Trip to Port Angeles
I rushed back up to my room. Bella was still in the bathroom. I took the opportunity to get some fresh clothes out of my closet and went into Emmett's room to wash up and change. I wanted to get Bella out of the house before Jasper changed his mind or Emmett returned from his hunt. I returned to my room and knocked on the bathroom door.
"Bella."
The door opened up and she walked out. "I'm ready Edward. I feel so much better. And I'm starving, let's go eat."
I started to reach for her but stopped, she seemed to be standing on her own without any problem. "How are your legs feeling? Can you walk okay?"
"They're still sore but I'm feeling much better, the hot water and Jacuzzi helped a lot. I won't be winning any foot races but I'm pretty sure I can walk without falling on my face." She started out the door.
"Are you still dizzy?" I asked, feeling guilty.
"Not too bad, just a little weak, but I haven't eaten in about 24 hours."
"Wait, let me stay close, just in case." I rushed to her side ready to assist if she need it.
She smiled up at me, "Thanks, I appreciate it."
She looked around in amazement at our home. "Edward your house is beautiful. I really didn't notice before."
"My father is a very successful doctor, he's going to start working at the hospital next week when he and Esme return from their holiday." I gently took her arm when we started down the stairs. I won't take any chances.
"Esme?" Bella asked in confusion.
"Esme is my mother, well not my natural mother, my brothers and I were all adopted by her and Carlisle."
"Oh, so you were an orphan like me?" She looked up at me with a mixture of pity and envy.
"Yes, my natural parents died long ago. I'm very happy and content with my new family. Although my brothers and I have our differences at times." Especially now, I thought.
"When will I meet your brothers?"
"Um... Well, perhaps you'll get to meet Emmett when we return. Jasper had something to do. You may not get chance to meet him."
"Oh, I thought you said your brothers would help you get Alice and Rosalie away from the girls home?"
"We'll talk about that later, lets get you something to eat first. There's nothing in the house. We just moved in before Carlisle and Esme left, she hasn't had time to stock the house yet." I lied.
"What have you been eating?" She asked puzzled and concerned for my well being.
"Um ... my brothers and I fend for ourselves. We go out to eat a lot. You know guys, we don't want to cook, but we're doing fine." I tried to explain as vague as possible. "We'll also stop and buy a few groceries."
I led her out to the BMW, I needed to take it and get it detailed. Hopefully they wouldn't find any damage. I opened her door and let her in.
"I love your car, what is it?" She rubbed the soft leather of the seat.
"It's not my car, it belongs to Esme. I need to take it into town and have them wash and detail it. Esme will kill me if she sees it like this." I explained.
"What is it?" She asked again.
"Oh, it's a BMW Z3."
"I've never been in a car this nice before. The girls home has a 12 passenger van and a old sedan."
Hoping to keep her mind off questions I was not prepared to answer I asked her, "How long have you lived in that girls home?"
"Not quite a year, I was in various foster homes before that. I've been in the system since I was eleven. My parents both died in a accident and I had no other relatives." She turned away from me and looked out the window. "At least that wanted me." She added softly.
Well Edward congratulations, you sure know how to start a pleasant conversation. Unable to come up with anything to say that wouldn't turn her mind back to Alice and Rosalie we continued into town in silence.
I drove into Port Angeles, the closer but smaller town of Forks didn't have a place to get the car detailed. I also wanted to take Bella into a shop to purchase some clothes, as she seemed uncomfortable with raiding Esme's closet and they hung on her slight frame. First things first, I needed to get some food into her before she passed out. I could hear her stomach growling with hunger.
The first restaurant I came across was an Italian restaurant, Bella Italia, how fitting. And there was a woman's clothing shop right next door. I pulled up and turned to Bella. "How does Italian food sound?"
"That's fine, whatever you want."
Right. I walked her into the restaurant and requested a table for two.
