AN: A big huge thanks for Dazzle for being awesome and making my chapter readable! Thanks to everyone for all the reviews! I heart all of you!
I don't have a lot to say. I hope you guys enjoy the chapter! You're getting it earlier than expected. You can thank the peer pressure I get from the girls in the Twilighted chat room.
I'll see you down below!
Chapter 4: Party Time
BPOV
____
There's no reason to be nervous. There's no reason to be nervous. There's no reason to be nervous.
"Bella, seriously, baby, there is no reason to be nervous."
I look at Edward with a frown. "How do you know I'm nervous?"
He chuckles softly. "You crushing the fuck out of my hand might have been a clue."
I gasp and let go of his hand. "Oh, I'm so sorry!"
I bring his hand up to my lips and place a soft kiss on the reddened skin. "Bella, please just breathe. Okay, love? This will all be over with soon and you'll be a better woman for it."
I shake my head. "I don't know. Maybe this is a bad sign. Maybe I shouldn't do this."
Edward rolls his eyes. "There is no way in hell I'm going to let you not go to college, baby. I love you and want only the best for you. You graduated at the top of your class. You have a full scholarship. Just because you aren't sure what to major in doesn't mean you shouldn't go. There are a ton of people that start college unsure about everything. You'll find your way, baby. I promise."
"God, I love you so much. How do you do that?"
He chuckles again, kissing my engagement ring. "Tell you what you need to hear?" I nod. He shrugs as he turns on to another street. "It's very simple, babe. You need encouragement to see the obvious. You'd be able to do the same for me. As a matter of fact, you've helped me through a lot of things just by talking me through it. We just know what the other needs." He winks at me. "There's no magic in that."
I smile, running my hand through the hair on the side of his head. He had recently gotten it cut. Two days after the dinner with Dad and Sue, Edward comes home with much shorter hair. It wasn't long to start with, but the lady cut it really close to his head and left the top longer. She told him she left it for him to style. When he told me that, I laughed. His styling process is towel drying it and letting it do as it wants. Thankfully, that was two weeks ago and his hair has grown out a little since. I like something I can run my hands through.
Edward's phone begins ringing. He always rolls his eyes at me as I smile at him when Alice calls. After he heard Etta James' At Last as his ringtone, he asked if everyone had a personal ringtone. I told him they did and convinced him to do the same thing. It took him about two and half weeks to get everyone a song. He chose Sister by Dave Matthews. With the way he treats her sometimes, you'd never think that he feels that way about Alice, and it always brings a smile to my face.
He answers the phone, "We're almost there, Tweety Bird. Here, talk to Bella, I don't want to get a ticket."
Edward hands me the phone. "Hey, Alice."
"At least one of you knows my damn name."
I laugh. "Edward's right. We're almost there."
She huffs. "How is it that you guys live in Seattle and can't make it here on time while we live three hours away and get here early?"
I scoff. "Do you really want to know why we're late?"
She sighs. "Seriously, you two need to take a break."
I roll my eyes. "Will you please stop concerning yourself with how much Edward and I have sex?"
"Oh my—I think I'm going to vomit."
"Then stop worrying about it. If we're late, now you know why—and you knew that even before I told you. I can't help myself, Alice. Your brother just knows how to—"
I hear a click and look down at the phone to see the numbers flashing, indicating the call was ended. I laugh as I set his phone in the center console. Edward takes my hand and presses it to his lips as he keeps his eyes on the road. "I just know how to do what?"
I giggle, biting my lip and winking at him as he glances over at me. "You know how to please me."
He gets a smug look on his face, kissing my engagement ring before setting our hands back in my lap. "Fucking right…" he mumbles.
* * *
We meet Alice and Jasper in front of the financial aid offices. They're talking with two girls and a guy. When we walk up, it doesn't go unnoticed by me that the two girls are checking out Edward. Alice introduces them, "Edward, Bella, this is Garrett Hyde, Claire Livingston, and Renesmee Montoya. Everyone, this is my brother, Edward Cullen, and his fiancé and my best friend, Bella Swan."
The girls' eyes grew a little wider at the announcement of our betrothal. That's right bitches… he's mine, so don't even think about it. Edward and I shake hands with the new people. Alice goes on to tell us, "Claire is majoring in Business, Renesmee in Biology, and Garrett in Criminal Justice."
Wow, they already know what they want to major in. Jasper chuckles. "I wish I knew what I was majoring in. Is it normal for freshmen to be so unsure?"
I grab Jasper's hand and nod. "Yes, I'm in the same boat as you."
Edward chuckles. "It's very normal. I was just telling Bella on the drive over here that freshmen come to college all the time not knowing what they want to do, and some might come with an idea, but end up changing their minds after that."
