Key. Chapter Three: In an Airport Parking Garage

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Chapter three: In an Airport Parking Garage

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I was driving, not that I had a real desire to do so. Jasper wanted me to use his new car while he was away until I came up to join him. I think it made him feel better. Then it would stay at his parents with the rest of the things he couldn’t take with him. His luggage was a single suitcase and a garment bag that held his suits as well as his briefcase. It wasn’t much at all. He put triple that in his old bedroom. He couldn’t believe how quickly he collected stuff.

Jasper was so ready to settle down.

We were silent on the drive to the airport. There wasn’t really anything to talk about. We had gone over it all during the week, probably twice. Maybe even three times. He was too deep in his own thoughts to chat. His hand rested on my denim-covered thigh, his other propping up his chin as he gazed out the window. Jasper kept chewing on his bottom lip as he did.

It was early in the morning. The sun was rising behind us on the highway, but the sky ahead was still faintly blue and purple as I paid to get into DFW. I came to a stop on the top floor of the parking garage. We had a few minutes before we had to go inside, and I wanted to enjoy those moments in private. There were no cars around.
“Hey,” I prompted lightly. “You doing okay?” He still hadn’t moved, his thumb resting on his cheek.

“Hm?” Humming, he glanced at me finally. Jasper shook his head as he looked down. “Oh, yeah. Of course, darlin. Just not ready for this vacation to be over. That’s all.”

“That wasn’t a vacation,” I repeated his words from that morning.

Groaning, he nodded. “No, it wasn’t,” he agreed with a smirk. “But I’ve gotten very spoiled being around you all the time. These past two months have been the best of my life.”

I scoffed, looking down at my lap. Taking his hand that still rested on my thigh, I squeezed his fingers. “Even with the gunshot wound?”

“Bella,” he spoke my name in a breath. “I finally found a place I want to be, and it’s with you. Here, with my friends and my family. I’m glad it happened. It showed me what kind of future I really want,” he answered as he picked up my palm and brought it to his mouth to kiss. “I’m ready to get started on that part of my life, but my job is stopping me from that. Again. I need to move on.”

“No, it’s not,” I promised. “It’s just delaying it for a little while. And we’ll be together again soon. It’s only for a short while,” I repeated, hoping he would believe me and not worry so much. “Then, when I get there, you’ll work, and I’ll write. And when you get home, we’ll play house. And you can play with me…” I trailed off, making him chuckle. “Start thinking of all the scenes you want to do, Dr. Hale. I expect you to use your imagination,” I teased as I brought him to me for a kiss. It lingered for a long moment. 

He smiled against my cheek. “Mm. Yes, Goddess.”

“You absolutely do not understand how much that turns me on,” I whispered in a sigh, scratching my nails over the back of his neck lightly. We had made love before we left for the airport, but I wanted him again. It was never enough. I needed more of his lips and hands on my body. Just thinking about it made me tingle with desire.

“Oh, yes, I do,” he cooed as he dragged his fingers from my knee to the apex of my thighs. Gasping softly, I rocked against his hand. “I can’t wait to see what you have in store for me next time we play, Goddess.”

He was literally making all my dreams come true.

“Next time,” I began in a beguiling voice as I pecked his lips. “It won’t just be about pleasure.”

Jasper moaned quietly. “Yes, definitely just a switch for you,” he mumbled before he kissed me more forcefully. I giggled against his mouth, making him genuinely smile. “And what sort of torture would you like to subject me to?”

“I think I’d enjoy tying you up to the bed, both your arms and legs. Blindfold you, and maybe even use earplugs. Or perhaps earbuds playing music. Then I’d alternate between pleasure and pain. Kisses, ice, hot wax, some clamps, the crop, flogger, and a vibrator. Whatever else I can find to tease you. Play with you for hours before I let you cum inside of me.”

Leaning his head back against the rest, his eyes went over my body. “Hot candle wax dripped all over your tits and thighs. Damn, we need to do that.”

“I was kind of hoping that maybe you’d tie me bent over something and drip it all over my ass after a good spanking,” I flirted, dragging my nails over his pant’s leg. “Down the back of my thighs.”

