This one is quite long. I may have to break up any further chapters that are big like this one. If y'all are okay with chapters this long, then I'll keep writing them like this.

A/N: Just a little insight on how I write my stories. There's always an HEA, and pregnancies.

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. All mistakes are my own.

ENJOY!

10/10/2022


Chapter 9

BPOV


I hated being sick. I had been living in the cocoon of my bed after visiting with my dad for a bit. Thank goodness he understood. Although, I thought he'd let me be and let me sleep but, no, Edward and my dad had been waiting on me hand and foot. I only hoped I felt better by Saturday evening.

My mom, along with my brother and sister, would be arriving tomorrow. Mom loved Pike Place and tried to visit a couple of times a month to get fresh veggies, a few different flavors of honey and some fish. She tried to get winter clothes for Alex and Gracie on those trips as well. Winter seemed it hit the Pacific Northwest a lot faster than it did any other state other than Alaska.

Edward stepped into the room for the millionth time today. "Do you need anything?"

"No. Between you and my dad, I won't need anything until next week." I knew I sounded a little grumpy, but I could only handle so much babying. I now had an endless supply of tissues, cough drops and NyQuil, which have been a God send. I can't fail to mention the Tamiflu that has worked wonders since I crawled back into bed.

Edward sat down on the bed next to me. "I'm sorry. We just wanna make sure that you don't need to get up unless you have to."

"I'm sorry, too. I know you two mean well, but you're crowding me. You need to let me sleep so I can get better." I glanced up at him guiltily. I was irritated and taking it out on him, and I honestly didn't mean to.

"Okay. I'll let you sleep." He leaned forward and kissed my forehead.

Thinking, it dawned on me..."You're trying to keep busy away from my dad, aren't you?"

"Why would you think that?" He sat up and squared his shoulders, ready to defend himself.

I smiled, knowing he was trying to play dumb. "Edward, you can't fool me. Are you not comfortable enough around him? I can tell him to get a hotel." This was practically is home, too, and I didn't want him to feel uncomfortable with my dad staying with us. It was all my fault because I didn't discuss the situation with him before I offered my dad to stay.

"No, no. It's fine. I guess I'm still a little skittish around him so yeah, I'm a little uncomfortable, so to speak." He chuckled nervously.

"Honey, you'll be fine. Has he said anything to you?" I placed my hand on his arm.

He shook his head a couple of times. "No. I just don't know what to say to him. I'm afraid I'll say the wrong thing. I mean, what does he like to do? What kind of hobbies does he have?"

"Well, he likes model cars. He loves baseball and definitely football. He's actually a big fan of you and Emmett. So, talk about what you know; Football. That shouldn't be so hard, should it?" Hopefully that bit of information would appease him.

He sighed and ran his hand through his hair, which I noticed he did when he was anxious or nervous. "Okay. I can do that. Um... I'm gonna order in for dinner, any request?"

"Nah, I'll eat what you get. You might wanna ask my dad, though. He's like you, a steak and potatoes kind of guy," I suggested. They always say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, right?

Edward smiled before getting up and heading towards the door. "Okay...I'll probably just order from Jack's Pub; they'll deliver."

"Okay." I snuggled back under the blankets when I head him open that door. "Oh, and Edward." He pushed the door open enough to stick his head in. "I love you."

"Love you, too. Now, go back to sleep." I wasn't arguing one bit with him.

And sleep is what I did.

I thanked the discovery of Tamiflu. I felt so much better after my dad and Edward finally let me sleep.

My dad woke me around eight o'clock. A peace offering of food. A sandwich and some soup, which I gladly accepted.

"Where's Edward?" Daddy helped me with the pillows so I could sit up.

He then placed the back of his hand on my forehead; checking for a fever. "He had to run over to the university for something. He didn't wanna wake you."

"Oh. Did you two eat already?"

"Yeah, he left about ten minutes ago. I figured you needed to eat," he explained and scooted the tray of food closer to me.

I smiled up at him. "Thanks Dad." He nodded.

I started feeling guilty about earlier when I asked them to leave me alone. "Hey, I'm sorry about earlier."

"Don't worry about it. I think I was trying to get one up on Edward." He chuckled. "He's a good guy. I wouldn't be me if I didn't come across threatening."

"Dad! What'd you do?" He was laughing at me now.

"Nothing I wouldn't normally do. I just cleaned my gun, that's all." He laughed like it was the biggest joke he's ever told. I couldn't believe him. Trying to scare off my boyfriend by cleaning his gun.

"If I didn't know any better, I think he may have wet his pants when I pulled my nine out of its case," he joked. If I didn't know any better, he did it on purpose to be an ass.

"I can't believe you. You did that on purpose didn't you?" He really laughed at me this time. "You're an ass."

"Oh, come on, now. Give your old man a break." He abruptly stopped laughing when he saw me pouting.

I sighed and sat up, leaning against the headboard. "Dad, I really love him. I'd like to keep him around."

"I know, I know. I needed to make sure he was good enough for you. You're being safe, right?" It was my turn to giggle. He could be so ridiculous sometimes.

"Dad, you already asked me that and I said yes," I reassured him.

He put both of his hands up; surrendering, "Okay, okay. I love you, kid. Eat up. Edward said he wouldn't be gone long." He got up from the bed and walked toward the door, but stopped. "You gonna be okay for dinner at the Whitlock's tomorrow?"

"I don't know. I've got some good medicine, though. I feel a little better." I really wanted to go, but I didn't want to risk getting anyone else sick.

I fell back to sleep after I ate my dinner. It was nice to sleep without any dreams. Honestly, I was surprised I hadn't dreamed more about the night Phil died. It must be all the medicine running through my system. I only hoped they stayed away indefinitely. Although, that would be asking too much.

I was brought out of my deep sleep when I felt the bed dip down behind me. Edward wrapped his arm around me and pulled me to him. He kissed my neck and ran his nose along the shell of my ear. I moaned, welcoming the feeling. "Hey you," I said groggily. "You just getting home?"

"Yeah, sorry. I ran over to the university to get my play book," he explained.

I turned in his arms and looked at him quizzically. "Play book?"

"It's my strategy play book. I draw and write out all the plays I have planned for the upcoming games. I thought maybe I'd show it to your dad." He placed another kiss along my jaw and ran his fingers through my hair.

I giggled, knowing all too well that he was being a suck up. "You've resorted to ass kissing?"

"Just a little. Do you think he'll like it?" He traced his finger along the bridge of my nose.

I did the same to him. "Sure. You know he's only messing around with you, right?"

"Bella, your dad pulled his gun out. I nearly pissed my pants when he did," he said, raising his brows at me.

I smiled at my dad's playfulness towards Edward. "Awe, honey...you'll be okay."

"You think this is funny? It's not. And now he's sleeping down the hall; knowing that I'm sleeping with his daughter. Please tell me that I can add an extra lock to the bedroom door. I don't wanna wake up in the middle of the night..."

I couldn't help but interrupt him. "Edward, stop!"

He huffed and plopped onto his back. I moved over and wrapped myself around him, placing my head on his chest. "My dad's only messing around; I promise. I already scolded him for it."

"You... scolded your dad?" He sounded unsure.

