Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, or any food in my room for that matter. So no late snackages for Kat. I do own, however, library books1!! That are due back Friday. Damn.

So this is Esme's point of view for the last chapter – I finally finished it after what, like 38435789876524575 bajillion minutes? Teeheehee… sorry! Reguardless,

Have a good read!!

Five minutes.

It was going on five minutes that I have been standing here, looking into the stupid closet, searching the yards of fabric for something to wear. It never normally took me anywhere near as long to get dressed as it was taking now. Taking today. Taking for tonight.

"Carlisle?"

My arms resignedly came to rest comfortably across the hotel's bathrobe as my body slowly found the soft wood of the doorframe to lean against, turning my head to my husband as he abandoned his shirt buttoning for my indecisiveness.

"Yes, dearest?"

My smile that formed at his affection melted away the exasperating thoughts that creased my forehead.

"What dress should I wear? I fear that dressing too flashy and being scoffed; yet arriving underdressed might reflect badly upon you. I am just unsure."

Goodness, when Carlisle had first suggested that I come to this weekend conference with him, I was more than excited and confident in my abilities as a wife to be a good reflection of what Carlisle stood for; but now, faced with the decision that plagued every female at least once a week, that confidence was flying away on the velvet wings of the butterflies that had just taken refuge in the pit of my stomach.

What if his colleagues and patrons thought ill of me? What would happen to Carlisle's career – my racing thoughts stopped short when I heard the feet crossing the lush carpet and my eyes focused back in reality just as his arm slipped around my waist and his soft lips fluttered over my own. I instantly relaxed by just being in his close presence.

"Esme, you could wear a potato cask and look divine and no one would think it too flashy of unpretentious. But I am rather drawn to you in that inviting deep green strapless dress."

I watched placidly as his strong arm ducked into the lit closet, bringing the gown out and placing it between the two of us to look over. The dress was lovely, I had to admit – Alice had shamed me into a shopping trip with her, saying things such as I never spent time with just her anymore. Even though we both knew that to be a lie I had gone with her anyway to give my poor son Jasper a break from the daunting hours that were spent just looking in stores.

Extracting one folded arm from its comfortable resting place I leisurely reached for the hanger and the admired cloth that was draped over it. I smiled to myself and walked out of my husband's loving caress, wandering into the spacious restroom to make myself presentable.

"Thank you."

My voice fluttered absently to the man standing in front of the open wardrobe while I shut the wooden door and hung the green silk on the proffered peg sticking out of the elegant white planks. I quickly stripped myself of the cotton dressing gown, throwing it to the floor carelessly and shooing it out of the way with a shove of my bare foot. My hand stretched towards the hanging item, my fingers running through the sleek fabric that stood out in the impeccably white washroom and was instantly transported back to fond memories of other silk items – such as the sheets that made the bed on my island so irresistible. My small smile grew as the memories flooded my unfailing mind and I shook them away swiftly before I started thinking of things that would be better left to the 'after-party', so to say.

I matched my right hand with my left and together they lifted the fabric from the padded hanger to the marble floor where I shimmied the frock up my body and secured it to my form safely. From there I turned to the substantial mirror to fluff my hair, twisting and twirling the caramel strands into different styles until I sighed and let them fall from my tired hands. I heard Carlisle on the other side of the door and I scrambled to pick up the castoff brush on the other side of the counter. He entered as I was brushing my hair back to my neck and twisting it with a flick of my wrist – all the time his eyes never leaving my body and his body never leaving the doorway. Fastening my hair with a golden clip, my golden eyes wandered to the mirror to survey his attire for the night.

I certainly loved my Carlisle dressed up in a tux. The dress wear brought his refined features to the front and added to his gentlemen upbringing a certain respectable and responsible air that no person alive could ignore when he stepped into a crowded room. I suddenly noticed his eyes on me in the reflective surface and I tore my eyes away from his frame to meet the warm ones that were staring mine down. My food fidgeted with the intensity of the gaze, my self-consciousness soon running off with the silent moment.

"Do I look alright, Carlisle?"

Although he stood there looking stunning, I had not forgotten the strong urge I felt to influence the individuals my love worked with all the daylong. He slowly walked to where I stood and picked up the necklace he had presented my with earlier that day as a 'no-reason' surprise, laying it upon my cold neck.

