Hello Sister, Goodbye Life
Disclaimer: I do not own the Twilight saga. All recognisable characters, content or locations belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.
Warning: Language. Adult themes.
Author's Note: Thanks for reading/reviewing/faving/alerting - I love getting your reviews, though, honestly, my inbox is being a pain in the ass at the moment. Hope you enjoy this chapter
Chapter Five
Can't Take My Eyes Off You
Pardon the way that I stare,
There's nothing else to compare,
The sight of you leaves me weak,
There are no words left to speak
But if you feel like I feel,
Please let me know that it's real,
You're just too good to be true,
Can't take my eyes off of you
Can't Take My Eyes Off You - Lauren Hill
Bella Swan
Weeks went by with client meetings, frequent stop offs at Renee's offices to see if all was going well, several lunches with Esme and several run ins with two of her three children.
Maddie had grasped onto the fact that mom and dad weren't coming back, a fact that both relieved me and saddened me at the same time. Seeing the sad look on her face whenever she saw a photo of mom and dad or one or the other made me just want to burst into tears, even more so when she'd pick up the frame and kiss it, saying, "Love you ma n da."
Rosalie, ever the drinker, had roped me into going out with her for TGI Friday with her cousin, his wife and her two brothers.
After dropping Maddeleine off at Leah's and promising that I'd pick her up the next morning, I headed for Gilhooley's, an Irish pub that sold, according to Rosalie, the best beer ever. Stepping inside in my work clothes – a dark blue blouse and a grey pencil skirt, matching blue heels, with my hair in a casual flop down my back, I made my way to where Rosalie was making a scene, throwing her arms about like an idiot. She was with another blonde I recognised to be Jasper Whitlock and his wife, Alice-the-volunteer-and-my-client.
"Bella!" Rosalie shouted, "You know Alice, right? She volunteers at Maddie's daycare? And this is Jasper, her husband and my cousin."
"Yeah, we've met," i laughed, shaking Jasper's hand again.
"Nice to see you again, Ms Swan."
"Bella," I replied airily, "You can call me Bella."
"Then I'm Jasper."
"Edward should be on his way," Alice informed the group, "He just went to drop Eva and Tony with mom and dad. Emmett, well, I can't guarantee you he'll show up before halfway through the night but..." she shrugged, sipping her lemonade.
As she said this, Edward slid into the stool beside me, nodding at everyone in greeting.
"So where's Madeleine?" Alice asked curiously.
"Leah, my receptionist at the firm," I replied, "Her and Jake, her husband, have a son round her age and they love kids so..." I trailed off, shrugging.
Rosalie gulped down half her glass of red, earning disapproving looks from Jasper and I. "What?" She asked indignantly, "It's TGI Friday."
"Yes, you also have to meet your parents tomorrow for brunch," I retorted, sipping my own glass of red. "Rosalie, by the time you're thirty, you'll have a beer gut the size of Texas, the rate you're going."
"Hey now, bestie, was that necessary?"
"Hey, best friends are honest with each other, right?" I fluttered my eyelashes at her, smiling innocently. She stuck her tongue out at me and I rolled my eyes.
"So, Edward, what is it that you do for a living?" I asked curiously, leaning back in my stool, raising my glass to my lips and arching a brow. His hair was disheveled and his coat was rumpled.
"I'm a surgeon at the local hospital," he replied, "Peadiatrics mostly. And you?"
"I inherited my father's half of Black Swan Associates," I replied, "I deal with family and divorce court cases and I'm the CEO of Dwyer Decor. My mother, Renee Swan nee Dwyer was the 'founder' and she passed it on to me. Until Maddie is 18, the business is mine."
"That sounds stressful," Alice commented.
I shrugged. "Billy helps me out sometimes at the firm; he owns the other half of it and your mother," I gestured to Alice and Edward, "Is managing to keep everything afloat. With Maddie in daycare most of the time and Rosalie able to take care of her when I'm unable, things aren't as hectic as it should be."
"What about house hold maintenance? Garden, house?"
"We have a gardener, heaven knows I can't work a lawn mower for shit. Maria, she's like a second mother to me, she's our housekeeper and keeps the house clean and makes sure I have food to cook meals with. Honestly, that woman is amazing."
I was on my third drink – Rosalie maybe on her ninth – when Emmett arrived. Oh and hell did he arrive. The man was a fucking half giant with muscles that had muscles and dimples that made his face so totally adorable, I was sure my heart melted at the sight of them.
"Well slap my ass and call me Charlie," Rosalie muttered beside me, "But I think I just came in my pants."
"You're disgusting." She didn't hear me, though, since she was too busy salivating over the man giant beside her. It didn't seem to matter, though, since he was doing the same to her. A match made in the gutter. They were eye fucking each other and it was there, clear on their faces like the light of day for the world to see.
I wondered if Rosalie was going to pounce onto his lap and screw him right then and there in the middle of an Irish pub that sold good beer. It was times like these I wished alcohol didn't exist.
A throat clearing from Edward brought the eye fuckers back to reality and while Emmett grinned sheepishly, Rosalie shrugged and took another swig of her beer.
"You're going to regret it in the morning, Rosalie," I sang, placing my lemonade onto the table, "And when you're parents give you shit tomorrow at brunch, don't look at me."
"What're you doing tomorrow, Bella?" Alice asked.
