Thank you so much for the reviews and alerts! If I haven't responded yet, rest assured that if you have PMs enabled, I will be answering soon.
Thank you to Javamomma0921 for being my sounding board and good friend. I get stuck, she listens to me rant via Skype, and suddenly the ideas flow. Thank you.
~HOH~
Chapter 2: What just hit me?
With a gaping mouth Edward stared into the rapidly cooling fall night, watching the bright red taillights of Bella's pickup fade into the darkness. A thousand thoughts raged through his mind. What were the chances that he would get a flat tire and that the first person to come by would be his future co-worker? And who would have believed he would have been so stupid to rant on and on about this future co-worker to them?
As Edward lightly pounded on his forehead with the heel of his hand he muttered "stupid, stupid, stupid."
He never heard the clicking of heels on pavement approach and jumped when he finally noticed a tiny body next to him.
"Jumpy, much, Bro?" a petite young woman chirped, holding her hand out expectantly.
"Didn't hear you approach, Alice," Edward grumbled, raising an eyebrow at the hand waving under his nose.
"Obviously. Keys? I have places to be." Alice looked around into the parking lot for her baby.
"Won't do you any good," he muttered, holding out the sparkly pink butterfly keychain.
"What did you do to my car?" she demanded, snatching the keys from him. Her eyes hastily searched the parking lot but no yellow Porsche could be found.
Edward would almost swear he heard her heartbeat accelerate at the countless thoughts that ran through Alice's mind as she tried to figure out just where her car was.
"I didn't do anything. It got a flat out on the main road. A woman gave me a ride here so I could call Triple A and get it fixed."
"You left my baby out in the cold! All alone? Edward, how could you?" Alice pouted as she fumbled through her pocketbook to get her phone out. "Damn it, no service."
"I didn't plan on it." Edward shoved his hands into his pockets, his shoulders slumped in defeat. "The damn jack was broken, and you don't have a lug wrench so I couldn't change the tire."
"Lung wrench?"
"Lug, Alice. Lug wrench. An L or X shaped looking thing?"
"Oh, that."
"Yes, oh, that. A bit necessary to take lugs off of a car. An air wrench is better but I don't happen to have that Swiss Army knife attachment."
Alice shot her brother a withering look at his sarcasm.
"So what are you doing standing out here?" she demanded. "Get inside and call Triple A so they can come fix my car!"
"What a grand idea! So glad you were here to tell me the right way to do things," he spat sarcastically. Edward spun on his heel, his long legs leaving Alice far behind as he used his key card to enter the building.
A few minutes later, Edward was sitting at his desk hanging up the phone after placing the service call. He looked up to find a sheepish Alice standing in the doorway. He immediately turned away and began logging into his e-mail.
"Jasper said he'd come back and wait with me," she murmured gently.
"How kind of him." Edward refused to look over at his sister.
"Edward," she sighed before crossing the small office and dumping a few crumpled pieces of paper out of the chair opposite his desk before daintily sitting down.
"I have some work to catch up on, Alice. This hasn't been the best of days, and I'm not in the mood."
"I told him I'd wait with you. You know how he worries about me here after hours alone."
"Whatever." He made a few clicks with the mouse and sent some spam to its rightful place in the virtual trashcan.
"Edward…" Alice moaned, dragging out the syllables of his name. She never could stand being ignored, especially by her younger big brother.
"Alice? Hush." Edward made a zipping motion in front of his mouth before he went back to his e-mail. Without thinking, he ran one hand through his hair before reaching blindly for a stainless steel water bottle. He quickly drained it and set it back next to his telephone, secretly thankful he didn't dribbled down his shirt. That would have just been the cherry on top.
There, at the very bottom of the queue of e-mails, was the message he was looking for—the one announcing the position of archival historian had been offered and that Miss Swan had promised to give her answer on Monday. Attached was her vitae, and he promptly opened it, scanning Miss Swan's credentials and publications.
He was rather impressed with her qualifications and quickly clicked the link to her blog. A few moments later, he realized that she was more than just a pretty face. Miss Swan had a certain writing style that was both educational and engaging. Perhaps Maggie had made a wise decision when hiring someone so young and Edward was completely content to admit he was wrong which did not happen very often.
"If I didn't know better, I would swear you were looking at porn over there," Alice piped up.
Edward had forgotten completely that his sister was still in the room and threw a 'you know better' glare at her.
