If anyone is interested in an outtake of the 'bachelor party' let me know! Twilight and all of its characters belong to Stephenie Meyer.
Edward is a little word in this chapter. I apologize before he starts.
Pictures of Bella's dress and the bridesmaids dress are on my blog.
It was just after sun rise when I ran by the sign that welcomed visitors to Forks. I was feeling so many conflicting emotions that I thought for a moment that Jasper had caught up with me. My anger tried to boil over again as my mind drifted to my brother.
I quickly pushed all thoughts that were not directly related to Bella from my head. I concentrated on my love for her. I was elated that today was the day that Bella would become my wife. My dead heart leapt with that knowledge.
I took off running again when Emmett's thoughts came into range. I would not deal with him now. It would have to wait until after the wedding.
Alice greeted me with an apology when I entered the house.
"I am so sorry Edward. I had no idea what he was going to do. He kept changing his mind and by the time his plan solidified it was too late to warn you."
"It's not your fault Alice. Emmett and Jasper are the ones to blame and no one else." I told her flopping down on the couch beside her.
"Oh I know. Jasper is going to hear all about it when he gets here, I can promise you that." she huffed, annoyed. I don't care that he only went along with it to keep you from killing Emmett.
What has you knickers in a twist? Rosalie asked when she came into the living room.
"Your husband." I said curtly.
"What the hell did he do this time?" she asked me exasperatedly. I looked to Alice to see if it was a good idea to tell her or not. She nodded so I did.
"He tried to force me to go to a gentleman's club with him and when I refused he tried to pay a woman that was standing on the corner by the club, to show me a good time, as he put it.
"He's dead." she said simply leaving to find and possible dismember Emmett.
"Be back by two to help with Bella's hair." Alice shouted over her shoulder. Rosalie agreed silently knowing that Alice would see that she'd be back in time.
I spent the morning helping Esme and Alice with the final decorations. Jasper had gone with Carlisle to collect Bella's mother and stepfather from the airport.
It was around one thirty when Bella showed up. I was banished to my room until the start of the ceremony.
Rosalie was true to her word and came dragging a filthy distraught looking Emmett behind her. She went straight to Alice's bedroom. It had been dubbed the bridal suite and all of the women were gathered there.
Emmett headed straight for the shower as per his wife's instruction muttering apologies to me the entire time. I accepted hem.
At four pm my brothers, Charlie and my father invaded my room. I was pacing anxiously waiting for the clock to strike six so that I could see my love again.
"Calm down Edward. Everything is going to be fine." Jasper sent a wave of serenity out into the room.
"This is as calm as I will get until I see Bella." I told him continuing to pace the length of my room.
He chuckled and busied himself with getting dressed at a human pace for Charlie's sake.
I was very surprised to note that Charlie was thinking unkind things about me. I had thought that we had a decent relationship. He seemed to be debating whether or not he should ask Bella to not go through with the wedding. Her probable reaction was the only thing stopping him.
When we were all dressed and ready he excused himself to go to Bella. I took this opportunity to ask Carlisle if he had any idea what I might have done to upset Charlie. He laughed openly before clapping me on the shoulder.
"You are taking away his daughter today Edward. He loved her first and I image it is hard to know that she won't be depending on him anymore. You are her protector now, or will be in just a few moments. He is reaction the way any father would. He doesn't suddenly dislike you son. I promise."
We made our way down the stairs and I took in the living room for the first time since Alice had finished decorating it.
The were white roses and orange blossoms twisted into garlands and stung along with white freesias and roses that were tinted a soft pink almost the color of Bella's blush. White gossamer ribbon was tied to every stable surface in the room giving the room a cloud like feel.
We took our places under the arch in front of the fireplace. The arch was overflowing with more flowers and billowy ribbon. Carlisle was standing just to my left as I faced the crowd. Emmett and Jasper took their places beside him after they had seated all of the guests.
The first notes of Pachebel's cannon brought Rosalie to the top of the stairs. She looked stunning in the strapless pink and white dress that Bella and Alice had chosen for the bridesmaids. The bodice was a darker pink covered with a pale pink overlay. The ribbon that adorned the waist of the dress matched the bottom of the skirt that flowed freely as she descended the stairs.
