Chapter 21
Edward
Bella leapt to her feet, her dark eyes blazing, making the very face Randall described wanting to avoid by asking me not to tell her about his feelings.
"Don't follow me!"
I got up too and tried to bring her back to me, but she ducked and started walking back to the house.
"Shit."
"Shit," echoed Riley. "Sorry, I thought she knew. I mean, it's so obvious. I guess I forgot how oblivious she can sometimes be." We both watched her stomp up the boardwalk. "And I haven't seen that temper flare for a while."
"Don't worry about it," I replied automatically. "I'll give her some time to cool off and then go find her." I was worried, though. I'd seen her get mad on numerous occasions; her feistiness was one of the things I loved about her. However, she'd never directed her temper at me before.
"Maybe we could talk about receptor kinetics. It's on my syllabus for the upcoming semester and I just don't get it," he asked, obviously trying to distract me.
"Sure."
I obliged him for fifteen minutes before going to find Bella. As I walked up the boardwalk, I met Carlisle and Esme, carrying lunch on trays.
"Oh, were you coming to find us? We couldn't find the mustard and I had to rethink what I was making, but ..."
"It's fine, Esme. I was just going back to get Bella. She popped back to the house for a moment."
"Oh, did she?" Esme's cheeks coloured. Riley and Katie were clearly on point about their parents' habits.
"Won't be a moment," I interjected, before dashing back inside.
"Bella?" I called through the house, but she didn't reply. She wasn't in our room and just as I was starting to panic, I spotted her through the window, sitting on the bonnet of our rental car. I ran out to the driveway. "Bella?"
She turned to look at me with a tear stained face, but she was smiling.
"Edward, look!" She pointed to a pair of beautiful dogs at her feet, begging for her attention. I hadn't seen them in my rush to get to her.
Both looked as if they had collie blood; one was large and clumsy, with brown fur and black paws, while the other was more delicate; she was white with patches of dark red and blue-black fur.
"They're adorable, Baby." The tricolour one trotted over to me and nuzzled my hand, a true cutie-pie. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, sorry for running off like that." She stood up and curled herself around me. "I reacted first, thought second."
"I'm sorry too. I told him at the time that I didn't like to keep things from you, but he was quite upset at finding out about us and mortified that I had figured out his attraction to you."
"Shh ..." she pressed her lips to mine to silence me. "I was the one in the wrong. When I calmed down, I realised that must have been the reason. If the roles had been reversed, I'd have probably done the same thing." She sighed and wiped one last tear from her eyes. "I don't know why I blew my lid like that. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
"It's okay, Baby. We were bound to have our first fight eventually."
I cradled her face with my hands and kissed her tenderly. She wasn't interested in tender, however, and as she snuck her tongue inside my mouth with ferocity, I forgot our surroundings and our waiting lunch. I pushed her against the side of the car and lifted her thigh up to wrap it around me.
"Yes ..." Her warm hands dipped under my shirt and stroked my lower back lightly. "Make-up sex ..."
Barking dogs interrupted us, just as I was fingering the button on her denim shorts.
"Edward, Bella?" Carlisle called. We separated instantly, but he had already seen us in our compromising position.
Note to self: Remember your surroundings.
"Sorry, Carlisle, we were just ..."
"Oh, uh ..." he mumbled at the same time before diverting his gaze. The dogs ambled over to him and nudged his hands. "Jake, Nessie, what are you doing here?"
They answered with a bark and a whine.
"They're such beautiful creatures," said Bella, with a hint of wistfulness. She had always wanted a dog. "Whose are they?"
"Our neighbour, Nettie. She's quite elderly, and forgets to shut the gate sometimes. I'd better return them."
"We'll head back to the beach," Bella replied. She crouched down briefly to cuddle the dogs. "Bye, doggies." They licked the side of her face. "Aww, it was nice to meet you, too."
"I'll be back in a couple of minutes." Carlisle ushered the dogs down the driveway, and we headed back.
"Oh, good, you're back. But where's Carlisle?" asked Esme, handing us plates of club sandwiches and crisps.
"Returning your neighbour's dogs. It seems they got out."
"Oh, Nettie ... I swear she has Alzheimer's. Every time we see her these days, she seems more muddled. I worry she's going to forget to look after Jake and Nessie soon."
"Bella was quite smitten by them."
"Definitely. One day, I'd love to have one or even two of our own."
"I can totally see you guys with doggies," echoed Riley, grabbing an enormous sandwich from the plate. "Now, let's get the fun started!"
