Crosshairs

Chapter Twenty-Six – Morning After

Edward stretched his arms overhead, hissing at the bite of pain along his neck. His Isabella had been aggressive the previous night, not that he'd complained. It made for an exhaustively satisfying and entertaining evening.

Isabella's sleepy voice intruded on his thoughts. "Ugh, you woke up before me. I was going to tie you down."

His cock twitched, which he hadn't thought would be possible after hours of fucking. "I can pretend if you'd like, my love."

"That takes the fun out of it," she muttered. Her body shifted against his, a toned thigh brushing his. "I know we explored a few…fantasies last night, but I have one that I feel would be a hard limit for you."

He turned to face her, the tips of his fingers slipping some of her hair behind her ear. "Kidnapping?"

"You didn't even hesitate to answer."

Edward shrugged, shifting to sit up. "Other than sharing you, it would be an easy assumption to make considering my past. I'm guessing it's one of yours, too."

She joined him at the head of the bed, leaning her head on his shoulder. "Not the actual fucking my captor thing, not unless he's doing it because I'm being a stubborn brat."

"Hmm, so if you try to leave me, kidnapping you once I find you..." he started in a tense voice, pulling her chin up to meet his eyes. "—and I would find you—eventually, it may turn you on?"

"Something like that." There was some amusement in her eyes, excitement too. "I've never been chased before."

He brushed the tip of his nose along her forehead, kissing each of her eyes; her lashes fluttered under his lips. "But you're no mouse, my dear."

The slight shiver that shook her body enthralled him; maybe he would consider chasing her one of these days. It wouldn't be safe once they announced their engagement.

"Run, without saying a fucking word to anyone, before we make the announcement."

She laughed, breathless as he caught the corner of her lightly swollen mouth. "Announcement? You haven't even asked me to marry you."

She was never going to let that shit go. Edward could hear it now whenever their future kids or grandkids inquired about how he asked her to marry him.

"It was damn implied, woman." He grunted, pulling her under him, covering her body with his. "The second I stated we were going to meet my parents."

The niggle in the back of his mind made him groan, his eyes closing. All the bullshit of the night before came rushing back. "Yeah, that isn't happening this morning." He rolled over and covered his face from Bella's soul-searching gaze. Nothing killed a mood faster than thinking of what that monster did to her. How it drove her to kill. How it made her into the woman she was today.

"Yeah, let's change the subject. We need to check on Jane, Aro's daughter."

Isabella huffed beside him. "Can you refrain from saying another woman's name in our bed?" She teased him for a few minutes, keeping his thoughts from heading to darker places from their pasts.

It wasn't long before loud voices intruded in their little bubble.

"I swear to God, put on some fucking clothes, Emmett!" Rosalie's voice carried through the house.

"I'd have clothes on if you hadn't fucking ripped my boxers off last night, babe."

Her answering scream almost reached banshee levels. "I was drunk!"

The silence that followed had Edward reaching for his clothes and Isabella doing the same.

"Don't you dare accuse me of doing something that horrible. You regret what happened last night, fine. You had two drinks last night, and you were more than capable of making a decision."

Isabella opened the bedroom door in time to see the hurt and disgust on Emmett's face before he spun around and made his way to his usual guest room. In all his butt-naked glory. She tilted her head to get a glimpse of a very nice ass, with a ghost pepper tattooed to the right cheek. That was until Edward covered her eyes with his large hand.

"That will be enough of that." His grumbled words made Rosalie flinch enough for her to notice that they had seen most of that. Dressed in a bedsheet, she looked thoroughly well fucked and groggy, but also upset.

"Get ready," Isabella said to Edward, gesturing toward their room. "I'll get some coffee and breakfast started.

"I'll be right down," Rosalie stated, holding her chin up high. Gone was the vulnerable look she had moments after Emmett's last words.

"Not so fast." Isabella slipped her arm around Rosalie's waist and headed to the room she had shared with Emmett the night before. "I warned you about your impulsiveness."

"I know," Rosalie whispered, their heads tipped toward each other. "I wanted to prove something to myself."

Edward didn't wait around to hear more, if it was something he needed to know, he knew Isabella would share it. He did need to check on Emmett, though, but after a shower and cup of coffee.

Edward kept it casual, dressed in some black sweats and a gray T-shirt, skipping a razor for the morning. A part of him wanted to see a little redness on the insides of Isabella's thighs later that night. Humming to himself, he wondered where Isabella had disappeared. She had taken a shower an hour earlier, but he had been too exhausted to join her.

