I like shiny things, but I'd marry you with paper rings

Uh huh, that's right

Darling, you're the one I want

~ Taylor Swift, Paper Rings

BPOV

I kept my eyes shut as long as possible, enjoying every last minute of semi-consciousness. Edward's bedroom was dark, but I could see sunlight seeping in through the cracks in the curtains and the half-open ensuite door. I sat up slowly, feeling surprisingly well-rested and normal. Except for the dull ache that covered the entire bottom half of my face from my nose down.

I heard the jingle of dog tags down the hall and watched as Lady nosed the door open and pranced into the room, Edward behind her. She was quick to hop on the bed, plopping herself down right next to me and rolling on her back for a belly rub.

"How do you feel?" Edward asked, walking over and handing me a small bowl filled with yogurt.

"Four teeth short," I sighed, that dull ache intensifying whenever I moved my mouth.

Edward did an awful job of hiding his laugh as he handed me a couple of pain pills and set a glass of water down beside me.

"What?"

"You accused me of letting the dentist steal your teeth many times yesterday."

My eyes widened. My wisdom teeth removal was a fairly quick process. I only had a few days to prepare for the whole ordeal, and I had been too busy attempting to make my workload as light as possible this weekend to worry about what stupid things I could say while the meds wore off.

"I didn't do anything else stupid right? Your parents took care of me while you were at work, I didn't say something to them, did I? They like me now, and they invite me to lunch every few weeks, and I – "

"First of all, my parents have liked you from the moment they met you," Edward sighed, taking his spot back in bed beside me. His arm rested behind me, his fingers gently massaging the top of my head. "You didn't do anything stupid. The most entertaining part of the day was you reprimanding me for not proposing to you, yet."

It should have been physically impossible to choke on yogurt, but I managed. My voice came out three octaves higher once I was able to ask, "What?"

Edward smiled over at me, the picture of nonchalance. "It's okay. I made it up to you by telling you all of my proposal plans."

My brows furrowed, my eyes still somehow as wide as possible as I stared over at him. "What?" I repeated.

"I believe your exact word was that it was 'annoying' that I hadn't asked yet. And you were high as hell, so I played the odds that you wouldn't remember a thing and told you my plan."

My brain was pulled in half a dozen different directions. For one, it was more than a little humiliating that I brought up his proposal at all, let alone told him it was annoying he hadn't asked yet. Yeah, I wanted to marry him. And he knew it. And he was the one that brought it up on Valentine's Day. And maybe there was a little voice in the back of my head that wondered about it every time he took me to a fancy dinner or did anything slightly romantic since then. But it was mortifying my increased lack of filter after my surgery told him those things.

The other way to look at the situation was that he admitted he had plans. Plans that I knew about but couldn't remember. As much as I wanted to focus on that part, the humiliation kept seeping in.

"I'm sorry," I groaned, my head falling into my hands. "I mean, I do want to get married, you know, someday. But, it's a big step. And you have Masen and Lucy to consider. And things are kind of normal for the first time for us. You just got divorced four months ago and – "

"Hey," Edward interrupted, touching my chin just enough to tell me he wanted me to turn my head, but not hard enough to actually move it. He seemed entirely unfazed when I met his gaze. "I thought your little ramble was cute."

"It was a ramble?" I squeaked, mortified. My head fell back against the headboard, my eyes squeezing shut. "This is why I don't go to the dentist. Nothing good comes of it."

"You don't have to be embarrassed," he said gently, warm lips pressed against my forehead. "I could list all of the reasons I want to marry you, if it'll make you feel better?"

Again, my eyes popped open, wide and horrified. "I listed reasons?"

Edward shook his head, very unconvincingly. "Come down, I've got a spot set up for you in the theater."

I groaned, grumbling to myself under my breath. I quickly swallowed the pills he gave me before heading to the ensuite to make myself somewhat presentable for the day, a nearly impossible task considering I looked a bit like a chipmunk with my swollen jaw. I pulled on a comfortable pair of cotton shorts and stole a sweatshirt from Edward's side of the closet before heading downstairs with Lady prancing along beside me.

Edward was waiting in the kitchen, smile on his face as he led me down to the theater he had in the basement. Masen and Lucy were huddled together at a table near the game area, both offering a wave in my direction.

