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WOP Chapter 19.
EPOV

The second I stepped into the confines of my home, I let out a deep sigh. I was fighting a major headache, a result of all the day's stress. I used to love my job, but lately, all we've been doing is dance around like puppets for the greater good of the many L.A. moguls and businesses. Sure, I still got to be creative and turn their ideas into something nice to look at, but the way the big boss was handling things lately made it very hard to enjoy my job. It was all about the money these days.

In an attempt to relax, I went over to my bathroom to take a shower and decompress. Hot water seemed to do wonders to my agitated body, the steam broke apart my headache and I stood underneath the stream, dead-still, enjoying the water droplets on my skin.

I thought about my lunch with Bella, Bella who always found a way to make me feel better. She was better than any kind of Ibuprofen but she was like drugs to me, heavily addicting.

The only thing I did that night was laying on my couch and kill some imaginary people with imaginary weapons. Bella joined the game after I texted her and we went back and forth about our strategies, never once talking about work or family or anything else. It was just like old times, I mused when we had no clue who the other one was. I was glad there was so much more to us right now, that we had found each other and that we were a 'we' now. We called it a night around eleven-thirty since we both had another two days of work to get to. She told me she'd miss me and couldn't wait for Saturday. This was a long-ass week, I thought when I crashed into my bed —alone.

—WOP—

Thursday flashed by in about three seconds, or so it seemed. Eric was sick, which meant that all the stuff he was working on with deadlines for the end of the week, ended up on my desk at well. I worked my ass off, frantically switching between files and different projects to be able to handle the workload. Giving up and taking a break was barely an option, but I gave in to my stomach's callings around three p.m. to go out to grab myself a Subway sandwich. On the trip back to hell, I was already munching it down, praising every possible kind of god for creating carbs. On stressful days, it was all I needed. The boss called us in for the mandatory de-briefing at around five and he actually congratulated me on the efforts I was putting in to make sure no clients were disappointed. I gladly accepted the pat on the back and used it to put in some more overtime. The skyline turned dark in a blink of an eye, and my phone was buzzing in my pocket. I cracked my neck, sore from sitting at this damn desk all day, and smiled when my brother's name illuminated the screen.

"Dude! Help me out, will you?" His voice was panicky and I straightened up in my chair immediately, fearing something was wrong.

"Emmett, calm down! What's going on?"

"I have no idea what I have to wear tomorrow night, or what to talk about with Alice and Bella," he huffed dramatically. I wanted to slap him across the head right now for making me worry about him.

"Oh God, you scared the shit out of me. I thought your house caught on fire or something," I said to him, swiveling my chair back and walking over to the kitchen to stretch my legs.

"Baby brother, this is hella important to me. Aren't you nervous to meet the girls?" The way he said it made me think of some kind of weird cult. He never seemed to lose control like this, it was quite funny.

"Yeah, I am. I know the feeling, man. Just be you, Emmett." I said, rolling my eyes at myself. Why the fuck was I giving my brother advice in socializing? I was the one who needed it the most. He heard my little chuckle and thought I was making fun of him.

"Dude, it's mostly the other way around. Sorry if I don't really know what to say here, okay?" I explained. Emmett's laughter boomed through the speakers of my phone and I held it away from my ear while he continued.

"I know, I'm sorry. But I really, really like Rosalie. I don't want to mess anything up." He said when he calmed down.

"Ditto, Emmett. Bella will love you, for sure, and as for Alice… All I've heard are good things, her husband sounds pretty cool as well if you ask me. If things hit the fan, we'll still have each other. Okay? Just be you and it'll be fine." I said to him.

"Yeah, you're right. It'll probably turn out okay, right?" We said our goodbyes as I opened the fridge and snagged a RedBull from one of my colleagues. I put a post-it note on the rest of the owner's six-pack, telling them I'd replace it ASAP.

Bella texted me a few times, asking if I was alright since she hadn't heard from me. I told her I was working late, and she sent me one of those pouty selfies of hers.

I hate this as much as you do, baby. Go to bed, I'll text you when I get home.

She'd replied with a goodnight text, telling me she'd come and get me if I didn't go home within the hour. When I checked the time, I almost had a heart attack, it was after nine and I was still at the office. Bella was right, this was crazy. I decided to leave the RedBull after all, leaving it on my desk for tomorrow and shut off my work station. I yawned loudly and rubbed the tiredness out of my eyes. When I got home, I locked up, stripped off my clothes, and waddled straight into my bed. I'd skip the gym tomorrow, I thought and shot a quick text Emmett's way to let him know I wouldn't be joining him at six in the morning.

