A/N: I know this is way earlier than I normally update, but I'm excited. I finished the entire story – yes, all chapters are written and beta'd, so I couldn't wait to share. Also, if you are reading this after having read Inappropriate Love (which is definitely what you should do!), then you know there is a trigger warning in this chapter. This time you get to hear what Edward was thinking while Bella was freaking out. I hope I did his side justice.

Chapter 6 – EPOV

After I reassured Bella, the rest of the drive was great. We continued the drive up I-5 through the northern part of California and up to Medford, Oregon before Bella and I switched places. As we drove through Oregon, Bella commented on how pretty it was there. I smirked as I thought of all the places that I wanted to take her and how prettier those places were.

I started to mentally calculate all of the places that I would have to take her now that she was living in my neck of the woods. British Columbia was necessary; it was just amazingly beautiful. I could simply take her on a ferry around Puget Sound, that would be really fun. There are parts of the Pacific Coast that were really pretty, though always cold. And Alaksa was a must; my family and I took camping trips up there during the warm portion of the year, and it was totally worth the trip.

The last couple hours of the trip felt like they drug on forever. My excitement about getting home – OUR home! – was taking over in full force, and I was almost antsy as I saw the sign for Tacoma. I knew that we were getting closer, and I couldn't wait to actually get there. I drove us past the airport, getting deeper into the city. Finally, we reached our exit, and I zoomed off the freeway, my excitement getting the better of me.

Though it was already dark, the skyline of the city, including the piers we drove by, were still visible. The lights coming off of the water around us was amazingly beautiful, and Bella was totally transfixed. She didn't say anything, but her head was plastered to the window, looking everywhere. I smiled smugly to myself, knowing that the real view would be in the morning. Elliot Bay was so beautiful when the sun was up.

When we finally got to our building, I was a little nervous. Since she had never seen the place I'd rented for us, I was worried suddenly that she was going to hate it. But I helped to collect our bags and walked her in, hoping that she wouldn't have any issues with what I'd chosen.

Bella's eyes were wide when I picked her up to carry her into the apartment. She was grinning, but I had a feeling that something like this, a simple gesture, was not something she was used to. I set her down carefully, vowing to make sure simple, loving gestures were a part of our lives going forward. She needed to feel loved every day, and I was damn sure going to do that.

The problem was that I hadn't consulted her about the apartment. The money got in the way; which was really ironic considering Kate would have been happy to not worry about money at all for a full year. I bit back a scowl remembering Kate and how often she would charge up her credit card, only to ask me to pay the balance. It was really angering to me how careless she was. But when Bella started talking about a partnership, and making sure I didn't spend that much on her, I realized that was not something Kate and I had ever had. Unless you count her spending the money I made a partnership...

After making love on our new bed, I saw Bella start to fall asleep, but I decided that I wasn't done with her yet. Her story of how selfish Jake had been lit a fire of two things in me: hatred and competition. I hated Jake for making her feel like less of a person, and I was convinced that I could do a better job than he did.

Rolling Bella over again, I kissed her hard, pushing my body against hers. I was starting to get hard again, as it seemed to be a constant state when I was around Bella, and I ground myself into her. Moaning, she moved her legs around me, pushing back into me.

"Again already, Edward?" she moaned, as my lips started to trail down her neck.

"Remember our first night, baby?" I smirked, sucking the skin where her neck connected to her shoulder. "And now it's different. I can take you whenever I want to. I mean, whenever you want me to."

"I'll always want you, Edward."

I leaned back, staring into her eyes. "And I'll always want you, too. Are you too sore though?"

She shook her head, a smile forming on her lips. "Never."

She pushed on my chest, bringing her legs down, and then sat up. We were both on our knees, holding each other, lips pressed together. She had a glint in her eye, so I wasn't sure what she was planning. I groaned when she rolled over, leaning down so she was on her hands. Her amazing ass stared up at me, and I grabbed her hips immediately.

