Ffn is being wonky again, so if you're reading this, YAY!

Thanks to Fran and my prereaders who literally had to keep feeding me sentences in order to get this chapter done haha. Sometimes chapters can pour out of me in two hours and other times….a week (Like this one!) Not sure why I was so stuck on it but I hope you enjoy. Speaking of enjoy, we're picking up right after Edward surprised Bella with that kiss!

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Bella

I don't know how long I stay in our row.

Even after Edward is long gone, I can't bring myself to leave this little slice of heaven between the books.

This is now my favorite place.

I have a cart of books to return to the shelves as one of our younger staffers couldn't make it tonight for her shift, and that is what had ultimately led me to the Biography section. What was once a relatively low-traffic area of the library is now where I want to spend the rest of my time until Edward returns from Vegas, reliving every second of what just happened here between us.

I'm fully aware of how ridiculous I sound, but I blame it all on him. To say I was unprepared for his kiss would be an understatement, and now I'm leaning against the bookcases like I've forgotten how to stand.

It's entirely possible that I've actually been swept off my feet.

After so many years, I can file books onto the shelves in my sleep, yet I take two books into my hands and place them absentmindedly back onto the shelf, my fingers coming up to settle on my lips as I think about Edward. Maybe it was the unexpectedness of it all or the way he had come here solely intent on kissing me goodbye; either way – I'm left feeling giddy and childish. Passionate and desperate for more.

Is this how it's supposed to feel; like a besotted schoolgirl with a crush and a full-grown woman on the cusp of her second sexual awakening?

Regardless, my hands keep shelving books while my mind keeps replaying the kiss over and over on repeat. His lips, which I had been sneaking glimpses of as often as I could get from the day we met, were even softer than I had imagined. As soft as they were, it was the firmness in which he pressed them against my own that has me reeling.

Soft when they separated from mine, allowing a faint trace of his tongue to dance with my own, and firm after we had caught enough air to dive into each other again. All this, coupled with his respectable yet still wandering hands drifting down back, cupping my cheek, holding my hands as he unwillingly left for his business trip?

Yeah. I'm completely done for.

And I don't mind for a second that this may be going too fast or if I'm in way over my head.

I'm exactly where I want to be.

Truthfully, the place I want to be is anywhere Edward is. But because that's not possible right now, staying here in our little row and reliving our last few minutes together will suffice.

For now.

All I know is that when he returns, containing myself will be the hardest thing I'll ever have to do in my life.

Judging by the text Edward sends me right before his plane takes off, it looks like I'm not the only one.

Three days.

-m-

By the time Friday rolls around, Jess and I are back at Demetri's, our favorite beach bar, ready to put the week behind us. Saturdays are the busiest days at the library, and because we're lucky to have enough reliable staff, we are able to rotate which Saturday we work. This week, Jess and I have Saturday off, which we plan on taking advantage of to the fullest.

We walk into the bar around six and snag a table for two outside on the patio. When Patrick spots us from his place behind the bar, he nods his head in our direction, and we get comfortable in our seats while he works on our first round of drinks. It's overcast today, which brings a small wind off the ocean towards us, but it doesn't bother me. When I look around to see that the weather has kept people away from the outside area, I'm even happier with our decision to head over after work.

Jess and I have a lot to discuss, and I won't feel guilty taking up a table for the night if the restaurant isn't as busy as it normally is.

"So you kissed him like that and sent him off to Vegas?" Jess asks around a mouthful of bottomless chips and salsa. "Hot and bothered surrounded by strippers?"

I laugh, downing a sip of a margarita the color of the turquoise ocean in front of us. I think of how reluctant Edward had been to leave. How badly I wanted to cling to him so he would have to stay. The way he held my hand for as long as he could as he slipped out of our row. The way he shook his head and came back to kiss me all over again.

"Guess so," I answer her with a lightness in my words I haven't heard in a long time. The image of Edward running his hands through his hair to compose himself when he really did have to leave before his plane left him behind makes me laugh. "Worth it, though."

Jessica nods, another chip dipped into the salsa.

"I think I agree with you," she says with a shake of her head before adding her next thought. "If you feel this way from a kiss, imagine when you two finally – "

"Here we are, ladies." Patrick has delivered our dinner to our table, and we pause our conversation as we slide our drinks and appetizers to the side to make room. He looks over our table before clapping his hands. "Anything else?"

Since we're regulars here, he knows us. He knows what comes next.

