The White Swan Lodge by jarkin33
Rating: M
Genre: Drama/Romance
Characters: Edward/Bella
Summary: Tragedy led her there. Commitment forced him there. Can a place of beauty and solitude hold the fate they were both seeking…
“The sensation of a light breeze rippled through the tall pine trees surrounding me as if urging me forward. I inhaled the fresh air, wiped my tears, squared my shoulders and took one careful step at a time to the front door and my future.”- Bella
“The cab honked on the street below. I quickly put on my grey hoodie, grabbed my things and locked my front door. When I stepped out into the cool, autumn air, I felt an unfamiliar exhilaration. Something deep in my gut told me this trip could change the aimless path I'd been on for so long.” - Edward
First of all, let me just say this for the prologue...Hot damn... Jaime, you are a little tease but a damn good one at that. So honestly you all don’t even need to read this review, just read the prologue and you’ll be aching for more.
But, this is kind of my job, so I’m going to take a stab at trying to summarize Jaime’s sweet, special touch of the English language into my crazy words.
In the beginning of this story, Bella is a photographer in Arizona when life throws her a wicked curve ball, leaving her motherless. But, this curve ball also gives her a new opportunity to escape her blasé life in Phoenix, because she inherits a nature lodge to run near her old hometown of Forks, Washington.
Then we see our good old Edward packing and getting ready to hit the road for an upcoming assignment. He is a travel critic and is being sent to a lodge in Washington where the owner has recently died and is now under new management. Learning this fact about the lodge makes him reflect on how blasé his life is, as well. He hasn't seen his family in months and every girl he is with is just a good bang. He has nothing to hold on to and he already feels for the poor girl, but knows that he has a job to do. No matter what, he must be critical of the lodge and how the new manager runs it.
This is one of those stories where the stars align for a certain reason and in this case it’s for our dear Bella and lovely Edward to meet. They are both wandering souls on the trail of life, seeking and searching for something still unknown to them.
Edward arrives at the lodge to an unsuspecting Bella and asks if he could please have a place to stay. She has no idea of his intentions and even though she wanted some time to fix up the place, she for some reason can’t seem to tell him no.
“The engine shut off in the black Jeep Cherokee just before the driver side door opened slightly. I moved even closer to the vehicle anticipating who might be inside. The door swung wide open and I noticed a hint of bronze hair. The man suddenly leaned back inside towards the passenger side to grab something; then he finally emerged. I saw a gloriously tall man step out onto the gravel, shut his car door and smile in one fluid motion. My heart raced and my breath hitched. I was quite certain I'd never seen such a handsome face. He pushed the dark sunglasses he was wearing up through his hair revealing the most breathtaking green eyes I'd ever seen. He towered over me; had to be at least 6'2". He was dressed in a worn grey hoodie jacket with a black t-shirt underneath, jeans and a pair of Converse tennis shoes. I forced myself from the spell this man's appearance had me under and spoke first.
"Jake?"
The stranger shook his head. "No, Edward. Sorry for showing up like this. I mean, I don't have a reservation or anything." His voice was like liquid velvet. It was strong, deep and unintentionally sexy.”
The lodge is certainly not ready for guests, so Bella has to make the bed for Edward and for some reason unbeknownst to him, he can’t help but help her.
Even though she should be getting poor marks in his critique, they instead have by far the hottest and most UST filled bed making session in fanfic history.
“Following her lead I fit the final corner. We both reached for the flat sheet at the same time and my hand wrapped around hers. It was delicate, warm and soft; and I didn't want to let go. Her eyes met mine and I could hear her inhale a deep breath. I reactively let go. As we were laying the sheet flat and smoothing out each side, our hands met in the middle, fingertips just barely brushing. I watched her and she watched me. It was the most oddly intimate moment I'd ever had with a woman while fully clothed.”
And that was just a snippet of it....
This tale is going to be filled with lovely awkward moments as Bella and Edward share a beautiful getaway lodge alone for a week and with the UST that has happened in just the few moments of interaction they have had with each other, I can honestly say I am dying to see how it all plays out and I really want to know who attacks who first.
I usually end on a note saying please give this fic a chance, blah, blah, blah, but I decided to part with this lovely note;
“Not able to resist any longer, I pushed open the swinging door and the sight nearly knocked me over. I had to lean against the small counter that housed the espresso machine to brace my weight. The idyllic beauty of the surrounding waterfalls, mountains and lakes be damned. I had a barefoot Bella Swan in front of me… sucking icing off her finger…with her eyes closed in motherfucking ecstasy."
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