AN: I love hearing everyone's opinions on if they will kiss or not. I hope this chapter satisfies!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Twilight series, the brilliant Stephenie Meyer does.
"E-Edward wait," I sputtered before placing my hands on his chest and gently pushing him away. He complied with a puzzled expression.
"What is it, Bella? You don't want to kiss me?"
"I-I don't know," I answered truthfully. This was happening too fast, I didn't know exactly how I felt about the whole situation. "I wasn't expecting that."
Edward nodded and inhaled deeply. "I'm sorry," he stated simply and took several steps back. "Getting rejected is something new for me."
"I would imagine so," I laughed dryly. Returning to my previous position on the couch, I studied Edward's troubled pout. He seemed truly disappointed.
An awkward silence engulfed us as we stared each other down. "What now?" I questioned, finally deciding to break the uncomfortable quiet.
"You tell me," he muttered, rolling his eyes and plopping on the edge of the bed. He huffed and shook his head. "You're the one who pushed me away."
My blood boiled as I registered his idiotic comment. "If you're expecting some sort of apology from me, don't hold your breath," I snapped with surprising malice. "It's not my fault that every girl doesn't want to kiss you."
"Oh, but you do," he countered with a humorless laugh. "You're just afraid."
I opened my mouth to deny his accusation when realization kicked in. Was I afraid? Edward Cullen wasn't the type of boy people would imagine me with. The bad boy and the innocent police chief's daughter, what a match. He studied me with a confident smirk. That's what was so obnoxious about him, he was always right and I couldn't even prove him wrong on this one. Damn.
"Maybe I should go," I mumbled and picked up a discarded binder, ready to shove it into my backpack. "I'll do the project myself." Several pages scattered to the ground as I hurriedly zipped everything away.
I felt like such an idiot! Of course Edward didn't want to work on the project; he wanted something else, something I wasn't prepared to give him.
"You're overreacting, Bella. I apologized, what more do you want?"
Anger coursed through me as he continued to play innocent. "What am I really here for, Edward? Were we actually going to work on the project?"
"If you're insinuating something else, you're wrong," he murmured softly. Several locks of copper hair fell forward into his face, giving him a childlike look of regret. I sighed; maybe I was overreacting just a bit. It was only a kiss after all.
"I'm sorry for being so defensive," I whispered while dropping my backpack to the ground. The books inside shifted with a resounding clunk.
"Maybe you shouldn't carry so much in there," Edward lectured jokingly. The corner of his mouth twitched upward, an indication that I was forgiven.
As if my little tantrum wasn't embarrassing enough, my stomach decided to make itself known with a loud gurgle. Red filled my cheeks as I attempted to cover the noise with a cough.
"Hungry?" Edward chuckled. "I haven't eaten either, would you like to go out to get something to eat? We don't have such a large selection of food since my family is out."
I hastily agreed. I would go anywhere with Edward. That alone frightened me. I'd never felt that way toward anyone; let alone a boy I barely knew.
The walk to his car was much less awkward. We were both over our confrontation that occurred just minutes before. As we entered the garage, I noticed his Volvo was the only car not under some kind of cover. Two other vehicles were parked and blanketed with a crisp, white sheet.
"You're family must have a lot of cars," I noted as he opened the passenger door. I smiled my thanks. He was much more polite than I ever would have expected.
"Yes, but they rarely get driven. Alice will seldom drive her Porsche since she finds it impractical in this sort of weather." He slid into the driver's side and quickly brought the Volvo to life. It purred as he slowly backed out of the garage. It was much quieter than my rusty truck.
"Then what's the point of having it?" I asked curiously. The green scenery flashed by the window, making me slightly nauseas.
"Who knows. Alice is very hard to decipher sometimes." His voice was laced with something, anger? I watched his hands clench and unclench around the steering wheel as we increased speed.
"A-Alice is your sister, right?" I hesitantly questioned.
He nodded and gazed intently at the road.
"Oh," I breathed, trying to read his hard expression. I had a feeling this conversation was suited for another time, so I let it go. "Where are we going?" I asked, attempting to change the subject.
"I figured we could go do a diner just a few minutes away," he replied in a much softer tone. "They have the best burgers around."
He took a quick glance my way and smiled. I practically melted. His smile was certainly breathtaking; it had the ability to make any girl weak at the knees. I was sure he used it quite often.
Within minutes, were turning into a quaint diner. "I've been here before," I noted, recognizing the familiar building. "My dad used to take me here a lot as a child." It was a family owned joint, as were many businesses in Forks, but it thrived due to great meals it always produced.
Edward quickly jumped out and strolled to my side, politely opening my door.
"You sure know how to treat a girl," I joked, following him into the busy establishment.
"You're not just a girl," he muttered quietly, so quietly I couldn't be sure he even said it.
Luckily, a booth was free and we eagerly took it. "I'm happy we came here, it brings back good memories."
Edward grinned and watched me skim over the menu. "I'm glad you're happy."
My eyes flickered to his face, but he looked distracted, as if he couldn't decide something. "You're kind of strange," I mumbled, once again nervous by his unyielding gaze. "You say things that I don't think you want me to hear, but they're nice, I appreciate them."
"I'm not very good at this kind of thing," he said while fidgeting with the menu. He seemed flustered, an emotion I've never seen Edward Cullen possess.
