Author Note: Thank you for the great response to this story so far! Everyone thought Edward had a great 29th birthday.
The husband from the real-life murder case that inspired this story got married this week!
Thanks again to moosals for pre-reading. Stephenie Meyer owns all characters.
Chapter 30 – Pressure Off
I spend much of Wednesday waiting for text message updates from Ben or Angela on how things are progressing. Despite the dose of Pitocin early this morning, labor isn't moving forward very quickly. A text from Ben around 6pm indicates that it's going to be a long night. By the time I'm ready for bed, there's still no baby.
When I wake up on Thursday, the first thing I do is check my phone.
4:56am. 9 lbs, 3 oz. I am wiped out, Ben's text reads.
Angela did all the hard work, I text back. When can we see her?
Give us until about noon. Room 247.
I quickly shower and get dressed, then call Alice. I can't get to the hospital on my own since Jacob has had my truck since early Tuesday. I'm expecting to get it back later this afternoon.
Thanks to Alice's employee parking sticker, we're able to park close to the entrance, then make our way to the Maternity floor.
"Knock, knock," Alice says, walking through the open door to Angela's room. Ben is seated in the chair beside the bed, a tiny pink bundle in his arms, while an exhausted Angela looks on from her semi-seated position in bed.
"Hey, guys," she greets us tiredly. "You just missed my parents; they went down for lunch."
"Hi," Ben smiles.
"Long day, huh?" I hug Angela carefully.
"And night," she nods. "I thought for sure I was going to end up with an emergency C-section."
After hugging Angela briefly, Alice walks around the bed to where Ben is seated. "Give her up," she demands with a grin, and he stands, calmly transferring the bundle to Alice's arms.
"So what's her name?" I ask excitedly.
"Chloe Ann Cheney," Angela announces proudly.
"Awwww…" I peek at the bundle, noticing that Chloe has a head full of dark hair already, just like both of her parents. "She's so tiny."
"She feels more like holding a three-month-old," Alice chuckles, coming back around to the other side of the bed. After a few minutes, she passes the baby to me, and I learn that she wasn't kidding.
"How long are you off work, Ben?" Alice asks.
"I'm hoping to go back after the Fourth, but I may have to do a little bit of work from home next week," he answers. "I'd been clearing my schedule for the past few weeks."
"You guys both look good holding a baby. Which of you is next?" Angela asks with a grin.
"Not me!" I exclaim. "Pretty hard to get pregnant when you haven't progressed beyond kissing."
"With or without tongue?" Alice asks.
"With," I answer, before I remember it's none of her business.
"Ooohhh…" She waggles her eyebrows. "Will you go home tomorrow?" she asks, turning to Angela.
"Yeah, as long as we both check out OK, I should be released sometime tomorrow afternoon."
When little Chloe starts to cry, I place her in her mother's arms. "That's her hungry cry," she says. "Didn't take long to learn that one."
"We'll get out of your hair then," Alice smiles. "Just let us know when you're up for visitors at home." We each give Ben a hug before leaving.
"She's soooo beautiful," Alice says as we head back to her car. "Almost makes me want to get knocked up."
"Almost?" I laugh.
"Well, there's the tiny issue of living 2,000 miles away from the baby's potential father."
"Have you guys talked about that?"
"A little bit," she shrugs. "I don't think Jasper is a Forks kind of guy. I think he'd be OK with moving to the Seattle area, but other than my sister and her family, everyone I love is here."
"Could you compromise at Port Angeles?" I suggest. "It's about five times the size of Forks."
"Maybe," she sighs. "This is the tough part of long distance relationships."
Since I won't get my car back until late afternoon, I ask Alice to stop at the Thiftway so I can pick up everything I'll need to make up a few meals for Angela and Ben. That way, I can make them this afternoon and drop them off at their house tomorrow.
I spend the rest of the afternoon cooking. After baking each meal, I separate them into two-person portions and place them in the cheap, disposable containers that I purchased for freezing and easy reheating for the new parents.
Shortly before I've got my kitchen cleaned up, I get a text from Jacob to say my truck is ready. He offers to come pick me up and drive me to the garage. I pay him for his work and head home.