The smell of bacon and coffee greeted him as he made his way downstairs. Dressed in some joggers and a crop top, Isabella stood with Rosalie in the kitchen as Emmett turned to serve them. Whatever happened while Edward was in the shower, appeared to be all right, but he knew it could all be an act.

He needed to tread carefully, because he had his own love life to focus on at the moment. "I have some business I need to handle this morning. Should we meet downtown at my office for lunch?"

"Is this the kind of business that I technically shouldn't be involved in?" As a fiancée, Isabella wouldn't be involved in the illegal side of his business, but as Phoenix, she had to be aware of his comings and goings.

"It's personal and nothing to be worried about. The usual security team should be sufficient."

Isabella nodded and helped Emmett plate some food. The latter remained especially quiet, confirming Edward's thoughts that it was all an act.

"Emmett, I need you to join me."

"Are you asking or demanding, bro?" Emmett gave him a smirk but shrugged. "Yeah, doesn't matter which, I need some fresh air. Where are we going?"

"The office and to pick up a few things I need." Edward's brother didn't ask any more questions; the vague answers were enough to know to change the subject.

"I wouldn't mind doing some shopping," Isabella said. She sipped on her piping hot coffee and sighed. "I didn't get to do much packing before we left Washington."

"I can arrange for a personal shopper to come here." Edward's suggestion earned him a smile.

"Sounds good, but even that will take a few days. I need the basics until then." The look she gave him then, settled the matter. "I will also be taking security with me." She tossed a paper, though not front-page news, there he was with Isabella getting into the car in front of his parents' house on page six. "The announcement needs to be made sooner rather than later. Can you set up an appointment with our fathers for tonight?" she asked. "We need to decide if we're letting the cartel know about my alter ego."

"Will do, you sure you'll be all right on your own?" Edward had every reason to worry, having witnessed some men pushing and pulling her into a car only days earlier.

"Yes, I will have the two that you would normally assign to me, but also the two more my father would." Her overprotective father had good reason to be cautious, considering the past and ties that bound her to Edward and his family.

"How about we meet at the office at noon? I'll show you around and we can grab lunch at a little bistro down the street?" Edward pecked her lips and grinned when she hummed in contentment.

"Sounds good to me." She kept up the conversation, feeling the tension between Emmett and Rosalie grow. The only sound coming from either of them was the clink of their silverware on their plates. It was starting to cause Isabella to ramble, and Edward had enough.

As he rose, he stated, "I don't know what's going on between you two, but it's starting to annoy the hell out of me. If it continues and undermines your ability to keep Isabella safe, Rosalie, you will be on the next plane out of here."

Rosalie dropped her fork and nodded. "I understand. There's nothing between us."

The sound of Emmett's chair scraping on the hardwood floor echoed in the dining room. "Absolutely nothing, I'll pick up some Plan B on the way home tonight." He left the room without another word or a glance back.

"I'm going to kick him in the balls," Isabella hissed, trying to get out of Rosalie's handgrip around her wrist.

"It's fine, B." Rosalie sighed deeply. "I asked him to treat me like he does all his other conquests."

Edward laughed. "He doesn't fuck without a condom, so what he said was only meant to sting you as much as you did him."

Rosalie stated she'd be ready to leave in thirty minutes, leaving Edward and Isabella alone again. He helped her clean up in the kitchen, something he rarely did. He had a maid for that, but now that he'd have a house full of people, it would be best to keep it manageable. He wrapped his arms around his future bride and spread a wealth of kisses on her shoulders.

"Were we that stubborn?"

She laughed. "We're still getting to know each other. The only reason our connection is so strong is because of the violence that forced us to face our feelings sooner. I wouldn't confess my love for you for months if it hadn't been for that."

He understood, because he felt the same way. Her kidnapping made it obvious that he wasn't settling for her because she was the perfect fit in his life, but because she meant more to him than anyone else did, even family.

Turning her so he could look in her beautiful eyes, he saw everything she'd normally hold back in her gaze. She loved him, maybe as much as he loved her.

"Now, where are you going?" She cocked a brow, letting him know she needed an answer.

"I need to prepare for an important event," he replied, and kissed the tip of her nose. "That's all you're getting from me."

She rolled her eyes. "You are aware that I can find out from my crew, right?"

"You wouldn't spy on me like that." He never gave her a reason to doubt him, why was she doing that now? "What's going on in that brilliant mind of yours?"

"I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop." She shrugged. "Everything went smoother than I would expect."

"Getting shot is smooth to you?"

"Smoother than most expected missions." She pulled away from his arms and smiled up at him. "I trust you; it's the rest of the fucking world that I don't. Please take precautions seriously and watch your back."