Claire smiles sweetly at Edward and I raised my eyebrow. "Are you a freshmen too?"
Edward shakes his head. "No, no. I'm in my first year of medical school. Which means this is where I take my leave." What?! No!
Edward takes my hand. "If you'll excuse us."
Alice groans. "You don't have time to—"
I hold up my finger, giving her a stern look. "Shut it."
Alice rolls her eyes as Edward pulls me over towards the stairs leading up to the building. He stands on the step below me. "You'll be okay, baby. Jasper and you are both going to be majoring in General Studies. You'll have someone with you the whole way."
I nod, trying to calm down, but frown a little. I never considered how nerve wrecking this would be. It's funny that I have no problem committing myself to Edward or the future children we'll have together. That doesn't bother or frighten me in the least. However, committing to a major in college is scary as hell. Actually, the whole college thing is scary as hell.
Edward must have seen more inner turmoil raging in my mind on my face. He wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me against him. "Baby, stop. You're going to end up with a panic attack. You're going to be amazing. College isn't that much different than high school—you still have teachers and classes and homework, except now you have more freedom to choose what you want to do. You have more control over what classes you take and when you take them." He presses his lips to my scar, leaving them there as he tells me, "You're so smart and talented. You need to stop worrying about something you're going to be wonderful at."
I sigh and nod, pulling away enough to look in his eyes. "You're right."
He chuckles. "I know I'm right. Stop thinking about the bad when there is so much good that's going to come from this."
I rest my head against his chest and close my eyes, forgetting my surroundings and letting the feeling of being pressed against him fight my fears away.
"People are starting to stare at us."
"So?"
He chuckles and pushes me away gently. "You need to go get your financial aid taken care of and then go get your classes sorted. You have your phone on you?" I nod as I check my pocket. "Good. I've got mine on me and if you need me for any reason at all, you better not fucking hesitate to call me. Understand, little girl?"
I smile at him and kiss him goodbye. "I understand."
He smiles at me, kissing me again before winking and walking away. I turn back to the group and find Claire watching Edward walk away. Renesmee sees me looking at Claire and nudges her in the side as I walk up. At least she has the decency to look embarrassed. Alice clears her throat. "Well, it was nice meeting you guys. Maybe we'll see each other around campus!"
I gave them a tight smile, moving past the three freshmen as I make my way into the building. I don't need to be the jealous girlfriend right now. I need to worry about signing the paperwork to finish my grant process and get my classes sorted. Then I plan on hiding in my closet until Dad and Sue get married and taking shelter again until Edward drags me out for the first day of school.
We walk in to find a rather large line of people heading in to the financial aid office. They've got about ten people helping the students, but there are still about twenty people in front of us. Alice starts looking through a magazine dealing with the campus sororities. I scoff. "You can't be serious?"
She shrugs. "I don't see why not. Rosalie was in one."
I frown. "Really? Rosalie?"
Alice nods. "Yeah. I think I might join the one she did." She looks up at me. "You should join one too."
I shake my head. "No, I don't really think I'm going to have time for one."
Alice smiles at me. "That's right. You have wedding plans to make."
I smile. "We're not going to have a big wedding like Em and Rose. It's just going to be something small."
She frowns. "What?! I don't think so! You can't have a small wedding!"
Her little outburst drew the attention of a couple of people in front of us. I smile at them and then look at her. "What the hell, Alice?"
Jasper chimes in. "I think since it's her wedding she can do whatever she wants."
She frowns at Jasper and looks back down at her magazine. "Fine, but when you're older and you regret it, don't look at me."
What the hell is wrong with her? She's been getting increasingly angry as the weeks had passed since prom. At first I worried she was upset that Edward had asked me to marry him, she assured me that wasn't the case, but I'm starting to wonder if she lied to me. I push her anger out of my mind and focus on the task at hand. I have enough on my plate to worry with.
* * *
After our financial aid is taken care of, we head off to our academic advisors. Unfortunately, Alice's advisor is different from Jasper's and mine since she already has an idea of what she wants to accomplish out of life. She's majoring in Business and her advisor is across campus. Jasper offers to walk her, but she quickly turns him down and tells us she'd meet up with us later.
Jasper and I head off towards Anderson Hall. The walk is silent. I take a deep breath, but before I can say anything, Jasper tells me, "It's me."
I frown at him. "What? What's you?"
"The reason Alice is angry."
I put my hands in my pockets. "Tell me what's going on."