Tomorrow I would have to bring my A-game, meeting Alice and Rosalie was a big deal to me, since the two of them were such big parts of Bella's life. I was anxious, yet excited, like a kid preparing for the first day of school.

Collecting my thoughts, I dried off and slipped into a pair of black sweatpants and a light sweater before I booted up my laptop.

I sat down on my couch, the computer on my lap, fingers aching to drabble about my day. Logging into my blog's dashboard, I opened a new blog post. My fingers went flying over the keyboard like they knew what to do without me giving it much thought. One day, I'd show my Enchantress what I wrote, telling her I can't go one day without completing a document without mentioning her. There were no lies, no hidden feelings, or no orchestrated emotions with an agenda. I felt proud that I could express myself using this medium, rather than keeping it cooped up inside. Clicking the publish button, I smiled. I never went back in to double-check any grammar or spelling errors, that only seemed to derive from the originality and deep feels of my words.

My stomach rumbled, and as I watched my phone to check the time, I wasn't surprised. It was already after eight p.m. and I hadn't exactly had the most nutritious day so far. Since today was Friday, a dull aching feeling haunted me, I was agitated that I hadn't asked Bella out for a date. I didn't even ask her about her plans for tonight, I figured since we would see each other tomorrow, I would be able to cope with being away from her. After all, it had only been a few hours since I last saw her.

I fiddled with the phone, opening a new text message, eager to receive a reply.

I miss you. It's Friday night, what's my Enchantress up to?

Enchantress: Wishing she'd told her Warrior to come over later.

I smiled at Bella's reply, imagining her little pouty face with her big, doe eyes.

Have you had dinner yet? I want to take my girl out on a date.

Enchantress: Couldn't be bothered. I'd like you to take your girl out.

Meet me at Giorgio's Café 9.

I had already gotten off the couch and into my bedroom, stripping the sweats and tugging on a pair of faded black jeans instead. The sweater was alright. After running my hands through my hair in front of the mirror in the hallway, I looked at her reply again, keys already in hand.

Enchantress: It's a date. Leaving now.

Internally fist-pumping myself, I locked up and walked to my car at a fast pace. Revving up the Lexus, I drove over to Giorgio's only to groan annoyed when I pulled up. Outside, most tabled seemed to be occupied, cozy fleece blanket draped over the occupants, shielding themselves from the slight chill in the Los Angeles evening. I was such a fool for not making a reservation. It was Friday night, after all, and the place seemed to be buzzing.

I walked up to the entrance, meeting the hostess inside. She was a tiny little thing, with short, auburn hair and a blunt fringe.

"Good evening, sir. Table for one?" She purred at me, looking up from under her dramatically thick lashes. I was about to answer when a warm hand draped along my waist, making me slightly jump.

"Sorry I'm late, honey," Bella beamed at me. Wow, she got here fast, let's hope she didn't break any speed limits.

"We'd like a table for two, actually." She told the hostess, smiling sweetly at the woman whose demeanor suddenly changed from overly-friendly to right-to-the-point.

"We have one table free in about forty minutes. Would you like to wait?" She asked, keeping her eyes on my face, totally ignoring Bella.

"I suppose we could, would you mind, baby?" I asked Bella, whose eyes sparkled.

"I guess there are worse ways to spend forty minutes," she laughed, brushing some hair over her shoulder. Her hair looked a little different, slightly less wavy and her make-up was darker than usual. It made her look like some kind of dark angel. I loved it.

"Good." The hostess spoke. "You can sit outside while you wait. This disk will light up and vibrate whenever your table's ready." She handed me a black device with the number 34 plastered on it. I thanked her and walked Bella over to one of the free tables.

"You got here fast," I said to Bella, pulling out the chair next to me for her. She smiled at me before she went to sit down.

"Yeah, I was actually on my way to Alice's. She wanted to go out for drinks, but I'd rather have a date with my handsome boyfriend." She leaned closer to me, her elbows on the armrest of the chair, and ran a finger along my jawline. I leaned into her touch, humming appreciatively.

"Won't she mind me stealing you away from her, then?" I asked, taking her hand in mine and kissing it softly.

"She wouldn't dare. Jasper got home from work sooner than expected anyway. I bet they have something better to do as well than to go sulk in a bar." Bella explained.

"Were you going to sulk?" I asked, arching a brow her way. Her reaction was everything, so damn cute when her cheeks flooded with a slight blush.

"Well, yeah. I mean…" she started, biting her lip and looking at the top of the table intensely. "It's a Friday night, I was alone, missing my boyfriend after spending a rather delicious lunch break with him." The more she said the B-word, the happier it made me feel. I felt giddy and happy as a kid.

