Protecting the Black Wolf's Mate
by wizardtho
Chapter 15:
Bella's POV
I smiled as I looked at the floor in the great room. It had been vacuumed like the rest, but the floor was still dusty. I turned to grin at the girls, "Care to help me with mopping? I’d like the floors not to be dusty when we eat tonight. Jared, you can be our muscle man and move the furniture so we can mop the whole floors."
He smirked and kissed his bicep as he flexed, making all of us laugh. Sam came back in with Paul, smiling as they carried three Swiffer WetJets and a box of the pads that go on them. Paul pouted playfully, “Hey, we have muscles too, you know.”
I chuckled, saying, “Well help with the furniture, then, oh great men of muscle.”
They all laughed as Sam playfully growled and nipped at my neck, then Leah said, "Paul and I will take the dining room and den. Kim and Jared, you take the guest suite and entry. Sam and Bella can take the theater, then we’ll meet back here in the great room. You boys can handle the furniture, then us girls will tackle this room together."
I smiled my agreement, then we divided up the box between the three of us so we each had plenty of clean mop pads. Sam and I headed to the theater, which had no furniture in it, as I looked at the mop to see that it had a solution in it for hardwood floors. I put one of the pads on it just as Sam said, "After we get done with this, please sit and rest a while. I don’t want you tired out when Emily gets here, or she’s liable to put you back on bed rest."
I nodded, kissing him lightly, "I will. I promise. I just don’t want dusty floors while we’re eating."
He understood, so I went down by the screen to start. When I pushed the button for the solution and pushed the mop through it, I gasped, “Holy shit!”
I did it again, garnering the same result, then exclaimed, "Sam, look! It’s all just caked on dust!"
What made the floors look like they needed to be refinished was all just settled and caked-on dust from the carpet being over the hardwood for so long. Sam rushed out a breath of, “Christ, Isabella.”
He kissed me excitedly, then went to the open door, calling for the girls to start their floors. I heard both of their gasps from where I was, they were so loud. I bounced in place a little, then got back to my floor as Sam confirmed they were dealing with the same thing. I giggled as I worked, "So happy. Oh, this is meant to be, Sam."
Just then, Quil came in smiling, "You all have the same thing happening. I think you’re right, Bella. This house was meant to be yours. I would have just kept having the carpets cleaned. If I’m right, there’s a reason you’re running into so much luck with the house."
I looked at him questioningly, but he just smiled, “You’ll see.”
I shook my head and laughed, “Don’t want to jinx it, huh?”
He nodded, offering, “I’m going to look in on the others.”
I smiled, then said to Sam, "Oh… call Charlie, please. Have them pick up more boxes of mop pads and solution. We’ll need them with how much dirt and dust is coming up."
He flipped his phone open, calling Charlie, then put it on speakerphone. When Charlie asked about why we needed it when there was some already at the house, I piped up to explain, "I just want to be stocked up in case we run into more luck and have hardwood on the second floor too. Plus, the rooms are big, and each one takes a pad all by itself with them being so dusty."
Charlie laughed, then said they’d pick them up. I was excited to see his expression when they got back, and was hoping to have this all done before they did. He really made a great buy with the house, for many reasons. I was excited and happy to start my life with Sam here.
When I was about halfway through cleaning the floor, Sam stopped me while wrapping his arms around me from behind, then rubbed my lower stomach tenderly as he whispered against my neck. "You should rest, Isabella. You’re overheating. Why don’t you let me finish up in here while you go get something cool to drink. Kick back on the couch until we come in to do that room."
I nodded, then Sam kissed me lovingly. I got a couple of bottles of water out of the fridge, drank both of them down quickly, then tossed them in the recycle bin before going to put my feet up on the couch. The cool breeze coming through the house felt so good on my overheated skin, that I couldn’t help but let my eyes flutter closed.
I must have dozed off, because the next thing I knew, I felt fingers running through my hair, then heard a feminine voice ask softly, “How long has she been asleep?”
Sam whispered from near my head, "About an hour and a half. She drank two full bottles of water, then laid on the couch and was asleep within minutes. I think it was too warm for her in the theater without the air on. There was no air moving with no windows in that room. She started to overheat, so I took over in there, telling her to come out here to relax."
