The One That Got Away
Chapter 10
Twilight, where Edward and Bella will always be in love, belongs to Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended.
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Alice paced back and forth across her office on amazingly high and incredibly fashionable heels. Outside the windows of her 6th floor suite, the sun shone brightly over New York City's most famous landmarks, but she was too absorbed in her phone call to notice. Jasper stood, enjoying the view - of his wife and the landmarks - while he waited to take her to lunch.
"Well, yes, I certainly appreciate that you'd like Ms. Smith to appear on the Today show, but she really does not plan to do any press appearances." She paused to listen. "Yes, I know that as a new author she would benefit from the exposure, but trust me, I've discussed this with her, and as of right now, she isn't budging."
Jasper rolled his eyes, knowing that Alice was leaving the door open for the possibility that "Ms. Smith" might consider an appearance in the future.
"Does the dedication mean that the book is about the one who got away? What a good question! You're know, you're very perceptive, I've always said that about you." Alice smirked. "I'll be sure to pass your questions along to the author, and if anything changes, I promise you'll be the first to know. Bye now!"
Jasper walked to her and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "You're such a manipulator. "
"I manipulated you into falling for me, didn't I?"
He smiled. "It didn't take any work to get me to fall in love with you, Alice." He kissed her again, this one a little longer and a little deeper. "But seriously, sweetheart. You know Bella isn't going to give in on this one. If she wanted people to know she wrote the book, she wouldn't have used a pen name."
"She wouldn't be the first famous author to write under a pen name and then admit to it later." She broke into a wide grin. "We'll see how it goes."
"Have you heard from her?"
"Not since the first day she got there. I've sent her some emails, but she hasn't answered, which means she must be writing. Oh Jasper, she sounded so pleased with the house. Remember how happy we were there?"
He remember exactly how happy they were, and thought that he'd have to talk to Liam about letting them stay there again soon.
"Ready for lunch?" Jasper laughed as Alice danced her way across the room. "You're awfully happy today. What's up?"
"I just have a really good feeling." Although she didn't often hide things from her husband, she didn't tell him about the email she'd gotten from Bree Tanner that morning. They were getting to be regular pen pals.
Dear Ms. Hale,
Thanks for writing back to me. We know you can't tell us anything about Ms. Swan and her lost love (doesn't that sound way better than boyfriend?) but we think we've found him. He's a veterinarian in Philadelphia, and we're going to email him to see if he's the right one. We're pretty sure he is, based on pictures we found (he is amazingly hot!). Anyway, you've been so great, we just wanted to let you know what we're doing!
Bree, Kim, Claire, and Rachel
Alice took Jasper's arm and squeezed it. "Something special is going to happen today, I just know it!"
-TOTGA—
Bella reached the puppy first, but Jenks and the driver of the car were right behind her. She knelt down and scooped the puppy into her lap, being careful not to touch the clearly broken leg. Tears ran down her face as she whispered comforting words in the puppy's silky ear. He looked into her eyes, and despite his injuries, he licked her hand. Her heart melted.
"I'm so sorry, I couldn't avoid him" said the young man. He looked horrified at the damage he caused.
"No, it was me, I looked the wrong way and I didn't see you." She looked around frantically. "Jenks, is there a vet nearby?"
Jenks was upset, but relieved that the puppy wasn't hurt worse than he appeared to be. If truth be told, he was just as concerned about Bella and her injuries as he was about the puppy. "Yes, Dr. Edward is right down the street." They all turned to see Matilda squeeze through the door and run to her puppy.
"It's OK, Matilda" Jenks said, rubbing her ears as she snuffled at the pup. "Your wee one will be just fine."
Bella tried to stand, holding the puppy, but winced at the pain in her knees.
"Miss Bella, you're hurt too" Jenks said. The driver looked at Bella's knees and at the puppy's leg, and looked like he might pass out himself.
"I'll be fine. We just need to get this little one to the vet. Will you show us where he is?"
Jenks pulled the door of the shop closed so the other pups wouldn't run out, then led the way down the block with Matilda, Bella, the puppy, and the driver. Bella tripped a little and struggled to keep hold of the dog.
