Falling for a Dark Soul

Chapter Six

Disclaimer: None of this mine, nor do I claim to be Stephenie Meyer. I just like to dabble in the playground that she created with Bella, Edward and her Twilight characters. No copyright infringement is intended.

Up next, we'll hear from Edward. We'll hear his thoughts regarding the night he spent with Bella and Katie. I promise you; I will not rehash it. We'll also hear about his meeting in the morning and jump forward in time (it's early October at the time of this chapter). Perhaps, we'll have some Halloween hijinks and some MAC team building.

Chapter Six

Edward

With each step away from Bella's brownstone, I felt like I needed to turn back around and stay there. Part of my soul was inside that building. Dramatic, much, Cullen? I felt comfortable there. Even though things were awkward between Bella and me, the warmth I experienced in her home seeped into my bones.

I wanted more of it.

I needed that warmth.

It didn't make a single bit of sense.

You're losing your damned mind, Edward.

And, when Bella started crying ... I wanted to take her into my arms and make all her pain go away. I did hug her. It felt right, but so different than I expected. Different in a good way. She melted against me, like all the air had left her. I could feel her body tremble as she gripped my sweater, clinging to me like was a life raft.

It felt good, giving someone support and being their rock. She'd been shouldering all of this alone.

Bella Swan was simply amazing.

"What the fuck am I doing?" I grumbled. "I'm so confused." Sam whimpered, his tail wagging. "Come on, bud. Do your business, please?" He barked, walking to a patch of grass.

Once Sam was done answering the call of nature, we made our way to my car. I had to park around the block from Bella's home. She was right that there was no parking on her street. Unlocking my car, I helped Sam into the back of my Tesla and slid into the driver's seat. I eased away from the curb, driving to my condo. Ironically enough, Bella lived about five minutes from me. Her place was in a good neighborhood, with a lot of families.

A perfect place for her and the little one.

After the short drive, I rode up to my home. But, it didn't feel like home. More like a sterile, empty shell ... like me. In my condo, I changed into a pair of loose sleep pants. I refilled Sam's water bowl, leaning against the kitchen counter with another bottle of beer. "Did you feel it tonight, Sam?" I asked.

He looked back at me, water dribbling down his coat. His responding bark was low before going back to drinking some water.

"I'm losing my damned mind," I grumbled. "Bella Swan is twisting me into knots. Everything in me is telling me to ... walk away, but I can't. I want to be closer."

There was something about Bella that drew me in. She was kind, forgiving and so loving. She'd forgiven my horrific gaff that fateful day. I still felt awful for hurting her so cruelly; it's why I went out of my way to help her. However, it was the way she cared for her sister. It was beautiful. Even when Katie was giving Bella sass, she was firm but kind. She wasn't cruel or mean. Despite their situation, it was apparent that Bella and Katie loved each other very much.

Katie was adorable and very smart, with pale skin, dark blonde hair and cornflower blue eyes. She was filled with sass, energy and giggles. However, I saw the sadness in her eyes of a child who lost everything. She'd lost her parents too young. Katie, however, was lucky to have Bella in her a life. Katie would never know the harsh realities going into the system. She'd be spared the nightmare of having creepy foster fathers, abusive foster mothers and indifferent foster siblings. Katie had family that loved her, unconditionally. She had ...