Well what do you know? An update in less than 6 months! I had a lot of fun with this chapter, I hope y'all enjoy it too.

Beta'd by the bodacious beta-wifey, Mynxi.

Standard disclaimer, not my characters/property, yada yada, these ones have libidos, yada yada, please be 18 or older if you're reading this, kthxnbai.

XxXxXxX

Edward

As dawn broke, Alejandro rose from the couch, barely sparing me a glance and padded into Bella's room. I heard him jump up onto her bed and begin to purr loudly, hearing her soft, muffled voice tell him good morning. I've never felt so jealous against animal, barring Jacob Black of course.

In the meantime, I had gotten up and headed into the kitchen, having decided to do something useful and make her coffee. She shuffled in moments later, her hair that same bunched haystack of disarray I fondly remembered from years before, and her eyes were only barely open. I was rather amazed that she didn't trip over the cat that was now weaving in and out between her legs, yowling for his breakfast, I assume. This was likely a daily occurrence. "Morning," she greeted me through a yawn as she reached into a lower cupboard to pull out a package of cat food.

"I see he has you well-trained," I joked while fetching a coffee cup from a small drying rack that sat next to her sink.

"Once he's been fed, he couldn't give the slightest fuck about what I do for the rest of the day," she replied glibly. She filled Alejandro's bowl, and stepped back as he immediately dug in. I handed her the freshly poured cup of coffee which she accepted gratefully. "Thanks for saving me the trouble."

"My pleasure." I waited for her to take a sip and get her bearings. "So… do I need to get going or anything? Do you have plans for the day?" My words didn't come out right and it was awkward; I really wanted to spend as much time as I could with her, but knowing how she didn't want to rush things, I didn't want to make her feel obligated to spend the day with me either.

She looked at me over the rim of her cup as she took a sip before shaking her head. "Actually, no. This is really the first weekend I've had at home for a few weeks, obviously, so I kind of just want to chill, you know?"

That really didn't answer my question. Risking the likelihood of sounding as needy and desperate as I felt, I reiterated my question. "Alone? Because I could go." Smooth, Cullen, I chastised myself. How this human managed to fluster me the way she did would never cease to amaze me. Her thoughts silent to me, she was the only being with whom I was ever 'flying blind'. It was exhilarating and frustrating all in one.

She cocked her eyebrow and looked at me funny. "Do you want to go?"

Chagrined, I admitted, "Not in the very least."

"Then stay here," she replied with a nonchalant shrug that crushed my spirits more than just a little bit. It was as though she would have been just as fine if I'd said I wanted to leave.

"Okayyy…" I turned to her refrigerator to see what she had for breakfast foods in there.

"Don't," I was surprised to hear her say.

Not bothering to hide my confusion this time, I asked her "Don't what?"

"You don't need to cook for me. This is my house, I can do for myself. Thanks for the coffee, but I can take it from here."

Her snappish tone and her words felt like a rebuke, a rejection, and I let my hands fall from the refrigerator door. "I see," I said quietly. "I'm sorry if I'm overstepping, Bella. I was only attempting to cook you breakfast, not asking if I could move in with you." I glanced down at my borrowed clothes, suddenly feeling ridiculous for hoping that we'd moved forward more than we actually had. "You know, maybe I should go. I'll go change and then I'll be out of your hair," I said, peeling off the borrowed shirt as I headed down the hall to her room.

"Edward, wait."

I paused at the door to her room, but didn't turn back to look at her. I couldn't read her mind, but I could certainly read her eyes, and I was afraid what of I might see in them.

I heard her sigh. "I'm kind of bitchy first thing in the morning, at least until that first dose of caffeine sinks into my system. You probably should get used to that idea if you're going to keep hanging out with me."

"Fair enough," I said, staring down at the balled up t-shirt in my hands, trying not to rejoice that she was still open to my hanging around.

"Would you please turn around? I really can't deal with passive aggressive petulance this early in the day either. I'm trying to apologize." I met her eyes and found that she did indeed look apologetic, but her mouth was still set in irritation. "Thank you, that's better. Now, I'm sorry for biting your head off a minute ago. But I need you to understand I'm not looking to be coddled or treated like something fragile. I'm very much used to my independence and I plan on continuing a fair semblance of that."

