ESPOV
"Esme? Are you ever going to come out of there?" Carlisle asks from the other side of the bathroom door.
"I don't think so." I call back to him and sink down into the mountain of bubbles I have created in the tub.
It's our first night at the beach house and after spending the afternoon unpacking, playing on the beach, and cooking dinner, I needed a relaxing soak in this amazing bathtub. We watched the sunset from the patio while I ate dinner, and now the full moon and bright stars are reflecting off of the ocean. It's so beautiful here. I don't know why Bella and Edward would ever choose to leave—the house is amazing, and I haven't even seen all of it yet, the view is spectacular, and it's completely private.
I can hear Carlisle pacing in the bedroom and it makes me giggle to think about him stressed waiting for me to get our of the bath.
"Esme." He growls playfully and I laugh even harder.
"Okay, I'm coming." I groan and I pull my body out of the warm water.
I dry off and put on the soft terrycloth robe Alice packed for me. It matches the teal accents in the house and I roll my eyes at her insistence at matching everything.
My hair is wet and dripping on my terrycloth-covered shoulders when I open the bathroom door. Carlisle's back is to me as he looks out of the wall of windows in our bedroom. He turns around to give me a smile when I come to stand beside him. His arms come around my waist and I automatically lay my head on his chest.
"Mmm…you smell so good." He growls into my hair and I smile into his bare chest.
"So do you." I whisper and kiss the skin above his heart.
The view out of our window is beautiful—there isn't a cloud in the sky and the stars are twinkling down on us. We stand in each other's arms enjoying the view and our comfortable silence until a yawn breaks thought my lips.
"Let's lay down, love." He says with a kiss to the top of my head and I nod.
For non-sleeping vampires, the Cullen buy the best beds. My body sinks into the expensive sheets before realizing all I have on is my robe. Walking over to what has been deemed my dresser, I look through the pajamas Alice packed for me. It seems that the tamest thing she packed for me is a baby pink, spaghetti-strapped nightgown, it's trimmed in white lace and comes just above my knee. The material is like butter as it slides over my skin and it's supportive enough that I decide I don't need anything under it.
When I turn around to go back to bed, Carlisle is laying down watching me with dark eyes and a huge smile breaks out on my face. I was more worried about finding the right pajamas than I was about him seeing me naked. I'm comfortable enough to change in front of him without even a second thought.
"What is that smile about, sweet girl?" he asks as I lay down beside him.
"I forgot you were here." I tell him and laugh when he frowns.
"And that's a good thing?"
"It's an amazing thing. It was so effortless to change in front of you that I forgot to be scared or self-conscious."
He smiles and when he laughs, peanut starts dancing in my belly. I jolt at the feeling because I'm not used to it yet and my hands come up to cradle my tummy.
"She's dancing." I whisper and his eyes sparkle with his smile. "She likes your laugh."
"You think?" he asks.
"As soon as she heard it, she started moving. She knows her daddy."
He smiles even wider and I think he's going to kiss me when he leans in, but instead he leans down to kiss my belly.
"Hey peanut. You have to get stronger so I can feel you out here. I'm so happy you're moving for mommy but daddy needs a little attention too, okay?"
I laugh as she jumps and he looks up at me with shining eyes.
"Did he move again?"
I nod. "She started jumping when you stopped talking."
"He's amazing." Carlisle whispers and kisses my belly before pulling me onto his chest.
"We should probably start thinking of names." I whisper against his cold skin. We brought our electric blanket with us so I switch it on and snuggle closer.
"Have you thought of any?" he asks and I nod sheepishly.
"Have you?"
He nods proudly with a big smile.
"What names do you like?" I ask him. No way am I telling first.
"I like old fashioned names. My favorites are Matthew, William, and Thomas for a boy, and Anna, Abigail, and Martha for a girl. What names have you considered?"
"Well I like all of those, but Anna is too close to my middle name. I don't want our daughter's first name to be after me, maybe that could be her middle name. The names I like are Carter for a boy and Melanie for a girl."
"I like both of those, love. Maybe we'll be able to narrow it down at your ultrasound when we get home."
"Hopefully or our baby's going to have a ridiculously long name."
He barks out a laugh and leans down to kiss my lips. Our tongues slide together lazily, but neither of us deepen it any further. When I yawn into his mouth he laughs and pulls away.
