A/N: I don't own any part of the Twilight universe, but you guys knew that already.
**Laughing hysterically** It seems that I am not the only one with a thing for Vampward. Your reviews were too funny. I am shamefully behind in my responses to reviews and PMs at the moment. I promise I am going to get to each one of them. The good news is; I am behind because the 1800 word Epilogue turned into a 4000+ word chapter, and yes, you will get it today.
As the word "Epilogue" suggests, we are almost to the end of the journey and I have a question for you guys in the Chapter Notes at the end. Please read and let me know what you guys think in your reviews for this chap. I'd love to hear from some of you that have read all along but not reviewed. I know you're out there and I'd love your opinions too.
Chapter 37-The Conquering of Atlanta
EPOV
"Fifteen minutes," rang through the door of the dressing room. I was the only one who even looked toward the voice as it called out.
Chip and Marcus each sat in a chair with a black leather fingerless glove in their hands. They were both trying to restitch the glove so that it would fit Bella's tiny hand. She had stolen the gloves from Felix, who apparently used them to lessen the blisters his drum sticks rubbed. She'd refused to let the bandage that covered her right hand be seen from the stage.
I smiled at the thought of that bandage as I watched her wiggle her way into a pair of very tight black leather pants. Shocked had not been even close to the right word for her stunt in the shower. It was the single most masochistic, dangerous thing I'd ever heard of anyone ever doing. And it was also the hottest most blatantly sexy thing I'd ever heard of anyone ever doing. There was no denying. And I'd heard a lot of truly deviant things over the last hundred years. The blood mixed with her words and the feeling of her body around me had been mind alteringly erotic.
I hated to admit it, but I was a vampire. And for a vampire, pleasure and blood were intermingled. But it was not an act I wanted her to repeat anytime soon. I'd made her promise not to do anything like that again without a little forewarning. It could have so easily turned into a disaster.
"Are you going to tell us why we are doing this?" Chip never looked up from his needle and thread as he asked her the same question for the ninth time. She'd refused to give him any details of how she'd injured her hand.
"No. Just sew," she replied distractedly. She was struggling to get the front of her pants laced up with the handicap her hand presented.
"You know I'll just ask Alice."
"Then Alice can tell you," she huffed as the leather string slipped from her fingers for the third time.
"Baby, come here. I'll do it." I was sitting on the couch, trying to stay out of the way, so that they could get her ready for the concert. Their normal routine had been disrupted by a brutal argument between JP and Bella over how tonight would work and they were all a little manic in trying to play catch up.
JP and the rest of the band had come into the tiny room to confirm that Bella and I would be recreating the entire performance from last night. She was all for the last three songs of the show, but she was vehement that "Like You" had been too intimate a moment to try and force a reproduction of. JP had not been happy and the fight broke out instantly. It had been scathing. They had screamed at each other for more than five minutes, each one trying to persuade the other that they were right.
I had to all but bite my tongue off not to step into the shouting match. I wanted so badly to intercede, but it wasn't my fight or decision. It was as against my nature to stand by quietly as it would have been to watch her wrestle a mountain lion. But I had promised her I wouldn't try to take over any part of her life, and that had been the first test.
I also had to admit, I was very proud of her as I watched them argue. The temper that had long ago been directed at me for my "double standards" and "mood swings" had been honed into a razor sharp point. She went right for the jugular with her arguments and never backed down an inch from the looming figure that stood before her.
In the end, they had agreed on a compromise. We would not be recreating the events that had played out during "Like You" but she would play my song again tonight. Then I would join them on stage for the last three songs.
"Thanks," she breathed out as she stepped between my legs in front of me. Chip had, once again, gone for broke with her costume. The top she wore was black and extremely tight. It looked like a leather vest, but it only covered her body a couple of inches below her chest, leaving the better part of her torso exposed. It too laced up. The pants that were giving her a fit did not have a button or zipper, just the tiny strings that laced together in the front. The sat so low on her, that her hip bones were visible above the edge of the leather.
