End of Chapter 19
"I am, too. This time away has brought some clarity to so many things, but we will talk more about that when I get back to Forks. I'll talk to you Sunday."
"Good-night, Buttercup."
"Good-night, Schroeder."
Chapter 20: Lover Lay Down (EPOV)
Bella's flight was to land in Seattle at 4:30pm on Sunday. I had symphony practice this weekend on Sunday, so I had stopped by to ask Charlie if I might pick Bella up for him while I was there to save him the drive. Also, since I was there already, I asked Charlie if I might take Bella to dinner before we head back to Forks, since we wouldn't be getting back until 8pm at the earliest.
"Like a date?" Charlie said with a smirk.
I swallowed hard.
"Yes, sir, if that is alright with you," I said struggling to keep eye contact. The Chief could stare a man down with the best of them.
"I think that is alright with me. Have you asked her yet?" He asked.
"Yes, sir. When I talked to her yesterday. She just didn't know it would be so soon," I said the last bit more to myself, and Charlie laughed.
"You're a good kid, Edward. I'm going to trust you with my baby…for now. Don't give me a reason not to, understand?"
"No, sir. I mean…yes, sir," I stammered and my mouth began to feel dry and my palms sweaty.
"You got her flight info?"
"Yes, sir."
"Don't bring her back here any later than 10pm. That should give you guys plenty of time to eat and make the drive."
"Thank-you, sir."
"You kids have fun and be safe."
"We will, and I will have Bella back to you by 10."
I spent the three and half hour drive to Seattle bouncing in my seat with the excitement of taking Bella out. I decided to take her for Mexican food, wondering if spending time with her mom made her think of Phoenix, and miss the life and culture she was exposed to there. I found a restaurant that was nothing fancy, but supposed to be good in Tacoma just off our route home.
It was hard to stay focused on symphony practice tonight. The conductor gave me a strange look, because I played through Fur Elise like it was a fucking show tune. I couldn't help it. I was feeling giddy about the evening, but after I heard the "Again, Mr. Cullen", I tried to refocus to play the piece as it should be played.
Instead of thinking of my evening ahead with Bella, I imagined Bella curled up with a book on my couch. Her hair is twisted up in a clip, and she is biting on a nail while she reads. She looks up at me over the pages, gives me a loving smile, and slides forward on the couch making room for me to climb in behind her. I sit stretching my legs out, and she settles herself between them. She continues to read, but I am only interested in distracting her, and her lovely, exposed neck is the perfect place to start. I start by merely skimming my nose from her shoulder to just behind her ear. She tenses a bit, but then relaxes back into her reading. This time, I repeat the motion, but just to the left of her spine. This causes a shiver, and a chuckle.
I have her now, so I move to placing slow, open-mouthed kissed along the side of her neck where my nose had been before. She is panting slightly now, and my name escapes her lips with her breath. Edward…
She drops her book to the floor and turns towards me, stroking the contours of my face with her eyes. She meets my eyes and smiles, and then rakes her eyes across my lips along with her thumb. I close my eyes at the sensation and sigh. I lean forward and glide my hands up her back and pull her close to me. I feel her pert breasts against my chest, and she brings her mouth down sweetly on mine, nipping, kissing, loving…
My hands climb further up her back, and find themselves tangled into her soft brown hair. She moans at the feeling of my fingertips on her scalp, and opens up her mouth to me as our tongues stretch out and wrap themselves around each other, dragging, twisting, loving…
Slowly, the kisses settled back down to soft, lingering pecks as my fantasy and the song ends.
"Perfect, Mr. Cullen."
Yes, yes it was.
We finished out practicing the rest of the concert, and I practically flew out of the door when the conductor released us. I sped to the airport, and made it with 15 minutes to spare. I wandered through the newsstand, thumbing through the latest Sports Illustrated, Rolling Stone, and Discover magazines. With 5 minutes to spare, I made my way over to wait for Bella. I found a seat outside of the security gates where I would be sure to see her.
Eventually, people started making their way from the depths of the long hall that led back to the gates, and I spotted her small figure in the crowd. She didn't see me at first, and I smiled when I realized that she wasn't raising her eyes, because she was concentrating on not tripping over the multitude of rolling luggage around her. As she passed through the security point, she finally raised her eyes. I could see her frantically scanning the crowd, but I was glued to the spot where I was standing. Waiting for her to see me. And then she did.
I watched as a huge smile slowly spread across her face. It was the type of smile that made her eyes light up, and it was all for me. We quickly stepped towards each other, and came to a stop in front of each other not knowing what the proper greeting was for each other anymore. I needed to feel her in my arms, so I reached out and pulled her into my chest, and her small arms wrapped themselves around my body. I held her close, and kissed her hair before taking a step back. We just stared at each other then, enjoying the moment and the reconnection.
