Chapter 96 part 2

EPOV

A picture, that’s why Bella had my father stop at the house and that’s why she answered the door draped in fur. It took me a second or two before I understood and once I did it was easier to get over my disappointment. Of course Leah helped with that, the woman was a demon when it came to her craft, barking out orders that had me behind a screened partition changing into the black suit Bella had picked out. Once I emerged there seemed to be urgency in getting the shots done which I didn’t completely understand.

“What’s the hurry?”

“Jake’s coming home soon” Bella said as she got to her knees in front of me

“He’ll be angry?” It didn’t seem likely but stranger things have happened.

“No” Leah answered as she adjusted the lens on the camera “We have something to do before going to your house”

Looking up at me Bella whispered “I’ll tell you later”

Nodding at her we set to work, the suggestions Leah were making about how to stand, our expressions and where to place my hands didn’t seem to be working.  After a few minutes and at least ten different changes I was getting rather frustrated and Bella seemed to be struggling to get in the right frame of mind. I knew Bella really wanted the picture to be great however the whole vibe in the room seemed off and there was absolutely no sense in continuing if it wasn’t going to turn out right.

“Hold on a second Leah” I said, squatting down so I could speak quietly to Bella. She had a slight scowl on her face which I was sure contained a mixture of impatience and aggravation.

“What’s the matter baby?”

“It just feels wrong” yeah she was frustrated and I knew why

“Should I fix it?” at the responding nod I needed to make sure Bella was aware of what could happen. Letting my eyes shift to the woman who was impatiently waiting I cautioned “Leah might not approve of what I have in mind”

Biting her lip she thought for a moment then shrugged.

I guess she really wanted this picture

“Alright Isabella…remain quiet and stand up” offering my hand I stood taking Bella with me then spoke as diplomatically as possible. “Let’s do it again, except this time  don’t say anything Leah, let us do what comes natural and you just take whatever shot you want.”

“Go ahead” her tone told me she was rather irritated too.

I wasn’t sure if her mood was from me exerting control, the wasted time or Leah just being Leah. It didn’t exactly matter what she thought, Bella wanted the picture to be special and that would require a proper frame of mind.

Taking a step back so I was just out of arms reach from Bella I said her name as firmly as I could “Isabella” and gave the hand signal for her to come to me followed by the one to kneel. In that moment her whole demeanor changed. As she took the step towards me the tension in her face was gone and she settled gracefully to her knees. Placing my hand under her chin she lifted her eyes to mine allowing me to stare into the soul of my submissive.

Holding her gaze for a few moments to let her completely embrace the role I could see Leah filtering around my peripheral snapping off pictures. Releasing Bella’s chin I gave the signal to lower her eyes before resting my hands comfortably on her head. Standing there staring down at the woman before me I too was lost in the moment until Leah’s quiet voice interrupted us.

“That was beautiful”

Beautiful?   

I thought my actions were going to piss her off not make the cynical woman all sentimental

“I have an idea for one more pose…do you want to try it?”

“Sure” I answered before Bella could, then again if she was in sub mode there’s no why she would have said anything.

“Great…” excitement oozed from her as Leah pointed to the corner of the room “Edward can you bring that chair over?”

After helping Bella up I retrieve the black leather wing chair placing it where Leah pointed, then followed her instructions to open my jacket and loosen the tie.

“Ok…Edward you sit down and Bella loose the fur”

My girl stood there in shock for a moment before Leah lost the loving feeling she had a few minutes before “Let’s go! Jakes going to be here soon”

Bella broke out of her passive mood, snapping back “I hope to hell you’re going to get something to eat before you come over tonight”

“Why? Is dinner going to be late?”

“Well you have to make it first and then it takes time to bake”

“Yeah..yeah..yeah…” Leah rambled as she rolled her hands impatiently “…talk while you’re getting in Edward’s lap”

Leaving out a huff Bella dropped the fur to the floor and my dick shot to life.