"Fuck, Bella," I said, lining myself up to her. I groaned as I pushed in, the new sensation hitting me full force.

"Hmmmm, yes, Edward. Fuck me."

I didn't need any more encouragement. I gripped her hips and started pushing in her, slowly gaining speed until the only sounds in the group were moans and slaps of skin together. Soon, Bella's arms collapsed, and she rested her head on the bed. I leaned over, grabbing her breasts with my hands, still slamming into her as hard as I could. Since I'd already come earlier, I knew I could last a little longer. I wanted to make sure this was enjoyable for her.

One hand slipped down her body, while the other continued to roll her nipple around. I found her clit, and started circling that with my fingers, trying to increase her pleasure.

"Fuck, Edward, oh my god." Bella ground backward into me, her back arching slightly. "Oh god, please, please," she said, pushing again. As if she needed to beg for anything; I would always give her whatever she wanted. "Don't stop. Oh, god, don't..."

I knew she was going to come before I felt it. I watched in fascination as the blush I loved so much spread down her back, the skin erupting with goosebumps. Just a split second after that, she gripped me and shuttered, screaming as she came. The visual of what I did to her body, plus the scream, sent me right over the edge as well.

Bella collapsed on the bed, and I went with her. I covered her body lightly with mine, my chest on her back. I kissed her neck, her shoulder, and up to her ear.

"I love you so fucking much," I whispered into her ear, before taking it into my mouth. My hands gently caressed down hers, which were pushed under the pillow her head was on. I entwined our fingers together, squeezing slightly.

"It's definitely going to be a problem." Bella's voice was slightly muffled. She turned her head slightly, so she could talk easier.

"What's a problem, baby?"

"I'm never going to be a contributing member of society if you keep doing that to me." She giggled, and I huffed a laugh as she pushed up a little, making me sit up so she could turn over. Unable to be too far away from her, I laid back down and settled between her legs to snake a hand under her shoulders. I leaned down and kissed her, opening my mouth to deepen the kiss.

Her feet wound around mine, and we stayed like that for some time. Her hands caressed softly down my back, as my tongue caressed hers. Eventually, though, my arms started to shake so I had to move. I shifted so that I was lying on my side, and she mirrored my position. I stared into her eyes.

"I'm afraid to go to sleep," I confessed, my hand tracing her lips and face.

"Why is that? Scared of the dark?" she joked.

"Because I'm afraid this is a dream and you aren't really here."

"It's real, baby. I'm here and I love you." She smirked, remembering that I had said that our first night together. "And this time it doesn't have to end. I'm here to stay; I'm never leaving you again."

I shifted closer, kissing her softly. I didn't know what to say in response, so I just kissed her again and again. Soon, I noticed that her eyes were closing. I shifted to my back, pulling her closer to me, kissing her forehead.

"Sleep, baby. We have the whole rest of the week to do this."

"And the rest of our lives."

The next morning, I woke up alone. For a moment, I was disoriented, trying to figure out where I was. Though I had slept in this apartment before, it was the first time sleeping in the bedroom. With the shades drawn, it was extremely dark and I couldn't tell what time it was. I got up and searched for my shirt and boxers, but I couldn't find them. Instead, I pulled on a pair of sweatpants and wandered into the kitchen. I found Bella standing in the kitchen, staring into the bare cupboards.

Once we established that coffee was essential, I took her through the streets to get to Starbucks. I internally cringed as we walked in, knowing that I wouldn't be happy with the sludge they sold here. But Bella was happy, and that's all that really mattered.

After we got home and Bella made breakfast, things seemed perfect. Unfortunately, that perfect lasted for about five minutes. When she tripped and fell, breaking my favorite coffee mug, all hell broke loose. I was not prepared for her tears, and the first thought I had was she had significantly hurt herself. Once I figured out what was going on, though, I wished she had only hurt herself. This hurt was much deeper than I could fix. That asshole had really tried his hardest to ruin her spirit, her very nature, and anger boiled up inside me.

