Hello! Thanks so much for all of your kind reviews to the story so far! If you haven't left me one yet, please don, because I love to hear what you think of the story :o)

Thanks To Becky for pre-reading for me – and encouraging me when I wasn't sure whether to give in to Bella's demands for more ;o). Also to Mrs P for beta'ing for me. I take full responsibility for any errors that remain seeing as I threw so much citrus into this chapter, despite knowing that it affects her ability to concentrate!

The title of this chapter is from Oasis's Acquiesce. Good times :o)

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight, EY is mine :o)

Chapter 10 ~ What's Sleepin' in our Soul

EPoV

Holy fuck, she was good. I resented the comment on the ass-print gallery, but I knew I deserved it given my reputation, so I let go of my irritation and decided to be honest with her instead.

"Bella." I walked over to her and bent to kiss her. "I've never brought any other woman here, I swear. In fact, I'm pretty strict on that."

"Then, why…" she began to ask, before trailing off.

I shrugged.

"I have no idea."

I'd be lying if I were to say that there wasn't a little something about this that made me uncomfortable. It wasn't that she was here, that felt…right.

Holy shit, I thought. Listen to me! The very fact that it felt right, that was the part fucking with my head.

I loved the fact that she was standing there covered in paint; my very own work of art, and in my opinion, my best ever piece.

"You should wear nothing but a coat of paint more often," I told her, running my thumb across her cheek and leaving another smear there. She smirked.

"I'm sure it could be arranged," she said, a suggestive lilt to her voice. I kissed her again and she returned it. It was slow and gentle and…fuck me if it didn't make me want her all over again. I pressed my body against her slightly to let her know and she moaned quietly into my mouth. I broke reluctantly away.

"As much as I love the paint…" I kissed her again. "I'm looking forward to getting cleaned up with you even more." Another kiss. "Shower?" I looked into her eyes and saw them glaze over slightly as I made the suggestion, and she nodded. I stepped back and took her hand, leading her out of my office and across the landing to my bedroom. Pushing the door open I took her inside and straight across to my bathroom. For the first time since Tanya had left me, I found myself silently thanking her. She'd been the one to insist on the biggest, top of the range walk-in shower that we could fit in this room. The fact that I was now going to share it with somebody else was like mentally flipping the bitch off. I wondered why I hadn't thought of this sooner, but the thought of sharing my space with the likes of some of those other women made my stomach turn unpleasantly. I pushed the thought away and focused on Bella again.

"Whoa! That is some shower, Edward. It looks very…uh…roomy." I laughed at her reaction.

"It is. Want to take a closer look, baby?" I whispered in her ear. I heard her breath hitch and pulled away, smirking. I pulled the glass door open and walked in to turn the water on. Bella lingered just on the other side of the door as I stretched my hand out to encourage her in.

"I'm not coming in there until I see steam coming off that water," she told me.

"Well, why don't you come in here and we'll make our own steam?" I licked my lips as she smiled and took a step towards me, pulling the door closed behind her.

"Did you seriously just say that?" Bella cocked an eyebrow at me as she stepped closer.

"Yes. I meant every word too."

I drew her to me beneath the flow of water, and turned her so her back was pressed to my chest as I wrapped my arms around her. Her arm reached up and around so that she was stroking the back of my neck. I kissed her neck slowly up and down as the water ran over us, smoothing her hair down her back. I began to rub slow circles on her body, smearing the paint and helping it to wash away.

I reached across and grabbed a bottle of shower gel from the shelf, popping the lid with my thumb. I held it in front of her and squeezed it directly onto her breasts. Bella gasped loudly as the cold gel hit her skin. I dropped the bottle and reached down to begin massaging the soap onto her, unable to keep from pressing my rock hard dick into her back, as my hands slid over her slick, wet skin. She pushed back against me and I moaned into her ear, noticing how her own breathing had grown deeper and louder.

Once the water was running clear from her breasts, I moved my hands lower to rub her stomach and hips, making large circles that I extended around to her ass too. As my hands moved behind her, I pulled upwards, rubbing her against myself.

