Thank you for all of your support so far! I've had lots of nice reviews and a shocking amount of views already for only two chapters! So here is your third! This is basically the first chapter according to Edward. Something I believe a few of you might be excited to read!
Enjoy and don't forget to review!
EPOV
It has been just over 13 months since the day that it happened. Sitting in my office hours before anyone else has the opportunity to arrive to the building has become a horrible routine. The need to avoid contact has grown progressively since that day. I can't help but feel the need for isolation didn't come from throwing Victoria out in the street, but from the way I treated Isabella Swan. The look on her face as I shoved my finger into her chest stirred an emotion in me that I couldn't pin point. The way she walked around the building, head down, daydreaming, it made me feel the need to keep an eye on her.
Countless times I'd cursed towards my monitor when people carelessly bumped into her shying frame as she tried to stumble through the crowds wearing ridiculous shoes. My head and heart were torn. I felt the need to keep an eye on her and watch over her but never would I approach her. There was no way on earth I could trust the girl. No matter how many times the women around her pushed her aside or shoved her into walls, she was still one of them in the most basic sense of a word. And I had had nothing but bad experiences with women.
Maybe all of her skulking was an act! After all I hadn't spoken to her since the incident in the elevator all that time ago. I tried avoiding her at all costs, making sure to check the cameras so I could make a quick exit. Sometimes I wouldn't be quick enough. Too many silent and icy corridor encounters had occurred when I had seen her making her way towards Tanya's desk with an impossibly high stack of files in her small arms. Part of me wanted to help her and the rest of me recoiled in disgust. Was she trying to look pathetic on purpose? Did she really think that would work?!
Today wouldn't be any different, I thought with dread as I sat at my desk waiting for everybody to arrive before I could leave to get my coffee. My head pounded and my fingers drummed against my mahogany desk with agitation. Why is it so fucking difficult just to get myself a coffee in the morning! I'm a grown man for fuck sake! I tortured myself with thoughts for what seemed like forever before I decided to throw caution to the wind and head out. I waited until the downstairs lobby of the building was nearly empty. Hoping everyone from the 8th floor was in the elevators before I could descend the male oriented stairs. All of the women dove in the elevators before any man could have the chance to. I had made the mistake of following in on one occasion. Safe to say it will never happen again. The last thing a recluse wants is to be trapped and suspended with 20 women around you pressing god knows what up against you. I shuddered at the memory.
A loud vibration on my desk startled me; reaching over quickly to avoid being distracted again I dreaded who would be the cause of this vibration. My mother would call, never text, and she would call my office phone. I deleted Vicky's number for obvious reasons. Turning it over I was shocked to see who had contacted me. My father rarely contacted anyone as he was constantly on call, being the leading doctor in the state. He was a remarkable man and very secretly, I envied his life. Being able to save people and experience the warmth of healing another person made me hungry to study medicine. That was until I saw my father come home after losing a patient, after that day I swore I couldn't put myself through that. I studied the text eagerly.
Good morning son, how are things at the business? I heard about what happened with Victoria and the whole family believe you made the right decision. I'm sorry I haven't contacted you more over the last year but you're aware of what my life has become. This brings me back to my original point Edward. I've been asked to attend Chicago general for the duration of the week to 'impart some wisdom' on the latest graduates. I would love to see you during this time, maybe go out for a whiskey or two. Waiting to hear from you, be safe. Dad x
I smiled down at the screen, the whole family was well aware of the situation at hand and we all cherished our father for making these sacrifices to see us whenever he could. I quickly hurried a reply and for the first time in a long time, felt positive for the week ahead. The lack of caffeine however had other plans and quickly intensified my headache, bringing me back to my frustrations.
Grabbing my briefcase from under my desk I held the beautifully worn handle in my palm and fled my office, the condition I had kept my pride and joy briefcase in was a surprise even to me. It hadn't left my side since the day it was given to me. In a ridiculous way, the briefcase was the thing that got me through the year. I couldn't leave Chicago and go back home to the rest of the family, and they all had their own lives to be focussed on. This was the only connection to a happier time that I had. I moved out of my apartment less than two months after the incident happened. I never got any sleep there and never could rest knowing what had happened. It took me a while to really make the place seem appealing to potential buyers because I couldn't shift the horrible images from my head. But eventually and unfortunately I managed to convince a young girl (that believe me, didn't need that much convincing) that her 'daddy' should buy her the apartment for her study home. I even let her have all the expensive furniture that I had collected over the years. Everything in that place was tainted and I had very little from my old home left.
