Edward
Eighteen hours separated Aiyanna and I from being united by the sacred bond of marriage. These hours have never felt as painful yet exhilarating as they did in this instant.
"You try to get out now." Aiyanna challenged me.
As part of our habits, my wife-to-be and I were laying on her bed, before she would fall asleep. Contrarily to almost every night before tonight, I wouldn't be able to watch over her while she would be sleeping. Jasper and Emmett planned on kidnapping me for a bachelor party I still knew nothing about.
Laying on her side, Aiyanna had put her right leg around my waist and had wrapped her arms around my neck, allowing me to breathe in her scent shamelessly. However, her embrace felt nothing like our numerous previous ones. This time, she was tightening her hold around me so I would not go.
Even a hundred years later, I would never get tired of her competitiveness. Thinking that her strength could exceed mine was amusingly endearing of her.
Accepting Aiyanna's challenge, I brought my hands to her sides and tickled her, knowing how sensitive she was there. Aiyanna giggled and unconsciously loosened her grip around me, allowing me to have the upper hand and push her on her back with her wrists tightly held in my hand above her head.
"Seriously ?" Aiyanna asked, barely calmed down.
"You never said I had to play fair."
"I assumed you'd know that it's a requirement in any challenges given to someone. You should be familiar with this concept by now. Wasn't it invented around the time you were born ?"
I chuckled at that. "Actually, Shakespeare came up with the concept three centuries before my birth."
"You know too much about this world for me to even doubt you" Aiyanna said, rolling her eyes. "You could actually be lying and I would believe you."
"Oh, really ? I love you."
Flabbergasted, Aiyanna's lips formed a perfect "O".
"Get out." she said, making me laugh.
Even for a joke, lying about my feelings for her was not something I was able to do. At least, not anymore. I once did it, when I parted ways with her almost a year ago, but knew I could never do it again. It was easier to hit her with the truth in the wrong context.
I leaned down at Aiyanna's level and pressed my lips to hers. With her inability to get me closer to her with her hands, Aiyanna imprisoned my waist in between her thighs. For something that started as innocent, Aiyanna turned on the switch to my arousal as she dragged her tongue across my top lip. Her intentions of freeing her hands from my grip so her fingers could wander under the shirt she found very much inconvenient, made me find no other solution than tightening my hold around her wrists. If I let her have her ways now, even just a little bit, I was not sure I would be able to stop her as I have managed to until now.
Our honeymoon was approaching, and for long, I have had concerns about my ability not to hurt her while we would make love. No matter how I anticipated giving in to our desires to be more intimate with each other, it was unfortunately, also something I dreaded about.
As strong as Aiyanna could be, I couldn't help but see her fragility. If I ever held her too tightly... surely her bruises would heal quickly but my mind would be more at ease if I didn't hurt her at all. Besides, I couldn't ignore the fact that there was a certain point at which she wouldn't heal at all.
Parting my lips from hers left both of us panting and while navigating through her mind, I realized that none of us was out of breath. We both longed for more and internally fought our body and mind to come to the common agreement that we wouldn't go further until the wedding night.
"Careful. You might actually make me believe that you do love me." Aiyanna whispered in warning.
I smiled and as if to convince her more than I already have, I kissed her again. However this time, our lips stayed connected only shortly before I rolled on my back beside her. As usual, Aiyanna snuggled against me. How thankful I was that she didn't and wouldn't need to be protected by the chill of my skin, as she once had to.
"Can I have a clue to what you guys did to your house ? I want to know." she suddenly inquired, her feet shaking with excitement.
My sister had forbidden Aiyanna from coming to our house for the rest of week, wanting to preserve the wow effect.
Alice has been bossing all of my family and I around to create the perfect venue for the wedding. Aiyanna's parents came earlier today to help with the final preparations along with Emily, Seth, Jared and Embry. If Emily and Seth came willingly, Jared and Embry had been sent mostly to protect Emily from any incident with my family, although this excuse was unfounded to my point of view. The other members of her pack were either patrolling, resting from their recent shifts or were simply not comfortable enough around us to roam around our house.
"Patience. You will know soon enough." I answered.
With a little bit of chance, we'll see them naked...
I was caught by surprise by how soon Emmett's thoughts came to interrupt my own, and unfortunately, not by his lubricious train of thoughts as I was unfortunately used to them.