"Fuck!" I breathed. "I thought that getting you covered in paint was sexy, but cleaning you off is even fucking better." She groaned loudly in response and turned to face me.

"Soap," she demanded, holding her hand out. I nodded down at the floor and raised an eyebrow in challenge as I smirked at her. She raised her own brow at me, and turned around. She parted her feet slightly and then bent over, keeping her legs perfectly straight as she bent to retrieve the bottle, giving me a perfect view of her half-washed painted ass and below it, her perfect pink folds.

"Jesus…Fuck, Bella!" I exclaimed. She straightened up and smiled at me in mock innocence.

"What?" she asked, moving closer to me.

"You know what," I told her, wrapping my arms around her and bending to kiss her. My lips had only just touched hers when she pulled away.

"I'm sure I don't," she teased me. "Ok, it's your turn to get clean." She held the bottle upside down over her hand.

"Here, let me help," I said, reaching for the bottle and deliberately knocking it out of her hand onto the floor. "Shit, sorry about that. I'm such a klutz sometimes," I said, unable to keep the smile from my face. She knew exactly what was going on, but she played along.

"Hey, that's ok. I can get it."

She did exactly as she had done to pick it up the last time, as I'd known she would. As soon as she turned away from me I moved closer as quietly as possible, so the moment she bent over I was ready. I wrapped an arm around her waist and bent my knees as I lined myself up with her hot, pink centre. She squealed playfully, but as soon as she felt me right there her squeal became a deep groan and she stilled, tilting her hips back towards me. I pushed myself inside her and we both let out the most primal of noises at the sensation.

There wasn't the urgency of the last time; this rhythm was entirely new. Slow, deep and intense.

"Edward?" Bella gasped between thrusts. I struggle not to cum there and then at the way her voice sounded speaking my name as I filled her with my cock. I tried to answer her but an unintelligible sound escaped my mouth. "I want to see your face while you fuck me." she groaned.

"Bella, baby. Unless you stop with the dirty mouth, this is going to be over waaaay too soon," I warned her, thrusting harder.

"I'm sorry," she gasped as I drove myself into her again. "I didn't realize you liked it so much when I talked about you fu…" I pushed myself deep inside her again to stop the words.

"Bella," I said sternly. She made the most amazing noise, somewhere between a giggle and a gasp, and I moaned loudly.

"Sorry, I meant…ohhh!…that thing you do…when you…fill my soaking wet pu…aaaah!...pussy…"

Fuck me, she said pussy. The urgency had returned and I was pounding into her now, supporting her weight with my arm because her legs appeared to have turned to jell-O from the way they kept buckling under her.

"Has anybody…ever told you…that you're…a very dirty…girl?" I asked her.

"I'm not…usually…" she groaned loudly again. "You…bring out…the worst…in me…Edward."

"Ithink…youmean…thebest."

"Justshutup…andfuckme…I'mohhhh…soclose!"

That was all the encouragement I needed. With one more extra hard and deep thrust, she was clenching around me, her cries echoing off the tiles and the glass of the shower enclosure as she came hard, joining mine as I emptied myself inside her.

We collapsed in a spent heap on the shower floor.

"I've never met anybody like you, Bella," I whispered quietly as the water flooded down noisily onto us. She looked round at me, eyes half close as her chest still heaved from the exertion.

"Huh?" she asked.

"I said, you're an amazing fuck," I told her, fixing a smile on my face as I hurriedly pushed my heart back inside its box and pulled the chains tight around it.

We'd dried ourselves off and moved into my bedroom.

"I guess I should be going," Bella said, glancing at the floor as she gripped the towel around her.

The post-coital escape. I was an expert at it, but I could tell that Bella wasn't. I lifted her face so she was looking at me.