I walked back toward her silently, and tipped her chin up with my finger, looking deep into those chocolate eyes. "That is fine, I can respect that," I said softly. "But, I need you to understand that I need to have a way to show you my affection, while towing that thin line of what you consider being coddled or my being overbearing. I'm not trying to smother you; I just wanted to do something nice. If you weren't hungry, a simple 'no thank you' would suffice."

She blinked and swallowed hard. "Fair enough," she replied, in an even tone of voice. "Now, while I am not kicking you out of here, maybe you should run back to your place for a change of clothes or something. Not that I'm really hating this look on you, or anything…" She let her eyes rake over my naked torso once before continuing, "But yeah, if you want to hang out this weekend, why don't you go grab some stuff?"

I stared after her as she went back to the kitchen to make her smoothie. Unless I was mistaken, I'd just been invited to stay tonight too. I looked at the shirt in my hand, contemplating whether to put it back on or not, before remembering the look in her eyes a moment ago. Smirking to myself, I tossed the shirt back toward her room over my shoulder and followed her to the kitchen, where I found her peeling bananas. I should have been ashamed over how erotic I found that simple activity to be. Then she stuffed the peeled bananas, some rinsed strawberries, some thick white substance from a tub – yogurt, apparently – and a scoop of some kind of powder into a blender. 'Whey protein' read the label.

"Exactly what are you making?" I asked, picking up the tub of plain nonfat greek yogurt.

"It's a smoothie. This is what I usually have for breakfast, though I do succumb to the occasional strawberry Pop Tart," she replied, and then pressed a button to whip all the ingredients into a mushy pink concoction. "You see, Edward, for some humans, our metabolism goes to shit once we near our thirties. Hell, once we're out of our teens, in many cases," she said speaking a little louder over the din of the blender, though I could hear her perfectly. "You should've seen me by the end of my freshman year in college. My ass was huge. They don't call it the 'freshman fifteen' for nothing. For me it was closer to the 'freshman twenty-five'. Pizza, mac and cheese, Taco Bell, ugh, my diet was disgusting."

She stopped blending and removed the pitcher to pour the contents into a tall glass. "I started jogging the summer between freshman and sophomore year."

I grinned at her, trying to envision my clumsy Bella jogging. "Really? Jogging?"

"Yes, jogging," she sneered. "Jerk. Yes, I twisted my ankle a few times, tripped and got some bruises, but after a while I found my mojo and I managed to lose twelve pounds before the school year started. Daisy and Madison used to jog with me. Nowadays, I don't get to jog very often, but I try to use the elliptical several times a week." She paused to take a healthy swig of the smoothie.

I cocked my head at her, letting my gaze fall past her hips, trying to imagine what Bella would look like with a larger ass. Considering that I came from an era where curves were desirable on a woman, I really didn't think it would be such a bad thing, not that she didn't look fantastic now. Regardless, I would love her without a doubt, whether thick or thin.

I looked back up to her to find her watching me with an amused expression. "You're trying to imagine what I'd look like with a big ass, aren't you?"

"Guilty," I said with a smile. "And I can honestly say I'm intrigued at the idea."

"Not on my watch," she said and drained her glass. "Okay, I'm gonna clean things up here a bit, maybe squeeze in a workout on my elliptical and grab a shower. Why don't you go grab some stuff from your place and then come back here? I promise I won't make you sit through another Hoarders marathon," she said with a twinkle in her eye.

I gave a fake shudder. "God, I hope not. That made me want to go home and clean my place some more, on their behalf. Alright, I'm going to make a quick trip home."

"Sounds like a plan," she said with a nod, and began cleaning her blender.

I went to her room and fetched my clothes from yesterday, which she'd draped over a chair and swiftly put them back on, before heading back to the kitchen, where she was still cleaning the blender in the sink. Her face was set in a scowl in her concentration and though she'd pulled her hair up into a sloppy topknot, a curl had escaped and was hanging in her face. She blew at it impatiently. I stepped closer to her and took the lock of hair, pushing it back behind her ear, and then kissed her cheek. "I'll be back soon."

She paused to smile at me, her cheeks slightly pinker with the blush I remembered so fondly. "Okay."

