I woke up early and started making breakfast for everyone. I shuffled around the kitchen trying not to make too much noise. I started the coffee pot and pulled out a big skillet to fry up some bacon.
"Do you need any help?" Alice asked in a low voice trying to stay quiet. Rose walked out of the guest room and headed for the coffee pot that had just finished brewing.
"Hey girls. What's cookin'?" She looked at the pack of bacon that I was pulling apart and laying in the pan. "You'd better throw two packs on, Emmett loves bacon."
We all giggled and I went to the fridge to get out another pack and the eggs. "So how have you both been?" I questioned. I hadn't seen either of them for over two months.
"Actually girls I have an announcement to make." Rose started. Alice and I looked at her willing her to continue. "I'm not supposed to say anything yet, but I can't stand it any longer."
"What?!" Alice and I both said at the same time.
"Well, we were going to make the announcement tonight at dinner, but…" She continued to whisper. "Emmett asked me to marry him!"
Alice and I both squealed rather loudly. "Shhh! I don't want him to know that I told you." Our squeal turned into a whisper squeal.
We held a group hug in the middle of my kitchen. The three of us were bouncing in place when Jasper appeared at the counter. "What's going on in here ladies?"
"Nothing Jazz, we are just happy to be together." Alice chimed in. "I've missed Bella so much. We should visit more often."
"Rose, you me and Bella…later." Alice winked at us. We both nodded.
"Mmm…bacon!" Emmett exclaimed coming from the bedroom. "I'm starving!"
I held my finger to my lips shushing him. "Edward is still asleep. He has hardly slept in the last month. Let him get some rest please."
"No sleep for Edward little Bella?" Emmett laughed. "Ooh Eddie!" He continued in a high pitched voice that I assumed was supposed to be me, rubbing his chest and wiggling his hips provocatively. "You're such a stud!"
My face flushed a bright red which made Emmett laugh even louder. I turned to the sink and started the water and the garbage disposal. I picked up the tray that held all of the cooked bacon and threatened to dump it in the sink. Emmett's eyes got wide and lunged for the tray. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" He yelled.
I handed him the tray and squinted my eyes at him. "Watch yourself Emmett Cullen, no more making fun of Bella, you got it?" He nodded profusely clutching the tray with one arm and running his hand back and forth along the rim like he was soothing it.
The girls and I finished cooking up breakfast and set it out on the table. "I'm going up to see if Edward wants any." I told everyone and headed to the stairs.
"Ooh, let me." Emmett shot past me and bounded up the stairs before I could stop him. I heard a grunt and an 'Emmett get the hell off me' and a couple of curse words before Emmett yelled 'Ow' and more cursing. Then there were two loud 'thuds' and Emmett came back downstairs holding his arm. "I don't think he wants any."
"What happened?" Rose asked.
"I only jumped on him and bounced around a little. Then he had the nerve to push me off and he even threw those fucking beat to shit boots that he loves at me. Asshole."
"Did he want any breakfast?" Jasper snickered. "Maybe you should put some on a tray and serve him breakfast in bed." Emmett just flipped him off.
"Emmett be nice." I scolded him and headed up the stairs.
Edward was lying on his stomach and was facing away from me when I entered the room. I crawled across the bed and draped myself over his back so that I could see his face.
"I made breakfast." I said brushing his hair out of his eyes. "Do you want some?"
"MmHm." He hummed, his eyes still closed. I kissed his bare shoulder and laid down beside him. He turned his face in my direction on his pillow.
"It's eight. You can sleep longer. I'll save some for you." I said rubbing my hand from his waist up into his hair and back. "Your mom is taking the girls and me shopping later, do you want to come?"
He cracked one green eye open and raised his eyebrow like I had just asked him the dumbest question known to man. "I didn't think so. I don't know what the 'boys' have planned for today but I'm sure it will beat shopping." I said in mock enthusiasm.
Breakfast and six showers later we were finally ready for the day. Carlisle and Esme showed up just as we were finishing getting ready. The girls hopped in one cab and the boys in another.
We shopped for hours before finally sitting down at a restaurant for lunch. "Alice I don't know how you plan on getting all of those new clothes in your suitcase and on the plane home." I laughed.
"Silly Bella, all of these clothes are not for me." She chirped.
"Please, I don't need any new clothes. I wish you wouldn't have done that." I scolded.
