BPOV

The first morning I woke up as the official future Mrs. Edward Cullen, I was on such a high I almost didn't know what to do with myself. I rolled over and just stared at Edward sleeping next to me — I laughed giddily to myself as every wonderful wave of emotion from the night before washed over me again.

I reached out a hand and gently grazed my fingers down his right cheek. An involuntary smile spread across his face and it increased the warm feeling that coursed through me. I could lie like this and watch him forever, but I was too excited to stay in bed all day. I snuggled in closer to Edward and captured his lips to give him a nice, thorough wake-up call.

He responded exactly the way I hoped he would; he rolled us over so I was on my back and he hovered over me, digging his fingers into my backside and pulling my pelvis close to his.

"Mmmm, Bella love," he whispered as soon as he broke the kiss. "I take it you still want to be my wife?"

"Did you think I was going to change my mind over night?"

He chuckled, "Well, you could do so much better..."

I silenced his nonsense with another kiss.

Though, as much as I wanted to have another tumble in the sack, I needed to get up and tell everybody my amazing news. And shouting it from the mountain tops wasn't in the cards. However, Edward seemed intent on continuing our activities from last night. His right hand slid back over my hip and made its way to the very core of me. He began stroking my already soaking entrance.

"Edward," I moaned, "I need to get up, I have things to do today."

"You have nothing to do today, except stay in bed with your fiancé."

Two of his long, slender fingers slipped between my folds and I couldn't stop the loud, long moan that escaped my lips. He brought me oh so close to a climax before removing his hand and pulling away slightly.

"Hey," I hissed through clenched teeth, "You better finish what you started, Mister."

"Yes ma'am," he laughed as he replaced his fingers with his throbbing erection.

An hour and many orgasms later, we finally found our way out of the bedroom. I immediately went to my cell phone and dialed Alice's number. I knew better than to wait too long to tell Al about the engagement.

However, a man with a sleepy drawl answered.

"Hello?"

"Um...yeah, is Alice there?"

"Hang on a sec," he said.

I sat on the couch, stunned. Who was this strange man answering Alice's phone. Then, after I thought about it for a moment, I realized that voice was very, very familiar.

"Hello?" Alice answered.

"Hey, best friend," I teased. "Who's answering your phone for you these days?"

"Oh...Bells...um," she began, "That's just...a friend."

"Oh, no way, Al," I said. "You tell me who that was right now! I won't sit by and let my best friend just sleep around with random guys!"

"Fine...if you must know, it's Jasper."

I felt a smile play at my lips, "Really? Jasper?"

"Yes," she replied simply, "What about it?"

"Nothin'," I said. "It's just surprising is all; I thought you were avoiding him."

"Well, I'm not," she said. "So, did you call to give me a hard time, or what?"

"No, I called to let you know the good news—and, yes, you are the first person I'm telling."

"OK," she said, unsure.

I took a dramatic pause, "Edward asked me to marry him, and I said yes."

"Oh, thank god," she replied. "I thought you were going to say you're pregnant."

"Well, after last night, who knows?" I replied.

"Bells, are you on birth control?"

"No," I said. "And I'm not going on it, either. I want to have a baby, Al."

"Is this some biological clock bullshit, or what?" Alice asked. "Because, seriously dude, you have plenty of time to have a baby."

"I know that," I responded, "But, I want one now. I don't know what it is, Alice, but I really want to be a mother. And, I want Edward to be the father."

"And what does Edward think of this? I mean, I don't know many 22-year-olds who are ready to become fathers."

"He wants this, too," I said. "He told me he does."

"Could he be just trying to make you happy? Think long and hard about this, Bells. Sit down and have a real talk with him."

I was beyond upset at this point, "Jesus Christ, Alice! I called to give you my great news about getting engaged, and all you want to do is be a kill-joy? Fine, bye!"

I slammed my phone shut and Edward was immediately at my side. "What's wrong, love? What did Alice say?"

"Nothing," I lied.

"I heard you yelling at her, Bella; that doesn't sound like nothing to me," he said.

I turned to him, "You...you do want to have a baby with me, right?"

"Of course I do," he said. "Is that what she said—that she doesn't think I'm really ready to be a father?"

"Not in so many words," I replied. "She just wants us to think about it before I get pregnant. But I have thought about it, and I want this more than anything...well, except getting married to you, that is."

