Disclaimer: All characters are not mine. No copyright infringement was intended. Thank you to Stephenie Meyer for creating Edward and Bella for our enjoyment. I just like playing with them, making them my own … even for just a little while.

Sooooo … we're in Gevalia and preliminary findings indicate that Queen Esme likes Bella. We'll hear more from Bella in two chapters. I want to stay with Masen for the next chapter so we can have a discussion with Emmett. Will he open up to his brother? I'm also planning on have an AlicePOV, too … but later on while we're in Gevalia.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Masen

Early the next morning, I woke up to my alarm. Bella grumbled, burrowing deeper into the pillows. I kissed her, seeing a message waiting on my private line. I got out of bed and pulled on a t-shirt. I walked to my private office and accessed my messages. It was Felix telling me my schedule. I jotted down the handful of meetings I needed to attend, but for the most part it was a lazy day.

Dialing Felix's extension, I placed an order for breakfast and said that Bella and I would be down in a couple of hours.

"I do apologize for the early call, your highness," Felix said quietly. "It's just your mother wanted to verify that you'd still attend the Christmas Eve event at the children's hospital and your father was insistent that you meet Prince Emmett."

"Can you arrange for Bella to have dinner with her family while I spend some time with my brother?" I asked. "I want to show her everything Gevalia has to offer, but …"

"He's your brother, your highness. I understand," Felix responded. "I'll handle it all."

"Thank you, Felix," I smiled. "Can you also see if we can get some holiday decorations in the manor? It's very un-Christmasy."

"I'll make those arrangements, too," he chuckled. "It's good to have you back, your highness. I've missed you."

"Thanks, Felix. I think," I snorted.

"Goodness, that came out misconstrued," Felix sputtered. "I have missed you, as a leader, a friend and my future king. It hasn't been the same since you left for America. There was an energy in the palace that could only come from you. I know that your parents missed you tremendously. Anyway, you're back, even if you're here for a short time … I'll let you go. Breakfast will be served at half past ten in the manor dining room." He hung up before I could thank him again.

Padding back to the bedroom, I checked on Bella. She was buried under the duvet cover and curled around my pillow. I crawled into bed, sliding my arms around her tiny waist. "Too. Early," she muttered. "Sleep. More."

"You're adorable in the morning, cherie," I whispered, kissing her neck. "I remember when you were up before the sun to work in the bakery."

"I got spoiled by a hot prince sweeping me off my feet," she giggled, turning around and grinning at me. "Why did your alarm go off at o'dark thirty?"

"Usually, I work out before I go to work," I said. "But, I can think of better ways to exercise."

"What's that, your majesty?" she purred.

"Loving you," I growled, kissing her mouth. I moved the covers down and revealed her sleep rumpled clothes on her deliciously sexy body. She moaned against my lips as she tugged on my t-shirt.

"We won't be interrupted, will we?" she asked, tossing my shirt onto the floor.

"We're free until half past ten, cherie. Hours of me languishing your body with orgasms," I said, inching her camisole up to reveal her pert, bare breast. I cupped it with my hand, wrapping my lips around the pink bud.

"Masen," she panted, arching her back. "Fuck …"

"I plan to do that, too, love," I said, tearing her camisole from her body. "I just want to see you naked in my bed." She smiled, shimmying out of her shorts and panties, revealing her naked form. "Fucking perfect, cherie. It's my dream come true."

"What's that?" she asked, her palms gliding along her sides and down to her hips.

"Having the woman, I love more than anything in my bed, naked, writhing and …" I paused, spreading her legs and cupping her pussy, "so fucking wet for me." I circled my fingers over folds, staring into her eyes. The diffused light from the snow made her look like a damned angel in my bed. "I want you to come for me, love." I pushed two fingers inside her, feeling her tightness and her juices coating my hand. I blinked down, staring at my fingers disappearing inside her pink, swollen heat. I kissed her hard, pulling her up. "Watch my fingers fuck you."

"Masen," she whimpered, looking to where I was pleasing her. "Shit …"

I spread her legs further apart, kissing her neck. "I've never felt a pussy so tight, baby. It's god damned perfection. Made for me." She panted, her head falling back. "No, Bella. Watch my fingers inside you. Do you see how wet you are?"

"Hmmm, yes," she moaned. She stopped my hand, pulling it from her core and sliding my fingers into her mouth. Holy fuck me. Her eyes were glazed over as she devoured her arousal off my fingers. She removed my hand, putting it back onto her sex, she kissed me. I put three fingers inside her, curling them just right. Bella was rocking with me, fucking my hand. Her breasts were bouncing with each thrust of my arm. "Harder, Masen."