I've got about a half hour to chill before I need to get ready to go bowling, so I relax on the couch with Sandy on my lap. "You know you're getting fur all over my jeans," I tell her. She opens one eye to look at me, then closes it again. "You don't care at all, do you?"
I take a few minutes to change into slightly nicer clothes and freshen up so that I'm ready when Edward arrives. As we walk out to his SUV, I notice Carolyn's car parked in front of the house.
Sunset Lanes also has a snack bar, so when we get there, the four of us order from the counter and grab a table.
"So, teams, right? Alice and me versus Edward and Bella?" Jasper suggests as he sips his beer.
"That seems more fair than boys versus girls," I grin.
"God, I don't think I've bowled since I came back to Forks," Alice says.
"Me either!" I laugh. We're going to be so awful.
After we've eaten, Jasper pays for a lane for two hours and we choose our rental shoes and balls. I choose the best fit for my hand, while Alice just wants a sparkly pink ball, even if it is only nine pounds.
It takes a few frames for me to get into some sort of groove, throwing at least a good first ball. I can't pick up a spare to save my life though. Both Edward and Jasper are quite good, though by the end of the two hours, they've each had enough of the cheap beer that their scores are starting to suffer.
Edward and I end up winning by a total of 12 pins. We enjoy taunting the other side, though Jasper has a pretty good argument in that his score was slightly higher than Edward's.
"That was fun," Alice says breathlessly as we step outside. "Even if we lost. Hand over the keys, Jazz," she insists as he starts to walk toward the driver's side of his rental car.
"That sounds like a good idea," I agree, holding out my hand. Once Edward has dropped his keys into my palm, I unlock the SUV and scoot the seat forward until I can reach the pedals.
Just a few short minutes later, I pull the SUV into Edward's driveway and shut off the engine. "Do you want to come in?" he asks with a slightly salacious drunken grin.
"Do you think that's a good idea?" I raise an eyebrow. He gives me his best pout and I relent. "For a few minutes."
Inside, Alice's mom is seated in the recliner, reading a book. "Who won?" she asks, inserting a bookmark as she closes the book and stands.
"Edward and I beat Alice and Jasper," I answer.
"Well, congratulations," she smiles. "Masen has been up in bed for about a half hour."
Edward pays Carolyn and walks her out while I grab two bottles of water from the fridge and bring them into the living room. I know I need to be the strong one here with Edward's inhibitions lowered.
I eye him carefully when he comes back into the room, but he just smiles. "I'm really not that drunk," he insists, sitting heavily beside me. I hand him one of the water bottles and he takes a long drink.
"That was fun." He sighs, "Sometimes I think I've forgotten what it's like to have fun. Even without the cloud of grief, I've still felt crushed under the pressure of trying to be both a dad and a mom to Masen."
"You're doing a great job, Edward." I reach over, touching his shoulder. "And you're allowed to have fun."
"I know," he smiles, turning to look at me. "I feel like I'm not alone in this anymore."
"You're not."
Edward crooks his finger and I scoot closer, letting him pull me in for a kiss. His hand is on my side, and as we kiss, it slowly slides up until I feel one finger brush against the side of my breast. My nipples tighten instantly, so ready for his touch.
"Just for a minute," he whispers, and I have no idea what he's referring to until he tugs me closer, helping me to straddle his lap. Finally able to get as close as I need, I tangle one hand in his hair, letting my breasts brush against his chest as our kisses deepen. His hands are wrapped around my sides.
Edward groans beneath me and I know he's enjoying this as much as I am. He's showing no signs of stopping, however, so I know that I need to be the responsible one. The last thing I want is for him to regret anything we do and pull back from me.
I force my lips away from his, and he slowly opens his eyes. Seeing the lust-filled look in them, I almost forget about stopping, but I know I have to remain strong.
"Time for me to go," I whisper.
He nods, and I stand up, starting to laugh. "What?" he asks in confusion.
"I did a number on your hair, sorry." He shrugs, smiling, and I know he'll be OK. "Stay! You don't have to walk me out."
Over the next week, Edward and I see each other often, almost always with Masen. They'll stop over for dinner and let Masen play with Sandy, and once I've started working at the bakery, they come by for ice cream on their way to the park.
There are no more hot make-out sessions, but that's OK.
On the first Saturday in July, Carolyn says she's able to watch Masen all evening, so Edward and I drive to Port Angeles for dinner at one of the seafood places near the water.