I hummed and began losing myself in a daydream when I started thinking about my apartment. The annoying nature of being a recluse really put a fork in the works of my smooth move in. I bought a larger apartment, wanting the space to be able to change rooms completely and not feel trapped. I couldn't bear to go into furniture stores and be purred at my saleswomen. I bought all of the new furniture I needed online and from specialised warehouses.
As I walked further towards the lobby of the 8th floor I could hear the elevators squeaking under the weight of every single woman that refused to walk the stairs. I hurried my step still virtually lost in thought and began pacing when the stairs came into sight. Men in suits of a thousand different standards were, like I suspected, all running the same pace as I towards the stairs. What is it with women that are too lazy to stretch their legs a little? Surely it would do them good to walk up some stairs every now and then? Then they wouldn't have to obsess and constantly nag on about diets!
Lost in my train of thought, I ignored the unwritten rule of stair travel and instead of going down the left hand side with all the people that were descending; I stepped on the edge of the right hand side. To my ultimate horror, just as my foot touched the marble edge something landed on it. Something small and warm was pushing quite heavily down on my foot and a flash of tan leather skidded past it. The next thing I heard was a gut wrenching crack and a heart breaking yelp, all coming from beneath me. The men around me continued travelling at normal speed ignoring what was happening just inches from them. My head clouded as I looked down and saw the very shade of hair that I had been looking out for on the CCTV for months.
Isabella Swan had barged her way into my world once again. A whirlwind of emotions flew through my head at a hundred miles an hour and my guard flew up instantly. Her hair folded over itself and the heavy curls tumbled over her shoulders as she lifted her head to see mine. Her eyes widened and her pupils dilated almost instantly, the torturous chocolate of her eyes almost entirely disappearing. I could see the tears building in her eyes but she refused to let them drop.
In that moment she looked lost. Like a young girl, so innocent and so horrified about what had happened. I couldn't allow myself to pity her, even if she were on her knees before me… Oh no. Before I could think another word my entire body tensed even harder. My jaw was clenched and was on the edge of being painful. My hand began shaking and I could hear my pens rattling together in my briefcase. Her head distractedly flicked towards the noise before her eyes widened even more. The journey her head took to face my hips felt like it took a lifetime. I saw her swallow and her hand tensed on my foot causing me to straighten my back even more.
I hadn't felt a feeling like this in well over a year. It wasn't even like this with Vicky. Of course I was attracted to her, I lived with her for god sake but this felt like a school yard romance blossoming through me. However with a body hungry demon seducing and cloaking every feeling of romance that entered my conflicted mind. The moment her eyes focussed on what was now becoming a serious issue in my pants, I had an overwhelming urge to take her hand and storm back to my office to settle this once and for all. By settle I of course mean fuck the living daylights out of.
The thought of doing that made every hair on my body stand on end. I was not attracted to this girl. She had caused me nothing but trouble all the while I had been here! She was the reason everything happened surely?! She was there making me angry and causing me to lose my patience which drove Vicky to cheating. She was the problem! I pushed all of the confusing thoughts aside when I saw her head begin to pull up to look at me. My tight eyes followed her tongue as it dragged across her full bottom lip. My hips fighting the urge to get myself close to her tongue. And when she pulled her lip in her mouth with her teeth, I lost it.
A strangled cough left my throat and she woke from her trance. Within a second the warm hand was gone from my foot and she attempting to spring up and from what I could guess run away as soon as possible. However as she tried to get up a slight crack from beneath her caused her to wince and yelp quietly again. Her eyes squeezed shut and her teeth pushed into her lip harder. Her flailing hand left her side and this time? Caught my briefcase. Unsure of how to react to her yelping my hand had foolishly loosened on the handle and it left my sight for the first time in years. The brush of her soft knuckles against mine was agony to my reclusive hands and the fury that subsequently raged through my bones was physically hot. I could feel myself sweating under the intensity of my hatred for this woman. I turned with haste towards my briefcase and faltered with horror at what was now laying on the marble floor. I heard a thump land on the floor and assumed it was her.
