The Help
9.
As the party began to wind down - the circus had packed up, presents had been opened and the photographer had immortalised it all - Bella took an exhausted Elizabeth upstairs to nap. This didn't mean the end of her duties, though. Tanya had told her earlier that she'd be required to stick around to help clean up at the end. But right now Tanya was preoccupied with her sisters, so Bella took the opportunity to duck out the side door for a five minute break. She wasn't expecting Tanya to notice her absence. Most of the time when she was in the room, Tanya paid Bella as little attention as she did the lamp - she didn't exist until she needed something from her. A trait, Bella discovered, that was shared by all the Denali sisters. Their eyes slid right past her, as though they'd been trained not to see her. Which was not an entirely unrealistic possibility.
The afternoon sun had warmed the bricks Bella was leaning against, and allowing herself a moment of indulgence she tipped her head back, closed her eyes and let out a tiny sigh of satisfaction. But she heard footsteps barely seconds later, and with some irritation she pushed herself back into a standing position, expecting Tanya. But it was just Edward who appeared, beer in hand, looking for all the world like someone sneaking out of some undesirable duty. When he saw Bella he shot her a smile that was equal parts guilty and relieved.
"Just you," he said.
"Just me," Bella agreed.
"I needed a breather," he said, still looking slightly guilty.
Bella smiled at him. "I won't tell if you don't."
He smiled back, leaning up against the same patch of bricks. When he raised his arms over his head to stretch his top rode up, exposing a thin strip of skin just by his left hipbone, and the shadow of the indent that traversed below the waistband of his jeans. She looked away quickly, wondering vaguely why that one small sliver skin seemed so much more intimate than all the exposed skin on his forearms. After all, wasn't skin just skin? She thought of Emmett, who often strode from his bedroom to the fridge in just his boxer shorts, who Bella had walked in on in the shower more times she cared to remember, and wondered why the sight of all that exposed skin on her flatmate didn't cause her face to warm and her stomach to swoop, yet one glance at the pale, almost translucently skin by her boss's left hipbone did.
Abruptly uncomfortable and nervous for reasons she didn't understand, Bella slid back down to a seated position. When Edward slid rigth down alongside her she found herself clearling her throat and asking awkwardly, "Long day, huh?"
"Hmmm," Edward said lazily, oblivious to Bella's sudden discomfort at his proximity. "Max - that's Tanya's oldest sister Irina's husband - has been bending my ear all day about advertising at the site of one of our developments. Who the hell wants to talk shop on a Saturday?"
"Um, Irina's husband, clearly."
Edward shot her an amused smirk. "Clearly." He yawned. "Where's Elizabeth?"
"Napping," Bella replied. She kept her eyes ahead until she was sure her cheeks had cooled, until the discomforting moment of awareness had passed. "I put her down just a few minutes ago. She was out like a light."
"I'm jealous," Edward admitted, and yawned again. "Wish I could do the same. These galas," he gestured towards the house and presumably meaning the party behind him that he'd just left, "Tanya loves them - but honestly, sometimes I don't see the point."
"Hmm," Bella said, noncommittally, unsure how appropriate it was to tell him that she completely agreed with him.
"A whole lot of drama and money, just to show we can, you know?" He sighed, then scrubbed at the back of his neck with a closed fist. "I don't know..."
"So you're not as blase as everyone else here?" Bella asked him, peeking at him out of the corner of her eye. "Cos I got the impression from your guests that this was fairly standard fare for a party..."
