Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of the characters.

A/N: I want to thank everyone who reviewed The Auction. I was not planning on continuing this story as it was always intended to be a one-shot. It was just my version of an alternate way for Edward to confess to Bella. But since a lot of people have been asking me to continue, I thought I'd give it a shot.

Thanks again to everyone who reviewed and liked my story. This next chapter is dedicated to Mamylove210 because she knew what I intended Bella's reaction to be.

Hope you like it!


EPOV

"What, Edward? What do you want to tell me?" Bella asked.

I can't believe I'm actually going through with this. What if I scare her? Of course you're going to scare her you fool. Any normal person would be frightened if they found out that vampires existed and lived amongst them. And this vampire was in love with her. She would surely run screaming for the hills.

But I needed to tell her. If I was going to be with her, she needed to know this about me. There would be no way of hiding it from her.

How do you break the news that you're a vampire gently? I couldn't just blurt it out, could I?

I felt her squeeze my arms in reassurance. She could obviously sense my unease and she was trying her best to comfort me. God, how I loved her! I was sure that this beautiful creature standing before me was heaven sent. She was placed on this earth to tempt me in every way imagineable. Overcoming the pull of her blood only proved to me that we were meant to be together.

I tightened my grip on her waist, careful not to hurt her, and began my confession. "Bella," I started, "I know that you're aware that I'm…..different."

She gave me a knowing smile. Obviously she knew. She had been asking me what I was since the day I saved her from certain death. And now I would tell her.

"Well, I want, no need, to be with you. And in order for that to happen, you need to know what I am. I've tried to stay away from you, but I can't. I'm just not strong enough." Her face brightened at my admission that I wanted to be with her. What man in their right mind wouldn't want to be with her? "But I'm afraid that what I have to tell you will scare you off and you won't want to be with me, and I don't know if I can survive without you." Just thinking about my life without her nearly brought me to my knees.

I brushed my fingers through her silky hair and she closed her eyes, humming in contentment. I let my fingers run through her hair to the very tips of her mahogany locks. Then once again I locked my arms around her waist. There was a very good chance that she would run away from me and I was going to take every opportunity to hold her until she did just that.

Opening her eyes she placed a hand on my ice-cold cheek and breathed, "I promise you Edward, nothing you could say would ever scare me off."

I smiled at her courage, but she had no idea what she was getting herself into. I hesitated for a moment, wondering if it would be best to not go through with this after all. It would most definitely be better for her if she didn't know what I was. Knowing my secret would bring all sorts of trouble down upon her, and I couldn't willingly do that to her. But I also realized that she was already in too deep with me, and I with her.

Her other hand found it's way to my remaining cheek and I was consumed with her warmth. Her touch felt utterly amazing and I closed my eyes, revelling in the feel of her skin on mine. It was like fire and ice. I loved it. I loved her.

"Please tell me. You can trust me, Edward," she whispered.

I opened my eyes and found nothing but sincerity in hers. I knew that I could trust her with my secret, but I just didn't want to bring her into the horrors of my world. What kind of man does that to the woman he loves? A monster, that's who, I thought.

I almost didn't go through with it. I very nearly pulled away, promising myself that I would let her live a normal, happy life, without me, but Alice's words echoed in my head.

"Now that you've touched each other's lives, no matter how brief a time it might have been, there's no going back to the way things used to be, for either of you."

The only other option would be to give her up completely, and I now knew that I could never do that. How could I even think that I could just watch her from the shadows? I knew without a doubt that there was no turning back now. Both of our lives were already forever changed by one another.

I felt like this was supposed to happen; me finding Bella. I truly believed that she was my other half. I had waited so long to find her, and there was no way I was going to give her up now.

I breathed in, savoring her scent, and then let out a huge sigh. I felt a weight suddenly lift from my shoulders. This was it, the moment of truth.

I am such a selfish creature.

"Bella, please know that I would never, ever hurt you in any way." I gazed into her eyes, pleading with my own for her to believe me.

She nodded in understanding. "Of course Edward." She said this like it was the most obvious thing in the world. I wondered if she would still believe that after finding out my horrible secret.

I dropped my eyes from hers, and moved my hands to her sides, allowing her the freedom to run away from me if she chose to do so.

"I just wanted to make sure you knew that. Because you may feel differently after what I am about to say." I looked into her eyes once again, waiting for the fear to show itself, but I never saw it. "Bella, you've seen my speed and my strength, you've noticed my eyes change colors, and I know you can feel how cold I am."

