Bella
How was she supposed to get through these next four weeks? She wanted someone to please tell her how.
Bella didn't know what would have been worse: if Edward had looked at her, pretended like they hadn't spent one dynamic evening together and ended it with the most toe-curling kiss she'd ever experienced. Or if he had approached her…and said…what? She knew they had a special moment together but were now committed to other people.
Yes. Then what? Go on with their lives…pretend they'd never met, never felt such a connection. He'd felt it too. She knew it by the way he looked at her. She felt his eyes on her as she was talking to Alice at the back of the room, trying to dodge the cameras and had lowered the mike to a 0 volume so they couldn't pick up their conversation. As much as she'd wanted to turn it off, it would have notified the producer and a grip or the intern would have come to "help" them with it. At least at a low volume, it was likely that what was going on with the room already, they weren't likely to be too concerned with what Alice and Bella were talking about.
Edward.
His name - that he was not at liberty to say. Because he was one of the grooms. She knew it, somehow, just the way Alice had been so certain of so many things…She, however, didn't know that Edward was to end up being somebody else's groom. Especially not that of the glamorous beauty Rosalie. How could anyone compete with her? She owned the room and hadn't needed the occasion to be her birthday to get the attention. Her own husband was obviously taken with her. Could she blame him? If she'd been a man…or attracted to women, she probably would have wanted Rosalie too.
Rosalie…blonde, gorgeous, probably sophisticated. Emmett, so far, seemed to be her biggest fan. Now, why did it bother her that Edward was married to her, and not so much that her husband was all over her? Should she be doing something about it? Like stepping in and trying to rein him back? There wasn't a part of that scenario that appealed to her. Because she didn't mind that Emmett and she had not the sort of connection Jasper and Alice had. The producer had picked up on this and stole Emmett not too long after. And for the life of her, she couldn't bring herself to care: She was too hung up on Edward. It was progress, she guessed.
At least she was no longer hung up on Jake.
Now, here they were. Emmett and Bella were back at the elevator, headed up to their room on the fourth floor, and he picked up on her silence.
"Look, I'm sorry," he said, running his hands through his hair. Their mikes were still on, she remembered, and the producer had insisted they stay that way at least for now. Bella could only imagine how this played out on film. Emmett flirting with another's bride. Primetime drama. Now, how would they feel if they knew about Edward and her night before?
"It's okay," she said, looking up at him. Poor guy really thought she was upset with him. Still, she had to make it look like she cared…at least. Besides, the last thing she needed was to draw attention to her infatuation with Edward.
"Are you sure? You're so quiet."
"I'm just thinking."
"What are you thinking about? Cuz you know this thing with Rosalie and me…it was just old habit. I didn't mean anything…"
Could that be true, she wondered. She thought the producer would probably want them to hash it out in the elevator, not leave anything unsaid. America wanted to know Emmett's intentions. Would he really go so far as to cheat on her with another's bride? No…that was worthy of Jerry Springer…definitely not material for Meet ya at the Altar. Though if there were any footage like that, the show could easily edit it out. It also occurred to her they could manipulate the footage to appear as they preferred. Not all reality show villains were born. So often they were made, and once they were in too deep to go back they played the hand they were dealt. What was Bella's role here? Wasn't she supposed to be jealous?
"Is she the sort of woman you date, Emmett? Be honest with me."
Red crept into his cheeks. "Well, I mean, sure. Who wouldn't? I just don't know if she's the kind you bring home to Mom."
She shrugged her shoulders. She guessed not. She knew she'd only "come home" to one mother, and it wasn't like she and Jake had been dating at the time. They'd only been friends at the time before his mother died in a car accident, but she'd wished they would've been more. She had gotten her wish and look how that turned out.
"Speaking of that, my parents really liked you…at the reception. They can't wait to see you again," he told her, and then the elevator dinged and halted as they arrived at their floor.
He gestured for her to step out before him, and she opened her mouth to say the words I don't want to go to Tennessee, but what came out was, "I am not sure how I will fit in, Emmett." That was true, but she couldn't find the courage to say that she wanted to go home to Arizona instead.
Emmett stopped and tugged on her elbow. "Don't worry about it. They're a bit much at first, but then you'll be fine. I can't wait to introduce you to the guys at the station." She wondered by the way his eyes didn't stay on her as he said it if he was being honest. Did anybody really picture Bella as Emmett's wife?
Oh and then work. Right. He had mentioned wanting to get back. But there were still three and a half weeks left in the experiment.
She didn't say anything, but he looked like he was registering the apprehension on her face.
"It's going to be great, Bella. You'll see."
"I don't know, Emmett. And I really love Arizona. It's my comfort zone, to be honest."
"And what did you tell me in Vegas? That you wanted to live outside your comfort zone."
Dammit! Why had she chosen those two words? She'd just screwed herself! Unless he was right and she was being rigid about her preferences. Just because she'd never been there didn't mean she wouldn't like it.
But, it was so far from Edward…
Stop it, Bella. True that Edward lives in California, but he also took a vow to a gorgeous blonde that not even another gorgeous blonde could compete with. Okay, forget Edward. Move on. Give Emmett a chance.
She sighed. She didn't have a valid argument left in her. He was definitely the power in this relationship, which she wasn't sure she liked yet. Not that she had been with Jacob. She seemed to attract people who liked to tell her what to do. And who knew? If she rode this out, like Alice said, it might lead to her person. "Fine. Okay."
He pulled her into his arms at that moment and squeezed her with all the force of the most gentle bear. Running his fingers down the back of her head in the most comforting way, she actually shivered. Warmth, security, and old spice filled her being at once.
Unless…he was her person.
