Disclaimer: Sadly I don't own Twilight, Stephenie Meyer does.
Part of the credit for this chapter goes to Mischief-Maker1 (love ya!) for coming up with the idea for the private dinner. All I had to do was add the chocolate soufflé. If you haven't already, go read her stories. They are made of awesome!
I added links on my profile to Bella's dress, the restaurant and chocolate soufflé (for those who don't know what it looks like – do they even exist? - or those who just want to gush over the gooey chocolaty deliciousness).
Heart to heart. (lemon)
"You know what he's got planned, don't you," I said, tightening my eyes to slits as I looked at Rose through the mirror glass.
"I do, but I'm not telling." She enjoyed being in the know a little too much for my liking.
"I'll remember that the next time you're in hospital alone," I grunted.
"Oh shut it you baby!" she giggled, whacking me on the head with her comb. "You're going to enjoy yourself! That's what matters."
"I am?" Maybe this would make her give something away.
"You know Edward, right?" she snorted. "So you know he'll probably have something revoltingly romantic planned out."
I laughed. Rose had never been one for romance – except for the day when she was getting married. She and Emmett were a match made in heaven since my dear brother probably wouldn't recognize a romantic gesture if it came up and slapped him in the face.
"Yes, he's very good at that," I said, smiling as I thought about all the romantic things Edward had done since we had gotten back together.
"Ugh! I'm going to hurl!" Rose said, making gagging noises. "Please just slap me again if I ever go all gooey like that!"
"Your face would have been black and blue if I would have done that when Emmett and you first got back together!"
"Would not!" she yelled, yanking on an errant strand of my hair.
"Oh please!" I said rolling my eyes. "If I'd had a dollar for every time I walked in on you and my brother in some form of PDA I would have been a bloody millionaire!"
"That's different," she stated, fixing my hair with some styling products. "That's because what we do is hot, not nauseating. If Emmett would ever write me a love poem I would divorce his sorry ass in a minute."
"Thank God you're in no great danger there!" I chuckled.
"I guess not," she laughed. "I mean I love your brother with all my heart and I can't wait to get married to him, but all that romantic stuff is really giving me the creeps. I fell for that once before and look where that made me end up." She shivered as she remembered her past. "After my little brush in with Royce and his croonies I promised myself I would never fall for all that romantic crap again. However you're free to like it."
"Why thank you," I replied. When I had first met Rose she was still recovering from that horrible night when her drunk boyfriend and his friends had attacked her in the streets and left her for death. She had just pulled up her defenses, some of which she was only now slowly starting to let down. To the outside world she still came off as prickly and unpleasant but I knew what was lurking underneath.
It had taken me some time to get used to the way she treated my brother. Okay, I knew every snide remark she made was a veiled declaration of love, but still I couldn't help myself from getting into 'protective sister mode' every time she called Emmett a dumb ass. In time I had gotten used to it and since Emmett seemed to think it was just part of their foreplay it didn't bother me anymore. In fact, it had kind of started to gross me out.
"Come on," she snickered, shooing me into the bedroom. "Let's just get you dressed. Edward and Libby should be here soon."
Edward told me he was going to pick up Libby from kindergarten after dropping me off at Rose's to spend some time alone with her this afternoon. I swear those two were thick as thieves but I was past the stage where that made me feel jealous or left out. I was just counting my blessings really.
It would have been so easy for Edward to back out of all of this when he found out I had a child, or to be completely spooked by it. Who knew he would be so natural at being a dad? He had just taken to it like he had never done anything else, though I knew that it must have been hard for him to come to terms with all of this.
It made me feel even more guilty for allowing myself to get so caught up in my own misery the last few days. Here he was, just trying to come to terms with everything that happened and trying to adjust to the completely new direction his life had taken, and I go and get all distant and broody on him.
I would never forgive myself for asking him to leave. I shouldn't have done it, not even if his behavior infuriated me the way it did. I knew it was his biggest fear that I would leave him again and – since I shared that fear – I could totally understand how he must have been feeling.
"Are you going to get dressed or what?" Rose said, smirking at me.
"Yes," I said, shaking my head to clear away my thoughts. "What have you picked for me?"
Ever since Edward and I had got back together I had developed a whole new appreciation for fashion. I still didn't care about it and I really couldn't give a toss about who designed it, but whenever Edward took me out I wanted to look nice for him and if that meant stuffing my body into some horribly overpriced dress then so be it. At least Rose and Alice were taking care not to torture me with heals that were too high.
