Chapter 7: Nothing Else Matters

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
And nothing else matters

I never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don't just say
And nothing else matters

Yeah, trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us something new
Open mind for a different view
And nothing else matters

~Nothing Else Matters- Metallica~


~Edward~

I lay in bed watching the sunrise from the large window in our hotel suite in Helsinki, Finland with an angel in my arms thinking about how fan-fucking-tastic the last ten days have been. Running my hands gently through her dark tresses, I reflect back on the last couple of weeks. Between the shows and the constant travel, we haven’t had much of a chance to sightsee, but we have, however, made good use of our nights.

Bella is naturally a sexual being. Everything about her screams sensuality, and let me tell you, my girl is insatiable. Fuck. I can hardly keep up with her! I seriously feel like an old son-of-a-bitch, but let me tell you, it has been the best sex of my life. And holy shit is she flexible. We have twisted ourselves into some positions that have left me sore in the morning. Fuck I’m old. I suppose that’s the price you pay when you date a twenty year-old version of sex incarnate, though. Not that I’m complaining one bit, I maintain that I am, indeed, a lucky bastard.

Although mind-blowing, it’s not just about the sex with Bella. With her I feel calmer, happier than I have ever been. She is so fucking patient with me, even when I’m being a total douche. She never hesitates to call me on my bullshit. The guys laugh at how easily she puts me in my place, fuckers. Yep, she definitely wears the skin-tight pants in our relationship, like my own personal dominatrix…mmmm, Bella with a flogger. Yes, my girl is a kinky one.

She has such a big heart too, always taking care of me. It’s the little things she does that mean so much to me, like making sure my water is ice cold after a performance or rehearsal, simply holding me when I’m tired or grumpy and how she runs her hands through my hair when I have a headache. She has been a fucking godsend.

That’s not to mention how she’s handled the constant media attention. The way she presents herself with such grace and class truly astounds me. She takes care of me as good as, if not better than, the way Alice takes care of Jasper, and now that I’ve gotten a taste of it, I know I can’t live without her nurturing presence.

Thankfully, Rosalie has kept her distance for the most part. There have been a few minor incidents, but nothing too serious. I know she has grown really close to Alice also, which is a good thing. They’ve spent a lot of time hanging out and doing whatever the fuck it is that girls do. It’s nice that she has someone other than me to talk to because I know all too well how tiring and lonely this life can be.

Glancing at the clock on the dark wood night-stand, I realize that we’re supposed to meet the rest of the group downstairs for breakfast in an hour. I decide to let Bella sleep a little longer while I take a shower since we were out so late last night.

Forty-five minutes later we are both showered, dressed and out the door on our way to the restaurant. All eyes are on us as we walk hand in hand to the table where everyone is already seated. Just as we’re seated, a little girl around thirteen approaches our table with her friend. Her eyes dart around the group as she opens her mouth shyly to talk to me.

“Um, I’m sorry to bother you, but do you think I could get a picture with you and your girlfriend?”

Everyone’s eyes fly to the little girl causing her to blush furiously. Rosalie scowls making the girl squirm under her glare.

“Well, it’s just that she is so pretty and you are, like, my favorite singer so I was hoping…” she trails off looking so fucking unsure of herself that it breaks my heart. I want to say yes to the little girl, but I don’t want to make Bella uncomfortable. Just as I open my mouth to offer a picture with everyone, Bella answers,

“Of course, sweetheart. What’s your name?”

“Mollie,” the little girl answers with a sweet smile, then she gestures to the dark-haired girl standing slightly behind her. “And this is my friend, Tara.”

“It’s so nice to meet you Mollie and Tara, I’m Bella. Alice, do you mind?” Bella prompts as she pulls me to my feet. I’m completely bewildered at how at ease she is in this situation. We place ourselves on either side of the girls and smile for the picture. Well Bella smiles, I arrange my features into my signature hard-ass smirk. When Alice goes to hand the camera back to the girls, Bella interjects by offering to take a picture of the girls with the band, shooting Jasper and Emmett pointed looks. After the girls thank Bella and give her a hug, I watch as they walk away squealing and giggling.

