Chapter 16

Walking across a street with Edward was surreal.

Not because he was famous, there was no one to walk past to recognize him.

Because he was simply, there. In the hot, late-summer air. With me.

All the colors outside were vibrant. Colors like I'd never seen before, had never pronounced before. The reds and yellows were dazzling. The blues and greens flared. The gold-tinged glow that magically emanated from him as the sun hit his skin was enough to make me high. It was like I was seeing things through overexposed camera film right before it caught on fire and bubbled.

The part of my chin he touched was still burning, still electrified. My lips still felt the sear of his even though they barely touched.

I was for sure having a stroke.

We didn't speak yet my body vibrated with each step as the sidewalk rippled and tripped. I had to take two for each of his long, casual strides.

He held the door open over his head for me so I had to move close to him, barely brushing the front of his too-small t-shirt as I ducked under his arm. The strange drowning man tattoo on his bicep was close enough to lick.

The bar was dark. Humid and dank inside as my eyes adjusted to the dim, yellow lighting. I looked around the haggard faces of drinkers as they stared at us with bothered expressions for cutting their dungeon with sunbeams for a brief moment.

ZZ Top was playing on the jukebox in the corner as I located the group, sitting at a round table in the middle of the room, table loaded with bottles. Edward walked towards them and I followed, nervous to have Carlisle see me. This would be his fault, I reasoned. He'd left me to return to a bus filled only with Edward. Would he rather I still be there, alone with him?

"Well look who decided to grace us with his presence." Yorkie said, a bit of a slur in his sentence as he put a hand over his chest in exaggerated wonder.

"Fuck you, asshole." Edward picked up Yorkie's beer and took a giant swig.

"Can't drink that now, full of herpes," Yorkie said as he gagged and motioned for the cocktail waitress to come over.

"You'd know." Edward smirked, and the girl day drinking next to Yorkie scooted away a little.

I looked at the faces of the band apprehensively, expecting to see anger that I'd shown up at their exclusive boys club. But they were all focused on Edward, looking at him with mild surprise.

"Bella, why are you here? Do you need something?" Carlisle asked as he leaned around Edward's tall frame I was shadowed behind.

"To keep me company on the long walk over," Edward responded.

I could see Carlisle's pained face, but he said nothing as Edward swung a chair from a nearby table over. "Bella, please, have a seat," he said and I just about fainted at the gesture. He even wiped it off with the back of his hand, a sweeping show of bowing to me.

I sat cautiously, trying not to press my back against his fingers, still lingering on the faded wood as I perched on the edge. Assuming he would take the open seat between Jasper and Yorkie, my body tensed as he pulled another up and squeezed it between me and Carlisle, who had no choice but to move his chair over.

"What would you like, Carlisle's niece?" Edward asked as the waitress appeared. "Are you a beer drinker? Or are you a dirty martini girl? Maybe extra dirty?"

"She'll have a Coke," Carlisle barked, saving me from having to answer and admit to being embarrassingly too young to order a drink.

"A Coke? Carlisle, we're off for the night. Let the girl live a little."

Carlisle's eyes darted to me, and I looked at him with all my anxiety. I silently pleaded with him not to rat me out. Not here. Not in front of him. Don't make me a baby baby baby.

Sending the most powerful brain waves I could, he eventually answered with a sigh. "Just because you don't have to do anything doesn't mean the rest of us don't. She's working."

"You're having yourself a nice cocktail." Edward nodded once to the brown liquor in front of Carlisle.

"I don't answer to you."

Edward turned his attention to the waitress, who looked like she was going to pass out as he laid on his charm. I wondered if he even knew he was doing it.

"Two Guinness, please." He smiled and she swayed a bit on her feet before answering too loudly and leaving too slowly.

"Edward–" Carlisle warned.

"They're for me. Gotta catch up to these mongrels." He lit a cigarette, and I knew no one in this bar would tell him he couldn't.

I sat there, stiff as a board, pressed between my uncle and the rock star. I didn't dare move, didn't dare touch him by accident. I kept my hands clasped painfully in my lap and prayed for this to be over soon.

I prayed for it to go on forever.