The hostess was giving me a double take and her thoughts were enough to make me blush if it were possible. She led us to a table and put her hand on my arm and lightly squeezed. "Let me know if you need anything." She whispered in a low husky voice. I turned from her and pulled out the chair for Bella, and ignored the comment.
Bella looked over the menu thankfully did not appear to notice my discomfort. After a few moments, she looked up at me and said, "I'll have the mushroom ravioli and a coke."
When the waitress walked up she cocked her head, gave me the eye and asked, "What can I do for you?" She was an exact clone of the hostess in her actions and thoughts.
"The lady will have the mushroom ravioli and coke, I'll just have a coke." I quickly diverted my gaze back to Bella, who looked at me in surprise. The waitress walked off in a huff.
"What, you're not eating?" Bella asked.
"I'm on a special diet." I replied.
"We could have gone somewhere else."
"Don't worry about me, I'm fine. Bella, you don't mind if I leave you for a few minutes do you? I need to drop the car off to be cleaned up and looked over, I'll be back in as fast as I can. Are you okay with that?"
She looked a little uncomfortable and replied shortly, "That's fine, I'll be fine."
I gave her a small reassuring smile and stood up. "I'll be right back."
As I turned to walk out my gaze fell on the hostess and waitress who were huddled together talking about me. When they saw me walk toward them the both stood up straight, cocked their heads and batted their eyes. It would have been comical if it wasn't directed toward me. I diverted my eyes and walked past them, trying my hardest to block their thoughts, but to no avail.
"He's coming to talk to me!"
"What does he see in that little girl? I could show him a good time."
"Check out that butt."
"He's driving the BMW? I gotta make him notice me."
They're like a pack of vultures soaring over road kill and I'm the dead meat. If they only knew.
I dropped off Esme's car with instructions to detail it and check for any damage. I had driven it enough to know that it was in good mechanical condition. But it would probably need a front-end alignment. I would take care of that later. Hopefully they would find no dents under the caked-on dirt.
I rushed back to the restaurant and past the two vultures that tripped over each other to get to me. Thankfully I reached the table before they reached me.
Bella was buttering a slice of bread, she stopped when she saw me. She looked both surprised and relieved when she saw me.
I chuckled and asked. "Did you think I deserted you?"
"Well, it did cross my mind. I was torn between offering to do the dishes or seeing if I could sneak out. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have doubted you."
"No problem, it was rude of me to run off like that. But I didn't want to make you walk over from the shop. And it would have looked funny if I had to carry you down the street."
She laughed and nodded. "Would you like the last piece of bread. I'm sorry I just wolfed it all down. It's really good."
"No, you eat it all, and if you like I could order you some more." I offered.
"Actually, I'm already getting full. I just couldn't resist. What are you going to eat?"
"I'll pick something up at the grocery store, I'm sort of a finicky eater. Don't worry about me." Hopefully she would drop the subject. I sensed the waitress coming with Bella's lunch, before I could turn away she placed the plate in front of Bella and turned to me. She put her hand on my shoulder and asked again, "Are you sure there isn't anything I can get for you?"
I looked away from her and leaned in towards Bella, "I'm fine." I wasn't a rude person generally, but this girl was really getting on my nerves. She is apparently not the type to take a subtle hint. But she finally turned and walked off.
Bella gave me a puzzled look and then glanced back at the retreating waitress.
I just looked at her and grimaced.
Bella finished her lunch in no time. I smiled when I saw her sopping up the juice in the bowl with the last slice of bread. She leaned back in the chair and sighed then looked at me. "You better hope I can walk out of here. You may not be able to lift me after that." She glanced down at her empty plate. "I have never eated that much in one sitting before. It was wonderful."
I laughed, "Lucky for me the chairs have wheels. Perhaps I can just push you out."
She slapped at my arm but grinned. Just then the waitress walked up with our check. She placed it on the table and walked away.
Bella laughed and said. "I guess she finally figured out that you're not interested.
I raised my eyebrows and would have blushed if possible. "You noticed that?"
