A/N… Here's an extra update, simply because it's a holiday. Happy Thanksgiving! Stay safe, be kind tomorrow if you shop because retail workers are people too, and may you catch a nap some time today. ;)
~oOo~
Chapter 4
BELLA
My house was exploding with music when we pulled up. I huffed a laugh, shaking my head.
"Wow," Kevin said through a chuckle. "Apparently, we're missing the show."
"I guess so," I murmured, grabbing my couple of bags. My chest was already feeling better, more solid. It always did once we got closer to each other.
The sound of Def Leppard was mind-blowing and most likely all Emmett's idea, but "Photograph" sounded better than the radio version. I stepped into the room, meeting Edward's gaze as he played guitar.
As Rose, Alice, and Caroline took seats with Archie and Adrian, Kevin joined in with the band, and I stepped into my bedroom to set down my things, quickly shielding myself for a moment. I'd bought the pink set Edward requested, along with a rainbow of other colors, which I promptly put away. Once I had on the set I wanted, I redressed and stepped back into the room as the song ended.
Walking straight to Edward as he set his guitar down on its stand, I fell into his embrace, and he wrapped his arms all the way around me.
"I missed you," I mumbled into his neck as he lifted me up and I secured my legs around his waist.
The boys fiddled around with a few notes of songs here and there as Edward stepped away into our kitchen. He set me on the counter, his eyes warm and molten honey from hunting today. I placed my hands on either side of that handsome face, bringing his forehead to mine as he stood between my legs.
"Me, too. Let's never do that again," he said, grinning when I laughed softly. "Why are you closed to me?" His brow furrowed in curiosity.
I lifted my shield, thinking, I can't let you see all the colors I got today. To watch his eyes darken briefly made me smirk. But don't move for a second.
He nodded, and I closed my eyes, simply breathing him in and brushing my lips over his. I needed just a moment to settle the rough edges of being away from him today.
"Take your time, sweet girl," he whispered, his hands gliding up and down my thighs. "It's okay. It's been a long time since we've done that."
Nodding against his forehead, I kissed him softly again. I didn't hate separating for the day, but it always seemed so harsh the first time after being together twenty-four-seven. Marcus told us once that it was harder on me than it was Edward. Something about the sire's strength.
"Maybe," Edward allowed, following my thoughts, and I smiled a little and raked my hands through his hair. "So what's the question, Bella?"
Giggling, I rolled my eyes. "Can you please wait?"
His smile was all things gorgeous and alluring. "No, not really. I will, but curiosity is killing me."
"Spoiled vampire," I muttered against his lips.
He huffed a laugh. "Without shame, my love."
I pulled back, cupping his face again. Inhaling deeply, I let the breath out slowly. The feel of our electric current skated over my skin, filling that empty feeling in my chest I'd had all day.
Edward let out a long, low purr because that feeling was amazing, healing, special. Suddenly, his lips met mine in a deep kiss. My fingers sank into his hair, holding him close, and his grasped my hips, pulling my body flush to his. Heavy breaths pushed out against cheeks as we turned our heads at the same time. Tongues swirled and teeth nipped, and my own sound escaped, which made Edward smile into our kiss.
"Stop it," I huffed in a soft laugh.
Edward fought his smile and barely won, but I waited; he wasn't winning that well at his battle with a teasing smirk. That thought from me cracked him, and he chuckled, grasping my face in both hands just to kiss me again.
Was it bad for you today? I thought to him.
"Same as you. Off and on," he answered honestly. "Did you have fun?"
I nodded and smiled. "Yeah, everyone is excited to visit Marcus and Demetri."
"Speaking of," he said, scooping me off the counter and carrying me into the music room to plop me down onto the ottoman in front of Adrian. "Carlisle spoke to Demetri today. They're happy to have us all when we're ready."
"So we're all going?" I verified, glancing around the room at my siblings.
"Yes, apparently Heavy E here is giving anniversary lessons," Kevin teased.
I snorted, raising an eyebrow at Edward. See, I told you once you could give sexy lessons. You didn't believe me.
