Chapter Two

Bella's POV

I heard the pounding of rain on the roof before I even managed to open my eyes. I squeezed them tight as I hugged myself closer to Edward's frozen body, snuggling my face into his icy chest. I felt his fingers lightly graze my cheek and I smiled. I loved waking up to him every morning. The times when he was away for hunting trips were so lonely and I never was able to sleep very well without him holding me. A thought dawned on me while I lay in Edward's arms. After we were married and I was changed, I would never have to be apart from him again, ever. The realisation made me break out in a wide grin as I opened my eyes to the cool, wet morning.

"Did you sleep well, love?" Edward's voice was soft and smooth as honey. I could get lost in the symphony of his beautiful voice without even trying. I sighed peacefully and nodded.

"Mm-hmm," I responded before surrendering to a huge yawn. I stretched my arms overhead and arched my back before looking into his glowing golden eyes.

"Pleasant dreams?" he asked lightly as he ran his fingers up and down the bare skin of my arm. The slight smile on his face and the knowing look in his eyes made me blush slightly as I ducked my head. I didn't remember having any dreams last night, but that didn't necessarily mean anything.

"You tell me. Was I talking a lot?" I asked as casually as I could. I knew that he had been listening to me talk in my sleep for some time now, but I had never really gotten over the embarrassment of having him hear my unguarded thoughts like that. It was one of the reasons I was glad he couldn't read my mind the way he could everyone else's. I liked my privacy and sometimes I knew my thoughts could get me into real trouble with him.

He chuckled lightly as he stroked my hair. "No more than usual. You did mention something about my piano though." He simply sounded curious, but I was mortified, having remembered what I had read the night before.

"Oh no, what did I say?" I groaned as I covered my face to try and hide my telltale blush from him. I knew it was useless as he could feel the heat from my face as well as see it.

"I couldn't make a lot of it out. You were mumbling incoherently for most of it. Between saying my name and telling me you love me there was something about watching me play, and that you hoped we wouldn't break the bench." He laughed lightly as I groaned again, my face taking on the shade of a stop sign.

Thank God you hid that book Isabella Swan or he wouldn't find this so humorous.

"So you don't remember your dream at all?" he asked as I sat up to look at the clock. Alice would be here in an hour and I knew I was going to need time to make myself 'presentable' by her standards.

"Um, no, not at all, sorry," I mumbled. In truth, I wasn't sorry at all. I was a terrible liar and I knew that if I had remembered that particular dream Edward would have dragged the details out of me, even if I were kicking and screaming. He hated that he couldn't read my mind. It drove him crazy never knowing what I was thinking. Once again I found myself thanking my lucky stars for whatever glitch in my brain kept my thoughts private.

"What are you doing with Alice today?" His question was innocent enough, but I blushed anyway, knowing what we would be shopping for. He quirked one eyebrow at my coloring cheeks and smiled slightly. "Nothing illegal I hope," he teased.

I breathed out a small laugh and shook my head. "No, nothing like that. We're um, going shopping."

He noticed my hesitation and sat up on my bed, a bemused expression spreading over his face. "You hate shopping Bella. What did you do? Loose a bet?"

"I would never bet against Alice. Actually, it was my idea," I said quickly, and then instantly regretted it. I knew what his next question was going to be before he even uttered the words.

"What are you-," he started to say when his phone rang on the nightstand.

"You'd better get that. I need a human minute anyway," I said as I grabbed my toiletry bag and dashed out of the room, not giving him a chance to argue. When I got to the bathroom I quickly closed the door. I considered locking it but then decided that would be a bad idea. Not only would it not keep Edward out if he really wanted to come in, but it might offend him if he thought I needed to lock the door to ensure I had privacy.

I took my time getting ready, not in any particular hurry to dodge the dozen or so questions I was sure Edward was ready to hurl at me the minute my little toes crossed the doorway. When I could delay no longer I sighed and slowly turned to go back to my room. I hadn't even been able to formulate a good cover story for what I would be shopping for.

I walked slowly back into my bedroom and saw that Edward was now standing next to my ancient computer, flipping threw one of the many wedding magazines that Alice continued to leave for me. She kept hoping they would inspire me to be more like joyful brides that adorned the glossy pages. Not likely Alice.

"Who was on the phone?" I asked as I started digging through my dresser for my usual jeans and t-shirt ensemble.

"Alice, of course," Edward chuckled. "She wanted me to remind you that she would be here at 10 o'clock sharp, so you should be ready." The way he stopped talking suddenly made me think that wasn't all Alice had called to tell him.

