Disclaimer: All the Twilight stuff belongs to Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement is intended. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

Author's Note: I have been told by some that my habit of italicizing things that were said, in addition to them being in quotation marks is irritating, and normally denotes things that are being thought not said. I am going to try this in this chapter and see if it works for me! Let me know what you think!

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Chapter 36 Oysters & Hot Springs

APOV

"Finally you're back," I said as I saw them emerge from the trees.

"Alice!" Bella said as she hugged me. "Thanks for the jackets, good thing I bought them."

"I suppose they are alright to wear in the back woods Bella, but they are NOT a fashion statement," I commented indignantly.

"You two are all sorted out then?" I asked, though I already knew the answer.

"Alice, you know we are," Edward offered. "You had to have seen to know that Bella would be cold, but thank you. Thank you for being here for us and for caring," he smiled as he hugged me.

Jasper and Emmett were playing Call of Duty on the flat screen while Rosalie absently flipped through some magazines. I had made dinner for Bella and I told her it was in the oven waiting for her, everyone else had already eaten but me. All the emotions flowing in this house had made Jaz thirsty as well, so he was going out for a bite with me.

"Jasper, you ready to go?"

"Coming darlin'," he responded immediately, a loud cat call coming from him and a loud thud which was probably Emmett hitting the floor, having been knocked off the couch.

We found a small herd and devoured the entire thing between us. It had been quite a day.

"It is just unbelievable to me, Alice, the way that Bella is with him. I've never seen a human have the reactions she does, nothing about him or his activities gets to her in the least. It's almost as if she should have been a vampire all along, you know what I mean?" Jasper said cocking his head to one side as if trying to understand.

"I've thought that myself, but I just never realized that anyone SHOULD have been a vampire, Jasper, it just always seemed to be a bad thing that happened to us."

"Well, it's not a bad thing for me," he said as he pulled me into his arms and held me tight, softly tucking a strand of my spiky hair behind my ear, "I would never have met you if we hadn't both been bit, Alice, and that would never do."

My husbands eyes were on fire with all his love for me as we kissed for a long minute, enjoying the stars and the night.

"I'm happy for Edward. Ever since I first met him he's always been incomplete, lacking something. Imagine living with three couples for all these years, having no one for yourself. He's whole now, from the minute he found her on that track, he's been whole," Jasper shared.

"I just wish he would decide when to change her. It scares me that something could happen to her while they wait. I know Christmas is only a couple of months off, but I can't see anything just after then, it's as if all of our futures are tied together, but they're in a fog . . ."

~oooOooo~

BPOV

Sometimes I think I'm dreaming.

Things could not be more perfect and I admit it scares me. We left the cabin this morning in time to have lunch at the Buffalo Bill Saloon, the one with the bar that Queen Elizabeth had sent over in the early 1800's. It was hysterical! I really don't know why my new family goes with me to eat, such a waste of money and food, but they love me and wanted to come and I could not help myself but to have some fun with them. We were seated at a round table, reminiscent of the tables you see in the old western movies where guys are in a saloon playing poker. Once I looked at the menu, I knew what I wanted to do and I had to be the one to order for the table.

"Do you guys mind if I order for us?" I asked.

They looked at me like I was nuts, but politely allowed me to continue . . . Alice smiling from behind her menu. I ordered by pointing on the menu so that it would not give away my choices. Edward laughed, of course, reading the mind of the waiter and the smile on Alices' face was huge. Lunch arrived and each of us had a plate before us.

"Dig in!"

They just looked at me and started to move the food on their plates around with their forks.

"Okay, I know it's disgusting, but just please either take one bite of the meat, or put it to your tongue and taste it. I want you to tell me what animal you're eating," I said with a smirk.

Edward just kept trying not to laugh and I had to ask him, "Did I succeed in getting your plate to you and you not knowing what you got?"

"You did, though I know the choices!"

"Well, try it! Make a guess at least," I pleaded.

Alice was the first. She cut a thin slice and put it in her mouth and chewed. Her pixie like face scrunched up immediately as she looked as though someone had worn a Prada purse and Gucci shoes that didn't match at the same time. Rosalie grimaced at her expression and the guys just laughed.

"That was really disgusting, Bella. I hope you know how much I love you to do this," Alice said.

"So, what animal do you think it is?" I asked leaning towards her, anxious to hear her guess.

"Well, I'm guessing it would be something off the normal, or you would not be so excited . . . I'm thinking elk."

"Alice! That's right! How did you cheat?"

"No cheating, Bella, it just made since given our surroundings and it doesn't taste like I remember cow tasting!"

"Okay, who's next?" I said to them, looking at all their expressions ranging from mild curiosity to utter disgust.

