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, Della Aarohi. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Author's Note:
Good day all. Here is the first chapter of So Help Me God. Please note that changes were made to the prologue so you may want to reread it. This chapter turned out much longer than I intended. I do hope you all enjoy it.
Hugs, kisses and best wishes,
Della.
So Help Me God
Chapter One
Isabella "Bella" Marie Swan stifled a groan of pain as she helped situate her father onto his hospital bed as his physical therapy session came to an end.
"You're making progress, Chief. It is slow but it's there," the hospital's physical therapist smiled encouragingly. "You just have to keep doing the exercises that I have shown you and you will be up and running in no time."
"Thanks, Cheryl," Charlie panted slightly, wiggling about to get into a more comfortable position."I really could not have done this without you and Bella here."
With a slight laugh, Cheryl, a plump and peace loving woman, who was well into her fifties, reached over to help Bella adjust the bed coverings over Charlie's legs. "I'm just doing my job. Your daughter is your true champion. You really lucked out in the daughter department, you know."
"Don't I know it," Charlie whispered, trying desperately to keep his tears at bay as he turned to look at his daughter who already had a glass of water waiting for him to sip on.
Oblivious to Charlie's inner turmoil, Cheryl proceeded to fill out the necessary paperwork for Charlie's discharge before turning to the young woman who had taken up residence on the tiny cot at the corner of Charlie's room since he had been admitted to the hospital eight days age
"Bella, sweetie, remember how I told you that I mentioned to my Mark that you were back in town? Well, he is bringing his family over next weekend and we were hoping that you would agree to join us for dinner on Saturday. He really wants to introduce his wife and kids to the little girl who married him at six years old," Cheryl laughed as she took a seat next to Bella. Cheryl's heart broke as she saw how exhausted Bella looked. The tiny beauty next to her was in desperate need of a long, hot shower, a decent meal and a proper night's rest but no one had been able to convince Bells to leave her father's side.
"I will definitely try to make it," Bella consented with a soft smile that failed to reach her eyes.
"I will come pick you up myself and between Billy, Sarah and Jake, I will know where to find you if you run,"Cheryl teased.
"I'll be there. Just tell me when," Bella blushed as she awkwardly pulled her tangled hair into a messy bun on top of her head.
"Six. Saturday evening. No. Make it five. That way I can have you all to myself before Matt and his family arrives. I'll make sure to mix up an extra strong batch of margaritas and you and I can talk about all the single boys in this town. Unfortunately, since Matt is off the market, I think it's only fair that I help you find another husband," Cheryl offered, causing Bella to laugh.
"Sounds fun," Bella said indulgently. "Though it may be hard to find someone to beat Matt. He did proposed to me with one of your chocolate chip cookies,
"That's why the little brat always wanted me to bake those cookies!" Cheryl guffawed. "My little Prince Charming. Winning the girls over by stuffing them full of cookies since 1990."
Sharing a laugh with Bella, Cheryl stood and gathered her belongings after entering her recommendation for Charlie's therapy into his discharge file. Stopping at the door to give her goodbyes, Cheryl could not help the fond smile that bloomed across her face as she looked back at Bella. "It really is so good to have you back, Bella. I hope you decide to stay."
With one more parting wave, Cheryl left the father and daughter pair in a very uncomfortable silence. Neither one knew how to act in each other's presence. They were both terrified of saying or doing the wrong thing so it seemed as though they had come to an unspoken agreement to not speak unless absolutely necessary.
So many years had passed since the pair had spent any time together. Their relationship laid in shambles. Had Bella been a different person, she would have washed her hands of her father and his family a long time ago. If she had done that, her actions would have been easily justifiable. Everyone in the small town of Forks knew what occurred between Bella and her father when he remarried and while she had many champions who were willing to intervene on her behalf, Bella simply shouldered her burden and carried on with her life, piecing it together as best she could.
"Bells," her father called just loud enough to be heard over the rhythmic beeping of the monitors he was attached to. He felt the need to say something to his daughter after watching the exchange between her and Cheryl. "Can you ever forgive me?" His heartbreak and guilt permeated every word.
