Disclaimer: The timing with Renee is a bit off, so sorry if this bothers you. And as I'm sure you all know by now, neither Eclipse nor Breaking Dawn are mine. Carlisle also quotes Ecclesiastes (also not mine).
Chapter Forty Six: There is a TimeCarlisle:
"What did you do?" Billy demanded, his voice strained with rage and tears. "What did you say to him, Cullen? Where's my boy?"
"I'm sorry, I don't know what you're talking about," I replied carefully.
"Don't play innocent with me," Billy growled. "The invitation. The letter. What did you say?"
"I didn't send an invitation," I fought to keep the surprise out of my tone as I looked around at the shocked, confused faces of my family to see if any of them knew what was going on here. I held the phone away from my mouth, a hand over the mouthpiece, and hissed at Alice;
"When did you write those?"
"Just this morning. Jake wasn't invited - I wrote one for him, but Bella made me throw it out. No werewolves, she insisted," Alice explained, just as surprised as I was.
"And you asked me to throw it out," Edward murmured. "I sent it."
"I'm still talking to you!" Billy roared.
"Of course," I replied, hurriedly returning the mouthpiece to my lips for a moment. "Just discussing the matter. One moment please."
"Your call is important to us," Rosalie teased in a nasal voice, mimicking the automated machine. "You have EIGHT calls ahead of you. Please stay on the line."
"Rose!" Esme scolded.
"More importantly - Edward!" Alice snapped. "How could you?"
"I'm sorry," Edward groaned, raking a hand through his hair. "I just think he should have the choice. I wrote a separate note to explain myself."
Emmett snorted.
"What'd ya write? Dear Mutt: sorry I stole your girlfriend - here, come watch us become joined in holy matrimony for ever and ever. Love, Edward. Aka Captain Sparkly."
"No," Edward muttered. "I thanked him."
"I think it was sweet of you, honey," Esme soothed.
"Doesn't solve the problem that he's gone," Jasper pointed out. He clenched his jaw, his expression twisting slightly.
"Here comes Bella," he announced. "I think she knows."
.o.o.o.
Rosalie and Emmett took their leave as Bella came crashing through the door and threw her arms around the nearest person's neck. Alice's."He's gone, he's gone, Alice," she whimpered. "It's my fault. I hurt him so badly..."
"It's not your fault," Alice objected gently, patting her sister on the back assuringly. "Your empty-headed-" she paused and glanced at Edward before prying Bella away to hold her at arms' length. "Your empty-headed sister forgot to throw out the invitation. I'm sorry, Bella. Are you mad?"
She pouted innocently and Bella shook her head, wiping the tears away.
"No, I'm not mad," she replied. "I just wish he was here. I hate knowing how much all this hurts him."
"You can cancel at any time," Edward reminded her. "No questions asked."
"No, I'm fine. I still want to do this." Bella smiled earnestly, despite the tears still twinkling in her eyes. She secured the ring's position on her finger to illustrate her point. I involuntarily smiled too at the sight of it, and Esme sighed dreamily.
"You owe Alice big," Jasper muttered with a sly half-smile. Edward nodded gratefully at his sister as Bella retreated. Bella looked at the doorway, where a few pebbles and grains of plaster decorated the floor.
"Sorry," she squeaked, blushing at Esme, already moving towards the pantry.
"Don't worry about it," Esme replied, beating Bella to the pantry and pulling out the brush and pan. "We do it all the time."
"Uh, Carlisle?" Bella pointed at the handset I was holding. "Is someone on the line?"
"Right...excuse me." I held the phone up to my ear, to find that Billy had calmed down somewhat.
"Look here, Cullen," he spat. "Jake's gone wolf, so - lucky for you - I can't call this in to the police. Yet. I'll find a way if I have to. I suggest you deal with whatever you're dealing with and get out of here as soon as possible. Jake will come back when he's ready - maybe he'll sort it out, maybe he'll want revenge. Either way, I want you lot out of here."
"I understand perfectly," I agreed. "I can assure you, we'll be gone as soon as we can."
"I can assure you, you'll regret it if you're not. We're monitoring Bella's situation very closely. Step carefully."
Billy hung up, and I followed. Everyone in the room was staring at me.
"Jacob has phased and run off to sort out some emotional issues," I explained. "Billy can't call it in to the station, so we have some time to get this sorted out."
"But first, we've got to go pick up Mum from the airport," Bella put in. "Geez, cheer up guys! We're planning a wedding here!"
"Exactly!" Alice agreed, clapping her hands enthusiastically. "That's the spirit, Bella! Oh, by the way, Esme and I found this amazing little store the other day..."
