Chapter 34
This one is for Dee-the kindest, sweetest woman. Who could always make me smile with her sweet smiling words.
It felt so good being back in Washington. Being in our home. The house I'd barely been able to get used to and comfortable in before we'd taken off for the road.
And I missed my dog. I had no idea how Edward did it. All I knew was that when the next season came along, there was no way I was leaving that dog with thunder-tits across the street for weeks on end.
Gordie needed his mama.
And she needed to be gone.
I stretched out on the fluffy sofa I was learning to love more and more and Gordie hopped up to lay across my feet. I pulled my blanket off the back and shuffled underneath it and turned to watch the gigantic television in front of me.
"Hurry up in there, Emmett! You're going to miss the puck drop!"
I microwave ping from behind me and then the thundering clamor of Emmett as he headed out the kitchen with two beers in one hand, a bowl of nacho cheese stuff in another, and a bag of chips under his arm.
He placed them all on the table and popped the cap on my beer and then fell into the reclining chair next to the couch.
"You are not sleeping with me after you eat that crap," Rosalie groaned from the other side of the sofa where I'd made her a little nest. "That pollutes your butthole and I can't keep anything in my stomach as it is."
Emmett leaned forward, scooping a huge glob of the yellow sludge into a chip, and slid it in his mouth, his eyes pinned to hers. "You can't sleep without me. You'll live."
She glared.
"Shut up. Seriously. You two have gotten so annoying while I was gone. Zip it. This is important. My man is about to grab himself this championship. Can you chill out?"
It appeared that pregnancy was more than not agreeing with Rose. She was a hot mess with a side of shit show. She was still sick almost all day every day and had been having a hard time sleeping. Big bags hung under her bright blue eyes, and her cheeks sunk into her face like she had a constant pucker.
I'd heard about the pregnancy glow, and poor Rose did not have it. She was still on bed rest, and I could see it was making the two of them nuts. Emmett was worried, and as usual, mostly covered it with his smart-ass remarks. But you could see the fear in his eyes, and he hated seeing her sick.
"It burns my eyes when he farts after eating that cheese, Bella. It's disgusting!"
I rolled my eyes again and turned back to the TV where the announcer was talking about the game.
"Talk about burning. I had no idea that kind of gas could come out of you until you got pregnant. It raises the fucking blankets."
"Because it's your foul child inside me!"
"Shut. Up!"
Rosalie mumbled something under her breath and Emmett chuckled. "Are you regretting not going with him now, Bella?"
"Yes," I told him, shaking my head. "Very much. Me and my dog are trying to watch Edward. I need to make sure I watch every single thing he does. I don't want to miss one minute. So keep your crap to yourselves."
They stopped their bickering as the minutes ticked by during the first period. I was finally getting the hang of the game, although, I still didn't understand all the rules, and watched intently as Edward moved across the ice with grace and focus.
He was fast on those skates. I was amazed at how well he could move across the ice with the other players, carrying that big ass stick. He seemed to know what his next move would be and carried through like it was second nature.
"I can't believe you missed this game, Bella. Twilight is taking the cup. We're already up by four goals."
I was on the edge of my seat, or sofa as it was, and glared over at Emmett. "We decided together. We're going to celebrate when he gets home."
He shrugged and opened another beer and sat back against the back of the chair. "When does he get back?"
I sighed. "He's leaving in the morning. He wanted to leave right away, but after we talked about it, he knew it wasn't going to be easy. Media shit, he said."
There was a fifty-fifty chance they'd win, obviously. Of course, I had no doubt they would. They'd had the best season they'd had in years. Edward explained how much attention was involved with the cup, and the winning team. He'd have interviews for weeks, both individually and with the team once they won. Which meant even though the season would be over with, his job would not.
"Are we still doing cake tasting on Saturday?" Rose asked.
I grabbed a brownie off the plate on the table and shoved half of it in my mouth before nodding.
"They'll be here at six," I mumbled through a mouthful. "Guess it's a good thing my fiancé is famous around here. Dropped his name and they were more than willing to bring it to us."
I couldn't fathom tasting cakes without Rose. Since she couldn't go to the bakery, they were coming to us. A wife of one of his teammates had used them for her wedding the year before, and she'd given me their number. Apparently, they were very good, and they were willing to accommodate us for the chance to work with another Twilight player.
