Chapter 5: No Way Out

Over the next two weeks, Rosalie and Emmett increased how often they saw each other. First it was once a day, but by the next Friday, they were spending practically the whole day together. Her mother didn't seem to notice, spending all her time on the telephone talking to someone. She seemed to stop as soon as Rose walked in the room, though, which was a bit odd. Rose shrugged it off, heading out to her and Emmett's meadow, carrying a picnic basket filled with lunch for the two of them.

She was dressed in a yellow short-sleeved jumper that came down to her knees, tan tights, brown Mary Janes, and a white flower in her hair, paired with gold jewelry. As always, half of her hair was pulled back.

Tucked into the basket, Rosalie had put a large blanket. She figured it might be a bit suspicious if she always came back to the house and the back of her dresses were stained with grass. This way, her dresses stayed clean and no one found out what her and Emmett were doing back here.

It was nothing bad. Well, not really. It was just reading things her parents didn't want her to know existed. And then some kissing. Actually, lately, it was turning into less reading and more kissing, not that Rosalie was complaining. She liked the kissing.

Rosalie made the journey through the woods until she arrived in their meadow, smiling as she saw Emmett standing there, a bouquet of wildflowers in his hands. She walked up to him, pausing at his side. "Hi," she breathed, looking up at him, a smile on her face.

"Hey," Emmett said, returning her greeting. He bent down, pecking her on the lips before handing her the flowers. "These are for you. I saw them when I was working and they reminded me of you," he said. Rosalie smiled, handing the basket to him and taking the flowers, hugging them to her chest as Emmett started setting everything up for their picnic lunch.

He laid the blanket on the ground, pulling out the bowls of fruit and plate of chicken Rosalie had packed for them. He gestured for her to join him, and she sat beside him on the blanket a moment later. Rosalie leaned her head back, lying it in Emmett's lap as he opened up The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and began reading while Rosalie listened.

Emmett didn't get it, but for some reason, Rose seemed to like the books that were 'scary'. So far, they'd read Frankenstein and Dracula, both of which she'd loved. Emmett had always taken Rosalie to be the kind of girl who would like romance, not monsters. Not that he was complaining—he liked these books better than something like Wuthering Heights.

While Emmett was reading, Rosalie was running her fingers up and down his thigh, fully engrossed in the book. She preferred Emmett reading the story to her instead of reading it to herself. She liked hearing his voice. Plus, it gave her a chance to spend a few hours lying with her head in his lap like this.

"'…He is not easy to describe. There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something downright detestable. I never saw a man I so disliked, and yet I scarce know why. He must be deformed somewhere; he gives a strong feeling of deformity, although I couldn't specify the point. He's an extraordinary-looking man, and yet I really can name nothing out of the way. No, sir; I can make no hand of it; I can't describe him. And it's not want of memory; for I declare I can see him this moment'," Emmett read, running his fingers through Rosalie's hair as he did so. She smiled, her eyes closed as she listened. Being out here with Emmett was just wonderful. It was relaxing and gave Rosalie a break from her life.

Emmett finished the chapter, making his spot in the book before setting it down on the blanket. He looked down at Rosalie, smiling a little. He still couldn't believe it had been two weeks since she told him how she felt, that he'd been kissing her secretly for two weeks. He bent his head down, kissing her lips lightly.

Rosalie smiled as his lips touched hers, kissing him back, her hands folded on top of her stomach. She opened her eyes when Emmett pulled away, still looking down at her. "I like this," she said, crossing one of her legs over the other. "You know, me and you coming out here and reading," she said.

Emmett smiled down at her, kissing her again. "I like this too. But you know what I like more?" he asked, his fingers running over her stomach.

"No, what's that?" she asked, her cheek resting against his abdomen, her eyes closed again.

"You," he said, moving her shoulders up a little and changed positions so he was lying beside her, one hand resting on her hip, the other resting on her cheek.

Rosalie smiled, moving close to him and kissed him. "Good, because I like you more than just lying out here as well," she whispered before kissing him again.

One thing Rosalie would never get tired of was kissing Emmett. The way his lips moved—well, she didn't want to think how much practice he had needed to perfect that. She was just glad she was the girl he was practicing on now. Rosalie let her legs tangle with his, not worrying about how dirty his jeans were from working in the garden all day.

Time seemed to escape Emmett and Rose when they were in the meadow. What seemed like a minute to them was really three hours. So when Rosalie noticed the sun starting to set, she unwillingly pulled back from Emmett, pecking him once more on the lips before sitting up.

"What's wrong?" he asked, rolling onto his back and looking up at her.

"I have to go. The King's are having some party tonight, so of course I have to go. And you know my mother. I'm going to spend the next two hours getting ready," she said, shaking her head a little.

