A/N To everyone who reviewed last week, you really do make my day, I know I don't often reply, (Too busy writing) but I do listen, for example this very chapter is thanks to a question by the wonderful * Pinklady34*
And to my beta Seiftis-forevs-47 you rock * Kisses*
Chapter Thirty six.
Bella's POV.
Oh My God... I'm engaged! I sat next to Edward in homeroom just marvelling at the exquisite ring on my finger. I looked up to see Edward watching me, the smirk on his face almost permanently etched on his face since I said yes this morning. Best birthday EVER! In fact the only downer had been the news my dad had given me this morning, he'd said he didn't want to ruin my day. But at the same time he didn't want me to think that he was keeping this from me. Mike and Tylor's trial date was set for next month, it had made me feel a little sick, but the events since then had pushed it from my mind. I knew I'd have to tell Edward at some point today, but really I was too happy at the moment, and I wanted to hang on to that feeling.
"Hey... where'd you go?" Edward asked, his face full of concern, shit I didn't want to lie to him.
I sighed, might as well get it out of the way now. "Dad told me this morning that the trial date has been set for next month, you know for the Mike and Tylor thing." I said, watching the indents form between his eyebrows as he frowned and his lip curled up menacingly.
"I will be with you through it all baby, and we will watch them rot in hell for what they did." he said.
"Thank you... so now you know can we forget about them and enjoy the rest of my day, please?" I asked when the frown didn't move from his face.
"Were you worried about telling me?" he asked.
"A little." I admitted, "I didn't want you sad at all today."
"You shouldn't be sad today either... I'm sorry baby, I promise not to think of it again today, okay?" he said, stroking my face.
Mrs Goff came to see why we weren't working then, seriously, I'd forgotten we were even in class.
~0~
During lunch my phone started ringing, I looked at the caller ID and was highly tempted to hit decline. My own finger betrayed me and hit accept.
"What's wrong?" I asked without preamble.
"Well hello to you too." Mom said.
"No seriously I know something must be wrong for you to call." I said.
"Oh haha, Miss Smarty pants... can't I phone my baby girl on her birthday without a ton of sarcasm?" She said.
"Well maybe if you responded to my messages once in a while I might not forget that you know who I am." I said, getting up and going outside, Edward came with me, his arms wrapping around me as he listened to the one side of my conversation with a frown on his face.
"I've been very busy, with selling the house and meeting people," she said by way of explaining her absence for the last month.
"Seriously mom, you could have at least text me." I pointed out, Edward's frown deepened.
"I'm talking to you now aren't I?" She said frustrated at me for my lack of gratitude. "So what have you had for your birthday?" She asked.
"Well lots of things, but the most memorable things would be, my new kinky lingerie, riding crop, oh and my engagement ring." I said and immediately pulled the phone away from my ear, and Edward grimaced at the sound of the response.
"WHAT!" Mom screeched down the phone.
"Oh I'd say that going by your response you heard me." I said nonchalant.
"How can you get engaged, you don't even date, you're still a virgin for heaven sake Bella." She said, her voice rising a little with each word.
"And you know this how?" I asked.
"I've only not talked to you for four weeks Isabella, that is not time to meet someone, let alone to have dated long enough to get engaged." She said.
"Okay, how many dates have you been on in that time?" I asked her.
"That's different." She bit back. "Bella you're being ridiculous you're making a huge mistake..." she started to say but I cut her off.
"I am not making the same mistakes as you mother, for a start I am not pregnant. I am eighteen and more than capable of making my own choices, since you already gave up on me. I am very much in love and if you can't at least be happy for me, then I can do without your opinion." I said and ended the call, breathing fast as my anger spiked.
Edward towed me to his car and sat me on the bonnet... er hood. "Hey." He said pulling me back to the edge and standing between my legs, my face in his hands. "Don't let her ruin your day babe, she's not worth it... just let it go." he said stroking my cheek. "Please... for me?" He said then pouted. Making me smile and instantly bringing me out of my funk, and then kissing me to seal the deal. "Though this will probably mean that I need to leave the state now," he said once we finally stopped kissing. I looked at him confused. "Well I'm willing to bet that your mother is on the phone to Charlie tearing him a new one right about now, he's going to castrate me for this." He said grimacing.
I smirked in response to his statement, and then sighed heavily. "You're probably right, which will mean another huge fight with my dad." I agreed frowning, and we had been getting along so well lately.
"I don't want you fighting with Charlie over this Bella." He tried to say.
"Maybe not but it will happen anyway, he's going to get all high and mighty, and not wait for us to tell him it's a long engagement we want. Perhaps we should just split now, go straight to Vegas." I suggested.
"I'd marry you today if I could but running to Vegas with Charlie following us with a loaded shotgun is not the way I want to marry you," he said kissing my forehead. "We'll tell him together after school, but maybe I'll have Mom and Dad meet us at your house, not that that will save me, but it might cushion the explosion, and at least my Dad will be there to help me when I get shot," he said and swallowed. "Sorry, I didn't really think of any of this, I was just too preoccupied with making you mine, to think of the consequences." He said sadly.
"No matter what anyone says, we will face it all together, we are doing nothing wrong. They constantly tell us that they want what's best for us and just want us to be happy, well that's what you mean to me. So how can they argue with that?" I said, he smiled at me and squeezed me tightly.
"Exactly," he agreed. "But let's face it, they are going to argue," he added.
I sighed knowing he was right, wishing there was some way I could prevent it turning into a fight. Then wondering if my dad would even wait until after school, surely he wouldn't turn up at school... would he? No, he would want to brood on it all day before he tried to kill me.
"Perhaps we should just not speak to any of them, have some answers written on cards or something?" I offered, making him laugh.
