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Chapter 14
Peepshow
Edward
I had just finished making plans for the coming day when my cell phone vibrated and I noticed that it was almost light out. I reached for it to see who was calling me at this hour.
'Alice' it lit up broadly on the display - who else?!
"What do you want?", I whispered.
"Have a wonderful good morning, too," she chirped in my ear, far too gleefully. "And I want to remind Bella that she missed her walk practice session yesterday!"
"Hmm ...", I mumbled. "She will be very enthusiastic about this. Besides, she's still asleep."
"Wake her up then! I need her again before I leave with Esmé to pick out the decorating fabrics."
"It's only a little after six! What time do you want to leave?"
"Two hours at the latest. Better sooner, we need to go to Seattle."
"OKAY. Oh yeah, what's the weather going to be like in the next few days?"
"Here in Forks ..." she started.
"No, toward Port Angeles in the mountains," I interrupted her.
"Why do you need to know the weather to hunt? ... Ahh ... Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort! Oh yeaaahh ... swimming, splashing, bathing ... It's going to be so great. I haven't been swimming for so long ..."
"Stop, wait a minute! Who's talking about you there?! Don't you have enough other things to do?"
"Oh come on! We can all spare a few hours! Just imagine what fun that would be!"
With Bella and my siblings together? The two of us on show for Emmett? Rose and Alice in bikinis ... Not exactly what Bella would feel comfortable with ...
"Oh no, not in the water and with all that chlorine!" she immediately shot down the objection.
"Now can you please tell me what the weather is up to!" I really didn't have the nerve now to argue about it on the phone with a sleeping Bella next to me. "And that hasn't been talked out yet!"
"Tomorrow is perfect! It will be even warmer than today, but remains cloudy. On Saturday the sun comes through too often!"
"Thank you."
"Please! And come on time! ... Um ..."
I waited, because I had the feeling that she wanted to say something else. But when nothing further came and my uneasy feeling increased further, I dug deeper.
"What?"
"Oh nothing. See you later!"
"See you then," I managed to get out just before only a toot could be heard.
I gave Bella another half hour of tossing and turning restlessly, resting her arm on my chest, her leg slowly wrapping more and more around my waist, and finally rolled completely on top of me and nestled against me.
She lifted her head and blinked at me, smiling sleepily.
"Good morning, my kitten," I murmured, pressing a kiss to her forehead.
How glad I was at that moment not to be a human man in the morning.
"Hmm ..." she purred. "Morning," and rubbed her face into the crook of my neck, making me shiver.
"Alice is expecting us."
"OKAY, my cougar. I'll brush my teeth first and then get a real good morning kiss from you!", she grinned at me.
I had to laugh softly at so much euphoria in the morning and then sighed.
What had I started here?
As soon as we arrived home, Bella was snatched away from me by Alice, who mentally sang 'All My Little Ducklings' in every language she knew. Her preferred method of purposefully and effectively banishing me from her mind. More secrets?
I rolled my eyes.
"Not very creative today," I teased her.
"Pff ... do you want me to do you a favor and come up with something new for your indiscretion every time just for your entertainment?", she replied annoyed.
"As if I could do anything about it. See you later, Bella," I could just call after her, when she was already dragged up the stairs by my sister-fury.
That was fine with me, because it meant I could approach Esmé unobserved to ask her about a house for us in Hanover. If anyone knew real estate, it was her, and not just in all sorts of places to study, but actually all-over North America. Her interest in architecture and her talent in renovating combined with Alice's talent had already landed her some lucrative deals. My mother would probably make the best realtor in the entire United States.
And as I suspected, she was able to immediately offer me not only a property that she had been remodeling for some time as a cash investment, but also two others that she would be happy to purchase and remodel for us.
She was in the middle of showing me each of the benefits when Carlisle came home from his night shift, joined us in the dining room, and greeted his wife with a heartfelt kiss.
I confidently put the decision about the houses in her hands, because I thought all three were fine, her ideas were beautiful, and because she could certainly better assess what could be realized in the remaining time.
"You want to go to Dartmouth? Does Bella want to wait longer after all?", my father immediately deciphered the reason for this conversation.