"That place is insane. I have to admit, I follow their Instagram religiously. The lemon tartlets I make are inspired by the one's they make. And the cakes are surreal."
I smiled at her. It stung that she wouldn't be making my wedding cake, and I knew it bothered her, too. She didn't make cakes for weddings, at least not anymore, but she'd always wanted to.
Her little shop had morphed into a coffee shop, and I knew she had aspired to have something different. But she'd created a lucrative business with the way things were.
"I'm glad you're going to be there to help me. I have no idea what to pick. I know I want chocolate cake, and so does Edward. But I don't know what it should look like."
Her eyes shined. "I've been saving some really interesting designs that remind me of you. I'll show you after the game. Oh, and I have some flower ideas for you too. I started searching the internet for some arrangements after you asked me about them."
I let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you. This is a lot, but I'm glad you're going to help."
She rubbed a hand over her belly and shifted on the sofa. "It's going to be beautiful. Everything you ever imagined. Now that you aren't freaking out, isn't it kind of fun to plan?"
It had been. Once the initial panic went away, I'd been having a blast planning the wedding. We'd decided to keep it small, but it was going to be spectacular. I'd found a gorgeous venue two days ago, and Edward paid the deposit over the phone. The place was gorgeous, on the rooftop of a beautiful hotel where we would have the landscape of Seattle behind us as we said our vows.
Everything was falling into place, and in less than two months, I would be Edward's wife.
It was almost unbelievable.
"Would you have believed it a year ago? That I'd be getting married to Edward Cullen?"
She snorted. "Fuck no. If you'd asked me a year ago, I would have said you'd still be standing behind the counter at the shop drooling over a stranger like a love-sick puppy. I never thought you'd manage to go on a date with him, much less marry him."
I shot her a glare.
She chuckled.
"I'm just glad you are," Emmett said. "I have a new best friend, and VIP tickets to see every Twilight home game next year. I'm stoked."
I rolled my eyes, again. "I'm so glad it worked out for you."
He wiggled his eyebrows, stood up and stretched his arms over his head. "I need to take a leak before the period starts."
I watched him walk out of the room and then turned to Rose. "Are you doing okay? You need anything?"
She rubbed her palms over her big belly, a small smile turning up her lips. "I'm perfect. I'm just feeling guilty you aren't at the game. Are you sure you did the right thing?"
For the one millionth time, I told her yes. I was fine being home.
"So you never finished telling me what happened with Edward's sister. Has she talked to Edward yet?"
I pulled my legs up underneath me on and the couch and shifted so I was facing her. The never-ending saga of Alice was once again fucking everything up.
"So, turns out, she's not pregnant."
Rosalie's eyes bulged out of her head. "No!"
"Yeah. False alarm. False positive. Whatever. She said her doctor told her it could have been stress. Honestly? I think she lied through her big white teeth."
"No way," she breathed. "Why would she do that? I mean, you said she was kind of bitchy, but this is next-level shit. Who does that?"
I shrugged. "Apparently her. She was adamant. She swore she was pregnant. I do think she was banging her ex-boyfriend slash boss. But I think she was so sure he was going to leave his wife, and when he didn't, she went with plan B. Which, obvs didn't work out either."
"How in the world is she related to Edward? Even his dick of a cheater brother isn't this bad."
I turned back to the game, just as Emmett walked back in the room. They'd just taken the ice again, so I flipped back on the couch and waved at Rosalie. "To be continued."
Honestly, I was glad the game was back, and I could concentrate on Edward and nothing else. I'd been troubled my Alice and her problems, and the problems she was causing everyone else for weeks. Long before I came home.
Esme was having a tough time with all of it, and it made me want to bury Alice. Didn't she understand how lucky she was to have the family she had? The supportive and loving mother Esme was? That spoiled little bitch had no idea. She didn't appreciate shit.
The temptation to leave her out of my wedding was strong. Mostly because I really couldn't stand her at all. But also, because I wasn't sure she wouldn't be in competition with Renee in the ruining of the entire thing.
She was vindictive enough to do it.
"Stevenson is brutal tonight. Edward said he's got a bit of an attitude, but he's a damn good right wing. He's quick. Smart."
I nodded. He looked like he was aggressive, but as I was finding out, that was a good thing in hockey. The fight for the puck was serious business.