"What are you guys doing?"

"Studying for the ACT," Masen groaned. "They're giving it at school next week."

"It's not that bad," I shrugged. "Just do plenty of practice tests."

"What did you get on it?"

"Thirty-five."

"No shit," Masen gasped.

Edward frowned over at him. "Hey."

"Sorry. That's one from a perfect score."

"I can help you later if you want," I offered, before Edward shooed me into the theater. There was a spot set up, as promised, a blanket and pillow waiting for me in the corner.

"You got a perfect score on the ACT?" Edward asked after he, Lady, and I got ourselves situated.

"One away from perfect," I shrugged. "I didn't get a full ride to UCLA just because I volunteered at an animal shelter for a couple years."

I was good at studying. Enjoyed it, even. That coupled with my constant need to be busy, made pushing myself for the best possible score on the test easy.

"Damn," he sighed, shaking his head.

I watched as he scrolled through the never-ending list of recommended movies, stopping only when I gasped and pointed to the one he very obviously tried to speed past. It was probably one of the worst horror movies ever made, and it starred none other than Edward Cullen in his late teenage years.

"We're not watching that," he said firmly, but I could see the pink start to spread across his cheeks.

"I think it'll make us even," I bartered.

"Even?"

"Yeah. If I have to live with the absolute horror of knowing I apparently told you how desperate I was for you to propose to me, then maybe watching this will put us back on more even ground."

Edward groaned, grumbling something under his breath before pressing play.

I smiled until it made my entire mouth hurt and grabbed his hand where it rested on my thigh. It just happened to be his left. There had been countless days where I saw a ring on his finger and absolutely loathed it. While I was mortified at whatever ramble I had gone on yesterday, I couldn't say I didn't want to see a new ring on his finger soon.

…Closure…

I used your credit card.

I sent the text as soon as I got in the car, the guilt attempting to eat me alive on the short walk through the parking lot. It shouldn't have, and I knew that, but I still felt like he should know I just spent his money.

It was a beautiful, sunny Sunday afternoon that Rosalie and I spent inside store after store. Time was ticking on the house. While we had no actual deadline, I knew Edward had been aiming to move during the summer while the kids were out of school. And, even though it seemed like every time I opened my computer I was deciding on a couch or bedframe or coffee table, the house was nowhere near finished.

The goal for my outing today with Rosalie was the kitchen. I went into the day thinking about silverware and plates and ended up getting a lecture from a woman at a container store about pantry and refrigerator organization.

That was my downfall.

I could happily spend hours in an office supply store, adding everything to my cart that would keep my work more organized. I never really cared or thought about the organization behind a kitchen before, but it was the same thing in theory. Instead of keeping my pens organized I was keeping my food organized. And I kind of loved it. Which meant Rosalie and I wandered around the place for hours and filled up four carts worth of containers and bags and whatever else caught my eye.

Good.

I rolled my eyes at his response.

Don't you want to know what I spent it on?

Doesn't matter.

I gritted my teeth.

What if it was drugs?

Was it?

No. It was everything a kitchen could possibly need, though.

I'm glad you got stuff for the kitchen, and I'm glad you used the card. You can buy yourself whatever you want with it. It doesn't have to be house related.

As glad as I was that he was okay about the kitchen supplies, the money thing was a touchy subject for me. I knew one of the biggest reasons Irina was married to him for so long was for his money, knew she fought for as much as she could get out of him in the divorce. I didn't want him to ever think I cared more about the money than him.

Okay. Gotta go call my dealer, then.

Get something good, at least.

I rolled my eyes, smiling as I put my phone back in my purse. There was no getting a joke past him, but it was one of the things I loved about him. My attention turned toward Rosalie, shaking her head as she pulled into my soon-to-be neighborhood.

"What?"

"You're moving to Brentwood," she chuckled.

The area was known for its wealth. Which wasn't surprising considering the cost of our house, but it was one of those areas in Los Angeles that everyone who wasn't bringing in millions idolized.

"I know," I sighed. The whole thing got a little surreal if I thought about it too much.

"Do you remember how shitty our place was when we first moved into it? The bathroom flooded twice, we lived out of a minifridge because the big one was broken, and we had three plates."

I smiled, remembering just how horrible our house used to be. The combination of us doing everything we could to improve it with what little money we had, and our constant nagging of our landlord led to the decency of it now.

