Bring Him Home – Chapter 39

“Would you like to go out on a date with me?”

“A date? Edward we have already been out on a date remember at your Mom’s restaurant” I was a little surprised at the question and slightly confused.

“I know and I’m not really asking you to go on another first date with me, I would just like to try the evening again that’s all, I’m in a better place now, I think, and I’m a lot more comfortable around you, so can we try again please?” the look on his face told me he was still very wary of my answer but he looked hopeful and who was I to destroy that?

“I’d love to go on a date with you, when would you like to go out?” I decided that I would leave all the details up to him, it would be better if we did this at his pace.

“How about tomorrow night?” he asked

“Perfect, what would you like to do?”

“Well can we do something really traditionally first dateish? Can we go to the movies and for pizza or ice cream or something?”

“Edward are you sure? I mean, we could just go for a walk or a quiet dinner somewhere, you don’t need to make yourself uncomfortable, I’ll be happy to just spend some time with you”

My first thought was that he was doing something because he thought that was what he was supposed to do and I didn’t want him to feel like that, I wanted him to do something where he would be relaxed and comfortable.

“No I need to start doing things I want to do and I used to love going to the movies, it’s been years since I’ve seen one of the blockbusters on the big screen”

“OK well I‘m in, let’s have a look what’s on and maybe you’ll be lucky and the IMAX cinema will be available”

“What’s IMAX?”

“Oh Edward you are in for a treat” I told him as we looked through the listings.

We chatted for another couple of hours, selecting and booking tickets for the following night and him arranging to pick me up here, he would not hear of me meeting him outside the cinema. We decided to wait and see what we were in the mood for food wise until after the film.

“I’d better go, it’s been a long day and I don’t like driving when I’m tired, I’m still getting used to driving at night again.”

I walked him to the door and opened it to let him out, as I turned to step back he was right behind me and I found myself pressed against him, my back hitting his chest. Before I could do anything his arms came up and held on to the tops of my arms to steady me.

“Careful Bella, sorry that was my fault I was too close to you, I should have given you room to step back”

I knew he was speaking to me but I wasn’t really listening, all my senses were focusing on one thing, the sensations that were running through my body, all of them beginning where his hands were still holding my arms. I could feel the goose bumps as they swept down my arms and back and then carried on until they reached my toes. I shuddered slightly as my skin registered the sensitivity of his hands moving as he stroked up and down my arms, I don’t think he even registered he was doing it because he was still talking to me.

“Bella are you ok?”

This was the question that finally brought me back into the moment, “Sorry what?” was all I could think to say.

“I asked you if you were ok, you seemed to fade out there for a minute” he said still behind me and still holding my arms.

I needed to sever the connection if I was going to be able to speak rationally to him so I took a step away from him and turned towards him. This made him drop his hands and rational thought made its way back into my brain.

“Bella are you ok?” he asked again. “If you are having second thoughts about tomorrow just say I’ll understand” as I looked at his face I knew he wouldn’t understand at all, but luckily I wasn’t about to disappoint him.

“Don’t worry, no second thoughts, I’m looking forward to tomorrow, now go on get home before you’re too tired to drive and text me when you get home ok so I know you have arrived safely”.

With that I brushed my lips against his cheek, it was almost a platonic kiss, like one you would give your old aunt or uncle when you hadn’t seen them in ages but he placed his fingers on his cheek to ‘feel’ the kiss before walking out of the door, which made it more special. We went through the same routine of me locking the door and him checking it before I watched him walk away through the peephole.

The next morning Jasper was waiting for me in the office when I got there, “Morning Bella I hope you don’t mind but I have arranged to meet Caius Volturi here this morning”

“Good morning to you to Jasper, would you like coffee?” It was early and I wasn’t expecting him.

“I looked at the on line calendar you keep last night and I could see you had no meeting scheduled for this morning so I thought we might as well get him in and go over everything that has happened and see how much of it he knows” he explained.

“Ok you could have just called me last night you know, you didn’t have to hack into the system, I would have been able to just tell you about my diary commitments.”

“I know sorry, It’s just old habits and all that” he at least had the grace to look slightly guilty.

“Ok, what time are we expecting him?”

