Thank you to everyone that has given my betas love in your reviews. My betas are MelissaMargaret, Batgirl8968 and Sweetishbubble, and they totally rock!
The rating for Book Two has change to M due to the sexually nature of this chapter and future chapters. It doesn't mean that the entire story is going to become a "lemon" fest, but I felt that with Esme's past sexual experiences being so horrible that I had to give her time with Carlisle to make it right. I apologize to anyone who is offended. If you are hesitant to read it, or have questions or concerns prior to reading it, please feel free to contact me via private message or on twitter to discuss the chapter.
This is the first of two parts to Carlisle and Esme's honeymoon. Enjoy!
September 1922
In some ways it felt like déjà vu. In others it was completely new.
I stood before the mirror examining my new white attire. I hadn't worn a nightgown since the night I awoke to find him holding my hand. It seemed foreign to me, yet it reminded me of another night when I was an uneasy new bride. This night would be different. It had to be. So why was I so nervous?
It wasn't Charles pacing in the other room; it was Carlisle. We adored each other. I had longed for the night when he would hold me in his arms as his wife. I desired him. But while that I stood there in that costume, I had stage fright.
I thought back over the evening.
We had briefly stayed at the parsonage. We took our photos and forced down some of the cake that Mrs. Anderson had surprised us with. Chocolate had been my favorite in my past life, but now it had no flavor at all. We were able to beg off and take our leave by citing the setting sun.
As we stood by the automobile getting ready to depart, I tightly hugged Edward. "Everything will be as it should be when you arrive in Virginia. It will be taken care of," he whispered cryptically to me. I was sure Carlisle could hear him, but my secret present for him would not be revealed that day. He would have to wait.
"Thank you. Be careful. Be safe," I whispered back. We were going to be separated for two weeks. I had never been without Edward for more than a few hours.
"I will be, Esme. Don't worry about me and don't think about me. Enjoy your time together." He kissed my cheek and squeezed my hand before helping me into the car and shutting the door.
He and Carlisle had a brief exchange before they too hugged and bid their farewells to each other. Carlisle took the seat beside me and I blew one more kiss to Edward and we were off.
We hadn't bothered with travel attire. At this point, we had no one to keep up appearances for. We pulled over when we were several miles out of town to expel the cake. I felt silly standing a few yards off the road essentially vomiting in a wedding gown, but at least they had made me practice expelling human food prior to that day. It would have been much more difficult without practice.
When that unpleasantness was complete, we were quickly back on the road. I wrapped my arm around Carlisle as he drove. We didn't say much. There would be time for words later. I didn't want to distract him from our destination and he was driving faster than usual.
When we reached the lodge it was dark. He helped me out of the vehicle and pulled me to him as he closed the door.
He whispered into my ear, "Esme, I know there are so many places you want to see and I will take you everywhere you want to go. I apologize that your first holiday must be some place so familiar, but I hope what I've done to the old place will make it feel a bit special for you."
"Carlisle, you're here. You're all I need forever."
He kissed me softly before sweeping me up in his arms. I entwined my arms around his neck and I laughed as he said, "It's tradition, my dear. We have too many centuries ahead of us not to begin this correctly."
He opened the door and I was instantly met by the scent of flowers. He crossed the threshold into the dark space and said, "I'm going to set you down, love. Close your eyes." I was on my feet a second later. "Are they closed?"
I squeezed them shut and said, "Yes." I smelled the sulfur as he struck a match. Beyond my eyelids, there was light and it was getting brighter as he lit more candles.
His hand slid into mine. "You can open them."
I did as he asked and saw that our lodge had been transformed. He had made the main room into our space. The old furniture and décor was mostly gone. The couch had been placed near the window and beside it sat an end table with a few of my favorite books. New plush rugs covered the floor. Flowers blossomed in vases throughout the room. Against the one wall sat something that neither of us had been in for quite some time, a bed. It was not the bed that would be waiting for us in Virginia. This one he had picked out for this occasion. I had no hand in this oasis. It was large with a wrought iron frame and covered in a beautiful floral comforter. It felt like a garden indoors. It felt like it was made for me.