I stood frozen, looking down at what was in front of me. Her shabby 'satchel' lying opened and folded up, all of her paperwork scattered in front of it and my expensive briefcase laying over where the clasp of her satchel would be, our paperwork mixing together. I wondered to myself how appropriate I would need to be in this precise moment. If the clasp like I had assumed had even nicked the leather of my briefcase in the slightest she would be cleaning toilets for a year. I hesitantly reached down for my briefcase and flipping it over, the clasp of her shitty fucking satchel had seared through the leather like it were foil, it hung with slack as I attempted to lift it slightly and a red haze descended over the lobby floor. I followed the path that they had taken to see that a faint scratch marked their path across the marble floor. Right up to where Isabella now sat. Her eyes were wide and a gasp left her lips, resonating loudly in the lobby. Before I could unleash a torrent of rage she stood up and staggered, hissing and yelping when any pressure forced her knees to bend. She looked like Bambi skating on ice, her hands occasionally tapped unexpectedly against her kneecaps and she winced and stumbled further. When she got closer her hands automatically flew towards the pile of paper. That's all I need, her to mess up the companies private accounts and spoil any chances I have of earning my bonus this year. I swatted her hand away and lowered myself onto one knee, reaching for the paperwork myself.
"Don't even bother!" I huffed, hoping she would get the message and back off before my control slipped.
Just like I expected her hand flew out again in a different direction. This time I put some of my anger into it and shoved it away with a grunt. Regrettably I pushed her more than I perhaps should have and she lost her balance, falling on her side with a thump just like before. Guilt rose in my chest for the first time ever. I have been controlling with women before but have never caused them pain. Her eyes showed clear evidence that the landing she just had hadn't been a soft one. I hazarded a glance towards where she landed. Her pencil skirt clad ass had indeed landed at an awkward angle. I felt like I should apologise but my eyes wandered of their own accord, following the line of her curvy hips and down her thighs. Her skirt had ridden up fractionally and I could just begin to make out the outline of stockings. The demon was back, wanting to push the skirt up and devour her. My eyes followed her toned legs passing her knees before reaching half way down her calves. I was drawn from my haze and re-looked at her knees. Her right knee was swollen beyond belief and her stockings had tightened over the bulge, causing redness to show through. Her other knee was slightly better but there was no way she should be putting any pressure on those for a while.
I had had previously knee related tumbles when I was younger and my father was and still is a very skilled doctor. I was made to sit with a cold compress for many hours of my childhood and adolescence. I knew what this pain felt like, and she shouldn't be here. My gasp and her sentence filled the room at the same time.
"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to ruin your morning, I jus-" She whimpered over her words and although I was focussing on her legs, it pulled me slightly out of my reverie. She thought she had ruined my morning? Well obviously it's too late to run and get a coffee now but I couldn't bring myself to pull away from her when I knew what level of pains she must be feeling. The girl with bulging kneecaps and an aching ass was concerned about my morning?!
My eyes were still fixed on her knees when a gasp left her lips a short while after her sentence. They lifted from my line of vision immediately. I heard a rustling of papers and turned my head sharply to stare at her. I swear I saw her flinch when her eyes connected with mine; they proceeded to duck down and avoid contact again. I hazarded a glance back to her knee, misjudging where they would be my vision landed on the floor where her knees once were and another wave of guilt pulled my emotions through my throat. A smear of dark blood stained the marble floor underneath her knees. Still beguiled as to where it could have come from, I noticed a drip add to the pile. The blood was coming from her. All of the breath that I held in my lungs left my mouth in an instant at the realisation that Isabella Swan was indeed hurt and I wouldn't and couldn't rest until it was fixed.
