Disclaimer: I don't own the Twilight Saga.

A/N: I'm so sorry it's taken me forever to update! I was in class one day, and I just got this great inspiration for a story, and I had to get it out. I finished it in about a week and a half, much faster than usual, and I was pretty happy with it. Then when I tried to jump back into this one, I just wasn't feeling it anymore. I didn't want to force the story, so I took a hiatus, giving my creative juices a chance to simmer. But, I'm back now, and ready to get to work! The updates might not be very frequent, maybe one every other week until I finish the semester in May. However, I promise to finish this story for you, and I hope it meets your expectations =) Enjoy!

Chapter 14

BPOV

After a frantic midnight call to Alice, everything was all set up. When Friday night rolled around, Anthony, Edward and I met up with our friends at Alice and Jasper's apartment. Rose and Emmett had already arrived, and they were all relaxing in the living room, beers and wine coolers in hand. Anthony squealed in delight as soon as we opened the door, and our friends took turns 'oohing' and 'aahing' over him, passing him from one set of arms to the next.

Edward quickly settled in to talk with the guys, while the girls hurried me into the kitchen. Anthony perched himself on Edward's lap, intently listening to the 'big boy' conversation. I couldn't help but giggle as I was whisked away. They really were too adorable for words.

"Okay, Swan, spill," Alice commanded. She and Rose were both watching me intently, and I sighed heavily while searching for the right words.

"I need your help," I started, rubbing my temples with my fingertips. "I have no idea what the hell I'm doing. One minute I'm telling Edward that there can neve be an 'us', and the next I'm fantasizing about mounting him on my kitchen island!" I cried in a hushed whisper. Both women's faces froze in shock before their laughter filled the room.

"Honestly, Bells, I'm surprised you lasted this long," Alice giggled. I glared at the little pixie, but couldn't help the smile that pulled at my lips.

"I made a bet with Em and Jazz that you two would do the dirty mattress shuffle by day two," Rose admitted. "You made me lose fifty bucks by the way," she tacked on with an annoyed look. I stared back and forth between the two of them, before bursting into laughter. They quickly joined me, and we all sank down into the seats around the breakfast table, and I sighed heavily as we quieted.

"Seriously, guys, what do I do?" I said quietly. "I'm in love with him. I always have been. But how do I know I can trust him, you know?" I asked, hoping they'd have the answer. They both smiled sadly, Rose placing a hand on my arm in comfort.

"You don't, sweetie. That's the whole point of 'trust'," she giggled. I glared playfully at her, and looked to Alice.

"Rose is right; you can't ever know for sure that he won't hurt you again. But that can't stop you from taking that leap. I'm not saying you should take him home and screw him ten ways 'til sunday," she giggled, "but if you love him as much as you say, I think you should give him a chance. Take it slow. Send Anthony to one of us for a night, invite him over for dinner and a movie, and just get to know each other again. You don't have to jump right back into declaring yourselves to one another, but don't rule out the possibility that he could be the one." Rose nodded her agreement with Alice's words, and I stayed quiet for a moment as I thought about it.

"That's the thing, Ali, I know he's the one. It isn't a matter of 'do I want him, or someone else?'. It's a matter of 'do I want him or no one else'." Alice and Rose exchanged a look with one another, then turned to grin brightly at me.

"In that case, Bella dearest, you better get your hot ass out there and start seducing Mr. Cullen," Rose laughed. She quickly pulled me to my feet and they led me back to the living room. The guys were all settled around the room, watching a movie while waiting for us.

I looked over at my boys, a smile quickly coming to my lips. Edward was settled in the middle of the couch, his long legs stretched out in front of him. Anthony was sitting to his left in the exact same position, with his little feet just barely dangling over the edge of the cushion.

I slipped quietly around the side of the sofa and caught a quick thumbs up from Rose and Ali when I went to settle down next to Edward. My body was barely two inches away from his, and I felt him stiffen as I curled my feet up beside me and leaned toward him slightly. We weren't touching, but if I moved just a little, we would be. I glanced up to smile at him, and he beamed down at me, extending his arm to rest behind me on the back of the couch.

