.
Chapter 202
Honeymoon
Edward
"Edward ... Anthony ... Black ...!", Bella said very clearly as she came towards me.
Her eyes flashed with anger. She looked so incredible when she was angry. Surely she wanted to read me the riot act, because I wanted to leave her to David, but from somewhere several bells reached my ear. This invitation came just in time for my angry angel to reach me. So I kissed her.
Possessively. To symbolize to David who really owned Bella. But of course, he wouldn't trade his own family for anything in this world. None of them. Just as I was unwilling to give away anyone of mine ... Maybe we could at least keep Emma? Temporarily? ...
I kissed my queen.
Devotedly and with all love and affection that all the guests were lost in my senses. Only a strange metallic clacking reminded me that I was at my wedding.
My first look - after the dreamy eyes of my spouse - went to our wrists.
Handcuffs. Covered with pink plush fabric.
"So you don't get lost again!" grinned Emmett next to us, and all the guests laughed most exhilaratedly.
"We will not lose each other again!", I said very convinced, and my angel nodded vigorously.
"If you leave it on until tomorrow, there's a pliant reward waiting for you!" he touted, but didn't let me know what it would be.
'Have fun on your wedding night with those things!' he added mentally, though.
Well, it would be absolutely no problem for me to free us from the handcuffs without a key, but Bella smiled very suggestively and blushed a tiny bit. I wonder if she had thought of the same thing. This should be amusing in any case.
Then Alice clapped her hands and jumped jitterily.
"It's time for you now," she said elatedly.
"For what?", I dug deeper. It was just past eight o'clock. Too early to end the evening, even if school-age children were present.
"For your honeymoon!", Alice shook her head as if it was a given.
"What, honeymoon?" asked Bella.
"Do you think I'd let you get married without sending you on your honeymoon afterwards!" snorted Alice contemptuously, retrieving Bella's coat from a bench in the background.
"But I have to go to school," I opined.
"Professor Stewart is expecting me tomorrow," Bella interjected.
"You're both already excused," Carlisle explained.
"Even with your children," Esmé added.
We looked to our three.
They nodded.
I walked up to my baby, who Leah had in her arms, and of course pulled Bella right along with me.
Handcuffs. Already quite forgotten.
"You knew about this and didn't tell us?", I asked sternly.
My son nodded with a grin and reached for our hands.
We saw it.
Friday evening. Here in this hall. Partially decorated already. Jasper had practiced walking with him after Ced pulled himself up by a chair and stood on his feet for quite a long time by his previous standards. This had apparently given Jasper the idea that he could bring us the rings walking, rather than crawling as originally intended. Jazz had discussed with him exactly what was going to happen here and asked if he would be okay with his parents going without him for a few days. In doing so, he promised that they would go swimming with him quite a bit. My baby agreed to that. Jazz also made it clear to him that he couldn't tell us about it because it would be a surprise. For Ced, it had been more of a game.
It was common in this country for the bride and groom to leave the ceremony while the party was actually still in full swing.
A completely superfluous tradition, in my opinion.
But before we would leave, it was also customary to throw the bridal bouquet.
This ritual bindingly clarified at whose wedding we would dance next. Binding at least in the eyes of the lady who would catch it. Well, Bella's bouquet was in the vase after the marriage quiz had been played. But Alice had provided a replacement, of course.
She took a small bouquet from the table decoration of our table.
Then all unmarried ladies were asked to line up.
It was pretty manageable. Leah and Becky, of course. Emma, who was all excited. Irina and Tanya. And Ciara. There was no age limit, after all. Rosalie and Alice also joined them. Officially, they were not married at the moment. Orenda didn't want to. She was a widow, not unmarried. Besides, the young things would be greedy enough for it.
She was undoubtedly right about that. Except for Leah and Ciara, who were only there for tradition's sake, they all wanted it.
I stood in front of my angel and behind her were the mainly greedy ladies. I gave my angel a kiss when a little bell rang.
As a good luck charm for the heavy throw behind her.
Emma jumped toward the bouquet, but missed. She was too small. Alice and Rose were on the wrong side and had already been offended by it when Bella let it go. Becky and our Denali cousins held out their hands, but Ciara actually caught it. It had fallen right into her arms.
"Congratulations, Granny!" said Becky in response.
I heard her slight jealousy about it, even though she didn't really take this custom seriously.
"Who should I marry. At my age!", Ciara replied.
We said goodbye to all guests in due detail. Especially from the Quileute and the Denali clan.
Only these we would not see again so quickly. The grandparents of the twins would stay here until their birthday next Friday. The Lathams had asked us to visit their Native American village again. Ciara would also stay in Saco for a while. And David and Sonya were our neighbors anyway.
I held out her coat to Bella.
Only with one arm she could put it on properly, on the side chained with me I carefully put it over her shoulder and buttoned it up so it wouldn't slip off her every time she moved.
She looked magical.
Only our children accompanied us to the underground garage.
We bid them a melancholy farewell.
It was especially hard for us to leave Ced behind. He was still so small, and we would not get to see his further attempts to walk.
"Recover well from us!", Jake hugged us.
"Have a great honeymoon!" said Becky.
"Don't think about us and enjoy the time you have just for yourselves!" wished Leah.
"Have fun wherever you arrive!" said Marcus.
"And you behave yourselves when we're not around!", I reminded my children.
"You know us!" said Jake.
"Yes, exactly!" countered Bella.
The first hurdle in handcuffs: Getting into the car. Fortunately, my right wrist was connected to Bella's left, so at least I could drive unhindered.
I climbed over the passenger side into my Jaguar.
