~ Paris, France - June 15, 2005 ~
Bella and I climbed the steps of the plane. Once we reached the door, the steward greeted us with smiles and mimosas. Bella giggled as she sipped her drink. At Charlie's wedding I found our that Champagne made Bella happy and amorous.
We took out seats in the main lounge. Before Bella had started on my mimosa, the plane was accelerating for takeoff. Bella's happy smile as she watched Paris fall away from us was all I could ask for. We spent yesterday at Versailles, before meeting Charlie and Irina for dinner at a quaint little bistro. This morning Bella and Charlie were both misty-eyed while saying good bye, but they would be back in Forks in seven days. This morning I also got a chance to meet with Etienne and warn him about the room damage, which he had already heard about from the cleaning staff. I let him know that I would happily reimburse the hotel, plus the thousand Euro tip I gave him ensured that Irina and Charlie would have a problem free stay.
Soon, the steward came back to let us know we had reached a safe cruising altitude, he also brought with him some more mimosas and some chocolate covered strawberries. Bella initially refused the drink, but then took one after the steward left us. The smirk I gave Bella, made her blush.
"I need something to wash down these decadent berries," she muttered before biting into the candy coated fruit.
"Edward, can you give me a tour of the plane?" The coy smile and flutter of her lashes told me the Champagne was working it's magic.
"Your wish is my command," I said pulling Bella to her feet. "This plane is bit different from the one you came out on. The main cabin in that was all one big seating area. This one, besides being bigger, has separate rooms. This here is the lounge, it's designed for open conversation and entertainment. On that far wall, the painting recedes into a hidden track revealing a plasma television. In the cabinet below it is video game console and a DVD player. Emmett and Jasper can usually be found parked in front of the screen."
Bella nodded. "I can see that. What does Rose and Alice do while their mates are busy being entertained?"
"Alice usually reads magazines or chats with Esme. Rose, well, more often than not, she likes to go up and fly the plane."
"Really!" Bella nearly yelled thanks to the alcohol. "I never knew she could fly?"
"Yeah, she has several classes of pilot's licenses. Personal, commercial, and helicopter."
"Oh my god! I could just see Rose behind the controls of a helicopter. Can anyone else fly a plane?"
"Well, not officially per the FAA, but Emmett and I could if called upon to do so. And probably Jasper, although he has problems with landings." Bella glared at me in shock. I shook my head, "Don't ask. Jasper, Rose, and the FAA would like to forget that incident."
Bella laughed, but the end came out like a small hiccup.
"Up front there is a powder room, it is also where the flight crew have their area. The galley is forward as well." With Bella's hand in mine, I led her to the back of the plane Where a narrow hallway ran down the right-hand side of the plane.
"This door is the bathroom." I opened the door to show Bella the full bathroom, including a shower. We got to the next door, which was already open.
"This is the office. Carlisle and I spend the most time in here when we fly." I pointed the side wall with its bookcase and stereo system.
"Than doesn't surprise me," she said.
"And finally here at the end of the hall, this door leads to a master bedroom." I opened the door and showed Bella inside. The room was dominated by the bed, but there was still room for a dresser and night stands. "The back door leads to another bathroom."
"This is gorgeous, Edward," Bella said as she walked around the bed. She sat down on the edge of the bed and bounced. "This is comfy. Too bad no one in your family sleeps. I'm sure it never gets used." She said coyly while stretching out on the bed.
I laid myself down on the bed next to Bella. I was the only Cullen who hadn't joined the mile-high club. Although, I had a feeling my membership card was about to get punched. I reached out to caress her cheek, but before I touched her skin, Bella jumped off the bed and fled the room. I stayed there for a moment trying to figure out what had just happened. I heard Bella go into the plane's office, so I quickly joined her.
Bella was standing in the office with sexy little small on her face. "Sit down at the desk, Edward, you are the owner of this company, after all." Bella said. I did as she asked. "Hmmm," she hummed. "To bad you don't have glasses. I always imagined a powerful executive, such as yourself, Mr. Masen, to have glasses."
Mr. Masen! Yes!
Every time Bella has tried to seduce me using role playing, she always calls me Mr. Masen. I liked where this was going. Perhaps I was about to have a meeting with my naughty-secretary, Isabella.
Wait, glasses!
