Chapter 18:
Bella POV:
I was busy enjoying my normal, complicated, messy life. The last few months had flown by in such a rush. As I drove home from school, I thought back about all that had happened.
I talked to Mrs. Newton and told her I would like to keep my job, but I also wanted to go to school part-time. She agreed I should go to school and told me it would be no problem to work around my school schedule. So, I went to the community college in Port Angeles and signed up for three classes: a writing class, a psych class and Accounting 101. The accounting class I took thinking that one day, if Jacob and Embry actually started the auto repair shop they were saving for, they would need someone to run the office end of things. The psychology and writing classes were all for me. I enjoyed writing, and I felt like it would be good for me to have some sort of creative outlet.
Jake and Embry stayed very busy working on cars, trucks, motorcycles, whatever anyone brought them. Jake had decided that he didn't want to go back to the reservation school for his senior year. He was 18, and ready to move on with his life. So, he took some night classes and got his GED. Embry decided to stay in school, so he worked after in the garage. He said he was in it "for the chicks" of course. Jake couldn't wait for him to imprint.
On that subject, Paul finally imprinted. On Rachel . . . Jacob's sister! She moved home from college and went to a bonfire one night with Jake and I. Paul was sitting at the fire, and the next thing you know, he is right in front of us, asking Rachel all about college. They sat and talked for quite awhile, then disappeared for a walk on the beach. All of this has been quite disturbing for Jake . . . especially when we walk into his house and find them making out (rather indecently) on the couch. I keep telling him he has to get used to it for his sister's sake. But it was Paul . . . Jake had seen too much inside his head to be comfortable knowing he was now doing those things with his sister.
Sam and Emily's baby was born in January. They named her Lily Anne, and she is beautiful. Sam is the proud, overprotective dad and Emily is the loving, nurturing mom we all knew she would be. I have found myself going over to visit just to hold the baby. I love to hold her close to my face so I can breathe in her sweet, baby scent. I am amazed at the maternal feelings she brings out in me, and it makes me glad once again that I stayed human. I want this someday . . . I really do.
For my birthday last September Jacob gave me a car. I was furious! I told him in no uncertain terms that I was never giving up my truck. I loved my truck! He explained that he really needed the truck for business, and he would let me drive it anytime I wanted. But the truck was getting old, and it wasn't as reliable as it used to be. He wanted me to have a safe vehicle to get to work and school. So, he made a deal with a guy that supplied him with parts for this car that was sitting outside his shop. It was an older Toyota Celica that needed a new engine. So, Jacob rebuilt an engine and fixed the car up for me in what little spare time he had. I couldn't believe it! I promised him I would try to get attached to the new car, and I had to admit, it was growing on me.
I remembered how much I used to hate my birthday, and was terrified of growing older when I was with Edward. Edward. I still thought of him now and again. I saw Alice regularly, and she kept me updated. Edward was attending med school out east. He was trying to do something meaningful. I was very proud of him for that.
The best thing happened 3 months ago. A little house on the reservation had just opened up. Billy, being an elder, worked it out so Jacob, as the Alpha, could have it. He was so excited when he told me! But, the downside was, it needed quite a bit of work. So, on weekends, we went over there and worked on it. I actually enjoyed ripping off old wallpaper, tearing out old carpet and tile. Of course, we had help. Sam was a big help – he was great with repairing the plumbing and things like that. The guys pitched in with the painting. We had just finished painting the last room when Dad insisted on paying for the new carpet and tile. Billy's friends were going to lay it through the house this next weekend.
I finally arrived at home and pulled up to the house to notice that Charlie's cruiser wasn't in the drive. He had been working long hours lately. As I walked into the kitchen, I put my book bag on the kitchen table and went to the fridge to see what I had to make for dinner. I stood there looking through the fridge thinking maybe I should have stopped at the grocery store. There wasn't much to pick from. I closed the door, and there was my answer: a menu from Tasty Pizza under a magnet on the fridge door. Pizza it is. Problem solved.
I wondered what time Jake and Dad would be done with work. You never knew with either of them. I called Dad at the office. "Sheriff Swan," he answered.
