Chapter 14 – Time Flies
The time flew past quicker than I could have ever imagined. I guess it was a mixture of my nerves and of my anticipation of the wedding night and onwards. Before I knew it, it was time to go pick up Renee and Phil at Seattle airport. Edward had offered to come with me, but I decided that I should do it alone. He insisted that I take his Volvo, and I complied; I wouldn't want to be stuck at the side of the highway with my red truck's bonnet steaming into the cloudy sky.
As I sped through the green forests of Washington, enjoying the lightness of the pedals and the quietness of the engine, I reflected, smiling to myself, on Charlie and Renee's reactions.
We had decided to tell Charlie first; Edward had said that he would give us a better idea of Renee's reaction. I agreed – Charlie had seen Edward and I on many an occasion, and hopefully wouldn't be too surprised at our apparently 'snap' decision to get married.
As we walked up to the ramshackle house, I tried desperately to hide my left hand, or at least the ring that emblazoned it. Edward stood on my right, holding my other hand gently, giving it a squeeze as we walked into the shabby kitchen, opening the door using the familiar old key under the eave.
I sat in Edward's lap until Charlie's arrival, where I moved to the seat next to him. Edward, in turn, moved his chair closer to mine so that his hand could grasp mine easily.
My heart seemed to freeze as I heard Charlie noisily hang up his gun and kick off his boots. I was sweating bullets and was acutely aware of the patches of sweat accumulating under my arms. Not letting go of Edward's hand, I folded my free arm around me, simultaneously hiding the ring.
Charlie started when he saw Edward and I sitting there, obviously awaiting his arrival.
'Hi, Dad' I coughed nervously, my voice shaking.
'Kids', Charlie grunted his acknowledgement
'Chief Swan', Edward addressed him, 'we have some good news'.
Charlie immediately straightened up from rummaging around in the refrigerator. Edward had stopped addressing him by his work name long before. Charlie glanced around, surveying my sweaty forehead and uncomfortable stance in contrast to Edward's cool composure, masking his worry, I felt.
'I have asked Bella to marry me,' Charlie's face paled, but Edward continued nonetheless, 'and she has agreed. Now, I know that it is generally customary to ask the girl's father for permission beforehand', Charlie grunted, looking disgruntled, 'but knowing how stubborn Bella is and I believe she would have said yes, regardless of your reaction'.
Charlie muttered something incoherently, and although my human ears didn't pick it up, I know Edward's did and he smiled.
Charlie looked directly at me, catching me slightly off guard.
'Bella, is this true?'
'Yes, dad. And before you say anything, I want you to know that I love Edward', I squeezed my fiancé's hand as I spoke, 'and no matter what you and mom decide, I'm marrying him'.
Charlie thought for a moment, eyebrows creased pensively. His face immediately brightened up, and much to my surprise, he started to chuckle.
'Fine with me, Bells. But you're telling Renee. I have no say in this one, honey!'
I smiled mockingly at him with false gratification and stood up to wrap my arms around Charlie's wide shoulders, letting go of Edward's hand in the process.
'I love you, dad', I whispered into his ear. Charlie's grip tightened a bit.
'I love you too, Bells'. As I pulled away, I could see that Charlie's eyes were wet with tears. He was as uncomfortable with emotions as I, and it broke my heart to see him cry, even if it was for a happy cause.
'Edward, you take care of her; I know you will'. Edward nodded seriously and then smiled lovingly at me, immediately making my heart flip.
'Don't worry, Charlie. I'll never let her go' Edward grinned honestly.
I smiled again when I returned back to my present surroundings. My face was wet with tears that were drying rapidly as the wind whipped past me through the open window. I knew it was going to be much harder for Charlie to let me go than Renee. Charlie had been alone since mom left him, and only had company when I had come to stay with him. I was concerned for his health, and made a mental reminder to call every week to ensure that he was doing okay, physically and emotionally.
Both Edward and I were astounded at Renee's reaction, however. When I called her, I told her directly, not wanting to beat about the bush, and winced as I waited for her reply. Instead of the berating I had expected, I received an unsurprised, unflustered Renee asking me for Esme's number so that they could discuss wedding plans together. Renee had rambled on for a while, telling me how she really wasn't surprised; the time Edward and I visited her obviously had made its mark. She had mentioned several times how much happier we looked than she and Charlie had before their big day.
Lost in my memories, I found myself pulling up to Seattle's giant airport much quicker than I had anticipated. Finding myself a parking spot in the 'short stay' multiplex, I headed to the 'Arrivals' gate.
