Betad by kitchmill. Mistakes are my own.
Preread by Hoodie
Warm skin touches mine, waking me from a light sleep. His palm slides up my inner thigh to the bend of my hip and I open my legs, welcoming his touch.
The last twenty-four hours have been a blur of touches, tangled limbs and tongues, little sleep. I've pretty much lost track of time, trying not to freak out and I'm doing a damn good job of it. All I have to do is focus on Edward and how he feels, how we feel together.
He palms my center, teasing my entrance with his middle finger. I whimper and he slides it in, muffling my moan with his mouth.
I'm sore but refuse to tell him. Somehow, it feels worse when he's not touching me.
Without leaving my mouth, he rises to his knees and crawls between mine. He adds pressure with the heel of his palm just above where he's fingering me and I moan again, only this time in pleasure.
His lips leave to lazily kiss down my neck and chest then latch onto my nipple. I hiss when he sucks it into his mouth. After letting it go, he licks the other before pulling it into his mouth too.
I writhe beneath him, almost there but not quite yet.
My breaths are coming out in short pants. The room spins and I feel dizzy, lightheaded as his mouth travels farther down, past my belly button.
He positions himself on his stomach at the bottom of the bed. His mouth hovers over the juncture of my thighs, his hot breath a cruel tease as he continues to slowly finger me.
I close my eyes, covering them with the back of my arm and gripping the sheets with my other hand, sucking in a sharp breath when his lips finally touch me.
He chastely kisses above my entrance, pulling back after each soft peck until I think I might go insane.
It makes his tongue all that much more satisfying when it flicks out to taste me.
That one taste is all it takes and his mouth is on me, hot and wet and oh so good. He switches from fast to slow, bringing me to the brink before he takes it away.
I groan, reaching down to grab the back of his head and finding him smirking.
He lets me pull him back down to me, flattening his tongue so I can move against it.
He starts to move with me and I suck in a sharp breath, my orgasm racing back tenfold once he picks up the pace.
There's so much pressure I'm about to burst, then I do, underneath his mouth, jerking through wave after wave of aftershock.
My head falls to the bed and my eyes fuse shut. It's physically impossible to open them until Edward crawls up my body and flops on his side, removing a stray hair from my face.
"You're so beautiful." His gaze roams over my face. His thumb sweeps over my lower lip. "You feel so good. It's unbelievable how good you feel."
I shift to face him, my hand sneaking under his arm to wrap around his back. "I know what you mean." I hum and close my eyes.
"You taste good too." He lips touch mine, his tongue poking out to give me a sample. If I'm being honest, I don't get the attraction but I suppose I taste as good to him as he does to me, so I don't question it.
Besides, I've got other things on my mind now.
"Have you heard back from your captain?"
He shakes his head. "Nope, nada. Can't even get through to the station." His brows crease, his eyes watching the pads of his fingers dance across my skin.
"Weird."
"Yeah."
He's been worrying but acting as if he's not. At first, I could sense it. Now I can see it in his eyes.
"Maybe we should leave and go there," I suggest, wondering if it would be the worst thing. Laurie's been MIA. We're running out of food and there's no way I'm eating tuna.
"I don't know. Maybe you're right." He lets out an audible breath. "I say we stay here 'til morning though. It's late and I'm tired."
I agree with a yawn. "I'm not even sure I can walk yet."
This pleases Edward. He gives me a lazy smile, leaning in as I pull myself closer. He kisses my cheek then nuzzles it with his three-day-old scruff. It makes me squeal and burrow my head into his neck where he can't get me and I'll gladly stay the rest of the night. It doesn't take us long to pass out in each other's arms.
I wake with a jerk in the middle of the night as if I heard a loud noise. Lifting my head, I look behind me then out into the living room, seeing nothing out of the ordinary.
Convinced it was my dream, I snuggle back into Edward's side as the premise of every horror movie I've ever watched runs through my mind. It had to have been a ghost. No, it was a demon getting ready to possess my body. Oh my God. What if I were still dreaming and Freddy Krueger was about to get me?
Try as I might, I can't fall back to sleep. I try something I read in an article a while back, blinking rapidly for a whole minute to tire my eyes. It kind of works but my bladder ruins it.