I turn my attention to Bella placing a gentle kiss on her jaw before whispering in her ear, “Thank you for that, you were wonderful with them.”

She just smiles and winks at me, then opens her menu, leaving me in awe of her grace. I notice that Rosalie is sitting with her arms crossed over her chest and her head turned away from the table as Emmett whispers in her ear. I don’t know what the fuck she’s jealous about, but she hates when fans interrupt our meals. Eventually she nods then picks up her menu, but not before sending Bella a glare, eyeing the tee shirt she’s wearing and making me think back to how I got her to wear it.

As Bella was getting dressed after her shower this morning, I noticed that she had jean shorts and a pink frilly top laying out on the bed. Taking it upon myself, I switched out the frilly number for the tee shirt I sang in last night, sniffing the pits to make sure it didn’t smell rancid and not giving a fuck if it was gross. Knowing we would be photographed at the airport today and, of course, being the possessive bastard that I am, I wanted her to be wearing my shirt when we are. I was both surprised and happy when she put it on without a word, but because it is huge on her tiny frame, she had to roll up the sleeves and tie a knot at the hip which shows a peek of the stars on her toned midsection, making my overeager dick stir in my jeans.

The ride to the airport is tense, to say the least, and I can hardly wait to get Bella away from Rosalie’s death glare. We’re able to navigate the airport without too much fuss and before too long we are on our way to LA. Once we are situated in our first class seats and are up in the air, I lift up the armrest separating us and lay my head on Bella’s chest, feeling the soft mounds mould against my face as I wrap my arms around her waist. Fucking heaven. She wriggles around a little to get comfortable, then proceeds to discard the skullcap I’m wearing and run her tiny fingers through the mess on my head. It makes me happy that she just seems to know what I want or need. Thirty-five minutes into our twelve hour flight, I’m passed out against the thumping of my girl’s beating heart.

When we arrive at LAX, it is complete and utter chaos. There are paparazzi fucking everywhere, grabbing at us and shouting out questions. I pull Bella into my side and try my best to maneuver us through the crowd without losing my temper. By the time Jacob and Jared catch up to us, I have already spouted my mouth off twice and shoved some fuckhead of a reporter away by his face. Great, a fucking lawsuit, just what I need. He should be glad that’s all I did though, the way he grabbed Bella.

Jacob is able to get us to the waiting car without anymore incidents and I slide into the waiting limo behind Bella getting a marvelous view of her ass and I can‘t resist smacking it, laughing exuberantly as she scowls at me over her shoulder. Alice, Jasper and Jacob are all riding with us whereas Rosalie, Emmett, Jared and Embry are riding in the car behind us.

“Hey, handsome.” Gianna purrs, in what I’m assuming is supposed to be a seductive voice but really just comes off harsh and nasally. She’s sitting in the bench seat across from us an batting her eyelashes, which kind of looks like she has a nervous twitch. It makes me thankful that Bella doesn’t have to try to be sexy and she just fucking is. Because seeing how hard some of these bitches try is actually quite comical. She nods politely to Jacob, Jasper and Alice, giving them a professional acknowledgement, which serves to piss me off. She turns her gaze back to me before looking over at Bella. She assesses her up and down with distaste as I cut in, “Don’t fucking call me that, Gianna. You never have before and you sure as fuck aren’t gonna start now.” I glare at her, fucking pissed about the way she is looking at Bella with disdain. I feel Bella stiffen under Gianna’s scrutiny before she places her hand on my thigh, keeping her eyes locked on Gianna. Feeling the tension in the car start to escalate, I lean over and whisper in Bella’s ear,

“It’s only you, baby…I only want you.”

Breaking her gaze away from Gianna, she looks up at me balling my shirt up in her fist as I plant a scorching kiss on her lips forcing my tongue into her mouth as I cup her face in my hand, rubbing soothing circles on her jaw. With a few more chaste kisses she finally pulls away, her beautiful brown eyes boring into mine.

