Sincere apologies for the delay in posting. RL has been a bugger.

Isabella gently closed the door to her bedroom, not that she thought she would waken Emmett from his slumber, but because the silence was precious to her, and she needed to hold that peaceful feeling just a little longer. She wanted to pack up every sensation and hold it tight in her heart for as long as possible. Words could not describe how wondrous the evening had been.

She hummed in her head as she crossed the room toward her dresser, dancing and spinning on the ball of one foot every few steps.

A giggle escaped her lips as she realized what she was doing.

She was the happiest she had been since word of her father's ship going down and it all bubbled up and out in spontaneous silliness.

What an evening she had.

Her eyes flitted over to the carriage clock on her writing desk.

2 am.

Isabella had never stayed awake this late.

No loss of slipper or Phaeton's turning into pumpkins for this Cinderella, she mused.

2 am.

Oh, most certainly, she had been roused by the occasional storm or bad dream at this hour, but sleep usually quickly returned. Not even a book had managed to keep her roused this late.

The past day had been exciting and exhausting and oh, so different from anything she had ever experienced.

Isabella slipped out of her dress and undergarments, carefully placing them over the back of chair next to her writing table before pulling her nightgown over her head. She knew she would be chided in the morning for not placing the clothing in its proper place, but she could not find it in herself to care.

Sighing blissfully as the lightly starched, white cotton slid over her skin, she reached up to pull the pins out of her hair. Isabella smiled as she brought to her nose the roses Edward had given her to wear. They still smelled just as sweet as when he offered them.

Had that only been yesterday afternoon? So much had happened since then.

Isabella slid into her bed, snuggling down with a satisfied sigh.

"Good," Edward had said.

"Good?"

"I am a selfish man, Isabella. If I can eliminate any competition for your attention, more the better."

"There is no competition, Edward Masen. I am no prize to be won."

"You most certainly do not see yourself clearly."

"Hmm…"

She had not believed him, and he could tell by the curve in her brow that she doubted his sincerity.

Raising his chin, Edward motioned across the way toward a man old enough to be her father.

"You see him?" he had murmured close to her ear, causing her to blush and goose bumps to erupt over her skin. "He was most fascinated with your seat..."

"My chair? Is he tired? Does he need a place to …"

Edward had smiled indulgently. She could feel the mirth rolling off of him as he shook his head, yet she did not feel as though he were laughing at her, unlike some they had recently been with.

"It's not furniture he stared at, my dear, innocent Isabella. When you were attempting to win your prize, you bent over, giving him a most delectable sight. I'm quite certain he could not think with no blood reaching his brain."

"He did not!"

She was mortified at his suggestion as Angela's lesson on male anatomy flooded her mind.

"He did."

Edward stood and offered an arm, not wishing to shock the sensibilities of his young lady with further conversation of such nature. He had spied several men, of all ages, watch her and he could almost read their minds as they considered attempting to usurp his position as her escort.

"Come. I'd like to get a little more to eat before it gets too dark to find a place to watch the fireworks."

Isabella smiled as she remembered how Edward's eyes had shone when he saw the little booths with sandwiches and fruit tidbits, Cornish pasties, and pancakes rolled around boiled chicken. The man did enjoy his food. But his absolute favorite had been the bits of fried dough rolled in sugar and cinnamon that tumbled down his chin and over his Champion ribbon with each bite.

The crooked grin of satisfaction as he popped the last morsel into his mouth made her heart glad.

"Have you ever seen fireworks before?" Edward asked, settling down next to her.

Blankets had been spread on the ground on a small hill, providing a comfy spot for couples to perch as well as provide a respectable distance between the parties. Perhaps the party organizers knew of the gossiping harpies that lived in the area and wanted to ensure a modicum of privacy while ensuring no one conducted themselves inappropriately in the dark night.

Isabella shook her head before realizing he might not be able to see her.

"No. But I have read about them in books. About how the Chinese created them. How they are like nothing I have ever seen before."

Her heart sped up in anticipation for the entertainment to come.

"Have you?"

"Just once."

A short distance away, the stumbling figures of Lauren and Jessica could be seen attempting to navigate between the settled couples as they discovered that all the prime spots were already occupied. A very unladylike muttering reached Isabella's ears as Lauren tripped and the sound of tearing fabric filled the dark air.

"Oops!" Isabella giggled, ducking her head to hide her smile.

