Chapter One
Bella's POV (Age 28)
To-morrow is Saint Valentine's day,
All in the morning betime,
And I a maid at your window,
To be your Valentine.
Then up he rose, and donn'd his clothes,
And dupp'd the chamber-door;
Let in the maid, that out a maid
Never departed more.
By Gis and by Saint Charity,
Alack, and fie for shame!
Young men will do't, if they come to't;
By cock, they are to blame.
Quoth she, before you tumbled me,
You promised me to wed.
So would I ha' done, by yonder sun,
An thou hadst not come to my bed.- Hamlet Act4 scene 5
Ten years, one month, two days, and five hours. Why am I still counting? He left me; he doesn't and never loved me. I cannot stop counting. I sit in my home office dragging my fingers across the mahogany surface, waiting for my documents to open on my computer. Nicholas saunters into the room and puts his arms around me while leaning inward against the chair. He kisses my hair; we both look at each other through the mirror sitting across the room. I shrug his hands off of me and get back to my work. He moves to the front of my desk and sits on the corner. He fumbles around with a foam hand stress ball and drops it. I watch him as he picks it up. He goes back to sitting on the corner of my desk. I sit frigid unable to think coherently. Out of the corner of my eye I can see him staring at me like I am a possession rather than a human.
"You seem frazzled today Bells, what is eating you? If it is about that important investor dinner tonight at the Twilight Grill don't worry about it everything will be fine." I love how he assumes that everything thought I have is about him, it is quite the opposite. I sit up a bit straighter to look at him. It is always about him isn't, I mumble to myself. He comes around my desk and moves my laptop a bit and sits down on the middle of the desk in front of me and crosses his arms in what predictably will be anger or ridicule. "You haven't even asked me about my day today? Or if I may or may not possibly have some of the greatest news ever." He doesn't even give me a chance to answer him. "I do and it will solve all of your problems" He says the last words with disgust. I feel my own anger boiling up.
"Like I need to know about you and that whore Jessica Stanley and whomever else you may have been with." I spit the words out with emphasis on each one. "I told you to stop sleeping with her, she has a big mouth and I would like to retain some dignity. Not to mention the possibility of some sort of disease from her." I say coldly. I shrug the idea of him sleeping with her off like a bad cold. I should have never even been her friend; she didn't even disserve that much. I move to get up but his hands grab my shoulders and plop me back down into my seat with little effort on his part.
"Now you listen to me Isabella," He tilts my head up to face him. I look into his lust and anger filled eyes. "You are my trophy wife, you will do as I say and I will do as I want. You got that Isabella?" He whispers my name into my ear. I wish I could be as small as I feel sitting in this chair right now. I feel my tears welling up in my eyes. "Now, now I did mention solving the problem. I give you one guess. His eyes light up immediately. "Wait never mind that I am just going to come out and say it; Jessica is pregnant." All the air bottled up in my lungs whooshes out and I feel completely enraged. I stand up and walk towards the door throwing his hands off of me.
"How does that solve any problem it just fucking creates more fucking problems. How could you do this, no wait I am glad you have done this, I hope the skank ruins you." I walk out of the room and out the door. I need some air or better yet a new life. I consider taking my car for a drive but decide to walk. I walk over to Madison Park North Beach. It is another sunless day in Seattle. I never did move far away in hopes that he would come back to Forks. I am beginning to think I should have moved somewhere sunny and warm. My life would have been very different if I had just let it go years ago.
I kick a small rock sitting on a jogging path. Who the fuck does Nick he think he is? I kick the stone again, this time with more force; it skids off the path and into a small pond, I continue walking. I should just leave or run but he would kill me if I did. It took him about five minutes after we got married for him to show his true colours but at least I tried to move on from Ed-ward. At the time seemed like I had, sure I was settling for second best but there was nothing I could do about that. I head to the nearest park bench that is empty and sit. It is getting later in the day and no one is really around, no one to talk to, nothing.
"I hope you are happy, where ever the fuck you are. I tried so damn fucking hard to be happy and move on and it all amounts to nothing, this is your fault and I hope you are living in misery and agony." I hate you Edward Cullen. The last words pass my lips in a jumbled whispering mess. I just can't say it out loud, his name it haunts me. I need to put on a brave face, wipe the tears from my eyes, fix my make-up and head back home and act as if nothing is wrong. If he is planning on taking me to hell then I will drag him down with me. I walk back to the house as slow as possible, if it were even possible I would not come back at all but I don't need one of Nick's men to hunt me down, especially not Mike. He still hasn't gotten over me and it gets creepier every time I have to go near him. I knock on the door even though it is mine physically not mentally. Kate, the maid opens it up for me. I head up stairs to the bathroom to fix my hair, and redo my make-up, get dressed for that stuck up supper. I swear to god I will murder the next old man that checks me out the entire night. I absolutely hate investor suppers, nothing but old gross men smoking imported cigars and talking about how rich they are. I go to the closet to look for a dress. Nick walks into the closet a couple of minutes later.
