One of my lovely readers and reviewers (thank you, fernyyuki!) asked me if there's a Facebook group for updates regarding this story. At the moment she asked, the answer was 'no'. Meanwhile, I got around to making it - so if you want to get sneak peeks of future chapters, early heads-ups regarding updates, songs that fit the moods of the chapters and more fun stuff, you are more than welcome to join the Facebook Group „After Nightfall: Updates, sneak peeks, music and discussions".

This is not happening. This is not happening. This is not happening.

A thousand thoughts cascaded through my mind, but none as loud as this. I couldn't see the forest as I ran. The world surrounding me was a warped blob and I wasn't fast enough to pierce through its damned walls. I could hear Emmett's thoughts screaming at me from miles away, as he tried to catch up with me, but I ignored them.

My mind couldn't wrap itself around the idea that as I was going through those bears like a man possessed, Bella had done the same - only not with bears, but with humans. No, there must have been a misunderstanding, that was the only possible explanation.

Alice must have worded it badly. It wouldn't be the first time she did that. Or they were playing a prank on me. A decidedly bad prank, but a prank nonetheless.

This is not happening.

While my mind went through soothing possibilities, my feet were barely touching the ground as I ran.

Bella was fine. She was probably giggling with Alice, waiting for my reaction. I was going to laugh with them eventually. Emmett was definitely in on the joke, that was why he was screaming at the top of his mental lungs "Don't do something stupid, Edward!".

My phone kept ringing in my pocket all throughout the few minutes it took me to arrive to the Calawah River Park. I never picked up.

I heard Alice's thoughts over the murmur of the river before smelling the blood.

"It happened too fast… How could I have seen it? I must find them… He's going to kill me."

Than, a gush of wind brought to me all the scents that I had foolishly hoped not to smell.

Blood. Oxidized flesh. Musty asphalt. Broken bones. Death. And above all these, the sweetest lavender on the planet.

This is not happening.

I felt an unfamiliar weakness in my body when I got closer and saw Bella crouched on the wet pavement, in the darkness. Her hands were draped around her waist in a protective pose - and next to her, I could descry a pile of five bodies, their members tangled in weird positions and their eyes open, their unmoving stares holding memories of a horrofying death. One of the bodies looked particularly fragile and small: a child. There was barely any blood left in any of them and their necks were broken at an unusual angle.

"Edward, I am so very sorry, it is all my fault," Alice cried, coming up to me. "I tried to stop her, but she had already killed them and I..."

"Alice, please," I hissed, unable to deal with both her verbal and mental chaos.

Bella didn't look at me, not for a second. I noticed that her clothes were, surprisingly enough, not splattered with blood.

"I simply didn't foresee it. Their car slid off the road and crashed and there was so much blood. I swear I tried to stop her."

"Tell me where are the others," I demanded, as I went to Bella.

"The others?"

"You said there are witnesses. Where are they?"

My voice was unnaturally calm, despite the horror that was unravelling inside me. I reached for Bella's hand, but she didn't move.

"They left."

"Who were they?"

"There was Elijah Cochran, from the fire station. He was with his wife, but he didn't stop."

One disaster after another. A single human witnessing this was more than enough, but two? I knew the consequence of this, but I wasn't prepared to deal with that thought yet. Not when my Bella was standing on the pavement, with her mind lost someplace where I had no access to.

"I am sure he didn't see her face, Edward," Alice tried to convince me.

"As if that helps," I growled.

"Man, what the actual hell happened here?"

Emmett's thoughts were loud when he finally arrived, but still not as deafening as Alice's. I needed silence more than anything in that moment.

"They drove by, but I know they saw."

"Alice, some context?" Emmett pleaded.

I couldn't take this madness anymore. Alice offered Emmett a much needed explanation, but her thoughts kept screaming at me from the back of her mind. She felt guilty. She felt unforgivable. She felt powerless. As for me, I had no time for that nonsense. I fell on my knees in front of Bella and took her face in my hands.

"Bella, you need to look at me."

She didn't. Her face was a blank canvas, brightened up only by the deep scarlet of her eyes.

"I think she's in shock, she hasn't talked to me either. You know how it is."

"Bella, please, just look at me."

No response. Emmett was going through a series of slurs in his head, considering all the possible scenarios for our immediate future - none of them too optimistic.