“Don’t forget we have dinner at the Four Seasons with Rod Harris from Rolling Stone this evening at eight,” Gianna spouts off while glancing down to her blackberry. I am fucking pissed that she interrupted our moment and I turn my glare on her so she knows it.

She continues on with her rambling, completely ignoring the look I’m giving her. “Will Rose and Alice be attending?” She glances up at me trying to look innocent, but I know she is anything but.

“Yes,” I answer in a low threatening tone, “Alice, Rosalie and Bella will all be attending.”

“I don’t think that is such a good idea, Edward,” she cautions, looking at Bella with calculating eyes. “No offence, Bella,” she adds in a smug tone. Bitch.

“Well, I don’t really give a fuck what you think, Gianna,” I snarl at her, glaring daggers as Bella gently places her hand on my arm. She cuts in, her voice calm and collected.

“Gianna, is it?” she looks Gianna up and down, clearly not impressed. “I’m not exactly sure what it is you do, but I think you need to learn your boundaries as far as my boyfriend is concerned…I won’t warn you again.” With that she turns her head and starts talking to Alice about the spa-day they have planned. I raise my eyebrow at Gianna who is openly gawking at Bella and smirk, threading my fingers into my girl‘s hair. That’s right bitch, back the fuck off. I make a mental note to call Peter tonight to discuss Gianna’s behavior because I refuse to work with her if she intends to keep acting this way.

When we arrive at the hotel, our security, along with Gianna, escort us up to our rooms. The suite is fucking huge and has a balcony off of the bedroom with a spectacular view. I want nothing more at the moment than to get my girl alone and naked, but I know we have to go over our schedule for the next few days. We all situate ourselves in the living room for the meeting and I sit in one of the overstuffed chairs with Bella in my lap, listening to what the weekend will entail. We have dinner tonight, the interview with Rolling Stone tomorrow night, the photoshoot Friday morning, the Music Matters Costume Gala Friday evening, and the awards show on Saturday evening. She also mentions that the representative from Harry Winston will be by at eleven-thirty on Saturday morning to deck the girls out in ice for the show and be back Sunday at noon to pick the loaned jewelry up.

After dinner, when we stop to drop Gianna off at her house, Alice remembers that she needs to pick up the girls’ awards show outfits. We all wait in the car as Alice follows Gianna inside trying to guess each others costumes for the Gala. The Music Matters Foundation is a charity that helps to keep music in schools, and each year they have a fundraiser costume ball in which each attendee dresses up to a theme. This year the theme is ‘portray a song title‘. Each couple has decided to keep their costumes a secret this year, and I laugh internally because there is no way these fuckers will ever guess what I’m going to be.

About ten minutes later Alice comes bounding down the stairs with three garment bags in tow and we’re on our way back to the hotel. During the ride I think about the looks Gianna gives Bella all night when she doesn’t think anyone is looking. I know that Bella isn’t easily intimidated and can hold her own, but something about Gianna’s demeanor doesn’t sit well with me and I make a mental note not to leave them alone together for the rest of the trip.

When we arrive back to our suite, Alice whisks Bella off to the bedroom for a final fitting, leaving Jasper and I alone in the living room. Lighting up a cigarette, I bring up Gianna’s behavior and he soothes my mind by letting me know that he noticed it as well. He lets me know that he will stand behind me tomorrow when I bring it up to Peter. I knew I would be able to count on Jasper, he’s like the brother I never had, and I trust him implicitly.

About twenty minutes later the girls emerge from the bedroom and Bella looks frazzled. “What’s wrong?” I ask immediately jumping to my feet and gathering her up into my arms. She looks up at me and I can see the distress in her beautiful brown eyes. I swear to fucking God if someone has fucked with her dress, they will have to answer to me and I can guaren-goddamn-tee you it will not end well.

“It doesn’t fit,” she whispers looking down as her bottom lip trembles. Tightening my arms around her, I look over at Alice who just shrugs sympathetically.

“I checked the tag and inspected all the seams, Edward. It seems to be intact.”

