A/N - Hi, everyone! So... I know it's not Friday, but I have a big event tomorrow, so I thought I'd post this sooner rather than later! I will be answering ALL reviews next week, including the ones from weeks past. Until then, have a great Thursday, Friday, Saturday (and Sunday comes afterwards) ;) Leave some love!

Chapter Eight

Secret: In my opinion, men and women can never, truly, be "just friends". Exhibit A:

After our truce, Edward and I inexplicably became friends. Well, maybe it wasn't so inexplicable, since our best friends were dating. It was really weird, actually. Emmett and Rosalie were a confirmed item, and Alice and Jasper were, of course, still married, which meant that Edward and I were effectively the only singletons on the plane. In fact, we were the only two people who weren't partnered up with someone within the flight crew.

For this reason, among others, Alice seemed to think that Edward and I were destined for each other. I mean, only in her little world of Martha Stewart-y, chick flick-ish perfection would this be a completely obvious conclusion.

Apparently not, though. Because as we'd been getting along like the best of friends, I'd begun to notice that Edward and I were acting a little chummier than "just friends" usually did. For instance, I noticed that he'd begun to wait for me after everyone else had gone home, and walked me to my car – like anything was going to happen to me in an airport parking lot. Still, it was sweet. I in turn – under Vivian's mischievous influence, no doubt – had begun baking for him. It was my Sunday night hobby, but now I actually had somebody I wanted to bake for – every day of the week.

I was in trouble, and I knew it.

Brain launched an offensive against Vivian, creating a list of pros and cons as it became clear that Edward's asking me out was inevitable.

Pros:

He was hot

I already knew we had chemistry

He was a good guy

He was funny, interesting, and smart

I felt safe with him, even when I thought the plane was crashing

If we were going out, we could finish what we had started in that bathroom, and I probably wouldn't get fired.

But there was the rub.

Cons:

He was basically the son of the owner of my employer, Cullen Air

I'd already received a severe warning and been put on probation the last time we'd had relations.

Essentially? As much as Flyward was perfect boyfriend material, I didn't want to find myself out of a job.

I communicated my concerns to Vivian, but she was highly unimpressed. Especially when Edward asked me out, sooner than I had anticipated.

He'd caught me after work, about two months after our second meeting. He had suggested that we stop for ice cream on our way home – it was a Friday night in June, the air was warm, and the stars were out. How could I refuse?

I should have known something was up when, instead of grabbing our gelato and heading back to the car like normal people, Edward asked me to take a walk with him. He was lucky that it was such a nice night, and that our little gelato place happened to be on the edge of a park. We strolled along the path, not having much scenery, as the faint light from the street lamps didn't do much to illuminate the flowerbeds lining the walkway.

I shivered in the light breeze, and was surprised to find myself leaning into him. I was even more surprised to find his warm hand around mine.

"Bella," he stopped, and I stared determinedly at my coffee gelato. "There's something I wanted to ask you."

"Mmhmm," I mumbled to my gelato. His fingers gently caught my chin, and tilted it upward so I had no choice but to look at him.

"With your permission," he said quietly "I'd like to take you to dinner tomorrow night. On a date."

I opened my mouth to say something, but I just closed it again. What could I possibly say? I think you're amazing, and hot and all that, but oh, gee, last time you nearly got me fired? Oh, yeah. That was a winner.

"Obviously, I didn't want to rush things, considering the, um, circumstances under which we met," he said diplomatically. "After our truce…well, I've really enjoyed getting to know you, and well," he sighed, shaking his head before looking down at me again. "I can't seem to get you out of my head."

Vivian cheered. Brain dithered. I was just one very confused, stumbling Bella.

"Oh," was what I said.

"I wanted to wait to ask you out, to do this right, and at this point, I didn't think I could or should wait any longer. So, Bella, may I take you out to dinner tomorrow?"

