A/N: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing mix and match with her characters.

New Business Guy
Chapter 14: Double Chapter

BPOV

Back at home Sunday night after my much-needed and stress-relieving weekend with New Business, I took a shower and a nap, called my parents and Emmett, ate dinner, and unpacked my overnight bag. Basically, I did every single thing I could possibly think of to keep from checking my work e-mails.

"Just get it over with," I muttered aloud, "it'll make the week go easier."

With a sigh, I logged in and checked my inbox.

Since we'd be closed on Tuesday for New Year's Day, this week would be short like last week so I thought it best to spend the rest of the night truly getting a handle on the most pressing issues.

After reviewing all of the e-mails from last week, the number one item on my list involved two aspects: defining what new positions I needed on the operations team, and compiling a list of all the new employees the other chiefs requested so that Jasper could begin the search process.

And that was why I fell asleep with thoughts of cubicles and organizational charts and interns on my mind.

At work Monday morning, I met with Carlisle and the other chiefs to discuss the e-mails I'd sent them last night about the staffing needs.

"This is like a grocery list," Rose said with a chuckle as she looked over my e-mail.

"It certainly is," Carlisle replied as he looked at his own. "I'm glad we're getting the whole eleventh floor. I don't know where we would have put 30 new people otherwise."

Unfortunately, Carlisle was not exaggerating. I'd carefully combed through all of the e-mails and notes from last week. Combined, the other chiefs and I were requesting a total of 30 new people for our teams: 22 full-time associates and 8 interns. Like Rose said, it truly read like a shopping list:

Finance: 3 (2 associates, 1 intern)
1 accountant
1 executive assistant (to the CFO: Jake)
1 intern

Sales: 7 (5 associates, 2 interns)
3 sales reps
1 executive assistant (to the CSO: Edward)
1 administrative assistant, sales team
2 interns

I.T.: 4 (2 associates, 2 interns)
2 client I.T. associates
2 interns

Operations: 16 (13 associates, 3 interns)
2 conference marketing associates
1 graphic designer
1 copywriter
1 administrative assistant, conference marketing
1 administrative assistant, website and promotions
1 administrative assistant, operations team
1 administrative assistant, ATS (*floating* support to all groups as needed)
1 administrative assistant, HR
1 HR associate
2 operations associates (labor/maintenance/supply)
1 receptionist (11th floor)
3 interns (1 legal, 1 marketing, 1 HR)

"Well, I'm approving all 30 requests," Carlisle said. "If we're going to grow the way I want us to, and the way we need to, we need a strong team."

"I agree," Rose said. "We don't really have a choice. We have a solid foundation now, and we need to be aggressive about growth."

Edward, Jake, and I nodded in agreement and then we spent a little time talking about the teams with the biggest needs: operations and sales.

"I met with the sales team Friday," Edward said. "We're moving Whitney, Conner, and Claire to the new business team with Seth. That leaves Paul, Felix, and Ty as the only sales reps but they're solid enough to hold things together until we get some new reps in."

"Heidi's going to be very busy training everyone," Rose said as Edward chuckled.

I grinned with pride at Edward's comments: Whitney, Conner, and Claire had all been hired after my assessments and I was glad to hear that they were working out so well. The other sales team need was a team admin assistant: the current sales team admin wanted to be a sales rep and would need to be replaced after his promotion.

We talked a little more about the sales team changes until Carlisle turned the focus to my operations group.

"Bella, I like the way you've broken up marketing," Carlisle said as he stared at the list.

"Thanks," I said. "It made the most sense."

I split the marketing group into two units: Conference Marketing, which Peter would head up, then Website and Promotions which would be led by Jared.

"The two new conference marketing associates will be responsible for attending all the conferences that you want ATS to be present at," I said. "I made it clear in the job description that travel will be a big part of the job for them."

"Heidi and I have talked about rotating people from the sales team to go to the conferences," Edward said. "Someone from sales should be there at all times, and I won't be able to go to all of them."

"I like that," Carlisle said, "that'll mean we'll have a constant presence."

"Bella, why is there a floating admin job on here?" Jake asked as he too looked at the list. "I thought that was Logan? She helped us out in finance last month, and she was great. I was thinking of asking if she'd be my assistant."

"First of all, you're too late. She's already agreed to be my new operations manager," I said smugly as he chuckled, "so you can't have her."

"Will she be like Heidi on my team?" Edward asked.

"And Laurent on mine?" Rose asked.

"Yes," I replied. "I realized that I needed someone to manage all the day to day stuff. I just won't have time for it right now. Most of my time will be spent with the marketing group. She'll be the operations contact when I'm out for any reason."

"That's a great idea," Carlisle said. "What about these operations associates jobs? They're new as well."

"They'll be responsible for mail, furniture, inventory, maintenance, all that sort of thing," I said. "I decided that with so many new people, we should have one for each floor. Logan will supervise them."

"I don't know how we've never had someone for those things," Rose said, shaking her head.

"Alice and Jasper and a few others have handled a lot of that," I replied. "They've done a lot more than people realized."

"I think we need to get these positions filled as soon as we can," Carlisle said.

"I met with Jasper this morning," I said. "He says we have plenty of résumés already on file from the last round of hiring. He'd like to go through those instead of putting ads in the paper or with the online job sites because he gets swamped when we do that."

"I have no problem with that," Carlisle said. "However he wants to handle it is fine."

"I'll let him know," I said. "I take it you've all read the draft I sent with the job descriptions I made from all your e-mails?"

"I have," Jake said. "What you wrote for my team is great."

"Same for me," Edward said.

"Me too," said Rose.

"I didn't have any positions to post, but I thought your descriptions were wonderful," Carlisle said with a grin.

"Good," I replied. "I'll send the e-mail to the whole company with all the new postings when we're done here, since you have no changes. Jasper suggested that we also post them on our website."

"That's a good idea," Rose said. "Most big companies have a career and jobs area on their website. We should too."

"I agree," I replied. "I'll have Jared put them up on the site. If we don't get any interest, Jasper says he'll place ads but he doesn't think it'll be necessary. Of course, he'll have to advertise the internships because we've never done that before, but he'll get on that soon."

"I think we should actively ask the other associates if they know people who might want the jobs," Jake said. "Most of us have worked other places and we know strong people who might be lured away. You never know."

"You don't think it'll be a problem having so many people know each other, considering our recent, uh, issues?" Carlisle asked with a quick glance at the nervous-looking pair of Rose and Edward. Jake and I smiled at each other and grinned.

"No," I said. "The problem wasn't that you worked with people you knew. The problem was letting some of those people get away with doing a shitty job."

"Exactly," Jake said. "We'll stay on top of it. So long as you try to keep the people who know each other on different teams wherever possible, I don't think it'll be a problem."

"Agreed," I said. "And the bottom line is, people need to be earning their pay around here and anybody who isn't needs to get cut quickly. I'll be reviewing all the new people on my team after a month. We don't have time for dead weight anymore."

"Well said," Carlisle replied. "I think reviews after one month should be mandatory, from now on. That's plenty of time to tell whether a person will make it here or not."

"By the way," I added, "Jasper says he already has four people in mind he wants to interview for the executive assistant jobs. He'll be calling them today to try to set up interviews as soon as possible."

"That's great," Edward said. "And Bella, if you don't mind, if they can interview later this week when I'm gone, could you interview them for me? I trust your opinion. It might be best if I'm not involved until the end anyway."

"Will do," I replied as I chuckled along with the others. "I think I'll have Alice interview the candidates as well. She knows the job and what's required. Jake, you should probably be there too, unless you have someone in mind."

"That sounds fine," he said with a grin. "Since I can't have Logan."

"You can't, so get over it," I said as the others laughed.

"That's really all I have for now," Carlisle said. "I think we're on good footing."

When I stood to leave, Carlisle called out to me. I turned and walked over to stand by his desk.

"Bella, I wanted to tell you how pleased I am with the suggestions you've made for the operations team," he said. "You're adding the most new people but I think we'll need every one of them. I feel confident about that group with you leading them."

"Thanks, Carlisle," I said. "I just don't want us in a position where we're understaffed like we were when I started."

"That makes two of us," he said with a smile.

I turned to leave when a picture on his desk caught my eye, causing me to gasp.

"The baby," I whispered, placing my hand over my mouth.

Carlisle beamed with pride at the sonogram picture he'd framed. He held it up to me.

"We found out Friday," he said, unable to stop smiling. "It's a boy."

"Congratulations," I said as I stared at the tiny little baby Cullen in the image. "Have you told Caius?"

"I have," he said, still smiling. "He's beside himself, obviously."

"Oh the things he'll be teaching his grandson," I said as I shook my head while Carlisle laughed. "When's the baby due?"

"June 3," he said. "Seems like a long way away. We're so excited. It's an incredible experience. My son has given me a purpose."

I handed the picture back to him. "I'm really happy for you," I said.

"Thanks," he replied without looking up at me. I left his office with Carlisle staring at the picture. It seemed that he had more than one reason for wanting to make things right at ATS. He was attempting to create a legacy for himself and his child.

At my desk, I almost picked up the phone and called Caius right then, but I stopped myself. I missed him terribly, but I had some unease about what our relationship would be now.

At work, I had reason to interact with him, but now, with him gone, I couldn't help feeling like some sort of mistress. Yes, we were friends, but I wondered how his wife would feel about me calling and texting him. I know I wouldn't be really happy with a woman befriending Emmett and calling and texting him, no matter how much I trusted him. I really needed to think through my contact with Caius.

"Life: always something to worry about," I muttered.

Since the chiefs had no changes, I sent the two e-mails I'd prepared last night. The first outlined all 30 new positions with detailed descriptions for each one. The second outlined all the changes and promotions within my operations team specifically. Jake, Rose, and Edward each sent out e-mails explaining changes for their teams as well.

Carlisle also sent two e-mails to everyone. In the first, he tried to allay concerns about how we would pay for the expansion upstairs and all of the new positions. He provided a list of new clients we'd acquired in the last month and assured that we had leads for more.

In his second e-mail, Carlisle shared that he, Rose, and Edward would be out of the office on visits with the largest clients Wednesday through Friday. In their absence, Jake and I were to be contacts for any in-house emergencies. He also asked that everyone enjoy tomorrow's New Year holiday and return to work in 2013 both rested and motivated.

"I didn't know reading e-mails all day was one of my new job duties," Alice said when she came to my office for her review meeting.

"This is the new ATS," I said as I laughed. "We're all about being open and accountable these days."

"Maybe you and Jake are," she said with a grin, "the jury's still out on the others."

"I have one last thing to talk to you about," I said to Alice as we wrapped up our meeting. "It's not part of your job, so don't feel like you have to do it."

"I'm curious now," Alice said with a big grin.

"In the meeting this morning, Edward asked me if the operations team could take over planning those happy hours," I said. "I told him no because I don't like them."

"You of all people should like them," she said with a smirk. "That's where you and Emmett..."

"Be that as it may," I said loudly as she cackled. "Those happy hours just feel mandatory to me and I don't like that. Nobody should be pressured to hang out with the people they work with. If you want to, that's fine, but you shouldn't feel like you have to."

"I like them," Alice said. "But I guess I see your point."

"I told Edward and the others that we should have some sort of social committee," I said as her face lit up. "The social committee would plan voluntary..."

"I'll do it!" Alice shouted, practically vibrating in her seat. "I said to Jasper a long time ago that we should have something like this."

For easily the next five minutes, Alice rattled off all the things she envisioned for the ATS social committee.

"Okay. I take it you'll head up the committee," I said as she laughed. "The social committee would organize the happy hours, and Carlisle thinks they should plan the holiday party and maybe some sort of company picnic in the summer."

"I can't wait," Alice said, feverishly writing down notes.

"He says he'll provide money for the committee out of his own budget," I said. "So you'll need to meet with him about that."

She nodded and kept scribbling on her notepad.

"I also think the social committee should be in charge of getting cards and cake or flowers or gifts for birthdays," I said.

"And baby showers too," she said. "It'll be great. I can't wait."

"Don't let me twist your arm," I said sarcastically as she laughed again. "I guess I'll send an e-mail now and ask people to get in touch with you if they're interested in being on the committee."

"That would be great," she said. "I promise this won't get in the way of my work."

"I know it won't," I said. "Let me make a copy of your review now that we've signed it and then I think we're done."

I probably shouldn't have been so amused by Alice's reaction, but I was. I was grateful that she was so interested in fostering the social aspect of the company. Someone needed to.

