6

"Isabella," Carlisle whispered as his hands roamed over my nude body. I moaned, pressing myself against him, needing him to touch me. "Baby, are you awake?"

"I am now," I giggled, rolling onto my back and looking over at him. He was propped up on one elbow, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. "What time is it?"

"Almost nine," he replied.

I groaned. "Too early."

He laughed. "Actually, it's pretty late. The boys are still asleep, which never happens. Usually they are up before the sun."

"Oh," I whispered, shifting so that I was facing him. I placed my hand on his chest, smiling when I felt him shiver. "I thought I was the only one who reacted like that when you touched me."

"Like what?" he asked, his tone low and soft.

"Happy, content, perfect," I whimpered, unable to keep the emotion from lacing my words.

Carlisle rolled us so that he was hovering over me, one hand sliding down my side while the other was tucked under my pillow. His eyes bore into mine, the intensity had tears filling my eyes. "Being with you makes me feel all of those, Isabella. You make me feel all of those emotions."

A tear slipped from my eye, but before I could wipe it away, Carlisle leaned down and kissed it. His lips trailed down to my jaw, sliding along my skin and leaving a tingle in their wake. I moaned, lifting my hips and pressing them against him. I could feel his cock — hard, thick, and long — between us. I wanted to touch him, to taste him on my tongue, so I brought my hand up to his shoulder and pushed him onto his back, moving so that I was straddling him.

"Fuck," he groaned, his hands reaching for my hips, but I scooted away from him, sliding down his body. Wrapping my fingers around his cock, I shifted my eyes up to his as my tongue snaked out and wrapped around the tip. "Oh, Jesus fuck!"

I giggled as I slid him into my mouth, letting him reach the back of her throat before pulling back. Carlisle was withering behind me, moaning my name and begging me not to stop. Over and over, I plunged him into my throat. His hand found the back of my head, his hips lifted just slightly. His breathing was rapid, coming out in short, airy pants, and I knew he was close. Hollowing my cheeks, I sucked harder and plunged himself into my throat. Carlisle cried out as he arched off the bed, his cock twitching in my mouth, and shooting his release down my throats.

I swallowed every drop before letting him fall from my mouth and sitting up, smiling shyly at him. "Thank you."

He laughed. "Pretty sure I should be thanking you."

"Yeah?" I asked with a smirk, and he nodded. "You still can."

"Hmm," he hummed, shifting us so that I was laying under him again. His eyes traveled down the length of my body, resting on my pussy. His lips curled upward as his hands slid to my legs, pushing them apart. He shifted his eyes to mine before he moved so that his mouth almost on me. I could feel his warm breath washing over my wet folds.

"Baby, please," I begged, needing him to taste me. Needing that connection with him more than anything in the world right then.

"What do you want from me?" he asked, his eyes locked onto mine. "Tell me what you want."

"You," I breathed. "Just you."

He smiled. "I'm already yours."

Carlisle lowered his lips against my pussy, his tongue sliding between my wet folds. I cried out, grabbing his pillow and pressing it over my mouth to stifle the sounds pouring from between my lips. However, Carlisle grabbed the pillow and tossed it onto the floor.

"I want to hear you, baby," he growled.

"More," I begged. "Please, give me more!"

A deep groan reverberated from his chest as he buried his face between my legs, licking and sucking every inch of me that he could reach. His hands were gripping my thighs, holding me off the bed and making love to my pussy with his mouth. While he'd tasted me before, this time was different. Our entire relationship had shifted over the last week, changing from two people just testing the waters, to a couple planning on spending the rest of our lives together. And make no mistake, I planned on spending the rest of my life with Carlisle. I loved him, loved his boys, and knew that we were meant to be together.

My body trembled, my orgasm was building, yet I found myself fighting the urge to let it wash over me. Carlisle shifted his hand between us, two fingers delving into my pussy and curling against my inner walls. I screamed as I found my release, clenching down around his fingers. He lapped against my wet fold before leaning up and kissing me hard, thrusting his tongue into my mouth.

Just then, the sound of the boys running down the hall flittered into our bedroom. Carlisle rolled onto the bed next to me and grabbed the sheet, covering us just seconds before the door opened and they came bounding inside, skidding to a stop next to the bed.