Alice and Jazz had packed our suitcases and also already put them in the trunk.
So we drove to the airport, not knowing where we would arrive at the end of the trip.
A strange feeling. I had a hunch, though, Esmé's island, although at the same time it seemed pretty unlikely to me. The flight took between thirteen and twenty hours, depending on the airline and stopovers. From Boston. But we had been sent to Portland.
Once there, I looked for a parking space in the underground garage. Here you could park for a longer period.
Cost a fortune, as Bella noted in a huff.
I rolled my eyes.
"You married my money too," I mumbled half unintelligibly, knowing all too well that Bella never wanted to talk to me about money. She very rarely used the black credit card, while my children were so slowly getting used to it, although so far not a single statement had been over two hundred dollars. I wasn't sure if I should be happy because my children were not spoiled regarding material things. Or whether I should be annoyed because they did not fulfill simply their very wishes. After all, what use was all my money if my family hardly made use of it to afford or experience nice things? Oh well. Idle topic.
I parked and climbed out of my car, demanding a kiss halfway there.
A little bell had rung somewhere. For sure.
There was a suitcase in the trunk.
In words: one. Maybe Alice was sick? However, it was a huge suitcase, so my concern was limited. In addition, there was a toiletry bag, which Bella immediately took while I dragged the suitcase behind me. Alice had told us to report to the service point. There they handed me an envelope and congratulated us on our wedding. It was undeniable because of our attire, especially Bella's beautiful dress.
Dear Bella! Dear Edward!
Some time ago I promised you the most romantic vacation possible on this planet. I have not forgotten this, and I will keep my promise. It would be appropriate if I could let you take it now, but you would need much more time than you have right now. Jake and Leah's birthday is already on Friday and so you will want to be with them on that day. However, you should be able to celebrate your finally achieved marriage all by yourselves in your own way. Therefore, I abduct you only for a few days.
I wish you all the love.
Your Alice
On the back was a map and a path was marked. We followed the dotted line of the plan and arrived at the gate for the private planes. A steward already met us, introduced himself as Jack, congratulated us, and took our luggage.
"This way, please, Mr. and Mrs. Black!" he said. "With the handcuffs, they won't be allowed through the normal screening, but there is another way."
"You're well informed, though!" stated Bella, irritated.
"Miss Alice gave us final instructions by phone a few minutes ago," the young man simply replied.
He smirked, as did I.
I saw his conversation with my sister in his mind. At least in fragments. She had been very energetic and had reported everything so meticulously and in such detail how people had not even wanted to know.
He led us down side corridors past general tourism, through a door outside into the cold, and a red carpet welcomed us to a small private jet.
Bella was amazed when she entered the interior.
I smiled at her adorable face.
It was only a small plane, which is why there wasn't quite as much space here, but it didn't feel like you were in an airplane. Rather in a luxurious little modern living room. Well. Nobody afforded such a cute jet, only to furnish it with folding chairs. Everything was covered in fine wood and carpeted, and the interior had not been cheap either. Large armchairs, a wide couch, a bar cabinet, TV, a workstation with a desk and two chairs ... Only the windows made it clear that we were on board an airplane.
Jack put our luggage in a designated locker.
From the cockpit the pilot came to us. A stocky middle-aged man.
He saw us and thought: 'He's still almost a child! And something like that catches such a classy woman? ... It's probably only because of the money! There he can keep the broad with pleasure!'
What he did say, however, was, "Good evening. Mr. and Mrs. Black. I am Victor, your pilot for this flight. The weather is good, and we anticipate a smooth flight. We have just been cleared for takeoff, so we are ready to launch immediately."
"Where are we flying to?" asked Bella.
"It was not allowed for us to tell you this," Jack said, but I heard it in his thoughts.
I smiled.
I would not have thought of that. I still kept it to myself.
We sat down in the chairs and fastened our seat belts.
The flight would take about three hours, so we had time, therefore I pulled Bella into my chair with me after takeoff. Together we looked out the window and watched the world fly by below us.
By the time we flew right over Niagara Falls, Bella had been asleep for some time.
Due to the now steady calm, the excitement of our wedding, the games, the many guests, had fallen away from her. Despite the altitude, one could see the impressive waterfalls well. Also the darkness did not disturb particularly, since many headlights shone on the water. Maybe it was just because of my eyes and would not have been quite so clear for my angel to see.
Jack came to us a couple of times during the flight. Chatted a little. Friendly asking about our wishes, regarding food, drink or a movie on the TV.
Seeing Bella asleep, he also offered a blanket, which I accepted.
He gently spread them over my angel and me.
His thoughts were just as kind as he acted toward us.
In the meantime, I also pretended to fall asleep, and I overheard a phone conversation Jack was having with his girlfriend due to our apparent inattention.
His colleague was apparently very strict about private conversations on duty.
He 'woke' me up when we had almost reached our destination.
"Bella, dearest," I whispered and kissed across my wife's face. How that sounded! My wife! Lovely! I cheered inwardly. As I had been doing all along.
Still sleepy, she opened her eyes.
"We're almost there, my heart!", I said.
"And where are we?" she asked, still tired.
"See for yourself," I urged her.
She awkwardly freed herself from the blanket, I lifted my arm, which was chained to her, over her, and she leaned against the window. She rubbed cutely through her eyes and squinted them a bit.
"Chicago?" she dug deeper.
"Chicago," I confirmed. It was a very nice idea of Alice's to pick Chicago, of all places, for our honeymoon. I had been born and raised here. I probably would have rather thought of New York, if it had to be a metropolis. But just for a few days, a beautiful and exciting city was of course an excellent idea.
