The characters are based on those of Stephenie Meyer - I'm just trying to get them laid . . .

Chapter 10

Bloody fucking hell…

I stared at Bella. My much abused dick was beginning to come back to life. I actually started to wonder for a moment if Bella could read my mind. Somehow she had managed to pluck the exact outfit from my most recent fantasy right out of my brain and was deliberately taunting me. I swallowed nervously. The monster started stroking itself.

"Good morning, Bella," I muttered, unable to stop my voice from cracking.

"Is there something wrong, Edward?" Bella asked, looking down at herself. She would have to be blind not to see that my stunned eyes hadn't moved a fraction of an inch from her body.

"No, um, not exactly." I could feel beads of sweat forming on the back of my neck. I took a deep breath and tried to center myself. "You look lovely, Bella. Truly. I'm just feeling extremely remiss for not telling you that we would be hiking a little way for our picnic today. Not far, but there is a particularly lovely spot that I have in mind. I just want to make sure you'll be comfortable in those…er, sandals. At the same time, you look so pretty, I hate to even suggest that you change." Please change. Please change. Please change before I bend you over the nearest flat, stable surface and toss your skirt over your head…

"Oh, well come on in. Give me just a minute and I'll find something more appropriate to wear," she said, clearly not bothered by either my lapse in memory or composure.

She turned and ran up the stairs, presumably to that room in the front of the house. I tried desperately not to picture Bella's skirt sliding down over her hips and hitting the floor. I made a real effort not to imagine her standing in her room, clad only in that blue camisole and probably some lacy blue panties. I attempted not to picture her fabulous ass half exposed as she bent over a dresser drawer, looking for alternative clothing. And I really, really sought to ignore the monster as it goaded me to follow her up the stairs. Christ, I'm shaking…

I wandered into the living room looking around for something to divert my attention. There was a series of pictures of Bella as a child. Well, that certainly cooled my ardor. I was entranced looking through them. She was adorable even then.

A moment later Bella came down the stairs, and I breathed a sigh of relief. She was still wearing the blue camisole, damn it, but she had also donned a white hoodie. More importantly, the skirt was gone, thank God. She had slipped on a pair of Capri length jeans and red tennis shoes. I stared for a moment, captivated by how the cute little girl had become this stunning woman.

"Ready?" I asked, my equilibrium restored.

Bella nodded and smiled at me. When she held out her hand in invitation, my own smile widened absurdly, and my heart skipped a beat. The butterflies in my stomach ran rampant. The monster clutched its heart.

I struggled to keep my eyes on the road as we drove. Each time I looked in Bella's direction I found her watching me. I was too distracted to make conversation.

"Where are we going?" Bella finally asked.

To the woods! shouted the monster excitedly.

"Alice and I were exploring one day last year when we found a little meadow. It's become one of my favorite spots. I go there sometimes, just to think, or when I want to be alone. I'm hoping you'll like it too."

When we arrived at the end of the road that was our destination, I helped Bella to exit the car before grabbing the duffle bag from the back seat. When I turned around, I almost ran into her, she was standing so close to me. My pulse skipped as I gazed down on her face, and I couldn't resist giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Shall we go?" I asked gruffly. Before I toss this bag to the side and throw you in the back seat of my car?

"How far is it?" Bella asked dubiously.

"It's only about a half hour walk. But we're in no hurry—you can set the pace," I offered.

I took her hand, and we started into the woods. It was warm and close under the trees. After a few minutes, Bella stopped to remove her hoodie, tying it around her waist. I tried not to gawk at her cleavage as we continued, but I knew I wasn't completely successful. The monster didn't even attempt to be discreet.

When we arrived at the clearing, I let Bella advance ahead of me. As I watched her walk, I wondered if substituting those jeans for the white skirt was any better, really. They were tight as hell and emphasized each of her sweet curves. I shook my dazed head and followed her.

Finding a place where the grass was lower, I put down the bag. Bella turned around and smiled joyously at me. Would I ever get used to how beautiful she was? She jogged over to where I was standing, and I couldn't even pretend not to notice the delightful way her breasts bounced. However, I was confident Bella didn't overhear the small keening sound that emerged before I could clamp my lips together. The monster wore a slightly stupid look.

"It's so pretty here, Edward. It's perfect, really," she announced with happiness, still smiling broadly.

I had to clear my throat before I could speak. "I'm so glad you're pleased," I replied intelligently.

"Can I help you with that stuff?" Bella asked cheerfully.

There is one big thing you could help me with…

"No, I've got it," I responded while opening the bag. I couldn't see much inside the dark bag, but noticed a blanket on top, so I grabbed it to spread it out. It wasn't until I flung it open in the sunlight that I did a double take. It was red plaid. This is like some kind of fucking conspiracy…

Bella must not have noticed the look of dismay on my face. "What have you got in there?" she asked.

"Well, I'll be honest," I responded, dragging my eyes from the blanket. "I asked Alice to help me arrange things, and she packed the bag. However, I don't want you to think I didn't help. Last night I assisted in the preparation of the food. I even baked cookies," I added, looking to score points.