"Was that it?" I turned to take in his expression. He smirked and rolled his eyes.

"No, actually, she also wanted to tell me to mind my own business. That whatever you two were doing today was 'girl stuff' and that I should stop giving you the third degree."

I laughed as I pictured the vision Alice must have had with Edward firing questions at me left and right, and me not being able to convincingly lie to him. It was one of the many moments where I was thankful for my psychic soon-to-be sister. I picked up the jeans I had placed on my bed and looked meaningfully at Edward. I usually got changed in the bathroom, but I had been in such a hurry to escape his curiosity that I hadn't thought to bring my clothes. I started to consider the conversation we had last night. I wasn't going to get anywhere with Edward if we both continued to be so shy, and I wasn't prepared to give up hope that I could change his mind when it came to pushing the boundaries a little.

I took a deep breath and turned around, whipping my tank off and throwing it on the floor. I kept my back to him; the blush from being even partially unclothed in his presence was spreading from my face down my neck and covered my chest. I quickly pulled my shirt on over my head and then hesitated briefly before yanking off my sweats. I sat down on my bed and pulled on my jeans as fast as humanly possible, but tried to look like I wasn't rushing. By the time I was finished buttoning my pants my heart was clambering so wildly in my chest that I was afraid it might actually crack a rib. I sucked in a lungful of air and slowly turned around.

My room stood completely empty. My eyes darted around, searching for the one thing that was very obviously missing.

"Edward?" I called tentatively. When there was no immediate reply I felt my stomach drop into my shoes.

What did he do, jump out the window?

I started to turn towards my window when I saw movement come from my doorway. Edward slowly walked back into my room, his eyes trained on the floor.

"Are you dressed?" His voice was low, rough.

"Yes. Where did…why did you leave?" Even though I could clearly see that he hadn't really left, I couldn't make the sick feeling go away. I couldn't get a good read on him as he was still studying my floorboards.

"What were you doing?" he asked quietly, still not bothering to look at me.

This coarseness of his velvety voice sent a small thrill though me. He sounded strained, but not angry or upset. Those were both emotions I had witnessed on several occasions, but what was coloring his voice in that instant was an emotion I had only heard once before.

"I was changing clothes," I said as innocently as I could. I stared at him until he raised his eyes to meet mine. They were pitch black. I felt my heart stop before it began the thunder in my chest. He took two quick steps forward, capturing my face firmly between his hands and crushing his lips down onto mine. I reached up and grasped the collar of his shirt between my fingers as I slid my other hand around to the back of his neck. His hands released my face but only to wrap around my waist and yank me hard against his marble body. I gasped at the force he was using. It was completely out of character for him to not handle me as if I was made of glass, but I loved it. I felt hot desire race through my veins and a slight dampness between my thighs. A rumbling sound rose in Edward's chest and a low growl escaped his lips as they pushed roughly against my own.

I had to turn my face away, breaking the kiss, to suck in some much needed oxygen. He continued to assault my face and neck with open mouthed kisses, his breathing becoming more erratic. When I felt his tongue lightly graze the shell of my ear I couldn't contain the whimper that escaped my lips. I felt Edward's body tense and was immediately afraid he was going to stop, like he always did whenever things became too intense. But much to my surprise, I felt his hand snake up my back and his fingers twine into my hair. His mouth came down onto mine again and I felt his tongue forcefully press against my lips, parting them slightly. I opened them a little further and met his cold tongue with my warm one.

I couldn't contain the shiver of pleasure that travelled down my spine. I had never kissed Edward like this. It wasn't something he had ever allowed before. I didn't know what had changed since last night, but I wasn't about to question it. As the kiss deepened further I felt my hands fist in Edward's hair. My breathing had turned into fast, heavy pants. My heart was sprinting in my ribs so fast that I couldn't discern separate beats. When I felt Edward press himself against me a little more I reflexively pulled us hair. I heard and felt a low moan escape Edward's hungry mouth as he pushed his tongue further into mine. When a rush of warm dampness came between my thighs I heard a quiet growl rumble in his chest.

It completely took me off guard when Edward quickly broke our kiss and backed away from me quickly. His breathing was heavy and his body was trembling slightly. I took a step back and sat down on the edge of my bed as I tried to calm my frenzied heartbeat and slow my own breathing.

"I'm sorry Bella that was out of line" Edward apologised as he raked his hands through his hair.

"Why are you sorry? I'm not. That was…amazing Edward." I was still a little breathless but I put as much emotion as I could manage behind my words. I saw him frown a little and shake his head. He was still standing near my window and I started to worry he might leap out of it without any warning. I rose up off my bed and crossed the room, wrapping my arms around his waist and resting my chin on his chest so that I could look into his eyes. They were back to their normal blazing butterscotch, so deep and beautiful that it took my breath away.

