Chapter 9
"Are you hungry? We should go get hot dogs," Edward said. One arm was slung casually around Bella's shoulders, and he was wheeling her small suitcase, along with the other.
Largely, Bella was in the moment. She was basking in the warmth of his embrace, hearing his voice again in real time, and the already easy flow of talking and being together. Then, there was a small part of her that was on high alert. It wasn't just the huge airport, jam-packed with people, it was the looks. At first, she thought she was imagining it, but when the third person got wide-eyed and pointed their phone, she knew that Edward's hat and shades weren't disguising shit.
"I could eat a dog," she agreed quietly. "Preferably somewhere with less people."
Edward glanced down at her, and even though his eyes were hidden behind the shades, the furrow in his brow told her he knew something was up. It took him a second to work through it. When he did, he glanced around, as if suddenly realizing where they were.
"Shit," he cursed. "Yeah. Yeah, less people. I can make that happen."
Their pace leaving the airport was a little less languid. When they reached his car in the parking lot, he quickly unlocked and stowed her bag away. Bella smiled when she climbed in, and ran her fingers of the lovingly restored leather.
"So, this is your baby," she said.
"Second prettiest girl I know," Edward replied, with a wink.
Bella felt her cheeks warm just a little. She reached and tugged his arm just before he put the key in the ignition.
"What's up, Beautiful?" he asked, mirroring her smile. It was like neither of them could stop.
Without words, Bella pulled him closer, and he came quite willingly. He was still smiling when his lips hit hers. The kiss was sweet and light. It was just what Bella needed to relax.
"Now we can go," she told him when it was over.
**WIB**
Forks and PA had not prepared Bella for LA traffic. Sure, everyone knew about LA traffic, but to be in it, was a whole other thing. It took them roughly an hour to get to the hole in the wall joint Edward wanted to eat at. In most other situations, the constant stop and very little go would have turned her into a road raging maniac; however, with the top down, Edward's hand holding hers, and him singing along with the radio, she kinda hoped they'd get stuck for another hour…or two.
Of course, her mind changed when they entered Chi-Town Dawgz. The smell of spicy chili and grilled meat made her realize she hadn't eaten since that morning. The pictures of hot dogs topped with ridiculous piles of toppings behind the counter made her mouth water. Edward smiled down at her.
"There's nothing here that isn't delicious," he told her.
"I'm so freaking happy right now," she replied.
They placed their order for beers, dogs, and chili cheese fries and settled into one of the high top tables a few steps away.
"I like this," Bella said, as she snapped pictures of the Chicago themed décor with her phone.
Edward smiled.
"I'm telling you, just wait until you try the dog," he told her.
Not only did Bella like the restaurant's style, she liked how small and cozy it was. There was a small eating counter with a few stools and just a few tables. It was nice to know that with all his money and status, Edward still picked normal stuff over the elite. And since they were the only people there, aside from the cook/cashier, Bella didn't feel like she'd spend her whole meal cringing away from prying eyes.
"How'd you find this place?" she asked.
"There's a bar not too far from here we played at when we were first starting out," he told her.
"Not so much with the playing in bars these days, huh?" she asked, with a smile.
Edward grinned. The last five years had been all arenas and entertainment complexes for Midnight Sun Alter.
"Not so much," he agreed.
"Do you miss it? Having a more intimate setting with your fans?" she asked.
Suddenly, Bella felt a little bad that, in all their conversations, they hadn't really discussed what it did for a living. She knew she had kind, of intentionally kept away from the subject, because she liked to separate Edward the rock star from Edward her…friend. By his smile alone, she could see how much he loved what he did.
"It's two very different experiences," he said. "In a smaller venue, you can really connect with the audience. You can see the look on their face and know they're really feeling your words. But, when you've got thousands of people singing along with you and the energy is through the roof, it's a high like nothing else in the world."
He spoke with wide eyes, bright green impressed his passion on Bella. She felt a little high herself.
"I got a Chicago style and an Italian beef," the cook said, placing piping hot food on the counter.
Edward gave Bella another grin before hopping up to go grab their lunch.
"Are you ready to feast?" he asked, setting the basket filled with a massive hotdog in front of her.
