A/N: This story is finally back, and Edward shall suffer no more. ;) I am sorry for the extended hiatus, and I appreciate your patience more than I can say. Thank you to my beta, TwilightMundi, for being so speedy and amazing. I expect this to update on Wednesdays, as usual for my stories.

I own nothing except my dirty little mind. All copyright and trademarked items mentioned herein belong to their respective owners. The remaining content is all mine. No copying or reproduction of this work is permitted without my express written authorization.

"I think so, too. You may help him with his orgasm."

"Thank you, Mistress."

BPOV

Edward and I made eye contact and shared the tiniest smile before my eyes moved lower. Much lower.

He was just as he'd felt – thick, long, and very hard. I knew the smallest movements would set him off, so I was careful with my touches. I wanted a sliver of time to have him all to myself before the night was over and he left.

I carefully dragged my nails up the length of him, licking my lips as I remembered the taste of him. I knew if I bent to my knees and took him in my mouth, though, he'd come in my mouth – against the rules – so I resisted the urge.

Edward brought his body as close as he could, leaving barely enough space for me to wrap my fingers around his cock. My lips tingled to touch his. I gripped him harder, pulled faster, and laid back, ready for what I knew was coming.

My eyes never left his body, watching intently as he came all over me. Normally, I thought it was kind of gross, but in that moment, it was sexy. I wanted as much as I could get from him. My hands didn't leave his dick until I was sure he was finished.

Mistress laughed lightly in the background and my eyes flicked up to hers.

"That didn't take very long, Pet," she said with a smile. "You must be good at that."

I lowered my head a bit as I felt my cheeks flame. "I'm pretty sure you're good at what you're doing as well, Mistress."

Yes, it was speaking out of turn. Technically, she could have punished me, but there was some strange vibe in the room and I had a strong feeling she needed to hear that her presence was vital.

"Edward, grab a washcloth from the bathroom and clean up both of you."

"Yes ma'am," he said. His fingers were resting on my thighs and as he pulled them away, his skin dragged against mine, one last reminder of him searing into my skin.

In an uncharacteristic move, she bent and kissed the back of his shoulder. My eyebrows knitted together. Her eyes were focused lower, withdrawing her implement, I assumed. Once she pulled away and moved to the bathroom with Edward, I relaxed a tiny bit.

Whispers were carried in tiny slivers into the main room, but I couldn't make out any particular sentences or words beyond small clips of orders and acknowledgments.

Edward brought a warm washcloth back with him and carefully, lovingly, cleaned me up. When he was finished, he put the fabric in the hamper and stood, waiting for his next order.

"Than you, Edward," Mistress said. "You've been a very giving and obedient toy tonight. I hope you enjoyed yourself?"

"Very much, ma'am."

"I'll talk to you in the morning, then. Goodnight."

He turned and got dressed, the smile never leaving his beautiful face. As he walked through the door, my focus turned back to Mistress, and I caught that funny look in her eyes again.

"Ready to go upstairs, Pet?"

"Yes, Mistress."

She held her hand out to me, and neither of us bothered to put our clothes on before leaving the room and re-entering our lives.

Rose was spare with her words, more quiet and contemplative than usual, and it made me nervous. I knew better than to push her; she'd talk to me when she was ready, but I still made sure to show her the caring and consideration I always did post-playtime. In our bath, we drank wine and listened to quiet music. We relaxed and held hands under the water. We almost fell asleep.

After we realized how exhausted we were – it was well past two in the morning by then – we drained the tub and curled into bed. My brain wouldn't shut down, an endless stream of worry and anxiety over whatever it was Rose was thinking. She didn't seem to have any trouble falling asleep, though, and I breathed a little easier when I heard her light snore and she pulled me closer.

In the morning, the sun warmed me. It took a moment to realize I was alone, but then I opened my eyes and tried to peek around for her. I smelled coffee, so I knew she had to be around somewhere. Stretching, I contemplated rolling over for more sleep. My thoughts were interrupted by her peeking her head around the corner.

"You're up," she said, wide smile on her beautiful face.

"Mhm, I am." I stretched again and yawned. "Whatcha doin'?"

"I was just making breakfast. Well, more like brunch at this point," she said with a laugh. "Hungry?"

"Fuck yes."

I was suddenly energized by the thought of a breakfast made by her, with her. She'd slipped on a nightgown and I watched the way it swirled around her body as we walked into the kitchen.

When our plates were piled ridiculously high, we sat at the kitchen table and shared a nervous smile.

"So, last night..." I started.

"I already checked in with Edward," she said. "He seems good. He thanked me about twenty times."

"Rose, you know I love Edward, but that's not what I care about right now. Are you okay?"

"Me?" she asked, face contorting. "Sure. I'm fine."

"Yeah?"

I wanted to believe her, but there had to be more. It couldn't have just been that easy, not with the funny looks and strange way she was so … tender with him.

"Do you... Are you..."

