A/N: Hey all! I hope you enjoy this chapter. Please review... it'll make me write faster!
Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn! Lucky bitch!
BPOV
"Sweetie, that's just how Edward is. I don't know why," Alice tried to comfort me with a cup of tea as I lay snuggled up in my bed, wrapped in my warm comforter. I was miserable and even skipped running this morning for the sake of sleeping in, but I couldn't even sleep in and ended up lying in bed wallowing and feeling more miserable.
"I just don't get why someone would be so mean to someone they barely knew! I mean he practically ignored me at the ball, was completely rude to me during our surprise encounter on the running path, and then at our 'lunch' the other day he came across as quite possible the biggest asshole I've ever met!" I made sure to emphasize air quotes for the lunch bit, seeing as that pithy meeting barely constituted a lunch or meeting.
"Bella, it's just how he is," Alice repeated gently. She was walking a fine line defending the asshole that was Edward Cullen, even if he was her only brother. "It comes from years of bottling everything up. He's definitely not one to be upfront about his emotions or any of that. I think it's actually a bit of a personality disorder. Maybe in the process of rejecting those emotions he also forgot about the good ones. He's super sweet when you get on his good side," she said, as if that were any consolation.
"Oh, right. I guess I must have confused his bag of issues as a blatant disregard for common courtesy," I replied dryly.
Alice gave me a hurt look but after being treated so terribly by her own family I hardly felt bad.
I turned over and punched my pillow a bit to soften it and then lay back down with an exaggerated humph! I mean I suppose it was her role to be fair and play devil's advocate, but she had been my roommate and my best friend for years. Disregarding my feelings for her dickwad older brother's was so unjustified.
Alice was busily texting away on her iPhone, some ridiculous piece of technology I preferred to blissfully ignore. I had my good ole cell phone because I didn't have the patience for such finicky contraptions as iPhones. Plus, it seemed to consume most of her communication, which, in my opinion, was really bad for when actual face-to-face communication was necessary. Such was clearly the case with Edward, but not Alice. She was able to come off sounding chipper as ever whether it be via verbal communication, an email, or a brief text message. Edward on the other hand, was consistently a dick via all of the aforementioned communications.
"Who the heck are you texting at eight o'clock in the frickin morning?" I grunted, chiefly angry because I missed my morning java, but also because I had an uneasy feeling that she might be messaging her phantom brother I hadn't heard about until a few weeks ago, when he came into my life with a vengeance.
Her devious grin told me all I needed to know.
"You better not be texting Edward!! ARGH! Alice!" I pleaded, in a higher pitched voice than normal. "He doesn't need to know that I'm talking about him first thing in the morning! Our conversations are confidential, remember? Don't make me tell Jasper about some of the conversations we have been having regarding some very personal topics..."
"You wouldn't!" she cut in.
"You know I would," I said, more confident in myself than I should have been. I paused for a minute, thinking whether it was moral to blackmail my best friend under a circumstance such as this. "Alright, alright, perhaps I wouldn't, but you know Rose would," I admitted.
"All I said was Bella thinks you're a lousy prick who deserves to have his building burned to the ground. And also that you will kick his ass in court because you're amazing." She looked quite pleased with herself.
"Alice! You know I suck in court!"
I was possibly the worst attorney when it came to the dreaded courtroom. I always got clumsy and tripped on my own feet, or blew my closing statement, or somehow managed to make a point in the defence's interest instead of my clients'. I was truly dreadful. I was an embarrassment to all lawyers. In fact, I hated the word "lawyer." I would rather be called a social worker, because in a sense, that's what I was. I simply provided a service, at no cost, for those who needed someone with knowledge of the law, to inform them of their options. I avoided all types of conventional law, including, but not limited to, corporate, civil, family law, intellectual property, criminal, litigation...
"Well I'll hire Emmett McCarty to represent you. Edward's roommate," Alice suggested. How benevolent of her.
