Thank you for the lovely reviews. Also, thank you to Gabby for helping making the story better.
As Edward chased the sun down the road leading to his sister's house, he focused on Bella's arms loosely wrapped around his body.
When they had arrived at the bonfire, Jacob had pulled her away for another earful about riding a bike, and Edward had barely contained his anger. Though, he had allowed Bella to speak to her friend.
After that rocky start of the evening, everything had flowed nicely. Bella had spent most of her attention focused on the boy named Seth. She had told Edward about the kid's story and how he'd studied hard to get a scholarship in a good college, and how everyone had been surprised when he was accepted at MIT. Except Bella, she had always had faith in him.
It had been a surprise to find out Seth had applied to his company in his quest to do what he'd studied for and make it out there. Edward had told him to come by his office on Monday to discuss his desired position.
Bella and Seth were the only ones happy about Edward's offer. Jacob seemed to be against it. Edward hoped Jacob wasn't thinking that Edward offered to interview Seth out of pity. He could see potential in that smart kid.
Before leaving, Edward had exchanged phone numbers with Seth, in case he somehow failed to find Cullen Industries. During that time, Bella and Jacob had a heated conversation several feet away.
Seth had followed Edward's eyes, sighing. "He'll never give up, but don't worry about it. Jake loves her more like a brother."
Edward had sketched a smile, nodding. Bella had returned to his side, putting on her helmet before Edward could see her eyes.
When Edward parked behind Emmett's Jeep, he kicked the stand, then grabbed Bella's elbow. She held her helmet in one hand, returning his gaze.
"I'm okay. I won't faint, promise."
He could feel himself smiling, despite the serious question he was about to ask. "Did you fight with your friend?"
Her eyes closed briefly, before he looked away from him. "Jake's a big boy. He'll get over himself sooner or later." She licked her lips, sighing. "If he wants me in his life, that is."
"I'm sorry, Bella." He hugged her close, kissing her forehead.
"I know he cares about me and he's scared for my safety and he's worrying about your intentions because he doesn't know you…but he should trust me. I'd like to think I'm mature enough to make my own decisions without ending up in a ditch at the first wrong turn."
"I'll always protect you."
"I know," she whispered, snuggling into his chest.
They walked to the front door, with Edward's arm around her shoulders. The path leading to the porch was dotted with blooming flowers. Rose had always wanted her personal garden.
He couldn't get any luckier, he decided. He'd found in Bella what he always wanted, without fully grasping the depth of his desire.
She'd never be the perfect Sub, he'd always envisioned of having, but that added to the way she challenged him daily. She loved riding the bike with him, which had been one of his desires since he'd first straddled a motorbike – to have a girl riding with him and forgetting about their problems. She had a wicked sense of humor, which sometimes left him perplexed at how her mind worked. And she was an all-around lovable and perfect woman.
Right before the door opened, after they had rang the bell, Edward leaned down to kiss her.
"What was that for?" Bella gasped, grinning up at him.
"Just because I love you."
She squeezed his side, kissing under his jaw. "Love you, Edward."
Rosalie opened the door. "If you plan to infect us with your love-dovey stuff, I'm going to rethink this."
"Consider it payback for the years I had to suffer through watching you eye-fuck Emmett."
Rose bristled, but stepped away. "Come in."
Bella accepted his sister's hug, somewhat taken by surprise. That was Rosalie for the unsuspecting person. She did nothing halfway – which applied to the way she treated people, whether it was about liking or not liking them.
Edward was glad, she'd gotten over her silly problem with Bella. He hadn't asked Bella about what she and Rose had talked about when he'd left them alone in his old room at his parents' house, but it seemed that they were friendly toward each other.
When Rose pulled away from Bella, Edward dropped a kiss on her cheek, brushing away a stray piece of hair. "Married life becomes you," he joked.
"And you're still an asshole," she deadpanned.
Edward chuckled, pulling Bella to the living room. The cream plush couch and loveseat and the white carpet were the only light colors in the otherwise dark wood scheme of the room.
