S.M owns twilight. But I like to borrow her characters.


Chapter 3

The following week became a blur.

I worked my ass off all work, doing more paperwork than I have ever seen in my life, managed to get more paper cuts until I figured out how to maneuver the papers around without slicing myself, it was either that or my fingers just became resistant to the slicing and dicing, and I actually shared greetings with Mr. Cullen.

My lunches were usually spent in the cafeteria talking to Jasper while I ate a salad, sandwich, or brought my own lunch. Occasionally, one of the other assistants that worked for Mr. Cullen and the elder Mr. Cullen, that I have yet to see in person, would be there.

The other two assistants, I learned, were Gianna and Bree.

Gianna's in her late twenty's, tanned skin from her Italian background, hazel eyes, and stunning. She showed me pictures of her and an Italian man that I thought was her father, but it turns out to be her husband. He's a middle aged man with long black hair, Aro, I believe she said his name is.

Bree's younger, like me. Her light brown hair is nearly always pulled back into a low pony tail. She also confessed that she is majorly crushing on the mailroom boy, Riley. I haven't seen him yet, since he drops the mail off at the main receptionist desk and Maggie walks back to deliver it, but Bree seems to know the exact time and makes an excuse that she needs to use the restroom each day when he's set to come. She then walks back with a dreamy look on her face and sighs when she sits back down. She's so cute when it comes to him.

I count my lucky stars on the day that I met a neighbor of mine, Mrs. Cope. She lives with her husband a floor below mine and does babysitting now that she's retired. We were talking about Kate and she was gushing about her grandchildren and then the next thing I know she's handing me references to the parents of children that she has babysat in the past. After a couple phone calls and nothing but stellar recommendations, I figured that she could babysit Kate while I'm at class on Wednesday evenings.

After I agreed, Mrs. Cope was over the moon. She's shown up at my door a couple times with fresh bread or baked goods saying that she loves to cook for people and her children don't stop by enough to take the leftovers. I gratefully accepted, after I tried the first muffin that she cooked, I was hooked. She should have opened a bakery.

Mrs. Cullen, I've learned is the same way. She's come in to check on me a couple times throughout the week, she also brings leftover food for Mr. Cullen, the elder Mr. Cullen, and I've even seen Jasper with a bowl of her food several times now.

After I dropped Kate off at Mrs. Cope's, I headed to the college campus for my business class. Overall it went well. The class was small, roughly twenty people, some young, some were old. The teacher was an elderly balding man named Mr. Dunn, what little hair he had left was white. He lectured and explained the papers that we'd have to write for the class, there would be five of them. I groaned at the thought because I know it's going to be hard to juggle doing them while working full time and being a full time mom, but I've done it before. You know that phrase; you made your bed, now you lie in it. Charlie used to tell me that frequently when I'd start to complain. He's right.


Work came and gone Friday, I couldn't keep the smile off my face as I took Kate and left. It had been an exhausting week.

Alice had managed to convince me to go to a bar with her tonight.

Okay, so I didn't need much convincing. Having a daughter to take care of doesn't exactly leave much room to go out for fun.

Kate didn't mind. Her new friend Anna has invited her over for a sleepover. She's been talking about it non-stop. This would be her first one. It made me more nervous than ever knowing that she's growing up so fast.


"I have an outfit for you," Alice shouted as she let herself into my apartment.

Of course she had a new outfit for me. She almost always brought something new. My closet was completely cluttered with her designs. Not that I'm complaining.

"What about me, Auntie Alice?" Kate pouted.

I narrowed my eyes at Alice. She taught Kate the pouty face.

"Do you really think I'd forget to bring something for my favorite goddaughter," Alice bent down and ruffled Kate's hair.

Kate's eyes lit up. She might like to play in mud, but that little girl loved getting new clothes and play dress-up.

"I'm your only goddaughter, Auntie Alice," Kate laughed.

"Here's a shirt for your Momma to wear," Alice said handing me a small garment bag with the top of a hanger poking out the top center of it. "And in here we have…" Alice reached slowly into her purse while Kate leaned closer trying to peek inside, "a pretty purple scarf, any idea who might like this?"

"It's so pretty," Kate gushed.

"It's all yours, princess," Alice smiled handing Kate the scarf, who immediately draped it around her neck not caring that it didn't matched whatsoever with her lime green t-shirt and black leggings. "I hear you're having your very first sleepover tonight."

