A/N: Here is the next installment! Someone mentioned I was rushing things… to clarify; in my mind, when someone imprints, the pull is so strong on either end there is no reason to wait. In my mind, it is never they meet, they date, boy or girl does something stupid, they fight, and then they fall in love and live happily ever after. Imprinting should be easy, it should be simple, and it should be lasting. To quickly clarify the timeline: The Cullen's left in September; Bella met Paul in late September. They dated all through October and November. They went to Florida over Thanksgiving break, and now it's Christmas. I hope that makes a little bit of sense, and I hope everyone doesn't feel like it's rushed. It makes sense to me, so I hope it does to you! Ok, read on!
Sitting on the beach with her toes in the sand, leaning against Paul's chest, Bella was in heaven.
Renee and Phil decided to give Bella and Paul their last night to themselves. Paul loved the East Coast beach, it was so warm here.
They had spent a whole week with Renee and Phil. Renee took Bella and Paul on a tour of the city while Phil was practicing. They ate at a ton of different restaurants, and Bella even cooked a huge Thanksgiving dinner.
They watched Phil play a game all dressed up like hardcore fans. Paul even painted his chest black with a giant gold sun to support the team. Bella laughed as they cheered and jeered.
Once again, she was grateful that she found Paul, and that Edward never gave in to her childish wishes of wanting to be immortal. She would have never been able to see her mother like this, never been able to watch Phil play a game of baseball, never been able to sit on the beach and watch the sunset.
"What are you thinking about, babe?" Paul asked, interrupting her thoughts.
She pulled his arms around her tighter. "I was just thinking about out time here, and how happy I am that I have you," she said leaning her head back to kiss him.
He deepened the kiss, leaning back into the sand, pulling her with him. She was thankful they had walked a ways, scouting out a small private cove to sit in the sand.
Bella moaned as Paul ran his hands over her back to cup her butt. She thrust her hands in his hair, sucking his bottom lip into his mouth. She squeaked when he dipped his thumbs under the hem of her jean shorts.
She pushed herself up, straddling him. "We shouldn't do this here," she said laughing.
He nodded, agreeing. "Wanna go for a swim?" he said, raising his eyebrows lecherously. She laughed as he dumped her into the sand, darting for the water.
The following morning Bella was dreading saying goodbye to her mom, but missed the pack dearly. Phil and Renee were heading to Pennsylvania to play an away game, so they all went to the airport together.
Bella promised they would visit soon, sometime after the New Year. They gave numerous hugs and kisses before they parted ways. Bella and Paul settled in for the seven hour flight in first class. It was the first, and probably last, time they had ever flown first class. It was amazing. The seats were spacious, they had good, hot food, and the flight attendants were so polite.
They landed in Port Angeles. Bella was happy to be on familiar land once more. Leah and Aaron picked them up from the airport. Bella attacked her best friend, crushing her in a bear hug.
"I've missed you, Leah!" she said enthusiastically. Bella raised her eyebrow at Leah, silently asking about Aaron.
Leah cleared her throat. "Bella, Paul… I'd like you to meet Aaron…," Bella looked confused, they had both met Aaron already, Paul had grown up with him. "…my imprint," Leah finished.
Bella screamed hugging Leah to her again. Paul grinned and shook Aaron's hand, wishing him luck.
Bella's mood increased exponentially as they neared the Forks county line. As she looked out the window, seeing nothing but green, she was finally content. She enjoyed visiting her mother, but she loved coming home.
Being away made Bella feel even closer to Paul; like more pieces of the puzzle fell into place. They weren't able to sleep in the same bed, or even the same room, so they stayed up very late into the night, sitting on the couch, just talking. When Bella would finally doze off, Paul would put her in the guestroom and return to the couch to try to sleep.
Neither of them had slept very much the whole week. They needed to sleep together to sleep properly.
Charlie was ecstatic to see them both, to Bella's surprise. He insisted they visit with him for a bit before going to Paul's house to get some rest.
Charlie knew about Paul giving Bella a key to his house, and he was very grateful that he didn't outright ask her to move in. Charlie was alright with Bella and Paul spending all their time together, he actually really liked the guy. He just didn't want to never see Bella again. He loved his daughter very much, and didn't want to lose her to a guy, no matter how great he is.