Bella smiled and sat back down with me.
"How long has it been since you've been here?"
"It hasn't been that long. I come here regularly for a few days to see how my city is changing. The last time I was here was last summer. As a stopover on my way to Saco."
For the landing we had to buckle up again, but then a car with a chauffeur was already waiting for us in front of the airport.
It was Sunday night and approaching midnight, but we were in the third largest city in the US. There was always something going on here.
During the thirty-minute drive from the airport to the hotel, Bella hung out the window and marveled. At the same time, it became more worth seeing with every mile, as the large skyscrapers came closer and closer. But before we drove into the heart of the city, the driver left the highway and we drove right along the lakeshore.
It seemed unreal, even to me. The huge lake, which almost seemed like an ocean. Next to it, the Chicago skyline. One of the first skyscrapers in the north was apparently our destination.
The car stopped in front of the inviting and brightly lit doors of the 'Four Seasons'.
One of the best hotels in the city. Five stars.
A bellboy, a young man hardly older than I, came promptly to the car, opened the door, and gallantly held out a hand to Bella.
Bella just got out in disbelief and looked up at the front of the house.
Two hundred and sixty-five meters. Sixty-six floors.
Because of the handcuffs, I rather clumsily crawled out of the car behind her.
"Welcome to the 'Four Seasons,'" he greeted us graciously, and took our luggage from the trunk from our chauffeur.
I lifted my arm, which was chained to Bella, over her and kissed her gently on the temple. Then I lifted my bride in my arms.
Fortunately, there were enough chain links between our shackles that I could manage this at all. Certainly looked a bit strange due to the handcuffs, since Bella more or less hugged herself with one arm.
So I carried her through the revolving door.
My angel looked around the foyer, impressed. Around the modest beige tones of the walls, black and white marble was the predominant material used in the tall and spacious entrance hall. Modern art on the walls and in the alcoves.
I reached the black granite reception desk.
Without lowering my bride.
"Good evening. You must be Mr. and Mrs. Black. We have been expecting you," an elderly lady greeted us in a friendly manner.
"Yes, we are," Bella confirmed, though in my direction and smiling adorably.
But the lady had understood and smirked.
"Your suite is already paid for, but I still need your IDs and a credit card," she asked.
It was common in establishments of this level. The IDs were of course required for security reasons. The credit card had to be given because of the costs - over and above the room rate. Parking, orders in the hotel kitchen including room service, breakfast - in the room if requested - packed lunches for/and day trips, offers in the spa area, et cetera. The list of possible additional costs was almost endless.
"Suite?" bristled Bella.
"Hopefully, we have such things with us at all," I reflected on the other hand, looking at our meager luggage. "My sister has packed. A few hours ago we didn't know we were going on a trip," I explained to the hotel employee after she looked very skeptical.
"Amusing," she smiled.
Unfortunately, in order to look in the side pocket of the suitcase for our papers, I had to lower Bella from my arms.
How unnecessary! But Alice could be relied upon. In the bag I found not only our IDs, but also our cell phones and wallets.
The lady deposited the data in the computer system and scanned my credit card.
"Welcome to the 'Four Seasons', all the best for your wedding and pleasant honeymoon days!" the lady now wished us, handing me back the papers.
Only now, when the formalities were cleared to their satisfaction according to the regulations, we were really welcome here! This was also common in hotels of this category.
"Evan. Suite 4808," she handed the cards for our room to the bellman.
And I took my bride in my arms again.
She was startled by this for a moment; I merely twitched my eyebrows.
We got on the spacious elevator with Evan.
Forty-eighth floor.
"I don't think one has to carry the bride over all the doorsteps!" complained Bella on the rode to subtle elevator music.
"I prefer to play it safe!", I clarified. I wasn't sure what threshold the custom referred to. I didn't want to take any risks.
Evan smirked at this, but wondered if she should be getting a little too heavy for me.
We reached the floor.
I already saw the oval sign with the number 4808.
Evan opened the door, and I carried my bride to our honeymoon suite.
"Wow ...!" my angel murmured.
"Now you're in Chicago," I replied to her delighted face, giving her a kiss and setting her on her feet.
She immediately went to one of the windows, apparently not paying any attention to the modern and spacious room. And of course pulled me along with her by the handcuffs.
The view from our penthouse in Portland had already been great, but the Chicago skyline at night was much more impressive. Especially from that height. The 'Plaza' in New York had only nineteen floors. Whatever floor Bella had been on during the short trip before Christmas, here we were at least two and a half times as high. In places, you could see Lake Michigan through the skyscrapers, its waterside promenade lit up.
I sat down on the windowsill and looked at my adorable, entranced angel.
"May I take your luggage to the bedroom?" asked Evan after a long moment in the background.
He had allowed my wife the view as long as he thought it appropriate to just stand silently in the doorway. Hotel staff never entered rooms without being asked, whether the guest was present or not. Only cleaners were exempt from this rule.
I nodded to him.
He put the suitcase and bag on a designated shelf in the bedroom next door and came back.
I took a step towards him and handed him my left hand.
After all, my right was tied to my spouse.
When Evan noticed the bill in my hand that I had already taken out of my wallet at the front desk earlier, his polite smile swelled a bit, and he indicated a surrendered bow. He left while my angel still couldn't let go of the view.
I took the coat from her and threw it over the generous sofa.
I could spend the rest of eternity just looking at Bella's adorable expression and be perfectly happy with that. But actually, for so much time, I could think of something funnier to do with her.
Sitting on the windowsill, I took her hand.
She looked at me immediately. Smiled. Raised her free hand to my nape.
"We're married," she noted.
