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Polar Night	By : belladonnacullen Category: Twilight Series > AU/AR > Het > Het Views: 8234 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or make any money from this story.

Chapter List
- 14
- 15
- 16
EPOV
Our flight was scheduled to leave before dawn. So we had to rush, and with a human that was no easy feat, but we’d made it to the gate just as they were announcing the final call for boarding. Bella rubbed small circles across the palm of my hand as the flight crew prepared for take-off, with a content, and dare I say it, proud smile on her lips.

“We’re going back,” she murmured. I found it hard to judge her mood, aside from the fact that her recent lack of sleep was beginning to take over. Her eyes were heavy lidded, and her head looked as if it were a bit too much of a burden for her slender neck to support.

“Sad?”

“A part of me could have stayed with you on that little island forever.”

“And the other part?”

“That part feels like I should try living with you a little before…” Bella’s voice trailed off and her eyes flashed chocolate brown in the dim light of the airplane. “I just want to enjoy us, the way we are right now. Does that make sense?”

“It’s only what I’ve been asking you to consider for months.”

But even as I smiled and kissed Bella’s temple, my mind wandered to places I wished it didn’t have to go. I’d begged Bella to remain human before I found out about the Volturi’s deal with Emmett and Rosalie: the bargain that threatened to tear my family apart. I would not let that happen.

“You still agree to give me some warning, though, in case you decide to finish off your freshman year, or complete your degree.”

“I won’t,” Bella replied, looking around for the airplane pillow.

“Please just say you’ll tell me in case you change your mind?” I couldn’t hide the urgency from my voice, and Bella stopped looking for the pillow long enough to eye me suspiciously.

“Edward, my mind is made up,” Bella grumbled as she kicked off her sandals.

“Just tell me you’ll give me notice. Please?” I handed her the pillow that she’d been halfway sitting on.

Bella rolled her eyes and yawned. It was still before six and half the people in the first class cabin yawned along with her. I was one of the few that didn’t. “I would let you know, Edward. But my mind is made up,” she mumbled, as she plumped the pillow and placed it on my lap. It all seemed so natural, and so right, as Bella casually made herself comfortable, placing her head in my lap and curling her knees to her chest.

“Thank you, love.” As I gazed down on Bella, cuddled like a kitten in my lap, I was thanking her for so much more than for simply giving in to my request.

Bella wound her hands behind my knees, clutching my legs as she settled her head comfortably in my lap. “Mm hmm,” she yawned again. Her heart shook her small body, and I brushed her hair back from her face, so that I could study her profile while she passed into sleep. The other passengers in our cabin also thought about sleeping, and tried to avoid the long lists of things they needed to accomplish after they arrived in the States.

I had my own list:

• Pack for college (which would take all of five minutes),
• Find a home for Bella and I in Juneau,
• Speak with Alice, Emmett and Rosalie about our new plan,
• Find a way out of the time limit for Bella’s humanity,
• And then there was another list of things I’d like to accomplish in Forks, things I’d almost never dared to hope for, but that were very real possibilities now that I was a married man.

Bella’s breathing was deep and even, and her head was incredibly warm in my lap. The dreams of the other passengers began to surface, shimmering and gossamer, beautiful impossibilities. Dreams set humans apart from vampires. It was more than the fact that I could never sleep; my vampiric brain could never replicate the unlikely trajectory of the human subconscious. The closest things I had to dreams were glimpses of childhood seen in a watery reflection: a hat blowing through the air, light reflecting through canisters on a kitchen counter, small hands on piano keys.

But I could wish. And as I gazed down at Bella, surrounded by hundreds of fitful fantasies and magical, yet haphazard yarns, I counted her eyelashes and I wished fervently. I let my mind roam freely and added my desires to the thoughts of the other sleeping passengers. No matter how unlikely or how outlandish, I gave my wishes up to whoever might be listening.

Bella was now my family, and I wanted her safe. I wanted her whole. And I wanted her human for as long as she desired. I wanted her so many ways… both innocent and otherwise. My mind ran away from me, stuck on thoughts of Bella, until my desire threatened to wake her, and I forced my brain to move on. I wanted the rest of my family, safe, whole and happy as well. And I had one other desire, one that I wouldn’t add to the list, one that I wouldn’t give up, one that I wouldn’t name, even for myself.

*****

BPOV
“Did Emmett ever tell you the story about the air marshal?” I giggled. We’d been traveling for about twenty hours, and now that we were just a few hours from home I was feeling kind of giddy.

“He didn’t have to tell me anything. It’s one of his favorite recent memories,” Edward sighed, shaking his head. But then he looked down at me in a way that made me shift a little in my seat, and seriously consider what had gotten Emmett and Rose into all that trouble in the first place. Edward and I had been together for the better part of a day, completely clothed. It was frustrating and inconvenient, to say the least.

But even as I glanced around to see if all the passengers around us were sleeping, I noticed something change in the way Edward was holding himself. Seriously, his emotions could turn in a nanosecond.

“Emmett told you that story? When?” Edward’s voice was clipped as he struggled to hold his mounting anger in check. I couldn’t imagine what he was angry about.

“It was when Emmett and I were dancing at the reception,” I explained somewhat impatiently. “We were talking about long plane rides. It was a funny story.”

“He was talking about sex while he danced with you at our reception?”

“No! He didn’t talk about sex! Mostly what happened after the sex. Really, Edward, you don’t have to protect me anymore, you know.”

Edward eyed me quizzically. “I have no choice but to try to keep you safe.”

“That’s not what I mean. I’m married and I’m a part of your family. There’s no need for you to try to keep things like the air marshal story from my virgin ears.”

“Emmett and Rosalie have never been good at respecting boundaries. Just because we’re married, it doesn’t mean I’d like to emulate either of them.”

I balked. What was Edward thinking? That I’d actually want him to take me against the door of the cockpit? That I was going to start bragging about our sex lives like Emmett and Rosalie?

