A/N- Thank you all for joining me again! The story is about to start picking up as far as moving the time ahead. Much love to you all & to the same wonderful ladies who have helped me with this!

I don't own the characters but I'll claim that Jacob over reacts.

Chapter 11
Baby Don't Cry

The weeks since the camping trip turned into months. Before we knew it, the end of the year was approaching. Thanksgiving had come and gone and much to my dismay, Isabella spent the holiday with the Blacks at La Push.

Christmas was a different story. I knew we wouldn't be able to get away with cooking an elaborate meal for Isabella and her father, but I was adamant that I spend part of the holiday with her. It would be our first Christmas after all.

Isabella had told me that instead of going to the reservation to celebrate, the families, or most of them, were invading her house. She had been like a wild tornado leading up to the sacred holiday. Planning meals, shopping for gifts, and helping her father get the house in order.

I hadn't seen much of her in the past couple of weeks. School had reached its mid year point and college applications had to be turned in soon. Isabella was still uncertain as to where she wanted to attend.

A part of her dilemma was money. She had been saving what little she made at Newton's as her college fund. I had spoken to Charlie briefly regarding the situation and in our talks I learned that he too had been setting money aside to help fund her higher education. It took him telling me that most of his retirement would be contributed to her college savings for me to decide what I was giving her for Christmas.

Isabella was a smart woman and she knew going in that she couldn't rely solely on grants or scholarships. That is where I came in. I had a plan formed, and as soon as Isabella told me her final choice of schools, I would put my plan into action. She had promised me that by Christmas her decision would be made.

I wanted nothing more than to be selfish and ask Isabella to spend Christmas Eve at my home, but I didn't. Charlie had requested the night off so that he could spend his first Christmas Eve with his daughter since she was a little girl. How could I compete with that? The man, in a matter of years, was going to lose his baby girl. I would get to have her forever; his time was limited.

On Christmas morning the angelic sounds of carols were being sung throughout the house. It was standard Alice tradition to sing the entire catalog of Christmas songs before the sun had fully risen.

The decorations this year were over the top to say the least. We always decorated but now that we had an added family member, the house felt more alive, as did each of its residents.

I walked into the living room, where Alice and Jasper sat facing one another, their legs intertwined together.

"Good morning," I offered. They turned their heads in my direction and smiled.

"Merry Christmas, Carlisle," Alice said.

"Merry Christmas," Jasper followed behind her.

"It is. A very merry Christmas. You sounded lovely, Alice."

"Thank you. Everything is ready for this evening. Things are going wonderfully," Alice spoke with a huge grin on her face.

I couldn't help but return the smile and her optimism. "I'm counting on it. I'm assuming she's made a decision?"

"She has. I can't wait. Jasper and I are very excited about our move."

"I'm glad to hear that. Should we begin our morning?"

They both nodded and we set off into the wilderness for our morning Christmas hunt. The air around us was cool as we sprinted through the trees in search of our next meal. My mind however was anywhere but my surroundings. I couldn't help but be curious as to where, a year from now, I would be living. Alice was hopeful that everything was going to work out and I knew never to bet against Alice. Knowing that she knew the outcome and that she and Jasper were excited about the prospect only fueled my desire to move on with our lives.

This was it. Our starting point. I had lived several hundred years and after living all over the world, I finally felt as if my life had begun. I wasn't sure where our paths would lead us, but I knew that it didn't matter if we went to New York, Seattle, or Timbuktu. As long as I was surrounded by my family I could face anything. This was turning out to be the best Christmas ever.

~xxx~

Isabella arrived a little after six that evening, her overnight bag packed and ready to spend the night in my arms. Alice all but tackled her to the floor when she walked into the house. I stood in the background watching the two laugh and hug like the sisters they had become. As soon as Alice released the death grip of a hug she had on Isabella, she spotted me across the room and winked. I smiled at the gesture and felt the lower half of my pants stiffen. Jasper, standing not far from me, cleared his throat.

