Thank y'all for the well wishes! I do feel a little better today. Not completely over it, but I at least don't feel like I'm gonna die. Ugh, I absolutely HATE getting kidney stones. They're the worst. I've had herniated disks in my back, and I deal with spinal stenosis and all that right now, and I'd have to say kidney stones are slightly worse. At least with the regular back pain, I'm not throwing up. Bleh.
Anywho, I'm glad y'all loved little Braveheart! Like I said before, that did happen to me back in October, and the picture I put on fb in the groups is actually my little monster about a week after I found her. She's grown A LOT since then, and she's into all sorts of mischief, but I do love her to pieces. I think animals make life better, one way or another. They can provide therapy, comfort, love, even a listening ear.
Annnnddddd noooooowwww, onto one of my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE places. Yay!
I have put pictures up in the groups, so please go see them because, gah, this place is so gorgeous! (all the pics are from the internet. I think a couple are my own from my trips, but still)
Chapter 20 - Trip
BPOV
"I'm giving you five minutes, then we're out the door." Edward says against my lips as he grabs his suitcase and pulls away to head out the bedroom door.
We're taking a little trip to up to Asheville, North Carolina, to Biltmore Estate.
It's been years since I've been up there, and I've been itching to get back.
It's almost the end of February and considered the off season at Biltmore, but that's perfectly fine with me. It just means we've got more of the estate to ourselves.
We're taking Braveheart over to Esme and Carlisle's for the week, because Esme just can't seem to get enough of the little guy.
She did lay into us about grandbabies when she found out about Braveheart… Which I kinda expected. What I didn't expect was for her to flip out worse than Alice at seeing him, and said, and I quote 'Grandma is up for babysitting, anytime, anywhere'… Citing that she needed to get in some practice…
But I digress…
We're also taking this trip because James' trial… is fucking OVER.
I can't even believe it. I didn't have to go out there, because they took my statement as my testimony in court, along with the two other women that had the statute run out. It was used to prove a history of behavior.
They found him guilty on all the counts he was charged with. And they came to a verdict rather quickly. That was what shocked me. They debated for a day and a half, and came back with the guilty verdict.
When I got the phone call… I'll be honest, I broke down crying. Edward held me for hours and hours that night, just comforting me and soothing my nerves.
Just knowing that that weight has been lifted off my shoulders, it's one of the biggest reliefs of my life.
So, Edward planned a little getaway for us to decompress and just celebrate the fact that this part of my life is in the rearview mirror.
And I've gotta say… I can't wait!
"Bells! We gotta get on the road! Mom's already called me twice asking where the cat is! Apparently I've been reduced to chopped-liver!" Edward calls up to me and I just laugh as I zip up my suitcase and head downstairs.
"Well, your mom has baby-fever, so unless we, or Alice, give her an actual grandchild, she's gonna be solely focused on the new 'baby' in the family." I joke as we make our last circle around the house to make sure everything is taken care of before we leave.
"Hello? Have you met my mother? The second she finds out you're pregnant, I'll cease to exist. I'll only be the means of her having a grandchild, not her own flesh and blood." He jabs back, knowing his mother is more than ready to be a grandma.
I look over at him and raise an eyebrow. "Do you know something I don't about my own body?"
He stops where he is and walks over to me with a hungry look in his eyes, and yanks me to his body. "Oh, Isabella… There are several things about your body I know, that you probably don't know yourself…" He says seductively against my ear before kissing down my jaw. "But if we were to go through all of those right now, we'd never make it to Asheville." He pulls away then smacks me on the ass. "Let's get a move on before mom decides to come looking for Braveheart and walks in on us, mid-act." He grabs our suitcases and walks out the front door, leaving me turned on and a little pissed that he started something without finishing it.
"Jerk!" I yell after him, only to hear his laughter following back through the door.
There's definitely been more of a lightness in the last few weeks between us, and I know the end of the trial had something to do with it. It was stressing both of us out, more than we realized.
I pick up Braveheart's carrier, lock up the house, and walk out to the car. We drop off Braveheart with a very enthusiastic Esme, then hit the interstate straight to western North Carolina.
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"Oh, how I've missed this place!" I yell in the car as we make the quick drive by Biltmore House on our way to the hotel on the estate.
This place never ceases to amaze me. Every time I come here, I feel like I've stepped back in time to an era long passed.
It was built by one of the Vanderbilt's back in 1889, and finished in 1895. It's a 250 room French Renaissance chateau tucked into the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina.
And it is FABULOUS! If you've ever seen some of the homes from the Gilded Age of the late 1800's, this is one of the peak examples of the era. But in a gorgeous mountain setting.