"Oh, my… We really need to do something about the car and the bodies. It's late, but someone could pass by anytime."

Alice vocalized her thoughts and Emmett immediately agreed to help her.

"Love, please..." my voice cracked, watching the still waters of Bella's eyes, unable to find the smallest ripple.

"You two need to go home. Take my car. Em and I will take care of the rest."

"We're in deep trouble, bro."

And I could not find the strength in me to contradict him, because he was right: we truly were.

Bella didn't say a word to me on the way home. Her eyes remained fixated on the road as I kept on trying to talk to her. Each one of my efforts was welcomed by deafening quietness.

When we arrived, of course everybody knew what had happened, before we even got the chance to step inside the house. After Bella had burned the last remains of my sanity with her silence, the sudden clamor of mental voices threw me off.

"The pack in La Push will find out about this."

"Any news about the witnesses?"

"It's not safe in here."

"I wonder how long we have until the Volturi find out about the witnesses."

"Thanks for bringing trouble back home, Edward."

Esme was the first to come to us. In a second, her arms wrapped around me and Bella, much to Rosalie's dismay.

"I'm so sorry this happened. We'll find a way. We always do."

We'll find a way. I tried to hold on to that thought, but it was next to impossible to find hope. In moments like these, I could understand that Esme's gift, as silent and underrated as it was, was inestimable in value. She didn't foster the seeds of a new-found grudge, like Rosalie. She didn't feel completely out of her wheelhouse, like Jasper. She simply wanted to show Bella that she was still loved.

"Sweetheart, why don't you come sit down for a bit?" she offered, taking Bella's hand in hers.

"Yes," she murmured - her first word after a very long time. Her voice held an unspoken edge, sounding less like a hummingbird and more like a scared sparrow.

"Jazz, care to join us, dear?" Esme asked and he immediately obliged, knowing full well that his power was not a caprice, but a necessity in that moment.

Esme took Bella away from me and they disappeared into the kitchen, along with Jasper. My nerves felt like a chord stretched to its capacity - and Rosalie's thoughts didn't make it any better.

"If you weren't the idiot that you are, this wouldn't have happened. You were too trusting with her and you were wrong, as usual. None of us deserve what is next, but you do."

"Carlisle," I said, in a bid to break away from her poisonous mind. "What's going to happen?"

"You already know, son. We can't stay here."

"As if you had to ask, Edward," Rosalie rolled her eyes.

"Rose," my father murmured.

"No, Carlisle, we all know where this is going and I'm not going to beat around the bush for his sake - or hers," she said under her breath. "Witnesses mean trouble. If the word gets out, the Volturi will not hesitate to come after us."

"She's right, but it doesn't have to be like this."

"What are our options?"

"The pack will soon find out about this - and the treaty is clear on the consequences of killing humans."

To hell with that treaty.

"Not to mention what happens if the Volturi find out about our witnesses," he added.

"We die because you couldn't keep her in place, moron."

"Then we need to do something about the witnesses," I uttered.

"Why don't we kill them as well and call it a day?" Rosalie suggested.

"You are not helping, Rose," I growled.

"She's just afraid, you have to understand her."

"We could bribe them," I suggested. "Humans tend to have a weakness when money is involved."

"Wow, aren't you a genius?"

Carlisle pondered over that option. Bribery was beyond his morals - and in other circumstances, it would've been beyond mine, as well. But when Bella's safety was at play, I couldn't care less about what was right and what was wrong. I wanted her safe: from the wolves, from the Volturi, from the perils of being a newborn.

"We can try that," he finally decided. "But bribery is still no guarantee that they will keep their silence. In any case, we need to leave tonight. We can't risk it with the pack. The treaty is clear: we either leave on our own before they get to us, or they take care of us."

"You're right, I will go get packing then."

"Rosalie, I suggest you do the same," Carlisle said.

She huffed and sent me a telepathic wave of foul words, before she turned around on her pointy heels to go upstairs.

"Where are we going?"

"The Denalis, for the moment. We have to keep a low profile. Cardiff is out of the question now."

"That's crazy, we can't put them in danger, in case the Volturi find out," I protested.

"And we won't. They know about our treaty with the wolves. They'll understand this. We don't have to tell them about the two witnesses."

