"Bella? Sweetheart, please open your eyes." My sweet, sweet Edward sounded so worried. What was wrong?

Ouch. Maybe he knew why my head was throbbing so excruciatingly. I really hoped I wasn't bleeding. Then poor Edward would have to deal with the temptation of smelling my blood.

"Bella, love? Please wake up, darling," Ok. I couldn't resist that. Now, where was I? Oh, that's right. Somewhere in Mount Rainer. Crap! I totally must have fallen off a mountain and split my head open. This was going to be bad.

"Edward?" I mumbled as I opened my dull, brown eyes, and was captivated by his shimmering gold eyes. His face was masked with an amused expression. I tore my gaze from his angelic face to see the dark clouds behind his head, and the drizzling rain that fell lightly to his face. Geez, could we never escape this stupid, unnecessary moisture?

"Amazing. Bella, just when I begin to think we'll make it through this outing unscathed, you trip over your own feet and have me thinking you had a concussion," Edward chuckled, and ran his cool hand across the back of my head.

"Mmm…head hurts," I groaned as I tried to sit up. My hands burned from catching myself, I supposed. They felt raw, and the rest of my body felt hot. My face felt the hottest. Oh. I was blushing.

"Don't tell me you're embarrassed?" Edward asked as he carefully sat down with his back to a big tree. His strong, but gentle arms pulled me into his lap. I laid my head against his cool chest. Even through his thick sweater, his stone chest still served as a pleasant substitute for an ice pack. I felt his hands caress my head underneath my hair, no doubt making sure I hadn't caused myself any injuries.

"I'm so ridiculously clumsy. I can't wait to be as graceful as you." I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply. He smelled so wonderful.

"Bella…"

"I know, I know. We're not having this discussion!" I tried mimicking him. It was obviously a terrible imitation, because he chuckled and brought his lips to my temple.

"If that's how I sound, I apologize." He whispered as I began to shiver. He got the wrong impression, although I was feeling the cold, wintry air blow my hair off my neck, causing goosebumps to rise along my bare neck.

"Here, take my jacket and I'll set up camp here. It's getting cold for humans now, I suppose," he said while kissing the area where the swelling hurt the most.

Edward stood up and pulled the camping bag off his shoulders. He pulled out a slim tent bag, and went to work setting up our temporary home. He made a small fire, and finished in less than two minutes. I walked over groggily, and felt the ground spinning up to me.

"Bella, Bella, Bella. Let's lie down for a bit," He said soothingly, while carrying me into the small, green tent. Inside was a large, soft comforter. Edward leaned over my head and kissed my forehead.

"Shall I stay with you, or go on a little adventure of my own? I'll be back before you wake. I can also take care of my thirst while I'm out," he murmured into my hair. This was cruel and unfair. He smelled so good, and I was so tired…

A cold, icy wind shook the tent. This brought back the painful memory of Jacob trying so hard to win me over. How he was so happy that he could do something for me that Edward could not, keep me warm. That fateful day Victoria was on the prowl for me and had brought with her a herd of bloodthirsty newborns was the day I made my final decision. I wanted Edward, wanted him for all of eternity. Now it was just the matter of convincing him to do so.

I reached out, expecting to find a cold, statuesque body lying next to me. Nothing. Hmm…this isn't usually how it worked. There were very few nights that I slept all the way through without Edward by my side.

Standing up too fast, my head swirled uncomfortably. I unzipped the opening to the tent, regretting not pulling on another sweatshirt as I stepped out into the frosty night. The smell of burning wood caught my attention as I struggled in find my way around. Then my eyes found his face.

Although he told me immeasurable times how much he loved me, my mind could still not fathom that this beautiful creature longed to be with me. His perfect face was unreadable as he stared into the fire, his eyes ablaze with the reflection. He glanced up at me and gave me a small, crooked smile. My favorite.

"Come here. Maybe the fire will keep you warm," he whispered as he opened his arms to me, an invitation I would never dream of declining. Careful not to trip on anything, I half ran into his arms. His head nuzzled my neck as I giggled. Wow. Edward had reduced me to giggling.

"So, Miss. Swan, what are you thinking about?" Edward softly murmured into my ear. His voice sounded angelic, it always knocked me off my feet.

"Umm…can't think of anything besides you right now…" was all I could get out with his face so close to mine.

"Being in the wilderness doesn't frighten you?" He murmured. His scent was intoxicating, a mix of woods, vanilla, and something else I could never decipher. It was Edward's smell; I could never get enough of it. Turning around in his arms, I swung my legs on either side of him and rested my forehead against his.

"I could never be scared with you around. You scare away the monsters." I smiled at how comfortable I was at this very moment. The fire crackled at the same time Edward laughed quietly.

"You sound so sure of yourself, even as you're sitting in a monster's lap." Edward said, his face falling. Would he never accept the fact that I didn't see him that way, or his wonderful family? They weren't monsters. They were my own saving grace. I loved them with all of my heart.

"Positively sure," I tried to say, losing my voice since the cold air had dried out my throat. I tried swallowing, but my throat felt desiccated. Going camping with Edward seemed like a great idea at first, but now my body was starting to take notice of how frigid the mountains really were. Edward had warned me, but I begged him to take me with him. Being without him for any long period of time was becoming unbearable. My new "please, Edward?" routine certainly got me what I wanted. All except for becoming what he was. In that, he was unmoving unless I met his stupid request.

"Hungry, love?" He asked, his hands smoothing circles on my back over my thick sweatshirt. He glanced down at it, then curiously looked up at me.

"First off, I'm really not that hungry. Secondly, this belonged to Renee." I smiled as I affectionately touched the front of my sweatshirt. The writing was nearly worn off, but "#1 Fan!" was still legible. Over that was a picture of me as a little girl, about seven, with my hair up in a high ponytail, holding a soccer ball. This had been worn by my mother to nearly every game of my short soccer career, despite the Arizona heat.

"I've never seen this before," Edward smiled as gazed at the picture. I felt another blush creeping into my face, and tried unsuccessfully to think of a way to divert his attention.

"You were so cute, my little Bella. I wish I had seen this earlier," he smirked as he ran a cool hand across my red cheek. His face looked so serene, so adoring. It made my heart skip a beat to think that he cared this way about me.

"It's embarrassing. When I was packing to move to Forks, my mom told me I could have it. Sweatshirts aren't really necessary in Florida. I guess I just never wore it around you before. But I figured, since it would be cold here-"

His kiss interrupted my tangent. I hadn't realized I'd been babbling. His lips were ice cold, but felt wonderful against mine. Fire and ice. While one arm stayed locked around my waist, his other arm slid over my torso, my ribs, up my arm, and finally rested around my head, pulling my face closer to his. His lips grazed mine for less than ten seconds before he pulled away.

Out of breath, I laid my head against his shoulder. His navy sweater was soft against my cheek, and his hand stroked my hair, untangling it with a slight tug. The fire cast a glow against his skin, illuminating his striking face. We sat like that for nearly an hour, completely content. The only sounds were the crackling fire or the occasional sound his lips made while kissing my forehead, nose, or hair. When he did that, my heart accelerated. I couldn't hear that, but I'm sure he could.

Suddenly, in a flash, Edward stiffened. His eyes narrowed, and his nose flared. There was something coming.