“Fuck, let’s go back to the hotel,” he muttered before leaning in to kiss me fiercely. Unabashedly, he groped me through my shirt. Jasper worked my nipple until it was hard under his touch.

“You could just fuck me right here in the car,” I offered as seductively as possible as I massaged him, too. “We could crawl into the back seat-”

“Damn,” he whimpered, pulling back with a laugh and a smile. “I swear, if I had thirty more minutes, I would.”

I giggled wickedly. “I promise it won’t take that long.”

Snorting, Jasper shook his head. “Thank you.”

“What? For what?” I asked in confusion.

“For existing and making me forget how terrible the world can be for a moment,” he breathed, curling his fingers around my cheek. He sighed softly as he glanced at the clock on the dashboard. “I should get going.”

He kissed me as if we would be apart for years in the terminal lobby before the security checkpoint. Bending me back, his arms wrapped around my body. When he pulled me up, his forehead rested against mine. We were both heavily panting. He made me feel like one of those girls in my sappy romantic stories, all secluded in the quiet airport.

“I love you, sir,” I breathed in his ear.

“I love you, too, Goddess,” he replied lightly. We were alone, so he gave my ass one last squeeze before he had to leave. Whimpering, I pressed my face into his chest. It made him chuckle as he kissed the top of my head. “Alright. I’ll see you in a week. Enjoy your party.”

“You are too happy you’re missing it.” He was going to be my date originally. He wasn’t looking forward to being anywhere close to Edward again. Now Alice would be my companion. We were going to go shopping the next day for the event and my traveling. He nodded in response, smirking. “Terrible.”

“A little,” he agreed.

Glancing up, his handsome face was smiling down at me. Tightly, I gripped the lapels of his blazer. His gun was already in place in its holster. He was on duty, and they required him to carry it, even if he wasn’t about to do anything dangerous. “Have a good day.”

“I always sincerely try,” he said before I watched him disappear through security with a flash of his badge. They seemed to know him. The guards waved him on with a smile.

I didn’t listen to music on the drive home. I was too nervous about doing it in his car. Especially in Dallas traffic. It would be terrible if anything happened to it while in my care. I would feel horrendous at the very least. My rusted red truck looked so sad when I parked next to it. It was covered in a thick layer of yellow pollen since spring came early to Texas.

After I killed the engine, I just sat there. I didn’t want to go into my apartment to be alone. It was the first time in a long while. I knew there was work I could do to distract me, but my heart wasn’t in it. I figured I would go back to bed instead and sleep the day away.

The moment I stepped out of the marine blue BMW, my cell phone rang loudly in my purse. I didn’t know the number, so I supposed it was a spam call. I quickly brought it up to my ear to check before I blocked it. “Hello?”

“Hello! I’m trying to reach Ms. Isabella Swan,” a real person started on the other side. They didn’t say they were the FBI or the police, so I rolled my eyes. I was about to be sold something. Law enforcement was always keen to announce themselves so they could get down to business. 

“This is she,” I stated flatly, making my way towards my front door. I had to search for my set of keys in my purse, dumping Jasper’s inside. He had his car and his parents’ house on a ring, and that was it.

“Hi. My name is Eric Yorkie. I’m an agent for the Black Sun publishing company. This is Isabella Swan, the writer, correct?”

I stopped in surprise, my mouth hanging open. It took a few seconds to shake the fog free from my brain. “Um, yeah. Yes, it is. How may I help you?”

He hastily cleared his throat. “Well, your work has recently come to my attention, and I was hoping to discuss the possibility of doing business with you. Maybe get you under contract.”

“What did you read?” I questioned in shock. There were so many possibilities. I just blurted it out. 

“The Rabbit in the Snow.”

The words hung in the air.

I leaned against my front door, my hand over my mouth. My heart was beating a million miles an hour. But I knew I had to get myself under control. Closing my eyes, I tried to focus. “And what do you mean by a contract, exactly?”

“I would like to buy the rights to publish the novel. But if it’s possible, I’d prefer discussing it with you in person. Over lunch? My treat,” he added swiftly at the end.