When the floods of people started pouring out, I stood on my tiptoes looking excitedly for my mom's familiar face. She found me first, however, and I was nearly knocked over by my mom's exuberant hug, followed by Phil wrapping his arms around the two of us, nearly losing his balance without his crutches.
Mom's face was bright with anticipation as she demanded to see the ring.
I thrust my hand at her, blushing slightly. I knew that Edward's ring was absolutely magnificent, and sometimes I felt upstaged by it.
'Oh, my goodness, Bella,' Renee cooed, 'where'd he find something like that?'
'It was his biological mother's', I replied.
Renee looked up at me. 'That's a big statement, Bells'.
'I know, Mom. I just love him so much it's inconceivable', I said, my face crumpling slightly as I felt a burning threatening behind my eyes. I knew that my mom would be watching me very carefully this trip, and she looked at me piteously as the tears threatened to spill.
I had to take a deep breath before helping them with the bags as Mom filled me in on the wedding details she had gone over with Esme and Alice. I swear to god – they knew more about this 'do' than I did!
Renee's eyebrows rose as we approached the car.
'Edward lent it to me', I explained. 'He didn't want me taking my truck in case it broke down on the way'.
The trip back to Forks went by quickly. My mom's chatter filled the silence. The Cullens had offered to pay for a hotel room in the nicest place in Port Angeles, the Slug and Lettuce. It was a small B&B, but it was very comfortable and clean and more than substantial for the week. I had a feeling that Renee would be spending most of her time at the Cullen house anyway, going over wedding plans again with Esme and Alice.
Our first stop was to be the hotel. We would drop Phil off there to let him unpack and get settled in while my mom reinstated her old bonds with the place she had left almost eighteen years ago. After leaving Phil outside the modest entrance to deal with the bags, we sped to Charlie's house.
I had decided from the beginning to wait in the car, wanting to avoid the painfully awkward conversation I knew would stem from their meeting. I fiddled with the air conditioning and tried to flatten my hair, anything to keep my mind from wandering to what could be happening inside the kitchen -- the kitchen that hadn't changed since the Swan women's departure long ago. I thought wistfully for a moment, contemplating whether Renee would notice how much Charlie was clinging onto the past.
When my mom came out of the house, the spark she had possessed beforehand had been dampened slightly, and she was quite quiet as we wound our way through the forest to the Cullens'.
Renee had the same reaction to the majestic white house on top of the long, sloping drive that I had – utter amazement. Even in the cloudy weather, it seemed to shine like a beacon, the brightest thing all around, though it was surrounded by thick forest.
As we pulled into the garage, mom's eyebrows rose slightly as she noticed the other expensive cars that graced the large, converted barn, but she didn't say anything about it. At least, not yet.
We walked in through the side door, entering the kitchen where we met a gloriously beautiful and maternal Esme wearing a frilly apron, chopping tomatoes and stirring something that smelt delicious on the stove.
Esme flashed me a stunning smile before greeting Renee warmly, inviting her on a tour of the house. Renee immediately relaxed – it was hard not to with Esme around – and the mothers fell into a comfortable chatter as they climbed the stairs.
I waited for Edward to find me, closing my eyes and sniffing deeply into the pot that was bubbling happily on the stove. At once, I felt a pair of substantial marble arms wrap themselves around my shoulders and felt a delicate kiss on the top of my hair.
I turned around, looking up at him, standing on my tiptoes for another kiss, this time on my lips. He smiled slightly and kissed my nose before planting his mouth fully on mine. Edward lifted me up onto the countertop and I wrapped my legs around his waist and entangled my hands into his hair, wanting to prolong the moment for as long as possible.
We continued like that for a while, until both of us pulled away, panting heavily.
'Where's everybody else?' I asked, breathless.
'Carlisle and Jasper are hunting, Alice is into wedding plans upstairs and Rosalie and Emmett have gone away for a bit'.
I frowned, biting my lower lip. 'Why?' I asked.
'They generally do that before one of us has a big occasion or event', Edward grimaced slightly, and 'Rosalie always misses not having the attention showered on her, so Emmett takes her away for a special 'Rosamett getaway''.
I chuckled into his chest and he placed an icy finger under my chin, pulling my head up for another kiss. This time it was gentler, and much more tame, as our mothers came in, arm in arm, laughing gaily.
'So, kids, what do you have planned for your bachelor parties?' Renee asked suggestively.
I immediately flushed, while Edward remained calm and composed, as always.
'Alice thought she'd stay in with Bella and Rosalie. She said something about renting some 'man candy movies' and celebrating Bella's last night as a 'single woman'' Edward finished, rolling his eyes and chuckling slightly.
'Emmett, Jasper and I are going to go for a camping trip. Of course, we'll be back in plenty of time before the wedding!'