"Bella," Edward tried to chastise, but it came out as a huffy laugh. He turned to Kevin. "No."
I cracked up but got up to sit on the other side of Adrian, who was just amused at the whole exchange as the guys played a few notes of something random.
He leaned over to me. "You okay?" he asked me softly.
I nodded with a smile. "Yeah. Did you guys have fun?"
"Archie scared the shit out of Emmett. That was pretty entertaining."
Archie grinned and shrugged but shot a humorous smirk toward a growling and eye-rolling Emmett. I couldn't stop my laugh if I tried.
"You freaks and your talents," he mumbled, and I shot my shield out, knocking his drumsticks right out of his hands and causing a couple of cymbals to crash loudly.
"I got your freak, Em," I told him, pointing his way as he scrambled up to pick up his sticks that I'd knocked almost all the way to the front door. "Insult us again, and every drum in that kit will end up in my pond."
Edward grinned my way, but we all waited for Emmett to inevitably say something stupid.
Edward, however, decided to poke the bear a bit. "Say that out loud, Em. She means that threat. What I can't tell is if she'll do it drum by drum, or just scoop it all up and drop it into the middle of the water."
Emmett rolled his eyes, but he was fighting his smile. He always took everything in stride with a tease and a laugh.
"Nope. Just want to play some music," he said like a little kid.
Kevin hummed a bit of a song, and that caught Edward's attention. He set down his guitar and took a seat at the piano. He started a song that almost sounded like classical music. Kevin smiled and nodded, and they began to play something I'd never heard, but it was beautiful. Kevin took the lead on this one.
Look into my eyes and you'll see
I'm the only one
You've captured my love
Stolen my heart
Changed my life
Every time you make a move
You destroy my mind
And the way you touch
I lose control and shiver deep inside
You take my breath away
You can reduce me to tears
With a single sigh
(Please don't cry anymore)
Every breath that you take
Any sound that you make
Is a whisper in my ear
I could give up all my life for just one kiss
I would surely die
If you dismiss me from your love
You take my breath away
My mouth fell open at the harmonies that all four of them pushed out. It was beautiful and a touch sad.
So please don't go
Don't leave me here all by myself
I get ever so lonely from time to time
I will find you anywhere you go
I'll be right behind you (ooh)
Right until the ends of the earth (aah)
I'll get no sleep
'Til I find you (get no sleep)
And tell you that you just
Take my breath away
Jasper had plugged in a rather large electric guitar, but the harmony was just stunning. And I glanced over at Adrian, who looked like I felt – shocked and a bit swoony.
I will find you anywhere you go (ooh)
Right until the ends of the earth (aah)
I'll get no sleep 'til I find you (get no sleep)
To tell you when I've found you
I love you
"Wow!" I said when the song ended. "Who was that?"
"Queen, my goddess. Freddie Mercury is a fucking legend," Kevin answered, and Edward nodded in agreement.
"Okay, we're going," Jasper suddenly stated out of the blue. He hung up his guitar on the bracket on the wall, shoving Edward on his way by. "You know what they say about curiosity, brother."
Edward grinned when I laughed way too hard at that. "So spoiled," I muttered, rolling my eyes as everyone chuckled at us as they packed up and made their way out our front door.
I laughed even harder when my husband suddenly scooped me up and I found myself planted in the middle of our bed. Chuckling kisses brushed up my neck as I shielded my thoughts from him.
"Maybe I am spoiled, Bella, but you've been teasing me all day," he growled against my skin.
Giggling a little, I shrugged. "Maybe," I allowed, licking my lips. "There was a conversation on the way to the mall, Edward. I couldn't help but get curious about something."
Edward smiled sweetly. "Okay, what did my siblings rat me out about this time?"
"Oh, nothing I didn't already know." I nudged him a little so we could sit up.
"Then what's the question, sweet girl?" he asked, tilting his head with a furrowed brow.
Dear Lord, that face was just about my undoing – all sweet and curious and wide open. He'd tell me anything. He hadn't always been that way, but he was now. Any question, any subject, any era – he was an open book.
