A Change in Direction: Chapter Twenty-five

6/4/2020

A Change in Direction: Chapter Twenty-five

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Chapter Twenty-five

So, on Monday, I came in at the time Edward and I had discussed. I did the grocery shopping since I hadn’t been able to on Sunday like I had been planning to before things went down. Everything was the same and completely different at the same time. The only thing I knew for certain was that this whole situation was a good thing.

A great thing.

Admittedly, I was more serious about my cooking. I made sure that there was nothing more than a peck on the lips when he arrived home until the last dishes were put away. Edward didn’t like it, but he respected me for it and understood why I did it.

I cooked some fried chicken again. He loved it as much as he did the first time. More prepared, I made twice as much to save for later. Once again, he took it to lunch with him the next day. It made me feel so... special, so important, to know he enjoyed it enough to take it. I wasn’t sure why, but it did.

The following Saturday, I made plans with Alice and Jasper. She wanted details, and he wanted to know what the hell was going on. Bless him, he was so confused. She had kept her word and said nothing. He didn’t even know she had met him before. I could have kissed her for that.

“So,” Jasper began as he played with the label of his beer while we sat in his backyard. He was grilling steaks and corn for lunch. It smelled great. I loved the aroma of smoke on a cool fall afternoon. It was homey somehow, relaxing even. “So yeah, what’s the deal? With you and my boss? Your boss? How did it start?”

I laughed and sighed, biting my bottom lip for a moment. “Apparently, Edward was interested in me from the beginning, and I have to admit I liked him too. He’s just such a sweet person. So sensitive,” I told him without giving away too much. There were things no one ever needed to know. We knew how it started, and I wasn’t really lying. I was… omitting. There was a difference.

“He always seems so cool and collected at work. Almost cold.” Jasper shook his head like he didn’t understand how something like that could happen.

“He’s just shy,” I explained, pulling my legs underneath me as I got more comfortable. “Anyhow, after the Maker’s Fair, everything clicked into place. I went over afterward to thank him. I tried to quit when we... um, got together, but he wouldn’t let me. Well, that’s not the right way to phrase it. He didn’t want me to quit. Anyway, we’re dating now.”

“How does that work?” He asked, standing up from the bright yellow plastic chair. It whimpered at the pressure from his massive size. He wasn’t fat, but he was so tall he was probably close to two hundred and thirty pounds, if not more. He had to be, or he would appear sickly.

“It’s working pretty well so far,” I replied with a slight smile as I thought about our past week together. “Boundaries. It is good to have those and open dialogue and stuff.”

“And stuff,” Jasper snorted to himself. I just rolled my eyes. Yeah, I wasn’t the best at explaining myself or my feelings. He knew that too well about me.

“Okay, I’ve got the salad and the dessert ready,” Alice called as she came outside. She walked over to her husband, who was flipping the steaks on the huge green grill and kissed his cheek lightly.

Then she stole his seat, scooting it closer to me. She smiled at me wickedly. “What?” I laughed. She just kept flapping her thick eyelashes at me, grinning like an idiot. Placing her chin on her hand, she rested her elbow on the chair arm closest to me.

When I said nothing, she took matters into her own hands. “So, what have you two done? How’s the sex? Is it good? Is he a freak? The quiet ones always are.”

“Ah, God! Do I have to hear this? I have to look at him on Monday!” Jasper cried, turning around to glare at us in utter horror. He frowned when he saw what happened to his seat, just sighing after his outburst. Alice raised her eyebrow in a challenge, and he sighed again, giving in to her silent argument with a slight shake of his head.

“We’ve had dinner-” I began only to annoy her. I knew that wasn’t exactly what she wished to hear. She could be so dirty when she wanted to be.

“Isabella! Come on!” She whined.

“I’m not telling you,” I laughed again, smacking her shoulder lightly. “Nice try, though. You should know me better than that.”

“At least tell me he’s good at it! I mean, he’s hot. And have you seen his ass? He must work out!” She gushed. Her husband groaned loudly as he plated the corn, taking it back into the house to eat before it got burned. Jasper probably just didn’t want to listen to her anymore. I couldn’t blame him. I wanted to leave too, but Alice would follow. Once he was out of earshot, she leaned in closer. “Have you gone there yet? Was he good?”

“He does run a lot,” I told her in answer to her first somewhat question. I thought she would punch me when she realized that was all I was going to give her. Her big brown eyes went wide. “Give it up. I won’t kiss and tell.”

