A/N – I have to say that the wait for publishing this has been excruciating. I never thought I would get this excited about an event, but this was a definite A+ experience to me! Thanks to the lovely mariescullen who made my banners for this (both teaser and other), Bitterharpy for keeping me sane and prereading this for me, lovely black butterfly for perfecting my madness and to the sweet and lovable brierlynn03, whom I wrote this story for.

Chapter 2

BPOV

To say the vision of a mop of coppery brown hair barreling towards us was surprising would be an understatement. Then again, I am assuming his apparent rage had something to do with me, which from the way we ended the only evening we spent together, would definitely not be the case. The night had started well, and when he had invited me back to his apartment, I had assuredly expected to be at least somehow ravished by the sexy creature. But the night hit a downward spiral the moment he opened his door and I caught a glimpse of a stunning girl about my age, the same one that had approached Edward numerous times throughout the night asking his plans, nearly naked on his sofa in a seductive pose.

I was so startled by that combined with the way Edward attempted to back out of the situation, that a gasp escaped my lips before I could stop myself. Honestly, I should have somewhat expected this; Edward's reputation was well-publicized around U-Dub.

What I didn't expect was her reaction to my presence, which was to melt even further into the upholstery of the couch like she belonged there and run her eyes up and down Edwards form, a mischievous smirk widening as she enjoyed my discomfort. I also hadn't expected hearing Edward begin to growl at her in anger while trying to soothe me by leading me into the apartment and out of her line of sight. The endearment he tossed out casually made me blush and I defensively corrected him since it was really way too soon for him to be pet naming me… especially right now. Then with the regalness of a queen at court, I strode out of the room.

Once I reached the safety of his kitchen, I grabbed a bottle of water, and crept back towards the open doorway, attempting to eavesdrop on the two of them without making my nosiness obvious. I almost felt bad for the girl; Edward made it painfully clear that she was absolutely nothing to him. He also made it clear that he had never given her any false hope or expectations of more, which was not a vibe I had gotten from him over the course of the night.

Don't get ahead of yourself, Bella. This could be standard protocol.

Just the thought of being one in a line of hopeful females caused a scowl to form on my face, and once I heard the door slam, I exited the kitchen, unsure of what I should do now. I was surprised when he begged me to stay, and led me over to the couch, to "watch a movie". I assumed that was code, but he was very much the gentleman as we settled in to watch Twilight, and soon I found myself falling asleep in his arms, dreaming of a night that was clearly not meant to be.

In hindsight, perhaps I wouldn't have bolted upon waking to his brothers gawking at me like a sideshow freak if I hadn't been unsure why they were doing so. The dream I woke from was so blissfully scandalous, however, and featuring their sexy brother and I have been known and teased for talking in my sleep at times. As my vision cleared and my eyes opened to see the staring, all I could think of was the teasing from my roommates and I rushed out of the room without even pausing to take a breath.

When I arrived home, I was greeted by my two extremely disheveled yet overly perky best friends who were eager to tell me about their night. Apparently, Emmett and Jasper were extremely taken with my friends, and their nights were much more lucrative than my own. They brought them back here to our place and the four of them parted ways as each couple took the night to learn as much about each other as possible, physically and emotionally. Both my best friends were on cloud nine; and assumed, since they had seen me leave with Edward, that my story would match theirs in every way.

Clearly, I was not the one Edward was looking for. I assumed otherwise of course until the Tanya incident occurred and the evening took a turn for the worse. Although polite and attentive, Edward made no attempts to make our encounter more intimate. We merely sat casually in the room watching the movie, a situation I had been in with numerous guy friends in the past. The idea was disappointing as I was extremely interested in taking things to the next level with Edward, even if it had only to be a one-night occurrence. Let's face it, Edward Cullen was one hot piece of man; and I responded to him like I never had before.

Finally, the chattering stopped and I looked up to find both of them looking at me in concern.

"What's wrong, Bella?" Alice asked gently. "We saw you leave with Edward. Did the night not go well? You two seemed awfully cozy…"

I shrugged and fiddled with the hem of my shirt nervously as I considered how to respond. I didn't want them to feel awkward or ruin their magical night, but i couldn't provide even the smallest bit of enthusiasm about our tepid evening. I decided to leave the drama out of the equation and answer as simply as possible. "We watched a movie at his place and fell asleep. I guess I am not who he is looking for." My statement came out more as a mumble since I felt extremely vulnerable for some reason in front of the two girls that I trusted more than anyone. I thought we seemed cozy as well, but maybe the Tanya incident opened his eyes to my insufficiencies. There was no way to compare us; she was stunning, sexy, and confident while I was generally plain, shy, and awkward.