"Seriously," she continued, rising from her seat and approaching his desk. "You sit down all grumpy Gus and after just a few minutes, you are almost relieved."
He laughed in spite of himself at the way her face morphed from one extreme to the other as if imitating how he looked even if the after was slightly disturbing.
"I was reading Miss Swan's vitae and blog. If she takes the position, it will be a good thing. At least on paper," Edward explained, motioning toward his monitor.
"She seemed like a nice person when Maggie brought her around, but then, if she gave a total stranger a ride, she might not be too bright."
"She told me she had a can of pepper spray and a few self-defense classes under her belt before she'd let me in her truck." Edward was distracted as he spoke, devoting most of his energy to writing something down on a scrap of paper with a stubby pencil, his long fingers wrapped uncomfortably around the writing implement.
"Did she now? Well, I may have to rethink that opinion. It would be nice to have another woman on board."
"What do you mean? Half the people here are female!" Edward pulled open a desk drawer and quickly unwrapped a peppermint before popping it in his mouth.
"Sharing's caring, bro," Alice giggled, holding one hand out.
With a mock-grimace, Edward begrudgingly handed over one of his precious peppermints. He had a weakness for the treats and had them stashed everywhere he went just in case.
"I don't mean Tileland," Alice continued, referring to the forward, visible to the public offices that had much better flooring than the back research areas which were lovingly referred to as Linoleumland. Their friend and co-worker Emmett had come up with the names one night over darts and beers and it had stuck.
"Just overall," she added. "There are more men than women working on projects and perhaps she'll add some balance to the mix."
Edward grunted his reply before returning to his note writing.
"We should take her out to Mickey's her first Friday," she continued, already making plans.
"Yes, yes," he agreed, shutting down his computer and paying little if any mind to what she was saying.
"And maybe arrange for different team members to take her to lunch so we can each let her know what we cover."
"Knowledge is good." Edward continued to putter around his desk, only paying half attention to his sister. He sighed deeply, recognizing his sister's social organization skills were coming to the forefront and it would be best just to ride the wave as it crested.
Alice paused and looked at her brother, her hands on her hips. Edward continued to sort through the mail on his desk, tossing odd pages into the recycling bin next to his desk. She recognized the mental brush-off he was so adept at doing when he would rather be doing something else. Alice cocked one eyebrow before a plan struck her.
"And you could offer to take her out first."
"Uh-huh."
"Maybe go off property somewhere nice."
"Oh, sure."
"I'll ask Sweetie to arrange it."
"Whatever you say."
"Always the right answer."
Alice's phone pinged with an incoming text, and she quickly read the message.
"Jasper said the tow truck was at my car, and he was waiting with Buttercup until she gets new shoes. He'll come get me when they are done."
"I still can't believe you named your car," Edward scoffed, pulling a book off the shelves behind his desk and adding it to his stack of items to take home.
"Don't be mocking Princess Buttercwup." Alice had long loved The Princess Bride and when she purchased her first car the same color as the fair maiden's hair, she knew she had to give the Porsche a proper name. She had been greatly upset to discover someone had already laid claim to the license plate proclaiming "mawage."
"You're taking work home again?" she demanded a bit disbelievingly.
"Just reference materials."
"Geez, Edward, you really need to get out more. It's the weekend. Lighten up." She peered at the title of the book. "John Banister and his fellow 17th century cronies will still be around on Monday."
Edward refrained from replying and merely glared at his younger sister before adding another book to the pile. Alice sighed and threw her hands up in defeat.
"If you start up again, I'll make sure Brandon gets his next birthday clothes from Wal…" he began before being interrupted.
"Okay, okay. Have it your way. You're never going to meet anyone if you spend all your time either at work or at home with your nose in a book. Mom's already begun pestering me about giving Brandon a brother or sister, and she wants you to get busy on giving Brandon a cousin."
"I'll take that under advisement," Edward replied, indicating clearly that he was not going to change anytime soon. He began packing a beat up Jansport backpack with the materials he had pulled.
"God, Edward, didn't you get the leather satchel I had sent for your birthday?" Alice wrinkled up her nose at the decade old canvas bag.
"Yes, I did. And I use it for meetings with clients. For toting back and forth from work, this does just fine." Edward pulled the zipper shut and threw the bag onto his shoulder. He pushed his glasses up his nose and stared silently at his sister. "May I go home now or do you with to taunt me a second time?"