The seven of us all sat in silence for a little over an hour, completely focused on the movie. Well, most of us were focused. I was just trying to concentrate on breathing properly with Edward so close to me. Every fiber in my body was aching to reach out and touch him, affirming my belief that I needed to pursue 'us'. Just when I thought I couldn't take this torture any longer, the doorbell rang, and Alice bolted over to answer it. I was shocked when Angela appeared on the other side.

"Aunt Angie!" Anthony shouted, scooting off the couch to run to her side. He wrapped his little arms around her legs, and she laughed softly, leaning down to kiss the top of his head.

"Hey, handsome," she greeted. "Whaddya say to hanging out with me tonight, and ditching your parents?" she grinned with a wink. He gasped happily and bobbed his head up and down before looking to me for permission. His wide eyes pleaded with me, and I quirked an eyebrow at Alice. She tossed me a wink, which didn't go unnoticed by Edward. I blushed furiously when he turned to me with questioning eyes, shrugging my shoulders in reply.

"That's fine, baby," I told Anthony. "Go have fun." He squeeled excitedly and ran over to hug both Edward and I goodbye, then returned to Angela. She helped him into his coat before smiling and waving her goodbyes, disappearing out the door with my son. Alice turned back to face us, a wide smile on her face, and bounced exitedly back into the room.

"So, now that the munchkin is being entertained, I think it's time to have some good old-fashioned fun," she grinned. I glanced worriedly around the room at our friends, who were all agreeing with her whole-heartedly. Edward shrugged when I met his eyes, but I saw the excitement he was trying to restrain. I watched him silently for a moment, then turned back to Alice with a bright smile.

"Get me a drink," I demanded. The whole room cheered loudly, and Alice disappeared, quickly returning with more wine coolers and beers. I sipped my drink eagerly, knowing that I was going to need some liquid courage for the night she had planned. Sure enough, less than ten minutes later she had us all seated in a circle on her living room floor, ready to play a game of truth or dare.

"Emmett, truth or dare?" Rose started, grinning mischievously. He didn't even pause to think.

"Dare, baby. Bring it on!" We all laughed at his exuberance, and Rose grinned evilly.

"I dare you to strip down to your skivvies and sing 'Like a Virgin' at the top of your lungs in front of the apartment building." Emmett's smile quickly faded, and I couldn't help the snort of laughter that came up. His terrified expression quickly became one of determination, and he rose to his feet, walking towards the front door.

He was down to his underwear when he finally reached it, and we all jumped to our feet to follow him out. I nearly wet myself when he reached the ground level, and turned to start his song. The few people milling around the parking lot stopped to watch and laughed, while others leaned out of their windows to take in the show. He stood proudly before them, belting it out with more passion than Madonna, taking a deep bow when he finished.

We all stumbled back to the apartment, tripping over ourselves with laughter. When we finally settled down, Emmett turned his gaze to Jasper.

"Jazz, truth or dare?" he questioned. Jasper watched him warily for a moment.

"Truth," he finally muttered, taking what he thought was the easy way out. Emmett's smile broadened, happy with his answer. Jasper swallowed nervously.

"Is it true that you play bitch in the bedroom when Alice wants to get a little kinky?" he laughed. Jasper's face paled, and Alice's eyes shot open wide with shock.

"Rose! You told him?" she cried, glaring at her furiously. Rose winced at her shriek, dropping her head guiltily.

"I"m sorry, but you know I can't keep a secret from him," she whined, begging for forgiveness with wide, pleading eyes. Alice held her glare for a moment before relaxing, sighing heavily as a smile took over her face. Rose's face relaxed and she leaned in to hug her, both girls unaware of Jasper's horrified expression.

"Dude, that's our sister," Edward whined at me side, shooting a pained expression at Emmett. Em winced lightly but shrugged his shoulders, his dimples quickly appearing in his cheeks.

"Yeah, but you gotta admit that's pretty fucking hilarious," he boomed. Edward shook his head, but couldn't keep from smiling. Jasper glared at them both, then turned his angry stare to Alice.