He smiled as he grazed his fingers gently over my cheek, "I want both of those things just as much as you do. Don't worry, love. Alice is your best friend, she'll come around."

As if on cue, my phone started playing "Army of Me," Alice's ringtone. I smiled and shook my head as I answered.

"Hey."

"I'm sorry, Bells; I was being kind of a bitch," she said. "I just don't want you to get hurt."

"I know you're just trying to protect me," I replied.

"So...I guess we've got some wedding plans to make, don't we? Have you guys decided on a date?"

"Sometime in May," I said. "So, I guess I'd better start looking for a dress now, huh?"

"Well, it is only a few months away," she laughed. "Don't worry, I'll get a hold of a few designers on Monday."

"Hold on a second, we don't have to make this a big deal, Al," I said. "I want a small wedding with just a few friends and a simple dress."

"Just because it's simply doesn't mean it can't be Monique Lhuillier."

I rolled my eyes and turned to Edward, exasperated. He chuckled and gave me a kiss on the cheek before heading into the kitchen.

"We'll talk about it later," I told her.

"OK, just know I've already got the perfect dress for you all planned out in my head right now."

"Oh, I don't doubt that. Bye, Al."

As I hung up again, Edward emerged from the kitchen with a cup of tea for me. All this time I've been sitting here, arguing with my best friend, he's been in the kitchen making me tea and starting breakfast. I could already detect the scent of eggs and bacon frying on a skillet.

"Wow, how'd I luck out and get such a fantastic man?" I asked as I followed him into the kitchen.

He laughed, "Don't say that until you actually taste the food — I'm not the world's greatest cook, you know."

"Maybe not, but you are the world's greatest fiancé," I told him as I wrapped my arms around his waist from behind. I placed my cheek against his back and enjoyed the feeling of being close as he flipped the eggs over on the skillet.

Once he slid them onto a plate, he put the hot frying pan aside and took me into his arms for a kiss. We were interrupted, unfortunately, by the toast popping out of the toaster. I let him finish making breakfast and sat at the table with my cup of tea.

Suddenly, I was hit with a million different worries at once — if we were getting married in just a few months, we really needed to get moving on the details. Alice was right, this is not the time to loaf. Just as Edward was bringing my breakfast to me, I jumped out of my chair and hurried to grab my laptop. I brought it back to the table and fired it up anxiously.

"What's the matter? You're acting a little jumpy, love."

"Well, we need to make some important decisions," I said. "Like, where are we going to get married? What are the colors going to be? Who are we going to invite? Where are we going to go on our honeymoon?"

"Bella, love," Edward said soothingly, "You're getting all worked up. Just calm down."

"I will once we get a few things straightened out," I said as I immediately performed a Google search for wedding planning. "Maybe I should hire a professional...no, I just want something simple."

"Love, just wait until Monday," he said as he sat next to me and placed his hand on my knee gently. "You and Alice can get all of the decisions made then."

"What about you? I want to know what you want for our wedding," I said.

"I'm happy with whatever you want, love," he said.

For some reason, that struck me as completely indifferent. "So, you have no interest in our wedding, whatsoever? You're just going to sit back and let me do all the work? Just show up in a tux and look pretty?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Where did all this come from?" He asked, trying to calm me once more. "Bella, I care very much about our wedding — I just want it to be everything you've ever dreamed of. If you want my say in the decisions, then I'll give you whatever you want."

I sat there for a moment, ashamed I had blown up at him for no reason. In fact, I was downright embarrassed with myself. The floodgates opened up, and I started bawling uncontrollably.

"I'm sorry," I sobbed. "I know you care...I don't know why I got so upset."

"Hey, it's alright, love," he whispered as he pulled me into his lap. "Maybe you're just not feeling well today. Why don't you go lie down, and I'll make you some more tea, OK?"

"No, I'm fine," I said with a sniffle. "I want to eat this breakfast you made for me."

I grabbed a piece of toast and took a big bite just to prove my point. In fact, I scarfed down the whole slice before diving into the fried eggs and bacon on my plate. Edward laughed, "Wow, maybe I'm a better cook than I thought."

"It's delicious," I said as I shoveled the food into my mouth. It was still a bit hot and burned the roof of my mouth, but I didn't care. I have never been so hungry in all my life.