Sighing, I roll to my back and throw off the covers, grabbing one of Edward's T-shirts off the floor on my way to the bathroom.
The streetlights glow against the blinds, giving me enough light so I can see where I'm going. But the bathroom light nearly blinds me when I flip it on. I can't see anything on my way back to the bedroom. My hands guide the way to the couch and I follow the back of it, slowing when a strange feeling comes over me. I stop, swinging my arm out into the darkness to meet air.
That strange feeling only worsens the longer I stand there. I wish like hell I'd woken Edward to come with me. There's nowhere I'd rather be than by his side, safe and sound. I hear him lightly snoring in the next room over. It helps me collect my bearings and head in the right direction.
I'm nearly there when the floor creaks behind me. Before I can look back somebody grabs me from behind. I get them good with an elbow to the ribs but they're strong, really strong, and get their arms around me with no problem. My head flies back, hitting their shoulder instead of their face. I get out one good scream that wakes Edward. He sits straight up, grabbing his gun as the one at my temple silences me.
"Put down the gun," the guy holding me captive says.
Edward holds up his other hand. "Okay, okay. I'm putting it down." He slowly lowers it to the bedside table and raises his hands back up in front of him.
"Just let her go. It's me you want."
The guy chuckles. "It's not that simple. You know that."
The guy steps back in the direction of the door.
"Wait!" Edward's stands up at the side of the bed.
"Sit down!" the guy screams in my ear, pointing the gun at Edward. I flinch away and he puts it back to my temple.
"There's gotta be something we can do. Something you want," Edward pleads.
"I got all I need." He rubs the side of his face against mine. I cringe and he laughs, pulling me back toward the door again.
Edward goes to step forward but stops himself. "Please. Just think about this. I know Marcus doesn't pay you enough. Not to support that habit."
"I'm set for life after this. Probably won't live that much longer anyway."
"I can get you more. Sell what you don't use." Edward shrugs as if it's that easy. "You can live like a king 'til that day comes. Think about it."
The guy remains silent and still. I assume he's considering Edward's offer.
"Marcus'll kill me."
"Not if he can't find you."
The guy goes quiet again. There's a sharp thud and the guy drops the gun, slumping forward. I move to the side as the guy falls to the ground and look behind me.
"Dad?" I can't believe my eyes. They well up with tears. "Daddy?" I ask again, jumping up and wrapping my arms around his neck. I cling to him, shaking like a leaf on a tree. His arms close around me. He holds me up, my legs dangling like he used to do when I was little.
The breeze from the open door reminds me I'm not fully dressed. I let go so he drops me, making sure I'm covered, then wipe the tears from my cheeks. "What are you doing here? How did you know where to find us?" I ask, trying to get my bearings and stop fucking crying as Edward swoops by us to cuff the asshole who had me held at gunpoint.
"Wasn't that hard." He scowls over my shoulder at Edward. "You want to put a shirt on, son? And you. You go get some bottoms," he says, officially mortifying me. "Then you both meet me out here." Dad closes the front door then heads into the living room.
I grab Edward's arm then rush into the bedroom, closing the door behind us. I whisper an apology as I pull on a pair of leggings and rip off Edward's shirt, throwing it at him once I find mine tangled in the sheets. Edward seems to be flustered, struggling with his shirt. I practically have to help him when he tries to put it on backward.
"Hey, you okay?" I ask.
Edward looks up at me, his eyes slightly widened. "That's your dad out there. Your dad. We're both half-naked. You were wearing my shirt and nothing else. I could see your bare ass while you were hugging him."
"I know." Jesus, do I know. "I'm sorry. I had no idea he was going to show up here." How could I?
"So you didn't call him?"
"No!" I whisper yell. "You told me not to, so I didn't. I have no idea how he found out."
Edward's clearly frustrated and just as uncomfortable with the situation as I am. Rubbing his hands slowly over his face, he quietly groans and then rakes them through his hair. "Okay, I guess I'm ready. Let's go."
We enter the living room slowly and quietly. My dad points to the couch and we sit. He tosses a folder full of papers at Edward. With quick reflexes, he catches it.
