A/N:Thank you all for the feedback last chapter. I got very mixed reviews on pretty much everything except for seeing the Cullens… so rest assured that will happen. As for the Quileute boys and whether or not the villain will be James and Victoria or someone new…. That's still up in the air… so if you're very opinionated on one of those two topics…. Include it in your review again, and I'll go with the majority.
Of Curses and Cures
Chapter Eight
December 6th, 2008
He stills at her question. Doesn't she know how much he longs to kiss her every moment of every day? He's been witness to hundreds upon hundreds of kisses in the minds of others, but the only kiss he ever wants to know is hers. He glances again at her bruised wrists, and his chest feels hollow, empty.
He takes hold of one wrist, raising it to his face. He studies the purpled prints for a moment, his movements almost mournful, then presses a cold kiss to the marked skin. He kisses each bruise and by the time he reaches for her other wrist her knees are weak and her pulse racing.
"Edward." She rasps, her mouth strangely dry.
"Mm?" He questions, his mouth continuing his quest.
She doesn't answer, but her erratic heartbeat tells him that something is wrong, so he looks up. Her face is a vivid red and she looks as though she might pass out at any moment.
"Breathe Bella."
She sucks in a desperate breath, feeling her lungs expand in welcome. He glances back at her wrist, specifically the two bruises he still has left to go. He contemplates for a moment before dropping her wrist and stepping away from her.
She groans and he ducks his head shamefully. "I'm sorry."
"What in the world are you apologizing for now? The sinking of the Titanic?" She breathes.
"Don't be ridiculous, Bella—I was only eleven when the Titanic sunk."
There is a momentary pause before her jaw drops in an audible gasp.
"You were eleven in 1912?"
He nods hesitantly, wondering if this is the moment where she will finally realize her mistake and walk away from him for good.
"No wonder." She whispers to herself, before turning her attention back to him, "What what it that you were apologizing for exactly?"
He ignores her question, "What did you mean by that? By 'No wonder'?"
She blushes and replies, "I asked you first."
He regards her for a moment, skeptical, but she turns her expectant gaze on him and he has to look away. He isn't sure how to say what he needs to express, but he's certain that if he could blush, his own face would match hers for once.
"I've never… I'm not…" He pauses and groans in frustration. "I'm new at this… I didn't mean to—"
"Nearly make me faint from pleasure?"
It is his jaw that drops now. "Pleasure?"
The word rolls off his tongue sensually, and it sends shivers down her spine.
"You mean… you were okay with that?"
"Okay?" She questions, bewildered. "Edward that could never be described as just okay."
He grins widely and she laughs.
"Proud of yourself?"
He nods happily. "So if it wasn't just okay," he smirks. "Then what exactly would you describe it as?"
She knows he's fishing for compliments now, but she is still slightly light-headed and the scent of him is surrounding her in the most wonderful way.
"Mmm… I'm having trouble thinking of the word for it." She replies, "Perhaps, you should do it once more, to you know, jog my memory."
He places both hands on her cheeks, and she has to hold onto his forearms to keep from swaying.
"Only if you'll tell me what you meant by 'No wonder.'"
Her cheeks are dusted with pink once again, but there is a strange glint in her eye.
"Well… I had assumed that your many years of life explained your… um, talents. I figured you'd had lots of practice." She is rigid by the time she finishes her statement, her jaw clenched tight, and he wonders
if she's jealous… not that there is anything of which to be jealous, but the look on her face is adorable, nonetheless.
"I said 'no wonder,'" she continues, "Because I thought the years accounted for the way you can dazzle me with very little effort whatsoever."
He trails a finger lightly along the silken skin of her neck, and whispers, "I dazzle you?"
"Frequently."
He leans close to her, his breath fanning across her face. "Well, if it's any consolation… I find myself quite incapacitated in your presence also."
He stares into her eyes, marveling at how much had changed since he leapt through her window the night before. He would forever be grateful for his distracted state that kept him from realizing she'd been awake after all.
"Well… what are you waiting for?" She smiled, "Dazzle me, already?"
She expects him to return again to her wrist, but his eyes flick briefly to her lips, and her heart thuds heavily in her chest.
He feels almost as though there is a magnetic pull between them. He hesitates unsure of whether or not to test himself, especially considering the way he'd nearly harmed her not long ago. But his eyes glance towards her lips once more, and they are so moist and parted and welcoming .
He bends towards her, but at the last minute, his doubts overtake him. He hears her disappointed sigh, and instead places a small kiss on the juncture between her neck and shoulder. Her breath catches, and she sways in his arms.
He suppresses a chuckle, focusing again on the soft, warm flesh of her neck. Her blood pulses wildly in her veins. He can see the miniscule movement of her pulse point, and he inhales deeply. Her scent crashes over him in waves, and it's almost delightfully suffocating. He's never smelled something so marvelous.
He kisses directly over her pulse point, the very evidence of her life—vibrant and active beneath his lips.
Her hands slip from his arms and settle on each side of his neck. He can feel the beat of pulse in each hand, surrounding his neck, and for a moment he feels her heartbeat as though it is a part of him, too. He traces his lips from her pulse point to the base of her neck and then back. Her hands grip his neck tightly and the warmth envelops him.
He places another kiss on the corner of her jaw just beside her ear and whispers, "I love you."
He finds it funny that it took him decades to find a woman that interested him, but only days to fall madly in love with her.
"And I love you."
He hadn't intended to kiss her fully, intent on taking things slowly, but at hearing the words from her mouth, he loses control. He crushes his lips to hers, immediately feeling her bury her hands in his hair. The kiss is not careful, but it is honest. He pours all of himself into it—his joy, his passion, his guilt, his hope.
He offers up all of himself.
The man.
And the monster.
And she matches him completely, accepting everything he gives her.
He pulls away before it can spiral even more out of control.
She gasps, and it takes a moment for him to realize that the morning sun is shining through her bedroom window.
"Dazzling is right." She whispers, pulling a finger from the sparkling skin of his neck up to his strong jaw and the marble smooth expanse of his cheek.
"There is so much I don't know about you." She whispers.
"And I you. It's torture not being able to hear your thoughts."
He pulls back and lies across her bed, his long legs dangling off the side. At her confused look, he smirks playfully, "Didn't I tell you I could read minds?"
Her jaw drops and he laughs. He opens his arms to her in welcome, and she climbs on the bed, snuggling up against his side.
She is struck by how different he seems already, so much more carefree. She had worried that the little incident this morning would have set them back greatly, but he seems relaxed. She wonders if he's forgotten for the time being, but knows that's a vein hope, by the careful way his arm is situated around her shoulders. She shakes the thoughts from her mind, choosing instead to relish the touch of his cool skin on her heated flesh.
They spend the entire morning asking questions back and forth, discovering truths, discovering each other.
It is late in the afternoon when she yawns against him, burrowing her head into the crook of his neck. "Can we just lie like this forever?" she mumbles.
And a part of him, the selfish part, wants nothing more than to grant that wish.
A/N: Short again, I know. I'm going to try and lay out the rest of the plot this week, so if you have a request, suggestion, or particularly strong opinion on what characters should or should not appear or what events should or should not happen… speak now or forever hold your peace.
And I now pronounce you wonderful readers, you may kiss the bride (also known as… leave a review).
smiles