"Another round, yes?" Jessica looks at me, and I nod in agreement, placing our glasses into Patrick's waiting hands.

"Please," I answer, and we wait until he's back at the bar with our order before we resume our conversation.

"So when does he come home?"

I sigh, looking out at a storm, miles away off the coast. I can see the rain clouds churning in anger, but I don't worry about it cutting our time short here at Demetri's. We have plenty of time before our night is over.

"Sunday." I try my best to convince myself it's not an eternity. "Later in the day."

Jessica nods as we dig into our dinners. "And you're both off Monday?"

I nod enthusiastically, unable to hide my eagerness in wishing today was Monday and not Friday.

"He's taking me out to dinner," I add, thinking of the conversation we had earlier today through text. With Edward's time monopolized with his boss and his potential client, plus the minor time difference between here and there, our time to talk is limited.

It didn't stop us from making plans for the dinner Edward jokingly owes me for his late library books.

Patrick arrives with our next round of drinks, and we get started on them right away.

Jess twists the straw of her drink between her fingertips before asking me, "Do I detect first official date vibes?" Even she has a smile on her face that can't be wiped away.

Technically, it will be our first date, now that I think about it. We've been in contact almost constantly over the two weeks since we've met, so I don't feel any nerves when I think about Monday. I don't have those first date jitters – I'm more antsy than nervous to see him again.

If that makes any sense.

"It doesn't feel like a first date," I admit, crunching on a fry from my plate. "I mean, we've been here before together." Sitting with him for hours that night was the first time we had seen each other outside of the library, and the removal of those four walls was true in both the literal and figurative sense.

"Yeah, but that was with a group of us," Jess replies with a shake of her head. "This will be your first time, just the two of you."

The thought of us being alone sends a shudder through my body—the good kind.

I think about all the other first dates I've gone on in my lifetime and acknowledge the significance. The first date decides everything – if there's something there worth pursuing.

I already know that answer.

"It is a big deal, right?"

"Normally, I would say no," Jessica disagrees, but then again, she's not the type to analyze things like the importance of first dates. "But you and Edward have been different from the beginning. I know you're not telling me everything, but I can tell there's a connection there. A different kind."

She's right on two counts. There are parts about Edward and me I'm not telling her – not because I don't want her to know, but I'm finding it hard to put it into the right words without me sounding like I've gone off the deep end and fallen for some guy I barely know. The other truth is that she's also right; this connection between Edward and me can't be ignored.

"It's fast," I admit. "I know that. But I've never felt this way about anyone, Jess. Not even after being with Alec for a year."

I watch as she recalls one of my last serious relationships. The fun we had in our time together was a permanent fixture; the passion was fleeting. And while it was hard to see him go, we both knew it was the right thing for us.

The thought of watching Edward go leaves me anxious. The thought of depriving myself of time with him in fear I may get hurt, is harder to accept.

"Oh, yeah. I remember him," she says and then offers more. "Yeah. Totally different."

I sigh again, and we sit in comfortable silence as we finish our dinners and drinks. I know Edward and I are moving fast, but I'm enjoying this ride and have no plans on stopping it any time soon.

Or ever.

When our food is taken away from the table, and more drinks are placed in front of us, I eventually start to feel the effects. I feel a calmness wash over me, and thoughts of Edward and me together appear in my mind like they're supposed to be there.

Like we were meant to be. Like we were just wading through life until we found each other.

Towards the end of our night, when most thoughts in my mind become too heavy to articulate out loud, I tell Jess whatever I can make of them. I end up babbling incoherent words that make sense only to me. "I can't explain it."

"You don't have to," Jess says as the storm off the ocean makes its way to us on the shore. "That's the best part."

-m-

Two more days.

My phone vibrates next to me right as I flop face-first onto my bed, the late hour coupled with the booze finally getting to me. With my face still pressed into my blankets, my hand blindly fumbles until it lands on what I'm searching for. I flip over onto my back, and even through eyes I can barely keep open, I see a text from Edward.

Knowing that he's counting down the days like I am makes me feel better. It also makes me feel on fire, thinking of how it will be to have him back where he belongs.

That long?

I'm almost whining as I slip my jeans down my hips and legs, tossing them with an ungraceful kick across my room.

Did you go out with Jess?

I slip beneath my sheets, the coolness against my skin doing nothing to quell the fulfillment I'm feeling now that I'm finally in my bed talking to him.