"Yes, we are," I confirmed.
"You are my husband!"
"I have to disagree with you there."
She looked cutely confused.
"Tell me if I'm wrong, but didn't we get married this afternoon?"
"Yes, but that alone does not make me your husband. And you not my wife."
"And what am I then?"
"My bride."
"What is missing for us to be husband and wife?"
"The wedding night!", I clarified.
Bella peeked teasingly, as if I had just invented it.
So I explained.
It was really like that! It not only belonged to the Christian duties to also consummate the marriage, but it was likewise actually anchored in the law books in such a way. Since the consummation of marriage was necessary for legal validity, it was sometimes performed under witnesses. At least among monarch unions, this custom persisted well into the nineteenth century. One could theoretically even sue for the consummation of the marriage in court, though I was not aware whether such a dispute had ever arisen.
"But haven't we already been through that? After all, Ced wouldn't exist otherwise!" she asked suspiciously.
"No, that doesn't count!", I lied unabashedly. In the past, far more importance was attached to the consummation of the marriage than to the church blessing, which could well take place later. So, according to points of view at that time, we would have been married already since September 15, 2024. So for one hundred and forty-seven wonderful days. Almost five months.
"Then I would say, let's fulfill our marital duty," she suggested seductively and gently kissed my lips.
"How romantic you say that," I smirked, but had already lifted her up in my arms again. After all, there was still a threshold to the bedroom.
She chuckled in surprise, since I had lifted her up so quickly.
"Door sill?" she asked.
I nodded.
We entered the bedroom and my angel looked at the window again impressed.
A clear view of the lake, surrounded by two skyscrapers. But here she also noticed the room itself.
The huge bed above all.
Everything was decorated in subtle beige and gray, with purple accents. For example, in the form of the curtains or an armchair that stood in a corner. Just like the living/dining room had been.
"Then why don't you cross the last threshold as well? I have to go to the bathroom," she suggested.
I thought so, which is why I hadn't lowered her yet.
I stopped at the room thermostat and Bella pushed the control to the highest setting.
Just like at home.
She grabbed the toiletry bag as we passed, and the last doorstep of the suite was behind us.
I put them in the bathroom.
Again, my angel was amazed, but this time it wasn't because of the view.
The bathroom was made of light stone. With large mirrors, bathtub, separate shower, two sinks set in granite and separate toilet. And all quite spacious.
"And you look the other way!" my wife held a forefinger in front of my face.
It wasn't that she was embarrassed or uncomfortable in front of me. We had both been over that for a few months. Rather, it was probably because our wedding night was coming up and she didn't want to destroy my image of my perfect wife. However, nothing would be able to change this image.
Nevertheless, I followed her instruction and turned away.
I was curious, though, how Bella was going to manage that with her dress. One-handed.
It was a lengthy endeavor, with Bella cursing under her breath several times and pulling roughly on my wrist several times.
As a human being, I would certainly suffer some bruising if it wasn't broken.
She washed her hands and wanted to remove her makeup so she wouldn't have to do it later.
I placed her between the two basins and did it for her.
I wanted to completely unwrap my bride, with everything that went with it. On her forehead I was especially gentle. There, where Leah's scar still was. I also took off her earrings, Rose's bracelet, and necklace. The rings I left where they were, but her hair I opened, and it fell down in gentle waves.
"You are so beautiful!", I murmured.
"Too late," she said, however.
"No, the truth! You are beautiful even without elaborate hairstyles or makeup. You always have been!", I explained my opinion.
She wanted to hug me, but because of the handcuffs she only managed to do it properly with one arm.
"I guess this is going to be interesting!" she smirked.
I nodded and lifted her off the granite slab. Kissing, we staggered back to the bedroom.
"I guess I should take off something you've been hiding under that dress first," I mused.
"The shoes. Good idea, because my feet already hurt!", she said.
"I had more of a garter in mind," I casually reflected. My sisters would have thought of that for sure, though I was grateful that it had apparently slipped their minds earlier in the party. Emmett, in particular, would have urged me to look for it under her dress in front of all the guests - in front of our children and their father!
Bella smiled audaciously.
"Then search. The shoes have time," she prompted me with shining eyes.
She leaned against a table, I knelt in front of her and lifted one of her legs.
"I would take the other one," she reflected.
So I changed, lifted the other one a bit and let my hands run over her slender leg, pushing the dress higher and higher.
Bella had to lean forward at the beginning, since our hands were tied together, but she leaned back up with my hands. With closed eyes and enjoying the touch.
I took my time.
I also already enjoyed the warmth of her body and her dreamy face in the process.
"But there isn't one," I noted when I reached the top.
"Oops ... Must have made a mistake," she chuckled.
So I repeated the little game on the other side, massaged a little harder over the delicate skin and found the baby blue garter. I leaned forward, kissed over the little bit of thigh above that was not covered by silk stockings.
A quiet soothing sound escaped Bella's throat.
With my teeth, I slowly pulled it down.
Carefully, so that it was not damaged. I wanted to repeat this on occasion. Of course, only in the exercise of my marital duty.
Proving it, I held it up.
Since I was already kneeling, I pulled her shoes off her feet right away.
As we stood in front of each other again, a strange feeling spread through me.
No uneasiness or worry or anything like that. It felt moving, melancholy and joyfully excited at the same time. A little nervous at that. And Bella looked at me with the same look. As if this moment and every other gesture was of great importance and every word was superfluous. As if we had never made love before. Yet we had done it so many times. We even had our son to prove it. But tonight it would take on a different meaning. Our wedding night was on.
I gently pushed my hands to her cheeks and kissed her.
