Twilight Tenth Anniversary Edition
Page 82
“Don’t worry, silly,” he whispered back. “I can.” He put my arms around his neck and lifted me to slide his feet under mine.
And then we were whirling, too.
“I feel like I’m five years old,” I laughed after a few minutes of effortless waltzing.
“You don’t look five,” he murmured, pulling me closer for a second, so that my feet were briefly a foot from the ground.
Alice caught my eye on a turn and smiled in encouragement—I smiled back. I was surprised to realize that I was actually enjoying myself… a little.
“Okay, this isn’t half bad,” I admitted.
But Edward was staring toward the doors, and his face was angry.
“What is it?” I wondered aloud. I followed his gaze, disoriented by the spinning, but finally I could see what was bothering him. Jacob Black, not in a tux, but in a long-sleeved white shirt and tie, his hair smoothed back into his usual ponytail, was crossing the floor toward us.
After the first shock of recognition, I couldn’t help but feel bad for Jacob. He was clearly uncomfortable—excruciatingly so. His face was apologetic as his eyes met mine.
Edward snarled very quietly.
“Behave!” I hissed.
Edward’s voice was scathing. “He wants to chat with you.”
Jacob reached us then, the embarrassment and apology even more evident on his face.
“Hey, Bella, I was hoping you would be here.” Jacob sounded like he’d been hoping the exact opposite. But his smile was just as warm as ever.
“Hi, Jacob.” I smiled back. “What’s up?”
“Can I cut in?” he asked tentatively, glancing at Edward for the first time. I was shocked to notice that Jacob didn’t have to look up. He must have grown half a foot since the first time I’d seen him.
Edward’s face was composed, his expression blank. His only answer was to set me carefully on my feet, and take a step back.
“Thanks,” Jacob said amiably.
Edward just nodded, looking at me intently before he turned to walk away.
Jacob put his hands on my waist, and I reached up to put my hands on his shoulders.
“Wow, Jake, how tall are you now?”
He was smug. “Six-two.”
We weren’t really dancing—my leg made that impossible. Instead we swayed awkwardly from side to side without moving our feet. It was just as well; the recent growth spurt had left him looking gangly and uncoordinated, he was probably no better a dancer than I was.
“So, how did you end up here tonight?” I asked without true curiosity. Considering Edward’s reaction, I could guess.
“Can you believe my dad paid me twenty bucks to come to your prom?” he admitted, slightly ashamed.
“Yes, I can,” I muttered. “Well, I hope you’re enjoying yourself, at least. Seen anything you like?” I teased, nodding toward a group of girls lined up against the wall like pastel confections.
“Yeah,” he sighed. “But she’s taken.”
He glanced down to meet my curious gaze for just a second—then we both looked away, embarrassed.
“You look really pretty, by the way,” he added shyly.
“Um, thanks. So why did Billy pay you to come here?” I asked quickly, though I knew the answer.
Jacob didn’t seem grateful for the subject change; he looked away, uncomfortable again. “He said it was a ‘safe’ place to talk to you. I swear the old man is losing his mind.”
I joined in his laughter weakly.
“Anyway, he said that if I told you something, he would get me that master cylinder I need,” he confessed with a sheepish grin.
“Tell me, then. I want you to get your car finished.” I grinned back. At least Jacob didn’t believe any of this. It made the situation a bit easier. Against the wall, Edward was watching my face, his own face expressionless. I saw a sophomore in a pink dress eyeing him with timid speculation, but he didn’t seem to be aware of her.
Jacob looked away again, ashamed. “Don’t get mad, okay?”
“There’s no way I’ll be mad at you, Jacob,” I assured him. “I won’t even be mad at Billy. Just say what you have to.”
“Well—this is so stupid, I’m sorry, Bella—he wants you to break up with your boyfriend. He asked me to tell you ‘please.’” He shook his head in disgust.
“He’s still superstitious, eh?”
“Yeah. He was… kind of over the top when you got hurt down in Phoenix. He didn’t believe…” Jacob trailed off self-consciously.
My eyes narrowed. “I fell.”
“I know that,” Jacob said quickly.
“He thinks Edward had something to do with me getting hurt.” It wasn’t a question, and despite my promise, I was angry.
Jacob wouldn’t meet my eyes. We weren’t even bothering to sway to the music, though his hands were still on my waist, and mine around his neck.
“Look, Jacob, I know Billy probably won’t believe this, but just so you know”—he looked at me now, responding to the new earnestness in my voice—“Edward really did save my life. If it weren’t for Edward and his father, I’d be dead.”
“I know,” he claimed, but he sounded like my sincere words had affected him some. Maybe he’d be able to convince Billy of this much, at least.
