Something occurred to me as I stood on the cold, tile floor. What was the big deal about Edward? It wasn't like he was anyone important. Sure, he was beautiful but I was taken. James had proved himself to me a thousand times over and then some.

I turned and opened the door. Walking towards the bed, I thought over the unexpected visit. Important or not, there was something familiar about that boy. As I sat on the bed, I almost smiled. I can't believe that I had thought of the boy, man really, as an angel vampire. It made me think that I was not so loyal to James as I had thought I had been after all.

James stared at me with a perplexed expression that I did not understand.

I looked down and played with my hair for a bit. I would let him do the talking. It was only a matter of time before he cracked.

James sighed.

He cracked:

"Ok, so you obviously have no clue as to who Edward is, do you?" He asked me, throwing himself down onto the bed.

I was still as the bed shifted to the newly added weight.

"Am I suppose to know of him?" I asked in a quiet voice.

James stiffened. I could feel him becoming more and more nervous. It wasn't like him.

"Ah, no. That was in your past life. It doesn't matter now." He answered.

I nodded to myself once.

"Alright then."

I stood and walked to the bathroom once more as he watched me with newly guarded eyes.

"What are you doing?" James asked suddenly.

I didn't turn to look at him.

"Why I'm putting on something comfortable of course. Do you mind?" I replied with a sly smile.

I heard the rushing wind from behind me before I could take another step.

James gently caressed my shoulders. My shirt slid down a few extra inches. I felt a major human blush coming on.

"Need any assistance with that?" James murmured.

I smirked and shook him off as I gathered my bearings.

"Oh, I'm pretty capable of changing myself. Don't wait up." I turned my head slightly and winked at him.

I was sure he would be salivating now, if not before.

"Hurry Isabella..." A ghost of a whisper followed me into the bathroom.

Jeez...he made me shiver even when he was not there.


Oh...

Oh wow...

OH WOW.

I had never thought that it was possible to experience such pleasure after death. I had never thought of death often. I didn't think of myself as such. But I guess, in the true sense of the word, I was clinically dead. But if I had known that I could experience such joy I would have died sooner, no lie.

I clenched the covers closer to my body.

But James was having none of that.

"What's this? I thought you had gotten over being shy years ago." He reached over me to tug down the sheets. I allowed him to and revealed my skin to him without a fuss. I was not shy. I just felt...different. Like I had some unseen enemy watching us. But that was not possible or even plausible.

James slowly dragged his fingers across my stomach in little circles. I could feel a blush coming on.

I smiled softly.

"I..." Hm.

James' kisses dragged slowly down my neck and across my collarbone. He raised his face for a moment to quirk an eyebrow at me.

"Nothing, my love." I sighed.

He smirked and continued ravaging my crystal skin. His legs became entangled in mine once more.

All forms of thought sailed out the window.

I clutched his body closer to mine. I couldn't get enough.

As I closed my eyes, I pretended that I was dreaming. This was certainly taking on a dreamlike quality to me. But sleep was dead to me. Sleep and dreams were not a luxury for the cursed to achieve. I still retained some of my human qualities like blush and my blood but not sleep. Of course, I could always pretend and imagine.

And yet! A sound! A sound that sounded so misplaced amidst this passionate lovemaking. It was so agonized and piercing that I thought I would loose my mind. What soul could be so depressed and live to tell it?

I wanted to see what it was about but...mmmhmm.

I sighed. No.

I pushed up against James' chest. Even though he was much stronger than I, for I had passed my first year mark years ago, he responded the way I wanted him to. He drew back and stared at me with piercing eyes. I wanted to pull his face back down to mine again.

After all, we had forever right?

What better way to use your time?

So tempting...

"Yes, my Bella?" James said in the sexiest sounding voice I had ever hoped to hear. It was so deep and the way his eyes glinted at me...it was too much...too much for one person.

"James, oh..." I broke off abruptly for my voice came out sounding like a breathless moan. It was embarrassing to say the least.

Oh never mind!

And once more I drowned in his ice cold kisses.


I sat up quickly in bed. I tried to swallow but the venom wasn't enough.

My throat was burning with thirst.

I could deny my needs no longer. I needed to hunt and soon.

James stirred besides me, moving closer and pressing flesh to flesh. I shuddered as he wrapped an arm around my torso.

"Where do you think you're going?" James muttered.

I smiled and leaned over. I kissed his cheek briefly and jumped out of bed, streaking towards the closet.

"I need to get dressed so I can go hunt." I called back to James.

I heard him push the covers away as he started to join me.

"Good idea." James said. But he didn't look for new clothes. He just wrapped his arms around me again and pressed his cold hands against my chest. I almost fainted. Almost.

"James..." I murmured. "Stop it." But I didn't really put any force behind it. James just snuggled into my neck. He blew softly into my ear.

I shuddered slightly.

"You don't...really want me...to stop, do you?" James purred so innocently like he wasn't making me feel like I was on fire.

I swallowed and then frowned.

"No I don't. But this thirst is causing me pain, James. Please..." My voice a little stronger after I evaluated my situation.

James sighed and pressed one last ice cold kiss on my smoldering neck. He slowly removed his hands from my chest. Oh man...

"Thank you." I let out breathlessly.

James groaned.

"I'm going to take a shower." He mumbled before slinking off into the bathroom.

I smiled, glad to know that I had that effect on him.

"Take as long as you need. I'm just going to grab a quick bite outside."

James mm-hmmed in my general direction to let me know he'd heard.

I pulled on some loose jeans and an old tee before stepping out into nature. It was a little muddy so I was glad I'd worn my hiking boots out.

I closed my eyes and let the instinct overtake me. I sniffed and automatically my body fall into a crouch. My eyes snapped back open and I saw an animal standing obliviously in the clearing.

I smiled and took a deliberate step forward.

My next meal had arrived.

I let out a furious growl and launched myself towards the animal.

"Whoa!"

I stopped dead in my tracks at the sound of the voice.

Who the hell was all the way out here?

My eyes narrowed and my stance stiffened. The doe had gotten away and I was a little miffed. That hadn't happened since I was a newborn. Someone else had ruined my hunt.

I would find out whom.

Still.

Stiff.

Statuesque.

I felt like I hadn't moved in years when it was really only minutes.

I had gone stiff with stress. Eventually another animal had gone by and I had gotten my fill. But it wasn't my original pick.

Ugh.

James didn't know about my near encounter with another person. I still didn't know who this person was. The voice sounded familiar but not. Maybe I had heard this voice before but had never spoken to them...?

And the way my body tingled from the subconscious nerves running through my system lead me to believe this voice was very, very, majorly important. At least, that was what I was guessing and definitely sticking to.

My ears perked up as I head the door scrape open on the hardwood floor.

James was back from his...meal.

I winced at the uncomfortable feeling in my throat.

He still smelled like human blood. I would have to make him shower again.

-Sigh- And we would have the same old tired out fight. He says he's just following his natural appetite and I'm denying my natural right. Then I'd say didn't he ever think of the person he was killing and didn't that just burn your conscience a bit? Just a little? You sure? Really? Uh huh, okay.

This was becoming a very...odd and uncomfortable relationship. Like a teeter-totter.

I just hoped that neither one of us fell off.