Disclaimer: I do not own the Twilight series, nor any of the characters created by Stephenie Meyer. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
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"We come here all the time."
"Well, let's go!" She was bubbling over.
The forest was quiet, all the animals in the area sensing the presence of a supreme predator. Me. I heard the crunch of pine needles beneath my feet, the wind whipping in her hair as I ran, carrying her along the path, up the steep hillside to the springs. There were no other cars parked along the road where we'd found the trail, but there was always a possibility that some hikers might have found their way here tonight. We were lucky to find the area deserted.
I lowered her gently to her feet, and walked up to a large pool, chest deep, ringed with boulders on the up hill side. The pool spilled over into another just below it, slightly shallower, and cooler than this upper pool. The lower pool cascaded in turn to another, and then into a creek that flowed to the base of the hill.
"There are other pools scattered along the hillside, over there, and up higher. This one is my favorite."
"You hedonist. What's that smell?" she asked, wrinkling her nose.
"Sulphur, and other minerals, from the water. You get used to it. As a matter of fact, it's actually kind of soothing, once you begin to associate the smell with the place. Ready?"
"Can't wait!" She was undressing quickly, laying her clothes and underwear on a boulder a ways back from the edge of the water. The sky peeked through the clouds intermittently, her skin luminous in the moonbeams. I felt a surge in my loins, but my throat burned only slightly. Courage.
"Drink some water, before you get in, okay?"
I stripped while she drank half a liter of water, and placed my clothes on the boulder with hers, along with the blanket and one of the towels. The other towel she'd wrapped around her like a cloak. "It's kind of chilly out here, even if it is July."
"Silly girl. Get in the water."
"You first."
I knew the easiest way to enter the pool was between the two boulders next to her. I hopped into the water lightly, and took her hand and showed her where to put her feet to avoid slipping, and where the best hand holds would be as she took the long step down into the pool. I tried to focus on the placement of her hands and feet, rather than the beauty of her bare body in the moonlight. Her foot touched the water and she flinched.
"Damn!"
"It's about the same as a hot bath, Bella."
"I guess. It just surprised me it would be that hot, right out of the ground."
"It's even hotter back there, under that ledge. Stay near this outer edge of the pool, the water is just a little cooler here."
She placed her foot in again, gingerly, and slowly stepped to the floor of the pool. The water was mid-thigh on her there, and she almost slipped when she misjudged how deep it was. I placed my hands on her waist and lifted her into the water from there, rather than risking her falling and hitting her head on one of the rocks. Getting her out of here naked and wet with a head injury would be tricky.
A soft purr escaped her lips as she sank into the water up to her chin. I couldn't help but smile. My little sybarite.
I sank into the water closer to its source, submerging completely, hearing the sounds of her feet against the sandy floor of the pool, the coursing water as it flowed from the rocks, her heartbeat reverberating around me. The intense heat warmed me to my bones, a rare sensation. I emerged from the water a few minutes later to see her lying against the overflow, eyes closed, limbs splayed, adrift like a leaf in a stream. Perfect.
I stepped closer to her and placed one arm under her shoulders, the other behind her knees, pulling her close to me as the water carried her weight. She was floating, in my arms.
Her eyes shot open and her body tensed, as she struggled to push me away.
"Edward?"
"What love? What did I do?" I knew exactly what had startled her: warm hands.
"You're – you're not cold!"
I allowed my smile to speak for me as she drifted back down into the water, buoyant and serene, her eyes never leaving mine. I took her more tightly into my arms, kissing her throat, behind her ears, her shoulders as she fought against the buoyancy to wrap her legs around my waist. I was relaxed enough from the heat that when her core came in contact with my belly it didn't bother me too much. At first. But my body reacted of its own accord as she tightened her grasp with her thighs.
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~*~*~*~
"Bella, love, we have company."
"I don't care." I squeezed him again with my legs, feeling his growing erection lifting toward my behind.
"You will," he whispered into my neck.
"Oh, God. All of them?" Oh screw it. Who cares.
"The hunting party, yes."