Edward raised one eyebrow, shrugged, then said, "Maybe I am. I don't know. I didn't even bat an eyelash when Tanya told me the cost of hiring a private circus for the day." He frowned. "But then sometimes I see it all from the point of view of my 22 year old self - and I find myself wondering when the hell this became the norm for me. Fucking acrobats in my backyard, who to be honest, were really just there for decoration. I don't know," he repeated, tilting his head back and squinting up at the sky. "I became very successful very young. I was only twenty-six when I made my first million. And I promised myself I wouldn't let it change me. That I'd always be the kid who grew up with nothing, who knew what it was like to live hand-to-mouth, to never forget how it was to live pay-cheque to pay-cheque. But it's so easy sometimes to feel like that life belonged to a completely different person. It's so easy to get caught up in the bullshit that comes with all this." He waved his arm behind him again. "I guess that means I have changed. Maybe it was inevitable." He shrugged again, somewhat broodily. "Maybe I should stop beating myself up about it."
"Fairly philosophical for a third birthday party," Bella said, sneaking another glance.
Edward chuckled, the mood around him lifting instantly. "Three of these," he said, holding up his half empty beer bottle, "this is what it does to me now," he said. "I've gone soft."
"Is this where you become all nostalgic and reveal to me how you used to be a master of the keg-stand back in college?"
"You sound skeptical," Edward said. He waited a beat, then continued, "and you have a right to be. I've never done a keg-stand in my life."
"I'm disappointed, Edward," Bella said with giggle. "And you should be, too. You missed out on an integral part of the college experience. You may as well never have gone at all."
"So my degree is useless, then?"
Bella nodded. "Mmm-hm. You may as well burn it."
Edward was quiet for moment, then out of the blue said, "I don't think I've told you, but I like how you started calling me Edward. I never felt comfortable with the whole 'Mr Cullen' thing. All that formality, it doesn't belong in the home." He hesitated noticeably, then added, "Well, I don't think it does, at least."
Bella figured he was referencing Tanya, and her insistence on keeping Bella at a constant arm's length. She hid her surprise at this, and merely said, "Well, you started calling me Bella, so I figured I'd return the favour."
"Well as it turns out, Isabella really does have too many syllables," and he shot her a slightly shame-faced smile.
Bella was reminded, as he likely was as well, of the first time they'd met. In hindsight, Bella wasn't entirely sure what had led her to believe his behaviour during those first couple of weeks had been directly related to her - possibly a certain sort of instinctual narcissism. Whatever it was, the belief had long lapsed, and she now suspected - as her friends had tried to convince her initially - that the two had been completely unrelated. After all, she knew very well that as affable and good-natured as he was right now, he was not always an even-tempered man. Although he tried his best not to display them in front of his daughters and in front of Bella, he had his fair share of bad moods, moments of impatience and irritation, and even he couldn't deny that he was grumpy and humourless until he'd had his morning coffee.
She wasn't expecting an apology, but she was tempted now to make him recognise just how rude he had been, and explain how much it had affected her opinion of him; perhaps with some gentle teasing to keep the mood light. But as she'd been mulling this all over he'd reached into the back pocket of his jeans and pulled out a rumpled packet of Marlboro's and a box of matches. He carefully placed one in his mouth, then struck a match and lit it.
Bella's surprise at this action caused all other thoughts to flee from her mind. "You smoke?"
Edward made a face. "Not often," he said. He raised his beer with a guilty smile. "Mainly just when I'm having one of these. Definitely not as much as I used to." He shot her another guilty grin. "That's what I was doing in college instead of keg-stands, I guess. Still can't entirely kick the habit."
"You hide it well."
"Hmm. I never smoke around the girls. Ally's so impressionable with these things."
"You never smell of smoke." And then Bella blushed, because she didn't want Edward to think she routinely went around smelling him. "I mean - normally you can smell it on a person. Ja - I mean, my ex used to. The smell never seemed to leave him. It was in his clothes and his skin and his hair." She wrinkled her nose.
"Tanya hates it," Edward told her, then added very sarcastically, "Not for those same reasons, but because it deviates from the 'image' she wants us to 'present as a family'." He smirked, and mimicked in a high pitched voice, "Smoking is considered very passe, and not at all suitable to people of our position."