"Yah he dropped his name in our 'meeting,'" I was sure to reinforce the air quotes again. "So I don't think he'll be representing me over Edward."
Alice's phone beeped persistently, indicating a new message. I hoped to God it wasn't from dickward.
"Ooh it's on!!" she squealed as she impatiently texted a message back.
"Please! Stop screwing with my fate!" I grabbed the phone from her, nearly sending it flying off the bed. Rosalie managed to catch it mid-flight, and peered at the message on the tiny screen.
"Hi Rose, I didn't even hear you come in," I said. She was dressed head-to-toe in her workout gear, ready for a days' work at her Pilates centre.
She nodded at me and then cleared her throat. "Alice. Good to hear from you. However, the circumstances under which you are contacting me are none of your concern. Call Tanya to arrange a lunch and we'll chat about more important things. It would be wise to stay out of this – it's strictly a matter of business."
"Oh, Edward is always trying to keep me from interfering in business. He said it's not ladylike to have to crunch numbers for a living," Alice sighed and took her phone back from Rosalie.
"What a douche," Rosalie shook her head in disgust. "Alice, why can't you just tell him to knock out the other side of the building? You know, the one that Bella's office doesn't occupy."
"And you think he'd listen? Rose, that would only make him try harder. Once Edward is set on something, he will do anything to get it. You remember how he is," she said knowingly. I didn't know if that was an innuendo of sorts or something else, but I had a feeling Rosalie knew Edward better than she initially led on.
"Anyway ladies, I have a class to teach. Bella, are you good for yoga tonight?"
I was pretty tempted to bail on my Yoga for Runners class, but ever since I had such a cult following for my Wednesday evening class, I knew I couldn't let Rosalie down. If she sensed how upset I was she would beg me to skip it though, but that would only mean I'd be giving in to Edward's demonizing ways. He wasn't going to ruin my life that easily.
"Yeah, I'll be there." I instantly regretted committing to it because that would mean I'd have to get my lazy ass out of bed at some point. "Do me a favour and jack the temperature up to about one-oh-five degrees about an hour before my class. It'll be good for my group to get their sweat on, and it'll certainly help me clear my mind."
"An impromptu Bikram class?" Rose contemplated. "I like your style. I'll stock up the room with my new Sigg water bottles to promote sales, too. They either buy the water, or pass out from dehydration on you," she joked.
Only Rosalie was able to fuse yoga and consumerism so seamlessly. Apparently her father was some mega-rich stockbroker or something, so she must have learned her business-minded ways from him. I actually really respected her entrepreneurial sense, and wished I had some of it to fight off Edward Cullen.
--
At a quarter to eight I rolled out my yoga mat and took a seat to practice some deep breathing before my class piled in. The room was, as requested, over a hundred degrees Fahrenheit, and I could already feel my hair sticking to my neck. I quickly slipped into the change room and stripped off my jogging pants and a t-shirt, and changed into my spandex shorts and tank top for tonight's super intense, super sweaty class.
When I returned, I was happy to find that most of my students were seated on their mats in Siddhasana, the basic starting pose, ready for my lesson.
"Hello everyone, welcome to tonight's class," I said in a quiet voice, trying to settle down the chatter at the back of the room and bring everyone's attention to their breathing. I turned off the lights so the room was dimly lit, and instructed everyone to sit with their eyes closed for a few minutes to bring awareness to their body in preparation for the intense activity it would undergo tonight.
More importantly, I always blushed at the beginning of the class out of nervousness, so the darkness covered that right up.
I took this time to quickly scan the room for any new faces. I noticed a new girl in the front row, seated right beside Angela, and a couple guys at the back. Great, I thought. The one time I wear next to nothing is the night the guys decide to show up. They must have some sort of sixth sense or built-in radar telling them when and where scantily-clad, yoga practising women would be gathered.