I could sense the sadness and guilt beneath his plan. Nobody hated lying more than Carlisle did. This was a case of lying by omission and with the final aim of protecting the Denalis, of course - but lying nonetheless. My father was abandoning everything for my sake and Bella's. And the most amazing thing about all that was that he didn't resent me or her for it. But what about the others? Why did they have to pay the price? And were they going to be as forgiving?

"You'd better hurry, Edward. News travel fast and the wolves are anything but forgiving."

"And be strong - Bella needs you now more than ever."

I couldn't agree more. A few seconds later, I was in my and Bella's room. Her human scent still lingered in the sheets of the bed we used to share, almost like a stray ghost. It burned my lungs with its unbearable sweetness.

For a split second, I remembered my bear feast from earlier - and how disappointing it all was. Looking back on it, I felt the same kind of shame that a kid feels after throwing a tantrum. My problem not only paled in comparison to what was going on, but it also seemed awfully selfish.

I realized I was going through the motions as my hands grabbed random stuff and threw them in a suitcase. Downstairs, the low hum of Bella's and Esme's dialogue was unnerving:

"This is not the first time we do this, Bella."

"I know, but if it weren't for me, you wouldn't have to deal with this whole mess."

"Sweetie, mistakes are bound to happen."

"Not like this… And I don't know if Edward will ever forgive me. I know I won't forgive myself."

She thought I wasn't going to forgive her? That very notion was so nonsensical that I was surprised to even hear her say it. Once again, the way her mind worked left me dumbfounded.

The lives unfairly lost today to her thirst were a tragedy - that I could not deny. But I couldn't find any amount of rage in me that was targeted towards Bella. And surprisingly enough, not even towards Alice. Because truth be told, it wasn't their fault at all. I should have known better. I shouldn't have put all my trust in Alice's visions. I shouldn't have been so confident that Bella had everything under control just because she seemed unnaturally good at being a newborn. I should have went with them to the mall - one pair of arms might have not been enough to stop Bella from going on a rampage, but two pairs might have been.

If anything, I was to blame for being too trusting.

"You're everything to Edward. I wouldn't worry about that right now," Esme told Bella.

She really was my everything. Did she understand that? I had told her these exact words for so many times - I could only hope that she actually listened to me.

Before long, I had packed two large suitcases with our clothes, our books and all of my CDs. As soon as I finished, I hurried to the kitchen. Esme and Jasper stood up from their chairs at the same time when they saw me.

"She's really fragile right now. Only you know the best way to take care of her."

"We'll pack our stuff, so that everything is ready when Alice and Emmett get back," Jasper announced.

"You know where to find me, if you need me, brother."

I thanked them and they disappeared out the door, leaving us alone. Bella looked incredibly small and uncharacteristically scared as she sat at the table. She looked as if she had been condemned to the gallows. Her eyes were studying me - a progress, but they were still avoiding my face.

"Bella, I think we need to talk."

"I really don't know what I can say right now."

Her voice was as dim as a whisper and it sparked a desperation within me that I didn't want to let out. I went up to her and kneeled, so that our faces could be at the same level.

"I know you think I won't be able to forgive you for what happened today, but that couldn't be farther from the truth."

"Don't say that... I deserve anything but your usual kindness right now."

My mind went through a thousand scenarios of how her train of logic might had led her to believe such a blasphemy.

"Please, be reasonable with me for a second," I begged.

"But I am!"

Her bottom lip quivered dangerously. I couldn't stand to see her like this.

"Bella, you are more important to me than my very own life. I just want you to be safe. Is that so hard to fathom? So impossible to understand?"

I couldn't resist the urge to let my fingers trace the contour of her face as I spoke. Her eyelids fluttered and closed upon my touch and a deep frown appeared between her eyebrows. I pressed my lips on the stubborn frown, hoping it would melt under my kiss and go away. It didn't.

"Tell me what you want me to do to make it better," I said, unable to stop myself from planting small kisses on every inch of her face - so much for hiding my desperation. "I will do anything, Bella, anything… just say the word."

"No, don't…" she whispered with a voice so broken that it killed me.

"Yes… yes… yes..." with each word I grabbed her tighter and pulled her closer to me, like a maniac. "I will not let you alone in this. If you go down, I go down with you."