Logan, my new operations manager, arrived next for her review meeting. She was almost as excited as Alice.

"I can't thank you enough for asking me to take this job," she said. "When you said last week that you wanted a team lead, I figured I was too young and I only have an associate's degree. Then, I read your review and I seriously almost cried. It means a lot that you trust me."

"I do," I said sincerely. "In the short time you've been here, you worked with all of the teams when you were needed. You learn quickly, you're adaptable, and you're not afraid to ask questions. That's exactly what I need and I'm happy to have you in this role."

She beamed at the praise and we talked more about the particulars of her job. I knew that for the next few months, my primary job would be working with the marketing team. In the future, I would consider getting a director for all of marketing like Peter had been before I shifted him to conference marketing, but I thought it would be in everyone's best interests for me to be the bridge between the chiefs and the marketing group for now. We had to start bringing in more clients from marketing and that had to be my initial focus.

HR and legal pretty much ran themselves, and that left my general admin group who handled most of our daily needs. As operations manager, Logan would be in charge of them, and as I explained in her review, her duties would be many:

- -supervising the to-be-hired operations associates and operations team admin, as well as the receptionists, the meeting services associate, and the floating admin.
- -coordinating the team to process all mail and packages: setting up an interoffice mail system, per the chiefs' request, and preparing and delivering all shipping, mail, and packages.
- -serving as the official ATS contact for all interns and processing all their paperwork.
- -maintaining the furniture and equipment, scheduling regular maintenance and repairs.
- -handling all vendors and approving invoices.
- -asking for volunteers for refrigerator clean-up on both floors and keeping a schedule of it.

"However you want to break up those duties between the operations associates and the team admin and yourself is up to you," I said. "But this will be your unit and you'll be responsible for them."

"I understand," she said.

"I've set aside money in the budget for you to get whatever you think you'll need," I said. "More mail carts, bins, mailboxes, whatever. "

She nodded and kept scribbling. When she finally looked up, her eyes were bright and lively.

"This is all so exciting," she said as I laughed. "Knowing that I'm helping whip this place into shape."

"I like your attitude," I said. "I'll see how you feel this time next month."

We laughed, then finished up the review.

"One more thing," I said as she stood to leave. "You and I will be meeting a lot. At least once, maybe even twice, a day. If there's any problems, don't hesitate to tell me. I can only help fix what I know about."

"Understood, boss," she said with a big grin before she turned and left the office.

Bree from human resources was next. Like Logan, she'd also been promoted: from HR admin assistant to HR associate.

"When I took the job as the admin," she said, "I hoped I'd learn enough where I could have a bigger role one day. This is what my degree is in, and I can't tell you how happy I am. I really appreciate your faith in me."

"I know you'll do well," I said as I signed her review and she went back to her desk.

I'd followed all of Jasper's recommendations for HR. Bree would primarily focus on new employee orientation as well as health care benefits meetings and workshops. The new HR associate would process payroll and leave. Jasper would supervise the group and arrange all mandatory training, like the very-much-needed sexual harassment training, among other things.

When Bree left, I had a little time before my next review meeting which was with Chelsea. I went to the break room, smiling when I saw Demetri from I.T.: he had a bottle of Mountain Dew in his hand.

It made me think of New Business, who'd be leaving Sacramento today to return home. Demetri and I chatted for a bit before I returned to my desk with my snack and drink.

I'd just sat back down at my desk when Riley, the head of the customer service team from I.T., knocked on my door.

"I know you're busy," he said as he sat down. "But I wanted to say this face to face."

"My face is listening," I said as he laughed.

"Everybody's reading about all the new jobs," he said nervously, "and I wanted to sort of put a bid in for somebody."

"For which job?" I asked.

"Operations associate," he said. "I think my little brother would be perfect for that. You said in the e-mail that it only needs a high school diploma and he's got that. He graduated high school last year and he's been working for my dad since then."

"What does your dad do?" I asked.

"He has his own painting business," he replied. "My brother's a good kid. But he didn't want to go to college like I did, or join the service, like our sister. He's young and he's figuring out what to do with himself."

"But doesn't your dad need him?" I asked.

"My dad needs to hire someone," he said tiredly. "He made my brother do this when he finished school, and he's not paying him like he would a real employee. They're at each other's throats and my mom can't take much more. I called her when I read about the operations job, and she told me to come down here and beg you."

While I processed all of this, Chelsea walked up outside of my door, I held up a finger to tell her I'd be right with her.

"I can't promise I'll hire your brother," I said to Riley. "But I'll definitely interview him. Send Jasper his résumé and copy me, and he'll set up a meeting."

"Thanks, Bella," Riley said with a beaming smile. "He's only ever worked for my dad, but we'll get something together for a résumé and I'll send it to you."

I met with Chelsea, who reiterated her desire to remain in her position as receptionist with one condition.

"I'll still be on this floor, won't I?" she asked.

"Yes," I replied. "The new receptionist will be upstairs."

"Good," she replied with relief. "Let that person deal with all those snobs on the I.T. team."

I chuckled as I signed her review and made her a copy of it. Gianna was my last review meeting for the day and I called her to see if she could come down a little early.

"Morning, boss," she said as she sat down and I laughed.

"Good morning," I replied. "I wanted to let you know that I won't be your direct 'boss' anymore."

I explained to her that she would report to Logan now and she actually seemed relieved.

"I know you'll still be over the both of us," she said. "But I have to admit, I like this arrangement a little better. We're not just friends, we're family now and I don't want things to get too awkward between us. Now, I can get mad at Logan instead of you."

We both cracked up laughing.

"I think it's for the best too," I said. "She'll be great."

"She will," Gianna said with a smile.

"I have to ask you one last time," I said. "Are you sure you don't want to apply for another job? You could do any of those admin assistant positions, and they pay more."

"I'm glad that you think so highly of me," she said. "But this job pays more than what I made at Eclipse. Liam's pays less than what he used to make, so it kind of balances out. I like my job. It's perfect for me. I've been worried that it might be phased out but..."

"Um, no," I said with a laugh. "If anything, you'll have more to do. There's meeting space up on the eleventh floor and you'll be responsible for that too. I thought about adding another meeting services position, but I felt like the floating admin person could help if you get too swamped some days."

"I think that'll work well," she said. "This job is pretty low stress and that's what I need. Liam and I really talked the other day, and we both know we've got some rough years ahead with Kim. She's getting to be a real handful and we don't need more stress."

"My sweet little Kimmie?" I remarked.

"Sweet little Kimmie, my ass," she said as I guffawed.

"I'm not bragging here," she continued, "but my daughter's gorgeous."

"She really is pretty," I said.

"The problem is she knows it," Gianna said. "And boys are starting to notice too. It's worse now that she started her period."

"Already?" I asked as I placed my hand over my mouth.

"She's twelve," Gianna said. "That's how old I was."

"I was actually eleven, now that you mention it," I said as we laughed.

"I'm not trying to turn you against her or anything," Gianna said. "Because 'sweet little Kimmie' is still in there, somewhere."

I cracked up laughing at that comment as she continued.

"I'm just pointing out that I don't need more stress. It's enough trying to keep track of her and her friends and everything she's up to. And now Liam's freaking out about the family counseling. There's enough going on at home. I don't need stress here."

"I see what you mean," I said in understanding.

I signed her review and gave her a copy while we chatted a little more. When I thought we were done, she had other plans.

"Uh, Bella, do you have a few more minutes?" she asked.

"Sure. We finished early," I replied.

"Could I use your phone?" she asked. I nodded and she picked up the work phone on my desk. I soon realized that she'd called Lizzie, the I.T. team admin.

"She's here now," Gianna said to her. "Just ask. It can't hurt. Come on."

"What's wrong?" I asked when she hung up.

"Lizzie wants to ask you something, but she's nervous," Gianna said.

"I don't bite," I said with a smirk.

"That's what I told her," she said.

"Is your riding arrangement with her still working?" I asked.

"Yes," she replied. "She's been a lifesaver."

We both turned to watch Lizzie who was already walking through the lobby toward my office. I waved her in when she reached the door.

"Hi," she said, looking absolutely terrified. I had to tease her.

"Whatever you want, the answer is no, absolutely not," I said sternly as Gianna fell out laughing.

"Ha ha," Lizzie said, smiling, as she sat down.

"You know I'm just kidding," I said. "What's going on?"

"Well, it's about the job postings you sent around this morning," she said as she quickly glanced at Gianna.

"You know someone for one of the jobs?" I asked.

"Well, I think my oldest son would be great for one of the operations associates," she said quietly. "But he's only eighteen."

"Is he done with high school?" I asked.

"Yes," she said. "He graduated last May, and he'll be nineteen soon."

"I'm sorry, but I couldn't even believe you had a son Kim's age, let alone one who's eighteen," I said incredulously. Lizzie looked younger than I did.

"I was a teen mom," she said. "I was a different person back then. I was a little wild."

"I shouldn't have said anything," I said quickly. "I'm really sorry, you just look so young."

"It's fine," she said with a grin. "I get a kick out of people's reactions. He does too. My kids changed my life. I'm grateful to have them."

"That's because she has all boys," Gianna said with a smirk. "She doesn't have to deal with anybody trying to sneak her makeup, or stuff their bra, or take her thongs out of the dryer to wear under their jeans to school."

My mouth fell open as they shrieked with laughter.

"Emmett cannot possibly know this," I said as I shook my head.

"He doesn't," she said as Lizzie clutched her stomach and continued to laugh. "Liam doesn't either."

"Let's keep it that way," I said with a chuckle.

When we settled down, I got back on topic.

"If your son's done with high school, he can apply," I said to Lizzie. "Is he working now?"

"Yes, he works at a gas station," she said. "I didn't mind at first, but they've started making him work nights and I hate it. I'm terrified he's going to get robbed or shot or something. This would be so perfect. I know he's young but he's a good kid. He'll work hard."

"Send in a résumé to Jasper as soon as you can," I said, reiterating what I'd said to Riley. "I can't promise I'll hire him, but I'll definitely interview him."

"Thanks," she said excitedly as she stood and hurriedly left the office.

"Do you think he has a chance, really?" Gianna asked.

"We just posted those jobs, but so far, only one other person has said they're interested in that one," I said. "It'll really depend on when I meet with them. But I know Lizzie's been really reliable and if he's anything like her, he'd be a great asset."

Gianna left soon thereafter and I took the time to check my schedule. I'd asked Alice to block out two hours for today's lunch with Rose as I had no idea how long I'd need for that.

The review meetings had moved fairly quickly and I wondered why Alice hadn't scheduled them all for today, but then I saw my afternoon: Carlisle had requested time for an exec team meeting about the expansion upstairs and seating arrangements, then Jasper had requested several hours to talk about the new jobs. Alice had scheduled it all, like the pro that she was.

Next, I checked the never-ending e-mails in my inbox. Apparently, Jake had been on to something when he suggested that we ask the other associates if they knew people who might be interested in the open jobs. I had e-mails from Jasper, Laurent and Victoria from I.T., and Heidi and Felix from sales, all suggesting people for the various positions on my team. Some sounded very promising.

I wrote everyone back and asked them to forward the résumés to Jasper. In his case, I told him to set up an interview. If Jasper recommended someone, that person was as good as hired as far as I was concerned.

After I sent the last e-mail, I went to the restroom then returned to my desk to prepare for the next big adventure of my day: lunch with Rose.

If I'd been expecting Rose to suddenly turn talkative just because she'd asked me to lunch, I would've been sadly mistaken. She'd driven us here - - a trendy restaurant in one of the downtown luxury hotels - - in relative silence. She was clearly well known here because the staff practically tripped over themselves as they quickly ushered us to a table with a beautiful view.

She'd only spoken a few words to me the entire time, but I'd made a vow: I was not going to stress myself out trying to make conversation with her. She'd invited me, so she needed to say whatever was on her mind. She cleared her throat as I placed my order with the waiter.

"Thank you for coming to lunch with me," Rose said when he left. "I wasn't sure that you would. I almost didn't ask."

"Why did you? I was surprised by the invitation," I said.

She took a sip of water then looked at me. "This company is the most important thing in my life," she said. "That may sound odd to you, but it's the truth. Now that you're on the exec board, I feel like I need to get to know you better. I'll be having lunch with Jake soon too."

"We all should make the effort," I said. "We need to be on the same page at all times, for the sake of the company."

"Yes," she said before lowering her voice to add, "for the company."