My brothers were coming. If I thought they'd forget about me, at least both of their intentions were clear : they would not let me bow out tonight.
Aiyanna tightened her grip around my waist before she loosened it to sit up, her senses alert. She glared in the direction of the window, under which, my brothers would be there in less than nine seconds.
"Where are they taking you ? Strip club ?" Aiyanna inquired, one of her eyebrows arching.
Although her eyebrows were wriggling, I could see how she didn't like this idea the slightest bit. At least, it made both of us.
"Shouldn't a bachelor party be fun for the groom ?" I said, rubbing my hand on her back in an attempt to reassure her.
"We never know. It's your brothers we're talking about. For the past weeks they've been..."
"Insufferable ?"
Aiyanna nodded. "Exactly. I wouldn't be surprised."
"If you don't send Edward out, we're coming in after him." Emmett hissed menacingly once arriving at his destination.
Aiyanna rolled her eyes and made her way out of the bed to walk up to the window. I followed after her the next instant and opened the windows, which we usually kept closed when it was only the two of us.
"Over my dead body." Aiyanna finally told Emmett.
Emmett scoffed. "Let's try to keep you alive for tomorrow. The boy has been waiting a century for this wedding. Don't ruin that for him."
"Funny of you to think that you could kill me. What do vampire bachelor parties consist of anyway ? I'll see if I approve it."
Aiyanna leaned her elbows on the edge of the window, looking down at my brothers.
Jasper let out a laugh and turned on his soothing vibes on Aiyanna. "Don't worry Aiyanna. We Cullens have our own version."
"Don't tell her anything !" Emmett hissed at Jasper, attempting an attack that Jasper's years of experience allowed him to dodge.
"Just a few mountain lions, a couple of grizzly bears. Pretty much an ordinary night out."
Aiyanna looked back at me to check if Jasper was telling the truth. Answering her silent request, I nodded.
All that fuss for a hunt... - Aiyanna thought, shrugging her shoulders.
I did not need to hunt honestly. As I already went hunting the week before, I could still go on for two more weeks if I really had to push it. However, going for a hunting trip before the wedding was a good idea. That way, I would not have to leave Aiyanna's side until halfway through our honeymoon.
"Go, before they break my house." Aiyanna told me, stepping away from the window.
I kissed her forehead, slowly realizing the next time I would do this gesture, Aiyanna and I would finally be husband and wife.
Aiyanna exhaled slowly, the same realization running through her mind. What a relief to have someone to share this excitement with.
"Get to sleep." I advised. "I'll meet you at the altar."
When I leaned back, Aiyanna smiled. "I'll be the one in white. Hopefully."
I chuckled at that, knowing that Aiyanna still had no clue on what her wedding dress looked like. And neither did I. "Very convincing."
In one swift movement, I leaped out the window and perfectly kicked Emmett's head before landing on my feet.
"Dammit, that hurt !" Emmett grunted, launching himself at me, in vain. His thoughts gave him away before he moved.
"The three of you better be on time tomorrow." Aiyanna warned us.
"Yes ma'am." Jasper answered with a strong Texas accent.
And without wasting time, my brothers and I took off running into the woods.
~~
Aiyanna
My room fell silent. The only noises caught by my hearing senses were the snoring sounds coming from my parents' bedroom or my own heartbeat pounding against my chest.
Edward being gone was one thing, having Jasper use his relaxing vibes on me only for it to disappear as soon as he left was another.
After closing the window, I crawled back into my bed and stared at the pale color of my bedroom's ceiling. Realization was only starting to hit me. This was my last night in this bedroom. My last night as Aiyanna Brown. Tomorrow, I would have to drop my last name to be Aiyanna Cullen.
The mere thought of it made the corners of my lips curve upwards but at the same time, it made the separation much harder. The closer we got to tying the knot and officially being each other's and the more difficult it was to let Edward go away from me.
The imprinting link between Edward and I never felt as strong than it did now, and I had no doubt that it would only grow much more stronger when Edward and I would become one. What was between him and I was much more deeper than just love and it did feel overwhelming, but if given the chance, I would not trade it for anything else.
Alice had advised me to sleep early but my mind kept wandering for a long moment before I could find some sleep. I couldn't help but think about tomorrow.
