Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. Stephenie Meyer created it all; I just like to play around in her world.

Life always gives us reasons, and I do have some very good ones as to why it has taken several months for me to get to this chapter. While I have had migraines throughout my life, I can't say that I truly understood what people meant when they've said they suffered from them . . . until now. Add into that, a comorbid diagnosis of carpal tunnel, and I wondered when I would ever feel like writing again. The last four months have been incredibly difficult, but these two characters wouldn't let me go.

Thanks to every one of you who emailed me to check on me. I couldn't answer many of the messages, but just knowing that you were thinking of me and the story really made my day. And as always, a shout out to the Fab Five (sherriola, Katmom, TwiloverSue, Sammi & NKubie) for their support and help - and beachcomberlc for her beta power! Sherry – please accept this as a late birthday gift. I'll be emailing you this evening.

This is just a little chapter and stops short of where I hoped to take it, but I can promise you that I'm working on the next one at this moment. I hope you enjoy, and I promise you that I will not abandon this story – I promise.

Also, just a shout out. I'm excited to be a judge in the P.S. I Love You contest. You can find us on Facebook under the same name. I hope you'll consider submitting a one-shot (beginning November 5th), because I know I would love to read them.

~Honor~

Edward took a deep breath as he smoothed the towel across his newly shaved face. His hospital shift had been horrendous, and he wasn't in the best frame of mind after losing a patient on the operating table.

God complex, some called it.

He called it failure.

It didn't matter the man was elderly and had a history of chronic heart problems. All that mattered was the way the hopeful look on his family's faces, particularly his granddaughter's, had morphed into grief as Edward walked into the waiting area. The man may have succumbed to the pull of death, but Edward could've sworn he'd died with a smile on his face . . . a probability that had next to a nonexistent chance. Or at least it would seem an impossibility until he met the family and heard the numerous stories of the man's beloved wife, who'd passed away just months prior. It would seem his patient had had everything to live and die for.

Walking into his closet, Edward pulled boxers from the built-in chest before selecting a pair of dark dress pants and blue button-down shirt to wear. He'd promised Bella a nice dinner, and he planned to follow through with that before he revealed his surprise. Like she'd suggested, he'd tell her about his day, relying on her to help him manage the stress. It was an odd feeling having someone to depend on in this way, but wasn't that what he'd always wanted? What he'd always envied his brothers and father for having?

Shrugging on the shirt, he worked quickly to fasten it, tucking it into his pants before sliding a belt through the loops. Passing the garment bag holding his tartan, he chuckled at the memory of Bella asking him to wear it for the wedding. Lurid fantasies of utilizing the quick access to take Bella up against the wall of their honeymoon suite filtered through his mind. He could imagine it clearly . . . her pale legs wrapped around his hips, the green of his tartan in contrast against the pale of her skin.

"Settle down," he muttered against the desire searing his senses.

Some might deem him odd to be able to experience such diverse emotions, the anger at losing someone and overwhelming desire, within a few minutes, but it was the ability to feel them in such bittersweet levels that had made him move so quickly in asking Bella to marry him. If there was one thing Edward had learned in his short career as a doctor, it was that no one lived forever, and in life, when you found something to live for you grabbed it with both hands and held on tight.

He knew he loved Bella with every ounce of his being. It didn't matter their courtship had been so short. When you knew, you knew. Call it the curse of Cullen men, but when they found their mates, nothing would dissuade them. For Carlisle, it had been the challenge of wooing Esme away from another, undeserving man. Emmett had worked diligently and patiently to break through Rosalie's defenses. The forces that had scared Jasper had only been slayed by a woman who could embrace the very nature that tortured him.

James . . . well Jamie had found love only to lose it.

"Edward, she's the one," Jamie said with a big grin. He drained his mug of beer with one thirsty gulp.

"The woman you met the other night?" Edward asked. He'd noticed Jamie's stillness when his eyes lit on the redhead. Like a shark cutting through water after its prey, Jamie had made his way toward the vivacious woman through the crowd of partiers.

"Victoria." Jamie nodded. "But she thinks I'm a freak." Edward's little brother grinned as if it was all good.

"Because . . ." Edward had a feeling about what Jamie would share.

"Because I told her she was mine, and we could forget about all the pretenses and go back to my place." Jamie smiled brilliantly. "She packs a mean right."

