oOo
Bella stared at him.
"You… Are you serious? Are you sure? You… you want this?"
She gestured between them.
He nodded imperceptibly, green eyes sparkling with relief.
"And you…" She bit her lip, and felt her cheeks get warm. "I mean… I mean, we haven't even…"
"Bella."
He let go of her hands and pulled her close, swiping her hair back over her shoulders.
He passed his knuckles over her cheek, and she leant into his touch.
His voice was low, like velvet and sandpaper, when he spoke.
"I'm falling in love with you, Bella."
And for once, Bella Swan was speechless.
She stared at him, unable to make a sound. Her limbs felt quite wobbly. In stark contrast, her heart was beating a wild tattoo.
"Bella?"
A tiny crease between his eyebrows.
"Bella? Could you… Can you please say something?"
The slight panic in his voice finally pulled her out of her haze.
His eyes were clearly asking a question that seemed to come straight from his heart.
"Yes," she said.
"Yes?"
A tiny lopsided smile.
"Yes. Yes, I want to be your girlfriend." She twined her arms around his neck. "Yes, I'm in love with you too."
"You are?"
"Of course, silly."
And with that, she pressed her lips to his and they kissed like they had never kissed before. It was soft and slow, and filled with the promise of things to come, and with love.
"I was such a fool," he whispered against her lips, "to not have realized earlier…"
"Mmm…" She pulled his lower lip between hers and closed her eyes again.
He was deliciously stubbly, and she knew her mouth would be red and itchy, but she couldn't have cared less.
Her fingers caressed the hair at the back of his neck. So soft.
She couldn't remember everything feeling so right.
His arms around her, his lips, his tongue, everything seemed as if it was meant to be exactly this way. So close.
She knew that they still had some serious talking to do, but she trusted Edward, and she was all right with them moving at their own pace. Some sixth sense told her that their connection was real.
Things weren't perfect, but they were moving forward. And now, they were doing it together.
"Are you coming with me?" Edward murmured against her lips.
"To your house?"
He chuckled, a sweet sound deep in his throat.
"I'd say anywhere if it wasn't so corny. Yes, to my house." He pulled back a little bit. "Or did you have anything planned? I'm sorry, I shouldn't assume –"
"I'd like to come," she replied, nuzzling his nose with hers. "I'm not ready to let you go again…"
"You're not going to get rid of me for a long time," he whispered, and Bella's heart flip-flopped.
oOo
You likey?
xoxo
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harperpitt