CHAPTER ELEVEN

American stories burning before me

I'm feeling helpless, the damsels are depressed

~ Taylor Swift, Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince

Edward Cullen

There was a field nestled deep in the rockies, probably five times larger than the average baseball field. Perfect for a game of ball, according to Emmett who took a surprising amount of pride in making sure the field met his specifications.

Bella hesitated at my side as we approached, the slightest falter in her steps as we each listened to the family discuss their modified game rules.

My thumb brushed over the back of her hand.

Something wrong?

Bella released a soft sigh. "I'm not good at sports."

I tried to hide my smile, pressing my lips into the top of her head. She never said what I was expecting, never worried about things I would expect from someone in her situation. "I don't think you have to doubt your athletic ability anymore."

"I don't know, Eddie," Emmett chuckled from across the field. "If any vampire had the ability to still be uncoordinated, I would put my money on Bella."

I would have argued with him, had he not recalled the memory of walking past the gymnasium in Forks High and witnessing Bella managing to not only bump into a rack full of volleyballs, but do it as she attempted to serve the ball and manage to ricochet it off the wall and into the teachers back.

"I told her not to let me play," Bella grumbled.

"You did," Alice agreed. "Then Mike decided to take one for the team and volunteer to be your partner."

Mike. I'd heard his name a few times, and had already decided I wasn't a fan.

Alice shook her head, flittering to Bella's side and pulling us both to the center of the field. "Excellent work on the thunder," she said to Bella with a smile.

Bella beamed over at her, then up at the sky. It was early evening, but the storm clouds hovered overhead. A few droplets of rain here and there, but mostly some rumbles of thunder every once in a while.

All brought on by the pretty little brunette at my side.

She had started working on it while Carlisle and I were still talking. It was fascinating, how much control she had now that she had my venom in her system. How much stamina. Our few hours of practice before had her practically drained, but she had brought in quite the weather front and didn't seem fazed by it at all.

Her eyes still swirled with silver strands between the amber.

My thumb grazed the back of her palm again.

"Edward and I will be team captains," Alice said, looping her arm through mine and pulling me toward the front of the group.

I shot Bella a wink as she settled herself beside Esme. Alice pulled my attention away, frowning up at me. I watched, fascinated, as round after round of rock-paper-scissors played in her mind between the two of us. Who got first pick, I realized.

"I win," I smirked, watching it play out in her mind.

"Damnit," she grumbled, taking a few steps away and frowning over at the family.

Bella's eyes widened in pure shock as I called her first. "You don't have to pick me."

My lips twitched up to the left. "I want to pick you."

Emmett coughed out a laugh.

Bella sighed. "I don't think you do."

"For being quite literally the most powerful vampire in existence, you're awfully quick to doubt yourself."

"You saw what happened with the volleyballs."

"When you were human. And adorably clumsy."

"Adorable," Emmett scoffed playfully. "Girl would have cracked her skull open half a dozen times if we weren't around."

"No switching. Bella, you're with Edward," Alice said quickly.

Bella walked to my side, frowning over at Alice and her overly relieved thoughts at not having Bella on her team. Her fingers slid between mine as she mumbled, "I've never been picked first for a sport before."

I hid my own smile against her hair, squeezing her hand.

Alice picked Emmett first, unsurprisingly. I snagged Carlisle and Rosalie while Alice got Jasper and Esme. A fairly even match up, visually.

Personally, I saw no competition. Alice had her visions, which would be their biggest advantage aside from Emmett's size, but I had Bella. And access to Alice's visions myself.

"Don't look too confident, Eddie," Emmett said, swinging a bat between his fingers. "I doubt baseball is big in Italy."

"It's not," I shook my head, catching a ball easily as Carlisle threw it from across the field. "But where do you think this little tradition started?"

1923 was the first game. Carlisle, Esme, and I against a few nomads we ran into on our way out of the country. We were headed to London for the time when a storm hit.

Emmett let out an excited guffaw, tossing the bat in Bella's direction. She caught it easily, but her hesitation about the game was clear on her face.

I pulled her close, not needing to see her mind to read her worries.

You're not the fragile human who couldn't walk over a flat surface without tripping anymore, I told her silently. With a hand on her hips I situated her stance, gently sliding her feet into place and wrapping my arms around her and holding the bat between our hands. You are strong and powerful and unstoppable.

