Edward
I have to admit listening to Bella open her gifts was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. I wanted to see her face as she opened the bracelet from me; I wanted to be able to hold her as the tears flowed when she saw the hair combs that her mother and grandmother wore.
Bella never said much about it but I knew that she missed her mother deeply. She had to miss her; she was going through two of the most important times in a woman's life, getting married and having a baby are times when a woman needs their mother to help guide them through and to understand. Unfortunately, she was going through these important milestones at the same time and right after losing her mother. I was amazed at her strength and her ability to hold it all together every day. For weeks, months and even years after my parents passed away I had trouble with their loss. It was so hard to hear Bella degrade herself and her accomplishments when in fact she was so much stronger than I ever was about this situation.
I glanced at my watch again and counted down the minutes until I would see her walk down the aisle. Nothing felt more right. All the concerns and worries about our age, being in college, the baby-none of that mattered. We were meant to be together and raise our family together.
Emmett burst through the door swinging a bottle in his hand and cheering loudly. I glanced over at the Chief but he seemed lost in thought and paid no attention to Emmett. Jasper and Carlisle also filed into the room behind Emmett albeit they were much, much quieter about it.
"Okay, Eddie boy, bring your dumb ass over here and take a shot with us!" Emmett boomed into the room.
I paled, and glanced at the Chief again. I had no idea what the hell ran through Emmett's mind sometimes. We were standing in the room with the Chief of Police who in a matter of minutes would be my father in law, and he was asking me to take a drink. And illegal drink!
"Em…what the hell?" I sputtered.
"Aw, come on. Chief will drink with us and then he can't arrest you for underage drinking without hauling his own self in for contributing to the delinquency of a minor. So let's drink." Emmett had lined up enough shot glasses for each of us in the room, including me. Charlie just stepped up and stood in front of his glass, still not really focusing on any of us, just his glass.
Carlisle must have noticed his obvious discomfort because he spoke up. "Charlie, you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm good. It's just hard to know that no matter how much I want to stop time and never let her go, I have to. You know?" Carlisle was the only one that could answer that question with honesty. He stepped over and clapped Charlie on the shoulder as he spoke.
"Yeah, they never stop growing up. And eventually they don't need you anymore. But the good thing is that you have done your job right when they don't need you anymore. You know?" Carlisle's logic made sense to me; I just prayed that it did to Charlie. I couldn't get this close and have her dad call this all off. My heart stood still waiting for Charlie to acknowledge Carlisle's words.
"I guess you're right about that. She is more than ready to be a grown up. Hell at times she's a better grown up than I am." He chuckled and took the shot glass full of amber liquid. "Here's to Edward and Bella. May they live a long, happy life together!" He held up his glass to me in salute. Carlisle, Emmett and even Jasper had grabbed their glasses and repeated the gesture. I was the lone stand out. My eyes met Charlie's again waiting for his approval. "Drink up boy, you are gonna need something to settle those nerves." Without haste I grabbed the glass as well, clinked it against the others and threw back the shot. Charlie turned towards Emmett and handed off his glass. "Now, you get that out of here. That shot was a freebie, the next one will get you thrown in the slammer boy." The look on Charlie's face told Emmett that he meant business and it was Emmett's turn to pale as he grabbed the glasses and bottle.
When Emmett was done scurrying from the room Charlie burst out with a large laugh. I realized that he was taking his chance to get one over on Emmett. He clapped me on the back and said, "Let's go and get you two married, shall we?" I knew that I was in good with my almost father in law, I appreciated Charlie for his show of alliance between the two of us. And it was funny as hell to get one over on Emmett who normally was sticking it to me.
Charlie left to find Bella to escort her down the aisle and Carlisle left to meet up with Esme. That left Emmett, Jasper and me waiting to move to the front of the alter to wait on our ladies.
"Edward, you both are perfect together. Love her for the rest of your life and treat her with respect." Jasper offered.
"Never go to bed angry, always let her win the argument and put the seat down. That's my advice for you." Emmett beamed, so proud of his stellar advice. Jasper and I both shook our heads at him. He is in a category all on his own.
We made our way to the front of the church and waited. The situation should have scared the shit out of me. I should have been scared to make this big step at this point in my life. But I wasn't, in fact I wasn't nervous at all. This felt so right to me. I knew without a doubt that I was at the right place at the right time.