Edward had noticed the bruise below Jamie's eye, but he'd long since given up trying to warn Jamie about his devil-may-care attitude.

"She's perfect . . ." Jamie's blue eyes sparkled with the challenge. At Edward's rolled eyes, Jamie laughed. "Just wait. You'll be as whooped when your girl finds you."

It'd only taken Jamie two weeks to wear down Victoria's defenses. As for Edward, he'd been struck from the moment he turned to see Bella being wheeled down the church aisle in her dress blues.

Splashing on the cologne Bella loved, Edward smirked. In love and war, everything was fair, and if the smell of him helped Bella break down her walls and defeat her enemies, who was he to not use every strategy he had in the battle?

Grabbing his wallet and keys from his bedside table, Edward looked over the preparations he'd made for later that evening. While his mood might derail the evening, he was at least prepared. Roses and candles adorned the tops of his furniture, the music was already cued on the iPod he kept attached to the Bose system, and the handcuffs and chains were handy just in case. He hoped he wouldn't need them, but he was prepared for the possibility. Satisfied he'd done everything he could do, he left, making his way to Bella's door. She answered almost instantaneously.

"What's wrong?" she asked, drawing him into her embrace.

Resting his cheek against the soft fall of her hair, he sighed into her. "Bad day at work. I lost someone."

She broke away gently before taking his hand and leading him over to the sofa. "Tell me," Bella ordered, patting the spot exactly beside her.

And so he did. Everything he'd learned about the man who'd lost his life, his wife, their life as told to him by those who'd loved them.

"Babe, I'm so sorry," she said when he finished, squeezing his hand, while she dashed away a few tears. "You want to cancel tonight and stay in?"

"No, this might sound strange, but somehow it would feel disrespectful of how my patient lived his life. Almost as if my grief over losing his life is more important than how he'd lived it."

Edward stretched his neck, sighing as the muscles softened and his neck popped. It took him a minute to realize Bella had frozen beside him.

"Oh my God," she stuttered.

"What?" he murmured, worried about the shock etched so clearly across her delicate face.

"I almost did that. I almost allowed the pain those men caused me to overshadow what Jamie gave me."

Pinching her chin between his fingers, Edward lifted Isabella's face so he could see her eyes. "Bella, I'm sure it felt that way, but the moment I saw Jake rolling you down the aisle, there was such life and fight in you."

"Maybe. But inside . . ."

He waited through her pause.

"Inside, I was frozen. Jamie would kick my ass." She chuckled, but the sound was watery. "No, he wouldn't have to worry. Carl would kick my ass for him." She sniffed against his chest.

"Carl, your friend from the veterans meetings?"

Bella nodded before crawling over to sit on Edward's lap, leaning her cheek against his chest.

"We were talking about the arrangements he's made to have his ashes taken back to his ship to be interred. I started getting upset about the conversation, but he stopped me. He told me grieving is for the living, not the dead, and he hoped his family would throw a party to celebrate his 'homegoing' as he put it. I just never put together what that meant about those of us left behind . . . about what it's all supposed to mean."

"Our legacy is what those left behind remember of us. How we've been changed by them, and them by us. How their lives intertwined with ours and made us better. That is what is important." Edward's chest rumbled against Bella's cheek as he spoke rapidly.

"Yeah.

They remained wrapped in each other's arms, Bella leaning on Edward, him resting his cheek against the top of her head for several minutes.

"Give me a few moments to touch up my eye makeup, and I'll be ready," she finally said.

Kissing her forehead, he released her and admired the view as she walked away. She was wearing a blue dress that made her skin glow. Following her into her room, he sat on the edge of the bed so he could watch her.

"I talked with my dad and he was okay with the idea of using the plane," she offered as she leaned forward to reline her eyes.

"Good. Other than our wedding bands, everything is taken care of then, and I thought we'd stop by Tiffany's this afternoon before we eat. Is that okay with you?"

She smiled as she used a large brush to dust powder across her cheeks. "Tiffany's is fine." Placing it onto a tray, she arched an eyebrow at him in the mirror. "Sorry, I'm not very glamorous tonight."

He thought she was beautiful. "You're gorgeous without makeup. When you dress like that, you're a knockout."

Turning, Bella rested her hip against the countertop to grin at him. "You're blind."