The afternoon passed by in a comfortable blur of volleyball, sunbathing, paddling in the sea, beers, and ice-cream. Dinner was a delicious barbecue feast of marinated chicken, salmon and ribs with various salads, washed down with cocktails and more beer. At ten o'clock, Carlisle and Esme called it a night, and left, hand in hand.
"In twenty years, Foxy, that's going to be us," Bella murmured, crawling into my lap.
"Definitely." Her fingers danced along my collarbone and behind my ear before she took my earlobe between her teeth, giving it a short tug that I felt right in my dick. "Uh ... scratch that ... we're going to be worse."
"Our kids are going to grow up wearing earplugs whenever we're not in the same room as them."
I ran my hand from her knee to the edge of her little shorts, and she whimpered, deep in her throat.
"They'll start every morning cleaning the kitchen counter, just in case."
She jammed her fingers between the buttons of my shirt, and they popped open.
"They'll always know what love looks and feels like."
"I want to show you how much I love you right now ..."
"We've never done it in the sea."
I took hold of her chin suddenly, causing her to gasp, and turned her head so I could whisper in her ear.
"I'm going to change that tonight, Baby."
"Okay, you two!" Riley cried suddenly. "I don't wanna watch Edward and Bella: The Porn Show."
"So go somewhere else," I growled, clutching Bella more tightly.
"Relax, Professor Horny Fox! I was just interrupting to tell you that Katie-kins and Pony have gone to watch a movie and I'm gonna go join them."
Sure enough, they were walking back up to the house, Katie having looped her arm through Randall's.
"Oh, right."
"If you don't want to be seen from the house, I suggest you decamp to the other side of the beach hut."
"Thanks, Riles," replied Bella.
"No problem!" He blew us both kisses before dancing up the boardwalk.
"All alone, finally," my wife murmured before getting up off my lap. "I believe I have some making up to do."
"You do indeed, Baby."
I tossed her over my shoulder and walked us to the other side of the beach hut as Riley suggested. She giggled and slapped my bum.
I stopped behind the hut, a few metres from the water's edge. It was low tide, and we had at least a couple of hours before it crept back in significantly.
I put her down, my heart beating rapidly as I took in her aroused state in the moonlight. Her hair was wild, blown up by the Atlantic winds, her face flushed and her eyes glistening with desire.
"Mrs. Masen, you take my breath away."
She said nothing, but unbuttoned her shirt to reveal her navy bikini top, and her denim shorts soon followed. She pointed at me and then flicked her finger downwards, and I stripped to my boxers. The night air was cool but not cold, and sticky with humidity. I reached for her, but she stepped out of my grasp.
"Bella, you're killing me here."
She licked her lips, then undid her bikini ties, throwing both pieces at me before spinning around slowly.
"What exactly do you want to do to me, Professor? We're all alone, a deserted beach, the ocean at our feet ..."
I removed my boxers and her eyes diverted to my cock. She slowly and deliberately fondled her breast, pulling and tweaking her sweet, pink nipple to tease me.
"I want to fuck my incredible wife while we float in the ocean."
I couldn't stand it any longer, and scooped her up before wading into the waves, the cold making us squeal in unison. She clung onto me, pressing her hot lips to my neck as she manoeuvred herself around so she was facing me, and then licked along my jaw until her mouth was on mine.
"Bella ..."
"Foxy ... please ... I'm ready for you now."
I stroked my hand between her supple thighs, and felt her slippery heat before guiding myself inside.
Cold all around us, but fire in between.
Bella groaned as I thrust upwards and again when I found her clit with my icy fingers.
"That's it, Foxy ... Oh, oh, yes."
"Close already?"
"Uh-huh."
I moved faster, no longer aware of the chilly ocean. Bella's moans grew louder, just slightly masked by the sound of crashing waves. The heat around my cock grew more intense, and then she stiffened and then turned to jelly in my arms.
"Every time you fall apart from my touch, the tie that binds my heart to yours grows stronger," I told her as she caught her breath. She looked up sharply.
"I feel it in everything you do and say," she replied, slowly starting to move on me once again. "I love you."
She repeated the words over and over again as she rode me until I climaxed with a roar inside her. We had probably woken up the whole of Cape Cod with the sounds of our lovemaking, but I couldn't bring myself to care.
-cc-
"Ooh," moaned Bella as she rolled over onto her front, wriggling under the covers of the very comfortable bed in Esme and Carlisle's guest room.
"What, Baby?"
"I think I missed some sand ... It feels all grainy in my crack."
I guffawed out loud, and sat up, but then felt a similar itch of my own.
"Ow, me too."
After making love in the ocean, we lay in each other's arms on the beach, looking up at the stars. We ended up having sex again; I just could not resist the allure of my wife's beautiful body. We had taken another dip in the sea to clean out the sand that invariably worked its way into our nooks and crannies, but evidently we had missed some.
