17. Practice

After dressing, Bella headed straight for the kitchen, her stomach growling loudly.

"What would you like this morning? Cereal? Pop-Tarts? Or I could make pancakes or another omelet."

"I've got it."

I leaned against the counter, watching her cook as I had often done at Charlie's. She kept it simple, not even flipping them over before sliding the barely cooked eggs onto a plate. The yolks were runny and the translucent whites looked like they needed another minute or two, but she started eating them even as she walked toward the table. I thought it looked inordinately disgusting.

Humans were such strange creatures. Didn't she like her food cooked? If she liked them so underdone, why had she not said anything to me before?

"Since when do you eat eggs sunny-side up?"

"Since now." Bella shrugged as she shoved another bite into her mouth.

"Do you know how many eggs you've gone through in the last week?" I grabbed the trash can from under the sink and showed her all of the discarded egg cartons.

"Weird. This place is messing with my appetite, but I like it here."

I felt a smile tugging at my lips. I'd been afraid she didn't like the island, but I supposed it was only my stubborn rejection that had made her upset.

"We'll probably have to leave soon, though, won't we, to make it to Dartmouth in time? Wow, I guess we need to find a place to live and stuff, too."

Dartmouth? I slid into the chair next to hers, studying her face. It was usually easy to tell when Bella was lying, and she seemed to be sincere, but I was confused. In the past, she'd as vehemently rejected the idea of Dartmouth as she had the suggestion to stay human. Perhaps she was still trying to bribe me into making love to her again.

Trying to assure her that I was no longer going to tell her no, I said, "You can give up the college pretense now - you've gotten what you wanted. And we didn't agree to a deal, so there are no strings attached."

Bella snorted as she raised her eyebrows. "It wasn't a pretense, Edward. I don't spend my free time plotting like some people do. What can we do to wear Bella out today?" She had lowered her voice to mimic mine, and I laughed, delighted. "I really do want a little more time being human. I have not had enough." She reached for me, her warm hands running across my chest and continuing down my stomach.

Stopping her before her roving hands got too far, I stared at her in surprise. She had been forward with me before, but that was usually in an attempt at persuading me to do something I didn't want - or wanted too much. Now that I was a willing partner, she was telling me she was willing to stay human, just so that we could pleasure each other again?

"For this? Sex was the key all along?" My mouth twisted into a wry smirk, and I muttered, "Why didn't I think of that? I could have saved myself a lot of arguments."

"Yeah, probably," she agreed with a laugh.

How many ways had I tried to convince her to live? How often had I seen humans - and Bella in particular - react to my vampire charm? If I'd been willing to compromise her virtue and take advantage of my ability to dazzle her a little fuller, would she have agreed to remain human before, just so that we could make love? I rolled my eyes. And why not? She had agreed to marry me for that reason. Bella wasn't a typical human in most instances, but apparently, where her sex drives were concerned, she was as vulnerable to the influence of her hormones as any human I'd ever met.

"You are so human," I said, amused.

"I know."

She wasn't rescinding her offer, though, and I felt a hopeful smile growing on my face. "We're going to Dartmouth? Really?"

She shrugged and continued eating. "I'll probably fail out in one semester."

"I'll tutor you. You're going to love college." My grin broadened. I knew how smart she was. She'd had no trouble with the advanced courses in high school, and college classes were always far more interesting than high school ones.

She returned my smile before a look of concern crossed her face. "Do you think we can find an apartment this late?"

I bit my lip wondering if I should have let her help me pick out a place to live. But then, when I'd bought the place, I hadn't thought we would actually be living there. "Well, we sort of already have a house there. You know, just in case," I admitted.

Her jaw dropped. "You bought a house?"

Attempting nonchalance, I shrugged. "Real estate is a good investment."

She studied me for a moment, and I wondered if she believed my excuse. It wasn't exactly a lie; real estate was a good investment. Apparently deciding not to challenge me, she said, "So we're ready then."

Excited, I thought of everything that would need to be done before we would truly be ready. The house wasn't furnished, but the cottage was. Alice would be thrilled to know her purchases would get plenty of use no matter what house we were in. We could get a moving van and drive everything across the country, though we'd have to tow at least one of the cars. Rose would love to join us in Dartmouth since New Hampshire felt more like home to her than most places. We would need more than her and Emmett's help to get every vehicle there. Maybe we should cut our time in Forks short and move the whole family, though we'd need a bigger place for all eight of us.