Jasper takes a deep breath and shakes his head. "Alice had no idea Edward was going to propose to you. She thought that when Edward arranged for us a ride back to her house that he just wanted you to himself. She wasn't faking being shocked when you showed her the ring, Bella." He shakes his head. "She got so angry with me; she didn't understand how the two of you could be engaged after being together for just shy of a year and we hadn't even talked about it. I tried to convince her that I had plans to ask her to marry me, that I didn't need a ring to prove that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. At first she was okay with that, but then Em and Rose's wedding brought the whole argument back. I told her that I would ask her to marry me when I was ready to ask her, not because everyone we know is doing it."
I frown at him. "Then why is she angry with me?"
He shakes his head. "She's not angry with you, per se. She's more jealous of you than angry with you. You're getting married and she's not."
"But, do you want to marry her?"
He nods, fervently. "Yes! Very much, but I'm not going to be pressured in to it, you see?"
I nod. "Yeah, I totally understand. I wouldn't want that."
He sighs. "But she just won't listen to me—she wants to do it now. I want to be her husband just as bad as she wants to be my wife, but they're just titles to me. I don't see the point in rushing it. We have so much other shit to worry with. We're still young. What's the hurry?"
"I think Alice just wants to be linked to you in every way, at least that's how I feel with Edward. There isn't a rush, that's why we're waiting until next summer, but we still wish to be married as soon as possible. I want the title of being his wife. I want to be called Bella Cullen and know that it's his last name I'm carrying. There's something intimate about being bound to someone like that."
Jasper looks at me with a little confusion. "Seriously?"
I nod. "Yeah. I mean, you're together in every sense of the word. How can that not be intimate? You're getting up in front of everyone you care about and pledging your love and devotion for this person. You're making a vow to honor and protect them for the rest of your life."
He nods. "Yeah, I guess you're right."
I shrug. "It could just be me. Edward's turned me in to such a romantic." I laugh quietly. "It's probably different for everyone, but I know the look I saw in Em and Rose's eyes said they felt it too."
He frowns. "Yeah, I saw that too."
I nudge his shoulder with mine. "What? What's wrong?"
He shakes his head. "I just don't feel that way about it. I mean, I love Alice completely, but getting married isn't going to mean too much more to me than a sheet of paper and a set of rings. I'm going to love her just as much now as on our wedding day."
I shake my head. "It's not about loving her more. I couldn't love Edward anymore than I already do. I mean he is everything to me. Getting married would just bring us closer together."
Jasper's frown deepens slightly as he nods. "I understand that."
"But?"
He shakes his head. "No 'but'."
* * *
Jasper and I walk out of Anderson Hall with pretty much the exact same schedule. He's taking History where I'm taking English, but that's about it. We step away from one another and call our other halves. Edward picks up on the second ring.
"Hey, baby! How did it go?!"
I smile at his enthusiasm. "Pretty good. Jasper and I are going to be connected at the hip for this semester. I think it'll be great."
"That's great, Bella. I'm so happy that you've calmed down."
I giggle. "Yeah, well, we still have the first day of school to go through."
"Blah, we'll worry with that when it comes. Right now, tell me where you are."
"I'm standing on the steps to Anderson Hall."
"Really? Is that where your advisor is?"
"Yeah. He's a really nice guy."
"Guy, huh?"
"Yeah, guy—as in of the male origin."
"I know what a guy is Bella."
"I'd hope so, I mean, you are studying to be a doctor."
Edward came to his decision two days ago. He'd told me he was really leaning towards still becoming a pediatrician, but still had some doubts. I kissed him and told him he should do it. I also told him that he'd look really hot in the scrubs he'd be forced to wear. I doubt that solidified his decision, but he hasn't spoken one word about doing something else since then.
"I'm almost to Anderson Hall. Where is Alice?"
"I don't know. Jasper is on the phone with her. He and I talked about Alice."
"Good. Did he tell you why she was being a stubborn little bitch?"
"Edward…"
"Seriously, Bella. She's your best friend and my goddamn sister. You'd think she would be just a little happy for us—"
"She's jealous," I told him, effectively cutting him off.
"What?"
I sigh. "I don't want to have this conversation on the phone or even at this time. We can talk about it when we get home, okay?"
"Okay," he said, his voice sounding much closer and behind me. I spin around and see him standing there with a crooked grin on his face. He stands on the step lower than me, just like he did at the financial aid building. I can't help but wrap my arms around him and kiss him eagerly.
A throat clearing pulls us apart. We turn and find Jasper standing there with a smile on his face, hands in his pockets, and bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Alice wants us to meet her outside of Clark Hall. She's just about to talk to her advisor."
Edward turns around, "Hop on, love."
I giggle and climb onto Edward's back. Jasper walks beside us, shaking his head for a second before starting up a meaningless conversation. Once Alice is done making her schedule, we head out for a late lunch. Alice is like her old Alice-self. There are no arguments and we all get along great! I'm even pleased that when we say goodbye to one another, she's still pleasant and tells me she wants my help picking out her dorm furniture. I readily agree and the four of us pair off and head home.