Bella's eyebrows shot up. She wondered just what Tanya would say if she knew Edward had just mocked her in front of "the help." Bella was a hundred percent certain she wouldn't have a job anymore, but the expression on Tanya's face would likely be priceless.
Edward carried on, either completely unaware or uncaring that he had crossed one of Tanya's many lines of appropriate employer-employee behaviour. "If I have on during the day I usually go to the gym after work. My workout habits are less motivated by a desire to keep fit, and more to do with using the showers afterwards to eradicate all evidence."
"So, you lead a secret double life?" Bella asked with a smirk. "Like Clark Kent?"
"Hmm," Edward pondered, taking another drag and squinting at her through the curl of smoke. "Except instead of saving lives, I'm killing myself."
Bella sent him a sidelong glance. "Wow. Morbid."
Edward's response was accompanied by a wry smile. "Just my way of trying to make sure you never start smoking."
"Ugh, you don't need to worry about that. Do you know how gross a smoker's breath tastes?"
Edward didn't reply, just raised one eyebrow and took another drag. For a while they stood there in companionable silence; Edward smoking and Bella enjoying the sun-warmed bricks against her back, becoming more lethargic by every passing moment. Edward appeared equally relaxed beside her, and Bella thought idly about how he and his wife were so different in manner and personality. Her mind wandered, as it so often did, and she tried to imagine just how Tanya and Edward had met, how they'd fallen in love, what had initially attracted him to her. She was not yet so cynical as to believe it had been solely her looks that had compelled him. (But this same cynical part was also wondering just how much Edward's wealth had factored into Tanya's attraction, and would not be as easily quelled.) Edward was a father, and a sensible man, and she knew now how much of a disservice she had done him by initially assuming he'd taken Tanya as a trophy wife. Despite this, she still couldn't understand what it was about her that had attracted him. She could only assume that there were aspects to Tanya's personality that she kept well-hidden from Bella. Aspects that had made a warm and caring man fall in love with her. Aspects that overrode the fact that she believed her own station in life to be so above someone like Bella's that she had no qualms in treating Bella with all the warmth she would treat the dishwasher or the washing machine.
And presently Bella was reminded of what she'd been thinking about earlier, and found herself wondering aloud, "Edward, do you ever think I'm a lamp?"
For a long moment Edward didn't answer. When he did finally speak, it was very slowly, as though he was choosing his words carefully. "No, Bella," he said. "I have to say I don't ever think you're a lamp." He paused, then added, "Or any other kind of inanimate item of household decor. I hope that doesn't disappoint you in any way." He was staring at her, his cigarette forgotten, his expression a combination of confusion, concern and amusement. "May I ask," he continued tentatively, "the reason behind this particular question?"
As Bella returned to her senses she tried not to laugh. "I'm so sorry," she said, stifling a giggle. "Ignore me. I was thinking aloud."
"Uh-huh. And tell me, do you often think things like that? Is this particular thought a recurring one?"
"You're going to have me admitted, aren't you? You're imagining me in a straight jacket right now, I can tell."
The corners of Edward's lips crept upwards. "The idea crossed my mind," he admitted.
"I understand," Bella said solemnly, and as he caught her eye she couldn't help the giggle that escaped. His laughter joined hers, pleasantly low and husky, making her feel as warm as the bricks against her back.
"You're an odd one,you know that?" He said, leaning a few inches towards her so his shoulder brushed hers. "You're definitely one of a kind, Bella Swan."
"Hmmm, you've said that before," Bella noted.
"And I'm sure I'll have reason to say it many times again." He glanced back at her again, his face openly curious. "Tell me why some lucky man hasn't snatched you up yet?"
Bella usually had many flippant responses to these sorts of questions. But for some reason, right now with Edward's shoulder inches away from hers, they had all fled her mind. "I don't know," she mumbled, suddenly embarrassed.
Edward looked apologetic. "Sorry," he said quickly. "I was being intrusive -"
"No, that's okay." She floundered for a few moments, then settled on a shrug. "Guess I'm a little too unique."
