Author's Note: I admit I am kind of rusty in the smut department. I haven't written a decent piece of smut for almost two months, but I hope the actual story is what keeps your attention, not the sex. I guess I can claim that because the characters are in a "new" relationship, the sex is bound to be a little awkward.

If there are any mistakes, I beg forgiveness.

Read on.

Time of the Season

December 23 6:52 a.m.

Flashes of red and green seemed to pulse against Bella's closed eyelids and while she tried to ignore it and go back to sleep, the colors only aided the pounding of her head and the churning of her stomach. For every flash of red, her head pounded. For every flash of green, the nausea in her stomach increased.

And she felt cold. Very cold. Like she wasn't wearing any clothing, but that puzzled her because she could feel the fabric against her legs. Her mouth was dry and her throat felt scratchy. Her legs and back ached and the rest of her body felt like dead weight.

Her head was resting on something smooth and hard, though soft at the same time. Cracking open her eyes, the green and red annoyances only got worse. They became more pronounced and Bella realized that her head was resting next to a depiction of Frosty the Snow Man. The red and green tiny lights were surrounding him.

Confusion coursing through her body, Bella averted her eyes to her surroundings and felt a wave of panic consume her when she saw not the four light blue walls of her comfy bedroom in her apartment, but cream colored walls and an old brown carpet. She was lying next to a desk. And a black swivel chair.

Her eyes traveled down to what she was resting on and with a gasp, she bolted upright where she was. Her eyes widened and a hand went to her mouth as she began to breathe heavily while she took in the half naked form of her coworker Edward Cullen.

His black pants and boxers were resting a few feet from her and she reached over, grabbed them, lifted her eyes to the ceiling and gingerly placed them in his lap to cover a very impressive part of his anatomy.

Still gasping slightly from her little wake up, Bella looked down at her body and was almost thrown into hysterics. Her blouse was nowhere to be found, her black pencil skirt had been hiked up to her waist where it met her crimson bra, which had been yanked down to her stomach, exposing her now cold breasts.

Hearing Edward groan next to her, Bella scrambled to pull her bra back up and put it in place. She saw Edward lift a hand to his face and rub tiredly and she scooted away from him as he propped himself up on his elbows.

Despite the panic and distress Bella felt, her heart fluttered when he opened his unfocused green eyes and looked around adorably confused. His eyes blinked and widened when he saw he wasn't wearing his pants and when he looked at Bella, his cheeks turned pink.

They were quiet for a long moment and then Edward sat all the way up, propped on his hands.

"What the hell happened?" He asked her, his voice rough with sleep and confusion.

Bella groaned, both hands coming up to shield her face. "I was hoping you would remember."

"Not so loud please." She heard him whisper and looked up to see him rubbing his temples.

Bella's hand went to the back of her neck, trying to massage a kink out of it, as she breathed deeply trying to remember what the fuck had gone on the previous night. There had been the office Christmas party and she remembered the routine of eating, singing, opening Secret Santa gifts…and then after that it was all hazy.

"Did I sing to you?" Edward asked her, his dilated eyes trained on the ground.

"I think we sang to each other." Bella groaned, rubbing her eyes. She caught sight of his blinking Frosty the Snow Man shirt. "Your niece gave that to you right?"

She pointed at his shirt when he shot her a confused look, and then he nodded. He looked her over and his eyes lit up while a smile graced his lips. "Did I give that to you?"

She cocked her head in confusion and he tapped his left collarbone.

Looking down, Bella gasped as she saw red puffy patch of skin that could only be a hickey.

"Oh my god…" She groaned and covered her face with her hands again while Edward chuckled.

Edward started to stand, holding his pants and boxers in front of him and Bella turned away, her eyes closing in despair. Bella and Edward had been office buddies for over a year, ever since he'd come to work there. He had caught her very loudly bashing their boss in an empty conference room his first week there and had asked if he could join her. And that was the start of a beautiful friendship.

They made fun of their coworkers together, took turns buying each other coffee, traded insults like they traded CDs and movies, and they took their lunch breaks together. She'd even tried flirting with him at some point, but he had seemed oblivious and, well, Bella wasn't that great of a flirt anyway, so she had let it rest. Why mess up a good office relationship just because you were horny?

But then it had turned to something more. She wanted more with him than just casual office sex, although that would be welcome as well. With each joke he told her, every story about his family, and every cup of coffee he left on her desk, Bella fell more in love with Edward Cullen. She'd gotten an inkling that just maybe she had more than just an office crush on him when it had been her birthday in September. She'd forgotten to take the day off and when she had arrived at her desk in the half cubicle she shared with Angela, there had been a bouquet of roses waiting for her with a wrapped present. The present had turned out to be a collection of poems from all of her favorite authors.

