Oh Boy! The Wedding! I know ya'll have waited a long time for this chapter. I worked real hard on it, and my buddy "GeezerWench" pre-reader and creative consultant extraordinaire did a great job helping me along :) Thank you!
Hope it makes you smile,
Happyghost
It was twilight by the time the travelers had all their belongings packed into the doctor's wagon. They had left Edward with a pantry full of baked goods, a sore jaw, and a broken heart, but he had stood proudly with his head held high when they said their good-byes, never letting his true feelings show.
After talking it over, it was decided that Emmett would help the Whitlocks get settled in at the hotel, and then he would go fetch the Justice himself. He pulled the team to a stop outside the Overland Hotel. It was a grand two-story first-class hotel located on Main Street; by far, the nicest place in town.
Bella, who was wearing her shabby old dress, complete with handmade moccasins, couldn't help but feel ashamed of how plain she looked as she stepped into the elegantly decorated lobby.
The front desk was made of polished, carved wood and sat under a huge gleaming oak entryway. Behind the imposing, yet beautiful, structure, stood a well-dressed man with long, pale blond hair. He wore a sneer on his face as he haughtily apprised the travelers who approached.
Bella and Charlotte stood nervously to one side, avoiding the man, while the brothers attempted to book some rooms.
The man absently flipped through his registry, never glancing up. "How long do you intend on staying?"
Before the Whitlocks could answer, Emmett barreled through the door with Bella's hope chest hefted over his shoulder. "Hey, Cai. I've got these folks covered. Put them up in yer best suites." He set the chest down with a loud thud and hurried over to the desk.
Caius closed the book. "Oh, please forgive me. It appears all the rooms are taken for the night."
Emmett narrowed his eyes, "Where's yer brother at?
Almost as if he had been summoned, a smaller man with an odd gliding gait appeared at the desk. His hair was long, jet black and slicked back with pomade. He had small, beady dark eyes and pale skin. He looked nothing like the first man—who was supposedly his brother—in stature or in countenance. His face radiated joy as he delicately set his small, bone china teacup and saucer on the desk. "Marshall McCarty," he cooed. "It is so nice to see you. Will you be dining with us this evening?"
Emmett was never one to turn down a meal. "That sounds wonderful, Aro, but my friends need a room. I made sure to bring them here, bein' the best place in town an' all. This fella's gettin' married," he said as he gave Jasper a heavy handed pat across his back.
Aro's eyes lit up and he clasped his hands with glee. "How splendid! Of course, we shall put the happy couple in our best suite." He leaned forward, gave a wide toothy grin, and cocked his head to one side. "When is the wedding, may I ask?"
The Marshall ran his hand over his neck. "I was hopin' we could have it here . . . tonight."
"Oh?" Aro's mouth quirked in confusion.
"I was goin' to get them settled here and then go look for the Justice."
Caius scoffed and slammed the register closed, and Aro turned and glared at him, his face stern. "Well, don't just stand there. Go ready the rooms for our guests," he hissed.
Aro lifted the leather-bound registration book, turned back to Marshall McCarty with a lighthearted shrug and handed him a pen. "It seems you have all the details worked out. Just sign here and I will be delighted to take care of your friends while you go hunt down Marcus." He held out two room keys with a flourish and glanced at the clock. "I should think you'd find him at the saloon."
Peter thought Emmett looked a little too pleased. "Make sure you don't get lost on the way back," he warned as he took the keys.
"I'll be back—straight away," the Marshall promised. "Unless one of ya'll is havin' second thoughts about the weddin'."
The scowl on Jasper's face was answer enough. Emmett suppressed a chuckle and ducked out the door.
Some good-natured, smartly dressed hotel attendants showed the travelers to their rooms and brought up all the luggage. For the time being, the women occupied one room while the men went to get cleaned up in the other.
Charlotte busied herself by unpacking their belongings.
"Can I help?" Bella asked.