"It's beautiful," I said as I turned to him. He had been completely still as he waited for my reaction. "I love it," I said as I touched his cheek. "Thank you."
He took my hand from his cheek kissed the inside of my palm. "You're welcome. I'm so happy you like it."
"You thought of everything."
"I just wanted it to be comfortable for you." While he was no longer still as a statue, he was rather tightly wound. He kissed my cheek and said, "Your trunk is in your room if you would like to get changed."
I nodded. I was starting to feel distressed. My excitement mixed with anxiety, and I was feeling more of the nerves. "I'll be back shortly," I said before taking the short walk down the hall and closing the door behind me. That was eighteen and a half minutes ago, which was longer than it took for me to arrive at Ashland Hospital to the moment he bit me. No wonder he was pacing.
I had to go out there. I wanted to go out there. I loved him. I wanted him. He would never harm me, I told myself. I couldn't leave him alone out there.
I looked down at the beautiful symbol of our bond on my finger and thought of the passage read earlier from Genesis: Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh.
I opened the door and padded down the hall in my bare feet. Carlisle had lit a fire, and now stopped his incessant pacing in front of the fireplace to look at me. If I needed air to breathe he would have taken it from me. How could so much beauty be mine forever? He too had changed his attire, and as foreign as the nightgown and robe felt to me, I was certain that the robe, pajamas and slippers he was wearing were beyond alien to him. The thought was fleeting though as he held a hand out to me, which I rushed to his side to take.
He kissed it before raising it to the side, and placing his other hand on my back. I instinctually raised my free hand to his shoulder. "I owe my wife our first dance."
"But we have no music," I said.
"Not true," he disagreed. I looked into his eyes waiting. He pulled me slightly closer and led me on the first step as he began to hum a favorite and beloved tune. His voice, like all things with Carlisle, was glorious. We danced around our bridal suite to our own rhythm, and we finally came to a stop I wrapped my arms around his neck.
"How did you know about that song?" I asked.
He smiled down at me. "Edward told me that you have loved it since the day he wrote it. He said whenever he plays it that you are full of happy thoughts."
"It's my favorite song. There is something about it that is just so beautiful and so special, and you just made even more so. Thank you."
"You're welcome, Mrs. Cullen." I had waited so long to be called that by him, and he looked blissful to be saying it. He had been alone too long, but I was grateful beyond words that he had waited for me. I placed my hand at the back of his neck, and pulled his head down to me so I could kiss my husband.
I could feel the tension in his neck. His body was rigid even as his lips melted against mine. Why was he so tense?
I kissed the corner of his mouth and said, "Thank you for my letter. I too was thinking of my dearest Jane Eyre last night."
"Oh?" he asked, still leaning toward me.
I quoted chapter twenty-five. "My future husband was becoming to me my whole world; and more than the world: almost my hope of heaven. He stood between me and every thought of religion, as an eclipse intervenes between man and the broad sun. I could not, in those days, see God for his creature: of whom I had made an idol."
I looked up into his eyes. I could see a struggle in them. There was adulation, but also trepidation.
"Carlisle, I would be lying if I said I wasn't anxious about tonight, but don't think for a moment that it means that I don't want to consummate our marriage. I want you."
"I don't want to upset you."
He was worried, but I was not.
"You're not going to!" I exclaimed. "I love you, Carlisle Cullen. I know you won't intentionally harm me physically or emotionally. Remember 'Make my happiness, I will make yours?' That goes both ways. You make me so happy."
"What if I do something wrong? I don't want to…" his voice trailed off so I answered for him.
"Trigger a memory? I'm here with you," I said as I stroked his cheek. "Focus on me and I'll focus on you."
"I've never done this before," he said timidly.