"Did I hurt you at all?" The concern on his face and the worry in his voice made me want to roll my eyes. Leave it to Edward to be convinced that a little passion would result in my broken bones. Instead I did everything I could to reassure him in hopes that this would not be the last time he let himself go a little.

"Not in the least, I swear it." I grinned widely and squeezed him gently around the waist. "I rather enjoyed myself. Didn't you?"

He broke into my favourite crooked smile as he reached up and delicately stroked my cheek. Closing his eyes briefly he planted a gentle kiss on my forehead and wrapped his arms around me. As he buried his face in my hair I felt his cold breath on my neck and heard him sigh softly.

"Alice is here," he murmured against my skin, causing me to shiver lightly.

"I'm sure she can wait a few minutes." I tightened my hold around his body and felt him chuckle. He reach back and carefully pulled himself free of my grasp, stepping back to put some space between us. I pouted and crossed my arms over my chest. It hadn't escaped my notice that he never answered my question.

"You know she isn't that patient." Edward laughed as he motioned towards my door with a slight nod of his head.

Alice came bounding into the room with a brilliant smile lighting up her lovely face. She skipped up to me and planted a kiss on my cheek before turning to Edward and sticking out her tongue.

"I can be patient when I choose to be, Mr. Smarty-pants. But right now it's time for me to take Bella for our girls' day out." She grinned at me as she linked her arm through mine. She was so excited that I was willing going shopping with her that she was practically dancing. If only I could inspire that kind of excitement in Edward. I gave her a small smile and shook my head. Best to go now and get this over with.

"Say goodbye, Bella," she commanded sweetly as she nodded towards Edward.

Without letting go of my arm Alice pulled me the two steps closer to Edward so I could lean up and plant a chaste kiss on his lips.

"Goodbye, Bella," I joked, and smiled when that brought a little laugh out of Edward.

"Call me when you need me to rescue you from this little monster," Edward teased as he reached over to muss her hair. I nodded as she danced lithely out of his reach and pulled me out the door.

"Monster indeed! What does he know? You may actually start to enjoy our little outings." When I rolled my eyes and gave her my 'not likely' look her bell like laughter trilled through the house.

I opened my mouth to ask Alice where we were going when she starting rattling on about some new movie she was trying to convince Jasper to go see with her. I guessed that Edward must still be in hearing range, so I just nodded and gave short one word answers until we were in her yellow Porsche and headed out of Forks.

"So, I thought we could go to Port Angeles. There is a really nice lingerie shop there that has all the things you will need for both before and after the wedding." She must have noticed the shocked look on my face because she smiled knowingly and tried to contain her laughter as the blush crept over my cheeks.

"Oh come on Bella, it's not so bad that I know what you are planning is it? You aren't exactly a sexual savant now are you? I could help, you know, give you some ideas on how to loosen Edward's death grip on his precious rules." She eyes me speculatively to be sure I was still listening to her as I stared unseeingly out the windshield. While I found her words beyond embarrassing, I had to admit she was right. I had no idea how to go about getting Edward to relax his boundaries without humiliating myself. Then I remembered what he said last night about not wanting to do anything else until after we were married. I sighed.

"It won't do any good Alice. He isn't interested in trying anything new until the honeymoon. The idea seemed…unappealing to him," I mumbled miserably.

"Pfft," Alice waved her hand dismissively and rolled her eyes. "Oh please Bella. That boy is just as tempted by your body as you are by his. Believe me when I tell you that he is very interested in trying any and all of the things that you would be up for…well except the actual act of sex itself. There will be no budging him on that one I'm afraid."

As much as I wanted to believe her, I just couldn't. He was always the one that stopped everything, always the one who pulled away and said we had gone too far. And he never seemed to be effected by anything we did. She had to be mistaken. I just shook my head. Alice must have sensed my doubts because her next words came out much softer.

"He loves you so much Bella, and he does want you in the same ways that you want him. It's just harder for him to express that because he is still so influenced by his conservative upbringing." Alice reached over and gently patted my knee. I looked up and gave her a small smile. I knew he loved me, of course I did. I just had a hard time believing that he wanted me half as much as I wanted him. But if Alice was sure than I was willing to give it my best shot. I had always maintained that I would never be the one to bet against her.

I took a deep breath in and let it out slowly. "Alright Alice, what did you have in mind?"