"Let me hold him" said the driver. "I'm Jacob…Jacob Black. Please let me help." He started to take the puppy from her arms, but backed off when Matilda growled at him.
"It's OK, Matilda, he didn't mean to hurt him." Bella's voice calmed the anxious mamma dog. Jenks couldn't help but smile, despite the situation.
"Is it far?" Bella shifted the puppy and kept walking.
"No" said Jenks. "Just a few more doors." He was relieved to see the familiar sign for "Dr. E. Cullen." Bella, her hands full of puppy, didn't notice it.
Jenks pushed open the door, and everyone filed into the clinic, Matilda leading the way.
-TOTGA—
Edward stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist. He took another one and rubbed his hair, leaving it spiky.
He'd been called out to one of the local farms in the middle of the night by a concerned owner. A prize mare was having trouble giving birth to her first foal and it looked at first like there could be a real problem. The foal's front legs appeared, just as they should, but the head and shoulders didn't follow right away. Edward thought he might have to reposition the foal, but he kept the mare calm and gave her some time to relax. Before long, she delivered the foal without any more trouble. Edward stayed for a couple of hours, just to make sure everything was OK, and desperately needed a shower and maybe a couple of hours of sleep by the time he got home.
He dressed quickly in clean jeans and a button down shirt. Just as he sat down on the bed, he heard furious pounding at the front door. His first thought was that there was a problem at the clinic, but wouldn't Tanya have called him if that was the case? He checked his phone, and sure enough, there were two missed calls that came in while he was in the shower. He pulled his shoes on and hurried down the stairs.
He yanked open the door. "Jenks, what are you doing here? What's wrong?"
"I'm sorry, Dr. Edward. One of Matilda's puppies got out into the street and got hit by a motorist." He frowned. "Tanya is trying to help him. She called you…"
"I know, I'm sorry. I was in the shower and didn't hear the phone." Edward tucked his phone in his pocket and grabbed his keys from the small table by the door. He turned to Jenks as they walked to the clinic door. "How badly injured does he seem?"
Jenks said "I'm sure his leg's broken, but other than that I can't tell."
"Was he awake after it happened?"
"Yes" Jenks said. "He was licking her hand while we walked here but he didn't make a sound." Edward didn't ask who the hand belonged to. "Matilda's come with us, she wouldn't leave him."
Edward smiled at the thought of the mamma dog but kept quiet. He didn't want to say anything about broken legs or anything else until he knew whether there were other injuries.
Through the open door of the exam room he could see Tanya, her unmistakable red hair pulled up in a bun on top of her head. The puppy was lying still on the table, and even before he got in the room Edward could see the leg that was obviously broken. Matilda stood next to the table, poking her nose over the edge.
"Excuse me, Matilda" Edward said, giving her a quick pat before moving to the sink to wash his hands. A tall man was standing by the wall, shifting nervously from one foot to another.
"Is he going to be OK? I didn't mean to hit him." The man looked at Jenks. "I would have hit her if I didn't swerve but I never meant to hit the puppy."
Edward could tell the man was upset, but his priority was to deal with his patient. "I'll be able to tell you more once I examine him." He thanked Tanya, and began to run his hands over the puppy. "Hey, little one. It's OK, just hold still." He examined the leg, and then began to check for other injuries, talking quietly the whole time. "You sure did a number on that leg, little guy. But your mamma is here to look out for you." Matilda whined as though she understood him.
Edward continued his examination. "Eyes look good, no bleeding from the mouth that might signal internal injuries." He felt the abdomen and was pleased. "It looks as though the leg might be the worst of it. The next thing is to determine whether he needs surgery or whether we can splint or cast it." Edward mused that Emmett was right about Tanya. She worked well around him, moving the puppy carefully without being asked into just the right position for Edward to examine the leg.
"Jenks, I'm afraid it's going to need surgery, but he should have a complete…" Edward looked up when another person walked into the room. He found himself staring into chocolate brown eyes, a heart-shaped face, and chestnut hair that he knew by touch. He swore his heart stopped. "Bella…."
Across the room, Bella Swan stopped dabbing at the blood on her hands, and fainted.