Her body stiffened against mine. I got a beautiful flutter of her thoughts in my own head. Unstoppable things are dangerous.

I pressed my lips to the hollow of her throat. Unstoppable things are remarkable.

Carlisle wound up a warm up pitch from across the field. I gave him a nod and he pitched it straight for us. The ball ricocheted off of the bat with a satisfying crack in sync with a snap of lightning from above.

My lips brushed against her throat again. "That's my girl."

—Miss Americana—

It was still surreal. Hard to believe that in front of me was the woman who changed the course of my existence. It had been less than two weeks ago that I found her in that meadow, sitting amongst the windflowers and terrified of her own breathing.

Now, she sat across from me in an equally beautiful field of flowers, all blooming in the early spring air while snow fluttered to the ground around us. Snow that came simply because she willed it.

"Amazing," I sighed, carefully tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear. It was tied up in an intricate braid, a few strands having blown astray in the wind.

Her eyes opened slowly, deep amber mixed with fading silver strands. It had been days since she had fed; off of an animal or me. And she was still going strong, no signs of the lethargy that came from her strictly animal diet.

Bella opened her mouth only to be interrupted by a call we, unfortunately, knew was coming.

Aro.

Alice had seen a glimpse of it, but Bella got a full vision of it this morning. Bella still gave Alice some blind spots, much to her frustration.

I brushed away the worry lines between her brows as I reached for the phone. The one only Aro had the number to.

"Aro," I answered, easily falling back into the person I had become for ninety years. I stood silently, pacing across the field through the still falling snow.

"Edward, my boy," Aro said, his voice its usual odd mixture of monotone and brittle with just a hint of threatening. "How is the situation progressing?"

"Fine," I told him flatly. The moment he knew there was something I wanted, something keeping me from him, was the moment he held all of the cards again. "There was a girl changed by Carlisle. He found her in a car that she managed to wrap around a tree. She hasn't been as… receptive to his lifestyle as his usual additions, though. It's been a struggle to keep her on the right track and under control. He didn't send word because it's unlikely she'll be a permanent member of his coven. He's simply doing his due diligence to make sure she understands the rules and knows to keep herself hidden."

"Ah."

I waited, knowing what his next question would be.

"Does she have any… specialities?"

My eyes floated across the field toward where she sat. The snow stopped and that wrinkle of worry pinched between her brows again.

The lie fell off of my tongue easily. "No."

"Pity. I'll expect you back within a few days time then?" It was phrased as a question, but we both knew it wasn't.

"I don't trust her," I told him. "She's incredibly volatile, constantly on the verge of making quite the mess of the small town they're in. There's still a decent chance she'll fall off the wagon and need to be taken care of before she causes a larger mess of things. I'll stay until I'm confident she's not a threat to the bigger picture."

Aro's silence was held for longer than necessary. He was always a fan of the dramatics.

"You'll have no problem taking care of her, should she become a problem?"

"Of course not."

Bella flinched at the words. Both Aro and I hung up, neither of us bothering with pleasantries or goodbyes.

Bella let out a breath, eyes on the ground as she anxiously picked at the grass. "What happens when he decides he wants you back?"

I folded myself back into the grass, sitting cross legged in front of her. Grasping both of her hands, I brushed my lips against her knuckles. "After a few more weeks, I'll call him back. Tell him I enjoyed seeing Carlisle, that the girl was taken care of after a close run in with a human but I'll be spending the foreseeable time with Carlisle."

"You think he's just going to let you go?"

"No," I shook my head. "But it's a start. I'll offer to take care of anything he needs nearby and it will placate him for the time being."

It was too big of a risk to ever physically go back to Volterra. Aro enjoyed my easy access to every mind without the need for contact, and he would be able to see everything about Bella the moment his hand fell on my shoulder.

Planting the seeds of my departure was the best we could do for the moment.

"If he tries to take you away from me–I…" Bella stuttered quietly.

I lifted her chin with a gentle finger. "It won't come to that."

"Okay kids, that's enough," Alice chirped, clapping her hands quickly and appearing beside us. "Time to go."

Bella sighed, replaying a wonderfully satisfying vision of what would have happened were we given another three seconds and Alice not interrupted.