Isabella crossed the room toward me, stopping to embrace Jasper in what looked like a very odd hug. It seemed the two weren't quite sure how to embrace one another. I had to hold back my laughter at watching them. After they exchanged Merry Christmas', she closed the distance between us, smiling at me brightly. At the same time, both of our arms wrapped tightly around one another and our lips said hello in the only way that two lips could.

"Merry Christmas," she said against my mouth.

"Merry Christmas. Have you had a good one so far?" I asked.

"It just got even better."

"Let's head to the living room. Alice is about to explode," I teased.

"But you said no gifts," she said in a panicked tone. "I didn't buy anything for anyone."

"I know. We don't exactly do traditional," I said using air quotes, "gifts. C'mon, you'll see."

I led her into the living room. Alice and Jasper were curled up in each other's laps on the love seat. I sat in front of the fire place, tugging on Isabella's hand to join me. When she sat, she leaned her back against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her body and inhaled her scent deeply.

"Bella, has Carlisle told you what we normally do in the way of gifts for Christmas?" Alice asked. Bella shook her head no against my chest and I looked up at Alice, urging her to continue.

"Well, we pretty much have everything we need but sadly, there are people in the world that don't. We're very fortunate and it's during this time of year that we are reminded just how fortunate we are. Instead of buying for one another, we make it our purpose to give to others."

"So, you do the Angel Tree at the mall?" Isabella asked.

"Not exactly, no," Jasper replied. "We do a little more than that."

Alice smiled sweetly and continued on. "We make donations, every year, to the charity of our choice."

"All of you, or as a family?"

"Each of us," Jasper said. "Alice?" he said, "Why don't you go first."

"This year, I've decided to donate fifty thousand dollars to the Red Cross. Jasper," Alice extended a hand offering the floor to him.

"I've chosen to give the same amount to the Humane Society."

Bella quietly snorted at Jasper's charity choice, thinking that no one could hear her. Jasper raised his eye and looked at her with a smirk.

"Something funny Ms. Swan?" he playfully asked.

"What? Oh…it's just, ironic. You give money to a charity that saves animals yet that's what you live on?"

Jasper shrugged. "Perhaps it's a guilty conscience."

"Bella," Alice began. "Before Carlisle tells us his choice, don't you have some news you'd like to share with us?" She smiled a knowing smile because she did in fact already know.

"Do you already know?" she asked, turning her body from my lap to face me.

I shook my head no.

"C'mon, Bella! Tell us! Or, tell Jasper and Carlisle. I can hardly keep quiet any longer!" Alice pleaded.

Taking a deep breath, Isabella began. "So, I've decided on where I want to go to school. I've decided that in the fall, I'll be a student at the University of Washington."

I hugged her tightly and kissed the side of her cheek. "I think that's a great idea."

"Really?" she asked. "I just think, with the limited time I may or may not have, staying close to Charlie would be good."

"As do I."

"Okay, Carlisle, spill the beans," Alice exclaimed, practically jumping up and down on the couch.

I was nervous because I wasn't sure how she was going to react. Alice had said everything was going to be fine, but I still had that nagging ache in my side that she would not appreciate the thought.

"Don't be scared, Bella," Jasper offered. He locked eyes with me and nodded for me to continue.

"Like Alice and Jasper, I've also donated money but not to a charitable cause this year. Instead I took the academic route." I paused to gauge her reaction, which led me to believe that she had no idea where I was headed with my statement.

"This year, I'm making a charitable donation, in your name, to the University of Washington. With the donation, you'll be receiving a full paid scholarship for the entire time you are enrolled in classes."

"What?" she asked, taken a back. "Carlisle, you didn't have to do that."

"I know I didn't, but I wanted to. You don't need to spend your savings on college and Charlie shouldn't have to dip into his retirement. I'm more than sufficient to provide this for you."

"I…it's just a lot," she stuttered out.

"It's the least I could do. We want you to focus on school when you are there and nothing else. Let me handle all the financial obligations."

Tears leaked out of her eyes and I was afraid she was going to tell me no until she flung herself in my arms, holding on to me like her life depended on it.

