Three Is Never a Crowd

C14: Strike One

Standard Disclaimer: I don't own any of the recognizable characters.

Alice's POV

The week leading up to New Year was fairly uneventful, even accounting for all of the amazing comedic chaos that ensued when Bella, Kate and Victoria got together to plan anything, which showed us a side of our mate we had not seen before, which is exactly why Rose and I saw no issue in going along with most of their sometimes hair-brained schemes.

"Bella, come on, we're going to be late." I called loud enough for her to hear, and it really wasn't that much of a lie, because we had to set up some things before the storm started, and we had wanted to show this to Bella for a long time.

"I'm here love, our darling Goddess thought it would be funny to see my reaction to her putting on her baseball pants, so I had to give my erection time to flag." Bella said with a slight blush as she came down the stairs, a smirking Rosalie not far behind.

I sighed and kissed her softly. "Really Rose? What did you think would happen?" I asked softly.

She smiled at that. "If anything it's your fault, Pixie, you designed them after all."

I smiled at her as we made our way to the car, the others would probably already be there by now, so that would give us some time alone, something we had not really had as of late. "It's been a while since we had the opportunity to play the Denali's." Rosalie said with a smile.

"It's going to be awesome though, I know I will be pitching anyway, and I think Bella will do amazing as umpire." I said with a smile.

Bella smiled at that. "As if I will be able to see if you guys are in or out. You all move way too fast."

"It all has an agreed upon speed, love. Otherwise Edward would have a home-run every time he was at bat. He is quicker than all of us. I promise you will be able to follow." Rosalie said with a smile through the rearview mirror.

Bella smiled and cuddled into me as we drove to the field. "We'll have to carry you the last bit of the way love. The field we usually use is a bit out of the way, for obvious reasons." I said with a soft smile.

"Since I will never object being in your or Rosalie's arms, I will let you two surprise me for once, instead of the other way around." She said with a cheeky smile.

Both Rosalie and I smiled at that. "Then we will take turns. Rosie will carry you there and I will carry you back to the car afterwards."

Bella smiled and kissed me softly. "I can't wait, especially since I get to feel first hand how well you two feel everything in these outfits."

"Sometimes it's a shame you can't see what your words do to us love, we would've have blushed as much as you do at times." I said softly.

Bella smiled at that. "When you are this close to me, I can feel exactly what it does to you, my Pixie. Your nipples are straining against that tight top." She said as she softly caressed between the valley of my breasts.

I couldn't help the soft moan that escaped my lips. "Careful love, otherwise you can explain to Mom why we are late, again."

She smiled at that. "We won't be late because, A: Rosalie is driving and B: we really need to build up a bit of willpower towards each other."

I smiled and kissed her softly. "That's not going to happen and you know it. The three of us are addicted to each other, and as we have demonstrated in the last weeks, none of us mind that fact. It will be good practice for when you are turned, because then you will truly be insatiable for a few months."

"Oh, I have no doubt of that. I just don't know if you two are ready for me to be insatiable." She said with a cheeky grin.

Rosalie smirked right back at her. "Since we have plenty of time to find out the truth of that and a ton of new positions we can try, we'll see how big a game you talk once you are turned, Tigress."

"Well, you both know I am talking a game of at least ten inches, unless that will change along with me." She said with a smile.

We both refrained from comment as Rosalie parked the car next to Carlisle's Mercedes. "So love, ready to be carried like a bride for once?"

"As long as I can do this on the actual wedding day I will be more than fine with this." Bella said as Rosalie cradled our love in her arms.

We both smiled at her. "We're fine with that love, but for now, keep your head in my neck, it'll help against the sickness."

She nodded and nuzzled her nose in Rosalie's neck as we took off towards the field.

Bella's POV

By the time Rosalie told me it as safe to remove my head from her neck, I still found myself reluctant, mostly because she smelled so good. "Come now love, Mom wants you to be her umpire today."

I smiled and pressed a kiss to her neck before she set me to the ground. "Sorry, I was enjoying the way you smell a bit too much."

She smiled and kissed me softly. "While I understand, Mom is glaring at me to stop hogging her favorite daughter."

I gave her a last kiss before walking towards Esme, who cradled me into her arms. "Sometimes you really are as bad as your brother, sweetie. It's been too long since we had some mother-daughter time."

"Sorry Mom, I didn't mean to after everything, it's just that I never thought to see my only real friends again." I said softly after giving Laurent a big hug.

She smiled and pressed a kiss to the top of my head. "It's okay sweetie, if we had known we would've called them earlier, and soon enough you will be able to see them plenty, since we'll be staying with them before and during your newborn phase. We will leave after your birthday."

