Three months later

"Dude! Mind-reading sex! How could you ever hide that from me?"

Emmett threw his hammer in my direction, missing my head by just an inch. The tool landed in the small primrose and buttercup garden below us with a thud, alongside the few dozen nails he had thrown earlier for the very same reason.

"Because I knew you'd be an ass, as usual," I responded simply. "Now climb down and get that, because you need it, idiot."

He growled at me, but two seconds later he was back on the roof frame with me, having retrieved his hammer and the nails.

"I feel personally offended," he continued.

"And to tell Alice first? That's just rude."

"You know this is not how it went."

"Alice, out of all people..." he muttered, ignoring me. "I taught you everything you know, brother! Not Alice. I'm your guru, you should come at me with these matters."

"I am more of a self-learner, Em. And forgive me for not considering it my top priority to keep you posted about my sex life."

"Well, you should. I keep you posted about mine."

"And I beg you everytime not to."

He huffed, changing his mind about whether to throw the hammer in his hand at me once again at the last minute.

Yesterday, I would not have guessed that I would be having this discussion. But a series of unfortunate events had led to this.

Three weeks ago, Alice had decided to set up an all-girls trip to Spain. Rosalie had been more than happy to take her up on the idea, knowing that such a vacation would mean various outfit changes and several pairs of eyes turning to stare at her. Bella had not been as eager, but accepted anyway, not quite knowing how to handle Alice's insistence without hurting her feelings. Esme was not going to accompany them - the official reason was that extravagant vacations were not exactly her style. The real reason was that I needed her here, in Glasgow.

The day prior, just as my sisters and Bella were getting ready to leave, I had decided to plant a small surprise in my wife's baggage. It wasn't much, just a letter that I had placed on the very top of the neatly folded clothes she had packed. The contents of that letter, however, were meant for her eyes and her eyes only. With the knowledge that she would be the only one to read it, I had not shied away from describing to her in full detail one particular fantasy we both had had. Between all my insolent musings, I had mentioned several times how much I was going to enjoy reading every thought she would have when this fantasy would finally come to fruition.

My surprise, however, got ruined when Alice decided to add some extra swimsuits to Bella's baggage. I was in the bedroom, wondering if I could squeeze in one last round of sex with my wife before she left, not particularly attentive to what my sister was thinking when she barged in the room. By the time I had understood her intentions, it was too late. She had already opened the baggage and she was staring at my letter, her eyes wide as she was going through all the words on it with speed.

I arrived by her side, closing the lid of the baggage in no time. But she had already seen the unseenable.

"All right," I said. "Let's pretend you haven't read that."

She stared at me, unable to find a proper response to what she had just witnessed. The wheels of her mind were spinning like crazy.

"Just… walk away, Alice."

"That was a lot… God, what a terrible day to have eyes. But still… you can read Bella's thoughts. Or is that some twisted fantasy?"

"It is not a fantasy, it's real," I managed between my gritted teeth. "Now bugger off."

"Are you serious, you can do that?"

"Yes, please leave."

"But since when do you-"

"Since September, Alice. Can you drop it, please?"

From downstairs, Emmett started doing his best impression of Snoop Dogg as he started humming 'Drop it like it's hot'. It didn't take him longer than three seconds to join us and ask:

"Drop what, homies?"

"Nothing, Em."

"Oh, I smell bullshit. Spill it."

"There's nothing to spill," I emphasized. "Now can't you get back to whatever it was that you were doing?"

"'Resident Evil' can wait, fresh family gossip can not."

Neither Alice, nor I said anything. But she made a simple mistake, one that set Emmett's senses off: she glanced at Bella's baggage one second too long. This was enough for him to understand the source of the bickering he had just heard. Without a word, he launched over the baggage, the exact moment Alice started having a vision of him doing so. The rest was history.

And there we were, one day later, sitting atop of the country house frame Esme had designed for me and Bella. After living two months together with the rest of our family in the Victorian mansion Esme had bought at the outskirts of Glasgow, it became obvious that we needed our own place. More often than not, Bella and I would find ourselves making love regardless of whoever happened to be within hearing distance. The decision to move out was only natural, given the fact that everyone had grown tired of us within the first week.

