To Nic, VampyreGirl86 and Hadley - we all survived another week of real life! Thanks for being a part of mine.
Quite a few of you seemed to like McMasen, so I thought I'd bring him back for a cameo role in this chapter. LOL.
Chapter 11
Edward leans against my desk once I close the door to my room. He picks up Klaus, saying he thought he was bigger from his photo on the internet.
I watch him, curious about his memories of our one time together, because I can't imagine it gets better than that.
"Come here," he says softly, opening his legs to me. "What's the matter?"
"I… nothing, I guess," I answer, taking Klaus and playing with his horns. "It's been a long time."
His eyes soften, agreeing with my statement, and his arms come around me gently. "Do you want to just sleep tonight?"
Putting Klaus down and cupping Edward's cheek, I can only imagine what it must be like for a man to deny himself when he's so close to getting what he wants. As I'm shaking my head, something buried in my subconscious bubbles to the surface, and comes straight out.
"Those women, Edward, the ones you trained on the island. What did you train them to do?"
"You don't need any training from me." He takes my hand and kisses it. "You're perfect as you are." Then he turns my hand over and bites gently into the fleshy part of my palm. I'm captivated by the sight, but thirsting for this knowledge.
"Tell me."
He looks up through those thick eyelashes, dragging his teeth over my palm.
"You want to know all the secrets, Bella?"
Trying to sound confident, I answer with, "Yes."
A tiny frown crosses his brow and then disappears as he looks over my face.
"Well, there are a lot of myths surrounding men's sexuality," he offers, pulling me in closer. "The joke about us only needing a woman to turn up naked with a six pack of beer has done us a lot of harm."
I smile because I actually believed that was probably true.
"We love it when a woman initiates erotic foreplay, and says 'yes' with body language."
"What else?" I ask, feeling the long line of his back.
He runs his hands over my shoulders, looks down at my chest, and starts opening buttons, touching the skin on show.
"We're visually stimulated, and we're not thinking straight when we get a glimpse of fancy underwear. We obsess about it, driven to see what it looks like on, and how it feels." He opens another button, and my head swims in fantasy, my nerves disappearing. "It doesn't take long for us to want to know what it looks like as we take it off."
He smirks as he removes my shirt, and his eyes lock on my bra. Breathing in and then out deeply, he slips his hands around my ribs, shaking his head very slowly.
"God, you are a gorgeous woman. I know how lucky I am to be here."
"I think I'm the lucky one," I respond, releasing the buttons of his shirt, needing to see and touch what's underneath. I push the shirt off him, coming close enough to kiss, but I'm not ready to lose myself and give up this view yet. It's the first time I've seen him without a tan, but he's no less devastating with his jeans riding low. Somehow, he looks stronger but leaner. With my hands moving over his chest, I resist the urge to kiss as I follow the shape of the body I've missed.
I like drawing this out.
"We love compliments, appreciative looks, or words," he says, tracing the edges of my bra.
With only a hum as a comment, I undo the button of his jeans, the heavy fabric straining to contain what's going on underneath, and I pop my eyebrows, signalling my approval. He watches my face as I carefully drag his zipper down, an almost-kiss teasing him like he did to me in the kitchen. He reacts by sliding his hands over my ass and yanking me to him, making me squeak and smile.
"Physically, we're not so different, but men like to be handled rougher than most women realize."
As I free his penis from its confines, he shuts his eyes when I squeeze and move up and down his shaft. He covers my hand with his and shows me just how hard he likes it.
"Tell me more secrets," I command, loving the feeling of controlling him.
Struggling to keep his eyes open while my hand moves on him, he asks, "How far do you want to go?"
"All the way, Edward." All the way until you're inside me.
He opens his eyes wide and grips my jaw, kissing me intensely, revealing everything he's been holding back. Swept into a world of wet heat, I moan from the feeling of his tongue on mine and the throb of his penis in my hand. Pulling out of the kiss, he looks down between us and says, "Stop."
Unhooking my bra and lowering the zipper of my skirt, he cups my breasts, watching the garment loosen off me, and his tongue peeks out. I whimper, and he murmurs, "These are… just..." His words are swallowed up in his hot breath on my nipple right before he strikes.
As he takes a breast into his mouth, it's like he's going to devour me, and the most luscious sound comes from his throat when he changes sides. He doesn't look up either, as if this is all for him, but he's wrong; this is for me.
Dropping in front of me, he kisses his way down, following my skirt as he slips it off. Then he nibbles the front of my panties and I gasp, holding on to his head as my legs weaken. "Personally," he speaks directly to my panties, peeling them down, "I like to see where I'm going." When he looks up, his eyes are full of lust, and he guides me to sit on the edge of the bed. "Show me," he growls, silk coating his voice.