"No, I've got it," Charlotte said, absently.
Bella wrung her hands in her lap. "I think I'll go mad sitting here waiting. Are you sure you don't need any help?"
"I'm sure. You don't need to lift a finger. Jasper might not marry you if'n you're sweatin' like a field hand."
Charlotte turned to find Bella looking worried and peaked. Her face fell as she rushed to her friend's side. "I was only foolin', honey. Wild horses couldn't keep Jasper away." She placed her hand to Bella's forehead. "Are you feelin' alright?"
"I'm just nervous. I guess."
Charlotte sat on the bed beside Bella and embraced her. "It's been a long, hard day."
"It sure has."
"Yep," Charlotte sighed deeply as images of the outlaw she had shot crossed her conscience. She was glad he was gone. When she realized that her shot hadn't done the job, she had wished that it had. "Things will all work out for the best. I just know it," she said with a gentle squeeze to Bella's shoulders.
Bella nodded. Somehow she believed that, too.
Time seemed to slow to a crawl. Jasper was feeling a bit worried himself, but not because of the impending nuptials. The Marshall had been gone an awful long time, and Jasper was concerned that he might not return with the Justice of the Peace. Then he'd have to spend the night bunked down with Peter. The thought of his brother's sleep letching crossed his mind and caused him to pace back and forth like a caged beast.
"We should have gone straight to the church," Peter complained. "Then none of this would have happened. Why doesn't anybody ever listen to me?" He threw his hands up in frustration.
Jasper continued to pace until Peter began to fret that he would wear a hole through the floor. "Let's go down stairs and have a smoke. That way we'll be sure to see Emmett when he gets back. Hell, he might be down there waitin' for us."
The idea sounded good to Jasper, so the brothers went down to the sitting area. On the lower level of the hotel they found a café, a bar, and a roaring fire burning in the hearth, but the Marshall hadn't returned. They sat by the fireside, smoked some cheroots they bought from the bar, and waited. Jasper became so tense that the idea of having a drink, or two, crossed his mind more than a couple of times.
After what seemed like an eternity, Emmett returned with an old, tall, lanky man at his side. He was dressed in a black suit with long tails, black pants, and black boots. His face wore a serious expression. Peter thought he looked more like an Undertaker than a Justice.
Emmett rushed over and made introductions. "Sorry we took so long."
The Justice, Marcus, removed his hat and ran his boney fingers through his long, stringy hair before offering his hand to each of the Whitlocks. "We had to stop by my office for this." He pulled a piece of paper—an ornately decorated marriage license—from the fold of his coat.
"You boys are lucky to have met me," Emmett grinned. "Sometimes folks have to wait a whole week before they can get one of these," he said as he poked a thick finger towards the paper. "Ol' Marc, here, happens to owe me a favor."
"Ol' Marc" didn't look the least bit amused. His mouth was set in a straight line as he smoothed out the document on to the table. "We'll need a pen." His voice sounded tired. "And the bride."
"Got it!" Peter went to the front desk, borrowed the pen and ink, and set it on the table by the fireside, then rushed up the stairs to get the girls. He went into his room first to pick up his trusty Bible. It was obvious that the Justice of the Peace had forgotten to bring his own, so he collected the Good Book, and just as he was about to leave, he paused as something else caught his eye.
Bella and Charlotte were lost in conversation, when they first heard the music being played out in the hall. It sounded like a fiddle, and it took all of two seconds for Charlotte to realize that it was her husband playing Here Comes the Bride. She nearly jumped out of her shoes with excitement. "They must be ready for you. Come on!" She rapidly pulled Bella to her feet.
When they opened the door, the sweet sound of strings beckoned Bella to her destiny, which awaited her downstairs. She was to be joined with Jasper tonight forever, in front of God and whoever else happened to be waiting in the hotel lobby.
Peter smiled warmly and continued to play; his Bible tucked up under the arm that held his instrument.
