A/N: There is a lot to read, so get to it!
Not ours, and we really wanted that Southampton estate too.
Chapter 12: Get What You're After
Surprises – B
The drive home from Southampton had been quiet. Edward gave me a short run down on his conversation with his father, but I could tell by his tone that he didn't want to dig into it.
My expectations had not been high on the drive out, but I think that his had. It is human nature to crave your parent's acceptance or blessing, and although he tried to play it off, Edward wasn't any different in that aspect.
The irony though, their coolness combined with his father's clear disapproval only strengthened Edward's resolve. It scared me at first. I didn't want to be his rebellion, a reason for him to lash out at his family. He assured me it was otherwise.
"Bella, I have spent my entire life trying to win his approval. He wants what he wants for me; he has no clue or consideration regarding what makes me happy. I am done trying to live my life for anyone else. For once, it's about me. About us."
I believed him, but I still couldn't help but worry. Family is an important part of who we are, even if they don't approve. I couldn't imagine having to deal with my father's disapproval. He took me moving to the East Coast hard, even though he knew it was the right thing at the time. I can't fathom doing something that would cause him to be angry or disappointed in me. But I had to remind myself that our situations were not the same.
We spent the next month on our 'island' as we dubbed it. We both continued with work as normal, although I did get a lot of questioning looks and more people dropping by my office than before. Demetri ferried me to and from work. I tried to fight it, but Edward had insisted, concerned that someone would try to approach me. I missed our morning ritual; the coffee, stopping by Tiffany's, him walking me to work. Edward must have been aware of that, and took to leaving me little notes in the car each morning. Some were sweet, some were funny, and some made me turn bright red. Demetri could tell the days I got a 'zinger' as he called them. He loved to tease me.
Weekends were spent at Edward's apartment, a replication of our first weekend there. It was the one place where we never had to worry about prying eyes, people's intentions, or who might be watching. When it came to peoples' intentions, Edward had become my fierce protector. He respected my independent nature, yet did everything he could to make sure that none of the ripples from my newfound notoriety caused harm or concern. He half joked at one point about getting a doorman for my building, but I nipped that one in the bud.
Unfortunately, the press scrutiny didn't die down. We tried going out a few times, dinner or drinks, but photographers always seemed to be waiting for us. I guess the Cinderella angle was too good to give up. Edward tried to make jokes about it, going so far as to take one of the photos and have it framed so he could put it on his desk at work. He insisted that I looked too cute in it to throw it away, and with all the copy cropped out, it looked like any other photo. It was a stretch, but I appreciated the effort.
As much as we could, we continued in the trajectory we had started. I hated the constant scrutiny, the feeling like I was always being watched, but I hadn't been lying to Esme Cullen. It was a sacrifice worth making. And in the end, Edward ultimately made it all worth it.
Family was the only wrinkle in the equation. We didn't see his parents after the disastrous trip to Southampton, and I had yet to meet his brother. I understand that Edward wanted to protect me, but it felt strange, keeping such a large part of his life at bay.
My dad tried to be understanding. We had formed an odd relationship over the years, a by product of it being just the two of us. He meant well, but when it came to things like talking about relationships, he was at a loss. Our twice weekly conversations covered everything under the sun, but romantic entanglements were not one of them.
The biggest surprise was receiving a few notes from my mother. Renee had apparently seen my name on one of the gossip sites, and dropped a few quick postcards to see how I was. This was typical with her. If there was something going on to draw attention then she had to be in the middle of it. There was no irony in the fact that the only times she ever decided to play an active role in my life was when I was the one in the spotlight.
I worried a little bit about telling Edward that she had re-engaged. I knew that her motives were most likely not altruistic, and he already had enough to deal with. I did ultimately end up telling him, but I probably played it down more than I normally would.
It scared me sometimes, the intensity of my feelings for Edward. It was the little things that called it out. When he would catch me looking at him, and give me 'my smile,' or how he'd twirl my hair around his finger as he read. One weekend it was rainy and miserable, and I made a half joking comment about how it would be great to be sitting on a beach with a beer. Two hours later the heat was cranked in the apartment, and we were sitting the middle of the living room floor on beach towels listening to Jimmy Buffet, drinking coronas and eating snow crab.