“Edward, please… I just thought it was a funny story.”

Edward’s eyes were trained on the window, and he didn’t look in my direction. I hoped he wasn’t planning on talking to Emmett. Who was I kidding; of course that’s what he was planning.

I searched my mind for a way to tactfully change the subject. “I know what you mean about feeling like you have to protect me. When we were walking through the airport, I actually found myself looking out for you.”

That did the trick. Edward glanced over at me with twinkling eyes, trying not to laugh. Good old Mr. Mercurial. “Excuse me?” he asked.

“What if someone suspected something? What if you were caught in a stray patch of sunlight?” I know it was a ridiculous compulsion, I mean, how could I do anything to protect Edward? But this feeling was completely new and impossible to ignore. Like it or not, and as stupid as it might seem, I’d be watching Edward’s back.

“First of all, the sun hadn’t come out yet. And secondly, I’ve done just fine for nearly ninety years,” he chuckled.

Well, I’d succeeded in turning Edward’s mood, but did he have to come out and laugh about it, even if it was absurd? I folded my arms across my chest and huffed. “It’s not silly. What if something happened and then you were gone? What would I do then?”

Edward placed a cool finger under my jaw and tilted my head so that I was staring defiantly into his suddenly serious eyes. My breath caught in my throat. He was disarmingly beautiful, and I wondered whether I would ever get used to having him so close, gazing into my eyes. I felt myself tearing up just because of his proximity, and because he loved me, and because he was mine.

“Of course I understand, Bella. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have laughed.”

But then Edward’s eyes began to twinkle anew, and I saw the corners of his mouth pull upward, despite his contrite words. “I thought you were grabbing at my hand because you were intimidated by the crowd in the airport. I had no idea it was for my protection.” Apparently, Edward just couldn’t help himself, and his subtle grin turned into a huge smile. I gave him my best menacing glare. Edward’s laughter filled the cabin.

“Maybe after I’m changed you’ll take my anger more seriously,” I huffed.

Edward was instantly quiet. “I’m sorry. Please, let’s not argue.”

“It wasn’t funny. I can’t lose you.”

“I know, now that we’re married --”

“It’s more than being married. What we have now is more than that.”

“Not the way I see it. Marrying you was everything to me. I could have been happy forever just being able to call you my wife. My wife,” Edward repeated in a reverent tone, his eyes sparkling like sunbursts as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close. It was hard to stay angry with so much of my body against his. It was like little bursts of electricity were going off wherever we were touching, and I was getting all hot and cold at the same time.

“Oh please… Are you trying to tell me you don’t need any of this, Mr. Cullen?” I asked, running my finger from the inside of his knee up his inner thigh, like I had when we were on our way to the airport after the reception. I watched the effect my fingertip had on him with delighted confidence: the way he went still all over, the way his eyes turned hot and yellow, the set of his jaw.

I let my finger linger, feeling icy coolness emanating from him, letting me know that no matter what he said, he liked this as much as I did. And then I very purposefully took my hand from his thigh and rested it in my lap and shifted in my chair so we were no longer touching.

It took Edward a few seconds to collect himself and move again. “Well, that is an added bonus. But I would have been happy without it. Did you see me at the reception?”

And all over again, I saw Edward, triumphant, euphoric, as I whispered ‘I do.’ The way he placed his hands so gently on my face as he leaned in for our first kiss. My body tingled all over again with the memory and I squirmed in my spacious leather seat. “I’ll never forget, Edward. Even afterwards, that’s one of the memories I’ll take with me. I’m sure of it.

“But this,” I grabbed Edward’s hand and all of those tingly feelings were magnified exponentially when the bare skin of his hand touched mine, enough to make me nearly jump, “this is more.”

Edward blinked rapidly, and he gently wrapped his fingers around mine. “It is. It reminds me of something Jasper mentioned once, about how he’d never dreamed he’d be blessed with both a mate and a wife. He said it was more than someone like him deserved.”

I shook my head in dismissive exasperation. “You and Jasper deserve each other, sometimes. Of course you deserve this. It’s just me.”

“Just you? Just everything. You’re all that matters to me, Bella.”

I rolled my eyes. Edward could be so dramatic. But deep down, I knew it was very close to the truth. And before I knew what was happening, my seatbelt was unfastened, and I was on Edward’s lap, his arms around me.

“It’s like being in love with a flame: so powerful that you’ve consumed me, yet so vulnerable that a little change in the wind might take you from me forever.”

“Four months,” I whispered, leaning up against his chest, my ear over his unbeating heart.

“Yes. And then I can stop tilting at windmills, trying to keep you whole.”

“And then you could kiss me, and I could kiss back.”

Edward didn’t respond verbally that time.

“And sex would be… different. Right?”

“I’d imagine.”

I was goading Edward, and I knew it. But he was the one to deposit me into his lap, for goodness sakes. I wiggled a bit. “See, you do like the sex, as far as I can tell.”

“I never said I didn’t,” he smirked.

I’ll admit, I resisted the urge to straddle him right there in first class. The other passengers seemed like they were asleep, but, well, it just wasn’t me, no matter how much I wanted this man. Instead, I settled for snuggling my body against his, letting my soft curves mold into his hard, unyielding skin. And, okay, I may have settled myself a little more vigorously than was necessary. Edward found one of the courtesy blankets and threw it over us.

“Thanks,” I murmured, shifting again.

Edward groaned and bit his bottom lip.

“You got that from me,” I giggled. Edward looked momentarily confused. “The lip-biting thing, I mean.”

He grinned. “Right. Of course, the ‘lip-biting thing.’” This time Edward was the one to shift underneath me. I felt my cheeks go red. “Not the only thing I got from you.”

“Watch out, Mr. Cullen, or they may need to summon the air marshal, after all.”

