Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, Stephanie Meyers does. I do own this plot and storyline. I own my own original characters and a sweet little Chromebook I just love.
All publicly recognizable characters, settings, products, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Author's Note: I want to thank everyone for the wonderful reviews and messages. I love that y'all are enjoying the story.
Chapter 26: One the Road
"When within yourself you find the road, the right road will open." ― Dejan Stojanovic
EPOV
"LET'S BLOW THIS POPSICLE STAND," Emmett belts out.
I shake my head at my brother as I place the last bag in the back of my mother's Suburban, and close it up. For this leg of the trip, Emmett is riding with my parents and myself. Evidently, my brother is reverting back to his middle school self, and even his wife can't be near him for any given length of time.
Jasper, Alice and Rose are already on their way to Ben and Angela's, where we'll meet up with them. They were the lucky ones to get to take the new truck that Bella purchased since they're hauling the supplies we purchased for the horse, minus the food and hay.
I take a deep breath and sigh. The 2013, Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD LTZ with four wheel drive in metallic blue.
Yeah. Nice truck indeed.
We have all been eyeing it for the past couple of weeks since Jasper and my father picked it up from the dealership.
"Emmett," my father chides, "Son, you've already pissed your wife off this morning, and now you're stressing your mother out. Chill out before I put you on a plane to Texas."
"Sorry, I just want to get out of this city. I'll behave," he replies remorsefully, ducking his head.
"Come on, guys. We need to get going if we're going to be at Ben and Angela's place before noon. I don't want them to have to load their truck all by themselves," I request, trying to keep us on time.
"That's it," my mother states, walking out of the house and locking the door. "We just need to drop the keys off to the property manager on our way out, and pick up a bag of ice for the cooler."
An hour later, we finally make it to the Cheney's apartment. They have everything loaded already and Jasper is closing the truck bed cover that my father purchased to help secure their possessions. Since we would be stopping a lot, and staying in hotels, he thinks that it would be safer. Emmett and I jump out to help him finish securing it.
"Ok, does everyone have their maps just in case we get separated? Just follow me and the first stop is our hotel in Woodland," Jasper tells us all as Angela and Ben place the last of their bags inside their truck. "It's only a little over two hours away."
Two and a half hours later, all three vehicles pull into the Lewis River Inn. My father goes to check us in. We're sharing three rooms, and I get to bunk with my parents. He gets Ben and Angela their own room, hoping to make it more comfortable for them, since we're still practically strangers.
Once we settle into our respective rooms, we head to the restaurant for dinner. Everyone is pretty tired from all the packing and loading earlier, so we only take a short walk around the lake before heading back to the inn to relax and sleep. Jasper wants to be at the dealership to pick up the trailer as soon as they open in the morning, so we all decide to meet downstairs at eight for the complimentary continental breakfast.
The next morning, everyone is already downstairs waiting for my parents and me. They pull three tables together so we can all sit together. For a free continental breakfast, they sure go all out. There are eggs, bacon, Danishes, cereal, juice, milk and coffee. There is even a Belgium Waffle station, which Emmett is getting a kick out of.
"Emmett, if you don't sit your ass down and start eating this shit, you're going to be the one riding in the horse trailer," Rose exclaims as she smacks him.
"But Babe, this thing is so cool! I want one," he whines, looking over to me. "Edward can we get one of these for the ranch?"
"Emmett, just eat and we'll discuss this fascination you have with waffles later," I retort back. I still need more coffee so that I can properly deal with him this morning.
"Fine you bunch of grumps, I'll enjoy my waffles while you eat rubber eggs," he shoots back with a pout.
"Big baby," Jasper whispers as we all laugh at his put out face.
Once everyone is ready to go, we check out and load up, following Jasper to the trailer place. It's just a few miles from the inn and we make it there right when they open the gate.
Jasper greets the man, Steve, and they head inside as the rest of us hang around the truck. Soon, Jasper is back and tells us to just chill for a few minutes while he and Steve gets everything ready.
As Jasper and Steve start to hook the trailer to the truck, Alice begins shaking her head and walks their way, getting my dad's attention. "What's wrong, Sweetheart?"