As I was conducting a quick head count, I noticed a familiar mop of bronze hair in the second row. I stretched up to see Edward Cullen's eyes wide open and focused on me. I instantly blushed at the realization where his eyes must have been this whole five minutes – that being my exposed body – and he just fucking smirked at me in response.
Fuck my life. Why in God's name was he doing yoga anyway? He was the type of asshole who needed to take his aggressions out on a punching bag, not sit through a serene ninety-minute hot yoga class.
Nonetheless, it was my obligation to be polite and courteous to each and every member of my class, despite my personal biases.
"I see we have some new faces in our class tonight. The lady in the pink tank top toward the back... your name?" I prompted to a superficial looking brunette chick. She was decked out from head to toe in Lululemon gear, including a headband and hair elastics. The easiest way to spot a poser was to check out their yoga attire. Head to toe name brand indicated they didn't give a shit about anything but declaring to the world that they did yoga. Right.
"I'm Jessica. Jessica Stanley," the brunette replied energetically. She had a fake smile and a tart-like voice, and I could tell already she was going to be the girl snickering at my poor balance throughout the entire class.
"Welcome Jessica," I said, and the class repeated in unison, "Welcome Jessica." I was beginning to feel like I was at an Alcoholics Anonymous group meeting instead of my 'yoga for runners' class.
"And you sir, in the grey tank top and black shorts," I said to Edward in my most oblivious voice, trying to pretend that I didn't have a clue who he was.
"I'm Edward Cullen," he said in a soft, velvety voice. "I'm here because I tore a ligament in my knee and my physiotherapist recommended it." There. That wasn't so hard to be respectful and not make an ass of yourself, now was it? "Also, I heard this is where all the good looking ladies hang out," he joked, and all the women around him began panting and parting their legs. So much for respectful.
"Right. Welcome Edward." I broke up the ladies' lust quickly, because I was in no mood to have my yoga class become a kama sutra lesson. "As most of you may know, I'm Bella, and I have been teaching this class for just over a year."
I hated these generic introductions but I felt like it helped me express that I wasn't some yoga hippie, but rather a serious runner who supplemented it with yoga. Truth be told, fuck if I knew who I really was.
"Ever since I started running on a regular basis, I began to learn the importance of stretching my muscles through yogic practices. What we do in this class is as crucial to your running as your running routine itself. I especially recommend it for marathoners, whether you are in the early stages of training, or have already ran four." I looked directly at Edward in reference to the last bit. He grinned at me, which made me nervous and uneasy.
I shook off his dashing looks and tried to focus on the newcomer in the class; a burly, dark haired man with a very muscular body, almost to the point where he looked intimidating. He made a ruckus in an attempt to quietly seat himself beside Edward, because he couldn't quite figure out how to situate his mat and vast array of yoga accessories. He sort of just stood there, looking at all the crap he'd brought, in complete bewilderment.
"This is not your typical yoga class," I continued, ignoring the newcomer until he settled down. "If you are used to lots of breathing and meditation and crap, you're at the wrong yoga studio. 'Hale Pilates and Athletic Yoga' prides itself on its strenuous and rigorous classes and personal training sessions. If you aren't prepared to sweat for a good hour and a half and physically strain muscles you didn't even know existed, please find your way to the nearest door." I paused for a second to see if anyone wanted to leave. No takers.
Fuck.
Edward Cullen, you're in for a real treat.
"Alright then. First we're going to warm up with a rapid cycle of twenty five sun salutations."
"Hi," the jacked dark hair guy beside Edward piped up. He was holding a yoga brick and used it to wave to the class. "I'm Emmett McCarty."
Double fuck.
Edward and his fucking attorney decided to come to my class and make a mockery of it. I was seriously not in the mood for this. The joke would be on them though, when they wouldn't be able to walk for a week after my class.
"Welcome Emmett McCarty," I responded apathetically, not bothering to look at him. I grabbed the clipboard from beside my mat and scribbled down the names of the three newcomers for attendance purposes. I stashed it aside carelessly and was about to give the class a lecture on coming to class five minutes early, not ten minutes late, when he opened his mouth yet again. He seemed to smile when he spoke, which is when I noticed subtle dimples in his cheeks. It made him significantly less intimidating.