I watched the slow golden burn in Edward’s eyes, the look that said he wanted to own me, in many, many ways. Now, after three weeks, I could finally meet that look head on, but it still turned my insides to liquid and I heard myself whimper, embarrassingly, out loud.

“Wait until tonight, Bella.” Edward’s voice was low and almost sinister, his cool breath blowing over my ear. And then he slid his lips slowly from just behind my ear to my shoulder, gently running the surface of his teeth over the bone there. I was afraid I might be getting Edward’s lap damp.

“Tonight?” I asked.

“I’ve been waiting for this night for some time. I didn’t know if I’d ever have the chance.” Edward gently rubbed my knee under the blanket.

“This night?” I suspected what he was getting at, but I wanted to hear him say it.

“Having you in my room. In our room,” he whispered, pulling my earlobe between his lips.

“How long is ‘some time?’”

“Long enough to nearly drive me mad.”

I searched my mind, trying to think of an instance, for the moment things changed. He told me when he bought the bed that it was only for me to sleep in. Did he want me then? “Since you bought the bed?”

I felt Edward’s smile against my neck, and his hand trailed higher on my leg.

“Longer?”

“Perhaps.”

And then it dawned on me. I knew how long. I knew when everything changed, and how all that sadness, that darkness had all been necessary in some ways. “I know when!” I was so excited I spun around in Edward’s lap so I was facing him. His eyes were that white-hot amber that I knew so well, and his mouth was slightly open so the edges of his teeth caught the light.

“You do?”

“Since you came back with me from Italy. I didn’t think you even wanted me around at first. But you did. You wanted me completely then.”

Edward smiled a bit, but his eyes dimmed and he looked away. I hated that he still beat himself up over all of that.

“Before that time I’d never let myself consider it,” he whispered so low that I almost couldn’t hear. I don’t know if the words were even meant for me. We’d talked ourselves to death about Edward leaving and what it did to us. How we felt about it. I didn’t want to belabor it, and suddenly, I felt all kinds of wrong for bringing it up.

“Well, you know I’ve always wanted that too. I never tried to convince you otherwise.”

“You weren’t only one I was trying to convince, Bella.”

But the spell had been broken, and I rested myself against Edward and it felt more familiar than sexy. It didn’t mean my mind didn’t pick up where we’d left off, though.

Tonight we’d stay in Edward’s room. He’d actually called it our room! We’d close the door… and then… oh so many possibilities. I’d wanted him on his couch long before he ever got the bed. And now that I thought about it, he did too! He’d mentioned something about the couch when he brought me up to his room a couple days before the wedding. I didn’t really get what he was saying then, but now… Well, I couldn’t get back to Forks soon enough. But we had at least another hour left in the air. And then we’d have to endure his family… his family of vampires.

“We can’t,” I murmured, upset beyond measure.

“I thought we’d settled that once and for all,” Edward rasped in my ear. God, how did he know what I was thinking?

“What’s wrong, Bella?”

“What about your family?” I asked, searching his eyes, trying to figure out if this was just par for the course with the Cullens.

“What about them?”

“They’re all vampires.”

“You finally figured it out,” he chuckled.

“Are you going to make me say this? They’ll all know. They’ll all be able to hear and…” I couldn’t bring myself to say they’d be able to smell. Ugh.

“They’ll be gone this evening, Bella. Every night this week if we asked. You can count on it. They owe me nearly ninety years worth of discretion.”

“I couldn’t ask them to leave their home.”

“You wouldn’t have to. They just will. They’ve all been in our shoes once. Give or take a human.”

Well, that was… considerate, I guess. I couldn’t lie to myself. I was completely relieved.

“So, you’ve been waiting to use the bed?” I asked, letting my hand study the planes of Edward’s chest through his thin cotton shirt.

“Our bed,” he corrected. He spoke in a way that made me have to look him in the eye. I shuddered with what I saw there.

“Right, our bed.”

“In our room,” he added very quietly. I bit my lip in response. I wasn’t sure if he was just making sure I knew he considered it our room, or if he was telling me he wanted me in our room. “Our room,” I agreed.

Two could play that game. “Our leather couch?”

Edward grabbed my hips and ground me into his lap. “Our bedroom door.” The words were so low and deep I almost couldn’t hear them, it was more like a vibration than a sound. I gulped.

“Our… door?” I squeaked, my mind attempting to picture what might be done against a door.

“Absolutely,” Edward hissed, and I shook, overcome, still unable to look away. We sat like that for quite some time, making only the tiniest of movements that sent shock waves reverberating through my body, the lightest touches, subtle shifts of the hips, as my mind worked in overdrive just imagining what might be coming.

And then, just when I though it was too much, Edward ‘s cold lips crashed into mine, and he slipped his tongue into my mouth in that careful way of his, his hands were suddenly under my dress, and I was momentarily lost, cold and consumed. But then a man somewhere behind us snorted a bit in his sleep. I tried to pull away.

“Edward!”

“The attendants are in the back, and the humans in first class with us are all sleeping.”

I glanced around nervously at the other people in the cabin. I couldn’t see them all, some were hunched over, others were sprawled out. I guess Edward heard their breathing, or maybe the lack of thoughts, or…

“You can hear sleep.” It wasn’t a question. It was just something I’d never considered.

“In a manner of speaking.”

I shimmied upwards a little, and placed my hands on Edward’s shoulders, my mood completely changed yet again.

“What does it sound like?”

“Hmm?”

“When people sleep?”

Edward’s fingertips continued to trace patterns on my thighs, but the touch had changed, and his hand moved in time with his voice. “It sounds human. When the human mind roams freely, it’s something so unique that it’s beautiful. Flowers bloom from moonstones, the wind turns a blind eye to sailors casting out over a sea of stars, an old woman is young again flying over a field of wheat chasing a sound that looks like a bird. There’s no order or pattern; it’s as unlikely and unpredictable, yet cohesive as the finest jazz improvisation. More so. It’s everything that is unique about humankind, wrapped into one silent, nightly ritual.”

