Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or the Twilight characters.
Although I like being a chapter ahead at all times, I'm still working on chapter 10. I'm wanting it to cover the entire weekend but it might be too long if I do that. Chapter 10 is already 8,000 words and I've only covered Friday. I might have to break it into multiple chapters to keep from having a 30,000 word chapter in the middle of this story.
I like reading your comments and comparing those who like the slow burn and those who want to rush the kiss. Don't worry…. They finally kiss in this chapter. I didn't want them to rush into anything especially since I already had the kiss planned. I understand the concern and hopes for a natural kiss but after the first date wouldn't have been the right time, even if they have been living together for weeks. Please remember that they didn't even start talking to each other until the second week.
Please read and review. Leave your thoughts, comments, and feelings. I love the reader's response that this story brings. Especially when I see the conflicting viewpoints over the pace of this story.
BPOV
The floor was completely silent by four. Creepy. Our on-call doctor was currently sleeping along with the patients. There were four nurses scheduled for this floor but two of them disappeared a few hours ago. They are probably sleeping in one of the empty beds. There were also one or two CNAs who would pass by the nursing station periodically. I've honestly never seen the labor unit this quiet, especially not for this long. There was always at least one or two patients who came in the early hours of the morning, even if they had to be sent from the E.R.
"I'm getting a drink, do you want anything?" I offered Ella, the only other nurse who was sitting at the nursing station.
"No thanks." She continued to scroll absentmindedly on her phone.
I made my way down the stairs to the vending machine. We have a drink and snack machine on every floor but the first floor had the most options. I was also hoping that the extra steps would help me feel more alive. Once on the first floor, I stared at the machine for the longest time before choosing a sprite. Despite the fact that it wouldn't provide me with any caffeine.
When I turned to leave, I ran straight into a hard body. I gasped in shock and stumbled backwards a bit but a strong arm reached out and grabbed my waist.
"I didn't mean to scare you." Edward gave me a crooked grin. I let out a breath of relief when I realized who it was.
"Well you did." I chuckled and lightly swatted his chest. I found it comforting that his hand remained on the small of my back.
"Yeah, you jumped pretty bad." He pulled me closer to his body and wrapped both arms around me. He's hugging me!.
I sighed into his chest and returned the hug by circling my arms around his waist. It felt good to lean my head against him. "I'm so bored and tired!" I whined against his shirt.
"You too?" He released me from his embrace. "The E.R. Is weirdly quiet at the moment. I don't think that I've ever had so little to do."
"Yeah, we haven't had any new admits since before midnight. We don't even have laboring mothers at the moment." I checked my watch. "I've been sitting around while waiting for the next round of medications."
"We've had a few people come and go. Only one person was admitted for observations, everyone else was discharged. I've never been in an E.R. this slow. It's killing me." Edward looked as tired as I felt.
"Do you not get to nap in the on-call rooms?"
"I guess I could, but I'm not a fan of sleeping while on the job because patients might come in at any moment. I prefer to stay awake and responsive. I'm guessing that your doctor is sleeping."
"Yeah. Dr. Turner says to wake him if a mother needs help." I couldn't help the yawn that escaped me as I opened my sprite. "Can we leave as soon as our shifts are over? I want to go home and sleep."
"Only if you're gonna share the bed with me. I sleep better next to you." He gave me another crooked grin that brought butterflies to my stomach.
"Deal. Your bed is more comfortable than mine anyways."
"Our bed… it's our room and our bed."
"I know." I understood the point he was trying to make. "I need to go back upstairs." I was sad to say goodbye to him but I know that it's only for three hours. Plus, it was unfair to leave Ella by herself for so long.
…MMHW…
I was completely exhausted by the time my shift was over. I couldn't help but feel like a zombie who was stumbling around blindly. Edward had helped me past the time by texting me memes….some were funny and some were plain stupid. I appreciate his attempt to keep me entertained though.
We also carried out a detailed conversation on what foods we loved and hated. Which animals we despised and felt shouldn't exist. Best of all, was us deciding that we should wait to take our honeymoon on our first anniversary. We decided to change our trip at the end of the summer to a family beach trip. We extended the invite to Edward's family and my parents. Our decision was based on our wants to continue growing as a couple before having a true honeymoon.
