A/N: Nothing to add...lets meet him already!
P.S. If you're just now starting the story, it's never too late to review! Please let me hear your thoughts.
Chapter 2 – Blue Eyes and Buzz Cuts
I stared at him, whoever he was. Sitting there at the end of the table was a man in a New York Yankees ball cap and grey tee, layered with a blue oxford shirt. He was staring back at me. A little more than a five o'clock shadow of scruff was running down and covered the most distinct and beautiful jaw line I had ever seen. There was the slightest dimple in his chin peeking through his early beard. His lips were pink and open as if he were about to speak, but he didn't. He just stared at me with his eyes, eyes which had my inner Bella stammering from idiocy to outright babble. Their blueness rivaled that of any Caribbean Sea, portraying soulfulness and a longing that left me stunned.
You think you like his eyes Bella? God yes!
I couldn't look away from his trance, even though the tension from the silence seemed to be palpable with every minute that passed.
Carlisle finally let out an audible sigh motioning. "And this is my youngest son, Edward."
I smiled my brightest smile of the day as I answered. "Nice to meet you, Edward."
I was drowning in the depth of his eyes when he finally answered in return. "Oh we've met, Isabella is it? But I suppose it was fucking hard to see me clearly since I was struggling to pull my car back on the road."
It was in that moment that I resurfaced with the chilling reality that fate loves to mock my existence.
The silver Volvo! Well, I'll be damn. And you thought he was staring at you analyzing the color of YOUR eyes and lips? Hahahaha……still laughing!
I stood there as if he had slapped me, willing myself to pull it together in front of Dr. Cullen and the others. I ignored his eyes as I felt them rake over me relentlessly.
Before I could apologize, Rosalie slid over and tapped on my arm."Enough with the niceties already. Sit down, Bella. I'm starving and we're waiting on you!"
I complied as Carlisle sat beside the Blue Eyed Jerk, realizing that no one had their food.
Just then, a group of chefs came from, what I assumed, the kitchen doors in the back of the dining hall. One was rolling a large cart towards our table.
"Bella, this is our head chef, Jasper. He is not only a gourmet specialist but lifetime friend of the family which is how I was able to lure him from his restaurant in Los Angeles and his multiple James Beard Rising Chef Awards." Carlisle noted with pride.
"Nice to meet you, Jasper," I said as these words brought great trepidation, given my last interchange.
Jasper responded in kind with a polite greeting before quickly turning his attention to the food. He was a handsome man himself with kind eyes and a boyish grin, although he seemed to be focused on the task at hand, preparing the dishes as he sat the various entrees onto the table for family style dining. He prepared one final dish in a sauté pan table side with pasta and fresh vegetables in light oil. He smiled sheepishly as he placed the dish in front of a beaming Alice.
"Thank you chef Jasper." Alice giggled and crooned like a school girl.
"It's my pleasure as always, my finicky vegetarian." He winked, turning to the remaining table guests as he spoke.
"I won't be joining you today since we are short two sous chefs and the resident census is at capacity. My sincere apologies, Carlisle, but you know I refuse to serve anything requiring the use of reheating or microwaves!" Jasper's passion for food was evident in his tone.
With that comment, everyone laughed and I chanced a quick glance at Edward Cullen.
He was still staring at me, or at least in my direction, and I began wondering if I had caused him to seriously scratch his car or had contributed to some other disaster that would incite such hostility.
Or maybe there is a sudden tumor-like growth that's emerging from your neck as we speak and he can't take his eyes off you? Just forget about his eyes already!
We began eating after Jasper returned to the kitchen and settled into a comfortable conversation of comparing high school memories from Rosalie and Emmet, both of whom seemed to manage being the most popular and the most outspoken in their class.
I relaxed enough to enjoy the delicious fresh green salad and chicken pancetta as I listened in amazement to the recollections of people who actually described their high school years fondly.
We had settled into a rhythm of polite exchanges when suddenly Alice decided to yell across the table, causing some of the residents in the dining hall to turn as well. "Edward!! You cut your hair?! I mean you buzz cut your hair?! What in the hell were you thinking? And you didn't even ask my opinion!"
I glanced, once again, at him as he ran his hand across a short buzz cut of brown hair that was accented by golden and red highlights as if kissed by the sun. He quickly placed his cap back on and, for the first time since our meeting, I was able to assess him as he stared into another's general direction. Well, glared is more like it.
"It's just hair Alice," Edward remarked bluntly.
"Oh, really? Is that so Locks of Love?"
With this statement, Alice began a soliloquy into the history of Edward's hair which seemed to be an ever-present issue of importance from childhood.
Alice had known the Cullen family since birth and spent much of her growing pains in the company of the Cullen boys and Jasper. I found it interesting that such a close knit group of people would all agree to work together since mixing business with friends and family was often a disaster.
