Chapter 1

Bella Swan

Dear Bella,

My boyfriend and I have been dating for over three years. I'm ready to settle down and start a

family but every time I ask him about it, he runs away.

How do I get some answers from him? Is this relationship worth it?

From

Unlucky in love.

-x-x-x-

Dear Unlucky,

Your boyfriend sounds like he might have commitment issues. This may sound rash to some,

but if you're serious about getting some answers, talk to him somewhere where he can't run

away, an elevator on emergency stop or a less drastic option would be a public place where he

won't be able to run away, like a restaurant. If you discover you want different things in life,

make sure he knows your desires and if he can't compromise then it's time to move on to

someone worth your time. The break might even make him realize that he does want to settle

down.

Best of luck,

Bella

"You all done with those letters, Bella?" My editor, Esme, questioned as she poked her head

into my office.

I smiled triumphantly up at her. "I just finished the last one now, it's at the printer."

"Great," she yawned. "I'll edit it tonight."

I waved her off dismissively. "Don't worry about it; it'll be there in the morning. Go get some

rest and send my love to Carlisle."

She smiled at the mention of her husband. "Will do, dear, are you going to be here much

longer?"

"Just a couple more minutes, but you go on ahead." I removed my glasses and placed them in

my handbag.

"You sure?" she verified and I nodded. "Okay then, see you tomorrow."

"See ya." I started cleaning up my desk, rearranging all the papers into a neat pile and placing

my pens back in the drawer.

I flipped off the lights as I exited, shivering as the cold evening air hit my skin.

I walked home every night in Port Angeles to my apartment, never this late though. I'd taken

the weekend off to spend some time with my newborn nephew, Samuel Banana-

hammock...just kidding! Unfortunately I'd gotten the flu and wasn't allowed near the baby, my

best friend – and sister in law – Rose and my brother Emmett were concerned about him

getting sick seeing as he was so young.

My nephew's name is Henry Charles Swan; the 'Charles' part was taken from my late father,

Charlie Swan, former chief of police in Forks. He passed away two years ago from a heart

attack. I'd just started at the Sunday Times and then had to take time off.

Everyone had been very supportive and my passion for helping people only seemed to grow

from the whole experience.

"Evening, ma'am," A street vendor greeted me, holding out one of the red roses he was

selling. "A beautiful rose for a beautiful girl like you?"

I smiled and nodded, taking the rose from him. "How much do I owe you?" I took out my

purse.

He grinned, showing off a gap where his two front teeth should be. "No charge. I'm a sucker

for the pretty ones,"

I laughed. Thank goodness it was dark enough that he couldn't see my blush. "Thank you,"

"Have good evening,"

"You too," I called back as I continued my walk.

As I rounded a corner down a dark alleyway the heavens opened and rain began to pour.

Great, just fucking great, I thought sarcastically. My white silk blouse was now see-through

against my black bra. The streets were eerily quiet; the only sound was my heels clicking and

the rain pelting on the path. A loud splash behind me made me jump, I glanced back to see a

tall dark silhouette approaching quickly.

I felt my heartbeat pick up as the feeling of fear sunk in. I quickened my pace to a swift walk.

"Miss?" The man called his voice a little too loud.

I whimpered and walked faster. Curse you, Alice Brandon, for talking me into buying these

stupid heels.

"Hey, stop!" he shouted, running now. He was only a few feet behind me and my apartment

was in the next block.

Something wet grabbed my arm, yanking me back. I screamed and thrust my knee into him

where it would hurt the most.

The man doubled over, groaning from the impact. "You left your purse." He wheezed holding

out my black purse.

"Oh my god," I started to apologize. "I'm so sorry."

He laughed, gruffly. "It's just not my day." He looked up at me then, flashing a set of white

teeth.

I bit my lip, feeling really terrible for hurting him. "I'm really sorry."

He sucked in a ragged breath and stood straighter. "It's no problem, really. I'm fine."

I couldn't see his face properly in the darkness or the rain but he looked relatively attractive.

"My apartment is just around the corner; can I make it up to you?" I realized what this

probably sounded like and blushed. "For coffee, I mean."

"No, I'm fine," he declined politely. "I wouldn't want to intrude on your evening."

"Oh, please. I practically assaulted you, it's the least I can do."

"If you're sure..."

I grinned and grabbed his hand, a little shocked my boldness. "Come on."

We half-ran through the rain to my apartment door, I fumbled a little with the key, my body

shivering from the cold.

I flipped on the lights and grimaced a little at the mess my roommate Angela had left, all the

clothes she'd thrown around in her attempts in finding something suitable for her date with

Ben, her boyfriend.

My apartment was small and cozy, the living room open plan with the kitchen, both painted a

warm chocolaty color.

"You have a beautiful apartment," the man murmured and I turned around to see his face in

better lighting.

I had to cover up my gasp with a cough, the man was a god. No, not Buddha. A Greek god.

I couldn't see the exact color of his hair, since it had been darkened by the rain, but it

appeared to be a weird shade of brown, some coppery streaks highlighted in the light.

His features were strong and chiseled the way most male models would kill for. Hell, I was

ready to tear my underwear off just at the sight of his face.

I noticed his eyes, a dark mint color, raking up my body and suddenly remembered what I was

wearing was now see-through.

I cleared my throat. "Um, thanks. I'm just gonna change into something that's not wet..." I

noticed the amusement dancing in his eyes. "Um, clothes, I mean."

He smirked. "Go ahead."

I closed the door to my bedroom and practically ripped the vicious red heels off my feet

before taking off my clothes. They landed with a splat on my wooden floor and then I faced a

dilemma. What do I change into?

I pulled on a black band t-shirt that was a little baggy and a pair of booty shorts.

Next I decided to fix my hair, putting it back with one of those big clips no one really knows

the name of.

My make up looked okay still, who knew waterproof mascara and eyeliner were actually

waterproof, I always thought it was a marketing scheme.

"So, I just realized I don't know your name..." I started as I walked into the living room, after

tossing my clothes in the hamper in the bathroom.

He smiled crookedly. "Edward, and yours?" I noticed he'd started a fire in the small fireplace

and was warming himself up. His clothes were relatively dry thanks to the big jacket he'd

been wearing.

"Bella," I replied. "How do you like your coffee?"

"Your name suits you," he smiled. "Um, you don't happen to have any tea, do you?" he asked,

brushing his hand through his hair.

"My roommate is addicted to it, so yeah. Milk and sugar?"

"Please,"

We were both silent as I made the tea, but I could feel his eyes watching me and it made me a

little self conscious about my actions.

"So, what's a gorgeous woman like you doing walking around the streets of Port Angeles this

late at night?"

I blushed. "I'm an advice columnist and some of the letters take a little longer to reply to than

others, but I walk home every night."

"Doesn't your boyfriend worry about your safety?"

I arched a brow. "You seriously think I'd be bringing an attractive man into my apartment if I

had a boyfriend?"

"You think I'm attractive?" he teased.

I rolled my eyes. "I thought it would be polite to repay you for your compliment."

"Mmhhmm, sure." He took the tea mug from me slowly, brushing his hand along mine.

"Thank you."

"What do you do?" I asked.

"I'm a...handyman," he frowned slightly and removed his eyes from mine.

"Hey, there's nothing wrong with a man who knows how to use his hands," I winked.

He barked out a laugh, almost spraying his tea everywhere. "I actually used to be a counselor

for children whose parents had recently separated."

"I had to go to one of those," I told him.

"I'm gonna take a wild guess here and say your parents divorced?"

"Yep," I sighed. "But it was for the best, they weren't happy together anymore."

"Is that what inspired you to give advice to others? I must say you look a little young to be a

columnist..."

"I only have my bachelor's degree in psychology. I studied for four years and then found this

job."

"Don't you find it tiring?"

"What, giving advice?"

He nodded, taking the last sip from his mug before taking mine and placing both in the sink.

"I get stuck with questions sometimes and put them off until I find the answer, but I love what

I do."

He smiled sadly after he glanced at his watch. "I'm afraid I have to get going."

I felt my expression drop into one of disappointment. "Okay," I sighed and followed him to

the door, resisting the urge to drag my feet like an immature child.

He turned to face me, those green eyes shocking me with their intensity much like before. "I

had a lovely time with you, Bella." He held out his hand for me.

I placed my small hand in his and tried to hold in my sigh as he pressed his lips against the

back of it. God, they were so soft. His green eyes locked into my brown ones, never breaking

contact.

When he straightened up I felt him tug slightly on my hand, pulling me forward. I licked my

lips in anticipation. His eyes moved from mine to my lips, darting between the two.

I nodded a little, to show him I wanted this and he needed no further encouragement, leaning

in closer and closer. His hot breath fanned against my skin.

Our lips hovered inches apart from each other before finally connecting. He held still for a

moment before biting down lightly on my bottom lip and pulling it into his mouth.

My arms moved from my sides and wrapped around his neck, his hands running down their

length, brushing past my breasts, dancing over my ribs and landing on my ass, squeezing

gently.

I moaned and he brushed his tongue along my bottom lip asking for entry to which I willingly

allowed.

"God, you taste so good," he gasped out as our kissing became frantic. His hands lifted my

ass, my legs automatically wrapping around him. Once I was secure, he ran his hands under

my shirt cupping my breasts. His hands were a little rough but I didn't care at that moment,

the feeling of him rolling my nipple between his fingers was almost too much. I moaned as I

felt his erection straining against his jeans and pressing into my core.

My fingers twined in his hair, securing our faces together as he bucked his hips into me,

trying to meet both our needs.

"Bedroom," I moaned out in an order. He stumbled blindly towards the general direction of

the room and I felt something rock hard slam into my back...and not in a good way. I giggled

as I realized he'd walked me into a wall.

He kept his lips on mine as he released me onto the bed. My hands reached down to the

hemline of his t-shirt pulling it over his head and revealing the sexiest abs I'd ever seen. I

grazed my nails along the lines of muscle and heard him growl before my shirt was suddenly

pulled over my head revealing my bare breasts to him.

"Fuck me," he breathed. "You're beautiful, Bella."

His lips moved from mine down to my collarbone, traveling further down until he reached my

right breast. His mouth took me in while his other hand gave the left one some attention. I was

pretty sure my nipples could cut through glass right about now.

With my lips free I could hear myself gasping. "Edward." I moaned out. "I-I need."

He released my breast, looking up at me with dark eyes. "Tell me what you need, Bella."

"I-I want. Fuck me." Was all I could choke out but he seemed to get the point, my shorts

suddenly being tugged down my legs.

"You have no idea how perfect your ass looks in these," he murmured appreciatively but

groaned when he saw the wetness seeping through my panties. "God, you're so wet. Is this all

for me?"

"All for you." I breathed, watching as he slid his thumbs into the waistband and pulled them

down.

I couldn't help but scream out as he ran a cold finger along my slit and then proceeded to

bring that same finger to his lips and taste it.

"Your pussy tastes even better than your mouth." he commented, leaning forward to flick his

tongue against me.

My hands automatically gripped into his hair, holding him there and he chuckled.

"Ah ah ah, baby." He shook his head, still chuckling. "It's not time for you to touch me yet,"

I whimpered pathetically and he smirked as he leaned down again, running his tongue along

the opening before thrusting it in.

"Fuck!" I screamed out.

"Not yet," he mumbled against me, the vibrations of his voice nearly sending me over the

edge. He replaced his mouth with a finger but stilled it inside of me.

"Edward." I growled, getting very impatient.

"Relax, Bella. Unless you wouldn't like me to give you multiple orgasms?"

I felt my eyes widen. "Go ahead then," I managed to squeak.

His finger curled inside of me. "You're so tight. I can't wait to feel you on me."

"Then don't wait!"

He ignored my comment, placing a second finger into me. His fingers curling and uncurling,

thrusting in and out as I neared me release. Curling… uncurling… in… out… in… out. Holy

shit. Every muscle in my body tensing in anticipation before he squeezed my clit with his free

hand and it was all too much for me.

I screamed out his name in my orgasm before drifting back down to earth on a cloud of

happiness. I was still panting heavily and had to break away briefly from his kiss to get some

air. His lips tasted a little salty now but fuck me if it wasn't sexy as hell knowing that he had

me in his mouth.

I reached down to unzip his jeans finally releasing him from the tight confines. His boxers

were a dark blue, the same color his shirt had been...I think; I wasn't exactly paying attention.

I held him through his boxers and he moaned out my name.

"Bella, don't feel like you have to do anything you don't want to." He breathed huskily,

stroking my hair in a way that was almost tender.

I nodded and he removed his hands from me to pull off his jeans and boxers, his belt buckle

clinking as it made contact with the wooden floor.

I gulped audibly as I took in his whole...um, body.

Of course he'd be huge.

How the fuck is that going to fit inside of me?

He noticed my worried gaze and smiled. "We don't have to have sex if you don't want to..."

"I'm sorry, but where have you been? I'm the one who's been begging you to fuck me, so get

over here, mister, and fuck me."

He gaped at me a little before an eager grin spread across his face, "I'm glad you're a woman

who knows what she wants."

I smiled at him as he hovered above me, capturing his lips in a searing kiss.

I felt his cock teasing my entrance and moved my hips upwards to give him better access.

Much too slowly for my liking, he filled me. My breath caught as I stretched around him.

Edward was very patient and stopped his movements when he saw I was uncomfortable.

I wriggled to test myself and he moaned at the feeling, before moving inside of me slowly.

"You okay?" he asked and I nodded in assurance.

He was gentle at first, thrusting slowly until my cries got louder for him to go faster.

Our moans of ecstasy filled the air, mixing with the sounds of skin slapping against skin and

the headboard banging up against the wall.

We continued until the early hours of the morning and, true to his word, Edward and I both

had multiple climaxes – each release hitting us harder and harder each time.

When we finally came to a halt, I fell into the best sleep I've had in years and knew it had

everything to do with the man whose arms I was wrapped up in.

Chapter 2

BPOV

I woke up with a smile on my face and rolled over to snuggle closer to the man next to me. It

would have been the most perfect morning of my life...

If he was there.

Instead, I was greeted with cold sheets which meant he had been gone for a while now.

"Edward?" I called out, pathetically. I kept very quiet, praying I would hear the shower

running or maybe he was in the kitchen making breakfast for me. That would be what a

perfect man would do, wouldn't it?

Then I realized it had just been a one night stand and disappointment sunk in.

I didn't even know his last name, he hadn't even left me a note with his number. Guess he

wasn't so perfect after all.

The front door creaking open gave me hope that maybe he hadn't left me after all.

I pulled the sheets up with me as I made my way to my door, opening it to see who it was.

"Edward?" I tried again. Only to be met with a pair of wide, hazel eyes.

The eyes of my roommate, Angela Weber.

She flushed in embarrassment, "Morning, Bella."

I raised my eyebrows twice suggestively, "Just getting in, are we?"

"Yeah, Ben didn't want me walking home alone last night so he said I could stay over...but,

hey! I'm not the one dressed in my bed sheets and calling out some mans name..."

I groaned and rested my head against my door frame, "Not just a man, the perfect man."

"So..." she looked around. "where is this man?"

"I'm guessing it was a one night stand, I mean, I was thinking it would be at first but..." I

shivered and smiled a little. "it was just...wow."

"Sometimes I wish Ben and I weren't waiting for marriage." she sighed and I hoisted my sheet

up higher.

"I think it's romantic, Ang, and it saves you from situations like this." I gestured to my outfit.

She laughed under her breath, "I suppose, but I'm just scared for when it does happen, ya

know?"

"Trust me, once you're in the moment you'll realize just how silly your fears were."

Her eyes moved to the fridge and widened, "Looks like Mr. Perfect left you a note."

I squealed, quite embarrassingly, and pulled the post-it off the fridge. Edward's writing was a

little untidy and since it was cursive I had a hard time reading it.

The one thing I could read was the number he'd left with it. I grabbed my phone and saved the

number.

"Men have terrible handwriting," Angela mumbled. "I can't make out what he's written here

something about a 'Lorry',"

I laughed and stuck the paper on the side of the fridge, I'd ask Ben about it when he came over

again. Maybe he'd be able to decipher the art of 'man writing'?

"You gonna call him?" she wondered as I walked back into my bedroom. She took my

previous position, leaning against my door frame.

"Nope," I told her, gathering my clothes to change into after my shower. "I wouldn't want to

seem too desperate."

She rolled her eyes and let me past, "Whatever, Bella. I know you want to..."

"Of course I want to, I just...Gah! I don't know, I'm nervous." I admitted, turning on the

shower tap.

"Bella Swan is nervous?" she gasped teasingly.

I stuck my tongue at her and closed the door, "Shut up, Ang."

"You know you love me." she called, quoting one of our favorite TV shows. Gossip Girl.

"ex oh ex oh," I called back.

After my shower I changed into a black lace top, dark skinny jeans and a pair of Louboutin

pumps. Since my outfit looked a little gloomy, I decided to wear a few gold bangles to finish

off the look.

The walk to work wasn't nearly as exciting as the one last night but at least it wasn't raining.

I guess it's time to introduce you to one of my best friends...

See that tiny pixie with the short black bob? Yeah? Well, she's Alice Brandon the social event

photographer for the newspaper and my personal shopping buddy.

"Morning, Bella!" she beamed up at me, even though I wasn't that much taller.

"Morning, Ali." I greeted her.

Her sparkly blue eyes examined my face, "You look different...are you using different

foundation? No, no it's not that." then she gasped. "You had sex didn't you?"

Nearly the entire office turned to look at me and I could almost see my face turning the color

of a tomato.

James, the sleazeball who writes the crime report section, winked at me and I was glad I had a

good gag reflex.

"Alice," I hissed furiously. "Not so loud!"

She rolled her eyes and followed me into my office, "Whatever, Bella. I'm just happy for

you,"

I half-smiled, "Thank you,"

"So...what's his name?" she was almost vibrating with excitement.

"Edward." I sighed, too bad my swoon reflex wasn't working.

"That's weird...I'm sure...wait, what's his last name?"

I bit my lip and pretended I hadn't heard her question, "So how's the article coming along?"

She leaned across my desk to hit my arm, "You don't know his last name? Isabella, you

hussy."

"It's a minor detail. I was more concerned with bigger things."

She giggled, "So he was good, I take it?"

I shook my head and she frowned, "Alice, he was amazing."

"Well, I wanna meet him."

"He left his number on my fridge and I'm just working up the courage to phone him."

"Call him now," she grabbed my phone and started flipping through my contacts.

I tried to snatch my phone back from her before she could press dial but it was too late, to

make matters worse, she'd even put it on speaker.

"The number you have dialed does not exist," a recorded default voice mocked me.

"Asshole!" Alice said clucking her tongue. When she noticed my expression her tone

softened. "I'm sorry, honey."

"I should've known better, all men are only interested in one thing. I feel like such a slut." I

rested my head against my desk and let my best friend rub my back in comfort.

"You're far from a slut, Bella." she disagreed. "Honestly, when was the last time you had sex?

Demetri?"

I groaned louder, "Alice, I'm already depressed, don't put thoughts of Demetri into my head."

Demetri Merta had been my boyfriend since the last year of college and was the owner of the

Sunday Times we had broken up a few times over the years but last month was the final time

for both of us, although he swears he still loves me. The reason we broke up, you ask? Well,

it's pretty hard to have a relationship with a guy who treats you like you don't exist, see he had

a little problem. Demetri is a workaholic, always has been always will be. Pretty soon I got

tired of taking a back seat to his career and had only remained with him because I'd been

scared that he would fire me.

So far so good, I'm still employed.

"I'm sorry, Bella. But it's great that you're moving on, maybe this 'Edward' guy was only there

to show you that you can have a normal life."

"Yeah," I replied glumly, starting to feel a little pissed off about the Edward situation. "One

night stands included."

She giggled and her tone picked up, "I've got something that'll make you feel so much better!"

I lifted my head warily and then groaned when she dropped the pile of letters on my desk. It

seemed as though I was groaning a lot this morning...and not for the right reasons.

"Giving advice for other peoples problems!" she finished, even clapping her hands together

once for emphasis.

"I'd rather read my fan-mail," I smiled cheekily at her.

She shrugged, "Or you could do that. Call me if you get anymore describing the way 'your

eyes twinkle in the sunlight'," she giggled, quoting one of my letters.

I gathered an handful of letters and chucked them at her, which she neatly dodged closing the

door behind her.

Dear Bella,

Your column saved my marriage and my husband and I are now awaiting the arrival of our

first child.

Thank you so much!

With love,

Leah Black

I smiled for their happiness and got that same fuzzy feeling in my stomach whenever I did

something good for others.

"Bella?" My intercom chirped with the voice of Jessica Stanley, my assistant.

"Yeah, Jess?"