"Thank you. I love you so much," she whispered into my neck. "You don't know how grateful I am to you."

She pulled back and wiped the tears from her eyes before looking over towards Alice and Jasper. "Thank you both," she said to them.

"It's our pleasure, Bella. Besides, this is a new venture for us too," Jasper added.

"What do you mean?"

"Jasper and I are going to school with you!" Alice exclaimed. "Isn't that exciting?"

"Wait. You two are going to college with me?" she asked in a disbelieving tone.

"We are. Alice and I have never been to college. We finished high school up just before you arrived and took some time for ourselves. We needed a break and honestly, it wasn't that we really needed to go. Now, however, seems like a good a time as any. It helps provide a cover for us all going to Seattle with you."

"This is…this is just," she stopped to catch her breath, "I can't believe it. So we're all going together? To Seattle?"

Alice and Jasper nodded. "Will the two of you be living on campus with me?"

They both laughed and I couldn't help but join along with them. "What's so funny?" she asked.

"Bella, you don't really think we're going to live in dorms do you? I mean, I'm all for having the full college experience, but dorm rooms are not a part of that."

"Then where will you live?" It amazed me that she still had not caught on to what we were offering.

"We," I corrected her, "will find a house close to campus. The four of us will live together, if you're okay with that."

"But Carlisle," she purred in my ear. Her tone had gone from a ball full of nervous, excited energy to one of a playful hell cat. "Then you won't get to experience trying to sneak into my room after hours."

"Believe me, we can still play that at our house. You're not mad?" I finally asked.

"No, I'm not. I'm shocked and I have no idea how I'm going to explain all of this, but I'm elated. We're all going to be together and that's what matters."

"I love you," I said, kissing her gently.

"You're the most amazing man, Carlisle. How will I ever repay you?"

"Oh, I'm sure we can think of a few ways," I said in my sex voice.

"On that note, the two of us are out of here," Jasper said, pulling Alice off of the couch.

With quick hugs from Isabella and more thank yous, we were left alone. We cuddled on the floor, talking about what the next four years were to hold. She confessed to me that she had decided to major in medicine, but her dreams of being doctor didn't reach my own inhibitions. She liked the idea of working with children, possibly as a nurse. She playfully teased that she had the best tutor to help her along her journey and I couldn't argue with her. I was beginning to like the sound of study dates, and college as a whole.

~xxx~

The end of the year had arrived and instead of ringing in the New Year with the clan from Denali, like we normally did, Alice and Jasper left to join them, leaving me the house to myself to entertain Isabella.

She had worked a half a day at Newton's and then joined her father at the reservation in La Push. She promised me that she was only going for dinner and would call me on her way to my house. Her father believed that she was spending a quiet evening watching the ball drop on TV with the three of us.

I truly hated lying to Charlie, but what could I have honestly said? I appear to be a man in his middle thirties that is sleeping with your beautiful daughter? Showing her things that she never knew existed, all the while, she is making me feel more alive than I ever had?

No. That was impossible. I wondered one day if I would ever be able to come out and tell him how I felt about her. I wanted the whole world to know and one day, I wanted to marry her and having Charlie's blessing would make our lifetime together that much more bearable.

It was a quarter to eight, and Isabella still had not called. I began to pace the floors of the house, worrying about whether or not she was alright. Deciding to end the battle raging through my body, I picked up the phone to call her cell. It took several rings and I was certain that her voice mail would pick it up, when I heard a faint sob through the receiver.

"Baby?" I asked timidly.

"I'm sorry, Carlisle," she choked out.

"For what? Where are you? Do I need to come and get you?" My tone had risen as I feared the worst. Maybe Jacob had finally convinced her that I was not right. Maybe she was upset because she was doing the one thing I had feared since falling in love with her.

"I'm sorry I haven't called yet. I'm on my way to you. It's just…"

"It's just what, baby? Talk to me. I'm worrying myself sick over here."

"Can I talk to you when I get there? The roads are kind of slick and I'd feel better if I wasn't on my phone."

