A/N: I finished In Your Arms in 2017 and was happy with the end product. I still love that story; but over the last several months, I've been thinking about how I could take the premise and improve upon it. A lot of the plot is going to be the same, so if you've read the original, you will know the basics. Things will be changed up and tweaked, but the basic idea will remain the same.

Just like with the original, creative license is taken. I'm aware that parts of this might be unrealistic, but that's why they call it fiction, right?

While I've taken down the original chapters from FFN, they are still on the internet. It can be found here: virginia lover fanfic .blogspot .com.

Happy reading!

1

Edward

I can't believe that I'm doing this.

Am I doing this?

That's the internal battle going through my mind as I drove through the streets of Charlotte toward the building that houses Alice Brandon's Dating Service.

I was still uneasy about going into talk to Ms. Brandon, but she had been more than pleasant on the phone and had helped put some of my fears at ease. She let me know that she ran a tight ship with strict rules that were to be followed exactly. The clients and escorts were not allowed to have a relationship outside of business, and that if there were suspicions of something nefarious going on, the arrangement was ended, and the employee was terminated due to breach of contract. Knowing how she ran her business, made me feel better about doing this, that I wasn't getting myself entangled in something questionable. So, I agreed to come and meet with her today.

Buying a date had never been something that I thought that I'd do. It all started one night when I'd mentioned to my business partner and friend, Felix, that my mom had been setting me up with women under the guise of inviting them over for dinner, which isn't anything new for my mom. She's very socially active and knows a lot of people in Charlotte society. My father was a well-known cardio-thoracic surgeon, and my mom had made a name for herself over the years party planning for Charlotte's elite. It also didn't hurt that they were genuinely nice people that would give you the shirt off their back.

As I mentioned, it wasn't that uncommon for mom to invite friends over to our weekly family dinners, but when she'd invited these women, who were nice, intelligent women, my brother and his fiancée would magically be missing that week at dinner.

My brother, Emmett, had let it slip one day when we'd met up at the gym, what mom was doing. I'd been a little angry, and when I'd told my mom again that week at dinner, that I wasn't ready to start dating, she'd told me she didn't know what I was alluding to.

Which told me that she knew exactly what I was alluding to.

"I know she's doing it out of love and she just wants me to be happy, but I'm not ready." I vented to him one night when we'd stayed late in the office. It was around eleven o'clock at night and there was bourbon involved.

This wasn't entirely new information to him; I'd complained about it in passing to him before. Felix was one of my closest friends, had been since college, and he'd been there the night I met Tanya.

Nearly a year ago, my last relationship had ended badly. Tanya and I had met six years prior when Felix and I were just starting our marketing firm. We'd gone out one night to celebrate at a bar downtown. Tanya had been there with some friends and our eyes had met across the bar. She'd given me a seductive smile, and I'd been done for. I'd gone over and offered to buy her a drink, then later we'd gone home together.

Tanya was beautiful with strawberry blonde hair, striking blue eyes, and model like figure. We were together for six years, had talked about marriage, and bought a house together, a house that I was still living in. She was adventurous and were always going on exotic vacations. She was genuinely fun to be around, and my family loved her. Everything was great. I'd been preparing to propose, bought the ring and everything. Then, I'd come home one day to find her fucking one of her colleagues on our couch.

Needless to say, our relationship ended with me losing my shit and kicking them both of the house.

"You could always buy a girlfriend," Felix had said, swirling the ice around in his glass, looking at me with his eyebrows raised.

"What do you mean?" If I hadn't been as drunk as I'd been this night, I would've known exactly what meant.

He leaned forward; his voice conspiratorially low even though we were the only ones left in the office. "I know a company, completely legit, that could help you out with this problem."

He'd gone on to tell me about Ms. Brandon's company. I'd scoffed, saying that I'd never do that.

But a few weeks later, here I was taking the last turn to Alice Brandon's Dating Service. This had been a last resort when I'd talked to my mother again, and nothing had changed. We had our annual family trip to our vacation home in Hawaii coming up, and I wanted someone to take with me.

When I pulled into the parking lot of the small brick building, I parked in the spot closest to the door. The lot was mostly empty, only a few cars lined the last row of spaces. The door dinged when I walked in, the cool air hitting my skin, nice after being in the hot, humid North Carolina weather. I rubbed my hands against my pants to get the sweat off of them, shaking my nerves off as I approached the reception desk.

I could do this.

"May I help you?" The receptionist looked up at me from behind her desk. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a bun on top of her head and she was dressed in a floral print top and blazer. She gave me a warm smile.