What Bella didn't know was that we would be moving out much sooner. After months of being tirelessly by my side whenever my grief got the best of me, I wanted - I needed - to make it up to her. It only took Esme three days to finish the sketches, using the directions I had given her. As soon as I had seen them, I knew they were exactly right for Bella: the house was a tasteful mix between the modest simplicity of 'Little Women''s Orchard House and the eerie charm of 'Jane Eyre''s Thornfield Hall.

Esme bought most of the necessary supplies within a week, making several trips to the B&Q home improvement store, until she managed to transport all the materials to the isolated spot in the woods where our home would be. Building the house was my job, as I had insisted. While I had never done it before, I figured it couldn't be that hard. I had started reading several architecture and house engineering manuals whenever Alice managed to steal Bella away from me.

Emmett insisted on helping me - not necessarily because he had suddenly become passionate about building houses, but because that offered him plenty of time to be as inquisitive as he liked. Someway, somehow, the conversation would always circle back to the very same topic: the fact that I could now read Bella's thoughts and that this was a frequent element within our lovemaking sessions. And with Emmett being Emmett, he had plenty of curiosities - not many of which I was willing to entertain.

"But like… do you guys have mind orgasms and stuff like that?"

"I don't even know what you mean by that," I sighed.

"You know, like having an orgasm just from thinking stuff. Damn, it would be cool if I could make Rose have one."

"I'm not sure what you're imagining, Em. There's no Jedi mind tricks at play here."

"Well, I wouldn't know, since you're being such a vague sissy."

"Go to hell."

Our squabble went on until Esme came by with extra buckets of paint. She had had a hard time deciding on just one and ended up buying several, just so that I would have enough choices. Sadly, she had heard our discussion from miles away and she was now in the mood of playing the role of the ever-protective mother.

"Emmett, dear, you'd better stop teasing your brother," she admonished him. "You know it's rude."

"It was just honest guy talk, didn't you teach us to be honest?" he fought back.

"There's a line between that and invading one's privacy."

"Besides, don't you have somewhere else to be?" I added.

He rolled his eyes and threw a 'momma's boy' thought my way, before resuming his task, while Esme stood close by, making sure that everything went well. As opposed to her, he should have had other priorities right now: such as finishing his reading assignment for tomorrow.

Moving to Glasgow had meant a new narrative for us; my brothers and sisters played the role of highschool students once again, much to their dismay. Jasper was having a particularly hard time being back among the humans. He had grown accustomed to being on the run and keeping a safe distance from them - being thrown back in the middle of them felt very much like having to start all over again. However, he and the rest only had to endure another semester, since they were all Seniors. After that, they would all be off to study at the University of Glasgow in the fall.

Meanwhile, Esme had found a part-time job at the University. She was now a substitute professor, teaching Interior Design classes. It didn't take up much of her time, but it was a start for her and it got her excited. She had always been the mother for my siblings and me - and it had always been enough for her. But even if she would have never admitted out loud, she felt relieved that I had Bella by my side, because this allowed her to focus her attention on something else as well - something that did not involve worrying about her one lonesome kid. Carlisle was so proud of her, that he rarely thought of anything else when she was around.

And my father, as always, was making waves with how skilled of a doctor he was. The nurses and doctors at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary were head over heels in love with him - some of them in the literal sense. It was no surprise that he had many admirers silently lusting after him, both female and male. This was preferable to having people be scared of him.

Bella and I kept the charade going by pretending we were taking a gap year, which was not far from the truth. I had not managed to find a teaching job to go along with the plans I had had in summer, but I did not exactly mind, because this allowed me plenty of time to keep the promise I had made to my wife in Ossora: to take her on a second honeymoon and make it the best trip she had ever had. This time, with no time limit.

Her father was not a big fan of this plan. He was convinced she was wasting her life away, unaware that she had an eternity ahead to go to all the colleges she pleased. Her mother was more accepting - if I had to guess, I would have said that she was only accepting this decision because she could recognize herself in the choices her daughter was making.

"Bella's going to love this," my mother pondered out loud many hours later.

"She will," I agreed, unable to suppress my grin when I glanced up at the cross gable roof.

