Story Title: The Team that's built on lies.

Rating *NC-17

Characters: Edward*Bella

Genre: Mystery/Drama

Summary: Rigid Bella gets her dream job as Planning and Quality Officer, selected for a two year project in the Caribbean. Enter a shy, stuttering, green-eyed, handsome Edward, with a dangerous past and you have a project disaster. Will Edward make Bella forget all her rules when it comes to work and play? Or, will one of them end up dead before they get a chance to explore the possibilities of a relationship.

Bella POV

I could not help the broad grin that graced my face as I walked through the glass doors of Masen's Project Solutions' headquarters in Forks, Washington. My hard work had intersected good fortune. I…Isabella Swan-though I prefer to be called Bella…at 24 years of age, was about to begin my dream job.

What was my dream job? It was to be the Planning and Quality Officer for Masen's Project Solutions. To the average person, it might not sound like the most exciting career, but for me, it was the be all and end all.

As I approached the receptionist, she looked up to me and smiling a warm, joyful smile asked, "Good morning, how may I be of assistance to you, madam?"

If their receptionist is so welcoming, I wonder if the management will be just as nice.

"Good morning, my name is Isabella Swan, and I am here to attend a meeting with Carlisle and Esme Cullen," I replied.

"Oh yes, Ms. Swan, please go straight through the black doors on your left and you will see the doors marked 'Auditorium' have a seat right in there."

"Thank you," I responded sweetly.

"Of course," please enjoy the rest of your day." I turned to leave, but heard the receptionist's voice again, "Oh, and Ms. Swan…"

"Yes?" I asked.

"Welcome to Masen's Project Solutions."

Grinning from ear to ear, I answered, "Thank you very much."

Upon entering the Auditorium, I took a seat at the back of the room. As I looked around, I noticed that each wall was a different colour. One was green, the other blue, followed by yellow and the last one was orange, which to me, seemed to be very bright colors for a company. I guess that is the "in thing" now as my neighbour Nessie would say.

I am just not up-to-date with the latest style. I studied all the time and worked hard, so I didn't get a chance to pick up fashion magazines very often; to me, it was a small sacrifice.

Surveying the room again, I realised that about 30 people were currently seated.

This is a lot of people for one project. I was brought out of my train of thought by a soprano voice to my right.

"Hi, my name is Alice Cullen, my speciality is design, nice to meet you." said a pixie-like lady with black hair pointing in every direction.

Did she just say 'nice to meet you' before I introduced myself?

"Hi, to you too," I said, still quietly appraising the sprite before me. "My name is Isabella Swan, but you can call me Bella and mine is planning and quality." Is that a new style? Geez, I need to purchase some of the latest magazines, yeah, Bella...post 2001

"So, are you…" She began, but her sentence was cut short by a man and a woman trying to get our attention at the front.

"Good morning everyone, my name is Carlisle Cullen and this is my wife, Esme." The blond-haired gentlemen greeted us with a warm smile.

Mr. Cullen looked so young; he was tall with blond hair and grey eyes. I was expecting the Manager to at least have twenty years experience, putting him at about sixty.

Mrs. Cullen was a beautiful brunette with honey gold eyes and a warm smile.

"Welcome to Masen's Project Solutions. We at MPS are very excited to have young fresh blood on within our company as we are eager to share our knowledge and learn from you as well. Now I'll hand you over to Esme for her to fill you in on Masen's history."

"Good morning, MPS was started by my older sister Elizabeth Masen and brother-in-law Edward Masen senior in 1956. If you did your research on the history of MPS, you will know that my sister and brother-in-law are no longer here. MPS was handed over to my husband and me in 1992. Masen's is a Project Management company, which puts forth proposals to companies in the hope to be awarded contracts to complete construction and architectural projects all over the world. MPS ensures that the project is finished on time, within budget, and most importantly, to client satisfaction. At present, MPS is estimated to be worth 150 billion dollars. The head office is in Forks, with other offices in Paris, England and Spain. "

I, myself, knew a few things about Masen's Project Solutions. I had researched the company; from their humble beginnings in the mid-fifties to their controversy in the early nineties. I had seen how Mr. and Mrs. Cullen managed to overcome the terrible circumstances and continue the company's unparalleled success. I knew the MPS mission statement forward and backward; I was ready for my assignment.

"Any questions so far?" Esme asked the group as she searched through the board room with her eyes.

"Good," Mrs. Cullen said when she recognized that no one had any questions. The energy in the room was palpable. I guessed I wasn't the only person anxious to find out the details of our assignment.

Continuing she said, "Now, MPS has been awarded a contract to build an Academy of the Arts Centre in the Caribbean and twenty team members, including myself and Carlisle, will be flown to the Caribbean Island in the next two days." As soon as the sentence left her mouth, hands started to go up like crazy around the Auditorium, along with loud murmurs. Instead of taking any questions Mr. Cullen interrupted, reminding us to allow Mrs. Cullen to finish before any questions would be answered.