The actual freaking chef came out next to greet Rose. He brought some dish for us to sample that we hadn't ordered. I didn't know if the special treatment was because she was a Cullen, a Hale, a very regular customer, a strikingly beautiful woman, or all of the above.

She introduced him to me and I hesitantly munched on the food he'd brought while they talked. The bread and spread had an interesting taste and texture combination that I tried to figure out as I ate. When I looked up, the chef had left the table and Rose watched me with a curious expression.

"Why are you here?" she asked bluntly. "Why didn't you tell me to fuck off when I asked you to lunch? Why don't you hate me? If the situation was reversed, I wouldn't even be speaking to you."

I finished chewing, took a sip of water, then spoke. "There's really no polite way to say it," I replied.

"Don't be nice," she said. "Be a bitch. Tell me the truth."

"I don't care enough about you to hate you," I said honestly. "You're not an important person in my life. That's the truth."

If I thought she'd be upset by my words, she wasn't, so I continued.

"I like this job. I like the people I work with," I said. "Despite the way you've treated me the whole time I've been at ATS, up until recently, I like the company. I have to work with you. You've apologized. I've accepted. So I'm here. It's as simple as that."

She nodded curtly and took another sip of water. Then she flashed those ice blue eyes at me again.

"I wanted you to be a total fuck-up," she said. "We all thought you were my uncle's latest whore. We couldn't believe he put one on the payroll. He'd never done that before."

"So why didn't you just fire me?" I asked. "There were four of you and one of him. And it was your company."

"He reminded us of the very obvious fact that ATS was completely falling apart," she said. "He said we should at least let you do the assessments and see what you could come up with. He said if you didn't have anything valuable to offer after those, he'd let you go himself."

"That sounds like him," I said.

"Then you interviewed everyone, and you got more information than we ever did," she said. "You actually had good ideas and suggestions. My uncle was so fucking smug that he was right about you. It was ridiculous."

"Caius smug?" I asked with a smirk. "No. I don't believe it."

Rose grinned, then sighed.

"I miss him," she said. "I used to talk to him all the time."

"I miss him too," I said. "ATS isn't the same without him."

"Have you talked to him?" she asked.

"Not since the day after the holiday party," I replied.

"He'll be happy to hear from you when you do talk to him," she said, looking down at her plate. "He hates me now."

"I don't think he does," I said. "He's just disappointed in you. You really hurt him."

"I'm disappointed in myself to be honest," she said as she shook her head. "I pride myself on my control. But you came along and I lost it all. You wormed your way into my company, you cozied up to my uncle, and you fell right in with... Emmett."

"I'm sorry for existing," I said as I chuckled to myself. She didn't appear to have heard me.

"Edward kept telling me I was becoming too emotional about you," she said. "That wasn't like me at all, but I couldn't let it go."

Our lunch came then and she stopped talking and began toying with her food.

"You seem close to Edward," I said before I took a bite of my sandwich.

"He's my best friend," she said with a warm smile. "We're almost like twins. He's only three months older than me."

"Well maybe in the future you should listen to your twin a little more," I said with a smirk.

Finally, she chuckled a little. We ate our lunch in a more companionable silence than earlier. I looked out at the view of downtown, with people and cars bustling about. Several times when I turned toward her, I found Rose watching me. Each time, she quickly looked away. When I finished my lunch, she spoke.

"I'm glad you took the chief of operations job," she said quietly. "Esme was never cut out for it but it wasn't her fault. We liked having her around. She understands our families and she's a good listener. She just wasn't too good with the staff."

I rolled my eyes and shook my head as I drank the rest of my soda. I wasn't even getting into the Esme situation again.

"Whatever I think of you personally," Rose said, "you're great with the staff and you'll be great as a chief. Right or wrong, you're not afraid to make a decision and we need that."

"Thanks," I replied though she apparently wasn't done.

"It's hard, extremely hard, being a woman in business," she said passionately. "Especially when you look like I do. You wouldn't believe some of the things that have been said to me at some of our meetings with clients and at some of the conferences."

"I can only imagine," I said somberly.

"Edward's turned away a few clients who said some really disgusting things about me," she said. "I'm... pleased... to have someone like you on the exec team. I've watched you a lot..."

"Obviously," I said as she let out a real genuine laugh that warmed her whole face.

"I've watched you," she said with a smile, "and I must admit, I like the way you work. You're not timid or afraid, and you speak your mind. I like that we have two strong women at ATS. I think we'll do well together."

"I do too, Rose," I said.

"I'm not saying I expect us to be best friends," she said cautiously, "but I think we make a good team."

"Don't worry," I said with a straight face. "I know Ed Money is your BFF. I won't come between you."

Again, she laughed heartily. The waiter brought the check, which Rose paid, then we made our way down to her shiny red sports car. I'd just fastened my seatbelt when New Business called.

Now, I could have turned my phone off for the duration of lunch. However, I knew he was due back in the early afternoon, and a part of me hoped that he'd call while I was out with Rose. Maybe that was petty, but oh well. I could forgive what she'd done to me, but I didn't have to be a saint.

I quickly answered his call.

"Are you back?" I asked.

"Yes," he replied tiredly. "I met with my boss and he gave me the rest of the day off."

"That was nice," I said, trying not to laugh at Rose who was clearly stalling from pulling off as she tried to listen in.

"Um, listen, don't get mad," he said, "but I kinda made plans for tonight."

"Do they involve me?" I asked as he laughed.

"Hopefully," he said. "But only if you don't mind spending your New Year's Eve with the kids."

"I don't mind at all," I said with relief. "Provided we don't go out anywhere. You know I don't really do well in crowds."

"No, no," he said quickly. "We'll be at home. I volunteered to watch them tonight and tomorrow. I haven't spent much time with them lately and I'll be leaving Thursday. I won't be back until the 27th."

"At all?" I asked, alarmed.

"At all," he said with a sigh. "They got me scheduled for so much shit between now and then I'll barely have time to breath."

"I knew it would be bad, but I thought you'd get some breaks in between," I said as I wrapped my mind around nearly 27 days without New Business.

"I did too," he said disgustedly. "Look, we'll talk tonight but thanks for understanding about the kids."

"You're bringing them over, right?" I asked.

"You don't mind them spending the night at the apartment?" he asked. "I was gonna keep them here at Ma's."

"No, it'll be more fun with us," I said. "There's plenty of room."

"Cool," he said. "They'll love that. I'll stop and get some stuff for them to eat."

"Can you pick up a few things for me?" I asked much too eagerly. I'd planned to go grocery shopping yesterday but I was too tired when I got back from Sacramento.

"Yes, I can do that," he replied with a chuckle.

"Get two dozen eggs and..."

"What do you need all those for?" he asked.

"They might wanna bake some cupcakes tonight or have eggs for breakfast," I said. "And someone on this phone call has been known to eat four scrambled eggs at a time so..."

"Okay, whatever," he said as we laughed.

"And get more milk for us at the house, and soda if you want it, and whatever they drink," I said. "And bread and bananas. That's it."

"Done," he replied. "We'll see you when you get home. Just remember, you agreed to this."

"It'll be fine," I said as he laughed again. "I love you."

"Love you too," he replied as we ended the call.

With a smile, I put my phone away. I truly forgot I was with Rose as I thought about the fact that Emmett and I had been so wrapped up in each other this weekend we forgot to even talk about what we might do to celebrate New Year's Eve tonight. I was glad we hadn't planned anything: I was looking forward to spending time with Kim, Henry, and Austin.

"Big plans for New Year's?" Rose asked, bringing me out of my reverie.

"Little plans actually," I said with a chuckle. "They include a 12-year-old, a 10-year-old, and a 3-year-old."

"And Emmett," she said with a smirk.

"Yes, and Emmett," I said. "Are you going out?"

"Edward always has a small party at his place to save us from going to the giant one his brother always throws, so I'll be there," she said.

"Will you take the guy you were with at the holiday party?" I asked.

"God no," she said with a shudder. "My mother set that up. She means well, but no."

"You'll meet someone when you least expect it," I told her. "People used to always say that to me and I didn't believe it. But that's exactly what happened."

"But in my case, they have to pass the Cullen-Hale board of inspection," she said with a dark chuckle.

"I really don't know what to say to that," I replied as she laughed.

We'd returned to the parking garage and made our way upstairs.

"That was good," Rose said to me when we reached the lobby. I knew she wasn't just referring to the food. "Let's do that again soon."

"Have your people call my people," I said.

She laughed again and turned to walk to her office. I made it two steps toward mine when Gianna found me.

"Guess who's going out tonight thanks to you and Emmett?" she asked giddily.

"You really shouldn't be this happy to pawn off your child," I said with a laugh.

"I can't wait until my little angel knocks those blinders off your eyes," she said.

By the time we reached my office door, I could barely stop laughing long enough to unlock it.

"I'll just leave you with this," Gianna said. "When all else fails, hide her cell phone. She'll be so busy trying to find it, she won't have time to give you much attitude."

With that, she gave a final wave and left my office. Still laughing, I prepared myself for the afternoon ahead. I hoped Gianna was exaggerating because if she wasn't, New Business and I were in for a long night ahead.

I walked into the apartment and found party central. A "Happy New Year" banner had been hung on the dining room wall and streamers and balloons had been placed strategically around the room. Emmett stood in the kitchen grinning at me as Kim, Henry, and Austin raced over to hug me.

"You guys have been busy," I said as I returned all the hugs.

"We're having our own New Year's party," Kim said with bright eyes.

"Uncle Em said we could stay up all night and do the countdown at midnight," Henry said, daring me to protest this special permission.

"You come too," Austin said as he reached up and held onto my hand.

"Thanks for inviting me," I said as they all giggled and laughed.

"Hey, Uncle Em," I said when I made it to the kitchen.

"'Sup, Auntie Bella," he replied with a big grin.

We couldn't seem to take our eyes off of each other even as the kids talked all over themselves to get my attention. Thankfully, New Business snapped out of it.

"Okay, the pizza's done," he said to the kids. Kim and Henry ran down the hall to wash their hands, while Austin raised his up to me.

"It smells great," I said.

"There's plenty," Emmett replied as he pulled the second of two frozen pizzas out of the oven. One was already cooling on top.

I picked Austin up and set him on the counter so I could wash his hands. Then I put him in his booster seat which Emmett had already attached to one of the dining room chairs. While Emmett cut the pizzas and Kim and Henry returned and got drinks, I went to the bedroom to change my clothes.

I'd just stepped out of my pants when the door opened and shut, and New Business swiftly picked me up and laid me on the bed.

"I could barely sleep without you last night," he said as he climbed on top of me.

"I had a rough night without you too," I said.

We tried not to groan too loudly as our lips connected and we tried to breathe each other in.

"How are we gonna make it?" I asked when he rested his head on my chest.

"I don't know," he said as he lifted his head and looked at me. "But I'm about this close to quitting this fucking job. I'm tired of this shit already."

"You're not serious," I said as I ran my fingers through his wavy hair. "I know you're not. Just think of this as endurance training, or something like that."

He rolled over and fell out laughing as I stood up. "I guess that's one way to look at it," he said.

"How did asshole take it when you turned down the regional VP job?" I asked.

He was momentarily distracted by me getting undressed, but when I put on one of his giant t-shirts and a pair of leggings, he seemed to recover.

"He couldn't understand why I wouldn't take it," Emmett said. "He really thought he could convince me. But he said he'd be keeping his eye on me because I reminded him of himself."

"In what universe?" I asked. "You're hot, you're a decent person, you're not obnoxious, and people like you. I'm not seeing the similarities."

"Mmm, I love flattery," he said, grabbing me and hugging me to him.

"Enough," I said as I pushed him away. "You're supposed to be spending time with the kids, not me. Let's go."

He grinned down at me and wriggled his eyebrows. "You go," he said. "Now that you and your tits decided to tease me, I'm gonna need a few minutes."

I snorted and laughed as he headed into the bathroom. The kids were so eager to talk that they didn't notice their uncle's extended absence.

"Aunt Bella, will you let me braid your hair?" asked Kim. "I can do French braids. Your hair would look great like that. I'm gonna be a hairdresser."

"It'll be nice to have a personal hairdresser," I said as the kids laughed. "Sure you can do it."

"Can we make cupcakes later?" Henry asked. "Chocolate cake and icing?"

"I like chocat," said Austin.

"Yes, we can do that," I said as I snagged a piece of pizza.

As we ate, they asked me when my parents had gone home and told me how much they'd like them. Finally, New Business returned with a satisfied look on his face. I could only chuckle; I was actually a little flattered that I had such an effect on him.