Once we were both finished with breakfast, we sat on the couch and started flipping through channels. After about an hour of watching Food Network, I started to feel a pang of nausea hit me. I ignored it at first, but after another fifteen minutes, I just couldn't keep quiet anymore.

"Hey, do you feel sick, too?" I asked Edward.

"No, you're not feeling well?" He asked as he put a hand to my forehead.

"I feel like I need to puke," I said.

I looked up at the screen and saw Bobby Flay throwing a big, raw steak onto his grill—that sent me over the edge. I ran to the bathroom and promptly expelled all of Edward's delicious breakfast he had so thoughtfully prepared for me out of my stomach. Fortunately, he was right there behind me with one arm around my waist and the other hand holding my hair out of my face.

Once I was done throwing up, he lifted me up and carried me to the bedroom. I lay there for a few moments, hoping I wouldn't have another bout of vomiting hit me, as he went to the kitchen and poured me some more tea.

But, by the time he got back to our room, I was fine. It was too weird. I had gone from completely nauseous to perfectly fine in about two minutes. How the hell could that happen?

Edward noticed the change in my demeanor, as well, when he set the tea cup on the bedside table.

"You look better already," he noted. "You're color's coming back. Wow, that was the quickest bug I've ever seen hit someone."

"Yeah...weird."

EPOV

Everything about Bella's actions the other day made me weary. She's never been prone to erratic behavior, so I decided to see if I could make some sense of it all online. I went to WebMD and typed in the symptoms she had. When I got to the nausea part, the Web site asked if it had occurred during pregnancy, and I stopped short. Pregnancy? Of course!

I searched the symptoms of pregnancy, and it all made sense — the hunger, the vomiting, the fragile emotional state. I think Bella finally got her wish, she's pregnant.

I was about to turn off the computer when I saw the icon for Microsoft Word on the desktop and became curious. Bella was out making wedding plans with Alice, and she won't be home for quite some time – especially from what she told me about Alice's shopping habits. She didn't have to know I had looked at her new story, and I was good at keeping a secret.

I brought up the program and searched through the documents until I found one titled "New Story." According to Microsoft, it had been updated just yesterday morning. I opened it and was immediately enthralled by the story – mostly because the plot was so similar to Bella's actual life. I remember her telling me she was inspired by her own experiences, but I wasn't sure how much until now.

Much of it brought a big smile to my face, especially when the story introduced Ethan, the man who changes Maggie's world. It was beyond flattering that I inspired Bella this much – that she would created an entire character based around me.

However, I got to the part where Maggie meets Ethan's father, a boozing womanizer named Cameron. I knew it shouldn't have bothered me, but it did hit a little too close to home. I really wished she'd just leave that part out of the book.

My phone rang, and the caller ID flashed Aro's name and number. I turned off the computer before I answered.

"Hey, Aro," I said. "What's up?"

"I should be asking you that, son," he said, his tone almost accusatory. "I get to work this morning and hear from Alice that you're engaged? That's not kosher, kid. You've got to tell your agent these things, you're about to be a major television star."

I rolled my eyes at the hyperbole. "Sorry Aro, I didn't think it was a big deal. I mean, I really don't want the press to start digging into my personal life."

"But that's what they do, son," he assured me, "And once they find out you're engaged to a famous author, they're going to jump on that. So, I need to know these things so I can devise a defensive strategy."

He was talking like some kind of military general, but I decided to just agree with whatever he said just to placate him.

"OK Aro, I'll let you know everything in the future, OK?" I told him, "I promise."

"Be sure you do," he said.

I gave him all the details of the upcoming wedding and honeymoon. And he invited me and Bella out for dinner with him and his wife to celebrate the engagement. Who was I to deny him, "Sure Aro, when did you want to do that?"

"How about tonight?"

"Um, well, I'll ask Bella when she gets home," I told him.

Just then, Bella walked in the front door – her arms loaded down with various catalogs and magazines.

"Is that Bella?" Aro asked; he has surprisingly good hearing for an old man.

"Yeah, hang on a sec," I told him – I turned to Bella, "Love, Aro wants to take us out to dinner tonight; you don't have any plans, do you?"

"No, that sounds like fun," she said. "Tell him I'd love to go."

"Did you hear that?" I asked him.

"Sure did, be ready by seven – I'll send a car around for you two."

"Sounds good," I said. "See you then."

"And wear something spectacular," Aro said before hanging up, "I'm pulling out all the stops tonight."