Just got home.

My phone buzzes again right after I send it.

Demetri's?

I text him a picture I had taken of Jess and me at dinner. Bottomless chips and salsa ftw

Another text right away.

Sounds amazing. Wish I was there

Thoughts of Edward with me where I am now, in my sheets to cool down from the summer sun, combined with the easy flow of steady drinks tonight, has made me brazen with a desperate need for him. Thanks to my night of indulgence, I don't have the filters in place to keep me from letting him know it.

Without hesitation, I send him a picture of one of my legs curled around the outside of the blankets, the hint of a bare hip taunting the top left of the picture.

Even if I'm thinking more clearly in the morning and may come to regret my decision to send it to him, I don't think he'll mind.

In bed thinking the same thing.

I watch through a haze of want and alcohol as he starts to respond and stops again. His one-word response is very telling.

Bella…

Playing innocent, my fingers flick quickly across the screen. Edward?

Even across the country, you're killing me

My head flops back against my pillows, sleep pulling me under despite how badly I want to stay awake. Sleeping now can make the time without Edward that much less.

Hurry home.

His responding text is the last thing I see until morning.

Two days.

-m-

Is Carolina Catch any good? Be honest. I'm still learning my way around here.

Monday has finally arrived, and I've spent the day slowly pampering myself to occupy the hours before our date tonight. I smile at his honesty.

Delicious. Food caught fresh daily if seafood is your thing.

We live in a beach town. How can it not be everyone's thing?

I laugh out loud before answering him back. Is that where you're taking me tonight?

Maybe.

I would be happy eating in a Taco Bell parking lot with Edward, but I don't tell him this. It seems more like a third date conversation. It's perfect.

See you at six?

Can't wait.

It's easier to decide what to wear now that I know where we're going. Carolina Catch, another wonderful coastal restaurant, is still fairly casual, though the crowd is rarely full of families with young children. It's a perfect place for people to converse at a level that doesn't require screaming in order for the other to hear. Like Demetri's, it faces the water and offers both indoor and outdoor dining, but the view outside is far more spectacular than inside. With the sun looming in the sky, there's no reason for us to have to be stuck indoors, so I dress comfortably for both the heat of the setting sun and the breeze off the night air.

The jeans I decide on come to my ankle, the holes in the denim placed sporadically down the sides and across my thighs, giving me the subtle edge I'm looking for. I stand in front of my mirror, twisting from side to side to get a better look at the black shirt I've paired with the jeans, the looseness from the sleeveless blouse billowing around me with every turn. Loose curls, subtle jewelry, and a pair of black wedged sandals finish the look I want. A touch of a gray smokey eye and a spray of perfume in places I want him to discover is all that stands between now and when Edward picks me up.

As I'm peering out of my windows, waiting for him to arrive, I remember what I had said to Jess about how this first date with Edward didn't feel like a first date. How natural it felt.

I realize now, as I'm taking deep breaths in and out to calm myself, how nervous I really am.

It feels like a first date.

I feel those butterflies. I feel the anticipation all the way down to my toes. My breath sounds shaky as I inhale my doubts and try to exhale my confidence.

When I see him step out of his car, instead of shaky breaths and inner pep-talks, I'm slow smiles and wrapped in a blanket of peace.

I'm not nervous anymore.

I watch him step out of his car, watch as he slowly takes in his surroundings before his eyes land on my apartment. I'm in the upstairs unit, and I had all intentions of heading downstairs to meet him outside once I noticed he arrived, but I can't help but watch him through the window.

The dark jeans he's wearing, coupled with a crisp gray button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled close to his elbows, has my breath catching in my throat. Just in the beginning stages of setting for the night, the sun is burning an orange so bright it catches his copper hair and accentuates the perfectly coiffed look of disarray that makes me want to run my fingers through it. The glint of silver off his watch bounces off the window, reminding me that standing up here and watching him is keeping me from where I ultimately want to always be.

With him.

Not wasting another minute, I head out, shutting the door to my apartment and locking it behind me. He's walking up the sidewalk leading to my front step when I open my outside door and spot him, and he slows his pace, almost coming to a complete stop when he sees me.

I'm leaning against the stucco wall of my apartment building, the smile creeping on my face matching the one Edward's giving me from his spot on my sidewalk.

When he reaches me on the doorstep, while I try to convince myself that jumping into his arms is a bad idea, his hands move up to slide against my cheeks, cupping my face gently between his fingers. A softness melts into his features before he leans down and places his lips against my own, softly at first.