"Taking Maddie to the Yo Gabba Gabba show."
"Oh, Edward's going with his kids, too!" Alice exclaimed, "You guys should so totally go together!" Subtle as a pig in shit.
"Oh, I don't know," I mumbled, "Maddie's not really good with new people these days and I don't want her to... she thinks I'm getting rid of her when i introduce her to new people. She was with a new babysitter the night of the accident and..." I shrugged, trailing off.
Alice pouted, her eyebrows furrowing as I shared an amused look with Rosalie. Glancing at Edward, he seemed totally oblivious. Men.
We talked and drank until it was nearing eleven when I decided to call it a night. Pulling out my bag, I slung it onto my shoulder and heaved Rosalie to her feet. "Alright, idiot, we're leaving." She was staggering back and forth, looking completely smashed, and I couldn't keep her upright long enough to walk the both of us to my car. Edward jumped to his feet and helped me support Rosalie's weight to my car where he helped her into the drivers' seat, mouthing off suggestions to cure what was to be a horrible hangover the next morning.
"Edward, stop," I laughed, shutting her door after dropping her bag at her feet, "I'll let her suffer through her hangover: if she wants to drink excessive amounts of alcohol, let her deal with the consequences."
He laughed, walking me to the driver side of the car, Opening my door for me, he laughed and said, "Very vindictive, Ms Swan."
I smiled impishly as I slid into my seat. "Someone has to be." I smiled up at him through my lashes. "Goodnight, Edward."
"Goodnight, Bella," he replied, closing my door as I started the engine of the Audi. I watched him walk back into the tavern, running a hand through his hair, before pulling out of the parking lot and heading home.
Rosalie was still unconcious when I left the house, headed for Jake and Leah's. The four occupants of the house were awake when I arrived mid morning and I opened my arms for Madeleine as she came toddling to me, an ecstatic grin on her little face.
"Hey rascal, were you good for Jake and Leah?"
She nodded, thumb in mouth as Leah entered the hall. "Hey, Bella, how was last night?"
I rolled my eyes. "Rosalie got plastered, as usual. One day, while she's drunk, she'll be charged for public indeescency, she'll contest it and then expect me to represent her in court. Then I'll say no because it ought to teach her a lesson."
Leah laughed and rolled her eyes. "It's a good thing she's got you to keep her out of trouble, then." She ran a hand through her black hair, pouting a little. "Hey, I can't come in Monday morning until eleven; I have a doctor's appointment with my GP. Is that okay?"
I nodded, "That's fine. I don't mind and I'm sure Billy won't mind, either."
Leah smiled, relieved as she gave me a slight hug, Maddie as well, since she was still on my hip. "Thanks, I'll make up for the missed time, though."
"Are you kidding? No. Please, you're already refusing payment for babysitting, don't even worry about it."
She sighed, a hesitant smile on her face. "Is that okay?"
I rolled my eyes. "Leah, just because I'm your boss now, doesn't mean I've stopped being your friend. I'm pretty sure bosses aren't supposed to know that their receptionist has a tattoo of a wolf on their inner thigh."
"And receptionists aren't supposed to know that their bosses have a birthmark the shape of a star on their left butt cheek."
"Exactly," I grinned, hugging my friend again. "Anyway, I'm taking Maddie out today so I'll see you round lunch Monday?"
She nodded in affirmative and I walked towards my car, Leah watching from her doorway. Once I'd pulled out of their drive and was on the way to the theatre they were hosting the show, Maddie quiet in her car seat, I asked, "How'd you like Leah and Jake, Maddie? And Seth?" Seth was Leah and Jake's two year old son and was hitting the 'terrible twos' stage.
Maddie nodded her little head and said, "Building bwocks."
I grinned, turning a corner, nearing the theatre.
Crowds had gathered out front when we arrived and, with Maddie on my back, arms securely around my neck, legs around my waist, her diaper bag over one shoulder, I pushed through the crowd until I was in front of the ticket booth.
Showing the ticket guy my prebooked tickets and an ID, he nodded and let me through the 'velvet rope'. In the theatre, I walked to the front row and slid into my reserved seat, Maddie moving to sit in her seat beside me as I slid her diaper bag under my seat. She gave me a confused look.
"You wanna watch Yo Gabba Gabba, don't you, Mad?"
Her face lit up like a fat kid's with cake and I couldn't help but grin – I loved putting that smile on my little sister's face.
"Gabba!" She shouted gleafully as the theatre doors flew open and a little girl went running down the aisle.
"Evangeline Elizabeth Cullen, stop right now, young lady," Edward's voice was sharp – strict – though it still sounded like honey and velvet combined.
I looked up and smiled at him, an empathetic smile on my face.
He slid into the front row, Evangeline in front of him and a little boy on his hip until he was standing two seats away from where I sat.
"You don't mind if Eva sits with you, right?" He gave me a hesitant smile and I shook my head, no, I didn't mind.
"Go right ahead."
Evangeline climbed into the seat beside me, Edward next to her and his son, Anthony, next to him. When people began to file in, Maddie climbed into my lap and buried her face into my chest, trembling slightly.
I held her tightly, silently assuring her that I'd never let her go. When the crowd was full of chattering toddlers and frustrated parents trying to reign in their out of control children, curtains were drawn back and the show began.