I growled against her mouth, bracing her with my leg and I moved my hand harder, faster and deeper in my girl. "Like that, my dirty girl?" She moaned, bucking with me. "Fuck, Bella. You're so wet. You need to come for me, baby." She threw her head back as I felt her muscles contract around my fingers. I pressed my thumb to her clit and she gripped my forearm, riding out the wave of her release. I looked down, seeing her hips undulate with each contraction of her orgasm and her arousal seeping onto my palm. "Fucking perfection, Bella."

She was panting, looking at me dreamily. "Love me, Masen. I want your cock inside me."

I kissed her, plunging my tongue into her mouth. Her hands pushed my sweatpants down and released my erection. I saw her hand reach between her legs and she rubbed her palm along her folds before stroking me. Feeling her mark me was my undoing. I maneuvered her over my lap and I positioned my cock to her entrance. With a deep kiss, she slid down my length, surrounding my cock with her wetness and heat. I banded my arms around her, rocking her over my body. "I love you more than words can describe. You're my everything, Bella."

She smiled, tangling her fingers into my hair while she rolled her hips, taking me deeper inside her sweet, delectable body. Our lips touched and I was lost in her completely. With her lips on mine, her pussy clenching around me and her fingers scratching my back, I could feel my own orgasm build. Staring at me, she whispered, breathy and with such conviction. "I love you, Masen. So much." Her sincere plea made me erupt and my body ignite. I shuddered under her, gripping her hair as my cock pulsated with each heartbeat. She trembled in my arms as our lovemaking slowed down. She looked at me, her eyes soft and full of love. "You're my everything, too."

I kissed her, hugging her to my body. "Come on, cherie. Let's take a shower and then I'll give you the guided tour of Masen Manor."

"You promised fucking," she quipped, nipping at my ear.

"Oh, I'll fuck you," I growled, picking her up and carrying her to the bathroom. I fucked her in front of the mirror.

It was fabulous and far safer than fucking her in the shower.

xx AMDFT xx

It was early evening. Bella was over at the château having dinner with her family after afternoon tea with my mother. I was pacing the length of my living room, waiting for my brother to arrive. Felix left to get him a half hour ago, but he hadn't returned. I sighed, looking at the decadent tree the staff had set up in the living room, with another one in the foyer and a smaller one in my bedroom.

And by small, it was seven feet tall instead of twelve.

The door opened and I heard Felix talking. I smoothed out my sweater, walking to the foyer. Emmett stood there beside him, looking healthier than I've ever seen him. Apparently, he traded drugs and alcohol for running and weight lifting. My brother turned to me, his ice-blue eyes troubled and not matching the wide grin on his face. He hugged me, holding onto me tightly. "Mase," he breathed. "It's so good to see you."

"You, too, Em," I smiled. "Come on. Let's relax by the fire. Do you want some coffee? Tea?"

"Coffee sounds good. It's freezing outside," Emmett shivered, shrugging off his coat. "Am I going to meet your dream girl?"

"Not tonight. I want to talk to you. See how you're doing," I said, pouring us both a cup of coffee from a tray that one of the servants left. "How's rehab?"

"When I got there, I was in a bad way," Emmett said, sitting down on the leather sofa. "I went into detox but had to be hospitalized. I was dehydrated and malnourished, unable to keep food down. Once I was stabilized, that's when the hard work began."

"Well, you look great, Emmett," I replied. "Healthy. Big."

"When you can't get high, you gotta find something else," Emmett laughed. "I didn't want to start smoking, so my therapist suggested working out. A couple of the guys have boxed and we started this 'fight club' where we spar. Nothing dangerous, but a killer workout. Helps with the anger issues I've got."

"What happened in New York?" I asked.

He blew out a breath, putting his coffee cup down. "I fucked up. I am a fuck up, but I figured I'd live up to the hype."

"You're not a fuck up," I growled.

"From the moment you've been born, you've been groomed to be king. Me? I was groomed to be 'second best.' I'm not king material, Masen. I never was and I never will be," Emmett explained. "You're a born leader, a natural diplomat. I'm just a trouble maker with a mediocre IQ and no path in life. So, I went to New York under the ruse of going to university. Not once did I step into a classroom."

"Emmett," I sighed.

"What would I do, Masen?" he asked. "I'm second in line to the throne, but even if you have children, I get bumped further down. So, I lived up to my expectations of being a failure. At least I succeeded in that."

"Emmett, you could do anything even if you're not the next in line to rule," I argued. "You're smart. You have a kind heart. The possibilities are limitless. Why did you …?"

