Irina's truth
Irina sat down in the saloon taking in her surroundings. Bella was at the bar helping Emmett even though she wasn't supposed to be, Edward should have come in by now but he hadn't. The other waitresses were working like always, though she hadn't cared to remember all their names. She liked working at the saloon though, it was one of the reasons she wanted to stay in the town. Embry though had been the main reason. She thought back to things that had brought her here.
The first memories she has are of a small Russian village and her abusive father. He was always yelling and when that didn't work he used his fist. Her mother died when she was still young leaving her alone with her always angry father. When she turned seventeen he started selling her body to his friends and then to the men in the entire village. At the age of eighteen, she ran away, leaving Russia and her father in the past.
Two years later she found herself in Paris, France, until she met Embry, that had been the happiest time of her life. She met Laurent and fell in love, and she had loved him for a time. But his family had made a relationship between them impossible. When she became pregnant, she had hoped things would change, that they would want the child. They hadn't, in fact, she and her unborn child had been threatened. She left Paris and Laurent behind never thinking he'd follow her as she hadn't been told he didn't want her or her bastard child.
On the ship across the treacherous seas, she lost her child, her heart had never been broken in such away before. America had been everything she'd ever dreamed, minus the heartache from losing her child and lover. When she reached New York, she thought she had found a better life for herself.
She had found just that, she was living with a nice family who had welcomed her with open arms. She had a job working for the family as the maid. Maybe there were some who looked down on her for being poor and lower class, but she didn't care. She had loved her life and had come to love the family. Until Laurent, she showed up.
The minute he had tried to approach her she ran. She went back to the house and packed her things, leaving a note for the family who had taken her in. She took the money she had been saving and got a train tick to as far west as she could go. When it stopped in Seattle, she heard talk of a remote logging town called Forks. Remote had been exactly what she'd been looking for. Irina was shocked to discover she loved the town and the people. The gossip mill ran wild there.
Sheriff Swan had given her a job on the spot no questions asked. The other saloon girls had been very welcoming and had helped her get settled and find a place to stay. She was paying rent to the Newton family general store to live in the room above their store, it wasn't much but it was enough. Then there was Embry, he made everything she'd been through worth it.
He made adjusting to things in town and La Push easier. She was shocked at how quickly she'd come to trust him. Things between them had progressed at a fast pace and four months after arriving she found herself in his arms. A little over a year later Laurent made his way to town. She wasn't sure how he'd found her, but he had. She'd spent so much time avoiding him, but maybe if she'd taken the time to explain the truth, he'd have left sooner.
She was pulled from her thoughts by a fight breaking out between Emmett and Edward, who finally made an appearance. Bella step between them glaring at Emmett and not her husband who and showed up late. Perhaps she knew where he'd been. After several more words she couldn't hear, Emmett stormed away. Edward pulled his wife into his arms and whispered something to her, and she laughed.
"A penny for your thoughts?" Embry asked.
She turned to him wondering how long he'd been there. "I was watching the fight. What happened? Do you know?"
"Edward is over four hours late. Naturally, Emmett is pissed. I don't know why Bella defended Edward other than the fact he is her husband." Embry explained.
Four hours? Four hours had passed since she'd been lost in the past. When her mind had wondered Edward had been only a few minutes late.
"What do you say we leave," Embry asked her smirking.
"I can't I'm working." She said standing.
"Not from what I've seen." He replied eyeing her.
She sighed, "Fine, my place or yours." She said knowing the answer. His mother wouldn't be happy if they showed up together, but Embry refused to confront her. Irina suspected she knew about them she wouldn't admit it to herself.
"Yours," he answered. She rolled her eyes but led him across the saloon to the door and the short distance to the general store.
"Promise me someday soon you'll tell her about us." She asked once they were inside the apartment.
"I promise," he whispered kissing. She accepted his words knowing it was a lie…