"Tsk, tsk," Edward teasingly chided, pointedly not looking in the direction of the hubbub. "One would think you did not care for the woman's predicament."

"Not caring would be too kind of an assessment."

The snort of laughter that was quickly disguised by a cough made Isabella smile.

Off in the distance, the band began to play. She did not recognize the tune but enjoyed it nonetheless.

"This is how they did it for the only other time I've seen fireworks," Edward murmured close to her ear.

She shivered, knowing he was seated so close. So much closer than would have been allowed under normal circumstances, she believed.

"For Her Majesty's Golden Jubilee, they had a similar production. It was quite the spectacle."

"You were there?" Her eyes widened in awe.

"Only as a servant. One of my classmates had a relation that worked in the kitchens. They needed extra hands, and I needed pocket money. Because it was my birthday, they allowed me to stand outside and see a few minutes of the fireworks. It was quite amazing."

"And what a present for your birthday!"

"Yes. And I thought nothing could top that."

Just then, the first, brilliant cascade of color exploded in multiple shades of pink and red.

Isabella felt the lightest brush of his fingertips as they laced between hers.

"But, Isabella Swan, being here with you this evening, is something I will treasure more than anything."

His hand gently cupped her jaw and turned her to face him before he leaned over and gently kissed her.

"Thank you."

Isabella wrapped the covers tighter around her as she remembered the music and the fireworks and how right his hand felt covering hers.

And the kiss.

She had read about first kisses, and how they would forever change a woman. She had not believed the stories, even when Angela waxed poetically about how talented The Right Reverend was.

Again, Isabella was not sure she could ever attend church with the proper sense of decorum.

But the tenderness, the almost reverential way he had touched her cheek. No words could ever capture the feelings and emotions she had at that moment. For the rest of the show, between the oohs and ahs he whispered sweet bits of poetry into her ear that no one else could hear.

Once the entertainment ended, servants with lanterns lined the walkway back to the games and food and merriment. Together, they decided to return to Swan House rather than follow most of the rest of the crowd. After all, Emmett was working on an assignment and was certain to need supervision early in the morning.

Edward did not kiss her again as he escorted her to the front door of Swan House before heading for his new quarters in a small house down the garden path. Not because he did not wish to, no she was certain of that.

They had been remarkably quiet as they left the Hale estate and boarded the Phaeton. It was a comfortable silence, one where a couple was so in synch with each other that they had no need to speak, rather they just enjoyed the company of the other.

But Isabella noticed how Edward took a moment to ensure his coat lay a certain way over his lap as they sat for the rest of the fireworks and walked with a little extra care on their way to the Phaeton, muttering how he must have sat on a rock when she began to inquire. Oh, Isabella was quite certain he left before he illustrated some of Angela's more blush-inducing lessons, tossing any further rules of propriety out the window.

The next morning, Isabella dressed in her favorite pale blue dress, twisted her hair up into a proper bun and trotted down the stairs to the dining room, expecting to find Edward and Emmett going over the day's lesson plans. She was sadly disappointed to find only her brother, surrounded by a mountain of paper, a pair of scissors, and a pot of paste next to a quickly congealing bowl of oatmeal porridge.

"Good morning, sister!" Emmett smiled, slapping a piece of paper onto a map. "Breakfast is over there."

"Good morning, Emmett," she replied, shaking her head with a wry smile. He had already managed to get a piece of paper glued to his forehead.

Isabella checked the temperature of the tea pot, and, finding it to her liking, poured herself a cup before laying a pastry and a few strawberries onto her plate.

"The post arrived a few minutes ago and is on the cart," Emmett muttered, pointing with his scissors to the small silver tray across the room just as Isabella took her seat.

Heaving a sigh of frustration, she arose and crossed the chamber to see what had been delivered.

An invoice for her latest book delivery.

A paper wrapped book, judging by the feel of it and the return address.

An invoice for feed for the stables.

"Oh, look! It's a thank you note from Rosalie for her present!"

Isabella noticed her brother's ears pinken as he pointedly tried to ignore her. She smiled as she came to the last envelope. It had been badly damaged in transit with dark water stains. The script on the outside was barely legible. After taking her seat and a quick sip of tea, she carefully pried open the envelope and extracted the single page.

"Emmett, where are my spectacles?"

"Wherever you last left them. Least that's what you always tell me when I ask you where my things are."