I smiled at her. "If my gut feeling is right, which it usually is, Charlie will come and fuck things up before then. He has always blamed me for him being cut out of my grandmother's will, so my guess is to do something about that before I turn eighteen and he can no longer have a way to get it."

She frowned at that. "Surely he won't go that far, will he? I mean despite everything you are still his daughter."

"Yeah, with the amount of money I will inherit once I turn eighteen, I wouldn't put filicide past him, and the funny thing is that he actually said that he never cared about the money." I said with a soft smile.

"We'll protect you from him sweetie, and it seems that Rosalie is going to get her wish after all, because there is no way we are going to let him live if he intends to kill you." Esme said softly.

I smiled and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "I know, and while I would wish it wouldn't be necessary, we just can't take the chance of him sending the puppies after us before I am turned, but could we talk about this another day, I just want to think about pleasant things today."

Esme smiled and nodded. "Of course sweetie, I think everybody is just about ready to start."

I looked across the field and saw that my Pixie was ready to pitch, while Emmett was the first one to swing. "Now Jelly, I want some fair reffing today."

"As long as you stop calling me Jelly, I will, I've had enough of that nickname back in New York." I said with a smile.

He grinned and nodded before getting ready, while Alice seemed to size him up on what ball to throw him. "Alright Pixie Princess, give me something to work with."

Alice glared at him, although I filed that name away for later use, it could always be used in the bedroom after all. She then wound up her pitch and threw the fastest fastball I had ever seen, but Emmett didn't even flinch as he hit it with a sound much like a clap of thunder, and I just couldn't help the slight flinch.

Esme noticed and squeezed my shoulder lovingly. "That is the reason why we can only play during a storm. Our hits are still audible in Forks even this far out."

"Oh I knew, it's just that thunder reminds me of gunshots, which I heard a lot in New York. It is one of those sounds that I will never get used to." I said with a slight blush, embarrassed to have such childish fears.

Esme just smiled and pressed a kiss to the top of my head. "It's okay sweetie, never again will you have to live in fear of a gun. We're quick enough to catch a bullet."

I smiled and pressed a kiss to her cheek as Rosalie came up to bat, and I had serious trouble not staring at her amazing ass in those form-fitting baseball pants.

I could also see that Alice had a plan for our Goddess, and threw her ball just so Rosalie would hit a guaranteed home-run, and as Rose hit the ball, it seemed to be exactly that, but of course I didn't count on Edward really be so fast and he threw it back to Esme at full speed, who on her turn plucked it out of the air like it was nothing not even a second before Rosalie slid into home-base. "Out." I said with a soft smile.

She glared and gave me a hip-bump that on any other day would have knocked me over, but thanks to Esme's arm around my waist, I didn't and was able to give her a firm slap on her ass, flashing my Goddess a wink in the process.

She smirked right back at me and I really had to contain myself not to kiss her senseless, or do other, less chaste things to her. "Focus, sweetie, there is plenty of time to ravage your lovers after the game." Esme said softly.

"What can I say Mom, we just love to tease each other." I said with a cheeky smile.

Esme smiled at that. "We all love to tease our mates, sweetie. It just comes with being with someone forever."

"For the sake of my sanity, I will pretend you and Dad do not have a sex life, if you don't mind." I said with a blush as Carlisle came up to bat.

Carlisle and Esme just smiled at me before giving each other a kiss, and just before Alice wanted to throw the ball, she stiffened. "James is on his way, and I have seen today will be his end, but he is not alone." Alice said softly.

"Good, he's been a thorn in our side for too long, and we don't want to risk anything now that Bella is here." Rosalie said softly.

I smiled and kissed both Rosalie and Alice, who were beside me in a flash. "For once I will stay put my loves. I'm not crazy enough to take on a vampire just yet."

"It would be much appreciated love. You might be very much a badass, but that will be of little use against James." Alice said as she molded herself against my side, while Rosalie pulled me against her.

The two families formed a shield around me, Alice and Rosalie tense beside me as they sandwiched me between them. "It'll be fine my loves. With everyone here I am sure he won't hurt me."

"We know he won't, because I have seen exactly how he will die, and it will not be in the way everyone thinks." Alice said softly.

I smiled and pressed a kiss against her hair as two vampires breached through the treeline, a blonde guy that I expected to be James, and a tall brunette woman that stopped as soon as she laid eyes on Tanya, and for some reason she looked familiar to me.

"Well, well, the Cullens and Denali's in the same field, I guess this is my lucky day. How's the bunny munching life treating you?" He asked with an almost sinister smile.

Victoria and Laurent growled at him, and even Rosalie and Alice's chest vibrated with a growl, which did no good things for the state of my underwear. "What the fuck are you doing here? I thought we made it clear you are not welcome here." Rosalie said annoyed.

"Since you have been keeping a pet as of late, I figured I would take her off your hands."

