AN/ Alright, put the pitch forks down. I know I'll never be able to apologize enough for almost three months of writer's block. And know you're probably thinking "but you said you had chapters already written and blah blah blah." Well a friend advised with constructive criticism that I post chapters POST Eclipse, and I had nothing like that written. This friend said that to have chapters conflict with the current story line would just initially confuse readers and take away from the overall success (I wouldn't call it that though) of my story. SO I DID! But not without some amazing difficulty. Every other day I'd sit down to write and crank out sentences at a time, eventually stealing from chapters I WANTED to post to help with lack of ideas. And thus this chapter was born!

About this chapter: I always wondered if Edward actually paid Charlie any attention or if he felt some kind of guilt towards Bella's parents for taking their girl away from them. (For any real parent, that would be an extremely difficult thing to knowingly go through, I can't imagine what Charlie and Renee will go through once she does disappear.) I also wondered why Charlie was so enabling. If I mysteriously fled for Italy for three days and not told my dad? Well...I would be in a vegetative state by now. (He'd only leave me barely alive after he's through).

So I took a stab at analyzing all these thoughts and answering the questions for myself. To apologize, this chapter's extra long! Please Enjoy!

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o.O.o

o.O.o.O.o

o.O.o

.o.

Though I'm risking more contempt by doing this, I'm completely defenseless against her ways persuasion.

"Bella…it is now…" I checked my watch. "9:02… Charlie has me timed to the very last second, you know this…and what with my car in the driveway…" I urged. I've tried very hard the past few months to better the quality of the relationship between Charlie and I, but Bella was making this harder than it had to be.

"Yes, but Charlie's not here, is he?" she leered. The glare and the intent behind it was clearly evident in my eyes. There was a seriousness there that she was childishly ignoring. I tried to inch slowly from under her, as she was positioned sprawled on top of me, but she noticed my attempts and fought me.

"Bella…does Charlie mean nothing to you?" I sighed. Her head shot up in incredulity.

"What kind of question is that?" she protested, I rolled my eyes.

"I mean…in regards to me. How can you allow me, no, force me to break his rules knowing fully well how he feels about me?" Our eyes smoldered in a heated non verbal battle for very long seconds until she seemed to resign. She rose into a sitting position next to me.

"Charlie will wear down with time…besides, it's not you he hates, its more what you make of me…or rather what I'm like without you, which is all the more reason for you to stay." She said playfully, but from her careful admittance I knew she was making herself vulnerable. She's misunderstanding me; I so very much wanted to stay, but I had to play my cards delicately. If I could co-exist peacefully with Charlie then he and Bella will be better off.

"He wouldn't give me a time limit if he thought the best thing for you was to be with me…" I informed her, moving to a more formal position on the edge of her bed.

"How long will Charlie matter?" she muttered. I cocked my head to the side, wondering just how to interpret such a question.

"As long as you're human." I said, covering my bases. She knew my answer was only to evade further discussion, so she looked away and said nothing. The look on her face was reproachful, and I was a bit disappointed in her. How could she let her erroneous human hormones mislead her now? Now especially? Has she forgotten why we needed to be so tolerant? I held her firmly by her shoulders.

"Bella…" I said firmly, waiting for eye contact, she looked unwillingly, but as she did I gained a small amount of clarity that I didn't have before. I could see the truth there, the conflict, I could see the weight of her options and the pain of her decision…and still, just as I feared, just as I fought and rebelled against, I could find no regret. To choose my life over her own…I could never oblige such a choice.

"Bella…you should always be conscious of the circumstances. If you're going to abandon this life leave no stone unturned in poor grace. Only you could force my hand this way and only you alone could be any kind of consolation for what I am going to do. Otherwise, I couldn't live with myself. Look at what I'm taking from Charlie, Renee! And selfishly at that! Yes, you're eighteen and more than able to survive without him, but please, for me, so I will be at peace- let him be your father while he still can."

