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Stephenie Meyer owns all things Twilight. Anything I didn't borrow from her belongs to me.
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Chapter Seventeen
Games
Bella POV
Today had been a good day. It was one of those days when everything goes right. The show had gone smoothly, the crowd had been energetic, and everyone seemed to come away from the show charged rather than drained. After the crap with James a couple of days ago, I felt I was more than owed this. I drank deeply from my beer and sighed contentedly. Everyone seemed to feel the same way.
We were spread out in the dressing room. Carlisle was flipping through some stills on Alice's Camera, Emmett was chatting with Edward while drumming on the back of the couch, Jasper was showing Alice some basic chords on Edward's acoustic guitar. I was sitting across the room, flaked out, and reveling in the relaxed atmosphere.
Suddenly Jasper jumped up and retrieved a notebook from across the room and started to write in it.
"Are you taking notes?" Alice asked him as he continued to write.
"No, I just had an idea. If I don't write them down, I might forget, or worse, they haunt me." He smirked at her.
I was contemplating my drink as he said this. "Yeah, don't you hate it when ideas come into your head and dance around like naked men until you take advantage of them properly? All dangly and jiggling..." I stopped gesturing in the air as I realized I was actually saying this out loud and looked up at the group. "Maybe that's just in my head." I blushed brightly and muttered to the stunned, silent faces.
"And how exactly do you take advantage of these naked men, Bella?" Edward said with an eyebrow cocked.
"Fuck me gently with a chainsaw," I said much louder than I'd intended.
Everyone burst out laughing.
"This is why I keep telling you people to stop giving me alcohol! My verbal filter is allergic to it! No one needs to know the strange and twisted things in my head," I wailed and threw my face into my hands. The group broke into another round of raucous laughter at my expense. I looked up again and met Edward's eyes. He was smiling sweetly at me.
"I always want to know what you're thinking, especially when your thoughts are so thoroughly entertaining." I grabbed a pillow from behind me and sent it flying at his head.
Carlisle cut through the hysterics. "All right now that you're all sufficiently drunk, I can tell you this without fear of bodily harm. There will be a stylist at the venue tomorrow—"
The three musicians started groaning as Alice, and I looked at each other in confusion.
"There will be a stylist at the venue tomorrow," Carlisle repeated, raising his voice over the mutinous complaints. "And I expect you all to visit her. The New York show is coming, and we have to start planning the photoshoots for the advanced press and artwork. You also have to decide what you're wearing for it the show. Esme seems to think that you don't understand the importance of your image for this recording."
"You knew you'd never get away with this if we weren't drunk, right?" said a surly Emmett.
Alice giggled at all the muttering. "It's like you just told them they have to wear a suit for school picture day."
"You'd be surprised how often you can compare them to children." Carlisle sighed, rubbing his eyes.
"You know we're still right here, and if I'm not mistaken, we're responsible for both of your paychecks," Jasper said coldly.
Carlisle and Alice looked at each other with mirrored exasperation, and I fell into a fit of laughter.
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Edward POVI grinned at Alice as she almost literally dragged herself to the table.
Bella smiled and addressed the rest of the breakfast table filled with the band and crew. "You guys have no idea what I have to deal with in the mornings. Compared to most days, this is good." Alice picked up a bagel and threw it at her head.
Bella smiled sweetly and signaled the waitress. "Your aim is much better after you've had caffeine. You might want to have a coffee before you try homicide by bread again."
Alice grunted and tracked the coffee pot in the waitress' hand as it made its way to us. I chuckled and turned back to the rest of the group, where Carlisle was outlining a schedule update.
"The weather is still looking bad for the southern leg of the tour. If it keeps raining down there, there's going to be massive flooding. The shows will most likely be canceled, but we won't be able to make a final decision until Friday. If we cancel everything in that area, we'll have a block of about seven free days. We'll need to decide if we want to rebook elsewhere or take it off."