Fucking beautiful

My own personal Aphrodite; settling her body into my lap and curling herself up into a semi fetal position making me shift my weight to hold her to me.

“That’s great, now do the same thing you did before”

Ignoring her sister, Bella rested her head against my shoulder and I set about getting my submissive back. It didn’t take long for the tension to leave or for the two of us to get lost within each other. Stoking her arm I kissed her forehead before resting my cheek on her head while I asked quietly “Did you have a nice lunch with my mother nâhtötse?”

“Ah, uh” nodding childishly while she snuggled in closer to my chest  

“That’s good, what did you eat?”

“Linguini and clams” shifting her head to look up at me she added “Connie says hello”

“Who?”

A satisfied smile played at her lips “Connie, she’s the hostess at the restaurant”

Try as I may it just wasn’t coming to me who Bella was talking about, still I had to know “Does it bother you she said something?”

Biting her lip Bella seemed to think about it before saying “No…not really…” she played with the loosened knot of my tie and glanced at me through her lashes “…you can’t help it you’re so irresistible”

The words along with the childish voice making me chuckle “only for you love…you’re the only one who I want to be appealing for”

“Leah…where are you!” at Jacob’s voice Bella stiffened in my arms, Seth ran towards the sound of his voice and Leah yelled “Don’t come in Jake!”

But it was too late

“Damn!” Jacob’s eyes widened and he spun around so fast I think I saw the blur from the air moving “It’s like Déjà vu …can’t you keep your fucking clothes on?”

It was Déjà vu and the irony was not lost on either Bella or me.

I was sure her face was beet red as she giggled into my neck and although my girl lay completely bare in my lap I couldn’t help but chuckle. In part because I knew the position Bella was in didn’t afford Jacob a view of anything except a butt cheek. More importantly he just didn’t look at Bella in a way that would make me uncomfortable.

“Oh you can’t see anything…” Leah came to our defense “…besides wait until you see the pictures”

“I don’t want to see the pictures” he grumbled walking out of the room before calling out “I want to bleach my fucking brain.”

Leah snickered as she struggled to bend over her belly to get the fur wrap off the floor, handing it to Bella while she warned her husband “Stop cursing, I swear if my baby’s first word is fuck…”

“The baby’s not even here yet” Jacob called from the outside the door while Bella gave me a smirk as she stood tucking the blanket around her like a towel.

“It doesn’t matter you should be practicing, besides you know damn well the baby can hear you from inside me…the poor thing’s going to be born wondering what ‘fucking’ is.”

“He already knows what fucking is, that’s how he got there after all” Leah scowled at Jacob’s comeback but didn’t get to say anything as he called out “Is it safe to come in yet?”

“Yes…” Bella said moving to go behind the screen to dress.

Jacob gave me a hard scowl when I passed him while putting the chair back into the corner causing me to defend myself “It wasn’t my idea”

“Yeah well…you certainly didn’t look like you objected”

Why in the world would I object?

“And you could have put your foot down to refused” glaring from me to his wife -who was attaching her camera to the computer – Jacob grumble “turning my house into the god damn playboy mansion…and I get yelled at for saying fuck”

Reemerging from behind the partition Bella giggled earning her a glare from Jacob too and Leah became excited as she flipped through the photo’s “Come here Heff look at how great these turned out”

Bella began to move towards her sister but Jacob stood his ground “I told you…I Don’t Want To See Them! Now will you turn that shit off because it’s already after five and the lab closes at six…”

As if she forgotten about the time Leah glanced over to the clock “Oh wow…ok”

It was like a whirlwind to get out of the house, Bella shoved the clothes I had been wearing into her tote, hooked Seth onto his leash and after hugging her sister and smiling slyly at Jacob the four of us left together. On the short ride home Bella told me Leah was slightly extra grouchy because she hadn’t been allowed to eat anything since noon. Apparently there was some sort of blood work she needed which required a six hour fast.

Pulling into the driveway I wondered “Is everything alright with the baby?”

