Last Time:
"Much better," he sighed.
And it was.
:NOTICE: Just because someone brought it up, I figured I would address it. I'm seeing this story not having major drama. Yes, there will be ups and downs in the story, but I mostly like keeping something like this happy, so I'm sorry if you were looking for a huge scandal…I don't foresee it happening. I'd like to call this a journey rather than a story so sorry if it's not your cup of tea. (
A/N: Kudos to InsatiableHanner and xxxRubyxxx for having brains. Sterlings, people, not euros. Got it!
9
By the time we left Chuck E. Cheese, it was four in the afternoon. Rae was dead on her feet and I picked her up, carrying her out to the car that was waiting for us.
By now, word had gotten out of where the Crown Prince was at and a mob of people seemed to take up the whole parking lot and surrounding areas; it was a madhouse. Unfortunately for Edward and me, it woke up a crabby Rae, who hadn't had her nap yet.
The whole way home, Rae wrestled with sleep, switching between Edward and myself to try and find a comfortable position.
"Mommy?" Rae asked, as she started to fake cough.
"Yes, sweetheart," I responded, lifting my head off of Edward's shoulder.
"Can I pleeease get a soda?"
I nudged Edward, preventing him from saying anything, knowing he was about to comply. "Rae, you just had a soda back at Chuck E Cheese. That's enough for today."
"But, mommy," Rae sniffled, her eyes starting to water. This was the true sign that she was tired. She knew she was only allowed to have one soda a day and normally she wouldn't whine about it. But without having her nap, this was going to turn into a sob fest.
"Rae, I said it the first time. No more soda for you. You've had enough junk food for today."
She started to pretend to cough again. "But my throat hurts," she whispered.
"Really?" I asked. When she nodded her head, I told her to open her mouth wide and stick out her tongue so I could see. "Oh no, Rae! You do. I'll have to get you some cold water. Lots of water…" I grinned, knowing that Rae disliked water as much as she disliked green beans.
Her brows furrowed together and she promptly shut her mouth. "Daddy…" Rae turned to Edward and I immediately knew we were hopeless. He really, physically, could not say 'no' to her. If I didn't think it was so cute, I'd consider it pathetic.
Rae was now putting on a show for Edward with tears still streaming down her face and a pouty, puppy dog face. She then moved from my lap to sit on Edward's. "I love you, daddy," Rae whispered.
Doomed. That was the only word that came to mind. The first time Rae says 'I love you' in that way to Edward should have been a memorable moment, but it wasn't; Rae was being manipulative and knew exactly what she was doing. Creative little sneak.
Edward had caved. I knew it and Rae knew it.
I crossed my arms across my chest and raised my eyebrows pointedly at him. "Edward?" I questioned.
He snapped his head up from looking at Rae to look at me, and then cleared his throat. "Oh, right. Rae, baby, I'm sorry, mommy says no soda."
What is wrong with this picture? 'Mommy' is the bad guy now?
Rae burst into full out hysterics and Edward grabbed her up into his arms. She just started beating on his chest, though I'm sure no damage was done with her being so small and him being so muscular, and fit, and divine…
Rae was in tantrum mode now. And it was obvious that Edward did not like seeing his princess unhappy. "How about an ice cream instead, Rae?" he asked, soothing her unruly hair down.
"Ice cream?" she sniffled.
"Any flavor you want with any toppings," he smiled.
"Okay!" Rae exclaimed, tears gone, fake sore throat gone, all attitude…gone.
"Edward!" I scolded. "What was the one thing I had said she had eaten enough of?"
Edward took a moment to run through the conversation from early in his head before he seemed to realize the answer and looked guilty. "Junk food?" he guessed.
"Yes, Edward," I told him, sounding very much like his own parent. "And what exactly is ice cream?"
"Dairy products, mommy," Rae smiled. "You should know that." She patted my leg in reassurance before sitting back in her seat.
"Yeah, mommy," Edward grinned.
I glared at Edward and then turned to look out the window, effectively ignoring him. It was childish, but it was all I knew how to do.
