My Biggest Mistake, My Greatest Salvation by LyricalKris
Edward has spent all of his thirty-two years trying to be the man his grandfather raised him to be. When he wakes up married to a young, scared, pregnant stranger, this is one mistake he won't leave in Vegas.
Reviewed by: Twilover 76
Whenever LyricalKris puts out a new story, I sit up and take notice. She has authored some of my favorites including The Butterfly Effect, A Certain Point of View, and Parenthetical Love. Her newest fic, My Biggest Mistake, My Greatest Salvation has quickly become one of my must-reads as soon as it updates.
Edward is an upstanding, successful, but very lonely businessman who happened across a crying, hopeless girl while he was in Vegas for a meeting. After convincing her to let him treat her to dinner, he learned part of the reason for her grief was that she was pregnant.
He woke up the next morning hungover and no longer lonely. In fact, he woke up married. Sometimes what happens in Vegas doesn’t always stay in Vegas.
"We're married."
Edward blinked, beginning to wonder if he'd done some hardcore drug the night before and he just didn't remember. "Can you... say that again?" His voice was raw with sleep and a mother of a hangover.
Wordlessly, Bella lifted her left hand. Sure enough, there was a cheesy looking gold band on her ring finger. Bewildered, Edward mimicked her movement and found a matching band on his finger. "Huh," he chuffed, staring at the thing dumbly.
As he looked up, the girl lowered her head to her knees, her breath hitching in that way that told him she was about to start crying again. "Yeah. I'd cry if I woke up married to me, too," he thought out loud. Apparently, his filter was hiding from the throb, throb, throbbing of his head.
"It's not that," she said, raising her head. "I'm so, so sorry. This is all my fault."
Edward decided that the first order of business, before he could consider this whole Holy Matrimony thing, was to figure out if he could sit up. He tried. The room only spun lackadaisically. "It takes two to tango," he pointed out almost conversationally, digging his fists into his eyes. A thought occurred to him and he glanced at the side of the bed he wasn't occupying. It was rumpled. "Did we?" he asked, vaguely horrified. "Tango, I mean..."
"Oh! Oh, no. No. You..." She flushed furiously, blowing out a breath in a huff before she tried again. "Last night, you held me," she admitted shyly. "It was so sweet." Her small smile fell almost as soon as it appeared. "Actually, you've just been so nice to me." She took a shuddering breath. "And I took advantage of that real quick, didn't I..."
"Maybe it would be best if you filled in the blanks," Edward suggested mildly. "I remember you said you were pregnant."
She bit her lip and nodded. "That's... I... Yes." She sniffled. "I told you my sob story." Her smile was wane but seemed genuine. "And then, you offered to marry me, and even though I knew you were drunk... I knew better, I still said yes."
It’s easy to be sympathetic for both Edward and Bella in this story. Edward was raised by his rigid, closed-minded grandfather, often deprived of the warmth and affection his brothers received from his real parents. Bella is on the run from her possessive, controlling, and abusive ex, who is also the father of her unborn child. While they each have doubts about their spontaneous and impulsive marriage, they decide to stick it out. Edward gains a companion and Bella gains a protector.
"I half expected to find you'd run off," Edward said softly, closing the door and walking slowly to the bed. He sat down, his eyes steady on her.
"I thought about it," she admitted.
"What else did you think about?" he asked, his voice unassuming.
"Well," she hedged. This was such an awkward conversation. "I was just curious. If you're in a suite, you obviously don't live here, right?"
He blinked at her and then laughed. "Of course. No, I don't live here. I live in Chicago."
Bella blew out a long breath, thinking about that. It had occurred to her that if he was just going to flit her away to a town as small as Forks, she might never get on her feet. She needed resources - job opportunities, that kind of thing.
Her heart started to race. She felt inexplicably shy about what she was about to say. "In that case, I was thinking that, unless you've reconsidered, I would like to take you up on your offer. But I want to pay you back," she said this last sentence quickly, tripping over her words. "I'll find a way to pay you back for all of it. Everything."
He raised an eyebrow, looking as though he was about to dismiss the need to repay him, but he must have seen something in her face and thought better of it. "If you prefer," he said easily.
Bella stared at him, feeling strangely calm about having just agreed to follow a near complete stranger back home. "You're sure this is okay?" she asked, wondering if she was asking him or herself.
"Mmhmm," he hummed affirmatively. The answer seemed oddly evasive, but his smile a moment later was genuine. "Good then. That's settled."
Edward even convinces Bella it would be best to tell everyone that he is the father of her child. Their unexpected union, and the news that Edward is going to be a “father”, does not go down easily with Edward’s family. Despite the hardships, Edward and Bella muddle their way through the unconventional relationship they’ve started. It’s a fun ride to read how these two learn from and support each other…and how they will hopefully grow to love each other. If you haven’t begun this work in progress, go start reading it now!
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