Long, consuming, romantic, with our hands going on a demure journey of discovery.
We caressed each other.
Along our neck or cheeks, through our neck or hair, over our shoulders, around the waist, over each other's hands.
The long kiss sounded off and Bella slipped my jacket over my shoulders.
She did it very slowly and with a lot of touch, which somehow excited me emotionally.
This was only about an unimportant jacket.
Then she chewed on her lower lip, brooding, and I smiled. With the right sleeve, the jacket hung on our handcuffs.
"Alice will forgive us," I whispered into that emotional silence, carefully but quickly undoing the seams of my suit jacket. I knew that Alice would not be displeased about this. She had made these clothes exclusively for today. Yesterday, I corrected myself. It was well after midnight.
The jacket flew onto the armchair and Bella unbuttoned my vest. Just as slowly and sensitively and just as I separated the seam.
Bella only now noticed that her lace stretched across the back of the vest. She stroked it before tossing it onto the armchair. Then it was my jabot's turn, but the clasp was small and unfamiliar to Bella. The chain links of the handcuffs jingled softly as she took a closer look at the one in my neck.
I pulled her back so that she landed awkwardly in my arms.
"A little bell," I said, providentially jingling my wrist again.
She smiled and kissed me.
As it should have been.
"If the handcuffs count as bells now, too, then we won't do anything else for the rest of the night," she reasoned, still lying in my arms.
"So?" I didn't understand the problem. It was possible to undress while kissing, which she proved herself with the next kiss.
She fumbled, albeit tediously, with the clasp of the jabot. She looked quite triumphant as she tossed it aside.
She had shown it to this annoying thing.
She began to undo the buttons of my shirt.
I held her hands tightly.
"Tell me, my heart. When can I undress you?" I asked.
Instead of answering me, she raised her eyebrows briefly and kissed her way down my torso. Slowly, clearing one button after the other out of the way.
I forgot, meanwhile, to complain. Her warm little hands on me, coupled with her silky lips, had made me forget my complaint.
The shirt was open, and she wanted to pull it over my shoulders.
"Cuff links," I objected beforehand, however.
She took one of them and looked at it.
"Pretty. Little globes," she stated.
"Old, blue and borrowed. From David," I said.
"I didn't realize that applied to the groom, too," she reflected, chuckling.
She took the other one and immediately brought the two to a table in the other corner.
I followed her unobtrusively.
After all, I didn't have much choice, which Bella also noticed.
"Are you going to follow my every move from now on?" she asked.
"I swore to protect you!", I stated in epic proportions. Heroic pose, stretched and with chest out and all.
"From cuff links?"
"You manage to trip over your own thoughts and break a leg in the process!", I teased her.
"Are you dying to argue with me?"
"Why argue? I'm just stating facts!"
She stuck her tongue out at me and pouted in offense, whereupon I let the handcuffs clink.
So we came kissing back to the subject.
Undress.
My shirt landed in shreds scattered on the floor. For the merely purchased top shirt, I had no leisure to carefully unravel it at the seams.
Bella's delicate fingers were also immediately on my belt.
I had again missed the moment that I had a turn.
She commanded me to sit on the bed and took off my shoes, whereby I leaned towards her because of the handcuffs. Just close enough to kiss her. She also pulled my socks over my feet.
That was not so exciting now, which is why I mustered the necessary concentration to quickly get behind her. Now it was my turn first!
I left my chained hand on her belly while I took a survey of the fastening of her dress.
A lacing. Especially since my right hand was connected to Bella, it didn't look easy one-handed. For a human at least. So I fiddled with it, meanwhile caressing my bride along the side of her neck. I sucked in her flowery smell, tasted her silky skin, felt the pulsing of the carotid artery at my lips, heard her somewhat accelerated pulse and noticed her deep breaths under the hand on her belly.
I took my time.
"Shouldn't ... you ... better ... concentrate ... on the strings and hooks?" she mumbled in the meantime, her head resting on the back of her neck with her eyes closed in enjoyment.
"Is it taking you too long?", I inquired with a smirk.
I didn't get a clear answer, just a chuckling sound that sounded like an even clearer yes.
I put my hand on her belly a little tighter and pulled her close to me. In doing so, I put my free arm over her shoulder to show her the remains of her lacing. The entire silk ribbon had already been winding around my fingers for a few moments and those had merely held the dress in place so that it would not slip down immediately.
I saw her open her eyes and look indecisively at my fingers. She also added her free hand to examine the ribbon more closely. She seemed to be looking for its purpose, since the dress was still on her, as she briefly checked with a glance down at herself.
So I stepped back a bit and loosened my hand on her belly.
The pretty dress slipped down a good bit.
She looked cute. Surprised and delighted at the same time.
I squatted behind her, pulled the fabric down further and gathered it up a bit on the floor so that she could step out unhindered. A little more carefully I put it on the armchair.
"It's a pity you won't wear it again. It looked great on you," I mused while doing so.
"Maybe we'll get married again. Like Alice and Jazz ... or Rose and Em."
"You don't believe that Alice will let you marry twice in the same dress?", I doubted very strongly. More likely hell would freeze over!
"Nah, kinda not!" my angel admitted with a smirk.
After this was now clarified and a little bell had rung again somewhere, I devoted myself to the petticoat. Leisurely I pulled it down and gently massaged along her legs.
Strange accessory, I thought. It had let the fabric of the dress fall very nicely, but now it lay quite flat and flattened on the floor. So be it. I had more to take off.
But during my fleeting consideration, Bella had already turned back to me and was tampering with my pants.
