Chapter 27

BPOV

It was dark out and there was nowhere to go. The moon was the only light I had to help guide me through darkness, which was filled with trees, lots and lots of trees. I ran as fast as I could away from someone. Who was that someone? He was after me to hurt me, that I knew. He wouldn't stop hunting me, but I knew I had to keep going.

I was running out of breath as I panted and realized I couldn't feel my feet anymore. It was almost as if the tree's roots were coming out at me now, making me trip to prevent me from escaping. My hands fell flat on the ground, protecting my face. I gulped in the air that was around me and tried to find the energy from the earth to help me get up and keep running.

The sound of footsteps over dead leaves and broken tree limbs was getting louder. He was near. I tried to cry out for help, but my throat was too dry and my lungs were aching as they tried to conserve the oxygen I could take in.

My whole body was starting to feel numb from the cold of the night and so was my brain. Why was this person running after me? Or was I running toward someone?

There was that sound again. The crunching of the dead leaves, the tiny branches cracking. No, I was running away from someone. How could I be so cold while I was running so much?

I shivered and had blinked for a moment too long. Within that moment, I had missed a tree root in front of me, making me fall to the ground. This time I could not find the energy from the earth to help me rise.

Within the darkness that was surrounding me, I could feel an even darker presence. He was standing right beside me. I kept from moving, thinking that he couldn't see me, but I was wrong.

I gasped at the pain I felt as he kicked me in the gut. "You finished running bitch?" he inhaled deeply. "It's been a great hunt though, I'll tell you that much, but it's over now. You're mine."

He bent over and turned me onto my back. My mouth was still dry and all the air that had been in my lungs had escaped with the kick. I inhaled as much as I could, fighting off the pain it caused in my chest.

I tried to fight him off of me with the last of my strength, but it was hopeless. "What's with all the layers of clothes, bitch?" he said as he started to rip my clothes off.

Out of nowhere the guy backed up off of me and fell to the ground. There was someone else. Fear started to run throughout my body again, but, once the person stepped closer to me, there was no more darkness. I exhaled.

There were no words that came out of the person's mouth. I looked closer as the moon shone in his face. Did I see correctly? Were his eyes green? Was the moonlight deceiving me?

He'd thrown a canteen at my side and ran off. No! "Please, don't leave me," I said with a scratchy voice. I took a quick swig from the canteen and yelled again, this time my voice was louder.

My goal was to find that person, but not long after I'd gotten back up, my legs couldn't take the weight of my body. I fell, hard, and started to whimper from the pain and fear.

"Bella?"

The voice sounded familiar and, as I inhaled again, my nostrils filled with Edward's scent. I opened my eyes and looked up at him fearfully, afraid it wouldn't be him.

Those beautiful green eyes were hard to see in the dark, but I knew it was him. My Edward, my savior. The tears flowed and I buried myself in his chest for comfort.

His hands were gently brushing my hair, helping me calm down. "Do you want to talk about it, sweetheart?" he asked with a worried tone.

I moved my head from side to side indicating I didn't want to, but there was one thing I wanted to confirm and I couldn't help myself from saying it. "Please don't leave me," I said, bluntly.

The touch of his skin sent a comforting sensation throughout my body when he'd placed his finger underneath my chin. He tilted my head up toward his and looked me straight in the eyes. "I will never leave you, Bella," he said firmly, but with emotion.

Our lips met and we started to kiss, affectionately, passionately, whichever way you want to put it. As soon as our tongues collided, my mouth was on fire, but I couldn't get enough of it. My arm slid up his body as it had earlier and my hand went straight for the hair again. His hair was soft to the touch and just long enough to grab. I did exactly that and tugged lightly.

Was it normal to get turned on by pulling on someone's hair? It didn't look like he minded as he scooted over to get closer. I could feel the fire radiating off of him we were so close. My skin started to dampen from the heat we'd created under the covers. If being this close to him meant me having to sweat, it was worth it.

His heart was beating so hard I could feel it on my chest. I swung my leg over his hip, making me even more aroused than I already was. His hand slid down my back, over my butt and continued toward my thigh that was over his hip. He backtracked up my thigh and back to my butt, grabbing it and squeezing me tightly.

A shock of pain went through me, but once I felt something hard touch my overheated area, it went away. Forgotten in eternal bliss.