"Same goes for you, Bella." He didn't use her nickname often, but in moments like that, it seemed fitting. Comforting.

"Isabella Marie Swan doesn't have a target on her back. Phoenix does, but I'm assuming as your companion that will change."

"Within the families, violence against women and children is prohibited and would meet with a swift blow from all the other families. It is the one rule we have never changed."

"Since I'm not yet family, I'm still the perfect target for revenge and or an attempt to overthrow your family."

"Yes," Edward, nearly choked with emotion, replied. "I'm doubling security. We're making the announcement tomorrow night."

She nodded in agreement, but held up her empty ring hand. "Just make sure you put a ring on it." With that said, she left to get ready for her shopping trip.

Fifteen minutes later, Emmett joined Edward in one of the cars and asked where they were going. "Isabella has already seen and worn the ring I had intended to propose with." He held out the little blue box that held the ring Isabella had worn to meet his parents. "I'm not about to use it now."

Emmett whistled while looking at the large diamond nestled in a ring of sapphires. "You're going to get her another one? But that one is a beauty."

"Exactly, now I need to top it."

Emmett laughed and shook his head. "Good luck with that. She's probably still going to want that one."

Edward took another look at the ring and nodded. "I'll have to do something about that, too." He looked at Emmett, who stared blankly out the window. "Are you all right, little brother?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I got ahead of myself. She hit all the buttons and even stomped on a few of them. Fucking a different woman every week, sometimes more, gets a little old, fast."

"Hence the reason I didn't do that shit much, especially at the clubs."

"I'll try to let it go. She's going to be a pain in the ass, and I doubt I'll handle some other guy well, but I'll get over it."

"Give it time, just be yourself, and all that mushy shit." Edward delivered his words with a cocky smirk.

"Mushy shit? Fucking hell, how are you better in the love department than the rest of us?"

Edward only sat back and smiled.

.

.

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Mary Alice watched from the corner of the room, shadowed by a potted tree and display case full of family portraits, as Jasper Cullen ate breakfast, reading something on his phone. She liked the way his face lit up as he scrolled through some social media app. He seemed to have slept well, and had stayed in his bedroom too.

He had ruined it after he killed someone that meant something to him, that was what she surmised from the conversations she heard since she came to live there.

She wasn't sure what drove her to break into his room to clean it up and redecorate it. Only she needed to keep busy and she wanted to help someone who felt as disconnected as she did.

She shouldn't want to know more, because she could practically see the blood on his hands. Stained a rich red, the tip of his chin dripping with it, tiny fragments of bone and brain matter caught in his long lashes. The bitch probably deserved it.

Alec always told her she deserved it.

She never believed it, but took the punishment as she had all her life. She didn't know anything else. Groomed from when she was sold over a decade earlier, she only knew how to follow the rules and what happened when she broke them.

Jasper's mother was trying to break that way of thinking, but was that any different from his brainwashing? She didn't know so she kept herself busy until her next appointment with a therapist.

"I know you're there, Mary." He kept his eyes on his phone, so she wasn't sure if he was talking to her or not. "Are you hungry, Mary?"

"Alice," she whispered, her voice sounding foreign to her. Alec didn't like when she talked.

"You prefer Alice, all right." He waited a few more moments to ask his question again.

"No," she replied, and shook her head. He probably couldn't see her, but he would know where she hid from the direction of her voice. She shrank a little more in the nook and held her breath.

"I won't hurt you, little one."

A shudder stiffened her spine. "Don't call me that!"

In horror, she watched Jasper flinch, but he quickly covered it up with a sigh and a nod.

"I understand."

Did he? His mother could only guess, but they wouldn't want to know. Why would he know?

She was on her feet before her next breath and sprinting for the nearest exit.

Before she could disappear down the hall, she heard Jasper say, "Thank you for my room."

She ran all the way to the room at the very top of the house and ignored the way she blushed.

AN: Thanks to Midnight Cougar, she got this back to me quickly. I know it's been a LONG time. Some of you may be aware but I broke my ankle and sprained the other. I had to have surgery back in October and it's been a slow recovery. I also got Covid, though thankfully nowhere near as bad as the first time. I'm going to try to get back to writing more but I can't make any promises because life is a little crazy right now. I hope you're all doing okay, and I hope 2023 treats you and yours well.

This chapter is mostly filler but it's necessary to set up a few things in the upcoming chapters. I'll be writing again tomorrow and the whole weekend, here's hoping for a nice productive weekend. Have a good one, and thank you for still being here.