Bella insisted she spend the next day, Saturday, at Charlie's cooking a full fledged Thanksgiving dinner. She made a turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, homemade cranberry sauce, and 2 pumpkin pies.
Charlie was absolutely thrilled. Apparently, he had been eating at the diner almost every meal, except the ones Emily insisted on providing him. Bella was grateful that Emily looked out for her dad; she would have to thank her.
After Thanksgiving time sped up, as it always seems to do. Bella existed in a haze of decorations, trees, recipes, and Paul. Bella spent every night with Paul at their house, even when he was patrolling all night. She still made food for Charlie almost every night though.
Pretty soon, it was Christmas week. Forks High gave their students an early Christmas break, so Bella was done with school from the 20th until the 3rd of January. While they had ample money to buy Christmas presents, Bella and Paul decided to enjoy their newfound domestication and make big cookie bouquets for all their friends and family.
Bella made a list of who all would receive a basket. They decided to make a few more just incase they missed anyone. Paul went out and bought ten medium sized baskets and at least a thousand skewers to shish kabob the cookies to arrange them in the baskets.
Bella baked all week long. She made too many cookies to count in each kind she made. There were gingerbread cookies, frosted sugar cookies, chocolate chip, peanut butter, chocolate mint, raspberry filled, and at least half a dozen other kinds.
The baskets had at least 100 cookies in each one. They looked beautiful. The cookies Bella had made extra were bagged up and frozen. She was sure Paul had ingested a few dozen while they baked together.
In reality, Bella had baked, while Paul distracted her with his hands and mouth. They even had a very titillating cookie dough battle which ended with having to wash the sheets, the tablecloth, and a few couch cushions.
Christmas day was finally here. Bella awoke wrapped around Paul, feeling him breathe against her neck. She wasn't sure what had awoken her, so she listened closely for any disturbances.
She heard it again, a faint knock at the front door. She slid from the bed, donning her thick bathrobe and padding down the stairs. "Who is it?" she called through the closed door.
"Delivery for Bella Swan and Paul Meraz?" a male voice called.
A delivery? Bella wondered. She opened the door to reveal an older man in a delivery uniform. He handed her a clipboard to sign for the goods. "Where do you want it Miss?" he asked.
"Uh, in the living room is fine," she said, still wondering who it could be from,
"It's not all going to fit there, ma'am," Bella's eyes bugged from her head.
"Uh, okay… just put it wherever I guess," she said.
He nodded his head, collected his clipboard, and walked back out to the truck. Paul wrapped his arms around Bella from behind. She gave a terrified yelp as he chuckled. "Merry Christmas, baby," he said sleepily.
"Merry Christmas," she replied kissing him softly. "It seems we've gotten a rather large delivery, Mr. Meraz," she teased him.
"Why, Miss Swan, whoever could it be from?" he replied with a strange accent.
She laughed. "There is only one person I know that would send us something in numbers so large the delivery man is afraid of it not fitting in the living room," she said.
"Alice," Paul stated. Bella just nodded.
"Go help him, babe, he seems to be struggling," she said as she watched the lone delivery man heave boxes onto a dolly.
He kissed her cheek and jogged out the door. She went into the kitchen to put coffee on and start when she heard laughter coming from her living room. She peeked out to see Jacob, Quil, and Paul shaking snow from their hair laughing like maniacs.
"Morning guys, Merry Christmas!" she said cheerily. Jacob gave her a quick hug as they all exchanged pleasantries.
"Coffee and cookies are on the counter and breakfast is in the oven," she said as she opened the box nearest her.
At first she was shocked by the sheer number of boxes. There had to be at least thirty different sized boxes sitting throughout their living and dining room.
"There's some on the porch too, babe… but there is a not on them telling us not to open them until February," he said skeptically.
Bella laughed. "We'll have to cover them with a tarp and let them sit then. Alice only sent them because she somehow saw we wouldn't open them… never bet against Alice," she said.
Paul laughed, but he also agreed. It took them nearly an hour to unpack everything. Some of the brown boxes had one or two brightly colored boxes, some had over a hundred small wrapped presents.
