When Edward gets home from his weekend away, he invites me back over to his house but tells me to wear good hiking shoes and something warm, which confuses the hell out of me. I'm not exactly in the right condition to hike, and I'd rather wear nothing around him.

But I do as he says and head over to his house around eleven in the morning.

He's waiting for me on his front porch in a Carhartt jacket and boots and grins as I put the Jeep in park. He quickly comes over, opening the door before I can.

"Hello, gorgeous," he says as I slide out. He quickly captures my lips, holding my face in his hands. "I missed you."

I smile, standing on my toes and kissing him again. "I missed you, too. So … hiking?"

"Not exactly," he laughs softly. "I want to take you to a meadow not far from here, but we do need to walk. We'll take it slow though, I promise."

I nod, trusting him completely. He grabs a cooler bag from the other rocking chair, and we head out to the left of his house through the woods. He holds my hand, walking slowly with me as he leads the way. We talk about our weekend apart, and he tells me a little more about his military career.

"I could have had it much worse," he says. "I worked in a field hospital, and while there was some danger, it was calm for the most part. A few times, I had to go out into the field for an injured soldier, but I always had some amazing men and women keeping me safe. There was one time I was nearly shot and had to pull my gun, but otherwise, I'd say I was as safe as you can be deployed to a war zone."

"I'm glad you weren't hurt. Could you be deployed again?"

He shakes his head. "I only have three months left in the reserves, and then I'm done. It's time to hang it up. I like living in Forks and working at Olympic Medical Center, and I don't want to have to give it up again. I've been lucky that my unit hasn't been deployed while I've been with it, and I don't want to press that luck."

"I don't want you to either," I say honestly. As much as I admire his commitment to our country, I'm a bit selfish and don't want to be without him.

I'm falling so incredibly hard for him and want more time with him, not less.

"We're here," he says as the treeline breaks, exposing what looks like a little piece of paradise.

Wildflowers litter the ground, and the sun actually reaches the small area of land, shining brightly down on us. It's … gorgeous, and I'm completely blown away that something like this exists so close by. Emmett and I used to have to hike for miles to find places like this when I was younger—and they were nowhere near as pretty.

"Oh my …" I mumble as Edward wraps his arms around me from behind. "It's beautiful."

"I thought you might like it," he says, pressing a kiss to my cheek. "Now, how about a picnic?"

I nod, following him into the middle of the clearing. He opens the cooler bag, pulling a blanket out first and spreading it out. He tells me to sit as he gets the sandwiches and water out, setting it up for us.

"Since it's not like we can just go to the diner for a dinner date, I figured we can come here," he says. "It's technically on my property, so we shouldn't have any unexpected visitors since it's not on the trails. It'll be our place, beautiful girl."

I grin, taking a bottle of water he holds out. "Our secret place," I say. "How romantic."

He chuckles. "I'm trying to be. Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah, perfect. I probably walk around more at work, and I didn't get out of breath once."

"Good. I can still give you mouth to mouth though."

I giggle, pecking his lips twice before taking a few sips of water. It's a cold November day, so I'm thankful he told me to dress warmly, but I wish I'd worn my heavier winter coat. As we eat, he notices me shiver and takes off his coat, laying it over my shoulders.

"But you'll freeze," I say, starting to shrug it off as he shakes his head.

"No, I'm fine; trust me. I'd rather you be warm anyway. I should have brought another blanket to wrap you in, to be honest. You're so thin, and I don't want the weather getting to you."

He's so sweet it's almost sickening, but I basically fucking swoon.

"So … can I ask a weird question?"

He nods. "Anything."

"How the fuck are you not married?"

He laughs. "Well, to be honest with you, I was once, but after only two years, we realized we weren't meant to be—and I'd been deployed for almost a year of those two years. We met during school. Her name's Lauren, but we've been divorced for six years now and haven't kept up with each other. After her, I just figured it might not be in the cards for me."

My eyes widen at his confession. Someone once left this man? They married him, had him completely committed, and then decided he wasn't the one? I can't believe it. Any girl would be lucky to call him hers. I know I am, and we've only been together for a couple weeks.

"Was she smart?" I ask.

He nods. "She's a doctor, too."

"Well then, she has no common sense, which don't get me wrong, I'm thankful for. You're amazing."

"You bring out the best parts of me, Bella." He leans down, kissing me again, and we forget about the sandwiches.

We make out like teenagers, and I love every second of it. He pulls me onto his lap, holding me close as our tongues entwine.

It's the perfect date.


Thanks to May, Nole, Fran, Brier, and Meg for prereading and Sally for Beta'ing.