Angela Weber began her trek down the stairs once Rosalie got to the bottom. I was pleased that the dress suited her as well as it did Rose.
The moment her foot dropped onto the bottom step Alice appeared. As she was Bella's maid of honor her dress was slightly different than the other two. She was wearing a shrug in the same color as the ribbon and skirt.
My whole body melted when she reached the bottom of the staircase. I thought for a moment that I had died and gone to heaven. For I was surely seeing an angel.
My Bella was wearing a beautiful white satin and lace dress that looked like a modernized version of a dress that a lady would wear on her wedding day when I was human.
It had a scooped neckline that was accented by lace and beadwork. The bodice was fitted and the satin skirt was bustled showing the underskirt of lace. I allowed my self a brief moment to take in all of her beauty.
I started at the hem of the dress moving my eyes steadily upwards until they met hers. I was glad I saved her face for last if not I would have never seen her dress. I simply could not force my gaze away from her blushing face that was currently frozen in an expression of love.
The moment her father placed her hand in mine I knew that god had not forsaken me. There was on way that I could believe that any god would damn an angel as perfect as my Bella to live with a soulless creature. There was hope and I was determined to keep myself and Bella when the time came, on the right path so that if we ever left this life we could see heaven.
Angela's father directed the guests to be seat and I realized with a start that I had not even noticed that they had stood.
My mind barely registered the words that Pastor Weber was saying. All I could see was my Bella; all I could hear was the sound of her breathing and the pounding of her heart in her chest. My mind was a dizzying swirl of Bella.
I was vaguely aware that my name was being said. I pushed away the haze that my love had me in to understand what was needed of me. It was time for my vows.
"Do you Edward Anthony take Isabella Marie to be you wedded wife?"
"I do." I replied forcefully.
"Edward and Isabella have written their own vows. Edward if you would begin" He smiled and nodded in my direction.
"Isabella, my love. There isn't a moment that goes by that I don't thank god that you are in my life. Before I met you I was a shell of the man you see before you. I was walking around in a constant stated of darkness.
You stumbled into my path bringing with you the light of a thousand suns. You are my personal angel and I will spend the rest of eternity trying to be the good enough to deserve you.
Today I pledge you not only my life and my love, I also give you my soul. Everything that I was, am and ever will be is yours. This is my solemn vow." I gently wiped away the tear that was threatening to roll down her cheek before turning to Carlisle to retrieve her ring.
"I, Edward Anthony Masen Cullen take you Isabella Marie Swan to be my lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, for better or worse, for richer or poorer in sickness and in health all of the days I walk this earth. This is my solemn vow."
I stared deep into her shimmering chocolate eyes as I slid the golden band on her finger. She closed her eyes for a second, taking a deep breath to calm herself enough so that her voice would be steady before she began.
"Do you Isabella Marie take Edward Anthony to be your wedded husband?"
"I do" her voice shook slightly but the conviction behind those two words caused my breath to hitch.
"When we decided that we were going to write our own vows I sat down for hours trying to think of the best way to tell you how much I love you but I could not put my feelings into words, you know that I've never been good at expressing my emotions." she paused to take a deep steadying breath before continuing.
"When I say you standing here under this arch waiting for me, I suddenly knew exactly what to say. I love you Edward. My heart is so full of you that I feel it may burst. You are my everything Edward and I will never want anything more than your happiness. I am eternally yours." With those words she turned to Alice taking the ring that she was holding out to her.
"I, Isabella Marie Swan take you Edward Anthony Masen Cullen to be my lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, for better or worse, for richer or poorer in sickness and in health all of the days I walk this earth. This is my solemn vow." She slid the ring onto my finger where it will stay until I am ash.
We turned to face the minister waiting until he said the final words that would bind Bella and I together in the eyes of god.
"BY the power vested in my By God and the state of Washington I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." I wasted no time in taking him up on that offer.
I wrapped Bella in a tight embrace kissing her with all of the passion that her words had invoked in me. I only broke the kiss to allow her to breathe before pressing my lips to hers again.