He had to admit, it wasn't every day when his sister didn't look anything but impeccable.
"If I'd known I was going to feel like the living dead, I wouldn't have asked you over." Rose followed them, slumping into the loveseat.
Edward gave her another once over. Besides the track pants, Emmett's shirt, and her hair in a messy bun, Rose didn't appear to be physically hurt.
"Where's Emmett?" Edward chose to ask, having a vague idea what was wrong with his sister. He could still remember to avoid her during that week, from the time they'd lived at home. She used to turn into a dragon, who snapped at everyone over the smallest things that irked her.
"Digging his grave in the backyard," Rose muttered. "You could go and give him a shove in the ass."
"Be right back," he whispered to Bella. He tried relaxing her through a look, when her eyes widened in panic.
Edward found Emmett in the backyard, working the grill instead of digging his hole as Rose had so nicely put it. If Edward had learned anything about Emmett in the time they'd known each other, it was that he liked food. Emmett owned some fancy gas and charcoal grill with two separate compartments for each type of grill.
"You made it!" Emmett exclaimed, grinning widely.
"I was informed you needed help digging your hole," Edward said casually, walking closer. He inspected the plates with grilled goodies, cringing at the amount of veggies there.
"I'm doing the meat now," Emmett said. He pointed with the spatula at the chicken legs and pork chops. "Don't worry. We won't starve."
"Good to know. So, what did you do to upset Rose?"
"She's been upside down the whole day. You alone?" Emmett met his eyes, curiously.
Edward leaned against the wall, shoving his hands in his pockets. "No. Bella's inside with Rose. I think they worked out whatever it was, last weekend."
"You know Rosie means well," he said quietly.
"You don't have to defend my sister in front of me, Emmett. I know exactly how Rosalie works. I also know, when she's a bitch just for the sake of being a bitch."
Emmett chuckled. "Rose seemed genuinely concerned about Bella last weekend."
"She made a full recovery. In the few months I've known Bella, I came to realize minor accidents are part of her daily life."
"Not that sprain, dude." Emmett placed the steaks on another plate, putting out the fire on the grill. "I mean…the way you were on her case for not mentioning her birthday."
"I just hate being taken by surprise," Edward muttered, not ready to revisit the time he'd found out about Bella's birthday and how he'd lost control with her. He'd regret hurting her so badly till his last day.
"Man, you looked ready to…I don't even know…it looked like you were about to hit her," Emmett grumbled. "You didn't, right?"
Edward glared at Emmett, for reading him so well. Sometimes, Edward wondered if Emmett suspected his lifestyle by his everyday actions.
Emmett lifted his hands in defense. "Sorry, bro. But you had all of us worried."
It dawned on Edward why his mother had insisted to have Bella alone at their place. She had probably tried to find out what sort of relationship they had. And Rosalie inviting them both over now.
"Everything okay?" Emmett checked, seeing the annoyed look on Edward's face.
"Why did Rose invite us over?" he asked, pushing away from the wall.
"We never got to tell you about the things we did on the honeymoon, because you never see us, unless it's for the couple of hours spent at your parents' house each Saturday. We couldn't go in details with them around."
"Why would I want details from your honeymoon?" Edward asked, confused.
He helped Emmett carry the plates inside the house.
Emmett shrugged. "It's something Rosie wanted to do. It's probably an excuse to have you around." He placed the plate in his hands on the kitchen table, which was already set nicely. "Bro, you used to come over from time to time…before…" He shifted uncomfortably. "I know you're not one hundred percent okay, but come on…drop by. For Rosie."
Edward curled his fingers on the back of a chair, closing his eyes.
"She misses you," Emmett kept talking.
"Okay, okay. I realize I've been an ass to her…and you…and everyone else. I've been taking it a day a time."
Emmett came closer, gripping one of Edward's shoulders. "Bella's helped you a lot, no one is denying it. But, I guess, it's time you start living again."
