Hi everyone, hope you enjoy this chapter! Thank you to all of you who continue to read, review, put me on your alert list and just cheer me on with your great words.
We all need to give Hope4more and My Bella huge props for this chapter. A big part of it would have been a disaster if not for their help. I thank you both for enduring the many rewrites of that certain part. I couldn't have done it without your help.
If you would like to see Edward's tattoo that is revealed in this chapter, the lovely Lindz over at Robmani Porn has made me a yummy pic of our guy with his tattoo bared for us all to see.
Once again I sadly must say that Miss Meyer owns them all.
Can you still see the heart of me
All my agony fades away
When you hold me in your embrace
Don't tear me down
For all i need
Make my heart a better place
Give me something I can believe
Don't turn it down
What's left of me
Make my heart a better place
I've tried many times but nothing was real
Make it fade away
Don't break me down
I want to believe that this is for real
Save me from my fear
Don't turn me down
Don't tear me down
For all i need
Make my heart a better place
All I Need by Within Temptation
~*EPOV*~
June 20, 2010
I woke up with a smile on my face as I anticipated the day that lay ahead of me. Pulling myself out of bed, I took a quick shower and once dressed made my way downstairs to the kitchen. Bella had spent the evening with her grandmother yesterday, so I had taken the first round of watch and then Jasper had come in to relieve me sometime around two this morning so I could get some sleep.
Knowing that Jasper would still be in the spare bedroom where we had all the monitoring equipment set up, I grabbed a tray and piled a couple of cups of coffee and some fruit and muffins on it and made my way back upstairs to see how he had faired during the night.
I nudged the partially open door with my foot to allow me entrance into the room. Hearing me enter, Jasper turned and looked grateful for the simple breakfast I had brought with me.
"Good morning partner. I trust the rest of the night was uneventful?" I inquired as I sat down placing the tray on the small table in the room.
"Yeah, your girl is safe and sound," he quipped.
"Come on, Jazz, I'd hardly call her my girl. I've only known her a few weeks and who knows what will happen once we are both back to our real lives." I knew what I wanted to happen, but Bella and I hadn't discussed whether or not we would continue this thing we had between us once we were back in Seattle.
"You're a bigger fool than I thought if you don't see how you're falling for her man," he chastised me.
"Look, I admit I have feelings for her, but falling for her, don't you think it's a bit premature for that?" I asked the whole time knowing that he was one hundred percent right. I walked over to the window to stare in the direction of her house. At least this way he couldn't see the smile that graced my face every time I thought about her.
Jasper got up and walked across the room to where I was standing, staring out the window. "Edward, why are you denying the obvious? I haven't seen you so wrapped up in a girl since basic training. Ever since that night you bumped into her on the beach, you've spent nearly every waking moment with her. Hey, man, I'm not trying to criticize you for it; hell I think it's great. You've been the odd man out for a while now. But if you think you can get away without telling her why you're here, you're crazy."
"You think I haven't thought about that?" I grumbled, turning to glare at him and silently telling him to shut the hell up. Which of course he didn't do.
"Then tell her. Before it's too late and you regret it."
"That won't happen."
"What won't happen? That you won't tell her or that you won't regret not telling her?" he retorted as he shook his head in disbelief at me.
"She won't flip out over it if she finds out. I mean, fuck she hasn't even told me the real reason she's here. That some madman is stalking her." I was getting pissed now; he needed to let this shit go.
"You keep telling yourself that," he replied solemnly and left the room leaving me to my own thoughts.
Thinking more and more about what Jasper had said, I decided it was time to call Emmett. I needed to know if he had any clue how much longer we'd be here. Digging my phone out of my pocket, I scrolled through my contacts list until I found his number. Hitting the send button, I began pacing the floor as I waited for him to answer.
"McCarty here," was his curt reply.
"Hey, McCarty, this is Edward Cullen," I stated as I tugged on the ends of my hair.
"Hey, man, is everything ok over there?"
"Yeah, we got it covered over here. But I do have a question for ya," I informed him.
"Ok, shoot. What do you need?'
"I realized when we agreed to take this job, you said it could be long term, but I need a time frame of how much longer we are going to be here. Jasper is getting married soon, and I do have a business back in Seattle to run. It's being handled for now, but I can't stay here forever." I didn't dare tell him that I had fallen head over heels for his agent and I wanted to know how much longer Bella and I had to linger in this perfect little bubble we were living in.
My feelings for Bella made me again question Jazz's insistence that I tell her why I was here. Did she really have to know? Would Emmett tell her that he had sent someone to watch her? She wouldn't be happy about it, so maybe he'd keep it to himself. Then it also occurred to me that I didn't want a lie hanging over us waiting to be found out and possibly ruin our relationship. One thing I had learned in my time here is that Bella was very independent and was certain she could take care of herself. I didn't doubt that she could handle herself extremely well. She wouldn't be with the bureau if she couldn't. However, that didn't mean she could do it on her own all the time.
"I don't have an exact time frame, but it won't be much longer. I won't be able to explain her absence much longer. And that's just the beginning of the shit I'm being forced to deal with," Emmett said with exasperation in his voice.
"What's going on, Emmett?" I got the distinct impression he was trying to avoid telling me something. Something big.
