Chapter 14

Previously in Deep Ocean…

“Now try to catch some sleep, love. You must be exhausted,” he said wrapping his arms around me.

I looked at him in confusion, because he was still hard as a rock but he was making no moves to relieve himself.

Chapter 14:

Edward’s cell phone rang on his night-table. He gently removed his arms from around my body and reached to grab it, reclining his back on the headboard while he took the call.

He was serious, and it didn’t seem he liked what they were telling him, but his replies were clipped and vague, not giving me details of what was going on. I wondered if there were problems in the casino again, if he was going to get dressed and leave my side to take care of them.

I didn’t want him to leave me alone, and I felt selfish, but I couldn’t help it. I wasn’t sure where we were standing, and something inside me wanted to fight for whatever time I had left with him. That part of me obviously wasn’t into sharing.

He ended his call, and let out a deep breath.

“Bella, do you trust me, love?” He asked me, his expression was tired and worried, as if he was looking for a way to tell me something I wasn’t going to like.

“Yes, Edward, of course I trust you. What happens?” I replied, sitting up.

My voice was shaky, as a dozen different scenarios crossed my mind, none of them very appealing.

“I’m gonna tell you what I know, love, but I need you to promise me you’ll stay here ‘till we figure out the rest,” he said staring at me gravely.

“Stay here? Figure what?”

Edward must have seen I was starting to panic again, because he took my hand in his, and started rubbing circles on my skin with his thumb.

“You were right; somebody was in your house when you heard the noises…”

I opened my mouth, and closed it again without saying anything.

“Baby, I need you to trust that I’m gonna keep you safe. You know I’d never gonna let anything happen to you, right?” His voice was strained, a deep crease forming in between his eyebrows. I nodded, because it seemed to be important to him.

“It’s all my fault. Somebody must have followed us. Fuck! How could I’ve been such and idiot? You shouldn’t have left the Twilight after a security breach,” he said banging his fist against his tight. “I’m so sorry, love.”

“Edward, calm down! Why do you say it was your fault? You couldn’t have known…”

“Bella,” he interrupted me, “it’s my job to know! It’s not the first time somebody threatens me, but until know, I was the only one at risk. Now some sick fuck decided to include you and my cousin Rosalie in the game!”

While he was talking, he let go of my hand, and was racking his fingers on his hair and pulling the strands with a force that made me wince. “They took my cousin’s purse to your house, and shredded it to ribbons on your couch…a purse that had been missing since Rose’s arrival. It was message to me, and I got it nice and clear. None of you are leaving my side till…”

“Edward!” I interrupted his movie plot, suddenly remembering about the mysterious purse. “The purse was already there, it was inside one of the shopping bags I carried home the other night. I took it to the couch when I noticed it with the idea of checking inside. The ID in the wallet read ‘Rosalie Cullen’. I was going to call you, but then the power went off and…”

He was looking at me with wide eyes.

“Are you saying that the purse somehow got into a bag and you took it home without knowing?” He said slowly, enunciating every word as if trying to make sense of it. “That changes a lot of things.”

All of a sudden, he jumped out of the bed and grabbed his phone again. He went to the closet, and started getting dressed while talking to somebody.

I didn’t know what to do. I wanted to get dressed too, there wasn’t a chance in hell I was going to sleep if Edward was leaving, but my clothes were a wet pile in Edward’s bathroom floor.

“Bella, I need to talk to Rosalie and my security guys, I’ll be back soon, you should catch some sleep,” he said as he ended his call.

“No! I want to go with you, Edward, please,” I begged.

“Don’t worry, love, nothing will happen to you, I’ll leave a bodyguard at the door,” he tried to reassure me.

“Edward, I know I’m asking too much, but perhaps I can help…Maybe we can figure this out together?”

My voice broke in the end of the sentence. I was aware that, in some way, I was asking him to take me to meet his cousin, and I wasn’t sure if he was willing to acknowledge my existence to her.

“I think we’re going to need to find you something to wear, love,” he said smirking, “As much as I enjoy seeing you like this, I’d have to kill Emmett and the rest of the guys if they look at you.” He said, his finger sliding from my chin to my chest while his mischievous eyes followed the imaginary trail on my skin hungrily.

I had to laugh at that too. I didn’t know what happened with that man, but he even made me forget about being naked, and I wasn’t exactly confident showing my body.

He went back to his closet, picked a few items, and handed them to me, grinning. Then he rummaged in the drawers for a moment, bringing me a pair of boxers and socks.

I put on his underwear and a T-shirt, feeling silly and giddy at the same time for wearing his clothes.

“Fuck,” he muttered under his breath, “I’ve never thought a woman wearing my boxers could be so hot!”

I tried to hide my smile, blushing furiously, while donning a pair of jeans that were too wide at the waist, and shockingly too long for my giraffe legs.

Edward kneeled in front of me, and taking a pair of black chucks from a box, he put them on my feet, chucking.

“I had bought this for you yesterday, I was going to send them to your house with a bouquet of flowers, but I guess you need them now,” he said tying the laces, and then rolling the pant legs a few times to adjust them to my weight.

He stood, pulled a thin scarf from a hanger, and passed it though the bell loops, tying it on the back. I guessed I wasn’t allowed to pee any time soon.

He seemed satisfied with the outfit, so I didn’t mention that part to him. I took a few minutes to splash some cold water on my face and try to make my hair look decent. I didn’t see a comb or a brush anywhere in his bathroom, so I just used my fingers. When I decided that was the best I could do with my appearance, I stepped back in his room, praying that his cousin wouldn’t think I was the ‘cat lady’.

Edward was looking so pleased when he took my hand, that I even felt beautiful for a moment. He led me to the corridor, but instead of going to the elevator, we walked in the opposite direction.

There was a small foyer at the end of the hallway. He opened one the doors and motioned me to get in.

It looked like a high-tech conference room. A blond guy was working on a laptop, sending images to the bigger monitors attached to the wall. The two big hurly guys from the previous day were discussing something pointing at the screens, while a stunning blonde woman was sitting at the table watching them with an unreadable face.

“Guys, this is Bella,” Edward said catching their attention. “Bella, you already met Emmett and Felix,” he pointed to ‘big burly guy’ 1 and 2, and they nodded their heads. “The one with his fingers glued to the keyboard is Jazz,” he told me, resuming the introductions. The guy waved with one hand, the other still typing numbers on a pad at his side.

He walked a few steps toward the blonde, who stood and stared at me with an amused expression. “And this is my cousin Rosalie.”

“Finally,” she said smiling, “I thought he wasn’t going to share any time soon.” She surprised me by hugging me, but I recovered fast and hugged her back. She seemed nice, and it didn’t feel as if she judging the way I looked.

“It’s very nice to meet you, Rosalie,” I managed once we were standing in front of each other again.

“It’s nice to meet you too, Bella,” she replied, and then added with a smirk, “Nice T-shirt.”

She and Edward started laughing.