Rosalie and Alice growled at him. "You may certainly try, but you will die trying to take her."

He smirked at her, which aggravated me to no end. No one smirks like that at my Goddess. "So fierce, perhaps I should make this a game like I did in New York. I've seen her there too."

I was shocked at that, having never even seen him before, but before anyone could react, Tanya rushed forward and ripped his head from his neck. "You will never threaten our sister again, and this is too good for what you have done to my mate." She said with a fierce growl.

The brunette in question took a step back as Tanya set his body on fire with a lighter, tossing his head into the flames afterwards. "I'm sorry, my sweet, but I know that look in his eyes too good. You have suffered while you were with him, haven't you?" She asked sweetly.

She nodded at her. "Yes, he found me when I was at my lowest and at first he was kind, but by the time I saw his true nature, it was too late. I didn't want to be alone anymore, and he threatened to kill me if I tried to run."

"What's your name, angel?" Tanya asked softly.

She smiled and walked over to the blonde. "I'm Natasha, my love."

Tanya smiled and gathered the brunette in her arms. "That is a beautiful name, it reminds me of home. I'm Tanya Denali."

Natasha smiled at her. "It's nice to meet you. I never expected to find my mate so quickly after being turned."

Tanya smiled at her newfound mate. "It is certainly nice to meet you too angel. Come, I shall introduce you to the rest of the family."

Natasha nodded at her. "I would love that."

Tanya smiled and led her past all of us, the brunette smiling at me when they stopped in front of us. "Hello Bella, it's good to see you again."

Then it dawned on me. "Hey Tasha. It's been a while since I have seen you."

She smiled at me. "Yes, ten years if I am not mistaken. I always knew you would grow up to be a beautiful woman."

I blushed a little at that. "Thank you Tasha. I would say the same, but I know it is kind of a given when dealing with vampires."

She smiled at me before giving me a quick hug. "How do you know our Bella, if you don't mind me asking." Alice asked softly.

Natasha smiled at her. "I know Bella because I was her musical teacher about a decade ago, before I met James. I taught her how to properly sing, although she didn't need to be taught as much. Her grandmother was a good friend of mine and taught her very well."

"So we have you to thank for that. She certainly knows how to move people with her voice." Rosalie said with a smile.

"I taught her to focus on a single person in the room and put emotion in her voice as she sang. It helped her project as she was a bit on the quiet side when she first came to me." Natasha said with a sweet smile.

I blushed at that. "I think it's safe to say I overcame that by now, as my mates will agree to."

Everyone laughed lightly at that. "In light of everything, shall we make our way home? I think Natasha and I have a lot to talk about." Tanya said with a soft smile.

"I think that is for the best. We also will have to celebrate the fact that James is finally dead." Carlisle said with a smile.

I just couldn't help but roll my eyes at that, but kept quiet for now. No need to upset the family with my thoughts after all, not after Tanya had just found her mate.

Rosalie's POV

As Alice and I ran back to our car with Alice cradling Bella like she was a blushing bride, I took some time to think about everything. Now that James was finally dead, we only had one last hurdle to overcome before we would be able to start our lives together, and after what happened with James I just knew there would be a bit of a detour, and just as a precaution, I texted Esme to not be worried if we were a bit late.

When we got to the car, we saw that everyone had already left, and because of the fact that this was a very deserted area, we had plenty of time to do anything we wanted.

We cuddled up in the backseat and pulled Bella against us. "Are you two okay? You looked so tense back there."

"That usually happens when James comes and taunts us, my love. It always leaves us on edge afterwards." Alice said softly.

Bella smiled and kissed us both. "Then forgive me for saying this, my loves, but why hasn't the family dealt with him before. I felt like ripping his head off myself for what he said. How was he still alive after insulting everyone?"

Alice and I shared a look with each other. "I honestly don't know. Carlisle always says we should strive for the diplomatic route, but sometimes it is a hindrance. We should have taken care of him a long time ago. We just got complacent in our pacifism I guess." I said softly.

She smiled and kissed us. "Well, I don't mind being the black sheep of the family if that means I get to end people that insult my mates or family."

We smiled at her. "That's okay love, you know we will always support you in whatever happens. The family might sometimes not agree, but the left hand doesn't always need to know what the right hand is doing."

She smiled and nodded. "As long as we will always be honest with each other."

"Of course love, although after you are turned, we wouldn't be able to lie to you anyway, at least not without you knowing." I said with a teasing smile.

Bella smiled at that. "I wonder how that is going to present itself. We should try with Emmett when I wake up."

"Oh that will be hilarious. If there is anyone who can't tell a lie, it is Emmett." Alice said with a smile.

She smiled and kissed our little pixie. "Feeling frisky love?" I asked softly.