"A couple of days after you left, a package arrived here at the office for Bella."
"What kind of a package? Was it from that nut-job?" I had a sick feeling in my gut that what he had to say wasn't going to be good.
"Ugh…yeah… it was," he groaned into the phone.
"What aren't you telling me, Emmett? If you expect me to do my job, I have to know what the hell is going on," I growled through clenched teeth, while trying to keep my cool. This was the woman I loved he was fucking talking about. Love? Where the hell did that come from Cullen? I am so screwed. Fucking Jasper was right.
My hand was balled in a tight fist and my heart was pounding in a deafening thud in my head as I waited for him to fill me in.
"It's like this. He doesn't know where she is yet, but he's looking and according to him he's close to figuring it out."
"And you know this how? Did the fucker just send you a note telling you this?" I had thought this situation was fucked up before I was involved with Bella. But now…now it just made me sick. This scumbag would have to go through me to get to her. Keeping her safe was no longer just a job to me. It had become essential to me and I'd do it if it was the last fucking thing I did.
"Yeah. That's exactly what he did." Again the cold tone to his voice told me he was dead serious.
"So your telling me that this nut-job just outright sends you hard core evidence that he's looking for her and you can't do shit about it? That's fucked up, man."
Well first of all. We haven't been able to trace anything to him. He didn't sign his name to the note, but he used the same method to contact me as he has Bella. His calling card of sorts."
"Then explain something to me if you can," I requested. "Is it common for nut-jobs, phsycos, whatever you want to call them to stalk the person or people who played a part in locking them up? What's his deal? Why is he so obsessed with her?" I needed to understand why this guy was doing this shit. I felt like the more I knew the better I could keep Bella safe.
"It's a bit complicated," was his answer.
"I'm not going anywhere anytime soon form what your telling me, so give me something, anything. You want me to do my job, then give me all the tools to do it," I demanded.
"Look, there are rules and restrictions and confidentiality laws that prevent me from telling you specifics. But what I can tell you is that it is much more common than you might think. James Reynolds' behaviors are are quite common for his mental state and what he's been convicted of. All you need to be worried about is not letting anyone get to her. Let me worry about the rest.
"I'm doing that. Anyone trying to get to her will have to go through Jasper and I first," I assured him.
"That's good to know, I only brought you into this because I knew I could trust you to do the job," he told me. It was clear the whole situation was even more frustrating that he had anticipated it would be.
Still having questions I asked, "I still need to know, what do we do now? How long do you intend to keep her here? You have any kind of a time frame? As I said before I have a business to run; it's being handled right now by my other employees. However, my sister is getting married in a few weeks. Her future husband is here with me and I'm the best man. Some alternate arrangements might have to be worked out temporarily. I need time to make those arrangements." The thought of having to leave Bella here for any amount of time hit me like a kick in the gut. I had a feeling there was a lot that Emmett was holding back from me and it was going to eat at me until I knew what it was.
I heard Emmett let out a long gust of air before he answered me. I could visualize him pacing his office floor much like he had done mine a few weeks earlier. "Not much longer and I won't have any choice but to bring her back. I want to try to keep her uninvolved in the investigation, but I got the head honchos breathing down my neck. As much as I don't want to I may have to let her in on it. I'll let you know as soon as I do. My guess is a couple of weeks tops."
We spoke for a few more minutes. He reminded me to be extra alert. I didn't like it but I was going to have to figure out a way to start carrying my gun when I was out with Bella. Didn't like it at all. If she somehow saw it or found it, I would have to tell her everything, there'd be no way around it then.
I had just dropped my phone on the table when Jasper returned. Picking it back up, I raised my hand currently holding my phone up and waved it at him to indicate I had just been on it, knowing he'd take the bait.
"Who was that? Bella?" he teased.
"No," I said a bit harshly. Everything Emmett had said still fresh in my head.
"You're looking a little pale, is everything ok? If it wasn't her then who was it?" he asked.
"It was Emmett. He said a couple more weeks should do it." I stated plainly as I stared at the phone in my hand.
"Shit, that's great news; I know you've had a great time with Bella, but I'm ready to go home to your sister. She's getting pissier by the day." He must have finally picked up on my sullen mood because he then asked, "Why don't you seem as excited as I think you should be? What am I missing?"
I filled Jasper in on everything Emmett had told me. He was just as concerned as I was.
"You're going to have to start packing heat when you are with her. That dude is seriously whacked in the head," he ranted.
"Yeah, I know. I already thought about that. I don't know how the fuck I am going to explain a gun to Bella." I huffed, aggravated with the new developments.
"And to think we thought this would be a simple job and we'd go home and be done with it. What are ya gonna do now?" Jasper asked.
"As far as I'm concerned I only have one option. I have to come clean, tell her everything, and then do everything within my power to make sure she's safe. I can't let anything happen to her Jazz. It's just not an option. It never was, but even more so now."
He nodded, letting me know that he knew exactly what I was saying. He knew I was admitting just how deep my feelings for her were and that I'd do whatever it took to protect her.