"I'm here now, baby. So it's all good, now get over here." I said to her and leaned in for a proper greeting kiss. Her lips moved against me suite innocently and sweet, yet the clearing of a throat interrupted us. I glanced up, seeing one of the servers standing at our table, tablet in hand.

"Would you like to order some drinks to start with?" The guy asked. He looked around twenty years old, with shaggy blond hair and a big smirk on his face.

"I'll have a martini," Bella said, crossing one leg over the other. It was only then that I noticed the fuckhot thigh-high boots she was wearing. They were black and looked like velvet with a thick heel. Dragging my eyes away from her legs, I ordered a glass of red wine, begging for the guy to leave us alone so I could check out the rest of Bella's outfit.

"What's wrong?" Bella asked me with furrowed brows.

"You look fucking edible, that's wrong," I joked and let my eyes wander her body. It looked like she was wearing a dress; red and black that reached her about mid-thigh. The dress was form-fitting and left the tiniest gap between the fabric and the start of her boots. I could only see a sliver of her tattoo peeking out.

"Well, if you're that hungry we should've ordered some calamari," Bella laughed, nudging my arm playfully. I rolled my eyes at her.

"Oh, baby, some fried delicacy won't be able to still that kinda hunger," I winked at her and smiled at the waiter who returned with our drinks. I took mine and handed Bella hers, clinking our glasses together.

"To us," I toasted.

"To us," Bella agreed.

As usual, we were chatting each other's ears off, barely sipping our glasses altogether. Bella was cursing at my boss's behavior, calling him all sorts of names since he didn't seem to respect the way a creative process takes place. 'It's like putting cat ears on a dog and assuming it will meow', she called it. I had to laugh at her fabricated saying and asked her about her day. Bella told me about all the preparations needed for Jane's book launch and everything she and Alice had already done.

"I thought you were supposed to edit her book, not plan her trip across the States?" I wondered, savoring the taste of the wine as I took a sip. Bella nodded at me.

"Yeah, I know. But it's part of my job-description apparently. I'm no editor just yet, Edward. Victoria is still keeping an eye on me since I just started the promotion," she explained. "Besides, I really like it the way it is now. It's never a dull day, every day it's something else, which makes me super happy. I just love how everything's coming together, as does Jane." Bella spoke so passionately about her job and about everyone she was working with on this project. The fact that she got to work together with Alice left her positively glowing, no doubt this book-tour would be a great success.

"Listen," Bella started with a serious look on her face. She got interrupted as the disk started twirling all over the table, flashing blue lights, announcing our table was ready. Bella's smile fell off her face as he looked annoyed. I wondered what turned her mood this upside down, but was surprised we'd been sitting here talking for forty minutes already. When I checked my watch, I noticed that it actually had been an hour.

"Nevermind, it can wait. Let's go eat, I'm starving," she said and rose from her seat. I took the opportunity to watch her glorious ass as she walked the three steps up to go inside. Did she have anything hanging in her wardrobe that looked absolutely ridiculous? Impossible, probably. She'd make anything look good.

"Apologies for the slight delay," the server said as he leads us over to a table in the far end corner of the restaurant. "Our previous guest had planned to do a proposal at dessert, so we didn't want to rush the guy," the man explained with a big smile on his face. I looked at Bella but she didn't notice, she didn't seem to particularly care about the news our waiter brought, which didn't surprise me to be fair. The waiter gave us the menu along with reciting tonight's specials and left us to pick our dishes.

"What were you about to say?" I asked Bella, my interests still peaked.

"Oh, ah." She looked uncomfortable and let out a deep sigh. Uh-oh, what was this?

"I have to go to New York for a while. For work," she rattled off. My brow furrowed and I bit the inside of my cheek. Why did it seem like a big deal?

"What's a while?" I tried, anxiously tapping my foot underneath the table.

"Three months," Bella replied quietly. I took a deep breath.

This was okay, right? I could go and visit, maybe I could even take some time off to spend time with her.

"When?"

"It would be on short notice. If I tell Victoria I'll go, I'd have to leave in about a week."

"Oh," I replied, puzzled and unprepared for this. "And what if you don't go?"

"Well, it's supposed to be some kind of internship at the headquarters. Victoria's father would be supervising me and it's really," she sighed and composed herself. "It's a once in a lifetime opportunity, Edward. I really can't pass this up," she explained.

I could tell she felt bad, I saw it in her eyes.

I told her to go, that she needed this in order to grow in her craft. Bella smiled at me, her eyes telling me she didn't like this one bit either.

"You know what," I leaned in and cradled my face in my hands. "I have a ton of vacation days stacked up. I've been meaning to cash them in, but never really had a reason."

