As always: Everything and anything related to the Twilight saga belongs to Stephenie Meyer. This is a work of fiction based on her writings. No harm is meant by it.

Special thanks and much adoration to my beta Kelly.

"In no sense do I advocate evading or defying the law. That would lead to anarchy."

~Martin Luther King, Jr.

Chapter Eighteen: D is for Defy

Power was something Bella could never truly handle. She was definitely a follower and not a leader. She was never one to dominate a conversation nor was she ever one to defy the rules. She mostly let Edward handle that aspect of their friendship. She often teased him about it by calling him 'your highness' and 'your majesty' just to annoy him, but she hadn't done it in years.

That was a problem with their friendship at times-- Edward's need to control and Bella's inability to say no to him. It had led to them sneaking into Interview with a Vampire when they were eleven and to her cliff diving. Emmett never let that little fact slide. He tended to let Bella know that she lacked a backbone and the 'cojones' to tell Edward off.

Perhaps it was true, she thought about it on many occasions, but there was something behind her lack of defiance against her best friend and all his ridiculous schemes and adventures. She liked to see him happy. There was nothing more beautiful to her then Edward beaming that pearly white smile in her direction, even if it meant compromising herself in some manner, and she knew he was the exact same way.

If Bella was being honest, Edward's smile was breathtaking. Even when he was five and he lost his front tooth while biting into an apple during snack time, his smile was still precious—gap and all. He wore it proudly in the class picture, and her mother had found it adorable. Bella had found it cool because she had yet to lose a tooth, and Edward would drink water and spit it out through the gap. She could laugh at it now, the absurdity of it, but at five years old, it was a neat trick.

When Edward smiled, his entire face lit up, the corner of his eyes crinkled, and the tiniest of dimples appeared in his cheeks. Much like his father and Emmett, Edward had the Cullen family dimples, though his were far less noticeable than his brothers' were.

She loved that smile almost as much as she loved him. It was why she could never say no to him. It was physically impossible to. All he had to do was tell her his crazy scheme, be it burning crayons or losing their virginities, she would argue that it was a dumb idea, and Edward would simply smile and say that it would make him happy and that was all it took for Bella to agree. Edward often accused Bella of manipulating him by giving him the so-called "face", but he did the exact same simply by smiling.

It was just about damn near impossible to deny him anything when he was complacent, but when he smiled, it was as impossible as walking on water.

But to be fair, Bella knew she had her moments of command. It was recently that she had tied Edward to her bed. The thought made her blush still. She couldn't understand that. At the time, she had been unbelievably confident in what she was doing but afterwards when she thought about it, her entire body would flush red. It was inexplicable, the sudden boost of confidence she got whenever she was about to have sex. She was like a different person completely, and quite frankly, Bella loved that but again there was a downside to the revelation.

She was only that adventurous with Edward.

Yes, she had tried things in her past relationships, but never had she dared to do the things she had done with Edward. There was a sense of ease around him. She could be herself and come up with the craziest ideas, and he wouldn't argue about it.

He played along wholeheartedly.

The thought plagued her as Bella sat in her office. She had lived out some of the many fantasies that pervaded her dreams, but Edward had yet to let her get into his head and she was sure something kinky was lurking in there.

She continued to wonder what Edwards's fantasies were. Did he want to be a teacher and she, his failing naughty student? Did he want her in the back of his car? Or on the hood of his car like some Whitesnake video? She wanted to know. Though all her times on Edward's weekends had been mind blowing, they had been tame compared to her crazy role-playing schemes. Even last night had been serene. Last night had been so different from anything.

She was blindsided by images of last night on her way to work and even as she sat in her office. She had thought about it briefly that morning when she was getting ready, but at that moment things were clear and vivid in her mind, and the tears welled up in her eyes faster than she could blink them away.

Every single scar, from the most obscure burn mark on her arm from cooking him chicken one night to the jagged mark on her wrist was worshipped and apologized for, and each apology was so gut wrenchingly sincere. She saw it in his glazed over eyes. Last night was a sort of cleansing for Edward, though she had never blamed him for anything that had occurred. Last night had felt like never before, she was so tempted to call it love; they had made love last night. It had been slow, sensual, and incredibly emotional.

"Why are you blubbering?" Emmett asked as he barged into the office unannounced as he usually did. The intrusion had broken her thoughts.

He sat down in the chair in front of her, nonchalantly leaning forward to stare at her.

"Just thinking about something sad. And good afternoon to you too," she greeted him, her tone giving off how riled up she was.

"Oh, bitchy today I see. Are you on the rag?" he asked laughing as he dodged a stapler she threw at him.

