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Chapter 60

Countdown

Emmett

The last day before the wedding began.

I felt the sun shining through the window wall on me and Bella. I lay happily behind her and held her in my arms. She pressed her snow-white back against my body, and I stroked her hair out of her face.

Thinking about today and tomorrow, I forgot about what happened yesterday.

I was actually quite happy that the two of them were now hopefully finally leaving us alone. Carlisle himself had been with the Volturis for years, so it really couldn't be that bad there. And I was glad that Alice assured us that they wouldn't kill people.

We had been lying on the bed for a while, lost in our own thoughts, when she turned and looked into my eyes.

I looked into hers and had to smile.

They had finally lost the last stitch of red and were now golden like ours. I wondered when that had happened. Yesterday? During the night? Or only this morning, while we were watching the sunrise behind the trees.

"What are you grinning at?", she asked.

"Your eyes ...", I said and got up to get a mirror from her sideboard.

I held it in front of her face.

She drew in her breath in surprise and looked dreamily at her golden eyes.

"Wow ..." she said, leaning back against my chest.

I put my fingers to her chin and pulled her gaze away from the mirror to me.

"You are so beautiful," I said, kissing her forehead.

She wrapped her arms around me and nestled her naked body against mine.

If we hadn't had fun all night, I would have taken it right here and now.

There was a knock at the door and Alice burst in.

"Alice!" Bella said indignantly and pulled the silk blanket over her butt.

Too bad.

I looked at Alice, annoyed.

"You knew we were naked!", Bella said reproachfully.

Alice grinned, but stayed in the room.

"Oh come on. Don't act like I haven't seen you guys naked already!", she said and just sat down next to us on the bed.

How brazen could one be? Little poison dwarf.

"Sorry Emmy, but I have to kidnap Bella. She has to try on the dress and of course you can't see it until tomorrow. But I promise you will like it," she said cheerfully with her 'I know everything' look.

Then she clapped her hands and stood up again.

"In my room in a minute, Belly!", she said and pranced out again.

Bella moaned in annoyance and put her head on my chest.

"No annoyed moaning, please. Come on, put something on and come!", Alice said from the hallway.

I thought about whether I could still inspire Bella for a little morning sex. Surely she would not find the idea bad.

But Alice thwarted my plan.

"Forget it, Emmett. Renée will be here in five minutes!", we heard her say from her room.

Bella and I both rolled our eyes and stood up.

Bella put on her underwear and wrapped a beach towel around herself, since with Alice she would have to try on the dress right away anyway.

I kissed her before she walked out and heard Jasper come into the room at the same moment.

"Hunting?", he asked.

Yesterday I had hunted a bear with Bella, but I didn't want to hear the hysterical shrieking of the women. So I nodded and put on a black T-shirt.

"Are you running away from the hysterical shrieking?", I asked Jasper.

He nodded.

"More like from the hysteria itself. Alice has been hyper excited all night because she finally gets to put Bella in the dress today. And last evening's feelings weren't so great either. I just need to relax a little again," he said as we walked down to the kitchen, where Carlisle was reading a book at the counter.

We all decided to forget about the matter of Edward, Rose and the Volturi and went about our normal activities.

"Feel like going hunting?", I asked him.

He looked up and his gaze begged to get away from the women.

"I ask for it! Esmé is already jumping all over the apartment and cleaning every corner!", he said.

We laughed and went out into the forest.

Probably the fitting would take a long time, so we decided to go a little farther away, over the mountains, so we didn't kill too many animals in Forks.

Alice and Angela were supposed to be bridesmaids. So presumably Jake was there too.

I really felt sorry for him at the thought ... he alone with all the women. I briefly considered whether we should have taken him with us, but his tolerance was probably not that great.

I remembered back to the day of the accident when Angela started talking about immortality.