Bella's face lit up.

"You'd do that?" She gasped.

"Anything for you, baby." I winked at her and she looked cuter than ever.

I realized then, it was our actual first —decent date. She deserved this. She deserved flowers and chivalrous dates, me dropping her off at her doorstep with a lingering kiss.

"I'd love that," she said.

"I l—"

The waiter rudely interrupted us, and I almost groaned out of pure frustration. I was about to confess my love for this gorgeous woman in front of me when he asked us what we'd like to order.

Bella went first, smiling widely as she ordered the pasta with salmon and cream cheese. She seemed so excited about the dish, I ordered the same thing.

We had a bottle of wine along with it, and as they came to place the food in front of us, it was already halfway finished.

Dinner was lovely, but somehow I never had the proper window to tell Bella those three little words. It was okay, it would come up again sooner rather than later anyway.

As Bella walked over to use the restroom, I was in awe of her. She was just so beautiful, so sweet, so passionate. I wasn't the only one thinking that either, since the table of guys close by the bar were staring her down as she passed them.

Mine, dickwads.

I asked for the check and by the time she got back, I'd handed the waiter my credit card.

I cut her off before she could even say something, she had to laugh at me.

"This is a date, so shut it. Besides, you brought me lunch. This is the least I could do," I winked at her, emphasizing the 'lunch'. Bella rolled her eyes at me.

"As we walked over to the parking lot, we had to part ways. We handed our tickets to the valet, and he went to fetch her car. I took her in my arms, pressing a kiss onto her head.

"I don't want to leave you just yet," she sighed as she leaned into me, her cheek resting against my chest.

"Me neither, but we always have tomorrow. Tomorrow will be great," I mused, rubbing her back.

"Do you want to stay over tonight?" She looked up at me. Bella in the dim outdoor lighting of the restaurant, together with the moonlight did things to me. I was glad she asked because there was nothing I'd rather do than go home with her —or have her go home with me.

"I'd love that," I said and pecked her on the lips. To the outside world, we must've looked like the couple who just went on a first date, completely oblivious to the other people around us. Truth is, I felt like that. Only it wasn't our first date, but the feelings were still there. I was still amazed she wanted to date me, I was over the moon that she was my girlfriend.

Her car arrived and she told me she'd wait for me to drive behind.

I'd only been to her place once before, and the fact that this was the first time I would sleepover at her apartment, made me feel jittery and nervous.

We arrived at her building soon after. She parked in her designated spot and I found an empty parking space somewhere on the block.

"Don't you want to park in my spot? Your car is so much nicer, I wouldn't want anyone to steal it." She said, walking up to me.

"No, it's fine. Don't worry, baby."

She took my hand, entwining our fingers as we made our way up to her apartment.

"Do you want to watch some TV?" She asked me, bending down to unzip her boots and struggled to pull them off. Bella wiggled her toes after she managed to get out of them, and I adored her socks —mint green with cheesy pizza slices all over.

"What? Life is too short to wear boring socks," She laughed and walked over to the couch, pulling me with her after I'd shrugged off my jacket.

We watched some sort of comedy show, and Bella curled up beside me with a blanket, her head against my shoulder, the soft strands of her hair flowing over the bare arm. It felt oddly domestic like we'd been doing this forever and I wondered briefly if life would be this good all the time if we moved in together. I didn't ask her, of course, since it was way too soon for any of that. I knew it was, since this way my first night at her place, and I didn't even have as much as a toothbrush here —or spare clothing for tomorrow.

Somewhere between the stand-up comedian cracking office jokes and telling us all about his crazy mother-in-law, Bella trailed her hand along my arm, holding it tightly —hugging me and I melted away in her arms. I bent down my head to kiss her, and we made out like teenagers after-prom —innocent, yet steamy enough to make me forget about the fact that I didn't tell her 'I love you', yet.

Bella and I must've drifted off to sleep, because I suddenly woke up on her couch, my neck slightly stiff from sitting the wrong way. Bella was out cold, her blanket draped around her legs and her head in my lap.

"Baby, wake up," I said, brushing her hair out of her face. As I checked my watch, I saw it was after three in the morning. The apartment was dark, except for the hue of the television and the lamp next to the couch.

She wobbled over to the bathroom to wash her face and took me to her bedroom. I had seen this room before: the first time I saw her —on the video chat but hadn't seen everything.

The walls were a soft, earthy color and she had her laptop on the floor, along with some papers. The bed looked so inviting, my eyes were still sleepy and I was so tired, I stripped down to my boxers and crawled under the white, cotton sheets.

