Author's Note: So…I left you at a cliffhanger earlier. Wondering what will happen next? But first, let's back up a bit… Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight.
Chapter 54
Edward's Point of View
I hated these annual New Year's parties the companies hosted every year. One top reason I hated them: I attracted girls like flowers attracted bees. Literally.
I was doing my best to avoid passing by groups of girls who were waiting for a chance to pounce on me. I greeted a couple of people and was concentrating on trying not to be conspicuous, but it was hard when Alice made you wear something good.
I wanted nothing more than to see Bella right now. I missed her so much. I needed to inhale her intoxicating scent. I needed to look at her beautiful face. I needed her desperately.
I was looking around the crowd quickly for any sign of her. I saw Jasper talking to a group of young men. I approached them quickly and was welcomed warmly.
"Hey, man, how you doing?" one of them asked. "How's work?"
"Tiring," I said, smiling wryly. "But manageable. How are you, Gabriel?"
"Eh," he said carelessly. "So, so. Did I mention I just dumped my girlfriend last week?"
"What?" another one said incredulously. "That hot girl? Why? No wonder I didn't see her tonight."
While they listened to Gabriel's story, I muttered to Jasper, "Have you seen Bella?"
Jasper raised his eyebrows. "Straightforward now, aren't you?" he asked flatly.
"I need to see her."
"You look a bit uncomfortable, man," he said. "You alright?"
"I told you," I said, on the lookout for giggly girls. "I need to see her. After I see her, I think I'll be okay."
He shook his head. "You're acting like a lovesick puppy. I wish you'd stop. This is my sister we're talking about."
"Is she even here?" I asked, spotting Janet Whiteman heading beeline towards me. I needed to escape as soon as possible.
"Yeah, I left her with Alice and Rose about half an hour ago." Just then, he spotted Janet too. "It's that girl again. She never gives up, does she?"
"I'm going to go," I muttered before slipping away.
I thought I'd gotten away when her familiar voice came from behind me.
"Edward!" Janet gushed. "It's been so long! How are you?"
I took a deep breath and turned, smiling politely. "Fine, thank you, Janet. You're looking good as well."
She laughed. "So. Enlighten me. Do you have a date tonight?"
She'd asked me that every year. Even if I did say yes, she saw right through me.
"No," I said truthfully. What was the point of lying? She detected lies too well.
"Me too!" Janet said, perking up. "Would you like to dance, Edward?"
I knew from experience that if I did so, she would never let go of me tonight until I slept with her. It had been hard, getting away from her a few years ago.
"Not tonight, Janet," I said politely. "I'm sorry."
"That's what you always say," she pouted. "Why can't you understand that I want you?"
"And why can't you understand that I'm a divorcé?"
She huffed. "I told you that I don't care, Edward. I want to be your girl."
I was getting irritated with this girl. How many times did I have to repeat myself? "I told you before, Janet, and I'll tell you again now. I'm sorry, but I'm not interested in you."
She scoffed. "You're never interested in any of the other girls either! You must have feelings for somebody. I mean, I know you're not gay."
My lips twitched amusedly. I wasn't gay. And I did have somebody that I already loved. "No, I assure you that I am not gay. I'm just not interested in anyone. How can I make myself clearer?"
"Edward…" Janet whined. "What's wrong with a bit of dating? At your age, you're supposed to be playing around! All the other young men at this party play around; why don't you?"
"If you prefer playboys, there are plenty here tonight," I offered.
She sighed exasperatedly. "I don't want playboys. I want you. Tonight."
She smiled flirtatiously as she stepped closer to me. Her body touched mine.
I wasn't impressed.
I stepped away immediately. "No matter what you might think of me, I'm someone who has a bad history. And you don't deserve someone like that, Janet. You deserve someone whole."
"I told you that I don't care!" Janet said, sounding annoyed. "Let's not go through this again, Edward. It's been eight years since you divorced your ex; it's high time you started dating!"
