Chapter 68 – Double the Love
Bella
Two hours later, I returned with a pair of the fuzziest, cutest little balls of fur imaginable, a solid black male and a black and white female. Sebastian and Anastasia. I handed them to dad, who looked at me like I was insane.
"I was only joking, Bella!" dad gaped at me with huge eyes. I grinned at him then went into the kitchen to mix two little bottles of kitten formula.
"They're only about five weeks old and underweight, Dad, so they still need formula a couple of times a day." I handed him one of the bottles and took Sebastian to feed. The kittens were hungry and made quick work of the bottles. "These were Dr. Stanley's pets, and she didn't have anyone to take them, so I'll do it. I just couldn't abandon them."
"You always were a softy, Bella," dad grinned at me over Anastasia, who had curled up on his chest and fallen asleep. He gently stroked her tiny back with two fingers while humming to her softly. The purr that began to emanate from her could be heard all over the room, and I wondered how something so tiny could produce that much sound.
"Look who's talking," I teased. I watched with cautious eyes, as Oliver and Felicity came sauntering into the room, their noses in the air. I hadn't given a thought to how they would react to two tiny intruders in their territory and feared they might start showing aggression, or worse, bad habits. Oliver jumped up and lay down in the chair across from me, eyeing the kitten sleeping in my arms. However, Felicity hopped up on the sofa and walked up to me, sniffing his foot. I was poised at the ready to shoo her away if she started anything, but she simply started licking him! My cat was as big a softy as I was.
"That's unusual. Adult cats usually are wary of little ones that aren't their own and will hiss, growl, and avoid them," my dad said, confused.
"Felicity is an unusual cat. She rarely ever does anything I expect her to," I laughed.
Felicity spent the rest of the afternoon "mothering" both kittens, licking them from head to toe and allowing them to nuzzle her belly. It took a while for Oliver to come around. He hissed a couple of times, but Felicity hissed back at him and smacked him, so he quit. By the time Edward came home, both adult cats were in their huge basket together, with the two kittens sound asleep between them.
"When did that happen?" Edward asked, looking confused, as he noticed the sudden increase in our family size. "Last I knew, they were both fixed."
"They were Dr. Stanley's pets," I told him, as I wrapped my arms around him. "They were at the shelter, and I just couldn't leave them there." Edward grinned and grabbed me up in a big hug and a long, passionate kiss before he leaned down over the basket and petted the two little ones. They stretched lazily, and Felicity began cleaning them all over again.
"Can we keep them?" he asked, picking up Sebastian and nuzzling the back of the kitten's neck with his nose. He was a bigger sucker for a furry face than I was, apparently.
"I think so. She was only fostering them, so no one has a claim on them." Edward settled into the recliner, playing with Sebastian with his tie, while talking basketball scores with my dad. I laughed at my two favorite men and headed into the kitchen to help mom with dinner.
"No, you're not sending those home with us," she muttered while peeling a cucumber. She sounded dead serious, but the grin threatening to burst onto her face told me she would be putty in dad's hands if he gave her his puppy, or rather kitten, eyes.
"I think you guys are just going to have to stay here, so we can avoid the fight between dad and Edward over them." She looked over at me, and we both broke out into giggles. Mom got quiet for a moment, and then she looked at me very seriously.
"Bella, are you okay? Edward told me some of what's been going on, and I'm worried about you. I know how you are, and this kind of thing isn't something you just get over."
My mom did know me well. I was trying my best to put on a brave and cheerful face, but inside, I was a mess, and she could see it. "I'm going to see Father Lebuteur one day this week to talk about it. He also does counseling, and I think Edward really wants me to go. Who knows, maybe it'll do some good."
I looked over at mom, and she was deep in thought, a small smile playing at the corner of her lips. "Lebuteur…why does that name sound familiar?" she half asked herself.
"He was the one who officiated the wedding, Mom," I told her. "You might remember him as Alec, one of the kids I used to play with during my visits here."
"That's right, Alec Lebuteur, he lived down the street. He was wonderful at the wedding, and a decent kid as I recall. You really should go talk to him, Bella. I'm sure he can help."
We served dinner, bringing out Grammy's beloved TV trays and setting up in the living room. Edward and I cleaned up after dinner and then snuggled together in the recliner to watch TV with mom and dad. When the news came on and they started talking about the bus crash again, Edward grabbed the remote to change the channel, but I stopped him because something caught my attention.
"…Investigators say there's now suspicion of foul play. Blood found on the bridge and signs of a possible struggle have the police investigating a new angle into the death of Laurant Dubois…"
"Murder?" I muttered. Not another one. Oh no, not someone else. It was bad enough that I had thought Laurant had killed himself over me. The thought that someone else might have killed him, and even Dr. Stanley, because of me was more than my nerves could take. This was deliberate, and whoever had done it was still out there and could, probably would, do it again.
Edward had been watching for my reaction. He quickly picked me up and ran, knowing that the tremors racking my body were quickly flipping my now-full stomach. He knew me well enough by now to see the signs and took me directly into the bathroom, holding my hair back while I lost my dinner. Needing a moment alone, I ushered him out of the bathroom while I brushed my teeth and took a few minutes to pull myself together.
When I came out, Edward led me upstairs and undressed me, ushering me into bed. He quickly stripped and climbed in next to me, pulling me against his warm body. I was still trembling, and he held me, trying to convince me I wasn't to blame.
"I might not be to blame, but I just know this is related to me somehow. I just know it, Edward. I can just feel it," I cried.
"Bella, we really don't know for certain if either one of these deaths has anything to do with you. Please, honey, try to relax a little bit before you come totally undone."
"But…you didn't see his face…and she was wearing my coat…and…and…"
Edward pulled me closer, trying to calm me. How could all this not somehow be related to me? Every fiber of my being told me it was. I looked up into Edward's troubled face and realized my actions were worrying him and making him anxious as well. This wasn't fair, and I became determined right then not to do this to him anymore. I took a deep breath to calm myself and smiled up at him as reassuringly as I could.
"I'm okay, and I promise to try not to lose it every time I hear something about this whole mess from now on. I think talking to someone may be a good idea after all."
I knew it was because of me, nothing had changed, but I also knew I was strong enough to hold it together in front of Edward and not do this to him. It was my problem, and I would deal with it. I owed him that much, and so much more, so I decided a distraction for both of us was in order.
I began trailing little kisses across his beautiful chest and up his neck before finding his warm lips, hoping he could feel my love for him. I realized we had been married for almost a week and had spent only one night making love. I suddenly felt the need to remedy that situation.