"You are kidding right? You still wear stuff from like three years ago." Rose informed the table. "You need a little updating."
"Not to mention you need to…I was going to say update, but I'm going to go with…create a wardrobe of sexy lingerie." Alice said and Rose agreed. Kill me now. I'm not that comfortable with this topic anyway, but I am sitting next to my boyfriend's mother.
I looked at Esme from the corner of my wide eyes to find her laughing along with my two ex-best friends. I slapped my hand over my face and tried to huddle in the corner of the booth.
"Girls, you are making Bella uncomfortable." I silently thanked Esme. I'm sure she didn't want to hear the details about her sons' sex lives today at lunch anyway.
We got home a few hours later to find Carlisle, Emmett and Jasper watching ESPN each with a beer in their hand and Edward standing in the kitchen listening to his iPod putting away dishes.
I walked in the kitchen and put my bags on the counter. Edward didn't even notice that I was there. I could hear the music coming from his ear buds. I wrapped my arms around his waist from behind and he turned and gave me his breathtaking crooked smile.
"What did you and the guys do today?" I asked him.
"Would you believe we went shopping?" He rolled his eyes. "They wanted to do some Christmas shopping around here. We just got home and they turned on the TV"
"What did you buy?"
"That, I am not telling you." He grinned at me before kissing me softly. "It would ruin the surprise."
"Well ladies, we have reservations for dinner at six." Carlisle said standing up and putting his arm around Esme. "We are going to head back to the hotel to change."
A few minutes later they left and we all started to get ready for dinner. The place that was chosen was supposed to be really nice. It wasn't formal, but we would have to look nice.
Alice presented a beautiful navy blue dress to me before I headed upstairs to change. It was sleeveless with a deep 'v' neck. The bodice was fitted to my waist and the skirt was loose and fell just above my knees. She also handed me a pair of peep-toe heels to match. I put on a little make-up and curled my hair just enough to give it some 'bounce'.
I walked out of the bathroom to find Edward dressed in some nice black slacks and a black button down shirt and black shoes. He already had the sleeves rolled up to his elbows.
"Lookin' good, Johnny Cash." I teased. "It looks like Alice got to you too."
"I don't mind. You look stunning by the way." He told me before taking my hand and heading down the stairs.
As we were being lead to our table in the restaurant I noticed a shock of red hair at a table in a different section. I cringed inwardly hoping that we could avoid any run-ins with the Denali family. Of all the restaurants in New York, we had ended up in the same one. Figures.
Just as the server had taken away our dinner plates Emmett called the table to attention. "Rose and I have an announcement to make." He beamed and Rose smiled. "I've asked Rose to marry me and oddly enough she has accepted!"
As Rose produced a very attractive ring on her left hand, Esme jumped up and ran around the table to give her soon-to-be daughter in-law a hug and kiss on the cheek.
The boys and Carlisle shook Emmett's hand and also hugged Rose. Carlisle ordered champagne, but Edward, Alice and I had to have soda after the first toast since we were not 21.
Before dessert arrived I excused myself to the restroom. My girls were going to go with me but I didn't want to tear Rose away from Emmett nor did I want to interrupt Alice's wedding planning conversation.
I was washing my hands and looked in the mirror. I combed my fingers lightly through my hair and headed out the door. I was smiling the whole time. I was so happy for Rose and could only hope that one day Edward and I could be sharing this kind of news with our family and friends. I was brought out of my thoughts when I bumped into a person in the hall.
"Oh! Sorry, I wasn't paying attention." I explained to the person that I had run into. He had gripped my by the arms so that I wouldn't fall.
"Hmm…not bad." The man purred into my ear not releasing his hands from my arms.
When I looked up to the mans face I was shocked to be looking into the eyes of James.
"Thanks for catching me." I struggled to get away from his grasp. "Excuse me."
I escaped his hold on my arms and I started to walk away. He grabbed my wrist and pulled me back. "Not so fast Bella." He sneered. "I wasn't finished talking to you."
"What do you want?" I was feeling very uncomfortable at this point. He wouldn't hurt me in the middle of an upper class restaurant would he?
"It seems that you have something that my Vicky's little sister Tanya wants." He snorted. "I don't know why she wants him, but she does and I want to make her and Vicky happy. Do you catch my drift?"
I shook my head and tried to pull my wrist out of his hands. "You're hurting me!"