I shot her a wink, getting to my feet and helping her do the same.

"Two days seems like a long time," Bella sighed.

I had no words of encouragement, because I was dreading the next two days just as much as her. We hadn't gone more than a few hours apart since I found her.

"It'll go by like that," Alice said with a snap. "We have plenty to do. Nails to paint, dresses to finish, bachelorette parties to throw. Really, we're already running behind schedule."

"What do you think the odds of me being able to sneak away are?" Bella playfully whispered against my chest.

Alice grumbled, giving us a minute alone.

I wrapped my arms around her waist, taking in a lungful of her scent. "I've been waiting a century to marry you," I sighed against her neck. "I suppose we'll survive two more days."

—Miss Americana—

Perhaps I was giving myself too much credit when I agreed and told Alice I would stay away for the full two days. I had an excellent excuse for breaking my promise, and in reality I didn't feel all that bad about it. I had waited for that woman for ninety years. A handful of hours apart now that I knew what I was missing was far more agonizing than I realized it would be.

She had seen me coming, just as I knew she would, and waited against the trunk of a large pine tree. Her outfit had me fighting a smile. It was obviously something Alice had come up with; a silky white pajama set with Mrs. embroidered on the top and shorts that had me second guessing my–mostly–pure intentions for my visit.

We let out matching sighs as soon as we caught sight of each other. Then I had my unnecessary breath knocked out of me as she barreled into me.

"Too long," she mumbled against my chest. "Never again."

I breathed out a chuckle against her hair, pressing a kiss to her temple. "Never again."

Eventually, Bella reluctantly pulled away. Just a fraction of an inch so she could look up at me.

"I don't want–"

I broke her off with a kiss. I didn't need to read her mind to know what she was going to say.

While I now knew my self-control wasn't strong enough to stay away from her for a full two days, my main reason for my visit was far more practical than a simple hello. And she knew it. Had seen me make the decision.

Has it ever occurred to you, I thought, pulling away and peppering kisses down her neck. That the thought of you feeding off of me is incredibly sexy to me?

Bella huffed out a breath. Her fingers clenched the flimsy fabric of my button down as dark eyes peered up at me. There were still faint gray streaks in her eyes, and she still seemed to be functioning fine on a mixture of animal blood and my venom, but it was going on a week since that first bite. And I didn't want her feeling too drained tomorrow.

Plus, there was the far more primal side of me that enjoyed the idea of it. Of knowing there was always part of me inside of her. That those eyes swam with my venom.

My mind wandered to far more scandalous images of her and I.

"Oh," Bella breathed out, eyes glassy and unfocused.

It's a purely selfish request on my part. I just need to make sure you've got the energy to keep up with me tomorrow night.

Our wedding night.

Were I a man with more willpower and sentiment, I might have waited until we were married to make her mine. Done things the more proper way, the way I was raised so long ago.

I was quick to realize my willpower was nonexistent where Bella was concerned. She could ask for the moon and I would make it happen.

"Just you," she said softly. "All I want is you."

"I'm yours," I told her, pulling her closer by her hips and softly nipping at her neck.

She hesitated, her lips pressing against my jugular. Then her teeth lightly scratched against the skin. Were she any less durable, the grip I had on her hips would have shattered them both as her teeth finally sank into my neck.

Bella took three generous pulls from me before somewhat reluctantly pulling herself away. I had just enough time to catch a glimpse of her eyes, bright and swimming with silver, before I pulled her lips to mine again.

It was as natural as breathing, having her in my arms. There were few actual cognitive decisions made as I pressed her into the tree, as her legs wrapped around my waist. While her breathy little moan would have spurred me on in any other situation, the lingering idea of doing things right by her floated back to my mind.

It was far too late for that, of course. But I could do much better than taking her against a tree the night before our wedding.

I pulled away with a reluctant sigh, pressing a lingering kiss to the corner of her lips. "The next time I have you, you'll be my wife," I breathed out against her skin. I would peel her wedding dress off of her, lay her down in our bed, and take my time appreciating every inch of her.

Bella whimpered quietly against my neck, but reluctantly let her legs fall from my waist.

—Miss Americana—

How Alice managed to have a tuxedo perfectly tailored to my body and delivered to Carlisle's home practically in the middle of nowhere Canada within a span of seven days, I'll never know. I was becoming ever thankful for the woman, though.