"That hitch isn't going to work," she contests with frustration lacing her voice.
"Well then, let's fix the problem, what do we need to do?" he asks as they both walk toward the truck. "Hold up, Jasper!" he says, raising his voice to get Jasper's attention.
"What, Dad?" Jasper responds, clearly confused as to why he's being stopped.
"That hitch isn't going to work," Alice tells them. "We need to get a drop receiver. The trailer has to be level. If you use this, the horse will lose his balance and fall. Plus, it will cause the trailer to sway."
"Steve, you know where we can get a drop receiver around here?" Jasper asks the guy.
"Not around here. Where you headed?" the guy questions Jasper.
"Klamath Falls tonight; Reno tomorrow," Jasper returns.
"I would say your best bet is going to be O'Reilly's in Vancouver. It's on your way. You're gonna need a six inch drop to level this thing out," he replies.
"That'll work. You want to load everything in the trailer now Alice, or wait?" Jasper asks his wife.
"We can wait," she responds, then turns to the guy hooking up the trailer. "Steve, do you have an extra spare tire besides the one that comes with the trailer?"
"Yeah, we sell extras. How far you traveling?" he responds, looking at Jasper.
"Texas," she firmly rebuts. I can tell she is getting irritated due to the fact that Steve is practically ignoring her and I believe he can, too. "I'd like to purchase at least one more, please."
"Good idea, Babe," Jasper states, walking over to her. I guess he's now realizing that she is fixing to lose her temper.
"Here, Alice, just charge it on here," my dad agrees, handing her the credit card Bella sent him.
After Alice pays for the spare and Jasper loads it in the trailer, we find ourselves traveling the twenty minutes to Vancouver. After purchasing and installing the receiver on the hitch, we help Alice load all the supplies that she has into the trailer's tack room. Besides the tack room having a lock on it, she wants it organized and ready for the horse. We then fuel up all the trucks and head over to Klamath Falls, where we'll stay for the night. Our only stop is in Eugene to eat lunch.
Six hours later, we pull into the Holiday Inn Express and I'm about ready to pull my hair out. As my father is getting out to go check in, I stop him. "Hey Dad, can you ask if there's a Verizon store around here?"
"Sure, Son. Something wrong with your phone?" he questions with concern.
"No, I want to check on getting an iPad. It will help me not inflict any pain on your oldest son during the rest of this trip. If I don't have a distraction, he may just be riding with the horse the rest of the way," is my snarky response. He just walks away shaking his head, his shoulders in movement with his chuckle, while I climb in Bella's truck with Jasper and Alice.
"You want to ride with us tomorrow?" Alice asks with concern as I slam the door.
"Yeah, probably. Dad is asking the front desk clerk where the nearest Verizon store is at. I want to get an iPad. That way I can watch movies or look up recipes. It will be easier to use than my phone," I answer in response.
"Oh, yeah. I've been wanting one, too. Can we add one to our plan, Jasper?" she turns to ask my brother.
"Let's check it out first, ok?" he counters.
"Sure," she acquiesces.
Soon after, my dad comes back with five key cards, handing them out. "We all get our own rooms tonight. Edward, he said there is a store a half a mile up the road. After we settle in, you can go get what you need."
"Thanks," I acknowledge, taking my key card.
"Hey, Edward. We'll meet you back at the Suburban in twenty," Jasper calls out as they head to their room.
"Why don't we all go? There's a steakhouse further down the road. We can eat dinner afterwards?" my dad calls back to us. We all nod in agreement and get settled quickly into our rooms.
Our simple search for an iPad turned into a quest of epic proportions. After driving to two different stores, and neither one having iPads in stock, we decide that we would have to wait until we get to Reno where there is an Apple store.
When we pull up to the steakhouse, there are no cars in the parking lot. Rose jumps out to go read the hours and discovers it's closed on Mondays.
"This day is just not going our way. Let's just go to that little pizza place we passed on the way here and be done with it. The hotel has an indoor pool and I'm going to utilize it when we get back," my mother asserts, clearly frustrated.
