Ready to be introduced to Edward's chest of drawers? ^_^

Edward opened the top drawer of his chest of drawers. He kept his eyes on Bella's face, not ready to miss any reaction. Her eyes widened when she took in the contents of the drawer.

She met his gaze, curiously.

"You can touch anything," he encouraged her with a light smile. Edward wanted Bella to be as comfortable as possible with everything in the chest of drawers.

Her hand reached out, and she pulled out a neatly folded silky blindfold. It was the one she'd given to him for his birthday. There was a variety of blindfolds of different fabrics and designs.

"This is something I think I'm comfortable with." Her eyes shined with desire.

"I'm willing to test it all on you. I know you're going to object at the mere sight of some toys, but it's the only way we can know your limits. I promise to never touch the object that you cross off the list." Edward picked a gag ball from the drawer. "Do you know what this is?"

Bella's brows met in the middle of her forehead. "I'm not sure."

"It's called a gag ball. It goes in your mouth."

She pursed her lips, snorting softly. "I figured as much."

Edward placed the contraption in her hand, reminding himself yet again she had no training, therefore, she didn't know that mouthing off could have severe consequences on her ass. Though, she might be doing it on purpose.

Bella was going to challenge his patience, that was for sure.

She put the gag ball back in the drawer, shuddering. "I'm not saying no to it, but let's call it a soft limit."

Edward chuckled. "I bet everything is going to be a soft limit until you test it."

"What the hell are these?" Bella plucked a string of anal beads, frowning at them. She felt the silicon texture in her hand, meeting his eyes, curiously.

"Anal beads." Edward was quick to catch the object as it fell from her hand as soon as she heard what it was. "Clearly, nothing you're ready for, yet."

"Yet?" She cried out. "Never!"

He placed the beads back in the drawer, knowing that there would be a time for that. Not any time soon, though. Instead of allowing her to rummage through the contents of the drawer, Edward pointed out to several nipple clamps, already imagining how she'd look dressed in them. Bella didn't seem thrilled at the prospect, but she didn't say no to them.

On the second drawer, Bella gasped, when Edward opened it. He had an impressive collection of vibrators.

"Did these get lost here from the first drawer?" She asked, reached out for something.

Edward waited to see what grabbed her attention, and was amused to see something he hadn't used on anyone. He'd bought the Ben Wa balls with the gala in February in mind, but Angela had vehemently declined wearing them at that party. He cringed, imagining how it would have looked to explain to the hospital about the toy. Edward shook his head, focusing back on the woman in front of him.

His short trip to the cemetery had helped him come at peace with himself. The accident might have been his fault, but he was the one still alive, and Angela would have been exceptionally angry to see him moping around and kicking away the opportunity of getting better. Bella was everything he needed at the moment, and even if his lifestyle wasn't for her, he'd still choose her. It scared Edward beyond rational thought, but Bella had bewitched him from the moment he'd first seen her at the bar. He was ready to change who he was for her.

He covered her hand before she could touch the Ben Wa balls. "Let's learn how to walk first."

She giggled, licking her lips. "Okay. This drawer is…green." A wide smile spread on her face, her brown eyes sparkling with mischief.

Edward chuckled, trailing his fingers up her bare arm. It was then he noticed, she was still wearing the dress Alice had forced upon her. "This color looks lovely on your skin."

She blushed scarlet, but kept her smile. "I expected something cornier."

"Like, this dress looks good on you, but it will look better on my bedroom floor?" Edward challenged, tracing her collarbone with his fingertips. She shivered under his touch. "Do you plan on wearing it tomorrow?"

"No way!" Bella shook her head. "It's not my style. Though, I have to check the other dress Alice brought over. If it is worse, I'll have to endure this one."

"What's wrong with this one?"

"My boobs are spilling out! As much as you might enjoy that, it's not me." She touched her chest, as if to emphasize the deep cleavage.

"Hmm…" Edward peered at her visible breasts, dipping his fingers toward the exposed skin. He could see her nipples hardening through the material. "I agree. You wouldn't be allowed out of my arms if you wore this tomorrow."

Bella took a shuddering breath. "Do you plan on finishing the show?" She gestured to the chest of drawers. "Or maybe…you could introduce me to one of these bad boys." She nodded to the vibrators.

Edward took a step back, closing the second drawer with too much force. His control was slipping. He wouldn't have thought a mouthy Sub could be a turn on.

"You're still…what was your word?…green. I plan to do this the correct way this time."

Bella rolled her eyes defiantly. She opened the last drawer, and stumbled back, kicking it shut with her foot.

Edward was amused by her reaction. "This is what brings the real pleasure." He opened the drawer again. "Of course, all of these could bring pain, as well."

"Of course." She rolled her eyes, looking anywhere but at his collection of riding crops, whips, floggers, and spanking paddles.

Sighing, Edward closed the drawer, leaning against the piece of furniture holding his lifestyle. He folded his arms across his chest. "My hard limits are few and they go with common sense. I guess, yours will reflect mine."

"Give me an example." Bella sat on the edge of the bed, keeping her eyes on him.

