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"Fanfuckingtastic. It's a deal. Naked tub talking time and bribery for birthdate reveals, plus a real date... once we nap."

"Looking forward to it," I mumbled, already falling asleep. Alice pulled herself closer to me, weaving her arm underneath my own and slipping her leg between mine. She tucked her head under my chin, the edge of her lips pressed against the hollow of my throat, and we fell asleep together.

BPOV

I was hot when I woke up; sweating, in fact. And groaning? Am I groaning?

I was, in fact, groaning.

"Hello, sleepyhead."

I could feel the vibrations of Alice's voice against my skin but I was too tired still to open my eyes. Her breath was somehow both hot and cold against my wet nipple, which I presumed she had been sucking on in her attempt to wake me up. Should have faked being asleep longer. Alice's body was on top of mine, hot skin against hot skin, a thin layer of sweat forming between us. We were bundled together underneath my down comforter and my bed had taken on a whole new feeling; I couldn't remember a time it had felt so distinctly comfortable before.

I stretched as much as I could without shifting her off my body and then wrapped my hands as low on her body as I could reach. I tugged her up so that her mouth was level with mine and kissed her softly. Her knees slipped across my legs to rest on either side of my torso and the thought that her wetness was so close to mine had me throbbing in anticipation.

"Alice," I whispered, too wrapped up in the kiss to even finish my sentence.

"Bella."

She was raining tiny kisses down my chin and then up one side of my face as I tried to remember what it was I wanted to say.

"Naked tub time?" I asked, unsure if she was genuinely trying to wake me up or fuck me.

"Yeah, I lit all the candles. I hope you don't mind. All we have to do is run the water. I wasn't sure how long it would take me to wake you up and I didn't want it to get cold."

I gently pushed Alice to the side and sat up, looking down the short hallway into my bathroom; it was glowing with the sparkle of what must've been dozens of tealight candles. She had also lit the candles in the sconces on the wall and my mind relaxed just looking at it. I could faintly hear music and realized she must've taken my iPod and plugged it in over in the bathtub area. I smiled at her, still groggy from sleep. My Alice, my angel.

Taking her hand in mine, I led her off the bed and to the bathroom. I stopped at the cabinet to grab two fluffy white towels and a clip for my hair. Once I was at the edge of the tub, I twisted my hair with my hands and clipped it up, then turned the water on. I adjusted the temperature and Alice slipped out of my hand and walked back over to the cabinet area. She came right back and I could see her letting a little bath oil spill from a bottle and into our water. The soft scent of vanilla and lavender came over me and I smiled again.

Alice put the bottle back in the cabinet, returned to my side, and stepped into the tub. She rested her head against the bath pillow I had and I watched as the water lapped over her skin. I stepped in on the opposite side, facing her. Our legs tangled under the water and I closed my eyes as the tub finished filling around us. Alice had her arms on the edges of the tub and my hands were on her legs, softly rubbing up and down the smooth skin. Once the tub was full, she turned the dials and the rushing water stopped, leaving us with just soft music as background noise.

"This is nice," Alice said.

"Mhm, it is. Whose genius idea was this?" I giggled.

"That reminds me, are you ready to tell me when your birthday is and agree to a party yet?"

One of my eyes flew open at that.

"You're kidding, right? We've been in the tub less than five minutes. You haven't even begun to convince me yet, nor have you agreed to a real date. Are you ready to agree to a date?" I asked.

I couldn't help it; the bath oil didn't create bubbles, just wafted a lovely scent through the room and coated our skin, but this meant that I could see right through the water and look at every inch of Alice as we talked. I realized I'd been staring when she slapped the water in front of me to get my attention.

"Sorry, perhaps naked tub time is not the best time for discussions," I said, turning pink.

"Oh no, you promised me more talking. Come over here. Maybe if you're lying with me you will listen better."

I turned and moved to her side of the tub, where she held her arms out for me. I sat between her legs and she wrapped them around me, pulling me tightly to her warm body. The oil made our bodies slick against each other. Alice wrapped her arms underneath mine and rested her chin on my shoulder. I tried to relax in her arms, but relaxation wasn't always in the cards for me. I did my best to take a few deep breaths and felt myself let go just the tiniest bit.