Renee's mouth popped open slightly – obviously she had just been worrying about that specific problem.
'Now, however, Bella and I are going to go and spend as much time as possible with each other before being separated by our overly zealous siblings', Edward grinned before picking me up, throwing me gracefully over his shoulder and heading upstairs.
After a few steps of squirming and squealing, I decided there was no point in fighting. As soon as we got out of view of the excited matriarchs, Edward ran to our room, placing me down in the centre of the bed and climbing predatorily so that he was hovering over me.
My body, the traitor that it was, of course responded immediately. My heartbeat sped up, cheeks flushing and overheating. Instead of letting my body's involuntarily reactions affect the moment, I tried playing the seductress. I surveyed Edward underneath my lashes, biting my lip and spreading my legs casually, hopefully inviting him in.
He took to my invitation very well and threw himself at me. All coherent thoughts I had were gone. All that filled my mind now was Edward. Edward's hands in my hair, Edward's lips on mine, Edward's tongue – well, we'd certainly never done that before. I had moaned involuntarily into his open mouth, which had caused him to stroke my bottom lip with his tongue.
Breathe, Bella…
I pulled away, gasping as I saw his expression. His eyes were that deep, molten gold again and he looked like a human in the throes of passion, although the perfect icy planes of his face were clearly nowhere near simple humanity.
Before I really knew what I was doing, my hands flew to the bottom of his t-shirt, pulling it up over his magnificent chest. I swear to god, the effect of his naked skin was enough to send me over the edge alone.
His hands were at the buttons of my blouse, which had suddenly flayed open, displaying my pale, milky skin contrasting with the blood red bra Alice had insisted upon me wearing, accentuating the curve of my breasts, I had noticed.
I fiddled with Edward's belt buckle, pulling his slacks over his hips, which revealed his surprisingly boring navy cotton boxers. I knew Alice did most of the shopping for Edward – would she really have gone for something that dull?
Edward kissed down from the slight hollow at the base of my throat to my belly button, his icy tongue running around the edge before dipping slightly into it. He rested his chin in my navel, looking up at me in all of my sweaty, red glory with a warm and loving smile on his face.
'I love you' he said honestly, his great golden irises melting my heart.
I chuckled at the way his head bobbed up and down when he spoke. Leaning over, I whispered in his ear 'I know'. I blushed again – I hadn't realised in bending down, I was giving him a great view of my cleavage. Great, just great.
Leaning back again, I burrowed into the pillows. At once, I felt Edward's cold hand delicately placed on my shoulder as he planted another delectable kiss on my lips. I sighed as I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him closer, and all worries about my body vanishing by each sweet caress.
Edward's icy fingers burned a trail into my skin as they delicately hovered across my stomach down to the fastenings of my jeans. He undid the button and zip deftly and I lifted my hips up to let him take them off. Running his hand back up my leg, he squeezed my butt slightly.
I hesitated. It was kind of weird, and very un-Edward like.
He stopped, pulling away, surveying my reaction.
'Come back here', I growled, grabbing the roots of his hair and pulling his head down to mine again. I felt his delicious lips curl into a smile under mine, which quickly followed suit.
We flipped over in one of those almost disconcertingly quick movements of his so that I was sprawled across the length of his body. Pulling away simultaneously, we looked deep into each other's eyes. His eyes seemed to bore into mine, and I found it impossible that he couldn't read my thoughts – his gaze seemed to penetrate my soul, seeing right through me.
His mouth curved up again into his breathtakingly beautiful crooked smile that made my heart stop and then continue beating at twice the rate as before.
All at once, his face fell as he said seriously, 'Renee'.
I scrambled around, trying desperately trying to find my clothes before my mother walked in on me half naked with my shirtless, trouserless fiancé, soon to be husband. I almost jumped up and down in excitement – I wasn't necessarily excited about the wedding, but I was for sure anticipating spending eternity with him.
I already had buttoned up my shirt, and was hopping around clumsily, trying to pull my legs into my jeans. Edward was, of course, already immaculate dressed, although his hair was more mussed than usual.
By the time we heard the brisk knock on the door, we were fairly decent, although I think the unnatural flush of my cheeks and wary look of my eyes might have given us away.
Edward opened the door and Renee's eyes widened, taking in the expanses of his room, and the messed covers on the bed. Renee grinned knowingly at Edward and me, causing my skin to flush red, again.
'Bella, are you going to show me the dress, or not?' she smiled.
At once, Alice had appeared behind Renee ordering Edward out, advising him to 'go for a walk or something'. I know that Alice had tried desperately not to think of the dress hanging in her closet while Edward was around, as she really wanted it to surprise him. She had foreseen his reaction when he saw me at the beginning of the aisle, and had told me that she had never seen him so moved before.