I turned back to Bella, more interested in what she was doing. Her face had warring expressions of distaste and amusement as she watched Alice inhale her coffee. When the pixie seemed a little more alert and capable of conversation, Bella began to question her.
"I thought you were going to sleep in, what changed your mind?"
"It was your fault," Alice said with venom.
"How is that possible? I wasn't even in the room."
"Dad called. Apparently, he and mom have taken to watching gossip shows."
I felt the entire table grow quiet as the focus shifted to the conversation happening at my end of the table. Bella became very focused on her bagel.
Alice eyed her but then quickly turned to me. "I have a message for you, Edward. Charlie said to tell you—and this is a direct quote—'I've been a police officer for almost thirty years. I've learned a lot in that time. I don't care how famous he is, I can still kill him and hide his body where no one will ever find it.'"
Uncontained laughter drifted down the table as I rubbed my neck sheepishly. Not the way I would have chosen to be introduced to Bella's parents.
Bella poked at her bagel again. "I don't see how it's my fault if irresponsible reporters choose to entertain unfounded rumors," she muttered.
Alice's head whipped back to her, and I winced for the upcoming tongue lashing I could see gathering on Alice's face. "Unfounded? Bella, unfounded, is when an unidentified source heard that your best friend's maid's dog walker saw you out holding hands. Unfounded is NOT six different angles of you attacking him with your tongue outside the bus!" Alice pointed her spoon at each of us violently as she said this. I wiped flecks of coffee off my face and looked at Bella to see what she'd say next. There was no way I was getting involved in this one. I valued my life too much.
"I was just doing what you—" She stopped suddenly when Alice narrowed her eyes.
"I implied that you might want to go talk to him. I did not tell you to eat his face in front of a group of fans, Bella."
I distinctly heard Carlisle snort at this before clearing his throat. "Okay, Okay. I think we can agree that even though there was no harm done—" Alice harrumphed "—in the future, perhaps more discretion is advised."
That was Carlisle, consummate peacemaker. I went back to eating my breakfast, happy to have made it through the conversation unscathed. Alice seemed to forgive Bella's transgressions throughout the course of the meal, and all tension dissipated.
"Alright now that I'm awake, I need to go have a shower." Alice sighed as she got up from the table.
I shook my head and laughed at the change in attitude since she'd arrived at the table. "Alice, remind me to never wake you up early."
She chuckled and headed for the elevator. Bella was the next to stand. "I guess I'm off too. I have a lot to do today. I'm just going to grab a tea at the breakfast bar and head up. I'll be in our room if anyone needs me today."
I watched as she walked across the room. She looked better fresh out of bed than most of the women who spent hours getting made up. I still hadn't decided how I was going to ask her out tonight, and now seemed as good a time as any. I got up and walked across the crowded room toward her. I snickered as I noticed that she was watching my progress and stirring a cup of hot water.
"Uh, hi…what's up?" she stammered.
"Well, you owe me a date. I came to let you know I plan to collect. Tonight."
"Um…okay?"
She definitely left it as a question. After everything, it was as though she still didn't quite grasp my attraction to her. I waited for her to get over the shock she seemed to be experiencing.
"Where are we going?" she said finally.
"It's a surprise."
She groaned. "Edward, if I tell Alice that we're going out and she has no idea how to dress me, she will find you, and she will make you a sad, sad, man. Is that what you want?"
"Fine. Dress casual. Whatever makes you most comfortable."
"Sweats?" she said doubtfully.
I laughed. "If that's what makes you most comfortable, definitely."
The look of sheer pleasure that crossed her face was glorious. Then her brow furrowed darkly. "What now?" I asked hesitantly.
"Two things. First, where the hell are you going to take me that sweats will be appropriate? Second, Alice still may come after you; she hates it when I wear my sweats."
"As long as you are comfortable, dealing with Alice will be worth it." I pushed a strand of hair that had escaped her clip behind her ear. I smiled again and turned to head up to my room.
"Eight o'clock, and you're going to be having dinner with me," I called back.