"Demetri's here, thought you might like a heads-up."

I sighed, "Thanks,"

"No problem-o,"

Jessica was such a sweetheart, a little bitchy to people she didn't know but once you'd

basically told her to 'fuck herself sideways' then she felt you had earned her respect.

In case you'd noticed the similarity, yes she is friends with Rose.

I straightened up my outfit just as I heard a knock at the door.

"Come in." I called and forced a smile when I saw my ex-lover in front of me.

He still looked amazing as always, the messy crop of brown hair, denim-blue eyes and the

manly stubble.

"There's my favorite advice columnist!" he crooned, "Looking good, enkeli."

Did I mention he was Finnish?

"Kiitos," I responded with a 'thank you'.

"That's my girl." He grinned widely. "You're picking up the language."

I shrugged, "I should hope so, two years with you should have at least given me something."

He sighed, "My parents were very upset when I told them you wouldn't be joining us this

winter in Finland,"

I half-smiled, "Send them my love."

"I will. I'm going to be around for a few weeks. How's the nephew? Harry, was it?"

"Henry," I corrected. "And he's fine, he smiled for the first time last week..." I stopped when I

saw his eyes glaze over with disinterest.

He checked his watch, "Great, great. Listen, great talking to you...but I have a meeting with

the board,"

"Bye." I said, more curtly then usual.

"näkemiin," He replied with a wink as he left the room. Why was I such a sucker for foreign

languages?

The next few weeks were pretty boring and I felt a like my flu was returning, my body was

pretty sore and the nausea was enough to make me go insane. I hid in my office to avoid any

confrontations with Demetri and responded to my letters. I hadn't forgotten about Edward or

the fake number, my rage only subsiding but not disappearing.

When the sky began to darken one Monday, I started packing up but paused when I heard

three timid raps on my office door and sighed, "Come in,"

A very tired looking Esme with red puffy eyes entered and took a seat in front of my desk.

"Esme?" I gasped, getting up to sit next to her. "What happened? Are you okay?"

She rested her head against my shoulder and my arms automatically wrapped around her

comfortingly. "Esme?"

She had always been the one comforting me over the years, she'd never had kids of her own

due to infertility so in a way the people at this newspaper were all her children.

She sniffed, "It's the paper."

"What about the paper?"

She stood then and started pacing, never in the two years I'd been working here had I ever

seen Esme Cullen this way.

"I mean, I knew it was coming at some point. I just..." she sniffed again. "I never knew it

would be so soon but when they said they needed to speak to me, I never would have guessed

this would happen."

I cut off her ramblings, "They? Who's 'they'? What did they do?"

She halted and turned to look at me, "Do I look old, Bella?"

I frowned, "I don't see how that's relevant at all,"

"Oh, it's very relevant, Bella, but answer my question."

I shook my head fiercely, "You don't look a day over thirty."

"And you think the newspaper hasn't lost it's touch?"

I shook my head no again, still confused. What could have happened to make her like this?

Esme knew how young she looked... Oh my god.

"Esme, no! They can't replace you!" I got to my feet and hugged her. Her heartbroken sobs

restarted as her arms wrapped around me.

"They said the demographics were dropping, we're losing a lot of readers and they think the

newspaper needs a revamp. We're talking new layouts, new everything. They don't think I'd

be able to cope with the change."

"Bullshit," I scoffed. "you're the best editor we could ever ask for."

She half-smiled and patted my shoulder, "I knew you'd make me feel better, dear, but what's

done is done. I've got until December to prove them wrong,"

"But that's three months," I objected.

She straightened herself out and took one final sniff, "That's more than enough time. Bella, I

need you to make sure everyone puts in one hundred and ten percent into every single article

that goes in that newspaper,"

I nodded seriously, "I'll do anything to keep you here,"

She sighed and embraced me again, "You're like the daughter I never had,"

"Is Demetri still around? I'd like to give him a piece of my mind."

She made an amused sound under her breath, "He was just leaving but I'm sure you could

catch him."

I nodded and grabbed my handbag, running out the office and down the stairs. There he was

standing just outside the door talking on that stupid cellphone of his.

I took a deep breath and shoved the glass door open, standing next to him with a glare.

He sighed when he saw my expression, "I'm sorry, sir. Something just came up, I'll call you

back." I waited until the phone was away from his ear...and then...

I slapped him. Hard.

"Mitävittua!" He rubbed his cheek. "What the fuck, Bella?"

"You know what!" I shrieked. "How could you do that?"

"She's sixty years old, Bella!" he defended, his expression changing into anger.

I was livid. "You know fucking well that Esme is the best editor to ever run this newspaper!"

"Don't be naïve," he scoffed. "We've found someone who'll be even better than Esme and he

wont be around in five years when she decides to retire."

Now it was my turn to scoff, "Oh really? I'll be the judge of that."

"Demetri, is there a problem?" A voice spoke up from behind me. A voice I thought I would

never hear again. A voice so muted and velvety that it could only belong to one person.

I didn't turn around to face him, my eyes locked with Demetri's in a stare down.

Demetri shook his head no, his eyes never leaving mine. "Just one of the staff had some

concerns." I felt a pang in my chest when he called me just 'one of the staff'.

"This is our advice columnist, Isabella Swan." he introduced us and I finally turned to look at

the man who had loved me and left me.

He still looked just as delicious, the bronze hair that I could now see properly, the minty green

eyes framed by long lashes. The pale skin, the chiseled jaw.

Perfection.

Focus, Bella!

Right, anger. Grr...

"Bella?" Edward murmured, genuinely surprised to see me.

"Edward," I sneered. He seemed even more surprised at how I greeted him.

"You two know each other?" Demetri wondered.

"Yes," Edward replied at the same time I said "Barely,"

"Ah good," Demetri sounded relieved for some reason. "Then, Bella, you'll know that Edward

here is going to be perfect for the job."

You're interrupting my last few seconds of shameless ogling, Demetri. "What?" I frowned.

"Edward's going to be the new editor," he said slowly, pronouncing every syllable as if I were

mentally incompetent.

Oh, shit.

I looked at Edward again, praying that I'd see something there that would tell me this was all

just a cruel joke. He didn't appear to be paying attention, his eyes were fixated on my

cleavage that was slightly bigger due to the way my arms were crossed.

"I though you were a handyman," I blurted out and he cringed slightly.

"Edward is more than capable of doing Esme's job," Demetri defended.

I rolled my eyes, "Yeah, sure. He can't even remember his own phone number. He's perfect

for the job!" I said sarcastically.

"My phone was stolen and I didn't have your number," he explained, Demetri was now

completely confused.

"How convenient," I snapped. "My number is in the newspaper, jackass."

He closed his eyes, "I never thought of that,"

"See, Demetri?" I pointed this out to him. "He 'never thought'. He's no Esme."

"I'll just have to convince you otherwise, then." He sounded sure of himself that he could.

"Good luck with that," Demetri chuckled under his breath. "Bella's stubborn, always has

been."

"sika," I grumbled and he laughed louder.

"Plus she can insult you in another language and you wouldn't even know what it means,"

"Oh no," I cut in with a sickly sweet smile. "that 'nickname' was for you."

He sighed, "I knew I'd regret teaching you that."

I nodded. "I'm sure you have a lot of regrets involving me, but teaching me a language is not

one of them."

"Well, Bella, Demetri, it was nice seeing you both again. I'll see you tomorrow." Edward

interrupted, shaking Demetri's hand and giving me a half-smile.

"Now look what you did, you chased him away!" I teased, faking anger.

Demetri shook his head with an amused smile. "I'll see you next week."

"Bye," I tried my best to hold in my grin.

If Demetri was only going to be back next week...then that would mean Edward would be

alone at the office...

I resisted the urge to cackle like an evil mastermind who had thought of their greatest master

to plan to rule the world.

Translations:

Enkeli – Angel

Kiitos – Thank you

näkemiin – Good bye

Mitä vittua – What the Fuck?

Sika – pig

Chapter 3

BPOV

I was pretty sure that by now Angela was completely comfortable with my preferable choice

of outfits when I'm at home. So what if I walked around in my underwear when I was

cleaning? Come on, you know you wish you could, too.

But this morning, for some unfathomable reason, I caught her staring at me.

I blew it off, suddenly wondering if I was paranoid, until she started asking me questions.

"Bella?" she started, grabbing a spoon to share the Ben and Jerry's cookie dough ice cream

with me.

"Hm?" I asked through a mouthful of ice cream.

"I know this isn't really my place to ask...areyouhavingyourperiod?"

I sprayed out all the ice cream in my mouth, "Wha? Why?"

She cringed at my tone, "I didn't wanna say anything...but, you're looking kinda bloated."

I looked down to examine the damages myself, okay so maybe I'd eaten a little too much over

the past few weeks. Tears sprung to my eyes as I realized that this was it, a downward spiral

into a crazy old cat lady with no life and a bloated stomach.

Angela's voice snapped me out of my depression, "Are you crying?"

I sniffed and croaked out a 'no'.

She let out a small laugh that sounded a little nervous, "I'm sorry, Bella. I thought that's what

best friends are for."

"I'm sorry," I choked. "I'm just very hormonal right now,"

"If it makes you feel any better, your boobs are bigger." she offered and I laughed despite the

waterworks.

"Yeah," I sniffed again. "That kinda works."

"Good, now go get dressed. It's Edward's first day today, remember? Give him hell."

I'd already filled her and Alice in on my master plan to make Edward's first day a nightmare

so that he could be scared off and leave Esme to the job that was rightfully hers.

My outfit was simple again today, black slacks, a black ribbed tank top and to hide my

stomach I wore an open dark gray jersey. My shoes were kitten heels since my back was

already sore.

"Good morning," I sang cheerily as I waltzed in through the frosted glass doors.

"Thank, God!" Alice cried, running out of her office. "I've been bored out of my mind,"

"I know, I know, I'm the life of the party. Please no photography." I deadpanned.

"You're looking fabulous today, B." Laurent, our style editor, informed me.

Alice hummed in agreement, "You have been looking pretty good lately. Healthier."

"Huh," I shrugged. "I was told I looked fat this morning."

"That's it!" Laurent announced. "Your boobs are bigger!"

Again, the whole office heard the comment and turned to look at me. Well, okay, my breasts.

Even Edward, who was in deep conversation with James, smirked and appraised me with his

eyes.

"Great," I said sarcastically. "Now that that's all cleared up. Alice, I need shoes."

She beamed immediately but I continued. "Flat shoes. My back is killing me." I removed the

demon heels from my feet.

She pouted a little and ran off into her office where it was rumored to hold the promised land

of all things designer somewhere in the confines of the four white walls. She emerged

moments later with a pair of pumps and I was instantly more comfortable.

"Good morning, Bella." Edward greeted me, his crooked smile playing games with my heart.

"Edward," I greeted him back, monotonously.

"Do you have a moment? I'd like to have a word."

I shrugged, "It better be quick, your cologne kind of makes me want to gag."

I wasn't lying either. I was really feeling sick from the smell. I had no idea why he felt the

need to use the foul scented stuff when his natural scent was so much better.

"Sorry to interrupt," the receptionist, Amanda, began. "but Bella there's someone here to see

you."

I looked expectantly at the door and felt the wide smile spread across my face when I saw

Rose with my nephew, Henry, in her arms.

I giggled when I saw his chubby cheeks pull up to give me a gummy smile his dimples only

making him even more adorable. Honestly, who needs men when you've got a nephew that

looks like this?

"There's my favorite nephew in the whole wide world!" I sang, taking him into my arms. My

pending conversation with Edward, all forgotten.

"Oh yeah, yeah, I'm just the one that...Oh, I don't know...gave him life!" Rose grumbled.

"You're my favorite sister-in-law, Rose." I winked and it somewhat appeased her.

Henry made a gurgling noise as he took in the surroundings and cooed as I beamed down at

him. My small magical moment was rudely interrupted by a throat clearing behind me and I

turned to glare at Edward.

"Bella?" he prompted.

I couldn't control the look I gave him, he was pissing me off. "One sec," Rose arched a perfect

brow at him and I sighed. "Rose, meet Edward. Edward, this is my sister-in-law, Rosalie."

He held out his hand to greet her but she stared him down and looked back at me, silently

asking if this was him. I nodded and her expression hardened even more.

"Nice to meet you," he murmured and she responded with a snappy, 'you too'.

"Bella, could you look after Henry for a few hours while I get some things done at home? I

really need a break."

"Yeah, sure." I responded, holding the small form against me while she slipped the baby bag

onto my shoulder.

"Thank you," she kissed my cheek, then both of Henry's and left.

"As I was saying," Edward continued and I rolled my eyes. "There's going to be a party over

at Demetri's this Saturday, to congratulate me on my new job and I expect you to be there.

Dress formal."

"But-" I started to protest.

"It's a compulsory event, Bella." he explained. "If you don't attend I'll be forced to fetch you, I

know where you live."

"You...you..." I searched my usually impressive vocabulary for an adjective that would

correctly describe him, but came up blank. "stalker." that would have to do.

He smirked, amusement dancing in his eyes and leaned in to whisper his next words. "I could

always drag you, I know how you like it rough."

I gaped at him, "Watch yourself, Masen. There's a minor in the room." I glanced pointedly at

my nephew in my arms who was almost asleep at this point.

"Bella? Edward?" Alice called as she skipped towards us, holding a colour chart in her hands.

"What colors do want for the party?" she smiled down at the sleeping boy in my arms.

"Why are you asking me, Ali?" I asked her.

"Because you're my best friend," she winked. "And about the only person in this office who

actually has a sense of style. Although your clothes are kinda baggy today."

Way to bring me down, Alice. "Yeah, as I said earlier. I was told I was putting on weight."

"Nonsense," she scoffed. "you're so not fat. Right, Edward?"

He flushed a little but took the opportunity to rake his eyes over my body. I shivered a little,

wondering what he was thinking of.

"Uh," he cleared his throat. "no, not that I can see."

"But your boobs are definitely bigger," Alice assured me.

I smirked, my plan falling into place perfectly, and looked up at Edward through my

eyelashes. "What do you think?"

"That question is inappropriate, Miss. Swan." he snapped although his cheeks flushed a light

pink.

This only fueled my fire, "Oh, so what about your comment about me 'liking it rough', huh?"

Alice's eyes darted between us, as if she were watching a game of tennis on TV, her eyes

trained to the ball as it darted between the two players. I'm pretty sure, if she could, she'd be

asking for popcorn.

Abruptly, Henry started crying and my attention was immediately focused on him.

Alice's POV

It was intriguing and entertaining to watch the playful conversation going on between my best

friend and her ex-lover. I knew all about her plan and, thankfully, Edward was playing into it

perfectly...

That was until Henry started crying. The little boy was extremely cute and I just wanted to

pinch those little cheeks and take gazillions of pictures of him, with a face like that he could

sell milk to a cow.

I watched as Bella fussed over him and even Edward had a concerned look on his face for the

baby he didn't even know.

That was when it clicked.

The faint luminescent glow on Bella's skin, her subtle weight gain, the mood swings and the

enlarged breasts.

OMG!

OMG!

Oh Em Gee!

She's pregnant!

I knew I had been missing something, did she even know about it? Had she known all along

and not told me?

No, Alice. My inner voice assured me. You're her best friend, of course she would tell you

something like this.

You sure? I verified.

Positive. The voice replied.

I took a deep breath and began thinking of all the cute places I could take pictures of her when

she started to show, maybe even a few shots with the dad.

Oh no, who was the dad?

I know Bella has been on birth control pills since she got her period when she was fifteen and

she wouldn't have stopped taking them when she was with Demetri.

Then again, she did have the flu a few weeks ago and was on medication...

I thought back to some fan fiction I had read that informed me that medicine can counteract

the affects of the birth control.

It must be Edward's then. With the combination of both parents genes...I painted a picture in

my head...wow, that child would be gorgeous.

Ooh, I hope they name it Alice, if it's a girl.

Bella's voice interrupted my reverie, "Alice, why do you look like you're about to break into

song?"

I grabbed Henry from her, passing him to a very shocked Edward and started dragging her

into my office.

"Um?" Edward prompted, looking at the baby completely confused.

"It's good practice." I sang over my shoulder before closing the door.

BPOV

Okay, now I was confused.

Alice turned to me once she'd closed the door and raised her eyebrow expectantly.

"You got some 'splaining to do, missy." she began, pointing her finger at me.

I looked at her, wide eyed and innocent. "I-I swear I was gonna give you back the lip gloss,

my lips were just really dry."

She rolled her eyes, "It's not about the lip gloss, silly goose. Although," she cocked her head

to the side. "I would like that one back, it's a pretty color."

"Then what are you talking about?"

"When was your last period?" she began.

"Why is everyone asking me if I'm on my period? Is it suddenly breaking news that I'm late a

couple of days."

She stared at me, unblinking, for a moment and I started to get freaked out. "Alice, stop

looking at me like that."

"Sorry, there was something in my eye." she apologized. "But, Bella, I thought you were

never late."

"Yeah, well..." I shrugged. "This stuff happens."

"Bullshit,"

I blanked. "Excuse me?"

"You blind woman!" she was almost shouting now. "How can you not see what's so obviously

right in front of you? How could I not see anything. It wasn't until I saw you and Edward with

Henry. Then all the pieces fit into place..."

I cut her off, "Again. Excuse me?"

"The mood swings, the weight gain, your sudden breast enlargement," she ticked each item

off on her fingers. "the glow on your skin, the missed period, the back ache, the nausea..."

My brain refused to comprehend her words. "What are you saying?"

"Bella, I think...no, I know you're pregnant."

I realized she was right and then everything went black.

Chapter 4

BPOV

"Bella?" someone cooed softly in my ear as I began to regain my hearing.

Callous fingers were stroking soothing circles into my right hand. A warm hand held onto my

left and cold, dainty fingers brushed against my forehead and cheeks.

That was when my last conversation flooded back into my mind and I gasped, my eyes

fluttering open.

"Baby. Where's the baby?" I croaked out as my eyes darted between Esme, Edward and Alice.

"Henry's fine, Bella." Edward assured me. "He's with Rosalie."

This wasn't the baby I was referring to. My hand involuntarily released from his and dropped

to my stomach.

I looked at Alice for confirmation and she smiled at me before turning to Edward. "Why don't

you go call the doctor?"

"Make sure it's Carlisle," Esme interjected, her eyes never leaving my face.

He nodded and unwillingly left the room, casting a final glance at me.

I let out a deep breath I didn't know I'd been holding. "What happened?"

"You fainted, dear." Esme told me. It was so easy to see the concern in her eyes.

I felt a faint stinging on the inside of my right elbow and looked down to see a small cotton

ball held on with clear medical tape.

"Carlisle took blood to run some tests," Alice explained. "I told him it's better to do it while

you aren't conscious."

I laughed weakly, "Thanks,"

I was about to ask whether she'd told Edward exactly why I had fainted but was interrupted by

Esme's husband, Carlisle Cullen, entering the small room.

Forget Greys Anatomy's 'McDreamy' and 'McSteamy'.

Dr. Carlisle Cullen was more like 'McFuckMe' the gold hair, the ocean blue eyes. Just one of

that combination was enough to make any girl swoon, although I shouldn't be having dirty

thoughts about my boss's husband. But hey, aren't pregnant women supposed to be horny?

Pregnant.

Yikes.

"There's my favorite patient," He smiled at me. I'd had my fair share of trips to the hospital

over the past few years.

"Hey," Esme protested, pouting a little.

"You're my favorite wife, dear. There's a big difference."

"I'm your only wife," she snapped, teasingly.

"That's what she thinks," he stage whispered to Alice and myself.

We both giggled and Esme rolled her eyes.

He read over my chart, "So, Bella, how are you feeling?"

I shrugged, "A little hungry, but I'll live." I looked at Alice, silently asking her to take Esme

so that I could talk to Carlisle privately.

"I'm actually pretty hungry, too." Alice announced. "Come on, Esme. Let's get Bella and

ourselves something to eat."

Esme squeezed my hand once and followed out with Alice.

"Will everything that's wrong with me show up in the blood work results?" I wondered.

He nodded, "It should. Why? Is there something I should know?"

"Well, I think there might be a slight possibility... that there definitely might be a chance

that..." Crap, no more stalling. "I might be pregnant."

The word hung in the air as I watched the shock spread across his face.

"I thought you were on birth control?"

"Remember I had flu a couple months back?"

I could see he understood, "What are your symptoms?"

I ticked each item off my fingers just like Alice had, "Late period, hormones, weight gain,

nausea, backache and my boobs are bigger."

"Ah, I see. That will definitely show up on the results but they will only be ready tomorrow, I

can have Heidi give you some home pregnancy tests you can even take them in the hospital

bathroom if you like?"