"Is that your concern?" My husband nodded, and his youth that I rarely thought about shined through. I always thought of Carlisle as appearing older than me. The vision of a young girl had never changed. As he stood before me I could see that the confidence of Dr. Cullen had been eradicated. A nervous young man, unsure of his abilities, had taken his place.
"I've never done this with someone I love and who cares about my well being."
"Esme," he interjected, but I was having none of it.
"What? I don't care whether the act itself is perfect. I'm with you and that alone makes it perfect. You heard the words today too. 'It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.' You've been alone too long, but I'm here now and therefore that man cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh. You chose me. You didn't want to be alone and you never will be again. I was nervous, but I'm not anymore. If we do something wrong then we'll laugh it off together. We have eternity to get it right, but we have to start first." I nuzzled my nose against his neck. "Carlisle, my dear husband, make love to me."
"I love you so much," he said as he wrapped his arms around me.
"Show me," I said as I kissed his throat, and moved my lips from his neck down to the top button of his pajamas. I reached down for the sash to untie his ridiculous robe. "If we hadn't bothered with these silly nightclothes we would already be in that bed."
His hands let go of me, and took my cheeks in between his palms. There was more confidence in his eyes and he chuckled. "I wasn't the one who took twenty minutes to get changed."
"Nineteen minutes," I countered.
"But who's counting?"
"Not me," I said with a wink.
"Waiting for an angel to appear in the hall was worth it." He punctuated the sentence with a gentle kiss.
I laughed. "I think my halo is crooked." I removed his hands from my face so I could push his robe off his shoulders. He let it fall to the floor.
His hands went to my shoulders and slid down my arms igniting them along the way. He entwined his fingers with mine and took a step back to look at me. "It's perfectly straight."
I shook my head as I looked down to gather my thoughts. When I looked back up to find his intense eyes watching me, I quietly said, "For the moment."
I let go of one of his hands to reach for the sash of my robe, and immediately found it covered with his as it wrapped around the light material.
"Allow me?" I could see in his eyes that he was asking for my permission. With a nod I slipped my hand out from under his, leaving the fabric in his hand. He tugged gently at it allowing it to fall open. He reached up, and with a tender touch the robe was in a puddle at my feet. I didn't feel a chill as my arms were exposed, but I felt as if goose bumps formed. I was excited. My nervousness was gone. I desired his touch. I wanted to feel every new sensation.
Our lips met again, and I reached in between us to unbutton his shirt. I fumbled blindly with each button until I felt the last one separate. I slid my palms in, and pressed them against his skin. His lips stopped moving, and I heard what sounded like a groan against my mouth. I took that as encouragement. I stroked my fingers along his stomach and around to his back pulling him close to me. His head rolled back, and I pressed my cheek against his chest. "I wish I could hear your heartbeat."
"It would be pounding." He sounded almost breathless. His arms had fallen to his side.
"As would mine," I said, and kissed the spot where the sound would have emanated from. My lips trailed to his shoulder, and removed the fabric from it. I slid the shirt down his arms and tossed it onto the floor. I looked up into his eyes. He looked almost dumbstruck. I placed one hand on his chest, and the other caressed his cheek. He closed his eyes, and leaned into my palm.
"I love you, Esme," he said once again.
"I love you, and will never tire of hearing you say those words, my dear husband." I closed my eyes and breathed in the air around me. His scent that I cherished enveloped my senses. I wanted to taste it on my tongue. I wanted to be wrapped in it. "Carlisle."
"What is it, my love?"
I pushed up on my toes, and flicked my tongue over his lips. "Touch me." My next words surprised me the moment after I said them. "I want your hands on my body."
He froze. I froze. I sheepishly looked up at him to see his eyes recovering from the shock I just gave him. I bit my lip for a second and giggled. "It was instinctual."