I hurried, in effort to not waste time and to be back at her place before the clouds burned off. The morning had begun overcast, but it looked as though the sun would be shining today. I sped to my apartment and quickly changed into a much more laid-back jeans and t-shirt ensemble, grabbing a zip-up hooded sweatshirt just in case, and then stuffed a pair of pajama pants and another change of clothes into a gym bag. I caught a glimpse of my uncombed hair the mirror and pulled on a knit beanie that Alice had given me when I moved to Portland ("so you'll fit in with the young hipsters") before hurrying back out to my car. By the time I arrived back to her condo, I'd only been gone thirty-five minutes.

I knocked on her door a couple times, but she didn't open. The sun was beginning to break through the clouds. I knocked one more time and then heard what sounded like singing. I tried the knob which, thankfully, was unlocked, and slipped inside the door just as a sunbeam began to shine on Bella's doorstep. "Bella?" I called.

She was definitely singing, somewhat breathlessly, and it was coming from her room. I walked down the hall and peered inside the doorway to find Bella on her elliptical machine, earbuds in her ears piping loud rock music into her ears as she was treading at a steady pace, wearing a tiny pair of gym shorts and a tank top with no bra. A sheen of sweat was glistening on her skin, and the movement of her ass as she pumped her legs on the tracks in time to the music was hypnotic. She was short of breath and singing along, really getting into it, and…it was the sexiest I'd ever seen her. I leaned against the doorway and just watched her, knowing full well she'd be startled and then pissed at me for not announcing myself, but to take in this scene before me, it would be worth her ire.

"She wraps those hands around that pole, she licks those lips and off we go, and she takes off nice and slow, 'cause that's porn star dancing…" her whiskey-kissed voice sang, and fuck me, I slid down to sit on the floor before I ended up snatching her sweaty self off that machine to have my filthy, filthy way with her.

My movement caught her eye though, and she glanced over and nearly fell off the machine in her surprise. "Jesus Christ, Edward! You could have fucking said something, are you trying to give me a heart attack?" She hit the button and stepped down, clutching her heart over chest.

I stayed sitting on the floor, thinking I may have a tent pitched in my jeans if I stood, but apologized for scaring her. "I'm sorry, I should've said something, but I really kind of wanted to just enjoy the show for a moment." I took in her form and noticed her nipples had hardened in her adrenaline rush and the tank top she was wearing clung like second skin.

She caught the direction of my gaze and folded her arms over her chest. "I bet you did," she said with an embarrassed chuckle. "I think I'm gonna grab a quick shower. Please feel free to get the hell out of my room while I do so."

"Ah, can I sit here for a moment longer? I'm not really sure I should stand up right now," I joked.

"Out!" she pointed toward her bedroom door with a laugh. "Jesus, who knew Edward Cullen could be such a perv?"

I stood, adjusting myself as discreetly as possible, and headed out of her room, hearing her giggle softly as she closed the door behind me.

Bella

I awoke to Alejandro pouncing on me, rubbing his head under my chin while purring loudly. Some may say a rooster is nature's alarm clock. Mine is a hungry ball of fur with claws, which were slowly beginning to knead my chest. Ouch. I groaned, "Good morning to you too, Alejandro. You do know it's Saturday, right?" and gently pushed him off of me. "Did you chase off the scary vampire during the night?" I asked him in my softest whisper, scratching him behind his ears. I stood and stretched, hearing that the TV was on, albeit at a very low volume. Edward was still here. I had no doubt he'd stayed but, suddenly, the light of day made our renewed intimacy last night just a little more awkward. I felt a little panicky once again that things were going too fast. I could admit to myself that was I extremely nervous about opening myself to him again, emotionally speaking. Physically speaking, well, my body begged to differ.

Resigning myself to keeping the tone of the day as casual as possible, I slowly headed to the kitchen, managing not to trip over Alejandro as he weaved in and out between my ankles. Edward was making me coffee and, sweet Jesus, he just looked so at home doing it. This wasn't the Edward I knew as a teenager; seeing him in my kitchen in such a casual state with the sweat pants and mussed hair did things to me, and I needed to nip that train of thought in the bud straightaway.

