A/N: This is it, the chapters leading up to where Bella FINALLY realizes. It's a 3 parter, so bear with me. I hope you enjoy it.

Disclaimer: SM owns it all

POVs: Edward, Bella

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Edward's POV

I frowned as I paced my room for the thousandth time tonight. I had been trying to brainstorm on how I should tell Bella that I was in love with her.

A note?

Flowers?

Chocolate, maybe?

No. None of these were good enough. They were too…Common. I had myself seen in the minds of plenty of men how they professed their undying love to the woman of their dreams. But none of their ideas suited Bella.

She needed more, she needed a battalion of wonderful things just so she could understand how much I loved her.

Edward, Esme's sweet voice called out to me through her mind. Could you come down here for a moment?

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. Maybe I should take a break from brainstorming. It wasn't like I was having any progress, anyway.

I was in the living room within the blink of an eye. I looked around me expectantly. The entire family were there. I frowned. At night? Why would they all be here at night? Normally, they retreated into their respective rooms with their significant other.

Something was on their minds.

Esme smiled gently at me, and brushed my hair back from my face. "Have you decided on how to tell her, my son?" she asked.

"Nope!" Alice sang out.

I sighed heavily. "It will come to me," I said. "Hopefully."

Emmett snorted, pausing his video game. "Dude, quit stressing over this," he told me. "Just grab her and plant one on her."

Rosalie smacked the back of his head, a resounding thwack echoing around the room. "Don't help him with the hormones," she hissed. She turned to me. "Okay, I get that you're her one true love and all, but I'm not going to have any part getting my daughter together with a member of the male species."

I rolled my eyes. Now really wasn't the time for the absurdities of my family. Alice giggled as she saw the expression on my face. "It'll come to you, Edward," she said confidently. "I know it."

I shot her a grateful smile. Sometimes it was a good thing having Alice as my sister.

In the meantime, the rest of us are going hunting, Carlisle thought.

My eyes widened. "All of you?" I asked nervously.

Rosalie shot me a death glare. "It's not like I'm excited about leaving you alone with her, either, you know?" she snapped at me.

That really wasn't what I was talking about. I was still undecided on how to approach Bella on how I feel about her. I felt awkward around her. I was afraid that she would see through me and ask me what was wrong. What if I accidentally let it slip and she runs off, disgusted?

Jasper sent me an assuring wave of serenity. "Don't worry," he said. She'll come to when it's time. You don't have to worry so much about it.

Rosalie was still unsure of leaving me alone with Bella. As if I would actually harm her in any way. She was my entire reason for existence. One bruise on her was enough to give me shocks of pain. Why would I hurt her?

"I mean, he's hormone-riddled, and all…"

If I could have blushed, I would have. I cringed at Rosalie's accusation. Jasper and Emmett snickered.

Esme hid her own laugh and gave Rosalie a reproving look. "You have to trust your own brother not to hurt our Bella, Rose," she said sternly.

Rosalie sighed, defeated. She stalked over to me, squaring her shoulders. She jabbed a finger at my chest. "If you hurt her in any way at all," she growled. "I will personally tear you limb from limb and throw you in the fire. Understood?"

I nodded my head, hiding my amusement out of respect. In all aspects, Bella was Rose's daughter. It wouldn't really bode well if I were to laugh at her while thinking of ways to impress her daughter. "Of course," I said politely.

I turned away as the others filed out of the house, leaving for their hunting trip. They were going to Canada this time for a long weekend hunting trip. They would come back on Sunday night for a baseball game. Alice had predicted a storm heading our way by seven Sunday night.

I tapped my chin, thinking. Maybe I should make Bella some breakfast. She would like that. We would have school today, though. I frowned, peering out the window. Alice had assured me the sun wouldn't make its appearance until the afternoon, so I could accompany Bella to school.

I cringed at the thought of Gabriel in school. I shuddered. Why on earth did he have to be there? Of course, it made Bella happy to have Gabriel around. And Alice and Jasper had told me plenty of times to be patient.

The thing was, my patience was running out. I had found out I was in love with Bella for a long time now. I wanted to be with her. I had to be with her.

It was driving me insane to have to pretend nothing was wrong every time I saw them together. A simple touch or a full blown kiss…I couldn't stand it.

I started to work on her breakfast. No matter what, this weekend would be the perfect time for me to impress her and confess my love to her.

And whatever her answer was, I just had to accept it. Even if it broke my heart.

I didn't exactly know what she wanted for breakfast, so I took out half of everything we had. I made waffles and pancakes and eggs…I'm sure there was something she'd like in there somewhere.

I heard Bella's heartbeat quicken as she woke up and made her way to the bathroom. I smiled to myself, finishing up on the eggs and placing them on a plate. I took out a carton of OJ and placed it on the counter.

Finally, Bella's footsteps neared the kitchen. "Mom? Dad? Everyone?" she called out, confused.

"In the dining room!" I called out.

Bella popped her head through the doorway and smiled when she saw me. She walked in, raising an eyebrow at the huge amount of food on the table. "Are we expecting a visit from the army?" she teased me, though a blush rose to her cheeks as she realized that I had made her breakfast.

I laughed easily and shook my head. "I didn't know what you would like for breakfast," I explained. "I made you a little of everything…Sit," I walked over to her and tugged at her hand, leading her to a chair. I sat next to her, just watching her eat.

Bella shot me an amused glance as she poured herself some juice. "Where's everyone else?" she asked.

