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Bella's stomach clenched the next morning as she and Lily followed Emmett to the barn. Just the thought of facing Edward this morning had her skin tingling with awareness. Their relationship or whatever their interactions were, was changing. Bella was still curious to see which direction it would take them. She was playing with fire, and Edward was the glowing coal.

If she were as smart as she thought she was, she would turn around and lock herself right back in that room. She would not walk away unaffected by these encounters with the man in question. With every crack in his armor, Bella felt the need to pry it away. If she weren't careful that coal would burn the shit out of her. Even knowing this, she was compelled, pulled by an invisible force deeper into the unknown. Despite the danger of affiliating with Edward Cullen, she happened to love the wicked sensations he inspired.

Of course, the impossible man had no idea of his effect on her. If he did, Bella was sure he'd run in the opposite direction. For now, she would embrace this one-sided admiration. She wasn't an idiot. Edward Cullen wanted her beyond collecting the debt she represented, but how bad and how much?

Was his attraction solely physical? Absolutely, she surmised. They didn't know one another well enough to be anything deeper than that. Did she want him beyond this obvious physical attraction? What would living life with Edward Cullen be like? To witness that scowl ease from his features and enjoy life.

Holy crap. One shared card game and a few dinners and she was already contemplating what a future with the King of the Midwest would be like. What the hell was wrong with her?

As she stepped into the dimly lit arena with Lily and Emmett, she spied Edward standing in an expensive Italian suit with two horses standing behind him. Although one was a lot smaller than the other.

Unable to withhold the chuckle, her gaze danced between Edward and the horses. "You look a tad overdressed for riding, and please tell me you aren't sticking me on that little creature behind you."

Edward tried to maintain the stern expression he wore when dealing with, well, with everyone. Unfortunately, lately, his features didn't seem to cooperate when Isabella was around. The only indication however was the slight lift of his lips. Spying Emmett close to Isabella's shoulder, his chest constricted this predatory animal awakening.

His order came out as a snap, his teeth grinding with annoyance. "Emmett, take Laurent and James on the rounds today. I have pressing matters here."

"Yeah, it looks like it," Emmett snapped back, his gaze roaming the woman in front of him. Even while Emmett should be happy Edward seemed to be taking interest in something or someone other than a damn picture, a spot of envy was born. No matter what he ever did, Emmett would never be comparable to his brother. There was something to be said about this feeling of inadequacy.

Judging by Bella's response to Edward, Emmett never stood a chance. But he would be damned if it stopped him from trying. Still, disappointment claimed him as he abruptly turned on his heel and left them standing alone in the arena. Once again, he was the lackey following orders.

Edward waited for Emmett to leave the barn before turning his attention back to Bella and Lily. "I am always dressed to impress. As for the horses, the little one is for Lily. She's been riding for a long time and has become quite the little equestrian, she needed a larger animal than Sage. The other one is for you."

As Edward spoke, his wandering eye lowered to Bella's tempting mouth. Last night had taken all of his willpower to leave her sitting in her room alone. Hell, he'd turned back in that empty hallway a half dozen times. All he wanted to do was press her ass into that mattress and sample those lips. A sample wouldn't suffice, however, Edward knew this and forced himself to his room.

There he sat looking at the picture of Irene. With every passing minute, he sat studying that picture, the sorrow became less and less. When he finally managed to catch a wink of sleep, Edward had been awakened by the same moaning sound he heard a few times now.

Very slowly he'd risen from the bed searching for the source, yet the sound quieted as he drew closer to Isabella's door. Confused and a bit chilled, he sleepily looked around the empty hallway. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, Edward looked inside Bella's room to find her snuggled in the center.

He'd been so tempted to cross the distance separating them and climb under those covers. Then perplexed, his gaze shot around her room to find it empty as well. Where the hell was the noise coming from? And why did it go silent whenever he came close to Isabella?

Slowly, he approached her bed, his fingers gliding over her cheek as he pulled her hair away from her face. Her nose twitched as his fingertip grazed her smooth skin. When her lips parted as she sucked in a breath, he'd salivated with the need to taste her. Swallowing tightly, Edward suppressed the urge and forced himself to return to his room.

"Daddy, you bought me another horse? But what about Sage? I don't want him to get lonely," Lily explained with a mixture of excitement and sadness.

Edward snapped back to the present. Focusing on Lily, he shook his head. "Lily, you can play with Sage anytime you want. I just thought you might be ready for a new friend."

Lily looked doubtful, but she stepped forward. Curiously, she studied the bigger black pony, her hand coming up to pet his muzzle. "What's his name?"

Edward chuckled, running his hand down Lily's soft curls. "Whatever you want it to be."

"Hmmm," she murmured, looking between her dad and the horse. "Is it a boy or a girl?"

"He is a boy," Edward answered, handing his daughter the reins. "Do you wanna ride him?"

"Yes," she whispered, "he is soooo pretty. Please don't tell Sage. I don't want to hurt his feelings. Daddy, can you help me get on him?"

Effortlessly, Edward lifted Lily onto the horse's back and handed her the reins. "So, what did you want to name him?"