I started to pant from lack of breath and Edward pulled back from me. NO! I didn't want to open my eyes, so I left them shut. He placed his forehead against mine and spoke. "Bella," he said in his luscious tone of voice, also trying to fill his lungs with air. "I can't do this to you. You need to heal."

"I'm okay Edward." I finally decided to open my eyes for him to see that I was. "You are healing me. When you...when you...kiss me, the pain goes away," I said truthfully. Was that a sparkle in his eyes? I mean, come on, this is real life, not some romance novel.

"I guess," he said and then kissed me softly. "I have to..." Another kiss. "Keep kissing you." I hummed letting him know I agreed with his belief. I was in heaven or maybe even in a better place than heaven.

His hand came up my waist, barely brushing the side of my breast. I gasped and squeezed myself against his chest, almost positive he could feel my rock hard nipples through our clothing.

My lower lips were probably swollen from the heat and in need of his touch. His hand had reached my face and he pulled back, again. Darn it! "You're so beautiful." How could he think that? I was all sweaty and probably red from all the blood flowing crazily throughout my body. He brushed the matted hair off of my face. "Especially like this. Oh, Bella. I feel so selfish doing this to you," he said.

Before either of us could say anything else, the darn alarm clock went off. Shit! Yeah, you heard me right. He rolled over onto his back to turn the alarm off. As soon as he'd detached himself from me, I was cold and felt a chill, almost like I had a fever. Now I felt all the pain I couldn't feel earlier, but it was well worth the pain as I thought back to him kissing me.

That would be my medicine from now on. All I'd have to do is remember how he made me feel within that small amount of time and it would help heal the pain. So I did just that, letting my mind succumb to my memory.

"Um...Bella?" Uh oh. Did I go a little too far and touch myself somewhere? Is that why he was saying my name like that? "We have to get up sweetheart. I have to get to work and if I don't bring you to the hospital on time, either my dad or yours will have my ass." He grinned as he looked down at me from his, now, seated position.

He got up off the bed and walked over to my side to help me up. Once I was in a seated position, he cupped my face and kissed me again. "Don't start something you can't finish," I mumbled.

He must have heard me as he cracked up laughing. "Well, I never thought I'd hear that from you. See, if I do finish it, well, we'd be extremely late and that could lead to me not ever being able to do anything like that with you ever again. Or even seeing you for that matter." He scooped me up in his arms and carried me over to the washroom.

"Why don't I let you get yourself ready. If you need me, just let me know, I'll be able to hear you," he said as he set me down and helped me catch my balance.

"Thank you," I replied to him. Thankfully the lights he'd turned on were dim, so I didn't really have to squint and my eyes were adjusting quickly. He walked out the door, leaving me all alone, by myself. I shook my head to get out of it and wake up for good. Hoping it would help I turned the lights on to their fullest, which made me squint at first, but again they adjusted.

I looked at myself in the mirror; big mistake. My hair was matted to my head and all over the place, my lips were cherry red and swollen and my face was flushed. No wonder he was laughing earlier.

The first thing I did was pee as I was sure my bladder was going to blow from the urge I had. When I wiped myself I noticed how wet I was from the ecstasy I'd just been through. My mind started to wander again and started to think of what it would feel like with him pleasuring me below. I knew I had to wipe myself again...

I sighed and pulled my pants back up and washed my hands. He had affected me so much that I wanted to do something to myself to help release the pressure. Just like it said to do in one of the books I read. It was called 'The Goddess of Love' by P.C. Cast.

Once I looked into the mirror again, I blushed. I had it bad. I mean, to the point of me wanting to pleasure myself? Ugh!

After having let the tap run a little longer to make sure the water was cold enough, I splashed my face with it. I shrieked at the sensation it have me since I'd forgotten how hot my skin was.

Edward was at the door in an instant. "Are you alright in there?" he asked with concern.

"Yes, thank you. I just...um...I thought I saw a spider," I lied.

"Don't worry, small bugs don't eat bigger ones," he laughed, which also made me grin.

I brushed my teeth and decided to do the rest in his bedroom as I was sure he needed to relieve himself too. My mind wandered back to having felt his hard phallus on my pelvis. That was what the Goddess of Love called it, right?

