Life's A Beach
Chapter 15
Edward flopped face down on the bed in his hotel room, unable to move. He'd just put his body through two grueling hours of practice and his legs burned from the exertion. This was the last really heavy practice session before Nationals. The competition started in three days, so from now on they'd be taking it a bit easier, working on form and strategy till Friday. He trusted his coach's training routine, and felt he was as ready as he could be.
During the time leading up to Nationals, his training became more and more intense. More training meant better performance, he knew. More training also meant less Bella, and he didn't like that at all. The last couple of months had been brutal, and he missed her more than he thought possible. Using all the power he had left, he rolled over on his back with a groan, too tired to strip off his sweat-soaked clothes. He willed his mind to take him to his happy place, and thankfully, his mind agreed.
He threw his arm over his eyes and focused on the one place he wanted to be. In his head, he saw tan and blue, sand and sky. And water. Gentle waves kissing the beach while the sun rose over the horizon. Clouds drifting across the sky, anchoring themselves along Broad Creek where they would watch over the early morning kayakers. Lying face down on the beach, her head resting on her crossed arms, was his Bella. The treasured tiny blue bikini sparkled in the early sunlight and her skin gleamed with beads of perspiration (not sweat, he thought) running from her back down her sides and into the sand. He could almost reach out and kiss her shoulders, nuzzle that sweet spot on her neck and…
The phone jarred him back from his happy place to the real world. Edward was half tempted to throw it across the room, but then he realized it might actually be Bella.
"Bella, sweetheart….?"
"No such luck, Speed Racer." Jasper laughed on the other end of the line. "Sorry to get your hopes up."
Edward growled. Now that his fantasy had been so cruelly interrupted, he was too aware that every part of his body hurt. "What is it?"
"I'm sorry, Edward. I know things are really intense there, and I thought maybe you could use a laugh. And I need someone to whine to, and you're elected."
Jasper had been there for him so many times; there was no way Edward wasn't going to listen. "What happened?" He sat up and started peeling off his socks. One whiff and he tossed them across the room to the laundry pile. That was gross.
"Emmett broke his arm. But that's not the funny part." Jasper snickered in the background. "The funny part is that he and Rosalie were 'counting cases of beer' in the storeroom when it happened, at least that's what they tell me, and neither one will admit what was really going on. Anyway, something made Emmett come running out into the bar, yelping about splinters, and he tripped over Aro. I don't know who was more scared, Emmett or the dog. But Aro escaped without injury. Emmett has a cast from his hand to his elbow for the next six weeks, and a bad case of wounded pride."
"Oh crap" sighed Edward. "I'm sorry about the dog."
"No, not his fault. This is all Emmett" said Jasper. "But I will get the whole story at some point and share it with you. Might take a few rounds, but I'll get it out of him."
"Or else Bella and Alice will get Rose to spill the details." Edward grinned at the thought. "I wish I could come down there and help you out" Edward said. He peeled off more layers of clothes while they talked.
"Don't worry about it. Guess who my new bartender is?" Jasper laughed an evil laugh. "Rosalie. I told her it was her fault, somehow, and she didn't argue too much. The funniest part is that she's great at it and trust me, she attracts a lot of attention. Business is booming. Emmett might find himself out of a job."
"Does that mean you won't be coming up for Nationals?" Edward felt a pang of disappointment. He was looking forward to having his cheering section there to bolster his effort.
"Oh no. I'm working it out, and we will all be there, though I was tempted to make Emmett and Rose take care of the club by themselves for punishment. Alice wouldn't let me do it." Jasper laughed again. "So when is Bella getting in?"
"She'll be here Thursday morning. That idiot, Riley, won't let her have the whole week and she definitely wants to be there for the finals on Saturday. At this point, there's no reason to push it."
"Yeah, better save up her vacation time till the Olympics. She'll want to be there for the whole time."
"Don't jinx things, Jas. One race at a time." Edward felt a chill run down his spine. He was so close, so close he could taste it. But he knew from his father's experience that all it took was one second – less than one second – and it could all be over.
