Chapter 4: Missing and loving (October 17th- Friday)

I called in sick. I had not done that in over three years. I did not have the heart to willingly give up any time with Emmett. Bella rolled her eyes when I reached for the phone, but continued to get herself up and showered. Emmett was still asleep when she left, so she made me promise to tell him goodbye for her.

The bathroom tile was cold beneath my feet, causing me to jump from foot to foot as I gargled the vanilla mint mouthwash. I was a little scruffy, not much, and my hair looked as mussed as always, so I did not see the point in showering yet. Eventually, he would see me looking less than one hundred percent put together. Why delay the inevitable?

The hard wood floors had soft white rugs covering them, a faux sheepskin which kept my feet warm as I padded my way down to the kitchen. I plugged my iPod into the dock and started singing along with Nathan Wallace's last song in the Genetic Opera as I fried up a pan full of hash browns and scrambled eggs. I was just draining the bacon when huge arms wrapped around my chest and pulled me backwards.

"Morning. What are you still doing home?"

"I do not actually have any classes today, was just going to tidy up my office and the music room. So, I called in sick to spend the day with you. If you would rather I go in, I can get dressed."

Emmett released his hold on me and his eyes took a slow sweep from my head to my feet and back again, lingering on the small hoops through my nipples.

"I rather like you in just those pants, even if you are a Bears fan. Didn't know you had piercings."

I blushed and ducked my head. "Jasper and I were rather drunk one night and made a bet which I promptly lost. After they were done, I found that I liked them. Luckily, so does Bella. Can you grab the plates," I added, trying to shift the conversation off of my college recklessness.

With the spatula, I pointed to the cabinet beside the microwave. When Emmett brought back our dishes, I served our food, and then took the plates to the breakfast nook. I grabbed the orange juice and two glasses on my way.

Breakfast was spent arguing over the upcoming Bears versus Packers game and making plans to watch it at their house in front of the big screen. We dumped the dishes into the washer, I quick washed the egg pan and put it in the drainer while he checked for any cups strewn about the living room from our movie night.

We passed the morning by taking a walk. I had to avoid areas like the mall but some locations were safe from me being caught out by coworkers. We ended up at Mitsuwa for lunch, sharing an order of sushi from the deli and a plate of bul go ki fro Mama's Kitchen in the food court. Emmett had never heard of bubble tea so I treated him to one while I grabbed a green tea smoothie from Re Leaf. On the way back, Emmett's hand brushed mine once, twice, and then a third time.

I looked up at him and smiled. Our fingers reached for one another and then intertwined. We walked hand in hand the rest of the trip back home. I was strangely content from such a small physical gesture.

Emmett and I had passed a turning point in our relationship and suddenly, I wanted more. I could feel the tension rippling off of him as we rode the elevator up, and he hovered right behind me as I opened the door. I tossed my keys into the basket and was watching him from the corner of my eye as I put my shoes away. When I stood, he smirked, the dimple in his right cheek deepening slightly.

"About damned time." Emmett's fingers came up slowly as he spoke. I stood still as they slid across my cheek to rest at the back of my neck. "Yes?"

"Yes," I whispered.

He applied gentle pressure to my neck, coaxing my face to tilt upward. My hand rose to his shoulder, cupping the rippled muscles beneath his wind breaker. The last thing I saw as my eyes slowly closed were those deeply pink tinged lips coming closer.

Warmth. I felt his breath wash over me before firm, plump, deliciously smooth lips pressed against mine. He was hesitant, waiting to see how I responded. I kissed Emmett back, our lips closed as we shared our first taste of intimacy.

It was over before it had truly begun and he was pulling back, smiling down at me. Emmett whistled as he released me and moved into the living room, sinking down into the couch, feet crossed on the coffee table. I stood there in the foyer, my fingers pressed against my lips. He was going to be the death of me if Bella wasn't.

~*~

"So, what did the two of you do today?" Bella was talking as she walked in the door. Emmett and I were there to greet her, something she obviously enjoyed. Her eyes brightened when she saw us standing there together.

