Chapter 11: On Edge

Bella was so tired of being here today. Mike was all over her, again, and she wanted to shout at him today. Jake had put her in a bad mood this morning. Yelling at her like she was a child who was crossing the street without looking both ways. Her smile faltered never to return because she didn't know when Edward was coming back. He had left her a note.

Bella,

Alice and Jasper made it in late last night. I will be at the house for a while. I should be back tonight but don't wait up if it is late.

I love you, Bella.

~Edward.

She understood, of course, but she didn't want him to be gone when she woke up this morning. The only thing that kept her smile was that he had written I Love You. Then Jake treating her like a six year old. She was not in the mood to put up with Mike today.

"Bella, can you watch the front while I make a call?" He asked. It was probably the first thing he had said to her all day that wasn't dripping with what Mike thought was charm.

"Pretty sure I can handle it." Bella snapped, not exactly meaning to snap.

"Ok, you know where I am if you need me." He looked at her weirdly and then went in the back.

It was a few minutes before the jingle of the front door bells caught her attention. She turned to see a gorgeous fiery woman walk into the store. She walked like she was born for seduction, hips swaying with every step. Her hair was untamed and the color of camp fire. It came down in curls to her mid back. She just looked Bella dead in the eyes like she was challenging her for a fight.

"Can I help you?" Bella asked after a moment.

Then she spoke and it was like a cat's purr, which fit perfectly with her sex kitten body and slinky movements. "I need to use the phone. My car broke down and I don't get bars in this town on my cell. You do have a phone, right?"

"Yeah, hold on a minute." Bella got a feeling that she wouldn't want to turn her back on this woman. So instead of going to get Mike she yelled for him. "Hey, Mike! There is a lady that needs to use the phone." It would give Bella some ease just to have another person in the room, even if it was just Mike.

Mike came out with the cordless in his hands. He was muttering about rudeness when he looked up to see her there. His eyes almost popped out of his head (like one of those cartoon wolves) as he took in her attire. Tight black, low slung pants that didn't quite meet the hem of her tight black tank top. Bella was sure she wasn't wearing underwear, because there was no trace of a panty line in those skintight pants. The tank was low enough to show off her voluptuous top half. Mike was almost drooling.

"Here you are. My name is Mike."

She smiled coyly at him. "Tori." She said. Though she hated when someone tried to call her that, she wasn't here to make friends. In a small town like this, she needed to use the small names. "My boyfriend, Jimmy, needs to know where to meet me. We're here on vacation." She grimaced inwardly at thinking of this as a vacation. The only reason she, James and Laurent had been here before was so they could do the rituals. They thought no one would happen across them in the deep woods here. Actually they had been doing it every year until about three years ago when it all went down. James spent over two years in jail and Laurent was still there.

Bella couldn't understand why but all her hairs were standing on end. There was something about this woman. Something in her eyes. It was like they were hiding a million evil sins. Mike, however, didn't seem to notice. He all but stripped her clothes off and took her on the floor of the store.

"He doesn't seem to be answering." She handed the phone back to Mike. "Can I hang around and try in a few minutes?"

Bella knew Mike would say yes no matter how much she wished he would say no. "Sure thing, you can stay all you need." He added his wink and cheesy grin at the end.

Well, at least he will get off me for the time she's here, Bella tried to think of the good things.

***

Edward was not happy. The whole time he'd been trying to call in some backup, he was being brushed off.

"Cullen, you and Hale have it covered. It will just be one guy. For Christ sake, can't you cover one girl?"

But Edward knew it was all going to be going down, and he was ready to call in special forces. He was pacing around the grand main room of the Cullen house. Alice flitted about asking how she could help. He loved his sister but sometimes it was like a five year old on a sugar high. She had done nothing but clean since she had been there. The furniture found itself in new places, and the window wall was so clear a bird might try to fly through it.

His last childhood home was his favorite by far. If he could just move it to somewhere other than Forks, he used to think….

Now, well, now he was imagining it Alice free. With an old homemade quilt on the bed, not just any one but the one on Bella's bed. He imagined the cream furniture replaced by more homey pieces making it look more like a page out of Better Homes and Gardening rather than an Ethan Allen catalogue.

He could also imagine the obvious teen and young adult rooms being modified for babies and young children.

Edward shook his head. His life, his daydream, was in trouble, and he had really just found it. Here he was wasting time fantasizing. Action- that is what needed to happen right now. He pulled out his phone for his final lifeline. Let's hope he wasn't out hunting with no signal.

"Hello?"

"Hey, are you tied up?" Edward hoped the answer was no so he could get the help he felt like he needed.

"Never too much to get out. What can I do for you, brother?"

***

Just before she left for the day to leave Mike to close up, the leggy redhead finally left the shop. A man with long blond hair tied back with a leather string came by and she ran out after him. He had made eye contact with Bella, looked through her almost. She had the sudden urge to run and cover herself all at once. She shuddered remembering the feeling as she pulled in to the driveway.

"Home sweet home."