Chapter
24
EDWARD
“We’ll be right behind
you,” Emmett told Aunt Jane. “But if I don’t stop at the diner for coffee,
Rosie’ll kill me…or turn into the road-rage queen.”
I grinned from the
backseat at Rose’s snort, but she nodded and shrugged, too. “I resemble that
remark,” she muttered, grinning at Bella’s soft laugh.
Alice, Bella, and I were
all riding with Emmett to Seattle, where he’d drop us off at the hotel by the
airport before he and Rose drove back to UW. The movers were loaded up and gone
with the few boxes we’d needed. Alice was packed and had already checked out Glenhaven
High School’s website, the school Jasper had attended. She was nervous and
quiet, but she seemed to be coming to terms with it all. She’d wanted to join
me in Florida anyway, but it all happened quicker than we’d originally thought.
“Coffee sounds pretty
damn good, actually,” Bella chimed in, leaning into me from the middle of the
backseat.
She was between me and
Alice, and just like I’d thought… The two got along perfectly. Rose, too, for
that matter. The three were very strong personalities, but they seemed to
complement one another instead of clashing.
We pulled into the diner,
and Bella and Rose went in for their coffee. Emmett followed to keep them
company. I looked over to Alice.
“I won’t miss this town,”
she said, meeting my gaze after rolling her eyes.
Chuckling, I reached over
to squeeze her shoulder. “You really won’t, Ali.”
There was a rumble of a
truck engine, not to mention a shadow cast over Emmett’s car, and when I
glanced to the parking space next to us, I groaned, shaking my head slowly. I’d
gone the whole damn Christmas break in Forks without running into any former
classmates…until now.
Mike Newton had once been
a friend in middle school. He then turned into the biggest asshole. As he slid
down from his ridiculously tall, oversize truck, he caught sight of Alice and
me, a slow, evil smile creeping up his face. A petite blonde girl slid down
from the passenger side at the same time.
“Ah, well… Looky here. If
it isn’t Killer Cullen!” he taunted, beaming like he’d just received an extra
fucking Christmas present. “Rumor has it your old man is in deep shit.”
I snorted, glancing to
Alice, who looked like she was about five seconds from launching herself
through the back window at him. But when I looked back at Mike, I saw Bella,
Rose, and Emmett emerge from the diner. My brother’s face darkened at the sight
of Mike, but Bella’s eyes narrowed as I opened the door to let her in.
“I got us a large to
share, baby,” she said, standing up on her toes to kiss my lips.
Mike laughed outright.
“You’re Killer Cullen’s girl?!” he asked incredulously but flinched when Emmett
stepped closer. “Hoshit! Emmett…didn’t see you there…”
Emmett grinned, shaking
his head. “Get away from me, Mike. I’ve got more important shit to do today
than teach you a lesson in history.”
Mike smirked, holding out
his hand to Rose and then Bella. “Michael Newton… I used to go to school with…”
Rose looked at him like
he was a disgusting, slimy bug. Bella, however, eyed his hand, tilted her head
to take in his truck, and then she looked to me.
“Did he really just call
you…Killer Cullen?” she asked in a
dangerously slow drawl, and I heard Alice’s giggle, never mind the fact that
Rose and Emmett were waiting for whatever my girl was about to say. When I
nodded, her nostrils flared and her eyes darkened as she faced Mike. “Is this
your truck?” she asked, which wasn’t what I was expecting, and Mike grinned
proudly her way.
“Hell, yeah…special mud
tires, a lift-kit…”
“Aww…” she crooned sadly
in a sing-song way. “Sorry about your penis, dude…” She spun to face me.
“Coffee, handsome?”
Grinning, I took the cup
as she crawled into the backseat of the car.
Rose barked a laugh,
mouthing, “So sorry,” to the blonde with him, and once everyone was back in the
car, she turned to face Bella as we left Mike and his confused girl and that
stupidly ginormous truck behind us. “Oh, Bella… You may be the most perfect
girl for Edward.”
Bella grinned, glancing
up my way, but it was me who whispered, “I know she is,” against her temple.
~oOo~
The three-hour drive into
Seattle was a mix of laughter and music and conversation that had nothing to do
with Carlisle Cullen, Forks, or even Mike. Emmett and I traded college stories,
the girls chatted about all sorts of different stuff, and for the first time
since I’d landed in Washington, I felt normal, calm, but that could’ve been
because I was about to leave the whole state behind.