Taking a quick peek at my watch I noticed that the morning was long gone and I needed to get ready to head over to have lunch with Bella and her grandmother. I gave Jasper all the specifics on the marina we'd be renting the boat out of and a general idea of the area we'd be at out on the water. Once we were done with that, I left to go take another shower in hopes that the hot water would wash away some of the stress of the morning. First though, I unzipped the bag where I had a blanket, my swim trunks and some beach towels thrown into for our outing this afternoon. Picking up my gun off the nightstand, I checked to make sure it was loaded and the safety was on before placing it in the bag. Along with my gun and I added an extra clip to the mix. Zipping the bag back up my thoughts turned back to what I needed to tell Bella. I wasn't sure how she'd take the news or how I had fallen so hard so fast for her. But one thing I knew was I wouldn't be able to live with myself if anything happened to her.
~*BPOV*~
It had been almost two weeks since my first date with Edward. I had spent most all of my free time with him. We had been on several dates, but had also spent a great deal of our time hanging out on the beach, swimming in the ocean and just being together. However, out of all the things we had done, I would have to admit that my favorite thing to do with Edward was kiss. His lips were so soft and warm, molding perfectly with mine every time he kissed me. There were times when I felt like I could never get enough of him kissing me and it didn't take long for me to realize the more time we spent together, the harder I found myself falling for him.
On our first day together after that first date, we went swimming and I got quite the surprise when Edward pulled his shirt off. As his arms rose in the air and the shirt went with them I was offered a view of one of the sexiest things I had ever seen. Not only was I afforded the sight of his bare chest, but Edward had a tattoo. This was not your everyday ordinary tattoo. Etched onto his skin was the image of a king cobra snake coiled and ready to strike. It was probably close to a foot long and maybe half that in width. The tattoo ran along the expanse of his sturdy ribcage. The body of the snake was black, but the head of the snake boasted piercing green eyes that reminded me so much of Edward's. As his abs moved, rising and falling with each inhale and exhale of air, it almost appeared as if the snake was moving, causing its eyes to give me the sensation as if it were watching me, peering right into the very depths of my soul. I was completely mesmerized and had to fight the urge to reach out and run my fingers along the intricate design.
I shivered and it brought his attention to the fact I'd been staring at him. He then asked if it bothered me. I told him no and asked why he had gotten it. He had explained that when he was in the army, once he had been assigned to his Special Forces team all the guys went out and got tattoos of their unit's call name when they completed their training. It was a tradition and an extreme bonding ritual amongst the team members and his team's name was obviously the Cobras.
Since that day we had gone swimming many times and it affected me the same each time I watched him remove his shirt. I think he knew it too.
Swimming and hanging on the beach wasn't all we had done. When we went out we would take turns picking what we wanted to do. On one of Edward's days to choose, he decided we would take a tour of the old ruins of the Imperial Roman Villas as well as some of the towers and forts that remained on the island.
We spent the day seeing sights that had once been inhabited by ancient rulers such as Tiberius and Augustus. At one ancient villa, we saw a watchtower that had been erected sometime in the Middle Ages on an old abandoned viewpoint, which looked out over the Gulf of Naples and was believed to have been deserted following the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius.
Edward was particularly fascinated by the Orrico Fort. This didn't surprise me given his military background. The fort was located some thirty meters above sea level and was a semicircular structure with walls that were two meters thick. That meant converted from meters to feet, the wall was roughly six and a half feet thick. The fort had two cannons facing in the southwest and the northwest directions that would defend it from any vessel attempting to approach the island during ancient battles.
We saw a couple of other forts that day as well as the lighthouse of Punta Carena. The lighthouse built about a hundred and fifty years ago, was named after the westernmost point of the island and was said to be the second most powerful lighthouse in Italy and a very important point of reference for navigation.
On another outing we went to what turned out to be one of my favorite places to visit. The Grotta Azzurra, which was also known as Capri's Blue Grotto. You had to enter the cave while on small rowing boats with a maximum capacity for two or three passengers. I was a little freaked out when we were told to lie down while passing in to the small opening in the cave. The boatman even had to do this and pulled the boat into the cave by using a chain attached to the wall. Once inside though, the intense blue tones and magical silvery lights that emanate from objects immersed in the water were absolutely gorgeous. I had never seen such an intense or more beautiful shade of turquoise in all my life.
However, even with all the time I had spent with Edward I was still extremely nervous for today. Edward was coming to have lunch with Nana and I before he took me out on the boat he rented. The two of them had had brief encounters when he would arrive to pick me up, but had not spent any real time together.
When I heard the doorbell chime, I rushed to answer it, while Nana placed the last of the food on the table. Stepping in the door, he handed me a beautiful bouquet of flowers as he placed a soft kiss on my lips. The assortment of flowers contained dark pink Dahlias, lavender and orange roses, with sprigs of baby's breath and greenery intertwined amongst the flowers. The bright colors were very striking against each other and it reminded me that I had never taken the time to look up the meaning of the first rose he had given me.
I thanked him after I inhaled their fragrant scent and slipped my hand in his as I led him into the kitchen. Upon entering the room, I gestured with my hand towards grandmother and said, "Nana, you remember Edward," she nodded before I then said, "Edward, this is my grandmother Carmen Bacherelli."
