Bella

I'm exhausted once again after two days of double shifts. To add to it, I got a phone call during my break today about a possible internship at an art gallery. It sounds perfect, but I wondered how on earth I could manage that and my job at the restaurant. I don't know how I can possibly quit my job. The tips are too nice. My worried indecision is only made worse by the fact that I haven't slept well all week.

I need some cozy pajamas and a glass of wine.

My cell phone chirps as I drive away from the restaurant, and the name on the display makes all my troubles melt away.

"I was just thinking of you," I say when I pick up.

"What a coincidence," says Edward. "Because I've been thinking about you all day. How are you?"

"Exhausted."

"I'm sorry. Any decision on the internship?"

I groan. "I just don't know. It sounds awesome. It's work that's the problem. I don't know if I can keep up."

"I have faith in you."

"That means a lot," I say without a hint of sarcasm. "Maybe if I start sleeping better, things won't feel so…I don't know… Doesn't it seem weird to you?"

"Weird?"

"I mean, we haven't been together very long, and it's like we have this…addiction."

His laugh is deep and rough in my ear. "That's a different way to phrase it. But I know what you mean."

"Doesn't that—I dunno—scare you a little?"

His reply is immediate and resolute. "No. Not even a little bit."

My eyes sting with hot tears.

"I love you, Bella. Unconditionally. Completely. Sometimes I'm worried I'll never find the words to tell you how much. Does it scare you?"

Does it? I breathe deeply, closing my eyes at a stoplight, blocking out everything else around me, concentrating on what I feel at this very moment.

Longing. A desire so strong to be with him that my insides ache.

"No," I say finally. "Not one bit."

"Two more days, babe," he says, a smile in voice.

The car behind me honks, and I'm jerked back into the present.

"Damn."

"Are you driving?"

I sigh. He hates it when I use the phone while driving. "Yeah. Just driving home from work. A couple came in ten minutes before closing time again. I thought they'd never leave."

"You get home and get some sleep, then. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

We say our goodbyes, and I turn the radio back up, singing loudly to keep myself awake.

As I pull into the parking lot of Edward's building, I can only think of collapsing into bed. But as I exit the car and start for the door, a pair of arms encircle my waist, and I freeze. My first thought is that Edward came home early, but the arms are too muscled, grasping roughly.

"Mmmmmm. You smell good."

I recognize James's voice immediately. I try to wiggle out of his grasp, but he holds me tightly.

"Did you move without telling me?"

I don't answer.

"I've been watching you. That pathetic boy hasn't been around. I went to your place twice this week, but you weren't there. So I followed you home from work."

I clench my jaw, feeling sick to my stomach. Was he always like this? I admit that I was seriously attracted to him those few times we went out. I liked spending time with him. But that was before Edward. "When did you turn into such a creep, James? What do you want?"

He turns me roughly to face him, and I lean as far away from his face as I can. He smells of whiskey.

"Isn't it obvious?" he sneers, pushing his hips against mine.

A loud, humorless laugh escapes me. "Well, you aren't getting that from me."

"Oh no? I know you better than that, Bella. You're just playing hard to get. You've been playing this game with me from the beginning."

"No, actually, I haven't. You gave up your chance, and I found something better."

"Where's this better thing now? Not here to save the day again."

"He'll be home any minute now," I lie.

He snorts. "Well, I'm going to need much more than a minute to deal with this growing problem."

I choke back a gag. My limbs shake from the rage building inside me. "Let go of me."

His arms are a cage around me, squeezing tighter, making me wince in pain. "You know you want this," he says, bringing his face close to mine.

As soon as his lips touch mine, I bite down hard, acting on pure instinct.

He shouts several expletives and jerks his hand up to his mouth, elbowing me in the face in the process. I see stars, but I seize the opportunity while his attention is diverted. I bring my knee up swiftly and made contact with his groin.

"Fuck!" he cries again, and as he doubles over in pain, I bring the heel of my hand up into his nose. He falls back onto the pavement, and I don't hesitate for a second. I run faster than I've ever run in my life. "Fucking bitch!" he screams after me.

I meet the doorman halfway. He grabs me by the arm and hurries me into the building, locking the main entrance behind us. "What's going on?" he asks urgently and picks up a phone. "Are you hurt?"

I shake my head. "I'm fine." It's true. I'm not really hurt. In shock, maybe, still shaking, still gasping for enough oxygen to satisfy my racing heart.

"You don't look fine, Miss Swan. I'm calling the police. Mr. Cullen would have my head on a platter if I didn't."

