Playlist: call my name, third day; i'll be there, jackson five; temporary insanity, alexz johnson
Dinner was lighthearted and uneventful. He found himself enjoying her company more than he ever thought possible. They got into a heated discussion about Hamlet, in which Vanessa eagerly joined in. He was repeatedly stunned by the knowledge and understanding the beautiful girl had, and was stumped by her logic and by how observant she was. She was truly as amazing as her mother was.
Bella cleared her throat when she saw Vanessa's eyes drooping dramatically. "Methinks 'tis Vanessa's bedtime," she said in a hideous British accent. He laughed as she stood. "Come on, Nessa. Let's go home."
"Don't want to," she mumbled sleepily. "Gotta practice."
They both laughed, then she turned to him. "I had a really nice time, Edward."
"The pleasure was all mine. It was great to meet you." He turned to Vanessa, messing her hair. "Alright, love. Practice, okay? Don't give your mother a hard time."
"Good night, Mr. Edward."
He knelt down in front of her. "You can call me Edward," he whispered conspirationally.
"But mommy says it's bad to call grownups without Mr. or Mrs."
"Unless they say it's okay to, love. And I say that you can call me Edward."
"Okay. Good night, Edward."
"Good night, Vanessa."
She scampered to the car again, and Bella watched her go before turning back to him. "Thank you for everything. Really."
He caught the underlying meaning. "You'll be okay, Bella. You can always call on me."
"But…"
"Any friend of my Pixie's is a friend of mine. This is my cell number…" he pulled a piece of paper from the notepad on the small table next to him. "You can call me when you need me. Any time of the day or night." He reached out intuitively and brushed her cheek, marveling at its warmth and softness. "Good night, Bella. Dream of angels and beautiful things."
She nodded mutely before turning and heading for her car. She turned back to him, staring. He gave her a nod and a small smile and she headed on her way.
"See you next week," he said to no one.
E|B
That was the first night she dreamt of Edward Cullen.
B|E
The next day he met Alice and Emmett for coffee.
"Hey Pix," he said, hugging her affectionately. "Hey Em." They clapped each other on the back.
Alice went straight to the point. "So what did you think? About Bella, I mean."
He sighed. "Maybe we should have gone to a bar instead."
"What do you think, man? Tell us."
"She's quite possibly the most beautiful thing I've ever seen," he finally spluttered. "God, she's a distraction. She is absolutely perfect…"
Alice giggled. "What makes you say that?"
"I spent the whole piano lesson thinking about her. Her skin, her hair… god, what did you make her wear? I couldn't stop staring at her chest! I wonder if she thinks I'm some horrible pervert now."
"I doubt it," Alice said, recalling that Bella had aid the exact same thing.
"So she's a ten, huh? I told you. Alice is never wrong. You gonna try to hook up with her?"
"Um… I'm still trying to teach her kid piano. It was really difficult not to get… hot… about her with her kid sitting right next to me."
"Damn, you're pathetic."
"I'm not. She's a beautiful woman."
"A beautiful woman you want," interjected Alice triumphantly.
"Yes," he finally admitted humbly. "A woman I want very much."
E|B
Dream of angels and beautiful things. For days, she played his voice over and over in her head. And she did dream of angels and beautiful things. Because she dreamt of him.
She told herself that she was being pathetic. She told herself that she was doing fine on her own, that she didn't need another man who could hurt her or her child.
But she was lying. She wasn't fine on her own… her melt down earlier that day proved it. She did need a man in her life. To protect her, to take care of her child, to give her the love she needed. She needed to feel wanted. Not needed-- she did have a child after all-- but wanted. By him.
She wanted to see him again. But putting the moves on him would make her look desperate. Not that she wasn't… but she didn't want to look pathetic to him… even though she probably already did. Anyway, she decided that she would let Alice dress her today and drop by his house. She had a good excuse… there was a page in Vanessa's music missing, and it was the only part she hadn't practiced. And there were only four days left until her second class.
After letting Alice fuss and obsess over her clothes, she sat in front of the mirror as Alice did her makeup.
"Wow, you aren't even complaining or asking me if it's too much. You must be desperate."
"Shut up, Alice."
"I won't. Alice is never wrong. I'm gonna gloat about this at your wedding."
Bella choked. "Who the hell said anything about a wedding?! We just met!"
"I know. I know. Look, I know you like him, so I'll let it drop."
"Alice…" Bella stood in front of the mirror and examined her skirt. "The point of coming here was to look decent, not… slutty. Could this skirt be shorter and still be classified as a skirt? Or would it be rubbish?"
"Oh please."
"Alice… I'm not trying to get in his pants."
"Yet."
Bella glared at her through the mirror.
"Fine. How about this?" She pulled out some black skinny jeans.
"Much better. Thanks." She rushed off to change and didn't even look at Alice as she scrambled out the door and into her car.
Upon arriving at Edward's house, she threw the car into park and drew a breath. She got out as calmly as she could and raised her hand to knock. But before she could, there was the Greek god himself. "Bella? Hi… what's up?"
"Hi… um… Nessa's missing a sheet in her music, I was wondering if you could get me a copy of it."
"Sure. Yeah, come in. I'm kind of in the middle of class right now, but you're welcome to sit in the living room." He motioned her in. "Do you have it with you or…?"
"It's right here."
He took it and examined it. "Oh. Oh, I see. I'm sorry, I thought I had made all the copies. I'll be right back." He almost tripped on something brown that streaked into the room. "Damnit, Brownie! Watch where you're going!"
The dog was the picture of shame for a moment before trotting over to Bella and sniffing her. Then she ran off again, returning with a ball.
Edward laughed. "She wants to play. She likes you."
Bella laughed too before taking the ball from her and sitting on the ground to play with her. He returned from the den with her copy in hand, only to find Bella on the floor laughing next to Brownie, who had her goofy grin on her face. Brownie went over and licked Bella's face. Bella slapped her mouth away, still laughing, and got to her knees and saw him. "Hi. Oh god, you're dog is hilarious."
He laughed too, finding her laughter adorable and quite contagious. "Yes, she's something, isn't she? Brownie, Come." The dog obeyed.
"Bring this to Bella."
She took the sheet from Edward's hand and brought it to Bella, setting it at her feet and sitting in front of her. Surprisingly, the sheet was undamaged by teeth marks or slobber. She looked at Edward questioningly. "You taught her that?"
"No, she learned on her own to bring me things. I just had to teach her to do it on a command. I also taught her to find things. She finds my keys, my music… my other sock… you get the picture. But those things are in their nature."
"What do you mean?"
"Pointers are good for hunting. They are great at sniffing things out… and they point in the direction of what you're hunting for, hence the name. They just have a lot of energy, and they need to be taught. She's a good dog." He checked his watch. "Look, I have to get back to class, but stick around; she'll be disappointed if you go. After this, we can go to lunch. I'll tell you about how I acquired her."
"Okay. Can I walk her? She brought me her leash."
He chuckled. "She's upset that I promised to put her out this morning and never did. Yes, you can walk her. I'll catch up after class."
"Okay. See you in a bit."
He stepped toward her and kissed her cheek. "See you in a bit."
Bell just nodded, the sweet scent of him still making her dizzy long after he was gone.