I sent a message to both Alice and Rose, despite it being so early in the morning. I knew that they wouldn't see the message until later but I wanted to send the invitation while it was fresh on my mind…. a slightly sleep deprived action. Who knows if our conversations would make sense once we were well rested. I was just happy that Edward and I were texting more.
"Ready to go?" Edward asked as I met him in the lobby.
"Very much so." I yawned again.
The hospital was starting to fill back up. More patients arrived at six and we had picked up capacity from there. I was delighted when the day shift arrived. I don't think I've ever clocked out so fast. I was desperate to go home and snuggle… sleep with Edward.
The ride home was silent but in a good way. I spent the entire time staring out the window and listening to the mindless hum of the engine. I eternally cheered when we turned into our driveway. The shower and bed were both calling my name.
"I'm going to shower upstairs but I promise that I'll come back down stairs." I needed to scrub the hospital off of me.
Edward nodded at me in understanding. I grabbed my clothing including my last pair of shorts. I couldn't help but give myself a little pep talk while in the shower. He said their length was ok. He said that it didn't matter… you're married.
My thoughts were distracted by how good the water felt against my skin and how nice it was to scrub off the dirt from work. For hospitals being a sterile environment, they sure had a way of making me feel gross.
After my shower, I towel dried my hair to the best of my abilities. I didn't feel like getting out the blow dryer, I chose to braid my hair instead. Once I was dressed, I slowly made my way back down the stairs and into the bedroom.
Edward was already laying in bed, waiting for me. He made no show or comments that my shorts were too short. You were worried about nothing. I relaxed as he opened the covers for me.
"Come on." I climbed into bed and slid a pillow in between us, still worried about my sneaking desire to snuggle against his will. He mumbled a quiet, "fuck that" before throwing the pillow out of the bed. He pulled my body towards him so that my head was resting on his chest and he draped his arm over my side. "Goodnight." He gently kissed the top of my head.
"Goodnight." I gave a gentle kiss to his chest in return. Sleep quickly took over my body once I was in his arms.
Wednesday
My eyes slowly fluttered open as I felt the need to stretch. I absentmindedly reached my arms out to release the tension in my body. Reality came back to me as my hand collided with the side of Edward's face.
"Sorry." I squeaked and quickly drew my arms back to my body.
"Fuck. My eye." Edward laughed to himself while still sounding a little groggy. I peeked over my fingers at him and noticed that he was rubbing his eye.
"I am so sorry."
"You're fine." He continued laughing. "That wasn't how I pictured waking up."
"Really? I thought that everyone enjoyed a nice punch to the face. A great wake up call." I was trying to make light of the situation.
"I guess there are worse ways to wake up. My eye might hurt but at least a pretty girl is in my bed."
"Oh stop. Let me see your eye." I sat up and leaned over to look at him. I gently pressed my finger to the underside of his eye and looked at the redness that formed. "That might bruise." I frowned. "I'm so sorry."
"Bella, it's ok. I promise. It just means that I can do this without you getting mad."
"Do what?" My words were cut off by Edward's fingers digging into my sides as he started tickling me. My body flung down onto the bed and I desperately tried to wiggle out of his grasp. My legs started flailing as I gripped his wrists. "Stop. Stop. Edward, please stop before I pee myself." I couldn't help my body's response of laughter.
"I'm not sure I want to stop." He moved his body to tower over mine. His hands were relentless as they found their way under my shirt and onto my bare sides.
"I'm going to pee!" I laughed. Edward finally slowed his attack but couldn't hide his amused smile.
"Please don't pee on the bed." He slipped his hands out from under my shirt but didn't make a move to put space between us.
The air became thick as I took in our surroundings. I was still under the covers but Edward had moved on top of the sheets and was straddling my legs. I used my elbows to help me sit up and slide back a little. My error brought Edward and I closer together. My stomach started knotting as the butterflies returned. I bit my lower lip and my eyes darted to his lips. Make the first move. It would be this easy.
Edward's tongue peeked out slightly as he wet his lips. "Bella, I…" I cut his words off by pushing myself forward and gently kissing his lips. His lips were soft and silky. Just like you remember. I pulled back when I noticed that he wasn't responding.
My eyes searched his face with concern. You just fucked everything up. I told you that he wasn't interested. "I'm sorry." My cheeks felt like they were on fire. I turned to the side and made a move to get out of the bed.
