14
Just before seven, the doorbell rang and I heard Carlisle yell that he had it, followed by the sound of the boys trying to beat him there. I smiled, for what felt like the first time since I'd gotten home from school. Those silly boys of mine, I thought. All three of them had spent the afternoon trying to take my mind off the fact that Mr. Varner had attacked me, that he'd called me a whore, that he'd groped me.
Of course the boys had no idea what had happened to me, and I didn't want them to. They were innocent, and I'd fight tooth and nail to keep them that way as long as I could.
"Bella." At the sound of Jasper's voice, I placed the knife I was using to cut cucumbers for the salad on the counter and turned to look at him. He was standing in the doorway to the kitchen with a pie in his hands and a frown on his face. "Where should I put it?"
"Um," I said, trying like hell to sound stronger than I felt. "Next to the microwave, I guess."
He nodded and walked across the kitchen, placing the pie on the counter. Turning so that he was facing me, he brought his hand up and brushed my hair behind my shoulder. "Are you okay?"
"Great," I lied, unable to keep the tremor out the single word.
"No, you're not," he murmured, pulling me into his arms. "I'm so sorry I didn't get there faster."
"It's not your fault," I cried. "I can't thank you enough for listening to Alice. You stopped him from . . ." I couldn't say it. The word died in my throat, but I knew, just like he did, that if he hadn't gotten there when he did, Mr. Varner would have raped me.
"You're welcome, I guess," he groused, and I leaned away, wiping my tears off my face with the back of my hand as Carlisle and Edward walked into the kitchen.
"Everything okay in here?" Edward asked, a frown tugging on his lips.
I nodded and turned back to the vegetables. "I didn't even ask, but do you two even like cucumbers?"
"Yeah, we do," Edward said, walking up behind me, he placed one hand on my shoulder while tugging the sleeve up on my shirt, exposing the bruises on my arm. "It is sore?"
"Yeah," I whispered.
He inhaled a sharp breath, but before he could say anything, the boys came running into the kitchen. In an instant, Tyler was wrapped around my body, his head falling against my sore hip. I manage to stifle my wince and pulled him into my arms, ignoring the look on Carlisle's face. All afternoon he'd been telling Tyler that he was too heavy for me to hold, and all afternoon, I'd been telling him that he wasn't.
"Sweetie, want to do me a favor?" I asked.
"I guess," he mumbled, laying his head on my shoulder.
"Can you and Michael go into the garage and get four folding chairs, please?"
Both boys groaned, but agreed. I placed Tyler down and watched as they walked into the garage. Turning back to the counter, I picked up the knife and finished chopping the cucumbers.
"Bella," Edward said, softly.
"Don't," I murmured. "I don't want to talk about it right now."
"Okay, if you're sure," he muttered.
I put on my best smile and looked over my shoulder at him. "I just want to enjoy dinner with my friends."
"While we can, at least," Jasper groused, and I looked over at him. "I was fired today."
"What?" I gasped just as the doorbell rang again.
For a moment, nobody moved, but then Carlisle turned and walked into the living room, and the boys came trudging into the kitchen with a folding chair in their arms. The look on their faces was enough for me to know that they wouldn't be able to get the other two chairs, so I went into the garage to get them. The tantrum they would throw wasn't worth it, something I knew from two years as their babysitter.
When I walked into the kitchen, I found Emmett and Rose standing next to Alice and Esme, who had her arm wrapped around Alice's waist and looked like she was trying to hold my best friend together. Carlisle and the boys were pulling plates from the dishwasher while Jasper had taken over chopping the cucumbers and Edward was standing around looking awkwardly out of place.
"Here, let me get those for you," Edward said, pulling the two chairs out of my arms.
"Oh, okay, thanks," I mumbled, clearing my throat and turning back to the stove.
"Bella," Alice whimpered.
I paused before I looked over at her.
"Are you all right?" she asked.
Shifting my eyes to the boys first, I nodded. "I am."