But it had been back in October when she first truly realized how deeply her feelings ran for him when she saw him dressed as the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz and was passing out candy to the little kids in the office playroom, where employees could bring their children for the day. All of the little kids had flocked to him, and Edward hadn't seemed to mind one bit. He even sung 'If I Only Had a Heart' which made Bella smile and laugh as she watched from across the lobby.

Like the love struck stalker she was.

And now, after two months of trying to either hide her feelings for him or leave hints for him, she was sitting on the floor of his office after they'd had a round of drunken office Christmas party sex, trying to pull herself together and not cry in front of him because she couldn't remember any of it. And that just about broke her heart. She wanted to remember.

Because any chance she may have had at starting a relationship with him were firmly shot to hell and she would never be able to have him again.

She felt something touch her shoulder and turning her head she saw her red blouse from the night before. Smiling slightly up at Edward, she took it from his and put her arms through the sleeves and buttoned it up.

She stumbled when she tried to stand up; only then realizing that she'd kept her black heels on from the night before. Her cheeks flamed again. This morning was just getting better and better.

Bella looked at Edward again and kind of smiled, kind of grimaced in his direction. Her head was pounding full force now that she was upright.

"So…" Edward said stuffing his hands inside his pockets.

"So…um…I guess since we don't really remember…exactly what happened…" she paused looking for the right words to say. But really, what is one supposed to say? "Maybe we should just…forget it." And start fresh Bella wanted to add but went silent. She didn't look at him when she said it, hoping he wouldn't see how desperately she wanted him to dispute what she'd said.

She was met with silence and when she looked up she saw Edward's jaw clenched and his eyes were dark with some emotion she couldn't place.

And then he swallowed, blinked and met her eyes once again. "Sure. It was just a mistake. We'll forget about it."

He was agreeing with her and while she should have felt relieved, all his words brought were more turmoil to her already churning stomach.

But she plastered a smile on her face and nodded with a hopefully relieved expression on her face but then her eyes caught sight of his chair.

The top of the black leather swivel chair had looked like it had been torn apart. The white fluffy interior was poking out and Bella's eyes widened.

She looked down at her finger nails. Seeing some black bits lodged underneath the nail on some, she felt the blush assault her again.

"Oh my god. I tore the hell out of your chair." Her voice was high pitched in her humiliation.

She stepped forward and turned it around. She placed her hands where the leather was torn and her fingers fit the indentations and she heard Edward laugh behind her.

"It's okay. I was due for a new chair anyway."

"I'll pay for it." She said, turning to him.

He just smiled guardedly and shook his head. "The company pays for those things. It's really okay Bella."

She just nodded her head and began walking to the door of his office. But as she walked she noticed she was missing something kind of important.

"Um…do you know where my underwear ended up last night?" She asked in a small quiet voice. The blush on her face was probably permanent now.

Edward's lips twitched as he shook his head. "What do they look like again?"

She leveled a glare at him and he just remained calm, gazing at her.

"Red…with little green bows…at the hips." And she indicated to her hip bones with her index fingers.

Edward stifled a laugh and shook his head again. "No, sorry. I didn't see them."

"Great." Bella sighed, taking a look around his office.

"Hey," She turned back to him and saw him leaning against the door. "Why don't you go home? Take the morning, recuperate a bit and then come back after lunch."

And another reason occurred to her about why they should keep this "mistake" under wraps. Edward had just been promoted. He was technically her boss now. One of them at least.

Edward saw her face fall as that thought crossed her mind and stepped forward and cupped her cheek.

"It's okay Bella. You don't have to worry about anything. We're still friends." She saw him grimace slightly at the word "friends" and wondered if he didn't even want that type of relationship with her anymore.

She could handle not being with him romantically but if he didn't want to be her friend…she didn't know about that.

Edward schooled his features back into a smile and pecked her forehead before giving her shoulders a slight squeeze and leading her out of his office.

"I'll see you after lunch then." She said over her shoulder and he nodded his head before closing the door.

Bella stood out in the hallway for a few minutes still trying to wrap her mind around what had just happened. She tried remembering how the events of last night could have possibly escalated into sex, but she had nothing.

Shaking her head with a small sigh, Bella walked down the hall, turning to the left to go to her little half cubicle and grab her jacket and bag.

She stopped short coming to the ceiling to floor glass wall of one of the Executives offices. There was a stone pillar right at the turn of another hallway that led to the conference room where the party had been the night before. She walked towards the glass and brought her hand up to a smudge that was on it.

