Two
The trip home was entertaining. Emmett had a great sense of humor and talked about his kids in such a funny and loving way that he had the sisters laughing out loud. He told them about the time his three year old son, Zachary, went to the zoo. He was so excited at the sight of the monkeys that he yanked on his mom's sweats which were loosely tied and the sweats fell in a puddle around her feet. She had the baby in her arms and had to hobble over to the stroller before picking up her pants. Emmett was so shocked instead of yanking up her pants he tried to cover her bottom with his hands. Oh how the sisters laughed. Bella thought that she would pee on herself. He also told them about the time that his son came downstairs during a dinner party and started to sing and dance to "Superfreak". He was full of funny stories and he told them with such comic glee that they arrived in Berkeley before they knew it. He really was a nice guy. Once again Bella reflected on how she should relax and lighten up.
They dropped Emmett off on and then headed up into the hills to their little house. They were quiet on the drive. Each sister was wrapped in with her own thoughts. Alice broke the silence first. "How did your show go?"
"It went okay. We had about thirty new students signing up and hopefully we can open up some new classes. I'll be able to teach dance again once I'm done with finals. I think we are going to start classes in mid-May. Margo will teach the older ones and I will teach the eight to ten year olds."
"Well I told you so. It sounds like the free performance and open house was what was needed. Get your name out there. If no one knows that there is a belly dance school how can they sign up?" she ranted.
"Okay, okay you were right. The only reason that we didn't do it before is because I had a lot on my plate with school and work. There's a lot going on and I don't want to put all my energy into belly dance studio and then lose my full-time job."
"I know you're having a tough time. You work long hours and go to school full-time. I would have thought you'd take a break and enjoy your summer."
"I don't want to, I like teaching the kids."
"Well, on a positive note my trip went well. My project is going swimmingly. Glenn Burnett is happy with the way the building is coming and I also managed to meet with a few potential clients. Jasper is happy. I will have to go back and forth to Austin over the next couple of years but it'll be more than worth it. I'm going to make a name for myself in the world of architecture."
"Well here is to the architect and the dancing chef/student." The sisters clinked imaginary champagne glasses and toasted.
They got to the little house in the hills and struggled up the steps with the luggage. "Alice, what did you pack? An anvil? God this is heavy." Once they were inside the door, Bella turned to Alice, "I missed you, you know. I hate sleeping alone here."
"I missed you too, but, get used to it, I'll be away more often. Plus you should be able to sleep alone, sweetie."
"It's hard. There was always Mom and then there was you and Mike and then there was Chris. I guess I'll get over it once I get used to the fact that Chris is gone for good."
Alice took her sister's hands in hers and looked deep into her eyes. "Chris is gone for good and you need to have fun again. I know he hurt you, but you know what? You guys were so young. He just fell in love with someone else. You need to move on too. When you fall in love again it'll be even better. Because you know how it feels to love and lose that love, you will savor your new love all the more."
"I don't think I can ever fall in love again. Not like that."
"Not like that, but different and maybe even better, trust me. It's like a roller coaster. The first time you go on it is exciting but it is so new you miss a lot of the thrill. But the next time you are less scared and you ride that baby and enjoy every moment of it don't you? Take it from me, first love is great. But true love is even better.
That night in bed, Bella thought about what her sister said. Then she thought about Chris and how much she missed him. He was her first love, her only love. They were high school sweethearts. They met on the first day of high school. She had stumbled and dropped all her books and he helped her pick them up. He was geeky, pimply and shorter than she was so they started out as friends, and became best friends. She told him about the boys she had crushes on and he told her how stupid those guys were. She didn't it know it at the time but Chris had an agenda. He never told her about his crushes because he had only one.
Then by the last year of high school, Chris grew tall and Bella started to notice how cute he was. He reached for her hand one day as they were walking to school and that was it, they were together. She drifted into the relationship and it took her along for the ride. Like a raft on a stream she let the relationship lead and she followed. Chris was sweet and tender. He was the boyfriend of her dreams, of every girl's dreams.
