~*~Bella POV~*~
Warm...
Warm and comfy...
Warm and comfy and sore...
As that last thought registered in my mind, my eyes flew open as I realized where I was - Edward's bed. My heart rate tripled and my stomach began to flip. I spent the night with a male prostitute!
Oh. My. God.
I couldn't complain, really. I just had the best sex of my life. No, scratch that...I just had the best night of my life! The sex was hot, intense, and primal. The times in between our bouts of fornication were light, friendly, and seemed natural - as if we have been lifelong friends. We spent a little time joking and laughing with each other about random things, but we never really touched on any personal topics. Does he have a day job? A family? Kids?
I gently raised Edward's arm from around my waist, but he snorted and mumbled in his sleep and I dropped his arm back into its resting place. He pulled me closer to him in his sleep and for a moment I relished the feeling of his luscious body wrapped around mine, but I knew this little lust-cocoon needed to be vacated. I shifted my torso away from his and slithered out from under his arm, replacing my body with a pillow. He gripped it tighter to himself, and I smiled at his sleeping form.
He seems like a really great guy...maybe that's all part of his "business" act.
I climbed out of bed, searching in the dark room for my clothes and purse. I needed to pee badly, but I didn't want to wake him up, so I vowed to stop in the ladies room in the lobby on my way out. Blindly, I rummaged through my bag, searching for a piece of paper to write him a note, but only found gum wrappers and a few business cards. Not thinking about the implications of anyone from my job discovering what I did last night, I jotted a quick note on the back of a card and produced the wad of cash I withdrew from the bank yesterday. Looks like rent will be late this month. I had no clue how much spending the whole night with him would normally cost, but I assumed it was a lot, so I swallowed the guilt of what I had done and laid the money and my note on the pillow. I tiptoed out of the bedroom, through the living area and slunk out the front door of Edward's suite.
The audible click of the door closing behind me ricocheted throughout the hallway. I glanced down at my cell phone and gasped as I realized it was nearly 6:45am and I had a conference call in forty-five minutes. I dashed down towards the bank of elevators, frantically pushing the call button. As I finally reached the lobby, I bolted out to the street, foregoing the lobby's restroom, and hailed a cab.
I made it to the office with three minutes to spare, after taking a two minute shower at home, and made a quick call to my assistant to confirm my schedule today. I settled into my desk and dialed up the conference call link, notifying the other participants of my attendance, and hit the mute button so they couldn't hear me slurp my coffee over the intercom. As the other call participants droned on about cost effectiveness and recent research findings, I dabbled on some light makeup and combed out my shower-wet hair. By the end of the call, I had successfully avoided listening to the CFO's whining and manufacturing department's bitching, when there was a light knock on my door.
"Come in."
"Dr. Swan, the board committee needs another person to be present for a panel interview at ten o'clock. Would you be able to sit in?" My assistant, Marjorie, asked from the doorway.
"Sure," I nodded. "What position are they interviewing for?"
"I'm not sure exactly. I wasn't aware we had any upper level positions open."
"Yeah, me either. Okay, yes, let them know I'll be there."
She smiled and closed my door softly, leaving me to the never-ending piles of work accumulated on my desk.
~*~Edward POV~*~
I had mulled this over in my head for the last hour. Should I go through with this interview? Or do I flake off? No, no I couldn't just flake off. This would launch my career, and I couldn't let a silly misunderstanding between me and one of their employees cause me to throw away my future.
So there I was, sitting in the lobby of Cullen Pharmaceuticals, nervous as a motherfucker - sweaty palms and all - waiting to be interviewed for a Vice President position. My stomach was in knots, and I had taken two shits before I left the hotel. I probably should have raided the in-room mini bar and indulged myself in a little liquid courage in the cab over here, but I didn't think about it at the time. However, I was thankful that I didn't eat breakfast, or I might have had the sudden urge to puke in the ficus tree sitting in the corner of the lobby. I was unsure of what I was more nervous about - the interview or possibly running into Bella while I was here.
The money she left this morning was weighing down my pocket like a fifty pound anvil. I didn't understand how things got so misconstrued? I felt like a fucking asshole for thinking she was an escort, when the whole time she thought I was. What did I do or say that gave her that vibe? Fuck, I know I had to have done something in my past to have this happen now. You know, karma's a bitch. Jesus, how did things get so messed up?
"Mr. Masen? The board will see you now," a short, stocky woman in a navy blue dress called out from the reception desk.
"Thank you."
I followed her down a hallway and into a large conference room. I introduced myself to the few gentlemen that were milling about, filling their coffees and pocketing donuts. A tall, balding man stood at the far end of the table and introduced himself as Carlisle Cullen, President and CEO of the company, and offered me a warm, comforting smile as pointed towards the dreaded "hot seat" at the opposite end of the table.
"Committee members, would you please take your seats so we may begin?" he addressed the people wandering about the conference room and they quickly scrambled for their chairs.