"You don't have to leave yet," I told her, bringing my mouth gently to hers. "Lie with me a while." I stepped to one side and pulled the duvet back on the bed, dropping my towel to the ground as I climbed in, pulling her in after me. She dropped her towel too and climbed in, scooting as close as she could and wrapping herself around me in a tight embrace.

I hummed happily.

"I love hugs," she whispered.

"Me too," I replied, before wondering where that had come from. Yep, in general I would doubt that any of the women since…you know, would have recognised that fact about me. In fact I'm pretty sure that they'd have snorted loudly at anybody that had tried to convince them of it.

Our mouths met and we shared a slow, lazy kiss. It was relaxed and comfortable, but I still felt a slight stirring between my legs only slightly before Bella did. She groaned and I apologised.

"I know, I'm sorry. Don't worry, I don't think I can move anyway."

"That wasn't a groan of worry, Edward. And you don't have to move."

She untangled her legs from mine and pushed me onto my back. Straddling my stomach she bent and kissed me. It wasn't a lazy kiss this time; it was slow and sensuous and full of promise. I cradled her head between my hands, strands of wet hair tangling in my fingers as we gently explored one another's mouths and tongues. We stayed that way, lost in our unbroken kiss, for a long time. When we eventually broke gently apart, I took in Bella's flushed face and the spark in her eyes.

She was beautiful.

She smiled at me and then shifted so that she could kiss my chest. She took her time as she kissed and sucked my nipples and then worked her way lower; down towards my stomach.

I revelled in the attention she was lavishing on me; she did not leave an inched untouched as she stroked and kissed me. She lifted herself up and settled herself back, hovering over my legs as her hand hovered above my cock. She looked up at me, my eyes hooded in anticipation, and she smiled. There was no sign of the teasing and playful look she'd shown to me in the shower. It was a smile of contentment and closeness, and as I watched her she lowered her eyes coyly and bit her lower lip.

Fuck. This girl had so many sides and I fucking loved them all.

She took me in her hand tentatively, stroking my length, before bending over and taking me into her mouth. I gasped as she set a slow pace, paying as much attention to my cock with her mouth and tongue as she had to the rest of me when she worked her way down my body.

I felt myself growing impossibly hard in her warm mouth as she pulled away, coating me heavily in her saliva as she did so. She didn't say a word, just smiled at me as she straightened up and adjusted herself, so she was on her knees, directly above me.

Agonisingly slowly she lowered herself onto me a little, then off slightly, on a little more, off a little, until finally she slid right the way down, her eyes half closed and her breathing heavy as her mouth curved slightly in a content smile. She looked at me, and truly for the first time in my life, I was more interested in the woman on my dick, than my dick itself. I placed my hands on her waist for no reason other than I wanted to feel her beneath them.

Slowly she rode me, grinding into me and lifting off again; it felt fucking amazing, and each time her eyes locked with mine, something changed and it felt even better. She leaned in for a kiss.

"I can't get enough of you, Edward," she whispered. I swallowed deeply at her words.

"Me neither." I could spend the rest of my life making love to you like this, I added silently, wincing as the fear pierced me the moment I registered the thought.

Bella's breathing was uneven now and she was making all kinds of adorable mewling sounds as she rose up and down on me, her pace increasing slightly. I was determined to watch her cum before I allowed myself my own release.

Moments later she was crying out as she bucked her hips and her walls tightened around me. She fought the urge to close her eyes, screwing them up to keep them fixed on mine as her mouth hung open.

I couldn't take any more; the sight of her coming apart on top of me nudged me over the edge, and this time it was her turn to watch as I came inside her.

We collapsed into one another's arms once again, wrapped around each other and sharing another long, gentle kiss as our breathing slowed. Within minutes I realized dopily that Bella had fallen asleep. A goofy grin spread across my face as I snuggled against her and allowed myself to fall too.

I awoke when I felt Bella begin to stir in my arms. I hummed softly and wrapped myself more tightly around her, inhaling deeply as I did so.

"Edward…I can't...breathe," she gasped, struggling against me. I pouted slightly as I loosened my grip on her.

