Twilight…not mine (sigh).

Chapter Ninety-Seven

We drank our first round of drinks and forced our way onto the dance floor. Emmett was still moping by the bar, but he was chatting with an attractive brunette. He was trying but I still think that he was pining for Rose.

Bella and I danced to some pounding electronic dance music. She was pressed against me with her back to my front. My hands were twined with hers and we were moving like one body, undulating and swiveling like a snake. Her ass was pressed to my burgeoning erection. Hell, I was going to get off from her movements if she didn't stop.

Angie and Ben began sucking each other's face. He damn near swallowed the girl whole before they ducked out, presumably to the bathroom or back to the hotel. Emmett was dancing with the brunette he was chatting up at the bar. Jessica and Mike were grinding against each other, similar to how Bella was dancing with me.

All of a sudden, the crowd seemed to grow. There was no more room on the dance floor and we were surrounded by swarms of people. I held onto Bella, trying to ignore the growing panic in my chest. I needed to be strong for her. I couldn't let this fear of touch get to me. But it proved to be fruitless. Bella was dancing in my arms, her hands threaded in my hair when a guy felt the urge to just rip her away from me. His arm wrapped around her waist and he tried to kiss her. Two men came on either side of me, sneering at me and they grabbed my arms. Bella clawed at the douchebag who stole her away from me. The men were dragging me off the dance floor. I pushed, I squirmed and I did everything to get out of their hold. Eventually, my instincts cut in and turned into the trained killer I was.

I did turn into an ED-bot.

The two men were a bloody mess by the time I was done with them. The bouncers came and they were prattling on in Italian. I responded, in kind. Yes, I knew Italian but couldn't let Bella know. I explained what they did and that my girl was on the dance floor, being harassed by their buddy. I pushed my way back onto the dance floor only to not find Bella there. I walked toward the back, near the restrooms. If I were a criminal, I'd drag my victim to a quiet corner.

Sure enough, the man was there, pinning Bella against the wall. She was squirming, trying to get away from him but he had her pinned with his entire body and her arms were stretched above her head. "Let her go," I snarled. Bella's panicked brown eyes caught mine. "Fucktard, if you want to live another day, let her go."

"She dress like a whore, she fucks like a whore," he growled back in Italian.

I arched a brow. "You have less than ten seconds to remove your hands from my girlfriend before I remove them for you," I said smoothly, in Italian. "I've already fucked up your friends. You're next."

He smirked, leaning into my Bella and tried to kiss her. She bit down on his lip, causing it to bleed. He jumped back, spitting profanities. He got ready to backhand her and I charged. We both fell onto the ground. I was straddling his waist, pounding on this guy's face. I wanted him dead. He touched what didn't belong to him. Once he held up his hands in surrender, I stopped. I got up, walking over to my girl. The bouncers, along with a couple of policemen walked in, escorting our friend out. He was arrested for sexually assaulting Bella and apparently raping three others in the Rome area over the course of the past three months.

Angie, Ben, Mike, Jessica and Emmett were all shocked when we came out of the back hallway. My hands were a bloody mess and my shirt torn. Bella looked a little shell shocked. The attack on my girl obviously closed down the club and they were waiting for us.

"Bambina, are you okay?" Emmett asked.

She didn't respond, just snuggled closer to me. "No, she's not okay," I said, kissing her forehead. "It all happened so fast and…let's just get back to hotel."

"We're sorry, Bella," Jessica frowned. "Mike and I were in our own world. We thought the guy who came up to you was Emmett." Bella scoffed. "We only saw the back of his head and it looked like Emmett."

"Are we free to go?" I asked one of the nearby bouncers. He nodded and we clambered into cab. The manager poked his head into the cab, explaining that this was on his tab due to the nature of Bella's attack. Bella was curled up against me and was shaking like a leaf. I was trying to keep a panic attack at bay. I tried to focus on staying calm for my beautiful, terrified girl.

The drive back to the hotel was quiet. Bella was quietly crying, her head buried in my neck. Once we reached the hotel, we got out of the cab and he left, nodding solemnly to us. Emmett looked at Bella, who was cradled in my arms. The woman who had begged for me to make her come on the dance floor was buried underneath the shattered shell of her. I felt for her and wanted to make it better. I ignored him and went upstairs to our room. Tenderly, I placed her on the bed and crouched in front of her. "Talk to me, Little One," I whispered.

"You know how to speak Italian?" she asked, brushing some of my hair from my face.

