The Fantasy Basket
By Esme Incognito
Inspired by Stephenie Meyers' Twilight series. No infringement intended.
Posted 6/6/12. Re-posted 1/1/14.
Please Review!
Chapter 8—Bella: The Passionista Party
July 13-15, 2012
Edward was gone when I awoke the morning after our argument. Carlisle had gone with him to observe the procedure Edward was scheduled to do. Esme and I took Riley to the park on the beach in Del Mar and then browsed through the stores full of artsy home accessories and furniture at the South Cedros Street Design District. She's always on the lookout for unique items to decorate her clients' homes with, and it was impressive to see her in action, making contacts and negotiating with artists and store managers.
Esme is helping me decorate, so we picked up a few items for our house, too. It's great to have a successful interior designer in the family. I have no idea how to make our place look worthy of one of San Diego's up and coming heart surgeons. My mother Renee and I moved around a lot after she left my dad when I was little, following her ever-changing interests, jobs, and boyfriends. We never lived in one place long enough to decorate. My dad Charlie is the complete opposite of Renee, never moving, never changing a thing. The only change Charlie had made to his house in 20 years—the same little house in Phoenix he bought when he and Mom got married—was to replace my crib with a twin bed when I moved in with him in high school. It's more shabby than chic, definitely! I've learned that around here, especially in Edward's escalating social strata, you're expected to keep up appearances. It's intimidating, and makes the difference in our upbringing glaringly obvious.
We picked up Alice at University Town Center, the mall where she works, and headed across the street to Regents Pizza. It's a great little place near the condo that Edward and I lived in when we were first married. They have the best Chicago style pizza. Carlisle met us there for lunch. When he arrived, he rushed to Esme, proclaiming "He did it, Baby, he did it!" as he lifted her by the waist and spun around. Then he kissed her and gazed deeply into her eyes, hands holding both sides of her face. They just kept staring and the emotions on their faces kept changing. It's like they were having a conversation with no words. Alice and I watched them in disbelief, and then looked at each other, snickering and shifting uncomfortably, a little embarrassed to be intruding on their private moment. It seemed kind of odd to hear my very conservative and distinguished father-in-law call Esme 'Baby,' but as I watched them out of the corner of my eye, I began to think how wonderful it was that he still felt that way about her, even after a whole lifetime together. It gave me hope. After nearly a minute, another quick kiss finally broke their love trance and they scooted forward in the line to order lunch, big smiles on their faces.
As we ate our inch-high slices and salads, Carlisle was practically buzzing with excitement as he told us about the big, important surgery Edward had performed that morning. Apparently, it was the first complete procedure (outside of clinical trials) using a new technique and new technology that the cardiac surgery industry has been eagerly anticipating for years. It's the thing that got him recognized for the 30 Under 30 award, so I knew a little about what it was, though Edward hadn't told me that today's surgery was so significant. His success today was pretty high-profile for the whole team, which included Carlisle and a few others. It was an innovative new procedure—safer and more effective than the status quo—which he could publish articles about in medical journals and become known as an expert in. That would attract more patients and lots of money to the hospital, and could get Edward a huge promotion.
Carlisle further explained to Alice that this procedure was the culmination of an idea that he and a couple of partners had been researching and testing for almost 20 years, and which Edward had helped him work on during every summer vacation since he was fourteen. "People around the hospital used to joke and call him Doogie Houser," Carlisle mused, but that hands-on, professional level research and work during high school and college had enabled Edward to fast-track through undergrad, med school, his residency, and his surgical fellowship, and to achieve a level of success unprecedented in someone so young. Carlisle and Esme had timed their trip specifically so Carlisle could assist with the surgery and attend a conference where Edward would be speaking about it. They were so proud. I felt like a fool. I had no idea about any of this.
"How could he leave me in the dark about everything, Alice?" I vented in the bathroom. "I'm his wife, I live with him, and other than the fact that he was stressed out and acting like a total jerk last night, I had no idea that this surgery was happening today. And the stuff with his dad? Oh my god, Alice! I knew his dad was his mentor and he worked for him when he was a kid, but…"
"Just calm down, Bella. Put a smile on your face, play along, and talk to him about it tonight when you're alone. You and I can call him an asshole, but you can't exactly say that to his parents, especially not right now, so just defer it until later, when you can rip him a new one privately." I love Alice. She tells it like it is.
After lunch, we headed home to put Riley down for his nap and make my house pretty with our new purchases. Hours later, when I heard the garage door rumble open, I rushed upstairs to change Riley's diaper, hiding from the 'couple time' I'm sure Esme wanted me to spend with Edward on the couch. What I had to say to him would take a lot more than 10 minutes, and would be best without an audience.