"Good then I have your attention." He spat. "You see, I want you to forget about Edward Cullen. You got that? Pack up and move away. I don't care, just leave New York."
Tears started spilling down my face and he continued. "If you don't, I can make your lives pretty miserable. You wouldn't want Edward to get kicked out of school for something like…I don't know…drugs?"
I thought about what he was saying. I would do anything for Edward, but was I strong enough to walk away. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Alice walk into the hallway that we were standing in and then she ran out.
"Please just leave us alone." I sobbed still trying to pull my wrist away. I thought I felt a 'crack' and then what felt like fire shoot straight up my arm into my shoulder and I cried out in pain.
James laughed at my misery and pushed me away still holding on to my wrist and into the phones that were hanging on the wall next to the restroom doors. My head hit one of the phones and the receiver hung and swayed on the cord. He pulled me back and shoved again sending me into the wall hitting my head again and then he finally released my arm.
I slumped and slid down the wall and landed on my butt. I heard what sounded like a low growl and I shifted my eyes to the source.
Edward was marching towards us followed by Emmett and Jasper. The fury in Edward's eyes only increased when he saw the state I was in. His hand shot out and grabbed James by the throat and shoved him into the opposite wall from me.
Emmett and Jasper reached Edward and pulled him off of James. "I see some of you have some kind of sense!" James laughed. "You wouldn't want to get innocent Edward into any trouble now would you?"
"See to Bella Edward." Emmett growled. "I've got this." Emmett's hand replaced Edward's on James' neck and proceeded to shove him out of the emergency exit door. Jasper followed close behind.
Edward kneeled down beside me and brushed the hair out of my face and straightened my dress so that I wouldn't be exposed to the world. I clutched my injured arm to my chest.
In one swift movement Edward scooped me up in his arms and was heading out to the street to get a cab.
I huddled close to Edward's chest in the cab all the way to the hospital. He was quiet except that he was humming my lullaby so soft that I could barely hear him.
He carried me into the emergency room and tried to put me in a chair in the waiting room. "Don't leave." I whimpered.
He closed his eyes and sighed. "I have to get you checked in and fill out paperwork. I'll be right back." He promised.
At that moment the rest of our group came in the ER doors minus Emmett and Jasper. Carlisle came over to me and quickly checked out my wrist while Esme headed to the check in station.
"You need an X-ray." Carlisle said and went over to the nurses' station. I couldn't hear what he was saying, but he was gesturing to me and he had a scowl on his face. The nurses kept shaking their heads and motioning for him to sit down.
I think he finally had had enough and raised his voice asking for the attending doctor, what made me smile is that he said that his 'daughter' was injured and needed to be seen immediately.
A man with a long white coat came out and looked apologetic, nodding his head and then getting a nurse to escort Edward and me into an exam curtain.
After an X-ray, a shot of pain medication, a prescription for pain medication, an examination of my head, and having a brace fitted on my now fractured wrist, I was released to go home.
I was wheeled out of the hospital in a wheelchair and put in the cab. I assured Carlisle and Esme that I was fine and they headed back to their hotel for the night since it was well past midnight at this point. Alice and Rose rode in the cab with us.
We walked in the front door; well everyone except me because Edward insisted that he would carry me, and found Emmett and Jasper with evil grins on their faces.
"What happened with James?" Alice asked sitting next to Jasper.
"Besides a good beating?" Emmett laughed. "No seriously. The cops came and he was arrested for assault, I think that was the charge, because the whole thing was on the security video. I don't think that he will be bothering you again."
"They want you to issue a restraining order." Jasper explained. "I think that it would be a good idea."
I yawned involuntarily and snuggled my head back into Edward's chest. "We'll talk about it in the morning." Edward said and headed with me in his arms up the stairs.
He sat me on the bed and went to the closet and pulled out one of his t-shirts for me to wear. When he came back out I was already lying down and almost asleep. The shot that they had given me for pain was starting to make me very sleepy.
Edward gently pulled me back into a sitting position and unzipped my dress and pulled it off of my shoulders.
"I don't think I'm up for this right now baby." I slurred. He rolled his eyes and continued to undress me.
Once I was dressed for bed in Edward's shirt, he pulled back the covers and helped me scoot in and lay down.
In seconds Edward was out of his nice clothes and was lying down behind me pulling me into his chest and kissing my shoulder and behind my ear.
With the comfort of Edward's arms and the pain medication I drifted off to sleep.