Edward and I get in the car and look at one another. I frown. "I wonder what changed her attitude…"
Edward shrugs, running a hand through his hair as he starts the car. "Beats me. So what's the problem? I've held my tongue long enough, Bella."
I sigh, taking his hand once we're on the road back home. "Jasper told me she's jealous of us—of me. She's upset that Jasper hasn't proposed to her. She doesn't understand how we got engaged a couple months after being together for a year while she and Jasper have been together for the past four years."
Edward sighs. "Are you fucking serious?"
I nod. "Jasper is taking the brunt of it obviously. I doubt she means to be the way she is towards us, but something tells me she can't help it. I mean here we are: engaged, living off campus together, and getting married at the beginning of next summer. We've got all these great things going for us, while she's got a boyfriend that doesn't want to be pressured into proposing to her."
"He feels pressured?"
I shake my head, "Not exactly. Jasper said he loves her completely and wants to marry her someday, but he wants to do so on his terms. Alice isn't helping with the pressuring, though."
He nods. "And she's taking it out on you because she wants to live your life?"
I nod again. He sighs and shakes his head. "Listen, Bella. I know you'll sit there and take her shit until the end of the world, but I'm not going to let her keep treating you like this. Jasper can fight his own battles, but—"
"I can fight my own battles, too."
He smiles. "I know you can, baby, I didn't mean you couldn't. I'm just not going to allow her to keep treating you like this. She's snarky every time you guys talk. You call her up and get off the phone upset. I don't want that for you, baby. I know she's your best friend and has been since before I came along, but I'll be damned if she keeps disrespecting you like that."
I sigh and nod. "I understand."
He nods. "Good. I'm glad you won't fight me on this. I don't need the both of you mad at me."
I laugh, running my fingers over the back of his hand. "I can't stay mad at you for long, Edward."
He nods. "I know, but I still don't like it when you're angry with me."
I kiss the back of his hand. "Let's talk about something less stressing. Let's talk about the party this weekend!"
____
EPOV
____
I wake up Saturday morning and the first thought that hits me is tonight is that blasted party. At first, Bella had been excited about it; a couple of days ago on the ride home from getting our class schedules in order, she was still happy about it. But the morning after, things changed and had continued to grow increasingly worse until last night when I wanted to shake her. She worried my friends wouldn't like her, then it went to us making sure there was enough food to feed all twenty people, then it went to my friends not liking her cooking… It just didn't stop until I took her mind off of it. If she was thinking about the party while screaming my name, I'll kill her… no, I wouldn't kill her, but I'd be very upset…
I roll over and see her sitting up in the bed with a pad of paper in her lap and chewing on the end of pen as she frowns down at the paper. I roll my eyes and sigh heavily as I recognize what's in her lap. She gives me an apologetic look. "Sorry," she whispers. "I'm just going over everything."
I get up and snatch the pad of paper from her lap. "Dammit, Bella. Would you stop worrying about this fucking party? What has gotten into you?" I get out of bed and throw the pad onto the desk. I run my hand through my hair and grab my pajama pants off the floor. Once I have them on, I turn to Bella to find her with her head on her knees.
I sigh. I shouldn't have hollered at her. I crawl back in bed and sit against the headboard. I run my hand over her back. "Baby?"
She just shakes her head. Her body jerks slightly and I know she's crying. I grab her and pull her into my lap, holding her against my chest so she doesn't move away from me. "What's going on, love?"
She shakes her head. "I just want tonight to be perfect," she whispers.
I sigh against the top of her head. "Tonight is going to be great. Why do you keep fretting over this? What's really bugging you?"
"What if they don't like me?" she whispers so low that I hardly made out what she said.
"What if who doesn't like you? My friends?" She nods. I tilt her head back so she's forced to look at me. "I honestly don't give a fuck whether they like you or not. No matter what happens tonight, I'm not going to feel any different about you, Bella. I love you and by this time next year, you're going to be my wife." Tears fell down her cheeks and her chin quivered. I kiss her forehead. I sigh and move her off my lap so that she sitting in front of me.
"Bella, the truth is they probably won't like you. I know Victoria won't." The tears fell down her face, but I want her to be prepared for this. As a guy, I didn't see this as a problem. I've had friends whose friends didn't like me. I didn't give a fuck, but for some reason, this is really important to my girl. "It won't have anything to do with you as a person, just what you pose to their world." I wipe her tears away. "Victoria Kirkland and Charlotte Wilder are very stubborn people. We've had our group for a long time and they don't take well to outsiders. They fucking treat it like it's a cult."
