Title: The Dark
Category: Books » Twilight
Author: Lady Gwynedd
Language: English, Rating: Rated: M
Genre: Romance/General
Published: 04-06-10, Updated: 04-06-10
Chapters: 1, Words: 4,294

Chapter 1: Chapter 1

Fun With Your Clothes On One-Shot Contest

Title: The Dark

Your pen name: Lady Gwynedd

Characters: Bella and Edward

Disclaimer: SM owns the original shindig.

I am Bella Swan, file clerk extraordinaire. I work in the Masen building down town. Yeah. That one. The big one that everyone thinks of when they think of our fair city. It was the tallest building in the world for about five seconds once but that was a while ago.

I am just a peon here, nobody notices me as I work my nine to five and I am content to let it be that way. I am more of an observer of life than a participant. I tell myself that this will make me an amazing author one day. I don't want to admit that I am a little on the shy side and that's why I'd rather watch than do. That sounds pretty pathetic when you're speaking about a twenty-two year old woman.

And I do love people-watching, especially when the people I am watching have no clue. It's amazing what you can learn about people when they think no one is looking. That sex kitten insurance adjuster with the big boobs, Jessica Stanley? Well, she stuffs. I saw her do it one day when I was coming out of a bathroom stall. She was there next to the sinks, stuffing Kleenex down her front. I don't think she caught me looking at her because I turned around and then came back out making a lot of noise so she'd have time to cover. Maybe she's saving up for a boob job.

And I know who's been stealing all the candy from the Cullen Enterprise's receptionist's candy jar. You'd never guess. Esme Cullen. That's right. The CEO's wife. She could afford to buy the Hershey factory and here she is, stealing a bunch of silver wrapped kisses from someone who makes less in a week than she spends on a pair of shoes. Go figure.

But my favorite person to watch is the CEO's and the Candy Stealer's son, Edward, and that's only because he's gorgeous. I have figured out that if I catch the 7:02 train, I'll get to the Masen Building at the same time that he does and on good days we even share an elevator – along with about seven other people, but still. If I can get the back corner, I can stare at his amazing physique and that thick mop of hair that my fingers are just dying to get into. But that will never happen. Why? Because he is who he is and I am just a peon, a worker ant, one of the little unnoticed people.

One day, as I was sitting in the employee cafeteria eating my apple and pretending to reread my latest bit of vampire obsession while I was secretly watching the world go by, I noticed that Edward Cullen was sitting at a table directly across from me, maybe about fifteen feet away. Happy, happy, joy, joy! Now I could indulge myself.

He was eating a ham and cheese sandwich and was drinking a soda. It was like watching porn. Oh my goodness. He'd take a bite, his white teeth tearing into the bread, his eyes half closed as though he was really enjoying himself. I could imagine his eyes would look the same as he was having sex. But then, how would I know? No one ever looked at me like that. Then, he'd chew and his Adam's apple would bob as he swallowed. I really, really wanted to lick him right there on his delicious neck and trail my lips along that magnificent jaw. Ooof. Then, his tongue would poke out the corner of his mouth trying to get that crumb that was lingering right on the edge of his full lip. And his long fingers would reach for his cup and I could imagine them reaching for me. Ohhh.

DAMN. What was wrong with me? I was practically getting off watching the poor man eating his lunch. I was a real pervert, that's for sure. I ducked my head down and tried to read about how feathers got stuck in the heroine's hair but I never made it past the first sentence. I just had to look back. And there he was again but this time he was staring right back at me. He winked.

Now, listen. I was supposed to people watch in secret. No one had actually caught me doing it before. I was bashful and backward and I had to get out of there. I smiled nervously back and then grabbed my book and my purse and left pretty darn quick. I didn't look at him again but I thought I could feel his eyes follow me out of the room and down the hall but maybe that was just my own self-consciousness.

The next day, I noticed he was on the morning elevator with me but this time I wasn't unnoticed. He smiled at me. Why? I wonder if he had remembered me from the cafeteria yesterday? I wonder if he had known what I was thinking about as he was eating his sandwich. How mortifying! But there was no way he could have known, could he? I wish I would stop blushing about it.

At lunchtime, I went to the cafeteria as I normally did and sat in my regular spot. There was no Edward Cullen to tantalize me today and so, I found my place in my book and tried to figure out how it would feel to have sex with a vampire who was cold to the touch. Maybe it was like using a pudding pop for a dildo? That doesn't sound remotely sexy.

Suddenly, I heard a chair scrape across the floor the next table over. I knew without looking by the way my nerves jumped and my heart started to pound that it was Edward Cullen. I heard the cellophane crinkle as he unwrapped his sandwich. I chanced a small glance in his direction just in time to see him loosen his tie. Ungh. There was something about the way his fingers tugged at the knot that sent shivers down my spine as I was imagining how it would feel if he were tugging at me.

