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AN – I do not own any of the characters o Twilight. They belong to Stephanie Meyers.
Ch 22
QPOV
Waking up the following morning was like a little slice of snow covered heaven. I don't think I've ever slept so well. Tia was sound asleep, curled up on my shoulder with her hand on my chest. We had spent our night talking, cuddling and kissing, making up for the time that we had lost. We knew that we both needed to have some serious discussions but at the same time, neither of us wanted to rush. I ran my fingers through her hair and caressed her shoulder until she finally woke up. She looked up at me with her sleepy eyes and a smile and I thought my heart would explode. She pulled herself up and propped her head up on her hand to be able to look down at me. I raised my hand to caress her face. Smiling, she leaned into my touch.
"Do we have to get out of bed?" she asked in a husky voice, making my heart stop. I swear I wish I could have said no and then do all of the things that I would like to do with her instead. However, we needed to wait just a little while longer.
"Well, no, we don't but I'm thinking my stomach will seriously start grumbling soon if we don't." Giggling, she ruffles my hair before pushing up to sitting. I sit up beside her and nuzzle her shoulder, allowing her scent to fill me. My wolf loves all of these small caresses. Nibbling on the back of her neck, I say "Go get a shower and I'll fix us something to eat."
I watch her as she hops out of bed, gathering whatever she needed. My wolf doesn't like any separation from Tia. I can't protect her if I can't see her. I have to trust in the ability of my pack brothers to help me in keeping her safe. Even though I can't see them, I know that they are just outside and will be here the second that there's any sign of distress. Still, I think it would much easier if we showered together. Whoa! Stop that mental image! I smirked propelling myself up to get going on breakfast. As if on cue, my stomach growls loudly. Heading to the kitchen, I pull out everything needed for our meal and I start cooking.
TPOV
Smiling as I get into the running water, I realize that I'm the happiest I've ever been. I have the love of my life back. I let my mind wander at the possibilities that my life now held as I washed my hair. Having a stable home life, love and an extended family had always seemed out of my reach but no longer. I have all of that and more if I want. I'm excited to start this new chapter of my life with Quil. After drying off, I take time to brush out my hair and dress in jeans and a v-neck sweater. While I don't want to push us too far too fast, there definitely wasn't anything wrong with a little enticement. The anticipation of our next step would only make it sweeter. My hair fell in waves around my face and I had dabbed on a bit of my favorite perfume before leaving the bedroom.
The smells coming from the kitchen were delicious, coffee, bacon, eggs and toast. I had lost some weight the last couple of months so I would not be surprised if Quil, Uma and Emily took it upon themselves to cook my favorite foods just to tempt me to eat more. I had no intention of letting them down in that respect.
I walk up behind him as he's plating our eggs and wrap my arms around his waist. "Mmmmm, a man in the kitchen. Sexy…" I can feel his warmth and the beat of his heart as I snuggled into his back. Once the food was ready, Quil turned around, bringing his face closer for our morning kiss. He caught the scent of my perfume and purred. My mind raced in reaction at the thought that he truly was that into me. My heart surged in happiness of it all. We lost ourselves in our kiss until his phone started to vibrate. Growling, Quil grabbed his phone from the counter to read a text.
"Sam says that there are a couple of pieces of mail for you at his house. We could go over to their place in a little while to see what it is." He said as he put his phone down.
"Sounds good." Looking at the table covered in food, I add "Geesh Quil, you didn't have to make so much food for me." I laugh.
"I want to take care of you Tia but I'll admit that I don't mind if you return this favor someday so that I can have the same view as I walk in the kitchen." He grins mischievously and he wiggles his eyebrows.
I take a sip of my coffee and have a seat. After eating for a moment in pleasurable silence, Quil's face turns serious. "T, we need to talk about us staying here."
"Oh,…" I take another sip of coffee to hide my nerves. "I hadn't given that any thought. What do you want to do?" I ask hoping that his reply will be the same as mine.
"I was kind of hoping that you would want to stay here with me." Looking down at his plate as a blush rises in his cheeks. "I want to continue living here with you. This house is mine and it's paid for. All we would have to cover is monthly utilities and food."
Now my nerves really kick in. Living with my boyfriend when I'm not even 18 yet? What would everyone think? Then again, I know what the people who are closest to us think. This living arrangement was initially their idea. Would they have a problem if we continued living together? "Maybe we should talk to Uma and you grandfather since this impacts them as well."
"I agree. I wouldn't want to do anything that they would consider disrespectful, but I already know that all of our friends see absolutely nothing wrong with us being together." He smiles shyly.
Ok, I'm going to go ahead and ask the question that has been on my mind since last night. "So…about us…what does this mean?" I can't bring myself to say the exact words. I hope he understands what I'm asking.