"Daddy, I'm hungry," Tyler whined, attempting to climb on the bed, but Carlisle reached over and stopped him, causing his son to look at him with a hurtful expression.

"Go downstairs," he told them. "Isabella and I will be right down."

Michael and Tyler grumbled, but did as their father asked and walked out of the room, leaving the door wide open. Carlisle muttered a series of four letter words under his breath as he climbed off the bed and shut the door and looked over at me.

"Shower with me?" he asked, smiling.

I nodded and scrambled off the bed, walking into the bathroom.

Our shower was intense, to say the least. Carlisle had a hard time keeping his hands to himself, not that I minded. His touch made me feel alive, made me feel free for the first time. Once we were done, we dried off and walked back into our bedroom and got dressed. It was still an odd thought, but it was our bedroom, mine and his. But as I searched through my drawers for a shirt to put on, I realized that I would need to go back to my mother's house soon and pack up the rest of my belongings. That was a trip I wasn't looking forward to at all. Renee had called a few times over the last four days, each time she left a hateful message. I could hear her slurring and knew she was drunk. While I wanted to believe it was the alcohol that made her behave in such a horrible way, I knew it wasn't. No, my mother was pissed that I had defied her by being with a man ten years older than me, a man who, in her eyes, was abusing me. It was ridiculous, of course. Carlisle loved me.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked, drawing my attention over to him. He was sitting on the bed, tying his shoes. "You look upset."

I smiled, or tried to at least, as I shook my head. "I'm fine. Just thinking."

He nodded and stood up, walking over to me, sliding his arms around my bare torso. All I was wearing were a pair of pink satin panties and a matching bra. "I'm going to head down before the boys mutiny and raid the pantry."

"Okay," I whispered, sliding my hands over his. "I'll be right down."

Carlisle kissed the side of my neck, causing me to smile, before he released me and walked out of the room. I took a deep breath as I grabbed a T-shirt and tossed it onto the bed searching for a pair of shorts. Once I was dressed, I pulled my hair up into a ponytail and added a pair of flip flops before heading downstairs to the kitchen, where I found them sitting around the table, bowls of cereal in front of them and laughter filling the air. I leaned against the doorframe and just watched as they interacted. The boys looked at him with amazement and complete awe.

"Bella!" Tyler cheered as he looked over and saw me standing there. "Sit by me!"

"Okay, just let me get some milk," I told him. Once I had poured myself a glass of milk, I walked over to the table and sat in the seat next to him. Tyler immediately scrambled into my lap, dragging his bowl of cereal with him.

"Ty, sit in your own chair," Carlisle laughed, and when Tyler shook his head and nestled himself further into my arms, I smirked.

"It's okay," I snickered. "I just might be forced to eat his breakfast, though."

"No," Tyler whined, guarding his bowl with both arms. He leaned down and licked a Cheerio into his mouth.

"You're not a dog," Carlisle grimaced. "Use your spoon."

Tyler grumbled, but picked up his spoon, keeping his other arm wrapped around his bowl like he really was afraid that I was going to eat his food. I slid my arm around his waist and pressed my lips to the back of his head, causing him to smile around the mouthful of food in his mouth as he looked over his shoulder at me.

"Dad, can we go to the beach today?" Michael asked.

Carlisle shifted his eyes over to me, raising an eyebrow and silently asking me if I wanted to. I smiled and nodded. "Sure," he said. "But only if you load the dishwasher with this morning's dishes."

Though they grumbled, the boys agreed. Once everyone was done eating and the boys had cleared the table, they rushed upstairs to their room, coming down a few minutes later wearing their swim trunks, arm floats, and an armful of beach toys like shovels, buckets, and balls. Carlisle and I lathered them in sunscreen before we loaded into the car and headed to the beach.

The moment the car was stopped, the boys were out of their seats and half-way down the beach, only stopping with Carlisle and I both yelled for them to wait. We gathered everything and made our way through the sand to them, ignoring the sad looks on their faces from our yelling. They were dramatic, but both boys knew better than to run off like that.

Once we had a spot picked out, the boys turned to Carlisle, grabbing his hands and pulling him toward the water.