"I'm living, Emmett!" Edward snapped. "I'm much better than I've been in June, but what happened cannot be erased like this." He snapped his fingers, taking small breaths.
Jasper had taught him how to work through the dark moments that could spring on him at random times.
But the method wasn't working with Emmett's hand on his back, rubbing him in a supposedly comforting manner.
"Stop touching me!" Edward shrugged him off.
"Edward!" Rose appeared seemingly out of air by his side. He hadn't heard her approaching. She'd probably been summoned by their raised voices. "I'm here. Shhh." She placed a hand over his curled fingers, rubbing her thumb over the top of his hand. "What's wrong with you, Emmett? I swear," she hissed at her husband, still trying to soothe her brother.
Edward pulled away from her. "I need air." He found Bella in the doorway, staring at him with huge eyes. He took her hand, leading her outside through the back door.
"Can I help?" she asked in a small voice.
He hugged her close, burrowing his face into her neck. When all methods failed, he knew he'd always have her there. Her mere presence was enough to calm him.
Bella stood rigid in her place, and Edward could bet she wanted to touch him. Surprisingly, he wanted it, too. His body craved her loving touch, which always managed to soothe him.
Carefully, Edward took her hands in his, bringing them around his body. "Hug me," he rasped into her neck.
"Do you want to talk about this?" she asked after a while.
"Not particularly," he mumbled into her shoulder, still clinging to her.
In such moments, Edward questioned what could Bella possibly see in him. There were times when he wasn't even half the man she deserved to have, especially when he crumbled to pieces like this.
"You have to tell me what she's done to you."
"Eventually."
"When you're ready," she whispered, turning her head to seek his lips. She kissed him slowly. "I love you. Never forget that."
"You're the most important thing to me. I can't lose you," he said against her lips.
"I'm not going anywhere," she promised.
When they finally returned inside, Edward only needed to catch his sister's eye for her to understand that the unfortunate event should be forgotten.
During dinner, Emmett and Rose shared their honeymoon stories, which weren't as bad as Edward had expected. It seemed people actually left their hotel rooms during the honeymoon. He turned to look at Bella, who was laughing at the story about Rose scaring Emmett with potential sharks in the ocean, while Edward mused about their own honeymoon. Bella would be shackled to the bed if he had anything to say in that matter.
"After the whole wedding hassle, getting a few days alone felt like bliss," Rose continued.
Bella gasped, turning to look at Edward.
"What?" he asked, worried.
"Alice! She told me to go over to their house tomorrow morning for my dress last adjustments."
"Tell her, she'll forget about the whole wedding stress when it's over," Rose said, smiling.
"I don't think Alice's stress will end any time soon," Edward chuckled. "Besides, what adjustments does your dress need? She'll need a new dress by the end of the month! Did you see how big she got?"
"She's close to five months, I think. But her dress isn't fitting around her middle. Her tummy is masked really well," Bella explained.
"This must be the year of weddings for you," Emmett said, amused.
"If any other of my friends decide to get married in the near future, I'm unavailable," Edward muttered. "I swear, Alice and Jasper's wedding is stressing me more than if it were my own."
"Piece of cake, bro!" Emmett winked, leaning closer to Rose to kiss her.
Bella turned beet red, avoiding his eyes. Edward patted her knee, silently telling her that he wasn't ready for that step yet.
"There's always eloping," Bella quipped, meeting his eyes.
Edward burst out laughing.
"Mom would have an aneurism if her favorite son eloped," Rose giggled.
"Rosalie, I'm mom's only son," Edward reminded her.
"Therefore, her favorite."
Bella giggled along, still blushing horribly. Edward brought his chair closer to her. He kissed along her neck, inhaling her unique freesia scent. "Eloping sounds like the best option," he murmured into her ear.
"I was joking," she whispered, meeting his eyes.
"I'm not," he insisted, swallowing her retort with his lips covering hers. "But nothing to worry about, for now."
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