I reached into the top desk drawer and pulled out a pair of glasses I kept to make me look older. The lenses were clear glass, and frame was polished black with chrome accents. Alice picked them out for me. When I wore them I looked almost ten years older. I slipped the glasses on and looked at a small pile of papers that were on the desk from the flight out.
I couldn't help but notice that Bella bit down on her lip after a whispered "fuck!" escaped her. I looked up at her with stern look of disdain.
"Miss Swan, you know I dislike indiscriminate cursing in the office!" I placed the papers on the desk and folded my hands in front of me. "It is unprofessional and I will not tolerate it, do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, Mr. Masen! It won't happen again." Bella looked down playing her part as a chastised employee.
"Good! Please shut the door, Miss Swan. I have something I need to discuss with you and I would like to not be disturbed."
Bella nodded and quickly shut the door. She looked over her shoulder with a sinful little smile, before she engaged the lock and turned back towards my desk.
God! I loved this woman!
"Miss Swan, these reports you brought me are not complete. I gave you plenty of time to get them done. What have you been doing all of this time?"
Bella bit her lip again and looked at me for several long moments.
"Miss Swan! I asked you a simple question!" I huffed with mock anger. "Why are these reports incomplete?"
"Sorry, Mr. Masen! It's just I've been having a hard time concentrating lately."
"And why is that, may I ask?"
"I would rather not say, Mr. Masen. The reason is a bit personal."
I shook my head letting her know I was not pleased with her non-answer.
"Well, Miss Swan, it may be personal, but when it impacts your ability to work, it becomes business...specifically my business. Now tell me what has you so distracted."
"Well," Bella paused as she sauntered around the desk. "You see," Bella's hand slowly moved to her shirt before she casually unbuttoned the top two buttons. She then pulled the collar of her shirt to the side just enough to expose the top of her cleavage and the blue satin bra she was wearing. "I can't keep my mind from thinking about what it would be like to do this," she nearly purred before she grabbed my face and kissed me deeply.
After a few moments of allowing Bella to kiss me senseless, I decided it was a time to take control of our little role-playing scene. I quickly stood and spun Bella so that her back was facing the desk. I gave her a cocky smirk as I was about to do something I had fantasized about doing for quite sometime. I waited a moment to check my vampire urges before I reached across the desk and shoved everything off the desk and onto the floor. I then at vampire speed, I lifted Bella, laid her down on the desk, and ripped her shirt down the middle, which caused buttons to go flying and Bella to gasp.
"Now, Miss Swan, let me show you what I have been thinking about ever since your sexy little body has graced this office."
Our dialog and play acting may have been worthy of a poorly written porno, but my assault on her body and our frantic love making on that desk was to be a highlight of my existence.
I watched Bella and her Mother talk out on the back patio of her small, but quaint little bungalow. Since we arrived yesterday afternoon, the weather here in Florida was not cooperating. Sunshine, sunshine, and more sunshine was in the forecast for the next several days, which meant I was stuck inside while Bella sat outside. The sliding glass door that separated us, did nothing to stop me from hearing their words and Renee's thoughts.
"So tell me about Charlie's new wife. Isn't she a bit young for him." Renee asked Bella.
"Well, she may seem young, but you would be surprised how well the two of them get along."
Renee shook her head as thoughts of Charlie robbing the cradle flitted through her mind. She turned back to see if was out of hearing range, before leaning in towards Bella. When we arrived yesterday, Bella and I told Renee and Phil all about our plans to study abroad next year.
"So, you and Edward. It must be serious if you two are planning on going away together on this foreign student program. I was beyond surprised that Charlie has been ok with you two dating. And, I still can't believe he is allowing you two to go away together." She shook her head. "Are you sure it is a good idea, Bella? Don't you want to stretch your wings and go wild on your own for a bit before you get so involved with a boy?"
From Renee's thoughts I could see she wanted Bella to experience all being young had to offer, including falling in and out of love with boys just so she could sow her oats. In Renee's mind she could not fathom how Bella could know what her favorite dish was if she hadn't tried everything on the menu. I was about to get up, and sparkling be damned, go outside and explain to her that Bella has no reason to sow her oats with anyone but me. However, Bella anticipated my agitation and shot me a look that clearly told me to stay put.
