Pairing: Edward/Bella.

Disclaimer; the Twilight saga doesn't belong to me. I make no money from my stories.

Warnings: NU18. Contains underage sex and a dirty talking Edward. Strong language and questionable adult situations. This is an age gap fic, and naughtiness abounds. Bella is very young when this story begins. But there are a couple if time lapses and she will be older eventually! Although the age gap wont lessen, obviously. Be warned. Thanks!

A/N; This chapter has finally been Beta'd by Fran :) I'm so happy! It's all sparkly now, just like the others. *includes complete editing to correct past and present tense mix up's*

Chapter One - The game begins.

The overhead lights glittered with subtle sophistication as a myriad of couples swayed gently to the music. Conversation ebbed and flowed around me and I sighed; probably for the fiftieth time that evening as boredom washed through me, leaving me lethargic. I needed some excitement, I was too young for this kind of life.

Reaching over lightly as a waiter passed, I slipped a glass of champagne off his tray. His eyes flashed to my face with a frown that disappeared as soon as he caught sight of me, with a slight smirk and an eyebrow waggle he moved on.

In his defense, I certainly did not look sixteen. My sea green gown was fitted, old world glamour. It shimmered as I moved, crystals sewn onto every centimeter of its expanse. The length was long, with a very deep slit that revealed much too much leg. The whole ensemble gave the impression of water. I loved it as its color complimented my chocolate brown hair and alabaster skin to perfection. My hair hung free tonight, maybe because it annoyed my mother that I wouldn't have it cut into some chic do. It was long and untamed, falling from my head to my hips in a waterfall of wanton curls and waves.

It was my one rebellion.

Otherwise, I was the dutiful daughter and always do as I'm told, so my one bit of rebellion is overlooked.

A sip of the bubbly liquid slipped down my throat and I welcomed the slight burn along with the relaxation that followed. Mother and her damned fundraisers. I hated them but really didn't have a choice about attending them. My dad hated these things as much as I did, but even he had succumbed to Mother's pleading tonight.

The only bit of excitement on the proverbial horizon was that I heard Dad telling Mother that his friend was coming in tonight from Los Angeles. Dad was so pumped about seeing him again that he had arranged for him to meet us here, at the museum that Mother ran and co-owned. I had never met this particular friend and any new face was an interesting change from the sameness of my life. I would probably be disappointed, he was probably going to be fat and balding and middle aged looking. Being the same age as my dad, he was sure to be at least one of those things. Dad was fairly young, I guess, being thirty-eight and very well preserved. I guessed that his friend would be much the same age.

Another sip of the bubbly golden liquid had me feeling very relaxed and almost happy. I drifted amongst the other guests weightlessly; small beaded clutch in my one hand, the champagne in the other. A floor length mirror I passed told me I didn't look half as plastered as I felt. I hadn't had alcohol often, so the glass I held was doubly intoxicating. I drained it and placed it on a small decorative table as I passed.

Evidence of my minor indiscretion well hidden; check.

I saw my dad standing uncomfortably near the dais, which my mother and other members of the committee will use to give interminable, long-winded speeches. He was all done up in a tuxedo worthy of a royal banquet and I smiled lovingly at him as I reached his side. Reaching up I adjusted his bow tie and smoothed his jacket with a mischievous smirk.

"Having fun Dad?"

A dirty look and a small smile were my answers as he pulled me into his side with fatherly pride, his arm running along my shoulders.

"Na Bells, you know I don't like this kind of thing. However, your mother insisted we all be here as a 'united front'. I would much rather be watching the game and having a beer with Harry."

Harry was Dad's other longtime friend and had masterminded many an escape involving my father disappearing for a few days at a time on 'fishing trips' to the coast.

I guessed even he needed a break from my mother's constant social climbing and charity work, endless committee meetings and boring, stiff, upper-class parties. Charlie wasn't sophisticated, he was small-town and proud of it. I often wondered how he had ended up with my extremely sophisticated mother who seemed to have been born for this life. I had tried to imagine her in a small gossipy town but failed miserably.

"You're looking beautiful tonight, Bells. My little girl is almost all grown up. You make your old man feel ancient." He hugged me, squeezing gently and my heart squeezed, too. I loved my dad. Sometimes I felt like he was the only real thing in my life.

I smiled up at him again and laid my head against his shoulder. "Thanks, Dad."