Something about the timbre of Edward’s voice made me long for my old pillow that I used to use when I wanted to feel safe. It was almost painful.

“It seems like it makes you sad.”

“Wistful, perhaps.”

I tilted my head to the side, trying to figure my husband out. “Because you can’t dream?”

“No… maybe because one day you won’t anymore. You know, that first night I came to your room, I hoped I might hear you dreaming. I thought maybe your conscious mind was blocking me, that when you were asleep I might hear you.”

“And it didn’t work.”

“I wouldn’t say that. I heard enough. Enough to fall in love. And now look where we are.”

“It was my dreams?”

“It was everything. It was you.”

*****

EPOV
The closer we came to the house, the more unsettled Bella became. She fidgeted in her seat, pawed through her purse, and bit her bottom lip so much I was afraid and excited that she might make it bleed. Bella hesitated when the car stopped in front of the house and actually shrunk back when I held out my hand.

“There’s no turning back now. They knew as soon as the car turned off the highway. Let’s go meet our family. They’re dying to see us.”

Bella looked silently back and forth between the house and me, and I could almost see the half-formed words on the tip of her tongue.

“It will be your fault if Alice jumps out of her skin, Bella,” I joked.

I’d intentionally invoked my sister’s name. Bella and Alice had become so close, just as Alice had seen years ago. I knew Alice would be able to ease some of Bella’s anxiety, and I was anxious myself: anxious that Bella should have someone to confide in. There was no precedent for our relationship, a vampire and a human, mated and married. I’d spoken to Carlisle and Emmett while on the honeymoon, and it had helped immensely, but Bella had been navigating this new relationship all on her own. That she’d remained so steadfast in her beliefs and so sure about us, even without outside support, reinforced for me how strong she was. It was a wonder she even wanted someone as weak as I was.

With mention of my sister, Bella smiled and finally offered me her hand.

“They’ll know,” she whispered, as I excitedly pulled her up the steps.

“Know?”

“They’ll understand how I feel about you.”

I stopped and held Bella’s hips, staring into her eyes. “Is that what was making you nervous?”

“No, it’s actually what gave me the strength to finally go in. Alice will get how I feel about you. I can be myself completely. I don’t have to pretend or worry. It’s really like a home.”

“It is a home, our home.”

“They’re all waiting, aren’t they?”

“Absolutely. Alice can hardly contain herself, and Emmett’s about to break down the door. Let’s go inside, for Esme’s sake. She rather likes the door.”

Bella stood on tiptoe and kissed me quickly on the lips. It was subtle, like a warm breeze, but it stilled the breath in my lungs nonetheless. “Yes, husband,” she whispered, wrapping her arms around me, and reaching out for the doorknob. But I couldn’t let her lead me into the house. I swooped her into my arms, and carried her across the threshold, her heart pounding against my chest, her eyes bright with surprise.

“Thorough,” I whispered in her ear, and she giggled as I set her back down on the landing. My family was poised on the stairwell, frozen and smiling. What they saw in us was enough to keep them still as their minds adjusted to the picture of Bella and I, mated and in love.

Bella’s arm tightened around me, and I could feel her taking strength from me as we stood a little awkwardly in front of our family.

“It’s true.”
“They did it.”
“He’s happy.”
“She loves him so much.”
“Look how it’s changed them.”

I took Esme’s silent advice and I looked at the way the weeks on the island had changed Bella; she stood taller perhaps, with an easy confidence, smiled more readily, her eyes sparkled, her skin was sun-kissed with little freckles across her nose, her hair had golden highlights with amber streaks a human might not have noticed. She held her arm around my waist so easily, so possessively.

But it was more than what I could see. There was something glowing from within her that connected us, one to the other. It made me a part of her, and in the process, nearly brought me back to life. Bella’s gazed up at me, her eyes searching mine, before she pressed her lips together and shook her head a bit. I understood. She knew what I was thinking, and she agreed.

I wound my arms around her waist, so small, soft and warm. After all of these years of solitude, I was complete in a way that I didn’t know I could be. I was finally home with my wife. Suddenly it seemed ridiculous to wait until the evening. My family would understand. I grabbed Bella’s hand, ready to tug her up the stairs past the rest of the family, when I was interrupted by Jasper.

“It was worth it,” he whispered to Alice.

My mind was quickly assaulted with pictures from Jasper and Alice’s minds: electric green grass, a bright blue cloudless sky, a sandstorm in the desert, a scar on Alice’s shin. Just as quickly, the thoughts were gone, sealed away. I was snapped out of my reverie, and my eyes locked with Jasper’s.

“Later, Edward,” he silently requested. “You’ll have to ask Alice.”

That’s when I noticed that Alice’s smile was unnaturally large, even for her. I watched her steel herself before bounding over to Bella and I.

“Bella, you look radiant,” Alice exclaimed, stunned by the sight of my mate. Of course Alice was stunned. It was almost as if Bella was lit from within; her eyes glowed, her cheeks were the most glorious shade of pink, her teeth gleamed, her sun bleached hair glimmered in the light.

“As do you, big brother. Marriage suits you, it seems. But, I never had any doubt that it would, thank you very much.”

“You never did, Alice. Thank you.”

And with my reply, Alice threw her arms around my neck, a gesture so spontaneous that I hadn’t seen it coming. She may have been half my size, but she nearly knocked me over with her enthusiasm. “I’m so happy for you, Edward. And for me too… we both get Bella forever now.” Alice’s eyes danced with happiness, and immediately visions of Juneau streamed through her mind: Bella and I sitting in our freshman Shakespeare class, Bella working in the campus library, Bella and I lying on a couch in a large living room, reading and looking out over the Taku River and the snowy banks of Douglas Island.

“I should have known you’d get your way, Edward. You men get us every time. But the house… do you really think that’s the one?”