So that is what we do. We quickly eat pizza and then go back to the hotel and hang out in the pool for a few hours.
I am physically exhausted when I finally make it to bed, but I can't fall asleep. While I'm enjoying spending time with my family on this trip, being in a vehicle for such a long period has my mind flying in a thousand directions at once. Not only am I still trying to wrap my mind around the Denali scandal, I'm still reeling from the feelings I'm discovering that I have for Bella. I roll over, tucking the sheets under my arm and finally fall asleep to the image of beautiful, soulful chocolate eyes.
I've only been awake a few minutes when Emmett starts banging on my door, yelling about being hungry. Next, I hear him banging on the door next to me. Big mistake. That is when, I'm pretty sure, the entire hotel hears my mother screech, "Emmett Samuel Cullen! Get your ass in this room," then their door slams shut.
Oh shit, I think to myself, she just full named him.
Shortly after, I'm dressed and packing up my duffle bag when I hear a knock on the door. I go to open it and everyone rushes in, except my parents and Emmett.
Rose flops on the bed with a sigh, "I told him he needs to chill out and grow up; that he's making this trip miserable. But he didn't listen, did he? No, he had to act like an ass and piss of Esme. Stupid dope."
Ben and Angela probably think we're some crazy family and sorry that they ever got mixed up with us. "Sorry guys, we aren't all like this," I apologize, looking over at Ben and Angela. "Emmett just pushes until he pushes too far," I explain to them.
"No problem. He isn't bothering us. Actually he reminds me of our son. Cole loved to play practical jokes on us all the time," Angela responds, wiping a tear from her cheek but is smiling.
"Well, he sounds awesome," Rose states, smiling at the couple. "So Jasper, how long until we're in Reno?"
"About five hours," he answers, never looking up from the magazine he's reading.
"And we have a day and a half there, right?" she asks, kicking his shoe to get his complete attention.
"Yep, we leave Reno Thursday morning to go pick up the horse. Once we check into Harrah's in Reno, Edward and Alice will hit up the Apple store and we can snag lunch after that. From there, I guess we still have to decide what everyone wants to do tomorrow," he responds.
We all carry our bags down to load in the trucks and then go eat. I send a text to my dad, letting him know where we'll be. The hotel provides a hot continental breakfast in the mornings and it has everything you could possibly imagine.
About twenty minutes after we all sit down, my parents and Emmett arrive. "Sorry guys. I didn't mean to make the trip crappy. I'll chill out so that we can all have fun," Emmett apologizes dejectedly.
"It's already a long and stressful trip Emmett. We're still recovering from the aftermath of that evil, revolting family. It's you acting annoying that we're tired of. Chill out and everything will be alright," I clarify to my brother.
My parents and Emmett fix their plates as Jasper and I take their bags to the truck. "I say we change it up. Why don't we guys all ride together in one truck and let the girls ride together in the other?" Jasper remarks.
"There's three vehicles," I remind him.
"Dad can ride with Ben in his truck so Angela can ride with the girls and get to know them better. They're going to be living with us soon," Jasper proposes.
"I think it's a good idea, but let's run it by the others, first. Who do you think wouldn't mind drive among the girls?" I ask Jasper, knowing my mother doesn't like driving long distances.
After a brief discussion with everyone, they all love the idea and decide that Rose will drive to Reno. Alice is excited about the set up and is happy with the opportunity to get to know Angela better.
I have my head leaned back against the front passenger seat, just listening to the radio when Emmett breaks the silence.
"So, you have feelings for Bella? What are you going to do about them?" he asks. His tone is serious and full of concern.
"I'm going to wait and let it play out. If it's meant to be, then it'll happen. Like mom said, there is no reason for me to stress out about it," I reply dryly.
"She is pretty amazing, and nothing like the she-devil," he comments, sticking his head between the two front seats. "If y'all start dating, not only will you be sleeping with the boss but an older woman."
"Sheesh, Emmett, really? Could you be anymore crude?" Jasper asks, astounded. "And when did you start saying y'all? Ya gonna start talkin' like a country boy now?"