All bets are off when his head tilts to the side, his lips sliding against mine like we've been doing this for years.

I sigh against his mouth, savoring this moment I've been waiting for since he walked out of the library on Thursday.

Maybe even longer than that.

I pull him to me, not caring if Mrs. Cope is watching from her downstairs apartment window, my hands reaching for anything I can grab. He's relentless now, his tongue and lips losing their beginnings of gentle promises, and I could not care less about our other plans for the evening.

Everything is forgotten but him.

"Hi," he breathes when we finally part, our foreheads pressed together as we try to catch our breaths. I'm just as swept off my feet as I was last time.

"Hi," I answer, wrapping my arms around his neck. When his arms wrap slowly around my waist, his face leaning into my neck, I wonder how we've stayed away from each other for as long as we have. His lips dance across my neck as he speaks.

"I made us a reservation."

His words on my skin have my fingers running through the hair at the nape of his neck.

"I know." My words in his ear make his lips trail from my neck to my mouth again, both of us forgetting that we're standing on my doorstep right around the time my neighbors come home from work.

Eventually, we part again, and when I open my eyes, I see that his are still closed.

"If we don't go now, we'll never go," Edward says, giving me one last small kiss before noticing the pout I'm sending his way. He laughs before grabbing my hand and leading me to his car. "Don't give me that look."

-m-

"So what happens now?" I ask, sipping a glass of wine as our waiter takes our plates away from the table. The sun set an hour earlier, covering the table and us in hues of pink and purple. Just like our night at Demetri's, I don't want this one to end.

The way Edward holds my gaze across the table tells me he feels the same.

"Well, the hard part is over," he answers, placing his glass down on the table. "The actual work on the project is easy. It's the convincing them I'm good enough for the job part that's the most taxing."

Our conversation has veered into Edward's trip to Vegas, and I'm finding it fascinating to learn more about what it is he chose to do for a living. The passion in his voice as he recounts his trip is evident, almost tangible.

"Of course, you're good enough. At least judging from the work you've shown me," I reply. I add softly, "You're very talented, Edward."

His modesty is another part of him that I love. "Just something I've done since I was old enough to go on the internet," Edward shrugs off my compliment good-naturedly. "Figured the best thing I could do was to take a hobby of mine and make a career out of it."

As a teenager, I think back to me working in a library just to surround myself with the books I've always loved.

"I can't agree with you more."

He finishes his drink and places his empty glass next to my empty one.

"When did you know you wanted to be a librarian?"

"It wasn't necessarily the path I was planning on," I say after a few moment's thought, "but being around books and literature and research was just something I knew I wanted to be involved with."

He nods in understanding.

"And the library?" The waiter comes over to drop off the check. "How did that come about?"

I laugh and shake my head in disbelief. "I think it was Willow Creek, actually. I was just passing through, but it didn't take long for me to know I wanted to stay." Without a doubt in my mind, the beach, the people, and the easy living had called my name the minute I stepped foot into this town. "The position at the library was just one of those things that fell into my lap."

He nods, settling the check for the night. "Right place, right time?"

It makes me think of us, how he had stumbled into my library on a random, rainy afternoon. It's a perfect expression that fits our story. I can tell by the smirk of a smile pulling at his lips that he, too, is not referring to our careers any longer.

I send a wry smile back to him. "Something like that."

"Is that a common occurrence here in Willow Creek?" Edward laughs. "I'm still waiting for this town to have something wrong with it, but it just keeps getting better."

"Better?" I question, leaning as forward as I can without tipping the table. He meets me in the middle, closing the gap between us with a soft kiss.

"All the time."

He drops me off at my house in the early hours of the morning after walking the beach using only the moonlight to light our way.

And when he has me against the outside wall of my apartment, his lips and sighs and desire pressing against me in all the places making me quiver beneath his touch, I don't care who sees.

FINALLY! So happy to move forward with these two! Setting the scene for the four of these guys to meet!

It's happening….soonish.

In the meantime, tomorrow, Monday 2/1, the first chapter to my collab with Jgaff goes live! Check out our joint page, JM Jill, to read our new story, Collisions with Clouds. Can't wait to share it with you! (If ffn cooperates, of course!)

Join my facebook group, Lily Jill Fics, to catch all the good stuff, especially if you don't receive email notifications for updated chapters.

See you soon!