"No such thing," Edward said firmly, nudging her foot with his own. "And if anyone says otherwise," he added somewhat abruptly, "they don't deserve you."
One of Tanya's sisters appeared then, a crease in her brow that smoothed away when she spied them. Or rather, when she spied him. Bella apparently didn't register on her radar. "Edward," she said. "Tanya's been looking everywhere for you. She needs you inside, your parents are getting ready to leave."
"Thanks Kate - tell her I'll be right there."
The sister disappeared back through the door. Edward guiltily began to stub out the cigarette he'd hastily hidden behind his back when she had appeared.
"Duty calls," Edward said to Bella. "But this conversation isn't over." He brushed past her, heading towards the side door. "I want to hear all about your secret second life as a lamp later on," he said. "I expect it will be the highlight of my day."
"Oh jeez. Now the pressure's on."
"It is. So you'd better make it good."
.
Bella went back inside not long after Edward, bypassing the living room where the handful of remaining guests were still gathered, and heading upstairs to check on Elizabeth before she was dragged into cleaning up duty. Elizabeth was fast asleep, sucking on one plump thumb, her dark blonde curls pressed damply against her neck. Bella pulled off her socks and adjusted her blankets, and was heading out of the room when she heard Tanya's voice approaching, sounding supremely pissed off.
"... how rude you were being to Max."
"I wasn't being rude, Tan. I just told him I didn't want to talk about business at my daughter's birthday party." Edward's voice followed, accompanied by their footsteps ascending the staircase.
"You were rolling your eyes at him, Edward. Everybody saw. I was mortified, and don't think Irina didn't notice it either, because she did -"
"Oh she did not, she didn't notice anything but her wine glass all day."
"Excuse me?" Tanya snapped.
Bella ducked back into Elizabeth's room. The last thing she wanted was for Tanya to see her and accuse her of eavesdropping.
There was silence. Then Edward spoke. "I was joking, Tan," he said tiredly.
"Hilarious," Tanya said coldly. They seemed to have halted near the top of the staircase.
Bella heard Edward sigh. "Look, I'll meet him for lunch or something one day this week. It's no big deal." His tone was conciliatory.
"That's the thing, Edward, it is a big deal. Literally. That sort of exposure is exactly what his company needs right now after that disaster with their shares a few months back, and he would be willing to pay you very well for the space -"
"Yes, so I'll discuss it with him at some point this week -"
"I just don't think you're taking this seriously, Edward, this is an opportunity for you, as well."
Edward sounded frustrated, all traces of his apologetic tone gone. "I'd have thought," he said tightly, "seeing how much time you spend dipping into them, that you would be aware that our bank accounts don't require us to trawl our friends and family for business -"
Tanya's voice was cutting. "Must you be so crass?"
"Oh, I'm sorry," Edward said sarcastically. "Remind me again of the correct etiquette for talking about money? We only mention it in the company of your sisters, and only when you think our bank balance exceeds theirs?"
"You're being ridiculous." Tanya's voice was cutting. "And I can't understand why you insist on making a mockery of this, you can't take anything seriously -"
"I will take it seriously Tanya." Exasperation was evident in Edward's voice. "On Monday. When I'm back at work. But right now all I'm trying to do is enjoy my day off, which is becoming increasingly more difficult -"
"Oh, and that will be my fault, won't it?"
"Right now, Tanya? Yes. It is."
Tanya's voice was a hiss. "Forgive me," she spat, "for only wanting the best for my family."
Edward sighed again. When he spoke again he sounded weary. "C'mon, Tan. Can we not fight for just one day?"
"I don't know, Edward. Can we?" Tanya's voice was icy, and her footsteps re-commenced, she seemed to be heading in the direction of the master suite. "I'm going to lie down, I'm getting a migraine. And you need to brush your teeth before you say goodbye to your parents. Your breath stinks of smoke."
