First of all, a big shout out to my team of pre-readers and beta: NimNimBonjangles, bevey99, and Fran. Thank you so much for all the help with this story.

Also, a huge thank you to all of you who've read, fav'ed, followed, and reviewed this. It means a lot to me. I seriously love and appreciate all of you!

[Edward]

Monday morning, I found myself breaking all the rules. I parked next to Bella's car in front of her apartment building.

I'd brought her car back yesterday and heard an earful from her for showing up there while Black and his girlfriend were over. Then, she started screaming at me for stealing her car keys, too. Thankfully, I made her forget about being mad at me by the time I'd left.

And now, I was leaning against the trunk of my car, waiting for her to come outside. I'd promised her yesterday I'd drive her to school. I hoped she'd believed me and that she hadn't arranged for Black to pick her up.

When the door of the building opened, and she appeared in my sight, I reminded my muscles to stay locked. Bella hated to be babied, and I'd done enough of that last Thursday when she'd injured herself.

I'd never been so scared as when I heard her yelp and the sound of her hitting the floor in the school hallway.

She was wearing a beige dress, the skirt of it blowing in the wind. There were flats on her feet, and for that, I was thankful.

"Good morning," she softly said when she stopped next to me.

I grinned, leaning to kiss her, but she ducked away, her eyes wide.

"Edward!"

A few more days, I reminded myself. "Morning, Grumpy," I joked, wrapping an arm around her waist, helping her to the passenger side.

I barely had the door open when the unmistakable sound of a motorbike engine made both of us look up. Black pulled up behind my car.

Had she called him? Judging by the shocked look on her face, him being here wasn't planned.

Fuck. He was going to read too much into this.

Black pulled his helmet off, locking eyes with me. I glared back because it was all I could do for now. As much as I'd liked him and enjoyed being on the team and having him as my coach, now all I desired was to punch him. I'd never thought him to be such an asshole.

"Jake," Bella gasped. "What are you doing here?"

"Clearly, you already have a ride," he muttered, not looking away from my eyes.

Did he think I was going to be first to blink? Ha. Dream on, Big Guy.

"Yeah, uh…Edward felt guilty for what happened and offered to be my ride."

Jesus. She was a horrible liar.

"Sure. See you later." He shoved the helmet back on his head, spinning his bike around, before gunning it toward the main street.

"Shit!" Bella leaned against my car, looking faint.

I stroked her cheek. "He has no right to say anything if he caught on to what's going on."

"This is a bad idea. I'm taking my car."

"You can barely walk. How are you going to drive?" I complained when she managed a couple of steps toward her car.

"Edward. I can't do this anymore." She dug in her purse, walking to her car. She unlocked it, then got behind the wheel.

I stared at her hunched over the steering wheel for a while, her shoulders shaking. I waited for her to come back and tell me I hadn't heard her right.

That this wasn't happening…

That this couldn't be over…

I watched as she backed away slowly, turning on the main road without looking back.

Fuck.

I crouched down, feeling my heart physically hurting. I had no idea what happened during a heart attack, but it sure felt like I was having one.

I gripped my hair, an agonizing cry leaving my mouth. Tears sprung from my eyes, and there was no way to stop them. I curled into a ball near the rear of my car, wrapping my arms around my knees.

I had no idea I could hurt so much without being physically injured. I couldn't breathe.

What would she do when she found out I'd never made it to school?

I wasn't likely to move from there.

Fuck. Whitlock was going to call Esme and tell her that I skipped classes.

There was no chance in hell I was going back there.

I couldn't face Bella.

What felt like hours later, I dragged my ass inside the car and drove home. It was a miracle I didn't crash the car. Tears blurred my vision, and my hands shook. It seemed I wasn't likely to get control over my body any time soon.

What the hell was I going to tell Esme?

I checked my face in the rearview mirror when I parked in front of the house. It was blotchy and red, with tearstains over my cheeks. My eyes looked bloodshot. Fuck. I was a royal mess.

I scrubbed my palms over my face, hoping to get rid of the evidence of my meltdown.

I stepped inside the house as quietly as possible, and I tiptoed up the stairs so I wouldn't alert her of my presence. My scheme was in vain when I collided with Esme at the top of the stairs.

"What happened to you? Your principal called to say you didn't go to school."

"It's the last week," I mumbled. My voice sounded hoarse.

"What's wrong?" She tilted my head with a finger under my chin. That little touch opened the floodgates once again.

A loud sob escaped me before I could cover it. Her arms wrapped around me, and I sobbed into her hair, hugging her tightly. My legs gave out, and she helped me to her and Carlisle's bedroom. We sat on the edge of the bed. She allowed me to cry it out, rubbing my back soothingly.