I saw Rene from across the room. She saw us and frowned slightly her eyes mildly irritated. We aren't mingling, as we should … as she would like us to. "Mom has seen us. Let me go and mingle and leave you to your duties, Dad." I said as I patted his chest with a playful hand and slip away, throwing a kiss to Charlie as I go.

He groaned mockingly, and sipped his drink as he began to talk to an aged ambassador with an overstuffed shirt front, probably from too many creampuffs at numerous teas.

I giggled light-heartedly as I nodded at my mother's acquaintances left and right. I saw several speculative glances fall on me as I walk, from men who are old enough to be my grandfather. I suppress a shiver of disgust as I made my escape through the lofty pillars towards a deserted side of the museum. The polished floor gleamed in the muted light and I made a game of stepping on only the black squares.

My high heels tapped loudly in the suddenly quiet surroundings and I felt relaxed for the first time tonight. A sky window above me let in the beautiful moonlight feom above. It flooded the floor around me and I twirled with childlike glee in the bright, natural spotlight as I felt the exhilaration I normally feel when I have evaded my mother for any length of time.

It's beautiful.

It's wonderful.

It's freedom.

And I love it.

"Do you usually dance by yourself, Venus?" a smooth voice asked. I stopped abruptly and stared into the shadows around me, startled, and more than a little embarrassed to be caught twirling like a child.

I felt my cheeks heat and I lifted my chin in a defensive manner. I couldn't see him clearly, because he was standing in the shadows, but I could see that he was leaning against a pillar, which bordered my small island of moonlight.

All I could make out is that he was tall.

"Venus?" I asked my voice trembling, although I tried to appear calm and unruffled. I don't usually talk to strangers. However, for once I don't care.

"Aphrodite then. No, in fact, I think a sea nymph is more appropriate when describing you. That gown is really something." The voice was as smooth as melted caramel and sent a shiver of delicious anticipation running through my core.

"Really?" I deadpan new, sounding far surer of myself than I was. "Is that the best you can do?"

A chuckle swept towards me from the shadows; it strummed a hidden cord deep within my body. "It's not my best by far. Would you like me to try again?"

I nodded boldly, just as I shifted my beaded clutch from one hand to the other.

"You look like sex and I want to taste every inch of you." The voice was wickedly decadent, dark chocolate. He was trying to shock me and he had succeeded, although I would rather die than let him know it.

I gulp down the saliva that had pooled in my mouth and blinked at the shadowy figure. A surge of a foreign sensation flooded my lower stomach and I felt my sex tighten. Oh my god, I couldn't believe this was happening to me.

A secret assignation in a dark corner; how felicitous.

But this was a man not a boy, I could tell by his voice. If he were a boy, he would be someone I could lead around easily. Somehow, instinct told me that this man was not led around by anyone.

Excitement gripped me none too gently and I felt fire rip through my body for the first time in my life. I had never experienced these sensations … they were so wildly unusual. Fear and excitement rushed through me again as I saw the figure straighten, and then saunter towards me.

Stalking.

Dangerous.

I should have been terrified and yet I had never felt so alive.

Didthis man know me?

Did he know that I'm only sixteen?

I don't believe he does, and that knowledge filled me with a shimmering wave of excitement, renewed and intensified. Right now, I am just a woman and he is just a man.

Nothing more, nothing less. The possibilities are endless.

Finally, I might get some of the experience I so desperately craved.

I wished to be an experienced woman and yet I have never been kissed. It disgusts me; I hate my youth and inexperience.

The figure advanced until the moonlight illuminated him softly and I stifled a moan just in time to avoid embarrassment. As it was, I dragged air deeply into my suddenly-staved lungs. It sounded like the gasp it was and echoed through the huge room.

I had not expected him to be quite so beautiful.

I had not expected him to be quite so young.

I stared like an idiot as he slowly walked towards me a slight smile on his lips.

Messy bronze hair, short on the sides and longer in the front, fell into his glittering eyes, which were fixed on me with almost frightening intensity. As he neared me, I saw that his eyes were a dark, moist green; like moss on a damp, rainy day. They swirled with emotions I couldn't name; I didn't dare to name them. He wore a tuxedo and it fitted him like a glove; his body was well built without being bulky. He was lithe elegance and strength combined. I watched enraptured as he walked towards me, until the material of his jacket was touching my dress.