"I hear you. Listen, I just got a text from Alice. She's gonna fly out with Bella and I'll meet them there Thursday night, okay? I'll have Emmett and Rose with me. I'll get everyone's flight numbers and send it to you."
"Sounds good. I don't think I'll be able to pick you up." Edward knew he wasn't going to have any time to spare between races, and any time he did have, he was spending with his girl.
"I've got it covered, man. You focus on what you're doing." Jasper got serious. "You're gonna do it, Ed. Don't overthink it."
"Thanks Jas. I'll try. See you Thursday." Edward clicked off the phone and dragged himself to the shower. Thursday couldn't come soon enough.
LAB
"Alice, grab that last bag and I'll go look for a cab." Bella picked up their carry-on bags and headed to the front of the airport. She was surprised to see a driver holding up a sign with her name. "I'm Bella Swan. Are you really here for me?"
"Yes ma'am. Courtesy of Mr. Cullen's coach." The driver smiled. "I'm to take you to the practice rink and drop your luggage at the hotel."
"Alice!" Bella dropped the carry-on bags and ran back to help her friend. She was desperate to see Edward and relieved that they had an easy way to get there. She'd have to remember to thank Coach later.
Thirty minutes later, they walked into the arena and headed for the rink.
"Bella, stop it" said Alice. "You're nearly hyperventilating."
"I can't help it" answered Bella. "My head is this crazy mix of dying to see him and being crazy worried about this weekend." She stopped and looked Alice in the eye. "He wants this so much, and I want him for him."
"He'll be fine" said Alice. "I just know." She pointed to her head and made Bella laugh. "Let's grab some seats until they're done." They slid into a row. "Do you see him?"
Bella felt like she could zone in on Edward no matter where he was. She ran her eyes quickly around the track area and spotted Edward standing near a bench just off the track. What she didn't expect to see was Coach standing in between Edward and another skater, one of his big hands on Edward's chest and one holding back the other skater. Her eyes grew wide as she realized who the second skater was. James Tracker. Somehow, she knew she shouldn't have been surprised.
"What's going on?" Alice whispered, despite the fact that they were too far away for the men to hear them.
"It's that guy I told you about, James. He's always giving Edward a hard time. It makes him crazy." Bella frowned. "He just pushes all Edward's buttons."
"Honey, you're the only one who should be pushing Edward's buttons, if you know what I mean." Alice gave her a sly look.
Bella couldn't hold back a laugh. Edward must have heard her, because he turned, grinned, and hopped over the wall. He sprinted up the steps to their seats. She squeezed out of the seats and reached for him and suddenly, they were both right where they wanted to be, wrapped tightly around each other.
Edward pulled back just enough to take her lips with his. He sighed, as content as he could possibly be. "I can't believe you're here. I've been waiting, it seemed like forever."
"I'm here" she murmured. "I missed you so much." They were lost in each other until Alice cleared her throat. They looked up, matching grins on their faces.
"Hey Alice" said Edward, leaning over to give her a hug without letting go of Bella.
"Hi Edward" Alice answered. "Jasper says to tell you he can't wait to get here."
"Yeah, I won't have a lot of free time but we are all definitely gonna hang out tonight when they all get here."
"And we'll celebrate on Sunday, right?"
"Don't get ahead of things, Allie" Edward said, but Bella took his chin firmly in hand.
"We will" said Bella. "We will definitely be celebrating." Her confidence in him made his heart melt.
"Well, well" said a male voice. "Who's this? Did you bring me a friend? Unless you plan on sharing the lovely Bella."
"Back off, James" growled Edward. "And don't be so crude."
"Hey, when you're good you can be anything you want" James said casually. "You're a cute one" he said, winking at Alice.
"Get lost, creep" she said. "The stringy hair look is out, didn't anyone tell you?" Bella laughed out loud, which just made James mad.
"You'll change your mind when I make the Olympic team and Eddie gets sent home."
"Not a chance" said Bella. "C'mon Edward. Let's go back to the hotel."
James refused to take the bait and strolled back down the steps. He picked up his helmet, said something quick to Coach, and made his way to the locker room.
"What a jerk" said Alice.
