Disclaimer: I own a lot of crap, but I don't own Twilight.
A/N: So I'm a little over 32k words into Nano. Good times. Lots and lots of writing going on. Thank you all so much for the reviews (and the cookies)! I also want to wish those that celebrate Turkey Day an early Happy Thanksgiving. I will be posting next Saturday, but not until after 430 central time. A big shout out to Chylex28 for her awesome beta skills.
Design For Life
A tattoo is a true poetic creation, and is always more than meets the eye. As a tattoo is grounded on living skin, so its essence emotes a poignancy unique to the mortal human condition. ~V. Vale and Andrea Juno, Modern Primitives
BPOV
I was warm, so incredibly comfortable and warm. A strong male arm was wrapped around my waist, and a large hand cupped my breast. Upon realizing that, my eyes flew open. Edward was copping a feel! I knew that if he woke up and realized where his hand was, he'd be flustered and probably upset. On the other hand, his reaction would probably be hilarious, and I was really enjoying the feel of his hand.
Behind me, Edward let out a contented moan and pulled me in closer, wrapping his arm around me tighter.
"Bella," he moaned, before thrusting up against me. Oh, my. The boy was packing. I wiggled a bit against him, and he let out another moan.
"Mmmm ... my beautiful tattooed angel."
I did my best to stifle the giggle that was threatening to erupt, but was unsuccessful. My giggles woke Edward up, who was obviously a bit confused.
"Bella? What—" he began, then jerked his hand off my breast. "Oh, my God! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to grope you. I'm so, so sorry!"
I let loose with a laugh. He was so damn cute. "It's fine. I didn't mind," I told him, rolling over so I was facing him.
He had rolled onto his back, the covers slipping down a bit, and I could see the tent in his pants. I couldn't wait to get a hold of that; of him. The man was too sexy for his own good, and the fact that he didn't even realize it, made him even more appealing. He'd thrown his arm over his face, hiding his face from me.
I tugged on his arm, but he refused to remove it. "Edward, please don't be embarrassed."
"I can't help it. I grabbed you without your permission," his muffled voice said.
I rolled my eyes. "You didn't do it on purpose. Honestly, Edward, I didn't mind. It felt nice."
Reluctantly, he removed his arm and looked at me. His face was bright red. I couldn't resist leaning over and giving him a quick closed mouth kiss. I didn't want to kill him with my dragon breath. I snuggled up next to him and put my arm around his waist, holding him close. My hand traveled up and down his chest, reveling in the muscles that lay hidden there. He was super built, but he was well toned.
"Did you sleep okay?" He asked me.
"Best sleep I've had in a while. You seemed to have slept well yourself. Any interesting dreams?" I asked.
"Uh—why do you ask?"
"Oh, no reason. You just seemed quite happy to see me this morning," I told him, my gaze drifting to his groin.
Immediately, his hands flew down to cover his crotch, causing me to roar with laughter. I couldn't help it, and I felt bad, but it was too funny.
"I'm sor—sorry. I'm not laughing at you, just at your reaction."
Still covering himself, he rolled away from me, and curled up. Aw, fuck. I wrapped myself around him. I'd really fucked up.
"Edward?" I asked, pressing a kiss to his shoulder.
"What?" he whispered.
"Please look at me. Please."
Slowly, he turned his head. His face was even more red than it had been before. Sitting up, I reached over and rested my hand against his cheek. "Why are you so embarrassed? It's a natural reaction. I know you know that."
"Of course I know that. I'm not stupid," he said harshly, then his voice softened. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap. I—ugh."
He flopped over onto his back, allowing me that wonderful view of his body again.
"I just don't want you to think of bad of me," he mumbled, unable to meet my eyes.
"Why would I think bad of you? Unless, of course, you were getting hard because you were thinking of someone else."
"What? Of course not. The only woman I notice is you."
"So, that's all for me, is it?" I asked with a grin.
"Uh ... yeah."
"I'm a lucky girl," I purred, licking my lips, and causing him to flush.
"Huh," was his response.
Getting up, I headed into his bathroom to brush my teeth and use the bathroom. Once done, I headed back to the room and was delighted to see that Edward was still in bed. The tent in his pants had gone down, and I was a bit sad to see it go. Hopefully, I'd be seeing it in person soon. Excusing himself, he went into the bathroom and exited a few moments later. He climbed onto the bed and sat down next to me.
"Good morning, my Edward," I said, leaning in to give him a proper kiss.