Emmett turned back to his coloring with a rather self-satisfied smile on his face as his sister refrained from pulling a face at him before heading to her father's office. The smell of tobacco and leather was a comfort as she found her glasses where she had left them, next to the Swan House ledger. Even with the extra help, she found it difficult to decipher everything on the page.

May 1st

My dearest cousin,

It has truly been too long since…

I look forward to … soon

happily married last Au…

Most excellent news to share…

.recovering here before…

will arrive the afternoon of May 21st.

Your loving cousin,

Esme Cullen

Isabella's eyes flew open as she reread the date and then quickly searched out her father's desk calendar. May 21st was today! There would be company at Swan House in only a few hours! She dashed from the room, calling for Jasper.

"Ma'am?" His brow was creased with concern. Miss Isabella rarely raised her voice.

"Company, Japser! I mean, Jasper! I mean…" She tried to gain her breath as she clutched the letter to her breast.

"Take a moment, Miss. We are in no hurry."

"Oh, but we are! Cousin Esme and possibly her new husband are arriving today!" She waved the epistle to accentuate her point. "We need to have Alice plan accordingly for meals and get a room ready and…"

She spun on her heels, trying to remember the last time company had come to Swan House and what needed to be done.

"Flowers!" she exclaimed, running to the door. "I must get flowers for her room and…"

Before Jasper could say a word, she disappeared out the door toward the garden. In his general, staid fashion, he shook his head ever so slightly before heading to the kitchen to let his wife know company was on its way.

Halfway to the kitchen, Jasper heard rapid footsteps behind him. Isabella dashed by, blurting out an apology before announcing she would talk to Alice about meals if he would arrange for the yellow bedroom to be readied.

"Esme loves yellow and the morning sun does not make it too too!"

Jasper shook his head with a dry smile before turning on his heel and climbed the stairs to the housekeeper's chambers to do as Isabella asked.

Isabella clipped a cluster of primroses and added it to the basket which already held bluebells, hyacinths, and greenery. She mentally arranged them in the silver vase she had requested be polished and brought to the yellow bedroom. Perhaps another two or three clusters of 'prims' would be best.

And some ivy to straggle down.

A few more snips and she was satisfied with her collection. Rising with a soft grunt, Isabella straightened and tugged off her gloves before tossing them into her collection basket.

Looking up at the sky, she reckoned it was close to four o'clock and Swan House would soon have its first houseguests since her father's death. She realized she was excited and terrified at the same time. As lady of the house, it was her responsibility to ensure everything went as smoothly as possible.

Isabella had every confidence in the staff and their preparations. All she needed to do was arrange the flowers, wash her face and hands, and make sure her dress had no stains.

The sound of horseshoes on the stone driveway told her that her time was quickly coming to an end.

Tossing her basket over her arm, Isabella dashed for the sunporch. In a mad flurry, she unpinned her bonnet and threw it atop the basket of flowers she placed near the door. She plunged her hands into the waiting bucket of water and dried them on her apron before tearing it off and crumpled it into a ball. She hoped and prayed her face was in acceptable condition as she rushed through the hall toward the main entrance.

"Isabella?"

She paused, hearing Edward call her name. He emerged from the dining room, concern marring his handsome face.

"They are here!" she announced just as the bell rang. "Do I look presentable? Do I have dirt on my face?"

Edward gently took her hands and gazed into her eyes. She immediately felt calmer as he studied her face.

"You are beautiful. Inside and out, my dear," he murmured before brushing a quick kiss on her cheek.

"Ewwww!"

"Brothers," Isabella muttered before smiling up at her beau.

Jasper cleared his throat.

"Miss, shall I answer the door or do you wish to do so?"

An indulgent smile graced the older man's face as she ran toward the door and threw it open to greet her cousin.

Isabella's heart clenched and her knees threatened to buckle as she saw not only her cousin and a handsome, blond-headed man she assumed to be Dr. Cullen but a person she never expected to see again.

"Hello, Isabella."

Apologies for the cliffie—but I'm evil like that. *wink*

True fact-there were fireworks on June 20, 1887, for Her Majesty. I thought it fitting since canon Edward Cullen's birthday is June 20th.

I'm traveling this weekend so it will be two weeks before the next update (but it's already half planned, so I'm optimistic!)

Again, thank you for your patience. Life has been very writing unfriendly. I'm hoping as the school year ends (Today for my older ; Thursday for my baby!) I'll have more time. And motivation.

As always, I love hearing what you think.

DeJean