Charlotte led Bella slowly down the hall by her trembling hands.
When they reached the staircase, Bella stalled, feeling faint. "Don't let me fall," She whispered and her voice wavered with emotion.
Jasper waited down by the glowing hearth, along with the Justice, the Marshall, and a small crowd of onlookers who had gathered as soon as the music began to play.
Aro and Caius from the front desk were among the witnesses. They were both waiting by the bottom of the stairs. Bella glanced between the two strange men, both looking expectantly up at her, awaiting her arrival, and she had a sudden impulse to turn back around and run to the room, but Peter filled the landing behind her, blocking her escape with his wide shoulders and soothing tune.
It was only a moment later that Bella's eyes met Jasper's, and all her tensions left her. He was looking up at her with pure love and devotion. She'd never seen him look so happy. In fact, she'd never seen anyone look so happy. His beautiful smile was contagious, and it was then that she felt as if she couldn't get down the stairs and into his arms fast enough. She couldn't even remember why it was she had been nervous in the first place.
As she drew near, he took her hand, and it suddenly seemed as if he were the only other person there in the room. He was the only one that mattered. She might have just stood there staring up at his handsome face all night, but Peter had set down his fiddle and the Justice had begun to speak.
Marcus could tell by the way that the couple looked at each other that they both were deeply in love. "Are you ready to begin?" he asked quietly.
Bella and Jasper both nodded.
"Is it your intention to be married here tonight?"
They both answered, "Yes."
A faint smile lifted the corners of the justice's solemn mouth and he asked, "Jasper, do you take Bella to be your wife?"
"I do."
"Bella, do you take Jasper to be your husband?"
"I do."
"Very good. Your marriage is now a matter of public record. If you will both step over here and sign this certificate, then we'll be all finished." Marcus handed Jasper the pen.
Aro just loved weddings, and he began to clap for the happy couple.
Peter held up his hand, "Oh, no. We're not done here. Now that the legal part is over with we can get to the good part."
Marcus sighed heavily. "That's the end of my ceremony. Once the paper is signed everything will be legitimate."
"Well. That's not the way we do it in Texas . . ." Peter placed his hands on his hips in defiance. ". . . and that's not the way we're going to do it here either, is it Jasper?"
Jasper handed Bella the pen, and tried not to get riled up at his brother's never-ending bellyaching. His eyes bright and filled with love, he held onto Bella's hand, and gave it a squeeze before he let it go. "This is the first time you'll be signing your new name." Nothing would aggravate him tonight, Bella was finally his wife. "God already knows how much I love her, Pete."
"I'm sure she wouldn't mind if I said a few words . . . would you, Bella?"
She proudly finished signing her new full name and turned to Peter, her face glowing with happiness. "It's fine with me."
Jasper, however, was less tolerant of the idea. He knew how his brother could run off at the mouth, especially when he had a captive audience. "Make it quick."
Peter was ecstatic; he had studied and practiced preaching back home before the war, but he'd never officiated a wedding. It was something he'd always wanted to do. He couldn't remember the way to word the vows. He knew that they began; dearly beloved we are gathered here today, and ended, you may now kiss the bride, but since none of the witnesses were family he decided to skip the first part, and wing the rest.
He picked up his Bible and prayed for the right words to come to him, and for God to bless his brother and new sister's union. He cleared his throat and made sure he had everyone's attention. "As the groom's brother, I'd like to say a few words, and uphold a family tradition. Where I'm from, the weddin's not over until the groom kisses his bride."
Peter winked at Jasper, who relaxed his tense shoulders. Hell yes, he would listen to his brother spout off for a few minutes if it meant he'd get to taste Bella's sweet lips and show everyone gathered that she was his wife.