"You should wear the blue one." Nick hints. There is no way in hell I will wear blue.
"Nope, I think I will wear this rust coloured dress." I hold the dress against my chest. This is the colour that my heart is, rusty, a dagger had gone through it a long time ago and now the blood is all dried up and rusty. He gives me a murderous glance and crosses his arms. "That look isn't going to work this time. "I will wear what I FUCKING WANT TO and maybe, just maybe I will not tell our not your investors about Jessifuck because let's face it you are nothing without me. Got me?" I give him the same glance he is giving me and cross my arms. "Leave the room I need to get dressed." He grabs his tie and complies.
"Could you at least help me with my tie, after you are done?" Everything about us is so bipolar. Nice one minute, a bitch the next.
"I don't know we will have to see." I smirk and kick him out the door. I throw my dress on in a hurry and walk back down to the living room. Nick sits in a chair all knowing like he is something, maybe at one point he was but he crossed that line a long time ago."Do you still need your tie done properly?"
"No, I am fine, just get in the car." He doesn't even open my door. I sit complacent and fiddle with the knobs on the stereo hoping there is some good music on so I don't have to sit here awkwardly with him. Drat there is nothing on the radio besides dub-step crap and auto-tune crap, which is pretty much the same thing. I guess I will have to settle with awkward conversation.
"So, who is the old man you are going to swindle money out of this time."
"He is not old actually, I think he is younger than Me." he says.
"Ok, fine then who is the young dumb and naive man you have wanting to invest." I reply frustrated.
"Um." He says while trying to navigate on the busy street. "I can't really remember his name it was something like Edwin, Ed or something really stupid. He has cancelled on me a couple of times now. I have only talked to him a handful of times and get this he apparently likes men. I mean what guy like him, looks like that and is into women, way to groomed I say. I almost didn't even want to partner with him because you know I mean I know that some people are okay with that sort of thing but I just can't have that but then he flashed a lot of cash I mean a lot the guy is loaded like you wouldn't believe, so I agreed to this "family dinner" I would not be surprised if he brought his boyfriend. I bet I could sucker him out a lot of money by the end of the night. The guy is so stupid." It is rants like these that make me wish I had a recorder on at all times, I could ruin him the way he has slowly ruined me.
We pull into the valet parking of the restaurant, the restaurant is a nice place, been to better but this place isn't the worst place I have eaten at before. Nick cuts the engine and I unbuckle my seat belt. Nick leans towards me and out stretches his arm to stop me from opening the door. "Don't do anything stupid tonight...Dear." I cock my head to face him.
"What the fuck is that suppose to mean?" I ask quizzically. He moves his hand back to his side. He looks outside the front window tensely. He then turns his head back to me.
"Just place nice, keep your pretty fucking mouth shut and you won't get in trouble Isabella. It is as simple as that." He smiles while grinding down on his teeth. He then opens his door and gets out of the car, before I can open my door he opens it up for me, grabs my hand to escort me out. I guess it is time for the pretty little show to begin. We walk hand in hand to the door. I wonder if it would be worth it to get in a little trouble tonight. Gosh what am I try to do, relive my last high-school year as adrenaline junkie again. Jake was never a good influence, by the end of the year we had a stash of at least a thousand items we had shop lifted from various places. Not to mention the motor bikes we tore up the road with. I still kind of miss riding on one. I have made up my mind though, tonight is just not the night to start shit.
"Reservations for Moon-Corp," Nick says while staring at the waitresses breasts. The hand of his that I am holding gets yanked hard. "Ouch, what is that for?" he whispers
"You better be on your best behaviour." I whisper back.
"He is your table in a private room; I assume you are waiting for the rest of your party?" She checks him out while she talks.
"Yes we are." He says with a shit eating grin.
"Can I get you anything to drink?" I love how she is only talking to him.
"No I think we will wait until the rest of the party shows up." I say tensely. I take a seat at the end of the table. The table is a little big to seat five but I like that I won't have to be really close to him tonight. "Don't even think of trying to move me from this spot."
