AN: Sorry for the delay: vacation, ending my work at Big Bad, starting a new job, and school have all been kicking my arse. I re-wrote this chapter too. Huge thanks to Poo235, JadedandBoring (check out her stories), Littlesecret84, and Isabel Grace for all of their help.
I own nothing but bags under my eyes.
Chapter 9: Deer Me
The sun was shining through the window as Bella struggled to open her eyes. She snuggled into the goose down comforter and fluffy pillows. I feel like a princess in this bed. I never want to leave. Closing her eyes, Bella managed to fall back asleep. She had been tired and it had taken her awhile to fall asleep the previous night; throwing up had not helped.
An hour later Bella woke up again. Her inappropriate feelings for Edward were still causing her stomach to turn, but she tried to push those feelings aside. She put on a bra, brushed her teeth, and went to find Edward. He didn't respond when Bella knocked. He must be downstairs. Making her way to the staircase, she could hear voices from the kitchen. Normally she wouldn't think anything of it, but she heard her name and it piqued her interest.
"She's smart, beautiful, and caring. We really don't see what is impeding you. You have always been a go-getter. Well, you used to be before you gave up on everything. I thought you were trying to be more ambitious?"
"I can't do anything right now. She's my boss for the next few months and then she could be my coworker. Sam wants me to join his team…"
Bella leaned against the banister and strained to hear what was being said.
She heard Edward's voice, stern and angry. "Don't talk to your lawyer. I'll figure it out."
Unsure what she was overhearing, Bella came barreling down the steps loudly. She made her way into the kitchen and saw Esme, Carlisle, and Edward sitting around the table in the breakfast nook.
"Morning!" she cried a little too enthusiastically. Edward and his parents looked up at Bella and smiled.
"Morning, sweetheart. Can I get you some coffee?" Esme asked, getting up and closing her robe over her dark green silk men's-style pajamas.
"No, I don't drink coffee, but do you have orange juice?" Bella asked.
"Yes, of course. What can I make for you? Both Carlisle and Edward had omelets," Esme called out as she fiddled around in the fridge, putting various ingredients on the counter.
"Mom, can you pour me a glass too? No pulp," Edward said, looking up. His eyes met Bella's and he winked.
"Edward, you have two feet. Get your own juice." Esme shook her head as she began to crack eggs into a bowl. "Bella, what do you want in your omelet? Cheese? Tomatoes? Mushrooms? Onions?"
Bella didn't recall saying she even wanted an omelet, but she shrugged it off. "Cheese. Just cheese." Her eyes went straight to Edward, who was now standing up. In his grey sweatpants, Bella couldn't help but notice the bulge around his crotch. Her eyes travelled up and noticed the ripples of his abs showing through his white tank top.
He handed her a cold glass of orange juice and then began pouring one for himself. "Bella, take a seat. We were discussing how Ben Bernanke has written papers on Japanese economic malaise and yet he is steering the US in a similar direction."
Carlisle choked on his coffee.
It was so blatantly obvious that they had changed the topic of conversation on her account, but she didn't let on that she knew this. Instead, Bella sat down in the empty seat and Edward followed, sitting next to her. Her eyes met Edward's, and he raised his eyebrows.
Bella took another sip of juice. "Wow! That is some breakfast conversation. I think if we continue with this zero-interest rate policy we could easily fall down the same path as the Japanese," Bella said. She then took another sip of her juice and noticed Carlisle winking at Edward out of the corner of her eye.
"Bella, that is very astute. You have a great head for business," Carlisle commented.
"Here you go, dear." Esme presented a plate with a huge omelet garnished with fruit in front of Bella before taking her seat back at the table.
"Thank you."
Bella ate her omelet and enjoyed the conversation around her. She felt so comfortable around the Cullens. They were so open and welcoming. Meeting his parents helped, but there were still some gaping holes in his life, like what did he do between college and working for Big Bad?
A few hours later, both Edward and Bella were freshly showered and packing up Edward's car, a Volvo C70 convertible. Ever the gentleman, Edward began loading the luggage into the small trunk.
"Can you stuff those big suitcases into such a small space?" Bella asked, watching him trying to figure out the optimal way to load their luggage.