She walked over to her closet, a room I had yet to discover and rummaged around in some drawers before she appeared back in a white, oversized shirt. I could see her pierced nipples through the fabric, but she looked so drowsy and dreamy, I ignored my boner and cradled her to my side.

We didn't have sex, but it felt so right being there. To have her by my side and hear her breathing get deeper, her warm body next to me her hand on my stomach. I smiled at her, feeling like the luckiest man in the world.

—WOP—

I woke up around eight, L.A. Sunshine filtering through the window of Bella's bedroom. Her hair was everywhere, but she had turned away from me on her side. Somehow, she kicked away the covers and her shirt had ridden up, tempting me with the view of her stomach and the pair of red, silky underwear. I decided to let my Sleeping Beauty be and got up to make us some breakfast.

I pulled on my jeans and T-shirt from the night before, hoping I'd get a chance to go home and change before the party tonight.

Bella had an old-school coffee maker on her kitchen counter, and I had to rummage through some of the cabinets to find the found coffee and a spoon.

In the cutlery drawer was a little, open notebook —dogeared and tattered with a dove grey cover. It was flipped open with a rubber hand to make it stay put. I was intrigued and couldn't tear my eyes away from it.

Bella's handwriting was rushed, yet sophisticated. Then I almost dropped the spoon out of my hand.

'Every Day Will Always Remain Dazzling'

She encircled the capital letters of every word.

EDWARD

My heart fluttered and grew five sizes as I ran my fingers along with the words the page.

Restless, rattled

Heart racing

Since you

Dreaming

Dazed

Utterly infatuated

Since you

Rested

Composed

Tied

To you

Her words definitely made me swoon, and I wondered briefly if this meant that she loved me, too. I wondered if she'd ever show me this page, or if I somehow intruded by reading it. It wasn't intentional, I just happened to find it. If it was a secret or something meant for her eyes only, she surely wouldn't leave it this out in the open, right?

I could imagine her, as she was waiting for her dinner to cook, scribbling and writing down everything that was hidden in her head.

As the sounds of the coffee maker drifted through the apartment, I pulled my phone out of my pocket and ran my blog application.

When she loves you, do you just know? Is there a cue, a sign, a word that betrays her own heart?

When you have an amazing night together, and you end up entwined on a couch with all your clothes on, does it mean you've somehow grown past having sex to express your feelings? Your innermost, most important, and most intimate feelings by just —feeling?

We went fast, so fast we didn't see the scenery around us. Too fast, but she assured me she felt the same. That this was more, yet we couldn't slow down. I didn't care. I loved it. I loved her. She made me feel proud, in my car, on my arm, her love was burning through me. I wanted her to be mine once in a lifetime. A touch, a kiss, an embrace, I was scared —still. I was scared it was all a dream. If you love someone as much as I do, it makes sense that you're afraid to lose them, right?

I wrote some more, making toast in the meantime and throwing together an omelet with ingredients I found in Bella's fridge.

"Well, good morning," Bella's sleepy voice broke the silence in the kitchen as she appeared next to me, looking frumpled and adorable in her shirt and fuzzy socks.

I eyed her legs: long and bare, the shirt barely covering her ass. The things she did to me…

"Morning, baby." She wrapped her arms around my waist, trapping me against the counter as she rested her head against my back.

I could totally get used to this.

I want this, every fucking day.

"Why did you leave me?" She pouted as I turned around.

"You looked so peaceful, I wanted to give you an extra hour of sleep, that's all." I kissed her sweetly, feeling her melt against my body, my hands roaming her soft, naked back underneath the T-shirt until they rested on the swell of her ass.

"You're burning the toast," she giggled and pulled away.

"Let's get you fed, babe." I kissed her one more time and made her sit down. I tried not to notice the fact she still wasn't wearing a bra —but failed since she caught me staring and winked at me.

"Yeah, we have a shower to take —plus, I have some plans for you later," she said suggestively and took a sip of her coffee.

"What kind of plans?" I asked, splitting the omelet onto two plates. Bella licked her lips and smiled widely, not taking her eyes off of the food in front of her.

"I'm taking you shopping so you don't have to leave me anytime soon," she blushed and I nudged her shoulder.

"Getting quite fond of me, are we?"

"Gee, you think?" She rolled her eyes and laughed, her eyes twinkling.

"You need an outfit for tonight, so I can show off my fine-ass man," she took a deep breath and a forkful of the omelet. "Plus, I think my boyfriend should have some stuff here. You know, so you're here even when you aren't."

This was big for Bella, I could tell. And I couldn't believe what she just suggested.

Was this my cue? Was this my hint?

Did she love me?