Argh, I'm horribly late again, surprise, surprise.
Kudos to the ever-fab Angel.
Enjoy!
Edward POV
I honestly didn't mean to have hot sex with Bella after we had made the mutual decision to take it slow, but really, how did she expect me to say no when she was encouraging me like that. Every touch, every sound out of her mouth was like my own personalised aphrodisiac, encouraging my hormones to run riot. It was impossible to resist her and she knew it and used it to her advantage to seduce me, the damn sexy minx.
As we were leaving, Alice rang. I had expected as much but I was surprised when I answered and she didn't yell or threaten me with castration. Her being nice was even scarier than her being mean, in fact, I would prefer the bitchy sister than the nice one. Her being nice only meant that she had something planned to get back at me — her revenge was always creative and torturous. I assured her we were on our way back to the house and that I would explain everything when we got there. Mollified, Alice agreed and hung up.
We waved to Winston on the way out, heading straight for the car. I opened Bella's door for her, helping her into the car and she rolled her eyes at me. Walking around the side of the car and opening my door, I was thinking that she would just have to get used to my gentlemanly ways. My mother had brought me up properly.
When we arrived home, my little sister was standing out the front looking at her watch and tapping her foot impatiently. She didn't give me a chance to get out of the car, ripping Bella's door open and dragging her forcibly toward the house. Sighing, I got out pulling our bags with me and trudged into my sister's home.
The girls were nowhere to be seen but I could hear the boys in the games room, cheering and yelling. Dumping our bags just inside the door, I joined Emmett, Jasper and Nate. They were multi-tasking, impressively enough, with WWE playing on the TV and a pool game in progress. Emmett was cheering and yelling at the wrestlers while Jazz and Nate played pool, half watching the match.
"Hey Eddie!" Emmett boomed when I walked through the door. He clapped me on the shoulder hard enough to hurt and handed me a beer, almost making up for the fact that he called me the stupid name he knew I hated. I grimaced and took a swig of the beer.
"Thanks dude," I grumbled sarcastically. Emmett just chuckled. "So, what are the girls doing?"
"Fuck knows," Emmett said, shrugging. "Girl stuff?" Jasper chuckled and lined up his shot, sinking the ball. Moving into position he hit the white ball, causing the shot to rebound off the pocket, and eventually roll to a stop in the middle of the table, nowhere near a pocket. Jasper cursed with a sailor's fluency while Nate fist pumped in the air and did a ridiculous happy dance around the pool table. Emmett joined in while I seriously considered their sanity.
That was how the girls found us.
The sound of a throat clearing made me turn around. Alice was standing in the doorway, hands still on hips and one eyebrow raised incredulously.
"What the hell is going on here?" she asked, almost managing to hide her smile. Emmett's head whipped around, his face fair splitting into an evil grin. "Emmett, don't even think about it. If you want to have children someday I would suggest you re-think this!"
Emmett, not listening or caring, swooped Alice up in his arms like a doll and pranced around the pool table as if he was dancing with a child. Alice squealed and beat at his chest ineffectually before finally giving up and just going with it. Emmett twirled around the table one last time, giggling like a schoolgirl and set Alice down on her feet.
I suddenly realised that if Alice were downstairs, Bella would be somewhere nearby too, right? My head snapped around to the doorway again and there she was, leaning against the doorway talking to Rose. The girls were all wearing matching sweats, complete with head and wristbands. Alice was in yellow, Rose in pink and Bella was wearing the most beautiful shade of blue that made her skin practically glow.
Jasper sidled up to Alice, nuzzling her neck affectionately. I shoved my hands in my pockets so I wouldn't reach out to touch Bella but I could still feel the urge to move towards her. I felt like a planet pulled out of its solar rotation, the magnetism between us was insistent to the point of being all-consuming. Rocking on my toes, I addressed Alice.
"Ah, what's going on here? Are you going to a yoga class or something?" Alice grinned and I felt a twinge of unease. That grin was reserved for her intended victim right before she dished out her direst revenge.