In the first box Bella opened she found two letters. One was addressed to her, and one to Paul. "Here, Paul," she said, handing him the sealed letter.
She carefully opened hers, reading it silently.
Merry Christmas, Bella!
I'm so sorry I couldn't be there to see your face when you saw the delivery truck roll up! Although, I will admit I'm glad I don't have to listen to you complain that we spent too much money. Please rest assured that every present bought was bought for a specific purpose and will be put to good use!
I instructed the delivery company to leave five boxes on the porch, I'm sure he did so. Do not open them until February 6th! It is a Sunday, so you and Paul will have all day to open them. That's all I am going to give away now! But, when I come see you they better still be there!
Do try to enjoy your presents… all of your presents. And Bella, as your best friend, remember you deserve everything good that is coming your way. Don't over think things, don't fret on things uncharted. Take the leap, because I'm sure you'll be caught.
I love you, Bella Swan! I will see you soon!
xoxo Alice
P.S. – Tell Paul there is a red tarp in the back of Jacob Black's garage.
Bella folded up her letter, tucking it into her pocket laughing. She turned towards Paul, seeing him do the same. They would share their letters with each other when the time was right.
"There's a red tarp in the back of Jake's garage we can use to cover the boxes on the porch," she said to Paul.
"How did you… Alice," he said laughing.
Jake was elected to go dig the tarp out so the boxes didn't get wet from the falling snow. When he came back, all the boxes were empty.
Thankfully, Alice didn't wrap everything, but put some things in boxes and some in bags. Bella and Paul decided to set everything around the tree as best they could, and open them later on, just the two of them.
Jake and Quil scarfed down some breakfast, before darting off to
Emily's. They mumbled something about Emily making breakfast also. Bella just laughed.
Bella decided to take a shower, and loudly told Paul she was doing so. He got the message about 10 seconds after he heard the water running through the open door. He was running up the stairs a second later.
She giggled as he skidded into the bathroom in his socks. "You could have just said you wanted shower sex, babe," he said deviously.
"Oh, it's more fun this way," she said, letting her robe slip to the floor and stepping into the shower.
After the hot water ran out, they grudgingly left their steamy bathroom to get dressed in the bedroom.
They had to be at Charlie's in 20 minutes, so they had no time to play around….
Forty minutes later, they were pulling into Charlie's driveway.
"I'm blaming it on you," she said, laughing at their lateness.
"Sure, sure, babe… just tell him we're late because I was violating his daughter in the shower, the hallway, and on the bed… I'm sure he'll understand," he said winking.
She laughed blushing as she slid from the car. "You forgot the sink, the dresser, and the staircase, dear," she said as she opened the front door, leaving him gaping on the stoop.
They ate an early dinner with Charlie and exchanged presents.
Bella and Paul got Charlie a new tackle box, loaded with every fishing lure possible, a new fishing rod, and a smaller basket of cookies.
Charlie of course, loved it all. He put the picture on the mantle right away.
Charlie got Bella two new recipe books and some empty scrapbooks to fill up with pictures. He gave Paul a sack full of small blocks of wood and a beautiful whittling knife.
Bella was surprised when Charlie all but shoed them from the house after having cookies and coffee. They climbed in the car laughing about him urging them to go home, spend their Christmas together.
Paul had a theory that there was a new woman in Charlie's life, but Bella vehemently disagreed.
They walked in the door and Bella was surprised to see a giant box sitting in the middle of the floor. She turned to Paul, her eyes glinting in the soft Christmas lights.
"I recruited some help from the pack," he said in her ear.
She smiled as she dropped her coat and presents inside the door, walking over to the box that came up to her waist.
"Before you say it," he started. "I know we agreed not to exchange gifts this year, but this is something for both of us. I'm almost positive you'll love it."
She laughed because he knew her so well. She ran her hand over the big red box before pulling the lid off. She chucked as she revealed another box, this time purple.
She took the purple lid off and revealed a piece of paper with the number 3 on it on top of a yellow box. She laid it on the floor without turning it over, as Paul instructed.
She felt like a little kid on Christmas morning. All the anticipation! She took the yellow lid off, revealing another slip of paper with the number 1 on it and another box.