The sense of completion, of just us in those moments made tolerating everything else worth it.
And, I'll be honest. That couch got broken in pretty darn well. And the bed. Well, most of the apartment for that matter.
As much is I lived for the just us moments, I felt bad that I had not seen Alice much in all the chaos. We still talked every day. She was my only lifeline to my old life. I hated that it was so hard to see her, but I didn't want her getting pulled into the fishbowl too. The last thing I wanted was for my friends and family to become decorative background; although knowing Alice, she would insist on being the plastic mermaid sitting on the rock. If there was one thing throughout this experience, it would be to protect the people I loved in whatever way I could.
Today would be the first time we had a chance to catch up in person in, well, forever. She had broken up with the most recent flavor of the month, and was looking for an opportunity to grab some pizza and talk. Work had been chaos; the first round of edits had just gone through on Jasper's new book, and I was in need of a breather too. So I blocked my calendar for the afternoon and met her in Soho.
She gave me a funny look when I climbed out of the Mercedes. She knew about Edward's insistence on having Demetri as my personal driver, yet hearing and seeing it were two different things.
"I won't be that long, Demetri. I can shoot you a text when we are wrapping up."
He grinned at me. "Sounds good Bella. Nice to meet you, Alice."
Alice shook her head. "Surreal!"
"Welcome to my world. Want to trade me names? Yours suits the situation better." We sat down at a table to ordered pizza and wine. This used to be a regular occurrence for us. I hadn't realized how much that I had missed it.
"Well, aside from living in a hermetically sealed bubble, you look fabulous. Being madly in love and having the press follow your every move suits you."
"Thanks, Alice. I'm sorry it's been so long since we've been able to get together."
She waved her hand dismissively. "It's not like you were the only one busy. I was with doofus number ten."
"That bad, huh?" Poor Alice. I've never met anyone who wanted the dream as much as she did.
"Yeah. Can't say it was one of my greater moments. But it's over now. I have resigned myself to flying solo for a while. I am tired of looking."
I laughed at her. "Be careful, Alice. I got to that point, and here I am now."
"Yeah, but you are different, B. You are living the fairy tale."
"Not sure about that. The only fairy tale aspect is Edward. Everything else is kind of nightmarish to be honest."
"How can having Mr. Perfect be nightmarish?"
I thought for a moment, debating how best to explain.
"Well, it feels like everyone knows who I am now, and reacts differently to me. People that never had a reason to be nice before are now. I have to second guess everyone, always looking for an objective or angle. Plus, I have zero privacy. Perfect example, there is a table of women sitting just over your shoulder who have been staring at me and whispering behind their hands since we walked in. Odds are they are either discussing what I am wearing, how I am not very pretty, or that I must be a gold digger. Edward tries to shelter me from it as much as he can, but I still see it and hate it."
"I never thought about it that way. Although I do have to laugh at the thought of you letting anyone protect you. Dare I say it, you've changed, Bella. And I don't just mean that sickeningly sweet 'I am in love' glow." She was quiet for a moment, as if debating how best to proceed, when I heard someone call out behind me.
"Bella?"
I cringed. People had started approaching me in public recently, acting like they knew me. A few people had gotten too close for comfort, but Demetri or Edward had been able to step in and diffuse what could have been a nasty situation.
"Hey, I thought it was you!"
Alice's face had drained of all its color. I looked up to see Jasper walking towards us, newspaper in hand.
"Oh, hey JW. What are you doing here?"
"I had a craving for pizza. I have been working my fingers to the bone lately for my slave driver of an editor, and decided I deserved a break."
"Nice." I made a face at him.
Alice kicked me under the table, hard.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Jasper, this is my best friend, Alice Brandon. I'm sure you remember me mentioning her. Alice, this is the infamous Jasper Whitlock."
We exchanged a few more pleasantries before Alice kicked me under the table again.
"Did you order anything yet?" I asked, hoping to avoid another pointed toe attack from the evil midget sitting across from me. She didn't know how to spell subtle.
"No, was just heading to do that when I saw you." He was addressing me, but Jasper never took his eyes off Alice.
"Would you like to join us? We've got plenty of food."
I might as well not have existed for the rest of lunch. Jasper and Alice never took their eyes off each other. They talked, they joked, they flirted shamelessly. I have to admit, it was pretty cute.