Turning her hand so that back of it was against the glass, she was assaulted by a memory…

…muffled giggling and an arm was around her waist, keeping her steady on the heels Angela had insisted she wear. They stumbled down the hallway, the sound of Burl Ives coming from the conference room fading as they continued walking. Her arm was clutching at his shoulders and every couple of steps their thighs brushed turning the atmosphere around them into something electrical. A pair of lips brushed her neck and cheek moving sloppily up to her ear and Bella was breathless. They turned the corner at the pillar and Edward tightened the arm he had around her waist, backing her up against the glass wall, attaching his lips firmly to hers. Bella's hand gripped at the back of his head, as the tastes of peppermint and alcohol and Edward overwhelmed her mouth and nose. He made her weak in the knees and just as she was about to buckle and slither to the floor from just his kiss, he pulled her body against his, her feet coming off the floor, and slammed her more firmly into the glass, grabbing her other hand with his, bringing it up to the glass as well. His tongue played and danced with hers as the alcohol faded and they were overwhelmed by the taste of each other…

Blinking and taking her hand from the glass, Bella bit her lip and continued on her way to her desk and grabbed her coat and bag.

o-0-o

Bella was surprised at how little early morning Seattle traffic there was as she made her way to her apartment but she was happy about it.

Hurrying into her bathroom and turning on her shower to one of the hottest temperatures it would go; Bella stripped down but just before going inside, she caught sight of her skin in the mirror.

"Jesus." She whispered as she took in the numerous marks on both of her collarbones. Lifting her hair, Bella saw one on the left side of her neck and one tiny one on the top of her right breast.

Her cheeks flaming, Bella glared at the mirror.

"Shit Edward." She muttered before stepping into the shower.

Grabbing her shampoo, Bella lathered it into her hair then grabbed her soap. She allowed the hot water to hit all of the sore muscles in her back and her eyes closed as she began to relax for the first time that morning.

…their fingers met in a frantic pushiness trying to get the door to his office open, their kisses becoming more frenzied, a pathetic whimper coming from her throat…

Her eyes snapped open. She shook her head, sending shampoo bubbles everywhere and went back to rubbing her sore neck, eyes closing again.

…hands hot underneath her thighs, hoisted her onto Edward's desk as she clutched at his shoulders, his mouth hot on her neck as his fingers came up to attack the buttons of her blouse…

Bella sighed. "I guess I'll just have to keep my eyes open then." She muttered to herself.

But that proved to be easier said then done. Bella had just gotten to her conditioner and was lathering it in and she closed her eyes.

…her mouth fell open in a gasp as his index finger ran up the cloth covering her slit and then both of his hands gripped at the offending material of her holiday underwear, dragging them slowly down her thighs and over her calves before Edward tossed her soaked panties behind him and cupped the wet heat in between her legs, bringing his lips back to hers as they fell slowly back on his desk…

The majority of Bella's morning was spent in the shower.

o-0-o

Bella tapped her black flat covered foot as the elevator made its way up to the floor of her office. She felt butterflies in her stomach at the thought of seeing Edward again and she tried to map out alternate routes to her desk or the conference rooms so she wouldn't have to face him.

And then she felt awful. She'd never had to avoid him ever. And now, because they both were too drunk to know any better, she was wondering if it would be easier if they never had to see each other again.

The elevator opened and she began to walk the long way to her desk.

When she got there, she smiled at Angela and removed her coat, placing it over the back of her chair and sat down.

"So, how was your after party last night?" Angela quirked a brow at her.

Bella's eyes widened as she looked at Angela across from her and she froze. How could she possibly know? Did Angela see something last night?

Swallowing around the lump in her throat, Bella blinked at the sudden dryness of her eyes. She leaned forward a little bit so her long hair covered the mark on her neck, hoping Angela hadn't seen it.

"Excuse me?" She said in a strained voice.

"Well, you seemed pretty buzzed when Ben and I left. I was just wondering if your night went better than mine." She sighed in exasperation, a smile on her face. "Right when we got home, Ben threw up on the side walk. I had to lug him all by myself up two flights of stairs to get inside and then to the bathroom because he was not going to throw up on the carpet."

A relieved smile flitted across Bella's face and she laughed at Angela's story, but it was more out of relief that she and Edward hadn't been caught.

As Angela continued talking, Bella just nodded her head occasionally and hummed in acknowledgement as she turned her computer on and opened up her day timer. She checked her in box for any paperwork that may have been dropped there in the morning and then from across the office and out of the corner of her eye, like she had some built in Edward Cullen radar, Bella saw him. He had changed out of the Frosty shirt and was now in a crisp white button down, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He looked tired she noted with some satisfaction. He was glaring at some paperwork he held in his hand, but looking at who was walking next to him, probably talking his ear off, Bella knew it wasn't the paperwork he was glaring at.

Lauren Mallory had been trying for months to get Edward to take her on a date.

