EPOV

"I don't think so." Bella's voice was playful. I helped her into her pajamas. "You had your fun. Strip!"

I must have had the stupidest grin on my face. "You need your rest, Bella." I kissed the tip of her nose.

"Oh, I'm not tired. Besides, we have the house to ourselves. Charlie's passed out in La Push." She hooked her finger into the waste of my jeans and pulled me closer. "And,…" her face turned pink, "I kind of got used to seeing you without these."

"I'm tempted." I rested my hands on her hips. "But, if we continue this tonight…I'm not sure it will stop at third base." His gorgeous, crooked smile was causing me to feel faint.

"That's what I was hoping for." She stood up on her tip-toes to try and steal a kiss. I leaned my head down and softly met her lips. I love how her warm lips felt against mine. She ran her hands around my waste and rested them just above my behind. She breathed deeply and pulled my hips to hers. Great. I'm sure she'll want to stop when she feels how hard I am.

"I've unleashed an animal." I smiled and pecked her lips one more time before pulling away. I grabbed her hands and opened the bathroom door. "You really do need to get some sleep, love." Bella made an annoyed groan and reluctantly walked back to her bedroom with me.

She crossed the threshold and yawned.

"See." There was a little smugness in my voice. I walked in behind her and kissed just below her ear.

"Don't be cocky." She smiled back at me and I wrapped my arms around her.

"Now, Bella, I thought that was exactly what you wanted" Stop teasing her, Edward. "Bedtime."

I knew she wanted to pick up where we had left off. Never had I thought we would have gotten to third base so quickly, and now we were rounding third and heading home. We should really slow this down a little bit. I truly love this woman, and want her to feel like the most important woman in the universe on our first night together,…not simply an object of my ferocious desire. I pulled the comforter back on her bed and she slid in. When I pulled the covers around her and laid down on top, she sighed. I pulled her back against my chest and ran my fingers, softly, up and down her arm.

"Bella?"

"Hmm?" I could see that sleep was trying to take over.

"I love you." I didn't go in for a kiss, or stop fingers. I just wanted to reassure her. It killed me to think that she would regret what we just did tomorrow. I was acting like an arrogant asshole who was forcing a woman to be with him against her will. Does she really want me or was this just a reaction to my anger? Is she afraid of me, now? I don't want her to lose who she is because she's trying to obey my commands. God, Edward, you're such a selfish jerk.

"Edward?"

"Yes, love?"

"I love you, too." Her eyes closed and she started to drift into dreamland. All the time we were lying there, her heart didn't accelerate and her body didn't tremble. She seemed in a world of calm. In fact, she seemed much less tense than usual. Hmm. Maybe, she did this night, after all. I know I enjoyed it…Ugh,…shut up, Edward.