A/N: You know the routine. It's not mine, but the plot is.

Thank you, thank you for the amazing reviews! I'm not sure if everyone knows what a boost those reviews are to the authors. They encourage us to continue. So keep them coming.

I would love to thank my beta, sjdavis74, for her amazing help!

Everything in italics is thoughts that Edward is reading.

Chapter 11

EPOV

I watched Bella drive away, still reeling over the time we spent together. This is by far the most incredible day I have ever had in my existence. I have a feeling that I'm going to be saying that a lot.

The thoughts from my family were all over the place. Everyone, except Rosalie, absolutely loved Bella. They felt that she and I were perfectly suited for each other.

I walked back inside and found Esme standing there, ready to gush.

"Oh, Edward, she's so stunning! I just can't believe how perfect for you she is. I'm so happy for you, my son." She reached up and gave me a quick hug.

"Your mother and I are very happy for you. It seems that all those years of waiting have really paid off for you, haven't they?" Carlisle asked me.

I smiled and shook my head, still in disbelief that only a few days ago, I was alone and thinking that I would be that way for eternity. "It's a little odd, but yes, I am happy that I was alone for all those years. All that time led me to Bella, and it has also helped be more appreciative of her."

"I told you. I told you. I told you! I knew everything was going to work out. She's fantastic, and I now have a best friend! I'm so happy!" Alice was even more enthusiastic than usual.

"Sure, Alice, I spent all this time wanting a mate, so you can have a best friend," I teased her. Alice stuck her tongue out at me.

"Man, Eddie boy, you got yourself one hot little number there." Emmett slapped me on the back, trying to get a rise out of me.

I growled at him in response, not liking his his reference to Bella. "Emmett, first of all, my name is Edward, and secondly, do not refer to Bella as a 'hot little number'. She's beautiful and needs to be shown respect."

"Dude, don't get your panties in a twist. I was just kidding. I really like her, and I think she's perfect for you. I also think she puts your piano playing to shame," Emmett said with his booming laugh.

"He's right, Edward. She's amazingly talented. It does appear that you finally have some competition in that area." Jasper smiled at me. "You know, I was picking up some pretty strong emotions from her, but you wouldn't be interested in that," Jasper joined in on the teasing.

"Boys, stop teasing your brother. This is very important to him, to all of us. He has waited a long time for his mate. We need to be supportive," Esme rebuked them.

"Thanks, Esme. Jasper, please, I need to know. I can't read her mind, which drives me insane, by the way. You have to tell me what she was feeling," I begged him pathetically.

"Well, Bella was throwing out a lot of happiness, joy,peace, love, nervousness, and dare I say, lust. The nervousness dissipated pretty quickly, but the rest didn't. She felt the most peace when she was playing the piano, but you could see it on her face. The love and lust, that was all directed at you, brother. I think it's safe to say that Bella is definitely feeling the mating pull, if she's already falling in love with you."

When Jasper said that she was in love with me, I could have jumped for joy. I have never been so over joyed. A small part of me still worried that with Bella being human, she wouldn't be able to feel our mating bond. I am so glad that I was wrong.

"Edward, I told you that you wouldn't have to worry about a thing. Just because she's human does not mean she can't feel the bond. I watched the two of you, and it was amazing how you interact with each other. Already, you act like magnets. You're drawn to each other. One moves, then the other. You're completely in sync, and it's only been a couple of days. I can't even begin to fathom how much more your connection will grow after you spend more time together," Carlisle informs me.

"I know. I was just being negative, I guess. I suppose a part of me still couldn't believe that I have finally found my mate after all this time. She's everything I have ever dreamed of and could never deserve."

But just like all good times, this one came to a crashing halt, when Rosalie yet again, decided to throw another fit.

"What the hell is wrong with all of you? You keep acting like it's okay for Edward to expose us to a human. Am I the only one that seems to care about how dangerous this is to the family? I'm not going to stand by while he puts us at risk," Rosalie screamed at us in anger.

