Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns all.

Rated M for several reasons.

Chapter 6: Dating, Interrupted

BPOV

Since it is only coffee and we are both professionals I decide that I do not need to sex myself up for Dr Tom, but I have done my makeup properly and opted for heels.

Something is wrong, I know I should be nervous or excited as I drive into Seattle. But I am not. Perhaps I should have followed my instincts and arranged to meet James first, instead of taking the easy option?

Too late now.

Tom is probably lovely, and I will feel better about him once I have met him.

The sun is shining, and I pause to savour the heat on my face as I exit the car. I have got used to living up here, but I still miss the sun on my skin.

The pessimist in me half expected Tom to look nothing like his picture but there he is, waiting in the coffee shop, just as advertised. His hair is short and dark, and his sleek black glasses frame his bright blue eyes beautifully. He is a stocky build, rather than athletic and style wise he is the male version of me, respectable and comfortable in grey slacks with matching jumper and black sport coat. In fact, we have accidentally dressed to mirror each other.

"Hi, Bella," he says, getting to his feet, "so nice to finally meet you."

"You too," I confirm as we shake hands.

I order coffee and a danish and we stumble into a conversation, talking about our education and residency experiences. He is older than me and has already specialized in cardiology while I have no idea if I even want to specialize.

He has an expensive apartment in an exclusive complex but does not seem fazed by the modest house I describe sharing with my dad.

He drives an Audi and I have to check my keys to remember that my car is a Ford.

He vacations abroad twice a year. I have never had a vacation, let alone been abroad.

He attends a spin class twice a week. I would be lying if I said I was entirely sure what a spin class was.

His dad is an acclaimed surgeon, mine is a small-town cop. The family have a house in the Hamptons, mine have a house.

He likes the opera; I think the girl who shared my dorm room the first year in college had an opera CD.

His secret sporting passion is tennis, and I had a boyfriend in college who tried to teach me how to play it once.

At first I am thinking that we have nothing in common but medical degrees, then I remind myself that it does not seem to bother him, and he is nice, and maybe what I should be doing is spending time with someone who has broader horizons than I do.

So, I agree to a second date when he suggests it and he goes up in my estimations when he offers to drive out to Forks.

"You know," I tell him, "there is nothing much in Forks."

"I don't mind," he assures me, "visiting new places is all part of life's rich tapestry."

Okay then.

…..

I decided that to be fair to Tom I would not take things any further with James or Liam until I had seen how our second date went. But my colleagues scoffed at my old-fashioned morals and insisted that the point of online dating was to try many pairs of shoes before you buy.

So, I messaged James, the park ranger, and when he had not replied several days later, I swallowed my guilty feelings and messaged Liam.

Now I have a date with Tom this Saturday and one with Liam for Sunday when his restaurant is closed. I am quite the floozy.

…..

I had thought that I would take Tom to the Christmas Market in Port Angeles but now I am worried that Liam will see us.

Instead I advise him to wrap up warm so I can take him on a whistle-stop tour of the Forks scenery and feed him lunch, in what I hope I can sell as our traditional 'mom and pop' diner.

In the meantime Charlie is worried that there is trouble brewing down at La Push, he cannot quite put his finger on it but something is definitely amiss and even Billy is, as he put it, blowing smoke up his ass. I tried talking to Leah and Jake about it but did not get far, which makes me suspicious too. Jake did say that Paul was sick, but when I went over to see if I could help, his uncle sent me away with a flea in my ear.

….

My second date with Tom was a success. He loved First Beach, waxing lyrical about the cliffs and the huge waves crashing in from the pacific. He also said he enjoyed tramping along the easily accessible forest paths and poking round our modest selection of historic local attractions. He also insisted that the eclectic range of cuisines mashed up in our diner was a great dining experience.

All of which endeared him to me enough to approach our first, modest, kiss with some enthusiasm.

It was nice and we arranged to have dinner in Seattle after Christmas.

…..

My date with Liam also went well, he is much closer to me in age and we share similar experiences with growing up as well as our taste in music and literature. We have coffee and then spent a few hours wandering around Port Angeles, during which I learned an embarrassing number of new things about the place. Embarrassing because Liam is from Denver and has only lived here for a little over a year. His parents passed a few years ago and he moved here with his younger brother, Riley, so they could start over.