I swallowed; hoping the lump in my throat would disappear, and try not to be obvious as I stood my ground bravely.

"Did I shock you?"

I began to shake my head in denial even as he chuckled again.

I didn't fool him, I realised.

"I meant to shock you. Your reactions are so refreshingly different. Forgive me."

I looked up at him and felt my head swim dangerously. I swayed slightly on my six inch heels. Whether it was the champagne or this man's presence, I cannot tell, but I felt drunk, more so than ever before in my life.

"So you didn't mean it?" I asked, my voice breathless and yet bold.

His eyes darkened further as they visually eat me. I think it's called an eye fuck. The flesh between my thighs throb and pulse oddly, and I blushed..

No smile graced his face as he stopped an inch from me, our bodies almost touching. Electricity surged between us, the air crackled with it and I shivered involuntarily.

"I meant every word."

Need flew through me and I swayed towards this stranger like a magnet seeking its partner.

"What is your name?"

I linked my fingers together trying to stop myself from grabbing onto his elegant tuxedo jacket just as they were itching to do.

His scent was incredible; expensive aftershave, a hint of cigarette smoke. It teased my nostrils as I breathed him in and leaned closer still.

"Does it matter?" I asked.

I noticed that his hands are slung casually into his trouser pockets. He looked movie star cool and calm. I envied his nonchalant attitude and glamorous essence. It was part of him. He was not affected.

He shook his head causing the moonlight overhead to dance on his shiny, messy brown hair. He grinned as his eyes watchfully follow his own finger as it reached out to trace a fiery path across my cheek. It stroked softly, teasingly across my skin and I stopped breathing entirely. My nipples harden against my bodice, the tight material rubbing across the aching peaks teasingly. I bit back a moan of want as his finger traced the tiny dip beneath my bottom lip.

"So tempting. So beautiful." He said simply, lazily, as I watched his lips form the words. His lips are deliciously pouty.

"I want you."

I'm not sure what he wanted exactly, but I wanted him to kiss me.

I knew he saw where my eyes are fixed as though I am hypnotized, and he laughed softly once again.

"Shall I taste you?" His deeply smooth voice asked wickedly.

I didn't answer, I was too shy. I acted boldly though, as I grabbed the front of his shirt and pull him towards me. His hand closed over my wrist and I gasped loudly as he roughly anchored it, along with my other one together behind my back without me realizing how he managed it so quickly. His touch was filled with rough passion and my body responded instantly. Instead of fear, I felt only lust. My clutch fell, forgotten, to the tiled floor. I couldn't think about that or anything else as I felt my body slide against his.

His body was hard, solid against mine, and my sex throbs again asking for deeper contact.

I watched, transfixed, as his head descended towards mine. He kissed me then, as roughly as he held my hands.

It was a soft, slow touching of lips and then his tongue was in my mouth and I whimpered. The sound I made is swallowed up as his hands squeeze relentlessly around my wrists causing pain, and strangely, ecstasy.

I had never known it could feel so good to kiss someone. His taste filled me to the brim and I submitted eagerly. He sucked my reluctant tongue into his own mouth and I found my hips moving against his hardness as if my body had a mind of its own.

I was embarrassed and elated all at once.

The faint sound of the ballroom music tickled my senses and increased the unreal feeling that persists.

Am I dreaming?

Maybe.

But I don't want to wake up.

The stranger's strong hands still gripped me and I sensed his total lack of control. Yet he appeared completely calm. Our kiss ended and his body swayed slightly to the distant music that surrounds us in our silent bubble. I felt my body follow his lead until we were dancing slowly, in a small circle.

I opened my eyes and glanced up at his dark green gaze, glittering with passion and need.

My stomach flip-flopped deliriously and my heart beat so fast in my chest that I was scared it might beat right out of my body.

His hand released mine and sensuously stroked my arms as they rose towards my shoulders.

His hands are large and almost cover my arms entirely.

I was breathing fast and I saw his eyes dip to my chest, blatantly watching the rise and fall of my breasts. My cheeks flame and I tried to pull him into another kiss.

I just want more.

He smirked at me and his face began to fall toward mine. But he paused a moment as the sound of clattering footsteps echoed through the halls. I pulled back guiltily, my cheeks flaming further as I cringed at being discovered.