I appreciated that she didn't try to find out what happened. It was probably obvious, even though she didn't know I'd been seeing someone.

It was clear it was over.

I can't do this anymore.

I cried harder, clinging to Esme, feeling like when I'd been seven years old. My whole world had crumbled at my feet once again.

"Shh. You'll make yourself sick, sweetheart."

"Does it always hurt like this?" I managed to finally croak out.

"Only when you love that person." She kissed the top of my head, still rubbing my back. "You're young. You'll love again."

No, I won't.

Did I really love Bella?

How could I let my feelings for her get so deep?

What I knew for a fact was that I'd never love anyone else like I loved Bella. No one else would make me smile like her. No one else would be able to turn me on by just standing there. There would be no other woman for me.

I hadn't lied when I'd told Bella that she was the only one I saw.

Her radiant smile. Her wavy, shiny brown hair. Her sparkling chocolate brown eyes. Her button nose. Her body. Her perfect tits. Her small hands, always so cold and feeling heavenly on my body.

I appreciated that Esme didn't try to find out who I'd been dating.

Eventually, she coaxed me into resting on their bed. She wrapped her arms around me from behind, rocking us gently until I fell asleep. My last conscious thought was that I needed a way out of school. I couldn't go to classes for the rest of the week.

.

.

.

It was dusk outside when I woke up. My eyelids felt crusty.

It took me a few minutes to realize I was in Carlisle and Esme's bed and why I was there. A new wave of pain hit me, twisting my stomach and making my heart ache.

I stumbled through the dark room, opening the door and gasping for air. I had to go to Bella. I had misunderstood her and acted like a complete tool. She couldn't have meant we were done.

No. Not when I had planned our summer in detail. Not when I planned to visit her as often as I could.

I rushed down the stairs. In my haste to get out of the house, I'd forgotten Esme was around.

"You're awake!" she said, surprised, from the living room.

I slowly turned to her, ready to find some lame excuse about my behavior from earlier. I still couldn't regulate my lungs to breathe right.

The sight that greeted me in the living room knocked out what little air I still had in my lungs.

Bella was on the couch with Esme. Her eyes were filled with worry, but there was something else…something that cut through my bones.

It hadn't been a misunderstanding.

Why was she here?

Oh, God. Did she tell Esme? No. If that were the case, Bella wouldn't be here anymore.

Esme came to me, rubbing my arm. "Your teacher was so worried about you when you didn't make it to class; she dropped by to check on you. She also wanted to praise you for being the only one not to cheat on your practical project in biology."

I felt numb as I nodded dumbly.

"I have to go get Carlisle from work. He's out of gas. Then we're going shopping after," Esme said.

"Okay," I croaked.

I went to sit on the other side of the couch. The longer the silence stretched between us, the deeper the wound inside me gaped.

The front door closed behind Esme, and we were alone.

Only after her car departed did Bella scoot closer, making me turn away. What little sense of self-preservation I had left in me had kicked in.

"Oh, Edward." She took my hand, linking our fingers. "I'm so sorry. This wasn't supposed to happen."

I turned to glare at her. "What exactly wasn't supposed to happen, Bella? Us, falling in love? You, kicking me to the curb at the first hint of threat? Nothing is going to happen! No one will find out! But it's moot. We're done, right? It's over." My anger fueled my power to talk, but I knew I was going to crumble to pieces once again.

Her small hand fit perfectly into mine. Why couldn't she see we were meant to be together?

Fuck people.

Fuck prejudices.

Fuck ethics.

But I had my chance. And I'd lost it.

I wasn't going to beg her to take me back. It was painfully clear she didn't want to be involved with someone as young as me, no matter how much she actually liked me.

"When you didn't make it to school," her other hand cupped my cheek, "I knew we'd made a big mess of everything."

I swallowed through the lump in my throat. "It gutted me when I realized you broke up with me. You left me standing there like an idiot. Who the hell does that?"

"I'm so sorry," she repeated with empathy. "If I didn't leave at that moment…"

"You'd have shown some emotion…your real feelings toward me…God forbid that," I sneered.

She winced, rubbing her thumb over my cheek. Her warm brown eyes watched me warily as if she was afraid. "When Esme told me you weren't well, I knew I'd made the right choice to come here."

"How did you know where I live?" I frowned.

"Right back at you, Mr. Cullen." Her lips twitched up, making me chuckle. "Your information is something all teachers have access to."

"I snuck into Whitlock's office to search your file. I don't regret it." I pulled away from her touch. "I don't regret anything that happened between us."

She folded her hands on her lap, staring at them. "Do you understand why this…us…can't happen?"

"No," I said honestly. "In four days, I won't be your student anymore."

Her wet eyes met mine, and I could see how affected she was by her own decision. "You'll understand it one day."