"I am!" Kate squealed. "We're going to eat popcorn, watch movies, and Anna said she has a princess game we can play!"

"Sounds like fun," Alice said back with as much enthusiasm. "I love playing princess games."

That was an understatement. Alice would turn into a little kid every time Kate asked her to play princess. They would be in her room for hours dressing up and posing for pictures.

"Can you help her finish packing while finish up getting ready?" I asked Alice.

"Sure, come on, princess," Alice took Kate's hand and they raced off to her bedroom.

"Just one night, Alice, not a whole week's worth of clothes," I hollered after them knowing that Kate was going to have more than one outfit in her duffle bag.

Most people look at Alice and think she's just some shopaholic that loves clothes and while that's true, she's so much more. Not many twenty-two year olds own their own boutique after designing clothes and selling them online for years and set up fashion fundraisers. She has a hand in every part of the business. Alice Brandon Designs is what she calls her collection; her boutique is named after her as well.

I took the garment bag to my bedroom and laid it down. My hair was already down and loosely curled, I'd keep it like that. I was undecided on how to do my make-up seeing as I didn't know what I was wearing.

Time to get this over with, I thought as I unzipped the bag to reveal my outfit.

Oh fuck.

I should have known.

It was just a shirt, which I could work with. However, it was sleeveless and cut low, I mean really really low. It had to dip down towards my belly button, a small piece of fabric connected the sides of the material right at my bust line to hold the two sides of my top together, but it was still open revealing the center strip of skin down my stomach.

I had to admit, as revealing as it was, I loved it. The top was just a simple black; no out there color and it covered the important parts. I decided to pair it with some dark skinny jeans and black pumps.

I put on black eyeliner, swiped dark eye shadow on my eyelids, and applied mascara.

Perfect.

I didn't go out very often, but when I did I liked to doll up a bit. When I was at home, it was the opposite. I was nearly always in sweatpants or jeans and a loose t-shirt.

I may have a child, but I'm still twenty-one. Charlie and Alice convinced me that I needed to go out and have fun sometimes to live my life a little.

Alice takes that duty very seriously.

"You are such a milf," Alice squealed walking into my bedroom.

"Thanks Alice," she's definitely one of a kind. "Is Kate all ready to go?"

"Yep, she's waiting out in the living room, quite impatiently I might add."

"Are you done, Momma?" Speak of the devil.

"Yes, princess, we'll be right out," I said back. "You look gorgeous, Al," I told her looking at her outfit.

Alice was always pretty. Tonight she was wearing a strapless silver mini dress with higher heels than imaginable.

"Thanks, now let's get the show on the road," she jumped up and down and clapped her hands.

Kate was standing in the living room, eyebrows raised and hands on her hips. Alice was right, she was impatient. When she saw us though, she dropped her arms and smiled.

"Wow, momma. You look so pretty," she told me.

"Thank you, princess." It's a great feeling getting compliments by your daughter.

"I can see your belly button," she pointed out.

I felt my face heat up. That's not something I was hoping she'd notice.

"Uh….yeah…" I stuttered.

"Let's go," Alice took charge and swung Kate's duffle bag over her shoulder while I picked up her care bears sleeping bag that had actually been mine as a child.


Brenner's Bar was pretty crowded when we walked in. The bar was off to the left, a crowded dance floor in the back, booths covered the right side, and random circular tables were positioned throughout the rest of the open spaces. Music floated through the speakers.

"There's an empty booth over there," Alice said.

"Okay, go grab it before someone else does," I told her. "I'll get the drinks. What do you want?"

"I'll take a beer," she shouted over the crowd.

I nodded and pushed my way to the bar.

"Two beers, please," I told the scruffy looking bar man.

"Never took you as a beer drinker," a voice to the right of me said.

"Jasper, hi."

"What are you doing, here, Swan?" He asked.

"Oh, I'm here with my friend, Alice," I pointed her out.

"She's pretty," his voice cracked.

I smirked at him. "Yes she is. She's also very single."

"Yeah?" His eyebrows rose. Oh, he was definitely interested.

I paid and the barman handed me both beers.

"Join us," I spoke to Jasper.

He followed me wordlessly.

"Alice," I spoke up catching her attention. "I'd like you to meet Jasper. Jasper, meet my best-friend, Alice."

Her eyes lit up and drifted over his body taking in his light wash jeans and half buttoned white shirt. Looks like she was interested too.