"My darling, you look wonderful tonight." He emphasized his words with a soft kiss on the side of my neck, adding fuel to the constant smile adorning my face.

--

I could hear the high-spirited voices and individual conversations before Carlisle reached for the grand doors, peeling them back and exhibiting to me the world of off-duty doctors. Even though our entrance was rather quiet all heads turned in our direction, the patrons' and doctors' attentions alike trained on my husband and myself as if we were a new medical journal – looks of lust shadowed the faces of many people, outshining the brilliantly lit chamber.

Carlisle's hands instantaneously embraced mine, his fingers fitting to my own in a puzzle that was always meant to be and started pulling me lightly towards a group of seven individuals who were engrossed in their topic of conversation. My keen senses noticed the subtle movements of men's heads to look at me, but what bothered my mind was all the women who nonchalantly following my love with their sneaky eyes, not in the least ashamed at their actions as long as they could look at the ethereal beauty of one man.

I clutched his hand tighter as we came to the circle of people Carlisle was heading to and we stopped abruptly when we reached the small opening that made the circle a semi-circle, all eyes wandering to our sudden appearance.

"Ah, Carlisle m'boy," a wiry man around the age of sixty spoke first, his jolly expression striking in contrast to the drab countenance of the others who made up the elegantly dressed audience. "How good to see you here with this exquisite young lady! I do not think I have met her yet…?"

I snuck a glance at Carlisle as his hand squeezed mine affectionately to see his grin grow larger at the mention of me. Looking around at the unfamiliar faces in the crowd I observed the different coloured eyes dart to our linked palms and Carlisle's ever-growing smile, and one dressed lady narrowed her gray eyes as her full mouth opened.

"Yes, Carlisle who is she? You never talk about a girlfriend," thoughts whirled around my head and I felt a small twinge of sadness at the said words of he never talked about me. "And I just assumed since you were so young you were not married."

My negative musings were blown away by the confident and soft voice that spoke at my side, my head of bouncy hair twirling to meet the side of his chiseled and perfectly pale face.

"Dr. Harburry, Ms. Riles, everyone, may I introduce my soul, my life – my wife," his golden eyes were dancing in their dark sockets, more bright than the eternal fireballs that burn brightly in the sky every night, boring right into mine as he deftly led our weaved hands to his lips and melted my dead heart with a gentlemen action he was never short of. "My Esme."

I felt my smile soften at his meaningful words directed to me more than those around us in the large room filled with those who didn't know that I existed. His splendid head broke our strong gaze as he faced the others surrounding us, his sturdy arm guiding our hands back to the sides where they belonged and he sucked in needless air to speak to those he now faced.

I looked at each individual respectively as they were introduced to me, each different person presenting me with a warm smile and slightly overwhelming me with the glistening of the ladies' necklaces and the men's polished cufflinks decorating their person.

"I'm very pleased to meet you." My head nodded up and down lightly as an intimate greeting to all, my earrings brushing the side of my neck as each graceful motion was made. Conversation picked up after the minute of introduction was over, the light and fluttery voices of the females complementing the rough, deep voices of their male counterparts; my mind raced off to other parts of the grand room, picking up pieces of medical jargon, private conversations, gossip, and jokes that the other occupants ceaselessly put forth for the sake of talking.

Hours strode by as quickly as the waiters refilled the bubbling champagne glasses that tinked together as an open sign of merriment while the planked floor was victim to relentless shuffling and studded heal imprints. The faces of all the people Carlisle introduced to me became ingrained in my brain together with their stares that could not be deterred from our forms as they visited the ones in offence.

At the fourth man who openly traveled his eyes up and down my body I could sense that Carlisle was growing inflamed with the unwelcome attention his lavishly dressed co-workers gave me, so I grabbed my beloved's perfectly sculpted hand and led him to a unoccupied table, sitting down when we reached the destination.

"Carlisle," my eyes ignored that of everything around me but the golden orbs of the man before me as I stared into his face, "are you alright? You seem aggravated – do these people bother you?"

I never thought that my husband could not like someone he worked with so frequently, yet the idea planted itself in my head as I observed his clipped manner around those he was both familiar and unfamiliar with. For the first time that night, the couples around us didn't look our way – the bright rays reflected off of the shining surfaces of the polished dinnerware set upon the white cloth were our only eavesdroppers.