"Don't worry, I'll teach you the Texas lingo so that you don't stick out like city folks," he snaps back. "Don't want my boys to embarrass me. I gotta introduce you to the lay of the land."
"I'm fixin' to introduce you to the way of the asphalt if you don't shut up," Jasper snarks back. "I wonder how long it would take you to walk to Texas?"
Just as Emmett is about to open his mouth, Jasper slams on the breaks with a "What the fuck!" He pulls over quickly to the side of the road. He doesn't even say anything as he jumps out of the truck. Emmett and I turn to look behind us and see the Suburban facing sideways in the middle of the road. We both jump out and run back as the girls climb out; visibly shaking.
Thank God there isn't any oncoming traffic, but Emmett and I push it out of the middle of the road and off to the side.
"Are you ok?" Jasper asks Rose with alarm, as he pulls Alice to him.
"Yeah," she answers, rattled as Emmett wraps her in a hug. "That really could have ended badly."
I go over to my mother and Angela just as my father and Ben pull up, rushing over to make sure everyone is ok.
"She did a hell of a job controlling that thing. I surely would have lost control," my mother comments, praising Rose.
I walk around to see the tire blown out and most of the rear quarter panel damaged from the shredded rubber. We had new tires put on just before leaving Seattle so I'm concerned she had hit something.
"Did you hit anything Rose or did it just blow?" I ask, worried about the other tires as well.
"No, I just felt it pull and pop. I tried to slow down but it had already blown," she responds, still upset.
"Well then, we need to get the other tires checked. These are new tires and shouldn't have blown out like this," I say, pissed that my family could have been hurt. "Let's get the spare on quickly and find the closest tire place. If we have to have them all replaced, we will. I'll drive it and the girls can split up and ride in the trucks."
As Emmett and I change the tire, Jasper finds the closest repair shop and plugs the information into his phone.
My father is just shaking his head at the damage to the Suburban. "Do you think it will make it to Reno on the spare?"
"I don't see why not, as long as none of the others blow." Emmett answers. "What are you thinking, Dad?"
"It's old and there is no way we're driving it all the way to Texas with this amount of damage. Maybe I should just trade it in and get your mother something newer and smaller. I'm worried we'll have more problems with it along the way."
Dad runs his hand through his hair, trying to make sense of this latest source of frustration. "I'm sure there's a dealership in Reno that will have something in stock that she'll be happy with," he explains, walking over to Jasper and my mother as we finish with the tire.
"I'll ride with you. That way Rose can ride with Angela and Ben and the others can ride with Jasper, no one will be cramped," Emmett concludes.
By the squeal coming from my mother, I assume that she is happy with getting a new car.
By the time we're back on the road, I'm tired and feeling gritty as we drive the rest of the way, listening to the music on a low volume.
Four hours later, we finally pull into Harrah's Hotel and Casino in Reno. After dropping my parents off at the front, Jasper asks us to follow him over to the self-parking.
"I think if we unload everything we don't need into the extra stall of the horse trailer, it'll be safe. The trailer has locks and there is lots of security here," Jasper rationalizes as he points out several security cameras throughout the parking area.
We nod in agreement and begin to move everything except our overnight bags and suitcases that we'll be taking to our rooms over to the trailer and Alice locks it up once we finish.
We meet back up with my parents in the hotel and find the suites we'll all share and decide to eat. "There's a nice cafe downstairs that isn't crowded," my mother suggests. We collectively mumble our agreement and it's easy to see that the events of this trip are quickly taking a toll on us.
While eating, we plan out what else we need to do. "I think we should drop Edward and Alice off at the Apple store and then go to the dealership. That could potentially take a while," Rose suggests looking over to where Alice and I are seated. "When you're done, just call to find out where we are and then you guys can take a cab to meet us there."
"Sounds like a plan, Sweetheart," my father agrees.
"Well, we'll meet you all for dinner, then. I want to have new tires put on the truck and Ang wants to go buy some jeans," Ben states, glancing over at his wife. "She doesn't have much to wear beside scrubs," he laughs out, as she slaps at his shoulder playfully.
An hour later, I'm standing in the Apple store with Alice while the sales lady explains the differences in the various iPads. Alice and I just look at each other totally confused.