He never pressured her for sex and when they finally made love it was sweet and slow and beautiful. It wasn't hurried like many of her friends told her their first time was. He kissed her all over and he told her he would never love anyone else. Each time they made love and she fell deeper and deeper in love with Chris. And afterwards he would stroke her back and talk about how she made him feel. She would have been happy to drift into marriage and kids with him.
After high school Chris went away to college and she went to culinary school. They saw each other on holidays. He was still sweet and playful, smart and funny. She counted on him for all her emotional needs. When her mother died he flew home and helped her get through it. When Alice got married he was there dancing with her at the reception. When Mike died, he came home again and helped. He was a rock.
After college graduation he came back home to Berkeley and moved in with her. He applied for grad school at CAL. They lived together and everything fell right into place. They drifted, both loving each other with a quiet love. Looking back on it now she can see that it was almost too quiet for such a young couple as they were. They had no fights. They liked doing the same quiet things, cycling, hiking, reading, cooking together, jazz music and slow dancing in bare feet in the living room.
Then Chris met Adrianna Yip. Tiny, skinny and boyish, she was a smart, funny, fellow grad student. Within a couple of months things had changed. Six months after they had met, Chris had left and moved in with Adrianna. When he left Bella he told her that he loved her dearly, but that Adrianna was his life. "Then what was I?" she screamed at him.
"You are my first love and my dearest, sweetest friend in the whole world. And I will always love you." But he turned and left. Just like that.
It was almost too cruel. He left her the day before Valentine's day and it was the hardest day of her life. Oh how she cried. She cried as though it was her vocation. She relived every conversation and every moment of the last few months. What had she done wrong? Why did he stop loving her and start loving someone else? And how come she didn't see it coming? Didn't realize that he no longer loved her like he used to?
She cried a lot and listened to a lot of blues and slow sad jazz. She lay on the couch for hours when she got home from school or work. Sometimes she even fell asleep on it; Alice would come in and cover her. She cried every day for two months. Then one day she stopped crying. Her tear reservoirs had been emptied. She cried inside though, every single day. Every time she thought about him the pain in her chest would start. And sometimes she thought about him deliberately, so that she could feel the pain. She welcomed the pain because it was all she had left of her life with Chris. If she no longer had the pain she would have nothing.
Before she fell asleep her thoughts drifted back to the guy at the airport. And how he looked at her when he told her, "I can show you how the other half lives." Her heart started to beat fast again, just like it had at the airport. She knew without a doubt that he could show her plenty.
#
Weeks went by and Alice left again for Austin. Bella spent the weekend with friends up in Napa. She was the designated driver as usual. They went to wine tasting after wine tasting. Her friends were all from the culinary institute. They were a pretty close bunch, bound together by a love of good food and good fun.
Afterwards the group made their way to Angela's housewarming party. After graduation Bella's good friend Angela had gotten a job at one of the best restaurants in Napa. She made a name for herself and recently she and her boyfriend opened their own little bistro. They also just bought a nice four bedroom house with a guest cottage and a great big backyard. The yard was huge and bordered by tall oaks on one side. Beyond the oak tree stand was the river. They had invited friends and neighbors and the place was packed. Music was playing, the drinks were flowing and everyone was running around in next to nothing.
Bella wandered around looking for her hostess to say hello and catch up a little. As she wandered onto the back patio she caught a glimpse of a familiar face. It was the guy from the airport! What on earth is he doing here? she wondered.
She ducked quickly behind a trellis of wisteria so that she could hide and observe him unnoticed. He had grown a beard since she last saw him. It was thin, starting at the pencil thin sideburns and just along the jawline, it made him even sexier. His hair was a little shorter and wavy. He was awfully good-looking; tall, wide-shouldered, lithe and handsome. Striking light grey eyes that stood out from his tanned skin, combined with his strong jaw and the slight creases in his cheek that deepened when he smiled or laughed made him the focus of every female within a ten mile radius. He was easily the most attractive man there and women gathered around him like a magnet. There was one tall blonde in particular who stood very close to him, constantly tossing her hair back and laughing. Bella felt a little twinge but shrugged it off.