And then he shocked the shit out of me.
"So how is it that Bella and I are on our sixth Jack Hale book, and she never introduced us?"
Did he just out himself to Alice? Wow. That's just…wow.
It became abundantly clear that I was a third wheel to their conversation. Watching them interact made me miss Edward too. Spring, warm weather, and love in the air. It didn't get better than this.
And it gave me an idea. I shot a quick text message to Demetri, and then waited for the next opening in the conversation.
"Jasper, I need to be somewhere. Would you mind keeping Alice company for me?" She mouthed thank you when Jasper wasn't looking. Oh she had it bad.
"Sure thing, Bella. I'd be happy to."
Demetri was waiting for me outside the restaurant. "Big D, Can we swing my apartment quickly? It should only take a minute."
"Absolutely, feisty one."
While Demetri navigated through traffic, I pulled out my cell and hit speed dial.
"Edward Cullen's office."
"Hi Jane, it's Bella. How is his schedule this afternoon?"
"OH! Hi! Hang on a second." I heard keys clicking. "He is in a meeting until three, and then he should be free."
I looked at my watch. That gave me an hour.
"Perfect. I am going to pop by at three. Can you make sure he's in his office?"
"Absolutely!"
I disconnected and smiled to myself. "You got that, Big D?"
"Your apartment, then CI. Got it."
I was in and out of my apartment in a flash. I was pretty sure that I remembered the day that Edward said he saw me in my wellies. I dug through my closet, frantic for a second when I couldn't find the cardigan. I finally located it wedged in the back of closet.
Fifteen minutes later, dressed in my wellies, cardigan and skirt, I flew out the door.
"Whoa. Nice rain boots there. Planning on going puddle stomping?"
"Thanks Demetri. Let's hit it."
At five 'til three, we pulled up in front of the CI building.
"I'll walk home with Edward, so don't worry about waiting around."
"Sounds like a plan. Have a good time Bella."
I took the elevator to the 53rd floor, where Jane was waiting for me. She looked me head to toe and smiled.
"I wish I had the courage to wear colors like that. I am too chicken."
"Every woman deserves a pair of wellies, Jane. You should get some. Is he in his office?"
"Yes he is. He came back a few minutes ago. He doesn't have anything on his calendar, so he should be in there alone."
"Great, thank you!"
I made my way down the hallway, ignoring the whispers that followed me. I had only been in CI on one other occasion, when Edward needed to pop back in and grab something for work.
His office was at the end of the hall, a corner with a view of course. The door was open. I stopped, hands braced against the doorway, waiting for him to see me.
It took me a moment to realize that there was someone in with him. Whoever it was must be sitting on the couch out of the line of sight of the door.
"…I just don't think it is that great of an idea. I am perfectly happy with where things stand…"
Edward pivoted in his chair at that point, and caught sight of me standing in the doorway. His eyes went immediately to my wellies, and then slowly worked their way up.
He actually blushed. Who would think yellow rain boots would have that kind of effect on a man?
"Bella…" He seemed a bit flustered. "What are you doing here?"
"Thought I would surprise you. Jane said your afternoon was clear."
A man stepped forward into my peripheral vision.
"So you are the infamous Bella, huh? I'm Emmett. It's nice to finally meet you."
Oops.
Busted - E
Emmet had really put the pressure on. He was doing his part to keep bringing the family together. I wondered how much influence mom had in his showing up at my office today. I hadn't spoken with her since the Monday after Southampton.
"So do you want to tell me what was up with you yesterday?" I'd asked her.
"What do you mean?"
"Come on, mom. What was that display? Hot and cold. You weren't terribly welcoming."
"Edward, what exactly did you expect? This is the first time I've met the girl. Typically, you don't date women long enough for me to even find out their last name." I cringed at the attack, though it wasn't much of an exaggeration.
"That doesn't justify rudeness."
"True. I was really only looking out for your best interests. I worried that perhaps you were blinded by love. I wanted to see if I could figure out this girl's intentions."
"You couldn't trust me to assess a person's character?"
"Perhaps, I can now. I was . . . impressed."
That garnered a smile from me though she couldn't see it.
"I hope that means next time you'll be far more pleasant."