Bella groaned in mock agony as Alice prattled on about the home wares store that she and Esme had raided while I was at Billy's. The worry that had clouded the cheerful mood of the day so far lifted, and we were all smiling again - even Jasper, though his was still a little tight, restrained, just in case.
"All right, Bella, let's go," Esme invited with a warm chuckle. She took one of Bella's wrists and pulled her outside, and Alice followed like a puppy, still talking. How she manages to fit so much air into those little lungs of hers, I have no idea.
.o.o.o.
"So, Carlisle, what do we do?" Edward asked once the shopping party was outside.
"I would suggest finding a tuxedo, but Alice has probably already done that," I shrugged. "Maybe we should try and find a company to hire all those chairs from...what?"
I trailed off, amused by the stricken look on Edward's face. He was staring at me like I was crazy. Rose and Emmett mimicked him. Jasper smirked.
"Well, you heard the man," he announced, clapping his hands together. "Get to it! Step lively!"
"Uh...don't we have more serious things to work out?" Emmett reminded us.
"Not right now." I shook my head. "Bella's right - we're planning a wedding! Everything on earth has its special season. There is a time to cry and a time to laugh. There is a time to be sad and a time to dance. There is a time to love and a time to hate. There is a time for war and a time for peace. Bella and Edward's wedding is rapidly approaching. Right now, we all deserve a break. It's time to laugh and dance and enjoy ourselves."
"Here here," Jasper nodded.
"Here here!" Rosalie cheered, a smile breaking out on her face.
"Here here," Emmett agreed. "Hmm what is that? It sounds like a special delivery! Wheels for the lovely lady?" He glanced at Edward, who grinned smugly.
The three of them bolted for the garage simultaneously, and I noticed the source of their curiosity: a large truck rolling up the drive. Like toddlers on Christmas morning, the three of them excitedly elbowed each other and whispered about how great it was going to be. If there was one way to diffuse a tense situation between Rose, Emmett and Edward - or any combination thereof - it was to dump a fast, powerful, sleek vehicle between them.
I was never as taken by the flashy cars as Rose, Emmett or Edward, but auto mechanics were fascinating. I hovered in the driveway and listened to the others dote over the new arrival.
"Four thousand pounds of body armour?" Emmett cried. "Geez, what do you think she'll be doing - driving through a mine field?"
"Don't answer that," Rose cut in before Edward could get a word out. She was leaning towards the driver's window, almost pressing her nose to the glass. "What grade is this?"
"Essentially missile-proof," Edward replied smugly, backing towards the doorway, where I was standing. To himself, he added:
"This will be a much more useful vehicle than that rust-bucket old Chevy of hers..."
"What happened to that, by the way?" I asked. "I haven't heard it around lately." Which is saying something, since one can usually hear it from a few miles away. Edward turned around to face me, chuckling.
"It's about to wheeze its last wheeze," he replied, holding his hand over his heart in mock solemnity. "I promised Bella I would find a suitable replacement."
.o.o.o.
Esme:
"We're ba-ack!" Alice announced in a sing-song voice as she somehow managed to open the door with shopping bags in both hands and even one carefully hanging from her mouth.
Renee gasped as she came through the door, looking around herself in awe.
"It's no wonder you are so adept at wedding planning," she praised as I walked in. "Your house is amazing."
"Thank you," I smiled proudly, thrilled as always that visitors approved. It was so rare we got them. I set four of my bags down on the kitchen bench, and put the others on the floor. Renee looked around for a place to leave hers.
"Just search for a flat surface," I instructed. She headed towards the dining table, which was covered at one end with craft items from making the invitations and at the other end by Alice's bags. Renee was just about to settle her bags amongst Alice's when she gasped quietly and covered her mouth. Her heart doubled its speed.
"Good evening, Mrs Dwyer," Carlisle greeted, coming down the stairs with a modest but dazzling smile.
"Doctor Cullen," Renee greeted, sounding flustered as she hurried to pull herself together. I smiled slyly. I couldn't help it.
"Please, call me Carlisle," he invited.
"Renee," she replied. The two of them shook hands, and while Renee's heartbeat had barely slowed since the initial meeting, she managed to act composed. There was a loud crash from the garage, and Carlisle quickly excused himself to investigate.
"Now I see where Edward gets it from," Renee muttered. I took this opportunity to join her in the dining room. She flushed with embarrassment.
"Don't worry," I brushed it off, laughing warmly. "Everyone does it. Now, let's see if we can't find you a room."