oOo
She had never seen Edward so relaxed, so easy-going. She'd been worried that he might regret telling her what he'd told her last night, but apparently, it had been libratory for him.
And she was now responsible for prodding him whenever he closed up.
She could do that.
She thought.
Well, she tried to think.
Which was not exactly easy.
Because Edward was kissing her.
And he was serious about it.
It seemed as if he wanted to prove to her that he was in it for real. His lips were proving it. His tongue joined in. His teeth, his fingers, his breath, all were out on a mission.
It was tender, and it was hot.
The way he tasted, the way he smelled.
He was passionate and careful at the same time.
His hands strayed to the sides of her breasts, but never further.
They were panting for air by the time Bella was straddling him on the loveseat, feeling that other parts of his body were trying to prove something, as well. One part, in particular.
"Bella," he mumbled between kisses. "Bella…"
"Hmm…"
"You're so beautiful." He kissed the side of her neck, which made her sigh. "And you feel so good, baby… But… can we… can we slow down?"
For a second, it was as if he'd emptied an ice bucket over her, but Edward pulled her closer, as close as humanly possible, and put his face on her chest.
"Not because I don't want to, because… I want to, believe me, I do."
"Yeah." She made one tiny move against him, and he groaned. "I believe you."
He kissed her again, sweet, full lips moulding with hers.
.
Later, when they'd finally stopped kissing and were making dinner, Bella realized that Edward just needed to talk more.
She could do that, as well.
And it wasn't awkward at all. He told Bella a little about the intricate relationship Irina had had with her sisters, and the difficulties with her parents when she'd decided to stay in Europe for good.
He didn't go into any of it deeply, but it was good to have the pink suede elephant out of the room. Bella felt much better now that he'd told her the truth.
It was Edward who ultimately changed the subject, asking Bella what he could do to help with their dinner.
"Can you stir the pasta again?" she said, looking up from her cutting board.
"Sure."
"Edward?"
"Yes?"
They looked at each other.
She smiled, stood on her tiptoes, and kissed him.
"Good that you're here."
.
After dinner, they settled down to watch Hello, Dolly!
Edward had never seen it, and they were laughing all the time, making fun of the costumes, the dialogue, and themselves.
They had opened a bottle of wine, and Bella had one glass and Edward two.
She'd asked him earlier whether he wanted to spend the night, and his large smile had been enough to answer her question.
They went to bed around midnight. Tonight, there was no shyness.
They snuggled up to each other, shared tender kisses, and fell asleep in each other's arms.
oOo
Thank you all so much for your ongoing support. Words cannot express how much it means to me.