"Believe me, I'm an expert at stuffing oversized items into tight spaces. The tighter, the better," Edward replied. She was sure he wasn't referring to luggage.
True to his word, Edward was able to fit all of their luggage into his small car. Bella never imagined that a Volvo could be such a sexy car, but somehow the hardtop convertible with Edward stroking the gear shift was one of the sexiest things she had witnessed.
His car hugged the curves of the historic roads of Connecticut. She didn't want to broach any topic with Edward as they all seemed to lead back to the one conversation she didn't, or rather, couldn't have. Instead of talking, Edward fooled with the radio as Bella stared out the window, enjoying the scenery.
Her eyes grew heavy as she leaned against her seatbelt and fell asleep, her dreams consisting of a naked Edward doing naughty things to her in her bed with her vibrator, George.
"Mmmh, Edward. Ohh, George. That's the spot," Bella moaned still half asleep. Her eyes began to flutter open as she awoke from her sensual dream. Looking over at Edward, Bella saw a huge grin over his face.
"What's so funny?" she asked.
"Who's George?" he responded.
Bella swallowed. She knew she could either be honest with Edward or she could pretend that he was crazy and what she had said out loud was nonsense.
"I don't know what you are talking about," Bella replied in denial of her nocturnal admissions. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked down, a tell-tale sign of lying.
Edward looked over at her and noticed that her face was a soft pink hue. His eyes turned back to the road. "I didn't realize you had a boyfriend."
"I don't."
Suddenly Bella felt the car screeching to halt before spiraling 360 degrees. Gripping the side of the seat, Bella saw her life flash before her eyes. Her childhood, graduation, working, spending time with friends – it was devoid of one thing, love.
As the car screeched to a halt, Edward's arm instinctively outstretched to hold Bella back from hitting the windshield; the gesture was unnecessary since Bella was wearing her seatbelt, but the act caused Edward's hand to brush against her breast. Not that Bella was thinking about Edward's hand on her breast, her eyes were now watching the brown blur galloping into the woods.
Panting and breathless, Edward took his hand from across Bella's chest and moved it to her thigh and leaned in closer to her. "We almost hit a deer. It came out of nowhere. I should have been watching the road. Did you see that? We could have… Are you okay?"
With her heart still in her throat Bella turned to face Edward, her eyes meeting his. She couldn't speak, but she leaned in closer to him as she realized the gravity of what had just occurred. Not thinking and just acting on pure instinct, her lips closed in on his, lightly pressing on his lips. Edward reacted and pulled her lips closer to his, enveloping her in his mouth. Bella stopped trying to fight and gave in. Edward held her face in place as he continued to explore her mouth. Hello, Vasco DeGama! Bella welcomed Edward's exploration and kissed him back.
Out of air, they both pulled away simultaneously this time. Edward turned back to the steering wheel, pausing for a few moments before slowly starting the powerful engine. Bella leaned back into her seatbelt and pressed her head against the window, turning her eyes away from Edward. The drive continued in silence.
As Edward drove, Bella sat there wallowing in emotions that ran the gamut from anger to elation. She had felt something; she had never felt something so strong in a kiss and even a half hour after the deer incident, her heart was still pounding in her chest. She pondered if now would be the best time to approach him; he would be caught off guard and might be more forthcoming with information. She knew if the tables were turned that she was far too wound up in her emotions to have her filter turned on.
"Edward, where were you between graduating college and starting at Big Bad?"
"Umm, how about I tell you when we stop for lunch? I don't need another distraction while driving," he replied without turning his eyes from the road.
So he is going to tell me something about him after all. Bella watched the road and looked for signs indicating places they could stop for lunch. She looked over at him, no longer able to bear the silence.
"What's with all of the mystery? Did you kill a man or something?"
Edward leaned his head back and laughed. "No, I didn't kill a man. You've been listening to Johnny Cash too much."
Bella thought about his answer for a moment. Edward was great at deflecting. The comments she overheard this morning before breakfast still didn't make sense. Most people she knew loved to talk about themselves but then, Edward was never forthcoming with much information about himself.
"So you like country music?"
"I like almost all kinds of music except for anything too religious and anything that promotes violence."
