Chapter 5

By six-fifteen, Edward had given up on the hope that Bella would show up. Besides, he'd run out of reasons to keep him at work since his replacement was already there.

She was avoiding him.

And the more he thought about that, the more irritated he became. And then, he was irritated that he was irritated. She didn't owe him anything, and considering the fiasco that happened that morning, he couldn't necessarily blame her for not wanting to see him. Even if he'd done nothing but think about her for the entire goddamn day. Reluctantly, he headed home. But as he walked to his apartment, he couldn't get the nagging thought out of his mind that something might be wrong.

Bella's life had a pattern – one he'd become all too familiar with since she'd moved into the building. She came and went at the same times every day. She didn't seem like the kind of person who would deviate from structure. She never had visitors. She'd basically told him in her apartment that she didn't have any friends. So, what could possibly be keeping her out this late? Or who?

Edward was worried.

And even worse, he was worried with no way of knowing how to find her. It was frustrating, he realized, that he knew something as personal as where she lived, but knew nothing of where she worked or even what she did. And with that, came the other more startling realization that Edward was obsessing over a woman he knew very little about, actually. But then he remembered the way she'd bravely let him inside her home the previous night, the way she looked when he touched her – all wide expressive eyes and rapid pulse. And he knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that her response hadn't been from fear. She wanted him there. He fucking knew it.

And that was what made him turn around and head back.

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Bella waited until she knew Edward would be gone to head home from work. She knew it wasn't rational, but that was just it, wasn't it? She wasn't rational. That part of her brain didn't work when it came to him, apparently.

She'd made it through the day as best as she could given the circumstances. And by the time her watch read seven, she was exhausted from work, exhausted from the events of the morning, and just exhausted from her life in general. Why did everything have to be so complicated? Why did she have to make everything more complicated? she thought caustically.

She realized what a mistake waiting had been when she walked outside, only to realize that it was already getting dark. She never walked the city streets alone at night, particularly when she was taking anxiety medicine. The edges of the world were a bit fuzzy, yet given her nervous tendencies, she was still tense and on edge.

"Five blocks," she whispered to herself, as she walked toward her building, keeping her head down as usual. It wasn't even that late, and there were still plenty of people making their own way through the city. She tried to remember all the reasons she'd wanted to move here in the first place as she walked. She thought about how determined she was to live on her own and be independent. This was what she wanted, wasn't it?

Yes.

Yes, it was.

The relief was palpable when her building came into view. And for the first time in five blocks, she was able to breathe deeply. Her comfort was short lived, as a tall figure stepped from the shadows.

"Where have you been?"

The sound she made was somewhere between a whisper and a yelp, and she jumped, unable to control her response. Her whole body was on edge, as her eyes adjusted and Edward's face came into view.

Even though it was mostly dark, Bella realized she could see just how green his eyes were. Not only that, she saw an intensity in those eyes she'd never seen before. It did nothing to ease her rising panic.

"Jesus," he whispered harshly. "I'm…god." He reached out, grabbing her hands, and though her initial instinct was to pull away, there was something so immediately soothing about his touch, she found herself clinging to his hands tightly.

"Fuck," he said lowly. "I'm sorry, Bella. I didn't mean to scare you like that."

She couldn't even find words to speak. She just stood there, looking up at him when she suddenly realized she was still clutching his hands. Only, with more than a bit of wonder, she realized he was clutching hers, too. She wanted to marvel at the feeling of it, his skin against hers. It wasn't gentle like his touch the evening before. He was holding onto her roughly, almost protectively.

"What are you…" she finally managed to form words. "I mean, you're supposed to be…"

"What?" he asked.

"Gone."

.

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Edward didn't want to think about her response, because honestly, that shit would piss him off. He knew she'd been upset earlier, but deep down he'd hoped that she wouldn't stay away just so she wouldn't have to see him. He was just so relieved to know she was okay, and that nothing had happened to her. But then it hit him that he'd grabbed her like she wasn't skittish as all fuck, like she hadn't run away from him like he was something out of a goddamn nightmare this morning.

"I'm sorry," he said, realizing how stupid he'd been, and wishing he could go back and make a better decision. One that didn't involve waiting for her outside in the dark like a fucking stalker. Jesus, what the fuck had he been thinking? "I didn't mean to just grab you like that."

He was going to pull away, but he felt the gentle squeeze of her hands inside his, and as soon as he realized she might not have a problem with it, she said, "It's okay. It's…good."

Those four words were almost as soothing as the presence of the woman standing before him. He was so goddamn happy she was okay – happier than he was readily willing to admit. It was new, this feeling. Not the protective way he always felt where she was concerned, but the feeling that she just might be okay with it. At least, it seemed like she was in this particular moment. So, Edward decided to be honest. "I was worried about you when you didn't come home. Especially after…" he stopped, not wanting to remind her of the events from the morning.

She winced, and he knew he should've kept is fucking mouth shut. He didn't want to embarrass her or make her feel bad. But truth be told, he really wanted to know what made her react like that when he was only trying to help her.

"I had to…work late."

He knew she was lying because she looked down on the last two words.

"You never work late," he hedged.

"I just…" she started, still looking down, so he finished for her, "You just didn't want to see me."

Her wide eyes shot up to his, and just for a moment, he wondered if he had it all wrong.

"It's just that…I was embarrassed."

"Embarrassed because you fell?" he asked.

"No," she huffed, blowing a forceful breath. Her face scrunched up like she was trying to solve a puzzle, which was fucking ridiculous to Edward because he was the one who was confused. She was the most confounding woman he'd ever known. Except that was just it, wasn't it? He didn't know her. Not really. Not the way he wanted to. And he knew that he needed to tread lightly here because how he handled this right now would likely impact his chances of really getting to know her in the future.

And Edward really wanted to get to know her.

"Can we just…" she said, her eyes darting all around them. "Do we have to do this out here? Could we maybe go inside? Like, to…my apartment?"

Edward tried not to smile. He really fucking did. But he failed miserably. He watched her face, trying to read her reaction. She wasn't necessarily smiling, but she was still holding his hands. He decided that was good enough for him.

"If that's what you want."

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A/N

I can't tell you how much it means to me that some of you are sharing your own personal stories of how much you relate to Bella.

I wish I could give all of you a hug.

The response has been amazing. More than I hoped for, to be honest.

I'm so happy you're reading. It makes me want to write more.

Reviews are love.