"Perhaps we ought to help each other in the shower," I suggested, tapping her sweet bum lightly.
"Hey, don't!" she retorted, swatting at my hand, although she was grinning. "It really does itch." She rose up onto her knees and then hopped out. "But I wouldn't say no to a shared shower."
"Your wish is my command, Mrs. Masen."
Thirty minutes later, and sand-free, we made our way downstairs, following the enticing smell of coffee and vanilla. Esme was making a huge pile of waffles.
"Oh, good morning," she greeted when she saw us. "Sleep well?"
"Very," Bella replied. "Are we the first ones up?"
"Yes, apart from Carlisle. He's gone to get a newspaper and check on Nettie and the dogs."
"That's sweet of him."
"She's a lovely old dear. She used to look after Katie and Riley, and all the neighbourhood kids, so we parents could have date nights."
"It's good to have neighbours like that," I said. "Does she have kids of her own?"
"She has a daughter, Lucy, who works for Senator Warren in her DC office, although I'm not sure what she does, exactly. We haven't seen her for a couple of years."
The conversation moved to breakfast, and a plan to go on a whale-watching cruise at Hyannis, and Bella was all for it.
Around ten minutes later, just as we were looking up sailing times on Esme's iPad, Carlisle came in through the kitchen door.
"Hey, how's Nettie?" Esme asked, handing him coffee and giving him a sweet peck on the cheek.
"Not so good," he replied, giving her a reciprocal kiss on the forehead. "She's more confused and the house is a mess. The dogs were running amok."
"Oh no. We should call her daughter and get her some medical help."
"I called Lucy. She was on her way up anyway. And I spoke to Dr Noel's office. He's going to do a house-call when Lucy arrives."
"Where are the dogs?" asked Bella, a hint of urgency in her tone. "Have they been fed? Do they have water?"
"I found some Purina in Nettie's larder and I've topped up their water. I've left them in the garden and shut the gate, and I'll go check on them in a while." Carlisle took in Bella's eager expression. "I can tell you're itching to go over and visit, Bella dear, but Nettie hasn't met you before and she is terribly mixed up right now. She didn't recognise me at first, and she's known me for fifteen years."
Bella sighed in disappointment and my insides lurched. It physically hurt to see her upset.
"I understand," she replied sadly.
"But would you like to come when I take them for a walk later?"
Bella's face brightened again.
"Definitely!" She paused to take a sip of coffee. "Carlisle, what's going to happen if Nettie can't look after two young, boisterous dogs, you know, permanently?"
"I'm not sure, dear. I suppose it will depend on Dr Noel's opinion and what Lucy wants to do."
"I suppose," Bella echoed.
Bella remained a little preoccupied for the rest of the day, although she loved the whale-watching. Randall and Katie continued to get on well, being very sweet to one another, with an undercurrent of flirtation. Carlisle and Esme were the perfect, gracious hosts, and showed us their favourite spots in Cape Cod. I could see why they loved it so much.
By the time we got to Lobster Jack's, the Cullens' favourite seafood restaurant, we were starving, having worked up an appetite from a busy day of sightseeing. Bella and I decided to split a lobster platter and a side of fried belly clams as the portions were gargantuan.
"I can see why this place is your favourite," Bella mumbled through a mouthful of lobster. "So yummy!"
"I second that," I agreed as Bella passed me a fried clam. "That's bloody delicious."
"They use beer in the batter. That's why it's so awesome." Riley, despite being on the skinny side, was munching his way through a giant, mixed seafood platter faster than the rest of us put together. He reminded me of Alice in that way; she, too was tiny, but could pack the food away like there was no tomorrow.
"Carlisle, Esme?" A slender woman in her forties, with mid-brown hair tied in a high ponytail, approached our table. Carlisle rose to his feet.
"Lucy." He pecked her on both cheeks. "Everyone, this is Lucy, our neighbour Nettie's daughter. Lucy, I'm sure you remember our kids Riley and Katie, and these are our friends and new colleagues Edward and Bella Masen, and Randall Smith." We all murmured greetings. "How are you? How's your mother?"
"I'm all right, thank you. Mom, on the other hand ... She's got a urinary infection and Dr Noel thinks she's had a small stroke. He's sent her into hospital."
"I'm sorry to hear that. I hope she recovers soon. Have you gotten a table yet? Would you like to join us?"
"That's sweet of you but I'm just collecting take-out and going back to Mom's. My husband Jack is on his way over from DC. Mom's not been coping with the house or the dogs for a while, so we need to make some decisions about the future."
