"Adversity is like a strong wind.
It tears away from us all but the things that cannot be torn,
so that we see ourselves as we really are."
Arthur Golden
CHAPTER 24: ADVERSITY THEN PROSPERITY
The wedding was… Beautiful, peaceful, joyous, even fun. Now Edward could wear his wedding ring on his finger all the time instead of on a chain around his neck. He chose to continue to wear the chain, however. He said it was a special gift to him, a loving memory of mine of my mother that I chose to share with him.
Alice had been a little difficult on the morning of our wedding. But when I gave her the gist of what Edward had done, she was actually a little jealous. Jasper was pretty romantic but Edward had really impressed her with his originality and creativeness.
I must have had a silly grin on my face because Edward reached over from his airline seat, in first class of course, and brushed my hair back from my face tucking it neatly behind my ear. "What are you giggling about, love?"
"Just thinking about the night before our second wedding." I gave him a lazy smile. He grinned in response.
We were flying. Again. This time our destination would be for our honeymoon. Even though I hadn't picked the final destination, I had given Edward the general idea of where I wanted to go: Italy.
We were heading to southern Italy, the Bay of Naples on the isle of Capri, to a hotel perched on a cliff 1,000 feet above the sea. Edward had procured the largest suite at the Hotel Caesar Augustus, the 'Suite Cesare.'
Unbeknownst to him, I'd done a little research on this particular hotel… And I couldn't believe what Edward had set us up for. Our suite—I definitely couldn't call it a room—was filled with roman and Greek antiques, a panoramic view of the sea, a Jacuzzi, a private terrace and access to an infinity pool. In a word? Spectacular.
Even though I hadn't told him I'd researched our honeymoon destination, I knew I wouldn't be lying when I acted surprised. I knew that as fantastic as the pictures were, there would be no way they could do the place justice. I had no doubt I'd cry once the porter dropped off our luggage and left us to our own devices.
Other than touring the Island itself, there were plans to visit Pompeii, Sorrento, and even Naples. We would be in Italy for three entire weeks. After Edward had helped me get over the shock of what he'd planned for our honeymoon, I ruefully decided maybe it wasn't so bad to be married to someone wealthy.
We would be seeing this part of Italy during the 'off' season, since technically it was winter. It was one of the reasons he'd picked the area, since he'd really wanted to take me to Tuscany but he wanted me to see it in all its glory in the spring or summer.
He admitted to me that he wanted to take a second honeymoon around his birthday in June to Tuscany. He said we deserved two honeymoons since we had two wedding dates. I thought he was just making excuses to take me away to exotic locals…
He thought it would be fun to stay at a northern Italian villa that offered local and regional cooking lessons, since he loved my cooking and thought it would be great to learn some new recipes together, especially with my Italian ancestry. He didn't think I knew enough Italian dishes. I'd rolled my eyes at that comment. I actually surprised him when I told him that I'd be happy to do that, as long as it was close to Lucca. It was a traditional, 'typical' Italian town and was very charming and peaceful. I'd actually had a friend in college that had spent one summer there, hence my intimate knowledge of the locale.
As we were lounging in our honeymoon suite's four-poster bed with its white, gauzy canopy after another love making session, Edward began to rub small circles into my shoulder.
"Love, you looked so amazing in your wedding dress." He gave a small sigh and kissed my temple.
"Oh Edward… It was only because I was so happy getting hitched to you."
"Hitched? That's not very… Romantic." Sometimes his British-ness would come out at odd times. But I knew what he meant. I giggled.
"Don't be difficult." I huffed at him, pretending to be annoyed.
"Hey, since we're an old married couple now…" I gave him a poke in the ribs. "Ow! Stop that! Anyway, don't you think when we get back home I should teach you how to drive the English way?"
"Oh… Um. O.k.?" I answered him sounding like I was asking his permission.
"Well it's just that as I get busier with the management of the estate, Mrs. Bailes won't always be able to take you places that you need to go… And it just makes sense." He gave me a little squeeze. "You told me once you were an independent woman and to me, having your own transportation is an important part of being independent."