"No, please don't call anyone. It's really not necessary." But he does anyway. I concentrate on his face as I watch him speak with the emergency operator. Trying to focus on anything besides what just happened, I think about our occasional chats. Laurent's in his early sixties, a handsome older man who grew up in Haiti. He has a wife and three grown children. A vegetable garden. A cat named Marie, which he told me when he heard Alice call me Bella Marie.

"There's a unit nearby," he tells me, interrupting my distraction.

I cross my arms, resigning myself to the embarrassment of having to talk to the cops. A cruiser pulls up after a mere couple of minutes, lights flashing. Two officers get out, hands on their gun holsters, eyes darting around.

They run to James, who's finally attempting to get on his bike and drive away, but apparently the knee to the groin makes mounting a motorcycle difficult. Laurent and I watch as James gestures wildly.

One of the uniformed officers makes his way toward the building, and when he steps into the light, a feeling of dread washes over me.

Oh, shit. Charlie. My dad. I haven't spoken to him in a very long time, and now isn't the best time for a forced family reunion. Laurent is oblivious to my internal panic as he unlocks the door.

"Good evening, officer," he says.

My father nods at him politely before his eyes move to me. His brow wrinkles in momentary confusion before he rushes over to me.

"Bella," he breathes. "Are you okay? Are you hurt? What happened?"

"I'm fine, Charlie," I say after a deep breath.

He winces when I call him by his first name. "I need to get a statement from you, Bells."

I swallow past the lump in my throat and nod. You can do this. You can get through this without breaking down.

We head over to the seating area in the middle of the lobby, and Charlie takes out his notebook and pen. I tell him exactly what happened and nothing more.

He gazes at me after he closes his notebook, and pain flickers in his eyes. I can't help but feel a bit smug at being the one to put it there.

"Bella, I'm so sorry."

"I told you, I'm fine. James is much worse off than I am."

He cracks a wry smile. "You actually listened to that self-defense lesson."

"Yeah, well, it's one of the only useful things you gave me." I bite my tongue in regret. That's not even remotely true. I know I shouldn't be so harsh, but I can't stop myself. The night's events have left me reeling, and adrenaline courses through me.

"Bells—"

"Don't call me that."

He sighs. "Why did you move without letting me know?"

Move? I look around then and remember where we are.

"I didn't move." I sigh. "This is my boyfriend's place. I'm staying here while he's out of town."

"Mike?"

"Mike dumped me right after Christmas."

He looks confused, and though I know he has questions, I wave it off. "So what's going to happen to James?"

"Well, it depends on whether you want to press charges. But regardless of that, we're hauling him in for driving under the influence."

Our conversation is stilted, formal, and when I don't offer promises of future contact, Charlie leaves, not doing a very good job of hiding a wounded look. He and his partner stick James in the back of their car and drive away.

Laurent touches my arm gently. "Would you like me to get you an ice pack for your cheek?"

"My cheek?"

He nods, looking sympathetic. "I think it's going to bruise. It's pretty inflamed."

Damn it. Two days until Edward comes home, and I get to welcome him home with a black and blue face.

"I'll get one when I get upstairs. Thanks for everything, Laurent."

He tells me to let him know if I need anything else, and I head for the elevator. I lean against the wall after pushing the button for the seventh floor. Now that I'm alone with space to think and feel, my cheek throbs. It feels swollen. It's going to bruise, and if my last encounter with James is any indication, Edward's going to freak. I drop my head into my hands, laughing a little just to relieve some of the stress. An hour ago, I was exhausted. Now I'm the walking dead.

Alice reads me the riot act the next morning. "I can't believe you didn't come get me when all this was happening!" she admonishes.

"It really wasn't that big of a deal. I figured you were already asleep."

The look on her face tells me she's thoroughly unconvinced. "Isabella Swan, you're attacked by a drunk guy, and the cop that shows up to save the day ends up being your estranged father, and it's not a big deal?"

It sounds crazy, and the urge to giggle is followed by the urge to sob hysterically. "My life sounds like a soap opera," I wail. "When did it become so dramatic?"

Alice wraps an arm around me. "You just have a lot on your plate right now. Sometimes everything seems to happen at once, and it's just overwhelming."

I nod and sniff.

"What did Edward say when you told him?"

I press my lips together and give the side-eye.

"You have talked to Edward, right?"

"I didn't want him to freak out."

"And what's he going to do when he sees that?" she asks, gesturing to my bruised cheek.

"Well, I'm sort of hoping some of the swelling will go down by Sunday. It's not so bad, really." I'm kidding myself. It is. It's considerably darker than it was last night, and I'm pretty sure it'll only get worse over the next day or so

She snorts. "That's not gonna go away in a day and a half, B."