The wolf whistles and cat calls of my brothers and the adolescent humans in attendance brought me back to the present so I released my hold on Bella taking her arm to lead her back down the aisle.
I led my wife into the dining room. Alice had decided that this was the perfect place for us to wait until all of our guests were outside and in place. She wanted us to make a grand entrance.
My wife. I couldn't help the wide smile that dominated my face at this thought. What beautiful unbelievable words. The last eighty years of solitude and loneliness were well worth the wait. I was reveling in this overwhelming joy that radiated from my very core.
We're ready for you newlyweds! Alice called in her thoughts just as Carlisle spoke.
"Ladies and gentleman I present to you for the first time as husband and wife; Isabella and Edward Cullen."
We stepped out into the backyard as flashes went off. Alice had strategically placed photographers at the doors to get what she referred to as candids of Bella and me.
I led Bella to the edge of the canopy that was serving as a reception hall tonight and turned to face the growing line of well-wishers waiting to congratulate us.
Bella's parents were first. Charlie hugged Bella tight and awkwardly congratulated me in the most polite manner he was able to muster up. I thanked him sincerely. I was happy to see through Charlie's mind that he had grudgingly admitted that I was good for Bella. He was happy to see her happy. Although in his mind no man was good enough for his daughter. I couldn't help but agree.
Renee was next in line.
"Oh, Bella!" she sobbed, throwing herself into her daughters arms.
"I'm so happy! The wedding was so beautiful, wasn't it? Oh, you're so beautiful! Isn't she beautiful, Phil? I'm so proud of you, sweetheart!" Bella smiled fondly at her hare-brained mother and hugged her back.
Phil smiled awkwardly at me and shook my hand before he was shoved away so that Renee could throw herself at me next. He almost lost his balance due to the bulky walking cast that he was wearing.
"Edward! Congratulations honey! You look so handsome! Oh, I couldn't have picked a better son-in-law! I'm just so happy."
"Thank you, Renee. I'm so happy you and Phil were able to come up and celebrate with us." I smiled warmly and gently pried her off me, handing her over to her husband.
Renee was easily distracted, dragging Phil's limping form away and muttering about finding Esme.
After greeting many more guests we were ushered to grand cake that Alice had insisted that we needed. She positioned us in front of the cake and solemnly held out a large, rather sharp knife.
"Edward, don't let her cut off her fingers. It will totally ruin the wedding." She growled as I took the knife.
"Cake time!" she sang, merrily turning to face the guests. I could see several uneasy faces as the guests saw Bella holding the knife, even though my hands were wrapped around hers. Bella looked at the cake and then back at the knife like one of them may attack her.
"Don't worry, it's just cake love" I murmured in her ear, chuckling.
She smiled up at me and I smiled back, finding myself lost in her beautiful chocolate eyes.
"Edward! Cut the darn cake! You guys will have plenty of time to make goo-goo eyes at each other later."
Light laughter ran through the crowd of people around us and Bella blushed deeply. I positioned our knife over the cake.
"Smile, Bella," I reminded her as the camera flashes started going off.
She aimed a forced smile at the cameras, which actually looked more like a grimace. Bella hated attention.
I kissed her forehead reassuringly and carefully helped her cut the intricately designed cake which would probably give her a heart attack if she knew how much Alice had spent on it.
Bella looked confused when I handed her a piece of cake, taking one for myself. I grinned her favorite crooked smile at her.
"This is our first cake as husband and wife, tradition states that we must feed it to each other." Her eyebrows shot up. She knew my family and I didn't eat. I winked at her and held my cake up to her mouth.
She mimicked me and then hesitantly leaned forward as if to take a bite. She took a dainty bite smiling at me apologetically as she placed the bite of cake she held to my mouth.
I struggled not to grimace as I choked down the nasty food. The sickly sweet taste of icing still remained after I swallowed.
I knew I would experience the full taste again when I excused myself to regurgitate my wedding cake from my nonworking digestive system.
It was worth it though, to see the look on Bella's face. I leaned down to kiss her icing smeared lips. Alice dragged her away before I was finished kissing her earning a quite growl from me.