Before I could continue that train of thought, Alice continued her rant of how Edward scored with every girl in high school, often due to his hair alone. In fact, it was his hair that had won him the nickname, 'Golden One' with the ladies. Sparingly, his mom, Esme, would force the issue of him trimming the 'locks' and Edward would comply but sulk accordingly.
As I watched the reactions and facial expressions of the others at the table, I was fully aware that Alice's response was not a histrionic reaction, but was in fact justified. Everyone sat in disbelief as Edward stared at an imaginary spot on the floor, listening to Alice's account of his past hair idiosyncrasies and the conquests he achieved related to them. It would seem that many women had fallen victim to his charm over the years, with Edward leaving a wake of them in his past.
I couldn't fathom that his looks would be any more intoxicating as I tried to picture his hair longer in my mind.
Yeah this is healthy Bella; think about pulling the hair of a guy that's staring you down like you're an alien. And did she say charming personality? From the scowling menace across the table? You bring out the best in men that's for sure! My inner Bella was silenced as I registered the longest series of words I had heard him piece together since our meeting.
"I suppose I'm not surprised that you would read into this, Alice. You are the psychologist, are you not? You would place hidden meaning into the way others exhale if given the opportunity." Edward's words dripped with sarcasm.
Alice smirked at the Blue Eyed Scowl as she turned towards me. "I am the staff psychologist here at the retreat, Bella. I'm not sure I mentioned that before. It seems that some people find my observations rather annoying, especially when they hit on a nerve." I heard Edward move slightly across the table as she continued, "But since you are our guest psychiatrist and an 'outside expert', so to speak, perhaps you could give your opinion on this sudden change of behavior in a twenty eight year old that has been spontaneously predictable his entire life?"
I was about to politely bow out of any such participation when I heard a mumbled huff laced with sarcasm coming from his direction. As I met those piercing blue eyes with my own once again, I finally felt the competitor that had carried me through medical school and residency rise to the occasion.
I've handled cardiothoracic surgeons and vengeful nurses, Blue Eyes, but you dare to scoff at my psychiatric abilities?
"You have a problem with my opinion on such a personal topic?" I asked him as a brief look of stunned affect crossed his brow. It was quickly replaced by a gleam of….excitement?
"By all means, Dr. Swan, I find this the least bit personal, I assure you," Edward said.
I acknowledged his words as I pondered the man that sat before me, this openly hostile, beautiful, and challenging person who seemed to be taunting me with his response.
I've always prided myself in being able to read people, which has served me well in psychiatric training both with my patients and my colleagues. Yet, as I looked at Edward, I was more than intrigued by his presenting demeanor versus the adoration and attention he was given by those at the table.
Don't do it. Yes. No. Oh hell, just do it, he hates you anyway.
I began, "First, I would have to disagree with you, Edward is it? I feel that when someone who has been resistant to a change in his hair for more than twenty years suddenly has his 'locks' removed, significantly, then there is most likely an association with other unseen issues in his life that are quite personal."
He watched me as I continued to speak, never blinking. "Now, seeing as how I've just met you, I would be arrogant to assume I had any idea what those personal issues might be. Common themes could include this haircut serving as a symbol of anger turned inward, removing a representation of your former self. Or perhaps a circumstance of feeling out of control in one's environment? That may often lead to such behaviors that are abrupt and decisive since they provide that feeling of control. Finally, I would offer that it could represent a fresh start or a decision of change…"
"Or it could be a damn haircut since this summer is going to be hot." he cut me off midsentence. "You do realize, Isabella, that sometimes a cigar is just a cigar, right? I know you shrinks like to pervert symbolism and sexuality into all life events, but honestly, don't you ever grow tired of your predictable interpretations? I'm honestly surprised you didn't tell me I was sexually frustrated."
As he affronted me and the field of psychiatry in general I felt my anger start to boil, but I also felt the strangest feeling of excitement and arousal.
He mentions sex and you catch fire Bella, way to live up to his words.
I knew I should stop baiting him or taking his own bait if that's what he intended, but my competitive nature pushed me forward.
"And just what do you do here, Edward?" I asked, staring directly at him.
He paused for a moment before answering firmly. "I provide music therapy for our residents three to five times a week."
So I'm being insulted by a music therapist?!
"So my assessment of possibilities that could have instigated your recent haircut, which you welcomed by the way, was just ridiculed by one who plays Mozart daily while assisting in deep breathing?" As I was saying the words I realized I should stop. I had always had the tendency to push in arguments to the point that I would win or at least stale mate, but at a cost.
As I glared back at him with my cheeks flushed and my breathing labored, I heard Emmet cough. It was then that I managed to glance around the table and find unanimously pained faces looking back towards me and glancing at him.
Before I could register why the others would be so uncomfortable with this exchange, Edward abruptly stood up. "Perhaps you're right, Isabella. It was rude of me to be so irreverent. Now if you will excuse me, I hope the rest of your day is more amenable." With those words and desperation in his eyes, Edward Cullen turned and left the room.