She stood up, starting to clean up everything from their picnic. They hadn't eaten much of the food, but it didn't matter. Rosalie had still had a wonderful time.

"Same time tomorrow?" she asked him. Emmett nodded his head, leaning in and giving her a quick kiss. "I'll see you then," she said softly, letting him head back first before she did.

By the time Rosalie made it back to her house, it was almost five in the evening. She walked into her room, hiding the basket before her sister skipped in, jumping onto the bed with a smirk on her lips. "Mother's going to kill you," she teased.

"What are you talking about?" she asked, taking the flower out of her hair and started brushing her golden locks.

"She's been looking all over for you," Lucille said, already dressed for the party. She was in a long ivory-colored lace dress. It reminded Rosalie of what her mother used to wear when she was younger. Lucy's hair was pulled back and pinned with a flower, giving the fourteen-year-old a very sophisticated look.

"Why? We're not leaving for another hour," Rosalie said in a bored voice, undoing the buckles on her shoes and slid them off, pulling her closet door open and started searching for her dress.

Rosalie never found out why because her mother walked in at that moment, shooing her sister away. "Rose! Where have you been? I've been looking all over for you!" she said, her voice a mixture of anger and relief. She ushered in a few servants, who started helping Rosalie change, do her hair, and do her make up.

Rosalie thought it was all a bit ridiculous, but then again, her mother did lots of things that were ridiculous in her mind. Maybe Rosalie was the weird one in her family and not the other way around.

Once Rosalie was dressed, her mother had the servants leave, choosing to put the diamond headpiece in her daughter's hair herself.

"I want you to be on your best behavior tonight, Rose. Don't be making any of your silly comments or embarrassing stories," she said. Rosalie just rolled her eyes at that.

She wasn't expecting her mother to grab her as hard as she did. "Ow, that hurts," she said, trying to pull away.

"Do you think this is some kind of joke? That I'm doing all this just to torture you?" she asked. "Royce may think you're pretty, but he's not stupid. There're lots of other pretty girls. Do you want this family to be labeled a joke because you screw up our one chance to be high class by acting like an idiot?"

"Mother, this is my life. You can't just control it. That isn't fair."

"Welcome to life as a woman, Rosalie. Nothing is fair for us. It's our role. We do what others tell us. That's how it's always been. And it's how it always will be," she said, adjusting the diamond headband in her daughter's hair. She looked at Rosalie in her purple gown and smiled. "There, you're beautiful." She held out her hand to her daughter. "Harold's out front with the car."

Rosalie took her mother's arm, heading down the hall with her. The two of them headed down the main stairs where most of the household staff was, watching the two of them leave. She guessed her father and sister were already in the car waiting for them.

Rosalie spotted Emmett, still in his dirt-covered shirt and jeans, smiling at her. She blushed, smiling back. She hadn't expected to see him here. She thought he'd gone home already.

Emmett stared at Rosalie. He tried to imagine that she'd gotten all that dressed up to see him, but he knew it was a lie. Besides, why would she ever look like that when seeing him? He was a poor garden boy. He could never afford anywhere that was nice enough to wear a ball gown. Rosalie was too good for someone like him. He could barely afford food for himself, let alone a nice dinner for him and Rosalie. She deserved Royce. He could give her whatever she wanted.

Rosalie kept walking slowly, putting one foot in front of the other and attempting not to trip over the dress' long train. Of course, her mind was on Emmett and not walking, so she did stumble a little, causing a stern look from her mother. But it made Emmett chuckle, so that was all that really mattered.

Emmett smiled and covered his mother, trying to stop himself from laughing aloud when Rosalie tripped over her own feet. And when he saw her smiling at him, he supposed it didn't matter who he thought she deserved. She wanted him, and it was what she wanted that mattered, really. And as long as she wanted him, he would always win over Royce, no matter who had more money.

Rosalie and her mother made their way out to the car, both climbing in gracefully as Harold started the car and drove them through town. Rosalie stared out the window as her parents and sister talked about how great the party was going to be.

Rosalie didn't even understand why the Kings were having a party. Nothing exciting was going on. Royce hadn't started his own company or anything. Then again, rich people did stuff like that all the time. Her parents sure did, at least.

Rosalie stared down at her nails, looking at them as Harold pulled into the drive way at the King's house. She didn't want to be here. She would rather be spending the night at Emmett's house and meeting his sister who he always talked about. But no, she was stuck at the King's party.

Harold helped Rosalie out of the car, giving her a smile. She smiled back, patting his hand lightly before heading up the front stairs, knocking on the door. They were greeted by Royce's butler Gregory, someone she had come to know well over the past few months.

There were hundreds of people there already, all talking, eating, and dancing. Rosalie didn't spot Royce anywhere, and honestly, she was a little relieved about that. After his mouth rape of her in the parking lot of her father's store, she could barely look him in the eyes. She knew she had to get over it, but it was hard to make small talk with a guy who shoved his dick into your mouth then shot his load on your dress.

