Chapter Two: Modern Romance
By the time I had made it to the diner, Charlie was already seated in our usual booth near the window with his after work beer in hand. He looked extremely tired from his long day. I quickly took the seat in front of him storing my bag beside me. I didn't even bother to glance at the menu. I had thrown my hair up in a messy ponytail figuring there was no salvaging it for the rest of the evening. While waiting for our "usuals" to arrive, we had the mandatory conversation that we had grown so accustomed to over the last month or so.
"Hey, I was going to go over to Edward's after this if that's cool. He's been gone all week and wanted to hang out for a while." I realized my words were more of a statement than a question of permission. The good thing about Charlie was he never doubted my judgment. I suppose he figured any teenager that could take care of my mother for an extended period of time had a pretty good head on her shoulders.
"Be home at a decent time. You work tomorrow?" He grumbled pushing his mashed potatoes around his plate.
"I actually switched with Mike because I knew Edward would be getting back from his trip. We were going to have a movie marathon at the house all day. I'll be back to make dinner though." I sipped generously on my straw quenching my thirst with the ice cold Coke.
"Well good. I invited someone over for dinner. I knew you wouldn't mind. He's a newbie down at the station. He lives alone, I figured we could show him a little hospitality," his voice informed me of his plans. In my head I began to make possible menus for our guest knowing I'd have to stop at the store some time between now and tomorrow night. We were always running low on groceries since I started at Outfitters.
"That's a great idea, dad. I'd be happy to." My eyes glanced at the nearest clock realizing my hour was running up quickly, and I still had to go home and change. "I better get going, I promised." I bit into one last fry before tugging my bag over my shoulder and hugging Charlie lightly. "I'll see you later." I muttered before walking hurriedly out to my truck.
At home I showered rapidly before tugging on a pair of sweats and a camisole. Before dashing out the door for the second time that day, I shrugged on a hooded sweatshirt and made my way to Edward's house already a half hour late. On the drive over, I prayed he wouldn't be too offended by my tardiness. He understood how rare it was for Charlie and I to spend time with one another. I think Charlie realized how much I cherished being with Edward. He had even commented on how my mood had changed drastically since when I first arrived in Forks what had seemed like ages ago. Whenever I thought about him, I couldn't do anything to keep my smile at bay.
Once my car was stowed safely in their rounded driveway, I went in through the front door without waiting for permission knowing it would be opened for me. The lower level showed no signs of life. All the lights were off and the stereo was unusually silent. I carefully made my way towards the staircase holding the railing with one hand.
"Edward?" I questioned into the darkness. At the top of the stairs, I noticed the sliver of light peeking out from the farthest door to the right. My heart began to thud in anticipation. I knew he could probably hear each and every one of my heart's flutters. He was probably laughing to himself that I still felt this way around him. I inched my way down the hall before placing my hand against the door noticing it was slightly cracked open. After taking a deep breath, I pushed it open revealing a bit more of the room each second before the door was completely ajar. I couldn't stop the gasp from escaping my lips. My hand automatically flew to my face to try to cover up the noise I had made. My eyes danced over the state of Edward's room. Instead of its usual sparseness, the majority of the center of the room was taken up by a large bed. Edward lounged on it lazily reading a worn manuscript atop the luxurious silk sheets. I noticed the corners of his lips tug upwards as he continued to read.
"Something wrong?" He questioned keeping his eyes on his reading.
"You didn't have to do this. What are you going to do with a bed, Edward?" I reminded him about the uselessness of a vampire possessing such lavish sleeping quarters considering he would never actually sleep in it.
"Before you start that, please have a seat." His fingertips softly patted the open space next to him beckoning me to join him. Slowly I crawled onto the large bed and laid my head against the copious amounts of pillows. I had never felt so relaxed in my entire life. This monstrosity put my bed back at home to shame. I had begun to realize how exhausted I was from my long day. Edward had leaned over stowing his book on his desk before turning back to me lying closer. He sighed resting his hands against his stone-like stomach. "Now do you understand the reason to my madness?" He questioned his voice almost purring it was so low. His stereo had been on quietly the entire time shuffling through his unlimited play list.
"This is nice," I spoke softly as I felt myself sink into the comfortable folds of the down comforter beneath the silk.