Bella stood to the side watching the interaction between Edward and Lily. It was hands down the sweetest encounter she'd ever witnessed between the two of them. There was a pull in her chest, wanting to be a part of the scenario, yet this bonding was so important for both father and daughter. Someday, despite the disaster, this family had been when she'd arrived, when she had children, she hoped their father would be just as attentive as Edward was becoming with Lily.

He had done such a complete one-eighty, Bella could scarcely believe this was the same man. "You know, two weeks ago, Edward couldn't even look at her. He wouldn't say her name … or anything. Wouldn't even talk about her." Bella's head jerked in the direction of the woman speaking to find Esme walking into the barn.

"I know," Bella nodded, turning her attention back to father and daughter. "Lily told me when we spoke through the door how strained their relationship was. I'm glad she had you to lend her strength when Edward didn't step up. Too many children don't have the luxury of a caring grandparent."

Esme considered the woman as she came to stand next to Bella. She detected a note of sadness in the girl's voice. She didn't know much of what brought Bella to be with them, and knowing her son, she probably didn't want to, yet Esme couldn't dismiss the effect of having her here. "Do you have a family you are close to?"

"No, not really. It was just me and my dad growing up. We weren't that close," Bella admitted, shrugging she continued, "I also didn't have a grandma to fill in for his negligence either. Lily is lucky she had the rest of her family to fill the void."

"Well, I don't know the circumstances that have brought you here, but you have single-handedly worked magic with this family. After whatever the circumstances blow over, you are always welcome here." With that said, Esme left Bella's side to go to Edward and Lily. "He's so beautiful, Lily. What are you going to name him?"

"Prince," she stated proudly looking toward Bella. "The princess needs someone to rescue her. Maybe I can teach my horse to rescue people."

There was only one person Lily referred to as the princess. Edward glanced in Isabella's direction, she was holding the reins of the gelding he'd chosen for her. Did Isabella need rescuing? Of all the people in the world and considering her circumstances, he supposed she did.

Esme pretended not to see the worry on Edward's face. Just witnessing the transformation of her son was enough to slightly soothe her worries for him. As nonchalantly as she could, she nudged Edward away from Lily and her new pony. "Don't you have a lesson to give? I've got Lily."

At breakfast, Edward informed them of his obligation this morning. The fact that Bella was able to finagle Edward into teaching her to ride spoke volumes about his personality shift since she'd arrived. Esme was surprised when her son didn't argue, instead, he pivoted on his heel and went to where Bella stood.

Bella sucked in a mouthful of air as Edward came to stand before her. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't look away from his magnetic gaze. Chills raced down her spine—which was odd considering the heat radiating from his navy depths. His lashes dropped a fraction as he stood there regarding her, and Bella had to wonder what instigated the way his pupils dilated.

Nervous energy took hold of Bella and she swallowed tightly. After a long silent moment, she lifted a pale brow, nibbling her lip. "Are you going to teach me to ride?—or stare at me like you're pissed all day?"

The feeling Edward was experiencing had nothing at all to do with anger. He focused on the lip she was making a snack out of. The temptation to drag her into one of the empty stalls and feast on her delicate mouth was almost too much to bear. When he heard Lily say something to his mother, Edward remembered they weren't exactly alone.

His hair fell into his eyes as he shifted out of his mother's line of view. "Have you ever ridden at all, Isabella? Are you able to mount on your own or not?"

"Perhaps I did once when I was very young," she answered, ripping her gaze from his to focus on the saddle. Bella picked up a stirrup and looked it over. "I just put my foot through here and throw my other leg over, right?"

"Technically speaking, yes," he answered, coming to stand behind her. "Put your foot in the stirrup and I will help lift you up."

Bella didn't need any help mounting, Edward would guess, but it was an excuse to touch her. Little wisps of her hair blew beneath his nose as his hands settled around her waist. Apparently, he wasn't the only one affected, because he felt her indrawn breath. Placing his mouth next to her ear, Edward grinned as she shivered. "Now, grab ahold of the front of the saddle, and hoist your weight up and fling your free leg over the saddle."

Bella desperately tried to concentrate on what he said, she really did. Her attention went to where he held her, and inhaling became work. An ache developed between her legs and she couldn't ignore the scrap of his scruff against her cheek. Honestly, all she wanted was Edward's fingers to slide lower. Before she could stop herself, she whimpered, "please" falling from her lips.

She wasn't sure what she was begging for—him to let her go or never to let her go—only she didn't want him to.

"Please, what?" Edward asked, his words caressing the shell of his ear. This intensity Edward experienced in Bella's presence was beyond anything he'd ever felt. His body responded to the scent of her, wanting to forget their company and surroundings. "I should've taken that kiss yesterday. I've thought of little since. Have you been thinking about it, Isabella? About the night you came to my room—and we played together? I wanna do that again, but this time I want to see your fingers."

With each word he spoke, Bella slumped further into his weight, anticipation tingling across her skin. "I—I …" she was at a loss for words. Every pore in her body screamed for her to take him by the hand and lead the way to a private location. "Yes. I've thought about it."

Edward was on the brink of madness. If he didn't put an end to this game, he wouldn't have the ability to. "Let's get you on this horse before I drag your ass into a stall somewhere."


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