"With love," he countered, crooking his index finger to beckon her over.

Whether she knew it or not, her walk was pure sin, her hips swaying slightly. Bella didn't ease into the kiss they shared, choosing instead to wrap her fingers into his hair and pulling him to her as she bent slightly. They were both out of breath before they broke apart.

"We'd better leave, or all my good intentions will come crashing down around us," he said, his voice hoarse with lust. He still sat on her bed, and it was very tempting.

They'd yet to break Marcus' contract about keeping her bed for sleeping, but a flush-faced, blazing green-eyed, fuck-hair-sticking-up Edward tempted Bella.

"Yeah, let's get out of here," she muttered, eliciting a harsh chuckle from him.

~Honor~

"Congratulations on your nuptials," the girl who'd helped them said as she handed Bella the small bag containing their wedding bands.

Walking into the store had almost overwhelmed her, and her gut had clenched when she'd seen the cost of the simple platinum rings she'd liked. One day, in the far distant future, she'd get out of Edward how much he'd paid for her ring, but she was afraid to ask now. Edward was, by far, no spendthrift, but it was going to take Bella a little while to accustom herself to not worrying as much about finances. She'd been okay while in the military, but with the cost of the therapy her insurance didn't cover and the still lingering doubts about her future, she felt the need to pinch every penny. The concern lingered still as they ate an early dinner at Toulouse Petit, a French/Spanish/Creole fusion restaurant. The food, though, quickly dispelled her fear as she savored every bite of her meal and some of Edward's.

"Full?" he joked as she placed her fork down on the clean plate.

Grinning, Bella rubbed her stomach, leaning back against the chair. "Damn, that was good."

He smirked when she watched one of the waitresses walk by with dessert. "Would you like to order something?"

She groaned. "Yeah, but I don't think I could eat another bite."

Chuckling he motioned for the check.

"You know, you don't have to take me out to eat all the time," Bella said as they slowly walked the short distance to the car.

"I know. But I don't want to spend all our time together sitting at the house. When your legs are stronger and the weather isn't so cold, I have lots of activities I want us to do. Things I haven't done since I was a kid like the Space Needle, the Museum of Flight, and Pike Place Market. I want to take the Underground Tour, too."

Bella handed him her cane, which he stowed in the back seat. It was when he turned back onto the busy street she realized they weren't driving back toward their lofts.

"Where are we going?"

"To my surprise," he said with a secretive smile.

"Surprise?" Bella hated surprises and Edward knew this.

It was only the feel of his skin sliding against hers as he laced their fingers together for a reassuring squeeze that calmed her.

"Bella, breathe. You're going to like this one, I think."

She watched in interest as the muscle in his cheek jerked. He was nervous, she realized.

"Hmm . . ." she hummed with a chuckle. "I thought we were going home so I could attack you?"

Any nervousness disappeared as a wolfish look crossed his face. "Um . . .no. Tonight is all mine."

Edward took the advantage of a red light to look over at her. If it was possible, Bella felt like she might combust at the heat in his eyes. Her nipples tightened and she clenched her thighs together. His smirk told her he knew exactly what he was doing. To prove his point, Edward brought their linked hands to his lips, nipping her skin slightly. Bella's heart pounded in her chest as the heat from his eyes flared across her skin.

"Forget the surprise and let's go home."

Smiling, he shook his head at her. "Normally, your every wish is my command, but not now. Let me do this for you, please." He narrowed his eyes at her gently, and when he spoke his voice was a dark promise. "I'll make it up to you later."

Bella could no more control the shiver that ran through her than stop breathing. Vivid fantasies entertained her as he drove. By the time he pulled into a parking lot, she was a squirming mess. She ached for him so much it was all she could do not to beg him to take her. Distracted by her need, the name of the building before her didn't register until she was halfway up the walk.

Galvin Flying

"Where are we?" she asked as she came to a stop, leaning on her cane heavily.

Edward's grin was shy. "A friend of a friend manages this place, and he agreed to open for us this evening."

Bella started to ask what he meant, but her curiosity was left wanting when the door to the business opened. Immediately comfortable with the military stance of the bear of a man in front of them, she guessed the Marines for his branch.

"You Cullen?" he asked of Edward before his eyes shot to her.

