Chapter 22: Two Hearts as One
Disclaimer: S. Meyer owns Twilight.
The couple never made a reference to their stalemate for the next few days. Jacob gave her plenty of space to make her own decision. In the meantime, he worked every chance he got on her ring. Fashioning a black band atop a silver one, he soldered the two hearts on it—one on the black metal, the other on the silver. He thought it symbolized their love; with the two hearts entwined together, and he hoped Bella liked it. Figuratively keeping his fingers crossed, he kept it in a tiny pouch inside his pants pocket in the event that she should make him the happiest man on the planet.
A week passed, and that evening when Jacob entered the home, the aromas emanating from the kitchen were heavenly. Stuffed mushrooms, shrimp rotelle, and bread salad decorated the table. There was the added sweet scent of a cake baking in the oven. Was this going to be the night then?
Charlie kept eyeing them back and forth, like they were ready to combust or something. Was he the keeper of the secret? It made Jacob nervous. Then he finished eating quickly, hopping up from the table with a lame excuse that he had to go to the hardware store. Considering he hardly seemed capable of handling a screwdriver, his hasty departure smacked of mighty suspicious behavior.
Alone at last. "Great meal," Jacob touted, as he helped Bella with the dishes.
Everything got put away, and the two went into the living room and sat on the couch. Bella exhaled loudly, and turned to Jacob. "I've been thinking over your proposal, and that last conversation we had, and well …"
Jacob leaned forward, holding his breath. His eyes locked with hers, waiting for her answer. She slid one finger up and down his arm—which by the way was so tense, it was like a bar of iron—but never looked away from his now pleading gaze.
C'mon, Bells …tell me. Jeez, spit it out already; I'm dyin' here. Damn, she seemed to need a little helpful prodding. "Yeah—and …"
"I hope I'm doing the right thing."
Never mind that. Just tell me for Pete's sake, before my hair turns gray!
"Charlie and I discussed this very carefully. He thought my decision was the best one considering the situation."
My heart's gonna flatline any minute now—I just know it. Please, have mercy. I'm in agony.
Bella smiled. Was that a good sign, or not? Ugh!
She took his hand. He hoped she didn't notice that his palms were sweating.
"So, I've decided …"
He closed his eyes.
"… that yes—I will marry you, Jacob Black."
His eyes popped open, and he let out a sigh of relief. "Oh god, Bell's, I won't ever give you a reason to regret this."
He plunged his hands into her hair, tugging her closer, and kissed all traces of exposed face and neck. Suddenly, he backed away. "Wait, wait, wait. I have something for you."
Fishing around in his pocket, his fingers snatched the little leather pouch holding her ring. With the pouch in his hand, Jacob all at once felt undeserving of her. His ring was dime-store quality, not exactly a picture of the perfect jewel that should grace her finger.
Embarrassed by his frugal offering, he took it out of the pouch and prefaced the presentation with, "I know it's not much right now, but I swear to you, I'll save up and get you a real engagement ring, in the next month or two."
He slipped the ring quickly on the finger of her left hand.
"Don't you dare!" she chastised him. "Oh, Jacob, it's beautiful."
Staring at her blankly, he stammered, "You … you mean, you like it?"
"Like it? I love it. It's you, Jacob. Your heart and soul are in this ring. I don't want any other. I don't need any other."
He was touched by her comment, and his signature Jacob grin emerged. "So when do you want to do it?"
"That's another thing I need to talk to you about."
Uh-oh, here it comes.
Bella rolled her eyes. "You can lose that look on your face, mister. I just mean I don't want it made into a circus. We can go to the courthouse in Beaver on Monday, after school, for a quiet little service by the Justice of the Peace. Billy and Charlie—that's all I want there. My dad can call Mom after we've tied the knot. It's not like she'd be thrilled about it. Anyway, it would be just like her to put a damper on everything. It's probably better this way. She's planning on helping out here. She'll arrive just before the baby's due. No sense in her having to fly up here twice, right?"
Bella really had all the bases covered. Jacob had been slack-jawed while she laid out the plan. This little woman was so organized, it was downright scary. He closed his mouth in stunned silence. By the following Monday, he'd be a married man.
Jeez, this year was a doozie. He'd finally gotten to made love to his woman, fathered a child, would be receiving his high school diploma in a few short weeks, and would soon be married. It was enough to make his head spin.
Jacob was practically bouncing off the couch. "This is a cause for celebration. Let's put on a movie. How 'bout Transformers?"
Ugh! Noooo! "How 'bout Dear John?" she countered.
That boring thing? "What about The Mask of Zorro?"
Bella nodded in agreement this time. "Comin' right up!"
Charlie and Billy were up front in the cruiser with Jacob and Bella in the back seat. It was Monday and they were on their way to the courthouse. "Are you nervous?" Jacob asked her quietly.
Bella leaned her head against his shoulder, and circled her arms around his. "I thought I would be, but for some reason, I'm not. Isn't that weird? I'm actually more worried about what to cook for all of us tonight."
"I heard that, "Charlie spouted, craning his neck toward them for a moment. "You're not cooking anything tonight, Mrs. Black; we're going out to eat. And I'm not taking no for an answer."
