A/N: So, this chapter was a horror to write, and I have a million terrible excuses-you know, Bella wouldn't talk to me because she was too high, and I had a hellof a time dragging the chapter out of her, Edward's kind of a jerk when he's drunk and I didn't enjoy seeing him with a bloody nose, I almost wrote an entire chapter dedicated to Emmett's body (after admiring photos of Kellan Lutz frolicking on the beach, of course)... etc. So... uh... Erm... We'll just get right to the chapter, shall we?

P.S. Do you take lemon in your water?

P.P.S. I don't own these people. I wouldn't mind seeing Edward in a collar, though...

BPOV

"Bella, would you like to go for a swim with me?"

I looked at his hand, which was shaking a little. Was it shaking because I was high or because he was unsure of himself? The blood coming out of his nose was making me queasy, and I started laughing. Edward was bleeding, and I was queasy.

Bleedy, meet queasy. Like the seven dwarves on crack. I continued to cackle at my inner monologue.

His eyes narrowed and he started to move away from me, turning around and lumbering toward the water. "Bleedy!" I yelled. I started laughing even harder before I ran and launched myself at his back. He nearly fell, but managed to steady himself.

"The fuck is wrong with you, Swan?" he spat out at me, struggling to hold me with one hand while the other clutched his still bleeding nose. We were in the water suddenly, and I clung to his back with everything I had as he waded deeper.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, nestling my face into his hair, smelling him, feelinghim. His hair was so soft, I reached up and grabbed a handful, pulling gently. I had dreamed about touching this hair. It was softer than I'd thought it'd be. It always seemed like it would be... coarser, if only because he was constantly pulling it.

"Edward," I whispered, attempting to sound serious, "your nose is bleeding."

He turned his face just enough to look at me with anger and slight surprise, and I grinned at him. He let go of me, and I squeezed my legs tighter around his waist. "No sir, no you don't." I ran a hand down his chest as I clung to him. "Your body feels too good to let go of." Shit, the things I say when I'm out of sorts. Once, at a party, I got so hammered that I'd announced to the water polo team that I was open for business... I learned to shut up after that. Or so I thought.

I giggled again, and his jaw started twitching. "Edward," I whispered again.

"Yes, Bella?" he asked through gritted teeth. The firmness of his jaw didn't fool me. His breathing was ragged under my touch. I licked my lips before trying again.

"Edward," I whispered, brushing my nose against his ear. "Is there anywhere quiet on this beach? Someplace where we could go talk?"

Was he shivering? Why was he shivering? I giggled again. I realized that he was up to his chest in water, which meant most of me was in water, too. The water was freezing... I think. I wiggled my toes and felt everything get a little hazy. I absently made circles with my fingers on Edward's beautiful chest, leaving a trail of goose bumps in their wake. I looked out at the water, and it was beautiful. Small ripples danced across the surface, and I sighed as the warm body below me grew steadily cooler.

I looked down at his face again, and he appeared to be considering something. He'd let go of his nose, and it was no longer bleeding. His jaw was twitching again, and his eyes were narrowed in concentration, brows drawn together. He thought for what seemed like forever, and then his face finally relaxed. He shook his head slightly. Why was he shaking his head?

"Bella, I'm going to take you back to the edge of the water. I have to clean the blood off my face, then we'll go find someplace... to talk," he snickered this last part, and another uncontrollable giggle escaped me. Silly boy. Did he really believe I wanted to do more than talk right now?

I didn't have the heart to tell him that, yes, I really didjust want to talk. I'd woken up this morning to a nice... surprise. I was fucking pissed, but there wasn't anything I could do about it. I'd known to expect it, but really, did my body need to remind me of my woman-ness on today, of all days? Of course, it was a great incentive to not try to jump Edward before I really knew him. I still wanted to have a cleaner reputation here, and I couldn't pull that off if I started screwing everyone in sight, however much I knew I neededto get laid. Plus, there was still the matter of his pushing and pulling.

Here one day, ran away the next? As much as I didn't want to believe I'd caused him to skip school, I couldn't forget the way he'd eyed me before he left that day. Alice later told me in class that Edward sometimes just took off, just to clear his head. She said he had a tendency to get extremely stressed sometimes. Was I stressing him out?