"I missed you so much, Bella," I said brushing my thumb along her cheek.
"I missed you too," she said smiling at me still.
I reached up and slid her carry-on bag off of her shoulder and swung it up onto mine. I then gave her a winning smile and held out my arm to her.
"Your chariot awaits, me lady."
She giggled and took my arm, hugging herself close to my body. We walked down to baggage claim, never breaking contact with each other. Standing there in comfortable silence, we waited and then watched for her bag in the procession of luggage. Once we snagged her bag, I led her out to where the car was parked. I climbed into the driver's seat once I had her and her luggage in the car.
"Edward?"
"Yes?"
"It's a long drive back, and it is almost dinner time, I was wondering if you would mind if we drove thru somewhere, so I could grab something to eat."
"Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that. Bella, can I make good on my request this evening and take you out to dinner? I already asked Charlie, and he said it was OK, but it is entirely up to you. I know you have been on a long flight, and probably just want to get home, and…"
"Edward. Edward!"
"Yes."
"I would love to. What did you have in mind?"
"There is this Mexican place on our way home in Tacoma that is supposed to be good. It's supposed to be 'authentic'. What do you think?"
"That sounds great, Edward."
So off we went down I-5 towards Tacoma. I followed the directions on my iPhone to the restaurant I had picked. I picked something that was a sit down restaurant, but not too fancy, not knowing how Bella would be dressed for her flight, and I didn't want her to feel uncomfortable if she was casually attired. We walked in, and I could tell Bella was sniffing the air, and she smiled widely.
"It smells wonderful in here," she sighed. "I am so hungry!"
"Well, you are to get whatever you want tonight. Even if you just want a taste," I said.
The hostess showed us to a cozy booth in the corner of the restaurant. The table was a brown mosaic of tiles, and a low light hung over the table giving it a soft feel. We settled in, and the waitress came over bringing us chips and salsa and taking our drink orders.
"Do you have queso?" Bella asked scanning the menu quickly.
"Yes," the waitress replied.
"Great!" Bella said lighting up again, and then she furrowed her eyes a bit and looked at me. "Do you mind?"
"Bring the lady whatever she wishes," I said turning to the waitress who smiled at me and winked at Bella.
After the waitress walked away, Bella looked shyly up at me over her menu, and mouthed 'thank-you'. I smiled and returned to my menu.
"So, what are you thinking about getting?" I asked.
"I think I might try this burrito with the chorizo and potatoes. It sounds fantastic. What about you?"
"I was thinking of doing the steak fajitas."
"That sounds good, too," Bella said as she began flipping through her menu again.
"I am willing to share, if you want to get your burrito."
"That sounds great. Does that mean I have to share with you?" She teased.
"You better!" I said with a fake scoff.
The waitress came back then with our drinks and Bella's queso, and we put in our orders.
"Why didn't you tell me about our dinner plans when I talked to you earlier?" Bella asked.
"I wanted it to be a surprise, and I wanted to have the chance to ask you in person. I felt bad for asking you over the phone yesterday."
"I'm happy you asked, and it is a lovely surprise." Bella said blushing.
"I'm glad you said 'yes'," I smiled at her and took a drink of my pop.
"So, how was symphony practice tonight? I wish I could have been there to hear you play."
I choked on my drink a bit remembering my inspiration for my piece this evening.
"It was good," I said recovering. "I had to play through Fur Elise twice, though, because the conductor didn't think I was capturing the mood properly. My happiness at the thought of seeing you crept into my playing, and I am afraid it was a bit too buoyant for maestro."
The food came to the table then, and our conversation fell away to a comfortable silence as we ate. We occasionally traded bites of each other's dinner, and filled the rest of dinner with stories of Bella's time with her mom that I hadn't already heard, and I told her about Thanksgiving in Forks. I sat enraptured with her as we talked. I loved the way she would use her hands when she was animated about a story, and how she would look me in the eyes and hold my gaze when it was my turn to talk.
I explained to Bella about my promise to have her home to Charlie by 10, so I paid our bill when we were done with our meal, and we settled into our three and a half hour drive. Once we were out of the congestion of the city, I allowed myself to relax a bit into my seat.
"Let's play twenty questions to help pass the time," Bella suggested. "Except they can't be boring questions like 'What is your favorite color?' And we have to both agree to answer with complete honesty."
"I think I can agree to that," I answered. "You start."
"You mentioned that you were chastised for not providing the correct mood for your music. What do you think about when you play the piano?" She asked, leaning her head to the side staring at my face awaiting my answer.
I coughed, and didn't meet her eyes.
"You agreed to answer honestly," she chided.
"Honestly…" I started, and I turned to glance at her as I said it, "I think of you."
"You think of me?" She said blushing and looking down at her lap.
