Please, please, PLEASE don't kill me. My stories have not been abandon. I swear.
I got a chance to study abroad this summer, and I took it. Although I didn't have time to work on my stories, I got TONS of inspiration, and school is back in session for the fall and I'm back to writing. Nine Months will be updated tonight or tomorrow, depending on when I'm done editing/tweaking it.
I love you all and your support is amazing. I promise to never leave ya'll hanging like that again :)
I own nothing.
*
"You may delay. Time, will not."
Bella
"Get up."
I groaned and pulled the sheets higher up on my face to cover my eyes. I felt my side get nudged with a pointy toe, like a high heeled boot, and then someone swatting my ass through the blankets on my bed.
"Bellaaaa," Alice whined. She kicked me in the ass, probably giving me a bruise.
I pulled the sheets off my head and glared at her, then down to her shiny brown boots that were on my bed. "You have five seconds to get off my bed."
"Bells, don't be such a priss," she scolded me.
"One…"
She rolled her eyes dramatically, but got off the bed none the less.
"Thank you," I said as I sat up and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. "What do you want?"
"Can't I come see my best friend?" she asked innocently.
I narrowed my eyes at her suspiciously. She sighed heavily and rolled her eyes again, before telling me, "Okay, I surrender. I need a new dress to wear tonight."
"Alice," I whined at her.
"Shut it. You need a new dress too."
"Why do I need a dress?"
"Jasper has challenged my pool skills. Apparently neither Emmett or Edward mentioned that they taught me in high school, so Jasper is clueless. So I'm going to whip his ass and claim it was beginners luck."
"Sounds thrilling," I mumbled sarcastically, throwing the blankets off of me and wandering into the bathroom. "So why do I need a new dress if you're playing pool?"
"Because you're coming too, silly," she announced, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Why am I coming?"
"Because it'll be fun if it's the six of us."
"Fun for who?" I croaked, spitting out some toothpaste.
"Bells, please," she pouted at me. "I'll buy your dress."
"I'm not wearing a dress. It's fucking December."
"Okay," she said slowly. "I'll buy your outfit!"
I met her at the doorway of the bathroom and frowned at her. "If you haven't noticed, Al, most of my closet has been given to me, curtsey of you."
She tsked and walked past me to check out her hair. "You have half an hour before I come back in here and drag you out."
I opened my mouth to protest but she jutted out her lower lip and her bright blue eyes welled up with tears that came out of no where. I sighed heavily and pushed her out of my bathroom to start the shower.
"Thank you, Bella!" she called from behind the closed door.
Forty minutes later, I was walking on the sidewalk dressed in simple blue jeans, a sweater under my coat, and comfortable sneakers. A scarf was wrapped around my neck, and a steaming cup of coffee was in my hands, making me just a tiny bit happier.
Alice was rambling on and on about some client at her work that I didn't give two shits about, but I nodded and hmm'ed at the right moments, tricking her.
Rosalie, apparently, was at work, even though she didn't normally work on Fridays.
"Have you written your article for next week yet?" Alice asked, as we stopped in the window panel of some boutique. She glanced at me, then at the window display affectionately.
"No, not yet," I mumbled. "I'm out of ideas."
She arched an eyebrow. "I doubt that."
"Why?"
"You're the most creative person I know, Bells."
I rolled my eyes and followed her into the store. She appraised several things without taking them off their rack, and several things she held up to me or herself and shook her head.
"I can try it on, you know."
"If it doesn't look good held up to you, it won't look good on you. Trust me," she waved her hand almost dismissively, while venturing to a different section of the small store.
She forced dresses, even though I told her no this morning, jeans, and various tops into my arms before pointing to the dressing rooms. I tried on everything, only showing her the things that I liked (or actually would wear) and once I was finished, she hid in the fitting room to try on her own things.
I settled for a new pair of black skinny jeans, since I didn't have a pair and Alice said it was the new "it" thing. She handed me a purple silk top that fit pretty well, and told me that the boots that I had bought last Christmas would go perfect with this outfit, and she'd help me accessorize.