"Mom, I only want to experience what next year will be with Edward. I know you think I should be wild and carefree for a while, but that is just not me. I am not you. This is not me settling for the first boy I have really felt something for. This is it for me. Edward is it for me." Renee started to interrupt her, but Bella continued on. "Mom, I know you must think that it is impossible for me to know that Edward is the man I will love and cherish for all time. But I do know. I feel it in my bones and in every breath I take. He's my soulmate. And Mom, I will not be going abroad alone with Edward. Dad and Irina will be joining us. Maybe not for the entire year, but most of it."
"What do you mean they are going with you? Charlie has a job?" Renee asked incredulously. " He would rarely even take a day off for me," she bitterly thought.
"Irina's family is wealthy. This has been something Dad has been struggling with accepting, but the reality is he no longer needs to work. So he has asked the Town Council for permission to take a sabbatical. It was the only way he felt comfortable with my plans for next year. I actually think the shooting last year also weighs on his mind. Between that and Irina, I think he is starting see things a bit differently."
"Really?" Renee asked trying to reconcile this new Charlie with the man she knew. She knew Charlie was never materialistic however she did briefly wonder if Irina's money was part of her allure, before throwing out the idea. She also quickly thought about Irina's age and how alluring and sexy that had to be for a man of Charlie's age, but quickly threw that thought as well. If Charlie wanted sex, there were options available to him. No, Renee was slowly starting to accept that Charlie loved Irina. That idea stung. True, Renee loved Phil, but she would always harbor some tender feelings for Charlie. She just hoped that Irina felt the same about him.
"If that is the case, I think you are also a big part of that too, Bella. He loves you more than you know." Renee paused and looked good and hard at Bella. "You are so much like him Bella. I was always glad you seemed to inherit his sensibilities, and not mine. And, I believe you if you say Edward is it for you. I can see it in his eyes as well. He is very intense when it comes to you. Not in a bad way, just in a he-would-do-anything-for-you kind-of way."
At least Renee was right about that. I would do anything for my Bella.
"So do you have any pictures of the wedding?" She asked. "I want to get a better idea who your new step-mom is."
"So you and Irina are really not blood-related cousins?" Renee asked as she browsed the wedding pictures I had on my laptop. Despite Renee's bohemian thoughts and occasional flightiness, she was actually very astute at reading people and she remembered faces extraordinarily well.
"No, we are not," I answered. I didn't like where her thoughts were taking her. "Technically, no one in our two families are related by birth."
Renee looked at Irina. She was jealous of Irina's looks and of the way she looked at Charlie in several of the pictures. It was obvious to her they were both deeply in love. She also keep looking between me and pictures of my family."
"I think I've seen some of your family before," she said while looking at a picture of Rose and Charlie talking to one another.
"I doubt that, Mom." Bella countered. I could tell by Bella's raised heart rate that she was getting nervous. I was nervous as well. Renee was starting to put too many things to get her in her mind.
"No, I'm sure of it, despite how crazy it even sounds to me. Take Edward's sister, here." Renee points to Rose. "Here name is Rosalie, is it not?" I had not mentioned the names of anyone in my family except for Carlisle and Esme.
Bella gasped and I nodded. Renee had a very good memory for people.
"She came to Bella's dance school one night." Renee paused and sorted her memories. "She is the one that got you into the fancy dance school in Scottsdale, Bella. I am sure of it. And I know I have seen this sister as well," Renee pointed to Alice. "I just can't place where."
Renee paused as she worked through the associated timelines and the fact that neither have seemed to age. Without much thought, and faster than I thought would be possible, she reached out and grabbed my arm. She squeezed as tightly as she could, but my flesh did not yield. I looked over at Bella who was just shaking her head. Renee's mind jumped to the La Push beach as a memory of her as a teenager hearing scary tribal stories came into view. Renee pulled her hand away from my arm and gasped.
She didn't know what I was or what my family was, the stories she remembered were vague and mainly about wolves. But she immediately made a connection that the wolves existed to protect the reservation against something. She wondered if that something was my family.
"Mom, tell me what you are thinking," Bella said with a shaky voice.
Renee looked between the two of us and then back to one of the pictures of Charlie and Irina. Her mind connected the final set of dots as she realized that my relationship with Bella, and Charlie's with Irina only now made sense because it was based on something of the supernatural.
Renee jumped up and left the room. Bella immediately grabbed my hand before pleading, "Edward what is going on? Tell me! Has she figured out your secret?"
"She hasn't exactly figured things out, but that is only semantics at this point. She knows that my family and the Denali's are something other than human. She remembers old stories that she heard at La Push as a teenager."
