Holy shit. I am so sorry. It has been for-fucking-ever since I last posted, but my life got really hectic and busy really quick. Like, more than usual. But I've finally had some down time to write this chapter. I hope you guys are still with me, because I have more in store for these two. And I've decided to (kind of) reward you for the long wait. So, I will see you lovelies at the bottom :)

CHAPTER TWENTY

EDWARD POV

Valentine's Day 2016

Things between Bella and me couldn't have gone any better than they were. We'd been dating for about three months now, and I found myself loving her more and more everyday. It was scary to admit that I was in love with Bella, considering my last relationship was with Lauren, and that hadn't gone so stellar. So, finally coming to terms with the fact that I loved my new girlfriend was definitely a bit of a hardship for me. But, even though there was a lot of self-doubt and hesitation, I knew Bella was really a person I could trust. I still hadn't told her I loved her, though. I wasn't quite ready to admit it to her, yet.

She had insisted that we not to anything beyond hanging out together for our first Valentine's Day together, which shouldn't have surprised me, because she wasn't anything like the girls I had dated before. The girls I had been with in the past liked and expected to be taken out to a fancy dinner and some sort of activity afterward. I had half expected Bella to take me up on the offer of a nice dinner, but she laughed and told me she avoided overly fancy occasions whenever she could, and that a night in together sounded much better. I couldn't help but grin at the memory of her eyes and how they brightened when I offered to make her dinner and watch Grey's Anatomy with her instead.

I was at the hospital on an early shift today, so I'd be home in time to go grocery shopping and start on dinner before Bella arrived at my apartment later that night after her forced shopping trip with Alice and Rosalie. Emmett was apparently taking Rose out on secret date tonight, and Alice had been instructed to get her an appropriate outfit for what he had planned, which he had only told Al and Bella about. Bella despised shopping, I had found out, but Alice always guilted her into it.

This past week I had been on pediatrics, which I was not complaining about, since it was what I planned on going into when my residency was up next year. Today I was being kept busy with a case of a little girl who was brought into the emergency room with a temperature and complaints of aching joints, and what looked like a cold. She was admitted to pediatrics because she had a set of complaining parents who wouldn't take the diagnosis the doctor in the ER gave them. So now, I had to deal with the parents from hell and the little girl who just looked like she wanted to get out of here as quickly as possible.

I was making rounds and decided to look in on the girl, Cynthia. Luckily, it looked like her parents had finally stepped away, leaving their ten year old on an iPad, giggling at whatever she was watching. She seemed so much more at ease now that her parents were gone. They had been non-stop nagging and bickering with each other, doctors, and other staff since they got here. Evidently it was something Cynthia was used to, because I watched her sigh, roll her eyes, and shake her head any time their voices began to raise. I had her test results,-confirming the ER physician's original diagnosis and the one I had identified when I first examined her-but I would have to wait for her parents to get back. I'd figured I'd drop in and see how she was doing anyway.

I knocked on the glass separating her room from the main floor, and I grinned at her as she looked up. She smiled back when she saw me and motioned for me to come in. I went and sat in the chair beside her bed. She closed the iPad and looked at me and then to the files in my hands.

"Are those my tests?" Cynthia asked, nodding toward the manilla folder. When I nodded, she got a grave look on her face. "It's not bad, is it?" Her hazel eyes widened, but then narrowed when I chuckled at her.

"No, Cynthia, you're completely fine," I assured her. "But let's just wait until your parents get here so I can tell you all at the same time."

"Oh, good," she said, placing her hand over her heart dramatically. "You had me scared for a second there, Dr. Cullen."

"I apologize," I told her. "I really just wanted to come in here and see how you were doing. Ask you instead of having your parents answer for you. Sometimes people are more comfortable when it's just them and the doctor."

"My parents like to control things," Cynthia told me, rolling her eyes. "My aunt calls them 'anal retentive', whatever that means."

