"Sit down, Mike. Let me go get Izzy." Edward said, suddenly sounding very awake. I heard his footsteps coming toward the bedroom. I was gingerly pulling one of his oversized T-shirts over my head by the time he entered the room. Large T-shirts and tank tops were the easiest tops to get on and off with my sling.

"Izzy…" he started.

"I heard." I pulled on a pair of pink sleep shorts. Edward opened his top drawer and was rooting around for a shirt for himself. I immediately noticed the bright red scratch marks on his right shoulder.

"Oh my God, Edward. I'm so sorry. I really scratched you." I frowned, lightly touching the inflamed area.

"Are you kidding me? I'm going to be thinking about how hot that was all day at work. You like it a little rough, huh, baby?" he teased, turning around from the dresser and wrapping his arms around my waist. He looked down at me with a grin.

"I knew that you were going to be hot in bed. You seem to like it rough. I can give it to you rough."

I pushed Edward away immediately. My heart started beating rapidly and I felt like I couldn't catch my breath.

"What's wrong?" he asked, his grin disappearing immediately.

"N-n-nothing." I stuttered. I wrapped my arms around my middle and backed up.

"Your face is white and you are shaking. Tell me what's wrong." Edward demanded.

"But Mike…"

"He can wait. Why are you trembling, Princess? What's wrong?" He put his hands on my shoulders and focused on my face, waiting for an answer.

"That night… Aro…when he was on top of me, he told me that since I liked it rough, he would give it to me rough. And then he started hitting my head on the ground…" I stopped, hot tears blurring my vision. I realized that I had never shared the specific details of what he'd said, not even with Angela or the police.

"Izzy…I love you. What we do with each other is out of passion – it's an expression of how we feel about each other. What that sick fuck did is about control. He tried to take something from you that you didn't want to give. I hope you know that I would never hurt you like he did." He said emphatically.

"I know."

"Am I too rough with you? Tell me, baby, please. I thought you liked it but…" He pleaded with me.

"Edward, I do like it…I love it. It's just … hearing you say that I liked it rough took me back to that night and…"

"Maybe it's too soon. We don't have to…"

"I've never thought about him while we were together. Not once. That was just a trigger, I guess."

"Maybe you should tell me everything that he said to you so I can know…I don't want to hurt you and I don't want you to be scared of me."

"Okay. After Mike leaves." I suggested. Edward nodded and pulled me into his arms. I felt warm, safe, loved. He rubbed my back until I stopped shaking. I told him that I was going to the bathroom to splash water on my face and would be out in a few. He kissed my forehead and went into the living room.

"He said there are a couple different devices that he can use." Mike was saying when I joined them. I sat down on the sofa next to Edward; Mike was on the loveseat. Edward took my left hand and intertwined our fingers.

"Can you catch me up?" I asked.

"I'm sorry for getting you out of bed, but Demitri needs instructions." Mike explained. Even though it was two in the morning, Mike looked fresh as a daisy, dressed in a pair of grey trousers and a white collared shirt.

"Demitri is the guy you hired to follow us, right?" I inquired.

"Yes. He followed us tonight to the restaurant and that's when he noticed two guys in a black Ford tailing our cab, waiting outside of the restaurant about a block away, and then tailing our cab back here." Edward told me.

"Demitri said one guy is white, blonde hair, multiple tattoos. The other guy is black with long dreadlocks." Mike said. "Once you guys came back here, they left and Demitri followed them. Apparently they are staying in an apartment on top of a pawn shop in Brooklyn."

"Brooklyn?" I repeated, thoroughly confused.

"I did a little research to see who owned the building. The police searched property records under Aro's whole name-Aro Miklos- and they only came up with the house that he lives in, the address that he gave to you." Mike said. "This Brooklyn property is listed under Miklos Corp. So I searched to see how many other properties are owned by Miklos Corp. There are eleven in New York, all over."

"A couple in Brooklyn, one in the Bronx, four in Long Island and the rest in Manhattan." Edward told me.

"So what does this mean?" I inquired.

"Well first of all, it means that all of these properties and businesses are probably fronts for illegal activity. But more importantly, it means that he could be hiding out at any of these places." Mike said.

"So can't we tell the police that we did a property search and found these records and they should check them out?" I asked.

Edward and Mike both looked at each other.

"Demitri wants to bug the car and the Brooklyn apartment to find out as much information about Aro as we can before the police move in on them. He also wants to install a tracking device on the Ford." Mike finally said.

"Tell him to do it." Edward insisted.

"Ed, you realize that any information that is obtained will not be admissible in court since it was obtained illegally." Mike advised.

"Yes, I understand that. At least we'll have some idea of his plans and can stay one step ahead. And we can use the information to drop hints to the police anonymously through their tip line and hopefully put them on the right track."

"And if that doesn't work?" Mike inquired. "The wheels of justice can be slow. Getting warrants, performing searches- there can be a lot of red tape."

"Then I'll go after him myself." He said, looking at me.

~SD~

"So Izzy, tell me about what's happened since I last saw you?" Angela asked, after I got comfortable on the leather sofa. I caught her up, going through the reconciliation with Edward, the package from Aro, and the party at Edward's parents' house.