"Good afternoon, ma'am, thank you so much for inviting me to lunch," he replied, as he charmed her by placing a quick kiss on her hand she had held out for him to shake. It made me wonder if he had such a profound effect on every woman he came into contact with. Hell everywhere we went he was constantly being ogled to the point that it was obviously blatant and ridiculous. He however seemed to be totally unaware of it all. Whether he was truly unaware or if he just pretended, I wasn't sure.
Nana motioned towards the table and told him to have a seat as I stood at the counter arranging the flowers in an empty vase I retrieved from the china cabinet.
"Can I get you something to drink? Some lemonade or glass of iced tea?" Nana asked him.
"Some lemonade would be nice, ma'am."
"Lemonade it is then," she said as she grabbed three glasses form the shelf and proceeded to pour the drinks.
On her way back to the table she stopped and patted him on the shoulder as she set his glass down in front of him and said, " I appreciate your manners, young man, but please feel free to call me Carmen or even Nana if that would be more comfortable for you." He smiled at her and nodded his head.
I knew I was smiling bright enough to light the night sky as I carried the vase full of flowers over to the table and set them in the center. As I sat down in the chair next to Edward, I realized that Nana had given him her seal of approval by giving him leave to call her by such a personal name.
While enjoying our lunch of caprese salad and prosciutto sandwiches, Edward and Nana got to know each other better as Nana grilled him with her version of twenty questions.
However, I wanted to crawl under the table and hide there from utter embarrassment at her last question.
"Do you have a girlfriend waiting for you back home, Edward?" she asked, causing Edward to cough and nearly choke on his drink.
As Nana's gaze stayed glued on Edward awaiting his answer, he turned his gaze to me. Flashing a rather amused smile while his eyes remained locked on mine he responded to her saying, "No, ma'am I don't. But I do hope to have one when someone I recently met here returns to Seattle. It seems that by some miracle we both live in the same city."
His statement made my heart warm with the knowledge that he wanted to continue to see me once we both returned to Seattle. I had worked so hard to guard my feelings and thus my heart over the years. Especially since the last time I opened it up to a man it had been broken. And here was this man that I had only known a few weeks tearing down all my defenses. I was falling in love with him and I felt as though there was nothing I could do to stop it even if I wanted to.
The way he made me feel was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. Every tingling sensation I felt, every skipped beat of my heart. For the first time in my life these feelings were all mine, not what I was sensing from someone else and I found it thrilling. The chemistry between us was so thick you could cut it with a chainsaw and I found myself craving more.
It dawned on me I had no real idea when I might be going home. I knew that Emmett couldn't keep me banished from work for much longer. I had been here more than a month now. But in realizing this I knew I was going to have to come clean with Edward about the true work related reason I was here. It was going to have to be soon too. The reality of the situation was that Emmett could call tomorrow and tell me to come home or I could end up being here after Edward left. If either happened, he would want some answers and would probably be upset if I kept it from him until the last minute.
Once we had finished eating, I tried to help Nana cleanup, but she shooed me away and told me to go enjoy my afternoon with Edward. She walked with us to the front door and as she hugged me she told me not to be too late tonight. She then whispered in my ear, "I think he's a keeper."
I nodded letting her know that I thought so too and kissed her cheek while telling her I wouldn't be late and if I was I would call. She then told Edward to take care of me and shoved us out the door.
A little over an hour and a half later, Edward and I were on our way out to sea. While he had been filling out the paperwork required to rent the boat for the afternoon, I was very surprised to find out that he had an international license so we were able to take the boat out ourselves and wouldn't need any crew.
As soon as Edward had changed into his swim trunks, he started the boat. Pulling out of the Marina we made our way out into the Tyrrhenian Sea on the north side of the island. I started to sit down in the seat behind where Edward stood driving the boat, but he had other ideas and grabbed my hand pulling me up to stand next to him. Soon we were alone on the open seas with the sun shining brightly and the wind blowing through our hair. It felt amazing.
I felt the boat's speed begin to slow and turned to look up at Edward to question him as to why. Before I could get the words out, he tugged me gently so that I was now standing trapped between his arms in front of the wheel.
He took my hands and placed them where the ten and two spots would be on a clock and leaned forward to speak with his lips right next to my ear, "You're gonna drive now."
I pulled my hands from the wheel and tried to inch away but he would have no part of it. He must have seen the look of hesitancy on my face because he instantly wrapped one arm around my waist and urged me forward keeping one hand over one of mine on the wheel. It was clear he wasn't going to take no for an answer. "I promise it's easy as driving a car," he murmured to me while placing a lingering kiss on my bare shoulder.
I wasn't sure if it was nerves over driving the boat or him being so close to me, but soon I began to relax and see that he was right that it actually was quite easy. Of course then it was hard to focus on steering the boat with his body pressed so closely up against mine.
After a short time had passed, he let go of my waist and placed his other hand back on the wheel and turned it to the right. Apparently he had done his homework and knew exactly where he wanted to go. He gently eased the throttled forward until the boat was gliding slowly along a cove. He shut the engine down and pushed the release for the anchor when we were about twenty feet from the cove wall. The dark gray color of the cliffs and rock formations above and below the water level gave the water a dark almost navy blue color. You could see other boats off on the horizon, but none of them were close enough to appear bigger than a toy floating in a pool.
Once the clanking of the anchor chain stopped Edward turned to me and flashing me his sexy smile said, "Wanna swim?"