Edward arrived home excited and happy, to cheers and applause from his parents. I laughed when Esme put her fingers in her mouth and gave a loud whistle. Carlisle stood to give a toast at dinner:
"Here's to Edward, the second best heart surgeon I know of, on his momentous achievement. I've been waiting over twenty years for this day, and I'm so happy that my own son has taken the lead in bringing it to fruition. Not only did you save the first of thousands of lives with this procedure today, but you took a big step toward making a better life for yourself and your family. Enjoy your success, son. You deserve it. But don't let it consume your life. As you continue on this path, Edward, be sure to make time for the things that are most important, so they'll be there always to share it with you." Carlisle's eyes met mine with a wide smile. "I'm proud of you, son."
"Cheers!"
I hadn't seen Edward so happy and animated in a long time. As we got ready for bed in our huge master bathroom, (who needs a bathroom this big? I swear it's bigger than the bedroom I had growing up!) I could tell that he wanted to celebrate. He leaned his shoulder against the doorframe of my walk in closet as I changed into the tank top and shorts I sleep in, shirtless and leering at me with a sexy smirk, hands in the pockets of his low slung drawstring sleep pants. I brushed past him through the door without acknowledgement, pulling my hair into a ponytail and leaning over the sink to wash my face. He moved to lean a hip against my sink and handed me a towel to dry my dripping face, brushing a stray tendril of my hair behind my ear, and dragging his fingers down the back of my neck. He turned to stand directly behind me, hands resting on the vanity to either side of me and watching in the mirror as I stood and applied toner, serum, eye cream, and moisturizer.
"Hey, Beautiful." He nuzzled my neck, placing light kisses along the curve of my neck and shoulder.
"Here, use this." I held out the eye cream and placed a squirt on his ring finger as he rolled his eyes at me through the mirror. "Don't give me that look, it'll keep those eyes of yours looking pretty." He complied, patting the lotion under his eyes with a huff, feeling emasculated as I brushed my teeth. He massaged my shoulders and kissed the top of my head as I brushed and spit out the toothpaste. As I leaned over to open the cabinet under the sink, he pulled my hips back into his, pressing his erection against my rear.
"Mmmm…" he groaned.
"Last night would have been better." I stood, holding up a tampon in one hand, a maxi pad in the other and walked toward the toilet room. "Today I got my period." His face fell and he walked over to his own sink.
He brushed his teeth while I did my business, and approached me as I crossed the room to wash my hands. "Well, we can do other stuff…" He circled his arms around my waist as I dried my hands, pulled me closer and started to kiss me with his minty clean mouth.
"No, Edward!" I glared at him as his expression changed from shock to understanding. He took a step away from me, hands outstretched in front of him, pleading as I leaned against my sink, arms crossed in front of me, frowning.
"Oh, Babe, is this about last night? Listen, I'm sorry I was such a jerk. I was so nervous about this procedure today, and I took it out on you." He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration and paced in front of me. "I didn't mean it. I never should have said those things." He pinched the bridge of his nose and then looked into my eyes. "Forgive me? Please, Bella?" He put his hands on my hips and kissed me with each phrase. "Can't we kiss and make up? Please? Hmm?"
I pushed him away from me, seething. "I can't believe that you didn't tell me about today." I stepped forward, poking him in the chest. "This was something important for you… for US…" I threw my hands up to my sides, fingers tense, "and I didn't know a damn thing about it." I ran my fingers over my hair, smoothing the wisps back toward the elastic they'd escaped from. "Your parents knew everything. They planned their trip around your surgery, for god's sake, and I knew NOTHING. I am your WIFE," pointing at myself, "and I knew NOTHING." I lifted my hands up in front of me, palms up, fingers splayed, my head cocked to one side.
Edward backed up and sat on the edge of the oversized spa tub (stupid giant thing that we never use, but I have to clean), hands on his knees. "Bella, I've been talking to my dad about it for weeks… professionally… as a mentor. We're kind of partners on this, so of course he knew all about it. I guess he told my mom." Shrugging his shoulders.
"Exactly!" I paced. "He told his WIFE," I turned to face him, bending at the waist, my face inches from his, "about something that was important to him." I resumed pacing, arms flailing. "Do you know what a FOOL I felt like when Carlisle was bragging at lunch about how well you'd done and how this was going to do great things for your career?" I threw my arms up in the air in false adulation. "And how you'd get published and bring all this money to the hospital and yadda, yadda? Oooo!" I steamed, eyes slitted. "And then when he started telling Alice how this was the culmination of his life's work—his dream—that you'd been helping him with since you were a kid… Jeez, I had NO idea. Thank god Alice was there to play dumb and ask the questions that I should have known the answers to. Do you have any idea how humiliating that was? How could you not share this with me?" I slapped my hands against his bare chest. "I can't believe… I just can't…" Tears filled my eyes, threatening to spill out.