"The Caribbean Island is a twin island state called Trinidad and Tobago and the project will be completed in Trinidad. Eighteen of you have already been chosen to work on this project and the remaining twelve will be working on small projects within Seattle and New York. Those, whom I call, please follow Carlisle and myself, while the rest of you will follow Felix, the gentlemen in black on my left. Felix is the office security." She gestured toward the door where a nondescript man in a suit stood waiting for the rejected twelve employees.

I held my breath as Mrs. Cullen called out the names, hoping mine would be among them.

"The eighteen employees who will be running the project in Trinidad are as follows:

Lauren Mallory, Scheduling

Rosalie Hale, Estimator and Machinery

Jasper Hale, Architect

Emmett Cullen, Engineer

Alice Cullen, Design

Tanya Denali, Design

Jessica Stanley, Estimator

Jacob Black, Machinery

Leah Clearwater, Scheduling

Mike Newton, Communications

Ben Cheney, Testing

Eric Yorkie, Communications

Isabella Swan, Planning and Quality

Angela Webber, Quality

Tyler Crowley, Quality

Seth Clearwater, Construction

Sam Uley, Construction, and finally,

Edward Whitson; Planning, Engineering, and Architecture."

I bit back a wide grin as my name was called. Not only was I working for the top solutions company in the United States, but I was now part of an elite team, being sent on an all-expenses-paid trip to one of the most beautiful places in the entire world.

As soon as the last person's name was announced, the group followed the Cullens out of the building and across the road to a restaurant called 'Masen's Dining.' I wondered to myself if this diner had also been established by Mr. and Mrs. Masen, and was now under the direction of the Cullens. How many businesses did this family own?

We were led by the receptionist to a private room, where the walls were an unusual emerald green colour. When everyone was seated, Mr. Cullen asked us to go around the table introducing ourselves.

A blonde girl, with huge boobs in a tight bright purple skirt suit that was two sizes too small, immediately started to speak in a nasally voice, which was so irritating it could upset a deaf man.

"My name is Lauren Mallory, I am 24 years old and from Forks, Washington, I would just like to say that it was so sad—what happened to the Masens…" But before she could finish her sentence Mr. Cullen interrupted her, reminding her that she was to speak about herself.

So again we had to endure her annoying voice. "Well, I attended Washington University where I completed my B.S. in Scheduling…" All I heard after that was "blah, blah, blah, self-important postulating, blah, blah, blah…"

Can someone please hit her over her head! Can I? Soon?

This continued for the next hour; person after person expounding on their pretentious achievements. I did manage to learn a little about each team member; a necessity, as we'd all be working very closely together over the coming months.

My turn quickly came and I introduced myself only letting them know the basic about me. My age, place of study and what I studied.

I learned that Alice and Emmett were Carlisle and Esme's children. Alice studied Design in Paris and was 24 years old, while Emmett was 26 and studied Engineering in England. Jasper and Rosalie Hale were 24 year old twins who also studied in England along side Emmett. Must be nice, I thought, to be so rich you can study anywhere in the world.

All of the other team members were around the same age, between 24 and 27, and I realized at that moment there could be a lot of…pleasure on this business trip. Real World: Trinidad, I thought dryly. Put this many young, attractive, single people together and it won't take long before they start pairing up.

Not me!

I decided then and there.

This was the greatest career opportunity that would ever come my way, and I wasn't going to throw it away on a quick romance.

I mentally upchucked when a gorgeous strawberry-blonde, Tanya Denali, introduced herself. Her eyes never left Mr. Cullen as she spoke, exaggerating the movement of her lips, in a very successful attempt to look seductive. The mouths of various other male team members hung slack as they stared at the temptress. It was very clear how a woman like Tanya made her way up the company ladder. Mr. Cullen, however, seemed particularly uninterested in her, as he often glanced at his wife and smiled when her eyes met his.

Tanya had studied in Alaska and her credentials would have been impressive, if I hadn't already gotten the impression that she'd earned them by bedding her professors. I wasn't usually so quick to judge others, but I resented women like Tanya who made this business so hard for women like me. I just wanted to work hard and deserve my place in the industry. The Tanya Denali's of the world gave every professor, project supervisor, and CEO the idea that a woman in this business was ready and willing to sleep their way to the top.

Mentally packing my suitcases, I paid little attention as the rest of the team members introduced themselves. I was running through a checklist in my mind.

Swimsuit, check.

Toothbrush, check.

Phone charger, check.

And right in the middle of my packing list, a velvet voice floated into my universe. It was a male voice, like thunder and cream, which commanded my attention. The very sound of it was at war with the words it spoke. He had an almost unnatural stutter, making a drawn out "am" sound frequently, yet the speech impediment did not serve to diminish the beauty of his voice.

At the sound of it, my head involuntarily snapped towards the direction it came from. I had to know what kind of heavenly creature could produce such a sound. When my eyes found him, I was not disappointed. He was a handsome with a sly look behind his emerald green colour eyes that matched the walls around us. His two gorgeous emerald stones were hidden behind huge Coke bottle spectacles. His glasses screamed "nerd!" but his taut jaw line screamed "sex god!" His hair was his most strangely alluring feature—a bronze, reddish colour, which stuck out haphazardly, as if he'd just rolled out of bed.

