Under My Nose
Edward Cullen sets a deadline of six months to find his true love, before he turns thirty. Leaving his successful restaurant to drive a mule-drawn carriage in the French Quarter of New Orleans, he searches for the meaning of true love, because he has yet to understand it. Will he know when he finds her or will she be right under his nose? Can bubbly, buxom Bella tantalize his taste buds with beignets and an abundant
booty?
A/N: Thank you to the readers who review every chapter. There are a handful of you. I appreciate the love, and I find your input very helpful. When we get into further chapters, I will send you another surprise. Again, thank you for your constant support.
And thank you to the readers who follow and favorite that I am unable to send a thank you PM.
ALSO! This story has taken a personality all of its own. I had outlined every chapter, but C'est la vie … I lost control.
And there are recipes at the end. I know… spoiling you.
Chapter Twenty-one:
EPOV: January 5
Bella and I walk into the apartment a little past eleven, crawl into bed and watch some TV. Within minutes, I hear her soft breaths of slumber. I can't sleep, and nothing on TV keeps my attention, but I don't want to leave her alone in case she wakes up. I decide to go downstairs to the restaurant, get all my books and receipts and work at the dining room table.
It doesn't take me long to go over everything since Jasper is always thorough and painstakingly neat. He makes the curliest G's and Y's.
I get up and walk from room to room ...
just staring …
and sighing.
The apartment is silent except for the occasional click of the heaters going on.
It's lonely without her.
I walk into my room. She sleeps soundly in a fetal position on my side of the bed, hugging my pillow. Ha, that makes me smile. Her shoulders are bare, and I cover her carefully and lightly run a finger over her soft cheek. She faintly smiles, as though she reacts to my touch.
I sit on the edge of the bed and watch her as she hugs my pillow closer.
Her face looks so peaceful, but I wonder what her thoughts are of what happened earlier.
My eyes follow the full, upturn curve to her lips, her small nose with these tiny freckles and her long lashes over her cheeks. Her skin is smooth and fair, and her hair is soft as it cascades over her shoulder. I get lost in a curl and twist it around my finger.
And it hits me that I want to give her something; well, not just any something, but something with meaning.
I carefully get up from the bed and rummage through my closet looking for the box with my grandmother's things. Once I find it, I scurry out of the room and back into the dining room, dumping the contents of small boxes onto the table; a life's worth of fine jewelry.
There's a slight knock at the front door and it opens with Emmett's head peeking in. "Hey, okay if I come in?"
"Since when do you knock and ask to come in?"
He walks towards me, "Since you started cohabiting with Bella."
I roll my eyes. "Cohabiting?"
"Where is she?" He looks around.
"She's asleep." I look through the open boxes. "She had a rough day."
"Yeah?" He frowns.
"She found out that Aunt Sally is really her mother." I blurt out.
"Fuck, man, that's heavy duty. She okay?"
I tell him all about finding the adoption papers and the difficulties with Bella's mother as we both thumb through Granny Cullen's baubles.
Emmett shakes his head. "Man, and they didn't tell her? That sucks, poor kid." He opens a box and holds up a ruby ring, and stares at it. "Why do you have Granny's shit out?"
"I want to give something to Bella," I say, still searching.
"See? That's why I didn't want any of Granny's jewels. Women get a sentimental gift that was your granny's, and they think of hearts and flowers and weddings."
"That's exactly what I want her to think," I quickly clarify. "She just went through fucking hell, and I want to show her I'm here for her." I shrug. "Eventually, she'll have it all."
"Man, Edward, you got it bad."
"Em, there's this … force between us. I felt it the first time I saw her. Fuck, she rides a fucking Harley." I get up and pace. "She's a chef and she knows the fucking passion of making 'the' perfect plate. We have this way of playing off each other's fucking words. And, she loves Julia. She has all these amazing ideas for carriage tours. She blows my fucking mind."
"She blowing anything else?" he smirks.
I slap the back of his head, and he shouts, 'hey', and I point at him. "She's not that kind of girl. I think sex has meaning for her.''
''Oh, the 'I-have-to-have-feelings-for-you' kind of thing?'' he questions.
''Yeah, that, and knowing me longer than five minutes.''
''I can get it.'' He confidently nods his head.
''You, get it?'' I ask.