"Not yet. But I'll leave no stone unturned to give her the appropriate incentive. Speaking of which - that's why I also wanted to talk to you, if you could spare a moment right now?"
"Shall we go up to my office? I'm sure you're busy, darling," he said goodbye to Esmé.
We were both a little uncomfortable discussing what might not be morally correct agreements in front of her.
"Yes, I need to get some catalogs and samples together before I go to Seattle with Alice later."
With a tender kiss she released him.
Since I had managed to kiss Bella, I could watch these devoted expressions of love benevolently without feeling a quiet sting in my chest. Before, these situations had always been more than unpleasant to me, and I would have fled as quickly as possible.
As soon as I reached the top, I asked him about his contacts and former colleagues at the renowned university, where he had held several teaching positions.
"I want to find out if Bella got a place at the university and if she didn't, help out accordingly," I explained my interest.
"Ahh ..." he nodded in understanding. 'I had already thought something like that. But can I ask you something else?'
I raised an eyebrow, alarmed by his cautious approach.
"What is it?"
"Did you keep track of the guest list for the wedding?", he continued.
Somewhat surprised by the topic, I answered his question in the negative.
"I left all that to Alice and Bella."
"I have noticed that they have not invited anyone from the Reservation, and I think it would be right to at least send Billy - as a friend of Bella's father - an invitation and maybe also Seth with his family. After all, he is also closer to you by now and I would think it would be good to take the opportunity to deepen our relationship with the Quileute ..."
"So?"
For the second time today, I had the nagging feeling that this had not been everything.
'... And with Jacob, I'm not sure myself what's right. That you don't necessarily want him there, I could well understand. But also with Bella, I have no idea what she would want. As far as I know from Alice, she's avoided the discussion. Just think about it,' he finished placatingly the suggestion when he saw my clearly skeptical and possibly slightly pained expression, which I tried to suppress.
"OKAY," I muttered.
And with that agreement, he instantly began to make a list in his mind of people who were active at the university in some way and could be helpful.
Somehow he was right about Billy and Seth ... And if I was honest, also about Jacob. As much as I would have preferred to banish him from our lives once and for all, and as glad as I was that he hadn't shown up in the last few weeks after the fight and his injury, I also realized how much I owed him. If Bella's decision had been the other way around, I would at least want to have the opportunity ...
On the sidelines, I registered my female family members getting ready and saying goodbye.
"Remember your walk practice!", I heard Alice admonish Bella. "Do you want me to bring Emmett in to help you again?"
At this question, I was jolted out of my thoughts and became slightly nervous.
Should I leave her to his clutches - or rather his oversized mouth - again? Nothing good could come of that.
"I can take care of Dartmouth for you if you want to take care of Bella yourself. I have nothing else to do right now," Carlisle offered when he noticed where my attention had turned.
I was about to decline, feeling a bit ridiculous with my concern, when I heard Emmett already rushing in.
"Hey Bella! Already on the spot! Now out with it. What was going on yesterday? How was it ... and where?", he greeted her loudly and it turned my stomach at the same moment.
'Shit, can't that loudmouth keep his pert mouth shut,' came from Jasper's room.
That was all the confirmation I needed. That's why Alice had faltered this morning. Jasper had blabbed! Argh ... As much as I felt the immense need inside me to just run away as fast and as far as possible, I was still aware that I couldn't let him leave Bella defenseless. She was certainly ten times more embarrassed than I was - he would verbally rip her apart. I had to free her from his clutches.
Already on the way out I said "Thank you, that would be very nice of you!" to a quite irritated father.
At least one who didn't know.
Milliseconds later, I arrived downstairs in the living room at the same time as Jazz, whom I glared at angrily.
"Can't you be relied on at all anymore?", I hissed. "And you just keep your loose mouth shut! Not a word to Bella!", I turned to Em.
"Oh come on, what's the big deal?", he complained.
'I didn't say anything,' Jazz defended himself.
"It doesn't exactly look like it, does it?"
Bella, who only caught our very different facial expressions and Emmett's statement, looked from one to the other quite confused.
"I at least want to know why I lost five hundred dollars," Em groused.