"This looks rather nice," I said, brushing my hand over the simple black dress Rose had laid out for me on the bed.
"Thanks! Alice and I picked it out for you right before she left for LA," she replied.
"What would I do without the two of you?" I mocked, lifting the dress over my head.
"Probably wear sweats!" she snorted. "By the way, do you know what the guys have planned for the bachelor party?"
"Nope," I said, shaking my head. "Felix wouldn't tell."
"Bloody idiots," Rose huffed, shifting the dress so it looked perfect.. "It's not as I we don't know there will probably be strippers and beer involved."
"Are you okay with that?" I asked. I knew how revolted Edward had been by the prospect of having to go through the traditional bachelor-party Felix was throwing Emmett. The look on his face whenever someone mentioned it pretty much cleared away any hint of jealousy I might have felt.
"Sure," Rose shrugged. "I know Emmett would like to have a traditional bachelor bash and it's not like he's going to cheat on me. I know he'd rather chew off his dick than stick it into some other skank's body."
"TMI!" I yelled, trying frantically to wash the mental picture from my head.
"And it's not like those strippers have anything on me anyway," she concluded, looking at her own reflection with a smug little grin. She was right, though maybe a bit overconfident. After giving birth to Charlie she had wasted no time shedding her pregnancy weight and she was now almost back to her former supermodel shapes. Right in time for the wedding.
"Rose, you do know it's midwinter right?" I said, after a gush of cold air had made me turn in front of the mirror to see why my back was feeling so cold. The dress – which I had initially thought to be nice and covering – actually had a plunging neckline. That explained the special bra she had made me wear!
"As I said before..........don't be such a baby," she scolded. "You'll be indoors most of the time anyway so you won't be having any problems with that. And just think about Edwards reaction when he sees it."
I couldn't help a blush and a smile from appearing. "That's my girl," she smiled, patting my revealed back.
"I just want to make up for how horrible I was to him the other day," I sighed.
"If you want, I could give you some pointers for that," she giggled, waggling her brows suggestively.
"I might just have taken you up on that offer if I didn't know your practice material so well," I laughed, nearly jumping up to the ceiling when the doorbell rang.
"Just go with your gut," Rose advised, rising to open the door. "Or if that fails, just follow your vagina!"
Rose would always be Rose, I was glad to see that motherhood hadn't changes any of that.
The way Edwards eyes lit up when he saw me enter the foyer sent a shiver down my spine. I carefully spun around to give him a better look of my appearance and the muffled hiss I heard when I had my back to him confirmed how much he liked my dress.
I quickly said goodnight to Libby, who was dragging her new Hello Kitty trolley – courtesy of Alice - behind her before returning my attention to Edward.
"Are you ready to go?" his velvety voice asked, his eyes scorching into mine.
"Yes," I croaked, taking his hand.
"Have fun you kids!" Rose giggled, handing Charlie over to Libby who held him very carefully. The little boy was starting to look more like Emmett every day.
"We will," Edward purred before leading me out of the building.
It wasn't really a surprise to me to see the Vanquish waiting for us, a small crowd gathering to look at it.
"Not that's a fine piece of machinery you've got there mister Cullen," Sammy, the doorman to Emmett's building, said.
"I know," Edward said, gazing lovingly at his priced possession. "And the appearance has nothing on what goes on under the hood!"
"I have no doubt about that," Sammy replied, winking at me before he walked back towards the entrance of the building. "Now have fun miss Bella."
"I will," I said, as Edward helped me into the car and sped off through the streets of New York. I tried to figure out where we were going but stopped, the city lights flashing by at a dazzling speed started to give me a headache.
I focused on something infinitely more pleasant instead. Edwards face.
"You know it's impolite to stare...." Edward chuckled, rounding a corner.
"It's just because you're so damn pretty!" I teased back, noticing we were slowing down before we pulled over in front of an old building with a white arch, revealing two rustic looking doors.
"This place was built as a carriage house in the eighteenth century," Edward explained as I studied the buildings facade. "The restaurant itself takes it's name from a verse in a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow."
"One if by land, two if by sea?" I asked. I had heard about this place. It was supposed to be the most romantic restaurant in New York. Edward had really outdone himself tonight.
He nodded. "Would you like to take a look inside?"
I took his arm again and together we walked into the building. The inside was a charming as the outside. You really got a feel of the character of the building with the exposed brick walls, the blazing fireplaces, the wooden tables and chairs scattered across the room and the eighteenth century paintings that lined the walls of the large space that used to hold the carriages of the wealthy New Yorkers.