As the last of the members settled into their spots, the conference room door opened behind me and the gentle scent of berries filled my nose.
"Ah, Dr. Swan, thank you for joining us this morning." Carlisle smiled at Bella as she skirted around the table to the empty seat directly to my right. "We were just about to begin."
I swallowed hard at the sight of her - damp, soft waves in her hair, a black pencil skirt and light blue sweater - and willed my nerves to stay in check. Without looking in my direction, she put her notebook and pen down on the table and turned to pour herself a glass of water from the cart in the corner of the room. She seemed quite put together and very professional, and I felt a pang of guilt over believing she was a hooker. My heart was having palpitations, fretting over both the weight that this interview held and the reaction Bella would have once when she realized it was me who was being interviewed. As she returned to her seat, she pulled her chair out and sat down, stretching her arm out to set her glass of water on the table.
"AHH!!" she shrieked, accidentally spilling her water as she made eye contact with me and recognizing me in an instant. "Shit!"
Instantly, I was out of my seat and sprinting to the refreshment cart for napkins. I handed a few to Bella and she proceeded to blot the liquid from her blouse. I settled back into my seat as a board member mopped up the puddle on the table.
"Dr. Swan, are you all right? You look like you have seen a ghost?" Carlisle asked, a look of genuine concern on his face.
She narrowed her eyes at me briefly and sighed, her cheeks flaming red as she turned to face the rest of the members, sporting a tight smile.
"Yes, sorry. I'm fine. I, uh, I thoughtIsawabug."
She angled her chair away from me and focused her attention on Carlisle, effectively giving me the cold shoulder. He began with introductions of the attendees around the table, ultimately finishing up with Bella. She turned her head briefly in my general direction, offered a curt nod, and returned her attention back to Carlisle.
Jesus, she must be so pissed.
"Well, now with the formalities out of the way, Mr. Masen, would you please be so kind as to tell us a little about yourself?"
I smiled enthusiastically and dove into my education and job history, along with my accomplishments. Once the typical interview questions had been answered - What are your strengths? Describe your leadership style. Describe a time when you had to make an unpopular decision. - some of the members started asking more personal and less formal questions. Those were geared more toward getting to know me as a person versus me as an employee. As I concluded one of my responses, Bella raised her hand as if we were in school, and waited until I had turned my attention to her.
"Mister, uh, Masen is it?" She glanced down at my resume as if she didn't already know my last name from all the introductions today. "Would you be willing to enlighten the board with any extracurricular activities you are involved in?" A smug, tight-lipped smile crept across her face.
I cleared my throat and squirmed a bit in my chair. I knew she was referring to last night and her misconception of me being an escort or whatever, but I turned my full attention to her and attempted to dazzle her with my best, heart-breaking smile.
"Absolutely, Dr. Swan. I volunteer most of my spare time to a local soup kitchen in Port Angeles and dedicate one week per year to Habitat for Humanity, helping to build homes for the less fortunate in the greater Seattle area. As a matter of fact, I also donate blood on a regular basis and coach a Little League baseball team. Other than those activities, I don't typically partake in many other social affairs."
Her smile fell instantly, and now she was giving me a major stink-eye.
Thankfully, another committee member spoke up with another question, and I was able to recover from Bella's death glare. The interview finally started to lighten up from the starchy, traditional questions and seemed more like a group of friends getting acquainted with a newbie to the club. We were laughing and joking with each other. It was clear these people were friends as well as co-workers, and I could easily see myself working with each of them, maybe even grabbing beers after office hours with of few of them.
Well, except for the iceburg-in-a-skirt who sat to my right. Bella's arms were crossed tightly over her chest and she glared daggers at the copy of my resume in front of her.
Carlisle cleared his throat and asked me if I had any questions. I refocused my eyes to where he was standing at the far end of the table and directed my generic questions to Carlisle about the company's mission statement and financial goals.
Bella was sitting stone-still as my interview concluded. Carlisle thanked me for traveling all the way from Washington and crossed the room to shake my hand. His grip was strong and stiff, but his smile was warm and sincere.
"Edward, it was a pleasure meeting you. I will deliberate with the board committee later this week and get back to you with our decision by Friday."
I returned his smile. "Thank you, sir, for giving me an opportunity to come and meet with you."
I turned to grab my portolio off the table, noticing Bella looking at me with a vexing stare. Her jaw clenched, but she didn't speak or move. I opened my mouth to say something to her, but Carlisle interrupted.
"Dr. Swan? Would you have a few minutes to show Mr. Masen around the office?"
Bella whipped her head to glare at him and offered a loud huff as her mouth opened and closed several times, but no sound came out.
Carlisle returned her pointed stare and continued, "Besides, if he is offered the position, he would be your boss."
"What?! What do you mean 'my boss'? You have got to be kidding me! What position would he be filling?" She pointed an accusing finger in my direction, speaking about me as if I wasn't there.