She was silent still, her eyes boring into mine. Either she had no response or feared her response would anger me somehow. I knew it was the latter; I know how she's come to justify her decision, but how could I ever believe for a second that I am worth such a sacrifice? I never will.

The only thing I do understand, and the only amount of leverage I have is empathy itself. I may not consider myself a respectable trade-off for her life of all things but I am all too aware of the cause. For some unfathomable reason Bella's chosen me and will give her life to me, out of love. And I knew, to my core, with no reservations, that given the chance I would do the same. Give my life to her to be with her, out of love over all.

After more minutes of silence I pulled her into my arms, sighing as the warmth of her skin surrounded me. In all essence, it was hardly fair that she hear this from me. I would go to any length, any measure, choose her over my own father, without rationale, without a second thought. But even in my poor approximation of what was good for her, I knew she would want this in the end. She will wish that she and Charlie had faired better. And Bella seemed so oblivious to the inequality between Charlie and I, the rut that I would never expect him to forgive. I could spare him and tolerate his offhanded attempts to evade me with nothing less than civility because very soon I would have her forever.

How could I complain?

A shrill sound that Bella was unaware of broke the silence around me.

"Bella…"I said, stroking her hair. "The phone's ringing."

Her arms tightened around me in blatant retaliation and we were back to square one again. Anyone within her human world could be calling to relay a trivial, or worse yet, a tragic message. Who was I to infringe on her sense of normalcy? Bella should be making the most of this human life for as long as it will last.

"Bella…" I said roughly, disentangling myself. Once I was free, I grabbed her arm and dragged her with me downstairs, using the little force necessary on my part to do so. She groaned the entire way. I picked up the phone before it stopped ringing and held it out to her.

"Edward you know as well as I do, that there's nothing in my life that would make me run to the phone." She hissed as I covered the mouth piece.

"You never know love." I teased. She took the phone gingerly and winced as she put it to her ear, almost as if it burned her skin. I smiled. Sometimes I would blasphemously think that characteristically, she was prepared to transition into my life, to leave the world she never seems to enjoy in the first place.

It was easy for me to over hear her conversation; she was talking to Charlie.

"Dad?...yes I'm fine, how was-…what?!...how-!…are you-!…ok, I'll be right there." She hung up, her face distressed. She put her hand to her forehead, closing her eyes tightly, as if she were fighting a headache.

"Edward, Charlie's-" she began.

"I know. Come on." I said, car keys already in my hands. Charlie must have been coming from La Push, taking one of many roads into forks that weren't illuminated at night to have gotten into an accident, which surprised me as there is nothing like a police cruiser to brighten the road. By voice alone, he seemed perfectly fine to me, but it was Bella's nature to worry over everything.

She ran to the car, and I was already there at the door of my Volvo, brandishing it open for her. She got in quickly. I was beside her half a second later, peeling out of the driveway smoothly but hastily. As I gently bared down on the pedal, inclining the speed well past ninety; she buckled her seat belt and made no qualms about the speed.

Charlie was stranded alongside the road's edge, his cruiser resting in the middle of the lane. It was dark enough outside that Bella could hardly see Charlie as we reached him; I had to point him out for her as we neared him.

"Stop the car." She commanded breathlessly as soon as I pulled up far enough, her heart racing a mile a minute. I skidded neatly to a halt and dipped out of the car.

"Charlie!" she yelled, forgetting the usual pretense her mother decided was more appropriate for a parent and a child. As she ran to him, I tested the air for blood and thankfully there wasn't any, in fact, he was standing with his arms in his pockets, almost as if he was suffering from boredom. I stood a comfortable distance away, coming up just a few feet behind Bella, managing an honest look of concern on my face. I knew he was okay…and I was certain of this as he continued to ignore me.

"Dad, are you all right?!" Bella pressed, her hands lingering on his shoulder, eyes searching incessantly for injury.

"I'm fine Bells, just a little car trouble." He said, smiling, enjoying the brief moment of diversion. I sighed internally.