His hand instantly caressed a stray piece of hair, pushing it behind my bare shoulder then brought the palm back to rest upon my eternally cold cheek.

"I feel wonderful tonight. Well, the lusty looks in your direction could lighten up considerably and half of these people could stop being pretentious – but yes, other than those two things I am alright."

Right away I became relieved that I wasn't the only one to be tired of the looks people were directing at us. Carlisle was by far the most handsome man in the room, and being a vampire the attention of every lady in the space, available or not, was drawn to the man. Their attempts of flirting fell flat, but that did not in the least stop the venom from pooling in my mouth as my possessive side was scarcely held back by the human mind that governed my actions.

Lovingly, I stretched up my hand to take hold of his that was covering my cheek, holding it tenderly in my own as my mouth formed words.

"Are you wanting to leave?"

I would never in any amount of years confess to this man that no matter how delighted I was to be here with him, how I was trying to impress his fellow workmen, that this gathering of hospital staff discomforted me as a whole. There were few good people in this room who do what they do for the act of saving lives and making lives better; many of the other people, I heard from their exchanges, were upset that they weren't making enough money and the patients were too needy for their care.

I did not want to be around them anymore when I knew that these people who took an oath to protect and serve others cared more about how many digits were on their bank draft. What made it worse was that Carlisle was suffering from the pompousness of these expensively dressed people as well.

He smiled and stood, making his way through the thinning crowd to the only person I had liked meeting tonight, back to the circle where we first entered the evening's glittering festivities.

"Patrick, I have a slight headache so I'm just going to retire for the night. It was a well put together reception and I have met several people I think I will benefit from working with this weekend."

I managed to hide my smile – it had been quite a while since I have had the pleasure of hearing Carlisle tell a lie that didn't have to do with hunting and sunny days. I laughed along with my husband at the retort the round man put forward, insisting that we eat and enjoy more of the socializing while the mood was still carefree and not loaded with scientific chatter.

He finally let us go with my firm promise to make sure Carlisle took the Aspirin and slept soundly for the night. Together we left the bright area and floated toward the back wall of the ornately decorated entrance where the elevators stood tall and reputable, waiting for passengers to carry up and down the majestic building. My heels clicked along the marble tiles as we passed a young couple kissing intensely on a sturdy divan, heedless of the people passing by they were so lost in their own world. When we reached our destination, Carlisle pressed the round button that called the elevator and we waited silently in the dim light for our ride.

I couldn't help but be reminded of all the times Carlisle and I were lost in our own world, oblivious of the society around us as our arms wrapped around the other securely. I remembered back to my human years when I had been married to Charles; his whole person wasn't even half of the worst man in the ballroom and could never come close to the man who was holding my hand and standing by my side right now. Instinctively I intertwined our fingers, leading his hand up to my eyes where they studied the magnificently plain yet infinitely beautiful ring on his third finger.

Charles had taken me to several of his important events as his wife to support his important family image. After I left him I had thrown the ring that burned my finger out of the rushing train, all false thoughts of him as a good man flying through the window after the piece of metal. Slowly, my left hand rose to meet our clasped hands, my finger just kissing the golden symbol of our unity and love.

Carlisle is what every husband should be like – caring, loving, selfless, respectful, honest, and always a gentleman. I loved everything about him, and even more so that I could just see a casual thing that has nothing to do with anything and link it to him. I knew at that moment that I would enjoy tonight together, alone with my husband, having a night that we have not been able to have in a while.

My attention was torn from my thoughts as the elevator appeared at our feet and both of my arms snapped to my side with the opening of the doors, though I kept a firm hold on his hand as we entered the contraption and the doors slid gracefully shut, our floor number illuminated in a soft yellow glow.

Carlisle immediately edged me to a wall of the reflective elevator, his body hovering mere inches away from mine as he stared straight into my open eyes and began to speak.

"What are you thinking?"

I bit my lip out of habit as I stared back at him, dazed from his remarkable and calculating eyes that always captured my whole attention when I looked at him.

"I'm thinking…. I am thinking how lucky I am to be married to such an extraordinary man, one who is selfless enough to take shifts for his coworkers or drive hours away just to assist in a difficult case, and always seems to have time for the wonderful family he has gathered and created along the long journey of his life."