"Yes, I did and he said he would stop. He likes you. He even said you're a good guy," I said reassuringly. I hoped he would calm down. He was taking everything too seriously.

"Fine," he conceded, wrapping his arm around my neck and pulling me further onto his chest.

"Fine?" I wasn't sure I heard him correctly.

"Yes, fine. I'll stop thinking irrationally. I can't help it, though. He intimidates me. Here I am, this dumbass jock acting like a baby." He relented and that made me feel better. I didn't want to keep telling him every time my dad was around.

I pressed a kiss to his chest. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Are you feeling better? You sound better." His concern made me smile.

"Much better. Tamiflu is a gift from the Gods. I'm not even really tired right now. You think maybe we could uh..." I tried to sound seductive and moved my hand down over his stomach and found the promise land. I cupped what I could fit of him and gave it a little squeeze.

He started shaking his head vigorously, side to side. "Oh, no, no, no, no." He sat up, grabbing my hand and pulled it to

his chest with a firm grip. "I don't think so. I'll definitely have a bullet in my ass mid thrust. So, no, no, not gonna happen. Not with your dad right down the hall. I'd like to continue sitting normally. Not tonight, please."

"Geez, Shut up!" I sat up, rolling away from him. "You can be all big, bad and tough one minute; let my dad come around and you lose your dick and tuck your tail." I was irritated as hell, feeling rejected and pissed off. He grabbed me and pulled me back to him. "Stop, Edward. I'm going back to sleep."

"Oh, baby please don't be mad; I'm sorry. I really am. It's just...shit. I don't even know if my dick will get hard knowing your dad's down the hall."

I sighed. rolling back over to look at him. "I'm 100% positive that your dick will get hard. I won't even try, though, but I will warn you right now. The next time my dad comes into town, I'll be breaking you out of that little shell of yours and you'll be fucking me regardless. You got that mister?" Yeah, I sounded demanding but my God, he needed to stop with all of his chicken shit, hardheadedness.

His face dropped in horror. "You wouldn't."

"Oh, I most definitely will. We've made love twice and I'm already craving more. See what you did to me, Mr. Good- lovin'?" I smirked at him. I sort of liked my demanding tone. I wouldn't use it all the time, but because he's being so absurd right now, I loved every single minute of it.

He looked confused for a second. "Um... okay?" He looked deeper in thought. "Mr. Good-lovin'?"

"Yeah, ya like it? Suits you." I reached down and cupped him again and felt him twitch. "Mmm... see, you like hearing my demanding tone, don't you? You dirty boy."

I was being so stupid and completely acting way out of character, but I wanted to see more of his reactions.

"What's wrong with you? What the hell kind of medicine are you taking?" He sounded surprised and I could see a small smirk at the corner of his lips.

I snuggled into his side. "Oh, shut up and go to sleep. Good night. I love you, you big ole whiner."

"I love y... hey, don't call me a whiner," he demanded, sounding hurt.

"If the shoe fits," I deadpanned; kissing his chest one last time before I fell asleep.

Sometime in the middle of the night, I woke up sweating my ass off and I couldn't move my body. I felt like I was strapped down to the bed. I could only move my fingers and toes.

Edward was lying completely on top of me; his head nuzzled in between my breasts. He was lightly snoring so I knew he was completely dead to the world; out cold.

I needed to pee and his weight on me wasn't helping matters at all. If I didn't get to the bathroom soon, I'd wet the bed.

I shimmied my shoulders, "Edward?"

He didn't stir so I raised my right shoulder, which was close to the back of his head, and pushed at it.

Oh, God, I'm gonna piss all over myself.

"Edward?" I said a little louder.

Holy shit, he'd sleep through a bomb blowing up. How the hell does he wake up when I'm having a nightmare?

He huffed and licked his lips, and started moving his jaw like he was a cow chewing its cud.

Is that drool?

I jerked my shoulder forward, harder, hitting the back of his head.

"Bella," he mumbled but still didn't wake up. Crap, I think I just peed a little.

This time, I jerked my shoulder, hitting his head and yelling his name. "Edward!"

FINALLY!

He bolted up onto his hands and knees, hovering over me. "What the fu...?"

He stopped himself, mid curse when he realized he was over the top of me.

"It's about freakin' time; I have to pee." I fled from the bed as fast as I could, stopping at my dresser to grab some dry panties.

I moaned as soon as I sat down on the toilet, not even realizing how loud I was. "You okay in there?"

"Yeah. I just had to pee really bad." Edward poked his head into the bathroom, making sure the coast was clear before he stepped inside.

I reached down to grab my clean pair of panties that I tossed on the floor next to the toilet. "What are... did you pee on yourself?"

"Just a little. I couldn't help it. You were lying on top of me pushing down on my bladder," I embarrassingly explained.

He chuckled. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, Mmmhmm. Why the hell were you sleeping on top of me anyway?"

He shook his head, shrugging his shoulders. "I don't know. I didn't do it on purpose. I can't help what my body does while I'm unconscious. I guess I'm drawn to you even in my sleep."

That made my heart melt a little, but I was still a little irritated. "I'm just gonna shower. I think you drooled all over my shirt." I pointed to the wet spot between my boobs.

He looked guilty but dodged the innuendo. "You want company?"

"No offense, but no thank you. I'll wanna do more in the shower and you won't." I hoped he didn't think I was still in the same drab mood as earlier.

"Um... okay. I'll just head back to bed." He dropped his head and pouted. That made me feel bad.

"Edward?" I smiled up at him when he turned around. "Yes?"

"I love you."

"I love you, too. I'll see you in a few minutes." He left the bathroom and I felt even guiltier. I really needed to get him over the fear of my dad.

Edward was lying on his side, facing away from me. I felt a little tension in the air as I pulled the covers back. Edward didn't move a muscle.

I wasn't so sure about cuddling up next to him, but I wanted his closeness. My body was drawn to his, so I scooted closer, spooning him. My arms had a mind of their own, as one snaked around his waist. He wrapped my hand in his long fingers and pulled me closer. I placed a kiss between his shoulder blades and he sighed.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

"What for?"

"For being a big baby. I promise to do better," he stated, matter of factually. I felt so bad for reacting the way I had, and there wasn't anything wrong with the way he feels around my dad.

I sighed and kissed his back again. "I love you, Edward. With my whole heart. I'd like to keep you around as long as you'll have me."

"I'm not going anywhere; I promise. I've never been this way before. Never around Katherine's dad, either. For some reason, your dad intimidates me and I lose a lot of my macho-ness. I've become a pussy." He sighed and rolled over- facing me. "I've never loved anyone like I love you. I've never loved anyone as much as I love you – outside family, of course. I guess I've found the one woman that matters." He placed a hand on my cheek and ran his thumb along my bottom lip. "I want what I say or do to uphold to what your dad wants for you. His opinion of me matters a lot and I'm afraid of messing up."

I cupped his cheek in return and kissed him lightly on the lips. "My dad knows what you mean to me. He knows that I would have never given myself to you if I wasn't in love."

"You talk to your dad about stuff like that?" He asked with a stunned expression.

"Well, I'm not gonna offer him the info, out right. If he asks me, I may beat around the bush a bit, but I don't lie to him. He's one of the best dads a girl could have." Edward leaned forward and kissed me again, only this time, it became heated and our hands started roaming.