She repeated this process until she had six slips of paper. She lifted the lid of a pink box and revealed a small green box with a bright red ribbon on it. The tiny slip of paper it came with said simply. Stop – flip over 1-6.
She giggled and turned to the papers she had lying on the floor amidst the colored lids. She flipped the first paper over to reveal her name. The second paper said will. The third: you. Her heart was beating faster in her chest, her breaths coming quicker. She slowly flipped the fourth over to reveal the word be. She licked her lips as she flipped the fifth over. My She flicked her eyes to Paul, he looked incredibly nervous. She reached for the sixth paper, flipping it with a shaking hand. Wife.
Paul stood, wiping his hands on his jeans. He reached for her hand, pulling her from her knees. He gently picked up the green box and knelt in front of Bella.
Her eyes were tearing up. She thought back to Alice's letter and smiled. Alice knew this would happen, and she must have seen it two ways. Bella was wondering what in the world would have ever made her hesitate. She loved the man kneeling in front of her with all her heart.
Paul tipped the lid back on the green box revealing a beautiful diamond engagement ring. "Bella, I have loved you from the moment I saw you standing on that stage pouring your heart out. I knew you were it when our eyes met. Baby, you're my heart, my soul, my everything. I know we're young, but I know what I want, and it's you, all of you, every day for the rest of our lives. Will you do the extraordinary honor of becoming my wife?"
Tears were streaming down Bella's face as she tried to find her voice. "Yes, yes, yes!" she said joyfully. "I don't care that we're young baby, you're it. We know its right, I love you, I love you so much," she chanted as he slid the ring on her finger.
She pulled him up to kiss him squarely on the mouth. They decided to tell everyone tomorrow, and just keep tonight for themselves.
Paul opened some wine and they began opening Alice's presents. Surprisingly, or not so much, Alice supplied Bella with an entire kitchen's worth of supplies. There were big mixing spoons, spatulas, tons of bowls, a beautiful, plain, mismatched china set that Bella adored, real silver silverware, and every kitchen gadget you could think of.
There were also enough clothes to outfit an entire neighborhood for Bella and for Paul. She had enclosed another note on the top of the box of lingerie for Bella.
Bella read it aloud.
Congratulations!
I figured with your current living arrangements that you're cooking a lot, Bella. So, Rosalie, Esme, and I have supplied you with everything you'd ever need and want!
Esme was going to throw in some cookbooks, but I know Charlie has that covered. I do hope you've been there already today, being that I can't see the wolves, I'm having a hard time keeping track of when things are happening. If you haven't seen Charlie yet today, act surprised!
Emmett and Jasper's gift to Paul will be arriving later tomorrow, they wouldn't deliver on Christmas for anything.
I knew once you got to this particular box, all bets were off as to when you two would surface again… so enjoy!
xoxo Alice
Bella laughed as she lifted a particularly trashy black, stringy, piece of fabric. "How would one even go about putting this on?" Bella said incredulous.
"I don't know…" he said honestly. "But we'll have fun figuring it out," he said pushing her to the floor, kissing her softly.
Her hands went to his chest, pulling his shirt over his head. His hands flitted over her shirt, popping the buttons as he went.
He was just about to pop the button on her jeans when they heard shouting from outside.
"What the hell," Paul said, sniffing the air. He jumped up, walking to the front door as Bella quickly buttoned her shirt. He flung open the door with Bella hot on his heels.
He sniffed again, recognizing the scent of something different. Definitely not a vampire, but not completely wolf either. It was certainly not human.
He walked down the steps taking in the scene. Bella bumped into him as he stopped, she was still fumbling with her bottom button.
Embry and Quil were standing in front of a woman. She looked to be about 19 or 20. Paul sniffed the air again. It was her he smelled. She looked like she had some Native American blood in her, but he didn't recognize her at all.
Bella looked up, finally done with her shirt. Her breathing stopped, her heart beating double time as a huge smile broke across her face.
"Stacy?" she said tentatively. The girl looked up, recognition flooding her face. "Squish?" the woman said.
"Oh my God!" Bella screamed running past Paul to fling herself at the woman.
A/N: Eeek! Did you like the proposal? What will happen in February? Who is the mysterious Stacy? Questions, Comments, Ideas? Review if you'd like! 3 =] I hope you all have a Merry Christmas!