"Oh no!", I groaned. "You've got to be kidding me!"
"What kind of bet is this about?", Bella interjected.
"Trust me, dear, you don't even want to know," I tried to somehow get out of it, conjuring Emmett with silent threats to scram.
But he would never dream of it.
'So, I have three bets going on the amount. First: Which of you two is more likely to have their first orgasm? Second: Are you, my brother, going to have sex before marriage after all? And third: Will there ever be sex for Bella in your beloved car?' he enumerated, smirking insinuatingly.
I could only look stunned from one brother to the other, of whom at least Jasper had the decency to put on a half-guilty expression.
It was clear to me that the two idiots bet on pretty much everything that presented itself to them. But on my sex life - or rather all the details of it ...?! And those were just the ones for that amount! How the hell did they think of finding out ... Alice! I really needed to put this traitor through the wringer!
Judging by the color of Bella's face, she slowly realized which event of the day yesterday they were talking about. She turned with a jerk and her shoes in hand and went to the stairs, where she crouched down lower than necessary with a protective curtain of her hair to put them on.
"You can get lost, Emmett! I'll take care of this one myself."
"You don't seriously think I'm going to miss this!", he announced and let himself fall with these words broad-legged on the sofa.
Jazz started to back away, but then after an almost imperceptible wave of Em's head, lowered himself to the rearmost armchair.
No sooner had I turned my attention to Bella than they started haggling over stakes, how many steps she would make, whether she would ride it out unscathed, and whether they could upset me.
"Shall we go upstairs to my room to practice?", I suggested hopefully to Bella, which only earned me a loud roar from Emmett.
"What is there to practice that we can't watch or stand by you with advice?" he commented when he had gotten himself together again.
"It's okay," Bella made an effort to calm the situation and held out her hands to me. "If he gets too annoying, we can always leave."
I helped her up and led her slowly back and forth under the watchful gaze of my brothers, whom I tried to ignore.
After a while, she seemed to have developed some feel for the stilettos, found her balance, and her vice grip around my hand loosened a bit.
"Would you like to try walking by yourself?", I asked her.
Immediately she clung to me tighter again, stopped and looked at me with a horrified expression.
"Come on, you can certainly do that. Very slowly, step by step. I face you and you come to me in my arms," I grinned at her encouragingly.
Yeah ... this is going to be exciting.
Emmett leaned forward, eyes flashing, propped his elbows on his knees and rubbed his hands together.
As if I had just asked Nikki Reed to strip. He really couldn't be helped. It looked like my suggestion had brought him closer to any of his tips.
And already new negotiations began between my brothers.
I tried to focus completely on Bella, who nodded hesitantly at me.
Slowly I released her fingers, took both her hands, and took a wide step back so that our arms were stretched.
"Just let go when you're ready."
"Oh God, this is never going to work," she muttered doubtfully, completely tense.
"Just shift your weight to your tiptoes and pretend you're barefoot," I tried to instruct her to ease her nervousness.
An image of me in Bella's high heels, gracefully pirouetting through the living room, bounced into my perception.
"Since when do you know about walking in women's shoes?", Emmett also exploded with laughter. "Is there a hidden side to you?", he chuckled and in his mind I was suddenly wearing a way too short blue summer dress.
"Oh please, Emmett, that's disgusting! Stop it," I moaned probably a little too loudly since my fiancée looked at me questioningly. "I'll catch you, don't worry," I said to her, not elaborating further on my brother's kinky ideas.
"You should offer her a little more for motivation so that this becomes something."
"Did you forget your bet or are you going to jump around again?", Jazz interjected with raised eyebrows.
"Oh, never mind, it'll be fun!" Em, who had registered Bella's eyes lighting up, replied.
And already new bets were placed.
"That's not such a bad idea. A kiss for every step I manage alone!", she also challenged me.
"One for each route," I allowed myself to be persuaded.
"All right," she agreed, and, seeming suddenly highly motivated, released my hands.
But then she more or less just dropped forward to immediately throw her arms around my neck.
I hugged her willingly and she grinned in my face, to then stretch her tempting lips towards me, which hovered unusually close in front of me due to the high heels.