"Emmett's going to move in, when you move out. He said he'll pay you for the next few months until your lease is up and then take it over."

"He doesn't have to pay me," I shrugged. "When did you guys decide to move in together?"

"I don't know. It just kind of happened. Our place is the perfect distance between school and the gym, so we'll probably stay there at least until we graduate. Again."

I chuckled. Rosalie loved school these days, and her disdain for her love of it was comical. "You're such a good little student," I teased.

"Shut up. I am not. I have a reputation to uphold, Bella."

"Your reputation is fine. I don't think anyone at Sigma Kappa has beaten your jello shot record, yet."

"Damn straight."

Once we pulled up to the house, I entered the code for the gate and we got to unloading everything. Rosalie was inside unpacking and I was on my fifth trip out to her trunk when I heard a greeting from behind me.

"Knock, knock!"

I turned around, a woman and who I assumed was her husband standing on the sidewalk outside the still open gate. They were probably in their early to mid-forties. They looked like a picture-perfect suburban couple. The man's hair was just starting to turn grey at his temple, a blue button down tucked into his khakis. The woman was pretty; blonde hair curled perfectly and wearing a summery maxi-dress in a floral pattern.

"Oh, hello," I turned around, dropping my load of bags back in Rosalie's trunk.

"We wondered who ended up here. It's a beautiful house," the man said, eyes on the home behind me.

"Excuse my husband. He's an architect and easily distracted by a new build," the woman chuckled. "We live a few houses down the block. I'm Heidi, and this is Felix. Are your parent's home? We'd love to introduce ourselves."

It took every ounce of willpower I had not to roll my eyes. Or throw up. "Oh, no. My boyfriend and I just bought the place."

"Oh. Of course," the woman, Heidi, stuttered. She did have the decency to look a little embarrassed at her assumption.

I took a few steps down the driveway toward them, holding my hand out. "I'm Bella Swan."

"It's lovely to meet you, Bella," Heidi smiled, seeming relieved I tried to bypass the awkward parent comment as fast as possible.

"Bella Swan," Felix muttered, shaking my hand. "I've heard that name before. What is it that you do?"

This is why I don't talk to people, I thought to myself. "I'm in publicity." I gave them a few seconds and watched as they connected the dots. "It was nice to meet you," I told them, already taking a few steps back toward the house.

"Oh, we're having a neighborhood bar-b-que in a few weeks!" Heidi shouted after me. "You and Ed – your um, boyfriend should come. If you're all settled in."

A green flyer appeared in her hands, telling me this little run in was more than a coincidence. Heidi took a few steps toward me, flyer outstretched.

"I'll let Edward know," I said, taking the flyer and giving them an out to know Edward's name even though they obviously already did. "Thanks."

"We'll see you around," Heidi smiled, both her and Felix waving as they left. As soon as they were out of eyeshot I typed the code into the gate for it to lock shut behind me.

I heard Rosalie giggle from behind me. "You're going to be such a cute little suburban housewife."

"Shut up, little miss honor roll," I groaned, grabbing a couple bags from the trunk and heading back inside.

"It's nice that our insults are now positive traits that we're ashamed of but not really ashamed of, you know?" Rosalie said, following me into the kitchen with the last of our shopping spree.

"I'm not a suburban housewife. You are about to be on the honor roll, though."

Rosalie snorted. "I'd bet you just about anything you're going to be a housewife within a year."

My cheeks flushed, her comment an unwelcome reminder of my drugged-up confession to Edward that I wanted him to propose. Because, unfortunately, Rosalie knew me better than just about anyone, as we unpacked and cleaned and organized she forced the story out of me.

We were just about through cleaning and putting away all of our purchases when Alice showed up, four boxes of kitchen ware in tow. All the kinds of things I'd have no idea you needed in a kitchen. Pots and pans and knives, most things I wasn't allowed to touch because Edward assumed I would injure myself. Apparently, Alice knew just what he liked, though, and had offered to pick it up for us today.

I had stopped suggesting bringing things over from Edward's house once I realized he kind of hated it there. The house itself was beautiful, and it was a roof over your head when that was a luxury many couldn't afford. But, while I had a years' worth of – mostly – wonderful memories to attribute to the place, he had seven years' worth of memories of being alone. I didn't blame him for wanting a fresh start.