Peter's voice carried well, even though his throat hadn't healed completely, and he spoke with an air of confidence which commanded everyone's attention. "Marriage can be a wondrous bond, and I feel certain that Jasper and Bella's commitment to each other will be a blessed one. I knew that Jasper fell in love with Bella from the moment he met her. He was a little rough around the edges at the time, but her kindness smoothed him out, and turned him from his wayward path. I will be forever grateful to Bella for saving my brother and renewing his spirit. That's what love does to us. It is a great power that comforts us in times of sadness and heightens our greatest joys."
Charlotte dabbed at the corner of her eye with her handkerchief. She always cried at weddings.
Peter directed his words towards the bride and groom. "Marriage is a covenant with God. It's the joining of two souls, a life-long commitment that's made in the heart. A promise. A promise that Jasper and Bella will make to each other publicly here tonight, and will continue to uphold day after day, for the rest of their lives. Do you, Jasper, promise to keep Bella as your wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, forsaking all others, until death do you part?"
Staring deeply into Bella's eyes, he promised. "I do."
"And you, Bella. Do you promise to keep Jasper as your husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, forsaking all others, until death do you part?"
Bella replied, "I do." She felt so in love with Jasper that she feared her heart might burst.
"Let us pray." Peter bowed his head to lead them in prayer. "Gracious God, our hearts are filled with great happiness on this the wedding day of Jasper and Bella. They have come before you, pledging their lives and their hearts to one another. Grant that they may be ever true and loving, living together in a way that shall ever nurture the soul of their marriage. Temper their hearts with kindness and help them to be sweethearts, helpmates, and friends. So that together, may they meet the cares and problems of life more bravely. May their home truly be a place of love and harmony where your Spirit is ever-present. Bless their marriage, we pray, and walk beside them, through all their life together. Amen."
Peter felt at peace in his heart and believed his prayer had been accepted. "You may now kiss your bride."
A rousing round of applause erupted from the well-wishers as Jasper ducked his head and gently kissed Bella on the lips.
Aro, who was in awe of Peter's remarkable speaking ability, appeared at his side to shake his hand. "Such a lovely ceremony—so heartfelt. You certainly have a way with words." He clasped Peter's hand between his pale cold ones.
Peter got a sort of creepy vibe from the man, and on top of that, he noticed his nails were unusually long, but his Momma had taught him to never judge a book by its cover, so he thanked him for his complement.
"I would like to extend an invitation for your family to dine with us tonight—on the house. Our gift for the newly wedded couple."
"That's mighty kind of you, sir. We'd be much obliged." Peter had to extract his hand from Aro's grasp, and then wade through the crowd of people who had gathered to congratulate the bride and groom, before he finally reached his brother.
Jasper embraced Peter warmly and thanked him. When he wasn't busy annoying the tar out of him, Jasper really appreciated his brother.
Charlotte was there hugging Bella, welcoming her into the family. She finally had the sister she had always dreamt of.
"I was thinkin' Bella and I would go up to our room now," Jasper whispered to Peter as he loosened his embrace and took a step back.
Peter responded with a chortle, "Oh, no you don't. We're all goin' to have a nice dinner. It's a gift from the innkeeper." He pointed towards Aro, who stood across the room, held up his hand, and wiggled his fingers while a crooked grin spread across his lips.
Jasper didn't feel like eating and making small talk. He wanted to throw Bella over his shoulder, run off with her up the stairs, lock them in their room, and spend the next few days naked in bed, but for the love in his heart he would forevermore put his wife's needs before his own. "Are you hungry, Bella?" He looked to her for an answer.
"It would be bad manners to decline his hospitality," she decided.
So the Whitlocks ate a good meal. At least some of them enjoyed it. Poor Jasper barely made it, as he was suffering through Peter regaling Aro with his tales of life back home in Texas and stories of the war. Aro sat in rapt attention, devouring every word.
Charlotte, who had heard all of her husband's stories at least a hundred times over, finally had enough and excused herself, saying she was too tired to stay up any later.
Jasper and Bella both jumped at the opportunity to get up and leave as well. They thanked their gracious host, climbed the stairs, and retreated into the privacy of their room.
