Hi! Happy Friday. Thanks to my favorite ladies for helping me out and to you for reading. :)

Blind Ambition – Chapter Four

"How was today? A little better?" Bella asked while filling the tub with warm water.

Edward made a noise in the back of his throat, making Bella laugh quietly.

"She's tough, huh?"

"She's something," he muttered. Although…if Edward were to be honest with her, he really enjoyed his sessions with Leah. She pushed him more than anyone in his family or circle of friends had, and expected more from him, too.

"Well, that's why we picked her, baby," Bella told him, helping him slip into the warm water. He moaned quietly in relief, feeling his muscles relax, and his fiancée smiled. "I'm going to wash the dishes." She kissed the top of his head and started to walk away, before Edward reached out quickly and caught her hand.

He raised his eyebrow suggestively. "How about you join me?"

Bella shook her head. "Edward…you can't."

He sighed and rested his head on the wall behind him. "I can. You won't."

"I don't want to hurt you," she said softly.

"Sweetheart, trust me. That's the last thing I'm thinking about right now." He pulled her closer, until she was sitting at the edge of the tub. Bella leaned forward, taking Edward's face in her hands and kissing him gently.

"I love you," she whispered against his lips, and then she was gone before he could respond.

He sank into the water, feeling dejected and rejected, and tried not to let it get to him. Honestly, he didn't know how sex would work, or even if it would work the first time. He just knew he wanted her…and wanted her to want him, too. The situation felt similar to how it had been when his sight first began to deteriorate. For a while Bella didn't know how to even try to get intimate, and Edward had been frustrated with the kid gloves she insisted on using with him. Eventually they'd worked it out. It was even fun for Edward, learning how to get things done differently, focusing on using everything except his sight. If anything, it made being together better once they finally tried again.

Edward didn't press the issue any more that night, even though he wanted to try. Instead, when they crawled into bed, he asked about the wedding plans.

"How are things coming along?" he asked, as Bella settled her head on his shoulder.

"Fine," she answered, shrugging and yawning.

He chuckled and kissed her head. "Just fine? We're going to have a fine wedding?"

"No, everything is going well. I'm just tired. I've been working on a tough account all week and hoping I don't lose it to Tyler."

"I hate that guy," Edward whispered.

Bella forced a laugh. "Yeah. He's a jerk."

"Okay, get some rest then. We can talk plans tomorrow." He rolled, pulling her against his chest, enjoying the way she fit against him, and looking forward to talking about their wedding.

xXx

Edward woke up to an empty bed in the morning, and his phone chirping with a text message. He made his way to the bathroom, phone in hand as it read him the message from Bella.

"Went into the office for a little while. See you this afternoon."

He frowned, but didn't bother responding. Saturdays were supposed to be days they spent together watching movies, going to farmers' markets, or shopping. Bella had been working more on the weekends within the past couple of weeks, though. Edward couldn't help to think that maybe things were busier for her than normal.

Or that she was hiding something.

Instead of worrying about it, he dressed himself (albeit slowly without an extra pair of hands) and called Jasper to pick him up and take him to the store.

"We don't work on Saturdays," Jasper grumbled as he helped Edward into his car.

"Now we do," Edward replied with a smile. "You can just drop me off if you want. I just have a couple of things to do."

"No, I'll stay. Alice's hormones are in full swing, and I swear to sweet little baby Jesus in his cradle, if she yells at me one more time I'm going to move out," Jasper told him, though he knew his friend was joking.

"She's pregnant, what did you expect?"

"But…you know how high-strung your sister already is? It's doubled," Jasper whined while Edward laughed.

"I am…not sorry about that. I lived with her for eighteen years; it's someone else's turn to suffer."

"Whatever, I'll just send her to hang out with Bella."

"Go for it, maybe she'll actually talk to Alice," Edward muttered, though he immediately regretted it.

"Trouble in paradise?" Jasper asked.

"I don't know. I think all of this," he broke off, gesturing to himself, "is a lot for her."

Jasper frowned and shook his head. "Well, it's a lot for you, too. Don't forget that," he said, squeezing his friend's shoulder tightly.

Edward nodded, feeling somewhat comforted, and happy that he'd finally admitted something out loud: that maybe things were going as well as he thought they were.