"Yeah." Edward held out his hand, and the Marine met it, all the while staring at her.

"You the Air Force pilot?" The man nodded toward Bella.

A thrill shot through her. For all she'd lost, she was still part of the Air Force, and a pilot she would be until the day she died . . . even if she was never let in another cockpit.

"I am." She hobbled a couple of steps closer with her cane before holding out her hand. "Bella Swan."

The man even grunted when he closed her hand in his. "Max Bane."

"Well, then, let's get inside. Since your man . . ." he nodded at Edward " . . . was true to his word about your arrival time, I'm yours for the next few hours."

Her confusion must have been written all over her face, because Edward finally took pity on her. "Galvin Flying is the premier flying school in Seattle. From what I was told, they have the newest flight simulator on the market."

"The Flagship. She'll give you at least a one-G experience," Max said with enough respect in his voice to tell Bella he loved his job.

"I'm sorry, I don't understand." She tried not to look clueless, but wasn't certain how effective she was.

"You're going flying tonight." Edward grinned at the way her mouth dropped.

~Honor~

Bella's face was flushed but unreadable when she exited the simulation room two hours later. Edward had spent the time answering emails and surfing the net. Although it had been a good use of his wait, every molecule of him had wanted to be with her. It had been a big risk leaving her in a position that could've triggered her PTSD, but it had been about trust. She'd promised if it became too much, she would abort the simulations Max had programmed. Other than a brief encounter when Edward had gone to the restroom, he'd not seen the man since.

That encounter, though, had let Edward know he'd been right to pull in this favor.

"That girl of yours is amazing. Never seen anyone handle the controls better." Max's brief assessment, along with the shrill whistle of admiration that escaped him, had set Edward at ease.

Edward panicked, though, when Bella grabbed him by the hand and he had to almost jog to keep up with her. They barely made it to the hallway leading to the front door when Bella slapped him in the chest, causing him to fall back against the wall.

He panicked, thinking she was angry, until she jerked him down by the collar of his shirt to give him a kiss that should've set the building on fire around them. He came back to Earth when the grind of Bella's pelvis against his threatened to have him exploding in his boxers. Somehow, somewhere during their embrace, he'd turned to place her back against the wall and Bella's legs had wrapped around his waist. He was all but screwing her against the painted concrete.

Bella moaned as he broke from her. Foreheads touching, Edward panted against her lips.

"If that's the kind of thank-you I get, I'm bringing you here more often."

"It is and you are," she said, punctuating her words with a soft thrust of her hips.

Edward groaned at the pressure against his cock. "Fuck," he muttered.

"Yeah, I'd like to, but I'm sure you're going to hold me to that 'No sex until we're married rule.'"

He chuckled, and they both moaned at what the movement did to them.

"Did you enjoy flying, Bella?"

A suspicious sheen made her eyes sparkle. "More than you can even know." She leaned forward to place a gentle kiss against his lips. "More than you can even know."

"Get a room!" Max yelled from somewhere close.

Laughing, they left after Bella shouted out a "Thank you" to the man.

Her body hummed in pleasure the entire way back to their lofts. Edward was quiet, and she was thankful for his perceptiveness as she wallowed in delight at the memories of the feel of the throttle in her hand and the small g-force the machine had produced. She'd chosen flights over the ocean, where she could almost smell the salt water and across the snow covered mountains of Alaska where she'd felt as if her breath came out in puffs of white vapor. And while it was all so tame in comparison to the rush of adrenaline her fighter had produced, Bella still buzzed with endorphins. The only thing that could've made it any better would've been to have Edward at her side . . . or for it to be real. Either way, he'd given her a surprise that had nourished the flame of want in her until it was an inferno burning at her bones.

She needed to fly. There was no other choice but to do so, and Edward's surprise served to remind her. While she hadn't quite forgotten, perhaps there was a vein of complacency that had taken root in her heart.

No more.

"Thank you," she said when she was finally able to form words.

"For?"

"Reminding me of who I am."

"You never forgot. I just didn't want you to forget how much you like being you."

Bella smiled softly as he pulled into the parking lot for their building.

'How much she liked being her.'

What a notion.

Certainly, she thought as Edward gave her his hand to help her from the car— deviltry, promise, and lust shining in his eyes— she could say she expected to very much like being her in the next hour or so.

~Honor~

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