Although I didn't like being the center of attention, I would never think of doing this alone. The wedding guest list wasn't really long, but it wasn't short either. It just made sense.
There would be as much of my side of the family as Edward's. The Denali clan included.
The Denali coven, or at least Irina, still held us accountable for Laurent's "unfair" death. Until this day, it seemed that she did not believe that Laurent deserved his death, which made her decline the invitation. The rest of the clan accepted to come and I had no doubt that the only reason why they did, was because of their long history with the Cullen family.
Which brought me to think about Tanya. I had never met any of their clan and I had to say, I was not eager to see Tanya who apparently, carried affection for Edward and had tried multiple times (according to Emmett's story) to deepen her relationship with him probably before I was even born.
I was not jealous at this point. Edward had shown and told me multiple times that I was the only person he wanted to be with and I believed him. I could easily add the fact that I imprinted on him to the reasons why I was not jealous of Tanya.
But it didn't stop me from not liking the idea of having her near him. I didn't know how they left each other the last time he went there, which was during his first attempt to flee Bella's scent.
Bella...
Tanya's presence would never annoy me as much as Bella's would. According to Alice, Bella was indeed planning on coming which did not make sense to me. Would it ever ?
I couldn't explain the reason of her coming. If she had planned something to ruin this wedding, Alice would be more likely to intercept it. But I couldn't ignore the fact that Bella once found a way to get around Alice's gift, in Jacksonville. What if she did it again, tomorrow ?
I sighed loudly, turning in my bed as if I tried to escape that idea.
Get some sleep, dammit !
I could originally sleep anytime and anywhere, but of course, it had to be the one night I had to sleep more than usual, that I couldn't stop overthinking.
Alice would kill me...
At least, that was what I thought when she came to wake me up the next morning. My soon-to-be sister in law, bridesmaid and best girlfriend for that matter despite our numerous innocent fights, had her short black hair smoothed into sleek pin curls around her face. Her makeup had been done as well, and although she wasn't wearing her dress yet, she looked ready to go.
"You have 30 minutes to get ready. We have a lot to do today." were the first words she told me. "Look at your eyes ! What did you do ? Stay up all night ?"
I let out a scoff after my first yawn of the day. "I just woke up Alice. Let me at least freshen up my face before you start judging the raw material."
"30 minutes."
"Yeah, yeah..."
I walked past my parents' bedroom while going to the bathroom, only to realize that they didn't wake up yet. What time was it right now ? More than that, how much time was it really going to take for Alice and Rosalie to make me presentable ? With their vampiric speed, they could easily get me prepared in just 10 minutes maximum.
After a good shower, I walked back into my bedroom, only to see Alice at the same spot I left her. She had laid clothes for me to wear on our way to the Cullens' house, on my bed. I wasn't surprised to see that she didn't choose any of my numerous oversized clothes she still very much despised.
"Aiyanna Brown wears bermuda shorts, not jeans."
"You are ten hours away from turning into Aiyanna Cullen, and a Cullen doesn't wear...that." Alice refuted.
I laughed. "Fine, I'll stop wearing them in ten hours then. Besides, you should be the one making compromises. I'm going to have to start wearing whatever you packed for me behind my back because none of you want to tell me where I'm going on my honeymoon."
Alice rolled her eyes and smirked, proud of not dropping a single hint about the subject. I wasn't too stressed about the mystery though, but it was strange not knowing anything from the design of my dress to the destination of our honeymoon trip.
"Is Edward back yet ?" I asked, while getting ready.
"Don't worry, he'll be there before the music starts. But you don't get to see him, no matter when he gets back. We're doing this the traditional way. You will also not see the decorations inside until it's time."
"Since when is the bride not allowed to see the decorations ?" I protested.
"Since she put me in charge. I want you to get the full impact walking down the aisle."
Alice clapped her hands, overly excited. It unconsciously made me smile. I couldn't ignore how she put her heart into preparing all this. She had confessed that it was the first wedding she's got to prepare other than her own with Jasper.
"Thank you, Alice." I let out, smiling at her.
Alice smiled back. "You will remember this day your whole life."
"I'm sure you did your best so I could."
And it was fair to say that I was not disappointed.