"I've seen uglier houses," Emmett teased, even if deep down he was proud beyond belief of how the house exterior had turned out.

Still, I could not refuse such an invitation, so I rushed to punch him in the pit of his stomach. He had expected this reaction and responded in the same brutal manner. Soon enough, we were play-fighting in the grass, making an effort to not disrupt the flower garden. Esme sighed - the sigh of a mother who does not want to deal with the mess of her children - and waited for us to finish.

We only stopped when my phone started ringing loudly from the back pocket of my jeans. To my surprise, it was Bella.

"Hello, handsome," she greeted me, her voice almost a purr.

I pushed Emmett off of me, jumping up and trying to clean up the dirt and grass stains from my clothes.

"My love, I was not expecting you," I admitted, kicking my brother in the shin right as he was getting ready to launch again. "Weren't you supposed to be out dancing all night with Alice and Rose?"

"Yes, about that… I've kind of bailed."

"What do you mean you've kind of bailed?"

"I mean I tried to do it, but I left after the first half an hour. As it turns out, my dislike of dancing has not changed that much after you've changed me."

"You just need the right partner."

"There were plenty of men who seemed eager to demonstrate their willingness to lead, but none of them were you, so…"

"Your first day in Palma de Mallorca and you're already breaking hearts."

"Someone has to do it. So anyway, what are you up to?"

Was she trying to sound sensual on purpose or was my imagination playing tricks on me?

"Nothing spectacular," I danced around the truth.

"Way to kill a booty call in the tracks," Emmett snickered.

This time, Esme got him to shut up quicker than me, by grabbing his arm and dragging him out of the yard. He started chuckling uncontrollably and my mother threw an apologetic glance at me. She dragged him further through the woods, until they disappeared.

"Was that Emmett?" Bella queried.

"Yes, it was. Esme just helped me get rid of him."

"Wow..."

"He's been an idiot all day, this was him just making an extra effort."

"Sorry you had to deal with that."

"He can't seem to wrap his mind around the fact that I can hear your thoughts."

She laughed, the sound coming off nervous.

"I liked it better when it was our little secret," she added. "Rose had a few questions herself."

"I'm not surprised. They'll forget about it. Eventually."

"I certainly hope so. So Emmett is no longer there?"

"Right now, no."

"And... you're alone now?"

With no sounds in sight other than the peaceful sounds of the forest, the answer was simple:

"Completely. Why are you asking?"

"Well, I happen to be alone as well in this bungalow," she offered.

Oh. I allowed myself to sit down in the grass, as the realization of what had prompted Bella to call me started sinking in. I was not oblivious, I knew there weren't many reasons why a woman would call her husband to tell him specifically that she was alone. But since we had never been in the position to stay separated for more than a few hours at a time, there had never been a need for... this.

This was new. Completely new.

"Are you?" I asked after a while, just as the delicious shock started to make its way through my body, gathering in a single, tight spot in my jeans.

"Yes, and I will be for as long as Alice and Rosalie are out."

"Hmmm… such a shame I'm not there with you…"

"It is a shame. There's a pretty nice bed in here. And it is quite isolated from the mainland, so not many people within hearing distance..."

I growled lowly, feeling the ache in my jeans grow stronger. It had been over a day since I had last been inside her, yet I felt as if it had been a week.

"Tell me what you're wearing, love," I pleaded, realizing that, predictable or not, this was the only thing that I wanted to know now.

"Still wearing the same dress Alice had chosen for me to go out dancing. It's blue and has an open back."

"You know I'd rip it off of you in seconds, so why don't you get rid of it for me?"

I listened closely to the soft rustling on the other end, feeling myself getting harder at the knowledge that my wife was undressing for me in some bungalow that was a thousand miles away.

"Done," she murmured.

"Good. Now the underwear as well."

Another round of rustling, and then nothing.

"Done again," she assured me.

The anticipation in her voice seeped inside my conscience, making me boil with desire. I tried picturing her: naked, laying in an unknown bed, thinking of me. What an exquisite image.

"Perfect," I offered. "Now that you're all naked, as you should be when you're talking to me, why don't you tell me why you really called, love?"