Not ten seconds later, I felt the spot next to me sink in and then I felt his lips on my neck, kissing me painstakingly slow with feather light touches. "Mmm," Edward whispered. "You smell divine." He continued his assault on my neck, and then with his fingers, tiptoed up my arm, caressing it seductively. "But you taste even better."
I tried to steer my thoughts away from the absolutely tempting seducer. Edward and Rae really were father and daughter. They both used their adorably cute—in Edward's case, smokingly handsome—looks to get what they wanted. Damn people who have that talent.
"Bella," Edward whispered, running his hand back down my arm until our hands were clasped together. "What are you think about, dear?" His kisses were now nearing my face, and I was tempted to turn my head the slightest, just to get a tiny taste of his heavenly lips. "It wouldn't be…me…perchance, would it?" he grinned, breaking his assault on my face to quickly kiss my hand before releasing it and leaning back, looking as smug as ever.
"You're a tease, Edward," I huffed.
"No, darling, you are just easy to seduce," he smirked.
I rolled my eyes but I couldn't be mad at him. I leaned back against him, on the opposite side of where Rae was now finally in a peaceful sleep.
"So?" I questioned. "Should we go tell Charlie about the move or get Rae's ice cream first?"
"Ice cream first, for sure. That way Rae is content in case Charlie isn't too…happy…about the situation."
"You're handsome and you're smart," I teased. "Me likey."
"Mmm," Edward grinned, kissing my lips, "you better like."
I smiled, leaning back against him. "Hey, Edward?" I called out, after a moment of peaceful silence.
"Yeah, hun?"
I moved around in my seat so that I could look up at him. "I just thought of something," I muttered.
"And?"
"And I haven't given my two weeks notice. I can't just quit out of the blue," I sighed.
Edward leaned his head back in frustration, knowing I was right. "Can't I just—"
"No!" I quickly interrupted. Edward most likely wanted to generously compensate the man for my leave of absence and I wouldn't allow it.
"Fine then. How about you give your two weeks notice over the phone tonight and while you're at it take tomorrow off? What's the worst he could do? Fire you?"
I sighed. "I guess you're right."
"I know I'm right," he smiled in a genuine way, no cockiness whatsoever. "Trust me, Bella, okay? You and me, Rae and me, you and Rae, all of us, we're all going to work out fine. Trust me."
I nodded my head. "I do trust you, Edward," I mumbled as I laid my head back down on his shoulder and shut my eyes.
Before I knew it, Edward was jostling me awake so we could go inside the ice cream parlor. Getting out of the car, Edward and I each took one of Rae's hands and swung her back and forth as we walked in, laughing the whole way at Rae's continuous giggles.
As we waited in line at the counter, a plan on how to get Edward back for giving into Rae so easily came to mind. I smiled, thinking of how small a gesture it was but how big a deal Edward would make out of it.
A few brave people came up to Edward asking for his autograph since security was not in line with us. After that, quite a crowd started to draw and Edward seemed to be the dessert before the dessert.
I noticed Rae's face scrunch up in confusion, not understanding why a herd of people was talking to her dad. She went to tug on his pants leg, trying to get his attention back on her.
"Rae," I warned her, picking her up into my arms, and moving ahead a little in the line. "Daddy's busy," I explained.
"What is he doing?" she asked, looking over my shoulder, a look of deep concentration spreading over her face.
"A lot of people know who your daddy is so they're just talking to him, getting pictures with him, and having him sign autographs," I told her, as we once again moved up in the line. If all those fans could keep Edward busy, my plan would go off without a hitch.
"Can I have daddy's autograph?" she asked.
I laughed, kissing her slightly pink cheeks. "Of course you can, you'll just have to ask him," I smiled.
Rae started squirming around in my arms, asking to be let down. I set her on the floor, just as I stepped up to order her a small chocolate ice cream.
Quickly, I handed over the cash, my little payback going smoothly. There was no way Edward would be happy about me paying.
I looked over my shoulder, just to make sure he was still busy, when I saw Rae working her way through the line with a napkin in hand.
As soon as I got my change back, I rushed over to the mob, trying to get to Rae so she wouldn't disturb Edward, but he saw her first.
"Hey, princess," he smiled, as he finished signing a waffle cone—weird, I know.