After breakfast, I made my way to the venue. Although there was no show tonight, we had managed to grab some extra time in a few cities for rehearsals. The last show of the tour in New York was going to be filmed for release. This meant more rehearsals, more meetings, and things like photoshoots. None of that bothered me as much as what I was currently doing, though. I flicked through the rack of clothes the stylist had brought and frowned.
She had tried to put me into some genuinely horrendous outfits. She had leotard for fuck sake. I hated this whole side of the industry, it seemed so contrived. I was perfectly happy to wear the same clothes I wore for every other show, but when you've got a manager that you trust like family and knows his job better than most people know the back of their hands, sometimes its best just to take his advice.
"I am not wearing that," I stated petulantly as she pulled out leather pants.
"Oh, I'll take those," said a voice from the door.
I looked back to see who the alien creature was."Jasper? What the fuck?"
"Afraid I'll look hotter than you?" he laughed.
I stared at him, bewildered.
"I'm not going to wear them on stage; I just want to try them on."
I shook my head and wondered if the water here was safe.
"I can deal with these," I said, picking out an artfully faded pair of jeans and a fitted black shirt with silver buttons. I looked over at Jasper, who was now eyeing a pair of low rise jeans, the kind that creeps ever lower and needs to be continuously adjusted. He looked very pleased with them.
"Were you abducted by aliens last night? You know you can talk to me about it, even if they did probing, I promise I won't laugh."
He shook his head at me and turned to the stylist. "Why don't you go grab some lunch, I have someone coming down to give me some opinions. By the time you get back, I'll have my stuff picked out."
"Okay, I have a couple of things picked out here if you want to try them. I'll be back in about an hour," The stylist shot us both a friendly smile and left the room. I looked at him as comprehension dawned on my face.
"Alice."
He nodded.
"The fuck me boots?"
He nodded again.
"The bite me shirt the other day?"
"Fuck, yes." He nodded a third time and smiled widely.
I howled with laughter. "Have fun, man."
"I really plan to, don't worry."
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Jasper POVEdward left and turned to look through the racks for more fuel. I had been trying to formulate a plan for revenge on Alice since she wore that damned shirt. At the time, I couldn't chalk the fuck me boots up to her solely trying to drive me mad, but I knew that the 'bite me' shirt had been selected with the intent of inspiring my lust.
Today was the day I got to turn the tables on my dear sweet Alice. Even though I had grumbled along with the rest last night, I was inwardly rejoicing that Carlisle had booked a stylist at such a convenient time. I had honestly been considering asking Alice to come shopping with me, but I wasn't sure if I was ready to pay quite that high a price, even for revenge. A man can only take so much.
Alice drifted in about ten minutes later, complete with a bottle of lemonade and a few magazines. "Do I get to pick or are the outfits done, and you have to choose between them?" she trilled, looking excitedly at the racks.
"A little of both, I have some stuff the stylist put together and some of my own choices. Take a seat on the couch, I'll be right back."
I headed into the bathroom and put on the first truly hideous outfit. It was a bright green one-piece polyester jumpsuit.
"Please, please, please, tell me that wasn't one of your choices." Alice look mortified.
"Definitely not," I grimaced and went to strip off the horrible outfit as quickly as possible. I couldn't bring myself to try on the next selection, even for my purposes. The third I snorted as I put on. It was straight off of the cover of every cheesy romance novel I'd ever seen. Granted, that wasn't a lot of them, but you've seen one you've seen them all. I pulled the billowy white shirt on and steeled myself. Alice was going to lose her shit at this.
I stepped out of the bathroom.
"Oh, I like that one, all you need is long flowing hair, and you can rename yourself Claude or something like that," she gasped out between laughs as she fell over on the couch.
I smiled serenely and decided I'd had enough of playing Mr. nice guy. I grabbed the leather pants on my way back into the bathroom.
Why had no one ever told me how fucking hard it is to get into leather pants?! I mean, it's not precisely knowledge worthy of going with the facts of life speech, but still, I felt that this was something I should have known. I didn't know what Alice thought I was doing in here, but with all the grunting I was doing, I bet I could guess. I swore a few times for good measure.
