital."
"It's nice to meet you Dr. Cullen," Bella replied, sticking out her hand for Edward to shake it. Her smile was warm and genuine, but her eyes held no trace of recognition. Edward shook her hand and let his thumb rest on the cold spot where James had bitten her. Bella's face didn't change when he touched the spot. Her eyes never changed. They were soft and lovely, but there was no glimmer of recognition, no trace of the love she had once professed. "So, how do you like living here in New York?"
"Well, I lived here growing up, so it's sort of like coming home for me," Edward replied honestly, his eyes never leaving Bella's. "My parents died when I was seventeen and so I left for a while. It's nice being home though. I hadn't realized how much I missed it."
"I'm sorry for your loss," Bella said sympathetically. "My dad died about seven years ago and I know how hard it was for me. I can't imagine that happening while I was still a teenager. I'm sure your parents are very proud of you."
"I'd like to hope so," Edward responded with a sad smile. "I know my adoptive parents, the Cullens, are proud of me. My dad is a doctor."
"That's wonderful," Bella smiled and then turned to her husband and wrapped her arms around his arm and leaned against him, her eyes looking up pleadingly at him. "Please give me my cell phone Andy! I swear I'll only be on the phone two minutes. I just can't stand this not knowing how our babies are!"
"Fine," Dr. Peters sighed and pulled a cell phone out of his pocket. "But if you are gone for over four minutes, I'm taking your phone away."
Bella kissed his cheek and then fled for the door, dialing as she went. Edward excused himself and followed her out, needing to speak with her. He wanted to know if her acting like she was just meeting him was an act, or if she really had forgotten about him. Bella was on the phone when he found her. He leaned back into the shadows and watched as she paced the hallway. "You scrapped your knee?" she asked with all a mother's sympathy. "Well I'll be sure to kiss it and make it better when Daddy and I get home." She was on the phone for another minute and then finally hung up and sighed with relief. She was about to walk back into the room when Edward stepped in front of her. "Dr. Cullen!" Bella exclaimed and laid a white hand on her chest. "Don't scare me like that!"
"You're as beautiful as ever Bella," he whispered huskily and watched Bella's eyes. All he saw there was confusion. The pain in his chest was almost too much to bear. He'd kept hoping for years that Bella hadn't forgotten him like he'd all but forced her to do and was still as in love with him as he was with her. "Please tell me that you remember me."
"I have no idea what you are talking about Dr. Cullen," Bella replied with a frown. "I've never met you before tonight."
"Bella…" he whispered painfully. "Can you honestly not remember me?" He grasped her upper arms and forced her to look him in the eye. He could see a hint of the inner battle Bella was going through, but her eyes suddenly calmed and became perfectly still.
"I've never met you before tonight," she replied and lifted her chin. "Now I really need to be getting back. My husband is probably looking for me by now." Bella pulled away from him and started to open the door and Edward started to walk away. Bella stopped with the door about half open and turned to look at him. "How does it feel Edward?" she asked with a faint sad smile. "To know that I did exactly what you told me to do? I forgot all about you and am living the exact life you wanted for me. I'm still human. I have a loving husband and children who I adore. I'm living the perfect life."
"Goodbye Bella," Edward whispered as he walked away and the rain started to fall. "I'm happy for you."
Bella watched him walk off into the rain and then walked back inside the building. She went straight to her husband and kissed him firmly on the lips. "You know I love you, don't you Andy?"
"Of course Bella," he replied, pressing another quick kiss on her lips. "Have you seen Edward? I think he just disappeared."
"I saw him leave when I was outside," Bella answered and let her husband pull her close to his side. "He said that his sister called and he had to leave."
"That's too bad," Dr. Peters said and then kissed the top of Bella's head. "He's a good kid. I would have liked for you to get to know him a little better."
"Perhaps another time," Bella replied and then turned to look at the tree. "Come on, they're opening presents." That night when Bella got home she kissed each of her children goodnight and sent them off to bed. She slipped into bed next to her husband and snuggled close to him, trying not to remember the feeling of cold arms wrapped around her in a protective grip. As she closed her eyes, it wasn't the face of the man who was lying next to her that came to mind. Instead an unbidden image of a pale face with expressive topaz eyes was the last thing she saw before she drifted off to sleep.