He opened slowly as I deepened the kiss, settling my mouth on his, tasting and teasing. After a few minutes, he broke the kiss, and started kissing my neck; nibbling on it. I threw my head back, letting out a moan. With one last kiss to my neck, he raised his head and planted another kiss on my lips.
"Good morning, my Bella."
We sat back and gave each other goofy grins. I could so get used to waking up with him. Eventually, Edward got off the bed, held out a hand, which I took, and we went downstairs to get some breakfast. It was while we were sitting there, eating Eggo waffles, that it hit me why I had spent the night at Edwards. I sobered up fast. As if sensing my mood change, Edward scooted his chair next to mine, and rested a hand on my shoulder.
"Mark will be here soon. Why don't we go get dressed."
Finishing the last bit of my waffles, I put my empty plate in the sink and followed Edward upstairs.
"Did you want to use my shower? I can let you borrow a clean shirt until you get home to change."
"That'd be great. Thanks, Edward," I told him, giving him a quick kiss.
Taking the towel and shirt he provided, I headed into his bathroom, closing the door behind me. The boxers that he had given me last night were still on the counter, so I figured I could wear those until I got home to put on some real underwear. I took a quick shower, inhaling the wonderful spicy scent of his body wash, not minding at all that I would be smelling like him all day. It was comforting, in fact. I opted not to wash my hair, figuring I could do that later. Stepping out of the shower, I dried off, threw on the boxers, my bra, and jeans. I held up the shirt he gave me, inhaling his scent. I loved the way he smelled. Once dressed, I headed back into his room to see that he was already dressed.
"I showered in the downstairs bathroom," he explained.
My breath caught at the thought of Edward naked. Hmmm...I bet he looked sinful. I was brought out of my lustful thoughts by the ringing of the doorbell. Holding my hand, we headed down and opened the front door.
"Morning, kids," Mark greeted us.
"Morning, Mark," we said.
"You ready to do this, Bella?"
Clasping Edward's hand tighter, I gave Mark a nod. We left Edward's house and walked over to mine, where we were met by one of Mark's deputies. My door was covered with a plastic sheet and police tape. Lovely. Ducking under it, we entered my house. Edward let out a gasp at seeing the living room, while I let loose with the swear words. Whoever the fuck did that was going to pay.
My couch was turned over, the cushions ripped and thrown over the floor. Pictures that I'd had on the mantle over the fireplace, were smashed on the floor. Rage was curling up inside me, ready to let loose.
"Is anything missing?" Mark asked, standing near me.
Blinking away tears of anger and rage, I looked through the carnage. Some of the picture frames were empty, and I let Mark know. He nodded and wrote it down in his little notebook. Taking a deep breath, I grabbed Edward's hand and headed upstairs toward my bedroom. I paused outside it, gripped Edward's hand a little tighter, than pushed the door open. My bed looked like a victim from a horror movie. The bedspread, sheets, and pillows were slashed. My underwear drawer had been rifled through, and I noticed that some of my more naughty lingerie was missing. I was pissed. It might not have been La Perla, but it was still damned expensive. I let Mark know that my lingerie was gone, as well as the journal that I kept in my bedside drawer. I didn't see anything else missing, and as we headed back down I heard a familiar voice.
"Is she okay? Was she hurt?"
I rushed down the stairs and found Esme standing in my living room. I'd totally forgotten about the Sunday Cullen brunch. The minute she saw me, she wrapped me up in a huge hug, rocking us back and forth.
"Oh, you poor girl. Are you okay? Were you hurt at all?"
I shook my head. I explained that it had happened while Edward and I were on our date. She gave me another fierce hug, telling me how glad she was that I was okay.
"You can't stay here until your door is fixed. You can stay at the house with us," she told me, fiercely.
I was taken back by how wonderful she was.
"Mom, Bella's staying with me," he told her, looking at me to confirm. I gave him a nod and a small smile.
Esme gave us a brilliant smile. "You let me know if my boy isn't on his best behavior."
I let out a laugh. "I don't think Edward's capable of misbehaving."
"Sweetie, he's a man. I'm sure he'll misbehave at some time or another. I'm pretty confident that you will keep him in line," she said with a wink.
Edward let out a groan, but shut up when Esme shot him a look. I snickered. I'd have to learn how to do that. Esme turned back to me.
"I know a good contractor who can get you a new door in a few days. I'll give him a call in a minute."
"Oh, you don't have to do that," I protested.
"Don't be silly, dear. You're family. I'll also have him hook you up with a security system as well," she said, before pulling out her phone. She walked out onto my porch, phone at her ear, talking a mile a minute. I immediately saw where Alice got it from.