"Edward Anthony Masen. Second son of Elizabeth Mason. Father unknown." I look over at Edward who's looking through the folder. My dad knows everything, probably more than me. That Edward's a cop, how long he's been undercover, what properties he owns. He even has a credit report.
"How do you even know who he is and that I was with him?" I ask, somewhat peeved even though he pretty much just saved my life.
"Jasper called." He puts his hands on his hips. "Said you brought some guy by the shop and he was worried about you. Looks like he had every reason to be." I can't stand it when he puts his hands on his hips. It makes him seem even more arrogant for being the hero of the day.
"Not only did I find out where you are, I found that mobster you're looking for."
Mobster.
What is this? Nineteen-twenties New York?
"Marcus? You found Marcus?" Edward asks, looking up from the papers.
My dad nods to the ground. "Yep. And the guy who blew your cover too."
Edward regards my dad then flips through a few more pages. Coming to a stop, he grips the folder, his nostrils flaring.
"That motherfu—" He restrains himself from cussing in front of my dad, shaking his head instead.
Curious, I lean over then look up at Edward. I place my hand on his forearm before addressing my dad. "Are you sure it's him?"
He nods once.
"You're positive? The picture's kind of blurry. I mean, it could be anybody," I try to reason, but Edward stops me.
"That's him, Bella. We met with him the day he was wearing that. Look at the date. No doubt, that's Laurie. And the guy with him is Kai, Marcus' right-hand man."
"Mmhm. Got it off of a surveillance camera," Dad pipes in.
There's a groan from behind the couch. Dad casually walks back there and clocks Marcus' guy to knock him out again.
"Somehow this friend of yours blocked your number from not only your captain's cell but the precinct itself. I'm assuming you haven't been able to get through or you would have contacted them by now."
Edward nods.
"Yeah well, Kai's still around town but Marcus left for Italy three days ago. He's traveling under the alias Aro Volturi. He's got a safe deposit box full of passports, each with a different identity."
Edward flips through all the photos of passports my dad somehow snapped.
Is there anything he can't do?
"He's staying at the Bettoja Hotel Mediterraneo." Dad butchers the name but there's an itinerary in the folder as well, so we know what he's talking about. "He'll be there through Sunday." Shrugging, he scratches his 'stache. "And I'm not leaving him out there when he's out for my baby girl. So, you comin'? Either way, I'm goin'."
I look from him to Edward, Edward to him. He can't be serious.
"Even if we find him, we've got no jurisdiction," Edward reasons.
Dad smirks. "I've got friends in high places, son. You don't need to worry about that."
Edward's quiet, staring down at his lap before looking up at me. He holds my stare as he speaks. "It'll be dangerous." Then he looks up at Dad. "He'll fight. His men will fight. They've died for less."
"I don't doubt it."
I swallow the lump in my throat, my eyes still on Edward.
He nods.
"Okay, then. I guess we're doing this." Edward slaps his lap then stands, holding out a hand to my father.
I jump up before he has time to shake it. "Wait." I can't believe I'm doing this. "Dad, what you know about Edward is just on these pages. But I know him. I love him." I see Edward's head jerk to look at my profile. I glance at his questioning face then back at my dad. It may have been the wrong time but I had to say it. "I can't let him go until you promise me he'll make it back alive. That you both will."
I feel Edward's hand brush against mine. I grab it, looking down as we clasp them together then back up at him.
The crease in his brow lightens, the straight line of his mouth turning up into a slight smile. His gaze drops to my lips then rises to my eyes again.
I wonder if he wants to kiss me as much as I want to kiss him. But that's out of the question when my dad clears his throat. We break eye contact to look at him.
"You know I can't—"
"Promise."
He won't look me in the eye when he does. Even though I know it's empty, I let them shake on it.
In no time, they're down to business, planning flights and hotel arrangements but most importantly, their plan of attack.
I put up a fight when they refuse to take me along, arguing I'd be safer if I was with them.
Edward tries to plead. Dad attempts to overthrow my decision with his ineffective scare tactics. I hold my ground, winning over Edward in the end.
Dad's furious with both of us by the time he leaves, letting us know somebody will be by to pick up the guy knocked out on the floor before stomping out with a disapproving huff.
The next time I see him we're boarding the plane.