"Have you considered what you might do with the dogs?"
Next to me, I felt Bella stiffen, and she gripped my thigh.
"Not really. If they can't stay with Mom when she comes out of hospital, Jack and I will need to decide whether we can keep them with us in our DC apartment. If that isn't an option, we'd have to sell them to a new home."
"Well, if there's anything we can do, please let us know. We're here until Monday afternoon and we're happy to walk them or check on them for you while you visit your mother."
"Thank you, Carlisle. I'll probably need to take you up on that." Her eyes became a little misty, but she composed herself quickly. "Have a good evening."
After she had left, Riley resumed the conversation regarding our meals, and I listened for a couple of minutes before glancing at Bella. She was biting her lip and not paying attention at all to the table-talk. I realised then, how much she had fallen head over heels for Jake and Nessie, and it was breaking her heart to think that they might be sold.
"Excuse me a moment ... Nature calls," I murmured as I got up from the table, pressing a kiss to Bella's forehead as I rose.
As I hoped, Lucy was still waiting for her food in the seating area.
"Excuse me?" She looked up. "Edward Masen, Carlisle's friend."
"Oh, yes, hello again." Naturally, she was surprised that I was approaching her. "Err ...?"
I sat down next to her.
"I'm very sorry to bother you, but my wife, Bella, is absolutely in love with your mother's dogs. She met them yesterday and they seemed to adore her, too. I realise that this is very presumptuous of me, and I don't at all intend to make your decisions more difficult, but if it transpires that you will have to sell Jake and Nessie, I would be very interested in taking them."
"I don't know ... I mean, can you look after them? They need a lot of walking and they'll eat you out of house and home. Do you have a big back yard?"
"We currently live in Arlington, in a house near a big park, and we do have a large garden, too. Bella's a doctoral student and I'm a researcher and lecturer, but between us, we'll be able to look after them. I promise you, we'd give them a real home."
I fished out one of my new business cards from my wallet and handed it to her.
"Okay, I'll consider it ... Your wife is a lucky woman, you know? Not many men I know would be so eager to please their wives."
"I'm the lucky one," I replied. "And I'm thankful for her, every single day."
Bella
The Fox returned from the bathroom with a glint on his face, looking strangely satisfied.
"You okay?"
He kissed me full on the mouth, grinning against my lips as he pulled away.
"I'm fantastic, Baby."
I thought about asking him more but thought better of it. I had to learn to trust that Edward would never hide something important from me. He had concealed his knowledge about Randall's feelings for me to help our friend save face, and looking back, it was the right thing to do. I still felt embarrassed at my ridiculous overreaction, and was glad that Randall hadn't witnessed it. Judging by the way he and Katie were giggling away and stealing food off each other's plates, they were utterly smitten, and any attraction to me had been long forgotten.
My mind wandered back to the two gorgeous creatures I'd met the day before.
Jake and Nessie.
I felt kind of ridiculous for spending so much time obsessing over two dogs, but I absolutely adored them, from the moment they came careening up the Cullens' driveway while I was upset with The Fox. They calmed me down and made me see that I had overreacted. When Edward arrived to check on me, he was smitten, too. My heart nearly broke when I heard that Jake and Nessie might be sold.
They should be part of our family.
I tried to push that thought to the back of my mind. They didn't belong to us, and I had no right to think that just because I adored them instantly, Nettie's daughter would just hand them over. To my horror, I could feel myself start to get misty-eyed. It was ridiculous. I had moments where my temper bubbled over, but I wasn't usually one for mood swings.
"Bella, honey, you gotta try this spicy crayfish salad," Riley said suddenly, interrupting my pondering. "It's amazing!"
He pointed at his plate and winked at me as I speared a forkful.
"Amazing," I agreed.
"Told ya!"
I see what you did there, Riles. Good job.
However, I tossed and turned that night. I felt hot and bothered, and troubled by dreams of Jake and Nessie, upset, dirty and neglected. At some point, the seedy, creepy figure of Slimy Volturi encroached on my nightmare, stealing away the dogs and Edward, and then sucking my soul ...
"Bella, Bella, wake up, Baby."
I opened my eyes with a start. I was encircled by Edward's arms; he was sitting up, looking worried.
"It was a nightmare."
"Yes, and you scared the shit out of me." I sat up and clambered into his lap.
"Bloody Slimy. He's getting into my dreams now." I leaned in and kissed him. "Sorry. This was supposed to be a relaxing, stress-free weekend, and I've yelled at you, cried and now I'm keeping you awake with my bad dreams."
A knock on the door stopped Edward from replying.
"Bella? Edward? Are you okay?"
"Come in, Carlisle."
