Bella
I crack one eyelid open to find myself burrowed underneath the covers of Edward's bed. I'm sweating profusely, so I kick them off of me and immediately feel dizzy as my head swims. Glancing over, I find the space next to me empty, and I wonder where he could be. Gingerly, I sit up and scoot to the edge of the bed. Everything is still disorienting, but now I really have to pee, so I trudge over to the bathroom only to have the door fling open in front of my face to find Edward and I surprising each other.
"Holy shit!" I scream as I press my thighs together while simultaneously clenching my kegel muscles as hard as I can.
"Bella!" Edward reaches out to grip my shoulders to steady me. He barely meets my eyes though, and as much as I'd like to focus on that, I notice that he's dressed for the office.
"Are you going somewhere?" I start shifting my weight from one foot to the other, and he smiles.
"Do you need to pee?"
I push past him, shutting the door in his face. "Don't leave until I talk to you," I scream at him as I relieve myself, and it feels like I'm in the bathroom forever after I wash my hands and brush my teeth quickly.
When I come out, Edward is sitting on the bench at the foot of the bed, a bottle of Gatorade in his hands. "Feel better?"
"Not really. I dry swallowed some Advil." He hands me the bottle, and I chug half of it down. "Where are you going?"
He sighs, not meeting my eyes again. "I need to get some work done. Not to mention I need to figure out who's trying to put me out of business if it isn't Lauren and Eleazar."
Learning against the door jamb, I stare at him. I know he's focused and career-driven, but …
"I thought we were going to spend the day together. How long are you going to be gone?" I'm trying not to pout, but it's hard when I feel like I might puke at any moment.
He stands, buttoning his suit jacket. "A few hours. I'll be home for dinner." He moves to the door without trying to kiss me goodbye.
"Excuse me? I think you're forgetting something." He turns back to see me puckering my lips. He strides over and kisses me softly. "I think you'll be home before dinner." I glance at the alarm clock. "Say three?"
He rolls his eyes. "Fine. I'll be back by three. I'll see you later, baby."
The way he says it, it's like he's leaving something out. I tell him to have a good day, and I watch him leave. I get dressed and get downstairs to assess the damages from last night. What I find at 11 a.m. is Dwayne and Austin sitting in the kitchen, drinking coffee with no mess in sight. They both take one look at me and give me low whistles.
"I know, I know. I look amazing." I move immediately to the coffee pot before joining them. "How do you two look so chipper?"
Austin smiles into his mug. "Well, we didn't drink like a sorority girl last night."
"And we went to bed before midnight," Dwayne adds.
"When did the cleaning crew show up?" I ask, inhaling the fragrance of the coffee.
"Seven. That's why we went to bed early." Dwayne eyeballs me. "Where did loverboy run off to?"
I fill them both in about Eleazar and Lauren and about how Edward went to the office to get some work done. "I guess I can hang out with you two or the elder Cullens until he gets back."
"Good luck with that." Dwayne rises from his seat, moving to the sink to wash his mug. "We're heading back to the city, and Esme and Carlisle are visiting some friends on the island before heading home. I doubt they'll be back here before they leave."
"So, I'm all alone. All day." I try to give my best puppy dog eyes, but my head is pounding and I know it's not working.
Dwayne walks over to press a kiss to my cheek. "You'll survive. Take a nap, eat some junk food, and try not to beat yourself up about not remembering anything from last night." He and Austin laugh while I smirk at them.
"I'll have you know that I remember every drunken night … eventually. I just need to clear the headache and everything comes back." I say it with pride, but if they knew some of the things Rose and I got up to in college, they'd cringe.
"That's … unfortunate," Austin shrugs. "There's a ton of leftovers in the fridge. Relax, girl."
They say their goodbyes, and I'm truly alone. I finish my coffee and two more cups before I feel like I might be able to shower without slipping and falling. By the time I'm dressed in comfy clothes with my hair up and out of my face, I head back downstairs to forage for food. The leftovers game is no joke, so I load up a plate of girl lunch and move to the TV room to relax.
As I'm mindlessly flipping channels and snacking away, little moments are coming back to me from the previous night. Challenging the bartender to do a shot with me. Trying to make Edward give me a piggyback ride. Trying to rap with a song. I actually cringe at that one because I know without fully remembering that one is especially bad. Playing the napkin game where Edward and I dropped cocktails on people without them noticing.
Then there was when we went upstairs. Me struggling to get undressed. Edward ripping my tights from my body and carrying me to the bathroom. When I called him Daddy. The crazy fucking in the shower and he said he—
"What the fuck!"
After panicking and throwing up, I FaceTime Rose. She's my best friend and my therapist. Not because I need a therapist or because that's her job, but it comes with the territory when you're best friends.
She doesn't pick up, which just notches up my anxiety until she finally texts me.
Rose: Bitch, I'm trying to sleep.
Bella: Edward told me he loved me last night. Just as he nutted inside of me.
…
…
Rose: I'll call you in a minute.
When the phone finally rings, Rose sounds like she spent the night puking. When she switches us to FaceTime, she also looks like she slept in the bathroom. "I'm really concerned about how you're looking right now, but I'm also freaking out."
"I'm fine. I'll rally." I can see her flop down on the couch. "Tell me what happened."
I fill her in on the minor details; some things about my personal life are sacred. But when I tell her that I'm positive that Edward said he loved me, she sits up straight.
"How did he say it?"
I think for a moment, and I only really have one answer. "A little breathlessly and balls deep in me! Rose, what do I do? He hightailed it out of here this morning with barely a 'how do you do?'. What if he regrets it? What if he doesn't remember it?"
Rose chuckles, and then seems to think better of it when she clutches her forehead. "I hate to have to ask the obvious question, but how do you feel?"
"Oh, I'm exhausted. I should probably try to take a nap and drink more Gatorade, but—"
She sighs. "Bella, you aren't simple. Please don't act like it."
"I love him. It's stupid, and it seems impossible but—"
"But what?"
"I love him. Nothing about us is conventional. Why should the way he told me be? Why should I be freaking out?" I smile at my best friend, but she's starting to look a little green. "Are you going to make it?"
"I don't know, dude. But I'm happy for you. Just talk to him, everything will sort itself out." She waves before I can thank her, and I have a feeling she needs to be gone more than I need to thank her.
I check the time on my phone, and it's only one. If I got dressed quickly enough, I could be in the city within the hour. Racing up the stairs, I yank open a drawer and pull on some jeans and slide a sweater over my head. I've been wearing socks all day so I slip into some sneakers before grabbing my purse and heading back downstairs. I grab my keys and phone, making my way to the front door, and I yank it open to find Edward on the other side.
"Holy shit!" Edward yells as he sees me in the doorway, holding my purse and keys.
"Edward!" I reach out to steady him, my hands on his chest, noticing his tie is undone, and he looks disheveled.
"Are you going somewhere?" He fidgets, and I start laughing like a maniac.
"Are we in a romantic comedy? I was coming to see you! What are you doing home so early?" Dragging him inside, I shut the door, looking at him intensely.
Raking a hand through his hair, he sighs. "Something happened last night. We were in the shower, and I said something. I didn't mean to say it, but it doesn't change the fact that I meant it … I mean it. Bella, I—"
Flinging myself into his arms, I press my lips to his. He clings to me, deepening the kiss. When we finally break apart, I stare deeply into his eyes.
"What I was trying to say, Bella—"
"I love you too."