Twilight character names belong to Stephenie Meyer. I own Dodge and Burn.
Much love and thanks to Pre-readers BtwntheStacks and Lemonmartinis and Beta-MsKathy
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Dodge and Burn / Chapter Twenty-Seven / Always
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Edward stands in the middle of Siena's brick-paved Piazza del Campo and gestures with one hand while the other holds up the guide book he's reading. "This is where they have the Il Palio. It's described as a medieval horse race that occurs twice a year."
Bella looks up at the aged and well-proportioned buildings that circle the square before responding to Edward's comments. He's managed to become a walking encyclopedia of all things Tuscan.
"A medieval horse race? Why do they do that?" Bella asks, as she photographs Edward and their surroundings. She's drawn to the colorful banners throughout the square.
"What do you mean, why do they do it? It's a tradition. Europe is all about traditions."
"See, this is out of my realm of thinking. We have no such traditions where we're from, unless you count the Super Bowl."
Edward laughs. "Wait a minute, what about the Rose Parade?"
Bella rolls her eyes. "Oh yeah, and that. And didn't you say a while back that this square was built in the thirteen hundreds. I think L.A. was built a few decades ago…not centuries," she teases. "I keep thinking places like this were built to look old…you know, like a film set or Disneyland."
Edward smiles at her. "It's fascinating how your mind works, Isabella."
She grins. "You think so?"
"Yup, I know so." He takes her hand and kisses it, then slides his arm around her waist. "Come on now, I have something else to show you."
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Edward leads Bella down several narrow streets until they reach another open square and they are standing before the Duomo, a Romanesque-Gothic cathedral noted for it's use of wide stripes of black and white stone work. Bella starts to immediately take pictures of the elaborately carved façade.
"It's so beautiful," she exclaims.
"So the plan initially was that this would be the largest cathedral in the world," Edward reads from the guide book.
"Really?" asks Bella. "How ambitious. What happened?"
"I think they ran out of money."
"What is this fascination with having the biggest things in the world, the tallest building, the most gigantic shopping mall anyway? I enjoy small places. They're intimate. You know what I'd like?"
"No, but I can't wait to hear."
"I'd like to live in a tree house with you. Wouldn't that be awesome?"
"Maybe for a day or two…any longer may be challenging," Edward says.
"Oh really?" she asks, stepping in front of him and grinning widely.
"Is this a ploy to get rid of my really big painting? Because it definitely isn't tree house friendly."
She scrunches up her face. "Well, yes there would be some issues to overcome. Maybe we can just build one in the oak tree in my back yard and do sleepovers?"
"Build a tree house? That's ambitious. Why don't we try camping one night in a tent and see if you're still hot for that idea?" He's fairly certain that the subject will be dropped after one long night of roughing it.
"Ooo I know!" she exclaims, bouncing on her toes. "We can get one of those suspended tents that hang from a tree. That's kind of like a tree house because you're up high in the branches."
"Suspended?" he asks, his voice not hiding his uneasiness. Why did he bring up camping anyway?
"You just wait, Mr. C. It's going to be awesome!"
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Bella takes Edward by the hand. "Come on, I want to go inside the church."
"But we went into that church in Florence," he argues.
"I didn't know there was a limit to church visits," she teases. "I'll go in and meet up with you in a few."
"Oh no," he says, grabbing her hand. "No straying for you. Besides, I was joking. Of course I'm coming with you."
She smiles and takes his hand. They leave the sunny plaza to step into the low, soft light of the cathedral. There's a solemn air as every step they take pulls them further away from the bustle of the outside world.
Bella studies the marble busts and sculptures, and looks up at the elaborately detailed domed ceiling. Edward watches her expressive face react to everything and he smiles.
He considers that there's something awe inspiring about walking on centuries-old marble mosaic floors to stand before an altar carved long before your great, great grandfather was even born.
Near the front of the altar, a young woman sinks to her knees and bows her head in prayer. The air is still and cool, voices are hushed, only fleeting whispers.
After they've wandered through the interior, Bella approaches a table where an older Italian woman is selling short candles in ruby red glass holders. Bella pulls out enough Euros to pay for three, then turns and offers two of them to Edward.
"What's this for?" he whispers.
"I'm going to light a candle for mom. I thought you'd like to for Carlisle and Esme as well."