Our gracious host padded in, and I moved off The Fox's lap.
"I heard a shout and became worried," he explained sheepishly. "I didn't mean to disturb you."
"I had a nightmare. Sorry to wake you."
"It's all right. Something troubling you?"
"It's this business with Aro Volturi, and worrying about Jake and Nessie, I think."
"Hi-hi-hi, are we having a pyjama party in here?"
Riley burst in, followed by Katie. A moment later, Esme came in, too.
"Sorry, we heard voices."
"What time is it?" I asked.
"Just after six. Carlisle and I wake up at this time anyway."
"What's up, Bella?"
"I was having a nightmare. Aro Volturi was creeping around, trying to steal Jake and Nessie, who were hurt and hungry. Sorry to wake you all."
"That's okay, Bella, dear," reassured Esme, sitting next to me and patting my knee. "I've met Aro Volturi, and with all the things he's been doing recently to unsettle you, it doesn't surprise me that you're having nightmares."
"Daddy-O, Edward, who's Aro Volturi and why's he causing trouble?"
"He's this creepy Italian neuroscientist from Cambridge," replied Katie. "Total slime ball."
"Wait, Katie, how do you know who he is?" asked Esme, her voice raising an octave. "Have you met him?"
"Yeah, only briefly, last summer, just before the end of sophomore year. Remember, I helped out at the Nobel Prize Exhibition when Professor Südhof and his colleagues won?"
"Volturi came along to that?"
"Yeah, a couple of us were asked to direct visitors, sort out ID tags and the like. He wasn't particularly interested in me, but he showered one girl, Maria, with compliments. He even gave her his card."
Esme's relief was palpable.
"What did Maria look like?"
"Err ... brunette, quite petite."
"He definitely has a type, doesn't he?" I muttered, reaching for my husband's hand.
"Did he hit on you?" asked Katie.
"Not directly."
Edward, Carlisle and I explained the situation.
"We knew he was going to make life difficult for us, so we're ready," Edward stated. "It's going to get worse, especially when he finds out that Bella and I are together."
"Yes, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it," I added, feeling defiant all of a sudden. "And he's not going to ruin our lovely weekend anymore."
"Hang on, Bella, honey." Riley sat on the bed, too. "This Slimy guy is turning you into a wreck, slowly, insidiously. I say you need to play offence."
"Son, did you just use a sports phrase?" asked Carlisle incredulously.
"Freddie's into basketball," Riley replied nonchalantly. "I'm serious though. Attack before you get attacked. Someone's gotta get the ball rolling."
I turned to Edward.
"Why don't we go on the offensive? At the moment, we're bearing the repercussions of him casting aspersions. We could turn it around so he's the one who's facing questions about his character. Show people the emails he sent me; get Bree Tanner to talk about what he did to her. Once a couple of people speak up, others will follow."
"Baby, Bree isn't going to do anything that will upset her stable home life, and I wouldn't ask her to. He's hurt her enough."
"But it's okay for us to have to bear the shit he's trying to pull?" I retorted.
"Bella, come on, I didn't mean it like that. Of course, it's not okay. Bree doesn't have the fighting streak you have, Baby. He nearly broke her the first time around."
"What do you mean?"
Edward looked around at all of us, uncertainty in his eyes.
"I didn't tell anyone this before because there didn't seem to be a need for everyone to know." He took a deep breath. "Bree had severe post natal depression, an alcohol problem which could have turned nasty had her family not intervened, and even now, the mere mention of his name turns her into a wreck."
"She was that bad?" asked Carlisle.
"She was. It took her a long time to tell me everything and it felt as though I should keep those details private."
"Okay, so not Bree Tanner, but we could lodge a complaint about the emails. They are harassing."
"Before you do anything, Edward, you should talk to the Public Affairs office. With the potential for this to turn into a dirty fight, they should know what's going on so they can help you."
"All right, when we get back to Harvard, we'll arrange to see them," he agreed.
"I'm happy to come with you for support," added Carlisle. "Knowing Aro Volturi, you'll need it."
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Thank you very much for all your support during the past few months. I am so touched by all the messages and kind reviews.
My aunt passed away peacefully in November, holding on far longer than we expected, tenacious to the end. It has been a tough few months, but now that we have said our goodbyes, and adjusting to life without our matriarch, we are starting to heal.
I can't tell you how often I will be posting as I haven't got many chapters in hand, but I'm aiming for fortnightly.
CC xxx
PS: FFn may not let you review this chapter if you left a review on my hiatus message, but thank you for trying if you did. If you still want to review with a signed guest review, that would be nice, or PM me. I'm grateful for any contact from you all. xxx