"You. Are. Correct." I sighed. "I think I'll be o.k. after a while but it's still pretty nerve wracking, you know?" I craned my neck upwards so I could give him my scrunched face with one eye closed.
He chuckled. "God you're so cute." He kissed me wetly on the forehead. "Well work on it as soon as we get back. You'll be fine. I do suggest, however, that we get you a vehicle that's an automatic."
"I don't need you to bu…" I felt him tense and so I did too. But I'd actually done my research on this particular subject. "Look, I was just going to say that I don't need you to buy something crazy like an Aston Martin or anything. I'd be happy with a BMW, actually."
He looked at me through his eyelashes. "Hmmm. Since when do you…"
I pushed myself up off the mattress and leaned over his head to reach the bedside table. I was so comfortable with him by this point that I didn't even think about the fact that I was still naked.
As I came back to sit next to him on the bed with the notes that I'd taken, I noticed that his eyes had slightly glazed over. "Ummmm, that was rather distracting…" He started rolling over to reach for me and pull me back to him to be closer to his body. "You can't do things like that without there being consequences…"
I swatted the top of his head. "Stop that. I have something important to tell you! I did some research. I know exactly what car I want!" I was really excited to share this with him.
He apparently was rather miffed that not only had I rebuffed him but had actually smacked his head. "I don't care. That wasn't necessary." He sounded really pouty and had even crossed his arms over his chest. It was a little difficult to take him seriously however, since he was still laying on his back with the bed sheet barely covering his legs and hips.
I leaned away from him and spread my legs a little bit. While keeping my eyes glued to his, I reached down to rest my hand against my inner thigh. I placed my other hand very suggestively against my neck, and began running one finger down towards my breasts, with my head slightly tilted to one side. "I'm sorry…" I said this with as much lust in my voice as I could manage.
He actually gulped. "O.k." And his voice was suddenly whisper quiet.
I immediately went back to sitting cross-legged and looked at my little piece of paper that I had dropped next to me on the bed. "Yeah, so, I would like to test drive a X6 xDrive35i. They've got several really nice shades of blue, too. You'll have to help me with the accessories but this particular model is all wheel drive, which I thought would be good for winter driving. You know, safer and stuff."
I was so excited and he was so shocked that we both started laughing uncontrollably.
After the laughter had died down some, I went back to lying beside him on the bed though not as close to him as I had been before. He slowly reached over to me and ran his index finger from my knee up to my hip, across to my bellybutton and up to my breasts. He leaned over to me, resting his head against his other hand as he did so, and carefully placed his once trailing hand over my right breast without actually touching my skin.
I watched as his eyes darkened. "I'm very happy you've put some thought into a vehicle that you'd like me to buy for you. However, that really wasn't very nice. I think I'm going to have to teach you a lesson."
He suddenly moved from the front of my chest to placing both his hands on my sides… And began tickling me mercilessly. "Apologize!" I almost couldn't breathe I was laughing so hard. "Say you're sorry… Come on!"
"I… I'm… sooorry…" I almost couldn't get the words out at all. He immediately stopped tickling me.
He fell backwards onto his back with his hands resting on my hips. "That's better. Oh, and by the way, that was incredibly hot the way you sat and posed for me like that." His eyes were back to their dark green depths of lust and passion.
I suddenly didn't feel like playing games with him anymore—even innocent ones. I sat up again balancing myself on my slightly spread knees and then leaned my body forward, resting my hands on his shoulders and pushed my chest slightly towards him arching my back as I did so. I took the hand that he had hovered over me and pulled it down to rest high against my inner thigh. "Who's posing?"
He gave me a little growl, pulled me to himself and immediately started kissing and touching me all over.
As we both paused to try and catch our breath, he placed his lips against the skin below my right ear. "Bella… Someday you will give me a heart attack… But at least we'll both be really, really happy while it's happening…" He whispered against my skin seductively.
He almost gave me a heart attack that afternoon. My loving, joyful, passionate husband.