"Why are you down here? Today is Thursday, doesn't that baseball player, the closet gay, come in today? The one with a crush on you?"

"Yeah, but he has an away game. I came down to inform you that your presence is warranted at my house Saturday for dinner."

"Who's gonna be there?"

"You, my dumbass of a brother, Alice, her fiancé, and probably my folks. Though I don't know if I want them coming because that means they have to stay over."

"They're your parents Emmett. You're supposed to enjoy their company," Bella pointed out as she shifted her focus back onto the manuscript she was reading. She had been rereading the same page since the daydreams started plaguing her.

"Yeah, and I love them all, but my mother thinks it's fine to wake Rose and I up at six in the morning the next day. I love her, but I want to sleep."

"Jackass," Bella muttered under her breath, but it didn't go unnoticed. She was still trying to focus on her work.

"Hey, hey, I resent that. I'm being civil here and you're being an über bitch. What the hell crawled up your ass? Did you break it off with your new guy or something?" he suggested, tossing a Post-it pad onto the papers she was staring at. She knocked the sticky notes over and looked up, her eyes furious.

"Emmett," she began, preparing to unleash all her pent up frustrations on him, but at the last moment she took a deep breath in, and apologized instead. "I'm sorry, Em. I just have a lot of work to do, and I keep getting distracted. Tell Rose, that Edward and I will be there, and that I'll call her tomorrow afternoon to see if she wants me to bring anything. What time should we be there?"

"No problem, Belly. You can get there around six, but I'm sure Rose will tell you more about it," he chuckled, noting the way Bella's lips were pursed. She was annoyed, but trying to keep it contained.

"If that's all Emmett, please, I have to get back to work, and stop calling me Belly!" she griped, standing up and pointing at him. Emmett laughed loudly and walked out, tossing a wave over his shoulder as he shut her office door.

"Are all Cullen men, infuriating?" she spoke aloud not expecting anyone to answer her.

"I'm offended!"

"Emmett, get out!" she all but scolded him, tossing a pen at him as he laughed closing her door once more.

I swear all Cullen men are permanently five years old, she thought to herself trying to focus on her work once more, but she couldn't get past the passage where the lovers discussed their relationship, and the reasons they had to keep it secret. She couldn't help but be reminded of Romeo and Juliet, hell she couldn't even help being reminded of her secret, lurid, affair, and that only served to distract her more as she pictured herself writhing under Edward on the couch, and his bound arms straining against the restraints as she tasted him for the first time.

She shook her head of all the distractions and again tried to zero in on her work, but again the words triggered flashes of Edward's skin, his body arching, his face contorting in pleasure, sweat falling down his face. Her mind was betraying her with every word she read, to the point where she shoved the manuscript aside in annoyance, and spun her chair around to face the window.

From her spot she could just make out the very top of the building where Edward worked. The office building had a rusted copper top with stone gargoyles on the corners that she could just make out, though the cloud cover blocked most of the frightening sculpture.

As she sat there, staring out at downtown Seattle, she wondered what Edward was doing. Was he in a meeting? Maybe he was adjusting his tie, which looked too tight this morning. Perhaps he was looking out his window toward her building.

She shook the crazy notion away and turned back around to find Emmett standing in front of her, holding flowers.

"Did you buy me flowers?" she asked as she stood up to take them from Emmett, but he placed them down on her desk, smelling the dainty yellow flowers.

"What are these?" he asked. Bella stared at him quizzically.

"You didn't buy them?" she asked, playing with the stem of one of the flowers in the vase.

"Nope, but there's a card," he gestured to the card amidst the flowers, pulling it out of the tiny envelope it resided in.

"Hand it over, Emmett," she ordered, and much to her surprise he complied.

She read the note over three times, finding it more difficult each time to stop from smiling to widely in front of Emmett.

Emmett stared at her, waiting for her to read the note out loud, but she quickly pocketed it, and shooed him away. He begrudgingly walked away, steeling one of the flowers and placing it behind his ear, making Bella giggle.

She sat down in her chair, turning it back around to face out her window, and pulled the card out. It read:

These reminded me of you.

Hope you have a better day than yesterday.

~Edward

She held the card against her chest tightly, as she smiled, her eyes focused on the scary gargoyle, blocks away.

=x=

Where Thursday had proven to be a good day, Friday had not. It dragged on, and though the sight of the yellow freesias on her desk brought a smile to her face, and a sweet aroma to her office, her boss's demands for Bella to finish editing the three manuscripts she was currently reading by the end of the following week was looming heavy in the back of her mind.

