Chapter Ten

After a short shower to get the feel of residue off his skin, Edward walked out of Bella's master bathroom and into her bedroom. He scrubbed his hair with one of her towels, his eyes lingering on her bed. The headboard was conversation piece for those not interested in her bed for other reasons. It was mainly made of wood in various varieties and colors, and the long curves and sensual lines appeared to be two people intertwined together. It was meant to draw the eye, and spark one's imagination. It lit his on fire.

"Popcorn is almost ready, Cullen! Get your fine ass out here."

Her voice carried well from down the hall, and with one last look at the bed, he joined her in the living room. "Your shower is fucking amazing." It was a bathroom meant to be photographed for a magazine, something to look forward to after a long day at work. He gave his head one last rub down with a towel, surprised to find Bella scowling, though it wasn't aimed at him.

"What's wrong?"

The snarl on her lips formed to a beautiful smile within a second, turning those magic eyes toward him. "What makes you think there's something wrong?"

He cocked an eyebrow, chuckling. "I don't know. Maybe because I'm shirtless, fresh out of the shower, and you're not ogling me."

Her eyes rolled and a sound part exasperation and part groan fell from her lips. "I can control myself, you know."

He waited for a few seconds, remaining silent. It wasn't long before her eyes drifted from somewhere behind him to his face, quickly roaming his chest, abs and further south. By the time she made the return trip to his eyes, his smile was firmly in place. "You were saying?"

She threw up her hands. "You're right there, how can I not look!" A throw pillow barely missed him and only because he dodged it, she had surprisingly good aim. He grabbed it from the floor with intention to lob it at her. "Don't point your ass at me, Cullen."

Deciding he'd rather serve his justice when she least expected it, he joined her on the couch where she had set up a mini-movie theatre experience on her coffee table. Aside from the movie on her big screen television, something hidden from view most of the time, she had every kind of movie candy a person would see at an actual theater.

"Why were you scowling, Swan?" he asked, throwing the pillow between them, as if it would help keep them from lunging at each other.

"I have a love-hate relationship with that shower." His curiosity was piqued, and saved him from asking for explanation. "Remember how I said I don't mix business with pleasure?"

"It's about the only thing keeping me from kissing you right now, Bella. Of course, I remember."

She stared at his lips for several seconds, not helping him keep his promise. Her bathroom smelled like her, only more potent, and it took considerable strength not to take care of his stiff cock while imagining Bella joining him in the shower.

"Well, um, what was I saying again?" She shook her head, and Edward had a hard time not smiling at her. "Oh, yeah. Uh, my ex, the one I mentioned." At his nod, she continued. "I met him when he came by to give me an estimate for the bathroom. I hired him, and let's just say over the first few days, we got to know each other and we started hooking up. Then the work started to slow down. Then came the excuses, then the anger when I asked him to work on it instead of trying to fuck again."

Edward had perfected his neutral, no comment face over the years, however, hearing Bella talk about her ex, his ability was waning. His right eyebrow ticked, his jaw clenching a little too tight. "Go on."

She looked concerned for a moment, but started up again. "Finally, after six freaking weeks, he comes up with another excuse, his tile saw was broken and it wasn't worth fixing. He was between jobs, so he didn't have the money."

"So you offered to pay for one."

She nodded, shrugging. "He finally finished the job after another four weeks, and things between us were strained. I wouldn't give him any more money until it was done. Then, on the final day, I thoroughly inspected his work, pointed out a few things, and he waved it off as 'I'll take care of it later' and shit like that. I gave him two-thirds of his final pay, and he went off on me and tried to take the tile saw."

Edward groaned. "What an asshole. Just because you bought it for him to use, didn't mean he could keep it."

"Exactly, I'm a fucking artist, I'd find a use for it. I told him he can pick up the rest of his pay when he fixes the problem with the grout. He refused and again, tried to take the tile saw. I had to call the cops, but he left before they showed up. He tried to take me to small claims court, but the contract saved me from having to pay him until the job was completed to my satisfaction. Which he refused to do. In the end, Jake and I had to dig out the shitty grout job and redo it ourselves. The whole bathroom, Edward."

Every inch of her bathroom other than the ceiling was made of tile and granite. Edward didn't blame her one bit for her hesitance on dating while she worked for him. "Your reluctance already made sense to me, considering your experience with the asshole producer. This solidifies it. I understand, Bella."

"Do you? You're a very hot man who can pretty much have anyone with a snap of your fingers."

"You'd be right." There was no sense in lying. He was never good at laying it all out. She was reluctant for good reasons, but he had trouble trusting anyone, especially someone who could benefit from being with him. This is Bella though, he told himself.

Without another word, she started the movie. The throw pillow he had put between them, might as well have been an ice cold river no one dared to cross. He wasn't sure what to say or do at the moment to make her feel better about their situation.

Silence filled the void between them, while the movie was nothing more than background noise. The Winter Soldier had yet to make an appearance when Bella paused it, shifting until she faced him on the couch, pulling the pillow onto her lap. "Edward, I want you to know that this isn't some fantasy, a one-time thing."