Of course she would.
She thought I didn't notice the blue sweater dress in my size that she stuck in the pile when she went to go pay for it all.
Knowing my luck, I'd be wearing that tonight, instead of jeans.
Alice mentioned something about grabbing lunch since it was past noon by the time we exited the store. I nodded when I heard my stomach growl in appreciation.
We sat down at a small little café that had pretty good soups and sandwiches, putting our bags in the two extra chairs at the table. We ordered our drinks, and when I started shrugging out of my coat, Alice cleared her throat.
"So I've heard some interesting news," she said coyly.
"News?" I asked.
"Yes," she agreed, "news. To me, at least," she added, frowning at me.
"What's this erm…news?" I asked nervously.
It had to do with Edward. I knew because the look in her eyes was similar to the one she had when she questioned me about him on my birthday.
"Well," she started, sipping her hot chocolate. "A little birdie told me that my brother has a pretty big thing for you."
I swallowed, and then smiled. "Really? I didn't think Emmett was that taken with me."
She rolled her eyes. "Not that brother, Bella."
"Oh."
"Yeah," she smirked, obviously enjoying herself. "This little birdie said that he had a thing for you, and that you had a thing for him."
"Who is this little birdie?" I asked.
She pursed her lips, and made the motion to lock them up and throw away the key.
I licked my lower lip, feeling it getting a little chapped. "It's possible."
"Bella!" she hissed.
"What?"
She smiled widely at me. "Are you guys…together?"
I bit my lower lip and thought back to the day I had last saw Edward. I closed my eyes briefly, remembering the few days earlier.
"I care about you," I assured him.
His arm dropped to my waist and he brought his other to rub against my cheek. "Enough to move forward?" he asked hopefully.
"Yeah," I said softly. "It's enough."
"Bells?" Alice broke me from my daydream.
I blinked a little in surprise and smiled at her. "Sorry, I zoned out."
"I noticed," she laughed. "So are you two together?"
"I don't know," I answered honestly. "I think it's a little soon to start putting a label on it."
She nodded, swirling her drink around with a coffee stir. "So you're label-less right now, then." I nodded, fingering my napkin so I'd have something to do with my hands. "That's good," she told me, grinning like an idiot. "I'm really happy for you, Bella."
I bit my lower lip and watched her through careful eyes. "You aren't…" I paused, looking for the right words. "Upset?"
"Fuck no," she said a little too loudly, and some mom in her forties in the next table glared at her. Alice mouthed an apology to her and rolled her eyes at me, still grinning. "I couldn't have picked someone better for my brother than my best friend. Now if I can only get Emmett to ask Rosalie out, and then it'd be perfect!"
I grinned down at my napkin. "I don't think that'll be that hard," I said quietly.
Alice couldn't stop smiling, and was probably planning some elaborate scheme in her head to make Emmett and Rosalie get together, but I knew it wouldn't take much. Emmett had an obvious sweet spot for her and her him, even though she tried to cover it up.
We continued talking until over an hour had past and our lunches were long forgotten. The air between us had cleared considerably, and there was nothing hanging to get in the way now.
All doors were clear. All signs were a go. There was nothing stopping us now.
That thought alone was enough to make me smile the entire way home from lunch, while Alice rambled on again about something.
*
"If you don't stop moving I'm going to burn you," Rosalie hissed at me through clenched teeth.
I sighed and sat completely still, looking at my made up reflection. Alice had out done herself on the make up. We were going to a pool bar, not a night club.
"You can never be sure where you'll end up," she sang.
There were times I didn't understand how she could be so annoying for someone who didn't reach my shoulder.
Rosalie was curling my hair in loose waves that could hang down my back and frame around my face. Her hair was perfect, already, and her face had flawless make up.
Alice was done too, already prancing around in her little dress she had gotten for tonight, rummaging through Rosalie's closet for a pair of shoes that she swore Rosalie owned.