“I’ve been a married woman for nearly a decade! COME ON! GIVE ME SOMETHING GOOD HERE! At least tell me if he’s decent in bed,” she begged. “Give me a little something-something to work with!”

I tapped my chin as I pretended to think, biting my tongue as I glanced up to the sky. Humming to myself, I made my poor friend nearly vibrate in anticipation. Sometimes, she was too funny.

“I’m surprised I can walk afterward,” I finally remarked. Squealing, she clapped her hands together like a small child that just got a new toy. Only rolling my eyes, I leaned back in my seat and gazed up at the bright blue sky.

“That good?” She whispered.

“That good,” I spoke to the heavens. Oh yeah, he was. We were like two puzzle pieces that fit together perfectly. I couldn’t imagine it getting much better.

“Oh, oh, oh, is he... generous, if you know what I mean?” My best friend inquired in her overly giddy tone. Alice bit her bottom lip, smiling widely despite herself.

“He’s generous in everything he does. Let’s leave it at that. Jasper doesn’t want to listen to this!” I scolded. I could hear him moving around in the house.

“Listen to the woman. She’s smart,” he insisted as he came back with a plate for the almost done steaks.

She crossed her arms over her chest. “Fine!” Alice whined, pursing her lips as she tried to think of other questions that wouldn’t get her into too much trouble. I could practically see the lightbulb above her head when she thought of one. “Will we ever get to meet him? Outside of work, I mean. Maybe go out on a double date?”

“Oh,” I drew out, not expecting that one. We spoke about my dad and mom, but we hadn’t talked about friends. “I don’t know. I’ll talk to Edward, and we’ll see. As I said, he’s shy. I’m not sure how comfortable he’d be.”

Eagerly, she grinned. “You can tell him we don’t bite!”

“Don’t nobody believe that bullshit,” Jasper snickered from the grill.

I snorted as I stood and stretched my arms above my head. “Yeah, babe. Sorry. Anyone who looks at you can tell you bite. You look like a little vampire. All pale with those sharp ass teeth of yours,” I teased. She flipped me off, throwing her head back as she marched into the house.

Chuckling, he wrapped his arm around one of my shoulders. “Well, if he wants to ‘meet’ us, we’ll be here. If not, we understand. Alice might not like it, but she understands. It’s been a while since she’s been in a new relationship. And I think she forgets how careful you have to be in the beginning. It’s like trying to avoid getting hurt with bare feet in a room full of broken glass. It ain’t easy.”

“Ain’t that the truth,” I muttered but smiled at him. “Thanks.”

“Anytime, sweets. Now, let’s go chow down! I’m starving.”

After my afternoon with my friends, I went home and took a long shower and carefully did my hair in a messy up-do for my date with Edward. I had to admit I was kind of excited. He said he was taking me somewhere fancy, but that’s all he gave me. He also told me to dress nice.

That I could handle.

I had gotten a stunning off-white cocktail dress with a jeweled bodice. Diamond-like crystals and pearls covered the top. It was an empire waist that flared from underneath my breast with the most beautiful sheer fabric. I felt like a princess when I wore it. I put on a pair of awesome nineteen forty style satin shoes with just a little heel. It was like playing dress-up.

Doing my makeup dramatically to contrast the clothing, I made my eyes dark and my lips fantastically red. I had to admit I felt beautiful, but I did whenever I was with Edward. Smiling to myself, I was excited to spend the evening with him.

My doorbell rang around five. I wrapped myself in a thin lace white shawl since it wasn’t that cold outside, especially for November. It had been a very warm and pleasant fall.

When I answered the door, I found Seth standing on the other side. “Hi, Bella. I was told to take you somewhere and not tell you where,” he explained awkwardly as his cheeks flushed.

“That’s fine,” I chuckled as I turned off the lights and shut the door behind me. I was kind of expecting this since Edward hadn’t explained where we were going. “How are you doing this evening?”

“I’m great. How are you? You look pretty, by the way,” he grinned, taking my hand as he helped me down my stairs in my heels. Not in the romantic lovers’ sort of way, but in the ‘please don’t fall and die’ sort. He knew me well. He had seen me trip down these steps more than once.

“Thank you,” I smiled. “You don’t think it’s too much?”

“Nah, you look like a million bucks,” he declared, opening the door so I could slide it. “Mr. Masen is lucky to be spending time with you.”