~~:::~~
Our honeymoon had truly been like living a dream.
When I was at college, people would talk about some exotic trip they'd taken to Belize or Fiji or Europe—take your pick of far away locations—and they would describe the water, the sky and the land with sharp, focused color names. Even with their photographs as a guide, I could never quite picture what it really looked like, what it would look like to me if I were there in person.
Until our honeymoon.
I knew from kindergarten that there were some very descriptively named colors: midnight blue, indigo, cerulean, aquamarine, burnt sienna, forest green… But even with an unlimited supply of paper and all those different crayons available to me growing up, nothing could have prepared me for experiencing those colors for myself.
It was exquisitely beautiful.
I was, however, not at all sad to be back home. We had our memories, our photographs, and the ability to go back.
With Edward's wealth it wasn't a question of ever having any difficulty in going wherever we would like. It was simply a matter of timing.
We both loved to travel but the estate was important to both of us also. It was actually the most important thing in both of our lives—well, except for each other.
However, it was a strange feeling to be reading 'Sense and Sensibility' in the library while gazing out the large windows, picturing how life felt similarly to me from Ms. Austen's descriptions, only to have a tractor drive by. I always had to laugh at myself when things like that happened.
It had been feeling fairly routine around the estate for several months after our return from our honeymoon. But as winter became spring, Edward had become busier and busier. It looked like it was time for me to spread some wings and fly—or at least be able to fly around the countryside by myself when necessary.
After several weeks of practicing driving on English country lanes, roads and even the expressway, Edward took me to Chichester to purchase my brand new BMW crossover. It wasn't really a wagon nor was it a full SUV. We were both really happy with it. Instead of the sea blue I had picked out in my mind, I ended up with a blue gray one—sort of an ice blue. I loved it.
As I 'spread my wings' so to speak, I made many discoveries. The nearest towns were Midhurst and Petworth. The nearest large town, really a small city, was Chichester. Even though Chichester had a bit of everything, even a McDonalds, I enjoyed shopping in the more local towns much better. I had a soft spot for Petworth especially. There was an actual bakery shop, butcher shop, and even a candlestick maker. Well, candle maker, anyway. It was an ancient and charming walled village. If I wanted to be more 'modern,' I could hit the Budgens grocery store in Midhurst. It reminded me of the 'Fresh & Easy' markets in the U.S.
Midhurst also had a Boots Pharmacy, similar to a Walgreens in the States. Which is where I had found myself on a fine summer's day in June, only a few days before Edward's 30th birthday.
I had nervously made my purchases that day, and was now waiting and pacing by our bed in our bedroom, staring at my bedside clock every few seconds.
After the required amount of time had been reached, I looked down at my hands with my eyes closed. As I slowly opened them, I could see the results for myself. I had already performed this test twice before this one, with the same result each time. I sighed.
I was finally pregnant.
I would have been overjoyed, excited beyond belief and even giddy, if it wasn't for the fact that Edward and I hadn't spoken much to each other in almost five days. Not for lack of wanting to, of course. He was just overwhelmed with managing the estate. Even with Thomas' and Joseph's immense amount of help, he was drowning. I knew this. I could see it taking its toll on my husband.
So, even though I wanted to give Edward the happy news right away, I knew I needed to help him with his current problems first. I knew I could only be a few weeks pregnant, probably only four or five, so it could technically wait another day.
As I started pacing again, I had the thought that perhaps I could just wait until his birthday and give him the most unexpected and wonderful present. I decided right then that's what I would do. I would tell no one. I would simply brightly wrap a now empty pregnancy test box and give it to him first thing on his birthday on the 20th.
With that settled, it was now time to step into my role as Lady of the estate. Since Edward was overwhelmed, the estate couldn't possibly be getting his best or fullest attention, so I would start with that tact when speaking with him.
