Disclaimer: I do not own the Twilight Saga. No copyright infringement intended.
Author's Note: I got this update done last week. I had originally planned for this to be date night, but Driver Bella and Cocky Cullen had other plans. I promise you that the date night will be the next chapter…whenever I actually find some time to write it. I'm hoping maybe I will get some writing time tonight, but I don't know for sure.
Thanks to my beta AgoodWITCH for her work. Hope you enjoy the update. I have a crazy busy week ahead of me, so I'm not sure if I will have updates for you guys next week or not. I did get some writing done Sunday night for SF, so there will be an update to that story next week for sure. :)
Mr. Cullen's Neighborhood
After the race in Texas, Edward didn't want Bella to have to ride back home, so he surprised her with tickets for the two of them to fly out of DFW to Raleigh where they were all set to catch a connecting flight back to Concord where they both had residences not far from the Volturi Racing Headquarters there. As much as Bella wanted to go see her Dad every time she made it home, she had been reluctant with the whole Jacob situation, choosing to bum around town instead, doing her public appearances as requested, but not having much of social life beyond that as she stayed in her small apartment in Concord. She usually spent a bit of time with Emmett, Rose, Alice and Jasper, but they had much busier lives than she did, so there were many times that she was alone.
Meanwhile, Edward often took those nice breaks in the race schedule to steal away back to Chicago for a few days to visit with his Mom and try to get along as best he could with his Dad before having to return for practices and meetings. He often found himself dealing with endorsement opportunities or being invited to some charity events. This time, however, his plans were to stick around Concord to be near Bella.
The press had been a bit excitable in Texas, following Edward and Bella as they checked in together for the flight back, hounding them with relationship questions, after a couple of questions about how Bella was feeling. They had figured that would be the worst of it, but once again, they greatly underestimated both their team headquarters home state interest in the couple, as well as the Volturi Brothers bloodlust for free publicity. When they got past security once they got off the plane, they were bombarded with a blinding wall of flash bulbs as high speed cameras went off before them at breakneck speeds.
The noise of the crowd was thunderous as Edward pulled Bella into his side, handing her his sunglasses to help shield her from the brightness. Bella felt the heat on her face as her embarrassment grew. So far, the media coverage of their relationship had been tolerable and she had been able to look the other way and try to ignore the attention, but there was no way to ignore the circus before them at the airport.
Edward pulled out his phone and talked loudly to the person on the other line. Moments later the crowd was pushed apart and two familiar faces came through. Bella smiled when she saw Emmett and Jasper come forward to meet them before leading the way to part the seas before them. When they got through the doors, thankfully not having to wait for luggage since they had only brought carry-ons, they hurriedly climbed into the back seat of Emmett's H3 Hummer with heavily tented back windows. With a sigh of relief, Bella melted into Edward's side, resting her head on his shoulder, as he wrapped his arm protectively around her shoulder and combed his fingers through her hair.
"That was nuts!" She whimpered as she pulled his sunglasses off and handed them to him tipping her face to look into his eyes. She had relaxed a bit too soon.
At that very moment, a pap jumped in front of the car Emmett was just beginning to move forward, holding his camera out to snap a few pictures through the windshield. Those pictures of Edward and Bella snuggled closely in the back seat of the car, her head resting on his shoulder, his arm tucked protectively around her shoulders, would be on the cover of every gossip rag in the country with headlines that ranged from "Pregnant Izzy leans on teammate lover's shoulder" to "Clingy female driver can't take the heat."
Emmett nearly ran over the pushy pap as he pulled away, burning rubber in his exit. Once they got a couple of blocks away he let out a loud sigh and let off the gas a bit. "Holy shit guys, you'd think you were Brangelina or something. What the hell?"
Edward sighed, kissing Bella's forehead as she continued to rest her head against his shoulder with her eyes closed. Emmett looked in the rearview and smiled before sharing a knowing look with Jasper. Seeing them together was a sweet picture, but the mania surrounding them right now was typically saved for Hollywood Starlets and crackhead rock stars, not racecar drivers…not unless they murdered someone or were caught having a harem while their wife sat at home with the kiddos like Tiger. No, this was highly unusual coverage for any racers.
They drove Bella to her apartment first, cringing as they saw the wall of reporters waiting out front. "Holy Fu…." Emmett groaned as he swerved back into traffic and continued traveling past the entryway. "Iz, what you want to do, babe? Do we go back and push our way past them to get you in? Or would you rather just stay with one of us for the night?"