I pretended to be puzzled by her question. "What makes you think they aren't here?" I asked innocently.

She snorted with laughter. "Edward, the house wouldn't be so quiet if they were," she pointed out, smiling widely that she had caught my lie.

I grinned at her, hope flaring up when her heart started to beat as fast as a marathon runner's. "Alright, you caught me," I admitted. "They went hunting. I've already went so I stayed behind."

She frowned all of a sudden and I felt my hope deflate. Did she not want me here? "To baby-sit me?" she asked sadly, a hint of frustration in her voice.

I bit my lip and looked away. "If you don't want me here…"

Bella placed the glass on the table and took my hand in hers. Her hand was colder than normal because she had just touched a glass of refrigerated juice. "No, that's not what I meant, Edward," she assured me softly. "I just hate it when they treat me like I'm a little kid. I'm growing up. I want to be treated as such."

I smiled at her, tucking a strand of stray hair behind her ear. To my delight, she blushed a deep crimson because of this. "They're just protective of you. And so am I. But if it helps any, I'll treat you like the woman you are," I promised, leaning forward and pressing my cool lips softly on her cheek.

I pulled back slightly to look into her brown eyes, and smiled. Her heart was pounding so furiously, it was the only thing I could hear. I heard her breath hitch and brushed my hand against hers casually.

Bella cleared her throat, turning her head away. She transferred some waffles onto her plate and grabbed a bottle of syrup. "When will they be back then?" she asked.

I, too, leaned back into my chair. There was no need to rush this. I wanted things to be perfect with Bella and me. I wanted her to remember the day that she and I finally confess our love to one another.

That is, if she would confess her love at all. I had no idea how she would react to me. Alice had shown me her vision of Bella and I together, saying 'I love you' to the other, but would that happen in the near future?

Or would my heart break before it could merge with hers?

I sighed inwardly, troubled by my internal dilemma. "Sunday night. Alice saw a storm and Emmett wanted to play baseball. Will you come with us?" I asked her, curious. She had missed the last two games because of Gabriel.

Bella seemed to remember that, as well, because she winced. I rubbed her arm soothingly and she gave me a grateful smile. "Yes, of course," she replied. "I've missed the games," she added softly.

I leaned my hand on the table, resting my weight on my elbow and cradling my head in my palm as I watched her eat. "We've missed having you at the games," I countered honestly.

Bella looked down at her lap, her teeth attacking her lip furiously. "I'm sorry about that," she said quietly.

I reached out, tilting her head with my thumb and forefinger under her chin. I gave her a smile, which she returned tentatively. "It's alright, Bella," I soothed. "Just promise me you'll be around more?"

She smiled and nodded her head. "Of course. You know I've missed being with you," she blushed as she said this. I grinned. I had missed her, too.

I chanced a glance at my watch. "We really should be heading to school," I mused. It was already half past seven. We would be late if we stayed any longer.

Bella shook her head. "Let's skip today," she suggested, smiling deviously.

I rolled my eyes. Being close to Emmett really had corrupted her sweet, innocent mind. She was becoming more and more like him everyday. "Bella," I said warningly.

She shrugged. "Come on, Edward," she pleaded, wrapping her arms around my neck and resting her chin on my shoulder. I turned my head so that I could see her face. She gave me one of her patented pouts that could put Alice to shame. "What's one day? We don't have any tests or anything…"

I hesitated. I didn't want Bella to get into any trouble.

"Please?" she breathed, her warm breath a pleasant breeze against my cool skin. "You skip all the time when it's sunny out. Can't I have just one day?"

I shot her a suspicious look. "Why the sudden urge to be rebellious?" I asked, curiosity lacing my voice.

Bella tried giving me an innocent look, but it was too ingenuous to be sincere. I smirked at her, raising an eyebrow. She sighed, resigned. "It's Mike," she admitted, her voice too soft for me to hear.

"Newton?" My brows furrowed. Had he done something to her? Had he hurt her? My fists clenched at the mere thought.

Since my hands were on her hips, Bella felt it. She looked up quickly, and shook her head. "No, Edward, it's nothing big," she amended.

I gave her a confused look. If it wasn't anything big, then why was she so reluctant to go to school?

She smiled sheepishly at me. "He's just really…Insistent," she told me embarrassedly. "Angela said that he was going to try something today. You know, ask me out…In front of everyone in the cafeteria during lunch," she flinched.

I laughed, my shoulders shaking uncontrollably. Bella scowled at me. "It's not funny, Edward. I really wouldn't like to be embarrassed in front of everyone!"

Of course, that only made me laugh harder. Bella huffed, averting her gaze from me. I controlled myself, although my smile remained intact on my face. I reached out and turned her to face me once more. "I guess we're skipping school today," I said decidedly.

Bella grinned at me. "Great!" she exclaimed excitedly, jumping up. "What do you want to do?"

I thought for a moment. These past few months had been hard for me, since Bella spent more time with Gabriel than she did at home or with me. We had hardly gone to our meadow recently. I looked at her questioningly. "What do you say if I suggested we go to the meadow?" I inquired.

Bella gave me a dazzling smile and nodded her head. She held out her hand, which I took. "Let's go," she said cheerfully.

I gripped her hand tighter so that she wouldn't slip from my grasp and swung her over my shoulders. Like a routine, we began. She locked her long legs around my waist, her arms gripping my neck in a chokehold.