“Yes...it’s just a standard glucose check. Normally they do it in the morning but since Jake has work and he didn’t want her out by herself…”

“She had to do it in the evening” I surmised and was surprised when Bella giggled “Yeah…so she was starving and …” she laughed slightly harder “…and blaming me”

It didn’t seem like something to laugh about “What’s so funny about blaming you”

“She was being such a bitch…” the giggles getting stronger “…I kept telling her all about the food I ate…especially the chocolate cake…” wiping the tears from her eyes Bella added “…she got so mad…” the laugher abruptly stopped as Bella glared at me and claimed “…Serves her right!”

Wow…my girl can be vindictive

“Remind me to not get on your side babe” I said with a chuckle as I got out of the car.

Taking the things Bella had brought to Leah’s upstairs with me, I changed back into the jeans and sweatshirt while Bella went to start on dinner. She might have thought it a bit of revenge to tease her sister with being able to eat but she wanted to at least have a snack prepared for when they arrived. In my estimation it sounded like a good idea, heaven help us if Leah got here and there was no food ready.

Coming back downstairs I was going to see if Bella needed any help  when the doorbell rang announcing the arrival of our overnight guest.

Alice had Mia perched on one hip, an overnight bag slug over the other shoulder and an overly excited little boy holding his own bag standing next to her.

“You changed the locks; I can’t get in the house Edward”

“Well hello to you too Alice” I said as Bella came from the kitchen to greet them with a cheerful “Hi guys”

“Hi Bella” Alice was still rather stoic setting Mia down – who ran to Bella with a gleeful ‘Unt Ella’ -  before handing me the overly packed bag.

“You didn’t give me the code Edward” we were still on the door situation.

“I didn’t give it to anyone” trying to pacify Alice was like trying to control the weather – it just wasn’t happening.

“What if there is an emergency, how are we supposed to get in?”

It didn’t figure into my calculations, each one of my family members always had a key to my home the same as I did to theirs. In part for easy access but more importantly in case of accidental lock out, with a keyless entry on our door that was no longer a concern.  The only reason to give anyone the code was out of courtesy and with Bella living here I just wasn’t comfortable with so many people knowing it. Not that I didn’t trust them to keep it a secret but more out of respect for her. After all the first weekend she was here Emmett had already busted in on us while she wasn’t exactly dressed for company. Of course since that time he had gotten a much better eyeful of the goods – sort of speaking.  Still until I spoke with Bella my family would have understand, it wasn’t just my privacy anymore.

“If that should happen the security company will notify the authorizes and if the need arises while we are away, then you’ll have to call me for the codes”

My sister’s eyes narrowed “Are you serious?”

Bella who had been speaking with Vinny about all the toys he had in his bag, recognized my sister’s tone of voice and took the two kids into the kitchen leaving me to deal with Alice.

“Yes I am very serious. This is not only my house anymore, Bella lives here too and until I’ve discussed it with her…”

“So you need Bella’s permissions to do something with your house that you pay for” the animosity coming from my sister was totally uncalled for as was the next statement. “Just tell her ‘this is the way it is’ and if she don’t like it, then too bad” 

“What is your problem?”

“Nothing…I had a really bad day and all I wanted to do was drop off Vinny but I get to the door and the whole lock system is changed…” glancing around past entrance way Alice huffed “…look at this place, the whole house is different…what is she taking over or something?”

Following her lead I too looked around, it was as clean as it always was yet it was homey, Granny V would have called it ‘lived in’. Small touches of Bella’s existence seemed to be everywhere adding to the warmth of the home which made my sisters ire all the more unreasonable because I liked it.

“Alice do you have something against Bella?”

“No of course not, I like Bella in fact I spent almost two hours on the phone with mom this afternoon talking about nothing but Bella”

Something in the way she said the word but made me wonder “What about Bella?”