''Yeah, I do get it!'' he snaps. ''There was this girl in Afghanistan." His voice is less than a whisper. "I met her,while she was repairing a jeep on the side of the road. Yeah, no wilted flower, but beautiful. She had grease on her forehead and hands, but man, her sunny hair hung down her back to her ass. And what an ass! We spent the whole afternoon, under that jeep."
"A wild afternoon under the jeep, huh?" I smirk.
Emmett smacks me in the shoulder. "It was nothing like that. I was helping her with the engine. And she fixed the fucking thing." He shakes his head.
"What happened to her?" I ask hesitantly.
"She was transferred to another unit, and I never saw her again," he mumbles.
'So, you liked her?" I nod.
He smiles. "Yeah, she was someone that could never be duplicated."
He clears his throat. "So what kind of a special gift are you looking for in Granny's stash?"
I frown. "I don't know."
Em pushes a few bracelet boxes around, and opens up a velvet pouch and pulls out a thin silver chain with a hummingbird charm. "You think this will do? Granddad gave this to Granny right after meeting her. He told me that he gave it to her, because she made him smile."
"He told you that?" I ask.
"He found me searching through her jewelry box when I was about eight. I had that necklace in my hands. He looked at it with a huge smile and told me the story, then he scolded me for being a snoop and kicked me out." Em laughs. "Oh, that old fucker was the hardest drill sergeant I ever had." He wipes his eye and hoots. "Loved that old buzzard."
I take the necklace from him. "Thanks, Em. This is perfect."
"No problem. So, when are you going to take Bella to the North Shore to meet Mom and Dad?" he asks.
I shrug. "I don't want Mom to overwhelm her and scare her away."
Emmett huffs. "Please, nothing scares that girl. She may be watchful, but not scared. Besides, Mom will love her, and Dad will be hooked on her desserts. It's a win-win situation."
He gets up, takes out his key ring and hands me my apartment key. "Give this to Bella." He starts to walk to the door, and turns to look at me. "I'll call next time." He walks out the door.
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January 6
It's around midnight when I walk back up the stairs from the restaurant. Jasper would have a coronary if the books weren't in their proper places. Far be it for me to cause him undue stress.
I grab Granny's box and head into the bedroom. Once I slip it back into the closet and set the pouch with the necklace on my nightstand, I strip out of my clothes and into sleep pants.
Bella is on her side of the bed. But as soon as I get under the covers, she turns toward me and onto her side. I turn to face her and lay my hand on her hip. She takes in a deep sigh, and I rub her side gently to let her know I'm here. I roll onto my back, place my hands under my neck, and a head burrows under my armpit.
She just fits.
She mumbles softly, "Edward, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. You go back to sleep." I move the hair off her cheek and brush it behind her ear.
"Thank you for today. You made me feel so special." She hugs me.
I lean down and kiss her nose. "You are. Now, get some sleep. You're going to have a full day tomorrow."
"I don't want to disappoint you." She locks her fingers in with mine.
"You'll do fine." I reassure her.
Her voice fades, "Yeah, I will." She giggles.
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I tighten up and yawn with my arms outstretched, reach for Bella, and come up with cold sheets. I open my eyes to see her spot empty. I strain to listen for the shower, but no sound. Ha, I should know better, within minutes, Bella walks into the bedroom, wearing her whites.
She walks over to the bed, bending down to kiss me. I grab her around the waist and hurl her over to one side. She squeals, and it's the best sound ever.
"Edward, you're going to wrinkle me," she warns.
"If I had my way, you'd be more than fucking wrinkled, Baby." I gruffly kid around.
She slaps my shoulder. "You are incorrigible."
"I try." I give her my million-dollar smile.
"And that smile will get you nowhere, but I did make you breakfast," she coos in my ear.
"You made me breakfast?" I sit up, dragging her with me.
Bella tries to get out of bed, and I stop her. "Wait a minute. I have something for you."
She looks at me with a stunned expression and tilts her head to the side.
I grab the small pouch and clear my throat. "Ah, look, you had a rough day yesterday, and I was looking at you while you slept, and it occurred to me that I needed, no wanted to give you something."
She says, "Oh Edward, you don't have…"
I interrupt her, "I don't have to do anything; I wanted to, Bella."
I place the pouch in her hand. "This was the first gift my grandfather gave to my grandmother. Emmett picked it out for you."