Or, maybe it could be just the two of us for a little while. I didn't want to leave my - our - family, but a few years on our own could be extremely fun, knowing that we would rejoin them again soon. They could keep the extra cars in Forks, and we would just need to get the furniture, my Volvo, and Bella's Guardian across the country.

Hmm. The Guardian. "I'll have to see if we can keep your 'before' car for a little longer..." I mused.

"Yes," Bella scoffed. "Heaven forbid I not be protected from tanks."

I'd thought she didn't speak Car & Driver! I couldn't hide my delight at her knowledge of how I'd kept her safe.

"How much longer can we stay?"

I shrugged. It wouldn't take our family long to help us get across the country, even if it did take several trips. It wasn't as though we would have to stop for sleep. "We're fine on time. A few more weeks, if you want. And then we can visit Charlie before we go to New Hampshire. We could spend Christmas with Renee..."

Overwhelmed, I couldn't finish my sentence. Acting human with Bella, watching her grow and live her life, married to the most amazing woman to ever exist, able to love her without hurting her, and not even truly leaving either of our families behind was more than I'd ever imagined possible.

She chewed on her lip thoughtfully before nodding firmly. "A few weeks." Pushing her empty plate away, the expression on her face shifted to one that sent a fire under my skin. "So I was thinking - you know what I was saying about practice before?"

Thrilled with how eager she was to love me again, I laughed. Despite my intentions to not tell her no anymore, we were about to have company.

"Can you hold on to that thought? I hear a boat. The cleaning crew must be here."

Though I expected her to grimace in disappointment, her eyes took on a twinkle and her mouth pursed into an inviting smile.

...long have we known them, Kaure?

...exactly my point!

...so why bother worrying now? You've never been harmed.

...telling you, something is different this time.

...the food again...

Yes, the food!

...everyone needs to eat.

...you ever known them to do so?

"Let me explain about the mess in the white room to Gustavo, and then we can go out. There's a place in the jungle on the south - "

"I don't want to go out," Bella said, shaking her head firmly. "I am not hiking all over the island today. I want to stay here and watch a movie."

Though Bella had objected to our outdoor activities before, that had been because she wanted to try to talk me into being intimate with her again. This time, it was surely out of a desire to slow down and relax. Amused at her irritation, I agreed, "All right, whatever you'd like. Why don't you pick one out while I get the door?"

"I didn't hear a knock." Her brow furrowed in confusion.

I cocked my head and tried to remember what it had been like to be human and capable of being surprised by an unexpected arrival. My senses were so much stronger than hers, but I could hear things that even others of my kind couldn't. Not even needing my enhanced hearing, I had touched their minds before they'd tied their boat to the dock, automatically translating their words into my native tongue. I watched through the eyes of the two humans who were creeping up the long sandy path from the dock to the house

...letting your superstitions get to you. Again, I might add.

...weren't so complacent when I was a young girl!

Bah.

Libishomen prey on the young!

...which neither of us is any longer. Now hush. They pay us well enough to keep our mouths shut. Be grateful.

The man climbed the wide porch steps, took a deep breath, and shot a stern look at the woman who was hanging back before knocking lightly on the door.

Grinning at Bella's exasperated huff, I sauntered toward the front door.

Greeting them in Portuguese, I stayed out of the direct line of the sun as I opened the door. "Gustavo! Kaure! It's good to see you again."

The short, round man smiled nervously at me. Despite his assurances to his wife, my family's unchanging appearance disturbed him. We had taken advantage of the fact that the native peoples of the area already believed demons walked among them and had hired the newlyweds to care for our island decades earlier. Although we had been careful not to do anything a human would not have been capable of while in their presence, they knew that we were not human. As the decades passed, they had changed, but we did not.

The couple had almost abandoned us at one point, until Jasper and Carlisle had managed to convince them that we meant them no harm. The large pile of money we gave them hadn't hurt. I had listened to their minds carefully and determined that they could be trusted, even if they didn't trust us. A little fear did them no harm, and kept them from saying anything. Besides, what proof did they have? We didn't interact with anyone else they knew.

He gave me a nod while she eyed me with the same wary distrust I had grown accustomed to seeing.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Cullen. Did everything meet your approval? We followed all of your instructions."

"You did," I assured him and gestured toward the interior of the house in invitation. "I trust you have been well?"

"Ah, well, my knees pain me some. I'm not as young as I used to be." He eyed me, shrewdly, and I couldn't help but to laugh at the unsubtle reminder that he noticed my lack of aging.

"None of us are, despite the fact that your wife is as lovely as always."