"Oh, come on. You've known about that."
"No, not really." I shook my head, frowning. "I had some vague idea of something your dad was mentoring you on. Some "big, long term project," but nothing specific. It always sounded like hero worship to me. I didn't know it was anything real. Other than the little bit of information I dragged out of you for the 30 Under 30 benefit, I'm pretty much in the dark about anything you do." I turned to face him and crossed my arms in front of my chest.
"That's bullshit."
My eyes narrowed. "Right. It's bullshit. Because I'm a mindreader or something, right?" I resumed my pacing, pulling the elastic from my hair and throwing it on the vanity so that I could press my fingers against the throbbing in my head. I'm just supposed to know everything there is to know about the amazing Edward Cullen, whether you tell me or not?" I turned toward him and threw my hands in the air. "Here's a newsflash, Edward. You never tell me ANYTHING anymore. You hardly talk to me at ALL." I leaned against my sink, massaging my headache.
"Yeah? Well, it's not for lack of trying." He stood up and started pacing himself. "I'm lucky to get HALF of your attention, much less a full conversation. Like last night on the couch: I was telling you about the surgery—how important it was and how stressed out it was making everybody—and you just jumped up and left when Riley came in, like I wasn't even talking. Like I wasn't there at all."
"He was hurt!"
"Dad had him. He was fine."
"Yeah, well your dad isn't usually here."
"That's right. Make excuses and then blame me for everything." He shook his head and crossed the room to his walk in closet, reaching for some clean running clothes. "I have to go for a run. Clear my head."
"Of course," I muttered under my breath. "Run away, just like you always do."
He looked up from tying his shoe and glared at me. "Bella… Don't!" He looked down to tie the other one and said, without looking at me, "I was so happy tonight. It was one of the best days of my life. The best of my career." He grabbed his Nano and looked up at me before clipping it on. "And all I wanted to do—all day—was come home and celebrate with you." He snorted and left the room. Left me conflicted.
I looked at myself in the mirror as my thoughts battled it out.
I'm such a bitch.
No, remember how you felt today at lunch? He's a dick for not telling you ANYTHING!
But maybe he's right. Maybe I just didn't listen enough.
Oh, Puh-lease. Stick up for yourself, would you?
But I feel awful for ruining his great day. He was in such a good mood until I…
Argh!
I ran downstairs to take something for my headache. When I returned, I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep, so I grabbed the cleanser and started scrubbing the shower to try to take my mind off of it. I just needed something—anything—to distract me. It didn't work right away, so I cleaned my way through the whole master bathroom until my mind was numb. At least I didn't cry.
I was wiping his sink and rearranging the stuff he keeps on the vanity when he returned, breathing hard and glistening with sweat. Edward looked at me in the mirror for a moment before putting his hands on my shoulders and kissing me on the temple. He retreated without a word to his closet, peeling off his sweaty clothes and his running shoes. I put the cleaning supplies away on a high shelf in my closet while he took a quick shower, and we found ourselves in the same position as earlier: he sat on the edge of the tub and I stood before him. Edward sighed and pulled me to stand between his knees, arms around my waist, forehead resting on my chest. I removed my hands from my hips, running them through his hair and onto his shoulders while taking a deep breath before pushing away from him. I stood across the room facing away from him, arms crossed and the knuckles of one hand toying with my bottom lip.
He puffed his cheeks and blew out a breath, ran his hands through his hair, and looked over at me. "I should've told you more… sooner." He stood, walked across the room, and lifted my hands to kiss them. "I always try to keep work issues at work, to leave the stress there instead of bringing it home to you and Riley, but I guess I… Well, obviously, I took it too far." He bent his head down to try to make eye contact, but I stared straight ahead at his chest, focused on the two little moles he has just under his right pec. Two traitorous tears spilled from my eyes. He lifted my chin with his fingers to look at him.
"This whole project is something you should have known more about, and I apologize for keeping it from you. It wasn't intentional. I honestly thought I had told you more than I did. I thought you knew." He caressed my cheek and left his hand on the side of my head, "I'm sorry." He lifted his other hand to my face, leaned in to kiss my forehead, and ran his fingers through my hair to brush it away from my face. He wiped my tears with his thumbs. Looking back into my eyes, I could see his forehead wrinkled in a look of remorse.
I sniffed. "I'm sorry I yelled at you and ruined your great day."