"Or something, brother dear," she said, still grinning. I actually felt a little afraid; she could have cooked up something really terrible with Bella's help. I looked to Bella for help but she just shrugged and tied her hair back, exposing her milky white neck. I swallowed heavily and tried to think about anything else but Bella and her smooth, soft skin.
Edward, you are a glutton for punishment!
Shaking my head to clear it, I turned back to Alice. "What kind of 'something', my most favourite of sisters?" I asked sweetly. Alice scowled at me.
"I'm your only sister, smart ass," she growled, "and Emmett has to go to work this afternoon so we figured we could go in early and use the empty floor to do a self defence class. What do you think?"
"Brilliant idea," I said right away.
"Well of course it is," Alice replied indignantly. "It was my idea." Emmett nodded thoughtfully, looking at his watch and draining his beer.
"We better go now, then." He started toward the door, throwing an arm around Bella. "Come on little Bella-rina, I'll show you some moves."
Bella grimaced at the nickname but let herself be led out of the house. I followed closely. Unable to stop myself, my eyes followed the perfect curve of Bella's ass in those navy blue sweats. The way the material hugged her soft flesh was mesmerising and I didn't realise I was staring until I heard the light tinkle of laughter from behind me. I stopped dead in my tracks, turned and glared at the sister who had most definitely orchestrated this. She just had to know what would drive me insane, didn't she?
Alice raised her eyebrows at me in challenge, daring me to say something, but I know my sister. I shut my mouth with a snap, knowing that anything that came out of it at the moment would just incriminate me in her evil plans. I turned back around, stalking after Emmett and Bella, keeping my eyes high and my posture stiff.
The club was closed, it being the middle of the day and all, so we parked out back, and waited for Emmett to let us in. Once the door was open, we all barged into the club. Alice ran for the DJ booth, her legs pumping and taking the stairs three at a time. Jasper flicked the lights on illuminating the empty dance floor. I went straight to the back room and started dragging out sparring mats.
Yes, we had done this before. A lot.
I threw the mats at Emmett, who started setting up the floor, arranging the mats in a giant square. Alice had finally found an album that would suffice – Florence and the Machine – and set the volume to a level that we could talk over. Satisfied, she bounded down the stairs, screeching to a stop in front of Emmett, bouncing on her toes.
"What are we going to learn today, Drill Master, Sir?" She saluted Emmett crisply. Emmett automatically saluted in return and Jasper yelled from across the room.
"You're doing it wrong!" Nate snickered but was bouncing up and down with excitement nearly as much as Alice.
"Well, my little pupils," Emmett started, ushering us all onto the mats. He gestured to Jasper to stand next to him. This was the usual way of doing things, Emmett playing the role of teacher and Jasper helping. I sit out most of the time but I thought it would be a good idea for me to observe closely today – I am the expert after all. I took my spot beside Bella and Rose on the mat.
"Because we have two new students today, we should start with the basics. Who would like to demonstrate?" Emmett's eyebrows wiggled.
Alice jumped up and down waving her hand in the air like a lunatic. "Me. Me, pick me!"
"Alright shorty. Come on." Alice bounded forward to stand facing Emmett. "Al, I'm going to rush at you, you know what to do." Alice nodded and Emmett charged like a bull toward the red flag.
It happened so quickly that it was barely noticeable, if I hadn't known what to look for I would have missed it too. Alice pirouetted lightly out of the way at the last minute. It was a simple evasion move we had practiced millions of times. Emmett was following the defence plan that I had used to teach him, that my master had used to teach me when I was a kid. It was an easy plan for beginners, starting at the simple evasion moves and graduating to the actual defence before finally learning how to attack, if necessary.
When we had first started doing these mini lessons, I was the only one of the group who had any experience whatsoever. Jasper knew all the theory if not the practice and Emmett would just use his size to intimidate. The first lesson, I had showed Alice and Rose how easy it was to take someone like Emmett down. He was all smiles, believing he had won the bout already. Alice, who had been to some of my boxing matches, knew just what I could do and was watching me intently hoping to catch my movements. Rose was focused as well, after having been through the Royce situation she was determined to never allow anyone get the better of her again and it sharpened her focus.