"So we were talking about Rose and Emmett's video, and I asked her what the next car was. She asked me if I wanted something," I explained with a laugh. "I told her no, that she should refurb something for newer members of the family, because you had enough car addictions."
Edward laughed, kissed me quickly. "And?"
"And Alice said you'd always been that way. So I wanted to know… When did that start, baby? When did cars become the one thing you did for just you?" I asked him, reaching up to rake my hands through his hair.
Edward smiled ruefully and shook his head a bit. "So wasn't the conversation I was expecting, but I think when cars became faster than me."
I laughed a little at that but waited for his real answer. He shifted around until his back was against the headboard of our bed. He pulled me gently to his lap, cupping my face and kissing me softly.
Edward's eyes were distant as he trailed a finger along my eyebrow and down my cheek. "The Model T was out by 1908, so I'd seen them grow in popularity before my change. They'd gone from wind-up crank to an electric starter by 1911. My own father couldn't resist getting one." He paused for a moment. "Up until the thirties, they stayed a bit the same. Different things changed, like cigarette lighters added or the radio or whatever, but the look didn't vary much. Then the automobile became more rounded, metal, like the gangster cars you've seen in movies, sweet girl."
"Oh! Okay, I know what those look like."
He was quiet for a moment or two, but his eyes were warm as he studied my face. "Your question was when did cars become the one thing I did for myself, right?"
"Right, like I understand the speed thing, and Rose and Emmett like to fix them, but you spoiled yourself with expensive toys. I just… When did that start?"
"When Esme came into the picture," he stated, smiling a little. "Carlisle and I liked driving, and we had the means, even back then, but when she came to be with us, she was still suffering a little. I mean, she'd attempted suicide but woken up immortal, so her emotional state was hard to hear." He tapped his temple, meaning her thoughts.
"Sometimes, she'd just need to get out of the house, but she was still a newborn, so I'd take her with me on long drives in the country when Carlisle worked or even if she just needed a minute to think about anything but blood and sadness." Edward smiled sadly. "He hated to leave her, but it happened occasionally. And they hadn't quite taken that next step into a relationship, so tensions were oh so high." He chuckled, shaking his head a little, but took a deep breath and let it out. "As time went on, Esme encouraged the next and newest car for me. I think it was her way of softening all that I had to hear from the two of them. I then went away for several years, and I didn't really drive much. I was…distracted."
He trailed off a bit, leaning in to kiss me, because he was talking about when he hunted human criminals. He nodded at that thought from me but said no more on it.
"When I came home, it got worse. They were still newly mated, and then Rose and Emmett came along… And when I didn't find a mate by then, Esme was still the one to encourage things that seemed to make me happy – cars, music, books. Eventually, Rose and Emmett joined in on that, and it's been a thing ever since. We'd buy something ridiculously expensive just to race or enhance or whatever. Alice and Jasper joined in a little, but I know they all encouraged it because it seemed to be the thing they thought made me happy."
"Did it?"
"No, not really. It was fun, but it wasn't…"
He sighed deeply, glancing around the room, and his eyes fell to the wall where all our photos hung in frames. They were wedding photos, silly pictures, trips we'd taken, and even prom when I was still human. They were beautiful and sweet and some of our most cherished memories. They hung all in black and white surrounding a photo that said Edward and Bella Cullen. Forever. Edward had written that on the wall in Verona several years ago.
"It wasn't that, baby." He jerked his chin toward those pictures. "It was fun. It was fine. And yeah, there's a bit of addiction to having something nice and fast and new. The last time I truly spoiled myself was the Vanquish, just before you so beautifully stumbled into my life."
I giggled, biting on my lip. "Well, at that point, you needed cars built for safety because I was a walking accident waiting to happen."
His grin was glorious. "All true, my love, but nothing in my long life made me as happy as finding you. Not a car or piano or whatever." He shrugged a shoulder. "I know why they encouraged it, but it just wasn't true happiness. You, Bella, are my happiness, my most expensive fast car, and my self-care. That's it."
"They just wanted to see you happy, Edward."