She sets the cool glass votives in his open palms and he follows her to the stand where people have left candles burning in memory of loved ones. He watches her hold the unlit votive close to her heart and close her eyes. She has a beatific smile on her face and he imagines she's saying a prayer for her mother. A minute later, she tips the candle over one that's already burning until the flame catches, then she carefully chooses an open spot to leave her glowing red votive.
She turns and looks at Edward, then nods and steps to the side so he can step forward.
Edward takes a deep breath. He's not a man of rituals, but there's something sacred in this moment, in this holy place where he imagines being closer to God. As his fingers tighten over the glass he thinks about how happy his parents would be to see him in Italy with a woman like Isabella by his side.
He closes his eyes and pictures Carlisle and his warm smile in the happier times, before his illness, before losing his wife and partner. Enough time has passed that the memory doesn't take Edward's breath away but rather comforts him. He holds the candle over a flame until it catches.
I miss you, Dad.
He then holds his unlit candle up and feels Esme's love surrounding him. He thinks about Esme's Place, and a surge of pride and excitement jolts through him.
Yeah, Mom…we're really doing it, and I think you'll be pleased.
He feels full of emotion as he tips her candle over his dad's and watches it spark and flame. His eyes scan the candle altar until he sees a two open spots right next to each other.
He gently sets them in place.
I love you guys.
He turns to Bella and notices her gaze is soft as she watches him. He points to where he left his votives side by side. "They're together," he whispers.
She steps up close and wraps her arms around him. "Yes, they are," she says softly. "Forever."
As he holds her, the warm feeling washes over him once more and he realizes that this is the most peaceful he's felt in a very long time.
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..~*~..
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Their final days in Italy are bittersweet. They've finally settled into a glorious synchronicity, only to know their time in their Italian paradise is soon over.
They have a couple of days of excursions but they're lazy on their last full day in Lucca. Sleeping in, they spend the early afternoon by the pool. Bella puts a lunch together from the odds and ends in their kitchen and they linger over each bite, wanting to remember how everything tastes when the Tuscan sun is shining down on them.
In the afternoon, she remembers that after all the drama and adventures she hasn't gotten the gifts for everyone she wanted to. She can't go back home with only a soccer jersey for Jacob and beaded necklace for Angela. So they pull themselves together and make it into the walled city while the stores are still open. Picking out beautiful hand-painted mugs, and delectables for her friends, Bella also encourages Edward to get something for Rose and her family, Alice, Jasper, Sean, and Julia.
"How are we going to get this stuff home?" Edward groans, his arms full of shopping bags, as they follow the hostess to a table in the restaurant's outside patio.
"Where there's a will there's a way," Bella responds. "Hey, something just occurred to me."
"What's that?" Edward asks as he settles and takes a sip of water.
"Did you buy yourself anything here? I don't remember a single thing that you bought that was for you," she says.
"No, why would I buy anything?"
"A memento? Or maybe just because it's fun to get something you want?"
"But Isabella," he says softly, taking her hand and squeezing it gently. "I have everything I could possibly want right here."
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..~*~..
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To make their last night in their villa even more special, Bella lights candles all over their bedroom and Edward uncorks the best bottle of wine that they'd saved for this night.
With the windows wide open, the soft breeze makes the candles flicker, casting a golden shimmer throughout the room. They aren't even halfway through their bottle when she starts undressing him.
"Tell me one thing," Bella whispers as her hands slide up his naked thighs, his jeans pushed down past his knees.
He gasps as her hand tightens over him. "Anything," he moans.
"Did you know I wouldn't be able to resist you on this trip?"
He looks down at Bella as he stands before her. She is fully clothed still as she sits with her legs wide apart on the edge of their bed.
"I'd hoped," he whispers, feeling impossibly harder as her fingers stroke him. He tries to remember why he's practically naked and Bella still has her clothes on. She seems particularly determined tonight.
She leans forward and slowly trails her tongue up his length. Her eyes flutter closed with pleasure.
"I can never resist you," she whispers.
He swallows thickly as he watches her, and he runs his fingers through her hair. "Take your top off, Isabella. I need to see more of you."
She leans back and looks up, smiling as she slides her T-shirt overhead then unclasps her bra. When she pulls it away, Edward cups her breasts in his hands as she looks up at him.
"I started to lose my conviction the very first day here when you watched me in the pool from your balcony. I wanted you so badly that night," she admits.