Alice and Emmet also decided they should return to work soon after, leaving me with an ever-growing guilt that I had stepped on an unknown landmine, and it just exploded.
Carlisle continued to describe the creativity and nuances of the Retreat, but I could tell even he was bothered by Edward's exchange with me. He finally received a page and suggested I tag along with Rose for the remainder of the day in order to gain a sense of the facilities. I thanked him for his undivided attention and willingness to meet with me on such short notice while he thanked me for including the Cullen Retreat on my list of interviews.
Yeah like you have a chance in hell now.
As Rose led me from the dining hall, she stopped and asked me the only question that could make matters worse. "Bella, do you need to borrow one of my jackets or sweaters?"
At first, it didn't sink in as she stood there watching me, but then I saw her eyes linger on my breasts and her eyebrows rise. I was instantly aware that my nipples were hard and erect and clearly visible in my white blouse that should have been under my nonexistent blazer. Yes, the very one which was lying in the rental, horribly stained during my coffee misadventure.
"How long?" I asked, begging for the obvious not to be true as I searched Rose's face for redemption.
She smiled apologetically as she replied, "Since you sat down at the table in front of Edward Cullen, you little tease!" Rose laughed as she wrapped her arm around me and we entered the back hallway. "Come on, chica. I have an extra jacket in my office."
Not only were you turned on by insulting the most beautiful man you've ever seen, you did it while your headlights were shining right in his face for the entire event!
After I borrowed Rose's fleece jacket, we walked around the main grounds together and I witnessed the patients/residents participating in various activities from yoga and meditation to pottery, amazed at the beauty and serenity of the atmosphere.
I felt the need to explain my flustered reaction to Edward Cullen earlier, but I wasn't sure how to broach the subject with Rose. Even though I had known her for years, we weren't exactly best friends. "Can I ask you a question, Rose? Since you've been working here at the Retreat from the time it opened?"
She looked at me with an all knowing glance and answered before I could continue. "Don't stress over Edward, Bella. He's been aloof and disgruntled since I met him six months ago. I've asked Emmet about it, but the whole Cullen family seems to be very protective of that one."
I sighed and shrugged my shoulders, realizing that I was still just as easy to read as when I was in high school for Rose. She always seemed to know my insecurities and to be the polar opposite of me in confidence.
She continued, "But I will say that you kicked ass today in holding your own back there. Dr. Bella has finally grown up!"
We laughed together as she dropped me off outside Dr. Cullen's office once again. I thanked her for the tour and the support of reference regarding the interview, while quietly knocking on Carlisle's door to say goodbye.
"Bella, please come in! Would you like some coffee?" he asked.
I smiled, since only in Medicine did it seem perfectly normal to have an IV of java running through your veins 24/7.
"No, thank you. I'm about to leave for the airport actually. I have a late flight back to Phoenix tonight."
Carlisle motioned for me to sit down as he pulled up a chair and joined me. "Well, please tell me, Bella. Do you have any other questions about the Retreat or the position we are offering?"
Other than why you're still pretending I have a chance?
"No, Carlisle. Well, I take that back. You have been open now for approximately six months, correct?"
He nodded expectantly.
"Well, why is it that you haven't hired a psychiatrist before now? Or even had one in place from the opening?"
Carlisle looked away as if choosing his words carefully before he turned to me. "That is an excellent question Bella. Considering our primary goal is to promote mental well being and Alice alone cannot provide the comprehensive care…we have in fact used several locum tenens physicians since the opening. None of them have worked out full time."
I sat there quietly, reading from his expression that there was something more he wasn't telling me. Silence always seemed to bring out the goods so I just sat there, patiently. He let out a deep breath and started again. "We did in fact have a psychiatrist in mind to be chief medical officer for the Retreat, with several others as adjunct physicians, but at the last minute, things…fell through."
I could tell by the tone of his last words that I wasn't getting any more than that, which made me even more paranoid and intrigued.
Do they make you sign in blood or something? Why wouldn't someone take a job here?
Carlisle stood and led me outside to the parking area as we said our goodbyes, surprising me with questions about a follow-up interview if I was interested. Although I had planned on accepting the state hospital job in Arizona for months now, I found myself agreeing to check back in with him and we exchanged business cards.
"I'll look forward to talking again soon, Bella."
As Carlisle turned towards the building, his sincerity reminded me of the look I saw in his son just hours earlier that day.
Are we back to his eyes again?! You need to get laid.
I let out a moan and hit my shin as I went to get in the car, ruminating obsessively over every aspect of the day, thinking of Blue Eyes more often than not.
As I boarded the plane, I reminded myself that I had always been fascinated by mysteries, but Edward Cullen was definitely one better left unsolved.
A/N: Reviews will make our silver Volvo driver smile.