Chapter 8

Isabella Pov

December 11th, 2011 ~

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I stood in the chilly lobby staring at the descending elevator.

Slowly, I unwrapped one of my arms from around my torso and brought my forefinger to my mouth, tracing my bottom lip absentmindedly. I could still vividly feel the softness of his lips and the taste of his coffee soaked breath as if he had imprinted them on me. Not to mention the burning feel of his large, masculine hands cupping my cheeks so gently yet so domineering. His cologne, now so familiar but still as memorable as the first time I had smelled it was lingering in the air like a pure, undiluted fog of lustfulness clouding my brain.

Yes, Edward Cullen, cold, pretentious, disturbingly rich lawyer had just kissed me, and I was about to melt into a puddle of hormonal goo. He had kissed me. On the freaking lips no less. Apparently, he was not as uninterested as I had thought him to be.

To be honest, I had no idea what had possessed him to do it in the first place. He had made it pretty clear that he wasn't ready for a relationship yet. I, on the other hand was becoming increasingly more and more interested in him.

That night in November when he had left my apartment with my cell number, I was convinced I was going to hear from him soon. The next day came and went without hearing a word from Edward, but it didn't bother me as I was well-aware of his busy work schedule. Then three days passed and then a week, and my phone remained silent. By week two I was starting to lose hope and by the time a month had passed I was downright pissed. I simply couldn't understand why he had even bothered to ask for my number in the first place if he didn't plan on using it. So, by the time he had the courtesy to actually make use of it, I don't think it was such a big surprise that I reacted the way I had. I was positively irritated with him. So, I did what every woman with a decent amount of self-respect would have done. I turned down his invitation to have dinner with him. That's until Angela heard about it. She threw a fit and started threatening me with whatever crossed her mind at the moment. Now, seeing how the night had ended, I was more than grateful that she had practically forced me to go out with him.

Yes, Edward Cullen wasn't perfect. I was sure he had his flaws – which I had yet to discover- and his own personal life issues –which I was just starting to find out about- but he definitely was one of those rare men who were worth sacrifices.

The sacrifice I was willing to do for him was called patience. I was going to give him time to work through his problems. I was going to give him my friendship and if he later decided he was ready to offer me more, I was going to take it.

Why?

Because he was worth it.

This Cinderella was now one step closer to conquering her Prince.

With a grin so big that I was afraid my face was going to be splitting in two, I spun on my heels and headed back inside, closing the door behind me.

I was heading towards my room to change into pajamas when the door to Angela's bedroom opened and her head peeked out from behind it. "Is he gone?" she whispered, her eyes roaming the hallway inquisitively.

"Yeah," I answered, smiling widely.

"So?" her voice returned to its normal tone as she stepped out into the hallway and leaned against a wall, crossing her arms over her chest. "How did it go? You look… strange."

My eyebrows arched in surprise. "What do you mean I look strange?"

She frowned. "I don't know. You're sort of… beaming. Did something happen?"

"Yeah," I admitted coyly, heading into my room and plopping on the bed. Angela followed. "Sort of."

"Wait." She gasped, placing her hand over her heart dramatically. "I napped for a little while, so I didn't hear anything, but… did you actually do it?" I looked at her blankly in response, and she laughed, catapulting herself on the queen sized bed next to me. "Oh my God, you little slut!" she shrieked, bouncing on her knees excitedly. "I'm so proud of you."

I burst out into laughter at her reaction. "Yeah, yeah, you might want to keep the exuberance to a minimum. He just kissed me."

"Oh." She stopped bouncing abruptly, her animated expression deflating in an instant.

"Oh?" I repeated, shaking my head at her disapprovingly. "Oh? Did you even hear what I said? I said he kissed me. On the lips."

She looked positively unimpressed. "Did he at least slip you some tongue?"

"No."

She let out a heavy sigh and plopped down onto her back, her arms and legs spread eagle-style. "God, you two are killing me. You're both acting like a couple of awkward teenagers. Just fuck already and get it over with."

I groaned, smacking her thigh. "Do you have to be so crass all the time?" I admonished, glaring down at her. "Edward doesn't fuck. He makes love."