His eyes were darker than their usual butterscotch color. I could see his lust. He desired me too. "Don't deny yourself. Don't deny me." I took his hand, and grinned at him as I started to lead him toward the bed. Next to the bed he pulled me back into his arms. I became rigid as I felt his arousal against me.
He drew back at my reaction. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to alarm you," he blurted out.
I had already begun to relax again. "Carlisle! I'm alright." I licked his jaw. "I'm just fine."
He swiftly attacked my mouth with his own. His tongue looked for entrance, and I was only too happy to let his in for a dance with mine. His hands slid up and down my back, intermittently clutching at the satin concealing it. His fingers wouldn't rip through it though. Even in his aroused state, they were still Dr. Cullen's caring hands.
I wound my arms around his neck, running my fingers through the back of his golden hair. So many new sensations were awakening throughout my body, and I couldn't yet determine if it was because I was a vampire or because it was Carlisle. I had my suspicions that it was both.
While the idea of standing there kissing him forever didn't seem like a bad one, I needed more. I couldn't reach the bottom of my nightgown with him holding me so close and tight. I tried pulling it up by grasping it at the hip. He must have felt the tugging as his hand caressed the top of mine before taking the fabric in his own hands and pulling it up and over my head.
I met his eyes again. I would live and die in those eyes. I felt no urge to cover myself or dive under the covers on the beautiful bed that the back of my legs were mere inches from. Instead I reached down, and dropped my bloomers to the floor.
Carlisle's nose flared and mine did too. For a moment I thought about being mortified, but honestly, for what reason? I was aroused. My body was reacting to my husband. I could feel the wetness against my thighs that was preparing me for our joining. I wasn't going to be embarrassed.
I smirked. "You've seen me like this before," I said as I placed one of his hands on my bare hip. "It's nothing new."
"Esme, I saw a fatally injured female patient who was in the midst of transforming into a vampire. It's not quite the same thing."
"Really?" I teased as lifted his other hand to my waist.
"No, not at all," he confirmed with an almost breathless tone. His eyes had left mine to roam over my skin, caressing each curve with a look, but I wanted his hands to caress me too.
"I'm yours, Carlisle. I won't break." His hands finally moved. His fingers wandered over my hips, my waist, my stomach, and I was in heaven. Every touch was so gentle, but so precise, and he was driving me mad. When his left hand finally stroked the underside of my breast, a very unladylike noise fell from my lips.
"Did you just growl?" he asked. His voice was surprised, but also teasing and delighted.
"I think I did," I said in disbelief.
"Do you do that often?"
"That may have been a first," I chortled.
"I like it," he said as his palms caressed my breasts. I thought of the night I awoke, and I could feel not just skin, but the texture of his fingers. I could feel every facet now as they glided over my skin. My head lolled as I gave myself over to the sensations. I didn't control the sounds coming from me. Upon reflection I realized I sounded almost like a cat purring. When his fingers slid lightly over my nipples the growl erupted again, and his reaction was to chuckle. "I'm starting to think that is a good noise."
"Me too," I said as ran my hand through his fair hair. "I believe it means I'm very, very happy."
"I hope so," he said as he dipped his head down to kiss my collarbone. He then slowly trailed down my chest and over my breasts before replacing his wandering fingers with his lips around my left nipple. Something between a gasp, a growl, and a moan came out of my mouth. The feeling of his lips and his tongue on such a sensitive spot was overwhelming. For a man with no experience at this he was handling himself, and handling me, remarkably well. Maybe it really was instinctual when it was the one you were suppose to be with, or maybe the doctor studied up, but either way I was putty in hands.
I tried reaching for his pants, but couldn't reach the waistband with him bent over my breasts, and I was not keen on stopping his actions. Only when his lips returned to mine did I make my next move. I reached back, and pulled the sheet toward the end of the bed. He must have turned down the rest of it while I was changing. Those nineteen minutes of anxiety seemed so silly.