"Is that why you came in to watch me in my room?" His thumbs brush back and forth across her hard nipples.
"Yes," she gasps. Her hands reach around until they spread over his backside. "I could have never lasted a week." Her fingers dig into his bare skin. "Not when I have so much to hold onto, not when you make love to me the way that you do."
Her fingers wrap around him again, and she gently kisses his arousal before her lips part.
"Isabella," he groans, watching.
She takes her time pleasuring him, secretly smiling as his breath gets more labored and his thigh muscles begin to tighten.
Just when she senses he's building to climax, his hands rest on her shoulders and he begins to push her backwards.
"What" she asks, sliding him slowly from between her lips.
"Get up on the bed, baby."
She grins and scoots back until she's in the center of the big four-poster bed. She lies back and slowly unbuttons her jeans and pulls down the zipper as he watches.
He crawls onto the bed after her, then digs his fingers under the waistband of her jeans and starts to pull them down her thighs.
She sits up on her elbows and watches him. The look in his eyes alone burns through her.
With her jeans and panties tossed aside, he leans over and pulls her legs open before kissing a trail starting along her calf. He then moves up, kissing her once on her knee, twice inside her inner thigh, and then three times between her legs as she writhes under him.
"Ready?" he asks as he slowly rises over her, then takes her hands and pins them down above her head.
She swallows and nods, her eyes wide with wonder. She swivels her hips, pressing against him. Her invitation is clear, his intentions undeniable.
His expression is one of barely contained restraint. She can tell he's fighting every instinct to just take her. She only makes it worse with her playful pleading.
"Please," she gasps as he presses his arousal against her.
He pauses, looking at her with a blinding intensity before pressing his lips against her ear. "Tell me you want me, Isabella," he whispers.
"You're such a tease," she growls.
"Tell me!" he insists, nipping her earlobe.
"Ahhh," she moans, fighting his restraint of her hands. "You're going to make me beg. I'll get you for this," she warns.
"Really?" he asks, grinning.
"Yes! I know how to use bed restraints, you know. You'll get yours."
"What?" he asks, looking alarmed.
"Never mind all that; stay on track here." She rocks her hips against his. "I want you…I want you!"
Refocused, he pushes down just enough to get her going. "I'm not convinced."
"Please, baby, please," she gasps, getting impatient, her expression shifting from playful to hungry.
"Like this?" he asks, pushing in a bit further.
"More," she groans, fighting to free her hands. He presses her wrists down tighter.
This time he pulls back, then pushes in until she is almost full of him.
"Oh God," she groans.
"I need all of you," he whispers, finally filling her so completely that it takes her breath away. A moment later, her hands are freed as he props himself up for leverage.
She twists her hands in his hair and pulls him closer, until their lips join together and her tongue curls against his. When her nails scrape down his back, he gives her a look.
"You're wild tonight," he gasps. Her passion inspires him, and he matches her desire thrust for thrust.
She moans with pleasure. "It's our last night here."
"Hmmm." He's too lost in her seduction to notice such details.
She digs her nails into his shoulders. "I want you to remember all of this."
"Oh I will," he assures her, rising up on his knees.
They gaze at each other, unblinking, their emotions bare.
"Come here, baby, closer." He lifts her up onto his lap and pulls her down over him as his arms hold her secure. He's silenced, stunned by the sensation of being so deep inside of her.
Her arms wrap tighter around his neck until they are heart to heart. They move slowly, pressing closer and closer together with each stroke until they're almost one.
Right before her head falls back in surrender, she gazes at him once more and whispers, "I'll remember this, too."
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Completely satiated, they lie face to face in each other's arms.
"I like this," she says quietly. "Being with you all the time. Sharing a bed, sharing our lives."
Yeah?" He grins.
She nods. "And I like you."
"I like you, too." He reaches closer and brushes his lips over hers with a kiss. "A lot."
She smiles but then he notices her expression shift subtly. "What?" he asks.
"I don't want to go home, Edward. What if everything feels different there?"
"It will be different…there's work and stress, but if at the end of the day we're together and holding each other like this, then life will be good."
"Yeah, you're right." She grins and curls closer to him.
"You bet." He rolls to his back and she rests her head on his shoulder, her fingers lazily making circles across his chest.
"I know there is still stuff we need to resolve," she says carefully.
"About the future?" he asks.
She nods.
He pauses, internally battling whether he should say something or not, but he finally decides to say what's on his mind.
