CPOV
"What do you think?" Esme asks coming out of my closet to model her outfit for me.
It's been four peaceful days since Esme's nightmare and our unexpected visitor. Today is Christmas Eve, and the kids have a full day planned for Esme. She told us yesterday that when she was married to Charles, they didn't celebrate Christmas, so now they want to give her everything she's been missing. Honestly, I have no idea what they have planned, but if it makes Esme smile, I'm completely happy with it.
Esme's outfit that she's currently modeling for me is one that was bought and put together by Alice. She has on a pair of designer blue jeans, and a black long sleeve shirt that has a Santa hat right above her baby bump, and across the middle of her belly it says "Santa Baby". The shirt is tight showing off our little peanut and her newly popped tummy. She looks absolutely beautiful and the Santa hat she has on top of her caramel hair just makes me smile wider.
"You look beautiful." I tell her and my smile grows when she blushes.
Walking over to her, I drop to my knees in front of her. "Let me see him." I beg her with my eyes and she giggles before lifting her shirt. I press my lips against the bare skin of her belly and run my nose along her silky skin.
"Good morning peanut." I coo to him. It's important to talk to him while he's in the womb so he'll know my voice when he's born. "It's your first Christmas Eve. Try to go easy on mommy's stomach today, nobody wants to be sick on Christmas. I love you so much baby, I know you can do this for me." I lay little kisses along her belly before laying one last kiss on her belly button and pulling her shirt back down.
"You're too sweet." Esme says when I stand up in front of her. She slips her arms around my neck and lays a gentle kiss on my lips.
"I just want him to know how much we love him." I whisper to her, suddenly self-conscious.
"I know and I love it. He may know you better than he knows me after he's born."
"That's not possible, angel. You two share a bloodstream. He lives next to your heart for nine months. But don't worry, I'm okay with being second to you." I grin at her and she chuckles at him.
"You know it could still be a girl." She whispers to me with a smile.
"I know, and she'll be a little princess. Just a few more weeks and we can find out."
"Do you want a boy?" she asks me looking worried.
"I think it would be wonderful to have a boy, but actually the more I think about it, the more I want a girl; a beautiful princess with your hair and eyes. Someone I can spoil and have tea parties with. I would love either one, I'm just so happy being with you and our peanut." I tell her honestly.
"I'll be happy either way, too." She says before leaning in closer to me. "But I really want a girl." She whispers with a wicked grin on her face.
I laugh and bury my face in her neck, laying kisses along the skin there.
"Well you'll have to wait just a little bit longer and we can find out. Now come on let's go see what these crazy kids have planned for you."
"They're not crazy, they're sweet." She says as I grab her hand and we walk out of the bedroom.
When we walk into the kitchen, all of the kids are fixing Esme's breakfast. Bella is making pancakes, Alice is making bacon, Rosalie is getting berries out of the fridge, Edward is setting the table, Jasper is pouring milk and orange juice into the glasses on the table, and Emmett is peering over Rosalie's shoulder at the food.
"That looks disgusting!" Emmet scoffs. "You guys should have let me cook breakfast."
"Emmett, Esme spent the morning vomiting after just seeing your breakfast." Bella throws over her shoulder.
"How was I supposed to know she wouldn't like mushed cornmeal?! That was good food when I was human."
"Emmett you were human in the 1930s. Besides, you burned it and the entire kitchen smelled like burnt corn. I almost vomited." Rosalie tells him without turning to look at him.
"Well I haven't cooked in over 70 years. That wasn't my fault." Emmett grumbles, crossing his arms and flopping into a dining room chair like a child.
Esme's giggle alerts them all of our presence, and each of them whip their heads around to smile at us.
"Good morning!" Bella says. "You're breakfast is almost ready if you want to go sit at the table."
"Thank you." Esme whispers and walks to the dining room table pulling me along by my hand.
"We have a full day planned." Alice bounces over and plops herself down in a chair across from Esme. "We are starting with a little Christmas-themed breakfast, then we'll decorate the tree, and then there are a couple Christmas movies we have to watch; and of course we will give each other our Christmas pajamas and Carlisle will read "Twas the Night Before Christmas"."
Esme was informed a few days ago of our Cullen Christmas traditions. First, we always give each other pajamas on Christmas Eve night. It's the first present of the Christmas season that we open. Edward is actually the one who started that tradition. Our first Christmas together, he gave them to me as a joke because, obviously, we don't sleep; after that we did it every year. With each new family member, we would extend the tradition until it was 3 couples and me. Each couple would buy for their other half and they would all get together to pick out mine. Now that Esme is here, I finally have someone to buy pajamas for. The decorating of the tree came with Alice. Edward and I never put up a Christmas tree when it was just the two of us. When Rosalie and Emmett came along, we would put up a small tree in the living room, but it was never decorated. Alice was appalled when she came along and found out about our sad, little tree. She insisted that we have a big tree and we had to buy decorations for it and for the house. We all gave in because she's small and persistent, but really it cheers up the house and gets everyone excited for Christmas. "Twas the Night Before Christmas" is something that I have read since it was published in 1823. I've always thought it was a great piece of poetry, and it seemed to get me in the Christmas mood. One Christmas Eve, Alice found me in my office reading it and demanded I read it to the family; thus the tradition was started.