"So you're alright then?" she said again, finally relaxing but the anxiety was still apparent on her face. There was a wrinkle between her brow -such an obvious sign of apprehension- that she seemed unaware of and remained there even when she tried to calm down.

"Really, I'm okay, don't get so worked up. I'd hate to see you in a real emergency." He laughed lightly to calm her further. It worked; she sighed and smiled anxiously in return. I chose then to courteously interject.

"May I ask what exactly is wrong with the cruiser chief? Maybe I can be of some help." I asked politely.

"Nah, that's okay Edward, don't trouble yourself, but thanks though, I'll let Jacob have a look tomorrow…" he said, brushing me off. Bella looked at me warily, almost as if the comment should physically hurt. I smiled to reassure her, I wasn't exactly bothered by Charlie's prospects… if only this man knew how much I respected his position as Bella's father, even though I'm twice his age, he might see how futile it was to regard me the way he does.

"I really don't mind" I pressed, loping toward the cruiser against Charlie's better judgment. "My father's been teaching me a few things, I'd be glad to take a look." I continued modestly. He couldn't possibly know that the better choice for a mechanic was here at his disposal. I'm certainly no Rosalie but compared to Jacob, I was better suited to the task because Jacob Black would need tools. I decided then, that if the job was small enough to get away with fixing by hand, then I'd do it. Although, a part of me knew that Charlie would be happier if I wasn't successful.

"So what precisely is going in here?" I said, my voice muffled as I lay on my back, half of me disappearing under the hood of the police cruiser.

"Well…"he started. How can he see? he thought. "It's just the front prop shaft…blew it on a curb awhile back, knocked out the four wheel drive." I began to fiddle with the exoskeleton of the cruiser as he spoke. I was there for several minutes, working as slowly as the situation required. Bella came to me and knelt down beside me, I assumed, so I alone could hear her.

"Don't impress him too much, he'll loathe you even more." She advised knowingly. I laughed at the truth of it all.

"You know, Charlie grows fonder of me each day, that's what scares him." I explained, winking at her.

"I really hope that's true. It'll make walking me down the aisle much easier for him." she said, her expression wistful but amused. I sided with Alice on several occasions to not only meet Bella's wedding demands, but Charlie's expectations as well, as only I had the means of knowing exactly what he thought. But Charlie gave me very little to work with. Out of paternal nature alone, I imagine, if he had his way, there'd be no wedding at all. If nothing else, I know he and I have the same objection, and that was seeing Bella happy.

"All done." I declared, and Bella let out a breath she was holding. As I slid from under the cruiser, I could hear the war of question in Charlie's head, but it didn't quite translate to his face.

"So?" he asked, expectantly, trying to deduce what I thought of my own handy work.

"I think she's ready to give her a try." I said, looking back at the cruiser uncertainly, playing the role.

Bella's glare was really something to envy as Charlie put on a show, inspecting every inch of his cruiser.

"I could have sworn the initial problem was in the front of the car." She hissed as Charlie disappeared behind the trunk, checking for something else. I bent slightly to speak directly to her ear.

"Remember Bella, tolerance." I said breezily.

And finally, after a long, drawn out show of scrutiny, Charlie unwillingly got inside the cruiser, turned the key, and listened to it sing. I tried to seem surprised.

"Well!" he exclaimed. "I hope I make it home…" he ribbed.

"No guarantees." I said, going along with his joke. I had to imagine Bella to be so annoyed beyond control right now; the apprehensive crease in her brow had suddenly gone. He face was flat with surpressed revulsion.

"You must be ready to go home now Dad." Bella urged, trying to atone for his rudeness I assumed.

"Yup, Bells, I'm starved." He said, calling out to her from inside the cruiser.

"Good. Dinner's been done…I ma-" she started but Charlie cut her off.