Carlisle stood with both hands on the back of a chair as he explained the situation to Bella. "Well, do you remember our restructuring plan that the board designed earlier this year? You were on that committee, right?"
"Yes."
"Well then, you should recall that we decided to create a new vice president position to help take some pressure off of the sales and marketing directors."
"Oh, right," Bella mumbled as she gazed down to the floor.
"I encouraged you to apply for the job, but you refused."
Bella released a loud sigh and watched her fumbling hands in her lap as Carlisle waited for her response. It seemed like several minutes passed, but it was probably only about twenty seconds.
"Bella? Will you be able to or not?"
"Be able to what?" She snapped her head back up to meet his eyes, her brows furrowed.
"Show Mr. Masen here around." Carlisle waved his hand towards me, and Bella lifted her head to look at me.
"Fine," she replied, sounding utterly deflated.
"Great!" He turned his genuine smile and attention back to me. "Edward, have a safe flight home, and I will speak to you sometime on Friday."
Again, I gave him my thanks and he exited the room quickly, taking a file from a tall, brunette standing in the hallway. I turned my head to look back at Bella as she stood from her chair. An awkward silence fell between us.
Finally alone with her, the need to talk about what happened last night burned like venom inside of me. "Bella, I-"
"Shut up!" she hushed me quietly and stalked to the door way, peering out to see if there was anyone lurking nearby. Quickly, she closed the conference room door as well as the blinds on the interior window overlooking the reception area.
"Are you stalking me?" she whispered-yelled at me, poised with her hands on her hips.
"What? Hell no. I came here for this interview. Trust me, once I saw on your business card that you worked here, I freaked out."
"You freaked out? YOU FREAKED OUT? Jesus, Edward, I nearly had a coronary when I recognized you."
I smiled ruefully as I remembered her expression of shock when she saw me. "I'm sorry I surprised you."
"Surprised? HA! A surprise would have been flowers or a phone call. But this...this..." She waved her arm around the room aimlessly, unable to find the right words to express her frustration.
"I know. I almost didn't come, but I knew I needed to do this for myself, and I wasn't going to let some woman stand in the way of my career."
At her sudden intake of air, I closed my eyes as the bite of the words I spoke registered in my brain. "Sorry, that came out wrong."
Bella's only response was a loud huff and a dramatic rolling of her pretty brown eyes as she plopped down in one of the conference room chairs.
"Bella, look, I don't know where our messages got crossed last night, but somehow you were under the impression I was a male escort, right?" I leaned down to try to look into her eyes, but she turned her face away from me. I noticed her cheeks were blushing, and I knew she was probably embarrassed to talk about this. She nodded in response but stayed quiet for a moment and then she pulled her hands up to her face, shielding it from me.
I knelt down in front of her, reaching into my pocket and pulled out the cash she left for me this morning. I gently grabbed her by one of her wrists and pulled her hand down from her face and placed the money in it, curling her fingers over the folded bills. I looked up into her eyes and saw some collected moisture gathering, and my heart broke a bit. I felt like a fucking tool having been the one to point out her error, but I knew I should apologize, considering I thought the same thing about her.
"Bella, I do have a little confession to make."
"Oh God." A look of pure humiliation crossed her face. I could only assume what was running through her mind.
"I actually thought you were an, uhh, escort."
"WHAT!" She stood up so fast from the chair I nearly lost my balance and had to catch myself on the edge of the conference table. "How could you have possibly thought that?" She started shaking her head and darting her eyes around frantically, similar to her post-coital freak out last night. "Oh my God, I am completely mortified."
"Please let me explain." I spoke in my most soothing tone, trying to keep her calm and hoped she would listen to my reasoning. After a few seconds, she released a deep breath and carefully sat back down in her chair. I stood up briefly to pull out the chair next to hers and swiveled it to face her. I reached for her right hand and held it between both of mine, and I told the whole story - complete with Emmett's bachelor party antics and Jasper's mysterious knowledge of the signals of a prostitute.
Thankfully, she listened quietly and seemed to pay close attention as I choked on the explanation of why I asked her to stay with me last night and how I felt this morning when I woke up and she was gone - prior to me finding the note. Then, of course, I explained the tsunami of emotions once I found the money and her card and how I nearly flaked out of the interview because I was nervous about seeing her again.
I finished with my spiel and stared quietly at her, continuing to hold her hand in mine. She blinked a few times, not quite looking in my eyes as she mulled over everything I had said. Finally, she gently squeezed my hand and the side of her mouth lifted into a small smile. My heart fluttered a few times as I realized she understood, and I hoped she would forgive me, or at least let go and put this crazy situation behind us.
Slowly, she stood from her chair, still holding my hand, and pulled me to stand with her. She picked up my portfolio and carried it with her as she led me around the table and opened the conference room door. Releasing my hand, she reached up to turn off the room lights and whispered seductively, "Well, then let me show you around, Mr. Masen."