"A smile is the light in the window of your face that tells people you're at home."
- Author Unknown
And that's why I smile
It's been a while
Since every day and everything has
Felt this right
And now you turn it all around
And suddenly you're all I need
The reason why I smile
Smile - by, Avril Lavigne
Chapter 9:
Scrumptious
-Bella POV-
Home life without Mom is quiet, desolate. Charlie is still working full-time, and I've found myself spending a lot of time by myself lately.
This week passes in a mournful haze, till it's finally Friday.
At school, Rosalie and Alice pull me aside and frown at me sadly.
"Bella," Rosalie says heavily, through a deep sigh.
"It's time for an intervention. We can't stand to see you mope around, missing Renee, and being so damn introverted. You need to have a little fun and loosen up," Alice speaks determinedly.
"Yeah, you need to let your hair down, Bella. Let us show you a good time." Rose smiles warmly at me.
Rosalie has been driving me to and from school this week — along with Alice — and I guess they're a little worried about me.
"So, we've decided…" Rosalie trails off, letting Alice take the reins again.
"That we're all gonna have a sleepover! At my house. For the entire weekend! Isn't that great, Bella?" Alice jumps up and down, clapping her hands excitedly.
My face pales, and my eyes glaze over.
I didn't see that coming.
The entire weekend?
I've never been invited to a sleepover before — and have never really been interested in them. I always knew I'd have more fun at home with Renee than with any of the snotty girls at school.
Now, suddenly, these two are springing this on me?
Are they for real? Aren't we a little too old for this shit?
"Well, uh, actually, I've gotta help Charlie this weekend…" I start to object.
"We are not taking no for an answer," Rose states firmly.
That doesn't stop me from trying to talk my way out of it, but it's to no avail. I even play the "Charlie won't allow me to stay overnight because boys will be there" card.
Alice calls him, charms him, and talks his ass into pretty much letting her do whatever she wants.
Fuck. Me.
Alice is an unstoppable force. Add Rosalie to the mix, and they could definitely form some type of World Domination Duo.
It's hardly fair, considering I'm no match for either one of them separately, let alone combined. They're smooth talkers, and they don't make it easy to take the path of least resistance—that's for sure. They absolutely refuse to let me wallow in my own self pity any longer.
After being thoroughly tag-teamed and forced into Operation: Slumber Party, they drive me back to my house so I can pack my clothes for the weekend.
This is the first time they are seeing the house totally renovated and unpacked. To say they approve would be putting it mildly.
"Holy shit, Bella. This place is amazing! It was nice before, but this is… It's like a totally different house." says Rose.
I can imagine their surprise, it looks a lot different than the last time they saw it.
"Oh my Gosh, my mom would love this place! You'll have to invite her over to check it out, Bella. This is going to be our new hangout spot—y'know, for when we want to get away from the boys. We'll even have our own bodyguard: Chief Swan, at our service! Now we won't have to go over to Rose's every time my parents entertain; we'll hang out here at Casa de Bella!" Alice booms while touring the main areas of the house.
I roll my eyes at her and trudge into my bedroom, shoving the door open and heading straight for my closet to find my overnight bag.
"Exactly what are the plans for this weekend, ladies?" I call from the bedroom.
"You know, a little this, a little that. Haven't you ever been to a sleepover before, Bella?" Alice's voice grows quiet as she steps into my room.
She and Rose stop dead in their tracks once they are standing in the center of my bedroom. Their mouths are wide open, their eyes are glazed over; I become worried that they've both gone into a state of shock.
"What?" I ask, slightly afraid that they've seen a ghost or a huge spider in the corner.
Lord, please don't let our new house be haunted…unless it's Jake…he'd be a nice ghost.
"What are you guys looking at? You're freaking me out!" I exclaim nervously.
Oh…and Lord? Please don't let it be infested with bugs either.
Thank you.
"Bella, your room is…" Rose trails off.
"…amazing," Alice finishes for her.
"Yeah," Rose adds, nodding.
"Uh, okay, thanks…I guess," I mumble, embarrassed and humbled.