I chuckled. "It just means they like to have their ducks in a row and for things to go the way that they planned. They don't like surprises, and they don't like things being outside of their control. Some people are just like that, sometimes."

"Yeah, I've noticed," she sighed. "Are you like that Dr. Cullen? My mom says professionals like to control things. But you're a professional, and you don't seem like my parents at all."

I smiled at her. She was incredibly observant for someone so young. "You're right, I'm not like that. I'm still young, though, so I still like how unpredictable the world can be. I wouldn't have a job if the world was perfect."

Her freckled nose wrinkled. "How can you be young? You're older than I am!"

I laughed. "I'm younger than your parents, is all I meant. Your mom and dad have a lot more life experience than I do. I'm younger than all of the other doctors, too."

"How?"

"I finished school early, so I was able to get a job quicker than other doctors."

She squinted her eyes at me. "So you're, like, really smart?"

I shrugged. "I suppose so." I was always modest about my apparent "genius-ness", even around this ten year old. I never liked to brag about myself. I probably never will.

My pager went off then, indicating I was needed elsewhere on the floor for an emergency. I mumbled a curse under my breath, which Cynthia raised her eyebrows at before giving me a mischievous grin. I grinned back sheepishly as I apologized.

"I gotta run, Cynthia, but I'll see you later when your parents get back so we can get you better and back home."

She waved at me as I exitted her room. "Bye, Dr. Cullen! Have a good day," she shouted out after me.

After my shift at the hospital, I stopped at the grocery store to pick up stuff for dinner and a bottle of wine. I was making a pasta dish tonight, one of the only things I actually knew how to make. My cooking skills weren't anywhere close to Bella's, but I had been complimented on this dish before, so I was hoping she wouldn't judge me too harshly once she tried it.

I arrived back home an hour before Bella was supposed to arrive, so I took a quick shower before starting dinner. I was in the middle of slicing up some chicken when there was a knock at my door. Knowing it was Bella, I called out that the door was open, knowing she would let herself in. I was actually planning on giving her a key to my place tonight so she would stop having to knock whenever she came by. Or she could just let herself in when I wasn't here.

We had been spending a lot of time together here. She had spent the night several times, seeing me off in the morning when I left for my shift at the hospital. She was here more often than she was at her own apartment, which was overrun by Alice, Jasper, Em and Rose. She often brought her homework and a couple days' worth of clothing with her during the week. I helped her with her work in between meals and make out sessions.

Our relationship had definitely been progressing in the physical area, as well. Bella seemed to be getting more comfortable with going further each time we were together intimately, although we hadn't actually had sex together yet, which I was looking forward to, but I was definitely okay with just fooling around. At the end of the night, we were both satisfied and she was happy and in my arms, and that's all that mattered. She was getting more touchy and took control of the situation more often than not, which was definitely one of the hottest things ever to happen to me. She was carrying the confidence she had at the club over into our relationship, which I was happy to see. In past conversations with Alice, who I had become weirdly close with over the last few months, she had told me that Bella was never able to exude to same confidence in her real life that she had while dancing on stage. I understood that her two personas were very different people, but I was glad Bambi was able to offer Bella a few pointers.

I felt her arms wrap around my waist as I stood at the counter, continuing to cut the chicken into strips. Her hands were warm as the slid under my shirt and across my stomach. I felt her body press against mine and her lips press against my shoulder blades. Even with her behind me, I could smell the scent that was purely Bella emanating off of her in waves.

"Whatever that is smells really good," she said, her voice mumbled as she kept her lips to my back. I smiled, feeling her words vibrate softly against my shirt.

"Hopefully it tastes just as good," I told her. "I'm not exactly a good cook."

"I'm sure it will be just fine, Edward," she assured me. I could feel her lips pulled up into a smile. "I just appreciate someone else cooking for me. I don't really care what it tastes like."