It worked. Bella gave me the sweetest smile. "That's so nice, Edward." The monster struck a modest pose, digging its toe into the ground.

I chuckled silently as I unpacked the bag. Alice had thought of everything. I'd owe her big time for this.

First I found my iPod, already inserted into a set of battery operated speakers. I wondered if there was a "Bella Swan Picnic" playlist on it. There was. I trusted Alice and hit the play button. The strains of a Sinatra song began softly floating through the meadow. Well, I had told Alice I wanted the picnic to be romantic…

"Wow," Bella exclaimed. "We even have music." She lay down on her stomach, propping her chin on her elbows, and my eyes were instinctively drawn to her luscious backside in those tight jeans. Shit, where's that skirt when you need it? The monster fell forward and started humping the blanket.

I pulled out a soft cooler, offering Bella her choice of coke or water. She accepted a coke, while I opened a bottle of water. Then I noticed in a blocked off area of the bag two white roses and a small vase. Now I knew why Alice asked about Bella's favorite flower. I poured a little water in the vase and set it up on the blanket. Bella looked at me with melting eyes, and I silently blessed Alice once again.

"What else have you got in that bag?" Bella laughingly asked.

"Just food, I think. Are you hungry?"

"No, not yet. I am curious though," she said enigmatically.

"I've noticed that about you," I responded with a laugh. "What would you like to know?"

Bella kept her eyes down. "You've gone to an awful lot of trouble, Edward. I'm wondering why?"

Crap. The monster stopped humping the blanket, raised its head and said huh?

Bella rolled over onto her side, at least taking her ass out of the distraction equation. It didn't help my brain that much in finding an answer though.

"Would it suffice if I just said that I really like you—a lot?" I asked hopefully.

Bella pursed her fabulous lips. Oh God, don't do that. The monster puckered up.

"I'm still a little confused. Let's just say your behavior towards me has been…inconsistent. The first time I saw you, in Biology, you acted like I'd kicked you or something. Then the next day you were fine. And it's been changing from one extreme to the other since then, more or less. I wonder why that is, if you don't mind telling me," she asked politely.

I nodded and took a deep breath. It wasn't like she didn't deserve an explanation. Now, how to do so without sounding like a total idiot? The monster, helpful as always, shrugged.

"Bella, this is really difficult to describe. You'll probably think I'm…strange." I paused before admitting, "It's just that I don't have a lot of experience with girls." Real experience, that is…

Bella looked shocked.

"It's true, Bella." I do, however, have a lot of experience with self love. "Honestly, I've never really been interested in a girl until I met you."

Bella's eyes widened even more. "That's rather hard to believe, Edward."

"I'm being absolutely truthful. I'm not saying that girls don't pay attention to me, because they do. But I have never sought it. I've always felt as if most girls I met were just uninteresting—well, most teenagers as a matter of fact. And that explains why I'm not very good at this, I guess."

I paused a moment before continuing. "The first time I saw you, I was thunderstruck. I thought you were the most…appealing woman I'd ever seen. And I guess I was just unprepared—I didn't know how to react." Other than to get a ginormous hard on…

Bella sat up and moved closer to where I sat Indian style on the blanket. She positioned herself in front of me. "And then what?" she asked quietly.

"To be frank, Bella, I didn't really want to like you. I found your presence so…disruptive. I wasn't used to that. I had always thought that I didn't need anyone else in my life—that I was fine all on my own. Looking back on it, I'm stunned by how arrogant I was. So, to be completely candid, when we first spoke, I was hoping that my interest in you would dissipate—that you'd turn out to be as uninteresting as everyone else—and I could go back to my safe, self-satisfied existence. That didn't happen. I found you to be fascinating, intelligent, and funny. I began to like you, more than I ever thought possible. That was…disconcerting, to put it mildly. My well ordered world was thrown into chaos."

Bella was watching me intently, hanging on my every word. "Is that why you stopped talking to me?"

"No, not exactly." As usual with Bella, I admitted more than I had intended. "After the incident with Tyler's van, I was just too ashamed to talk to you," I confessed, dropping my eyes. "I had never…lost control…like that before."

"So, that's why you didn't speak with me?" Bella asked incredulously. The monster gave me a hard, questioning look.

It was my turn to look shocked. "Yes. What did you think?"

"I don't know. I thought you were angry with me for some reason I couldn't fathom. I just never thought… it was anything like that," Bella finished. "You do realize now that you had nothing to be embarrassed about, don't you?"

"You couldn't have convinced me of that at the time. I was way beyond embarrassed—mortified would be more apt."

Bella shook her head. "We can't continually be in control of our reactions or our feelings."

"I always was—always—until I met you," I responded. "I'm afraid that if I told you how much I think about you, how much wanting to be in your company has become an…addiction for me, you'd run away screaming. The fact is, I have to…work to maintain my composure whenever I'm around you."

A sly smile appeared on Bella's face. "Well, you should probably know, it certainly didn't make me think, uh, less of you. In fact, it was, um, nice to imagine that you were a little attracted to me. I was actually pretty devastated when you started avoiding me."