She squealed and bounced around in her seat as she took the corners at mach 10. I didn't care how good their reflexes were, vampire driving scared the crap out of me. She didn't seem to notice that I clutched my seat for dear life as she started rattling off ideas left and right. I was having trouble keeping up.

"Well, the lingerie is a good start. Although it really doesn't seem to matter what you have on under your clothes, showing any kind of skin seems to push Edwards buttons well enough."

"Wait, what?" I gasped as I turned to look at her, my fear momentarily forgotten. Alice's face lit up in a mischievous grin as she giggled and winked at me. I groaned and covered my face with my hands as I realised that she must have seen what had taken place in my room earlier.

"Alice," I whined. "Could you please try not to see things like that? It's beyond embarrassing!"

"I wasn't trying to look, well…not really anyway. I was just making sure that I wouldn't be walking in on something. Edward is skittish enough without me interrupting your progress. Besides, this is something you are just going to have to get used to when you become like the rest of us. Bella, none of us have any privacy. Between Jasper's empathy, my visions, and Edward's constant mind reading, you just learn to ignore it the best you can and do what you want to anyway." She shrugged her tiny shoulders and turned her eyes back to the road. I knew what she was telling me was true. Edward and I had already had similar discussions when I would spend the night over at their house. I knew no one was looking or listening on purpose, it was just an unavoidable part of their lives, soon to be my life. When I looked back out my window I noticed that we had just passed into the city limits of Port Angeles. The usual hour long trip had taken less than 20 terrifying minutes. I hoped that I developed a new appreciate for speed in my new life.

We parked the car in front of a few boutiques and darted in to one called La Mystique as we narrowly avoided getting drenched by the rain. I stood gape mouthed in the entry of the store, my eyes wide as I took in all the frilly and delicately feminine articles of clothing that adorned every rack and shelf in sight. Alice gently nudged me forward with a giggle and guided me to the back of the store where the dressing rooms were.

"Um, Alice, don't I need to pick some things out first?" I asked as she shoved me behind a red velvet curtain, tugging it closed behind me.

"Trust me Bella. This will go so much faster if you just let me pick everything. And believe me when I tell you I have impeccable taste. I know exactly what you will need," she sang as she danced away from the curtain. I grumbled quietly under my breath as I tried not to think about what exactly Alice had seen me doing once I was decked out in satin and lace.

I spent the next hour or so trying on bra and panty sets, teddies, garter belts, and a few contraptions (later identified to me as corsets) that I need Alice's assistance with to take both on and off again. When I had settled on a few of the bras with matching panties and one of the teddies (which did wonderful things for my generally unimpressive bust), I started to get dressed again, thinking we were all finished. That was when lace, silk, and satin negligees starting making their way into my dressing room. There were several that were nearly sheer, leaving nothing to the imagination, and more than a few that were just embarrassing to look at. Why bother putting anything on at all if you could still see everything?

"Because the point of these is to entice the one you are wearing them for. They aren't meant to stay on too long," Alice answered my unspoken question. I must have thought about actually voicing it for her to have known.

I was pleasantly surprised by how several of them looked on me. I actually felt sexy, desirable even, when I twirled and twisted around in front of the floor length mirror. I chose several of the skimpy nighties, things that I had never pictured myself liking, let alone wearing, and quickly dressed to join Alice at the till.

I hadn't even bothered to look at the price tags on any of the garments, so when the shop assistant said the total was over $400 I just about had a stroke.

"Alice, I can't afford all this. I'll put most of back," I offered as I reached towards the piles of lace and satin folded neatly on the counter.

"Bella, don't you dare!" Alice admonished me her eyes widened in horror. "This is what I am here for. Besides, you need all this!" She quickly whipped out a sleek black credit card and eyed me with an expression that dared me to object.

We carried the bags out to her car and tossed them all into the trunk. The rain had eased up to a fine mist and there was a light cool breeze to carry the fresh scents of summer flowers and sea water. I stood by the passenger door for a moment and breathed in the cool clean air. I loved days like these. I remembered when I hated the rain, hated Forks, and the whole sodden Olympic peninsula. My perspective had changed somewhat when I realised that days like today meant that I could spend time with those I loved out in the open. And as long as I wasn't cold and wet, the constant damp weather really didn't bother me anymore.

"You are one strange human Bella Swan," Alice giggled as she watched my little display. I turned and beamed at her.

"I know," I said, grinning. "But you wouldn't have me any other way."

Alice laughed and nodded, then slid gracefully into her car. I followed suit, decidedly more awkward than she had been and braced myself for another hair raising driving experience. As I took my seat I felt a large lump under my butt. I reached under me and pulled out a thick black book with a multi-colored logo on the front. When I read the title I nearly dropped it on my feet.