"I'm telling you, I don't own a pair like that," she called from her bathroom, fluffing up my hair.
"I promise you, you do!" Alice piped from the closet.
Rosalie rolled her eyes and laughed, fixing my hair still.
Rosalie looked stunning, as always. Her hair was pinned back a little so her bangs were out of her face, but the rest was hanging down straight to the middle of her back. Rosalie was wearing a pair of black pinstripe slacks with a gorgeous red satin top that clung to her like second skin, with a pair of flashy heels that gave her 5'9" frame an extra two inches or so.
"All done," she declared, fluffing my hair one last time. I stood up and walked back into the room, where Alice had put the boots I was supposed to wear on Rosalie's bed.
I slipped them on, and straightened myself up. "Is this necessary?" I asked as Alice threw a gold chain around my neck and a bracelet on my wrist.
"Yes, shut up."
I sighed heavily, and took the rest of their fitting in silence, until Alice stepped back, with only one of her heels on, and took me in.
"If I had a penis, Bells, I would so want to bang you."
I quirked an eyebrow. "Thanks…I think?"
"It's meant as a compliment," she informed me, returning to her search for her other heel.
I walked over to the full length mirror hanging on the back of Rosalie's bathroom door, and nearly gasped. My hair looked good, for once. It was shiny and didn't look mousey brown; it looked like chocolate and honey and caramel and it was extremely shiny, with long loose waves covering my shoulders.
As I had known, Alice forced me to wear the dress she sneaked in.
But it wasn't that bad; it was a deep blue sweater dress. The v-neck was a little low, but it showed my cleavage a decent bit (okay, more like ALL of it) and it stopped a few inches above my knee.
The black boots stopped just below the knee, giving me a little bit of support so I wouldn't break my ankle because of the heel.
"I look good," I breathed.
"Damn straight," Rosalie agreed, standing beside me.
"FINALLY!" Alice yelled from the closet. She came out, donning a pair of cute black heels that looked like any other heels Alice owned, smiling. Rosalie frowned at her.
"I didn't know I had those."
"Well now you do," she told her, smoothing out her own dress. She hadn't opted for a sweater dress, but something more of silk that clung to her and probably wasn't warm whatsoever. Maybe that was what she was thinking, though, and she wanted Jasper to warm her up.
"Can we go?" Alice asked, slipping her gray pea coat on and a scarf. "We said we'd be there in ten minutes and its twenty minutes to walk."
We braved the cold, and Rosalie was the only person not bitching about it, as we walked towards the bar. We arrived, only ten minutes late, to walk in and huddle around the nearest space heater that was set near the front door.
I glanced around the place. "This is it?"
She nodded. "Apparently Emmett and Jasper love this place. I don't know, though."
I looked around the place, looking for a sign of any of them. I saw Emmett laughing with a pool stick in his hand near the back of the bar. I couldn't see the other two because it was so crowded, but I assumed they were nearby.
"This way," I told them, maneuvering us through the sea of bodies.
"Girls!" Emmett boomed when he caught sight of us. He grinned at us and leaned his pool stick against the table and picked up his baby sister first.
Alice shrieked and pounded her little fists on his back but he laughed, and didn't bother putting her down before he just put her in Jasper's arms. She huffed and growled at both of them, and then leaned up to kiss Jasper.
Emmett hugged me and then Rosalie, and after a hug from Jasper, I shrugged out of my coat and threw it over the back of a chair of the bar table the guys had been using.
I eyed the three half empty beers, and then the two men in front of me. "Where's Edward?"
As if it was on cue, I heard a low whistle from behind me. I whirled around and nearly fell into Edward's chest. He shook his head while staring at my legs.
"Hi!" I squeaked.
He grinned crookedly and wrapped his arms around me in a hug. "Hi," he cooed. He leaned in and whispered into my ear, "You're killing me, Bella."