"Um, I think I'll take it at home. I have a feeling I'll need some comfort food no matter what

the result."

He chuckled, "Of course, but other than that...you seem fine, you can leave now."

I sighed in relief, "Thanks."

-x-x-x-

An hour later, my hunger finally satiated with hospital cafeteria food. Alice's handbag now

stored the home pregnancy tests that Heidi, the nurse, gave me.

"Feel free to take the rest of the day off," Edward murmured as we left through the hospital

doors.

"Yes, Bella." Esme cut in. "Feel free, since I said so. I'm still the boss."

I'd never seen this side of Esme before but I could understand, the paper was her life.

"For now," he snapped.

"Hey!" I shouted, the overload of hormones in my body made my temper flare up easily.

They both quieted and sulked at me for not taking either of their sides. What was I supposed

to do? The one was basically my mother and the is the father of my maybe-baby.

I was certain Edward would be the father since he had the higher possibility.

Just then a black BMW pulled into the parking lot and I recognized the driver.

"Bella, are you okay?" Demetri called as he approached and I heard Edward growl quietly

next to me when his arms pulled me into a hug.

"Yes," I sighed, releasing myself from his grip. "I'm fine."

"I would have been here earlier but I've had meeting after meeting the whole morning." he

glanced briefly at Edward and his brow furrowed slightly.

Excuses are the tools of the incompetent, my dear.

Edward cleared his throat, "Sorry, I was concerned about her."

"I'll have to catch you up when we get back to the office."

"Well, I'm going to take Bella home," Alice announced, linking her fingers through mine.

"Bye," I called over my shoulder.

-x-x-x-x-

"Maybe we should wait until Angela gets home," I thought out loud. I had been stalling for

the past half hour and Alice's patience was wearing thin. So far I had changed into my

pajamas, had more food and even claimed to have a song stuck in my head and the only way

to get it out was for me to hear it again.

"Isabella Marie Swan!" she threatened. "If you don't pee on that stick this second, I'm coming

in there."

"Alright, alright," I sighed, placing it in the correct position as indicated on the box. "Start the

timer," I called after I'd put the thin white stick in a plastic cup.

I opened the bathroom door and went to sit next to her on my bed, I couldn't stand the

suspense waiting in there by myself.

She held her cellphone in her hand staring at the screen intently as she waited for the two

minutes to be up. I kept my eyes on everything but the stick in front of me.

About sixty-three hours later her little phone chirped indicating it had been two minutes. My

eyes clamped shut and I passed the cup to her.

"I'm not looking," I squeaked out. She sighed in what sounded like relief and my one eye

opened cautiously. "So...?" She smiled sadly up at me and I was certain she was going to say

'not pregnant'.

But that wasn't what she said.

"Positive."

I grabbed the stick from her grasp and examined it for myself. The tiny pink stripe almost

mocking me as I stared at it.

"Give me another one," I mumbled.

"What?"

"I said 'give me another one' I need to be a hundred percent sure,"

"Okay, okay," she sighed pulling another one out the box and handing it to me.

-x-x-x-x-x-

A bottle of water, three more pregnancy tests, half a box of tissues, a calculation and several

scoops of ice cream later...

I was certain I was pregnant.

All the tests proving positive. Every single one of them.

I was now laying on my bed, my head resting on Alice's shoulder as she sat next to me while I

cried it all out.

"At least this time you didn't faint," she hedged.

"It doesn't matter, Alice." I spluttered. "What am I going to do? How am I going to explain

this to Renee? Oh fuck, how am I going to tell Edward? What about Esme?" I choked. "she'll

feel betrayed, she doesn't know about Edward and I. God, Emmett's gonna kill him."

"Ssh," she cooed, brushing her fingers through my hair. "They'll understand, Bella.

Everything will be fine."

"Anybody home?" The voice of my roommate called out as the front door opened.

"In here," Alice called back.

Angela noticed my red, puffy eyes and gasped. Immediately coming to sit next to me.

"Bella, what happened? Was it that Edward again?"

"You should tell her," Alice whispered to me.

I groaned, "I'm pregnant, Ang. I'm twenty-four, single and about to have a baby."

"You're WHAT?" she nearly shrieked.

I buried my head deeper into Alice and grumbled, "Imagine what it's going to be like telling

Em and Rose."

I heard a few deep breaths and then Angela's hand squeezed mine, "Bella, I'm not mad. I'm

just...shocked. How far along?"

I sniffed, "Um, about three months that was the last time I had sex."

"You're through the first trimester then, when are you going to tell him?" Alice wondered.

I wiped my face with the back of my hand, "I'll wait until I get the blood results back from the

hospital. If it's positive, he's having a formal dress party over at Demetri's place this Saturday,

maybe I can get him somewhere private and explain all this."

"Sounds like a good plan to me," Angela told me and I smiled taking a deep breath.

"Maybe you should get some sleep," Alice suggested. "It's been a rough day for you,"

I sighed, "Sure, I could sleep. Thank you," I hugged both of them, "you're the best friends any

girl could ever want."

"Don't start getting all sappy on us, B." Alice teased, hitting my arm playfully.

"Alrighty then, out both of you." I smiled cheekily.

"You know, I was starting to like the sappy one." Angela commented as they both left my

room, flicking off the light switch as they went.

I rested my head against the pillow, taking deep breaths while I tried to come to terms with

everything that had happened today. My hand tightened around the hem of my camisole and

pulled it up slightly so that I could run my fingers over my stomach. It was obvious to me

now that I was pregnant, the slight protrusion sticking out between my hips. I thought ahead

nine months, thinking about how different my life would be. I'd have to hire a nanny once the

baby had been born so that I'd be able to continue working, although now that I think about it

I could probably work from home and just email in my column.

I eventually drifted to sleep, my handle cradled protectively over my growing baby.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-

My eyes flew open, the gasps of breath sucked into my lungs filling the silent darkness. It had

seemed so real, I ran my fingers over my swollen stomach noting the slickness from my

sweat.

I'd had nightmares before, they plagued nearly every night of my life but never in my entire

existence had I ever felt this amount of fear.

Not fear for myself, fear for my unborn baby. Fear that I wouldn't be a good enough mother.

Fear that I wouldn't be able to protect it.

I wiped the tears away from my face, feeling the clamminess of my skin and took a few deep

breaths to try calm myself down.

I trailed my hands along my bedside table looking for the clock and pressed the illuminate

button, the small screen lighting up to tell me it was five in the morning.

I quietly crept out of my room and opened the linen cupboard in the passage taking out two

towels for my shower.

I let the warm water calm my overheated body and relax my muscles. The scent of my

strawberry shampoo comforting me with a sense of familiarity. I used to use the same

shampoo and conditioner when I lived with my dad down in Forks and I couldn't seem to

stop. It was just a way of holding onto him now that he isn't here. Thinking of him made me

wonder what he'd have to say about my situation. No doubt he would probably chase after

Edward with his shotgun but I knew deep down behind his gruff exterior there was a big

softie inside of him. I'd witnessed it at Emmett's wedding, the slight glassiness of his eyes and

the throat clearing.

I'm pretty sure I even saw him hug Rose.

My mother, on the other hand, would be worse. Renee wasn't the mothering type and I had

been raised by Emmett and my dad after the divorce. It had been an interesting experience

when they had tried to explain to me what exactly occurs during a menstrual cycle and

eventually called in Grandma Swan to do the job. I was never really close to her so the whole

situation was awkward to say the least. Although it was nowhere near as bad as the sex talk.

I'd never seen Charlie blush before but in the duration of that conversation, I think he might

have even been redder than me.

While I towel-dried my hair I compiled a mental list of the people I would have to tell. First

would obviously be Edward, then Emmett and Rose, Renee and finally everyone else.

I kept my make up simple today, eyeliner, charcoal eyeshadow and the peach lip gloss I was

supposed to give back to Alice. I chose to wear a pair of black slacks, a loose fitting white

blouse with a loose black jersey since I was getting paranoid about anyone else finding out

about my pregnancy before Edward, if the situation was reversed, I sure as hell wouldn't want

to be the last to know.

My stomach rumbled loudly and I rummaged through the pantry cupboard looking for

something suitable to eat. Now that I knew I was eating for two, nothing seemed good

enough. Was there stuff I wasn't allowed to eat?

I heard Angela's bedroom door open, "Good morning, star shine."

"The Earth says 'hello'," I quoted 'Charlie and the chocolate factory'. What can I say? It has

Johnny Depp in.

She grabbed a carton of orange juice from the fridge, "How did you sleep?"

"Good," I lied and changed the subject. "I have no idea what to eat."

"Hmm," she tapped her index finger against her mouth as she thought. This was a habit of

hers whenever she had to contemplate something. "How about muesli with yoghurt and

freshly sliced strawberries?"

My stomach growled in agreement, "I guess that's a yes." I grabbed the ingredients and began

making my breakfast while Angela just had some toast.

"Any good shipments lately?" I wondered, scarfing down the muesli. Angela worked at a

book store with Ben and always filled me in on the new arrivals.

She shrugged and took a bite of her toast, "I haven't really been paying attention,"

"Ben keeping you busy?" I winked.

She blushed, "We just talk Bella."

"So that's what you're calling it now?" I teased and she mock punched my shoulder.

"Oh hush, Bella. Don't you have a job to go to?"

I placed my bowl in the sink, "I believe I do. Goodbye,"

"Goodbye, my lover." she sang. 'James Blunt – Goodbye, my lover.'

"Goodbye, my friend." I sang back as I closed the front door.

I contemplated whether or not to haul a cab to take me to work but I didn't have to make the

decision because there was a silver Volvo waiting outside.

I cocked my head to the side when I saw the glimmer of bronze hair peaking out as Edward

opened the drivers side, stepping out his car to see me face to face.

"Good morning," he grinned crookedly.

"What are you doing here?" I wondered, pulling my jersey closed at the front. It was colder

outside than I thought it would be.

"I'm taking you to work," he explained, as if this was the most obvious thing in the world. "I

don't like the idea of you walking all alone."

"I'm perfectly fine by myself, thank you very much." I walked past his car, embracing my

stubborn side I'd inherited from my father.

"Bella, wait!" he called, running behind me.

I sighed and slowed down my walk, letting him go ahead so he could turn and face me.

"Please? I want to talk about what happened three months ago."

I suppressed a smile, the fact that he knew the date gave me hope. "You've counted?"

He half-smiled, "I'll tell you if you let me give you a ride."

I pursed my lips, "You don't fight fair,"

He laughed at that, leading me back to his car. "Never said I did," he murmured, as he held

the passenger door open for me.

I watched him as he rounded the front of the car, the thin rays of sunlight highlighting the

coppery strands in his hair, his pale skin seeming almost luminous. Then there was the body.

Oh, god. The body. The way his muscles flexed in his arms, the subtle hint of pecs below his

black shirt. I, of course, knew just how amazing his abs were underneath that thin piece of

fabric. I tore my eyes away before they got too low and I'd be forced to take him in the car.

Was that even safe now?

He fiddled with the heat settings, warming the car up slightly and turned down the stereo so

that the music was playing at a quiet background level.

Once he had pulled out onto the quiet road he spoke again, "Let's talk."

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"What is there to talk about?" I mumbled. "We had sex, you left. Simple as that."

He laughed humorlessly, "You don't beat around the bush do you?"

I shrugged, "Life is short enough without people wasting your time while they struggle for the

right thing to say."

"Wise words, who's that by?"

I snorted, "Isabella Swan, age twenty-four."

"You made that up on the spot?"

This seemed to surprise him.

"Yes," I dragged out the word to emphasize it. "I'm an advice columnist, I'm paid for that

stuff."

"I think you deserve a raise," he commented.

"Feel free to think so. I, however, prefer to know that I've earned my income."

He sighed, "I'm not having this conversation right now. I wanted to explain myself."

"Good," I grumbled. "You're confusing enough, maybe this will shed some light on things."

"I'm originally from Chicago, my parents are actually still there along with my step-brother,

Jasper."

"Okay...what are you doing in Port Angeles then?"

"I was getting to that," he gave me the side eye and continued. "Demetri was there for a

meeting with a friend of mine who's in the publishing business, we got talking and he told me

that he was looking for an editor. I told him my qualifications and explained my situation. He

was kind enough to offer me a job."

"Yeah, Demetri's extremely big hearted." I said sarcastically.

He ignored my comment. "That night I met you I was looking for a hotel building and then I

saw you'd dropped your purse...well, you know the rest. I can quite confidently say that that

was the best night of my life. Bella, you were...no you are amazing. You're smart, you're

witty. Plus you gave me the best sex I've ever had."

I blushed furiously and dropped my eyes from his face.

"I woke up early the next morning because I had a flight back to Chicago. I did write you a

note with my cellphone number on but I left my phone on the plane and had to deactivate the

number. I'm terribly sorry and I know you probably think I'm the biggest ass of the century,

but I'd like you to see that I have a very good excuse."

I sucked in a deep breath and released it slowly, "I don't know what to say,"

"You don't have to say anything, I just wanted you to know my side of the story."

By this time we were already outside of the office building, the car parked, engine off.

Our eyes locked and held for an immeasurable moment before I looked down and laced my

fingers with his. "Thank you for telling me." I wish I could tell you my story.

He brought our hands up to his face and kissed the back of mine, "Anytime."

Reluctantly, I slipped my hand out of his and got out the car. All these conflicting emotions

inside of me made me want to break down and cry again but I held strong. "Thanks for the

ride," I called back with a smile.

He winked, "My pleasure."

The office was buzzing while people rushed around trying to meet their article deadlines. I

said my 'hello's' to everyone but they were all too busy to notice.

"Bella!" Jessica called as I walked past. "Call on line one, it's your doctor."

"Put him through," I glanced behind me briefly to make sure Edward hadn't heard this and

quickly dashed inside my office.

"Hi, Carlisle." I sighed as I answered the phone.

"Good morning, Bella. How are you feeling today?"

I shrugged even though he couldn't see, "An emotional mess. A basket case. Whatever, have

you got the results? I'm sitting down so you don't have to worry about me fainting. I have a

feeling I already know the answer."

He chuckled lightly, "I take it you took the test?"

"Yep. Positive."

I heard papers rustling before he spoke again, "Well, Congratulations. You're three months

pregnant, I'll be setting up an appointment with an OB/GYN for an ultrasound, that's if you're

keeping it."

"Carlisle," I groaned. "Of course I'm keeping it."

"I suppose you don't really have a choice, you're in the second trimester already. Don't worry,

you'll make a great mother, Bella. That child will be so lucky."

"Yeah yeah, remind me in nine months."

"Six actually."

"Smart ass,"

He chuckled, "Enjoy the rest of your day. Keep Esme out of trouble."

"Will do,"

We said our goodbyes and I rested my head against the cool wooden desktop. It was official, I

was pregnant. I trailed my fingers along the patterns in the woodwork, lost in thoughts of my

uncertain future, when two light knocks broke me out of my dream land.

My pixie-like best friend stood there grinning with a cup of Starbucks in her hand, "Good

morning,"

I looked at the little plastic cup forlornly and whimpered.

"Oh come on," she sighed with a light giggle. "it's just coffee, Bella. You'll survive."

"Sure," I grumbled and she took a seat in front of my desk.

"So I'll take it the blood work confirmed our tests?"

"Yeah," I sighed.

I could see my simple answers were bothering her, "And...?"

"And, nothing. I'm fine, Alice. Honestly. I'm okay with this. I've always been brought up to

believe everything happens for a reason and obviously there's a reason why this happened to

me. It just better be a good reason."

She smiled and cocked her head to the side, "You're so strong, Bella. I know you can do this.

No matter what happens I'll be here for you," she reached over and touched my growing belly.

"and this little one, too."

"Thanks, Ali." I smiled at her.

"And...can I just say? That this baby will be the most gorgeous creature to ever grace the

earth. Between either gene pool it can't go wrong. Have you seen his face?" she was referring

to Edward. "God, those features."

I smiled, bemused. "Yes, I can certainly see his charm."

She snorted, "But, Bella, you have seen his 'charms'." and with that she got up to leave.

"You have a sick mind, Alice Brandon." I called after her, half-joking.

"You're a bad influence on me," she called back.

I laughed lightly to myself and started replying back to various letters, choosing one that I'd

publish in my small column.

Dear Bella,

My husband's mother recently passed away and he's having a hard time coming to terms with

the grief and isn't expressing any emotions.

I've suggested seeing a counselor but he wont budge. Is there anything that I can do to help

him?

- Concerned Wife

I chewed on my bottom lip as I considered what to reply, their situation was not uncommon

just delicate. People suffering from the loss of a loved one need that little push that will let

them know they need to continue their lives. The problem being that how does one know how

hard to push?

Dear Concerned Wife, I typed.

Never fear, your situation is not the only one of it's kind. Many people are unsure of how to

deal with the grief.

When I lost my father I felt alone and numb despite having loved ones around me. That was

until my older brother told me to 'get my act together', his simple comment fueled a dormant

fire inside of me and I managed to release some of my built-up emotions, rather loudly by the

way. Be gentle in your approach and show him you understand what he's going through.

Maybe put up a picture of her or ask him to tell you some funny stories from when he was

younger that involve her. He might seem hesitant about it at first but thinking back on the past

can sometimes heal your future.

If all else fails make an appointment with a grief counselor for yourself just to ask her some

questions you might have about his situation.

Hope everything works out,

Bella

There, that would do. With a smile I sent it off to the printer and sent a copy to Esme.

Suddenly, a chat window opened up with a message from Edward.

Edward: You do realize you look like a complete idiot smiling at your laptop? (:

I snorted and looked up from my laptop to see his office door was open, he was looking at me,

smiling crookedly.

Bella: One of these fingers is for you.

I held up my index and middle finger to him with a cheeky smile and saw his shoulders shake

with laughter.

Edward: Will a compliment make you forgive me?

I smiled. Bella: It might help your case.

Edward: Then you look very beautiful today. Glad to see you've got some color back on your

skin. You looked like a corpse yesterday.

Bella: Thanks...I think.

Edward: Jessica told me your doctor was on the phone, was everything okay?

Shit.

Bella: I'm fine. I just have another appointment next week.

This wasn't a lie, I did have an appointment for an ultrasound. Hopefully Edward would be

coming with me.

Edward: Esme's just sent me the copy of your article. It's good.

Bella: Thanks.

Edward: I have a few ideas for your column, could we discuss it over lunch?

Bella: Why don't you just ask me straight out? Either way – I'd love to.

Edward: I'm terribly shy.

Bella: What is that smell? Oh, I know...BULLSHIT

I signed off, removed my glasses and grabbed my handbag so I could pay for my own lunch.

"Ready to go?" Edward wondered, suddenly outside my office door.

I walked past him, ignoring the question. "How did you get messenger address anyway?"

"I have my ways," he answered simply, holding open the door for me.

"It was Alice wasn't it? Little cretin can't keep her mouth shut,"

He laughed and I felt his hand on the small of my back, "It might have been, but she has good

intentions."

"Yeah, yeah." I grumbled. "Where are you taking me?"

"I actually have no idea," he admitted. "but I pass this small diner everyday, it looks pretty

good."

I had a feeling I knew which one he was talking about. "Let me guess, it's called 'Charlies'?"

He stopped to look at me, "How'd you know?"

I rolled my eyes, "That's my brothers restaurant, named after my dad."

"I didn't know you had a brother," he started walking again.

"Yep, Emmett Swan. He's four years older. He runs this place with Rose,"

"So, Rose will be here? Because, to be honest, she scares me."

I laughed, "I doubt it, she spends all her time with that adorable nephew of mine, but if you

think she's scary then, there's no hope for Emmett."

I'm pretty sure I heard him gulp, but he had no time to respond as we were now outside the

small diner.

Charlie's was a small, homey diner that gave you home cooked meals for an extremely

reasonable price. Emmett had started it up soon after my father died as a tribute to Charlie's

love for diners.

Victoria, one of the waitresses and my cousin from Renee's husband's side, saw me and

smiled. She was fresh out of art school, her hair was as red as Superman's cape and her face

covered with freckles. She had a bit of a reputation of sleeping with one-too-many men, but

she was always a decent person to me.

"Bella, hey!" she greeted me cheerfully and then turned towards the kitchen. "Emmett? Your

sister's here."

"Hi, Vicky." I greeted her, noticing the way she was looking at Edward.

"Who's your friend, B?" she hinted.

"This is Edward," I introduced him. "Edward, this is my cousin Victoria."

He shook her hand, "Pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise," she smiled but dropped it when she saw his hand return to the small of my back.

"There's my baby sister!" Emmett crowed, pushing through the swinging kitchen door.

"haven't seen you in a while, bubba."