I shook my head again, surprised at my thoughts. I decided to splash some more cold water on my face as it had reddened some more. I needed to clear my mind of all these naughty thoughts.

Making sure I had my brush, I walked back out. "I'm done. Your turn," I mentioned and waved my hand toward the door.

The knots that had formed themselves in my hair were ridiculous. I felt like screaming from the pain as I tried brushing them out. After having accomplished that, my next task was to get dressed. I started with the pants, which wasn't too bad, but I hadn't thought about the darn bra. I figured my best bet was to do it differently this time. Instead of putting it completely on and then hooking it up, I decided to hook it from the front. As I was swiveling it around to position it correctly, Edward walked out of the bathroom, his eyes staring straight at me. Then down to my, out-in-the-open, breasts.

"I'm so sorry Bella," he said, looking at me with what appeared like hunger and then turned himself around immediately.

"Don't apologize, I should have told you I was getting dressed." Although, now that he'd more than likely seen my breasts, I felt like going up to him and asking him to take it off. Bella! I said to myself in shock. Where were all these dirty thoughts coming from? This was definitely not me. Maybe it was the drugs they were giving me, but had I even taken any last night before bed?

"I'm almost done, Edward," I said as I'd finished putting my arm through the second hole and placed the strap comfortably. "I just have my t-shirt to put on now." I grabbed it quickly and pulled it over my head. It was easier getting around with a cast than it was with a splint. "You can turn around now," I concluded.

He turned around as I told him to do. Was he blushing? Maybe it was just the lighting. Yeah, probably that. I'm sure he's seen more than enough naked women for my breasts to make him blush, right?

"How about we get some breakfast before heading out to the hospital? That pizza from last night is long gone," he said while he rubbed his stomach in circles.

"Yeah, I agree with you on that one," I replied, but I didn't do the same thing he did.

With that, we grabbed all of our things we'd need for the day and headed for the car. We stopped at some doughnut shop to get a quick bite to eat and then left for the hospital. I was kind of anxious to see how my mother was doing since I hadn't seen her all night. What didn't help the anxiety was the lack of sleep I've had lately.

My legs started to shake up and down, which I hadn't realized until I felt a warm hand on my thigh to help steady me. I felt his eyes on me, but I didn't want to look over at him as I was sure it would affect me somehow.

I kept my eyes ahead of me for the rest of the ride to the hospital. None of us had spoken a word on the way, but as usual it wasn't awkward. I hoped he felt the same way. His hand had never left my thigh. I definitely didn't mind. The energy that he transferred to me was refreshing.

We reached our destination, parked the car and then got out. Once we reached the doors he stopped in front of the locker room or whatever it was called. "Do you want to wait for me or do you want to go straight up to see your mother?" he asked.

"You don't mind if I go upstairs?" I answered his question with another one.

"Not at all. I understand you wanting to go see your mother right away. Go ahead, I'll meet you later." He bent over and kissed me on the forehead and then turned around to go to the locker room.

Doing as I said I would, I went in the direction of the elevators. I was too tired to take the stairs, afraid I'd pass out on the way up. At least I didn't have to wait forever. There was one downside; Jessica Stanley walked out the doors.

Thankfully, she didn't see me through the rest of the crowd that walked out with her. I sneaked behind everyone and walked into the elevator and to the side, that way she couldn't see me. The doors started to close as I pressed the button to the correct floor. I sighed once they were fully closed and leaned against the wall to relax. Why had I been so stressed from seeing her? Why should I even care?

The bell rang, indicating I had reached my floor, which made me jump slightly. For some reason, Emmett popped into my head after I'd jumped, which made me laugh as I knew he would have. I was still somewhat frustrated at him for having stopped me from beating Jessica more, but, maybe it was also a good thing.

I walked straight toward my mother's room and saw Angela. "Hi. How are you doing?" I asked her. I was really happy she was taking care of my mother also. I would have to thank her for it eventually. I knew it was her job, but she was really caring and, I don't know, she was good to my mother. Enough said.

"Good morning, Bella. To answer your question, by the looks of things, I'm much better than you are," she replied.

Before I even thought about what to say, I blurted out, "What are you doing here at this time anyway? Isn't your shift over?" What was it with me lately with all the talking without thinking? It was very unusual of me. "I'm sorry, it's actually none of my business." There I was apologizing to someone due to my bluntness again.