"Who picked the movies?" I ask with a raised eyebrow.
"Not Emmett" Bella laughs bringing Esme's breakfast over for her. It is two pancakes made to look like a snowman's body, a bacon scarf, and blueberry eyes, nose, and buttons.
"Thank God." I mutter and Esme giggles.
"This is so cute, guys. Thank you." Esme says before pouring syrup over everything and digging in.
She eats two plates of pancakes before she finally declares she's full, and I smile at her eating habits. She's finally put on the weight she lost when she was married to Charles. Her face is healthy instead of sunken in and her arms and legs have a little bit of meat on them. I love her body and I'm finding that with each new pregnancy side effect, I love it even more.
"So I think that we should let Esme do the ornaments, she will do a good job placing them evenly. Carlisle is always good at putting on the tinsel. Rosalie and Bella, you can do the lights like you always do. Emmett of course you are in charge of setting up the tree. Jasper and Edward will do the banister decorations, and I will supervise." Alice barks like a little drill sergeant, and everyone skips off to do what she says except Esme and I.
The girls are pulling the decorations out of storage and the boys are out getting a tree. It doesn't take long before they're carrying a massive form of pine needles and bark into the house. Emmett sets it up in the corner of the living room, and steps back to look at his handy work. He nods his head like he's satisfied and the girls attack. Rosalie and Bella immediately start stringing the lights and I take the tinsel that Alice hands me. Walking toward the tree, I look back to find Esme looking around her with her hands on her belly and a soft smile on her gorgeous face. I surprise her by throwing a little tinsel on her which lands right on her nose. She laughs and throws it back at me before standing up and coming to start with the ornaments.
It doesn't take long before the tree is decorated and we are adding a few new ornaments that Alice bought: a clear ball with a black paw print and the word "Sammy" written in silver across it, a foggy glass bulb with gold and black writing with Esme and 2017 on it, and lastly a golden peanut on a chain.
Alice hands me Esme's ornament with a smile. I take it to her and she reaches to put it on the tree until she sees what it is.
"Esme, each of us have a Christmas ornament with our name and the year we joined the family on it. This is yours. I have never in my life been happier to present one of these to a member of my family. We all love you very much. Welcome to the family." I hand the small glass ball to her and she takes it with a shaky hand.
"Thank you so much. All of you. I'm honored." She reaches up to hang it around the back of the tree until I grab it and move it front and center.
Next I hand her Sammy's ornament and she giggles before hanging it on a low-hanging branch. Finally I hand her the golden peanut and she bursts into tears. She throws herself at me and I catch her chuckling. These pregnancy hormones are really throwing her for a loop.
"Hey it's okay." I tell her as she sobs into my chest.
"I love you so much." She cries and I chuckle.
"I love you too, sweetheart. Come on, lets hang it on the tree."
She nods and hands the peanut to me.
"Where do you want it?"
She bites her lip before pointing to a spot too high for her to reach, right on the front of the tree.
"It's perfect." I tell her before reaching up and placing it reverently in place.
"Thank you all. I love each one of you so much." She tells the children as she lays her cheek against my chest.
"We all love you too, baby mama. Now come on, let's watch some movies." Emmett says cannonballing into the couch and I swear I see the floor quake.
"You don't get to pick this time, Emmett." Alice says.
"Aww man."
We all take spots next to our mates scattered around the living room snuggling close and enjoying the lights from the Christmas tree reflecting all over the room.
We watch "It's a Wonderful Life" and "Miracle on 34th Street" before Esme's stomach forces us to take a break. She eats an early dinner of grilled chicken and broccoli, which she cooked herself, before we go back to snuggling in the living room.
We just got through watching "A Christmas Story" when Alice shuts off the television and announces it's time for our pajama presents. Usually we all open presents downstairs, but since we are now 4 couples instead of 3 couples and a single, Alice has declared each couple will exchange gifts in their rooms and return to the living room for the reading of the poem in our new pajamas.
Esme and I walk upstairs to my room with Samson following close behind us. He has ditched his sweater, because he got too fat for it, and is now sporting a red bow around his neck.