"Of course. I'll see you soon. I love you," I said before we hung up.

"I love you, too."

The phone went dead and it took everything I had not to throw it across the room. I was going to be a mess of emotions until she walked through the door and into my arms.

It took her twenty minutes to arrive. The longest twenty minutes of my life. I continued to pace the living room, pulling my hair out by its ends. When I heard her truck coming down the road, I flew to the front of the house and waited for the rickety piece of metal to make its way down my driveway. I didn't even give her time to place it in park before I was at her door, collecting her in my arms.

She sobbed into my chest while I brushed her hair back. I tried to offer her consoling words but nothing seemed to help and it didn't help me that I was uncertain as to what I was helping comfort.

"Let's get you inside before you freeze," I said, keeping my arms wrapped tightly around her. I led her into the house, taking her bag from her shoulder and setting in down it the foyer.

I walked us to the couch, sitting down and pulling her into my lap. She stared at her hands, fisting them in her own lap.

"Tell me what's wrong. What has you so upset?" I asked, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear.

She took a few minutes before she breathed in deep and began speaking. "My dad was so excited about the scholarship. He told everyone on the reservation over dinner. Everyone was saying congratulations and that they were so proud of me. You could see Charlie's eyes light up, knowing that I was going to accomplish my dreams. Anyway, when he went on to tell everyone how Alice and Jasper were also enrolling in school, Jacob got pissed. He didn't make a big spectacle or anything, but I could tell from his body posture and his tone when he spoke.

"Charlie went on to tell everyone how he felt he'd be able to sleep at night knowing that I wasn't in a big city alone and that he felt better that I would be living with all of you. That was Jacob's breaking point. He stormed out of the house like a mad man."

"What did everyone say about his behavior?" I asked. I knew that Jacob, still, had not been honest with her regarding what he really was. I was curious as to how the rest of the tribe would excuse his behavior in front of outsiders.

"They just blew him off. I think the only two it startled was me and my dad. I excused myself so that I could speak with Jacob. When I found him outside of the house, he was pacing the yard, looking as if he was about to combust. I know he doesn't like that I am with you, but is that really a reason to go ape shit like that?"

"Isabella, there are things you don't know. Things that could better explain why Jacob acted the way he did. Now, I'm not excusing his behavior. You are not property. Whether I like to think of you as mine, you are your own person. If you wanted Jacob, I would step aside. It would devastate me, but if that was who you chose, I would honor your wishes."

"Carlisle," she said, rubbing the pads of her thumbs across my cheeks, "you are who I want. You are who I will always want. It doesn't matter to me that Jacob doesn't think you are that person. It matters what I think."

"Then that is all that matters, but you need to understand, Jacob, when he's angry like that and loses his temper, it could be very bad for you."

"How?" she asked.

"Isabella, it's not my place to tell. Just know that Jacob is something else. Just as I am, so is he. He has his reasons for not liking you around my family and his reasons go back to the beginning of time. Maybe you should do some research on the subject." I had hoped by telling her this that she would, indeed, do the research to find out why Jacob was the way he was. I may not have agreed with him on whether I was the right man for Isabella, but I did respect the fact that his secret was not mine to share.

"What?" she said in a sarcastic tone. "Like look up what the mortal enemy of vampires are?"

"Yes. Maybe that's exactly what you should do. Listen, baby, I don't want you to be upset and I'm sorry he has upset you. Is there anything I can do to make you feel better?"

She sat on my lap, her finger tapping her chin. Her eyes lit up and she leaned forward, taking my top lip in her mouth and biting it playfully.

"As a matter of fact, there is something."

"Anything," I said, tracing my tongue around her warm, wet, pink lips.

"I'd love nothing more than to ring in the New Year, naked, in the bed, in your arms."

Without a second to think, I scooped her up in my arms and sprinted through the house, toward the bedroom. Laying her flat against the bed, I removed my shirt and shoes, before covering her body with my own.

"You have too many clothes on," I said between kisses.

"You didn't give me the chance to take any of them off. Maybe you should do something about that."