"How late is it? Must be close to ten, for sure…" he began, and I was knew, with quiet displeasure, where this was going. I made myself to be the willing accommodator, and confirmed the time.

"Yes, sir, it's ten till." I said watching Bella warily; I couldn't, as of yet, deduce how she would act when she found out what Charlie was pulling.

"Yep, that's about right. So, Bella, hop in with me and Edward…thanks for the handy work." He said abruptly, walking around to open the passenger door for her. Her mouth dropped open in response to his audacity.

"Bella, go." I whispered, marginally turning to leave to show the chief I was cooperating. "I'll be waiting for you when you get home, I promise." I added.

"And ride in the cruiser? No way!" she exclaimed quietly. My mood deflated minutely; it was certainly characteristic of Bella to be difficult about everything. She noticed the small change in my disposition and quickly turned her attention to Charlie, adamant in getting her way.

"Ok Dad, but after you've finished your dinner, you have to help me with the rest of my Calculus homework." She said, overly cheerful and lying through her teeth. There was no calculus homework. Charlie's face fell, looking to me and then back to her as he wondered in his mind just who made me the math genius.

"Can't you skip homework for one night?" he said meagerly, closing the door he held open for her. He could see he was losing this fight.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that…" she said, happily, as she won over Charlie. I sighed.

"Bella" I urged. "It's not such a bad idea to get rid of my car. The sooner, the longer the night…" I crooned, trying to sound alluring as to lead her into submission.

"Shh." She commanded sternly. I sighed again.

"Alright alright, when we get back you've got an hour to finish." He warned severely, slugging back to the driver's side.

"Ok Dad, see you at home." I began to walk to my car…Bella turned too quickly….this I was not prepared for….

"Oh, but Bella…"he said. Bella merely inclined her head in Charlie's direction, almost skipping to my car. "…let Edward ride with me." He finished, changing his mind from his previous instrction. My body went rigid and Bella stopped short; it wasn't often I was surprised by a mind I could read. It took me half a second to relax.

"What?" she said breathlessly. It was my fear that Bella would gratuitously fight Charlie on the subject, so I turned heel and made my way over to the cruiser post haste. Bella was still in shock.

As soon as I got near enough he clapped me on the shoulder and fell into step with me.

"Ok, ok, just wait a second, Cha-Dad…" she yelled from behind.

"What's that Bells?" he said vaguely, I knew, because he wouldn't change his mind.

"I…I-I've never driven Edward's car before…" she said, but even I knew that that excuse couldn't have been any poorer. Driving Bella's truck would certainly make one apt to drive anything just shy of an airplane.

"Well be careful, I'm sure it goes over 50." He mocked her, sliding into the driver's seat.

"Could you give me a second Chief? I think she'll need these" I said, dangling my keys in front of him.

"Make it quick Edward, you don't want that Calculus homework to get cold do you?"

"Right" I laughed. The man was insatiable.

I ducked my head from under the car, and ran over to Bella as she stood, arms crossed and lips pouting in the darkness. I held out my keys for her and she took them spitefully.

"Patience would be such a virtue right about now Bella…" I pleaded.

"Hmph."

I sighed and laughed. Overall, I was amused by Charlie's plan. And I was already very sure of the subjects we would cover as we bonded on the ride home. I merely wished that I had some answers prepared. I ran back over to the cruiser and Charlie had the passenger door open for me.

"Thank you sir." I said, buckling my seat belt, something I never needed to do before.

"Again with the honorifics? C'mon son-in-law, Charlie's fine." He insisted. He couldn't hide the malignance there…or was it his intent to make that obvious?

"I'm sorry, really Charlie. I'll remember that from now on." I said, watching Bella slide into the Volvo and take off with a little too much speed.

"Man you chose a stubborn one." He smirked, regarding Bella's tendency to be intolerable. I laughed with him.

"I have no regrets." I said simply.

"In fact, that's why this whole thing throws me." He said, his voice diminishing in wonder.