At my words she started laughing hysterically. "Oh, you poor innocent soul."

"What?" I narrowed my eyes at her. When she didn't answer because she was laughing so hard, I got up with a huff. "What's so hilarious?" I said annoyed, starting to pace the room. "In case you haven't noticed, he's a gentleman."

She propped herself on her elbows to look at me with amused, watery eyes. " I noticed all right." She chuckled, watching me pace. "I also noticed the way he was looking at you earlier in the kitchen. Trust me, when the time comes…" she paused to roll her eyes for effect, "… if ever… that man will not make love. He will fuck. That's all I have to say."

"You think?" I asked softly, chewing on my thumb and trying hard not to think of Edward naked… in bed… with me.

"I'm sure of it." She nodded firmly, grinning. "And it's going to be sooo so good." She was quiet for a few seconds then added teasingly, "You do remember who made love, right?"

"You mean Jacob?" I said, referring to my ex.

"Yeah, and we both know how well that went. You need a real man who knows how to take care of your needs. Edward seems like the type of guy who knows how to handle a woman in bed."

"Yeah," I agreed with a dreamy sigh, walking over to gaze out the window. The street below, covered in a thick layer of fresh snow was pretty much deserted. A solitary Bobcat was plowing the snow lazily while a tall man wearing a Russian-style hat was hurrying towards his destination, his hands buried deep into his jacket's pockets.

After a while I turned back to Angela with a new smile plastered on my face. I had to admit that the prospect of anything that involved Edward and a bed was really appealing.

"Alright, you're going all goofy smiles on me, and it's creeping me out," she said, giving me a strange look. "I think it's time for you to go to bed."

"And dream of Edward and his amazingly soft lips," I replied, walking away from the window to sit back down next to her.

"Okay, that's it," she groaned, turning on her side and trying to shove me out of the bed. "Just get out of my face. I can't look at you anymore or I'll throw up my whole dinner."

I chuckled, shoving her back. "Then go lie in your own bed."

With a grunt she got up and started walking out of my room. She stopped in the doorway and turned to throw me one last glance. I gave her a big dopey grin and she made a horrified face. "You are seriously scaring the crap out of me."

~~ 0 ~~

The next morning I woke up feeling refreshed. As I stretched my limbs lazily, I remembered fragments of a dream I'd had that night. I had dreamt that Edward and I were together and he invited me to spend a week on his fancy yacht somewhere in the Bahamas Islands. It was a short and silly dream, induced by the recent events and fueled by my newly awakened hormones, but it had put me in excellent mood. I could bet Edward didn't even own a yacht.

As I stepped into the hallway, I could smell the delicious scent of freshly brewed coffee luring me towards the kitchen. I headed in that direction, eager for my daily caffeine fix.

Angela was sitting at the kitchen table, having breakfast and browsing through a magazine. She looked up when she heard the shuffle of my slippers scratching the linoleum.

"Morning, Sunshine," she greeted.

I beamed at her, making my way to the coffee maker through foggy vision. "Good morning."

"Oh, sweet baby Jesus," she breathed incredulously. "There's that creepy lovestruck grin again."

I poured myself a cup of the greatest drink ever invented by human kind, took a sip and sighed contently.

… and on the eight day, God created coffee…

I turned to face Angela, my hands wrapped securely around the hot mug. "I'm just in such a good mood today, you know?"

"Uh huh." She rolled her eyes at me. "Did you dream of your Prince Charming last night?"

"Maybe," I admitted sheepishly, peering at her over the rim of the mug.

She looked at me like I had suddenly grown a beard. "You can't be serious. What are you, twelve?"

"Shut up. Nothing you say can put me out of my good mood," I said, taking another sip.

"The washing machine broke," she said nonchalantly, popping a piece of bagel in her mouth.

I almost spit coffee on her. "What?" I squeaked, the warm liquid going down the wrong pipe and causing me to cough like I had been chain smoking for fifty years.

"Yep," she replied, popping the 'p' and staring at me impassively as I finished coughing my lungs out. "How's the good mood now?"

"It's out the freaking window," I said with a frown, my voice rough. "How the hell did it break?"

She shrugged. "I don't know."

"What did you do this time?" I said accusingly.