Though I promised her I would never treat her that way, I was scared that she didn't truly believe me. If that was what she had known as long as she'd been married to him, it would take time to undo that damage.

I led her to the couch and pulled her close to me. My mind was swirling with possibilities of what I could do to help her understand that I was a different man than him. She snuggled close to me and I just held her, watching her eyes droop and then finally close. I figured that the abundant emotions had probably exhausted her, so I let her sleep. I had a lot to think over anyway.

I was trying to remember any sort of advice that I'd gotten from my mother, Alice, or any ex-girlfriend I'd had. But I simply didn't have much experience with this sort of thing. Jake had clearly held control of their house, and made Bella bend to his wishes. He yelled at her for the smallest things, demeaned her when she forgot something he felt was important, and finally hit her when she did something against his will.

I just wanted to wrap her up in my arms and never let her go. Make her feel loved every damn day, and make sure that she never had that kind of reaction again. Not because it was embarrassing for me, or anything like that, but because I didn't want her to have to worry over my reaction to everything. I wanted her to trust me, to know how much I loved her each and every day. I had absolutely no idea what to do for her.

Without moving too much, I fished my phone out of my pocket and started googling how to help someone in an abusive relationship. There were many hotlines listed, but I wasn't sure if she would be willing to talk to someone. Plus, if she was willing, I'd rather it be a licensed therapist who could see her often and help her work through the trauma that he had inflicted on her.

Finally, I found an article on how to help those you love who had been in abusive relationships with intimate partners. It explained the difference between parental abuse and partner abuse, stating that while they are similar in that the victim loses the ability to trust those that they should be able to, when you add sex into the mix, it makes the trauma impact the victim in a different way.

The article stated that I needed to be careful, and not push her, otherwise I was likely to build a wall between us if she felt cornered. Stemming from the abuse that she was used to, I had to be cautious of her reactions. It said to take note of the things that pushed them into 'episodes' of vividly remembering the abuse, and to be wary of putting either of us in a position to reenact any of those events.

The interesting part, for me anyway, was that I shouldn't push her to talk about it. That she had to reach out to me to discuss what happened. It said that often victims feel embarrassed or weak as a result of the abuse, and it was important that she feel comfortable with me to bring it up on her own.

As I sat there, holding the most important thing in the world to me, I felt tears start falling down my face. All I wanted to do was love her, but I had to be careful about doing it. Her ex-husband had caused deep damage to the woman I loved, and I needed to be there for her while she worked through it. I wasn't upset for myself – because I would quite literally do anything she wanted me to – but I was upset that she had to go through it, and now had to deal with the repercussions.

I wiped away the tears and continued reading the article. It said that the best thing I could do for her was to make sure she knew I wasn't like him. That I loved her, and would never hurt her. It talked about key phrases to say, over and over if necessary, such as 'it's not your fault,' and 'this doesn't change how I feel about you.' I committed as much of the article to memory as I could before finally locking my phone and putting it back in my pocket.

I would do right by Bella, I knew that for sure. I would be whatever she needed me to be, because I simply couldn't let her continue to feel this way. I never wanted her to feel hurt or sad ever again – for things I could control, anyway.

So, I sat there, continuing to hold her while she slept, and loving her while hating her ex-husband so much it almost consumed me.

A/N: It can be hard to love someone who has been hurt – physically or emotionally. I wanted to address his inner turmoil at how to help her, since I had covered all of her inner thoughts in the other story. I did the best I could, and I hope all of you understood where he was coming from.

Let me know what you thought!

Also, please be sure to check out Twist of Fate, my vamp fiction. I'm getting so close on wrapping that story. I'm really proud of it.

Also, if you haven't checked out Jgaff's new fic "Cutie for Christmas", this is a must! She's updating it daily and the story is so sweet and fun for this time of year. I am really loving it. I found her on the Facebook group Cheatward's Spot. Good fan fic recommendations!

Thanks again to my beautiful/wonderful beta zombified419 for all of your help and encouragement. I don't know how I wrote without you my friend.