Before I could bring the wound to her attention she cursed under her breath and flew towards the floor. Swinging her legs to the side she, without even thinking, threw her pristine white blouse sleeve onto the bloody floor. She began mopping it up with the cuff and the bottom of her sleeve, something that perplexed me. I wanted to push her back and tell her I would arrange for it to be seen to but I dare not touch her again. I decided to speak instead, something that I should have considered more thoroughly as the tone in which the words left my mouth was less than desirable.
"What are you doing?!" I huffed, instantly embarrassed and her hand increased speed, attempting to remove the blood from the floor faster.
"I'm sorry I'll get it all clean, I'm sorry please don't fire me" the tears in her voice were audible and my heart sagged in my chest. Why would I fire her?! What did this girl see me as?!
"Why wou-" I grunted back at her, a terrified yelp left her as the words left my mouth and I decided to halt my sentence. Of course I knew what this girl saw me as. She was terrified of me, why wouldn't she be terrified after everything that had happened between us.
I attempted to put words together in my head and adjust my tone when her hands left the stain, it being nearly invisible and returned to stacking the paperwork in piles haphazardly. I wanted her to be able to know I was sorry, I wanted nothing more. My hands twitched to help but my brain halted their actions quickly and they faltered. Pushing on the floor, palms down as to not tempt myself. I saw flashes of colour before she rushed to turn things over and pull them closer towards her. I was almost ready to talk when she shoved a pile onto her satchel and using her hands, pushed herself up onto her agonising legs. I watched in awe as she flushed with pain and panic. She didn't look at me again as she staggered away, stumbling aimlessly and almost tripping over other people's feet.
I knelt there for a few moments lost in my thoughts. A whirlwind of emotions passed through me and I couldn't begin to categorize them, let alone find a conclusion. I wanted her to stay and come back to my office, I had first aid supplies there, I had never distributed them amongst desks on the office floor like I should have but let's face it I've had other things on my mind this year.
Before I could think for any longer the blonde brigade stormed their way out of the elevators. I noticed one girl honing in on Isabella and a flash of panic scratched at my attention.
"Isabella, stop!" I called down the corridor after her, trying my upmost to remain calm and collected.
Of course she wouldn't listen, another girl I recognised to be Irina Denali, Tanya's sister, heard my call and seeing it as a cruel joke shoved herself into Isabella. She turned with force and was knocked violently into the wall, her yelping barely audible and her hands reaching down to shield her knees. The fury that ran through my veins once again startled me. Before I could even consider the idea of walking towards her to check on her she was already gone. However turning right towards her offices as all of the others turned left towards the cloakroom. I began incredulously collecting everything and pushed it into my once, pride and joy, briefcase. Unable to think about anything but her I decided to screw off being late and go find the nearest Starbucks I could.
What had this girl done to me? She had the ability to make me absolutely furious at her one moment and want to pull her into my arms and hold her close the next. Not to mention the beastly side that wanted her every minute every hour. I was torn between three forces, making me backtrack and re-evaluate everything only to tarmac it over and remember what women do. I couldn't bear the agony of considering I had been wrong about her, how could I?! That would mean I would have to apologise for the elevator incident and stalking her on the CCTV cameras. I wouldn't admit to that, not yet anyway. I reached Starbucks in no time at all and ordered a caramel cappuccino and a few muffins. The waitress handed me my cup with a wink, I looked down to see she had written her number on the side of it. I huffed to myself and stormed back to the building. Why are women so infuriating? My thoughts of Isabella and the waitress were shoved together in the forefront of my mind and I began uncontrollably blaming Isabella for what had happened at Starbucks. If she hadn't distracted me with her falling over I would have been able to control the situation here and not become so furious with the world again.
I decided to catch the elevator up to the 8th floor as the stairs had tarnished themselves with the events of today. If I caught even a glimpse of the red stain or the scratch in the marble I would lose my mind. Keeping my head up I stormed towards my office, wanting to lock the door and never come out again. Much to my distain the red headed demon that was Tanya bumped into me on the way. A splash of my coffee spilled on my suit and I was immediately furious once again. She apologised and tried mopping it up but I managed to gently push her away telling her I could deal with it. She informed me that I should take a look at the stationary cupboard because I would be 'impressed'. Seriously she thinks she's an artist. She's a desk monkey that accepts a low wage. That is the sole reason I hired her, she was cheap. I accepted and began walking, her feet followed me and I realised that I would actually have to look. To my surprise she stopped at the corridor and pulled out her phone, typing a message. I hovered when I got to the cupboard and turning back to look down the corridor, the bitch was still there waving her hand silently for me to 'take a look'! In annoyance, I swung the door open letting it catch on the doorstop, faintly hearing a shuffle I assumed it had caused some packaging to shift on the shelf behind it and didn't bother investigating.