And for months Edward and Bella had been making fun of her. Edward would do these impressions of her in a high pitched girly voice that put Bella in stitches every time she heard it.

Bella started laughing when she saw Edward shake his arm out of Lauren's hand and roll his eyes.

He stopped and turned to talk to her, but he froze when his eyes met Bella's over Lauren's shoulder.

He smiled at her. And Bella felt like she was being burned. It was the same smile that kept flashing across her mind when she'd been in the shower that morning. It made her breathless and she'd never felt happier to be sitting down.

"Oh Bella," Angela brought Bella's attention away from Edward. "Here. You left this in the conference room last night. One of the mail carriers brought it by."

And Angela tossed a tiny partially wrapped box on her desk. The silver wrapping was ripped at the top and Bella picked it up, taking the lid off to look inside.

This was the part of the night she did remember with perfect clarity. The Secret Santa gift exchange…

…Bella walked swiftly to the giant tree in the middle of the conference room and placed her wrapped gift under the tree and then walked away at the same pace. She didn't want the recipient to know it had been her to buy that gift.

She passed by some coworkers, greeting them with smiles and a few words and then picked up a green plastic cup and ladled out some eggnog. Turning to observe the party around her, Bella took a sip of the eggnog and smiled when she saw Edward wave at her from across the room.

They made their way to each other, meeting in the middle.

"And a Merry Christmas to you little elf." He said placing a green elf's hat on her head and then placing a Santa hat on his.

They burst out laughing a few seconds later and Bella swiped her hat off her head.

"Where did you find these?" She said still chuckling.

Edward sighed dramatically. "Only I can know. Sorry." She hit him with the hat and he took it from her, laughing still.

Bella looked down at the blinking shirt he had changed into and quirked an amused eyebrow at him.

"Frosty should have stayed outside." She said indicating to the snowman on the front that was smiling happily up at her, blinking red and green.

He mock glared at her. "My two year old niece gave it to me. Have a heart Scrooge."

They laughed together and made their way back over to the refreshments table. Bella watched as Edward got a cup of cider. The bosses wouldn't let the alcohol come out until later.

"So who'd you get for Secret Santa?" He asked with curiosity.

Bella's face scrunched up and a flash of intuition went through Edward's eyes. She only ever made that expression when it came to one person.

"Don't tell me…" Edward started.

"Newton." They said together and Edward rolled his eyes and shook his head.

Then he got a teasing look on his face. "What was on his list? I was so preoccupied with mine I forgot to check."

Bella rolled her eyes and took another big gulp of her eggnog. "He had two categories actually. For a female, he said he wanted a full body shot." She grimaced and Edward bit his lip, trying not to laugh. "And then for a male, he put this way too expensive video game for his XBOX." She rolled her eyes again, something she'd picked up from Edward.

"So? What'd you get him? Please tell me it was the full body shot." He teased.

Bella bit her lip as she blushed. "I got him a keychain." And then they were laughing together, practically falling on each other as Edward wiped at his eyes.

"Poor Newton. I know he's wanted to get a "proper" look at you for some time." Bella slapped him on the shoulder as Edward continued laughing.

And then there was an announcement for Secret Santa time and they went toward the tree, watching as gifts were passed out.

Edward tried hard to hold back his laugh, making it come out more like a cough, when Mike opened his gift and saw the keychain.

"Thank you?" Mike said as he looked around at his coworkers.

Bella elbowed Edward as he started laughing again.

She watched a small silver wrapped box was brought out from under the tree. She heard Edward get quiet next to her and then started when she heard her name called. Smiling and walking forward, Bella accepted the present and began to unwrap it.

Lifting the lid of the small box, she gasped when she caught sight of what was inside.

She gently took the faded gold lapel pin out of its velvet resting place and brought it up to the light. Four rows of the most beautiful pearls she had ever seen adorned the front of the pin.

It was exactly as she remembered.

She met Edward's eyes from across the gathering and she tilted her head to the right. He nodded and followed her over to the refreshments table.

"How did you remember?" She whispered, still overwhelmed by the gift.

"How do you know it was me?" He asked, swiping a hand through his hair, a sign of nervousness.

"Because, seven months ago, we were at that new sandwich place a few block down and we were walking back here and I saw this in a window." She picked up the pin again and held it up for him to look at.

But he was looking at her.

"And you said that it was just like one your grandmother used to have. But your mother lost it. I remember. I remember everything you said." He told her with a small smile, his green eyes were looking at her with such intensity and sincerity.

She stepped forward and put her arms around him. "Thank you." She whispered into his shoulder.

"Don't thank me. Thank Santa."

Picking up the faded gold pin from inside the box, Bella held it up and examined the rows of tiny pearls. She placed it on her desk and then noticed a card taped to the bottom of the box.