“Hey, I’m sorry you had to come do this, Jacob,” I apologized. “At any rate, you get your parts, right?”
“Yeah,” he muttered. He was still looking awkward… upset.
“There’s more?” I asked in disbelief.
“Forget it,” he mumbled, “I’ll get a job and save the money myself.”
I glared at him until he met my gaze. “Just spit it out, Jacob.”
“It’s so bad.”
“I don’t care. Tell me,” I insisted.
“Okay… but, geez, this sounds bad.” He shook his head. “He said to tell you, no, to warn you, that—and this is his plural, not mine”—he lifted one hand from my waist and made little quotations marks in the air—“‘We’ll be watching.’” He watched warily for my reaction.
It sounded like something from a mafia movie. I laughed out loud.
“Sorry you had to do this, Jake,” I snickered.
“I don’t mind that much.” He grinned in relief. His eyes were appraising as they raked quickly over my dress. “So, should I tell him you said to butt the hell out?” he asked hopefully.
“No,” I sighed. “Tell him I said thanks. I know he means well.”
The song ended, and I dropped my arms.
His hands hesitated at my waist, and he glanced at my bum leg. “Do you want to dance again? Or can I help you get somewhere?”
Edward answered for me. “That’s all right, Jacob. I’ll take it from here.”
Jacob flinched, and stared wide-eyed at Edward, who stood just beside us.
“Hey, I didn’t see you there,” he mumbled. “I guess I’ll see you around, Bella.” He stepped back, waving halfheartedly.
I smiled. “Yeah, I’ll see you later.”
“Sorry,” he said again before he turned for the door.
Edward’s arms wound around me as the next song started. It was a little up-tempo for slow dancing, but that didn’t seem to concern him. I leaned my head against his chest, content.
“Feeling better?” I teased.
“Not really,” he said tersely.
“Don’t be mad at Billy,” I sighed. “He just worries about me for Charlie’s sake. It’s nothing personal.”
“I’m not mad at Billy,” he corrected in a clipped voice. “But his son is irritating me.”
I pulled back to look at him. His face was very serious.
“Why?”
“First of all, he made me break my promise.”
I stared at him in confusion.
He half-smiled. “I promised I wouldn’t let go of you tonight,” he explained.
“Oh. Well, I forgive you.”
“Thanks. But there’s something else.” Edward frowne
d.
I waited patiently.
“He called you pretty,” he finally continued, his frown deepening. “That’s practically an insult, the way you look right now. You’re much more than beautiful.”
I laughed. “You might be a little biased.”
“I don’t think that’s it. Besides, I have excellent eyesight.”
We were twirling again, my feet on his as he held me close.
“So are you going to explain the reason for all of this?” I wondered.
He looked down at me, confused, and I glared meaningfully at the crepe paper.
He considered for a moment, and then changed direction, spinning me through the crowd to the back door of the gym. I caught a glimpse of Jessica and Mike dancing, staring at me curiously. Jessica waved, and I smiled back quickly. Angela was there, too, looking blissfully happy in the arms of little Ben Cheney; she didn’t look up from his eyes, a head lower than hers. Lee and Samantha, Lauren, glaring toward us, with Conner; I could name every face that spiraled past me. And then we were outdoors, in the cool, dim light of a fading sunset.
As soon as we were alone, he swung me up into his arms, and carried me across the dark grounds till he reached the bench beneath the shadow of the madrone trees. He sat there, keeping me cradled against his chest. The moon was already up, visible through the gauzy clouds, and his face glowed pale in the white light. His mouth was hard, his eyes troubled.
“The point?” I prompted softly.
He ignored me, staring up at the moon.
“Twilight, again,” he murmured. “Another ending. No matter how perfect the day is, it always has to end.”
“Some things don’t have to end,” I muttered through my teeth, instantly tense.
He sighed.
“I brought you to the prom,” he said slowly, finally answering my question, “because I don’t want you to miss anything. I don’t want my presence to take anything away from you, if I can help it. I want you to be human. I want your life to continue as it would have if I’d died in nineteen-eighteen like I should have.”
I shuddered at his words, and then shook my head angrily. “In what strange parallel dimension would I ever have gone to prom of my own free will? If you weren’t a thousand times stronger than me, I would never have let you get away with this.”
He smiled briefly, but it didn’t touch his eyes. “It wasn’t so bad, you said so yourself.”
“That’s because I was with you.”
We were quiet for a minute; he stared at the moon and I stared at him. I wished there was some way to explain how very uninterested I was in a normal human life.
“Will you tell me something?” he asked, glancing down at me with a slight smile.
“Don’t I always?”
“Just promise you’ll tell me,” he insisted, grinning.