"Cullen," Edward announced to the hostess. I really didn't like the way she was giving Edward the eye, especially not since I was standing right next to him. It sure as hell made me understand Edwards actions from yesterday a bit better.
"Ah," she replied. "I'll just check to see if your room is ready."
"Room?" I asked, turning to Edward.
"I thought it would be nice to have a little privacy during our dinner," he stated, ignoring my baffled expression.
The hostess came back after that, cutting short any further questions I had. She brought us over to a smaller room at the end of a corridor which held only one table. The walls in this room had been plastered and painted in a cozy deep red. The fireplace and painting making it feel almost homely, but with a more romantic touch to it.
Edward held out my chair for me as I sat down, still taking in the room around me. "Edward, it beautiful!" I sighed as I was done studying the room. "But you didn't have to do this. I would have been happy fixing us some dinner at home!"
"Silly Bella," he chuckled. "I wanted to do this. To make up for all the terrible mistakes I've made over the last couple of days."
"You've made mistakes?" I shook my head, he was trying to take the blame again. This time I wouldn't let him. "It's I who should be doing all of this."
"If I didn't insist on dragging you kicking and screaming to a ball, none of it would have happened," he said, taking my hand over the table and rubbing his thumb over the ball of my hand.
"But I should have been stronger and I should have been more honest with you about the way I was feeling. If I had only done that....."
I was cut off by the arrival of a waiter who handed us the menus and a basket of bread. Edward ordered us some wine and water before we could get back to our talk.
"I'm not letting you take the blame for this Bella," he stated. "I should have been more attentive to the things you were going through. I could have known that with Caius there it would be a big disaster and with everything you have been going through at work and with Renee I should have known better."
"Edward!" I said, trying to make my voice as confident as possible. "I know you like to take the blame for every bad thing that happens in our lives but I won't let you."
He shook his head, gearing up to speak but I silenced him before he could say anything.
"Yes, I've been through a lot lately but that doesn't change the fact that I acted selfishly. I should never have let Tanya, doctor House and everybody else get to me like that. I should have placed more trust in you. In us. I owe you that."
He looked away, it was his way of accepting that I had a point.
The waiter came back with the wine Edward had requested and we placed our orders. The appetizers and first course came and went without much conversation. We just remarked on the amazing tastes of our dishes and asked polite questions about work. We both knew we were just building up to the main talk. We had only been skirting around the edges earlier.
I felt ready to burst by the time the waiter brought the main course in. Edward must have felt the same because it was he who first broke the silence.
"I talked to Jacob earlier today," he stated as he took a first bite from his main course.
I took in a sharp breath. "I thought you had to work?"
"I did," Edward chuckled, knowing I was only feigning calmness. "He came by at the hospital."
"Did he leave in the same state he arrived?" I asked, remembering the livid stare down that had taken place at our place yesterday.
"Depends," he shrugged, slicing his knife through his meat.
"On what?" I knew he had me right where he wanted me, but I couldn't care less. I hated it when he was acting all cool and innocent.
"On whether or not he got into an accident on his way down to the main lobby," he chuckled, offering the bit of his duck breast he had just sliced off for me to taste.
"So you talked?" I asked with my mouth full. "Oh my God, this is delicious by the way..."
"I know. Remind me to leave a big tip..." he chuckled. "And yes...we talked. We even came to some sort of arrangement."
"Arrangement?"
"We've called a truce," he grinned, taking a large sip of his wine, while playing with his fork.
"Good," I nodded. "So the two of you will stop acting like total idiots the next time you're around each other?"
"I wasn't acting like an idiot Bella," he stated. "I was just jealous and confused. It's a perfectly normal reaction when you love someone – or so I've heard."
"It might be normal," I replied, "but I don't think I like it very much when you ca accuse me of cheating on you."
He blushed and suddenly found something very interesting about the way his vegetables were arranged on his plate. "I'm sorry about that," he muttered. "I've never felt as strongly about anyone ever before as I do about you. I guess I let myself get carried away in my jealousy. I will try to work on that in the future."
"Edward," I smiled, prying the fork from his hand and taking it in mine. "It's not the jealousy in itself I hate – if anything I find it rather sexy – it's the fact that you didn't trust me that has me worried."
"So you like my being jealous?" He smirked, flashing his perfect crooked grin.
"Don't let this get to your head, but yes....I kind of like it," I admitted. "It proves me you love me enough to fight for me. But you're evading the question."