"If you want to know why I'm late, yoga master," he began, plopping down in the centre of his mat, "it's because-"
"You needed to rent a van to haul all your yoga accessories?" I interrupted.
Edward furrowed his brow at Emmett's excessive yoga apparel and began chuckling, which he tried to cover up as a cough.
"No miss, but I've never been to one of these classes, so I didn't know what to expect," he countered. "I was actually late because the woman at the front desk, who, by the way," he turned to face Edward, "is a fuckin smokeshow, decided to give me a lecture on coming into her studio five minutes late for a class, unprepared. She then suckered me into buying all this," he waved his arms at all the stuff in front of him, which now made sense, "and that is why I'm late." He let out an exasperated breath.
"Well unfortunately for you McCarty, you only really need a basic yoga mat for my class. Rosalie is just really good at getting guys to drop their wallets at her feet," I replied coolly. "Now, if you don't mind, I want to get started on our twenty-five sun salutations."
Near the end of the class Emmett and Edward had to take a twenty minute breather from the class. They opted on sprawling out on their mats and fanning themselves with their drenched t-shirts. The sight of the two men, with impeccable bodies, without shirts on, was enough to distract the rest of the ladies in the class from my lesson.
If it was at all possible, by the end of my class I was ten times tenser than before. The guys made innuendos and inside jokes whenever all the girls participated in suggestive moves, such as bending down, which made me really nervous. For the most part I was able to avoid falling or tripping over my own two feet – something which was a daily occurrence for me.
"Namaste, class," I said to the group as they slowly piled out of the room looking like zombies. The ninety minute hot yoga session was sure to get everyone's muscles aching by tomorrow.
Just as I was throwing all my gear into my ratty backpack, I saw in my periphery, two chiselled, shirtless figures approaching me.
"Now what," I muttered under my breath.
"Great class Bella," Emmett said, extending a sweaty hand for me to shake. I looked at it for a moment, but then shook it and tucked my hands behind my back. I didn't intend to be a bitch to him, only Edward.
"Thanks guys," I looked up through my eyelashes shyly – a habit I had when I was nervous.
Edward had a devious look in his eyes, likely from conjuring up dirty thoughts in his mind, and I decided now was as good as ever to confront him. It was paramount to catch him off guard.
"So do you want to knock down this building too?" I snapped, looking him straight in the eye.
"Whew, she is a nasty one, isn't she?" Emmett commented, then quickly cupped his hand over his mouth. "Sorry yoga master, I didn't mean any disrespect," he said sincerely.
I smiled involuntarily, because the fact that he called me yoga master was really frickin weird and made me laugh.
"Aha! So I see the devil does smile," Edward said, grinning widely, perhaps trying to lighten the mood.
"Edward, why is it that when women are fierce in the business world, they are she-devils. But when men are fierce in the business world, they are successful businessmen. Do you care to enlighten me?" I began tapping my foot impatiently and his eyes began dancing. Last time that happened, it indicated a fire was igniting within him.
"Oh Bella, are you still caught up on that silly thing? And you're hardly a business woman. You're a lawyer, just like Emmett here."
Emmett's eyes widened with intrigue. "A lawyer? Really?" he asked. "What firm? I might have heard of you."
"I doubt it," Edward cut in. "Simply non-profit, poor person crap. You know, homeless alcoholics and the like."
What a douche.
"Actually, I specialize in women's and children's rights, something that is overshadowed by pretentious corporate law," I sneered, "and the like."
"Hmm. Then I suppose I wouldn't have heard of you. There's really no money in that Bella," Emmett said, as if he was letting me in on some big secret. "Why do you do it?"
Was he seriously that thick?
"Because I care. That's why. Isn't that why you went to law school Emmett? To make a difference?"