"Ok, we have no clue what you're talking about, so I will make it simple," Alice finally cuts her off. "I want a white iPad and he wants a black iPad. We both need it to connect with our cellular service and Wi-Fi, along with lots of storage space. We need car chargers and cases, too. Oh, and those protective glass cover thingys."
I bust out laughing at the look the lady is giving Alice. "Sorry," I apologize.
"No problem; just give me your cellular carriers and phone numbers and I will add them to your plans. You can go ahead and pick out your accessories while I set these up," she rattles out.
A thousand dollars and an hour later, Alice and I are getting in a cab. She tells the driver the name of the Chevrolet dealership that Jasper gave her.
"Jasper is going to kill me for spending this much money," she whines. "He wants to save what we can until we get settled in Texas since we still have to buy a vehicle."
"Damn Alice; why didn't you tell me? I would have put it on my card," I admonish her.
"Because it's not your responsibility to take care of us, Edward. It'll be ok," she replies. "We just had so many loans with the business that we didn't see a very big profit from the sale. We paid off all of our bills and my student loans, wanting to make a fresh start in Texas."
I'm just shaking my head as we pull into the dealership. Emmett runs up to the cab as I pay the driver.
"Hey man, what's up?" I ask, concerned that he looks so flustered.
"Mom found something she likes, but they don't have enough to pay cash like they want and apparently a bank wire will take two days. I would help, but Rose and I only have our debit cards," he says, clearly frustrated while leading us into the building.
"Well, do they take credit cards?" I ask following him.
"Yeah, but dad's limit isn't that high," he responds and I nod my head in understanding.
I walk in the small office and sit next to my father, "What's going on?"
"Um, I want to pay in full, but they're saying a bank wire will take a few days to process and I only have a ten thousand dollar limit on my credit card. I didn't want to finance it but it looks like we may have to," he explains, clearly disappointed.
"Just charge it on my card and we can work it out later. I just paid it off when I sold the restaurant," I tell him, pulling out my credit card trying to hand it to him.
"Son, no. I can't ask you to do that," he tries to refuse.
"Good, then it's settled. You didn't ask, I'm offering," I repute, still shoving the card towards him. "You and mom would do it for me. Where is she by the way?"
"Looking at cheaper cars with Rose and Jasper," he states as, I assume, the finance manager walks in.
"Mr. Cullen, they tell me two days is the quickest they can process a wire," he starts as I cut him off.
"Just charge it on here," I demand, thrusting my card at him since my father refused to take it.
"And you are?" he asks snarky.
"Their son," I snark right back, not liking the tone that he's taking with me. "How long until you can have the papers signed and the car my mother wants ready, so we can get on with our day?"
"An hour tops," he replies while quickly leaving the office with my card.
"Manners, Edward," my father chides. "Even if he doesn't deserve them."
Forty-five minutes later, we both walk towards the others and my father hands my mother the keys to her new 2013 Chevrolet Tahoe.
"How?" is all she asks.
His reply is simple, "Edward."
She turns to me with tears in her eyes, giving me a tight hug and whispers, "Thank you, Sweetheart."
"Come on, Mom, show us how this thing rides," I tell her, making her laugh.
I sit in the front seat, playing with the navigation and sound system, while she drives around Reno. Everyone else is just talking and carrying on in the back. She reaches over and pats my hand getting my attention. "Love you," she whispers.
"Love you, too, Mom," I whisper back, smiling at her.
"Esme, we need to get you some of those Jackie-O sunglasses," Rose exclaims, interrupting our moment.
Before my mother can reply, we hear Jasper's raised voice, "Really Alice? Are you fucking nuts?"
I look back to see tears in Alice's eyes. I think the stress of everything has finally gotten to him because he rarely raises his voice. I've never heard him talk to Alice like that. Before I can say anything, Emmett jumps in.
"Whoa man, calm down," he abolishes Jasper's rant. "There ain't nothing worth getting that upset at her about."
"Sorry, Alice. I didn't mean to raise my voice at you. I guess I just didn't realize that those things were so expensive," he apologizes.