I was already dressed in black dress pants and a small white oxford shirt—one of Edward's favorite outfits on me. I had spent some extra time on my hair that morning so that it was very shiny and sleek looking. I also decided to throw him for a little bit of a loop and wear my black dress shoes that I'd worn for our first official party, with the three inch heels and rhinestones, which would make a nice clicking noise as I crossed from the door of his office to his desk. I thought of Alice and Rosalie and smiled. They would be so proud of me.
As I reached his office door, I could hear him practically yelling at someone on the phone. I didn't want to eavesdrop but I was concerned for him. I didn't think I'd ever heard him so angry.
"I'm doing fine and NO, I do not need to… Now, look here… I will not continue this conversation! Goodbye." I heard him slam the phone back into its cradle.
As I tentatively opened the door I could see that he was standing in a very defensive posture. His shoulders and arms were stiff as he held the bridge of his nose between the long fingers of his right hand. His eyes were squeezed tightly shut.
As I stepped into the room and closed the door behind me, I looked back to see his face had only slightly changed. He had dropped his hand from his face and his eyes were now open and boring into me as he looked at me suspiciously.
I instantly felt self-conscious. I reminded myself that I was here for him, for the estate, and for our child. If he killed himself over work before I'd even been able to tell him that we were expecting, I didn't think I'd survive it.
With that thought, I pushed my shoulders back and confidently strode toward his desk. I had to suppress my smirk when his eyes flickered down to my feet as my shoes clicked against the wood flooring. As I reached one of the deep leather guest chairs that sat in front of his massive wood desk, I gracefully sat at the edge of the seat and crossed my legs at the ankle, tucking them slightly under the chair. I stared at his face as I placed my hands lightly into my lap and waited.
He leaned forward, placing his now fisted hands on top of his desk, with his arms ram-rod straight and his head bowed slightly towards his chest. He let out a noisy breath. "Isabella, now is not a good time." He looked back up at me and I felt slightly intimidated.
And then… I remembered why I was here in the first place.
After I had decided that I would go away to college, I had a hard time speaking up for myself, with Jacob's family, my dad, even my classmates. Over the last few years I had discovered that if I didn't speak up for myself and for the things I believed in, no one else was going to do it for me. I gained even more confidence in myself after college and as I began making strides at my job.
However, it was with Edward that I learned that sometimes you must speak up for not only yourself but for those that you love too. Even if they would have difficulty in listening to you.
Their difficulty in hearing you did not change the fact that in certain instances you would have to speak up, that you would have absolutely no choice no matter how painful it would be for you and them.
This was one of those times.
I gazed into his eyes deeply as I spoke. "Edward. You are my husband. You are the Lord of this estate. I am therefore the Lady of this estate." I didn't hesitate or drop my eyes from his.
He was now staring at me with a strange expression on his face. It wasn't exactly anger but it wasn't happiness either. I continued on before he could interrupt.
"Due to my love for you as well as our estate, in my capacity as the Lady of said estate, I must make you fully aware that you are currently overwhelmed and under staffed. You have taken on too much and therefore are unable to put your fullest and best attention towards the needs of the estate. You must hire a new Estate Manager. Immediately."
Now I could see the anger.
"You presume too much Isabella." His voice was deep and rich. But not in a seductive way... I hid my gulp well.
There had been two previous times that Edward had looked at me with anything other than either curiosity or love in his eyes.
The first time was when we were still at his grandmothers and he'd told me that I hadn't ever experienced loss, the second was when he'd thought that I had discounted his feelings when he'd told me that he wanted me to be his wife.
This was much worse.
He was dismissive.
As if, nothing I had said meant anything. As if, I didn't mean anything to him.
I knew of course that he was being incredibly unreasonable and that he previously had been very angry with someone else on the phone, who had obviously been saying something similarly to him as I just had.
I also knew that deep down, he loved me. That would never change.
However, I realized that I had three options at this point. I could get angry back. I could get upset and cry. Or I could ignore his outburst.
I choose door number three.
"I will ignore that statement. I am neither presumptuous nor will I be dismissed. I have told you what needs to be done. If it is not, then by the end of this week I will take matters into my own hands."
