Things had been tense since Bella and Edward's foray into sexual gratification. Both agreed they wanted their first time together to be after a kill. The thought excited Edward on a new level, as he'd never had sex with anyone after the kill—they were dead. He was looking forward to sharing his adrenaline high and fucking Bella's brains out.
The next few weeks were filled with hand jobs, blow jobs, finger fucks, and even a little... lip service. Edward had also commented on the fact that he liked Bella's pussy juice all over his face, saying he wanted to dine and dash at some point (eating Bella out then immediately setting a kill while she still glistened on his face). He wanted the woman he was killing to smell Bella on him and know he belonged to someone else.
She had confided she thought she would like to watch a live show of Edward inflicting pain on one of his victims before he strangled her, citing that she'd consider a threesome down the line. She wasn't entirely sure she wanted to share the darkness with another woman, so let him know she wanted to keep that idea tempered for the moment; perhaps later when their relationship was less tenuous.
The delay in their advanced intimacy had come in Edward not being ready to share the hunt after their last argument. That seemed to be the only thing that struck a chord between them. Bella consistently picked brunettes for the slaughter. He didn't know if it was purposeful or something she did unconsciously. After the third week, when he finally felt he was back to full strength, he decided to breach the topic with her.
"Why do you pick women with brown hair?"
"What?"
"When we are hunting, you seem to choose women with variations of dark brown hair similar to yours. Why?"
The question kind of surprised Bella because she wondered why Edward always nixed the women she chose. But having him point out their hair color was similar to hers had clued her in.
"So you won't kill ones that remind you of me?" She arched a brow, challenging him to deny it. His lack of response was answer enough. "For how long?" Bella demanded.
"Awhile."
Since his confession, there'd been a shift in the balance of power. Bella understood Edward's hesitance in killing women who reminded him of her, which to most women may have been flattering, but Bella knew it was more. To her, it spoke of Edward's true devotion, and she wasn't about to shake that with something as inconsequential as hair color. The few hunts since their discussion had resulted in Bella choosing a couple redheads, and Edward even taking one of her suggestions. It was the hurdle they needed to overcome.
"I think this is the week. Will you come with me?" Of the women Edward had to pick from this week, he chose a party-girl whom no one would notice had gone missing and who wouldn't suspect something sinister when he suggested she come home with him and his girlfriend.
Bella was overcome with his invitation, as she'd waited what seemed like forever for this moment. "What changed your mind?" she wondered.
"It doesn't matter. What is important is that I want you with me—beside me—and I want you when we're done."
Finally, was the only intelligible word that came to Bella's mind.