She hadn't been able to undo more than the belt earlier. The fabric of my suit was quite heavy, which is why the pants didn't fall down so easily. Bella had to lend a hand there and she began to kiss with her lips over my belly.
I was already smirking and eager to see her reaction.
She came - as expected. When she uncovered my boxer shorts, she started laughing up.
"Is there anything about my underwear that doesn't agree with you?", I inquired.
She did not answer.
From laughter.
It took a while for her to say anything, while I just stood there patiently, watching her laugh frugally and waiting.
"Yes, it is. It's appropriate for the occasion," she opined.
"Then why are you laughing so dirty?"
Then I really didn't get an answer to that.
Bella had seduced me so often with exciting lingerie in the past few months that I had now developed a real aversion to the clothing industry. There were so many options for women. Sexy, playful, cute, elegant. But for men, there were hardly any provocative ideas that were within a certain taste norm to somehow compensate for that. Coincidentally, I did find something when I was out one afternoon with David in Portland. My boxer shorts looked like a tuxedo. Centered on a white satin 'shirt' with three black buttons, the actual 'suit' was black nylon, sewn on pockets and collar, and there was even a little bow tie on the waistband.
"Sexy!" murmured Bella as she gently stroked her fingertips over the 'shirt' to the bow tie.
"But you're still wearing something rather superfluous," I murmured back, putting my hands on her waist.
The handcuffs had clinked. I complied with this jingling as I slowly slid the lace top up her. Again, I only carefully undid the seam to be able to free Bella from it completely. It took all my willpower not to just rip it to shreds while Bella examined my little tuxedo on my ass for completeness.
So we both stood there in just our underwear.
For a moment, we just looked at each other.
Bella was just beautiful. No matter what she wore ... or didn't wear.
We lifted our bound hands, intertwined our fingers with each other, kissed incredibly and at some point fell together on the bed.
There were many ways to make love. Wild, romantic, passionate, fast, fiery, greedy, enjoying. There were also just as many terms for it. Sex and coitus, but also fucking, fuck and similar - in my opinion - vulgar and inappropriate terms. But what Bella and I experienced together that night could be summed up in a single word: Love. We loved each other on so many different levels of consciousness. Physically and emotionally. My senses were going completely crazy. All our affection for each other and all our mutual trust was palpable that night ...
"I love you, Bella!", I whispered around four in the morning, after a consuming kiss, stroking her face lovingly.
She lay on me with an exceedingly enchanted expression. And with swollen lips.
"I love you too, Edward!" she mumbled tiredly.
I smiled.
It had been a long and exciting day.
I flipped the covers over her and put an arm around her back.
"Sleep now, my love. And tomorrow I'll show you my city," I gave her a kiss on the forehead.
"Mmm ... mmm ..." she was still mumbling, but then was fast asleep.
So we lay in the darkness of the hotel room, and I dreamed to myself while listening to Bella's heartbeat. Later also her involuntary words. Like me, my angel dreamed of that day. How stunning I had looked when she had seen me standing on the podest.
"You too, dearest. Like a beautiful queen who rules over me," I answered her words mumbled in a dream.
She also said something about Ced and how cute he looked in his tails. That Marcus had lied in her way. How great our twins looked. She was surprised that I had eaten cake and drank champagne. There were a few little things that made me smile. Right down to the handcuffs, where her little sleepy monologue had sadly come to an end. We still had the handcuffs on, and our fingers were still intertwined. They hadn't separated for a moment. In the end, the restraint hadn't bothered us all that much. Had Emmett imagined it differently?
I didn't know exactly what time it was when Bella stirred above me.
It was already daylight, although cloudy. Therefore, I could not accurately determine the position of the sun. Alice had certainly taken a prescient look at the weather when she considered sending us to Chicago. However, there would certainly be very pleasant aspects to having the sun lock me in this room. With Bella, of course. I didn't really feel like getting up and leaving either. Rather, I just wanted to enjoy extensive togetherness with my wife and cuddle. Really. Just cuddle! ... Who knew where the cuddling would lead us?
"Good morning, my beloved wife!", I greeted her blinking eyes in a whisper.
She took a moment to adjust to the brightness, but then drew an arm across my chest and rested her chin on it.
"Say that again, please," she asked.
"Good morning," I murmured again.
"Not that."
I smirked.
I had already figured that she meant the second part of my greeting.
I lifted my head, gently placed my fingertips against her face and kissed her tenderly.
"My wife!" so I repeated.
She smiled.
"Good morning, my husband!" she said now.
What that sounded like. Husband! "And how did my wife sleep?"
"Lovely!" she said, stretching with pleasure and rolling off me to snuggle at my side. "And my husband?"
"I had a nice conversation with my wife, who seemed to be dreaming about the day yesterday."
I reported in more detail while our chained hands played with each other. Then she went into the bathroom, and I had to go with her.
"How long do we have to wear these?" asked Bella.
I shrugged my shoulders ignorantly.
On my way back to bed, I took my cell phone out of the suitcase.
It was already after twelve o'clock.
I took a picture of our bound hands on the bedspread. Asking when I might release us from it, I sent it to Emmett.
There was no answer, but that didn't bother me very much at the moment. After Bella had asked whether I wanted to get rid of her so soon, I just proved the opposite. That it would be very practical if she could not run away.
I tickled her, she tickled me too, we teased each other silly, kissed again and again and playfully squabbled between the sheets. Until there was a knock. Surprised, we lifted our heads.
Who disturbed us here in the middle of the war?!
Bella gave me a kiss on the tip of my nose and wanted to get up. I pulled her back by the handcuffs.