Alice gave a wan smile at the terrible French accent he chose to speak in. Edward did have a fondness for Monty Python and threw in random references to his favorite bits from time to time. She truly loved her brother, but Alice readily admitted he took some getting used to.
Although she was a bit biased, Alice believed Edward was a complete package: good looks, decent job, loyalty beyond belief and a rapid wit. Unfortunately, his razor-sharp mind often took leaps and bounds that left mere mortals far behind. When he knew something, he knew absolutely everything about it. If his knowledge base was lacking, he would throw himself into his research until he exhausted the subject, often at the expense of his friends and family. As a result, not many women were willing to play second fiddle to his educational passion. It was going to take a special person to understand and encourage this huge part of who Edward A. Cullen was.
"Jasper should be here in a few," Alice murmured softly. "I'll wait in the lobby."
"I'll walk you," Edward replied, completely oblivious to the thoughts running through is older sister.
The two stood side by side in the atrium just as a pair of headlights turned the corner into the parking lot.
"He's got good timing," Edward stated, nodding toward his brother-in-law's vehicle.
"Yes, he does," Alice smiled, indicating she meant more than just the ability to pick her up from work.
"TMI, Alice. TMI," he groaned. Edward had grown accustomed to his sister and brother-in-law's randy behavior at inopportune times but that did not mean he liked to think about it.
"You love me anyway, Eddie."
She giggled at the glare shot her at the nickname he despised.
"See you at Mom and Dad's for brunch on Sunday," she tittered before jumping into the waiting car.
Edward watched as his sister and brother-in-law exchanged a warm kiss in the dim light of the overhead bulb in Jasper's car. He sighed, happy for them and just a little sad for himself that such relationships were not on his radar.
He was half way to his car when his entire conversation with Alice in his office replayed in his mind, including him agreeing to have Maggie's personal assistant putting lunch with him on Miss Swan's schedule during her orientation. Edward came to a standstill; half disbelieving that Alice had tricked him so, half angry with himself for letting it happen.
"Damn little pixie," he muttered, angrily punching the unlock button on his key fob. "Just … damn."
~HOH~
Bella plugged her cellphone into the charging dock on her nightstand after sending a quick text to her dad to let him know she was home safe and sound. She pulled the clip from her ponytail and headed to the bathroom to change out of interview clothes. Moments later, she emerged in jeans and a fresh tee shirt and sighed contently at being out of the confines of more formal attire. She carefully hung up the borrowed pieces and placed the hanger on the doorknob to her closet.
"Honey! I'm home!" came a loud, obviously lowered voice accompanied by the slam of the front door.
"In here, love!" Bella giggled. This was the roommates' traditional greeting and it never grew old for either of them.
A ball cap covered head poked into the doorway.
"How'd it go?"
"They offered me the job!"
"Oh, B!"
Bella found herself engulfed in a huge hug from her friend.
"So when do you start?"
"Sit, sit!" Bella waved her arms toward the bed before folding her legs under her. She exhaled contently. "Angela, it was amazing!"
"It looked it. So tell me everything!" She grabbed a pillow and propped it up against the wall before leaning into it. "Don't leave a detail out."
Bella laughed and spent the next ten minutes telling about meeting Sweetheart Mobolade and Ms. Magenta Violetta Chartruse Green and the interview and the tour and then the job offer. She described in full detail everything from the colors in Sweetie's garb and how they complimented her ivory skin to Ms. Green's clipped speech to the overall feel of the teams Bella had been introduced.
"Wow!" Angela exclaimed. "You've had quite a day!" She grabbed her friend's arm and shook it excitedly. "I am so proud of you! So do you think you'll take it?"
"I'd be stupid not to," Bella shrugged. "I kept sneaking peeks at the offer every time I got stopped at a traffic light. It is very generous."
"My little girl is growing up!" She pretended to sniffle and wipe an imaginary tear from her eye.
"Thank you so much for the suit loan, by the way."
"Not a problem. You know that. Now that I wear chef whites every day, it's not like I need something like that. Did you stop off to tell your dad?"
Bella shook her head. "The tour ran me a little later than I had planned and so I decided to call him and just come home. That's when the second adventure of the day began"
Her stomach decided at that very moment to rumble.