Edward grumbled against my lips, "We're still not having sex."

"Dammit." I groaned. "Fine."

"Horn dog; go back to sleep. If you're feeling any better tomorrow, I might give you a good spanking." He placed a loud kiss on my neck.

"Promises, promises." I giggled. "I love you."

"I love you, too. Good night."

The light blaring through the gap in the curtains, was telling me it was time to get up. I had slept so much in the last two and a half days that I was surprised I fell back to sleep after Edward and I had our small heart to heart.

I felt about 70% better. My cold was still lingering in my chest a little, but it was tolerable.

I groaned and stretched, waking up more. Edward was sprawled out on his stomach with his arms tucked under his pillow and his head half under it. I smiled, reaching over and brushing his hair away from his forehead.

A whispered moan escaped him. "Do I have to wake up? I don't think I could move." He groaned and rolled to his side, rubbing both of his hands over his stubbled face.

"No. You can sleep until I get breakfast ready. I'm sure my dad's already up and on his second pot of coffee." He could drink that stuff like it was the only drinkable substance left on the planet.

Edward sat up abruptly. "Shit. I forgot he was here."

"Edward, don't start, please. Just be yourself. You survived yesterday, plus you were gonna do some ass kissing, remember?" He looked like a light bulb went off in his head and smiled. A whispered "Oh, yeah"fell from his lips.

I patted him on the top of his head in approval. "See, you could be a good little soldier and kiss ass really well. I'm sure he'll eat that shit right up."

"I hope so. I feel like I have so much to prove." He turned and let his feet drop to the floor.

"How about you go shower and I'll meet you in the kitchen when you're done?" I hoped what he had planned worked. He really needed to get used to the way my dad was. If he wanted to be with me, my jokester of a father came with me.

"Yeah, okay. I'll see you in about thirty minutes." He stood from the bed and I noticed his morning wood was tenting out his boxers. He nonchalantly walked over to the dresser and collected his clothes from the drawers that I had cleared out for him.

I was getting wet watching him as he made his way to the bathroom. "Thirty minutes? You're gonna rub one out, aren't you?" He continued towards the bathroom.

He stopped and turned so I could see his prominent erection and smirked at me. "Probably." And walked through the bathroom door.

He knew what that would do to me. Which left me to endure my horny thoughts while standing in the kitchen thinking about him stroking himself.

What the hell is wrong with me? All I've been thinking about is sex, lately.

I got up and walked out to the kitchen. I was surprised to find my dad already at the stove, cooking.

He had a little bit of everything sizzling on the stove. Sausage, bacon, and scrambled eggs. He was even making French toast.

"Is that what I think it is?" I asked, pointing to the French toast.

My dad turned and pulled me into a hug. "Sure is. Only my baby girls' favorites. Stuffed French toast with sweetened cream cheese. I even got a few different fruit toppings for you. Strawberries, blueberries and bananas."

"Thank you, daddy. This is really great." I kissed his cheek and stepped over to the fridge to pull the orange juice out.

"Your mom will be here around two. She called this morning while she was packing the overnight bags. We're staying at the Whitlock's tonight." He slid another piece of French toast onto the platter.

"What? Why aren't you guys staying here tonight?" I'm not sure if I meant to sound hurt, but it just came out that way.

"Your mom and Joan have plans tomorrow so it's up to the men to keep your brother and sister occupied while they're out. We're taking them out to play miniature golf," he explained. I was a little dumbfounded at that fact. My mom nor Momma Whitlock never mentioned anything to me about having plans. I wondered if they were using my moms birthday gift. But, then again, mom said she'd rather all three of us go together.

I felt a little left out, but I let it go. They didn't need me around every time they made plans. It was too childish for me to even think that way. And, as I think about it, I was all for the idea because now, Edward had no excuse to reject me again tonight.

My dad and I were setting everything on the table when Edward came out of my room. He walked over to me and placed a chaste kiss on my lips. "This looks good, baby."

"Thank you, but my dad made breakfast." I pointed over to the table. Edward smiled and pulled a chair out for me, like the proper gentleman that he is.

"Mornin' Edward. Sleep good?" Oh, good God. My dad was already starting to pick on Edward. And where the hell did his Southern accent come from?

He must be talking to Jasper, again, because Jasper does it too, occasionally.

Edward was silent for a few seconds. "Yes, sir. How about yourself?"

"I slept real good. Thanks for asking. I always get so thirsty in the middle of the night, so after a couple of times getting up, I finally fell into a deep sleep." My dad sat down at the table with a smirk on his face. Oh, No! Here it comes. "Say, Edward, when I passed by Bella's room last night, I heard you two talking. Is that normal for you, two?" My dad, being the comedian he thought he was, didn't realize he would've had to walk across the whole apartment to even pass by my room. He gave himself away about snooping.

Edward didn't think before he answered. "Oh, no, sir. Sometimes we..." I kicked him on the side of the leg to shut him up. "What the hell?" Then his face paled when he realized what he was about to say.

"Sometimes you what? How long have you really been staying with my daughter?" My dads brows were raised as he asked.

Edward looked on the verge of a heart attack and my dad kept glaring at him for an answer with his arms crossed over his chest.

Edwards face was blank and I was sure there were a million different answers, to those questions, running through his head.

"Daddy, stop, please?" I wanted a peaceful breakfast. "And, what the heck were you doing by my room anyway? It's on the other side of the freakin' apartment?"

"What? Can he not answer those questions?" He was completely dodging my question to keep up his teasing of my boyfriend. Edward looked between me and my dad like he was watching a tennis match. I looked pointedly at my dad, hoping he'd get the picture and stop his foolishness. "Fine. Edward, I'm only messing with you." My dad chuckled. "I was actually starting to have fun too and Bella had to go and ruin it. And I wasn't by your room. I could hear you two talking while I was in the kitchen."

"That's not very nice, sir." Edward finally spoke up.

"Oh, I know. Get used to it, kid. If you're with Bella for the long haul, you'll have to get used to the flame because this kitchen ain't shuttin' down." My dad laughed, pointing to himself with his thumbs.

"Dad, that was really lame," I stated firmly, not laughing at his attempt at being funny.

He chuckled and started spooning food onto his plate, looking at me dumb-stricken. "Really? I thought it pretty good."

"Yes, really. You've been hanging out with Alex and his friends too much." I giggled, knowing all too well what it was like to be around my little brother and his friends.

"I try. I gotta be the cool dad and all, ya know. It's not easy with all this new lingo goin' around." My dad was quick to defend himself. I giggled because I was sometimes confused when I visited and Alex said something I had no clue what he was saying. I pretended to know and sometimes that didn't even work.

All three of us proceeded to load our plates with food. Silence fell amongst us for a few minutes until Edward finally got the courage to talk. "This looks really good. I didn't peg you as a cook at all, Marshal."

My dad grumbled, reaching for more bacon. "What exactly did you peg me for, Edward?"

"A beer drinking, sports watching, Fisherman."

My dad glared at Edward long enough to cause a light sheen of sweat to coat his forehead. I placed my hand on his thigh and gave it a little squeeze.

My dad laughed. "Gotcha! You're so damn gullible." Edwards' shoulders relaxed when my dad spoke next. "I actually wished I had time for more extracurricular activities. I do love me some sports, though. Football especially. Between work, my wife and two pre-teens at home, I'm always busy."