Now that we're only a week away from the anniversary of Bree's death, I'm wondering at what point the grief will start to hit him, but he still appears fine. I suggest going out to one of the bars for some dancing after dinner instead of catching a movie, and he agrees.
Forgoing drinks, we step onto the dance floor right away, enjoying the fast beat. Last December, Edward and I danced together as part of a group, but this is our first time just the two of us. I don't think I'm a particularly good dancer, but it doesn't matter.
When a slow song begins, I throw my arms around Edward's neck, letting him pull me close. Maybe it's the sexy beat, or the flashing lights, or just the atmosphere, but my want for him grows by the second. Halfway through the song, he spins me around, his lips running along the side of my neck. I forget about trying to be good and grind my backside against him.
"I love the way you feel," he whispers, his hot breath in my ear causing goosebumps over my entire body.
When the music changes, we continue dancing like that. I reach back with one arm, playing with his hair since he seems to love it.
"Let's go," Edward whispers, and I let him take my hand and lead me out of the club. We walk briskly back to his SUV, and instead of opening the door for me, he presses me against it. Almost immediately, his lips are on mine. I eagerly kiss him back, my tongue tangling with his and my hands brushing up and down his back.
I hear someone catcalling, which snaps me back to reality. We're in a parking lot, over an hour from home. When Edward's lips move to sucking on my neck, I take the opportunity to place my hands on his chest, gently pushing him away.
"Any further and we might be arrested," I joke through my heavy breaths.
"Why is it so damn far back to Forks?" he whines, letting go of me. He unlocks the door, jogging around to the driver's side.
Edward turns the radio on for the drive back, and I can feel this… anticipation in the air. Whatever we started isn't going to end with a simple goodnight kiss on my doorstep.
Of course, Carolyn is at Edward's house, so we have to behave ourselves when we get there. I get out of the car before he can open the door for me, reaching for his hand as he unlocks his front door with the other.
"Hello," she greets us, the TV tuned to a rerun of Saturday Night Live. "Did you kids have a good time?"
I snicker at being called a kid. "Yeah, we went dancing after dinner."
"Oh, how fun! Well, I'll get out of your hair."
I wait in in the living room, still standing, for Edward to walk Carolyn out, unsure of what his plans are. I mean, I doubt he has any intention of taking me up to bed. I know he's not ready for that.
When he returns, he takes my hand in his, then tugs me toward the couch. As he sits, he pulls me down so I'm straddling his lap, then reaches up to take my face in his hands. "I've been thinking about this for the past hour," he whispers.
"You and me both." I typically wait for Edward to make the first move, but this time I don't. I take his lips in mine, burying my hands in his hair. He doesn't hesitate to start kissing me back. As we kiss, his hands start wandering until both of his thumbs are rubbing against the bottom of my breasts.
I moan and that spurs him on to move them higher, brushing against my nipples as his lips travel along my jaw to my neck. I can feel him hard beneath me. The devil over one shoulder says I should go ahead and find a little friction, while the angel fears that this will all be too much for him.
The devil wins. Edward isn't at all impaired — he had one glass of wine hours ago with dinner — so he knows what he's doing.
I'm not sure I've ever dry-humped a man so shamelessly, but I literally can't help myself. The top of my dress is blousy enough that he can rub his lips over the top of my breasts. His hands are squeezing my ass as he helps me move back and forth over his erection. He must be so uncomfortable still in his pants, but I don't dare even suggest opening them.
Edward whimpers and I know he must be close. "Don't stop," he mumbles, burying his face in my neck. And I don't, not until his groan lets me know that he's reached his peak.
I pull back a little as he raises his head, staring at me. His eyes say it all… we went too far, too fast.
A/N: We've reached PG-13 territory! And it appears to have been too much for Edward. I don't think they could make this journey without at least one step back. But what happens now?
Angela's baby girl is named for one of my favorite Instagram kitties (_gochloego_)
Monday is Christmas day so I may or may not update. I don't actually know what my plans are for the holiday right now. It'll be somewhere in Sunday through Tuesday though.
I'm off work until a week from today (Thursday), so I hope to get a lot of the Everything She Wants continuation written. I know exactly what I want to write!