Turning around, I surveyed the living room. I was going to have to throw out my couch, and that really pissed me off. I'd bought it new when I moved up here. I went into my kitchen and grabbed a garbage bag, a broom, and a dustpan, before heading back to the living room. Edward saw what I was doing and grabbed the broom from me.
"Let me."
I gave him a nod, willing the tears that I felt gathering, not to fall. I started gathering up the stuffing that had come out of the cushions, shoving it into the garbage bag.
"Stupid fucking asshole! When I find out who did this, I'm going to tear his fucking balls off and feed it to him," I ranted, shoving stuff into the bag forcefully, until the tears that I'd kept at bay started to fall. God dammit! I wiped away the tears, angry at myself for letting them fall; angry that I'd let who ever had done this get to me.
Strong arms wrapped themselves around me, and I turned my face into Edward's chest, letting the tears fall. He held me tightly while my tears fell, whispering comforting words into my ear. Finally, my tears stopped, and I pulled away. I was positive I looked a hot mess, but Edward didn't seem to care. He brushed away my tears with a gentle hand, pressing kisses on my cheeks.
"Feel better?" he asked softly.
"Yeah. Thanks for letting me cry on you," I whispered.
"Anytime. You never have to hide your feelings from me."
Esme had come in at some point and finished what I'd begun. She wrangled Mark and Edward into carrying my broken couch out to the curb, then she swept up the rest of the mess. Mark's friend from the Port Angeles P.D. had shown up and dusted earlier that morning, and Mark let me know that they hoped to find out who broke in soon.
"Chances are good that it was your ex, but I'd like to know for sure," he told me.
After promising to keep me in the loop, Mark left. Esme, Edward, and I re-taped the plastic tarp that was serving as my temporary door, before we headed back to Edwards. Esme insisted that I take a seat on the couch, while she made us some tea.
"My contractor will be over around three today, to take measurements for your door," she said from Edward's kitchen.
I thanked her as she handed me my tea.
"So what are you kids up to today?"
I looked at Edward, and he looked at me, shrugging. We hadn't formulated any plans.
"We might just hang around and watch movies or something," Edward told her.
"Why don't you kids go out for the day? Go out and have some fun. I'll stay here until Ryan arrives. Go. Shoo!" she said ushering us out the door.
We stood on his porch, staring at the door, trying to figure out what had just happened.
"Uh ... guess we're going out," Edward said, a bit stunned.
"Guess so," I replied, equally stunned.
"So ... what do you want to do?"
I shrugged. It was cold and snowy, and I had a set of bruised ribs, not to mention a headache had formed.
"Well, we could go to a movie in Port Angeles," he suggested.
"Sure. We can do that."
Walking to his Volvo, he opened my door for me, then closed it before climbing into the driver's side. The ride to Port Angeles was quiet, with the sounds of classical music filling the car. I couldn't even find it in myself to be annoyed by it. We arrived at the move theater and decided on a comedy. I hated romantic movies, and Edward wasn't in the mood for horror. Edward bought our tickets, as well as some candy and popcorn.
"This movie is awful," he whispered in my ear, about twenty minutes into the movie.
I snorted out a giggle. He was right. The movie was horrible. "Maybe it'll get better," I offered.
"One can only hope."
Forty-five minutes later, it still sucked. The acting was a joke, and the jokes were lame. "It hasn't gotten any better. This movie isn't very entertaining," he whispered.
"I know. How about we make our own entertainment?"
"Uh ... okay," he said, sounding a bit uncertain.
I figured that Edward had never made out in a movie theater before, and what better time than now to introduce him to the joys of it. I had purposely made sure that we sat in the last row, despite his objections. Pushing the arm rest that was between us, up, I leaned over, resting my hand on his thigh. I heard his breath hitch and speed up.
I cupped his cheek, turning his face toward mine, before I lightly brushed my lips over his. I slid my hands up to his neck, then delved into his hair, tugging on it. I couldn't get close enough to him. Waves of warmth rushed over me, and my body lit on fire when he let out a low moan. His tongue traced my lips, and I opened, giving him entry. His tongue was tentative at first. His taste drove me insane, and I couldn't resist nipping at his bottom lip. He pulled away, breathing heavy, before diving back in. For a man who wasn't experienced, he was one hell of a kisser. Lost in our kiss, I almost didn't notice his hand running up and down my uninjured side, from my waist to the underside of my breast. My boy was getting bolder. A bout of laughter from others in the theater, broke us apart. We were both breathing heavy, and I could see the blush rising on Edward's cheek.