I finished cutting the chicken and then slid it into a pan that was already hot on the stove. Bella removed her arms so I could wash my hands before I turned to her. I wrapped my arms around her waist now, pulling her so her body was flush to mine. I leaned down and pressed my lips to hers, accepting eagerly as she parted her lips, deepening the kiss. Her tongue darted out, swiping at my lips before mine met hers in a slow battle.

I could feel my heart rate quickening and my grip on her sides tightening. Her hands snaked up to my shoulders, holding me closely to her. She sighed into my mouth as my thumbs rubbed slowly against her ribs, just under her breasts.

Everywhere she was touching me felt like it was alive with electricity, causing my nerve endings to dance with energy. Everything about Bella excited me, and I never wanted to be without her. When I was at work, there was this pull in my chest that I knew was caused by being away from her. I craved her touch and her presence, and I knew it was beyond just physically having her beside me. I wanted the mental and emotional connection we had, too. I wanted to constantly be talking to her and hearing her talk about the most asinine topics. I wanted to hear about how her day was, because I genuinely wanted to know how everything had gone for her. I had never felt these things for any girl, ever, not even Lauren, who I could have sworn I was in love with, even though I know now that I wasn't.

I knew I was in love with Bella. I had known it for a long time. I knew from the second I saw her that I wasn't going to be able to shake her. I knew from the second she spoke to me that I wasn't going to be able to forget her. I knew from the moment I kissed her that I wasn't going to be able to be away from her. I knew from the moment that she said yes to being my girlfriend that I wasn't going to be able to let her go. I was fucked from the beginning and I couldn't be more content with it.

She pulled away from the kiss before I did, giving me a mischievous smirk. "We better stop before you burn the chicken." She unwound herself from me and walked toward the refrigerator as I turned back to tend to dinner.

"There's a bottle of wine in there, if you'd like some," I informed her. She smiled at me and asked if I wanted a glass as she pulled it out of the fridge. I confirmed and she pulled two wine glasses down from the cupboard next to the fridge. Bella had spent so much time here that she knew this kitchen better than I did.

She poured me a glass and slid it across the counter before pouring herself one and travelling into the living room, perching herself on the couch. She flipped the TV on and changed it to Netflix before selecting Grey's Anatomy. I had watched quite a few episodes with her now, and I was hating it less than I had before, mostly because I watched Bella while she watched it. She laughed and cried at all the appropriate scenes, even though I knew she had seen them several times before. She was dedicated to the characters, though, so I didn't expect anything less.

Once dinner was done, I served it in a bowl and took two of them to the living room, settling in next to Bella on the couch. She draped her legs over mine after I propped them up on the coffee table. She pulled a blanket from the back of the couch and draped it over our laps before digging into the pasta. She made small humming noises of approval, but she never took her eyes off the TV screen. I was glad that she was enjoying literally the only meal that I could make.

We set our bowls on the side tables when we were done, and Bella promptly scooted over so she was pressed against my side. I wrapped my arm around her and pulled her closer. She tilted her head up to smile at me, which I returned.

"Thank you for dinner, Edward, it was really good," she said. I leaned down and pressed my lips gently against hers twice before turning back to watch the episode with her.

We watched the rest of the episode together before Bella pulled the blanket off of us, moving to straddle my lap. I grinned up at her, moving to rest my hands on her hips. She smirked down at me, resting her arms on my shoulders, her hands taking up residence in my hair. She knew what her soft pulls did to me, and she had been sure to exploit it every chance that she got. I certainly enjoyed the feeling, and I didn't exactly mind that she had this one thing over me.

"Can I help you, ma'am?" I jokingly asked.

"Mm," she hummed, leaning forward and kissing along my jaw, causing my skin to warm there. "I'm sure you could." Her lips moved to my neck, causing my hands to tighten on her hips.

"How can I be of service to you?" I wondered. The wicked grin that played on her lips when she pulled back to look at me had my stomach flipping in anticipation of her answer. She had been hinting at possibly going all the way with our physical relationship for about a month, and I wondered if tonight was the night that it finally happened.