"Out here?" I asked.
"Sure, you can't tell me you don't know how 'cause we've been swimming several times over the last couple of weeks."
"Um, I've just never swam out in the open water before," I stated nervously.
He leaned forward and pressed his mouth against mine and kissed me. My eyes fluttered shut and I melted against him relishing in the softness of his lips as they moved against mine. He could probably convince me to jump off one of the many cliffs around here if he kept kissing me like that. I was completely entranced and unaware of anything outside the two of us. As he slowly broke the kiss, he whispered, "Bella, we don't have to swim if you don't want to."
"No it's fine," I told him as I chewed on my bottom lip, trying to hide the fact that I was still slightly nervous about the open water. Damn Jaws movies. After all I dealt with serial killers. I could do this.
However, as soon as I watched him pull his t-shirt off and toe his shoes off, I instantly felt a heated flush creep up my neck and I could think of very little else other than getting in the water with him. Once I had my tank top and shorts I'd been wearing over my suit off, we walked to the back of the boat, him jumping in first with me following right after.
After being in the water for a few minutes, I realized how silly I'd been to be worried about it. There was just something so completely freeing about it. We swam and chased each other under the water, stopping to wrap around each other and kiss from time to time. We continued to do this until we were tired and ready to get out.
Edward helped me back up onto the boat before hoisting himself up as well. After he got our towels out of the bag he brought and we were through drying off a bit he asked if I was hungry. Before I could answer my stomach growled causing us both to laugh.
"I believe that is a yes, Ms. Swan." He kissed me on the cheek real quick and went to go get our lunch from the boats galley.
Once Edward returned, we took the basket full of goodies and the blanket he had brought up to the front deck of the boat. I spread the blanket out and we sat next to each other as he pulled our lunch from the basket. We enjoyed the various cheeses and fruits he brought along. I had just finished eating the wedge of cheese he had fed me when he pulled a pair of mangos out of the basket and offered me some. Who would have thought that being hand fed fruit and cheese could be such a turn on, but the second he leaned forward and kissed a few drops of mango juice from my lips, I thought I'd died and gone to heaven.
I was slowing starting to relax a bit and accept the fact that I was unable to read him and on some level found that I might even like it. He was so sweet and caring and I felt so safe when I was with him. It was like the rest of the world around us failed to exist. It was hard for me to let go completely, but I hoped that over time maybe I could. That for once in my life I could completely trust in what I saw and what my heart was telling me and not my head.
We continued to playfully feed each other and laughed at our bad aim when tossing grapes into each other's mouths. At one point he teased me saying, "I hope your aim is better when you have to shoot a gun, Ms. FBI agent." I assured him I was an excellent marksman and that once we were both back in Seattle I'd show him.
Done eating we had just started to clean up and were going to go for another swim, when we were suddenly surprised by a huge gust of wind that seemed to come out of nowhere. It nearly knocked me over and caused Edward to grab a hold of me to keep from falling as the boat started to rock back and forth from the increased wave activity in the water.
Turning around and looking out to sea, we could see dark ominous clouds that appeared to be a storm rolling in. We quickly finished gathering up our stuff and headed back below deck. When we got there I noticed my cellphone chirping from a missed call while I put my tank top and shorts back on over my swimsuit.
Edward must have noticed the look of worry on my face, and asked, "What's wrong? Who was the call from?"
"It was Nana," I replied already dialing the number to call her. "Shit, shit, shit," I cursed causing Edward to look at me slightly puzzled.
"What?" he asked as we made our way back to the cockpit of the boat.
I explained to him that I couldn't get a signal to make the call and how I was worried because Nana wouldn't call unless it was absolutely necessary..
"I'm sure we'll be able to reach her as soon as we are back on land," he told me to ease my worries.
The seas were getting pretty rough real fast so Edward was anxious to get the anchor raised and the boat started. The storm was moving much faster than we thought.
It took a little longer to get back to the marina than it had to leave due to the change in the weather conditions. It had begun raining hard and the winds and amount of lightning were increasing rapidly, making the seas quite rough. I think Edward could tell that I was freaking out just a little since I clung to him until the boat was safely docked.
Back at the marina we ran until we were inside the boat rental building. While Edward checked the boat in, I dug out my phone and called Nana.
I stood near a window watching the storm rage outside while tapping my foot nervously as I waited for Nana to answer the phone. Finally after several rings she picked up.
"Bella ,dear, are you still out on the water?"
"No, we're back at the marina returning the boat. Why?"
"Good, I am glad you are not still out there. The weather reports are encouraging everyone on that side of the island to take cover and wait it out. They said no one should be out unless it's an absolute necessity."
"Wow. It must be bad storm," I told her.
"It is. They said it could continue for a while depending on how fast it moves once it hits land." I could hear how concerned she was and I knew she would worry until she knew we were someplace safe.
"I'm going to go fill Edward in and I will let you know where we are once we figure it out. I think this building we are in now is way too close to the water to be safe."
"Be careful, dear," she warned.
"We will, Nana, I promise. I'll let you know where we are as soon as we get there."
After we exchanged I love you's I disconnected the call and then walked over towards where Edward was talking with the marina worker. "Nana says the storm is really bad. They are urging everyone on this side of the island to seek shelter and stay there. She said it will be at least a couple of hours if not longer before it blows over this end of the island."