Regardless, Rosalie still pretended everything was okay with them when she saw him. She had to. Rosalie took a glass of champagne from one of the passing waiters, sipping on it slowly. She stayed close to her sister, looking around at everyone who seemed to be staring at her. No, it was just her imagination. They weren't really staring at her. They were just looking over in her direction.

"Amelia!" came a high-pitched voice. Royce's mother came strolling over to them dressed in an extravagant gold gown, kissing her mother once on each cheek. "How are you darling?" she asked before turning her attention to Rosalie. "Oh, Rose dear. Royce is looking for you over on the other side.

Rosalie nodded, taking that as her cue to leave and headed over in the direction where Mrs. King had pointed. Royce's mother turned back to Mrs. Hale once Rosalie was out of hearing range.

"So, you're sure she has no idea?" she asked.

"No, she doesn't," Lucy said, stationed at her mother's side. "She was asking earlier why you were even having a party in the first place. She'll be surprised, I promise."

Mr. Hale let out a sigh. "Do you really think this is right? Having this and not bothering to tell Rose what she's heading into?"

"Oh, don't be silly, Jackson. Everything will be perfect. And Rosalie will be fine." Jackson shook his head, just hoping his daughter was ready for what was coming her way.

"Wait, what's happening?" Alice asked, interrupting her grandmother's story.

"You'll find out soon, Alice dear," Mrs. Pratt said, reaching over and patting her granddaughter's hand with hers. "Just listen to the story."

"Yeah, Alice. Listen to the story," Bella teased, elbowing her cousin in the side.

Rosalie found Royce talking to three of his friends, three friends she had never met before. "Rose!" he said, putting an arm around her and giving her a big kiss on her cheek. "Boys, this is the lovely Rosalie Hale, the girl I was telling you about. Rose, this is Thomas Crane, Samuel Anderson, and Eric Harrison," he said, introducing his three friends. Rosalie smiled at the three of them, shaking their hands in a polite manner.

Royce seemed intent on showing her off that night, introducing her to everyone in the room, never taking his arm off her. Rosalie kept a smile on her face the whole time, though she never opened her mouth once. She figured it was better to look pretty than open her mouth and embarrass Royce in front of the governor of Georgia.

Once she had met what felt like half of the state, Royce took her over to a waiter, getting the two of them some champagne, handing her a glass. While she took a sip, he kissed her cheek again. "I love you," he said, smiling at her.

Rosalie smiled and nodded her head. "I love you too," she said, though she could taste the lie on her tongue.

Royce grinned at her. "It makes me so happy to hear you say that," he said. Rosalie noticed that it had grown very quiet. She looked over to the side and saw everyone staring at them. She felt a knot in the pit of her stomach. She was right before—everyone had been looking at her.

She closed her eyes, wanting to scream at everyone to mind their own business and leave her and Royce alone. She hated being the center of attention. But she also knew that she had to be on her best behavior, and screaming at everyone was not proper behavior. So instead, she turned her attention back to Royce and put a smile on her face once more.

Royce took her champagne glass, setting it on the table beside his own, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small box as he got down on one knee.

And that was when it all clicked for Rosalie. Her mother's secret conversations on the phone all day. Her sister's smug look. Her mother's warning to behave. Everyone staring at her. This wasn't just any old party—it was her engagement party. And it seemed she was the only one who didn't know that.

"Rosalie Hale," Royce said, though he sounded far away. All Rosalie could concentrate on was that everyone knew about this but her. Did all the servants know too? Did Emmett know and not tell her?

"…will you marry me?" was the next thing Rosalie heard Royce say. She looked down at him, holding a ring up to her. It was a huge diamond and probably cost as much as most people made in five years. Yet Royce had bought it for her and was asking for her hand in marriage.

Rosalie felt a few tears falling down her face, figuring it was an acceptable time to cry. Though they weren't tears of happiness. They were tears of anger. She was furious at everyone. How could they lie to her like this?

It took her a moment to realize that everyone was waiting for a response from her. Not sure if she could actually speak without screaming, Rosalie chose to simply nod her head, extending her hand to Royce, who slid the ring on her finger. He stood up a moment later, lifting her up and laughing as everyone else clapped.

Rosalie put a fake smile on her face as she had an internal battle with herself. On one side, she was furious at everyone for tricking her like this and not telling her she was going to her own engagement party. On the other side, she was panicking. She was engaged now. Once she turned eighteen, she would get married. And she had no money to get away from Royce. There was really no way out now.

Okay, so the pictures of Rosalie's meadow dress, ball dress, and engagement ring are in my profile along with Lucy's dress. Review please!