On the first day, God created the world, next came the people, then Stephanie Meyer created these sexy characters…not me…gutted!!
Taken Aback—'Surprised or startled by a sudden turn of events.'
Bella POV.
"Bella…you look incredible…" Rosalie complemented me as she looked me up and down.
"Thanks." I smiled as I smoothed down my plain black strapless dress that reached my knees. I had butterflies in my stomach since the moment I started to get ready for the date. I sighed in relief as I heard a knock on the main door, I was afraid that the butterflies in my stomach were about to escape. "I'll see you guys later." I waved at them as I stepped out into the hall.
"Hey Bella" Mike greeted me with a smile as he handed me a yellow rose. I twirled it in my hands as I thanked him and then linked my arm with his as he offered his to me.
"You look incredible" he told me as we entered the elevator. I blushed and thanked him. I looked over his clothes; he wore black trousers and a blue button up shirt. I admitted to him my relief that I wasn't over or underdressed.
We stepped out of the elevator onto the resort deck, still with our arms linked together. As we passed the pool, Mike said, "I hope you don't think I'm being weird…but you looked really good today beside the pool." I noticed that he had a nervous hitch to his voice.
I gave his arm a squeeze before I answered, "Thank you, you looked pretty good yourself."
We chatted about the pool, it's live music and how deep it goes as we headed to the main doors of the 'Ocean' restaurant. I smiled at Mike as he held the door open for me in a polite gesture. A young man led us to our table which was situated beside a large window which overlooked the sky and sea.
I sat down opposite Mike and glanced around the décor of the place. It was mainly blue, with wooden floors. Scattered around the walls were odd bits of fishing memorabilia, like old nets and fishing hooks, along with pictures of fishing boats and people's catches.
I looked back to Mike who lowered his head quickly as I caught him staring at me. I smiled at him as he braved to look back up. I set my rose on the table once I realised that I was still spinning it in my hands. We chatted lightly about the heat and the sunset until we were handed a menu each by, "Tanya?! What are you doing here?" I asked in disbelief.
"Well…one of the waitresses got sick, so I decided to cover her. I guessed that I'd be free tonight seeing as you guys hardly ever need my services." She pouted at me in a mocking way as if she was offended.
I caught Mike looking from Tanya and myself in confusion, so I explained to him that Tanya was our butler. "Nice to meet you Mike, ohhh... would you guys like anything to drink?" she added. Mike ordered wine for us after asking my approval. "I'll be back to take your order in a few…" Tanya told us as she walked away.
"You're in one of the Penthouse suites?" Mike asked me in disbelief.
"Yeah…you know Alice…the one with the black hair" he nodded his head, "She won tickets for three on this cruise…so here I am!" I smiled as I finished my short story.
"Well…I'm glad she won the holiday, I'd have never got the chance to meet you otherwise." He told me as he held my gaze with an intense look.
I blushed and nodded at him, feeling slightly shocked at how intense his gaze was. I looked down to my menu and decided almost instantly what I was going to have.
"God…is everything in here fish?" Mike asked in a joking voice as he looked at me over the menu, his eyes glistening with humour.
"Were in a fish restaurant Mike…" I laughed back, joining in on his joke.
He bent his head back to study the menu for a few moments until Tanya returned with the wine. "Are you ready to order?" she asked in a pleasant tone as she poised her pen ready against her note pad.
"Yeah…I'll have the crab risotto…" I told her as I poured myself a glass of wine.
"I'll have the same…" Mike said as he handed Tanya his menu.
"Okay…I'll be back with your food in a bit!" she waved as she walked away.
"She's really nice." Mike commented as he filled his wine glass. I went off on a tirade about how great she'd been to us so far and how much the three of us got on with her, while Mike listened.
"So how are you and your friend enjoying the cruise?" I asked in attempt to learn more about him.
He talked about how he and his friend Tyler tended to spend their days at the poolside or trying out new things and how they hadn't been to the club yet.
"The risotto's" Tanya's voice broke Mike and me apart as we talked intently.
"Thanks Tanya" I smiled at her as she placed Mike's food in front of him.
"No problemo…more wine?" she asked as she surveyed our empty bottle. Mike nodded his head as he picked up his fork. Tanya took the empty bottle with her and soon returned with a full one as Mike and I began to eat.
"I didn't even realise that we'd finished that last one!" I admitted as I began to fill my glass anew.
"Neither did I" Mike said as he grabbed the bottle from my hand to fill his own glass. I gasped as his fingers brushed mine. I looked up to his eyes and saw the same intense look that I saw before.
We fell into silence as we both ate, cutting the odd glance at each other. Once we were done, we began to talk once again, about high school. "Would you like to see the desert menu?" Tanya asked as she collected our empty plates.
"Yeah sure" I answered as Mike nodded his head with a smile.
"Alrighty…I'll be back!" She told us in a mock Terminator voice.
Minutes later, she was back, taking out order. "I'll have the chocolate fondant." I told her as I snapped the desert menu closed.