Bella sighed, lifting the heel of her hand to massage her pounding forehead. "Ugh…I can't let them run my life, Em. I…I think I have to go back and just deal with it."
Emmett eyed her carefully through the rearview before sighing in resignation. "Well they'll swamp Edward if we leave him sitting there while you go in. I'm sure his place is just as covered. I guess, we'll have Jasper take you in and I'll drive off with Edward and come back for J later?"
He looked at Jasper for his opinion. Jasper just smiled with a slight nod. He glanced back to the back seat to see Edward and Bella staring at each other as if they were sharing a private conversation. It surprised the crap out of him to see the closeness they had already developed. There was a stretch of silence before Edward blinked slowly, a tint of frustration on his face as he nodded minutely. Bella sighed, closing her eyes before turning back toward the front.
"Sounds like it's our only option. Are you okay with that, Jazz?"
Jasper turned in his seat to smile back at her with a wink. "Sure thing, Izzy. Don't you worry," he said glancing at Edward with a small nod. "I'll take good care of her."
Edward's shoulders dropped slightly before he sucked in a deep breath and nodded back. A few moments later, they were back at the hotel. The second Emmett stopped the car, Bella squeezed Edward's hand held between them before shuffling closer to the door. Jasper jumped out and moved to open the door for Bella, grabbing her small bag and hugging her protectively to his side as they moved toward the door as the roar of shouted questions poured over them.
The second the door was closed, Emmett began to pull away, as a few paps turned their attention back to the car, noticing someone else in the back seat. Edward turned in his seat as they sped away to watch Bella slowly disappear into the crowd as she cowered into Jasper's side. It pissed him off that he couldn't be the one to protect her, but that would have made things so much worse in that particular moment.
Ten minutes later, Emmett pulled through the gate leading into the community within which Edward owned a moderate home, slowly inching past the mob of photogs standing at the automated gate. The security guard was obviously on his break, leaving nobody to keep the vultures at bay. They hadn't thought about the fact that the security for the gated community that he lived in would give them a level of privacy that Bella's place did not afford her. Thinking of her safety, Edward immediately began to calculate if knew of any places nearby in the subdivision that would be available for her to take possession of in the foreseeable future that he could convince Bella to buy.
Emmett parked and walked with Edward to front door. Edward felt it was overkill, but went along when Emmett said something to the effect of "Izzy would skin me alive if I didn't make sure you were okay." Edward couldn't argue with that.
Emmett left as soon as Edward was settled, leaving Edward all alone in his nice home. His mom, the award winning decorator, had come in and decorated the whole thing in bachelor chic as she called it. The living room had cream carpeting with taupe walls and black leather couch and easy chair that sat directly across from his sixty inch flat screen. She offset the total maleness of the living area by putting out knick knacks with tribal symbols and Japanese characters to give the place a more lived in feel, along with large lithograph prints featuring Samurai warriors on the walls to compliment the set of Samurai swords proudly displayed on this long back credenza that ran behind the couch. Edward loved everything about his living space, but after the past couple of weeks, he couldn't help but feel it was somehow lacking.
Edward wandered from room to room, staring blankly at his bedroom with a similar theme, the large black lacquer four poster bed, draped with the red comforter and black satin sheets not even looking appealing in spite of his exhaustion. He drifted to the large bay windows in his bedroom that looked out on the in-ground swimming pool off of his back patio. He flipped on the lights with a sigh before shutting them off and pacing back to the kitchen to stare into his empty refrigerator.
He jumped when his phone rang in his pocket, but before he even pulled it out of his pocket he was smiling as he heard the tune calling from the small plastic device. The opened the flip phone and brought it to his mouth, smiling ear to ear.
"Hey, beautiful, you make it home safe and sound?"
Just hearing her voice made his whole place seem brighter. "Yeah, Alice appeared just after you guys left with my suitcase. She and Jasper just left. Did you have a media circus to deal with too?"
Edward chuckled. "A little, but the beauty of living in a gated community is that they can't get past the gate, and if they do we have it on tape and can press charges, which is why they obey the rules. Speaking of which, I'm really worried about you living in that apartment complex. There's no security to keep you safe, and with all this press mess, you need it."