"You weren't going to open the door like that, were you?!", I asked skeptically, pointing at her extensive clothing. She was wearing her rings on her finger. Nothing more. And the handcuffs, of course.
Wrapped together in the comforter, we staggered through the bedroom, through the living/dining room to the door of the room.
A bellboy had a serving cart with him.
"Good morning, ma'am, sir ... I trust you had a pleasant night?" he asked, politely skipping our elevator.
As was to be expected in hotels of this category. Mentally, he thought his piece. Namely, that we looked like we had a very pleasant and, above all, exciting night.
"Yes, we did. Thank you," I confirmed. "And what are you bringing us? We didn't order anything."
"We got phone orders to bring you this," he said, lifting two of the four covers on the serving cart.
A plate with toasted slices of toast. A plate with scrambled eggs and bacon.
Bella immediately snacked on the fried bacon, and I heard her stomach growl enthusiastically.
Between the plates, an envelope leaned against a small vase of flowers. In Emmett's handwriting it said,
'Bella & Edward'
I pushed Bella back into the bedroom for a tip while the bellboy wheeled the cart to the dining table. We passed him with our chained hands, at which he smirked. I thanked him politely and he left.
Further wrapped in the blanket, we took seats on top of each other at the table.
Bella grabbed the thermos of coffee first; I grabbed the envelope.
I read aloud,
Welcome to marriage! Since you must have had a very short night, I thought you could use something to eat. Consider breakfast your reward if the night wasn't enough for you. Enclosed is the key for the handcuffs so you don't have to break these. I'm sure they can be used again. Have fun recycling them!
Emmett
"And how did the key get here?" asked Bella, puzzled, as I now opened the handcuffs using the key.
"Maybe he brought it, maybe sent it here by express or courier, maybe the Denali's dropped it off on their way home," I pondered. I really didn't know.
Gently, I put the shackle aside.
I would certainly use them again.
Bella ate breakfast and I was amazed at how well my brother actually knew Bella's tastes.
Scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, fruit, orange juice. Bella's favorite breakfast.
We chatted as we did so.
"... I searched the entire property for you!", I justified myself, because I had searched for her for quite a long time yesterday. "I was sure that David wouldn't kidnap you to the point where you had to leave the premises, but that he would have you brought right back to the ballroom, I wouldn't have thought of that in my life. I was afraid that you would have run away. Tell me, since I am now officially and legally recognized as Jake's father, I can surely punish him very severely for helping with your kidnapping, can't I?" I then dug deeper.
"What are you going to do with him? Maybe send him to boarding school?"
"Maybe. Somewhere far away, without phone and without internet, so he has no contact with Becky anymore either!", I stated.
"You could do that to him?"
I nodded decisively.
It was an outright lie, which Bella knew, of course.
She laughed at me. Since she was finished with her breakfast, I pushed the serving cart into the hallway and pulled my wife into the shower, offended. I soaped every square inch of her delicate skin very thoroughly. As she did mine.
Hygiene was important after all.
I combed my wife's damp hair and, kissing, we staggered back into the bedroom I nudged her as we stood right in front of the bed, causing her to fall into the sheets. From the toilet bag I got her body lotion and was further very careful with the application of cream.
Not that I would forget a spot.
I checked with my lips whether every spot was really of its usual silky texture. In some places I checked this particularly extensively.
However innocently my thoughts had begun, we were both powerless against the physical desire. In this respect, we lay in bed at some point very happy, but quite disheveled.
She fetched something to drink from next door, while I increasingly liked the role of the husband, who dutifully fulfilled the obligations assigned to him.
Then apparently Bella actually had ambitions to go outside?
She put down her glass, looked inside our suitcase and rummaged around in it.
Alice had even packed us a laptop? What on earth for?
With underwear for both of us, Bella sat down on the edge of the bed, having already put on a pair of panties.
I crawled over to her across the lying surface.
"You really want out?", I said, running my fingertips over her back.
"You said you wanted to show me your city," she stated, peering over her shoulder.
"The city is not going anywhere."
"Neither am I!"
She gave me a promising kiss, but immediately leaned forward to put on her socks. Then she already had her bra in her hands, unimpressed by my gentle fingers.
How did Candy put it the other night? I'd have to bring out the big guns!
So I kissed my way up her back and Bella became a little less confident in handling her bra. Nevertheless, she had it on then. I caressed over her shoulder, pulled down the strap.
"Edward. Are you going to stay in bed all day when we're already in Chicago?" she reprimanded me and lifted the carrier back to its original place.
"I have marital duties to perform," I muttered, pulling the strap back down.
" You have just done that," she reminded me.
"And wasn't it beautiful?"
"Yes. Sure. It was okay," she opined matter-of-factly. Pushing the strap up again.
"Okay?" I asked in dismay. That struck me deep in my masculine pride. Just okay?! "Then I guess I'll have to refresh your memory a bit!", I stated threateningly, unclasping her bra with two fingers and pulling her back to the bed.
I wouldn't take an 'okay' lying down. And I gave it all I had. All the passion that dwelled in me, dwelled in me only because of her, I unleashed. In honor of my goddess.
I took my time, using all that her body and soul had taught me in the past months to tickle the arousal out of Bella in all its beautiful facets.
And what Bella was doing, meanwhile, didn't look like 'okay'. Not by a long shot. She was lolling beneath me. Moaning unrestrainedly. Twitched and vibrated. Clawed into my skin. Her eyelids fluttered. She whimpered my name in ecstasy. I teased her to the extreme until she begged me to give her fulfillment ...
We both struggled to breathe and looked into each other's eyes with glowing gazes as Bella lay in my arms afterwards. Dusk was already setting in, while Bella was still shaken by small aftershocks for some time and soon fell asleep from exhaustion.
