Sunday, December 30, 2012

Chapter 34

Sunday, September 11

“Keys. Wallet,” Edward mumbled under his breath, patting his jeans pockets to take inventory before heading to Charlotte’s place. He was just bolting down the stairs to the side landing when a knock sounded at that very door.

“Shit,” was his second mumble. He realized he’d forgotten to make a Very Important Call this morning. He was cringing when he opened the door, but his expression was lost on the talking grocery sack and twelve-pack of Heineken that greeted him.

“I got chips, I got salsa, I got pretzels and nuts,” Emmett’s voice boomed from behind the bag. “I also picked up one of those fancy deli trays with ten different kinds of dead livestock and their milk by-products. But most important of all - libations!” He hoisted up the beer for emphasis.

“Wow. Shit,” Edward repeated under his breath.

“Would you care to maybe help me with this?” Emmett grunted back, stepping into the doorway and shoving the twelve-pack at Edward.

“Sure, sorry,” he replied, grabbing the box out of one beefy paw and heading back up the stairs to the kitchen, Emmett on his heels. The pair set the feast on the island countertop and Emmett began to unpack the groceries.

“You ready for another virtual ass-whipping, Eddie?” he taunted. He knew Edward hated that nickname, which was exactly why he relished using it.

“Well, see, that’s the thing - I should have called you earlier. I really don’t have time for video games today.” His lips twisted into another sheepish cringe.

Emmett stopped unpacking and gave him an incredulous look. “Dude! It’s Black Ops Sunday. You cannot bail on me. I’ve been looking forward to this rematch all week.”

“I know. I’m really sorry. I kind of forgot about it, to be honest.”

“Forgot?” Emmett’s face registered complete incomprehension. “We’ve only been playing this game almost every weekend since I bought it for your birthday, which was how long ago?”

“Uh . . . three months?” Edward calculated, wincing slightly.

“Exactly. But you forgot I’d be over.” He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes, waiting for an explanation.

“I know. I’m sorry, man. It’s just . . . I’ve got a lot on my plate right now. I can’t stick around this afternoon - I’ve got stuff I’ve got to take care of.”

Stuff?” Emmett’s eyes were mere slivers of blue ice as he stared his friend down.

“Yeah,” Edward replied, having trouble meeting his gaze. “I have an appointment I can’t really get out of.”

Emmett’s chest heaved a quick snort of denial. “I checked your schedule before I came over. You don’t have any bookings today. And you don’t need me until tomorrow night, for that newbie - Mandy? I think that’s her name.”

“This isn’t work-related,” Edward countered.

Emmett’s brows raised as realization dawned. “Oh, I get it. It’s that girl, Bella, isn’t it? You’re seeing her on the side.” He chuckled and shook his head. “I figured that was it.”

“What do you mean? Figured what was it?”

“The complaints Rose has been getting,” Emmett informed him. “You didn’t think Lauren would be the only one, did you?”

Edward’s heart sank a little, and his shoulders followed. “Great,” he muttered. “Why hasn’t Rosalie said anything to me about it?”

Emmett shrugged. “She was waiting until I talked to you today. Once again, I get the unenviable job of being your go-between. I know you two aren’t exactly BFFs, but you really need to open the lines of communication a little bit. She is your boss. For now, anyway.”

“For now?” Edward repeated. “What, is she canning me already?”

“No. She doesn’t want to. But if you continue to . . . disappoint some of the customers the way you have been lately, you won’t leave her much choice.”

Edward’s lips pursed together as he nodded slowly. He knew it would come to this, but he’d been hoping he’d be able to buy more time than just a couple of weeks.

“Is that your strategy?” Emmett continued. “Playing the celibate card until requests for your services dwindle down to nothing?”

Edward shrugged one reluctant shoulder, knowing how shitty that must sound to the guy who’d gotten him the job in the first place. Emmett’s expression confirmed it.

“Look, man. If you want out, just be upfront about it. Don’t puss out and force Rose’s hand. Don’t you think you owe her a little better than that?”

Edward sighed under the weight of Emmett’s judgment and slumped onto one of the kitchen stools.

“I know, I suck. I’ll admit it - I was going to try to play both ends against the middle for awhile, hoping to put off the inevitable. I need the money, but I don’t know how much longer I can keep escorting. I can’t . . .” he stopped, trying to find the right words to explain. If he couldn’t articulate to Bella how he felt about her, how could he say the words to Emmett? “I just don’t have it in me anymore. Bullshitting woman after woman that I’m not interested in and then using them for sex.”