I clenched my jaw so I wouldn't say something I was going to regret.

Bella stood, smoothing her palms over her dress, which was a sign of nerves, as I'd come to learn during the hours I'd been studying her body in class.

For a moment, it seemed she struggled to say something; then, she wobbled to the hallway.

I knew if I didn't have the balls to stop her at that moment, I'd lose her forever.

I hurried after her, blocking her path. "I'll see you next Monday."

"School lets out this Friday," she said slowly as if I was mentally challenged.

"Exactly. I'll see you on Monday – a week from now," I insisted, staring into her eyes.

She caught her bottom lip between her teeth, and I forgot all about waiting. I grabbed her shoulders, pushing her into the wall, before kissing her roughly.

"Don't you ever do this again," I begged between kisses. "It killed me," I gasped against her lips. "Don't leave me."

Her small hands cupped my cheeks as she kissed my eyelids. "I realized something happened when you didn't show up in my class. I'm so sorry for how I acted this morning."

"Bella." I pulled away enough to look into her eyes. "I understand. Really, I do." I bit my tongue so I wouldn't say more because all I wanted at that moment was to tell her how much I loved her, what she meant for me.

"Then be a good boy – four more days, Edward," she pleaded.

"Don't go yet."

"You don't play fair." Her hands clutched at the collar of my shirt. "What if Esme returns?"

"They won't be home for hours. And if they find you here, we'll say you stayed so Carlisle could check on your ankle." I raised her right leg, wrapping it around my hip. "Stay."

"Okay, just for a little while," she indulged.

"Let me show you to my room." I didn't wait to hear her protests as I picked her up and carried her to my room.

"Is it that difficult for you to hear the word 'no' as an answer?"

"After everything you've done to me today, the least you can do is stay a while. I promise we won't do anything you don't want," I said.

I stopped in front of my door, elbowing it open. I couldn't remember how clean or dirty it was, but I knew Bella wouldn't care. I lowered her onto the bed before I returned to close the door.

Bella leaned back on her hands, looking around. It made me feel self-conscious about my usually organized room. Notebooks and textbooks lay all over the place, and some clothes were on the floor.

She stood slowly, going to my bookcase. Her fingertips ran over the spine of the books. "Have you read them all?" she asked in wonder.

"I keep them there for show," I joked.

"So, yes." She glanced at me over her shoulder.

"Yes, Bella." I joined her, wrapping my arms around her waist.

I picked Pride and Prejudice, opening it at the red sticky note glued to the page, and without looking at her, I started reading. If I couldn't reach out to her through books, I wasn't sure I could tell her the words.

"Be not alarmed, madam, on receiving this letter, by the apprehension of its containing any repetition of those sentiments or renewal of those offers which were last night so disgusting to you. I write without any intention of paining you, or humbling myself, by dwelling on wishes which, for the happiness of both, cannot be too soon forgotten: and the effort which the formation and the perusal of this letter must occasion, should have been spared had not my character required it to be written and read. You must, therefore, pardon the freedom with which I demand your attention; your feelings, I know, will bestow it unwillingly, but I demand it of your justice."

Bella pulled the book from my hand, hugging me tightly, her face pressed against my shoulder. She met my eyes. Her hands cupped my cheeks, and she lifted on her toes.

"I love you so much, Edward. I never wanted to hurt you."

My heart lurched.

How was it possible to feel like I'd lost everything and then like I had everything I'd always need all in the same day.

"I…love…you," I gasped out, kissing all over her face.

This hadn't been my plan – to fall in love with her. We were meant to just fool around and have some fun. But when I'd decided to actively tease her and show her how much I desired her, I hadn't expected to get caught in a tangled web and love her so much.

We walked to the bed, and despite my promise that we wouldn't do more, we slowly undressed each other before falling on the mattress.

I clutched her hands in mine and stared into her deep, chocolate brown eyes as I made love with her. It felt like it was just the two of us in the world, and nothing else mattered at that moment. Nothing could break our bubble of love.

If I'd ever fooled myself that I'd known happiness, well…what I was feeling now was pure pleasure, something I'd never known possible. It was the highest bliss to be entangled in her soft body, knowing she was all mine and that she loved me.

Long after we were sated, we lay curled around each other on my bed. Bella had insisted on covering her nakedness with one of my T-shirts and her panties, and I'd put some underwear on, too.

"Oh," she gasped, looking up at me from where she was lying on my chest.

"Mhmm?" I hummed, peering down at her.

"Your friend was really curious about your absence from Prom."

I winced because that sounded exactly like something Emmett would worry about. At that moment, it occurred to me; he hadn't tried contacting me all day.

I shot up, remembering how I'd left my phone in my car.

"What's wrong?" She leaned on her elbows, watching me grab a pair of sweats.