"God, yes," she said. The dog looked every bit as amazing as he made it out to be. It took Bella minute to plan out her attack, due to the size and topping composition, but when she finally got the first bite in her mouth, she thought she'd died and went to Heaven. "Oh my go so fluf goo," she tried to say, around a mouth full of amazingness.
Edward laughed. He had yet to take his first bite, waiting patiently for her reaction. As he went to put a forkful in his mouth, his phone began to buzz.
"Damn it," he huffed, fishing it out of his pocket.
Bella watched, amused and contently chewing.
"Yeah," he answered.
Bella thought it was interesting to just watch him when he wasn't focused on her. She thought that it would fade, but everything about his face was still so damn appealing to her. The way his mouth formed around words. The way his eyes were sometimes more green or more gray. The sharp lines of his jaw and cheekbones. She only snapped out of her lusty haze when she heard him say the words "yeah, maybe we'll see you there". She focused in only to hear him saying goodbyes to whoever he was talking to.
"So, that was my boy, Garrett," Edward said, laying the phone down. The look in his eyes, hesitant and regretful, made Bella put down her dog. "And he was inviting us to the first of many engagement celebrations tonight."
Bella puzzled over the statement for a moment. She wasn't sure why that would make Edward look so concerned.
"Ok," she hedged.
"Thing is, he invited us," he said, eyes widening to emphasis the word us.
"Ok," she said again. There was something there, but it was just out of Bella's grasp. She thought maybe it was Edward effect making her ditzy again.
"I didn't tell him you were here," he said.
Bella's brow winkled.
"Then how does he know….shit," her question died when she realized exactly what had happened.
Edward sighed and picked up his phone. He tapped a few times, and when he handed it to her, it was open to his twitter feed, which was filled with photos of the two of them. Bella sighed deeply. This was exactly what she had been scared of. She scrolled down and saw so many pictures, from so many angles. Pictures right up until they climbed in his car. It made her feel uneasy, and just a little violated.
"I'm sorry," Edward said, reaching over to place his hand on hers.
She nodded.
"Bella," Edward's voice was soft, and Bella finally looked up from his phone. "You did know this was unavoidable right?"
"I'm sure I could have just rented a car or something," she began.
"Yeah, but at some point," he cut her off gently shaking his head, "you will be seen with me. Two people in a relationship will be seen together by someone, at some point."
Bella's head was spinning. Her face was being blasted all over the internet, and Edward had just said the word relationship. She took a deep breath.
"I mean, you get that right?" Edward reached and took both of her hands in his.
She was quiet for a moment longer.
"I mean, I am who I am. I can't change that," he went on. Clearly, her silence was freaking him out. "I mean, if you want me to, I could snatch up every phone that gets pointed at us and smash the shit out of it, but I think that would get pretty expensive, what with the eventual court costs and all."
Bella couldn't help but chuckle. Leave it to Edward to make her laugh every time she thought things were completely fucked and uncontrollable.
"So, what do we do now?" she asked.
"Well, you can tell me you don't want to deal with this shit, and I'll change your flight. You can head home, and I won't bother you anymore. However, I will be heartbroken from missing you, and will drown my sorrows in a bottle. My career will deteriorate and die. You'll see the whole thing on the news, and, eventually as a cautionary tale on VH1," he told her, completely earnest. "Or, you can kinda roll with the punches and be the girlfriend of a famous guy in a band."
Bella smirked.
"You want me to be your girlfriend?" she asked.
"Oh...well…yeah," Edward babbled. Bella was pretty sure he hadn't even realized the label was a big deal.
"You mean, you like me?" she sing-songed, grinning. "You like me a lot."
Edward laughed and rolled his eyes.
"Yes, woman, I like you a lot," he told her.
"You wanna be my booooyyyyfriend," she was having too much fun teasing him. He looked at her pointedly. "Fine. I'm all yours, Rockstar. But I can't promise I'm going to be good at this whole camera, media thing."
Edward smiled.
"I'll do whatever I have to, to take care of you," he said. "With all that being said, wanna go to a party?"
**WIB**
"So, I need a favor," Edward said, when his sister answered the phone.
