A/N:

Here we are again. Thanks to everyone who is reading! I think you will like this chapter – there is a lot of Edward/Bella interaction. Please leave a review if you are enjoying the story and even if you aren't! REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! PLEASE! Come on, I'm craving the interaction with you! I will write back – honestly!

And please go check out "Blossom" by ms-ambrosia. She is the greatest beta ever and a really excellent writer too!

Disclaimer: I don't own or profit in any way from my use of these fabulous characters who I've twisted in every which way.

Chapter 14

I jumped up instantly and was unlocking the window before I had even decided to move.

I shifted the window up and Bella appeared inside rocketing across the space of my room much faster than my eyes could see. As I searched for her in the darkness my heart began to pound so rapidly in my chest that for a moment I thought I might lose consciousness. I realized that I needed to sit or else my legs would give way beneath me.

I fell awkwardly onto the edge of the bed and within half a breath Bella was on her knees before me. Her face was illuminated by the glow of the incandescent lamp and I was struck anew by her otherworldly beauty. She lightly placed her ice cold hands on the skin on my bare thighs, paradoxically setting them ablaze with her touch.

"Are you hurt, Edward?" she asked sincerely, with real fear in her voice.

"Bella," I reached my hand out to touch her upturned face, "are you real?"

"Yes. I wanted to see you. And I'm selfish. I…can't stay away." I flinched at the anguish in her words and was filled with the desire to erase it, to make it go away. But I also yearned to know where she had been and why she wasn't at school.

"Why weren't you at school? I looked for you. I went to your cabin."

"You did?"

"Yes. School isn't the same without you." I was completely aware of how lovesick and pathetic I sounded but I couldn't stop myself from telling her the truth.

"Edward you shouldn't miss school because of me. I just couldn't go today. It was too sunny. I can't go out in the full sun."

"Why…Does it harm you?" I was consumed with concern again.

"No. It's just…I sparkle. My skin sparkles. It would be too obvious that I am different. I can only go out when it's overcast. Luckily, there aren't too many sunny days in Forks." She chuckled at her statement and I sighed in relief, feeling all my anxiety slip away in her presence.

All day long I had bottled up the worry that I had said or done something to drive Bella away – that our intimacy on Saturday night had overwhelmed or frightened her. But now she was here kneeling expectantly in front of me, alone with me in my room and making me feel instantly alive. I gazed down at her face and was swept away by her look of adoration. I wasn't used to feeling self-doubt but I couldn't deny I felt unworthy of her love – anyone would feel unworthy of this gorgeous creature's love.

But if I was insecure of her feelings, I was instantly reassured by the devotion and love that emanated from her – both from her body and her thoughts. Her mind was laid open to me and it was simply coursing with emotions. They wavered between her intrinsic need to be completely understood by me and her nearly uncontrollable physical desire for me.

I was intoxicated by the sensuality of her thoughts and my mental link to her seemed heightened by the passion of the moment. My brain involuntarily sought after more information, narrowing its focus to delve deeper into her mind. Underlying all her most palpable feelings and thoughts, I detected a steady stream of words that kept repeating in some deeper part of her consciousness, "I must maintain control. I must maintain control."

Bella was afraid. She thought she might hurt me. And she was trying to reign in her intense need to be closer to me but her hands betrayed her. They began to move infinitesimally on my thighs. Her touch was just a feathery whisper, her passion restrained only by her strong will. I closed my eyes and allowed myself to be overcome by the thrill of contact. I couldn't stop the shudder that ripped through my body as a vibration of electricity pulsed across the tips of her tiny fingers and into my legs.

I inhaled deeply and reached out for her, opening my eyes but she was no longer in front of me. My hands automatically grasped my thighs where her hands had been. I was instantly mourning the loss of her gentle touch. A wave of disappointment crashed upon me. Moments before I was in ecstasy, every molecule of my body was alert, ready and aroused by the mere closeness to Bella Swan. Where had she gone? Even as my eyes told me that she was no longer in my room, I heard her again and my heart soared.

"I'm here, Edward," she thought and I looked to the wall behind me and there she was, her arms spread out behind her as if holding onto the flat plane was a matter of life and death. "I can never lose control with you, Edward," she said, radiating fear and frustration. "I can never lose control."

I lifted myself to a standing position and moved toward her hesitantly, slowly. For a brief moment as I squinted at her in the darkness, I was flooded with her overwhelming feelings of fear and apprehension. Her emotions were nearly unbearable. With the strength of my will alone, I shunned her dark thoughts and recovered control of my mind.