I looked down to break from his gaze as he leaned his back against the wall and moved his arms to my shoulders. "This isn't the only time, though, Edward. This isn't just about your project or this surgery. We used to be so close, but now I feel like I don't even know you anymore. I'm scared that I'm losing you." I darted my eyes up to his for just a moment, long enough to see the fear and anguish he held there.
He shook his head and cupped my face. "No! That can't happen. We can't let that happen. I need you too much." He bent down to kiss my forehead and started to pull me into a hug, which I thwarted by twisting out of his grasp.
"It already is happening, Edward. Love doesn't die all at once, it just gradually wears away until there's nothing left. Can't you see that happening already? I don't want to turn into one of those women around here. Their lives are so void and lonely, and they just fill them up with shopping and gossip. Their husbands buy them stuff to make up for ignoring them all the time. That's not the life I want. I don't want you to work harder to buy a bigger house or more stuff. I just want more of you."
His knees bent and he slid down the wall until he was sitting on the floor, elbows resting on his bent knees. He picked at something on his thumb, keeping his eyes off me. "Is that why you've been talking to my mom?" he asked, quietly.
I nodded and sniffed.
"That makes me really, really uncomfortable." He took a deep, shuddering breath, nervous to tell me that.
"Why? Edward, they can tell that something's not right with us, even if we don't say anything. They're worried about us. About you. And she just wants to help."
He buried his face in his hands. "Yeah. Well, that didn't work out so well the last time."
"What?"
He shook his head, trying to block out the memory. "Ancient history."
"Oh." I answered, sheepishly. "Will you tell me about it?" He had never shared much about past relationships. Neither of us had.
He gave me a pained look. "Not tonight, ok? But sometime I will." I nodded. Sure, we'll see if that ever happens. He shook his head and muttered, "Jeez, Mom…"
I thought about losing Esme if Edward and I ever split up. Then I reminded myself of her no dumping rule and smiled. "I don't want to lose her as a mother-in-law, so you have to be nice to me. At least until this big stupid house is done." I joked through my tears, trying to lighten the mood since I'd made my point.
He looked up at me and chuckled. "So you'll put up with me as long as she's part of the package?"
"Yeah," I nodded with a watery smile. "She's pretty great."
"I think you're pretty great."
"Well why don't you tell me once in awhile, you big jerk?" I extended my hand to help pull him up to his feet and pretended to smack him in the chest. "You can take a break from saving the world, can't you, Superman?"
"I couldn't save it without you, Lois." He draped his arm around my shoulder and gave it a squeeze as I flicked off the light and we crossed through the sitting area to the bedroom.
Suddenly serious, I turned toward him and implored, "Just put me first Edward, ok? Kiss me first when you get home, look into my eyes at least once a day, tell me what you're thinking, what you're feeling. Ok? I need that. Every day."
"I will. I promise. I love you." He held both my hands in his and gazed deeply into my eyes.
I was the first to break eye contact, looking down and then quickly back up into his eyes. "I love you, too."
We lay down together, his head on my belly, an arm slung over my waist as I ran my fingers through his hair and rubbed his neck and shoulders until we drifted off to sleep.
Edward woke me the next morning before leaving for work. "Good morning." He kissed my forehead and ran his fingers through my hair, sitting on the side of the bed. When I opened my eyes, he looked into them deeply, "Hi."
"Hi." I rubbed my eyes, gritty with sleep, and my cheeks, tight with last night's salty tears and squinted into my husband's face, still adjusting to the morning light.
"I've got to get going. Are we ok?"
"Yeah," I croaked in my scratchy morning voice. "We will be." I reached up to stroke his cheek "Let's take your folks up on their offer to watch Ri this week so we can go talk somewhere, ok?"
"Anything." He leaned down to kiss me again and smiled softly. As he headed for the door, I called out, "Alice's party is tonight…"
"I know. I'll be home early so you can get there on time. I'm actually at a conference today with Dad. I'm presenting."
"Oh, that explains the tie. You look nice. Break a leg!"
"Thanks. I love you, Bell." And with a smile he was gone.
Esme and I took Riley to his weekly playgroup at the park. After the accolades from all the moms about his birthday died down, conversation turned to Alice's Passionista party. The ladies were abuzz,
"I can't wait to see everything in person. It's so hard to tell from a web site."
"My sister went to a Passionista party and said she learned a lot. The consultant was really helpful and answered lots of questions she never thought to ask. It's a great way to see everything, much less embarrassing than…"
"What kind of party is this, exactly?" I wondered. I thought "Fashionista" would be some sort of clothing line, or accessories, or jewelry or something.
"Didn't you click the link on the e-vite and check out their catalog, Bella?"