"Still, I don't want him panicking and running home before he needs to. I told you about his reaction the last time James showed up."

"Maybe you should tell him just before they leave on Sunday."

I shrug. "I'll see how it goes. Honestly, Alice, it's fine."

"And what about seeing your dad?" she asks, her tone quieter and more sincere.

It gives me pause. Seeing Charlie brought up an awful lot of feelings that I thought I'd put to rest. "It was…unexpected. I would've liked some time to prepare myself before seeing him."

"What did he say?"

"Not much. He asked if I'd moved. When I said this is my boyfriend's place, he thought I was talking about Mike."

"Are you serious? What did you tell him?"

"I told him we broke up, and that's it. He didn't even try to ask for a way to contact me or anything…" I trail off. I didn't exactly offer it up.

"Isn't that what you wanted, though?"

I did want it that way. But do I want to keep ignoring him? Or do I want to finally say all the things that have been building up in my head for the past year? Honestly…I have no idea.

Edward

"Damn it." I drop my phone carelessly on the table in the airport's food court.

"Still not answering?" says Jasper.

I shake my head and drum my fingers on the formica. "Have you talked to Alice?"

"Nope."

I scrub my hands over my face and blow out a long breath. "Wonder what they're up to."

He raises an eyebrow. "There's no telling with Alice."

My phone vibrates loudly, and I'm relieved to see Bella's name flashing on the screen.

"Hey! You called?" she says when I answer. She sounds breathless, like she's been running.

"Bella, is everything okay?"

"Yeah! Why?"

"I've been trying to call for a while, and Jasper hasn't been able to get in touch with Alice either."

"I'm so sorry," she says. "I didn't mean to worry you. We're at the beach."

"Are you sure everything's okay?" I ask, realizing my anxiety is unwarranted and probably overbearing.

"Of course! Everything's fine. Your flight gets in at eight, right?"

"Yep," I say, trying to lighten my tone. I drop my voice to make sure no one around me could hear. "I hope you've had a restful week, because it's going to be a long night."

"I'm excited to see you," she says in a lusty voice, and I'm suddenly at half-mast. Christ. She can do things to me when she's not even near.

"Me too. Listen, I've got to get to the gate. I'll see you soon, okay?"

"All right," she says with a sigh. "I love you."

"Love you, too." I hang up and glance over at Jasper, who's on the phone now, looking a little red-faced and flustered. I snicker to myself.

I spy Bella immediately when we pass the security area, and I feel like my smile might split my face. She runs to meet me and crashes into my chest, making me laugh and sigh in relief. Everything else disappears, and it's just Bella and me, alone in a crowd.

"God, I missed you," I say, tightening my arms around her and burying my face in her hair.

"Me too." She throws her arms around my neck and squeezes. "Now I'm not letting you go."

I chuckle again and pull back, bringing my hand underneath her chin and tilting it up. My breath catches in my throat when I see her fully. A large purple bruise covers a large portion of her left cheek.

"Bella, what the hell happened to you?"

"It looks so much worse than it is, I promise," she says, eyes clouded with what looks like worry.

"How did this happen?" I ask, stroking the unbruised part of her cheek.

"I ran into James, and—"

My whole body tenses. "That asshole did this to you?"

"It wasn't intentional. He—"

"I don't care. I told him to stay away. What was he doing near you?" My insides turn. My blood boils.

"Edward. People are starting to stare," she murmurs, glancing nervously around the terminal.

Jasper and Alice are beside us then, and Alice puts a hand on my arm. "Really, Edward. Everything's perfectly fine. He won't be bothering her again."

I turn to her for a second before whipping my head back around to ask Bella what she's talking about.

"Can we please talk about this in the car?" she asks meekly.

She seems…afraid? Of me? Good job, Cullen, I chide myself, and I know right away that this is exactly why she didn't tell me. She was afraid of my reaction. I take a calming breath and kiss her forehead. "I'm sorry. Yes, let's talk about it in the car."

Once we're on our way home, I felt calmer, but every time she turns her face to me, I see the dark purple that spreads down over the apple of her cheek. It pains me. She snuggles up to my side in the backseat, and I pull her closer with my arm around her shoulders.

"Now will you tell me what happened?"

She groans but nods, resting her other cheek against me. "Remember when we were talking on the phone Friday while I was driving home from work?"

"Yes."

"James followed me home. I didn't know he was there, and grabbed me in the parking lot. He tried to kiss me—"

Rage.

"—but I bit him. His elbow hit my face when he reacted. I got away from him and ran into the building, and Laurent called the police."

