Hi everyone!
Before I leave you with chapter 7, I would like to respond to a few reviews that came in and I felt needed to be responded to here, instead of in private. You can always skip this part.
I know (guest reviewer) said: "Loathe what is happening. Why have they not run away? Why didnt Bella tell the truth? Not liking this at all. I am no longer gonna read this"
If you are reading this, I know, I must say that I am disappointed, because you didn't give this fic a proper chance. You're not the only one not liking the situation in which the girls are. I'd hoped you'd stuck around a few more chapters, because they are not stuck there forever.
That being said, I know that it's not everyone who will like this story, but I just wish you would have given this story a proper chance, because it's only now getting started.
tmcash2274 said: "I really like this story so far, but it was more than a little frustrating. I know the guys were drinking however how could Jasper not recognize his cousin Rose if they were supposed to be best friends and most of all if Edward had gotten that close to Bella and learned her real name how could he not gotten a glimmer of recognition, especially after hearing her dad was a cop. Frustrated!"
I don't want to seem like I do not accept constructive criticism, because I do. I only want to be a better writer, and your comments on my writing are important. That being said, it may look as if I have overlooked some details, but don't forget one thing: when you drink, the brain works a lot slower. Also, Rose and Bella are heavily made up, and they lost weight since the last time they were in contact with Jasper and Edward, so they are harder to recognize. Thank you again for your comments, and I hope you will enjoy this new chapter.
And I now present you with chapter 7. I hope you will enjoy it!
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Aftermath
When I couldn't feel Edward's presence anymore, I stayed sitting there for a while. I couldn't believe everything that had transpired tonight. I had never felt anything like this before. How can you feel so close to someone on the first meeting?
I was brought out of my thoughts by a knock at the door. Laurent peeked in.
"Hey, we're closing up. You better hurry out."
I just nodded, making my way out of the room. Laurent was always nice to me and Rose, but he would never dream of taking our side against Phil…or Tanya, or James, or Victoria.
James was Phil's right hand man. And it was as if he had a sixth sense. Sometimes the way he looked at me was just plain creepy. Like he knew I was planning something…
Victoria was James's girlfriend. She was the bartender. She had been a dancer, but she retired two years ago when I arrived. And I can't talk about Victoria without talking about Tanya. For some reason, Tanya hates me. Add to that that Irina is her sister; let's just say I'm not welcomed around here.
On my way to the changing room that Rose and I shared, I came across Tanya, Irina and Jessica. Tanya "accidentally" bumped my shoulder then continued on her way as if nothing had happened. I was used to that by now, their hatred never waned.
I slowly entered the changing room, still somewhat in a daze. Rose was already there, sitting in front of her mirror and slowly removing her make-up. I flopped down on the seat at my make up table beside Rose.
As I removed the make-up and sweat of the night, my mind wandered again to Edward and the time we spent together in my private room. I'm so confused. I don't know what to do. Part of me, and I don't know how dominant that part might be, ached for him. For his touch. It all felt so natural and real that I don't ever want to live without his touch again. The other part of me, the more realistic one, is saying that it's impossible to get in a relationship with him. I can't even get out of the house when I'm not at the club, so how could we possibly even entertain the idea of dating? Even if he was so obviously interested in pursuing something with me, it wasn't possible. I was still Phil's prisoner and no matter how much I wanted to be with Edward, I would never drag him into this fucked up situation.
When I was done washing my face, I looked at Rose. She was strangely silent. She seemed to have a contemplative look on her face. Sensing I was looking at her, she turned to me and gave me a small smile.
"I need to talk to you," she simply told. I knew that meant we would spend a good part of the night talking in the basement.
"Okay," I replied.
As I was removing my top, the door opened and Phil came in.
"You have five minutes, then we're leaving." He told us, and then left the room. His cold eyes always managed to give me a chill.
Rose and I looked at each other, as we scrambled to get changed so that we were ready when he came back. I was just putting on my shoes when he came in again. Without a word, we filed out and quickly walked to the back door of the club. It was easy to let my mind wander and just allow my body to be on autopilot because like every night for the last two years the same car was waiting there. Phil opened the door behind the driver and roughly pushed me and Rose inside.
I hit my head against the handle of the door on the other side, but I didn't utter a word. I knew there was no reason to after all it would only make things worse. Rose saw it happen though, so I knew she would take a look at it once we were alone in the basement of the house.