I groaned, "Em, you know I hate that nickname." His eyes landed on Edward and the huge

grin dropped, "This is Edward, he works with me." I explained quickly. "Edward, this is my

brother, Emmett."

They shook hands forcefully and Edward seemed a little on edge. "Let me get you two some

menus," Emmett excused himself.

"You still wanna eat here?" I whispered through unmoving lips.

He chuckled lightly and I wasn't surprised to hear it sounded a little nervous, "I'm sure the

food's good."

I scoffed at the word 'good', "The food is amazing."

We sat down at a table in a quiet corner away from the other guests and Emmett returned

shortly with the menus.

"If you don't mind me asking," Edward started as we looked over the menu. "what's with the

nickname?"

Crap. "It's nothing," I could tell my famous blush was already giving me away.

"'nothing' doesn't make you blush like that, spill."

"You're worse than Alice," I grumbled. "My mother has always been a bit eccentric and after

my parents got divorced we didn't see her much. She was always changing her clothing styles,

her religion...you get my point. One of the few times she came to visit, she'd changed her

religion again to Buddhism. I was two years old at that time and she tried to convert me, but I

couldn't even pronounce Buddha, so I called him 'bubba'."

He chuckled, "I bet you were a cute baby,"

I lowered my menu to stick my tongue out at him, this only made him laugh harder.

Victoria appeared then with a pad of paper and pen to take our orders, "Have you two decided

yet?"

"Um, I'll just have a burger thanks," Edward ordered.

She nodded and wrote it down, "The usual for you, B?"

"Yeah, but hold the coffee."

She frowned slightly, "Bella Swan not drinking coffee?" she looked around. "Am I being

punk'd?"

"Ha Ha, you're hilarious. My sides are splitting." I said monotonously.

She winked at me, "Your food will be out soon." and left.

"What did you want to discuss with me?" I wondered, referring back to our previous

conversation.

"Demetri and I have been discussing the paper and your column for a while now, we feel that

you're one of the main reasons it sells so well so we want to expand the column a little. By

that I mean, not just one or two replies but an introductory essay, if you will, just about topics

you feel are relevant to what's happening around you."

I had to ask this, "What's in it for me?"

"You'll have a significant salary increase and health benefits since you seem to be prone to

accidents," he smiled at the last part.

A salary increase? That meant I'd have more money for a better life with my child, should

Edward not want to be a part of his/her life.

"Where are you getting the extra space from?" The paper was full enough as it was. Surely

they'd have to pull someones article to accommodate the new column?

"With the economy the way it is we are looking into retrenchments, so we're still discussing

whose article to pull."

"I don't wanna put anyone out of a job," I loved everyone at the paper, even the weirdo,

James, he was still an important part.

"We'd make sure they were transferred to another paper on the same salary or maybe even

higher," he assured me. "you'd be doing them a favor,"

I ran my fingers through my hair, "Can I have some time to think this through?"

He half-smiled, "I don't expect you to decide this second, Bella. You weren't even supposed to

know about this yet, but I didn't want you to be the last to know about something that could

change your life." His emerald eyes locked with mine for a moment as if he were trying to

explain the double meaning behind his words.

That's when I started to panic.

Did he already know? Had he figured it out?

I was about to open my mouth to voice one of my questions but Victoria appeared again with

our food.

I kept my eyes away from his and on my chicken salad, I didn't order it just because I was

embarrassed about pigging out in front of him, it's just my favorite meal.

We ate in silence, the only sounds coming from our table was the clinking of knives and

forks.

"So, did you enjoy your meal, bubba?" Emmett boomed as he approached.

I smiled sheepishly, despite the churning in my stomach from being so nervous. I'd have to

tell Edward soon, Saturday was too far away.

"Thanks, Em." I sighed as he grabbed our empty plates.

"What about you, Edward?" he asked.

He forced a smile, "It was great, thank you." he started to pull cash out for the bill but my big

brother stopped him.

"It's on the house,"

We said our 'thank you's' and left. Edward didn't try and touch me while we walked back to

the office and I tried to think of the best way to explain this to him.

I chickened out and began walking faster away from him.

"Bella," he called, trying to catch up with me. "wait, please."

As I walked faster it reminded me of how we first met, I truly believed then that he had been

the perfect man. I mean, I'd kicked him in his balls and he wasn't even angry at me. He

deserved to know.

I slowed down and waited until he was standing in front of me, "Will you stop always running

from me?" he requested, breathlessly. "Seems like I can never get a decent conversation out of

you."

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, my eyes on the cracks on the ground to hide the way my eyes were

filling up with tears. "I'm just scared."

He placed his hand on my shoulder but I flinched away, "What are you afraid of?"

"I'm afraid of what might happen when I tell you this," I choked out, wiping away the

overflowing tears with my hand. I'd probably just smudged my eye make-up and now

resembled a raccoon but I didn't care.

His eyes closed, making his expression seem even more pained. "Tell me what?"

"I-I can't." I couldn't do it. He'd run. He'd leave me just like everyone else did. First my

mother then my father. Only this time I'd be stuck with a kid I didn't know how to raise.

"I have a pretty good idea what's going on," he whispered so low I wasn't sure if he intended

me to hear it. Then he spoke up, "Say it, Bella. Out loud."

I swallowed and opened my mouth but no words came out, I just mouthed 'I'm' over and over

again until I mustered up the courage to finally blurt it out.

"Pregnant."

Chapter 6

BPOV

The way his face paled was comical and it would have made me laugh if I had found anything

remotely humorous about the situation.

He stared at me for a moment, his eyes flickering between both of mine as if looking for any

sign that I might be joking.

I wasn't sure what he found there besides the droplets of water running down my cheeks, but

he pulled in a deep breath and released it slowly.

"Are you sure?" he asked quietly. Much to my relief his voice was calm and gentle.

All I could do was nod and he looked past my head for a split second.

"When were you planning on telling me this?" his voice was losing it's calm edge and starting

to sound a little angry.

"I-I just got my results back today, I promise." I said with conviction, my voice still nothing

more than a breathy whisper but at least it was something.

"And you're sure it's mine?"

I nodded again, "If you don't want to be a part of his or her life, I understand. No matter what

you say I'm keeping this baby,"

I saw a hint of a smile pulling at his lips, "Of course I'd want to be a part of it's life, Bella."

I froze and gaped at him, "Seriously?" Oh god, I sounded so junior high.

The smile was now more profound, "Seriously. Is that really so hard to believe?"

"No, no, I just..." Way to form a coherent sentence, Bella.

"You thought I'd just pay you off, didn't you?"

I grimaced slightly, "Yeah, sorry about that."

He chuckled humorlessly, "I understand I'm not seen as the most 'fatherly' person on the

planet, but I was raised to be prepared to face the consequences of my mistakes,"

The last part struck a nerve, "This isn't a mistake, Edward. How could you even say that?"

"I-I didn't mean it that way,"

My eyes were starting to fill up with tears again, "You can't say that kind of stuff to me, ever.

Imagine what this child will go through when he or she finds out this was nothing but a

mistake."

People were starting to notice our exchange of raised voices and my teary eyes.

Edward glanced around, "Bella, calm down, you're attracting attention,"

"I don't care," I growled, glaring at him.

"Look, why don't I take you home? We can talk there and you wont embarrass yourself,"

"You think I'm embarrassing myself?" I all but shrieked. "You think it's embarrassing that I'm

displaying my emotions publicly? I've always been type of girl who keeps it all locked up

inside of her until she's in a quiet, private place where no one will see her, but right now I

don't care. I'm tired, I feel like I'm gonna throw up, my breasts ache and I really, really need

to pee!"

The last part came out a little louder than expected since everyone had stopped what they

were doing to listen in, I glared murderously at all of them and they quickly resumed what

they were doing.

"I can't talk to you when you're like this," Edward murmured, his voice as quiet and controlled

as before.

"Then leave," I spat.

I didn't expect for him to take me seriously, but he did. With one final glance in my direction,

he left.

I sucked in a ragged breath and dropped my eyes to the ground again to avoid the stares all

fixated upon me.

I realized I probably looked like a hot mess and decided to clean myself up in a bathroom at a

coffee shop.

Luckily I had my make-up in my handbag so I removed and reapplied, the only signs that I

had been crying was my bloodshot eyes which felt like a cat had scratched at them every time

I blinked, but there was really nothing I could do about that.

The office was eerily quiet when I returned and I saw that Edward's office door was closed.

I walked swiftly into my office to avoid talking to anyone but paused when I saw Alice seated

in one of my chairs.

"Man, you're lucky you weren't here two minutes ago, I think Edward's having a little

meltdown."

"Oh," I said, completely disinterested.

Her eyes narrowed as she took in my appearance, "Why, in the name of photo shop, do your

eyes look like someone's poured red food coloring into them?"

"Hay fever," I lied, taking my seat.

"You told him didn't you?" she guessed. I wasn't surprised she'd figured it out, Alice was

known for her 'psychic abilities'.

"Yep," embarrassingly, my voice broke on the simple word.

She sighed and linked her fingers through mine, "What happened?"

"H-He kept hinting that he knew, making all these remarks about 'life changing decisions' and

that he deserved to know. So, I told him and he called it a 'mistake',"

She gasped but I continued, closing my eyes, "I started going off at him about that and pretty

soon I got hysterical. People started looking at us and he got uncomfortable so I told him to

leave, which obviously he did."

"He was seriously pale and slammed his office door so hard you could practically hear the

glass shaking in the windows. What else did he say?"

I breathed in deeply, "He said he wanted to be a part of the baby's life,"

She smiled but quickly controlled it, "And that's a good thing?"

I half-shrugged, "I guess. I mean, it's great that I wont be going through this alone, ya know?

But...I don't know, a part of me wants to be sure that he wants to be in our child's life not that

he feels he needs to,"

"I get what you're saying," she assured me, "and not to put a damper on your already bad day

but his parents are going to be there on Saturday night,"

I let out a frustrated sigh, "Great,"

"It's Elizabeth and Edward Senior although he prefers to be called 'Ed',"

I frowned at her, "How do you know this?"

She looked down and began fidgeting with the hemline on her shirt, "Well...since I'm in

charge of planning the party, I though it would be nice to have his parents there..."

"Aaaalice," I whined, throwing my head back against my chair.

She smiled sheepishly, "Sorry,"

I rubbed my hands across my face and laughed once hysterically into them before sighing,

"You better have bought me an amazing dress."

She grinned and nodded her head so fast I was amazed it didn't fall off, "You'll love it, I truly

outdid myself and I will be over at your place bright and early Saturday morning to make you

look even more beautiful than you already are," all that without a single pause to take a

breath? I wanted to laugh at how excited she got over my outfit choices.

I blushed, "Aww, thank you, Alice. You're the greatest,"

She sighed wistfully, "Aren't I, just?"

-x-x-x-

I take back what I said.

Alice wasn't the greatest in my eyes right now, in fact she looked a reincarnation of a fashion

pixie-demon sent out to destroy me.

I've been scrubbed, polished and preened until my skin started to feel raw. Plus, Alice has

been humming a tune that sounds an awful lot like 'Barbie Girl', I hate that song.

Okay, okay, I admit it. I'm a little pissy right now, but I haven't eaten in three hours, I really

need to pee and this heartburn is a bitch.

I didn't even want to know what she was dusting across my face right now. I mean, I don't

mind a little make up, I'm far from being a tomboy but when she nearly pulled all my lashes

out with the eyelash curler, I decided enough was enough.

"Alice, how much longer?" I whined for the hundredth time this evening.

"Hush," she commanded and I scowled at her. With one final swipe of mascara she backed

away a little to admire her handiwork, "I've definitely outdone myself this time, get up so I

can put you in your dress,"

I tried to stand up but my legs had fallen asleep, I groaned at the unpleasant tingly feeling,

"My legs are dead,"

She pulled me out the chair slowly by my hand and when I was stable enough I removed my

old sweats and closed my eyes since I wasn't allowed to see the dress Alice was now zipping

up onto my body.

I felt her touching my hair brushing a stray lock behind my ear before she spoke again.

"Okay, open your eyes,"

I hesitantly opened one eye and looked in the mirror, the girl I saw wasn't the same one I saw

staring back at me everyday in the mirror.

My brown, curly hair was pulled back into a messy bun and my bangs were left to hang loose.

My eyes were now framed with thick black lashes accompanied by a subtle smokey eyed

effect done with a charcoal colored eyeshadow and some eyeliner.

My face wasn't as pale as it usually was due to the bronzer and the small amount of glitter

Alice had dusted across certain points of my face and the peachy colored lip gloss only

brought out my eyes even more.

Lastly, was the dress. It's a midnight blue color, strapless with a sweetheart neckline complete

with a broach in the center between my breasts and flows down my body like a waterfall.

"Wow," I concluded, brushing my hand along the fabric.

I'm pretty sure I heard a sniff coming from the bathroom door, I tore my eyes away from my

reflection and saw Angela standing there watching me with teary eyes.

"Ang, what's wrong?" I asked, immediately hugging her close to me.

"You look so beautiful, Bella." she choked out and I heard a quiet, satisfied giggle from Alice.

"Don't cry," I pleaded. "You're gonna set me off, I though I was the one that's supposed to be

hormonal around here?"

She laughed through the tears and hugged me tighter, "I'm gonna say a really corny line now,

so be warned. My little girl's growing up,"

I laughed along with her, "You've been watching too many movies,"

She shrugged one shoulder, "Only a couple hundred or so,"

I took a cab since Alice still had some things to do before the party, so now I was arriving at

Demetri's all by myself.

The house was...big, to sum it up in one word. His parents were rich and the newspaper

earned him a lot of money and what better way to show it then with a house far too

extravagant for one person, right?

There were only three other cars parked outside besides Demetri's ostentatious range of

various sports cars.

I wasn't a stranger to this house, in fact I'd even lived here for a short period of time.

The front door was open so I walked inside, "Hello?" I called out into the silence.

A middle-aged woman with caramel colored hair, fair skin and dressed in a elegant green

dress approached me, "Hi there, are you here for the party?"

I smirked, "No, I'm the cleaning crew,"

She laughed loudly at that, a full on belly laugh, "Well, aren't you charming?" she extended

her hand out to me, "My name's Elizabeth, I'm Edward's mother,"

I could feel my eyes widen, "Oh, hi, I'm Bella, it's great to meet you,"

We shook hands, "You're the advice columnist, correct?"

I nodded, "One and the same,"

She smiled delightedly, "How lovely, Ed and I are huge fans and Edward just hasn't stopped

talking about you,"

My smile grew pained, "Good things, I hope?"

"Oh, the best," she winked.

Edward appeared then with a man who looked like an older version of him, he must be Ed.

"Edward," Elizabeth called. "you never told me just how charming Bella was, she got me to

laugh with her first sentence," Edward's face flushed a little with embarrassment and his

mother laughed at his expense, "Poor boy wouldn't shut up about how beautiful you are, I

think he's quite smitten with you, dear."

What the hell am I supposed to say to that?

Now it was my turn to be embarrassed, I could almost see the red tint on my cheeks.

Ed chuckled much like his son and extended his hand to me, "Don't let my wife embarrass

you, Bella. The name's Ed," I placed my hand in his and he kissed the back of it.

"Pleasure to meet you both, I can definitely see where Edward gets his charm from,"

Too bad he uses it incorrectly.

Another man around the same age as Edward but with blonde curly hair and blue eyes joined

us then, "Hi, I'm Jasper, Edward's brother," he greeted me, extending his hand.

"Nice to meet you," I'd have to introduce him to Alice, something tells me he's definitely her

type.

"Is that Bella's voice I hear?" I heard Demetri's mother, Elena, call as she approached.

Elena still looked like a model even though she was now well into her fifties, she was almost

a female version of Demetri with her dark brown hair and blue eyes.

"Elena," I grinned, embracing her when she opened her arms out for me.

"Olen kaivannut sinua," she stepped back to look me over. "Olet kaunis,"

"Kiitos," I thanked her for the compliment.

Edward and his family looked completely lost, "Oh, um, sorry we're being very rude,

Demetri's parents are from Finland," I explained.

Elena grinned at them, "Bella here has been picking up the language and it's nice to talk to

somebody who understands you." she continued. "I'm going to go find the boys, I haven't seen

them in a while,"

When she was gone, Edward excused himself to make a phone call and I was now left with

my baby's unknowing grandparents.

Thankfully, people started arriving every single one of them looked beautiful. It was nice to

see them outside of the office environment.

Alice grinned and waved when she saw me, "Hey, Bella," she glided over to me in her electric

blue gown. "everyone looks so fabulous," she sighed dreamily.

"Are you Alice?" Elizabeth questioned.

Alice nodded and shook hands with her, "Great to finally meet you,"

"Thank you so much for organizing our trip, Edward hadn't even told us he would be having a

party,"

She didn't appear to be paying attention, her eyes locked with Jasper's. Elizabeth noticed and

introduced them, he then asked her if she'd like a drink to which she slowly nodded.

She's a tough girl but when you put a gorgeous guy in front of her she practically melts.

I was complimented by some of the women and prattled off in light conversation until I felt

warm breath fan across my neck, sending tingles down my spine as a soft, velvety voice

spoke.

"You look beautiful tonight, Bella."

Translations:

Olen kaivannut sinua – I've missed you

Olet kaunis – You look/are beautiful

Kiitos – thank you

Chapter 7

BPOV

I turned around and came face to face with Edward, "So you've decided to treat me like I

actually exist?"

He sighed and ran a hand through his already disheveled hair, "Don't be difficult,"

"I'm not being difficult, Edward." I snapped. "I could always raise my voice to express how

angry I am at you, but I know how much you hate embarrassment,"

"I'm sorry for how I reacted. Can I at least explain myself? In private?"

I glanced back at Alice who was watching our exchange over Jasper's shoulder and gave her a

small nod to show her I was okay. "Sure," I agreed, leading him to the parlor room. Once we

were both inside I closed the door and looked around. The room was completely empty except

for a baby grand piano, my baby grand piano. Demetri had bought it for me when he found

out I knew how to play.

I sighed a little when I saw it, he was keeping it for me until I had a place big enough to

accommodate it.

I reached out and ran my fingers across it, it was a little dusty but still in perfect condition. It

was only when I saw another hand brush across the surface did I remember I wasn't alone.

"I never knew Demetri played the piano," he thought aloud.

I laughed under my breath, "He doesn't, it's mine."

The corners of his lips turned up into a small smile, "You play?"

I frowned at him, "No, I like to look at it,"

He grinned wider, "There's that wit again,"

I rolled my eyes, "Yeah, yeah, get used to it,"

"I guess I'll have to," he let out a sigh. "Look, I'm sorry I've been avoiding you all this time, I

just thought it would be the best way. I've been thinking a lot lately,"

I glanced up at his face, "'Bout what?"

He hesitated slightly and I was nervous to hear what he had been thinking about, "Lots of

things, but mainly...us. I want to be a part of our baby's life, Bella, and I apologize for the way

I handled the news. It wasn't my intention to call this a mistake, I just meant that I was willing

to man-up to my responsibilities,"

"And I'm sorry too," I interrupted.

He frowned, "For what?"

"For lashing out at you like that, I'm just very hormonal right now,"

He smirked at me, "I believe it's understandable under the current circumstances,"

"Have you told your parents?" I wondered, unconsciously running my hand over my stomach.

He laughed nervously and I already had my answer, "Uh, no. I'm not an expert on how to tell

your parents you knocked up a complete stranger," I raised an eyebrow at him for the choice

of words and he quickly backtracked, "What I meant to say is 'conceived a child with a

stunningly beautiful woman I hardly know',"

I laughed to draw his attention away from my blush, "Much better,"

He brushed his fingertips along my cheekbone, effectively darkening my blush. "I mean that,"

I melted against his touch, "What happens now?" Would we just be friends for the sake of the

baby? Or was he prepared to be a normal family?

His hand curved to fit against my cheek, his eyes darting to my lips as he leaned closer "Well,

I was thinking..." his lips were just inches from mine, my breath hitched in my throat. "that

we could do this," on the last word he softly pressed his lips against mine and I felt like my

heart would jump out of my chest.

His lips moved slow and sensually with mine, sucking in my bottom lip into his mouth for a

moment before gliding his tongue over it to gain entrance to my mouth.

My hands which were rested on his shoulders moved up and tangled into his hair, twining the

strands between my fingers. Our kiss grew heated and passionate, his tongue exploring my

mouth until his arms encircled my waist as we both broke away, panting for air. Our

foreheads rested together and a huge smile graced both of our lips as we gave each other

small, chaste kisses.

"I've missed that," he admitted, brushing a stray lock of hair behind my ear.

I raised and eyebrow at him, "You only had it for one night,"

"Exactly, but I intend on never going without it again,"

I giggled, "You're so full of shit, you know that?"