"No, seriously, the mural is beautiful. I've been in art classes for years and could never make something like that. It's simple but elegantly beautiful, and modern all at the same time. It makes the room flow so effortlessly. Your room is so…you. Beautiful and simple," Rose says matter-of-factly.
I blush furiously. "Thanks, Rose. There's another mural in the bathroom."
Alice and Rose scramble into my adjoining bathroom.
"Holy shit!" I can hear Rosalie's muffled exclamation from my bedroom.
"How did you even do this? It's so intricate and detailed," Alice asks wondrously, standing in the doorway between my bedroom and bathroom.
Twisting my mouth to the side, I shrug. "I don't know. I couldn't sleep."
I stuff a few more things into my overnight bag and make my way into the bathroom to pack my toiletries.
In a successful attempt to change the subject, I ask, "Seriously, what are the plans for this weekend? Is Emmett going to start therapy this weekend or do I get more time? Should I bring my swimsuit?"
Rosalie grins. "Yeah. You start therapy tomorrow. We'll be swimming a lot. We'll also just chill at their place, watch movies, give each other makeovers, and play games, the usual." She shrugs.
"M-makeovers?" I stutter.
"Yep!" Alice jumps off her perch on the sink and dances over to me on her tippy toes.
"We're going to get you all sexified this weekend. Edward won't know what hit him!" She smirks evilly.
"Alice, I don't think it's such a great idea to mess with him anymore. After all the stuff he's done for me. We're sorta becoming friends," I ramble.
"Ah, Bella, Bella, Bella, it's fine! Eddie Boy appreciates a good chase. Besides, if you two would get your heads out of your own asses, you'd probably be a really cute couple," Rose says.
"I'm sorry, what? Edward and I? No, I don't think so." I shake my head as my cheeks burn hotter than a fire poker.
"You know what, Rose? You're absolutely right. They would be." Alice hops on board faster than a nympho in a cat house.
"Uhm, no. Both of you meddling bitches had better just slow your rolls. If I want to make an ass of myself, I'll do it on my own terms and spare my love life in the process. Focus on your own relationships instead of mine, please and thank you very much," I say adamantly, giving them a stern look, and hoping they buy my tough girl attitude.
They smile like Cheshire cats.
"No problem, Bella," Rose replies.
"Wouldn't dream of it," Alice retorts.
For some reason I don't think this will be the last time we have this conversation.
. . . . . . .
Alice and Rose advise me to change into my swimsuit before we leave, and they tell me to wear it under my clothes so we can swim right after dinner. I grab the last suit I have—that I haven't already packed into my overnight bag—and throw it on. I purposely didn't pack it earlier because it's skimpy and to me it seems slightly small on my body.
I can hardly ever say that something is too small on me. Perks of being a little person I guess.
The suit is black with purple glitter all over it. The bikini top is strapless, and there's a gold circle that rests between my boobs to hold the pieces together. The bottom is basically a skimpy pair of boy-shorts. It's much too revealing for my comfort zone, but Renee bought it for me anyway. Her motto was, "If you got it, flaunt it." I always asked her just exactly what "it" was, and she'd turn red in the face and give me a brush-off.
Needless to say, the only other time besides now that I've ever worn this suit would be when she first purchased it for me. This will be the first time it actually serves its purpose and touches water. Aside from washing it, of course.
As I slip it on, I pray that the boys are busy tonight and not joining us for our after-dinner swim.
. . . . . . .
The drive to Alice's house is literally one minute long. We pull out of my driveway, drive the distance of probably a few blocks, and we're pulling into the Cullens' driveway.
At first, the Cullens' driveway seems like a typical gravel road, and that's exactly what I would have thought if there hadn't been a big sign at the turn off that said Cullen on it. The driveway is gravel until we get closer to the house, then it smoothes out into a very detailed pattern stamped in concrete.
I half expect there to be big wrought iron gates and gargoyles, but that isn't the case. The long and narrow driveway loops into a circle right in front of the house for easier access, and there's a modest sized fountain in the middle of it.