"Bella, why don't you like to celebrate your birthday?" she asked softly.

"I don't like to be the center of attention," I explained.

Alice laughed. "You don't exactly strike me as someone trying to blend in, sweetheart."

She kissed just below my ear and I let my mind swirl around these two facts; she was right. I didn't want to blend in, but there was something else nagging at my brain.

"I don't know," I closed my eyes and sighed. "I've never been overjoyed at the idea of my birthday, but it's gotten worse the last few years. Jasper and I usually go out for drinks and then have a sleepover. It's fun usually, simple, casual."

I tipped my head back to rest on her shoulder and she sighed.

"Alice, what do you want to be when you grow up?" I asked on a whim. I could feel her giggle behind me and I was glad to bring some levity to the conversation.

"I want to be happy," she said simply.

"What makes you happy?"

"Right now, right here, this makes me immensely happy. Sketching a beautiful piece of clothing and watching it come to life, that makes me happy. My family makes me happy. Shopping makes me happy. Hmm, dancing. Dancing makes me happy."

"I just realized I have no fucking clue what you do for living, Alice," I interrupted.

"Oh," her voice softened, just a tiny bit, but enough to hear the sadness behind it. "I got my degree in dance from Vassar, but I don't know what I want to do. I feel pulled to work with my mom, but I also love dancing and would maybe like to open a studio."

"Really?" I was surprised; not that she loved to dance, but that there was a side of her that also might someday want to teach or design clothing.

"Yeah, I'd love to teach kids to dance – spark that creativity in them. But it's true, I do also love clothes. Working with my mom isn't always easy, but oh, once you meet her Bella, you'll understand, she's a really wonderful person. You can't help but want to be around her."

Meet her. Alice wanted me to meet her mom.

"Edward mentioned something the other day at the office about your other brother. He's a doctor at Children's with your dad?"

"Yep, Emmett is a doctor."

The wheels in my brain started turning.

"Single?" I asked.

"Yeah, he's single, but Bella... Emmett is a lot. A lot to handle. He has a lot of responsibilities. He's single by choice. He meets a lot of women, but he decided a while ago that he wasn't particularly interested in settling down."

She sounded so sad when she talked about him, and I couldn't understand why.

"Huh, why not?"

"Emmett has a daughter."

"So? That's not a very good reason to stop dating and shut down."

Alice laughed and a moment later, I caught the irony. There never really is a good reason to the outside world, is there?

"It's funny that you would say that Bella, being one of the most shut down people I've met lately. Christ, if you were straight I might introduce you two just so I could know you'd both at least be getting some hot sex out of your dysfunctions."

I opened my eyes and thought about it for a moment before speaking, letting her words rest in my brain.

"I'm sorry, was that over the line?" she asked, kissing my neck.

"No," I whispered. "No, it wasn't over the line, it was the truth. It's just... Sometimes, I don't think I realized how shut down I was or maybe still am. I think you try and protect yourself and it becomes such a normal feeling that you forget you're all fucked up inside. You're just plugging along, day to day..."

We sat quietly like that for a few minutes, just being together. Being ourselves. Becoming an us.

"Sit up, sweetheart, let me wash your back," Alice said.

She picked up my sponge and put some gel on it, wringing it a few times to get the bubbles good and foamy. She gently pushed her hand on my back to press me forward. I hugged my knees and felt her swipe the sponge across my skin carefully. After a few moments, her small hands ran up and down through the suds, pressing into my sore muscles. I rested my head on my knees and let out a deep sigh.

"Tell me more about Emmett?" I asked.

"You gonna leave me for my brother, baby?" she asked, her hands pressing into my shoulders.

I laughed. "No, I have a sister. Did you know that?"

"Nope. What's her name?"

"Rosalie. Rose. She's an attorney also, a partner at my firm."

"You're a partner?"

"Yeah, Rose, Angela and I opened a firm together, so we're technically all partners. So, Emmett?"