He brought me back to the water's edge, setting me down almost gingerly. I reached up and brushed my fingers down his nose; I couldn't help it. I needed to touch him, even if the blood still made me nauseous. His eyes fluttered momentarily at my gesture, then he turned away. Once he was deep enough, he dropped his entire body into the water, causing me to giggle yet again. He resurfaced, shaking his head hard to get the water out of his hair.

It. Was. Fucking. Hot.

I shifted my body, realizing that it was cold. As much as I wanted to watch Edward's body coming back towards me from the water, I needed to get a blanket. I watched him a moment longer. Water streamed down his defined chest, down his stomach, down into the seams of his trunks. Because of the water, the trunks clung to his body, and heat coursed through my own as I caught sight of the silhouette of his manhood in them. It made me shudder. Even in spite of the cold water, he was packing something impressive. Once again, I fought the urge to reach out and touch him.

I turned around and started marching to where the others were, vaguely aware of the sand moving between my toes. It felt magnificent. As I approached the rest of the group, I saw that Emmett's hands were still under the blanket, and a look of peace was floating across Rosalie's pretty face. Lucky bitch. Alice was still curled into a ball, her head in Jasper's lap, and he was still singing Dylan to her. He'd stripped down to a beater at some point, I guess while we were in the ocean. I watched the muscles in his arm as he reached over Alice for a beer that was seated in the sand. Something about his arms was off. I squinted, looking closer. I felt my eyes go wide, and I was suddenly very unsure of what I was seeing. I gasped when I realized that yes, I wasseeing it. A million different thoughts ran through my brain, trying to work out what exactly had made his arms look like that. Upon closer inspection, I noticed they spread up to his neck, as well, and disappeared below the hems of his beater. Fear tugged at me for my new friend, amassed with a heavy amount of worry.

He looked up at me as he took a swig, his own eyes squinted. I looked down in embarrassment, and when I looked up again, he was humming softly and petting Alice's head. He looked right in my eyes, and a nervous blush overtook me. Before I could say anything or give an apologetic glance, two strong arms were suddenly around my waist, and I squealed as giggles overtook me yet again. Rosalie opened her eyes and scowled at us, but Emmett and Alice smiled. Jasper's face remained stoney, and a wave of guilt overtook me. I hadn't meant to ogle him the way I had. My flight instinct kicked in, and I tried to turn to face Edward, but he held me tightly. Water was dripping off of him, freezing every part of my body that it touched. He rested his head on my shoulder, tipping his chin down and staring blatantly down at my chest.

"Swan," he breathed in my ear, "you're gonna get frostbite if we don't get you bundled up soon."

My eyes closed very briefly and I sighed shakily, and when I opened them again, he'd let me go. He moved to where Alice and Jasper were, picking up two huge beach towels and a large blanket. He wobbled back over to me and wrapped a towel around me, rubbing my arms to warm me up again. I smiled gratefully at him, and he winked in response.

He wrapped his own towel around himself, the held out a hand to me. I accepted it, and we moved away from our friends.

"Behave!" Alice shouted after us.

I grinned at her over my shoulder, sticking my tongue out. She laughed, and Jasper finally smiled at the sound. It made me feel better to see him smile again, and when I met his eyes, he smiled warmly at me before going back to petting Alice. I felt loads better, even if I was still worried for him.

We moved slowly across the beach, silently. It was becoming colder and colder, and I realized finally that I was coming down. When I started shivering, Edward stopped me and wrapped the blanket around us. He wrapped one arm around my waist, and I mimicked his action, loving the feel of his warm skin against me. He held the blanket closed with his other hand. When I looked up at him, he had that concentrated look on his face again, as though he were debating something with himself. He noticed me looking and gave me a small smile before nodding towards a small, moderately secluded strip of land.

There were trees and brush all around, and if I'd still been high, it probably would've scared the shit out of me. Everything was starting to look black as night descended upon us.

Edward pulled us so that we were sitting in a tiny dune of sorts, wrapping the large blanket around us and bringing me close to him. I could feel the thrum of his heart in his chest, and it gave away what his breathing didn't: Edward was nervous. I got smug at the thought. The golden boy was nervous.