"Wow, Izzy. You've had a really busy week." She observed. "How are you feeling?"

"Better. I've been trying to talk out my feelings and it's been helping. I don't feel so overwhelmed all of the time."

"So you're sleeping better now?"

"Yes. Much better."

"And still no nightmares or anxiety attacks, right?"

"Well…there was one incident that was weird."

"Tell me about it." Angela encouraged, taking off her glasses and sitting on the edge of her seat.

"Edward took me on a date and we had an amazing time and when we got back he had a romantic thing all set up and we had an even more amazing time." I felt my face flushing.

"Ohhh this sounds really juicy." She joked.

"Things got very…heated and when we're together it's just so good. I kind of scratched him…" I admitted.

"I'm sure he didn't mind." She smirked.

"No, he didn't. He teased me and said that I liked it rough. And all of a sudden, I was back on the ground with Aro on top of me trying to pull my pants off. I started shaking and I felt so scared. Even though I was with Edward."

"Did Aro say something similar that night?"

"He said the exact same thing, that I liked it rough and that he would give it to me rough."

"Did you tell Edward how you were feeling and that you'd had a flashback?"

I nodded.

She smiled. "I am so proud of you. That was really brave. A lot of women don't share their trauma with their partners. Was he supportive?"

"He told me that he loved me and that he would never hurt me like Aro did. And he asked me if he was too rough with me. He even said that we didn't have to have sex if I wasn't ready."

"Wow, Izzy. He sounds like a really great guy. Are you sure he and your ex have the same parents?"

I laughed out loud. "My friend Rose has asked the same question."

"Do you feel like you're not ready?"

"Not at all. I love being with him. And I do like it when he's rough. Is that normal?"

"Very normal. Women are socialized to believe that all we should want is quiet missionary sex but it's not true. Sometimes we like to be manhandled. Anything that is consensual is fair game. But what happened with Aro obviously wasn't consensual. If something happens that elicits that fear response again, talk about it. You're on the right track."

We wrapped up a few minutes later and I made an appointment for the following week. Rose was sitting in the waiting room, squinting at her cell phone.

"Stop being so vain and get some damn glasses." I chastised her. She'd gotten a prescription from the eye doctor two years before and it just sat in a drawer. Thank God she wasn't a surgeon.

"Shut up, there was a glare from the sun through the window and I couldn't read the screen." She explained, standing up. "Alice wants us to meet her at her job and go to dinner."

"Ummm, I'm not sure if that's a good idea." I said. With the threat of Aro and his goons hanging over my head, I tried not to go anywhere that wasn't absolutely necessary without Edward. But at the same time, I missed girl time with Rose and Alice. "Let me text Edward." I said as we walked to Rose's car

Do you think it would be alright if Alice, Rose and I went to dinner? -Izzy

Sure, Princess. Just be careful and stay together. How was your session? -Edward

After Mike had left and we'd talked more about what happened with Aro, I'd admitted to Edward that I had started seeing a therapist. He thought it was a great thing and was nothing but positive about it.

It was good. How's work? -Izzy

Awful. One of my clients is being charged with tax fraud and he swears that it's a mistake. I'm going to be working on this issue all weekend. -Edward

Well, he has the best lawyer in the world representing him :) -Izzy

I thought I was his only lawyer :( -Edward

You are so silly! I love you -Izzy

I love you too, Princess. Have fun with your friends. –Edward

"It's cool. Let's go eat." I said to Rose.

"Look at that humongous grin! You are sooooo in love." She teased as she maneuvered through traffic.

"I am, Rose. I have never felt this way about anyone before." I admitted.

"Has he said it to you yet?"

"Yes." I told her.

"Wow! Give me all the details…where were you…who said it first?" she wanted to know. I told her our story while we sat in Friday evening traffic. After what felt like forever, we pulled up in front of Eclipse.

"I'll call her and tell her to come outside. No way am I trying to park." Rose said. Five minutes later Alice was crawling into the backseat with a huge binder in her hands.

"What's that?" I asked, gesturing toward the book.

"Wedding stuff. We need to start planning." Alice said. Rose groaned. I didn't envy her at all; Alice was opinionated and sometimes she could be overbearing.

"Where do you want to go for dinner?" Alice inquired.

"How about sushi?" I suggested.

"Oh, there's a new Japanese place not far from here." Alice said excitedly. We all loved to try new restaurants. There was a long wait when we arrived, so we opted to sit at the bar until our table was ready. Alice sat between us and opened the binder.

"I have some dress ideas. You have the perfect figure so you can pull off pretty much anything." She flipped through the photos slowly.

"I like this one, Rose." I said, pointing to a strapless gown with a beaded lace bodice and a long tulle skirt.

"I was thinking something a little more form fitting. Like this one." She pointed to a gown with a satin bodice and a trumpet skirt.

"Hello, ladies. Twice in one week, huh?" All three of us turned simultaneously to face Emmett standing behind us. Fuck.

"Hello, Emmett." Alice said tonelessly. Rose totally ignored him, turned back around and sipped her martini.

