Disclaimer: The characters are the sole property of Stephenie Meyer. I only play with them. :)

Epov

I heard Bella's sweet voice ringing down from the top of the stairs, and turned around, eager to drink in the sight of my love.

What I saw left me speechless.

Bella looked stunning. Just staring at her perfection created an ache in my chest that nearly bowled me over, and it took physical effort to keep my knees from involuntarily collapsing out from under me. Her face, still as beautiful as it was every day, was stunningly accentuated and brightened. Her hair looked like silk, and her lips, so full and pink, begged to be kissed. The ache grew stronger until I had to do something, anything, because I felt closer to fainting than should be physically possible for a vampire. I suddenly felt the overwhelming need to close the distance between us.

In the human blink of an eye, I was at the top of the stairs, and I scooped Bella up, drawing her close to me. I then slowly descended the stairs; however, halfway down, I realized the warmth of her skin on my arm, and stopped dead.

"Edward?" she asked, frowning. "What's wrong?"

In the span of a second I was standing at the bottom of the stairs. I set her on her feet, gently, as though she was made of glass, and then turned her around. The sight of her almost-bare back set flames raging through my body.

I spun her around to face me, and murmured, "That dress looks entirely too good on you, love," before closing the final distance, the distance between her lips and my own.

This kiss, more so than most of its predecessors, pushed me to the edge. Her lips were so sweet, the fragrance of her so enticing, that I almost wanted to forget the whole evening I had planned, and spend it doing other activities instead…

"Edward! Don't you dare!" snapped Alice from the top of the steps where she still stood.

Her voice cut through my reverie, and I pulled back abruptly, turning my head to take a deep breath of air that wasn't drenched with Bella's enticing smell. I looked back at Bella, only to meet a very confused face.

"What? Did you say something, Alice?" she asked.

"Nothing, Bella. Just reminding Edward to control himself, and stick to tonight's plans. Apparently that dress is too good on you, Bella," she added with a grin.

I could kill my sister right now. Bella looked back and forth between the two of us, clearly confused. Suddenly, realization seemed to hit her, and she rapidly became tomato-red.

My eyes closed, I pinched the bridge of my nose and said "I apologize for my ungentlemanly behavior, Bella." Worried that I had made her uncomfortable, I slowly opened my eyes to catch a glimpse of her face, expecting embarrassment to meet my gaze.

I was completely and utterly shocked to find a grin quickly spreading across her face.

"Thanks, Alice," she called up the stairs, still grinning, her eyes locked on mine. Although I thought it might kill me to look away, I tore my gaze back to my sister, who shared Bella's grin.

"We're leaving now," I stated abruptly, feeling uncomfortable under the piercing gazes of my sister and my love.

Letting out a chuckle, Alice called down, "Have fun you two. But not too much fun," she added, and laughed.

I led Bella out the door, planning to berate my sister later. "Bye, Alice," Bella called over her shoulder, before catching stride with me.

I helped her into the car, and then got in myself. I leaned over and buckled her seatbelt. Sitting up, I put the key in the engine and glanced over at Bella, pleased that I had managed to stop whatever conversation would have been started in there. However, the smile on her face told me that the subject was far from dropped.

It's short, I know! But I've got all sorts of stuff to do today. I'm sorry it took me so long to update. The next chap should be up soon )

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My.Personal.Lullaby