I couldn't recall a time yet when I'd seen him nervous, and a thrill shot through me. I was winning. Victory was going to be outrageously sweet, when the time came. I'd never wanted anyone sexually the way I wanted him. Granted, I was still very young, but the hormones that he spiked created a high that was purely biochemical, and thatwas a high I wouldn't be coming down from anytime soon.

I wiggled a little closer to him, and he squeezed me tighter. His arms felt delicious. I leaned my head against him, and I could've sworn I felt him smell my hair. I guess he enjoyed my salty goodness?

"So, Bella," he began. I could still smell the alcohol on his breath, and I remembered that he'd downed a couple chugs of vodka before we'd gone in the water. He couldn't possibly be sober right now. Was that why he was being so friendly? Realization dawned on me, and I felt a little panicked. His voice was kind of gruff, though, and it turned me on to hear him speak lowly like that. "What would you like to talk about?"

I had half a mind to smack the cocky out of his voice, but before I could say anything, one of his thumbs was running up and down my stomach. My breathing picked up a little, and I momentarily forgot my fears and that I shouldn't be doing this.

Yes, fuck yes!My body screamed. So long. It had been so long.

I snuggled against him more, and was rewarded with the sound of his breathing growing heavier. I turned my mouth into his neck, my lips touching it but not kissing him. I could feel his pulse pounding as I breathed hot and cold against his throat, and then not one but two hands were rubbing my stomach. I could feel his jaw clenching on top of my head, and he was breathing loudly through his nose. He nudged my head with it, and I pulled back to find him staring at me with heavy lids. I was positive that my expression matched his own.

"Bella," he whispered, licking his lips. He looked me square in the eye. "Would you mind terribly if I took advantage of you?"

I chuckled, a low, almost guttural sound. This boy was driving me mad. I turned enough so that I could splay a hand on his chest and push him away slightly.

He frowned at my action. I bit my lip and his nostrils flared again.

Mmm. I was really enjoying turning him on. Justin had never reacted like this. He was always down for the action, but the buildup was never his strong suit. A girl liked to be warmed up first, you know? Foreplay is absolutely necessary, and most of the time, it's hotter than the actual fucking. Scratch that-it's alwayshotter than the actual fucking. Especially when it's a slow, intense buildup... Edward knew what he was doing. This cemented it. I hadto have him. Just not tonight.

I shrugged out of his grip, smacking his hands away as he tried to grab me again. "Ah ah ah. Down boy," I whispered. He groaned somewhere low in his throat, and it sounded close to a growl. I wanted to hear that noise again, desperately, but tonight just wasn't the night.

I decided I could push things a little further, but not by much. As long as I remembered my personal limitations, this could actually be quite fun. I could bring him to an edge he didn't know he had, and then I could pull back. I'd have to forget my planned interrogation for another evening.

Yeah. Leave the bastard wanting more. Stresshim a little.

I smirked at him and his eyes smiled back at me, sexy and dark. I moved so that I was straddling him, and he brought his hands to my hips to pull me down.

"No, Edward," I whispered. I grabbed fistfuls of his hair, gently, and brought my mouth to his ear. "Not yet." He groaned again, and I arched up to rub my tits in his face. His tongue traced the space between them, and I fought to not moan-I only wanted to encourage so much.

He spread his fingers wide on my back then clawed me, again trying to drag me down to sit on top of him. I pulled his hair harder this time. He needed to know who was in charge. Not him.And in spite of being dangerously close to giving in to him, I knew I could still hold my own. To prove this to myself, I stared sternly into his eyes. His mouth was slightly ajar and he panted as his tongue darted out to wet his lips. I smirked again, realizing just how fun this could be.

I moved my mouth to his, breathing against his lips as I had with his throat. Mmm. Edward's mouth.

He pushed up to kiss me, thrusting his pelvis up at the same time, and I dropped his mouth to my throat the second his erection touched me. Motherfucker. I moaned when he nipped lightly at my neck. Yes. No, shit! Damn it. This couldn't go much further.

It wasn't even the right week. Thanks a lot, Eve. Fuck up this amazing opportunity for gratuitous nudity, all for an apple; dumb bitch.