"I got this!" Emmett bellowed, taking a large bite and acting like he liked it. It took only moments for his expression to change. It was like seeing a teenager, anxious to prove himself, confidently take a large shot of a strong whiskey and then crumbling once the taste fully registered. The entire table broke into laughter!

"Not funny!" Emmett fussed as he spit the bite into his napkin.

"Emmett, I thought bear was your favorite!" I said, unable to wait for his guess.

"They ruined a perfectly good bear! That's just unbelievable. How could something so good raw be so disgusting cooked? Yuck!"

"Rosie, try yours," Emmett requested as the appalled expression faded from his face.

"Well," Rosalie looked reluctantly at her plate, "Mine looks different from the rest of yours, so that's a clue."

"Duck," she said as she swallowed an exceptionally small bite.

"Nice, Rosalie. That was really close, it was ostrich," I told her, "That was good guessing!"

"Okay, Jasper or Edward, which one of you is next?" I said taking a large bite of my meal.

"I'll go next, darlin'. My plate looks just like yours and Alice's, but Alice's smells different than ours."

I had forgotten all about the heightened sense of smell that all vampires had, but still, he was probably not going to guess this one right I thought to myself.

"I'm going to guess buffalo just because of where we are and the fact that you seem to really be enjoying yours," Jasper laughed.

"Right! You guessed it, Jasper! Mine is delicious, do you like the taste at all?"

"No. No, it's really disgusting, Bella. But funny that you had a cavalry officer eating buffalo . . . I might have really liked it . . . before!"

"Bella, do I really have to do this? You know, you have to be around me later when this comes back up! Can I just guess from the smell?" Edward asked.

"You can guess from the smell if you want, but take just a nibble . . . just to see! You love nibbling things . . . ," I said as I playfully nudged him.

He put a bite I his mouth and chewed as the most wretched, vile look came across his features.

"Bella, that is disgusting even for human food! That makes the steak at your dad's house taste like fresh mountain lion in comparison . . . well, almost. What is this, anyway? The only other dish the waiter had in his mind was oysters and this doesn't look like any type of seafood that I've ever seen."

Alice lost it! She all but fell from her chair, unable to contain herself laughing. "Edward, Bella just had you taste testicles, they call them Rock Mountain Oysters!" Alice explained.

The roar from Jasper and Emmett was not contained. The entire restaurant turning to look our way as even Rosalie laughed hysterically!

"God, I'm starting to really enjoy having you around, Bella!" Rosalie said, "Only you could get away with making Edward eat balls! Him not being able to read your mind really comes in handy."

Edward just sat and continued to try and remove the taste from his mouth with a napkin. The look on his face remained priceless.

"You are so paying for that." he whispered to me as his body still involuntarily shuttered, " I didn't know which is worse, the taste or knowing what it was that I just tasted."

When the waiter came, I quickly grabbed the bill and slipped my credit card in the folder. Edward looked at me curiously. "Well, you said I needed to get used to having money, so I can at least pay the bill for the entertainment I got out of all of this."

"I love you," Edward whispered in my ear, "But you are so not through paying for this!"

I could only imagine what he meant by that and as we drove along the curvy mountain roads, admiring the spectacular view of the snow capped peaks of the Colorado Rocky Mountains, I realized that I was looking forward to the payback.

Alice had made reservations for us to stay a few days at a place called Dunton Hot Springs. It was apparently a very out of the way, rustic, abandoned ghost town that had been restored. It looked like something out of the movies . . . the old westerns that Charlie sometimes watched, as we drove down main street. The hotel didn't seem that impressive from the outside, small cabins dotted the landscape of the valley with stables off to the North side and what looked like a pool behind the lobby. Alice came out, handing us each our keys. She and Jasper were staying in the Major Ross Cabin, fittingly named since Jasper was an officer after all. Emmet and Rose were in Bjoermans Cabin and Edward was handed the key to the Well House Cabin. All three were off to the very Southern end of the valley.

"This place is exclusive," she said, "There are only 9 cabins total, and complete room service - all you have to do is call and order anything you want, any time of the night or day, Bella. You should totally take advantage of it, though the rest of us will order something so that we don't arouse suspicion. Lets all go get changed and jump in the hot springs! This place is famous for the 106 degree water in the natural mineral spring."

We each went to our cabin. They looked like something Grizzly Adams would have stayed in from the outside, but the inside was a different story. The cabin was small, one room with a bath, but the room was large enough to accommodate a beautiful king sized bed covered in luxurious comforters and pillows. The walls were perfectly sealed and polished wood, as was the floor and the high rafters of the ceiling. There was a comfy fire already in the wood burning stove that added welcomed heat to the room. There, in the other end of the room, was a contained of water. It looked like, perhaps an old horse trough but much larger. It rose to about a foot off the floor and was about 4 feet wide and ten feet long!