The feminine voice, who I now recognized as Emily, responded, "Good. She needs the rest. Don’t be surprised if she sleeps more in the next few days. Try to get her to rest every chance you can, and see if you can get her to do more research than actual work on the house for the next few days. I want her to rest because if she has a chance of implanting, it’ll be within the next 4-6 days."
I whispered softly, "Well I guess rest is on the schedule, then. Hey, Emily."
She chuckled, "Sorry, Bella. I didn’t mean to wake you."
I rubbed my eyes before opening them, to see Emily smiling, "No, I think it’s because I need the restroom. I drank those bottles of water quickly, then laid right down. Did you check out the floors? Pretty awesome luck, huh?"
She nodded, "Very. They’re magnificent. That’ll save a lot of time and work for you all."
I nodded, then turned to Sam to cup his cheek, "Hi, Handsome. You miss me?"
He smiled while kissing me lightly, "Yes, but it was for a good reason. You needed the rest. I bet you didn’t even realize you were tired, did you?"
I shook my head, so he said, "See? This is why you need to listen to Emily and rest. You shouldn’t have done all that with the floor. Next time, ask me to take over, please."
I nodded, then asked, “Are Charlie and Sue back?”
He replied with a smile, “Back, already put the groceries away, and are outside getting the grill going.”
I grumbled, “Crap, I really wanted to see Charlie’s reaction to the floors.”
I heard Leah chuckle from nearby, "Then it’s a good thing Kim thought to get it on video with her phone. Sam had to warn them before they even got in the house that you were sleeping on the couch, and not to wake you… no matter what."
I chuckled, “I bet Charlie about had a heart attack, didn’t he?”
They laughed their agreement, then my bladder made itself known again. "Sorry guys. You’ve gotta give me a minute."
I sat up, my eyes falling to the floor, “Hey, how’d this room get done?”
Sam gave me a cheeky grin, "I did it, so you would be able to rest. I moved everything but the couch, so underneath it still needs to be done."
I patted his cheek, kissed his lips softly, then made my way to the half bath off of the entry.
When I came back out, I took a good look at the entry floor, as well as the other rooms. I smiled widely as I walked back into the great room, "You guys did an awesome job. The rooms and entry look incredible. The floors were so well preserved somehow, that I don’t even think they need to be resealed right yet."
Sam agreed as I sat in his lap on the couch, "You're right, Angel. They look pristine. We’ll have to see how they hold up in the next month or two to be sure, though."
Emily smiled, “Have you checked under the linoleum yet?”
I chuckled, shaking my head, "I asked the same exact thing earlier… but no. They didn’t want to make the kitchen floor all sticky when food had to be prepared in there tonight."
She looked at the kitchen, then the nook before saying, "There’s no furniture in the nook. Are you using it for anything? If not, you could use that as your checkpoint."
I nodded, then looked at Sam hopefully. He laughed, placing his hands tenderly over my ears before calling, “Charlie!”
Charlie came through the side door of the house laughing with Sue, so Sam pointed out, "Emily made a good point. No one even goes in the nook right now, so that could be our checkpoint for wood in the kitchen. Want to check it out?"
Charlie beamed, "What do I need to do? I don’t want to mess up the wood if it’s under there."
Jared grinned as he slapped Charlie on the back, "Come on, Chief. I’ll teach you."
The guys had already laid the toolbox and a few other things in the nook since it wasn’t being used, so Jared taught Charlie how to properly score, heat, and peel up the linoleum. They scored a patch between the french doors and the kitchen, another patch at the opposite corner near the great room, then Jared showed Charlie how to do it.
When he started carefully peeling back the linoleum, Charlie whooped, “Yes, hardwood, Bells!”
I chuckled, “Don’t get too excited until we actually make it into the kitchen, Dad.”
Once Jared finished that patch, he said, "There’s not much residue, Sam. It looks like we’d be able to get it up with that solution we use. We may not need to sand and reseal this."
Sam smiled, then Jared handed the heat gun and tools to Charlie. "Have at that other square, Chief. Let’s see how much you learned."