The music started and I watched as Rosalie and Alice both made their way down the aisle. They both looked beautiful and very happy. Then the doors opened and Bella stepped into view. And my whole opinion changed, Rosalie and Alice paled in comparison to Bella's beauty. She looked radiant, her skin glowed and her face was lit up from within. The dress fit her perfectly and absolutely suited her personality. Alice was a master at her craft that much was obvious. Her hair and makeup was subtle and allowed Bella's inner beauty show through instead of the artificial front that so many women rely on.
I guess that we should be embarrassed that we were getting married with Bella pregnant, obviously pregnant. Mr. Webber said that while God would have preferred us go about the steps in the right order he is happy that we are doing the right thing now. And I would never ever be embarrassed about my daughter in any way or fashion. Besides we had close friends and family here with us today, so we knew without a doubt that all involved supported us fully. I understood Bella's decision to make this part of our wedding a small affair. I knew that I would look back on this day and always remember it as one of the best days of my life. It certainly made it easier to know that no one would be condemning us on this day for our mistakes or decisions.
When Bella got close enough to me I could tell her eyes were misted over. It almost made me chuckle because I knew that Alice was itching to get to her with a Kleenex and clean her up before anyone saw her that way. I, on the other hand, wanted to see the tears. The emotion that she felt for the day, it showed her love in a way that words never could. Just seeing her so close to the edge made tears spring up in my eyes as well.
The Wagner's March had to be the longest and slowest damn song in the history of weddings themselves, because it felt like Bella was never going to get to me. I needed to take her hand in mine, I needed to feel her skin, to touch her and know she was really here with me.
When she finally reached the alter where I stood, Charlie stood between us. We turned and listened as Mr. Webber spoke about the bonds that a family makes with each other and how those bonds are broken when two people enter into marriage with each other. That a husband and wife break the bonds of family when they take each other in marriage, and that other than our bonds with God, our marriage bond would be the most important in our lives. I knew that this would never be an issue with either of our families but it was nice to hear that guideline for our marriage. Mr. Webber finally asked of Charlie, "Who gives this woman away?"
Charlie's response gave me a moment of hesitation, I was afraid for his answer. I was fearful that it might upset Bella and remind her of her mother's absence on this day. When Charlie's clear, strong voice spoke, "Her family and I do." I noticed that Bella reached up and touched the hair combs that held her hair back off of her face and secured her veil in place. She was reminding herself that even though her mother wasn't here in a physical being, she was certainly here in spirit. Charlie moved Bella's veil and kissed her cheek. He took her hand and placed it in mine and clasped both hands in his. "I love you both, and wish you all of the happiness in the world." His words stunned me at the depth of emotions as he gave his daughter away to me. I was beaming with pride to know that I was good enough in his eyes.
I finally felt her skin touching mine, her eyes searching mine, our souls talking to each other as we stood motionless, together. Mr. Webber began to speak again. He quoted Bible verses and talked about marriage. I wouldn't remember anything he said. I just remember the look in Bella's eyes and the joy that showed from her soul. We held hands as he talked; I rubbed my thumb along the inside of her wrist. I waited for my chance to tell her all that was in my heart.
"Edward and Bella have decided to write their own vows. Edward." Mr. Webber nodded at me.
I cleared my throat and spoke to Bella. "Words seem so inadequate when I tried to decide what I wanted to say to you. I wished for some sort of supernatural power that would allow you into my heart, so you would know the depth of my love for you." I took a deep breath and relaxed when I saw her laughing eyes. "Our love was so easy and simple from the start and we certainly had a few bumps along the way. But nothing could keep us apart." I felt her hands tighten against mine. I rushed forward to hopefully convey to her that I had more to say. "Your kind spirit and the strength you display to me each and every day amaze me. Your ability to love and show love makes me want to be a better man. I want to work each and every day to live up to the title of your husband, to be the man you deserve." All traces of her hesitation were gone and were replaced by joy and happiness. "I promise to always take care of you, to always look out for your needs first and protect you to the best of my ability. I thank you for our child and for giving me the opportunity to go through this with you by my side. I loved you the first time I saw you and I love you more each day we spend together. I'm proud to call you my wife." I knew that I couldn't kiss her yet so I lifted her hands to place a kiss on her knuckles.
Mr. Webber turned to Bella when he spoke. He quoted another Bible verse and I stood mesmerized by Bella. She turned to face me again when it was her turn to relay her vows to me. After softly clearing her throat she began. "Edward, I have had several examples of great men in my life. Each has taught me over the years, they showed me the kind of man I wanted to have in my life as my husband. Charlie, Carlisle, and even Phil made sure that I looked for the best; and that man is you, I found my soul mate in you." She took a moment to wipe away a tear from the corner of her eye. I gently squeezed the one hand that I still held. "I know that this road will not be without bumps, as we both have already seen, but I do know that it is worth the journey with you. You have the ability to know what I need when I need it. Some say that is great intuition but I say that is love. I hope I can return that to you. I want to be there for you, knowing what you need, taking care of those needs and helping you to be a better man. Just like you do for me. I promise to always stop to think before I speak, to put your feelings first and to raise our family with the love and devotion. I'm proud to call you my husband." I reached down and rubbed the side of her stomach when she spoke about our family.