"I know, but I had to find that on my own," he countered, kissing me briefly. "I just didn't know I'd find it in a high school biology lab in the middle of Washington after the turn of another century."
Grinning, I rolled my eyes and broke out into a laugh. "You, my sweet Edward, are ridiculously romantic at heart."
"I wasn't always," he countered, wearing a rather disgruntled expression.
"Maybe, but you are now. I love it. Don't ever stop. I don't care what your brothers get up to."
He laughed, toying with the bottom of my shirt. "Did I earn my prize now, love?"
"Oh, yeah. All the colors, but go on."
He lifted my shirt up and over my head and reached for my jeans, practically lifting me off the bed to tug those off as well, which made me laugh. I'd given him the pink that he'd asked for, but I'd given him more. It was lace and flowers as well as several shades of pink.
"Now that is something that makes me very fucking happy," he crooned, pulling me back so that I was straddling his lap.
I loved when he looked at me like he was, because it was as if he had tunnel vision. He made me feel loved and beautiful and like the only thing that ever mattered.
"Yes, you are all those things, Bella," he said softly, tearing his gaze away from my body to my eyes. "I want you, sweet girl. I need it after today."
"Me, too."
The way he was looking at me seemed to feel like a moment, those times that love seemed overwhelming and blinding. When he nodded that I was right, I knew we wouldn't be coming up for air for hours. And that was fine by me.
~oOo~
EDWARD
I ran my fingers up the keys of my piano, playing snippets of different songs. Most were classical. However, my eyes were on my wife.
I wasn't sure what I'd done in this life or another to deserve her, but I stopped questioning it ages ago. My moment the night before had been all-consuming and almost debilitating. Being apart, her teasing, and her pure happiness had built up all day, so it didn't shock me when I fell into the abyss.
Bella was doing a load of laundry, and she was also putting away the last few things we'd moved with us from Missoula. Books were added to the shelves in the living room, important papers were filed in my desk, and boxes were broken down and taken to the bin. I offered to help her with these things, but she said she'd rather hear me play. Just me.
As she rearranged books on the shelf, brief thoughts of Belle from "Beauty and the Beast" flashed through her mind, and I grinned, deciding to play on her thoughts instead of anything random. I started "Prologue from Beauty and the Beast."
It was a beautiful, complicated piece to play, and it caught Bella's attention instantly. Suddenly, she was atop my piano, face-to-face with me and her sweet feet in the air behind her. It was her favorite way to listen to me play, and it had started in London when we'd lived alone. It carried over to Maine, but not as often since we lived with the family then. I leaned in to kiss her briefly.
"My beast," she whispered against my lips.
"Oh, yes, ma'am," I agreed, grinning at her giggle, because she used to tease me about how I used to be when we met. However, it was all true, so I didn't bother denying it.
I played a few other songs – classical, contemporary, my own. I'd missed my piano. I'd taken a few guitars and a keyboard with me to Missoula, but it wasn't the same, and it was nice to be able to lose myself in music, not to mention Bella's train of thought, which was wondering how this upcoming trip would be.
I met her gaze. "Anyplace specific you'd like to see while we're over there?" I asked her.
"Oh, hell… There's so much, Edward. Maybe Venice?"
"Okay, Venice. I've never stayed there, so it'll be new for us both."
That made her smile, and then she said, "The Alps?"
"All of them?" I teased her with a grin. "It's beautiful, for sure. From France all the way across Switzerland into Austria."
The word Switzerland caused her to remember a conversation with Esme when they were at the mall. Apparently, the reason that Demetri and Marcus had been so busy was because of some incidents with a few immortals feeding inappropriately.
My brow furrowed, and I stopped playing. "What was that? Carlisle didn't mention it."
"I guess there's some of our kind over there making a mess," she answered, shrugging a shoulder. "Esme said they'd caught a couple of them."
Reaching up, I cupped her face and kissed her. "Okay, then we'll wait until we get to Volterra before I plan where we go. I simply want to know where the trouble was before I take us somewhere alone, Bella."
She smiled sweetly. "I've already told you that I was good with anything you planned, baby."
