I looked up at his face warily. His eyes were closed, and his jaw was strained.

“I’ll never forgive myself for leaving you,” he whispered. “Not if I live a hundred thousand years.”

I put my hand against his cold face and waited until he sighed and opened his eyes.

“You were just trying to do the right thing. And I’m sure it would have worked with anyone less mental than me. Besides, you’re here now. That’s the part that matters.”

“If I’d never left, you wouldn’t feel the need to go risk your life to comfort a dog.”

I flinched. I was used to Jacob and all his derogatory slurs — bloodsucker, leech, parasite. . . . Somehow it sounded harsher in Edward’s velvet voice.

“I don’t know how to phrase this properly,” Edward said, and his tone was bleak. “It’s going to sound cruel, I suppose. But I’ve come too close to losing you in the past. I know what it feels like to think I have. I am not going to tolerate anything dangerous.”

“You have to trust me on this. I’ll be fine.”

His face was pained again. “Please, Bella,” he whispered.

I stared into his suddenly burning golden eyes. “Please what?”

“Please, for me. Please make a conscious effort to keep yourself safe. I’ll do everything I can, but I would appreciate a little help.”

“I’ll work on it,” I murmured.

“Do you really have any idea how important you are to me? Any concept at all of how much I love you?” He pulled me tighter against his hard chest, tucking my head under his chin.

I pressed my lips against his snow-cold neck. “I know how much I love you,” I answered.

“You compare one small tree to the entire forest.”

I rolled my eyes, but he couldn’t see. “Impossible.”

He kissed the top of my head and sighed.

“No werewolves.”

“I’m not going along with that. I have to see Jacob.”

“Then I’ll have to stop you.”

He sounded utterly confident that this wouldn’t be a problem.

I was sure he was right.

“We’ll see about that,” I bluffed anyway. “He’s still my friend.”

I could feel Jacob’s note in my pocket, like it suddenly weighed ten pounds. I could hear the words in his voice, and he seemed to be agreeing with Edward — something that would never happen in reality.

Doesn’t change anything. Sorry.