And I realized Alice had shown me a vision the house I would find for Bella and I. I wanted to ask more, but held back. It wasn’t exactly to Bella’s specifications.

“Oh, you haven’t found the house yet? Well, you better hurry up, the semester starts in days!”

I glanced at Bella and she was eyeing Alice and I intently, that little wrinkle between her brows coming to life. I stooped down and kissed her forehead, trying to ease her concern about the silent conversation that was taking place in front of her.

But Alice wasn’t so easily distracted. “Today I’ll let you settle in, Bella. But that’s it. I can’t believe you didn’t give me more warning! We have to purchase a complete college wardrobe and furnish a home, all in a week!”

I could feel the air vibrate with Bella’s tension. She detested shopping. “Alice, I don’t really think--” Bella began.

I grasped Bella’s hand, and she turned to look at me. I tried to silently reassure her that I’d speak to Alice. My sister and I had a lot to discuss; a request to curtail shopping would be the easy part. And amazingly, Bella seemed to understand; her shoulders fell and she leaned against me as the worry disappeared from her face. My mate.

Alice got the hint as well. “Well, at the very least, be prepared for a trip to Seattle tomorrow. We’ll leave at seven-thirty, sharp.”

Bella jumped a little and let go of my hand. “Seven-thirty! Alice, please, I’m still human. I need to sleep!”

“Alice,” I began.

“Please, Edward, she has all night to sleep! There’s not much time before…”

I stepped towards Alice and silently planned to reprimand her in the future, a trick Alice and I had been employing for years. I chose the words that I wanted to say carefully. “We have plans for tonight, Alice. You should understand. In the future, please think before you embarrass my mate in front of the entire family.”

Alice’s eyes widened and she sighed in resignation, her hopes of an eight-hour shopping day dashed. “Oh. Of course she doesn’t have all night to sleep. Jasper was right: this will take some getting used to.”

“How does eleven sound, then?” she asked Bella out loud.

“Better,” Bella breathed, relieved.

“Seriously, Bella. I hope you managed to sign up for all evening classes.”

Bella giggled and hid her face against my chest, and I pulled her protectively into my arms, cradling her in my embrace, burying my nose in her hair. Was this over? Could we retire to our room?

“About that bet,” Emmett laughed, slapping Jasper on the back. “And to think Edward used to have such a good poker face. Guess those days are over.”

Jasper handed over a small stack of bills, faster than Bella could have seen, and I relaxed a bit more, glad that we were no longer the subject of a wager, and a little proud of the way it had turned out in the end.

“Oh for heaven’s sake!” Esme exclaimed, finally rushing over to Bella and I, throwing her arms around the both of us with a little more force than she should have. I worked to shield Bella so she wouldn’t be injured by my mother’s overly enthusiastic love. Esme pulled back and beamed at the both of us. “Finally!”

“I can’t wait to hear about everything! How did you enjoy the cottage?”

I felt Bella stiffen in my arms, warmth radiating from her face. Seriously, this was a bit too much. “The cottage?” Bella stammered.

“Oh, I didn’t mean…”

“Everything?” I began. “Hmm, let’s see… we met your parrots,” I teased my mother.

Carlisle had been on his way over to greet us, but stopped in mid-step. Emmett and Rosalie roared with laughter. Apparently, we weren’t the only ones that had discovered my parents’ secret.

Esme covered her mouth with her hand, and reached for Carlisle’s arm, but her eyes twinkled with mischief. “So, did you enjoy the tide pools as much as we have?”

I returned a wry smile. She’d never get it out of me. Emmett was on the floor by this time, clutching his sides.

Bella giggled and glanced between Emmett and me, before clearing her throat. “And we watched Notorious.”

Emmett and Rose were immediately silent, and after a second, the rest of the family broke into nervous laughter.

“Emmett!” Rosalie hissed, crossing her arms across her chest. “He knows how I feel about that woman!”

Emmett was quickly on his feet, but Rosalie turned her back on him. “That woman!” she mumbled. The rest of the family tried to suppress their laughter, to no avail. Ingrid Bergman was dead and buried, for god’s sake.

“Thanks a lot, Bella,” Emmett laughed grimly. “The gloves are definitely off now, little sister. You best watch yourself.”

Bella leaned against me, secure in my embrace, still laughing. She seemed finally, completely at ease. She was my mate, and my wife, and fit in naturally as part of the family.

Having no luck with Rosalie, Emmett bounded over to us and lifted Bella off the ground in a very big, yet very careful bear hug. “Thanks little sis, you won the bet for me.”

“What bet?”

I growled and Emmett placed Bella back on the ground, without answering. Emmett and I would need to have a little talk in the not so distant future.

Eventually, we managed to make out way into the dining room, where Esme had an enormous breakfast spread waiting for Bella. There were eggs, pancakes, bacon, fresh fruit, toast, croissants, coffee and three different fresh squeezed juices. Bella tentatively picked at a croissant and ladled herself some fruit. Everyone was all eyes, watching for confirmatory signs that Bella and I were truly a mated couple, wondering at how exactly that was accomplished, and just generally curious what a human and a vampire might do alone together for such a stretch of time.

“We went snorkeling,” I started.

“I almost saw some fish,” Bella giggled. “But the coral and the anemones and stuff were really pretty. And the dolphins were amazing! I swam with them.” Emmett thought wistfully about the delicate flavor of dolphin blood. The family had banned him from feeding from dolphins over ten years ago, much to his chagrin.

Carlisle patted my shoulder. “You look happy, Edward. Did you discuss your issues with Bella?”

“Later,” I hissed, under my breath. Five sets of vampire eyes settled on Carlisle and I, and Bella glanced around, trying to gauge what she’d missed. Alice squeezed Bella’s knee reassuringly.

“So, uh, Alice, where were you while we were gone? Your cell kept going to voicemail.”

Alice jumped in her seat, and her mind closed like a steel vault. She managed to project nothing but white static, a new talent that she’d apparently picked up while we were gone.