Emmett had charged me, arms held wide trying to get them around me - which might have been the end of me in a real life situation – but I had dropped to the ground and swept his legs out from under him. He landed on his side with a woof and I had straightened to cheers from the girls. It was just a demonstration to show them that no matter how big the target or how strong, they could be overcome with brains and practice.
The group applauded Alice now. Emmett grinned and clapped her on the back in congratulations.
"Did you catch that Bella?" he asked, turning to the brunette beside me. She nodded but looked confused. "Let's do it again, slower this time so Bella can see."
There were a couple more demonstrations before Emmett let us break into pairs to practice. I smirked at Rose knowing she would be my partner today while Emmett ran the class. Rosalie and I have a competitive streak and our battles were always interesting. It felt odd to charge a woman as if I were going to attack her; I would never do such a thing. As I've mentioned, men beating on women is a big no-no in my book, its sacrilege. Rosalie was intense in learning everything she could to protect herself and she had become more than proficient with this simple move.
I kept an eye on Bella, who was working with Nate while Emmett hovered over them and I was happy to see she was doing well, even if Nate was taking it a tad too seriously. There was an odd clenching in my gut as I watched him charge the small woman. My fists clenched at my sides and my palms itched to go over there and pummel him, even if he was her brother.
In my distraction, Rosalie kicked my ass, literally. Laughing, she helped me up and we stood at attention, waiting for the next part of the lesson, which just happened to be an 'evade and restrain' tactic.
Rose and Jasper demonstrated. Jasper attacked Rose, but she used the side step to evade him. As she did, her hand flicked out and grabbed Jasper's wrist, pirouetting and twisting his arm with her. Jasper dropped to his knees, Rose pulling his arm as high up his back as she could and feinted jabbing her knee into his back. There was another cheer from the group as Jaz got up and rolled his shoulder with grimace.
We had to replay the move a few times, slower so that Bella could see and then we set up the groups again.
A few more defence tactics later and we were all sweating. At the end of a lesson, I always staged a mock battle with one of the others just to see how much they had really retained. I picked Jasper today, just because I knew it would be a bit of a challenge. Out of everyone, Jasper was the one with the most skill. He and I enjoyed sparring in our spare time and he and I often hit the gym together.
We circled each other, light on our feet, waiting for the first move and counter-move. Jasper feinted to the left then spun to the right instead, taking a jab at my exposed side. I moved out of his reach, circling again. I saw his weakness; he was focused on me but on my hands and not my feet. I tested it, throwing a hand out to his midsection. He successfully blocked, pushing my hand away from his body, I went with my momentum, spinning all the way round and dropping at the last minute to take his feet out. He tried to evade but wasn't quick enough to jump out of the way, my leg catching his foot and he went down with a thud onto the mat.
Everyone clapped a job well done and dispersed to wash up in the staff toilets. I helped Jasper up, clapping him on the back and sending him on hi way. Emmett and I put the mats away, chattering away about the lesson before heading to the bar for a well-earned drink.
Bella POV
When Alice pulled me into the house and dragged me upstairs, and ordered me into navy blue sweats and matching tank top, I growled and grumbled. Physical exertion is not my forte and I had already expended enough energy today to cover the rest of the week. But when Alice tells you to do something, you do it or suffer her wrath, which I would rather not.
When I stepped out of the bathroom, Alice threw a matching head- and wrist-band at me. I looked up and noticed she was dressed the same but in that disgustingly bright canary yellow. I shuddered. Typical Alice though, bright! Rose was painting her nails to match her suit, which was pink. When our eyes met, hers rolled skyward and I nodded slightly. Alice's eyes flickered between us, not missing the silent conversation going on.
"If you two complain, I'm going to cut your hair off while you sleep," she growled. I chuckled thinking that I wouldn't be staying with her much longer and that would thwart her evil plans. Then I remembered that Edward is her brother and if she really wanted to, she would find a way.
"I love this colour, Alice," I said, trying to placate the little pixie.
"It suits you fantastically," she said thoughtfully. "But that's not why I picked it for you. Edward is going to simply love it."
I narrowed my eyes at my best friend, knowing she was up to something and it probably involved torturing her brother. It's like she knew about what was happening between us. Then again, she probably did. Alice made it her job to know pretty much everything about the people around her, much to our dismay.