I shook my head. I had been so busy with all the birthday party stuff that I barely had a chance to check my email last week.
"Mama, swing!" As the ladies tittered nervously at my ignorance, I relieved Esme from Riley-duty, glad for the escape and further embarrassment. What in the world…
At home, I put Riley down for his nap and checked email as Esme hung some art on a wall and rearranged my bookshelves. I clicked the link from Alice's e-vite and was looking, shocked, at the Passionista (with a "P") web site, when Esme came up behind me. "The Rabbit is great. Get the waterproof one."
"Oh my gosh, Esme, did you know what this party tonight was going to be?"
"Of course. I've been to a few before. My neighbor hosts them all the time. It will be a great place to get some things for your Fantasy Basket. See, they have lingerie, costumes, props… everything you need. I've even heard that now they sell some Fantasy Baskets all made up with everything you need—Quick and simple!" Her eyes twinkled deviously.
"Esme, I don't know if I can do that. It's really not my style." And I really didn't feel up to it tonight, after our fight.
She looked at me thoughtfully. "You've been quiet. Is everything all right?" I shifted nervously and shrugged, not willing to share my troubles with Edward's mother.
She took my face in her hands. "Make the choice, Honey, even when you don't feel like he deserves know that neither of you is going anywhere, except out for a long dinner and a talk tomorrow night where you can start to work things out. And for now just push those negative thoughts right out of your head so you can relax and have fun tonight."
I took a deep breath. "He's mad at me for talking to you about stuff. He said you scared off an old girlfriend or something. He's going to freak out about this." I clicked on the page labeled "for him," and stared, trying to figure out what some of those things were used for.
"Really?" She pursed her lips. "Well, girl talk is girl talk. He doesn't need all the details. You can be vague when you tell him about tonight. Just share the parts that he'll like. And as for Jayne," she rolled her eyes, "she needed running off. She was bad news."
Jane, huh? "Esme, it's not just him, it's me, too. I'm very private. I'm just not comfortable sharing… or even thinking about these kinds of things." I tilted my head toward the monitor and grimaced at the pictures of vibrators and… well, I had no idea what some of those items were. I'm sure my face was bright red. I minimized the window and was flashed with the huge wallpaper picture of Riley's face—quite a contrast!
Esme looked at me thoughtfully. "You haven't been friends with Alice for long, have you?"
"No," I replied, confused at the change of subject. "We just met last month. She helped me find an outfit for Edward's 30 Under 30 thing and we hit it off, like we'd been friends forever." I shut down the computer and we moved to the kitchen where I poured some milk in a sippy cup for Riley to drink after his nap.
"I think she's going to be good for you. She's such a doll, and has so much self-confidence. I think she'll help you really open up and embrace the wonderful woman that you are, Bella." Now I was definitely red. "Have you ever met my friend Siobhan?"
"She's the O'Leary from Cullen O'Leary Design, right?"
Esme nodded. "It's good to have a close friend who will push you past your comfort zone once in a while. She did that for me. Still does, sometimes!"
"Maybe. I've always been pretty quiet and Alice seems pretty blunt. It's kind of nice to have a shiny new BFF." We laughed. "I don't know about this party, though."
"Bella, it's going to be fun. Isn't there something you've been curious about but were too shy to ask? Or too shy to try?"
My face heated up even more.
"That's what I thought. There's no need to be embarrassed. Just go with an open mind. I bet you'll learn something. Your husband will thank you for it."
"No… He's pretty conservative…"
"I know. Edward always was kind of quiet. He didn't have many girlfriends, but he is a man."
"I know, but he's never…"
"Trust me on this. If YOU initiate something new, something exciting, he will love it. He may never do it himself but if you do, I bet he'll play along."
"Why me?" Why me, indeed. And why this conversation? Please kill me now before she goes into detail about the depraved things I should do to her son. Oh my god…
"It doesn't make you bad, Bella, it makes you normal. It makes you a good wife who wants to please her husband and who wants to be pleased herself by keeping things fresh and exciting."
I swallowed and shifted nervously, closing the refrigerator and moving to the family room, where I sat on the couch, hugging my knees to my chest. I'm ready to crawl into a hole and die now!
"I know it's a difficult subject. It certainly was for me. But I found that the Fantasy Basket really helped introduce things that were hard for both of us to talk about. Not just physical things, but other topics that were difficult to approach, too. It was this, kind of, anonymous entity that took the rap for bringing up embarrassing subjects. Sometimes Carlisle's eyes would be as wide as saucers when he read one of the fantasies. And he told me once that he was afraid of what would be in there. I'd just say, 'but Sweetheart, it was so hard to come up with enough ideas for a whole year, I had to put a little of everything in.'" I nodded, wide-eyed. "Sometimes we'd burst out laughing at how ridiculous we felt." She smiled at a memory. "And we could always say 'no' if either of us was uncomfortable. Or we could compromise and meet halfway. But it was a great way to try some new things, be someone new for a little while. No matter how the fantasies led us to behave, whether it was playful or sweet or sensual or dark or dirty, it was always loving, and intimate, and together. It was something we shared that was very private and personal."
