This hasn't been beta'd or really looked over by me … but I really want to update as often as possible! I definitely miss updating all of the time. I'm on such a roll with this story, and I'm so excited because FINALLY, so I just couldn't wait. I'm so glad you guys are enjoying this! I read all of your reviews and it really means a lot to me! Sorry I'm so bad at responding. Know that I totally read them all. After I post this, I'm going to get started on another chapter. (Yay)

Chapter 27:

Looking Ahead

"I can get someone to take you back to my room. You can freshen up and get rid of your luggage."

I smile against his lips, feeling at home again. Why had I been so keen on leaving before? Now, it doesn't make sense to me. With my head against his chest, his heartbeat sounding against my ear, I realize this is all I could ever need or want. Everything else … Well, who cares about everything else.

"That's perfect. Can we just … stay like this for a second?"

"Just a second," he humors me, wrapping his arms around my figure. "I've got to get back to practice soon. I want tonight to be perfect. You're here to watch me, after all."

"It will be perfect," I agree. "I just want to listen to the sound of your heartbeat for a little longer."

"I'm not going anywhere." Edward laughs.

"I know, I know." I blush, knowing I'm being silly. However, I can't seem to pull away. Moments like these feel so rare. They won't be rare for much longer. You're going to stay. You're going to stay and these moments will be constant. "I'm excited for tonight. I'm excited to sleep next to you again."

"Me, too," he answers, running his fingers through my messy hair. "Beds are so cold without you in them." He's quiet for a moment, before he continues, "I hate hotel rooms. They're so impersonal. They make you feel so lonely. When I was younger, I used to love them."

"Why? Because they were filled with girls waiting for you?" I interrupt, teasing.

"No," he replies, laughing. "Back then, I would sit in a hotel room and think to myself, 'Wow, I'm really doing it. I'm really on the road!' Now, I'm just bored with the whole thing."

"I get that. However, I still like hotel rooms." I peer up at Edward to find him smiling down at me. I nuzzle against his side, content in his embrace. "I just feel like I'm on an adventure."

"You like adventures, don't you?" I nod, and he smiles at me. "Well, this life is perfect for you, then. I'm never in one place for too long." He's quiet for a moment and then chuckles to himself before saying, "At least, it feels that way to me."

"You're happy like this, aren't you?"

"Of course," he agrees. "How couldn't I be happy? I'm doing what I love and I have you by my side."

Now, it's my turn to be quiet. I want to be doing what I love, too. As much as I love watching him accomplish things, I want to chase after my own dreams. His life has inspired me. I want to live, too; I want to be the woman I always thought I could be. Time won't pause for me, and I'm not getting any younger. Years have passed without me chasing after anything. Not anymore …

"I want to do what I love, too," I say quietly.

"You should, Bells." Bending down, Edward presses a kiss against my head, causing my body to relax against his. I almost feel like a small child as he holds me, comforted and protected from the outside world. With this sort of strength surrounding me, I truly believe I can do anything. "You must have so much bottled up inside of you, waiting to come out."

"I think so." I pause, a small smile tugs on my lips. "I hope so."

"What's held you back?"

"I don't know … fear?"

"Fear of what?"

"Failing, I guess. Isn't that what everyone fears? Failure?"

He nods but remains quiet, giving me a chance to vent my emotions-express my fears.

"I'm just worried that if I go for it, it won't work out. What if I put so much effort into something, and it leads to nothing? What would I do then?"

"Want my serious advice?"

I gaze up at him, meeting his intense gaze. "Of course," I respond.

"If things don't work out, you just get up, brush yourself off, and try again. You know how many times I've fallen on my ass, Bells? Too many times to count. Do you think I just gave up because I was banged up and embarrassed? No, I just kept going. If it's something you're passionate about, getting up and brushing yourself off is all you can ever do."

I smile at his words. In this moment, I feel like I am home. Truly, I feel like I could do anything. I feel so much more confident with him by my side. I wish he could have been here sooner. I wonder who I would be now if I always had a supporter like him.

"You're right." My smile grows as his hand raises from his lap and his fingers brush against my lips. "You're right, I'm just being dumb."

"You're not being dumb. I used to fear the same sort of thing. But I love the sport, so I couldn't quit."

"I love this, too. I won't quit."

