Design For Life

Chapter 4

A/N: So glad that everyone seems to be enjoying the story! Thank you for reading and for reviewing. Makes my day seeing those reviews. Big thanks to Chylex28 for corrected all of my grammatical crap.

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Design For Life

"The world is divided into two kinds of people: those who have tattoos, and those who are afraid of people with tattoos." ~Author Unknown

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BOV

Sunday morning, I woke up at around eight. I was nervous, and a bit terrified, of what brunch would bring. I had been completely shocked when Edward asked me. Of course, once he realized what he'd done, he tried to backpedal and tell me not to worry about it. I had a feeling that was the first time that Edward asked a girl anywhere. I had shocked myself when I told him I'd go, but the look on his face was priceless. He'd gotten a huge smile on his face when I'd agreed. Now, however, I was regretting saying yes. Family brunch seemed a bit, intimate. I knew that Alice and Emmett would be there, which meant that Jasper and Rosalie would most likely be there as well. I didn't have a problem with Jasper, but I wasn't sure how I felt about the rest of them.

Meeting Alice on Friday had been ... interesting. She was something else, and I couldn't decide if that was good or bad. I had walked into the library, teasing Edward about making some kid cry, when my phone had rung. Once I saw it was Laurent, I shut it off, and felt the need to tell Edward that it was my ex. I wasn't sure why it was so important to me that he knew I was single. Did I like Edward? Sure. Was he cute? You bet. Was I falling for him? Nope. Not at all. No way. Not my type. We were friends. That was all. Not a few minutes later, I was assaulted by a tiny woman. She'd thrown her arms around me, hugging me, and rambling on and on about something. I hated it when strangers got familiar with me, and I'd sent Edward a plea for help. He'd pried her off of me and explained to her that she couldn't go around hugging people.

She was like a hyperactive child that someone mistakenly fed sugar to. It was a bit much to take, and I eventually excused myself to hunt down some books. I had walked by the Local History room and noticed old Mrs. Riley, ogling Jasper's ass, as he bent over to get a book for her. I couldn't really fault her. He did have a nice ass. He stood up and gave me a friendly smile when he saw me.

"Hey, Bella."

"Hi, Jasper. How goes it?"

Rolling his eyes, and nodding his head in Mrs. Riley's direction, he said, "It goes. Did you meet Alice yet? She's been dying to meet you."

"Yeah, I met her. She's ... something else."

He snickered. "That she is, but I love her to death."

I could see how Jasper and Alice fit together. He was the calm to her hurricane. I found it hard to believe that she and Edward were related. He was so quiet and shy, and she was very outgoing. Then, there was Emmett. I didn't really have an opinion of him yet. I'd only met him on Saturday, when he and his wife had shown up at the shop. He did seem to enjoy picking on Edward a bit. Rosalie, on the other hand, was a raging bitch. I had been surprised to hear her comments to Edward. When I'd pierced her nip a week earlier, she was fine. Polite, if not a bit distant. But I was floored by what I heard from her at the shop on Saturday.

I had offered them drinks, and wasn't surprised at all, when Edward asked for tea. Of course, that had led to Emmett teasing him, and then Rosalie had felt the need to jump in as well. So what if he drank tea or wore tweed? That didn't make him an old man at all. It made me think of a hot professor. I was glad to hear Edward telling her to butt out. I was afraid that he'd let her walk all over him. It had taken everything in me, not to bitch slap her, when she'd outed him in the shop. Sure, we weren't busy. However, it was no one's business, but Edward's, if he was a virgin.