This is not something I've done before. Yes, he's been down there, but it happened while I was in a euphoric state. This is different. I've never been part of this kind of raw sexuality, and I feel him challenging me. He looks dangerous right now, like he'll have his way no matter what I decide. Ruled by a pulse beat inside me, I've never been more turned on in my life.
As I slowly spread my legs and lean back, a sexy grin takes over his face, then he tastes what he wants. My mouth drops open at the sensation, watching him lick and suck me until I eventually fall back, fully submitting to the orgasm.
Oh, God. It's even better than I remember.
Panting and shaky, I move up the bed and watch him undress. We smile at each other as he joins me, skin to skin, welcomed by my legs around his waist, his mouth and tongue claiming me as I grab hold of his hair.
I grind against his erection, and his breathing is heavy when he takes over. He kisses me so passionately, squeezing my breasts, that it doesn't take long for the combination of sensations to make me come undone again. Pushing inside with a groan and a look of ecstasy, he holds still for the last of my orgasm, and then his eyes blaze as he moves, lifting my hips to meet his thrusts.
Slowing down, he takes my legs from around him, and twists me over, pounding into me, hard and deep. I have to bury my face in a pillow to dampen a sound I didn't even know I could make as the buildup increases and explodes.
When we're finally wrapped around each other, sweaty and spent, I don't recognize what's wrong with me. I can feel where he's been, and I can't still be horny, but I'm wide awake in a weird state, wanting more of him. He cannot go back to the pub and sleep alone again when I'll never want to give this up. I tighten my hug because I refuse to lose him again.
"I love you so much," he murmurs into my hair and pulls me closer with his leg. "Stay with me forever."
A wave of calm sweeps over me, and I realize I was craving some assurance that we would continue through tomorrow and the next day. With a contented smile on my face and my hands gliding over his back, I can drift off to sleep.
I wake up to a thumb grazing my nipple and an erection pressing into my leg.
"Good morning, Edward," I murmur, still half-asleep.
"God, your tits look good when you breathe."
"When I breathe?" I ask, quietly giggling.
"Yeah... spectacular," he responds as his eyes follow his hand moving over my chest, down to my waist and back up again. I'm seduced by the expression on his face right now. He's so beautiful and sexy.
When he looks up, I pull him down to kiss me, and his thigh covers mine, a soft groan announcing the moment his fingers discover I'm ready for him. My hips move on their own as he touches me, but he's pinning my legs down in the most delicious way.
He's doing it to me again, overwhelming me with so much sensation that I moan loudly, aware of how hard he is now against my leg.
"Get on top," he purrs. "I want to touch that beautiful body while you fuck me."
Jesus... the compliment, the command full of desire. I could never refuse his kind of temptation.
Edward stays in bed until I say I have to get going, making me fall more deeply in love with him. Without telling me directly, I know he means this sweet gesture to allay any fear I have of a repeat of what happened on the island.
After mornings spent visiting newspapers and magazine offices, I go to the pub in the afternoon where people are coming and going, so we don't have a lot of alone time. We're both highly aware of each other, insatiable, and ready to take any opportunity we can.
The sound of Edward locking the front door sends my heart racing, knowing one of us is going to pounce, for this is the place where we can have every kind of sex without worrying about noise. Back at Waterloo, we're like any other couple in public, enjoying the company of our roommates and going to bed, making love tenderly or talking each night.
I see Edward handing money to Ben. He turns up with the things we need. There's no conflict about him staying, and he stays every night.
"Bella?" Tonight, Edward's smooth voice is part of my dream. I have my hand under McMasen's kilt and it's warm in there. "Bella?" I can even feel his breath this time, right in my ear.
"Hmm?" I answer, hoping that dream Edward will play along and speak in the accent I love.
"I'm wide awake with you doing that. Are you trying to protect it, or are you groping me in your sleep?"
Startling, I become fully conscious and aware of what I'm doing. My hand is wrapped around his hardening penis, and I burst out in giggles, burying my face in his chest, apologizing and promising to be good.
Whoops.
With July fast-approaching, my chest constricts every time he mentions going back to that other world. I can't get my head around him being locked up with no escape. He tries to explain that it's no different from a long flight, using descriptions of the peace he feels on the ocean floor and the incredible creatures he sees down there to make me feel better. They don't, but I love him, and he needs this money to make his dream come true.
We spend the weekend getting ready for two important events. Edward's father and sister are arriving on Tuesday, and Rosalie and Emmett are back this Sunday. Edward announces that Emmett has agreed to manage the pub while he's away diving. I wonder how Rosalie is taking that, but Edward guarantees that Emmett has month-long vacations planned in between to keep her happy.
Of course he does.
