14

Bella pulled her lips from Edward's, tears filling her eyes as she tilted her head back and looked at him. Emotionally overwhelmed, she found herself wanting to share all her secrets with him, but struggled to let herself be honest with him.

"Damn, Swan."

Tensing, Bella turned and found Seth standing in the entrance to the tent, his laptop pressed against his chest, while his arms were crossed around it. He had a smirk on his lips that she could remember him sporting when they were little and she'd get in trouble for talking to him during class.

"Guess you're feeling okay then," he added, raising an eyebrow as he looked from her to Edward and back.

"When were you not feeling okay?" Edward asked, causing Bella to sigh.

"It was nothing," she said, softly. "Hands were shaking a little, but they're fine now. See?"

She held her hands up, cringing when she saw them trembling still. Clenching her hands into fists, she turned to Seth. "Don't you have an elsewhere to be?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. My wife is waiting for me. Don't tell her I said this, but she doesn't have much in the way of patience, but she's cute when she'd trying to be all pissed and everything."

Seth smiled before he left her and Edward alone. Bella bit the inside of her lip as she turned and looked back at Edward, who was glaring at the back of Seth's head. It was comical and a round of laughter erupted from inside her before she could stop them.

"What's so funny?" Edward grumbled and shifted his attention down to her.

"You," she replied coyly. "You're jealous of him."

"No, I'm not," he groused.

"Yeah, okay," she scoffed, fisting the front of his T-shirt and pulling him downward so she could kiss him again. "I'd better get back to work. Meet me at my jeep at the end of the day?"

"You sure you're okay to keep working?"

Bella rolled her eyes and released her hold on him.

"I'm just asking," he said, grabbing her hands and bringing them upward, quirking an eyebrow when they trembled again.

"I'm fine. Just a little shaky. It's normal," she said, quietly. "I gotta go. Meet me later?"

With nod, Edward agreed, though Bella could see the worry in his eyes. She hated that she caused him to worry about her. He was supposed to be focusing on his matches, on kicking ass and taking names, not whether her hands shook or her legs ached. As she left him next to the hospitality tent, she knew the kind thing to do would be to end her relationship with him then and there, but Bella was selfish. She wanted him, even if it was only for the next two weeks.

—BDBH—

By the time Bella wrapped up her day, she'd filled two memory cards with photos and her body ached more than ever. It took all her strengthen to pack everything up and make the walk to her jeep, where not only was Edward waiting for her, but so were Jasper, Alice, Carlisle, and Esme. Bella had caught a few glances at her sister throughout the day, just enough to know that Esme worried that she was making a mistake by being with Edward. Esme wasn't wrong, but for once, Bella didn't want to let her impending death stop her from living. Maybe Jasper was right; maybe she needed to make a bucket list, but wasn't that just accepting her fate?

Esme pushed away from the jeep and meeting her halfway across the lot, wrapping her in a warm embrace. "I'm sorry."

"Me, too," Bella whimpered, hoisting her bag onto her shoulder and reaching for her sister's hands, which she allowed her to hold. "I know it's selfish, Essie. I just . . ." She shook her head. "I just want a chance to be happy, like you and Carlisle, Peanut and Cowboy. Even if it's not going to last. Even if it isn't fair to him."

"It's not selfish," Esme murmured, causing Bella to snort. "Okay, so maybe it's a little selfish, but if he makes you happy, if he makes the time you have left better, then I won't stand in your way. Just don't expect me not to worry."

"You not worry?" Bella teased with a smile. "I don't think it's possible."

"Whatever," Esme laughed, looping her arm with Bella's and tugging her toward her jeep, where everyone was waiting. "Hope you didn't have any big plans tonight. Carlisle thought it might be fun to take his boat out, grill some opah, and you know, just chillax."

"Did you just say chillax?" Bella snickered. "Essie, you really need to learn the new slang."

"Probably," she giggled as they stopped in front of the others. "So, what you do think?"

Bella shrugged her shoulders. "Sure, I guess. I had planned on working tonight. Getting a schedule made up for the tournament photo shoot, but I guess I can do that tomorrow."

"Or you can trust your partner," Alice scoffed. "I already have everything planned. I'll go over it with you tomorrow. Tonight, we're going to relax and have fun."

"We'll meet you at the marina," Carlisle said, wrapping his arms around Esme and dragging her backward toward her car. "Bring snacks, and don't forget your meds, Swan."

Alice and Jasper laughed before rushing to Alice's porche, leaving just Bella and Edward standing next to her jeep. Placing her camera case in the back seat, Bella leaned against the side with her body facing him.

"We don't have to go. We could bail, go back to my place, and find something to occupy our time."

Edward grinned as he matched her position, one hand sliding along her hip. She shivered from his touch, which only caused his smile to grow. "We could," he agreed. "But I did promise your sister that I'd get you there, and I don't want her to think I'm not a man of my word."

Bella raised an eyebrow at the news that he and Esme had chatted about her. "What'd she say to you?"

"Nothing," he lied, and when Bella hummed in disbelief, he sighed. "She asked me why I'm with you."

"And what'd you tell her?" she asked, trying to sound nonchalant, but knew she failed.

"You really want to know?"

Bella nodded.

"I told her I'm here because I want to be with you, that I care about you."

Bella couldn't keep the smile off her face. "You do?"

Edward closed the gap between them, his hand on her hip sliding around to her back while his other cupped the right side of her face. "More than I want to even admit, Bella."