Rose cuts in, figuring out that Jasper is upset about the iPad purchase, "They are expensive, but a very good investment. You can do so many things with them. There are apps for just about anything. Jasper you can even find an app that will help you get project plans and compare prices on materials."
It takes a while, but Alice finally gets her spirit back before we meet up with Ben and Angela for dinner. Without much discussion, we decide to just eat at the hotel. Everyone is tired of driving and being in a car.
After dinner, the girls go to the pool while us guys play a little in the casino. I sit down at a slot machine next to my dad, not really paying attention to what I'm doing, when the machine starts making a loud noise.
As I look to see what the problem is, my father exclaims. "Holy shit, Son! You just won!"
"Won what?" I ask, as two casino personnel walk up to the machine.
"The jackpot," a lady that works for the casino says, laughing at my shocked face, I'm sure.
"What's the jackpot?" my dad asks, because apparently I forgot how to speak.
"Eighty-two thousand dollars," she states with a wave of her hand. "It's small in comparison."
"Small? Really? I don't think it's small," I state, looking at her like she is crazy.
After the technician verified that I did, indeed, win and then verified the amount of my prize, he took down my information. I had the casino remove the taxes I had to pay due to winning over eleven-hundred dollars from my reward and cut me a check for the remainder. By the time I was through, all the guys were waiting to congratulate me. We decide to go get the girls and head to the room.
As walked into the pool area, Emmett blurted out, "Edward won!"
"Edward won what?" my mother asks.
"You a new car," I tell her, as the guys laugh, catching on.
"What are you talking about? I just got a new car," confusion coloring her tone.
"And it didn't cost a dime," I dispute.
"Edward, what are you talking about? You paid a lot of money for that car and as soon as we get to Texas, I'm paying you back," she states, getting upset.
My father steps in before we continue egging her on, "Sweetheart, what I think our clever son is trying to tell you is, 'Happy early Mother's Day'. He just won a jackpot on the slots."
"Oh my, Edward! You can't buy me a car. That's your money," she says, shaking her head.
"Mom, I won more than enough. Don't worry about it, ok? It was meant to be," I tell her, wrapping her in a hug. "Now, I know we're all tired and I need a shower. So, let's hit the sack. We can play more tomorrow."
We all sleep in the next morning, even Alice, who is usually up before the crack of dawn. We meet up in the lobby and decide to eat breakfast at Hash House, which is located in the hotel. While eating, we try to agree on what to do for the day. Alice is on the phone, confirming that we'll be at the ranch in Fallon before noon tomorrow to pick up the horse, while Rose is showing Jasper how to find a feed store in Fallon with their new iPad.
I guess he just needed time to rest and calm down.
"Ooh, snowmobiles," Emmett says excitedly, breaking me out of my musings. "Come on, Mom, it will be so much fun."
"Well, if we're going to do that, then I'm going to need to find my boots and then pick up a pair of real shoes," she states, showing us her feet, which contain heels, as we all laugh. "I don't think that these will work."
"Hold on," Jasper tells her, turning to Rose. "Show me that map finder thing again?"
We all laugh as Alice finishes her call and turns to him with a pout stating, "I thought that I was in trouble for buying a 'toy'. Here you are all over it and I haven't gotten to use it once."
"But look, Babe, it knows where we're automatically and then you just type in shoes and it finds shoe stores," he tells her, sounding like an excited five year old.
She just shakes her head at him then turns to my dad, "I have to get both an updated CVI health certificate and Coggins for the horse. Dan said he has a vet that can meet us at one o'clock tomorrow at his ranch. Can you let Bella know? The registration is in her name, but I need the vet papers to show me as the one transporting him."
"Sure, Sweetheart. We'll call her once we get in the truck," he replies to her.
As soon as we're through eating, Jasper drives us all in my mother's new SUV to the nearest outlet mall. I'm personally excited about the Converse store. As we drove, my father calls Bella on speaker.
"Hello," she answers, a little out of breath.
"Bella? Are you alright?" he asks concerned.
"Yeah, just chasin' a horse. What can I do for you, Carlisle? How's the trip so far?" she inquires.