"Dad, Alex and Gracie aren't pre-teens. Not for a few years," I assured him. I thought he would know better considering he was around me when I was a pre-teen.

"Yeah, well, your sister already acts like one. She asked your mother if she could start shaving her legs. And she asked me for a credit card. How many kids, her age, have their own credit cards?" He shook his head and shoved a piece of sausage into his mouth.

Edward did the same as we fell into a comfortable silence, stuffing our faces. The conversation of pre-teens forgotten. I couldn't wait to see Alex and Gracie, though. We were all supposed to be at the Whitlocks around six o'clock for dinner, so we had the whole day to find stuff to do, but it was futile to say the least. We opted to watch a couple of movies together. My dad left the room a few times to take phone calls for work even though he was off duty. He was very dedicated to his job.

My mom, Alex and Gracie arrived around two-thirty. Alex and Gracie were so excited to see me. I felt the same about them. After greeting me, we all went into the kitchen for drinks, but Alex kept bouncing on the balls of his feet, like he had something on this mind.

After handing him his drink he burst. "Where is he, sissy?"

"Who, buddy?"

"Edward, who else? I know he's here. Mom says he's staying with you." He stood with both of his hands on his hips, tapping his foot impatiently.

"I thought maybe you were talking about Dad," I said, suggestively.

He looked at me pleadingly. "Okay, okay. He was in my office reading the last time I saw him." I turned and handed Gracie her drink. "Give me a minute. Mom do you wanna get them a snack? I'll wake Dad up and let him know you're here. He laid down for a nap about an hour ago."

"Sure, honey but don't wake up your father. I'll do that in a sec. Grace, did you want to go with your sister?" Gracie glanced up at me with a huge smile on her face. I knew she wanted to meet Edward just as bad as Alex, but for a whole different reason.

"Oh, yes, yes, yes. I wanna meet sissy's boyfriend." She bounced on the balls of her feet, much like Alex was doing when they first arrived.

All three of us made our way to my office. Edward was laying on the couch playing on some hand held video game system. "Hey, sorry to interrupt but there's a couple of someone's who are anxious to meet you."

Edward sat up on the couch and placed his game system down on the coffee table. "Oh, yeah? Who do we have here?"

"This is Alex and Gracie, my brother and sister." I put my hand on Alex's shoulder and gave him a little push towards Edward.

Edward stood from the couch and extended his hand toward Alex. Gracie stood back with a huge smile on her face. She tugged on the sleeve of my shirt to get my attention. When I leaned down for her to whisper in my ear, she said, "He's really hot." And then I wondered where the heck she heard stuff like that. She needed to be sheltered and babied like the baby that she is.

She was right, though, so I smiled a huge toothy grin and nodded, agreeing with her.

Edward seemed just as pleased to meet them.

"Hi, Alex. It's nice to finally meet you. I'm Edward." They shook hands and Edward knelt down in front of him to be more at eye level. Grace stepped forward to get a better look, too.

Alex's facial expression was one of pure excitement. "Oh, I know who you are. No one at school believed me when I told them that I was meeting you today." Alex reached into his back pocket and pulled out Edwards' football trading card. "Will you sign this for me, please?"

"Sure, buddy. You wanna take a picture, too? I'm sure your big sister has a camera around here somewhere." Edward was definitely making Alex feel like one of the luckiest kids, ever.

I walked over to my desk and pulled my digital camera out of the drawer and turned it on. I had a docking station to print the pictures when I was ready to. We'd make sure that Alex had all the proof possible that he met Edward.

I waited a few minutes. After introductions were made, I took a few pictures and printed them out. Edward signed the pictures for him, too.

Then he turned his attention towards Gracie and extended his hand to her. "You must be Gracie. It's very nice to meet you. Do you want a picture, too?"

Gracie nodded her head vigorously and smiled. "Are you gonna marry my sissy?"

I gasped at her question, shocked at her forwardness, "Gracie!"

Edward stood up, a huge smile on his face. "Well, I don't know, sweetie. I do love your sister very much. Maybe she might agree to marry me one day."

At that moment, I hadn't really thought about marriage other than what Momma Whitlock said a few weeks before, and I knew it wasn't uncommon for people to get married after being together for just a few days. That's something I'll think about another time.

Gracie lunged forward, wrapping her arms around him. He seemed taken aback at first, but reciprocated her hug. "I can't wait."

"All right. Let's take a few pictures and get them printed out. We still need to get ready for dinner," I suggested, changing the subject.

They posed for a few pictures and Edward signed them for Gracie, too. They had never been around someone that was famous, so they acted as if they were in celebrity la-la land.

"Alright, you two. Let's go find mom and dad. We need to leave in about an hour." I ushered them out of the room. Edward followed as we entered the living room.

My parents were sitting on the couch. Dad still had pillow creases on his face, so I decided to start a pot of coffee for him considering it ran through his veins, anyway.

Edward, Alex and Gracie made themselves comfortable. Gracie took up my dad's lap; opting to leave the spot next to our dad, for Alex.

I stood back and watched them all together. My heart swelled with an overabundance of love for everyone sitting in my living room.

An hour later, we were all dressed and ready to leave. Edward was sexy as ever in a button up shirt and a pair of jeans. We were all going for nice casual. It was only dinner with family and a few friends, after all.

I opted for a skirt and a fairly nice shirt. Nothing too fancy, and when we arrived at the Whitlocks, I kept my game face on. I was feeling a whole lot better and a little nervous about meeting Edwards parents, Emmett and Emmett's wife, Rosalie.

I glanced around the room and caught sight of Momma Whitlock, Alice and Jasper. They were in deep conversation about something, so I made my way over to them with Edward in tow. "What are you guys up to?"

I hugged Momma Whitlock first. "Hi, sweetheart."

"Hi, yourself." I turned to Alice and Jasper; grabbing both of them into a three way hug. "You two look guilty."

Alice smiled, glancing at Jasper then back to me. "We do not."

"Yes, you do. I've barely seen you since you moved back. You've been up this yahoo's ass the whole time." I pointed to Jasper, smiling because he knew I was happy for him because he finally got his woman.

Alice changed the subject. "You look good. Joan said that you've been sick."

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure I had the flu. Dad and Edward kept me drugged up. I think its ran its course, though. I feel a whole lot better."

Momma Whitlock chimed in. "You look really happy, too."

"Maybe we should be thanking Edward. She's been nothing but smiles since he snatched her up," suggested Jasper. Edward stood back with a smug look on his face.

Before I could start mingling, Edward was grabbed up by a big brute of a man, in a huge bear hug. "Edward, it's so good to see you, man."

"Emmett, you're gonna break my back, please set me down." I had seen Emmett in pictures of course, but in person, he was a completely different story. His pictures definitely didn't do him justice. He was taller than Edward. Not by much though, maybe 6' 6" or 6' 7". I knew Edward was 6' 4". Emmett also outweighed Edward by about sixty pounds. All pure muscle of course. An honest to goodness football player stature. They both had a similar color of hair and the same eye color. You could see the resemblance between the two of them and knew they were related.

Emmett set Edward back on his feet. I saw Rosalie standing off to the side waiting for her husband. I knew who she was because the pictures that I've seen. "How've you been? How's coaching goin' for ya?"