"Nothing."

"Angela," I warned, getting annoyed with her incompetence. It wasn't the first time she broke things. First it was the blender, then the toaster -yeah, she had somehow managed to break a freaking toaster- and now the washing machine.

"What?" she said defensively. "It's true, I didn't do anything."

With narrowed eyes, I placed my mug on the counter top and stomped towards the bathroom. I lifted the washing machine's lid and glanced inside only to see a huge bundle of soaking wet clothes. They were so many, the lid couldn't even be closed properly.

"Angela!" I hollered angrily. "Get your ass in here."

"What?" She appeared seconds later, half a bagel covered in honey in her hand.

"What is this?" I demanded, pointing towards the open lid.

"Uh… is this a trick question?" She took a bite of her bagel, and looked at me with raised eyebrows, only to be met with my hostile glare. "Okay, it's my clothes."

"Too many clothes!" I snapped. "You over loaded it, didn't you?"

" I guess…" she trailed off apprehensively.

"This thing is ancient! You can't do that. And where's all the water?"

"I mopped it from the floor earlier."

At her words, the blood must have rushed to my head, because I was starting to see red. "You flooded the bathroom?"

"I told you the damn thing broke," she said, giving it a kick.

"No, you broke it," I gritted.

"We'll get someone to fix it. It's not that big of a deal."

I crossed my arms over my chest. "You'll get someone to fix it. I'm not paying for this."

"Fine," she huffed. "Whatever. Now can you please stop yelling at me and wipe that ugly frown from your forehead? You're giving me a headache and it's not even 9 yet."

"I'm not yelling," I said in a lower tone, my frown deepening. "I'm just scolding you."

"Yeah, well stop with the scolding already," she replied, stepping past me. "Look away and think of Edward or something."

~~ 0 ~~

Later that day, I was taking a long, relaxing shower when I heard the faint ringtone of my phone. The sound of hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway and shortly after Angela yelled at me, "It's Edward!"

"Don't answer!" I yelled back. "I'll call him back when I get out."

Seconds later I heard her voice as clearly as if she was standing right next to me.

"Hey, Edward," she said in a sugary voice, and I stopped what I was doing, realizing she was just outside the bathroom. "Bella's in the shower. Naked."

I groaned, stopping myself from screaming at her to hang up.

There was a long silence, and I turned off the water, thinking she must have gone elsewhere. I stood there, clutching onto the shower curtain and craning my neck towards the door. Just when I thought I wasn't going to hear anything more, Angela spoke again. "Yeah, okay. I'll tell her. Bye."

"I told you not to answer, Angela!" I shouted as soon as I was sure she wasn't on the phone with him anymore.

"He said to call him back when you can," she replied, opening the bathroom door and grinning at me. "Damn, he sure has a sexy phone voice. Can I do him, if you don't plan to any time soon?"

I shook my head and turned the water back on, deciding to ignore her.

I called Edward the moment I stepped out of the bathroom, and he asked me if I was able to be at his place by five. I told him yes, and then hung up, glancing at the clock and realizing I had only an hour and a half to get there. Quickly, I made my way to my bedroom, opening my closet and starting to scan the clothes. I heard Angela sauntering towards where I stood. She draped an arm across my shoulders nonchalantly, joining me in my staring.

"Okay, what should I wear?" I asked.

She looked at me with a smirk. "Anything that's short and slutty. Oh, but wait. You don't own anything short and slutty. You're a nun."

"You know what?" I pushed her arm away. "Get out. I'll pick my clothes myself."

"Oh, no, no, no." She shook her head, putting her arm back on my shoulder. "You need my help on this. Trust me."

"Just so you know, I'm wearing jeans."

"Fine." She sighed, stepping forward and pulling out a low-cut pair of jeans and a light blue sweater I hadn't worn in two years. "Pair these jeans with this sweater," she said, throwing them at me.

I examined the sweater, not really convinced I should wear it. "The cleavage is kind of deep…"

"That's the point. He'll be ogling you all night. Or… your tits."

I raised my eyes to the ceiling in exasperation. "Remind me, why are we friends?"

"Admit it. You'd be lost without me." She winked, walking over to the bed to sit down. "Can I do your make up?"

