We arrived at the Seattle airport in just a few hours.
Charlie and Sue had slept most of the way. The rest of us had hushed conversations. I was excited about living in Forks again.
When we landed, Charlie and Sue were still groggy from sleep. I was grateful that Alice and Jasper had driven them from Forks. I wasn’t sure Charlie could’ve driven home safely.
Carlisle and Esme picked up their Mercedes from overnight parking. Rosalie hopped in with them. Emmett, Edward, and I ran to Forks. It was a relief to stretch our legs, not that we ever got stiff—just that we enjoyed running. We arrived at the Cullen mansion before Alice and Jasper. I looked at Edward. “I’ll bet Alice is keeping safely within the speed limit considering Charlie is the Police Chief.”
Edward chuckled. “I’m sure you’re right, and I’m also sure Alice is having a hard time keeping her foot off the gas.” I laughed with him.
Carlisle pulled up in his Mercedes a few minutes after us. He parked in the garage and everyone walked into the house.
I turned to Carlisle. “When do we need to be at the University of Washington tomorrow?”
“Leah said we should be there by nine. The ceremony is at ten. It will be in the main conference center. Their ceremony is with the bulk of the students, so we need to be early to find a parking spot and a place to sit.” Esme stood quietly by his side, his arm securely around her shoulders.
I nodded then looked at Edward. “I’d really like to see the cottage before we need to leave.” It was almost two in the morning.
He took my hand, and we said quiet farewells. “Please thank Alice for taking Charlie and Sue home. Let her know we’ll see her in the morning.”
“Of course, dear.” Esme’s beautiful voice was soothing.
We walked hand in hand out the back door of the Cullen home. We quickly jumped the river then walked to our cottage. It was as welcoming as always. It was my fairy tale house where I lived with my fairy tale husband. Sometimes I wondered if my bubble would ever burst—like a snow white with no prince to kiss her awake. I suppressed a shudder. I had lived that nightmare once when Edward decided it wasn’t safe for the very human me to be so close to his vampire life. I couldn’t live without my prince, and he couldn’t live without me. A sense of foreboding came over me, and I quickly shoved the feeling away. I didn’t want to spoil my alone time with Edward.
As he reached down to press me to him, I muttered against his eager lips, “You know, we won’t be able to keep going on like this much longer.”
Edward pulled away, a shocked looked on his face. “What are you talking about?”
“Well,” I nuzzled his neck as I talked, “Nessie is getting older.”
His lips were running along my jaw, and I had a hard time keeping my thoughts in order. They wanted to fall into chaos. He managed to mumble distractedly, “What does that have to do with us?”
“I’m sure her awareness is going to increase. We won’t be able to keep up this level of…” I had a hard time concentrating when he was exploring so many places at once, and I gasped in pleasure before I continued, “enthusiasm as she grows.”
Edward pulled away slightly, a look of concern crossing his perfect features.
I pulled him back and moved my lips with his, molding myself to his perfect form. “Enjoy the moment,” I managed to gasp out. “We might be getting fewer of these…”
Edward groaned, and my ability to speak coherently was effectively cut off.