I had half expected a call from Emmett or Esme inviting me to Christmas the next morning, but Christmas Eve and Day passed with only texts wishing me a wonderful day. I enjoyed my low-key holiday, as Edward had described it, and planned to do much the same on New Year's Eve. I was downstairs checking my mail when I saw Edward struggling to balance a personal shopping cart, and an odd-shaped box.
I rushed over, catching the box just before it hit the floor.
"Bella, hi."
"Hello, Edward. Do you need some help?"
"I could be polite and say, 'no, thank you,' but the truth is I could really use it."
I nodded and followed him to the elevators, and we moved up to his penthouse. When we stepped inside his home, I was surprised by how sparse it was. I knew he'd only recently moved in, but it still shocked me that it was so empty.
"Are you still waiting for things to arrive from Chicago?"
"No. I didn't have much of myself in my apartment there. Irina didn't like clutter. Anything I might have wanted fell into some category that would allow her to get rid of it."
"She's a model?" I asked, taking another look around the space.
"Yes. How did you know?"
"Something Emmett said," I admitted. "I know the type. Demanding perfection on the outside because there's a void on the inside."
"Someone you met doing advertising?" He turned to face me fully.
"Who I was when I modeled." I looked down briefly, but I didn't miss the shocked look on his face.
"You modeled?"
"Don't seem so blown away."
"No, it isn't that. I'm just surprised."
"Because of my size when you met me?" I asked.
"Absolutely not," he said adamantly. "I know there are plus size models, but that isn't what I meant. There's a depth to you I didn't see much in that world. Which is a terrible stereotype, I know, but I saw the world through Irina's interactions with it."
"Well, it was that way for me too. And truth be told, it almost killed me. It took a long time and a lot of hard work to get to a place where I was happy."
"I could use some of that right now."
"If you want to talk to someone, my best friends work in a facility for people with eating disorders. I'm sure they could help you find someone." I hated to see anyone struggle; I was beginning to see that Edward was a lot more damaged than he appeared.
"Yeah, maybe," he whispered.
Wanting to change the subject, my gaze landed on the wall of windows in front of us. "The fireworks display over the sound will be beautiful up here on New Year's."
"You're welcome to come up if you don't have plans with your boyfriend."
"Subtle," I teased. "No boyfriend."
"The angry guy with the dreads?" Edward asked, fighting and failing to keep the smirk off his face.
"Just an overprotective friend."
"You have a few of them. My brother included." Edward looked down at his feet as he said it.
I groaned at his mention of Emmett. "I told him to go easy on you last year. Did that not happen?"
"There's a lot of bad blood there."
"I'm sorry if I added to it. I should go."
"I was serious about tonight. Casual dress code."
"Okay. Have a good one, Edward."
I debated his offer on the way down to my apartment, then decided to just go for it. Edward seemed in desperate need of a friend. I could be that for him.
I also shot Alice a text. I wanted her to meet Edward and see if she could help him find someone who'd help him talk through his issues.
A few hours later, in leggings and a baggy sweatshirt, I caught the elevator up with a bottle of champagne in hand. I didn't know what his plans were, but if need be, I could run to the deli and pick up some snacks for tonight.
I knocked on his door, pleased to see him answer in a pair of gray sweats and a Dartmouth t-shirt.
"I'm glad you came. I may have gone a little overboard on my order."
I inhaled as I entered his apartment, the familiar smells hitting me immediately. "Is that—?"
"The Mediterranean Grill? Yeah. When you told me about it, I didn't realize that was its name. But I thought it would be a good option for tonight. And now I won't have to worry about wasting the food."
He took the bottle of champagne from me and led me into the kitchen, where the various appetizers were laid out on the kitchen island. The TV was set to the countdown in New York.
We each made a plate, poured some champagne into red solo cups, and sat down on Edward's large sectional couch.
The celebration in New York passed while we ate, and by the time Chicago was ready to ring in 2024, Edward got a little quiet.
"Do you believe it?"
"What?" I asked. I turned to see Edward staring at me.
"That whatever you're doing at midnight on New Year's Eve is what you're supposed to be doing all year long." I watched as his eyes dropped to my lips for a second before returning my gaze.
"Don't know. I'm either out with my friends or sleeping. I've never thought about what I'm doing at the exact moment the year changes over."
"Well, if spending it hanging out with you is how it goes, I wouldn't be mad. You're more forgiving than most, not to mention beautiful."
"Edward, you spend more time focusing on that one interaction than I do. Forgive yourself."
Edward shook his head and I reached out to cup his cheek.
"Do you know what I see when I look at you? I see a gorgeous man who is hurting. Someone who agonizes over how his words are taken because he's been hurt by other people's opinions in the past. And someone who looks far too good in loungewear."
Edward laughed at my last statement. "You should talk. That shirt should be illegal, hanging off your shoulder so I can see your bra strap. It has me wondering what's underneath it."
"Those sweats don't leave a lot to the imagination, but I wouldn't mind seeing what's under that shirt."
Edward smirked and tugged gently on a loose piece of my hair. "Don't start something you don't want to finish. I'm happy being your friend if that's all you want, but I don't do halfway."
That statement brought me up short.
Edward got up and kissed my forehead, his trip to the kitchen brief as he brought us each a bottle of water and the half empty bottle of champagne.
We talked and joked, the tension between us like a live wire. I thought seriously about his words. He was happy being my friend, but in the brief time I'd spent with him, he'd been kind and funny, vulnerable and open. I found that as sexy as the top of the V peeking out of his sweats when he reached up to stretch, pointing exactly to what I knew lay beneath the outline on those damn gray sweatpants.
I didn't want to go that far, but I definitely didn't want to relegate Edward to the friend zone.
Around eleven fifty-five, I'd made my decision. I just needed to wait for the right moment to tell him.
As the countdown began at eleven fifty-nine, Edward pulled me into his side. His eyes were darting between the TV coverage of California and the window where the fireworks would be going off any second.
"Edward?"
He turned to me, his finger grazing the skin just beside the bra strap he'd been so focused on two hours ago. "Yeah?"
"I know what I want to be doing at midnight."
The smirk spread across his face slowly as he waited for me to finish. "Yeah?"
"I want to be kissing you."
Edward's lips pressed against mine. Soft but firm, it was the first kiss I'd had in years. Well worth the wait.
His hands wrapped around me. I moaned as his right hand drifted down to rest on my ass.
The noise of the TV and the bright lights of the fireworks let us know that the New Year had begun, but we were too wrapped up in each other to care.