"I forgot my phone in the car. I'll bet Emmett's blown it up with calls and texts. He's going to show up here eventually if I don't answer."

Bella sat up, running her hands through her sweaty hair. I restrained myself from pushing her back down to devour her again.

I pulled on a T-shirt and stepped into my house slippers while she located her bra, then put on her dress.

"I'm keeping this," she said teasingly, holding in her hand the T-shirt she'd been wearing.

I grinned, wrapping my arms around her waist. "You're not getting back those panties. Ever."

She rolled her eyes. "At least, I have a real use for this shirt. You have no use of my panties besides keeping them as a trophy."

"Oh, but I do." I nuzzled her nose, kissing the corner of her mouth. "I'll have a part of you with me in my dorm when I get lonely."

Her cheeks turned scarlet, and I chuckled. I threaded my fingers through hers, walking downstairs.

I led her to her car, trapping her near the door. She lifted an eyebrow at me. I grinned, kissing her again, still flying on happiness and love. Bella seemed to be just as happy as I was because she didn't push me away. She stroked my cheek, tangling her fingers into my hair, deepening the kiss.

"Promise me, you'll behave tomorrow," she whispered against my lips.

I dropped my hands to her ass, squeezing it. "I promise."

The approaching sound of a car made us pull away. It sounded like Emmett's Jeep.

Bella ducked in her car and winked at me before pulling away.

I didn't care what Emmett had to say about seeing her leaving my house in the evening. He parked behind my Volvo. It reminded me to grab my phone.

I was half bent over the console, picking the forgotten device, when Emmett wolf-called, like a twelve-year-old.

I flipped him off, straightening, and closing the door.

"So, why did you miss school? Was that Ms. Swan I saw?"

I had the irrational urge to tell him everything, but I knew sharing my happiness with him wasn't possible. Emmett wasn't going to judge me, or so I hoped. However, he could run his mouth and slip my secret. I knew him, so I'd have to keep it from him for a while longer.

"I felt sick today," I told him. It wasn't even a lie. "I left my practical project on my desk last Friday when Swan didn't come to school. Apparently, I'm the only one who aced it."

"And she came here to praise you?" he asked, shocked.

"And check if I was okay." I shrugged.

"I've been calling you all day," he said, upset.

"My phone was in the car." I showed him the now-dead phone.

"You didn't make it to Prom," he insisted, narrowing his eyes.

"I'd been feeling funny all weekend. What the hell, dude?" I steered him toward the house. "What's with the questions?"

"You've been acting odd lately," he mumbled.

"Let me beat your ass at some Mortal Kombat." I elbowed him on our way to my room.

I went straight to the gaming system, not realizing he'd stopped in the doorway. When I threw myself on the couch, ready to game, I noticed him staring at me with wide eyes.

Fuck my life.

The bed.

The smell of sex in the air.

And…fucking shit. Bella's stockings right at his feet.

"Holy fuck, man!" Emmett choked out. "What have you done?"

I pressed my face into my hands. "Fine, I lied. I found some pussy at the bar and spent the whole weekend fucking her." Please, buy my bullshit lie. Come on, bro.

He frowned, his eyes calculating as if he didn't believe me. "Sounds like something you'd do…skip Prom for some pussy."

I sighed in relief. "She was passing through town, and we had real fun."

He came to sit next to me, clapping my shoulder. "I know it's not to improve your grades. I also know you're smarter than to fuck your biology teacher. Whatever the reason, kudos, bro! Fucking an older woman." He wiggled his brows, making the blood drain from my face.

Of course, he'd seen through my bullshit. I must have lost my touch at lying.

I grabbed his bicep, squeezing. "Not a fucking peep to anyone. Not even your girl!"

"No, dude! You know me better than that," he muttered, visibly upset I thought so low of him. "I never told anyone about your blood thing; this goes up there with that secret."

"Thanks, man."

He picked a controller. "Ready to be crashed like a bug?"

"In your dreams."

I didn't want to drag the pain. Next week will bring the final chapter of this story.

Reviews are love.

This story is fully pre-written and there will be regular Sunday updates until it's completed. The sequel is ready to see the light as soon as we wrap up this story. =)

For anyone interested, I started posting a new story: Undisclosed Desires (When Bella, an experienced Domme, agrees to meet a wounded Sub, she doesn't know how much he'll change her life.)

Don't forget to check out the facebook groups where I share teasers for my stories

- addict_writer fanfiction (my group) www dot facebook dot com/groups/274198112656668

- It All Started with Twilight (Fran's amazing group) www dot facebook dot com/groups/896806390388220

PS: please check out/join the Song to Story challenge - a contest by our dear Frannie. details here: www dot facebook dot / groups/834673544138327