Edward grabbed my wrist to prevent me from pulling back the covers. I turned slightly towards him with tears forming in the corner of my eyes. This would be easier if he got off my legs. I can't easily go anywhere with him on top of me.
"Let.." I was going to plead with him to let me go but my words were cut off by his lips returning to mine. He placed a gentle hand on my cheek as his lips molded to mine. He pulled back slightly to search my face for something. It only took a second but I was glad when his mouth returned to mine.
I grabbed his bicep with my left hand. Using my right hand, I cupped his jaw. I never got a chance to deepen the kiss because Edward pulled away again. I instantly missed the warmth of his lips once they were gone.
"Let's get something to eat. I can hear your stomach growling." He chuckled before getting off the bed. Edward walked into the bathroom completely unphased by the events that had just unfolded. I sat still for a moment while running my fingers over the edge of my lips, remembering the feel of our kiss.
To prevent myself from over thinking, I got out of bed and made my way to the kitchen. It was two in the afternoon but it felt like the perfect time to make pancakes. I located the ingredients to make them from scratch, none of that box crap that's never fluffy enough.
I had the first few in the pan by the time that Edward appeared. Without turning around, I broached a subject that I wasn't planning to think about.
"You didn't kiss back… well you did, but not at first. If you were only kissing me for my benefit and to ease my embarrassment then you need to tell…"
I was cut off by Edward swiftly turning me around. His lips landed on mine, hard. He had one arm firmly around my waist and the other tangled into my hair. My lips relaxed against his and my hands found purchase in his hair. He turned both of our bodies to back me against the counter. His tongue danced on the edge of my lip and I moaned into his mouth. He used this as an opportunity to further our kiss.
The feeling of his tongue dancing with mine and his lips sliding smoothly against me felt unreal. Better than I had ever imagined. It clicked in my brain that he had gone to the bathroom to brush his teeth. The taste of peppermint still lingered against his tongue. We pulled away from each other when we were both out of breath.
"I did nothing to ease your embarrassment. I kissed you because I wanted to." His words were softly spoken but I was still panting from the heat of the kiss.
"But you paused. I felt like you didn't want me."
"Bella, I never want you to doubt how much I want you. I will always want you. I was just trying to make sure that it was what you truly wanted." I was going to respond to him but the smell of burnt pancakes pulled me from my thoughts.
"My pancakes." I whined as I flipped the charred batter. I frowned as I walked them to the trash.
"I guess I distracted you for a little too long." Edward mused.
"I'm glad that you think this is funny."
…
We took a seat at the table once our food was ready… and not burnt. I kept glancing at the card deck that remained in the center of the table. It wasn't until I internally screamed to myself to grab one, that I made the motion to tear a card off.
Discuss past and present pets and the desire for future ones.
I set the card on the table between Edward and I so that we could both read it. These cards really don't have an order, do they?
"I can start." I sighed at the simple topic. "The only pet that I had growing up was a fish. A red betta fish who swam in circles all day. My mother wasn't fond of animals so I was never allowed to get anything else. I think that Charlie secretly wanted a dog but would never tell Renee that. He knew that she was very strong willed on her stance. I wanted a dog or a rabbit growing up but it never happened. Just me and my betta who had blue pebbles in the bottom of his tank." I knew that my response was boring but it was the truth. "I don't have any current pets as you know. And I'm not sure about future pets. My unrealistic dream pet would be a raccoon."
"A raccoon? Really?" Edward looked shocked.
"Yeah, I think they are cute. Like little thieves."
"I can see that… Would you like to elaborate on being unsure about future pets?" Edward asked.
"My thoughts are that we work weird and long hours with the jobs that we have. I find it unfair to bring a dog or possibly a cat into that. Don't get me wrong, I would love to have a pet but I don't think it's very feasible. It wouldn't be fair to have an irregular dinner time or not being able to run and walk during the day. If I was ever home more, then I might consider it a possibility."
"I definitely agree with that. That's actually the reason why I don't currently have a pet. I figured that since I can't properly care for it, then I don't need it. Caring for a pet is so much more than financially providing for it. At the last hospital I worked at, I had a ton of crazy hours so I wasn't able to emotionally support an animal. I knew that I couldn't give it the proper exercise so I chose to not get one."
"I'm glad that we are on the same page." I smiled at him.