"Oh yes, I kinda expected her to dump that bowl on my head."
I didn't know how to react to that. I wanted to retaliate somehow. How dare them treat my Bella like that! My Bella? Calm down, Edward. Instead, I put the money and included a sizeable tip on the table and assisted Bella out of the restaurant. Feeling the eyes of the two vultures on my back the whole time.
I was relieved to leave them behind, but I felt that was nothing compared to what was about to come.
"Do you think your car is ready?"
"No, it'll be a while I want them to clean it real good and check for damage. We have a another errand to run first." I led her to the clothing shop near the restaurant.
She looked at me in confusion; this was women's clothing store. "What do you need here?"
"I don't need anything, but I'm sure that you need some things."
"Edward, I can't take anything else from you. I already owe you a big debt and who knows when I'll be able to repay."
"Bella, you've seen the house, you've seen the car. You don't have to repay me. If I don't help you, my mother will have my head. You don't want me to get in trouble do you? Now you go in there and find several pairs of jeans, t-shirts and whatever else you need. If you don't I'll go in there and pick it out myself. And you don't want me picking out underwear for you I'm sure. I want you to get a jacket and a couple pairs of shoes as well."
She gave me a look of total disgust. "I really don't want to do this, at least not here. There must be a thrift store that I can pick up a few things."
I shook my head and said, "Come on, I'll walk you inside." I gently grabbed her hand and thought I would have to drag her in. I gave her a stern look, and she finally followed meekly, like a lamb.
I walked up to the sales lady and said. "Ma'am, my friend here has lost all her belongings in a house fire. I want you to make sure she gets at least five changes of clothes and everything else she needs. She is being stubborn, so I'm expecting you to help me out here. Don't skimp on anything."
The saleslady looked at me and then at Bella and back to me. "Who's going to pay for all this?"
I whipped out my American Express Black Card and handed it over with my ID.
She looked back up at me, dollar signs flashing in her eyes. "Yes sir, you can count on me sir. Come on young lady, let's get busy." I'll keep her away from the sales racks, with the commission from this sale I'll be able to pay my electricity bill current and buy a few groceries.
She turned back to me, "Sir…"
Amazing the respect that Black Card demanded.
"There's a chair back by the dressing room if you would like to relax and have her to model for you." She offered.
Bella looked back at me with a panic stricken look on her face. No, she mouthed, as she shook her head.
"Thank you ma'am, but I think I'll wait outside." I saw Bella's shoulders slump in relief. I grinned at her with a look that said, don't mess with me, I always get what I want.
"I'll leave her in your capable hands, I'll just be outside if she gives you any trouble. If you can be done in an hour I'll give you a hundred dollar tip."
She beamed at me, "Yes Sir. Come on young lady." She led her away like a lamb to the slaughter.
I stepped outside and chuckled. But I knew there would be hell to pay later. Good thing I can't read Bella's mind.
After 45 minutes my cell phone rang. The BMW was ready to be picked up. And the good news was there was no visible damage. I told them I would be there in a few minutes and went back into the store.
"How are we doing ladies?" I looked around, no Bella; she must be in the dressing room. The saleslady had an arm full of clothes and looked alarmed, she glanced at the clock and breathed a sigh of relief.
"We have fifteen minutes left, I assure you we'll be done on time."
I lowered my voice, "How's it going? She's not giving you any trouble is she?"
She responded quietly, "She has tried, but I shut her down." She smiled at me as if she was a fellow conspirator interrogating a captive.
"I need to leave for a few moments, but I'll hurry right back. Don't let her sneak out of here." I winked.
"Yes Sir, I'll have everything ready for you." She promised.
I rushed to pick up the car and was back in time to see Bella and her 'prison guard' about to square off for a verbal fight. I rushed in to save the day. The saleslady gave Bella a look that said it all. I've won the battle and the war, young lady.