"Does the chocolate torte have any nuts in it?" Mike asked Tanya as he studied the menu. She told him that it didn't. "I'll have the torte then please." He said with a friendly smile as he handed her the menu back.
"So you have and allergy to nuts?" I asked as I twirled my wine in the glass.
"Yeah…it's not too bad…I just get sick…no hospital needed you know." He explained as he took another sip of his wine.
We fell into a comfortable conversation about where we grew up until our deserts arrived. I grinned as I looked down at my chocolate fondant. "Let me know if you like it before you leave, I could have it delivered to your room every night if you want!" Tanya winked at me as she walked away.
I cut into the warm chocolate sponge and smiled in excitement as I watched the liquid chocolate run out from the middle. I ate it all slower than I wanted to; I didn't think that it was such a good idea that I stuffed my face with the chocolate while I was on a date.
Mike polished off his torte and gave his still flat, toned stomach a pat. "That was good!" he smiled.
"Snap" I agreed as I looked down to my clean plate.
"Looks like you both enjoyed it!" Tanya smiled as she grabbed our dishes. I caught the funny look that she gave Mike, but shrugged it off.
"Hey Tanya…I think it'd be a good idea if you could get me one of those fondants sent up tomorrow night…and it'd probably be a good thing for your safety if you sent Alice and Rosalie one each as well." I finished with a smirk.
"Whatever you say boss!" she laughed over her shoulder as she walked away.
"Want to go for a walk?" Mike asked as soon as I turned my attention back to him.
"Sure" I answered as I grabbed my rose from the table. I waved to Tanya as we walked outside onto the deck.
We walked in silence along the side of the ship. I glanced a few times at Mike who hadn't said a word since we left. "Mike…is everything alright?" I asked, feeling worried.
"Yeah…I just feel a little funny that's all…I'll be alright in a few minutes." He reassured me as he continued to walk.
"Do you want to call it a night?" I asked feeling slightly disappointed that our good night was coming to an end so soon.
"I'm sorry…but yeah I think it'd be for the best." He told me with a weak smile as he rubbed a hand over his forehead.
"Just…get well soon" I told him as I stepped up to him to kiss his cheek. He caught me off guard as he turned this head, catching my lips with his. I stood shocked for a few seconds as he kissed me. The moment one of his hands grabbed my waist in an attempt to pull me closer to him, I pulled away.
"I'm sorry…" he stuttered as he looked down with an odd look on his face. I wondered if it was disappointment.
"I'll see you tomorrow maybe?" I asked half heartedly as I began to walk away. I cringed as I heard him heaving behind me. "Eeeewww" I whispered to myself as I got into the elevator.
Edward POV.
"Snap!" Alice cheered as she won another game. She was good…she always seemed to be a second faster than everyone else, as if she knew what was coming.
I heard the room's phone ring as we all settled back into the next round. "I'll get it" I announced as I put down my cards and headed through the sliding glass doors.
"Hello?" I answered. I listened as Tanya spoke to in a rush. "Okay….bye! And thanks for this!" I finished just before she hung up.
I strolled back onto the veranda with a pleased smile on my face. As I sat down, they all seemed to notice my change in mood. "Who was that on the phone? Was it Tanya?" Jasper asked as he stared at me expectantly.
I nodded my head and explained, "Apparently…Mike's allergic to nuts…so…" I finished, shrugging my shoulders.
"No way! She's going to put nuts in his food!" Emmett laughed. "She's a genius that one!" he added.
"But what if he gets really sick? He could die…" Rosalie's usual carefree nature broke as she asked a good question.
"Don't worry…" I reassured them. I looked to Emmett and Jasper, "Tanya would never endanger a persons life just on a whim like that, would she?" I finished, looking to the guys.
"He's right." Emmett nodded along with Jasper. "She's too clever to do something stupid…she'd find some other way to get him." Confidently, Emmett finished sounding as convinced as I felt.
"So, now we wait…" Jasper stated with a smile as he dealt out the cards once more.
Half an hour later, Alice quickly jumped from her seat and ran over the adjoining rail of our verandas. "Bella! Were over with the guys!" she called out excitedly before she came back and sat back down next to Jasper.
A few minutes later, Bella stepped out of their suite and headed towards the chair which Alice and Rosalie had used to step over the high rail. I caught the look of unease on her face and made a bid to go help her, but Emmett beat me. I headed inside and pulled out another chair for her to sit on.
"Thanks" she smiled at me as she sat down.
"Why are you back so early?" Rosalie asked innocently with a curious look on her face.
"Erm…well Mike felt kinda sick, so we ended our night early." She admitted as she played with the end of her dress.
"Did you have a good night?" Emmett asked as he leant forward looking eager. I shook my head in disbelief as I marvelled at how Emmett could get as exited as a woman about some idle gossip.
"The night was perfect…he was really sweet…we had loads to talk about…" she told us. "Ohh and guess what! Tanya was our server!" she told us in excitement.
"No way! How come?" Alice asked looking bemused.