All of the sudden she frowns angrily. "You mean they aren't even going to give me a chance before they hate me?"
I shake my head. "Unfortunately, no. You've met James and he told me he liked you. The rest of them will be more open. It's really just Victoria and Charlotte you have to worry about. Scratch that, you don't have to worry about that, you don't have to worry about anything."
She takes a deep breath. "I don't understand. Why would they hate me?" She looks down at her hands. "I mean, I make you happy," she says softly in a tone that sounded slightly questionable.
I tilt her face up so that she's looking at me again. "You make me very happy. Victoria and Charlotte are just stuck up girls that I put up with because of James and Peter. Peter is Charlotte's husband." She nods, probably remembering the numerous conversations in which I've talked about my friends. "Just overlook them and know they don't really matter to me."
She takes a deep breath. "Promise me something."
"Name it."
She sighs. "Promise me you won't leave me alone."
I nod. "I promise to do everything I can to not leave you alone, baby. If I'm not with you, I'll make sure Alice is beside you. Or Rose. Rose can't stand Victoria and Charlotte either."
She nods. "I'll accept that."
I grab her hips and pull her back into my lap, wrapping her legs around me. I look into her eyes. "I love you, Bella. You can't seriously think that my friends' opinions matter more than my own feelings."
She shakes her head. "I just don't want any strain on your friendships. I want to be a part of everything in your life and making friends with these people is important to me. I haven't made friends since Alice and Jasper."
I rest my forehead against hers. "It'll work out, baby, I promise. Everything will be okay."
She sighs and nods. "I believe you. I'll listen to your intuition."
I can't tell her that my gut isn't telling me this would end well. It isn't telling me anything. They were more words of encouragement than anything else. She didn't need to worry with making friends with them. I more than likely won't ever talk to these people once medical school is over. They all want to move to different parts of the US to start their practices.
I kiss her. "Come on. Let's get a shower right fast and start on some of the food. Dad and Emmett will be here in a couple of hours with the grill."
She wipes her cheeks and smiles at me, wrapping her arms around my neck and her legs tighter around my waist. "Up, up, and away."
I throw my head back as I laugh at her. I hold her close as I get off the bed and carry us to the bathroom, chuckling at her one-eighty degree mood swing.
* * *
Dad, Mom, Em, and Rose show up around one that afternoon. The party isn't set to start until three, but they just had to help. I'm grateful they arrived when they did. Bella's been driving me crazy. She's making sure that everything is perfect, which means she evaluates everything I do to make sure it's up to par. I haven't said anything, but I'm at my wits' end and want this party to be over with right now.
I leave Bella in the kitchen to greet our family outside. I grab my mother by the shoulders and look at her desperately. "Please go take my place in the kitchen. Bella can't calm down and she keeps going over everything we've done. Just… help her. Please?"
Mom smiles at me apologetically. "Edward, this is a big thing for her."
Dad comes up and pats me on my shoulder. "She's just trying to prove to everyone that she's okay here. That everything is fine. Even though none of us are worried things aren't going beautifully, she still wants to make sure we know."
"And she also has the added pressure of meeting your friends for the first time," Mom says as she pats my hands.
I release my hold on her so she can go into the house. Rose walks up to take her place in front of me. "Did I hear that right?! Bella hasn't met your friends?!"
I grimace. "I know. You'd think she would've met them by now. I just haven't wanted to share yet. I like it being the two of us. I know as soon as they meet her, they'll want us to start double dating and shit."
Rose shakes her head. "Victoria and Charlotte are going to tear her apart, you know that right? Have you even warned her?"
"What do you mean tear her apart?" Dad asks with concern in his voice.
Rose sighs and shakes her head again. "Those two girls… I don't even know where to begin really. They've never liked me simply because I'm different. It's like they can only hang out with doctors or something."
Emmett walks up and wraps his arm around Rose's shoulders. "They have issues with change, both spawning from traumatic childhood experiences where change meant pain."
It's so strange listening to Emmett talk doctor. He's studying to be a psychologist. Rose studied to be a computer information specialist. She knows all about networking and computer stuff.
Dad sighs, shaking his head. "Rose, just stay with her, okay?"
Before Rose could agree, I make sure to tell her, "I promised Bella that I'd make sure either you or Alice stayed with her."
Rose scoffs. "Alice? You sure you want Bella around her?"
I shrug. "They've been getting along better since we hung out at college the other day."
Rose nods. "I'll be sure to stay with her."
Rose pats my shoulder, kisses Em on the cheek, and heads inside. I look between Dad and Emmett and sigh. "Let's get this party started."
* * *
"How are you holding up, baby?"
