Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters.

Author's Note: It seems that boredom and lack of sleep breeds chapters. I've been pretty much stuck in the recliner with my daughter velcroed to my chest since Wednesday. Thus being so, I've had lots of time to mentally work up this story, even if I haven't had the free hands to write it. So, when she went to bed and thankfully slept all night in her crib last night (Thank you Lord!), I was able to get this all down in the course of just an hour and a half before passing out in my own bed. I hope you like it.

Thanks as always to our beta AgoodWITCH. She's such a good fanfiction little sis.

**This chapter is only about 80% wuss perv friendly, (yeah, totally stole that warning from Clipped Wings and Inked Armor…if you haven't read it you really should!). Don't forget my little o~O~o to warn you it's coming and let you know when it's over. Don't skip the whole chapter or you'll miss crucial things.

***This chapter has also been edited to meet TOS guidelines. To read the uncensored version, please seek out the posting on twcslibrary dot com

*I'm issuing a TISSUE WARNING for the events at the end.*


5. Savoring Every Moment

Edward and I stayed locked away in our room, wrapped together under the covers and simply unwilling to let each other go for even a moment. Eventually the world outside begged for our attention. After five calls from Alice, we finally relented and agreed to meet our friends for a late lunch of hot dogs in Central Park.

As we walked up to them, it didn't escape our attention that the affection level had skyrocketed between these pairs. When we reached their side, I immediately saw the glinting from their fingers and screamed uncharacteristically. They both beamed at me, presenting their rings regally as I ran to hug them. Behind our loud excited chatter, I heard Edward congratulate his buddies with handshakes and half hugs with the requisite three pats on the back at the end.

The girls took up residence on each side of me, wrapping their arms with mine and leading the way as they told me all about how the boys had asked them and all the romantic trappings Emmett and Jasper had managed to garner for each of them. Once they were done, they began grilling me about married life, squealing excitedly about my new job. Rosalie was more than happy to be collecting my belongings for me.

My arms were beginning to really miss Edward after an hour of walking with the girls. I was so glad when their boys laughed before they ran up behind us. Jasper grabbed Alice's waist, peeling her from my side while Emmett simply stepped in front of Rose and planted a kiss on her lips. My arm was quickly abandoned to allow her hand to find purchase in his hair.

I giggled, watching the scenes unfold just as the warmth and comfort of my wonderful husband wrapped around me from behind. He rested his chin on my shoulder as he pulled my back against his chest. I blushed when I felt the evidence of his love for me against my back. He leaned in to kiss my ear teasingly before drifting kisses down my neck. I sighed, leaning my head away to allow him better access.

A duo of little old ladies walked past us, clucking their tongues at our less than appropriate public displays. I blushed, turning to tuck my head into the chest of my laughing husband while Emmett told them to look away if it bothered them. Jasper just fanned a hand at them before resuming kissing his girl.

I spent the rest of the day walking arm in arm with Edward. Most of the time, his free hand would reach up to caress the back of my hand wrapped in his given arm. Every time I looked up at him, which was quite often if I were truly honest, he was looking back at me with such love it made my heart ache. It was almost like he was afraid to look away, not wanting to miss a single moment. I knew how he felt. I wished I had a photographic memory so I could remember everything in perfect detail for the rest of my life.

The other four made themselves scarce around four o'clock saying that they had plans for the evening, leaving Edward and I to walk in the park alone. We meandered our way to Belvedere Castle taking in the views before working our way down to the Shakespeare garden. It was late spring, so many of the unique specimens on display were in full bloom and absolutely breathtaking.

As the day progressed into early evening and the sun began to set along the horizon indicating that yet another day had escaped us, I whimpered as I cowered into his side. I couldn't bear the thought of him leaving in what was now less than twenty four hours.

Sensing my sadness, Edward grabbed me and tugged me off the path to lean against a nearby tree, bracing his hands on either side of my head as he looked into my eyes with deep concern. He didn't have to ask the question weighing on his mind. He knew all too well what I was feeling, because the same emotions were brewing behind his own emerald eyes.

Suddenly, he leaned forward, pressing me against the bark as he claimed my lips desperately. I grabbed hold of his shirt, fisting it so tightly in my hands that I believed I might have loosened a few of the buttons. I pulled him closer, need and desperation overruling all else. His hands trailed knowingly down my sides as my body arched itself, desperate to be even closer. After a few moments, he broke the kiss, both of us panting as we stared in desperation at one another.

"Let's go back to our room, my love. I don't want to leave our bed again until we have to leave for the shipyard."

I sniffled, trying to push back my tears, and failing. The pained look on his face as he reached up to wipe my tear away did nothing for my resolve.