In many ways I wished we could have waited until Makenna was born so that she could be a part of this but I wanted my name attached to both of my girls, so I guess I was too impatient to wait for that to happen.
"The rings that are placed on each other's hand have special meanings. As a ring has no end, it symbolizes a couples love and devotion to each other without end. The precious metal that is used to make the rings also symbolizes the unique bond the two have and how precious it is to them. Edward please take the ring and place it on Bella's hand and repeat after me…I give you this ring to wear with love and joy. As a ring has no end, neither shall my love for you. The most precious metal symbolizes that your love is the most precious element in my life. I place it on your finger as a visible sign of the vows which have made us husband and wife."
I gladly repeated each of those words as the weight of them began to settle down on my shoulders. I realized that instead of feeling oppressed by the task, I felt invigorated by them. I felt ready to take care of Bella and Makenna. And as many children she would give me.
Mr. Webber turned to Bella and asked her to do the same thing. She placed the ring on my finger that we picked out together and spoke with a clear strong voice. Her tone saying she was feeling the same wave of joy that I felt. It made my heart sing to know that she didn't have any hesitation or doubt at all when she spoke the sentiment to me.
When we were both done with the rings Mr. Webber paused for a slight moment, an extremely torturous moment since I knew what came after his pause. "What has taken place in the sight of God is sanctioned by God. Let no man divide what God has placed together. Edward…you may kiss your bride."
I'm sure the smile that split my face could have lit up the entire city of Seattle without any help what so ever. I let go of her hands. Bella slid her small hands up to grip my forearms and I wrapped my hands around her, one darting up to cup her sweet face and the other gently resting in the middle of her back. When we were close enough that only she would hear, I whispered to her, "I promise to love you every moment of forever, Mrs. Isabella Masen-Cullen." I leaned in and kissed her, a kiss that spoke of my love, my devotion, and my happiness in that moment but still chaste enough to take place in a church. Bella returned every single emotion that I put into that kiss, I felt them all. When I released her lips I simple dropped my forehead to hers.
"Yours, forever." She whispered.
"Yours, forever." I whispered back.
Bella turned us to face the small crowd as Mr. Webber made the announcement that I wanted to hear almost as much as 'you may kiss your bride', "It gives me great pleasure to introduce Mr. and Mrs. Edward Anthony Masen-Cullen." Bella and I linked hands and made our way to the back of the church, for the first time truly together.
I'm sure we did all the normal things that people do at a reception, cake cutting, garter and bouquet toss, but all I remember was holding Bella in my arms and dancing with her.
After what seemed like half a year, in actuality it had only been a few hours, it was late enough for Bella and I to take our leave. I wanted to drive Bella to a fancy hotel in Seattle, but the drive would be too much for her at this late stage in her pregnancy. Besides I knew we would not get out of here at a reasonable time anyway to make the drive all the way to Seattle. I did find a great B&B outside of Port Angeles that would work for us. It offered plenty of lazy activities to do and lots of time for Bella to rest and relax. I knew she had done too much this past week but she looked so happy the whole time so how could I tell her no.
Bella grabbed my hand and led me upstairs, we agreed that we wanted to change before we left to drive out to the B&B. She had no idea how hard it would be for me to leave my hands off of her knowing that she was now my wife. I had a hard enough time not assaulting her in public much less when we would be in our room getting undressed by ourselves. I turned my back on Bella and heard her dress drift off of her body and whisper as it fell to the floor. I stepped into the bathroom and closed the door, praying that when I stepped out she would be dressed in something. She was. I helped her hang her dress up and grabbed our bags off of the floor.
"I wish we had just stayed here instead." She bite her lip in between her teeth, a sure sign of her nervousness. "I love being in our home." I smiled, knowing that she couldn't read my mind but I swear that the exact same thought was running through my mind at the same time.
"Me too, but we will be home in a few days and we have lots of time to be here before Makenna is born. You will be so sick of this house by the time we head back to New Hampshire, I swear you will." I lightly tickled her ribs trying to get her to smile back at me. She didn't deny me. "Let's get on the road before it gets too late, come on." I grabbed both bags and pulled her hand towards the stairs.