I rolled my body against him, just once, just enough make him dig his nails into my back again. His breathing was out of control now, and he thrust up against me once more, causing me to moan again. I'd never wanted a boy more than I did in this single moment, and as he brought a hand up to my chest, I felt my knees go weak. Instead of groping me or pinching my nipples, he put his palm directly on my sternum. His other hand mirrored this position on my back, and the heat radiating between his hands was becoming unbearable.

I wasn't supposed to give him this control. I had to fight this. I was in no position to-

"Bella," he whispered, running his nose along my jaw. "I want to taste you."

FUCKINGHELLFORTHELOVEOFALLTHATISHOLY!

My heart began pounding rapidly in my chest, and he moved his hand up to throat, pulling me down to his mouth again. As much as I wanted to let him have his way with me, as sexy as his admission was, now was not the fucking time.

I swear, the whole fucking universe was against me.

He dragged his thumb below my jaw, and I wanted it. I wanted it so bad I could've screamed. My body was shaking with desire, and the heat between us was burning my skin. I wanted nothing more than to rip off his trunks and take him into my hands and feel the weight of him before impaling myself on him. I wanted to explore his glorious body, to lick every inch of his pretty skin, to count every freckle. I wanted to tell him every naughty thing I wanted to do to him, and I wanted to watch his face when he heard me describing my idea of the perfect night.

"Edward," I gasped out instead. How I didn't lose my mind in that moment, I have no idea. He was busying himself by licking the other side of my neck, the side he wasn't on the verge of choking. I knew it was dangerous to deter a man who was simultaneously biting and squeezing your throat, but I had to... make... him... "Stop."

He chuckled against my throat, his lips and cool breath making me moan again. "S'that what you want?" he whispered. "You want me to stop?" The hand on my back started traveling south, his fingers inching closer and closer to my ass. I lifted his face to mine again. Just as he was reaching his destination, I stared directly into his eyes. All movement halted as we breathed heavily into each other's faces. The tips of his fingers were barely in the fabric of my bikini, and I was just barely on the edge of saying screw it and begging him to screw me. I leaned my chest into him but pulled my hips away, slowly moving into a standing position.

His eyes got darker, a slow smirk playing on that beautiful mouth of his. I knew exactly what he was thinking, and it pissed me off to no end that I had to turn this down.

"Not tonight," I whispered, sadly shaking my head. "Not yet."

EPOV

She stood, pulling away from me, half naked in her bikini and glowing in the moonlight. Not tonight? The fuck? Why the hell not? I'd felt her heart pounding in her throat. I'd felt her giving in and trying to regain control of the situation. She wanted to be in control, but she still wanted it. So why was she pulling away?

The pain in my dick shot up tenfold as I observed her nipples through her bikini top and the goose bumps trailing down her hips. I reached forward and grabbed them, wanting to show her just how much I wanted her. She placed her hands firmly on my shoulders, shaking her head and stepping back.

"Not yet," she repeated, more sternly this time. I couldn't help but notice the irritation in her voice. Was she irritated that I wasn't stopping, or was she irritated that shewas stopping? I'd have to investigate this further at some point. I was highly aware of the fact that she wanted me. Her body was completely responsive to every movement we'd made, and her nipples weren't hard from the cold. Well, not justthe cold, at least. Her lips were swollen, her skin flushed. She was probably soaking that little bikini bottom. I eyed the space between her hips, pleased to recognize that she kept herself smooth. Why were we stopping, again? I frowned up at her, and she smiled slightly. She took a deep, composing breath, then shrugged at me before offering her hands to help me up.

I accepted, confused though I was. As she pulled me and the blanket and towels fell to the ground at my feet, I tried one last time to turn things in my favor. I was going to pull all the stops if I had to. Every single fucking one. I wanted this girl, and I wasn't used to being turned down. Victoria had beggedme. Jessica had bribed me. I would notgo down without a fight.

I wrapped an arm around her waist again, flexing against her. I put my other hand in her hair, mimicking the way she'd pulled my own, drawing her mouth close to my own. This time, I didget into her bikini, and I squeezed her ass hard as I ground my dick into her hip. Her eyes rolled into her head and I nuzzled her cheek, willing her to look at me again. When she didn't, I moved my mouth to her forehead.