"Are you getting dressed or attacking something in there?"
"Both? I don't think these pants fit…" I trailed off as I walked out. For good measure, I had removed the shirt I was wearing and was now sporting my good old tank top.
Her jaw hit the floor, and I suppressed a cry of triumph.
"They feel tight in the back," I said with my best complaining grumble as I turned around. "What do you think?"
"Too. Tight." She blinked at me as I looked back at her for her answer. Then she shook her head. "You…don't uh…want to wear them for a long time, you'll be chafed all to hell."
"Hmm," I said, keeping my back turned to her and casually flipping through the rack. "Ok, I'll try these then." I grabbed the jeans I'd picked out earlier and walked just a little slower than I needed to back to the bathroom.
Good god, the leather was worth it, but I don't think I'd ever wear it again. Maybe if they weren't quite so tight, it wouldn't have been so bad. I put on the low cut jeans that I had chosen. They showed off the V at the bottom of my abs just as I'd hoped they would. I usually wasn't this vain, but it was for a good cause. I debated taking the shirt off entirely and remembered the t-shirt she wore the other day. Yes, ruthlessness was called for. The shirt definitely had to go.
"I'm not sure what would go well with these yet," I said lazily as I walked out and leaned against the door frame. She was thumbing through a magazine and looked up. Hey, eyes never got farther than my waist. I swear I heard her heart stop Alice's breathing increased, and she squirmed ever so slightly.
Fuck me boots, meet low rise jeans, I thought wryly to myself.
Alice jumped up from the couch, quickly approaching the rack. "You're going to wear this, and this," she said as she plucked a pair of black pants that looked reasonably comfortable and a dark red button-up shirt. "You'll wear it over a white tank with the arms rolled up and unbuttoned."
She sounded like a doctor using their clinical voice. She looked at me again, and I saw her eyes trail down my bare chest to the waist of the very low jeans. Her hand twitched toward me slightly before she whimpered and walked from the room very quickly.
And the round goes to Jasper.
I cleaned up the clothes I had strewn about and made my way to rehearsal. After a full and productive day, I was finally back at the hotel and making plans for the evening. Edward saw me approaching the elevator and held the door. "How did the torture go?"
"Extremely pleasant, thank you." I chuckled, and the woman standing with us shot us a startled glance. We smiled back, politely. We were on our way back to Bella and Alice's room. Edward was taking Bella out for dinner, I thought I might ask Alice to go to dinner with me.
Bella opened the door moments after his knock. A brilliant smile lit up her face the second she saw him. She looked at me, then frowned.
"You lied, sweats are not appropriate for a threesome," she said with a perfectly straight face.
I snorted, Edward looked stunned, and I gave him a moment to compose himself. "I'm here to see Alice, I thought she might like to go grab some dinner."
"I'm sure she would, but for some odd reason, she was all worked up when she got back this afternoon. She went down to the pool to cool off." Bella scowled at me before breaking into a wide grin and winking. She closed the door behind her and walked with Edward as he led her toward the stairs.
I turned back toward the elevators and contemplated this development. Alice had obviously relayed what happened to Bella. So that meant that Alice wanted me to know that she had been 'worked up' and that she also wanted me to know that she was in the pool. If she didn't, Bella wouldn't have told them.
Ding, ding, round three. I grinned and stepped off the elevator.
As I left the stairs for the gym, I spotted the wall of glass that looked over the Olympic sized pool and approached it. Alice was in a red one-piece suit. The suit itself was actually quite modest, but the intricate cutouts and lines clung to her in fascinating ways.
I was standing there trying to figure out my move for the next round of our little unspoken game when I realized that I didn't want to play anymore. The flirtatious back and forth was a lot of fun, but suddenly I wanted something else entirely.
