A/N: 5 of 6...

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, SM does, I am playing in the sandbox! ENJOY!

44

EPOV

As we sit and talk, I can't shake the feeling that Bella isn't all with me. Her touches are tentative, her looks are reserved, and even her eyes seem to be hiding something. Part of me wants to demand answers, to find out what is wrong. But I remind myself that she has had a lot to deal with in the months since I was gone. I'm convinced that with time, I can crumble any walls she may have built.

So I focus all my attention on just being there and attentive to her needs. With that decided, I start right then and there.

When there is a lull in our conversation and we are busy looking out at the pond, I pull her close and tell her what's in my heart.

"Every day that I was apart from you, I carried your note." I produce the note that to this day I still carry with me. The lines of my folding and refolding are evident. "I still carry it with me. Reading it became part of my pre-show ritual. I had to have it with me or I felt lost, naked even."

I can feel the furious pounding of her heart. She is barely breathing. I forge ahead.

"I thought about you every day. The first week was the hardest. It took all my energy and concentration to keep going, to put on foot in front of the other." I nuzzle her close and kiss the top of her scarf covered head. "I have never felt that way about someone, much less someone I had just met."

"But after talking to the rest of the band, I realized I needed to put my feelings away for a while. But you were always there. Your words and your face."

With that I show her the photos I took while she slept. The look of peace and serenity on her face is unmistakable. Her gasp of surprise takes me off guard and I move us so I hover over her. I see tears in her eyes and I become alarmed.

"Don't be sad, baby. I just wanted to tell you that I've never stopped wanting you. What you are going through now won't stop me. It won't stop us."

I hold her gaze, making sure she sees the truth in my words. When I see her slow acceptance, I gently kiss her lips, sealing my vow to her.

A/N: I want Rockerward... soo sweet... Can Bella put her trust in him? Should she?