I pulled away confused, but he very pointedly ran his eyes from my face, down to my exposed cleavage, and then back down to my legs. He smirked.
I felt my face heat and blushed furiously.
He pulled away to greet Alice and Rosalie, and then I heard Alice whisper in my ear, "So cute."
"Stop it," I hissed at her and glared over in her direction.
She rolled her eyes and kissed Jasper.
Edward and Emmett were in the middle of a game, so we settled at the table they occupied, while Jasper and Alice said they'd go run and get us drinks.
As Rose and I sat there watching Emmett and Edward play, I couldn't help but notice how…sensual the game was.
Maybe it wasn't to them, but I was definitely noticing a surge of heat between my legs as I watched Edward move around the table.
The way that he held the stick in his hands, so firm yet delicate enough to have it slip through his fingers when he shot. Or the way he furrowed his brow when aiming for a shot and he'd lick his upper lip in concentration. Or the way his shoulder tensed when he shot, and the way his long sleeve t-shirt would stretch across his lean muscles as he moved.
I was getting flushed already.
Rosalie was looking at me curiously, and then back to the guys, smiling. "It's a sight to see," she muttered.
I grinned sheepishly. "Enjoying the view?"
She arched an eyebrow at me and crossed her legs. "Aren't you?"
Alice and Jasper returned with our drinks, setting a martini down in front of me and something that smelled sweet in front of Rose. She just smiled knowingly and thanked Alice and Jasper, before turning back to watch Emmett bend over the table in front of us.
After another ten minutes, and almost another martini later, Edward came to the table grinning, with Emmett in tow scowling.
"You cheated," he cursed at his brother.
Edward laughed and picked up his discarded beer. "I did not."
"You did, and I'll prove it. Eventually." Emmett picked up his drink and chugged half of it.
"Who will I be beating next?" Edward boasted, smiling at me.
"I want to play!" Alice said suddenly. She leaned on Jasper, clutching his arm. "You said you'd play me, remember?"
Jasper smirked at her. "Of course."
Alice hopped out of her chair and took the stick from Edward. "Promise you'll go easy me, ok?"
"Of course, sweetheart."
Edward made a face behind their backs and smiled when I started giggling. Emmett rolled his eyes and slid in next to Rosalie, while Edward took the open spot on my right.
I let my eyes wander over Edward's chest as he pushed his sleeves up to his elbows and set them back on the table. His t-shirt was tight across his chest, but flowed a little bit away from his stomach. His jeans hung low on his hips, snugly though, and so delicious looking.
"Hello? Bella?" he chuckled, waving his hand in front of my face.
I blinked at him. "Huh?"
"Glad you could join us," he teased, leaning towards me.
I glanced up to see that Rosalie and Emmett were talking quietly to each other and kind of excluded themselves from Edward and I by turning their heads to face each other.
"Sorry, I zoned out," I explained.
"You do that a lot," he noted, still leaning a little.
I smiled, feeling my stomach tense up a little.
I was itching to ask him about the time he spent in New York, but I was almost scared that he wouldn't tell me, or worse—I would regret asking.
But I took in a deep breath and smiled at him, leaning on my elbows with him and leaning towards him. "Tell me about New York."
He blinked and furrowed his brows. "What do you want to know?"
"Anything," I told him, biting my lip. "Everything."
He licked his lips and looked down at his drink briefly, before meeting my gaze again. "New York," he started, shaking his head. "It's…a change a pace, you could say."
I nodded, eager for more.
He explained how he lived in a tiny, studio apartment that you could barely see fit for one person to live out of. He didn't mind though because apparently he didn't have very much stuff. He said the only thing he wanted room for was a piano. He said how he would ride the Subway to pass time when he was bored, how he used to come back from late nights at the hospital to watch people stumble out of bars at 3AM.
He told me how he grew to hate the city and that one day he realized there was nothing keeping him there and he moved back. When I asked if it was that simple, he just smiled and said, "I was tired of missing something everyday."