I considered telling him how amazing he was for putting up with those people day after day and how Charles was actually a blessing in my life – if I had never married him I would have never had this life with Carlisle that I would die a million times over for.

"I'm the selfless one, love?" The tone in his voice bordered incredulousness as he took in my words. "I do believe that I am a rather selfish being compared to you."

Me, selfless? The thought that he even thought that I could be selfless made my marble knees weak in my ridiculous shoes; his silky forehead came to rest on mine while his perfect hand once again cradled my face with nothing but adoring love in his dark topaz eyes. When his thumb raced back and forth across my cheekbone my knees faltered the slightest bit and I was thankful that he was too preoccupied to notice his effect on me after all these years together.

"Do you realize how much I love you?"

I giggled, voicing the first natural thing that came to my head after such a statement.

"If it's anywhere near to how much I love you, I could guess but that wouldn't even begin to tip the scale."

The elevator paid no attention as his lips found mine before my words were ever completed, his passion and love transferring and rolling off of him in waves that would be hard for Jasper to comprehend. My free hand floated to the back of his head, clutching it like the lifeline he had grown to be over the numerous years as his body covered mine, eliciting a small, involuntary moan from the back of my throat. Our tongues collided and conveyed our need for the other and as I was about to lose my restraint the elevator betrayed our secret hiding place, its doors gliding open slowly to end a magical moment that would forever be reminisced in elevators.

Carlisle backed away quickly as to not offend any passenger that join the intimate situation in the small box laden with sexual tension. I dipped my head and excused myself out of the elevator, followed by my husband who quickly returned to my side, escorting us back to our large room peacefully. Once in the furbished area, I stopped just inside and rested against the neutrally coloured wall, watching every move that my mate made. A small smile slipped to my face as I gracefully kicked off my dangerous heels and watched him struggle with taking off his jacket – he was dashing in a tuxedo, which just enhanced his centuries-different looks.

"That was unexpected, Carlisle."

"Unexpected… yes."

My smile grew wider as he freed himself from the simple black material, throwing it haphazardly to the side and took a large step to be next to me again. His hand glided through the air to land at my neck where it proceeded to travel down my arm to meet my elbow.

"But not unwelcome I assume."

"Oh, of course not darling." Out of habit my small hands ran up his chest and tangled themselves into his lush hair, a question bubbling at the back of my throat that even though I didn't hold respect for Carlisle's people I desperately wanted to make him look good to them, to prove that he was a great father and a caring husband on top of being an amazing doctor. "But tell me, truthfully, was my impression on your friends… how was that?"

I was answered with a soft chuckle and a chaste kiss to the forehead, accompanied with the simple words of, "Esme, you were wonderful tonight."

His soft lips met kiss my right cheek, then the left, and once again on my neck when he managed to unhook the sparkling necklace that had been the envy of a few ladies in the brightly lit social room. Skillfully he led me backwards to the bed, abandoning his shoes masterfully as he never broke his trail leading to the giant bed just feet away.

"Yes, Esme," hot kisses were left to tempt me as he finished his sentence, kissing me after every word. "You," kiss, "were," kiss "wonderful", two desire filled kisses after that word, "tonight."

His silky lips finally stopped moving long enough for me to kiss him back, adding to the head that raged in both our bodies at this moment in time. His strong arms lowered my small form carefully down to the comforter when we hit the bed, his body following after mine was set, his muscular body positioned above mine being held up by his elbows.

The soft glow of the bedside light bounced off of his blonde hair, creating a halo around the angelic face that fell to meet mine, nose to nose as this being refused to fly back to heaven where he belonged.

"I love you…"

He had said those words every day since we had fallen in love and each time they were said they were better then the last; this time the words reached me in a way that they hadn't before. My love's voice was soft and throaty, like he would be holding back tears if we were able to cry and all I could do was love this man who had given me everything more than I had before.

"… And I you, Carlisle."

I am done with it! Huzzah! And please forgive all mistakes in here, for it is 2.17 in the morning and I don't care much for miniscule grammar mistakes. To all of you who stuck through it to here, and are actually reading this, I'm surprised that you're still reading because now I'm just typing because it's habit from the whole day – I typed half of my research paper earlier ( it was due today… go me!) and now my fingers are just being stupid.

Tid-Bit Information Time:

Sleep is the best thing everrrrrrrrrrrr.

Thanks for reading!

Love to All,

Kat

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