A/N- Good morning all you wonderful Edward hating girls! So it would seem that the general theme to the reviews for the last chapter were, 'find some balls,' 'get his head out of his ass,' and 'man up.' Yeah it would appear that Edward is on everyone's shit list, and few aren't too happy with Bella.

Thank you to katydid2363 for the emails that make me laugh. To my prereaders who really worked it out for this chapter, angstaddict09, dinx, and fngrcufs I love you girls!

Stephanie Meyer owns all.

Chapter 9

I never thought I would see in my lifetime
My memory
But fate has a way to show
Who's the boss
For now
-The Avenue, Cowboy Mouth

BPOV

How my emotions had done a total one eighty from a week ago was beyond me. When Edward walked into the bar the previous night I all but wanted to jump him right there with Rose watching. I had to keep my hormones in check so I smiled at him. When he returned the smile my knees went weak. Just as soon as I thought that things couldn't get any better, they got worse, a hell of a lot worse.

When I found Jasper I was going kick him square in the ball sack. I couldn't believe that he had outed our once upon a time fling to Edward. True, it made no difference really. How dare Edward judge me over a past relationship when three weeks ago he was parading around town like he was the King of Rex with his girlfriend?

Girlfriend. The nerve of them to show up. Really, the nerve was all on me. How I could have thought even for one tiny second that Edward Cullen could be mine was not lost on me. He could never be mine. He never came back to me; he never came down here to play for the benefit.

I seethed over these details as I walked back to my apartment in the pouring down rain. The minor things over this whole ordeal were nothing compared to the bombshell I was pretty sure I wasn't supposed to overhear.

Edward's intentions were never to come home and participate in the benefit for the city. He was here to soften up his father so that he would agree to work on an album with him. It wasn't just that I was mad at Edward, mad being a total understatement, I was also hurt. In the one dinner we shared, I thought we had connected on a level that wasn't in the physical sense. Sure, I let him feel me up (which was amazing and it pissed me off that it still made my body tingle when I thought about it) but we had talked about the city and the hurt and despair she was facing. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought the man who poured his heart out to me would end up being a fraud.

I wasn't sure why I jumped in but I did. That was a lie. I knew why I did it. I wanted him to know that I had heard everything. He honestly made me sick to my stomach. Using the broken form of a beautiful city to only further his own career. How someone could possibly do something as selfish and low as that was something I could never understand.

Edward had lied to me. His sights were set bigger than just seeing New Orleans get back on her feet. He had other countries to attend to, more important people to hob knob with. We were nothing. This city was nothing to him. I was nothing.

I sloshed through the water puddles pissed that I had let myself get this far with him. I was pissed I had let myself feel anything past a sexual need. In the long run I did though. I had begun to care about Edward. I had begun to feel things for him that I had never felt for another man. This was the prime example as to why I never let myself get too deep with anyone. I was well aware that he had a girlfriend but it wasn't my fault he was perfect in every other way. He could play the cornet and the piano. He could sing like you wouldn't believe and damn it all to hell if he wasn't the most beautiful creature I had ever laid eyes upon.

He broke my heart and I was pretty sure he had no idea. After storming out of Charlie's office, I grabbed my things from behind the bar and nearly crashed into Carlisle on my way out. He stopped our collision by grabbing hold of my arms and stilling me. The tears I tried like hell to keep at bay came flooding out when he looked at me. All I saw was Edward.

I shook my head uncontrollably, silently asking him not to say anything. He pulled me close and hugged me tightly. That brought the tears on heavier. Before releasing me he whispered into my ear.

"Don't give up on him, Bella. Please. He means well he's just confused."

I said nothing as I pulled my body out of Carlisle's embrace. Without acknowledging him, I stormed out of the club toward home.

Carlisle had a lot of nerve to ask me not to give up on Edward. It made me wonder what all he knew. What had Edward told him? It didn't matter. There was no way I could entertain thoughts that Edward had wanted me just as much as I wanted him. I knew without a doubt that in the physical sense he did. I felt that plain as day the night we got a little heavy on my couch. It was my own fault for feeling anything other than his hands all over my body. It was my fault I let my damn traitorous heart get involved.

The rain was heavy as I continued home. One more block to go then I could take off these clothes, open the bottle of Patron I kept hidden for emergencies (and away from Jasper's greedy hands), and get shit faced alone.