I glanced back down at my book and swallowed. My throat was suddenly dry for some reason. This man was becoming an unhealthy obsession with me. I was beginning to have pretty explicit fantasies about him even when he wasn't around to watch.

I took a sip of my water but as I began to swallow, I looked across at him to find him staring intently back at me. Startled, I choked and started coughing embarrassingly loudly as the water went down the wrong pipe. Clasping my hand to my mouth, I scrambled around for a napkin and struggled to get control over my stupid lungs. I felt like such an ass. Why was it that whenever Edward Cullen looked my way, I was always doing something incredibly graceless?

Not glancing again in his direction, I quickly gathered my things and rushed out of the cafeteria for the second time in as many days and for the same reason. I was a social imbecile.

It was getting close to quitting time when my boss came to me, "Bella, we have a project that has to get out tonight. I am ordering dinner for our group so we can stay late and finish. Can you stay, too?" I had absolutely nothing to do back at my teeny apartment except to wonder how in the world vampires and humans could interbreed, so I quickly agreed and got busy with the Xerox machine. We had our dinner – pad thai, one of my favorites – and by eight, my part of the project was completely done. My boss sent me off with his thanks.

After gathering my things and slipping my raincoat on, I walked over to the elevator bank and pressed the down button. When the door slid open, my biggest fantasy and also my biggest fear came to life. Edward Cullen was standing there in the elevator completely alone and smirking at me, his eyebrow quirked in amusement. I almost turned tail and ran but that would be just too stupid and I wasn't quite that dumb…not quite.

I mustered my courage and stepped into the elevator, flickering a smile in his general direction. He was probably thinking, "Oh, here's that little moronic girl who can't drink her water without choking to death." I turned away from him to face the elevator doors. It was his turn to stare at my back. Oh well, I could deal with this for thirty floors.

We rode a few floors down in silence when suddenly there was a loud squealing noise and the elevator car jerked to a stop. Then, the lights went out.

"Oh, no," I said. I had a huge fear of the dark. My heart started pounding and my eyes started to water.

"We must have had a power outage," Edward commented calmly. "The power should come back on soon."

I edged my way over to the wall so that I could put my back to it. I was beginning to get panicky feelings in my chest. "Oh." I said again in a shaky voice.

"Are you okay?"

I couldn't answer that truthfully because he'd know what a loser I was. Basically, I was afraid of the dark and it was pitch black in there. "Shhhouldn't there be emergency lighting?"

"It depends on what went out, I think. Let me feel my way to the control panel and see if I can alert people we are here."

I heard him moving across from me and then some scraping and rubbing noises as if he were trying to open the panel, then a pop and I heard, "Hello?" and a clicking noise. "Hello?" I could hear him hang up the phone and he said, "It's dead. I've flicked some buttons and there doesn't seem to be any response. Hopefully, they'll get the power on soon and we'll get out of here."

"Ooh. Okay," I replied in a shaky voice.

He asked again, "Are you alright? You aren't afraid of small places are you?"

"No, just a little leery of the dark. I was told too many scary stories when I was young."

"And yet you read books about Vampires?"

Oh. He noticed what I carried around with me at lunch. "Well, those act more like humans than vampires most of the time, so they don't count."

I heard his footsteps move across the elevator to stand closer to me, "You seem so entranced by that story, that I was wondering if you paid any attention to the real flesh and blood around you every day."

My heart beat seemed to relax a bit as I considered his comment. How little did he know about what I was actually doing. Should I tell him? My fear was dissipating and surprisingly the darkness was making me feel less socially awkward.

"I'll tell you a secret," I said conspiratorially.

"Yes?"

"That book is my cover."

"Your cover?"

"Yes, I pretend to read it when actually I am people watching."

"People watching? Is that what you're doing as you eat your lunch?"

"Yes. And I've only been caught once or twice."

"Really, by whom?"

"Well, by you. Yesterday and today."

"Ah, ha! I thought I saw you watching me eat my sandwich. I couldn't figure out what was so interesting about that."

It helped that I couldn't see him. I might be scared of the dark but with him standing so close, that lessened. The fact I couldn't see his handsome face, piercing green eyes, and long fingered hands seemed to make me verbally bold. If I could see him, I knew I'd retreat into my little mousy shell. At the moment, it was as if I was dreaming and I was all sorts of bold in my dreams.

"Well, there's eating a sandwich and there's eating a sandwich. You were definitely eating that ham and cheese. The pure enjoyment on your face was enthralling. It was almost as if you were having sex."

