After a couple of weeks from hell where it seems I fought with everyone (my university, my teachers, my friends) and everything (blogger, laptop, photoshop) and even my own mother, I'm finally back on track.
It's been insane here, and then to make matters worse, my mom had to be hospitalized this week. She's better now, but scared the crap out me!
Now that's all over, I'm glad to announce that Chapter 14 is with my pre-reader. This is her second round. She usually suggests a few re-writes, but there were one particular event in this chapter we saw differently and we finally reached a compromise. I'm waiting for her to send back the chapter so my beta can have a look at it and then I'll post it.
In the meantime, here's a little teaser...
“Don’t you think this is a bit, I don’t know…surreal?”
Edward reached over and put his index finger under her chin, delicately raising her head until she met his eyes. “I don’t think it’s surreal, Bella.”
“Maybe not for you, but…I’m a simple girl, Edward. I don’t usually attend galas, formal dinners or balls. The fanciest event I’ve ever been to until tonight was Angela’s sweet sixteen party.”
“And that’s not a bad thing,” he reassured her, having a feeling where this conversation was going. “I understand things can be overwhelming for you.” He took both of her hands and kissed the back of them. “But I want you to know that there is no pressure. I’m still the same Edward you met in Seattle, and you can still be the same Bella. I just want a chance to show you what we could be together. No pressure, no expectations. Just you and me.”
“Just you and me?”
“Yes. Just you and me.”
Bella touched his cheek, her thumb tracing his dimple. “I still have no idea what brought you here.”
Edward chuckled and kissed the palm of her hand. “Well, who am I to fight fate?”
Bella bit my lip. “Fate?”
“You don’t believe in fate?”
She scrunched up my nose. “Not really. I believe our actions and choices carve the path we walk on.”
“I admit I didn’t believe in fate before, but how can I not, now when it has proven its existence to me time and time again? It was certainly fate that brought us together, wasn’t it?”
“If fate’s name is now Rosalie…”
At that Edward threw his head back in laughter, his Adam’s apple trembling. “Ah, yes…my dear sister. I owe her a big thank-you gift for all she’s done for me,” his gaze was soft and full of joy and Bella felt something tug in her chest, “but I meant our first meeting. I think fate had a hand in all this. After all, it was more than just a coincidence that it was you who helped me find my father’s ring.”
“So you’re saying it was faith that made me poison you with a hot dog?” she deadpanned, but with a teasing smile on her face.
“No,” he said with a smirk, “that was just bad luck. I think we were meant to meet that day, and even though for different reasons we were being kept apart, here we are…together. Don’t you think fate had a hand in that?”
”I guess,” she answered, shrugging her shoulders, “but isn’t this a bit too…reckless?”
He sighed and rubbed her knuckles. “Yes, it does seem like it, but I’ve been known to be very impatient when I desire something very much. I’m here, Bella. I’m here because I want you. You’re all I’ve been thinking about for the past weeks. Isn’t that enough?”
Bella swooned at his fervent words. “Are you always so good at this kind of things?”
“What kind of things?”
“Dazzling people.”
He softly kissed the back of her hand. “I like to believe I’m good at dazzling you.”
I'll post a pic teaser the day before I post the chapter, which could be this Saturday or the next, depending how busy is my beta.
That's all for now, till next time...