"I think Bella and I definitely came to an understanding. Your father on the other hand . . ."
She hadn't had to finish that statement. I knew we hadn't won him over.
But my mother continued to push for ways to get everyone in the same room together.
Emmett seemed to be in agreement with her. I was arguing vehemently with him when Bella walked into my office at 3:00 in the afternoon wearing her yellow rain boots. It wasn't raining outside. There didn't seem to be any real urgency to her visit. She said she was "surprising me." Oh.
I forgot my own name for a moment. Not surprisingly, I didn't remember Emmett was in the room either. He had to introduce himself. Then realization hit me. He had seen her before too. In the boots. In that exact outfit. Would he put two and two together?
"Hey there. I'm Bella. I'm happy to meet you too."
Emmett looked Bella up and down. I could see his wheels turning. His brows furrowed. He looked over at me as if to ask a question. I probably looked like the Cheshire cat. He tilted his head to the side, and then looked back at Bella.
"Oh my god! You're the crazy girl from Tiffany's?!?" He turned beet red which was rare for Emmett. "I mean I'm sure you're not crazy. I just . . ." I had to save him.
"Emmett was with me the first day I saw you. You were kind of in your own world."
"Was I singing?" She asked Emmett.
"Uh, yeah."
"I probably did look a little nutty, then. Don't worry, I'm mostly sane, but the more I hang out with your brother, here, the more I think you all are the ones living in the loony bin."
And Emmett threw his head back and shook with laughter.
"Ah, now I see what's got mom so on edge," he said to me. "She's as feisty as Rosalie. Mom's still holding out for a quiet one she can have 'tea' with and by 'tea' I mean have a few cocktails in the midmorning and talk about the neighbors."
"Sounds about right," I acknowledged.
"Is the neighborhood gossip any good? Torrid affairs with the cabana boy? Secret cocaine stash in the pool house?"
"Naw, more like, 'Did you see the Muffy wore white yesterday? It's nowhere near Memorial Day!'" And he put his hand up to his mouth to feign shock. Bella responded with mock indignation.
"Oh the horror!"
The mood was light, and it was needed. Though he'd always been good at diffusing in the past, the tension in the family had so strong lately. I almost forgot how much I loved my brother. I might resent the hell out of his easy relationship with our father, but until Bella, no one had ever made me laugh more. Without Emmett reminding me not to take myself so seriously, I hated to think of what kind of miserable, arrogant bastard I might have become. I have a feeling the man in the mirror would have very closely resembled my dad, the man I least wanted to emulate these days.
All my life, people had remarked on my similarities to my father. Even as an adult, clients commented that I approached business exactly like him—calculated and reserved. Observers noted that Emmett and my mother shared a similar humor and they made others feel comfortable instantly upon introduction. I wondered what it said about us that we'd always seemed to gravitate toward the parent least like our own innate personalities. Then again, I knew it was deeper than that. Our personalities didn't necessarily line up that easily. I don't think it was fair to say that I was exactly like my dad, or that Emmett was nothing like him.
"Okay, I'm not sure I meant it before, but now I do. I really am glad to finally meet you, Bella. We should have been there when you met our parents, but it was complicated. Rosalie is very protective of Haley, and we're trying to keep a low profile through the whole media storm."
I knew the argument, and I didn't blame Rosalie for being a mother hen, but I still expected a little more from Emmett. I had depended on him a lot over the years to help calm things with my father. Ever since I was a teenager, he'd been an important buffer. Since I'd come back, his own family clearly took precedence, and I understood, but I'd really hoped that given his position, he could help bridge the widening gap.
And I had anticipated his show of support when I took Bella to the beach house.
"Here's hoping the storm dies down soon." Bella answered.
"I hear you there," he responded. "But maybe we'll get a chance to see you again before long, Bella." And he looked at me pointedly. I shrugged.
"I'll see myself out. Have a nice afternoon you two."
Bella stood in front of me, smiling. "I like your brother."
"He likes you too."
She turned back to the door. "So, are you free this afternoon as Jane said?" She shut the door behind Emmett.
I picked up the phone and buzzed Jane, "Hold my calls. I'm out for the rest of the day."
"I am now. What did you have in mind?" I sat up straight, readying to walk toward where she was standing by the couch.