I reached for the strings on the vest and the back of my hand brushed the black lace bra that pushed her breast together and created a mouth watering bit of cleavage. I couldn't help but lean forward and place an open mouthed kiss in the very center of her chest before I laced the garment together. She smiled and ran her hand through my hair as I repeated the action on her stomach before I laced the pants.
"Keep that up and none of us will make it on stage."
I wrapped my arms around her hips and hugged her tightly, laying my cheek against her stomach. Her hair tickled my neck as she leaned forward and kissed the top of my head before pulling away.
She sat at the end of the couch opposite me and pulled the knee high boots Chip had laid out for her into her lap. She pulled the first one on, zipped it up and then looked at the heel, a scowl on her face.
"Um…are you trying to get me to bust my ass in front of three thousand people or what?"
"Shut up and put them on. Alice picked them up for you this afternoon. I swear I don't know how she does it. How she found a five inch heel Christian Louboutin boot with an hour's notice is nothing short of a miracle. I swear I wish I could get her to come work with us." Chip's voice was full of affection and reverence as he spoke of my sister. Bella on the other hand, looked almost frightened at the prospect of Alice and Chip ganging up on her on a regular basis.
"Don't worry, baby, I'll protect you if they gang up on you," I chuckled as I took the other boot from her and slid it up her leg. I kissed her knee cap as I pulled the zipper up. I looked up at her to find the most beautiful smile. Her head was tilted slightly to the right and her eyes were shinning.
"Do you know how much I love you?" she asked quietly.
"Almost as much as I love you."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Chip mocked us. "How long are you guys going to be like this?" His smile was amused as he looked at us and his thoughts were kind. He just enjoyed teasing Bella. "Here, try that."
He tossed her the glove and she slid it over her right hand, wincing slightly. She snapped the button around her wrist and then turned it over to look at it. There was only the slightest bulge from the bandage beneath.
"This works. Thanks Queenie."
Marcus threw the other glove to her and she secured it on her left hand as she rose from the couch. She pulled the leather back from her left ring finger slightly, allowing her ring to be seen. She walked to the small table and picked up her choker. She ran her finger over the silver outline gently and then looked at me. Her smile would have lit up the universe.
"Are you still going to wear that thing," Chip asked, sounding slightly annoyed. "You've got the man's ring on your finger. Do you really need that too?"
"Five minutes," called from the other side of the door. She looked over her shoulder at the door and then back to Chip.
"I haven't done a show without it in more than three years. I'll be lost without it." She seemed almost embarrassed to admit her confession out loud.
"I've got an idea." I rose from the couch and crossed the room to where she sat in a low chair in front of the mirror. I unsnapped the leather cuff on my wrist and knelt down in front of her. I pulled her right hand toward me and placed the cuff with our crest around her wrist. "Wear mine until we can get you one of your own, Mrs. Cullen."
She looked briefly shocked and then her eyes filled with tears. She leaned forward and kissed me, placing her hands on the sides of my face. I deepened the kiss slightly as I wound my arms around her waist. The small moan that she breathed into my mouth thrilled me.
"Thank you."
"I told you, what's mine is yours."
"Bitch, it's time." JP's voice blared from behind the wooden door seconds before he opened it. All traces of anger had vanished as he stuck his head in the small crack and looked around the room. "Aww, am I busting up a moment?" He was highly amused as he took in our position. "Eddie, dude, you spend a lot of time on your knees around her. I thought it was supposed to be the other way around."
"Oh, fuck you asshole," she shrieked at him as we stood up.
I grabbed the leather coat hanging on the hook by the door as we stepped out into the dark hallway. I walked with her to the stairs that led to the stage and slipped the coat around her shoulders. The crowd was already worked up into a frenzy and they were chanting the band's name over and over.
"You know where I'll be. And I'll meet you back here during the break." I kissed her once more before I pulled the ties to the coat around her waist.
"I love you."
"I love you too baby."
I slipped into the box with my family just as she sang the first note, Chip right behind me.