We talked and ate the whole way to Port Angeles. The food that the catering company packed for us was wonderful. Bella and I both confessed to being too nervous or too busy to eat much at all that day. I will have to thank Esme for knowing to tell the catering company to do this for us. Besides I didn't want Bella to go without food for her and our sweet little baby either. The atmosphere in the car was light and flirty, I relished the time alone with Bella. I could talk with her for hours on end and never tire of her. But all too soon the B&B came across our horizon. Check in was quick since I did most of it online and paid already with my credit card. I didn't want Bella to know how much it was or she would feel guilty about staying.
Bella and I worked in silence as we unpacked our stuff and she went off to take a shower. I slipped on some pajama pants and closed my eyes to relive every single moment of the day. I will never forget how beautiful Bella looked walking towards me in her dress. She took my breath away, especially at that moment in time. I hoped that the photographer got a shot of her; I would gladly pay any price to buy that photo.
Bella emerged from the bathroom in a simple nightgown. It was rather plain and unassuming in any way but damned if it didn't turn me upon first glance at it. I think it was Bella's warm, sweet smelling body rather than the nightgown anyway. She approached the bed with surety in her steps and desire in her eyes. I was taken aback by this, for some reason I expected us both to be hesitant and unsure about this particular night. I guess it is drilled into your brain that all couples are unsure and scared on their honeymoon night and therefore we would be as well. This, however, was not the case. Bella showed no signs of nervousness and when I searched myself I was excited certainly but not nervousness in any way.
I was reclined back against the headboard and pulled her towards me to semi cover my upper body. With her face so close to mine I could smell the Freesia body wash she had used for the last few months. She said something about the strawberry being too strong for her sensitive nose now. I had no problem with the change, she still smelled edible.
I nuzzled my nose down the side of her face, inhaling deeply. Taking her in and holding a part of her inside of me. Words simply couldn't express the magnitude of feelings running through my body at this time. I felt inadequate to not be able to explain it or even express it to her but I was at a loss. I slid the nightgown off of her and pulled her close to me again, pulling us both into the center of the bed. Bella worked my pants off of me as I kissed her and tried to show her how much she meant to me. Somehow as much desire as I had running through my body yet I still couldn't rush things with her. This was a night for slow, sweet lovemaking with her. Nothing about tonight would be rushed; I needed her to know how much I worshipped her.
When we were both naked I pulled Bella onto her side with my back flush against hers. This position seemed to be the best in her condition and trust me we had tried them all. I held her close as I pushed into her warm center. Her gasp told me she was as lost in the sensation as I was. I rocked against her body climbing the ladder of ecstasy with her.
Bella turned her head and ran her hand through my hair. "Edward, let me turn to face you, I need to see you." I wouldn't resist her but I was afraid for her to be lying on her back for too long. The doctor warned that this is neither comfortable nor safe for a woman in Bella's stage of pregnancy.
"Baby, that's not safe." I expressed hesitantly. I didn't want her to think that I didn't want her close to me, but my concern for her safety won on every account.
"I don't care about our position, find one that will allow me to look into your eyes, okay?"
I pulled away from her and moved to sit against the headboard of the bed. Bella's eyes lit up with recognition of what I wanted. She immediately climbed into my lap and she positioned her body above mine. I had to admit that this was certainly my favorite position while she was pregnant. It allowed my access to her face, neck, collar bones, and breasts all at the same time. I loved the extra curves that my wife had now thanks to our baby. I secretly hoped that she kept many of them. I know that Bella couldn't wait to lose weight but I had my own ideas of perfection for her. I ran my hand along those curves and pushed up into her. She threw her head back in ecstasy. I loved making love to her. She was so expressive with me and allowed me to see parts of her no one else ever has. No one else will ever see, this was something we shared, only with each other.
Just as quickly as her head dropped backwards it snapped back up again. She took her hands and held them on either side of my face. Forcing my eyes to meet hers, I knew she was close I could feel her body's signs. Her eyes locked with mine as she fell apart in my arms. Watching her submit to her pleasure pushed me over the edge as I dove head long into my own pleasure.
When our breathing was normal again, I scooted down on the bed and pulled the blankets over us. She snuggled against me and we talked for hours on end. I touched and caressed her body as she seemed to need to do the same to mine. We just couldn't get enough of each other. We were husband and wife now, somehow those words and the ceremony made all the difference to us. They made the difference in how we felt about each other.