"Emmett was here, last night?"
"Yeah, he came by to give you his key, since we are cohabiting," I laugh. "He really was weird, too, but he found this for you." She looks at me. "Open it."
She pulls on the drawstrings, reaches in, lifts the chain, and stares at the hummingbird. "This gives me goose bumps." She bites her cheek and I pull it free. "Oh, Edward, it's so pretty. Thank you. Would you put it on for me?"
She lifts her hair, and I connect the clasp around her neck. She drops her hair, places her hand on the hummingbird, and looks at me. "This was so very sweet of you, thank you." I get a sweet kiss. Then, I go in for the kill, kissing her hard. "And we have to stop. I'm starting my new job, today. I have to impress my boss." She smiles.
"Oh, Baby, you fucking already have." I kiss her again.
She giggles. "Okay, Romeo, breakfast will get cold."
We head into the kitchen where I find a quiche style omelet on the stove. Oooo. Bella plates it up with toast, and fresh coffee, and we sit at the breakfast bar.
She takes a sip of her tea and puts her cup down. "I want to tell you something."
I look up. "Okay."
"Edward, I have money," she blurts out.
I repeat, "Okay."
"Aunt Sally is a very wealthy woman, and throughout the years, she put money into an account for me from her four marriages. She had a great financial adviser and tripled that money."
I nod. "Okay."
"I just wanted you to know that I don't take easily from anyone. I don't have to. I'm not interested in your money," she confesses.
"So, you are all about my fucking good looks and masculine body?" I question in jest.
She kisses me. "I'm all about this good man in front of me." She places her hands on my jaw. "I'm all about his kindness and caring and protectiveness for me." I get a small peck. "And most of all, I'm all about your clueless ass realizing you like me."
I wrap my arms around her and sigh. "I'm more than liking you."
She shyly smiles. "I'm more than liking you, too. And I'm scared out of my wits."
"Bella, I'm not going to change my mind. You are nothing like anyone I have ever fucking met. We click."
"You aren't scared?" she questions.
"No." I straighten up. "I have always lunged forward with a good idea." He chuckles. "Look at the fucking carriage rides. I thought if I took couples around New Orleans, I would find out something about love. Little did I know that it would fall right under my nose." I kiss her nose. "I've worked hard to get what I want and I don't spare any expense. My heart is in my restaurant … and our future. I set my goals, and I go after them."
"Meaning?"
"Meaning, I'll do whatever it takes to make you comfortable in this relationship." I slap her ass. "But now, as your boss, let's get to work."
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Bella and I walk into the main kitchen with warm greetings from my staff. I direct Bella to the pastry station, leave her with her sous chef, walk out of the kitchen and watch through the window.
Bella looks around at the stainless steel appliances, down to the brick colored floor, up at the glaring overhead lights, and then at her sous chef, Jean. As Jean smiles warmly, she extends her hand. "Hi, I'm Mama Jean."
Now, Mama Jean is all of five feet tall and maybe ninety-five pounds wringing wet. She's older than Bella and younger than Aunt Sally. Her facial features are soft and sweet; her brown hair is up in a net and her whites are white-white.
Bella smiles back at her. "I'm Bella."
She giggles, "I know … and Bella, you did the impossible."
"Which is?" Bella questions and I lean closer straining to hear.
""You made that boy fall head over heels in love with you. He is always smiling." She grabs Bella's hand and squeezes.
I turn red, all over. I am that obvious.
Jean reassures Bella, "Sweetie, you could make pooh on crust, and he's going to love it."
That's very true. She can do anything.
"Good, nerves be gone and let's get to the best part of lunch, today. What are we making?"
Bella says, "I was thinking we could start out with three simple, but light desserts. A sorbet of pomegranate and cranberry served with a chocolate wafer, sour cream pound cake with strawberry sauce and whipped cream, and the house bread pudding."
Jean looks at Bella with a frown.
"What?" Bella ask.
"We don't have a house bread pudding, Bella." Jean laments.
"No problem we'll make one up," Bella shrugs. That's my girl.
She giggles. "Yeah, I like you!"
Then, Bella giggles and dips her hand in the flour container and throws it at Jean.
Jean retaliates with a handful of flour of her own.
"Yeah, I like you, too." And they hug.