I was now afraid to continue looking into his eyes. As I'd finished my rebuke and dropped my eyes, I caught a look of utter fury on his face.
I rose gracefully from my seat and walked stiffly and purposefully from the room. I was nervous enough, however, that I headed straight for the stairs, gripping the banister tightly and continued on to the kitchen rather than to my own office or to our bedroom.
I only hoped that as he cooled down, he would seriously think over the things that I had said. I prayed fervently for it.
~~:::~~
After my disastrous telephone conversation with Rosalie about a new estate manager, Bella came to see me. At first, I was slightly taken aback by her appearance. She was absolutely stunning. The heels she was wearing were just sexy as hell. However, I was too angry to tell her.
Mistake number one.
She then told me in a very poised and ladylike manner, that I was overwhelmed. In over my head. Drowning.
I was, of course. She was absolutely correct. But to have Rosalie tell me what I should do, and then my own wife tell me almost the same thing… With the stress I was under and the lack of communication Bella and I had been having lately, I snapped.
Mistake number two.
Then to have Bella give me a solution to the current difficult situation I was in and to have her basically give me an ultimatum—I was livid. She was correct in her assessment but I was a man and was therefore prideful. I completely came unhinged.
Mistake number three.
I sighed. I was now sitting in my large, heavy leather desk chair, wondering how in the world I could tell her she had been right without losing my dignity.
She had only left me in my office fuming thirty minutes before. She had been genteel and professional. I loved her but had dismissed her and her help. I sighed again.
What the hell was I going to do?
I could go and find her, most likely in the kitchen, and tell her that I was sorry, grovel for her forgiveness and tell her that Rosalie had not only told me something similar but even had someone for me to consult with.
I rubbed my hands over my face and almost laughed at my own stupidity. Rather than try to carry the weight of the estate completely on my own shoulders, I should have spoken with Bella months ago.
Instead, I had my best friend threatening to castrate me and my wife probably wishing for her to succeed.
I thought again over exactly what Bella had said. I shook my head at her honesty, intelligence and forthrightness.
She was the brightest spot in my universe.
She was the reason the estate even continued to matter to me any more at all. Without her, it was all pointless. Useless. Hopeless.
I hung my head and dropped them into my hands as I rested my elbows on my knees. I suddenly felt giddy and stood straight up out of the chair. I had had an actual all out epiphany.
I would do three things to make up for my three very big mistakes.
One: I would apologize. As part of my apology, I would give her an enormous bouquet of wildflowers from the back garden that I would pick out myself momentarily.
Two: I would tell her that I had not been honest with her or myself over the last few months and had needed her guidance and judgment. I would ask her to begin doing so immediately.
Three: I would give her the person's resume to peruse and request that she give me her assessment of the individual Rosalie had suggested, and that I agreed that a decision would be required from us both before the end of the week.
As I headed downstairs for the music room to head out the back doors to go out among the flower beds, I thanked God that I hadn't yelled at her. The thought alone almost brought me to my knees. I knew that she wasn't fragile and would probably yell right back at me, but just the thought of taking my anger out on someone so beautiful and kind was actually painful. I felt a constriction in my chest that almost stopped me in my tracks.
As I collected blooms for her arrangement, I felt only gratitude for her obvious and intense interest in the success of the estate. More importantly, she proved once again how deeply and thoroughly she loved me. I knew that she had only spoken to me at all because of her love and concern for me.
I now had a sizable bouquet and I knew I needed to soften my stance before I approached her. I of course still felt prideful but it was now tempered with humility.
I only hoped she would allow me to at least complete the first part of my attempt at apologizing to her… My wife. My love. My everything.
~~:::~~
I'd made it to the kitchen before I began to cry in earnest.
I wasn't sure what to expect from him now. Would he come looking for me? Would he apologize? Should I? Had he been right, and I really had presumed too much?
No.
I knew that as his wife, his mate, his partner, I had done the right thing. I would not doubt myself now. I couldn't undo it anyway.