There was a beat, and then Edward spoke guiltily. "I'm sorry. It was only one -"
She cut him off. "Honestly, Edward? I don't care."
.
When Bella finally left the afternoon was rapidly becoming evening, the sun sinking behind the treetops and casting long shadows across the front yard. Concealed in one of these shadows, seated cross-legged at the base of one of the towering pine trees with her headphones in her ears, was Alice. She'd changed out of the dress she'd disliked so much and back into her skinny jeans and Converse; dressed all in black and sitting still as a statue Bella almost walked right past her.
"Pretty ninja hiding spot you've got going on here," she said, pausing at the edge of the shadow. "I almost didn't see you."
Alice glanced up, tugging one of the buds from her ear."Huh?"
"Nothing. Just admiring your camouflage skills."
"Clearly they're not that great," was Alice's muttered reply, accompanied by a scowl.
Bella ignored the attitude, instead she tugged her sweater down over her wrists, tucking her hands into the fabric. "Aren't you cold out here?"
Alice scrunched her face up. "I don't want to go back in there."
"Why not? Everyone's gone. Safe to go back inside."
Alice just shrugged, and was silent.
Bella frowned. "Did something happen?"
Nothing, just another shrug.
Bella waited one long moment, and then another, and was just about to give up and go when Alice spoke, her voice a disgruntled mutter.
"Tanya wouldn't let Elizabeth open my present."
"What? Why not?"
Alice plucked at the grass near her feet despondently. "I heard her tell Dad she didn't want it opened in front of everyone, just in case I got her something inappropriate." Another scowl darkened her expression. "Like I would do that. She's my sister." She tugged at a clump of grass. "Nothing I ever do is good enough for her," she muttered.
"Who? For Elizabeth?"
"No. For Tanya."
It surprised Bella to hear that Alice cared whether or not she had Tanya's approval. And instead of making Alice appear contrary, it instead seemed to expose a hidden, vulnerable side to Alice's personality. Of course she cared about Tanya's approval - she was fourteen year old girl and Tanya was the only real mother figure she had. Thinking about this, Bella lowered herself onto a patch of grass a few feet away that was still within the sun's reach. Alice's sigh was clearly meant to express her irritation at this move, but it lacked any conviction.
"What did you get her?" Bella asked, ignoring the sigh.
"A charm bracelet."
"Cute."
Alice lifted her chin. "It has, like, extra links for the chain, so she can wear it even when she's bigger. And I can get her new charms for it every year on her birthday."
Bella knew that Alice loved her little sister, but even so the thoughtfulness of Alice's gift surprised her. She tried not to let this show, though, for fear of causing offense. She expected she wasn't the first person in Alice's life to underestimate her. "That's a really nice idea," was all she said.
"I know." Alice sounded proud. It suited her far more than the scorn her voice usually held. "I've been saving up for it for ages."
"You know, it's probably a good thing Elizabeth didn't open it with the others - you saw how overwhelmed she got. Now she can open it when it's just the two of you, when she's not distracted. Makes it more special. Like it should be."
"Yeah. I guess."
"If it's any consolation, mine wasn't opened, either." Bella had passed it on the way out, her little hand wrapped gift looking a little woeful amongst a pile of others that were clearly professionally wrapped, however also apparently hadn't been deemed extravagant enough to open in front of the photographer.
"Yeah, I know," Alice said. "I saw Tanya put it on the other pile."
"The reject pile," Bella said. "Guess it didn't make the cut. Didn't make it to the grand finale. Was it the home wrapping job? Was it the lack of designer store tag? I guess I'll never know."
Alice snorted. "Tanya's such a bitch. Like, she'd told Dad that she only wanted the gifts from family and close friends opened in front of the photographer. But that was total bullshit. She just wanted the biggest and best looking ones opened. Otherwise she would have opened mine. And she would have opened yours." Alice snapped her mouth shut abruptly, looking first embarrassed and then annoyed. "I mean," she muttered belligerently, "you're here all the time, you practically live here. You're practically family..."