"Hey, Dad. Any idea what time you might be home for dinner? I just decided that it is pizza night," I told him. I took the menu off the fridge and looked it over.
"Bella, I just got a call from Mike, the new deputy I hired. He's having trouble with some of the paperwork, and I told him I'd stay late and help him out. Plus, I'm still working on my month-end reports, and those are due tomorrow. So, I guess you should go ahead and eat without me, but save me a slice or two. I'll warm it up when I get home," he answered. He sounded tired.
"You work too hard, Dad. Maybe you should start slacking off," I teased. Like that would ever happen.
He laughed at that. "Maybe I will someday, but not today. Sorry, kiddo."
"That's OK," I sighed. "I guess I'll just have to call the other man in my life and see if I can persuade him to eat pizza with me."
"I'm pretty sure that won't be a hard sell. You and pizza are probably the two most important things in Jake's life," he said with a laugh. "You might want to buy two pizzas so you don't starve."
I laughed at that. He was right . . . he knew Jake pretty well. "OK, Dad. I'll see you later. Don't be too hard on the new guy," I told him sternly.
"I'll try to be nice, Bells. Bye." He hung up and I dialed Jake's number. He had just gotten a cell phone. He decided he needed one so that people could contact him about business. "This is Jake," he answered.
"This is your girlfriend," I said happily.
"Rita?" Jacob asked.
"What? Who's Rita?"
"Julie? Bambi? You gotta help me out here," he said, barely containing his laughter.
"Jacob Black, you are so bad," I said in mock anger.
"Hey, Bells, honey. Still love me?" Jacob asked sweetly.
"Yes, God help me, I do. I actually called because I have decided to declare tonight 'pizza night' but Charlie has to work late, so I was hoping you could come over and keep me from eating a whole pizza myself. When will you be done with work?"
"What time do you want me there?" he asked.
"I don't care. As soon as you can."
"How about now?" I heard him say as he walked in the front door.
I hung up the phone, ran out of the kitchen and into his arms. He caught me and pulled me up into a big hug. "So now is good?" he asked.
"Yes, now is good," I smiled at him. He leaned down and kissed me senseless. I was clinging to him, wrapping my arms around his neck and winding my fingers into his hair. I could never get enough of him.
He pulled back to ask, "So, where's the pizza?"
"The pizza can wait," I said, as I took his hand and dragged him upstairs. We went into the bedroom, and Jake shut the door. We took turns taking each other's clothes off then I laid back on the bed and pulled him down with me. He kissed me slowly, his tongue teasing mine. His lips left mine as he put light kisses on my cheek, then down my throat, my neck, then he stopped. It took me a second to realize what he was doing. The scar. His finger was lightly tracing the outline of the mark that Edward had left there. He had never touched it before. We never ever talked about it. "Jake?" I whispered.
He very slowly put his lips on the scar and kissed it gently, tenderly. Then he lifted his head and kissed me softly on the lips. This was an amazing man I was in love with. He was so loving, so forgiving. I felt incredibly lucky to have him love me like he did.
We took our time to kiss and to touch . . . every time we were together, we found something new, and I loved discovering another way to make Jake shiver with desire. I rolled him to his back and crawled on top to take him inside me and he smiled at me. "Oh, Jake," I moaned as I moved. I loved the way we fit together. So perfect. Jake had taught me so much about feeling the passion that was between us and not being afraid of it. I loved him so much for that.
I moved faster and faster until I found the pleasure I was seeking and collapsed on top of Jake. "Oh, God . . . Jake, that was . . . so good."
"Oh yeah?" he said as he rolled me to my back. "Mmm, I think I want some of that." He drove into me and moved oh, so slowly at first, then he captured my lips as he moved, increasing his speed until I felt him explode and shudder with his release. "Yeah, you were right. This is good," he panted.
We lay there in the afterglow, lightly kissing each other until our hearts regained their normal rate. I smiled at him and said, what do you think about summer weddings? I know, summer wedding, so cliché, but I would be out of school . . ."