"I'll have to think about it," I said nervously, chewing my lip. Did I want this? It was totally a chick flick-y moment, but I was sooo not Meg Ryan, or Jennifer Aniston. I didn't know that in situations such as these, you are supposed to fling your arms around the guy and have a passionate, unbridled make-out session while the camera pans a 360 degree view of it. I only did that when it looked like I was about to die in a matter of seconds. Hence the turbulence incident.

Edward smiled gently. "If the word 'yes' doesn't come immediately to mind, then I obviously overestimated my timing skills."

"Edward, I –"

"Don't worry about it, Bella. It's completely fine."

We walked back to our cars in silence, and if Vivian had had a knife, she totally would have stabbed me in the back like my own personal Brutus. Et tu, Vivian?

"You said what?" Alice howled.

I cowered behind my frappuccino. It was Shoe Saturday yet again, and I had a feeling that I wasn't going to be receiving a large portion of the shoe fund today, due to my – in Alice's eyes – grievous misbehavior.

"Do you mean to say," she thundered "that you could be shopping for the perfect date outfit right now, but instead you will be sitting home tonight with another pathetic batch of cookies?"

"Hey, I like to bake," I said, a little defensively.

"Isabella Marie Swan, if you do not accept his offer, I shall annihilate you."

"It's just…awkward, you know?" I put forward feebly. "I feel like… he's almost too nice to date. I feel like I messed everything up so much already that I'll just screw up something else. Besides, I could get fired. Possibly."

Alice softened a little. "You won't mess it up," she promised. "And you won't get fired. And furthermore, if you don't agree to go on a date with him, I will tell him that you won't date him because you're afraid of getting fired, and also because you're chicken.

"I am not chicken!"

"And what's more," she continued dangerously "I will tell him about Mike, and how he was just your drunken rebound."

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Wouldn't I?" she said evilly. "You need to move on, Bella. Mike isn't worth your time. If you're not ready for a real relationship, at least have some fun."

I hung my head with shame, thinking how even after all this time, I had been known to think of Mike and TBJ…the two people I hated most, and who, as far as I knew, were still together.

"Do it," Alice advised, more gently now. "Give Flyward a chance. Prove to me that you're over Mike."

"I'm over him," I declared, thinking with some small measure of guilt of the box underneath my bed that still held his things and pictures, the facebook messages and emails that I could never bring myself to delete.

Alice handed me her phone.

"Fine," I snapped, dialing his number.

"Hello?" I felt my stomach drop when he answered, feeling vaguely uneasy.

"Hi, Edward, this is Bella."

"Bella! I didn't recognize the number."

"Oh, yeah…I'm on Alice's cell," I explained awkwardly. "Listen, I was calling to say that I'd love to go out with you tonight, if it isn't too late to RSVP."

Alice gave me an enthusiastic thumbs up. I flipped her the bird.

"Oh!" he sounded genuinely surprised, making me feel even worse. "Well, actually, something came up tonight…"

"That's okay," I said hastily, while Alice shook her head with a frightening glare.

"…But, if you're free, I'd like to make a date for Wednesday."

"Wednesday?" I repeated, and Alice looked like I'd told her he had a three-headed dog "Yeah, I'm free."

"Great," he said, and he sounded like he meant it. "I'll just pick you up right after work."

"Sounds good," I said. "I'll see you Monday."

"I'll see you then."

I flipped Alice's phone shut and handed it back to her. "Happy?" Alice rolled her eyes at my sarcasm.

"Who plans a first-date for a Wednesday?" she wondered. "Whatever, this is for your benefit. You'll get some, and you can't even get fired because he's the bosses' kid."

I knew that Alice really wanted us to fall madly in love and get married. I knew that her whole 'have some fun' thing was just a ploy to get me to agree to go out with him. Still, her arguments, if insincere, were fairly convincing. She could write a book.

Morals with Alice: A Three-Part Series On How To Hit It And Quit It.