Stephanie owns the Twilight characters, we just dress them up in furry blue costumes…
Chapter 10 - Fly Away
(EPOV)
Silk, mahogany, gardenias, chocolate, lips….Bella.
Twisted in my alarmingly sweaty sheets, I rolled over to squint at the nightstand and found the red glare of my alarm clock.
4:38 am is that too early to call Bella? It's actually 5:38 a.m. there…I wonder if she's up yet. She may not be up yet, but I see something else that is. Well, helloooo El Capitan.
I threw the pillow I had been clutching across the room, and grabbed my glasses off the nightstand, and made my way into the bathroom for a shower. I debated for a minute if I should try to get some relief and play a little five-on-one, or just suck it up and take a cold shower, I opted for the latter. With my hands on the cool marble of the vanity, I looked around the room and imagined what it would be like to have Bella in my home with me, in my shower, in my bed.
COLD SHOWER ASSHOLE, REMEMBER?! Keep going at this rate and you will need a fucking ice bath!
Fearing hypothermia and the loss of my favorite appendage, I took the quickest shower possible. Even with the frigid water, I still couldn't seem to think straight.
It had been over two weeks since I had had to say goodbye to Bella at the airport. Since then, every morning seemed to start exactly the same way: me waking from the most wonderful and torturous dreams of Bella, which would require an immediate fist pump or cold shower.
Since returning home I had started using so much water I was afraid I might be partially to blame for all the rivers drying up. Completely frustrated with my inability to think straight, I decided to go for a run, while internally chastising myself for the excessive water consumption of what would likely be two morning showers.
I made my way over to Wicker Park a little after 5 a.m., hoping a run would help me clear my mind. As I stretched by a park bench to loosen my stiff muscles, I kept replaying last night's conversation with Bella over and over again. She sounded so broken and tired, it made me ache in a way I didn't know possible.
What had made me even more sick was my own selfishness. I was actually elated when she'd confessed she'd not only needed to hear my voice, but also needed me. I wanted to make it better for her. I wanted to hop on the red eye to Miami and be waiting at her doorstep with coffee and doughnuts in the morning, but this was Bella and I had waited almost 12 years for her. I could wait a little longer. I just had to keep reminding myself that she asked me to take it slow.
I decided if I couldn't be there, I wanted to send her something to lift her spirits. I knew I didn't want to get her a bouquet of flowers that would die in a few days, so instead I decided to send a miniature gardenia plant. I didn't know how romantic it was to send the woman of your dreams a plant, but it was perfect for her. The white velvety petal of the flower reminded me of Bella's soft creamy skin, of course the scent of the flower didn't match Bella's intoxicating aroma but it still reminded me of her.
For the past two weeks I had used all of the self-restraint I could manage, and allowed Bella to lead, keeping my promise not to rush things. It was all so exhausting, I was even having a hard time concentrating at work, which was completely out of character for me. Usually, I was able to handle a million things at once, but since I'd gotten home I'd found myself forgetting what I was doing. Just yesterday my assistant, Jane, actually asked me if I was feeling okay. I had no idea what to tell her, because I was anything but okay. I was exactly 1,384 miles away from being okay.
As I made my way around the park for the fourth time, I could feel the burning in my lungs and welcomed the heaviness in my legs. Finally, pushing myself to exhaustion, I was able to think clearly. Glancing at my watch I realized Bella would be on her way to get her morning coffee. I had gotten Jasper to find out when Bella usually had a free moment in her day -- I didn't want to call her when she was busy -- and thanks to her caffeine addiction that was between 7:30 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. every morning.
I grabbed my phone out of my pocket as I made my way back home. I knew it was only 7:28 in Miami, but I couldn't wait another second to hear her voice.
"Yeah, hold on," she said as I heard some rustling on the other end of the phone.
"Iced cinnamon dolce latte for Bella!"
"Edward, sorry I was just getting something on the way into the office," She finally answered.
"Not a problem, I just wanted to see if you were feeling any better this morning," I asked, and realized I was still breathing a little heavily from my run.
"Yeah, I'm sorry about that last night…..hey you sound a little funny are you ok?"
"Actually I just finished running, I thought I'd try to catch you before I got ready for work," I answered as I opened my front door.
"You sound…sweaty," Bella half whispered, her voice dropping with the last word.
Three tiny words, just four little syllables from Bella's mouth, and my He-Man Sword sprang right back to life.
Don't fool yourself buddy…ever since you've gotten home you've been walking around at half mast!