"I will come back to you as soon as I can, but I promise you…I WILL come back. I have to."

I nodded, wrapping my arms around his neck as I lifted to my toes, holding on with all of my might. I wanted so desperately to hold onto him like this and never let him go. They couldn't send him to war if I was permanently attached to his neck. If that was what it would take for him to stay and be safe, I would do it in a heartbeat.

Edward held me close as we made our way to Fifth Avenue where we caught a cab back to the hotel. If we hadn't been so desperate to get back and savor what little time we had left, I would have suggested walking, even if it was several dozen blocks, or taking the subway. I felt guilty spending his money so frivolously and wasting valuable resources. We had only been made aware last month that a food rationing system was being set up to be implemented soon, and other goods would soon follow. The biggest rumors centered around gas and rubber. It seemed that in a time when the gas we were using to cross town and the rubber being used from the tires should be reserved for our troops and to share as a nation that we shouldn't be wasting it frivolously like this, even if the rationing hadn't technically started yet.

I didn't voice any of this though. At the moment, I could have cared less about anything but the man beside me. He tossed money at the driver before escorting me swiftly through the lobby and to the elevator. The second the door to our suite was closed, we were wrapped together in a desperate embrace as our clothes began to fall to the floor piece by frustrating piece. We stumbled as Edward tried to step out of his pants while on the move toward the bedroom as my dress and slip were whipped over my head and tossed to the far end of the living area.

o~O~o

By the time we actually reached the bed, my bra had also been tossed aside. Edward worshipped me, moaning with looks of appreciation between delicious kisses. Just like his looks in the park, it felt as though he was going to take in every sensation of our activities with the intention of imbedding them as permanently as possible in his memory. These moments would be moments that we would hold onto with all of our might in those dark lonely nights while we were a half a world away from one another. These memories would be the bittersweet balm that would help us push through the moments of despair until we would be together again.

I pushed myself as close to his body as I could, straddling his legs, crawling onto the bed with him as his hands wrapped around my body, moving slowly up my back and sides. My body was still new to the experiences of making love, but it seemed to be pretty adept at figuring things out as we went on its own as I felt my warm lady parts rub against him through his boxers.

He groaned, burying his face in my neck and suckling the flesh there as his hands drifted over my thighs to the tops of my stockings, releasing them from the garter belt that held them in place. His lips drifted down across my collarbone as his fingers slid to the clasp on the back of my black lace garter belt, releasing it from my body before tugging at my panties to be rid of them as well, but not bothering with the stockings.

He laid back on the bed with his hands propped behind his head as he stared up at my newly naked body with a smirk. I felt the blush bloom on my face and stretch down my chest as his eyes roamed my form perched above him.

In an instant, my shy nature disappeared behind my desire for my husband, which was so much stronger than I ever imagined. His eyes grew wide and twinkled as he watched my posture change. I smirked down at him, before taking over this new and different way of being united. Everything was new to me, but it surprised me how different the sensations were depending upon the positions we were in.

We reached heaven together before I collapsed on his chest as we both fought for breath, our bodies trembling together. Neither of us cared that we were sticky and sweaty, nor did we bother to clean up since we both knew that this was just the beginning.

"I knew I was lucky when you agreed to marry me, but Bella, I had no idea just how perfect you were. I didn't think it was possible to find someone who honestly is everything you ever dreamed of in one single person. Thank you, Bella, baby. I love you…so much."

I began to cry more noticeably at his words. His brows furrowed a moment before he descended onto my mouth, devouring my lips and tongue as he began moving over me again. Every move, sound, and look we shared carried such intensity that it felt like I could die in that moment and never regret it.

After a few long moments of intensity, Edward wrapped his arms around me, rolling us over so that I was now on top. He smiled up at me with heavy lids full of desperate lust as I settled myself and began move above him. His hands drifted up my body, claiming my chest greedily.

"As long as I live I will never see anything more beautiful than this, Bella. Oh...uh…you are a goddess. I love you so…ugh…so much. Oh….Bella…I'm not."

I whimpered as he grasped my hips. My body began to tingle, the muscles in my groin twitching as I arched above him and screamed his name in the same moment that I felt him moan my name in pleasure.

o~O~o

I fell to his side as he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me close as I draped my knee across his thighs. He kissed me sweetly on the lips before brushing butterfly kisses across the rest of my face.

"You are everything to me, my beautiful Bella. Please let my family help you and take care of you. I hate that I'm not going to be here to do that, but I'm going to come back to you as soon as I can. I promise you, Bella."