Once Emmett pulled up to
the hotel, he turned to face us. “I’ll keep you posted on Dad, guys. And we’ll
be down as soon as school lets out for the summer. Baby bro, watch over the
midget…and vice versa.”
“I will,” Alice and I
said at the same time.
“And guys…let this shit
go. Forget about Dad. We’re in the right, so we just have to wait out all his
court bullshit.”
We all nodded and got
out, calling good-byes and love yous before we walked into the hotel.
Bella squeezed my hand,
looking up at me. “I… I got a room for the two of us to share, Edward, so I
hope…”
Nodding, I kissed her
temple. “Yeah, I’m gonna hate the dorms after this.”
Her giggle was adorable.
“Then my spoiling you is working!”
It turned out that Alice
had her own room, where everyone else was doubled up. I honestly just needed to
be back in Florida. I was ready to do like my brother said and put all of this
shit behind me.
It wasn’t until later
that night that I realized how subdued Bella had been since we’d checked into
the hotel. Throughout dinner, she’d been quiet, not to mention in the car as we
drove around Seattle. But once we were back in our room, I sat her down on the
edge of the bed.
“What’s wrong, pretty
girl? You’re so quiet. Is there… Do you…” I wasn’t sure what to ask, or even
how to ask it, but something was making her nervous. I worried that I’d done
something wrong, though I couldn’t figure out what.
She reached up to trail
her fingers down my face, her brow furrowing a little. “I love you.”
“I love you, too, Bella.”
She got up from the bed
to rummage around in her bag, pulling out something I’d completely forgotten
about – my leather-bound journal. I chuckled a little, taking it from her.
“Did you read it all, baby?”
I asked her, thumbing through it but looking up at the beautiful girl taking
her seat back on the bed.
She nodded, leaning in to
kiss me. “I did. And it was beautiful. All of it. I prefer the real deal, but I
was missing you, so I was happy with what you gave me.”
Grinning, I nodded but
tilted my head at her. “So… What’s this got… You didn’t answer my question.
What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong, Edward,” she spoke softly,
fidgeting with my fingers in her lap. “I just… There was an entry in there.”
She finally met my gaze as she tapped the book. “You said… You… I don’t need
candles or…or beautiful words, but Edward, I’m ready for the universe to
shift.”
It took me a second to
realize what she meant, and when I did, I gasped, gaping up at her with shock.
“Bella, what are you saying?”
“I’m… I want to be with
you…in every way, Edward. I’m ready… Shit, I was ready before you left Florida,
but… I love you, and I want to show you.”
I gave the room a quick
glance as I set my journal on the floor. If I was being honest with myself, I
hadn’t seen it happening this way. Though, I wasn’t sure what I’d expected.
However, this was slowly starting to feel like the perfect place. We had our
own room, not her bedroom at her house, and it wasn’t my dorm room. It was ours
and ours alone. It also seemed like perfect timing, because I wanted to show
her, too. I’d thought I loved her before I’d gotten on the plane to come here,
but as I gazed at the girl in front of me, I knew it was more, deeper, just
everything.
Reaching for her face, I
brushed the backs of my fingers across her cheek. “You’re sure?” I asked in a
whisper. “Pretty girl, I need you to
be so sure…” My voice was soft, but the tone was pleading. I’d never forgive
myself if she really wasn’t ready.
“I’m sure I love you,”
she said back with a slight smile on her gorgeous face, but she tilted her head
at me, bringing my lips to hers for a brief, light kiss. “Edward, we don’t need
candles or poetry or grand gestures. We don’t need to plan a thing. We just
need each other.”
I grinned, brushing my
lips across hers. “Plan…” I scoffed as I shook my head. “I never planned on
you, Bella. That’s for damn sure.” I sighed, standing up in front of her and
kicking out of my shoes before sitting on the bed with my back against the
headboard. “C’mere,” I breathed, holding my arms out for her, and immediately
she was astride my lap. Cupping her face, I said, “We may not need grand gestures,
Bella, but… This…this is important to me, not because it’s the first time but because
it’s you. I want this to be…everything. You are everything to me,
pretty girl, and I… Despite how badly I want you – and oh God, I want you so
bad – I want this to be special. And I don’t want to hurt you or mess up or…”
She smiled, leaning in to
kiss me and raking her fingers gently through my hair to shut me up and most
likely settle me down, as well. “From the very second I met you, Edward Cullen,
I knew you would never hurt me. And
you never will. I know it, deep down inside my heart. And at no time, no matter
what we’ve done, have I regretted a thing.”