"Yes, I'm here to see Alice Brandon. I have an appointment for eleven o'clock." I watched as she typed somethings into the computer.

"Mr. Cullen?" she looked at me expectantly.

"Yes." I nodded, trying not to get anxious. The longer I stood here, the more I lost my nerve.

"I'll call her up for you," she picked up the phone, hitting some buttons. "Miss Brandon, your eleven o'clock is here." She listened to the voice on the other end for a second, "Yes, ma'am." she hung up the phone, her attention coming back to me. "She'll be right up."

"Thank you." I looked around the waiting area, pictures by local artists were hung on the wall, making it feel homey. Plush looking chairs lined the walls, decorative pillows stacked on either end. The office had a very homey feel.

"Mr. Cullen," I turned to see a short, blacked haired woman making her way over to me. She was very young, which surprised me. The way that she'd talked on the phone, made her seem older, but she could command a room with her presence. Her blue eyes were kind, as she shook my hand. "Right this way."

She led me down a short hallway to an office at the very end. It was a small space that was filled with pictures of family and friends. I took a seat in one of the chairs that sat in front of the desk, her taking a seat in her office chair.

"I hope when we spoke earlier on the phone that it helped put your mind at ease." She folded her arms on top of her desk, the sleeves of her suit bunching up in her elbows, revealing the pale skin of her wrists.

"It did actually. It's just I've never done something like this before." I admitted. I threaded my fingers together on the surface of the desk so she wouldn't see how my hands were shaking.

"You don't have to be so nervous," she laughed, leaning back in her seat, the epitome of ease. "None of us here bite. Let's just start with what brings you in today."

"My last relationship ended badly about a year ago, and over the last couple of months, my mom's been setting me up with women, even though I'm not ready for a real relationship. This seemed like the best option. It sounds crazy, doesn't it?" I scrub my hands over my face. It sounded beyond crazy, not to mention pathetic. Who hired a date to get their mommy off their back? I was a grown ass thirty-two year-old man, I could do whatever the fuck I wanted, but my mother still put the fear of God into me.

Alice smiled reassuringly at me, "It doesn't sound crazy at all, Mr. Cullen. There's a reason that we, and other businesses like us, exist. A lot of successful businessmen, and women, such as yourself, don't have a lot of free time to date, nor the desire. We're here to fill a need that otherwise can't be met when you need to go to a function where it's preferred that you show up with a date. You have no reason to feel ashamed or embarrassed."

"Thank you." I let out a breath. "My family and I are going on our annual family vacation at the end of May for two weeks, which is the main reason I came here today."

"End of May?" she asked, brow furrowed. I could understand her confusion. It's the beginning of April.

"I know my mom well enough to know that if I just show up to the airport with a girlfriend, she'll be suspicious. I'm going to have to really sell it for her to believe it. This woman is going to have to be around my family quite a bit for it to work. I also have a couple of events that I have to go to as well." I explain.

"You and your family sound like you're very close."

"We are."

"I think that I have the perfect woman for the job. Let me check her schedule to see if she's available." Alice clicks away on her computer for a moment. "Her last assignment ended yesterday, perfect." She turns to a file cabinet behind her desk, going through some folders, before pulling one out and setting it on the desk. "Isabella Swan is the best I've got." She opens the folder and slides it in my direction.

The picture in the folder is of a beautiful brown haired, brown eyed woman. She's girl next door pretty with soft facial features, and warm, chocolate brown eyes. Her hair is long, hanging in waves around her shoulders.

"She is on the younger side at twenty-four. Is that a problem?" Alice asks, and I finally take my eyes off the picture.

I sit back in my chair, feeling a little overwhelmed. This is actually happening.

"If you say she's the best, there's no problem at all." I reply with a nod.

"Excellent!" Alice claps her hands. "There are some steps that have to be taken before its official. I'll have to talk to Ms. Swan to make sure that she's willing to take the assignment. If she is, I'd like to have the two of you meet on neutral ground to see if you two get along, that way neither of you is pressured to say yes. If you both agree, there is a contract and an NDA that will need to be signed."

I blow a breath when she finishes speaking. In a board room, I feel more than capable in my abilities, but here, in this woman's office, I am completely out of my element.

"I know it's a lot. We'll take it one step at time," Alice takes the folder off the desk, closing it. "I'll speak to Ms. Swan, if she's willing, you'll get a call from our receptionist this afternoon to set up a time for you two to meet. Sound good?"

I nod, "Yes, ma'am."

"Great," Alice stands from her chair, and I follow. "It was nice meeting you, Mr. Cullen." She sticks her hand out for me to shake, and I do.