I can feel Bella’s tears soaking the front of my shirt, so I gesture to the door. The door clicks softly behind Alice and Jasper as they leave while I take Bella’s tearstained face in my hands gently wiping under her eyes with my thumbs. “It will be okay, baby. We have to go shopping tomorrow anyway, so we can get you a new dress. Please don’t cry…I hate to see you so sad.” I murmur while stroking her hair, trying desperately to comfort her.

Her eyes flash with irritation as she looks up at me before pushing me away, “I’m not sad, Edward, I’m fucking pissed!” she shouts. She is furious and I swear to all that is holy, she has never looked more sexy. I feel like an asshole for having inappropriate thoughts while Bella is distressed, but fuck she is hot with her chest heaving and her eyes spitting fire. I suddenly want to piss her off just so she’ll punish me. Mmmm, Edward has been a naughty boy, Bella…

The Dominating Bella Fantasy is going to have to wait, however, because she is truly upset and I need to be a supportive boyfriend. I’m a little confused as to why she is crying if she’s pissed though, so I cock my head to the side hoping to elicit an explanation rather than voicing my question out of fear of appearing stupid. Women are so fucking confusing.

“I’m pissed because someone obviously tampered with my dress, Edward,” she explains exasperated as she rolls her eyes, clearly annoyed that she has to explain herself. “I could not have possibly gained that much weight in two days,” she says this like it is the most obvious thing in the world, before continuing, “and the worst part about this is that I don’t know who tampered with it. And even if I did, what could I really do about it, you know?” she finishes, sounding dejected.

“It doesn’t matter, I refuse to let them get me down…It’s just a dress right?” she says with false sincerity. When she looks up at me again the mask of anger is gone, leaving only a vulnerable girl in its place. I know in that moment that I need to fix this in whatever way I can. This is my first chance to be there for her and I don’t want to fuck it up. I decide it’s time to man the fuck up and take care of my woman.

I reach out taking her tiny hand in mine and lead her to the bedroom without saying a word because words cannot fix it this time. I pull her to stand between my legs as I sit on the edge of the bed, quickly discarding her shirt and pants leaving her standing before me in a lacy pink bra and panties.

Looking into her eyes as she rests her hands on my shoulders, I slowly run my open palms up the outside of her thighs, reaching around as they glide over the soft flesh of her ass, continuing up over her ribs, grazing the sides of her full breasts, and finally resting on either side of her long, graceful neck. I gently tug her face up to kiss her mouth before sliding my hands back down over the front of her body, feeling her nipples pebble under my palms as my hands make their way down to her stomach. My mouth follows, leaving a trail of hot open-mouth kisses down to her hip while my hands caress the back of her thighs down to her calves.

After pulling my shirt over my head, I remove her bra and lay back, pulling her down on top of me. Rolling over so that she is underneath me, I brush my lips against her cheeks, her eyelids, her nose, her forehead, her jaw and her mouth as I run my fingertips over every piece of exposed flesh I can find. She is so fucking soft. Her skin feels like satin beneath my calloused fingers.

Sitting up, I straddle her thighs and trace my fingertips from her collarbone to her hip bones. Watching the way her curvy, pale form squirms beneath me on the dark blue comforter, with her hair fanned out around her. It makes it look like we are floating in water and the graceful way her body is moving makes her look like a mermaid.

Not able to wait another moment, I swiftly remove my jeans and pull Bella’s panties down her creamy long legs, kissing my way back up until I’m settled in the cradle of her thighs. I take her hands and place them above her head, lacing our fingers together as she wraps her legs around my waist. I look at her face as I start to push inside her, and something inside me shifts, and with the overwhelming emotion I see swimming in her eyes, I know she feels it too. When I am fully sheathed inside her, she gasps and I immediately bring my mouth down on hers, not able to bear any part of our bodies not touching. We finally break for breath as our bodies move frantically toward release. Soft sighs, quiet moans and our heavy breathing are the only sounds that fill the room. Our hands are everywhere, legs, thighs, shoulders and faces keeping our lips touching at all times, even though we’re not kissing. We’re exchanging breath…it is so intimate, so erotic. I feel so overwhelmed and over-stimulated that all it takes to push me over the edge is hearing her breathy voice whisper my name.