I was overthinking. I
knew I was. She’d once told me that it didn’t matter that I’d never had a
girlfriend, and she’d placed her hand on my heart, telling me to follow it. As
I gazed up at the girl who’d irreversibly changed my life for the better, I
could feel myself completely surrender. She made me strong, she made me laugh,
and she gave me peace in the stormy shit that was my life. But I could see she
was my future, too. All those things she’d said that first morning she’d
arrived in Forks – I wanted it. I wanted all of it. I wanted to mesh our lives
together into one perfect thing.
Slipping my hand into her
hair, I pulled her lips to mine. I kissed her softly, like our first kiss,
taking my time, but I pulled back to meet her gaze. “I know we don’t need… I
mean…” I kissed her again, deeply, simply because I couldn’t stop myself, but
when I pulled back, I met her dark, heated gaze. “I want to make you feel good,
Bella. And…and…”
Her smile was wicked and
sexy and sweet – all at the same time. “We don’t need anything. You know I’m on
the pill, baby. You’ve seen me take it. Now… Finish that sentence, Edward.”
I swallowed nervously. “I
want to see all of you, and I can’t wait to feel you.”
“Yes,” she hissed,
reaching for the bottom of her sweater and tugging it off, only to reach for
mine.
Something in us melted
away. There was no more hesitation. When we were both shirtless, left only in
our jeans, I sat up, wrapping my arms around her as we lost ourselves in the
deepest kiss. It started slightly frantic and hungry, but slowly we both found
a smooth, deep pace, with hands touching skin and chest pressing against chest.
Rolling us, I melted into her, barely breaking away from her lips, but her legs
wrapped around my waist as hands started to pull and push and grip.
With one last brush
across her lips, I pulled away, pressing my forehead to hers. “I love you,
Bella.”
“I love you, too. Please
don’t stop.”
“I can’t,” I said
breathlessly, giving her a half smile when she cupped my face. “I can’t stop. I
need you, pretty girl. I need this and you and all of it. Nothing matters to me
but you. Tell me you know that before we…before I…”
She was nodding before I
finished that rambling plea, and I braced one hand by her hand, pushing up to
gaze down at the beautiful thing beneath me. God, she was gorgeous, which I
said out loud as I reached out with my free hand to touch – her face, her neck,
between her breasts, and flat along her stomach. When I reached the edge of her
jeans, I looked back at her face, and she nodded vehemently.
I pulled at the button
until it popped open and then lowered her zipper. Dropping kisses to each
peaked nipple and the soft skin along her stomach, I worked my way down to
kneel between her legs. I grasped the top of her jeans, and we both smiled when
she had to wriggle a bit to get out of them, but I was finally able to tug them
off and drop them off the side of the bed. To see her sprawled out in nothing
but a pair of tiny pink underwear was just about my undoing.
“Fuck, you’re
just…beautiful,” I said in awe, reaching for the pale-pink lace.
I lost myself a bit when
she lay completely bare in front of me, but her giggle brought me right back,
as did her legs, which wrapped around my torso to tug at me. I smiled back at
her, feeling a little of my worries disappear as nothing about this felt wrong
or too soon or too much. It was just us.
“I want…” I licked my
lips at what I wanted to say, but my eyes betrayed me as I took in the apex of
her legs.
“Oh God…” she whimpered.
“Edward, please…”
“I’ve never…but I… Fuck,
I want to…”
Skimming my hands flat
along her thighs that were wrapped around me, I gently pushed them open. I’d
touched her before – more than one time – but to see her spread out for me was
better than anything I’d ever read, watched, or dreamed. I rubbed the inside of
her thighs gently, finally trailing my fingers along her mound and then through
her slit. I could feel her shaking, her hips raising up a little as I leaned
down and kissed her stomach, the inside of her thigh, and finally her pussy.
Her reaction was better
than any part of what we were doing. She was so sensitive, her hips raised
again. The flavor of her was heady, a salty-sweet taste, not unlike her skin
when she was sweaty. She used her body to tell me what felt good; she barely
breathed aloud not to stop when my fingers slid inside her at the same time my
tongue hit the perfect spot and speed. And soon, my name, along with a few
curse words, hit the air as her pussy fluttered around my fingers.