Detaching it, she opened the envelope and took out the card.

Yours,

Secret Santa

Short and simple and Bella would recognize Edward's handwriting anywhere.

But what puzzled her was the 'Yours.' She didn't know what to make of it. Was he really hers?

"It was just a mistake."

His words from earlier that morning came back to haunt her and she grudgingly came to realize that any chance of Edward being hers had evaporated last night right along with their inhibitions.

o-0-o

Six hours later, Bella was done until the 27th. She had to get home and finish packing so she could make the trip from Seattle to Forks and spend Christmas with her dad.

Walking to the elevator she stopped short when she saw Edward waiting for the next elevator to open.

Taking a deep breath, Bella continued walking until she stood next to him.

He turned his head to her and smiled. "Hey."

"Hey."

Thankfully the elevator opened and Edward gestured for her to go in front of him. Their fingers met on the button for the first floor and nervous laughter filled the small enclosed space.

"So, are you going to spend Christmas with your family?" Bella asked him.

"Yeah, well they all live in the city so it won't be that hard for everyone to make it over to my parents' house on the 25th."

Bella looked down at the ground. "What are you doing tomorrow?" She tried to sound nonchalant but failed.

Edward didn't notice. "With my new position, I don't have the luxury of taking Christmas Eve off. I'll be here, slaving away over reports." He sighed.

Bella smirked. "You'll be blasting The Cure won't you?"

"Of course."

The elevator opened and they walked to the glass doors of the building. Edward held the door for her and they were just about to part on the sidewalk, their cars parked on opposite ends of the sidewalk when she heard Edward.

"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas."

Bella turned back to him, her brow creased in confusion.

He smiled at her and stuffed his hands into his pockets. "That's what we sang to each other last night. I remember you tried to impress me by imitating Judy Garland…"

And Bella remembered. It was after the bosses gave the okay for the liquor to come out of hiding and she and Edward had helped themselves to many cups of the Peppermint Schnapps. The Christmas CD had been playing over and over again on repeat and Bella remembered Edward had gotten that ridiculous hat back on her head.

They had been dancing…

…they were swaying back and forth to the music, her head resting on his shoulder, his hands linked at the small of her back. He was quietly humming the tune in her ear as she took another drink of the peppermint concoction in her cup and then flung it at Mike Newton when it was empty. Edward's humming turned into actual singing and she lifted her face so she could see him. His eyes were deliciously glazed over and there was the damned crooked smile as his beautiful lips formed the words of one her favorite Christmas songs. Bella smiled back at him and joined him in his quiet singing.

"Faithful friends who are dear to us
Gather near to us once more.
Through the years
We all will be together,
If the Fates allow"

And it had continued on until the song ended and their faces had gotten closer and closer until Bella could taste his breath on her tongue. Their eyes locked and their faces tilted toward each other at the same time…

Bella blinked and smiled sadly at Edward.

"Merry Christmas Edward." And she turned and walked to her car.

"Merry Christmas Bella." She heard him say quietly behind her, and the sound of his footsteps matched the pounding of her heart.

o-0-o

Bella had just gotten out of her car when she heard the front door of Charlie's house open.

"Bells!" She heard him yell and then the sound of his pounding feet on the steps of the porch. Turning she saw him coming towards her with his arms open and she was enveloped in a hug.

"Hi dad. Merry Christmas." She said.

"Merry Christmas sweetie. Let's get your bags." And he moved her out of the way to get at her suitcase and shopping bag full of presents she had purchased for him.

"How was the drive? Not too bad I hope." He said leading the way into the house.

"No not too bad." Bella agreed.

Charlie lugged her suitcase up the stairs and into her old bedroom, setting it at the foot of her bed.

"Well, I'm sure you've had a long day," Bella held back a laugh at that. If you only knew the half of it dad, she thought sarcastically. "I'll say goodnight and let you rest. Billy and Jacob are coming by tomorrow for dinner."

"Oh is Jake bringing Ness?" Bella and Jacob had tried dating when they were in high school but it had never felt right between them. They'd gone their separate ways in college and he'd found a wonderful girl that he'd been dating for the past few years.

Charlie rolled his eyes. "Of course. Those two are attached at the hip."

Bella laughed and sat down on her bed. Charlie stepped forward and placed a kiss on her forehead. "It's good to have you home. Have a good sleep."

o-0-o

Bella did not have a good sleep. She tossed and turned all night, replaying the little snippets of memory that had come back to her the previous day and she tried to be quiet when her fingers lingered underneath the covers a little too long.

She kept picturing Edward's face as he bent her over his desk, she could practically feel his hands holding her thighs apart as he thrust inside of her, hear his voice as he called out her name.