Emmett
He knew Bella wasn't crazy about going to Knoxville. He was okay with that because he knew once she spent enough time with his family, she wouldn't be able to resist falling in love with them. Of course he had his doubts, but they'd seemed open enough to her at the reception.
He was still embarrassed about the thing with Rosalie. Like wow- was she hot? Like he had a hard time staying away from her, almost as if she were his own personal magnet. And it was looking like it was mutual. Talking to her had been so easy - was it because they were both already married? Then he had to remind himself that her husband - Edward…how did he get so lucky to land a knockout like Rosalie? The truth was, he kind of forgot about Edward…and about his own wife. Poor Bella. He felt like a heel. He hadn't even realized how bad it looked until the producer pulled him aside and had a "chat" about it on camera. Emmett apologized to Edward and there seemed to be no hard feelings. Funny how with Rosalie in his sight the cameras and everyone around them just seemed to fade into the background.
Bella didn't seem too worried about his attraction to Rosalie either, but he hoped that she just accepted the apology he gave her. In his head, it was still hard to accept Bella as his wife…especially because they were still getting to know each other…and they hadn't even kissed, except for at the wedding…and that hadn't been much of a kiss, more of a peck- one a person would hurry to give to a friend or relative.
Maybe he needed to try harder. But now remembering Rosalie's smile at her party kept distracting him. Dang, she was beautiful. Edward had no idea how lucky he was.
When they got back to the room, they packed their bags for their early morning departure. They arrived around mid afternoon in Tennessee, and he'd already arranged for a cleaning lady to do her magic. He didn't want to scare his bride away so early in the game. True he didn't dedicate as much time to cleaning the place, but he had bigger priorities. Besides, he could be gone for 72 hours at a time or longer, so who had time to clean?
His apartment was only fifteen minutes from his folks and a few blocks away from fire station 187- his home away from home. He lived in a building that had 4 separate apartments, and his upstairs neighbors were away most of the time, which was good.
680 feet was a pretty big size just for him, and the two bedrooms were used as a bedroom and an office/workout room. He wondered as she looked around if she might have other plans for what had been his bachelor pad for his adult life. Not much on the walls, plenty of light streaming through the windows, which he liked. Big screen television and his VR headset sat atop the counter. Now he considered how he would get her one for herself. She seemed like she would enjoy it.
Bella's eyes wandered the kitchen, which thank God the sink hadn't been left with the dishes he'd forgotten about, and the tile counters were clean and bare. Thank you, Molly Maids.
"Very clean," she remarked, but her face stayed neutral.
He wondered what her place looked like. Was Bella a slob like him? Or did she keep a tidy house? He'd been on his best behavior so far and tried his best at the hotel to keep his clothes on top of his suitcase, often getting the dirty mixed with the clean, but this traveling thing was something he wasn't used to. Or how to manage keeping an area clear…or even sharing space with someone else other than with the controlled situation at the fire station. Not that she had much stuff in the way of makeup or the things that other ladies he'd been with had, but still, this was all new to him.
"This is home." He set his suitcase down in the bathroom that they'd share, intending to do laundry soon. Another thing to get used to. He'd been managing for himself for at least 8 years, so this was definitely going to be a learning curve. He remembered even being uncomfortable with the idea of a woman staying over for one night…not that he'd been so taken with one that he'd wanted that.
Their camera man, Pete, followed them inside, and Bella peeked inside cabinets and the refrigerator. Emmett did like to cook and usually kept it stocked, but he'd been gone for a few weeks, so he was probably missing eggs and milk and other staples.
"I'm going to cook tonight," he told her proudly. "Do you like salmon?"
"I love salmon," she said, and he smiled because he knew she'd like the parmesan- crusted dish he planned. It was a favorite at the station, and he liked to steam some asparagus and have a nice loaf of garlic bread to go with it.
When they got to the bedroom, she set her suitcase on top of the king-sized bed and went straight to the window.
"No curtains," she said.
"I like the morning light," I said.
"And your neighbors?"
"I don't see them much. The people next door have their own entrance on the other side, so I don't see much of anything outside the trees and patio."
"Nice. But I still think I'd like some blinds or some curtains."
"Feel free, Bella. Mi casa es tu casa. Literally."
He could tell she was trying to hide her emotions, keeping her lips from falling into a frown. They'd made a deal. They would give it a month here in Knoxville, and if she hated it then he would try Arizona. After all, he needed to be flexible.
Just then, the doorbell rang, and a petite lady in her fifties stood on the other side with another camera man behind her. Emmett recognized her as one of the experts they'd been introduced to at orientation as the sexologist, Dr. Muncher, whose mouth was quite small, despite her name, but used a laser focus on them with large, expressive eyes. Since they'd not been given a heads up about this, he imagined the producer had been concerned about his attraction to Rosalie, and how Bella and he had not progressed physically. The sexologist was there to assist, they said.
Bella looked like a deer in headlights because she'd recognized her too.
She held a bag over her shoulder. A bag of tricks? Dr. Muncher shook Bella's hand and then Emmett's. "It's a pleasure seeing you both again. I understand that my help is in order."
"Your help?" Bella asked, her eyes wider than he'd ever seen them.
"Yes, with your permission. I'm here to help the two of you develop your connection. Shall we get started?"
Emmett opened the door, having no idea what to expect, but he knew better than to argue as the other camera person and now the boom operator settled behind her inside his house. Besides, they weren't in any place to argue - they were a married couple who agreed to see this through. The producer had reminded them of this. He closed the door behind the well-dressed woman as she set down her bag in front of her as Bella's face flushed a bright pink.
What did this expert have in store for them?
A/N: Oh there's just all kinds of good stuff awaiting them! LOL. Please stay with me. Many thanks to all for reading, for your follows, and especially your reviews! I so love hearing from you!