"Excuse me sir?" I said, pretending to be confused, the words were as clear in head as if he'd already said it himself.

"My girl was never the married type. Saw what it did to her mother and she's been against the concept ever since. Renee always told her it was important to find love later then to marry too soon and I agree." He explained, beating around the bush again.

"So she's said." I concurred.

"Told you huh? Well, then, now I'm downright confused. How'd you get her to go along with it?" he finally admitted.

"Well, sir…stories…have their way of affecting one's opinion but emotions are…very real, hard to deny." I hesitated. He nodded, digesting the unexpected answer, and the implications of it.

"Hm…yea, that'll do it. But what I don't get…well let's get right down to it, you're a smart kid Edward…"

"Thank you sir."

"Not at all. In fact, I thought you would have been bright enough to see the good in waiting." He suggested, annunciating every letter, eyebrows raised sarcastically. This was becoming impossible. How could I explain to him all the circumstances, including my inhuman love for Bella without giving myself, and my family away? It was simply unavoidable. I deliberated quickly before deciding on an answer.

"I understand completely, and I did consider waiting, but we decided against it later. Call me old fashioned -perhaps I get it from my father-, it just seemed like the right thing to do, the only thing." I said slowly. He scoffed again.

"You guys are just about as old as I was when we I proposed to Bella's mother."

I sat up in my seat, watching Bella drive. She was shockingly unsteady; it was enough to make me nervous.

"Can I ask what made you do it?" I asked. He took in a long draw of breath before answering.

"Well, ask us now and we'll both agree there was no real reason. I was just as serious about her as I was when I married her, but I wasn't ready to support her. And when we did get on our feet…this just wasn't the life she wanted. That's the thing: people get older and they change. Just like a kid's favorite toy, they get to a certain age and they forget about it. Forget what it meant to them, and get something new." He said, lost in his own past.

"I understand that too." I said. "But I don't think that will happen. My father always stressed that there was a fine line in how serious a man could get about a woman without a ring on her finger. I'm more afraid Bella would…as you say, grow older and search for something new." I said, the truth coming out now.

"Really." He said, unconvinced. "That's a good thing to teach a boy. So how serious would you say you are about her?" He asked, glancing at me. I sensed a definite double standard there.

"Serious enough to ask her to the alter, but still, not quite as serious as most people our age." I said, internally amused. He would never know that this 'seriousness' of which he spoke was the only thing getting Bella to marry me in the first place.

"That's good to know…you religious?" he asked. I tried, with great effort, not to roll my eyes.

"I was raised Catholic, but my commitment hasn't been as it used to be now that my mother stopped forcing me to church." I lied. A religious vampire? What an awful oxymoron.

"Ha. Yeah I get that all too well." He said, and trailed off, remembering his Lutheran upbringing. We drove around the curve that put us back on his block in physical silence, but he whispered the words he wanted to say over and over again in his thoughts the entire way there…even when we pulled up along the sidewalk in front of his house. I couldn't stand it, I was very near responding to his internal voice.

"Well, thanks for riding with me Edward, we should do it again sometime…" he said, the words still playing like a broken record on his mind, driving me insane. He would never understand. I couldn't fight it anymore. I gave in to my talent and defended myself.

"You don't have to worry Charlie, I will never leave her like I did before. As long as she'll have me I'm here." I said, my tongue recognizing the words as I had said them before. Charlie stared at me, but slowly began to nod, his face still expressionless. I knew that he was suppressing something very close to hatred. Hatred for me. And in the brief second it took for him to turn away I saw them, so very clearly. I saw the months of my absence in his mind. And the pain was just as potent as it was the very first moment I'd seen her after our time apart. Would I ever live long enough to forget? That didn't seem possible now.

"We'll see." he breathed, and straightened to walk away.

"Yes, we will." I said, answering both our dilemmas.

o.O.o

"Not now" I mouthed silently, Calculus homework and writing material spilling uselessly over the table between us. Bella was burning with an intense desire to hear of my ride with Charlie, but we had so much time ahead of us, and I was itching for a change in venue.