Alone. That word in itself made me want to cry. I had concluded that that's all I would ever be, alone for the rest of my life. Sure I'd have "friends" around to take care of my body when I needed to be satisfied but guys like James weren't exactly the marrying kind. Given my track record it would probably surprise a few people that I even considered the idea of marriage but I did. I wanted what my parents had. I wanted a man to come home to every night. Someone who loved me inside and out, someone who loved this city just as much as I did, and someone who called me and only me 'cher like my father had always called my mother, Like Carlisle probably called Esme. I wanted true love.

I was almost home when I heard my name being called out from behind me. It was a ways back but it was loud enough that I could make out that they were saying my name. I rolled my eyes and kept walking, assuming it was Jasper coming after me since I hadn't told any of them bye. The voice became louder and more pleading. I stopped and turned around to see a soaking wet Edward, panting.

It was as if I was stuck to the street. My feet wouldn't move. Hell my brain wasn't even telling them to go. He held up one finger and then slumped forward, a hand on each of his knees as he caught his breath. I was pissed at myself for just standing there watching him, waiting for him to say something. Slowly he stood up straight and began to walk toward me. I stayed motionless, the rain dumping buckets on us both, until he was directly in front of me. We were in touching distance. If I wanted I could easily reach out and…

I threw my hand up and slapped him across the face. His eyes got wide and he cupped his hand over his jaw rubbing over the place I had made contact with. I was so mad. Had it not been dark I would have been as red as a tomato. I wanted to scream at him, I wanted to cry. Instead, I kept still waiting for what I didn't know.

"I deserved that," he said, still rubbing his face.

"You deserve a hell of a lot more than that," I said, anger pouring out from my words.

"You're right I do but please, Bella, let me explain."

"Explain what Edward? How you only came down here to 'your beloved city'," I said using air quotes, "only to get your dad to play on some album that will only further your career? That you don't give a shit about the benefit? Please don't feed me any more bullshit."

"Bella I swear to you it wasn't like that," he said pleadingly.

"Really? So everything I overheard at the club was a lie? I may be blind in some things that go on around me, Edward, but I'm not deaf, nor am I stupid. That's fine if you want to make a record with your dad, hell that's fantastic but don't use the city and her fragile state right now to do so."

I was yelling so loud I knew that any minute, the people living around us were sure to come out on their balconies to see what the problem was. It was only a matter of time before the police showed up, or worse for Edward, my friends.

"I would really like the chance to explain everything to you, Bella."

I rolled my eyes and shook my head. "You're unbelievable! You know that? How dare you, Edward!" I couldn't even finish my thoughts. I was so mad that I felt like I wasn't making any sense. "Don't you have a plane to catch? Are your girlfriend and that other guy waiting around the corner for you? Did he tell you to come and make nice with me so you could still play for the benefit? Because I'm pretty sure, that will help your career too." My tone was full of malice. Somehow since coming down here, Edward had made everything about himself. It had never been about New Orleans, only him.

"No one told me to come after you in the pouring rain. I did that on my own," he said, stepping closer to me.

I glared at him. "You've done a lot on your own, Edward. Fucking this up for one."

I turned around prepared to run the rest of the way home if I had to when Edward grabbed me by the back of the arm, pulling my body flush with his. Before I could push him away, his lips were on mine. This kiss was so unlike the first and only one we had shared. In this kiss it was as if he was trying to tell me something. Something that only a kiss could tell you. I closed my eyes for a brief second when I felt his tongue glide itself past my lips and into my mouth. He held his free arm around my waist, holding me tightly to his body.

I savored the moment for a tiny second. In the back of my mind I had wanted this. I had wanted him to come running after me, to profess his undying love for me. I relaxed my body and allowed the arm he wasn't holding to ghost along the shirt sticking to his body. I could feel his hard chest underneath the wet cotton. He pulled our bodies closer and I could feel the bulge in his pants. Our tongues met one last time before I forcefully pushed him away. He was gasping for air and looking at me in shock. I was on the verge of tears but I had to do it. It wasn't right even if it felt that way.

"Edward, I can't. You lied to me. You have a girlfriend. Please, just let me go."

I turned around, leaving him standing like a statue in the middle of the street. Tears began to well up in my eyes as I started walking to my apartment. I let them flow, allowing them to mix with the tears of the sky.

"I can't," he said finally. I stopped, barely registering what he had said. "Bella, I can't let you go. Now that I've found you I don't want to be away from you."

His voice had become closer. I knew he had closed the space between us because I could feel him. Knowing that I had that kind of connection to him, a connection that would never be, made me cry that much harder. He placed his hand on my shoulder but I refused to turn around and face him.