"What have you all been up to since Christmas?" I asked.

"I've been at Grandma's mostly," Kim said. "I'm ready to go back to school and see all my friends."

"We've been over Mister Brett's house sometimes," Henry said.

"Wif Mommy," Austin added.

"How do you like Brett?" I asked.

"Yeah, how do you like him?" Emmett asked as he plated several slices of pizza.

Again, the kids talked all over themselves.

"I was nervous at first," Kim said, "but I think he's nice now. Aunt Emily really likes him."

"He's okay," Henry said. "He makes mom laugh a lot, so I like that."

"Bett buy me toy," Austin said. "I like Bett."

I looked at Emmett and we both chuckled.

"Uncle Em, did you know my mom told us and Grammy that we might get a house with Mister Brett?" Henry asked.

He tried to appear nonchalant but he was clearly interested in his uncle's take on the situation. Kim stopped eating so she could listen in eagerly as well.

"I heard," Emmett said. "I think your mom knows him a lot better than I do, so I trust her to do what she thinks is right. I know she won't put you boys in a bad place again. What do you think?"

Henry must have been expecting Emmett to put up a fight. He looked visibly relieved by Emmett's calm reaction.

"I think it'll be okay," Henry said as he stared at his uncle with wide eyes.

"And if you move away from your Grammy's, you know we'll still come and see you," I said. "And you get to know Miss Mary and Mr. Waylon too. I liked them."

"Miss Mary gimme book," said Austin happily.

"I'll be away a lot more with my new job," Emmett said as he looked around the table at his niece and nephews. "But you can always call me if you need me."

"I wish you didn't have to leave," Henry said. He crossed his arms on the table and laid his head on it, looking at Emmett sideways.

"You should get a job where you don't have to leave so much," Kim said. "Grandma worries when you leave. We all do."

"Stay wif us," Austin said before turning his attention back to his pizza.

I could almost see Emmett's heart breaking at their words. Truthfully, I felt like they did, but I understood him wanting to honor his commitment.

"I know it's hard when I'm gone," Emmett said. "I have to stay at this job at least through the summer, but after that I'm definitely finding something where I don't have to travel so much."

"So in September, you won't be leaving anymore?" Henry asked. "That's after the summer."

"That's my plan," New Business said. "I don't like leaving you guys or Aunt Bella. Now that she's in the family, I want you three to check on her when I'm gone and call her and make sure she doesn't get lonely."

"We will," Henry said as he grinned at me.

"We call her," said Austin.

Kim ran and got her cell phone which she gave to me so I could call my phone from hers.

"We can hang out and stuff," she said excitedly when I gave her the phone back. "I can't wait."

"I'll definitely come over and see you guys when Uncle Em's gone," I said. "And if you need to talk or you're worried about something, you can call me too."

"I'm glad you came in the family," Henry said as he stood and hugged me.

"I'm glad I'm here," I said as I kissed his cheek.

"Can we make the cupcakes now?" he asked.

"And then I'll do your hair," Kim said.

"I want cutcake," Austin said with a mouthful of pizza.

"When we finish our pizza, yes, we can make cupcakes," I said firmly.

The rest of the evening passed fairly quickly. I kept my eye on Kim, but she didn't exhibit any surly pre-teen behavior... at least she hadn't so far. We all took part in baking the cupcakes, even New Business, who helped Austin messily crack open eggs. Kim braided my hair while the cupcakes cooled and she really did a great job. She braided it sort of around my head with a few tendrils hanging out.

"It's so pretty," she sang as she snapped a picture of it on her cell phone. New Business took one as well. He'd been snapping shots of all of us all night, presumably to load onto the picture frame.

We iced the cupcakes and everybody crashed after the sugar rush. Kim went to the guest room and talked on her cell phone, Emmett and Henry played a video game together, and I read to Austin. At about 11:30, we turned on the television to watch some of the New Year's coverage so we could count down when it was time. Kim returned and we all settled around the sectional until it was almost time to count down from 10.

I hurriedly passed out the noisemakers they'd brought with them and put out the bowl of confetti they'd bought as well. I already knew it would be a pain to clean up, but it was fun and the kids were excited.

They were absolutely giddy as we started counting down.

"...five, four, three, two, one. Happy New Year!" we shouted.

While the kids blew the noisemakers and threw around the confetti, Emmett pulled me to him and gazed into my eyes.

"Happy New Year, Madam Bad-Ass," he whispered.

"Happy New Year, New Business," I replied.

For the first time ever, I began a new year in the arms of a man that I loved. And I absolutely had to seal that fact with a kiss. Not even the giggles, squeals, and taunts of the children could break us apart.

Shockingly to me, I was the first person to wake up on New Year's day. Austin fell asleep minutes after midnight. We put him to bed and left Kim and Henry in the living room, watching the New Year's shows and concerts on TV. They seemed determined to stay up as long as possible and Emmett and I retired to bed at about 1:15. We fell asleep easily after my long day at work, his long day of traveling then returning home, and our busy evening with the kids.

New Business didn't move a muscle as I showered and dressed, nor did Kim or Henry when I entered the kitchen. They were sprawled out on the sectional, sleeping soundly.

It was just after nine, and I knew they'd all be up soon, so I decided to make breakfast since I was hungry anyway. I debated about what to make, but in the end I figured French toast was a safe bet. I'd never met anyone who didn't like it, not that I knew all that many people.

I tried not to make too much noise as I worked; soon, the shrill sound of my cell phone rang out into the silence.

"Happy New Year, kid," said Charlie when I answered.

"Happy New Year," I whispered.

"You got a cold?" he asked.

"No," I replied quietly. "I have a house full of sleeping McCartys."

"Oh," he said as he laughed.

"I rang in the new year with Emmett and the kids," I said.

"Did you now?" he asked. "Getting used to the idea of having a house full of little ones, huh?"

"Did you want something, old man?" I asked.

"Guess I touched a nerve," he said with a chuckle. "Just wanted to say Happy New Year. I think this'll be a good one, for both of us."

"I think so too," I said.

For some reason, Charlie was much more talkative than usual and we chatted for quite a few more minutes.

"Oh, I meant to tell ya," he said. "Me and Sue ran into Beth Weber yesterday. She was going on and on about all her plans for the wedding. It was all we could do to keep from laughing right in her face. If she knew how much money Ben's family has..."

I chuckled along with him. "I think it's best they're trying to keep it from her. I don't know how long they'll be able to keep it up though."

"Well, I'm loving this," he said. "Nice to have something over on her for once."

"True," I said. "Are you at work?"

"I am," he said, "so I'd better go. Enjoy your day off."

"I will," I said. "It's the last one I'll have for a while."

I heard rustling down the hall before I ended our call. I placed my phone on the counter and got to work on the French toast and decided to cook some bacon as well. My stomach growled as I cooked.

As I put some plates and utensils on the dining room table, I finally got some company.

"That smells so good," Emmett said as he walked in carrying Austin who was rubbing his eyes.

"Morning, fellas," I said as they smiled. "Do you like French toast, Austin?"

He nodded enthusiastically, looking entirely too cute in an undershirt and Spiderman briefs. Emmett poured some milk into Austin's cup and put him in his booster seat at the table while I put out the first plate of bacon and stack of French toast.

We were too busy eating to talk very much but there was something I just had to say.

"You know, you're very good at this having kids thing," I said to New Business.

"Lots of practice with these three guinea pigs," he replied.

"I not dinny pig," said Austin with syrup on his cheeks and a mouth full of food.

"No, you're a messy pig," Emmett replied.

"You a uncle pig," replied Austin, giggling, as he stuffed more French toast into his mouth.

The three of us finished up the first batch of French toast and Emmett took Austin to clean him up and get him completely dressed. Henry and Kim finally woke up as I cooked a second batch.

"I love French toast," Henry said as he stood, yawning, and watched me.

"Happy New Year, Aunt Bella," Kim said. "It's gonna be a great year. I can feel it."

She turned quickly and skipped down the hall before I could reply.

"Are you gonna stand here all day or are you gonna get dressed?" Emmett asked Henry.

"Stand here all day," Henry replied with a big grin.

"Henry, hurry up so we go," Austin said to his big brother.

"Yes, Grammy," Henry said as both boys and their uncle laughed.

"They're so cute," I said as Henry walked down the hall and Austin ran to the living room to play with one of his books.

"I guess it's good that they haven't driven you crazy yet," Emmett replied.

I plated the last batch of French toast which Henry, Kim, and Emmett polished off while I cleaned up.

"We're getting movies, right?" Henry asked. "You said we would."

"Yeah, we'll go to the store when we're done," Emmett replied. "And Kim your mom called while you were sleep. She said don't spend all your money."

Kim sighed dramatically, then rolled her eyes. I chuckled; this was more like the behavior Gianna warned me about. I suspected that, like many kids, Kim's worst behavior was reserved for her parents. Austin wandered over to the table to talk with the others while they finished eating.

It was all very homey and nice, but I couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to have busy jobs like ours, while raising three kids. I just didn't see how it would be possible without major help.

We finally got everyone fed and dressed, and then we went to Target. Emmett let each of the kids pick a movie: Kim wanted 'Pitch Perfect', Henry got 'The Dark Knight Rises', and Austin pointed to 'Ice Age: Continental Drift'.

I had my eye on a movie as well; unfortunately for me, New Business noticed.

"Horny ass," he whispered to me when he saw me eyeballing the 'Magic Mike' DVD. Angie and I had gone to see it when I first moved here and quite enjoyed it.

"Just shut up and mind your own business," I said as I tossed it into my cart.

I quickly saw why Gianna had told Kim not to spend all her money. Whatever money she had was clearly burning a hole in her pocket; she wanted to buy something in almost every department we passed.

"You just got a ton of stuff for Christmas," Emmett said to her. "I'm getting you this movie, and you can pick one other thing and that's it. And it can't be makeup because I don't wanna hear it from your dad."

His tone left no room for argument, so she didn't put up much fuss. But she wouldn't be true to her pre-teen nature if she didn't complain a little.

"I don't know what's the point of having my own money if I can't buy what I want," she said loudly as she put some tubes of lip gloss back on a shelf.

I almost said something, but I really had nothing to add. I completely agreed with New Business, so I just decided to keep quiet as I pushed along my cart. I was having more fun watching the McCartys anyway.

Emmett picked up a few toiletries and I picked up a few things for the house. I thought we were almost done until we got to the toy section.

"I mean it," Emmett yelled as Kim and Henry took off down separate aisles. "One thing each."

"I want more book," Austin said, which made the book-loving part of me very happy.

I went with him and we looked over the selection of books. He chose one with Thomas the train that played engine and whistle sounds.

"You look very proud of yourself," New Business said when he found us.

"I am," I said. "I feel like I introduced him to something special."

"You did," he replied. "You."

"Normally, that flattery would get your everywhere," I said as he chuckled. "But I'm still on my period, so too bad for you."

He guffawed while I learned my first lesson in watching what I said around little ears.

"Why on you period?" Austin asked as Emmett and I snorted with laughter.

"Do you know what a period is?" I asked when I settled down.

"No," he replied as he giggled.

"Well, let's not worry about it then, okay?" I said as Emmett continued to laugh.

"'kay," Austin said before he went back to pressing sounds on his book.

Still chuckling, we rounded up Henry and Kim who'd made their way down to the video game section.

"No, absolutely not," Emmett said when they begged him to buy some $60 dollar game. "You both just got new games for Christmas. Put your toys in the cart and let's go."

The whole ride home, Kim and Henry argued over which movie to watch first when we got back, then about what we should eat for lunch. Austin added to the noise by repeatedly pressing each and every sound on his book.

"They're just the cutest, aren't they?" New Business asked with a smirk when we got back home and the still-arguing kids ran up to the apartment door.

"I don't know if I have it in me," I said tiredly. "I may not be cut out for parenthood."

"Well, our kids will be perfect so it won't be like this at all," he said with a perfectly straight face that caused us to howl with laughter as we unlocked the door and got the kids inside.

"Thanks. I had so much fun," Kim said, removing the cell phone from her ear long enough to hug me goodbye, before turning to hug New Business. "Bye, Uncle Em. Have a safe trip."

"Be good," he said before he let her go.

She instantly put the phone back to her ear and tore upstairs in a flash, completely ignoring her parents.

Gianna and Liam seemed quite used to this behavior and merely chuckled as they watched their daughter go up the stairs. We followed them in and settled into seats around the living room.