I paused as I followed her thoughts in her bedroom, she was searching for a picture she once took while Bella and her were on a trip to San Diego. Renee found the picture and returned. This was not going to be good.
"She has a picture of," I started to tell Bella, but Renee returned.
"Edward, is the man in this picture related to you?" She asked pointing to a vampire she captured one evening while Bella and her were in the lamp-light district. He had alabaster skin and red eyes. He was a vampire I recognized and my world had just become a lot smaller than it was before today.
"That man is not related to me, however he is like me. Like my family." I responded.
"Is he...he is dangerous, yes?" She asked. From her thoughts Renee got a very bad feeling when she saw him that night. As he walked through the crowd, he brushed up against Renee. He felt like stone, cold and hard. And his eyes, besides being red, were as cold as his skin. She couldn't place it at the time, but she never forgot how she whisked Bella away from the man as fast as she could. When she was far enough away that she felt safe, she took a picture of him because she had never felt so unsettled by a person before.
"At one time he was dangerous, deadly, but he is no longer a danger to anyone."
Both Renee and Bella looked at me wanting me to explain, but I could not...at least not in front of Renee.
"Mom, please! I am begging you to not ask too many questions." Bella pleaded with her mother.
"I knew it the moment I saw him, then he brushed up against me as he hurried past," Renee continued overtop of Bella's pleas. "I never felt so cold before or so terrified. I knew he was something not normal and something evil. A predator on the prowl."
Renee looked at me as if she was seeing me for the first time. She may be prone to distraction, but she had some latent skill in knowing danger when she came upon it.
"But I don't get that from you. You would do anything to protect Bella, wouldn't you?"
"I would." I simply said as I wrapped my arms around her daughter. "I'm sorry, but I cannot say anything else regarding this man. Please understand, Renee, I am not trying to be difficult. However, your intuition regarding this man was well placed. He was a predator and he was not hunting alone. You were wise to be afraid of him."
"Was?" Bella asked looking up at me.
"Was," I replied, "as in no more."
Bella looked at the picture. From the camera angle, Renee got a good profile of the James. Somewhere close to them was also Victoria and probably Laurent. "San Diego?" After Renee nodded, Bella turned towards me. "This was summer of ninety-nine. I was eleven."
Renee took the picture from Bella. She walked over to the kitchen sink and dropped the photo into the steel basin. A moment later she lit a match and set the photo on fire.
"I only kept the photo to remind me what he looked like," she said. "Now that he is no more, I no longer need it. Plus, I am guessing you both would rather it be destroyed."
Renee looked at me for confirmation as the photo curled into a small ball of ash. Just like the vampire the photo contained.
After Renee poured herself a glass of wine, we went into the family room to talk.
"So I know you would rather I don't ask questions, but I need to know a few things," Renee said as she looked at me. "So, you and your family, and I guess Irina's family, you are not normal?" Renee didn't know what we are, she just knew that we weren't normal humans.
"No, we are not." I answered. "I can't really tell you anything else."
"I assume that Bella and Charlie know?"
"We do." Bella answered.
"And Charlie is ok with it?" She asked.
"Yes, both Dad and I are ok with it, Mom. Dad knew before I did."
"This deep connection you two have, and I am guessing Charlie and Irina have, is because of them not being normal?" Renee asked Bella.
"I wouldn't say that is a completely accurate statement," I answered. "What I am, what my family is, does not change how we feel. It makes the feelings stronger, but I would love your daughter regardless."
"I see. So you are not doing anything to brainwash my daughter into being with you?" Renee asked as this was her greatest fear.
"No!" Both Bella and answered. I placed a hand on Bella's arms to calm her down.
"No, Renee. There is no funny business at play here. My condition makes the feelings more pronounced, but no less authentic. I promise you, Bella and Charlie are not being coerced or manipulated. If anything, it is Irina and myself that have been enchanted by them."
Renee took a long sip of her wine, before asking "Why aren't your eyes red?"
"I can't answer that directly," I responded, "but I can tell you that our amber eyes are a sign that we respect and honor the lives of those around us."
"So I guess by that cryptic answer, that having red eyes would mean that you wouldn't respect the lives of those around you?"
"That is correct. If you see anyone like me, but with crimson eyes, it would be best get as far away from them as possible."