"Nothing including blood play, cutting, or anything that leaves permanent marks on the body." He would always resent Siobhan for the scars on his body. As grateful as he was for their time together, and the world she'd introduced him to, Edward despised the whip marks. That had been his breaking point, too. He had had a hard time looking at a whip for the longest time, until Jasper had explained that it could bring pleasure, too. The whip had only been used as a punishing weapon on Edward. "Also…" He walked to Bella, crouching at her feet. He touched her knees, looking into her eyes. "You can't touch me…not without some warning, at least."

"What?"

Of course, she wouldn't understand. It had taken him years not to lash out on the unsuspecting person who touched him, not knowing his aversion to the otherwise common gesture.

Siobhan had been into the dark side of the lifestyle, which was one of the worst first tastes for Edward to experience as someone new to the whole BDSM scene. She used to deprive him of eyesight, and sometimes, of hearing, too, before using her favorite whips and crops on his body. He had never known where to expect the lick of the leather, so his body had learned to react to unexpected touches the best way it knew to preserve itself. Whenever someone took him by surprise, touching his arm or back, Edward would move on instinct, reacting in defense. He'd gotten in too many fights just because some person was too close to him, let alone touch him.

"Do you remember my first email to you?" Edward still couldn't believe he'd told her about his darkest secret.

"Oh." Her eyes softened. "But…I've touched you before."

Edward took her hands in his. "Somehow, your touch is not as frightening as others, but most of those times, I saw what you planned on doing. I've learned to brace myself, to expect it." He closed his eyes briefly. "That first night together…when I felt your fingers on my back, I knew you were different."

"Oh, God," she gasped. "I didn't know."

"Of course, you didn't. Jasper is the only other person who knows. And Rose understands I don't like being touched. She always tells me what she's going to do before hugging me, which I greatly appreciate."

"Shit." Tears filled her eyes, and Bella lifted their joined hands to her face. Then she kissed his fingers.

Edward expected her to say that she was sorry, or to find pity in her eyes, but he could only see resentment. He understood that feeling, because it was all he had felt for his former Mistress for the longest time.

He brushed the tears rolling down her cheeks. "Shhh. I'm in a better place now."

Bella drew in a shaky breath. "I want to hug you."

Edward opened his arms, and she slid on the floor beside him, hugging him tightly. Her cheek pressed wetly against the side of his neck.

"Tell me more. Soft limits?" she whispered. Her fingers clutched at his shirt.

"Breath play."

Bella's breath hitched. "What's that?" He could feel her lips against his neck as she talked.

Edward took a moment to arrange his thoughts and come up with a good wording. It was a high possibility Bella would cross breath play off the list. "Mild choking during sex. Keep in mind that you'll always be safe with me."

"It sounds kinda hot," she said softly, unfolding herself from around his body to look into his eyes.

"Soft limit," he assured her.

"Anything going in my ass is a soft limit," she said confidently. "You'll have to work hard to convince me otherwise."

"I love a challenge." He stroked her cheek, smiling. "Anything else?"

"I bet we'll encounter many such challenges along the way, but the best way to judge it…is to experience it, I guess."

"I see you've done your research, or Alice has told you about the color scheme," Edward continued. "I expect a lot of Yellow from you, in the beginning."

"What if I'm saying it just because of my silly fear to give up control?"

"We'll talk about what scares you about the scene or the toy I'm about to use. Bella, I want you to say Yellow as often as possible. I'd be worried if you agreed to everything I planned on doing to your body."

Her pupils dilated in desire. "What if I say Red?"

"Again, we'll talk about it. Red doesn't mean we're not going to try it again after you said it. We just won't resume the scene, but we're still going to talk."

She nodded. "What about a word if I want out? Alice mentioned that."

The thought of losing Bella terrified him. Because if she chose such a word and used it, Edward couldn't see a relationship working between them after he'd pushed her beyond her limits during playtime.

"Do you have such a word in mind?" His voice sounded cool and collected, a contrast to what he actually felt.

"I've no idea what to choose. Did you have such a word with your other… Shit. Don't answer that."

"Yes, I did," he said softly. "It has to be a word you don't use often…not in the bedroom. Like, pancake." He chuckled, remembering his first Sub telling him her safe word.

"Pancake?" Bella laughed.

"Angela's safe word was monster," he said casually. "She said the moment I crossed the limit, I'd become a monster."

Bella chewed on her lips. "Can I think about it?"

"Of course. We're not going to jump into anything tonight."

"No?" She sounded heartbroken.

"I'm pretty sure you're tired after the day we had. Let's sleep, enjoy the wedding tomorrow, and then we'll see what happens."

"Okay."

After a late lunch, they decided to take a nap. Before sleep took them, Edward told Bella that they had to work on her behavior and being respectful.

Important A/N: this is for the guest reviewers who don't have the balls to leave signed in comments and all they do is criticize and judge. Maybe you should just stop reading if all you have to say is something negative.

On a lighter note, I love all the feedback I get from you guys. Thank you so much for reading and sharing your thoughts with me.