I kissed her again for that. My human Bella had hated surprises, but my wife seemed to prefer them. I often wondered when that had changed, but I was certain it was when I'd come home to her after being gone for two wretched years. I'd earned her trust back from when I'd left her with lies and ego and fear, and her trust and love was precious to me. I was more than willing to concede to whatever popped into that gorgeous head of hers, but she simply didn't care what we did or where we went. Everything to her was new and exciting, and if I decided to keep us home, she'd be good with that too. But I wasn't going to do that. It had been a few years since we'd traveled for our anniversary, and I wanted to spoil her.
She giggled a bit, leaning in to kiss my lips one more time. "Your face reads like a book, Edward. Whatever you're plotting and planning, I'm in. No need to worry you'll pick wrong."
Grinning, I tilted my head. "Fair enough, my sweet girl." I paused for a second when vocal and mental sounds caught my attention.
I faced out the front window, chuckling as little Caroline was racing here with Emmett giving chase.
"Bells! Edward!" she squealed in both terror and laughter.
"Oh, hell," Bella muttered, rushing to the front door, and without even changing her expression, that shield of hers slammed down into our front yard behind our newest sister, causing a small rumble beneath my feet.
Caroline ducked into the house at the same time Emmett ran face-first into that shield. His growly laugh made me smirk. He tumbled and rolled several feet before coming to rest flat on his back.
With a grin, I turned to Caroline. "What did you do to anger the giant, Caroline?"
Her giggle was mischief and goodness. "I bet that Bella would whoop his ass in pool, and therefore would be able to pick all the songs for open mic night."
"That's 'cause Ed and Bells cheat! Let me in!" Emmett called from the far side of the front yard, because my angel's shield was still firmly in place.
Snorting, I raised an eyebrow at Bella. "I guess the wager is already on the table, my love."
Caroline grinned at Bella's scoff and eyeroll, saying, "It's couple versus couple. Archie and I aren't playing because I suck at it."
I tsked her way. "You don't. You just need practice."
"No, she really does suck!" Emmett taunted from outside.
"Oh, my damn, I'm gonna…" Bella trailed off, stepping outside. "Caroline, you should just kick his ass. Forget pool."
"I can't fight him!" she whispered to me. "He's bigger than I am, stronger."
"He's bigger and stronger than Bella, too, and my money's still on her," I told her, jerking my chin toward Emmett's fearful face as Bella stalked him. "C'mere." I guided her by the shoulder to the front porch. "If you want to learn to fight, those two are perfect to watch. When they fight, size doesn't matter, and she won't even use her shield."
"Well, unless it's funny," Bella muttered to us, which cracked me up. "Or he comes anywhere near my house," she warned him through gritted teeth.
"She's been doing it since she was a newborn," I told Caroline.
Emmett grinned at that. "Should I throw baseballs at your head again, Bells?"
Bella chuckled, shaking her head. "No thanks."
Coming over the hill were a few other members of our family. It seemed everyone but Carlisle and Esme were coming to see what happened after Caroline had torn out of the family house like hell itself was on her tail.
Jasper could feel Bella's confidence, Emmett's mischief, and my pride, but he was also catching Caroline's curiosity and nerves. I wasn't sure when the last time the family practiced fighting, but they were ready for this one.
Alice was sorting through visions to see who won, but it wasn't quite clear because they hadn't started yet. Emmett was making too many decisions. Rose was amused because Emmett had picked and teased until Caroline had snapped on him.
"You know," Bella drawled softly, "when we're done here, I'm going to help Caroline beat you at pool. One game. Team against team. And I'll enjoy telling you what you're singing."
Emmett grinned evilly, rubbing his hands together. He waved her forward, taunting, "Bring it, Bells. Or have you gone soft working with hot doc over there?"
Kevin snorted into a laugh. "Goddess, tell him you can do both – kick his ass and save the world."
I guided Caroline closer because she needed to see this. We'd been living for a few years now in peaceful times, so unless it was for a football game, she hadn't really seen much fighting.
"Watch her," I whispered in Caroline's ear. "Emmett always starts with a big tackle. She knows it, and she braces for it. After that, she actually uses her size as an advantage against him."