I laughed at her anxiety, even after all these years. "You'd better hold on tight, spider monkey," I teased, using the nickname I'd gotten used to calling her every time she climbed on my back.

I dashed out of the house at breakneck speed. Despite her occasional, irrational fears of hitting trees and whatnot, Bella actually loved being able to experience moving this fast. I knew because she said it once when she was sleeping. She found it exhilarating.

Within minutes, we were in the meadow. The sun was shining slightly, but there was enough overcast to hide the sparkles that would otherwise shine on my skin.

Bella sank to the ground, laying back on the grass. I followed suit, placing my arms behind my head, smiling up at the sky. Bella turned to me and smiled. "So talk," she demanded.

I laughed. She was the most absurd human I'd ever met. But then again, I knew that years ago when I'd told her my family and I were vampires and she'd said "okay".

"What do you want me to say?" I played along, turning to my side to face her. I propped myself up on my elbow, cradling my head in my hand. With my other hand, I played with a blade of grass, twirling it around a finger gently. It took a lot of years to do so, but I had learned how to control my strength enough.

Bella shrugged, her nose scrunching up in that adorable way of hers which meant she was thinking something through thoroughly. Her eyes lit up with amusement and she grinned at me. "How's dear old Jessica doing?" she asked with mock seriousness.

I scowled at her. "That is not funny," I said bitingly. "The girl is insane! She follows me around everywhere…You would think 'no' would give her a clue that I really have no interest in her, but of course the one human who would become infatuated with me had to be the clueless one," I ranted.

Bella laughed, shaking her head. "You know, it's kind of funny that you have a stalker," she snickered.

I glowered at her. "I suppose I could say the same thing about you and Newton," I pointed out. At this, Bella only laughed harder. "What?" I growled, irritated.

"At least he doesn't…" She was laughing too hard to speak, so I had to wait it out until her giggles somewhat subsided. "Wonder what I look like covered in nothing but whip cream."

She burst into laughter again while I cringed. How on earth did she know about that? I only knew because Emmett and I happened to be passing by when she and Lauren had been discussing the daydreams they had about me. Emmett had given me a hard time about it, never letting me forget-

I narrowed my eyes at her. "Emmett told you, didn't he?" I asked knowingly, anger bubbling to the surface.

Bella's hand flew to her mouth as she tried desperately to suppress an onslaught of giggles. It didn't work and soon enough, she had her head buried in my chest as her body shook with laughter.

I couldn't even stay angry at her when she was so close to me like this. Instead, I lowered my head and pressed my nose to her hair, inhaling the sweet scent of strawberries and freesia mixed together.

Finally, her amusement contained, she sobered up and looked up at me. I noticed that she didn't move from me. She rested her chin on my chest as her brown eyes sparkled, gazing at me. "Sorry," she said, her lips quirking into a smile. "I couldn't help myself."

I pretended to heave a heavy sigh. "It's alright," I said dramatically. "Just wait until Newton does something equally embarrassing to you," I added evilly.

Bella blinked at me, her mouth opened as she looked at me in terror. "You don't mean that, do you?" she asked nervously.

I laughed, amused. "Of course I do," I teased. "It's the Cullen way to humiliate one another." Bella groaned, dropping her head on my chest as she blushed. I smirked at her even though she couldn't see me. "Don't worry. I'll go easy on you," I quipped.

Bella shifted, moving back from me. I immediately felt the loss of her warmth, the comfort of her presence. She settled back into a supine position next to me, close enough for me to touch but far enough to drive me crazy.

"Gee, thanks," she said dryly, closing her eyes as the sun slowly begun to show itself.

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When we reached the house, it was already five thirty. We had just talked the day away without even realizing it. We had gone back to our own little world, oblivious to the world around us. The sparkling sun, the darkening sky, the wind speeding up…None of those had any effect on us.

The thing that alerted me of the time was the grumbling of Bella's hungry stomach. She had blushed furiously, while I had been horrified of the time. I had kept her in the meadow the whole day, depriving her of her meal.

I reached around behind me and pulled Bella off of me. Setting her down on the floor, I scrutinized her. Was she very hungry? Did she feel faint from having missed a meal? I hoped she wasn't very angry with me.

As if knowing what I thought, as if she were the mind reader, Bella smiled reassuringly at me. "Edward," she chided gently. "I lost track of time, too, you know? Besides, a little hunger isn't something you should beat yourself up about. I can handle it. I'll just have dinner and I'm good to go."

I returned her smile, and leaned forward to kiss her forehead. Her entire face flamed up, and I chuckled. "What do you say you and I go out for dinner?" I suggested. "We could go to Port Angeles…"

Bella considered for a short second before nodding her head. "Sounds good. I need to get some new books anyway. Let me just change and I'll be right down," she said, turning around to head for the stairs. She tripped after taking her first step away from me, her foot getting caught on the carpet.

I rolled my eyes, catching her around the waist and setting her back on her feet. She blushed, and rubbed her arm sheepishly. "Thanks," she murmured, batting her lashes at me before going up the stairs.

I stood rooted to the spot, my mouth hanging open as I watched her leave. My eyes were fixed on the top of the stairs, even long after she had disappeared. Did she know she was being alluring or was it something that came naturally for her?

Shaking my head to clear it, I dashed up the stairs and changed at vampire speed. If I were to take her out, I wouldn't want grass stains on my shirt.

I went out of my room and bumped into Bella. She stumbled as she hit my granite body. I smiled, catching her before she hit the floor. "Really, Bella," I teased. "You're extremely lucky to have been found by vampires, the way you fall every two seconds."