I laughed at Charlie’s excitement, then thought about how good it would be having Charlie helping out with the house. The smile that shown on my face had Sam whispering to me, "He’s happy, Isabella. He’s really happy about this because he gets to be around you... see you so much more."
I nodded as I curled into Sam, "It’ll be really nice, being able to see him so much. Maybe Charlie could help with any other renovations or restorations that come my way. He seems to be learning from you boys as we go along, so maybe he could help me with the work estimations."
Sam beamed at me, "I’m sure he’d love that, Angel. How are you feeling?"
I nodded, "Okay. Still a bit tired, though."
Just then I heard Sue as she leaned over to whisper to me, "Then you’ll stay right there and relax while the other girls help me finish dinner. You heard Dr. Young… you need to rest. Plus, you have a lot coming up to do with the house, so you might as well relax while you have the chance."
I nodded, curling further into Sam, "Alright, Sue. Thanks for doing all this."
She kissed my temple, “It’s no problem, Dear.”
Emily came back over a few minutes later, then said, "I want to check your temp again, Bella. Would you mind sitting up for a few minutes so I can get an accurate reading?"
I pulled myself into a sitting position next to Sam with my hand in his, but my head and body leaning on the back of the couch. With the breeze coming into the house, she was ready to take my temperature within a few minutes, offering, "Here we go. I’ll be done soon."
I nodded, then held the end of the thermometer as I closed my mouth.
I leaned against the couch again, and when the thermometer beeped, Emily smiled widely, "Good… 99.4. Only two points above Dr. Gerandy’s assessment for this morning. I think we’re in the clear for infections, Bella. Since you usually run at 98.8 or 9, the small jump in your temperature can easily be explained by ovulating and possibly conceiving. I really do want you resting for the next couple of days. I’ll throw down the order if I need to, but I don’t want to order bed rest for you when you were just released. Do you promise to take it extremely easy?"
I nodded, "I swear, Emily. Sam’s with me all this week. You know he won’t let me cheat."
She nodded, "Alright. I brought the powder I told you about earlier. I’ll go explain to Sue and the girls how to use it, then see if they can make you up a shake."
I smiled, laid my head on Sam’s lap, closing my eyes when I felt his fingers dance along my spine. I faintly heard Sam whisper, "Rest, my little Beauty. Sleep for a while longer."
Sam's POV
I knew Isabella was still tired when I asked her, so I was glad when she admitted it. At least she wasn’t trying to hide it. She easily gave in, letting the girls take over dinner with Sue, then laid back down against me after Emily took her temperature. When her breathing evened out and her heart rate slowed, just mere minutes after I whispered for her to sleep a while longer, I smiled. I warned softly, “Jared… let Charlie know she’s asleep again, please, so he doesn’t wake her.”
Immediately I heard Paul whispering to the girls in the kitchen, as well as Jared whispering to Charlie. Charlie stuck his head up, smiled at us, then gave me a silent head bob.
I was still stroking my sleeping Beauty’s spine when Emily came back in. She smiled as she whispered, "She’s good for you, Sam. You’re a lot calmer now. There was a time, not too long ago, when I remember you wouldn’t slow down for anything."
I smiled, "I know, but I have her to think about now. It’s a good thing her temp is still elevated those few points, right? That was that look you gave me?"
She gave me a beaming smile, "And it’s a good sign that she’s sleeping so easily. We just have to wait to see if you can hear a heartbeat soon. I don’t want to get your hopes up…"
I smiled, “But...”
She chuckled softly, replying, "But I think a little cub may be on the way to implanting if it’s not already making its den. She had that antibiotic shot and has stopped her pills, so…"
I nodded, understanding that there was nothing at all to stop a life from forming, then looked down at Isabella. "I don’t want her to get her hopes up, then find out that it didn’t happen this month. She said herself that it could take a few months, but I saw the look in her eyes, Emily. I saw that she wants this… just as much as I do. How will I keep her from worrying, though? With the house, her GED, and all the other extreme changes in her life…"
Emily smiled, "Sue was telling me how Bella was going to be taking her GED. She and Charlie stopped today to find out what needed to be done. The principal said that since she’s in mostly AP classes, and her non-AP grades were all A’s, they can skip the assessment portion... go right to the GED test, if she feels confident enough. He told Charlie a website for Bella to look at that has similar assessment questions on it. If she feels good with them, then she’ll have no problem with the actual GED. She’ll have to go into Forks High one more time, to take the test, but then she’s done."