He asked about Charlie and Renee. He asked about Sue and the wedding, and how I got along with Leah and Seth, Sue's kids. He asked how Alice, Rosalie, and I got to be friends in the first place.
It was like we were both starving for information on each other, and neither of us were getting our fill.
At some point, he ventured to get me another martini. Alice and Jasper were still playing, and by the annoyed look on Jasper's face, Alice was beating him by a long shot.
Rosalie and Emmett had wandered off at some point to order us all some appetizers to munch on while we drank and played and still hadn't returned. When Edward brought me my drink and his own back, he slipped his chair closer to mine.
"Where were we?" he said huskily.
I just smiled at him because I apparently couldn't think of something coherent to say.
He grinned and started rambling some story about Alice that was intended to make me laugh, but I couldn't really hear him. Half way through the story, the bar erupted in cheers from some sports game, so he leaned into my ear to tell the rest.
And he also, very smoothly, placed his large warm hand on my knee.
It didn't seem to phase him whatsoever, because he just kept talking, but my heart was in over drive and my pulse was pumping out of control.
"And that's a game!" Alice shouted happily over the noise of the bar.
Jasper scowled at her and leaned his stick next to the table. "Beginners luck."
Edward laughed. "Jasper, she's not a beginner."
Alice smirked at her boyfriend, and then looked over at Edward and mine's close proximity, and his hand on my knee.
"What do you mean?"
"Emmett and I taught her to play."
His jaw dropped slightly as he narrowed his eyes. "When?"
"When she was fifteen."
"You lied!" he accused, but he was grinning a little.
"I did no such thing," she sang. "I just with held certain tid bits. You can't back out of our bet now, Jazz."
Jasper suddenly smirked and licked his lips, shaking his head. "Wouldn't dream of it."
Edward turned his head away and looked at me wide eyed. "Ew. Distract me, please before I think about their bet."
"Do you even know—"
"No, and I don't want to."
He shut his eyes tightly and I wanted to smack him for being over dramatic, but Alice and Jasper had gone to get another drink, so I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his cheek in a chaste kiss.
His eyes fluttered open and he grinned stupidly at me. "Did I distract you?" I asked after a second.
He looked at my lips and licked his own. "Yeah."
Edward leaned in, and I was more than a hundred percent positive that he was going to press his lips to mine, except Rosalie and Emmett chose that moment to come back with more drinks and food in their arms.
"We come baring gifts!" Emmett bellowed, laughing as he set down some plates in front of us.
Rose set down the drinks and smoothed out her shirt, like it had been wrinkled during their trip.
Edward sighed heavily, tickling my cheek and ate a couple of appetizers they had brought back. He turned to me after a minute, grinning. "Want to play?"
"Pool?"
He nodded. "Unless there's another game you'd like to play," he whispered, his voice low and dangerous. His eyes were smoldering, and looked almost pitch black in this light.
"Pool is good," I croaked.
He grinned, helping me out of the stool. "Do you know how?"
I shook my head, picking up the pool stick and twirling it while it was on the ground. Edward chuckled. "It's not difficult. Want to learn?"
I smiled and nodded, thinking whatever Edward could teach me I wanted to learn. Technically, I already knew how to play pool, because Charlie and Jake had both tried to teach me; however, I sucked horribly.
He grinned. "Come on," he cooed.
He began to rack the balls up properly. "The trick is to aim the stick where you want the ball to go," he started.
"Thanks, Einstein."
He grinned and shook his head. "Alright, if you're so good, let's see what you've got."
"Alright then." I aimed the cue ball towards the balls to break them. I was extremely aware of Edward standing directly behind me, so I made sure to bend over and wiggle my ass a little more than necessary. I aimed, and I shot.
And I missed. By a long shot.
I turned around, with my cheeks burning. Edward scratched the back of his head and tried not to laugh. "That's all you've got?" he said in a really strained voice. The corners of his lips were tugging up.
