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Chapter 24:

October 2009- Seattle

EPOV

I walked lazily into the kitchen to make myself a snack and was hit like a wave with the sight of Bella, leaning over the granite countertop in nothing but a pair of lacy boyshorts and my t-shirt. She was doing a crossword puzzle innocently, but my thoughts were anything but innocent.

Her ass was perfectly on display as her hips cocked to one side and her legs were crossed at the ankles. She bit the end of a pencil in concentration, tapping her fingers on the countertop.

She glanced over her shoulder when she heard me coming flashing me the cutest fucking expression on her face. She was smiling while still biting on the pencil, the smile being flirty as hell. My pants tightened as my body reacted to the sight of her. I slid up behind her letting my hands reach around her; one gripped her hips and the other slid lower between her thighs, feeling the heat emanating off her.

"Bella, you can't walk around the house like that and not expect me to react," I said, as I gently nibbled her ear and pressed my hips into her. "Plus, what if the guys come home?"

"They are gone for the afternoon, so we have your place all to ourselves," she said flirtatiously. "What do you think we should do to pass the time?"

This woman is killing me.

I wasn't sure where the next comment came from, but I was definitely worked up and she wasn't helping matters any, "How about I fuck you right here on this counter?"

She turned around; my arms still wrapped tightly around her, and smiled deviously, "You'd do that?"

Umm…yeah.

"In a New York minute," I said, kissing her neck, while my hands found her soft skin of her back beneath her shirt.

She reached down and pulled the shirt over her head as my hands rubbed up and down her back.

Fuck, no bra.

My mouth instinctively moved to her breast and I sucked her hardened nipple into my mouth, enjoying the way she squirmed beneath my lips.

"So fucking good," I murmured against her warm skin.

Her hands began to undress me in a frenzy of desire, pulling and tugging until I was naked and impossibly hard.

"I need you," she whispered breathily in my ear.

I lifted her by her ass and set her down on the counter, laying her back gently. Her hair splayed out as her head tilted back, almost hanging off the back of the counter. Her back was arched and her breasts called to me, begging to be touched and kissed.

I stood between her legs as I let my hand slowly descend her body, between her breasts, over her stomach and hips, finally sliding down her leg. She lifted her leg, which was previously wrapped around me to allow me to continue my touching. She whimpered and smiled when I reached her ankle and moved it to rest on my shoulder.

"I don't think I can be gentle, Bella," I sighed, massaging and kissing her calf as I stroked my cock with my other hand.

"Mmm, I like the sound of that," she said, extending her hands over her head in complete submission as she brought her other leg over my shoulder.

Jesus Christ.

Bella was spread before me, on my fucking kitchen countertop, which thankfully was the perfect height for my cock to line up with her glistening entrance. Her ankles were on my shoulders and she was naked and ready. My dick throbbed and I longed to be inside of her.

I guided my cock to her slick folds, rubbing up and down to tease her and then powerfully thrust into her, causing her to groan loudly and buck her hips into me.

I pulled out and pounded fiercely into her again, using my hand on the top of her thighs to push even deeper into her.

"Oh fuck…Edward…harder…" She grabbed the edge of the counter above her head and thrust herself into my hips, causing me to groan loudly.

That's it, Bella.

Clutching her ankles, I gently lowered her legs from my shoulders, spreading them wide as I continued to thrust into her.

"I want to see you touch yourself," I grunted out in between thrusts.

She reached down, leaving one hand behind her head, and slowly lowered her other hand down her body until her delicate fingers rested on her clit, rubbing gently.

"Like this," she sighed breathlessly, "Is this what you had in mind?"

Holy shit.

I had never seen Bella so wanton before. She was so carefree and uninhibited and I fucking loved it. I knew I should be gentler with her, but I couldn't help myself. She was irresistible.

"Bella, come for me, baby. I want to feel you come hard on my cock." I looked in her eyes, which were dark with lust and I could tell that she was close to her release.