After tearing my eyes away from the fountain, I look up at the beautifully enormous house before me.
"Wow! Your house is beautiful, Alice. I haven't seen one this big since I moved up here. It's really nice."
I know I sound lame, but they just spent the last forty-five minutes complimenting my house, when in all actuality, Alice's place is so much bigger, and probably a lot nicer.
Again, my feelings of being inadequate creep back in. I feel like the awkward duckling in a pond full of swans. Alice and Rose's parents come from money, and they're in successful non-broken relationships.
They've all made their own money, and earned their own things. The only reason Charlie and I have nice things is because of the accident. No one wants to come into money that way. I'd trade it all back for my friend, in an instant.
The main inadequacy is the friendship though. I'll always be the new girl, the outsider, I don't have a past with these people. The only reason I can even say that I'm a part of this group is because they (meaning, Alice, Rosalie, Emmett, and Jasper—I'm not so sure about Edward, yet.) want me in it—I don't truly belong here like they do. They're all linked, I'm just…not.
I wonder if I'll ever feel equal to these amazing people I call my friends?
We park right outside the three-car garage, and we all help each other unpack the car. I brought two bags along with me, a small one for toiletries and a duffel for clothes. Rosalie has four bags. She claims that we need a lot of options for our makeover. I cringe at the thought and pretend I don't hear her.
As we walk inside of the Cullen home, the smell of garlic and home-cooked food hangs heavily in the air, and my stomach immediately growls embarrassingly loudly.
I blush and trip over my shoes as I try to kick them off by the coat closet. My attempt at being polite and agile quickly floats away, and I trip into the wall, knocking myself and my bags to the ground.
And because fate loves to fuck with me, Edward happens to be walking around the corner right after I take my tumble, so he trips over my bag, and falls as well.
And when I say he trips over my bag, I really mean he literally falls over me. His knee bangs against my duffel bag that fell just to my right, sending him tumbling into the air, and he lands just to the left of me.
My traitor bitch mouth also decides to pipe up mid-fall, and I shout, "Mayday! Mayday! Going down!"
Alice and Rosalie think it's the funniest thing they've ever seen in their entire lives and keep repeating it as I pick myself up off the floor.
"I'm so sorry, Edward! By now, you should probably be aware of how accident prone I am. These things just…happen to me sometimes." I am shaking my head and gesturing with my hands, and I'm sure I look like a nervous wreck.
He's sitting on the floor, his mouth agape. After a beat, he finally gets up and stalks off.
"I'll be downstairs," he calls over his shoulder, to no one in particular.
At this point, I glare at Alice and Rose as I grab my bags, throwing them over my shoulder and follow the girls to Alice's room; which is apparently on the other end of the house.
"Dude…" I huff, now dragging my bags and attempting to stay close to Alice and Rosalie.
"If I have to pee in the middle of the night, I'm gonna get lost. You're going to have to send out the wolves to find me or something. There'll be flairs and pictures of me on milk cartons," I ramble tiredly, slightly out of breath.
Alice and Rose giggle. "There's a bathroom with every bedroom. You'll be fine."
As I enter Alice's room, I toss my bags aside and drop down onto her soft, plush carpet.
"Finally, a soft place to rest! I feel like we've been walking for days!" I over exaggerate as I sprawl out and mimic making snow angels on Alice's carpet.
Suddenly, a strong melodic voice calls down the hall, "Alice? You home, honey?"
"Yeah, Mom. We'll be right out," she answers.
"She probably wants help with dinner, and she's very excited to meet you, Bella." Alice smiles.
I groan softly. "We're moving again? Oh man, I think I need a piggyback. If I meet Edward in the stairway, it could spell disaster!" We all chuckle and head downstairs to the kitchen.
I hop on Alice's back at the foot of the stairs; we all laugh, though, because I'm probably the only person Alice can effortlessly carry around the house.
Alice's mom starts chuckling as we enter the kitchen, and Alice sits me down on a stool at the breakfast bar and then walks around to greet her mother.