“You think so?” I asked as I played with my fingernails. He was making me shy suddenly. His compliments didn’t really make me uncomfortable like they normally did with others, maybe because I knew he meant them in the most innocent of ways.

“Totally. You’re awesome. I wish I could have a girl like you for my sister. Mine is kind of a harpy,” he laughed. “She thinks I’m a dork because I play video games. Unlike you.”

“You’re not!” I assured him. “If you are, so am I! Seriously, we need to go game shopping sometime soon. I’ve got the money, but I don’t know what to buy.”

“That would be awesome!” Seth said as we drove along the Red River. “You don’t think that would bother Mr. Masen? Us doing that together?”

“I don’t imagine it would.” I shrugged. “Just because I’m his girlfriend doesn’t mean he owns me. He knows that. Besides, he knows you’re a good guy and that we’re friends.”

“So, girlfriend? I didn’t realize that you two had made it official. I was worried about you guys. Especially after that ball thing you went to. What happened? If you don’t mind me asking.”

“A stupid misunderstanding. We figured it out and fixed everything, though.” I shrugged again. We pulled into a casino valet. “So, is this my stop? Some surprise,” I remarked teasingly.

Seth laughed. “Yeah. Someone is supposed to be waiting for you. Look, Bella, I’m glad you two worked it out. I was afraid for a while I would lose you as a friend.”

His sweet words surprised me. He was so sincere. I touched his shoulder. “No, sweetheart. You wouldn’t. Hey, you know where I live! You can always come to find me so we can hang out.”

“Cool.” He smiled. “Have a good night. I’ll see you later.”

“Yeah. We’ll try not to make out too much in the backseat,” I joked... sort of.

He just waved his hand at me, telling me to go on. “I’ve seen much worse. You guys are tame. There is a reason I carry wet wipes and paper towels with me in the automobile at all times.”

I stopped mid exit. “Ew. I feel both relieved and pity for you,” I giggled. “That must suck. I can’t imagine doing anything with someone in the car driving.”

“You have no idea. They need to invent brain bleach,” he chuckled before waving me on again. “Have a good time!”

“I will,” I assured him as I slipped out of the vehicle.

Almost instantly, I was greeted by a pretty blond woman in a blue suit with a tag that said ‘host.’ “Ms. Swan?” She asked politely, but I could tell she already knew it was me for sure.

“Yes?”

“Hi, Mr. Masen is waiting for you this way, if you’d just follow me, please,” she pleasantly explained. She was no-nonsense, though. We rode up an elevator together in silence, the trip a long one. We went all the way to the top. “Have a pleasant evening, ma’am,” she said after I stepped out. The doors closed before I could respond.

Soft jazz was playing as I walked onto a private veranda surrounded by beautiful plants and flowers. Twinkling lights set the whole place aglow. Edward was standing by a table, his back turned to me with a glass of champagne in his hands. He looked out over the downtown lights, slowly sipping his drink. He was wearing black trousers with a deep gray button-down shirt, and a black vest, too.

Alice was right. He had a nice ass.

“What a view,” I commented as I walked towards him, setting my purse down on the table. He didn’t turn, but I could see the corners of his mouth move up in a smile.

“The scenery is lovely,” he agreed.

“I wasn’t talking about that,” I informed him as I ran my fingers over his back.

Edward smirked as he took my hand and brought it up to his lips, kissing the top of it lightly. “You look like an angel.”

“It’s not too much?” I inquired as I did a turn. I knew what Seth said, but I wanted Edward’s reassurance.

And maybe I was fishing a bit for a compliment.

He set down his glass on the table, walking back to me with the most sensual expression. “No. It’s absolutely enough. It’ll look perfect on my floor later,” he promised, a little cockiness coming out as he wrapped an arm around my waist and began to dance to the music. He dipped me slowly, kissing my bare neck before pulling me up against his chest.

“How much have you had to drink tonight?” I teased as his palm slid down to my ass, squeezing it tightly. It made me weak in the knees, a tingling spreading from where his hand gripped to the rest of my body.

“A glass or two,” he chuckled.

“And I thought you didn’t like to consume alcohol,” I mused as we swayed to the music.

“I do enjoy it. I’m just not very good at controlling myself when I do. I’m hoping that won’t be an issue anymore between us. Besides, I was a bit nervous. I needed a little something to calm me down.”