He made small talk as I fed Alejandro and then handed me a cup of coffee. I tried to play it cool when he not-so-subtly hinted about wanting to hang out with me for the day. My heart leapt at the idea, while my mind balked. Reminding myself that the goal for the day was putting the brakes on a bit and slowing things down, I remained nonchalant over the notion whether he was staying or going.

I realized I overdid it, however, when after I admittedly rudely discouraged him from cooking my breakfast, my reaction had hurt him. I watched him peel my shirt off in disappointment and head toward my room to change. That moment of raw emotion was enough to have me chasing him to apologize. He wouldn't look at me though, as I tried to make nice with him, which then only served to irritate me further. I was being honest with him when I told him I tended to be bitchy in the mornings, and it certainly wasn't the time to play games with me. I cringed inwardly at how bitchy my so-called apology came out. What I was unprepared for was the look in his golden eyes when they finally did meet mine.

His stare was almost predatory as he stepped closer to me, and I suppressed a shiver when his finger tipped up my chin. "That is fine, I can respect that," he began softly, "but I need you to understand that I need to have a way to show you my affection, while towing that thin line of what you consider being coddled or my being overbearing. I'm not trying to smother you; I just wanted to do something nice. If you weren't hungry, a simple 'no thank you' would suffice."

Burning under his gaze within such close proximity, I suddenly felt like I was swallowing a golf ball. "Fair enough," I acquiesced, amazed that my voice sounded so calm. "Now, while I am not kicking you out of here, maybe you should run back to your place for a change of clothes or something. Not that I'm really hating this look on you, or anything…" Despite my reservations, I couldn't help but sweep my eyes over the sculpted landscape of his bare chest. I couldn't remember it affecting me this way before, but now all I could imagine was tracing my tongue along each and every line. Snap out of it Bella! "But yeah, if you want to hang out this weekend, why don't you go grab some stuff?"

I turned on my heel and headed back to the kitchen to escape before I gave in to my urge to lean forward and taste his smooth, marble-like pectoral. My mood was a mix of giddy and relieved as I began prepping ingredients to make my smoothie.

Edward returned, sans shirt praise Jeebus, and picked up my tub of yogurt. "Exactly what are you making?"

"It's a smoothie. This is what I usually have for breakfast, though I do succumb to the occasional strawberry Pop Tart." I paused to press the Blend button to whip all the ingredients together. "You see, Edward, for some humans, our metabolism goes to shit once we near our thirties. Hell, once we're out of our teens, in many cases." My speech volume rose purely out of habit, knowing full well he could have heard me if I whispered. "You should've seen me by the end of my freshman year in college. My ass was huge. They don't call it the "freshman fifteen" for nothing. For me it was closer to the freshman twenty-five. Pizza, mac and cheese, Taco Bell, ugh, my diet was disgusting." It was too; my skin was a mess and I wore nothing but sweats and t-shirts by the end of my freshman year. I poured the smoothie into a glass. "I started jogging the summer between freshman and sophomore year."

"Jogging? Really?"

His skepticism was justified, but it was still a little irritating. "Yes, jogging. Jerk. Yes, I twisted my ankle a few times, tripped and got some bruises, but after a while I found my mojo and I managed to lose twelve pounds before the school year started. Daisy and Madison used to jog with me. Nowadays, I don't get to jog very often, but I try to use the elliptical several times a week."

As I drank from my glass, I watched as he cocked his head allowing his stare to fall past my waist. He was making no attempt at being subtle and it tickled the shit out of me. "You're trying to imagine what I'd look like with a big ass, aren't you?"

"Guilty," he said with a smile. "And I can honestly say I'm intrigued at the idea."

Bless him. I had to get him out of this house for a while, before I lost my wits and jumped him right there in my kitchen. There were a couple of occasions when Roger had actually had the audacity to point out areas he thought were getting a little too "spongy". It had angered me then, but not enough to be a deal killer. And more times than not, I'd still add an extra ten or fifteen minutes or some extra sets to my workout to try to firm those spots up. Considering Edward had grown up in a time that appreciated women who looked like women, he would have found this appalling. I decided to keep that little nugget of info to myself.