Alice rolled her eyes “Mom was telling me how great their lunch went and wonderful she thinks Bella is for you and how much she likes her. She kept going on and on about wedding plans, where to hold a bridal shower and the engagement party.  I swear mom was more excited about planning a wedding for you and Bella then she was mine”

Oh…that’s the problem

Alice was a generous person who loved her family and cared for her friends but she was also a bit of a ‘princess’. She was not only the youngest but also the only girl and our parents – along with Emmett and me and especially Jasper – had spoiled her. My sister was used to being the center of attention, she expected, even demanded us to cater to her. At that moment Bella was the shiny new toy making Alice have to step out of the limelight and like any spoiled brat who wasn’t getting her way, she was throwing a tantrum.

Looking over my shoulder I was glad to see the swinging door to the kitchen had been closed as I didn’t want our conversation to be overheard. “ I really wish you and mom would not be making plans without Bella’s input, especially since I don’t even have the ring yet or an answer from her.”

“Oh… like she’s going to turn you down.” The conceitedness coming through loud and clear “please Edward…Bella Swan becoming a Cullen is like dream come true.”

Something in the way Alice spoke gave me a slightly nauseous feeling in my stomach “You make it sound like Bella is the only one gaining from our union”

“You know the family she comes from Edward, for god’s sake Bella told you she wore clothes brought at yard sales. Why in the world would she turn down the finical stability you can give her…”

I was completely stunned by what was being implied “We love each other Alice”

“I know” the smile she gave not completely reaching her eyes “but you have to admit, coming from the life she had to what you can give her …”

“You know Bella is finically stable, she has her own portfolio” which reminded me to have Bella make an appointment with Financial Advisor.

“I know…but it’s nothing compared to ours…” she seemed to think for a moment “…you should make sure to see a lawyer about a pre-nup…”

“What?” That was totally uncalled for “Did you have one?”

My question caused her to look at me like I had just slapped her “of course not…but Jazzy and I come from the same place…I’m not saying Bella doesn’t love you, but she’s already been divorced once…”

“And you know why, you’re the one who told mom he was an asshole”

“Right…” the smug smile was back “…and she knew what he was like but married him anyway. I like Bella, she’s my friend and she’ll be my sister but I just don’t want her to get tired of your lifestyle like she did with her first husband.”

“What the hell are you talking about? You think Bella enjoyed what was done to her…”

“Look Edward when we were at the beach Rose was reading some stupid survey and the question was ‘have you ever regretted sleeping with someone’. Bella said ‘yes’ she regretted every time with him.” Raising her eyebrow she asked “If it was so bad, why would she marry him?”

There was a time when I asked myself the same question, however since then I had come to understand my girl so well that I knew the answer. I could have gotten all psychological on Alice, explaining Bella’s abandonment issues, lack of confidence and isolation from her peers. All of which made her easy prey to a calculating psychopath hell bent on getting what he wanted. However none of those things were any of my sister’s business instead I gave a basic reply.

“Bella was young when she married him; she made a mistake that a lot of small town girls make”

“Exactly Edward…Bella is small town who wants to live big city life. And judging from the way the house looks” waving her hand like a game show hostess “you’re giving her exactly what she wants.”

I had no idea what that meant, there were a few personal touches, nothing of any great expense, in fact everything was brought from Bella’s house. In the six weeks she had been living with me no furniture had been added, no major appliance had been replaced and there had been no remodeling of rooms. I didn’t count the master bath because that had already been a planned event way before Bella’s arrival. Although I did upgrade to the luxury model tub - with her in mind – it was still my doing not hers and in the long run would pay for itself in added value to the house.  

So I was majorly confused

“I thought you said you liked Bella?”    

“I do…all I’m saying is she’s not like us”

“You mean those of us who have an Ivy League educations” It was childish on my part because I knew damn well Jasper could have gone to a prestigious college had his parents backed him up. But Alice was a completely different story…”Oh…that’s right I guess in that instance you would be less like me then Bella”

Yeah that pissed her off

“I don’t want to fight with you Edward and believe it or not I’m very happy for you and Bella. It’s just there are obstacles I’m not sure you’re considering”

Because I’m a glutton for punishment or maybe I just wanted this all out in the open, I prompted “Such as?”