"Nice meeting you as well, Ms. Brandon."

"Come, I'll walk you out."

When I leave the office, I'm still not sure what I've gotten myself into.

-IYA-

Bella

"Come on, ladies!" The spin instructor barks from the front of the room.

I'm sweating as I welcome the burn in my legs as I push through the last few minutes of the session. My eyes cut to Angela on the bike next to mine. She's not holding up as well as the rest of us, it'd been longer since she'd taken a spin class and she looks like she's about to pass out; her face is red, sweat dripping off her. I feel bad about asking her to come with me this morning, but we hadn't seen much of each other lately, even though we live together. Our work schedules were too different recently to be conducive to hanging out. Angela worked as a kindergarten teacher, and I'd just gotten back to town from going on a trip with a client to their work conference out in LA. Over the last several months Alice had been putting me on more out of town assignments, not that I was complaining, it meant more money.

When the instructor announced that the session had come to an end, Angela practically fell off her bike.

"Are you okay?" I ask her, trying not to laugh at her haggard appearance.

"I fucking hate you!" Angela sneered, gasping in breathes through her mouth.

Angela and I had been best friends since high school, we'd both come to North Carolina from our hometown in Virginia for college and hadn't left. I still remember the first day that we'd met our freshmen year. We'd been in gym class and it was during the dreaded dance unit. Why do schools do this to children? It's right up there with the torture that is running the mile.

There'd been an uneven number of girls and guys, so Angela and I had been partnered up. Angela was shy, still was, and I had been the opposite, still was. We ended up getting into an argument about who was leading who and bitching about the other stepping on our feet. Our gym teacher had to separate us. I remember leaving the class thinking that I would never speak to her again, swearing up and down that she was a bitch. Neither of us can tell you how we went from screaming at each to best friends. It may have been because she brough in chocolate chip cookies the next day as an apology, or because I'd stood up for her against Jessica Stanley when the other girl had cornered Angela in the girl's bathroom. Either way, we'd been inseparable ever since.

When we'd been applying to college, we knew that we wanted to go somewhere together, and when we'd both been accepted to Wake Forrest, we'd been over the moon. Angela's parents were well off and college fund for her, where I, coming from the family of two teachers, was relying on student loans and financial aid from the university.

We got an apartment off campus, a really shitty apartment, but an apartment nonetheless. During the week went to class and on the weekends we went out clubbing and to parties. We had our first taste of freedom away from our parents, and it was fantastic.

Everything was great, until I forgot to reapply for financial aid the following year. I thought that I'd been screwed. Angela had been the supportive voice she'd always been, and I let all the while knowing that there was no way that I was going to be able to continue paying for college on what little I was making from the book store that I'd been working at.

The day I'd met Alice Brandon I'd gone to the store where my card had been declined. I ended up sitting at a bus stop, crying my eyes out, where Alice found me. She'd sat beside me, given me a tissue, and asked what was wrong. I ended up telling her everything, which was unlike me, but there was something about her, or maybe I just needed to vent, I don't know. After I was done, she told me about the business she was starting. I wasn't thrilled about the idea of being an escort, even if it didn't involve being paid to have sex, but at the time, it was an offer that I couldn't refuse. I'd almost choked at the figures she'd told me.

I took the job and ended up loving it. It enabled me to stay in school and for Angela and I to get a better apartment now that I was able to contribute more to rent. It had been five years, and I was still working for Alice. While not my end all be all, it was fine for now while I finished up my master's degree in marketing.

"I'm sorry," I tell Angela while she glares at me. "Can I buy you coffee to make up for it?"

"It better be a big one," she grumbled, heading for the exit.

After getting coffee at Starbucks on the way back to our apartment (a really big one for her as promised), I did some stretches on the floor of our living room while Angela took a shower and got ready for work. An advantage working where I did, was most of the time I didn't need to be in until the afternoon. Which on the days I took a spin class, meant nothing because I liked to get it over with in the morning, or I never would.

Alice didn't have rules about diet or exercise, there men and women working for her of all shapes, sizes, races, and ethnicities. I ate whatever I wanted, which meant I had to workout to maintain. I unfortunately wasn't someone that could eat anything and not gain. I liked the way I looked, I was confident in my own skin, owning every roll, patch of cellulite, curve, and my size 12 jeans.

Angela came out of her room while I was making breakfast, in black pointe pants and a white button-down shirt with small hearts on it. She limped to one of the bar stools at our counter, gingerly taking a seat.