Having successfully shooed him out of my house, but not before he kissed my cheek goodbye and set off the butterflies in my stomach again. I cleaned up my kitchen, and decided I'd go ahead and have a quick workout, release some of this pent-up…frustration by less intimate means. I was twenty minutes into my workout, pushing myself to go harder against the thrashing beats of the playlist I'd selected, when a certain song I loved, because it made me feel naughty, came on. I turned it up and began singing along, throwing a little extra swing into my hips as I pumped my legs, trying not to imagine Edward in the starring role in the song as I writhed and danced around a pole. Suddenly, I had that eerie feeling I was being watched, and not just by my cat. I saw movement out of the corner of my eye and that's when I found Edward sitting on the floor against my bedroom doorway watching me with eyes that had darkened to almost black. And he didn't look thirsty.

"Jesus Christ, Edward! You could have fucking said something, are you trying to give me a heart attack?" I hit the red stop button and stepped off the machine, clutching my chest over my racing heart.

Edward didn't budge from where he sat. "I'm sorry, I should've said something, but I really kind of wanted to just enjoy the show for a moment."

His gaze took in my workout clothes, and I could tell by the way my chest felt that my nipples were suddenly giving Edward quite the show. I crossed my arms over my chest to conceal them. "I bet you did," I said with an embarrassed chuckle. "I think I'm gonna grab a quick shower. Please feel free to get the hell out of my room while I do so."

"Ah, can I sit here for a moment longer? I'm not really sure I should stand up right now." His tone was joking, but the large amount of black taking up his irises told me there was some truth in his words. He probably was sporting some serious wood at the moment.

"Out!" I ordered with a laugh, because, "Jesus, who knew Edward Cullen could be such a perv?"

He meekly shuffled out and I shut the door behind him with a giggle. I hurried through my shower, suddenly eager to spend time with Edward, my morning's hesitation seemingly forgotten. I needed to get past my reservations, thinking he was going to treat me as he did when I was younger; his actions thus far had shown me that he was indeed a changed man, as changed as a vampire could manage. He'd once said that things change so little for vampires, that when they do they are life-altering events. Perhaps when he left me, it truly did alter his life as much as it had altered mine. He'd stepped so far out of character for himself, choosing to actually try living for once instead of staying in his steadfast way that only had caused him pain. I realized that I really, really liked this Edward, and was intrigued to get to know him better. Was I ready to hand him my heart, spend the rest of my life with him? Not by a long shot, but that didn't matter right now. He wasn't asking me to marry him; he just wanted me to give him a chance. That I could do.

I turned off the water, dried off, and dressed in my favorite pair of slightly tattered jeans and a tank top. I quickly combed out my hair, opting to leave it down to air dry, before walking out to the living room to find Edward seated on my couch, in the middle of what appeared to be another standoff with Alejandro. Edward was staring intently at him as though trying to read his mind, while Alejandro sat perched on the arm of the sofa, staring back with his ears turned flat backward on his head. Suddenly, Alejandro hissed and to both our surprise, Edward hissed back. Alejandro stood and growled, arching his back. "Really, you two?" I picked up Alejandro and set him on the floor. "Be nice," I chided both of them.

I could swear Alejandro glared at me before turning to walk away from us, twitching his tail in the air in irritation. "What the fuck was that about?" I asked Edward.

"It's between me and the cat," Edward sniffed ominously.

"Okay…" I plopped down on the sofa next to Edward and stretched out my legs, placing my feet in his lap. "So what do you want to do today?"

He looked down at my feet and then gave me an amused smile. "Wow, some coffee, a workout, and a shower and you're a completely different person, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I wasn't joking about that bitchy in the morning thing."

He slowly nodded once. "I'll consider myself warned then. As for what to do… I don't know. How does a typical Saturday in the life of Bella Swan play out?"

I thought for a moment. "Well… until lately, my Saturdays were often spent with Roger, unless he had an assignment, or as it seems, plans to cheat on me for the day. Otherwise, I'd go do my grocery shopping, or maybe drive down to Salem to see Daisy… I don't know. Sometimes I would wear my pajamas all day and not do diddly-shit because that's what I felt like doing."

Edward tapped his chin, miming one deep in thought. "Since the weather today is horrifically nice, I'm afraid I'm no good for going out grocery shopping, and I'm not so sure you're ready to introduce your sparkly former flame to your friend, so visiting Daisy probably isn't on the agenda for today either. I vote for a non-diddly-shit day," he finished with his signature crooked grin.