"It's alright. I have a...um...date tonight with Eric, so I switched my shift." Her face lit up as she told me about her date. I was happy for her. Then I thought of the other nurse that takes care of my mother: Eric. Could it be him? No, that would be too weird, right?

I was too curious to find out. "Are you talking about Eric who is usually here at this time?"

"Bella! That's none of your business," my mother blurted out. Between Angela and I talking, I had forgotten about her. I think I am losing my mind!

"Yes, it is him. I'm so excited," Angela continued. Her face beamed with joy. She walked up to me. "He's taking me out to dinner and then we're going to see a Broadway show." I thought she was going to start jumping up and down. "Oh, Bella. I don't even know what to wear. It's supposed to be this fancy restaurant, but I don't have those kind of clothes." Her shoulders slumped and her smile disappeared.

Now was my chance to get back to her for taking such good care of my mother. "You know what, I think I know someone that could help. I'll get back to you on that soon. When does your shift end?"

"Actually, it ends when Edward gets here, which should be soon I hope." She looked at her watch a few times.

"Yes, he's downstairs changing. He drove me here this morning." I don't know why I was embarrassed mentioning it. Maybe it was because my mother was there. But even then, I had already told her I had stayed at Edward's the other night.

"Okay, I'll go finish up my paper work then," she said before taking off.

"Angela, wait. You're going to have to give me your number for me to get back to you. I need to make a call before I confirm I can help." She came back and gave me her number on a crumpled paper I had in my pocket.

As soon as she stepped out the door I called Alice. Although, for all I knew she could be in class right now. She usually kept her phone off anyway when she was in class. I was in luck as she answered after a couple of rings. "Hello?"

"Alice, can you do me a favor?"

"Well good morning to you too," she replied.

"Sorry, it's just that Angela won't be here much longer and I told her I'd help her with something."

She cut in. "And why are you calling me then?"

"Well, I was kind of wondering if you, uh, if you might have a dress for her? I will pay you for it if you want. I just wanted to help her for everything she's done. You know what I'm talking about," I said, trying to be discreet since my mother was listening in to our conversation.

"Actually, I have a few that she could try on. You have my key, so if you want you can take her to my place and have her try them on. They are in my closet on the far right side. Look I have to let you go," she said as I heard a male voice in the background.

It sounded something like, "Hey darlin'. You ready?" Then I heard him apologize. I decided to add that to my 'ask Alice list' for later.

"Thanks Alice," I said and then hung up the phone and looked at my mom. "Hi," I finally said to her.

"Hi," she replied.

I took her hand and held it in mine. "Mom, I know I just got here, but do you mind if I leave again for a little bit? I have to go to Alice's to pick a dress up as you more than likely heard me say to Alice. I'll be right back." I felt bad since I'd just arrived, but I had a feeling this was going to be the best way to thank Angela for all her hard work.

"It's okay baby. I'm actually still tired, so while you're out I'll get some shut eye. Don't you worry about me. Now go on," she told me as she squeezed my hand.

I kissed her on the forehead and then ran out to find Angela. "Hey Angela? Do you have time to come with me? Alice has some dresses for you to try on for your date tonight."

Her eyes lit up. "You mean, Alice, comes here with you Alice?"

"Yeah I do," I replied.

"I love her taste in clothes and the designs she's shown me are brilliant." Her eyes gleamed. "Well, as soon as Edward comes in, then we can go."

"Oh, there's only one problem with that. I don't have my truck." I didn't exactly want to tell her it was totaled either.

"That's alright. You can come with me. I have mine. I'll bring you back after, I don't mind. It's the least I could do for you since you're helping to get me a dress."

"How about I meet you downstairs? I want to go the store and get something to drink, so I'll meet you by the front door. Sound good for you?"

"Definitely," she replied with a huge smile, which made me smile in return.

I did not see Edward on my way down, so I'd imagined he was on his way up, while I was going down. I was surprised it had taken him so long since he was usually pretty quick in the locker room. Plus he now had his key so he didn't have to go to the front desk anymore.

As I told Angela I would, I stopped at the store to get some water. I was really thirsty, so I bought a one liter bottle. The girl at the counter looked at me funny. What? I asked her, but in my mind. They were there to drink, was I not correct on that one?