I backed away from him, separating our lips, and turned to climb up onto the bed. I felt him move toward me and I turned around to face him on my knees. "I believe you can lose the slippers and the bottoms, my love."
A moment later he too was naked, and kneeling on the bed in front of me. The fire light cast long shadows over us in this position. I moved toward him, and he moved toward me this time. We wrapped our arms around each other as our bodies melted together. I unabashedly ran my fingers down his spine and over his buttock. This time he was the one who growled, "Esme."
I found myself being lowered onto the pillows while he cradled my body as if I was the most precious thing he had ever touched. With me on my back he ran a hand from the top of my head to my thigh. When he spoke there was so much emotion. "You are so beautiful."
I felt my leg tremble slightly, and I willed it to stop, but he already felt the vibration.
"We can stop," he said, but I could hear the sadness in his voice. I didn't want to stop. My body was just reacting irrationally to the unknown. I separated my knees a bit.
"Don't stop," I desperately demanded. I ached for him.
"Are you sure?" I appreciated that he was so concerned about my well being. I loved that he cared so much. My past be damned though. How could he not see how much I wanted this? How much I wanted him?
"Carlisle," I said in a low voice as I separated my legs more. "Don't stop. I'm yours. Claim me."
He nodded his head with a new determination in his eyes as he positioned himself in between my thighs. I looked up at him as he touched my hair, then my cheek. "I love you."
"And I love you," I said touching his cheek in return, and trying to vocalize away all his concerns. "You won't harm me. I want this. I want you."
He kissed me and began to push against me. I hadn't gotten a good look at his length in the dim light, but as he entered me my body stretched to accommodate him. I shivered as I was once again beset by my passions. He was watching me – waiting for my reaction. How could he see anything but delight in my eyes? I could see he was overwhelmed too. There were so many feelings that it was almost too much to bear. I half expected a whimper from him with the look on his face. I ran my hands over his back to encourage him. It took him a moment before he started to slowly move. I was so aroused that he slid easily in and out. There was no pain – only pleasure as I always knew it would be with him.
It was all so new. It felt like something was building up inside of me. What would happen when it reached its peak? I longed to find out. I pulled his head down to mine and devoured his mouth. He began thrusting faster and harder. My legs wrapped around him forcing him deeper inside of me. I could feel every vibration of his organ against my walls. I felt like I was out of control and even if I could control myself or him I didn't want to. Then he surprised me.
His hand at my hip roamed over to my wet curls, and he slid his finger against the mound of flesh right above where we were joined. My hips jumped. I yelped, and felt him grin proudly against my lips. "Are you alright?" he asked without stopping. All I could do was moan as the pressure was built.
I could tell he was fighting for his own control, but was losing. A moment later with a stammered yell I felt him release inside of me. I was so close to something, and I whimpered. He didn't stop though. His fingers kept moving, and he kept pumping into me determined to make me feel something akin to what he just felt. My fingers gripped the sheets below me, and my back arched as my body exploded in what had to be the definition of ecstasy. If I could conjure tears they would have been in my eyes as I cried out his name. I belonged to him. My spirit was intertwined with his. We were one now and forever.
As I unclenched my legs from around his waist he pulled out of me. I knew it wouldn't be long before we were coupled again. He rolled over onto his back next me, and pulled me in close to him. I snuggled into his side and lifted one leg over his, pressing my wet and still tingling center against his thigh. I rested my head against his shoulder. I wasn't cold, but he pulled the blankets up over us.
I looked toward his face and was met by his eyes. I felt like I was wearing the same goofy grin that Edward called beautifully happy. He was contemplative, or was he overwhelmed? Was he happy or sad? His look was unreadable.
"Carlisle, love, are you alright?"
"In all my studies, and all of the things I have heard over the years about this, nothing truly can ever prepare you for what this is like."
"What did you hear?" I prodded.
"It doesn't matter now," he said as he pressed his lips to my forehead.
"Is it better or worse than expected?"