When we got downstairs, I finally found out why I was forced into one of the three musketeers outfits. Self-defence, I had almost forgotten. In fact, I had almost forgotten the whole James debacle, which was just fine with me. Edward said he wasn't at his apartment, he had probably fled town. God, I hoped so. It felt like the whole time I had been living with James was just a fuzzy nightmare but I had woken up to the best of realities. The Bella I was before I met Edward, was just a shadow of the real me and I finally had a chance to let her out of her cage.
Freedom. That one little word summed up my thoughts and feelings of the last couple of days. I was finally free to do as I wanted, not what someone else wanted of me. Well, except Alice, who had taken it upon herself to be my boss in life; and Edward who insisted I take the amazing apartment despite my protests. It must run in the family, their mother was just as nice as they were, though she still made me nervous due to the fact that she had no idea of my involvement with her son.
We went to the club and I was, once again, struck by how much I had forgotten about that night. I had almost wiped the entire incident from my memory. Coming back to the club should have brought it to the forefront, and it did, but it was like it had happened in the dream, like it had happened to someone else and I had been watching from afar. I was disconnected from the whole situation.
Shrugging it off, I filed in after the others, grabbing Nate's arm and hugging it to me. He pried me off so he could drape it over my shoulder, pulling me into his side. I nuzzled into him, smelling the warmth of home and comfort. My little brother could sometimes be an absolute twat but I was so glad to have him here, my little piece of home.
We started the class. Emmett took charge immediately, hovering over me and Nate and interrupting our bouts to give us handy tips on where to place our feet or when exactly to dodge our opponent. I have to say it was very educational and easier than I thought it would be. I thought I had done quite well by the end of it considering I hadn't fallen over once.
Emmett clapped me on the back and told me to go shower up so I followed Alice and Rose to the back of the club and down a hallway. To my surprise, the staff toilets had a single shower. We took turns, chatting away about inconsequential things until Alice brought up the inevitable.
"So, how's things with my brother?" she asked over the top of the shower stall. I was brushing through my wet hair until she spoke, freezing mid-stroke.
"Ah, good I suppose," I said hesitantly, untangling the brush from a snarl in my hair. I hadn't told anyone about our decision and I didn't know how Alice would take it, she was so excited that anything at all was happening between us.
"What do you mean 'suppose'?" she replied sharply. Rose was looking across at me from the other mirror as she applied a fresh coat of lip-gloss.
Yep, just the reaction I didn't want.
"Um, we…uh…sort of... decided to…cool it off?" I stuttered, my statement turning into a question. Rosalie's eyebrows rose into her hairline.
"What the fuck for?" she asked incredulously, smacking her perfect cherry lips.
"Well," I thought about it before I said it. "Nate freaked out today when he saw Edward carrying me. I haven't told him yet and I want to do it in my own time. He's going to flip enough as it is, I'll be lucky if he doesn't call Charlie." After my revelation today, I didn't think the second reason was quite so important anymore. "And, the whole James thing just happened. Edward just broke up with the bitch-face he was dating. We both need a bit of time to sort that out in our heads. Plus I just met him, you freaks, I can't fall in love with him already!"
I gasped and clapped a hand over my mouth. Alice squealed from the other side of the stall and I heard the water turn off before she appeared behind me in a towel, flinging her still wet arms around me and squeezing.
"Holy crap! I knew it; I knew you would be my sister one day! Yes!" She jumped up and down in her excitement, still holding onto me with surprising strength.
"Alice," I gasped. "Let go…can't…breathe."
"Oh, sorry," she chirped, letting go and jumping around. "I knew it!"
She pranced back into the shower stall to get dressed while Rose chuckled.
"Anyway, back to the first question," Rose said tactfully. "Why you guys aren't gettin' it on." I blushed a few shades of red and Rose coughed. "So you are gettin' it on?"
"Not anymore," I said in a quiet voice. Alice burst out of the stall, dressed this time.
"What the hell has he done?" she seethed. "Fucked it up already?"