"Alice, baby, truth or dare?" he asked sweetly. All laughter stopped as she turned to look warily at him, concentrating hard on her answer.

"Um...truth?" she asked, obviously nervous. His sweet smile remained in placed, and she fidgeted from the suspense.

" Is it true that the scratch on the side of Edward's Volvo got there when you backed it into Emmet's Jeep's tailight in tenth grade?" He smiled proudly as horror washed over Alice's little face.

"That was you!" Emmett and Edward shouted simultaneously. Alice flinched at their anger, sticking her bottom lip out in a pout.

"I'm sorry!" she wailed. "It was an accident! You were parked in the way of the basketball goal, so I thought I could just move it," she whined to Edward. "I was afraid if I told you that I wouldn't be able to go to the homecoming dance that weekend." Her eyes were watering dramatically, and both men shook their heads.

"I got suspended for three days for starting a fight with Eric Yorkie over that," Edward groaned. "I thought he had scratched it parking too close at school." Alice's shoulders hunched, and I saw the anger start to seep out of Edward's face.

"Mom and Dad took away my keys for a month, thinking I had backed into something again!" Emmett yelled. A single tear leaked onto Alice's cheek, and the room was suddenly quiet. Jasper's proud smirk turned into a grimace of shame, and he leaned over to hug her.

"I'm sorry, baby. I didn't mean to upset you," he murmured softly. She nodded her head, looking up to give him a watery smile.

"You're lucky I got an extension on my pre-calculus test because of that suspension," Edward grinned, earning a wider smile from her.

"Yeah, and just be glad that not having a car meant I had to ride with Rosie for a month," Emmett smirked, waggling his eyebrows suggestively. Alice laughed at that, wiping away her tears with the back of her hand. Crisis officially averted, she turned her bright smile in my direction. My own grin slipped off my face, and I swallowed nervously.

"Okay, Bells, your turn," she giggled. "Truth or dare?" I quickly responded with 'dare', afraid of what kind of truths she could pull out of me. Apparently I made the wrong choice, however, because her smile only broadened at my answer.

"I dare you to take Edward into my closet for 7 minutes in heaven," she laughed. My eyes widened in shock, and I quickly glanced at Edward, who was wearing a similar expression. The rest of the group laughed loudly, and Edward slowly rose to his feet, reaching a hand out to help me up.

My face was burning with the force of my blush as he led the way to her bedroom and into the closet, pulling the door shut as we entered. We stood in the quiet darkness for a few seconds, just listening to each other breathe. My hands were shaking with a mixture of fear and excitement. I had no idea what would happen after these seven minutes, but I couldn't deny the excitement at feeling his lips against mine. I slowly reached one hand up in the darkness, placing it gently against his cheek. A shuddering breath left his lips, and I smiled softly to myself. It was good to know I wasn't the only one that was nervous.

"You don't have to kiss me if you don't want to, Bella," he said quietly, giving me a chance to back out. My smile widened, and I took a step toward him, my chest now brushing his lightly.

"I know," I said softly, sliding my hand to the back of his neck to pull him down to my level. His lips quickly connected with mine, and I sighed in contentment at the feeling. This was right. This is where I wanted to be.

I pulled Edward's bottom lip into my mouth, sucking gently and moaning at the faint taste of beer that lingered there. A flood of memories rushed back to me, and I could feel the warmth begin to gather in my core.

Edward softly sighed against my lips, before his hand reached down to grip my waist tightly, pulling my body into his own. His lips became more forceful, holding their own rather than allowing me to do all the work. I groaned in pleasure as his velvet tongue swept lightly against my bottom lip, and I opened my mouth to his without protest. He growled softly in his chest, thrusting his tongue forward to meet mine, the two fighting for dominance.

Without a second's notice he had spun me around, pushing my back up against the wall and moving his hands to my backside, lifting me into the air. I quickly wrapped my legs around his waist, leaning my head back to moan loudly at the pleasure I felt as his hardness made contact with my center.

"Fuck, Bella," he murmured quietly, causing my panties to dampen significantly. We were both panting heavily now, and I rocked roughly against him, trying to relieve the ache forming between my legs.