My teeth clenched. She'd hit a nerve. She should know that Bella was a touchy subject for me.
"Perhaps," I agreed tightly. "But I'm not interested, so what are you going to do about it?"
"I heard your ex was here tonight," Janet sneered. "Has she even bothered to come greet you?"
I couldn't look at her anymore. I studied my glass of champagne. And I felt bitter as I answered. "No. She has not."
"There!" Janet said. "You see? She doesn't care about you anymore, Edward! It's time to move on from her!"
No, I thought to myself. I had to hope that she still had feelings for me. She had to. She just had to.
"I'm sure…she's busy…greeting guests," I said quietly, trying to convince myself more than her.
"Even so," Janet said. "How rude of her. She doesn't care about you, Edward. So come to me. You can do whatever you want with me. You can even use me to get back at her. I'm willing! I want you!"
I sighed. "Janet. Please don't do this. I'm really not interested."
"Edward…" she pouted, batting her eyelashes.
I looked up to cut her off, firmly this time. And I spotted a young woman in a long, ivory dress staring at me, looking vulnerable. I blinked, surprised. Has she heard everything?
Bella's eyes widened as she realized that she'd gotten caught. Quickly, before I could do anything, she turned and disappeared into the crowd.
"Bella…" I murmured numbly. I moved to go after her, but Janet grabbed my arm.
"Edward!" she protested. "Stop it. I told you, she's over you. Don't waste your time and energy over someone who threw you away selfishly!"
I looked back at her. I pulled my arm free and walked away without another word. She didn't follow this time, dejected.
I searched for her desperately. Where did she go?
I spotted a familiar pixie and a blonde. "Alice. Rosalie."
They looked surprised. "Edward. What is it?"
"Bella," I explained under my breath. "Where is she? Did she come this way?"
They looked confused. Alice spoke up. "We were with her earlier, but we lost her when Cynthia Hemmingway took her away from us. We were distracted, and we couldn't stop her. Why? Did you see her?"
I sighed resignedly. "Janet Whiteman was onto me, and Bella saw us. She ran away when I saw her."
"She ran away?" Rosalie repeated. "Well. I thought she was okay with having you around."
"It's because he was too stupid to be a jerk for one second and shake off that Janet girl," Alice said, sounding irritated. "When will you learn when to be a jerk, and when not to be a jerk?"
I frowned. "Bella's the one making this hard. I'm trying my best, Alice."
She sighed. "I believe you. I don't know where she is, though."
"Emmett!" Rosalie said as he approached us. "Have you seen Bella lately?"
"Yeah, why?"
I perked up. "You have? Where? When?"
"About thirty seconds ago," Emmett said, looking confused. "She was on the dance floor, dancing with some guy."
"What?" Alice demanded. "Who was he?"
"How should I know? There are tons of teenagers here tonight."
"He's a teen?" Rosalie asked, appalled.
"Well, I guess not," he admitted. "He was around Bella's age though. She looked a bit uncomfortable to be with him, so that's why I was looking for you, Edward. Why don't you go save her? Edward?"
"He's already on his way," I heard Alice say behind me in satisfaction. "Good boy."
I glanced around, looking for an ivory dress. There she was. She was dancing with…
"Shit," I murmured. "Why him?" Matthew Coleman was the world's biggest jerk. He loved seducing beautiful women like Bella, and once he set his eyes on one, he went immediately to work.
Most women I'd seen with him would swoon within ten seconds, but Bella was an exception. It was clear that she wanted nothing more than to get away from him. I bet she was wishing that she hadn't run away. She'd rather face me than this slick guy.
Approaching them briskly, I tapped him on the shoulder. "May I cut in?"
Matthew glanced back at me, annoyed, while Bella looked relieved.
"Sure," he muttered. He scowled at me before strolling away.
"Thank you," Bella said gratefully as we twirled around slowly, swaying to the music. "He was getting a bit creepy."