"There is no girlfriend, there is no album. All I want is you. Please look at me," he said.

I stood with my back to him, taking in everything he had just said. Not turning around, I addressed him. "What do you mean?"

Without taking his hand away from my body, he walked around so that he was now standing in front of me. "I mean I sent Tyler and Lauren packing. It wasn't the album, hell to be honest; it wasn't even the benefit that got me down here. It was the voice of the most beautiful woman that pulled me here." I looked at him, the water beaded down the slope of his nose. His eyelashes were wet and matted from the rain. His sexy mess of hair was slicked back against his head. He had no doubt run his fingers through it. "It was you 'cher," he finally said.

Our eyes locked with that one statement and I couldn't hold back any more. I didn't want to. I threw my arms around his neck and wrapped my legs around his body. He grabbed the back of my thighs and hoisted my body against his. I did my best to wipe the rain away from his face. I traced the sharp line of his jaw up to the shell of his ear. My hands stroked the wetness of his hair until they rested against the back of his neck.

"So help me God, Edward, if you are fucking with me I will kick your ass," I said as my voice began to waver.

He smiled and pressed his lips against mine. I opened my mouth wider to allow our tongues to meet once more. I pulled at the hair on the back of his neck as he pulled my body closer to his. I knew I was crying but with the rain falling down on us, no one would have ever known.

Edward hadn't offered an explanation for his behavior but he didn't have to. Once he called me 'cher it was over with. No one had ever called me that. Not Jasper, not James, not even my dad. He reserved that one word for my mother and I prayed like hell that Edward would reserve it solely for me.

I had no clue that we had begun walking until I was inside and the rain was no longer soaking my body. I broke our kiss when I realized that we were under shelter but Edward never released his grip on my body. We were standing in the entry way of my apartment building. Edward carried me up the stairs, never setting me down, never uttering a single word until we were in front of my door.

"Key?" he asked.

As much as I didn't want to, I slid myself slowly down his body to fetch the key from my purse. I turned around, my back pressed against Edward's chest, while he held me as I opened the door.

"I'm going to want one of those. For the record, I'd like to have Jasper's," he said seductively in my ear.

I threw the door open and turned so that I was facing him once again. He kicked the door shut with his foot once we were both inside.

"You can have whatever you want," I said, pulling his face down to mine.

Our kisses became more heated in that moment. "Anything?" he asked taking my bottom lip between his teeth.

"Anything."

With that one word I had just confirmed to him what we had both been wanting for weeks. All the sexual tension, the sly looks and touches had come down to this. I kicked my shoes off as we continued to walk and kiss at the same time. I headed down the hall towards my bedroom, guiding Edward through our lips. Our hands were everywhere on each other all at once, caressing each other's faces, threading our fingers through each other's hair and pulling at the hems of each other's shirts. We were a hot mess of lust.

When we finally made it into my bedroom I stopped to allow him to take his shoes off. Once they were off of his feet, our wet clothes began to fly across the room. We both tried to take each other's shirts off, laughing when our heads got stuck in the fabric. Our jeans proved to be a little more difficult but we managed.

We laughed as we both tried working them past our hips. I had more trouble than Edward which meant he was able to help me with the process. Never had I thought taking off a pair of wet jeans would be erotic but somehow, Edward made it possible.

He had already shimmed out of his own when he began helping me with mine. I was working hard to push them down my hips when his hands stopped me. He looked at me with his sexy smirk. "Allow me."

I nodded somehow unable to form any kind of words. Why all of a sudden I couldn't speak I didn't know. Never had words escaped me in the throes of passion. Never.

Edward began to peel the stiff, wet cotton from my body. His lips met a newly exposed part of my skin as the pants slowly came off. His kisses were soft and sensual. His lips seemed to barely graze my skin yet the trail he left made my body feel like it was on fire.

He pulled the jeans down further until they were past my hips. On their own, they fell to my feet. I carefully stepped out of the wet material that had pooled at them. Edward's hands were firmly planted on either side of my hips. He kissed his way along the band of my underwear. I was thankful that I had matched my bra and panties this morning. He looked up, staring at me with his lust filled eyes.

"You are so beautiful, Bella. I knew from the moment I first heard your voice that you would be beautiful."