"Practically," Bella agreed cheerfully, buoyed by Alice's comment.
Alice dug the toe of one shoe into the grass, looked like she was debating whether to remain silent or not, and in the end settled on asking somewhat begrudgingly, "What did you get her?"
"Nothing amazing," Bella replied. "Just something to add to her bear collection. I'm so bad with gifts, I can never think of anything original. For the last ten years I've been getting my Dad the exact same thing every birthday and Christmas - fishing gear. I don't even know if he still likes fishing."
"I get Dad ties," Alice volunteered unexpectedly. "The more hideous, the better." Then she grinned. "The best was last year for Christmas when I got him one with these cartoon dog poops on them. It was so tacky, it was fantastic." Her voice picked up pace, exposing her excitement in relaying the tale, "And oh my god, he wore it to Christmas dinner at Grandma and Grandpa Cullen's and you should have seen the look on Tanya's face. She freaked the hell out, but Dad refused to take it off. Her expression - it was like it was real poop and she could smell it. Best. Christmas. Ever."
Bella snorted. "I would have paid to see that."
Alice tilted her head, and stared at Bella speculatively. "I don't think you like Tanya," she said suddenly. Then she rolled her eyes. "You're not going to admit it of course, but I can tell."
Bella glanced over, surprised. "Oh, really?" She asked, trying to keep her voice and expression neutral.
"Uh-huh." Then after a few moments Alice added, "You're not intimidated by her. And sometimes I'm sure you're making fun of her. She can tell, too. She doesn't like you either."
"Hmmm." Bella plucked at a couple of stems of grass, hiding her face. "You're pretty perceptive, huh?"
"Not really. I mean, it's pretty obvious." Alice's brow wrinkled as she frowned. "She treats you like crap. Why do you even stay? Is it just the money? I heard Tanya complaining to Dad about how much they're paying you, she said she didn't think you were worth even a third of it."
Bella ignored the last part of Alice's statement and the glee she seemed to take in announcing it, and focused on her question instead.
"I stay because I like it," she replied. "I like the job, and I like you guys."
Alice snorted. "You don't like me."
Bella's eyebrows shot up. Alice had gone back to sullenly tugging at the grass by her feet, pulling it up in clumps. "What makes you say that?"
"Because you don't. Nobody around here does. And if I were you, I wouldn't like me."
Bella felt her brow furrow in concern. "Alice, why would I tell you I like you if I didn't?"
Alice rolled her eyes, then muttered, "I don't know, why does anyone say shit that isn't true? Cos it's bad manners to be honest."
"Do I look like I give a shit about manners?"
Alice's head shot up at this.
"Besides," Bella continued, "I think lying to people is far worse manners."
"Not around here it's not," Alice said, dropping her head back down again. "Around here no one tells the truth. Everyone pretends they like everyone else. And the more you hate someone, the nicer your pretend to be to them."
"Well, that's all kinds of fucked up."
Alice looked suddenly irritated. "You don't know anything about it," she snapped. "You didn't grow up somewhere like this, with these sorts of people. You've go no idea, and you'll never understand. You have no right to judge."
Bella was taken aback by the abrupt change in Alice's attitude. "I'm not judging anyone,' she said quickly. "But listen, just because I didn't grow up in this sort of environment doesn't mean I can't understand how difficult you're finding this -"
"Yeah it does, okay?"
"Alice, I -"
Alice jammed her ear buds back in her ears. "I've had to pretend to be nice to people I don't like all day," she snapped. "And I'm done now."
Bella sighed, and got to her feet. Alice clearly wasn't budging, and Bella was exhausted. All she wanted to do was go home, run a bubble bath and maybe eat a little cheese. Every time she thought she'd taken a step forward with Alice, she then took two huge steps backwards, and she was starting to think she should just give up, and like she had with Tanya, accept that she and Alice were never going to have a good relationship. But as she walked slowly down the driveway she hear Alice's voice in her head - If I were you, I wouldn't like me - and she couldn't escape the feeling that she just shouldn't let this one go.