I would wait and hope that our first real fight would be the anomaly it felt like. A rarity.
But what if it wasn't? Or, worse, what if he couldn't see my attempted involvement for what it was? An honest effort to help him and look out for him?
I shuddered.
I tried to dry my tears with the backs of my hands rubbed over my face. I dropped my hands and placed them on my hips as I looked around the kitchen for something to keep my hands and mind busy.
Mrs. Bailes had of course taken care of cleaning up after breakfast. I knew that she had gone into Chichester for some shopping and I didn't expect her back until later that afternoon. I sighed and decided to head for the library, since there really wasn't anything for me to do in the kitchen.
I felt a few tears break free as I walked towards the library but I held my head high and walked purposefully.
I heard my name softly spoken behind me like a vow and froze. "Bella?"
I couldn't turn around. I couldn't stop my hands from moving quickly to my face, as the tears came more swiftly than I could wipe them away.
He swiftly came to me and one of his arms was around me quickly from behind. "Oh… My love." He gently turned my body so I was facing him.
He had a pained expression on his face but he also had a huge bouquet of wildflowers held tightly in his other hand. He tentatively held them towards me. "My dearest, sweetest love… Can you forgive me?"
I tried to stifle my sob but he was too quick. "My love… Please… I'm truly sorry." He held on to the flowers but wrapped both his arms around me, holding the flowers at my back. He pulled me to his chest and slowly rocked me back and forth, almost like we were dancing in place. "Shhhh. I'm so sorry." He whispered.
Feeling my tears slow, I automatically wrapped my arms around his waist as he'd pulled me to himself. "I love you Edward." I whispered back.
I heard him suck in air suddenly and he squeezed me even tighter.
I don't think he really knew what to say at that point. But, being the ever practical person that I am, I released his waist and moved my hands to rest on his chest.
I looked up into his deep emerald eyes as he continued to rock us back and forth. I reached one hand back behind me to pull his arm slowly around between us. I touched the hand that was holding the flowers, "These are so beautiful. Thank you."
He gave me a tentative smile and nodded once in recognition of my sentiment, and gripped my waist with his other hand.
"Let me take these and put them in a vase, o.k.?" I smiled tentatively up at him. He nodded his head again in acquiesce as he released his grip on them.
I held his hand in mine for a few seconds longer and we both seemed to hold our breath and release it at the same time. I took the flowers from him and slowly headed back towards the kitchen. I took the hand that was resting on my hip and held it tightly, pausing for a second so he would understand that I didn't want to lose contact with him. He squeezed my hand to let me know he understood.
After I'd found a large vase to place them in, I carefully filled it with water from the kitchen sink and set them on the island counter. I gave his hand a little squeeze and released it to straighten the blooms.
I was fidgeting now, avoiding looking into his eyes. Obviously he'd apologized but we still had to discuss what had happened and what he was going to do about what I'd told him.
I was not going to back down on my ultimatum regarding the estate. I wasn't sure if he understood that.
He came to stand right next to me, invading my personal space in an intimate and loving way. He reached up and softly brushed my hair over my shoulder, away from my face.
He ran his fingers back along and down my cheek. "I hope you can forgive me, my love."
I nodded my head without looking up into his eyes. His stance seemed to relax slightly. I hadn't even really noticed how tense he was until he wasn't any longer.
"We need to discuss what you told me. About… Me and the estate. Will you come with me to the library?" I nodded to him again. He sighed as he took my smaller hand into his large, warm one and pulled me towards the library.
As we passed the vase of beautiful sunny flowers, I dropped his hand and picked it up off the counter. "I think we'll put these in the library." I smiled up at him.
He gave me a slightly faltering smile back. "O.k."
As we headed for the library with awkward steps, I pulled the vase of flowers tightly to my abdomen so I could see over the tops of the flowers. I heard a small chuckle from just behind me and couldn't help but giggle in response.
"As usual you've gone all out. Thank you, again. They're very beautiful."
I could hear his laughter change cadence. "Not as beautiful as you, however." As we continued to walk towards the library, he placed his hand on the small of my back.