"It's better than what I thought it would be." Edward placed his hand on the small of my back and urged me forward. "Hey, I want you to meet someone. This is Bella, my girlfriend." I extended my hand to shake his, but he decided against it and pulled me into a hug. "Emmett, I think a handshake would've sufficed."

"No way, man. She gets the genuine Cullen family welcoming." Emmett started swinging me around. "It's great to meet you, Bella. Hope you're keeping our boy in line."

"Put her down, Emmett," Edward demanded, trying to pry Emmett's meaty hands off of me.

"It's nice to meet you, too. And yes, Edward's kept in line," I responded, glancing up at Edward as Emmett placed me on

the floor next to him.

"Emmett, I wasn't aware that we had a genuine Cullen family welcoming." Edward pulled me to his side, keeping his arm around my waist.

"Oh well, hey." Emmett shrugged his shoulders, stepping over and pulled Rosalie in front of me. "This is my wife, Rosalie, I call her Rosie though. Rosie, this is Bella, Edwards' girlfriend."

Rosalie rolled her eyes at Emmett, "It's nice to meet you. Joan talks very highly of you."

"Thank you. I've seen all the pictures of you two around her house. She talks highly of both of you, also." This was true. That woman couldn't find a negative thing to say about anyone.

"Yeah, her nephews are her pride and joys. But don't forget about Jasper, he's at the top of that list. He's such a momma's boy," teased Rosalie as she glanced over at Jasper. He was entranced in a conversation with Alice.

I watched him for a second as he kept talking and let it be known that he heard what Rosalie had said, "I heard that. I resemble that remark."

"See, told ya," Snickered Rosalie.

After introductions, I was ready to eat; I was starving. There was a buffet set up of various foods. All of my favorites, of course. I was actually enjoying myself and this was just a dinner with the whole family because Emmett was in town.

When we finished eating, a very nice couple approached us and Edward hurriedly scooted back from the table, "Mom, Dad, glad you could make it." He hugged both of them, gesturing so they'd take a seat with us at the table.

"Mom, Dad, this is Bella, my girlfriend. Bella, this is Carlisle and Esme Cullen." We shook hands and smiled at each other. Looking between them, I could see where Edward and Emmett got their looks from.

"Sorry we're late." Esme expressed. She looked up at me, again. "Now, why have I never met you before? Joanie talks about you all the time and I feel like I know you already. And now you go and capture my Edwards heart. Isn't she exquisite, Carlisle?" You could literally see stars in her eyes when she mentioned Edward, and when she said she felt like she already knew me, her smile was from ear to ear.

Carlisle smiled at me as he answered his wife. "She is, sweetheart. It's very nice to meet you, Bella."

"It's so nice to meet both of you, Mr. and Mrs. Cullen. I heard so much about both of you from Edward and Momma Whitlock. She keeps me hidden, all to herself, I suppose," I replied. I already felt comfortable, in the few minutes that we talked. I could tell I was going to absolutely love Edwards' parents.

Edward smiled over at me. Satisfaction was abundant. He spoke to his father without taking his eyes off of me. "So, dad, are you getting back into your work routine after being away for so long?"

"Yes. I got too lazy on our trip; your mother spoiled me. Thank goodness I have a good enough crew that kept the company afloat while I was away." Carlisle turned to looked at me. "Bella, unless you absolutely love shopping, run for the hills if Esme ever asks you to tag along. You'll never make it home. We'll have to send a rescue party out for you."

Esme playfully smacked Carlisle on the arm, "Oh, stop it, Carl." She looked to me. "He's over exaggerating, sweetie. He just can't hack it." I giggled at the two of them.

After a while, we separated and I started mingling, again. Edward stood off to the side indulging in conversations between his uncle and his dad. Now and then, I would catch Edward staring at me from across the room. He would wink and turn back to his conversation. That man made my heart race every time I looked at him. It was like seeing him for the first time, all over again.

I eventually needed a bathroom break; wanting to get away from the noise for a bit. Heading to the upstairs bathroom, I was suddenly grabbed around the waist and pulled into a room. It was Edward. I knew it the moment he touched me.

"What are you up to, mister?" I giggled, trying to turn and look at him.

"I'm not up to anything. My dick on the other hand..." he deadpanned, pressing his hardened self into my lower back. It only took him a second to set me on fire.

I raised my arms and brought them around his neck. He took advantage and cupped both of my breasts; kissing along my exposed neck and shoulder.

"Edward?" We were on the verge of getting carried away.

"Yeah, baby?" He continued to kiss along my neck and shoulder.

"We can't do this here. There's people downstairs," I stated firmly but he continued his ministrations across my body.

He pulled my earlobe between his lips. Goosebumps riddled down my arms. My nipples felt the need to perk up, themselves. "We can and we are," he whispered and I wasn't about to deny him like he had done to me the night before.

He lowered himself down behind me and ran both of his hands up my inner thighs. I melted when he grazed his fingers across my cloth covered opening between my legs.

"OH..." I moaned, leaning back, my ass resting on his shoulder, but he didn't complain. My knees were about to give out and I needed the support.

"Mmm... you like that, baby?" Edward asked in his husky, seductive voice.

"Yyyeeess," I hissed through my teeth. I wanted more and hoped he wouldn't deny me.

I turned around and knelt down in front of him. I grabbed his face, immediately forcing my tongue into his mouth. He pulled me closer, wrapping me in his arms as we sucked each others face off.

I didn't want to waste any time. Someone would start looking for us if we took too long. "Do you have a condom on you?"

"Yes, in my pocket." Thank goodness. I really didn't to wait and I really needed to get on birth control.

"Did you plan this?" I wasn't complaining by any means at all.

He reached into his pocket and retrieved the condom. "Guilty as charged."

I made quick work of the button on his jeans, pushing them down as I went. We were still kneeling on the floor. "Turn around and lay across the bed on your stomach."

"Oh, baby." Edward pulled my skirt up around my waist as I leaned forward across the bed. My panties were next to go.

I heard the tear of the foil packet and my heart raced with anticipation, knowing what was about to happen.

I felt his fingers run along the length of my opening, slipping a finger inside. A moan escaped my lips at the feeling.

I glanced over my shoulder at him. His face was illuminated from the desk lamp in front of us. Desire was written all over his face. His bottom lip was captured between his teeth as he concentrated on what he was doing.

A sound of slippery wetness echoed throughout the room as he pumped his finger inside of me. I was getting impatient. "Edward, please." He added another finger as I begged. I pushed back wanting more friction. "Oh, God."

"I want you to cum first before you get my cock." He sped up his ministrations, working me over. I felt him press into my clit, causing me to moan almost too loudly. I couldn't help it, he was driving me insane.

As he worked me over, he finally hit that spot deep inside of me, increasing my impending orgasm.

"Fuck..." I whispered into the room. Edward groaned, adding more pressure to my clit with small circular motions.

"Mmm... I can feel you, baby; just let go," he insisted, speeding up his rhythm.

I tried to raise my ass further into the air as I pressed back against his hand. That angle sent me over the edge. "Shit. Shit. Shit."

"That's it, baby, squeeze my fingers." I had no idea what he was doing, but he could keep doing it.