She nodded her head, not removing her hands from my face, and began stroking her thumbs gently against my cheeks. A smile began to form on her lips. I couldn't fathom what she might be thinking right this very second. I wished I could read her mind. It would make this so much easier. She was no doubt smiling because I was finally going to reveal to her what I was, but once she found out the truth, that smile would most definitely disappear.

"Well, these are just a few of the things that make me different, that make me what I am. I'm not like you, Bella. I haven't been for a long time." I paused, letting that sink in, before continuing. "I'm not human." I watched her face but her expression never changed. It was still serene. Perhaps I should elaborate on me being 'not human'.

Bracing myself, I took a huge breath, and told her. "Bella, I'm a vampire."

I closed my eyes as I said this, not wanting to see her reaction, and I loosened my hold on her, expecting her to recoil from my touch. She never did.

When I didn't feel her leave my arms I opened my eyes. She wore the most radiant smile that I had ever seen on her face. Maybe she didn't hear me correctly.

"Bella, did you hear what I said?" I asked warily. Perhaps she was having a nervous breakdown and this was some sort of delayed reaction.

She responded by shifting her body so that our chests were touching. Her warmth was like a blanket enveloping me and I couldn't help but snake my arms around her back, pulling her close again.

Her arms wound their way around my neck and she leaned up so that our faces were only an inch apart. "I heard you Edward, and I already knew." With a smile she said, "I've just been waiting for you to tell me."

I was speechless. Bella knew? How could she possibly know my secret?

For a long time I didn't know what to say. Eventually though, I managed to croak out a "Huh?" Very articulate, I know.

Bella giggled at my confusion and began pulling me further into the meadow - our meadow.

She spoke softly when she said, "Why don't we sit down and then I'll tell you everything."

I obliged and gracefully took a seat, pulling Bella down with me. We both sat Indian style in front of each other, our hands still clasped. I grabbed the other one, wanting to feel as much of her as possible.

I was finally able to find my voice. "Bella, how did you know?" I asked cautiously.

She cleared her throat and began. "Well, about a week ago I was up in La Push visiting a family friend." She paused, no doubt gauging my reaction.

I knew where this was going. The Quileutes were the only people who knew of our existence. I nodded for her to go on.

"My father and I were visiting Billy Black. He has a son around our - I mean - my age. His name is Jacob," she said quietly.

I nodded again, letting her know that I was following.

"Anyway, Jake and I took a walk on the beach and he thought it would be funny to scare me with some legends about his tribe. He knows how frightened I get sometimes."

I certainly didn't like the idea of Bella going for a walk with some boy, but that was not the issue at hand here. Besides, she wasn't mine then, in fact, she still isn't, yet.

I tried to keep my voice and face as calm as I could when I spoke. "Please, go on."

"He started telling me about an old legend involving his ancestors as werewolves, and these rival creatures called the 'cold ones'. The way he described them, reminded me of you."

"He wasn't supposed to tell you," I said, anger seeping into my voice now. I wasn't angry with her, but with that idiot boy for not being able to keep his damn mouth shut. Telling a human was a violation of the treaty.

Her eyes grew wide at my outburst. "Edward, please don't be angry with him. He's just a kid, and he doesn't think the stories are real. He was just having some fun." I visibly relaxed, and she noticed. She took this as an opportunity to lighten the mood a bit. "I mean, honestly, who would believe a story about vampires." I saw a tiny smile play at the corners of her lips and I couldn't help but chuckle a little.

We laughed together for a moment, the tension easing somewhat.

When our quiet laughter had subsided I spoke. "Then why did you believe him?" I countered. "If the idea of vampires is so ridiculous, how come you believed his stories?"

"Like I said, the way he described the 'cold ones' reminded me of you. So when I went home that night, I did some research online." She seemed a bit embarrassed at this confession.

"What did your research tell you?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I was genuinely curious now.

"Most of the research was silly folklore. None if it seemed to fit with you. But then I realized something." She inched herself closer to me so that our knees were touching.

"What?" I asked, truly intrigued now.

She shrugged. "I realized that I didn't care."

"You didn't care?" I asked incredulously.

She nodded. "Edward, it doesn't matter to me what you are."

I was ecstatic. She didn't care that I was a vampire. This knowledge made me the happiest I've been in a long time, but it also scared me to no end. Where was her sense of survival? It was bad enough that she didn't stay away from me in the beginning, like most human's instinct would tell them to do, but now that she actually knows the truth, she still chooses to be with me. She should be running away from me.

I know I should be nothing but happy about this. This was what I wanted after all. I wanted for her to be okay with everything, to look passed the monster that I am. So why were my emotions warring with each other?