.
.
.
"So," Emmett said, somewhat tensely. "What's happening here is that you have dragged me away from my long standing Thursday evening tradition of watching America's Next Top Model repeats in my boxers on the couch to tell me that you were right."
He stared at Bella stonily across the booth table. Bella returned his stare, unflinching.
"No," Bella said finally, taking a particularly long and self satisfied drink of her beer. "I dragged you away from your frankly creepy Thursday evening tradition to tell you - wait for it - I told you so."
"I fail to see the difference."
"Trust me," Bella said merrily, "it's there."
"Right." Emmett glowered at her. "So, run me through this again. You met some random girl at the playground -"
"She's not a random girl," Bella interrupted. "Her name is Jessica and she's the Greyson's nanny, and she was actually quite nice, if a little flaky - you know, drinks Starbucks, wears Ugg boots kinda girl -"
"I was under the impression those were all things you hated in a person."
Bella huffed in irritation. "No - okay, yeah, I do. But she seemed sweet and fairly harmless, and if I take her under my wing maybe I can get her to discard her overpriced sugary drinks and over-privileged white girl choice in footwear -"
"Um, hello, have you seen the colour of your skin lately? What is it you said they used to call you on the Rez? Pale-face?"
"They call everyone who's not Native a pale-face, it's their thing. Anyway, I meant she was the uber-white girl -"
"Cos you're so urban -"
"Emmett -"
"Question," Emmett continued, relentless, "you were complaining the other day about there not being any other nannies your age in the neighbourhood. Are you sure you're not making this Jessica girl up?"
"She only works for the Greysons during school holidays so I hadn't met her til now - the Greyson boys go to this uptight boarding school in New England. They have these weird Boston accents, they're kinda creepy -"
"Wow, creepy kids, flaky nanny, helluva cast of characters you've got here -"
Bella exploded. "Look, bitch, can you shut up and let me tell the damn story?"
Emmett snapped his mouth shut, and mimed locking his lips with a key.
"Thank you," Bella said sarcastically, settling back into her seat. "So, like I said, I'm at the playground with Elizabeth, and this girl Jessica comes up and introduces herself to me. She used to know Lee, who was Elizabeth's nanny before me, the one who apparently left because she couldn't go from part time to full time - or so I'd been led to believe."
"Let me guess," Emmett said drily, interrupting Bella's deliberate suspense-filled pause. "The plot twist is that she left because Tanya and Edward were assholes to her."
"Oh my God!" Bella yelled. "Why are you ruining this?"
"Why are you making such a big deal about this - again?" Emmett demanded. "I thought we were past this whole thing, I mean aren't you guys all BFF's or something now? Didn't you spend all last evening debating Quentin Tarantino films with Edward?"
"How do you know about that?" Bella demanded, abruptly sitting forward. "I didn't tell you that!"
"Edward did," Emmett revealed. "In the break room this morning. He wouldn't stop talking about you. Kinda annoying, to be honest. I go to work to get away from you."
Bella's stomach lurched in that uncomfortably familiar way. "Really?" She murmured.
Emmett's stare turned pointed. "Yes," he said. "Really. Why are you blushing?"
"I'm not," Bella said, rubbing one cheek with the back of her hand. "It's hot in here. And I'm tipsy. You know I get flushed when I'm tipsy."
"You've had half a beer." Emmett's stare was hard.
Bella squirmed. "Can I finish my story? Please?"
Emmett sighed, leaned back in the booth and made a "carry-on" gesture with his hand.