"I trust you, Bella," I uttered breathily.

She was struggling. I could sense it. But more than that I sensed her need for me and I heard it in her mind. "I need him. Must have him. Must touch him. I need him. Control…control. It's been so long since I've touched anyone. I don't want to resist. I must be in control. I want to touch him…touch Edward. Hold me. Hold me Edward!"

She practically screamed this last thought and a sharp pain shot through my temples, temporarily paralyzing me. I brought my hands to my head and began to crumble forward, my eyes clenched shut.

"Edward!" Bella whispered, concern lacing her thoughts. I couldn't let her know how much I was hurting. I concentrated all my effort to mask the physical pain I was feeling to ease her distress. My eyes flit up to catch hers and as I lost myself in her liquid gaze I almost convinced myself that whatever pain I was feeling was gone.

My resolve to touch her instantly returned to me, consuming me, and I stepped forward. I began to close the distance between us, all the while cautiously gauging her reaction. Her eyes were narrow and fierce. I knew that there was a part of her that wanted to attack me, that hungered for my blood. If I were less confident in the depth of her feelings for me I would have been terribly frightened of her in this moment.

With each excruciatingly slow step forward I noticed the increasing level of worry in Bella's expression. I stood near enough to reach out and touch her and I could clearly see her eyes turn from those of the hunter, the predator, to those of the prey. She was frightened. But not for herself – for me.

I had to reassure her. "I'm not scared of you, Bella. I'm only afraid that you'll disappear."

She tentatively dropped one hand from the wall behind her and lifted it to my face. She ran her cool hand along the length of my jaw and buried it in the hair at the nape of my neck. I had the most acute reaction when her hands came in contact with my skin, her caress leaving me literally trembling with desire.

Even though a layer of clothes separated us, this was undoubtedly the most erotic experience of my life. I exhaled the breath I'd been holding, and tried to control my aching need to lean in and instantly satisfy my deep longing for her. I squeezed my eyes shut and concentrated on the only sounds in the room: my deep labored breaths and the audible thumping of my overwrought heart.

I opened my eyes to find Bella looking at me intently as if memorizing the planes of my face. My blood rushed to the surface of my skin and my heart was pumping so maniacally I thought it might burst. As if reading my mind, Bella closed her eyes, her long dark lashes fluttering against the pale tissue-like skin below her eyes and placed her hand on my chest. She applied a small bit of pressure and then sent me her thoughts, "Your heart, Edward…it's so alive. I can feel the blood surging through your veins. Its…exquisite."

Perhaps her words should have frightened me but I was too deeply entranced to be fully aware of how conceivably precarious my situation was. Without a notion of fear in my mind, I raised my hand and laid it gently on top of hers. Her fingers interlaced with mine and she moved our joined hands down the front plane of my body.

I couldn't help that my body reacted on its own to her touch and as she pushed away from the wall and leaned her hard, taut body against me I knew that she could feel my arousal. But I restrained myself. I knew that I couldn't give in to my desires. We had to move slowly.

I carefully lifted my hand and ran my fingers down the length of her thin arm, marveling in its smooth, cool feel. Our eyes never lost contact as we gradually continued to explore the exposed parts of our bodies. Bella moved both hands so they were around the nape of my neck, their icy touch calming the heat my body was generating. I looked in her eyes for permission and finding no resistance, I leaned down to touch her lips with mine.

I lightly stroked my lower lip across the length of hers, the tip of my tongue easing out and sliding slowly down the edge of her top lip. "Bella," I moaned into her mouth before I placed my lips more firmly against hers. I was so lost in the moment that I didn't at first notice that her posture had changed. Her body became rigid and she took a step backwards. All her softness, her whispery touches were instantly gone.

"Edward…I'm not sure I can do this. You smell too good. I need more time." Just as I was about to protest, Bella's head snapped to the direction of my bedroom door and she crouched defensively. I followed her gaze and then heard a clomping noise in the hallway outside my door.

"Damn," Emmett drowsily yelled, probably headed down the hallway to the bathroom and stumbling on something in the darkness.

My already rapid heartbeat accelerated even more as I froze in place, momentarily stunned by the interruption. I turned back to face Bella, my mind only beginning to grasp what had happened but Bella was no longer there. I caught an instantaneous flash of pale white skin on the tree branch outside my window when I heard Bella's thoughts.

"Edward…goodnight."

________________________________________________________________________End Notes:

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