I set my phone back on the kitchen table as Bella began perusing a catalog full of wedding cakes – it made me hungry.

"How has your day been?" She asked as I sat next to her.

"Fine," I said, trying to push my previous feelings to the back of my mind. "So, how have you been feeling today – anymore sickness?"

"Nope," she said simply, "Guess it really was just a bug."

I wasn't convinced, "What about your…emotional state? Have you felt sad or upset for no reason today?"

"No, why do you ask?" She asked as she looked up from the glossy pages.

"Because you were so…erratic the other day," I said. "And, well, I looked it up online, and you have all the symptoms of being pregnant."

She smiled sadly and put a hand on my cheek, "Oh Edward, I wish I was. But, I had my period not long ago. And, if I were pregnant, I wouldn't have those kinds of symptoms this early. I just had an off day, I guess; that's all it was."

"Well, maybe it's for the best," I said. "After all, part of the fun of you being pregnant is the path that gets you there."

I waggled my eyebrows at her and she giggled giddily. I attacked the side of her neck and tickled her ribs in an attempt to otherwise distract her. But Bella was not to be deterred. She pulled away slightly and pointed at the page in front of her.

"What do you think of this cake?" She asked, her small, delicate finger hovering just over a four-tiered wedding cake adorned with a ton of red and pink roses.

"What kind is it?" I asked.

"It can be any kind we want, silly," she told me. "But, I like the style."

"Are those the colors you picked?"

"No, we'll have light blue, yellow and white," she said. "The flowers can be any color we want, too. But I like how simple this one is – it's just a plain, white cake with flowers."

"That sounds perfect," I told her. "Simplicity is a very good thing."

She kissed me gently before looking to the clock, "What time are we supposed to meet Aro?"

"He's sending a car at seven," I said. It was five o'clock and, knowing Bella, she'd want to go rifle through her closet and find the perfect outfit. It was funny to see how she had turned into a more fashion-conscious person since I met her. She had garments in her closet I'm sure she'd never even seen before, and she was having a good time finding those hidden treasures.

She emerged from the closet just after 6:30, clad in a skin-tight, black dress with a bustier top. I felt a sudden, intense tightness in the groin area of my pants. She bent over to slide on a pair of black pumps, and her cleavage pushed up even further to the top of the dress – I almost didn't want to let her out like that, it was damn-near indecent.

Bella caught me staring, "What's wrong? Do I look OK?"

"Do you even need to ask, love? You look positively stunning." I took her into my arms and captured her lips; I was rewarded with a layer of her raspberry lipgloss on my lips. She giggled as she wiped it off.

Bella walked back into the bathroom to reapply the gloss as I grabbed my phone and wallet and waited on the couch for the car to come around. I had just flipped on the TV when the doorbell rang.

"Love, that's our ride," I called to Bella as I tossed the remote aside. She emerged this time with her hair pulled half up and a brilliant, green coat over her arm.

The car took us to the downtown area, and I immediately regretted saying yes to Aro about this evening. We showed up at the restaurant, and I could tell right away it was a very posh place. Plus, there were people standing around out front with camera's dangling from their necks – this did not bode well for our evening.

The driver helped me and Bella out of the car, and we were immediately swarmed by the photographers.

"Miss Swan! Look this way, please!"

"Miss Swan, is this your fiancé?"

"Miss Swan, is it true you're pregnant?"

We managed to make our way through the chaos unscathed, but it was still unnerving to think how and why those people were there. Could Aro have called them and tipped them off? Or, did he want to come here on purpose, because he knew they would be here? The last thing I wanted to do was exploit my relationship with Bella, but leave it to an agent to only think about publicity.

Aro and his wife were sitting at a table in the back of the restaurant, seemingly oblivious to the goings-on outside. They stood and greeted us warmly as we approached.

"There's the happy couple! Mazel tov!" Aro exclaimed as we sat down. "Have some champagne, both of you, this is a celebration!"

We sipped our drinks and chatted amiably for the rest of the evening. Aro's wife, Sofia, was a very lovely woman, and she gushed to Bella about how much she loved her books. I decided to let the whole paparazzi thing go, it's just something I'll have to get used to if I'm going to be in show business.

Once we got home, I was able to let go of everything that had bothered me today even more as I carried Bella into our bedroom and got busy on the baby-making end of things.