"You're welcome," I said, smiling. "You seem to be attracting lots of unwanted attentions here tonight, Miss Swan."
She blushed. She avoided my eyes. "I could say the same for you too."
"I seem to be one of your admirers tonight," I commented. "You look beautiful, Bella."
She pursed her lips. "This is exactly why those girls like you so much. Because you don't know how to be a jerk."
I grinned. "What's wrong with being a gentleman?"
She sighed. "Nothing." She seemed vulnerable again. I knew she was thinking about that scene from earlier.
"Why did you run away?" I asked softly.
She flinched slightly, looking guilty. "Did I?"
"Were you not going to see me?" I asked. I was surprised to hear hurt lingering in my tone.
She hesitated. "I was…I was a bit surprised to see you there without a warning, actually. And I guess I…panicked…when you saw me."
"Is that all?" I asked flatly.
She looked up at me for the first time. "Isn't it enough?"
"Am I that scary to you?" I asked, smiling slightly. "Why do you need to run when you see me? Didn't I tell you that I wanted to return our relationship to its non-awkward state? You're making this harder for both of us, Bella."
"I was just…" She flushed pink again. "You seemed busy…and I felt like I was intruding. That's all."
Had she misunderstood earlier?
"She's just an acquaintance, Bella," I said, fearing slightly that she wouldn't believe me. "Nothing more."
Bella looked thoughtful as she stared up at me with her brown eyes once more.
Bella's Point of View
Sharon had told me that this would be the perfect chance to find out some things from him. And it was also a perfect opportunity to cut him off. And as long as it was for both of us, the fact that he would be hurt didn't seem like a big deal to me.
I stared at him. He continued to stare at me steadily, his hands on my waist, and my arms around his neck.
"Can I…ask you a question?" I asked hesitantly.
"Anything," Edward said, smiling slightly.
"Do you believe…that there's another woman out there…that you could love very much?"
His smile faded. His eyes held uncertainty. He didn't answer.
"Answer me," I said in an expressionless voice. "Do you think you can love another like there's no tomorrow?"
"No," Edward said firmly. We'd stopped dancing. We were standing still in the middle of the dance floor, though our hands were still in place.
"There was only one woman for me in my entire life," he said quietly. "And there will only be one woman for me in the future as well."
My heart began racing faster. He wasn't making this any easier.
His arms tightened around my waist, bringing me closer to him. "Nothing will change that," he breathed softly.
"You don't know that," I countered quietly. "You don't know what's ahead of you, Edward."
"Yes, I do," he disagreed. "There was only one woman that I gave my heart to. She still has it. I don't believe I can love another."
"Well, I do," I snapped. I couldn't help myself. He was making this really difficult for me. "I believe there's more out there for me than Edward Cullen."
His expression didn't change. "You think so?"
"I know so," I retorted. I released my grip around his neck and reached down to shove away his arms that still hung onto my waist. I stepped away from him. "Therefore, I would appreciate it if you would not continue to do as you wish. I don't like it."
"And what am I doing?" Edward challenged.
"You know what it is," I said, my eyes narrowing. "I can't do anything to change your mind about that one person, but I think I can make my side clear. I'm warning you, Edward. Don't do what you're planning to do. And from this point onward, I'm going to try to forget everything that happened to us, and we're going back to the time when we were strictly friends and siblings."
And I left him there on the middle of the dance floor and walked away quickly. I wanted nothing more than to get away from him as quickly as possible.
Edward's Point of View
I watched as she walked away. I should've been feeling hurt, but instead, I was amused. She was still the smart young woman that I used to know. She'd caught on fast.
Despite her warning and wishes, I had no intentions on obeying her. On the contrary, I was going to do exactly what she didn't want me to do. Now that she knew what I was trying to do, I wouldn't have to be secretive about my plan.
She might be able to try to forget our past. But we weren't going back to friends and siblings. She was. I wasn't.
No. I was going after her openly and confidently. I was going to get her back.
AN: How was it? Reviews?