"Goodnight, sweet angel." He whispers and I fall quickly to sleep.
Seagulls and sunshine wake me and it takes a minute for me to remember where I am.
"Good morning." Carlisle says as I throw my arms over my head and stretch.
"Good morning." I'm grinning at him and he smiles back. I guess it takes warm weather and the beach to make me wake up happy.
"What do you want to do today, love?"
"Let's go swimming and have a picnic on the beach." I'm out of bed searching for a swimsuit before I even finish speaking.
"Okay. Get dressed and I'll make breakfast." With a kiss to the top of my head, he's gone.
Alice is nuts if she thinks I'm going to wear some of the things in this drawer, but I finally decide on a tankini with a chevron top in pink, blue and purple and pair it with the purple bottoms Alice has laid with it. I throw on a sheer hot pink cover and grab my sunglasses and flip flops. Once my hair and teeth are brushed, I'm ready.
When I get to the kitchen, a breakfast of toast and fruit has been laid out for me. Carlisle is packing our cooler with sandwiches and water bottles, but stops when I enter.
"Wow…you look beautiful." He stutters.
"Thank you." I blush and take a bite of my toast.
"I'm going to go change while you eat." He says putting the full cooler on the floor and I nod.
I'm putting my plate in the dishwasher when Carlisle comes back downstairs carrying a bag over his shoulder—his bare shoulder. He's wearing dark blue board shorts and nothing else.
"You ready?" He asks with a smile and I'm pretty sure I'm drooling.
"Um…yeah. You look…good." I tell him and then want to hide under the bed and never come out.
He grins at my blush and thanks me.
We walk down the beach hand in hand until we come to the edge of the water where Carlisle sets down the bag and cooler.
"Hold on, love." He says and then disappears. He comes back carrying two beach loungers and I smile at his ridiculous vampire strength.
Once he's determined they're in the right spot, he reaches into the bag and pulls out a bottle of sunscreen.
"May I?" I nod and lift my hair so he can do my back. My suit top is a halter so my entire upper back is exposed. His cold fingers take their time massaging and rubbing the lotion into my back and legs before turning me around and doing my front.
"This may be my favorite human necessity." He says while he's on his knees taking his time rubbing lotion on my upper thighs, and I have to agree. I'm enjoying watching and feeling him. I don't think I'll ever get used to his beautiful skin in the sunlight. He really is an angel sent to save me.
"Done" he smiles and stands. "You'll need another coat in a few hours." He looks so excited that I have to laugh.
I lean forward and melt my lips against his. The warm sun has heated his skin and the new feeling is nice. My hands take their time gliding from his hands up to his hard biceps, giving them a little squeeze before moving to his chest and finally up around his neck. My tongue dips out to taste his lips and I moan.
"Mmm you last like sunshine."
He takes my mouth again and sticks his tongue out to get his own taste.
"And you taste like heaven."
My fingers dig into his hair and I hitch one leg over his hip as our tongues tangle in my mouth. I let out a little whimper when his fingers find their way inside my top and caress my bare sides. I surprise him and myself when I jump up to wrap my legs around his waist, but he catches me easily. My bump is a little bit of an obstacle between us, but believe me, I'm making it work. He moans when he feels my center against him and it turns to a growl when I grind down on him. He sits down on one of the lounge chairs keeping me in his lap so his hands are free and they immediately go to my breasts which are heavy and aching for his touch.
"Carlisle please" I moan. "Put your mouth on me." He freezes and looks up at me in a mix of shock and hunger.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Please."
He whispers what sounds like a 'thank you' before untying the halter top and letting it drop to free my breasts. He licks his lips before leaning in and kissing every inch of the newly exposed skin. His mouth feels amazing and I moan when he opens his mouth against the side swell. He gets braver as he goes, eventually running his tongue along the crease under my left breast. He's kissed and touched me everywhere but where I want him most and I'm writhing on his lap. Wrapping my hand in his hair, I pull his mouth to my nipple and he chuckles when I whimper. Finally—finally his mouth closes over the hardened peak and I cry out. He runs his tongue along it and then sucks it into his mouth. With one powerful suck and one grind of my hips, I'm orgasming on his lap, and judging by the sounds and movements he's making, he is too.
He lays back pulling me with him so our bare chests are pressed together.