"Well," Edward exclaimed, "Alice has outdone herself this time. We have our own personal hot spring to soak in."

"Really? That's what that is!" I exclaimed as I felt the water with my hand. Sure enough, it was really warm, flowing in at one end of the tub and continuing to flow out the other end.

Edward put our bag on the dresser. "I don't remember any swimwear on this trip, Edward," I said as I looked through the bag. I spoke too soon. Alice had purchased a bikini for me and board shorts for Edward. I should have known the little pixie would have taken care of it ahead of time, she was always there with things she knew we would need, that she had seen in our future. Edwards cell buzzed, Alice.

"Change in the bathroom. Bella, or you'll never get past Edward and join us!"

"Damn it!" Edward exclaimed as he released me from his arms, his hands had just started griping my butt and the kisses were becoming much more intense, "It's really frightening just how much she sees!"

We changed and met our family at the spring, it was about half the size of an Olympic pool, but there were jets in the sides that massaged your body as you clung to the edge and the warmth of the pool combined with the cool of the evening air was amazing. We basked in the warmth for quite awhile, just enjoying each others company. The sky put on a display of color rivaling anything I had ever seen, warm gold fading into brilliant pink which gave way to a dark rose color. Set against the pure blue background with a smattering of white stars starting to appear, it was magnificent. It felt like we were the only people on the planet and were being given a sneak preview of the heavens. Edward wrapped his arms around me, his lips kissing down my neck as he nuzzled into my shoulder with his face.

"I am so in love with you, you know that don't you Mrs. Cullen?"

"I do know that, Mr. Cullen," I answered.

"This is just awesome, Alice. How did you know about this place?" I asked.

"I googled luxury resort hot springs in Colorado, of course. This place is exclusive and we were lucky they had a cancellation! Apparently a party had rented the entire town for a week, then called it off at the last minute, so we pretty much have the place to ourselves."

"Is that what I think it is, Alice?" Jasper asked pointing to a small pool a few yards away from the main pool."

I wondered why they would have a hot tub beside the hot springs, it just didn't make any sense to me.

"Yep, it is," Alice giggled as Jasper picked her up and headed up the steps to go to the other pool.

"Hell yea!, Emmett yelled, grabbing Rose and throwing her over his shoulder on his way to follow Jasper. Rose was smacking Emmett on the rear and threatening not to give him any for a month if he put her in there, but after Alice and Jasper jumped in, he tossed her unceremoniously in as well, joining her with a laugh.

"What's going on, Edward?" I asked. The sparkle in his eye worried me and I knew he was up to something.

"Come on, love, lets join them," he said as he took my hand and led me towards the other pool.

I started to step in, assuming we were just changing pools for some random reason. We had been in the other pool for quite awhile and I was starting to get overheated. Maybe this smaller one was not a mineral pool or something, there had to be some difference.

"Forgive me for this, baby," Edward said as he lifted me and tossed me into the pool.

"OH MY GOD!"

I thought I was going to have a heart attack as my head emerged above water, sputtering. My family stood in this pool, unfazed by it, but I was absolutely in shock! The water was ICE cold! In face, there had to be a refrigerating unit near by to get it this cold! It had no effect on them, but apparently the blue lips it caused on me and the shivering was hysterical to them.

"Edward! I'm so going to get you for this!" I screamed as I scrambled out of the water. He was long gone, running back towards our cabin almost tripping he was laughing so hard. I ran after him, not just because I wanted to catch him, but because I wanted to be in front of the hot stove in the cabin . . . I was freezing. He stood in the cabin, hands on his knees supporting him as he continued to laugh! He was so adorable laughing at me that I couldn't be mad for long, but he didn't need to know that.

"Edward! How could you! Unfair stupid ridiculous vampires, the cold didn't bother anyone else, they were all just standing in the pool like it was nothing, like it was warm like the big pool - how was I supposed to know that it would be cold! You could have warned me!"

"Its a Cold Plunge, sweetheart," he said as he wrapped his arms around me, "It's supposed to be healthy to get all warm in the spring then dip in the cold . . . my family just stayed in the cold a little longer than most, I guess to give you the impression it was comfortable there. You have to admit, the look on your face was priceless."

"Well my getting pneumonia won't be," I said shivering.

Our swim suits were off in a flash, cast aside onto a chair in the corner. Edward picked me up and walked to the tub in our room, moving down the steps till we were both waist deep in the water, then sitting on the bench to submerge us to the shoulders. It was gloriously warm and I wrapped my arms around his neck to enjoy it for a minute, his body seemed still warm from the other hot spring we had been in. He hadn't gotten into the Cold Purge!

