A/N: I love that you all are loving this story. I'm having a great time writing it. A big thanks to my beta, Heather, for her awesome beta skills.
..................................................
Come Monday morning, I found myself a nervous wreck as I opened the dresser drawers and tried to figure out what to wear to meet Edward.
After staring at them and my closet for close to five minutes, I pulled out my phone and texted Alice, begging for help. Her response was immediate and told me to just be myself and wear what I normally would.
Seeing as how she was of no help, I finally opted for dark skinny jeans, a blue sweater, and boots. I left my hair hanging down my back and applied some mascara and lip gloss. I looked like myself, just a bit more done up, and it wasn't as if Edward hadn't seen me looking gross and sweaty after a hike.
Grabbing my wallet and phone, I shoved them into my purse just as the doorbell rang. I took a deep breath to steady myself and made my way downstairs where I could hear my dad talking to Edward.
"Ah, there she is. Well, you two have fun. I'm off to work, but I should be home by six. Bells, I'd like you home no later than midnight," he said, giving me a hug before walking out the front door and leaving me alone with Edward.
Edward didn't say a word, just held open his arms, and I rushed into them. I inhaled the wonderful scent that was Edward and whatever cologne he used, and I found myself wanting to bury my fingers in his hair.
His strong arms wrapped around me, and I held on tight when he twirled me around, telling me how wonderful it was to see me, and I told him the same.
Finally, he set me down and told me that his family couldn't wait to see me. I was just as eager to see them, so I locked the front door and followed Edward out to his car, a shiny red Volvo.
The drive took about an hour, and we kept up a constant stream of conversation the whole time, never running out of things to talk about.
"How do you like Forks so far?" he asked as we pulled into a residential area.
"I haven't seen a whole lot of it, but I like what I have seen. Plus, I can't remember ever seeing my dad so happy and relaxed. Forks has been good for him."
"Yeah, it's a great place. We lived in Forks until fifth grade when Dad got a position as the head of surgery over at Olympic Medical Center. He could have made the commute every day, but Mom and Dad decided to move us to Port Angeles."
"And you like it here?"
He glanced over at me as he nodded his head.
"Yeah, I do. It's quite a bit bigger than Forks, and there's a lot more to do here. Although, I still keep in touch and hang out with some kids in Forks."
A few minutes later, we'd driven out of the residential area and Edward turned down a small road that I almost missed.
"You live way out here?" I asked.
"Yep. Mom designed our house, and she wanted to live a little ways out."
He wasn't kidding. We drove on the small road for about a mile or so before a beautiful house appeared, surrounded by woods. I let out a gasp when I laid eyes on it.
"Wow," I mumbled, and Edward let out a chuckle.
"Yeah, it's a bit excessive, but it's home."
And what a home. It was huge with wood siding and a stone foundation, and I was in awe as I climbed out of Edward's car and looked around the front yard. The landscaping was amazing, and when I told Edward that, he said to wait until I saw the backyard.
I followed him up the front walk, and then we walked into a large living room. Before I could even take a look around, Alice ran up and tossed herself at me. I had no choice but to catch her, and I stumbled back a few feet, Edward placing a hand on my lower back to keep from falling over.
"You're here!" she chanted a few times while squeezing the breath out of me.
"Let her breathe, Alice," I heard Mrs. Cullen say, and I grinned when Alice let me go, mumbling an apology.
Soon, I was hugged by Mrs. Cullen, who, again insisted that I call her Esme, and then I was wrapped up in a huge hug by Emmett. Dr. Cullen had gotten called in to the hospital, but he would be back later in the day.
"Let's show you around," Alice said, grabbing my hand and tugging me toward what looked to be the kitchen.
I shot Edward a look as Alice pulled me away, and he mouthed an apology before following behind us.
"This is the kitchen, and that's the dining room," Alice said. They were both huge with white walls and wooden accents.
As I followed her from room to room, I found myself amazed and impressed. The Cullen house was huge, and eventually, Alice led me outside to the backyard. My mouth dropped open when I saw it. There was a fire pit and a small pond with a waterfall.
"It's beautiful," I told them.
"So, I figured we could hit up the Fine Arts Center if you want and maybe the Marine Life Center as well," Edward said as we walked back into the living room a little while later.
"Sounds good to me," I told him.
"We'll pick up lunch, too, and then maybe we can do a bit of shopping," Alice said, causing both Edward and Emmett to moan.
"Okay, but no marathon shopping," I said, pointing a finger at her.
"Oh, I have something for you," I told Edward after Alice ran upstairs to grab her purse.
"Yeah?" he asked, his face lighting up like a kid at Christmas.
"Well, it's not much. You'll have to wait to get your Christmas present until the end of the week, but I thought you should have this," I told him, pulling out a postcard from Forks that I'd picked up at the grocery store my first day in town.
He grinned as he took it from me, and I noticed Emmett looking between the two of us.
"I don't get it," he said. "It's just a postcard."
"It's more than that," Edward said softly, his gaze catching mine, and I felt a blush creeping up my cheeks.
"Thank you," he said, and I smiled at him.
"Let me show you my room while I put this away," he said, and I followed him up the stairs, ignoring Emmett and his wagging eyebrows.