"Much more entertaining than the movie, huh?" I asked.
"Oh, yeah. I've never made out in a theater before. I can definitely say I enjoyed it."
Looking down at his lap, I could see that he'd enjoyed what we'd done. I pretended to focus my attention on the screen, as he discretely adjusted himself. We spent the rest of the movie, sneaking kisses and making fun of the horrible dialogue. We left the theater with smiles on our faces. I'd had a great time, and I was fairly confident that Edward had as well. We opted for dinner at McDonalds, relaxing as we ate.
"That had to be one of the worst movies I've ever seen," he told me, taking a bite of his burger.
"How would you know? We barely even watched it," I said with a smirk, reaching over to wipe away a spot of ketchup on his chin.
He grinned while blushing. "True. I did enjoy that part of the movie the best."
"As did I."
It was close to six by the time we arrived back at Edward's house, and I saw Esme's car was still in the drive. I felt bad that we'd taken off, leaving her to deal with my mess. I said as much to Edward as we got out.
"Bella, my mom kicked us out, remember? She loves decorating, and all aspects that go with it. Don't be surprised when she picks out a new couch for you and redoes your whole house."
We walked into his house and found Esme sitting on his couch watching HGTV. She gave us a beaming smile when she saw us.
"Hi, kids. Did you have a good time?"
We told her that we did.
"I'm glad. Ryan will be able to get your door installed tomorrow. I hope you don't mind, but I took the liberty of picking out a new door for you. I also have some ideas regarding a new couch and bed for you. We can discuss that tomorrow," she informed me.
Once again, I got to spend the night with an amazing man. Esme had grabbed some clothes for me and laid them out on Edward's bed. Deciding that I preferred Edward's shirt, rather than my boring penguin pajamas, I opted to wear that to bed. As I was brushing my teeth, there was a knock on the bathroom door. Edward poked his head around it, and flashed me a shy smile. How he could still be shy was a mystery to me, but I loved it. And that was when it hit me. I truly loved him. More than I'd ever loved another man before. I had to steady myself against the counter for a moment.
"Are you okay?" he asked, concerned.
"I'm fine. Just got dizzy for a second."
He frowned. He was such a worrier. "I'm okay, really," I said, touching his face gently. That seemed to appease him and he left the bathroom. I headed into the bedroom and found Edward lying on his side of the bed. I was glad to see that he'd forgone the shirt. My side of the bed was turned down, and I crawled in, snuggling up against him right away. His arm came around me, pulling me into his side, while his hand traced a pattern on my arm.
"I had a great time today, well, once we were kicked out of the house. Not to say that this morning wasn't enjoyable. I mean—the time that we spent before we went to your house," he rambled out.
"I had a wonderful time, too. I always do when I'm with you."
"I'm so glad that you're in my life," he whispered, so softly I almost didn't hear him.
"Me, too," I said, before placing a kiss over his heart.
I was amazed at how comfortable and how right it felt to share a bed with Edward. My last conscious thought was that we were meant to be.
Monday was—Monday. Edward and I had forgotten to set the alarm in the morning, so we woke up rushing. I was without my truck while it was in the shop, and I had a minor freak out, trying to figure out how I was going to get to work. Thankfully, Esme showed up and offered to drive me to work. Giving Edward a quick kiss goodbye, I climbed into her pretty little Audi.
"Thank you so much for driving me to work," I told her.
She waved her hand. "It's no problem. Oh! I found the perfect couch for you. I'll email you the link to it."
I thanked her again when she dropped me off in front of Eclipse.
"Bella!" Jake roared, wrapping me up in a gentle hug. "So," he said with a grin.
I raised an eyebrow.
"C'mon, woman. Spill."
"We want details of your date," Seth called from the back.
I sat down on the stool behind the counter and waited for Seth to come out from the back. The minute he did, they both looked at me.
"We ate at Bella Italia, then went back to watch movies at his house," I told them.
They just started at me. "That's it?"
"Yup."
Jake shook his head. "I'm so disappointed in you. I would have thought you'd have at least copped a feel."
"Nah, Edward did that last night."
That got their attention. Both their mouths dropped open. "Uh oh. No way!" Seth said with a grin.
I let out a laugh. "Okay, so he was asleep when he did it, and mortified when he realized it."
"Hold it," Seth said, raising a hand. "You're telling me that you slept with Edward?"
"Slept as in slept. We shared his bed since my house was broken into."
Twin looks of shock and outrage met me. I quickly explained what had happened, and my suspicions that Laurent was behind it. Their faced darkened.