"Nothing really. Just thought maybe I could lure you away for the rest of the afternoon, and I didn't need anyone listening in on the plans."
"That would probably be for the best," I said as I sat down on the couch.
I doubted Bella was quite aware what that outfit she was wearing was doing to me. A year ago if were shut in an office with a woman wearing a skirt like this, there is no way I wouldn't have had her under my spell within minutes.
Today, Bella was casting the one casting spells as she sat down in my lap.
"I hadn't really noticed your office view. It's a good one too."
I ran my fingers up and down her leg.
"I like this view better. You're starting to make me believe it's the only view I need."
"Damn, you really should write a book of lines sure to drive women wild."
"Am I driving you wild?"
"Stop it! You are not going to get me to drop my panties in your office, Cullen!"
"Where's your sense of adventure today?" I said in a mock seductive voice. I nipped at her neck a bit, and felt the goose bumps on her arm.
"I have a different couch in mind for this afternoon's make out session."
"I'm intrigued. Which couch did you have in mind?" I asked before she licked my bottom lip.
After her little tease, she pulled back.
"What was the conversation I walked into earlier? With the big guy?"
It took me a second to realize she was referring to my brother.
"There is an event that CI contributes to every year in about a month. He was making the case for my attendance. Actually, rephrase that, our attendance. I'm not sure it's a great idea at this point. With everything . . ."
There was a knock on the door at the same time Jane buzzed the intercom.
"I'm very sorry, Mr. Cullen, but he insisted."
Only one person would have that kind of clout with Jane.
I looked at Bella, and said, "Get ready."
He barged in before she had a chance to fully move from my lap to the other side of the couch.
"Hello, dad, to what do we owe the visit?"
"Shut up, Edward. You two can frolic all over Manhattan for all I care, but I will not have you make a laughing stock of this office."
"I assure you I have no idea . . ." I said while standing up to face him. But he cut me off.
"Then why would I get a call that there was breaking news about an afternoon office romp going on in Edward Cullen's office on one of the gossip sites."
"Why would anyone be talking about this? I just came to visit my boyfriend. Is that a crime?" Bella asked clearly confused.
"Certainly, it isn't a crime, but judging by the shut office door, the "no calls" policy, the position I just saw you in, and the shade of your cheeks right now, I'd say they weren't too far off the mark now were they?"
"Looks can be very deceiving." I protested. Just like him to assume first and ask later. Scratch that. He'd never asked.
"I know what I just saw, Edward."
"What you just saw was completely innocent; nothing happened!" Bella was standing her ground.
He raised one eyebrow at her.
"No one knew you were coming, Bella?" I asked.
She shook her head. "Just Demetri and Jane, of course."
No one said anything. Certainly none of us would implicate them. They'd been too much of a lifeline to any one of us at any given time.
"Dad, someone must be a leak. There have been too many times now where the press seemed to how to find us before we even arrived."
"That's your issue, Edward. I won't waste any resources trying to protect you and your tryst."
"Damn it; stop talking about Bella like that. She's right here! I'm not asking for resources. I'm just saying. We aren't flaunting anything. Neither of us is seeking this attention. If you'd get your head out of your ass and see that, maybe we could solve the problem."
He shook his head and left the room without saying a word.
I was shaking.
After a long pause, Bella hedged. "Hey, are you okay?"
"No, I'm not fucking okay." I was livid. None of this should be happening. Every time I thought it was all going to fade away, something stirred the pot again. I didn't know who I could trust anymore. I looked at Bella who looked a little rattled, so I calmed myself, and went over to sit by her on the couch. "I should have just taken you away from here, from all of this. Maybe it's not too late. Want to go hide on that private island with me? We'd only be a plane ride from snow."
"No, as tempting as the private island sounds, I do not want to hide at all. We have no reason to run away."
I leaned my head against the back of the couch. She inched herself closer, and I brought my arm down around her shoulders.
"God, I love you. Talk about always saying the right thing." We stared at each other intently for a while. Every day, every challenge our foundation was getting stronger. Trust was the mortar that held it all together.
"So much for walking home on this great spring day, huh?" she said with a wink.