Around four in the morning, Bella finally dozed, but she had dreams of Frosty the Snowman wearing an elf hat and drinking from a red plastic cup.

o-0-o

The morning of Christmas Eve had passed by quietly and uneventfully and Charlie graciously let Bella sleep as he went down to the tree lot and picked up the one he had put on reserve so that when Bella got home, they could decorate it together as a family. He set it up in the living room, after moving some furniture around and then grabbed the boxes of ornaments from the attic and placed them around the room so that when she was ready they could start.

Bella got out of bed a little before noon and made herself something to eat.

And then they decorated the tree. It felt just like old times, at least before her mom had died. Renee had loved Christmas and Charlie would go above and beyond for his wife at that time of year, getting one of the biggest trees and numerous ornaments and lights that he would string all around the house. But then she'd gotten sick when Bella was a teenager. And the first few years after, it seemed like Renee's death had been Charlie's as well. But he'd eventually snapped out of it, seeing how much he was hurting Bella with his behavior.

Bella helped him string up twinkle light all around the house, wrapping them around the stair banister, outlining the doorway to the kitchen, and stringing them up around the living room.

Bella put on some supper and felt relieved to hear that the Blacks' were bringing a turkey over, and would leave them leftovers for the next day. And just like clockwork, at 5 o'clock, the door bell rang and the Blacks' had arrived.

o-0-o

They had enjoyed a nice meal, Bella chatted with Ness, catching up on how things were going with her and Jake.

Then they moved into the living room and Jacob put some gifts they'd brought over under the tree. Bella sat beside Charlie on the couch and pretended to listen as the four of them talked about sports of work.

She just sat there, picturing Edward's face, his smile, his eyes.

And it suddenly felt too warm in there.

Bella excused herself and made her way up to her room, closing and locking the door behind her. She opened her window a little bit and sat on her bed, trying to fan her face. She closed her eyes and lay back…

…they had moved to his black swivel chair, Edward seated before her, her legs straddling him, hands gripping the top of the chair for some leverage as she bounced up and down on him. He was saying her name over and over, mixed in with the words 'fuck' 'faster' and 'Oh god yes'. He had ripped her blouse off her body and shoved her bra down so he could attack her nipples and Bella arched her back, gripping the back of his head, thrusting down on his cock, and then thrusting up to his mouth. His teeth grazed over her flesh and she hissed in pleasure. The heat between their bodies was reaching an all time high and Bella could have sworn she felt electrical sparks where he was thrusting into her body. She felt a hand grip the back of her head and pull her back. Her glazed brown eyes met the dazed green ones of Edward and they paused in their movements. His mouth opened and he got a look of awe on his face.

"I love you." He whispered against her lips, licking the bottom one and gently thrusting upward.

"I love you too." She whispered back and gave a triumphant little smile and then crashed their lips together, resuming her bouncing and his thrusting.

Their declarations had been whispered, unlike the rest of their words said that night.

Because those words of love were meant for their ears only. Let the entire office hear their animalistic calls and movements in his office.

The 'I love yous' were private.

And it was 'I love you' that Bella whispered into his ear after she came down from the high of her orgasm and it was 'I love you' that was whispered back when Edward lowered them to floor, bringing her body close to his, her head falling to his chest and Bella fell into an exhausted sleep…

Bella's eyes snapped open and she shot up in her bed. Her heart was racing now with this new memory.

And she didn't think about her next actions. She just grabbed her coat from the foot of her bed and raced down the stairs.

"Dad, I have to go back to Seattle." She called into the front room, interrupting the conversation.

Charlie stood and walked toward her. "But you just got here."

"I…forgot something." She said, stuffing her arms through her coat and buttoning it up. It wasn't a complete lie. She did forget to really talk with Edward about what had happened. Instead she took the cowards way out and told him to forget about it. When he had put himself on the line and said 'I love you' first.

"Can't it wait until you go back? It's Christmas honey."

"I know. I promise I'll come back tonight. If not, I'll be here tomorrow morning. I promise dad." She called as she ran down the icy steps of the porch.

"Buckle up!" The confused voice of her dad called after her.

o-0-o

"Shouldn't you people be with your families?" She muttered angrily as she sat in the traffic jam just outside of the city limits of Seattle.

She angrily flicked through the radio stations, trying to find some music to calm her nerves and froze upon hearing that damn song. Fucking 'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas'.

Bella groaned and bashed her head on her steering wheel. She jumped when a car behind her honked and she started driving forward slowly.

o-0-o

Bella pulled up slowly to Edward's apartment building. She'd never been there personally, but had gotten the address out of the office directory. Her earlier feelings of rushing and wanting to get to him were gone, and in place of them were nervousness and fear.