"Well then we need to find someplace. If it's moving across the island it will be on our tails the whole time heading back to the other side. I saw several hotels up the main road on our way here. We'll head up there and wait it out."
"Ok, that sounds good. Let's go," I urged.
We drove west on the main drive to the area he had seen the hotels. The storm was intensifying quickly so Edward pulled into the lot of the first hotel we came upon.
Out of the car and in the driving rain, Edward grabbed my hand and we ran to the doors of the structure as fast as we could, leaving everything except our cellphones behind. We were absolutely drenched by the time we reached the lobby. Since we were wet we stayed close to the doors watching the rain continue to come down. At times it even appeared to be falling horizontally.
It was only a short time later when I started freezing in the air conditioned lobby. I began rubbing my arms when I felt myself shivering. Being dripping wet and standing in chilled air was not a good combination. We were also receiving several questioning looks from the hotel staff.
Next thing I knew, Edward was pulling me across the hotel lobby while saying, "Come on, I've got an idea."
I followed him until we reached the hotel gift shop. Inside Edward purchased a couple of souvenir t-shirts and shorts. He then took my hand again and led me to the front reception desk. "Edward, what are you doing?" I asked.
"You'll see," he told me and I could see him fighting the smile that was playing on the corners of his mouth.
Once the hostess was finished booking a room for us, Edward led me over to the elevators. "I can't believe you got us a room," I remarked.
"Well we couldn't sit in the lobby much longer. The hostess was giving us the evil eye, you're freezing and I'm getting cold myself. We couldn't even sit down because we're soaked. So I figured at least this way we can hang out and watch TV and I'll have room service launder our clothes while we wait out the storm." I laughed and told him he was crazy as we exited the elevator. Truth was I was extremely nervous about being alone with him in a hotel room and was doing my best to not show it.
We both felt grimy from being in the sea water and then getting caught in the rain so while Edward got first dibs on the shower, I called Nana to let her know where we were and that I'd be home as soon as the storm passed. After Edward and I had both taken our turn showering and were dry, we laughed about wearing our ridiculous looking gift shop garb.
Deciding to watch TV, I grabbed us both a bottle of water from the mini bar, while Edward called for our clothes to be picked up by the hotel's laundry service. Once that was taken care of we settled on the couch next to each other to watch a movie.
I found it increasingly difficult to focus on the movie, being overwhelmed by Edward's closeness and more specifically with thoughts and feelings I hadn't had in years. I couldn't stop thinking about the fact that we had both had on our swimsuits which meant neither one of us was wearing anything under the t-shirt and shorts we currently had on. In our haste to get out of the storm, we had left our bag with our change of clothes in his car. Although it may not have mattered much as the bag probably had gotten just as wet as we had going from the marina to his car.
Towards the middle of the movie, it was still storming pretty heavily. I was getting sleepy and slightly chilled again so I attempted to curl up in a ball to stay warm.
The couch shifted as Edward got up and went over to the bed and pulled the comforter off of it and brought it back over to me. Sitting back down he patted his lap inviting me to snuggle beneath the blanket with him. He turned sideways pulling me onto his lap, then covering us both up and wrapping his arms around me.
I was in heaven as I burrowed against his chest and rested my head on his shoulder. I also felt like a seventeen year girl old alone with her boyfriend for the first time in her parent's house.
Once I was finally able to settle down and calm the butterflies that were swirling inside me, I relaxed sliding one of my arms up to rest loosely on his shoulder and around his neck. As if they had a mind of their own my fingers were soon toying with the hair at the nape of his neck. I loved how silky soft his short tresses felt. It had become a habit of mine to tangle my hands in it whenever we kissed. It was an unconscious reaction that just seemed to happen naturally.
Edward appeared to like my hands in his hair any time whether we were kissing or not. There had been times when we would be relaxing on the beach and he would lay his head on my lap and place one of my hands in his hair, jiggling my fingers in the auburn mess as a silent plea to play with it.
I shifted my position slightly on his lap and instantly thought I was gonna die. The reaction my movement caused was unintentional, but I was acutely aware of what it had done to him. The hard evidence was right underneath me pressing into my backside. We hadn't gone past anything more than a few heated make out sessions, and though he showed signs of having similar feelings for me, I was still afraid to trust them completely. It was a repercussion of relying on my abilities for so long. I wasn't sure how I felt about taking things further. Obviously my body was screaming for me to give in to the hormones surging through me. I wanted to be able to give in and let go, but I didn't know if I could. Even though he knew what I did for a living I still hadn't told him about my real reason for my trip here and I was afraid that he'd freak out and leave. He'd indicated at lunch today that he wanted to continue our relationship when we were both back home, so I kept hoping that Emmett would call with news that the danger was gone and I could go home. Then I would never have to tell Edward.
I stilled my fingers in his hair and tried to remain as still as possible hoping that if I was it would allow him to calm as well. I decided to pretend I had drifted to sleep. I opened my eyes and looked up at him hoping to steal one last glance at his gorgeous face before I did so. However I was met with boiling pools of green that were focused entirely on me. Smiling softly at him I was stricken with the urge to lick my lips silently inviting him to kiss me. When had I become so bold, I thought.