After hours of work in the kitchen, it finally seemed finished. Or functional at the very least. There was no food, but there were plates and bowls and silverware and pots and pans and a place for everything in the pantry once there were groceries to unload.

Rosalie, Alice, and I collapsed on the brand-new cream sofa in the adjoining living room once we were done. My attention turned toward Alice, who I hadn't had a chance to really talk to since Masen and Lucy's birthday dinner. She had been up in New York working for a while, then I had gotten taken down by my wisdom teeth.

"What happened at Masen and Lucy's birthday dinner?" I asked, not bothering to beat around the bush. I knew Edward had told most of his family not to get into the specifics with me, but if anyone was going to break the rule, it would be Alice.

Alice sighed. "Edward doesn't want you to get your feelings hurt."

I rolled my eyes. "Right after the story about Edward's investment in Renata's firm broke, there was a very convincing story published about how I was secretly a prostitute. Had me convinced for half of the article. I've got very thick skin these days."

Alice sat up, crossing her legs underneath her, and turned toward Rosalie and I. "Well, as soon as you left Irina's mother said something along the lines of how 'Edward let that whore tear apart his family.'

"Edward lost it. He's got a bit of a temper, but I've never seen him that mad. I think it was a very cathartic moment for him, though. He told Mel and Dan that they were never welcome to another family gathering if they were going to disrespect you. He was much more… colorful as he banished them from the family.

"He went on about how he took care of Irina when they abandoned her, made sure there was a roof over her head even when they were separated, and tried to make the divorce as easy as possible on the kids. He was obviously talking to Irina and Demetri, too, because they've been just as shitty lately.

"Once it was obvious Edward was a little too worked up to calm himself down, Jasper pulled him away. I didn't hear what Dan said next, Dad said it was another dig at you, though, and he very nearly gave him a black eye. Grandpa had to stop him."

"Shit," Rosalie muttered.

I chewed my bottom lip, a heavy rock settling in my stomach. My own feelings weren't hurt; I was being honest when I said I had grown a thick skin, and I had heard much worse said about me in the past year. I hated Irina's parents, Mel and Dan, for Edward, though. Because he had tried to do the right thing by their daughter and grandchildren for years, and they still somehow blamed him for everything. My presence obviously only exasperated their issues, too.

"I shouldn't have said anything," Alice gushed. "I'm sorry."

"No, it's not that," I sighed. The whore comment had hardly hurt my feelings. "It's just another thing to add to my list of reasons to hate Irina."

"She actually looked a little ashamed, more and more as Edward went on. Maybe she finally realized how much she messed up."

Maybe it was my complete and utter hatred for Irina, but I thought Alice might be giving her too much credit.

"Bitch is lucky I've never met her," Rosalie grumbled.

After a few more minutes of chatter we all packed up to head out. Rosalie had met me here this morning, so my car was waiting for me in the garage. I let the radio float through the car on my drive home, but couldn't name a single song that played.

I let the dinner play out in my head, my own version that I could piece together based on what I had heard from everybody. While I was supposed to be working on not letting my anger get the best of me, I was fuming by the time I was halfway home.

The last moments of Edward's childhood and young adult life had been devoted to Irina and their children. He had been willing to spend a good portion of his adult life tethered to her in a nonexistent marriage to make things easier. And still, everyone seemed to blame him for the fallout.

I made a last minute decision to pull into the Target just down the street from Edward's. It was still fairly early in the afternoon, and a very flimsy plan began to form in my head, becoming clearer as I wandered the store and tossed whatever caught my eye in my cart.

It had been much easier organizing an entire kitchen than setting everything up when I got home, especially with a needy dog stealing everything I needed every five minutes because she wanted attention. I managed to get everything done and make myself presentable with a few minutes to spare, though.

Edward had spent the day golfing with Leon Woods. It was an annual thing for them, ever since he hired Edward for the show. It fell on Mother's Day this year, though, but neither of them minded. Leon's wife apparently preferred him out of the way on her day with her kids, and Lucy and Masen were spending all day with Irina.

There had been a family dinner with Esme last night, one where I tried not to let my awkwardness get the best of me. As much as I loved and appreciated all of Carlisle and Esme's efforts to make up for my less-than-stellar parents, they weren't my parents. And I had the ability to overthink every little thing and it very nearly made me fake cramps to get out of going to the dinner.