"Even if it involves another DVR marathon?" I asked devilishly.

"Oh God, what are you going to put me through this time?"

"I'm five episodes behind on Strange Foods," I began and he groaned.

"I can hardly bear what you humans eat now. I refuse to watch people eating paste and laundry soap. Next."

"How about Pawn Stars? I have several episodes of that on my queue."

He nodded. "Now that I can live with."

We passed the next hour lazing on the couch, laughing at the antics of the Pawn Star crew. Edward was knowledgeable about many of the antique items that were brought in and I joked he missed his calling of owning a pawn shop. "Think of how rich you'd be!" I deadpanned. I never budged from my original position with my feet in his lap, though I did pull the throw blanket off the back of the couch when my feet got cold to cover us.

As one hour became two, Edward's hand, which had been resting on my denim-covered ankle, slid down to my foot and began to lightly massage, his thumb immediately finding the 'money' spot in my arch. "Sweet Jesus; that, Mr. Cullen, is the best idea you've had all morning," I moaned. He smirked at me and began to massage my high-heel-tortured feet a little harder. "Mmm, yes, right there, that's the spot," I crooned, letting my head drop back and my eyes close as I enjoyed what his magical fingers were doing to my feet.

"If I knew this was all it took to melt you into a gooey puddle of ecstasy, I'd have pinned you down and massaged your feet first thing this morning," he murmured as he slid his thumb back and forth across the ball of my foot.

"Less talking, more rubbing," I said, fighting my suddenly heavy eyelids back open. I tried to turn my attention back to the television, yet small moans of satisfaction still escaped me every now and then. After a few moments, and Edward switched feet, I felt my gaze be drawn back to Edward, who was watching me intently. I let my eyes fall to watch what his hands were doing to my feet, how graceful yet strong they were in their movements. As he finished, I watched as he lifted first one foot to his mouth to kiss it gently on the arch, and released it gently to his lap before picking up the other one and doing the same. The intimate contact sent a tingle straight to my center, the sensation causing me to gasp.

He smiled again, more seductively than before and, still holding my foot, placing a kiss a little higher up at my ankle. My heart rate began to race in my excitement and, still watching me, he let his hand trail up my leg curving up to the outside of my thigh. It became more of a stretch for him as he reached my hip, and so he shifted so that he was partially laying over me. He gripped my hip and lowered his head to kiss the small amount of skin that was exposed over the waistband of my jeans. I shuddered involuntarily, adjusting my position so that I lay more open to him, allowing him more room to lie between my legs on the couch. His nose edged toward my center for the briefest of moments, as though he was sneaking a quick whiff of my scent, before what sounded like a purr of satisfaction rumbled in his chest. He then moved his face back up against my body, using his nose to push the hem of my shirt upwards a little more, planting little open-mouth kisses on the skin he exposed along the way. I felt his tongue dart out to taste me occasionally. He didn't push my shirt higher than my bra, but nestled his face at my breasts over the top of the fabric. His body practically covered mine and my free leg curled over his waist as though it had a mind of its own. The purring sound was back, even louder, and he rolled his hips against me once while nuzzling at my breast through the fabric and my bra, nipping at its peak with his lips curled over his teeth. I gasped and bit my lip, arching myself into him more.

A bit braver now, he wrapped his lips around my peak, sucking at it through the fabric barrier, biting gently so as not to rip through. I was unable to contain my moan. "Fuck, that feels so good, don't stop…"

He brought up the hand that had been curled under my backside and slid it under my shirt. The heat under my rump had warmed it a little so I only barely flinched when I felt his fingers slide underneath my bra. He palmed and kneaded the soft mound that wasn't under his lips, groaning at the sensation as my nipple hardened under his hand. Suddenly, he sat up slightly and a moment later, my tank top was now a vest, ripped down the middle along with my bra. "Sorry," he growled before dipping his face back down to my breasts, alternating sides as he laved his tongue over them and sucked at the nipples.

I didn't have it in me to give the smallest of shit over my torn shirt and ruined bra because this felt amazing. My hips began to rock under his, seeking friction and when he rolled his hips against mine again, I cried out in unintelligible ecstasy. "So fucking beautiful," he murmured against my skin, and I felt one of his hands begin its descent below my waist. He palmed my center over my jeans, pressing against the mound with the heel of his hand and allowing his fingers to rub where I wanted the friction the most.

