81

"You are driving me insane," Angela cries when Alice squeezes between the front seats to start the song on the radio over for the tenth time in a row.

"I love this song, and if I mess up, I have to start from the beginning."

"Mary Alice, if you don't sit your ass back down and put your seatbelt on, we're turning around," I warn in an authoritative tone.

My vampire smirks but keeps her eyes on the road while my youngest insists that seat belts aren't necessary with Bella behind the wheel.

"Ali, please stop trying to give your father more gray hair than he already has. Rabbit, I packed a set of headphones in the bag by your feet. Give them to your sister."

"But—"

"You're driving us all up the wall. You can either listen to your song on repeat with the headphones or not at all."

Alice gives a heavy sigh and rolls her eyes. "Yes, Mother Dearest."

Bella squeezes my hand, a small smile playing on her lips.

"I do not have gray hair," I mutter.

Angela snorts. "Denial ain't just a river in Egypt."

Bella snorts and cuts her eyes to me. "I'll make you an optometrist appointment when we get back home, handsome."

I scoff and shake my newspaper out, prepared to ignore all the girls in my life for the rest of the drive. It's difficult because my tone-deaf child can't seem to get the lyrics to her favorite song correct.

Summer vacation has just begun for the girls, and we're going to visit my parents for a quick visit before Alice starts her job at Cora's. I'm sort of nervous about spending the nights with Bella in my childhood bedroom. We haven't been able to keep our hands off each other lately, and I refuse to touch her with them so close by.

"Your parents are a mated couple, Edward." She just shrugged when I voiced my apprehension. "They will be understanding if we need to spend some alone time together while we're there."

The plan was to fly out until Bella let it slip that she'd never been on a real road trip. The twins insisted we make it a grand affair. There's a cooler with drinks, plenty of snacks, and Bella's blood. Disney movie soundtracks, much to my chagrin, and road trip game supplies.

Bella is really good at license plate B.I.N.G.O. because of her heightened eyesight, but that's okay. Ang dominates in Fortunately, Unfortunately, and Alice swears up and down that she's the best at Punch Buggy. I consider myself an Eye Spy champ.

"Are we there yet?" Angela asks over the sound of her sister's caterwauling.

"Rabbit, don't make me pull over," Bella warns playfully.

They are determined to give her the full experience, including the downside of sharing a small space for hours on end. By the time we stop for the night, Bella is ready to pull her hair out, so I sprang for separate rooms. For the safety of my children. I lie.

"Having fun yet?" I ask when we ensure the girls are safely tucked away for the night in the room across the hall with the room service menu and HBO package.

Bella sighs tiredly, flops down on the bed, and throws an arm over her eyes. "Call down and see if they have duct tape."

I laugh and stop unbuttoning my shirt. "Are you planning on tying me up?"

"No. I'm going to gag the girls before we hit the road tomorrow. If they don't have any, I'll run to a hardware store before we leave."

I can't tell if she's joking or not until she moves her arm. Her smile is genuine, especially when she sees that I'm taking my clothes off.

In a flash, she's standing in front of me, naked as the day she was born.

"Hmm, hello." She hums and runs her icy hands up my abdomen, leaving goosebumps in their wake.

"Did you pack the electric blankets?" I ask in a low voice.

"Of course, I did." Her fingers braid in my hair, and she pulls me down until our lips meet.

The small, rumbly purr that comes from her chest is my favorite sound. I wrap my arms around her and kiss her until I'm a shivering mess.

"Let me get those blankets," Bella whispers, pulling out of my embrace.

This time tomorrow, we'll be at my parent's house, and I might be a grown man with a newly found mate, but there's no way I'm having sexual relations while under their roof. Nope. Not happening. Bella and I take full advantage of our last night of privacy, staying up really late and enjoying our alone time. I can sleep in the car tomorrow while she drives.

"I love you."

Bella burrows her head in my chest.

"I love you."