Bella was too excited to be upset at her friend. Wouldn't she have preferred to get together with Edward on her own terms? Maybe, but right now, as she closed the door behind her and Edward sat, deliciously on her loveseat, she couldn't think of anything but the sizzle of the moment—they were alone, finally. And there wasn't a thing in the world anyone could do about it—or stop them from doing. She shut down her phone after deadbolting the door.

"I'm really sorry about all this," Edward smiled, rubbing his forehead. There was a sheepish quality to the way he said it.

"It's okay. Alice…she knows things…and because of it, I trust her." Of course, it seemed at times she took it a little too far, but…hey there they were together at last.

Bella didn't know what to do with herself, and her hands knotted together. "Would you like some more wine?" she asked because she was ready to pour herself another, if only just to calm her nerves.

"Let me get that," he said, pointing to her foot. He scooped the two wine glasses left on the coffee table and headed to the kitchen. She'd only drank half of what she'd poured for herself, and he topped it off with the chilled red liquid from the fridge.

When he sat down to join her, he took a seat on the opposite end.

A jingle from a commercial about condoms played from the television, and Bella gasped as her eyes met the screen. She grabbed the remote and shut the TV off as they both laughed. Like the moment wasn't awkward enough.

They sat, sipping wine and only looked at each other. "Do you want to watch something?" she asked.

"No. Unless…you do."

"No." She took another drink from her glass. The most contact she'd had with Edward this evening was her hand holding his. That had happened when they both reached for some prosciutto at the same moment and bumped hands. There it was—that electric energy, that buzz that still flowed between them. Now, she didn't know how to get back to that, though, with every cell she wanted to be back in his arms, she wouldn't dream of being so forward.

"Bella…"

"Yeah, Edward…"

She hung on his words, and as cool and collected as he usually was, Edward seemed to fumble for what to say.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I guess I'm just a bit nervous."

She chuckled. "You?"

"Yeah. I've been waiting for this moment…" He nodded. "For a long time. Just you and me…here by ourselves. Well, not here…in your apartment."

Bella was taken by how adorable he was, inarticulate and stumbling. "I'm nervous too."

"This whole experience has been…"

"Crazy. Unexpected. Nuts."

"Well, yeah that too, but it's opened my eyes. Rosalie taught me a lot about myself, and what I want from a woman."

"OH," Bella said, her heart sinking. "Yeah. And I'm not Rosalie. Sorry."

"Right. You're not. And I'm glad."

Here he'd been married to Miss America, and she wasn't what he preferred? Bella still couldn't make herself comprehend it.

"Yeah, I guess Emmett has taught me a lot about myself too," Bella said.

"I've been wanting to talk to you. About that night. And I shouldn't have kissed you."

Had he spent all this time regretting it? This gnawed at her heart. Bella wasn't sorry. She grabbed a cushion and picked at it, avoiding his gaze. "I probably shouldn't have gone with you to the garden to begin with."

"There's something very magnetic about you, Bella."

Same, she thought, unable to believe these were words coming out of his mouth.

"I'm just so grateful…that is, I'm sorry it didn't work out between you and Emmett…"

"I'm not. I mean, Emmett's great, but not for me, as you saw tonight."

"Right. But he could've been."

"Emmett and I didn't have the chemistry we have, Edward."

"Same for me and Rosalie…as you saw."

But what about that kiss? Bella couldn't bring herself to ask. How could she when after Dr. Muncher left, she'd all but thrown herself at him, insisting that Emmett kiss her.

"I don't want to rush into anything because I have a feeling about us, Bella, and I want it to last."

"Me too." Alice too, but she wasn't going to say that.

"Right. So my intentions are clear, as I said. We have as long as it takes. But I am not going to push you into anything you're not ready for."

That was admirable, she thought, when all she could think of were his lips on hers.

"That's very respectable."

"It's still a little weird being here tonight, when I much would've rather gone the old-fashioned route and asked you to meet for coffee, then dinner, then start seeing each other on a regular basis. I didn't have the patience to wait for the show to be over."

She appreciated his old-fashioned values and things being as they were, it was not a good idea to be out in public.

"It's okay, Edward. I would've preferred that too," she said, though her cheeks burned hot. It wasn't really the truth, and she wondered if he sensed it. "You can sleep in the other room. Nothing has to happen here tonight."

"Good."

"Good."

She was lying again. Come on, she told herself, channeling her inner Emmett. Tell the truth. Don't apologize for it. Tell Edward what you want. "The truth is, Edward, I haven't been able to stop thinking about you."

Edward smiled. "You haven't? Me too. I thought about you more than I thought about my own wife."

"But, what about all you did for Rosalie? She thinks the world of you."

"I was in survival mode in our marriage. I didn't know what else to do. I tried to help her as much as I could, but there was nothing else there for us than her problems."

"And with Emmett—poor Emmett—he tried…and I just couldn't…with him. But we're good friends now."