I lifted the hem of her shirt over her head. She sat up slightly, stretching her arms over her head. I flung the shirt across the room before popping the button on her jeans and easing the zipper down. Scooting back on my feet, I took her legs in my hands, slipping the denim down until she was in nothing but her innocent bra and panties.

"I don't know how any one person can make simple white cotton look so damn sexy," I said, raking my eyes over her form.

She smiled at me, biting her bottom lip. "Now, you're the one with too many clothes on."

I stood from the bed, doing my best not to destroy the remaining clothes from my body in an attempt to rid them as fast as possible. I crawled across the bed, like a lion on the prowl, fully nude. I kissed Isabella across the swells of her breasts, easing her bra off and exposing her beautiful breasts. She raised her body up, allowing me to wrap my hands around her back to unclasp her bra. As soon as I had it off, my mouth and my hands began to work on their own accord, assaulting her body with gentle nips and kisses. She moved underneath me, moaning her pleasure and doing her best to work friction between our bodies.

My mouth descended towards her body until my lips were met with the elastic band of her panties. I took the thin material in my mouth, pulling it away from her body and tucking my fingers under the waist band on either side of her hips, removing them so that I could have what my body was craving in that moment.

She smelled heavenly. Light, slightly tart, but I knew once my tongue began to lap its way down and across her slick folds, it would be nothing less than sweet.

Her hands fisted in my hair as I lowered my mouth and kissed the top of her lips, just where they parted. My tongue darted out, having no patience, and licked her clit, eliciting a deep throaty moan from Isabella. Her body moved off of the bed, pushing her pussy into my face, as if she were offering herself to me. My tongue began its own dance, working its way from the front, all the way toward the back. At the second pass, I stopped long enough to suck her clit into my mouth. My tongue swirled around, sucking and lapping her juices.

Her body went rigid underneath me and the hold she had on my hair tightened. Her pants grew louder the harder I sucked her into my mouth. I could hear her heartbeat quicken and as I sucked her clit she came on my tongue, screaming and chanting unintelligible words into the darkened room.

Her body slowly fell, reaching the comforts of the bed and I heard her sigh to herself. I rose up on my elbows and looked at her, eyes heavily lidded. My hands guided themselves up her body, taking in the curves of her waist, stopping to gently massage her breasts in my hands. When I reached her face, I dropped my head so that our mouths were connected. Her tongue reached out to mine first and she moaned again as she sucked her juices into her own mouth.

"Mmmm…" she said with a smile. "I think I want a turn."

"You want a turn?" I asked and she nodded. "What…?"

Her hands went flat against my chest as she pushed my body away. I sat back on my ankles and watched her slither her way closer. She pushed me gently against the bed until I was the one who was flat on their back. Hovering above me, she licked her lips and dropped her mouth against the side of my neck.

"I want to taste you, Carlisle. You have feasted upon me, let me return the favor," she whispered into my ear before taking the lobe into her mouth.

"You want to…"

Oh God! I thought. She wants to…she wants to…

"I want you in my mouth," she said huskily.

Before I could protest or…hell who was I kidding I wasn't going to protest, her mouth made its own way down my abdomen, peppering kisses along the trail of hair that led to…

"Shit, Isabella!" I cried as her whole mouth engulfed me.

Her breath, hot against my member, felt like a heat wave of the best kind. Her head moved slowly, up and down, while her hand gripped my shaft moving with the same pattern. She circled the head with her tongue, plunging it back into the inferno that was her mouth. She moved back up, grazing her teeth along the side and sucked the head in the same manner I sucked on her clit.

"Mother…." My train of thought left me as she increased her speed. There was no doubt I would blow my load into her mouth and very soon.

"That feels so good, baby. Your mouth, oh God," I moaned as she took my balls into her hand and massaged them. "Isabella, I can't…I can't….I can't wait," I finally choked out.

My hands, afraid to grab the base of her skull and wrap her hair around my fingers, were pushed to my forehead. She sucked harder as she moved up and down and I did my best to keep my pelvis glued to the bed. I could not risk thrusting into her mouth and likely killing her, here, dick in her mouth.