I was happy about that, so I told Emily, "She called that place horrid, so she’ll be happy that she only has to go back for the test. Maybe she can schedule it before the week’s out, so I can be there to support her."
Emily nodded, "That would be best, but try to have her schedule it for more like Thursday or Friday, if she can. Tomorrow and Wednesday I’d like her off her feet as much as possible, doing more research or studying than anything else. I don't want the stress of testing on her yet. Sue and Leah have dinner for both nights covered, then Sue has lunch covered. I guess that leaves you with breakfast. Sue said that Charlie burns toast."
She giggled a little, but I noted, "Yeah. He makes a mean cup of coffee, though. Oh, speaking of which… when Bella wakes up, we need to go over any foods or drinks you want her to stay clear of. She also didn’t know whether or not you wanted to start her on a vitamin now or not."
Emily nodded, "We can go over all of that together. I can even get a list made up for posting in the kitchen, so no one forgets."
I smiled, "Thanks, Emily. Charlie said this morning when I asked that she liked a certain tea, so she had that instead of coffee this morning."
Emily nodded, "All in all, you two are off to a wonderful start. I really hope this calorie powder works well, and she starts to gain a bit of weight, though. I’m almost afraid of what a wolf baby would do to her body with her being so tiny. She needs that weight, Sam."
I nodded, knowing she was right, then said, "She really has eaten well the last 2 days. You’ll see what I mean at dinner."
Emily nodded, then Charlie knelt down beside Isabella to place a stray hair behind her ear. He looked at me while whispering, "She looks peaceful. I extended the strip by the kitchen to just past the natural nook line, and you’ll be happy to hear that we do indeed have hardwood. Jared said that the spot I did looks the same as the other one, and he thinks that just the solution you use should do the trick. He said Bells won’t be able to be in the house when you do it, though."
I shook my head, saying seriously, "We need to keep her away from the chemicals and the dust in the carpets. A lot of that stuff could be harmful if she’s pregnant. Since we know she’s going to have to do her GED at the high school, we can set you and the boys up to do the floor when I take her to do the test. Open all of the doors and windows. Have the fans running, pointing out, so that they suck the harsh smell out of the rooms. The boys will be able to tell when it's safe for her to come back. I want to set the trailer bay under your apartment up as the workshop, for stripping the paint on the moldings and stuff, since it’s the furthest from the house. You don’t mind, do you?"
Charlie chuckled, shaking his head, "Of course not, Son. If she shouldn’t be near it, then that’s the best place for it. Plus, that’ll keep the noise from bothering her while she’s resting. Should she be sleeping so much?"
Emily nodded, "It’s a good thing, Charlie. She needs to get all the rest she can right now, so the next two days, she’s been ordered to rest as much as possible. Sue and the girls have lunch and dinner taken care of, plus Sam’s doing breakfast, so Bella will have no excuse to be cooking. Her temp looks good, and she’s out of the woods for an infection from the other night."
Charlie nodded, "That’s good. I was worried about pneumonia at first, with her being lost in the rain for so long."
Sue came in, whispering in my direction, "Sam, dinner will be ready in 20 minutes. You might want to start waking her slowly, so she’s ready to eat when it’s time. I’ll bring her shake in for you in a few minutes."
I nodded, “Thanks, Sue.”
Emily went to see if she could help in the kitchen as Charlie whispered, "I heard about your surprise earlier. Quite the crafty maneuver, with her distraction, huh?"
I chuckled softly, "Yeah, it was pretty good, wasn’t it? She had Sue and the girls in on it, then had the girls pull Paul and Jared out, while Sue helped with the kitchen distraction. I think we’re going to have trouble on our hands with those two, Chief. They make quite the crafty duo."