BPOV
We ran through the forest back towards home, laughing most the way. I knew we had much to discuss, but that could wait until we got home. For now, I was just happy to be with him again, to know he loved me, and that I loved him.
I had to admit I was surprised when I saw Alice waiting by the cottage, smiling. She had showed very little emotion when she had spoken to me earlier.
"I knew you would make the right decision," she said, as she gave me a hug.
I reached for Edward's hand, entwining my fingers with his, making sure this was real.
"Why couldn't you tell me Alice?" I asked her, it would have saved a lot of trouble if she told me this was going to happen.
"Would you have believed me?" she simply answered.
I thought about it, with the state of mind I was in, no I probably wouldn't have believed her. "No I wouldn't have."
"And I knew if I tried to stop you, it would have been of even worse." She said.
"Really?" I was actually quite curious.
"Yes really, if I tried to stop you, you would have taken off running, not bothering to text Jacob, giving no warning that you were going. I would have tried to convince Edward that you had left, but he wouldn't believe me until morning thinking that you would return, and by then you would have been long gone, and incredibly hard for us to track." She sighed at the end. "You don't make it easy for me do you Bella?" but she was smiling now. She hugged me and said she would tell the rest of the family we were 'happily' married again. I watched her run off back to the house. It was good to be home.
"Shall we?" Edward asked, gesturing to the door of our cottage.
"Of course," I said, and we opened the door together and went inside. Now it felt right, to be here, with him, like this.
I went and collapsed on the couch, it made no difference to how I felt. I remember when you had a hard day, had sore feet, you just wanted to come home and collapse on the couch or bed. I wanted that feeling of relief when you finally hit the bed or couch, I felt nothing. I was just as comfortable standing up then as I was lying down. Those were the little things I would miss, but I knew, I had to make the best of what I had, and what I had was Edward. I looked at him from where I was lying on the couch.
"May I join you?"
"Yup." I said, I pulled up my feet so he could sit down, and then put my legs over his lap.
We looked at each other for a long time, neither of us speaking, unsure of what to say. I knew if we didn't say the things we wanted to say, it would bottle up inside ourselves, and I didn't want a repeat performance. But it was Edward who spoke first.
"Im insecure, and Jacob makes me jealous, even though I know it shouldn't" he blurted out. I sat up and looked at him. I had no idea, well not until recently when Jacob dropped it on me at the beach, and even then I didn't realize Edward could be jealous over him.
I reached for his hand. "I love you Edward, he's just a friend, like a brother almost."
He looked at the ceiling, "I know, I know. Its not you and it's not even him. He has nothing but respect and love for you; I know that, I know that in my heart and in my brain. But I still feel it, those little niggling feelings of jealousy. Because you could talk to him, and not to me. Because you could play guitar hero with him, and not with me. I know that playing a game with him isnt a big deal, I think what bothered me the most was because there were things you done with him you wouldn't do with me."
"Im sorry Edward, I hadn't realized you were feeling that way. He always said to talk to you about those things, but I couldn't. I was worried how you would react; I didn't want to hurt you. I wished I could always tell you what you want to hear." Then I smiled, "and as for the game, it wasn't even fair for me to play against you, but now. Wow, I might just win."
He chuckled. "We shall see."
"I will do what I can do help ease you insecurities over Jacob but Im not sure what I can do." I said looking into his eyes, I really wanted him to understand that I did love him and I wanted no one else but him.
"You don't need to do anything Bella, it is me, all me. I trust you; my issues with Jacob are in my own head and my own imagination." and he run his fingers through his fair in frustration. Not at me, but at himself, for not being able to control his emotions.
"Ok" I said softly.
"Oh and Isle Esme, I snooped on your phone to." he said quickly.
"What?" I asked. I couldn't believe it.
"Thought I may as well get it out there, while we are being honest." he said sheepishly.
I shrugged, "well that explains your mood that day." I had suspected he might have, but thought he wouldn't. I was obviously wrong.
"Yeah." He replied. We sat in silence a bit longer.
"I should have told you I didn't want to change so soon." I said. His eyes connected with mine again, and they were filled with sorrow. I rubbed his hand in between both of mine gently. "Don't worry Edward, Im not angry at you. I was at first, I was pissed I wanted to do all sorts of violent things to you, but that feeling went away almost as quickly as it came. It wasn't what I wanted at first, but I wouldn't want to change it. Me being changed now, just means we have to start our forever earlier then planned, and Im fine with that if you are?"
He grinned, an award winning smile. "Of course Im fine with it Bella." And he leaned forward and kissed me softly on the lips.
Was there anything else I wanted to tell him?
I racked my brain, off the top of my head there wasn't really I wanted to say. I just wanted to love him, and be loved back.
"I was proud of you today," Edward stated, "I saw you walk past those humans, and it didn't seem to bother you."
He was there at the beach?
"Were you at the beach?" I asked.
He looked down, "Yes, I uh had followed you. I didn't mean to spy, it was only because you were a new born and I was worried you might stumble across a human. When I found you, you were just walking down on to the beach with Jacob. You were to far away and I couldn't really hear you, and I couldn't hear his thoughts. I assumed you had blocked them."