"Better – beyond what I could ever imagine better. I…" his voice trailed off, and I could see he was contemplating his words. I wanted to know what he was so reticent to say. I urged him on.
"What is it?"
He shook his head. I could see that he was becoming embarrassed, but I longed to know his thoughts. I kissed his shoulder, and implored him once more.
"Carlisle, I'm your wife now, and we've just performed the most intimate act a man and woman can do together. There's nothing you can't tell me."
I didn't know it was possible for him to pull me any closer, but he adjusted me so I was eye to eye with him on the pillow. His hand lovingly caressed my cheek as he gazed at me.
"The feelings. The emotions. The sensations. The need and the desire to be one with you, and then when it happened, it overwhelmed every sense: the vision of you, and the look in your eyes as you looked at me; the taste of your skin and your lips; the growl, and the moans, and the sighs, and the sound of our bodies moving together, and your glorious scent. Then this new scent, yours and mine combining; and the feeling of being joined with you – it's the most intimate act and the most personal especially for a woman – you let me, no, welcomed me inside you, and you gave me paradise. Thank you."
It was my turn to be overwhelmed by such a candid explanation. Like magnets our lips were pulled together. I wanted him again. I wanted him forever.
He was slower in his movements as he hovered above me in the firelight. His lips and his fingers moved over my body at an exquisite pace. He was exploring me and I wanted the adventure. My body was on fire with my need for him, and by their own volition, I found my hands on his hips pulling his body toward mine. He was slower as he entered me. Every moment was more deliberate. We had done it once and it had been wonderful, but my Carlisle was aiming for his own version of perfection.
In the past I had hated this. The violation. The pain. The odors. The feeling. It all felt wrong. But now, nothing felt more right than this – than being with him. Across the centuries from when our bodies were formed it was like we were made to be joined this way. It was beautiful. It was perfect.
I fell over the precipice again thanks to a combination of his talented fingers and him pulsing inside of me.
I slid up against him again and looked at his beautiful and adoring face. "Let me see you," I said against his lips.
"What do you mean?" he asked, his eyebrow raised.
I tugged at the top of the blankets covering us. "Let me see you." He had been in shadow, and I wanted to admire my husband's body.
He smirked at me for a moment, and I could tell he was amused by my request before he threw the sheet aside exposing him to me.
I sat up to get a better view. Between shadows and blankets I had yet to get a good look at Carlisle, but now as my eyes traced the lines of his body from his head to his toe, I gasped.
"Carlisle Cullen, the gods wept when they made you," I barely breathed out at him. He was always beautiful. Every article of clothing seemed to fit him perfectly, but now as he laid here before me I saw just how beautiful he was underneath his wardrobe. His body was chiseled, and with his pale skin looked like he could have been a Greek statue. The muscles in his arms and the definition of his abdominal muscles were what the great sculptors envisioned. "I feel unworthy next to you," I said as my face dived for the pillow suddenly feeling completely inadequate to be matched with him and his stunning beauty.
"Esme," he said as his hand slid over my back. "I've always thought of you as some beautiful combination of Hera and Aphrodite. You are perfection. The curve of your thighs and your perfect breasts. A face so stunning men would battle for your attentions. Hair that when done up makes me long to kiss your graceful neck and touch every loose tendril, and when down it frames your beautiful face so perfectly that I desire to thread my fingers through it and caress your lips with mine…and your eyes, I become completely lost in their depths. You are a goddess, my goddess, and I will worship you for eternity."
"You sure have a way with words," I said as I pushed myself back up to my former position of admiring him.
"The words are inspired by the gorgeous subject," he said as he slipped his hand onto my hip.
"Do you have any idea how happy you make me?" I asked as I leaned over him to kiss his collarbone.
"If it's anything akin to my happiness then you are blissful," he said with a chuckle. I traced my fingers down the muscles in his arm.
"You were a minister's son. How did you end up with a body like this or is it a vampire thing?"