Bella scowled at me, waving a set of keys in front of me. "Just for that, we're taking my McLaren…And I'm driving!" she said, moving over to the stairs.

Right, she was taking her car because I teased her. I shook my head, smiling, and followed her. Bella didn't take her car out to school all that often, so it wasn't really a surprise that she wanted to drive tonight.

It was true that the McLaren garnered a lot of attention. Whenever she drove it to school, it was almost impossible to avert the stares.

Bella hated it. Especially when the overly smug human males started to give her suggestive comments.

I hated it, too.

We went out into the garage. Bella slid excitedly into the front seat and I followed, slipping into the passenger seat. She slid the key into the ignition and the engine started with a purr. Bella smiled contentedly. "I've missed this," she cooed, running her hand proudly over the dashboard.

I rolled my eyes at her. "And to think, before you saw this car, you would have bitten off my head for even thinking of getting you a gift this extravagant," I pointed out dryly.

Bella lifted her shoulder and let it drop a moment later. "It was love at first sight," she said jovially.

She pulled out of the garage and soon we were off to Port Angeles. She drove at just above 100 - living with vampires could get a human used to speed. She was slower than me on my worst day, but at least it wasn't 50.

I fiddled with the knob on the radio. "You wanted to get some books?" I asked her, looking in the compartment for a CD. One of the good things about taking her car was that our music tastes were almost identical. Chances were, whatever I found in the car, I would like.

Bella nodded, eyes focused on the road. "Yeah," she replied distractedly. "I ran out of reading material."

I chuckled. "Only you, Bella, would live in the same house as Jasper and Carlisle and still be able to say that. Have you seen their libraries?"

Jasper had his own collection of books in his study, and Carlisle had his own in his office. It would be impossible for a human to run out of reading material.

I, on the other hand, was a vampire. Not only do I not have to endure sleeping - an inane task that was necessary for humans to survive - I could also absorb every single word in a book in less than fifteen minutes.

Bella glared playfully at me, before turning her eyes back to the road quickly. She was as much of a safe driver as Esme, who had never gone over the speed limit in her entire existence. "Hey," she said defensively. "A decade is more than enough time to finish reading their books."

"Of course," I said, still smiling.

When we reached Port Angeles, it was still quite early. Bella wanted to go to the bookstore before we headed over to dinner. I eyed her critically. "Are you sure, Bella? You did miss lunch…"

Bella sighed. "Edward," she said, turning another bend. "I'm fine. I took an apple before we left. Dinner can wait a few minutes."

I bit my lip, nodding my head slightly. She smiled at me, and got out of the car. "There's a music store a few blocks down…" I mused. "After we go to the bookstore, maybe we could go to the music store?"

Bella chuckled. "Edward, you don't have to baby-sit me all the time, you know," she winked. "You go ahead to the music store." She must have seen my reluctance, because she laughed. "You take hours to pick one CD, Edward. Go on. I'll meet you there in a few minutes."

I nodded my head, but made sure that she had her cell phone. When she gave me a 'yes' with an irritated huff, I smiled and kissed her cheek. "Be careful, Isabella," I warned her.

She nodded and waved as she headed up the stairs to the bookstore. I watched her go inside, hearing the thoughts of the people nearby.

There was only the salesgirl inside the store, and no other customer other than Bella. The salesgirl didn't think of cults or sacrificing goats, though, so I figured it was safe. I watched the store for a few more seconds, smiling as I heard Bella ask where the Austen collection was.

I walked away from the bookstore, keeping an eye on Bella using the salesgirl's mind. I knew that Bella would probably be angry with me if she found out I was 'baby-sitting' her, but this wasn't a very populated area at night. I just wanted to keep her safe.

I stepped into the air-conditioned music store, the atmosphere in it hitting me like a blast. There were several different people in the quaint store, and their scents hit me like a ton of bricks. I held my breath for a few seconds, then slowly took in a breath. I smiled. My self-control was getting better by the second. This hardly affected me anymore. I was surrounded by humans all the time in school.

I walked over to the classical music section. I became so engrossed in the collection that I hadn't realized the time.

'Goodbye. Come again soon!' She seems nice. Very interested in mythology…

I glanced at my watch, startled. Bella was right. I'd been in the store for over an hour. Bella had already left the bookstore. I panicked, going from the salesgirl's mind to the mind of a thirty something businessman entering the store to the ones of the people Bella was passing by.

She looked happy, so I assumed she had gotten all, if not most, of the books she was looking for. She was carrying a heavy-looking plastic bag in one hand, the other holding her purse close to her body.

Suddenly her body shifted, her shoulders tense. Her movements grew quicker.

That was when I heard them.

Oh, look. A poor little defenseless girl…How charming, running around by herself this time of night. I betcha she's a screamer.

I froze.

This vile human, with his disgusting, unfamiliar mind, wasn't a complete stranger to me. His kind were the exact ones I used to hunt.

Ooh. Lonnie's going to just love her…Another man's thoughts broke through the panicked haze in my mind.

There was more than one.

A flashback of Rosalie telling me her story flashed through my mind.

"There they were. My supposed fiancé and his disgusting friends. They didn't care that I screamed, they didn't care that I was in pain, yelling for them to stop. I begged, Edward. But they did it to me, again and again, until I was sure I saw the light. I wanted nothing more than to die. The humiliation, the agony, the loss of my virtue…You said that the pain of the transformation was painful. You haven't felt pain. You think you lost your soul when you became a vampire. I lost my soul when they ravaged me."