Alice led Renee and me to her bedroom, and then into the walk in closet which just happened to be bigger than my room at Charlie's house.
'Strip, Bella' she commanded. I sighed wearily and began to unbutton the blouse, flushing slightly as I remembered the last person who had undone it. I stepped out of my jeans, leaving them as a pool of denim on the floor. I drew the dress up over my legs, wiggling slightly as it passed over my hips. I turned around, lifting my hair up over my shoulders so Alice could deftly do up the many buttons. She bent down to place my feet in a pair of high shoes covered in silk. The soles were bright red and there was a fancy French name written in gold silk on the inside.
'Um, Alice, how do you say that?' I asked, feeling exceedingly stupid.
'Christian Louboutin' she snorted, as if it was obvious.
I turned around to show the two women in front of me my appearance. I kept my eyes down, not wanting to see their reaction.
'Oh, Isabella!' Renee sighed. I glared at her for her use of my full name, but immediately stopped as Alice turned me by my shoulders to look in the mirror.
I was shocked – the woman in the mirror didn't look like me! She was ethereally tall, her long, shiny mahogany hair cascading down her back, with a few tendrils falling forwards, curling just underneath her breasts. Her cheeks were flushed, although the rest of her skin was milky, matching the white lace that met at her breasts, forming a 'sweet heart' cut. The neckline was wide, and accentuated her sloping shoulders. The sleeves were tiered, and the skirt long with a lace train connecting to the veil. I looked like something out of the 'Anne of Green Gables' era. All that filled my head was Edward's facial expression when he saw me in it.
I grinned and turned again, throwing my arms around Alice and Renee.
'No, careful! We have to take the dress off first!' Alice said, panicked.
I stepped out of it again, pulling on my jeans and grabbing a t-shirt from Alice's closet – the blouse was too difficult to keep on taking on and off.
I blew Alice and Renee a kiss before heading downstairs to find Edward. I jumped as Alice came creeping up behind me, saying that Edward had gone hunting and would be back in 'exactly twenty three minutes'. She winked at me before dancing gracefully upstairs; once again, she knew more about me than I did.
I sighed and fell back onto the couch and jumped again as I saw Esme on the couch.
'Bella, what are you going to get Edward as a wedding present?' Esme asked gently.
A wave of icy water seemed to have washed over me as the shock gripped my body.
'W-wedding present?' I asked, astounded.
Esme just smiled at my reaction. 'Yes. I had expected that Edward wouldn't tell you; he's still getting over the thought of having you to himself. I just thought you should know…'
My shock slowly turned to worry. 'Thank you, Esme. Do you have any id-'
She cut me off, chuckling slightly, before I could finish my sentence.
'Sorry, Bella, but I'm not giving you any hints. I know Alice has seen it, though', she said, eyes twinkling.
I shouted my gratitude as I ran up the stairs, screaming 'Alice!'
'Yes?' she chirped.
'Have you seen anything about my wedding gift to Edward?' I whispered, incredibly flustered.
'Yes, but I'm not telling you anything. You have to figure this one out yourself. Sorry!' she said as she headed back into her bedroom, presumably showing Renee the bridesmaids' dresses.
I growled, grinding my teeth and headed to the office, turning on the computer. I searched eBay, Amazon, everywhere. There was nothing, nothing at all that I thought would be suitable. I did, however, take note of the shiny silver MP3 player that Edward would definitely love for a birthday or Christmas.
As Alice passed the door, she called out to me, 'instead of searching the internet, take a trip into Port Angeles' antique book store'.
I stood up, hastily turning off the computer and grabbing Edward's car keys. He had obviously gone by foot.
I sped to Port Angles quicker than I normally would have, but my mind was whirring, racking my brains. I had no idea what to give him. What do you give to your soul mate that already has everything?
I pulled up into a space in front of the store. My entry was marked by the tinkling of a hidden bell and I was then hit by a rich, musky scent. The dark shelves looked incredibly inviting and I started to browse. Most of the books looked like they would fall apart if I removed them. Now that I was in this incredible place, I had a rough idea of what I was looking for. Preferably something that was first published around Edward's date of birth or 'death', something that mirrored our own relationship, maybe? I frowned – most of the books written in those days reflected the war raging in Europe, and not tragically happy love stories.
As I was looking through a fairly good copy of Kenneth Grahame's 'The Wind in the Willows', something caught my eye. It was rusty red, leather bound. Gold lettering emblazoned the front. It read 'The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux'. I gulped while looking at the half title… it was a first edition, published in September 1909. Edward would have just had his eighth birthday. This was it – I knew it.