I was used to his normally icy touch, even joking with him about having sex with a Popsicle and I loved his warmer touch each morning, having been under the heating blanket and snuggled up to me all night, but this was different. He was warmer than I was, his body having become the temperature of the hot springs. His lips felt like some sort of heated velvet as mine molded to them, caressing them with no desire to be anywhere else in the world. I turned to sit straddling my husbands lap, pressing my body to his and tugging at my favorite soft hair at the nape of his neck. With is arms encircling me, he rubbed soft patterns on my back and down my spine. The love between us was overwhelming. I felt his erection, straining for attention between us as I traced my fingers along his jaw, feeling the smooth muscles of his neck as he kissed me and the hard planes of his chest as the muscles moved and flexes with his arms movements.

His abs were amazing, hard and rippled with soft velvet skin stretched across the bands of steel. I wondered if he had those before he was changed or if they were a benefit of being a vampire, I had never seen a vampire that was heavy or overweight and I had to remember to ask about that . . . but not now. Now I just needed Edward. We stared into each others eyes for a long moment, each of us holding the others face in our hands, enjoying the feel of our lips and tongues moving together. God I loved this man.

I lifted myself up off of his thighs and onto my knees ar either side of him as he stoked my folds with his length, positioning it for me to slide down on and sheath him inside of me. As I moved to lower myself, it felt like a flame ignited within me. Edward's body was hot, just short of painfully hot as he entered me, the effects of the hot springs making themselves known. I screamed his name as I impaled myself on him.

"Bella, are you alright?" he asked as a panicked expression crossed his face and his body stilled.

"I . . mmmmmm . . . ff . . . ineeeee, baby . . . . Ed . . . warddddd . . ., you're SO warm . . .", I barely managed to get the words out I was so consumed with pleasure.

He smirked at me, realizing that his body temperature was greater than mine right now.

"Do you prefer this to your normal Edward Popsicle, love?" he teased.

I couldn't answer. I moved up and down his length, feeling him thrust into me with each passing movement. I couldn't take it, having no idea how long it continued, an hour or a minute, but I exploded, pulsing around him and squeezing him for all I was worth. He released into me, my actions triggering his, and roared so fiercely I was sure the locals would think wolves were on the prowl close by. Had he not been immortal and indestructible, I'm sure I would have removed a large portion of his hair my fists were so tightly coiled, tangled in his locks. He smiled the most delicious smile as his eyes returned to focus and stared at me.

~oooOooo~

EPOV

Bella had the most glorious, satiated look on her face that I had to smile. I was thrilled that I could please her so fully though seeming to me like I was being so gentle. If I were honest with myself, I could not wait till she was as indestructible as I was and I no longer had to concentrate so fully on not hurting her, not kissing her too roughly or thrusting into her too hard. The day was soon coming when I could make love to her with abandon, thrust into her as hard and fast as I was capable of, for as long as I liked.

She had no idea, of course, what I was really holding back. It wasn't that I was holding out on her, exactly . . . I had to keep her safe. She was too precious to me to risk anything out of the ordinary or new till she was more durable. Listening to sex in the minds of people for almost a century now had given me ideas and I had so many things I wanted to try with her, to do with her . . . but they had to wait. She had to be protected, safe, even if I was protecting her from me. We agreed to talk about everything, I agreed never to take her choice away again, to always discuss everything, but I was sure she had no real idea about what sex would be like for us once she was a vampire as well.

I held her to me, whispering my love for her over and over into her ear as I hardened again within her. She was used to this by now, in fact, she expected it . . . relished it I think. I had the notion that she really did enjoy sex with me every bit as much as I enjoyed it with her.

She was starting to overheat, her face appeared to be perspiring in the hot tub and that was a definite sign that it was time to get out of the water. I grabbed the soft robe from the hook near the tub and placed it around her shoulders as she stepped from the bath, softly moving it over her skin to dry her off. She took a towel and rubbed it across my shoulders and back, then dried my hair for me. Life was so easy between us, gentle caresses and small acts of care and love between us just as a normal course of the day. She was my everything.

Emmett had accused me of turning to mush in the last few weeks and I was starting to agree with him, I loved it . . . and I loved her. Being without a mate - without her for over 80 years had me focusing on every opportunity to show her my love and cherish every gift she was willing to give me from tricking me into eating testicles in a restaurant to drying my hair, making love to walking hand in hand with her. It was all the same, all part of my life with her now and I truly loved it. She was the other half of me and I could never survive again without her.

~oooOooo~