The crowd 'awed', which I actually found disturbing since in no way were they affiliated with Rae or Edward. If any other man were to say that to his daughter, a group of people cooing over how adorable it was would seem psychotic.
"Can I have your autograph, daddy?" Rae asked, holding out her napkin for him to sign.
Edward laughed and picked her up easily, planting a kiss on the corner of her lips. His eyes met mine through the crowd and I shrugged, smiling.
"Rae, let me finish up here okay, sweetheart? If you go back with mommy, we can get your ice cream in a minute," he reasoned with her.
By the time Rae got back over to me, because of different people snapping her picture—which bothered me immensely—her ice cream, which I opted to have in a small bowl so she wouldn't make as much of a mess, was ready.
We walked over to a small table, farthest from the commotion, and Rae set about happily telling me about the new friends she had met at Chuck E. Cheese. In the middle of telling me about the little boy she had met, which I was happy Edward wasn't there to hear about, Rae squealed. I looked up to find Edward joining us. He gave me a quick kiss on the lips and slid into the seat across from us.
"And how are my two favorite girls?" Edward grinned, a smile that I realized was filled with love. It was our smile.
"Daddy!" Rae giggled. "You forgot my kiss."
"Well, I'll have to fix that, won't I? How about a kiss for a bite of ice cream?"
Edward and Rae got to bartering, Rae walking out of it with three kisses while Edward got the smallest bite of ice cream I'd ever seen.
"Great negotiation skills there, prince," I joked.
He laughed. "You know, she'd be a good weapon to use. She could have grown men on their knees; she's that hard to resist."
I smiled, glancing around the ice cream parlor. I had never realized it before, but almost everyone's eyes were on us. It was a bit unnerving and I wanted to get Rae out of here as soon as I could.
"Edward, do you think Rae could eat the ice cream in the car?"
He looked at me, narrowing his eyes in question, but agreed.
Once back in the car, I saddled up close to Edward. "Everyone's eyes were on us," I whispered. "And when Rae was walking away from you earlier, a few people snapped pictures of her. I'm not going to lie, I don't like this at all, but when Rae is involved, it absolutely terrifies me."
Edward put his arm around me, and I rested my head against his chest. "Bella, trust me, I don't like it anymore than you do. There's not much I can do about it without either spending a lot of money or taking away Rae's semi-normal life."
I sighed. There was always the left unsaid option. But I couldn't do that to Rae. And I think, selfishly so, I couldn't do that to me either. Edward was now our life, much like we were his. "Lots of security," I whispered to Edward.
He flashed me a grin. "Did I just hear you indirectly tell me to spend money?"
I nudged him while rolling my eyes. "You are a smug, smug man," I told him.
"Now, speaking about money, how much do I owe you for sleeping beauty's ice cream?"
I looked over at Rae and noticed she had indeed fallen asleep again, ice cream coating all around her lips like a brown, delicious-looking lipstick.
"Nope, that's your punishment. Every time you give into Rae when you really shouldn't have, I pay for the damage. It will teach you to be much more careful," I grinned.
"You are an evil, evil woman, Bella Swan," Edward whispered, nuzzling my neck with his nose, planting kisses along my collarbone.
"And you are a handsome, handsome tempter who does not have the time to seduce me since we just pulled up to the house." I flashed him a coy smile, knowing that I had won that round, as he groaned, but got out of the car.
I took a deep breath, getting out after Rae. It was now or never. But either way I would walk out of here as a now permanent resident of the Cullen household; whether Charlie approved or not.
A/N: I'm seriously blown away by the quality of the reviews; much appreciated!! And, of course, it wouldn't be my ending A/N if I didn't give my love to the Cookie League or give praise and thanks to SillyLily619 who told me to shut up about the self-conscious writing. C: She also happened to push me into writing another TNYL chapter for this weekend, so that's next on my plate…
:EXPLANATION: Just to let all you lovelies know, next chapter is show and tell. There will only be a reference to Charlie's reaction. I feel like if I put it in, it will be too repetitive because of all the stories that have Charlie's reaction to Edward and Bella getting engaged. Agree/disagree?