A sense of peace enveloped me and I knew then that we would be alright. We could have disagreements and even all out arguments but as long as we came back together to discuss them, I knew we would always be o.k.
As we reached the library door, however, I hoped that we would be discussing what I had told him and not having another argument so soon after the first.
As I looked at the flowers he'd given me, I became hopeful when I realized the effort he must have gone to, to collect them for me. I sighed. Even though we'd been married for such a short time, I truly felt that we had a strong marriage. A strong partnership.
These thoughts helped to relieve some of my apprehension about our upcoming conversation. As I headed to one of the round side tables to set the vase down, I felt his hand ghost up my spine from my lower back and when he reached my neck, he gave it a slight massage.
Here we go… I thought, as we both reached the loveseat by the window, sitting down and turning to face each other slightly while holding hands between us.
He loved me. And I certainly loved him. We would be alright. We had to be. It was just that simple.
~~:::~~
I stared down at her slight frame next to me on the loveseat. I glanced down at our intertwined hands—her left to my right.
She was beautiful, strong and loving. I still had trouble believing she had chosen me to spend the rest of her mortal life with, and that she and I both dreamed of spending our eternities together.
I felt shame for how I had treated her. She must have noticed my sudden fallen countenance, because she reached up and caressed my cheek with the hand that wasn't holding mine. I closed my eyes to savor the feel of her soft hand against my slightly stubble-covered jaw. "Bella… Have you… Have you forgiven me?" I swallowed hard, awaiting her response but I couldn't stop myself from looking at her to gauge her reaction to my question.
She did not remove her hand from my face. "Yes." She stated simply.
She let out a long breath. "However…" She began slowly. I winced internally awaiting what she would say next. "I truly believe that you are overwhelmed and it has affected our relationship. Let alone the fact that the estate couldn't possibly be getting your best or fullest attention right now."
She brushed her fingers around my eyes and then held them lightly to my lips. "I really, truly believe that it would be best if you hired someone to be the estate manager, and you took on a roll as more of an overseer."
I reached up with my free hand and took hers away from my face and held it tightly. Best to make this simple. "I agree." I then gave her my most winning smile.
She laughed and squeezed my hands. "O.k., well… That was easy. Would you like to discuss your ideas on solving world peace now?" She looked at me with her eyebrows raised but I could see the playfulness of her tone in her eyes.
"Bella, that's the point. This should have been easy. There shouldn't even have been a fight about this. There are several things that I need to tell you." I re-set myself on the couch as I looked at her a bit gravely.
She nodded her head and smiled generously at me to continue. "One, I am very thankful that you have accepted my apology." I paused for only a moment.
"Two, I have not been honest with you or myself over the last few months. I've needed your guidance and judgment and should have been seeking for it earnestly. I would like to ask that you immediately begin doing so."
She giggled again. "I sort of just did."
I had to laugh with her. "Hmmm. I suppose you're right." I sighed. "Well, that's good. I've got one more item for discussion though. When you came into the office this morning, I had just gotten off the phone with Rosalie. She had basically told me something very similar to what you ended up telling me."
"She emailed me a person's recommendation and I'd really like for you to look it over and give me your assessment of the gentleman. When we agree on someone, I would like that decision to be acted upon immediately, as you'd requested."
I took a deep breath and let it out noisily. "Well, what do you think, my love?"
She had a mischievous glint in her eye as she responded to me. "I feel sort of let down. That was way too easy. We've had our first major fight and it was solved quickly and without too much fuss." She gave me a rather seductive pout. "Does this mean we can't have make-up sex?"
I barked out an edgy laugh. "Mrs. Cullen, we can make love whenever you'd like. But right now, we need to go back up to the office and decide on how to proceed regarding finding a new estate manager." I gave her a serious shake of my head with one eyebrow cocked at her.
She scooted over towards me on the loveseat and wrapped her leg around my calf. "Ummm. O.k. If you say so…" She giggled at me.