On the ride to the house, we passed a multitude of shops and cafés. I would have given anything at that moment to be in a bookstore looking for something to read or in a café, enjoying a cup of coffee with Rose.
Or Edward, dare I even hope and dream of a day when that would happen. My mind wandered back to him again. There must be a way for us to get out of this situation. Maybe Edward could… no, I refused to even entertain that idea. He could get hurt in the process, and I didn't want that to happen. I would rather be the one to make the sacrifice and simply see him healthy and alive in the confines of the club. That way I knew that he would never suffer at Phil's hands because of me.
A sigh escaped me when I saw we were pulling up at the house. Phil roughly pulled me and Rose out of the car. He seemed angrier tonight for some reason. I knew better than to make a wrong move or sound on these nights. He was twice as rough as normal. Phil ushered us inside and down the stairs to the basement, then closed the door and locked it.
Once we were safely alone, we sat down on the bed and waited. Phil would be back, he always came back. Like clockwork, Phil reappeared a few minutes later, coming down with not only shampoo, but also conditioner.
"I'm happy tonight girls," he suddenly said after he had dropped the supplies in the bathroom. This seemed like a huge contradiction to his rough treatment of Rose and I in the car but I would never think of asking him why. "You have twenty minutes." Without another word, he went back upstairs. Not in the whole time we had been here had we ever been given twenty whole minutes to shower.
"You go first," Rose told me. "You're the one that had the highest bid tonight, you deserve it."
I blushed. "Thanks." I pulled out the fifty Edward had given me along with a few bills I had managed to steal from the money that was slipped in my bra and panties during my solo and waved them in Rose's direction. "Here, put it with the rest."
She just nodded and I made my way to the bathroom.
I got into the shower and washed my hair thoroughly, knowing the next time I could use conditioner would be in quite a while. I finished off quickly, hurriedly drying myself to let Rose have her time in the shower.
When she was done, she joined me on the bed and took a look at my head. I could feel the excitement radiating off of her. I guess I wasn't the only one that had a good night.
"I had such a wonderful time tonight, Bella!" she exclaimed when she was done with my head.
I shared my smile with her, I certainly understood her happiness. I think this was the first time we knew genuine happiness in the two long years we had been together.
"Emmett was absolutely wonderful!" She continued without me inviting her to do so. "I'm so used to men bossing me around, always asking for the same things… Emmett was… different. And not just as a client, Bella."
I frowned. "What do you mean?"
"I mean… Emmett is not just a client to me, Bella. I can't really explain it… but we have this kind of… connection. Like two magnets. He makes me feel so many things! I had feelings for Royce once, but it's different with Emmett." Her face was an unreadable mask.
"Good different, or bad different?" I asked, needing to know what lay beneath that mask she wore.
"Definitely good different."She was absolutely glowing.
Wait… glowing? She didn't… did she?
"Rose," I started hesitantly, "did you and Emmett, you know…"
"Did Emmett and I what?" she asked when she saw I wasn't continuing.
I blushed. Yup, I still blushed when sex came up.
"Did you and Emmett… go all the way?"
At her confused face, I sighed. Bite the bullet Bella, damn it!
"Did you and Emmett have sex in your room?"
She blushed. Rosalie Hale actually blushed! That answered my question. I have to mark this day somewhere…
"Rose! H-h-how…?"
"Well, you know, this connection… one thing led to another, you know, and before I know it, we were both horizontal on the couch with no clothes on and making out like mad. And our connection deepened when he penetrated me…"
"Rose, I don't need the details, please!"
"I'm not giving you the details. I'm just stating that when I felt him inside me, it just felt… there aren't even words to describe the feelings I had at that moment. It just felt right, you know." Her face searched mine, looking for something that told her I did really understand what she meant.
She paused for a moment, like she was contemplating something.
"But as much as I enjoyed my time with Emmett tonight, I don't think it would be a good idea to try and build a relationship with him right now. I mean, we can't even get out of this basement when we're not at the club, what's the point in pursuing anything? He would get suspicious when he'd see I can't go out on a date with him, and then start asking questions I can't answer. I would only end up hurting him."
Poor Rose. I knew how she felt. If she only knew…
"But you know, I can't help how I feel," she said after a moment of silence. "I think I've fallen in love with Emmett, Bella. He even promised to come back to the club soon for me!"
I gave her a small smile. Edward promised the same thing.