"Well, it's nice to see you, too, girls." She smiles at Rose and Alice. "Hello, Bella, it's a pleasure to finally meet you. The kids have told me so much about you; it's nice to finally be able to put a face to a name." She shakes my hand gently.
"It's very nice to meet you too, Mrs. Cullen. Alice speaks very highly of both you and Doctor Cullen." I know I'm turning fifty shades of red, but I was raised to be polite, especially to my elders.
"Oh, Bella, dear, you are too sweet. You may call me Esme, and Doctor Cullen is usually referred to as 'dad', 'bonehead', or 'Carlisle' around here," she says with a smile. "And Alice is probably only being so sweet because I haven't pulled her credit card privileges lately." She chuckles mischievously as Alice tries to swat at her playfully.
It's official. Mrs. Cullen—I mean—Esme…is good people.
My mom would love her.
She turns back to Alice, frowning slightly. "Where's your brother, dear? I was hoping Edward would taste test the spaghetti sauce for me," she says, looking around to see if Edward is nearby.
"Well, you see, Ma," Rosalie starts.
I smile at her and Esme's obvious closeness, even though the Cullens' aren't Rose and Jasper's biological parents, they still act the part.
"Our Bella here…" Rose continues but I interrupt her, knowing she's about to tell Esme how I practically maimed her son not ten minutes ago.
My face reddens immediately, and I raise my hand slightly. "Uh, that is probably my fault. I sorta…collided with him when we were walking inside the front door. Afterwards, he mentioned going downstairs."
As my luck would have it, I don't get away with just telling her the shortened version. Alice and Rose give Esme a full play-by-play of the fiasco, and within seconds all three of them are hunched over in a fit of giggles at my expense.
"Not cool, ladies, not cool," I grumble and shake my head as I try not to chuckle with them. I fail miserably.
After our giggles subside, Esme asks me to help her with the sauce since Edward isn't here to do it for her. She has Alice and Rose chopping the ingredients for the salad, and she's putting the finishing touches on the garlic loaf.
Alice quickly grabs a household step stool from the pantry closet and slides it in front of the stove for me.
"Thanks, Ali," I whisper gratefully.
"No problem, B. You know I got your back." She winks playfully and swats my butt as I step up to the stove and start stirring the sauce.
After adding a little bit of garlic and onion powder, I ask, "Esme, have you ever tried adding brown sugar to the sauce?"
All three of them turn to me and give me their best imitation of the "people's eyebrow", looking at me like I'd lost my damn mind.
Do you smell what the Nugget's cookin'?
Don't ask. Charlie and I used to watch way too much wrestling when I was younger. And nugget is a nickname I've gone by for years. It's a term of endearment for me as a little person.
"No, I'm serious. Let's put some in a bowl and try it."
Esme spoons some sauce and meat into a bowl, and I sprinkle a little brown sugar in, stir it up, and then I let them taste it.
"So?" I ask once they've all taken a bite.
"Mmm, oh, Bella, that's really good," Rosalie purrs.
"Scrum-diddly-dumptious!" Alice exclaims.
"Divine," Esme remarks proudly, nodding her head.
"Bella, if you're comfortable enough, you can finish the sauce. I need to slice the garlic bread, and Alice and Rose can set the table in the dining room, okay girls?"
We all agree and set out to do our tasks.
I should have known Esme had an ulterior motive for getting Alice and Rose out of the kitchen. As soon as the kitchen door swings shut, she starts firing questions at me.
Only, instead of being nervous and awkward, it's surprisingly pleasant. I keep myself busy with the food, and she doesn't press too hard on topics I don't like to discuss.
The only time it is even remotely awkward is when she asks how Edward and I have been getting along. I have a feeling she talks to her son a lot more than she lets on, though, because she asks me about the Jessica Stanley situation, and many other things that took place my first week at Forks High.
"She's not bothering you anymore, is she, Bella?" Esme inquires worriedly.
"No, no. She hasn't said anything to me since the accident. I wouldn't be surprised if it starts again, but I kind of think Rose may have threatened her. I'm not sure what is going on with that situation, but for now she's staying quiet." I assure her the best I can.
