The Hunted

Chapter 4

A/N: Happy Friday, ya'll!  Thanks for reading this story and giving it some love. For those lurkers out there, don't be afraid to leave a review even if it's just a smiley face.  Let's see what Bella and Edward are up to.  Big thanks to the PTB beta's who whipped this chapter into shape.

....................................................................................................

"So where are you headed next?" Edward asked, scaring the shit out of me and causing my eggs to fall off my fork and into my lap. I shot him a glare as I picked the eggs up off my lap. I was furious that he'd shown up; he was going to ruin my breakfast.

"I thought you left," I said, tossing my napkin with eggs on the table.

He gave me a shrug and ordered a coffee when the waitress came by asking if I needed anything else. I stared at him after the waitress left, and he shot me a wink.

"Gotta keep up appearances."

I rolled my eyes at him and went back to my breakfast, trying my best to forget that he was there.

"Is that any good?" he asked, wrinkling his nose as I took a bite of bacon, and I gave him another glare.

"Yes, it's fantastic. Now, would you leave me alone?"

He sat back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest, and I couldn't help but notice the way his arm muscles flexed.

"Oh, c'mon now, Swan. Don't be like that. Are you going to tell me you don't enjoy my company?" he asked.

I scowled at him and barked out a "no" in response to his question. Shoving another piece of bacon into my mouth, I demanded to know why he wouldn't leave me alone.

He gave me a smirk, rocking his chair back on two legs, and I wanted nothing more than to topple his chair and watch him fall on his ass.

"I made a promise to Alice to look out for you."

Well, that was just fucking peachy. Funny how she'd failed to mention that when we'd spoken. Knowing that he wasn't going to go away anytime soon, I decided to ignore him. I finished my breakfast, paid my tab, and headed out the door. The GTO was ready to go, so I hopped in and began driving. I didn't have any particular destination in mind this time. I figured I'd go where the road took me. If I stumbled upon a vampire or two along the way, so be it, as long as the vampire wasn't Edward. There was something about him that bugged the hell out of me, and it wasn't just the fact he was a vampire. He was arrogant and so fucking good looking.

I drove for days, stopping only when it was necessary, and I eventually found myself in South Dakota. Tired of driving, I found myself a nice little motel on the edge of a small town. I couldn't help but smile when I walked into the room and found it covered in that wonderful 1970's decor. Orange and greens clashed together in a nauseating war against the neon blue and the shit brown. This was definitely my kind of place. I set my bags down on the bed and grinned when I noticed the tiny machine next to the bed that you inserted quarters into. Good ol' magic fingers.

Grabbing Alice's laptop out of my bag, I set it up on the table and logged on. I wasn't much for technology and before Alice joined me, I'd done all my research with newspapers and by word of mouth. Once the laptop was up and running and I'd managed to connect to the motel's WiFi, I sent Jensen an email. I'd promised to stay in touch more often, even though email wasn't really my thing. I also had an email from Alice waiting for me. Opening it, I read it quickly. She apologized for not telling me about Edward's promise and asked me to be nice to him. I pecked away at the keyboard, typing back my reply. Using the phone was so much fucking easier than this email shit.