"But where is your pretty sister, then? Did your family not accompany you?"

We entered the living room, and I gestured toward the human girl who stood by the wall of movies. "My family has grown since you saw us last. Gustavo, Kaure, I'd like you to meet Isabella Cullen, my blushing bride." I laughed as her cheeks tinged pink.

...A human girl!

...she not know the danger she is in?

...call her his bride?

...could a demon like him want with a human girl?... does she know what he is?

"Bella and I got married just this past week. We will be here for several weeks more, and I think the next time you come, I may need you to bring some more eggs."

...perhaps her fears aren't as silly as I thought ...flaunting his victim...

Gustavo managed to smile politely at Bella, but his tiny wife stared at mine with terror in her eyes. Her thoughts were no longer coherent, but I saw flashes of images from the stories she had been told as a young girl. They were far too similar to what I'd seen in Jacob's mind, and I gestured for them to follow me, trying to disrupt the pattern of the woman's thoughts. I'd seen Bella dead in far too many of Alice's visions; I didn't need yet another mind picturing me killing her.

When I opened the door, I was pleased to see that the feather blizzard had settled. Without the open outer door or my movements to stir the wind, the puffs of white had fallen to coat the entire room.

...what happened in here?!

...family have to destroy things every time they come here?

Finding a strange need to clear my throat again, I sheepishly rubbed the back of my neck with one hand while I gestured toward the room with my other. "Please start in here." When their questioning eyes met mine, I grimaced, having no desire to admit to what had really happened to the pillows. Attempting nonchalance, I spoke in an even voice. "I decided I just didn't like those pillows anymore. Though, I wasn't really expecting the filling to go everywhere. They made quite the mess..."

I trailed off realizing I could have told them anything and they wouldn't have believed it.

"You're paid to clean, not to question me," I snapped at them. Pausing before I walked away, I muttered, "Stay out of the blue room."

I returned to the living room to find Bella simply standing where I'd left her. Needing to feel her warm body against mine, I pulled her into my arms. Sighing in relief at having her pressed against me, I vowed that I would never hurt her again. What those humans thought didn't matter. What Tanya, Jacob, and the wolves thought didn't matter. None of them understood us. We loved each other, and that was all that would ever matter.

"What's with her?" Bella whispered against my chest.

I should have guessed that Bella's clear eyes would see Kaure's fear. "Kaure's part Ticuna Indian. She was raised to be more superstitious - or you could call it more aware - than those who live in the modern world. She suspects what I am, or close enough. They have their own legends here. The Libishomen - a blood drinking demon who preys exclusively on beautiful women." Deliberately, I showed her all of my teeth, raising my eyebrows suggestively.

Naturally, Bella blushed under the intensity of my gaze. "She looked terrified."

"She is - but mostly she's worried about you."

"Me?"

"She's afraid of why I have you here, all alone." If they knew the truth - that she was not my prey, but truly my wife - they would surely think she had lost her mind, or that I had put her under some kind of spell. Well, perhaps I had. I chuckled at how often had she accused me of unintentionally dazzling her. "Oh well, why don't you choose something for us to watch? That's an acceptably human thing to do."

"Yes," Bella said as she made a rude noise in the back of her throat. "I'm sure a movie will convince her that you're human." She giggled and slid her hands along my neck. Her warmth sent shivers down my spine in anticipation of what I knew would come later. Rising onto her toes she pulled me close for a kiss. Her sweetness surrounded me, the taste of her lips, the scent of her hair and skin, the warmth radiating from her body, and I pressed her tighter to me, picking her up off the ground to touch my lips to the pulse in her throat.

Her hands knotted themselves in my hair, and she muttered, "Movie, schmovie."

I chuckled against her skin, thrilled that I could make her respond to me in such a way. I had tuned out the two minds that were in the house with us, uninterested in their dark speculations, especially when Bella was so much more interesting. Becoming aware of the image of us at the same time as I heard the woman gasp, I saw myself in Kaure's mind: a pale, dead-looking creature with my face buried in the long hair of the vibrant, pink girl in my arms. I saw how my mouth was invisible against the skin of her throat. I saw how Bella's eyes were closed and her lips parted, her forehead creased in what I recognized as an expression of anticipation or pleasure.

Kaure, however, saw only what she expected to see. I had surely waited until I had an audience just so that I could kill Bella in front of them.

Her mind was screaming the accusations at me, words which I had used to describe myself all too often. Demon! Killer! Murderer! Monster!