"You left out the best part!" Alice cries from the front seat, turning her body to the side so she can see us. "She kicked him in the balls and then punched him in the nose."

I can't help the short bark of a laugh that rises from my chest. "You beat him up?"

Alice and Jasper try to stifle their laughter in the front seat.

Bella shrugs. "My dad's a cop. He taught me self-defense when I was younger."

"So, James, then?"

"They took him in for drunk driving."

"And there's a restraining order," Alice cuts in again.

"Good."

"Really, it's not a big deal. It just sort of got out of hand," Bella insisted.

I squeeze her tighter and let the subject drop for now. She's safe, if slightly injured. I'm home, and we have tonight and all of tomorrow together. Our reunion didn't go exactly as I expected, but I vow not to let my temper ruin the rest of our night.

As soon as we reach my bedroom, I drop my bags, kick the door shut, and grab Bella by the wrist.

She turns abruptly, hair swinging out, wafting her delicious scent in my direction.

"Bella, I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" Her eyebrows pull together, creating a little line in her forehead.

I reach out and smooth it with my fingers. "For the way I acted before."

She smiled softly. "It's my fault."

"How on earth is it your fault?"

"I didn't want to tell you over the phone. I didn't want you to freak out and come home before you were supposed to." She moves closer and lays her head on my chest.

"It's not your fault at all. I was just shocked." I tilt her face up to mine again. "The thought of you being hurt, the thought of anything happening to you… To be honest, it scares me to death."

Her breath hitches, and her eyes glisten. It makes my chest tight. I stroke her uninjured cheekbone with my thumb and search her eyes.

"Remember what we talked about on the phone Friday night?"

"Of course."

"I meant every single word, Bella. I love you so much. I don't ever want to be apart from you. I don't ever want to be with anybody else."

A tear falls to her cheek, and I brush it away. She sniffs and nods. "I feel the same."

I crush my lips to hers, and she responds immediately, our lips working frantically. I hold her tight, and her hands tangle in my hair as we drown in the heaviest moment.

Her cool hands work themselves under my t-shirt, and I help her pull it over my head. She averts her gazer from mine and lowers her head to place a soft kiss over my heart, then brings her lips back to mine. I lean into her, forcing her to back toward my bed.

My hands trail from her back to her sides, moving slowly down her curves. When I come to the hem of her short pink dress, I trace my fingers over the soft skin where the tops of her legs meet her luscious ass.

"Wait a second," she breathes, and I groan at the loss of her body against mine. She goes to the iPod dock on my bookshelf and touches a button, and the opening of "How Soon Is Now" fills the room.

Fuck. Me.

My eyes drink in the sight of her as she turns around with a shy smile and pulls her dress over her head. Clad only in a pair of lacy black panties and bra, she slowly makes her way back to me.

"God, you're sexy," I say, gathering her in my arms and crushing her lips with mine.

She pulls my jeans off, and we fall back onto the bed. I drag my lips down her neck, her collarbone, her chest, pulling her bra straps down, unveiling her breasts and taking one pink nipple into my mouth. She arches against me, and the sultry music that fills the air makes everything that much sexier. Hot. Sort of frantic. She used my own trick on me. Knowing she's anticipated this as much as I have makes my dick even harder.

I take her other nipple gently between my teeth, and she lifts her hips and grinds herself up against me.

"Please," she whimpers. "I need you, Edward."

My hands slide down her abdomen, slipping the lacy panties down when I reach her hips. She kicks them off as she pulls my boxers down. When our hips meet again and I feel how wet and hot she is, I know this won't last long. The first time, at least. I have plans for us for the rest of the night.

I spread her legs wider and slide inside in one swift, plunging move.

We both groan at the feeling we've craved for the past week. I almost lose my mind. It feels like we're made for each other, and I know in that second that we are.

I hold still for a second, giving her time to adjust, and then pull back and drive forward hard, the music spurring me on. She gasps, and her lips find mine again. We kiss like it's a drug as I move within her. Her hips meet mine with every feverish thrust. It won't be long before she falls apart in my arms. I revel in the feeling of pounding into her like this. I don't think it's ever been so rushed, so frenzied. She feels tighter, hotter, wetter than ever, and I can tell she's close.

"Gonna come for me, baby?" I ask huskily, the music and the desperation and the feel of her making me crude. "God, you feel tight."

"Edward," she rasps. "Yes…so good."

I murmur lusty words into her ear and feel her clench hard around me dick once. "Come for me, Bella." My voice is harsh, grinding. She cries out and squeezes me inside over and over again. Heat courses through me, and I come hard. So hard.