We didn't get a wink of sleep that night as we continued to worship one another, taking turns memorizing every line of one another's body. I especially loved kissing his birthmarks. He had three, which I found particularly unusual. He had a rounded one on his right shoulder blade that was just slightly darker than the rest of his skin. The second was a thin line like one on his left thigh right at the midpoint between his knee and his groin that probably very few people besides myself, and possibly his parents, even knew about. The final one on was on his neck, just below the hairline. He said all the guys in boot camp teased that it was an everlasting love bite.

When the sun rose the next morning, my chest ached as though my heart was dying inside it. We lay together as I rested my head on his chest, counting his heartbeats and memorizing their tone. I breathed in his scent desperately trying to keep it in my memories.

When eleven o'clock came, we couldn't hide from fate any longer. We pulled ourselves out of bed and enjoyed a slow shower together before working together in a dazed state to pack up our belongings. I insisted that I provide the wifely duty of folding his clothes and packing them neatly in his duffel bag, slipping one of my handkerchiefs and a picture of me for him to find later. I hoped that they would get him through the long days ahead.

With heavy hearts, we opened the door to Esme who hugged Edward a long time before walking to me and tucking me lovingly into her side as Edward made one last check of the room before we checked out. Every step I took with them toward the lobby and then to the street where we caught a cab headed to the harbor, I felt were my last. A part of me was going to die when I had to say goodbye to Edward in one short hour. The part of me had only been alive for less than a month and yet if felt like such a massive part of who I was now.

When we reached the dock, we were surrounded by a sea of people, but somehow Emmett, Rose, Alice, and Jasper managed to find us. Edward gave Esme one last hug before wrapping his arms around me so tightly I felt like I couldn't take even the smallest of breaths, but I didn't care. I hugged back with equal ferocity, not able to bear the thought of him walking away from me in a few moments.

He finally pulled away with great difficulty to cup my cheek in his hand, brushing the tears away that were freely flowing from my red puffy eyes. I wished I could send him away with a better image, but I was hopeless. Taking a deep breath, he leaned in kissing me deeply before dipping me during the kiss and brining me back up before releasing me lips.

"I love you so much, Bella Cullen. I AM coming back to you. No matter what, I'll find a way. I love you more than anything, more than my own life. You don't just have my heart, you ARE my heart, so please take care of yourself. I couldn't live without my heart."

I burst into gut wrenching sobs as I nodded and hugged myself tightly to his chest. A loud whistle sounded, making me jump just before the chatter around us grew louder.

Edward leaned down and whispered in my ear. "That means I have to go, love. Be safe, Bella. I'll write you every day. I love you so much, sweetheart!"

"I love you too," I sobbed as I slowly released my fingers from behind his neck, watching as he backed away slowly toward the line waiting to board the boat. He kept his eyes locked with mine until he was lost from view in the sea of uniformed men all pressing toward the narrow catwalk that led to the boat that would transport them to the carrier just off shore.

A cold numbness worked its way through my limbs as hysterical sobs escaped me. I felt like my knees were growing weak when I felt three sets of warming, soothing arms around me. The bodies connected to the arms were also sobbing, but even in their tears, they held me up.

We stood in a tangle of four, watching as the men crowded the deck of the ship. I wiped at my eyes desperately searching for one last peek of my husband among the crowd. The sounds of chains being released and the catwalk being pulled away from the boat's hull informed me that I only had moments left. My eyes were frantic as they searched for my Edward in the crowd of waving arms and shouting faces. I was about to grow hysterical again when I heard Alice's voice shouting in my ear.

"There they are!"

"Where?" Rosalie and I shouted in unison, desperate for one last look.

Alice pointed and we followed her finger's direction to the very edge of the stern of the boat where our three boys were standing on the railing, waving frantically. I smiled through my tears, as the four of us pushed through the crowd toward the back of the boat waving with smiles on our faces as we screamed our oaths of love and blew kisses.

Edward's smile seared my soul as he blew me a kiss and waved again before placing his hand over his heart and pointing at me. "Keep it safe," he mouthed just before the ship pulled away. I nodded and cried as we watched them move further away, their faces soon dots on the boat, before the entire boat turned into a small dot on the horizon.

Alice, Rose, Esme, and I numbly shuffled our way back to the street. Esme hugged us good-bye, promising to stop by the apartment the next day to check in before disappearing in a cab. Alice, Rose and I sadly made our way back to our apartment where we all wordlessly moved to our beds and collapsed, none of us moving for the rest of the day.

Author's Note: Okay, is it crazy that I sobbed writing the end of this? I find myself living through these experiences a bit as I write them, but that was the hardest I've cried while writing a chapter since writing the end of the hostage scene in FDKK. Anyway, let me know what you thought!