"You look a little tired, Bella," Liam said, unable to contain his laughter. "Everything all right?"

"What's the matter?" Gianna asked, openly laughing at me. "Did sweet little Kimmie give you a big fat headache?"

"No, she didn't. I just need a nap. That's all," I replied as Liam, Gianna, and Emmett screamed with laughter.

"Whatever," Gianna said. "Your face tells a different story."

"Welcome to our world," Liam said with a grin. "The kids finally started acting like normal around you. It's official. You're really in the family now."

Emmett was absolutely shaking with laughter at me as we talked. Biscuit the dog and Midnight the cat both eyed me suspiciously from across the room, but thankfully they kept their distance.

"The kids really weren't too bad. Just talkative," I said. "I don't remember talking that much as a kid. Mostly, I stayed in my room reading books. I wasn't around many other children."

"They talk nonstop," Gianna said. "You try to listen and be interested, but sometimes, you just tune it out."

"Austin's really talking a lot more," Liam said seriously. "He barely talked at all when they first came back, but he's making up for lost time now."

"Henry's loosened up too," Gianna said. "They're like night and day from when they moved back."

"I hope Brett understands what he's getting into," Emmett said. "Kids are a lot of work."

Brett was at Maggie's with Emily when we'd just dropped the boys off. He seemed very comfortable with them, more so than me actually.

"Don't worry about it," Liam said to his brother. "I think his folks will help them a lot anyway. Emily says they're gonna try to find a place right near them."

"That'll be great since Emily doesn't drive," I said. "Mary and Waylon will be near if Brett's at work or something."

"That's true," Gianna said. "Do you two want to stay for dinner? It's almost done."

"No, I promised Bella dinner out tonight," New Business said. "I owe her a drink."

"Ain't that sweet," Liam said as we all laughed. We talked with them more and Gianna stopped us just as we were about to leave.

"Did Kim do your hair?" she asked as she touched the braid.

"She did," I said. "I really like it."

"Beauty school's cheaper than college, so I'm all for this career choice," Liam said as we laughed all over again.

"I almost forgot to tell you," Gianna said. "We went to Costco earlier and we ran into Lizzie and her family. She sent in her son's résumé after she talked to you, and Jasper already set up an interview for Thursday."

"I don't know how they're gonna pay for all those new jobs," Liam said, obviously in the loop on all the changes at ATS.

"They got the money, trust me," Emmett said. "They just never wanted to come off of it. They'll be fine."

"Can't we tempt you into coming back?" Gianna asked Emmett with a smirk.

"Read my lips," New Business said. "Hell. No."

And with a loud round of laughter, we parted ways with Liam and Gianna.

"Dinner last night was perfect," I said to New Business as I prepared to leave for work on Wednesday morning.

"Thank you for being so great about the kids," he said as he clutched me more tightly.

"I have to go," I said as I gazed into his eyes.

"I don't want you to," he replied, leaning in to kiss me.

We shared a kiss that was much too passionate for two people who needed to go to work and I reluctantly pulled away.

"I'll see you tonight," I said.

"I'll be here after counseling," he said. "I promise."

"You'll be fine there," I said. "Just say what you feel."

"I will," he replied with one final hug and kiss. "See you tonight."

My workday absolutely flew by. In the morning, I completed the review meetings with the marketing and legal teams. I even received a special invitation.

"One more thing before I leave," Jared said with a smirk as I made a copy of his signed review.

"Why am I nervous about what you're about to say?" I asked.

"You should be," he said. "Randall's happier about this promotion than I am, and he wants you over for dinner to celebrate. He won't take no for an answer."

"Just let me know when and I'm there," I said. "Me and Randall are tight like that."

Jared cracked up laughing as he left my office. I couldn't wait to have dinner with Jared and his partner, Randall, who'd I'd taken to so easily at the holiday party.

In the afternoon, Jasper and I interviewed two of the executive assistant candidates. One was a possibility; the other was obviously more concerned with working with the Cullens than actually learning about the job.

"That's a 'no' on her," I said to Jasper after she left.

"Her résumé was great," Jasper said. "I'm surprised she came off so bad in person."

"Jessica 2.0," said Alice as we laughed.

For the rest of the day, Jasper and I went over the résumés for tomorrow's interviews. I couldn't believe he'd lined up so many already, but as he so aptly stated, "People need jobs. They're available."

When I returned home, New Business wasn't there, but his schedule for the month was. He'd printed it and put it up on the refrigerator for me.

Emmett McCarty, New Business Leader,
Region 5: Idaho, Montana, Wyoming
ITINERARY - January 2013

Jan 1-3: Seattle, WA - Status/Planning Meetings
Jan 3-5: Billings, MT - Sales Visit
Jan 5-8: Chicago, IL - Summit-Meyer Annual Sales Kickoff
Jan 8-11: Jackson Hole, WY - Wyoming Business Alliance Conference
Jan 11-14: Houston, TX - 2013 Software Innovations Conference
Jan 14-18: Las Vegas, NV - Summit-Meyer 2013 New Product Launch
Jan 18-20: Denver, CO - Close that Deal! Sales Training
Jan 20-23: Boise, ID - Sales Visit
Jan 23-25: Cheyenne, WY - Sales Visit
Jan 25-27: Palm Desert, CA - Western Region Sales Retreat with CEO Foster
Jan 27-31: Seattle, WA - Status/Planning Meetings

Holy shit. My head hurt just looking over this list. I liked to travel as much as the next person but this seemed extreme. Not to mention the fact that it was January, the middle of winter, and some of these cities had the potential for very nasty weather that I prayed New Business wouldn't get stuck in.

With a sigh, I headed to the bedroom. I decided to shower and change in preparation for my last night with Emmett. I put on my white lace bra, as it seemed to be a favorite of his. I didn't have panties that matched it, but that didn't matter because I was still on my period. I put on a pair of black sleep shorts and the Seahawks jersey he'd given me for Christmas with his name on the back.

"That's about as sexy as I'm gonna get," I said to my reflection in the bathroom mirror.

"Don't move," Emmett said suddenly from the doorway of the bathroom. "You know I need a picture of you like this."

I chuckled as my face flushed; I hadn't heard him come in at all. I had to pose from the front and the back so he could snap pictures of me in my jersey from all angles. When he could bear to put the camera down, we stepped into the bedroom where he pulled me into a tight hug.

"You smell amazing," he said as he brazenly sniffed my neck.

"I know," I replied as he laughed and let me go.

"C'mon," he said as he took me by the hand. "I've got a surprise for you."

I didn't have to ask what it was because as soon as we reached the end of the hall I saw it on the breakfast bar: the largest bouquet of deep red roses I'd ever seen, in a crystal vase with a gauzy ribbon tied around it.

"They're beautiful," I said as I flung my arms around him.

"Just like you," he said.

I released him and ran to the vase where I breathed deeply to take in the aroma. I couldn't begin to count how many flowers were there.

"I brought dinner for you too," he said shyly. "Your favorite."

I gasped when he opened the refrigerator and pulled out a bag.

"Asian chicken salad?" I asked as he nodded.

I was grinning so much that my face began to hurt.

I didn't know if I really had a favorite food, but I did rave about the Asian chicken salad from the restaurant ATS used for catering. I got tired of scrounging around to see if there was any left over from the various meetings, so I'd gone to the restaurant myself a few times on the way home from work. Apparently, Emmett had noticed.

"You actually listen to me, who knew?" I remarked.

"I do," he said with a chuckle. "Have a seat."

I sat down at the table and he served my salad and asked what I wanted to drink. I watched him move about the kitchen, though it was hard to take my eyes off of the flowers.

"How was counseling?" I asked when he sat down.

He rolled his eyes. "Bunch of bullshit," he said as I laughed. "At least I'll be gone so I'll miss the next ones. They're doing that shit every week this month."

"Obviously you didn't like it," I said with a chuckle. "But what about the others? Did they get anything out of it?"

"Liam talked a lot more than I thought he would," he said. "Ma was really defensive at first but she warmed up to the therapist toward the end. Emily was her usual self."

"Did you like the therapist?" I asked as I cut up my salad.

"No," he replied with a frown. "Fucking know it all, asking all her dumb-ass questions. What do you think, Emmett? How did you feel, Emmett? What was that like, Emmett? Too fucking nosey."

I could only laugh and shake my head at his disgusted expression. "She's just doing her job," I said.

Again, he rolled his eyes. "Whatever," he said. "Everybody else seemed to get something from it, so that's all that matters."

I really wanted to press him for his feelings but he was obviously upset about it, and I didn't want our last night together for a while to end with him angry. Apparently, he felt the same way.

"Enough about me," he said. "Tonight is for you. With the holidays and our families and jobs, I've been totally neglecting you. While we were waiting, Ma and Liam told me that you're not Gianna's boss anymore. I didn't even know that. I don't like not knowing what's going on with you. I wanna know everything about you."

"I don't even want to know everything about myself," I said as he laughed.

"You're making a joke when I'm trying to be serious," he said. "That's really cute and all, but it's not gonna work tonight."

"Nothing's really going on except work," I said with an exasperated sigh. "You know that already."

"Tell me about work then," he said. "You know all about what's going on with my job. I don't know much at all about what's going on with yours. You have to be stressed right now. Tell me about it."

I wanted to make another joke, but he was really serious. His eyes took on an intensity I'd never seen before as he stared at me. I took a few more bites of my salad, drank some water, and started talking.

"Well, first of all, I really miss Caius," I began. "And I'm nervous about getting in touch with him because I don't know what kind of relationship we have now. It was okay when we were boss and employee, but is it okay for us to be friends? I don't think I'd like it if you had some woman you used to work with calling you all the time, so I'm worried what his wife will think."

And then the floodgates opened. New Business ate his dinner and listened with real interest as I shared all of my feelings about my job.

How worried I was that it would consume all my free time. How nervous I was about being respected and taken seriously as a woman in an executive position. How I felt a little hypocritical being nice and chummy with Rose, Carlisle, and Edward when just a few weeks ago, they'd treated me like shit.

"I worry about my relationship with Alice and Gianna and Jasper," I continued. "I really don't like being their boss but they're great workers. It makes me uncomfortable, but there's nothing I can do about it. I need them."

I shared my fears that Edward, Rose, and Carlisle's family would interfere with the company, even though the three swore they'd learned to stop telling their relatives so many details about ATS and its finances. I talked about how unfair I thought it was that I'd been asked to take over the shakiest team.

"Half the new people we're hiring will be on my team," I shrieked. "That's a lot of fucking pressure on me. First of all, I have to make sure everybody works together. Then, I have to keep watch to make sure they're not freaking head cases."

When I exhausted myself talking about work, I revealed my thoughts on our friends and family.

"You know Emily and Brett are gonna get engaged soon," I said. "Everybody's getting engaged and that's going to put a spotlight on us. I don't want that. I want us to move at our own pace."

"I'm with you on that one," he said as he stood and cleared the table of our trash. Then we moved into the living room where we sat in the corner of the sectional. I sat sideways on his lap so I could face him.

"I feel like I'm being a bad friend too," I said as he lightly stroked my thigh. "Angie jumped right into this thing with Ben after she'd been with Eric for years. Part of me feels like it's her life and she should do what she wants, but part of me feels like I should be telling her to pump the brakes a little."

He listened quietly as I moved on to my family.

"I'm happy for my dad that he's found Sue," I said. "But I'm kind of pissed off that he didn't tell me he was selling the house. I have a lot of memories there and soon it'll be gone. I don't really have a right to say anything, but I'm kind of upset about it."

He leaned down and placed a light kiss on the top of my forehead as I moved on to my mom.

"You saw her with Austin when she was here," I said. "I think she's backed off of pushing me to get married soon, but I think she'll start up about me having a baby. My dad made a crack about it yesterday when I said the kids were here. I don't want them pushing me."

At this, he began to play with the ends of my hair. I'd reached the end of my 'worries list', where my concerns about our relationship had been placed.

"Whether it seems like it or not, I worry about you," I said as I looked down at my lap. "About us. I feel like I'm so dependent on you. Emotionally. And that bothers me. I'm used to being on my own for the most part, and it scares me that my whole sense of happiness is tied to someone I just met in August."

I looked up at him then with tears in my eyes. His whole face had frozen and I felt like it was a reflection of what mine must look like right now.

"I love you so much," I said as the tears fell. "Deep down, I always feel like something bad's gonna happen because everything with you is too good to be true. You're so handsome, you're such a great person, you'd do anything for the people you love. If I can see that, other people can too. Other women. I don't know what I'd do if you..."

