SO so sorry for not updating sooner!
i had traveling stuff going on and just couldn't pull myself away from the troupe to finish this chapter.
i love love love this chapter. hopefully you guys like my leading up to this eventful chapter of the actual book and give me your opinion.
i love you guys and you're the best!
COMMENT FAVORITE FOLLOW
*****all characters belong to Stephenie Meyer*****
EPOV
I fell back onto my bed, taking in deep, slow breaths, and pressed my palms against my eyes. I flopped onto my back and checked the clock—it was already eleven o'clock and Charlie was snoring in his room after a slow night at the station. I sleepily pulled off my shirt and changed into a pair of sweats, feeling the smooth fingers of sleep tugging at the back of my mind like the thin stems of chilled wine glasses. I ran my hands through my hair and buried my face into the pillow that smelled of leather and gunpowder after being left on the living room couch where Charlie cleans his guns and polishes his boots.
"Edward," Charlie called from down the hall.
I rolled back to a sitting position and stumbled down the hall. I heard snoring coming from in his room, and I rubbed my eyes, "yeah, Charlie?"
There was no answer, so I pushed open the door.
His room smelled of after-shave and boot polish, and the walls were the same deep violet color from when Renee lived here. The same black satin bedspread was tangled on the mattress, and Charlie was in a deep sleep as he rolled over onto his back.
"Edward," he mumbled again, and his forehead crinkled with worry, "I'm sorry…"
"Dad, what are you—"
His snoring cut me off and I sighed as I pulled the door closed again. I walked back to my room, my eyes drooping slowly as I spotted the warm tangle of blankets on my bed. A faint chill ran over my back and I pulled the sheets over my head as the curling wind from outside filled the room with a strong pine scent.
The far-away sound of someone breathing at my ear almost pulled me out of my deep sleep but I ignored it and slipped back into the dark haze of my dreams…
A faint thumping sound surrounded me.
The smell of lavender, strawberries, and vanilla filled the room and the brush of soft, damp curls skimmed across the blazing skin of my wrist. I tried to flinch back, as I curled my hands into fists but my body refused to move. I gritted my teeth together, biting back a scream that blazed up as quickly as the fire that was torturously wrapping tighter and tighter around my wrist.
The thumping grew louder until it was the only thing I could focus on; my searing pain somehow forgotten.
I was fascinated as I listened to the thick, wet sound that shattered through my ears.
My breath was coming in wild gasps and I felt something brush my hair back from my face; the object was soft, but at the same time hard as stone, like a piece of chilled marble wrapped in satin.
My internal mind screaming with pain as the object left my jaw, taking the calming, strange thumping sound with it and leaving me to writhe in agony as the fire began licking its way up my arm. My neck tensed and I was choked as the fire pooled up and down into my throat, hissing like hot embers deep within my lungs.
Voices were muffled around me, and I felt as if I was thrown into a deep pool of boiling water.
Pressure seemed to crush my bones to fine dust and as my teeth ground together through the pain, my eyes flashed open.
I was surrounded by crimson.
The heat reseeded as quickly as it had appeared, but slowly coiling around my throat it refused to leave me.
My mind seemed to accept that the heat was now a part of me, that I was to continue living on with this agony that slowly scratched its way down my throat.
The back of my tongue was suddenly pooling with the taste of honey suckle and cinnamon, and something that couldn't be described as anything but chilled autumn air. My body was cradled in a bed of moist leaves, and as I lifted myself from the decay, I was blinded with the brilliance of sunlight streaming through jade leaves. I hissed in pain as the burn rose in my throat and I kicked myself back against a thick tree.
Something cold wrapped around my throat and as the pale hand wrapped around my skin that was suddenly as soft as velvet but hard as granite, venom pooled across my tongue…
"Edward, shh…" something cold pressed against my chest.
I tensed, and tried to throw myself out of bed, my heart pounding in my ears as I found that I couldn't move. A slight growl of frustration rose from my throat and the pressure was suddenly gone from my chest and I lurched forward, and tumbled to the cold, hard-wood floor in a tangle of sweat soaked sheets.
"Edward," a pair of small hands wrapped around my wrists that were ripping at the sheets that were bundled around me, "Edward, are you okay?"
The sheet fell to the floor and my breath was still coming in short gasps as I looked up to see a silhouette rimmed in pale gold light.
She was sitting on her knees on the bed, her hands gripping the mattress as she stared down at me with a worried expression. A lose curl fell into her face and she looked like a perfect statue sculpted from ivory marble. Her hair was tangled around her small torso in a thick mane and the shirt she was wearing defined the swell of her breasts as she held her breath. I was completely tongue tied as I stared up at her face, rimmed in warm light that glimmered off her skin as she gave an angelic smile and her honey eyes seemed to be liquid butterscotch.