"We watched some tv, bitched about sports, grabbed food at that Japanese marketplace on Algonquin, I kissed your husband, we played some video games, and he showed off his music skills; just the usual, you know."

The sparkle in his eyes was at odds with the calm, "no big deal" tone of his voice. Bella's eyes grew even larger as she looked first at Emmett and then to me. He turned to me with a smile before he grabbed Bella around the waist and pulled her over to him.

"Welcome home, babe." He had to bend nearly in half to close the foot difference in height. I watched with warmth and an increased fondness as his nose brushed against hers and then their lips met. It was soft and sweet, but no less heartfelt for the short nature.

I wrapped my arms around her and gave her the next kiss, Emmett smiling at both of us as we separated.

"You two are still disgustingly cute with each other after four years. I like it."

I rounded on him. "Who are you to talk? You and Rosalie still make eyes like love-struck teenagers whenever you walk into a room."

Emmett laughed and put an arm around my shoulder, his other around Bella. "We have been together for sixteen years, married for ten. We took a break to sow our wild oats, to make sure we would not wake up one day and feel like we had missed out, for a few weeks in college, but found ourselves back together. We were just meant to be. She is my best friend as well as my wife. I cannot imagine a day where I do not wake up beside her or at least hear her voice within the first hour of being awake. Rose is my everything."

He walked us slowly over to the couch and we all sat together. "I have real hopes that the four of us will turn out like that. You and Bella have this amazingly solid relationship. You support one another and help each other grow. I am getting to the point where I do not like being away from either of you, the same way I feel about Rosie. When you are away, it feels like a part of me is missing. I am in love with the both of you."

My mind was empty of everything but Emmett and Bella loving me. I blurted out, "I love you," as I turned to kiss the side of his neck. He made a content, purring sound, a low moan in his throat before he pulled me half onto his lap.

I had not consciously thought about falling in love with Emmett, or Rosalie for that matter, but it had happened. My heart had grown in capacity; I was not loving Bella any less or differently because my heart had claimed space for them. My love for Bella was deeper because she was sharing this love with me.

The three of us sat quietly, the tv on but forgotten, just enjoying the moment. We had been there for almost thirty minutes when Emmett's phone began to vibrate against me. To their amusement, in my position the vibration was directly against the inside of my thighs and balls. I let out a low groan as Emmett shifted me over to get to his phone.

"Hey, Rosie-Posie, how was your day?"

I watched as Emmett tucked the phone between his ear and shoulder before pulling me back onto his lap, close to our prior position. One hand went to the phone and the other was resting on my thigh. He smiled at me before turning his attention back to the phone.

"That is great, honey! Please send Vera my congratulations. I'm so glad that you're having a good time and everyone came to see you and the kids. You deserve this trip away from home and the shop. I am sure Jake and the boys can handle everything with you gone. They know they can just call me and I will be there in two hours, less if Edward drives."

Emmett switched hands and draped the other around Bella's shoulders. "Oh, yeah, it has been fun. Edward showed me some of their city, we probably made some folks do a double take as we held hands walking back along Arlington Heights Road. Oh! That is too funny; just a second."

He put his hand over the microphone portion of his phone. "Rosalie said we probably fueled some imaginations more than causing a stink." We both rolled our eyes as the women giggled.

Emmett returned to the phone. "I miss you, baby. Yeah, well, we'll see. I'm not sure what time I'm going to bed..." or which bed you're sleeping in, "... but sure, I'll call right before bed. Oh... Oh! Yeah, I definitely will call. Love you!" He kissed the phone and then we could hear the high pitched sounds of glee as Rosalie wrangled the kids to the phone to say hi to Daddy.

"You make it look so easy," I said as he hung up the phone. "I hope that I can be even half the father you are one day."

He leaned back into the couch, his arms crossing behind his head on the back of the cushion. "I fly by the seat of my pants most days. All you can do is love them. I keep food on the table and make sure they are clean, but most of all, I just love them. It is the same way with a relationship. You have to work, every single day, to keep up with the maintenance work. But it is love that keeps you going."

