The Twilight 25

Prompt: Slip

Pen Name: CherBella

Pairing: EdwardxBella

Rating: M

All copyright and trademarked items mentioned herein belong to their respective owners. The remaining content is all mine. No copying or reproduction of this work is permitted without my express written authorization.

~*~ Slip ~*~

He rushed as quickly as he could without arousing suspicion, to the end of the room. He had to get to her before she slipped away again. The balcony door was slightly ajar and without hesitation his hand grasped the handle and threw it open, startling the lady in red on the other side. As she whirled around at the commotion and he finally laid eyes on her for the first time, all breath left his body.

Everything in the young Lord's body stilled as she looked at him…as he looked back at her…trapped by her gaze, by her beauty. Muscles forgot how to move, lungs forgot how to breathe, words could not form. Dark mahogany hair pinned up, a few stray tendrils loose about her perfect alabaster face, pale except for the rouge blush on her cheeks and the luscious red on her perfect plump lips. The graceful curve of her neck leading down to her creamy, almost bare shoulders. And the dress, the treasure he had hunted for all evening–sumptuous red satin flowing from cap sleeves on her shoulders over her breasts and swirling downward to her small waist, draping softly over her curves and falling in waves to the floor. There was beading and other décor highlighting her décolletage, and continuing down the flow of the dress.

The vibrant red was such a beautiful, bold contrast to her creamy, flawless complexion.

He couldn't take his eyes from her. She continued staring at him, expectantly now, waiting on him to explain his explosive entrance.

"I…I'm sorry to disturb you, my Lady. Forgive me for my brash intrusion," he babbled reproachfully.

She lifted her head slightly. "Okay…you're forgiven."

The silence continued.

"Is there something else?" her voice was delicate yet strong, not at all like the squeaky vapid tones of the countless ladies in pastel in the next room. The melodic sound carried through the air and vibrated through every cell of his body. Her voice also held a definite English accent, so whomever she was here with tonight, she was definitely not Italian. His heart soared at that small piece of knowledge.

"I'm sorry…"

"You do apologize a lot." She cut him off before he could finish.

He was still grasping, searching for words. Just being in her presence affected him in a way he was not accustomed. He took a deep breath of the cool night air, and tried again.

"I noticed you out here alone, I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

She raised an eyebrow as if she knew he was lying. "I am fine, thank you, Lord, I simply needed some fresh air and a moment…" she hesitated, her turn now to search for the appropriate, inoffensive word.

"…away from the pompousness? The unbearable pretentiousness? The ignorant insufferable gossips?" He sympathetically finished her statement for her as she just stared at him dumbfounded.

Suddenly her lips curled up into an impish smile and her eyes twinkled in amusement. The sound of her laughter warmed him all over.

"Well…yes, yes and yes, I guess you hit the nail on the proverbial head, as they say."

"I frequently find myself searching for an escape at these events myself, or a quiet place to hide out. When I saw you out here, I immediately recognized a fellow refugee."

She cast her eyes downward as her whole face dimmed. She made a movement toward the other door "I really should be…"

Desperate to keep her from leaving, he stepped closer toward her. "As fellow fugitives from the inanity it is only proper that we introduce ourselves." He bowed his head slightly. "I am Lord Edward Masen."

He immediately reached out his hand to accept hers, as was the etiquette when greeting a lady. She looked uncomfortable at his request but finally acquiesced. She extended her gloved hand and tipped her head as well.

"Isabella Swan, M'lord."

Isabella. Grasping her hand in his, he leaned down to place a gentle kiss on her hand. "Lady Swan, it is such a pleasure." Isabella. God what an exquisite and fitting name for the stunning creature before him, he thought to himself. Isabella. He couldn't get enough of that name; he wanted to shout it from the rooftops.

"Just Isabella, M'Lord…I am no lady," she spoke quietly.

Misconstruing her last statement as humility, he answered her in kind, "And I am just Edward, I've never had any real care for my title, either."

He continued to stare at her in adoration while still holding her gloved hand in his. Even though a layer of silky fabric separated their naked fingers from touching, he felt a current of heat flowing between them and he was reluctant to break it.

He felt a tug from her hand, acknowledgement that he had prolonged the moment longer than was acceptable. But he refused to let her go.

"Isabella, it would honor me greatly if you would accept a dance with me." Please say yes, please say yes, his mind pleaded silently.

She sighed resolutely and nodded her head demurely. "As you wish, m'Lor…Edward." She caught herself in the slip and corrected herself, using his first name as he had instructed her.

He grinned broadly and finally let go of her hand so that he could open the door for her. He motioned toward the inside. "After you, Isabella."

As she slipped past him, he lightly placed his hand at her waist to guide her inside and onto the dance floor. A new waltz was just starting. As they turned to face each other, she placed one hand on his shoulder. He grasped her other hand in his and held it up high. His other hand he placed lightly on her back. This time his fingertips did touch her bare skin and the heat, the electricity of the touch was stronger. She felt it too as she shivered and her back arched. He felt her breathe in unsteadily as her eyes darted all around. The pull of his eyes boring into her was eventually too hard to resist as she finally lifted her lashes and looked at him. For a brief moment her eyes widened, betraying her vulnerable emotions. His heart leapt with hope that she was feeling the same way he was. But then the music started and she blinked, turning her gaze away to some point over his shoulder.

They turned and twirled to the tinkling music, round and round, in perfect synchronization, two halves of a complete whole. They were so wrapped up in each other they didn't notice the stares and the whispers–"Young Lord Masen…dancing with her!"

When the song finally ended they were breathing heavily from the exertion and their eyes were shiny as they looked at each other. Again, there was a look of desire and exhilaration on Isabella's face, as Edward's hands remained on her body, holding her as close to him as was acceptable. He was so aware of every part of her body–her head tilted up to gaze at him; her breasts moving up and down with every breath, a bead of sweat trickling down her chest; her hand, even gloved, was damp in his; her full red lips now wet as she nervously licked them. He began to lean down to kiss her, when the mask closed over her face again and she pulled roughly away from his grasp. She bowed gently toward him.

"Thank you for the dance, Lor…Edward." She murmured politely. And then she was gone, slipping away into the crowd again, as the dance floor started to fill up for the next dance. Edward remained rooted in his spot, shocked that she was gone that quick. The music starting up for the new dance and the couples swishing by jostled him out of his trance and he moved off to the side, beginning his frantic search again for his lady in red.

~*~O~X~X~O~*~

A/N: When I was doing some research to determine exactly what time period I wanted to set this story in, I based it mostly in the style of fashion I pictured Bella wearing. (Alice would be proud I'm sure :) This dress was the basis for Bella's red gown and also gave me the approximate era:

http://i915 (dot) photobucket (dot) com/albums/ac359/CherBella09/Twi25%20images/gown003det (dot) jpg

The story is set in 1910. It was only after choosing the year that I discovered this time period (lasting from1901 to 1912, 1914 or 1918 depending on the source) was known as the Edwardian Era. Total coincidence, I swear! :) If you're interested in more information, check out the wiki article below or just envision the Titanic movie for visual reference. :)

http://en (dot) wikipedia (dot) org/wiki/Edwardian_era