"Sorry," I mumbled, my face buried in her hair.

"What time is it?" she asked.

"I don't know," I said, unwilling to move. She giggled.

"Well, could you check if you're not going to let me go enough for me to do it myself?"

I groaned and rolled over slightly onto my back, craning my neck until the alarm clock came into view. It took a moment for me to register what time it said.

"Oh fuck!" I exclaimed, throwing the duvet back and scrambling out. Bella watched me, confused at my outburst. "We've got ten minutes until school's out!" Her eyes went wide.

"Oh fuck!" she echoed. I paused, trying to collect my thoughts.

"I'll fetch your clothes," I told her, racing out of the bedroom and across the landing to my office. I gathered all of the garments together, noticing her bag at the last moment when the sound of her cell phone ringing alerted me to where it had ended up…underneath my desk.

Back in the bedroom she was standing wrapped in the towel again, looking in dismay at her hair in the mirror. I dumped her stuff on the bed and we both dressed hurriedly. As she yanked her bag open and pulled out a hair brush I suddenly remembered.

"Oh, your cell was ringing before." She brushed her hair with one hand whilst she dug around in her bag with the other. Pulling her cell out, she looked at the screen. Her face fell and was then filled with panic.

"Shit, shit, SHIT!" she yelled.

"What's up?"

"Four missed calls from school and another six from Jake." She looked stricken and I immediately felt terrible. "I have to go, I'll see you later." She rushed past me, out of the door and down the stairs. I heard the front door slam behind her and sighed. Glancing at the clock pushed me into action again and I raced out of the house too.

I rounded the corner into the schoolyard just after the bell sounded, as the kids began pouring out of the school. My eyes were drawn immediately to where Bella stood…with Jake. They weren't speaking loud enough to be heard, but I could tell that they were arguing. Bella's eyes met mine and she looked almost sick. She looked away quickly as Jake bent to speak to her again. I could tell that he was chastising her, and I wanted nothing more than to go over there and lay the big motherfucker out. Just as I was thinking it, he looked up and locked eyes with mine. For a moment I felt as though he knew exactly what had been going on, but then a small boy who was the spitting the image of him was tugging on his sweater. He looked down, his face lighting up when he saw the child. He scooped him up into his arms and without a second glance at Bella, he walked away. I watched as Bella turned to follow them, risking one last look back at me and smiling sadly at me.

I clenched and unclenched my fists, fighting to keep control of my temper.

"Hey, Uncle Edward!" Grace bounded up to me.

"Hey, Gracie," I said, bending to kiss her on the head. "You had a good day?"

"Yeah, it was ok until Joshua Black puked everywhere after lunch. It was gross."

"Hmm, I bet," I answered absentmindedly. Joshua had obviously gotten sick and school couldn't get hold of Bella, so they'd had to call Jake instead. What was the chances of that happening today of all days?

I didn't see Bella at all for the rest of the week. Joshua stayed out of school and Alice had offered to bring the younger boy in and take him home for Bella. She acted like some kind of fucking saint, when in fact I knew that all she wanted to do was have an excuse to hang out with that blonde dude some more.

According to Alice, I'd been in a foul mood all week. Yeah, whatever. Sisters could be a royal pain in the ass sometimes. I didn't know why she couldn't be more like Emmett. Vacant, she called it. I preferred to think of it more as…nonchalant. I had a feeling that he'd call it minding his own fucking business. Alice wasn't good at that; she never had been.

On Friday Alice let me know that Joshua was feeling a lot better and the party was still going ahead. I didn't know how I felt about that now. The amount of thought I'd given to Bella these past few days was unsettling me if I was honest. And not the just the amount either, the content of those thoughts was worrying me just as fucking much. It wasn't as though I was consciously thinking this shit about her, if anything I was fighting to not think it, but every so often a sly thought would pop into my head from out of fucking nowhere, and freak me out.