“Oh! Um, yeah. Well…” I trailed off as I thought about it. It was actually hard. There was so much going on in my brain. “I’ll be free this week, but I’ll be traveling soon for an extended period.”

“This week works!” He eagerly replied. “Uh, what do you say to Thursday? I’ll have my secretary make some reservations, and I’ll have her send you the information when we confirm the time and date.”

“That’s fine!” I answered immediately. “Um, Thursday lunch. That works perfectly. Thank you.”

The man on the other side of the phone chuckled cordially. “Fantastic! I’m so happy I got a hold of you so easily. I very much enjoyed your story. Obviously, if I’m making this call,” he rambled. He sounded young. “Anyway. Thank you for your time. If I could get more contact information from you, that would be great.”

After I gave him my email address, we hung up. I stared at the screen for a long second. 

Suddenly tears burst forth, the dam breaking wildly. I put both fists over my eyes, shaking with the force of it. And I had no idea exactly why.

“Bella?” Edward breathed as he came into the hallway towards the apartment. “What happened? Are you okay?”

I brought my hands down to look at him. He was only a few feet away, clearly worried. He was in his blue jeans and a polo since he was off for the day. “I just got a call from a publisher. They want to buy my book,” I choked out. 

“Oh!” He remarked in surprise. Edward rocked on his heels, slipping his fingers in his pockets. “Well… Congratulations! So, are these happy tears?” He asked, leaning down to peer at my face.

Opening my mouth to answer, nothing came out. I tried to look him in the eyes, but I couldn’t. They just came harder. “I don’t know,” I finally whimpered.

“Shit. Um, okay,” he grumbled as he hurriedly unlocked the front door while I still leaned against it. “Come on. Let’s get you inside, sweetheart. I’ll get you something to drink. A glass of water.”

“Water doesn’t fix everything,” I blubbered, wiping my nose with my long sleeve. It was gross, but I didn’t care. I was about to throw myself into bed, anyway.

“No,” he agreed. “But it gives me something to do with my hands.”

Finally, Edward opened the door and led me inside. Tanya was there by the couch, gathering her things and shoving them into his big purse. They were about to go out for the day. She looked up at us in shock. 

“What’s going on?” She was instantly concerned.

“I got a call from a publisher, and they want to talk to me about my book. And Jasper isn’t here for me to tell him,” I wept, my shoulders slumping as if there was a weight on them.

She hurriedly came around the sofa to hug me while her boyfriend jogged off into the kitchen. Her long arms reached around me as she kissed the top of my head. “Aw, you can soon, though! Tonight, right? But that’s fabulous! I knew it would happen! I’m so proud of you.”

“Thank you,” I sniffled.

Gently, Edward put his hand on my shoulder and passed me the glass with a straw. “Here you go.”

Looking at it for a moment, I glanced up at him awkwardly. “Um, thanks, Doc. I think I’ll take this and lie down for a while. Y’all have a good day,” I replied before anyone could say anything else to me. I was so embarrassed over the weird outburst that I didn’t quite understand.

After a few minutes, my roommate tapped her fingernails on the door. “Are you sure?” She asked through it in a gentle voice.

“Yeah. I’m fine. Just emotional. I didn’t get any sleep last night. You go have fun.”

There was a hushed discussion in the living room I couldn’t hear. Finally, Edward shouted to me through my bedroom door. “Call us if you need anything,” he declared firmly.

“I’m okay. I just need a nap! I swear.”

Sitting on the edge of the bed, I placed the cup to the side. The front door rattled as they left. I could hear the deadbolt locking in place loudly. I rubbed my palms over my eyes, swallowing back the leftovers of the outbursts in my throat.

My phone beeped in my purse. This time it was from Jasper. Without even reading it, it made my heart feel a little better.

“I already can’t wait to talk to you tonight. I’m so pathetic.”

Biting my lip, I smiled to myself. “No, you’re not. I can’t wait, either. I’ve got some news to tell you, anyway. Call me when you get settled at the hotel. It’s huge.”

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Thanks to Gina for proofreading this chapter!

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