I let out an outraged growl, scaring the person next to me out of her wits. I didn't care. I ran out of the store as fast as I could without attracting attention. When I was out of sight, I used my vampire speed.

I was nearing her now. I could hear her heartbeat, practically feel it under my own skin. I could taste the scent of her.

I could also sense her fear.

So could Lonnie, the leader of this group of people who wanted to steal the soul of my Bella. I snarled as Lonnie touched her arm, laughing in his mind and out loud at the way Bella was shaking. I moved faster, pushing my legs to go further than they ever had.

Finally I reached her. I pushed her out of the way and she stumbled slightly. I crouched, tensed, as I stared down Lonnie and his friends.

What's this? Her knight in shining armor?

Lonnie was still trying to be brave, but he couldn't fool me. The fear was radiating off of him in waves.

Oh, man. I knew we shouldn't have done this tonight. Too many people around!

One of his companions was screaming in his mind.

"Let's go, man!" the other one said.

Lonnie ignored both his friends, attempting to scare me with his glare. "Shut up, Jeff!" he snapped, lunging at me.

I held him off with one hand around the neck. The other hand reached around and snapped his wrist. Lonnie howled in pain, but I didn't care. He deserved it for what he was attempting to do.

Jeff was trying to escape while the other companion was trying to help Lonnie. He came at me from the side, but I swept his legs from under him, tripping him, and stepped on his leg, breaking it from his knee down.

I swung Lonnie to the wall behind me then dumped his semi-conscious body on top of his friend.

Jeff was running away from me, but I was too fast for him. I moved at vampire speed, seeming to appear in front of him to his human eyes. I grabbed him by the neck. He started to claw at my hands, but it didn't faze me even a little. I squeezed until his air supply was cut off. I watched his eyes water, his face turning blue before my very eyes.

I felt a presence running at me from behind. The figure swayed from side to side, not entirely stable on his feet. I turned around, dropping Jeff to the ground. He was spluttering around too much to get up, wheezing as he sucked up the oxygen.

Lonnie had gotten up. He was trying to hit me, but I grabbed his hand before it made contact. Of course, he would have broken his hand if he'd made contact anyway. I twisted his arm into a bag angle, a sickening crunch making me smile. I threw a swift kick to his middle, hearing his ribs cracked as well.

Jeff was struggling to get up so I stepped on his legs, snapping the bones on each leg. He howled in pain.

But it wasn't enough.

These hooligans had been beaten up by me, but it was still not enough. I had to kill them. More than that, I wanted to.

I raised Lonnie from the ground by the scruff of his neck, glowering at him. He seemed to know, even in his pain, that I was about to finish him off. He started to tremble, his thoughts calling out to the God he hadn't believed in just five minutes ago.

I heard a sweet voice calling out to me. The voice of an angel. In my red haze, my mind couldn't identify it.

"Please, Edward!" the angel cried out.

I dropped Lonnie to the floor where he started to cry in agony.

"Bella!" I exclaimed, turning around to see her shaking, holding on to a lamppost. I rushed to her side, reaching her in the blink of an eye. "Did they hurt you?" I asked. I had seen their actions in their thoughts, of course. Lonnie had touched her arm. He'd slid a hand down her arm. But other than that, they hadn't done anything. They didn't have the time.

I gripped her to me, growling. I had almost lost her. I had almost seen her death. I couldn't lose her, not now, not ever.

Bella was still shaking. Understandably. She had just been attacked, for God's sake. "Please," she whispered. "Let's go. Please, Edward."

I pulled back to look into her fearful eyes. "Go wait in the car, Bella," I said firmly. I had to finish Lonnie and his friends off. I couldn't let them get away.

But I didn't want Bella to witness a murder, either.

I didn't know how long her innocence would hold. I didn't know how long until she saw a human getting killed, or if she would be the one doing the killing. I didn't know how either of us would react to her first hunt, or when she slipped for the first time.

I just wanted to retain her innocence for as long as I could. Watching me kill three humans wouldn't exactly be very innocent.

Bella shook her head frantically, gripping onto my shirt with as much force as her hands could handle. "Please," she said, tears welling up behind her eyes. "Just…Let's go, okay? I-I can't be here any longer," she nodded towards the pathetic human men behind me.

I ran my hand through her silky hair and sighed, nodding my head. "Fine," I said softly, not wanting to scare her any more than she already was.

I took her hand, swept the bag of books from the ground and walked her to the McLaren. I pulled her into the car, but I got her in the passenger seat. I was driving, no question.

We were both shaken up. Bella was in fear and I was simply too angry to stay focused. But all in all, I had better reflexes.

I started the engine and drove away from the bookstore, and away from Lonnie.

My hands gripped the steering wheel hard. I had to remind myself time and again to calm down slightly so that I didn't put a dent in the floor or pull the wheel off.

Bella's melodic voice filled my ears once more. "Edward?" she whispered, her voice husky. She cleared her throat. "Edward, are you alright?" she asked, sounding more like herself.

I barked out a humorless laugh. "Bella, you were the one who was attacked," I spat out angrily. How dare someone attacked her? What sort of a sick lunatic waited around in the shadows for a defenseless girl?

We reached the more populous part of the city. I parked in the shadows of some trees, needing the time to calm down before we move on ahead.