My mother reached for my hand as I leaned down to kiss her cheek.
"Where's your crest," she asked as she turned my hand over and covered it with her free hand.
"Down there," I pointed to Bella, still hidden on the darkened stage. "It's on her right wrist."
"We need to make sure she gets hers quickly." Her smile was endearing as she spoke of my wife.
"Holy shit, look at you. I never thought I would see you in combat boots," Rose smirked as she took in my appearance. Once again, I'd lost the battle with Alice. Tonight she had me in a much too tight black tee shirt, another pair of leather pants and combat boots. I felt like a fool, but had been relieved to see JP dressed similarly. On second thought, that should probably have frightened me.
"We weren't sure if you'd be up here with us or not. I know it takes a bite out of your time with her," Emmett snickered before I even had a chance to sit down.
I cut my eyes at Alice, who was trying desperately to contain her smile. And failing miserably.
"You didn't."
"Oh, come on Edward. You didn't really think that would stay hidden did you," she laughed.
I groaned.
Jasper grabbed a handful of my hair and pulled my head backwards over the edge of the chair. His face was inches from my own as he looked into my eyes, a very serious expression on his face. He stared at me for just a second, before he grinned widely and released my head.
"Nope, no red. Not even a little blood shot."
That seemed to be the trigger. Everyone in the room burst out laughing, my mother included. I kept my eyes locked on Bella on the stage as they laughed riotously.
"Dude, I gotta say. That's just unfucking believable. You are gonna have your hands so full when she's a newborn." Emmett could hardly get the words out he was shaking so hard with amusement.
"Forget when she's a newborn. He's got his hands full right now," Rose added, much to my chagrin. That brought on a new round of guffaws.
"Are you guys done?"
"Not even close. We've got eons to torture you about this, brother dear," Alice added.
I turned away from their snickers to watch as Bella finished the first song. She was every bit as stunning on stage tonight as she'd been the first night I saw her.
And she was mine.
My siblings finally settled down enough to watch the show. Every one of us sang along and bobbed our heads with the music. I could feel the happiness radiating off of my family as they watched our newest addition bring the audience to their knees. She was so incredible to watch. Her energy and passion was contagious.
The further into the show she got, the more boisterous my family got. When she made her way to the tower in front of us during "Taking Over Me" they went ballistic. As she climbed the stairs, we were all on our feet, clapping and cheering. Emmett, however, wolf whistled and then mimed biting his hand, earning a slap on the back of the head from me and a blush from my wife. She did a good job of not letting it throw her though. She never missed a note.
As she made her way back down the stairs, I became concerned. I smelled her blood. It had to be her hand. She had winced as she played "Imaginary" and I guessed that she had reopened the wound. I cut my eyes to Carlisle, who nodded.
"Chip, can you take Carlisle downstairs to look at her hand. She's bleeding."
He nodded and he two of them rose without another word.
I turned my head back to the stage as she began to introduce "My Last Breath".
"It's getting hot in here Atlanta. How about a song about sex to keep the temperature up."
I noticed that JP laughed at her altered introduction and that Dimitri shook his head as he smiled. But my brothers were not so discreet. Jasper threw his arm around Emmett's shoulder and the two of them smiled evilly.
"Our little boy's grown up, Em."
"You try and teach them everything you know, and then one day, they're ready to face the world." He wiped a nonexistent tear from under his eye before the two of them dissolved into hysterics.
"But I'm not sure… we told him what to do when his… his wife bites her own hand and smears the blood over his mouth," Jasper choked out between fits of laughter.
"Well, who the fuck knew we needed to teach him that."
"Enough assholes. I will dismember you two if you do this shit around Bella." My threat only encouraged more laughter from the moron twins.
She was making her way around the room in the sinful leather outfit and I was immediately pulled from my brothers' taunts. I could have watched her forever. I was really going to have to work hard to share a stage with her. For all the unnatural beauty and allure that being a vampire gave me, I had nothing on the intoxicating woman that had captured my heart.