"That was amazing." He whispers after we catch our breath and I nod in agreement. We lay together letting the sun warm our skin until I can finally move again.
"So," he says and kisses my nose "swim?"
I nod and smile. He helps me off his lap and lays one kiss between my breasts before sighing and righting my top.
Once we're both ready, he takes my hand and we walk close enough to the sea that the water laps at our toes. I squeal and jump away from the cold temperatures and Carlisle chuckles at me.
It takes me a few minutes to get used to the water, but once I do, we wade out until the water is at my chest. Carlisle's skin sparkles even under the surface of the ocean and it makes me smile.
"Are there sharks around here?" I ask suddenly nervous.
"Yes, but they won't come near you while I'm around. Don't go swimming alone, though." I scoff at him. Of course I won't go where sharks are! I'm human, not reckless.
We spend over an hour playing in the water until Carlisle declares it's time for another coat of sunscreen. He carries me and walks back to our chairs. I have to be completely dry before he can put more lotion on me so he hands me a towel out of his bag and takes one for himself. I lay mine out on my lounger and lay down on it. I'd rather be dried by the sun anyway. The whole point of being at the beach is to get some sun. Carlisle looks at me with a frown until I untie my top and let the strings fall. My breasts are still covered, but his eyes darken anyway.
"I don't wan tan lines." I tell him. "In fact…"
I roll up my top until it sits just under my breasts, exposing my belly. My skin practically glows in the dark and peanut needs some sun—especially if I'm going to wear those ridiculous bikinis Alice packed, although I'm pretty sure I'm not.
Carlisle sighs and smiles when he sees my bare belly. Since I first started showing, he's loved looking at my bare bump. I hope he still feels that way when it's huge and covered in stretch marks.
"What are you thinking about?" he asks smoothing out my furrowed brows with his fingertips.
"I was wondering if you'll still like my belly when it's giant and has stretch marks on it."
"I"ll love your belly no matter what. That's where you carry our child. I can't wait until he's big enough to stretch your belly out."
I'm not sure if that's a compliment or not so I just nod and smile.
Once I'm dry, he applies my second round of sunscreen, this time paying extra attention to my belly. Peanut dances around at his father's touch and I giggle. I'm not sure I'll ever get used to that feeling.
I love being here with Carlisle, just the two of us…well three of us. We can just be ourselves and Carlisle doesn't have to hid what he is. I love the vampire side of him too, and I hate when he has to hide it. Here we can just be ourselves and it's perfect.
"Here, angel." Carlisle says handing me a bottle of water. "You need to stay hydrated out here in the sun."
"Shouldn't this be a piña colada or a strawberry daiquiri?"
"I'll see what I can do tomorrow, love." He says with a smile. " But they'll have to be virgin."
"That's fine with me as long as they have a little umbrella."
"I'll work on it." He laughs.
The hot shower feels good after my day being covered in salt and sand. Carlisle was very diligent about his sunscreen application so I have a nice tan started and no sunburn.
Carlisle has insisted that we have "a proper date" tonight so he shooed me upstairs to get ready while he cooks dinner. Apparently he has learned some new recipes or we're going to be having toast for dinner.
Once I'm washed, shaved, and polished, I dry off and pick out my outfit for tonight. We're not going anywhere and it's just the two of us so I go a little more casual dressy. I pair a solid teal maxi skirt with a coral colored tank top that has ruffles along the scoop neck and layer it with a white lace cardigan. I find coral earrings and a coral and teal bangle bracelet that match nicely and finish it off with white and brown sandals. The last things I need to do are my hair and makeup. It doesn't take long to blow-dry my hair and I put it into a loose side braid, curling the fly-aways. I keep my make-up simple because Carlisle likes when I look natural, and after some mascara, blush, and lipstick, I'm ready to go.
When I come downstairs, Carlisle is nowhere to be found. Finally I see a light down by the beach and follow it.
Carlisle has set up an entire table on the beach so we can eat and watch the sunset together. There are candles everywhere and it looks like I just stepped into a fairytale. Carlisle is standing next to the table in khaki dress pants, bare feet, and a white dress shirt that only has a few buttons done up so it blows in the breeze.
"Wow" I whisper as I stand there stunned.
"What do you think?" he asks nervously.
"I think it's perfect. Absolutely perfect."
The smile on his face is breathtaking and I know this is going to be a great night.