"He tries really hard to get under everyone's skin, but it all gets decided out on the track" said Edward. "On Saturday, he'll get what's coming to him."
"Can we go say hi to Coach?" Bella smiled. "I have to thank him for the car service."
"Yes, he's waiting to see you. I think he likes you more than he likes me" said Edward.
"That's true Cullen" said Coach as they walked up to him. "I just keep you around so I can see Bella."
Alice was introduced and they all chatted for a bit before Edward decided he couldn't stand it anymore. "I'm taking the girls back to the hotel. See you tomorrow, Coach."
LAB
By Thursday night, the whole gang had arrived. Edward burst out laughing when Emmett and Rose walked into the hotel lobby. Emmett's left arm was wrapped in a bright pink cast.
"It's not my fault" said Emmett. "Rose made the doctor do it. I wanted something manly, like camo color." He ignored the fact that everyone was laughing now. "Besides, I'm rocking this color. I declare it the new manly color for all things medical."
"You do that, Emmett. But you still look like a 5 year old girl." Edward was nearly doubled over now.
Rose just looked on smugly. "One of my better ideas, don't you think girls?" She linked arms with Bella and Alice. "Come on ladies, I need a drink after a day of traveling."
They found a local steak place and had a great dinner. Edward had to stick to a pretty strict diet, but the rest of them pigged out. They used the time to catch up on all that had happened since they were last all together. After a while, the talk turned to Friday and Saturday's races.
"So how does this work?" asked Rose.
"Well, it's a 400 meter track. The skaters will compete in pairs. One skater starts on the inside track and one on the outside track."
"Isn't that unfair to the one on the outside track?" said Emmett. "He has to skate farther."
"They thought of that" said Edward, rolling his eyes. "There's a crossover halfway through where the skaters switch lanes, so they both skate the same distance."
Emmett thought about that for a minute. "What if they both get to the crossover at the same time? What if they crash into each other? That would be cool, like roller derby only on ice skates." He grinned like a little kid.
Rosalie smacked his arm. "It's not like roller derby, you goof."
Edward shook his head and tried hard to stop laughing. "Because of the stagger, one skater should get to the cross over before the other. But if not, everyone knows which one has the right of way. A collision couldn't happen."
"But it would be so cool" said Emmett.
"Um, going really really fast on a little tiny blade here, Em. Colliding would definitely not be cool." Edward shuddered and Bella squeezed her eyes tight. She pictured exactly what Emmett was describing. Edward kissed the side of her head and gave her a hug. "Can't happen, sweetheart."
"Are you going to have to skate against that jerk we met today?" Alice crossed her arms over her chest. Her eyes narrowed as she thought of what James had said.
Edward sighed. "Probably. We're ranked one and two, so the chances are we'll meet in the final."
"Well, I hope you kick his butt" said Alice. Jasper squeezed her hand. "She might be tiny, but she's fierce" he said. They all laughed, except for Bella. She couldn't get the thought of what Emmett said out of her mind.
"I have an early bedtime, guys. You can stay here, but Bella and I are gonna head back." Edward pulled her to him. "Ok?"
"More than ok" Bella responded, kissing him gently on the lips. "See everyone tomorrow." They headed out.
"What happened with this guy James?" asked Jasper. Alice told them the whole story. Jasper, Emmett and Rose looked equally angry. "He shouldn't have disrespected you and Bella" said Jasper "let alone being such a pain to Edward."
"I say we keep a close eye out for him tomorrow" said Emmett. He could be pretty scary looking when he was serious.
"You won't be able to do anything when they're out on the ice" said Rose.
"No, but we can watch out everywhere else" said Jasper.
"And keep Bella safe from that creep" said Emmett.
"I'm glad you three are on Edward's side" exclaimed Alice. "You make a great fan club!"
"Oh yeah, said Emmett. "We're gonna be the best fans any speed skater ever had." They laughed and gave each other high fives. "Now, where's the dessert menu?"
A/N – I have no excuses for the delay except for writer's block – but now the characters have let me know what they want and so we are back on again. Please remember that I am taking liberties with the Olympic Team selection process for the sake of the story!