He gently brushed back the hair from my face. Lowering his mouth to mine he claimed it in a heated kiss that flooded my body with desire. If that weren't enough, one of his hands tangled in my long hair holding his face to mine, as the other slid up the back of my shirt caressing the bare skin while at the same time pulling me closer to him.
Without thinking I turned to straddle his lap causing him to moan as we went on kissing until we were out of breath. When we separated I hid my face against his neck. I had never acted so brazenly and was suddenly scared by my actions. I wanted him but it frightened me.
"Bella, what's wrong? Why do I feel like you are trying to hide from me?"
After a moment of silence I managed to speak just loud enough for him to hear me. "I'm scared."
"Scared? Baby, what are you scared of?" If he only knew.
He eased me back and lifted my chin so he could see my face. "Bella, please tell me what is going on in that beautiful head of yours. What could you possibly be afraid of?" he asked his voice heavy with concern and confusion.
"You."
"Me? Bella I don't—"
"Not of you exactly, but of how I feel about you. How you make me feel," I said while chewing on my bottom lip.
It was a nervous trait I'd had as a child I'd learned to control for the most part. It only surfaced over the past few years in extreme situations. It was also one of the many things I'd learned to spot in others through all the psychology classes I'd taken in college. There were all sorts of physical mannerisms that gave people's true feelings away. And while I couldn't mentally and instinctually rely on my gift to read Edward, I believed he was being honest with me. There hadn't been any physical signs that he wasn't. But there was still this little voice in the back of my mind that appeared to be waiting for the proverbial other shoe to drop, as it kept telling me that I was completely clueless as to what was real and what wasn't in my hormone induced haze.
His brows furrowed as he scratched his head for a minute before asking, "What do you mean, Sweetheart?"
Sighing I lowered my head allowing my hair to fall down around my face. Unable to look directly at him, I peered through the thin veil my hair had formed and said, "I've only ever had one real relationship and it was very short lived. I've had crushes and infatuations before, but I've never experienced anything remotely close to what I feel for you. It's so strong and overwhelming and that scares me. This is all so new to me."
There it was out there. I had opened the door and now I sat waiting, daring him to tell me if he felt the same way. I had to know.
"Bella, look at me please," he implored. So I did. "I've not had many serious relationships in my time, but I've had a couple. The longest lasting a couple of years. As real as I know my feelings were for her, I can say with certainty that they never came close to what I feel for you. I know it's only been a couple of weeks, I know it feels crazy and overwhelming, 'cause I feel it too. But more than anything else I know that the short time we have been together, I have never been happier in my life. I'm going to go out on a limb here, because I feel like I have to. I feel like you need to know the truth. Bella the truth is…" He paused for a second and when he began to talk again his voice was much lower, softer, laced with emotion. "If I'm completely honest with you, I can say, I'm falling in love with you."
I sat there not uttering a word for the longest time. I was speechless. I questioned myself. Could this really be love that we were feeling? Wasn't it too soon for such a deep emotion to have developed between us?
It was then that I chose to look up at him and I saw the pained expression on his face. Did he regret what he had just said?
"Bella, now would be a good time to say something. I'm beginning to think I just made a complete fool of myself by admitting how much I care for you."
Realizing my silence was sending the wrong message and remembering the words Nana had spoken to me a few weeks ago about not overthinking things and following my heart, I reached up, cupping his face in my hand and bared my soul to him, " Edward, I'm falling in love with you too."
His mouth was instantly reclaiming mine in the most passionate kiss I'd ever experienced. My lips parted, opening up as his tongue forged its way through hungrily. Flinging my arms around his neck, I kissed him back with as much fervor as he was kissing me. Holding me in his arms, he stood and carried me over to the bed, lying me down on it without his mouth ever leaving mine.
That same small voice was calling to me again. Telling me that it was too soon. That I needed to stop. But I couldn't find the will to do so. I was done listening to my head. It had gotten me nowhere with men. Edward was different. He had to be. There was only one way to find out. That was the minute I let go of the last of my reservations. I gave myself over to my own emotions, to my heart.
As if sensing my reluctance slipping away, Edward rolled us so that he was partially on top of me, while grabbing my leg and hitching it up over his hip. His hand slid underneath my shirt as his hips ground into mine. Panting and gasping for air, he began trialing slow wet kisses along my collar bone from one side across to the other.
I moaned, "Edward," as he paused to suck on the sweet spot just below my ear. I became aware of his hands moving my shirt up and before I knew it, he was tugging it over my head. My heart was racing, threatening to jump right out of my chest. His kisses began to move down to the curve of my breast. His fingers toyed with the hard nipple as he licked and sucked all around it. I gasped, arching my back off the bed as he took it in his mouth.
"God, Bella, you are so beautiful" he whispered, causing me to shiver from his touch. He lowered his mouth to one breast while cupping the other in his hand. I had never felt anything so good.
My hands were knotting and tugging on his hair. My body began to respond in ways I had never felt before. I wasn't a virgin, but I was far from having any real sexual experience. The one and only time I had ever had sex, was painful and over before I'd had a chance to enjoy it at all. It was also the last time I had ever given in to my heart.