"You shouldn't be here with me," she whispered wanting nothing more than to feel his lips pressed against hers again. Needing the feeling of being that close to him.

"I know."

Edward tightened his arm around her as his lips connected with hers.

—BDBH—

An hour later, Bella pulled her jeep into the parking lot outside of the marina. She reached for the bags of snacks she and Edward had picked up at the local market, but before her fingers could as much as touch them, Edward had them hoisted out of the backseat with a look that clearly said not to argue with him. She bit the inside of her lip, trying to act annoyed, but to be honest, she found it sweet that he thought she couldn't handle a simple shopping bag.

"Lead the way," he said, once again smirking.

"Okay, but before we head to Carlisle's boat, there's something you probably should know." She grabbed her camera, walked around the jeep and stood facing him. "Carlisle only loves one thing more than this boat and that's my sister. Fuck something up, and he'll have your ass. The guy may look all calm and chill, but he'll light your ass up in a heartbeat. Got it?"

"You act like he's in the mob," Edward snickered.

"Just warning you now, dude," Bella scoffed and started toward the entrance to the marina.

"How long has he and Esme been together?"

"Um, ten years? Maybe longer," she replied, laughing when his eyes widened. "They met in high school, but didn't start dating seriously until their first year of college. Carlisle was going through a really tough time, and, well, my dad kind of brought him home like a lost puppy, I guess. A few months later, I caught them kissing in the pantry. They'd been sneaking around for weeks because they were afraid my dad wouldn't approve, but Charlie . . ." Bella shook her head and looked over at Edward. "Charlie always saw the best in everyone."

"You really miss him, don't you?"

Bella frowned and looked away. "Every day, even though . . ."

Edward shuffled the bags into one hand and grabbed her arm, pulling her to a stop. "Even though what?"

"Even though I hate him," she whimpered, her eyes filling with tears. "For leaving me, for passing Kufs onto me."

"Oh." Edward's hand dropped from her arm. "Guess that makes sense."

"Yeah," she murmured, sniffing back the tears before they could fall. She turned and gestured for him to follow her. As they approached the end of the marina, Bella sighed. "Well, that's it."

Edward's eyes widened as he took in the vessel in front of them. It wasn't your average boat. The Heesen Yacht was three tiered with a pool on the far end. Down below there were six bedrooms, three full bathrooms, large kitchen, a movie theater, and large living room overlooking the back deck.

"I don't think you can call this a boat," Edward said, slowly and looked down at her.

"When Carlisle graduated high school, his parents announced that they were getting divorced. It was a long time coming, according to Carlisle, but they were bitter and angry. Both tried their hardest to get him on their side, just one of the reasons why Charlie took him in. Carlisle hated them, hated that they treated him like a piece of property. The Cullen's are one of the most prominent families on the island. Anyway, during an argument, things got heated and Carlisle's father was killed, by his mother."

"Shit," Edward swore under his breath.

"Yeah, no kidding. Anyway, she insisted that it was self-defense and got off. She moved to the mainland after his father's will was read and she found out she wasn't going to get anything. Everything was left to Carlisle. He sold most of his father's holdings, but this boat meant too much, I guess."

"Does he ever talk to his mom?"

Bella shrugged her shoulders. "I've never asked. Figured if it was business, he'd tell me. He makes my sister happy. That's all I care about."

"It's about damn time you got here!" Carlisle yelled before leaning over the bar on the top tier. "Get your asses on board so we can set off. Your sister is getting pissed, and Peanut's starving. Remember what happened last time we didn't feed her on time?"

Bella laughed and hollered, "All right, all right, we're coming."

Carlisle's laughter could be heard as he disappeared from sight.

"What's he talking about?" Edward asked, following her to the small ramp leading to the boat.

"Peanut likes food. I mean, likes food a lot. For a small thing, she can eat. Anyway, a few years ago, right after my dad was diagnosed, we had gone out to dinner to celebrate her birthday, and well, the service was really bad. Took them two hours to get our order out and it was wrong. Peanut was starving by now and when the owner came to apologize for the third time, she slammed her hands on the table, stood up, and proceeded to call him a series of four letter words that had Charlie turning red and threatening to wash her mouth out with soap. Then, she flipped the table over and stormed out, leaving the rest of us to clean up her mess. By the time we'd caught up with her, she'd found the closest fish taco truck and had one in each hand and another ten in front of her. She all twelve, and still managed to get a huge ice cream Sunday."

Edward laughed and shook his head. "Now I see why Whitlock likes her so much."

"And why is that?" Bella asked, reaching over and pressing the button that raised the ramp, sealing it in place.

"On the outside, he's like this calm, collected guy, right?"

Bella nodded.

"When we're in the middle of a real gritty match, where the pressure is intoxicating and the crowd is passionate, yelling and screaming for us, it's like . . . like he can feel it. Feed off it. I guess, maybe, he feels that way around Alice, too."

"Is that how you feel when you're playing?"

Edward shook his head. "I block everyone but Whitlock out and whoever the poor sons of bitches we're demolishing out. All that matters is ending them."

"And if you lose?" she asked, biting the inside of her lip after the words slipped out of her mouth. "What happens then?"

"We don't lose."

"Ever?"

He shook his head. "Never. I want it too much, Bella, and when I want something, I don't let go."

The double meaning behind his words wasn't lost on her, but she wondered what would happen when he was forced to let her go? After all, she was dying.

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