The wedding had been the most breathtaking moment of your life. Your dress had fit like a dream, Edward had looked impossibly perfect, the music had wrapped around you like a lullaby—everything felt enchanted, like stepping into a fairytale spun just for the two of you.

You hadn’t had much time to enjoy the reception, though. Jasper had slipped away to carry your bags to Edward’s car while you descended the stone steps of the Cullen house, Edward’s cool hand entwined with yours. Friends and family lined the path, their applause ringing softly through the dusk, like gentle waves breaking on the shore.

Edward had kept your honeymoon destination a secret, and though his refusal to share the details might have irked some of the guests, your friends, especially, you didn’t mind at all. You trusted him implicitly. You only hoped Alice had packed suitably for wherever you were headed.

Hours later, after a plane ride beneath a blanket of stars and a taxi drive through the warm Brazilian night, you arrived at a quiet harbor. Edward helped you into a sleek fastboat, and soon, the bright lights of the mainland faded into the distance.

“That’s Isle Esme. It was a gift from Carlisle,” Edward said softly, as a secluded island came into view.

It was small and intimate, framed by the moonlit ocean and crowned with a stunning house nestled by the beach. A stone path, lit with flickering torches, wound from where the water lapped at the sand to the smooth, golden-brown patio leading to wide glass doors, glowing with warm light from within.

He let you walk ahead first—he always did, unless he sensed danger—but as soon as he placed the bags gently by the door, he skipped a quick step towards you, catching you in his arms in one graceful movement.

You barely had time to take in the breathtaking open living room, encased in glass and filled with the sound of waves, before his voice came from behind you, low and velvet-soft, tender in a way Edward hadn’t even known he was capable of the past 108 years before he met you.

“Would you like to take a look around?”