"Right. So, even though you have totally spoilered the plot twist, I'm going to tell it to you anyway. So, like, this Lee chick was only meant to be part time because Tanya was only meant to be working part time. But right from day one Tanya wasn't coming home on time, and Lee was getting into trouble at her other job cos she was always showing up late. So she went to speak to Edward about it, and apparently he was just awful to her. Like, she told Jessica that she'd never felt so unwelcome anywhere ever. And that was why she ended up leaving, because Edward made it so obvious he didn't want her there. So."
"So?"
"So - that's exactly what he was like when I first started, remember?"
"Yeah, right. But he's not like that now, is he? So I don't get the big deal."
"The big deal is that you all made me feel like I was inventing the entire situation in my head!" Bella exclaimed. "You totally had me convinced that I was making the whole thing up, that it was no big deal - and it was! Their last nanny left because of it!"
"Right, so she was piss-weak and couldn't handle a bad mood or two. So you're stronger than her and stuck it out, and here we are."
"No, that's not it, stop trying to make this something else -"
Emmett's irritation seemed genuine. "No, you stop trying to make this something else. You're just trying to start drama, and I don't get why."
Bella was stung. "I am not!" She exclaimed. "What the hell, Emmett? I was genuinely upset by the way he treated me at first, and it's - like - gratifying to know that it wasn't just me it happened to, that it wasn't something I did wrong, that it was him, and it was real and -"
Emmett sighed loudly, effectively cutting Bella off. She sat back in her seat, not wanting Emmett to see how much he'd bothered her. A tense silence settled across the table, the background noise of the bar seemed amplified, and suddenly all Bella wanted to do was leave. She felt somehow like Emmett had betrayed her. Pushing her drink away from her, she got to her feet and grabbed for her bag.
"Wait," Emmett said, reaching out and holding onto her arm. "Wait - Jeez. I'm sorry. Fuck." He scrunched his face up. "Man, I've had a shitty day. I'm not deliberately trying to piss you off, believe it or not."
"Right." Bella was hurt and unconvinced.
"Look. I'm not trying to disqualify what happened. I just - I guess I can't understand why this is such a big deal to you. So, he was an ass. But he's not now."
Bella shrugged. "I told you. It made me feel really shitty, and really worried that I'd done something wrong. And everybody made me feel like I invented the whole thing. I don't make up drama. I'm not one of those girls. And I'm both offended and surprised that you think I am."
"I know you're not," Emmett said quickly. "It was just - hard for me understand, I guess. I only know Edward from work. He's always been this awesome, genuine guy. But I guess it's like what you said - I know him from work. You know him from home."
"Hmmm." Bella eyed Emmett with some concern. "Are you okay? Is everything alright with you and Lucy?"
"We're fine," Emmett said, a little brusquely. "I'm fine. I'm just under the pump at work. We have a new account and it's complicated."
"Do you... Do you really go to work to get away from me?"
Emmett rolled his eyes. "No, you twit. You know you're my best friend." He hesitated, then said, "it was just sort of weird having Edward talking about you. You're meant to be these two completely separate parts of my life."
Bella was pleased. "Am I really your best friend?"
Emmett's cheeks flushed. He shrugged. "I dunno. I guess, yeah. God, don't go and get all weird on me about this."
"I'm not!" Bella insisted. "I just - I mean, you're my best friend."
"Well, this is touching."
They both looked up to see Proust girl standing above them, a look of unveiled derision on her face, holding their bowl of deluxe fries. Emmett's face turned an impossible shade of red, but Bella just laughed.
After Proust girl had left, Bella asked Emmett through a mouthful of potatoes, cheese and bacon, "So, my question to you is this: In light of recent information, should I assume that until I arrived Edward had an irrational hatred of all nannies - possibly some sort of deep-seated psychosis - but then I came along with my Mary Poppins carpet bag of wit and general awesomeness and amazing taste in shoes and melted his bitterness away and finally allowed him to trust someone else with the care of his children?"
Emmett blinked at her very slowly, and after a long pause, just said, "you're fucking bat shit crazy, Bella Swan."
Bella grinned. "I'm going to take that as a yes."