"Come on, Daddy, come on!" Tyler begged, giving his hand a hearty tug.

"Okay, okay, just a second," he laughed, looking over at me. "Coming?"

I shook my head. "I'm staying here."

"You sure?" he asked.

Nodding, I lifted up the book I'd brought. "Yep, just going to read. Go. Have fun."

"Okay," he sighed, before taking off with the boys beside him. When they reached the water, I heard the three of them yell, "ONE, TWO, THREE!" before they jumped into the surf. A smile spread over my lips as I watched them break through the surface, the three of them laughing.

Though I had my book open, I found myself watching them more than I read. Carlisle was a wonderful father. He had so much patience and endurance, especially with Tyler, who tended to be needier than his brother. I often wondered if that was because he was so little when his mother left, that her absence in his life made him more dependent on his father than Michael. The last few days had proved as much.

Every morning, Michael and Tyler had insisted that I walk them to their classrooms and that I was the one who picked them up. On Tuesday, Carlisle met us at the school and then drove us home, but on Wednesday, he had stay at the hospital so he and Edward Masen arranged for his car to be in the parking lot when I got out, which just made people stare at me even more. Dr. Gerandy had kept his word and had made it his mission to make Carlisle's life miserable, at least at the hospital. Starting tomorrow night, he was scheduled to work the night shift, which meant the boys and I would be home alone. I didn't like it, but with only a couple more weeks until school was over and I graduated, we were stuck in Forks.

By Friday, most of the kids at school had stopped staring at me, at least not making it obvious. Though I heard them talking about me, calling me a slut and whore. Most of those came from the girls, while the boys seemed to think that because I was dating Carlisle, I would be willing to date them, too. It didn't matter, not anymore. They could talk about me all they wanted, I knew where my heart lay and that was with Carlisle.

"Hey, you," he said, falling onto the blanket next to me. He was soaked, his hair sticking out in every direction. The boys had settled in the sand and were filling their buckets up. "Good book?"

"I wouldn't know," I laughed. "You distracted me."

"I did?" he asked, and I nodded. "How?"

I felt my cheeks warm. "By being you. How was the water?"

"Cold," he snickered. "Why didn't you come in?"

I bit my lip as I shook my head. "I don't know how to swim."

Carlisle pushed himself on his elbow and stared at me. "You don't know how to swim?"

I shook my head. "Never learned. My dad hated the water," I told him with a frown.

"You miss him, don't you?"

Once again, I nodded. "Every day."

"You know I was there," he whispered. "When they brought him in, I was working the ER."

"I knew that," I murmured.

Carlisle reached over, sliding his hand over mine. "He wasn't in any pain. In the end, I mean. I don't know if that helps."

"He wasn't?" I whimpered.

He shook his head. "The body, when faced with a traumatic event like he did, has a way of . . . protecting itself. Once he lost consciousness, he didn't feel much."

My lips trembled as I pulled his hand up to my chest, hugging his arm. "Do . . . do you think, if he hadn't been killed, that he would hate me? Like my mother does?"

Carlisle sighed as he sat up and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me onto his lap. "Renee doesn't hate you. She hates me, and the fact that I love you too much to keep away from you and I'm sure your father wouldn't like us being together, either."

I nodded, knowing he was telling the truth.

"I've been thinking," he murmured, causing me to look over at him. "Maybe, I need to start sending out some resumes."

"What?" I asked.

Carlisle sighed and leaned his forehead against the side of my head. "I don't see the board renewing my contract. Especially since I all but told them to fuck off Tuesday. I know you have a few weeks until graduation, and I don't know what your plans are for college, but we need to start making plans, right?"

"You'd do that? You'd move so I can go to school where ever I want?"

He smiled. "Of course, I would. Isabella, you're everything to me, to the boys. We need you."

"I need you, too," I whispered.

"Good," he laughed. "So, where were you planning on going?"

"Um," I said, taking a deep breath. "I haven't made any decisions, but I got accepted to UW, UCLA, Berkeley, and Dartmouth."

Carlisle's eyes widened. "Wow. I knew you were smart, but, damn, baby."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever. I was lucky that they took pity on me. I wrote one hell of a good essay on how my father's untimely demise caused me to suffer. Typical sob story."