I looked down at Alice again, she was absolutely stunning. I wanted her, but it wasn't just about lust, and I wanted her to know that too. I turned from the glass and headed back my room lost in thought about what I should do to show her exactly what she was starting to mean to me.
She had won the game, and she didn't even know it.
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Bella POV
I watched Edward strut off from the restaurant and looked down at the cup of hot water I was still stirring. Something was wrong with that, but my brain didn't seem able to process it. Edward wanted to go on a real date. With me. Tonight.
Ok, this was alright, this was good. I should go back to the room. I should speak to Alice, definitely. I ended up in the room without any clear recollection of how I got there.
"Bella?" I heard the slight alarm in Alice's voice and looked up at her. I was sure that I looked like a deer in the headlights. "What's wrong?!"
"Edward is taking me out on a date tonight."
She squealed, and I jumped about a foot off the ground. "Jesus Alice, calm down!" I panted while clutching at my heart.
"Why do you look so stunned? Didn't you tell me that you promised to go out with him if he was a good boy and went to bed the other night?"
"Well, yeah but I thought he was drunk, I didn't think he'd remember."
"Are you trying to tell me that you don't want to go out with him? If that's the case, you were probably giving him the wrong idea when you attacked him outside the bus the other day."
"Of course not, I mean of course I want to go out with him."
"Then what's the problem?!"
"I was…caught off guard?"
"Bella, for a fairly insightful person, sometimes you can be so blind. Ok, I know you're rusty on being adored by a guy so I won't make fun. But, Bella, what did you think the next step would be?" She laughed and shook her head at my confused expression.
"I don't know, I didn't think about it all that much apparently."
Alice sighed then pursed her lips in thought. "Listen, I've got to hop in the shower then head over to the venue. Jasper wants some opinions on the clothes the stylist brought. It shouldn't take me too long, though, so grab your shower while I'm gone, and then we'll get you ready for your date when I get back."
"He said I can wear sweats!" I announced proudly.
Alice paled. "What?! Where is he taking you? A monster truck rally?"
"I have no idea. He said it was a surprise."
"I will not let you wear sweats. I don't care what he said. You'll go naked first."
"Fine, but casual, I am not getting dressed up."
Alice sighed and disappeared into the bathroom, complaining. "You never let me have any fun."
After Alice left, I got my shower and settled into my laptop for some work. Unfortunately, I spent most of my time either daydreaming about my date with Edward or trying to figure out where he was planning to take me. Of course, I was excited to be going out with him, but I also had no love for formal 'dates.' They were often too loud, which make talking impossible or too quiet and formal, which added pressure to the conversation, so it was never natural.
Alice used to set me up on blind dates with friends of friends until I put my foot down. She was only trying to help, but it always felt forced. I was so stressed out leading up to a date that I decided it wasn't worth it anymore. Considering the amount of time we had already spent with our lips locked together, this situation was obviously different, but I was still nervous.
Sure we had already clicked on a physical and intellectual level. We had spent hours and hours just hanging out, so it was almost like we'd been on a bunch of unofficial dates already. But this seemed like a turning point, perhaps the moment our relationship became official. I came to the realization that I had been waiting for the other shoe all this time. I was expecting something, be it James, my ineptitude at relationships, or for him to finally realize that he way out of my league.
No, I was not going to spend the day talking myself into a panic. I was not the most confident person, and self-esteem was not one of my strengths, but if tonight started with that sort of mindset, I was already doomed to failure. Rome was not built in a day, though, so instead of trying to reconcile that Edward was right about any of the wonderful things he said to me, I consciously tried no to fight the idea that this was something Edward wanted.
With that in mind, I found myself wondering about how this evening would end. Instead of dreading an awkward goodnight kiss, I was excited and a little nervous at the possibilities.
My musing was interrupted by Alice slamming the door, stomping across the room, and throwing herself face-down on the bed.
"Clothes and Jasper alone in one room, what could have possibly gone wrong?" I said, completely baffled.
She mumbled into the bed.
"If you want me to take part in this conversation, you're going to have to turn over. I can't understand a word you're saying."