I am not sure if it was from the lack of blood in the rest of my body, or the fact that I was constantly fantasizing about Bella, but I blurted out the first thing that came to my mind.
"I am sweaty, actually. I've been working very hard on increasing my stamina these past few weeks."
Fuck, what are you a 13-year-old boy? She is probably completely disgusted by you right now. Why don't you stick your size twelve a little further in your mouth dipshit!
"Well, Edward, speaking from first-hand experience I can attest to the fact there is nothing wrong with your…...stamina," Bella purred on the other end of the phone.
Okay, I stand corrected, carry on.
"I'm glad you feel that way Ms. Swan, I would love to have you review my performance again at your earliest convenience."
"Edward…" she groaned. "Are you trying to kill me? I am not sure if you are aware of this or not, but Miami has some of the worst drivers in the world!"
I couldn't help laughing at her frustration, she sounded so cute.
"Oh so you think this is funny Edward? First you torture me in my dreams and now you almost make me wreck my car?"
"Bella, turnabout is fair play. You, my dear, have been torturing me in my dreams for years."
Just like that the mood of the conversation had changed, and you could almost feel the energy between us, even separated by the distance. Now it was my turn to ask if I could call her this evening.
"I know you're really busy, but do you think it would be alright if I call you tonight?"
Before I could get the entire question out of my mouth she'd already agreed.
"I'll call you around 9 p.m. Bella. I hope you have a better day today than yesterday."
"It already is. Bye Edward."
"Goodbye, Bella."
With the knowledge that I'd get to talk to Bella again today, I threw myself into work as much as I possibly could. The research and development department had sent me their findings on a new biotech prosthetic leg we are working on, so I had plenty to keep me busy. I had been very excited to get into this field of work. Even though I knew I had a head for business, I'd wanted to be involved in something other than making millions of dollars for already rich men. Having seen Carlisle's love of medicine, and how he really impacted peoples' lives, I'd jumped at the offer to be the Global Strategic Marketing Director at Martin Bionics.
By lunchtime all of my concentration was out the window. I hadn't received a call, text, or even an email from Bella about the gardenias. What if she felt I was being too pushy, or hated them?
Seriously, you dumb fuck, a PLANT?! That's the kind of shit you give to your grandma when you visit her at the old folks home.
I grabbed a quick lunch from the deli down the street and took it back to my office to eat at my desk. After staring at the same e-mail for ten minutes, all I could think to write was 'Bella has pretty lips,' so I decided it was a lost cause.
I took the photo of Bella and I in the photo booth from my wallet. I felt a rush of emotion, remembering her pressed up against me so tightly in that small space. She looked so carefree and happy with the most genuine smile on her face. It was a smile that sadly, I had not seen enough when we were in high school.
It wasn't that Bella was an unhappy person -- most of the people around her never would have noticed anything was off -- but there was always a sadness there that she didn't like to talk about.
As much as she'd hated to leave her mother in Phoenix, Bella hated the reason she'd decided to leave even more. She had confided in me once that in 16 years she and Renee had moved 23 times. She'd never felt safe or secure, or like she'd belonged anywhere. She had watched her mother move from man to man, never making a living for herself, and always depended on them to take care of her and Bella. She'd never really made any friends, or set roots down anywhere, because she always knew that she would just be moving on again in a few months. Bella didn't feel like she had a home.
Her decision to move to Forks and live with Charlie had actually come after Renee's boyfriend at the time, cleaned out the little savings that she had and skipped town. Instead of trying to go out and find a job, Renee had just called around to old boyfriends to find out which ones were currently single. Bella had to be the parent and worry about money to pay bills or where she and Renee were going to live. Finally she'd had enough of the instability and constant worry and called Charlie. She was on a plane to Forks two days later.
I know that Bella isn't her mother, and I am not like any of those men who would prey on weak women like Renee -- and I am sure Bella knows this too -- but I needed to take this slowly until she not only knew it, but also believed it.
"Mr. Cullen, your 2:30 conference call is holding on line 3," Jane's voice buzzed through the intercom.
I was so startled, being completely lost in my thoughts of Bella, that I knocked my drink over and onto to my keyboard.
"Shit," I seethed.
Jane came running in with paper towels and a rag for me. She was nothing if not efficient; she seemed to anticipate my next move so well you would think she was inside my head at times.
I cleaned up the mess I'd made, and finished with my conference call as quickly as I could. I only allowed myself to check my cell for a message, text or e-mail ten times during the span of the 45-minute call.