I smiled as I ran my hands through his damp hair. He returned his gaze back to my exposed stomach continuing to kiss the flesh. His thumbs hooked themselves on the thin cotton material that was keeping me partially covered. Slowly, he pulled them down my hips meeting my eyes as he did. I continued to massage his scalp, threading my fingers into his hair. He was going slowly, painfully slow. I never wanted this moment to end so it made no difference to me how slow he went. He could have prolonged this moment for the next twenty years, I would still have been fine with it.

Once I stepped out of the clothes at my feet, Edward gently began to push me towards the bed. My knees gave way as soon as I came in contact with the mattress. I placed my palm on his naked chest silently asking him to stop.

"I need to see you too."

He nodded a yes and took my hands in his as he helped me push his boxer briefs off of his hips. I stared down in amazement at our bodies. They were both glistening from the rain but it was the places I knew water couldn't have touched that made my breath hitch.

I took my hands and caressed his face while he made to remove my bra. Tossing it across the room, he laid me gently across the bed and hovered his body over mine, balancing himself on his hands to keep his full weight from crushing me. My back arched from the bed as he slowly trailed his finger between the valley of my breasts, straight down my stomach until his finger teased my center. He smiled and lowered his mouth to cover my nipple. It had hardened from the rain and the sexual desire to consume Edward left it in that state. He took the pert peak between his teeth and tugged lightly, eliciting a moan from my lips. He continued to barely touch between my thighs and the slight movement drove me crazy. I had never gotten off by just a simple touch but I was pretty I would've if he'd kept it up.

My hands were fisted in his hair as he lowered himself to kiss my lips. Our tongues slid in and out of each others mouths. I was so needy for him and to the point to yell at him to hurry it the fuck up. I knew better though. Even though he had yet to make any sort of penetration, I knew without a doubt that this was going to be so much more different than any other sexual experience I'd ever had. This was something new for me, something more than just a simple quick fuck.

Edward released our mouths and began to kiss his way down the path his fingers had just trailed. One hand helped guide him down my body while the other stopped to knead my breasts. He stopped just short of where I wanted him most in that moment. Right above my hip bone, he paused to look at the tiny tattoo I had. He looked up and kissed it gently, flicking his tongue out to trace the pattern of the clarinet.

"You have one on your foot too," he said, straddling my body, the tip of his cock grazing my entrance. I was about to lift my hips just enough so that I could feel some sort of pressure on my ache when he began to make his way further down my body. He lifted my leg up and kissed his way down to my ankle, tracing my fleur-de-lis tattoo with his tongue.

I propped myself up on my elbows to get a better look at him. "How did you know?"

"The first night at the club, when you sat next to me, do you remember that night?" he asked, inching his way higher across my body. I nodded. "Do you remember the way you teased me that night? With your tight white shirt and those fuck me shoes. Do you know that all I could think about then was taking your legs like this," he lifted both of my legs in the air, resting them on either side of this head. "I wanted you so bad that night and we had only just met. Don't you see what you do to me, Bella? Don't you see now how I can't be away from you?"

"I don't want you to be away from me, Edward. I wanted you that night too. Even though I had called you every name in the book, I wanted you more than I had ever wanted a man before."

He smiled and ran his hands up and down the length of my legs. "I want to love you 'cher. Will you let me?"

"Please," I croaked out.

He lowered his body bringing my legs down with him. I was still resting my weight on my elbows, so when his head disappeared between my legs I had the best view in the house. I watched as he kissed the outside of my thighs, our eyes locked into a fierce stare. He kissed my clit once and then slid his tongue down my slit. I threw my head back, falling flat on the bed and moaned.. His tongue kept a steady rhythm of licking my wet folds as he alternated between gently sucking my clit. My moans became louder more incoherent every time he did so.

My hips bucked with every new pass his tongue made. He held my hips firmly with his hands and each time I lifted myself from the bed, he buried his face deeper. The sensation his tongue was making was doing more for me than any other man's cock had done. I could only imagine what it was going to be like when he did totally consume me.

I propped myself back up on one elbow and with my free hand I grabbed the back of his neck, fisting his hair in my hands.

"Edward, that feels so amazing. I can't last much longer," I said gasping for air.

"Then don't," he said, his head still buried between my legs. "Let go."

He sucked one last time and I was done. My head fell back, my eyes closed, and a series of unintelligible words and moans escaped my mouth. My hand gripped a fist full of Edward's hair. As soon as my orgasm passed through my body, I collapsed on the bed. My breathing was heavy, my chest rising and falling with each inhale and exhale. I opened my eyes and saw a very smug Edward above me. I smiled at him and rolled my eyes.