“Edward…”

White light erupts behind my eyes and I groan out the words, “Oh, Bella.” She grasps at my shoulders and hair, as though she can’t get close enough, and she lets out a cry while her body clamps down on mine, prolonging my impossibly long release even further. Holy fuck.

When I’m finally able to catch my breath, I open my eyes to find a tear rolling down her face and a soft smile on her lips. I kiss her softly several more times before rolling over and gathering her up into my arms. I’m still riding on my euphoric high when I hear her quiet voice.

“Thank you”

I thread my fingers into her silky hair and place a kiss to her temple, wondering if this is what love feels like and never wanting it to fucking end. My thoughts drift back to Bella squirming on the blue comforter and I wonder if Alice will do a rendition of her as a mermaid. I decide to talk to her about it after we get through this hectic weekend.

My thoughts are interrupted by Bella’s soft voice, “Edward?” She sounds timid, unsure of herself and it sort of puts me on edge.

“Yeah?” I prompt cautiously, starting to freak out a little.

“I’m scared.” Oh shit, here it comes. Panic immediately sets in as she traces aimless patterns on my chest, refusing to meet my eyes.

“What are you scared about?” I am nervous as fuck because the last thing I wanted was to scare her away with my intensity, and I looks like it have accomplished just that. It’s a damn good thing I didn’t blurt out those words that have been floating around in my head.

She’s quiet for what seems like hours, but is probably only a few minutes. My heart is pounding in my chest and my breathing quickens…yep, I’m definitely in fight or flight mode.

“Please don’t hurt me.” Say what? Her words are barely a whisper and they make my chest constrict painfully.

“Bella? Baby, what the fuck are talking about?” I’m not gonna lie, I’m a little pissed at her implication, and I’m sure the irritation comes through in my voice. How could she seriously think I would hurt her? Didn’t I just give her my entire heart and soul not even thirty minutes ago?

“I just worry that you’ll tire of me…please don’t be mad, it’s just that my emotions are on edge by the shitty day I had and they were amplified by what we just experienced…” she trails off, finally looking up to meet my gaze. Her eyes are filled with worry and tears as she looks away while choking out, “I just…Edward, I would be devastated if you tossed me aside now after what we just shared. I’m not doubting your loyalty, please don’t think that…I guess…I just need to know what it is that you see in me, beyond the physical appeal and crazy chemistry. Please, give this to me…”

All of my anger melts away at the sheer vulnerability in her voice. My baby needs reassurance and I am sure as fuck going to give it to her.

“Bella, you are everything. You are kind and caring, you take such good care of me. It’s the little things you do that mean so much to me…like when you rub my head when I’m tired and how you put me in check when I’m being and asshole. You’re intelligent and well read. You’re witty and have a wicked sense of humor. You just…you’re perfect for me. And fuck, Bella, you’re so strong. I know what you are going through with these fucking harpies must be so hard, but you handle it all so well. I promise that I will call Peter tomorrow. Gianna is seriously out of fucking line and I won’t tolerate it--you don’t deserve that.

“Sometimes I worry that you will wake up one morning and decide that I’m not worth all the bullshit you have to endure.” I look up at her and her eyes soften as she brushes her fingers through my hair. I close my eyes and get up the courage to whisper my greatest fear.

“Please don’t leave me, Bella.”

I feel like such a pussy, practically begging her to stay but, fuck, I need her…I can’t lose her. She scoots up to wrap her arms around my head, cradling me into her chest.

“I’m not going anywhere, Edward.”

The conviction in her voice is fierce and I know that I need to let go of my doubts. She said she isn’t going anywhere and I need to believe her--trust her. Taking her face in my hands, I lay it all on the line. No more fear and no more holding back.

“Bella, I can’t promise that I will never hurt you, and I can’t promise that I will never fuck up, but I can promise you with all my heart that I will respect you, be honest with you and be faithful to you…always.”