"I said I almost jumped Jasper."
"Of course you did. Today is a day ending in 'y'."
"No, I really almost jumped Jasper. In the dressing room…on the floor."
"Oh, what did he do?"
"He fought dirty!"
She told me about Jasper's fashion show, and by the end, I was laughing hysterically on the bed, and she was scowling at me.
"He totally got revenge for the boots!" I sputtered between laughs.
"Yes," she pouted.
"So, what's your next move?"
"I'm not sure. I'm going to think about it while I do your hair."
She rambled on about my hair and nails while I found myself preoccupied again. I remembered the times in the past that Edward and I had kissed, and I felt my body flame under his touch. If he did that again tonight, there was every possibility I wouldn't stop him from taking it farther. "Alice…"
"Oh, relax, Bella. I won't go overboard."
"No, it's not that, I uh…want to go shopping."
She froze and stared at me for a solid minute before she said anything. "Who are you, and what have you done with Bella?"
"Har, Har. I want to go buy some lingerie. Nothing too fancy, but I didn't bring anything nice with me. I think I could use the confidence boost tonight. Plus…" I trailed off, not really wanting to say that I was considering ending up in Edward's room tonight.
"That's a great idea, Bella. I should have thought of it. I know just the place, come on." She didn't tease, harass, or interrogate me. She just understood what I needed. It was one of the reasons Alice was such a great friend.
We were back in our room a couple of hours later, both of us very pleased with our purchases. Alice got to work on my hair. She decided that I needed to look natural much to my relief. By the time she was done, my hair was shining and full of large soft cascading curls.
After much debate, we settled on my favorite tattered jeans with a particularly large hole on one of the thighs and a tight-fitting emerald green top. The top was comfortable, but sexy since it was lower cut. Alice insisted that I needed to show off my 'assets' as she put it.
She completed the final touches with light makeup, and Alice pronounced that I was ready. I checked the clock, it was only 7, and I started to pace.
"So I think I've decided what I'm going to do to Jasper," she said proudly, holding up a swimsuit.
It was one of her favorites. And one that had got her a fair bit of attention in the past.
"I have a feeling that Jasper will show up here tonight with Edward. You're going to tell him that I was worked up when I got back and that I finally went down for a swim to cool off."
"Alice, what exactly are you trying to accomplish?" I asked perplexed.
"I…I'm not sure exactly…forcing him into making a move?"
"Have you two stopped moving yet? Ever considered just telling him how you feel?"
"He knows how I feel, I don't have to tell him. I just need to make him realize that he feels that same way. Besides, guys always like a chase, it's a caveman thing. He likes it when I keep surprising him."
"Be careful what you wish for. Maybe one of these days, Jasper may surprise you. He already did once today."
She muttered something about fairness, grabbed her bag, and left the room.
I continued trying to work and keep my eyes off the clock. There was a knock at the door promptly at eight. Edward was at the door with Jasper, just as Alice had predicted. I silently thanked Alice for this opportunity. I had prepared my line, and I never would have been able to pull it off without preparation.
"You lied, sweats are not appropriate for a threesome," I proudly managed to say with a straight face and no blush.
Jasper snorted in amusement, and I turned to see a slightly shocked look on Edward's face. Jasper seemed to realize Edward wasn't going to explain his presence. "I'm here to see Alice, I thought she might like to go grab some dinner."
I chuckled to myself. "I'm sure she would have, but for some odd reason, she was all worked up when she got back this afternoon. She went down to the pool, she needed to cool off." I managed a weak scowl for a long as I could, but eventually, a smile broke through, and I winked at him. He was a smart guy, I'm sure he had the game all figured out by now.
Edward led me toward the stairs as Jasper said his goodbyes and returned to the elevator.
"Where are the sweats?" he asked, seemingly surprised.
"Oh, Alice put her foot down. She said it was this or naked."
"Tough choice," he smiled.
"Not as much as you might think. So do I get to know where we're going yet?"
"You'll see."
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