She hesitated for a second, before responding:

"I was rather aroused."

"Colour me surprised. I wonder what got you so aroused in the first place."

"Nothing in particular, just… the fact that you hadn't been inside me for over a day."

The longing in her voice made my erection twitch and I had to grab it tightly, to offer myself a tiny semblance of relief.

"Nympho," I teased. "And how may I be of service?"

"Tell me how hard you are right now."

"Like a damn rock."

"Oh, my God…"

Her words came in a half-moan, and I had no other choice but to unzip my pants right that moment and grab my erect member properly.

"What would you do about it?" I provoked.

"I'd love to get on my knees and take your… hm, your…"

I tried not to laugh at her sudden bashfulness, knowing that it would upset her. Truth be told, she was adorable. And way too sexy for her own good. This was a lethal combination.

"My what?" I pushed.

She would not have forced out the word for anyone else, that much I was willing to bet. But she did it for me:

"Your cock."

As always, no obscenity could sound vulgar coming from her lips. Instead, it sounded exceedingly concupiscent, almost like a forbidden poem. I liked the way it seemed to send new, unknown sensations through my limbs. Soon enough, I knew I would want to hear her say it again.

"Finish that idea," I encouraged her, making no effort to hide the smile in my voice.

"I'd... take your cock into my mouth. And I'd suck it thoroughly, begging you with my mind to plunge all the way inside my throat."

Oh, God. My hand was now moving slowly up and down my length - any faster and I would have been lost.

"I would do that for you with pleasure," I said. "More."

"I'd be working you with my tongue, licking, rubbing, then sucking. I would do it until you could no longer hold back…"

"Yes…"

"I'd swallow every last drop when you come… and then I'd do it all over again until you came once more, all over my face."

"Goddamn, Bella!"

I made an effort to slow down the movement of my hand and control my erratic breathing. We might have been miles away from each other, but I still wanted her to have her orgasm first. My own release always felt sweeter when it followed hers.

"I want you to open your legs for me," I directed. "Wide, just as if I were there and you were getting ready to be fucked for days."

"Yes, Edward…" she responded in a breathy moan.

"Now I want to reach between your legs and tell me exactly how wet you are, so that I can picture it."

The shortest pause followed, but it got interrupted by her deep sigh. She appeared to have forgotten what I had asked.

"Are you touching yourself?"

"Yes," she confirmed with a soft voice.

"And?"

"I'm really, really wet right now. It got on my thighs."

"God, Bella… I'd lick you clean in a second if I could."

"It would only get me wetter and you know it."

"Oh, I know, love, I know. It would prompt me to give you my all, just so that I can feel you explode on my tongue..."

I heard her gasp loudly and I started stroking myself faster in response.

"I need to come, Edward," she implored.

"I'll get you there. Start rubbing your clitoris, love. Don't rush it, you know I wouldn't."

She must have listened, because the next second she moaned loudly, leaving no doubt about what she was doing. While extremely faint, I could pick up the wet sounds of her hand moving over her bundle of nerves. It made me burn for release even fiercer than before.

"Rub it in circles, I know how much you love it when I do it," I instructed through my teeth, tightening the grip on my member as I pleased myself.

"Yes, this is it…"

"Now hold on, I said not to rush it. You have to earn this."

She didn't bother to offer me an answer; instead, she cried and whimpered, struggling to contain her own excitement.

"Slip two fingers inside, Bella. Slowly, feel them properly."

Once again, she blessed me with a delectable symphony of moans as she listened to my instructions.

"Are they in?" I checked.

"Yes!"

"How does it feel?"

"Tight!"

"Now start moving them as deeply as you can. Picture it's my cock in that hot, tight space. Entering you inch by inch, until there's no more room to go further..."

"God, Edward!"

I knew she was now pushing in and out of herself, judging by the rhythm of her breathing. I tried to match that rhythm as I continued stroking myself.

"Thrusting back and forth, fucking you relentlessly…"

"Yes…"

"Slapping that perfect ass as I do it…"

"Fuck!"