Right as I was about to call FTD to track the delivery, I heard my phone vibrate. I snatched it up and saw Bella's text:
Thank you! It's beautiful and smells lovely. Glad you didn't send something that will die in 2 days. I Love it!
I let out my breath in a sigh of relief, and texted her back exactly what I was thinking when I ordered them:
They remind me of home. They remind me of you.
I was able to make it through the rest of my day with little incident. I even stayed late to finish up all the work that had seemed to be piling up on me.
I called in an order to Crust for a Basilico pizza, and picked it up on the way home. By the time I had managed to polish off the entire pizza and two beers, it was 7:45 p.m. --meaning it was 8:45 in Miami, and I only had to wait 15 minutes to call Bella.
After I put away my dishes, I grabbed my phone and went into the bedroom. I knew it was ridiculous, but I just enjoyed the thought of talking to Bella in my bed.
Fuck Cullen, did you just start your period, you puss?
By 7:53 I couldn't wait anymore, and I decided to call her.
"What took you so long?"she answered immediately.
"Bella?"
"Of course it's me! I've been waiting 10 minutes for you to call me," she huffed into the phone a little.
I quickly glanced at the clock to confirm it wasn't even 8 p.m.
"I'm sorry, I thought I'd told you I would call you around 9 tonight."
"No, you did. I have just been trying to will you to call me with my mind for the past 10 minutes because I missed hearing your voice and I wanted to thank you properly for the present."
"I'm glad you liked it. I was a little worried about getting you a plant, but I wanted you to enjoy it for a very long time," I said, hoping she picked up on the full meaning of my statement.
"No, it was perfect, really," she insisted.
"How are all of the preparations coming for the fashion show?" I asked.
"Ughhh, don't get me started! Some imbecile over at the Viceroy almost double-booked the room! I swear, if I don't stay on top of them with every little detail we won't be having a show at all," Bella replied, and I could hear the tension starting to edge it's way in.
"I'm sorry Bella. If there is anything you need, just let me know."
"Thanks, I'm just frustrated," she said her voice returning to normal.
"I know getting everything ready for the show is frustrating, but you're going to do a great job I'm sure."
"That's not actually what I was talking about Edward."
You stupid dipshit, of course she isn't frustrated about work! She's frustrated with you calling her all the time and sending her shit!
"What is it then?" I asked warily, fearing her answer.
I heard her let out an exasperated sigh. "Do I really have to say it?"
"Say what Bella?"
"Shit….I'm sexually frustrated Edward," she squeaked out and I could hear what sounded like a pillow covering her mouth while she spoke.
If there were pillows, then there was a good chance she was in her bedroom.
"Bella are you covering your face with a pillow?"
"Yesh," I heard from the other end of the phone, only she sounded like she was underwater.
"So, if you have a pillow over your face, does that mean you're in your bedroom now?"
I could hear her move the pillow off of her face. "Maybe," she said in a singsong voice and I could hear her smile returning.
"I would love to ease your frustration in any way possible. Is there something I could do that would help?" I asked, my voice growing huskier with each word.
"Edward, please don't ask what I'm wearing," she groaned.
"I wasn't going to. It isn't what you are wearing that concerns me, it's what you have underneath that I am most interested in at the moment."
I heard Bella take a ragged breath on the other end of the phone. She hadn't told me to go to hell yet, so I decided to see how far she was willing to take this.
"Bella, I keep replaying all the times we were together over and over again in my head. The way you tasted on my lips, the way you felt in my hands, and the way it felt when I was inside of you."
I heard her let out a small moan, and of it's own accord, my free hand went directly down to the button on my pants, trying to remove them while still holding the phone.
"I remember the way you looked laying on the table…the way you tasted in my mouth. I wish I could taste you right now Bella."
Her breathing began to accelerate, and I could hear some movement on the other end.
"Would you touch yourself for me Bella?"
"Only you if you will too," she answered her voice thick with lust.
I successfully removed my pants and positioned myself back to a reclining position. I moved my hand under the waistband of my boxer briefs, the grey fabric pulled taut against my growing erection. I released my cock from it's confines, hissing slightly at the sensation.
"Oh you motherfucking piece of shit," I heard Bella growl from the other end of the phone.
"What's wrong? Are you ok," I asked, my body lurching up until I was once again in an upright position.
"No, I'm fine, it's just my stupid iPhone is about to die. We've been having trouble with our internet at work, so I've been using it to check e-mails today, and I guess I left the charger in my office," Bella whined slightly.