"He's been mentoring him. That's what he told me. The guy has a giant chip on his shoulder, but the team management and the asshole coach make it worse."
Edward was officially, completely, and genuinely done with Twilight. He'd planned on sticking with the contract he had with them until it was up but had decided it was time to throw his name in for trade. He was ready for a fresh start and a new team to continue his career in professional hockey.
"He's going to be traded. Aro screwed the pooch on this one. He loses Edward and Stevenson and from what I read, Williams is going to retire. The Twilight will be up a fucking tree."
I shrugged, keeping my eyes on the screen as I watched Edward check one of the other team's guys in the shoulder, tossing him into the side of the rink.
"Ooh! That was a good one! Did you see that?"
Emmett chuckled and grabbed the package of chocolate chip cookies off the table. I didn't know how he didn't get sick with as much food as he put away.
"He wants this trophy. Especially if this is his last season. Make his mark. There isn't a team who won't take him on for double what Twilight has on him."
I sighed. It was bittersweet. Edward threw an idea on the table, and it was one I had to admit wasn't terrible. Even if he stayed one more season with the Twilight, he wanted to sell his house and buy one in Illinois near his parents.
So, sooner than I imagined, we were going to leave Seattle, and start our lives in another state.
I liked the idea of being near his family. Loved it. But it was all so fast. It scared me a little.
"No comment?"
"Crap!" I spat as I watched Edward slide into the penalty box for the third time. "He needs to cool it. We've been tied too long. There's only eleven minutes left!"
Thankfully those two minutes he was stuck went by fast and he was out of that box and across the ice like a beast. In an instant after that, Stevenson flung the puck into the goal, so quick I barely caught it, and we'd officially headed into the lead.
"Yes, yes, yes! He's going to get that trophy!"
Rosalie groaned as a fight broke out between a few of Edward's teammates and several on the other team. I'd gotten used to the fights, and especially when Edward went all caveman on the ice.
It was hot as hell.
"My baby boy isn't playing this game with a bunch of Neanderthals."
Emmett scoffed. "Yeah, okay."
She rubbed her tummy and smiled down at it. "You're not going to play sports, are you, pee-wee. Nooo. You're going to help mama bake cookies."
I laughed when Emmett flew off the couch and pointed a finger at her. "You will shut your mouth. And enough with the pee-wee stuff. You're gonna give the kid a complex."
"Shut up," I snapped again. "Five minutes. Fucking argue afterwards. And it's probably a girl, so you're both shit out of luck."
The seconds swept by as I kept my eyes glued to the television in front of me. We were up two points, but as I'd seen several times in the past couple months, that didn't mean squat. A last-minute goal and things would shift. The pulse of the game would throb. The anxiety would rise.
My eyeballs bounced from the ice and the players hauling ass across it to the ticking clock.
And with my gut in my throat, I held my breath as the game ended.
And we'd won.
"He gets his freaking trophy! My man did it! We won!"
Emmett and I shared high fives, a big hug, and then I ran to the front yard, Gordie hot on my heels, and screamed at the top of my lungs.
"My fiancé is a champion motherfuckers!"
Twenty-seven hours later, Edward walked through the door. To our home. I'd watched from the window for forty minutes after I'd gotten the phone call from him when he'd landed at the airport.
I'd wanted to go pick him up, but he insisted I wait for him at home. He wanted to walk into his house and see me and his dog there waiting for him.
He'd barely put his bag on the floor when I launched myself at him, wrapping my legs around him and hugged him around the neck with every ounce of energy I had.
"You can never leave me again," I mumbled into his neck, squeezing tighter. "Ever. Ever."
His hold on me was just as tight as he carried me into the house, kicking the door closed behind him.
"Fuck, I missed you," he breathed out.
He walked us through the house, up the stairs, and into our bedroom, setting me down on the edge of the bed before he started taking off his jacket.
He looked tired. Gorgeous, and so damn tired.
"We're not leaving this room for the next two days."
I raised my eyebrow and pouted. "What happens in two days?"
If he said he had to leave again, I was going to rope him to the bed.
"I give my dick a rest. Because until then, I plan on living inside you."
Thanks so much for reading.
I hope you are all okay and staying safe during these crazy horrible times.
I am thinking of you all and all your families.
Love much,
Jami