Her chest was vibrating now and she was panting. No tears were falling, yet I knew: she was crying.

I pulled her from the chair and on to the floor where I was kneeled, to take her in my arms. We remained like this for what seemed like forever. Bella kept on crying, unable to shed any actual tears, and I kept on telling her how much I loved her again and again. This is how Alice found us when she got back.

"It's done. No DNA left whatsoever. No news about the witnesses."

"We're going to bribe them," I said in response to her thoughts, still holding Bella in my arms.

"We'll send them an anonymous check first thing tomorrow. They're probably sleeping anyway, it's two A.M."

"Everyone else is ready. At least Emmett has an excuse to put his pilot license into practice again now."

I nodded and stood up, lifting Bella from the floor as well.

"I'm so sorry I'm making you all do this," she whispered.

"Bella, we've been here before, don't worry," Alice said. "Come on now, we need to hurry. The suitcases are already in the car."

Crippled by the great unknown in front of us, we left the kitchen and headed to the door. With Bella's hand in mine and Alice by my side, I stepped outside our home in Forks for the last time and into the complete darkness of the woods.

It took me a great deal of power not to look back.

It was a miracle that we somehow didn't have a crash landing. Emmett hadn't piloted our private jet - or any other plane, for that matter - in years and it showed. We had a really turbulent flight, the kind that would make humans pass out from the extreme movements and the lack of oxygen. In retrospective, I should have been the one to do it.

Alice made sure to make a detour to the closest postal office and send an envelope with a $500.000 check to Elijah Cochran. She used her fake ID to do so - the one she had for emergency situations - and we could only hope for the best.

The Denalis' house hadn't changed one bit since the last time I visited them, back when Bella and I didn't even have our first conversation. When I first met her, the incredible scent emanating from her pores drove me so hopelessly wild that I had to evade the country to escape its flames.

Eleazar and Carmen were away to a secluded island to celebrate their anniversary, while Irina was in Seattle, with none other than Laurent, Victoria's and James' tag-along buddy. The news of their relationship took me by surprise. Laurent had expressed in the past his intererst in our alternative lifestyle. As it turned out, it wasn't until a chance encounter with Irina that he decided to give it a fair shot.

The only ones left in the house were Tanya and Kate, who came to hug us as soon as they saw us stepping inside their yard. Tanya lingered a second too long when it came to hugging me and I pulled back as soon as I had heard her thoughts.

"It's so good to see you all again," she exclaimed. "And so good to finally meet Edward's mate!"

"This is my wife, Bella," I said, dissatisfied with her use of the word 'mate' - of course Bella was my mate, but she was also so much more than that. "Love, these are our cousins I've been telling you about, Tanya and Kate."

"It is so nice to meet you," she said. "And thank you for letting us stay here."

"Oh, of course," Kate intervened. "We've all been there at some point or another - we know what it's like."

I loved the way Kate's mind worked. Her line of thoughts was as upfront as Emmett's. With her, what she spoke was exactly what she thought - no surprises, no hidden undertones. She was truly pleased to meet Bella - unlike Tanya, who, beneath her bubbly facade, felt a deep jealousy I had expected with dread.

The history of Tanya and me was anything but simple. We had known each other for decades and we always got along fine. Her wit was something I had always appreciated and it made for extremely interesting discussions whenever our paths crossed. She was beautiful, of course - the kind of beauty expected to be seen at the grand parties of the roaring 20's: delicate to the extreme, yet startlingly sly. But next to Bella, her beauty faded into oblivion. Unfortunately, Tanya's feelings for me went a little further than the ones of friendship and platonic endearment I felt for her.

Being the sexual creature that she was - this being the exact reason I used to jokingly refer to her as a 'succubus' - she never shied away from expressing her desire for me. She began with innocent flirting, a tactic that, in her experience, always worked on human men. When Tanya saw that it had no effect on me whatsoever, she went further.

Only she and I knew how many times she tried to orchestrate the perfect scenario that, in her mind, would have convinced me to give in and sleep with her. She even had a phase in which she wrote me long poetic letters, detailing all the ways in which she wanted me to possess her - only to be met with short cynical letters from me, in which I briefly described how I wasn't interested in any of that and how I would have preferred to remain friends instead.