“I hate to break it to you, but they’re the ones using you, my friend,” Emmett interjected gently. “And paying handsomely for the privilege, as you’re well aware.”

Edward let out a wry laugh. “Is that supposed to make me feel better? I can’t be that guy anymore. That overpaid fantasy guy. Every night it gets harder for me to live the lie they demand, even for a few hours. I’m done with it - all of it. The problem is, I don’t have a back-up plan in place yet. But I might in a few weeks, if things go my way.”

“What things?” Emmett asked, hopping onto the stool opposite Edward and leaning his elbows on the granite countertop. “Talk to me, brother. What’s all this about?”

Edward hesitated, wondering if he could trust Emmett to keep his confidence, especially now that he’d moved in with Rosalie.

“A great opportunity kind of fell in my lap. A friend entered me in the Seattle International Piano Competition next month, and I’ve been rehearsing every day, trying to get my chops back so I can do well in this thing. It could be my ticket out of escorting, if I can impress the right people. That’s where I was headed now - to practice.”

Emmett nodded, studying his friend with thoughtful eyes. “That’s great news, man. That’s what you should be doing - putting that education of yours to work. I know that’s your dream, so you should definitely go for it.”

He stopped and shook his head, chuckling. “It’s the damnedest thing, though. When I first got you the job at Renaissance, I wasn’t sure you were cut out for the escort business. I didn’t think you’d last more than a couple of weeks, to be honest. Then you went and turned out to be one of Rose’s best guys. She still gets more requests for you than she can book. You’re pretty enough that the young ones aren’t threatened by you, but still manly enough that the older women don’t feel like they’re robbing the cradle. And you’re so fucking smooth, you charm every last one of them without even trying. It’s like you were made for this gig. But your heart was never in it, was it?”

The question was rhetorical, but Edward answered anyway. “Is anyone’s heart ever in it, in this business? I think the guys who don’t have a heart to begin with have the biggest advantage. The ones who do had better learn to keep it under lock and key, or they won’t last. As long as I kept it all in perspective and treated every date like the business transaction it was, I was fine. I never counted on anyone actually finding that damned key. I thought I had it well hidden.”

His eyes drifted from Emmett’s as he remembered sitting across the dinner table from Bella that first night, bound to her by a tension so thick that he knew something would have to give. He just never dreamed it would be him. He was so focused on breaking down her defenses that he didn’t realize how quickly she was demolishing his own. She’d zeroed in on his vulnerability like a heat-seeking missile, not stopping until she’d stripped away his carefully constructed façade.

Maybe Bella never even found the key to his heart. That would have implied a gentle and welcome admittance, not a forceful intrusion. Her victory was far more swift and decisive than that. She simply broke the lock, kicked the door down and grabbed the bloody organ in her bare hands. But that vessel had never pumped so powerfully, so eagerly, as it did under her possessive touch. Edward couldn’t begrudge her ownership. After all, his heart’s new master seemed to be doing a hell of a better job making him feel alive than he ever did.

Or maybe he embraced her possession because she didn’t lord her power over him or use his vulnerability against him. Instead, she opened her own door and offered herself in return. He recalled the thrill of utter triumph when she melted against him in the glow of the sunset coming through the hotel windows; when she lay naked and utterly exposed on the couch, looking up at him with a mixture of trepidation and trust.

She let the trust take over. Let braveness conquer fear.

Now it was his turn.

Emmett watched the battle taking place in his friend’s eyes. It wasn’t even a battle, really. He could see that Bella had already won. Or maybe Edward had - the real Edward. The one Emmett remembered from high school, two years his junior, a tangle of gangly limbs in gym class, but a graceful master behind the keyboard at school recitals. He’d done what he had to in order to survive. Now it was time for him to actually live.

“I know the feeling,” Emmett said. “It’s not like escorting was my dream job, either. But I never had a talent like yours. I had big NFL dreams when I was in high school, but I got my comeuppance pretty quickly in college. I lost my athletic scholarship after my first year - couldn’t keep my grades up. I came home to work at my dad’s construction firm with my tail between my legs.”

Edward stared at him in surprise. “You never told me any of that.”

Emmett’s smile was wry. “It’s not something I like to revisit. I’m sure you understand.” Edward nodded in commiseration while Emmett continued. “I’ll never forget the day Rose approached me. Some buddies and I had stopped at one of those highbrow cocktail bars near our construction site after work. We thought it would be fun to show up in our filthy dirty work clothes and mix it up with the suits. You know, show the white collars what real men look like.”