"Oh God…Edward…don't stop…just like that…" she mumbled incoherently as I drilled into her. The ripples of her orgasm wracked her body and I stilled my movements to feel each and every contraction. The feeling of being inside Bella when she came brought me quickly to my own climax as I yelled obscenities and exploded into her.

"Oh Jesus, Bella," I whimpered, lowering her legs as I pulled out of her, my knees shaky from the exertion.

She ran her hand over her face and through her hair, "Wow," she sighed, her breathing still shallow, "that was just…fuck."

I couldn't agree more.

I grabbed her hands and helped her to sit as I pulled her into a tight hug, my hands placed on the back of her head, clinging to her hair as I inhaled her delicious scent.

"I love you so much," I hummed into her ear.

Her arms were wrapped around my back, rubbing gently up and down as she kissed my chest and shoulder. "I love you too."

She climbed off the counter and sauntered into the bathroom to shower, grabbing her clothes along the way. I watched her walk away and made a mental note that clothes should be banned when we were alone. I quickly slid on some boxers and cleaned up the kitchen, since our impromptu fucking session had made quite a mess. We never did shit like that and I was excited that Bella was so spontaneous.

By the time I got back into my room, she was out of the shower and getting ready. We were going to a costume party for Halloween at Tanya's house. I was going as a football player and Bella was going as a referee. It was cheesy, but I couldn't say no to Bella.

As I was putting on my costume, Bella emerged looking unbelievably hot in the sexiest referee costume I'd ever seen. She had on black, short shorts with a fitted black and white striped shirt, which was cut really fucking low. Her hair was in two low ponytails, draping loosely over her shoulders. Her legs looked like they were a mile long, with high heels and socks that came up over her knees to her thighs.

I moved like a magnet to her, "You can't leave the house looking like that," I huffed, kissing her cheek.

She smiled sweetly, "Oh, so you like my costume?"

Like it? Jesus Fucking Christ.

"Bella, I'm not going to be able to think about anything else all night, and neither will any other guy there." The thought of other guys ogling her made me fucking pissed.

"Oh come on, you know the only opinion I care about is yours." She smiled as she walked out of the room, looking over her shoulder. "Come on, everyone will be here soon."

The gang showed up and we were going to have a few cocktails before we left for the party.

Rosalie was dressed as a sexy witch, and had dressed up Emmett as a fucking banana. He looked like a wall of yellow coming into the house and I nearly spit out my drink when I saw him. He looked hilarious. It was a perfect costume for him, given his larger than life personality. He was the only person I knew who could pull off a fucking banana costume and not look like a complete asshole.

Alice looked perfectly put together as a cat, complete with ears and a tail, while Jasper took the easy way out as a hippie, donning a long wig and a suede vest with fringe on it.

"Hey, you guys look great," Jasper said, motioning to Bella and me, but only really eyeing Bella.

I hit him in the chest and he chuckled lightly, "Let's get a drink."

We arrived at Tanya's house at about 8:00, and her place was already quite crowded with guests. We made our way into the kitchen and poured ourselves a couple of drinks.

"Thanks for coming, guys," Tanya said as she hugged me and then turned to Bella, smiling. "Bella, you look great." But there was a certain look in her eyes and I knew she wasn't being sincere.

Tanya had not been overly happy for me when I started dating Bella. I think she was still holding out hope that she and I would end up together, even though I'd been more than straightforward about wanting to remain friends. Tanya's obvious jealousy of Bella had been the source of tension between Tanya and me but I hoped as time went by that things would smooth over.

For Tanya's sake, I hoped it happened sooner rather than later. Tanya and I had been friends for a really long time. I didn't want to see our friendship end, but if she couldn't respect my relationship with Bella and show Bella respect than our friendship wouldn't last much longer. I wouldn't stand by and let her be rude to the woman I loved.

