The Learning Curve: Chapter 105

Hanover, New Hampshire

The town outside my hotel room window was so lovely, I almost couldn't stand it.

I understood now why Edward had been so set on this place. It was perfect.

The hotel was really nice, too, and I had the feeling that Edward and his family were used to traveling in style. We each had our own room at the hotel, something that never would have happened with my family, and the rooms were…huge. Bigger than I'd ever experienced in a hotel.

It was a little intimidating.

There was a knock on my door, and I hurried over to it, knowing it would be Edward. He stood there wearing a broad smile that I couldn't help returning.

"You ready?" he asked eagerly.

Our flight had landed in the early afternoon, and it was after three o'clock when we reached the hotel. We were going to stroll around the town for a while before having some dinner and turning in for the night. Tomorrow, we would spend the day touring the campus.

"Ready," I said. "Just let me grab my bag."

Esme was waiting for us down in the lobby. Our hotel was on one of the main roads in town, so it was simple to just walk out the door and begin to look around. Esme had so much to tell us. She pointed out businesses that had been around while she was there, restaurants she used to frequent, stores she loved, and she told us what things had changed. She had tons of stories, and I gathered that Edward had heard most of them because he was constantly prompting her. I was enchanted. I couldn't wait to have stories of my own one day. Stories that included Edward, just as Esme's did Carlisle.

We had dinner at a Thai restaurant, which was something new for me, and then strolled back to the hotel. We all went back to our separate rooms, but it wasn't long before Edward was tapping softly at my door again.

I let him in, looking worriedly down the hall. "Does your mom know you're in here?"

Edward laughed. "My mom told me in no uncertain terms that if there's something going on, she doesn't want to know. And what she doesn't know won't hurt her," he said, all the while raking his eyes over me. I'd just come out of the shower and hadn't put anything but a bathrobe on yet.

"You look so good just out of the shower," Edward groaned, running a thumb over my undoubtedly flushed cheek. "The only thing better is you in the shower."

I laughed, feeling overly warm. "Well, you're not going to see that tonight," I told him, though the thought of getting Edward in the shower with me was a tempting one. There was nothing quite like watching soapy water run down his back and over his taut –

"So, do you like Hanover?" Edward asked, abruptly ending my train of thought.

"I love it," I said, wandering over to the bed. Evidently sexy time wasn't starting yet. I sat near the pillows with my legs tucked under me, and Edward sat cross-legged facing me.

"I was thinking we could go see that apartment while we're here," Edward said. "Not tomorrow, since we have the campus tour, but maybe Tuesday." We were on our spring break from school and not due to fly back until Thursday morning.

"How long do you think we have until someone else takes the apartment?" I asked worriedly. Our hopes of living together would be ruined if we didn't have a place to live. I knew there were probably other apartments, but this one was perfect. The rent wasn't too expensive, so I didn't feel as guilty about it, and it was a really nice place.

"I don't know," Edward sighed. "The closer it gets to the end of the school year, the more people will be looking. We should put a deposit down soon if we want it. But we can talk about that on Tuesday."

"Okay," I agreed, leaning back against the headboard. Edward's eyes lingered on my bare legs, and I let one creep out from under my robe experimentally. The split in the front of the robe left me exposed up to mid-thigh.

Oblivious, Edward scooted to sit beside me and trailed his fingers over the skin I'd revealed. I breathed deeply and tucked my head against his shoulder, hoping it would always be like this.

A/N: Thank you for the votes of confidence, guys. It's nice to be told you're on the right track with your life. I do want to publish my own work, but until I can do that, gotta have a day job.

And I'm very sorry there was no update yesterday. I admit it: I got lazy.