"I want to make you scream," I said against her forehead. "I want to see what you look like when you're begging me to let you come," I breathed against her ear. "I want to feel you squeezing my cock with your pretty little pussy," I panted against her cheek. She moaned again, making my dick jump, and she shoved her hip into it while her hands scratched down my back. "I want to lick you clean after you've come all over me," I whispered against her mouth.

Her eyes flew open, and she stared up at me through her lashes. We swayed against each other, pulling each other closer and panting. Her breath was a hot contrast against the freezing Washington night, and if it weren't so cold and there wasn't so much fucking beach around us, I would've dropped her right there and pounded her ass into the sand. Hell, if she'd let me, I'd fuck her right then anyway.

I squeezed her ass harder, wanting to spank her but not able to because how tight her bottoms were. She dropped her head against my chest, moaning softly. Somehow, her hands were suddenly not on my back but in front of her face, and she was pushing me away.

No! Nooo! My dick cried. Please, no!

I sucked in a frustrated breath as she pulled away from me. She shook her head at me and gave me an apologetic smile that still managed to be sexy, then stepped around me and bent over to pick up a towel. The rejection was the final sobering blow, and all traces of alcohol burned out of my system in that moment. This time, I did smack her ass, out of horniness and sheer frustration. I was going to have blue balls, which was just thrilling. And here I thought Iwas indecisive.

She yelped, and the evil pieces inside of me rejoiced at the sound. A glare over her shoulder told me she was not amused, and I resisted the urge to grind myself into her ass. I smirked at her, not wanting her to see the second guessing I was doing mentally. She shoved the towels at me and wrapped the blanket around herself, then started to walk away without me.

"Hey!" I called after a moment, jogging a few paces to catch up. This girl was all over the place. Moving too fast, stopping too soon, walking away too quickly. Such a cock tease. Such a beautiful, confusing cock tease. She looked up at me as she halted and shrugged the blanket on, and I wrapped the towels around myself. They were still wet, so of course they were freezing. She knew this, and rolled her eyes, offering me the blanket. I took it, finally allowing my face to show my frustration.

She shook her head silently, still not willing to tell me why the fuck she was passing up the chance to fuck me. Okay, that sounds very cocky, but to my credit, I amgreat in bed. I've managed to give more girls their first orgasm than most men ever have, and I knew for a fact they weren't faking it. The key to knowing when a girl is faking it is to pay attention to her physical respon-

"Cullen, where the fuck you been? The girls are freezing, Rose is ready to go." I rolled my eyes at Emmett's hulking form. Rose was ready to leave. Yeah, of course she was, the killjoy. I was ready to fucking explode. All over Bella. Bella, who was giggling as Emmett got close enough to offer her his hand. Fucker.

He took note of her shivering form as he extracted her from our blanket, and quickly yanked off his sweater for her. She thanked him and accepted it. I glared at him over her struggle to pull it on. He had no right to be chivalrous towards my-my what, exactly? What was she to me?

He narrowed his own eyes at me, jerking a thumb towards where we'd been all day. Everyone was gone, as was all of our stuff. I looked to where the cars were, and could see a light on inside Rose's.

"You're driving my Jeep," Emmett said seriously. I nodded, understanding why. Jasper was probably so shitfaced he could barely walk. "Rose is too tired to drive, so I'm driving her car again."

"Same seating as before?" Bella piped up, finally having managed to get the sweater on properly.

Emmett laughed and nodded, then gave me a serious eye again. His voice lowered, though I'm not certain why. Only Bella and I could hear him. "There's a bag in the back seat, Alice knows to have it ready. Bells," he turned to address her directly, "you're sitting up front with Cullen. Cullen," he turned back to me dramatically. I snickered, and his eyes flared. "You better fucking drive the speed limit. I swear to hell if you make Jasper blow chunks in my car, I'll gut you." I rolled me eyes again. "Got it?"

"Yes, Emmett." I held my hand up in the boy scout salute, straightening my spine out. "I solemnly swear that I will not cause Jasper to puke in your Jeep." I knew Emmett was wary of drunken Jasper in the Jeep, but I was positive Rosalie had all ready told him flat out that she wouldn't be driving Jasper home. It made little sense in the logical way of looking at things, but the BMW's upholstery wasfar more costly than the Jeep's. And though they were the closest of siblings, Rosalie wouldn't think twice about throttling her brother for fucking her car up.