"All the time," I admitted. She reached over and slid her fingers in between mine on the hand that was resting on the center consol. It felt so right, and I turned and smiled at her and was met with her matching smile.
"Your turn," she said. I thought for a moment, and then frowned at myself at the question that came to mind. "What is it, Edward?"
"Why didn't you let me in at first? Why did you push me away?" I asked.
"It was a false sense of duty to Charlie. Not false, but I felt that this was his business, and he wasn't telling anyone, so I felt that it wasn't my place to tell. I didn't know how to explain what was going on without giving you all the details. I wanted to…so much," she admitted looking straight at me.
"I wish you would have, Bella. It hurt so much to watch your physical and emotional state deteriorate in front of my eyes. I felt so helpless, and I wanted to help you. I wanted to be your friend."
"My turn," Bella said then. "Why did you keep trying?"
"That first day, Bella, you fascinated me. You were intelligent and funny. You were like no girl I had ever met. You were beautiful. You are beautiful, Bella."
I reached out and ran my thumb across her cheek. She took my hand in hers and brought the back of my hand up to her mouth, and left a long, linger kiss on the top of my fingers. I breathed deeply at the sensation, and allowed myself to linger in the moment. I chanced a glance at her, and she was looking at me through her eyelashes. My eyes landed on her pouty lips, and I quickly turned back to face the windshield.
I glanced down at the clock. It was nine o'clock and we had reached the edges of Port Angeles. I wasn't ready to take her home yet, and we had some time to kill.
"Would you like to stop and get a coffee? Maybe take a walk on City Pier?" I asked her.
"That sounds great," she agreed looking at her watch. "We have time."
I drove down the streets of Port Angeles, and found a spot at a meter to park. We walked across the street to the small coffee shop, and ordered our drinks to go. While we were waiting in line, Bella scooted closer to me, wrapped one arm around my waist, and snuggled into my side. I put my arm around her, and pulled her close, sighing in contentment. Once we had our drinks in hand, we walked back across the street, and took a casual pace hand-in-hand up the pier.
"It's your turn," Bella said as she took a sip of her latte.
"I am not sure I can ask this. I mean, I want to know the answer, but it might not be an easy one for you to respond to."
"Just ask, Edward," Bella encouraged me.
"What is your greatest fear with Charlie, other than death?" I asked. Her grip tightened on my hand and she turned and looked out at the water as we continued to walk.
"I fear him being alone. I fear not being there when he needs me most."
She sniffed then, and I released her hand to wrap my arm around her shoulder, and pull her to me. She leaned into me until she calmed down, and leaned back to look at me. I leaned forward and kissed her forehead. I took her hand once more in mine, and she took a deep and we continued walking. We reached the end of the pier, and looked out over the water.
"Sorry," she said.
"Don't apologize, Bella, and you are not alone, you or Charlie. You have us now. My family and the Clearwaters are here for you both." I said earnestly, turning and facing her and setting my drink down next to hers on the railing. "I am here for you, Bella."
She shivered in that moment, and I pulled her into my arms. I wrapped my wool trench coat around us both. She buried her face into my chest, and I rested my chin on top of her head trying to steady my nerves for what I was about to do next. I pulled myself away from her a bit and looked down at the beautiful girl in my arms. She looked up at me then, and everything in my life fell into place. This is where I was meant to be.
I reached my hands up and cupped her face as I swam in her eyes. Hers traveled down to my lips as her tongue swept across hers letting me know that she wanted the same thing I did. I smiled at her, and she smiled back. Then slowly, we both leaned forward and our lips came together in a soft embrace. I closed my eyes memorizing the sensation of her full bottom lip between mine, and the way she slighted sucked on my top lip. I could taste a mixture of coffee, chorizo, and her. We continued a languid dance of soft kisses; sometimes short pecks, and other times lingering embraces.
I let my tongue slide out then and graze the bottom of her top lip, and she sighed the most beautiful sigh, and I felt her tongue reach out for mine. Like my fantasy before, my hands snake their way into her soft brown hair. I feel her arms wrap themselves around my neck as she pulls me closer, and opens up her mouth to me as our tongues stretch out and wrap themselves around each other, dragging, twisting, loving…
We eventually have to come up for air, and we part panting and pecking and remaining close. When we part, her eyes show the promise of commitment and togetherness. She wants me as I want her. She will care for my heart, as I will fiercely protect hers. I smile at her then, and say the only thing that comes to mind.
"Welcome home."
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A/N: I am so sorry this is late! I have had serious writer's block. Here it is, though! I hope it was worth the wait!
Pimpin' my project! DefinatelyStaying, Lillie Cullen, and I have started up a blog in which to promote stories that you recommend. We will then review your suggestions, and post those that we all agree upon to our recommendations. Looking forward to the gems you send our way! Come visit us at http://blacksheepfics(dot)blogspot(dot)com/
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