"No, no!" I reassured quickly. "We both decided that we were moving too fast. I mean, yeah we slept together-" Rose snorted. I ignored her and kept going, "-but I don't know anything about him."
"His favourite colour is blue or green, he plays every instrument under the sun, he works in promotions, I'm his sister, his friends and family are awesome, he's an old romantic and he really, really likes you," Alice rattled off. I gaped at her. "What? Now you know everything."
"Everything?" I asked, sceptically.
"Well, not quite," Alice smirked. "I know everything." I slung an arm around her shoulders and pulled her out of the bathroom, Rosalie following close behind us.
"Don't we know it," I grinned. "What exciting adventures are we going to have next?"
Alice stopped and put her fingers to her temples, humming and closing her eyes. "I see," she said in a spooky voice. "Drinks!"
"Fancy that, we are in a bar," Rose said sarcastically. Alice poked her tongue out at her back as she walked to the bar where Emmett was serving up drinks.
"Hey, hot stuff," Emmett purred, slipping his arm around Rose's waist and kissing her soundly. I slipped into the bar stool next to Edward, looking shyly up at him and smiling. He picked up my hand, kissing my palm before placing it back on the bar. "Vodka? Beer? Tequila? What can I get for you stunning ladies?"
"Shots!" Alice looked at me pointedly as I opened my mouth to protest. "Shut it, Bells." My mouth snapped closed and I shrugged. It's not like I had to go to work or anything. Alice grinned in triumph.
"Sure," Emmett agreed. "How about something special?"
"As long as it tastes good," I said softly. Emmett nodded and turned around to scan the shelves of liquor. He pulled down a bottle of gold tequila and sambuca, then reached under the bar, placing a bottle of Tabasco sauce next to the liquor.
"Flatliners," he announced. Nate was by my side in seconds, that boy loves shots. "You boys in?"
At their nods, he lined up six shot glasses on the bar and started with the Sambuca, lining the bottom of the shots with the black syrupy liquor. With a flourish, he put the bottle back in its correct position on the shelf and unscrewed the tequila. Pouring carefully, he topped the shot glasses up with the golden liquid, making sure it did not mix with the sambuca but layered nicely. Flipping the bottle expertly around his hand, he put it back on the shelf too, picking up the last ingredient; Tabasco. Carefully administering the hot sauce, he let three drops fall into each shot.
I looked at the shot dubiously. They looked pretty but I doubted they tasted that great. As awesome as tequila is, it's not very tasty, and Tabasco is one hot sauce. However, I picked up one of the shots along with everyone else, raised it citing 'cheers' and downed it. It burnt and made me cough, trying to get some air into my lungs, but after the initial burn, the Sambuca left a nice, sweet, aniseed taste in my mouth. I pressed my burning tongue to the roof of my mouth, savouring the liquorice taste, delicious.
Emmett was watching me closely. I gave him a nod of approval and he whooped, pumping his fist in the air in triumph.
"I knew you'd like it Bella-doll," he grinned. "It's got a bit of spice to it, like you."
I grimaced at him while the others chuckled at my expense. I just can't understand why he has to give everyone a nickname. I have a name and it's already been shortened into a nickname. Why did he have to give my nickname a nickname?
Jesus, Bella, your thoughts are confusing yourself with this silly never-ending internal monologue. Maybe we should stop right here…
And suddenly, another shot smelling of crème de menthe was shoved under my nose. Not even pausing to ask what it was, I threw it back, slamming it back on the bar and gasping for another. Shot after shot is definitely a good way of stopping thoughts dead in their tracks and that's what I was aiming for – sweet oblivion.
The music changed and I squealed with delight, jumping up as Nickleback's Animals blasted through the speakers. Alice joined me, squealing and dragged Nate onto the dance floor. I grabbed Edward's hand, pulling him with me to the centre of the floor. Dropping his hand, I turned and stalked toward Alice, singing along to the song.