Bella reached out and rested her hand on my arm. It felt so good to have her soothing warmth. I closed my eyes, willing my anger to recede.

When I finally opened my eyes again, Bella smiled. "Better. But it's not quite the topaz I love," she said teasingly.

I cracked a small smile, then reached over to wipe at the corners of her wet eyes. "Bella," I whispered. "Are you sure you're alright?"

Bella nodded her head. "Yes, I'm fine," she said, blushing at my concern. "You got to me just in time."

My fists clenched again, and she frowned. Lifting my marble hand off my lap, she kissed my knuckle gently. I felt my fist slowly unclenching.

I stared at Bella in shock. She had just kissed me. On my hand, but it was still a kiss. Maybe that didn't count…I didn't care. Her lips had felt so soft, so gentle against my own cold, hard skin. I wanted to feel it again.

I shook my head imperceptibly to clear it then bit my lip. "Bella, how can you be so calm?" I asked, confused. "You sounded so scared back there…"

She looked away. "I was scared," she admitted. I wanted nothing more than to reach out and pull her into my arms. "But you have to understand, I wasn't scared for me. I was scared for you."

I gaped at her. "For me!?" I exclaimed. Why on earth would she be scared for me? Nothing could have hurt me. She, on the other hand, was a complete danger magnet. She was, also, a fragile human. How could she sit here next to me, being so levelheaded, and tell me that she was afraid only for me?

Bella didn't look up to meet my eyes as she replied. "You worked really hard to be where you are now, Edward. I didn't want you to ruin it all in a matter of five minutes," she said quietly.

I made a face, disgusted. "I wouldn't have drank their blood," I said, shuddering just at the mere thought of it.

She nodded. "I know. But murder is still murder. You would have taken their lives…I know you wanted it, but you would feel the burden of it at some point. I didn't want you to go through that, all because I'm the all mighty danger magnet," she said the last part bitterly.

I cupped her cheek with one hand and gently tilted her face. I wanted to see her beautiful brown eyes clearly, and say it. "Bella," my voice sounded strained, even to my ears. "None of that was your fault…They were vile, disgusting monsters. If it weren't you, they would have done it to another girl."

Bella shuddered as she contemplated that possibility.

I sighed, dropping my hand. I was completely amazed by her confession. Shocked, of course, that she had even the courage to think of what killing those bastards might do to me in the future at a time so crucial. But amazed. She was truly self-sacrificing. If I hadn't learned that when she had given up her humanity for our lives, I knew that now.

"You should have let me killed them," I told her, anger still evident in my voice. "I still want to go back and-"

Bella's hand on the side of my face brought me back to reality. She tugged as hard as she could to get me to look at her. I finally allowed myself to look at her once more. "Edward, you're an amazing person," she informed me.

"You saved me, and not just tonight either. I won't let you bear the burden of killing someone again. Not after everything you've worked for. We'll deal with it the more human way - we'll call the cops. You left them pretty banged up. I'm sure they'll still be there when the police gets there," she said all this as though she was pleading with me.

I knew it scared her to think that I would fall off the wagon. She hadn't seen any of us slipping up, but she had seen how Jasper had reacted when he had almost attacked her after the incident in London.

He had seen how badly Rosalie felt when she had nearly gone for a human because she had gone so long without hunting.

She had seen the disgust I'd felt when I recounted stories of my rebellious years. She knew how much it would kill me to have killed another human.

But she was wrong.

I didn't regret killing any of the humans I did. I killed only the sinful ones, the ones like Lonnie. Yes, I realized it was wrong of me to take the role of God. I realized how wrong it was for me to decide who should live and who should die. But I didn't regret killing them. They would have hurt innocent people if they had continued living.

And killing Lonnie and the others wouldn't cause me grief at all. In fact, I would get a small amount of satisfaction from it, probably.

Bella blamed herself, though, for the trouble she thought she had caused. She had already placed the burden on her shoulders. If I went back to kill Lonnie, she would feel even more guilty.

I couldn't place that sort of weight on her shoulders.

So I nodded my head stiffly and went out of the car to find a pay phone so that I could make an anonymous phone call to the police.

After the call, where I had successfully disguised my voice, I slipped back into the car. I was about to just take Bella home when her stomach grumbled loudly.

Bella shot me a sheepish look, her face flushing. I chuckled slightly. "How about we get you some dinner?" I asked, already putting the car in drive.

She hadn't eaten a proper meal since breakfast and after an ordeal like that, she was surely even more hungry. Shock did that to people. I wasn't going to take no for an answer.

I pulled up in front of a place called La Bella Italia, parking in the lot in front of it. I took the keys, slipping it my pocket and was out of the car before Bella could even blink. She stepped out of the car, and smiled at me.

I reached out and took her hand which she, surprisingly, didn't take back. I opened the door to the restaurant, and gestured for her to enter first. Bella giggled at my action, and stepped inside. I smiled, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"Hello," I said absentmindedly to the hostess. "I would like a table for two, please."

My God, that voice…The hostess looked up and her eyes widened as she saw me. Oh, wow. Is that the most good looking guy I have ever seen or what!? I've got to tell Suzie. Better yet, I've got to ask him out!

I expected Bella to start laughing, or nudge my ribs gently - so as not to hurt herself - and wink playfully just to annoy me because I could read the hostess mind when she was so clearly infatuated with me.

When I looked at Bella, though, she was glaring at the hostess, shooting daggers with her brown eyes. She reached up to grip my hand that was dangling from around her shoulder. I raised my eyebrow. Why was she acting like that? What had gotten into her?