"Someone got sick…and she guessed that we wouldn't call for her" she shrugged her dainty shoulders before looking down to the cards on the table. "Cards? Why aren't you in the card room?" she asked as her eyes settled on mine.
I gave her a sheepish grin as I explained, "We went there earlier in the night…but there was some sort of poker tournament on…and we started playing snap in the corner…" I rolled my eyes as Emmett butted in.
"To be fair, it's a good game, but Bella dearest…" he gave a dramatic sigh before he continued, "We got chucked out for being…what was the word?" he asked as he looked around us for the answer.
"Rowdy" Jasper answered Emmett's question, laughing.
Her laughter washed over us all as she listened to Emmett's story. "So this is why you're all out here." She concluded.
"Yep…so you're going to see Mike again?" Alice slipped in quickly as she showed Jasper her palm tree nails once again as an act of nonchalance.
"Yep…I'll see how he is tomorrow maybe, but most likely the day after tomorrow. Maybe we'll go out again…I don't know?" She paused to study her nails.
I felt gutted that our plan for Mike's demise had only made her want to spend more time with the slimy creature. I frowned in frustration at the thought of Bella spending time with such a cheating, fake guy.
She continued from before, sounding confused, "I like him…but he kissed me and…ahhh I don't know…" she finished as she rubbed the back of her neck.
"He kissed you?" I couldn't contain my shock.
"Yeah…I was just going to kiss his cheek…but then he turned his head and kissed me…" she answered with a frown as she went back to studying her nails.
"How was it?" Rosalie asked. I noticed that she looked both interested and weary. She obviously didn't like the fact that Mike was kissing her either.
"Unexpected…" she laughed lightly as she looked up to Rosalie. I sighed in irritation.
"What's up?" Bella asked me with a look of concern on her face.
"Nothing" I lied. "Just wondering what I was going to get up to tomorrow." I improvised.
"We're heading to the gym tomorrow my dear brothers!" Emmett commanded as he pointed at both of us.
"And we are off to do some yoga tomorrow" Rosalie told Bella and Alice in an up-beat voice. "I spoke to Tanya this afternoon about it; she told me that it was fun."
I heard a groan beside me, and looked at Bella who had her head in her hands. I rubbed her back mechanically as I asked her, "Bella…what's wrong?"
She let out a heartfelt sigh as she turned to me. Her eyes looked worried as she admitted, "Tomorrow's going to be a nightmare...my body doesn't get along with yoga…or any other form of sport." Her shoulders slumped as she finished. I continued to rub her back as she cradled her head back in her hands again.
"Bella, it'll be fine! I won't let you pass out this time!" Rosalie said in a reassuring and carefree voice as if it was a regular occurrence.
"Pass out?" I asked. I felt Bella wiggle her back around. I smiled as I realised that I'd stopped rubbing her back, and that she wanted me to continue.
"Don't worry, we'll take the beginners class" Alice assured Bella as she gave her knee a squeeze.
"Okay" Bella accepted in defeat. I felt sorry for her being dragged to do yoga, but then I didn't feel so bad for her when I realised that Alice and Rosalie would effectively be keeping her busy and away from Mike. "I'm going to bed" she yawned into her hands.
I took my hand away from her back as she straightened up. Alice and Rose joined in on Bella's idea and bid us goodnight as they headed towards the rail separating out veranda and theirs.
The three of us sat chuckling for a few moments as we watched the girls struggle to lift the chair from their side over to ours to use as a step. We all soon got up and headed to their rescue.
Emmett unceremoniously lifted Rosalie into his arms and let her down on the other side. They then stood on either side, leaning against the rail as they said goodnight. Jasper picked Alice into his arms bridal style as well and lowered her down to Rosalie while I picked Bella up so that she was sat on the rail, facing her suite. I held my arms around her waist tightly, holding her against my chest securely as I whispered "Goodnight" into her ear. I then loosened my hold on her and told her to jump the small distance down.
We all bid each other goodnight before we walked away. I carried in the chairs back into the living room while Jasper and Emmett brought in the table and the pack of cards.
"So what are we going to do now? The girls have got Bella busy tomorrow morning…" Jasper began with a worried look.
"Easy" Emmett said confidently as he crossed his arms over his chest with a huge grin on his face. "We just make sure that we hang around with the girls as much as possible…that way Mike won't get much of a chance of getting to her."
"Or we tell her about him?" I asked, thinking that it must be the best option.
"Erm…that's not such a good idea, according to Alice" Jasper informed me. "I already asked her, and she told me that Bella's been cheated on before…so she's kinda sensitive about that whole topic."
"But it's happening to her again! Why can't we tell her?" I growled out. I couldn't contain the anger that I felt at the fact that someone could cheat on her.
"Look…we'll work it out in tomorrow. Like she said, she might see him tomorrow, but most likely the day after." Emmett reasoned as he headed towards the bedroom.
Don't hate me! I know…Mike and Bella had a good date…sort of…! But he'll get what's coming to him soon enough!
The reviews are going great! They're making me sooo happy….I might just post another chapter for y'all if you keep it up!! ;)