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This chapter wouldn't be what it is without The Real Teacher's hard work. Thank you so much!

~ Chapter six ~

Bella woke up that morning completely disoriented but still very pleasantly buzzed. Lifting her head off the pillow it rested on she found that she was in a bedroom but she had no idea how she got there. What she did remember, however, was the kiss.

Dear lord! That kiss!

As she giggled aloud, her hand touching the still slightly swollen surface of her lips, she thought that maybe her mother's romance novels hadn't been so wrong after all. True, they had been grossly exaggerating when it came to the pleasures of falling in love, but when it came to kissing they were really spot on.

Closing her eyes again Bella remembered the tingling sensation in her body when Edward had first touched her. It was as if her whole body was oriented to his, like a sunflower to the sun. The strange thing was that, though she had no idea of what to do, how to act or what to expect, her body hadn't appeared to be so…unknowledgeable.

And then he kissed her and the quiet hum had turned into a bolt of lightning, illuminating her from the inside until all she could think about was him.

Speaking of which….where was he?

Returning her attention to the room she soon found that it was probably Edwards; his powerful masculine scent ingrained in the bed linen, the razor, placed neatly beside the bowl and water jug on the dressing table, the neat and unadorned look of the room…..Yep. Definitely male.

Afraid of being caught snooping around in a man's bedroom, she left the room as soon as she could. Even if said man was courting her, be it as yet unofficially, it somehow felt inappropriate to stay longer than a quick fix-up of her hair and look in the mirror could justify. As soon as she was done, she slipped out of the room and slowly started to make her way downstairs.

The house was beautiful, that much she could tell. It might not have seen a woman's touch in quite a few years, apart maybe from someone coming in to clean, but as she walked downstairs Bella could still see the beauty of it. The wooden railing intricately carved and the soft colors making the most of the light that shone in through the tall rectangular windows which offered a spectacular view of the forest.

But the décor wasn't what caught Bella's eyes as she cautiously took one step after another, afraid of slipping over the hem of her skirt.

The paintings were.

In all her life Bella had never seen anything like them; the vibrancy of the colors and the likeness to the subject making them look like they could come to life at any moment. Most of them depicted the scenery and houses in and around town, but there were rare ones that had actual people in them. It was only when her eyes fell on a small watercolor painting of a little boy with a shock of auburn hair and the most startling green eyes she had ever seen, that she realized who the artist behind these masterworks was.

Elizabeth Masen. Edward's mother.

From that moment Bella flew down the stairs in her hurry to get away from them. Looking at those paintings now felt almost as if she was poking her nose into matters that didn't concern her, even if Edward probably didn't mind her seeing them. It was up to Edward to tell her about his childhood and the loss of his parents when – if – he was ready to do so.

The same theme of light feminine decorations with just a touch of male continued downstairs. The femininity of the elegant carved legs of the dining table contrasted with the dirty trimming shears and soil stained scoop lying on its smooth surface almost making Bella giggle. Judging by the look of them, they'd been there ever since Edward had returned from his latest trip into the forest.

Well, at least that was something she didn't have to get used to when she married Edward. Growing up around her dad and Emmett had more than prepared her when it came to finding all sorts of implements in various states of cleanliness on top of tables or in sinks.

When she married Edward.

The thought of the promise they had made to each other yesterday evening made her heart beat faster and her temperature rise. A request for courtship wasn't made lightly in a society where everyone knew everyone, nor was acceptance given lightly. As far as the town would be concerned, once her father gave them permission they were as good as betrothed; proposal or not.

She would have to get used to the size of the house though. Ugh! She definitely wasn't looking forward to having to clean all those rooms!

Bella sighed, letting her eyes glide over the huge expanse of the downstairs living accommodations as she looked around her. The place was huge! The Masens had been very wealthy when they exchanged the noise and crowdedness of the big town for the peace and quiet of a small village. Bella couldn't help but snort as she thought of how the family got a bit more than they bargained for when, five years after their arrival, they found themselves trapped in the middle of nowhere forever…..like the rest of them.

She shook her head as if it would make the melancholy thoughts go away. Dwelling on things that could not be changed was pointless. Especially now, when she had so much to live for…..someone to live for. So she smiled as she walked in the direction of an almighty noise coming from the kitchen. Edward was cooking breakfast.

He had probably been in a hurry to fix himself some food because the sight of him was at best unruly. Not that Bella minded though. Between his messy hair, untucked shirt and suspenders hanging idly, Edward looked more edible than any dish he could be preparing. Which wasn't a great achievement though, Bella thought wryly. Judging from the absolute carnage that appeared to have taken place inside the kitchen, preparing his own food wasn't something he usually did.