"Dad, it's all in the past. Let's just see about getting you to your home and on your feet again," Bella responded just as softly; her gaze not shifting from the hospital papers in front of her.
"Sue should have never done what she did. Demanding that you pay those bills. She could have taken money from our retirement fund," Charlie fumed as his hands balled themselves into fists.
"Dad, let's not think about it. It's paid for already," Bella lied in what she hoped was a convincing manner. In truth, she had months to go before she paid off the exorbitant medical bill her father had incurred.
"But how Bella? You still haven't gotten a position at a school and you work in that disgusting bar. I know you don't make much so you definitely could not afford to pay off those bills," Charlie argued.
Sighing softly, Bella placed the papers down before standing and walking over to her father's bedside."Dad, enough!" Bella said in a gentle yet forceful voice. "Let me worry about that for now."
"Bells…."Her father started once more only to be shushed by his daughter.
"No," she said gently, kissing him softly on his head. "I don't want to hear it. The hospital bills are being handled. Sam, Jake and Seth have fitted the house to your needs and the nurse will be there from the morning to help you get back on your feet."
"Bella, none of that is cheap. What did I do to deserve having such a daughter like you?" Charlie asked.
Unable to answer, Bella simply shrugged her shoulders before retaking her seat. " You should rest. You will need a lot of energy later."
"Sounds good," Charlie yawned. " Therapy really kicks my butt."
As Bella watched her father drift off to sleep, she felt as if another tiny part of her heart broke off from the already abused organ and died. She found herself taking deep breaths as she desperately fought back the tears that threatened to fall. For the past eight days, she had been running on pure adrenaline. She was far beyond the point of being able to remember if she ate or slept. Her days had seamlessly blended together and she could feel her body crumbling under the weight of what she carried upon her shoulders.
She remembered all too well the absolute horror and despair she felt when her stepmother called her in the middle of her shift to inform her that her father had been shot in the line of duty. As best as she could, Bella hurriedly explained to her boss what had occured before she made her way to the hospital.
She was a mess of gut wrenching sobs and incoherent babbling she burst through the doors of the emergency ward in search of her father. Her stepsister, Leah, ironically had been one of the nurses on duty that night and had told Bella that her stepmother, Sue, was so overcome with grief that she was unable to make any decisions pertaining to Charlie's care. Without hesitation, Bella signed all of the necessary documents, giving the hospital permission to conduct the surgery that Charlie required while simultaneously becoming the one who would be legally required to pay all of Charlie's medical bills.
So here she was, just eight days later: over fifty thousand dollars for Charlie's medical bills, twenty five thousand for her student loans, another couple of thousands for Sam and his crew for the construction materials they needed to fix up her father's house as well as their labour and now, according to Sue, the nurse that Sue had hired to help with Charlie's care was asking for one thousand dollars a week.
When Bella had asked Sue if Sue would be able to at least handle some of Charlie's care so that they would be able to save some money, Sue had informed Bella that she was an elderly woman and she should not be made to place such a strain on her body. Bella was also told by her stepmother that she should stop being such a penny pinching bitch and do what she needs to do.
All Bella could think about was how she was going to pay for all of it. Her measly savings of ten thousand was already gone. She was able to work out a payment plan with the hospital and the hospital had also been gracious enough to defer the payments by a couple of months. It was their way of saying thank you to their Chief of Police. The agreement she had with the nurse was that she was to be paid at the end of the week so Bella had all of five days to find that money and Sue was adamantly refusing to touch any of her and Charlie's money saying that it had been put aside for Seth's college fund.
Additionally, Bella was very sure that she didn't have a job to go back to at The Cliffs. Her boss, Jamie, was a decent guy even if the patrons of the bar left much to be desired. He called and checked in with her every day; always asking if she was taking care of herself and making sure she ate the food he sent but as great of a friend Jamie was to her, she knew that she could not have taken the last days off like she did without any consequences. The last time they spoke and she mentioned coming back to work he told her to not worry about it and that they would talk about it after she got Charlie settled at home.
Well that day had come.
All she was waiting for was the final signature for Charlie's discharge to be completed and as soon as she got Charlie to his house and settled, she was going to head over to the bar. Having that job was the only way she could keep from drowning in the financial hole she was in.