"Biting your neck until it hurts…"

I wasn't fully concentrating on what I was saying. I was simply describing all the magnetic flashes that went through my mind as they came. Soon enough, I was no longer able to say much else, and neither was Bella. We were too busy moaning and groaning our way through this phone call, as our hands worked to bring us over the edge. When she came, she cried out my name - once, twice, three times - and I really didn't need more to lose it completely.

My orgasm followed immediately, the venom bursting in thick streams all over my shirt and the grass underneath. I called Bella's name in return, taking delight in the way she breathlessly encouraged me to let go. Forgetting my surroundings. Succumbing to this faultless rapture.

It took us a while to recover. But once we were able to form cohesive sentences again, we went right back to the start. And then to the finish line. And then to the start again. Then the finish line once more. Again and again and again.

We only stopped when Bella heard the sharp sounds of Rosalie's heels from afar.


No house was as beautiful as ours.

Our house was covered in a lattice of winter roses on one side and a dense veil of honeysuckle that would only bloom in late spring on the other. The stone from which it was built had a lavender tint to it, that was more evident in bright daylight. When the night came, the lavender went away, making room for an oceanic grey.

Our house had one large oak door, reminiscent of old fairy tales. It opened the way to a small foyer, and the foyer led to our living room. The ceiling was just high enough so that I wouldn't need to crouch to avoid the exposed beams. The walls boasted intricate mosaics, each stone a different kind of blue, to remind us of all the different shades the water on Isle Esme had. There was a fireplace in the corner and a large bookshelf on the northern wall. And at the very core of the room, a piano.

Our house had a spacious bedroom, where we would be doing anything but sleeping. The bed was huge and covered in a waterfall of translucent gossamer, that fell down from the canopy to the floor, just like a soft ocean wave. My music collection was all there, stacking the wall facing the bed. Underneath the bed, there was a large case; inside it, a wide array of items awaited: climbing ropes, chains, scarves, belts - most of them new, since they never lasted long. One wall had large glass doors on it that opened straight into the back yard, where a small pond awaited.

Our house had a bathroom that perfectly mimicked one of the many bathrooms on Isle Esme. It wasn't awfully large - just large enough to fit a bathtub in which two people could lay together comfortably. The floor was a pale gold in colour, reminiscent of the sand glowing lightly in the sunlight.

Our house had a closet too, because I did not want to disappoint Alice. Just large enough for her to fit all the clothes she had been buying for Bella, but small enough to not upset my wife too much with its existence. Besides, I could think of another use for it, one that involved dressing down instead of dressing up.

Our house also had a room meant for no one in particular. It had a smaller bed and it was filled to the brim with shelves of books. It even had its small movie projector. When I told Esme about this room, she didn't have to ask too many questions to guess the reasons behind me wanting such a thing. She simply thought to herself: "More and more like his father, with each passing day".

Our house would no longer be a house from now on, for it would soon become our home. Bella just didn't know it when she stepped past the conveyor belts and started running in my direction, barely keeping a human pace. She landed straight into my arms, with her legs circling my waist and her arms around my neck. We were lost inside a kiss before we knew it.

"I've missed you so, so, so much," I murmured under her attack.

"Not nearly as much as I've missed you."

"How was your flight?"

"Uneventful for the most part."

She rushed to kiss me again, pressing herself to me as tightly as possible when she realized I had become hard.

"As much as I want to take you right now, we're still in an airport, my love," I reminded her, pulling away gently and letting her body back on the ground.

She didn't protest - at least not out loud. But her eyes were most certainly not pleased when she raised them up at me. I couldn't help but smile like an idiot. I was still getting used to this new colour of her irises. Caramelized pumpkins, acacia honey, crystallized amber - there was a different undertone I would catch everyday. Today, her eyes were candied orange peel, their depth inviting me to get lost in them for the rest of my days.

And I would have gladly accepted that invitation, had it not been for Alice and Rosalie clearing their throats, making sure that I noticed them too.

"So you're our ride?" Alice chirped, before exploding in a fit of laughter and hugging me.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Looks like we've got the short end of the stick," Rosalie sneered, but greeted me with an embrace as well.