I woke Bella up at almost ten. "Sweetheart, if we don't go down to breakfast we will miss it. And they don't serve lunch for almost three hours. I don't want you to miss out on food." I touched her face and swept my thumb along the pulse point in her neck. She stretched and reached to pull me into a kiss.
"Okay, give me a few and I'll be ready." She slowly got out of bed and made her way to the closet where our clothes were hung up. I was worried about how tired she looked. I know we stayed up way too late last night together. I knew that after lunch we would come back and take a nap so she could rest some more.
We left the room and made our way to the dining room. Bella was starving and I was glad that I made her get up so she could eat. I was pretty hungry myself. Guess it was all the great sex with my wife. I snickered to myself at my cocky comment.
"So, do you think we can go shopping since we are so close to Port Angeles? I have a few more items to get for Makenna." Bella asked as she delivered another forkful of food.
"I guess we can but what if we do it on the way home because I want you to take a nap when we get back to the room. You look exhausted." I tried to give her a say in the conversation but really I was prepared to put my foot down in this matter.
"It's cause that bed was so damn lumpy. I just couldn't get comfortable." She pouted.
"Yeah, it wasn't the most comfortable thing was it?" I nodded; I did wake up quite a few times myself.
"Nothing like the mattress in our room, at our house." She added.
This gave me a great idea. "What if we pack up, shop and then head home. Everyone thinks we are away so no one will look for us at our house. We can have peace and quiet and a great bed all at once." Her eyes lit up the second I said the word home. She began to cram food into her mouth at a faster pace.
"Hurry up." She called out around the food in her mouth.
Within twenty minutes we were packed up, loaded up and checked out of the B&B. I had to delicately explain to the owner but his wife understood completely since she had five kids. We stopped in Port Angeles and shopped until I was worried that Bella would fall over with exhaustion. We were able to cross off everything on the list though so it was a successful trip after all.
Bella dozed off and on while I drove us as fast as humanly possible towards our house. I pulled the car in the garage to keep it hidden and made my way into the house with the shopping bags and our luggage. I went back to get Bella from the front seat. I hated to wake her so I was praying that she would sleep right through me moving her.
The rest of our weekend went just as quietly and smoothly as our drive home. We didn't hear from anyone, except for one text from Carlisle asking when we had to get the tux's back to the rental place. I was pretty proud of us. We had managed to thwart Emmett and Alice the whole weekend. In fact it was almost noon on Monday and still no sign of any of them.
Bella was in the kitchen and I was sitting at the piano when we heard a car pull into the driveway. We both froze. It was obvious that we had spent the weekend here and there was no way to explain that to the family without hurting any of their feelings. I had nothing prepared for an explanation. I had actually planned to call them a little later today and tell them we were now home. So much for that idea! I simply shrugged at Bella and prayed for the best as the front door lock turned. Esme marched in with a large watering can in her hands. She halted when she stepped into the hallway that lead to the back of the house. She could see Bella and I both from her vantage point.
"Oh my gosh, I am so sorry. I didn't know you were home. I was worried about your plants Bella, I came to water them. I'm so sorry." Esme began to back out of the hallway and towards the front door. Bella rushed over to stop her.
"No wait, don't go, it's okay." Esme stopped and Bella pulled her into the music room to sit. "We uh… well we came home Saturday morning. The bed in the B&B was terrible and I couldn't get comfortable." Esme's face registered the fact that we had been home all weekend long.
"Well, aren't you two clever? Who would have thought to look for you here? Did you have a nice weekend then?"
"It was perfect, so quiet and restful. I feel great, but hungry do want some lunch with us?" Bella asked as she returned to the kitchen to continue making the sandwiches. "I have a weird appetite but you are welcome to stay with us. We're having some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, pineapple chunks and chips. Oh wait I think I will add some pickles as well." I started laughing at Bella. I don't know if she realized it but all of her foods technically started with a P.
Esme shook her head at us. "No thanks I'm going to meet Carlisle after this for lunch. Why don't you two come for dinner tonight though, everyone else would like to see you both, okay?" I nodded at her as she rose to leave.
"Hey, if you don't mind… can you keep it a secret that we were here all weekend?" Esme just nodded at us and left.
"Guess we dodged a bullet there didn't we?" Bella just laughed and moved back towards the kitchen. "You ready with my P lunch yet?" I asked as I followed behind her. She simply broke out laughing at me.
"I hadn't thought about it that way but yeah I guess your P lunch is ready silly."
"Then by all means, wife of mine, let's eat." I motioned towards the table and took our plates to sit and eat lunch with her. I wasn't certain that life could get any better than this moment right now.
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