Jake cut me off with, "Bella, are you talking about our wedding? You and me?"
"Yes, Jake. Who else would I be talking about?" I asked with a smile.
He grinned. "It's about fucking time!" I laughed at that. "Hell yeah! I would love a summer wedding. I would love any wedding. I would marry you tomorrow!"
"Well, funny you should say that, because I was thinking three weeks from this Saturday," I said.
"Three weeks? Really?"
"Yeah, I mean, I don't go back to school until the fall, and the house is almost ready to move into. Why wait?" I smiled at him. "I'm thinking about something very simple – maybe out on the beach, you know? Just our family and friends. Then maybe a small party after."
Jake leaned over and kissed me. "It sounds perfect to me."
A stomach growl interrupted us. Jacob laughed. "That wasn't me, for once. How about that pizza?"
Jacob POV:
Three weeks. In just three weeks, Bella would be my wife. My wife. All of a sudden, three weeks seemed a long time to wait.
I was at the new house and Quil and I were re-hanging the cupboard doors in the kitchen. We had taken them off to paint them. "Man, in three weeks you will be an old married man," Quil said.
"Yea. Weird, huh?"
"At least you only have to wait three weeks. I got years to wait."
"That's gotta suck, man," I told him as I picked up the last door to hang.
"Na, it's OK. Did I tell you what Claire said to me yesterday?" Quil was always sharing "Claire" stories. She was pretty cute, so I didn't mind. "She asked Emily why she was hiding Lily under a blanket. Emily was breast-feeding her, and you know she always puts that blanket over her. So, Emily tells her because she's eating and she doesn't like to have people watch her when she eats. Then Claire says, 'Oh, she must be messy like Embry.' I about died!" Quil and I both cracked up. "She is so funny," Quil said as he put the screwdriver back in the toolbox. "Well, that finishes that. Anything else you want done tonight?"
"Nope. This is it. I'm beat. I'm going to head home. Thanks a lot for coming over and helping," I said.
"No problem. Catch ya later," Quil said as he closed the kitchen door behind him.
I picked up my tools then looked around. The house was looking good! The kitchen was now a nice soft yellow, with white cabinets and a new tile floor. Bella was bringing curtains to put up tomorrow.
I walked through the living room on my way to the bathroom. It was small, but functional. We didn't have any furniture yet, so I guess it didn't matter how small it was. I walked down the short hall to use the bathroom and wash my hands. It too was small, but we painted it a pale turquoise color, and Bella had put in nice shower curtain and some towels, so it already felt a little like home.
I flipped off the light when I left the bathroom then stopped at the bedroom. Bella had such a hard time picking a color for the bedroom. She kept saying she didn't want it be too "girly" because it was my room too. We finally settled on blue, and I liked it. Dad's friends had laid the new carpet yesterday through the house, and I decided it really made a big difference. As I stood there, I again tried to figure out how we were going to get a king-sized bed in there. I didn't care if it took up the whole room. I was getting one and I would make it fit.
I walked back to the living room, flipped off all of the lights, locked the front door, and walked outside, closing it behind me. While standing there on the front porch, I decided what I would get Bella as a wedding gift . . . a porch swing. She would love it! I could picture us out here in the evening, sitting on the swing, watching the kids play in the yard. Whoa, one thing at time, Jake. How about you get married first then think about kids. Damnit, Quil. All that talk about Claire had me thinking about kids, I guess.
I shook my head as I stepped off of the porch then climbed into the truck and headed home.
Bella POV:
Everyone thought I was crazy for throwing a wedding in three weeks. What's the big deal? My mother almost had a heart attack when I called her. "Three weeks! Bella, are you crazy? You can't plan a wedding in three weeks!"
"Mom, I just want a very, simple wedding. I already have a dress, and I bought Jake this great white button down shirt for him to wear with black pants. He looks gorgeous in white. We booked the beach, and Sue is throwing the party at her house. Everything will be fine. All I need you to do is make plane reservations for you and Phil, and come here. OK?"
"OK, I can do that. I can't wait, Bella. It sounds like you. Simple and beautiful," she said lovingly.