And I was talking A-grade freak out material too. Seriously. Like life-fucking-altering, marriage, kids; the kind of shit that I ran a mile from these days. What the hell had she done to me? It was liking she was turning me back into a normal fucking human being again or something. And that shit was dangerous. You lived a normal life, you got hurt. Fact.

Besides, what the fuck was I torturing myself with all of this for? The last time I looked she was still living with the Incredible fucking Hulk. And I was going into their home. Tomorrow.

I smirked, wondering if I could manage to get her to give it up to me in her own home while he was there. I bet I stood a very good fucking chance. Hell, now that I'd had that thought, I hadn't looked forward to a party so much since the time we booked that stripper for Mike Newton's 17th birthday. Shame the fucker had lied about his parents not being around just to get us all there. What a fucking waste. Not for Emmett of course. I smiled as I remembered him walking into the kitchen the next morning, the biggest shit-eating grin on his face ever. Of course, Rosalie hated to be reminded of how they met, and the story had changed substantially over the years. Whatever; I knew the truth of the mother-fucking matter. Maybe I'd bring it up the next time she started annoying me.

Saturday morning saw me waking up having undergone some sort of weird transformation overnight. I had felt too antsy for coffee when I got up, so I had decided to go for a run instead. This used to be a part of my everyday routine. Before. Before life shit on me and mornings meant hangovers and regrets. I headed for my closet and dug through it until I found my running shoes and shorts. I got dressed, pulling on a t-shirt and hoodie, grabbed my mp3 player and left the house.

My body screamed in protest at the exercise, especially my lungs. The last time I'd done this was before I'd taken up smoking again and the difference was frightening. I was pushing on past an unfamiliar house, when the door opened and my sister stepped out. Jasper was right behind her, his hand on her lower back. I pulled up short, unsure who was the most surprised, me to see Alice coming out of Jasper's house after blatantly having stayed the night, or her to see me out running at this time on a Saturday morning.

"Hey, Alice. Little early to be calling on people, isn't it?" She gave me the stink eye, while Jasper had the good grace to look at least a little embarrassed.

"Mornin' Edward," he greeted me. "I didn't know you ran."

"Oh, uh, yeah. It's been a while, if I'm honest." Alice was looking at me now like a proud parent. That was my cue to leave. I rolled my eyes at her. "Ok, I need to carry on before my muscles seize." I began jogging backwards. "I'll see you later," I told them with a wave, before turning and running on.

When I reached home, I grabbed a bottle of cold water from the refrigerator and took it upstairs with me. Peeling off my sweaty running clothes and dumping them in the hamper, I walked into the shower. The exercise hadn't helped any in some respects. Every time I went for a shower since the day that Bella spent here, all I could see was her bending over to pick up the damn shower gel. As usual my cock sprang to attention at the thought, and as usual I ended up knocking one out like a horny teen before I shut the water off.

The morning dragged as I tried to get some work done, but constantly let my attention wander back to the ass-print that I'd attached to the wall above my desk.

Finally it was the afternoon, and time to collect Grace for the party. She chattered excitedly all the way there, but I couldn't focus. By the time we arrived I was a nervous wreck beneath my controlled exterior.

The Hulk answered the door. Fuck me, he was even bigger close up. He looked at me coolly.

"Hi. I brought Grace for the party."

"Well, ok. Hi Grace, c'mon in." He held the door open and Grace stepped over the threshold. I moved forwards to follow her in when he turned back to me, filling the doorway. "We're planning on finishing up at around five thirty if you want to come back then to collect her."

"Thanks, but I'll stay. No offence, but I don't know you."

"You know Bella." The statement was cold and I was unsure whether it was an accusation or an acknowledgement of what had happened between us.

"I said, I'll stay."

I heard a familiar voice calling out behind him to ask who it was. She nudged him out of the way to see past him.

"Oh! Hey Edward. Aren't you staying?"

"Yes, I am," I told her glaring at the Hulk as he glared back at me. She rolled her eyes and shoved Jake to one side.

"For God's sake, Jake, let the man in." I walked through the door, smiling smugly at him as I passed. I was certain that he didn't know anything about Bella and me, because there's no way she'd have reacted like that if he did.