I knew I was going to regret this almost instantly. “Fine.”
“You seemed honestly surprised when you figured out that I was taking you here,” he began.
“I was,” I interjected.
“Exactly,” he agreed. “But you must have had some other theory… I’m curious—what did you think I was dressing you up for?”
Yes, instant regret. I pursed my lips, hesitating. “I don’t want to tell you.”
“You promised,” he objected.
“I know.”
“What’s the problem?”
I knew he thought it was mere embarrassment holding me back. “I think it will make you mad—or sad.”
His brows pulled together over his eyes as he thought that through. “I still want to know. Please?”
I sighed. He waited.
“Well… I assumed it was some kind of… occasion. But I didn’t think it would be some trite human thing… prom!” I scoffed.
“Human?” he asked flatly. He’d picked up on the key word.
I looked down at my dress, fidgeting with a stray piece of chiffon. He waited in silence.
“Okay,” I confessed in a rush. “So I was hoping that you might have changed your mind… that you were going to change me, after all.”
A dozen emotions played across his face. Some I recognized: anger… pain… and then he seemed to collect himself and his expression became amused.
“You thought that would be a black tie occasion, did you?” he teased, touching the lapel of his tuxedo jacket.
I scowled to hide my embarrassment. “I don’t know how these things work. To me, at least, it seems more rational than prom does.” He was still grinning. “It’s not funny,” I said.
“No, you’re right, it’s not,” he agreed, his smile fading. “I’d rather treat it like a joke, though, than believe you’re serious.”
“But I am serious.”
He sighed deeply. “I know. And you’re really that willing?”
The pain was back in his eyes. I bit my lip and nodded.
“So ready for this to be the end,” he murmured, almost to himself, “for this to be the twilight of your life, though your life has barely started. You’re ready to give up everything.”
“It’s not the end, it’s the beginning,” I disagreed under my breath.
“I’m not worth it,” he said sadly.
“Do you remember when you told me that I didn’t see myself very clearly?” I asked, raising my eyebrows. “You obviously have the same blindness.”
“I know what I am.”
I sighed.
But his mercurial mood shifted on me. He pursed his lips, and his eyes were probing. He examined my face for a long moment.
“You’re ready now, then?” he asked.
“Um.” I gulped. “Yes?”
He smiled, and inclined his head slowly until his cold lips brushed against the skin just under the corner of my jaw.
“Right now?” he whispered, his breath blowing cool on my neck. I shivered involuntarily.
“Yes,” I whispered, so my voice wouldn’t have a chance to break. If he thought I was bluffing, he was going to be disappointed. I’d already made this decision, and I was sure. It didn’t matter that my body was rigid as a plank, my hands balled into fists, my breathing erratic…
He chuckled darkly, and leaned away. His face did look disappointed.
“You can’t really believe that I would give in so easily,” he said with a sour edge to his mocking tone.
“A girl can dream.”
His eyebrows rose. “Is that what you dream about? Being a monster?”
“Not exactly,” I said, frowning at his word choice. Monster, indeed. “Mostly I dream about being with you forever.”
His expression changed, softened and saddened by the subtle ache in my voice.
“Bella.” His fingers lightly traced the shape of my lips. “I will stay with you—isn’t that enough?”
I smiled under his fingertips. “Enough for now.”
He frowned at my tenacity. No one was going to surrender tonight. He exhaled, and the sound was practically a growl.
I touched his face. “Look,” I said. “I love you more than everything else in the world combined. Isn’t that enough?”
“Yes, it is enough,” he answered, smiling. “Enough for forever.”
And he leaned down to press his cold lips once more to my throat.
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theNOVL.com
STEPHENIE MEYER’S
The Twilight Saga
Twilight
New Moon
Eclipse
Breaking Dawn
The Twilight Saga: The Official Illustrated Guide
The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner
Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Volume 1
Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Volume 2
New Moon: The Graphic Novel, Volume 1
Stephenie Meyer is the author of
the #1 bestselling Twilight Saga and The Host. She lives in Arizona with her husband and three sons. Her website is www.stepheniemeyer.com.
Contents
COVER
WELCOME
A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR
LIFE AND DEATH TITLE PAGE
DEDICATION
FOREWORD
EPIGRAPH
PREFACE
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
CHAPTER 20
CHAPTER 21
CHAPTER 22
CHAPTER 23
CHAPTER 24
EPILOGUE
TWILIGHT TITLE PAGE
DEDICATION
EPIGRAPH
PREFACE
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
CHAPTER 20
CHAPTER 21
CHAPTER 22
CHAPTER 23
CHAPTER 24
EPILOGUE
STEPHENIE MEYER’S THE TWILIGHT SAGA
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
COPYRIGHT
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.