"Alice, w-what the hell is this?" I spluttered as I looked at the substantial volume in my hands.

She rolled her eyes and snorted delicately. "What does it look like Bella? It's a book."

"Yes I can see that, but…are you serious? The 'Guide To Getting It On'? Are you freaking kidding me?" I realised I had started screeching, but I couldn't find it in me to turn the volume down a notch.

"Breathe Bella, just relax. I know that you have a lot of questions and that you are a bit shy when it comes to actually trying to ask them, even with me." She pouted, seemingly upset by the fact that I wasn't capable of talking girl talk and sex with her. I gritted my teeth and tried to speak as if I wasn't mortified and annoyed at her assumption that I needed a sex manual to spell things out for me.

"Alice, I appreciate what you are trying to do for me, really I do, but this is…" I was at a loss for words. I just shook my head.

"Take it easy Bella. This book is full of all sorts of useful information. It isn't just about sex. In fact, the act itself isn't the main focus of the book at all. It is so much more, and it's fun and easy to read. Just give it a go." Alice encouraged with a smile. "Read it and then if you have any questions I will be more than happy to talk you through anything you want or need to explore."

I sighed and nodded in defeat. I knew she was just trying to help the best way she knew how. And she was right about one thing. Asking questions seemed to be too difficult for me right now. I got all flustered and wasn't able to aptly articulate what I wanted to know without feeling my face go hot or thinking that I might be some sort of closet pervert. Maybe the book would be helpful after all.

"Thanks, Alice. And I will come ask you things when I get the courage." As I was speaking there was one question that popped into my mind that I was sure no book would hold the answer to. Instead of giving her abilities time to sense what I was about to say before I actually voiced the words I quickly blurted out my question.

"Actually Alice, there was something I wanted to know…specifically about vampires. Uh, is it a good thing when they um…growl?" I choked out as I squinted my eyes. I needed to work on my communication skills with Alice if I had any hope of talking to Edward about anything that could even relate to sex.

"You made him growl?" Alice looked over at me with genuine surprise.

"Um, yeah, is that good?"

"Yes Bella, that's very good!" she exclaimed as knowing grin spread across her lips. She looked at me from the corner of her eye and cocked her head slightly to the side.

"What did you do?"

I laughed a little in disbelief. "Nothing, I swear. We were kissing…I may have pulled his hair, but I do that a lot." I felt myself start to blush as I told Alice about some of the more intimate contact I had with her brother. She giggled and grinned widely at me.

"I knew you had it in you," she teased as she winked at me.

I giggled back and felt a little of my discomfort start to fade. It was nice to able to finally talk to someone about all of this. There was no way anyone else would understand, and even if they would, I wasn't sure I could trust anyone with my secrets as much as I could Alice.

"One other thing…his eyes were black. I've seen that before, but this was different. He wasn't thirsty, he was…" I tried to think of the right word to describe Edward's demeanour last night and this morning.

"Turned on?" Alice offered. I felt my eyes go wide at the possibility. She laughed again as she took in my expression. "Oh, Bella. Did it scare you? The black eyes and the growling?"

"No!" I said just a little too emphatically and then let out a breathy laugh. Alice laughed along with me, her bell-like tinkles setting me at ease despite the topic of conversation.

"That's good. Because it's something you need to become accustomed to if you plan on being with him at all." She giggled.

"Really?" I couldn't hide my pleasure or surprise as I turned to look at her little pixie face. She was all lit up as she nodded vigorously. I knew she was more than pleased that I was finally willing to talk to her about some of these things.

"It's a vampire thing. Our eyes always go dark whenever there is any intense primal emotion. Lust, anger, thirst, anything that would be driven by our inner animal, hence the growling that accompanies it." She explained lightly, not mincing her words at all. I greatly appreciated how candid she always was with me. I was so used to Edward trying to shelter me from anything that he considered to be unsavoury. It was nice to be treated like an equal. When my mind wandered to Edward I was suddenly filled with a sense of dread.

"Alice," I started to say, my panic evident in my voice.

"Don't worry Bella, I have become an expert at keeping him out of my head. I promise not the reveal anything that you and I ever discuss or do. It's none of his business anyway!" Her laughter trilled around me as I relaxed back into my seat. I looked down at the book in my lap and hesitantly stroked my fingers over the cover. Well, one thing was certain, I was going to need a better hiding place, or my bed wouldn't be a very comfortable place to sleep for the next few weeks.