"Whatever, I don't really care where you sit. I need to make sure the car is parked properly, I'll be right back." He kisses my cheek as he leaves. I sense that he is most likely going to go fuck that waitress or proposition it for later. I rest my elbows on the table and rest my head between my hands. I distract myself to keep the tears from pouring out. There is an interesting piece of artwork to my left. I think it is a painting of Spain or maybe it is France but that would not make sense because we are in an Italian restaurant. I look at the next piece of artwork beside it, it is a fruit bowl.
"The table is right this way men, the rest of your party have already arrived. I'll be right back with a wine list." I don't pay attention to the men who have entered it is not my place I don't want the money. Nick comes back a moment later.
"Hello Nicholas it is a pleasure to do business with you." That voice, it sounds like Edward but it just cannot be. I feel instantly paralyzed. "These are my associates Emmett and Jasper." I continue pretending staring at the painting uninterested but I am pretty sure Edward knows exactly how uncomfortable I am.
"This is my wife Isabella." I still can't move to utter a single word or even acknowledge the other people in the room. My mind keeps replaying that scene in the forest. He doesn't love me why is he back to torment me some more. "Bells, are you alright?" I feel all the repressed resent and angry building up. I will not give Edward the satisfaction of knowing how badly he hurt me.
"I'm fine dear. It is a pleasure to meet you all." I take a glance at Edward. Something is off, everything is all wrong with him. His eyes are no longer black or gold and now that I think about it his voice was a little rough sounding, not as smooth as it use to be. The waitress interrupts my thoughts.
"Here is the wine list and here are the menus." She passes out the menus and while she gives one to Nick I see her slip a little piece of paper in his menu, Stupid bitch.
"Do any of you have a preference for the wine?" Nick says.
"No."
"Ok then we will have the best you have got." The waitress takes back the wine list and heads back to the kitchen, I assume. I hide my face behind my menu. Nick talks to Edward, Emmett, and Jasper about god knows what, I assume business. We eventually order our food and eat, the men talk about things, I don't bother to concern myself with their chatter. I don't even bother to look at Edward to check if he is staring at me.
"Would you all excuse me?" Crap Nick is leaving me here all alone with them. Where is he going anyway? I sigh knowing the answer to my stupid question. We all sip our wine awkwardly, no one making a move to discuss the elephant room.
"Ok, you know what I am done with this awkwardness. Even if you told me not to, I am going to do it." Emmett says. I stare down at my plate, confused. I look up and stare at Emmett. He looks just as funny as Edward does. I look at Jasper sure enough he looks different as well. They are vampires, unchanging, unmoving, this doesn't make an ounce of sense. "So...Bella, how are you." Emmett says with a giant grin. I immediately suspect that if there was not a table here right now I would be the recipient of an Emmett hug.
"I am great, thank you? Uh..how are you?" I say coldly.
"I am pretty good; I have two little rascals running around now so it is interesting to say the least." I immediately feel confused by Emmett's statement.
"I am sorry, what do you mean by rascals?" He looks at me like I am supposed to understand, when clearly I do not.
"He doesn't mean anything Bella." Edward cuts in. I whip my head in his direction.
"So you have chosen now to talk to me. Well I guess I should feel special." I feel myself losing control of my emotions. "What the fuck are doing here Ed-ward, you don't want to do business with Nick, so why? You want to torment me some more. I think you have done enough damage to last a century, how about this Edward, go the highest cliff, climb and jump off of it in a deadly suicide." I stand up and throw my half full wine glass across the room; it hits the side of his face with a sickening sound. I sit down in shock of what I have just done. I cover my hands over my face in shame. I hear Nick enter the room.
"What the hell happened in here?" he says clearly amused but that amusement will turn to anger soon enough. "Did you throw your wine glass at him?" He now yells very loudly at me.
"She didn't throw it at me it was my god damn brother." Edward says pissed. He clutches his cheek and there is blood pouring through the napkin. He must be so angry at me. What how is he bleeding? What the fuck is going on here? Nick looks around the table.
"Is that so? Well I wonder why my wife's glass is missing. There is no point in lying to me about what my wife has done. I will deal with her later. Isabella go wait. In. The. Car." He points to the door like he is my father grounding me to my room. I comply because I have already dug myself a deep hole.
"I am so sorry for throwing that glass at you." I say. Edward nods his head in understanding but he looks scared. I walk out the door quickly. I head outside to get the car and wait for Nick and whatever ugly personality he has brought to the car with him. The valet brings the car up and hands me the keys I get in the car and park it, get out, sit in the passenger's seat and turn on the radio to calm my nerves. Total eclipse of the heart plays after a One Republic song and I break down, that song is making everything worse so I turn off the radio. Sometime later Nick opens the door and hops in the car, he slams the door shut and we drive home in silence. I wish we would be hit by a car on the way home because that would be kinder than what he will do to me when we get home.