"Well that's okay. I'll just call you back on your house phone."
"No, Alice canceled our house phone last month, something about how we don't use it and being robbed blind."
I was having trouble thinking at this point, but like a light from heaven, five little letters popped into my head.
"Skype," I asked trying to keep my voice even and not allow the panic to be audible.
"YES! I have to use it for work all the time, but the video isn't set up."
"We don't need video," I replied clenching my jaw from my almost painful erection.
I gave her my username, and grabbed my computer bag from next to the bed. I was sure that normally my Macbook booted up very quickly, but at the moment it was taking it's sweet-ass time, almost like it was mocking me.
Fuck you Steve Jobs and your ugly ass turtlenecks.
Finally, after what seemed like 30 minutes, but was only really 4, I was logged into my Skype account and waited for Bella's name to pop up.
I saw "HellsBells" pop up under online contacts, and I clicked the call icon as fast as I could. The usually annoying robotic sound was suddenly music to my ears.
"Hello? Can you hear me Edward?"
"Yes, perfectly," I answered.
At this point I was a bit unsure of what to do next. I didn't know if I should just pick up where we left off, or if we might need to ease back into it.
Luckily, Bella answered the question for me.
"Where were we?" she asked, her tone still deep and her breathing a bit labored.
"I believe you were about to touch yourself Bella," I answered trying to make my voice as seductive as I could.
"Edward, please tell me what you want to do to me. All I can think about are your hands on my body. Tell me what to do…please…" she pleaded.
"God, Bella, you're so fucking sexy. I wish I could see your face right now. I want to kiss your lips, feel them up against mine. I would kiss you along your jaw and down your neck, enjoying the sweet skin at your collarbone. Take your fingers and run them over your neck, down your collarbone, then lower over your chest. Imagine my mouth on your breast kissing you softly. Move your hand lower Bella, trace the outline of your breast for me."
Bella answered my requests with small moans and beautiful humming sounds. Silently thanking the inventor of Skype, and the ability to have both hands free, I moved one hand back down to touch myself while throwing the other arm over my eyes so I could concentrate on every word and sound coming from Bella.
"Now take your other hand and slowly move it across your stomach, caressing the skin. Imagine my lips and tongue brushing against you. Bella are you still wearing your panties?"
I waited for Bella to answer me, but after a few moments with no answer, I removed my arm from over my eyes and looked over at my laptop to see a skype chat box opened from Bella.
HellsBells- Edward I got disconnected.
Hellsbells- It's not letting me call you back
HellsBells- Helllllllooooooo
HellsBells- You better not be finishing without me!!!
I quickly flipped to my side allowing me access to type.
EC-3PO- Let me hang up and try to call you back.
EC-3PO- BTW DEFINITELY NOT FINISHING WITHOUT YOU!
The call still showed as connected, so I disconnected and called Bella back.
"God Damnit Edward this is killing me," she responded in a tight frustrated voice from her end.
"Me too Bella. Please I want to help you feel better. Put one hand back on your breast and move the other hand down under your panties. Are you wet for me Bella?"
"Yes, I am so wet all I can think about is how you feel inside of me. Are you touching yourself and thinking about feeling me all around you?"
"Bella you have no fucking idea what you do to me. Please caress yourself for me. Imagine I have my mouth on you, and my tongue is making teasing circles all around."
She let out a loud moan, which caused me to pump faster, gliding my hand over the shaft faster now imagining myself buried in Bella's wetness.
"Do you like that Bella? Does that feel good?" I asked, breathing erratically as I continued to stroke myself.
"Bella I want to come with you. Please tell me when you're close."
I waited for an answer but instead heard the unmistakable sound of the Skype chat ping.
HellsBells- JHFHGDTGFDJYIUYFJFSHDAHTJYDFLUIG
HellsBells- Fucking piece of shit technology!!
HellsBells- We should call it a night before there is a killing spree here in Miami.
EC-3PO- I wish you were here I miss you.
HellsBells- I miss you too.
HellsBells- Think of me…later.
EC-3PO- I ALWAYS do.
HellsBells- Goodnight Edward.
EC-3PO- Goodnight Beautiful.
Ready to explode from all of the build up, I crawled out of bed to take my third fucking shower of the day so I could beat the captain into submission. Hopefully with some relief I might be able to get some sleep tonight.
The following two weeks were even worse than the previous two had been. Bella was so busy we didn't have time to talk as much as I would have liked. After our failed phone and Skype-sex, we'd kept our racier thoughts to e-mails or texts here or there.