"No," I answered, starting to strip out of my pajama bottoms and the long-sleeved t-shirt I was wearing.

"Come on. I promise I won't overdo it."

"No, because I won't be wearing anything but mascara and maybe a bit of lip gloss."

She groaned in return. "Lord, give me strength. How do you expect to land a hottie like Edward without at least making an effort?"

"I don't need make up to 'land' him," I said, buttoning up the jeans and making quotes with my fingers. "Besides, it's just a casual evening at his place. It's not like we're going out."

"Can you at least put on a little blush?" she insisted. "You look like Vivien Leigh's ghost."

"Fine," I agreed, putting on a bra and then the sweater. "Was that supposed to be some sort of half-assed compliment?"

She shrugged. "You kind of look like her. Classic beauty and all that crap. When you make an effort, that is."

"Aww." I smiled at her, extending my arms. "Come here."

I closed the gap between us and leaned down to give her a hug.

"Now, don't you get all sentimental on me." She chuckled, squeezing me back. Then she let go of me and smacked my ass. "Okay, get moving. It's time you put this sexy ass to good use and show that pretentious prick who's the boss." I narrowed my eyes at her, and she added amused, "No, this time I didn't mean sex, you pervert."

~~ 0 ~~

I made it to Edward's place at ten to five. The building was as imposing as the first time I had seen it, standing up to over sixty floors. I pushed against the heavy door and stepped inside, where I was met with a comfortable temperature of at least sixty-eight degrees. The lobby was huge and had a floor covered in expensive white marble. Facing the front door were the stairs and to the right there were two doors, one of which I knew led to the building's garage. On the left was the elevator, and in the middle of the room, instead of the large round table and the tall vase with flowers I had seen back in November was a gorgeous Christmas tree.

I headed over to the familiar doorman sitting at his desk and smiled. He raised his head from the newspaper he was reading and responded with a smile of his own. I noticed a beautiful, lively-colored Poinsettia lying next to his cup of tea and stole an admiring glance at it.

"Hello," I greeted, turning my attention back to him.

He nodded. "Good evening, Miss."

"I'm here to see Mr. Cullen."

"Are you Miss Swan?"

"Yes," I confirmed.

"25th floor, door 195. It's the third one on the left," he explained patiently, even though I remembered very well where Edward lived. "Mr. Cullen is expecting you."

"Thank you," I said, already heading towards the elevator.

"You're welcome."

While in the elevator, I made sure to reapply lipstick. It was a light red color and Angela had forced me to wear it, saying it made my lips look fuller. I stopped in front of Edward's door and ran my hands through my loose hair a couple of times, then rang the doorbell.

I waited nervously, and seconds later the door flung open, revealing a beaming Jessica.

"Hey, Jess," I smiled down at her.

"Bella!" she shrieked, throwing herself at me. I chuckled, hugging her back. "You smell nice," she noticed, pulling away from me.

"Thanks," I said, stepping inside. I was wearing my best perfume which had cost me seventy dollars a bottle. It had made a little gap in my budget at the time, but it was all worth it. "Where's your uncle?"

"In the kitchen," she replied. "Susan is making us homemade pizza."

I frowned, starting to take off my coat. "Who's Susan?"

"Uncle Eddie's cook."

"Oh," I let out a breath of relief. I admit I almost got worried for a second.

"Come." She grabbed my hand, starting to pull me down the hallway. "Bella's here!"

Edward came out of the kitchen, wiping his hands on a towel. He was wearing jeans and a green t-shirt, his feet bare. His hair, usually so perfectly combed was now a bit disheveled, and he was sporting the traces of a five o'clock shadow. To say he looked good would be a gross understatement.

"Hi," he greeted with a smile. He walked towards me, and to my complete bewilderment, he put his right hand on my waist and with a light squeeze he leaned down to kiss my cheek.

I think I may have swooned.

"Hi," I said back, grinning like a fool. "Smells good in here."

"Homemade pizza," he replied, his hand moving to the small of my back as he guided me into the kitchen.

"Yeah, I heard," I said, a bit distracted by the fact that he was touching me.