"Rosie, we're talking about his mate, not some girl he picked up at the mall," Emmett tried to reason with her.

"Shut it, Emmett. I can't believe that you would go against me on this. I'm not going to stand by and allow this to happen."

"Rosalie Hale, that will be quite enough! I may remind you that when you found your mate, he was human as well. You brought him to me and asked me to change him. You will not stand there with your holier- than- thou attitude and attempt to judge Edward or the rest of this family. Bella is Edward's mate. Deal with it," Carlisle barked at her. It is very rare that he ever raises his voice, but when he does, we stop and listen.

"I'm sorry, Edward. I will be speaking with Rosie." With that, Emmett grabbed his wife's hand and practically dragged her out of the house to go deal with her in private.

"Well, that was expected. Rosalie is never going to accept my Bella." I sighed, frustrated with having to hear another one of Rose's attempts at gaining attention. She was more vain and selfish that anyone I had ever met. I have no clue how Emmett puts up with it.

"Don't worry about it. I saw her calming down, eventually. She's just upset about someone else getting all the attention. She just won't admit it," Alice offered.

"Thanks, Alice. I'm going for a quick hunt. I've got a few things to think through, like how and when to tell her about me and what we are. I'm delving into uncharted territories here, and I don't want to mess anything up."

"Do you want some company?" Carlisle offered.

"Yeah, that would be great. I could use your advice."

Carlisle turned and gave Esme a quick kiss, and we headed out.

We ran for about ten miles, until we came upon a small herd of deer. I took down only one while Carlisle took down two. When we finished, we sat down on a fallen tree to talk.

So, Edward, what is it that you needed advice on? Carlisle asked me in his thoughts.

"I don't know how long I should wait before I ask her out, and then after I do, when should I tell her that I'm a vampire? Then, what if after I tell her I'm a vampire she doesn't want to be with me?" I rambled on.

Slow down. One thing at a time. Let's deal with you asking her out. She's already in love with you. Keep that in mind. Why don't you just ask her if you could take her out on a date? I'm sure she'll say yes. You forget, son, I was there this evening. I saw the way she was looking at you. Carlisle began thinking about seeing us together at my piano. Bella was looking at me with so much love in her eyes. How had I missed that?

"Wow! I never even realized the way she was looking at me." I ran my fingers through my already messy hair. I was shocked my Bella loved me!

That's not too surprising. Your attentions were otherwise occupied. I can't blame you. Bella is very beautiful, and I noticed that she seems to be very comfortable around us.

"Yes, I noticed that too. Would you believe that she has never flinched from the coldness of my skin? It never seemed to faze her," I informed him.

I noticed that, when she first shook mine and your mother's hands. It's almost like she doesn't detect any difference in temperature between us and a human. It's interesting.

"Everything about her is interesting. I'm going to ask her out tomorrow. Then I'll go from there. Just expect more talks. I have never been this nervous in my existence."

You'll be fine. I have a suggestion that might work. Bella, obviously, loves classical music. There is a concert symphony in Port Angeles on Sunday night. Why don't you take her to that? It's something you would both like.

"That's an excellent idea. I'll hop online and get the tickets as soon as we get back. Thanks for the chat, Carlisle."

We stood up and raced back to the house. I won, as usual. I headed upstairs to my room to get on my computer. I was excited. It looked like I was going to be going on my very first date this weekend. Time to start planning.

BPOV

I woke up in the best mood I have ever been in. The time I spent at Edward's yesterday was amazing. He was amazing.

I wanted to look good today. I needed to. My attraction to Edward was at its strongest now, and I desperately hoped he felt the same way. There was no way I was going to show up to school looking like frump.

I jumped up out of bed and walked over to my closet. The situation there was a little depressing. I just didn't have enough clothes. Saturday couldn't get here soon enough. I really was looking forward to shopping with Alice.