"Which was...."
"Why you didn't trust me," I repeated. "Why you were so quick to think I was cheating on you."
He took a deep breath. "I was afraid that after the ball I had lost you. You were acting so distant and evasive that it was almost as if you were severing your ties with me. I was so afraid of loosing you that I wasn't thinking straight. I can't tell you how sorry I am for the way I acted."
He flipped our hands so that my hand was now in his, placing a kiss on the back of my hand before giving it a slight squeeze and releasing it.
"It's okay," I whispered., knowing my time to talk was coming up rapidly. "I'm sorry for making you feel that way. Even now I feel like a total hypocrite for accusing you of not trusting me when I did the same thing to you. And more."
"You're no hypocrite Bella," he sighed. "Nobody who has seen what you've had to go through would ever think of calling you that. What made you close yourself off from me though?" he asked, his concern showing on his face. "Was it just the effects of the ball or is there more to it? Emmett told me it wasn't the first time you've acted like that."
"It's just that...........I was afraid," I stammered, busying myself with my food to not have to look at the reaction on his face or – if I managed to keep my mouth full – to react to the questions that were bound to ensue.
"You were afraid?" he asked. I could hear his confusion in his voice.
I nodded, shoving another huge fork full of food into my mouth.
"Talk to me Bella," he demanded, taking my hand before I could take another bite. "Please, I want to understand what's going on in your head."
I sighed. I guess I owed him that much.
"I'm still afraid that one day you'll wake up and realize I'm not good enough for you."
"Why?" he said. He sounded so confused and ......frustrated. "Haven't I told you time and time again that I don't want anyone else but you? That I'm the one who should be frightened of that?"
"It won't help, not even if you tell me a thousand times," I sighed, unable to hide my own frustration. How could I explain to him that nothing he could ever say or do could quite undo the damage that had been caused years ago? That it would take time and many more breakdowns before my fear would really go away?. "It's just.....some things that happened in the past."
"Tell me," he asked, his eyes scorching into mine, almost as if they were trying to dazzle the truth out of me. "Please."
"In college.......no I have to go farther back," I interrupted myself. "Growing up in a small town like Forks isn't as romantic and idyllic as it's cracked up to be. Not only is it one of the most rainy places in the world, there are also some drawback to growing up in a place where everyone knows everyone."
"People aren't as open minded and cosmopolitan as they are over here for starters....... I mean, they still have dreams......Every kid in my class wanted the same thing: go off to college and get the hell out of Forks. Most of them, however, knew deep down inside that after their education they would come back, marry their high school sweetheart, start a family and end up at Forks cemetery."
"My mom was the perfect example of that. She was going to go to college and get the hell away from Forks, maybe even go to a big city like Seattle or something, and become a career woman. She was so disappointed when she got knocked up by my dad at her senior prom. She saw it as a sign that her life was over before it had even begun. When I was born she was determined not to let me end up like her. I was going to study hard, get good grades and become everything she had never managed to achieve herself."
"When it turned out that I was good at school and achieved perfect grades the others somehow saw it as a sign that I was looking down on them. That I thought I was better than them because I had a good set of brains in my head. The only person who liked me just the way I was – apart from my family – was Jake. He always defended me in class when the other kids were picking on me," I chuckled. "He was kind of like my hero. That's why I love him so much.........as a friend though, never as more than that."
"I wouldn't have fitted in regardless of my.....ambitions though," I added. "I was never blond or thin enough to be popular, too clumsy to be asked out on trips to the beach and too gloomy and broody to be considered prime dating material."
"I thought it was going to be so different when I went off to college. Since I was the only kid in my class who got accepted to an Ivy League school I was going to be free at last. Or so I thought," I couldn't hold in my bitter smile as I thought back on my first days at Yale. "In stead I ended up in a dorm room with Lauren, who never ceased to remind me that I was unworthy of even breathing in the same air as her."
"Even though I had Angela to talk to – she was kind of in the same boat as me – and Jessica was semi nice to me as long as I went with everything she said and did and didn't embarrass her in public I couldn't help but feeling so........lost, those first months at university."
"After a while things got better. I found some real friends – Angela being one of them – I really like studying at university, but the damage had been done."
I looked him straight in the eye for the first time since I had started my story.
"I think part of me will always think that I'm somehow breaking every social code in the book by being with you and that I'm dragging you down with me by allowing this to continue. Me, the poor, plain small town girl, dating the beautiful, upper class doctor." I silenced Edward before he could say anything. "I know it's not true. I love you and I know you love me too but that won't stop these feelings from seeping onto the surface every now and then."
