53 – EPOV
Relief.
That's all I felt the entire ride back to our duplex.
I could see her in the rear-view mirror.
She was beaming and sucking in her bottom lip, taunting me with it.
I wanted to spend the rest of my life worshiping her.
I loved her.
I loved her as an acquaintance when we were merely online buddies.
And now that she was here with me and that I had the chance to know the woman behind the screen. She was real. It was her.
There was nothing about her that was made up. She'd shown me who she was the entire time.
And I'd fallen in love with her. All of her.
I had been a complete wreck, not sleeping and barely eating for the last two days.
Mom and Dad didn't say anything but I had a suspicious feeling they knew something was up.
I usually ate about half that turkey myself. Mom had more than double her usual leftovers this year. Something was definitely up with me.
I parked my car in it's usual spot and practically ran to meet Bella.
I picked her up and swung her around as soon as she was out of her car.
Her laughter was music to my ears as she held on to me. Her arms were wrapped tightly around my neck and her feet were a foot off the ground as I led us to her front door.
I guided her to a standing position and waited impatiently as she unlocked her door.
Bella took my hand and led me into her living room, "Have a seat. Do you want anything to drink?"
I took a seat on the sofa and smirked, "Do you want anything to drink?"
She smiled and quirked an eyebrow at me, "Not at all."
Shaking her head, she walked over to me and surprised me but straddling my lap, "I still can't believe...all this time. You're Lightning?"
I held on to her by putting my hands on her hips, "And you're Bean?"
"This is surreal, like a Meg Ryan movie. When did you figure it out?"
I told her how I'd figured it out after Bean had told me she'd moved. I'd put the time lines together and then the fact that she was a teacher and that she'd had such an impact on Brandon.
I also told her it was a lot of little things that eventually led to bigger ones like her nickname that really solidified it for me.
She said she'd had an inkling after I'd told her about Vicky but she wasn't as convinced.
She was going to decline Lightning's offer to meet her but after agreeing on Forks, she just had to see for herself.
"I swear Bella, I never wanted to hurt you," I held her face in my hands and looked into her eyes, trying to solidify everything.
"You didn't." she shook her head, "I feel like the luckiest woman alive right now," she leaned in and kissed me softly.
I eagerly returned her kiss, letting my fingers graze the skin down the side of her neck, her shoulders and arms.
Bella groaned and I felt her skin erupt into goose bumps under my touch.
I could feel the heat radiating off of her and onto my groin.
She was going to be the death of me.
So what next?