"Was that so hard, Edward Cullen?"
"What was so hard?" Edward glanced down at his crotch, before returning his eyes back to the road.
"Sharing a little tidbit of information about yourself. It isn't a crime to let people get to know you."
"Lunch?" Edward pointed to a sign indicating a diner.
"Sounds good, but lunch goes on the corporate card."
A few minutes later Edward pulled into a roadside diner. It was one of those places frozen in time, where the waitresses wore dresses with aprons and pointy glasses. Often, they went by the name Laverne or Flo. The pair grabbed a booth toward the back of the restaurant. After ordering, Bella propped her elbow on the Formica and chrome table, resting her chin in her hand.
"Okay, so where were you? What's the big secret?" She didn't understand what all the secrecy was about. She got that she and Edward were from very different worlds. Seeing his parents' house proved that, but what else was he hiding?
"No, I want to hear more of your theories. Come on. Then I'll tell you."
Bella pursed her lips together as she thought. "You developed some type of addiction and went to rehab?"
"Good one. What kind of addiction?"
"Drugs? No. Alcohol? No, I've seen you drink. Sex? Hmm… you're a sex addict like Mulder from the X-Files."
"Not quite. Keep going."
Before she could say anything, the waitress interrupted them and they ordered their lunch. When she left, Bella continued guessing.
"Peace Corps?"
"No, I don't rough it."
"You don't rough it. So that rules out volunteering in third world countries. You did Teach for America?"
"Too respectable."
"You channeled your inner Tom Cruise and served cocktails at a resort in the Caribbean?"
"My inner Tom Cruise? I think not."
"Ugh, Edward, I give up. Just tell me already."
"So, The Reader's Digest version is that I was in Europe."
"Why are you so secretive about that? Lots of kids go backpacking in Europe after graduation."
"I had a falling out with my parents shortly before graduation. I stayed long enough to get my degree and then I fled for Europe. I stayed there for a few years. I thought that there was nothing for me at home."
Bella looked into his eyes; they were heavy and sad looking, not able to focus on her. She looked down and realized that as he was talking he was shredding his napkin into little pieces. "Is that all? Europe. You were in Europe for a couple of years."
He continued. "Yeah, Europe. I went everywhere."
"I had a bunch of friends who did that. They took huge backpacks and stayed in hostels, took the trains everywhere on some Europass. Is that what you did?"
"No, I already told you I'm not one for roughing it. I stayed in hotels, spent most of my time drinking and partying."
Bella's eyes and mouth widened; Edward surely didn't seem like a party boy. She tried to imagine him partying like Paris Hilton would. Often when she worked long days she wished if she won the lottery she could lead a life of leisure. Why would anyone choose to leave such a lifestyle? "So why'd you come home?"
The waitress set their food down on the table. Edward motioned for Bella to eat. "I don't want to talk about that. I had to. I had no choice but to return home. I blinked my eyes and soon I was working for Big Bad."
Bella put half of her grilled cheese sandwich down on the plate and narrowed her eyes. "Well, Edward, thank you so much for sharing, but you are definitely hiding something."
"Yeah, so what if I am?" Edward shrugged and took a big bite of his cheeseburger. The silence as he chewed was palpable, but Bella was anxious to hear more.
"You dated an heiress and it led to some big scandal?"
Edward continued to chew and neither denied nor confirmed anything.
"You dated Paris Hilton?"
"What?" Edward said with his mouth full of half-chewed meat. "I didn't date Paris Hilton."
Bella crinkled her nose. That is so disgusting, but him talking with his mouth full proves he's human.
"So, who'd you date?"
"I didn't date any heiress when I was in Europe. Jeez, woman."
"So, Europe is the big secret?"
"It's the part I feel like sharing."
Aha! There is more!
Bella nodded and decided if he wasn't going to share anymore, perhaps he could at least tell her more about his travels. "So Europe. I've always wanted to go to Europe. Where did you go in Europe?" It was easier to start with a lighter question. She didn't want to interrogate him.