"While growing up, my pets varied. I had a cat until my father died and my mother gave it away. When I lived with Esme and Carlisle, they had a dog for about three years but he died of old age. Emmett had a fish or two and they offered to get me one but I wasn't interested in them. Other than that, we didn't have any pets. Especially not when James was there. He seemed to torment any animal that passed our house."
"That's horrible. I'm glad that there were no animals in the house when he was there."
"Me too." Edward looked serious. "I think a dog would be my dream pet but it will probably be a while before I even consider getting one."
I stood to rinse my plate off, I was extremely pleased with how our conversation went. I knew that it wasn't a hard topic but I was incredibly thankful that we were on the same side. Pets can be a lot of responsibility and I would hate for us to have different expectations.
"I'm needing to do laundry today, obviously." I gestured to my outfit. "Let me know if you have anything you want to add. I figured that I would change the upstairs sheets tomorrow or Friday morning before our weekend get together. This way, the bed will be fresh in case someone decides to stay up there."
"I definitely don't mind your outfit." I rolled my eyes as Edward pretended to look me up and down. "I only have a few things to add if that's ok with you."
"It's okay with me. I will have to run multiple loads anyways. I'm out of clothes… like out, out."
I spent most of the afternoon doing laundry but by the time I was done, both Edward and I had clean clothes and fresh sheets. I decided to throw in the master sheets when I realized that they hadn't been cleaned in a hot minute. I would still wait until Thursday or Friday to prep the upstairs for visitors. I wanted the entire house to look clean and not like we had avoided the household duties for almost three weeks.
Edward and I had created a chore list and split our duties down the center. We found that it was easier to accomplish things when you weren't having to do them alone. By the time we settled on the couch we had finished the laundry, cleaned and remade the bed, washed and put away towels, swept, vacuumed both upstairs and down stairs, moped, dusted the living room and ceiling fans, sanitized the counters, and wiped down the windows. It seemed like a lot but I felt accomplished once we finished. The house looked amazing.
"Do you normally do all of that everytime you clean?" Edward asked as he took a seat next to me.
"It depends. I don't dust every week and dusting the fans is more of a seasonal thing. When the weather changes I like to completely deep clean the house, all the way down to scrubbing the baseboards. We obviously didn't do that today. I normally just sweep, vacuum, and keep up on laundry as my weekly duties. I'm more of a 'clean it when it's dirty, not clean it endlessly'. What about you, how clean was your bachelor pad."
"Umm…. I normally just wash my laundry."
"What? Are you telling me that you're used to living in filth?" I was shocked at Edward's statement.
"No! I just am used to... having a…cleaner." His sentence trailed off a little. "I hired a cleaning service that comes in weekly and cleans while I'm at work. They cleaned my house from top to bottom so the only thing I had to do was wash my own laundry….. They have actually been coming here too. I told them to clean everything but the room you've been staying in. I didn't want you to freak out if you stuff was moved."
"Oh." I knew that Edward made good money but I didn't think he made weekly cleaner money.
"I was actually lucky when I found out that their company had a branch in Seattle. Are you okay with this? I can understand if it makes you uncomfortable to have strangers in the house."
"It's not that it makes me uncomfortable, it's just a luxury that I've never dreamed of having…. Maybe it is weird that there is someone coming in here and cleaning while I'm gone but it's okay. This is what you're used to and I'm sure that I can try to get used to it as well." I made a slightly sour face as I put a little more thought into it. "You let me spend my day cleaning this place as if it hasn't been cleaned in almost three weeks. I didn't think that the house looked extremely dirty but it would have been nice to know that there wasn't hidden dust that I was scrubbing at. You just went along with it! Your cleaning windows and fans as if they weren't cleaned earlier this week or last week."
"Well the cleaners come tomorrow, so you weren't cleaning a perfectly clean house."
I narrowed my eyes at him. "That's worse. I just spent the day cleaning the house and you're paying people to clean tomorrow!" I exclaimed. I turned my body so that I could lay down with my feet up on the couch. Edward straightened my knees out and placed my legs over his lap.
"Sorry?" He rubbed my leg comfortingly.
"Can't change it now, just know that I would have spent my day differently if I had known."
"On a happier note, it's date night. We agreed to go out for dinner on Wednesday and today is Wednesday." He smiled brightly at me.