My arms loosened, and Bella's feet hit the floor. She stared at me in surprise, but I turned my eyes to meet those of woman who was watching us. There was a flicker of an image in her mind - an expectation: my mouth stained with the girl's blood, her body drained and limp in my arms with her neck torn open. The image was gone as soon as her brain processed the fact that I was not covered in Bella's blood, and the girl in question was clinging to me with her throat still very much intact.

Realizing that she was standing there gaping at me, Kaure closed her mouth with a snap and an audible swallow. "Forgive my intrusion," she muttered.

"Think nothing of it. Go about your business."

She nodded slightly and walked away, trailing feathers from her hair and clothes. I grimaced, realizing we would probably still be finding those damned feathers years from now. I would have to speak with my mother about her choice of accessories when furnishing a house for romantically inclined vampires - newborn, newlywed, or otherwise.

"She was thinking what I think she was thinking, wasn't she?" Bella whispered.

Snickering at Bella's phrasing, I nodded. "Yes."

Her eyes not leaving mine, she reached toward the wall of movies and snagged one from the shelf. "Here. Put this on and we can pretend to watch it."

"Very honeymoonish." I nodded, pleased with her unintentional choice. An inch to the right and she would have grabbed Romeo and Juliet - hardly appropriate for our honeymoon as far as I was concerned, though Bella liked the play. As it was, the movie she chose was a romantic musical, and one of Esme's favorites.

Once the movie was playing, I sat on the couch and wordlessly invited Bella into my arms. Her eyes bright and her lips curving into a pleased smile, she climbed onto my lap and leaned into me. Since her ear was pressed against my chest, I hummed along with the songs, watching in amusement as Bella began to blink sleepily at the screen.

"Will we move back into the white room now?"

"I don't know... I've already mangled the headboard in the other room beyond repair - maybe if we limit the destruction to one area of the house, Esme might invite us back someday."

The grin that took over Bella's face was made only more adorable by her words. "So there will be more destruction?"

I couldn't help but laugh at her eagerness. "I think it might be safer if it's premeditated, rather than if I wait for you to assault me again."

"It would only be a matter of time," she assured me, calmly. However, I had little doubt that if she didn't initiate something the first chance she got, I would. I had to resist the urge to yell for the human couple to finish what they were doing quickly and be on their way. Bella's heart abruptly broke into a sprint, though she hadn't moved in my arms.

"Is there something the matter with your heart?"

"Nope. Healthy as a horse."

Hmm. We'd been talking of destroying more of the bed. Considering how often she'd tried to talk me into having sex with her that week, I wondered if she was as excited by the coming afternoon as I was.

Two bright spots of red appeared on her cheeks, and after only a short pause, she confirmed my suspicions. "Did you want to go survey the demolition zone now?"

Holding back a grin, I cautioned her, "Maybe it would be more polite to wait until we're alone. You may not notice me tearing the furniture apart, but it would probably scare them."

She blinked in seeming surprise. "Right. Drat."

I chuckled and hugged her closer to my body, grateful that the wall I'd put between us was gone now. I must have been the world's biggest fool. Bella's love was the greatest gift I could possibly have been given, and I had allowed my fears to get in the way of our time together. Sternly, I resolved not to let my fears control me any longer. She believed I was good, so I would do my best to be good. She believed I could never hurt her, so I would do everything in my power to see that she was proved right. She believed she would be capable of refraining from killing once I turned her, so I would trust her, and when the time came, help protect her from herself, but not from me. Not anymore.

"Mr. Cullen." At the sound of Gustavo's voice, Bella - who had been nearly asleep in my lap - jumped. Keeping my arms around her, I met his eyes. When he saw that he had my attention, he continued, "We are finished."

"Thank you, Gustavo, and please thank Kaure for me."

He nodded.

"You will find a deposit in your account as usual. Please return next week, and remember to bring more eggs."

"We have some obligations for the first of the week. Would Wednesday be acceptable, or - "

"No, no. Wednesday will be just fine."

Nodding his head once more, he hurried to rejoin his wife, who was waiting impatiently on the porch.

Meeting Bella's questioning eyes, I explained, "They're finished."

She arched an eyebrow at me, and I saw a smile tugging at the corners of her lips, giving me a hint of what she was thinking even before she spoke. "So does that mean we're alone now?"

As little as Bella had eaten for breakfast, I thought that I should feed her before getting distracted. "How about lunch first?"