Looking at Charlie as he rested, his signature moustache twitching in his sleep, Bella could not find it in her to regret her decisions though. As quietly as she could, Bella pulled out the tiny, tattered notebook she used to keep track of her measly savings and began to plan her expenses for the next month.
Utterly depressed and unable to find a solution to her financial woes, Bella snuck out of Charlie's room to get a cup of coffee. She could not have been gone more than five minutes but when she returned, her father was already awake.
"That was a short nap," Bella commented. "Can I get you anything?"
"No, thank you. My knee feels kind of stiff but Cheryl said to expect that." Charlie hissed as he pulled himself into a more seated position. "Did you hear from Sue?"
"I did. She left a voice message. She will meet us at the house. Seth does not have football practice today so he'll be around to help until the nurse gets there in the morning," Bella said between sips of her coffee.
"Bella, I promise you that as soon as I get the paperwork filed and the workman's compensation comes through, I will be paying you back every cent you spent behind me and then some," Charlie said vehemently.
"Don't worry about it," Bella responded. "Let's see about getting you on your feet."
"To hell with getting on my feet!" Charlie shouted in a very uncharacteristic burst of anger. "You are my daughter. I should be the one taking care of you. None of this should be your expense. Not a single dollar of your money should be spent on me."
Before their conversation could go any further, Charlie's doctor and former friend, Dr. Billy Black walked in.
"So it took you twelve years to figure out that Bella is your daughter?" Billy remarked sarcastically as he pulled his pen from his pocket before reaching for Charlie's file.
"Today is not the day, Black," Charlie growled; his hatred for Billy oozing from him.
"What are you going to do?" Billy taunted as he continued to read through Charlie's file. "Put me out on the streets?"
"Enough," Bella intervened as both men squared off. "Are you discharging him?"
"Yes," Billy said, sneering one more time at the injured man before turning to the young woman in front of him with a soft smile. "But he has to take it slow. Remember we had to do a knee replacement because the bullet shattered his knee completely. I give him six months to make a full recovery."
"I know. I know," Charlie grumbled, already moving to swing his legs over the side of the bed in an attempt to hurry his departure forward.
"Don't brush this off, Charlie," Billy scolded, his ponytail slipping over his shoulder as he turned to look at Charlie . "You are very lucky that you didn't lose that leg. If I had my way your ass would be here until you are at one hundred percent but your wife," Billy spat, "had different plans."
"Thank the Lord," Charlie huffed, "No offense, but there are only so many times I can see your face in one week, Bill."
"At whose expense?" Billy roared. "You are such a poor excuse for a father, Charlie. Aren't you ashamed of what you have done? Ashamed of what you allowed your wife to do? Ashamed of what she is still doing?"
"That's my wife that you're talking about," Charlie spat as his monitors began to beep rapidly.
"And where the hell is she?" Billy rebutted. "Sue is my blood and I have no problems saying that she is a viper."
"Dad. Pops. Come on. Stop this," Bella pleaded, unsure of what she should do.
"I'll leave it for now but only because you asked, Bug," Billy said after he took a calming breath. "Your discharge papers are signed. Get him out of my hospital."
"Thank you, Pops," Bella mumbled embarrassment colouring her face.
Sensing her discomfort, Billy sighed before pulling Bella into a hug, "I'm sorry for my behaviour, Bug."
"It's okay," Bella whispered as she breathed in Billy's comforting scent. It was always easier for her to show affection to Billy than Charlie. Maybe it was because Billy was never shy to show his affection for her. "I understand."
"That's the problem. You have had to understand too many things in your life." Billy whispered softly. "Will you be home later?"
"Yes. I just want to pass and talk to Jamie after I drop Charlie off," Bella muttered, tightening her hold on Billy.
"Great. Jake and I are lighting up the grill." Billy smiled, pulling back to place a soft kiss on Bella's forehead. "Steaks are on the menu. Sarah is making mashed potatoes, her signature mushrooms and some apple pie. Well she'll make the apple pie after I call and tell her how you would like some apple pie."