"Is there anything I can do to keep them at bay?" He whispered, gently squeezing my hand a little.
"Not much," I chuckled. "Just be there for me and try to understands why I feel the way I feel. I know it's hard. Not even Emmett – or Jacob for that matter – understands me when I'm having one of my little spells and they have been around me for as long as I can remember."
"Bella," Edward said after I had finished. "Know that I will never stop fighting for you. I don't care about what other people say or think. All I care about is what we have together......the three of us. You are the most amazing person I have ever met in my entire life and I don't think there is anything you can't do if you set your mind to it. I will always believe in you, even when you don't believe in yourself."
He lifted my hand to his face and kissed it softly, lovingly, his thumb rubbing soothing circles in the palm of my hand.
"Thank you," I whispered, my tears spilling over the edge. I had shared my feelings with anyone as I had done tonight. Charlie had never been one to talk, Renee – when we had still been each others confidants – wouldn't have understood and Emmett......well, he was Emmett. The only two people who knew to some extend what had gone on in my life where Jacob and Angela and even with them I had never been completely open.
"You're welcome," he said, twining his hand with mine while his eyes kept up their relentless gaze. I knew he was seeing all of it now – even the things I would have rather kept hidden from him – but it didn't scare me anymore. If anything the events of the last few days – weeks if you counted the arrival of my mother – had only served to cement our bond. It is like you have to stare disaster in the face to realize what you have is worth fighting for.
Edward was worth fighting for.
What we had was worth fighting for.
I only hoped the next time something like this would happen again – as it inevitably would – I would remember this and let him in. He deserved as much.
"What is going on in that head of yours?" Edward asked. He looked a little wary. "It kills me to know you're thinking about something and I can't hear what it is."
"I'm just thinking about how I'll never stop fighting for you either so that basically means you're stuck with me," I said.
"I wouldn't have it any other way," he chuckled, kissing my hand again as our waiter came back in to collect our empty plates and hand us the menus again for our deserts.
"Would you let me pick for you?" Edward asked.
"I don't know Edward," I joked. "I'm not sure if I trust you enough.....I might just end up with some boring old puff pastry instead of glorious chocolaty goodness."
He wasn't fooled in the slightest. "Bella," he said in a mock offended tone, moving his chair over so he was sitting next to me instead of opposite me. "You know I would never subject you to a boring old puff pastry."
He moved his nose along my jaw and nipped at my earlobe while his hand trailed along my leg and inched just under the hemline of my dress. "Just imagine what this little vote of confidence would do for me....for you."
"But....." Even though the implication of his words had me trembling in my seat and happy I was sitting down, the fact that we were currently in some posh eating establishment with – I don't know – around about a hundred people in close proximity to us hadn't escaped my notice.
"What's the use of booking a private room if you don't make full use of it?" he crooned in my ear. "And I'd like to exploit this opportunity to the fullest."
I leaned my head against his while he talked. It was all I could do to keep it upright. The combined force of his words, his voice and his hands, which were still inching up my legs in an almost painfully slow pace, was enough to turn me into a swooning mess.
He inched away from me again when the waiter came in. Every cell in my body felt the loss of his warm skin against mine. The only thing that could keep it from pining too openly was the knowledge that he would soon return to me.
He whispered something to the waiter, being careful to keep whatever he was ordering a secret.
"You know how much I dislike surprises," I said as soon as the waiter had left again.
"You'll like this one," he crooned, letting his nose trail along my jaw bone before kissing me softly.
"How would you know?" I asked, moaning as he lowered his face to my neck and started nipping and sucking at the tender skin at the base of my neck.
"Believe me Bella," he chuckled against my skin, sending vibrations through my body, "I know you. I know just what you like."
His finger ghosted over the exposed skin of my back, sending shivers over my body while he placed butterfly kissed along my jaw and neck.
He practically growled at the waiter, bringing us the desert he had ordered and shot him a murderous look, but after I took one look at what he had placed in front of me – a mouthwatering chocolate soufflé – I couldn't keep my focus on what was going on around me anymore.
"If you need anything......just press the button in the corner and I will be right over," the waiter said, fidgeting about in the door opening.
"Thanks!" Edward mumbled, never taking his attention away from me.
"Well that was rude," I scolded him after the waiter had left. "You nearly gave the poor man a heart attack with all the PDA going on here and now you're all but shooing him away."
"There are certain things that should never be interrupted," he hummed against my skin.