All three of us laughed out loud.
"Ha ... that's what I'm saying. The right incentive is everything!", Emmett rejoiced.
I gave her a chaste short kiss and detached myself from her to go back a little further this time.
"What, that was supposed to be a reward!? My God, I think you really need tutoring," he nagged, visibly disappointed. "Bella, you can't settle for that! Let him offer you something. Get him out of the reserve, this is your chance!", he spurred her on indignantly, who was wearing about the same expression as he was.
She and I, smooching wildly in explicit poses, flashed before my inner eye.
"Emmett, for crying out loud, keep your imagination in check. This isn't a peepshow!"
"You don't say! Far from it. Besides, I'm not sitting behind a keyhole either!", he pouted playfully.
"I wouldn't put it past you ..."
"But nevertheless, you're still to 'peep', even if it's without a show!", he laughed - contrary to his previous words visibly well entertained.
Bella looked at me invitingly with slightly narrowed eyes and nodded briefly as she found her balance.
I carefully let go of her and took another step back.
She stretched her hands to the side as if she were standing on a six foot high balance beam, concentrated on the floor and wiggled wildly ruddering with her arms, not very elegantly towards me, so that not only I had to bite my lips to suppress my laughter.
"Yeah, peepshow! We should record this," Jasper chuckled softly, but immediately raised his hands defensively when he caught my murderous gaze.
At least that helped neutralize my facial expressions when she arrived by me and sank into my embrace with relief.
Only a moment later she straightened up again, let her hands wander down my neck where they intertwined with my hair, and kissed me passionately until a provocative whistle sounded from Emmett and she broke away from me, her cheeks flushed.
"Yeah ... baby, that's how it's done. Take a cue from her, bro! All is not yet lost with you two."
I could have told her right away that this would not remain uncommented.
"How about we just save the rewards for tonight?" I suggested, which of course was immediately met by a cry of protest from Em.
"Oh, come on ... Bella! ... That's not fair!", he begged.
"Not fair? Tell me, are you crazy? What are we to you anyway? Your personal clowns? Check out your porn collection when you need some stimulation!"
Bella looked at me in shock, but Emmett just grinned.
"Okay. That might really be better," she agreed. "Are you counting?"
My big brother gurgled again.
"Just make sure he doesn't screw you over! You shouldn't trust him so blindly."
"Stay out of this, Emmett!" she replied to him.
Brief astonishment flickered across his face, but didn't last long and the wide grin returned.
"You shouldn't defend him too. Now seriously, you need to negotiate more ... A point system or something. Five kisses are one f ..."
"Emmett!" I growled angrily at him.
'I was just going to say fumble.'
"Well, sure, who'd believe it! Either you keep your mouth shut right now or I'll throw you out," I threatened him rashly.
"Oh yeah?" he said provocatively, sitting back down deeper in the cushions with his arms folded. "And how are you going to accomplish that?"
I took a deep breath, rather annoyed, and then looked at Bella questioningly.
"Shall we go?"
But she just shrugged her shoulders and said she could go on a little longer.
So we slowly increased the distance and Bella actually got better each time.
My brothers noticeably held back, but when she had managed ten steps without my help, a suppressed "Fuck!" was heard and Em tossed a bundle of bills to a triumphantly smirking Jazz.
Bella and I just looked at each other uncomprehendingly, shrugged with smiles, and continued our training.
However, at fifteen steps, with which she crossed half the room almost without wobbling and even looked me in the eye, he could no longer hold back.
"Well, for that feat there must be more than even a long French kiss! ... One lick I would say ..."
Our heads snapped in his direction.
Me angry and horrified and Bella ... clueless and questioning.
'What? Actually, I wanted to say a quickie, but that wouldn't be such a hit with a virgin - besides, it's supposed to be a reward for her!'
I was about to jump down his throat when Bella's question completely threw me.
"What does he mean by that?"
Both gentlemen laughed out loud, and she looked at me with interest.
"Yes, Edward, what do I mean by that? Explain it to her," my cursed brother snorted.
"Certainly, but not here and now," I muttered, running my hands through my hair, silently praying that she would quickly forget.
Thank you for reading!