“Why is that?” I asked. “What do you have to be nervous about? It’s just me.”

“I was because I have a gift for you,” he stated before pulling away from me. He removed a rectangular red felt box from his pocket. Any girl worth their weight knew what those held. It was jewelry.

“Oh, my,” I breathed as I took it from his grip. As I opened it, the lid clicked loudly. Inside was an exquisite large teardrop necklace, the color a deep dark, clear forest green. The stone was wrapped in what appeared to be brass or copper, I wasn’t sure. The link chain, an extremely long one, seemed to be made from the same material. At the top of the box, there was a pair of matching earrings, though much smaller. “Oh! How beautiful!” I exclaimed as I pulled out my cheap baubles to put in the new ones. They dangled about an inch from my lobe, just brushing my neck whenever I turned my head.

“Allow me.” He took it from my hands and put the necklace around my throat. I touched it as it rested comfortably between my breasts. “Just as I thought. Lovely.”

I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him firmly on the mouth. He returned it happily, a smile on his lips. “Thank you!”

“You act as if no one has ever given you jewelry before.”

“No one has,” I answered truthfully, wishing I could check myself out in a mirror to see how they looked on me. I couldn’t help but keep touching them, fiddling with the gems.

“Well, that’s something that will change,” Edward smiled a little to himself. “I actually got this before... but I wasn’t sure if it would have been right to give it to you. I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable. I was still worried about making you feel like that, honestly. Hence the drinking.”

“I think it would have,” I admitted, “but I love it. They’re gorgeous. You didn’t have to.”

“I have to admit, I only wanted to see it on you. Especially while nude.” He ran his knuckles down the chain to where the stone sat. Suddenly his cheeks flushed. “Perhaps I should slow down on the champagne. It makes me a little too bold.”

“I think you should have another glass.” I bit my bottom lip, smiling at him wickedly. “And pour me one too.”

“It’s going to be a wild night.”

I walked to the table and picked up his drink, handing it to him. “I certainly hope so.”

Edward grinned, looking me over again. “Ms. Swan, you are such a tease.”

“When are you going to realize that I’m not teasing?” I asked as I picked up my flute and took a long drag of the slightly sweet bubbly liquid. “You could have me on this table right now if you wanted to.”

“I always want to,” he said as he brought a pocket watch out of his vest. “But, they should be bringing our first course up at any moment.”

“Then we shouldn’t waste the time we have,” I told him as I finished mine and returned it to the table before I wiggled my finger at him. He came right over, and I shoved him into a chair. Sitting down on his lap, I crossed my legs as ladylike as possible as my arms wrapped around his neck.

“I adore how you think,” he moaned softly as his hand slid from my knee to my ass under my dress. My fingers went to his bright red silk tie, pulling his mouth to mine in a fiery kiss.

It didn’t stop until a poor waiter cleared his throat loudly. On a cart was a silver-domed dish. “Pardon me. Are you ready to eat?” He asked. “Or should I take it back down?”

Edward was too busy panting and trying to catch his breath with his cheek resting against my neck to answer. I giggled as it tickled my skin. I still had a hold of his tie, twisting it carefully in my fist so as not to tug at his throat. “Yes, we are. Thank you.”

“I’ll be bringing your meals up in fifteen minutes,” he replied, the young man’s face a shade of scarlet. He brought the dish to the table, uncovering it quickly before backing away.

Once he was gone again, I cackled. “Poor thing,” I snickered. “Good thing you didn’t take me on the table, I suppose. I think he would have had a heart attack.”

He just laughed quietly to himself, his face still pressed against my skin. He patted my thigh, wanting me to get up. I did, straightening my dress as I did so. Pulling my chair out for me, I sat across from him.

We ate our meals with my barefoot brushing up and down his calf the entire time. Edward’s face flushed as I brought it to his lap when our desserts came. He was hard against the ball of my foot.

I had never seen a man eat ice cream that quickly without getting a brain freeze. It was almost something to be admired. He sent a text to Seth when he was done, allowing me to finish in my own time as he sipped from his flute of champagne.

His hand rested on my ass for the entire elevator ride down. The look in his eyes was pure desire, and I knew exactly what he wanted. I would do my best to make sure that didn’t happen in the car, though. For poor Seth’s sake.

That didn’t keep him from running his fingers up and down my thigh repeatedly, just brushing the bottom of my dress with each pass.