"Can we leave now?" Charlie huffed as he averted his eyes from the pair. He would never admit how much it bothered him to see Billy comfort his daughter especially since he knew that Bella would never be receptive to Charlie comforting her.
"You do not get to be angry because Sarah and I picked up up the slack when you were too stupid to see the pure idiocy of what you were doing. I said it twelve years ago and I will say it over and over until you die. You are a moron, Charlie Swan." Billy all but yelled.
Thankfully, at that moment, one of the nurses entered the room with a wheelchair."Alright, Chief Swan," she said brightly, completely unaware of the tension in the room, "I've got your wheelchair here and Seth is out front with the car to take you home."
"Great. I have a viper to get home too," Charlie shot at Billy who simply rolled his eyes and left Bella and the nurse to get Charlie dressed and out of the hospital.
Seth, her always smiling and forever happy stepbrother, was waiting on them at the hospital doors. After several minutes of struggling, Charlie, all his bags and temporary wheelchair were all loaded into Seth's car and Bella was left to follow in her own beaten up and barely-holding-it together truck.
As it always was in Forks, the copious amounts of rainfall made the roads slippery and difficult to maneuver especially in a truck that desperately needed new tyres. The exhaustion that began to slowly permeate her body forced her to crack her window to let the icy cold air blast against her face to keep her awake.
The drive to her father's home was short and she dreaded having to enter the house. Nothing changed since she lived there. The broken swing set was still in the front yard. The house was still that awful orange colour. Some of the windows needed to be replaced and it also was the place where all her childhood horrors occured.
Through her rain splattered windscreen, she could already see the well wishers who had gathered to greet her father. Putting on a smile, she parked her truck, clambered out of the beast and made her way to the house. Seth was able to get Charlie out of the car and into his wheelchair. When Bella approached to help him, he playfully shoved her to the side so that he could wheel Charlie inside while some of Charlie's deputies started to remove the bags from the car.
With nothing left to do, Bella greeted some of those who were gathered before making her way into the house. All the while, she could already feel her stepmother's glare upon her. No love gained there, she guessed.
Bella worked quickly with Seth to get her father settled in his makeshift room on the first floor before quickly heading to the laundry room to throw in all of the clothes Charlie's used during his stay at the hospital. She desperately hoped that she would be finished with all that she needed to do before her stepmother cornered her but her hope was all in vain.
"I see you are making yourself at home," Sue Swan sneered as she stepped into the tiny laundry room.
"I was just putting my dad's things to wash. I'll be out of here shortly," Bella replied, not stopping her task. The quicker she was done, the quicker she could leave.
"It's not like you have much of a choice. We don't have space for you," Sue smirked evilly, repeating the words she had spat at Bella when she was only ten years old.
Trying desperately to fight the tears that threatened to surface as old wounds began to open up, Bella turned to face the woman who took pleasure in tormenting her. "Is there something else you needed, Mrs. Swan?"
"Why you little bitch!" Sue roared, raising her hand to strike Bella.
"Mum! What is the matter with you?" Seth intervened, pulling down his mother's hand. " I could hear you from the kitchen."
"She was insulting me," Sue whirled around to look at her son, fake tears quickly spilling from her eyes.
"Don't even try that, Mum. You were the one causing trouble. Leave Bella alone. She has a right to be here," Seth stated while rolling his eyes at his mother's theatrics.
Letting out a stifled scream, Sue pushed past her son and left the stepsiblings behind.
"You really should not have done that," Bella scolded softly.
"It's about time I did do something," Seth confessed with a sheepish look on his boyish face.
"Not your battle, Bro," Bella threw back at him before shutting the machine.
" I think it's time I get to pick my battles. After all, I'm fifteen now," Seth teased as he wiggled his eyebrows and flexed his growing biceps.
"Okay, fifteen year old," Bella laughed as she reached into her pocket and pulled out forty dollars and handed it to him. "Dinner is on me. Call up for some pizza."
Before Seth could refuse, she stood on her tiptoes and placed a quick kiss on his cheek before leaving the laundry. She quickly checked on Charlie, who was already engrossed in a baseball game on television, and then hurried out to her truck.