On our way to the Cullen's house, I was surprised to see that Alice got to reuse the decorations from the graduation party. Three miles of drive were once again wrapped in hundreds of thousands of twinkle lights and this time, she'd added white satin bows.
It was the only part of the decorations I was allowed to see, until Alice clapped her hand over my eyes, as she did not trust me to close my eyes by myself, and guided me around the house to get to her oversized bathroom.
Once arrived at our destination, I stared at the counter covered with makeup and hair tools and products. A low pink chair was waiting for me to sit on, in front of them.
Rosalie was waiting for us near the window and an evil smile appeared on her face once seeing the horror on mine.
Contrarily to Alice, Rosalie was already dressed and her makeup and hair were done as well. She was wearing the same dress as Alice, as she also agreed to be my second and last bridesmaid.
"Let's get to it." Rosalie said, enjoying a bit too much the fact that they would get to play around with me, and get me out of my comfort zone.
I kept my eyes closed, while Alice masked, buffed and polished every part of my face and body.
Rosalie, on the other hand, took care of my hair. My hair texture being different from the ones she's dealt with before, I let her train on my hair over the past month with my mom's guidance, until she'd find a hairstyle both her and Alice finally agreed on.
It was only after lunchtime that the three of us heard Emmett, Edward and Jasper come back from their so-called party.
"They're back." Rosalie announced out loud.
"Keep him out of here !" Alice panicked.
Alice had managed to keep my unusual appearance as a secret to Edward for long. With Rosalie in the equation, she had much less control over what Edward would see in our minds.
"He won't cross you today. He values his life too much." Rosalie reassured her. "Esme's got them finishing things up out back."
Starting from then, time passed as fast as the vampires' heightened speed while she moved around me.
I heard the Cullens moving around the house, doors opening and closing over and over, voices floating up to us...
While Rosalie was sent to get my dress once she was done with my hair, Alice made me stand up with my eyes still closed. I was dying to see the final product of their work.
Alice helped me get in my dress and the heels I had to train walking with for days in the dressing room, before she left me alone so she could get dressed as well.
During her absence I tried to control my breathing. I was seated, feeling the fabric of the dress with my hands for the first time. Satin. Now I only hoped for the dress to be white, which was most likely the case since the theme of the wedding was traditional.
"Are you ready to finally discover yourself ?" Alice asked me, excitement heard in her voice.
Now that it was the moment for me to see myself in the mirror after weeks of being unable to, my heartbeat quickened. I was filled with excitement and panic. I was afraid of my own reflection before I even got to see it.
"Deep breaths, Aiyanna. You're going to sweat off your new face." Alice told me.
Following her advice, I took one deep breath before I stood up on my own and nodded. "I'm ready."
Alice grabbed my arm and made me walk the few steps needed to get in front of the mirror before she finally said the words I had been dying to hear for the past month.
"You can open your eyes."
After having my eyes closed for long, they naturally felt heavy as I opened them. However, when I saw my reflection in the mirror, I realized that it was also due to the false lashes Alice had glued over my natural ones.
"Alice...wow..."
I could not recognize the person who was staring back at me in the mirror. The person in front of me had her hair smoothed into finger waves underneath the jewelry head piece that had been set on top of my hair, thanks to which, the veil held in place.
The makeup Alice did was beyond what I ever expected. The lips were colored with a rosy-brown shade, close to my natural lip color, bringing the emphasize to the eyes where the magic had been done.
My eyes looked down at the white dress I was wearing. It was exactly how I imagined it, if not more mesmerizing. The sleeves of the off-shoulder dress fell perfectly at the top of my arms, without concealing my Quileute tattoo, which I was thankful for. As I expected while having it on during my fittings, the dress started flaring out starting from my waist and had a trail behind.
I finally allowed myself to touch the dress in Alice's presence and lifted it so I could see the shoes I had on as well. The heels were appropriately high, but I doubted I would wear them all night.
"Do you like it ?" Alice checked, expectant.
Unable to foresee my reactions, Alice studied my expressions closely. Her eyes were shining, mirroring mine as I discovered myself.
"This is beautiful Alice." I answered.
"You are beautiful."
I smiled at her and took us both by surprise when I walked up to her and hugged her.
If I orginally would have avoided doing that for our common comfort, I didn't find any other way to show my gratitude for everything she's done for me, so far.