"Bella, how could you not care what I am? I'm not human, I'm dead, and I shouldn't even exist. Yet here I am. I'm an abomination." I could hear my voice growing louder with my anger. I couldn't help it though. Did she realize what she was getting herself into?

She winced a little at the volume of my voice, but she never once moved away from me. Her grip on my hands only tightened, almost as if she were afraid I would run away. I would never run away from her. It is she who should leave me.

I squeezed back, letting her know that I was okay. "I'm sorry Bella. I shouldn't have raised my voice. That was uncalled for." I smiled at her. "Please forgive my rudeness."

She leaned over and cupped my cheek in her hand. "There's nothing to forgive Edward." She released her hand and I was saddened at the loss.

I decided to ask the question that has been on my mind from the beginning. "Aren't you afraid of me?" I was in awe at how comfortable she seemed around me, especially since she knew the truth.

She vehemently shook her head no. "Edward, I could never be afraid of you."

I sighed. I don't think she understands exactly how wrong it is for us to be together. "Bella, you should be afraid. I'm a natural predator and you are my prey. We shouldn't be together. This is wrong." My voice grew lower with each word that passed my lips, and I dropped my eyes from her gaze, ashamed at myself for allowing this to happen.

In an instant that I would have thought too quick for her, Bella was on her knees in front of me. She took both her hands and placed them on either side of my face, forcing me to look her in the eyes. "No, Edward, it's not. How can it be wrong when I feel this way when I'm around you? I can't imagine God bringing you into my life, only to make it so that we can't be together. He's not that cruel Edward," she spoke softly, almost reverently.

She continued, beating me into submission with her words. "I know you're afraid of hurting me, Edward, but I believe with every fiber of my being that you would never do that. I know you would never do that." I looked into her eyes and all I saw was hope. Hope that I would see that we could do this, that this could work out. Hope that I could believe our love was strong enough to carry us through anything. "If you wanted to kill me, you could have done it a long time ago."

I winced at her words. She had no idea how close I had actually been to doing just that.

"I know that you care about me, Edward. I knew even before today. If you didn't, you wouldn't have risked your secret to save my life." She began stroking my face and the gesture relaxed me instantly. I was slowly beginning to believe that our love could be strong enough.

"I'm not afraid of you." Her voice was confident but quiet when she spoke. "I'm only afraid of losing you."

I brought my hand up to her face and began tracing her features with my fingertips. She shuddered at the contact. Closing her eyes, she allowed me free reign.

I raised myself to my knees and continued my journey over her delectable skin. I skimmed her eyes, her nose, and finally her lips. I moved my hands to her neck and collarbone, but kept my eyes fixed on her luscious lips. I wanted so badly to lean in and close the gap between us, but I wasn't sure if I could do it. Being that close would surely be problematic.

My hands continued their descent over her shoulders and down her arms. Her breathing was becoming erratic now, and I knew that if I needed to breathe, mine would be doing the same.

I decided I would just do it. I would kiss her. If Bella had faith in me, then so could I.

"Bella," I breathed. Her eyes fluttered open, revealing her mesmerizing orbs to me. "I want to try something, so please, stay very still." She nodded. "Close your eyes for me, Bella," I whispered.

Her eyelids closed, and not only could I feel her heartbeat pick up through my hold on her wrists, but I could also hear it thundering loudly in her chest. She knew exactly what was coming and her body was reacting.

I carefully placed my hands on her waist, allowing myself a moment to brace myself. I took a deep breath in, adjusting myself once again to her heavenly scent. I savored the flavor and then released my breath. I could do this. But to be on the safe side, I decided to hold my breath.

Very slowly, I leaned in. When I was no more than a centimeter away, her lips parted and her breath fanned over me. The sensation sent tingles all over my body and in that moment I closed my eyes and let my lips touch hers.

She kept her promise and remained still. She did not move except for her lips working with mine. We took it slow, getting used to each other. Our lips moved together perfectly and I couldn't help but think that I should have done this a long time ago.


A/N: Some stuff you might recognize from the book but none of it is word for word. I really liked that line, "I'm only afraid of losing you." from the movie, so I thought I'd add that in here. You'll also notice that I changed the way Bella found out about Edward a bit. If I decide to continue with the story I'm going to have to change things to make it my own.

If it's not as good as the first chapter I apologize. I'm not sure where I want to go with this story, but I'm going to leave it up to you guys. I'm going to ask for votes at the end of the chapters. If I get at least 10 votes to continue after each chapter then I will gladly oblige.

Please read and review…and don't forget to vote. Thanks. I hope you liked it.