After lunch, he and Bella headed back to his place. Edward's head was swimming from everything that had happened. He had a real, standard girlfriend for the first time since high school. In the corners of his mind, where he expected to find panic, he only found excitement. Everything with Bella felt so damn right, there was no fear. The fact that she was willing to commit to being a part of the crazy, intrusive life led by the famous told him everything he needed to know about the way she felt about it. Even though it was Garrett and Bree's nigh,t he was looking forward to introducing his new girlfriend to his friends. Only problem was Bella didn't have anything to wear that would meet the club's dress code. While Bella checked out his vinyl collection, Edward was calling his problem solver.
"Edward," Alice sighed. "Despite what you may think, I can't control the internet. I can't make every single celebrity worshiping dipshit on Twitter delete pictures of your little friend."
"That's not the favor, Alice," he told her.
"Oh?"
"Nope, we are unconcerned. Also, my girlfriend," he couldn't help but smirk as he said the g word.
"Girlfriend. Huh," Edward detected a note of impressed in Alice's voice. "Then, what's this favor."
"You know Garrett and Bree are having an engagement thing at The Lounge tonight?" he asked.
"Yeah, I was going to pop in for a few, but some things came up," his sister replied.
"Well, Bella needs a dress," he told her.
"Dress. Right," she replied. Edward heard her start to tap on her ever-present iPad. "I could make that happen. But in what aspect am I doing this favor? Is this a sister favor or a manager favor?"
By the tone of Alice's voice, Edward knew it would cost him.
"This is a sister favor," he replied.
"Then, littler brother, the cost is a private concert at my house, for a friend of mine's birthday," she told him.
Edward wrinkled his nose.
"What if it's a manager favor?"
"Then it's a private concert, for my friend's birthday, at her actual party," she said smugly.
Edward laughed.
"Fine, one acoustic couch show," he told his sister.
"Send me a picture of your girl so I can get the sizing right," she replied.
**WIB**
The dress was amazing. It was gold and sparkly, and hugged Bella's curves in a way that was lethal. She'd taken her time flat ironing her hair and doing her make-up dark and smudgy. The matching gold stilettos made her legs look a mile long. When he picked her up to go to his father's party, he remembered thinking she looked like a vintage movie star. Now, she looked like a femme fatale.
"Wow," he said, taking his time eyeing her up and down when she walked out of the bathroom and into his bedroom. He was sitting on the edge of his bed tying his shoes. Even though they were already twenty minutes late, Edward had only managed the get his pants and shoes on. Every time he'd started getting dressed, he'd thought of something else he wanted to tell Bella, or show her, or he just got sidetracked thinking about her.
She smiled.
"These heels are going to kill me. This is like, the tiniest stiletto in the history of shoes," she said with wide eyes.
"Alice always says beauty is pain," he told her with a laugh.
She moved to stand between his legs and took his face in both of her hands.
"Is that why it hurts to look at you?" she asked.
Edward felt his heart start to thump in his chest. It wasn't like women didn't comment on his looks all the time, they did. But hearing those words from this sweet girl was something else entirely. It caused a tidal wave of mixed up emotion. Warmth, happiness, and a whole fuck ton of lust punched him in the gut. He leaned up and she met him halfway. The kiss was more intense than their hello kiss, by a long shot. Her tongue darted past his lips to touch his own. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. His hands moved restlessly down her back and over the curve of her ass. He groaned against her mouth. It pained him to pull away.
"We're already late," he said, smiling sheepishly.
"Right," she said, letting out a deep breath. Her eyes were bright and her skin was flushed. Edward was willing to bet if he suggested skipping the party, she'd go along with it. He was very tempted.
Bella stepped away, and he missed her warmth immediately.
"I'm a little nervous about this," she told him, as he pulled his shirt on and buttoned it up.
He shook his head dismissive.
"It's not going to be a big deal. We'll be in the VIP section of the club. There'll be twenty, thirty people tops. And some of them will be far more important than me, so that should keep the cameras off you," he told her.
She still looked apprehensive.
"If anyone hassles you, you let me know immediately, and I'll deal with it," he told her. He stood and circled her in his arms again. "Besides, I don't plan on letting you get that far from me."