"Thanks, Mom."
We hung up and I looked at the calendar and counted. Three weeks. I hope that's soon enough.
The weeks flew by too quickly. There was more to do than I thought. Kim helped me with the invitations . . . we did those first thing and got them out. I sent one to the Cullens even though I knew they could never attend. Getting married in La Push took care of that. I still cared for them very much and wanted them to feel included, especially Alice. She had stopped by earlier this week and brought me a beautiful silver heart necklace to wear on my wedding day. It had two small diamonds hung in the middle of the heart to represent the two men that had held my heart. Of course it made me cry.
Emily insisted on baking the wedding cake, so she had tons of pictures for me to go through. Billy was working on some special secret project that I could know nothing about. Charlie would go out in the evenings and help him. The suspense was killing me! I couldn't wait to see what it was.
Jake and I spent as much time at the house as we could so it would be ready to move into after the wedding. I found an old wooden kitchen table and chairs at a flea market, so on this Saturday afternoon before the wedding, we were out in the back yard painting it white to match the cupboards.
"Hey, I boxed up more of my stuff and brought it with me in the truck," Jake said as he set his paint brush down. "Sue also gave us some more stuff – a set of dishes she decided she didn't need, and a crock pot. While this dries, I'm going to go out and carry it in, OK?"
"Sure," I answered. He kissed me as he walked by and it made me smile. I finished the chair I was painting, and put the brush down. It actually looked pretty good. I thought it would fit into our kitchen perfectly. By tomorrow, we should be able to move it in.
I went out and helped Jake carry in the boxes. I had already brought some of my stuff over, too. "You know, we should think about finding some furniture," I told him. I had already secretly bought the king-size bed that Jacob wanted so badly. I knew that was Jake's ONE request. It was being delivered this afternoon. I could hardly hide my excitement.
"Yeah, I guess," he said as he set down the last box. "Man, it's hot today. I'm gonna get a drink of water. Be right back," he said as he walked to the kitchen.
Just then, I heard the furniture delivery truck pull up outside. Yes . . . perfect timing. I ran out to the living room to open the door for them. I felt like a little kid at Christmas! "Jake, can you come here and help me with something?" I called out to him.
"Sure, sure," he said as he walked into the living room. "What do you ne. . ." he stopped as he saw the delivery van out front. There were two guys pulling the box springs out of the truck. "Bella?" He turned to me in shock and awe.
I just grinned at him.
"No way! You didn't?"
"Happy Wedding!" I sang out.
He picked me up and twirled me around. "This is fucking AWESOME!" He put me down, kissed me, and hurried out to help the guys get the box springs into the house. I had scrimped and saved every penny I could for months, but it was so worth it.
The three of them had fun trying to get that huge thing set up in our tiny little bedroom. I wished I had a video camera. It took up most of the room, but that was OK. I wanted Jake to be able sleep comfortably.
I walked the delivery guys out, and then went back to find Jacob completely laid out on his back on the bed. I couldn't afford a headboard, so the box springs and mattress sat on a metal frame, against the wall. I stood in the doorway and smiled.
"Bella, this is the greatest present EVER! I LOVE THIS BED!" Jake shouted.
"I don't suppose there is room for me, is there?" I asked with a smile.
"Are you kidding me? Get your ass over here right now," he ordered.
"Yes, sir." I walked in and climbed onto the huge bed and laid on my back beside Jake. He looked over at me. "Bella. I know this must have cost . . ."
"Stop," I interrupted him. "I have been saving for a long time. Don't worry about it. It's paid for and it's yours. Well, and mine, too, I guess," I told him.
He rolled to his side and propped himself on his elbow. "Thank you very much. I love it, and I love you." He looked down at me. I knew that look. "So, you wanna break in the new mattress?" he said as he wiggled his eyebrows at me. "What do you say?"
I laughed. "What do you think, baby?" I sat up and pulled my t-shirt over my head and threw it on the floor.
"I think," he said as he pulled his t-shirt over his head and threw it on the floor with mine, "That you are going to be the perfect wife for me."