I picked up one of Bella's hands and took it in both of mine before making the most difficult confession. "Ignoring you did me no good whatsoever, Isabella. In spite of all my efforts, without exchanging one word with you all that time, I still fell head over heels for you," I admitted.

Bella blushed and smiled broadly. She looked happy, then thoughtful. Finally, she spoke. "I guess it's obvious how I feel, Edward. You act as if I don't exist for six weeks, decide to talk to me one day, and I jump at the chance to go out with you. I'm pathetic," she finished with a laugh.

We both laughed.

Then we smiled stupidly at one another.

Soon our smiles faded, and I found myself getting lost in Bella's warm, brown eyes. Of its own accord, my hand reached up to cup her soft cheek. Bella stilled completely. I slowly leaned forward and gently brushed my lips against hers, once, then again. And those innocent little kisses were wonderful enough to put all my fantasies to shame. As we separated, Bella gave me a shy smile and a light blush stained her cheeks.

The monster jumped and kicked its heels together.

It had gotten strangely warmer in the meadow, so I removed my sweatshirt and threw it aside. Underneath I wore a plain black T-shirt, and I was positive that when I raised my eyes I caught Bella checking me out. That sent a different type of thrill through me. A distraction seemed in order to keep my poor mistreated dick from reacting.

"Hmm. Well, are you hungry yet? I think I'd like something to eat." Eat her! Eat her! the monster chanted.

"Sure," Bella replied. "Let's see what you've got in there. And I definitely want one of your cookies." Taunting me once again…

I started removing items from the picnic bag and placing them on the blanket. "So, we have grapes, cheese, cute little sandwiches with the crust cut off, some salads, and of course, cookies. And I see Alice threw in some chocolate, as well." I laughed when I saw what was in the bottom of the bag. "And, because Alice will be Alice, silver cutlery and china dishes on which to dine."

Bella laughed and noted, "Alice is in my English class. She seems really nice. I'd like to get to know her better."

"I have a strange feeling you will," I replied with a chuckle. The monster, exasperated, added an insincere little laugh of its own.

We spent the next couple of hours sampling food and talking. I told Bella about my family and asked questions about hers. We discussed books, music, movies and other interests. Once again, I was impressed with the breadth of her knowledge and her insightful comments and amazed that we could so compatibly speak about such a wide variety of subjects. Eventually, Bella lay down on the blanket, soaking up the sun, and I stretched out next to her, lying on my side with my head propped on my hand. She slipped her shoes off. Even her toes were adorable. The monster made free to kiss one.

Bella lifted her face to the sun, closed her eyes, and stretched like a cat. My breath caught, and I allowed my gaze to roam liberally over her body. I had to clench my free hand, both to stop it from shaking and restrain myself from grabbing various parts of her body in a most inappropriate way. When she relaxed, I picked up her hand and softly kissed her palm, inhaling the light perfume of her wrist. Bella smiled at me, and it seemed a light tremor went through her body. Desire stirred within me yet again. It would be as easy as falling forward to cover her body with my own. The monster pushed furiously on my back.

So as not to ruin our perfect afternoon, I suggested we pack up and go home. I hadn't forgotten that Bella had plans for the evening, and that knowledge was eating away at my insides. I desperately wanted to ask about them, but held my tongue.

When we arrived back at my car I threw the picnic bag in the back seat. I stopped myself before opening the passenger door for her. Instead, I put my hands on Bella's waist and gazed into her eyes as she tilted her head towards me, expectation written all over her face.

"Just in case your dad is home when we get back, I'd like to do this here." I leaned down to kiss her, more thoroughly this time. Her response was delightfully eager. Her arms wound tightly around my neck, the momentum pushing me back against the car as she plastered her body against me. Without further encouragement, my tongue parted her lips, and a low groan escaped me as I tasted her mouth for the first time, something I had dreamed of doing for so long. I concentrated on the incredible feeling of her breasts straining against my chest, and all rational thought fled. It didn't seem that Bella was thinking any clearer, as she pressed herself closer to me and returned my kiss with even more intensity, her tongue actively meeting mine. I was already hard and for once, I didn't care. One of my hands moved to her face, then slid from her jaw to the back of her neck and plunged into her silken hair, while the other crept lower, pushing against her lower back to increase the pressure on my arousal. As Bella melted further into me, I felt her nipples harden through the thin layers of fabric separating our torsos. My hands were moving deliberately in the direction of her breasts when sanity started to return. Regardless of her initial response, if I took this too far, I could scare Bella. I broke our kiss and leaned my forehead against her shoulder, breathing heavily. Bella rested her head against my chest, and I held it there, before lifting my head to tuck hers under my chin.

Eventually she looked up at me with shining eyes. "That was…wonderful," she breathed.

The desire filling my throat prevented me from replying with anything more than a nod. I held her close in my arms for another minute, thinking about the conflicting emotions raging through me, trying to discover what it was that made me want to protect the delicate and seemingly vulnerable woman in my arms while at the same time fighting to restrain myself from throwing her on the ground and taking her like a savage. The only thing I was certain of was that I had to make her mine and mine alone. I kissed the top of her head and gently released her.

The monster swooned.

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Thank you to psymom for being a wonderful Beta.