She sighed, but didn't push the issue, knowing how much I wanted to protect the boys. Since dinner was ready, everyone settled around the table Michael wasn't happy that Carlisle insisted on sitting next to me, and seeing as Tyler has planted himself in my lap, which meant Michael had to take the chair next to his father, who feigned hurt that his son would rather sit next to me. At least, I think he was pretending. I wondered if the boys' dependence on me was hurting their relationship with Carlisle. I didn't want to come between them.
"All of this looks . . . delicious," Esme said, smiling at me. "It's been a while since I've had a home cooked meal."
"I figured your mom would have tried to fatten you up when you got home," I replied, placing some roast on Tyler's plate, followed by some mashed potatoes, green beans, and a roll. He grimaced as he picked up his fork and poked the roast. "Try it."
"It looks gross," he grumbled, tilting his head back and looking at me. "Do I have to?"
"If you want a brownie later," I said, kissing the tip of his nose.
Tyler laughed. "Okay, fine!"
He tore a small piece off and slowly brought it up to his mouth, a grimace already tugging on his lips before the meat even touched his tongue. However, a moment later, he smiled and nodded, declaring, "It's yummy in my tummy!"
Laughing, everyone started filling their plates. While we ate, the boys entertained all of us with the details of their end-of-the-year parties, everything from the cupcakes that Angela Weber's mother brought to the water balloon fight that Michael's class had, where they all ganged up on their teachers and soaked them from head to toe. However, even though our guest were listening to every words the boys said, throughout the meal, everyone kept glancing at me, like they were afraid I'd suddenly grab a knife and slice my wrists. I was stronger than that. I had two boys and Carlisle, I had good friends, and most importantly, we were getting the fuck out of Forks as soon as we could. Life was pretty damn good, if you asked me.
After two helpings of almost everything and a couple of brownies, the boys were nearly falling asleep at the table, so I scooped Tyler into my arms and led Michael upstairs to their bedroom. They changed into their pajamas and climbed into their bed. With a hug and a kiss to the cheek, I tucked them in before heading back downstairs.
When I walked into the kitchen, I was surprised to see Emmett, Edward, Jasper, and Carlisle cleaning the place up. Carlisle and Jasper were loading the dishwasher, while Emmett was scrubbing the pans that wouldn't fit and Edward was wiping down the counter. I walked over to the table and sat down.
"How'd you get them to clean?" I asked, earning me a glare from all four men. "What?"
"First of all, they didn't get us to do anything," Carlisle griped. "You cooked, so it only seemed fair."
I nodded. "If you say so, lover."
He glared at me again, but the sparkle in his eyes told me that he wasn't pissed. Once they were done, Jasper grabbed the pie off the counter and placed it in the middle of the table, sitting across from me. Carlisle placed some smaller plates next to it before grabbing the pot of coffee he'd been brewing and placed it on the table, as well.
"Who all wants coffee?" he asked.
Jasper, Edward, Esme, and Rose all said, "Me."
He nodded and pulled five cups from the cabinet and placed them on the table, too. Adding the cream, sugar, and the bottle of honey for himself, he sat at down next to me, fixed himself a cup, and leaned back, placing his arm on the back of my chair. An awkward, uncomfortable silence filled the air, one that I didn't like.
Sighing, I leaned forward, placed my elbow on the table, and looked at Jasper. "Mr. Greene fired you."
Emmett, Rose, Alice, and Esme looked from me to Jasper, who nodded. "For striking a fellow teacher. Apparently, I was supposed to leave you there and go to the office instead of beating the door down and kicking that bastard's ass."
I shook my head. "Why doesn't that surprise me?"
"I don't understand," Alice said, her voice full of emotions. "He would have hurt her! And they expected you to waste time by going to the office first?"
"It's just an excuse to get rid of me," Jasper explained. "Mr. Greene said that the board hadn't made a decision on whether or not to extend my contract, and that they'd had some complaints about my teaching methods from students and teachers."
"That's ridiculous!" Emmett exclaimed. "You're like the best teacher we've got!"