"Honestly, it has been hell. One hell of an adventure, that's for sure. We're actually on the way to the outlet mall in Reno right now for shoes so that we can all go snowmobiling," he tells her, laughing a little. "Yesterday, we had a blowout that caused damage to the Suburban so we bought Esme a new Tahoe. Anyway, the true reason for this call is because Alice needs to discuss something with you."
"Wait, did you say you were going to the outlet mall in Reno?" she asks, her voice filling with excitement.
"Yes, Dear. We're on our way there now," he replies.
"Please, please, please go to the Converse store for me. I will text whoever a list and just use the company card I sent you to pay for everything," she begs, as the entire car turns to look at me with smirks on their faces.
Before I could respond, Emmett jumps in, "Well, it just so happens that Converse's number one fan is here with us and he's a little too excited to go to that store. I'm sure that he wouldn't mind shopping for you, also."
"Just text Edward what you want and he'll buy out the rest of the store," Rose adds laughing.
"Hey, quit it. Those have gotta be the most comfortable shoes, ever. Cassie and me both love 'em," she retorts. "Now Alice, what's up?"
"Um, I talked to Dan this morning and he said Smoke needs an updated CVI health certificate and Coggins. His registration is being transferred to the ranch, but since I'm the transporter, I need the health paperwork showing my name on them. What do you suggest?"
"I'll take care of it. Jess will fax Dan a letter of authorization for you to transport and proof of your employment with the ranch. He'll have it waitin' for you, along with the updated health papers. You'd think as much as I paid for him that he could cover thirty dollars for a CVI," she snips out. "Go enjoy y'all's day and send me pics. Edward you'll have a long text in a minute."
"Bye, Dear, talk to you soon," my father says as he ends the call.
"You know," Angela remarks quietly, teasingly. "It's really cool that you both like the same shoes."
"Not you, too," I whine to her. "Don't listen to them. They don't know what they're talking about."
"I don't have to listen to them. Your entire face lit up when you heard her voice," she tells me with a smirk. "I think I'm really going to like her. She reminds me of Rose and Alice."
"Ok, Mom. Skechers or Nike?" Jasper asks, interrupting the conversation.
"Whichever. They're all sneakers right?" she asks confused.
"Yeah, Honey," my dad laughs out. "Just take her to the Skechers store, while Edward and I go to Converse. I want to see what all the hype is about these shoes."
As we walk into the store, my phone pings with an incoming text, "Holy shit! She's obsessed."
"Let me see what she wants, maybe I can help," my dad states, grabbing my phone.
After reading the text, he shakes his head and walks up to one of the sales ladies. He hands her my phone, asking, "Do you understand this?"
"Yes, Sir. Would you like for me to get these for you?" she chirps out, sounding like Alice on caffeine.
"I would greatly appreciate that, Sweetheart. You'd be saving me so much time," he tells her, handing her Bella's credit card.
"Come on, old man. Let's get us some shoes," I say, dragging him away from the sunglass display to the men's section. After getting three pairs for myself and one for dad, we head up to the counter to check out.
As I'm checking out, they ring up Bella's order and I think my dad is going to have a heart attack. "Miss? Are you sure this is right? I mean it can't possibly be five hundred and sixty dollars for a few pairs of shoes, right?"
"Sir, that's for ten pairs of shoes. There is five ladies and five children's items on the list," she states, looking at him like he's crazy.
"Dad, it's alright. She got Cassie some, too," I say gently, like talking to a small child.
Once he signs the receipts, she hands him two large bags. He just shakes his head and walks out the door to meet up with the others. We load our bags into the SUV as my mother changes into her new sneakers, as she calls them, raving at how comfortable they are.
"You know, Mom, you won't be wearing heels and slacks on the ranch. You'll need a rugged wardrobe. When we get to Texas, we'll go shopping for some practical clothes," I say, urging her to agree.
"We'll do that," she responds, nodding her head. "Now, let's go have some fun in the snow."
"We could have some fun, dear," my father whispers loudly to my mother. "Just you in some cowboy boots, my sexy little cowgirl."
