Chapter Five

"Bella, you didn't have to give Edward such a hard time," Angela said as they entered the kitchen. They'd gone into Cayucos to make a stop at a place famous for their cookies, and a local bakery that made bread bowls. They had picked up some clam chowder in Morro Bay but decided to eat back at the house.

"I did not give him a hard time," she said, checking the chowder. It was still hot and perfect for dinner. Her mouth watered; it had been too long since she'd had any. "I gave him my number, and besides, that Alec guy reminds me too much of Peter." Bella's ex had blond hair, but their personalities and arrogance were similar.

Angela slipped an arm around Bella's waist and squeezed her against her side. "I'm sorry Peter pretty much ruined any guy, and not in a good way. He was a rotten apple among an orchard of good ones, and though I know there will be a few more worms, you'll be missing out on all the delicious if you pass all of them by."

Bella giggled, remembering the apple orchard they stopped at on the way to California. The owner, a cute little, old man named Marcus told them everything he knew about apples. Angela loved every second of that visit, since she used to spend many summers in a place like that as a child.

"Does that make Edward a Granny Smith apple because of his eyes? Wouldn't that make him tart?" Angela pouted but joined Bella in her laughter.

"You noticed the color of his eyes," Angela teased, putting the bread bowls in the oven to warm.

Bella threw her hands up a bit. "How can anyone not notice? They stand out, framed by those long lashes of his and dark eyebrows, and did you see the freckles on the nose?" She had to work not to sigh; Edward was cute, and it was unfair.

"Oh my God," Angela said, her jaw nearly on the counter. "I knew it."

Bella gave her best friend her best bitch face. "You tricked me into saying something good about him."

"I'm not going to be a psychologist for nothing, you know," Angela stated, dramatically flipping her hair. "Anyway, don't hide behind the wall tonight. That's all I ask."

"Between you, my aunts and my mother, pretty much saying the same thing, I guess I could try." She smiled and washed her hands. "He is pretty cute."

"Girl, he is hot," Angela said, popping some ice cubes in some glasses. "And he couldn't take his eyes off you. So tonight, be yourself with him."

"I'll try."

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"Is that them?" Alec asked, tipping his head toward the house where Edward had seen Bella earlier. Two figures were coming down the stairs that led from the house to the beach. Just from the silhouette and long hair blowing everywhere in the wind, he recognized Bella.

He couldn't believe how his palms started to sweat and his heart pounded in his chest. She'd been on his mind for hours, and more since they started the fire, hoping it would lure her out. For the last hour, he'd almost given up on her coming.

They weren't the only ones on the beach. Several people had joined them; a few early weekenders, and some college kids from a nearby school. The amount of strangers could intimidate two girls.

"Yeah, that's Bella and her friend." He stood up, tapping his thigh for Riker to join him. "I'll be right back." Alec laughed as he started to jog along the wet sand beneath his shoes. He had to put some on when the wind picked up. Meaning the chances of seeing Bella in shorts and a bikini again were slim that night. However, if the wind continued to pick up, he could help keep her warm.

"Hey," he called up at the base of the stairs. The girls laughed as Riker climbed up to join them, licking Bella's hand. "You're such a flirt, boy." Edward couldn't help but take Bella in, dressed in grey leggings and an oversized, off the shoulder black sweater. A silver necklace glinted in the moonlight, the pendant laying between her breasts. She had a white band on her head, to keep most of it from face. She was incredible; the kind of girl that songs were written about.

The moment Bella stepped onto the sand, she placed her hand on his bicep, unfortunately covered by his hoodie. She stood on the tips of her toes to place a kiss on his cheek, the top of her head barely reaching his shoulders. He fucking loved that. "Thanks for coming up to escort us. I see the group grew."

"Some people were attracted the fire, or maybe it's me," he said jokingly, offering both of them an elbow each. "Ladies." They giggled and he couldn't help the smile on his face; the guys were going be jealous. "Come on, boy." Riker barked up at him, licked Bella's hand, and ran a couple of circles around them before he made a beeline for the water.

Bella leaned in a little closer. "Your dog likes to lick me," she said, laughing and shaking her head. "What kind of dog is he?" They watched as Riker barked at the tide, running away before it could touch his paws.