She sighed and he smiled a little more thinking even her sigh sounded beautiful. "I guess you're right, but I hate to waste the money on a place where I will hardly ever stay. I'd rather save it for a rainy day."
Edward scoffed loudly. "Bella, you're an amazing racer and unless you run off to another team, you're going to be here with Volturi for a long time. You should settle some roots and keep yourself safe. Besides, you're already making enough for a couple of rainy days at least, you should invest some of that into a stable home for yourself. I can help you if you want."
"Oh really?" Bella asked skeptically making Edward chuckle.
"Yep, matter of fact, I think there are a couple right here in my own neighborhood that will be coming on the market soon. We could be neighbors."
"Would you like that, Mr. Rogers? I always wanted to have a neighbor just like you."
Edward tossed back his head and laughed hard. God, I adore this woman, he thought as he turned and looked out of the back widows to the lit house on the other side of his back fence. "Would you be mine? Could you be mine? Won't you be my neighbor? Matter of fact, the ones that live right behind me are supposed to be moving out of state soon. I don't know if they found a buyer yet or not, but I know for a fact it's an amazing place. If I didn't have my house, I'd be lusting after it myself."
"Oh really? What's so great about it?"
Edward smirked, leaning against the counter top in the kitchen and taking a sip of a bottled water he stole out of the fridge before continuing. "Well first of all, my place is a two bedroom, where that house has four, which would be nice to have an office and room for guests. It also has granite kitchen countertops with stainless steel appliances. There's a formal living room, a family room with a wood burning fireplace in the back, and a fully finished basement that would make a kick ass game room. It also has an awesome in-ground pool out back with a waterfall and hot tub. It's a great place, and if they haven't sold yet, they'd probably be willing to drop the price a bit more to get out from under it before their move."
Bella coughed before clearing her throat. "Good Lord, Edward. Exactly how much space do you think I take up in this world? All of that would definitely be a waste for me on to live on my own. My belongings barely fill a two bedroom apartment. My things in a place like that wouldn't even fill half the house!"
Edward sighed with a nod. He knew it was definitely too much for someone living alone, but to be honest, he always looked at it as an investment in his future…a place where he could raise a family when the right woman came along. He had thought he'd found that right person with Tanya a few years before, but that had ended far too soon to ever reach that point when Tanya found herself falling in love with her best friend and lab partner, Shawna. Yeah, it's kind of hard to fight THAT problem. Tanya had apologized over and over, telling Edward that he was a wonderful man who would someday find the girl to have the family he wanted with. It had scarred Edward though, enough that he stopped looking altogether…enough that he no longer cared what image he gave to the world, allowing the bad rep he had in the racing community to fester and grow. It didn't matter that it was the farthest from reality you could possibly get, actually very little did matter anymore after that besides racing…until Isabella Swan sauntered into his life that is.
"Well, if you want, we could still ask around and take a look. Maybe we could look into a switcheroo. If you came over and liked my place, then maybe I could buy the other place and rent or sell my house to you. Then we'd both win."
He heard Bella's breathing as she paused for a long time. "Iiiiiiii don't know, Edward. That sounds like it could get really complicated. I mean, they say you should never do business with friends or family. What if something went wrong? I finally feel like we're starting to develop…something. I, um….I don't…"
She trailed off and even though she was putting the kybosh on his idea, Edward couldn't help but smile while doing a little fist bump. Whatever was beginning between them was important to her…too important to risk. Her reaction only bolstered Edward's confidence that asking her out on that date was the right thing to do.
"Alright," he said, after realizing that the line had been quiet for a while. "I'd still like to check into it for me, though. You want to come along if it's still on the market?"
"Um…sure. When?"
"I have to check on it in the morning, but how about I call you?"
He heard a yawn on the line before she mumbled an 'okay, sounds good.'
"You sound tired, sweetheart. Why don't you go crash out and I'll call you up tomorrow when I know more?"
She yawned again before finally agreeing. Edward hung up his phone, once more alone, and yet not feeling it as much as he had before the phone call. He walked to the living room and nabbed his laptop out of his waiting belongings from his carry on. The rest of his things wouldn't arrive for a day or two when his RV returned from Forth Worth.
While he waited for the hard drive to spin up so he could check the listing for the house behind his, he stared once more through the double pane of his sliding glass doors and indulged in daydreams he hadn't allowed to flourish in several years. It seemed the entrance of Isabella Swan was waking up far more dormant parts of his heart than just his desires.