"There was still work to be done, and I preferred to pitch in than let others do all the work for us. Also I helped out when work needed to be done in the community as well. Looking back I think deep inside I felt that hard labor would give me some level of atonement for what I felt were the wrongs my father was committing in persecuting the innocent."
"Looking at you now, I say you did more than your share," I said as I dragged one finger down his chest to his navel. He was stunning, and he was mine. I leaned over him, pressing my lips to the base of his throat, and slowly moved my mouth down the path, with slight deviation, that my finger just traveled. The rumble in his chest was heartening.
When I reached the trail of hair that I knew was the road less traveled, I thought about stopping and found myself having an internal debate. I wanted to know him better than he knew himself. So far he had given me pleasure beyond what either of use ever dreamed of, and I knew it would only keep getting better. The curious part of me wanted to touch him, and feel the organ that connected us so perfectly, but in the back of my mind was the fact that this particular piece of anatomy had been a weapon in my past life used to abuse and torment me.
As I slid my hand down slightly further I took a deep breath out of resolution, and Carlisle took one too out of anticipation. I caught his eyes again, and found a look that told me everything I needed to know – if you don't, I understand why, but you are more than welcome to try. Curiosity won.
I slipped my hand down further, and my eyes followed the trail. It was becoming wet, and I felt a thrill of nervous excitement run through me knowing that this slickness was from us. He was becoming aroused again before I even touched his length. He was well endowed to say the least.
I was slow with my movements as I traced my fingers gently over his flesh. The intimacy of this touching was overwhelming and arousing to both of us. After exploring all around it I saw out of the corner of my eye his hands grasp the sheets as I reached the base of his length. I stifled a giggle. I loved that I excited him. I gently wrapped my hand around his length, and it felt like it almost jumped in my hand. Above me his moaning was a lovely sound. I slid my palm up and over him, my thumb grazing over the tip eliciting a growl from his throat. "Did you just growl?" I teased as I slid my hand back down.
His response was to groan my name. After a few strokes, he caught my hand in his making me pause. I looked to his face for an answer, but I found his eyes closed tight and his jaw clenched as he looked to be fighting for some sort of control.
I waited. When his eyes opened a moment later, they stared at me with a dark, but pleading intensity. "My goddess, I'm not as in control as I would like to be, or soon hope to be. Your touch is exquisite, so exquisite and arousing, that I'm afraid I may lose control all together, so to avoid any embarrassment I must regretfully ask you to stop."
He was solid and hard in my fist. I knew he needed relief. I slithered back up his body to kiss his lips. "Whatever you want, my angel."
I lifted my leg, and unlike the day in the woods, I did not feel un-lady like or embarrassed about straddling him. Could there possibly be anything wrong if I was with him?
I was beginning to enjoy seeing the combination of lust and astonishment in his eyes. It was a satisfying reaction to achieve.
I felt his erection against my buttock and lower back, and lifted my body so I could envelop him with mine. I surprisingly didn't fumble as I lowered myself over him. His reaction was to sit up pulling my upper body against his, and pushing deeper into me causing us both to make very audible noises.
"You are full of surprises, Mrs. Cullen," he said with a slight laugh. He kissed my temple and ran his hands down my back and under my buttock then began rocking against me. I matched his pace. It felt different in this position, but also wonderful. The friction of my body rubbing against his made fingers unnecessary, which was good because at that moment they were clutching my bottom, and I liked them there. I felt that rising uncontrollable sensation building again inside of me, and began moving a little faster and harder against him pushing it to its peak. His lips were in my hair, on my face, then at my neck, and when his mouth moved over the spot where he marked me as his forever it was my undoing. My body shook – the intensity of it was higher than before. I clutched his back, and his name fell from my lips with a cry. As my insides tightened around him he too reached his climax, and yelled my name as he let go deep inside me again.