She was so happy for Friday to end. She hadn't driven home so fast in a long time, and when she arrived home, Edward had already started dinner. It would still be some time before it would be ready, so Bella opted to call Rosalie.

She tossed her shoes off as she threw herself onto her bed and dialed Rosalie and Emmett's number.

"Hey Bella," Rosalie answered the phone, a loud racket in the background.

"Hey Rose, what the hell is going on?" she asked, laughing as she heard Emmett swearing in the back.

"Oh you know. Emmett is trying to be Mr. Fix-It and is attempting to put together the new dining room table. He was too cheap to let the people at the furniture store do it when they delivered it."

"They wanted to charge me a hundred dollars. Get the fuck out of here," Bella heard Emmett shout, and she heard Rosalie yell at him to shut it, and something about no sex unless he got the table up and ready for the dinner party.

"Abstaining sex, Rose? That's unlike you," Bella teased, hearing Rosalie chuckle.

"It's the only way to get Emmett to do shit around here sometimes. I love him, but honestly, he's behaves like a child."

"I think that's a Cullen men thing, because Edward is the exact same way," Bella laughed and Rosalie joined in.

"So, what's with the phone call? It's been a while, loser. I'm hurt. You don't call me anymore, and I hear from my husband that you're seeing someone. Apparently, you came in looking like a cheetah," she taunted, her voice in that tone that Bella knew all too well. It was the tone that meant Bella had some explaining to do.

"I'm sorry, Rose. Work has been really stressful lately. I'm calling to see if you want to bring anything tomorrow," she began, almost opting to address the last part of Rosalie's questions. "And I'm not seeing anyone. It was a…one time thing," she lied.

"I understand Bella. Don't worry, I was just kidding. Work's been kicking my ass, too. I love my students, I do, but sometimes I want to wring their necks."

"I can just imagine. Why did you choose to teach first graders?"

"I love kids, Bella, especially young children because their like sponges. You can teach them so much. You know that," Rosalie replied, scoffing as Emmett cursed loudly in the back.

"Fuck, Emmett, if you scratch the floor, you'll pay to lay down new wood."

Bella laughed as they quarreled, while she waited for Rosalie to remember that she was still on the phone. It was another minute before Rosalie noticed.

"I'm sorry, Bella. I'm going to go kick my husband's ass right now, but just bring some of those tasty pastries you brought last time, and be here a little before six. I'll see you then, and we will definitely be discussing this apparent one-night stand you aptly have decided not tell me about it," Rosalie rushed as she heard Emmett calling her for help.

"No problem, Rosalie. I'll see you tomorrow. Tell Emmett I said that I hope he lives to see tomorrow," she teased as Rosalie laughed and said her goodbye.

When she hung up the phone, she headed out of her room to find Edward by the door, paying the Chinese food delivery man.

"I thought you were cooking," she inquired as she walked into the kitchen.

"I was, but I decided I was in the mood for Chinese food instead, I hope you don't mind."

"No, it's fine. I just got off the phone with Rosalie. She wants us to be there by six and to bring some of those French pastries you bought the last time."

"I figured," he answered, despondently as he passed over the Mei Fun.

"What's wrong?" Bella asked, wondering why Edward looked upset.

"Nothing, Bella. Everything's good."

"Why are you lying to me?"

"I'm not."

"You are. Whenever your voice goes down that low, you're lying. What's wrong? Please tell me," she pleaded, her eyes staring straight into his, which kept meandering away from hers.

"Nothing, really. I just have a lot on my mind, that's all. I promise, Bella. You know I wouldn't keep anything from you," he reasoned, smiling at her, and of course, she brushed her insecurities aside, and shrugged her shoulders and nodded her head.

They ate in silence, which wasn't rare, but again, Bella couldn't help but feel awkward as she sat sipping her egg drop soup.

=x=

"Can I ask you something personal?" Bella asked on Saturday morning as she and Edward sat eating Fruit Loops out of the box. They were watching old Scooby-Doo reruns.

"Bella, you know you can ask me anything," he turned and smiled at her, and Bella felt her heart skip an enigmatic beat. She wondered what it was all about, but she pushed the notion aside.

"What's your deepest darkest fantasy, Edward Cullen?" she asked, keeping her voice low and husky.

She watched as his eyes widened and he shifted in his seat. He gulped audibly and she found herself mesmerized by the movement of his Adam's apple as he did.

"Are you serious?" he asked hesitantly, testing the waters.

"Yeah, I want to know. These past two months, I've explored my fantasies, but you haven't. What do you like, Edward? Do you want me to be a naughty nurse? Maybe I can be a naughty school girl? Or a filthy ballerina?"