The rest of the show progressed just as the first two nights. She had the crowd worked up into a roar by the time she finished the first set. Carlisle had not returned and I was anxious to see what his assessment of her hand was. As she sat at the piano in front of us for "Call Me When Your Sober" the smell of her blood was stronger. I noticed that each member of my family had caught the scent. But their thoughts were not teasing or even thirsty. They were concerned.
"Edward, she doesn't need to keep playing. All joking aside, her hand has got to fucking hurt," Alice whispered to me as I reached for the door that would take me back to the dressing room.
"Have you seen something?"
"No, but I know you smelled it. You know she won't say anything, but you need to take care of her."
I nodded and kissed the top of her head before I left room.
"Tell her we love her" echoed from behind me as I made my way down the stairs and behind the stage. I smiled at the unconditional love my family had for her.
I stepped into her dressing room two minutes later to find her sitting on the couch beside Carlisle. He had her hand unwrapped and it was bleeding freely. She had her head turned away from him and there were tears in her eyes as she looked at me. I immediately moved to sit beside her and wrapped my arms around her. She tucked her head into my shoulder and I felt her body relax.
"Probably not my brightest idea, huh" Her voice shook slightly.
"No probably not. But much appreciated any way. Does it hurt?"
"It does now. It was okay until I played "Imaginary". About half way through, I felt it open up again."
"I'm sorry." I looked over her shoulder to see Carlisle had a small bottle of liquid adhesive in his hand. He was closing each puncture mark carefully, but every move he made caused her to flinch from the pain.
JP stepped into the room and looked down at the three of us on the couch.
"Damn, what did you do this time? That's fucking gnarly looking."
"Nothing. It was stupid. But it hurts like a mother."
"Fuck, I bet it does. You gonna make it?"
"Yeah, I'll get through."
I pulled the thought out of his head and then looked at her. If she would agree to it, it might make the second set easier for her. But after witnessing the fight earlier, I had my doubts as to her compliance.
"If I asked you to do something, would you?"
She immediately recognized her words from this morning.
"Anything," she smirked.
"Let me play for you. I don't want you to be in pain and 'Lithium' alone is enough to split your hand open again. Let me do it, please." I looked up at her from under my lashes, hoping that I was dazzling her.
She looked distressed for a fraction of a second before she blew out her breath.
"That's really unfair. I thought I told you I needed practice resisting you before you did that. Okay, you play. Do you know 'Breathe No More'? You've only heard it a couple of times."
I nodded. I'd only needed to hear it once. It had been engrained into my memory the moment I'd heard her playing it in the hotel lounge.
"See, if you'd just listened to me earlier…," JP crowed.
"Not a fucking word asshole. I'm still not doing it your way." Her words were much nastier than her expression.
Once Carlisle had closed all the open wounds, he rebandaged her hand. He also insisted that she take a pain killer before he would let her go back out on stage.
"Please do it. Indulge your father-in-law, just this once." He leaned over and kissed her forehead lightly. When he pulled away, the tears were back in her eyes.
"What about me, Dad? Do I get a kiss too?" JP stood against the door with his best childish pout plastered over on his face.
Much to his and everyone else in the rooms, surprise; Carlisle took a few short steps and quickly pecked his cheek. The shocked look on his face was beyond hysterical and Bella nearly fell off the couch laughing.
"I swear you and Emmett must have been separated at birth. You weren't born in Tennessee in the 1920's were you?"
"Naw, South Carolina in the 1980's. But thanks for the compliment."
"It wasn't a compliment, but you're welcome anyway." He flashed a quick smile at the two of us and then headed out the door.
"I really dig you family, dude. Especially Emmett. I think this could be the start of a beautiful friendship."
"Lord, help us all," Chip muttered as he looked at his watch. "Guys, it's time."
We filed out of the tiny room and back toward the stage. As we stood in the wings, Bella took my hand and gently squeezed.
"You okay?"
"Yeah, but I think I'm nervous."
She kissed me quickly. "Nothing to be nervous about. You can do anything, right?"