His lips quickly captured mine once more in a passionate kiss, before he pulled them away to trail along the line of my jaw. When he reached my neck I tilted my head to the side to give him better access, moaning softly as he licked and nipped at the sensitive skin.

"Unh...Edward," I cried softly, " I think I'm gonna..." I struggled to remain coherant, the coil beginning to tighten in my abdoment. He began to rock his hips faster into mine, one hand leaving my waist to tangle itself in my hair.

"Cum for me, my Bella," he encouraged softly. That was all it took. I fell over the edge, the ball in my stomach exploding to flood my body with heat, flashes of light appearing behind my eyelids.

"Edward!" I screamed, my body trembling as pleasure consumed my senses. I felt him stiffen against me momentarily before his own body began to shake with his release, and we both came down from the high together.

He gently lowered me back onto my feet, keeping his hands wrapped around my waist and his forehead resting against my own. His thumbs rubbed soothing circles on my hips, and I lifted my arms up to wrap them around his neck. I tugged slightly to get him to bend, and planted a gentle kiss on his lips.

"I love you, Edward," I said quietly, my lips brushing against his as I spoke. He leaned forward to kiss me once more, one hand reaching up to cup my face sweetly.

"And I love you, my Bella. More than my own life," he responded simply. My heart fluttered at his use of the word 'my', and I couldn't help the smile that spread across my lips. With one final kiss, he stepped away, holding onto one of my hands as he reached for the doorknob.

Edward pulled us quickly out of the closet and into the master bath, handing me a damp towel before grabbing one of his own to clean up. We fixed ourselves in silence, then turned to leave the room. He paused before he opened the bedroom door, turning back to meet my gaze.

I lost myself in the intensity of his stare, my breath hitching when he reached up to gently stroke my cheek with his thumb. He leaned down to place a soft, lingering kiss on my lips, causing my knees to shake slightly with emotion, then pulled away to smile softly. Without another word, he opened the bedroom door and stepped through, leading me back to our friends.

Four sets of eyes were casually looking anywhere but at us as we walked awkwardly back into the room. The smiles on their faces were poorly hidden, and I felt my cheeks flush with embarrassment at what they might have heard. Edward rubbed his thumb against my hand reassuringly, and we quickly took our seats in the circle.

"So, are you guys ready to get back to the game, Edward?" Emmett moaned Edward's name in a falsetto, imitating my cries of ecstasy from just a few minutes prior. My face flushed crimson, and I quickly turned to bury my face in Edward's chest. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders, running the other one through my hair as he chuckled softly.

"Don't be embarrassed, love," he murmured, placing a kiss on top of my head. "You're forgetting, we've caught them all 'in the act' numerous times throughout the years," he laughed. I couldn't help but giggle at the memories, and soon we were back to our game.

It was only a couple hours later when all eyes began to droop, the floor of the living room now littered with empty bottles. Alice and Jasper excused themselves for the night, staggering drunkenly off to their room. Emmett and Rose were already passed out on the floor, wrapped around one another, and I draped an extra blanket over them before turning to Edward.

He was laying on the couch, one arm tucked beneath his head, his arm holding up the blanket to invite me in. I smiled sleepily and stumled over, slipping off my shoes and sliding in next to him. He quickly dropped the blanket and wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me firmly against his chest. I snuggled back into the warmth, a peaceful smile gracing my lips.

I wasn't sure where this road would lead us. I had no idea if he would leave again, or what he wanted for us for the future. The only thing that I did know was that I was tired of wasting time. If Edward was going to leave me again some day, then I wanted to savor the time that I had left with him. If he decided to stay, then I wasn't going to lose any time being distant. He was what I wanted, in whatever way I could get him.

A/N: Well, how did I do? I just couldn't wait anymore for the big moment! Don't get too upset, they're not going to rush off to get married the next day or anything. Bella just knows what she wants, and she has finally made up her mind to go after it. Besides, if I locked you in a closet with Edward Cullen, do you really think you could have held out? Yeah, that's what I thought =P