"Funny how those two seemed magnetized to each other."

"Very funny."

The silence hung between them, and she didn't know how to edge herself closer to him. Bella cleared her throat. "Emmett…knows…about us…"

"How?"

"Uh…I guess I talk in my sleep."

Edward's eyes met hers, his gaze boring into hers. "Ohhh…can you elaborate on that?" He tilted his head, his eyes glinting.

"I'd really prefer not to."

"Alright."

"What about…did you tell Rosalie about our kiss that night at the hotel?"

"No. I thought about it, but what good would that do?"

"I guess it wouldn't." So, Rosalie hadn't been aware of what had happened between Bella and Edward. But, it probably wouldn't have mattered to her anyway.

A yawn tore from Bella's mouth. It was past 10, and the day had caught up with her, the excitement of Edward showing up. She'd still had to be in to work in the afternoon. She hadn't made a dent in the pile she was supposed to tackle.

"I'm sorry. I'm keeping you up."

"I just have to get a jump on these manuscripts," she said. "I'll get you a toothbrush."

He brightened. "What kind of work do you do?"

"I'm an editor. I thought I would have all this time while we were filming, but I couldn't wrap my head around anything work-related."

He smiled. "I know what you mean. And so, maybe I should just go to a hotel. You've got work to do."

She hurried to the bathroom and dug out the extra toothbrush from the drawer. "No, no. See? I've got you covered."

He stood before Bella and accepted her offering. "Thank you. And I'll make alternate arrangements for tomorrow…"

Bella's eyes darted all around, afraid to meet his. "No…I mean, yeah, I've got stuff to do, but, don't go. I don't want you to leave." She was finally able to meet the relief there in his gaze. "My boss will kill me if I show up unprepared. I need a summary of one, at the very least."

"Let me know if I can help."

Everything was uncertain. Would Edward just end up flying back home? He hadn't been prepared to stay. She didn't see how he could help her, but she appreciated his offer. She handed him an extra blanket.

"Good night, Edward."

"Good night, Bella. Thanks for allowing me to stay."

They stood in the hallway, in the small gap between her room and the guest room/office, and she was grateful to have that extra bed. She'd needed it in the past when her mom had stayed there with her. Though, this was the first time a very handsome man would be sleeping in it. Which made no sense. That very handsome man should be sleeping in her bed.

She leaned up and pecked him on the cheek and hobbled back to her room before she could see his reaction.

She heard the door click closed to the other room and after getting ready for bed herself, she grabbed the manuscript and sat up, cursing her job. Bella loved her job, but right now it was a distraction. Or was Edward the distraction?

With the manuscript in hand, she grabbed a red pen and returned to the paragraph where she left off. She knew she could do edits easily on the computer, but she preferred doing her work the old-fashioned way.

Three pages in, and she was losing her focus. Was it because of the delicious man in the other room? Would she even be able to sleep tonight?

This darn manuscript—an enemies to lovers romance—seemed to be taking too long to get to the point. She crossed out the first lines in the next paragraph, and thumbed through to the end to see if she remembered correctly what had happened. Now, refreshed, she returned back to the page she'd left and skimmed to where the meet cute was finally taking place.

His eyes met hers then, the gray color as severe as the clouds that stormed above them. He brushed aside the umberella…

She circled the word umbrella and continued reading.

The desire pooled in her loins, and Kat found she couldn't meet Colin's gaze without trembling. Bella crossed out the words
"found" and "she" and reread the sentence.

Bella sighed. Desire. Pooling. She kept reading.

Colin's sensual lips curved, and his tongue swiped across the fullness of his bottom lip. He whispered the words to her and it was like a shock to her system. "I'm here now. Deal with it," he said, his tone husky.

She blew out a breath, imagining Edward saying those words to her. This romance was not helping keep her mind off him.

Biting her bottom lip, Bella rose from her bed, abandoning the manuscript. How was she supposed to sleep with him there? She limped as quietly as she could and stood outside his door, feeling like a creeper.

Edward? She listened for breathing. Was he asleep? The bathroom door opened and she jumped as he stood behind her.

"Do you need something?"

Her heart pounded. Yes. She needed his lips on hers. Now… "I was just checking to see if you…need anything."

"I'm fine. How's it coming along with the manuscript?"

"Oh, it's dull," she lied.

"I'm kind of a grammar nazi myself, if you need some help."

"I don't think you'd be very interested."

"Why not?"

She lifted a shoulder, not wanting to say the words. "It's a romance."

"I'm not opposed to it," he said with a wink. "I have nowhere to be tomorrow," he said. "And I would love to help."

"Okay," she agreed. "I'll be right back." Her heart pounded in her chest and her eyes fluttered. She loved the idea of Edward "helping" her. But, would they get any actual work done?

A/N: Alright, I'm officially gone for two weeks, so I hope this will tide you over as we leave Edward and Bella together… in a good place. Thanks so much for reading, and I appreciate your reviews.