"How have you been…regarding the accident and everything…you're getting on okay? I mean, for the circumstances, you're alright?" she asks maternally.
I nod at her, unsure of my voice at first. "The best I can be, I guess." I shrug.
"Oh, Bella, I'm sorry for bringing it up. We've all just been really worried about you. I can tell you mean a lot to the kids already, and I know your Mom just went back home, so I want you to know that if you need someone to talk to, or if you need anything at all, I'm here."
Surprisingly, I can actually see myself taking her up on that offer.
"I'll keep that in mind. Thank you, Esme." I smile.
She wraps me in a quick hug, and we get back to business.
. . . . . . .
We have supper on the table by the time Doctor Cullen gets home from work.
I mean Carlisle.
I think a better name would be Pretty Daddy, but I probably shouldn't start calling him that in my head, because it's sure to slip out eventually.
"Esme, the sauce is delicious. Did you try something different?" Carlisle asks curiously.
Emmett, Jasper, Edward, and Rose are digging into their plates ravenously. The rest of us eat at a slower pace. It isn't that I'm not starving; I just don't want to look like a bigger fool than I already have in front of Alice's family.
Goodness, I almost wiped Edward out at the knees upon entering. Carlisle has seen me on a morphine drip. Enough said.
"Actually, it's funny you should ask that, darling. Edward wasn't around when I was cooking supper, so I had Bella take over the sauce. She showed me a secret ingredient that really brings out the flavor."
Esme looks at me proudly, then gives Edward a pointed look and glances back to her husband with a smile on her face.
My eyes drop down to my plate as I twirl my noodles around and my face flushes with embarrassment.
"That's probably my fault; I sorta bulldozed him when I came inside," I mumble, trying to take the blame, but at the same time, hoping everybody just goes with it and doesn't stop to ask questions.
Alice and Rosalie both snicker, and Edward snorts as Carlisle's and Emmett's heads both snap up.
They both blurt at the same time, "Are you okay, Bella?"
I jump at the sound of both of their voices and nod my head yes.
"Yeah, it's no big deal, I'm fine," I respond.
Edward is slightly irritated. "I'm fine, too, in case anyone was wondering."
Carlisle and Emmett ignore him and start eating again.
. . . . . . .
After eating a delicious piece of Torta di Mele (which is fancy Italian-speak for Apple Cake) for dessert, I stand from my seat and start to gather my dishes.
"No, no, dear, put that down," Esme admonishes.
I look at her curiously, wondering why she's lightly scolding me for picking up after myself.
"In this house, when the women cook, the men clean," Esme states warmly.
"Um…but I don't mind picking up after myself. Really, I can wash my own dishes," I start saying but am hushed quickly as Esme strides up to me and leans down to kiss my cheek.
"Child, you are so sweet. Don't you worry about a thing; the boys have everything under control. Isn't that right?" she asks the boys.
"Yeah, no worries, Beelzebub," Emmett says after he burps obnoxiously and rubs his belly softly, probably too stuffed to move. The kid packed away three platefuls of pasta.
I ignore his strange nickname and thank them for the meal, telling Esme it was delicious.
"C'mon, Bella! Time for you to see the pool!" Alice shouts enthusiastically.
"What? We're swimming now? Don't you know you have to wait at least thirty minutes before swimming after you eat? You'll cramp up and drown!" I am trying to get out of doing any more physical activity than I have to tonight.
Between getting up early, walking around school all day, trekking through the Cullen manor, and eating all of that fantastic food, all I really want to do is relax for a little bit.
"Bella, we agreed we'd swim after dinner, then we'll hang out and watch movies. Tomorrow we'll have girl time," Rosalie speaks nonchalantly.
"Girl time?" I ask, slightly intimidated.
"Girl time!" Emmett whoops, clearly excited.
"Like, PJs and lame-ass movies?" I ask after Carlisle and Esme walk into the kitchen.
"No, that's later tonight, and you forgot the ice cream! Girl time is when we do makeup and pick out sexy outfits, y'know? That kinda thing," Alice says, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.