Jasper smiled. "Thanks, but clearly not everyone feels that way. I'm sure it has more to do with my relationship with Edward than it does the fact that I stopped one of their dearest teachers from sexually assaulting a student."
"That's stupid," Alice grumbled. "He would have hurt her if you hadn't stopped him!"
"But he didn't, so let's just forget it happened," I said, causing everyone to look over at me. However, my attention was focused on Edward and Jasper. "So what are you going to do now?"
"Well," Edward answered with a smile, "we've heard California is nice."
"What?" I asked.
"California. You know, if you're planning on moving there, you really should know where it is," Jasper teased.
I rolled my eyes. "Are you saying that you're considering moving to California, too?"
"Thinking about it," he said, shrugging his shoulders.
"But." I paused and looked over at Edward. "What about your job at the hospital?"
"I'll quit," he told me. "There are a lot of hospitals in San Francisco, Bella. And if I can't find a job there, I can always start my own practice."
"This is crazy," I exclaimed.
"What is?" Jasper asked.
"This," I said, gesturing to them. "You're uprooting your lives and moving with us to California. Normal people don't follow their friends like that."
"We never claimed to be normal, darlin'," Jasper laughed, causing everyone else to laugh, everyone but me. Sighing, he leaned forward and placed his elbow on the table. "Edward and I have talked several times about leaving Washington and starting new. We only decided California would be good because at least that way, we'd have friends. No, we'd have family."
Tears filled my eyes. "You think of us as family?"
"We do," he said, nodding and looking over at Edward. "Right, babe?"
"Yes," he said, shifting his attention to me. "We haven't decided on anything for sure. I've called a few people, tried to get a feel on whether or not there are any job openings for me. A couple of guys I went to med school gave me some leads so I'm going to make some calls tomorrow."
"But what about your families?" I asked.
Jasper snorted. "What family? Let's just say neither of our families are supportive of our choices, of our relationship. Edward and I made the choice a long time ago, Bella, to love each other. They didn't like it, they made it clear we weren't welcome if we were together."
"I told you, Bella, I love him, and I'm not letting him go," Edward said, reaching over and taking hold of Jasper's hand. "Just like you love Carlisle."
I felt my cheeks warm as I looked at the man sitting to my right, who winked at me. "I do."
"Not more than I love you, though," he snickered, leaning over and kissing my cheek.
"Bullshit," I giggled, bringing my hand up to his face.
"Oh, this is going to be exciting!" Alice squealed, causing everyone to look at her. "We're all going to be together."
I shifted my attention to Emmett and Rose, who had been oddly quiet. "Almost all of us."
Rose smiled. "We're working on it. If not, then I don't know, but we're working on it."
As the evening progressed, I found myself relaxing more and more. The day had been long and tiring. First the stress of passing my exams, then dealing with Mr. Varner. One more day, just one more day and I'd be done with Forks High School.
—TB—
Hours later, once everyone had left, Carlisle locked up the house while I headed upstairs to check on the boys. They were fast asleep, their blankets kicked to the bottom of their beds and their shirts pushed up on their tummies. I smiled and covered them before turning and walking down the hallway and into our bedroom.
Carlisle was sitting on the side of the bed, his shirt in his hands and his pants undone. He shifted his eyes up to mine and smiled. "They still asleep?"
I nodded. "They had a long day."
"They did," he agreed, tossing his shift into the hamper. He reached for me, and my feet automatically moved toward him. His hands wrapped around my thighs, his forehead resting on my stomach. "When Alice called, when she told me that you had been left alone with him, I just . . . I knew something was wrong."
"I'm just glad Alice went for help," I murmured, threading my fingers in his hair.
Carlisle tilted his head back, his eyes meeting mine. "I can't lose you, Isabella. Not ever. You gave me a reason to live again, a reason to . . . feel. Please, don't ever lose me, baby."
Tears filled my eyes as I pushed him back onto the bed and moved so that I was straddling him. Bending down, I pressed my lips against his. "I'm never leaving you, lover. You're my life. You and the boys, you're my reasons for existing."