"Rosetta Stone works for me," I quipped. "I don't know a lot but I understood what he said and enough to tell him to fuck off." She eyed me dubiously. "Are you okay?"

"I feel dirty," she said, crossing her arms over her body.

"Come. Let's clean you off," I said. I swept her in my arms and unlike the last time we had a trauma like this, was far more comfortable and equipped to care for her. To love her. Gently, I placed her on the counter of the bathroom. "I'm going to start the shower, Little One. Do you want me to join you or do you want to be by yourself?"

"With you," she whispered. Her eyes were trained on my hands. "Do they hurt?"

"Not as much as my heart," I muttered. "I…I'm sorry, Bella. I should have…"

"No, Edward, this wasn't your fault. Those three guys overpowered you," she said, her chocolate eyes blazing at me. She hopped off the counter and cupped my cheek. I could feel the heat of where one of the guys hit me. Her hand was like a soothing balm to the bruise on my jaw. "I tried to get away from him, but he said that if I went willingly, he wouldn't carve me up into little pieces. In the hallway, I tried to fight but he took away all of my power…" She unbuttoned my shirt and slid it off my shoulders.

"We'll have to work on that once we get back from Venice," I whispered brokenly. "I'm still sorry, Bella. I've failed you."

She sobbed, wrapping her arms around me. "You didn't, Edward. You got to me and I'm okay. He only kissed me and tried to grope me. Each time he tried, someone would come out of the bathroom. You saved me." She unbuckled my belt, unbuttoned my pants and slid them over my hips. I kicked them off, along with my shoes and socks. Bella removed her dress, tossing it into the trash with a wrinkled nose. "He called me a whore."

"You're not," I said as I pulled her naked body to mine. "You're not, Little One. You're beautiful, loving, kind and most definitely not what he called you." I led her into the shower after she removed her jewelry.

We'd shared a bath before. We'd seen each other naked before. But, this…this was not about sex or sexual exploration. This was love. Pure and simple. My girl, my beautiful girl, needed me to be strong and to be taken care of. Under the hot spray of the shower, I held her closely. The water cascaded down our bodies. After five minutes, I reached for the soap. I turned Bella around and began caressing her soft, tanned skin with a washcloth. She was crying quietly as I cleaned her body. I started with the back since it was probably the least 'traumatic.'

Turning her to face me, I cupped her face. "It's me, Little One. I'll never hurt you. You know that, right?"

"I do," she sniffled.

I leaned forward, keeping my eyes open and asking permission with them to kiss her. She closed the gap and kissed me three times. Her arms wrapped around my neck as she sobbed quietly against my shoulder. I swayed her gently, running my fingers through her long, dark hair.

We finished up the shower. I washed Bella's tears and 'dirtiness' away. She wanted to help me but I knew that I was too raw to have her touch me like that. I did let her wash my hair, which she did happily. She had a weird obsession with my hair. I had no idea why.

After the shower, Bella and I dried off. She plaited her hair and led me into the bedroom. We got between the clean, white sheets. She curled up against my chest, holding her arms around my waist. I held her, wanting to take the pain of tonight from her. I wanted to make her better. I knew one way to make it better. "Bella?"

"Yeah, protettore?" she replied.

"I know you like clubbing and going out for a good time, but seriously, can we take a break from going out to the clubs?"

"I think you've got a point, Edward," she giggled sweetly.

"I am of average intelligence," I snickered.

"You're more than average, tesoro. You're brilliant. I mean, in Seattle, we almost get blown up. In Rome, I almost get…"

"Don't say it," I whimpered, holding her close. "Just don't and…yeah."

"It really scared you, didn't it, Edward?" she asked, her brows furrowing.

"Nothing can happen to you, Little One," I said, running my finger down her beautiful but sad face. "I feel awful…"

"I'm fine. Yes, I was scared while it was happing that it would happen, but you stopped it, Edward. You! Mio prottetore. Mio angelo. Mio tesoro. Just hold me, baby. Please?" she asked, her brown eyes beseeching me.

"I'm never going to let you go, Bella," I vowed.

"Good, because you're stuck with me," she mumbled sleepily. "And no more clubs for the foreseeable future, prottetore. I've had it with the drama."

I snorted, kissing her forehead. She sighed shakily, pressing her face into my chest and falling into a troubled sleep. I wasn't too far behind her.

A/N: This chapter kind of ran away from me, honestly. I had it planned one way but struggled with it, so here's what you get. Bella's stronger than you expect. She'll bounce back from this quickly. Edward…he's the one you've got worry about. Leave me some…please?