"Edward." I whined. "How much longer do I have to walk? My feet are killing me." He chuckled and turned around. Sadly, I was about twelve feet behind him. I really hated making him wait, but I wasn't about to be left behind.
"The rest of them are already there." He reminded me. I groaned and trudged through the hazardous twigs.
"It's been at least five hours. I haven't gotten to rest once." I slumped against a tree and stared at him. The way the color of the trees clashed around him made him look even more like a Greek god. But it didn't that much of my breath away. I supposed that I was growing used to it, and I was tired.
"You're the one that told me you wanted to walk." Edward said, looking at me carefully. "Are you feeling all right?"
"Yes, because I'm terrified of running." I nodded my head slowly, but even doing that made my head spin. "It's a human thing called exhaustion." He laughed and held his arms out for me.
"Come on, Bella. Let me carry you. We'll get there much faster, and you can relax." Relax? Ha! I debated for a few moments before sighing in defeat. He could carry me, on one condition.
"All right, I give up. But promise me you won't hit into anything, or drop me." Again, he laughed. It surprised me how happy he seemed over the past few days.
"Bella, honestly." He rolled his eyes and swung me up into his arms in one fluid motion. I wondered how heavy I felt to him, but I never got around to asking. "Ready?"
"Am I ever?" I closed my eyes and locked my arms around his neck. His cold skin felt good against my clammy skin. It was refreshing to just fly through the trees like that. I was counting down until I could actually breathe again, and I was surprised to find that it was less than five minutes before he stopped.
"You can let go now. We're there." Slowly, I opened my eyes and loosened my arms from around his neck, but still refusing to let go.
"Wow." I said quietly. The cabin looked more like a wooden mansion. From what I saw, it looked to be three stories or more. It overlooked a small stream, and it was sheltered by a hundred pine trees… give or take a few.
"Finally." I jumped as Alice danced towards us. Apparently, Edward didn't miss that.
"Something wrong?" He asked, setting me down but not letting go of me.
"She just startled me, that's all. Nothing to worry about." In order to show them that I was fine, I took a small step away from him and managed to keep my balance perfectly. "Hi, Alice."
"Hi, Bella. We've been waiting for you guys. For a while there, we thought that Edward might've…" She trailed off at the hard look on Edward's face. Attempting to lighten the mood, I let out a little laugh.
"I just felt like walking for a little bit. Sorry if you've been waiting long." Alice shook her head.
"It hasn't been long. Just a few hours or so." She flashed me a toothy smile.
"Sorry." I said again, glancing at Edward.
"All our belongings are here?" He asked. Alice nodded.
"Rosalie and Emmett brought it." She said. Edward nodded and looked at the cabin.
"Come on." Before I could even take a step, Alice was gone. Leaving just the two of us to walk the rest of the way by ourselves. "You like it?"
"It's beautiful." I said, admiring it in awe. He gave a quiet chuckle. "What?" I asked, turning my attention to him.
"Your eyes. You should see the way they light up." I smiled and looked down at my feet. "I like it." He added, looking back to the house.
"Edward, Bella!" Carlisle and Esme beamed at us from the top of the stairs. "I trust you two had a safe trip."
"Thanks to Edward we did." I said brightly. Esme laughed and nodded.
"Always looking out for her, aren't you, Edward?" She asked, giving him a motherly smile.
"Would you like to see the inside, Bella?" I nodded and followed Edward up the stairs and inside. I inhaled sharply as I stepped through the doorway. The interior was even more beautiful then the exterior. It was so outdoorsy, I immediately fell in love with it.
"Do you like it?" Esme asked, stepping up beside me. For a moment I didn't know what to say, so I just gawked at her.
"Bella?" Edward asked, tapping my shoulder.
"Huh?" I shook my head, and then quickly nodded. "Oh yes. I love it." Satisfied, Esme pointed to the kitchen.
"Edward reminded us that require more than we do. So the kitchen is at your disposal." I blushed and nodded. I was always the odd man out, but I was trying to get used to it.
"Thank you." I muttered.
"Let me show you to our room." Our room. I cast a quick glance around the room before allowing Edward to drag me up the winding stairs to the third story. He led me to the end of the hallway before pushing open a door and ushering me inside.
"You're lucky they never took this bed out of here." He said, closing the door softly behind him and coming to stand next to me.
"I would sleep on the floor if I had to." I said, going over and sitting down on the small bed. It reminded me of the bed I had at home. Home. Oh no! I jumped up quickly.
"What is it?" He asked, alarm clear in his voice.
"I forgot to call Charlie. I told him I'd call once we got here." I had my hand on the doorknob when I felt a strong arm slip around my waist. Edward pressed a small metal object into my free hand. A cell phone. Right.
"There are no phones out here, Bella." I looked at him for a moment before flipping the phone open and dialing Charlie's number. It rang three times before I heard the other line pick up.
"Hello?"
"Dad. It's me, Bella. We just got here. It's beautiful, and I'm all right." There was silence before he spoke.
"All right. Well, have fun and call me later, Bells."
"I will, Dad. I promise. Bye."
"Bye." I closed the phone and handed it back to him. "Running water?" I asked, eyeing him carefully.
"Nope." I tried again.
"Electricity?"
"Nope." He folded his arms across his chest and smirked at me.
"How in the world am I going to survive?" I asked, folding my arms across my chest as well. Edward shrugged innocently.
"You'll find a way. Human instincts will kick in eventually." I narrowed my eyes at him.
"So now I'm going to have to live like a cave man or something?" He laughed and shook his head.
"Not quite. But close enough." I groaned and threw myself down on the bed.
"Oh, Bella. Lighten up." He sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at me. "It's not that bad out here, trust me. It'll be fun. Just as long as you don't get eaten by a wild animal."
"You're a wild animal." I mumbled.
"Perhaps. But I won't eat you." I looked at him and grinned.
"You would if you could. But you can't, so you won't."
"I would if I could. But I don't want to, so I won't." He said, giving me my favorite crooked smile.