He kissed my nose, "Oh, please, you know you love it,"

I rolled my eyes playfully, but before I could respond their was a knock at the door. I broke

away from Edward but he kept his arms locked around my waist, holding me against him.

"Bella?" I heard Alice call. "Esme's looking for you,"

I sighed and rested my head against his chest, he still smelled as good as I remembered.

"Thanks, Ali."

"No problem," she called and I heard her footsteps retreating away from the door.

I looked up at Edward, "What am I supposed to tell her? She's like a mother to me,"

"It would hurt her more if we lied to her," he told me.

I didn't like the fact I'd have to tell Esme that the girl she once felt was like a daughter to her

was pregnant with the child of a man who was taking her job.

"What about your parents?" I wondered. I wasn't sure how Edward's parents would react, they

seemed laid back enough but my mother would be a different story.

He shrugged, "My mom's been pestering me about grandchildren since I turned twenty and

my dad's always just gone with the flow,"

This reminded me of a question I hadn't asked him yet, "I know this is a stupid question...but,

how old are you?"

"One hundred and seven," he answered with a straight face.

I stared at him with a face that was equally composed, we stayed like that for a moment

waiting for the other to crack up.

His lips began to twitch and waver before he started laughing, "Sorry, I have a bad habit of

laughing at my own jokes, but I'm twenty-nine and you're...twenty-four, right?"

I narrowed my eyes at him, "How did you know that?"

He smiled sheepishly, "I might have looked at the employee files,"

"My my, Edward Masen, you're practically a stalker," I teased.

His hands moved from my hips to tickle my sides, I giggled loudly. "Guilty as charged, why

do you think I moved from Chicago?"

"Hmm, I should have known this was all just a cover story,"

He laughed and pecked my lips, "I'm afraid I'll have to kill you now, you know far too much,"

"You can never know enough, I think I'll have a conversation with your mother, I know how

much she loves embarrassing you," I giggled, remembering the way his cheeks had flushed.

He smirked, "I was a very well behaved, boring child, there's not many stories,"

"Ah, but I bet there's lots of cute baby Edward photos," I disagreed. I could already picture a

baby Edward with unruly, bronze hair, emerald eyes and freckles. Seeing this image made me

wonder what our child would look like. Would it be a boy or girl? Bronze hair or brown hair?

Green or brown eyes?

He chuckled, "I suppose we better get back to the party,"

I didn't want him to miss the party held in his honor, but I was worried that somehow this

moment would be lost if we left the room and joined the outside world again.

As if sensing my thoughts, Edward wrapped his arm around my waist as we left the room.

I spotted Esme, wearing a classic black dress, in conversation with a group of our colleagues

and Carlisle. Before she spotted me I kissed Edward's cheek. "I better get this over and done

with,"

"I can tell her with you, if you want?" he offered.

I grimaced, "Yeah, that's probably not such a good idea,"

"You're probably right," he exhaled, dropping his hold on my waist.

I took a deep breath, squared my shoulders and made my way over to the crowd.

"There you are!" Esme shouted, with an expression that made me feel like a child being

scolded. I froze mid-step as she walked towards me, Carlisle trying unsuccessfully to hold her

back. The room grew very quiet, the only sound was the music playing quietly in the

background.

"How could you keep something like this from me?" she cried. Carlisle shot me an apologetic

glance.

Edward was in front of me in a second, his body protecting me from her. Her eyes narrowed

at him. "And you. How could you do that to her?"

Edward's parents joined us, also going into protection mode.

"What's going on, Edward?" Elizabeth asked.

Esme looked confused, "You mean they haven't told you?"

"We haven't told anybody, Esme." I assured her. "I was going to tell you right now,"

Her mouth formed a small 'o' before she smiled timidly at our audience.

"Why is it that every time I have a private conversation everyone feels the need to listen in?" I

mused out loud but nobody was listening to that.

"Tell anybody what?" Ed asked his son.

Edward and I shared a look before I took a deep breath and raised my voice.

"Okay, everybody, you're all going to find out eventually, we were just trying to tell a few

people before we let all of you know," I started. I'd never really realized how many people

worked in the same office as me but then I remembered there were some of Demetri's friends

and the publishers here too.

Edward linked his fingers through mine and gave them a gentle squeeze, "Bella and I are

expecting a baby,"

I'd never heard a collective gasp quite like this one before, I don't think anyone knew what to

say...

Except for Edwards parents.

I don't think I've ever heard a squeal louder than Alice's before but Elizabeth's came a close

second. Her arms wrapped around me, replacing her sons.

After my shocked stupor wore off I hugged her back, my eyes connected with Demetri's and

his expression was a mix of anger and confusion. His parents had the same expression, minus

the angry part they looked more disappointed.

"I was scared to tell you," I admitted to Esme who gave me a small, sad smile.

"It's alright, Bella. I understand,"

"I'm sorry," Carlisle apologized. "I've never been able to keep secrets from her,"

"It's okay, I guess," I relented, watching Edward speaking to his very excited parents. "I feel

better now that everything is out in the open,"

"I didn't mean to cause such a scene," she murmured. "I just felt a little left out,"

I waved her off dismissively, "I would have done the same thing, but now I need to tell

Renee, Emmett and Rose before anyone else can," Just imagining what any of them would do

to me if they found out from someone else was enough to make me shudder.

She placed a soft hand on my shoulder, "I'm sure they'll understand,"

We were cut off by Demetri and his parents. Aro, Demetri's father, was the first one to speak.

"Isabella, I'm so disappointed! We all thought you'd be having our grandchildren,"

Elena placed a hand on her husbands chest, "Rauhoittumisen." she turned back to me. "I'm

very happy for you, Bella and Edward,"

Edward's arm wound around my waist again, "Thank you," I melted into his side.

Demetri's eyes were fixed on that arm for a moment too long before he looked back at me, "I

can't say I'm not surprised, I never even knew you two were dating,"

Edward and I both shared a look and laughed, "We weren't." They seemed to understand and

didn't ask any more questions.

Thankfully, that had been the last dramatic moment of the evening and I was glad to have a

chance to rest.

There was dancing, speeches and drinking, for everyone besides me. Edward was glued to my

side the entire evening and we even shared some dances. Occasionally he would kiss my

temple or my cheek or pull me closer against him and I couldn't help but to sigh a little each

time, it was a wonderful feeling.

I got tired eventually and had to lean against him a little for support until he offered to take

me home, I said my goodbye's to everyone including a very starry-eyed Alice who had been

attached to Jasper's arm the whole night. I was happy for her, she'd been without a man for

long enough. I just hope he wont break her heart, especially if he'd like for me to keep his face

intact. Elizabeth was almost glowing with her excitement, she'd been chatting my ear off for

most of the night about all things baby. Like family names, all of Edward's old habits and then

she added in that she'd like to meet my mother as soon as possible. I wasn't sure if I wanted to

have this particular conversation with Renee over the phone. Maybe I could get her, Emmett

and Rose all in the same room and tell them all at once, that way they'd all shout at me and it

would all be over and done with. I relayed my idea to Edward in the car and he felt he'd rather

meet Renee first before telling her but that he was more scared of telling Emmett and Rose,

since he got the feeling that Rose would probably cut his family jewels off. Which,

admittedly, she would.

When we arrived outside my apartment building, I noticed the lights were off which meant

Angela had gone to bed already. I sighed and squeezed our interlocked fingers across the

console, I didn't want him to leave already.

He turned off the car and climbed out, walking briskly over to my side to open the door for

me.

Could he get any more perfect?

"So, I was thinking," he began, breaking the comfortable silence as he led me to my door.

"that maybe we could have lunch tomorrow at your brothers restaurant,"

I smiled, "I told you the food was good,"

"You told me the food was 'amazing', if I remember correctly." he teased.

I nudged his arm, "Yeah yeah, don't get technical with me,"

He chuckled and we came to a stop outside the door. "So will you go with me?"

Resist the urge to squee, Bella. "Of course,"

He grinned, "I thought maybe you could invite Rose with us, since Emmett will probably

already be there and we could just tell them then,"

My smile dropped and I sighed, defeated. "I guess,"

Soft fingertips brushed my cheeks, "I'm sure it'll be fine, Bella." he sounded like he was

convincing himself at the same time.

To ease my troubles he placed a chaste kiss on my lips, letting our tongues brush sweetly over

each other. "I'll pick you up at noon,"

"Night," I breathed as we broke apart, resting our foreheads against each others.

"Sweet dreams," he reciprocated just as quietly.

And as if he couldn't get any more perfect he knelt down on both knees, maintaining eye

contact with me as he softly placed his hands against my stomach and kissed it.

"Sweet dreams to you too, little one," his eyes weren't on mine anymore but on my small,

protruding stomach his eyes almost shining with adoration he felt.

A single tear rolled down my cheeks as I watched this tender moment.

We would be okay.

Translations:

Rauhoittumisen – Calm down.

Chapter 8

BPOV

I walked, or a more appropriate word would be stumbled, inside. My mind still in a daze after

witnessing such a tender display of emotion.

A lamp flicked on in the living room, illuminating Angela who was seated in the lazy boy

chair.

I let out a giggle before I could stop myself, I'd never been in this type of situation before.

"Don't tell me you waited up all this time just to scold me?"

Angela gave me a sleepy grin, "I wanted to hear how everything went, I saw your little

display at the front door, heart wrenching stuff. Although, I am upset you didn't bring him in

so I could actually meet him,"

I smiled and sat down on the chair next to her, "He's picking me up tomorrow for lunch,"

"Ooh, can't stay away from you, can he?" she teased.

I sighed, "Actually, we're telling Em and Rose tomorrow,"

"Ah, did you tell Esme?"

I shook my head, "Carlisle slipped up and she didn't take the news well so we ended up

announcing that I'm pregnant to all the guests,"

She gasped, "Talk about awkward, wasn't Demetri's parents there?"

I nodded, "Aro was pissed, Elena...was, well, disappointed and Demetri was just

confused...but," I cocked my head to the side. "then again, it doesn't take much to confuse

him,"

She chortled under her breath, "I've always thought he was a bit of a meat head,"

"Yeah," I breathed, getting up from my seat. "I'm beat, I think I'm gonna turn in,"

She turned her attention to the TV after bidding me goodnight.

I changed into my pajamas, removed my make up and shook out my hair from the messy bun

before climbing into bed. The sheets were cold enough to make me shiver as they touched my

skin.

After the stressful day I'd had, sleep came fast and easy.

-x-x-x-

The sound of incessant knocking was what woke me the next morning. I wasn't sure what

time it was but I could tell by the amount of light streaming in through my windows that it

was still early. I rolled onto my side and checked my clock and groaned when I saw it was

nine am. I'd wanted to get a lot of stuff done today before the dreaded lunch with Emmett and

Rose.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Hold your horses," I grumbled under my breath. The lounge was still in a mess for once,

usually Ang would clean up as soon as she woke up, which was always before me. I glanced

at her room and noticed her door was still closed, she must still be sleeping. Lucky.

I unlocked the deadbolt and opened the door to see Elizabeth standing there. Looking like

she'd just stepped out a magazine advertising the perfect housewife.

"Mrs. Masen?" my voice was gravelly and quiet from sleep. I cleared my throat to make my

voice louder. "What are you doing here?"

She smiled endearingly at me, "Call me Elizabeth, dear, and I'm here to get to know you

better." I'm pretty sure my gulp was so loud that even she could hear it. Ruh Roh. She laughed

gently to ease my tension, "Don't look so frightened, I've got embarrassing baby pictures," It

was only then that I noticed the photo albums she was holding and I grinned like the cat that

ate the canary.

"In that case, please come in," I stepped aside and held the door open wider for her to enter.

"Tea?" I offered to which she nodded. As I made the tea, she took a seat at the center island

and glanced around what she could see of the apartment and then looked back at me, taking in

my appearance. Pajamas, bed hair, no make up.

"I suppose I came a little too early, didn't I?" she mused.

I waved her off, "Nah, why start sleeping in now anyways?"

Her laugh was nervous this time and she ran her hand through her hair. That must be where

Edward got that habit from. "Sorry, I've just been too excited to think clearly since last night,"

I handed her her cup and took a seat. "Have you spoken to your family?"

I sighed and looked down into my cup, "Edward and I are having lunch with my brother and

sister-in-law, I'm not so sure how I'm going to tell my mom," Renee was unpredictable at best.

Elizabeth nodded and sipped her tea quietly, "Do you live here by yourself?"

"No, um, I have a roommate, her name's Angela," I pointed to a nearby frame holding a

picture of her and I at a mutual friend's birthday party.

"She looks like a sweet girl," she commented, smiling at me.

"The sweetest." I agreed. "Her father is Father Weber down at the church in Forks,"

She nodded and gazed into her cup pensively before speaking again, "I've noticed you don't

talk about your own father,"

I sighed despondently, "He died two years ago,"

She reached across the island and squeezed my hand, trying to comfort me. "I'm sorry, I didn't

mean to pry."

I gave her what I hoped looked like a smile, "It's fine,"

She started to say something but Angela's door opened revealing my half-asleep roommate.

She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand and blinked a couple of times before they

widened and she blushed. "Um, hi,"

Elizabeth stood up to offer her hand to Angela, "Good morning, you must be Angela,"

Angela shook it hesitantly and gave me a weary glance. "This is Elizabeth, Edward's mother,"

I informed her and noticed her posture relax immediately.

"Great to meet you," Angela smiled and began making herself her own cup of tea.

"I'm sorry to be here so early on a Sunday," Elizabeth apologized but Angela waved her off

before she could continue.

"Don't worry about it."

Elizabeth nodded and turned back to me, "How are you feeling? No morning sickness?"

I shrugged and took the last swig of my tea, "I've only thrown up a few times, but it's

bearable,"

"You're lucky, when I was pregnant with Edward I felt terrible. Couldn't keep any food

down," Her face scrunched up as she remembered. "before I knew I was pregnant, Ed made

me breakfast in bed and once I got a whiff of the eggs I had to run to the bathroom, I've never

eaten eggs since,"

I smiled and touched my stomach, "I've been lucky with this one, so far,"

She grinned at me, "When are you getting the ultrasound done?"

"Tomorrow, if I'm still alive after lunch time today,"

"They can't be that bad, Bella."

It was obvious she'd never met them before. "Not bad... just a little...overprotective. Rose is a

classic example of 'mama bear' and Emmett is the older brother who'd punch a guys face in if

he even caught him looking at his sister," But I wouldn't trade them for the world.

She smiled as she listened to my description, "And you said they have a son?"

"Henry," I beamed. "cutest nephew I've ever had,"

"He's the only nephew you've ever had, Bells." Angela reminded me as she tidied up the

lounge. I would have offered to help her but by now I knew that she didn't clean because she

felt she had to, she just genuinely enjoyed cleaning. Odd woman.

"Still pretty darn cute, though," I defended. "he has Emmett's hair colour and face shape but

Rose's ice blue eyes,"

"And he hardly ever cries," Angela added folding up one of the brown throws.

"I wasn't really bothered by Edward's crying," Elizabeth started. "I just kept reminding myself

that I had also cried when I was a baby and this was just a 'payback' of sorts. On that topic,"

she pulled out one of the photo albums and placed it front and center on the island. "let's look

at family photo's, shall we?"

Angela left us to go read a book in her room and I was thankful that she was such a kind and

considerate person.

Before we started, I excused myself to call Rose and invite her to lunch. Thankfully, she was

busy changing Henry's diaper so she didn't have time to ask why.

Elizabeth paged through the several photo albums and I 'ooh'ed', 'aah'ed' and gushed over

baby pictures of Edward and there was a few cute shots of Jasper too. I had tears in my eyes

from laughing at some of the stories like the one where Edward got himself stuck in the doggy

door when he tried to escape bath time or the one where she got a call telling her that Edward

had wet his pants in kindergarten and needed a change of clothes.

I couldn't deny the way my heart squeezed when I saw the pictures of him as he grew up, he

was a really photogenic kid. Most of the pictures he wasn't even aware that they were being

taken. One of my favorites was a picture of him, no more than five years old, sitting in a pair

of shorts and an old t-shirt while he played in the mud with a stick. Cute, no?

I hadn't looked at the clock since nine this morning but when I suddenly looked again and saw

it was half-past eleven, I sighed.

Elizabeth looked up too and smiled sadly at me, "I better be going then,"

"Bye, Mrs. Masen!" I heard being called from Angela's room as I walked her to the door.

Elizabeth smiled and called back, "Goodbye, Angela."

"Oh, your photo albums," I remembered, walking back to get them.

She stopped me before I could pick them up, "I'll leave them here with you, you can give

them back to me the next time I see you,"

I cocked my head to the side, inquisitively. "How did you know to bring them on your trip

here?"

She smiled and tapped her head with her index finger, "I'm always prepared,"

Her arms wrapped around me the same way a parent would hug their child and I felt like

crying for two reasons. One was because Edward's family was so kind and caring ; and the

second was because I missed both my parents even though I'm still not so close to Renee.

"I'll see you soon," she breathed, stroking the hair at the back of my head.

"I'll send you the pictures of the ultrasound," I promised, breaking away from her.

"You're good for him, Bella," she informed me out of nowhere. "There's no other person

better for my son,"

I smiled and wiped at my eyes, "Stop, you're making it worse," I laughed a little through the

tears.

She smiled and her eyes twinkled a little with excitement, "Mind if I say goodbye to my

grandchild?"

I lifted the edge of my tank top to reveal the small bump, "By all means,"

She kissed her hand and placed it just above my bellybutton, "You know he or she will be

able to hear you soon? I'm not sure the exact number of weeks,"

"Really?" I wondered in awe.

She nodded, "I used to read fairy tales,"

"I'll have to ask Ang for some suggestions," I mused out loud.

"Goodbye, Bella." She exhaled, stepping out the door. "Take care,"

"You too," I closed the door and let out a big breath of relief.

Angela's door popped open and she stuck her head out, "She seems nice,"

"Yeah," I agreed gathering the mugs we'd used over the hours.

Angela took them from me, "Go get ready and I'll clean up,"

"You sure?" I verified.

She nodded and I skidded over to the bathroom to take a much needed shower.

-x-x-x-

Once I was all squeaky clean, I dressed casually and lightly dried my hair then applied a small

amount of make up.

I heard voices coming from the living room, one of them was Edward's, the other Angela's. I

couldn't tell what they were saying but it didn't sound like arguing.

I stepped into the room and both of them immediately smiled at me. They were both seated on

opposite chairs.

"Hi there," Edward grinned as he stood up and held his arms open for me.

I stopped myself from running at lightening speed and managed to maintain a human pace

until his arms wound around my waist, pulling me into his chest.

I breathed in his scent, sunlight and fresh rain all in one. Even a hint of laundry detergent. I

was glad he'd stopped using that cologne.

"Good..." I glanced up at the clock. "afternoon,"

"I'm sorry I was a bit early, I figured it would give us time to think of how to word our

explanation,"

"You weren't the only one who was early today," I told him, nodding my head over to the

photo albums.

He glanced at them briefly before recognition flashed across his features and he smiled,

shaking his head the action caused a copper strand to fall into his eyes."That mother of mine,"

"Mmhmm," I breathed. "I like her, we're friends,"

He kissed my forehead, "That makes me so happy,"

"Alright, alright, love birds," Angela interrupted. "As much as I'm happy to see you happy,

Bells..." she hinted.

"Got it," I nodded and linked my fingers through Edwards, gazing deep into his emerald green

eyes. "let's do this,"

Emmett's POV (:

Rosie called me earlier to let me know Bella and Edward would be joining us for lunch. He

seemed to be a nice enough guy but where my sister is concerned, I'm not so sure he's the

right guy for her.

I guess I'd never think any man would be good enough for her. My father's last words to me

before he had a hear attack were 'take care of your sister'.

It makes you wonder if people know they're going to die, right?

It happened with Grandma Swan too, she suddenly felt the need to get her will in order and

next thing you know...she's gone.

Nonetheless, I'd been looking after Bella pretty much since the day she was born. Even if I

was only four years old at the time. I was a pretty fucking clever kid.

Then Bella walked in with Edward at her side, their fingers locked together as they walked.

Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion, kind of like in the Matrix when that guy

dodges the bullet...

Hey, I could probably do that...Nah, Rose would never...

I looked back at my baby sister, judging by the smile on her face I could tell she was

genuinely happy for the first time in years. I guess this Edward dude must be good to her

especially since her skin is all glowing.

Gah! Glowing skin? What the fuck man? My inner, manly, voice scalded me.

I shook my head, trying to get my brain to shut up for a second.

Bella noticed me then and I saw the big brown eyes of my father staring back at me in her

pale face. She smiled at me and I was surprised to see she looked a little shy, this was a first.

Probably had something to do with Edward.