Bella snuck away from the patio and found Angela in the kitchen. She helped a little with some hors' d'oeuvres platters and they chatted. But it was so hot that she eventually had to beg off and go outside. Most of the crowd had drifted towards the bank of trees by the river. Bella knew why. It was a blisteringly hot day in early June and she and her friends put on their bathing suits and joined the fun. The tinkling sound of the river and the cool shade of the trees were so inviting it was hard to resist. Bella wandered down to the river's edge in her teeny weeny red string bikini. It was really no more than four triangles of red crocheted fabric held together by some yarn. It was scandalous, but she knew she looked good in it. She was dipping her toes in the shallow river's edge, balancing on the river rocks when she heard a familiar voice.
"Hello."
She turned and her heart sunk to the pit of her stomach. It was him. "Hi," she responded hesitantly.
"Well, well so we meet again. Well, actually, we meet for the first time because you never told me your name the first time around." He smiled in that lopsided way he had with the one big crease showing.
He put out his hand and said, "I'm Edward."
Feeling guilty about their last encounter, she smiled a little wider than she normally would have and shook his hand, "Bella, how are you?"
"Fine, really fine." He was staring at her body.
"Nice to meet you, Edward" she smiled and started to wade into the freezing river.
He followed her in. "Better be careful, you're not dressed for this." She laughed.
"True, but what's the worst that can happen?"
Just then a couple who were horse playing, started to splash and the cold water sprayed out in every direction. Bella gasped as the ice cold water hit the hot flesh of her back and she arched toward Edward. Edward grabbed her to keep her from falling and they both hit the shallow river water with a splash.
It happened so quickly, seconds really, then Bella found herself lying on top of him. She looked down at him and he looked up at her, both of them surprised by the quick turn of events. She tried to get up but he held on to her. She looked into his eyes and saw that he was looking at her lips. Bella became nervous and her heart started to pound. Edward seemed content to hold on to her but she pushed away and got up. "Sorry 'bout that" she said. "I'll go get you a towel."
He walked out of the river dripping wet, his jeans and shirt were plastered to his body. Bella felt sorry for him and ran ahead to ask Angela for a towel, Edward followed behind. She turned as she ran and she caught him eyeing her backside. For a second she was reminded of the words at the airport but she dashed them out of her mind.
She grabbed a towel and raced back to him. "I feel so bad that I pushed you in." she apologized.
"It's okay, it's not as though you meant to hurt or embarrass me." He looked directly into her eyes and she had a feeling he was referring to the last time they met.
"Sorry" she said again. Hoping he would realize it was an apology for that time as well.
He dried off with the towel and smiled at her. She smiled back at him and noticed that he looked younger than he had the last time. He did look like he was in his mid-thirties. His hair still had a touch of silver by the temples but for some reason he looked younger. "Excuse me, I'd better get out of these wet clothes." She watched him as he walked away from her for the second time. She kept her eyes on him as he reached the front gate and then he was gone. All of a sudden she felt a little let down. Almost as though she had nothing left to look forward to. "Oh well," she turned around and went back down to the river.
She found Justin, Ann and Tyler and they waded in the water together and started to talk about work. They continued to talk and laugh and splash for a good few minutes. At one point she climbed on Tyler's back and Ann climbed on Justin's and they started to play fight, each team trying to push the other into the water. She felt it when Edward came back. She knew before she turned around that he was watching and waiting for her to notice him.
She gave it a few minutes then walked over to him and said, "You came back."
"Yeah, I just needed to change."
She noticed that he had on some boardshorts and a Hawaiian shirt that was open all the way down. Bella also noticed that his chest was fit and so were his muscular legs. "Where did you change?" she wondered aloud.
"I'm here for the weekend at a friend's house. He lives nearby."
"How do you know Angela and Ben?" she was curious.
"I don't know them at all." he answered
"How do you happen to be here, then?"
"I followed you."
"No way" she gasped. A feeling of alarm raised the hairs on the back of her head.
"Yes, way. I had to see you again. So I hired a detective and had you followed. It took him a while because I didn't know much about you but it finally paid off."
Bella became really scared and then realized that he was smiling, almost laughing at her.
"You're joking, right?"
"Yeah, I am." He confessed.
