So, how do we like FighterWard? Isn't he swoon-worthy? Anyway, I hope you're enjoying the story … What's up next?
Up next will be Edward moving into his new place, meeting up with Emmett and Jasper and dealing with the cold shoulder from Ms. Swan at the Labor Day Bull Dog Barbecue Bash at Casa de Swan.
What I own: An adorable approximation of my deceased furbaby from Cuddle Clones. They even got the snaggle tooth!
What I don't: Twilight
Chapter Sixteen
Edward was organizing his kitchen, getting settled into his new apartment. After he got the keys, he loaded up his SUV with his clothes, kitchen supplies and personal effects to decorate his place. After he got inside, he went grocery shopping to pick up healthy foods. Eating room service was not necessarily good for his workout regimen. He couldn't run as far or strength train because of the limitations that Carlisle had put on him for his head injury.
As he was putting the food away, his phone rang. Sliding his finger across the screen, he put it on speaker. "Hello?"
"Masen! It's Emmett! What are you doing?" Emmett bellowed.
"I'm organizing my new place and trying not to go batshit crazy," Edward snorted.
"You got a new place?" Emmett asked.
"Yeah, I signed the paperwork last week. I spent the past few days moving in and getting settled. The line at the DMV was killer," Edward laughed. "Do you want to come over? I'm trying to load up my fridge with healthy food and …"
"Send me the address. Jasper and I will be there in a half hour," Emmett said. "Looking forward to it, man. Do you need anything? Never mind. We'll bring over some nosh. See you in a bit."
The phone call ended abruptly, leaving Edward flummoxed. Emmett was a very chatty guy, but his conversations flitted from one topic to the next. Shaking his head, Edward finished putting away his groceries and went around his place, picking up any random crap from the floor. Since it was so new, there was very little out of place.
He did light some candles around the place, since the apartment did smell like fresh paint. He was looking at his computer, checking his email and paying some bills. The intercom buzzed. Walking to the doorway, he saw Emmett and a blonde man standing in the doorway. Emmett waved goofily at the security camera, making Edward chuckle. He buzzed them in, leaving his door open.
A few moments later, Emmett, who was larger than life, entered the apartment, with a smaller man. "Edward, my man, awesome digs!" Emmett boomed. "Very rustic. Your décor?"
"No. I purchased a furnished place because I wanted to make sure that Seattle was a good fit for me," Edward replied. "Water? Soda?"
"Pssh, I'm not training today. I'm drinking beer," Emmett said, putting a six pack on the quartz countertop. The blonde put two pizza boxes on the counter. "Jasper, this is Edward Masen. Edward, this is my brother-in-law and best friend, Jasper Whitlock. He's also the attorney for the gym. The lawsuit he's bringing against Jacob Black is going to be sweet!"
"I swear, Em, you have no sense of tact," Jasper sighed, shaking his head. "You can't talk about it. Nondisclosure agreement, asshat." Looking at Edward, he held out his hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Edward. You're all the gym can talk about. Quite the buzz."
"Nice to meet you, too, Jasper. I promise to not say anything about the impending litigation against Jacob Black, though he deserves all the shit he gets," Edward snickered.
"Holy fuck, you're smart. I read that you graduated from Northwestern, but …" Jasper squeaked.
Edward just grinned crookedly as he pulled out the bottle opener for Emmett, who was struggling and failing to open up his beer. "Thanks, Edward," Emmett replied, handing his new friend a beer.
"I can't. Not yet. I'm still dealing with the concussion protocols. I'm stuck with water or soda until I get cleared by Dr. Cullen," he said.
"My dad wouldn't let you suffer so," Emmett pouted.
"Don't push it, Emmett," Jasper huffed. "Have you ever had a concussion? They're hell."
"My concussion was bordering on traumatic brain injury. I still have a bruise on my brain," Edward shrugged. "It's why I'm not training full out yet. I can do strength training, working on my form, but I can't spar. When do go back to the ring, I have wear head protection because of what happened with Demetri." He opened up the cabinets, pulling out plates for the pizza.
"That was some hard-core bullshit," Jasper frowned. "I was actually in Chicago during that fight, doing some work for one of my clients. I was there. I heard the punches and even over the crowd, you could hear the damage being done to your head."
"After the first couple of rounds, I felt like I was deaf, dumb and blind," Edward grimaced, leaning back against the sink. "It was a combination of Demetri's hits and the roofies that were in my water. I was totally fucked up." He picked up his water bottle, shaking his head slowly. "Jasper, I know you're here in a casual capacity, but …"
"Bella already told me that you had concerns about your previous representation," Jasper said with an easy smile. "Do you have a copy of your contract?"
"In my safe," Edward answered. "I'm also concerned that they were fleecing me out of hard-earned money."
"I can have my forensic accountant take a look at your accounts," Jasper replied. "You're not the first former Volterra fighter who's claimed that Aro screwed them over." Jasper's easy smile turned sinister. "It's my ultimate plan to bring down that group of assholes. Aro is just shady, and Caius is known to give his fighters PEDs."
"He tried with me, but I refused. I ate clean, worked out clean … hell, after my fight, I didn't take anything stronger than over the counter," Edward said, taking a slice of pizza and devouring half of it with one bite. "Fuck me, that's delicious."
"Right?" Emmett said around his third slice. "This shit is the best pie on the west coast. Puts Chicago-style pizza to shame."
"I wouldn't go that far," Edward argued, arching a brow. "New York Style, yes. Chicago-style is in a class on its own."