"Bubba!" I called and saw that adorable, scowly-face she inherited from our mother.

"Emmett," she groaned and I noticed Edward snicker quietly to himself.

"Nice to see you again, Edward." I greeted him, trying my best to be friendly.

He gave me a small nod, "Hi, Emmett."

I led them over to a small table. "So...what can I do ya for?"

"Can't I have lunch with my big brother and sister-in-law?" she said, trying to sound offhand

but I wasn't buying it.

"You usually come in during the week," I pointed out.

She grimaced, "Sunday is a week day,"

I smirked, "Sure, it is," I heard the doorbell jingle as the door opened for my Rosie to come

walking in. Even after a kid she still looks just as fucking beautiful as the first time I saw her.

She smiled as she saw me and Bella, but it dropped momentarily when she saw Edward. I got

up and held her chair out for her, cause I know how much she liked that type of stuff.

Hopefully I'd get rewarded for it later...

"Edward, Bella," She greeted them.

"Hey, Rose," Bella smiled weakly as Edward offered a quiet 'hello'. Man of few words, this

one. It's probably a good idea since I get in trouble all the goddamn time for saying stupid

stuff. Or swearing.

Only place I get to swear is in my head, or in the sack. If you know what I mean...wink wink,

nudge nudge.

"So...what's up?" Rose asked, picking at her nails which were painted fire truck red. Just the

way I liked them.

Bella and Edward shared a look before he spoke up and I found myself wishing he hadn't.

"We're having a baby,"

That's when I lost it.

Chapter 9

BPOV

I had never seen Emmett looking so serious in my life. His eyes were unfocused and he

appeared to be staring blankly at Edward, a million different thoughts running through his

head.

Rose had her mouth hanging agape before a shiver ran through her and she started

shouting."What do you mean you're having a baby?"

People in the restaurant turned to look at us and I saw Victoria stop in her tracks to listen in to

the conversation. Great, I'd have to tell Renee sooner than expected before she could tell Phil.

"Exactly that, Rose. I'm four months next week," I informed her, my voice quiet but I wasn't

really paying attention to her. I was more worried about Emmett.

"And you're only telling me this now? How long have you known about this?"

"Since that day I fainted at work. I hadn't even realized it, Alice did."

"Well, shit, Bella." she growled. "How could you be so careless? Ever heard of putting his

banana in a pajama?"

"We were a bit caught up in the moment," Edward explained, squeezing my hand under the

table.

She now directed her attack at him, "That's no excuse for being so irresponsible and if I were

you I'd keep my mouth shut, talking isn't making this any better for-"

Emmett released a deep breath and held up his hand to stop her mid-sentence.

Now it was my turn to squeeze Edward's hand for support. It felt like that moment just before

you have blood taken when you're still a kid and you have to hold your parents hand for

comfort.

Emmett leaned forward, making sure we could hear every word. His eyes narrowed at

Edward's in threat. "You and me, my office. Now."

Edward stiffened next to me and I gasped. "Emmett, I swear, if you do anything to hurt him,

I'll hurt you back."

Emmett looked back at me and forced a tight smile, "I'm not going to punch him, Bella. I just

need to have a word in private,"

Edward kissed my hand before releasing it and looking at me, "I'll be okay," he sounded like

he wasn't just trying to assure me.

I watched helplessly after them as they both entered Emmett's office and shut the door.

Rose sighed and flipped her hair over her shoulder, "Bella, this is a big responsibility, are you

sure you're ready for this?"

I sighed and ran my index finger over the lip of my glass of water, "I'm sure I can handle this,

it's not like I'm alone,"

She glanced back at the office door, "But are you sure this is what you want? I'm not telling

you to give up the baby, I'm thrilled that you're pregnant but I just want you to be sure."

"I've never been so sure of anything in my life," I answered truthfully.

"You're prepared for the sleepless nights, baby poop and spit up?"

"Ah, Rose," I sighed with a laugh. "you always make everything sound so wonderful," This

reminded me. "Where is Henry by the way?"

"With the nanny," She answered, "I want to make sure you know about all the things that

come with a baby. I honestly don't know what's gotten into Emmett, I thought he'd punch

Edward square in the face?"

I shook my head, wondering the same thing myself. "I don't know, the serious expression was

pretty frightening."

She laughed, "He must have been concentrating very hard,"

I giggled and looked up just in time to see Edward and my brother exiting the office, both of

them appeared relaxed and unscathed. I narrowed my eyes suspiciously at both of them.

Emmett just shrugged and Edward gave me his heart stopping crooked smile.

"What happened?" I asked as they both took their seats.

Edward's hand slipped back into mine as if the action was as natural as breathing, "Just talked

a few things out,"

Rose looked at Emmett for confirmation but he just sighed and mouthed the word 'later' to

her.

"Well," I said, loudly, trying to alleviate the tense atmosphere. "I'm starving," I picked up my

menu and scanned through it although I already knew what I wanted.

Edward chuckled under his breath at me and I saw a hint of a smile on Emmett's lips.

"Vicky, let's get some grub over here!" he called to our cousin who grinned and gave a

thumbs up.

"Have you told Renee?" Emmett pondered after taking a swig of his coke.

I smiled sheepishly, "No."

He guffawed loudly at my expense. "Should be an interesting conversation, sometimes she

just switches and decides she actually wants to be our mother,"

I nodded in agreement, I'd witnessed this a few times before during my not-so-long-ago

teenage years when I brought home my first boyfriend, Jacob Black. Suddenly Renee decided

that she'd like to meet this boy despite the fact she hardly ever visited just to see me.

Victoria returned then, giving Edward the same meal from last time and giving the rest of us

our usual.

"Congratulations, Bella." she winked as she set my meal in front of me.

"Thanks, Vicky, but Renee and Phil don't know yet," I explained. "so could you keep it quiet

for now?"

"Oh, sure, no problem." she smiled sweetly. Yeah, I'm not trusting you for a second.

The rest of lunch was much calmer, with Emmett being his usual crude self telling jokes that

made me laugh every time I took a bite of my salad. Of course, I scowled at him each time

and threatened to tell Rose about some of his embarrassing childhood stories.

Like the Britney incident of '89...

That shut him up momentarily but he quickly resumed and toned down the jokes just a little. I

swear the man could write a joke book.

When the bill came around at the end, Emmett blew us off again and responded that it was on

the house. In return, I insisted that both him, Rose and my nephew come over for dinner one

night. They agreed quickly since they both loved my cooking.

Emmett hugged me goodbye and surprising all of us he even patted my stomach and told the

bump to 'be good'.

Rose requested that we get copies of the ultrasound for her, so by now I was up to six.

One for Edward, two for me (for the office and for home), Elizabeth, Rose and lastly would

be Renee, if she wanted it.

The drive home was quiet except for Edward's quiet singing along with the radio. I'd newly

discovered that the man could sing really well.

When we got home I decided that it was now or never to make a decision about Renee. Either

I'd tell her over the phone, or request that she come visit me and if she couldn't then I'd tell her

over the phone.

Of course, Edward wanted the latter.

He sat down on the couch, making himself comfortable as I stared at the numbers on the

phone. Angela had left a note on the fridge to say she was out with Ben for the day.

I took the seat next to him and with a deep breath quickly pressed Renee's number into the

phone.

Don't pick up. Don't pick up. Don't pick up.

"Hello?" my mothers voice sang into the phone.

holyshitfuckcrap.

"Hi, Renee." I kept my tone quiet and controlled.

"Hi...um, who is this?"

Always so predictable. "Your daughter,"

"Bella?"

No, your other daughter. I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, it's me."

"Oh...what's wrong?"

"Why would anything be wrong, can't I phone my own mother?"

Edward frowned infinitesimally at me and busied himself with a lock of my hair, twirling it

around his fingers.

She chortled humorlessly into the phone, "You never phone me unless there's something

wrong...so forgive me,"

"Yeah, well you never phone period." I argued.

I heard her sigh, "I'm not in the mood for an argument right now, Isabella." Ooh, full name

usage. "I'm extremely busy so let's cut to the chase,"

"You know what? I don't even wanna tell you anymore," I growled. Edwards hand squeezed

my thigh. "I'm only doing this because I feel you have a right to know,"

"Look, I'm on my way to get a manicure and a facial. Why don't you call me back tomorrow?"

"No, how about you call me when you've decided you're actually ready to live up to your

responsibilities as a mother,"

And with that, I cut the call. Let her hear the news from Victoria, I didn't care at this point.

Edward, sensing my tension, eased the phone out of my fingers and held me against his chest.

You know that feeling when you're trying your best to hold back the tears but then someone is

nice to you and you just can't keep it in any longer? Well, that's what happened.

I buried my face into him, gripping his shirt with my fingers while I cried it all out. Edward

rocked my slowly in his arms, his face buried in my hair as he whispered comforting words in

my ear.

"She's never been there for me," I managed to stutter out through breaths.

He brushed the hair away from my face, "Just let it all out, I'm listening."

And so the story of my life began, I explained everything. From my parents divorce, my

mothers abandonment of her children to my father's death. I'd never felt so open and exposed

before, like I had no more secrets to live behind. The thought was rather freeing.

Edward was quiet as he let me speak, only occasionally asking me to elaborate some of the

stories. Like how long I'd been with Jacob and Demetri.

When I couldn't think of anything else to say, I sat there blankly trying to think of something

but kept coming up with nothing.

"Feeling better?" Edward wondered, rubbing his hand along my arm.

I looked up at him and smiled, "You're good, and here I thought I was the psychologist."

He grinned, "Technically you're only have a bachelors,"

I stuck my tongue out at him, "Technically you're an ass."

"I'm an ass who got you to smile again," he countered.

I snuggled in closer to him, "That's true." I took a deep breath, taking in his scent. "You also

smell good."

"So...I'm an ass that smells good?" he teased, ducking his head into my shoulder as he

laughed.

I giggled loudly, "That's sounds so wrong!"

EPOV (!)

I'd never been in a relationship like this before. One where everything flowed naturally, as if it

were the simplest thing in the world and we'd known each other for years and not a couple of

months. I could easily see myself falling for Bella. With her incredible beauty, quick wit and

infectious smile. Not to mention the way she was always looking out for others.

I'd known since the first moment my eyes locked with hers in that dark alleyway, that I was in

trouble. Little did I know I'd never be able to keep her off my mind for any length of time, I'd

just see something...like the bark of a tree or a piece of chocolate that would remind me of her

eyes and I'd sit there in a daze thinking about her.

It was far from healthy.

But I loved it.

I loved the way she captivated the attention in a room, like at the party...could it have only

been yesterday? Every head in the room turned when they saw her, the woman did this

unconsciously as they copied the eyes of their partner to see who he was looking at. To us

men, it just came naturally to gawk at beautiful women. Although some of us are able to be a

little more reserved about it.

Even now, with her hair in a mess, her eyes still a little red and glassy. She was easily the

most beautiful creature I'd ever been in the presence of. This beautiful woman was in my arms

and she's having my baby. I've always wanted children but have never found someone that I

was willing to have a future with like I am with Bella. My parents loved her too, especially

my mother. I had been a little wary about her knowing, not knowing how she would react to

the news, but I should have known not to doubt her. My father, I knew I didn't have to worry

about, all he'd care about was that I be an active part of the child's life.

When we told Emmett and Rosalie about the baby, I had never been so scared in my entire

life as I was at that moment. I was expecting a much more physical approach from Emmett

since he was so big, bulky and seemed like a man of few words. But he'd proven me wrong

and requested I accompany him into his office away from our women.

I was basically hyperventilating by the time we got there and I think that was the reaction he

wanted because I swear I saw him smile briefly at me before giving me all the advice I needed

on how to keep his little sister happy since he had some experience with pregnancy hormones.

Things like always giving in when there's an argument and agreeing that she's right even

when you think you are and keeping the fridge and cupboards stocked with all types of food

which would be a little tricky since Bella and I didn't live together...yet.

Then he surprised me by actually patting my back and telling me 'good luck'.

And I was certain I'd need it with Bella's stubbornness and determination, but we'd get

through it together no matter what.

Chapter 10

BPOV

Edward stayed over that night, no not for that reason. We just both fell asleep on the couch

after watching my old box sets of the Charmed series. I was a bit of a Charmed freak when I

was younger since I was convinced there was magic in the world. Anyways, he discovered

them at the very back of the DVD collection and insisted on watching it since he used to love

the show too.

We watched, snuggled, teased and kissed until we both fell asleep and only woke up when

Angela called later that evening to say she was staying over at Ben's.

I woke up on Monday morning before Edward and after shamelessly watching him sleep, I

decided I should start getting ready for my appointment at the hospital.

I took a shower and dressed in a pair of white pants and a light blue tunic, making sure to

wear flats today. I tied my hair up and applied a light touch of make up to finish everything

off.

When I was done I walked back to my bedroom and saw Edward still asleep. His face tiled to

the side as he lay face down with his arms and legs spread out, almost in the shape of an 'X'. I

giggled when I saw the tiny dribble of drool on his chin and saw his eyelids start to flutter

before they opened slowly, revealing the deep green orbs.

"Was I in your dreams?" I whispered as I sat down next to him, running my fingers through

his hair.

He hummed in contentment, rubbing his face into my sheets. "How did you know?"

"Because you were drooling," I answered cheekily.

His eyes widened and he immediately wiped away at his chin, trying to remove the evidence.

I giggled and he gave me a lazy smirk before wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling

me down so that I was laying next to him. "Why are you dressed already?"

"I have my appointment just now," I reminded him. Running my index finger along his

jawline.

"Shit," he cursed, quickly getting out of bed, obviously having forgotten. He was only

wearing his boxers and my eyes were trained to that perfect chest before they dropped to his

very obvious morning wood. I managed to keep myself from sighing longingly.

He caught me staring and threw me a wink as he ran his hand along his abs. "Mind if we stop

by my place before we go, so I can shower and dress?"

My mind immediately went to the gutter at the word 'shower' with thoughts of him naked in

the shower. Wet.

I shrugged, trying to be cool about it. "Sure,"

He grinned and pulled on his jeans, readjusting himself once he had before pulling on his

white t-shirt.

"What time's the appointment?" he wondered as we left my bedroom.

"Um, nine thirty," I glanced up at the clock and saw it was quarter to nine already.

"Well, my apartment's not too far from here, we'll be able to make it,"

I nodded and wrote down a note to Angela in case she came home to get her stuff.

"How long has Angela been dating this 'Ben' guy?" Edward wondered as we climbed into his

Volvo.

"A really long time," I answered and then explained further. "They were high school

sweethearts,"

He smiled, his eyes still trained on the road ahead. "Is he planning on popping the question

any time soon?"

I sighed, Angela and I had both been wondering the exact same thing. "I'm not sure, but I

think he'd probably ask for my opinion on rings. He has no sense of style whatsoever,"

"Give the guy a break, style isn't a natural thing for most of us,"

"You're one to talk, you always look like you've just stepped out of an ad in GQ,"

He scoffed, "I said 'most of us', that doesn't necessarily include me,"

"Cocky bastard," I mumbled under my breath. He obviously heard me because he started to

laugh.

We pulled in in front of a small apartment building, there appeared to be only two floors.

Of course, he lived in the biggest apartment on the top level. It was medium sized but still

much bigger then mine, the walls were painted various shades of beige and browns. His

lounge was open plan to the kitchen just like mine was and had three plush couches placed in

front of the TV in a 'U' shape with a coffee table in the center.

Edward placed his keys inside a glass bowl as he entered, "Feel free to explore," he called

over his shoulder.

I was half-expecting a grand tour but I guess that wasn't in my cards today, I wandered freely

through his house. First stop: the kitchen. I ran my fingertips over the counter tops and even

did an inspection of his fridge. I was a little confused that there didn't appear to be that much

food. There was a bottle of Coke Zero, a six-pack of Bud, some old mac and cheese in a

container, eggs and a bottle of milk.

How did this guy survive?

I opened the cupboard doors, getting hit on the head by a packet of pretzels and nearly

impaled by a chocolate bar. Death by Chocolate, literally.

Note to self: take Edward grocery shopping.

There was a dinner table with four chairs inside the large kitchen. Satisfied that the kitchen

was sparkly clean, I skipped through to the lounge, plopping down into one of the couches

that swallowed me up. It was like being eaten by a marshmallow.

Still pretty damn comfy, though.

There was a photography book on the table titled 'A view of Africa'. I flipped through it until I

reached South Africa and gaped at some of the photos. One being a sunset where the sky was

literally a vivid red with orange streaks. I'd never seen anything like it in my life. There were

a few pictures of a city called Durban and I nearly died when I saw the pictures of the beach.

It wasn't like the beaches I was used to seeing, the sand wasn't a pale white and the water

wasn't a crystal clear turquoise, but the sand was golden and the sea a dark blue.

Suddenly remembering that I had a whole apartment to still explore, I quickly put the book

away and continued my adventure. I walked down a small passage way pausing in the center

of three doors. I opened the one in front of me to reveal a large master bedroom, the walls

were painted a light blue. The same colour of the sky on a clear, sunny day. The light wooden

floors went through the whole house but in this room it reminded me of the same golden sand

I'd seen in the picture.

His sheets were white and simple and my eyes noticed a picture frame on the side table. I

picked it up to get a better look, it was a picture of Edward, Jasper, Ed and Elizabeth. There

arms all over each others shoulders and a big smile on each of their lips. They all looked so

happy that I found myself smiling.

I was so caught up in my own little dreamland that I didn't even hear the shower turn off or

Edward approach, suddenly he spoke, causing me to jump. "That was taken just before I left,"

he saw my frightened expression and smiled. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you,"

I only barely registered his words, my eyes now trained on a single drop of moisture running

from his shoulder, to his chest before disappearing underneath the towel wrapped loosely

around his hips.

I'm pretty sure there was a puddle of drool at my feet right now.

I wanted to find that damn water droplet.

Edward waved his hand, asking me something.

"Hmm?" I prompted, shaking my head slightly to clear it.

He smirked at me before walking over to a dresser, buttoning up his shirt. "Weren't you ever

taught it's rude to stare?"

I huffed trying to appear irritated but my cheeks were burning with embarrassment. "Like you

wouldn't do the same thing if I was wet and naked."

He groaned loudly, "Fuck, Bella, I've just had a cold shower,"

I looked up at him innocently through my eyelashes, "Why would you do that?"

Holy shit, I think he just growled.

I blushed as he pulled on a pair of pants after his boxers, "This particular conversation will be

continued later tonight," I wasn't sure if this was a threat or a promise.

I hoped, with every fiber in my being, that it was a promise. Guess, who's getting it on

tonight?

ME.

Oh, and Edward of course.

Plus billions of other people in the world.

Gah, I'm killing my own mood.

"So, did you finish exploring my humble abode?"

I snorted, "Did you just say 'abode'? Who the fuck says that anymore?"

He laughed, "Sorry, I'm a little old fashioned,"

I rubbed my stomach, "I would never have guessed,"

He rolled his eyes before walking forward and holding out his hand for me. I stared at it for a

moment then placed my hand in his.

"Let's go see our baby," he murmured quietly, a spark of excitement in his eyes.

EPOV

Her smile could illuminate an entire city.

I'd fantasized regularly about having Bella in my apartment, on my bed. Not exactly how she

was now, but it's close enough.

I tugged on her hand gently, pulling her onto her feet. She raised herself up on her tiptoes to

press her lips softly on mine.

It was only with the knowledge that we would be late for the appointment that I managed to

restrain myself from taking this simple kiss further.

We left my apartment and drove off to the hospital, the journey to the hospital was short since

I lived so close to it, that had all been my mothers doing since she was like every other

mother: neurotic about their child's safety.

We walked through the hospital until we got to the maternity ward, I wasn't sure what the

doctors name was but Bella seemed to know since she checked every sign outside the door.

A woman about the same age as Bella sat behind the desk, twirling a strand of bleach blonde

hair between her fingers.

Bella stiffened next to me, obviously knowing the girl. I rubbed her back soothingly, trying to

get her to relax.

I cleared my throat to get some attention. Blondie smiled up at me and briefly glanced at the

beautiful woman next to me before doing a double take. Her jaw dropped with an audible

'pop'.

"Bella Swan?" she inquired, her eyes wide with disbelief.

Bella smiled timidly at her, "Hey, Lauren."

"Like, oh my gosh, what are you doing here?"

Bella sighed exasperatedly, "Really? What other reason would I be in the maternity ward

for?"

Lauren, as Bella called her, seemed to understand. "Oh, you're visiting someone."

I managed to maintain my laugh as Bella's face scrunched up in a scowl, "Actually, my..."

what do I call her? "girlfriend." don't kick me, Bella. "and I are here for an ultrasound of our

baby,"

Lauren's eyes widened comically, "No way!"