Renee nodded and drank some more wine. Her mind drifted to a number of possibilities regarding my biology. Alien was one thought. Angel was another. Luckily, vampire was not being considered.
"So, I did meet your two sisters before?" She asked.
"You did. I believe you also met Esme, my mother."
"Really?" Renee asked trying to remember her.
"She was the bookmobile attendant one time in Phoenix." Bella answered.
Renee's mouth moved into the shape of the letter "O" as she pondered both that it had happened and that Bella knew. This got Renee thinking about a lot of coincidences during Bella's youth. Some she got right, other's were not my family's doing, at least I did not think they were. Renee quickly jumped ahead to this past year. She guessed there was more to Charlie being shot. She also starting thinking about our plans for next year.
"So this exchange program, there is more to it than what you are telling me, isn't there?"
Bella nodded.
Renee thought for a moment before she gasped.
"Oh my God! This trip wasn't to stop in and say hello, but to say goodbye, wasn't it?" Renee pictured Bella and Charlie with amber eyes. "You and Charlie are going to become like him! You were going to leave, weren't you?"
With this realization, Renee stood and looked out the window, as she started to cry. Bella left my side to comfort and hug her mother.
"I didn't want that to be the case, Mom, but I wanted to see you, just in case." Bella was crying now too.
I sat watching the two women hold each other. I stood up to give them some privacy, but Renee reached out and stopped me.
"You will be good to her? You will love her like she deserves?" Renee asked me.
"I will. She is my other half and I will spend the rest of eternity loving her."
Renee thought about my words and the implied meaning. My family did not age. That is why Rose looks the same, even though a decade had past. She now understood. Bella and Charlie would not age. At some point, they would have to disappear and leave behind those that knew them. Leave her behind.
Renee reached up and held her daughter's face in her hands. "I don't want you to disappear on me, Bella. I understand you may need to move away and break ties with others, but not me. I promise not to ask too many questions, just please don't leave me behind. I knew when you left to be with Charlie that my time as a hands-on Mom was over, not that I was very good at it anyway."
"Mom..." Bella started to say, but Renee kissed her forehead before stopping her.
"No, Bella. We both know that I was never Mother-of-the-year material. Luckily, you have enough of your father in you. You made it easy. So, Charlie's going to be with you next year and beyond?"
Bella nodded.
"Good! I didn't do right by him taking you away like I did, and then trying to shut him out of your life. But something always brought him to you when you needed him." Renee looked over at me with a raised brow.
All I could do is look away, but in her thoughts she knew my family were their guardian angels.
Angels.
That is how Renee chose to see me and my family.
"Now it is his turn. He is much better equipped to handle this new part of your life."
Bella climbed the steps of the airplane. At the top she waved to Renee and Phil who both came to the airport to see us off. The private jet before them was quite impressive. Renee wondered if sometime in the future she and Phil would have golden eyes. At one point in her life the thought of cheating death and being young forever would have been terrific, but she was genuinely happy with life and with Phil. However, she couldn't stop herself from wondering what it would be like.
Once the outer door was sealed, Bella pulled my head down and kissed me softly.
"Thank you, Edward," she whispered against my lips. "I now feel like I can go into this year without any regrets. I was able to see that my Mom is truly happy with her life in Jacksonville. Plus, I know that no matter what happens during my change, I will at least get to keep my Mom as part of my life, at least for some number of years."
"You are most welcome, Love." I whispered back. "I am happy for you and your Mom."
As soon as we were told he could move about, Bella sprinted to the back of the plane and looked into the conference room. Bella giggled at the site of a new desk sitting in room. During our passionate flight to Jacksonville, the desk did not survive our love making. As we left the plane in Florida, Bella cringed at the thought of the crew discovering the wreckage. It was then I reminded her that all of my family have used this jet, so broken furniture is not new to the crew."
"Did you just have another one of these hanging around, Edward?" Bella asked about the new desk. That naughty twinkle I loved so much was back in her eyes.
Bella grabbed my hand and led me back to the bedroom. After shutting and locking the door, she turned and asked, "Do you have another bed laying about too? I think you're going to need it."
Author's Note:
So that was Jacksonville and Renee. I hoped you liked her. I do. She is still a bit of a scatterbrain, but she has some depth as well. Next up, everyone is back in Forks getting ready to put their French plans in motion. See you all Monday! Thank you for all of the support and for reading!
-Chris