I pause briefly, flicking my gaze back and forth among Emmett, Rose, and Alice.
"So, I'll be in the kitchen if anyone needs me," I start and briskly turn toward the kitchen door.
Sadly, I'm no match for the Cover Girl twins, Rosalie catches me and picks me up, one arm under my shoulders and the other under my knees.
"Rose! Holy shit! Put me down, you hooker!" I holler, momentarily forgetting that the parental units are only one room over.
Alice joins in by tickling me mercilessly as I thrash and swing my legs back and forth, trying to block her advances.
"Oh my Gosh, Alice! Please stop! Please! Oh, I gotta pee! Put me down, I gotta pee!" I squeal as tears leak from my eyes, and my face flushes from exertion.
Rose swiftly sets me down on my feet.
"Bathroom?" I ask hurriedly, looking like a deer in headlights as I clench my thighs together and do my own version of the "pee pee dance."
"Down the hall to the right," Jasper replies quickly through his chuckles.
"Thanks!" I call out and start running down the hall.
When I find the bathroom, I quickly do my business, having to step onto my tip-toes to scoot up onto the toilet seat. When I finish, I look around for something to stand on to wash my hands.
When my search yields no results, I pull open the cupboard door underneath the sink and step up onto the ledge of the inside of the cupboard. It gives me just enough height to wet my hands under the faucet and scrub them quickly.
I make a mental note to grab the step stool from the kitchen for future bathroom excursions.
After my business is taken care of, I step out into the hall and roam around looking for Rose and Alice.
The dining room is now vacant, so I pop into the kitchen and smile when I see the boys and Carlisle all hard at work. Emmett is scraping plates and munching on leftovers, Carlisle is rinsing and loading the dishwasher, Jasper is drying the pans and putting them away, and Edward is putting the leftovers into Tupperware meticulously and loading it into the fridge.
Emmett chuckles when he catches me watching them work and teases me.
"Like whatcha see, Bells?" he says with a wink.
My face blushes, and I tap the toe of my right shoe against my left heel as I look down at the ground.
"No, I mean, I was looking for the girls and couldn't find them. Are you sure you guys don't need any help?" I ask, trying to mask my embarrassment and change the subject simultaneously.
I feel a light hand softly scratch the back of my neck, and when I look up, Esme is standing there smiling at me.
"Nice try, dear, but the boys have it covered. Something tells me you run the ship at your house," she says with a warm amusement.
I bite the corner of my lip and smile back at her as I respond. "Yeah, Charlie's probably never washed a dish in his life. I'd hate to think of what we could catch if he were in charge of the cleaning. He'd probably forget to rinse, and we'd all get the poops." I clap my hand over my mouth as they all start laughing loudly.
"Well, dear, maybe I'll have to send the boys over to help you out around there. I'm sure you could use a break every now and again." Her hand has moved from the back of my neck to the top of my head as she runs her fingers through my hair absentmindedly.
Emmett takes this opportunity to voice his concerns. "Can you cook, Bella? I mean, besides super secret spaghetti sauces?" The smile in his voice is contagious, and I turn to face him wondering why he's asking.
"Yeah?" I respond. It's more of a question than an answer, as I wait to see what he's getting to.
"Well then, count me in. I'll come clean for you any day," he says.
"Ditto," Jasper adds enthusiastically.
Edward remains silent, and I'm not the only one who notices as everyone else turns to look at him.
"I go where they go," he finally answers with a smile directed more towards the food he's putting away than at anyone else in particular.
Unfortunately, my face flushes with his simple statement, and I pray it goes unnoticed by the others.
The last thing I need is for some of Edward's family to think that I have a crush on him; it's bad enough that Alice and Rosalie are trying to push us together.
I turn around quickly to look up at Esme and catch a knowing look pass across her face.
"Uhm, do you know where Alice and Rose went?" I squeak politely.
"Oh, yes, dear, they went down to the basement. Edward, honey, would you be so kind as to escort Bella downstairs?" Esme asks him. I can tell she's up to something.
Alice and Rose probably got to her, those bitches.