"Yes way!" Bella retorted with false enthusiasm.

"Little Bella 'ugly duckling' Swan is actually having a baby? I'm so tweeting about this," She

took out a blackberry and began frantically typing.

"Look," I drew her attention back from the shiny object. "If you could just wait one second to

'chirp' or whatever and let us through I'd very much appreciate it," I used my most persuasive

voice accompanied with a crooked smile.

She rolled her eyes and pressed down on the intercom, "Dr. Andrews, you're appointment is

here,"

The consulting room door opened, revealing a mousy looking woman with glasses. She

smiled when she saw us, "Come in. Come in." she ushered.

The room was pretty much what the rest of the hospital looked like, white.

Bella and I took our seats answering numerous questions about our medical history.

Bella's file was much larger than mine due to the countless number of injuries she'd endured

over the years. Dr. Andrews even cracked up at a few of them, which I'd never seen a doctor

do to a patient before.

After a couple of tests I got tired and looked around the office, noticing the many certificates

framed on the walls.

All of them for a Dr. F. Andrews.

"What's the 'F' stand for?" I wondered out loud before I could stop myself.

"Fanny," she replied, tensing immediately.

I heard Bella snicker quietly next to me.

Her name was Fanny and she's a Gynecologist?Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.

My lips were pursed in ultimate concentration as I tried not to lose it.

"You may laugh," she permitted, raising an eyebrow at us as she wrote down something.

"It's not funny..."Lie. "just...unfortunate."

She sighed, "It was a family name. Now," she changed the subject. "would you like to see

your baby?"

Bella and I both grinned and nodded our heads eagerly, this is what we had been waiting for. I

held Bella's hand as she pulled up her shirt, revealing the small bump. Our small bump.

She winced as the cold lubricant made contact with her skin and I watched in awe as Dr.

Andrews glided the scanner, or whatever you call it, over her belly. Resulting in one of the

greatest things I'd ever seen in my life.

The screen was small and a weird brown and white color but I didn't care.

The shape was a little blurry but I could distinctly make out the head and body. A quiet

thumping indicated that this was not just an imaginary sea monkey, but, in fact, a real life

baby.

It finally seemed real to me.

I looked back at Bella to find her staring at the screen, her big, brown, doe like eyes were

glassy with tears. I wasn't sure what was going through her mind or if I should be worried.

Finally, she smiled widely at me, the tears now flowing freely down her cheeks.

"Look what we did," she whispered, pointing to the screen.

I looked back at the screen for a while before looking at Dr. Andrews, she was smiling at both

of us.

"You're baby is healthy, I see no problems with his or her development,"

And that was all we needed to hear.

Chapter 11

EPOV

After a very valid question whether or not it was safe to have sex yet, we left the hospital. I

grinned like the kid who managed to get the last cookie out the jar when we were given the

'go ahead'.

Now, Bella sat in the passenger seat next to me, examining the pictures from the ultrasound

bringing it up to her face and squinting.

I chuckled at the way her face was scrunched up, "What are you trying to do?"

"I'm trying to see whether it's a boy or girl," she informed me. "but the legs are in the way,"

"I doubt you'd be able to tell anyway," I assured her.

She sighed and placed the pictures back in the envelope. "Can't blame a girl for trying,"

We'd asked Dr. Andrews to tell us the sex of the baby, but our little tyke decided it would be

fun to keep his or her legs closed preventing us from even getting a glimpse. I had a hunch

we'd be guessing until we actually saw our baby face to face, that is if the baby took after

Bella. She was about as stubborn as they come.

Unfortunately, there was a Monday morning staff meeting that we were already late for which

canceled out taking Bella back to my apartment and fuck her until the sun rose again.

"Bella, Edward!" The receptionist, uh, what was her name again? Amanda, or something,

sang as we entered the office. "Meeting's started already, better get in there,"

I was still holding Bella's hand as we stepped into the boardroom. Everyone turned their heads

to look at us. All except Alice.

She jumped out of her chair and came running towards Bella, screaming 'let me see' at the top

of her lungs.

I chuckled at her enthusiasm and Bella whipped out the pictures, it wasn't long before there

was a crowd of people around us all 'oohing' and 'ahhing' over our baby.

I was so caught up in the commotion that I hadn't even noticed that Demetri had been in the

middle of a meeting, I could tell by his expression that he was not impressed.

He cleared his throat loudly, trying to draw the attention back to him, a few heads turned in

his direction but quickly turned back again.

"Isabella, Edward," he started. "could this wait until the end of the meeting?"

The rest of the staff shot him a death glare but, I admit, Bella's was definitely the scariest.

Probably because her look was the most genuine.

I heard Alice grumble a faint, 'fuck you' under her breath as we all took our seats.

"They were just trying to show off their baby, Demetri." Esme said, throwing us a brief smile.

He straightened up the papers in front of him, hitting them against the desk. He completely

ignored her comment. "Back to the meeting,"

I felt Bella's small hand squeeze my knee and I placed my hand on her thigh. Feeling the heat

of her skin through her pants.

Demetri droned on some rubbish, discussing ways on how to get sales to pick up again since

we were still going through the recession.

Nearly everyone was still sitting with scowls on their faces, it reminded me of school children

who had just been scolded by their teacher. Suddenly they decide that he or she is the worst

being on the face of the planet and wish a giant meteor would crush them into millions of tiny

pieces...

Well, that was how I saw it.

I managed to entertain myself by trailing patterns along Bella's thigh, enjoying the sound of

her breath hitching as my hand got dangerously close to wear she wanted it most.

Suddenly her hand became active, gliding too slowly up to my prominent erection that was

straining against the thin fabric of my pants. I constantly had to readjust myself the entire

meeting, people probably thought I was letting rip since the chair made a squeaking noise

every time I did so. Each time, Bella giggled.

When I had finally had too much and my dick was about to break through the fabric, I

grabbed Bella's hand, stopping her movements.

I chanced a look at her and she was looking up at me, her bottom lip jutting out in an

attractive pout.

"No," I mouthed at her. As much as I wanted her to, I knew I wouldn't be able to stop myself

from throwing her onto the table and making her scream my name with everyone watching.

What can I say? I'm horny right now, sue me.

Pssh, you're a guy, you're always horny. My mind scoffed at me.

True. I agreed.

Bella had the ability to turn me back into a hormone-crazed seventeen year old that blew his

load as soon as a girl even looked at his cock.

And I wouldn't have it any other way.

I heard us both exhale deeply as Demetri announced the meeting was adjourned. I grabbed

Bella's hand tightly in mine, trying to make our escape before being bombarded with staff

members wanting to see our baby.

It occurred to me, as I pulled her into my office, that we hadn't kissed today. I decided to take

immediate action.

Bella stood with her back against my door, her breathing labored as I approached her, her

eyes threatened to close as I ran my hands along the thin cotton of her blouse, my left hand

running over her side before reaching back to lock the door.

Her chocolate eyes darted to my lips then back to my eyes again as I leaned in closer still.

Her lips were warm and soft against mine, moving deliciously slow as my tongue skimmed

across her full bottom lip. The same one she'd been taunting me with by pouting in the

meeting. Bella made a seductive mewling sound as our tongues tangled and danced together,

her mouth tasted minty and sweet as my tongue explored.

"Edward," she moaned loudly, her hands grabbing hold of the hair at the back of my head and

tugging forcefully. I used this moment to lean down slightly and graze her earlobe with my

teeth, initiating another, louder, moan of pleasure and want from her.

One of her hands reached down and grabbed my cock through my pants, her small hand

rubbing against it. The pleasure was almost painful.

My hands cupped her breasts through the fabric of her blouse, unbuttoning it, revealing her

tits only clad in thin pink lace. The sight of her nipples straining against the fabric made me

even harder. I started to reach behind her to unhook her bra but her hand stopped me.

I felt her fingers fiddle with the zip as I recaptured her lips with a kiss. I pulled back slightly

to see her expression. Her lips were swollen and red from our passionate make out session,

her eyes darkened and heavy with lust.

"Let me do this," she purred seductively as she guided me back with her hand, with one final

push against my chest, I was seated in my desk chair. She'd already unzipped me so it was just

a matter of unbuttoning a stupid button and removing my boxers and I'd be free. Once she'd

done so, my cock stood fully erect and impatient, twitching in anticipation. She licked her lips

slowly, the sight of her moist, pink tongue almost making me come right then and there. Her

hand gripped my rock hard shaft aggressively, bringing her mouth down slowly onto me. The

sight and feeling of her hot mouth wrapped around me was intense, her hand massaged my

balls while the other rubbed what she couldn't fit in her mouth. She swallowed, trying to open

up more space in her throat for me. She hummed in appreciation, the feeling making my cock

twitch inside of her mouth.

"Oh god, Bella." I moaned as her head began bobbing, taking me in deeper as she ran her

tongue along me. My hands, of their own accord, gripped onto her hair guiding her into the

correct rhythm. Her gorgeous breasts bouncing with the movement.

"Fuck!" I yelled, a little too loudly considering our surroundings, as I felt her squeeze my

balls.

"Just like that, baby," I spurred her on, the coil inside of me twisting and tightening as I

neared my release. With a few more bobs of her head and a stroke of her tongue, I was

coming. Hard. I moaned out her name as I did. The pure feeling of ecstasy washing through

me. My eyes connected with hers as she swallowed every drop greedily and nothing else

mattered. I didn't care that we were in an office full of people, probably people who all knew

what was going on right now, it was just us.

BPOV

His face was flushed. His hair in utter disarray. His eyes were so dark that I could see my

reflection in them.

And I'd never seen him look so beautiful.

He gave me a lazy, sexy smirk, leaning down to kiss my lips chastely. I smiled against his

lips, feeling giddy about bringing him such pleasure.

"That was fucking amazing. Thank you, beautiful." he murmured as he pulled away.

I smiled wider, "My pleasure,"

"I'd reciprocate right now," he started. "but I know, from personal experience, that you're a

screamer,"

I blushed and dipped my head, embarrassed, my hair falling from behind my shoulders and

making a dark curtain around me.

A warm finger was placed on my chin, lifting my face up once more. "I love hearing you

scream,"

I grinned wickedly and scrambled into his lap, my legs straddling his. I'd bite down on my

bottom lip until it bled, if I had to. I was horny as hell and there's an incredibly gorgeous man

with his cock exposed in the same room as me. It was pretty simple.

Knock, Knock.

I jumped out of his embrace, grabbing my blouse of the floor and hiding under his desk as I

tried to re-button it and neaten up my appearance, I could feel my hair sticking up in all sorts

of crazy direction from Edward tugging on it.

Edward quickly tucked himself back into his boxers and re-zipped his pants.

"Coming," he called as the impatient person knocked again.

"Have you seen Bella? I've checked everywhere," I heard a deep voice ask.

Figures, it would be Demetri.

"Uh, no," Edward stammered. "haven't seen her, she might be in the toilet, pregnancy and all

that,"

"Could you not flaunt that 'pregnancy' shit in front of me? It's getting really old, really fast,"

My blood boiled inside of me and my hands clenched into fists, how dare he. After all that

time I spent with him, trying to determine whether he'd want kids someday, and he'd never

given me a straightforward answer.

"My apologies for actually making Bella happy," Edward snapped.

I heard someone growl, "Look, Masen, I did you a favor, okay? You'd be out on the street if it

wasn't for me,"

Edward snorted, "Hardly, Demetri. You forget my family is one of the richest in Chicago,"

This was new. I guess I'd always just assumed he was well off.

"That may be true, but that doesn't change the fact that you owe me. I had a hard time giving

Bella up. Hell, I'm still not over her. She's like a drug – addictive. Once you've had her, she

ruins everyone else for you. So just do me a favor and keep this quiet while I'm around,"

My body was frozen in shock and I realized I'd stopped breathing. He couldn't mean all that,

I'd seen him with countless flings after our break up. He looked happy.

I was close to revealing myself and demanding to know whether or not this was all true but I

wanted to hear how Edward responded.

"I understand, but there will be times when it's up to you to block stuff out. I'm not willing to

let Bella miss out on everything she should be going through, the excitement, the joy, the

attention. She deserves it,"

I heard the sound of footsteps approaching before someone took a seat in one of the chairs on

the other side of the desk. "How did you do it?" Demetri asked.

"Do what?"

"Was she just a one-time fling, an easy fuck gone wrong? Or where you two in a relationship

beforehand?"

"It was a one night stand at first...I hadn't been looking for anything in particular, I'm ninety-

nine percent sure I would've stayed in the morning, but I had a flight back to Chicago. When I

got back, she confessed that she was pregnant, with my child."

"And you're both positive that it's yours?" Demetri spoke the words so quiet, I wasn't sure I'd

heard him correctly.

"We are," his voice was sure and determined as he spoke the words. No doubt to be found.

There was a sound of a gust of air being exhaled heavily, "Guess I'll have to move on, huh?"

I stretched out my knees that had been placed against my chest in the fetal position, I was

getting a little uncomfortable.

"I think it would be for the best," Edward agreed quietly.

Demetri stood again, his voice further away than before. "I swear to God, if you hurt her or

that baby, I'll kill you. If I ever see a single tear over you, you're dead. Understand?" he

threatened.

"I'll never hurt her,"

I heard Demetri laugh but there was no amusement to the sound, "That's what they all say."

Chapter 12

EPOV

Demetri left my office after that last comment. My palms were sweaty and I was shaking. Not

from the mind-blowing orgasm I'd just endured, but the fact that Bella was still in the room

and had heard her ex confess that he was still in love with her. I could only hope that she

chose me over him. Though, I certainly had a better chance since she was carrying my child.

It seemed like hours had gone past since I'd seen her when she finally emerged from under my

desk, her appearance still disheveled from our previous activity.

Her face was paler than usual, the whiteness of her skin contrasting against her dark curled

hair. Warm chocolate depths met my eyes. We stood there and waited for the other to speak

first.

She walked forward slowly and for a moment I thought she might pass me but instead her

arms wrapped around me, holding me tight as she buried her face into my chest. My arms

held her against me, stroking her hair. "Do you want to talk about it?" I wondered, usually

people felt better when they vented out their problems.

"There's nothing to talk about," she mumbled. "he made his decision long ago,"

I pulled her back to look into her eyes, "But, did you?"

She frowned slightly, dropping her arms. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, are you still in love with him?"

The frown was more prominent. She looked pissed. "What type of a question is that?" she all

but shrieked. "Of course I'm not!"

I examined her expression carefully, seeing the fire blazing in her eyes. There was no hint of

hesitation to be found.

I let out a deep, relieved, breath. "Okay, I believe you,"

She relaxed slightly, "Don't doubt me, Edward, it's hardly fair,"

"I'm sorry," I apologized, holding my arms open for her again. They were immediately filled,

her shape fitting against mine perfectly. "I just want to be sure you want this,"

She placed a kiss over my heart through my shirt, "I want you, the rest of it we'll figure out."

I tucked her head under my chin, "Together."

BPOV

I wanted to know what was on his mind. My heart had fluttered in my chest when he had said

'together'. I wasn't sure exactly what we were...but, he had called me his girlfriend at the

hospital earlier this morning. I needed verbal assurance.

"Edward?" I started, my body still pressed against his.

"Hmm?" he murmured back.

"What...well, what exactly...are we?" I asked, bashfully.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean...are we dating?" I mumbled the last word. "'Cause you did call me your girlfriend at

the hospital earlier, or was that just to spite Lauren?"

He pulled back to smile down at me, his fingers caressed my cheek leaving a burning trail

where they touched. "Do you want to be my girlfriend?" I nodded, smiling back at him. He

grinned. "Well, then, that's settled,"

There was another knock on the door, interrupting us from our moment. "Come in," Edward

called, his arms still wrapped around me.

Alice peaked her head in, grinning ear-to-ear, "Hi, guys,"

"Hi, Alice. What's up?" I wondered.

She shrugged and plopped herself down in the small couch, "Nothing much...so,

Edward...how's your brother? What was his name again? John? James?"

Could she be any more obvious? I giggled into Edward's chest, "Jasper?" I hinted.

Her eyes flashed with false recognition and she tapped the air with her index finger, "Yeah,

that's him."

Edward pursed his lips together to keep in his smile, "He's okay, I guess." he winked subtly at

me. He was playing with her.

Alice tensed up a little, she hated short answers. "Just...okay?" Edward shrugged indifferently.

"Did he say he enjoyed his trip here?"

"We haven't spoken much, he's been pretty busy with his art," I had recently found out that

Jasper was an artist. Though, I had never seen his work, Edward assured me he was good.

Alice sighed, "I just wanted to know why he hasn't called me yet,"

"It hasn't been that long," I tried to console her.

She gave me a small, sad smile, "I know, but I just thought we had a...connection, ya know

what I mean?"

"He's really shy, Alice. I've never known him to approach a girl first," Edward added.

Alice stood up again, "Well, in that case, give me his number,"

Edward walked over to his desk and scribbled down the digits on a post-it then handed it to

her outstretched hand. "There you go,"

She skipped out the room, yelling a 'thanks' over her shoulder.

I watched her retreating figure and shook my head, amused. "She has too much energy,"

Edward chuckled and sat down in his chair. My mind immediately went back to what we were

doing in that chair earlier and he had to clear his throat to get my attention. "I hope you don't

mind, I still have to finish editing this weeks paper,"

I shrugged, "Nah, I'm okay. I'll just go answer some more letters or something,"

I flitted back to my office, for some reason I was in an extremely good mood. It might have

had something to do with the fact the guy I'm crazy about just asked me to be his girlfriend.

I answered a few letters, giving advice to a number of people. From commitment-phobe

boyfriends to depression. I made sure I'd never given the advice before since I didn't want to

one of those columnists who just recycled their work.

Knock Knock.

I pulled off my glasses, "Come in,"

Alice glided into my office, "Get up, we're going...Shopping!"

I laughed at her enthusiasm, "We're at work, Alice. We can't just leave,"

"You got knocked up by the boss, I'd say you're privileged." she argued.

I scowled at her, "Take that back,"

She sighed, "Fine, just come on, we're getting you some maternity clothes,"

I groaned, "Oh, god. What's wrong with the clothes I have now?"

"They wont fit in a few months, silly," She said as if it were the most obvious thing in the

world. Which, admittedly, it kind of was.

"Okay, just let me say 'goodbye' to Edward," I got up and walked past her as she made 'kissy'

noises after me. I responded accordingly, by flipping her off.

I knocked on his door once and then let myself in. He looked up from his laptop and smiled at

me. "Alice is taking me shopping for maternity clothes, do you mind?"

"Of course I do," his expression was serious. My smile dropped but then he smiled again.

"You'll be too far away from me,"

I rolled my eyes and blew him a kiss as I left, "See ya,"

Alice was at my side instantly, linking her arm through mine. "Shall we?" she poorly imitated

a British accent.

"Let's," I agreed, playing along.

"Right-o," she nodded, pulling me along. We giggled as we left but nobody raised eyebrows

or questioned our behavior, this was quite normal for us.

The good thing about Port Angeles is that everything is within walking distance but we still

took Alice's little yellow VW beetle (the new model). We stopped at a small boutique that

catered especially for pregnant woman.

The amount of pink and frills inside was frightening.

...I take that back. Alice's expression when she saw the pink and frills was frightening.

She flew around the store grabbing shirts, dresses and pants. Each item was thrown into a

dressing room awaiting yours truly to try them on.

I browsed through some standard black pants when suddenly I was interrupted by a hand on

my stomach. I looked at the owner, an old gray-haired woman with half-moon spectacles. She

had kind, blue eyes and an endearing smile. "Expecting?"

"Nah, I just ate a large burrito at lunch," I deadpanned.

She believed me though, her hand immediately gone. "Oh my, I'm terribly sorry,"

Alice snorted, she was suddenly standing next to me, "Bella, don't tease your elders. Yes,

ma'am, she is pregnant, feel free to touch her belly,"

The old woman laughed delightedly and rubbed my stomach, "I've always seen it as a good

luck charm,"

"Kind of like rubbing Buddha's tummy?" I voiced. A memory flashed in my mind of a small

package from Renee containing a small Buddha which you rub his stomach for luck.

The woman nodded. "How far along are you?"

"Four months," I answered with a smile.

"Come on, Bella." Alice tugged my hand. "Let's get you into some new clothes!"

I didn't really see the point in all these clothes, I'd just wear them for nine months and be done

with them. It's not like I could wear them again some time in the future, surely they'd be out

of fashion? Unless I was one of those women who pushed them out faster than bread out a

toaster. Technically, it's toast that comes out a toaster...but you get my point.

There were floral print dresses, jeans with elasticated waists, blouses, tunics, skirts, sweaters

and much to my pleasure, a pair of sweats.

