Chapter Twenty Two
Jasper
I was relieved to see that Bella and Charlotte had gotten along so well. Alice and the Whitlocks had not exactly been a match made in heaven, but Bella was a different kind of person so I guess I needn't have worried so much. Now, Peter and Bella? Well, that was a different matter. My best friend was certainly an acquired taste. I freely admitted as much. He was mischievous and coarse-mouthed but I hoped that she would see beyond that to his loyalty and courage. I had told her a little about them, but there hadn't been time to go into depth and detail.
When the Cullens had met Peter I had been pleasantly surprised with regard to Carlisle and Esme. They had been welcoming although Peter's huge inferiority complex made him a little prickly. Then there was Emmett who enjoyed Peter's company, but then they were two of a kind when it came to causing mayhem so that was to be expected.
Alice and Rosalie found him too difficult to stomach and as a result kept their distance. The real problems came when Edward and Peter were in the same room. My 'foster brother' was something of a snob and did not attempt to hide the fact that he looked down his nose at Peter and Charlotte. A rancher's attitude to homesteaders would be a good comparison.
Unfortunately, Peter looked upon this as a challenge and did all in his power to rile Edward and he was a master of that particular art!
Having the two of them under the same roof again could be potentially explosive, but I was determined that nothing would ruin our family Christmas. If the two of them couldn't act like civilized human beings then they could spend the festive season up in the tree house!
As the time approached when Peter and Emmett were due I went out to find Edward and Angie. What the hell had they been doing all this time? When I discovered the answer to that question I stopped and stared.
They had turned the barn into an ice skating rink and Santa's magical grotto all rolled into one. There were giant animatronic snowmen, polar bears, penguins, and elves along with flashing colored lights and a snow machine. The snow fell over huge ice boulders and caused drifts in hollows. This was the sort of thing that Emmett might dream up in one of his wilder fantasies, but Edward?
Seeing me standing there staring, Edward came over beaming, "What do you think? The kids are going to love it. We shouldn't be much longer."
"Where the hell did you get all this stuff? How did you get it here?"
"I wanted to surprise everyone so I left the semi down the track. It was quite a drive in this weather. Poor Angie struggled enough with the car so you can imagine the work of keeping a truck on the road."
"You do realize this is a working farm, Edward? I'm going to need the barn."
He waved a hand dismissively, "Don't be such a Grinch. You can do without it for a few weeks. The stuff has to be back by the middle of January, then you can have your precious barn back. I wanted Maggie to have a magical Christmas just for once."
I felt my temper begin to rise and swallowed it down with difficulty.
"Every Christmas has been magical for Maggie, and Charlie. They don't need thousands of pounds worth of fancy electronics for that."
He smiled, "Oh, I know you do your best for my daughter, but you have to give me some leeway this time of year. Angie?"
The last was shouted and Angie popped up from behind the tallest boulder.
"Yes, Edward? Hi Jasper. Merry Christmas."
I nodded, "Merry Christmas."
"Is that Santa ready yet, Angie?"
I turned back to him, "What Santa, Edward?"
He grinned, "The piece de resistance. Santa pops up and shouts Ho Ho Ho every so often and shoots little presents for the kids to find. I wish we'd had things like this when I was young. Maggie is going to be blown away."
It must have cost a fortune and I was sure the kids would be delighted, but it wasn't the kind of Christmas I wanted for my kids and I was pretty sure Bella wouldn't be knocked out by it either.
"Did you discuss this with Bella, Edward?"
He frowned, "I didn't think it was necessary. Maggie is my daughter and I'm just doing what I think she'll love. A little Christmas magic never hurts."
"A little? You've got the whole Magic Circle here in force."
"Don't sulk, Jazz. It's not a good look on you."
I was about to give him a fat lip when I heard a car pull up outside and groaned. Peter! That was all I needed right now, Peter and Edward!
"I need my barn back right after Christmas, Edward."
I spun on my heel and went out to greet our new arrivals but Charlotte had beaten me to it. She and Peter were embracing while an excited dog circled them making low woofing noises. At least he wasn't barking loud enough to wake the children.
Putting Charlotte back on her feet he looked around and nodded, "Not a bad little setup. Suits you, Major."