Possessive much? The hostess was thinking, as she contemplated Bella's reaction to her. Well, there goes my hopes of her being his sister…My God the way he looks at her. Hmm. Maybe I should just flirt a little. It couldn't hurt. If I give him my full attention he'll dump Plain Jane over there and come to me, no doubt.

I struggled not to wrinkle my nose in disgust at her thoughts, then looked at Bella in surprise. Possessive? Was that how she was reacting? She was…Jealous?

The thought brought a smile to my face.

I leaned down, just for the fun of it, and pressed my lips to Bella's cheek. She tore her gaze away from the hostess to look at me, blushing fiercely.

The hostess was both touched by my sweetness, and jealous of Bella at the same time. She brought us to a table in the center of the room, but I shook my head. "Something a little more private, please," I said pleasantly, slipping her a hundred dollar bill.

She blinked at me, surprised, then shrugged. She led us away to a more private booth, and I smiled my gratitude. With a flirtatious wink, she headed back to the front of the restaurant. I suppressed a shudder, and tuned out her illicit thoughts.

I turned to face Bella as she sat next to me at the booth. She had her arms folded across her chest, glaring at the empty space in front of her. I chuckled. If she really was jealous, it was adorable.

She turned her angry eyes at me. "What?" she demanded, miffed.

I shrugged. "It's nothing, Bella," I said softly, brushing her hair back with my fingers. She blinked up at me, and I leaned in closer just to flash her a wide smile.

Bella's eyes widened slightly, glazing over. Then a goofy grin broke out on her lips, and she batted her eyes at me, a delicious blush spreading across her creamy skin.

"Hello," a deep voice greeted us. I looked over, annoyed, to see a boy about seventeen years old, holding two menus in his hands. Our server. The hormonal teenage boy who was eyeing Bella appreciatively.

Bella wasn't all that oblivious to the way his eyes raked over her, because she blushed, ducking her head. The server found this adorable.

Man, she's so hot! I wonder if Fabio over there is her boyfriend. I'd have no chance if he were… No, Danny, remember what the therapist said. Confidence, not self-doubt. Just ask her out. Once her boyfriend wasn't anywhere near her, of course. The dude looks like he's about to blow up!

He handed us our menus, and I snatched mine from his hand quickly. The server's eyes widened. "H-hi," he stuttered. "I'm Danny, and I will be your server tonight. Could I get you folks anything to drink?"

I glared at him for a second longer, then turned to Bella. She cleared her throat, embarrassed that both Danny and I were looking at her. "I'll have a coke?" she said, her statement coming out sounding like a question more than anything.

"Nothing for me," I said coldly.

Danny seemed to catch on to the fact that I knew he was ogling Bella. He left soon after, but not without giving Bella a wide smile. She, of course, blushed which made him think that she liked him.

I was still glaring after him as he left. I turned back to Bella only to find her smiling amusedly at me.

******************************************************************************

Bella's POV

The hostess was giving Edward these flirtatious winks and little waves of her fingers. Disgusting. I glared at her long and hard until she backed off. She left Edward and I be, but not before she gave another flirty wink of course.

I crossed my arms across my chest, and huffed. That hostess was so…Indecent! For all she knew, Edward was my boyfriend. I mean, not that he was…He was just a friend. Best friend. Possible soul mate, but not boyfriend.

The hostess didn't know that, though. Here I was sitting next to someone who was probably my boyfriend and she was just winking and flirting like there was no tomorrow.

How disgusting!

When I heard Edward laughing quietly to himself, I turned to glare at him. "What?" I spat out, daring him to say something to anger me more.

Instead, he just smiled. He reached out and brushed away a strand of my hair from my face. "It's nothing, Bella," he said softly. His velvet voice sent shivers running down my spine.

Edward leaned forward and flashed me his crooked smile. I felt my breath hitch as I stared at his flawless smile and his sparkling topaz eyes. I could feel the familiar blush creeping on my cheeks as I gave him a goofy grin in return.

"Hello," I heard someone say. I looked up, annoyed that someone else was interrupting us. I caught myself. Interrupting us? God, stop thinking so…Hormonally, Bella.

A boy who looked to be around my age stood in front of our table, a couple of menus in his hand. He glanced at Edward, then looked at me. His eyes raked over me - or whatever he could see of me, anyway.

I felt a blush at having someone paying attention to me. The boy smiled widely, handing the menus over. Edward snatched the menus before I had even lifted my hand.

"Hi," the boy said. "My name is Danny and I will be your server tonight. Could I get you folks anything to drink?"

He barely looked at Edward, but Edward looked like he was ready to snap Danny's throat. Edward turned to me, signaling me to give my order. "I'll have a coke?" I said, my order coming out as a question. I had a habit to have everything I said turning into a question whenever I was nervous.

Edward waved Danny off, not ordering anything for himself. Danny gave me an appreciative smile and I blushed for getting such attention.

Edward glared at Danny until he left. He growled at the retreating back of our server, and shook my head, amused.

When he turned to look at me, I snickered. "A little more humane, Edward," I said, referring to his growl. "That's what we're going for."

Edward scowled at me. When Danny came back with my coke, Edward was still looking ready to kill. I quickly ordered a mushroom ravioli, very much aware of how ridiculous it looked that I was the only one eating and drinking.

Danny came by every five minutes to 'check if we needed anything else'. Edward finally had enough and told him to just leave until he called for the check.