I didn't. And it was lovely. Of course.

I was rearranging the jello shots when Edward's voice came from behind me.

"What's all this?"

I turned around with a smile. "Our own personal pool party. Jello shot?"

He took the tiny blue cup from my hand and let it slide down his throat without any hesitation. "Pool party?"

I smiled at the cute furrow of his brows and nodded. "I never did the whole college party thing and you had two children by the age of eighteen. I thought we could have our own little irresponsible night of debauchery tonight to make up for all of that."

Just as I was starting to think my entire plan was ridiculous, a smile spread across his face as his eyes wandered the backyard.

"I have beer pong set up on the table over there," I said, pointing in the direction of my stash of red solo cups. "There's a basketball hoop for the pool to go with our new inflatable flamingo. Pizza is on the way, and there's more beer in the fridge. And, I made jello shots," I finished with a smile.

"There's a hell of a lot of vodka in those jello shots," Edward chuckled.

"I know. I wasn't sure on the proper jello to vodka ratio so I just guessed."

Edward shook his head with another chuckle. He took a couple steps toward me, his arm wrapping around my waist and his lips just barely brushing against mine. "I'll go change," he said with a wink, heading upstairs.

I watched him walk away, my cheeks heating up when he turned to head up the stairs and caught me staring at his ass. He was in a pair of tan khakis, that fit him very well, with a navy-blue polo. He had definitely looked the part for his golf game.

After setting everything up I had ditched my comfortable floral sundress for a simple midnight blue string bikini, a pair of jean shorts over the bottoms. The bikini top meant I'd have to keep sunscreen nearby me for the rest of the day or else I would be a lobster in the morning, but I was hoping it would help me break Edward out of his idea that I still couldn't be kissed properly.

I was over two weeks past my wisdom teeth removal. The first week was pretty awful, but things got better pretty quickly as the second week dragged on. There was little to no pain now, the oral surgeon who had done the procedure had checked everything a few days ago and said I was healing nicely. So, now, I wanted a proper kiss. And more, once I watched Edward walk back out, swim trunks hanging low on his hips.

Our pool party hardly reached the level of debauchery of the parties Rosalie had attended. I had heard story after story over the years, and while it was somewhat my inspiration for the evening, with just two of us I knew our party would be much more tame.

Still, it was exactly what I wanted. What I thought we could both use. One night of irresponsible, stupid fun.

I beat Edward at beer pong twice. I didn't make a single basket when we tried out the hoop on the edge of the pool. I ignored my rule of not drinking too much because I was a new fan of jello shots, and Edward was a very bad influence when he was drunk.

By the time the sun had set we had settled into the bubbling hot tub. Edward's cheeks were flushed, a mixture of the alcohol and sun that I was sure was mirrored on my own.

"Did you have a good afternoon?" I asked, whispering after the sudden silence we had plunged ourselves into in the last few minutes of floating intertwined in the center of the hot tub.

"I did," Edward smiled. "Who knew you were a beer pong prodigy?"

I chuckled softly, my eyes locked on his.

"What was all of this for?" Edward asked quietly.

I shrugged, as much as I could with my limbs wrapped around him. There were a dozen different reasons I ended up wandering around Target planning a pool party, most of which would rat out Alice for telling me about the birthday dinner disaster. I settled on the most straightforward answer. "To make up for lost time."

My childhood and college years were stolen from me. Edward's youth was focused on his children and a woman who would never fully appreciate all of the things he sacrificed for her and them. Neither of us were ever really in a situation to be too irresponsible.

Instead of dwelling on the bad, I focused on the good right in front of me. My lips pressed softly against his in three quick pecks before I tried to deepen it.

"Bella…"

"I'm okay," I said quickly, answering his question before he could ask and going back in for the kiss I was waiting for.

"We shouldn't – "

"Just shut up and kiss me. Please."

For a moment I thought he was going to argue, but then his arms tightened around my waist and his lips were moving with mine in the kiss I had been waiting for. I pulled away a few moments later because I needed some pesky oxygen. I only managed to suck in a quick breath of air before he got impatient, pulling me back and refusing to put so much as an inch between us.