"Are you trying to make me feel better?" I sat up so that I could look him face to face.
"Maybe." He shrugged. "Is there a better way to do that?" I picked up on his clues as he slid my body onto his lap.
"You can only try." I smiled as he softly planted his lips onto mine. The kiss never ventured further than a few soft brushes. He never deepened the kiss and I don't find the courage to either. I was living in the feeling of his soft lips as they tenderly brushed against mine. "That's a good start." I commented softly when we finally separated.
….MMHW…
Edward and I walked back into the house with our hands interlocked. Our date went remarkably well. Edward took me to a Mexican restaurant then out for ice cream. We spent the majority of the night talking and learning even more about each other. We had even discussed our thoughts from the previous night. We still agreed to make our vacation a family vacation at the end of the summer and celebrate our honeymoon on our one year anniversary. I was also trying to convince him that a cruise was a reasonable selection but that might take more effort to get him on board.
"I'm glad that we went out tonight." I commented as I led him to sit on the couch.
"Me too. I always enjoy spending time with you."
"I'm glad but I do have a request." I spent the night thinking about how to approach this topic.
"Is something wrong?" I didn't answer him right away but settled into his side.
"Of course not, I've just been thinking. I know that you asked me out tonight since that's what your romantic card said. I enjoy spending time with you as well but I don't want you to tell me when you draw a new card. I don't think that I want to know if you are being romantic or just following a card. I would prefer to think that you're doing everything on your own whim and desire and not because you're obligated to. You can always let me know if it's a card when you do something extremely crazy and out of the ordinary." I hoped that he understood what he was saying.
"I asked you out because I wanted to ask you out, the card didn't affect that. I promise that I won't tell you if I'm following my own intuition or a card unless it's something crazy. Just know that no matter if it's a card or my decision, I'm wanting to do it. I want to date you, to woe you, to love you, and fix all of our missed steps."
My heart swelled at his words. I wanted to have the romantic steps as well. "Thank you." I couldn't find any other words but thank you. It was the only way that I could express my feelings since he truly understood what I wanted.
His green eyes bore into mine before he gently leaned his head down to press a kiss to my lips. "Let's go to bed." I frowned when he pulled away from me. I wanted nothing more than to spend the entire night kissing him.
Thursday.
Edward and I didn't ride together today since I had to go into work before him, which also meant that I got to go home before him. This would give me a chance to shower and start dinner before he arrived. I was thinking about making parmesan chicken but my ideas are always subjected to change.
"Hey, Bells." Rosalie greeted me as she approached the nurses station. I looked up from the computer.
"Hey. How's room 38? Has she progressed any further along?"
"Not really, but I'm not here to talk about that. I heard that there was a little show in the E.R. on Monday. Do you want to tell me about that?" I knew what she was talking about but I was still going to do some fishing.
"Monday? Nothing that I know about. We were quite busy and I was sent downstairs when we had no ultrasound technicians available. Other than that, I know nothing about the E.R., why do you ask?" I feigned innocents to her question.
"Lies. You know exactly what I'm talking about. Your eyebrows raised slightly and your cheeks just tinged a bit darker." Dammit she knows me too well.
"Are you wanting to talk about Jessica's freak out? How she had annoyed Edward all day then forcefully shoved her hands into his pockets to the point that a patient had called her out on it? I can talk about that." I tried my best to turn my focus back onto the computer.
"No. No. No. I want to talk about your hand in his pocket and her face when you did so. I already know that he told her off and that the patient found it quite humorous. Alice was sure to fill me in on the events but I'm wanting to hear your take."
"I'm sorry to disappoint you. I can only tell you about assisting a doctor who couldn't reach their phone while they were helping a patient." I knew that she could tell I was lying, I could even feel my ears heat up as the rest of my face flushed.
"Sure. Sure. Maybe I should go ask Edward about it."
"No!" I almost raised out of my seat. My worried expression was met with Rosalie's amused one. She raised her eyebrow at me as if to say 'spill'. "Yes, I put my hand in his pocket. Only at his request. Jessica's face was one of horror and shock which quickly turned sour when she tried to tell me that I was being inappropriate. That's when the patient pointed out that Jessica had tried to force her hand into his pocket without Edward's permission. The entire time I was downstairs, Jessica was extremely eager to help him despite his look of annoyance."