He must have been hungry.

I guess fighting a rabid pack of wolves does that to you, Bella thought as she took a tentative step into the room, her nerves suddenly overtaking her.

He didn't notice her, his attention completely taken up by the task of preparing food, which meant that unless Bella wanted to practice her skills as a living statue, she would have to be the one to speak first.

"Good morning," she spoke, shyly announcing her presence in the room.

Edward turned around. A radiant smile appeared on his face the minute he spotted her and his eyes shone like precious gemstones as he appraised her, the feelings behind his stare making her feel awkward and unspeakably happy at the same time. "Good morning, my sweet girl."

She noticed how he winced slightly as he turned towards her, which made her remember how fiercely he had defended her last night. "How is your shoulder?"

"I'll live," he shrugged, taking the skillet off the stove and one handedly pouring the contents into two bowls.

"Don't be difficult, Edward," she huffed, her worry for Edward's health momentarily distracting her from the awkwardness of being in a strange man's kitchen the morning after you'd shared a heated kiss with said man. "I can see you're hurting even from the other side of the room!"

"Fine," he sighed. "It hurts. But the wound is clean and doesn't show any signs of infection."

"Show me," Bella demanded, blushing fiercely as Edward flashed a crooked grin at her.

"Not unless you want to give me a hand in unbuttoning all these blasted buttons," he smirked, the darkening of his eyes making Bella's blush spread all the way down her torso. "We'd be here all day if I have to do it myself. Not that I'd mind."

There was a new confidence and lightness in his voice, both of which Bella liked immensely. It was as if he wasn't so hesitant to speak to her anymore which, in turn, made her grow bolder than she'd ever thought she'd be.

"Okay," she nodded, biting her bottom lip as she took a few, tentative steps towards him.

"Okay," Edward responded, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down as he swallowed hard, his breath audibly hitching in his throat as Bella's hands started to nimbly unbutton his shirt and thereby touching the naked skin of his chest.

"I'm sorry," she muttered, hiding her face behind her hair. "My hands must be terribly cold."

"I-It's okay," Edward panted as he tried to focus his attention on the fragrance of the eggs, the quiet bubbling of the nearby stream or anything else but the reaction of his body to the softness of her touch or the sweetness of her scent.

Bella could do nothing else but agree with Edward's assessment of his wound, though she made sure to check the superficial laceration and the skin surrounding it thoroughly.

"Ow," Edward gasped as she poked her small fingers around the wound to search for infections or any other things that shouldn't be there.

"Hush," she scolded him. "Don't be childish and let me do my work!"

"Only if you promise to kiss and make it better when you're done," Edward grinned, surprising his lady when his free hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her towards him.

"You keep your hands to yourself and let me finish this and I might think about it," Bella answered, enjoying both her own forwardness and the playfulness in her beloved. "There."

She didn't even have time to wrap the wound in a fresh bandage before Edward drew her towards his, her lips stumbling onto his as she fell forward. The passion in his kiss mirrored that of the night before, though there was a new comfort in it that came from the certainty they both had of the other's feelings.

All too soon Edward knew he had to pull away, the sweetness of her taste and the warmth of her mouth against his stirring desires in him he wasn't sure he could ignore for much longer.

Bella didn't help, her small whimper when he slowed down his kisses before pulling away altogether making the savage inside him scream at him to just take her right there on the kitchen table.

"Breakfast," he growled against her lips, trying desperately to shut the best back inside its cage. There would be no taking. Not today or ever, if Edward had any say in it. A fine woman like Bella Swan deserved to be loved and cherished from twilight until daybreak or until he body was so sated and satisfied that she could no longer keep her eyes open, not taken like some beast in the field.

"Breakfast," Bella repeated, panting for breath as she helped Edward back into his shirt, buttoning it up one torturous button at a time.

"There," Edward chuckled as she finally fastened the last one, celebrating the victory of his mind over his more primal urges by brushing his lips against hers one last time, "all better now."

His words, words she had heard countless of times before though from a different set of lips, made her gasp and clasp her hands over her mouth. "Father!"

"Don't worry," Edward chuckled; turning his attention back to the stove since the contents of the frying pan had started hissing at the blatant disregard he showed them. "Your father knows you're safe."

"How?" This bit of information puzzled her. Judging by the position of the sun it was still early so, unless Edward would have set off at daybreak and jogged across town and back at a dazzling speed, he could not have been the one to deliver the news.

"Carlisle came by just before you woke up….I guess he was anxious to see if we were still alive," Edward spoke, a hint of nervousness lacing his voice. "I asked him to drop by your father's house on his way to the clinic to let him know you were safe."