"I beg to differ," I chuckled, breathing in the scent of Edward hair mixed with the flavor of the chocolate.
"What is it with you preferring chocolate over me?" he chuckled, pulling back a little to look into my eyes. "Is it because I'm doing something wrong?"
"You've got to be kidding, right?" I chuckled. "As a doctor you should know that's it's actually clinically proven that women prefer chocolate over sex. So there's nothing you can do about it. It's in the genes!" I said, reaching for my spoon.
"What's your take on combining the two of them?" he purred, enveloping my hand before I could stick the spoon in the little tower of chocolaty delight waiting on the table.
"What?" I was afraid my mouth was hanging a little open. I didn't know if it was from shock or excitement.
"As I said before," he said, sneaking his hand up my thigh again, "I intend to use the benefit of private dining to the fullest.
He stuck the desert spoon into the soufflé and a gush of liquid chocolate came pooling out of it. The added effect of Edward hand other hand continuing it's path up my thighs had me shivering in anticipation .
"Be a good girl and open up for me," Edward whispered in my ear, his hand sneaking up to the apex of my legs.
I looked back at him, trying to figure out which part of me he wanted to open up. I couldn't read anything in his eyes though – except for the lust – so I decided to go with both, parting my legs slightly while opening my mouth.
It appeared he had meant both as well because the moment the spoon reached my mouth and I started to lap up the deliciously gooey chocolate desert his fingers reached my folds, parting them before he eased two of his long slender fingers inside of me, his thumb reaching for my bundle of nerves.
I let my head sag against the high back of the chair, fighting to suppress my moans as Edwards lips found their way back to the space between my neck and my shoulder again. The combination of the liquid chocolate gliding down my throat, the crunchy parts slowly melting in my mouth and Edwards mouth sucking and licking my overheated skin while his fingers slowly moved in and out of me was almost too much to bear.
By the fifth bite of my soufflé I was beyond caring if anyone could hear me and I let out a high shriek as Edward slightly bit down on the skin of my neck.
"Quiet love," he chuckled. "We don't want the host to come in and interrupt us do we?"
I made a slight incline with my head, conveying that I was in total agreeable with him. It was all I could manage as I felt the pressure building up in my abdomen.
"Are you ready for another mouth full?" Edward chuckled, holding the spoon in front of my lips.
I nodded, enveloping the spoon with my lips before pulling the content into my mouth as suggestively as I could. I could perceive I was doing a good job by the way his breathing hitched an his thumb added just a little more pressure to my clit.
"God Bella," he groaned. "you'll be the death of me someday!" before crashing his lips to mine. It was all I needed to send me over the edge, my frantic moans stifled by his kisses.
"Edward!" I panted, resting my head against his shoulder as I tried to regain some of my composure. I desperately needed it if I wanted to leave this place standing upright and I was desperate to leave right now. I just wanted to go home, tear Edwards clothes off his body and devour him.
He pulled his hand out from in between my legs, licking his fingers before taking a bite of the soufflé. "You were right," he said. "It is delicious. But the taste has nothing on you."
Once again he rendered me speechless and fiery red.
"Thanks?" I finally managed. What was the appropriate thing to say on such an occasion?
"Did you have enough?" Edward asked, taking my face in his hands.
"If you mean that I've had enough to eat, then yes," I said. "If however you mean of I have had enough of you, then no. I don't think I could ever get enough of you."
"Why don't we go home and find out?" he chuckled, kissing me lightly.
"My thoughts exactly," I giggled.
Edward quickly settled the bill and left the building with a speed that nearly had me running after him to keep up.
"Where's the fire?" I panted, as I buckled up in the passenger seat of the Aston Martin.
"Really Bella?" he smirked at me, before pulling out of the parking space at full speed.
For once I was glad about his total disregard for speed limits. Between our previous actions and the smoldering glances Edward kept shooting at me whenever he didn't have to keep his eyes on the road, the thought we would be home soon was all that could keep me from jumping him in front of a red traffic light. I knew our fellow road users wouldn't be best pleased if we held up traffic like that.
Before I knew it we had gotten to our street, Edward had parked the car in front of our house and he opened the door with a fierce movement that almost tore it out of it's hinges.
"Edward? What?" I stammered as he lifted me out of my seat and almost ran the two of us to the door, cradling me to his chest.
"I need you Bella," He said, fumbling with the lock. "I need us. Naked. On the bed. Very soon. Or I'll go insane."