And we remained friends, despite the awkwardness of her constantly trying to have sex with me. I ignored that part to the best of my abilities. But now, with my wife by my side, I was no longer willing to be so forgiving with Tanya's advances, had she tried any. And it wouldn't have surprised me if she did, given her explicit thoughts upon feeling my body pressed to hers when she hugged me. She had to learn about boundaries, one way or another.

Kate led me and Bella to what was going to be our room for the time being. It was spacious and the design was a tasteful mix of modernism and minimalism - something that contrasted greatly with the classic details of our home in Forks. The room had its own private bathroom, that was almost as vast as the bedroom itself.

As soon as we were alone, Bella began unpacking one of the suitcases. She rummaged through the stuff she found in it with a look of dismay on her face.

"Can I help you find something?" I asked.

"I was hoping to find something to wear - I hadn't changed since… well, you know."

"Of course."

I knew exactly where I had put her jeans and her cotton blouses. She seemed relieved when I handed them to her.

"Thank you, I'll go take a shower first."

She took her clothes off piece by piece, and I watched in awe, forgetting for a while about the chaos surrounding us.

"Just so you know, there are a thousand things I want to do to you right now," I said, leaning back on the armchair I was in and crossing my arms under my head, to get a better view of her.

"I am not sure this is such a good idea."

"This is always a good idea," I countered.

A sudden sadness darkened her features, but she turned around to go to the bathroom before I got to see more of it.

The first day at the Denalis' house was weird. We tried to catch up with what each of us had been doing, but it felt extremely unnatural, given the circumstances. Bella oscillated between being friendly and being quiet throughout the day. Tanya and Kate were convinced that this weird behaviour was simply due to the fact that Bella had just killed five innocent humans and she felt guilty - I let them believe that, since they weren't completely wrong.

In the evening, news of a disappearing family broke for the first time on NBC. I took Bella out of the room as soon as I saw the headline on the screen, knowing that she didn't need to see that in the state that she was in.

"Yeah, sheltering her from the consequences of her actions will do" Rosalie's thoughts shouted after me.

And I knew that, in her malice, she had a point. But not sheltering Bella enough in her first weeks as a newborn was the reason we were all here. I couldn't make the same mistake twice.

The next day, things didn't go any better. The missing family now had a name and a history. Melinda Wilson and Wayne Wilson used to be the proud owners of a local grocery shop in Sappho. They had three kids: two teenage daughters who were getting ready for college and a nine-year-old son. They were on their way to Forks to visit Melinda's mother, but they never made it to their destination. The rest of the story remained a question mark for the investigators, who couldn't understand how a family of five could disappear out of thin air in such a small town.

Kate - and even Tanya - tried to console Bella, telling her that these mistakes are inescapable, even to the most experienced vegetarian vampires. But neither of them knew that the stakes were much higher than any of us let on, given that we had two witnesses who, so far, had kept their silence.

Throughout this chaos, Charlie kept calling, unaware of the fact that we had left. He was caught up in helping the investigators, but that didn't prevent him from worrying about Bella. He insisted that we kept our outings to a minimum and it was easy to promise him that that wasn't going to be a problem. Renée called once or twice as well, but she was too absorbed in her own issues - with Phil changing teams and them having to move again - to notice anything peculiar about Bella.

Each new day came with more sensationalized news regarding the Wilsons. Rumours about them being in debt and trying to flee the country were quick to appear. The story was gaining traction, getting picked up by more and more television stations. Their speculations were, of course, a far cry from the reality of what had happened. However, the sudden attention the whole case got didn't help us at all.

Bella and I didn't make love again. We were rarely alone - and when we weren't, she stopped our kisses before they turned into more, without much of an explanation, in a way that reminded me too much of our nights spent in her childhood room in Charlie's house. Tanya sensed a certain tension and quickly got back to her old ways. She didn't do anything at first, but kept sending me unwanted fantasies of her and me. She did this when I least expected it, convinced that she was helping me overcome what she thought was a sexual blockage. I tried to be a gentleman and ignored her, hoping that she would take the hint.

After the first week, Tanya found her much-wanted loophole when my family went hunting. She took advantage of Bella and Kate being deeply engrossed in a conversation about how newborns can learn to control their thirst and came to tell me:

"You've been down ever since you came here. Do you want to get some fresh air? Maybe build a snowman or something?"