It's three thirty and everyone but James, Victoria, Peter, Charlotte, Jacob and Sue's daughter, Leah, are here. Sue apologized for Leah changing her mind, but from the relaxed look on Charlie's face, I'm going to assume it's a good thing she didn't show up. Seth did, however, and he was very pleasant to both Bella and me.
Jacob had a date with some girl. He planned on coming to the party, but then a friend of his introduced him to this girl and he had to take her out. Bella told him to bring her here, but he didn't want to overwhelm her on their first date. She told him that he better marry the girl, if he planned on skipping out, because if he blew her off for some skank, she was going to castrate him. Bella's words…
She nods. "I'm better than I thought. So far so good. Tanya and Laurent are really nice, Alice isn't being terse, our neighbors are having a good time, and I have my entire family under one roof."
I pull her to me, hugging her tight and kissing the top of her head. "See? I told you everything would work out, Bella."
She sighs and nods, wrapping her arms around my waist. "I'm sorry," she whispers.
I pull away and cup her face in my hands. "Don't apologize for a thing, little girl," I tell her with a wink. She smiles up at me and nods.
I kiss her quickly. "I need to get these burgers on the grill. Rose will be back in here in a second."
She takes a deep breath and goes back to frosting the two layer chocolate cake she made. She is the best little hostess I'd ever seen. She made sure everyone had something to drink or snack on while Em, Dad, Charlie, Seth, and I grilled the meat. Mom and Rose were helping her while Alice and Tanya were keeping the rest of them entertained.
As soon as I walk out the front door, James, Victoria, Peter, and Charlotte drive up. Dad pats my back and gives me a nod, silently telling me to step up and protect Bella from the hell Victoria and Charlotte will be sure to give her. I walk out to them, smiling because I am happy to see Peter and James. James told me Bella was perfect for me and Peter couldn't wait to meet her.
"Edward!" Peter greets me with a handshake and a hug. James smiles and does the same. I look past them and see Victoria and Charlotte fixing their hair and clothes in the reflection of the car windows.
James pats my shoulder. "We'll try and keep them away from her as much as possible," he whispers.
I nod. "Thanks."
Victoria and Charlotte turn and smile at me. They both give me quick hugs. "So where is the little missus?" Victoria asks with malice in her voice and smirk on her face.
I totally don't believe in hitting women, but right now, I want to bitch slap her. I shove my hands in my pockets and nod back to the house. "She's inside."
Victoria and Charlotte smile at one another before looking back at me. "Well, what's the hold up? Let's go meet her!" Charlotte exclaims as she grabs Victoria's hand and pushes past me, dragging the fiery redhead behind her. I close my eyes and count to five before rushing after them.
I hear James and Peter's dejected sighs behind me. Why they are still with these two… people is beyond me. I walk in behind them and thankfully, Tanya and Laurent cut them off. I make my way into the kitchen and find Rose and Bella giggling over the cake.
"Babe?"
Bella turns quickly, her face falling when she sees me. "They're here, aren't they?"
I just nod. Bella takes off the apron she's had on all day to avoid messing up her pretty white top. She takes a deep breath and Rose grabs her shoulders. "Remember what I said. They aren't worth your time. Their opinion doesn't matter."
I nod as Bella nods in agreement with Rosalie. Rose pushes her towards me gently. I grab her hand and kiss her quickly. "Ready?"
She smiles at me and nods. "Yes."
I pull her into the living room. Alice and Jasper give Bella suspicious looks. She's got a beautiful smile on her face, but the grip she has on my hand lets me know she's still scared. Chris and Shannon shake hands with my four friends after Tanya does the introductions. James sees Bella and smiles brightly at her. "Hey, Bella!"
Bella squeezes my hand before releasing it. She walks up to James. "Hey, James," she says before hugging him. She takes a couple of steps back to where I am. I place my hand on the small of her back as Victoria and Charlotte turn from Chris and Shannon to look at her. Peter does the same and smiles just as brightly as James. "Hey, Bella, I'm Peter Wilder."
Bella shakes his hand. "It's nice to finally meet you," she says with a small giggle. Peter laughs. Nodding, he tells her, "I think Edward just didn't want to share."
I shrug. "What can I say? I'm a selfish bastard."
Victoria and Charlotte push past their significant other and smile down at my girl like she's a feast and they haven't eaten in centuries.
Victoria gives Bella a light hug before saying, "It's so nice to meet you, dear. I'm Victoria Kirkland, James' girlfriend." She taps Bella's nose. "Aren't you just as cute as a button?"
Charlotte steps forward and gives her the same hug. "I'm Charlotte, Peter's wife. Victoria's right; you're just the cutest little thing. When Edward told us you were mature for a seventeen year old, I figured you'd look older too, but you don't look a day over fifteen."
