The last regular chapter *sob.*

21. Bella

Edward held me close to his hard body and pressed his cheek to mine. Butterflies fluttered inside me at the romantic gesture.

"You said, last night, that I'd ruined you for other men," he whispered.

"You have."

"There won't be any other men. Ever. I'm never letting you go. You've ruined me too."

"We keep making these declarations post-orgasm, don't we?" I observed. "They're all true though."

"They are."

"You started it with the letter," I added.

"Tell me. Did it hold its own against Darcy, Knightley, Wentworth and the like?"

"Definitely," I replied. "You know Austen?"

"I read all the novels when I realised how much you loved her. I nearly bought you a membership to the Jane Austen Society, but then I saw the hardback collection, and decided that it would be a nicer gift for you to receive."

"It's a good thing you didn't buy me the membership. I already have one."

"Really?" I nodded.

"Do you ever, uh, get dressed up in the costumes? With the ..." he drew a line across my chest with his index finger, right across the tops of my breasts, "necklines?"

"Why, Mr Cullen, do you have a thing for heaving bosoms showcased in sweeping gowns?"

He groaned softly.

"Just on you, Bella. When I was reading Austen's novels, in my head, every heroine was you in Regency dress."

I flicked my tongue against his jaw.

"I'm not really one for dressing up, but I could be persuaded ..."

We were interrupted by a loud knocking.

"Bruv, just letting you know that Rosie will have both your asses if you get jizz on any surface of that cloakroom!" Emmett chortled. "Now come on out of there, both of you. Alice, Jazz and the Furball have just arrived."

"Just a second, Em."

We could hear Emmett's chuckles get fainter as he went to the front door.

"Damn it," I mumbled. Things were just starting to get interesting again. "To be postponed, Mr Cullen?"

"Undoubtedly."

After I adjusted his cute Christmas Tree jumper as well as my own reindeer tunic, we stepped out, one after the other, and headed into the living room. Alice came in a moment later, wearing a slouchy sweatshirt with cats and the words 'Merry Catmas' on it. It seemed like we'd all decided to sport festive knitwear today. She handed me Mr Wibbles' carrier.

"Do you mind extricating him while I get some Buck's Fizz, B?"

"Hello, Wibbler," I greeted him as I coaxed him out. He seemed even more reluctant than usual to leave his little palace, but he eventually exited, and the reason for his hesitancy became apparent. Alice had dressed him up in a red, green and white elf outfit. Inside the carrier was a tiny elf hat, which he appeared to have pulled off himself.

To everyone's surprise, he made a beeline for Esme, who was comfortably ensconced in Carlisle's arms, and sat on her feet.

"Why me, cat?" she asked. He continued to look up at her, pleading for something. "God, you look ridiculous!"

"That's why, Es. You're the strongest voice of reason," I realised.

"Okay, then." She leaned down and tentatively undid the coat's Velcro fastening before throwing it back to me so I could put it back in the carrier. Mr Wibbles purred loudly and rubbed himself against her legs before hopping up onto her lap, snuggling into the lap of her black and silver star print dress. She tensed, but then relaxed, and he curled up and closed his eyes.

"I guess we're finally friends."

Jazz came in then, carrying a huge botanic display of Christmas roses, poinsettias, fir, holly and ivy.

"Wow, what a gorgeous bouquet," I exclaimed.

"I can't take credit for it, I'm afraid. My little Ali-Cat picked up some holly and ivy from your building gardens, and put it together with these flowers and red plants she had in her apartment. She wanted to say thanks to Rosalie and Emmett for hosting."

He put the display down on the window sill. He was dressed in a black t-shirt and black jeans with black boots, which only highlighted the ridiculousness of his skating penguins waistcoat.

Alice returned with a jug of Buck's Fizz.

"Who wants a top up … oh Mr Wibbles!" The poor cat raised his little head. "What happened to your outfit? You looked so cute!"

"It's in his carrier, Alice," I replied, careful not to actually answer her question. "You got photos though, didn't you?"

"Only about twenty …"

"Baby, Bella was just saying how pretty this arrangement is," interrupted Jazz. I looked over at him gratefully. He was definitely going in my good books. "You're so talented."

"You think?"

Jazz nodded and held open his arms. She squealed, and it was all I could do to take the jug of Buck's Fizz from her before she launched herself at him.

At that moment, Rosalie, dressed in a pretty cream merino wool hooded knit dress with a red snowflake on the front, emphasising her tiny bump walked in carrying a tray of smoked salmon nibbles. Emmett, now sporting a Santa coat and hat, followed her, carrying a massive platter of cocktail sausages.

"While they're eating each other," began Rosalie, "anyone want a canapé?"

-cc-

The rest of the day was full of food, laughter and most of all, joy.

Rosalie and I caught up on nearly twenty years of stories, and laughed at all the near misses we'd had at bumping into one another. She had been in the same tutorial group as one of my former flatmates from my fresher year. I had been a (very short-lived) member of the running group that her close friend Vera had set up. We had lived within fifteen minutes' drive of each other for years. We used the same hairdresser, liked the same restaurants and shops … it was crazy that we hadn't met up before.

Mr Wibbles lasted a grand total of fifteen minutes on Esme's lap, but it was fifteen minutes longer than they'd ever tolerated each other before. He stole at least five smoked salmon canapés and a mini sausage, when Alice wasn't looking, before falling asleep in front of Rosalie and Emmett's fireplace.

Jazz enthralled us with his stories from Cambodia, and of some of the other places he'd been on his travels. We all swapped horror stories about our exes, and bonded over the fact that we'd all had at least one nightmare former partner.