"I don't believe that, Bells." Rose chimed in, crossing her arms in agitation. "I saw you two, and he definitely seemed VERY interested. Did something else happen?"

There was no way I was sharing what I walked in on. I just shrugged again and shook my head, hoping they dropped the subject when I didn't elaborate. They let it drop, thank the lord, and when I asked them to please tell me more about their evenings, they willingly complied.

I tried to push Edward out of my head. I dated a few random guys on campus—Mike 'the chump' and Jacob 'the pound puppy' who followed me around like the campus bloodhound—hoping to find that same spark I felt around Edward. Riley was a nice guy and I could see that going somewhere but he still wasn't Edward. Thus far, I was painfully disappointed. No one gave me butterflies or made my head swim in desire. It was incredibly frustrating. I had just been introduced to Demetri that afternoon. Hell, I didn't even know his last name.

Emmett and Jasper became common fixtures around our place, never leaving my roommates alone for very long. I was thrilled they both found their special someone, yet it was bittersweet for me, having no special someone of my own to occupy my time.

I did my best to avoid Edward completely. If he wasn't interested, I was definitely not pushing myself on him. It sounds like that might be an easy task, but for a disinterested man, Edward sure did show up in my line of sight a lot. I became a master at ducking behind all sorts of various items in an attempt to keep him from noticing I was near.

Until now, that is as I gawked at Edward thundering towards myself and Demetri as we crossed the courtyard towards the library. He didn't even pause to greet me as he tackled poor Demetri to the ground and started throwing punches, growling out obscenities, and acting like a complete caveman. I stood there helplessly; not stupid enough to attempt to get in between them.

Thankfully, his brothers and my friends appeared quickly after the debacle started, and as Rose and Alice gently tried to pull me away from the mayhem, the Cullen brothers separated Edward and Demetri and held them back from doing any massive damage to each other. As my friends led me away, I glanced back, silently yearning that the quarrel was over me and not over some other disagreement between the two of them. I realized then, that I was still way over my head in regards to Edward Cullen.

The girls were full of inquiry once we returned home, unsure why Edward had run amok on Demetri since I had been adamant that he had no interest in me. They were both baffled since all three of the brothers had asked each of them separately about my schedule and such, which opened my eyes to how he always seemed to be in the right place and the right time; making me duck and hide from him like a thief in the shadows whenever I caught a peep of that tell-tale hair.

Not long after my friends began their inquisition into my apparent blindness, Emmett and Jasper arrived, and as soon as they passed the doorway, they settled on either side of me on the couch. Although slightly disheveled, they both appeared unharmed, making me believe that campus brawls were all in a day's work for them.

"So, Bella," Jasper drawled, as a small grin appeared on his youthful face, "are you ever going to put our brother out of his misery? He's in pretty poor shape. Not that it isn't hilarious to watch him unravel and all, but I am starting to worry about his mental state. He doesn't go out at all anymore, and I'm pretty sure it is because of you, little lady."

The look I gave him in response clearly amused both brothers, as they started laughing and smacking their legs in unison. Seriously, the way these guys tended to do this simultaneously was a tad bit creepy. My friends were not as amused and glared at their men as I felt the telltale blush stain my cheeks and neck. "I thought he wasn't interested; I mean he didn't even kiss me." The flush grew tenfold as I unwittingly admitted that fact, and I focused my eyes on my feet to avoid looking into any of their eyes.

"Well, I don't get that at all, darlin'," Jasper responded, "But I can tell you that he is definitely interested, he hasn't even looked at another girl since you ran out of the apartment that mornin'."

My eyes flew to his at that admission, and I felt that little blossom of warm hope start to surge through me. "Really?" I whispered in awe. "I had no idea, I just assumed otherwise."

"You kind of bolted like your ass was on fire, Bella," Emmett chimed in quickly. "I'm sorry if we startled you, but you two looked so damn cozy on the couch that we couldn't help but rib our brother a bit." His shoulders shook as he chuckled over this, making the hulk of a man look almost harmless as a teddy bear.

I admitted I was not quite awake when that happened and that perhaps I shouldn't have assumed the worse, but with their reputations around here, there was definitely an assumption there that something a bit more than cuddling would occur between us, and therefore I was rattled that he didn't even attempt a kiss or caress during our time together alone at their place.