"Since there is a reason you both are in the backseat with me, I figured you two needed to reaffirm our bond, so I thought I would get a head start on our impending lovemaking." Bella said softly.

We smiled at her. "We thought we needed the same thing to calm ourselves down, but after the bit of cuddling we did, we're okay again." I said with a soft smile.

Bella smiled at that. "We can go home if you two are okay, I would rather have a mattress beneath me the next time I ravage my fiancees."

Alice smiled and kissed us before crawling over the center console to drive us home. I handed her the keys before pulling Bella into my lap, nuzzling my nose in her neck, one of the few places her scent was strong.

She on her turn wrapped her arms around my waist. "Are you okay Rosie?"

I nodded at her. "I am okay love. I'm just glad that James is finally dead and that cloud is no longer hanging over our heads. I should have killed him the first time he came sniffing around Alice."

"Then why didn't you love?" She asked softly.

"Because Carlisle stopped me, and I shouldn't have let him. He is a good man, but sometimes his pacifist views are a pain in the ass." I said softly.

Bella smiled and pressed a kiss against the top of my head. "I know, let's just hope that we don't need to upset them that much anymore. I know Charlie will try something soon, and I think that Jacob will make a return as well, he always needed to learn things the hard way."

I smiled at her. "It's up to you what you want to do with him love. We all heard what Sam said, and if Jacob decides to go rogue on this, the pack will not intervene."

Bella nodded at that. "We'll see what happens, I don't want to think about idiots who try to rip us apart right now."

"I understand love. We've all been through enough to have our happiness denied." I said as my phone vibrated.

I quickly took it out of my pocket and smiled at the text. "Mom wants to know what you want for dinner tonight."

She seemed to think about it for a moment. "You know, it's been a while since I had pizza, could you ask if that's okay?"

I texted her wishes back to Esme, who immediately replied with her affirmative and the question of topping.

"She will make you a pizza, and asks what toppings you want." I said with a smile.

She smiled at that. "meat, mushrooms and cheese, types of meat doesn't really matter, but absolutely no pineapple. That shit just doesn't belong on a pizza."

Both Alice and I laughed at that. "We agreed with that wholeheartedly. The one who invented that definitely has no taste." Alice said with a smile.

I texted Bella's wishes back to Esme before putting my phone back and pressing a kiss to Bella's neck, after which I felt a slight twitch in her pants. "Are you okay love? Do you need blow of some steam?" I asked teasingly.

She groaned at that. "Love, if you don't want any stains on that top or in those pants, you won't tease me right now. I really will need time to get this erection to flag before we get home. I will not embarrass myself in front of Emmett and the rest of the family."

I smiled and kissed her softly. "Why Emmett specifically love?"

"Because he would never let me hear the end of it, and with everything coming up, that will be a very long time." She said with the most adorable pout ever.

I smiled and kissed her softly. "Sorry love, but I don't think our Pixie will forgive us if we stain these pants with something else than grass stains. You don't know how long it took her to make mine."

"We both know why that is love. I always have trouble controlling myself when we play baseball, and when we made those pants I had even less control of my urges. So yes, we fucked plenty of times while I had to fit those pants for you." Alice said with a huff.

I smiled at her. "And I think that will all be repeated once you get to fit Bella's, and we both know that I will be there when you do."

Alice smiled at that. "Since we're going to be in Denali when I get to design and fit them, I think we'll break Emmett and Jasper's record."

"What record? I'm all up for breaking records." Bella said with a grin.

We both smiled at her. "Jasper and Emmett were gone for five days after Emmett was turned, which lead to them having sex for those five days. I am sure we can break that." I said softly.

"Five days? With the way we are already insatiable, I am sure we can at least double that." Bella said with a soft smile.

I smiled and kissed her softly. "That is what we expect, and why I have made a bet with Emmett. If we can make it to fifteen days, he will never be allowed to make fun of your prowess in the bedroom again."

Bella smiled at that. "I can live with that, and I think fifteen days of loving you two is something we can do, we nearly managed it back at our cabin."

"You know what the best part is, I stacked the deck in our favor. Because there is no recuperation period for vampires, we can make continuous love for days on end." I said as I pulled her close and kissing her neck softly.

Bella moaned softly and nuzzled her nose in my neck as we pulled up to the house. "We're home love, unless you want to cuddle some more before we go in, by the smell of it Esme isn't quite done with your pizza yet."

"I'd like that. I've missed having my fiancees close." She said softly.

Alice then quickly climbed back over the center console as we laid down, Alice cuddling up in front of Bella while I held her from behind, and from my vantage point I saw how Bella's hand crept under Alice's shirt to cup a breast before the brunette placed a soft kiss against Alice's neck.

"It doesn't get much better than this." Bella said with a content sigh, which made me smile, because I happened to agree with her.