Bella:

I tried, I really did, but in the end, it was just too much to ask of me. I rapidly got lost in the pleasure he was giving me and forgot, wanting to explore his body with my hands and mouth, just as he did mine. His warning growl stopped me every time, but he finally lost patience and had to tie my hands to the headboard. My protests at this turn of events fell on deaf ears, and I was surprised to find it strangely liberating. I was able to give myself over to the incredible sensations fully, straining against my restraints if I needed to (I did) without having to worry about making a move that could threaten his tenuous control. Now that the threat of my wandering hands had been neutralized, he was able to focus completely on pleasuring me, seducing me so thoroughly that when he finally did carefully slide into me, the brief stab of pain barely registered.

We both paused then, welded together, his hips cradled between my thighs, eyes locked for an interminable moment, aware of the meaningfulness of this moment we had been anticipating for so long. I shifted my hips slightly, intrigued by how cold and foreign he felt inside me, and froze when the slight movement made me clench around him. His jaw tightened and his eyes squeezed closed. He hovered above me for so long, I thought he might pull away from me and disappear, but it wasn't long before he relaxed, the tension leaching slowly out of him. His eyes were dark and intense with lust when he opened them, and his amber gaze caught and held my eyes, leaving me feeling strangely breathless.

Then, very deliberately, he rocked his hips.

I cried out in shock, eyes flying wide open, not expecting the heat to blossom so suddenly and so powerfully in my belly. Another strong surge of his hips, and another, and the heat pulsed. I moaned, letting my eyelids flutter closed, intimidated by the unfathomable intimacy in his hypnotic eyes, and turned my head away from him. He stilled immediately.

"Bella, look at me," he commanded softly. I turned my face back toward him. "I want to see you," he whispered. "I want to look into your eyes."

Holding his weight on his elbows, he slipped his arms under my bound ones, and tangled his fingers in my hair, to keep me where he wanted me. Kissing me possessively, he rocked his hips again, this time with more force.

"Edward..." I moaned against his lips, his name coming out like a plea. I got no mercy. He continued to torment me, experimenting, finding the best angle, watching my face the whole time and taking his cues from my tortured expression. Then he settled into a rhythm, and started thrusting in earnest.

He told the truth when he said it would be very rough. He was merciless, yet never went beyond what I could endure, letting the timber of my cries tell him when he was straying too close to the limits of my tolerance.

Somewhere in the middle of it all, he freed my arms. They coiled around his neck as if they had a life of their own, my hands clenching in his disheveled hair. Reaching down with one hand, his fingers skimming down my hip and thigh, never losing contact with my skin, he hooked his arm under my left knee, pushing my leg toward my chest as I pulled myself up to his face, savagely biting his lower lip, freed by the knowledge that I couldn't hurt him.

It was over quickly. In a heartbeat, the blazing sun in my lower abdomen went supernova, causing my muscles to contract powerfully around him, and it was his turn to cry out in shock. Dropping back to the bed, my arms falling away from his neck, fingers clutching convulsively at the sheets, I arched and twisted beneath him, turning my head, trying to muffle my frantic cries in the pillows. I felt him press his bared, tightly clenched teeth against my jugular as he slammed into me twice more. He cried out loudly into my neck, his body wracked with shudders, and went limp.

When the aftershocks faded, I drifted…well, on a cloud of bliss is such a cliché, but that is what it was. I felt boneless, liquid, a little sore, and very relaxed. Edward's cold body, still fused with mine, felt wonderful against my flushed, sweat-dampened skin. Even the weight of him on top of me was a comfort, somehow. I had never felt as deeply content and comfortable as I did right then.

It took me a while to notice that Edward wasn't moving. I could have been trapped in the frozen embrace of a statue.

"Edward? Are you ok?" I said, concerned. He shifted, lifting his head to look down at me.

The love and awe in his face were laced with shock. "Edward… what is it?" I asked, reaching up to touch his cheek. His next words stunned me.

"Bella…" he whispered, "I saw into you again."

"Why do you think it happens?"