On my way out, I ran into Phil. "Hey," I said, getting his attention with a touch on the shoulder.

He jumped slightly. "Oh, hi Bella."

"Just to let you know, Mom might be sleeping, so maybe you should wait a bit or be really quiet when you go in. She told me she was pretty tired and wanted to get more sleep. Alright?"

"Yes Boss!" he said as he saluted me.

"Ha, ha, ha, very funny. I'm serious Phil. She needs her rest." He had to realize that, but he had a thick skull, which made it extremely hard to explain things for him to understand.

"Yes, Bella I do understand. I'm not a six year old that has to have everything repeated to him all the time," he replied.

Yeah, okay, whatever. I thought to myself. "I'll be back in about an hour or so anyway. See you later." He nodded his head and then took off in the opposite direction.

Angela had been pretty quick as she arrived a few minutes after me. "You ready to go?" she asked me and then noticed the bottle. "I can see someone's thirsty."

"Yes to both questions," I replied. Within those minutes I'd waited for her I had drank about a third of the bottle.

I followed her since she knew where we were going. "How are you feeling Bella? You can tell me the truth you know. Your mom isn't here right now and I can tell you're not being very truthful about it when I usually do ask. And I'm not only talking about the pain," she confirmed by looking at my arm that had a cast on it.

We reached her car, which was a nice Toyota. I'd always wanted one of those as I'd heard they were tough and durable. Yet, I knew my truck was much better, and it served me well for the amount of time I had it.

After being properly seated I put on my seat belt and examined the inside of the car. It was very clean and the style was really nice. "Wow, your car is great. I love how it looks. You know, I've always wanted one. Maybe I should get myself one."

"Thanks, but stop changing the subject. Seriously, I'm here for you, so don't feel shy to speak out to me." Her eyes said it all once they looked into mine. That must have been my cue, as I could feel the tears coming down my cheeks. How could there even be any liquid left after all the times I'd cried within the past few days.

"Alright, but do you mind if I tell you as you're driving?" That way it would be easier to speak and we'd get there faster.

"Sure, but you'll have to let me know where we're going first. I don't know where this place is." Right.

As I gave her the address, she recognized the area right away. I started to explain to her what I was going through and about the accident. How I was scared of my mother dying and how much I'd miss her. Once I was done explaining my feelings, we reached Alice's place.

"Thank you for listening Angela. You've been so kind to me. Why were we never friends in high school?"

"It's my pleasure. As for high school, well, I didn't have many friends. I was always working on the yearbook and posters for the school. My only friend I had was Ben. Well, more like my boyfriend I should say. We were together for a long time and I was happy with that. So, which apartment is it?" she said, bringing us back to our surroundings.

"Up on the second floor. Follow me." We headed over to Alice's apartment and I unlocked her door after I'd finally found the keys, which were mixed with mine. I felt kind of stupid after I'd had to fiddle with my keys for a few seconds. It had felt longer than that though.

Her facial expression was in awe as she took in the beauty of Alice's place. "This place is beautiful. Does she do this for a living? If she does I might ask her to come design my place."

"She's studying in clothing design. She has a talent with pretty much anything that has to do with designing though. I could always ask her about designing your place," I mentioned. "Let me show you her bedroom."

I knew Alice wouldn't mind because she always kept her place spotless. Most of the time I felt like a slob when I'd come over if I compared what our apartments looked like.

Angela was again in awe with the designs to Alice's bedroom. I wondered what her face would look like once she saw the dresses. While she gawked at the room, I went to where Alice said the dresses were and took them out of the closet. I spread them out across the bed for Angela to pick which one she preferred.

Her hands went up to her mouth and she gasped. Man, this was priceless. I grinned at her response. "So, which one do you like?"

"Are you serious," she asked as she looked at me. Her eyes had a glint in them. Was she on the verge of crying? If so, I definitely hoped it was out of joy.

Before I could answer, I heard someone coming in the front door. I thought Alice had an exam at this time? I discreetly headed out of the bedroom to get a look at the invader after I'd put my finger up to my mouth, notifying Angela to keep quiet.

As I peeked around the corner it was definitely not Alice that had walked in.

Who the heck is that?

A/N: Alright, thanks to everyone for commenting. I would like to hear from others too! Don't be shy...