I opened my mouth to say something – though I didn't have the faintest clue to what I was going to say – but before I could make a sound Edward threw the door open, pushed me inside and against the wall and crashed his lips to mine.
I moaned as he ground his hips against me, kicking the door shut with one of his feet. He almost made me forget the plan I had made on our way here.
Almost.
I gently pushed him away, grinning at the look of utter confusion on his face as I maneuvered him so that he was sitting on the bottom steps of the stairs.
"Just returning the favor," I stated before reaching to unbuckle his belt and release his already prominent erection from it's restraints.
I wasted no time taking him into my mouth, relishing in the salty sweetness of his taste.
"God Bella," Edward groaned, slumping backwards against the stairs as I swirled my tongue around his length, massaging his balls with one of my hands.
I could feel he wasn't going to last long. The searing sexual tension of the night having taken as much out of his self control as it had taken out of mine.
As I bobbed my head up and down his shaft his hips started bucking slightly against me, moving along with my movements.
"Fuck," he panted, his fingers twisting into my hair. "I'm........so.......close. Don't....stop."
"Hmmm," I hummed against him. The vibrations sending him over the edge chanting my name as if it were some sacred kind of mantra.
I greedily sucked him clean before zipping his pants back up and buckling his belt again making it look as if nothing had happened.
I was hardly even done when Edward grabbed my chin and yanked me up. I lost my balance and fell against him, yelping in surprise. His arms formed a protective cage around me, breaking my fall and crashing me against his chest all in one.
His lips found mine immediately, our tongues twining together again, caressing each other as Edward let his body slump back again, taking me with him. I knew he must have been uncomfortable with his back against the steps of the staircase but he never showed it.
"Edward....." I gasped, not being able to let myself get carried away if I knew Edward might be uncomfortable.
"Bedroom. Now," he growled in between kisses.
"Yes," I panted.
We stumbled up the stairs, neither of us wanting to let go of the others lips which made our progress rather awkward considering the difference in height between the two of us.
Finally Edward let out a frustrated growl, lifted me up by my rear and carried me up the stairs.
"Much better," he purred before claiming my lips again.
He gently placed me on the bed, hovering over me with his knees on either side of my hips as he kept on kissing me. The fierceness and overpowering urgency in his kiss bating a little bit though. I bucked up my hips, grinding them into his to stir him on, my effort only met with a chuckle as he pulled back.
"No Isabella," he purred. "I intend to take my time with you tonight."
"But I need you...." I whined. I swear if the man didn't make a move soon I was going to combust.
"Patience is a virtue," he sang, rolling me over so he could reach the zipper at the back of my dress.
"So is abstaining until marriage," I grumbled, "but I don't see you eager to follow that rule!"
"Believe me my angel," he whispered in my ear. "Your patience will be rewarded." Our bodies were flush against each other now with him lying on top of me, supporting his weight with his arms and knees. "I'm going to make love to you until there are starts dancing in front of your eyes and you will scream my name so loudly you won't be able to manage anything above a whisper tomorrow."
He leaned back, supporting his body with one arm as the other pulled the zipper of my dress down, while his mouth left a trail of wet kisses along my spine.
I rolled over, locking my legs around his waist and my arms around his neck. "Make me," I hummed against his lips.
"My pleasure," he chuckled, before taking my bottom lip in between his teeth and sucking on it while his hands brushed over my shoulders, easing my dress down as they traveled over my arms.
"You're so beautiful," he said as he worked my dress down to my waist.
I still didn't believe him. I mean, you just had to look at me to see it I wasn't beautiful. Still, when he said it I could almost believe it. The way he looked at me when we made love – or even when we were sitting together in the living room watching the news – or the way he touched me. Gently, reverently almost. It unlocked all sorts of hitherto unknown feelings in me. It made me feel special.
Wanted.
Beautiful.
When I was with him I could almost forget the past. The condescending looks of the kids at school. The condescending looks from the people at university. The difficult relationship with my mother.....
"So beautiful," Edward repeated, unveiling me in nothing but my underwear as he finished removing the dress and threw it to the side. "But still you don't see it."
I tried to say something but he silenced me before I could open my mouth.
"I see it in your eyes, every time I tell you," he said, shaking his head slightly. "You don't believe me. You believe those idiots you met when you were younger."
He caressed my skin from my ankled to my collarbone. His hands moving slowly, reverently over my body. "They never saw you clearly," he said, his eyes boring into mine, "just as you don't see yourself clearly."
"And you do?" I asked sarcastically.