As soon as the front door closed behind us, I dropped my shawl to the ground. My purse found its way down there too. Edward wrapped his arms around me, kissing my lips hard. My legs curled around his waist as he pressed me against the foyer wall, one of my shoes falling off. My fingernails dragged across the back of his neck. He growled loudly, his mouth going to my throat.

“Hell yes,” I moaned as my head leaned back against the wall. Something tugged at my hair, making it fall haphazardly around my shoulders as one strap of my dress fell. “Fuck me,” I gasped as he nipped at the top of my breasts.

“I planned on it,” he whispered in my ear. “I’ve been so fucking horny all night.”

Something about him cursing turned me on even more. So often he was overly proper, so when he let go... it was hot.

“How are you going to?” I pushed as his hips began to grind into me, making me slide up and down the wall. The other sleeve of my dress fell, exposing more of my breasts.

“Hard and in every position I can think of. I need to feel you cum,” he grunted against my bra, biting hard before tugging the fabric down just a little. I grabbed his head and forced his mouth back to mine. With that, my other shoe fell.

It was like my clothes were trying to fall off for him. It wasn’t fair. He was still fully dressed.

“Put me down,” I said against his lips. He instantly dropped me, and I loosened his tie before wrapping it around my fist. “Come with me,” I ordered. He followed eagerly, but I didn’t give him much of a choice.

When we got to the stairs, I shoved him down so that he was sitting on the third or fourth one. I kissed him once while still standing at the bottom of the steps as I undid the fly of his pants. He was straining against his boxers, and all I wanted to do was free him. But first, I pecked the cloth-covered tip, making him jerk.

“Fuck,” he breathed, pushing my messy curls away from my face as I pulled him out. Once again, I kissed the tip, this time skin against skin. He was slightly moist, the salty flavor on my tongue. I went for more, but Edward grabbed me by the hair and forced me up to his lips. When I did, I straddled his lap, so he was brushing against my soaked panties. “What are you trying to do to me?”

Instead of answering him, I pushed my hand between my legs so I could shove my underwear to the side. Then I slid down on him, the moisture spilling over both of us. “Do you want me to stop?”

“God,” he hissed as I rode him, using the step behind his head to balance me. I was just above him so that my breasts were brushing against his face. His hands went to my ass once again, squeezing it firmly. “Don’t. God, please don’t. It’s perfect.”

Increasing the pace, I only wanted to feel him twitch inside of me. Edward shifted one of the cups of my bra down, exposing my chest completely. I whimpered as he brought my nipple into his mouth, the sharp tug of suction incredible with each bounce. But what was even better was the loud vibrating moan as he came.

He pulled away, panting as he rested his head against my breast for a moment. I didn’t give him long before I got up and walked up the stairs.

“Where are you going?” He whimpered, still breathless. “I haven’t made you cum yet.”

“Hm, well.” I stepped out of my dress at the top of the steps, dangling the fabric off of one of my fingers. “Didn’t you say this would look good on your floor?”

Edward grinned impishly, and I could see his cock twitch. Popping up quickly, he slid himself back into his pants before running up the steps after me. I giggled and made a mad dash to his room. He caught up, of course, but I wanted him to. When he did, he pushed me against the bedroom door. His cloth-covered chest was pressed against my back. The dress dropped from my fingers, but I hardly noticed it. All I could feel was his hands on my ass and his lips against my ear.

“I think I see a couple of other things that would look better on the floor,” he cooed, working my silky panties down to around my calves. Next, he flicked the hooks of my bra-free. Then, oh, God. He dropped to his knees behind me as he licked and kissed my spine. He even bit my right ass cheek as he forced my lingerie all the way down.

When he came back up, he let the fingers of his left-hand drag from my ankle all the way to my hair. He pushed it away from my ear so he could kiss it lightly. “Mm,” he hummed as his right hand slid between my legs, stroking gently. “Much better.”

The tables had been turned. I had the control earlier, but he took it back brilliantly. And he knew how to use it. I moaned as he slid his finger against my clit. His palm came to my breast, slipping between the door and it. I was putty in his hands.

“My love, do you know what time it is?” He whispered.

I could barely understand the question. I was too into what he was doing. Shaking my head, I rested my forehead against the smooth wooden door. “No,” I finally whimpered, my voice an unrecognizable pant.

“Well, Ms. Swan, it’s time to fuck you in my bed.”

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