Emmett let out a booming laugh at the memory. “It worked like a charm. You should have seen the women swarming around us. But Rose was the one who caught my eye. And I definitely caught hers. I was pretty damned shocked when she told me what she really wanted from me, though. I never dreamed when I went in that place that I’d be recruited by a modern-day madam.”

He paused and reached for the twelve-pack of beer warming on the counter. “Mind if I have one of these? Maybe you should have one, too, for the road,” he suggested, tearing into the box and handing Edward a beer before opening his own.

“Sure,” Edward agreed, knowing he had a long afternoon ahead at Charlotte’s.

“Anyway,” Emmett continued after a couple of swigs, “I probably would have done anything Rose asked me to then. Jump through hoops, perform party tricks, dance around in a goddamned pink tutu - I didn’t care. It was all a game to me then. I just wanted to get her attention. Get that icy blonde ball buster to want me as much as I wanted her. I used to describe every date she sent me on in excruciating detail, just to get a rise out of her. I wanted to make her jealous in the worst way. It was so fucking high school,” he said with a rueful laugh.

“Yeah, but it worked,” Edward noted. “She couldn’t stand it. She used to ask me about you all the time when I first started. She wanted to know how I knew you, how we met. She interrogated me about you - she wanted to know everything. You were obviously the teacher’s pet.”

“Really? She used to grill you about me?” A satisfied grin captured Emmett’s face. “She never let on, of course. Cool as a cucumber on the surface, that one. But those are the ones who burn the hottest underneath. Once you crack that ice, you’re in for a hell of a ride.”

It was Emmett’s gaze that now drifted, burning bright with his own memories of the woman he loved. Edward had the feeling that his own story wasn’t so different. Maybe you’re never ready to meet the one who turns your world upside down and then gives it a violent shake or two for good measure. But if you’re smart, you figure out how to roll with it, and maybe give as good as you get.

“Well, Rosalie made it pretty obvious where she stood when she took you off the market,” Edward commented. “I laughed at first when she created that Enforcer position for you. But it’s actually not a bad idea, giving new clients a bit of assurance that they’re the ones in control, and nothing’s going to happen that they don’t want to happen. They don’t have to know you’d never lay a hand on me.” He grinned at Emmett before taking a few gulps of beer.

“But I would, if you ever touched a woman in any kind of way she didn’t like.”

“You know I’d never do that.”

“Right. But there are a couple of guys on our roster that I don’t entirely trust not to get carried away. I tag along for most of James and Felix’s dates. James is just a little weasel, but Felix . . . I don’t know what that guy’s capable of. I kind of think Rose should cut him loose.”

“The guy is huge, too. You don’t want to get into it with him.”

“I could take him,” Emmett scoffed. “I’ve taken down bigger men than him in my day.”

“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that. For his dates’ sakes,” Edward said with a small shudder.

“Damn straight. Guess I won’t have to worry about that with you, now that you’re refusing to let little Eddie come out to play.” Emmett’s grin soon faded. “Seriously, though, you need to have a talk with Rose. Just be straight with her like you were with me. She could surprise you and cut you some slack if she knows why you’re doing this. Otherwise, she might start to take it personally.”

Edward let out a heavy sigh. “Fine. You’re right, I do owe her that much. And you. Don’t think I don’t appreciate everything you’ve done for me, because I do. I mean that.”

“I know you do,” Emmett said with his usual easy smile. “Believe me, I get why you can’t do it anymore. I couldn’t go back to escorting now. What was it that Paul Newman always said about his wife? Something like, ‘Why would I go out for hamburger when I have steak at home?’ That pretty much sums it up for me.”

Edward grinned at the analogy. “Words to live by.”

He and Emmett raised their beers in a silent toast to the women in their lives before draining the bottles dry.

# # # # # # # # # #

Monday, September 12

Hella-bo-Bella! Here’s the plan for pre-Bday festivities. Dirty John’s, 8 p.m. for pool, darts and the best hot wings in town, all within walking distance of the dorms. Riley and I will swing by your room to pick you up, then walk over to Jess’s sorority to get her. We’ll meet a few of-age Delt brothers at the bar for drinks and general merriment. C U then!

Bella re-read the text message she’d received from Mike over the weekend while she was in Forks, visiting her father. There was no getting out of it now. At least Alice and Jasper would be there so she wouldn’t have to worry about Mike and Jessica being the only people she knew. She still had hopes of playing match-maker for the latter, since she suspected Jess still had a thing for Mike after all these years.

