DISCLAIMER: Stephenie Meyers owns these characters. We've only borrowed them for this story.
Chapter 6
Alice's POV
I can't believe him! He promised me he wouldn't go near her until we worked out the timeline. I knew he wouldn't be able to stay away. But he must be making this decisions last minute or I would have seen him for sure…sneaky little bastard. I jumped into the car and drove home at top speed. He'd better be there for the lashing he's gonna get.
I threw the car into park and flew up the stairs. I already knew he wasn't home. Coward. I flipped open my phone and dialed. Voicemail…"Edward, it's your loving sister. I know what you did tonight…that was so, NOT, cool. We will have words when you decide to show up. And stop trying to outsmart me. You know I'll catch up to you eventually. Love you!" I snapped the phone shut. I needed to calm down so I called Jasper. I wish he was here. I needed to relax.
Edward's POV
Ok. That went over better than I expected. I really thought that my first time actually seeing her would be more difficult…quite the contrary. I feel renewed. I have missed her so much. Her smell was so intoxicating. Just being that close to her…I knew I'd never be able to leave her again. I will fight tooth and nail for her to forgive me. I have to prove to her that I still love her. I know I meant for her to move on, but now I know that no one can have her but me. We belong together. And what was with that guy Mark?! I can't believe she smiled at him. Her smiles should only be for me! I heard what he was thinking…not one indecent thought, a perfect gentleman. Great. Ugggh. There is no way I can convince her not to go out with him. I haven't even spoken to her yet…I should just kill him…I can make it look like an accident. What am I saying?! I'd never do something like that. But surely I can make it difficult for her to get to know him...
Bella's POV
I cleaned up the store as best I could and closed up. People didn't stay long after the "lights" incident so I was able to close right at 9pm. I was tired and frazzled. I couldn't stop thinking about what happened. I could have sworn I smelled Edward…it's still hard to even think his name, but I'm getting better at it. This is crazy! HE'S NOT HERE. My mind must have been playing tricks on me. I was reading a romantic novel and I was thinking of him. And it felt so real like he was right there breathing into my ear. As much as I don't want to admit it…I do miss him. I know I told Alice to keep me out but I wish I could know what he's doing now. I wish could see him, even if it's only once. But what reason would he have to come back here? And, as far as I know, he's way out in the jungle somewhere…and maybe he's not alone. Ugghh. I can't even think about that. As hard as it is for me to move on, it's harder to think of him with someone else. I can't keep doing this to myself. I'll drive myself mad if I don't stop this now.
He wasn't here. He's not coming back. I was just imagining it. He simply just doesn't love me anymore.
I woke up in the morning feeling more relaxed than I expected. Maybe it was the wine I drank when I got home last night, although I think it gave me strange dreams. No matter what I tried to will myself to do, I still spent the night dreaming of Edward. I even dreamt I heard him humming my lullaby. Or maybe it's just my subconscious playing tricks on me because I was nervous about going out with Mark?
I dressed quickly… I put on my khaki's, rose colored cotton twinset, and ballet flats. I hated to admit it to Alice, but these shoes were not only cute, but so comfortable. Then I remembered that Mark was picking me up at the store so I threw my good jeans into a bag along with my wedge sandals and some make-up. I wanted to look nice but I didn't want to look like I was trying too hard. When I got to the store Alice's car was already there. This was going to be interesting.
"Hi Bella, how are you feeling today-better?" She acted like nothing was wrong, she's amazing!
Ok, I'll play along. "Hi Alice. I'm better thanks. But something very weird did happen last night. Unless I'm imagining things I really thought I felt…Um… Edward here. Standing right next to me. You wouldn't know anything about that would you? Please be honest with me. Did you see anything?"
"No Bella, I swear I didn't see a thing. Are you sure you're feeling ok?" Her tone insinuated that I wasn't making sense, but I persisted.
"Yeah of course I am. It's just I can't help it. I feel like I'm missing something. I know I asked you not to say anything but…do you see something I should know about right now?"
"Nope…nothing you need to know about…it's all good." She smiled a little sheepishly but with Alice it's hard to tell what she's up to and it's no use getting her to explain until she's ready.
Alice got a call from Jasper after lunch-he was coming home early so she left to meet him. Mark called me at 6pm to confirm he'd be by to get me at 9pm. I was actually looking forward to it. A night out would be a good distraction.
I closed up the shop but kept the inside light on in the back of the store so Mark could see me. I picked up my copy of Bridget Jones' Diary and began to read to pass the time. I don't know how long I was there, but when I looked up the clock said 9:30pm. Did I miss him? No…I would have heard him knocking. Even so, he would have called me if I didn't –right? I picked up the phone and dialed the number he gave me earlier. It went straight to voicemail. How strange. I waited another 15 minutes and tried again. Same thing. This time I left a message.
"Hi Mark, it's Bella. It's 9:45 and I haven't heard from you. I hope everything's ok? I'm just gonna go home. Call me when you get the chance."
I walked out the door to my car. I still missed my truck but after it died, Jacob just couldn't get it running again, so I had to get a new one. The new one wasn't actually new, it was used, but only 2 years old and it had 4-wheel drive. As I reached in my bag to get my keys, I lost my grip and they fell to the ground. I bent down to pick them up and heard a car approaching. I stood up and instinctively turned toward it. It came and went so fast I wasn't sure it actually happened. My heart started to pound inside my chest. I couldn't breathe. It was a silver car…it looked like a Volvo. His Volvo. I tried to get a look at the driver, but couldn't see anything. Dammit! It couldn't have been him…I am definitely going crazy.