3 3 3 3
Bella settled into her bed after she got off the phone with Edward only to find herself tossing and turning under the covers. They hadn't even kissed yet, but Bella already felt like her relationship with Edward was progressing faster than it should. The emotions that something as simple as his wanting her to move into his neighborhood to be safer invoked within her scared her senseless.
The oddest part of all was that in just a little over one short week since she and Edward started becoming friends, she already felt miles and miles closer to him than she ever had with Jake, and Jake had been her best friend ever. It didn't make any kind of rational sense, which is what terrified Bella the most. What if everything between she and Edward was nothing more than a mirage that, with time and familiarity, would fade into nothingness? She already felt herself becoming too emotionally invested, and even if it all fell apart right that very moment, she knew that she would feel absolutely devastated.
She thought about everything for a good hour or two before her body no longer allowed her to stew and forced her into a deep sleep.
Bella awoke the next morning to the sound of her phone singing on the bedside table. She glanced at the alarm clock through squinted eyes to see it was already nine in the morning. She leaned over to grab the phone, grimacing when she noticed it was Edward's ringtone singing into her sleepy face. She flipped it open, croaking a weak hello into the receiver.
"Oh Bella, you were still sleeping, weren't you? I'm so sorry. I…I'll call back later."
Bella groaned and rolled onto her back, stretching her legs out spread eagle on the bed. "No, no. I need to get up. I just had a hard time sleeping last night. What's up?"
Edward cleared his throat before continuing. "Um, well last night you said you'd come with me today to check out houses. I looked online and the house behind me is still on the market and the price has dropped ten thousand dollars. I was sort of hoping you would want to check it out with me when I had my appointment this afternoon. I also arranged with my realtor to take us to a few other places that will be available in the area for you that are smaller if you'd like."
Bella rubbed her forehead with a whimper before looking at the clock again. "I need to get cleaned up first. I could meet you in about forty five minutes somewhere if you'd like."
Edward was silent for a long stretch and Bella wondered what was wrong. Just when she was about to ask he sighed into the line. "Yeah, or I could pick you up. I mean, if you didn't want to have to meet me. It's not a problem."
Bella pushed herself up to sit on the edge of the bed, cracking her neck as she stood to her feet. "Well, I wouldn't mind, but what about the press? They might still be out there."
Edward chuckled and Bella could almost picture him shaking his head. "I can guarantee they're still out there, sweetie, but I outed us yesterday in Texas. It's not going to be some big surprise if I come to pick you up."
Bella chuckled shaking her own head at her own naiveté. Of course, the vultures would still be out. I am obviously still half asleep. Bella thought to herself with a sigh.
"Well, if you're that tired maybe you should get more rest, Bella. I'm sure you need more than usual to finish healing up. How are you feeling anyway?"
Bella blinked a few times, feeling embarrassed that she had obviously voiced that last bit out loud. "Um…I'm feeling pretty good actually. It still aches a bit when I stretch certain ways, but for the most part I feel fine."
"That's good. You go get cleaned up, sweetie, and I'll pick you up at your front door in about forty minutes or so."
"Thirty," Bella blurted before slapping her hand over her mouth.
"What was that, Bella?"
Bella cleared her throat feeling her face heating in embarrassment. "Um…If I don't have to drive anywhere, I can be ready in thirty minutes if you're just meeting me here."
She heard Edward chuckle lightly before his amused voice replied. "Alright, see you in thirty then."
3 3 3 3
To the couple's great relief there were only a couple of paps hanging outside Bella's place. They snapped away as Edward arrived and again as Edward escorted Bella out to his mint condition, cherry red, 1968 Dodge Charger. It was a classic that he cared for like most mothers care for their newborns. Since he took possession of it, not a single night had passed when it sat out in the elements. It always stayed in his garage unless he had a perfect day like the one they were having to take it out on the town.
Bella smiled as they walked down, admiring the shine off the car's paint. She knew a well maintained car when she saw it, and this baby was SPOILED rotten! Edward opened the door as the paps snapped away at their exchange, smiling down at her before closing her into the passenger side. Bella sighed at the beautiful machine as she stroked the seats and leaned over to examine the original gauges.
When Edward slid in beside her, she turned to him with wide eyes. "Holy hell, is this all original?"
