Where She Belongs
Chapter 22
"Marriage? Are you out of your fucking mind?" I just look at him incredulously.
"Think about it, Edward? What's the one thing that the whole family has to protect?" Emmett asks me. "Put your thinking cap on. It's not that hard."
"Family," I whisper.
"Yes, family. If she marries you then she becomes family to all of us, even our father."
"He would never allow it," I say as I shake my head.
"HE doesn't have to find out. Don't tell anyone, and just do it. Then later you can introduce her to the family as your wife." Emmett seems adamant that he has indeed found the solution.
He does have a point. No harm is to ever come to our family. We protect our own or die trying.
"Bella will never agree to it," I say wincing at the thought of what she would even think by the suggestion.
"I thought you told her what to do," Emmett says with a big grin on his face as he realizes that Bella has me wrapped around her little finger now.
"You know it's not like that anymore."
"I know. I was just making sure that you knew," he says still grinning like an idiot.
"Then what the hell do you suggest I do?" I am totally exasperated now.
"You still need to marry her. It's for her own safety, so you just have to convince her," he says like it's going to be the easiest thing in the world.
"Fine, I'll go talk to her." I start to get up from my desk.
"Whoa, hold on a sec," Emmett says. "You can't just go in there like this."
"Like what?" I sigh.
"Without a plan?" He rolls his eyes at me. "Well, you need to romance her and get her a ring."
"This isn't exactly your average romance." What is with him? He knows the situation.
"But, you're still going to ask her to marry you. Don't you think every woman has dreamed or thought about the day that someone asked for their hand? Don't you think she deserves the same courtesy?"
"It's not like she's going to say yes," I admit.
"That's why I said you need to convince her." Emmett shakes his head at me. "At least if you romance her then she knows that you're capable of it."
"What do I do?" I have no idea how to go about this.
"What do people normally do when they go out? Take her to dinner, to a movie. Hell, Edward, you're not stupid. You can figure this out."
"Go buy a ring because you need to propose tonight," Emmett says to me as he raises an eyebrow.
"Tonight?! Why the fuck tonight?" This is all happening way too soon.
"Because you should probably marry her tomorrow. You need to do this fast. We all know what father is capable of, but do we even have an inkling as to what Aro or whomever it is that he's representing is capable of?"
This is fucked up!
"Will you stay here while I'm gone? I'm not sure how much I trust the morons to do their job now." I am still very much peeved that my men would leave their duties without directly talking to me.
"Yeah, of course I will. I also think your men are morons." Emmett's laughing, but I can tell there's a serious undertone there. He knows what is at stake here. Bella.
.~*~.
There is a hole burning in my pocket since I've returned from Tiffany's. I've said goodbye to Emmett a while ago.
I am so nervous. I feel like a five year old on their first day of school.
An internal battle is raging in my head. I want to back down, afraid of scaring Bella. However, I also know it is my duty to keep her safe. And, in all honesty, I must admit that the idea of her becoming my wife is somewhat appealing though I'm almost certain that she will not feel the same way.
I've got everything set up. I tried to add a romantic ambience to the night. I've had the cook prepare a special dinner. I've picked out a fine, aged bottle of wine. I've done everything that I can think of.
Time is ticking by slowly and coming too fast all at once. I want to get on with this night and do the right thing, and ask Bella to be my wife. I want to slow everything down to prolong it as well. I'm a walking contradiction.
Too nervous to face her just yet, I called her on the cell phone I had given her and asked her to be dressed for dinner and I would come and escort her at 9:00. I could hear her hesitate, I'm sure wondering about the late time, but she didn't comment.
I changed into my black pants and black button down shirt with the top few buttons undone. Then I changed again. Then I changed back. I am such a girl right now.
To pass the time I went and checked on everything again, probably driving my employees' nuts. But, hey, I pay them to let me drive them crazy.
It's time now and here I am standing nervously in front of my own door, trying to catch my breath before I knock. Should I knock? Or just go in? It is my room. Shit, I need to be a gentleman. Knock it is.
Bella opens the door, and the breath that I am letting out gets stuck in my throat. She's a knock out! She's wearing a blue halter style dress and black heels.
"I'm sorry," she says looking down and then turning around to go back into the room. "I'll change."
She thinks I don't like it. How can she think that?
"No, Bella, you look magnificent, absolutely stunning." I grab her hand and turn her around so she can see that I'm being honest.
"You might want to grab a sweater for later. It might get chilly," I warn her.
"Okay …. " She answers slightly confused. I know she thinks we're staying in, and we are, sort of.
She quickly returns with her sweater, and as I escort her out, I ask her if she is hungry.
"I'm famished," she admits. I feel a little guilty for making her wait so long to eat her dinner.
"Well, let's take care of that, shall we?" I smile at her and her return smile warms my heart.
We step out into the hallway and I lead us to the spiraling staircase to the attic. She stops and looks at me with her eyebrows raised. "Are we eating in the attic?"
"No. You'll see," I say as I gently pull her along.
She seems intrigued by the antiques as I lead her through the attic. We make it to the door to the roof. I take a deep breath and pray that everything goes well.
"I don't understand," she says looking at the door questioningly.
"Let me show you." I take her hand and open the door.
She looks around the roof in awe.
I have a table set up with candles and pink roses, which she once told me was her favorite. Our dinner is laid out on the table along with a chilling bottle of wine. All along the roof, as well as the ground below, is aglow with twinkling lights. Soft piano music is playing in the background.
I shift my weight from foot to foot as I wait for her to say something. She steps up to the edge of the balcony of the roof and looks down below at the magical lights in the garden.
She turns around and tilts her head in question. "What is all this?"
"Do you like it?"