"Bean dip!" both women exclaimed before heading to the kitchen with a giggle.
Tradition dictated that when one or both of the friends had accomplished something - whether it be finishing an exam, surviving a bad date, celebrating a good date, finding a lost twenty in a winter coat, whatever - that they pulled out the Velveeta and refried beans and enjoyed a completely unhealthy repast. A few minutes later, they sat face to face at the small table with a bag of tortilla chips and a bubbling hot pot of refried bean dip, giggling madly.
"You said something about the adventure continuing," Angela murmured, dipping a chip into the pot and pulling out a large bite of salty, cheesy goodness.
"Oh! On my way home, there was a man next to a car with a flat tire."
"Oh, Bella! You didn't." Angela knew her friend well enough to know she had more than likely stopped to help a stranger.
"I couldn't leave him there, Ange. It was getting dark and … "
Angela sighed loudly before heading to the fridge to get a drink. She pulled out a diet soda and motioned, silently asking if Bella wanted anything.
"Water, please."
"So, spill." Angela handed over a bottle of water and slid back into her seat.
"Before you go ballistic, it was someone from Hands-On."
"Was he wearing a company tee shirt or had a neon sign over his head or something that you knew this fact before you stopped?"
"No, Mom," Bella sighed. She had been fussed at by her friend for being too trusting in the past and knew what was coming.
"Well, it worked out in the end, I guess."
Bella blinked disbelievingly at her friend. Angela never had given in so quickly.
"So was he cute?" Angela inquired with mild curiosity.
"I guess so," Bella shrugged. "It was dark, and I really wasn't paying close attention. Not sure I'd even recognize him in light of day. He seemed okay. He was the team member missing when I went on the tour. Specialty's music history, I think."
"Ooh, a musician," she grinned.
"You're incorrigible." Bella smiled at her friend, poking her in the arm. "What'll Ben say?"
"Ben will say 'just because you're married, doesn't mean you can't look.'" Angela flashed her left hand with a modest but beautiful engagement ring on it.
"He didn't!" Bella grabbed the hand and admired the sparkle.
"He did!"
Angela proceeded to relay how Sargent Benjamin Cheney, proud member of the United States Marine Corps currently stationed in Yemen had arranged for his now-fiancée to receive a package at work while they Skyped during her lunchtime. He had actually gotten down on one knee and proposed as she opened the box. She, of course, had said yes and had been so excited that the batch of carrot cake muffins she had in the oven burned beyond repair and set off the fire alarm.
Bella was genuinely happy for her friend and listened intently, asking pertinent questions at just the right time. It was a little hard to believe that this man and woman she had known for the better part of ten years were going to finally get married.
"And now comes the favor asking part of the program," Angela stated, segueing into a new conversation.
"Oh, no. I don't like it when you get that look."
"What look?"
"That look."
"I don't have a look."
"Yeah, right. What do you need?"
"I sort of promised Ben I'd take another group of his soldier buddies out tonight. They're only in town until their connecting flight leaves on Monday."
Ben greatly cared for those soldiers he worked with and any time the men on leave were stuck in Seattle between flights while on their way home, he would ask Angela to make sure they felt welcome if no one else was available.
"And?"
Bella did not like one bit the glow in her friend's eyes. Going out with Ben's friends often translated into setting Bella up with a blind date. The score so far was eight dates, zero callbacks—not that Bella was disappointed. She just did not have much in common with any of the men she had been introduced to. Most were career soldiers and while she found that a completely admirable vocation, her own dream man was more of a thinker than a fighter.
"I need another girl so there are no fifth wheels."
"Ange, I don't know any of them," Bella whined. She hated being set up like this.
"They're good guys, Bel."
"I didn't say they weren't. I just hate tagging along with total strangers."
"There's only three this time. It'll be you, me and Leah."
With a deep sigh, Bella calmly got up and opened the pale pink bakery box that was sitting on the counter in front of the microwave. She turned to her friend and cocked one eyebrow after seeing the chocolate and whipped cream confection before her. Angel Cakes' chocolate mousse with amaretto cream was one of Bella's favorite treats and her friend knew it quite well.
"Pleeeeeeeease?" Angela begged.
Bella silently nodded as she pulled out two spoons.
"You're the best, B. The absolute best."
And the two friends dug into the dessert with gusto, planning and laughing and remembering until every last bite was gone.
~HOH~
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