"So why are you telling me about it?"
"Because it's the best gift I ever gave him, or myself. It helped us so much, and we want to help you kids. And I'm NOT planning to share the details!"
"Thank god for that!" we laughed. Then I cringed at the reminder that she knew of our problems. "Carlisle knows about Edward and me?" I asked as I bit my lip.
"Honey, we tell each other everything. And even if we didn't, he sees it in Edward. It'll never get better if you don't start talking to each other, Bella. The Fantasy Basket can help you two, but that's only half of the equation."
I nodded in resignation, "Yeah, I guess." Our talk last night sure wasn't fun.
We heard Riley on the baby monitor, so I excused myself to go get him from his room. The guys arrived home as I descended the stairs with Ri on my hip, gulping from his sippy cup.
Esme greeted Carlisle with a kiss, "Hi Sweetheart, what a treat to have you boys home early! How was your conference? Learn anything new?"
Carlisle explained that the conference was mostly same-old, same-old. "But there was one hot-shot young cardiologist who presented on a breakthrough technique that just earned FDA approval. He included some data from a surgery performed only yesterday. Quite the up-and-comer. I'll have to keep my eye on him." He grinned with a punch to Edward's shoulder.
"Is that right?" Esme played along, "Sounds like he may give you a run for your money, Grandpa. You'd better stay on your toes or you may just be replaced as the hottest heart surgeon in America." Carlisle was a bit of a celebrity doctor. The networks loved to call on his expert opinion whenever someone notable had heart surgery. Esme reached up to kiss Edward's cheek and ruffle his already messy hair. He flashed me his sexy crooked smile over his mom's head and took my hand, leaning in for a kiss.
"You'd better watch your back also, number two. Sounds like someone's out to de-throne the Cullen boys," I warned.
"Smart Alec," he laughed with a swat to my ass. Esme quirked an eyebrow at me and turned away with a knowing smile.
"Well boys," she said, backing away from the table after a quick dinner, "we've got a party to get to. Think you two superstars can manage without us for a couple of hours? We may just bring something special home for you."
"Go, go!" Carlisle took her plate to clear it for her and rushed her toward the door with a kiss to the top of her head.
"What's that all about?" Edward asked
"I'll tell you later. Better yet, why don't you ask your dad?" I smirked.
As we pulled into Alice's condo complex, I sighed. "Two kid-free outings in one week? This is heaven. You guys can never leave, ok?"
Esme laughed. "Listen, Bella? Tonight let's just be friends and try to forget about how we're related, ok?"
"Hmm. Ok." What's that all about?
Alice's door was open, so we opened the screen and came right in. "Yoo hoo! Ali—let's get this party started!"
"Oh, hi!" We were greeted by a tall, faux-chested bleach-blonde who was pretty, but seemed to try too hard—typical for San Diego. "Alice ran to get changed. She's going to model one of our outfits tonight. I'm Lauren, with Passionista." She held her hand out to shake ours. "Have you ever been to one of our parties before?"
"Hi Lauren, I'm Bella and this is my mother-in-l… uh, my friend, Esme. And no, I didn't even know what your company did until this morning."
"Well hi Bella, Esme. I'm so glad you could make it."
"Hi Lauren," Esme answered, "I've been to a few parties up in Seattle where I live. My neighbor, Shelly Cope, is a consultant. She has one of your company BMWs, so she must be doing well."
"You know Shelly Cope? Wow! I listen to her online trainings all the time. Please tell her hello, I'm a great admirer." Lauren was so excited. It's like Esme's neighbor was a celebrity or something. "Say, is her house as fabulous as they say it is?"
"I like to think so," Esme smirked.
"So Esme, I'm sure you've got several of our fun products. Bella, do you have any toys?"
"Well, I have a two year old, so we have toys everywhere." I hadn't really been paying attention, my eyes diverted to the disturbing display on Alice's coffee table, so I didn't get what she was really asking. Call me dense!
"Ha ha ha. I don't think you'd want your two year old playing with these toys! I'm talking about toys for you and your husband," she pretended to whisper, hand raised to her mouth. "That's a gorgeous ring, by the way. Look at that rock!"