Bella was positioned in front of all the single women in the room to toss her bouquet. I saw my brothers' disappointed expressions when it didn't hit anyone in the head.
Then it was my turn. A chair was brought out for Bella and she perched nervously on the edge of it. I heard Emmett's chuckle of anticipation as I knelt down in front of her.
My brothers had a bet going on. Emmett was sure I would not go through with this particular wedding ritual. Jasper was sure I would but thought I would use my hands instead of my mouth as the tradition called for.
Bella stiffened in surprise when took her leg in my hands and ducked my head under her dress and grabbed her garter with my teeth. Careful not to rip it with my sharp teeth. I took my time pulling the garter down her leg.
The frilly band rested mid-thigh. I held in the pleasurable growl that tried to break free when my lips came in contact with the soft skin there for the first time. When I emerged with my prize Bella looked absolutely mortified. Her lovely face was glowing a deep red. The crowd was roaring with laughter, Emmett's laughter loudest of all.
I stood up and faced the group of men in front of me. I turned to wink at Bella before flinging the garter right into Mike Newton's face. That piece of lace was the closest he would ever get to his revolting fantasies of Bella.
I gently pulled Bella onto the dance floor as the first note of her lullaby floated through the air. I led us into a slow waltz, keeping a firm hold on her waist to prevent my adorably clumsy wife from tripping.
The entire world melted away as I danced with her; the voices in my head were muted for once. Nothing else mattered when I danced with my angel.
I was pleased see that for the first time tonight, being on display didn't seem to bother her. She appeared content in my arms.
I bent my head and pressed my lips gently to hers. We kissed for the remainder of our first dance. We were sharing the overwhelming emotions that neither of us could put into words.
We were interrupted much too soon and I reluctantly handed Bella off to her father. I would have never been able to let her go if it weren't for the knowledge that I had the rest of eternity to dance with her. I could share her this one night.
I approached my own parents, standing with the rest of our guests at the edge of the dance floor. I bowed before offering my hand to Esme.
"May I have this dance?"
My mother laughed lightly taking my outstretched hand. "You may."
I've always wanted you to find love and I more than pleased that you have found it with someone as wonderful as Bella. I saw her memory of the first day I brought Bella home to meet the family.
I observed with her my exultant expression, foreign to her on my usually serious face. Even without Jasper's power I could feel her overwhelming joy for me.
"I know," I whispered, watching Bella and Charlie stumble through their dance, a trademark blush staining my wife's beautiful face.
"Thank you, Mom." She smiled and reached up to kiss my cheek as our dance ended.
"No, Edward. Thank you for giving me such a lovely new daughter!"
I spent the next hours dancing with girl after giggling, blushing, dazzled girl. I ignored their admiring thoughts, watching wistfully as Bella stumbled across the floor with her own dance partners.
I clenched my teeth in frustration as Mike Newton claimed Bella. I knew it was ridiculous to be jealous, especially on my wedding day, but then again I'd found that such emotions didn't have much logic.
About halfway through Mike's fantasy of running away with Bella, it became too much.
"Excuse me," I said, cutting off Jessica Stanley in mid-rant and disentangling myself from her arms. I tapped Mike on the shoulder and put on the most polite expression I could muster.
"May I cut in?" I almost growled.
"Uh…sure," Mike muttered, looking disappointed.
Bella, on the other hand, looked relieved as I took her from her unworthy dance partner. I held her close for a moment, relishing the feeling of her in my arms again before I resumed dancing with her.
"I love you, Mrs. Cullen." I told her my smiling growing even wider.
"I love you too, Mr. Cullen" she giggled.
She rested her head against my chest with a contented sigh, implying that she had missed my touch as much as I had missed hers. I held her tighter, savoring the scent of her skin and the rhythm of her heartbeat.
"I could get used to this," she whispered dreamily.
"Finally admitting that you actually like dancing, love? " I chuckled.
"Dancing isn't so bad, as long as it's with you. But I was thinking more of this, of never having to separated from you again" she said as she buried herself even deeper into my arms.
My frozen heart leapt into my throat.