What if he told her it had just been drunken ramblings of a horny coworker?

What if he didn't remember saying it at all?

But then Bella remembered she wasn't going to take the coward's way out anymore, and got out of her car, locking her door. She went inside and took the elevator up to the floor indicated on the directory and then searched for his number.

Standing outside of his door, she prayed that he'd still be there and hadn't decided to go to his parents' house early.

Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she lifted her fist and knocked softly on the door. The nerves in her stomach became more pronounced and her heart sped up when she heard him moving around on the inside.

Her breath caught when he opened the door.

His hair was wet, his eyes were bright and his jaw was clean shaven. He was wearing a pair of blue plaid pajama pants and a blue cotton pull over and looked all around heavenly.

He looked at her in confusion and before he could say anything, Bella plunged right in.

"You said you love me."

His face softened and he opened the door wider for her to enter. He took her coat and hung it up on a peg beside the door next to his. She tried not to think about how good their coats looked together and instead focused on Edward, who was walking towards his kitchen.

Following, they stood on opposite sides of the wooden counter and just looked at each other.

Edward sighed. "I was wondering when you were going to remember." He ran a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say it-"

Bella flinched. "So you didn't mean it then."

He chuckled. "If you'll let me finish, I didn't mean to say it like that."

"Like that?"

He nodded his head. "I was picturing something a little bit different for when that came, but in retrospect, anything with you straddling me and saying the same words back is a win-win situation in my book." He smiled crookedly at her.

"You remembered." She stated, ignoring the heat on her face.

He nodded.

"And you didn't say anything."

He nodded again.

"You said it was a mistake."

He sighed. "I was only trying to make you feel better. I could see you were starting to panic about what had happened and I didn't want you to feel like that. 'Mistake' was probably too strong of a word. It again, wasn't how I would have pictured our first time together." He took a step around the counter and walked toward her. "How about these words: amazing, brilliant, fantastic."

Bella had backed up into the counter behind her as Edward continued walking toward her.

"So you meant it?" She asked in a hopeful voice.

"Oh I meant it." He smiled at her, bringing his arms out to trap her in between the counter and his body. He brought his head closer to her and grazed his nose along her jaw line. The smell of his shampoo and body wash overwhelmed her senses and she brought her arms around his neck.

"I meant it too." She whispered into his hair.

"I know." He placed a gentle kiss on her neck, above the mark he'd given her. "I was just waiting for you to remember."

Bella trailed kisses up his cheek to his ear lobe and tugged on it with her teeth. "I'm still a little bit fuzzy on some of the details. How'd you like to help me remember?"

His answering moan was enough confirmation for her.

o-0-o

Edward's bedroom door banged against the wall as he carried Bella into the room. He kicked it shut behind them and then carried her to his bed and plopped her down, coming to lay on top of her, their lips still attached.

Her hands were carding through his hair, as his slithered down to her jean covered hips and lifted the tee shirt she was wearing to stroke the skin of her stomach.

Planting her feet on the bed, Bella pushed herself further up the bed to the pillows and Edward grabbed her hands in his and pinned her wrists above their heads and his hips started grinding into hers.

Her hands were clutching at the fabric of his pillows as Edward trailed kisses down her neck, trying to move the neckline of her shirt down so he could get at more of her skin. Bella was feeling cotton all around her hands but then froze when her fingers came in contact with something silk.

Her eyes opened and she grabbed hold of the silky material, raising her eyebrows when it came up pretty easily. She brought whatever it was in front of her face, Edward still preoccupied with leaving as many love bites on her as he could.

Adjusting her eyes to get a good look at the silky material in her hands, Bella gasped.

"Edward!"

His head shot up at her alarmed tone and then seeing what she had in her hands, he blushed.

Bella was holding a pair of silk crimson panties with little green bows where, if you were to put them on, would meet your hip bones.

Her eyes met Edward's. "You little thief."

He ran a hand through his hair. "Oh…yeah." He grinned sheepishly at her.

"I can't believe you had me walk through the office and drive home going commando." She tried to look angry but couldn't help the slight twitch of her lips.

He smiled at her. "I can't help it that they smelled so good." He bent to kiss her lips, but she angled her head away so he met her cheek, which was fine with him. He placed kisses all over her face, while asking her if he could keep them.

He finally captured her lips and she tossed the panties over the side of his bed.

With Edward hovering above her, Bella really couldn't bring herself to care about much else.

His hands went up her shirt and cupped her breasts, massaging them through the material of her bra as his tongue flicked against hers.

But then he was gone.

She opened her eyes and saw him kneeling above her.

"I believe you asked me to help you remember exactly what we did."

She shivered at his husky tone and nodded her head, smiling up at him. He leaned toward her and she propped up on her elbows to meet him. His lips brushed against hers.