We made it back to the vehicles and Rose gave Bella an icy glare as we passed her car. She was pissed about the sweater. 'It's a fucking sweater,' I wanted to yell. I resisted, of course, but it wasn't without great effort. I was practically seething right now. I did my best to maintain my sense of control, but whatever the fuck had just happened with Bella was making my skin crawl. I'd given in, I'd told her how much I wanted her... and she fucking turned me down. I was ready to get on my knees for that girl, and she turned me down. I shook my head disgustedly and spat on the ground. What a fucking bitch.

Jasper was spread out in the back seat of the Jeep, Alice giggling in his lap. He was tickling her... I think. I hoped that's all he was doing, at least. I opened Bella's door for her, averting my eyes from her in extreme irritation. I was, however, grateful that Emmett had put the top on the Jeep. The last thing I needed was the girls complaining about how cold they were.

Jasper was singing again, off key this time, and it was Fleetwood Mac. Alice hummed along, and they played with each other's hands.

"Edward, pop in some Fleetwood, can ya?" I turned to deny his request, to tell him that they weren't present in my iPod, but Bella spoke before I could.

"Yeah! Rumours is incredible!" They began discussing the amazingness of the album, and I tuned them out as I slammed Bella's door behind her. I spoke briefly with Emmett, receiving another lecture about driving the speed limit, then told him to drive safe as well.

When I got into the driver's seat, Bella had plugged her own iPod in, and, sure enough, Rumours was playing through the speakers. Her and Jasper were singing along to "Go Your Own Way," and it was very clear that Alice didn't know the words. She merely bobbed her head along with them.

Bella's singing voice was interesting. She had a deeper, throatier sound than I would've imagined, and she wasn't quite in tune, but the uniqueness of her voice was actually quite pleasant. She had sort of a Janis Joplin thing going on. I felt myself calming at the sound very quickly, and what anger remained I tried to push down deep inside. She smiled at me when I put my arm on the back of her seat and threw the car into reverse, and I gave her a tight smile in return. My expression wasn't lost on her, but she didn't say anything. Instead, she went back to singing, leaning towards the window and staring out at the forest.

When we were a couple miles out, I began singing along softly as well, and she eyed me in surprise. I winked at her, having finally relaxed. Ah, she hadn't pegged me as a singer, either. I remembered to file that away for later. Most girls loved it when you sang to them, and it appeared that Bella was one of those girls. I'd have to use that to my advantage if-no, when-I decided I was ready to get her.

Now that she had turned me down, she'd lit a fire in me that I wasn't ready to put out. I hadn't had a good chase like this with a girl since... ever. The challenge was thrilling, I'll admit. I'd never had to go out of my way. I'd never actually wantedto, either. But Bella... she was bringing something primal forward in me. I'd never wanted to fuck anyone more than I'd wanted to fuck her. She'd be my undoing, I was certain. I glanced sidelong at her, and she was facing the backseat and crooning along with Jasper. I gripped the wheel tighter, shaking my head. Fuck.

The drive home was filled with sing-a-longs and laughter, like we were in some sort of road movie or something. It probably would've been fun if I wasn't so conflicted. I did my best to mind the speed limit, but once Jasper assured me that he was getting close to sober again, I resumed close to normal speed. I eventually caught up to Emmett, and he braked a couple of times to let me know how pissed he was that I'd sped. I flashed the high beams at him and Rosalie's blonde head popped out of the window, scowling at me. I barked out a laugh when she flipped me off, but there'd probably be some sort of hell to pay later.

When we arrived back at Rose and Jasper's, I paid careful attention to Bella's face. It was clear that she wasn't expecting the sight before her-the old Victorian house was obviously quite ancient. Esme had helped Dorothy Hale renovate it extensively, but there were still several pieces of the house that appeared more than a little dilapidated. I wondered what she thought of the juxtaposition of Rosalie's car with the house-would it strike her as odd? Would she wonder where the car came from, how it was afforded when it was clear the house still needed so much work? Would she care at all?