He laid back, pulling me down on top of him. I rested my cheek on his chest and closed my eyes inhaling deeply and enjoying the moment. "Do you smell this good to everyone or just to me?" I murmured as I punctuated the sentence by rubbing my nose against his tantalizing skin.
He glided his hands up and down my back. "Our scent is especially appealing to humans. It helps us draw them in."
I looked up at him. "You never told me that."
"There's so much to tell you still, and so much for us to learn."
"So many lifetimes…" I trailed off.
"For us to live together," he said finishing my sentence with his own thought as his hand passed over my cheek. I smiled and leaned into his hand. I was so happy. "As for our scents," he continued. "I find that I am drawn to yours disproportionally as well."
"Disproportionally?" I questioned.
"Vampires, for the most part, have a pleasant odor. It's appealing to humans, and certainly not offensive to vampires. Edward doesn't smell bad to you, does he?"
"No. He smells quite pleasant, but it's nothing like what you smell like to me."
"And what is it that I smell like to you?"
I pressed my nose against the sprinkling of hair on his chest, and took another deep breath in through my nose. "So many wonderful scents that are blended together to make it your own, and I just want to be doused in your cologne." I took another breath. "They're scents that make me think of you. Leather like your book bindings and your office. Pine like the trees in our forest outside, but also slightly earthy. A sweetness like a fruit, apple maybe or pear, but also something akin to a spice like cinnamon. Something slightly antiseptic that makes me think of the first night I met Dr. Cullen. There are others that I can't put my finger on, but then there is something also, I don't know, manly," I said with a chuckle, "that I love so much. It's just you. When I catch your scent in the air, I am drawn to it. I can't get close enough to it. I can't breathe it in enough. I love the smell of you, and now," I said with a light flicker of my tongue over his chest, "I love the taste of you, too."
"Sunshine," he said as his fingers raked through my hair. "I think it's a combination of your warmth, and the moment in the sun when I realized I was in love with you. I know it doesn't have a smell, but your scent makes me think of sunlight."
"What else?" I asked.
"Your scent is floral. Like a beautiful bouquet or a garden, you are a mix of scents –lily of the valley, roses, freesias, lavender, lilac, jasmine, apple blossoms and honeysuckle. Something delicious that I believe may be vanilla or chocolate, and scents that are warm and of home like linen and fresh baked bread. But like what you describe me as manly, something in your scent is a womanly musk that I can't put my finger on. In all my years, I've never been drawn to any scent like I feel drawn to yours. I didn't expect to be so inflamed by the new scent of your aroused state, but I love it, and these new heavenly aromas since our scents and our bodies have combined. "
"Do you think it's the animal inside, our desire to be mated, that makes our scents that much more appealing to each other?"
"I believe there is a lot of truth in that statement, but what animal, love?"
"This uncontrollable desire and need to have you," I said as I squeezed my thighs where they still laid astride him.
His eyes were smoldering. "Or it could just be the intimate expression of our love."
I laughed and gave him a naughty smirk. "You growled."
"So did you," he said a wicked grin crossed his lips. "And I hope to hear your inner animal rear her head again post haste."
"I believe my inner animal would be happy to oblige," I said as I prepared to make love to my incredible husband again.
The next chapter, the second part of their honeymoon, is written. Reviews will encourage me to post it faster. ;-)
Do you want to see Esme's nightgown? Visit my profile page for the link.
Have you read The Twilight Saga: The Official Illustrated Guide yet? I was disappointed that there's very little new information about Esme, Carlisle, and the Cullen family as a unit. Also, Stephenie made a few changes/alterations to the Carlisle and Esme story from what is in The Correspondence with Stephenie on TwilightLexicon, which is the basis for this story. I'm not going to go back and do rewrites to accommodate those changes. I will integrate new information, when appropriate, moving forward.
And just as an FYI, Esme was very disappointed by the new Jane Eyre. While very appropriately cast, the screenplay adaption is terrible.
Thanks for reading!