Falling for Royalty

Chapter 4

Bella

The day of the much-awaited ball had finally arrived. Right on cue, the Denalis had arrived the day before along with several other covens, but unlike the Cullens, they didn't plan on staying for any great length of time. They seemed to have a solid family network, but as much as I tried, I wasn't able to connect with them like I did with the Cullens. They'd been spending the majority of their time with Carlisle, Esme, my father, and uncles - although Tanya seemed much opposed to that arrangement. It didn't take a psychologist to realise her clear desire to spend every waking minute with Edward.

I was glad that the Cullens had extended their stay - they were having such a good time, and the sentiments were returned. With them, it felt a bit like I had found a second family.

With the ball due to start in a couple of hours, the Cullen kids had decided to kill that time in my bedroom.

Upon making his entrance for the first time, Edward had been nothing short of impressed by the bookshelf spanning the entire right wall, containing just a few of my favourite novels. I had to admit; his approval did boost my ego - just the slightest.

"What's your favourite?" he looked from the books to me, appearing as though my answer was going to be the most interesting thing he would hear for the day.

I tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear, unbelievably flustered from his on-the-spot question, but seemingly hiding that fact well. I moved in closer to the collection, running my fingers along the spines until they easily and swiftly selected one that I had a tradition to read at least once a year.

"Wuthering Heights?" his lips slowly upturned into a grin, and he shook his head, "You never fail to amaze me, Bella."

What on earth did he mean by that?

"Why is that so surprising?" I wondered, attempting to shift my focus from the fact that I apparently amazed him.

He chuckled, looking from the book to my face, "I didn't mean it in a bad way. I just didn't expect you to be a fan of the classics. It's refreshing." His smile went from less teasing to one that showed a touch more earnestness. It was a dangerous thing, allowing myself to stare - I could feel myself losing concentration as I slipped deeper and deeper into those butterscotch eyes of his.

Thankfully, I managed to break contant, smiling at his compliment before following the others as they found a place to settle down.

As we all sat in a circle, couples grouped together on the loveseats, Jace on the armchair, Edward and I gravitated towards the black leather couch.

I adjusted my position so that my legs were folded beneath me, just as Edward leaned back, making himself a little more comfortable. A good couple of inches separated us from one another, and admittedly, I had mixed feelings about it.

"So what do you guys want to do to pass the time?" I asked, thinking that the only possibility was a movie, or something along those lines.

Everyone continued to ponder, twisting their ideas over internally, but before long, Jace caught a wicked glint in his eye, zeroing in on me. My own eyes widened, hoping to all of the Gods above that his mind wasn't going where I could see it going.

Oh, no.

"We should watch some old videos of Bella."