Ravenous for her, I
lifted my head, still licking the flavor from my lips, and she sat up a little
to reach for my jeans. Her fingers deftly popped open the button, and I kissed
her briefly before slipping off the bed in order to kick out of them, tugging
my socks off as well. She’d seen my dick before, but the way she was looking at
me made me feel nervous and smug at the same time. She knelt on the bed,
pulling me to stand in front of her, and I leaned down to kiss her.
We were hands and skin
and heavy breathing, completely bare for each other, but as badly as I wanted
her, I needed to slow down. However, it was Bella who took the lead this time,
gently placing her hand on the back of my neck and guiding me back onto the bed
over her. Her kiss was searing and needy, her hands everywhere. And we both
moaned aloud when everything about us lined up perfectly.
Gasping, I squeezed my
eyes closed for a second before opening them up to see her. “Bella…baby…I love
you. I need… You have to…”
“Shhh,” she breathed
against the corner of my mouth, “I love you, too.” Her hand wrapped around my
shaft and guided me to her entrance. “Please…”
My eyes rolled back as I
started to push forward, and my mouth fell open. It was unlike anything I’d
ever felt and infinitely better than anything we’d done prior to this. She was
warm and wet and heavenly, and I froze when she gasped a little.
Leaning down, I kissed
her, slowly easing out and then back in, which was using every bit of my
self-control. I wanted to feel all of her around me, and the urge to come was
overwhelming, but slowly her muscles stopped tensing and her grip went from
harsh to pulling me in, touching me everywhere, and her legs wrapped around me.
But it was her face I
paid the most attention to, making sure I wasn’t hurting her. The pinched
expression faded from around her eyes, and the warmth returned as her lips met
mine and her hips started to work with me.
“Damn, I… You feel so
good, Edward,” she moaned.
“Yes,” I hissed, burying
my face in her neck as I tried to keep from coming, but she felt too good.
I felt it building,
creeping up my spine and tightening my balls. I was barely holding back, but it
all became so much, too much. It was
the feel of skin on skin and the smell of her hair; it was the sounds that the
two of us made together and the sight of all of that stuff combined into one
single act. And it was overwhelming need, but most of all it was my overflowing
love for her. Suddenly, I was coming harder than I’d ever come before. Bella’s arms
held me close, and my own curses, along with my love for her, were muffled
against the skin of her throat.
My vision blurred a bit,
but I was breathing heavy as my forehead fell to hers. Her fingers glided up
and down my spine.
“Don’t move,” she pleaded
against the side of my head as I buried my face in her neck again.
“I’m sorry. You didn’t…”
“Don’t be sorry,” she
whispered, and I heard her breathing hitch a little.
My eyes opened to see a
tear escape the corners of her eyes, and I frowned, reaching to wipe one away
with my thumb. “You okay?”
“I’m…perfect. I just…love
you, and now… I may never let you go,” she rambled adorably in a whisper,
smiling when I chuckled a little.
“Good, then my spoiling is working,” I teased her,
brushing kisses all over her face. “That was… I can’t… Thank you. I love you,
too, Bella.” I laughed softly at my inability to speak, and her smile melted me
completely. I trailed a thumb gently beneath her eye. “The universe did shift. I see…everything in your eyes, pretty girl.”
There was so much truth
in that statement. She was everything perfect and good and loving. She was
everything I’d ever needed in my life. My life had completely changed since
meeting her, and in spite of all the bullshit we still had to deal with
concerning my dad, I finally felt, for the first time in my life, that I’d
found my normal, my family, myself.
Leaving Washington tomorrow would be the start of everything. I could do what
my mother had intended for me – I’d truly live, seeking a future with my family
– both blood related and hand-picked – and a future with Bella.
But some things I wanted
to hold on to, things that were too important to lose, so with a smile and a
slight grimace, I separated from her, reaching for the book I’d left on the
nightstand before dinner.
“C’mere, pretty girl.
I’ve missed this,” I whispered, settling her under the covers, and she curled
herself around me, wearing a beautiful smile, as I opened to the first page and
dropped a kiss to her head before I started to read.
“The Secret Garden. Chapter 1. There Is No One
Left. When Mary Lennox was sent to Misselthwaite Manor to live with her uncle
everybody said she was most disagreeable-looking child ever seen…”
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