"What kind of thing?"
But just as he were about to answer, our waitress arrived to take our order. "Hello there, my name is Betty, what can I get you?" Our waitress was a short, older woman with wrinkles framing her kind face. She couldn't have been much older than sixty and it saddened me she had to earn a living in a diner. People like Edward took for granted the money they were given, not taking a chance to imagine how their life could be.
"Um, I'll take a Coke."
"Make that two," Edward added with a grin.
Betty nodded and gave us a warm smile. "I'll be back with your drinks in just a minute."
I expected Edward to continue, but he simply turned his face to the menu. "Weren't you about to say something?" I hinted, eager for whatever explanation he was about to give me.
"It might be a better idea to wait until we get our food," he answered, eyes still roaming the menu. "I don't want to be interrupted again."
My heart pounded so hard I was afraid it would shoot out of my chest. What was Edward getting at? His cryptic comments were starting to wear on me.
"Alright, but you promise you'll tell me?"
"I promise, Bella." His emerald eyes met mine and he winked, dazzling me into submission.
Betty then appeared with our drinks, placing them on the table before us. "Have you decided what you want to eat?" she asked kindly, clicking open a pen.
Edward nodded toward me.
"I'll take a cheeseburger and fries, please."
Betty scribbled down my order and glanced at Edward. "And for you, Edward?" The fact that she knew him by name surprised me. Edward grinned and handed her his menu.
"I'll have a cheeseburger and fries, also."
She nodded and picked up my menu. "It'll be out soon," she stated before scurrying to the kitchen.
"You know her?" I asked, surprise evident in my tone.
"I'm a frequent customer," he chuckled and set his elbows on the table. "She waits on me every time and we talk. This is her second job, she took it to help pay for her son in college. I tend to give her a larger tip."
My eyebrows rose in shock. "Wow, that's really nice of you, Edward."
"I can be nice," he admitted with a grin. "I'm just very selective of who I'm nice to."
I took a sip of Coke and distractedly played with the straw. "So," I began, hoping he would just get to whatever he wanted to tell me now. He just smiled. "Where did your family go?"
"My father had a business meeting in Los Angeles. Since my mother and Alice can't pass up shopping, they went with him. I opted to stay home."
I nodded and bent the plastic I was still playing with. "No wild parties this weekend?" I asked, attempting to be nonchalant.
"Hm, I don't know. There's still time I suppose."
My hand stilled and I coughed. I wasn't expecting that for an answer. "So you really do have parties then? I thought it was just a rumor."
"The parties I have are greatly exaggerated," he assured with shake of his head. "People like to imagine the worst. Either that or their jealous that they don't get invited." His mouth twitched with quiet laughter.
"I guess I shouldn't believe everything I hear then," I muttered. My straw was bent every which way, useless now. I removed it and gently placed it on a nearby napkin.
"You really shouldn't." His voice was so inviting, like velvet.
"Here you go," Betty chirped and placed two delicious burgers on the table. "Anything else I can get you kids?"
Edward looked to me and I shook my head. "No, that's all for now. Thank you."
"Just holler if you need anything," she replied and flashed each of us a smile.
I eagerly bit into my burger; I hadn't realized how hungry I was. It was cooked perfectly. The slight pink peeked out from between the hearty bun as I took another bite.
"How is it?" Edward asked, shaking the ketchup until it splattered all over his fries.
I laughed and looked at Edward's shocked expression. He glanced at me and grinned.
"You're laugh is fascinating," he stated before scraping off the majority of ketchup with a large fry.
"Thanks?" It sounded more like a question than a statement. I wasn't sure how to respond. "Is fascinating a good thing?"
He swallowed and wiped at his fingers with a napkin. "I like to think of it as a good thing. Not many people fascinate me the way you do."
"Back to those comments!" I complained while picking apart a fry. "What do you mean by them?"
"I mean exactly what I say. You fascinate me."
"That's not answering my question," I demanded, irritation leaking into my tone. "I don't understand what you want."
He sighed and pushed a hand through his hair. He was nervous. "I don't necessarily want anything, Bella."
"It didn't seem that way earlier," I objected, reminding him of our almost kiss.
"I was caught up in the moment." His pointer finger bounced nervously on the table as he inhaled. "Alright, so maybe there is a reason why I seem so motivated by this project. A reason you may not want me to admit."
"What?" I practically demanded, excited and unprepared for what he was about to say.
"I like you, Bella. I like you so much more than I should." His stare was so intense that I had to close my eyes.
I sighed and reopened them. "You have no idea how long I've wanted that," I muttered, shock evident on my face. "I just never expected that you, Edward Cullen, would have feelings for me."
"What's wrong with you?" he asked, almost angrily. "You're much different than what I'm used to."
"Exactly! I'm not some slut that you can play with, Edward. I care about you."
My response startled him. "I know you're not like that, Bella. That's why I'm so indecisive about how I feel. You should be with someone who has better morals, someone your parents would be proud for you to date."
Our food was long forgotten as I uttered the words that would seal my future. "But that's the thing. I want to be with you."
AN: I know, another cliffhanger! But it's really not that bad considering what I was going to leave it at. This will be the last one for awhile, I just have to get you all excited for the next chapter :)