I have to look strangely at Bella when she bursts out laughing. As a matter of fact, everyone but Jasper looks at her like she's crazy. Once her laughing fit is over, she covers her mouth and shakes her head, taking a deep breath. She wraps her arm around my waist and smiles sweetly at Charlotte and Victoria.
"When I was warned about you two, I thought that you'd be complete terrors and pretend to be nice to my face while you berated everything I did behind my back. I didn't expect you to be as stupid as to try to criticize me to my face and try and play it off like complements." She giggles at the memory. "I'm actually eighteen now, just so you know, and I know I look older than fifteen, but thanks for telling me that, it just means that when I'm as old as you two, I won't actually look it." She pulls away from me slightly. "Can I get the four of you something to drink? James, Peter, we have beer out in the cooler. You might have to fight Emmett for one, but there should be some left. Ladies, we have some wine in the kitchen or soda if you'd prefer that."
She waits for their answers with a gorgeous smile on her face like the amazing hostess I already knew she was. James and Peter can't help but chuckle. James motions to the door. "We'll go get a beer."
Bella nods, turning to look again at the shocked faces of the two wicked witches. "Ladies?"
They shake their heads, as if finally recovering from Bella's shut down. Victoria stands up straight. "I'll grab a beer as well." She doesn't let Charlotte answer before she pulls her behind her and out the front door. Tanya and Laurent finally burst out laughing, after holding it in for as long as they could. Alice's face is completely shocked while Jasper chuckles softly and bounces on the balls of his feet. Poor Chris and Shannon have no idea what just took place. I grab Bella's hand and pull her behind me into the kitchen, where Rose is laughing so hard she can't breathe. When she sees us, she sobers enough to tell us, "I'll give you two a second."
She walks out, closing the swinging door behind her as she lets out a loud cackle. Bella turns to me and I can't help it, but I grab her up and crush my lips against hers. She was so hot telling off Victoria and Charlotte and then being nice to them with a hint of snark afterwards just fueled my need for her.
I back her up against a counter, lifting her up and setting her on the counter. I finally get my mind back as I pull away and look at her. Her heavy breathing, swollen red lips, and lust filled eyes almost make me lose it again, but I regain some control.
"You were amazing, baby. I'm so proud to be able to call myself your fiancé."
She giggles softly, kissing me wantonly. "Thank you," she says against my lips. It's then that I notice something. I kiss her again, sucking her bottom lip into my mouth. I pull away and frown. "Your lips taste like wine."
Her cheeks blush slightly and she nods. "Yeah, I had a glass. My hands were shaking and Rose told me it would calm me down. We argued about it, but she convinced me to have some."
We'd both been pretty adamant about no alcohol in the house since I'd gotten stupid with it. We'd bought some for the guests to have for tonight, but neither of us was planning on partaking in any of it. It is slightly extreme for us to swear it off completely, but neither of us wants a repeat of January.
"Bella…"
She nods. "I know, but I needed something to calm me down. If I hadn't had that wine, I wouldn't have had the level headedness I needed to take those two down a notch."
I sigh and shake my head. "Just promise me you won't do it again."
She nods again. "I promise."
I kiss her slowly, before pulling away to tell her, "You know, I believe you would've had the courage. You're a brave, strong woman, baby. You stood up to your own father when he threatened our relationship. It takes a very strong person to stand up to her father and move out on her own."
She rolls her eyes. "I wasn't living on my own, Edward. I moved in with your family. That's hardly strong."
I scoff. "And you standing up to Charlie was what, Bella? You were fucking ready to haul ass the first time I met him simply because you weren't going to let him talk to either of us like that. You weren't going to take shit from your own father and stood up to him without a second thought. Victoria and Charlotte are no different and mean a whole lot less."
She takes a deep breath and leans her head on my shoulder. "You're right. This is all just so overwhelming, Edward. I mean everything is happening so quickly. My life is flying by. I never thought I'd be living with my fiancé by the time I was eighteen. College is going to start soon and I'll have the added worry of classes. Then we're going to be married next summer…"
I pull away from her and look her in the eyes. "Bella, what are you saying?"
Fear like I've never experienced before is coursing through my body. Was she having second thoughts? Did she want space? Was I smothering her? I just love her so much. If she needs some time to think or breathe or whatever, I'd give it to her, but I'm not sure how I'd survive it. Bella is my world and I'm—
Her little hands cup my face. "Edward, stop. You're shaking. I didn't mean anything by what I said. I love you and want to marry you and live with you and be your fiancé. Breathe, Edward."
I take a deep breath when I realize I'm not breathing at all. She shakes her head, kissing me quickly before telling me, "I didn't mean I didn't want any of this. I love living with you. I love being engaged to you. I can't wait to love being married to you. I just meant that I didn't think this would happen to me. I didn't think I'd be here at this age. That doesn't mean I want to give it up for anything, but that also means that I can still find all this overwhelming."
