As usual, I don't own Twilight. It belongs to the talented Stephenie Meyer.

Under the Mistletoe

Bella POV

I leaned back in my chair and looked around me at everyone here. My parents hosted a Christmas party every year at their house on Christmas Eve and invited just about everyone we knew. Half of the guests consisted of my aunt Didyme, my uncle Marcus and their kids Heidi, Felix, and Renata, and Mom and Dad's friends Garrett and Kate. The other half were of mine and my brother Emmett's friends and the extra people that my best friend Alice ended up inviting.

Em and his fiancée Rosalie spent half the night sucking each other's faces off under the damn mistletoe every year while Alice dragged me around the house to talk to anybody brave enough to face her energetic personality. Mom, Aunt Didyme, and Kate kept to themselves in the kitchen cooking dinner while Heidi and Renata sat at the island behind them gossiping about boys like the typical teenagers they were. Dad would hide in his little man cave in the basement with Uncle Marcus and Felix watching the Seahawks lose again. Everyone else would be somewhere in the house talking to one another.

This year was different though.

This year I was able to get out of Alice's rounds, but only because of the stupidest thing ever.

She was trying to set me up on a date. Again. And she wasn't taking no for an answer.

"Bella, go on," Alice urged, pushing me in the direction of the doorway. I firmly planted my feet on the floor as she continued to try to shove me.

"No, Alice." I shook my head and grabbed onto the back of the dining room chairs as she tried to tickle me into submission. "No matter what you try to do, you'll never make me go in there if I have to go under that thing." She huffed and dropped her arms, sitting down in the chair beside us, finally turning silent for once in her life.

I sighed in relief and sat down in the chair next to hers and looked at her. I love Alice, really I do, she's the sister I always wanted, but sometimes she's just a little overbearing. For the past three years Alice has been trying to get me back on the dating scene after the disaster that was Tyler our sophomore year of college. Last time she tried doing this, she set me up on a blind date with this guy named Demetri.

The first fifteen minutes of the date were fine until our entrees came. He took one look at the chicken parmesan that he had ordered and immediately had the waiter take it back, saying that it wasn't what he ordered. But I distinctly remember him saying chicken parmesan. When the waiter brought the plate back Demetri completely freaked on him and told him to have the person who cooked it to separate everything.

At first I thought he meant take the chicken parm out the pasta, but really Demetri meant that he wanted the cheese separated from the chicken and the chicken separated from the sauce and the sauce separated from the spaghetti. Turns out Demetri's not all there in the head. I had to call Alice from the bathroom to come get me once I had snuck away from the table.

The date before that was worse. It was with some guy named Aro and he was the same age as my dad Charlie. The entire date all he talked about was how he missed and loved his ex-wife, Jane. From what he told me, she sounded like a cold, self-centered bitch who liked to inflict pain onto others. Yeah, that sounded like someone I would want to spend the rest of my life with.

Alice turned to me then and gave me her famous pout. It was the one that made me cave in and go to prom our senior year with that prick Mike Newton. "Please, Bella," she begged. "Pretty, pretty please with sugar on top." I looked away from the full devastating power of the pout and shook my head. "Will you just go over to the mistletoe and meet Jazz's friend? I've met him, Bella, and he's perfect for you." I crossed my arms over my chest and shook my head again. She knew what she was doing, arranging our meeting under that thing in the doorway. "Bella, come on! You won't have to give me anything for Christmas this year if you do this." I rolled my eyes and gave her a look. We both knew that wasn't true.

For the past week she had raved on and on about how her boyfriend Jasper had a "really hot friend that was totally interested in me". I told her pointblank that I wasn't interested in another blind date after the disaster of the last one. But she still didn't listen to me and told me that it wasn't.

How was I supposed to know that she invited the guy to my parents' Christmas party?

Fortunately Alice dropped the whole thing and started telling me about how Jazz took her out to dinner last night and gave her the emerald ring that was on her hand now. I was somewhat envious of Alice. She had the perfect boyfriend who was head-over-heels in love with her and would do just about anything to make her happy. I wanted that, just not with all of the guys that she has been trying to set me up with.

About an hour later Mom called everyone to the table for dinner. Alice thought she was funny and sat me down next to the empty seat beside the head of the table where Dad sat. When she wasn't looking I got up and sat next to Renata at the other end of the table across from Rose and Em. There was no way in hell that I was going to sit next to Jazz's friend.