“Last minute trip to Ireland,” she answered, strangely nervous. “We hung out with the Irish coven for a little bit.” Then I saw pictures of the Burren, Siobhan’s little cottage, Siobhan and Liam, Maggie giving Alice a small gold necklace. Alice’s mind snapped shut again and she sought out my eyes across the table. “Later,” she thought. I was becoming a bit nervous at all the conversations the family was putting off until ‘later.’

“The Irish coven?” Bella asked.

“Siobhan and Liam have been acquaintances of mine for many years,” Carlisle answered. “Maggie is their newest addition. They live in Ireland outside a little village called Kinvara.”

“But they weren’t at the wedding, though?”

“We didn’t invite anyone that doesn’t adhere to our diet. There were too many humans about.”

“Oh, right. I forget you have friends that don’t live like you.”

“Maggie’s especially nice,” Alice jumped in, smiling. “We all hung out a lot back in the day.”

Emmett was suddenly more interested in the conversation. He smiled broadly, looking between Bella and I. “Alice says Maggie was kind of… surprised to hear you guys were married.” I shot him an evil look. He was trying to get back at Bella by making her jealous.

“It shocked her so much, I hear she gave back your necklace, Edward,” Emmett continued.

“What?” Bella asked, staring between Emmett and I.

“Maggie lived with Edward, Jasper and Alice the summer after he graduated from medical school,” Emmett informed Bella, still smiling. I was conflicted about whether to jump across the table at Emmett or try to explain things to Bella. I chose to stay by Bella’s side, but didn’t know where to begin.

“She lived with you?” Bella demanded.

“It wasn’t just Maggie. Tanya and Kate stayed with us as well,” I explained.

“Tanya?” Bella stood up and glanced around, looking for somewhere to turn. Everyone except Emmett and Alice where trying to make themselves scarce. Emmett was enjoying his game a bit too much and Alice was silently pleading with Bella.

“Bella, nothing happened,” I began.

“How many other females have you lived with over the years, Edward?”

“How did Achiri take the news, Carlisle?” Emmett asked our father, laughing outright now. Alice beat me to the other side of the table and managed to tip over Emmett’s chair. I finished by pinning him to the ground.

“This is not funny, Emmett,” I snarled.

“Achiri?” Bella whispered. “Who’s Achiri?”

Alice was instantly back at Bella’s side. “She lives in Brazil. She’s a friend of the family.”

“Esme, I’m sorry but I’m not very hungry, right now. Thanks for the food,” Bella managed, her voice cracking. She turned and tried to run to the stairs, but only made it halfway before tripping over an area rug. I managed to make it to her side in time to catch her.

“Here, let me help you.”

“I need some time, Edward. But, it sounds like you should probably give Maggie a call. And Achiri. And I bet Tanya’s still upset.” With that, she turned around and marched up the stairs.

“Bella!”

“Leave me alone, Edward.”

I spun around and glared at my brother, who was still looking pretty pleased with himself. “Emmett, you and me, outside, now!”

“Boys!” Esme reprimanded, stepping between us.

“I told her to watch out after that Notorious comment.”

“Outside, Emmett, or you’re going to have to buy Esme a new table with your recent winnings,” I growled.

*****

JPOV
I paused at the door to Edward’s bedroom, reacquainting myself with Bella’s scent, with the way her blood pounded in her veins, attempting to build a tolerance. I’d mostly steered clear of Bella since her birthday. But it had been a year, and now she was my sister, and she was human. I’d have to get used to it. For now, at least.

I was actually pretty sure I could handle being alone in Bella’s presence. My trip to Ireland with Alice had left me with a sense that everything had been set right, and I had faith that my family was on the correct path. It was a deep, settled peace that I had never known in all my years vampire. As soon as Maggie gave back that necklace, Alice saw that Bella was going to be upset; there’d been no way around that. But she also saw that I could help matters, something I was more than willing to do after all of the pain I’d caused.

So, I took a deep Bella-filled breath of air, closed my eyes, and knocked on Edward’s door.

“Alice?”

“Uh, no.”

“Jasper?”

Bella’s voice was quavering and higher pitched than usual. At least I didn’t hear sobbing. I could never handle crying women when I was human, and it was well over a century since I’d had to fumble through a situation such as that. “Uh, Bella, could we talk?”

Bella didn’t answer, but I heard her walking towards the door. “I was unpacking. Did Edward send you?”

“Nope.”

“Alice, then?”

“It’s just me, Bella. Could I come in?”

Bella cracked the door open and peered into the hall, before glancing back over her shoulder. I worried she’d dumped a bunch of underclothes on the bed, or something else feminine and private. “I could come back,” I offered.

“No, no, it’s okay,” she assured me, although I couldn’t detect any assurance whatsoever in her voice, and she opened the door wide. “Come in, I guess.”

“Thanks.” Bella and I both looked askance at the broken bed, and chose to settle awkwardly on either side of the leather couch. Bella smiled and twisted her hands in front of her.

“Edward feels awful, you know,” I started lamely.

“He should.” I was impressed by the way the little human was almost able to growl.

“And you’re jealous.”

“Jasper, you don’t have to be, well… you, to have noticed that.”

“Sorry, Bella… listen, I came to talk openly. No meddling with your emotions or anything, just to talk, I promise.”

“But, why?”

“Well, I’ve got a bit more experience than you or Edward in these matters. I kind of knew I’d have to do this ever since Maggie gave back that necklace.”

“Alice saw…”

“She saw there was no way it was going to go over well with you.”

“He never even told me about someone named Maggie.”

“What would he have said? She had a crush on him?”

“Yeah, and probably before I was born, even.”

“1980.”

“Uh huh, before I was born. And he’s known Tanya forever. And who else? Who the heck is Achiri? How many other vampires out there want Edward? How many has he just let into his life? He let them love him while they lived together?”

