Surprise! Happy Monday!

So, a lot of you were expecting a proposal last chapter, but I promise you all that I think you all will enjoy what I have planned when it happens. See the additional note at the bottom for more info.

A thank you to my lovely ladies: Brie, kitchmill, Jenn, Kelly, and Kim.

This week's encounter is mine again. Shortly after we moved to Oregon, TLC's show Little People, Big World came on and both my husband and I were fans. We decided to make a weekend of it and drove up to Portland and spent the weekend up there visiting haunted houses and such. At the time the Roloff's Farm was a very popular pumpkin patch, so we went to pick pumpkins and hopefully meet one of the family members. In the end we met Matt, the dad, and his son, Zach, who is also a little person. They were really nice and the farm was beautiful.

Chapter Twenty-Five

It was an enlightening thing to realize you were irrevocably in love with someone. The moment the understanding hits, you began to picture the future with a sort of clarity you never had before. You could imagine the house you'd call a home, the puppy you'd adopt, and the children you'd want to have.

But it all starts with that singular moment you realize you found the person you're going to marry.

As I lay in the bed, staring at Edward's handsome face, I realized everything I just mentioned is the God's honest truth. I had finally caught up to him, and I couldn't stop the huge grin that enveloped my face.

I was in love with the man I would marry...and it felt amazing.

Unable to resist, I pressed my lips to his unmoving ones. I placed peck after peck until he began to respond. The always present heat between us bubbled and flared into an inferno when his gentleness bloomed into a desperate need to claim me—mark me, even.

This was different than the other times we'd made love. There was a raw hunger and almost frantic quality to his loving—as if he was afraid I would disappear—and it was then that I realized it was my last day in Paris. With that realization, I returned his feelings tenfold, the ache of leaving now very present in my mind as we loved.

Clawing at his back, I clung to him both in ecstasy and dread as he pumped into me over and over again. Tears stuck to my lashes as every emotion poured through me.

"L-love you...so much. D-don't want to leave." My voice ached like my heart.

He shuddered at the sadness in my voice. "More...I love you so much more." He pushed deeper, faster, and with more determination to hold on to me, make me understand any and everything he felt as well. "I never want to be apart from you again."

I cried out in surprise when I crashed over the edge of bliss, shocked by how fast it had hit. It was a bliss that only Edward could and would ever provide me. The roll of his hips allowed Edward to prolong the pleasure that was coursing through me. I was on the verge of begging him to stop, but the feelings he provoked were so spine tingling and enjoyable that I couldn't do it. I wanted more—needed more—so that I would still feel him for the remaining month and a half we were going to continue to be apart for.

"That's it, love…fuck! You feel so good." His eyes snapped shut when I clamped down on his hardness once more. I felt a wave of power rush through me knowing that I had caused him to react that way.

I envied the knowledge and control he seemed to possess at all times when it came to sex, so embracing the one tiny thing I knew I could do to cause chaos to rage within him, I tightened again. I felt like a vixen, even though it was only the fluttering of the prowess of a woman who knew what she was doing. I let go and just let myself feel, finding and taking pleasure without waiting for him to show me. I wanted to figure it out, and I would be damned if I was going to wait almost six weeks to find this side of myself.

I managed to roll us over so I was on top of him, and my hair formed a curtain around our faces. Edward's eyebrow rose as a smirk overcame my face. Tentatively, I began to move, faster and harder, grinding against his groin. It was amazing, this control he let me have. I felt like a wild cat as I clawed at his chest, making him arch up and tighten his grip on my hips. The pain felt good and added to the pleasure I was taking from him.

I was shocked when he reached up and pinched one of my nipples, and the tingle set me off once more. I came again, chanting "yes" over and over again as I shuddered through the waves of pleasure. I had been so clueless about the potential of what my body was capable of in the heat of the moment.

My scream wasn't silent that time as I rode out the storm. I was convinced only his talented mouth, hands, and hardness could ever make me come like this. When I collapsed, still shuddering and quaking, I squeaked in surprise when he flipped us back over.

I hadn't even recovered before he began driving into me with a vigorous pace that had me reaching up to the headboard to keep my head from colliding with it. My calves were high up on his shoulders and it hurt in the best possible way.

"Holy hell," I cried out. I didn't know it was possible to feel this much at one time. He gave more than he ever took.

"So good…Never. Want. It. To. End." He punctuated each word with a swift thrust of his hips.

I nodded and then threw my head back before I tugged on my own hair. My mind raced with questions about our coupling. Would it always be like this? Did everyone else experience this same overwhelming need for one another? How many times could a woman come before she passed out?

"Oh, God…yes!" I think the last question was about to be answered.

"Coming!" Edward shouted before he thrust erratically a few more times. He then dropped down onto me.

Our breathing came in harsh pants, and I could feel his heart was racing as fast as mine. This was the only way I would ever workout again. Who needed a gym when they had Edward Cullen: Sex God Extraordinaire?

I closed my eyes and allowed myself to drift back to sleep, Edward's weight a balm to my sad soul. It comforted and protected me. My heart was going to break when we eventually said goodbye.

~o~o~o~

When we awoke a couple hours later, I had to rush around the room and finish packing. I had been reluctant to pack anytime before then because I felt like it would seem like I was excited to go home when the exact opposite was true. There was no rhyme or reason to my loading of the luggage. I tossed everything in and hoped it would zip without any problem when I was finished.

When I was sure I had everything, I took my last remaining clean outfit into the bathroom and started cleaning up from all of our bedroom activities.

"I hate that you're washing my smell off you." I peeped out the shower curtain and saw a frown playing upon his face.