"Emmett," she said, and I could hear the smile in her voice. Alice was definitely a woman that loved her family. "He's a grownup with the heart and spirit of a child. He can be serious, but most people write him off far too quickly because of his good looks and goofy nature. He's handsome and smart, very charming; much like Edward, actually, only straight," she said with a giggle.

"Huh."

I leaned back against her, her hands having stopped for the moment, resting on my shoulders.

"And Rose?" she asked.

"Rose is twenty-seven," I said. "How old is Emmett?"

"Twenty-eight."

"Ok, so Rose is twenty-seven, a partner at the firm. She's very dedicated to what she does. Beautiful. A good person, I think. She tends to date losers, though. It's so frustrating. I know she wants to settle down and have a family, but she keeps picking the worst guys ever." I shook my head.

"You know, if you agreed to a birthday party, we could introduce them to each other," Alice said.

She began kissing the spot where my neck joined my body at my shoulder. She nipped lightly and her hands moved from their spot on my back to underneath my arms as she reached around to the front of my body. I hummed lightly when her fingers traced the sensitive underside of my breasts before skimming over the nipple. I let out my breath in a sigh, hoping to convey just how much I was enjoying what Alice was doing without words. Her fingertips teased my nipples, then tugged gently.

"Will you let me throw you a birthday party, lovey?" she asked quietly.

"You fight dirty, Alice," I smirked.

I moaned as she pinched a little harder the next time. "Come on, baby. I'll give you your date, you give me a nice little party? Please, let me celebrate the day you were born." She was nuzzling into the crook of my neck again.

"Are you always such a sappy romantic? Celebrate the day I was born, really?" I chuckled softly. The idea that someone wanted to celebrate my entrance to the world was a little silly to me.

"Are you always such a killjoy? Do you have a romantic bone in your body? Can't you bring yourself to appreciate that there are people out there in this world that love you and want to show you that?" she asked, her voice laced with hurt and sadness again.

"I can be romantic, don't pout baby. Okay, you can throw me a very small party," I said. I couldn't believe she got me to cave so quickly, but really, what was the point of holding out? I knew that in the end, she was going to get her way and I would get mine.

Fuck, is this compromising? Bella Swan is compromising?

"Really?" she squealed.

I could see the thoughts spinning in her head already, calling catering companies and going over the top. She was jiggling my breasts up and down as if they were some sort of toy for her to celebrate with and it made me laugh. I needed to put some limits on this party before it got out of hand.

"With a few conditions. I'm going to cook. We can have it either here or Jasper's place, either should be large enough. No parents, pretty please? We can go over there for dinner or something Brady-like maybe Sunday. I would love to meet them, but not at my birthday party, okay?"

She looked like she was weighing her options and considering a counter-offer, then she let out a gust of air in apparent defeat.

"Okay. You know you have to tell me first when your birthday is, right?"

"Saturday. My birthday is Saturday."

"This Saturday?" she nearly screamed in my ear.

"Shit, calm down, Alice. Yes, this Saturday."

"You're not giving me much time to plan," Alice huffed.

"It's not like I can move the date of my birth."

Alice laughed and began to slowly stroke my nipples again. She didn't seem to be trying to seduce me anymore, she was just keeping in contact with my body.

I rested my head back against her shoulder and slouched my body slightly, giving her greater access. She kept her calm, slow movements against my skin, driving me crazy. One of her hands moved to my abdomen and was drawing lazy circles around my belly button.

I smiled. "Are you trying to distract me so that I forget about your promise of a date?"

She nibbled my earlobe quickly before whispering, "No. I have every intention of letting you take me out and then bring me home."

"Alice?"

"Mhm?"

"It's time to get out of the tub."

"I was hoping you'd say that soon. My fingers are all pruney," she said.

I laughed and pulled the plug. When I stood up, I reached a hand out to help Alice stand. She wrapped her hands around my neck and brought me down for a soft kiss.

"More naked tub time again?" she asked as I stepped out onto the bath mat.

"Anytime you want." I kissed her again, swiping gently at her lips with my tongue.