I, I'm driving black on black
Just got my license back
I got this feeling in my veins this train is coming off the track
I'll ask polite if the devil needs a ride
Because the angel on my right ain't hanging out with me tonight
We danced up and down on each other. Hands were flying all over the place, hair flicking back and forth, and shoulders shaking. You name the corny eighties dance moves and we were doing it. We were acting like the idiots we are and loving every minute of it. Alice and I had pulled this before, though none of our friends were around to witness it. It was a song we couldn't help but dance to – how can you not with a beat like that and those dirty lyrics that no one really hears.
We turned back to the boys, stalking towards them. When I reached Edward, I wrapped my arms around his neck, shaking my hips from side to side and rubbing up and down along his body, smirking as the lines of the song turned dirty. Edward's eyes were wide and his mouth was hanging slightly open, his eyes flicking quickly between me and Nate.
I'm driving past your house while you were sneaking out
I got the car door opened up so you can jump in on the run
Your mom don't know that you were missing
She'd be pissed if she could see the part of you that I've been kissing.
Screamin'
I smirked again, knowing what was going to happen next was probably rather cruel of me, but it was all in good fun. I spun around and pressed my body flush with Edward's chest. One of my arms twisted behind me so my fingers could comb through the soft hair at the nape of his neck. I sashayed my hips slightly from side to side, teasing him and feeling him harden beneath me. I spun back around at the chorus, singing and watching Edward from beneath my lashes.
No, we're never gonna quit
Ain't nothing wrong with it
Just acting like we're animals
No, no matter where we go
'Cause everybody knows
We're just a couple of animals
So come on baby, get in
Get in, just get in
Check out the trouble we're in
I probably shouldn't have done it, especially to this song. I was almost taunting him. Dangling the bait in front of him but he wasn't allowed to bite. He did well though, only pressing his erection into my stomach once and resting his hands gently on my swaying hips. He even joined in, murmuring the chorus to me through his upturned lips.
The next verse was the real test though. I wrapped my arms around his neck, plastering my body to his, and whispered the words in his ear. I was very aware of what it was doing to him and how very, very mean it was of me to do it, but I couldn't find the need to care.
You're beside me on the seat
Got your hand between my knees
And you control how fast we go by just how hard you want to squeeze
It's hard to steer when you're breathing in my ear
But I got both hands on the wheel while you got both hands on my gears
By now, no doubt that we were heading south
I guess nobody ever taught her not to speak with a full mouth
'Cause this was it, like flicking on a switch
It felt so good I almost drove into the ditch.
I'm screamin'
I released Edward, turning to face Alice as the next verse started. I took both her hands and we swayed to the music, grinning at each other stupidly as we starting singing softly.
We were parked out by the tracks
We're sitting in the back
And we just started getting busy
When she whispered "What was that?"
The wind, I think 'cause no one else knows where we are
And that was when she started screaming
"That's my dad outside the car!"
Oh please, the keys, they're not in the ignition
Must have wound up on the floor while we were switching our positions
I guess they knew that she was missing
As I tried to tell her dad it was her mouth that I was kissing.
Alice and I burst into ridiculous laughter as the song finished, gasping and almost crying with our mirth.
"Oh, my god!" Alice gasped, clutching onto my shoulders so she wouldn't fall over. "I freakin' love that song!"
"I know right? How awesome are we?" I laughed.
"Fucking awesome!"
We high-fived each other and then the clapping started. We turned; I had completely forgotten that everyone was here. Emmett was grinning fit to split his face and he and Rosalie cheered loudly. Jasper was smiling and clapping demurely and both Nate and Edward were still standing where we had left them. Nate recovered first and with a worried look at Jasper, he clapped as well. Edward's eyes clouded and I could see the muscles in his jaw standing out with tension. I smiled and Alice and I bowed to our audience.
Emmett cupped his hands around his mouth, booming. "Ladies and gentlemen! Bella-bam-bida and The Small One formally known as Alice!"
Alice and I rolled our eyes and joined the others back at the bar. The club would open soon and even though it was a Tuesday night, people would be arriving soon to join in the night's entertainment – which happened to be a nice little blues band. We decided we would stick around and watch the band for a while; we didn't have anything better to do.
There is plot coming up, seriously. I have it all planned now! Mwahaha!
I have my OS sitting in front of me right now, doing final edits. Be prepared, it will be up sometime very soon! Argh!
-Gee