"And you think I don't?" I stuck my head back behind the curtain and rinsed the suds from my head. "I love having your smell all over me. It drives me crazy, but I really don't want the entire first class cabin smelling our sex."

His answering growl caused wetness to seep from my body. "Keep talking like that and you won't be able to stop me from making it a reality."

I switched off the water and slid the curtain open. Drops of water slid slowly down my body, and the crisp, cool air caused my nipples to harden instantly. Edward's jaw hung opened as he followed a single drop of water down my ribs before it disappeared between my legs.

I stepped out of the tub and onto the mat on the floor before I began rubbing a towel all over my body. When I flipped my head upside down to wrap the towel around my wet hair like a turban, Edward groaned and mumbled under his breath. I didn't catch his words, but before I could even right myself, he stepped behind me and pushed me up against the counter, sinking into my body with one long moan.

I was putty in his hands as he showed me the true meaning of a quickie.

I was utterly spent and had no desire to get into the shower again. The people in first class were just going to have to deal with the smell of our coupling.

Before I could slide my t-shirt on, Edward tossed me one of his. "What's this for?"

"I want you to have something of mine for me to come and claim once I'm back," he stated. Like he needed an excuse, I thought to myself.

Once I had the tee on, I pulled the collar up to my nose and inhaled the mingling smell of Edward and his fabric softener. I loved that smell. "There will be something for you to claim, but it won't be this shirt. It's mine now."

"I can live with that." He left the bathroom with a small smile.

I decided to leave him with something I'd worn too. I stuffed the nightie from the night before under his pillow when he wasn't looking. It was the least I could do, since I was taking a piece of him with me.

The ride to the airport sucked…there was no other word for it. I sat huddled in Edward's arms on the verge of tears, but I was glad he was able to see me off before he had to be on set again. I kept telling myself that it would only be a few more weeks before he would be back home for the rest of the year… well, unless a new project popped up before then. It didn't work well, though, since I still hated the idea of being apart.

Now that we had this experience of being together, I didn't want it to end. Finishing school couldn't arrive fast enough. Our relationship was a bit unconventional, but the love was stronger than anything I had ever imagined being in love could feel like. Knowing that your future was pretty much set in stone made you want it even more, at least that's what it'd done for me.

We arrived at the airport faster than I liked. I just stared out the window, a grimace on my face. "I guess this is it."

He turned me to him, holding my cheeks in his hands and my eyes met his. "It's only temporary. I'll be back home before you know it. Besides, you'll be too busy with school and Emily and the coffeehouse to even miss me."

I attempted to shake my head. He was so wrong. "All those things will keep the loneliness at bay, but they will never completely mask it. You're in my every thought, my every dream. You're the love of my life, the other half of my soul, and I'm not complete without you. I never will be again. I love you so much."

It wasn't the most ideal time, but I laid every single card of mine on the table and showed him exactly what I saw for my—our—future. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to follow you wherever you go, I want to show you everything I'm capable of. But most importantly, I think I've known since the first time you heard me sing, that I want nothing more than to be your wife. So when you finally decide to ask, you can rest assured I will, without one tiny miniscule of doubt, say yes. You promise you're still going to ask one day, right?"

He nodded and brushed away my tears. "This moment, right now, is the happiest and most bittersweet because now that I know what your answer will be I wish you weren't about to get on a plane and fly halfway around the world away from me. I love you too, coffee girl. Eternity doesn't even come close to expressing how long I will continue to love you for."

Our lips met and I sighed into his mouth. Bittersweet was right. The kiss was languid and left me feeling serene, almost dazed. The love that we both poured into it filled my heart and made me forget how to breathe. Floating and breathless, Edward helped me out of the car. We were immediately surrounded by French paparazzi, and it frightened me beyond anything I'd ever felt before.

They were screaming and shouting. Even though I tried to hold him back, Edward was enraged. "Back the fuck off! Let us through! It's me you want, just let her get past!"

He kept me tucked tightly in his arms as he pushed his way through the doors. Security quickly pushed the paps back outside, but now everyone was staring at us.

"You okay?" I could only nod.

I may have been shocked, but I was okay. I wondered if this was what it was going to be like now, but in the end it didn't matter. I wanted Edward and this was a reality that I would have to adjust to.

"I'm so sorry. Maybe—"

"If you even think about finishing that statement, I will knee you in the balls. You've seen what I'm capable of already."

All the color in Edward's face drained before he threw his head back and laughed. When he finally had control again, he kissed me. Hard.

"I love you, Bella. I promise to stop doubting what you can and can't handle."

"Good, because anything I can do to you would be a thousand times worse coming from Officer Swan if you hurt his baby girl. You got that?"

The light was back in his eyes and I had control over my heart again. "Yes, ma'am."

With another sigh, I turned and noticed security was waiting to escort me through to my gate. "I guess this is it."

"Yeah." He wasn't very convincing. "Call me the second you get home. I'm going to have Emmett pick you up in case the paps are waiting there as well."

I was about to complain, but he beat me to it. "Your safety means everything to me. Please, don't try and argue this."

"Okay. As long as it won't be putting him out."

Edward rolled his eyes. "Emmett will be ecstatic to spend some more time with his new sister."

It made me laugh. Emmett really was a great, goofy guy.

"I love you, Eddie. Thank you for such an amazing time."

"Thank you for coming. I only wish we could have spent more time together."

I nodded. "Maybe next time."

"Next time indeed. I love you too, coffee girl. Have a safe flight."

With one last lingering kiss and a hug I could still feel as I walked through security, we said goodbye.

Home wouldn't be sweet until he came back.

Thank you so much for reading and reviewing. There are ten more chapters and the epilogue left. I will be updating three times a week now: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday until the story is complete. See you Wednesday. xx Dee