"I'll take you one day." Edward's automatic response contained desires even he wasn't ready to come to terms with. "Uhh… London for a while, then France. I spent a while in Cannes, bummed around the film festival. I then spent some time skiing in the Alps. Summered around Lake Cuomo then headed down to the rest of Italy. Amsterdam the longest," he said as he rattled off the list quickly. Bella couldn't help but think that his newfound chatter was intentional. Perhaps he was trying to hide his initial response.
Bella nodded her head. Amsterdam made sense. He must have smoked weed and hung out in the red-light district. The thought of the city reminded her of that famous movie.
"Do they really call quarter pounders Royale with cheese?"
Edward responded with a deep seated laugh. "I love that about you. You take one subject and completely twist it around into something hilarious."
She really didn't comprehend what he was saying. He loved her humor? He loved her? She thought about his Johnny Cash comment. "Funny, I could say the same thing about you?"
Edward placed his hand on top of hers. "Could you now?"
Looking down, Bella quickly pulled her hand out from underneath his. She liked her body parts being under his, but she wouldn't allow her mind to travel down that path. Instead she switched her thoughts to his current position at Big Bad. Without any transition she blurted out, "So, how did you come about getting into the rotational program at Big Bad?"
"My dad plays golf with the CEO and he sort of helped me. Well, he at least forwarded my résumé to HR."
This hadn't surprised Bella; she had quickly learned from living in New York that more often than not, it was about who you knew and not what you knew. "Well, I'm sure you impressed HR. You're very good at what you do. You have a very keen sense of business. Not that I'm not telling you anything you don't know."
Edward nodded. Bella continued, "So, you used connections to get your foot in the door. You are here because of your work effort not because of who your dad plays golf with."
"I hadn't really thought about it like that." Edward mumbled, looking down at the worn Formica table.
Looking at him, she didn't resent him for using his connections to get to where he was. It was obvious from his work product that Edward was intelligent and belonged at Big Bad. She didn't resent him. She wanted to know more, but what he said would have to suffice.
Bella opened her mouth to respond, but she wasn't sure how and quickly shut it. She went back to finishing her lunch and whipped out her corporate card to pay the bill for both of them. After signing for the check, the pair walked out in silence. Edward opened the passenger car door for her. Bella didn't protest.
As Edward took his seat, Bella looked over at him. Go on, wimp. Say it. "Edward, I think you are pretty fantastic. Thank you for sharing a little bit more about yourself with me. I liked learning more about you."
He placed his hand over hers. "Thank you for listening to me." This time Bella didn't pull her hand away.
They continued their drive to Merit Ridge in silence but instead of being awkward, it was comfortable. Edward kept one hand on the wheel and the other on top of Bella's hand.
Edward pulled up to the front of the hotel section and quickly sped around to open Bella's door. He then went and retrieved their bags from the trunk. Bella waited for Edward to finish parking the car before checking in. She looked at her hand, thinking about how Edward's had been resting on it only a few moments ago. She missed his touch. That's odd. Missing someone's touch? I never felt this way about Jake, though Jake had the hands of a mechanic. They were rough and he always had grime under his fingernails.
The lobby of Merit Ridge's hotel had a rustic look to it with exposed wood beams in the ceiling, but thankfully there were no dead animal heads hanging on the walls.
Bella felt a tap on the shoulder and turned around. "You didn't have to wait for me."
"I wanted to," she said softly as she wheeled her suitcase up to the check-in counter.
Bella approached the check-in counter first. She was handed her room assignment and keys – 214. She waited for Edward to check-in. Secretly she hoped they were assigned rooms near one another for many reasons. First, for professional reasons - it would be helpful for them to be in close proximity to finish team assignments. Second, she hated these corporate events where she had to push her introverted personality to the side and pretend to be an extrovert. Third, she was curious to see if that kiss they had shared was a by-product of adrenaline or something else.
Edward returned to her and held up his folio containing his keys. "216. You?"
Bella bit down on her lip and raised an eyebrow. "214."
"Nice."
The two of them walking side by side, pulled their bags to their adjacent rooms. As they both entered their rooms, they each wore huge grins on their faces.
AN: You know the drill – review get a teaser (It's very Pavlovian). I also post teasers on Fictionators and on PictTease both post on Mondays.
Oh and I am doing something for Fandom Gives Back.