"I was actually planning to take Bella for a walk in the forest," I lied immediately.

"As you can see, my sister is kind of holding her prisoner right now."

"I am willing to wait."

"Come on, Edward, it's just a snowman."

She was hiding her intentions well. But it didn't matter, of course, because I knew her too well. Maybe this was my chance to set things straight with her for the last time.

I let out a sigh of annoyance and said:

"Fine, but keep in mind I don't have much time on hand."

"Oh, I can be quick."

I rolled my eyes and, without any kind of enthusiasm, followed her outside. We went to a nearby meadow, just a little higher up the mountain, where the snow was pristine and plenty. She began dancing around, in a calculated attempt to look charming. My mind immediately took me back to the last day Bella and I had spent in our meadow. The way she pirouetted in the sun like an angel was forever engraved in my brain, as a reminder of the last time we felt truly carefree.

"So how have you been, Edward? We didn't really have a chance to talk properly."

"No, we haven't. As you can see, I've had better days."

"Clearly."

She ran her hand through her strawberry-blonde locks and began to make a small pile of snow with the help of her boots.

"The last time you were here you weren't much better," she noticed.

"Just an unhappy coincidence."

"Maybe. I didn't expect you to be so… different, you know?"

"Different how?"

"I don't know, I guess you've matured since the last time I saw you."

Her brain tried to find some way of bringing the discussion on the path she wanted it on - and it didn't take her long. In fact, I found it profoundly unladylike that she didn't at least try to drag it out a little. But I could understand why she wanted to cut straight to the chase: it was the first time I was away from Bella and she wasn't willing to waste any time.

"I must say I'm surprised though," Tanya uttered.

She let her mind finish her words for her: "I had always been convinced that you will be this untouchable bachelor."

"As it turns out, all I had to do was stumble upon Bella."

"Of course."

Tanya was making progress with the base of her snowman, but I wasn't willing to offer her any help. I wanted to get it over with.

"And you're happy?"

I huffed.

"Of course I am, Tanya."

"It's just that she seems so... distant. Is she always like this?"

"Don't be ridiculous. My wife has been through a lot and it is taking a toll on her."

"I'm sure of that. Although..."

"I'm sure it is taking a toll on you as well. You're always the caretaker, but who takes care of you?"

She lifted her eyes from the snowman she was building to meet mine. Her pupils were dilated and I wanted to get out of there.

"Don't go there," I pleaded.

"Go where?"

She wasn't able to fake innocence too well.

"Don't pretend you don't know what I mean. You are smarter than this."

"I'm just playing with you, silly!"

She made a few steps in my direction.

"I am not playing games, Tanya - please, understand this."

She got closer, convinced that this was my way of teasing her. She put her palm on my chest, right where my unbeating heart was placed, just like she did so many times in the past.

"It's always been a game with you and me."

I took her wrist in my hand and removed it carefully.

"You are better than this," I murmured.

"You've always been stubborn."

"Don't mistake my lack of interest for stubbornness."

Her mind started to fog up with the frustration of being refused by me for the hundredth time, but she pushed further anyway:

"You must be a little curious."

"I can guarantee you that I am not."

She went back and forth between whether to kiss me and hope for the best or slap me and see what happens. In the end, she did neither.

"There's no other woman for me, Tanya. Bella is my everything. You must learn to leave the past behind. This truly is the last time I am telling you this."

Her glare was sorrowful, but I knew she would forget about it at some point. She went back to her snowman and changed the subject, in a bid to get over her embarassment, but her shame continued to haunt her mentally, making our further conversations painfully awkward. We didn't linger much longer in the meadow and finally headed back to the house.

Bella was still talking to Kate and I was glad to see a lively spark in her eyes - whatever Kate had told her to ignite that spark, I was thankful.

"How did the snowman turn out?" Kate asked.

"Amazing," Tanya responded, as she hurried to her room.

"I hope she didn't make a fool of herself, as usual."

"She's fine," I assured her.

Bella looked confused - I knew I owed her a few explanations.

"Can I steal Bella from you?"

"She's all yours, friend."