"Thank you, Alice." I choked.
"It's nothing." she answered, disregarding the amazing work she did. "Edward just came back with your mother. She will bring the final touch and you will be good to go."
"What about my dad ? He's supposed to walk me down the aisle."
The guest started arriving a while ago and were being welcomed by the Cullen family downstairs. Rosalie, being the second best musician in the house, was playing the piano as a background melody.
My father alongside Emmett and Jasper had been assigned to pick up some of the members of my family from the airport while others took taxis to get here.
"He'll be on time." Alice reassured me.
My family, especially on my dad's side, wasn't known for being on time at weddings or at any family gathering. I silently prayed for today to be the exception.
Alice walked out of the dressing room to wait for my mother as she made her way upstairs, on her own.
"Oh, my !" my mother squealed, gushing before she even walked through the door of the dressing room. "You are gorgeous, Aiyanna."
I smiled widely and opened my arms to hold her in my arms. My mother shortened the distance between us and wrapped her arms around me almost carefully, as if she was scared to ruin it.
"Alice. What Esme, Rosalie and you did is amazing." my mother complimented her, once she stepped out of my embrace.
She must have seen the decorations that I was still forbidden to see. However, I put my undying trust in whatever they did to this house. I knew I wouldn't be disappointed.
"It would not have been possible without all the help we received." Alice answered.
"You barely let us do anything." my mother protested, to which Alice laughed. My mother then, turned to me. "There's something I want to give you."
My mother took a small black box out of her handbag and held it out to me after lifting the lid. There, laid a silver princess necklace with a blue sapphire as a focal piece, which complemented the silver earrings that came with it.
"It was your Nana's. As her only daughter, she handed it to me when I got married." my mom said. "And as my only daughter, it is only right for you to wear it."
My throat thickened and my eyes started tingling while becoming blurry. I pursed my lips and leaned my head back in an attempt to keep the tears from falling.
How I wished for Nana to be here with me. How I wished for her to see me happy with my imprint.
"Thanks, mom."
Alice came to us and held the box while my mother walked behind me to help me put on the necklace while I put on earrings for the first time in a while.
"Now, you're officially perfect." Alice complimented me.
"Okay, stop it now. My cheeks hurt." I told her, before a loud, gruff throat-clearing sound came from the doorway.
My father stayed there, holding my bouquet in his hand, his eyes getting bigger the longer he stared at me. Alice stepped aside to let him get a clearer view of a daughter he's barely seen all dressed up like this.
"Aiyanna !" he said, shocked.
"You actually made it on time." I congratulated him.
My father rolled his eyes, not proud of the reputation given to him. "Your mother would have killed me if I didn't. You are stunning. Come here." he said, and without complying, I lifted the hem of my dress to walk up to him and return his embrace. "I can't believe how much you've grown."
"Most of it is because of the heels."
"Forget what I said. You haven't grown much." My dad sighed, to which I scoffed.
"We have to go downstairs." I heard Alice tell my mother.
I tightened my hold around my father at the signal. It was time. Finally.
As soon as my father loosened his hold around me, I took a deep breath, willing myself into composure.
"I'll see you two outside." my mother told my dad and I, unconsciously giving me a hint to where the wedding was going to take place.
So it wouldn't be inside, like I thought it would. With both vampires and werewolves invited, it was better to have the ceremony outside rather than inside anyway.
I gave Alice a glance and she winked at me. The hint didn't matter anymore. We were only minutes away from the ceremony.
I nodded at my mother and watched her and Alice leave the dressing room. The sound of the piano had stopped and I could hear the footsteps of the guests leaving the house to wait for me outside.
My father handed me my bouquet and stepped beside me, offering his right arm to me.
"You ready ?" he asked me.
Taking one last deep breath, I intertwined my arm with his and nodded. "Don't let me go, dad."
"Never."
A/N : Firstly, I would like to apologize for not updating as frequently as I once did with Eclipse. Fortunately, I was able to sort everything out with my personal stuff, so I can finally breathe and focus a bit more on this story.
I actually thought I would be able to write about the ceremony in this chapter but since it is already long as it is, it will be in the next two chapters.
I hope you liked this chapter and I thank you for your patience with me. Next update will be posted next week ;)