"So, Bella, what did you want to do this evening?" Emmett steered the conversation away from the heavy waters we had been swimming into.

"I thought, since we are close enough to Chicago, we would go the touristy route and grab some pizza before walking the Mile. It is still warm enough that the Lake wind should not be too cold. We could get some souvenirs for the kids. Cara and Kailey might like something from American Girl, and we could probably shop for Chase at the Disney Store."

We both agreed with Bella and after putting on some slightly warmer jackets, we made our way out to the SUV. Emmett nodded his head over to the sheet draped Vanquish. While Bella opened up the garage and started the Trailblazer, I pulled back the cover and let Emmett see my baby.

His low wolf-whistle made me smile and he looked to me before touching the Vanquish. "Ya know, Rosie would love to get her hands on this."

If I could trust anyone with my baby, it would be Rosalie. "Next time we come up, I'll drive the Vanquish."

"She will absolutely shit her pants after working on all the crap suburbanite cars she sees day after day." Emmett was still shaking his head in disbelief over my 'quarter-life crisis-mobile,' as Bella refers to it.

"Classy, Emmett, real classy. Do you kiss Rose and your kids with that mouth?" Bella was staring at both of us as she chastised him.

"Along with you and your husband."

Bella rolled her eyes and told us to get in. She drove while I fiddled with the radio. Emmett was buckled in yet leaning forward so that his arms were resting on our seats, his head between ours to keep the conversation going. It was only later when the waitress brought us our pizza at Gino's that I realized what was wrong.

"I miss Rose. She should be here."

Bella and Emmett looked up at me, a hint of sad acknowledgment in their eyes. I pulled out my phone and called her. She answered after a few rings.

"Edward?"

"Hello, Rosalie. We are sitting down to dinner and it doesn't feel right without you being here with us. We needed to hear your voice."

"Just a sec." Rosalie's voice was shaky and I heard the clicking of her heels on either tile or hardwood, before she quickly went up or down stairs. She let out a harsh breath before coming back to the phone. "Warn a girl before you pull out that sappy stuff, Edward. Gods, I must be hormonal today. The kids are having a blast with my folks outside. I came back in to talk so they do not see me with mascara running down my cheeks. Where are you eating?"

"We are at Gino's, having pizza. Well, Emm and I are splitting a meaty legend. Bella ordered the spinach stromboli, knowing we could finish off a medium pizza by ourselves."

Bella's palm was outstretched for the phone and was talking to Rose when Emmett reached over and took my hand. He mouthed "thank you" and then lightly kissed the inside of my wrist before grabbing another slice of pizza.

"We'll see you soon, Rosalie. I promise. I'd like that, a girls' day. Have a good night, honey. Here's Emmett... I love you too."

We watched as my wife's eyes became misty and she handed off the phone. Emmett waited as Rosalie went back out and we listened as he wished Cara and Kailey goodnight before lowering his voice to a whisper to sing a goodnight song to Chase. "Yeah, I miss you too, buddy. Daddy'll see you in a few days and we'll go play football out back, just you and me, 'kay? If that's what you want, I'll ask him. Love ya, Chasey. 'Night night."

He gave me back my phone and smiled. "Chase wants you to come play football with us, Edward."

We turned our attention back to the food and I watched as Emmett finished off our pizza and helped Bella with her stromboli. He must have a hollow leg as he sure doesn't put the food on around his middle. I do not think there is a spare inch of fat on him.

"Why don't we head back to your place for the night. We can do some shopping tomorrow. After that call, I realized that I just want to spend time with the two of you, not share you with other people."

Bella and I agreed with Emmett and asked for our check. I went to retrieve the car and drove up to find Emmett's arm around Bella's waist. They fit together, almost naturally, and a spark of jealousy flowed through me. I swallowed it back, a mantra of 'he's yours too' repeating through my mind as I assimilated the emotion.

Emmett called shotgun and immediately leaned over to kiss me on the cheek. "You okay?"

I nodded and his jaw tightened. He repeated the question again and I let out a sigh.

"I am fine now. I just had some momentary issues but I worked through them. I am good, I promise."