God how did she look so perfect in a tank top and jeans?
The deep, navy color of her shirt almost made my mouth water at the sight of the contrast against her creamy white skin and I pulled her down to my lap to burry my face into her hair.
She tensed slightly before letting out a relieved sigh and wrapping her arms around me. My eyes were wide open, the feeling of burning still imprinted in my mind as I fell back against the mattress behind me. Bella tightened her grip on my torso, her lips brushing across the skin above my heart as I tilted my head back and stared at the ceiling.
"Are you okay," she whispered, her delicate fingers tracing patterns above my racing heart.
I blinked, taking a deep slow breath and ran my fingers through her hair, "yeah, it was nothing…"
"Edward," Bella scoffed, "it didn't look like nothing."
"I promise, love," I kissed the top of her head, not even realizing how affectionate I was being, "it was nothing."
She stared up at me, her doe eyes catching fragments of sunlight that burst across her skin in thin golden needles. I opened my mouth to speak, and then closed it when I found myself caught up in the soft curls of auburn wound through her mahogany hair.
Her pale lips pulled up to a smile and I grinned back crookedly, "I'm sorry about being upset yesterday," she frowned and chewed her lip, "it was entirely—"
My sentence was cut off by her lips. Her eye lashes fluttered against my cheek bones as she tilted her head and her hands tangled into my hair. I gripped her cool waist and she shivered as my hands pressed against her ice cold skin. She was suddenly everywhere; her scent was soaking into my skin as her fingers brushed along my neck, her hair tangling around us in a dark curtain, and her taste seeping across my lips. I was overwhelmed and was unable to control myself as my tongue traced the edge of her bottom lip.
A surprised sound came from her chest and she leaned in more, not allowing me to deepen the kiss, but sending us back a few inches as the bed behind me scraped across the floor. That's when she tensed and pulled back, even though my arms were still locked around her waist, her lips quirked up to a satisfied smile.
"What was that," I whispered as she leaned in to place a softer, more controlled kiss on my lips.
I automatically kissed her back, my arms tightening around her as her scent tangled my thoughts into a mess of colors and scents. She smirked against my lips and gently pulled back, her eyes halfway open as she pressed her forehead against mine.
"I just wanted to see something," she batted her eyes at me and ran her fingers across my jaw, "you know…experimenting…"
"That was experimenting," I whined, "you're so mean!"
She laughed again as she leaned back against my knees to look me in the face, "I'm not mean," she shook her head slightly, and I realized that she looked like she had just woken up.
She still looked beautiful.
What are you thinking, I scoffed at myself, Bella will always be nothing but beautiful…
Her mouth was a pale shade of pink and I couldn't believe that only a few seconds ago I was kissing those perfectly sculpted lips. Her white teeth winked at me as she chewed her lip and quirked her head to the side, "what are you thinking," her brows knit together and she crossed her arms over her chest.
I blinked at her, and shook my head, "nothing."
"Edward, please…" she tilted her head back a little and her throat seemed so pale that it almost looked silver in the morning light, "it kills me that I can't hear what you're thinking."
"Well it kills me that you like to torture me with your amazing kisses for experiments," I grinned and lightly tapped my fingertip against her nose.
She wrinkled her nose at me and huffed, "that's not the same thing..." she grinned and batted her eyelashes at me, "my kisses are amazing?"
I grinned back at her, watching as her pupils slightly grew and gave a small shrug, "I dunno…maybe…"
"But you just said—"
"Can't prove it, love," I grinned and pulled her over to me.
"I could.."
"Ah, but that would require reading my mind, now wouldn't it," I kissed her head and as she poked my ribs, "Hey!"
She narrowed her eyes at me and crawled back to the bed, "You are mean Edward Swan," she grumbled.
^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^
Bella kept her promise, and after an hour of debating on what we should do today, she cut me off with a wave of her hand, saying that I needed food first. She pulled me down to the kitchen, her pale hand wrapped in mine as we walked down the stairs and into the kitchen.
She was wearing a pair of dark jeans and her tank top rode up to show an inch of skin as she hopped onto the counter and began digging around the cabinets. I smiled as she quirked her head to the side and jumped to the ground to pull open the refrigerator. Her ocher eyes scanned the shelves, finally landing on a gallon of milk, and then she flickered over to the pantry, sniffing the air as she opened the door.
"Aha," she grinned to herself and snatched a box of cereal from a wire shelf.