"Good."

Bending forward, he brings his lips to meet mine. Unlike our kisses from earlier, this one is gentle, teasing, and makes my heart flutter. Kisses like this felt so pure. When he acts like this, I feel truly loved.

"I have to go, baby. I have to keep on practicing."

A playful groan escapes my lips before I let him pull away. I know it was selfish of me, but I didn't want to move. I wanted to stay like this forever.

"Win for me tonight, all right?"

"Of course." He smiles, bending down to kiss my forehead. "That's a given."

He fixes himself up while I do the same. I feel like a voyeur watching him, but I can't tear my eyes away. He's just so much to look at. His body shows the years of vigorous training and I want to run my tongue over every inch of him. As soon as our clothes are straightened and we don't look completely disheveled, we headed back toward the stadium. Edward took my hand and guided me and as he did, I felt every eye on me. Suddenly, I seemed to be fascinating to everyone. I blush under the scrutiny and try to focus my mind on the night ahead.

"Do you ever get nervous?" I ask as he pulls me along.

"Yeah," he admits, smiling back at me. "Every time. I think the nerves are good, though. I would be worried if I wasn't nervous. The nerves keep me on my toes."

"I guess it would be hard not to be nervous while riding a bull," I reply with a laugh. "I'm sure if you seemed too relaxed, the bull would feel it."

"Yeah, the bastard would feel it and try to kick me off."

I giggle, smiling as we finally move down the hallway toward the entrance of the stadium. Edward pulls me along until we get to the bottom of the bleachers. My eyes move away from him to glance around, taking everything in. This stadium's huge, completely overwhelming. There are so many seats. So many eyes will be watching Edward tonight. How does he handle it? I imagine the bleachers filled with people and wonder what everything looks like to Edward when he's out there. Does he see past the bright lights? Does he recognize any faces from the crowd surrounding him? Is it all one colorful blur? Does he even think about these things when he's riding?

"Bella, you sit up front here," he directs, pulling me away from my thoughts.

"Sure." I smile brightly, part of me still daydreaming.

"Keep your eyes on me, okay?" he says, his eyes intense.

"Of course. You're my favorite thing to watch."

Edward smiles at this, bringing my hand up to his mouth for a quick kiss before he pulls away, leaving me to take my seat. I keep my promise, and as he makes his way to one of the chutes, I never look away. Even if I hadn't promised, I would still be watching him. My Edward … he's so captivating. I watch as he gears up for a quick practice, feeling like I'm the only person in the entire stadium. Leaning forward on my seat, I watch him slide onto a bull before taking off. He's the only one here practicing. I wonder if he feels unsure of himself.

Even from my seat, I can see that he's tense. Despite this, he's smiling. This is just where he needs to be. Time flies by and before I know it, he's finished, covered in sweat. I lick my lips as I watch him, hoping we'll have some time to be alone after this. I want to at least shower with him before the match. I want to-

"You're Bella, right?" a feminine voice interrupts me from my thoughts.

I raise my gaze to find the pretty blonde from before. She smiles at me before taking a seat next to me.

"I wanted to introduce myself earlier, but he pulled you away so fast. I'm Sherry, Edward's cousin." Reaching out her hand, she grabs mine for a shake, smiling a me while doing so. "He talks about you nonstop. It would be annoying if it wasn't so cute. I tease him about it a lot, but really I've never seen him so infatuated before." She giggles at this. "He always picks the worst girls imaginable, so, I was happy to see you're normal."

She's his cousin … I flush, feeling embarrassed for ever being jealous of her. I should have known she was a relative considering how quickly Edward had dismissed her earlier. He was probably worried she would tease him in front of me like she's doing now.

"When he talks about me, what does he say?"

"Well, all this morning he was talking about how much he misses you. He told me about how you met and how you love art … and did I say we were only chatting for maybe like a half hour? The man barely talks about himself. Which is weird because he used to always talk about himself." She snickers before smiling at me.

"He barely talks about himself to me," I mutter.

"He's changed," she muses, leaning back against the bleacher behind her. "He was so cocky and self-absorbed before. Now, he's so calm and focused. You're good for him, you know? He's getting older and I think he really needed this."

"He's good for me, too."