That concept seemed to fly right over his head, and he looked at me blankly. "I went to law school cuz I wanted to play ball for three more years." Well, at least he was honest with himself, unlike Edward.
"So, Bella. What law school did you attend?" Edward prompted, clearly trying to strike a chord.
"Boston College," I replied flatly.
The spark in Edward's eyes lit up again, clearly delighted at the prospect of bashing my alma mater. "Not Harvard? Why is that?"
"Meh, I did the Harvard thing. Hated it. Now, are you here to interview me on my career, or did you have something important to say?"
"Nope, I just wanted to say you did a great class. I haven't done yoga before, because it's kinda gay, but since my physiotherapist recommended it, I thought I might as well give it a go. I'm actually surprised you work at the most upscale studio in the city though," he shrugged. "I'd have pegged you for a YMCA type girl," he added condescendingly.
"Yah, well, hot chick that Emmett wants to bone is my roommate, so she hooked me up with this gig." I turned on my heels to leave when I felt a sweaty grip on my arm.
I turned around, and Emmett was smiling widely, showing off those damn adorable dimples.
"Please can you get me a date with her? Just one? She's the hottest woman I've ever seen. And she's strangely familiar..." Wow, he really did have shit for brains. Must have been those football concussions.
"Yah? Maybe that's because she's on this month's cover of GQ and Sports Illustrated?" I waited for a light bulb to go off...
"Oh, damn!" Emmett exclaimed, becoming increasingly excited (and probably horny) by the minute.
"And, uh, no, I won't get you a date. Sorry man, I like you, but your buddy here is a complete dick who's trying to bust down my building," I glared daggers at Edward. "And since you work for this dick, you're also involved in knocking down my building. So why should I do you any favours?"
Emmett's faced dropped and he was about to make a deal with the devil when Edward butt in.
"Seriously man, you don't want her. I tapped that. She's overrated."
Emmett looked seriously crushed for a moment, and then became seriously irate which is when I made my move and snuck out of the room. I could hear the two yelling at each other about Rosalie all the way down the hall.
Incidentally, she was sitting at the front desk smacking her bubble gum and flipping through a gossip magazine as I made my way to the front of the studio.
"Hey Bella," she said half-heartedly. "Ugh, yay, now I can finally shut this place down for the night. And wow, you look rough. Tough class?" she got up and began flicking off the front lights and shutting down the computer.
"You could say that. And oh, by the way, you have two jacked guys fighting over you in the yoga room. I suggest you break it up or call for backup."
She looked puzzled for a minute and then peered at the class sign-in sheet on top of her desk.
"Let me guess... Edward dickward Cullen?" she rolled her eyes.
"Yep, and Emmett McCarty."
She peered back down at the sheet. "Oh, right. The ten minutes late dude. What a dolt he was," she shook her head in disbelief.
"Yep. And incidentally Edward's personal attorney, consultant, and roommate."
"Fuck, for real?" she dropped her magazine and hopped up off her stool. "I thought he had shit for brains? Oh damn, I better break them up. This won't end well."
I nodded my head in agreement. "Good luck," I called out to her on my way out the door, "See ya at home."
--
The next morning I woke up, went for a relatively successful run, and upon returning back to my house, noticed that my car was lower on one side than it was the other. I pulled my earphones out and went over to examine the tires carefully, because it looked from here to be a flat tire. Clearly a case of driving over some nails in a construction site or something careless like that, which would unfortunately involve hours of work and hundreds of dollars getting new tires put on.
"Fuck! How fucking inconvenient," I grunted, kicking up the gravel in frustration. I then got a fucking rock in my running shoe, which made me ten times angrier.
As I got closer to the car, however, I noticed it was more than just an inconvenient flat. My front right and back right tires had been slashed.
I gasped and covered my mouth in shock, and became queasy over the first name that came to mind.
Edward Cullen.
A/N: Please don't hate on me!