I found myself dissecting every detail about the three days we'd spent together in Forks. The way she'd looked at me the first time in the gym, it had seemed she was pleased, but also like she was trying to figure something out.
The way she kept talking about my glasses just baffled me. I hated them, and every time I wore them I felt like the geeky kid from high school again. I couldn't understand why Bella would want to see me in them. Wouldn't it just remind her of who I used to be? I obsessed on all of these points, over and over again, and the same thought kept coming to mind.
Maybe she had liked me in high school too! Charlie had pretty much told me that Bella had feelings for me in high school, but that doesn't mean it was actually true.
Her words from our conversation at the airport kept ringing in my ears, "I didn't know how to go out and get what I wanted. I settled for what was easy."
Could I have been what she'd wanted all along?
On my way into work on Monday morning, I got a text message from Jasper letting me know he'd just gotten back from New York, and to meet him for a drink after work over at the Double Door. I had to admit I was jealous he'd gotten to be on Sesame Street. If he got to meet Count Von Count I was going to punch that lucky bastard right in the junk.
By 6:30 p.m. I was already sitting in a booth with my Jack and coke, waiting for Jasper down in the Dirtroom. I usually liked to sit upstairs and listen to whatever band they had playing. Tonight, though, I wanted to find out about his trip to South Carolina and his meeting with the documentary people in California, but especially his adventures down Sesame Street. Maybe he'd finally gotten the dirt on whether Bert and Ernie are life-partners.
As usual Jasper showed up 20 minutes late with the goofiest grin on his face. He ordered a John Daly from our waitress, Katie, and I cocked an eyebrow at him.
"What, don't look at me like that, all those Sons of the Confederate Veterans guys drink them."
"Whatever, why were you late? Not that you usually have a reason."
"Hey fucktard take it easy. I was talking to Alice. She's really stressed out about their fall line and she needed to vent."
Feeling a little bit of jealousy rising in me that Jasper was able to talk to Alice and she actually shared what was going on.
"So does she call you a lot, or is this the time of day you guys usually talk?" I asked trying to be nonchalant.
Damn Cullen! Why don't you just ask him if you can braid his hair too?! Look at you sitting around trying to talk to him about your pseudo girlfriend.
"Fuck no she doesn't call me a lot. She has a ton of shit going on, you idiot. I call her just to check up on her, see how things are, and try to get her mind off all the craziness if I can," Jasper answered while shaking his head a little at me.
"Wait--don't tell me you only call Bella once a day," he sneered at me looking a little disgusted.
"Well, yeah, I don't want to bother her, and she seems so busy. I didn't want to add to all of her stress by pestering her with my calls."
"Seriously? For a smart guy you are one of the dumbest motherfuckers I have ever met! You know, Alice told me the only time in the day she sees Bella smile is in the morning when she comes into the office after she's talked to you."
"But she told me she's really busy and doesn't have the time right now. I'm taking all this shit slow like she asked."
"Look, Bella isn't the type of girl that is going to come to you and ask you for help. You know she feels she has to be independent about everything, but she needs you Edward. You should have seen how sad she looked when I was there."
"Yeah, but she asked me not to rush anything. I've waited for her this long. If I have to I can wait longer."
"There's something to be said for waiting, and then there's something to be said about just being fucking stupid. You, brother, are bordering on the moronic. I'm not saying attach yourself to her like a Siamese twin. It's been six weeks since we left Forks, aren't you dying to see her?"
"Of course I am! Don't ask dumbass questions!"
"Then do something about it! I believe this is what some might call your 'shit-or-get-off-the-pot' moment."
I looked over at Jasper as he leaned back in his chair, almost as if he was challenging me, while he crossed his arms over his chest.
I reached into my pocket and retrieved my cell phone, looking back up to see Jasper with a shit-eating grin on his face while he chewed on the miniature purple sword in his mouth.
"Jane, I'm really sorry to be calling so late, but I need you to clear my schedule and book me a flight to Miami please."
AN – Skype Sex is brought to you by Lenny Kravitz's Fly Away and, of course, the fantabulous inventor of Skype, without which we would not be able to chat for 8 hours straight to bring you the fucktastic adventures of Geekward and Bella.
Many thanks to Jenny (Imdominating) for being the best tour guide around Chicago a girl could ask for!
If anyone is curious about Jasper's drink here is a link: http://www(dot)crazyfortea(dot)com/sweetteavodka(dot)html