I found him easier company than Tom because I was less worried that he might be judging me against an upbringing and lifestyle that I do not share.

We too agreed to meet again after Christmas. No kiss though.

…..

Christmas has crept up on Charlie and I and it is not until the last minute that we are scrambling around getting a tree, decorating the house, buying gifts and tracking down a bird for a traditional dinner. Leah and Jake are having their first Christmas together as a family, so we have invited Sue and Seth to join us.

In fact, we were in such a last-minute panic that I felt totally guilt free turning down an invitation to a drinks party for the hospital staff at the Cullen's.

The panic was partly my fault, I stripped off all the wallpaper downstairs, intending to re-decorate at my leisure, before I knew that Sue and Seth were coming. The new décor does not match the aging furniture, but we cannot do anything about that now.

Charlie is still salty about it as we start dinner on Christmas morning, he hates decorating and had intended to spend Christmas Eve drinking too much beer down at the Res.

"Stop moaning," I tell him, "at least you do not have a hangover this year."

"Don't get smart with me young lady, I was up till midnight painting all the fiddly bits while you ponced about in here with your fancy pants recipes."

"Which you will eat," I point out.

"Damn straight I will," he confirms, "I've worked up quite an appetite and you're an acceptable cook."

"Wow, thanks."

"You're welcome," he says with a smirk. "Now, is there anything else you want to force me to do or can I go and get a shower?"

I dismiss him with a wave of my hand, and he stomps off to avail himself of the 'new agey' shower he is always complaining about, but secretly loves. I am sure it is the only reason he comes home these days.

I am hoping he will thaw out when we exchange gifts later, I got him the new fishing rod Billy said he wanted and a new hunting vest to replace the one with all the ripped pockets.

…..

We had a great Christmas with Sue and Seth. Seth's a grown man now but still has the playful sweet nature I remember from when we were kids.

I hope Sue enjoyed it as she much as she could, once the life of the party she is so sad and lost without Harry, and I can understand why Charlie and Billy have been spending so much time with her.

I struggle to understand how it must feel to lose someone you have been with so long. The father of your children, the man who built your house for them and held you at night. I was so young when mom and Charlie split up it all feels a bit alien and magical to me. My longest ever relationship was with Jake and if I am honest that was merely because we were so comfortable with each other that is never occurred to us that anything might be missing. I mean, I lost my virginity to him, but I cannot recall ever looking at him and thinking 'hubba hubba'.

Which brings me, rather selfishly, back to dating. Neither Tom nor Liam are giving me the 'hubba hubbas'.

I know that love at first sight is ridiculous. I know that romantic love is largely a literary construct of the last couple of centuries. I know that lust and love are not always the same thing. I am therefore sure that my approach to dating has always been reasonable. But secretly I have always wished that there were more to it, Romeo and Juliet was always my favourite story, even though the premise is blatantly ridiculous.

I cannot see myself drinking poison for Liam or Tom, nor them for me. And I have not had a single sexual fantasy about either of them. What does that mean?

It means I am over analysing things. As usual.

Just because I have heard all mom's stories about how the mere sight of Charlie used to set fire to her loins, even after the point when his simply existing bored the pants off her anyway, does not mean that I should be hankering for the same thing. I mean, look how their relationship played out?

No, I will stick to my plan. And maybe read Romeo and Juliet again, it has been a while.

…..

However, there was no dating, and precious little reading, in the weeks after Christmas as a flu epidemic swept Forks. At one point our modest hospital was nearly overwhelmed with half the staff out sick and half the town seeking some kind of treatment. We were so short staffed on one day that most of Carlisle's family were in acting as porters and cleaners.

Charlie had it and eventually I caught it too.

And I have many people to apologise to for that, sick doctors are truly awful, awful, people.

By the end of January things, and me, are finally starting to get back to normal.

Or whatever that is. Neither Charlie nor I feel comfortable down at La Push at the moment, for a start. The community was severely affected by the flu according to Sue, but they strongly discouraged any attempts to help, effectively sealing themselves off. Leah is not returning my calls and Jake is not being forthcoming about why.

Tom is staying with family on the east coast and Liam has fallen out of contact, which is probably why I felt a thrill of anticipation when James, the park ranger, got back in touch and suggested we meet up.

Something to look forward to . . . .