She breathed out. "My God for a few seconds I thought you were some stalker on the loose." And she started to laugh in relief.
He laughed too.
She asked him again how he came to know Angela and he repeated that he didn't.
"Not again," she smiled.
"Well I don't know them, but I know of them. A good friend of mine lives down the lane and he was invited and I came along."
"Who is this good friend?" she asked suspiciously.
He named a famous Hollywood director. "You don't believe me, do you?" Bella shook her head from side to side. "Here I'll show you his house." He took her by her upper arms and turned her a little. "See that roof top right over there, through the trees. That's his house." Edward was standing behind her with his face leaning over her right shoulder and his cheek very near hers. Her heart started that crazy beating again and she tensed her shoulders. He ran his hand down her arm and then held her hand,
"Come over here you can see it better from near this tree." They walked the few yards to the fence and he showed her the house again. She suddenly realized that there was no one else around. It was eerily quiet. She and Edward were the only ones still lingering by this area of the river. She felt his warm chest press into her back as his hands rested on her hips.
"Do you know how unbelievably sexy and beautiful you are?" She shook her head dumbly, her heart was pounding and her throat felt constricted.
He turned her around and maneuvered her back against a tree, leaning in very closely and staring into her eyes. He looked down at her mouth and without her willing them to, her lips parted ready and eager to be kissed. Her knees went weak and she knew what was coming. He breathed heavily and touched his forehead to hers, her eyes drifted shut and she felt his hot breath on her lips. "You are, so, so sexy." he whispered and then he kissed her. It wasn't the kind of kiss she had expected. She was prepared for a soft, tentative explorative first kiss, but this one was nothing like that. It was in a word, hungry.
Edward bit her bottom lip gently and sucked her lip into his mouth caressing it with his tongue. He moved to her top lip and then he breathed into her mouth and ran his tongue along the front tip of her tongue. He then buried his mouth into hers and started to suck the air from her lungs. His lips were forceful. She had never been kissed like this. She held onto his shirt as he continued to kiss her, he briefly nuzzled and sucked at her neck and then returned again to her mouth.
The kiss went on and on until she thought that she would faint. She felt his hands move from her shoulders to her breasts. He reached his thumbs under her skimpy top and massaged her nipples and her legs turned to jelly. His hands moved down to her ribcage and then around to her back. She felt him run his hands down her back and slid both palms inside her bikini bottom and pulled her into his hips. He was aroused and she moaned as she felt a rush of liquid heat between her thighs as he pushed his hips into her. His lips were still locked on hers as his right hand slid around to the front of her bikini bottom and his hand dipped down in front. He moaned as he felt her smooth bare skin, Bella was always meticulously waxed. As he stroked her wet point, Bella's heart tripped and started to pound as she felt tremors begin.
Suddenly the fog in her brain cleared and she realized the danger she was in. This virtual stranger was devouring her and she was sure that he would take this to its completion. She became terrified that he would only stop when they had full sexual intercourse, right here by the river where anyone could see them. She started to struggle out of his hold, but he moved both hands to her hips to tighten his grip on her. Bella put her elbows on his chest and arched away from him. Finally, he moved his mouth from hers and stopped the onslaught, he leaned his forehead against hers again. "Yes," he breathed. "You're so sweet, baby. So good." She looked at him and saw the sleepy desire in his eyes. Neither of them could draw enough air. They were both as breathless as if they had just run a marathon.
After a few seconds, Bella mustered the strength and caught him by surprise as she pushed him away with as much force as she could. She ran stumblingly back up the bank of the river and didn't stop until she got to the house. She searched for her friends who were on the back patio off the kitchen. She slid in between Ann and Justin, as if seeking protection. As everyone talked around her, her thoughts were in a whirl.
She just couldn't understand Edward's behavior or her own. She didn't know him from Adam. And yet he behaved as though he had a right to touch her and fondle her in the most intimate way. Everything had happened so fast that she couldn't make sense of it. How and why had she let this stranger get so close? Why didn't she stop him when he started? It was so unlike her to let a man even kiss her. Yet he managed to practically have sex with her a few minutes after introducing himself. She sat there, quietly confused and mortified, praying that she'd never see him again. Never.