During heat wave conditions, Edward dismantles the old kitchen cupboards, and I spend more time than I should checking out his muscles flexing and straining against his t-shirt. He's so entertaining that when Rosalie and Emmett arrive, we're still moving the last of the debris into the dumpster at the back of the property. We're sweaty and dusty, wearing gloves that have to come off before I can hug them. They both look gorgeous and relaxed, glowing after their vacation.
Rosalie stands back and sighs with her eyes roaming over the space as if she expected something more completed, I guess. She wouldn't have any idea of the work Edward has already done to get the place ready for the interior work to commence.
Emmett asks a lot of questions about Edward's plans and then adds, "So what's the name of the pub?"
"The original name was Masen's, and I'm sticking with that for historical purposes."
"You should call it something like 'The Disappearing Duck.' We've stayed in lots of places with names like that, haven't we, Em?" Rosalie covers her choice of words with a laugh, but we all know they're laced with sarcasm.
"Rose." Emmett tries to pull her into line.
Edward laughs, walks over to her, and puts his hand out. "Hi, I'm Edward Masen. You're standing in what was my grandfather's hotel. It's now mine."
He's caught her off guard with his stance of authority, stifling her next comeback. It's rare that she's speechless, and I enjoy the moment while I can.
Edward takes Emmett on the guided tour, and Rosalie looks around again. "Any news on a job yet?"
I shake my head, disappointed. "No, I've had one interview, and they asked me for a submission. I haven't heard back yet."
"What about James?"
"He's not offering the kind of job that will allow me to stay in the country, Rose."
After a knowing raise of her eyebrows, she looks around the ceiling, out the front door, and then back at me. "So Edward really owns this?"
"Yeah," I answer with a smirk.
Emmett blasts down the stairs, taking the last three steps in a leap, and says, "This is going to be awesome." Rose looks at him with love in her eyes.
After a quick freshen up, Edward takes my hand and leads the way to the Covent Garden Piazza where street performers are entertaining the crowd. An escape artist is just finishing his act, ridding himself of a mass of chains. The next performer is a man on a tightrope, juggling knives, and I gasp when he looks like he's losing his balance.
"It's all show," Edward says quietly, wrapping his arms around my waist and planting his chin on my shoulder. "He probably works for Cirque du Soleil during the week." After he kisses my cheek, I watch the man more closely, catching him plan his movements to get the maximum reaction out of the crowd. It is all part of the performance.
Rosalie is more interested in the nearby market and excuses herself, saying she'll be back. Emmett calls after her, pointing to the Punch and Judy Hotel, pretending to hold a glass up and drink.
He looks at me and says, "There's no point in waiting for her. She really likes to shop, doesn't she?"
I laugh and nod, remembering the times I found a place to sit and absorb my surroundings while she hunted for bargains. She had more money than I did, and her bag was much heavier because of it.
We squeeze through the crowd with our pints of beer to find a spot on the terrace where we can continue to watch the performers, but it soon starts raining, and we rush inside, grabbing the last two stools in the place. Edward and I share ours with me standing between his legs, leaning on him.
"You like London, Bella?" Emmett asks.
"I love it, Emmett. There's something about it."
"Does it have anything to do with this guy?" he asks, nodding toward Edward.
"Yeah," I answer with a smile as Edward's arms come around me, and I hold onto his forearms to keep him there.
"It's good to see him happy, isn't it?" Emmett asks, sincerely pleased for his friend.
"It's the best," I answer and feel Edward rocking me softly.
"What do you think Rose would say if I asked her to stick around now? I could help Edward's dad manage the project when he's gone. It's a big job on your own."
"I think she'll want to stay if you do. She missed you, Em."
His lips curl up in a shy smile, and he says, "Yeah, maybe."
Angela and Ben meet us at Barrio Central, a Latin-themed restaurant and bar with cheap food and well-priced cocktails during happy hour. Edward is interested in how they run the business, watching everything, because it's packed even though it's raining tonight.
It's obvious that Rosalie isn't happy, so when she goes to the bathroom, I follow and ask her what's wrong.
"Did you know that Edward talked Emmett into hanging around while his pub is refurbished?"
"It seemed to me like Emmett offered, Rose."
"Where is Edward getting all this money?"
"He has a job as a commercial diver. He's going away for a whole month soon."
She takes this in anxiously. "I don't trust him, Bella. He could be playing us all. How do we know where he's actually going or what he's doing?"
I could erupt, but there's no point. She's made up her mind about Edward, and she's too narrow-minded to give him a chance.
"He wouldn't do that, to Emmett or to me," I tell her as I turn to walk away.
She holds my arm and states, "You know he'll never change, Bella. You're just wasting your time on him."
I look in her eyes and reply, "He doesn't need to change, Rose. He's always been a good person. You just can't see it." I'm so sick of her attitude towards Edward.
Emmett must be a fucking saint to put up with her sometimes.