Emmett did exactly as I'd predicted, and so did Bella. He launched himself her way, and she dove over him in a flip. Once her feet hit the ground, she was already on his back.
"Oh!" Caroline gasped, wide-eyed and shocked.
Archie walked to the two of us. "Bella wins. Hands down."
"I agree," I told him, hearing everyone but Alice call in their own bets.
Rose, who had seen this fight before, called a draw. Kevin said Bella. Adrian called a draw. Jasper said Bella, because he'd taught her how to beat Emmett.
"You're the last bet," I told Caroline, shaking her shoulder.
"Bella." She grinned.
"Okay, let's see how this ends."
The entire time bets were being called, Emmett had shaken Bella off his back and taken to the surrounding treetops. Bella didn't follow his lead, opting to stay on the ground and wait him out. When he tried to jump her from the top of a tall pine, she gracefully shifted out of the way, sweeping a foot at his shins, which caused him to lose his balance.
She leaped over him with a laugh, jumping from boulder to boulder, and finally landed in front of him.
"This is where her size is better than his," I whispered to Caroline. "Yes, he's strong and fast and big. And Emmett is an amazing hand-to-hand fighter. But he can't do this."
Emmett launched himself at Bella again, and it almost looked like he had her, but instead of leaping over her opponent, she dropped to her knees. She made herself smaller, tumbling between his legs in order to dodge his arms. By the time Emmett realized she was behind him, she was already on his back and at his neck.
"Dammit!" Emmett growled, but he was grinning at the same time.
"See?" I asked Caroline. "Size doesn't matter."
"Can she beat you?" Caroline asked, wearing a wry smirk.
Chuckling, I said, "She has before, but we end up a draw a lot of the time."
That's because I can read every inch of you, handsome.
I spun my gaze to Bella, wearing a shit-eating grin, which made Caroline and Archie laugh. "And I told you, I can't find it in me to complain about that."
Bella laughed. "I bet." She rounded on Emmett. "Okay. Pool. Who's playing? Name your terms."
"Meet us at the parents' house. We'll discuss terms and who's playing," Emmett told us, but he looked to Caroline. "And if you want to learn to fight, we'll all help you…both of you. I'd like to see what Archie can do in a fight."
I snorted at Archie's wide-eye expression, saying, "Actually, I'd like to see what Bella's shield and Archie's invisibility could do against each other."
"Oh, damn!" Jasper gasped, glancing between those two and imagining all sorts of mayhem. "Me, too."
Bella glanced at Archie. "Unbelievable."
He chuckled softly, shrugging and wrapping an arm around Caroline's shoulders. "I'm game," he said to Bella. "But I think everyone wants to know about open mic night."
Bella ruffled his hair. "Fine. Pool first. We'll meet you at the house."
Everyone took off, but Bella walked to me, wrapping her arms around my neck. "You're an awesome big brother."
I huffed a light laugh, pulling her closer. "Maybe. She's super easy to teach. She has been since the beginning, even with her rough start after her dad died." I kissed Bella's lips briefly. "Rose was intense when she first joined us, and Alice was hyper and happy having someone to share her mental burden. Caroline is somewhere in between, and she really does see me as a big brother. She has since she was human."
Bella studied my face, wearing a small, sweet smile. "That's probably very true." She lifted herself up and wrapped her legs around my waist. "Okay, let's head to the house. We've got a game of pool to play."
"Yes, ma'am," I conceded, keeping her in my arms as I ran toward the main house.
~oOo~
A/N… I discovered in a recent reread of this series as I was putting the Angelward playlist together that I committed an enormous sin by not including Queen – honestly one of my fave bands of all time. Freddie is a fucking legend, like Kevin said. So I corrected that mistake. It may not be the last song of theirs I use in this story either.
Added to the playlist:
"Photograph" by Def Leppard
"You Take My Breath Away" by Queen
"Prologue from Beauty and the Beast"
Like I said up top, this is just an extra update for you guys. Thank you for all your love. I'll still see you on Monday. Mooches, Deb ;)