"Now what about you?" She asked excitedly. "How was your time with the big spender?"
"His name is Edward," I said, biting my bottom lip nervously. "The time I spent with him… it was… magical." Well, as magical as it could be under these circumstances.
"Ah, come on Bella, tell me more!" Rose squealed, clapping her hands.
Geeze, okay. I took a deep breath.
"Things were a bit awkward at first. I kind of had to push a little to have him talk to me. It was his birthday today. He said it wasn't his idea of being there for his birthday, so he didn't know what to ask from me. He didn't seem very okay with it anyway. We danced for a bit, and things got… heated."
Rose gave me a big smile. Yeah, if only it were that easy.
"We ended up making out on the couch. Don't give me that look Rose, we didn't go as far as you and Emmett!"
She pouted. I laughed.
"We almost did though, as he asked me to tell him to stop. But I didn't. I couldn't. As much as I felt how wrong it was for us to have sex there, I couldn't bring myself to stop him. It was so good, it felt so right. And you know that connection you were talking about earlier?"
She nodded.
"I had that too, with Edward. It was like… electricity. The more intense things were between us, the more I could feel that electricity. He felt it too, you know. He even asked me if I could feel it."
Rose's eyes were as big as saucers. I couldn't help but let out a small laugh.
"After we stopped making out, we curled up on the couch. He said he wanted to get to know me." At that, tears started to fill my eyes and a lump filled my throat. I couldn't help but sniff.
"Are you alright, Bella? What happened?" Her face searched mine again but for a different reason this time. This time was to make sure I was okay, and not for anything as superficial as to find out how much fun I had with Edward.
"He was so nice, Rose!" I exclaimed through my tears. "The feeling of being in his arms… it was incredible, like I was meant to be there. There was no awkwardness. He's a complete stranger, but it felt as if I had always known him, you know? We played Twenty questions… well, more like eleven, because someone knocked at the door before we could get to twenty. That's where the fifty bucks came from, he offered to pay for the answers," I smiled at that memory.
"What did he ask?"
"Basic stuff, my name, my age, where I'm from." I shrugged my shoulders at the predictability of his questions. "Stuff like that." I was scared to share the last question with Rose. I was afraid of her reaction to it. "He asked why I had taken that job."
"Did you tell him the truth?"
"For the most part. I told him my name and age, but I gave him half-truths for the other questions. When he asked where I was from in Washington, that's when there was a knock at the door."
"He really does want to get to know you."
I could only nod, another lump forming in my throat.
"When it was time for him to go, he seemed genuinely disappointed. He hugged me so tight, as if he didn't want to let me go." The lump in my throat was growing bigger by the second. "And I didn't want to let him go either." More tears escaped me at that, and Rose hugged me. "You know, until that knock at the door, it was as if we were alone, as if we were a normal couple that has just started dating. We were in our own bubble, in our own world. Just before he left, he gave me this soft, deep kiss, and promised he would come back."
Silent tears were falling from my eyes, remembering how empty I felt once he was gone. How empty I felt at this very moment.
"As much as I want us to be more, we can't. Like you said earlier, I couldn't even go out on a date with him, and he would get suspicious. It would be too hard, and I would only end up hurting him. As much as it hurts me, I have to let him go." The tears fell in earnest with my last statement.
It was silent for a while, my sniffling was the only sound in the room.
"I have an idea," Rose suddenly said.
I only looked up at her, unable to say a word.
"Maybe, you know… maybe Emmett and Edward could help us."
Realizing what she was saying, I started shaking my head no furiously.
"No," I said, finally finding my voice. "No, I refuse to take that risk. I refuse to even entertain the possibility of them getting hurt if things were to go wrong. I'd rather see a healthy Edward in the confines of the club until he gets tired of me instead of having him hurt when things turn for the worst."
"But Bella, think about it! Things don't always go wrong! You've got to be positive, here! This opportunity could never present itself again!"
I only shook my head no again. I couldn't… Rose sighed in defeat. Wanting this night to be over now, I laid down on my side of the bed, my back to her. She must have sensed I wouldn't discuss this again, so she lay down as well after she went to turn off the light in the bathroom.
Thoughts? Please leave a review! :o)
Please note that I will not be able to update next Sunday, as I will be on my way back from New York City, so I will update on Monday, September 28 instead. Thank you for your understanding, and see you all soon!