I called Demetri, but unfortunately, since Bella told him she was going home with me, he had gone up to Connecticut to visit family for the evening. He apologized and offered to be back within a couple of hours. I dismissed him and told him to enjoy himself.
"Well it looks like we may have to brave the walk after all."
"How bad will it be?"
"They'll be in your face. They'll be loud. They won't let up. But we'll be together, right?" I walked over to grab my briefcase, giving Bella a minute to think. She was looking out the window, and she turned to me with a renewed confidence.
"Okay, I can do this."
"No, Bella. We can."
Walk on a Nice Spring Day - B
We rode down in the elevator, Edward's arm securely around my shoulders.
"You ready for this?"
I looked up at him, his expression fierce, like he was ready to head into battle.
"How does this work? You are the lineman, I'm the running back? You block and tackle, I've got the ball?"
Edward stopped in the atrium and locked at me with a bemused expression on his face.
"For someone who hates sports, you sure use them in an awful lot of analogies."
"Remember my childhood. I am the one that shouted 'hit him, hurt him' at football games. I am a product of my environment."
He shook his head. "You never cease to amaze me. You never do or say what I expect you to"
"That's part of what keeps you coming back." I gave him a slight hip check. "Ready to face the crazies?"
"Let's do it."
We walked hand in hand through the atrium doors, and out of the building. The minute the doors closed behind us, the shouts began.
"Edward, this is the longest you've kept a woman around, is this the one?"
"Edward, what do your parents think?"
"Have you taken her to meet the family yet?"
"Edward, what were you doing up there?"
"What is with the rumors about jewelry?"
We pushed ahead, trying our best to ignore the constant clicking and questions. At one point, a photographer got to close to me. Edward slipped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me into his side in an attempt to shield me. The flashbulbs were blinding.
"Well, I guess we just gave them one heck of a photo opportunity." He muttered.
"Should I tell you a story to make you laugh?" I asked under my breath.
"Sure. No names though, okay?"
"I had lunch with my best buddy today. We were hanging out talking, and guess who showed up? Mr. Hale."
"Really? Do tell." He kept a small smile on his face as we walked. Cameras continued to click.
"So we were talking, having a good old time, when Mr. Hale comes walking up. He plunks down to join us, and next thing I know, my best buddy and Mr. Hale are in deep smit. So much so that he let on about that dirty little secret of his. I left them at the restaurant. I had better get one hell of a fruit basket for introducing them."
"Dirty little secret outted on the first meeting? Wow that might top us for spontaneity."
We were only a few blocks from Edward's building at this point, and covered the rest of the distance in silence. I kept a small smile plastered on my face as I continued to ignore the barrage of questions.
Once we were safely inside the elevator, Edward leaned back against the wall, and banged his head a few times against the paneling.
"So much for my bright idea. I'm so sorry. I just thought you'd get a kick out of it if I showed up like this."
He stared at the ceiling for a moment. "It's not your fault. And for the record, I absolutely loved you showing up like that. All of this would be a non issue if it weren't for the feeding frenzy we walked into. Something isn't right. There is no way they should have known you would be at CI, which means that I need to figure out how things keep leaking out. There has been too many times where we've been ambushed when no one should know our plans."
We dissected the afternoon, trying to create a short list of who knew that I was either on my way to or at CI. We could only come up with a handful of names.
I sat on the kitchen counter, eating ice cream out of the container with a spoon. "So are you going to tell me about your conversation with Emmett?"
"You aren't going to let that one go, are you?"
"Nope. You know me better than that."
Edward sighed and grabbed the spoon out of my hand to scoop out some ice cream.
"CI sponsors an event at the Met every year. It's supposedly for charity, but it's all a big visibility thing. Emmett thinks we should all be there, as it has always been a family thing. He thinks it would look strange if it were only the four of them."
"You said 'we'. Is that Cullen we, or Bella and Edward we?"
"Both. I told him I didn't think it was a good idea. My family hasn't been the most supportive of late, what motivation do I have to reciprocate? That was before my father came bursting into my office like a raging asshole to further buttress the argument."
I stole the spoon back from him and took another bite. "What if we were to kill them with kindness? They aren't going to break us up, so they are either going to have to accept us or shut up, right?"
I scooped out another gob of ice cream and held it out for Edward. He was frowning at me.