"Thank you," she whispered, her fingers itching to take over from him as he all but molested the eggs he was scrambling. Those beautiful products of nature need to be scrambled, not butchered you gorgeous man who intends to marry me one fine day.

"I can do that," she offered, her hand already wrapping around the spatula.

"Are you questioning my ability to cook?" Edward asked, her original fear of having offended him soon dissipating as she saw the lights of amusement dancing in his eyes.

Yes. "No," she replied cautiously, trying to hush her inner voice as she tried to come up with a sensible reply, "but it feels unnatural for me to sit back and have you do all the work."

"If that's all there is to your worries, then rest assured," he said, a small smile playing on his lips. "I have taken care of my own needs for three years now." Bella didn't quite understand why that statement made him blush, though she could see how it made him reluctant to give up the command over his kitchen.

She would have felt the same.

"Please, Bella," he chuckled, brushing a strand of hair out of her face she hadn't even noticed was there as he appeared to be debating something before coming to a decision and leaning in for a chaste kiss. As a second and a third kiss followed the first one, Bella didn't realize that Edward was manipulating her body until she found herself sitting in one of the kitchen chairs, the feeling of her rear hitting the wood of the seat making her gasp in surprise.

"There will come a day when you are mistress of this house but until that day comes, please let me take care of you," Edward whispered against her lips, his thumb brushing over the heated skin of her cheek. "It gives me great pleasure to do so."

"Fine," she sighed, powerless to resist when he put it like that.

She took her seat reluctantly, though even Bella had to admit that from her seat at the kitchen table the view was much nicer than it would have been had she been standing in front of the stove.

The view of Edward's backside.

The food, in spite of the massacre that had taken place, looked and tasted amazing, the combination of fragrant fresh herbs and the heartiness of the egg and fried bacon satisfying at least her need for sustenance. Her other needs, though, weren't yet met as they sat across from each other eating silently.

"Edward?" Bella finally spoke; the questions bubbling inside of her almost making her explode.

"Hmm?" Edward replied, his mouth still full.

"Why did you never speak to me?" She blushed, thinking her question might be a bit forward. "I mean…considering how strong you claim your feelings for me are, I'm assuming they didn't develop overnight…."

She waited until Edward nodded his affirmation. "Why did you never approach me?"

He was silent for a long time – too long – and Bella could almost see him mulling over the answer time and time again before he finally spoke.

"I am twenty years old, Bella." His voice barely registered above a whisper as he took her hand and started flaying with her fingers to distract himself and maybe even her. "I am well aware of the dangers I am about to face. I did not want anyone to grieve needlessly, should I not return."

"I would have mourned you even if this had never happened," Bella spoke, the truth self-evident in her words.

"I know."

"Do you? Because I don't think you realize how long I've waited for a sign – or anything – that told me that you felt the same way for me as I have for you….ever since we were children."

"But…." Edward's brow furrowed in confusion. "You….Jacob…"

Bella sighed. "It was all a farce." As she proceeded to tell him the truth about how her engagement to her childhood friend came to be.

"I am so sorry you had to go through that, Bella," he spoke softly as she finished. "Had I known what was going on……"

He sighed, picking at his fingernails as he shook his head. "I thought you were grieving and I wanted to give you time and space to do so. And apart from that…after what happened to Jacob I thought that the last thing you'd ever do was go through it all over again."

Bella's reply was cut short when the front door shot open and her brother marched in stopping only when he was on the threshold to the kitchen.

"Is it safe to look?" Emmett grinned, his huge hands splayed out so widely that – even if it hadn't – he still would have seen everything.

"It's safe," Bella growled, her appetite all but lost now that her brother had arrived. She knew all too well what the hidden message behind his arrival was; her father wanted her home. "I guess dad sent you."

"You got that right, squirt," he chuckled, his eyes shifting from his sister to the man he had considered one of his best friends for years now, even if he never tired of teasing Edward about the fact that he was the youngest in their group of three. "The old man wanted to make sure his daughter's virtue was still intact."

"And he sent you?" Bella snorted.

Emmett could be scary enough when he got angry – that was, if he ever did – but with the way both he and his wife had been hinting at a possible love match between the houses of Masen and Swan, she wondered if joy hadn't been the dominant emotion when her brother found out where his sister had spend the night.

"What? You don't think I am man enough to defend my baby sister's reputation when it's in danger of being sullied?" Emmett pretended to be hurt but the amusement in his eyes gave him away. He had always been a terrible liar.

Just like his sister.

"I think you've done all too much sullying in your life to be able to defend anything!" Bella muttered under her breath, wishing Emmett would just drop the matter, especially since it took place in front of Edward who had been looking on at the verbal sparring between the two siblings as if he were watching a sports game.