"I don't know how much longer he'll be able to do this for," she continues. "He's had a few minor injuries in the past but this sort of stuff is rough on your body. The older he gets, the more his body will change … he could really hurt himself if he's not careful."

"He is careful, though, right?" I ask, growing worried.

I never thought about this. I suppose in the back of my mind, I knew this was dangerous for him, but I didn't put any thought into the changes in his body or how the sport could affect him as his body grows older. Knowing he can't do this forever, I hope he makes every competition meaningful. I want him to be happy and this makes him happy.

"He's careful. He works out a lot, trains constantly, and works hard. But injuries are inevitable when you get older. Everyone has their limit."

"I had no idea …" I murmur. "How much longer can he do this for?"

"Sorry." She laughs. "I didn't mean to put a damper on things. He has a few years, for sure. My brother did this, too. He gave it up a few years ago after he tore a ligament. He was thirty-three. Which isn't old, but for something like this … it just gets harder and harder. But hey, I think the record for the oldest rider was in his fifties."

"What does your brother do now?"

"He works on our family's farm. He's always worked with Dad, so, it's nothing new. Edward will probably do the same when he retires. That's why I'm glad he found you … Gives him something else to focus his attention on."

I blush, almost embarrassing myself by giggling at her comment. "I wish I could watch him doing this forever."

"I know. He's wonderful, isn't he?" she asks, nugging my shoulder.

I like her. I'm glad his family is so accepting of me. In the past, I had never been too close to any of my boyfriends' families. I never thought our relationships had been serious enough to take that step. With Edward, I want things to be as serious as possible. I won't run away from him, like I've done with everyone else in the past. I won't run again, will I? Edward's too different. I can do it this time… I can stay by his side.

"He is wonderful. I can't believe he's real sometimes."

"He doesn't seem like a man to you?" she teases.

"He's more than a man," I begin before I hear a chuckle from next to me.

"I'm more than a man, Bells?" Edward asks as he smirks at his cousin and me.

"No wonder you have such a big head, Ed," Sherry comments as she stands up. "This girl is filling your head with all sorts of nonsense." She winks at me before hopping off our seat and onto the ground. "See you guys tonight, then?"

"Tonight," Edward confirms as he proffers his hand to help me down from the bleachers. "You better come ready to see a big win, Sherry."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say, Ed." She waves him off before smiling at us both. "Have fun today. Don't let her wear you out too much." With a wink, she turns on her heel and walks toward a group of buckle bunnies sitting in the bleachers a few yards away.

"Sorry I didn't introduce you two earlier. I was too busy getting reacquainted with you," he teases as he wraps his arm around my shoulders and guides me forward. "Want to get your stuff and head to my hotel room. We can relax a bit and get some room service before I have to be back here tonight."

"That sounds perfect. That's just what I wanted to do."

The drive to the hotel hadn't been fast enough. He was all over me from the moment we entered the cab. I felt almost embarrassed, knowing anyone could see us if they wanted to, but I hadn't allowed that embarrassment to stop me. We practically fell out of the cab when we arrived at the hotel and I had almost forgot my carry-on in the backseat since I had been so absorbed by Edward. Thankfully, he already had a room key so all we had to do was avoid mauling each other as we had made our way up to the third floor. His room was three doors down from the elevator and as soon as we were inside, we both undressed, falling over each other before we finally made it to the bed.

His movements had been quick and needy-just like I wanted them to be. I felt so desired when he was ravenous. He rode me from behind until I forgot about all our time apart, then, he carried me to the bathroom, sitting me down on the top of the toilet seat while he ran a bath.

"You're cute like this, you know?" I ask, watching him add bubble bath to the hot water.

"Like what?"

"Relaxed. I love seeing you like this almost as much as I love seeing you competing."

"Do I look cute competing, too?"

"No." I giggle. "Then, you just look sexy. I want to lick every inch of you."

He smiles at this before reaching for me, pulling me up into his arms. "The bath is ready."

Carefully, he lowers us into the water. I lean back against him as he wraps his entire body around me. His legs intertwine with mine and his arms wrap around me as we enjoy the feel of the hot bath water against our skin.

"Do you ever think about the future?" I ask, slouching against him.

"Of course. It's hard not to."

"What do you have planned?"

"I don't know …" Holding me tighter, he adds, "A lot of days like this."