As Kate went after Tanya to ask her what happened, Bella and I went upstairs, to our bedroom. I closed the door behind us and watched as she climbed into the bed. After one week of painful abstinence, the sight of her laying on the mattress was too tempting, awakening hungers in me that could only be sedated in a certain way.

"Are you going to tell me what that was all about?" she asked.

I sat down at the end of the bed, allowing my hand to rest on one of her calves.

"Yes. Tanya has always had a bit of a crush on me."

"Oh."

I felt the muscles underneath her skin tense up ever so slightly. It was the first time I was telling her this.

"Okay, that's not a surprise," she added. "What woman doesn't?"

"I never looked at her that way, of course - not even before I met you."

She raised her eyebrows and puckered her lips upon hearing that.

"But I guess she tried to shoot one last chance," I added.

Bella was definitely not pleased with what she was hearing - a new emotion altered her perfect features, one that hadn't bothered her before: jealousy. In a way that felt barren of any kind of logic, I felt a sudden wave of possessiveness towards her. It was as if my whole being wanted to let Bella know that there was no room in my mind or in my heart for someone else.

"Well, she is gorgeous," Bella said.

I tried not to laugh at the impossibility of ever finding another woman better than her in any way.

"That's quite an overstatement when I have you for comparison, my love."

Her lips curled in a pout and she looked irresistible. I leaned down over her, planting a kiss on her belly. This was the closest I had managed to get to her in the week that passed. Her fingers interlocked in my hair out of habit and I exhaled a satisfied breath on her skin.

"I told her I am not interested in anyone but my wife," I said, kissing my way to the bones of her hips.

"You told her that?"

"Yes," I said and traced a delicate line with my tongue from her right hip to right above the hem of her underwear. "My very beautiful wife, who has been teasing me all week."

"I'm… really sorry about that," she managed, out of breath.

"Don't be, I just want to understand why that is."

"Don't get me wrong, I want you more than anything, Edward, but..."

She gasped when she felt my teeth ripping the top part of her pants and underwear, to reveal her pubic bone.

"Go on," I encouraged her, going back to kissing her abdomen.

"I feel like… like I don't deserve this right now."

I scowled, but my lips couldn't get enough of the satin perfection of her skin, so I didn't make the effort to look up at her and show my disapproval.

"Bella, don't be ridiculous."

My hands grabbed her thighs to open them wider. Her scent left my mouth watering.

"I know you need this as much as I do," I muttered, planting soft kisses on her pubic bone.

She moaned and her eyes closed for a second.

"Oh, I do, but..."

My nose was now rubbing on the soft material of her underwear, feeling her wetness beyond it, craving to collect it all on my tongue.

"Let me taste you, love," I begged.

Another moan left her lips and it made me want to rip off her clothes completely. It was a torture a million times more scorching than being burned alive.

"It's been so long and I am aching to have you..."

I could almost hear the internal battle she was having with herself through her jagged breaths. I was seconds away from losing it when she pulled me up from between her legs, until our faces were aligned.

"I know you know how much I want you," she said.

It was an effort not to shut her mouth with a kiss, but I managed to contain myself.

"This isn't any easier for me - but how can I allow myself to be even slightly happy right now, when the TV reminds me everyday that I am, in fact, a murderess?"

"You're not a murderess," I grumbled.

"Yet I am, Edward. I've killed five innocent people."

I could not deny that. But I knew, deep down, that murderesses killed for fun, just for the sake of it. Or out of spite. Often as a form of revenge. Victoria, for instance, used to be the epitome of a murderess.

My Bella wasn't like that. Her only fault was that she had surrendered herself to the most basic instinct of a vampire - that didn't make her evil.

"You didn't want to do this," I whispered.

"But that doesn't make it any better, does it? The fact that it was a slip up on my part won't bring the Wilsons back."

Undeniable - again.

"You're right, it won't," I said.

Defeated for the moment, I hid my face in the nape of her neck.

"I guess we've got some learning to do, love."

"You can say that again."

I pressed my lips on her neck, full of longing.

"We've got plenty of time," I told her.

At least it seemed like we did, as we laid there entangled in each other's arms. But for one reason or another, I felt the air slowly loading with the oracular calm before the storm.

Sooo we're back to brooding Edward, guys. But he's still our Edward and we must protect him at all costs.

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