Again, Bella watched as Edward swallowed.

"I just like-" he began but Bella interrupted.

"Be honest, Edward. I want to know."

"Honestly, my biggest fantasy is being dominated like you did with the letter R. You have no idea how hard I was; how hard I get whenever I think about that day. I loved being at the mercy of a sexy woman, letting her have her way with me. I know that doesn't sound very macho and what not, and Emmett would probably laugh, but I can't help but be turned on by a woman who knows what she wants."

"Really? I never would've…never would've guessed that." Edward shrugged his shoulders and smiled shyly as he tossed a red Fruit Loop up and caught it in his mouth.

"Why did you want to know?" he asked, passing over the box of cereal.

"I was thinking, in my office Thursday, about how you've never done something as outrageous as my librarian or vampire fantasies."

"Well, I'll keep that in mind for my next letter. Though I have another fantasy, but we'll discuss that at another time," he chuckled, waggling his eyebrows as Shaggy asked Scooby if he wanted another Scooby Snack.

=x=

"Did you get the right pastries?" Edward asked as Bella stepped back into his car as they headed over to dinner.

"Yep, but why are they so expensive?"

"'Cause they're the best in town, Bells. You pay for quality!"

"Does that apply to hookers as well?" she teased as Edward laughed alongside her.

After breakfast that morning, they seemed to be much more relaxed around each other, but there was still electricity between them, and air of tension Bella couldn't quite grasp, but in the grand fashion of the last couple of days, she brushed it aside.

They arrived at Emmett's in no time, and before she knew it, a model-esque blond was assaulting her at the door.

"Bella!" Rosalie greeted her, and bringing her inside quickly as Edward followed.

"Rosalie!" Bella greeted her back, just as enthusiastically.

"Mhmm…that's sexy," Emmett catcalled from the living room, and Edward joined in.

"Children. The Cullen men are children," Rosalie addressed the room.

"I couldn't agree with your more, dear," Esme said as she stood from her seat.

"Bella, sweetie," she called as she gave her a hug.

"Esme, it's been too long."

"It has dear. It has."

"Hello, Dr. Cullen," Bella said as hugged him. He chuckled and hugged her back.

"Bella. How many times must I tell you to call me Carlisle?" he chided, playfully.

"Oh, so Bella get's the grand welcome, and I get nothing. I brought the dessert," Edward huffed like a little boy, causing everyone to laugh.

"Come here, Edward. I missed you. You don't ever call," Esme gently smacked Edward's arm as she pulled away from their embrace.

"I missed you, too, Mom."

"Alright already, enough with the love. Can we eat? I'm starving, and the pot roast smells so fucking good," Emmett interrupted everyone. Rosalie rolled her eyes as she led everyone toward the dining room.

"Where's Alice and Jasper?" Bella asked.

"Edward didn't tell you?" Rosalie asked, turning to Edward, who stared at her, confused. "Didn't she tell you she was going to Los Angeles this weekend? She's going to get her wedding gown fitted and tailored."

"Oh," both Bella and Edward answered as they followed Rosalie.

"Oh, is this the new table, dear?" Esme asked as she sat down beside Carlisle.

"Yeah, Emmett spent most of last night and today putting it together. I hope it doesn't fall down on us," Rosalie joked as Emmett pouted. Bella laughed at how alike Edward and Emmett truly were.

"Where are you sitting?" Edward asked Bella as he walked in behind her. Bella pointed to the side of the table opposite of Esme and Carlisle. Edward nodded and followed her, sitting down beside her. Rosalie and Emmett sat at the opposite ends of the massive table.

"Looks good, Rosalie," Edward said as he poured wine for everyone.

"Yeah, Rose smells good, too," Bell added.

"Thanks, guys. Everyone, dig in," she instructed as everyone started to pass the dinner dishes around.

"The pot roast is fantastic," Carlisle piped in as he took another bite of it. Rosalie smiled graciously as everyone continued to dig into the feast. Esme asked Rosalie about her students, and that turned out to be the main focus of the dinner conversation.

Bella laughed as Rosalie described an incident with two of her student involving hair and glue. Edward chuckled bringing up the story about how he persuaded to burn some Crayola crayons' on the recess jungle gym with her one day, which sent everyone into hysterics.

"Who's ready for dessert?" Emmett asked as he helped Rosalie clear off the table.

"Did you bring those delicious French pastries, son?" Carlisle asked Edward, who nodded as he let Emmett take his plate away.

"Come here," he told Bella who leaned toward him. He whipped something off her face and sucked it off his finger.