Passing his hand through his hair, he hung his head down and started to speak, "I, a-am, hello, am…my name is Edward Whitson, I am 24 years old. I attended University of Maryland. I have a, am…BSC in Planning with a minor in Architecture and an MSC in Engineering in Project Management," he said timidly, but his voice was still as smooth as velvet; unlike any voice I'd ever heard. It flitted into my ears and rang though my entire body. I thought I might orgasm on the spot, if my mouth had not been hanging open in shock—along with everyone else's—at the number of qualifications he had for his age. I was pretty sure I heard Mike and a few other guys mutter the word "geek," amidst quiet laughter, as Edward finished.

Mr. Cullen—Carlisle, he insisted that we refer to him as Carlisle and his wife as Esme—was the first to bring everyone out of their shock.

"Thank you for introducing yourselves. After you are finished with your meal, you may leave to spend the next couple days with your family and friends. As you knew, before you were interviewed that you would be called upon at any time to work outside of the US. Spend the rest of the days with your family, because on Wednesday afternoon we will be in Trinidad and Tobago for two years. Work commences on Thursday."

While some people start existing the restaurant to return to their homes, a conversation began between Alice, Rosalie, Jasper, Emmett, Tanya, Edward, Carlisle and Esme about the project. Eventually there was a silence as the conversation died down and Carlisle decided to ask Edward about how he had attained so much at such a young age.

Edward replied, but he looked rather uncomfortable answering any questions about himself.

"I…am, skipped a lot of grades and earned a scholarship to Maryland to study by the age of fifteen."

"Scholarship?" Alice ears perked up at the mention of the word. "What did you complete at Maryland?"

"I did my double major," Edward replied.

It felt like pulling teeth, as Edward only answered what was asked.

Nothing more, and nothing less.

After what felt like eternity, Carlisle finally got out of Edward that he was given another scholarship to complete his Masters, where he maintained a perfect grade point average.

He looked nervous as he said this. At least to me, I thought. To everyone else it looked very effortless, but to me, he seemed so uncomfortable. Most people were speechless.

How can you just pull off a perfect GPA in your major and minor and in your Masters…it's just not possible.

Esme finally spoke up, "Your parents must be very proud of you, Edward." She herself seemed proud, such a prodigy was a fantastic asset to their company.

Edward tensed at the mention of his parents, but he replied to Esme, "I did not know my parents…I grew up in an orphanage."

The pixie-like Cullen daughter, Alice, looked at him with a mixture of pity and horror. "That's so sad, how long were you in an orphanage for and where?"

"Since I was six…in Chicago." Damn, that is a hard life. What I felt was not pity or horror, it was compassion. I wanted to scoop him up. To put my hands on either side of that perfect jaw and clutch him to my chest. To tell him it would all be okay now that I was there for him.

Not a rational reaction, Bella. Get a grip!

"So you were never adopted?" Alice inquired, clearly unafraid to be blunt.

"No, most families found that I was too quiet, not a good fit for them, they said. So it never really worked out; but in the end, I believe that I was safer in the orphanage anyway."

Esme interrupted, trying to stop Alice's inquisition. "Edward, you have peculiarly colored eyes," Esme said wistfully, "They remind me so much my sister, Elizabeth Masen." But as the name 'Elizabeth Masen' left her mouth, Edward immediately paled and looked like he was going to either throw up or pass out.

"Edward, are you alright?" Carlisle asked, taking in his pallor.

"Yes, just a little upset stomach, nothing a little water won't cure," he replied as he tried to shake it off. Alice seemed like she was not buying the story.

"So were you originally from Chicago?" Alice inquired, but this time she was watching Edward with a very odd expression on her face that I could not read. Esme shared the same expression.

"Am, am, no, I am not," he replied but his answer was very short and suddenly cold.

"Well, where are you from?" Alice pushed.

"Am, I'm sorry to cut this conversation short, but I really have to go. I, have some important business to attend since…you know, I'm, am, leaving for two years," he cleared his throat awkwardly, nodded in the direction of Carlisle and Esme. He then hurried out the door as if the devil himself was chasing him.

The man was strange, there was no denying it, but the mystery only served to strengthen his appeal. I wanted to know him, to discover him from the inside out, and that scared me.

Business before pleasure, Bella, I told myself.

I had worked so hard to earn my place in this company and now was not the time to lose my head chasing a piece of ass. A mystifying, god-like, bronze-haired piece of ass, with a voice from the heavens and eyes poured from an emerald sea, but really, just a piece of ass none-the-less.

Two more days to go and I will be in Trinidad, doing the job that I love, and Edward Whitson will be the farthest thing from my mind.

Oh, who am I kidding?

Trinidad, here I come.

Thanks to PTB and Polly.