As soon as she was in her truck, she sent a quick message to Jamie, her boss, asking him if he was at the bar. She got his confirmation quickly and she did not hesitate to head in that direction.
The Cliffs, the bar she worked at, was a seedy little establishment. The building which housed the bar was in desperate need of repairs. The paint from the exterior was long gone and so was the sign above the door. So many windows had been broken in bar fights, that all of the windows had been boarded up. The interior was in desperate need of a deep cleaning. The place stank of old beer and was permanently clouded in cigarette smoke. There were holes in the drywall and several of the booths were in need of upholstery. How the health department had not shut down this place yet was anyone's guess.
The Cliffs also catered to a very particular clientele. The men and women who frequented the bar were not known for being law abiding citizens. They were known for causing mischief and mayhem wherever they went. The less you knew about The Cliffs patrons, the better it was for you. In fact, it was a patron of The Cliffs that shot off her father's knee after her father pulled over the man for speeding.
As dangerous as it was for her to work there, Bella had no choice. Until a vacancy opened up at one of the schools in Forks, she had no option but to take the one job she could find. The pay was not too bad either. It was enough to keep her fed and clothed while the tips she made were substantial enough that she was using it to help pay off her student loans.
It took Bella a twenty minute drive before she was pulling into the gravel parking lot in front of The Cliffs. She could already decipher out the cars of several of their regulars though a convoy of three heavily tinted and black coloured Range Rovers located directly in front of the entrance to the building, stuck out like a sore thumb. She quickly found a park and hurried to get into the bar and out of the rain. As she passed the Range Rovers, she couldn't help but try to see into the vehicles but the vehicles' tint was so heavy that she could not see anything.
"Bella!" Jamie exclaimed as soon as he spotted the petite woman coming through the door.
Bella considered Jamie to be one of her dearest friends. It was easy to be intimidated by the man. Over six feet tall and able to bench press over three hundred pounds, Jamie scared the living daylights out of many of the people who interacted with him. He was gruff, blunt and had very little patience when it came to just about everything. The tattoos on his face and his untameable, long blonde hair certainly did not make him appear any friendlier to those around him. Add to the mix Jamie's unhealthy obsession with guns and the citizens of Forks gave him and his bar a wide breadth.
Bella, however, thought of him as a big teddy bear. Since her return to Forks a year ago, he had been in her corner. When she showed up at The Cliffs asking if there were any job vacancies, Jamie immediately turned her down and sent her from the bar. A combination of Jamie's rejection and an overwhelming sense of hopelessness sent Bella into a tailspin and she spent the next hour crying in her truck. That was where Jamie found her after he overheard some of his regulars talking about, "the blondie in the truck they wanted to fuck."
Seeing her tear stained face and the anguish in her eyes, Jamie took pity on the young girl and invited her back into the bar where, after a few beers, Bella told him that she needed a job desperately to get on her feet. Aided by the amount of alcohol she consumed, Bella went further and told Jamie that she was living with a family friend since returning from college and was unable to even finance her own upkeep as she had little to no savings. She also told him her student loans needed to be paid.
After hearing what Bella had to say and knowing a bit of what occured between Bella and her father, Jamie folded like a wet napkin and gave into the young woman though he gave her the job with the condition that she would work on the shifts that he worked. Unfortunately, that meant that she worked a lot of night shifts but he felt more comfortable knowing that he would always be on hand to protect her should one of the customers became too aggressive.
So here they were several months since Bella started at The Cliffs. She was one of the best employees he ever had. She handled the rowdy customers beautifully and had gotten so well at sensing when trouble was brewing that they didn't have a bar brawl in about three months.
To see her looking so haggard and dreary after spending just eight days taking care of her father left a bitter taste in his mouth.
"Hey Jamie," Bella muttered shyly, completely aware that every pair of eyes in the bar were now focused on her.
"Pull up a seat." Jamie nodded towards the bar stool in front of him. "Let me tell Vicky to do a burger for you. Or do you want some wings?"
Before Bella could respond, Jamie turned to the window leading kitchen and began to bellow, "Yo, woman! Burger and fries! Medium rare and some of those honey barbecue wings!"