We were lying in the copper light of the sunset, curled under the covers together. It would have been far too hot for that under normal circumstances, but that's what Edward's lovely cold body was there for. He was my reverse hot water bottle.

"I don't know," he replied. "I already hear everyone, so I assume it is something you are doing, but I really have nothing to base that assumption on." He turned, propping himself up on his elbow to look down at me.

"What did you see?" I said, looking at his lips, and then up at his eyes.

"It's more like what I felt." He shook his head. "I can't describe it, Bella. It was…I felt…it was a lot more intense than last time, and it lasted longer. I felt everything you were feeling." He looked at me pointedly. My face ignited suddenly, and was absolutely furious with myself for it. "You felt my…" I stopped, totally embarrassed.

"Your orgasm, yes," he said, keeping any amusement he may have felt over my embarrassment to himself. "And everything you were feeling for me. It was the most seductive, intoxicating thing I have ever experienced." He leaned down to nudge my nose with his, and lay back down.

I was quiet for a long moment. "Edward…was it difficult for you?" I finally asked, a little afraid of the answer.

He understood exactly what I meant. "Yes," he said seriously. "It was very hard. I was…sorely tempted. Very sorely tempted. And that mental contact I had with you made it even harder."

"But you did resist, so…"

He sat up. "Bella, we can't do that again anytime soon. It is too dangerous."

"We aren't back to square one again are we?"

"No. But we have lost some ground. I am finding it difficult to resist you." He leaned down, kissing me as chastely as he did in the beginning of our relationship, almost as if he were testing himself. I longed to deepen the kiss, but he pulled away. "You should sleep now," he continued. "Your eyelids are drooping. We'll talk about this more tomorrow, I promise."

I was tired, and deliciously so. Snuggling closer to him, I closed my eyes with a sigh.

"Edward," I murmured drowsily, "you know I am going to make you pay for that smack on the butt, don't you?"

He chuckled. "I don't doubt that for a minute, my love."

I woke up in the cold blue light of a moonlit room, alone. The room was a little stuffy, and the sheets were bunched around my knees. I untangled myself impatiently and went to open a window, letting in the cool night air. I couldn't find my nightgown, so I picked up the matching robe instead, and wrapped it around myself, padding down the stairs in search of Edward. As I neared the library, I heard him ending a call with someone.

He was sitting in one of the large armchairs. I went straight to him, and made myself at home on his lap. He enfolded me in his arms and pulled me to him, resting his chin on my head.

"Who was that?" I asked sleepily.

"Carlisle."

I straightened up and pulled back to look at him, apprehension in my tone. "And?"

"It's over." His voice was grim. "The newborns have been destroyed."

"Did anyone…" I stopped, swallowing.

"Everyone is ok, Bella," he reassured me, pulling me back against his chest.

"Thank goodness," I breathed, relieved beyond words. The Cullens, Jacob, Seth, the pack…all safe and sound.

Then it really hit me. It was over. I was safe, the people I loved were safe, and I was in this gorgeous place with the man I loved, with forever stretching out ahead of me. And speaking of forever…

"It is time to talk about my joining you, Edward," I said quietly.

He stiffened.

"Don't," I said sharply, pushing away from his chest to look at him again. "You said when this was over, we would really talk and you would really listen. Tensing up is not a good sign that you are going to be open minded about this."

He stood up, with me in his arms, and started back to the bedroom. "It is the middle of the night, Bella, and you are going to bed. We will talk about this tomorrow. After I have gone hunting."

"Edward Cullen, you are stalling," I snapped, as he put me on the bed.

"I am not," he retorted. "After last night, I need to feed. I especially need to feed if I am going to have that talk with you. I am sure you are going to try my patience once or twice."

"Likewise," I muttered. I frowned at him. "As soon as you get back from hunting, then," I said severely, shrugging out of my robe, "and not a minute later."

"Bella…" He sounded pained, "put something on, or I won't stay."

I had forgotten I was naked under the robe. I found my nightgown under the bed, pulled it over my head, and hopped into bed. The room had cooled with the window open, and I was glad to snuggle under the sheet. Edward stretched out on top of it, and I immediately rolled over and into my favorite sleeping position, head pillowed on his chest, and arm flung across him. I was asleep immediately.