That was the last thing I was able to say before he grabbed me roughly and kissed me like his life depended on it. Tears from above me fell on my cheeks. His tears.

"You don't fucking ever have to worry about another woman," he said as his voice cracked and shook. "All I see is you. All I think about is you. I worry every fucking night that one of these times I'm away, you'll realize that you deserve somebody better. Somebody who won't leave you all the time. Somebody who doesn't have all the family shit that I have. You just took over my whole fucking life since the day I met you. And I know exactly what you mean: that shit scares the hell out of me."

"I'm not leaving you," I said through gasping sobs. "There's nobody better for me than you. I love you."

"I can't leave you either," he said as he wiped his face. "So don't think that. As much as you love me, I love you a million times more. You have no idea how you make me feel. Nobody ever loved me like you love me."

I flung my arms around his neck and we sobbed together. He was gripping me so tightly that my ribs were beginning to hurt but I absorbed the pain. Hearing him say what he'd just said to me made everything worth it.

When we finally calmed down and pulled ourselves apart, I leaned back and smirked at him.

"If you love me a million times more, then I love you a billion," I said as he guffawed.

"I love you a trillion," he said with a blinding grin.

"Decadillion," I replied.

"That shit's not even real," he said as he threw back his head and laughed.

"Yes it is," I insisted.

He raised an eyebrow and looked at me with a dubious expression.

"I still win, whether it's real or not," I said as I kissed the tip of his nose.

"I win because I get you," he said, "and that's the end of it."

We exchanged silly grins before I spoke.

"Thank you for pushing me to talk," I said. "I didn't realize all that stuff was swirling around in my head."

"Yeah, you got problems," he said as I laughed.

"I wanna know what's going on with you," he said seriously when I quieted down. "Sometimes it helps to just talk. I'll listen whenever you need me."

"Thank you. I do feel better," I said as I placed my hands on his chest and placed a light kiss on his lips.

"Good," he said. "Now it's time for your surprise."

"I thought the roses and dinner were my surprise," I said in confusion.

"You thought wrong," he said as I looked up at him eagerly. "Don't pass out because this is not what you think."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," I replied hurriedly. "Gimme!"

He cracked up laughing, then kissed me again. When he pulled back, he reached into the pocket of his sweatpants and pulled out a ring box.

"You know how I feel about you," he said as I stared at the box wondering what the hell he was doing.

I looked up at him and nodded.

"I think we've both made it clear that we're not ready to be engaged or married and have all that responsibility," he said.

I nodded once more, dying of curiosity about what was in the box.

"This is not an engagement ring," he said. "But it does make it pretty obvious that somebody loves you. I want you to look at it and think of me."

I gasped when he opened the box: inside was a ring - - a thin, pinkish-gold band - - with "I love you" written around it in script.

"It's beautiful," I whispered as my eyes again filled with tears.

"Will you wear it?" he asked nervously.

"Every day," I said.

"It's rose gold," he said. "I thought it looked different. I liked it."

"I love it," I said. "Put it on. Now!"

"Yes, Madam Bad-Ass," he said as we laughed together. "I hope it fits. You don't really wear much jewelry but the lady..."

Tired of his yammering, I grabbed the ring out of the box as he laughed. It was a little big for my ring finger, but it fit perfectly on my middle one.

"We can get it sized down if you want," he said as I held my hand out to admire it.

"No, this is perfect," I said with a huge grin as I wriggled my finger around to examine the ring. "If it was on either ring finger, people would talk. Thank you. I love it."

"Whew, I'm glad," he said with relief. "I thought you would've noticed the box in my pocket."

"You keep so much shit in your pockets, I wouldn't be surprised if you pulled a puppy out one day," I said as he guffawed.

His eyes flickered devilishly and he opened his mouth to speak. I quickly cut him off.

"And no snake jokes either," I said as he clutched his stomach and fell sideways, laughing hysterically.

"I know you better than you think, New Business," I said with a smirk. "I even understand your sick need to make crass jokes."

"But you love me anyway," he replied with a sheepish grin.

"I do," I replied. "I love you anyway."

Emmett and I talked so long on Wednesday night after he gave me the ring that we fell asleep on the sectional. This morning, after careful discussion and consideration, I decided to place a temporary hold on my 'no period sex' policy. It was lighter because it was almost over anyway, and seriously, I wouldn't be seeing New Business for almost a month. Something had to give. He certainly hadn't minded.

"I'm gonna call you so much you'll get tired of me," he said as we tried to drag ourselves apart so that we could leave for work.

"I'll never get tired of you," I replied before we parted ways.

At work, I might as well have had a floodlight on my hand because nearly every person I encountered, men and women, ATS staff and interviewees, commented on my ring.

Jake was first to notice, when we met for a two-person exec team meeting since Rose, Edward, and Carlisle were still out of the office on the client visits.

"Damn, Emmett's got it bad," Jake said when he grabbed my hand to take a closer look at the ring.

"You get things like this when you're a fuck-awesome girlfriend," I replied as he howled with laughter.

"You fucking own his ass, bitch," said Gianna as she chuckled and held my hand to examine the ring. "If I didn't think he was serious before, I know it now."

"Do you want to take a picture?" I asked as she cackled. "I'm sure you'll need to give a full report to the family."

"That's a ring that says 'she's off the market'," Jasper said, laughing, when he saw it.

"You might as well start a wedding registry," Alice said with a smirk. "It's only a matter of time."

They laughed at me, but I didn't mind. I freaking loved my ring and I could take all their snide comments.

"Enough about me, you two," I said to them as they continued laughing. "Let's get these interviews started."

"Let's," Jasper said. "We'll be doing them all day."

My HR director had not been lying. I spent all day with Jasper interviewing people for some of the open positions. Alice, Jake, Peter, Jared, Heidi, and Logan were called in at different points, depending on the position we were interviewing for at the time.

Because several of the interviewees were relatives or friends of ATS staffers, the day was also filled with nervous employees who paced the floor outside of HR.

Laurent practically pounced on me when I left the interview with his younger sister, Larissa. He'd recommended her for one of the administrative assistant positions.

"So," he asked, "did she get one?"

"No," I replied as his mouth fell open. "She didn't get one of the admin jobs."

"But she..." he began with real agitation.

"We like her for the copywriter job," I said with a grin as his mouth fell open again. "Jared and Peter put together a writing test really quickly and she's taking that now."

"But she doesn't have any marketing experience," he said. "How did you know she writes?"

"She said on her résumé that she minored in English for one thing," I said. "And she also put a link to her blog on her résumé. We checked it out. It's pretty awesome."

"But she just messes around on there," he said dismissively.

"She's a very strong writer," I said. "She's young, but she really mixes humor in well with serious topics. And she writes great titles for her blog posts. That was the main selling point. In marketing, you need to be able to write lines that are catchy and to the point. We want to give her a shot. Jasper's calling her references now."

"So this would be more money than the admin job, right?" he asked.

"Right," I replied.

"Carry on then," he said with a grin as I cracked up laughing.

Next to pace the floor were Riley and Lizzie. We'd interviewed his brother, Ricky, and her son, Tucker, for the two operations associate jobs back to back. They were both still here, taking some tests just to make sure they could type basic e-mails and could use Microsoft Office products like they said they could.

"They're like the same damn person," Jasper whispered to me when we left them in the testing room.

"They are," I said with a chuckle. "Very strapping young lads."

Ricky and Tucker were both a little over six feet tall with athletic builds. Ricky's hair was a little darker than Tucker's and he had brown eyes to Tucker's blue, but other than that they were quite similar. Both were soon to be nineteen, and both had been incredibly nervous, but polite, in the interviews. Because neither one of them had much job experience, they'd had some of their high school teachers and sports coaches e-mail us glowing reference letters.

"They called me 'ma'am' so much I feel like I'm a thousand years old," I said as Jasper laughed.

"What do you think about them?" he asked me and Logan, who'd also sat in on the interviews. "You both read their reference letters. There's pros and cons to hiring two people so young and inexperienced."

"I like them," I said. "And not just because nobody else applied for the job."

Jasper and Logan cracked up laughing. "I'd like to give them a chance," I said. "There's a lot of labor involved and they can clearly do that, and because they haven't worked very many places, they won't really know that their job is kind of undefined right now."

"I agree," said Logan, who would be supervising them. "I feel like if we get some older people in here, they'll want things done their way more than these two will. With proper direction, I think they'll do great."

"Okay," Jasper said. "Bella, you go tell Lizzie and Riley. They almost bit my head off last time I went out into the hall."

I found Lizzie and Riley right outside of HR, talking rapidly and animatedly.

"Don't you two have work to do?" I asked. They seriously looked like they wanted to hurt me.

"Tough crowd," I said with a chuckle.

"What are they doing so long in there?" Lizzie asked indignantly.

She acted just like I had when Gianna had interviewed and I'd been a nervous wreck.

"I wasn't here this long for my own interview," Riley said as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Right now, they're testing on the Office suite," I said. "Just to make sure they can use Word and Excel like they said. And we're giving them a test to see if they can draft and respond to basic e-mails."

"I guess that makes sense," Lizzie said, though she looked highly put out.

"So, are they gonna get it?" Riley asked. "My mom's ringing my phone off the hook."

"Logan and I have both agreed to bring them on," I said.

"Yes!" Riley shouted.

"Thank you," Lizzie screamed as she grabbed my hand and squeezed it.

"Don't call anybody yet though," I said. "First of all, they have to accept the jobs, and then we have to find out when they can start."

"Of course Tucker wants the job," Lizzie said as she looked at me like I was nuts. "He can start right now. Forget the gas station. People come and go from there all the time."

"Ricky can start right now too," said Riley. "My mom will put her foot down with my dad if she has to about the painting work."

"Thanks, but we'd like forTucker and Ricky to tell us that," I said as they cracked up laughing.

The rest of the interviews for the day were for the two executive assistant positions and the many administrative assistant positions. We loved two of the candidates, and we thought they'd be perfect for sales: one as the new sales team admin and the other as Edward's executive assistant. We asked Heidi to come down and talk to them, and she agreed that with their background and temperament, they'd fit in well.

"I'd say five potential hires out of ten interviews is a pretty good day," Jasper said when we finished the last meeting.

"I don't know if that's good or bad, but I have a new admiration for you," I said as he laughed. "Some of these people are nothing like they claim to be in their cover letters. I'd have to start calling people out if I did this all day."

"That's why you do what you do and I do HR," Jasper said with a cocky grin. "I have to remain calm at all times."

"Even in the face of complete and total bullshit," Alice said as we ended the day with laughter.

Friday brought more interviews. Jasper heard back from the references for the two sales team candidates we'd liked yesterday, so after we asked Heidi to come down to Jasper's office, we called Edward and put him on speaker to set up a time for him to meet them on Monday.

"They'll have to meet my approval," he said haughtily after he hemmed and hawed about a meeting time.

"We're well aware of that," I said as I rolled my eyes. "But you're the one who said you needed somebody like yesterday."

"Let's do it early then," he said with attitude, like we were bothering him. "Anytime between nine and eleven works for me."

Jasper, Alice, Heidi, and I all fell out laughing when he ended the call.

"What the hell is his problem?" Alice asked as she laughed.

"It's because of his approval in the past that he needs a new assistant in the first place," I said as they laughed anew.

"Don't be too mad at him," Heidi said when she stopped laughing. "This is hard on him, admitting that Jessica was a mistake. Once he meets them, he'll see that they're right for the team. His pride is a little hurt; that's all that was."

Jasper called each of the candidates and asked them to come back on Monday to meet Edward and they both agreed.

"Good," Alice said when Jasper hung up the phone. "Now he can stop giving me dirty looks for not being his assistant."

I sat in on two more interviews, then I left to meet with Alice and Logan. I'd asked Alice to set up a meeting with the vending machine representative and also to line up meetings with some coffee services as the chiefs had requested.

The first three meetings went well, but the last one left us furious.

"I'm shaking right now I'm so mad," Alice said, fuming, when the sleazy sales rep left.

"I knew it wouldn't be long before I had to deal with some sexist crap, but I didn't expect it from a coffee vendor," I said as I shook my head.

"That's a local company and they always act like they're so green and eco-friendly," Logan said tightly. "Maybe they should be more concerned about their own work environment. It's gotta be pretty crappy if they let people like him represent them."

"I'm writing a letter to the president of the company and their customer service," I said as I opened an e-mail. "And I'm copying the exec team and everyone here. His behavior was ridiculous."