"Edward, c'mon. He's practically asleep. Sport center's watching him." She pleaded pathetically, knowing I would not give in.

"Bella, it can wait." I shook my head, amazed. "It really isn't in Charlie's best interest to fight you, I see that now…" I said.

"Whatever that means, you should take notes and tell me what he said to you!" she pleaded again, child-like now.

"Why was it necessary to fabricate calculus homework Bella? If he'd stopped for one second to think of the fact that you've already told him the date of your calculus final and that you've taken it and passed, you'd have nothing short of a foolish lie on your hands." I scolded her. All of this was unnecessary. Or was it her natural defensiveness that drove to her rebel ridiculously against Charlie? She could be in bed right now, and I could be with her, given her hard headed-ness.

"…I really didn't think that one through did I?" she said inoffensively. I smiled, sensing all the futility in trying to reconcile them. I understand much better now that this rut in their relationship wasn't indicative of an actual problem between them. I suppose, it is just the natural dynamic of their relationship.

"You're in obvious need of bed rest." I insisted, rising from the table, suddenly too eager for Charlie's assigned hour to end. I walked around the table to her and kissed her forehead.

"Let's consider calculus done shall we?" I asked rhetorically. She rolled her eyes and laughed at herself. "I'll be back in fifteen minutes."

The ride home was startlingly serene this night. Often, when the subject of Bella's transformation and our subsequent marriage came into question, I was left with a lot to think about. As of now, my concerns have changed into something I've been slow to recognize. I've traded all my previous reservations for Bella's state of mind. It was all those finer still crucial details, such as her relationship with her mother and father that would make the final separation that much harder for her. But what could explain the serenity of my mind tonight? I'd spent most of my time trying to delay Bella, almost convinced that she would find something in her world worth staying human for. But the power of my new concerns don't seem to be enough to combat the selfishness within me, that part of me that would act to change her, taking her from this world forever. Maybe it was her confidence that was making me submissive now. When did I start letting myself believe?

I parked my car in front of the house with reckless abandon, not even bothering to leave it in the garage. It made me oddly complacent to know that I was still rushing to her bedside night after night after night. Charlie was quick to believe that I was only as capable as another man, that I'd get bored with daily routine, waking up to the same woman everyday.

Bella was still in the restroom when I arrived so I fixed myself on her bed waiting for her to return, not so enthused to regale her with the details of my ride with Charlie and wondering why it bothered her so much anyhow. When she came back, she made a show of curling against me,warming me up for confession.

"I believe you owe me an explanation." She said, her voice leering, probably from a less obvious need to sleep. I considered this and gave in. The quicker she was satisfied, the quicker she would sleep. I sighed and smiled.

"This changes nothing Bella." I demanded of her. Nothing could change.If she were suddenly upset with Charlie he would know precisely why.

"I know he's less afraid to tell you the truth. Maybe I can help, I want to help. I want him to believe that I'll be safe wherever I am…"she trailed off morosely, a drastic contrast from her previous behavior.

"Anyway, whatever you said to Charlie was making him awfully pleasant tonight. It's annoying. I don't understand why you…dehumanize yourself to make him think you're humble. Like he cares, he's a father." We laughed together at the irony.

"Believe it or not, it could have been much worse. Charlie is wiser then we give him credit for. He didn't ask the questions I half expected he would, the questions that would have been more appropriate. Such as where exactly we were when you came to rescue me in Italy. But it was surprisingly difficult to respond to the questions he did ask." I began.

"You're wrong either way. My intent is not to have him think I'm humble. There's no need to prove myself to Charlie. He knows that as a person, as your fian-" I smiled when I felt her cringe against me..