"It's nice to meet you, darling," I choked back a laugh. He was totally playing up is southern accent.

Jasper slid in the booth next to Alice and the conversation flowed.

Two beers and a shot later, my fingers were beginning to tingle. I was such a lightweight.

Alice and I talked and gossiped about Jasper while he was off to get us another beer.

"I want him," Alice gushed.

"I don't think he'll fight you on that."

"Who's he with?" She asked her neck stretching to look through the crowd.

I followed her line of sight.

You have to be shitting me.

"Look here who I found," Jasper announced.

"Hello, Miss. Swan," Mr. Cullen said. He then introduced himself to Alice.

"We're outside of work, you can call me Bella," I told him trying to be polite.

He didn't respond. Guess I was still going to have to call him Mr. Cullen.

"I want to dance," Alice piped up.

"Whatever you want, darling'," Jasper slid out of the booth and let Alice drag him onto the dance floor.

"What about you, Mr. Cullen?" I asked. I wanted to dance too.

He turned his head, I watched as his eyes drifted down my shirt.

He shook his head swiftly and brought his eyes back up fast avoiding my gaze, "I think that would be inappropriate, Miss. Swan."

"Fine," I brushed his answer off. "If you'll please excuse me then."

I waited for him to climb out of the booth so I could exit it and go to the dance floor.

His lips were in a tight line as he sat back down.

"How about a second girl to dance with, Jasper?" I approached him and Alice.

"I would be honored, Swan."

He took my hand in his and Alice's in the other and proceeded to spin us in circles.

I giggled like a little schoolgirl, I was having so much fun.

"How about I take her off your hands," a gruff voice said behind me.

I turned around facing a stocky man with a beer gut.

"Thanks, but I have a handle on this," Jasper deflected the situation moving me behind him and closer to Alice.

The guy growled something under his breath and left the dance floor.

Jasper's quickly becoming one of my new favorite people.

Soon enough we were back to laughing and dancing.

Every so often I'd glance back to our booth. Edward was still there nursing a beer, his head tilted downward. Occasionally, I'd see him glance up at us on the dance floor.

"I'll take the girl now," the gruff voice from earlier was back and this time more slurred.

Jasper stepped in front of me and Alice stopped dancing grabbing my hand and pulled me to her side.

"No, you aren't, man. Just go back to the bar," Jasper spoke calmly.

"I want to dance with her," the stocky man said as he tried to move around Jasper to grab at me. He was obviously drunk.

"That's not going to happen," Jasper's tone was getting hard. Alice and I took another step back.

Something snapped in the man's eyes when Jasper said that to him. He threw his arms forward into Jasper pushing him straight into me.

I flew to the ground hard. My head hit the floor.

Fuck that hurt.

A commotion broke out.

I heard a loud "Hey" and watched the stocky man turn around.

A fist connected to his face hard knocking him out.

Mr. Cullen. Edward Cullen was the one that shouted and ran into the crowd and knocked the man out.

He was breathing deep and fast. His hands ran from his tousled messy bronze hair to his navy blue suit and tie. His eyes flashed to mine. I was still lying frozen on the floor.

It seemed like he was about to step to me, but Alice beat him to it.

"Are you okay?" She asked. I could hear the worry in her voice.

"Yeah," I took her hand and let her pull me up. "What a night, huh?" I tried to joke and ignore the throbbing in back of my head.

"Where's Jasper?" I asked.

"He's over there somewhere explaining what happened to the owner," she waved her arm towards the bar.

"Can we go home now?" I whined causing her to crack a smile. I hated seeing her worry.

She nodded.

"I'll let Jasper know and walk you girls out," Edward excused himself from us. I was completely unaware that he was still by us.


"Are you okay?" Edward asked as the cab pulled up for Alice and me.

"Yes," I answered honestly. Minus the splitting headache I was fine.

"You've already got a bump," he frowned and ran his fingers softly over back of my head.

I figured as much.

"I'll put ice on it when I get home," I told him.

"Good, it should help with the swelling."

I stared at him for a moment. We were having an actual conversation and he seemed to be truly concerned.

"I'll see you at work, Bella," he cleared his throat and backed away as I climbed into the cab after Alice and shut the door leaving Jasper and Edward standing in front of the bar.

It took me until Alice and I arrived and my apartment and put the ice on my head that I realized something.

He called me Bella.


Thanks again for the reviews. I love reading them.

And to answer a question I received, this will more than likely be an all bpov.