Grinning from ear to ear, Jacob affirmed that statement. "Charlie's right. You're not gonna slave over a hot stove on your freakin' wedding day. So, relax and enjoy the ride, honey." Then he buzzed the hair along her temple, trailing his lips slowly down to her jaw.
Jacob had removed his ring from her finger since he didn't have the money for a new one, and placed it in his pocket before they started the trip to Beaver. Bella had already gotten used to having it there and it gave her a funny feeling as he took it from her. It was as if a part of her was suddenly gone.
The wedding ceremony didn't take very long. Filling out the paperwork actually took up the most time.
The two dads stood by beaming, while Bella and Jacob recited their vows. Bella broke down as Jacob replaced the black and silver band on her ring finger, and even though he tried to deny it, Charlie got a little misty too. And Billy—well he donned the smile of a proud father.
As the Justice pronounced them man and wife, Jacob thought the buttons would burst right off his shirt. Bella was finally his in the eyes of the law, and nothing was ever gonna change that if he could help it. He couldn't remember a time when he felt this much happiness. Sure, there were moments that rated high on his list—their first kiss, the day she had chosen him, the first time they made love, the day he felt his child move within her. But they were only stops along the way through his life's journey. It all led up to this point, and he couldn't wait to see what the next chapter brought.
All during dinner at The Olive Garden, Jacob and Bella were in a world of their own. They couldn't stop staring at each other. Bella was wearing a white lace maternity dress that Sue had mad for her, and Jacob thought he had never seen her more beautiful. She fairly glowed. He cleaned up pretty good himself, in a suit and necktie. What a handsome devil, she had nabbed. At this moment, she wondered, why was I so hesitant to marry him? God, she didn't think she could ever stop loving her Jacob.
On the way back home, Jacob could not control himself. He had Bella practically bundled up in his arms, and he kept kissing her as if she was going to disappear in the next few seconds.
"Gosh, Jacob," she whispered, "save a little for later."
"This is our wedding night, Mrs. Black. Don't worry about it. I've got lots more where that came from."
As they pulled up to Billy's home, Charlie helped him inside. He came out a minute later and told the couple, "I'm gonna stay a little while here with Billy." He winked at Jacob. "Why don't you and Bella go home in your car, and I'll see you all later."
Jacob walked to the Rabbit with one arm around his new wife. He assisted her into the passenger seat and soon they were on the road to Forks. Parking in the driveway, he told Bella, "Stay right there, Mrs. Black. I'm gonna do this up right."
Before she knew what happened, the door was opened, and she was safe in Jacob's arms. He carried Bella up to their double bed, seating her gently on the edge of the mattress. Kneeling down in front of her, he allowed her to remove his shirt and tie. She took his face in her hands, and crying softly, met his lips. Then groaning, she ran her hands gingerly through his hair and said, "I'm sorry, Jacob. This won't be much of a honeymoon. I'm so big and clumsy. It can't be any fun for you."
Jacob wiped away her tears with his forefinger. "No, that's not true. Tonight, when I share my love with you, it will be even better, because there's been one thing missing all this time—and that's knowing that you're truly my own. I'm free to love you, Bella—'cuz now you're really mine, and you know that I'm all yours, and yours alone. I'm gonna love you with all of my being this night and every night to come until the day I die. I love you, Bella Black, and there's nothing either of us can do about it."
He stood, and pulling her up with him, kissed her tenderly. Removing her clothes, he placed one hand on her swollen tummy, then bending down, let his lips brush along that beautiful belly that housed his child. He lifted her effortlessly onto the bed, doffed the rest of his clothing, and lay down beside her.
They'd been practicing different positions the last couple of months to accommodate her growing girth. Jacob proved to be very inventive; after all, he wanted his sweetheart to be as comfortable as possible. He was definitely not a selfish lover.
The Kama Sutra had nothing on this set of love birds. There were even a couple of positions that he filed away in the back of his mind to pull out and use after the baby came. So their lovemaking that night, despite Bella's prediction, was glorious because their love for each other was real.
Afterwards, they slept in each other's arms, and never noticed when Charlie made it back to the house.
Bella had made arrangements with her instructors to study ahead and take her finals early—no sense in risking labor day to fall on an exam day. As expected, she passed with flying colors.
Jacob was no slouch either. All of his hard work paid off, and he earned his diploma, along with a few college credits. All of La Push were there squeezed into Billy's little red house to celebrate. Bella was so proud of him. It just seemed like there was nothing he couldn't do when he put his mind to it. Things were falling into place like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. The odds were in their favor, until ….
Eight more days, and the baby was due to come. Sam was being a stinker and made Jacob put in extra time patrolling, since he'd be giving the father to be the following week off in anticipation of the birth. Following a familiar sickly sweet scent that particular night, they had traveled clear up to the Canadian border. It was on the way back that Embry caught up with them.
Hey, man, you better get your butt in gear; Charlie called your dad. Bella's been crying for you. She's in labor.
That's all Jacob had to hear. He's was off like a streak of lightning.