I started and stopped so many times in my head, managing to do so out loud only twice. It was like my brain wouldn't send the message to my mouth to form the words.

"Am I what?" she asked, scooting a little closer. "Damn, now I'm worried about you. Are you okay, B?"

She covered my hand with hers and her body shifted toward mine, which made me smile.

"I'm fine, I promise." I knew the only way I could spit the words out was to close my eyes and say them as fast as I could. "DoyouhavefeelingsforEdward?"

"Fuck," she said, blowing out air along with the letters. "No, I don't have feelings for Edward, weirdo. God, I thought you were going to tell me you were leaving or something."

"No, I mean, I love Edward, but I don't love him. I'm not leaving you until you push me out the door," I said for emphasis. I meant every word of what I'd said.

"Not gonna happen," she said, popping a bite of blueberry muffin into her mouth. "You're just stuck with me."

"Poor me," I said with a dramatic sigh. "Stuck here, lost in your love forever. How will I go on?"

Laughing, we went back to eating and the mood lightened for the rest of the day. I could still sense something nagging just under the surface of her, though, and sure enough, the heavy mood from earlier crept in under the dark of night.

"What would you think if I..."

"If you what, baby?" I asked, squeezing our hands.

"What if I wanted that?"

Out of context and with no framework, I had no clue what the fuck she meant.

"Want what?"

"What if I wanted to be with a man?" she asked, hesitating. "Just once. Just to see what it's like."

It was kind of adorable, the way she was clearly so self-conscious and nervous. For fuck's sake, she could have done anything she wanted downstairs.

Then I let her question roll around a little more as I thought about it. I wasn't really sure how I felt, and I told her about my concerns.

"I think it would be good for you to experience it, you know?" I said, reassuring her. "I think if you want to do it, we should. Just don't leave me out, please. I want to be there. And it might be weird if it's Edward. Wait, do you mean like, fucking, or do you want to sub for someone?"

"I... I don't know. I don't think I want to be anyone's bottom, especially not in a situation like that. I'd want to be in control, for sure. Just, the way he looks at you, and the way you look when he's inside you. I don't think I've ever seen you look that way."

Her wanting to be in control made sense to me, but the rest of it? Total nonsense.

"I love you, Rose. I love you so much. Just tell me what you need and I'll give it to you. Maybe we can go to a party and meet someone open to playing with both of us. But trust me, the way I look at him? I don't know what you see, all I can tell you is what I feel and what's in my heart. You. You're the one person there. If you wanted to stop playing with other people, I'd agree in a heartbeat."

"I love you, too. I'll think about it more and we can talk again."

Several weeks went by. I got nervous when Rose didn't bring the topic up again, nor did she seem to want to visit the playroom with me. Nothing else seemed off – she was still just as affectionate as ever, and open to my advances as well, it was just … something wasn't right.

Rose had agreed that we'd go to a few of the local parties and see if we could find the right person. Of course, I had no idea what that person would look like. Did Rose have a type? Did she want a pretty guy? Did looks even matter, for these purposes? I wondered if there was a way to check out their pants while being discreet.

The first party we went to was mostly a bust. There were a lot of men there, but none of them captured Rose's attention like she'd wanted. Edward was there, so we hugged and hung around him most of the time.

Something about that party must've jarred Rose, though, and I wasn't sure if it was good or bad until I saw my ring sparkle in its holder the following Wednesday. Joyful didn't even begin to cover describing our night.

The second gathering we went to was at the same home I'd met Edward all those years ago. I smiled as we walked around and I remembered playing there with him, although he wasn't there that night.

A deep baritone voice brought me from my musings with a greeting.

"Hello," the stranger said, a youthful grin on his face.

"Hi. I'm Bella," I replied, putting my hand out for him to shake.

"Bella," he repeated. He brought my hand to his lips and kissed, and I laughed. I wondered if guys like that still really existed, and decided they must – my proof was in front of me.

"Having a nice time?" he asked, leaning closer to look into the room at what I'd been watching.

"I am."

Suddenly, I worried about where Rose was. I looked around, remembering she'd wandered to grab something to drink. In the corner of the room opposite ours, she was leaning against the wall, smiling at me. One of her eyebrows quirked, and the side of her mouth lifted in a half-smile.

"HIM?" I mouthed, nearly frantic and panicking. She'd sent him over? She'd seen him and wanted to know more? A thousand questions raced through my mind.

Rose nodded, then brought her Diet Coke can to her lips, taking a long sip. Her smile grew and when she lowered the can, she mouthed, "Yes?" to me.

She was giving me the option to veto, and I wasn't sure yet. The guy next to me was … young. Certainly younger than Rose and me. I needed to know more from her, to ask her all the questions lingering, but when I made a move to walk to her, she shook her head.

Clarity set in – she was making the call, but giving me an out.

At this point, the muscled man standing inappropriately close to me brought his fingers beneath my chin, tilting my face up to his.

"Please say yes," he practically whispered.