I strode confidently to the cashier, clutching the book carefully. This was to be the first time that I would use the credit card that the Cullens had given me, and I felt a twinge of remorse; this present was meant to be from me, and therefore I should be paying for it. I asked for the card back and handed over my debit card instead.
The cashier gave me a look, raising his eyebrows impossibly high, and then shook his head as he processed the payment. Wrapping the book up in brown paper and twine, he handed it to me with a wry smile.
I drove back to Forks slower than my outward journey had been, mulling happily over my purchase. The storyline of 'The Phantom of the Opera' certainly mirrored our own - a forbidden lover story of a normal girl and a beautifully scarred 'phantom'. The only difference, of course, is that Christine didn't go for the other, normal choice – she went for the 'monster'. My heart ached as I thought of Edward's view of himself. He couldn't see the absolute beauty and goodness he radiated. He thought he was selfish. I sighed; if only he knew how much I loved him, how much my life had improved to before I had met him. The revelation I had had after we came back from Italy, surely, was enough to convince him?
As I wound up the Cullens' drive, I glanced at the dashboard clock and gasped – it was much later than I had anticipated. Dinner time, I smiled dryly as I entered the house. I wondered what the Cullens would do with the extra food. There would be five of us, I calculated. I just had to make sure that Renee was focusing on something else and not on their slightly unorthodox eating habits.
When I entered the house, I heard bubbly chatter coming from the dining room. I walked in, standing in the doorway. I know my face betrayed my shock at seeing the Cullens eat, and the surprise quickly changed in to embarrassment as I thought of the sacrifice they were making for me.
I took a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves.
'Mmm… Esme, this looks delicious!' I exclaimed while piling my plate high, ensuring that there wouldn't be much left, decreasing the chance of Renee pushing second helpings on everybody.
'Thank you, Bella' she said, eyes twinkling.
'Hungry, Bells?' Renee asked.
'Yeah, I'm bushed. I forgot to have breakfast…and lunch…'
'How come?' Renee asked, obviously implying something.
'I had to go run an errand in Port Angeles and got swept up in a bookstore, Mom', I replied icily. Her implications had suddenly become obvious to me – she assumed I didn't eat in the morning because of morning sickness, as such. Ugh. If only she knew the truth, I smiled to myself.
Carlisle's crisp voice pulled me out of my daydream.
'When are you exchanging wedding gifts, kids?'
Edward grinned in reply, 'hopefully tonight'.
I nodded stupidly, my mouth full of scalding tomato sauce.
The rest of dinner passed uneventfully and I was itching to go up to Edward's room to give him my present. Esme obviously noticed my impatience and whispered for me to go upstairs and wait for him there – she would deal with the dishes and my mother.
I thanked her silently and rushed up to the office, book in hand, and closed the door with a sharp 'snap'. I fumbled around in the drawers, finally finding an envelope and writing paper. I smiled sadly as I remembered the last time I had written Edward a letter – when I was sacrificing myself to James.
I took a deep breath and put my pen to the paper, trying to portray the intensity of my emotions about him onto paper.
'Edward,
It's difficult for me to write this, because I don't think my feelings for you can be put into words, only actions.
I love you – more than anything. I'm ecstatic at becoming your wife. I am waiting with true impatience until the moment that I become your one and only.
You, of course, already had my heart, my mind, my body.
I cannot wait for forever.
Bella'.
I signed off simply, not knowing what else to say.
Licking the envelope and sealing it, I left the front blank and slid it underneath the twine holding the wrapping together.
I skipped to Edward's room, preparing myself for waiting for him, but found him already on the bed, rummaging through his bedside table drawer – the same drawer he had taken my ring out of all that time ago.
I greeted him with a kiss and went to sit down next to him, cross-legged. I placed the book in front of my legs and waited patiently for him to stop looking.
Turning towards me, he smiled, holding something behind his back.
'Yours or mine first?' he asked teasingly.
'Simultaneously?' I suggested.
I handed him the package at the same time as he gave me a navy blue box tied with a red ribbon. All of a sudden, my boring brown paper packaging seemed incredibly insignificant.
Casting my fears aside, I carefully undid the ribbon and lifted the lid. There were two ancient envelopes inside with 'Edward's wife' written in two different styles.
I took one of the envelopes, opened it and started to read.
My eyes filled with tears at the beautiful words printed across the page. The sheer sentimentality and romanticism of it made my heart soar as the tears overflowed, dropping onto the gold bedspread.
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A/N: I'm sorry for the cliff hanger! I want to know what you think – review, please!
LionsLamb