The dog jumped up and knocked him on his ass in the snow then proceeded to lick him excitedly.
"Hunter, Hunter, for fuck sake calm down you lunatic mutt."
The dog took little notice of his words but saw Rose in the doorway and sped over to greet her as she ran to Emmett. The sound of their collision was loud enough for me to peer anxiously up at the bedroom windows but they remained dark.
"Em, take Hunter inside before he wakes the kids, please."
Emmett nodded and wrapping an arm around Rose he whistled the dog to his side and they disappeared inside.
Peter sprang up brushing snow off his pants. "That dog is crazy as a loon. The kids are gonna love him. So, where's my welcome committee?"
"Bella, the kids, and Charlie are asleep and I'd appreciate it if you could keep the noise down so they stay that way for a few more hours."
He made a face, "Well, what about Dr. Strange Love and his coven of weirdos?"
"Be nice, Peter. Please."
Peter sighed and nodded in response to Charlotte's entreaty.
"OK. I can see we'll have no fun here."
His head whipped around as he heard a deep 'Ho Ho Ho' from the barn.
"What the fuck is that? Do you have Santa held hostage in there?"
Before I could explain or stop him, he was at the barn door and peered inside.
"Man.
He ran to the house and called for Emmett to join us. "Come and look at this Emmett."
I rolled my eyes as Emmett joined him and peered inside. They were like two kids. No, make that two of the devil's imps! They smiled at each other with obvious evil intent.
"Isn't this a little OTT for you, Major?"
I jumped in hurriedly before they could cause trouble.
"It has nothing to do with me, and before you go in there causing mayhem, DON'T. It's for the children tomorrow."
Edward pushed them away from the barn and shut the doors with some finality.
"This is out of bounds to you two. It's for Maggie…" he saw my expression and hurriedly added, "and Charlie for tomorrow. Everything in there is rented and extremely expensive. Keep your hands off."
Peter pulled a face, but Emmett attempted a look of total innocence which he almost managed to carry off.
"Sure, Edward. We'll be sure to stay away. I just hope Hunter doesn't get inside. He'd have a whale of a time."
Edward ostentatiously locked the door with a shiny new padlock and placed the key carefully in his pocket.
"Unless the dog has opposable thumbs, everything should be safe enough now. As for you two, stay away. Don't you dare ruin my daughter's Christmas surprise."
Emmett smiled, "Fair enough, Scrooge Cullen. I'm just glad that you're not driving Santa's sleigh tonight with an attitude like that."
Peter noticed Edward's prosthetic arm and walked closer to examine it.
"Nice. The Major told me you'd become the bionic man. Does it do anything cool?"
"Cool?" Edward echoed sarcastically.
"Yeah, you know what I mean. Does it shoot flames or lob grenades? Flash rude signals. Something cool?"
"You really are pathetic, Whitlock. You watch too many children's movies. Still, they're about at your intellectual level."
Did Edward truly think he could beat Peter at verbal sparring? He should know better!
"It's a shame they couldn't give you decent looks or a pleasant nature along with the arm. Nah, maybe not. You need something to work with. Come on, Em. We know where we're not wanted. Let's go see if the Christmas spirit is alive and well in the house where the grown-ups are."
I was suspicious at how mildly Peter had accepted Edward's orders. That never boded well, but I wasn't going to rock the boat.
Edward watched them leave before turning back to me.
"I'm going to give Maggie the key after lunch. If that's OK with you, Jasper, of course."
"You'd better clear it with Bella, and Edward, in the future, a heads up would be nice."
He curled his lip and turned to Angie, "I should have known that my dear brother wouldn't approve. It's not rural and backward enough for his tastes. Some of us have embraced the 21st Century. You should try it sometime."
He took Angie's arm and steered her towards the house, "Don't bother thinking about apologizing for my behavior, dear. It's really not necessary."
I wondered how she put up with Edward reading her mind constantly. At least Bella had been able to keep her thoughts to herself.
I called a warning after him, "Edward. I would be careful about winding Peter up."
He turned to me, "I know all about your 'friend' and he'd better behave himself around my daughter. If he tries to ruin things there will be trouble."
I was sure that there would be, but my money was on Peter every time.