"Oh, shut up," Bella said and I was surprised to see them laugh in unison. Whatever had happened in Spain, it seemed to have helped them warm up to each other a little more. This warming up had started back in Alaska, once Rosalie had understood the reason behind Bella's misery. If anyone could understand the pain of not being able to have a kid, it was my sister.

The car ride home had been filled with silly inner jokes and stories of Spanish lands. I listened to all of them, happy to just be a witness to their cheerfulness. Without saying a word, Alice kept bombarding me with visions of Bella seeing our new home for the first time. They were all painted in various shades of happiness, leaving no doubt about whether she was going to enjoy my surprise or not.

When we arrived home, Bella got out of the car along with my sisters, motioning me to join them. She seemed taken aback when I told her to get back in the car. Alice and Rosalie gave her their best poker faces when she asked them if they knew anything about this. In the end, she got back in, confusion gracing her every feature.

"Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise," I said, winking.

"You know my stance on surprises."

"Of course. But this one you'll love."

"Will I?"

Before starting the engine again, I reached inside the pocket of my jacket, where I had carefully placed a thin scarf. Bella seemed surprised when I took it out and watched me with an intrigued expression.

"Come here, love," I said. "I want to cover your eyes."

She bit her lip right as a smile was starting to form.

"What? Here? Everyone will hear us, Edward."

"It's not for the reason you think it is," I assured her. "Although I can make that happen later, if you're up for it."

"After two weeks of phone sex, what do you think?"

I laughed and tied the scarf around her head, making sure that there were no gaps whatsoever in the eye area. As I did that, I couldn't help but notice the way she started pressing her legs together.

"What are you doing?" I asked, amused.

"It's not my fault you've Pavloved me into getting wet at the mere sight of a scarf," she muttered. "Now drive before I jump on you."

Not that I would have minded being jumped on by her, but I had been waiting for this moment for too long and I was dying to surprise her. I drove away, keeping a hand on her thigh as I made my way through the mildly beaten trail that led to the house. The scent of the roses insinuating in the air as we got closer prompted Bella to ask:

"A garden?"

"Yes, among other things."

The scent of fresh paint was subdued, now that more than a week had passed since I had finished painting the ceilings. However, the light fragrance of the pond was unmistakable.

"We're close to water," my wife inferred.

"You are correct," I admitted, stopping the car and getting out.

I rushed to open her door and help her out, even if she could have done all that on her own. She squeaked loudly when I lifted her feet off the ground and took her in my arms - after all, thresholds were my job.

I stepped inside the yard and stopped, taking everything in.

The freshly bloomed rose buds covering the window frames.

The way the twilight glazed the outside walls with berry-toned tendrils.

The scent of a storm approaching from the North.

The hope of new beginnings.

The woman in my arms. God, the woman in my arms…

"You know you're everything to me, right?" I checked, grazing the contour of her waist with my fingers.

"You keep telling me that," she smirked.

"Good, I have my reasons."

Without another word, I reached with one hand behind Bella's back, to undo the knot of her scarf, letting it fall down in the grass. Her eyes remained stuck on my face for a little while; she looked dazed and confused and in love, all at the same time. I had to remind her to look around. She listened, her gaze leaving my face and studying our surroundings with care.

The seconds until she spoke again passed like a hazy dream. When I heard her voice, it was filled with so many emotions, that I got overwhelmed myself - not that I needed extra-help in this department:

"Edward, this is… I just..."

She was struggling to find her words, so I stepped in and said the words I had been waiting to say all week - although, to be frank, it felt as if I had been waiting a lifetime to finally say them:

"Welcome home, love."


Am I crying? Maybe, since this is the last chapter before the epilogue! I already know I'll be missing these two like crazy once I'm finished with this story.

I honestly feel all the feels right now and I would be so very thankful if you could let me know what you think. Any thoughts, small or big, are welcome and I'll make sure to respond to everyone!

And because you've all been so sweet and encouraging ever since I received my COVID-19 diagnosis, I'll let you know that I'm feeling even better. There are no more symptoms and my sense of smell is almost as sharp as it used to be.

Thank you, lovely people - for reading, for commenting, for being so supportive! You're all the best readers an author could ever dream of.

Stay safe and happy and get ready for the epilogue - it's coming way sooner than you'd think!