Cocking her head to the side Alice asked “Do you know if she was married in a Catholic Church?”

At my shrug she made it a point to fill me in on why that was important “If she was then she’ll have to get an annulment to be married again, that’s going to take some time and a signature from her ex-husband.”

 “Then we’ll get married someplace else” it seemed simple enough to me however Alice was livid

“What? Mom would have a fit; in fact I’ll bet she wouldn’t attend if you don’t get married at the church”

“That would be her loss. For all I care it wouldn’t matter to me if we got married at the drive through chapel in Vegas.”

“You’re serious?”

Narrowing my eyes I made it clear this conversation was not going to end in a way that would make Alice happy

“I am dead serious. And whoever doesn’t like it, can kiss my ass. That includes you, mom or the fucking man in the moon.”

“You really would choose Bella over your family?”

Was she fucking serious?

“Hopefully Bella is going to be my wife…that makes her the closest family member I have.”

I had no idea how our conversation went from Alice not having keys to the house to me basically giving my sister an ultimatum, yet that’s what happened, and she was not at all happy.

“Maybe it’s not a good idea for my son to stay here”

“Why?” she could be mad at me but Vinny didn’t do anything.

“I just don’t think this is the best atmosphere for my child to be exposed to”

Her comment was totally uncalled for and I wasn’t going to just cower away from her pompous attitude “When the hell did you get so fucking condescending?”

Her mouth dropped open “I’m taking my son home!”

I wasn’t going to beg her however I thought maybe it might be possible to appeal to her sense of fairness.

“Alice, I have no idea where all this hostility came from or what makes you think Vinny would be unsafe under my care. But that little boy in there has been excited about spending the night since last week. Bella planned an evening full of games and movies and tomorrow I was taking him to lunch. If you want to be annoyed at me, for whatever reason, go right ahead. I have broad shoulders so I can handle it, however taking your resentment out on your son, is uncalled for. ”

“You think I’m a bad mother?”

What the fuck is up with women?

I began to wonder if Alice was – as Jacob put it - on the rag

“I would never say that and you know damn well I think you’re a great mother who loves her children and wants nothing but the best for them. All I’m saying is you’re annoyed at me and letting that get in the way of your judgment. Just please step back, calm down and think for minute before making a decision”

There really was no sense in Alice being so angry and she was definitely angry, standing there staring daggers at me for what seemed like an eternity.

After a few minutes calmness returned to Alice’s features as she sighed “I’m sorry…” moisture filled her eyes “…it’s just been a really bad day…” tears falling from her eyes “…all I wanted to do…” she started gasping for breath as she sobbed “…if I have to spend…the next nine months listening to mom…”

“Shhhh…it’s ok Alice” I said wrapping my arms around her and letting her cry.

When she wouldn’t stop I was beginning to get worried. Granted the only emotional female I ever really comforted was Bella, normally she would calm down in my arms; Alice just seemed to get worse.

Then the tears stopped as suddenly as they had started, sniffling as she stepped away from me Alice gave me a sad smile. “I didn’t mean any of that stuff Edward…honest, I’m so happy for you…”

The tears began to flow again while she spoke through stuttering breathes “…I rea…really am…you’re nev…never going to be …alone…ever again…you’re…going to ..get…get everything…you de…deserve”

“Are you alright Alice?” I was beginning to wonder if my sister was on some kind medication

“I’m fine” she said with a half-smile wiping her cheeks with the back of her hand “let me go get Mia and say good bye to Vinny”

I stood there dumbfounded, we had just been through one of the worse disagreements we’ve had in a long time followed by a crying fit and then she was acting like nothing had happened.

She was fucking crazy and a mess “Do you want to go wash your face first” 

“Yeah…that would be a good idea” she said before expectantly jumping up to hug me “I love you big brother”

“I love you too Alice” I said patting her back “But right now your scaring the shit out of me”

And as if the barrage of emotions hadn’t been enough - she fucking laughed

Women…what the fuck is the matter with them?