I chuckled along with her. How does she do it? Make me feel all silly and happy?
By loving me unconditionally, that's how.
I shook my head at her and she took my hand in hers to play with my fingers. We got up and headed out of the library hand in hand.
We went upstairs but took a detour from the office to our bedroom. "My sexy wife—you know you have me completely wrapped around your finger, right?"
She just laughed at my comment. "Yep!"
~~:::~~
As we walked into our bedroom, I had the sudden sinking feeling that I might not have put the pregnancy test box away to wrap it up later, to give to him on his birthday.
I gritted my teeth and kept chanting in my head: 'Don't let it still be sitting on the bed, don't let it still be sitting on the bed…'
Since I had walked into the room first, I waited until he had turned to close the door behind us before I quickly stood on my tiptoes to rake my eyes across the bedcovers. Nope. I hadn't left it there.
But… I no longer felt that it was right to wait to tell him.
We'd had our first major fight and he now realized that he needed to make some serious changes in how the estate was being run. He needed some really good news. About us. About our future.
Before he could sweep me up in his arms to take me to our bed, I touched his forearm lightly with my fingertips. "Edward… I need to talk to you about one other thing…" I trailed my fingers along his arm as I headed slowly to the armchairs by the fireplace. I took my shoes off and sat down while folding my legs under me, with my hands resting on my lap.
As he walked over to sit in the chair across from me, I picked up on a look of confusion that flitted through the green depths of his eyes. "Oh. O.k. …" He sat down slowly and crossed one of his ankles over the top of his other knee, leaving one hand resting on his bent knee and his other on the heel of his shoe.
I reached out to him, clasping and unclasping my fingers so that he would reach out to me and hold my hands. He hesitated for only a moment, and as he held my hands in his I saw the look of apprehension in his eyes change to one of wonderment. I realized that he must have picked up on the fact that I was ready to burst with happiness.
"Sweetheart…?" His dark eyebrows came together a little bit as he spoke his term of endearment for me but he also gave me his crooked grin, smiling encouragingly at me.
I pulled in an obvious, big breath and gave him my biggest smile. "Edward, I'm pregnant!" I let all the air out of my lungs as I'd spoken.
There were a few seconds where I could actually see his mind processing this bit of information. His eyebrows shot up and his eyes grew impossibly large. "You're… You're pregnant?"
He was suddenly kneeling in front of my chair, grasping my legs tightly in his iron grip. "Truly?" As he asked me this small but immensely important question, he tenderly placed one hand on my abdomen.
The look of adoration and devotion that spread across his face as he stared at my stomach covered with his large hand was magical.
I immediately placed both my hands over his. "Yes, truly." I could feel tears of happiness and elation slowly trickle down my cheeks. And I had been planning on waiting to tell him? Insane, that's what I was…
He tore his eyes away from my currently flat belly and worshipfully brushed his fingers over both my cheeks, gently wiping away my tears.
"My sweetest Bella." He leaned in as close as he could to me while leaving his one hand on my stomach, kissing my eyelids, my nose, my chin and then with his eyes roaming over my face, he whispered. "You are my world. My entire world. And I promise that I will work at being the best husband… And father, that I possibly can be."
"I know…" As soon as I had the words out, he tightened his grip around my body, picked me up and took me to our bed.
Incredibly, unbelievably, he reverently loved me in ways that he hadn't before.
Every few moments during our lovemaking he would whisper words of love, devotion, even respect to me. It was different but the same… I didn't think he could love me any more than he had already. But he did and I knew he always would.
The love we had for our child was strong and unwavering.
The love we had for our families, our friends, and even the estate was never ending.
In the grand scheme of things, it may not have taken us long to reach this place of nirvana and happiness but it was just as real as if we'd known each other our entire lives.
As if we'd already loved each other… Forever.
THE END
~~:::~~
A/N: Whew! That was fun. MAN I love these two characters. Hope ya'll enjoyed the ride! Please let me know your thoughts via a review. Thanks sooooooooooooooooooo much for reading!