As the door clicked shut, Jasper sighed with relief. "I thought I'd never get you alone."
Bella gasped as her husband's strong arms lifted her up and she found herself placed on top of the bed.
A small table top lamp barely lit the small room, and cast dancing shadows across Bella's face. Jasper thought she looked so damn beautiful, and he couldn't wait to get her hair down.
He carefully removed the silver comb from her mahogany locks and set it on the bedside table. It was the first gift he had ever bought her. They'd lost so much in the Snake River—he had nearly lost his Bella—but she had survived, and somehow, his small gift had also made the crossing to continue on with them.
Jasper's long fingers combed slowly through Bella's hair and he leaned forward to press his lips to hers. A small kiss led to a more passionate one, and before long Bella was helping Jasper free her from her dress.
He nearly toppled over in his rush to remove his boots and shuck off his irritating clothing. He caught himself on one of the bed posts and glanced up to see Bella already situated up under the covers, smiling at him welcomingly.
"That bed sure does look inviting. Is it comfortable?" he asked.
Bella felt an inexpiable excitement well within her as she raked her eyes over her handsome husband standing naked at the foot of the bed. He was tall and strong and sturdy. She nodded and beckoned him to join her.
Jasper felt downright giddy. He peeled back the quilts by Bella's feet and entered the bed by climbing up over her body, kissing up her leg as he went. He playfully licked and nipped at her thighs. Now that she was finally his wife, he wanted to brand every inch of her body with his tongue and lips and teeth.
When Bella felt Jasper's warm breath graze her dampened curls, it was unexpected and tickled her in a strange yet pleasurable way. She jerked and clamped her thighs around his head.
"Ow."
"Oh, no! Did I hurt you?" Bella worriedly asked Jasper, who was still somewhere between her legs, under the blankets.
"I'm fine." He grinned as he flipped back the blankets, eager to feast his eyes upon his beautiful new bride. In the glow of the dim lamp light she was breathtaking.
She tried to cover her breasts with her arms, but Jasper wouldn't have it. "Do you know how often I've dreamed of seeing you like this? How happy it makes me to be the only man to ever see you this way, the only man that ever will. Please, don't cover yourself."
She breathed a sigh of relief, and her body relaxed as her hands fell to her sides. "I didn't mean to jump, I'm just ticklish."
"I'll remember that for next time." Undeterred, Jasper continued on his mission. His thick calloused fingers parted her slick flesh, and his wandering tongue writhed against her most sensitive place.
She cried out his name and threaded her fingers through his hair as he took her to passionate new heights. Places she had never dreamed of—places she had never imagined.
She rocked into him, feeling so close to the edge of release. In the moment before she fell apart, he joined her, trailing wet kisses up her heated body, until he reached her gasping lips.
In a haze of swirling feeling and emotions, he slid inside of her, as her orgasm seared through the both of them.
She took all of him into her hot, pulsating core, and he buried himself within her again and again. Slowly and languidly he moved with her as she met his thrusts with her hips.
He groaned out his pleasure as he found his release and melted into her, his love, his wife, his life.
They were both panting and spent, but Jasper didn't want to move. He wanted to stay inside of her forever. She was still reeling with the aftershocks of their passion, and her skin was flushed and her lips looked plump and well kissed. She was so beautiful.
Bella felt him slip out from between her thighs after a long while, and he rolled over, propping his head up on his hand. He watched her with wonder and adoration, sentiments that she mirrored back to him in her loving gaze.
She knew that she would never tire of him, she would never be able to get enough of Jasper, but her eyes began to feel heavy.
He pulled the blankets up to cover them both and tucked her up under his arm. She felt so safe and warm and cozy, even in the chill of the late October night. She knew she'd never feel cold any more with Jasper by her side.
They wrapped their arms around each other and fell asleep, and dreamed of the wonderful future they would share for the rest of forever.