"Why won't you talk to him?" I looked up at Rose with a questioning look. She smirked and leaned toward me. "Oh, come on, Bella, I've seen what's been going on all night."

I snorted. "And what exactly do you think is going on, Rose?"

"That you have been ignoring Edward at all costs because you think that he'll have some kind of problem that's going to scare the crap out of you or that he's still in love with old ex of his. Am I right?" she asked smirking at me again. I wanted to slap the smug look off her face so badly, but she was right.

I looked back down at the food on my plate and started to push it around and around with my fork, playing with it, as a sudden thought hit me. Alice never told me his name.

Edward. I like it.

Edward and Bella.

Bella and Edward.

I giggled into my bite of mashed potato, causing Renata to look at me like a crazy person. I giggled again, making Emmett chuckle with me this time. "What's funny, lil' sister?" I shook my head and threw my head back, letting a full-fledged laugh out this time. Emmett chuckled again and then started to really laugh with me.

"I don't know what's funny, Bella, but it's always about something good," he said in between fits of laughter, banging his fist on the table. Rosalie smacked him in the back of the head and glared at me across the table at the same time.

She pursed her lips at us. "Sometimes I don't know what I deserved to have to suffer through this."

"That's easy, Rosie," Em said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "You love us more than anything in the world." He laid a sloppy kiss on her cheek. She made a disgusted noise in the back of her throat and turned on him. I tuned their bickering out and subtly looked down the table at Edward.

I think that this was the first time that I had actually looked at him all night. He was beautiful with his bronze hair and sharp chiseled jaw. I wanted to lick that jaw. From here I could see strands of gold and dark brown in his hair and his eyes were the most mesmerizing shade of dark green. And, oh, his laugh. His laugh is the most enchanting thing I had ever heard in my entire life.

Lost in marveling over Edward's beautiful laugh I didn't even notice when the table was cleared and dessert – Kate's famous Christmas cheesecake – was served. It distracted me enough with its deliciousness until everyone slowly left the table one by one.

"So, you must be the infamous Bella Swan that everyone has been telling me about," a velvety voice said from my left. I froze, fork halfway to my mouth, and looked over at him. One side of his mouth was curved up into to a beautiful crooked grin and his emerald eyes shined with this mesmerizing spark in them, like he was looking at the very depths of my soul. I looked down as my blush overtook my face at the intensity of his gaze.

He chuckled and held out his hand. "Edward Cullen, Jasper's best friend from high school."

I smiled and took his hand. "Bella Swan, Alice's best friend from high school." A shiver ran up my spine at the spark when our skin touched. I gasped and looked up Edward. He had a bemused smile on his face as he stared down at our hands. He met my gaze and his green eyes captured me, unwilling to let me go.

As we looked into the other's eyes, I had the most curious feeling, like I had known him all my life. I felt so comfortable with him.

"Hey, you guys! Your mom says it's time to open presents, Bella," Alice shrieked in our ears, suddenly popping up in between us. We jumped apart from each other, snatching our hands back. Alice saw and gave me a smug smile as if to say, "I told you so." I rolled my eyes at her, knowing full well that she would want to talk later. She danced out of the room, the pleated skirt of her magenta dress swishing with her movements.

Edward stood, holding out his hand to me. "Ready?" he asked. I smiled, taking his hand and let him pull me from my seat. He squeezed my hand and the intense look in his eyes and the sudden coolness of my hand as he let it go gave me the most peculiar urge to kiss him. Like right on the lips. But I don't even really know him.

Edward Cullen was what my mother would call "the One". That is if you were going off of her former fascination with all things spiritual and cosmic. Think of the crap you would read in your horoscope and that's what Mom basically likes to tell you.

If you go here and stay away from this you'll find true love. Or something like that. Mom likes to think that when some guy touches you and you suddenly have a really intense feeling like you've lost something means that he's your soul mate.

Alice bought into that back in high school and never stopped believing in it. Seemed to work for her alright.

I sighed and scooped up my empty plate. "I just need to put this in the dishwasher and I'll be right there," I told him.

Edward gave me a crooked smile that made my heart beat just a little bit faster. "Okay. I'll save you a seat, Bella." I smiled in thanks and walked into the kitchen. Just as I put the dirty plate into the dishwasher, what Alice said washed over me. We were opening presents.

And all of my gifts were still out in my car.