"Nice?" Before I could respond, he had rolled to rest above me with my hands pinned on either side of my head. I could feel his hips press down so lightly against mine. "I think it's a little better than nice. I was more looking for spectacular, unbelievable, magnificent." With each word, his face seemed to lower down closer and closer to mine. The fluttering of my heart had only increased at this point. I knew he could hear my excitement judging by the coy smile that was curling up on the corners of his lips. He was too good. And he knew it too. It was a wonder I could even keep up with his actions sometimes.
"I-I-I just mean, it's…unnecessary. You'll never be able to sleep in it, so why should you invest so much in something like this?" I stammered over my words trying to find a good excuse. As I spoke, his lips had made their way against my ear humming ever so slightly.
"I wasn't planning on using it for sleeping, Bella." My heart surged upwards in my chest skipping a beat. I wondered what it must have been like to hear how crazy he made me. I just wished there was a way to know that I made him feel the same way. Words had escaped me at this point as I laid with my lips parted slightly searching for something. It was rare that he was the one insinuating. Usually I was the one trying to convince him. His new confidence was doing a number on keeping my breathing even. I felt his lips brush over my jaw line tracing it to my chin before he began placing kisses upwards to my lips.
"I-I can't be home too late, Charlie-" I managed to mutter with his lips almost touching mine. They were so close I could feel the chill radiating off of them.
"I know," he interrupted before his lips finally met mine passionately. My mind began to fade as I let my body take control of my actions letting my fingers sift into his hair tugging slightly. Within seconds I had fully submitted to instinct as my eyes fluttered closed.
When I finally stirred, the room was completely dark except for the soft light from Edward's stereo. Slowly my mind and body reconnected as I realized I was resting against his cool chest. Gently I let my lips plant a series of kisses just below his collarbone. Although I knew my hair must have looked a mess, I didn't care as my body pressed tightly against his.
"What's the verdict?" He cooed softly brushing his fingertips over my elbow in a soft pattern. I knew the bed would do nothing but take up pointless space for him, but he had done a fine job of convincing me it was essential.
"I'm pretty sure it's mandatory." My voice came out breathlessly. I didn't want to tear myself away from him, but I knew that even as lenient as Charlie was, he wouldn't feel comfortable with me spending the night at Edward's. I sighed loudly debating whether or not it was worth an argument.
"Let's get you home, love," He answered my thoughts effortlessly. I slowly began to redress unenthusiastically trying to delay my departure for as long as possible. In the time it took me to slide on my shirt, he had already finished and was waiting patiently against the foot of the bed.
"Tell me again why I'm going home?" I mumbled slipping back into my sweats, which were thrown to the other end of his room. Once I had finished redressing, he scooped me into his arms pressing his lips against my temple soothing any worries I had. I couldn't help the soft coo that escaped my throat as he kept his lips against my pressure point. He knew exactly how to make me melt in his arms. I was in the passenger seat of my truck before I could mutter another word of protest.
Although it was hard for me to leave him at the end of the night, driving back to my house was one of my favorite parts of the evening. We always kept the windows rolled down allowing the summer air to flow throughout the bed of the truck. My ancient radio was set to oldies as we cruised the completely emptied streets. The streetlights flashed symbolizing the lateness of the hour. And Edward positioned just so one hand held the wheel, his other interlaced with mine. I always silently thanked the slowness of my engine compared to his Volvo. This way the ride was drawn out even longer. Even as my eyes drifted closed from the soothing motions of the truck, I always could tell by the turns he took when we had made it to our destination. I never dared opened my eyes once we had pulled into the driveway knowing that once we were safely stowed away, his fingertips would gently graze my cheek as he planted a soft kiss against my forehead.
"I'll see you tomorrow, darling," he whispered so quietly as I managed to make my way into the house only to crash in my bed minutes later. As I began to fade between consciousness and dreaming, I felt my blanket slowly being brought over my body. "I love you."
"I love you," I cooed half awake. I didn't have to open my eyes to know he was smiling as he silently slipped out of my window. I fell asleep to the sound of my wind chimes tinkling softly in the summer breeze.
****Sorry that an update has taken so long! I'm in the middle of a move! I hope you're still interested in where things are going with this!! Review! Let me know! I'd love to hear from you!****
Jenfur Lee