Edward beamed at her as he turned the key making the car rumble to life. Bella closed her eyes and savored the sensations. There was nothing like sitting in a classic muscle car still kitted out in its original glory. The only thing better was sitting behind the wheel of said car and gripping it tightly in your hands as you maneuvered it through winding streets. She glanced lustfully toward Edward's hands, causing him to laugh.
"Now if you'd only look at ME that way, we'd be sitting pretty."
Bella cut her eyes at him, her mouth in a half smirk, half wince. Edward laughed again before asking her to put on her seatbelt, which Bella had totally forgotten to do in her car lusting. Once she was safely restrained, he took off, making Bella giggle at the Paps who jumped back in shock.
Ten minutes later, a laughing Edward and Bella pulled up to the massive gates that separated his small neighborhood from the main road beyond. He pulled up to a gate house where a short bald man stood in a uniform.
"Good Morning, Mr. Cullen. I hear those press people gave you problems last night. I made sure to run them off after you left this morning though. Here's the clipboard to sign your guest in, sir."
Edward smiled up at the man, taking the clipboard and filling out the line. "Howard, I'd like you to meet Isabella Swan. If things go my way, she may just be a new tenant in our little neighborhood."
Howard leaned down with a smile pushing his jowl laden cheeks up a bit. "You're the lady car racer that drives on the same team as Mr. Cullen here. My daughter and granddaughters are such big fans of yours. Do you think I could get an autograph for them?"
Bella smiled as she blushed bright pink. She wasn't really used to the autograph thing yet. Before she hit the Sprint Cup Series, she never really had anyone ask for one outside of the dedicated signing events. She nodded, reaching for a paper Howard extended past Edward.
Edward smiled, passing the paper to Bella as he handed the clipboard back to Howard.
"Who should I make this out to?" Bella asked, nibbling her lip as she strained to write on her leg.
"Oh, just make it out to 'my biggest fan.'" Bella and Edward cut their eyes at each other before Bella finished the autograph, handing the paper back to Howard. Once they pulled away, Edward tossed back his head and laughed loudly while Bella buried her face in her hands.
"I've never seen Howard star struck before! His daughter and granddaughter, my ass. He definitely wanted that puppy all for himself."
Bella groaned as they turned a corner and she looked up to see where they were going. Bella's eyes widened as she took in the large, beautiful houses along the streets, all perfectly appointed with short manicured lawns and beautiful seasonal flowers laid out in weedless rows. She felt like Dorothy dropping into Oz.
Edward made another turn before slowing down to stop in front of an adorable light blue house with dark blue shutters. It was exactly like what she would pick out for herself, if she got to choose. She looked back at him in confusion.
"I really like this one, but it doesn't look big enough for all the rooms you described."
Edward beamed at her from the driver's side. "That's because that is MY house…the one I was saying you could live in if I buy the house behind it. The offer still stands. If you didn't want the expense of buying, you could rent it."
Bella shook her head. "I never mix business with…" She dropped off blushing bright red.
Edward smiled at her. "Pleasure? Was that what you were going to say? Because I like the idea of pleasure with you, and since we are colleagues, we're already dipping our toe in the proverbial pool. I, personally, think you would be the perfect tenant…or if you really loved it, you could buy it from me."
Bella furrowed her brow, looking anxious. Edward smiled, reaching across to take her hand from her lap and kiss her knuckles gently. "I'm not going to push. Now let's go see this other house. I know you're going to love it."
He put the car in gear and drove around the block, parking in front of a large house with an exterior that looked almost as if it were a log cabin. Large windows looked out from its unique edifice that really stood out as something different amongst the cookie cutter homes in the neighborhood. Bella's mouth hung open as she stepped in a daze from the car when Edward opened it and helped her out.
"Isn't this a development? How did they?"
Edward chuckled, grabbing her hand and kissing the back again as he led her toward the front door where the realtor stood waiting with a bright smile. "This house was originally on the property when it sold. The one stipulation of the land owners was that it would stay and remain in the neighborhood. The people who lived here once the development went up loved it and worked extensively to restore and upgrade the inside. It's an awesome house. I can't wait for you to see."
Bella smiled and followed him as he tugged her along like an over excited five year old on his first day of school. When they reached the large wraparound porch with the shingled roof, the realtor smiled at Bella and introduced herself before leading them into the house.