I nod. Thank fucking God… I think I almost had a panic attack… "If there's anything I can do to make this easier or better or—"
She shakes her head, laughing at me. She kisses my forehead, cheeks, and lips before smiling at me. "You couldn't be more perfect if you tried, Edward. There's nothing you're doing or not doing. My being overwhelmed has nothing to do with you, okay? It's all me. I worry too much, take today for example."
I nod. "Yeah." I take another deep breath. "Okay."
She smiles brightly at me. "Can you get me down from here? I think the brownies are almost done."
I chuckle as I pick her up and set her on her feet. She grabs my shirt and pulls me down to kiss her for a moment before pushing me away. "Get out of here before we get caught doing something we shouldn't."
I smirk, backing her against the counter. "You sure?"
She giggles and pushes me away. "Get out of here."
I smile and wink before turning and leaving her to her baking.
____
BPOV
____
As soon as the door to the kitchen closes behind Edward, I take a deep breath and slide to the floor.
Emotional. Rollercoaster. From. Hell.
I shouldn't have drunk that glass of wine to deal with Victoria and Charlotte, but my nerves were shot. I was worried about the food being good enough and there being enough of it. I wanted to make sure everyone had a good time and got along. Then I had the added stress of meeting Edward's friends. I brought this all on myself. I wanted this party. This was all my idea.
I lean my head against the cabinets for a second before sighing and getting off the floor. I pull the brownies out of the oven, checking to make sure they were done before turning off the oven. I look around the kitchen and make sure there's nothing else that needs to be cooked or baked or chilled or anything. Everything is ready to be served. Thank God!
Alice and Rose walk into the kitchen as I'm cutting the brownies. Their large smiles cause me to smile at them. Alice grabs the bowl of mashed potatoes. "Are we ready to start taking everything outside? The guys are almost finished grilling. The steaks are on their last flip."
I nod. "Yeah, I think so."
Rose, who is standing by the door, turns to the living room and nods her head. Tanya, Laurent, Chris, Shannon, and Jasper walk in to the kitchen and grab a dish to bring outside. My heart swells at the help my friends are giving me.
Tanya Sharpe and Laurent Michaels surprised me when they first got here. Laurent told me quickly that they were friends because he'd been gay for as long as he could remember, and asked if I knew any available gay guys. Tanya rolled her eyes and apologized for him, telling me he had no shame and the faster I got used to his crazy personality the quicker I'd learn to enjoy him. They treated me like they'd been best friends with me instead of Edward.
As soon as I had the brownies cut up and placed on a plate, I join everyone outside with the last two dishes. Edward rushes over and grabs one from me, winking at me. We set the two dishes on the large table Esme had in storage. They'd come over a couple of days ago with this table and one of the large picnic tables from their backyard. Chris and Shannon brought their picnic table over to our side of the yard and Edward went and bought one for us to have. There was plenty of room to sit everyone and plenty of food to feed them, too.
Once everyone started leaving around nine that night, I realized the party was a complete success. Everyone had a great time and thanked us for inviting them; even Victoria and Charlotte told me they had a nice time. They never apologized for their behavior, but I didn't expect them to and I didn't care one way or the other.
Alice, Jasper, Em and Rose stayed and helped clean up the party's mess. Em cleaned up the grill while Edward and Jasper brought the dishes into the kitchen for Alice, Rose and I to wash as they put away the leftovers. The clean up party is just as fun as the main event we had.
As they leave, Em and Jasper make arrangements to come and get the grill and tables for Carlisle and Esme in a couple of days. We wave goodbye to them all as they get in their vehicles. I walk in behind Edward, shutting and locking the door. I lean against it and sigh dramatically. "That was tiring. We aren't ever doing that again."
He laughs and holds out his hand. "Come on. Let's go relax in the tub for a little while and go to bed."
I shake my head. "Can't we just go to bed? I'm beat." He pouts as I take his hand. I reach up and kiss his lip. "Please?"
He sighs and nods. "Okay. We can just go to bed."
I smile and pull him up the stairs behind me. We change into our pajamas and curl up to each other. I vaguely hear him tell me goodnight before I fall asleep.
Man...that doesn't feel like nine thousand words...
I still really don't have a lot to say. LOL! Um, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, I'll try and answer them if I can do so without giving away any plot. You'll get some long over due smut next chapter and also a little surprise. It's a good surprise. You guys are still a little skittish it seems. So I'll put you at ease. You'll like the surprise. Some may even love it. :D
Leave 'em if ya got 'em! I'll see everyone soon!