"I have to go," I whispered my lips felt swollen and strange.

"I'll find you again." He said and it sounded like a promise.

I shook my head slightly as I backed away from him.

"I'm sorry," I said as I turned and run-walked toward the party and the noise.

One last glance over my shoulder told me that the stranger was still where I had left him.

He was watching me closely, eyes glittering dangerously. All I wanted to do was run back to him, no matter how crazy that was.

The urge sacred me, so I moved forwards toward sanity instead.

I entered the party once again, I ran straight into my mother.

"Bella where have you been? You're so flushed darling. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Mom. Can I go home, please, I have a headache." I was ever hopeful it seemed.

I want to be alone with my thoughts.

A shocked look flits across her serenely beautiful face and I knew that she needed backup tonight and I'm it.

"No, Bella. I need you darling. Go and freshen up in the ladies and come and join us. Your father's friend has arrived and you must meet him."

I turned away in defeat and made my way to the powder room. I leaned against the door for several moments getting my bearings back. Somehow, I feel different, older, and I wanted to see the stranger again.

I know that it was impossible and that I would probably never see him again. Nevertheless, I can only hope that I do, against all odds.

I wanted more of his rough passion. I wanted another taste of his lips and tongue. I wanted him to be the one to teach me all he knows.

I wish I had asked his name at least.

.

.

.

After powdering my face delicately and fixing my hair, I slicked on my lip-gloss and touch up my eye makeup. Once again, picture perfect, I made my way back towards the dais and my needy mother.

I didn't pay enough attention and bumped into the person standing beside my dad. I murmured my apology as I raised my eyes to his face.

My body knew already.

It came alive under the hand that steadied me, and once again, I was breathless and excited all at once.

Brown meets moss green filled with incredulous amusement, which died in shock as my mother cheerfully announced,

"Oh, I see you've caught her! Dear Edward, let me introduce to you my daughter, Isabella. Bella this is your father's friend, Edward Cullen."

Our eyes met.

Dismayed green and shocked brown.

He dropped my arm as though it burned him and nodded at me cool-friendly.

"Miss Swan, it's my pleasure." He intoned formally, as he dismissed me with a quick glance.

He continued his conversation with Dad as I stared at him agape, in total shock.

My mother gripped my arm none too gently and whispered into my ear. "Bella pull yourself together, your're scaring our guest."

I fake smiled immediately and straightened up; the picture perfect daughter within seconds. It's what is expected of me and I deliver just as I always have.

I watched, still stunned, as Edward Cullen spoke to my father who clasped him on the shoulder in close friendship. Dad practically glowed at this happy reunion.

Of all the men in the world, why did it have to be him? My dad's best friend. He was at least twenty years my senior although he didn't look it for a moment.

His beauty was indisputable and blinding. I had an overwhelming urge to Google him. I wanted to find out all I could about him. I had a vague memory of hearing some gossip connected with his name and I was dying to see just how scandalous it was.

He was a professional at this, not glancing at me again for the rest of the evening.

It drove me insane.

Not even one small look.

Come on, Edward Cullen, look at me.

Look at me.

I chanted internally.

I felt like pouting, but I didn't.

Smile,

Talk,

Laugh at jokes that made no sense.

I functioned, but all I could see was Edward.

I wanted to carry on where we left off. I wanted him to show me everything he knew and then I wanted him to revise each lesson in detail. I wanted those delectably pouty lips on mine again, and I wanted to touch him, to run my hands through that messy hair and I wanted to drown in his scent.

Desire throbbed through me and I stared, trying not to be obvious, as he spoke to my mother, head bent at just the right angle to indicate interest. I was fascinated and enthralled by each mannerism.

My mother turned to speak to my father and in that split second Edward's eyes rose to mine as though he had been aware of my scrutiny and lustful thoughts all along.

And then I realized that he had been.

My heart fluttered, and I was nothing but a crazily beating heart and breathless wonder.

I stared into his dark green eyes for a moment and felt faint. I saw a small but definite smirk twist at the corner of his lips as he raked my entire face and body in one, clean, vusual sweep.

My fingers tightened on my champagne flute and I think I must surely be panting. His gaze was gone quickly, and I was left wondering if I imagined it.

Excitement gripped me as I realized that I want him.

Maybe more than I should.

Because I know now that he wanted me, too, and that's all that mattered..