DISCLAIMER: Twilight and its inclusive material is copyright to Stephenie Meyer. Original creation, including but not limited to plot and characters, is copyright to the respective authors of each story. No copyright infringement is intended. Additionally, "Death Shall Have No Dominion" belongs to Dylan Thomas. No copyright infringement is intended.

Previously:

"One second." I covered the phone. "Bella." She looked up and smiled. "Do you want to go to dinner with everyone tomorrow night?"

"Yes!" she exclaimed. Her relationship with Alice had improved, and she enjoyed getting together with her now.

"We'll be there, Esme."

"That's wonderful. We'll see you at 6:00pm. I love you. Tell Bella I said hello."

"I will. We'll see you tomorrow."

I shut off the car and went around to open Bella's door. She stepped out and smiled at me when she took my arm. I led her inside and savored the elevator ride as she remained pressed against my side. Family dinner had been fun tonight. We'd laughed, told stories about our childhood, and listened to tales from Carlisle and Esme about their younger life. Bella had been hunched over laughing freely at our antics. She had even carried on a side conversation with Alice while Jasper and I were talking with my aunt and uncle. Watching her having a good time, smiling, being a part of my family, made it even more difficult not to reach over and pull her to me for a kiss. Everything about her made me want her even more.

"Thank you for tonight," Bella said. She turned back to me and leaned against the door after unlocking it. "I appreciate you letting me be a part of that." She looked so tempting in that moment. I wanted nothing more than to press my lips against hers. They looked so inviting as I tried to break my stare. I tore my gaze from her when she pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. When she spoke, her voice was barely a whisper. "What is this?" I searched her eyes.

"What do you mean?" I asked when I saw something I couldn't identify.

"What is this, Edward?" She averted her eyes before she continued while motioning between us. "This. You. Me. Sometimes, I think you see me as this victim that you need to fix. Sometimes, though, I think you see me as a woman. A woman that isn't broken, that isn't damaged. A woman you might want more than this friendship with. Am I totally off?"

"You are not damaged." She looked at me tenderly.

"You make me feel like I'm not." I reached forward and held her arms.

"You. Are. Not. Damaged." She smiled.

"Then what am I to you?" My heart sped up. This was the right time. I could feel it in my bones.

"You are everything." I saw hope spark in her eyes.

"Then when are you going to kiss me?"

Hearing those words, I lost the little bit of control that I'd managed to hold onto. I pulled her forward and finally, finally placed my lips on hers. They were warm against mine, and I felt that warmth spread through me. I kept the kiss gentle, tender. I wanted her to know how much I cherished her. I groaned when she wrapped her arms around my neck and spread her fingers through my hair. Electricity ran through my body, and I moved my hands to her back to pull her tighter against me. I was surprised when I felt Bella run her tongue over my lips and gasped. She took the opportunity to deepen the kiss, and I didn't stop her. I stepped forward until Bella was trapped between me and the door. Feeling the door against my hands brought me back to the present. With reluctance, I pulled back and pecked her lips a few times.

"Bella." My voice was raspy as the emotions of the moment overwhelmed me.

"God, that was good," she whispered, her eyes still closed and a small smile pulling at her lips. I laughed. I wanted nothing more than to press myself against her once again. "4.8 stars." I groaned.

"Don't make this harder than it already is." Her eyes finally met mine, and they were slightly hooded. Tempting. She was enticing.

"Will you come in?" My mind jumped to activities with Bella that I shouldn't be imagining yet. Images of Bella in bed assaulted me, and I closed my eyes as I groaned. "To talk! Only to talk." I leaned my forehead down to rest on hers and look into her eyes.

"Talk."

"Only talk." From the corner of my eye, I saw her raise two fingers. "I promise not to attack you."

"You know you're not a Boy Scout, right?" I pulled her fingers down so her hand was in a fist. She opened my hand and laced her fingers through mine before she turned to open the door and pull me inside. I warred with myself about going inside but followed her anyway. She tossed her keys onto the sideboard before walking to take a seat on the couch. I sat beside her and turned so I could face her directly.

"I don't know how people usually talk about this, how they ease into it. So, I'll just ask." I nodded. As much as I could see Bella's development and growth since her return, I often forgot she was still so young. Bella had had one boyfriend before, and it was such a young and short-lived relationship. Then she'd been taken, and her whole world had been turned upside down. Relationships had been non-existent or perverted and twisted. She hadn't learned how to have normal, healthy relationships. "I like you." She looked down, and I could see her mustering the courage to continue. "I imagine being with you. I see myself with you, loving you, married to you."

"Bella," I breathed out quietly. I was in awe of her. I fought not to interrupt her, to let her do this since she was being so brave.

"Then there are moments I think you want that too. There are moments when you look at me in just this certain way that I think, there it is. Then it's like these shutters come down, and it's gone. Maybe I'm reading more into this than I should. Maybe I'm jeopardizing the friendship we have right now. And I need to know if I'm completely off base, because I'm already invested. I need to find a way to…realign my heart if you don't feel the same way." She sighed and moved to push off the couch, so I captured her hand and held her in place. She looked over at me cautiously.

"I want everything with you." A small smile pulled at her lips, but I could still see the hesitation in her eyes as if she didn't fully believe me. "Bella, don't you know?" She tilted her head as her eyes crinkled. "I've loved you for a very long time." Her breath hitched. "Definitely since we escaped the hotel. Probably from the second time I saw you."

"How…why…"

"Because you are beautiful." I reached up and softly ran my thumb over the smooth skin of her cheek. "But before that, I discovered you were kind." She reached up and took my hand into hers, holding it in her lap. "Before that, I learned you were smart and funny – exactly the right kind of smart and funny. Because I can imagine taking a long trip with you without ever getting bored. Because whenever I see something new and interesting, or new and ridiculous, I always wonder what you have to say about it, how many stars you'd give it and why." She laughed before covering her mouth and sobering. "Because when I think about my future, you're all I see." She leaned forward and pressed her lips to mine before pulling back just centimeters with a radiant smile. The sun had set ages ago, but her smile brought so much light to the room – to my life. She bit her lip before uttering the words I'd been waiting to hear for so long.

"I love you, too."

AN 06/05/2019: Everyone together now - yaaaaaaaay! It's about dadgum time. ;) A few of y'all called it - Bella was the one that made the first move. But Edward was waiting with the perfect response. Let me know what you thought about this chapter. I can't wait to hear from you guys.