"I knew it!"
"Knew what?" I questioned.
"I knew that it was more than phone grabbing. Your face gets redder everytime you talk about being in close proximity to him and your face looked slightly jealous when you mentioned Jessica spending the day with him. You like him, like a lot."
"And? He's my husband."
She rolled her eyes slightly. "He may be your husband but I've never seen you get so flushed over talking about someone. It's normally the crude jokes and avoidance of sex talk that sends you over the edge with blushing." I would never admit it but she was right. "You want him and you want to do stuff with him."
"Oh, hush. I'm not blushing and you don't know anything." Except everything you're saying is completely true. "Would it be so wrong to hope to do 'stuff' as you so elegantly put it."
"Not at all. It's good to see you happy and it's even better to get a kick out of your embarrassment."
"I am not embarrassed!" I felt the need to defend myself.
"That's not what your cheeks say." I knew that her teasing was done so out of love but I still wished that my emotions weren't as obvious.
The first thing I saw when I arrived home was a package on the front porch. Excitement filled me when I realized it was my package. I had ordered a vibrator since mine never made it to the house from my apartment. I was not about to ask anyone if it got packed. Rather save myself the embarrassment.
….MMHW…
EPOV
Bella was nowhere to be found when I got home. To avoid a repeat of Monday, I ended up in my office. I was using this time to catch up on some work. My mind couldn't help but wonder if Bella was in the shower. I've spent all week struggling as I imagine her wet and dripping like before. Stop with the perverted thoughts!
My concentration was lost when I realized that I wasn't imagining things but rather hearing things. My eyebrows scrunched and I lifted my head away from my work, trying to follow the sound. I dropped my pencil as if it would help me strengthen my ears. I could hear a faint buzzing sound almost like it was in the distance. I made the bold decision to follow the noise. I stood up and moved around my desk, making sure that it wasn't my phone or my computer.
Moving towards the wall, I checked my surrounds to make sure that it wasn't anything electrical. I would hate to call an electric on over a strange buzzing noise. As I moved around, the sounds seemed stronger near the door but was still too faint to be in the room. I followed the noise and stepped into the hall. I pressed my ear against the wall right outside of my office. Maybe it's the hall's electrics?
I noticed that Bella's bedroom light was on. Maybe she also hears the sound. I raised my fist to knock on her door but found myself frozen in place. My search to find the buzzing was silenced by a moaning sound. It was quiet but undeniable.
Color rose in my cheeks as I realized it was Bella. I could almost make out the sound of a slight 'oh fuck'. I quickly returned to my office and shut the door behind me. My brain started to work in overdrive as I processed the current events. There was a buzzing sound…. Bella was moaning…. Bella was masturbating, while only two doors away from me and I had been standing on the other side of the door while she pleasured herself.
Blood rushed to my dick as I thought about her hand disappearing between her thighs. A part of me wanted to know if she was fingering herself. She was definitely using a vibration of somesort. My thoughts turned juvenile as I squeezed my eyes shut. I wonder what she thinks about when touching herself.
The only way that I would be able to go to bed next to her was if I ended my night with a cold shower. The only thing that I was sure of was that I needed to leave my office. Now. My mind was going crazy over listening to her pleasure herself. I was so turned on but also felt scummy for my feelings since I doubted she knew I could hear.
I was extremely quiet when leaving my office…. until I tripped in the doorway "Shit." I cursed to myself while hoping Bella didn't hear me. I quickly made it down stairs and to the bedroom. I was in desperate need of a shower.
I'd be lying if I said my dreams weren't filled with Bella. Especially the images I had of her with water running down her chest. Those images did nothing to stop my feelings towards her. She was attractive and my body was definitely drawn to her but I'm not sure if her feelings were returned. We have kissed a few times but haven't moved any further since I don't want to push her if she's not ready.
I fell asleep early into the evening. I was slightly thankful that I wouldn't have to face her before falling asleep, it wouldn't be easy to stop at just a good night kiss.
Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed how this story has progressed so far. Up next is chapter 10 which should cover the entire weekend (might have to post multiple chapters at once to cover the weekend). Do you want this chapter posted early? Let me know, I need at least five comments to make a decision. I don't want to post chapters early if you'd prefer to wait.
Please leave a review and let me know what you think of the story so far. I appreciate all the feedback I get.