Before I was able to compose myself after my orgasm, Edward entered me in one quick motion. I screamed out my pleasure, muffling it by pressing my face in the mattress.

"Shh... baby; we don't want anyone to hear." I pulled my bottom lip between my teeth to stifle the loud moans that were involuntarily falling from my mouth.

I had moved around so I was on all fours and my ass was in the air. Edward was grunting with his thrusts, causing me to inch forward on the carpeted floor. There was no way to avoid the carpet burn on my knees and elbows.

"I need to get on the bed. I'm getting rug burn." Edward pulled out of me and I hurried up on the bed. I assumed the position at the edge. He didn't hesitate re-entering me.

Edward ran his hands along my back until he reached my shoulders. This gave him better leverage to pound into me. I had to press my face back into the mattress because there was no way I could hold back the screams I wanted to release. I was on the edge again; my second orgasm teetering, waiting to be pushed over, and I knew the moment I came, it wasn't going to be quiet."I'm close."

"Me too, baby. Me too." He sped up, his fingers gripping my shoulders. It was almost painful but I didn't care.

A few more thrust and my orgasm hit me like a ton of bricks. I screamed into the mattress, gripping onto the blanket and pressing my mouth into it.

Edward thrust into me two more times before he abruptly stopped. I felt him pulse inside of me, releasing his pleasure within the latex. Slowly, he swiveled his hips a few times and leaned forward, placing kisses along my back where my shirt had ridden up.

"Mmm, that was perfect, baby. There's more of this when we get home. I'm not done with you yet." He rubbed his hands up and down my back before he slowly pulled out of me. I plopped forward onto the bed, trying to catch my breath. Edward followed suit, resting on his elbows.

I glanced around the room, taking in the scenery. "Whose room is this?"

I rolled to my side, glancing at Edward. He reached down to remove the condom. "It's mine. Ah, shit." I heard him whisper. I had been to the Whitlock house plenty of times and toured it numerous times, but I didn't know which room was his.

"What?" I sat up quickly, wondering what was going on.

"The condom broke. Look..." he instructed, pointing to his dick. It was still attached, but it was completely split down the side. I didn't feel a difference and obviously he didn't either. Freaky, hot sex will do that to a person. "Um..." I didn't know what to say. "Should we be worried?"

He looked up at me before he finished pulling the rubber off. "Maybe we should get back downstairs before they notice we're gone." Truthfully, I didn't know what to think. I had never been in a situation where the condom broke. We're adults, so if we couldn't talk to each other like adults or solve issues like adults, then we had no business being together.

"Are you ready to leave? We can tell everyone that you're still not feeling good. I'm sure they'll understand," he recommended. I was pretty sure he wanted to get home and take advantage of me more, and going back downstairs would get his mind and mine away from the huge elephant in the room.

I straightened my shirt and made sure my skirt wasn't crooked. "Nope. Let's go mingle for a little bit longer. I'm finally feeling better and I've missed everyone. Plus, it's the first time I've met your parents. You can wait a little longer to get me home."

"Okay," he relented. "As long as you're sure." He bent down and gave me a chaste kiss. "If you change your mind, let me know and we'll leave." I knew he really wanted to go.

Before I reached for the door, he pulled me back. "Wait, I have something for you."

He pulled a long, slender box from underneath a pillow on the bed. "I hope you like it."

I sat down and slowly lifted the lid. Inside, was a necklace with a Past, Present, Future pendant on it, in platinum. All three circles were adorned with diamonds. My stomach fluttered and my heart swelled; I loved him more than I ever thought I could..

I stood from the bed and launched myself at him. "It's beautiful." I let him go and looked back to the necklace. I couldn't take my eyes off of it. "Thank you, but why are you giving this to me?"

"Because I love you. And I've only bought you flowers. I wanted to get you something different for a change." He smiled. I could see the love in eyes; it was so bright.

The tears were stinging my eyes, so I let them fall knowing there was no way I could hold them back from anything. Especially where this man was concerned. "I'll never take it off." I stepped back and handed him the box. "Help me put it on."

Edward took the necklace from the box and clasped it around my neck. "All set. You ready to head back downstairs?" I nodded in agreement, running my fingers across the pendant.

We stayed for a little while longer. No one ever noticed that we disappeared, and thank goodness for that. My mom noticed the necklace, as well as Alice. They gushed over it and complimented Edwards tastes in jewelry.

After our goodbyes we headed home. It was after ten when we arrived. I started to feel the tiredness creep through me, so I headed upstairs and went about my business getting ready to hit the sack.

We climbed into bed, both of us lying on our backs, staring at the ceiling. That didn't last very long before he rolled on top of me, grabbing my hands and holding them above my head. "I told you I wasn't done with you."

"I was wondering how long it was gonna take before you pounced on me," I joked, popping my head up and planting my lips on his.

He ground his erection into me, our kiss growing more eager. With one hand, he tried to rid me of my clothes. "I can help. You just need to let go of my hands."

My clothes were off in a Nano second and we were back to kissing and groping each other. I don't think I would ever get tired of this man touching me.

The next few weeks flew by and it was now time for my birthday. I was turning 25. I honestly felt like I just had a birthday and I knew that now that Alice was back in town, her and Momma Whitlock, along with my mom, would definitely plan something. I just needed to play dumb and let them enjoy their planning. They were already acting secretive. Edward was too.

I had questioned Jasper about it a few times, but much like me, he played dumb. I knew he knew something, but I wasn't going to push. I was actually looking forward to a surprise.

"Bella," Edward sing-songed coming from the bathroom. He was holding a razor that looked like one of his, but I was pretty sure it was the one I used on my legs earlier in the evening. I was all out of mine and men's razors worked better than women's…sometimes.

I smiled, scooting further under the comforter. "Yes," I sing-songed in return.

"Do you have any idea why my last razor was in the shower accompanied by your shaving cream?" He laid the razor down on the sink and walked into the bedroom. I was watching every move he made. "I can't shave with it now because it's completely dull."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," I mumbled, trying to hide my face from him.

He raised his brows at me. "Oh, I think you do," he said, accusingly. He placed his left knee on the bed and reached for the comforter, yanking it off of me. He pounced on me before I could get up and run. "You owe me, now, you little shit."

I giggled. "And what exactly do I owe you?" I was squirming, trying to get my legs out from underneath him, but he had them trapped between his.

I could see his erection pushing against his towel as he tortured me. "I can think of a few things, but right now…" he reached down with one hand, still holding my hands in his other, and started tugging on my panties. "…you're gonna give up the goods."

"Is that my punishment?" I asked, wiggling my butt to help him rid me of my underwear.

He raised his head up, looking at me. "Is our love making punishment for you?"

I caught him off guard and freed my hands, wrapping my arms around his neck. "Never in a million years." I placed my lips against his and whispered, "But if this is punishment, I want it every day of my life. Chain me to the wall."

Edward laughed and hopped up on his knees, reaching down to the waistband of my panties and pulling them all the way off. "Prepare to be punished, then."

He dove straight in. He didn't even collect $200 when he passed Go. I wasn't complaining at all and there was no way I was sending this man to jail.

He pushed my legs apart as far as they could go. I gripped the bars on the headboard so I wouldn't rip his hair out from pulling on it so hard. I learned my lesson a couple of weeks ago when I tugged a little too hard and left his scalp sore for a week.