“I’m already here” said a voice as Mr Volturi stepped into my office.

“You know Miss Swan you really need to look at the security here, I’ve just walked through the buildings foyer and straight into your office without anyone challenging me”

“This is an office block, there are over 50 companies in this building, how could you possibly have security with all those people coming in and out?”

“There are ways Miss Swan and I would be happy to discuss them with you but for now can we discuss whatever new information Mr Whitlock has found. I presume that is why I have been summoned here”

“Summoned, who summoned you?” I asked turning to Jasper.

“I asked him Bella so can we please get on with it” Jasper said sitting down at the conference table in my office.

Mr Volturi and I joined him and watched as Jasper set up his laptop and IPad. We spent about ten minutes as Jasper went through all the information he had so far, it was obvious that while Caius knew about Sam Black he didn’t know about the juvenile history and the link to me through my Dad.

As he sat back I could see his mind working, almost as if he parts of the jigsaw were suddenly fitting together.

“So Bella you have already met Jacob Black then”

“Yes he works in this building, I’ve bumped into him a few times around this area and I’ve even been out to dinner with him once, well if you could call it that.” I admitted.

“Ahh that explains “ Caius said before closing down.

“I am still employed by Mrs Hunter, so as she is still my client I will not break her confidence, but I can say that she won’t be my client for much longer”

“Well before you make that decision there is one more thing I want to show you” Jasper said as he got the clips ready from Esme’s attorney. He played the first one and I turned away, I couldn’t watch it, it was horrific.

“As you can see there is no doubt that Mr Hunter is the person that assaulted her, there are several clips like this and we have them stored in several different locations. If anything happens to Esme or Bella or if Mr Hunter decides to go for a retrial or early parole, we will use these to stop him”

“I totally understand Mr Whitlock, I do not like being lied to so I need to go and see my client and I will be in touch shortly. I believe you and I can sort out the other problem that is bubbling under all this, namely Jacob Black” with that Caius left my office as quickly as he had entered it.

“Well that went well I think” I said to Jasper as he started closing down his laptop.

Just as he was about to put his laptop into its case, his email notification on his phone alerted him to a new email.

“It’s from Caius Volturi” he said as he opened the email.

“Holy shit! He has sent me the next two videos” he said

He reached back into his case and set up his laptop again, quickly logging in he went straight to his email app and opened the notification from Caius.

My first thought was I needed a laptop like his, mine seems to take ages to wake up and log on and no way do the apps and things open that fast, then I thought it was probably some hush hush government model, but then again I still didn’t know what Jasper actually did for a living.

“Ok Bella you ready?” he said as his finger seemed to wait in mid-air to press play.

“Does he say anything, why has he sent them?”

“there is just a note saying these are the video’s he had prepared but he will delete them as soon as he can, he gives us his word he won’t use them ever and that he will destroy all the research he has done”

Jasper hit play and we sat back and watched the first clip.

I had to hold in my anger as I watched as the new Mrs Hunter, sitting in what I presumed was her home crying as she told her story of how Esme had stolen away her high school sweetheart and then abused and assaulted him. Finally, after years of putting up with his horrendous husband beating wife James Hunter had snapped and hit Esme in self-defence. Mrs Hunter then went on to describe how Esme had set out to frame James by hurting herself and blaming him. She admitted that her and James had been together for most of the time he had been married to Esme and that Esme had known about the relationship and was happy for them. Mrs Hunter was adamant that this was Esme’s way of punishing them for doing something they were sure they had her blessing for.

The second clip was ever more diatribe, it featured a collection of photos of Esme with different men, they were all cropped and edited to just show Esme smiling and quite relaxed with all of them. Mrs Hunter’s voice could be heard over the slideshow saying that Esme had assured her she was happy with the arrangement and that an open marriage was the best sort to have.

As Jasper shut the clip down I could hear movement in the offices outside as everyone started to arrive for work.

“We need to show this to Esme and get her to identify every man in the pictures, if this is true things just got a lot tougher” he said as he avoided my eyes.

“You don’t believe that crap do you?”

“Bella very little surprises me anymore about what goes on behind closed doors, whether I believe it or not does not matter, what Esme tells us however does.

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