"Don't use your executive team group list," Alice said. "Type in Carlisle, Rose, and Edward's names separately."

"She's right," Logan said as I did as instructed. "Once they see the names Cullen, Masen, and Hale, that'll get their attention."

We should've known the meeting would not go well when the asshole sales rep greeted us by saying, "Wow. If you three were blonde, you could give Hugh Hefner's girlfriends a run for their money."

He'd already set up his presentation, so we let him continue, but we were annoyed right off the bat. When he continued to refer to us as "you girls" we started to wrap things up. But when he lost his train of thought at one point because he was too busy ogling my chest, then actually licked his lips as he continued to stare, I'd had enough.

"Okay, you're done here," I said firmly. "We will not be making any contracts with you because you're a pig. You have two minutes to leave before I have you escorted out."

I didn't know if I could actually get him 'escorted out', but we did have building security. And even if we didn't, any of the men here - - Jake, Jasper, Seth, Ben, Laurent, and more - - would have happily tossed his ass out.

He'd glared at me before he hastily packed up his samples and materials, mumbling something about "stuck-up bitches" on the way out.

When I finished typing the e-mail, which I promptly sent, I decided that Alice, Logan, and I needed a break.

"Come on," I said. "I'm treating you two to lunch. We need some fresh air."

"It's hard to believe that in 2013, guys like that still exist," Logan said as we sat at a table at Jenks restaurant down the street and tried to eat our lunch.

"That I can believe," Alice said. "But I can't believe a company would let someone like him work in sales in this day and age. How dumb can they be?"

"Rose told me that she's had some disgusting things said right to her face by clients and vendors," I said as they gasped. "It's like, deal with it, fellas. We have tits, but we have brains too."

"I think I'd like that on a t-shirt," Logan said as we laughed. The situation wasn't funny, but I was not going to let one Neanderthal asshole ruin our day.

I probably shouldn't have been surprised when Rose called me while we ate.

"I told you, there's some real assholes out there," she said angrily. "I loved the note you sent to their president. Did you see the reply from their PR person? She's scared shitless, as she should be."

"I'm at lunch with Alice and Logan," I said. "I hadn't checked my e-mails. What did she say?"

"Apologized ten different ways," Rose said with a laugh. "She says they'll be 'following up' and 'investigating'. I'm glad there were three of you there because it's not just your word against his."

"True," I said. "I don't care what she says. We're not using them, even if they try to give us free service. He was a pig, and it says a lot about them that they send him out to represent them."

I could hear talking in the background, then she spoke again.

"Edward says he knows their sales boss and he's an asshole too," she said. "And Carlisle says to tell you he's sorry about this. You only had the meeting because he asked you to look into some coffee services."

"It's not his fault at all," I said. "We had two other meetings with coffee vendors, and the vending machine rep, and they went perfectly fine."

She briefly relayed what I said, then got back on the phone. "We're on our way back now," she said. "The client visits went really well."

"I'm glad," I said.

"I had to call to tell you that you made my day," she said with a chuckle. "I love to see sexist assholes squirm. See you Monday."

"Bye, Rose," I said as I ended the call.

"I really didn't expect this to be such a big deal," I said after I told Alice and Logan what she'd said.

"That guy's ass is grass when this gets around," Logan said with a laugh. "He insulted us, and we're basically representatives of the Cullens. He messed up big."

"Do you think he even knew that the Cullen family started this company?" I asked.

"He should have," Alice said. "Any real sales rep would have researched the client before a sales call. At the very least, he should've looked at our website, and Carlisle, Edward, and Rose's names are all over it."

"Didn't you notice how the other two vendors kept mentioning Carlisle's name, and saying how honored they'd be to have our business?" Logan asked me.

"I did," I replied. "I just thought it was because he was the CEO."

"He is," Alice said. "But why would coffee vendors be bending over backwards to mention a CEO's name? Because this would be a big account for them locally, just on name recognition alone. You're still kind of new to Seattle. You still don't really understand how known the Cullen name is here. The Masens and Hales too."

"She's right," Logan said, nodding vigorously. "I guarantee you that company is sweating bullets right now. If they could've landed an account with the Cullens, that would've been huge for them. They're not a very big company at all."

"Not only did they not land the account," Alice said with a grin, "they insulted us, and we're representatives of the Cullens. This is not over. He better be glad Caius wasn't here. He wouldn't have taken this lightly."

"I'm just glad you said something," Logan said.

"I'm just glad none of us was alone with that sleazeball," I said as we finished our lunch.

When we returned, I had about a half an hour before I needed to head down to HR, and all the talk of Cullens, Masens, and Hales finalized something I'd been worrying over in my head.

I'd finally decided to call Caius.

I didn't know where in the world he was, but I assumed he was still in Europe; he said he'd be there for a while. I decided to text him and tell him to call me at work when he had time.

"There," I said when I sent the text. "Done."

In less than a minute, my work phone rang.

"Hello, secret lover," said Caius as I cackled into the phone.

"That is exactly why I've been worried about calling you," I said. "I don't want your wife mad at me."

"I must admit, I've been reluctant to call you too," he said. "No matter how much I've missed you. You put up with too many rumors because of me and I didn't want to start that up again."

"It's just not the same here without you," I said. "There's a dent in the wall outside my office where you used to wait for me."

He laughed heartily. "I miss that sense of humor; I truly do."

"Maybe if you call me here in the office, it won't feel so much like we're doing something wrong," I said.

"I take your point," he said. "I've been patiently waiting for your call."

I couldn't help the grin that spread across my face.

"Carlisle's been calling me every day," he said. "We've never talked this much."

"That's a good thing, right?" I asked.

"Definitely," he said. "He's been telling me everything that's been going on. He's very impressed with you, and so am I. I knew you would do well, and you are."

"Some of that is false bravado," I admitted.

"That's often needed when you're in a leadership role," he said. "The rank and file look to you for the appearance of confidence and strength. That's what you have to give them, whether you feel that way or not."

"Oh, how I've missed you saying things like 'rank and file' to me," I said as he laughed.

"I miss you," he said.

Again, I grinned widely.

"You have a very sharp mind," he said. "I used to love our talks in the mornings. I miss that. I've wanted to call you every day, but just like you said, it doesn't feel quite right since we don't work together anymore."

"It really doesn't," I said.

"It would be easier if you were my mistress, like everyone thought," he said. "Because then, I just wouldn't give a shit; I'd call you when I felt like it. But you had to go and be a decent human being, and I don't want to make things hard for you."

"I'm a police chief's daughter, what can I say?" I replied as he laughed. "I try to live right."

"I do like this 'calling you at work' arrangement that you've proposed," he said. "Would it be all right if I called you there regularly?"

"That's fine," I said quickly. "I promise Emmett won't beat you up."

"Good to know," he said as he chuckled. "I'll explain the situation to Dora as well. How are things with Emmett?"

"Very good," I said. "We're doing really well. He's kind of on a fast track at Summit-Meyer and he's been traveling a lot already. I hate when he's gone, but I don't feel as guilty about how much time I'm starting to spend here because he's away too."

"I thought he'd do well there," he said. "It's a huge company. There's plenty of room for advancement for someone like him. How are you liking the COO job? And tell me the truth."

"It's... challenging," I said as I grinned. "I'm honestly loving it. I have my moments where I'm annoyed that Esme basically didn't do shit, but I kind of like putting together my own team and my own systems."

"You're basically starting from scratch," he said. "Esme is utterly useless. And now she's playing the 'I can't lift a finger because I'm pregnant' game. She's worthless."

I snorted with laughter. "Be nice, grandpa," I said as he guffawed.

"Let's hope my grandson comes out more Cullen than Platt," he said. "I'll have to be involved in the poor boy's life. He'll need me. Carlisle's mother is too wrapped up in herself to care about him, and Esme's parents are total idiots. He'll need one rational grandparent."

"Poor kid if you're the most rational one," I said.

"What did you think of that business with Irina and the client?" he asked when we finished laughing.

"I thought that if you'd have found out when you were here, you'd have had a heart attack," I said.

"I almost had one when Carlisle told me," he said disgustedly. "Can you believe Rose and Edward? I told you they don't know much about operating a business. They're smart, but they just haven't experienced enough to understand. That could have gotten us embroiled in some nasty lawsuits. At least the client didn't fight when we terminated his contract."

"What did he do? I hadn't heard," I said.

"He accepted it," Caius said. "We refunded his money."

"Which is ridiculous," I said.

"It is," he replied. "But a few thousand dollars back to him, versus all the nasty publicity that could result from a lawsuit was worth it."

"Did he have anything to say for himself?" I asked since Caius was so well informed.

"Carlisle said he claims to really love Irina," he said. "That tells me right there he's a moron. That woman is insufferable."

I shouldn't have laughed, but I did.

"Carlisle and Sam reminded him that fucking our staff is not a part of our service agreement," Caius said. "There really wasn't much he could say to that. He has Irina, so she can do all his web upkeep. That's what she was doing for him at ATS anyway."

"I couldn't help but notice your repeated use of the words 'us' and 'we'," I said with a smirk, not that he could see me.

"Yes, you did," he said with a smile in his voice. "I poured my soul into ATS. I may be gone but it's still a part of me."

"We really miss you," I said. "Why don't you come back?"

"There's not really a place for me anymore, is there?" he asked.

"Caius, we could..."

"Oh, I'm joking," he said with a chuckle. "I'm done. I might be a little bored, but I can't deny that I feel much less stressed and anxious. My blood pressure had been creeping back up, and it's already back down to normal. I needed to leave. Like I told you before, if I work again, it'll be for myself."

"Your health is so much more important," I said as I glanced at the clock. I was already supposed to be in HR for the next interview.

"It is," Caius said. "Right now, I'm just enjoying life."

"Good for you," I said. "Listen, I need to run. Jasper and I are interviewing and I need to get down to HR."

"I understand," he said. "Carlisle has sent me some of your e-mails and you're putting quite a team together. I can't tell you how proud that makes me."

"Thank you, Caius," I said as I got a little choked up. "I learned from the best. You."

"Okay, I'm reluctantly letting you go," he said. "I'll try not to call you every day at work, but I will be calling you Monday morning. I have to tell you how much money the family has already spent."

He sounded positively giddy at the thought of our next chat.

"You said they'd go right through it," I said as I shook my head.

"Anthony bought himself an Aston Martin Vanquish for Christmas," he said.

"I don't know what that is, but it sounds expensive," I said.

"It's only a $300,000 dollar car," he said.

"Holy shit," I said. "I almost feel sorry for Edward. It's gotta be rough having an asshole like that for a brother."

"That's another topic for our Monday conversation," he said with glee. "Your new friendship with your good buddies Rose and Edward."

I cracked up laughing. "You sir, are incorrigible," I said. "Goodbye."

"Until Monday," he said happily as we ended the call.

Caius Cullen. There was simply no one like him on the planet.

I gathered my notes and hastily made my way down to HR. My lingering smile never once left my face.

"It's not an engagement ring, but I'll take it," Renée said.

"Yes, I think it's enough to get you and Maggie off our backs for a while," I replied.

Last night, I'd sent my mother a picture of my ring. She'd definitely approved of it.

"What are your plans for today?" she asked. "Phil and I are going to look at furniture for his new office. And I know that you know, Ms. Secret Keeper."

I cackled with laughter.

"You're the one who said I was all Swan," I said to my big-mouthed mother. "The Swan tight-lipped-ness overrides the Higginbotham need to gossip."

"God, I wish I'd had another child sometimes," she said as I kept right on laughing. "I just can't deal with you when you're smug like this."

"Sorry, you're kind of stuck with me," I said as I grinned. "So how do you feel about Phil getting an office outside of the house?"

"I'm not happy, but he does need it," she said. "I've agreed to be his office manager, part-time."

"Excuse me, I need to sit down," I said. "I thought I just heard you say you agreed to work."

She could do nothing but laugh. "It's all your fault," she said. "This house is too empty without you. I need to do something with my time. Everybody's busy. I told him I'd give it a go, but if it got too stressful, I'm out."

"I'm really happy for you," I said. "For both of you. For some reason, he wanted to work with you, and now he can."

"I've had about as much of you as I can take for one conversation," she said with a chuckle. "What are you going to do with yourself today with Emmett gone?"

"Clean," I said. "I've been going non-stop since before Christmas. I'm going to clean this whole apartment. Until I get tired anyway."

"You should see what Angie's up to," she said.