"Uh, I'm okay — if you could just give me directions, I'm sure I could find it…" I trail off as Edward closes the fridge and makes his way toward us.
"It's okay, I was heading down there anyway," he responds and waves his hand for me to go first as we exit the kitchen.
"Careful, you two, don't do anything I wouldn't do," Emmett calls.
Esme, Carlisle, and Jasper chuckle, and I make a mental note to junk-punch Emmett if he comes downstairs tonight.
Edward rolls his eyes at Emmett's antics and continues with me through the living room to the door just down the hall.
"You'll have to forgive Emmett and his crudeness. He seems to think anytime two people from the opposite sex get together, they're immediately fucking," Edward says crassly.
"Emmett's the crude one?" I return haughtily, referring to his previous choice in words.
But I won't lie, my panties became slightly damp when Edward was being all domestic in the kitchen — and hearing the word "fucking" leave his mouth opened the floodgates. Pretty sure my knees even knocked together. Hopefully I'm not that transparent.
"What's the matter, Bella? Don't you cuss?" he teases me.
"Fuck yes, I do, you can bet your sweet ass on that!" I say with humorous confidence. Then I stop dead in my tracks as I realize what I've just said.
Oh shit, damn, fuck…
"Oh, really? So I have a sweet ass, do I?" Edward is a few steps lower than I am on the stairs, and when he turns to look at me, our faces are level, but there are probably four and a half feet between us.
"Do you?" I croak.
"Do I?" His voice drops a few octaves, and I clench my thighs together, trying to seal off the floodwaters that are threatening to trickle out.
Thank God I'm wearing a swimsuit.
I try to give him a sexy smirk and bite my bottom lip softly.
Think of something, Bella! You can't let him have this control over you.
"Could you maybe…turn around for me? I didn't really get a good look before," I drawl seductively.
The look of surprise that passes over his face is unmistakable. I've caught him off guard, and the feeling is absolutely exhilarating.
He slowly spins, and for the first time since dinner, I notice he's changed into an old, stained t-shirt and a pair of board shorts. The t-shirt is too baggy for me to get a decent glimpse of his ass, so I boldly go where I've never gone before.
"Up with the shirt," I say saucily, smirking when he hesitates a second before lifting his shirt up to his mid torso and doing another slow spin.
Holy mother of pearl, his abs are scrumptious. I want to fucking eat him.
I flick my gaze upwards, and our eyes lock. I try getting my breathing and pounding heartbeat under control, but it proves to be slightly difficult with the look he's giving me.
His gaze is smoldering, and I've never seen his eyes so intensely green.
I'm the first to blink. I let my cocky smirk return as my shoulders shrug indifferently.
"Eh, you're okay, I guess," I say offhandedly.
His eyebrows rise nearly to his hairline. "Just okay?"
I nod my head and take one more step down toward him, making me level with his shoulders, and leaving about three feet between us.
"I've seen better," I state matter-of-factly as I look up at him.
"Oh really?" His eyes narrow as he tries to tell if I'm telling the truth or not.
"Yup." I pop the "p" and make sure to give him my most confident stare.
"Well, what about you?" he asks, catching me off guard.
"What about me, what?" I ask, confused.
"Do you have a sweet ass?" he asks teasingly.
"Sure do." I grin at him cheekily.
"Prove it." His cocky tone is back, and I know a challenge when I see one.
"You have shorts on…" I trail off, mildly apprehensive about baring my body…outside of the water…in front of Edward…in this swimming suit.
"It's okay if you can't do it. Probably not wearing any panties again, huh, Bella?" His arrogant tone fuels my fire, and I know I can't back down from this.
All of my reservations and insecurities are pushed to the back burner as I kick my tennis shoes off quickly and begin to unbutton my pants.
"I'll do you one better, Pretty Boy," I say coyly.
This is the first time I've called him Pretty Boy to his face, and the feeling is so freeing, I almost forget what I'm about to do.
After he hears his nickname, a huge smile breaks out on his face, and then his face morphs into absolute shock when I grab the hem of my shirt and pull it up over my head, exposing my scantily clad torso to him.