"I may have," I said, I actually didn't remember, had I blocked them? Or maybe when I was with him, it just automatically happened since I had done the first couple of times with him, I just done it without thinking. "I actually don't know if I did or not." and it was the truth.
"Well," he continued "anyway I watched for awhile, and when I thought he was about to kiss you, I run off. When you come back to the house, I didn't want to talk to you, afraid that you were picking him."
I stared at him in disbelief. Stunned into silence, before I realised he was waiting for me to speak.
"Uh….well, I didn't kiss him Edward, he was telling me I had to talk to you, he was right, so I came to talk to you to tell you I loved you. It didnt go so well did it? But Im glad things worked out in the end."
"Me to," he sighed, "but I have to say, Im still impressed how you handled the humans."
I shrugged, "It was nothing, really, they didn't smell nice or anything."
"Your shield?" he asked.
"What about it?" Were we on a different topic, or was he asking if my shield had anything to do with human's not smelling nice?
"Why did you shield Jacob from me?" he asked. We were on a different topic.
"Because I wanted you to focus on me." I said flatly, it was true. In that moment, when I turned around to face him when I had first awoken I wanted all of his attention to be on me.
He nodded, "Im sorry I didn't. I was to busy being jealous. Im sorry." He sighed, and then he turned to face me more. "So with your shield, you can just throw it out to protect any one around you."
I nodded, "so it would seem." I said. "It's pretty easy to control it, I can feel it, and I can see it. I can throw it out from me by just thinking about it." It seemed so natural to have my shield, and not 2 weeks ago I thought the entire idea of having a shield was ridiculous.
I looked at Edward and could almost see the idea clicking over in his mind, he quirked one eyebrow and looked at me, "could you throw it around me?"
"Yes." but Im not going to.
"Go on then," he said.
"Not a chance," I said smiling.
"Why?" he asked, looking a little disappointed.
"Because if you're under my shield with me, you'll be able to read my mind, and I don't want you to. I like having you out of my mind. Don't get me wrong, if I ever have to use it to protect you I will."
He shrugged, and then smiled, "I thought you might say that, but it was worth a try."
I grinned at him. I threw the shield out around him for a split second, and his eyes flashed to mine.
"Bella?" he asked.
"What?" I asked, as innocently as I could.
"Did you just….did you just throw your shield out around me?"
"No, why would you say that?" still keeping up the pretense I was innocent, although Im sure the smile that I was trying to hold back was creeping across my face.
"Well, because I would bet anything that I just heard a thought of a beautiful woman who wants her husband to take her to bed."
"Well, there could be some truth in that statement." I said coyly.
And with that, he swept me up off the couch and to the room, where we spent the last couple of hours of darkness making love. I had never felt so complete, so sure of his love for me, and my love for him.
We watched the sun rise from our cottage morning. Edward cuddled up behind me.
"What shall we do today?" I asked.
"Well, I think I have a hole in the wall in the living room that I need to fix for Esme."
"What? A hole? What from?" I asked suprised.
"Lets just say, Jacob had to knock some sense into me, literally." He chuckled.
Who would have thought, Jacob would be the one to save our marriage, save our love. If someone told me, or Edward or Jacob for that matter that this would be how things turned out, I would have never believed it. My whole world was piecing together nicely. I had the Cullen's; I had Edward as my husband, Jacob as a friend. All I needed now was Charlie and Renee.
We lay in bed until mid morning, talking, catching up, laughing, kissing, touching, and making love some more. I was never going to get sick of him. It was a remarkable experience to be with him like this. I remembered when I was human, he felt cold and hard. Now that I was like him he was warm to me, and soft, and even more handsome through these eyes. I had forever to enjoy this, how could I had ever been mad at him for giving me this?
We were just getting out of bed when there was a knock on the door.
Who would be knocking? Surely any one of the Cullen's would just walk on in, especially Emmett.
I answered the door, and froze at the red eyes that stared back at me.
"My my Bella, I have been proved wrong, you are changed after all."
She looked as evil as ever.
"Jane." I nodded, as to greet her. It didn't feel right to say hello. How have you been? to this vile creature. Edward stood behind me, a hand protectively around my waist. Although I knew I would be the one that would have to protect him from her. Not the other way around.
"You have 5 minutes to meet me back at the Cullen's house, Aro is waiting." and she turned and left disappearing back towards the house.
"Why didn't Alice warn us?" I whispered to Edward, hoping that Jane was far enough away she wouldn't hear me.
He shrugged, he looked angry about this unwelcome surprise in this happy moment we had been sharing.
"Well I guess she couldn't ring my phone, I left it in the forest." I said, wishing I hadnt. Charlie had brought me that.
"I have it," Edward said, "its back at the house, where mine is to. Alice would likely have missed this visit because we had been too distracted with what has been happening with you."
I let out a long breath and slumped against the wall. "Well, they can't be angry." I started to say. "We kept our promise, I am changed."
Edward smiled, "Your right, there's nothing to worry about, lets get some clean clothes on and go meet Aro."