"We were supposed to hang out today, but one of Ben's sisters went into labor, so she's at the hospital with them," I said.

"That family was a little too close for my tastes," she said. "But as long as Angie's happy."

"She is," I said.

"All right, sweetie. Phil's ready to go," she said.

"Tell him I said 'hello'," I replied. "I love you."

"I love you too," she said. "Talk to you soon."

There was so much that needed to be cleaned in my apartment that I actually had to make a little list so that I could decide what to do first.

"Laundry," I said to myself. "Definitely laundry."

I felt like an idiot for smiling when I started separating clothes from the hamper. For the first time ever, some of New Business' s clothes were mixed in with mine. He normally washed his dirty clothes at Maggie's, or more likely left them for her to do.

In the future, I would absolutely make him do some laundry on his own here, but for today, I allowed myself to get a little emotional. Little things like this were signs that I was in a real relationship, something that I still had a hard time wrapping my head around.

I'd put in the first load of clothes and started cleaning the kitchen when the man himself called me.

"How are we today?" he asked brightly.

"I was fine until I started doing laundry and the funk from somebody's giant dirty socks almost knocked me out," I replied.

He couldn't even speak he was laughing so hard.

"Laugh now, buddy," I said. "But once you're here for a little while, you will be doing some of your own laundry. Get used to the idea now."

"It's not my fault that Ma always did my laundry," he said. "That's just how she is."

"I'm happy for her," I said. "But that's now how it's gonna work over here. Just letting you know."

"We'll see," he said with a chuckle.

"Yeah, we will," I replied with a laugh of my own. "Obviously, I'm cleaning up. What are you doing today?"

"I'm schmoozing potential clients," he said. "Or at least I will be, come lunch time. My client meeting yesterday went well, so I'm hoping this one will too."

"I'm glad," I said. "You know, I think I'm going over to Maggie's today. Her crock pot and Emily's pan and a few other dishes are all here from Christmas."

"She's got tons of pots and pans," he said. "She probably doesn't even miss them."

"I'll still probably go over," I said. "I'll call first."

We talked more as I loaded and ran the dishwasher and finished tidying the kitchen.

"I better go," he said after a time. "I'm glad you're not doing any ATS work today. You need a break. Don't even check your e-mails."

"I'm not," I said. "Good luck. I'll talk to you tonight."

As usual, I ended our call with a smile on my face.

"I think I've done enough for today," I muttered as I looked around the living room. "I'll put away the Christmas tree and do the bathrooms tomorrow."

I decided that I would indeed go see Maggie, if she was at home.

"I'm here," she said when I called. "I don't care about those pans at all, but you're welcome to stop by."

"I'll be there soon," I said.

The more I thought about it, the better the idea of going to see her seemed. I rarely spent time with Maggie alone, and that needed to change. She would be my mother-in-law someday; she basically already was.

"I love your outfit," Maggie said when I took my coat off at her house.

I'd worn my navy yoga pants with matching zip-up jacket and a pair of sneakers.

"Thanks," I said as I followed her to the kitchen. "I like to be comfortable."

"Me too," she said.

"I'm sorry I kept these so long," I said as I placed the crock pot and pans on her counter.

"Oh, I know you've been busy," she said. "I meant to grab all this stuff Christmas night, but we were so wrapped up in talking with Brett and his family, and yours. I was distracted. It's fine though. I've got two other crock pots and more pans than I can count. "

She opened a few cabinets to put them away and they did appear to be filled to bursting with pans of all shapes and sizes.

"Gianna and Em told us all about your new job," she said with a smile. "You'll be great at it. "

"Thanks," I said. "The challenge will be not letting it take over my life."

"You'll manage. You're tough," she said as we walked back to the living room.

"I brought that folding table back too," I said. "Let me get it out of the car."

I dashed out to the car and brought it inside.

"Just leave that right here," she said, pointing to a wall in the dining room. "I'll have Liam put it back out in the shed the next time he's here."

I placed the folding table where she told me, and sat down on the couch.

"How come you're here by yourself?" I asked. "I don't even see Champ."

"Harry took him to see his granddaughter," she said.

"Popular dog," I said with a chuckle.

"He is," she replied. "They're at his granddaughter's birthday party."

"Why didn't you go?" I asked before I realized that I probably shouldn't have.

"I don't really care for his ex-wife," she said as she wrinkled her nose. "She's a big manager at Nordstrom's and she's always dressed to impress in fancy clothes. She kind of looks down her nose at me."

"Well that sucks," I said.

"I just steer clear of her," Maggie said, trying to pretend that like she wasn't hurt when her face clearly indicated that she was.

"Do you get along with his daughter?" I asked.

"She's nice enough to me," she said. "But I think she'd like someone a little less homey for her dad. She's a lot like her mom. They're both super skinny and they buy all the latest clothes. That's just not me."

"Harry thinks the world of you, so that's all that matters," I said as she smiled.

"What do you have planned for today?" she asked.

"I was supposed to spend the day with Angie," I said.

"I liked her," Maggie said. "She seems like a sweet girl."

"She really is like a sister to me," I said. "But one of Ben's sisters went into labor and she's with the family at the hospital."

"Emmett told me he's one of the 'Cheney Medical' Cheneys," Maggie said. "They're really rich. They probably own the hospital."

We laughed together. "Angie and I didn't know that when they met," I said.

"And I'm sure that makes Ben very happy," she said.

"I cleaned up some after she called, but I don't have anything else planned, and honestly, that's fine by me," I said. "It's been a busy last month. I don't mind the time to breathe a little."

"It definitely has been busy," she said.

"Where's Emily and the boys?" I asked.

"They're with Brett," she said. "He's good with the boys."

"You're really okay with them?" I asked.

"I'm getting there," she said calmly. "I'm always going to worry and fuss. But there's not much wrong I can find in the situation. They've known each other for almost a year now. He's a nice boy and his parents are good people. It's a blessing really. It was just a shock finding out."

"Emmett says they're talking about getting a house," I said. "Are you okay with that happening too?"

"I am," she said. "Mary told me that Brett wants to propose to her soon, now that all the family knows. He's very serious about her."

"I figured as much," I said.

"Emily knows what she wants," she said. "I have to trust her. I was just worried about the boys but I know she won't put them in a bad situation again."

"And if for some reason it doesn't work out, we'll help her," I said. "She'll be fine. The boys too."

"I think they're looking at houses today," Maggie said. "Brett's already been approved for a loan."

"Perks of working at a bank," I said as we laughed.

"Very true," she said. "Mary and I are trying to let them pick a place themselves."

I snorted and raised an eyebrow at her, as she cracked up laughing.

"We're trying to stay out of it for the most part," she said as she grinned. "We really are. They're looking in the same neighborhood where they live now. It's very nice there."

"Would Henry have to change schools?" I asked.

"He would, but I'm sure they'd let him finish out the spring term here and start there in the fall," she said.

"That would probably be easiest on him," I said.

"If they find a place in that neighborhood," she said, "I think Austin would be assigned to the school where Angie teaches and Mary used to teach."

"That would be great," I said. "Angie lives right near that school, so she must live pretty close to Brett and Mary. What a small world."

"It is," Maggie said. "We'll cross our fingers. Henry has a few friends in the neighborhood here but the schools are so much better where Mary is. I hope it works out."

"I'm sure it will," I said as I was struck with a whim.

"Since we've both been stood up today," I said, "why don't we go out and do something?"

Her face lit up, but then quickly clouded over. "I'm sure you have better things to do," she said.

"That's not an answer," I said. "We should hang out and spend a little time together. We've really only been alone the day you waited at my place for the furniture. We need to get to know each other. I'm not going anywhere."

"I like that you keep saying that," she said. "It would be nice to spend more time with you."

"Is there anywhere particular you'd like to go?" I asked.

"Well, I was thinking of going to Michaels, but that's over in Bellevue and you might not want to..."

"The craft store Michaels?" I asked.

"Yes," she replied. "I usually go during the week, late morning when the traffic's not so bad."

"Let's do it," I said. "Because then we can go to Bellevue Square. My mom and Sue and Phil went when they were here and they kept couldn't stop talking about it."

"I only go window shopping there," she said with a chuckle. "That's about all I can afford. But it should be fun, with you. I'll get ready."

Despite the traffic and the crowds, Maggie and I spent a very relaxing day together. First, we went to Michaels where we went our separate ways. We had Michaels in Phoenix too, and I was very familiar with the store. In addition to crafts and art supplies, they also sold all kinds of baking supplies and cake decorations. While I filled my cart in that part of the store, she filled hers in the yarn and knitting tools section.

"What a rush," Maggie said with glee as we'd loaded our many, many bags into my car.

"I can't believe we got all this for what we paid," I said with a chuckle. "Thanks for the coupons."

"No problem," she said. "If you ever get coupons in circulars or in the mail - - for anything - - that you don't want, give them to me. Even if I don't use them, I can take them to the girls at church. We always swap coupons."

"I will," I said.

Next, we'd gone to Bellevue Square, a very large mall, and set out a plan of attack.

"No way am I walking this whole thing," Maggie said as I laughed. "Let's get a directory and figure out where to go."

There wasn't any specific store that we wanted to go to, so we decided to pick somewhere to eat for lunch, then keep our walking and browsing to that area.

"I see they have a Cheesecake Factory," I said when I saw it on the directory. "I don't know how you feel about eating there."

"I've never been," she said. "Emily and Gianna loved it when they went with you."

"If you'd like to go, I have a gift card," I said.

"I thought you used those when you went with them?" she asked.

"My old boss sent me another one in her Christmas card," I said.

I'd sent one Christmas card to the funeral home, giving them a brief update on my life in Seattle and telling them I missed them all. I'd received my boss's card a few days later.

"I'd love to go then," she said happily.

There was a line and quite a wait, so we put our names down then walked around in the stores near that part of the mall. As we walked, my phone only rang once, when Angie told me they were all still at the hospital and that the baby hadn't been born yet.

Maggie's phone, however, barely stopped ringing. She took calls from Harry, Emily, Liam, and finally Emmett.

"Guess who I'm out with?" she sang when she answered his call. "Bella! We're at Bellevue Square."

He gave some long reply that had her cracking up laughing, then she talked to him for quite a while. I really didn't want to eavesdrop so I wandered off back toward the restaurant, then lingered so she could catch up when she was done.

I was distracted by my own window shopping when my phone rang.

"You're amazing," New Business said. "She's really happy you did this. Thank you."

"I'm having a great time too," I said. "It's no problem."

"I'll call you tonight," he said. "I love you."

Maggie had just about reached me when I ended the call.

"Our table's ready," she said, holding up the buzzer with its red lights flashing.

"I'm glad," I replied as we hurried along. "I'm starving."

We followed our hostess to a table in the busy restaurant and settled in to look at the menus while the waiter talked about the specials and took our drink orders.

"I thought Emily was exaggerating about the menu," Maggie said as she flipped through the pages.

"It's huge," I said with a chuckle as I decided what to get.

We both made our decisions and went back to talking. We didn't want for conversation at all and talked in-depth over the course of the meal.

"How did you like the therapy session?" I asked.

"It wasn't as bad as I was expecting," she said as she took a moment to wipe off her glasses. "The therapist is very nice. I made an appointment to go and talk to her on my own."

"I think that's great," I said.

"I always thought it would be... different," she said. "I don't know. I thought everybody would be yelling and blaming me but it wasn't like that. She just asked each of us to talk about why we thought we were there."

I chuckled because her recollection was completely different from her son's.

"Whatever the kids said on Christmas really shook Liam up," she said. "He kept saying he didn't like thinking that he was making life bad for Kim or the boys."

"Sometimes kids see things more clearly than adults," I said.

"Yeah," she said. "It's a shame Em won't be back for a while, but I know he'll come to the appointments when he can. The therapist said Emily told her how much he travels so that's why she made our appointment as soon as she did. I appreciate that because at least we were all there for the first one."

"I'm proud of all of you," I said. "It's not easy to do but you all deserve to be happy."

She nodded and we both went back to eating. I wanted to ask Maggie more, so much more, about her life and her family and whether she really hadn't talked to them in years. But I didn't ask.

This was the first time we'd spent together without an argument or major tension, and I didn't want to ruin it.

Besides, I had many years to get to know Maggie. As I told her before, I wasn't going anywhere. The McCartys were my family now too.

A/N: I'll be putting a picture of the ring in Ch. 14 on the New Business Guy blog (link in profile).

As always, thanks for reading and let me know what you think!