We lie in each other's arms as our hearts slow, and I kiss her everywhere, brushing her hair from her face and behind her shoulders. We caress arms and sides and faces and stomachs as the air in the room calms. Another Smiths song starts up on the iPod.

Finally, I grin and break the silence. "I love the playlist," I say slyly. "Did you make it for the occasion?"

"Indeed I did," she says, smiling back at me. "I'm honored that you like it, Mr. Musician."

"How did you know that Smiths song would drive me crazy?"

Her cheeks redden. "I, um…I've always wanted to do it while that song was playing."

This woman is perfect. "So you had big plans for this evening too, Miss Swan." I place open-mouthed kisses on her neck. Her head falls back, giving me better access. "You taste so good. I want to kiss every inch of you."

A satisfied smile takes over her upturned face, I inch lower, my lips and tongue worshipping at the altar that is her body. When I press my lips above her belly button, I paused, blinking and pulling my gaze back from her heated skin.

I trace the shape of her hips. "Bella? Baby, did I do this to you?"

My fingers brush lightly over fading bruises on her hipbones. She props herself up on her elbows and looks sheepishly at me, shaking her head.

Boiling blood rushes to my head. "Who did?" I ask in a small voice.

She looks away, and I push myself up onto my knees. "Bella?" I plead, my heart aching. "Please, love…" I don't even allow the ridiculous question to leave my lips, because I know it's unfounded, but it's all over my face.

She gasps, and the color drains from her face. "No, Edward! No. God! How could you even think that?"

"I know." I run my hands through my hair. "I know. What, then?"

"James."

"Did he—did something happen that you aren't telling me?"

"I wouldn't keep something like that from you." There's hurt in her eyes, and I immediately felt like the world's biggest ass. "He just grabbed me a little too hard."

"A little?" I shake my head and stare at the bruises.

"Yes, Edward. A little." She sits up, bringing the sheet up over her chest, clearly agitated. "Look, I bruise easily, okay? I fought back. So yes, he grabbed me too hard, and I bruised. End of story."

"I'm sorry," I whisper, rubbing her calf with my hand, sneaking the sheet away from her legs.

She raises her eyes to mine.

"I shouldn't jump to conclusions. It's just…the thought of his hands on you—" I stop, breathing deeply to compose myself again. "I'm sorry."

Her face softens. "I get it. I should've told you. I honestly forgot about those bruises. But…how could you think that about me?"

Her body tenses as I lean forward and trail my nose ever-so-gently down her neck. "I didn't think that. I just—I've made this evening a complete mess, haven't I? Can we start over?"

"I don't think so," she says, but she seemed to relax a little, eventually giving me a sly grin. "There's no way I want to forget what we just did."

I smile against her skin, nibble and kiss. "Then let's pretend the rest didn't happen."

"Agreed. As long as you don't ever question me like that again."

I make my way back down her body and kiss the bruises, then trail my lips lightly back up her body, barely touching her. Her hands go to my shoulders, trying to pull me back up to her. I ignore her and continue exploring. Not quite kissing. Barely touching. Goosebumps break out over her skin. When I line my body up with hers again, I slip inside easily, slower this time, and linger, unmoving, teasing her, torturing myself. I pull out at an agonizing pace, then slide back in. A few more times. Pull, push. Slide out, sink in. "Turn over," I tell her when I pull completely out, and she does.

I watch myself sink inside her again, resuming my slow pace, and groan as my head drops forward.

"Edward," she breathes, then looks over her shoulder at me. "Edward, fuck me."

All the air leaves my lungs at her words. "I love it when you talk like that," I say in a low voice. "You feel so damned good, Bella." I slide slowly out of her and thrust back in, barely hearing her moans as she buries her face in the pillow.

"I love fucking you this way."

She pushes back against me and squeezes. "Harder," she demands as she comes around me.

I can't hold out. She's too sexy like this. It rushes through me, making me see fireworks as I spill all hot inside her, claiming her as mine.

We talk. We laugh. We make love. We whisper. We fuck.

"That," Bella says between gasps of air after the fourth time, "was amazing."

"That's an understatement." I bring her hand to my lips and kissed it softly. "Are you okay? I wasn't too rough, was I?"

"I'm more than fine. A little sore, but I'm…well, amazed."

My chest swells, as does my ego, and I take her into my arms again and kiss her mouth. "Glad to hear it."

"Mmmmmm," she sighs as her breathing slows once again. "I want to stay like this forever, but I need to go to the bathroom."

"Okay. But after that, let's not ever leave this bed, okay?"

She nods, and I hope to God she's as serious as I am. Because I know in this moment that I want to be with her forever.