"Yeah, so I can't say anything stupid and make matters worse." he said.
Edward got my new violin and guitar from his car, and handed me my violin case and we walked hand in hand to music class.
~0~
Edward had text his parents, but it seems that Charlie had already been on the phone to them, screaming blue murder. And we were instructed to go straight to my Dad's house after school, dear lord this was not going to be pretty. But we were doing things the right way, we weren't rushing into anything. We were basically just declaring our love and devotion to each other for when we did eventually get married. Letting each other know that we were with the one we wanted to be with, was that really so wrong?
Edward pulled up outside the house, Dr Cullen's car was already here, well that was a good thing I guess. I could almost feel the tension permeating from the house. Edward walked around the car and came to my door, as he closed the passenger door he backed me up to the door.
Taking my face in his hands he leaned down to me. "I love you, and I will always love you. Whatever happens now we will face it together, okay?" He said. I took a deep breath and nodded, my mouth too dry to speak, as I tried to swallow the huge lump in my throat.
Edward kissed my forehead and took my hand, giving me a little tug so I would let go of the door handle I was clutching with the other hand.
"Come on, it won't be that bad," he tried to coax.
"You have met my dad, right? Chief shoot first ask questions later where my daughter is concerned Swan." I said.
He just laughed, pulled me closer and wrapped his arm around me as we walked up the porch steps. It felt more like walking the green mile as we walked down the hall to the living room where I could feel the angry silence coming from within. I gazed up at Edward and he mouthed 'I love you' before we walked into the room where Edward's parents, Dad and Anna were waiting, poised to attack.
"Well what have you got to say for yourselves?" Dad barked as we entered the room.
Edward lifted his hand to stop him. "Please, may I say something first, before you get to have your say?" He asked. Dad grunted, huffed but finally nodded stiffly once.
"Firstly I'm sorry you found out the way you did, that was never our intention." Edward said, his hand rubbing my back as I blushed with embarrassment. "Today as you know is Bella's birthday and I gave her a ring, asking her to 'someday' be my wife." He said holding his hand up asking Dad to let him finish, as he was clearly about to interrupt. "I love her more than anything else in the world Charlie and by some miracle she feels that way too." Edward said, and I think I understood for the first time just how much he really does love me. "Bella said yes to me, telling me that yes 'someday' she will be my wife, maybe after college... but not until she is ready. We know it's too soon and neither of us are ready for marriage yet, but someday we will be. This ring signifies to us that we will stand by each other, trust and love each other, and will be there to face whatever comes our way... Together."
The room was silent as four sets of eyes just stared at us, I gazed up at Edward in awe. "Thank you." I said not able to hold back the tears, I loved him even more after that, and I had been sure that that had not been possible. He pulled me tight against himself as we waited for someone to speak.
"Well that told us." Carlisle said, eventually breaking the silence.
"And you're happy about this?" Dad asked.
"I've never been so happy." I said fervently.
Dad stood up from his place on the sofa and walked over to the two of us, tugging me away from Edward. "I was so worried you were going to run off on me or something kid," he said hugging me briefly.
"No Dad, I'm not going anywhere... well not until college," I said hugging him back.
"But engaged, is that really necessary?" He asked.
"What does being married mean to you?" I asked, he released me and stood back to look at me, I moved back to stand beside Edward and his arm encircled my waist immediately. Dad didn't speak so I continued. "To love, honour, trust, respect and stay loyal to the one you love?" I suggested. To which he gave me a non-committal nod/grunt. "That is what this ring signifies to us, Dad, this is our prenuptial agreement to each other if you like." I said, and Edward squeezed my waist and kissed the top of my head. We both knew what it meant without having to tell each other.
Esme got up and came and hugged us both. "I can't say that I was in agreement, but now I know I have to say how proud I am of you both." She said. "And happy birthday sweetheart," she said kissing my cheek before she took hold of my hand to look at the ring.
"Aww man this sucks, I was expecting explosions and shit, and all I see is hugging, man I thought at the very least you'd kick his ass Charlie," Emm complained from the doorway.
"Emmett!" Anna admonished.
Dad's moustache twitched. "Thought about it," Dad murmured nodding, which earned him a slap upside the head from Anna as she came to hug me too.
"The youngest one here and yet the one with the most sense," Carlisle said hugging both Edward and I.
"Hey... I'm standing right here." Emm complained.
"Emmett you don't have a romantic bone in your body." Carlisle said.
"You'd know doc, sides I'm all man, not a pussy like Eddy," he said grinning at Edward, earning him a slap up each side of his head from Rose and Anna.
"You could learn a lot from him, actually." Rose said, glaring at Emm.
"What you want me to be a pu... perfect gentleman." Emmett corrected himself, dodging the two hands heading his way again.
"It might make a change once in a while." Rose said.
"Nah... you know I love you, don't need any grand gestures." Emm said, nonchalant.
"Is that right?" Rose said annoyed.
"I think you're about to feel that explosion you were waiting for Emm." Edward said grinning as he hugged me. Emmett looked at Rosalie, who looked like she was about to detonate. "I think that's our cue to leave." Edward said pulling me from the room, making a wide berth around Rosalie, as we went.
Half way up the stairs, Dad called after us. "Engaged or not, bedroom door open and the only biology studies allowed under my roof are done with books," he shouted.
"Ooops..." Edward said grinning. "Looks like we'll need to open all your books on the bed first from now on," he said chuckling, I hid my face in his shirt to try and stifle my giggling...
A/N Yay, Edward finally stepped up and fought for his woman :)
Thanks so much for reading... not sure how many chapters left... but not too many I think... (Famous last words!)