“Bella, it’s not like that. Edward kept to himself for over a century. He never really got the whole woman thing, until you. He didn’t care about any of them that way. I would know. Your husband is a good man, and there aren’t that many male vampires out there, good or otherwise… we fight one another off. And he’s the kind of guy a female would notice.”

Bella blushed a pretty shade of pink and I held my breath and clenched my hands, silently cursing the venom that began to flow in my mouth. I looked out the window and swallowed quickly, hoping that Bella hadn’t noticed. I could feel her love for Edward simmering just beneath the surface, but she tried to suppress it with her waning anger.

“There’s never been anyone but you, Bella. No matter how many women wanted to get into your husband’s pants, you’re the only one that’s been there, the only one he ever considered.

“But he never told me about Maggie. Or Achiri.”

“What was there to tell? That they liked him and he didn’t return their feelings? He may read minds, but he’s a bit thickheaded when it comes to women, Bella. I figured that by now you would have guessed.”

Bella smiled a little and looked away, unwilling to speak poorly of her mate. I understood it as an agreement on her part. “He didn’t care for them?”

“Of course he cared, but only as a friend. He’s always meant well, but he’s just not as insightful with females. Tanya’s theory is that he was just turned too young to understand women. I don’t know that that’s an excuse. What I remember of my mama, she made sure I knew how to treat a woman from an early age. But I don’t admit to being as much of a gentleman as Edward on all occasions, so I suppose it evens out some in the end.”

“Is Maggie pretty?”

“She’s a vampire.”

“Right, got it, she’s beautiful.”

I didn’t know about that. But I’d never had eyes for anyone else after I’d met Alice, so it was hard to say. “Red hair, freckles, that kind of thing. More cute than anything, if you ask me.”

Bella inched closer to me on the couch, and I clutched my end of the seat. She truly smelled delicious, and I worked at containing my feelings of hunger so that Bella couldn’t the emotion. I didn’t know how that would go over. “Is there anyone else? Any other female that wanted Edward?”

“Well, uh, I believe you went to high school with us. Do you really want me to --”

“Humans don’t count,” Bella said rolling her eyes. I understood, and I was glad she did as well.

“Yeah, Edward was quite the fundamentalist in his day. That’s part of the reason that you were so surprising,” I admitted.

“A fundamentalist?”

“Just cause we don’t eat the cattle, it doesn’t mean we’ve got the right to play with ‘em.”

“Huh.” Bella eyed me uncertainly and I felt growing indignation on her part.

“It’s not like I think you’re cattle,” I added quickly. “It was all a little while ago. Edward was pretty self-righteous back in the day.”

“He was?” Finally, Bella was able to manage a strained smile, but it vanished almost as soon as it materialized. “Please, Jasper, I meant other female vampires. Were there others? You can tell me.”

“I don’t know. Probably. But I’ve only been here the past fifty-five years. And I couldn’t say if say Edward even knows who all wanted him like that. God, Tanya loved him forever, and he thought she just wanted a roll in the hay.”

“Even I knew that wasn’t exactly right,” she added with a confident nod. Females were females, I suppose, vampire or otherwise. Women had a way of knowing these things better than men. And that was partially my point.

“He wasn’t keeping it from you, Bella. He didn’t know. Tanya asked me not to say anything a long time ago. The only reason I told Edward before the wedding was because, with Tanya there at the wedding, it seemed like he should know. And who was I to continue to keep her confidence after her coven refused to help with the newborns?”

“But this vampire, Maggie, Edward liked her enough to give her a necklace. Why would he do that?”

In my estimation, Bella was off the mark worrying about Maggie. Tanya and Edward had a deep friendship that spanned nearly a century. Maggie was in and out of his life in a decade. But I certainly wasn’t going to put in my two cents on the matter. I’d also let Edward find his way through the minefield that was his mother’s necklace. I wasn’t touching that with a ten foot pole. “Honestly, Bella, you’d have to ask Edward. I’ve got some ideas, but it wouldn’t be right to speculate.”

Bella shook her head and began pacing the room, all the while feeling more and more insecure. I watched her wipe her eyes with the back of her hand. Fuck. Tears. Suddenly the minefield didn’t seem as threatening.

“Bella, Maggie was a devout Catholic when Siobhan found her, and she clung to those beliefs to help her through the change. It’s still something that holds a lot of meaning for her, and you can imagine what a struggle that could be for a vampire. Especially one that lives on human blood. It’s a struggle Edward naturally understood.”

Bella stopped pacing, and gulped nervously. At least she’d stopped crying. Another tear and I’d have lifted her emotions one way or the other, no matter what I’d promised earlier.

“And he still didn’t like her? Like her, like her, I mean? The way she must have felt, it’s so much like Edward.”

“You can’t help who you’re drawn to, Bella. Finding a mate’s got nothing to do with religion as far as I can tell.”

With the word ‘mate’ Bella’s head shot up and she really looked at me for the first time since we started talking.

“We use the word mate, but it’s so small compared to what it actually means. Isn’t it?”

Bella nodded a little and I felt her simultaneous understanding and curiosity.

“It changes you forever, Bella. It’s big, really big. You know? I tried explaining it to Edward before you two, well… but there are no words for it, really, are there?”

“No. In a way, it feels like we’re two pieces of the same whole. But that’s the best I’ve got.”

“That sounds about right. The way I see it, finding your mate gives you some flexibility. It allows you to better exist in the world. I mean, the world changes all the time, but as vampires, we don’t change. Having that other person helps to stabilize us. Otherwise, you just eventually shut down and you might as well be stone.”

“Really?”

“It may take a while, but sure. There are vamps out there like that today. Don’t hardly move, even. No one can exist unaided in this world, especially not forever. And once you find your mate, and uh, cement the relationship, that’s it. The past doesn’t matter. It can’t.

“Bella, all of those other vamps know you’re the one. Edward’s mated and the past is over. I suspect it’s one of the reasons Carlisle chose to vacation in Brazil, and Alice and I had to go to Ireland.”