"He has some golden retriever and some lab, I think. He was a rescue," he offered, before asking Angela if she liked the area so far. He might have been interested in Bella, but he wasn't going to be an asshole and make her feel like third wheel.

"It's so beautiful, but I'm surprised there aren't more people here."

"There will be," Bella and Edward said in unison. "By Friday," he added, grinning at Bella. "The place will be packed, especially with school ending this week in the area. "Before we join the party, please try not to group me with the assholes that are my friends. I'm nicer than all of them."

"I heard that, dick," James said, tossing a Nerf ball at his head. Bella caught it before it struck and threw it back, hitting James in the chest. "Nice spiral there, girl."

Bella took a seat on a vacant chair after checking that no one was sitting there. Edward grabbed his guitar off the one beside her and introduced her and Angela to the group. There were about twenty of them surrounding the fire, many of them older than her and Angela.

Before Bella could blink, her best friend was talking up Alec, and she wasn't sure who was chasing whom? Since they left Giovanni's in Morro Bay, she hadn't stopped going on about him. Bella had hoped she'd take interest in Ben, Edward's friend, because he seemed safer.

Immediately, she felt bad for automatically putting Alec in the same group as her ex. She had to stop doing that, because it wasn't fair to Edward and his friends. It was a hard habit to break.

Edward was something else, and she wasn't sure had it in her to resist. He had a face that would make a grown woman swoon, a voice that matched. She didn't even want to think about his hair, but it was longer than what she was used to seeing on boys. The color of it was like a gorgeous shade of brownish-red and she knew it would lighten more under the sun over the next week. His jawline was what a reader expected to find between the covers of a YA novel as the mysterious new boy in high school. She was in trouble if she was comparing him to her favorite book boyfriends and found them all falling short of Edward.

"Hey, where did you go?" Edward asked, touching her arm to get her attention. She surprised herself earlier by kissing his cheek, and now for not moving away. He looked toward his cousin and Angela. "I can tell him to back off, if you're worried." She shook her head. "He can be loud and obnoxious, but he's never mistreated a girl, contrary to popular belief and his arrogance."

"Rumors are at the base of all evil in high school and small towns."

He nodded, watching her too closely. It should've scared her, but she held his gaze. "Exactly and something tells me you know something about that." He said nothing for a bit, offering her an unopened can of soda. "We have other drinks, if you're interested."

"Not tonight," she said. She didn't think his friends would pull something, but she didn't know the others. Feeling the need to stop thinking like a cop's daughter, she leaned toward Edward and asked about where he was from.

They talked for a while about home, occasionally laughing at the antics of the others. There were quite a few bad dancers, two accidental burns as some tried to jump the fire.

They told each other about their road trip to Cayucos, hers only about four hours longer than his. "We must have driven by each other at some point if you just got in today. We had just arrived when we saw you earlier."

"Probably," Bella said, shivering when the wind picked up.

"It's fucking cold," he said, scooting his chair closer and offering to share the blanket he was smart enough to bring. In the rush to get to the beach to meet up with Edward, after checking in with her parents, she'd forgotten to throw on a pair of sweats and grab a blanket. "See, you can relax."

She had to look away from the intensity of his jade eyes. "Sorry. I don't trust easily."

He leaned closer, bumping her shoulder with his. "You trusted me enough with your number."

"I did, didn't I?" She looked at him, not surprised that he was so close. The scent of his cologne was not overwhelming; it was subtle, but memorable enough that she'd always associate the ocean and campfires with him. "I wonder why that is?"

"I don't know. How about we figure it out together?"

He played unfair, giving her a crooked smile that displayed a tiny dimple in his right cheek. She wanted to kiss it again. She tapped her chin with the tip of her finger, as if thinking hard about her answer, hearing him playfully huff and check his watchless wrist for the time.

"I'd like that, Edward." He didn't bother to hide his smile or the fist-pump he made as he sat. "How about that song you promised me?"

He gave her a look that made him a real triple threat; those eyes, that smile and the cute dimple would render anyone speechless. The sound of his voice only made it impossible to resist leaning toward him. "Do you have any requests?"

"Surprise me."

His answer smile was warm and a little crooked, strumming a cord. "I know just the song."