I moved my hands away from my face and gripped the sheets of the bed. I tried to warn her that I was coming but she wasn't moving. I had to wonder if I was even making any sense. She took me in one last time and that was all I could take. I cried out her name, or what sounded like a garbled version of her name, flooding her mouth with my seed.

When the last of it deposited into her mouth, she kissed the tip of my dick and eased her way over my body, making sure that her center rubbed itself against my still, rock hard shaft.

"That was," I began to say after I had caught my breath, "amazing. You didn't have to."

"I know," she said, leaning down and pressing her lips against mine.

I pulled her closer, by the nape of her neck and thrust my tongue into her mouth, tasting myself all over.

"You taste like me," I whispered.

"You taste like me," she said back.

"We taste like us," I countered.

She moaned and ground herself into me. I could feel the heat of her core and the wetness began to leak onto my cock.

"I need to be inside of you," I said, taking a breast into my hand and tweaking it until the nipple was pert.

I sat us up so that she was straddling me. She lifted herself up and grabbed the base of my cock, positioning herself over it. Slowly, our eyes locked in a heated stare, she guided herself onto it, and both of us groaned as I fully entered her. Her hands gripped my shoulders and her body fell back, as she rocked herself against me. I grabbed her waist, pulling her closer, deeper, feeling her totally encompass my world.

I watched her face, the way her eyes fluttered closed. She looked deep in concentration as she bit at her lip, moaning softly. My gaze traveled lower, over the mounds of her breasts where they bounced ever so lightly against her ivory skin. My eyes kept drifting further south, to the point where our bodies met. She alternated her movements between circling her hips and moving her lower half up and down. I was completely amazed at the way our bodies were attuned to one another. She was my other half and it was evident in the way we responded to one another's needs.

"Carlisle," she said in a strained voice. "Carlisle, I'm so close."

I couldn't respond to her. I was too caught up in watching the way she moved over me. When I finally found my voice, I said, "I want to watch you come. Fall apart around me, Isabella. I want to see your beautiful face as I make you come."

"Oh shit," she sighed, bouncing her body against my dick in a more frantic way.

"That's it, baby. Come,"

I felt her walls tighten around me. Her mouth dropped open to form the most beautiful O shape I had ever seen. The sounds that came out of it were light, airy almost, but just as beautiful as the cries of passion that erupted from her moments before.

"Yes," I hissed. She was magnificent, riding my cock, her perfect tits bouncing around like a boat on choppy water.

The faintest cry left her mouth as I came in her, grunting my release. I buried myself in her, as deep as I could go, giving her all I had. She sat up and threw her arms around my neck, resting her head on my shoulder. We stayed in each other's arms, our bodies still connected, while we listened to the fireworks begin to go off outside.

"I don't want to separate us," she said, kissing my shoulder up to my ear, where she licked along its shell.

"We don't have to. We can stay like this all night if you want." I caught her lips with my own as they danced over my cheek.

It didn't take long for her to begin to rub against me, hard as granite, inside of her. I held her close, never letting her out of my grasp as we both came again and again.

When midnight approached, we both lay on the bed, spent from our constant sexual needs. I was flat on my back, Isabella, lying softly on top of me. Fireworks illuminated the sky outside, signaling the arrival of another new year.

This coming year, however, I had so much to look forward to. The woman I loved at my side, a family I wouldn't trade for the world, and the prospect of a future that made me look forward to what may come.

As the fireworks played on, I held Isabella close watching her face. Her hands were folded over my chest and her chin rested firmly on them. Her gaze was turned to the window, watching the show. She was breathtaking and she was mine.

"Happy New Year, my sweet, sweet Isabella."

She turned her head slightly and gave me my favorite smile. The one that told me that she felt everything I felt for her.

"Happy New Year, my sweet, sweet Carlisle."

~xxx~

A/N- Ah! Nothing says the holidays like a good blow job. LOL Reviewers get a tease for Friday's update!

xoxo
Holly