They took their pizza, settling on the couches and watched some college football. Edward's alma mater, Northwestern was playing University of Illinois.
"So, are you planning on coming to the Labor Day barbecue at Charlie's home?" Emmett asked. He'd finished off an entire pizza while Jasper and Edward shared the other one. Now, Emmett was eating from a bag of popcorn that he'd found in the pantry.
"Where do you put it all?" Edward asked. "You're never not eating."
"I'm a growing boy. I need to maintain my heavyweight status," Emmett answered.
"It's heavyweight, not overweight," Jasper teased, arching a brow at his brother-in-law. "You're going to get a gut, tubbo."
"Fuck you. Not everyone can be as svelte as you, Whitlock," Emmett scowled. "Or, you, Masen. I have to work to look this good."
"You keep telling yourself that, brother," Jasper snorted as he took a pull from his beer. "How do you like Seattle, so far?"
"It's nice. I'm not used to all the rain," Edward shrugged. "I'm also battling with the altitude, but it's far more scenic than Chicago. The running trails are beautiful."
"Once you're used to the altitude, we can go for a hike and a camping trip near one of the mountains," Jasper grinned. "The air is so crisp, clear. Very good for the weary soul."
"Thanks, I'd like that," Edward agreed.
"Have you been to the gym this week?" Emmett asked.
"No, I've been using moving in as my workouts," Edward answered. "Plus running in the morning. Why?"
"Bella has been extra distant," Emmett frowned. "Bitchy."
"Dude, she broke up with Jacob who had been cheating on her for a year," Jasper growled, smacking Emmett's head. "I think she's entitled to be pissed, man. Hell, I wasn't in the relationship with Jacob and I'm bitchy about it. Dude was an asshole."
"I was there when she dumped his ass. She was angry, but strong. Now? She's barking at everyone and holing herself up in her office, avoiding any sort of interaction with anyone besides Alice, Rose, or her dad," Emmett explained.
"That might be my fault," Edward sighed, getting up and grabbing another bottle of water.
Emmett's friendly face morphed into one of anger. One that made fighters quake in their boots.
"Emmett, don't beat him up," Jasper said, shooting Emmett a scowl. "Let him talk. I know we all think of Bella like our sister, family, but I doubt that Edward would harm a hair on her head. Right?" Jasper's scowl was turned to Edward.
"No, never. I'm a fighter in the ring. Outside of that? I'm … I would never hurt a woman. Ever," Edward explained quickly, sitting back down in the recliner opposite of his two new friends. "A week ago, Bella used her realtor to get me this place. We spent the day together, getting to know each other and I thought we had a connection. If anything, a friendship. But, there was this undercurrent in our interactions that was deeper."
"You like her," Emmett sang.
"Yes, I do," Edward admitted. "I told her about my skanky ex, and she told me about Jacob. We both been burned by cheating partners. Anyway, it started raining and we ran back to my car. Something sparked between us, in the rain, we kissed … barely."
"Whoa, that's some romantic movie shit," Emmett murmured.
"It was the softest, most chaste kiss, but I felt so alive," Edward whispered. "Like, it was right. Unfortunately, there was a lightning strike nearby and we jumped apart. The moment was gone, and Bella shut down as I drove us back to the gym. I haven't heard from her since, despite my texts, thanking her for her help."
"She told you the whole story about Jacob?" Emmett pressed. "And her epiphany about …"
"How she refuses to date fighters? Yeah, she told me everything," Edward admitted. "Not every guy is like her ex-boyfriend. Not every guy cheat on their beautiful woman …"
"Fuck, you really, really like her," Jasper murmured. "Edward, I'm going to be perfectly honest with you. Bella is stubborn as the day is long. If she says no fighters, she will dig her heels in. She will avoid fighters, like the plague. You might have a connection."
"No, she wouldn't be mega-bitch if she wasn't afraid of falling for pretty boy," Emmett snorted.
"Pretty boy?" Edward questioned.
"Dude, you're pretty. Even your crooked nose is pretty. Pretty boy," Emmett explained, stuffing his face with popcorn. "Do you think she'll let him in?"
"She already did and is now putting up walls to push him out, resulting in pushing us all out," Jasper sighed. "Look, Edward, I'm not condoning Bella's reaction to your almost kiss, but be patient if you want to pursue something with her. We all love her and we don't want to see her hurt anymore."
"Like I said, I could never hurt her. I felt more with that kiss with Bella than I did with my cheating ex," Edward explained. "But, I don't want to push her into something she's not ready for. I'll respect her distance."
"Respect her distance … pssssh, Bella needs someone to challenge her. Jacob didn't. He tried to buy her love," Emmett said. "Challenge her, Masen. We love Bella and she deserves happiness. I think …"
"No, we know," Jasper supplied.
"Right, we know that Bella could be happy with you," Emmett nodded. "Now, let's figure out how to crack down those mile-high walls."
A/N: Emmett and Jasper are the shit. They like Edward, obviously so. They did not like Jacob. Again, obviously so. Now, pictures are on up on my blog … link in my profile. I'm also on FB: Tufano79's Twilight Fanfiction Appreciation. Twitter, too: tufano79.
Up next will be Labor Day BBQ at Charlie's place … Bella practically ignoring him, being coldly polite, Jasper and Emmett supporting Edward and Rose and Alice giving Bella shit for not giving Edward a proper chance. How long will she hold out?