"Is this torture enough for you, baby? Or do you want more?" He went back to pumping his fingers in and out of me. His tongue was causing me delicious feelings.

"MORE!" I screamed with anticipation because he definitely knew how to work my body from top to bottom.

He eased his way up my body, but not before he reached for a condom on my nightstand. "I hate these things. Please tell me you're seeing your doctor soon?"

"Yes," I breathed out. "Soon, I promise."

He lowered himself and kissed me as we began to make love.

I was so out of breath by the time we were done, so I dropped down on my stomach, "Stay with me."

"I'm not going anywhere," he answered, not understanding exactly what I was saying.

I rose up, propping myself on my elbows. I looked over at him. "No, I mean, I want you to live with me. As in, get your stuff from the storage unit and move in with me. I want you here with me every night. I want you coming home to me every day even after this Michael bullshit is said and done."

"Seriously?" He smiled, widely at me.

I scooted over next to him. "You bet your sweet ass I'm serious."

"I never thought you'd ask." And for the rest of the night, we made love, fucked and had raunchy, hot sex. I guess I got my answer.

Three days later we were getting dressed to head out. We were expected at Edwards' parents' house. The house he grew up in. I hadn't been there yet and I was pretty excited to see where he kept his childhood belongings. I was feeling a little down because Edward was leaving the next morning for an away game. I was going to miss the heck out of him. I've gotten used to him being with me every night, and knew that it was something I'd have to get used to.

"Bella, where's my light green polo shirt? It's not hanging in the closet." Edward asked as he was rummaging through our closet trying to get dressed so we could leave.

He walked out and stopped mid-step when he saw me standing at the end of our bed holding his shirt. "Right here."

"How did you know I wanted that one?" He took it from my hand, planting a light kiss on my lips to say thank me. "I could've wanted to wear my blue one."

"First of all, you asked for your light green polo, and Baby, your laundry basket that is still full of clean clothes is sitting right there." I pointed to the said item sitting next to his side of the bed, but pushed out of the way. "I'm not your maid, Edward." Yeah, I sounded like a snotty little bitch, but it was true.

He yanked his shirt on and grabbed for me. "What's the attitude for?" He nuzzled his nose into the crook of my neck. "Thank you for my shirt. I'll get my laundry put away when we get home. I have to pack anyway."

I pulled away. "Don't remind me." I slipped my black flats on and turned to him. "Do I look okay? I don't want to be too overdressed. I mean, it's just dinner at your parents, right?"

"Yes," He pressed his lips to mine. "Just dinner, but Emmett and Rose will be there, of course and I think my aunt and uncle will be, too." He pulled me to him and squeezed me. "Happy Birthday, by the way."

He was trying to be sneaky and slipped his hand down my leg and eased it up my thigh and under my skirt. "We don't have time for this. We need to leave in five minutes."

He slipped his finger past my panties and gave me a little rub. "I know you want to, baby. I can feel it."

I pulled away from him and placed my hands on his chest. "Edward, we need to save this for when we get home. Then you can have your wicked way with me."

"You promise?" He placed his hands on my hips and leaned into me. I could feel his erection and I knew it wasn't going away anytime soon.

"How about…" I dropped to my knees and started to undo the button on his slacks and pulled the zipper down. "…me take care of this for you real quick?"

Forty-five minutes and one ferry ride later, we were finally pulling up to his parents' house. It was huge and gated. Edward had to enter a code before the gate opened for us. "Damn. You'd think your parents' were some kind of celebrities with all this." I motioned to the fence around the property.

"This is where I grew up. Mom really never worried whether we were gonna run right into the street or worry about any cars flying through the front yard and running us over." He explained. He drove through the gate and up toward a four car garage.

There were already about twenty cars parked out front and I started to wonder whether this was just a regular dinner with family. Then I spotted my mom's car. "Edward, my mom's here." Then I saw Jasper's and Emmett's cars, as well. "Okay, what's really going on here?" Then I remembered it was my birthday. "This is for my birthday, isn't it?" I knew how to pretend that I didn't know what was going on.

Edward smiled over at me as he put his truck in park. "Can you be surprised when you walk in? Please? For them? They really went through a lot to set this up for you." He laced his fingers with mine. "Everyone in this house loves you and wanted to do something special."

"Okay. I can do that." I smiled up at him. "I'm actually pretty excited about this, now."

"Good." He moved to get out, walking around to my side and opened my door for me. I couldn't help the fast pace of my heart beat as I looked at him. He was so damn good looking.

He led me to the front of the house and we made our way up the steps and stopped. "Are you nervous?"

"No. Just ring the doorbell or whatever it is you do when you come here." I was getting impatient. "I'm excited."

Edward reached and pushed the button for the doorbell. I could hear it chiming throughout the house. Moments later, a blonde with a black and white uniform opened the door. "Ah, Mr. Cullen. Your parents are expecting you."

We walked in and through a long hallway. I couldn't take my eyes off the artwork that adorned the walls. They were exquisite. Family pictures were in clusters elegantly, mixed in with the artwork. It was done to perfection.

We stopped in front of a set of double doors. I could hear light music playing from the other side. "You ready?"

"Yes," I bounced on my feet.

The door burst open with Esme on the other side and loud roars of 'Surprise' startled me. It really was a huge surprise. My hands went to my mouth and tears sprang to my eyes. "Oh my, God." I was speechless.

There were so many people here. Carol from work and Chelsea, Momma Whitlocks receptionist. It was definitely beyond excited.

I glanced around and spotted my mom with my brother and sister. They came running toward me. "Happy Birthday, Sissy!"

I dropped to my knees and hugged them. Edward stood back and watched as I began to greet everyone. My mom approached me. "This is amazing, Mom. Thank you."

We hugged and I cried. "It was all Alice and Jasper's idea. Esme wanted everyone here, though." She hugged me tighter.

I eventually made my rounds to everyone. A few people from the legal department were even in attendance. I was still in awe over how many people were here to celebrate my birthday. I had never had a birthday like this before.

Edward found me, eventually. "Hey," he leaned down and placed a kiss on the corner of my mouth. "I wanna show you something."

He laced our fingers together and began pulling toward the stairs in the corner. "Where are we going?"

"Just go with it, okay?" We continued around the curve of the stairs and made a left at the top, walking all the way to the end of the hall. Edward opened the door to the room we stopped in front of. "This was my room."

We walked in and my eyes bounced from poster to poster of rock bands and girls in bikinis. None of them were overly tasteless, but still, you could see where Edward was pure boy. He was showing me another part of his life and that meant everything to me.

"This is amazing. Thank you for showing me what kind of childhood you had." I walked over and ran my fingers across a few books that adorned a small bookcase next to his desk. There was a picture of all four of them…Emmett, Esme, Carlisle and Edward. They were standing in front of a huge boat. They were wearing life jackets and their hair was all wind-blown. Edward and Emmett were no more than ten or eleven years old.

"That's my grandfather's yacht." Edward explained. "We had cruised up the coast that day and into Canada. It was mine and Emmett's first time there and mom wanted to make sure her boys were safe. We were always into something and she knew that we'd probably try and throw one another off the side, so that's why we have life jackets on."