"You know, I've been thinking. It'd be a really good idea for you to talk to Jacob about all of this. I think he needs to know about the plan you made several years ago, and you need to know how he feels about it. He's a very mature young man, Isabella. He can handle it."
She lies quietly for a minute, thinking. He can feel her heart thundering and sense her waves of emotion. Finally, she replies. "Yes, you're right."
He pulls her closer and gives her a kiss on her forehead. "Knowing how he feels will also affect your point of view about it, and then we can figure out where we stand."
"Okay," she whispers.
"And know that I will help you however I can, whatever support I can give." He feels her tremble and looks down just as she brushes tears away. "What, baby?"
She shakes her head, then presses her cheek tightly against his chest. "In my desire to protect my son, I've probably messed everything up. He will worry now like you did, that I could do something rash. And as for Leo…perhaps he could have had a relationship with his son all these years. I wish I'd done things differently, Edward."
"Shhh," he says softly, soothing her. "You did what you thought was best at the time, Isabella. You've been a very loving parent."
She looks at him intently. "But I was wrong to keep everything from the men in my life."
"But you're working to rectify that now, aren't you?"
She nods, brushing the last tear away.
"None of this is easy. You're brave, Isabella."
"And I'm trying to be strong," she adds, not really feeling that strong. But she wants to believe she is, and she wants him to believe it, too.
"That's my girl," he says, pulling her closer.
She sighs and he feels her slowly calming.
"So we will be together once we're home?" she asks. "Together all the time?"
His brow furrows as he thinks about the work waiting for him back home. "I just want you to realize that it's going to be a bit crazy until after the fundraiser. Especially since I took this time off to come to Italy."
"Oh, I see," she says quietly.
"I'm going to be working really long hours. But I don't want you to worry about that. Things will settle down to just busy once it's over."
"Okay, sure," she says. "And if I can do anything…"
"You can bet I'll keep that in mind. But you know what I really need most from you, and only you, Isabella."
"My delicious baking to give you energy?" she asks, teasing.
He shakes his head. "Nope."
"My earth shattering sex to unwind you after your hard days?" She winks at him playfully.
"Oh God," he groans. "You're making this difficult. But no," he says with great hesitation.
She throws her hands up haplessly. "I give up, then…what?"
He rolls over close and kisses her, pressing her into the sheets. "I need your love, baby." He kisses her again, slow and deep until she's melted against him.
"That's easy, Mr. C," she says as she hooks her leg around him and pulls him closer. "You've got it!"
"Mmmm," he groans as he kisses his way up her neck, and she laughs happily.
"All of it," she whispers before their lips meet again. She can feel the happiness radiate between them. She kisses him back again and again, soaking up every bit of their magic.
If only she could bottle the magic and bring it home. But she believes in Edward, she believes in the power of their love.
"Always," she whispers.
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..~*~..
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The next morning, Edward zips up and carries the last suitcase to the front door and calls out to Isabella, but she doesn't answer. He looks in the kitchen, and then heads upstairs to their bedroom. When he doesn't find her there, he steps out onto the balcony. Sure enough, Isabella is wandering through the secret garden, stopping to smell the jasmine and dipping her toes down into the pool. She looks so happy and carefree and it makes him smile.
He glances down at his watch and realizes that they still have some time and he considers joining her, but a moment later she heads towards the garden gate. Just before exiting she turns back, spreads her arms, and appears to say something out loud.
He shakes his head, laughing. My woman is talking to the garden.
He watches her turn and walk through the gate. As she heads back into the house he starts down the stairs to join her. Before he reaches the bottom stair, he hears her voice.
"Goodbye, beautiful living room where Edward and I cuddled on the couch."
He freezes and his heart swells, realizing that she's saying goodbye to their villa, room by room. He hears her sandals click down the floors of the hallway.
"Goodbye, wonderful kitchen where Edward made me cappuccinos."
Next is the ping of what sounds like a hand slapping a metal surface. "Goodbye, little laundry room that washed our clothes so efficiently."
He smirks. She's thanking the laundry room?
When she starts up the back stairway to go upstairs, he quietly heads back upstairs.
"Goodbye, elegant bathroom where I had the most wonderful baths. Sorry I never figured out the shower thing."
Edward laughs to himself as he shakes his head. She sure didn't.
"Goodbye, Edward's bedroom where I got to watch my beautiful boyfriend. Oh my," she sighs.