"Shut up." I made a point to whack him with my stick, but he moved out of the way.
"Sorry," he grinned. He picked up his drink to sip on it. "Come on, I'll show you the right way."
He leaned his pole against the wall and walked up behind me. I held perfectly still, because—well, I was afraid if I moved, he'd move away. So I became a statue as Edward pressed his chest into my back, and pushed my pole back into my hands.
He rested his hands on top of mine and started moving them along the stick. "First things first," he said in my ear. His breath was hot and it tickled my skin, and I wanted to shiver but I held it in. "You're holding it wrong. Move your hands to here," he shifted my fingers with his to hold the stick differently. "And hold it like this." He paused. I kept my eyes on our hands, because I couldn't chance melting into mush now.
"Okay," I breathed. "Easy enough."
"Mhmm," he hummed against me. I felt the vibrations from his chest on my back, making me close my eyes briefly, but I snapped them open when I realized I probably looked like a fool. "Lean forward."
I felt him bend with me and some weight on my back and he shifted a little to the side but I could still feel him against me, as he resituated his hands and his body. I pushed my ass back a little and nearly smiled when I heard Edward suck in a deep breath.
"Okay," he whispered. His voice was low and gravely, and it had the most delicious kind of edge to it. "Keep this hand like this. It has to hold the stick up." His right hand left mine and ran down my arm to hold onto my hip. "Now just aim…" he trailed off, and I actually concentrated a little and tried to aim the white ball towards all the colored ones. "Now shoot," he whispered against my neck.
His lips grazed my sensitive skin as he spoke and I wanted to slap him and kiss him for being the worst pool instructor ever, because there was no way I was making this shot.
My head limped to my shoulder a little, and Edward got more access to my neck. "Bella," he murmured as he kissed my shoulder. "You're supposed to shoot."
"Mmm, am I?" I mumbled. "I can't really concentrate."
"My apologies." Edward brushed his lips against my skin one last time and pulled away, almost completely but kept his hands on my hips. "Shoot. Remember what I told you."
The fog had lifted slightly, enough for me to focus on the balls, so I aimed and shot. And this time, I didn't miss. I actually got a ball in.
"Congratulations," he told me. "You're stripes."
"Beat his ass, Bells!" Rosalie shouted from the table.
I spun around and nearly gasped when I realized how close Edward was to me, ignoring the fact that Emmett and Rosalie were less the five feet from us. His hands instantly went to the table on either sides of my hips and he leaned in so his nose was almost touching mine.
"So you're solids?" I squeaked.
"Mhmm." He grinned crookedly and cocked his head to the right. "That's the idea."
I thought for two seconds he might kiss me—but sadly, he chuckled and pulled away to take his own turn.
I tried (and failed miserably) to keep up with him during the game, but after a few attempts I was sure it was safe to say pool was not my sport. Alice and Jasper came back with more drinks for all of us and tried to cheer me on, but after missing shots completely, my cheerleading squad got very silent.
Edward got bored after a while, I guess, and just started shooting all the balls in while I sat on the edge of the table and watched him.
He looked up at me while he was bent and about to shoot, arching an eyebrow. "What?"
I sipped on the martini Alice had handed me. "You look sexy."
His teeth grazed his lower lip as he smiled, and he tried to focus back on the balls, but I turned to face him more and hiked my dress up a little farther.
Instantly, his eyes snapped to the blue at my thigh and he froze his movements. He raised his eyes almost hesitantly, like it was the last thing he wanted to do, and smirked at me.
"Let's make a bet."
I sipped my drink and cocked my head to the side. "A bet? I thought you didn't like bets," I mocked him.
He walked around to me and stood in front of me, so I couldn't see our friends at the table near us. "No," he corrected me, "I don't like my little sister making bets. I, however, love making bets."
I picked an olive out of the drink with a tooth pick and brought it to my lips, and sucked on the end softly. Edward watched, licking his lips, before putting his hands on the top of my exposed thighs.
"What kind of bet?" I asked innocently.
