Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns the Twilight universe and characters.

Chapter 13

BPOV

After some discussion, Edward and I decided to try and find a hotel room as soon as we got into the city, rather than making the 3 hour trip back later that night. We parked the car and took a stroll around. I wasn't surprised to get the news that the only rooms available in moderately priced hotels were booked. There was a music festival of sorts downtown, not to mention a Star Trek convention, and a fundraiser sponsored by a local brewery.

Edward seemed unfazed, and led me towards a five star hotel and I immediately dug in my heels.

"Edward," I hissed, grabbing his wrist to prevent him from entering the building.

"What?" he asked, innocently.

"I can't afford to stay in a ritzy place like this!" I practically yelled.

He shrugged, "I can. Don't worry about it."

"Don't… don't worry about it?" I sputtered.

"Nah. I got it. You can pay for the movies, if you want," he said lightly.

I grabbed his other wrist, and he turned towards me. Suddenly his casual façade began to crack and his face began to redden, "Look, it's not a big deal. I have an inheritance that I've barely touched. That's not to mention the "Cullen Fortune"," he said, making air quotes, albeit looking embarrassed.

For a few moments I was silent, and he took that chance to hold my hands and bring me closer to him.

I shook my head, and impulsively wrapped my arms around his waist and I could feel him breathe in deeply. I felt the quickening throb of his heart against my ear and he gently brushed down a wisp of my hair as the breeze picked up.

I stepped back from him after a few moments and he stared down at me.

"I've never had a friend who had money before," I said gently, "Most of us in the arts industry are broke as fuck."

"I've always had money," he admitted, "but I've had a lot of buddies who I played with who didn't have a dime. There's a fine line in friendships like that where, if you have money, you can't pay for everything all the time, even though you can afford it without even blinking. Pride is tied up in money, and so is guilt, but Bella? I don't want to worry about that shit. Straight up? I've got coin, and I'm one of the lucky few that doesn't have to think about things like budgets, mortgages, taxes and bottom lines. My inheritance in one of the few things that I have from my biological parents and they worked hard to be able to provide that for me. Would you do me a favour and let me have some fun with it for a change? I'd like to be able to share this with you without any kind of negative feelings."

I thought about it, and automatically we drew together. He wrapped his arms around me, and I breathed in his scent. I closed my eyes and my heart rate picked up. It was impossible not to be enchanted by Edward Cullen.

"Holy fuck," I repeated, slowly circling the room once again.

Edward had gone back for the car, and had left me with a magnetic swipe key of my own, along with our meagre amount of luggage. Between the two of us, we had a laptop, 2 wallets, keys, a paperback, and an ipod.

I felt completely out of my league compared to the majestic quality of the suite. I flopped down on a buttery leather couch and waited for Edward to arrive, and realised that there was no question about it: I needed to do some shopping if we were going to be here until the next day.

Even though I had never been shopping with Alice and Rose, I knew that they went all out every time. I had to worry about things like budgets, though, so I had never taken the opportunity to spend a wad of cash at once. Usually, I ran into an Old Navy for a cotton long-sleeved shirt, or hit a second-hand store to troll for rock band shirts. I had a uniform of sorts which consisted of t-shirt, dark jeans and hoodie, and though I preferred it to overtly feminine clothing, I wasn't one to shy away from dressing up either. I was in it for comfort, but after checking out my financial status via telephone banking, I was practically pacing at the door by the time Edward arrived.

"Looks like you have something in mind," he said, as I immediately reached for his hand and pulled him back out into the hallway.

"I need to get a few things," I told him, and though I tried to let go of his hand as we walked back towards the elevator, he held on tightly, refusing to let go.

We walked into a nearby drugstore and got some basic necessities. I splurged on my favourite body wash and shampoo, even though there was bound to be sample-sized toiletries back at the hotel. We entered a shopping mall and Edward and I parted ways for a bit to shop for clothing on our own. We had agreed along the way to get a bit dressy for our evening out, though we weren't going to go anywhere truly high end.

By the time we had met again, we each had several bags from a variety of stores. We stopped at a nearby Starbucks and relaxed with coffee and cakes. I let out a sigh as I bit into a huge bite of butter icing, and could practically feel my heart speed up as the caffeine entered my system.

Edward stared at me, mesmerised and I laughed loudly.

"It looked pretty sexy," he protested, and I rolled my eyes.

"What did you end up buying?" he asked, trying to peek into one of the many bags that were sprawled out around us.

"Nuh-huh," I warned lazily, taking another large bite, "We can have a fashion show back at the hotel. Let's just enjoy this goddamned beautiful cake."

It was his turn to laugh, and he leaned towards me, his hands cupping his cheeks as he rested his elbows on the table to stare at me.

"What?" I asked, pleased that he couldn't take his eyes off me.

"I don't want to scare you away," he admitted, finally.

"Edward, I think we are past that, don't you?" I said, truthfully, but also feeling a bit awkward.

"Bella, what's happening between us?" he demanded, reaching for my hand.

"I don't know," I breathed. "I told you before, I suck at relationships. I don't want to hurt you. I… don't think we can just be friends, though."

He leaned forward and. slower than sin, reached a hand up to cup my own cheek.

"Good. I don't want to be just friends," he murmured.

Already, I could feel the panic rising, and I could feel myself shutting down, but I fought it.

"You're going to have to be very patient with me," I told him, honestly.

He nodded, "I can do that."

"My first instinct is to always bolt when things get to emotional," I admitted.

"I won't let you."

"You're probably just wasting your time. There's a lot you don't know about me."

"I can wait to find out."

"Edward?"

"Bella?"

"Let's get out of here," I said, staring right back at him.

He simply nodded, reached for our bags, and led me back towards the hotel.

A/N Thanks so much for reading and reviewing. I enjoy your comments and messages.