"Never," I whispered. I bent my head to hers and kissed her deeply. I was lost in her, our kiss growing deeper as we expressed the feelings there were no words for, an intense pleasure that was stronger even than the call of human blood.
I was briefly distracted by a distant-sounding high-pitched voice. I ignored it. It wasn't important. I wrapped my arms tighter around Bella. Our lips eagerly explored each other's. She tasted so good, my Bella.
"It's time to change, Bella." Alice's voice successfully broke through the haze in my mind. I groaned, inwardly.
What on earth was she squawking about now? I managed to draw my lips from Bella's long enough to mumble, "Go away, Alice."
I returned my mouth to Bella's, eagerly hoping to find the little piece of heaven I had been previously lost in.
Edward Anthony release my sister, Alice thoughts growled at me. If not so help me god I will tell her how much this whole wedding cost.
I froze, feeling a growl build in my chest. She wouldn't dare. She knows exactly how Bella would react to that. But I could see her out of the corner of my eye, challenging me, one perfect eyebrow raised.
I drew my face away from Bella's to glare at my sister. I bit back all the nasty responses I wanted to say and chose the one that would least upset my mother, listening nearby.
"You're awfully small to be so hugely irritating."
"I didn't pick out the perfect going-away dress to have it wasted," she growled back, snatching up Bella's hand and attempting to tug her away.
"Come on, Bella. So much to do, so little time" she grumbled as she pulled Bella from my arms.
Bella made a small sound of protest, tugging back uselessly against my sister's inhumanly strong grip. She managed to pull herself up on her tiptoes for one more short kiss before Alice succeeded in yanking her away.
My poor kidnapped bride gave me one more longing look before she and her abductor disappeared around the corner.
I sighed, then turned to observe my now much-amused guests. I could see from their minds that they had gotten quite a show.
I pushed through the crowd as we entered the house. I moved to wait at the bottom of the staircase. I tuned out the voices around me, both vocal and mental, and concentrated on the conversation upstairs.
"Everything's ready," I heard Alice chirp cheerfully. "Your suitcases are in the car. Jasper's pulling it around right now."
They appeared at the top of the stairs, Bella and her mother following a few steps behind Alice. My bride had changed out of her attire into a more travel-appropriate outfit.
"I love you, Mom," she whispered. "I'm so glad you have Phil. Take care of each other."
Renee smiled at her daughter, her thoughts somewhat confused as to Bella's formal goodbye.
"I love you, too, Bella, honey."
"Goodbye, Mom," Bella murmured. I could see the tears building in her eyes. "I love you."
They reached the bottom of the stairs now, and Bella reluctantly let go of her mother's hand to take mine.
Bella was looking around now, her eyes scanning the crowd of people standing in the foyer.
"Dad?" she called.
I quickly scanned the crowd finding my father-in-law leaning against the wall across the room.
"Over here." I pulled Bella toward him and the wedding guests pulled back to make room for us.
Charlie looked embarrassed to be found, his red eyes and nose showing proof of the emotion he had wished to hide.
"Oh, Dad!" Bella cried, throwing herself into his arms.
After a heart-wrenching goodbye that caused a chain reaction of sniffles among watching guests, Charlie handed over my wet-eyed bride and the guests once again pulled back to make a path to the door.
"Are you ready?" I asked gently, as Bella wiped away the last tears from her eyes. She smiled up at me, her face peaceful.
"I am." She said confidently.
"Let's go then," I said, grinning slyly at Bella.
She gasped as I swept her off her feet and planted my mouth on hers. The crowd cheered. Bella blushed. Emmett guffawed.
I felt a handful of dry rice hit the back of my head. Bella picked a grain from my hair, her eyes widened. Her eyes came up to meet mine.
"Make a run for it?" she whispered.
"As you wish my love."
I sprinted through the doorway, holding Bella close to my body to protect her from the shower of rice pelting down on my back. The rice followed us unnaturally far, thanks to my dear brothers.
We reached the car and I helped her in, using myself as a barrier between her and the rice quickly closing her door before making my way to the driver's side. She laughed as I eagerly peeling away from the house.