"Know what I want right now," she said, teasing me with her voice and words.

Alice squealed as I lifted her out of the tub, those morning workouts of mine finally paying off in a useful way. I used the towel to dry her off quickly as she did the same for me, both of us giggling at our haste.

Once we were dry, Alice wrapped her arms around my neck again and I picked her up in my arms. I kept one hand under her bottom and one around her waist as I carefully walked to the bed, my lips never leaving hers.

Thankfully the distance was short; I laid her down and hovered above her body, kissing all around her collarbone and chest. I licked and sucked her nipples as she arched her back and moaned. I tugged her left nipple between my teeth and softly stroked the right with my fingers before trailing my hand lower.

My fingertips traced her wet lips and I teased her clit quickly with a flick of my thumb. While listening to her moan and pant, I came to an interesting realization. I loved just playing with Alice many times more than I loved fucking any other woman; she responded to me in such delightful ways and was almost as eager as I was.

I began to trail kisses to her cute little belly button, stopping to kiss and lick it on my way down to my real destination. Before I got to where I wanted to be, Alice twisted her body and knocked me off.

"If you wanted me to move, you could have just said so," I said as I stroked her thigh.

Alice laughed and wrapped her legs around my body, stopping me from going any further.

"Alice?" I questioned, looking up at her. She raised her eyebrow and nudged her head to the side a little, and for a brief moment I was confused.

Then, I got it.

I brought my lower half around to her and hooked her right leg across my neck, giving me as much access to her as I wanted. My mouth watered as the smell of her combined with the sweet bath oil we'd just been lingering in hit me. I felt her hand on my leg, moving me as she wished, and then her tongue against my skin; she wasted no time. I pushed my hips forward as she pulled my lower lips into her mouth, snaking her tongue out into me. She moaned against me and I spread her lips, eager to taste her, to give her the same pleasure she was giving me.

I could still hear the music coming from the bathroom, but the louder noises around us were Alice's mouth on my pussy and mine on hers. I could hear and feel her as she lapped at me, stopping to flick my clit with her tongue periodically. She slipped her fingers deep inside me as she kissed and teased me.

My hips were moving on their own, her fingers gliding in and out effortlessly now. I couldn't help the mewling noises leaving my mouth and vibrating against her clit. One of my hands curled around her thigh and my fingers moved forward between her lips. They dipped between them, gliding up and down her slit before I pushed two inside of her. She pressed her face closer to my body, her mouth and tongue seemingly greedy, fingers pressing, pulling and tugging, demanding my release from my body.

Alice pressed her tongue flat against my clit and ran it back and forth quickly, the knot in my stomach winding tighter. I was whimpering into her, flicking my tongue against her swollen clit. I dipped a third finger into her and brought it back out to circle her other entrance. I pressed lightly and nibbled gently on her clit when I felt her fall over the edge and into her orgasm. I knew I wouldn't be far behind, her moans and cries encouraging me and providing extra sensation. Once I felt her orgasm subside, I leaned my head back slightly to let her know how much I was enjoying her movements.

"I'm almost there, baby... God, you feel so fucking good doing that," I said.

I felt Alice's thumb move to cover my clit and her hot breath moved across me.

"Come for me, Bella, please," she begged before quickly returning her mouth to my body.

I arched my back in an impossible attempt to get even closer to her mouth and I felt my orgasm roll over me in waves. Delicious, glorious, scream-inducing waves. Alice never stopped her movements, thankfully, as I came hard against her mouth and fingers.

My eyes closed and I tried to regain the power of thought, my breathing ragged. I moved my fingers that had been inside of her to her hip and we both sort of rolled to our backs at the same time. Her hand was on my stomach and then in my hand, pulling me gently back up to her. I moved and laid next to her, curling my body into hers.

As our breathing returned to normal, I brought a hand up to Alice's right breast and cupped it, teasing her nipple playfully. I softly kissed her left breast, the nipple standing erect almost taunting me.

"You're insatiable," she laughed softly.

I decided to try honesty for once. "I just need to be touching and loving you," I said. "Please stay?"

"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."