We spoke to all our families on Skype, throughout the course of the day, getting the whole 'meet the parents' thing out of the way in one fail swoop. Edward's parents were very sweet, and very happy that I was close to Rosalie, whom they adored. His mother even told me she would knit me a jumper. My family were surprised that I was suddenly presenting them with a man, but he passed the mother test ('Oh Edward, you're such a charmer!'), brother test ('Dude, Call of Duty Ghosts is da bomb!') and stepdad test ('I totally agree, the Marlins need that new blood!').

By ten pm, Rosalie was falling asleep on Emmett's shoulder. Clearly the pregnant lady was ready for bed. It was time to leave.

"Bella," began Alice, "I think we're going to stay at Jazz's tonight, but I think Mr Wibbles might be a bit disorientated if I introduce him to yet another new place, and Jazz doesn't have any cat food or milk …"

"I'm happy to look after him, if you are, Bella," said Edward. He looked over at the Wibbler and grinned. "It'd be an honour."

"Of course," I echoed, looking over my new man in surprise.

"Great! Thank you both." She kissed us on the cheek.

"I'll just go get our things, sweetheart, while you sort out the cat."

A short while later, when we were driving back, I asked Edward why he was so keen to look after Mr Wibbles.

"Well, I owe him. He was instrumental in getting me my Christmas miracle."

"Huh?"

"If he hadn't ventured out when he did, I wouldn't have had to return him to Alice, and then she wouldn't have invited me round for coffee. We wouldn't have bumped into each other and had such an emotional reaction …"

"Edward, I never struck you as the sentimental type!" I laughed. "I was unpacking my things. I would have probably found the letter yesterday regardless."

"But you would have phoned or emailed me, and probably not until you'd turned the idea over in your mind a few times. We would have set up a date for after Christmas, and it would have been much later that we found out that you were Rosalie's childhood best friend, or that my best friend was dating your old flatmate, or that Carlisle and Esme both wanted more than just sex from their relationship."

"Maybe …" I conceded.

"We wouldn't have just had this amazing Christmas, getting to know each other so …" he licked his lips, "… intimately."

"You have me there. I'm glad we didn't wait."

We pulled into Edward's garage at Holly and Ivy Court, and he leaned in, cupped my face with both hands and took possession of my mouth. Our kisses grew deeper and more passionate, and I was just about to jump across the centre console into his lap, when Mr Wibbles yowled from behind us.

"Well, he may have been your Christmas miracle-maker, but right now, he's your Christmas cock-blocker!"

"Hmm ..."

Edward looked pensive for a moment, and licked his lips.

"I'm going to give you some choices now, sweetheart."

"Oh?"

"One, backseat or bed? Two, fingers, tongue, cock or a mixture?"

"Hmm ..." They all sounded tempting, but I had had fantasies of being pleasured in the backseat of this car ever since I spotted him in getting into it at the end of my first day at Meyer High.

"Backseat. Fingers and tongue," I eventually whispered.

He got out of the Volvo and picked up Mr Wibbles from the backseat.

"I'll get him settled in my flat and I'll be back in just a minute."

"Okay, Mr Cullen." I blew him a kiss.

He was true to his word.

"Welcome back."

"Backseat, sweetheart," he murmured huskily.

I climbed through to the back between the two front seats. He was over me immediately, our legs tangled and sticking out of the open door. It was cramped and our elbows kept banging the seats but as we kissed with ferocity and uncontrollable passion, I found I couldn't care less.

Edward's hands slipped under my clothes and exposed my skin. I should have been cold, but lust was keeping me warm. When he pulled down my leggings and very damp French briefs, he took a deep breath and then looked up at me with his gorgeous green eyes.

"You okay?" I checked.

He kissed my bellybutton before answering.

"Absolutely perfect, Bella."

With those words, he pressed his nose into my pubic mound and slid one finger into my slit. When he rubbed my wetness up and down, I threw my head back in delight and hit it on the door.

"Ouch!"

"Shit, are you okay?"

"Great, don't stop!"

He didn't stop; his finger slipped inside me, and then a second. He pressed his lips to the top of my slit and I felt his tongue probe inside, tantalisingly close to my aching, swollen clit. With his free hand, he pulled off his Christmas tree jumper and he passed it to me.

"Put this under your head, sweetheart. I want you to enjoy this consciously."

My heart leapt at his small sacrifice for me. I decided not to protest. I couldn't anyway, because my ability to speak had been decimated by the maddening, delectable action of his tongue on my clit. His fingers also continued to tease me- curling and rubbing and pumping. I carded my hands into his sexy, coppery mane. He grunted, gripped my ass with his free hand and sped up both his tongue and finger actions. I curled my legs around him as best I could given the limited space.

My body started to rock and shake; this climax was going to be massive. A drop of water plopped onto my head suddenly and I looked up; the windows had steamed up with condensation. We were so hot together, the car had fogged up. I couldn't dwell though, because my body was begging for release and when Edward actually nibbled my little nub, I let go.

It was a good thing we were in a closed garage, because I let out a porno-worthy scream, rattling the Volvo a little.

"Fucking hell, sweetheart! That was so hot!" He clambered on top of me and I cradled him in my arms and legs as he rested his head against my boobs.

"I mean, like, wow!" I gushed.

"Uh-huh. We did a Titanic on the windows!"

"Almost. Just missing a handprint."

"We can do better than them." He lifted my hand and pressed it to the wet glass. Then he pressed his own hand next to my print. Finally he wrote something underneath.

EC & BS

Always.

It was official.

Best Christmas ever.

-cc-

I couldn't help but incorporate some festive knitwear into their Christmas Day. They've become very popular over here in the past couple of years. At work today I saw some truly shocking specimens!

You'll notice that I've posted two chapters tonight. The second is a little something extra from an alternate POV. The epilogue will be tomorrow, fairly early in the day!

Merry Christmas!