Inside, I found to my relief that Peter and Emmett had persuaded the girls to play cards in the kitchen. That left Carlisle, Esme, Angie, and me to endure Edward. I saw Angie glance longingly at the kitchen door whenever soft laughter erupted, but she knew there was no way that Edward would let her join them.
She seemed to be firmly under the thumb. He'd tried that with Bella and got his fingers burned, but he never learned. If he crushed Angie's spirit it would be a tragedy.
Esme had also noticed and after a few minutes asked Angie if she would partner with her so she could join the card game. Edward would have liked to object, but when Esme looked at you like that it was safest to keep your mouth closed and go along with her.
Edward continued explaining to Carlisle where he had obtained his 'surprise' for Maggie.
"It wasn't cheap, but nothing is too good for my little Princess. I was thinking that maybe Angie and I could take her to Europe next year. I think a rounded education is important and while I'm sure Bella and Jasper do their best, some things just have to be experienced."
"You should talk to Bella before you say anything to Maggie. It's up to her as Maggie's mother, Edward."
"And I'm her father, Jasper. I want what is best for her and unlike you, I can afford to give it to her."
Carlisle sat forward, "Edward, it's Christmas. Let's not start a quarrel. If you feel so strongly about a European tour then you should take Bella to one side and discuss the possibility like two adults. I will not let you start trouble and ruin the festive season. If you can't behave like a mature adult then I suggest you take your leave. Remember what happened the last time you tried to bully Bella? It didn't end well for you."
Edward looked stunned. Had he actually thought that Carlisle would back him when he was being so obnoxious and unreasonable?
"Why do you always have to go at things like a bull in a china shop? Learn a little diplomacy."
Edward sat back, took out his cell phone, and amused himself surfing the internet, ostentatiously ignoring us both. Sulking was not a good look on him, but we left him to it and went to retrieve the children's sacks from the basement where I'd hidden them earlier in the day.
We were arranging them around the tree and filling the stockings when he disappeared outside without a word. Had he decided to leave? No, we weren't that lucky.
Carlisle sighed, "I thought Edward had matured since Maggie was born. Angie has been a good influence on him, but sometimes I could knock his head against the wall. Doesn't he understand that causing friction between the two of you and himself will only hurt his chances with Maggie?"
"You're talking about Edward. What did you expect? I thought he'd done remarkably well. Bella began to wonder if he'd been possessed by an alien he was acting so reasonably. I guess the true Edward had to rear his ugly head again sooner or later."
Edward reappeared a few minutes later with a stack of packages and piled them beside Maggie's sack then took two small ones out of his pocket and slipped them into Charlie's.
Carlisle and I exchanged glances. It was blindingly obvious that he had spent a fortune on his daughter and wanted it to be seen by everyone. Did he think that Charlie was going to feel left out? I doubted my son would even notice, he wasn't interested in the number of things, only that he got things that interested him.
We had just finished arranging everything and sat down when gales of laughter from the kitchen rocked the house and I waited for the patter of feet, sure the noise had woken the children.
In the event, it was Bella who appeared followed by a bleary-eyed Chief Swan.
"What was that? An earthquake?"
The kitchen door opened briefly and Emmett popped his head around, "Sorry. Did we wake them?"
"No, luckily for you," I growled.
As Emmett retreated back to the game I noticed Bella staring at the piles of presents. She whirled on Edward, "I thought we agreed on a price limit for presents, Edward."
"No. You gave me a figure. We never agreed on anything, and as Maggie is my daughter I chose to get her a little extra."
I put a hand on Bella's shoulder, "Leave it, Bella. It's not worth getting upset about. Come and sit by the fire, you're freezing."
I pulled her down beside me and the Chief joined us.
"I couldn't sleep. I feel like a kid on Christmas Eve. I guess it's the excitement of discovering that I have my daughter back and two wonderful grandchildren. I take it everyone is here now?"
I nodded as Hunter, recognizing his master's voice, came flying through from the kitchen barking in excitement, and launched himself at the Chief.
Well, the kids may have slept through the card game laughter but Hunter's barking certainly woke them, and seconds later two excited children came running down the stairs shouting at the top of their voices that Santa had been here.