"Really, Dad?" Jasper whines. "Therapy is not cheap and I'm going to need a lot of it to get that picture outta my head."
"Just get your ass in the truck, Son," my father laughs at our disgusted faces.
Once we're loaded up, Jasper directs us to Eagle Ridge for our tour. I jump out before anyone else can and walk inside to the counter. "Cullen group, right?" the man asks, looking up from the computer.
"Yes sir, but I want to see if I could change our tour to the all-day one and pay for it before the rest of my party comes in?" I ask in a rush.
"Um, yeah sure man. Just give me your credit card to hold your spots and then once we're back I will take care of it. Let's get everyone fitted for gear and waivers signed," he agrees.
When we were about an hour into the trail, Jasper asks our tour guide how much longer until we turn around.
"We'll be to the play area in about twenty minutes. Then we'll go up the trail a little further to another play area before heading back down," he explains. "It's an all day tour, so approximately four hours total."
"But we were only scheduled for the two hour tour," Jasper states in a panic.
"Nope, you're scheduled for an all day tour, took care of the request myself," he laughs out.
Jasper just turns to me with a small frown shaking his head, "Thanks, Edward." I wonder what that is about.
"Yeah, thanks Edward," the others echo, although they sound excited.
We play and ride the trails for the next three and half hours. Everyone is wearing smiles and seems to be enjoying the tour. By the time we make it back to the office, we are all freezing and hungry. I sign the receipt and jump in the car hearing the others arguing.
"What's going on?" I ask loudly as everyone is talking over each other.
"JASPER THOMAS CULLEN, YOU JACKASS! I SWEAR, BOY," my mother wails. "If I could reach back there I would smack you."
Oh shit, I think to myself. She just full named him, which is rare for Jasper.
"Whoa, guys," I interrupt, trying to get control. "What the hell happened?"
"Your dufus brothers are being stupid, disrespectful and unappreciative," Rose states with venom lacing her tone. "You spiteful, catty, swinish twits," she finishes, glaring at the both of them.
"Ok, now does someone want to fill me in? I still have no idea what is wrong," I ask, getting frustrated.
"Nothing, just something stupid," Jasper replies quickly. A little too quickly.
"I don't think so. Not gonna work on me. Out with it," I snip out getting pissed.
"Fine. I said I wanted to eat at a buffet because more than likely you'd end up paying anyway. Dad said that I was being rude and ungrateful, which I agree; I was.
"I'm sorry for the comment. It was stupid, but I didn't mean anything resentful by it. Jasper mentioned that you were flaunting the fact that you had money now and that isn't the brother he knew. His remark about you acting superior to us as a result of the money is what caused the uproar," Emmett spit out. I could tell he was embarrassed and angry. Angry at who? I'm not sure.
"Really, guys. Jasper you know me better than that. I would never do anything purposefully to make you feel inferior. I just don't want any of you putting yourself in a bind financially on this trip," I vehemently state. I take a deep breath in order to gather my thoughts and calm down a bit.
"You have to look at it from my point of view. I fucked up and you're all suffering as a result of it. You've had to sell your business, quit your jobs and move from everything you've built. All because I fucked up. I'm sorry that I just want to make it easier on all of you. I really didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."
I turn around in the front seat as my mother starts the car and drives off. The silence is stifling. I really don't mean to flaunt anything or want to make them feel despondent. I'm only trying to lessen the burden on them. A burden that I brought onto all of us. I just want everyone to have fun and enjoy themselves.
I must have gotten lost in my thoughts because the next thing I know, we're pulling into the hotel. I didn't even wait for everyone else. I lost my appetite anyways, so I head back to the suite I'm sharing with my parents.
I decide that a shower and bed are in order. I don't think I've ever been this upset with Jasper. He's my brother, my best friend. He knows me better than anyone else.
It's going to be a long, miserable trip to Texas.
After my shower, I repack my duffle with clean clothes; pulling out the ones I will wear tomorrow. I decide to set up my iPad and learn how to use it for the rest of the night. I fall asleep playing games with the headphones still on. I didn't even hear my parents come in and go to bed.
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