It was no surprise that every guy at the party noticed Bella and her costume. As the party went on I was seething with jealousy. Bella was oblivious to the stares and slack jaws but I could see the guy's faces as she walked by. I tried to keep her by my side as much as possible, but I didn't want to come off like some possessive asshole boyfriend, which I realized was exactly how I was feeling.

The party was lively and fun with loud music playing and all kinds of Halloween decorations all around. Everyone seemed to embrace the costumes and each time someone with a creative costume passed by, there was always a stream of laughter. Bella and I were having a great time, dancing and laughing with our friends, but to be honest, I couldn't wait to get Bella back home and have her all to myself.

"I'll be right back," Bella said sweetly, kissing my cheek. "Don't move a muscle."

I watched her move through the crowd toward the bathroom, eventually disappearing from my sight.

Emmett and I joked around for a while. We were having our own personal costume contest when people walked by. It was not lost on me that every costume that Emmett voted on was a sexy whatever…sexy police woman, sexy construction worker, sexy nurse. When Rosalie walked up behind him and heard his comments, she smacked him upside the head, causing me to double over in a fit of laughter. I tried to warn him that that would happen.

After what seemed like a long time, Bella had still not returned to me. I began to worry and started roaming the party to find her. I mean, how long could the line for the bathroom be?

After searching the family room and the dining room, I walked into the living room and saw Bella talking with Tanya while holding a picture frame in her hand. Her head hung low, her body almost turned into herself, and it looked like she was crying, but I had no idea why.

Bella looked furious and upset when I walked up to them, tears streaming down her face.

"Bella, baby? What's wrong? Are you okay?" I asked, concerned. I took a step toward her to pull her into a hug but she stopped me abruptly.

She thrust the frame at me and my face fell as I looked at it, "Who's that, Edward?" She pointed to the woman with fire red hair standing next to me.

Victoria. Fuck.

"Bella, that was taken a long time ago," I said, reaching out to comfort her. She flinched and pulled away. Tanya just glared at me with her arms crossed.

What the fuck is going on?

Bella sniffled and inhaled, trying to collect her thoughts, "Answer me one question, Edward."

"Of course, anything." I didn't like where this was headed.

"Was that girl your girlfriend when we were together in Europe?" she asked as she pointed to the picture.

Oh shit.

"Bella, let's go home and we can talk about this. I'll answer any question you ask. Can we please not do this here?" I tried to gently grab Bella's arm so we could leave to talk, but she shrugged me off.

"Edward? It's a yes or no question. Was she your girlfriend?" She stood with her arms crossed waiting for my answer, tears still coming down her cheeks. The sight was absolutely breaking my heart.

"It's not that simple. It wasn't like that…" I stammered but was interrupted.

Her voice was louder, more fierce when she spoke. "Was she your girlfriend or not? Yes or NO?" She looked angry as hell, but I could also see the hurt behind her eyes.

I ran my fingers through my hair nervously. I had been avoiding this topic since I met Bella but now I could see that that was a mistake. She shouldn't have found out about Victoria like this.

You're such a dick.

"Edward, please just answer me," she pleaded, gazing at me through her tears.

"Technically, yes," I said, panicked that Bella wasn't going to let me explain, "but it wasn't…"

"Technically?" She looked at me, aghast.

"Bella, let me explain…" I stammered.

Her expression turned ice cold. The glare she gave me froze me in my spot. "I've heard enough, Edward. The way I see it, you've had plenty of time to 'explain' and you didn't. Your omission is a lie, a betrayal. How could you? You bastard!" she spat, as she held up her hand in front of my face and walked by.

Fuck!

I turned to chase after her, but she shrugged me off, "Bella, fuck. It's not what you think."

"Let me go, Edward." She continued to walk away from me with tears falling down her cheeks, her shoulders slightly shaking as if she was on the verge of sobs.

Fuck!!!

Alice, seeing Bella's condition, raced over and threw her arms around Bella, shielding her from me.