They have flour all over their station, their whites and faces. When, I walk back into the kitchen, Jean and Bella break apart and stand next to one another, holding hands and trying to stifle their laughs.
I look between them, and they look back at me. I inspect the flour all over the table, their whites and faces.
I speak to Jean. "You know what I like."
She bursts out laughing, contains herself and says, "Clean. You like it clean, Chef."
Bella looks on in horror, probably thinks her sweet Edward a tyrant.
I turn to Bella. "Did you start this?"
She stands tall. "Yes, I did Chef."
I try to contain my smile. "Lunch is in three hours."
"Yes, Chef," she answers.
"My office, now!" I order.
And from behind us, as we exit through the door Jean sings, "Someone's in trouble."
We walk into my office, and I close the door.
Bella turns to me. "I'm sorry….
I interrupt her apology with a kiss.
"Okaaaaay…. You're not mad," Bella laughs.
"I do frown on flour showers," I sternly moan into my neck.
"I'll try to keep them down," she yelps.
We separate and I slap her ass. "Now, go make my sweets, Woman!"
"Oh, I see how it's going to be, all caveman at work." she coos.
"I can make that happen at home, too. You just say the fucking words."
She bites her cheek, and I pull at it. "You okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine." She looks at me.
"What?" I wonder.
"You're really happy. Jean says you smile more."
I smile. "You have that effect on me."
"I'm glad." She heads toward the door and turns to me. "Edward, I'm going to make the best desserts ever."
"I have no doubt."
She shakes her head. " You don't."
"Nope."
She walks out, and I smile.
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX
Lunch rush is over. It's time to wind down, and I walk out of my office onto the dining floor to see Bella standing at one of the corner tables.
My heart starts to race, as I quicken my step and get to Bella.
"Edward, darling, you have an amazing pastry chef."
Bella says, "Thank you."
I catch my breath and mutter, "Yes, she is amazing."
"Well, if there isn't anything else I can do for you, I need to get back to the kitchen. I'm very pleased you liked the sorbet," Bella beams.
"Oh, and I loved the wafers. They were very tasty."
I moan inwardly. It's about to happen.
"Edward, is there something you'd like to tell us?"
I think I will fucking kill Emmett. "Mom, Dad, this is Bella, my girlfriend."
Bella gasps, my mother squeals and my father goes for another wafer, smiling his ass off.
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There is something said about a sneak attack...
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A/N: Thank you to my Beta, Sunflower Fran. I appreciate her time, her proper grammar and quick pen. Another great find by PAD!
To Robseve and Postapocalypticdepository (PAD), my pre-readers that give their unselfish time and creative input. Both of these ladies are inspirations and true friends.
Now, let me rec Postapocalypticdepository stories, since she so graciously rec'd mine.
Never Judge by the Cover: 9056924
Boys Will Be: 8868006
Rude Awakenings: 8876785
It's a New Dawn, It's a New Year: 8862243 (complete)
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And thank you to all the readers, whether you review or not. I enjoy every comment and suggestion. Yes, NOLA (New Orleans, LA) is an exciting place to live. And to combine the old world with the new is a challenge, but the humor is quite a serious business. My objective is for all of you to smile, after each chapter.
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Recipes:
Classic Cheese Soufflé2 tablespoons finely grated parmesan cheese
1 cup whole milk
2 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon salt
4 large egg yolks
5 large egg whites
1 cup packed coarsely grated Gruyère cheese
Preheat to 400F. Butter 6-cup (1 1/2-quart) soufflé dish. Add Parmesan cheese and tilt dish, coating bottom and sides. Warm milk in heavy small saucepan over medium-low heat until steaming.
Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and whisk until mixture begins to foam and loses raw taste, about 3 minutes (do not allow mixture to brown). Remove saucepan from heat; let stand 1 minute. Pour in warm milk, whisking until smooth. Return to heat and cook, whisking constantly until very thick, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat; whisk in salt and paprika. Add egg yolks 1 at a time, whisking to blend after each addition. Scrape soufflé base into large bowl. Cool to lukewarm. Cover and let stand at room temperature.
Beat egg whites in another large bowl until stiff but not dry. Fold 1/4 of whites into lukewarm or room temperature soufflé base to lighten. Fold in remaining whites in 2 additions while gradually sprinkling in Gruyère cheese. Transfer batter to prepared dish.