"Oh God," I moaned, rocking my hips against his moving hand. "Oh fuck, please don't stop," I whispered. My hands fisted in his hair, his head still hovering over my chest as his tongue did delightful things to my nipples. In a flurry of movement, my jeans were unbuttoned, the zipper possibly ruined, and his hand was now shoved inside my underwear, picking up where it had left off only a second before.

"So wet," he softly growled around my breast. "How very, very wet you are, my naughty Bella…" Oh ye gods, my dirty-talking Edward, yes please; he had no idea he'd just uncovered my personal kryptonite. He shifted the position of his hand so that he could slide two fingers in, leaving his thumb to stroke and roll my clit. I hissed and rolled my hips against his hand as he pumped his fingers in me, feeling my insides liquefy and my muscles tighten around him. He lifted his face from my chest to change his position enough to kiss me deeply, never pausing the rhythm of his hand. A third finger joined the first two, and I was lifting my hips off the couch to meet each thrust of his fingers. "Edward!" I cried. I was so close.

His lips trailed to caress my ear and whisper, "You're positively drenched down there, darling. Do you know how badly I want to taste you? How badly I want to fuck you?" His words ended in almost a predatory growl, his tongue stroked the side of my neck, and I could feel his arousal through his jeans as he ground it against my hip. It was my undoing and I let go with a cry, my orgasm rippling through me like a tsunami of lust. I felt him thrust hard against me, once, twice, three times and go still; I heard a ripping sound to the left of my head, but thought nothing of it as I floated on the cloud of the best orgasm I'd had in a long, long time.

He removed his fingers from me, placing them on my hip to lightly caress it as he peppered gentle kisses along my neck and shoulder. "I love you, Bella, so very much," he whispered faintly. I don't know if I was supposed to hear it, but hear it I did. Regardless, I couldn't say the words back, but I turned my face so I could meet his lips with my own, and I kissed him with all the emotion I was feeling right then. I didn't have words for what I felt right now, so this would have to suffice. He returned the kiss with mutual feeling, as though he understood, and then, lifting and shifting me, I was laying atop his chest, my legs somewhat straddling him. "Are you alright?" he inquired softly.

"I'm more alright than I've felt in a long time, Edward," I replied, my voice thick with my satiation. Bracing my hands on his chest, I sat up a little to look down at him. He still had the beanie on, and though his skin was pale, his eyes had only a ring of gold around his otherwise black irises. "Thank you."

He lifted a hand and stroked it down my cheek, pushing back a lock of damp hair from my eyes, his dark eyes searching my face. "The pleasure was all mine. Watching you in the throes of passion is probably the most incredible vision I've ever seen. My imagined version didn't do justice to the reality. You don't have regrets?" he asked cautiously.

I shook my head. "None." My stomach chose then to growl. A glance at the clock on the wall told me it was well past lunch time.

He laughed. "If I offer to make you a sandwich, will you set me on fire?"

I groaned, suddenly ravenous. "If you don't make me a sandwich, I'll set you on fire." I rocked back on my heels to sit at the far end of the couch so he could get up. I looked down at the shredded fly of my once-favorite, now destroyed jeans. Totally worth it. "I think I'm going to go change."

"Sorry," he said as he stood and moved toward the kitchen. And that's when I saw the shredded hole in my couch, stuffing peeking through the mouth-sized, tattered hole.

"What the actual fuck did you do to my couch?"

"Yeah… I bit it," Edward said from the kitchen. "Sorry about that too, I'll buy you a new one. Turkey and rye sound okay to you?"

A/N - So yeah, thought I'd throw you girls a bone and break you off a sample of what's to come. Loooove it? Gimme a holler in the reviews.

Totally unrelated to AFU A/N - For those of you who used to read The Scent of Fear, it's now posted at Twiwrite(dot)net, and that's the only place you will find it. Be 18 or older, or don't bother, but if you've made it down to this a/n, I hope to God you already are 18. *stern face* It's now very possible I'm going to continue it, I maaay have started a new chapter for it, just sayin... Mkay, review love please, kthnxmuah.