As we stepped into the room, my eyes fell on a woman standing at the kitchen island, sprinkling sliced mushrooms on a large pizza dough.

"Bella, this is Susan. Susan, this is Bella, a friend of mine," Edward made the introductions.

The woman glanced up at me and smiled politely. She looked to be in her late forties, had dark hair pinned up in a ponytail and was wearing one of those white coats you only see chefs wear. I briefly wondered if she was an actual chef. "Nice to meet you."

I nodded. "You too."

"Wine?" Edward asked, letting go of me and walking towards the fridge.

"Sure."

He pulled out two bottles and held them up for me to see. "Red or white?"

"Red goes better with the pizza."

"Red it is," he said, putting the white wine back in the fridge. He uncorked the bottle and poured two glasses. "Ice?" he asked, smirking at me knowingly.

"Yes, please," I said, overly pleased that he had remembered such a trivial detail.

He handed me the glass, and I took it from him, peering up at him through my lashes. Yeah, I was flirting. Sue me. In reaction to my flirting, I saw his lips part almost imperceptibly as he stared at me intensely.

"Can I have a cookie?" Jessica's voice cut through the moment we were having like a chainsaw, and we both turned our attention to her. She was sitting on the counter top, looking at us curiously. She might have been thirteen and uninitiated in the games of seduction, but she was not oblivious. I saw the exact moment she realized what was going on. Her eyes met my traitor ones which were probably screaming lust, and the corner of her mouth lifted up like she wanted to say 'gotcha.'

She definitely was too perceptive for her own good. Now, I hoped she had nothing against me hitting on her sexy uncle.

"After dinner," Edward said.

"You're mean," she replied, but she wasn't even looking at him. Her eyes were still trained on me.

"Yeah, I know." Edward sighed exaggeratedly. "I'm downright malicious."

"Whatever." She jumped from the counter and grabbed my hand. "Let's go in the living room, Bella."

Edward followed behind us, and just as I was about to sit next to Jessica on the couch, his arm wrapped around my waist and he guided me as we continued walking. He was starting to make a habit of holding my waist, and I loved it. His arm felt so right coiled around me.

"Come," he said. "I want to show you something."

"Oh?" I inquired, gazing up at him. He was looking straight ahead, probably towards our destination, but I couldn't keep my eyes off him. He was giving me a perfect view of his profile. His jaw was strong with well-defined lines, his nose was straight and manly and his eyelashes seemed to be longer than my mascara coated ones.

He let go of me to open a door, and I had to look and see where he was taking me. Apparently on the balcony. I didn't know skyscrapers even had balconies.

"Wow," I breathed as we stepped into the chilly air. "The view is amazing."

It was more than amazing. It was the coolest thing I had seen in a long time.

Edward smiled, leaning over the railing and taking a sip of his wine. "It's the best thing about living in a condo."

"Have you lived here long?" I inquired, sensing the opportunity to find out more about him.

"About eight months."

I nodded, imitating his posture. "It must have cost a fortune."

He shrugged nonchalantly. "I got it at a reasonable price." He was quiet for minute as he looked at the busy street below. Then, all of a sudden, he asked, "How old are you, Isabella?"

"I turned twenty-two in September," I said, watching his expression cautiously and hoping he didn't think I was too young for him to get involved. "You?"

"Thirty-four in June." He turned his head to look at me, and I was surprised to see the same cautious expression I was wearing mirrored on his face. "Does the age difference scare you? Assuming someday there might be something more between us."

"Not really," I answered honestly. "Does it scare you?"

"No," he said immediately, his expression changing to one I couldn't quite categorize. "I think age is irrelevant in a relationship. If it works, it works. If it doesn't, it doesn't. Age has nothing to do with it."

"Good to know," I chuckled relieved. I sipped on my wine as we fell in companionable silence. I glanced to my left where somewhere in the distance I could make out Lake Michigan. It reminded me of the dream I'd had that night, and before I realized what I was doing, I blurted out stupidly, "Do you have a yacht?"

"What?" He laughed, looking perplexed. "No. But my parents do. Why are you asking?"

"No reason." I shrugged, feeling my cheeks warming up.