"What are you up to?"
"Why do we care what they think? It's not like what your parents say is going to make a difference to you, right? So why let it? Screw 'em."
"I don't know, Bella. It's bad enough that you are under the microscope everyday. Attending will put a bull's-eye on your back. I let you get ambushed once; I don't want it to happen again."
"We can't let scrutiny rule our lives, Edward. We are going to have to start venturing out of this apartment. What better way to do it than in a controlled environment? Everyone will get to see us out together, we can say yes, no, or how much. It's an easy, slow, managed entry. And by taking the situation head on, we take the power out of your dad's hands. Show him that he can't win. Screw 'em."
He studied me for a minute, as if trying to piece together my thought process. Then he leaned in and took the bite of ice cream.
"You are brilliant. Screw 'em." He took the ice cream and spoon out of my hands and placed them on the counter, then stepped a bit closer, so that he could rest his hands on either side of me, eyes level with mine.
"So are you going to tell me why you showed up at my office today wearing these?" His knee nudged one of my feet.
"I told you, I wanted to lure you back here. You have such a soft spot for them; I thought that you it might provide a little extra motivation."
"Hmm, was that your intent?" He skimmed his thumb along my thigh, stopping at the hem of my skirt. "You know exactly what I think about you in these boots, yet all you thought was that it might provide a little extra motivation for me to leave early?"
His hand inched slowly higher, raising goose flesh as he went. He knew exactly what buttons to push.
"So if memory serves me correctly, the last time I saw you wearing exactly this outfit, I was thinking about doing this…." He moved both of his hands to my knees and pulled them open so he could step in closer. He stared into my eyes with an evil grin as he slid his hands down the back of my calves, straightening them so he could wrap my legs around him.
"You thought all this that first time you saw me? You're a perv, Cullen! You didn't even know me."
"No, but I wanted to know you."
"Yeah, like in the biblical sense!"
"You have a problem with that?"
His hands were slowly moving back up my legs when my phone rang.
"Damnit." I mumbled, fumbling for my phone.
"Let it go." Edward murmured as he leaned in closer.
"Yeah, remember what happened last time we did that?" I looked at my display and flipped it open. "Hey Dad!"
Hold That Thought – E
I was not feeling the 'patience is a virtue' vibe at that moment. Ever since the moment Bella walked into my office, and I saw those damn boots, my hormones had been raging. My fantasy incarnate. Of course, nothing was going to happen in my office. But I knew why my dad was so quick to jump to conclusions. More of my past coming back to bite me.
I was still working on making connections with the leaks. Something wasn't quite adding up, but today solidified for me that it had to be someone at CI. I wouldn't enjoy the interrogations I was going to have to conduct on Monday, but they were necessary at this point.
I resisted tapping my fingers on the kitchen counter to speed her up. If it had been anyone but her dad, I would have absolutely tormented her while she was on the phone by licking he collar bone or continuing to forge a trail along her thigh with my finger, but I didn't need the police chief suspicious of me before we met.
Bella and I had formed a comfortable pattern over the last several weeks. Both in the routine itself and with each other. Sometimes it was hard to believe we'd been together a relatively short time. But then on days like today, when we faced cameras, or met my brother, the newness of what we seemed all the more real.
As her conversation with her dad continued on, delaying my gratification, I realized I hadn't had to infiltrate Bella's world beyond her apartment. Her circle of friends was apparently quite small, and as for family, well the man on the phone was it.
We were an interesting pair. In a way were already on our private island. Somehow, we'd both ended up on our own, stumbling and searching. We had friends. We had family. I knew the way I had crafted my isolation had been unintentional. Choices I made in my past led me here, and while I valued independence, I never intended for it to result in complete seclusion.
I studied Bella while she talked with her dad. I wondered what brought her to the island.
When she ended her call, one corner of my mouth turned up. She put the phone down, and crooked her finger toward me.
As long as she was willing to share her island with me, I didn't really care what brought her here.
E/N: So, there was a lot to take in here. What excited you most? How do you feel about Alice and Jasper? And the boots are back! So, what's next for our couple as they decide to venture out into the world? What will it take to solve the mystery of the leak? And that mess of a man Carlisle. What has him so on edge?
Bring on the reviews! We really do love your theories.