Okay, i know its been a while so i need to explain some things. My boss has been sick for the past few weeks and i've been picking up the slack so by the time i get home i crawl into bed and sleep, leaving little time for the fic. Hopefully she'll be back on monday so i'll have more time. Until then, this chapter will have to tide you over! sorry!
Sam and Emily's kitchen was packed tight by the time Jacob and I arrived with the girls on Christmas Eve. Despite the sub zero temperatures and the threat of snow, Jared, Paul, Sam, Embry and Quil all stood in the yard talking and laughing, bottles of beer in one hand and some sort of food in the other. Jacob followed me inside, his hand warm against my hip as he guided me.
"Hey there girls." Emily greeted Mia and Faye. "The others are up in Jody's room watching a DVD. Why don't you head on up?"
The two of them smiled at Emily and then waved at Jacob and me before running for the stairs. Jacob grabbed the bottle of beer and the cheese burger Emily offered him, leaving the plate in her hands, and kissed me on the cheek before heading outside to join the rest of the boys.
"Wow." I murmured to Emily with a chuckle. "My fiancé has no manners."
Emily laughed loudly and led me towards the living room. I could hear voices and laughter as we approached and my grin widened as I saw Abby and Claire wave at me from the sofa. I smiled at Emily before making my way across the room, dropping in between them and receiving a kiss on each cheek.
"So, how are you?"
I hadn't seen Abby since returning from LA and I tried to smile to reassure her.
"I'm doing okay. The adoption papers are filled in and sent off but it'll be the new year before we hear anything. Mia's parents were a nightmare, they really freaked the girls out."
"Why, what'd they do?" Abby asked softly. I shrugged. I was still slightly fuzzy on the details since both girls tried to ignore all mention of their grandparents.
"I'm not a 100 but I think they tried to force them to stay with them. I mean, they won't talk about it and Mia's parents wouldn't admit anything but I caught the girls talking once about their grandma showing them their bedrooms and telling them they had to live there with them."
"No shit."
"Yeah. Freaked them out. I mean, they've been through so much crap this past year and they've finally settled down and they love it here. They've got friends and school and this stability they've never had before and they really like it. You know, I thought for years that they were spoilt brats."
Abby chuckled and choked slightly on the wine she was drinking as I nodded at her seriously.
"I did. They got everything that they wanted and they certainly knew how to pitch a fit but you know, I think it was more of a cry for attention than actually being spoilt. I mean, they've never thrown a fit here, over anything. Guess I was wrong."
"Guess so." Abby chuckled. "How did the funeral go?"
"God, it was awful, I'm pretty sure everyone forgot I was actually Mia's best friend. There were so many dirty looks and everyone was talking about my sudden reappearance. I heard some girl that used to work with Mia on her show tell her friend that I had kidnapped the girls and hired a hitman to kill Mia so that I could keep them because I was baron and couldn't have kids of my own. Oh, and the 'hot Indian guy' with me was my personal body guard because Mia's mom had hired a hitman for me in revenge."
Abby and Claire laughed loudly as I rolled my eyes, thinking back on the rumours that had surrounded my last day in LA.
"Talk about a straight to DVD movie." Claire muttered, wiping her eyes. I chuckled and nodded in agreement, thanking Emily with a smile as she handed me a glass of wine.
"Yeah, I'm so glad to be home." I rolled my shoulders to get rid of the kink in my neck before smiling at the two women on either side of me, my two best friends, and turning my attention to the conversation in the rest of the room. Leah and Sue Clearwater sat on the second couch, next to Billy in his chair. Kim sat on the arm while Alicia and Anaise shared the large armchair in the corner.
"Have you got everything ready for the girls?"
"Yeah, its all open and ready to be sat out. I can't wait to see their faces." I grinned at Abby. "Speaking of."
I pulled the small, neatly wrapped present out of my back and handed it to her with a wink. She chuckled at me and reached inside her own bag, handing me a slim gift, wrapped in bright blue paper with a huge, sparkly silver bow. It was obviously a record. I grinned at her, wrapping my arm around her shoulder. I had had a little trouble thinking of what to buy everyone except Abby and Claire. When I had sat the small, antique painting I knew Claire would love it. And, in the same antique store, when I had saw the charm bracelet, I knew Abby would adore it.
"So, what are you ladies talking about?" Embry asked loudly as he led the group of men inside the room. The temperature shot up and suddenly there was barely room to move as Jacob folded himself almost in half in an attempt to sit against my legs without kicking the table in the middle of the room.
"I take offence at that comment." Billy chuckled. Embry shrugged and handed him another beer and all was forgiven. I smiled at Jacob as he turned to face me for a few seconds, a happy smile stretched across his face.
A few hours and three glasses of wine later, I stood in the cold air outside the house with Abby, waiting on Jacob bringing the girls down. It was almost nine and the girls had to be in bed soon for me to get their gifts set up.
"How is the wedding planning going?"
"Slowly." I chuckled in reply. "I'm going to throw myself into it in the new year, once the adoption mess all gets sorted out and Christmas is over and I have the time and the energy to do everything."
"Big wedding?"
"Nah, small. Intimate. I'm thinking friends and family." I chuckled mirthlessly. "Although I doubt my family will show up. They're refusing to forgive me for running away from LA. My mom and dad spent most of out trip making rude comments about Jacob and me, so they definitely don't approve of the union."
"Do you care?"
"Not really. Jacob and the girls are my family now and if my mom, dad and sister can't accept that then it's their problem, not mine. I mean, I love them and I would love for them to be there but its not going to break my heart if they don't show up, you know?"
"I'm sure they will. They're probably just shocked, you know?" Abby's smile was reassuring and I retuned it softly with a shrug.
"Yeah, well, it doesn't matter."
The truth was I would love my parents and sister to show up but part of me resented them because of the way they had treated Jacob. He had practically saved me from a miserable, self pitying life. He was the reason I felt so alive, so happy. It was all him. And I don't know how they didn't see that. How they missed the tangible connection between the two of us. Were they blind or were they trying their best to ignore it?
"Hey baby, you ready?"
I turned and smiled softly at Jacob as he carried Mia and Faye towards me. I hugged Abby and promised her I'd call her at some point on Boxing Day before she took off to see her folks.
"Let's go." I smiled up at Jacob and led him towards the car. He sat the two girls down in the back before opening my car and guiding me inside. I leant my head against the cold window and yawned. I was exhausted and I still had to spend an hour setting up the gifts for the girls.
"Has Santa been here yet?" Mia asked tiredly from the back.
"Not yet, honey. Soon." I told her.
"You gotta go to bed and go to sleep before he shows." Jacob told her. "And he knows if your faking it."
"Are you sure? What if I pretend to snore?"
"Santa knows everything little girl." Jacob chuckled. "He knows when you're fake snoring."
We pulled up outside the house and I rushed to the front door, opening it before Jacob had the girls out of the car. I watched from inside the hallway, shivering violently, as he carried them inside, whispering something in their ears that made them giggle sleepily. He winked at me as he carried them on upstairs and I shut and locked the door behind me, pulling my coat off.