"Back to work today?" she asked, taking a grape from the bowl of fruit on our counter. Alice gave a few days off between assignments to rest and regroup.

"Yep," I say putting scrambled eggs on two plates with toast, handing her one of them.

"Are getting another out of town?" she asks, taking a bite of her eggs.

"Oh, you just want me to go out of town so you can have wild monkey sex with your boyfriend." I teased, taking a sip from my second cup of coffee today. Angela had been dating Ben Cheney, our neighbor from across the hall for six months. He was a computer nerd with glasses, who always wore some sort of superhero t-shirt. They were sickeningly adorable together. From the things that Angela had told me about their sex life, Mr. Nerd had a kinky side.

Angela grimaced as she adjusted in her seat, "I can't move without pain, there won't be any wild monkey sex for a while."

"Aw, come on, Ang. I'm going through a dry spell; I need to live vicariously through you." I take a bite of my own eggs. "I can't even remember the last time that I went on a date that wasn't work related."

While allowed to date outside of work, I hadn't in a long time. The last guy that I'd gotten close enough to to call him my boyfriend ghosted me when he found out what I did for a living. Instead, whenever I got the itch, I took to Tinder for a casual hookup.

"Ben has a single friend that I could hook you up with." Angela sing-songed.

"Are you talking about Mike?" I ask her, with a serious expression on my face. There was nothing wrong with the guy, he just wasn't my type. The last time that I'd seen him, he'd made two sexual innuendos in a single conversation.

"Maybe," she replied coyly.

"If you set me up with Mike, I'll put all your stuff in the hallway and change the locks."

Angela laughed, putting her hands up. "Okay, okay. I won't set you up with Mike. Now, I have to go." She stood, putting her plate in the sink. "See you later."

"'Bye!" I call as she leaves.

After taking a shower, I relaxed most of the morning, finishing up homework for my class on Monday. Since I travelled so much for work, I'd opted to start taking online classes, so I could keep up with my schoolwork no matter where I was.

I arrived at work around noon, parking in my usual space. The scent of vanilla hit me as I walked in, making me instantly ill. Before working here, I loved the smell, but now I hated it.

"It is particularly suffocating today, isn't it?" Lauren's voice came from behind the desk. She was fairly new. Alice hired her a few months ago to man the front desk, which was something that we'd really needed.

"Yeah," I walked over to her, leaning against the desk. "Do I have anything?"

Sometimes, we had things scheduled in advance when a previous client called to request our service again, but most of the time, we came in and waited until an assignment came in.

"Maybe. Alice said to send you to her office when you got here."

"Thanks," I smile, turning to go down the hall to Alice's office.

The door was closed, which was typical, she liked her privacy.

"Come in!" her muffled voice called when I knocked.

I walked into the office to find her sitting at her desk, replying to e-mails. I took a seat in the chair in front of her desk, waiting for her finish up.

Once finished, Alice turned her attention to me, folding her hands on top of her desk. "How was your trip with Mr. Yorkie?"

I shrugged, "Fun, like always." Eric Yorkie had been a regular of mine pretty much since I started. He was handsome, rich, and very gay. He came to our service when he wanted a companion to take on a trip when his long-time partner couldn't go. He was the one client that I'd ever gotten close to blurring the client-friend line with.

"That's good," Alice leaned back in her chair. "We had a new potential client come in today. His name is Edward Cullen, he's looking for someone for the next two months. It's going to be mostly an in-town assignment, but he does have a two-week trip coming up at the end of May. I told him you were the best."

"You're going to make me get a big head." I tease. I usually got the new people, being as I was the one that had been here the longest. I was the best at keeping things professional, at not getting any personal feelings involved.

She laughed with a shake of her head. "Would you be interested in taking him on? I know it's a long commitment, and I know you have school."

"When I have, I ever said no to an assignment?" I ask her, "You know I'm interested."

"You know I have to check," she gives me a look. "What time and day is good for you so I can have Lauren call him."

"I'm free tomorrow afternoon, say two?" I tell her.

"Alright," she writes down the day and time on a sticky note. "I'll let you know what he says."

"Okay."

I leave her office, having no clue what I had gotten myself into.

A/N: Going into this new draft, the main thing that's changed is the timeline. I thought it was important for the characters and the story's growth, that there needed to be more of a build to them getting together.

One of the things that I wanted to improve was the feeling that Bella wasn't like other girls. That's one thing that upon re-reading the original to do my re-writes that made me cringe. I wanted her to be feistier and more confident, which makes more sense to me considering the line of work that she's in.

Let me know what you think of this new chapter one. I'll try to get chapter two up soon.

See you next time.