The fire roars through him as he remembers that night.
But when she enters their room, he can't stay away. He steps up to the doorway and watches her run her hand down the bed's post and smooth her fingers over the duvet. She turns and notices him in the doorway.
"You're saying goodbye to our villa," he says softly.
She nods, smiling sweetly. "And I saved the best room for last."
"Goodbye, beautiful room where my Edward and I found each other again."
They gaze at each other for a moment, remembering where they were when they arrived in Italy and where they are now.
She closes her eyes. "Can you feel how full of love this room is?"
"I can," he answers. "Lucky are the people who stay here next in this room full of love."
"So lucky…" she says. She looks out the window, realizing the sun is already higher in the sky. "Is it time?"
He nods. "Time to start our journey home."
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..~*~..
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Later, they're huddled together in the airport lounge, waiting for their delayed flight to get rescheduled. Bella holds her camera up between them as she scans through the images.
"That's a great picture of you and I in front of the ocean you got that tourist to take," Edward says.
"I'm surprised it turned out so well," Bella says. "He didn't know how to press the shutter button. I had to show him."
"But what I'll remember best from that beach is you in my arms in the water and how I had no sense of time, it was just you and me in the moment."
"It was perfect," Bella agrees.
"That was our last stop on the Cinque Terre excursion, right?" he asks.
"Yes," she responds. "Antonia, our tour guide, was flirting with some beach attendant while we were having our Italian moment."
"She seemed easily distracted," Edward says.
"Yes, but didn't you end up tipping her something crazy, like one hundred Euros or something?"
"Yeah, I got confused with the exchange rate. Too much wine at lunch, I think…"
"Well she loves us now. She already sent me an email asking us to come back," Bella says.
"Did she now?" Edward asks, grinning.
"Yes, besides the fact that she has a crush on you, my handsome boyfriend who's a big tipper. I think she enjoyed us and our joie de vivre!" Bella says.
"I think you're right. Hey, do you want to split another gin and tonic?" Edward asks as he looks around. "It looks like we aren't boarding anytime soon."
"Nah, I better drink some water," she says.
"Speaking of water, remember what happened at that little restaurant?"
"The one she took us to in the second village built into the cliff? Where we had lunch? How can I forget?" she says, laughing.
"It wasn't funny!" he insists.
"You mean how the waiter spilled water down the front of my shirt. Yeah, I remember that vividly."
"I bet you do," he says.
"And he revealed my assets since I was wearing a thin, white T-shirt. Thank you for not kicking his ass, by the way. I know you wanted to."
"You have no idea how much I wanted to," he says, practically growling. "I'm convinced the jerk did it intentionally."
"Yes, but as I recall, not long after that we were in the ocean with your under-water hands all over my breasts." She smirks.
"Well, of course," he states matter-of-factly.
"What was that all about?"
"Men and beautiful breasts…what can I say? We're hard-wired to want to touch them."
Before she can taunt him, their flight is announced over the loud speaker.
"I guess we can board now," she says sadly.
He looks up at the clock. "Yeah, let's go." He stands up and hoists on his backpack, then lifts his guitar before reaching his hand out for her.
"Ready?"
She sighs. "I guess so."
She looks so forlorn that it breaks his heart a little until a thought comes to him.
"Hey, when we get in our seats, let's start figuring out our next adventure. Okay?" he suggests with a big grin.
Her expression brightens as she takes his hand. "Oh, I love that idea."
When they leave the lounge and walk toward the gate, they pass an advertising sign promoting hot-air balloon rides over Tuscany. Bella stops in her tracks, drawn in by the colorful shapes and the idea of soaring over the very place she's fallen hopelessly in love with. She turns to Edward and takes him by the arm.
"Tell me you'll bring me back here one day," she asks, her expression sincere and hopeful.
Edward glances over at the sign and smiles. "Sure I will. Do you want to do the balloon ride next time we come back? We can make our own traditions, like doing some type of adventure every time we come."
She nods, with wide eyes like a young child who approaches a carousel full of colorful horses. She takes a step closer to him and places her hands on his shoulders as she looks up at him.
"So we'll always have Italy," she says happily.
He sets down his guitar, and pulls her into his arms. "Oh, Isabella."
"Yes, we will…
always."
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Thanks for reading and thanks for reviewing :-)
xoxo
abbie
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