Thursday, March 29, 2018

Seismic Shift Epilogue



She sits quietly there, black water in a jar
Says, baby why you tremblin’ like you are

She's the sunset shadows
She's like Rembrandt's light
She's the history that's made at night
She's my lost companion
She's my dreamin’ tree
Together in this brief eternity
Summer days, winter snow
She's all things to behold

She's my kind of rain
Like love from a drunken sky
Confetti falling down all night

She's my kind of rain
Oh, rain on me

~ Tim McGraw, She's My Kind Of Rain

EPOV

It has been a year to the day that Bella gave birth. Alice could not resist, none of us could, really, and a party is imminent. The entire party store could possibly be in my backyard presently, but I cannot mind when it is for the express purpose of celebrating the light of my life.
She has grown rapidly, as we were warned she would, and she could easily pass for a four year old. Combining the best of the both of us, our little girl is adventurous and intelligent, beautiful and strong. Her favorite person outside of Bella and myself is Jacob; the Quileute chief and his new wife have her over at their house frequently. Jake was the first to shift in front of our little miracle, who immediately declared the humongous russet wolf her best friend.
Bella had named her Maralah, for the name that Sue used when Bella first lived with them. Mara was easy to get along with, and it was fair to say that she had everyone enthralled. Charlie waited on her hand and foot, putting off going home for the day until his granddaughter was asleep. Their home was not far from my parents', and the character transformation in him was quite beneficial to Bella.
For the brief time left before the party, my love and I are hiding in the tall flowers in our meadow. We kiss amid the delphinium blowing in the strong Northwestern breeze.
"We'll have to be back soon," Bella reminds me as she leans in for another kiss.
"I know," I agree, capturing her soft lips with my own.
There is no urgency, no threat hanging over our heads. I had been worried sick about Bella giving birth, despite her strength and determination. Mara had been large, the typical size of a baby several months old, when she was born. It took a combination of a cesarean and the sharpness of my teeth to work her out of Bella's body. It was a very long time before Bella recovered her strength and normal body weight after her truncated pregnancy.
But now, now we are free to do as we please. We have no threats hanging over our heads, only bliss.
Utilizing our time wisely, I peel off the clothing covering my wife's body and bury my face between her legs. She breathes out shakily as I suck her clit into my mouth, followed by a loud moan that causes a rumbling from the ground. I move my tongue to taste her fully, and there is nothing quite like the sound of my name as she screams it to the heavens. Pushing my cock into her waiting body while she trembles brings a shudder of pleasure that runs along my spine. There is an underlying need to take, to possess, to mark and claim. I have to remind myself that she is not invulnerable and reign in the monster that lurks just underneath the surface. Her heat seeps into my skin until I cannot hold back any more.
"I hope you're ready, Bella," I growl in her ear.
"I'm so close, Edward," she pants, and then her muscles clamp down on my dick like a vise. I pour everything I have into her as I find my release.
"Sex is somehow better in our meadow," she remarks, cuddling up against me after our lovemaking.
"Our sex is always magnificent, thank you very much," I retort. She laughs at me.
"You're right," she agrees before turning in my arms to kiss me briefly. She stands, her naked body glorious in the dappled sunlight.
"If you do not redress, I will find myself tempted to ravish you once more."
This time Bella throws back her head and gives me a full belly laugh. "If not for our daughter's birthday, I would accept that challenge." She stares at me pensively. "You know, I thought I had to leave my home to find what I wanted, what was practically clawing its way out of me. Instead, I found my destiny, not in far off places, but within myself. I found it with you."
I step forward and kiss her, long and hard, until her breath is lost. "I love you for all time."
"I love you, too. Forever."
We dress and make our way back to our home, Bella clinging to my back for ease of travel. I sigh quietly as I let her down near the front door.
"What's wrong?" she asks, frowning.
I must not have been as quiet as I assumed. "Nothing, precisely."
"Yeah, that doesn't sound suspicious."
I am prevaricating, but only because I do not wish to fight with Bella on such an important and glorious day. Except that I cannot abide the shifter, Connor, and he has remained in the area, as has Shelly. The difference is that Shelly does not covet my wife.
"Ah, now I see," she says as we join the group standing around the backyard.
It consists of Connor, Alice, Esme, and Renée and Charlie. Bella does her best to remain cordial while not feeding my jealous beast as she greets each person in turn.
It is not her fault that she looks magnificent; her long brown hair spills over her shoulders in chaotic waves, her porcelain skin is still flushed from our activities in the meadow, and her eyes are bright and happy. It is a wonder the universe still turns rather than stopping and staring at such a rare sight of exquisite beauty.
I cannot resist kissing her temple and wrapping my arm around her waist. It thrills me when she leans into my side.
"Momma! Daddy!"
We both turn at the sound of Mara calling our names. She runs to Bella first, who picks up the little cherub. If Bella is a glorious sight, the two of them together could start a war bigger than the likes of Troy and Sparta. Mara has the green eyes of my childhood and Bella's thick brown curls. Her skin is pale and remains rather warm compared to a human's, but her temperature doesn't run as high as Bella's. She can drink animal blood, but much prefers human food, as she says blood smells too rusty to be appetizing. It was her sustenance as a young infant, but she quickly outgrew it as she does everything. We wonder what, if any, gifts she will acquire from her bloodlines.
She is our miracle in more ways than one.
Her arms reach out for me, and I am helpless to her charms. I take her from her mother willingly, frowning at the thought that flits through Connor's head.
"Little M, where is your Uncle Jacob?" I ask after kissing her cheek. She points, and I let her down to run over to him before I turn to face the boy head on.
His eyes widen as I stand very close to his face, and he has to look up to meet my furious gaze. "E-edward," he stammers.
"Connor," I growl, allowing the venom in my mouth to flow and unleashing the monster the tiniest bit. "Do you remember what my gift is?"
Oh, shit, I've made him angry. Oh, God, they won't let him kill me, will they? "I-it's ESP, r-right?"
"Edward—" Bella begins, but I speak again.
"It is telepathy, Connor. What is telepathy?" I ask, my tone low and lethal.
"Uh… "
"It is the ability to read each and every thought that flickers through one's mind. Say, for instance, the girl you find intriguing and think on constantly? The married one with the child?" His pupils are dilated until I almost can't detect the blue of his irises.
"I don't m-mean any harm, Edward. Sir." He cringes when I lift my eyebrow. "Honest. I know she's married to you."
"Do you?" I spit.
"Y-yes. I do. I do. I'm sorry. I get it." He backs away as he stumbles over an apology, but I wonder if he can even help himself and his thoughts.
I feel Bella's soft hand on my arm, and I turn and smile at her. "You scared the piss out of him," she mumbles.
"I did not. The boy had complete control over his bladder and bowels."
She laughs loudly, but I cannot comprehend why. I drop it, especially when Maralah comes back over to us.
Emmett has strung white lights in the trees, reminiscent of our wedding, and Alice set up a huge gift table. It's currently about to collapse from the weight of the presents piled atop it. Esme has baked a cake for her granddaughter and the other food eaters, and it looks very nice as this stuff goes. I am not what one would call an expert in that area.
Garrett and the Denali clan have come down for the celebration, and all of our family in the area are here. There are twenty five people in the backyard, which thankfully consists of the forest surrounding our property. The atmosphere is happy, as it should be. It's different than it was this time over a year ago. If the past is a breath, then the present is a lung, full of promises. We've worked hard to find peace and the right to live the way we choose. We chose our families, and they've evolved and grown.
And I choose my wife and our daughter, every day of forever.



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