"Hi Emmett." I greeted him and then I turned around as well. I prayed that he would go away but of course he didn't.

"Izzy, can I talk to you for a minute? Alone?"

"Emmett, why don't you just…" Rose started and I held my hand up to stop her.

"Emmett, we really don't have anything to say to each other. Have a good night." I told him, not even turning around.

"Izzy, I really miss you. I miss us."

"What?" I cried. I spun around and looked at him, my eyebrows furrowed. To say that I was flabbergasted would have been a gross understatement.

"I know you miss me too, babe. I saw you staring at me at my parents' house."

Alice choked on her drink.

"Emmett, I'm with Edward now."

"I'm willing to look past your mistake. You'll never have with him what we had." He insisted.

"Thank God." Rose muttered.

He leaned in and whispered in my ear. "I know he's not fucking you as good as I did." He licked my ear lobe. Ew.

I pushed him away. "Emmett, just stop. It's over."

"Alice, party of three…Alice, party of three!" The hostess called. We all stood up and grabbed our drinks.

"Good bye, Emmett. Say hi to Bree for me." I said as I brushed past him.

"Whatever. You two deserve each other. You're both fucking losers." Emmett mumbled as he walked away.

"I can't believe him!" Alice exclaimed.

"I can. He really believes he is God's gift to women." Rose surmised.

"I don't care what he believes anymore. I am totally and completely done with him. Rose, have you and Jake picked a wedding date yet?" I asked. And that was the end of that.

~SD~

"I'm home!" I called, shutting the door behind me. I listened for a response but there was none. Was Edward even home? I walked down the hallway to his office and pushed the door open. He was sitting at the massive desk and it was completely covered in various documents. The phone was nestled between his shoulder and cheek and he was typing rapidly on his laptop.

"I don't know if filing a motion to dismiss is the best option." He said into the phone. He smiled when he saw me and I leaned over and kissed his cheek and left him to his work. I puttered around the apartment, straightening up. There were a few dishes in the sink and Edward had left half of the pizza he'd ordered for his dinner on the counter.

I went into the bedroom and turned on my own computer. I had been working on a novel in my spare time for the last few months; I hadn't told anyone about it. I had always dreamed of writing a book, ever since I was a teenager. After college I had written for a newspaper for a couple years before I started writing grants, but my ultimate goal was to be an author. I tried to focus but all I could think about was how sexy Edward was when he was totally into his work. He was a handsome man, but his intelligence was very attractive to me, too. My mind began to wander and pretty soon I was aching for him.

I undressed and took a quick shower, donning a pair of red lace cheeky panties and a matching demi bra. Shameless. I sauntered down the hall to his office barefoot and peeked in. He wasn't on the phone, but he was paging through a thick book and making notes.

"Edward, I know you're busy, but I just need five minutes."

"Princess, I really can't…" he started to say, not even looking up from his book.

"Just five minutes." I interrupted. He looked up and his eyes grew wide. I crossed the room quickly, straddled his lap and kissed him feverishly. His arms came around me and he kissed me back. I reached between us and rubbed his cock, which was growing hard under my touch.

"Fuck, baby." He groaned. He unbuttoned his jeans and I reached into his boxers and pulled him out. I licked my palm and stroked him, up and down, relishing his velvety smoothness. He deftly reached between my legs.

"Baby…your panties are soaked." He whispered as he touched me. "What's got you so hot, naughty girl?"

"You…you're so sexy when you are working…it turns me on…I don't know why but it does." I breathed. I pulled the crotch of my panties aside, grabbed the back of his chair for leverage and sank down onto his cock. I moaned against his neck as he stretched me. He gripped my hips and I rode him for all I was worth, grinding and twisting my hips, my hair falling into his face.

"God, you feel so good, Edward…"

"Your pussy is so wet, baby. You're dripping…"

"I needed you so bad…"

"Does my dick feel good in your needy pussy?"

"So good…"

"You like it?"

"I fucking love it…you're so deep in my pussy…" I cried, completely uninhibited and lost in my pleasure.

"Goddamn, Izzy…"

"I'm gonna come…" I moaned. The phone on his desk began to ring.

"Don't stop, baby. Keep riding me. I'm close, too…"

"Yes…oh fuck!" I buried by face against his shoulder as I splintered apart, my muscles contracting violently around his cock. He squeezed my ass and he released into me, grunting with each spurt. Both of us were breathing hard, like we'd just run a race. The phone stopped ringing and immediately started again. I pecked his lips and got up from his lap and he answered the phone.

"Cullen."

After a quick stop in the bathroom, I went to the bedroom and got dressed for bed. I heard my cell phone chime, letting me know that I had a text message.

I have the hottest, sexiest girlfriend in the whole world. – Edward

Aren't you supposed to working? –Izzy

I can do two things at once. My client likes to talk, he's not so good at listening. You were a very bad girl tonight -Edward

I was…but it felt so good to be bad –Izzy

I liked the bad girl in her devilishly red lingerie, just taking what she wants. Hopefully she can come out and play again –Edward

I'm sure you haven't seen the last of her. – Izzy

I love you, Izzy. So much. – Edward

I love you, too. So much. -Izzy