I had always wondered how the wolves did it. They did not become older, at least not like humans. But mostly they imprinted themselves on humans. What did they do then, if this person became old? And once they died, which was inevitable. Angela must have asked herself the same questions. But why did she start with me? Was she really just concerned about how Bella was doing, or did she want something else?

A smell of mountain lion rose to my nose, and I forgot my thoughts.

Three of us ran up the hill, more for the sake of the race than the chase.

We drank three mountain lions and walked on.

After seven hours we came back.

I smelled that there were no more people.

Presumably, Renée and Angela had already left.

Alice rushed out the door and pulled us inside.

"Finally! You know you still have to try on your new suits, too," she said, and Esmé came down to help her.

Bella was lying on the sofa watching a movie. She rolled her eyes and smiled at me.

When we went up to Alice's room, there were three new suits hanging on her wall. Next to them were the bridesmaids' and bride's dresses, but nicely wrapped in white fabric so we wouldn't see them.

Alice and Esmé scurried around wildly after we got the suits on, pinning some fabric here and there. It looked like the two of them would spend the night re-sewing.

I almost felt sorry for Jasper and Carlisle, since they probably wouldn't be able to get their wives into bed today. Luckily, Bella didn't have to prepare anything for the wedding. Once we were done with the fitting, I could take her up to the room and press her perfect body against mine.

"Forget it!" Alice warbled and adjusted my suit.

I looked at her questioningly.

"Do you really think you'll get to see Bella before she walks down the aisle?" she asked.

Apparently, my facial expression amused her.

What was that supposed to mean?

"We're going to a hotel. The women get ready there and you men here. Otherwise, where's the element of surprise?"

I rolled my eyes.

Then why couldn't she just go to that hotel tomorrow and get ready? Why did she have to take me away a night with Bella?

I probably looked pretty pissed and Jasper poked me in the ribs.

"Can't you save yourself for one night for the wedding night?", he asked.

I listened when he mentioned it.

"Speaking of the wedding night. Could I please know where we're going to spend it, or are you still making such a huge secret about it?"

The others laughed.

They all knew where it was going, except me and Bella, of course.

Alice shook her head.

"Nope, this is a surprise and also the wedding gift for you from all of us," Esmé said cheerfully.

I wondered if the two of them were on drugs. How could anyone prance around the rooms so euphorically? Poor Jake at noon today.

"Did Jake have to put up with your warbling all this time?" I asked Alice, who was humming with excitement.

Esmé, Alice, and even Bella down in the living room chuckled.

"He dropped Angela off and after I gave him the suits for the werewolves, he escaped again," Alice said with a laugh.

That was probably the best he could do. Of course, Alice had also imposed new suits on the dogs.

When we were finally ready, we got dressed while the women went down to Bella with their arms full of clothes and a bag full of makeup.

"Come on, we have to go," Alice told her.

What, I couldn't even say goodbye?

"Alice, at least let me say goodbye!" I yelled.

Of course, she would hear me even if I had spoken softly, but I was slowly with the nerves at the end.

There was silence for a moment, then I heard Alice sigh.

"Alright, I can't stop it anyway, you stubborn bastards," she said, and I flew down in a second and took Bella in my arms.

She kissed me passionately and I overheard all too gladly the nervous tapping of Alice's foot.

"I love you," I whispered in her ear as our lips finally parted.

"I you even more. I'll see you tomorrow. I'm the one in the white dress," she said and jumped off me.

Alice and Esmé pulled her away and we let go of our hands.

When the women left, we all hung our heads.

"Any suggestions?", I asked in the round.

I had no plan for what we were going to do all night, especially since we were already hunting this morning.

"Watch movies?", Carlisle suggested, and we placed ourselves on the sofa.

"How about 'Love Wedding Marriage'?", Jasper said jokingly, and I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah right, more women making a huge drama out of relationships and weddings!", I said sarcastically.

In the end, we decided on wrestling.

All I wanted was for the time to pass quickly and for me to finally be with Bella again. My Bella, my fiancée and soon my wife.