"Gravy," he answered her questioning expression. Bella smiled, the spot on her face feeling unbelievably hot. It sent a current straight to her loins.

As she turned back to the table to find everyone staring at them, but none of them said a word. Rosalie and Emmett had already brought in the dessert.

"These are fantastic," Rosalie said as she popped another of the Chou pastries into her mouth.

"Mhmm," was Emmett said as he stuffed another one into his mouth.

"Don't eat so fast, honey," Esme told him as she spent time eating the one in her hand.

Again, the conversation centered on one person, this time Carlisle. Bella quickly tuned it out as she rubbed her legs together. She was so pissed at her menstrual cycle at the moment. She was yearning for a release after Edward touching her. All he had done was wipe gravy off her face, but it was the way in which he had sucked it off his finger that had triggered her response. He had stared right at her as his tongue darted to lick the substance.

Inadvertently, her hand found itself on Edward's left knee, startling him. He turned to her and she smiled innocently at him, as her fingers started to dance up his thigh, like a spider. She had to stifle a laugh as Edward tensed under her hand. He sat straight and rigid against his chair, lips pressed tightly.

No one noticed, as they kept their attention on dessert and Carlisle.

"What are you doing?" he asked through clenched teeth as her fingers ghosted up and down the teeth on the zipper of his trousers.

"Nothing," she answered innocently, biting her bottom lip. She pressed the palm of her hand onto the arousal in his pants, and he jumped a little in his seat but no one noticed.

"Are you nuts?" he asked, through deep breaths as she started to rub him with intention.

She shook her head as she pressed her hand against him harder. She had to suppress a giggle as Edward gripped the side of his chair as his hips started to push up against her hand.

Bella averted her eyes from him, keeping her hands moving, thankful for the long table cloth that covered her little performance. She chimed something into the conversation as to not gain suspicion from their silence. Edward struggled to keep a straight face as Bella stopped her ministrations and unbuttoned his pants.

"Bella," Edward hissed as she pulled the zipper down, purposely pressing down on it so he would feel the vibration from it. He gulped loudly, and Bella licked her lips as she watched his Adam's apple bob in the tantalizing way it always did.

She smiled as she slipped her hand into his boxer briefs, and gripped him, springing him free of the cotton constraint. She never took her eyes off Carlisle as he continued to describe a complicated case he had just diagnosed. Rosalie and Esme looked engrossed, and Emmett looked more engrossed in the dessert than the topic but he kept paying attention.

Bella's hand moved down Edward's hardened shaft slowly, before bringing it up slowly, letting her blunt finger nail circumnavigate along the underside of his swollen head. Edward jumped in his seat, quickly turning a groan into a slight cough, catching Emmett's attention.

"Yeah," he answered, his voice husky and grainy. "Went down the wrong…ugh...pipe," he pointed to the half-eaten dessert on his plate. Emmett scoffed as he turned his focus back to his own dessert and Carlisle.

"Ugh, Bella," he moaned lowly, his mouth clench tightly as her hand sped up, only slowing down when she would teased the slit in his head.

"Bella," he hissed, out of breath as his hips rose to meet her down strokes. She turned her head only slightly, looking at him though her peripherals. He mouthed the words, 'so close' as she sped her hand up. She watched shortly as Edward's knuckles went white as his grip on his chair tightened before turning back to the table. Esme was commanding the conversation now. Bella grabbed a few of the pastries on to her plate with her left hand and popped one into her mouth.

Everyone laughed at something Esme said and Bella joined in, though she had no idea what was going on. She was focused on the pulsing organ in her hand. She stole a glance at Edward, noting his fluttering lashes and his eyes were starting to roll back into his head.

He was close.

She could feel it. He was starting to twitch in her hands, and his hips were rising with fervor.

"Bella," he gasped. "I can't…hold back…anymore," he whispered as he came into her hand, shuddering in his seat, unbeknownst to everyone.

She kept her hand on him, collecting the ribbons of come that flowed from him, until he stopped. She moved her hand away slowly, giving him the opportunity to tuck himself away and button his pants up.

Bella grabbed one of the pastries on plate, placed it into her right hand, and ate it slowly. Edward watched the entire time.

"These pastries are delicious. I can't get enough of them," she moaned and everyone at the table agreed, taking the focus away from Esme.

Edward watched mesmerized as Bella licked her hand cleaned. She knew what she was doing. His eyebrow was quirked up as she closed her eyes in ecstasy as she licked her hand clean of Edward.

"So, Bella who is this guy, Emmett tells me you're seeing?" Rosalie asked, garnering everyone's attention to Bella.

"Well, he's…he's…"