For all of the Cullen's.

Rosalie was still hesitant about me, but I couldn't blame her. Emmett and Jasper were easy to get along with, though. Both keeping me occupied during the two days Alice had requested Bella's full attention for wedding preparations. Emmett showed me practically every moment he had with Bella as a human and I had to agree that it was a miracle she had ever survived.

Part of me wished I had known her as a human. Had gotten to see the adorable clumsiness for myself. But as he mistakenly showed me the moment her change started, the moment she collapsed beside my old piano as Carlisle tried to save her human life before they realized what was happening, I was selfishly thankful for my blissful ignorance in Volterra at the time.

Had I known she was enduring months upon months of burning, I don't know what I would have done.

Jasper was a quiet presence, but his mind was always working. Strategizing. He had a history with the south, vampire wars that barely went undetected by the human population. Before my arrival, he had always had an appreciation for the Volturi. For the peace they tried to keep. But the knowledge that Aro was possibly in the process of breaking that peace had him on edge. Reminiscing about his own vampire wars.

It was easy to come to care for both of them. Even Rosalie, despite her coldness toward me. Because I knew that even though she didn't trust me, she was protecting Bella. And I had nothing but respect for her for that.

"Don't you look handsome," Esme sighed, breezing into the room in a lovely lavender gown.

I smiled down at her, letting her fix my bowtie even though I knew I had it perfectly straight before. "You look lovely."

She waved me off. "Wait until you see your wife."

Wife.

I remembered the moment with perfect clarity. The damp, midnight air was still fresh in my nostrils as it was the evening Alice found me and showed me that split second of Bella.

And now she was here. Safe. Protected. Mine.

Esme patted my cheek. "I'm glad you're home, Edward."

I smiled, pressing a kiss to her cheek quickly. "Me too."

Our wedding was small. Nestled in the mountains of the Rockies, only our found family in attendance. Carlisle stood by my side, at the end of a makeshift aisle that had sprigs of lavender leading down the way. Made by Bella, I realized with a smile as I reached down to put a sprig in my coat pocket.

Emmett, Rosalie, Esme, Alice and Jasper stood close by, none of them tensing when Jacob Black and Seth Clearwater emerged from the forest, very obviously dressed by Alice given the perfect press of their suits.

Bella invited them, Esme told me quickly. They came to an understanding.

I sighed, eying the boy who foolishly thought he had a claim on my mate. Granted, he knew far better now. But there was little logic where mates were concerned.

I just want to make sure she's safe and happy, Jacob told me quietly, eying me with a raised brow as if asking if I heard him. We're here to watch her back, and yours.

I saw a flash of a conversation with Bella, one that must have happened within the last two days. One where she bluntly told the wolves that if they were going to stick around due to some calling they felt to protect her, they were going to have to be, in Bella's words, less creepy about it.

They had been hiding in the woods for the most part. Keeping their distance. Watching from afar. Stalking, as Bella had put it to me a few days ago. It was still a somewhat tense relationship. And while I had a grudge against the kid for thinking he had a chance with Bella, it might be nice for her to have them around. Someone from her life before.

I didn't care to think about the wolves any longer. Not when a flash of white caught my eye and I watched the most remarkably beautiful creature float down the aisle toward me.

Her dress was stunning. Fabric ruffling off her shoulders and across her chest. The lightweight chiffon floating down her legs with ivory flowers embroidered to the ground. Her hair fell in curls down her back, half of it braided in an intricate piece of art with a few lavender sprigs of her own braided in.

Carlisle's hand fell firmly on my shoulder.

I hadn't even realized I took a step toward her.

After a painstakingly long minute, she was in front of me. I took a hold of her hands after Alice quickly stole her bouquet from her. I had to swallow a few times in order to remember how to speak. "You look… exquisite."

Bella beamed up at me.

Carlisle made quick work of the ceremony.

And then, after ninety long years, Isabella Swan was finally my wife.

A/N: I'm sorry about the delay on this one. Life has just been annoyingly in the way these days. I will say I think things are about to get a little rough for these two, so enjoy the peaceful moment while you can ;) I hope you guys enjoyed this one, and I'll see you next time!