**WIB**
Bree had taken to Bella like a house fire. Then again, Bree was three sheets to the wind. As soon as Edward and Bella had approached the velvet roped VIP area, they'd hear her shouting "I'm getting married, bitches" at the top of her lungs.
"Oh my God, you have a girlfriend now?" Bree yelled, when Edward introduced them.
"It seem so," Edward said laughing.
"Babe, you don't have to yell, it's not that loud in here," Garrett told his fiancé.
"Am I loud?" she asked, wide eyed, clapping her hand to her mouth.
"You're perfect," Garrett appeased her with a laugh. He pressed a kiss to her forehead, and Bree was beaming again.
"I'm getting married!" she yelled again. The thumping beat of the music changed and Bree lunged forward and grabbed Bella's hand. "I love this song, let's dance!"
Edward expected to see alarm on Bella's face but instead, she looked amused. He looked at her questioningly, as she forcible followed Bree.
I'm good, she mouthed to him.
"Well, look at that, we must all be growing up. I'm getting married and you have a real girlfriend," Garrett teased his friend, as they settled onto leather couches. Garrett put ice in two glasses, followed by a generous pour of whiskey.
"Shock and awe," Edward replied with a grin.
"She from here?" Garrett asked.
"Nope, she lives in Washington. Same place my parents stay," he said.
"So, long distance thing. How's that working out?"
"Pretty well," Edward said. Although it was nice to talk to his friend, he couldn't fight the pull toward his girl. His eyes found her on the dance floor. He licked his lips as he studied her swaying hips. All day, thoughts about how much he wanted her hadn't been far from his mind, but he'd kept things low key as to not overwhelm her. He wasn't sure how much longer he'd be able to stay chaste.
"So I see," Garrett laughed. He raised his glass for a toast. "To finding a good woman."
Edward tapped his glass against his friend's enthusiastically.
**WIB**
Hours later, Bella was at his side, and her hand was on his ass. He sincerely hoped she wasn't drunk. Not that Edward minded her having a good time, but it was a twenty minute drive home, and anything past ten minutes was pass out zone. He turned his attention away from the bar and looked closely at his girl.
"Are you drunk?" he asked.
Bella grinned.
"Nope," she said popping the p. "I just like your ass."
Edward grinned back at her.
"Well, I'm pretty fond of yours as well," he said.
"I bet I've got a few other things you might like," she told him with a sassy smirk.
Edward shook his head at the incredible woman in front of him.
"I bet you've got more than just a few," he returned.
The bartender handed over their drinks and they headed back to their spot, hand in hand. Bella drank down some of the cherry coke she'd asked for, then fished the cherry out. As Edward watched, she popped the fruit in her mouth, and a few second later, a knotted stem came back out. Edward raised an eyebrow at her smirk, then pulled her to him. He attacked her mouth. She tasted like cherries and she kissed him back with equal fever. His hands gripped her ass and pulled her against him, hips to hips. When they were both breathless, he pulled away.
"You taste so good, I could eat you alive," he growled in her ear. He felt her shiver in response. When he looked in her eyes, they were wide and excited. Without another word, he took her hand and led her to say goodbye.
"Bella!" Bree shouted, "Find me on Instagram!"
Bella laughed and agreed that she would. There were good-byes and congratulations. Then Bella and Edward were weaving their way through the crowd. Edward had his arm around her shoulders, his fingertips were tracing patterns on her bare shoulders. It was like her skin was magnetic. He couldn't stop touching her.
The paparazzi had dwindled, and the car he'd called earlier was waiting by the curb. He hustled his girl in and didn't allow an inch of space between him when he slid in next to her. Twenty minutes was going to take way too long. As soon as they left the streets and hit the highway, Edward turned to Bella.
"Did I tell you how fucking sexy you looked tonight?" he murmured, brushing aside her hair and leaning in to nuzzle her neck.
She gasped softly. She placed one hand on his thigh. He didn't know if she was trying to push him away or just brace herself.
"Edward," she whispered. "The driver."
Edward pulled back just enough to look her in eyes.
"I'm not doing anything," he said with a smirk, then leaned in again, brushed his nose up the soft skin of her throat. "I can't help you smell so good."