"-significant other" I corrected myself. "-that I haven't changed, that I've cared for you and held you in the same regard ever since I realized I loved you. My fatal flaw in leaving you is what's causing all this dissension. It fuels his frustration with you as well. He still wonders why you've taken me back though he already knows the answer. And it hurts him all the same. The irrationality you accuse him of half the time lies in that one missing piece. Because he'll never know why I left you, or why you will disappear one day to run away with me forever, or what you'll be when you're there. His feelings for me influence your relationship with him and it's a responsibility he's subconsciously bestowed me with. For that reason, I can't help but offer him some peace of mind in anyway I can afford." I explained, realizing that I had deviated from the conversation of our ride home.

"Bella?" I asked, she was too still beside me. Had she fallen asleep?

"I'm awake…I just wish I- that we could tell him something. I really must thank the Volturi for that." She said solemnly. I didn't particularly like that she was harboring feelings like this. Wishful thinking could be dangerous; one may begin to believe in something they know is impossible. This would only cause regret later on.

"Yes. But ignorance, as we've proven time and time again, is far safer for the human race. I do in fact admire them for that. Their willingness to protect the human race at the expense of living concealed lives. But, as you know, that 'protection' only goes so far…" I admitted. The Volturi has been the figure heads of my world for who knows how long. They have the power to expose themselves and disregard the humans, but they continue to set the standard for us all.

"Did he ask you not to marry me?" she asked, the seriousness fading, frivolous curiosity taking its place.

"No." I said, my voice laden in wonder. A question like that would have been more typical, and I would have expected it. "But he more or less wished that I'd have waited a few years." I said sternly. I hoped she sees the irony there; all I've wanted from the start was more time.

"Well that's just not going to happen…"she said, almost as if that fact was so exhausted it was boring. She moved her arm to rest her palm on my chest as I continued to stare out the window and into the night.

"Did he ask if we were intimate?" she inquired, almost whispering, her voice thick with amusement. I smiled.

"No, but he assumed we were so I was compelled to specify." I told her. She seemed unsurprised.

"Wow. I didn't think he believed me, as embarrassing as that conversation was." She said as I confirmed the truth. "That's good to know" she added sourly. I laughed and shifted my weight, turning my body so that I was on top of her, face to face. I smiled as I heard her breath catch.

"You have no right to be believed, not with how hard you've worked to share my bed with me already." I accused. Her heart began to race, but she pouted her lips rebelliously.

"What happen to innocent before proven guilty" she pleaded.

"Probable cause" I said and interceded with my lips, molding them to hers. Knowing that I had finally given in to the impending event in which I would physically claim her as mine, Bella was becoming increasingly bolder in her actions. And yet, at the expense my own self control, I willingly allowed it. I allowed her to slip her tongue between my teeth when I kissed her, I allowed her hips to expose my body to the heat of a place she was most sensitive, her fingers to slide underneath my shirt, to thread through my hair. Kissing her, touching her…I began to notice all the subtle things I loved about Bella, things I would miss when I transformed her. The feel of her skin, like satin against stone, the way her temperature rose when I kissed her, the way her heart reacted to my merest touch, the way her body felt against mine…none of this would be the same. In the second our lips parted, she heaved a breath and I laughed, pulling away from her.

"No, don't stop…" she whined, breathing heavily, eyes dancing in arousal.

"But I must Bella, you'll die of asphyxiation." I laughed, kissing the curve of her neck.

"I can't think of a better way to go." She said, still panting. I rolled over onto my side, taking her with me so that we were facing each other still. Her eyes half-lidded, lips pink from the onslaught.

"I believe you've had your fill for one night, now it's time for you to sleep." I demanded, they play of things still evident in my voice.

"Easy for you to say." She said rebelliously, wrapping her slight arms around my neck, drawing her body against mine.

"And I'll say it again…" I said, pulling her to me and tracing the length of her back slowly with my palm, reveling the feel.

"Try to sleep Bella, my love."

o.O.o

AN/ Terrible ending I know...but it might have taken another two weeks to get anything more than what you see here. Please review, I'm in need of some inspiration...