Tears run down her cheeks as she pulls my face to hers, kissing me deeply. No more words are needed as our bodies speak everything that we are not ready to say out loud.

The next morning we make our plans for shopping, and after all we experienced last night, I want to make this day fun. I also want to get her a little something to wear on her body that solidifies my commitment. I call the front desk and arrange for a car, bypassing Gianna altogether, and after some amazing shower sex we’re dressed and ready to go.

As we settle into the back seat of the sedan, Bella turns to me with her eager brown eyes shining brightly, “What were you like as a teenager?”

“I was a fucking dork, you probably wouldn’t have given me the time of day,” No one did. I add darkly in my head, memories of the only time I had made myself vulnerable to a girl in my life only to have her laugh in my face. I’d had a crush on Lauren Mallory, one of the only girls that paid any attention to me, so I decided to ask her to our Junior prom. Little did I know that Lauren was desperate to be accepted by the popular crowd, and would do anything to achieve that acceptance. She agreed to go with me and asked me to meet her in front of the gym, since she was not yet allowed to date. I dressed in my best suit, tie and all, pulled back my hair and even bought her flowers.

Fucking Bitch.

When I showed up, she was standing around with the ‘in crowd’ of our school. I walked up, holding the bouquet of daisies I had gotten for her, only to have her sneer and spit that ‘I was even more pathetic than she thought I was, to believe that she would be seen with a loser like me‘. I was devastated and I vowed to never put myself in the position to end up looking like a fool again. I met up with her right before our first tour, and I treated her the way I believed she should be treated. As a matter of fact, that is when the rules were born. I’m not quite ready to rehash all the dirty details of my pathetic high school life to Bella yet, so I give her a condensed version.

“Yes, well, believe it or not, I wasn’t always this famous.” I throw in a cocky smirk to mask the awkwardness I feel. A part of me knows that even if Bella and I had been in high school together, she wouldn’t have acted like any of those other nasty females, but it doesn’t change the fact that the incident with Mallory changed me forever. “I never dated in high school. After all, nobody wants to date the nerd. After one horrendously humiliating experience, I swore of the opposite sex for good….and by for good, I mean until I saw that bitch, again, and gave her what was coming….no pun intended. She definitely didn’t get hers.

“You know, I was the valedictorian of my graduating class.” I force a chuckle out, trying desperately to come across cool and calm as I change the subject, before adding, “You can probably Google me when we get back to the hotel, I’m sure there are pictures of our early days floating around the internet.”

I glance over at her noticing she is tapping furiously on her iPhone. “What are you doing?” I ask as she bursts into laughter, immediately making me regret the suggestion.

“Oh, Edward! Look at you…you look so young, like a little boy.” She is only mildly snickering as she traces the mortifying image she has pulled up.

“I told you I was a dork,” I chuckle looking down at the picture. I’m about seventeen or eighteen with hair practically down to my waist, wearing a Guns and Roses t-shirt with a big fucking goofy smile plastered across my face.

“Are those the same combat boots?” she asks gesturing down to the ones I’m wearing. I look down at the scuffed up boots as I answer, “Naw, I still have them though somewhere in the back of my closet…that’s when I thought I was Axel Rose.” I can’t help but laugh at the memory.

“I can see that, look at all that red hair!” she smiles at me as I scowl. “You’re much hotter though…even with the dorky smile,” she adds with a wink.

“I do not have red hair,” I grumble looking, down at the picture.

“Yes you do,” she insists while looking at her phone wistfully, then adding, “I hope our kids have your hair.”

My heart swells at her casual comment. “You wanna make redheaded babies with me?” I ask, envisioning a little girl with my hair and Bella’s eyes.

“I thought you said you don’t have red hair?” she teases with a sexy smirk, immediately lightening the mood.

“Speaking of hair,” I lead in, “Francois is coming by this evening before the interview for haircuts…I don’t really want to cut it, though, what do you think?” I ask looking up at her amused expression.