Turning the light on I could see that the cupboard looked okay but as okay as a stationary cupboard can look, you know? I grabbed a new stapler from the shelf to my left realising that I probably would need one to categorise all of my loose and tattered files again. I flicked the light off and walked out pulling the door with me; I waved the stapler around in an animated fake enthusiastic way to appease her and turned with haste to my office before I could see her haggard face wink at me for the billionth time this morning. Reaching for the handle of my office door I noticed a flash of blue at my feet. Letting the door open with its own heavy weight I bent down to pick up the file that lay in front of me. It was the one file I had panicked about her ruining when she knocked my briefcase out of my hand, and to my surprise it was in a mint condition. Before I could stop myself, I smiled; she had actually brought this here? No-one else could have!
I picked it up and walked to my desk, out of view of the door, I put my now tattered briefcase on the desk, followed by my coffee and muffins and at the opposite end, the blue file. I looked down to everything below me and shook my head. I wished I knew what I was supposed to think. A faint clicking of heels brought me out of my reverie and I turned to look at the CCTV. The flash of brown limp hair tumbling and her face looking around caused me to stand upright immediately.
I walked silently over to the door when I heard her walking away back to her office. She was gripping a phone in her hand while her other hand tried to steady herself as she walked, if you could call it that. She whimpered and her bloodied sleeve shot up to her eyes. She was crying?! Why would she be crying? Then my eyes flicked down and noticed, remembering everything, all of the breath in my lungs left my body. Her right knee was swollen, you could even see from behind how bad it was. Her stocking was torn and laddered all the way up and down her leg and the skin underneath was red and raw. The cut on the back of her knee was still bleeding, less than before, but still noticeably down her leg. I wanted to run and help her, but what could I do. She would run from me!
I turned to reach for my phone when I noticed her rolling up the sleeve of her shirt to cover the blood and make up marks. She folded the sleeve four times before it became completely unnoticeable. I was impressed at the lengths she went to, to cover it up. Other girls would go home without a second thought and Isabella Swan seemed to just want to hide away and move on with her day. A pang of guilt flew through my body and I reached for my phone without a second thought when she had turned the corner. I sat at my desk and watched her on the CCTV as I dialled my father's number.
"Edward, what a pleasure it is to hear fr-" my father spoke warmly to me
"Dad I need some advice, a girl in the office fell on her knee on some marble steps and it's swollen and she can't walk right and the back of her leg is bleeding and won't stop an-"
"Son, calm down!" My father begged, I hadn't realised my hand was gripping the phone and my other holding tightly on the arm of my office chair. "Okay when did this happen?"
"Like 30 minutes ago?"
"You should bring her to me as soon as possible Edward; it sounds like she has fractured her knee cap. You experienced that pain when you were younger son, do you remember?" I nodded even though he couldn't see me "she must be in a lot of pain; you need to tell her to come to see me as soon as possible. Let me know when you're on your way and I'll be waiting for you"
He made the decision so quickly I couldn't contest it.
"Okay I'll tell her to drive ov-" my father interrupted me before I could finish my sentence.
"Edward, be serious, she cannot drive with a fractured knee" he scolded me. I was immediately embarrassed. I knew she couldn't drive I just couldn't face the alternative. "You will drive her; you obviously care enough to have made this phone call and not just dialled for an ambulance"
"But I don-" I began protesting
"Do the right thing son" and with that the line went dead.
He hung up on me; my own father had hung up on me. Everything that had gone wrong in the past year had involved me making a decision. Me calling the shots and making mistakes but this was his decision. He was ordering me to bring Isabella in, to drive her 3 miles to the hospital, whilst I was in my car… with her. Fuck.
The only question remained, how do I get her to agree to get in my car?!