I face palmed myself and grabbed my jacket from the kitchen chair where I left it earlier. I put it on and turned in a full circle looking for my boots, remembering that I took them off when I got into the house. Barely thinking about what I was doing I ran out of the kitchen and, just as I was about to get into the living room, I smacked into a hard, muscular chest.

I gasped as I stumbled back, almost falling back onto my ass. But before I could hit the floor a pair of strong arms wrapped around my waist and held me up.

"Are you okay, Bella?" Edward asked me, placing his hands on my hips. I couldn't answer that. Not truthfully, anyway. I was far more concerned with where we're standing. We were in the doorway in between the dining room and the living room where Mom had placed the mistletoe.

I placed my hands on Edward's shoulders and just as I was about to open my mouth Alice squealed, making us jump. "Oh, my God! You guys are under the mistletoe."

"Now you have to kiss. Oh, I have to get my camera!" Mom gushed from somewhere behind Alice. I didn't know where, I was too frozen in shock to look. "Charlie, where's my camera?"

"Renée, leave them alone," Dad admonished from somewhere nearby. The sound of high heels against hardwood floors let me know that Mom had ignored him and ran off to get her camera. She had the best intentions, but sometimes she ended up being more embarrassing than helpful.

Hesitantly, I looked up into Edward's eyes and was immediately trapped in his emerald eyes. They were dark, almost black, and lustful, like he had been craving a moment like this all night. Just looking into them made me forget everything around us and run a shiver up my spine.

He leaned his head closer to mine until our noses touched his intoxicating scent making my head swim as it washed over me. It was like nothing I had ever smelled before and I knew that it was all him. Slowly, he ran his hands up my back and over my shoulders, stopping once his hands reached my wrists. His touch burned through my coat, igniting a fire over my skin. Edward took me by my wrists and pulled my arms up to wrap around his neck and placed his hands back on my hips.

"Edward," I breathed, fisting one of my hands in his long bronze hair.

"Bella," he sighed against my lips. "Jazz and Alice have told me so many things about you over last month, Bella. They told me that you're kind and caring, and a fierce person who would protect someone she loves in a heartbeat. And that you're stubborn, too. I like that about you the most. You're not afraid to stand your ground."

He leaned in closer and placed his lips at my ear. "All I want for Christmas is you, Bella." I gasped as he crushed me against the length of his body and everything around us faded away. Vaguely, I could hear Emmett and Jazz chanting "Kiss her, kiss her" over and over again.

Whether it was from Em and Jazz's egging on or my own desire to give in to the powerful lure of Edward himself I didn't know, but I kissed him back just as fiercely when his lips touched mine. It was like I was in heaven. Our bodies fit perfectly together as if they were made for each other and our lips were unyielding against the others.

I gasped when we broke apart, my heart beating fast and my breath coming out in short pants. Edward's eyes were as dark as the green shirt he had on and I knew that he wanted to kiss me again just as I wanted to kiss him. But before either of us could move, everyone started to cheer, bringing us back to the present.

"Awww," Alice cooed, "that was so cute, you guys. A little graphic, but cute." Edward laughed, pulling me tight against him again.

He looked down at me and smiled that crooked smile of his. "I got what I wanted for Christmas, Miss Swan, but what about you. Did you get what you wanted?" I bit my bottom lip and nodded quickly as I felt my face flushed scarlet. He smiled again and whispered, "Well, what was it?"

"I got my first kiss under the mistletoe with a guy I like," I whispered back. He chuckled and touched his lips to mine again.

"And did you like it?" he asked, walking us into the living room. Before I could answer, Mom came running back into the room, her camera in hand.

"Wait, get back over there," she demanded, turning the camera on. "I want a picture of you two so that I can have a picture of your first kiss and show it at your wedding." We froze at her words as Alice and Rosalie started to squeal loudly behind us.

Emmett looked at her and deadpanned, "But, Mom, they already kissed." He completely ignored the wedding part. But what did I expect. This is Emmett we're talking about.

"I can see that, Emmett, but I still want my picture." She pushed us back into the door way and told us to stand the way were before. Edward and I did as we were told and he kissed me lightly and wrapped me tightly in his arms. And I knew from the look in his eyes that he wanted that wedding one day just like I did.

He rested his forehead against mine and stared into my eyes, dark green meeting chocolate brown. When the camera finally flashed, I knew that Edward Cullen was the person I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.

And I wanted to spend every Christmas from now until forever with him under the mistletoe.

So, that's it. Liked it? Hated it? Tell me in a review.