He turns his chair to face me and takes my hands in his. Speaking directly to me, he explains "It means that I want to live with the woman that I love. Hopefully, some day she will be my wife."
It's my turn to blush. I had wondered if he was already thinking along those lines and now I have that answer. "So what about the intimate side of our relationship?" I am not able to look him in the eyes. I know that if I did, I'd blush even more than I already was.
Quil stands up and leads me by the hand to the couch. He pulls me into his lap and then gently raises my chin up so that I'm looking at him. All I see is his sincerity and love for me.
"You are the woman I love. There will never be another. I love and respect you above all else. You and I both know that someday we'll find the right time to be together. I want, my wolf wants, to make love to you." His voice is deep with passion and emotion. "However, I think that we both deserve to have something that follows tradition, something that we've not had much of in our lives. We've both experienced the loss of parents. We've both had to become adults before our time. Goodness knows, we don't live normal lives. I want us to wait until we get married so that we share this experience as we should, as husband and wife." He gazes into my eyes waiting for me to respond.
I start to tear up at his words. I never knew how much I've wanted to hear exactly what he just said to me but now I do. He's offering me the most precious of all things, his heart. "I look forward to the day that I become yours." He pulls me into a deep kiss. Neither of us wanted to move and lose this special moment.
Later in the afternoon, we walk over to Sam and Emily's to see what the mail that he had mentioned held. The snow was still falling so it was easier to walk the distance, which wasn't too far. We both needed to get out and stretch our legs anyway.
Once we arrived, Sam grabbed the letters from his bedroom; we all took a seat in the living room. As I take the letters, I had to admit that I became very anxious, not knowing what they held. Quil put his arm around my shoulders as I opened the first one. It was from Officer Harding. He explained the current standing of the case against Jim Nelson. He had been charged with first degree murder which carried a minimum of 30 years jail time if found guilty. Since I was not present at the time of my mother's murder, I would only be needed as a character witness in the trial. I breathed a sigh of relief over the fact that I might not have to appear for that trial at all.
Feeling a bit more relaxed, I open the second letter and read it out loud. It was from a lawyer in Vegas who was handling mom's estate. Unknown to me, mom truly had been faithfully investing all of her spare money over the years. The letter explained that I was to inherit approximately half a million dollars between her investments and life insurance. My eyes were as big as saucers. I look up at Quil to see the same reaction on his face. Suddenly, I let the realization hit me. "Well, this answers one of the questions that I had!" Giddy with excitement, I place my hand over my mouth as I laugh.
"What question was that Tia?" Sam asked.
I look up at Quil as I reply "How Quil and I will afford living together!" Emily's eyebrows raise but Sam is not surprised.
Quil clears his throat "About that…Sam, could I talk to you outside?" Sam gets a puzzled look on his face as he stands indicating that now was as good a time as any. Quil goes out the door behind him, leaving Emily and me watching in wonder.
QPOV
I find myself to be very anxious as I walk out the door to the back porch. Sam is leaning against the rail watching me closely.
"I take it that you two have straightened everything out?" Sam asks with a protective gleam in his eyes.
Straightening my shoulders, I answer "Yeah, we have Sam…" I breathe again. "…we have talked about living together and getting married."
Sam crosses his arms across his chest. "Well Quil, I have to admit that I saw this coming with you two living up there on your own these past couple of months. However, you do know that if you ever do anything to hurt her, I will beat your ass, right? Tia is like my little sister and I expect her to be treated with the utmost respect and care."
"Does this mean that I have your blessing to ask her Sam?" My smile growing.
"You do, but you still have to talk to Uma and your grandfather first." Sam replies sharing the same smile.
"I'd already planned on doing just that. Hey, would you mind if I did that right now?"
"I wouldn't mind at all. In a hurry now, huh?" he laughs.
"Well yeah, I am… I'll be back in about an hour." I run up the hill to speak to Uma.
TPOV
Watching the guys walk out the door, Emily immediately came over to sit closer to me. Emily asked "So, I take it that things are better for you two?"
Blushing, I answer "Oh yeah, much better. We worked through our problems last night and this morning."
"I knew it was just a matter of talking this through like I said. Men can be so thick especially when their pride is involved. Luckily for us, we learn very quickly how to straighten our wolves out." The gleam in Emily's eyes spoke volumes. "It's a good thing that they have us around, you know? " I couldn't help but giggle at their words. I was one of the wolf girls and taking care of our men is what we do.
Pulling me up off of the couch by my hand, Emily walks into the kitchen to start the lunch preparations. I follow to lend a hand. Emily is always so organized and prepared amidst the chaos of the pack. I can only hope that one day I will be able to pull my own weight to help her.
"How are the wedding plans going Emily?" I ask chopping vegetables for a stew.