“My badass boyfriend gets his hair cut by a man named Francois?” she taunts raising her eyebrow. I roll my eyes at her as she continues, “I think you should cut it into a mohawk. Not a crazy looking shaved one but, you know, leave the length but cut the sides short. Take it all the way to the back though not just on top like a chicken…you’ll look so sexy.” She runs her fingers through my hair as she explains her vision while licking her lips. If Bella thinks it’s sexy then I will most definitely be sporting a mohawk.

Shopping with Bella is intense, to say the least. She kind of scares me, all focused and passionate. She finds her outfit for the awards show easily, insisting that she likes this one better anyway. Let me tell you, it’s sexy as fuck. I’m still determined to find out which of those skanks fucked with her dress, though.

I’m not letting that shit go.

On our way back to the car, I stealthily lead her into Cartier. I did a little research and found the perfect token of my affection. While Bella was trying on dresses earlier, I decided to stop being a pussy and just go for it. As we enter the store, Bella quirks her perfectly arched eyebrow at me but follows me inside with no resistance.

A saleslady practically attacks us as we walk up to the front counter, tripping over herself in the process. “Welcome! My name is Larianne, what can I help you find today?” She looks around quickly before adding in a whispered squeal, “Mr. Cullen, I am such a huge fan.”

I give her my best panty dropping smile, figuring that Bella won’t mind considering the lady is at least sixty years old.

“I would like to see the LOVE bracelet, please,” I say a little fucking nervously, considering I’m saying that particular word out loud in front of Bella for the first time. Larraine blushes as she gestures for us to follow her to a case in the back of the store, calling over her shoulder, “Right this way.”

Bella’s hand tightens in mine and I chance a glance at her, only to find her looking up at me with so much emotion shining in her eyes.

I point to the tray holding the bracelet that catches my eye as I explain to Bella why I like it. “It’s like a handcuff, baby, and only I will have the tool to remove it.” I flash her a triumphant grin, like my caveman way of thinking is completely logical.

She rolls her eyes, clearly amused, before breaking into a breathtaking smile. I am such a lucky motherfucker.

“I would love to wear your handcuff, topolino,” she says, looking up at me shyly through her long lashes.

We turn our attention to Larianne as she pulls three of the bracelets out of the case. The first is plain yellow gold, and both Bella and I shake our heads before she can get into her spiel. She laughs that we had the same reaction. The next one is plain white gold and Bella’s eyes light up, but I shake my head because my girl deserves diamonds. The last one Larianne pulls out is definitely the winner. It’s white gold with diamonds accentuating the circles. It is simple and beautiful and not at all overly ostentatious, just like my Bella.

“That one,” I say, handing her my card before she can spout off the price. Larraine smiles knowingly at me while she pulls out a red cloth to polish it up.

“Would you like to do the honors, Mr. Cullen?” she asks sweetly. I nod my confirmation as she gives me a brief tutorial on how the contraption works, then hands it over to me. I look into Bella’s eyes, hoping to convey the significance of the gesture as I close the bracelet over her dainty wrist, where it will stay, hopefully forever.

As I screw it into place, Bella slips her free hand around my shoulder tangling her tiny fingers into my hair. The moment is so intimate that I almost wish I had waited to put it on her until we were alone. I look back into her warm brown eyes and want to tell her that I love her, but am unsure of how she will react. I’m sure that she can see the war raging in my eyes because she pulls my face to hers, kissing me so deeply that it makes me weak in the knees. When she finally pulls away, she whispers in my ear while caressing the side of my face,

“I know, bambino. Thank you.” she pulls back, smiling brightly before turning her attention back to the case and demanding with that sexy as fuck smirk of hers, “What about you? I want to stake my claim on you, too.”

Twenty minutes later I walk out of the store with a platinum chain holding an infinity pendant around my neck and a very smug Bella wearing a metaphorical handcuff, looking sexy as fuck. Holding her hand, I can feel the cool metal against my wrist, making me so hard that I can hardly wait to get back to the hotel.

I am so happy in this moment that I can almost ignore the paparazzi that have been trailing us all day.