Carlisle moaned and rolled us so that he was hovering over me, one arm resting next to my head while the other toyed with the hem of my T-shirt. "Marry me."
"What?" I asked.
He smiled. "Marry me. Be my wife."
Placing my hand on his chest, I pushed him onto the bed next to me, sliding up so that I was sitting up. "Why?"
"Why what?" he asked.
"Why do you want to me to marry you?" I asked, my voice soft. "I love you, Carlisle, but it's only been three weeks."
"I want to marry you," he said, placing his palm in the middle of my chest and laying me back on the bed, "because I love you. Because I need you. Because you make my sons smile and laugh. I want to marry you, Isabella, because you're the woman I'm gonna to spend the rest of my life making love to. I want my ring on your finger. I want to have babies with you. I want everything with you."
"Babies?" I asked with a smile. "You want to have babies with me?"
He nodded. "When you're ready. I'm not saying that we have to have one now. You've got college, but one day, I can see us having a baby or two of our own. Give the boys another brother. Perhaps even a sister."
"Wow, you've really thought about this, haven't you?" I asked.
Carlisle nodded. "Since the night you let me have you, I've known that you're my future."
"You always say the sweetest things," I murmured.
"You haven't given me an answer," he whispered, bringing his hand up to my face. "Will you marry me?"
Taking a deep breath, I smiled and said, "Yes."
"Yeah? Really?"
I laughed. "Yes! I want nothing more than to be your wife."
Carlisle crushed his lips against mine, his tongue pushing into my mouth. I moaned, my fingers finding themselves into his hair, tugging him down against my body. In a frenzy, we removed each other's clothes, flinging them in every direction. Carlisle lay me out on the bed, his lips and tongue sliding across my skin. My body felt like it was on fire as he kissed and sucked his way down my body. He captured my nipple between his teeth, giving it a gently tug before suckling on it.
"Carlisle," I moaned, tightening my hold in his hair. "You drive me fucking crazy."
"Good, that's what I mean to do," he laughed, releasing me from his mouth and sliding off the bed. He grabbed my thighs, pulling me so that I was nearly hanging off the edge. He brought my legs up to his shoulders, his eyes meeting mine again as he lowered his lips against my pussy.
I cried out, leaning up on my elbow and watching as he devoured me, licking and sucking, fucking me with his tongue. Falling back onto the bed, I lifted my hips up, begging him to fuck me harder, to love me more. I needed more. I needed him to prove that he wanted me, that I was his — just his, only his.
"Come for me, Isabella," he demanded, before pulling my clit in between his teeth.
My back arched off the bed as I swallowed back my screen, my body shaking and trembling with my release. Carlisle climbed up on the bed, his body covering mine as he kissed me again. I could taste myself on his tongue. Placing my hands on his chest, I pushed him onto the bed, moving so that I was straddling him.
"You ate my pussy," I purred, sliding my hands down his chest, wrapping my fingers around his cock. "Now it's my turn."
Carlisle watched me with hooded eyes as I slide down his body and sucked him into my mouth. He groaned, his hand coming up against the back of my head, and lifting his lips up toward me. I smiled around him, letting him slide a bit further before pulling him out and giving his shaft a long, slow lick.
"Jesus fuck, Isabella," he growled, propping himself up and watching me. "I love the way your mouth feels around me."
"I love it, too," I murmured, sucking just on the tip. "But you know what I like better?"
He shook his head.
"The way your cock feels in my pussy," I cooed, before sliding him into my mouth.
"Oh, my God!" he groaned, reaching down and grabbing my arm. He pulled me up and shifted us so that I was laying beneath him again. "I need you."
"I need you, too," I murmured, bringing my hand up to the back of his head. "Make me yours again."
"You've always been mine," he whispered, before shifting his hips forward and filling me.
As we came together, our bodies covered in sweat, our hands grabbing whichever parts of each other that we could reach, I knew without a doubt that I wanted to be his wife.
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