She looked in the mirror once more, grabbing a brush and running it through her hair. She hadn’t gone out of her way to fix herself up, since Dirty John’s on a Monday night wasn’t exactly a fancy occasion. Besides, if she looked as plain as possible, maybe Mike’s interest in her would wane. Jess was much prettier, she thought as she regarded her pale, lightly freckled face in the mirror. Without make-up, Bella felt about as ordinary as they come.

So why did Edward look at her the way he did first thing in the morning, like she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen? She knew better. She’d frowned at her pasty complexion and dark under-eye circles many a morning before a hot shower brought her to life. She was nothing like Edward, freakishly handsome in sleep, even when he frowned or snored or his mouth hung ajar. He looked better in his unconscious moments than most guys did when they’d made a conscious effort.

Well, not everyone could be like him. Most of us need some conscious effort, Bella thought to herself. She hoped the fact that she’d skipped it tonight would be enough to keep Mike at bay.

As if on cue, a cacophony of howling and fists banging on her dorm door signaled his arrival.

“Hella-bo-Bella!” came Mike’s muffled call. “It’s time for the birthday festivities to begin.”

Bella marched to the door and jerked it open. “You know I hate that nickname,” she reminded Mike’s grinning mug.

“Sorry, Bells,” he replied, resorting to one she could tolerate. “You ready to go?”

She liked that he looked a little uncertain as his eyes skimmed her baggy t-shirt, worn jeans and sneakers. Behind him, Riley stood grinning and waving, looking as casual as she did. She returned his easy smile, and wondered vaguely if he was already stoned.

“I’m ready as I’ll ever be,” she replied. “Just let me grab my bag.”

Moments later they were strolling through the quad toward sorority row, making small talk about school, parties and the weather. It was always a topic of conversation if they were able to walk freely around campus without the sky pissing rain upon them.

The three were still gratefully dry when they showed up at the Grab A Thigh Later house, which Bella came to realize was actually Gamma Phi Beta, after Mike had pronounced it a couple of times. She opted to stay outside with Riley while Mike went in to get Jessica. Bella was in no mood to be confronted with bubbly sorority types, whom she imagined would be made up to the nines on a Monday night just to sit around the house and study.


Jess did nothing to dispel her stereotypical notions when she appeared, bounding out on the landing in a fitted t-shirt and jeans that managed to look far more dressy than casual, as did her carefully curled hair.

“Hey, birthday girl! You ready to celebrate?” she exclaimed as she joined them, flashing her usual overly large, disingenuous smile. She barely waited for Bella’s response before turning to Mike and chattering away about some upcoming Greek party.

Bella was only too happy to lag behind with laid-back Riley, trying to ignore Mike’s apologetic glances over his shoulder as they all walked toward the bar.

“So, how’s your Beastie Boys t-shirt faring these days?” she asked. “Did that jungle juice finally come out?”

“Yeah, it’s looking fine. After a couple of washings, it’s almost good as new. Well, for a twenty-year-old shirt,” Riley added with a laugh.

“I still feel terrible about that,” she lamented. “I’ll be on the lookout for a replacement. There are a ton of thrift stores around here - you never know.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he insisted. “Just have a good time tonight. Mike tells me this is your last night as a teenager. That’s big.”

“Yeah, I guess it is.” Bella fell silent for a moment. It was finally here - the big 2-0. She was about to officially enter adulthood. She’d been so anxious to grow up and leave her awkward youth behind that she’d taken some pretty crazy steps to rush the process. Still, she couldn’t regret them, because they’d led her to Edward. His words echoed in her head now, begging her not to hurry it along. I wish you could see how special you are right now, where you are. Who you are.

Why was he the only one who’d made her believe it?

She didn’t know, but she wished he were here right now to remind her.

# # # # # # # # # #

Slu-u-u-u-u-rp.

Edward cringed at the sounds emanating from his date as she sucked another spoonful of tomato bisque between her thin lips. She stared carefully down at her bowl, methodically blowing on each spoonful of hot broth before noisily inhaling it into her mouth. He wished he’d cranked up the sound system up a little louder so the ambient music would drown her out.

Mandy Cook was rather typical of his younger customers. A bit shy and insecure, a bit plain, a bit plump. He’d escorted many a girl like this to social functions requiring a date, his presence providing evidence that the girl in question was desirable enough to get one.

