I write my History Final this morning, so reviews would be greatly appreciated. Good or bad!

Thanks again SunflowerFran for being my beta! I never realize how many mistakes I make no matter how many times I read it over.


I looked up at the stars and fought to keep my eyes open as we kept going. It was now quite cold out, Emmett and I had put our jackets on, part of mine wrapped around Isabella's shoulders, making her shift in her sleep to get comfortable. She was exhausted and that overruled her pain and she had fallen into slumber about an hour or two ago, little sounds coming from her every now and then.

We eventually stopped for an hour so that the horses and cattle could take a little rest and eat. The little calves greedily sucked at their mothers, their gurgling sounds the only thing disrupting the silence of the night. Emmett came over and sighed, taking big gulps from his canteen and pulling his jacket closer around him. The sun was brutal, but as soon as it went down, the night nipped at you something fierce.

"How's her leg doing? With it sitting for this long, Pa's gonna have to work harder to set it and that's gonna hurt like a bitch," he said, shaking his head and grimacing. I glared at him and looked down at Isabella to make sure she was still sleeping. She didn't need to be hearing his foul words. He shrugged sheepishly. Ma would have slapped his mouth if she were here.

"I haven't looked at it, but it's been hanging in this position for so long, it's going to be even more agony to get her down once we get home. It makes my leg hurt just to think about it. Pa doesn't have anything good enough that'll stop her from screamin' when he sets it." I tightened my arm around her and got her head resting back on my shoulder as she started to fall back from settling into a deeper sleep. Emmett smiled gently down at her with a little chuckle. His eyes drooped a bit before he looked back up at me. We were both so tired, but we didn't have the time to rest.

"I can't stop thinking about falling into bed and sleeping for hours with Rosie in my arms. Sounds amazing," he groaned, palming at his face. Resting my head down on a pillow made me want to groan myself, but I held it in as Isabella whimpered and squirmed in my arms more before settling down.

"So where did she come from?" Emmett broke the silence after a few minutes, jerkin' his chin down to Isabella. I shrugged slowly.

"I didn't ask, but she's actually in a little bit of trouble, though," I confessed. His head shot up. His light blue eyes narrowed.

"What kind of trouble?"

"Marriage trouble," I whispered. I clenched my teeth together. Not my story to tell. Emmett opened his mouth to question me further, but I held up my hand to stop him.

"Not my story to tell, brother. You understand, right?" He nodded with a grunt and looked out at the cattle with hard eyes. He wanted to know more just as much as I did.

"Hey, she hasn't told me too much about it. You're not the only one." His shoulders seemed to relax after I said that. Emmett hated to be left out of anything.

We didn't say anymore to each other after that; just enjoying the silence and the few crickets that quieted down every time the cattle made noise or the horses shifted. Isabella seemed to fall into a deeper sleep every minute that passed, her head continuously falling from my shoulder and me barely fast enough to catch it before she fell over or woke up. A few times, I almost jerked her up by her hair but stopped myself just in time before I did.

We knew we had to be on our way as the calves started running around after each other and knocking each other over. They were getting excited and were beginning to move farther away from their mothers. We got them back together and headed toward home. We were now very close.

"Hey, Ed," Emmett called from up front. I just barely caught the little pouch he threw at me.

"What's this?"

"Some jerky. I was saving it until we got really hungry. I can't hold back anymore." He was mumbling through the handful he had stuffed in his mouth. I raised my eyebrows at him.

"Why didn't I know about this?" He swallowed thickly and shoved more into his mouth with animalistic sounds.

"I didn't need you taking it before it was necessary," he said. I scoffed. Yes, because I ate so much food, way more than Emmett, and couldn't control myself around it. He laughed as if he knew what I was thinking.

I got some pieces out and almost shoved them down my throat. My stomach growled like it was thanking me. I left the rest for Isabella. I let her sleep so that she could escape the pain for a while longer until we got home and she could have a real meal. She could have the jerky if she woke up before we arrived. I took a few more sips from my canteen and shifted Isabella in my arms before I picked up my pace to keep up with Emmett and the cattle.

More stars appeared in the black sky the closer we got to home. Emmett's horse was picking up speed. He was over excited to get back to his wife and bed … for sleep and other things. I closed my eyes for a moment and shook my head, shaking those disturbing thoughts away. I was too tired to be thinking about stuff like that.

"Em, could you slow down? I can't go any faster or else Isabella will wake up," I called to him. He looked back at me and slowed. Barely. I rolled my eyes but kept my pace. It put me at ease with Isabella sleeping and her not feeling any pain. Her leg would be throbbing terribly by now instead of a sharp pain like earlier. At least that would be more bearable, but just.

"Whoo!" Emmett suddenly cried, startling Ash, myself, and Isabella, who jumped in my arms and tightened her grip around me with wide eyes and a pale face. The moonlight just barely allowed me to see her features.

"What…?" She was disoriented and looked around frantically. I calmed her down and yelled at Emmett. He wasn't fazed in the least as he waved away my threats with a flick of his hand.

"Home sweet home." He took a long dramatic breath and let it out. We could slightly see the house through the thick trees. The cattle and horses ears twitched at the sound of the other horses in the pasture. I'm sure they were excited to be able to rest and get a good night's sleep. I yawned deeply at the thought.

"Is this your home?" Isabella asked in my ear, her warm breath fanning over my skin. I tensed my muscles to stop from visibly shaking from the sensation. I cleared my throat and looked down at her.

"Sure is," Emmett said loudly before I could open my mouth to reply. How did he even hear her? Isabella laughed at his enthusiasm. It was quite funny coming from a big guy like him.

We broke through the trees and I couldn't remember another time that I felt such relief about being home.


So the chapters are short, but with school work and other things going on in my life, updating more than once a week just wouldn't work. Thank you for reading and please leave a review!

Join "Pay It Forward" on Facebook. Great group and so welcoming!

Leave a review. It would be greatly appreciated!