She chewed on her lip, as though unable to decide which hunger she wanted to satisfy first. Considering what I had planned, I made the decision for her. Despite the rather large meal I fixed, she once again ate nearly every bite.

"This is getting out of hand," she said with a scowl at the empty plate in front of her.

Deciding it would be fun to tease her, I said, "Do you want to swim with the dolphins this afternoon - burn off the calories?"

She eyed be briefly before giving me a sly smile. "Maybe later. I had another idea for burning calories."

I didn't bother trying to keep my body from responding to her expression. For once knowing exactly what was on her mind, but still wanting to hear her say it, I pressed, "And what was that?"

Bella's smile widened, and a blush spread across her cheeks. "Well, there's an awful lot of headboard left - "

Before she could finish her sentence, I scooped her up and silenced her with a kiss. Sauntering at a slightly faster than human pace, I took her into our bedroom.

She was giggling breathlessly when I set her down on her feet and began to tug her shirt over her head.

I put my hands over hers, stopping her with a stern shake of my head. "Will you please stop trying to take your clothes off?"

Her smile fell, and she looked at me with hurt in her eyes.

Smirking, I put my lips against her ear. "I want to do that part."

Her heart broke into a sprint, and her smile returned. Winding her arms around my neck, she said, "Well, what are you waiting for?"

Not wanting to shred her clothes again simply for the pleasure of removing them slowly, I slid my hands under her shirt and up the warm, smooth skin of her back. My thumbs caught the bottom edge of her shirt, and I slipped it over her head, pleased that she hadn't bothered to wear anything underneath. With one hand resting lightly against the small of her back, the other moved to cup one of her breasts. It was different with her standing than when she'd been laying down, and I enjoyed feeling its slight weight in my hand.

She steadied herself with her hands on my arms and closed her eyes with a smile. I wanted to taste her skin again and leaned down to find my favorite spot just under her ear. Her hands moved up into my hair as I kissed her, and I moaned softly at her gentle touch. Bella was half naked in my arms, but while that was undeniably pleasant, it was hardly enough. I wanted to fully unwrap her beautiful body from the clothes that hid it from my view.

Just because I had loved her once without hurting her did not mean I could afford to get careless, and we had all the time in the world. Deliberately keeping my motions slower than a human would normally have moved, I eased her shorts down and let them fall to her ankles. My fingers brushed the lace before they slid into the elastic waistband of her panties, and I tugged them down her legs, kissing her breasts, stomach, and legs along the way. I supported her with one arm as she stepped out of them before I tossed them and her shorts unceremoniously aside. Her hips were level with my eyes as I knelt in front of her, and I pulled her close so that I might lay my head against her flat stomach. I let my hands circle around to cup her curvy bottom and chuckled as I felt her muscles flexing.

She said my name softly, and I looked up to meet her eyes with a smile. I would never tire of hearing my name fall from her lips. Her eyes were bright with excitement, and her lips curved upwards. They looked so inviting and sweet, I ached to taste them again. Bella pulled my shirt over my head as I worked my way back up to her mouth. She tucked her hands into my shorts, and I couldn't stop myself from pulling away from her mouth to watch as she undid the button and zipper. The sounds of her shaky breaths and racing heart were loud in my ears as she pushed my shorts from my hips, and they fell to the floor, exposing exactly how much I wanted her.

In her bedroom at Charlie's house, Bella had run her hands along my bare chest, back, and stomach every night since she had accepted my proposal - barring the few I had spent out hunting - but I doubted I would ever grow accustomed to the shock of her hands as they burned like flames against my sensitive skin. I'd been inside her twice, but she still seemed to be as curious as I had been our first night as she let her fingers trail down to graze along my exposed length. Though I had stopped her our first night, I bit my lip and let her explore the way I felt. Her touch was as light and gentle as everything else about her, but when she wrapped her hand around me, the pleasure I felt was almost painful.

Letting out the breath I hadn't realized I was holding, I thrust my hands into her hair and caught her mouth in a fierce kiss. Bella threw her arms around my neck and pressed her naked body against mine, kissing me as eagerly as I was kissing her. I hadn't been prepared for the way it felt for her to touch me like that, and it took a moment before I trusted myself enough to unlock my muscles. When I finally lifted her into my arms, she wound her legs around my waist, feverishly kissing my face, jaw, and neck. I held her carefully against me and walked us over to the bed we had shared last night with every intention of spending the rest of the afternoon making slow, delicious love with my Bella. The headboard received several more hand-sized holes and the sheets ended up in tattered shreds, but my hands never again marked Bella's perfect skin.