He leads me to a small table he was already sitting at in the back corner of the room. And I can't stop the laugh that escapes me, as I realize that he was already here. And I just didn't look back. And the irony isn't lost on me, because I'm all about the looking back.

"What are you laughing at?" he asks as we sit down.

He takes his hand from mine, and while the not touching is comfortable to me…I miss it. His warmth.

"Nothing," I say quickly.

"Nothing?" he asks. "I don't believe you."

I look across the small table at him and smile. I hope it doesn't look as crazy as it feels.

"I was just…" I pause, feeling my feet shuffle nervously under the table. "I was just…well, I was laughing because when I first came in…I thought you weren't here."

"And that was funny?" he chuckles.

I feel the flush cover my face, and I'm pretty sure that every limb on my body is numb from nervousness.

"No," I tell him. "It was funny…because you were. I mean…I mean you are."

His eyes widen a bit and I realize that I sound like the idiot I am.

"I don't know which is worse," he says, smiling. "You laughing because I'm here…or you laughing because I'm not."

"That's not what I mean," I tell him, looking down. "It was…it was more about me. Like I was nervous or something. Like, I thought you didn't come…but you were really here all along. And it was just…I was just…stupid really."

"Hey," he says. I don't look up at him because now I feel ridiculous. But he reaches across the table. Slowly. So fucking slowly. And he brushes the back of my clasped hands, rubbing. You know, really softly. I look up at him and fuck me…the way he looks makes me die a little. Sweet and concerned. And just so fucking like him. His ex-wife must have been a goddamn idiot. "You're not stupid."

His words are so genuine, that I can't even say anything sarcastic. And I wonder how he does that. How the fuck does he disarm me so easily?

It's…well, it's disarming. For lack of a better and more creative word.

A woman comes over to take our order. She's young and short and cute and bubbly. And everything about her is perky.

Everything.

She asks what I'm drinking and I tell her. And then she smiles at Edward, while she twirls a strand of her short, dark hair around her finger. He orders a cappuccino, and she gushes about his drink order. Seriously. She gushes.

It's a cappuccino, little girl.

What are you? Twelve?

Back the fuck off.

My ridiculous thoughts scare me, and I pull my hand away from Edward's. I have no right to feel possessive of him in any way. He doesn't belong to me. In fact, when I think about it, he should probably be with someone more like her anyway. Well, someone who's happy and probably not fucked up. Although, maybe a grown-up and not this…this fetus.

And just when I'm beginning to think that all of this is a mistake, Edward looks at me, and then back to my hand. He smiles and it's real. Not contrived in any way. And I can't look away as he deliberately reaches back over and puts his hand on mine. And the whole fucking time, he's looking at me. Me…and not the perky fetus. I mean waitress. Whatever.

"How was your day?" he asks.

It's a simple question, you know? And just…normal. I briefly think that Renata would ask me to define normal, so I bite my lip, try not to smile and I just answer him.

"It was good," I say, trying not to look at his hand on mine. Even though every part of my arm is tingling down to the tips of my fingers. "Long."

"Why was it long?"

Because I couldn't stop thinking about you.

"You know…work," I say dismissively. "What about you? How was your day?"

I feel his thumb slide across the back of my hand. It's soft and feels good. And I try to remember if I used lotion the night before. I really hope I did.

"My day was long, too," he says. "I couldn't…"

He stops mid-sentence and I wonder what he was going to say.

"You couldn't what?"

He looks serious for a moment, and I wonder what he's thinking. And I panic because I feel like whatever he wanted to say was probably bad.

Fuck, it was bad, wasn't it?

He takes a deep breath.

"Can I be honest with you?" he says, his voice quiet and questioning.

Maybe.

"Yes."

"I'm afraid if I tell you the truth…it's just…" he stops again, clearly trying to choose his words.

"Just say it," I snap, not meaning to sound so harsh, but his nervousness and uncertainty is making me feel raw and exposed.

"I'm just…I don't," he says, his eyes still penetrating mine. "I don't want to say something to scare you, Bella. I feel like I'm always saying the wrong things."

"You're not," I whisper.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Fuck it," he says, blushing. And I die. "I was just going to say that my day was long because I couldn't stop thinking about you."

He squeezes my hand gently as he says it. And there's not an ounce of insincerity in his voice. And for a second, I feel like it can't possibly be true. He couldn't really have thought about me all day like I did him. But the moment passes, and he's still here. Still looking at me the same way.

"I hid my phone," I blurt out.

I cringe like the fucking idiot I am…and he smiles.

He grins.

"What?" he laughs. "Why did you hide your phone?"

My cheeks burn…you know, from the blush or the smile.

Whatever.

"Because you were in it," I say quickly. "I mean on it. Fuck, I mean…I meant your message was on it. And I needed to focus. And well, I couldn't really…yeah. So, I had to hide it."

Oh my god.

Could I sound more like a stammering moron?

I shouldn't be allowed in public.

The waitress comes back with our drinks, and for the first time tonight, I'm happy for her to be here. I need the interruption. But Edward doesn't acknowledge her. Not once. Not as she gives us our drinks or asks if we need anything else.

He just looks at me.

The whole time.

Smiling.

And even though all of this makes me nervous and a little sick to my stomach, I can't help but smile back.

"Bella?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm really glad you're here."

.

.

.

A/N

Reviews are love.

Please leave me some.

I'm currently home dying with a sinus infection. So, I have no witty comments or funny things to say. Just thank you for reading. So much.

I love Marvar more than I love my antibiotics and my bed. And I love both of them a lot right now.

#TeamAmazeballs Thank you for everything. And for your support and willingness to be in my gang. LOL Raina, Kourt, Laura and Jaime, I love you all.

See you in the morning!