Within seconds, the red haired, tattooed bombshell who was The Cliffs' night shift cook and Jamie's girlfriend appeared at the window fuming. "Who the fuck are you hollering at? I will cut you, J! I ain't afraid of prison."
"Would you shut up! You are as dangerous as an ingrown toenail! Just a pain in my ass! Go cook! Bella's hungry," Jamie spat before gesturing to Bella who was looking at the exchange between the two in amusement.
"Oh! Bella's here? Hey girl! I missed you. You left me to deal with this flesh eating fungus." Vicky smiled before turning back to sneer at Jamie, "Why didn't you say that? You tell me everything to do with the other assholes here but you can't tell me when my girl is here?"
"Shut up and cook, woman!" Jamie groaned before slamming his hand on the top of the bar causing a man, who was nodding off in a drunken stupor at the other end of the bar, to jerk awake.
"Fuck you, J! You should be careful about eating anything I cook if I were you," Vicky threatened before she stormed away to begin cooking.
"Is this some kind of foreplay for the two of you?" Bella stage whispered causing Jamie to groan.
"I don't ever want to hear the word foreplay coming out of your mouth, Bella." Jamie shuddered before a serious look took over his face. "So the Chief is home then?" Jamie asked, throwing a dish towel over his left shoulder before opening two beers, handing her one and keeping the other for himself.
"Yeah," Bella sighed, hunching her shoulders slightly. "Billy gave him six months before he could make a full recovery."
"That's a long time," Jamie whistled.
"Don't I know it. That's why I wanted to talk to you. Do I still have a job?" Bella asked cautiously.
"I'm sorry, Bella," Jamie said, remorse colouring his face.
"I understand," Bella sighed, taking a drink from her beer. "I was kind of expecting it."
"It's not because of the time off, Bella. It's because some of the other staff on the day shift were stealing money and alcohol. The accountant was doing the books and he noticed the discrepancies. He reported his findings to my business partner and he had me fired everyone because without cameras, we can not pinpoint who was involved in the theft," Jamie explained. "I tried to get him to leave you alone. I vouched for you but he has completed veto on who is employed."
"Damn!" Bella swore,"I really needed the job. Is there any way I can reapply?"
"Hey! Wasn't Edward looking for someone to hire to work for him?" Vicky interjected, making her way from the kitchen with the food Jamie had ordered.
"He is," Jamie nodded with a thoughtful look in his eyes."But Bella may have to relocate."
"Wait! Are you talking about Edward Cullen?" Bella asked in shock. "Is that who those Range Rovers out front belongs to?"
"Yup," Jamie confirmed, turning to look at the office door where two armed men stood guard. "He's in there right now."
"That's your business partner?" Bella gaped at her boss in disbelief.
"Yeah. I went through a rough patch and when I retreated to Forks, I didn't have a single dollar to my name. Edward found me, got me on the right track and gave me the capital to open this place up. Once every fortnight, he sends someone to check the books and if his accountant notices anything funny, Edward steps in."
"Talk to him for her, J," Vicky pleaded. "Bella is just the kind of person he would hire to work for him anyway and she is way too good for here."
With a grunt, Jamie fell silent. Every once in a while, he would look over at Bella and then towards the office where Edward Cullen was sequestered. Neither Bella nor Vicky knew what to say though they could see that Jamie wss seriously considering approaching Edward on Bella's behalf
After several minutes, Jamie expelled a ragged breath and turned to address Bella. "Edward, like me, served in the Marines. I did two tours overseas. He did three. Being in a war changes you and when you get back home, you develop ways to cope. I turned to drugs and alcohol. He became a robot. I know you need a job and working for him would open a lot of doors for you but you have to be sure. He is one of the best men I know but he is also one of the most difficult and demanding assholes to walk the planet and I don't want you to get hurt."
Bella was absolutely stunned. She had never heard Jamie speak so candidly about his time in the Marines and quite frankly it unsettled her. In the time that she had known him, he never hesitated to act on her behalf but here he was now, asking her to understand and for her to give him her permission as if he was about to throw her into the lion's den. Unsure about what to say, Bella just whispered, "You're just asking for an interview, Jamie."