I could see he was about to insist on the subject, but his phone started ringing at that exact moment, distracting him. He took it out of his pocket and glanced at the screen.

With a heavy sigh, he looked at me apologetically. "Do you mind? I really need to take this."

I waved him off. "Go ahead."

He went back inside, and seconds later Jessica took his spot next to me.

"Nice view, huh?" she said, propping her elbows on the glass railing.

"Yeah," I agreed, glancing at her.

All of the sudden, an idea struck me. It was a devious idea, and I knew I shouldn't have done what I did next, but I couldn't help myself.

"Jess, can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

I hesitated for a second before speaking. "What can you tell me about your aunt? You know, Edward's wife."

"She was really nice. Beautiful, too." Jessica sighed with an air of sadness. "Uncle Eddie has photos. You want to see them?"

Even though I felt kind of guilty for extracting info that way, I was stunned that it was so easy to find out things about Edward's wife.

"Yeah."

I followed her inside and sat down as she went to the TV table, opened a drawer and pulled out a heavy photo album.

"This is just one of them," she said, sitting next to me and placing it in my lap. "I don't know where the others are."

With slightly trembling hands, I opened it, nervous that Edward could come back any minute. I was taking the risk of being caught invading his private life, but the curiosity nagging at me was just too big.

The first photo I laid eyes on was of three people sitting at a table somewhere in a garden. Two of them, a man and a woman were in their fifties. They were wearing light summer clothing, their hands clasped on top of the table as the woman seemed to be whispering something in the man's ear. But what had gotten my attention was the third person. I instantly knew it was her. I just knew it. She was young with long strawberry hair gathered in a simple braid and eyes so blue, they rivaled the clear sky on a spring day. Her skin had a slightly tan texture and she was wearing cut-offs paired with a white tank top. She had her feet resting on the edge on the chair under her, and her arms were wrapped around her knees as she smiled at the camera brightly, showing off a pair of perfect white teeth.

She was simply radiant, and I felt a pang of jealousy at the sight of her. I couldn't compete with that.

"That's her," Jessica explained needlessly, pointing at the blonde woman. "Those are her parents."

"Wow," I murmured. "She was gorgeous."

"Yeah. She used to model when she was a teenager."

Of course she did.

"How long were they married?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. I think I was three or four when they got married."

"So ten years," I concluded, turning the page.

"I guess."

The next photo was of her and Edward at a party. She was standing with a cocktail in her hand while Edward had his arms circling her from behind. They were smiling at each other and looked like they were about to kiss. They looked so happy.

"When did she die?" I asked, tracing the picture's contour with my finger.

"Last January."

"You know why she died?"

Jessica moved closer to me and lowered her voice when she answered. "My mom didn't want to tell me at first, but I overheard her talking to Dad about it. They were saying Aunt Tanya died of leukemia."

"Oh my God," I whispered, my mind flying to Edward and the pain he had endured in the past. "It must have been terrible seeing his wife go through that."

"Yeah," she murmured, staring at the picture blankly. "I didn't visit much at the time because my mom wouldn't let me, but the funeral was the first time I saw Uncle Eddie cry."

"And they never had any children?" I asked, finding it strange that a man who seemed so inclined to be a father had no children of his own.

"Nah. Uncle Eddie always tells me I'm like the daughter he never had. He would make an awesome dad."

"Yes, he would," I assented with her, closing the album and handing it to her. "Here, you can put this back. And please don't mention I saw it, nor that we spoke about her. I don't want to upset Edward."

"Okay." She got up to return it to its place then sat back down on the leather couch, turning sideways to face me. "He kind of is a little… jumpy when someone mentions Aunt Tanya or the fact that he's a widower." She looked over her shoulder, then leaned towards me, lowering her voice secretively, "A few months ago, Grandma tried to shove Lauren Mallory at him, and he had a fit."

This definitely piqued my interest. "Who's Lauren Mallory," I inquired as secretively.

"Some lady. She's really conceited and stuff. No one likes her. Well, except for Grandma." She rolled her eyes, chuckling.

"Huh." I contemplated for a moment, knowing for a fact that mothers who tried to set up their sons were the worst mother-in-laws. "Is your Grandma nice?"