"What?" he said, chuckling. "I can't help it if I've got amazing skills."

"You're so full of yourself, Cullen." I said, still smiling.

"Oh is that so? Well Swan, you're about to be full of me too."

He leaned down, kissing his way across my neck to the gap at my ear.. He sucked at the lobe while his hands familiarized themselves with the rest of my body. I wrapped my legs around his waist and pulled him so that his cock rested nicely between my folds. He lifted his head to look me directly in the eye.

"I want to give you everything, Bella. Will you let me continue showing you how I can love you?"

"Yes," I simply stated.

I teased him by rubbing myself against his dick, coating him with my juices. "Do you have a condom?" He breathed into my ear, taking the lobe in his mouth once more.

"Bedside table, first drawer."

He leaned over and opened the drawer. I could hear the rustle of the package as he grabbed what sounded like more than one. He opened the foil package with his teeth and lifted himself up, straddling my body. I watched as he sheathed himself with the rubber and then aligned his self at my entrance.

"There is something else in the drawer that caught my eye," he said, teasing me with his tip.

"Is there? What would that be?" I asked, not having a clue as to what he was talking about. I tried to rack my brain for what I kept in there but for the moment the only thing I was really focused on was having him inside me.

He bent down and kissed me hard on the mouth, darting his tongue out. He moaned when I took it in my mouth and sucked on it. "You're vibrator," he said as the thrust himself into me.

I gasped when the words that he had found my vibrator registered. I moaned when our bodies became one. He looked down, slowly moving himself in and out, and smiled a wicked grin. "I hope you won't be needing that anytime soon."

I met him thrust for thrust, clawing his back at the intensity of our union. I smiled just as wickedly back at him. "I'll let you know when this is over."

With that Edward righted himself upwards, taking my legs with him. He stroked my calves and rubbed soothing circles on the bottom of my feet. The new position caused him to bury himself deeper inside of me. I ran my hands over his rock hard chest, watching his stomach muscles expand and contract with every move he made.

As much as I loved watching him work me over from above me I wanted him closer. I released my legs from his hold and wrapped them around his waist, urging him forward. He dipped down until our chests were touching. He held my face in the palms of his hands using the pads of his thumbs to gently stroke my cheeks.

"I want you closer to me," I said digging my heels into his bare backside.

"I never want to be away from you," he said kissing me softly. "Bella, baby, you feel so good."

He continued to pound lovingly into me, our bodies slapping against one another. He hit a sensitive spot when he changed the angle of his hips. I held him tighter, needing him to do that over and over.

"Right there, Edward. God, that feels good. Yes," I shouted when he hit the spot again, "right there!"

"Here?" he asked as he continued to hit the spot over and over until everything started to become a blur.

My whole body tensed. "Edward," I managed to choke out. "Edward, I'm there baby. Don't stop," I pleaded.

I tried pulling him closer even though he was as close to me as one person could be. When I felt it all come undone I cried out his name. His pace picked up and he pressed his forehead to mine as he came, shouting my name over and over.

We laid like that for several minutes, neither of us in any hurry to move. I kissed his nose and then moved to his lips. It wasn't a passionate kiss of longing, it was one of love. Something I was unfamiliar with yet I recognized it immediately.

Instead of withdrawing himself from me, he kept himself buried deep inside. He swept back the hair that had matted to my forehead. I hated to think what I looked like. A woman well worked over that was for sure. He smiled and kissed each cheek, each eyelid, my nose and then settled for my lips again.

"That was…" he started to say.

"Beautiful," I finished for him.

He nodded. "Most definitely. Will you let me show you again? Will you let me show you every day how I can love you? How I want to love you?"

"Everyday?" I asked.

"Unless of course you think you might need the vibrator, in which case, I guess I won't be needed," he joked.

"No, no vibrator. You hit spots that thing has never dreamed of hitting." I thought for a moment about what he had just said. I wanted him to show me everyday how much he could love me. I wanted to show him in return how much I could love him.

Instead of flat out answering his question, I asked him the one thing I had never asked another man who had been in this position.

"Edward, will you stay with me tonight?"

He kissed me with more passion, cupping my face in his hands. "There is no other place I'd rather be."

~xxx~

A/N- Was it good for you? I hope so. I've had this scene playing out in my head since I began writing this story. I know that most of you are probably wondering what led him to run after her in the rain. Edward will get his chance to explain everything in the next chapter.

Leave some love and tell me what you think about a Bella & Carlisle pairing.

Xoxo
Holly