Edward ended up sitting on the ledge in the hot tub. My knees scraped against the stone as I settled myself over him, but I didn't mind. My head fell back, eyes squeezed shut as he finally gave me a moment to breathe while his lips trailed down my neck to my collarbone. I wasn't cognizant enough to realize he was untying my top until I heard it fall against the concrete ledge with a splash.

Warm hands floated across my abdomen, his touch almost reverent. His words fell out of his mouth softly, almost like a thought escaping without his permission. "You're the sexiest thing I've ever seen."

My own response, an anything-but-sexy snort, also came out without my permission.

I didn't expect Edward's answering frown. "You don't believe me?"

I shrugged. I believed him in the moment. But I also had the unfortunate knowledge of knowing far too much about all of the women he had been with in the past. "I spent a very depressing evening finding and contacting a list of women you had been with in the past. Half of them were literal supermodels."

Edward eyed me for a moment, an eyebrow arched. "What I'm about to say might be a little… crude, but apparently it needs to be said."

I cocked my head to the side, lost.

His hands slid around my waist, fingers gently tracing patterns against my abdomen. "You are the sexiest thing I've ever seen. You've got a hot little six pack that clenches whenever I touch you just right. Your tits are fantastic. Remarkable. Extraordinary. Take your pick on synonyms," he shrugged, his expression completely serious as both of his hands trailed up my ribs to cup both my breasts. "You have no idea how often I get distracted throughout any given day thinking about them."

I rolled my eyes, but it didn't faze him.

"If I'm standing next to you there's a ninety percent chance my hand is on your ass, so I think you probably already know how fond I am of it. You – "

"I get it," I interrupted quickly. I wasn't sure if I could handle more of his list.

"I can keep going."

"Oh, I know," I chuckled, relaxing back against him. My fingers tugged at the wet hair at the nape of his neck. I opened my mouth to say something, but it was completely wiped from my mind when his lips wrapped around my nipple.

I wasn't sure if he was still trying to prove his point about my breasts, but my nails left indents in his shoulders as he licked, bit, suckled, tortured me until I was ready to implode.

"Please," I squeaked, not sure if I was begging for more or for a reprieve.

My legs instinctively wrapped around his waist when he stood up with no warning. Water cascaded around us, leaving a trail of droplets as Edward headed into the house without a word. He plopped me into the center of his bed, grinning down at me as I quickly shimmied out of my bikini bottoms.

The room was dark, but the windows let in enough moonlight for me to be able to see him clearly. My own list started forming in my mind as I watched him drop his shorts to the ground. The muscles in his arms stretched as he moved. His abdomen, which was much closer to a six pack than mine, tensed as he looked at me. His cock stood up proudly between his legs.

"I have a list, too," I gasped, only half-joking.

He gave me my favorite lopsided grin a moment before his body covered mine. It was a nearly supernaturally smooth movement as he kneeled over me, hooking my knee around his arm and entering me all at once.

"You're always ready for me," he grunted into my ear.

I nodded against his shoulder. I wasn't sure if it was just a statement or if he was continuing on with his list, but either way it was true. One look from him, whether it was a crooked smile or a wink and I was putty in his hands. It was something I had assumed would dissipate over time, but we were nearly a year in and, if anything, it was getting worse. Or better, depending on how you looked at it.

"You're perfect," he sighed, tightening his hold on my leg. "Every fucking inch is perfect. And just for me."

I smiled against the crook of his neck, pressing my lips against his pulse point. The possessiveness was probably a red flag to some people, but I liked it. It wasn't overbearing and I knew part of it was probably because of the way his marriage ended, and I liked that I was his in every sense of the word.

I pushed against his chest until he rolled us over. I was impatient and right on the edge and wasted no time before I started rocking my hips against him.

Edward's eyes were hooded, his hands tight on my hips until one moved to press against my clit. I was done for, my hips now moving on their own accord, attempting to make my orgasm last as long as possible.

Edward's hips thrust up against mine in a disjointed rhythm until he let out a string of curses as he came.

I collapsed against his chest, my breath coming out in pants for a few minutes before my heart returned to a normal rhythm. I found myself on my back again, soft kisses peppered all over my face.

A/N: hope this chapter finds you all well. Not to scare anyone but… enjoy the fluff while you can :)