Esme and I have spent every night in my room since our first night doing so. We haven't discussed her moving in here permanently, but I hope to soon. I would love to share my space with her, in fact, I've waited almost 400 years to share my closet with my mate. Sitting next to the bed, where we left them this morning, are two perfectly wrapped gifts. We sit cross legged facing each other on the bed with our gifts in our hands.
"You go first." I tell her.
"Okay" she smiles shyly and slowly rips into the wrapping paper.
The pajamas I got for her are a set of a t-shirt and pants. The pants are white with black lines and small patterns all over them like snowflakes and reindeer, and the shirt is white with red writing that says "Mama Bear" with a small red bear on top of the words.
A grin crosses her face when she sees them and she laughs.
"I love them!" She says leaning over to kiss me. "Thank you."
"You're very welcome. I'm glad you like them."
"I do, now open yours."
Inside my box, I find white pants with red and black plaid stripes on them and a dark grey sweater to go with them. They are something I would have picked for myself and I smile at her nervous face.
"They're perfect. Thank you."
The kiss I give her is soft and deep, and I have trouble pulling away. By the dazed look on her face, I can tell she's thinking the same thing.
"I suppose we should change." I tell her and she frowns and wrinkles her nose.
"Okay." She grumbles.
I help her off the bed and let her go into the bathroom to change while I stay in the bedroom. She stops outside the bathroom door and turns to me.
"Carlisle?" she looks nervous and I'm suddenly worried.
"Yes, love?"
"Would you like to help me change into my new pajamas?"
I swear I just lost consciousness.
"I uh I um yeah I would." I stutter out.
She smiles and walks over to me. I pluck the Santa hat off of her head and smooth her beautiful hair down. She raises her arms up, a signal for me to take off her shirt, and I happily oblige. With each inch I pull, another piece of creamy flesh is revealed. Esme is my personal goddess. She's perfect. After her shirt is off, I sigh; she's so beautiful and her baby bump just makes her shine brighter. She swallows quickly before unbuttoning her jeans and pushing them down her legs. One of the first things I noticed about Esme's body is her long, gorgeous legs, and seeing them now, I know I underestimated them before. She's standing in front of me in her bra and panties and I can't help but pull her into my arms.
"You are so beautiful." I whisper against her lips and she smiles radiantly.
"Thank you."
I take her shirt and help it over her head, and then lean down to help put her pants on. Kneeling in front of her when there's nothing covering her except her panties takes all of my self-control. Her center is right by my face and the scent of my mate's arousal is calling to me. I quickly make work of her pants, running my hands up her legs as I pull them up, before standing up.
"Can I help you now?" She asks shyly.
"Of course, angel."
She pushes her hands up my shirt running her palms across my stomach and chest as she pulls it over my head. Her hands are shaking as she reaches for the button of my jeans, and I let her do what she's comfortable with. She undoes my pants before pushing them down to my ankles for me to step out of. I'm now standing in front of her in nothing but my boxers.
"Hmmm, so you're a boxers man." She muses as she runs her fingers along the waistband of them. I shiver at her touch and she smiles. Leaning in she kisses my chest directly over my non-beating heart before helping get my shirt over my head. She takes the pants in her hands and bites her lip nervously, but I quickly take them and lean down to put them on. It's clear she would be uncomfortable on her knees in front of me; theres no telling what that bastard made her do, and honestly I'm not sure my self-control could handle seeing her there right now. Once the waistband is to my knees, she helps pull them up, grazing my hipbones lightly with her fingertips before pulling her hands away.
"You're gorgeous." She says leaning in to kiss my lips.
I nuzzle my nose against hers and pull her in so I can bury my face in her neck. We stand like for a minute before we hear the kids moving around downstairs.
"Come on, love. I bet they're waiting on us."
She nods with a smile and takes my hand as we walk out of the room.
Everyone takes up their positions in the living room including Esme and I. The pajamas are always fun to look at each year. Emmett is always something fun and silly, and this year it looks like a fuzzy onesie. Rosalie's is always glamorous and a touch revealing; this year is a spaghetti strap tank top and pants set in red silk. Bella and Alice are always different, sometimes a little sexy and sometimes a little silly. Alice is wearing a onesie like Emmett's except it actually looks cute on her, and Bella is wearing a red and white plaid shorts and long sleeve shirt set. Edward and Jasper are always pretty boring and classic like me. Edward is in a white t-shirt and black and white plaid pants, while Jasper is wearing red and black plants and a grey henley with a red chest pocket.
Alice hands me my copy of "Twas the Night Before Christmas" before going over to cuddle with Jasper. I pull Esme over to rest her head on my chest and rest the book on my lap. It really hits me that this is the first year that I'm really not alone. I have my other half here, and looking around the room at the other happy couples, I sigh happily. Our family is complete. With a kiss to Esme's forehead, I start reading.
Twas the night before Christmas…