Place dish in oven and immediately reduce oven temperature to 375F. Bake until soufflé is puffed and golden brown on top and center moves only slightly when dish is shaken gently, about 25 minutes (do not open oven door during first 20 minutes). Serve immediately.
New Orleans-style Crabmeat Salad - Emeril Lagasse1 head iceberg lettuce, cored and cubed
1 lb. lump crabmeat, cleaned
½ cup chopped yellow onion
½ cup chopped celery
½ cup roughly chopped pimento-stuffed green olives (8 large)
2 tablespoons chopped green onions
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
⅔ cup olive oil
⅓ cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon minced garlic
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
In a large bowl, combine the lettuce, crabmeat, onions, celery, olives, green onions, and parsley. In a small bowl, combine the oil, vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper, and whisk to blend. Pour over crabmeat mixture. Toss gently, keeping crabmeat lumps intact.
Refrigerate until chilled and crabmeat is well marinated, at least 2 hours.
Pomegranate Cranberry Sorbet w/Chocolate paper thin wafers1 cup fresh cranberries
⅓ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup water
3 cups chilled cranberry pomegranate juice
In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring the cranberries, sugar and water to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for five minutes, when the cranberries burst and mixture thickens. Allow the berries to chill completely and then through a fine-mesh sieve, discarding any solids.
Mix together the cranberry puree and juice and then freeze in an ice cream maker and follow the instructions.
Chocolate Wafers
½ cup granulated sugar
zest of one orange
3 eggs, beaten
½ cup cold water
½ cup unsalted butter, melted but let stand at room temperature
½ teaspoon vanilla
¾ cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup cocoa powder
Warm a mini waffle makes, while you prepare the ingredients.
In a small bowl, place orange zest and sugar and mix together.
In mixer bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together until light.
Add cold water, cooled butter, and vanilla.
Whisk together flour and cocoa, no lumps.
Add dry ingredients to the wet.
Mix on low until blended. Chocolate color is throughout.
Pour one tablespoon of batter for each cookie onto heated and greased waffle cone maker and close the top.
Cook to instructions 30-60 seconds.
Gently lift out with a fork and place on rack to cool.
Serve a mound of sorbet with a wafer or two stuck into the mound.
Lemon Sour Cream Pound Cake and Strawberry Sauce
2 lemons
1 pint fresh strawberries
1/8 cup sugar (for strawberry sauce)
1 1/2 cups sugar (for cake)
1/4-1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sour cream
3 eggs
1 pinch baking soda
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease and flour and 8x4 inch loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add sour cream and eggs. Add juice from 1/2 of one lemon.
3. Add flour and pinch of baking soda. Mix well. Pour into loaf pan.
4. Bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean (from my experience, this cake is ready is slightly less than an hour).
Lemon Glaze:
Pour juice from 1/2 of one lemon into a bowl. Add 1/4 cup of the confectioner's sugar and mix well. Keep adding sugar until the glaze is the consistency desired. (Note: you will have to stir for a few minutes before the confectioner's sugar begins to become incorporated with the lemon).
Strawberry Sauce:
1. Wash strawberries and cut the tops off (save a few fresh strawberries for garnish).
2. Put strawberries, 1/8 cup of sugar and juice from 1/2 of a lemon in blender and blend well.
3. Pour the mixture into a pot and cook on medium heat until it begins to boil. Cook for another 10-15 minutes.
House Bread Pudding
5 slices white bread, crusts trimmed
4 tablespoons softened butter
1/2 cup raisins
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 cups milk
2/3 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly butter a shallow 12x8x2-inch baking dish. Butter bread slices generously with the butter. Cut each slice into 4 squares. Sprinkle raisins over the bottom of the prepared baking dish then arrange bread squares, buttered side up, over raisins. Sprinkle bread with the cinnamon.
In a saucepan, heat milk just until bubbles form around edge; remove from heat. Add sugar, stirring until sugar is dissolved.
In a large bowl, beat eggs; stir in hot milk mixture then stir in vanilla. Pour over bread in baking dish. Set baking dish in a larger baking pan then add about 1/2 to 1 inch of very hot water to the larger pan. Bake at 350° for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Remove baking dish from the larger pan of water and let cool for about 15 minutes before serving
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