Bella was awe struck at the simple beauty of the home. Rich warm woods lined the walls and the floors, giving the inside just as homey of a feel as the outside. Room after room, Bella found herself more and more astounded at just how amazing it was. She never thought she would say that she had fallen in love with an inanimate object besides her cars, but this house was damn close to matching her love for them. By the time they were finishing up, she was wishing she could justify buying a house that large just for her, because she would definitely be happy in a home with that feel and space.
Edward watched Bella closely, his chest warming as her obvious approval shone from her eyes. With every passing room, he couldn't help but envision a life in the house with Bella at his side, and eventually children filling the rooms. As they left, the realtor locked up the key box as they walked together to the car. Bella turned back with a sigh.
"What do you think?" Edward asked as they reached the car door.
"I think it's the most amazing house I've ever seen and you'd be a fool not to jump at it if you can afford to."
Edward smirked, if only Bella knew how much he could afford, she would have a heart attack. Not only did he make an abundant living from his salary with the team and his additional sponsorships, but he also was a trust fund baby, with an account he hadn't touched in more than five years, steadily gaining interest. He had enough money in that fund alone to buy five of the houses they had just seen and still have money left over to pay for the property taxes for the rest of his life there.
They followed the realtor to the few other houses nearby that were listed, but none of them appealed to Bella like the first two houses Edward showed her did. When they were done, Edward told the realtor he would call her later in the day or tomorrow to discuss the house he wanted more before sending her on her way.
Bella looked at him in surprise. "You're not going to bid?"
Edward chuckled. "Not right this minute. It will build the suspense if I wait and make them more willing to negotiate. I doubt I'll try to bring them down any more than they've already come. The house is far and away worth every bit of the original asking price, I just don't want them trying to creep back up on me because they know that I have the funds."
Bella frowned, feeling like a complete country bumpkin. It never would have occurred to her to do that.
Edward smiled, leaning over to take her hand again. "So, do you want to see my place now?"
Bella looked over at him with wide, surprised eyes, making Edward reevaluate how the question sounded. His eyes matcher her own as he started shaking his head. "No, no, no…not like that…it's just that if I buy the other house it will be open for someone else to love."
He wiggled his eyebrows at Bella making her laugh. "Okay…you convinced me."
Edward's home was relatively small, allowing him to give her the full tour in a few short minutes. She really liked the layout and the decorations as well. It really just seemed to fit him to have all the Samurai pictures and swords around him. At the end, Edward led her to the doors to the back patio and smiled as he pointed toward the large brown house behind the fence. There was a privacy fence between the yards with a man sized gate in the middle.
"See, if you took me up on this, we'd even be neighbors with a mutual gate. It'd make dating so much easier. No drives across town fighting the paps to pick you up, I could just walk through my back yard."
Bella turned to him with a raised brow. "Oh, so you think I'm that cheap a date, huh?"
Edward chuckled shaking his head and reaching out to rub her shoulders gently. "On the contrary, I'm looking forward to taking you out for a real night out on the town. What do you say to Thursday night?"
"Why Thursday?"
Edward smiled. "Well tomorrow I'll be up to my eyeballs in escrow, Wednesday you have a charity auction in Raleigh, so I assumed Thursday would be the first day we'd both have free."
Bella smiled up at Edward with a nod. "Thursday sounds perfect. What are we going to do?"
Edward shook his head, backing up to lean against the counter that separated the kitchen from the dining area they were standing in. "Oh no, that's going to be a surprise. Matter of fact, let's make it an all day Thursday thing. I'll pick you up at say, ten in the morning? Would that work?"
Bella frowned, cutting her eyes nervously at Edward. "I'm not a real big fan of surprises."
Edward pushed off the counter and walked toward her with a smile before breezing right past her. "Me either, but I promise you'll enjoy it if you just give it a chance."
Bella sighed, closing her eyes before following Edward back toward the front of the house.
"So are you hungry for lunch yet?" He asked as he reached the front door and turned the knob.
Bella smiled as she passed him and began walking down the front stoop. "Absolutely…what have you got in mind?"
"How do you feel about sushi?"
Bella squealed and clapped like a little girl, making Edward adore her even more. "So sushi it is!" He locked the door behind him before making his way to his car in the drive, his hand at the base of Bella's back giving them both shivers that went all the way to their souls.