"Take your clothes off, Cullen," she demanded, her hands moving to the hem of my shirt, deftly gripping it and pulling it over my head with ease. Her hands fell to my shoulders after she threw my shirt to the side, abandoning it somewhere in my living room. Her warm palms ran down my arms once before they laid flat across my pecs, causing goosebumps to erupt across my skin. She leaned down and pressed her lips to my shoulders in open mouthed kisses.

I moved to grab at the bottom of her shirt, but she grasped my wrists and set my hands on the couch by my sides.

"Not yet, Edward," she ordered, giving me a small smile. She slid off the couch, coming to rest on her knees between mine. Her hands trailed down my body, nails scratching lightly over my abdomen, causing the muscles to involuntarily flex and a gasp to escape my mouth. She grinned to herself. Bella had quickly learned all the little spots on my body that garnered a reaction out of me when we were being intimate. She was sure to exploit them whenever possible, not that I minded too much.

She quickly undid my belt and the button and fly of my jeans, pulling the denim down my hips as I lifted them up. I was already hard, which she smirked at when she finally discarded my pants. She wasted no time in gripping me from the outside of my boxers, making me hiss at the contact. Bella was not shy around me whatsoever, which I found incredibly sexy and endearing. I loved that she could be open and comfortable with me, even when we were being the most intimate and vulnerable that any two people could possibly be. It made me want to hug her and hold her close, but not right now. Right now I wanted some sort of relief from the teasing pleasuring she was causing as she slowly stroked me.

"Baby, please," I breathed out, gritting my teeth at the pain of not getting any relief. She was barely moving her hand, and it took everything in me not to push her hand out of the way and pull off my boxers. I needed skin on skin contact, but she was intentionally withholding it from me. It was torture.

"Please what, Edward?" She was nearly purring at me. She was fully aware of the control she had over this situation, and I was almost one hundred percent certain that she got off on it.

"Please touch me, baby."

"I am touching you, Edward." My eyes flitted down to meet hers, only to see the mirth shining in her pupils, taunting me.

"Bella," I begged. I had never been so completely helpless to a woman, and even though I knew I could take control at any time, I wanted Bella to have this. She deserved to be in control sometimes, even though I was itching to just take her how I wanted. If this was going where I thought this was going, I wanted her to have complete control until she told me she didn't want it anymore. It was the least she deserved.

"Okay, baby," she acquiesced, finally hooking her fingers in the waistband of my boxers and pulling them down, much like she had with my jeans a few moments earlier. My dick finally sprang free from its cotton jail. Bella didn't hesitate to take me in her hand, making all the nerves in my body acutely on edge. The groan that escaped me was something I didn't have any control over.

I couldn't take her slow movements anymore; my entire body was on fire and I needed something to soothe the burn, and Bella was only fanning the flames. I leaned forward and took her face in my hands, crashing my mouth to hers. A breathy moan escaped her lips, and she released me from her hand, crawling up my body so she was straddling my lap again. This time, she allowed me to pull her shirt over her head, breaking our kiss only momentarily, and I immediately started running my hands over her soft skin. Her hands were in my hair, tugging at it, making me moan, and her mouth stretched into a smile against mine.

Something about her smugness caused a strong reaction in me, and I growled into her mouth. I gripped her ass as I stood from the couch and walked her to my bedroom, never breaking contact with her lips.

When I got to my bedroom, I laid Bella gently on my bed. I finally removed my lips from hers, only to trail them down her neck, across her shoulders, and then down her chest. When I hit the swell of her breast, I licked my tongue out, leaving a wet trail over her left breast. She hissed and brought a hand to my hair, her breathing picking up the longer my tongue was on her.

