Caught in the Flames

Chapter One Hundred Sixty-Eight

As always, none of this is mine. I'm just the perv who want to make our beloved Twilight characters swear, drink, and go at it like horny rabbits. This story will be a combination of love, suspense, some violence and steamy, sweaty sex.

Chapter 168

EPOV

The bachelor/bachelorette party was fun, but we were ready to go home at ten. Despite the fact that I had slept through the night, I was still up early. Bella had gotten up with Marie. Underneath the makeup she wore, I could see dark circles under her eyes. We managed to stay out until midnight. It wasn't until Bella started snoring that Alice realized that we were new parents, adjusting to the sleep schedule of a highly unpredictable infant.

I drove us home, being the more awake of the two of us. It felt weird to not have Marie with us, but her grandparents wanted to dote on her. I helped Bella upstairs. She was barely coherent as I guided us to our bedroom, balancing Bella's sleepy form and carrying her shoes. "I'm going to go wash my face," she mumbled, stumbling into our bathroom after she picked up her pajamas off the bed. I stripped out of my clothes, putting on a pair of shorts. As I was reaching for my shirt, Bella walked out, her hair up in a loose ponytail and her face scrubbed of the makeup. Her eyes widened when she saw my bare chest. I tried to cover up, but she stopped me. "Don't."

"I guess we both have our scars," I said, my voice barely audible. "You haven't really seen mine."

"No," she murmured. She stepped toward me, her fingers moving to the two raised scars from my stab wounds. "Do they hurt?"

"Not anymore. They're more numb than anything because of the surgeries the doctor's performed," I answered.

"And the burns?" she asked, her hand moving to the slightly scarred skin on my torso. "Do those hurt?"

I shook my head. "I'll never be able to go tanning since the skin is more susceptible to burning, but I never liked laying out in the sun in the first place," I quipped. "They don't scare you?"

"Edward, you make it sound like you're a monster. You were very lucky," she said, her hand moving up my side and down my arm, which was free from its compression sleeve. "I could have lost you that night. I will love you, scars and all. And you could never scare me. Losing you scares me more than anything."

"Ditto," I said, cupping her chin and looking into her exhausted eyes. "We've had enough close scrapes to last a lifetime. We're together now and nothing will stop that."

"Even though I can't give you more children?" she choked out, a lone tear slipping down her cheek. "Well, more children without a lot of help."

"Marie was an unexpected and welcomed miracle. If God decides that it's right for us to have more children, then we will. It doesn't matter how we get them, whether it be a surrogate or adoption. Don't ever think that I'd love you less because you can't give me more babies. You and Marie are my world," I said, trying to push the point across that I wasn't going to let either one go. "Now, it's late and we're both exhausted. Let's go to sleep." I reached for my shirt.

"Leave it off," Bella whispered. "I miss feeling your skin." I nodded, tossing my t-shirt into the hamper and crawling into bed. She followed, snuggling against my chest and idly tracing patterns on my belly, tickling the hair that led further south. "I love you, Edward. Thank you for understanding my trepidation."

"We're both in the same boat, Bella. Physically, our bodies are ready, but our heads are not," I said, kissing her forehead. "When we are ready, it will be that much more special." She smiled up at me, pressing her lips to mine and snuggling back against my chest.