Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. Edited by Sjdavis84 and StillDreaming85.
Marie Cullen. (Isabella)
A week had passed since the incident on the stairs. I had done my best to avoid Edward at all cost as well as avoiding his little friend, Janina. Which wasn't really that hard to do because wherever Edward was, Janina wasn't far behind. She followed after him like a lost puppy. It was suffocating to watch. Edward didn't appear to appreciate her presence the majority of the time that I had seen them together, yet he made no effort to get away from her.
There was clearly something going on between the two of them, or something had happened at some point.
I wasn't stupid, I knew that Edward had probably slept with her and yet I didn't know how to feel about that. There was no one emotion to describe it. It was almost as if I was empty.
It was late now as I made my way down to the kitchen. All the lights were off and the doors were closed.
One of the housekeepers was in the kitchen tidying up as I made myself a sandwich. I had made the excuse that I wasn't feeling well at dinner. Of course, Esme and Carmen hadn't brought my little lie, but they didn't push.
It was childish of me to act like this, to avoid him, them. But Edward wasn't exactly a reasonable man and when his mind was set on something, well there was no changing it.
He had tried to explain to me numerous times that he and Janina, it wasn't what it had looked like, and I told him the first thing that slipped out of my mouth, that I didn't care.
That didn't sit well with him. I honestly didn't know what reaction he was expecting me to have.
Was I supposed to feel angry? Jealous? Hurt even? I didn't know because the truth was, I felt nothing.
Maybe that's what made him angry, my indifference to the situation and the position I had caught him in.
I turned around to load my empty plate into the dishwasher. When I looked up, the housekeeper all but ran out of the kitchen. What a strange woman, I thought. But when I turned back around, I could see the reason she had high tailed out of here. Edward was leaning with his elbows on the bench top.
The first thing that caught my eye, was his red and bruised knuckles and I wondered who had gotten on his wrong side.
The second thing that caught my eye, was the gun tucked into the waistband of his pants. He made no effort to cover it up, nor did he seem to care.
"What are you doing down here?" He asked. "I thought you were sick."
"I was hungry," I said, avoiding his gaze. I hated it, the way he would look at me, it was always so intense.
"And you're feeling better now?"
All this small talk was pointless. It was his way of trying to get me stuck into a conversation with him. Maybe he thought that by some miracle I would fall for it.
But there was one thing Edward had failed to realize, I wasn't a little girl anymore. I wasn't the same person I was three years ago. I had grown up and learned so much more.
"Cut the small talk," I said. "Say what you have to say and be done already. I'm tired of this."
He slowly straightened himself up. He walked around the long island bench. I followed his every move.
I had nowhere to run. I was trapped between the bench, the wall and the dishwasher on the opposite side. I could always jump over the bench, I thought. But was I really that desperate to get away from him?
My decision had been made for me though. It was too late, he stood now right in front of me, so close our bodies were almost touching.
He was fast. I don't remember him being that fast. He waited, waited for me to look up at him.
As much as I didn't want to, as much as I wanted to go on ignoring him. I knew he wasn't a patient man and I didn't know how short his fuse was right now. So I put us both out of our miseries and looked up at him, it was a decision I regretted instantly.
He was furious, yet he was trying to hold back. His hands were by his sides balled into fists. I had seen Edward angry before, but I don't remember him being anything like this. I prayed that someone would come and find us in the kitchen, Esme, maybe Carmen or even Carlisle. Even Janina would do right now, as long as it gave me the chance to get away from Edward.
"I don't like your attitude, dolcezza. I don't remember you being so...bratty," he said.
"I thought you wanted to talk about your little girlfriend," I said, refusing to be intimidated by him.
"Let me make one thing clear here, dolcezza. She is not my girlfriend and what you saw was nothing than a misunderstanding," he said.
A misunderstanding? Is that what he's going to call it? Or did he really think I was that stupid. It was hard not to laugh in his face and my outburst caught him off guard, which let me slip past him and put some distance between us.
"A misunderstanding, really Edward is that the best you can do?" I laughed. "You know what, I don't care. What you do or who you do it with is none of my business. But you are such a hypocrite"
'What the hell are you talking about?" He said, taking a step towards me, but I took one back.
