All recognizable characters are the intellectual property of Mrs. Stephenie Meyer. The plot and the other characters are the intellectual property of ME. No part of this fanfiction may be reproduced without my permission. No monetary gain is being made from this work.
Just a little taste, for those who care!
Edward was enjoying a bit of sunshine, fresh air, and a newsprint when his walk was interrupted by the panicked voice of a lady. "Oh my! I feel faint!" He sighed as he turned in the direction of the voice.
Ah, yes, the dirty blond again. Her name was 'Lauren', wasn't it? The back of her hand was pressed dramatically to her forehead, "Isn't there a doctor anywhere nearby?" She cried as she fanned herself shamelessly. He stepped up onto the boardwalk and tipped his hat, and smiled.
"I believe that you called for a doctor, madam, and I am at your service." The formerly fainting lady was once again giggling and flushed with color. Her friend was more of the same.
"Ooh, oh. It's back. I shall faint dead away this time. Jessica I mean it!" The girl whimpered, taking one step nearer Edward, and practically threw herself into his arms. Jessica Stanley cried in terror loud enough that the entire town could hear. Everyone within earshot came running, but none so quickly as a blond haired, blue eyed young man in buckskin trousers, a white collared shirt, and a doeskin vest.
Edward hoisted the always fainting Lauren into his arms and set her carefully into a rocking chair, out of the sun; while the young blond man fetched water from the pump near the livery. "Dr. Masen, she's not conscious!"
"Have no fear, Miss Stanley. She'll be well enough in a moment. See? She's already coming to."
"Oh... OH!" She simpered, as she took in the anxious faces of the townsfolk. She saved Edward's gaze for last, but knew that he would be awed by her beauty. After all, he had carried her through half of the town, in broad daylight, just so that she would have a nice place to sit! She was not disappointed when she found him leaning against a guardrail, one bootheel pressed firmly, against a wood spindle, beneath his thigh. She felt a warmth spread through her, and she knew that she must claim this gorgeously wealthy man as hers. "Dr. Masen! My hero!"
"God, Sue. Pull it tighter!" Rose screamed as she held onto the bed post. Her abdomen pulled in protest as the laces of her full whale boned corset strained to open.
"I will not, Rosalie. You don't need to be damaging your belly for something so silly as this." Sooleawa was firm. Mrs. Newton had left a small portion of Rose's bodice open a bit, in the back, knowing that she'd be spending most of her time in the wheelchair. "Dr. Masen would have a right fit if he saw you putting on this contraption."
"It's a nursing corset!" Rose howled at Sue, not interested in hearing Sue's misplaced wisdom. "If it wasn't meant for a woman to wear after she had a baby, they wouldn't exist!"
"Gooood morning ladies!" Emmett crowed as he entered his wife's bedroom to help break up the fight that was making everyone downstairs having breakfast nervous. "How's my lovely wife this morning?" He bent at the hips to give Rose a kiss, but she slapped him.
"What in tarnation do you have to be so cheerful about, you big oaf?" Emmett disguised his laugh as a cough. He signaled that she should spin around and grab the bedpost. He gave one good pull, which really didn't make it any tighter than it had been, before it loosened during Rose's boxing match with Sue. Having pulled it, Emmett quickly tied it so that it shouldn't loosen, tossed her bodice in her direction, and left the room.
Bella watched Edward flip over the railing and spin, before landing flat on his back directly on top of a rose bush. She had been standing next to Sue, who was holding the newly Christened Emmett Eugene McCarty III; named for Rose's late Father-in-Law.
Sue gave Bella a hefty shove with her shoulder, when Edward hit the ground with a loud thud. Bella hadn't been expecting it, and fell to her hands and knees. She managed to scramble up, without getting any grass stains on her new dress, and jog in Edward's direction. As she reached him, a panic swelled over her. He seemed to be unconscious, and she was surprised by how much that worried her.
No longer caring if her dress became soiled, she crouched over him, and pulled his neck away from the thorny rose bush. He was very heavy, and she was barely able to move him. He began to stir, and Bella was relieved. He moaned, and brought his hands to his head. Finally, he opened one eye, just enough to see Bella sitting over him. He sighed as she brushed his unruly hair out of his eyes. She was fighting a smile, and despite the pain of a thousand thorns digging into the back half of him, he smiled back.
"You look mighty nice, Miss Swan." Groaning loudly, he reached behind him, and pulled. "I picked you wildflowers this morning. They're still in the church, so until I can get off of this blame hard ground, this'll have to do. He dethorned a single, partially crushed rose and placed it behind her ear. "Stunning."