“Now that they know, are they going to try to hurt me? Should I be scared?”

“If they cared for Edward, they’d never injure his mate. They know that if they killed you, it would kill him too.”

“But Victoria, the Volturi…”

“They’ve got nothing to do with love.”

“Hmph. It certainly doesn’t feel like being mated has made me so much better. I kind of want to kill Maggie right now, and I’ve never even met her.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle, and Bella’s eyes went wide, her alarm at my reaction to her violent confession filled the room. I worked to keep a straight face. “Someday you’ve got to get Alice to tell you about the last time we bumped into Maria.”

Bella’s faced blanched. “Alice?”

“My woman can really throw a punch; it’s one of the things I like about her… But, Bella, it’s not that being mated makes you better; it’s a little different than that. It just helps you to exist. And you’re human, that’s different in ways we can’t even begin to understand. I couldn’t have even said if it could have happened between you two, before you were turned. Until I saw you today.”

“You could tell?” Bella looked incredulous.

“Are you kidding? You may be human, but what you feel for my brother astounds me, pure and simple. I’ve never felt anything like it. No way you’re not mates. And you’ve got to know what you’ve done for Edward… I mean, we all have our issues, but Edward was so sure he was just bad, through and through. You helped him see there was good in himself.”

“Is that what Alice did for you after you two were mated?”

“Well, Alice is the only good part about me, with everything else I’m a work in progress, I suppose.”

“You and Edward do deserve one another.”

“Excuse me?”

“Well, count this conversation as a step in the right direction. A non-Alice good thing.”

I wasn’t sure what to say to that, and immediately thought to excuse myself. Edward and Bella had been together barely three weeks and here I was talking to his mate, unsupervised, in their bedroom of all places. While he was trying to take down Emmett in the back yard. No, clearly it was time to go.

“Can I ask you something else, Jasper?”

“Uh…”

“About biting?”

“What?” I quickly moved to the door and cracked it open, trying to breathe some fresh human-free air. Jesus, she wanted to talk to me about biting.

“How is umm, biting different than being mated? I mean, Edward couldn’t… and well, me…”

I desperately wanted to leave the room. God, I wished Alice hadn’t left with Emmett and Edward. I thought about calling for Esme, but would Bella want to talk about this with Edward’s mom? But Bella kept right on talking, somehow ignoring the feelings of indecision that were filling the air around us.

“So you can be mated without the biting part?” she asked.

“I guess, uh, marking someone, or biting them is like a wedding ring, you know. A sign that you belong to the other person. Their venom will always be part of your skin; their scent is on you permanently. You can be mated without it, but one generally goes hand in hand with the other. It’s uh, natural, I guess.”

“Can I tell you something?”

“I don’t know, Bella. I think maybe I should go.”

“I want it too. I want him to bite me.”

“Well, then, umm… why not, if you don’t mind me asking?” That little desire of Bella’s could solve quite a few problems that were brewing.

“You know what newborns are like much better than I do. I just want to focus on Edward a little longer. I don’t want to give that up so soon, you know? Before I turn into a bloodthirsty monster.”

Well, if that was all… “I’ll help you, you know. I’ve got plenty of experience with newborns, like you said.”

“Really?”

“You’re my sister now. Of course.”

“You’re ruining your own rep here, Jasper. That’s the second Alice-free good thing you’ve done in less than an hour.” Bella’s smile was genuine, her relief rolled over me like a soothing balm. If that’s all that was keeping Bella human, I felt certain we could make this happen before the deadline. The feeling that all had been set right returned, and I smiled right back at Bella.

“Well, you know, Bella, there’s a theory going around that maybe you make us all a little better.”

But just as I was feeling more comfortable, I heard Edward making his way up the path from the river. Bella turned towards the door. “It’s him, isn’t it?”

He was still too far off for a human to be able to hear. “How’d you do that?” I asked.

Bella shrugged, “What?” And just as I thought I’d done what I was supposed to, that I’d smoothed it all over, I felt anger bubbling back to the surface under a thin veneer of nervous tension. It wasn’t just Bella. The closer Edward got, the more I knew I should go, and the more anxious I became.

“Just remember that he loves you, Bella, more than anything else. You’re luckier than a whole pack of female vampires. You’ve got nothing to worry about. Do you need a little help, maybe? Some confidence or serenity, or something?”

“No. I’m sure I’ll be just fine,” she sighed. “I appreciate you coming up here and talking. Not just about all the women, but everything.”

I turned to leave, but thought of something as I reached the door.

“And, uh, would you give Edward a chance and hear him out? He’s pretty upset and he was, uh, really excited to get you here. Don’t make too much hell for him… for me?”

I didn’t want to think about Edward’s mood if Bella threw him out of the bedroom.

“Just a little hell?” Bella grinned mischievously.

“I wouldn’t respect you half as much if you didn’t give him some trouble.”

“All right then. If you say so.”

Bella took a cautious step in my direction, but then thought better of whatever she’d intended. My brother married a smart girl. And by the state of Edward’s bed, she was also remarkably tough, for a human.

“Listen, I should probably go before Edward tries to take me out back too.”

“We’re just talking, for god’s sake!”

“Don’t forget we’re vampires, Bella. We may play human for the neighbors, but Edward’s still got a hundred years of territoriality to get out of his system.”

“Really?” she asked rolling her eyes again.

“Just ask Emmett later,” I chuckled, and high-tailed it out of there to go find Alice and see if I’d helped things any.

A/N: You can expect more regular updates of Polar Night now that The Necklace is finished and I've caught up with The Newborn. Well, these newlyweds have a lot to accomplish in just a week in Forks. Edward's got a list and he'll be checking it twice. I'm open to suggestions about that last bullet point on the list. Just send me your suggestions in the form of a review, and I'll try not to disappoint! xxx, m
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Polar Night