Just then I heard Emmett's booming laugh as Edward maneuvered me against the rocks at my back, effectively shielding all of me from view but my head and shoulders, and my knees which were quite obviously tucked up under his armpits. The only way to break this position and avoid accidental contact with Edward's erection would expose one or both of us to Emmett's eyes. Edward was modest enough that he preferred to hold our current position. Very chivalrous. Like a knight in shining armor, ever ready to protect the damsel. Lend me your sword, good sir knight… I have a scabbard, custom made… Good lord where did that come from?
"Well, well well. What do we have here? A little premarital nookie? I've never been so proud of you Ed. Seriously. It's about fucking time." He had launched his enormous naked form into the water behind Edward, the resulting waves bobbing us like fishing floats. I kept my eyes on Edward, afraid of seeing more than Emmett's bare behind. Meh. Too much like a side of beef. I prefer Sir Edward, the Lean.
Edward didn't move, didn't take his eyes from me, and didn't speak a word. I expected him to be furious, but the look on his face was one of resigned acceptance. I couldn't help but smile. The whole scene was sad, and too funny at the same time.
"Emmett, please. Give them some peace. I'm sure they didn't come up here hoping to see us." Carlisle's voice was calm, and firm, but you could hear the smile behind his words. I turned to look at him, off to the side and not quite behind me, and saw Esme at his side, smiling up at him. I heard Rosalie mumbling something unintelligible from farther up the hillside, ending with a very clear "NOW, EMMETT."
"Yes, Rose." He hauled himself out of the water reluctantly.
"Don't even think about it if you value your Jeep."
"I'm going, I'm going." He grumbled under his breath as I heard him run up the hill, then Rose giggling, then a splash.
"What was that all about?"
"He was contemplating stealing our clothes and towels. This is his favorite pool, too."
"Goodnight, Bella." Carlisle's voice trailed off to the west, and I knew he and Esme had found another pool.
"Goodnight."
Edward, make sure she drinks.
"I will."
He untangled our arms, and shifted his body to the side as I removed my legs from his waist. I noticed as he stood that while his 'problem' had abated somewhat during our interruption, he was still obviously aroused. He leapt out of the pool smoothly and returned in two heartbeats with the remainder of the first bottle of water. The moonlight on his wet skin made him shimmer like pearls, the line of black hair trailing down from his navel in stark contrast with his oyster whiteness. He was beautiful.
"Come, sit here and drink this," he motioned for me to sit on the edge of the pool on the rocks beside him, a sort of bench at the water's edge.
"I'll freeze!"
"No, trust me. You're getting overheated, Carlisle could tell. You need to drink this and cool off a bit before you get light headed. Besides, you're getting pruney."
He was right. Standing up took more effort than I realized, and sitting naked on the cool smooth stones felt wonderful. I finished the rest of the water in three gulps. A light breeze tickled my skin, and I had never felt so alive. The amazing sensation of the heat, being naked in Edward's presence, and being outdoors all at the same time was odd. It was sensual, liberating, natural. I should probably have tried to cover myself, but I had no need for modesty at that moment. Edward's eyes smoldered as he looked at me, and he moved to stand between my knees. Where were we before we were so rudely interrupted?
I could hear Rosalie's laughter in the distance, and other soft sounds coming from the west. I knew Edward could hear them better than I could, and hear their thoughts as well. I began to chill, my skin pebbling in the cool night air. Edward slowly pulled me into his embrace, and my legs wrapped around his waist once again. My core came into contact with his for the first time, without barriers, the base of his erection sandwiched between my folds. We both froze, aware of how close we were, neither of us wanting to stop, but needing to stop. He slowly pulled me even closer, pulling me down into the steaming water. His kisses were slow, deep, packed with longing, but the look on his face was one of pain.
"Am I hurting you?" Please say no, Edward.
"Pain is the furthest thing from my mind right now."
"Tell me what you're thinking."
"I'm thinking I want to move my hips, and I know that if I do, I won't be able to stop. I love the way you feel, holding me, urging me on. To know that you want me, it's almost too much to bear." His mouth was hungry on mine. He whispered, between kisses, "I want to fill you, to feel you surrounding me, tight and hot and wet, I want to hear what sounds you'll make, to hear my name on your lips when I enter you, I want to know what that feels like, to be where I belong, to give myself over to it, to be a man, inside the woman that was made for me. God Bella, I want to be inside you." He buried his face in my neck, the strength of his embrace almost bruising.