"Not really," she said flatly, scrunching her nose. "Grandpa is a lot nicer than her."

Count on a child to tell the truth in a situation where an adult would try to be diplomatic…

Deciding it was enough information for one day and eager to change the subject before Edward showed up, I smiled at Jessica, playing with her ponytail. "So, Jess. When is your birthday? I don't want to miss it."

She grinned, her face lighting up. "The 8th of April."

"I think I have the perfect gift for you," I said, thinking of a book I had stumbled upon a few days before.

"What is it?" she pressed.

"It's a surprise."

"Okay. I like surprises."

"So, you're going to be fourteen, huh?"

"Yeah." She sighed, making a face. "I'm getting old."

I started laughing, pulling on her ponytail playfully. "If you're old, I'm ancient."

We chatted for a few more minutes about random things. At some point, her attention was distracted by a movie starting on TV and we were both quiet as we watched it.

Unexpectedly, Jessica spoke again, her gaze still on the TV, "By the way, I have nothing against you being my new aunt. Just wanted to let you know."

My eyes widened and I felt my face go red with embarrassment. When she noticed I wasn't saying anything, she glanced at me. She started laughing and was about to open her mouth again when Edward returned.

"You two seem to be having fun without me," he noticed with a smile, blissfully oblivious to his niece's previous comment.

"We are," Jessica replied merrily.

"Scoot over," he said to her as he squeezed in between us. He draped his long arms on the back of the couch behind our shoulders, then leaned to whisper in my ear. "Sorry it took so long."

"It's okay," I mumbled mortified, peering at Jessica and seeing her waggling her eyebrows at me.

Satisfied, Edward turned his attention to the TV. "What are we watching?"

I shook my head at Jessica, and she rolled her eyes at me. This was one awkward silent conversation we were having.

Marry him!

No, I can't!

Chicken!

Or something like that.

When I realized I hadn't answered Edward's question, I looked back at the TV and cleared my throat. "Uh… the Adams family?"

~~ 0 ~~

"Time to get you home, Jess," Edward said, glancing at his watch.

"Already?" she whined from where she was lying on the rug, watching the end of the movie.

"It's after nine, kiddo. You have school tomorrow."

"Fine," she sighed, getting up. "I'll go get dressed."

"I should get going, too," I said, placing my glass on the coffee table and rising to my feet. I pointed to the dirty plates still lying around and asked, "You need help with these?"

"No, leave them. I'll take care of them later," he answered. "Did you drive here?"

"No, I took a cab."

"Then you're coming with us. I'll drop Jessica off, then you."

I shook my head. "You don't have to do that."

"Yes, I do," he insisted, giving me that look that said he was not to argue with.

Half an hour later, Edward was dropping Jessica in front of a house that screamed 'rich people.' She said good bye and gave me a hug before bolting out of the car and heading inside. Then, just as promised, we were heading towards my apartment. We made light conversation on the twenty minute drive, and by the time we made it to our destination, I was reluctant to let him leave. We both had to work the next day, but I wished I could have a little more time in his company.

"Well, thanks for driving me home," I said, toying with my coat's top button.

"You have nothing to thank me for," he said gently.

"So… I'll see you?"

He nodded. "Soon."

"Okay."

He leaned down to kiss my cheek like he had done earlier that day. I don't know what possessed me to do it, but just before his lips touched my cheek, I turned my head so they landed on my mouth.

Surprised, he pulled back a few inches, just staring at me like he was trying to decipher something on my face.

With new found determination, I cupped his cheeks in the same fashion he had the other day and pressed my lips against his once again. This time he didn't pull back. Instead, he grabbed my hips and dragged me closer to him as he deepened the kiss.

I closed my eyes and let myself feel it. It was passionate, stomach-twisting, butterflies-giving, panty-dropping and everything else a first kiss could be. I slid my arms around his neck and let out a soft moan to which he answered with a low grunt, pulling me impossibly close.

He was the one to break it. Letting go of me, he leaned back into his seat and panted lightly, running a hand over his face.

I was afraid I might have upset him and was about to apologize when he turned his head and smiled.

I sighed relieved.

Yeah, we were good.

A/N So? What did you think?

See ya next time!

~Andreea~