"Yeah, this place never gets old. We'll have to come back in the spring or summer to see the flowers, but I think we needed this trip to just get away and relax a little. You've been under enough stress the past few months, and this place always seems to put you at ease." Edward said as he drove through the other gate, down through the gardens and onto the winding road that leads to the Inn on the estate.
He's right; this place always puts my nerves at ease. Not just my nerves, but my soul, too. It's just like a cleansing experience when you come here and stay and recharge your batteries and just relax.
Watching the trees go by and seeing the river off to the side is just so soothing. It's still winter, but it doesn't make it any less beautiful.
We make it to the Inn and get checked in and up to our room.
Or more like suite.
We did end up splurging a little and got one of the fancy shmancy suites. And it's AWESOME!
"Wow… look at the view of the mountains. It's the most gorgeous sight." I said in a low voice, just taking in the beauty.
"It certainly is…" I heard Edward say from behind me and I tore my eyes away from the window to look over at him, only to see him staring right at me.
I blushed and looked back out the window.
"You're a little biased, you know?" I joked, but he always knew how to make me feel like I was a precious gift, somehow.
I felt his arms wrap around me from behind and look out the window with me.
"I may be… But I'm also not wrong. Hashtag IAmNotWrong." He said in my ear and I burst out laughing, then turned in his arms to look up at him.
"I'll let that one slide because I know how much you hate that whole movement of the hashtag. But also because I don't know how I could ever feel anything but that when you look at me." I said then rose up to kiss him soundly on the lips.
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Sitting out on the loggia at the Inn with Edward and a couple cups of coffee is quite relaxing. It's gotten incredibly cold and they were calling for snow.
I missed the snow so damn much. It didn't exactly snow in L.A., and Charleston very, very rarely ever got snow. So, I was hoping to see some of the pretty white stuff falling while we were here.
We had a nice quiet evening last night after we got here. We went down to Cedric's for dinner and took a walk around Antler Hill Village and just relaxed under the stars.
"You wanted to do the wine tasting over at the winery this afternoon, right?" Edward asked me as he took a sip of his steaming coffee.
Mmmmm wine tasting. Yes and please!
"Oh yeah. They've got some great choices for wine here. They also have the wine and chocolate tasting, too. I'm kinda excited about that." I told him as I pulled the throw blanket, that I'd thought to bring along, tighter around me. "I wanna walk down to the river, too. It's one of the world's oldest rivers. It's supposed to be older than all of these mountains… It just makes you contemplate things, if you start thinking about it."
It really does when you look and see all of these mountains and how expansive they are. Even when you're thinking about three hundred million years… That's how old the French Broad River is said to be. You really start feeling small with the realization of exactly how long it's been there. Some rivers are hundreds, even thousands of years old. But when you're thinking hundreds of millions of years… Wow…
"That sounds like a good idea. You wanna tour the house tomorrow? I know there's not much in the gardens right now, but we can go down to the conservatory, see what they've got hidden away in there." He suggested as we continued to plan out our time here.
We weren't on any specific schedule while we're here. We're staying for a week and we plan to take our time and relax, to really be in no rush to get somewhere else.
"Absolutely. I always love seeing the orchids in the conservatory. They have so many different kinds in there. I didn't know there were that many kinds. But they're just so pretty.
"I wanna go to the spa, too. I don't suppose I could talk you into coming with me?" I asked him, figuring it would be futile.
"Aww, Bells, you know I'm not into that fru-fru stuff. But, I want you to go get pampered and relax. I'm sure I can find something to occupy my time." He smiled over at me, and I'm pretty sure I've got an idea of what he's thinking about.
He's been wanting to go do the clay shooting that they offer, here on the estate.
"Yes, by all means, go shooting. You know I'm not on board for that one. So, you go shooting, I'll go to the spa. Fair trade off." I told him and he smile wider at me, leaned over and gave me a deep kiss.
We spend the rest of the morning relaxing and taking in the beautiful views of the mountains. At lunch time, we head to the Library Lounge for a little light lunch before we go put alcohol in our systems.
We took a little walk down to the river, first, before we went to our wine tasting.
"Wow. I could sit out here all day, and just watch the water flowing by. It's so peaceful." I said as we sat on the blanket we brought down with us.
"I agree. There's just a serene feeling to being out here, even in the winter. I wouldn't have thought that was possible." Edward said as he snuggled up to me, just holding me close to him.
We've had these kinds of moments down at the beach, back home, but there's just something about the mountains that appeals to both our souls.
It could be the age of the river we're sitting by, also. With the history of it and the things this river has seen and been a part of, it feels awe-inspiring.