"I knew that bastard was up to something," Jake growled.
"What?"
Seth nodded. "He stopped by Friday, looking for you. Threw a fit when we refused to tell him where you were."
"Why didn't you tell me?," I asked, a bit outraged that they kept me in the dark.
"Sweetie, we knew you were on your date with Edward and didn't want to ruin it. We honestly didn't think Laurent would show up at your door and assault you."
I let out a sigh. I wasn't really angry with them, just at the situation itself, and Laurent. The rest of my day went by quickly. We were incredibly busy for some reason, and I was glad for the distraction it gave me. A little after one, I took my lunch break, opting to eat in the back in our little break room rather than go out. I checked my phone and felt a smile cross my face when I saw I had a text from Edward.
Thinking of you. Hope you're having a great day!
I sent him a text back, then spent my lunch reading the latest book by Christie Golden. After my hour was up, I headed back into the shop and stopped upon seeing Seth and Jake in a heated embrace. Good God! I could feel the heat rolling off of them in waves, and was in fear of being scorched.
"Ahem," I cleared my throat.
The boys pulled apart, giving me sheepish smiles. "Sorry, Bells," Jake said, a satisfied smirk gracing his lips.
"Yeah, you look real sorry."
"Oh, uh—" Seth began, taking a moment to gather his thoughts. "There's an expo coming up in Seattle in two weeks. We'd like you to go and represent us if you're willing?"
"I'd love to! Are you sure you want me to represent Eclipse, though? Wouldn't it be better if one of you went?"
I was giddy with the prospect of going to the expo.
"Nah. You're a great artist, and we have faith that you'll represent us just fine. Besides," Jake began with a smile, "Seth and I will be out of town that week."
"Oh, really? And where are you going?'
"Hawaii!" Seth practically shouted at me.
"Our anniversary is next week, and Seth's wanted to go to Hawaii forever. I've been saving up for years to be able to take him," Jake said, a soft smile on his lips.
I was super excited for the both of them. I threw my arms around them, hugging them close.
"I want to see lots of pictures! And I want a palm tree, and some sand. Maybe a bit of the ocean as well."
By the time Esme picked me up, I was wishing I was the one going to Hawaii. The shop had gotten super busy, not to mention it had started snowing again. Esme kept up a constant stream of chatter on the way home, and I didn't mind. When we pulled into my drive, I was surprised to see a bright blue door gracing my house. I loved it immediately and told her so.
"Bella dear, I hope you won't get too mad, but I went ahead and got you a couch," she said, tentatively.
"Oh." I didn't quite know what to say to that. I hope it isn't ugly as sin. Climbing out of her car, Esme handed me a set of keys, and a piece of paper with a number written on it. She explained that it was the code to disarm the security system that had been installed. I unlocked my new door, punched in the code, and walked into my living room. There, where my old couch used to be, was an amazing couch. It consisted of purple curves and even deeper purple swirls, with black velvet trimming. It was so me.
"Wow! It's amazing!" I exclaimed, throwing my arms around her, giving her a hug.
She let out a laugh, patting my back. "I'm so glad that you like it. I saw it and thought of you."
"How much do I owe you?" I asked, after pulling away.
She waved her hand. "Don't worry about it."
"Esme! I can't let you go and buy me doors and couches."
"Bella, dear, I got a discount on both of them. It was no big deal."
"If it was no big deal, then you'll let me pay for them."
Realizing that I wasn't going to let it go, Esme caved. "Fine. You can write me a check for fifty dollars."
"What? Esme, I'm not stupid. I know that they all cost more than fifty bucks."
Esme crossed her arms over her chest, shooting me a mom look. "I won't take anything more than that."
Letting out a huff, I dug into my purse and pulled out my checkbook. I wrote her a check for fifty, then made a vow to find a way to pay her back. A while later, Esme left, after making me promise to come to dinner on Thursday. I sat down on my new couch, enjoying the feel of it. It was fabulous. I shot a text off to Edward, letting him know that I was home, and to come see my new couch.
A knock on my door alerted me that he was there. I opened the door, only to see Chief Hunter, Mark, standing at my door. He did not look like a happy man, and I felt a sinking feeling in my stomach.
"May I come in?" he asked.
I opened the door wider, allowing him to pass through. I offered him a seat on my new couch, before sitting down opposite him.
"Bella, I've got some news," he began.
a/n: There you go. So ... did we enjoy this chapter at all? If so leave me a little something. You know, a slice of pumpkin pie, a review, maybe RPattz. You know, whatever.