His mouth is gaping, and his eyes turn dark as I shimmy out of my jeans and socks and innocently toss the shirt and jeans at him.
"Hold those for me?" I ask.
"Uh…" He nods and swallows thickly.
"Oh! I almost forgot," I say. I spin slowly, with my hands held out to the side, giving him the show he asked for.
"Good?" I ask as I smirk at him.
"Huh?" his gaze snaps up to my face after obviously roaming up and down the short length of my body.
My eyes narrow playfully as I smirk and start walking towards him.
"I'll take that as a yes," I say softly as I grab his hips, now standing directly in front of him, my face is right around his mid to lower torso; I could easily lean down just a bit and be face-to-face with his crotch. His hands are gripping my clothes so tightly, his knuckles are white, and he peers down at me under heavily lidded eyes.
"Excuse me," I whisper as I move him out of my way and downstairs.
"Bella! Is that you?" I hear Alice calling out to me as I reach the bottom of the stairs.
I don't bother glancing back at Edward as I walk with purpose, following the sound of Alice's voice, with a devilish smirk on my face the whole time.
Gotcha, sucker.
Disclaimer: I don't own. SM does, I'm just hopping on her hop-scotch!
Authors Note: Thank you to everyone who has stuck by me through this - I know I don't update regularily, I'm honestly working on it. But be adivsed that the fall season is going to be incredibly busy for me.
I'll still be updating LM, but I'll be starting a new story called "Hourglass" in November. It's a lot different from this - it's going to be extreamly heavy, and sad and just... yeah. lol So, I'm warning you ahead of time - it will be a disturbing, angst-ridden story, that wouldn't stop hopping around in my head. My apologies ahead of time.
Also - I'll be a contributing writer for a few contests and other things going on in the fandom. One of them is the Countdown to 2012! It's hosted by Breath-of-twilight. Link: http:/www (dot) fanfiction (dot) net/s/7348457/1/
So, I just wanted everyone to know that it may be four or so weeks between posting. (Hopefully not, I'm actually preparing chapter 10 for the beta as we speak, and I'm half way done with chapter 11. So everything could be pretty smooth, I'm just warning you in case.)
And if you're still reading this massive fail of an A/N you will be pleased to note that there is a little more of a physical encounter between ExB next chapter. No lemons-yet, obviously, but their flirtation ramps it up a notch. (It's even hotter in Chapter 11) ;) lol :))
Alas, a few story recs:
Kinkily Ever After - by, bornonhalloween (Sequel to Once Upon a Desire) D/S themed story. Rated M for Lemons
Anything written by bornonhalloween is win. Epic f***ing win. This lady owns me. (Her other story - Comp Sem 101 is one of my all time favorite stories!) I think I've recced it before though, lol.
Link: http:/www (dot) fanfiction (dot) net/s/7312097/1/Kinkily_Ever_After
Where the Sidewalk Ends - by, Bronzehairedgirl620
1940's era story. Edward is imprisoned in Alcatraz for Murder. Bella's father is in charge of reopening and investigating the case. Okay, I cannot describe how fantastically f***ing awesome this story is. It owns me right now, I litterally end up panting for more when I finish a chapter. The great thing is? She gives you the next posting date at the end of each chapter. So you don't play guessing games w/ updates, you know when they're coming. And - she also gives you teasers if you review. Ahhmaayyyziiing. Great story! Will constantly keep you guessing! Mwuah, love it. End of story!
Link: http:/www (dot) fanfiction (dot) net/s/6069010/1/bWhere_b_the_bSidewalk_b_bEnds_b
Aha Shake - by, TeamBella23
I don't even know how to describe this story, other than by saying it is funny as shit, and will literally leave you running to the bathroom to pee, because it's so funny. You should check it out if you love smut, and laughing, and ... watching people being spontaneously injured after or during sex. It's AWESOME! lol And it's now complete!
Link: http:/www (dot) fanfiction (dot) net/s/6201301/1/bAha_b_bShake_b