Jasper removed himself from the vehicle, but not before kissing Alice, then Bella's hand, then the back of my head. "Night, all," he said simply as he hopped out. He swaggered over to the passenger side of the BMW to open the door for his sister, and she took his outstretched hand willingly. Again, I noted Bella's expression. She looked positively shocked. This wasn't much of a surprise to me, but she had to know that Jasper and Rose were close. I supposed it could still be rather off putting to see a bitch like Rosalie accepting chivalry from any man.

I started to move to get into the backseat with Alice, but Emmett yelled at me that I was still going to drive. He walked Rose to the door, and Jasper disappeared inside before their kiss. Bella attempted to casually look away, but I saw a hint of longing on her face. Well, she had her shot at affection on the beach, had she not?I thought bitterly. So why was she going on girl on me now?

I glanced in the rearview to find Alice starting to doze. Poor girl used up a lot of energy stock when she subjected her body to the horrors of teen boozing and drugging. Part of me is certain she only indulges because the rest of us do, but part of me is convinced she does it to be closer to Jasper. It made me sad to see her putting herself at risk for him, but what little of a romantic there was in me felt renewed hope every time I saw her doing something like that for him. I also knew that he would never allow anything bad to happen to her, and that was perhaps the foremost reason that I continued to let her join us in our activities.

The drive to Bella's house was mostly quiet, save for the very end. Emmett pulled Alice close to him while she slept. "Keeping her little body from being thrown all over the goddamn place," he explained. Made sense enough to me. His Jeep wasn't exactly a smooth ride. I smirked as I snuck a peek over at Bella, and much to my joy, her chest was bouncing right along.

Once we arrived at Bella's, after nearly hitting a squirrel and Bella screaming and Alice waking up more confused than I've ever seen her, Bella gave me an apologetic glance. Everything I'd been attempting to deal with seared through my body with that look. My face must've displayed all of my frustrations, because she looked away sheepishly. Emmett began to get out to help her with her stuff, but I shook my head at him and got myself out instead.

I walked around the back of the Jeep. I was trying to work out what I should say to her, if anything at all. I didn't owe her any explanations, but her company was undeniably a great addition to my friends. Save for Rosalie, of course. If I did anything to fuck up the friendship Alice was creating... she might just kill me. Alice always wanted more friends. She never talked about it, because we were all so close and tight knit, but I knew. As much as we all loved each other... sometimes, you needed someone from the outside to come in and shake things up a bit.

Bella was our variable. I could all ready see it. She was important to the group dynamic now. And she'd managed it in a time span that would make anyone who'd ever tried to infiltrate us supremely jealous, not to mention curious as to how she'd managed it. Maybe she was a spy. Yeah. That would explain everything. She was an undercover agent. She was sexy, smart, funny, and really good at pretending to be sixteen and getting in with the right group of people. She was infiltrating us so that... so she could... fuck, was I actuallyhaving this train of thought?

I glared at her. She looked up at me and sighed, then shook her head.

"Cullen, look. Sometimes, a girl just can't fuck, okay?" I raised my eyebrows at her, willing her to continue. To my great delight, she obliged. "It's not that I didn't want to," she whispered, stepping closer to me. She smelled like Emmett since she was still in his sweater, and that was irritating. Her small hands reaching up to stroke my face? Not so much.

"I definitely wanted to." I let go of a deep breath. She ran her nose against my jaw, making it tense up. A flurry of thoughts began pulsing through my brain. Maybe I could bring her home with me. Fuck her into my mattress. Fuck her on my kitchen table. Fuck her in the theater room. Fuck her in the maze.

"But I'm not a whore."

She pushed off my chest, yanking her bag away from me and running up the path to her front door. She was in and the porch light was off before I could even register what had just happened. Emmett banged on the window of his Jeep, and I turned to glare at him. He flipped me off and mouthed for me to hurry the fuck up.

I slammed the door as I got in, ignoring Alice and Emmett's questions. As if being turned down weren't enough, she thought she'd be a whore if we had sex? Fantastic. One more obstacle to overcome. How on earth was I going to get into this girl's pants? And what if Alice was right? What if I wanted Bella a little more than I knew? Shit, what didI want? I didn't want her to think sex with me would make her a whore, that's for sure.

Endnotes: Let me know how you dig it, darlings. Your feedback is more helpful than you could ever know.

And, in case anyone was curious? NSotB = Non-Sex on the Beach. Aunt Flo is a cruel woman, you know.