"It's beautiful, but what's it for?" And, she really doesn't get it.
"It's for you," I say as I step closer to her and take her hand. I lead her over to the table and pull out the chair for her to sit down.
She looks down at the table and sees our meal of Margherita Pasta Salad and Baked Ziti. She lets out a little gasp.
"You remembered?"
"Yes, I remember a lot of things you tell me," I answer her. She had told me that when she was little, her mom would make a big Italian dinner for special occasions and that was two of her favorite dishes.
I take a seat across from her at our small table. I start to pour her a glass of wine and she stops me.
"I think I'll stick with the water for now," she says as she points to her water glass.
"Is there anything else you would like? I can have the cook bring up a different beverage?" I ask.
"No, no. The water is fine. I may have some wine later."
Dinner is a quiet affair with a little small talk and both of us savoring our delicious meal.
Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by Johann Sebastian Bach starts playing and Bella's smile is contagious. "You really do remember things?"
I did remember her favorite cantata. She has great musical tastes. Something we have in common.
"It's easy to remember with you. You fascinate me," I answer and her sweet, shy smile just does things to me. Lots of things. Some things which aren't appropriate at this time.
I take my napkin off my lap and stand up keeping my eyes on her. I smile as I walk over to her and put my hand out.
"May I have this dance?"
"I … I can't dance," she answers with a little frown on her face.
"Well, dancing is basically swaying." I smile at her and bend down to whisper in her ear. "Come on, come sway with me."
She lets out a small giggle, and takes my outstretched hand.
My right arm goes around her waist and I pull her close to me. My left hand intertwines with hers and I bring them up to rest against my chest. We begin slowly swaying to the music.
"See, you're dancing."
"Yes, I guess I am," she says as she looks up into my eyes.
I want nothing more than to kiss her at this moment. It's the perfect, kissable moment. So, I do. I lean down and touch my lips to hers. She kisses me back, but neither of us opens our mouth. It feels intimate enough with the closeness that we have now. She then lays her head on my shoulder and we finish our slow "swaying" dance.
I take her over by the balcony and we stare out at the twinkling garden below.
"This is all so beautiful, but I still don't understand why you are doing this for me," she says.
"Bella, I've come a long way, but I know I still have a way to go. I brought you here for all the wrong reasons, but I want you to stay for the right reasons." I take her hands and pull us to where we are facing each other.
"What are the right reasons?" She asks as she looks into my eyes almost as if she's got the power of truth on her side, which I guess she does. I hope that I will pass this test and she will see all the honesty that I'm about to unleash. What I am about to say to her is just not to convince her to marry me but to convince her that I care for her and that I've fallen in love with her.
Did I just say that? Did I seriously say that I have fallen in love with her? Well, shit. I can't tell her everything at once or she will be scared, or should I say more scared of what awaits for her.
"You have been through so much. I was an arrogant, selfish bastard that only cared for himself. Then I met you and I didn't know what to do. So, I did what I thought was expected of me. I messed up even more. I treated you as a second class citizen. I didn't ask for your likes or dislikes. I didn't ask about you. But then, you changed me. With a look, with your words, with your innocence. Suddenly I could no longer see a woman sent to pleasure me, but a sweet and innocent girl, lost and alone and in desperate need for someone to rescue her.
"I want to be that man Bella. I want to be the one that you want to talk to about your day. I want to be the one that you talk to about your classes, your hopes, your dreams. And most of all, I want to help some of those dreams come true."
"But, would you hurt me?" she asks rather nervously, as if that question in itself is going to get her into trouble.
"Not on purpose, never on purpose. I will never lay a hand on you again in anger. You have my word on that as well as Emmett and Jasper's because they would tear me a new one if I did. But, none of that matters because the thought of any harm coming to you would tear me apart no matter whose hands they were from."
"Do you think anybody wants to hurt me?" She asks and she shivers a little. I walk over to the table and grab her sweater and put it around her shoulders.
"Baby, I don't know. There are some really bad men out there and I don't know what they're plans are but I want to be honest with you. I think some of those plans involving getting you back to Aro somehow and them from him to someone else."
The tears start pouring down her cheeks.
"I … I …I don't want to leave here," she says as she leans over and cries into my chest.
"I don't want you to leaver either." I wrap my arms around her and pull her close.
"Sweetheart," I say as I look down and gently hold her chin for her watery eyes to look up into mine. "I never want you to leave. I want you to stay here with me. I want to keep you safe. I want to be the reason you get up in the morning and I'd love to hold you at night when you go to sleep. You have become my number one priority. I promise I will not let any harm come to you under my watch. And Bella, I would like my watch to be a mighty long time. Months, years, decades, watching grandchildren going to the bus stop on their first day of school."
"What are you saying, Edward? I don't understand any of this."
"I'm saying, I want to keep you safe, I want you out of harm's way, and I want to see you succeed in whatever it is you want to do in life. I want to earn your trust and love. I owe so much to you because you have taught me so much, starting with how to love."
I know this is not your standard proposal and we are not your standard "in love" couple, but it's now or never and I just hope that I can convince her to say yes.
I reach into my pants pocket and pull out the blue box. She's staring at me, totally confused.
"Look, baby, I know this is a shock to you and I want you to know that I have no expectations from you. I just want to get to know you even more. Because I love what I know. I love all the things about you that you have given me the honor to know.
"I offer this ring to you for the love I feel, for the love we could have, for the wonderful woman that I have come to know. No matter what is going on outside of these walls, please know that I vow to protect you and keep you safe.
"Please accept this ring, and become my wife." I am looking anxiously into her eyes trying to get a read on anything that she is feeling.
After staring at the ground for some time, she finally looks up and into my eyes and says "I'll take that drink now."