"Pshh," he scoffed. "Which school is top on your list?"

"Honestly?" I asked, and he nodded. "Berkeley."

"Why there?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "They have a good English department. And it's warm and dry, most of the time at least."

He laughed. "You don't like the cold and rain?"

"No," I scoffed. "I hate it here."

His smile dropped. "I didn't realize that."

"Don't get me wrong," I said, quickly. "I love you, and I love the boys, but Forks . . ."

"I get it," he murmured. "California sounds kind of nice," he added, looking over at Michael and Tyler who had nearly buried themselves in the sand. "Think they'll like it?"

"I hope so," I whispered, knowing that if he had to choose between me and them, he would pick them, as he should. They were his children, his entire world. If they didn't want to move, he wouldn't force them.

Michael and Tyler scrambled to their feet and walked over to us. "Dad, we're hungry," Michael mumbled, rubbing his tummy.

"Yeah," Tyler added, falling to his knees. "I'm starving to death."

"To death?" Carlisle gasped, dramatically.

Tyler nodded, falling backward with his arms and legs spread. "See? I'm dead."

"Hmm," Carlisle hummed, sliding me back onto the blanket before he moved so that he was leaning over his son. His hands grazed Tyler's sides, causing the little boy to laugh uncontrollably. "Funny, I didn't realize that dead people laughed."

"Stop it, Daddy!" he laughed, struggling to get away.

Michael climbed on Carlisle's back, trying in vain to help his brother. However, Carlisle managed to maneuver him so that both boys were laying under him as he tickled them, causing them to nearly scream with laughter.

"Stop! Please!" Michael begged.

Carlisle leaned back on his legs, smiling like a goof. "Fine, whatever. Let's pack up and we can go home and eat."

The boys cheered as they scrambled to their feet and rushed over and began gathering their toys. Ten minutes later, we had everything loaded into the car and were on our way back to the house. The boys were in the backseat, singing a song they had completely made up. Carlisle reached over and grabbed my hand, causing me to look over at him. He winked, his smile growing wider with each mile he drove.

When Carlisle pulled up in the driveway, I felt my heart drop into my stomach. There, sitting on the front porch, was my mother. Carlisle and I exchanged a look as he turned the car off.

"Daddy, who's that?" Michael asked from the backseat.

"Um, Isabella's mom," he murmured, keeping his eyes locked on mine. "We can leave. I'll take you wherever you want."

I shook my head, knowing that running away wasn't going to help anything. "It's okay. Just take the boys inside. Please?"

"Isabella," Carlisle mumbled, warily. "I don't think you should be alone with her."

Once again, I felt my lips trembled. "Me either, but they don't need to deal with her right now. They are more important than anything."

Though I knew he didn't like the idea of me facing my mother, Carlisle nodded and climbed out of the car. Together, we got the boys out of the back and made our way to where Renee was sitting, glaring at him.

"Get away from her," Renee screeched as she lunged for him, bumping into Michael and knocking him to the ground. He started wailing, causing her to look down at him. "Shut up, you fucking little brat!"

I snapped my eyes up to her. "Don't talk to him like that," I yelled, grabbing Michael by the arm and pulling him behind me. Carlisle had Tyler behind him, as my mother turned her murderous glare back to me. I could smell the booze radiating off of her. "Look, I know you're upset. Let them go inside and then we can talk."

"Talk? Talk!" she screamed, grabbing my arm and dragging me away from Michael.

"Bella!" he cried, reaching for me.

"You're coming with me," she snapped, ignoring him and trying to drag me toward her car.

"No, I'm not," I sobbed. Her nails were digging into my skin. "Let me go!"

"Why?" she seethed, turning around and slapping me with her free hand.

I spun away from her, falling to the ground and hitting my head on the edge of one of the steps leading up to the porch. Searing pain exploded inside of me and I could hear everyone screaming. My eyes fluttered over to Carlisle, who had a look of horror on his face. Lifting my hand, I reached for him just before I felt the darkness take me away.

Thank you for all the reviews. I told you it would get intense. I warned you! LOL. Anyway, yes Renee is beyond horrible. Will this open Bella's eyes and cause her to press charges against her mother?