She sniffed the air again, and flitted over to the cabinets beside the sink before pulling down a bowl. I gave a small round of applause after she poured the cereal and milk into the bowl and she sat in the seat across from me in half of a second. She pushed the bowl towards me, her eyes wide as she watched me slowly raise a spoonful of Frosted Flakes to my mouth.
"What," I grinned as she quirked her mouth to the side, "do I have something on my face?"
"No," she grimaced, "it's just…" she shivered, "I can't believe you're eating that…"
"Why?" I asked and ate another spoonful.
She shook her head, "it smells like dirt."
I busted out laughing at her expression, "what? It smells like sugar! What are you talking about?"
"No," she folded her hands under her chin and her pupils widen slightly, "it smells like dirt."
I fell back into my seat and threw my hands into my lap, "fine," I chuckled at her grimace and ran my hands through my hair, "it may smell like dirt to you but to me it smells like happiness."
She rolled her eyes and snatched my bowl from in front of me, "happiness huh?"
"Hey what are you…"
I trailed off as she scooped up a mouthful and kept her gaze trained on me as she shoved it into her mouth. The following seconds have probably been to date my favorite.
Milk trailed down her chin, and her eyes clamped shut as she slowly chewed on the cereal. I stared at her with my mouth hanging open in disbelief as she quickly finished chewing and swallowed the cereal. She growled slightly and pushed the bowl back to me.
"If that," she jabbed her finger at the small cereal bowl, "is what you call happiness…I'm sincerely worried for you."
I shook my head and got up to go put my bowl in the sink, "fine, it's not happiness, that's something else.."
"And what is that," she appeared behind me and wrapped her cold arms around my waist.
I grinned and turned to kiss the top of her head. I felt her grin against my bare chest and she stood on her tip toes to kiss my jaw, "Edward?"
"Hmm…" I twirled a piece of her hair around my finger and breathed in the smell of lavender and strawberries from her skin.
"Would you be interested in going somewhere else with me?"
"Sure," I said as she nuzzled my collar bone with her nose, "where are we going, love?"
She pulled back and hopped up on the kitchen table. She chewed her lip, and swung her legs back and forth. I leaned against the counter and crossed my arms loosely across my chest.
"Bella…" I began, but she flitted back to me and placed a sweet kiss on my lips.
I wrapped my arms around her and froze as her cool tongue traced my bottom lip, and deepened the kiss. She tasted like sweet summer air; honey sickle, strawberries, cinnamon, and crisp mint all at once. Her hands began tightening around my neck and I leaned in as she dipped her head back.
"Stop," she whispered and pressed her forehead to my chest.
My heart was pounding in my ears and I tightened my grip on her as her fingers shook against my neck.
"I-I'm sorry," I shook my head and pulled her chin up to look at me.
She stared into my eyes for a little while and then nodded her head, "it's okay," she grinned, "let's go."
BPOV
"Bella, please tell me where we're going," Edward settled against the seat of my Volvo and dug through my CD collection in the glove box.
He settled on a blank CD and pushed play. One of Emmett's mix CD's started blasting through the speakers and I groaned as Walk It Out began playing. Edward raised his eyebrows at me, his mouth pressed in a tight line to keep himself from laughing and I shook my head at him.
"It's not mine," I jabbed at the eject button and shoved a different CD into the slot, "fucking Em…"
"Who?"
"No one," I snapped and hit the play button.
One of my compositions began playing, and Jasper's guitar flooded into the melody. His chords melted my angst as I spun the wheel and turned onto the driveway I've driven down thousands of times. Edward sat up, his curiosity growing as we snaked our way through the thick forestry.
"Bella…" his hands shook in his lap and I was suddenly rethinking the agenda for today.
If I turned around now, they wouldn't know we were here. Alice wouldn't tease me about her visions coming true, Jasper wouldn't become the insane overprotective brother he tended to be, and Rosalie would keep her sour thoughts about humans to herself…for now.
I nodded to myself as I decided to go with my new idea, and brought the car to a nice, slow stop.
Edward looked at me with a confused expression again but I just shrugged and put the car in reverse.
"Wrong way—"
BAM!
The two of us jumped in our seats, and I tightened my hands on the steering wheel as those daunting thoughts broke through my barrier.
A thick tree crashed in front of the car and I growled as Emmett popped his head up from behind the wall of branches staring us in the face. His face was plastered with a huge grin and I growled at him.
"Now, Isabella," he leapt over the tree and slowly walked over to Edwards side of the car.
The windows were rolled down and I hissed at his thoughts as he leaned in and rested his thick arms on the car. His dark curly hair was damp from passed rain, and his teeth were blinding white pearls.
"You didn't tell us you were bringing…" he looked over to Edward and flashed a wolfish grin, "a new friend."