"I fell in love," he whispered.

"What?"

"One of the few times I went to campus, I met a girl. I fell in love," Emmett explained. "I wanted everything with her. We had fun. We made love. We had a future."

"And then?" I asked.

"We didn't," he muttered. "We went to a party at one of the frats. I got separated from Rosalie. She was the girl. She was from Rochester, attending New York University to become a doctor or something. She was really smart and gorgeous and mine. She knew me as Emmett and not Prince Emmett Masen Cullen, prince of Gevalia. She suspected that I was more than I led her to believe, but she loved me. Anyway, we go to this party. While we're separated, Rosalie was roofied, bound and raped in one of the rooms in the frat."

"Emmett," I whispered. "Is she alright?"

"I don't know. I found her, called 911 and she was rushed over Bellevue. When I went back the next day, Rosalie was gone. Her stuff was moved out of her apartment and she was erased from my life," Emmett said. "Someone I loved was violated and I couldn't do anything to stop it. I have this 'influence' and the person I care for the most is …"

"When did that happen?" I asked.

"End of the spring semester. Um, late May, early June?" he said, wiping his cheeks. "I was so fucking angry. I used drugs and alcohol to help me forget what had happened to her. You have to know, Mase, I never once did anything those rags said when it came to women. I'm not a dog."

"And you never heard from her again?" I murmured. He shook his head. "Her first name is Rosalie. Do you have a last name?"

"Hale," he muttered. "From Rochester. She's twenty-three and was a first-year medical student."

"Do you know if they caught the guys who raped her?"

"The whole frat was banned from campus, with the president, vice president and upper classmen expelled. The president, supposedly, was the ring-leader," Emmett growled. "His name was Royce King. He's a total douchebag."

"Jacob can do some digging for you, Emmett," I said. "I can also find out information about this Royce character."

"I'm terrified that Rosalie will have read the trash on Page Six, seeing me as this colossal asshole," Emmett grumbled. "It's not like I was hiding my behavior. My heart was shattered, first when Rosalie was raped and then again when I couldn't find her. I turned to drugs and alcohol to try and forget. If you hadn't bailed me out, I probably would have continued using until I died. I felt empty without Rosalie. I still do. My heart hurts, Masen. How can I stop feeling like this?" He looked at me and his blue eyes were anguished. I moved to sit next to him, hugging him and he sobbed against my shoulder.

"I don't know how to make your heart stop breaking, but I'm here for you, Emmett," I whispered. "I know we haven't had the closest relationship recently, but I love you and I want you to be happy." He pulled back, wiping his eyes. "I'll call Jacob and have him do some looking into Rosalie Hale, twenty-three from Rochester along with information about Royce King. What frat?"

"I don't even remember," Emmett shrugged. "All I remember from that night is seeing Rosalie, naked, bloody and broken. It made me sick. That body which I cherished that morning was completely desecrated by those animals. What if something like that had happened to your girl? How would you react?"

"I can't honestly know and I pray I never have to experience it, Emmett," I replied. "Let me help. Please?" He nodded woodenly. "Why didn't you tell Dad?"

"He's a prude," Emmett scoffed. "He still believes that if a woman dresses provocatively, she's asking to be raped."

"I wouldn't say that, Em," I argued. "He's old-fashioned, but never once has he said that a woman is asking for it."

"Please, don't tell him," Emmett pleaded. "Or Mother, either. I'm already a black stain on her legacy."

"They should know why you turned to drugs and alcohol. They don't need to know the specifics, but at least that someone that you loved was attacked brutally and cut you out of her life," I suggested.

"I'll consider it," Emmett said. "I'm not making any promises. I'm still coming to terms with what happened, Mase. It would be better if I knew what the hell happened to Rosalie. Does she still love me?"

"I'll call Jake first thing tomorrow morning," I nodded.

Emmett stared at me, his blue eyes wary and appraising my expression. He blew out a breath and leaned forward, sipping his coffee. "I wish this was tequila."

"Not happening, brother," I snickered. "No alcohol in the manor. Not even Listerine or cold medicine."

"Thank you for taking my sobriety seriously, Mase," Emmett smiled, the wariness and pain ebbing from his eyes. "Now, tell me all about Bella. She sounds like a wonderful woman …"

A/N: Kind of a short chapter, but you heard from Emmett and found out why he turned to drugs and alcohol. We'll find out more about Rosalie in later chapters. Up next will be Bella and her tea with the queen, dinner with her family and leading up to Christmas, starting with the charity event at the children's hospital.

Leave me some! Thanks for reading!