For a few tense seconds afterwards, Jamie stared at Bella with such intensity that she found herself fighting the urge to look away. His glacier blue eyes met her warm brown ones and Bella felt as if Jamie was trying to read her soul. He must have found whatever he was searching for because he suddenly turned and left the two women who were both confused by the exchange.
"What the absolute fuck was that?" Vicky was clearly very worried for Jamie. She nervously chewed on her bottom lip, her blue eyes following him as Jamie stepped into the office after acknowledging the two men who stood guarding the door.
"I don't know," Bella replied. Her palms were sweaty and her heart was racing. She reached over the bar and helped herself to a glass of water and forced Vicky to drink some as well.
The two women spent the next few minutes staring at the office door in tense silence. Vicky even ignored the patrons who approached the bar for drinks. On one occasion, the men guarding the door turned towards the office, their hands going to the guns at their waist as if they needed to intervene in some struggle occurring within the office. Both Vicky and Bella let out startled gasps when they saw the men reaching for weapons since neither of the women knew the men carried firearms until that moment.
Thankfully, Jamie came out of the office just seconds later panting as if he had run a marathon. Both women looked on in astonishment as Jamie made his way back to the bar and quickly downed two shots of tequila. Jamie's entire body shook from barely concealed fury.
"If he wasn't such a good guy, I would happily put a bullet in his head. You hear me, Cullen!" Jamie roared as he whirled around and put his fist through the drywall causing some of the glasses to rattle ominously. All the while, his blazing eyes remained locked on the office door that was still opened after he had stormed out.
"Babe!" Vicky gasped, reaching out to gently touch his shoulder. Gently as she could, Vicky eased Jamie's hand from the hole in the wall and placed his hand under the pipe to wash away the dust, splinters and blood that were covering his fist. Bella jumped into action and quickly retrieved the first aid kit from the kitchen. Both women worked quickly and in silence to clean and bandage Jamie's hand. His occasional hisses of pain were his only acknowledgement that he was conscious of what was occuring.
After treating his wounds, Vicky sat on top of the bar and pulled Jamie into a hug; making sure to wrap both her arms and legs around him. At first Jamie was unmoving; his arms remained hanging at his sides. As time passed though, Bella could see the calm slowly reentering Jamie, little by little, bit by bit until he pulled Vicky as close as he could and buried his face in her neck.
Feeling as she was intruding on a very intimate moment, Bella busied herself by filling the drink orders for some of the customers. None of them were troubled by Jamie's outburst. They were only annoyed that their glasses were empty. By the time she returned to the bar after filling the order for a large group of bikers, Bella saw that Jamie and Vicky finally separated though they both were still within arms reach of each other.
"He agreed to give you an interview," Jamie mumbled when Bella made it back to the bar, "Sorry if I scared you but Edward has that effect on people."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause trouble." Bella lowered her head in apology.
"You're not the trouble, Bella," Jamie sighed. "He is. And thanks for the help with the drinks."
" No thanks needed. I know how these guys get without alcohol," Bella joked. "When's the interview?"
"That's the thing. He is insisting that the only time he has to give you the interview is now," Jamie spat, turning to glare at the office once more.
"Asshole," Vicky sneered before shooting Bella a sympathetic smile.
"Now?" Bella gulped, her eyes widening in shock. "It's not possible. I don't have my resume. I'm not even dressed appropriately. I don't even know what the position is."
"It's the best I can do." Jamie shook his head in apology. "We have your resume on file from when you were hired here. He is using that one. I know it's sudden but this is what he does. He does things to throw people off their game."
"What do I do?" Bella whispered helplessly.
"Your best." Jamie smiled in a reassuring manner, giving her a pat on the back. "You've got this."
Before any of them could say anything further, the larger of the two guards approached the trio.
"Good afternoon, Miss Swan. If you would please follow me. Mister Cullen shall see you now," The beast of a man said, startling Bella.
After rolling her shoulders and taking a deep fortifying breath, Bella slid off her stool and followed the man to the office to meet the powerhouse, self made billionaire that was Edward Cullen.
All she could think was what did she get herself into.