Laying there with Edward, my mind starts wandering, and it starts hearing a melody. One that seems to write itself. I reach into my bag and grab my notebook that I write down my lyrics and inspiration in, and start jotting down what's flowing through my brain.
Sometimes if I don't write it down as it pops up, then I could just forget it and never get it back. So, I always make a point to write these things down, no matter whether it's good or bad. I'll sort it all out later on.
"What's this one about?" I hear Edward whisper next to me and look up to see that he hasn't even turned his head my way. He just knows me that well.
"A place you go to heal your hurt. A place you're always welcome. A place where memories always keep you company…" I tell him as I write them down quickly.
I see his head turn my way and look up at him. "Home." He says simply, and it's like he's always got a window into my mind. He knows how my brain works.
"Yeah." I smile at him. "It just kinda popped in my head. It's what I've been feeling since I came home. It was beating around in my head for a while, but there was nothing concrete, until now. It's starting to talk to me on how it wants to be written." It's literally how I write my songs. I listen to what floats around in my head and let it tell me how it wants to be written out.
"I like it. I think it'll be great once it's done. It's got a lot of potential." He says as he smiles over at me.
Edward has always been behind me, one hundred percent, when I've been writing songs in the past. He's always told me what he thinks, whether I should alter something in what I'm writing, or whether it's just complete dog shit. Which he's never really done the last part, but he would. He doesn't patronize me or try to sugar coat it. It's something that I love about him.
"I've gotta work a lot more on it, but it's actually taking more shape than it had before. So, I'll call it progress." I laugh and put my notebook back in my bag and resume my spot next to Edward.
We stay there for another hour, then head over to Antler Hill Village, where the Winery is located.
Once we're situated at the bar setup they've got inside for the tasting, the gentleman hands us all a little leaflet that has the wines listed so we can keep track of what we've tried and what we like.
It's seriously so fun to be able to try these different wines and have them complimented by the chocolates that are in front of us, too.
It doesn't hurt that you get a little tipsy while you're at it, either. Haa!
Edward and I are just on that cusp of being slightly sloshed, but we've kept ourselves somewhat under control.
Well, for the most part.
I can't help it if I find things extremely funny when I've had a good bit of wine.
Wine hits me in a different way, for some weird reason.
We head back to the room and I feel the wine kicking in a little more, so I lay down for a bit, just to get myself a little more clear headed.
I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I knew, my nose was tickling with something being dragged down it.
"That better not be Braveheart's tail in my face because I was having a really good dream…" I mutter then hear a laugh right next to me.
"Nope, the only pussy here is yours." Edward says with a laugh in his voice, and I swing my hand out to smack the shit out of him for that comment.
"You're so crude, sometimes. Jeez…" I say sleepily as I burrow back into the pillow.
"Naaawww, but you love me, regardless of how crude I am. If I remember correctly, you like it sometimes when I'm crude like that…" He says in his sexy as hell voice, right next to my ear.
"That's so not fair. It's different and you know it." I whine as I finally roll over to face him.
He looks completely awake, so he must not have dozed off like I had. I looked over at the clock and see it's bee about an hour since we got back to the room.
"Why didn't you wake me? I didn't mean to fall asleep." I ask, trying to reorient myself.
"You're fine. I just made sure our dinner reservations were set and made a few phone calls to work to make sure everything is running smoothly. No big deal." He says as he cuddles into me.
Dinner that night at the Bistro is so delicious. Steak Frites never fails me. And the dessert we had was just…. Mmmmmmm scrumptious. A blood orange chocolate dome cheesecake concoction, is just the cherry on top. I've never had a bad meal up here, with the several dozen times I've been to the estate. They really make sure they've got some of the most amazing food, and service, here.
We walk back out around the Village area, just taking in the sights and the rather cold night that has come upon us. All of the twinkling lights they have strung around the Village make things so magical.
I don't care who you are, white Christmas lights always make a place seem more beautiful and add that sense of magic to an otherwise dull area. In the Village, it just adds to the amazing atmosphere.
As if to add to the peacefulness of the night, it started snowing while we were eating dinner.
"Wow… Oh I'm so excited! In all the times I've been here, it's never snowed during my visits." I say as I look up at the beautiful falling snow against the dark sky.
This is probably the best thing I've ever experienced here, and we haven't even toured the house yet. I really am so excited for snow at Biltmore!
"It's magical to see here. Hey, I wonder if we can sneak over to the house and at least get onto the esplanade. It looks like it's coming down pretty good, so maybe by the time we get over there, some of it will have stuck to the ground. What'dya say, Bells?" He asks with a hint of mischief in his eyes.
"Oh, you're so on!" I grab his hand and we go to the car and make our way over to the big house on the hill.
"Look at that…" I whisper as we walk down the Rampe Douce to the Esplanade.