Edward's room was just as beautiful as the rest of the house. White walls with a dark blue trim, a huge bed, a couch, and a ton of bookshelves. He also had a whole wall of windows that overlooked the woods, and you could even see the water beyond them.
"This is so you," I told him as I continued to look around.
He grabbed a photo book off a bookshelf as I wandered over toward a picture that was sitting on his bedside table. I picked it up, feeling all kinds of tingly, as I saw it was a picture of us that Alice had taken. The fact that he kept it on his bedside table seemed so intimate, and it made me feel all sorts of warm.
"That's a good picture of us," he said, noticing that I'd picked it up.
"Yeah, it is," I said quietly, setting it back down and looking over at him.
He had tucked the postcard into a slot in the photo book, and that's when I noticed all of the other postcards that I'd sent him.
"You've kept them all," I commented as I reached for the book and flipped through it.
"Of course. You gave me the idea after you told me that you collected them. I even framed a few with them," he told me, pointing to the far wall where I spotted a couple of postcards from Florida and Arizona in frames.
"That's a great idea," I said, and he told me that his mom had come up with it. I didn't know why I hadn't thought of it, but I was totally going to steal the idea.
A few minutes later, the four of us were climbing into Edward's car and driving toward the art center.
We had a great morning and by the time we stopped for lunch, I was starving. We went to a little Italian place, and once we were seated, our waitress came over and practically fell all over herself to talk to Edward.
"Hi," she said in a breathy voice. "My name's Amber, and I'll be your server."
She handed Edward his menu all while leaning in and getting all up in his personal space.
I had to bite my tongue in order to not tell the woman to lay off, but Edward handled it perfectly by ignoring the advances she was pathetically attempting to make. Not that I was jealous or anything.
As soon as the woman took our drink orders and left, Emmett let out a sigh.
"Damn, Edward. We just can't take you anywhere," he teased, and Edward's face turned red as he muttered for Emmett to shut up.
"So, what's good here?" I asked in a pathetic attempt to change the subject.
"Everything," the three of them said, and I rolled my eyes at them as I picked up the menu.
I finally decided on the mushroom ravioli after a long debate between that and the chicken parmesan, and it seemed that as soon as Edward had decided on what to order, our waitress showed up.
"What can I get you?" she asked him.
"Bella, why don't you go ahead and order?" Edward suggested, and it was almost comical to watch as her face fell.
She turned to me as I placed my order, but she didn't once speak to me. Her tip wasn't going to be very big; that was for sure. She did the same thing to Alice and Emmett, only speaking when Edward ordered.
"Seriously?" Alice sneered once the woman had walked away. "She does realize there are three other people at this table, right? Hmph. Well, I sure as hell won't be tipping her generously."
Thankfully, our server left Edward alone once it got super busy, although she did practically salivate all over him when serving our lunch.
"Can I get you anything else?" she asked him, and when he shook his head, she started to walk away.
"You could ask the rest of us," I told her before she got too far. "I need a refill."
Her face turned red, and Emmett couldn't hold back a snicker as he held up his empty glass.
"Yeah, a refill would be nice."
She practically snatched our glasses off the table before marching away, and I shook my head at her incompetence.
"Is it always this difficult to go out to eat with you?" I asked Edward, half teasing him and half serious.
"Occasionally," he said. "But this is the worst it's been in a while. Normally, when we come here, we don't have any problems."
Lunch was delicious, and when it came time to get the bill, our waitress slipped her number in there as she handed it to Edward. Disgusted, he handed it back to her, telling her he wasn't interested, and Emmett about died trying to hold his laughter in.
"What now?" Emmett asked once we were out in the parking lot.
"Shopping!" Alice sang, and I let out a laugh at the horror on both boys faces.
Reluctantly, Edward drove us downtown and pulled into a public parking lot, and we all got out of the car. Soon, I was following Alice down the sidewalk, listening as she chattered on about the cute little stores the town had to offer.
"Is there a bookstore?" I asked her, and she rolled her eyes at me.
"You sound like Edward whenever we go somewhere," she said with a sigh, but I knew she was teasing. "Yes, there's a bookstore down the road, and yes, we can go in."
I didn't need any clothes, and since Christmas was later in the week, I really didn't have much money to spend, but I always had money for books.
About an hour later, Emmett was whining so loudly that I was ready to smack him upside the head the way Alice had done only moments before. He was complaining that he was cold, that he was tired, and that his feet hurt. On and on it went until finally, Alice told us we could go.
"How was your day out?" Esme asked once we were back at the Cullen house.
"Fine until Emmett started whining like a two year old," Alice said, sticking her tongue out at her brother.
Esme let out a small laugh and asked Alice if she was really surprised.
"Hey now!" Emmett protested. "It's not my fault that I don't like shopping. I'm a guy."
"So is Edward, but I didn't hear him complaining," I replied with a smirk, and I grinned as Emmett's jaw dropped open while the rest of their family cracked up.
"Oh, yeah. You'll fit in just fine around here," Esme said, giving me a wink.
...........................................................
a/n: As always, I love to hear your thoughts. See you all next week.