He'd never spoken to me like that before, to so specifically name his desires. The look on his face had indeed been one of pain, the pain of longing. I twitched my hips, only an inch at most, moving my folds against his shaft. He groaned like an animal in agony, and I kissed his neck. He loosened his hold on me, and turned his face to mine. I was breathing hard, my forehead pressed to his, our lips touching, but not kissing. I licked his lower lip, and met the tip of his tongue with mine. I closed my lips around it, sucking it lightly into my mouth. He reciprocated, nibbling at my lips as I panted into his mouth, the tip of his tongue dancing over mine, swirling, teasing.
Off in the distance, I heard Emmett laughing.
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~*~*~*~
"Stop worrying about the pussy your brother's getting, Em, and think about this." Emmett's hearty laugh announced to the world his delight with my sister's gesture. I hoped all Bella heard was the laugh.
My body throbbed against Bella's core, the base of my erection shrouded in her folds. I'd just said things to her I'd barely allowed myself to admit, much less given voice to. It was all true. All I could do was look into her eyes, and hope she understood what I didn't say. Too much. Too close.
She pushed her hips back away from me and repositioned herself so that both her legs were on the same side of my body, our chests still pressed together.
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"For not making me stop you."
"What do you mean?"
"For sticking to the line. If you hadn't stopped when you did, I wouldn't have either. I'm not a piece of stone, Bella, I have desires too – and my interest in sticking to the line is already wavering. I need you to help me, I can't maintain this level of control by myself. I want you Bella, in every way imaginable, and now that I know this is going to work, I'm having immense difficulty being patient. We agreed to the line, to wait, but you can't do that to me and expect me to always be the one to put on the brakes. I want you too badly. So, thank you, for stopping. I hate always being the one to say no."
Silence. The only sounds were those of my family, now thankfully subdued, some insects chirping in the forest, and the cascading mineral water flowing from one pool to the next and on down the hillside.
"When does the moratorium start?"
"Well, if the wedding is August 13th… I guess that gives us about a month."
"I don't want to move from this spot, for a month. The feeling of your skin against mine, the warm water, the moonlight, your arms. I don't want to let go of you, Edward." She kissed me again, and I tasted the salt of sweat on her lips.
I laughed, thinking what she'd look like after a month submerged in sulphur water.
"Somehow I don't think Alice would be very happy pouring a dissolved prune into your wedding dress. Would you, Alice?"
"Why aren't I surprised," she whispered into my neck. The look on her face was priceless. I'd known they were approaching, but hated to interrupt our conversation.
"No, I wouldn't be very happy about that, and no, you shouldn't be surprised. Sorry about earlier. Jasper and I…" Alice spoke quietly from behind me, having entered the pool with us much more delicately than Emmett. Jasper was with her, his back to Bella, his emotions soothing, trying to convey to her that he didn't plan to compromise her modesty.
"Its okay, Alice. I understand." I felt them touch hands under the water, their fingers twining together for the briefest moment.
"Me too, Bells." Jasper laid a gentle blanket of happy over all of us, light, relaxed. He needn't have bothered.
"I know Jazz. It's okay, really. Besides, if I'd stayed asleep, who knows how long it would have taken him to bring me here."
"Not long," Alice giggled, knowing exactly when I would have brought her here, probably better than me.
"How long before I get to come again?"
All three of us laughed uncomfortably at her unintentional double entendre. She slapped the back of my head, as I leaned in to kiss her, still laughing.
"Let's get you out of here Bella. We'll have the house to ourselves for a few hours if we leave now." Maybe that's not such a good idea.
"I don't know if I trust you with my virtue, sir. Alice? Are his intentions honorable?"
"Definitely not. He's a manwhore, Bella. No self-respecting girl should ever be left alone with him."
I laughed and splashed Alice hard, full in the face. I scooped Bella up and out of the water before she had a chance to be embarrassed about Jasper accidentally seeing her bare behind.
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Chapter title refers to a Quileute legend about the formation of Sol Duc and Olympic hot springs. You can google it.
The Olympic Hot Springs are real, but not quite as I described them. They are much shallower than northern New Mexico's Spence and San Antonio hot springs, which I used as my visual inspiration for this scene. Gorgeous. *home sick for NM*
As always, reviews are almost better than naked wet Cullen boys... and custom scabbards.