But this girl had requested a private date. When Edward had informed Rosalie that he wasn’t available Tuesday, she’d bumped his new client up a day. Apparently another regular had canceled on him. His boss said nothing about it, but Edward knew he would have to, and soon - especially after he insisted that Rose switch hotels for the date. He refused to entertain any more clients at Hotel 1000. Eventually he was going to have to explain why.

Slu-u-u-u-urp.

Edward forced a smile. “Are you enjoying the soup?”

Mandy gulped loudly and looked up, hazel eyes bulging in alarm. They protruded to the degree that he suspected she had a thyroid problem.

“Very much,” she replied, still looking slightly terrified. “How about you?”

“It’s delicious,” he agreed softly, reassuringly. “I think you’ll like the chicken parmesan here, too.”

She nodded, then bent over her bowl once more, a lock of wheat-colored hair falling over her forehead before she pushed it behind one ear. He’d quickly discerned that she was a simple girl with simple tastes. He feared that her reason for hiring him this evening would turn out to be just as elemental.

He tried not to make the obvious comparison, but he couldn’t help it. Though the girl was quite different from Bella on the surface, she was proving to be identical in one increasingly apparent way.

Could Mandy Cook really be the second virgin to hire him for sex in less than a month?

# # # # # # # # # #

Thwap!

Bella’s face fell at the sound of yet another of her darts missing the target entirely and bouncing harmlessly off the back wall of Dirty John’s. Apparently her lack of athleticism extended even to the game of darts. She was just glad she hadn’t nailed any of the bar patrons yet.

Mike, of course, was only too eager to help. For the third time in ten minutes, he positioned himself right behind her and closed a guiding hand over her arm. He instructed her once more in the art of setting her sights on the bull’s-eye, lining up the dart accordingly and hefting it so that it made the proper arc to hit its intended target. As soon as he stepped away, she tossed the tiny feathered arrow and watched it sail so high that it barely cleared the ceiling.

She heard Jess guffaw behind her while Mike and Riley assured her she’d get the hang of it. Then a fourth voice rang like a bell over the bar buzz, flooding her with relief.

“Go-o-o Bella!” cheered Alice Cullen, weaving her way through the crowd, Jasper right behind her. She applauded as she approached, but it was more good-natured than sarcastic. Bella took a deep bow in response.

“How do you like my mad darts skills?” she deadpanned.

Alice grabbed her up in a quick hug and spoke low in her ear. “Your aim was true when it came to my cousin. That’s all I care about.”

Bella flashed her first genuine smile of the evening.

“I’m so glad you could make it,” she said. “You too, Jasper.” She introduced them to the group, explaining that Alice was the cousin of her “friend,” Edward. She didn’t know what else to call him.

“Who’s Edward?” she heard Riley murmur to Mike.

“The creepy suit guy who took her home after the party that night,” Mike mumbled back.

Riley looked confused for a second before light dawned. “Oh, the guy she hurled on?” he said with a chortle.

Mike snickered and nodded, while Bella gave them both a sour look. She glanced at Alice to see if she’d heard, but she was busy talking to Jasper about what kind of beer to order. Apparently he was planning to provide the pitchers since he was twenty-one. Bella didn’t notice Jessica approach, and jumped when she spoke close to her ear.

“Edward Cullen? Isn’t that the name of the guy you said you hired to take your virginity?”

Bella’s spine stiffened in shock. “What are you talking about?”

“That story you told us all at the dorm party, about giving it up to a paid escort. I thought you were joking.” She arched one expectant eyebrow at Bella, clearly awaiting an explanation.

Bella’s heart plummeted to the pit of her stomach as the memory of her drunken slip came rushing back. She swallowed and scrambled for a response.

“Of course, I was joking,” she agreed, adding a laugh so phony that even the Queen of Fake, Jessica, was sure to pick up on it. “You saw how drunk I was. Whatever I said was just wishful thinking out loud. ‘Cause Alice’s cousin is, like, really good-looking,” she added lamely.

“Oh yeah? I didn’t get to meet him that night. Mike thought he was kind of a douche. But you know how guys are - he was probably just jealous,” Jess responded with a phony laugh of her own. “I figured you were kidding. I mean, who would actually do such a thing? Like, what kind of girl would pay a male hooker to pop her cherry?”

Jessica laughed again, but her eyes were mirthless as they branded Bella in unspoken condemnation.

Now they both knew exactly what kind of girl would do such a thing.