I felt my face turn bright red. "Um, thanks, and uuuuuh, no, we don't have any grown up toys, unless you count our Wii or our sailboat."
"Ha—I like you, Bella. We're going to have a blast tonight."
"Actually, Lauren," Esme interjected, "I've been recommending that Bella introduce a Fantasy Basket into their marriage. Things get so much harder once kids enter the picture, you know."
"Esme, please…"
"Shelly did a training about those when Passionista first introduced them. It's a great idea, especially as a gift."
"Well, the original one was a gift. I told her about the one I made for my husband for Christmas about twenty years ago, and she took the idea and ran with it. Apparently, they have spread like wildfire through your company. I uhm…" Wait, Esme was bashful about something? "…I actually copyrighted the Fantasy Basket concept and worked with Shelly to license it out to you, so I get a nice little royalty check from Passionista once in awhile."
Lauren gasped. "Oh my god, Esme. Are you serious? You created The Fantasy Basket?"
"Oh, it's nothing… Anyway, tonight we want to focus on getting Bella all set up." I looked at her in shock. "Don't worry Bella, we won't try to embarrass you. We'll be very discreet," Esme promised.
"Bella, you are lucky to have such a cool mother-in- uh, friend! And you definitely have nothing to worry about. My business exists because nice girls like us want a safe, private place to learn more about these kinds of things. (nice girls like her?) This will be fun and painless, I promise! Esme, I'd love to show you a couple of our newest baskets. This one is great for beginners…"
They wandered off to the table to look at the scary assortment as Alice entered, wearing a French maid's costume. "Bonjour madame!" She shook her feather duster at me. After picking my jaw up off the floor, I whispered, "I can't believe my mother-in-law is a sex toy entrepreneur and is over there talking about my love life with her son to a total stranger." Alice giggled. "Lauren's right, you know, Esme is way-cool. Jasper's mom is such a prude that she almost passed out with embarrassment when we showed her our honeymoon photos. I mean, pictures of the beach and the ocean and stuff, not the bed! Esme is awesome, You're so lucky!"
More guests arrived and the party got underway, Lauren passing around all kinds of books and DVDs, candles and lotions, costumes and props, and vibrators. All sorts of vibrators. She assured us they had never been used, but they still made me squeamish. I flipped through the catalog so I wouldn't have to look at the real things and there it was.
"Oh my god, Esme! This chair that Riley likes to play on and slide down is a SEX CHAIR?" I had always thought that wavy, undulating chair in the retreat off her master bedroom was some arty, high fashion piece of designer furniture, yet here it was in the Passionista catalog, with the models demonstrating many different ways of… um… enjoying it.
"It's lots of fun to play on, no matter how old you are." I felt like I was going to be sick. "Bella, I clean it every time, don't worry. It's really no different from him climbing around on your bed. It's just a piece of furniture."
"Here, Bella, I think you need a drink." Alice handed me a glass of wine.
Lauren continued, "So, Esme, I'm really excited to have you with us here tonight. Ladies, this is the creator of the Fantasy Basket, which is one of our top sellers. Would you mind telling us what Fantasy Baskets are and a little about how you came up with the idea for them?"
A murmur of excitement and interest went through the group of guests.
"That's right!" Esme blushed. "The Fantasy Basket idea actually helped save my marriage. It all happened about 20 years ago, pre-internet, and before home parties like this existed, so I didn't have nearly as much information or as many products as we do now, but at the time I had two boys in grade school, and an extremely busy and stressed out husband who was so focused on his career that I was feeling pretty neglected and worried about our future. He's an attractive guy in a high profile job and…
Alice interrupted, "Come on, Esme, don't be so modest. He is gorgeous, and a heart surgeon, and… well, more than just an attractive guy."
"Alice, jeez!" I hushed her.
"Well, like I said… I trusted him but I felt that if things continued on as they were—the complacency, the boredom—he'd have ample opportunity to stray, and I was determined to fight for him, to keep the homefires lit and never let them burn out. I'd even gotten up the nerve to go to a porn shop for a few items to spice things up, but we rarely found time to use them. I was lucky if we were intimate once a month!" A general nod of understanding went through the crowd. "So, for Christmas one year, he unwrapped a pair of silky boxers with a note saying that I knew how hard Santa had been working and that Mrs. Claus would meet him in the bedroom that night to help him unload his big, heavy package…" She fluttered her eyelashes.
"Ahh… TMI, TMI," I cringed. Alice and the other guests laughed and Alice whispered to them that Esme was my mother-in-law. So much for our deception.
"I met him there that night in my Santa negligee and black stilettos with a basket full of little presents and a grab bag full of notes. The first note promised to meet him there every Tuesday night of the year to play out a fantasy. He was supposed to wear some of his sexy new underwear every Tuesday morning and choose one of the notes, so he could think about his fantasy all day long and then play it out at night."