"Then we better go to my desk." He turned his head and looked in the corner of his room. Bella followed his gaze and saw he had a desk set up with a chair.

She felt the wetness in between her legs double and she shifted uncomfortably in her jeans.

Edward grabbed her hand and pulled her off the bed with him and against his chest.

"I think it went a little something like this." He whispered to her while walking her backwards to the window. He pressed her back against the glass and captured her lips, grabbing her hand in his and pressing that against the glass as well. His arm around her waist brought her body closer to his, her leg lifting from the floor to wrap around his thigh. His tongue plundered her mouth and his hips bucked slowly into hers. He brought his hand from around her waist to undo the button of her jeans and then lowered the zipper.

"We're gonna have to…improvise a little…" He panted against her mouth and then lowered the jeans off her legs and helped her step out of them. She giggled when she heard him mutter something about skirts giving easier access and then moaned softly when his hands caressed her thighs and gentle hot kisses were placed on her skin.

His hands went behind her legs and he hoisted her body up to his and he walked them over to his desk and gently lowered her so she was sitting before him. She saw he had already gotten rid of his plaid pajama pants and she reached out and touched the bulge in his boxers and he crashed their lips together again.

She felt his fingers rub against her slit through her panties and she smiled against his lips, anticipating what she knew was coming next. He lowered her soaked underwear off her legs and then he lowered her so she was lying on his desk, her legs wrapped around his waist. Edward was standing before her, his hands running over the skin of her legs and then his fingers were back at her slit, rubbing and flicking against her clit, a finger tracing over her entrance. Bella's mouth opened and she gasped at the tingles that sent through her body. Her toes curled and her legs clenched around his waist.

Her eyes were closed but she felt the material of Edward's boxers fall to the floor and she breathed a sigh of relief, feeling his skin against hers. She felt the tip of his erection rub against her and she whimpered in frustration and heard Edward's laugh.

She opened her eyes to glare at him, before propping herself on her elbows and tightening her legs around him, bringing him closer. With that movement, he was pushing inside of her and her head fell back in a moan of satisfaction.

He pushed slowly until he was all the way and then he muttered, "That was new."

And then he was thrusting gently inside her, pushing the material of her shirt out of his way to rub her stomach and stroke the tops of her breasts. His hands went back down to her hips, holding her to the desk when she tried to meet his thrusts. He started going deeper and harder but still kept the same level pace which drove Bella crazy with need.

Edward leaned close to her and licked the shell of her ear and whispered to her, "Somewhere around here we moved to the chair. You said you wanted to come on top." He chuckled to her, speeding up his thrusts, and placing a kiss on her neck. "Of course I had no objections."

And with that, his hands gripped her legs again and brought her against his body, her arms circling his neck, holding onto him as he sat in the desk chair.

She was basically on her knees perched above him and her hands went to the back of the chair for leverage as she started moving on him. She lifted the tee shirt all the way off her body and unclasped her bra so that too could fall to the floor. Edward pulled her body closer and dipped his head, placing an open mouthed kiss in the valley between her breasts and then began sucking on a nipple.

Bella sped up her movements, trying to take all of him with every downward thrust but wanting to go as fast as she could.

Her arms hugged around his back, wanting to be as close to him as she could, and his were around her waist and she heard her name being called over and over again as the heat threatened to consume them.

His hands were gripping her ass, making her come down on him more forcefully and she felt herself clenching all around him, her toes curled and her fingers dug into his shoulder blades.

She felt as if the flames really did consume her as she clenched almost painfully around his cock and her orgasm pulsed through her body.

She felt Edward freeze beneath her and then she felt him spill into her, making her feel warm on the inside.

It was quiet in Edward's room, except for their heavy breathing as they tried to calm their racing heartbeats. Bella placed a kiss on his shoulder and he swiped the hair away from her neck to lick and kiss the skin he met there.

"I do love you." He whispered into her neck.

Bella sighed and smiled into his hair. "I love you too."

Edward gently picked her up again, and Bella winced slightly when he left her body and carried her back to his bed, lifting the covers and placing her gently on the mattress and climbing in next to her.

She folded her body next to his, their legs entwining together under the covers, their arms holding each other close.

Author's Note: From me, to you! I hope you guys enjoyed this. I had lots of fun writing it! I wasn't going to put this out until tomorrow, but I don't know how much I'll be around the computer tomorrow or the next day. Besides, you guys have been really great about reading and reviewing my more serious stuff, so I thought you'd enjoy a little break from that.

I hope it was okay! Really, this one shot was a way for me to get over my little dry spell in the smut department.

Anyway, please leave a review. I love every single one I get!

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanza, and all that Jazz!