"Can you take me home, Alice?" she asked quietly. I just stood there, feeling like a complete shithead as my girlfriend cried. Alice glared at me with a mama bear look that told me that I'd better not try and do anything.

"Of course I'll take you home," Alice soothed, "Let me just get the keys from Jasper."

They walked off and I knew there was nothing I could do to prevent her from leaving. I needed to clear things up, but I had no idea what to do. Seeing her so upset was breaking my heart, and it was amplified knowing that I had caused it. I followed them out the door but she never acknowledged me.

After I watched her get in the car, I turned and stalked back into the party to find Tanya, who was still in the living room. She had replaced the picture frame back amongst the others on display. If I wasn't so upset about what was going on with Bella, I might have noticed the smirk she had on her face sooner.

"Tanya, what the fuck did you say to her?" I asked, seething with anger.

"Me? Why is this MY fault?" she said defensively.

"Just tell me what you said," I demanded, as I ran my fingers through my hair in frustration.

"How the hell was I supposed to know that you hadn't even told her about Victoria?"

I knew that Tanya was right, but I could help but question her intentions. She'd made no bones about the fact that she wasn't supportive of my relationship with Bella, so this played right into what she wanted. She could have softened the blow for Bella, but knowing Tanya, she let Bella come to her own conclusions.

"Edward, how could you have gone this long and not told her about Victoria?"

I didn't need Tanya to point out the obvious. I fucked up. I knew that. I should have told Bella.

"Fuck you, Tanya! It's not your goddamn place to tell MY girlfriend anything. That shit is for me to tell her and I've been trying to find the right fucking time to do it…but FUCK!" I wailed at her. "Now it's all fucked up. What the hell happened? Why the fuck did you have to tell her?"

"She was in here looking at pictures and when she saw the photo of all of us with Victoria in it, she asked me about her," Tanya said, taking a sip of her drink.

"Why? It's not like she knows her or anything," I asked, confused as to why that particular picture would spark such a fierce reaction from Bella.

"I don't know, but she did say she'd seen her before," Tanya added.

She's seen her? When?

I slammed my fist down on the entertainment center, feeling helpless, "Fuck!" I yelled loudly causing several people to take notice.

Jasper was among those who heard me and walked over to me, "Bad night, huh?"

"That's the fucking understatement of the year," I hissed back.

"What happened? Alice took my car to take Bella home. She looked pretty fucking upset," Jasper said, empathetically.

"She found out about Victoria." I shook my head and lowered it, sighing. "The wrong way."

"Oh…" he said slowly, nodding in understanding. "I guess it didn't go over so well then, huh?"

"What the fuck do you think?" I spat at him. I knew I was being an ass and that Jasper didn't deserve it, but I was so fucking lost.

What the fuck am I going to do?

He shrugged and took a sip of his beer.

"I'm sorry, man," I said, feeling guilty over fucking yelling at him. It wasn't Jasper's fault that I was such a dickhead.

"It's okay. I understand. I'd feel the same way if I was you," Jasper said calmly, "What are you going to do?"

"I don't fucking know. I've got to straighten this whole mess out and Bella won't even talk to me."

"Give her some time. Alice is with her, that'll help." Jasper handed me a drink, but I didn't feel like staying.

"Thanks, but I've got to go. God, I hope you're right, Jasper. I've never seen her so upset before. I don't know what I'll fucking do if she won't talk to me." Jasper instructed me to stay away from Bella tonight and give her some space. I heard him, but I didn't know if I could stay away.

I weaved through the crowd and left, finding my car. I slid into the driver's seat and slammed my fists down on the steering wheel. I was such a stupid fuck. Why didn't I just tell her? Why did she have to find out like this?

I should have mailed those fucking letters when I wrote them.

Now it was too late and I had no idea if Bella would forgive me.

A/N: Uh oh. Tanya's never a good thing, is she? Wonder what she told Bella? Shoot me a review for a teaser!