Unable to hold still I began to squirm under his touch. Edward shifted his position so that he was now kneeling over me from between my legs, completely on top of me. Kissing his way up between my breasts to my neck and over my jaw, he captured my lips with his. The kiss started slow and sensual, his lips soft and pliant as they moved over mine. However it wasn't long before we both became needy and hungry, our tongues battling for dominance as they sought out each other.
His hands slid down my ribs, past my hips until he was pulling my legs up so that they were bent at the knee and my feet were planted flat on the bed. I couldn't help grinding up into him.
He pulled away pecking small kisses all over my face. "Bella, I want you, I want to show you just how I feel about you. Let me make love to you."
Unable to say much, I nodded and whispered, "Yes."
He rose up on his knees and scooted back until his hands were resting on the waistband on my shorts. Without hesitation, he made quick work of untying the drawstring that I had used to secure the oversized shorts to my hips. Moving off the bed, he removed them leaving me lying there completely bare before him.
"Bella, are you sure about this?" he asked.
"I'm sure," I panted, still unable to fully catch my breath.
He turned around and walked out of the room. Not sure what he was doing, I was extremely confused and wondering if he had changed his mind. From the placement of the bed in the room, I couldn't see what he had done in the other room, but noticed that he had turned off the TV and all the lights.
When he returned the room was now so dark I could barely make out the shadow of his tall frame as he shrugged off his own clothing.
As he climbed back onto the bed hovering partially on top of me but off to the side I asked, "What were you doing?"
"I um… thought we should use protection," he whispered nervously.
I heard the crinkling and tearing of the foil package and realized he was opening a condom. He rose up on his knees for a moment and slid the condom on before reaching down and gently spreading my legs apart. I could feel his hard erection as it brushed against my thigh. There was no mistaking how excited he was.
Leaning forward he began kissing me. Our bodies aligned and Edward began to rub against me without entering me. As he continued to slide back and forth the friction from his repeated movements was becoming too much and I was consumed with desire for him. It was beyond a want, it had become a need.
"Edward, please," I begged.
"Please what? Tell me what you want, Bella," he ordered while continuing with his movements.
"Make love to me."
"Mmmm, not yet," he murmured as he pressed wet open mouthed kisses down the entire length of my body, only pausing briefly when he reached my breasts, and took the time sucking on each of my nipples before continuing to move down the rest of my body.
He stopped as he reached the top of my mound. Leaning down he looked up to me as if asking for permission. I had never had a man go down on me before, but I had heard other women describe how wonderful it was. Unable to make the words come out of my mouth I nodded in approval.
He hands were now on my thighs as he placed several kisses on both sides. Inching closer and closer to my wet center .He dragged his tongue up the inside of my thigh causing me to whimper in anticipation.
Slipping first one and then two fingers inside me, I moaned, Oh God," as my hips bucked off the bed in response to the combination of his touch and his mouth on me. He began moving them back and forth slowly at first and then gradually picking up the pace.
I felt myself losing control and sinking into the bliss he was stirring inside me. He curled his fingers upwards, causing me to cry out, "Oh, Edward," as I lost myself in the added sensations.
I thought I was going to come undone when he abruptly pulled away and shifted his position, moving on top of me.
Now poised at my entrance, Edward said through his heavy breaths, "It's not too late. You can still back out."
"No, I want this more than you can imagine. I want you."
"Fuck, I want you too, baby. Wrap your legs around me."
I did and felt myself shudder while he slowly entered me. Lowering his head, his mouth engulfed mine as he began moving inside me. His lips and tongue devoured mine as he steadily picked up his pace, filling me and giving me pleasure like nothing I had ever felt before or had even dared to dream of.
"You feel so good, Bella. God, you're perfect and you're mine now.
"Yes, yours," I moaned.
He continued the rhythm as we moved in unison. Matching each other stroke for stroke, back and forth driving each other to the heights of ecstasy.
Grabbing my legs and he angled them so his body was now pressed against mine. The change in his position allowed him to hit that spot deep inside me over and over again. He thrust harder, deeper, and faster and I felt myself nearing my release.
It only took a few more hard thrusts and my body was contracting tightly around him. I shuddered, screaming out his name while completely lost in my orgasm.
With a few stokes later, he exploded with his own release, crying out my name as he did.
Collapsing next to me, he rolled to his side gathering me in his arms holding me tightly against his chest. Smoothing the damp hair away from my face, he pressed a soft kiss to my forehead and ran his ringers through my tangled hair.
Neither one of us spoke, we simply laid there content in each other's arms.
A rumble of thunder alerted us that it was still storming outside as he pulled the covers over us wrapping us in a cocoon, tucked away from the rest of the world. Sleep overtook me quickly, safe in his arms. I wanted to be here forever.
Orange roses generally mean the embodiment of desire and enthusiasm. They also often symbolize passion and excitement and are an expression of fervent romance.
Lavender roses are a perfect symbol of enchantment. The lavender rose is also traditionally used to express feelings of love at first sight.
The dark pink Dahlias mean can't stop thinking about you.
What did ya think? Don't forget you can see a bare chested picture of Edward and his tattoo on my blog. The link is on my profile page and on Monday a teaser for chapter 5 will posted. Thanks again for reading. Until next time, EA~