Forbidden Love: Amusingly Incisive, Leisurely-Paced Twilight Romance

"Wow, this is a big house."

"Yes, it's Edward's. He inherited it from his father a few years ago."

"Has he been here long?"

"No, just a few years… but I've known him since he was in high school, so I guess you could say I know him better than anyone else does," Bella smiled. "He went to Dartmouth for some time, but then he dropped out and started his company."

"That's impressive," Isabella said with a smile. "What did his dad do?"

"He was a stockbroker or something like that."

"So what kind of business does Edward have?" she asked as they pulled into the driveway. The house looked like an oversized log cabin. It was large and imposing, with a huge front porch and giant windows on all sides of the house. A porch light was on, but otherwise the light inside the house appeared to be off. Isabella wondered if Edward was home and what he'd think of her mother showing up with her daughter. She sighed quietly to herself knowing that he probably wasn't home yet.

"He makes wine and sells it to restaurants and stuff," Bella explained as she pulled slowly into the garage. "It's pretty expensive stuff too."

Isabella peered curiously at the house again as they got out of the car. Bella took her bags out of the trunk and walked with Isabella up to the house. They walked through the mud room and into the kitchen where there were two people sitting at a table eating dinner. One was a woman who looked to be about 45 years old, with dark brown hair that was tied back into a ponytail. The other person, who Isabella assumed must be Edward, looked to be about 30 years old and had black hair just past his shoulders that curled slightly at the ends around his ears. He had thin lips and prominent cheek bones, which gave him an almost elven look about him. His skin looked tan and healthy except for a red scar down one side of his face near his eye that looked somewhat irritated. His eyes were narrowed in annoyance as he stared at Bella intently when she walked in with Isabella behind her.

"Hi," Bella said cheerfully as she set down Isabella's bags on the floor by the door. "This is my daughter Isabella." She turned to look at Isabella with an expectant smile on her face as if wanting her to say something in return.

Isabella shoved her hands into her jacket pockets and glanced quickly around the kitchen before looking back at Bella with an unsure smile on her face before saying "Hi." She felt nervous around these people, especially this man named Edward who was staring at her intensely while chewing awkwardly on his lip ring like he wanted to say something but wasn't sure what it was yet or if he even wanted to say anything at all. Not knowing what else to do or say she shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot before turning to look toward the older lady sitting at the table across from Edward.

She seemed nice enough; not nearly as intimidating as this strange man named Edward sitting across from her with piercing blue eyes watching her every move intently while chewing on his lip ring nervously like he couldn't decide whether or not he should open his mouth or not like he didn't know what kind of reaction whatever thing might come out of it might cause or how best it would be received by whomever might be receiving it from him or if it would even be worth anyone getting upset over whatever it might be once it finally came out of him anyway… anyway… anyway..