I met them both at the cash register and avoided Bella's gaze. But I felt the daggers she shot at me. I once again pulled out my Black Card and handed it to the saleslady, she ran the charge through, I hope this goes through, please go through… Yes. She looked up at me smiling ear to ear and handed me the sales slip. "I'll get this all bagged for you and help you to the car if you'd like."
I signed the receipt and returned it along with her $100.00 tip. "I can manage, thank you very much. I'll be sure to let my mother know how helpful you have been."
"It's been my pleasure, please tell her to ask for Kathleen."
I smiled at her and started to pick up the bags, I would have to use my vampire strength to force it all into the small trunk of the BMW. Bella picked up the few remaining bags and followed me silently out of the shop. When we reached the car I popped the trunk and started filling it. I turned to Bella who gave me a smug look as if to say, what now Sherlock? I'd like to see you get this all in there.
I took the bags from Bella and told her to get in the car. She raised her eyebrows at me and did just that. A few seconds later I had finished the chore and joined her in the car. I looked over at her; she sat stiffly with her arms crossed staring straight ahead.
"Well that was certainly fun." I started. No response from my passenger, but I could see the wheels turning in her head. So I tried again. "Did you get everything you needed or do we need to try another store?" That got a response.
"What? Are you crazy? I loathe shopping. I've never had that many clothes in all my life. What am I going to do with them all?"
"You can wear them, that's what most people do. My mother tells my father all the time a woman can't have too many clothes or shoes. Listen, I'm sorry, but you did need some things, Esme's clothes are a little big on you. No more arguing, now let's stop by for some groceries and go home. We need to talk to Emmett about Alice and Rosalie.
I could see that she was starting to feel fatigued. It would take a few days to replenish her blood supply. In the meantime she would be weak. I'm sure that was the only thing that prevented a bigger argument out of her about the clothes.
I pulled into a small grocery store and turned to her. "Are you ready, lets pick up a few things and get you home."
"Yeah, I'm really tired. I don't know what is wrong with me. Maybe it was that huge lunch."
"I'm sure that is what it was, come on, we'll be quick." I grabbed a cart and together we walked in the store. The smell of all the food was nauseating to me, another incentive for us to complete this chore quickly.
"Get whatever you like and make sure you get enough for Alice and Rosalie."
"What about you, what are you getting?"
I grabbed a couple frozen pizzas and threw them into the cart. "There, are you happy now?" I asked.
"That's not very healthy. I thought you said you were a finicky eater?"
"Yeah, well, I'm also a lazy teenage boy. Mom will be home in a few days, I 'm sure she will set me back on the straight and narrow." We passed the meat counter and I suggested. "How about some liver, doesn't that sound good." Nice and healthy and full of iron. Good for the blood.
"Are you kidding?" She scrunched up her nose and look at me in horror. "Ugh, I don't like animal organs."
A few more minutes and the cart was filled with frozen dinners and canned food. "I think this will be plenty."
"Are you sure? You've been in that home a long time, what's the one thing that you and your friends have craved?"
"Chocolate." She answered with a sigh.
"Okay, we're not leaving until you find some chocolate, you can surprise the girls with that."
She smiled, threw herself at me and wrapped her arms around me. Then she reached up and kissed me on the cheek.
I pulled away from her, no doubt my eyes wide in shock and dark with desire.
"I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me." She stepped back and blushed.
I laughed, "That's okay, you just surprised me. You're a confusing creature. I buy you a whole new wardrobe and it makes you mad. I offer to buy you chocolate and you throw yourself at me. I'll never understand women, but I'll keep that in mind for the future. Come on, let's get you home."
We found an assortment of chocolate in the form of cookies and candy and headed for the cashier. I was going to have to make all this fit inside the car. There was only a small space behind the seats, we were just barely able to make it all fit. We started for the highway but before leaving town I saw a shoe store with a big SALE sign on the window, I pointed it out to Bella, "Hey, do you want to stop?"
She glared at me and I grinned.
"Relax, I'm just teasing. Now why don't you lean back and get some rest. I'll have you home in no time."