Emily, bent over the oven to take out some fresh baked bread, stands and gives me a wistful look. "Pretty good, since we are not having a church wedding in favor of a tribal celebration, the biggest decisions are when and what food to serve." Setting the bread down on the counter to cool, she adds smiling "You do know that I want you to help me with the preparations, don't you?"
I laugh "I'd love to! All you have to do is ask and I will do whatever needs to be done." I drop the chopped carrots into a bowl to start on the celery. "I want you to know that I appreciate the care that you have taken of me and Quil. We both appreciate everything."
She hugs me tightly "You are family to us. The pack loves you. I know you've been through a lot but I'm very excited that you will be staying on the Res with us."
"I only hope that someday, Quil and I have the kind of relationship that you all have." I add pensively.
She laughs, "Oh, I wouldn't wish that on you, or anyone else Tia. I love that man but our relationship is far from perfect. Sometimes Sam gets so wrapped up in his thoughts and responsiblities that I'm not sure he's even on the same planet as I am." Shaking her head, she grabs a bowl to start peeling potatoes.
"Speaking of Sam, have you told him your news Emily?"
"I just bought the test yesterday. Hey, the house is quiet….you think I should?" glancing towards the bathroom.
"YES! GO! I puff up my chest in a poor attempt to look muscular and imposing, pushing her out of the kitchen. "I'll run interference if the boys should walk in." This was so exciting!
Emily flies up the stairs to their bathroom to take the test. I keep working on lunch when a few minutes later, Sam comes through the front door. Knowing that he would go looking for Emily, I immediately start a conversation.
"Sam, where did Quil go?" I hand him a slice of the fresh bread with butter thinking that there's one definite way to distract a wolf. Feed him.
He sits down at the table with a pensive look on his face as he eats the bread. "He had an errand to run but he'll be back in a few. Where's Emily?"
I slice more bread and place the butter on the table hoping to buy a few more minutes of time. "She just ran upstairs to use the restroom. She'll be down shortly." I sit down beside him. "So…what do you think about me living with Quil?"
Sighing, he replies "Well, if we lived normal lives, I would say Hell no!, you are too young, but this not the case. The imprint bond once it has been accepted is something that is not easily overlooked or severed. The Big Brother in me doesn't want you to grow up so fast but I know that isn't realistic. I take it that you two had some serious heart to heart discussions yesterday?"
"We did. I will admit that I was thrown a bit by Quil mentioning marriage. I hadn't even considered it."
"Marriage is a big step T. I won't lie. However, I think you and Quil will be good for each other. He's very much in love with you." He blushes as we skirt the girl talk that we had had earlier that he doesn't like. "You do know that you don't have to get married right away. You could wait a year or two if you want."
"Yeah, we could wait, but how long is long enough? I guess I need to think about this some more." I sigh.
From upstairs, we hear a door open and Emily comes walking down the stairs with something hid behind her back. At that moment, the front door opens again, but it's Jake and Bella who walk in. It's almost time for Jake's patrol run and Bella would be staying with Emily.
"Hey, what's wrong? Are you ok Emily?" Sam's unsure of how to react to her at that moment. Jake sits down with Bella on his lap, looking at Emily.
"Oh, everything is just fine Sam." She walks over to his side to give him a kiss, but not sharing what she had hidden.
I had to hide my smile under my hands as I watch this special moment. I couldn't say a word to give her secret away. Jake and Bella are watching Emily closely.
"What are you up to, love?" Sam tries playfully to get Emily to share her secret. Fortunately, Sam allows her to have her moment.
"Close your eyes and hold your hands out." Sam does as he's told and Emily places the test stick in his hands.
"Ok, open." Sam looks down at it with some confusion. He is a guy after all. He's not sure what the blue lines mean. Jake shared his confusion but Bella gasped and then smiled.
"Sam, you are going to be a father." Emily looks at him with the love pouring from her. Sam jumps up and pulls her into a bear hug. Happiness fills his face as the reality of his impending fatherhood settles over him. His excitement was contagious and we all hugged Emily. The first pack baby was on its way!
"We need to get you to the doctor. I need to start plans for the nursery. When do we get the car seat?" and he continues asking questions hurriedly.
"Sam, we have several months yet. There will be time enough to make all of the preparations." She laughs at his antics.
Jake, Bella and I walk into the living room to give them a bit of privacy and sit in front of the fire in Sam's recliner. Jake and Bella take a moment to snuggle and I decide to look into the fire. My eyes lose focus as I reach inside the dancing flames. My dream has its normal beginning but this time, I see the pack standing in a field in front of a group of beautiful people. One of them in particular stood out in my mind…I come out of my dream. The others hadn't noticed that I was dreaming but I quickly got their attention when I said "Alice is coming soon."