When I was done, Edward practically begging me to eat faster, in his 1900s gentleman way of course, he called for the check. The hostess came by with the bill. I saw Edward shift uncomfortably as he slipped in the money and slammed the bill on the table quickly.

He took my hand and we went out of the door as fast as we could without actually running. Once we were by the car, we turned to look at one another and burst out laughing. That had to be the funniest dinner I had ever had.

We slid into the car and I took the wheel again. I sighed, contented, as I drove off in my McLaren. Edward, sensing my happiness, laughed, shaking his head. He reached out and turned on the radio. After a few stations, he grumbled. Taking out a CD from a compartment, he put it on.

I smiled as Debussy filled the car. The third song would be Clair de Lune. I exchanged a grin with Edward then focused on the road, a comfortable silence filling the space between us for the rest of the ride home.

When I parked in the garage, Edward took my bag of books from the backseat. He offered to carry it inside. I protested, saying that I could very well carry my own shopping bag. He ignored my protests and I didn't actually mind it.

The answering machine had a green light blinking so I pushed the button to hear the messages we'd gotten.

The first was from Rosalie. "Isabella Marie Hale! Why aren't you answering your phone? Alice had a vision of some meat sacks attacking you. Where the hell are you? I've been calling for God only knows how long! Call me this instant!"

I flinched, diving for my bag. I had forgotten all about my phone.

Apparently, so hard Edward because the second message was from Rosalie, as well, but for him. "Edward Cullen! Where's my daughter! I asked you to protect her for one lousy weekend and already you've messed up. It's not even Saturday yet!"

I rolled my eyes, shaking my head.

Edward had a pained look on his face, though, so I walked over to him, placing my hand on his cheek, shaking my head. I didn't want him to blame himself. It wasn't his fault in any way. He saved me, he was my hero. Not the cause for my little run in with trouble.

That was my fault, as resident danger magnet.

The final message was from Gabriel.

"Bella," his voice interrupted my time with Edward.

I withdrew my hand from Edward's cheek awkwardly. It felt strange touching Edward or being near him at all when Gabriel was mentioned.

I stared at the answering machine, unsure if I should continue listening, stop the message or delete it. "I called you, but you didn't pick up…I was just worried you didn't come to school today. I hope everything's alright. Call me if you get the chance."

I opened my phone and, sure enough, there were missed calls and text messages from Gabriel. I had forgotten all about him, for the entire day. How was that even possible? He was my boyfriend! I should have thought of him all day, wasn't I?

Look at Alice and Rose. They think of Jazz and Em all the time. Even when Alice was shopping, she would pick out certain things she knew Jazz would like. And when Rose was fixing up cars, she'd tell me stories of the romantic things Emmett sometimes did for her over the years.

Why wasn't I like that with Gabriel? I had to be the worst girlfriend ever to have actually forgotten about him for an entire day.

I pressed his number on speed dial, and waited for him to pick up. "Gabriel?" I asked. I turned around to leave the room, not wanting to talk to him with Edward in the same room. It was just plain uncomfortable.

Gabriel's voice sounded happy on the other end. I wished I felt the same way. "Bella!" he cried. "Where have you been? I've been worried sick!"

I bit my lip guiltily. "Yeah. Sorry about that, Gabe. I…It was a last minute thing, some family bonding time, you know?" There was absolutely no need to mention that the only one I was spending time with was Edward. Besides, it wasn't a significant detail anyway.

I talked to him a little. Gabriel said that he sat with Angela and Ben - her crush - at lunch, while Lauren tried to make her move on him again. I rolled my eyes. She was too insistent for her own good.

I stretched my arms over my head and suppressed a yawn. "Gabe, I'm really tired. I'll call you tomorrow, okay?" I said goodnight and turned off my phone. I stared at it for a really long time, unsure of what to do.

"You should probably call Rose," Edward called out quietly. I jumped and turned around to see him standing at the foot of the stairs. His face was a blank mask, but I blushed anyway. His presence alone was enough to get me to do that.

I nodded my head, as if agreeing with his suggestion. "Right," I said, laughing nervously. "I'll do that…Well, goodnight, Edward."

He gave me a half smile, but it was still enough to take my breath away. I smiled back hesitantly. When I passed him on the stairs, Edward stopped me to kiss my cheek. "Goodnight, Bella," he said softly, his sweet breath caressing my face.

I made it to my room without tripping and called Rose on the phone. Alice had already assured her that nothing was wrong with me, and Edward had called her the moment he heard the message, but she still wanted to hear my voice.

I told her not to worry since Edward was with me and to enjoy hunting. It was only a two days away before she would see me again.

I showered and change into a pair of boy shorts and a Smurf t-shirt. I climbed into bed, sighing as the soft sheets relaxed my tensed muscles. I closed my eyes, expecting dreams of my wonderfully sweet French boyfriend to come to me.

But, as usual, Edward's beautiful face and crooked smile floated in my mind. And, as usual, he was telling me how much he loved me.

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Okay, that was just a really long chapter.

The other two chapters have already been written, but I won't post them until this one gets 100 reviews. I'm really sorry to demand it like that but I want to know what you think. It's not too sudden, is it?? Their attraction? Bella has already somewhat come to terms with the fact that she loves Edward. Along with emotional epiphany, she has to have physical attraction to him as well. Next one coming right up...Just remember what I asked. Please and thank you.

Happy reading and please review.

Thank you!

Juliet.