Edward was gone by the time I woke up, and when I came downstairs, there was a note on the table from him telling me that he'd gone hunting, he would be back before nightfall, and that he'd made a fresh fruit salad for me. Retrieving it from the fridge, I went outside to sit on the steps, savoring the cold chunks of fruit with my fingers and enjoying the silence.

It really was very quiet here. There wasn't much bird song, and the silence was broken mainly be the soughing of the wind in the trees, and the occasional hum when an insect flew close by. I finished my breakfast, and went back inside to take a shower. I dressed, made the bed and straightened the room a bit, and then started looking for one of my new books. Unable to find it, I headed to the garage to see if it was still in the Volvo.

I forgot about the book as soon as I entered the garage. In addition to the Volvo, there was a motorcycle parked in the back. On the spur of the moment, I decided to see if it worked. If it did, I'd take it out for a spin and go exploring. A whole unsupervised day did not come my way often, and I was going to take advantage of it. I went back upstairs to change into jeans and get my backpack to carry a snack and some bottled water, and then wheeled the bike carefully past the Volvo and out of the garage. It took so long to get it started, I almost gave up. On my final attempt before throwing in the towel, it roared to life with a belch of black exhaust. Straddling it, I shouldered my pack and very carefully started making my way down the mountain road.

I was not wearing a watch, and it felt like hours before I got to the unpaved main road. I hesitated, looking right and left, and wondering which way to turn. I finally dug a coin out of my pocket, and flipped it. Right it was.

I rode for what felt like ages, never seeing a single sign of human life or habitation. Enjoying the solitude at first, I eventually got a little nervous, and became very conscious of how alone I was. If something happened to the bike, I would be in for a very unpleasant rest of the day, and as much of the night as it took Edward to find me.

Right on cue, the bike started sputtering, and shortly thereafter, the engine died. I came to a stop, and got off the bike, wobbling it, listening for sloshing in the gas tank. I heard nothing.

I had run out of gas.

I fought to control a surge of panic. It would not do to lose it now. I knew there was nothing the way I had come, so I looked ahead, trying to see if there was anything, any habitation of any kind visible to me. Dammit, why did I keep getting myself into these scrapes? No wonder Edward was so overbearingly protective. I could hardly blame him when I clearly wasn't doing much of a job proving I could take care of myself.

I spotted something in the distance that looked like it could be an edifice of some kind, and decided to wheel the bike at least that far. If it was abandoned, I could hide the bike before…before what? I certainly couldn't walk home. Metaphorically kicking myself yet again for my stupidity, I started pushing the bike along beside me.

I was lucky. Not only was the structure I saw a home, but it was well maintained, and also occupied. Three Native Americans - two women and a middle-aged man - were sitting in the shade of the porch. As I wheeled the bike onto their property, the man stood and came toward me.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, but I ran out of gas," I said, smiling at him. "You wouldn't happen to have any I could buy, would you?"

"Unfortunately, we are out," he said. "But I can give you and your bike a ride back to wherever you came from. You shouldn't be out right now; it's too hot, and it's only going to get hotter. It can be dangerous."

Not having any choice and grateful for the help, I accepted his offer of a ride. "Thank you," I said, relieved. "You don't know how much I appreciate it. I live up on the mountain, down the road a ways."

"You are a guest of Mr. Cullen's?" he said, surprised. "We are the caretakers of his place when he is away. You have come quite some way from there."

I was curious if they had ever met Edward, but didn't want to open a potential can of worms by asking. Instead, I introduced myself while he wheeled the bike over to a pick-up truck, and with my help, lifted the bike onto the bed.

When I climbed into the cab next to him, I noticed his cell phone clipped to his waistband. "Could I trouble you for one more thing? I need to make a long distance phone call. Could I borrow your phone? I'll pay you for the call…" He waved off my offer of payment, and handed me his phone.

I flipped it open, and dialed. Since I was having trouble getting in touch with Alice, I was going to call Carlisle.

To be continued…