"Let me start describing to you what I see, every time I look at you," he said, ignoring my snide remark, waiting for my approval.
I nodded faintly.
"I see the most beautiful large dark chocolate eyes the world has ever seen," he started, looking into my eyes. "They hold everything spellbound with there gaze and if they fix on you it is as if they can look straight into your soul."
I giggled. That was exactly the same way his stared always made me feel.
"I see a head of sumptuous rich brown hair with hints of red in it when the sunlight falls on it in a certain way. The thick tressed dancing around your head as you walk.....though I prefer it as it is now, sprawled out across the pillow."
There was something about his voice that send every cell in my body into a tingling state of excitement. It was as if he was calling out to it, commanding it, bending it to his will. If any other person would have spoken to me like that I would have busted out laughing. The way he said it though made me believe him......
"I see a body," he let his hands drift over my exposed skin, "that is every inch perfection. The skin smoother than silk, tasting sweeter than ambrosia and smelling like freshly picked flowers."
"And your breasts......." he said, unclasping my bra and tossing it to the side. "I find that they are best worshiped with actions in stead of words."
He brought his mouth to my chest, reverently kissing each of my mounds before taking one of my nipples into his mouth and twirling his tongue around it, his hand lavishing attention on my other breast.
"Edward," I moaned, arching my back into him.
"Yes, my love?" he asked, looking up at me.
"I want you closer," I said, rolling us over and straddling us. "I need you closer."
His words had unleashed a fire in my body that made it almost painful to have any distance between us. To not have him inside me. I wanted to shed the remaining barriers between us and found myself unable to with him still being fully clothed.
I unbuttoned his shirt, adding it to the growing pile of clothes next to the bed before unblinking him for the second time that night and pulling his pants and his boxers down together while he divested himself of his shoes.
"Better?" he asked, flashing his crooked grin.
"Much better," I grinned, letting my eyes trail over his body. "You know, you're not so bad looking yourself either."
"Really?" he grinned.
"Come on!" I scolded, straddling him. "You know you're gorgeous."
"If you say so!" he said, closing his eyes as I started to trace the muscles in his chest with my tongue.
"And tasty....." I added, sucking and nipping at his skin.
"Bella," he grunted, letting his voice trail of on the last syllable.
"Yes, my love?" I asked, mimicking his earlier expression.
"Stop teasing me," he growled, flipping us over again.
He ripped my panties from my body, letting his eyes trail over my now completely nude form. The intensity of his stare adding more force to the fire raging in my body..
"Please," I begged.
He eagerly granted my request, pushing into me slowly, both of us groaning at the feeling of completion. He moved in and out tortuously slow, kissing every part of me he could reach.
"Edward," I moaned, his movements leaving me on the brink of insanity.
"What is it my angel?" he panted, kissing me passionately on the lips.
"Faster.....oh please......more," I begged as he started thrusting into me deeper and faster than before. It send me flying towards the peak.
"Come for me Bella," Edward growled, reaching between us to flick his finger over my aching bundle of nerves. I knew he was close as well by the way his muscles started to tense. "I want to feel you clench around me as I bury myself deep inside you."
"Edward," I screamed out as my back arched into his, my whole body shuddering with the force of my climax.
"That's it Bella," he panted, never stopping his thrusts. "That's it my love."
I wrapped my legs around him, pulling him even closer to me as he neared his own release. He let out a throaty moan as he filled me, collapsing on top of me utterly spent.
I held him close as we both came down from our high, not wanting to let him go. Ever.
He rolled us over, wrapping his arms around me and pulling the blankets up around us.
"I love you," he said, kissing the top of my head.
"I love you too," I whispered, looking up at him. I traced the features of his face lightly with my hands, brushing a few strands of hair away. "More than my own life."
So, that was the first time I added food to a lemon. Did I do a good job?
As said above....The restaurant really exists. It offers private dining and chocolate soufflé's. If they offered complementary Edwards I'd be on a plane to New York tonight......
The bit about how growing up in Forks was for Bella was kind of taken from real life. I grew up in a small rural town and let's just say I don't look back on it with happy thoughts. If you didn't conform to the general concept of normalcy (which was exactly as I described it in this chapter) you pretty much ranked amongst the outcasts (which I did). I know not every small town or village is like this (I hope I didn't offend any village-enthusiast reading this story) but for me it was. And it screwed with my brain.
The next chapter will have Libby meeting Renee (that should be interesting right?)
Please let me know what you thought of this chapter. Reviews make my day.
.