I noticed the clasp of her bra was sitting the in the center of her chest, so I quickly undid it, allowing both halves to fall free. She sat up a bit to shrug out of the garment, tossing it to the side. I skimmed my lips past each breast, watching as goosebumps rose on her pale flesh, and kissed down her stomach. Her muscles flexed at the stimulation, and she gasped when I circled my tongue around her belly button.

I pulled back to undo the button on her jeans before pulling them and her underwear down in one movement. I ran my hands up her smooth legs and smiled at her, which she returned. Her eyes were hooded, though, and her chocolate brown eyes had gotten impossibly darker with her arousal.

"Edward," she breathed out. She sounded needy and incredibly turned on, which was exactly where I wanted her.

"Yes baby?" I asked her. I pressed kisses to her knees as I waited for her to answer.

"Touch me, please," she said. She didn't have to tell me twice.

"Anything you want, love."

I moved my kisses further up her legs, making my way to the place we both wanted me to be. When I got to the apex of her thighs, I pressed a kiss to each side of her before looking up at her as I darted my tongue out to lightly lap at her clit. Her hips bucked up off the bed as she whimpered. She had told me a few weeks ago that she had a special place in her heart for being gone down on, so I had made sure to do it as often as possible. And I made a point to tease her with it when I was so inclined.

I was in no place to be teasing her today, though, considering how much I wanted to see her cum, and how much I wanted to cum, as well. I pressed my tongue more firmly against her, and I let out my own moan at the discovery of how wet she was already. I drew her clit gently into my mouth as I gripped her hips in my hands to prevent her from moving too far off the bed. Her hands quickly moved to my hair, lightly gripping the strands at the top of my head and tightening when I did something that she found particularly pleasurable. When I could tell she was getting close, I inserted one finger and hooked it inside her to hit that place inside her that made her fall apart in a matter of seconds.

Just like I thought, only five more seconds of my mouth and my finger and her muscles clamped down, her hands tightened their hold and her back arched slightly off the bed. I kept my eyes on her face; I loved the way her mouth fell open in a silent moan and the way her eyes clenched shut. The red flush that spread across her chest was particularly endearing, since I was used to seeing it only on her face. Everything about this woman was extremely astounding, and sometimes I couldn't believe that I had the pleasure of calling myself hers. I don't know what I had done in this life or any past ones that had allowed me the privilege of even getting to know Isabella Swan, much less love her and make her feel like this.

When she had a few seconds to calm her breathing after her orgasm, I felt her gently pull on my hair, coaxing me up to her. I moved up her body, laying myself between her legs, my hips flush with hers. I could feel the aftermath of her orgasm coating my dick, making me want to push into her, but I still wasn't sure if we were taking this all the way tonight. I was just about to ask her how she wanted to move forward when she began to speak.

"Edward?" she questioned.

"Yes, baby?"

"I'm ready."

I knew I could trust her judgement on this, but I had to be sure. "Are you sure, Bella? I don't mind waiting." Which was the truth. Sure I missed having sex, but I was happy to wait this out for her. She deserved everything I could give her, and if she needed more time, I would give her all the time in the world.

She smiled at me, and she placed her hand on my cheek before softly brushing back the hair that had flopped into my face. "I'm sure, baby. I trust you. And I want you." When she looked into my eyes, I could see the lust, and I pressed my lips against hers.

"Okay, Bella. Anything you want."

So, uh, don't kill me, but I promise the whole scene will be in the next chapter. And I promise not to take as long as last time to post the next chapter. I have a much better plan for this story now, so you should be getting chapters much more quickly, as long as I get time to sit down and write. Plus, I only have five more weeks of school, so I won't be so busy all the time! So yay for that!

Leave a review, let me know what you guys think. Let me know what you want to see in future chapters. Someone suggested something to me a while ago that I am taking into consideration, so I'll see what happens with that. But will start making bigger jumps in the timeline from now on, because I realize it was dragging on for a while. I really want to get more of the main plot in there, and I want more of the drama to unfold, because, boy, do I have some shit in store for you guys :D

Anyways.

Until next time, lovelies!