He barked out a laugh. "Sex? Well to be honest it was just about that. My father is a health nut. He won't allow anything as unwholesome as white bread, yellow mustard, processed ham and American cheese anywhere near us. Yesterday, I just had to indulge myself. A man can only go so long." He dropped his voice as he said the last few words and I knew he was thinking of something else. I got goose bumps.

"That explains why your mother steals the Hershey's kisses out of the receptionist's candy jar then."

Edward snorted, "Esme's been at the chocolate? Dad will kill her."

"Why is he so strict about your diets?"

"He got very sick a few years ago and they couldn't find out what was wrong with him. He started on this health kick: no processed foods, no white flour, no white sugars, no dairy, and definitely no chocolate. His health improved. My dad is excitable and when he goes on a kick the rest of us have to follow or we live to regret it. Don't tell him you saw me eating in the cafeteria. He'd flip."

"Don't worry. I've never been in the same room as your father. I am just a peon; too lowly to be noticed."

"I noticed you." His voice came closer.

"That's because I was making a fool out of myself. It's hard not to notice the idiot."

He chuckled softly and came even closer, "No, I've noticed you for a good while. You're quite beautiful.

It was my turn to snort, "Yeah, right."

"You are beautiful, don't you know?"

"No. I don't know. I don't compare to the curvaceous girls in the insurance department."

"Their beauty is just superficial and largely manufactured. Yours is a natural beauty that is breathtaking. Your hair is beautiful." His voice was mesmerizing and his long fingers were suddenly weaving through my hair, and I practically swooned, "In the sun, it has about ten different colors in it. I can always pick you out in a crowd because of your hair. It's so soft and silky." He was now standing right next to me, stroking my long hair. I was so glad I had been too lazy to put it up this morning.

"And your skin is like porcelain." In the dark, I couldn't see him move. But I could feel him as he gently slid his knuckles along my cheek, down my neck and over my shoulder, where he grasped me, as I suddenly felt his other hand my other shoulder.

"And your lips are tantalizing, making a man wonder if they tasted like honey." His voice got closer and the little quivers I felt going up and down my spine told me that he was in perfect position to discover that for himself.

"I know this is too soon but I can't help myself. May I kiss you to see if my fantasies are true?" His voice was husky.

I nodded my head but then realized he couldn't see me, so I whispered almost too softly to hear, "Yes."

The darkness was like a cocoon, wrapping me in lightless silken ties as he pulled me to his body and suddenly his lips were touching mine. His quick gasp told me he felt what I had – a shaky magnetic spark that shot through my veins like lightening. The sensation was incredible and I gasped, my lips parting. Edward's lips quickly returned and his tongue slowly caressed mine. My heart began to pound thunderously, as I opened completely to him.

He released my shoulders and wrapped his arms completely around my body and pulled me tightly against his as he deepened the kiss to combustible heights. I lifted my arms to wrap them around his neck so that I could place one hand against the nape of his neck. My thumb started to make slow circles there. Edward groaned. He broke off the kiss and whispered softly, "This feels like a dream to me. Indeed, you do taste like honey. Your kisses are like sweet fire."

We returned to kissing then, sensuously exploring each other's lips and teeth and tongues. Emboldened by the dark, I threaded my fingers through his hair and pressed my body tightly against his. I could feel his desire hard against my hip. I was in utter awe. I was making Edward Cullen, the most gorgeous man in the universe, want me. How could that even be possible? If I was dreaming, I hope I never woke up, at least until after the part where we'd had torrid, hot sex. The dark was becoming a playground rather than something to be feared.

He had been running his hands along my back and ribcage as we kissed when he broke off for a moment asked in his incredibly alluring voice, "May I touch you?"

Can he touch me? Wasn't he touching me already? "You can do anything you want, Mr. Cullen," I gasped out.

"You have no idea the extent of what I want. You may not be comfortable with it."

"What do you mean?"

"I want to please you."

"You are pleasing me."

"But more intimately, my lovely."

"By touching me?"

"Yes, let me show you?"

"Okay," I said in a small voice.

First, I felt him lift the shoulders of my raincoat, as if he wanted me to take it off. I quickly shrugged out of the garment and let it slide to the floor. I felt his hand drift down my shoulder and then linger mid arm, his lips were at my temple, his other arm pulling me at a slight angle to his body. I heard and felt his deep breaths as he seemed to breathe me in, absorbing my essence. He was a solid part of the darkness to me, surrounding me, engulfing me. I was lost in my waking dream.

"Ah, you feel so right in my arms," he murmured.