He checked his watch and looked over his shoulder at everyone else. "I think we're supposed to be taking you guys home soon."
As if on cue, I tried to hide a small yawn with my hand. Edward shook his head, grinning. "If I can make the rest of the balls in with one shot, you'll come with me instead of going home," he said softly.
My insides did a summersault.
"Where?"
"It doesn't matter."
I bit my lower lip, glancing back at the table. There were three balls still on the table, at various sides. "You won't make it."
He smirked at me and grabbed the cue stick from next to me. "You underestimate me."
I wanted him to make it. I wanted him to make it so badly that I hopped off the table so I wouldn't distract him.
Edward lined up the stick with one of the balls, sticking his tongue out a little while he concentrated. His eyes narrowed, and he bent his arm back, and was about to shoot the ball—
"EDWARD!" Emmett yelled.
Edward's arm followed through with the shot, except Emmett interrupted his concentration and made him twitch half way through. We both watched as the ball he hit flew to another ball and sunk into a pocket, sending the other ball flying into anther and into a pocket. The last ball was hit, but missed the pocket by half an inch.
Edward met my eyes and scowled.
"That doesn't count," I told him. He shook his head, still scowling.
"What?" he snapped at Emmett, putting the sticks back up against the wall.
"You ready to head out?" Alice asked him.
Edward came up to me and sighed heavily. "I guess it's for the best," he mumbled. "I bet you're tired, aren't you?"
"A little…"
He smiled weakly and went to grab my coat and his. He shrugged his on, before holding mine out for me to slip my arms through. Emmett drove, so he offered us three a ride home so we wouldn't walk in the cold.
Edward rode in the passengers seat (based purely on his size; he was built a little bigger that Jasper) while Jasper and the three of us slid into the backseat, Alice perching herself happily on Jasper's lap.
I saw Emmett and Edward roll their eyes at each other.
We pulled up to our apartment and we got out, when Alice leaned in towards Emmett's window, her face flushed from all the alcohol. "Do you guys want to come up for a midnight snack or something? It's not that late."
Edward answered the same time Jasper did. "Yes!"
Emmett looked back at the two of them and then shrugged. "I guess that's a yes. Let me go park and we'll meet you guys up there."
We let ourselves into the apartment and Alice, drunkenly and stumbling around the kitchen, started to cook food.
"What are you making?" I asked, leaning on the counter.
"Grilled cheese," she said happily, slurring a little. She kicked off her heels without looking where they were going, and I dodged them, laughing as they hit the wall behind her.
Rosalie took out a water bottle and kicked off her shoes into her room. "I need to change," she told us.
"Yeah, I do too."
"I'll let them in!" Alice announced to us. "Do you think they're hungry?"
I giggled at her and shrugged. I walked into my room and shut the door, pulling out a pair of yoga pants I hadn't worn in a while and a tank top. I changed into them, taking my time since I was feeling the alcohol a little. I walked into the bathroom, smoothed out my hair and brushed my teeth.
There was a light knock from my door and a soft, "Bella?"
I froze with the toothbrush in my mouth. Edward opened the door a little and stepped inside to see me at my sink holding to the toothbrush, wide eyed.
"Hey," he smiled.
I leaned over the sink and spit out the toothpaste (but made sure he couldn't see it) and straightened up. "Hi!"
I walked into the room and stopped in front of him. His eyes raked over my new clothes, lingering on my chest, and then down to my gray pants. "Nice clothes," he observed.
"Thanks…"
Edward licked his lips for what seemed like the hundredth time that night, but this time, it made me think he was hungry, instead of just a nervous habit.
Hungry for you, Bella.
I blushed at my own thoughts and he chuckled, cupping my cheek in his hands. "Why are you blushing?"
"N-nothing," I slurred a little and laughed.
"Surely it's something."
"Really, it's nothing."
He nodded, and looked me deeply in the eyes, and slowly lowered his face to mine.