I giggled. "You two love each other. That's what siblings are for." I placed the picture back on the self. I couldn't stop smiling.

I turned to him and placed my hands on his chest. "Are you enjoying yourself?"

"Yes," I rose up on my tip-toes and placed a light kiss on his lips.

"Thank you. I know you had something to do with this, too."

He placed his hands on my hips and pulled me to him. "I love you and all I want is the best for you." I could feel him growing hard against me as he leaned down and captured my lips with his.

He eased his hands up my arms and placed them on each side of my face. "I want you. Here, in my room. I've never had a girl in my childhood bed before."

I giggled. "I find that hard to believe."

"It's true." He pressed his lips to mine, again, deepening the kiss. It didn't take long before we were panting and groping each other.

"Please tell me you brought a condom?"

He pushed me backwards towards his bed, not hesitating to drop his pants right in front of me. His erection was sticking out of the flap of his boxers.

I reached up and wrapped my fingers around him and urged him forward so I could take him in my mouth. "Fuck," he grunted, reaching for the back of my head so he could guide my mouth over him. He pressed into me a few times before he pulled out and pushed me back to lie down.

He slid my shoes off and placed my feet on the edge of his bed. "Thank goodness you're wearing a skirt." He pushed the material to my waist and pulled my panties off and sniffed them before he put them in the pocket of his pants where he had the condom waiting for this moment.

"I can never get enough of you," he said as he unwrapped the condom and sheathed himself. Luckily enough, the bed was high off the floor because he didn't need to get on his knees. He wrapped his hands around my thighs and pulled my ass to the edge of the bed where he slammed into me. Thankfully I was wet enough to welcome him in.

We finished with one last hard slam into me then he stopped, growling as his release shot from his body. "Damn," He whispered loudly. "I can't get enough of you." He released my shoulders and rubbed down my back, placing his hands on each of my butt cheeks, spreading them as he pulled out. But he was too quiet. He stopped moving and I wasn't sure what he doing. "Baby…" he whispered.

I looked over my shoulder at him, then reached for the box of tissue that was on the nightstand. I pulled a few out and handed them to him before noticing I had to clean my thighs off. That's when I noticed that he was pulling off pieces of the torn condom, and wrapping it in a tissue.

Edward looked at me guiltily. "I'm sorry. I didn't notice. When you're in the heat of the moment, you don't notice stuff like that." He shook his head. "This is the second one that broke and it's my fault because I didn't get another box."

Was I supposed to be worried? Did I want to be worried? The only thing that bothered me, was the fact that he was acting like it was all his fault when it is partially my responsibility, as well.

"Baby, say something," he encouraged as he bent down to pull his pants up. He stuffed the used condom into his pocket. "Bella," he whispered; moving forward. He cupped my cheeks with his hands. "It'll be okay, right?"

I nodded, "Uh huh..." unsure of my answer. "I'm okay."

"Hey, look at me." I locked eyes with him, feeling a little dazed. "I'm sorry," he said, again. "It'll all be okay. I promise." A tear rolled down my cheek, not even realizing I had a reason to cry. "Please don't cry."

"I'm fine, Edward." I was sure I needed to be freaking out, but there were worse things in the world to be worried about more than a couple of torn condoms.

"You sure? You zoned out there for a minute." He pulled back, placing his hands on my shoulders, looking into my eyes.

I nodded. "Yeah. Um... Yeah. I'm okay. Maybe we should get back downstairs before they notice we're gone. We're always sneaking off to fuck." I was trying to keep my composure. I wanted kids, but I wanted them planned? And as much as I love Edward, he is the man I want to have babies with. Maybe he was overreacting about the whole situation, or I wasn't reacting enough.

We stayed for another hour and a half before we headed home. It was a quiet car ride. I was assuming from being tired, but honestly, I knew exactly what it was about. I really didn't want to talk about it, but I knew we needed to.

Neither one of us was giving in. The lights on each bedside table, stayed illuminated. It seemed hours before Edward finally spoke. "Do you wanna talk about what happened?" he asked, his voice melancholy.

"What do you want me to say?" I sounded irritated, which I was, but I really didn't know what he expected me to say or how to react.

Edwards' voice raised a couple of decibels as he spoke. "I don't know, baby. Yell at me. Slap me. Something, as long as I know that you've acknowledged what happened tonight and the other night at my aunts."

"I know exactly what happened, Edward. There's nothing we can do about it. It happened. We can't change it." I sighed heavily, turning my head to look at him. He was still staring at the ceiling. "Why it happened? We'll never know. Maybe you didn't put it on right. Maybe it was defective especially if it was from the same box as the last condom. Maybe you noticed there was a hole in it and didn't care, therefore hoping I'd get pregnant."

"I don't know what to say except that maybe, yes, I did notice and just didn't care anymore. I didn't do it on purpose, though. I'd never do that to you. In the heat of the moment, I didn't care if you got pregnant. I don't ever want to be with another woman other than you, so if you wanna hate me over this, then I'm sorry. I truly am." I heard a quiver in his voice as he spoke.

"I could never hate you and stop apologizing. It happened, so unless you wanna walk out that door because of it, by all means go. I can't stop you." Sadness reaped through my words, but if Edward wanted to leave me, I couldn't stop him. I rolled to my side, away from him, and pulled the comforter up over my shoulders.

I felt the bed move as he reached for me, pulling me to him; my back to his chest. "Don't ever say stuff like that. I love you, dammit and I'm not going anywhere, so get that thought out of your thick head. If you end up pregnant, then good. That just means we won't have to wait to make babies."

I sighed, grabbing his hand and wrapping his arm further around me. I couldn't get him close enough. "I love you, too. I just... I don't know what to think. We've only been together for a couple of months. Are you sure you even want babies? Especially with me?"

"Well, regardless of the outcome, I'm not getting any younger, that's for sure. So, like I said, if it happens it happens. I love you, Bella. I love you more than anything and I want babies with you. Lots of them, so now we just play the waiting game. When is your period due?"

"In about two weeks, give or take. I've always been right on time; like clockwork. Every 28 to 30 days. I'm the poster child for a regular cycle," I explained, trying to lighten the mood. I wasn't sure how much Edward knew about a woman's period and most guys cringed away from stuff like that, but Edward didn't seem fazed by it at all.

He sighed, cupping my cheek then placed a searing kiss on my lips. "Mmm... let's just forget about all the 'ifs' right now. My opinion still remains, if it happens, it happens. There's always a risk anyway, on birth control pills or using condoms." He kissed me lightly again and let out a deep breath. "Your dad may shoot me, though."

"Okay." I kissed him again, sliding my hand up his chest and around the back of his neck. "Thank you for being honest with me and understanding how I feel."

Edward leaned forward and captured my lips, again. That led to a really hot and heavy make out session. I was starting to get light headed from the lack of oxygen and I was battling the familiar ache between my legs. Edward pulled back suddenly asking, "Can we maybe um... pick back up where I left off before our little condom tearing incident?"

"I thought you'd never ask," I stated, grabbing him around the neck and pulling him over the top of me.

We ended up making love two more times that night and luckily, the condoms didn't break. I honestly thought it was operator error with the condom issue. If I ended up pregnant, I would never let him live it down.


Thanks again,

Reason