I had to smile. She'd said the same words to my family the very first time she ever met them. It was amazing how different things were now as compared to six years ago, but I was grateful. I'd never felt more content in my life.
I took my place at the piano on the smoke filled stage and watched as she moved to the front of the stage. That was another benefit of playing with her that I'd not thought of. I had an unobstructed view of her ass for the next hour. Only draw back would be that chances were I'd have a hard on by the time we actually made it to the end of the show.
As she started the set, I was amazed at how differently the atmosphere felt from the stage. I'd not paid any attention to anything but her and her reactions last night. But you could almost physically feel the mood of the audience. The more excited they became, the harder we played. It was a strange connection to the mass of people below us, but I understood immediately how addictive performing could be.
As the set progressed, I would occasionally look up at the faces of my family. They were as drawn into the performance as the rest of the crowd. Only there was also a perceptible pride to their cheers. Esme in particular seemed to be almost bursting as she watched her youngest daughter perform.
I also came to realize that the lyrics of the songs were much easier to take when Bella sang them from just a few feet away. I missed the eye contact she made with me when I was in the audience, but being close enough to hear her heartbeat and smell her rich scent made listening to the words of pain and suffering a little more bearable.
When she got to "Like You", she sang the song facing the audience until she got to the bridge. She delivered the powerful lines that had brought us both to our knees the night before with her back to the audience and sang them to me. I felt a swell of arrogance in my chest as she proclaimed to the entire audience her love for me.
"Breathe No More" was the only awkward part of her performance, and even then it was only briefly. She'd never sang the song without playing. She was momentarily stumped with what to do with herself. But she gracefully slid herself up onto the lid of the piano and sat perfectly still. The lighting tech picked up on her cue and dimmed the lights on the stage, leaving a single spot light shining on the two of us.
Every couple of lines, she would turn her head and look at me, her expression so loving it almost hurt. I smiled like an idiot the entire way through the song.
We finished the show very much the way we had the night before and the crowd reacted, if possible, even more enthusiastically. When she stood atop the piano during "Bring Me to Life" and sang the bridge with me, I could physically feel the force of the screams that emanated from below. The sound waves were so loud, I actually felt them as they drifted over my skin and I wondered if she could feel it as well.
During "My Immortal" I was again overcome with the desire to kiss her as she looked into my eyes and sang. This would always be my favorite song of hers. Beautiful as it was, it was so much more special because she had written the song at my piano. There would never be another song that I felt that connection to and I wished I could somehow express to her how much it meant to me.
I didn't have to wait to kiss her. I stood during the bridge of the song, again, with her perched on the very edge of the lid. The second the last note left her lips, she kissed me. Passionately. I sat back down on the bench with her in my lap and we finished the song, ending it with another blistering kiss. Only this time, they left the lights up and we were on full display for the fans.
If the noise level was any indication, the crowd appreciated it very much.
Unequivocally though, the highlight of the set, for me, came as we sang "Broken." JP made his same "thanks for coming out" speech and introduced me to the crowd just as I began the first verse. When Bella joined in for the chorus, the audience went nuts. But I had the honor of introducing her to the crowd.
"Ladies and gentleman, my wife, Mrs. Bella Cullen"
I'd never had nor ever would utter more perfect words in my existence.
Chapter Notes: Ok guys, all three shows are done and the story has one more chapter to go. It is killing me to say goodbye to EverClear and I think some of you guys are going to miss them almost as much as I will. With that said, I have an outline already in place for a sequel to this story. So, here's my question:
Is there any interest from you guys in continuing the saga of EverClear a little further? I can tell you this, while the drama and angst is different than in the first story, there is a definite plot that I think will keep you guys hanging as much as this one did. There is also another new character dying to be introduced and we'll see a few familiar faces as our favorite band makes its way back home to Seattle.
Let me know what you think about a continuation in your reviews. When I post the last chapter this afternoon, I'll let you guys know what the majority vote was.
Big hugs and sloppy kisses to all of you guys.
Kelly