I wanted the kiss to happen so badly, I could feel it in my toes. My heart leapt up into my throat and my skin broke out into goose bumps, and I sighed happily before he even touched me.
"Edward!" Alice called. "Do you want a grilled cheese?"
He froze less than an inch from my face. His nose brushed against my cheek and he sighed angrily. "What the fuck," he growled softly. Raising his voice slightly, he called out, "No, Alice." He pulled away after another second and shrugged out of his coat, laying it on my bed and turning back to me.
"I'm thirsty," I said awkwardly. He nodded, and followed me out of the room and into the kitchen. Everyone looked up at us and then back down to the sandwiches Alice had made them or whatever movie was playing from our TV.
I grabbed a Coke and popped it open, sitting up on the part of the counter that no one could see from the living room.
Edward quirked his eyebrow at me. "Caffeine this late?"
I stuck my tongue out at him. "I'm drunk enough where I'll fall asleep."
"Are you?" he asked, his voice dropping an octave.
He slowly made his way to me, putting his hands on my knees. "Mhmm," I hummed.
Edward ran his hands up to my hips and sighed heavily, never breaking eye contact with me. "I have a confession."
"Do tell," I teased him.
"I'm trying to be a gentleman and be respectful, but I'm having a hard time tonight," he whispered.
I looked at him quizzically and sipped my coke.
His fingers danced lazily across my clothes, making me shiver in his arms. "All I've wanted to do tonight was to kiss you, throw you on that pool table and have my way with you."
My lips parted in surprise, and a shot of desire rippled through me.
Suddenly his hands weren't on my hips any more; they were in his hair, tugging it to no end. "I'm sorry, that was inappropriate. I'm a little drunk—"
"Edward."
He rested his hands back on my hips and looked me in the eye, his eyes almost pitch black and completely smoldering. "I'm dying to kiss you, Bella."
My tongue ran over my bottom lip almost automatically. "Then kiss me," I whispered just as softly.
He didn't need me to say anything else, apparently. He grabbed my face and held me tightly, before putting his lips to mine.
He kissed me softly, but passionately. His tongue swept over my bottom lip, and I sighed into his mouth, feeling my heart rate shoot through the roof.
We broke apart and he kissed my jaw, not like he was in a rush, but like he just wanted to show another part of my body affection. I could feel him smiling against my skin and I giggled a little.
"Alright, I'm heading to bed," Rosalie announced.
"Me too," Alice yawned, but it sounded forced.
"Yeah, we should get going," Emmett told the guys. Jasper cleared his throat.
"Actually I'm spending the night here," he told Emmett.
Edward froze and then sighed. I nudged him with my foot and he shook his head. "I'll get used to it…eventually."
I rolled my eyes at him. "They've been together for a while now."
"Just a few months."
"That's a while."
He gave me a look like he wanted to argue, but Emmett walked into the kitchen as Edward moved to my side instead of standing in front of me.
"I guess it's just us then. Ready?"
I wanted to ask him to stay, so badly, that my voice actually raised a strangled sound, but I didn't make the words.
Edward nodded, walking into my room to retrieve his coat off my bed, and then came to me, where I was waiting by the front door. I was acutely aware that everyone was watching us.
It didn't seem to phase him. He smiled down at me, and whispered, "I'll call you tomorrow," and bent down to kiss me again.
This kiss wasn't passionate or lust filled; it actually was extremely sweet and kind, with his lips barely moving over mine. Afterwards he pressed a peck to my lips and pulled away, grinning like an idiot, as he and Emmett walked out of the door.
Alice hummed loudly and winked at me, dragging Jasper to her bedroom and locking it. Rosalie stood with her hip cocked to the side and her brows furrowed.
"It's about fucking time," she growled, and then went into her room and shut the door.
I locked the deadbolt and grinned, still feeling the tingling on my lips from his kiss.
Rosalie was right; it was about fucking time.
*
Look at that, the clock never lies. It's a quarter 'til too late.