"You almost killed a man because I was having a conversation with him and then I find you with your tongue down another woman's throat after you claim to love me and you can stand there and call it a misunderstanding?" I yelled. I didn't know where all of this was coming from. Maybe deep down I was angry at him, angry that he had lied to me. Angry that he claimed to love me and then pull a stunt like that knowing very well that I could walk in and see it.
"I do love you. Don't you ever question me about that," he said, reaching out and grabbing my hand pulling me to him. I didn't like this. I didn't like this closeness, it did something to me, it clouded my judgment.
"And I told you what you saw was a misunderstanding, If you would have let me explain earlier than we could have avoided this past week. We could have avoided you avoiding me."
"I was not avoiding you," I said.
He raised his brow, knowing himself that that was a lie.
"Who is she then?" I finally asked him.
Carmen had told me in large that Janina was the daughter of one of Carlisle's important contacts, but that was all Carmen said. Maybe that was all she knew or maybe she didn't want to tell me, or maybe she chose not to get involved.
"She is a...Not important," he said, avoiding my question.
"You're going to have to do better than that, Edward. I'm not stupid."
"And I told you I don't like your attitude."
"Alright, I'm done," I said, snatching my hand back. He wanted to play this game and I was not in the mood. If he couldn't answer a simple question, how did he expect me to believe anything else he tells me?
What bothered me though was, why did I want to know so much who this woman was to him? Why did I suddenly care when I was so sure I didn't? Why was it that when I thought about the two of them now, when my mind showed me the picture of the two of them together, my blood boiled. I felt my anger rise and I had the sudden urge to take it all out on someone, on her, on him.
Was I jealous? Is this what jealousy felt like? If so I didn't like it one bit. I was never a violent person. But now the only thing that I could think of was killing Janina and the satisfaction it would bring me.
"Dolcezza, come here now," Edward called out. "I'm not done with you yet."
"Well, I'm done with you."
I almost made the perfect escape. I was sure he was not following after me because I couldn't hear his footsteps following behind me. When I made it up the stairs and to my room. I almost had a heart attack when I saw him standing in front of my bed with his arms crossed.
"How did you get here before me?"
"You are forgetting dolcezza, I spent a lot of summers here as a child. I know this house back to front, including the staircase between the walls," he said, as he removed his gun from the waistband of his pants. My breath caught in my throat for a second as I thought of the worst, before he placed the gun down on my bedside.
"Get out," I demanded.
"I don't think so." He chuckled. "You are my wife and it's about time you started acting like it."
"What is that suppose to mean?"
He was beside me in a flash, I didn't even have time to blink. He pulled me to him by the hem of my shirt, I heard it rip in the process.
In the time that I had spent with Edward before, I had never seen him like this. It was almost as if it wasn't him and that scared me. This Edward scared me, more than Anthony ever did.
He kissed me without asking, I wasn't prepared but he didn't care. There was nothing gentle about it, not like before. The stubble on his face scraped against mine uncomfortably.
He walked me back until the back of my knees hit the bed. He pushed me back. I leaned up on my elbows as he pulled his shirt over his head.
"Please don't do this," I cried. He wouldn't. He couldn't. This wasn't him, but then again, I never knew the real him.
He paid no attention to my pleas, in fact, I don't think he even heard me. He leaned down and captured my mouth with his in another angry kiss. I pushed and banged my fists on his chest with as much force as I could, but I was no match for him.
But when he stopped. He rested his forehead against mine. I was too scared to open my eyes but I could hear him, I could hear his soft cried and then I felt his tears slip down onto my face.
I was lost I didn't know what to do. So I just stayed there and I held onto him and I let him cry on me. I didn't know what was going on in his head. I didn't know what had caused this. But seeing him in this way. He was always so strong and determined, never broken. It broke me to see him this way.
I don't know how long we stayed there like that. My arms were numb, my whole body was numb. He had placed almost all of his weight on me. But he got up, he kicked his shoes off and pulled back the covers and climbed into bed, taking me with him.
"You're my wife," he whispered into my ear.
Not giving it a second thought, I answered him. "I'm your wife."