He was right, once we got over to the house, there's a good layer already sticking to the ground. It's big, fluffy flakes, too, so it's incredibly beautiful.
Once we've made our way to the bottom, we notice we're not the only ones that had the idea to come see the house at night, in the snow. There's a small handful of people milling about, watching the flakes fall. There are also some employees straggling around after they've closed up the house for the night, so that they can take in the snow.
I lift my face to the sky, close my eyes, and just listen to the peace and quiet that comes with snowfall. Animals typically head for cover when they sense snow coming down, so there's no birds chirping, or squirrels or anything else scurrying around. Just total quiet.
I love that.
My peaceful moment is interrupted when I feel the back of my sweater move and all of a sudden there's ice cold wetness on the skin of my back…
He shoved a fucking snowball down my shirt!
"Ahhh! Edward! You fucking jerk!" I whirl around, hearing him laugh his ass off and start chasing him around the fountain of the Esplanade, grabbing snow as I go and chuck it at his head and just barely getting him.
We're laughing and throwing snow at each other, and I finally catch up to him and tackle his ass to the ground.
"You know…" I start saying, slightly out of breath. "I hate it when you do that shit. Now my shirt's all wet and cold."
"Aww, I'll warm you up when we get back to the room." He waggles his eyebrow at me. Then he gets this look on his face and he sits up. "Can I ask you something?"
"Of course you can." I wonder what's gotten his mood to change.
"Now… you've already told me you'd say yes… So I just need to know as a formality now… Would you like to get married here… or in Charleston?" He asks as he moves to one knee and pulls a ring box out of his coat.
Wait a sec…
I'm sitting there, slack-jawed as he opens the box and turns it to me.
"Uhhhh…." Yeah, that's my brilliant response.
The ring in the box is stunning. It looks like an antique. With a single diamond sitting on top of the gold band, a band of very small diamonds wrapping around the base of the main diamond, facing out.
It's elegant and just simply beautiful.
And I'm still just stuck here with my mouth hanging open.
I shake myself out of my stupor and look back up at him, seeing this pensive, hopeful look on his face.
Clearing my throat, I tell him, "Well… Here would be amazing… But… no one's actually asked me to marry them, yet. Sooooo…."
He laughs to himself and pulls the ring box back, takes it out and holds it in his hand. "Well, if we're gonna go that route… Isabella Marie Swan… I've loved you… for as long as I can humanly remember. I don't remember a time in my life when you weren't there. Even when you were gone. I still kept up with you, and you were always there in my mind. Always telling me there was no one else that I loved in this world, more than you. Will you do me the honor of marrying me? Here, at Biltmore?" He held up the ring to me, waiting.
I sat there for another minute, hopefully making him squirm a little bit.
I purse my lips because I may have to do something I don't like doing.
"Do you think they'll let me play the celebrity card here so we can get married this spring?" I ask instead of answering his question.
"You're killing me here, Bells…" He groans as he hangs his head for a minute.
I can't help but laugh and grab his face to look up at me.
"Yes. A thousand times, yes." I tell him before I kiss his lips sweetly.
He tackles me back to the ground and deepens the kiss, before pulling back and sliding the ring on my left ring finger.
We hear a handful of people clapping off to our side and look over seeing the other people and the employees that stuck around cheering for us.
I'm a little embarrassed at having people witness this intimate moment with us, but oh well. I just burry my face in Edward's chest as he chuckles.
We both stand up and wave to them, and see one of them run over to us.
"Congratulations! I hope you guys don't mind, but I caught a couple of pictures, if you'd like them. People don't always get their special moment captured and thought you might like them as something to look back on." The woman said as she turned her phone to us to show us what she'd captured.
There were some pretty great shots, and it being in one of my favorite places, and in the snow, it's just perfect.
"These are great. I'd love to have them. Thank you so much." I gushed to her, excited that I'll be able to look back and remember this moment, forever.
She sends us the pictures and we politely ask her to keep it quiet and not post it all over social media.
That's all we need right now, is for our family to know before we can tell them.
She readily agrees, telling us not to worry about it. She seems like she's not one of those asshole people that would go straight to the tabloids to sell these pictures to the highest bidder.
We'll have to wait and see if that holds true, but, I'd like to think there's still some people out there that can be trusted.
Once they've walked off, I turn back to Edward and wrap my arms around him.
"We're getting married…" I whisper to him, smiling at his own bright smile that doesn't seem to leave his face now.
"Finally…" He whispers back before he captures my lips again.
A/N: Eeeeeeeeeeek! Who else is excited about this?
Next chapter's gonna have some funny moments in it, because, well, Rosalie... what else is new...
See y'all later!