We spoke a while longer, and before they left, I assured them that if Edward wanted to see me again, I was more than open to the idea, I was just trying to accept the "obvious". As they walked out the door, I wondered if I really would get another chance with Edward, or if this was all just wishful thinking.

The answer came sooner than I expected, when that same evening, I opened the door to an obscene bouquet of flowers, held but an uneasy looking Edward. I smiled gently and opened the door to allow him entrance. He scratched the back of his neck with his free hand, and like the last time, it made me want to run my fingers through his hair to see if it was indeed as soft as it looked. I shook my head at the thought because once again I was jumping the gun and moving way ahead of myself.

"Hey, Bella." he practically whispered; his eyes trained on the floor bashfully. Never since I first heard the name Edward Cullen would I ever imagine seeing him look so unsure and bashful around a female, and those butterflies in my belly took flight, making me gasp slightly and the unruly feeling took me by surprise.

Only with this man, I confirmed silently as I reached for the flowers and thanked him for the gesture, before motioning to our living area and asking him to sit while I put them in some water. My hands shook slightly as I filled the vase, still unsure of where this was going and hoping I wouldn't be painfully disappointed like the last time we were together alone. I inhaled deeply, reminding myself that he sought me out here, in my comfort zone, and I was not some hopeless romantic chasing a pipe dream by following him around in a daze, begging for scraps of affection.

OMG Bella, Stop acting like an innocent virginal sacrifice and get your ass in there!

I could feel his eyes on me as I entered the room. I glanced up and almost stumbled, seeing a determined yet cautionary look in his eyes as I walked over and sat down next to him. He shifted closer, if that was possible, and leaned forward until we were practically nose to nose.

"I just want to try something," he murmured, as he leaned in closer and I knew that finally, he was going to kiss me. My lips gravitated towards his, and once we connected, the feelings of nervous energy morphed into something else. It was like I could feel all of the want and need I had inside of my amplified and returned with equal fervor. At that point, the chains holding both of us back shattered and our hands began to grasp at each other's body urgently, in almost a race to who could undress the other first. As clothes parted and skin was revealed, our bodies molded together as our hands and eyes learned one another and my body tingled with nearly electrified energy as I felt his hands learn every exposed inch of my flesh. All rational thought fled and the urge to simply feel overcame me, as Edward stared at me with longing and I allowed myself to give in to the temptation, let myself go, and enjoy the moment, no matter how long it might last.

EPOV

I promised myself I would move slowly, and let Bella become accustomed to my body before overpowering her with feelings and sensations, but the moment our lips met, the pure feeling of completeness that overcame me was not something I anticipated. My body reacted to hers, and where she moved, I followed suit, almost like yin yang blending together to form that perfect circle of contentment. If I had not already known that she was the one prior, there was zero doubt in my mind now. We were born for each other, and hopefully, she would be as accepting of this fate as I, for there was zero doubt I would not be able to live without her.

It hit me once our clothes were discarded, exploring each other that we were in her living area, and our privacy was limited and that the chances of our being interrupted were increasing as time passed, especially knowing how my brothers operated. Nosey fuckers.

"Bella, love," I gasped out as her hand wrapped around my girth tentative yet eagerly, "can we take this somewhere more private?" She quickly nodded, took my hand, and practically dashed with me into her room, locking the door behind her. Clearly, the thought that all of our clothes were scattered around her living area failed to phase her, and there was no way I was distracting her from her current course, which was for her to shove me towards her bed to continue where we left off.

I gently nudged her along with me until we made it to the bed and laid her back against the soft pillowed comforter, having yet to get my fill of her. She peeked up at me through her lashes as I trailed my hands down her torso, my lips paying homage to her body as they followed my hands' path. Her hand came up to grip my hair roughly as I neared my goal, and she pulled firmly to encourage me to bring my lips back to meet hers as her legs wrapped around me, holding my already straining cock right next to her heat as she ground her pelvis against me and our tongues battled a dance for dominance.

As if it were as natural as taking a breath, my aching length found her entrance and I slowly eased myself into her warmth, pausing for a second to whisper a quiet thank you to the fates for gifting me with such a prize. My body allowed me merely that second before I was urged to move, and I surged forward eagerly, our movements became fast and desperate, our orgasms building together before we fell simultaneously over the edge, crying out each other's name as we both came apart.

As we lay there spent, I gathered her in my arms as I whispered into her ear, "I was born to love you, Bella, and I'll never let you go."

Bella sighed in contentment as she snuggled close and replied softly, "I'm so glad, Edward. So very glad."