I rifled through what little I had and decided to wear my only skirt. It was a VS Hipster Fray Skirt. It fell to mid thigh and made my legs look a mile long. With it, I chose an elbow length sleeve, scoop-neck tee in dark purple. I decided to wear my black wedge booties. I then grabbed my Forever 21 black leather jacket. I kept my hair down and applied light makeup. Looking in the mirror, I was satisfied with the results.

I grabbed my things and headed down to the kitchen, relieved to see that my father remembered to leave some money for food shopping. I put the money in my wallet and took the list I had made and put that in my purse as well.

I wasn't hungry this morning, so I decided to head on out.

I pulled into the school lot and noticed that Edward and his siblings were already there. Edward looked so good. He had on dark wash jeans and a dark blue tee. And his hair, I just wanted to run my fingers through it.

No sooner did I park, then I heard my name.

"Bella!".

I slammed my truck shut in time to see Alice run over to me. She gave me a quick hug that I returned.

"Bella, you look beautiful. I love those booties!"

"Thanks. I love them too." I laughed at Alice's enthusiasm. It really was infectious.

We made our way over to her family. I looked at Edward, and he was smiling at me. Be still my heart.

"You look stunning, Bella," Edward complimented me. I blushed, looking away.

"Thank you," I whispered to him.

"Bella, could I talk to you for a moment. In private?" Edward asked me.

"Of course, is there something wrong?" I was getting really nervous now. I heard Jasper make some kind of an excuse about needing to get something from his locker, and the rest of them followed, leaving me and Edward alone.

"No, Bella, there's nothing wrong. I wanted to talk to you about something. I really enjoyed spending time with you yesterday. You're very intelligent, funny, and sweet. You have a lot of the same interests that I do. I would like to get to know you even more. I was wondering if you would like to go out on a date with me this Sunday?"

Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God! Edward Cullen just asked me out on a date! I can't believe it!

"I would love to, Edward. Thank you." I smiled at him, happy that he seemed to be as interested in me as I am in him.

We made our way into the the school. Edward even walked with me to my locker. I grabbed the books that I needed and closed it.

"Will you sit with me at lunch, again? We can talk then," Edward asked me quietly. We both noticed that we were being watched.

"Certainly, it's obvious that we are now the latest gossip. Some people have no lives of their own."

"You get used to it. I'll see you later." Edward then did something I just didn't expect. He took the back of his hand and very gently brushed my cheek down to my jawline, and then tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

He turned and walked away. My heart skipped a beat while I watched him. Oh, my!

I heading on over to my first class when I was suddenly confronted by both Lauren and Jessica. Wow! Looks like Tweedle Dumb and Tweedle Dumber are at it again.

"Hey, Lauren, look who it is? Bella Slut. Isn't it a pity that she's been shamelessly throwing herself at Edward?" Jessica laughed at her own joke.

"I don't know why she would think she would ever have a chance. I mean look at her. She's plain and ugly," Lauren sneered at me.

"Listen, try to pick up what I'm about to put down. In fact, I'll make sure to go slow so you can keep up. Jessica, you are the one who keeps throwing herself at Edward, even after he has made it more than obvious that he doesn't find you attractive. And you Lauren, Edward would never give you the time of day. A guy like him doesn't want someone else's sloppy seconds. If you're so desperate to find someone, perhaps the two of you should look into Mike Newton. I hear he's desperate." With that, I turned on my heel and walked into my Calculus class.

I knew that I hadn't heard the end of it from them. I was fine with it. Part of me couldn't blame them. Edward was gorgeous. You would have to be blind not to see the appeal he had to all the females here, but that doesn't mean that I'm going to tolerate them getting into my face. If they were smart, which I have yet to see evidence of, they would back off on their own.

In my nearly eighteen years, Edward was the first guy I ever felt this way for. I wanted to get to know him better. On Sunday, I'm going on my first date ever. I can't wait!

I guess my dream was starting to come to fruition. Something big was definitely happening to me.