"What kinds of things were on the notes, Esme?" Lauren prompted.
"Well, it was hard to think of 52 things. My girlfriend helped me brainstorm, and I think we made it to about 40-45, so I invited him to add some of his own and I added more throughout the year as I thought of things. I included everything from a bubble bath and massage to exploring each of the five senses, to every kind of roleplay and costume I could think of, to a little taste of domination/submission. I included some that we could do when I had my period, too, and I printed those on a different color paper for the grab bag.
"Like what?" one of Alice's neighbors asked.
"It's actually ok to have sex during your cycle," Lauren interjected. "Just use a towel to protect your sheets. There's nothing harmful. We have these really handy wipes to keep nearby to clean things up."
"I know, but…" Esme crinkled her nose in disgust and shook her head no, "…not our thing. Anyway, things I included for that time of the month were…" she thought for a second, "Oh let's see—a cum shot, a candy cane, cleavage sex, tantric gaze…"
"Oh my god, Esme, is that what you guys were doing at the pizza place? It's like you guys were in a trance!"
Esme raised her eyebrows and smiled. "Oh, no. That was different. That was… pride, accomplishment, fulfillment of a dream." She bit her lip and looked down, trying to contain her emotions.
She shook her head and returned her attention to the party guests. "Sorry. The idea behind the Fantasy Basket was that all day every Tuesday he would be physically reminded of me by the silk shorts, as well as mentally reminded of me by anticipating the fantasy for that night. I was thinking of him during the day as well, as I planned and prepared for our evening rendezvous. So, by implementing these fantasies just one day a week to start, we were eventually able to change our whole relationship. We were focusing our minds on each other, we were increasing the frequency and improving the quality and variety of our physical connection, and the great talks we had before and after our lovemaking helped us improve communication with each other, which carried over to other times of day as well. It really helped make us stronger as a couple. And now, we're more in love than ever, after 39 years of marriage."
"It's true." I noted. "You should see them. They are adorable. So lovey dovey! That's one of the first things I noticed when Edward took me home to meet them—they were so in love with each other. I knew it was a great thing that he'd grown up with that kind of example. When I met his folks I knew for sure that he was good marriage material."
"As if being a rich, brilliant doctor who plays the piano and happens to be smokin' hot wasn't enough to convince you?" Alice declared.
I blushed.
"We Cullens," Esme added from behind me, giving my shoulder a squeeze, "are very, very lucky women." I smiled and nodded, wondering why the guests laughed.
"Alice, what's so funny?" I whispered, as Lauren took over the presentation, showing off the Fantasy Baskets offered by her company.
"Very lucky women," she repeated, holding her index fingers up about nine inches apart.
"Esme," I gasped and turned to face her. "You didn't!" Jeez, there were people there from Riley's playgroup.
"Hmm?" she asked, innocently as she walked toward the kitchen to refill her drink. "Would you like a refill?"
Somehow I made it through the evening without dying of embarrassment. I eventually managed to relax a little, so that I could enjoy the party and learn a few new things. With Esme's and Alice's prompting, I wound up purchasing the Deluxe Fantasy Basket, which included everything I would need for '52 Nights of FANTAStic Sex!' Esme threatened to buy it for Edward for his birthday in two weeks if I didn't, so I gave in. I also got some strawberry flavored lubricant and a waterproof Rabbit, which Alice insists is an 'accessory that no woman's bedside table should be without.' Holy crow!
I don't even want to know what was in Esme's bag, but she and Carlisle didn't waste any time saying good night and heading upstairs after we got home. Edward and I snuggled down for the night, tired and still a little tentative after our fight. I was a bit traumatized myself, and didn't want to stir up his apprehensions about revealing too much to Esme, so when he asked about the party, I vaguely answered as I massaged his neck and shoulders, "It was a fun girls' night out. Thanks for giving me two in one week, sweet husband of mine."
"Mmm." He'd melted from the back rub. I kissed him and settled down to sleep, hand on his chest, foot trapped between his calves, smile on my face.
A/N
I'm posting this chapter on New Year's Day. It's a time for goal setting so I thought I'd share mine: Since I first posted this story, I've hoped it would reach 1000 reviews. Will you please help me reach that by leaving a short message in the box? Even a :), 3, or 'thanks' is enough.
Thanks to teacher1209, just4me, gracefish21, and .cullen1313 for the reviews of the last chapter.
Thanks to Besotted. She helps me not worry about the numbers—just the story.
Thanks for reading. Hope your year is filled with happiness and success.
JEN