He appreciated her words, having experienced a few empty hookups in his early years in Hollywood. Some sought more and their fifteen minutes of fame, others just wanted to be able to say they fucked Edward Cullen. Rather embarrassed by the whole reputation in his early days, he scaled back and only hooked up with women in the industry who weren't looking for anything serious, though it became just as tedious.

His fingers traced the curve of her cheek, smiling at the heat felt there. "From the moment I met you, I realized once would never be enough. It's why I'm still here, to give you the opportunity to work on something you've always wanted to do, and to get to know you."

She looked away toward the screen. "You're right, once wouldn't be enough." Though she couldn't see it, he had to smile. Her shoulders finally relaxed, her eyes shifting to his chest once or twice. "Of course, we're under the assumption that any intimacy between us would be a pleasure."

"We're assuming we'd find pleasure from something as simple as a kiss," he said, attempting to add a tinge of uncertainty to his voice.

She laughed, poking his arm, then allowing her hand to linger there. Her eyes hadn't remained too far from his chest, either. "Your lips do look rather chapped, Cullen." She made a sound of disgust, her cute nose twitching, and she was visibly shuddering. Her gaze dipped down to his mouth, watching as his tongue slid along his bottom lip. "Yeah, I think a kiss would be okay. You know so we can test our assumptions."

She was putting the ball on his court, but he wasn't quite ready to go for the free throw.

"Good to know, now back to the movie, Swan."

She laughed again, then asked him to get the drinks from her kitchen. As he rummaged through her fridge, he heard her say she was going to change. He would miss the yoga pants she threw on earlier, but it was for the best. Other than a kiss, he wouldn't ask for more from her. Not until they both fulfilled the deal they made.

"Hey, Swan. Do you have something against wine?" He found some beer and grapes, grabbing them.

"I'm a beer and burger kind of woman, Cullen."

"My kind of woman," he said to himself, returning to the living room. The moment he saw her, his senses stalled and then fired up so fast he almost dropped everything in his hands. The bikini top and shorts she wore while in her too hot studio had been tantalizing and shredding his control. What she changed into now completely unraveled him. She had let down her hair, the curls just skimming the middle of her back. The off shoulder sweater she put on was blue with large black stripes, and the dark shorts she wore allowed her legs to be displayed in all their glory. The dark contrasting colors nearly made her skin glow, and even though she had more clothes on than earlier, she looked even sexier.

"Edward," Bella whispered, her heart racing. There was no mistaking the desire in his eyes, his gaze lingering on her bare shoulder. She rubbed her thighs together, her feet shifting on the coffee table, catching his attention. Slowly, Edward walked toward her and placed their drinks down. There was no looking away from his dark eyes as he circled the couch, only to come to a stop directly behind her. She looked over her shoulder at him, hoping he could see how much she wanted this. Her lips parted slightly, his name slipping through and rolling off her tongue with ease.

His hand reached for her hair, gathering it up to expose her shoulder and the side of her neck. "Stay real still," he murmured, the heat of his words brushing over her skin. She thought he would tease her with a touch of his lips, but no, Edward went for the kill. His lips opened over her pulse, his tongue tasting her, his teeth scraping over taut, sensitive skin. A strong hand slipped down her arm, the tips of his fingers grazing the side of her of her breast. She bit the inside of her lip to stop from grinding her hips, seeking friction and moaning out loud. The hand in her hair tugged slightly, her gasp barely contained. His lips brushed over her shoulder, up her neck, the tip of his tongue teasing her ear. Between the heated, delicious torture of his mouth and the slight sting of his hand pulling her hair, she was desperate for a taste of him. She said his name, and he didn't make her wait. Their lips met, harder than either of them expected, but Edward softened his touch, lingering and slowly exploring with every slide of his tongue. His lips returned on their earlier trek, testing her control, of which she already had none. As if he sensed how close she was to giving in, his lips slowed, until they were gone.

His hold on her hair loosened, his fingers massaging her scalp for a few seconds as his lips hovered over her ear. "What do you think?"

He expected her to think after frying her brain and every one of her senses. It took three deep breaths for her to meet his eyes. "That all you got, Cullen. Pfft." She grabbed the remote instead of throwing the man over her shoulder and couch to have her wicked way with him. "Hey, where you going?"

He looked over his shoulder, right at her, already half way down the hall. "I'm taking another shower." The fucker winked at her, leaving her a big pile of goo on her couch.

"I'm not going to survive three hours, much less three weeks."

"I heard that, Swan!"

Since she had to have the last word, she called out to him. "The lotion I'm wearing, there's a bottle of it on the counter." His answering groan made her smile, and as Edward showered, she decided to make some additions to her Loki costume, well what she'd wear under it. Sketching on a pad she always had nearby, she figured Edward would love the reveal.

AN: Now, these two need to let me move things along and let's be honest, she needs time to work on the costumes. I want to say there will be a time jump in the next chapter, but since Edward pretty much refuses to allow me control, I can't make promises. We'll be revisiting the shower in the future ;)