He felt good in my arms, too. In fact he felt amazing. I remember watching him lick his lips as he ate his sandwich and had a sudden urge to touch his lips. In the dark, my hand slipped up his chest, then hesitantly traced his jaw, then around to his lips. I let my fingers gently trace the outline of his full bottom lip and I remembered seeing his teeth bite into the sandwich yesterday and how that crumb clung just there, where I was touching right now. He kissed my fingers, then gently bit my index finger, and suckled it. I know I must have moaned. I turned my head into his chest and kissed along his collar bone still covered by his shirt, then up to that tender place just under his ear. I let myself drift my lips down his neck to his Adam's apple and kissed it, just as I had fantasized doing yesterday.

The groan he uttered at that moment echoed in every cell of my body.

Our lips met again, his hand was tracing light patterns around my abdomen, gliding higher with every intricate shape until he was sketching spirals around my breast, spirals that were growing smaller and smaller until only my nipple was being encircled. I arched my back in sheer delight as courses of sensation rippled through my body. He lightly pinched me there as I felt his other hand slide down my back to my buttocks where he gripped and pulled me up into his now throbbing erection.

"Ah, Beautiful," he whispered, "Can you feel how much I want you?"

I had buried my face into his neck and nodded. He could feel my answer.

"Put your legs around me."As I did as he requested, my skirt shifted up to the tops of my thighs.

He pressed my back against the wall of the elevator, his face now nestled into my neck. He started kissing and nibbling there as he pressed his hips against mine. I could feel every inch of his need rubbing against me and I was so glad he was holding me up. I was just about to melt away with desire. Since I was pressed against the wall, I couldn't move very much, just entwine my fingers in his hair and respond to his kisses. He pushed and rocked and rubbed against me and I could feel my climax approaching. Just as I reached the edge, Edward bit me on my neck, not hard so as to leave marks but just enough to send me flying way out over the edge.

"Ohhhhh," I moaned, much louder than I intended. He bucked harder into me, clasping my ass tightly in his large hands and I could feel the tension explode in his body as he flew to meet me, out there with the shooting stars and the comets. He held me there for a few more moments then gently let my legs slide down his body to rest on the floor. He leaned down to nuzzle my neck and kiss my cheek, his arms enfolding me.

"Thank you, my Beauty. I'll dream of this."

Oh, and so would I! He'd ruined me for vampires. How could I go back to that mundane world – and really their manner of bringing babies into the world could use some work—when I now had my own amazing climax in the soft, sexy dark.

Edward stepped back and I could hear him adjusting his clothes. I hadn't realized he'd taken his belt off before. That was thoughtful. I smoothed down my own clothes and stooped down to find my coat shoved into the corner. I picked it up and tried to figure out by feel which was right side out, hoping I got that right, and slipped it onto my shoulders.

I was running my hand through my messy hair, when I felt Edward's hand groping for mine. I was surprised but gave it to him. He grabbed it and pulled me close. "It shouldn't be long now." We waited like that in companionable silence, held close and listening to the pounding of each other's heart. I wasn't thinking beyond the dark. Right now, it was nice but when the lights went on, I knew we'd go back to our peon/greek god status. That didn't worry me. He'd kept me from losing my mind in the dark. I shuddered to think of how I would have coped had I been alone.

"Are you, Okay?" He must have felt my shiver.

"I am very fine. I was just thinking about how terrified I would have been if I had been here by myself. You've kept my mind off of my fear. Thank you."

He laughed, "Glad, very glad to be of service, my Beauty." He leaned down to kiss me on the forehead just as the lights went on and the elevator grumbled into movement. It dawned upon me that he had never called me by name.

The lights brought a little awkwardness and we stepped back from each other, dropping hands, and reaching for our 'carryon' luggage. It was rather shocking to face the crowd in the lobby when the doors opened. We assured everyone we were fine and I was shuttled into a taxi (they didn't send me to the bus) to take me home. I was told that I could have the next day off to make up for missed sleep. I was surprised to find when I asked that it was two in the morning.

By rote, I got ready for bed still lost in the dark, the light wasn't my reality any longer, and I curled up in my little bed imagining lips on mine and arms around me and slept peacefully. It was the first time in my life I slept without a light on.

I woke up late the next day and busied myself with routine chores. My boss called me to inquire after my well-being and I assured him, other than making up for lost sleep, I was fine. I'd be at work as usual the next day.

I knew that everything would be back to the way it was. I would go my solitary way back to work and do my everyday routine, right down to people watching. I was running a little late so I missed the 7:05, maybe on purpose. I wasn't sure I wanted to see Edward distance himself from me as if the dark never happened.

I rushed into my work cubby after saying quick hellos to my coworkers to find a small envelope on my desk. It was from Edward. It said, "Beautiful Bella, Meet you in the cafeteria at 12? Bring Vampire book. We can people watch together. E."

I hope he knew of a dark place to visit as well.