She shuddered. The hand on his thigh gripped with nails.
"I bet you feel good, too," he said and nibbled just a little on her ear lobe.
This time he got a full blown whimper.
"How long is this ride?" she whispered urgently.
"Just a few more minutes," he promised. Traffic was light so the drive, thankfully, wasn't taking quite as long. "Just a few more minutes and I want you out of that dress."
"I… I want that too," she said. He could hear her making an effort to steady her breath.
"Do you want me?" he asked.
"So bad," she whispered.
He took her face in both of his hands and kissed her. They barely managed to stop when the car came to a halt in front of his door. They fumbled their way out of the car, and stumbled through the door, unable to stop kissing and touching. Edward walked backward, guiding Bella through the house. He also managed to shed his jacket while they moved in sync, had he not been so focused on enjoying how delicious Bella tasted, he probably would have marveled at his agility. Still moving through the dim house, he pushed the straps of her dress over her shoulders. It slid down, and with the slightest bit of help from him, it landed on the floor. Bella stepped out without hesitation, and it was then he realized they'd never make it to the bedroom. He had to be inside of her immediately.
With his hands around her waist, he pushed her in front of him and walked them into the kitchen. Through the window he could see the lights of the city sparkling. He took her there and placed her palms flat on the glass.
"I need you now," he whispered in her ear, pressing against her so she could feel how hard he was.
Her answer was a groan, as she pressed her soft ass back against him. He shuddered and kissed the shell of her ear and her neck. With one hand, he traced a line with this fingertips down the soft skin of her stomach to skimpy lace underwear, with the other, he opened his belt and pants, letting them fall around his feet. He cupped her sex and groaned loudly when he found her hot and wet.
"Oh, God, please," she whimpered.
Clearly, she needed this as bad as he did. He pushed the lacy little scrap down her thighs and she squirmed to step out of them. He shoved his boxer briefs down his thighs and traced along her wetness with the head of his dick.
"God, you're so fucking wet," he groaned.
"Edward, please," she pleaded.
"You want me in you, baby?" he asked.
"Please," she replied, her hips and ass pushing back at him so hard he almost stumbled.
That was the last encouragement he needed. He pushed inside her with one strong stroke.
"Oh my God," he cried, when she was wrapped around him, hot and tight.
"God, yes," she groaned, her agreeance.
Edward came in close and kissed her neck and shoulders, then he gripped both of her hips in his hands, and he went to work. He stroked long and deep. Her whimpers and little pleads for more spurned him on. It wasn't long before he felt a familiar tightening in his balls.
"Can you come, sweetheart?" he asked.
"I need…" she took one of the hands bracing herself against the glass and pulled one of his hands from her hip. She guided him to her clit. He touched lightly as he stroked, and her legs started shaking. He made his stokes more shallow and longer in between and he touched her just where she told him to. "God, yes. Like that," she groaned.
When she came, she yelled his name. Just a couple more long, hard strokes and he was shooting over the edge himself. He dropped to the floor and took her with him. Sitting next to him, she snuggled under his arm.
"Sorry, we didn't get to the bed," he said.
"That's perfectly ok," she replied.
They sat in comfortable silence, coming down from their high. A few moments later Bella spoke.
"But I do need one thing from you," she told him.
He looked down at her and reached one hand up to softly stroke her face.
"Anything," he said.
She wrinkled her nose.
"Can you get me a towel?" she asked
A/N: Achievement Unlocked: Solid M Rating. Fist pump.
Thanks, as usual, to everyone reading along (I have so much love for how involved y'all are with these characters) and thanks to my beta for hitting this with the magic wand.
Extra love to Random Rita at Rob Attack for featuring WIB as a Friday Feature Fic and welcome to everyone who got here from there. It makes me misty in the eye region, I swear.
Also, Chi-Town Dawgz is a real place. Only, it's in Mobile AL. If you ever have the chance to go there, do it. There is a gaping sadness in my heart due to the fact that I don't actually live close enough to go there everyday. Had the hot dog I had there been a person I would have immediately filed for divorce so we could have been together.
Chapter Songs: Californication – Red Hot Chili Peppers
Animals – Maroon 5