"Au contraire, fair maiden," her brother quipped, making matters even worse by winking at Edward. "I think it makes me the best possible defender of your honor."

He eyed Bella's plate of food long enough for her to surrender and push it across the table where he plopped down in a chair and started shoving the food into his mouth as if Rose didn't feed him often enough.

His next remark was barely audible as it came from behind pieces of chewed egg and cheese. "And you wouldn't want Jess to be over here anyway. She's been in an awful mood ever since she found out."

"Jess," she sighed. Knowing her sister, Jess would have probably resented Bella even more than she resented the wolves for staying the night at the home of the man she'd set her cap at. The conversation that would have to take place soon, in which Bella would inform her little sister of her new status as Edward's sweetheart, was one she was dreading maybe even more than the conversation that would take place very soon with her father. And that was saying something, for Bella didn't expect her father to part with her lightly.

"It's my fault," Edward spoke. It was the first thing he said since Emmett had entered the house. "I should have thought…."

"With all due respect and all that crap, Edward," Emmett grinned, "I think you're talking out of your ass."

"Emmett!" Bella scowled.

"It's true!" Emmett cried, his booming voice making the porcelain cups and plates rattle on the table.

"Even if Saint Isabella was carried home by angels, Jessica still would have found fault with her, so don't beat yourself up over it, Edward. Instead, you might want to think about making it over to Swan headquarters to face the pater familias. He's been waiting anxiously ever since Doctor Cullen paid him a visit."

Emmett's last remark was enough to set both Edward and Bella in motion, knowing that a lot depended on Charlie's mood when they faced him. Five minutes later the three of them were walking into town. The fact that the townsfolk zeroed their eyes on Bella and Edward's clasped hands made Bella feel more uncomfortable than she ever thought she'd been.

Bella and Edward soon found themselves lagging behind as they followed Emmett across town to her home, both of them wanting to make the most of the time they had before they had to face the force of nature that was Charles Swan.

The presence of the townsfolk and their stares meant that any obvious displays of affection were out. However, the holding of hands was just about tolerable in the eyes of the town and Edward wanted to make the most of it. He rubbed soothing circles with his thumb as they slowly progressed to the Swan residence on the other side of town.

They were anxious to get their impending meeting over with but dreaded it at the same time.

It was only when Edward gripped Bella's hand with intense pressure to the point that it was almost painful, that Bella caught on to the fact that he was as nervous about their meeting as she was.

"You're awfully quiet," she teased, watching Edward's face tense up as he listened to her. "In fact….if I hadn't seen you take on a pack of wolves singlehandedly last night I would think you were afraid of meeting my father."

"I am a man, Bella," he growled playfully, though he let go of her hand, "I'm not afraid."

Bella bit her lip as she mourned the loss of their intimacy. Apparently men didn't like it when people questioned their bravery, even if the questioning was very just and very true. "Liar," she muttered under her breath.

"What was that?" he asked, chuckling at her ill attempt at keeping her words from him.

"Nothing," she sang, the innocence in her voice too obvious to have any credibility.

"Liar." His voice was barely audible, as hers would have been, but that didn't mean she didn't hear it.

A few choice words in reply, however, were out of the question when they reached the small cottage that was home to the Swans, Emmett waiting for them by the door with a huge grin on his face.

"You didn't think I'd miss this, did you?" he chuckled, completely disregarding Bella's fierce glare, choosing to zone in on Edward's less than calm expression instead. "You okay there buddy?"

He continued only as Edward gave him a slight nod. "Deep cleansing breaths, baby boy. I don't think my dad would consider you a suitable companion for my sister if you passed out on the front steps."

"Emmett!" Bella hissed. "Cut him some slack!"

"Just returning the favor, sis," Emmett shrugged. "I'm doing nothing he didn't do when I asked for my Rosie's hand in marriage."

"Men," Bella growled, tugging a very silent Edward – more silent even than he usually was – up the front steps and into the house, knowing her father would be waiting for them.

The first emotion that hit her when they entered, though, wasn't frustration or defiance – things she would have been prepared for – but confusion.

"This is even better than I thought it would!" Emmett snickered behind them causing both Edward and Bella to hiss at him in annoyance.

"Emmett," Charlie's voice called. "Don't you have a wife to pester?"

Emmett took that as his cue to leave, his snickers lingering in the air long after he'd left though his sister paid no notice to them. As her eyes glided over her father's robust form and settled on his hands she wondered what the hell he was doing.

And, more importantly, why he was holding a gun in his hands.

Apparently Charlie is a little less enthused about Bella and Edward's budding romance than everyone else ;-)

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