However, I only let her rest for a good hour so that the day/night rhythm did not shift.
So I kissed gently over her face. She smiled enraptured, but also still a little sleepy. I got her something to drink, but we stayed in bed together. Bella made no effort to want to leave this bed for the time being.
We talked, cuddled, teased, and kissed.
We ordered Bella's dinner to the room. With her dessert, she sat on the windowsill in her bathrobe and looked out at the illuminated city.
We were just happy and enjoyed each other's undisturbed company.
Around nine o'clock in the evening, a text message reached me.
Are you guys on the road right now or can we Skype for a minute?
Jake had written.
Give us two minutes.
I wrote back.
"So that's what the laptop is for," I thus stated.
"Do you think something happened?" asked Bella uneasily.
"I don't think so. Otherwise he wouldn't have inquired carefully, but would have called immediately," I said.
We went to our suitcase, put on some clothes and set up the laptop on the dining table. We waited kissing for the Internet call, which came immediately.
Jake, Leah, and Ced sat around the home computer and waved smiling into the camera.
"Mommy! Daddy!" Ced immediately cheered, seemingly pawing at the monitor.
"This isn't working, Ced," Leah took the hands off our baby.
She told him that although he could see us and we could see him, his gift was not applicable via this video call.
Our son looked cutely scowled.
"Ced didn't really understand," Jake, meanwhile, began to explain why he had wanted to Skype. "Jazz had said you guys would be away for a few days without us. But Ced didn't infer from that that he really wouldn't see you. He assumed that you guys would be gone during the day, but that he would at least be put to bed by you guys."
"In other words, you don't want to go to bed," I thus stated in summary and slightly upset. In Saco it was an hour later, so already almost ten o'clock in the evening. Still early for our twins, but not for our baby!
Our baby crossed his arms in front of his chest and shook his head very seriously. I saw the little indignant wrinkle between his eyebrows.
"Your baby, my heart!", I whispered to Bella.
We tried to explain to him what the honeymoon was all about. That one usually started this without children. Usually you simply didn't have any children when you started it, but at most brought some with you, even if you only found this out later. We said that we were too far away to just come home. But that we all missed them.
We really did, even though it was only now that we were actually reminded of our children by this video call.
We asked how the celebration had gone on yesterday without us.
Another game had been played with all the guests. Thirteen couples competed against each other and had to get something different in each round of the game, which was more difficult to obtain with each round: lipsticks, condoms, handkerchiefs, tampons and so on. Relatively at the end, bras were required, but most of the ladies had not worn any at all, which had made it a bit tricky. There were thirteen chairs and in each round of play one was removed from the group. So the couple that took too long to get the requested item and didn't get a seat had lost the round.
David and Sonya owed us dinner as a result. Rose and Emmett a house cleaning. Charlie and Sue an outing with our kids so we would be alone. Kate and Garrett had to arrange a date for us ... A gambling debt was due in each of the next twelve months. We had to take the winning couple out to dinner exquisitely. Akai and Phoebe.
After that, David and his family had gone on their way. The kids had school today, after all. What the vampires had been up to, they didn't know, but the humans had all retired around eleven, with Carlisle driving Granny home. Our four teenagers, along with Ced, had made themselves comfortable in Jake's attic and were awakened in time by Carlisle and Esmé with coffee. Much to the chagrin of the school-age children. They had hoped they would be forgotten and allowed to sleep in. Ced had played a lot with the Native Americans today. In the water, of course. They would apparently be flying home on Wednesday. Right now Billy, Emily, and Sam were having dinner with Becky's family.
"So how's Chicago?" asked Leah elatedly.
"Um ... Nice!", Bella said, with a trace of embarrassment in her voice.
I chuckled at that.
"Look at this view!" she put in, grabbing the laptop and walking over to the window so the kids could see something through the little camera.
It was dark outside, but the night skyline was still very impressive.
I turned off the lights in the room so they would see it better. I heard fascinated murmuring through the loudspeaker.
When we looked at the screen again, Ced covered his eyes.
"I think Ced is afraid of heights," Leah chuckled.
We said a melancholy goodbye to our children, instructed Ced to go to bed without growling, and told them how much we loved them. And we arranged to Skype again tomorrow night.
I put the computer on the windowsill and hugged my wife. A tear rolled out of the corner of her eye.
"Would you rather go home?", I asked her.
She looked at me.
"Yes. I mean no," she dropped her head against my shoulder, and I smirked at her very precise answer.
If she had asked me, I probably would have said the same thing.
"I really like to be alone with you for a few days. Switch off from everyday life. Not having to share you with anyone. Discover the world with you," she tried to explain her answer, taking my thoughts out of my head.
"But our children are not here," I completed.
She nodded. And chuckled shortly after.
"Do you think they realized we haven't set foot outside this room yet?"
"Certainly not," I said with conviction.
"Yes, we did!" came the laughing sound from the computer.
I hadn't finished Skype and apparently neither had our kids.
Bella blushed cutely.
"Didn't we just send you to bed?", I called out to the device.
"Good night!" it warbled, and this time I heard the call end.
Bella laughed again.
We took off our only makeshift clothes again and went back to bed. We took the laptop with us.
A few things I wanted to show Bella in my city I already knew since the destination of our trip was known to me. Chicago had a lot to offer, but we only had three days.
So we made plans for the coming days so that we could also tell the children something.
"Sleep now, dearest. And tomorrow I'll show you my city," I gave her a kiss on the forehead as she grew sleepy around midnight.
"That's what you said yesterday!"
Thanks for reading!