I followed her into the house, where a dozen or so kids were running around shouting and squealing. Balloons and decorations hung everywhere at the expense of actual personal belongings.

"Don't you have any, like, stuff?" I asked her. She laughed as she turned and my heart stopped at the vision.

"What do you mean, stuff?" She asked, genuinely puzzled.

"I mean belongings, you know, stuff." She laughed some more now she understood.

"Of course we do, but I packed anything breakable away. Have you even ever been to a kid's party before, Edward?" I smirked.

"Does Mike Newton's 17th count?" She looked at me strangely. "Never mind," I assured her. "I'll tell you about it sometime."

As we reached the kitchen, I found it full of other parents. The big motherfucker had just been trying to keep me out. Bad luck, Hulk, I thought, and then stifled a laugh as I wondered whether if I bugged him enough he'd turn green and rip his clothes off.

Jasper brought Charlotte along, and I spent some time making small talk with him. After a while, Grace came to find me to ask if she could use the bathroom. I looked for Bella or Jake to ask for directions, but there was no sign of either of them. One of the other parents told me that she thought it was on the second floor, so we headed up the staircase to look. I peered into the rooms through the cracked doors as I tried to find the bathroom. I stood and waited for Grace to come out so I could go in myself. When I came out, Grace had gone back to the party. I heard the sound of a voice I recognised, although I couldn't make out the words. I couldn't hear any other voice though, so I wondered if she was on the phone. This could be my chance to get her on her own.

I moved quietly to the room where the voice was coming from. I looked through the crack in the door and felt like I'd been punched in the stomach. I'd never known such acute and painful jealousy to affect me.

The Hulk sat on the edge of the bed and Bella stood between his legs. They were holding each other. She had a hand on the back of his head, moving it through his hair in soothing circles, while his head was resting on her chest facing away from me, his arms holding her tight to him around her waist. She was speaking to him in a low voice, but I still couldn't make out the words.

I pushed away and stomped down the stairs. I knew that I had no right to feel this way; I'd got involved knowing what the deal was. Involved? Was that what I was? I guessed so. Fuck. I yanked my hand roughly through my hair.

I'd been back downstairs for a few minutes when Jake reappeared, smiling as he started organizing a game for the kids. I left the room, determined to find out if I could get some of that personal attention from Bella for myself.

She was just coming out of the room I'd seen her in with him, dabbing at her eyes with a tissue. I walked straight up to her.

"He made you cry," I stated.

"No! I mean, yes, but not how you think. We're good." I raised an eyebrow at her.

"I don't want to talk about him, I came up here for you," I told her. I pushed her gently back against the wall and then reached down and kissed the tears from her cheeks. She kept casting nervous glances at the stairs.

"Edward, not here, we can't…"

"We can," I told her. I bent down, lifted her face to mine and pressed my lips to hers. She moaned quietly and parted her lips, slipping her tongue out to meet mine. The kiss deepened quickly as all of my frustration and desire for her from the past few days boiled over. I reached down and grabbed her under her ass, lifting her up. She wrapped her legs around my waist and I pushed myself harder against her, almost frantic now.

I kissed up and down her neck and she mewled quietly, but desperately.

"Oh, Edward," she moaned into my neck. "I want you so bad,"

The sudden sound of a man clearing his throat behind me caused me to freeze, my face buried in her hair. I felt my heart jump.

"Oh fuck," I said, not wanting to turn around.

We'd been caught.

Oooh, not good!

A couple of announcements. First off, I've written an EY Jasper x Alice outtake for the Fandom For Preemies fundraiser. Check here for further information: www (dot) fandomforpreemies (dot) blogspot (dot) com

Secondly, my good friend beckybrit, who listens to me going on about all my fic ideas, has posted the first chapter from her first multi-chapter fic, Dark Wolves and Vampire Delights. It's excellent, and knowing what's to come I recommend you all take your seats now!

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