Add onto that list new underwear and new shoes, then you've basically got all the clothes I

had to try on. By the end of the ordeal, my hair was in a mess from pulling shirts over my

head and I was dead beat.

Edward had sent me texts, asking if I was okay or whether I wanted him to come and save me.

In the end he sent me a message to say he'd gone to his house and wanted me to join him there

for dinner.

Alice insisted that I keep on a new pair of black pants and a white blouse that was tight at the

top, tucking in under my breasts and then flowed down. I looked pretty damn good, if I do say

so myself.

Alice dropped me off at Edward's place and I knocked on his door, three taps, for him to open

up. When he finally answered, I giggled when I saw his appearance. His hair was in complete

disarray, sticking up in every direction possible. He had a cook book in his one hand and a

large spoon in the other.

"Hi there," he grinned leaning down to peck my lips. He stepped aside to allow me to enter. I

placed the hundreds of bags down and he quirked a brow. "Have fun today?

I brushed my bangs out my face and laughed nervously, "Alice...gets a little 'credit card

happy'." I was immediately assaulted with the smell of tomato sauce and garlic. Yum yum for

my tum tum. I walked over to the kitchen to see what he was concocting.

A pair of warm arms wrapped around my waist as I opened up the pot to reveal a spaghetti

dish.

He pressed his lips to my cheek, "I hope you like spaghetti...?"

I turned my body so my chest was placed against his, my arms wrapped around his neck. "It's

my favorite, how did you know?"

He grinned crookedly, "I'm psychic,"

I shook my head, still smiling. "Alice is psychic,"

He pouted, "Can't I be psychic, too?"

I kissed his lips, "You can be...an incredible cook..." Kiss "the best lover" Kiss. I could feel

his lips turn up into a smile. "...and the most amazing boyfriend a girl could ask for,"

His tongue flicked against mine as it gained entrance into my mouth, "I..." the timer went off

on the stove, interrupting what he was about to say. "think dinner's ready,"

It was only when he was a decent distance away from me did I notice that the small dining

room table had been set out romantically. There was even candles.

He waited behind one of the chairs to pull it out and push me back in and then served up the

meal.

The spaghetti was heavenly and I thanked him by leaning over the table and kissing him.

"Mind if we try something?" he wondered, pulling up a single noodle.

I arched a brow questioningly at him when he brought it up to my lips, I took it between my

mouth and he did the same.

Together we shared the single piece of noodle, just like one of my favorite movies, Lady and

The Tramp.

We broke away from our heated kiss, his fingers interlocked with mine as he led me to his

bedroom. There was something different between us, some unspoken change that didn't make

me feel like I had to undress him in the blink of an eye.

His mouth found mine again, our tongues caressing as we kissed. His hands found the hem of

my shirt, pulling it over my head slowly as my fingers unbuttoned his shirt for the second

time today. His lips trailed down my neck as I unzipped his pants, my breathing accelerating.

"You're so beautiful, Bella."

He spoke my name like a blessing.

His hands cupped my breasts through the thin pink lace of my bra, initiating a loud moan of

pleasure from me. The man just touches my boobs and I'm already moaning.

"I'm going to take my time with you," he whispered, reaching back to unclasp my bra. My

breasts now free as they molded into his hands, "we're going to remember this for the rest of

our lives,"

How he was able to speak at a time like this, I had no idea. Hell, I had trouble thinking

straight.

He guided me back until I felt the bed hit the back of my knees, causing me to fall back. His

glorious body hovering slightly above mine.

I'd never had a sexual experience like this before. It was always just passionate and rough.

Never had I felt the same way as I did now with Edward's hands caressing my body. His

mouth, licking and biting my flushed, sensitive flesh. I bucked my hips against his trying to

bring his attention to the matter at hand.

"Edward!" I cried out as he bit the side of my neck. I'd never been this loud before. I hope he

has soundproof walls.

His tongue trailed down between the valley of my breasts, down to my belly button where he

placed a gentle kiss. His fingers hooked into my pants and panties, pulling them both off with

one swift movement. I reached down to continue undressing him, but he stopped me, doing

the job himself.

We switched positions, he was now seated against the headboard his erection saluting me

from below. I smiled when I saw it, it had been far too long. Even if it was just a couple of

hours.

I raised myself on top of him, feeling his rock hard cock against my entrance. Slowly, I

lowered myself so that I took in his length fully. Finally feeling whole for the first time in

months. His hands rested on my hips, guiding me up again. After the correct pace was set, his

mouth latched onto my right breast as his hand squeezed and rolled the other nipple. The

feeling so erotic, I found myself crying out his name. We continued slowly, steadily at this

pace. Our climaxes building just as rapidly. The burning coil inside of me tightening, twisting

and turning with each thrust of his hips meeting mine.

"Bella, Bella, Bella, Bella," he moaned out between the sounds of skin slapping against skin

and my screams. "God, I'm so close...Ungh, yeah, baby,"

I loved it when he called me 'baby', my pace quickened. My eyes squeezing closed as I waited

for it.

"Look at me, Bella. Let me see you," he breathed, my eyes opening to find his face twisted in

the pleasure of his release.

Everything exploded inside of me, like that moment of anticipation as you feel a sneeze

coming on and the intense pleasure and relief as it finally happens. My entire body came alive

in the white hot heat of my orgasm surging through me. Every muscle in my body felt relaxed

and renewed as if they had never been under any stress throughout my entire life.

I floated back down from my high and collapsed against his chest, both our bodies slick

against each others from the sweat. His arms wrapped around me as if he never wanted to let

go.

It was only then that I realized what we'd done.

We'd made love...

And it scared the hell out of me.

Chapter 13

BPOV

I stayed up most of the night, my body was exhausted and my eyes were closed, but my brain

refused to shut down. It was too busy recalling yesterdays events.

I'd never 'made love' before and it was all very new, surely I should be happy that the

relationship was moving along positively. But there was a constant nagging in my head, a

quiet voice that would pop up again...the voice was Grandma Swan. She'd had an

unsuccessful love life, never getting married, only a brief relationship in which my father was

conceived and that was about it. She'd always drilled it into my brain that women were made

to be independent and free, that I should never settle down until I had explored every single

option available in my life.

I extricated myself out of Edward's hold, replacing my body with a pillow. He nuzzled into it

with his eyes closed tightly as he inhaled. He looked so vulnerable. I found my panties on the

floor and pulled them on after dressing in one of Edward's shirts. Somehow I accomplished

this in the darkness without tripping.

I walked through his apartment, stopping in the kitchen to where there was still dirty plates

and cooking utensils from dinner. The clock on the microwave told me it was three in the

morning.

I'll probably look like shit tomorrow...or later today, I thought to myself as I filled up the sink

with hot water and washing liquid. I cleaned up the kitchen until it sparkled back at me. I

filled up a glass of water and took a seat in one of the marshmallow-like couches, my back

against the side rest as I looked out a large window. There wasn't that much to see except for

the occasional building but it was a blank canvas that acted as a catalyst to my thoughts.

My mind drifted back to all the letters I'd received about people or their partners that were

hesitant or against commitment, it had seemed so easy to give them advice, but now that I was

in the situation myself. I felt totally helpless and confused. Part of me just wanted to give in to

the emotion and let it consume me so I could fall in love with Edward.

But the other part of me was terrified since I was so young and the rest of my life was now set

for me. All revolving around a child I hadn't met yet, but already loved. And then there were

these strange feelings around Edward that I'd never gotten with a man before; my heartbeat

would increase in tempo, my palms would sweat and I blushed like mad. In all that time I'd

been with Demetri I had never said 'I love you' and actually meant it with every fiber in my

being. I had believed that there was a small part of me that did love him, but I now realized I

had been wrong.

I was so caught up in my own thoughts that I hadn't even heard Edward open his bedroom

door, he stood there clad in only a pair of black boxers. "Bella?" he croaked out. His

expression was panicked but when he saw me seated on his couch he sighed, relieved. "What

are you doing?"

I half-smiled at him, though I doubted he could see me clearly. "Just thinking,"

He sat down where my feet had been propped up, taking them into his lap. "About what?"

"Lots of stuff," I replied simply, wiggling my toes.

His eyes wandered to the gleaming kitchen and then looked back at me with a frown, "Why

did you clean up?"

I rolled my eyes teasingly, "Well, what else is there to do at three o'clock in the morning,

silly?"

He laughed under his breath and I could see his crooked smile even in the darkness, I got up

and settled into his lap, his arms immediately holding me close to him.

"You have no idea how scared I was when I woke up and you weren't there," he admitted, his

face buried into my hair. I rested my head on his shoulder, breathing him in.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, placing a kiss there. "I just have some things to think through on my

own,"

His hands stroked my hair and he started humming an unfamiliar melody. My eyes grew

heavy and I yawned sleepily. Edward readjusted us so that we were both lying down, my face

pressed into his chest. His scent was delicious and soothing all at the same time and I had

already forgotten all my qualms.

His voice was low, velvety and muted as he sang a song I'd never heard...

Even if you're rich

Even if you're poor

Every breath you breathe

I'll be there for you

Even if you're strong

Even if you're not

Every breath you breathe I'll be there for you

Angelic little princess I wanna wake up to your face every morning...

I sighed contently and nuzzled deeper into him, the sound of his singing making his chest

vibrate slightly. The last thing I registered was Edward's lips pressing against my forehead.

x-x-x

Sometime later I was woken up by streams of light pouring in through the window. My body

against Edwards, our chests pressing together and his arm wrapped around my waist. I looked

up and saw that he was awake already, staring intently at my face. I immediately blushed, he

was turning me into a self-conscious, blushing, teenage girl all over again.

"Good morning," he murmured, raising the hand that was draped over me to brush my

cheekbone.

"Hmm," I hummed in contentment, my eyelids fluttering closed.

"God, I hope our baby is as beautiful as you are," he whispered so low I wasn't sure I'd heard

it.

My blush deepened as I looked into his minty-green eyes, "I hope he looks exactly like you,"

"He?"

I smiled, taking his hand and holding it against my stomach. "I have a feeling,"

"I gotta feeling, woohoo." he started to sing and I swotted at his chest. His voice was so loud

that I jumped.

"Don't you dare sing that around me," I glared, playfully. "Black Eyed Peas are not my

favorite band, believe it or not,"

He chuckled, "It was Jasper's ring tone, it irritated the hell out of me but somehow managed to

get stuck in my head,"

"Well, get it unstuck," I grumbled, still scowling

I felt a small fluttering sensation in my stomach, maybe this was gas? I knew pregnant women

usually were a little gassy. Then something small nudged me on the inside of my stomach. I'm

guessing Edward felt it, too, since he stopped talking and was gazing down at my stomach,

where his hand still rested.

"Did you feel that?" he breathed, his eyes still on my belly.

All I could do was nod, so many different emotions running through my body – shock,

wonder, excitement, love, adoration and...pride.

"That was the baby, right?" he verified, his eyes meeting with mine for a split second. "Not

just indigestion?"

I frowned slightly, "I-I think it was the baby, it felt...weird."

He grinned widely and looked up at me, "He must like the Black Eyed Peas."

I rolled my eyes and scoffed, "That would be just my luck wouldn't it?"

Edward chuckled, "I want to feel it again," he sounded like a whining child begging for just

one more scoop of ice cream.

"I'll be sure to put in a request," I uttered, teasingly.

He shuffled down on the couch so that his face was in-line with my stomach, "Baby? Earth to

baby? Could you kick just once more, please? Do it for daddy."

I was giddy. The moment so sweet and endearing that I giggled.

We both waited in anticipation but no nudges or fluttering sensations came. I sighed and

began to get up.

"I'll call you when I feel it again," I promised him when I saw his disappointed expression.

I showered and dressed in some of my newly acquired clothes while Edward made us both

breakfast.

As I munched on my toast, I suddenly remembered a question I had been meaning to ask him.

"Why do you have such crap in your cupboards?"

He stopped eating, his mouth still full of toast. "Ha?" he swallowed and repeated himself.

"Huh?"

I gestured to his kitchen cupboards, "Your food supply, it's all unhealthy and yet you're an

excellent cook."

He shrugged and scratched the back of his neck, "I'm too lazy,"

I quirked a brow, "We're going grocery shopping after work today," I left him no outlet to

negotiate on.

He nodded, "I'm paying, though,"

I shrugged, "Your groceries, I don't care, all I know is I'm buying mine,"

"No you're not,"

I frowned at him, "Uh...yes, I am. You're forgetting I have to buy for three," He frowned this

time, confused. I ticked off each person on my fingers. "Me, Ang and..." I patted my stomach.

"this little fetus,"

"You forget that I'm responsible for two of those,"

"Huh," I responded. "I never knew you were so close to Angela,"

He rolled his eyes, "Bella, I'm serious,"

"So am I." I argued. "I don't like people wasting money on me,"

"It's not 'wasting', Bella. Why did you let Alice buy all those clothes for you, but you wont let

me pay for a few groceries?"

Shit, he had me there.

"Because, I know how Alice is. She's unwavering and determined, there's no way I would

have even had time to get my credit card out,"

"You still haven't answered my question,"

"Fine then, how about you pay for them but I pay you back?"

He was quiet for a moment as he considered this, "Okay,"

I grinned, "Okay."

He glanced at his watch and took a final sip of his coffee, "We should get to the office,"

We arrived at work shortly after, everybody starting off the new day with their usual routines.

Amanda was, as usual, talking to her boyfriend that lived in Australia on Skype as they caught

up about their previous day. Laurent was flipping through various style magazines as he

predicted the upcoming trends. Alice was on her laptop editing photos and putting together

next weeks article. James was hanging around the coffee machine as he read a copy of this

weeks newspaper. Jessica was prattling off some story to Kate, Esme's assistant. Demetri was

back at work and seated in his large office, he glanced up briefly and continued his work. And

finally Esme was seated at her desk, as usual, flipping through paper work and making notes.

Edward kissed my cheek and headed off to his office. As I turned to start working on my

letters I noticed Demetri was watching us. I sighed and shook my head, walking to my office

so I could get some work done for once.

I looked up expectantly when I heard a throat clear, there stood Alice, beaming at me. "Do

you know how absolutely adorable you look in maternity clothes?"

I scowled at her, "Hush,"

This only seemed to encourage her. She giggled, "I'm serious, B. It really suits you,"

I looked down at myself with a frown, it was just a pair of black slacks and a white wrap

blouse. "I'm pretty sure I've worn something similar to this before," I was certain I had

another white wrap top somewhere in my closet...

"I know, silly. But this is maternity clothes, it practically screams 'cuteness',"

"Save the 'cute' talk for my baby. I'm twenty-four, not two, 'cute' is not a word a woman likes

to be described as," We like to be told we're sexy and beautiful.

She rolled her eyes, "You know you like it,"

I raised my eyebrows twice suggestively and licked my lips. She collapsed into a fit of

giggles.

"Having fun are we, ladies?" Demetri muttered, suddenly standing in my doorway.

Alice wheezed for air, wiping at her eyes. I knew I had a sense of humor, but Alice was just a

little too easy to entertain."Oh, she's a funny one," and with that she left.

Demetri stepped into my office and closed the door behind him. "Mind if we talk?" he asked.

I nodded my head yes, although I really didn't feel like it. "Sure," He took a seat and folded

his hands on my desk, his denim-blue eyes were troubled. I removed my glasses and gave him

my full attention. "What do you want to talk about?"

He let out a big gust of air, "I'm not going to lie, Bella. I'm miserable,"

"What does this have to do with me?" I wondered with a frown.

He chuckled darkly, humorlessly. "It has everything to do with you. I thought this 'break up'

would just be like the others – that we'd just get back together after a few weeks like we

always do...I never really detached myself from you,"

I sighed, "Demetri, there's really nothing we can do right now. I'm with Edward, you need to

move on,"

"That's the problem, Bella. I can't. You're the one for me, I've always seen it. My parents see

it. The only one whose blind is you,"

"Demetri," I started, refusing myself to absorb his words. "I'm pregnant with another mans

baby. Do you understand that? There's a living human being growing inside of me,"

"I know that. Dammit!" he shouted, raising from his chair. I recoiled instantly. "I fucked up.

One more chance, that's all I'm asking. Please," his voice dropped to a whisper. "just one

more, Bella. I'll prove myself to you, I can change."

I shook my head violently, trying to rid the visions of a different future from my mind. "Stop

it. Just...stop it." I wheezed."You can't do this to me. I gave you the decision months ago, it

was me or the paper. You chose the paper. It's who you are, I'd never want you to deny that.

You were perfectly fine last time I checked, you're just jealous because I'm no longer

available and I'm. no. longer. Yours." I emphasized each of those last words, hoping they'd set

in. "Do not come grovelling back to me months later and say you 'fucked up' and promise

change when we both know you're incapable of changing,"

I pushed out my chair from the desk and ran to Edward's office. He'd make it all better. I

knew he would.

He looked up at me, surprised by my sudden appearance in his office. He took in the red

puffiness of my eyes and his expression immediately turned into one of concern. He didn't ask

any questions, just stood up and wrapped his arms around me, whispering comforting words

in my ear.

Chapter 14

EPOV

Bella clung to me with all her strength, her entire body quivering as she sobbed into my chest.

I'd kill whoever did this to her. Hell, I'd kill myself if I ever made her cry this way.

"I-I just h-hate him so-o much," she choked, digging her nails into my bicep.

"Who?" I asked, needing to know whose ass I was going to serve to them. Alice walked past

my office at that moment and saw the state Bella was in. She hesitated, unsure if she was

needed. I motioned with my index finger for her to enter so I could punch the idiot that did

this to her.

"Demetri," she spluttered and I could feel the rage building up inside of me like vile about to

be thrown up.

I, gently, pried her off of me and passed her to Alice. "I'll be right back,"

I was usually a very non-violent person but when I saw Demetri still seated in Bella's office, I

lost it. I gave in to instinct and focused on the rage I was feeling towards him. He obviously

hadn't heard me coming since he jumped up when he heard the click of the lock as I closed

the door behind me.

"What are you doing?" he asked, apprehensively, backing away slightly.

"I'm going to make sure I never see her shed a single tear over you ever again," I explained,

walking towards him, my hands already clenched into fists...

BPOV

"Alice, what's going on?" I mumbled into her shoulder. "Why did he leave?"

Alice patted my back comfortingly, "I'm not sure...I think he's talking to Demetri,"

Just then there was a loud crash followed by two male voices shouting and cussing.

"Oh god," I groaned, I should have known better then to come running to Edward again. He

was probably hurting right now, that's how I would feel if the roles were reversed and I was

the one comforting him while he cried over a past love. What he didn't understand, was that

these were tears of anger.

"Hey!" I heard Esme shout. "Break it up, you two!"

I wriggled free of Alice's hold and headed straight for my office, pushing through a crowd of

my colleagues who had all gathered there. There were actually cheering them on...what was

this? High School?

I made it through just in time to see Edward's fist snap back and connect with Demetri's jaw

with a sickening crunch.

I placed both hand on my hips, "Enough!"

The office fell silent, the only sound was the phone ringing in reception and the heavy

breathing of Edward and Demetri. Edward had Demetri locked beneath him, his fist ready to

hit again. Normally I would have found two men fighting over me to be insanely hot, but now

it just pissed me off.

I heard a small 'ooh' from the watching crowd and turned around to give them a glare, "Out!"

They ran like dogs with their tails between their legs, I guess an enraged pregnant woman can

be pretty scary. Only Esme remained, sensing I'd need her assistance. Out of the corner of my

eye I saw Edward's fist raise again and quickly caught it. "Don't you dare hit him again,"

They both looked up at me incredulously – Edward because he didn't believe I wasn't on his

side; and Demetri because he couldn't believe I was on his. Upon closer inspection, I noticed

Demetri had a bloody nose and Edward had a split lip.

I scrunched up my nose at the sight of the crimson liquid, "Edward, get up,"

He obeyed immediately, shaking his head slightly to clear it. "Bella, I..."

I raised both my hands as if halting traffic, "Stop." I turned to Esme. "Do you mind taking

care of Demetri?"

"Of course not," she murmured, rushing forward to help him to his feet. I knew he wasn't in

her good books right now but she still treated him as if he was her own son.

He grumbled out a 'thanks' as he left with her, leaving Edward and I alone. He stood there

with his hands in his pockets looking like a child awaiting his punishment. I closed the door

and turned to face him.

"What the hell, Edward?"

He grimaced but quickly explained, "You were upset..."

I shook my head, "I was angry,"

"I hated...hate that he made you feel that way, I was only trying to help."

"Help who? You or me?" I snapped back.

He looked at me with widened eyes, surprised by my question. "You...obviously,"

"How is this...?" I gestured to the room, referring back to the fight. "helping me? You were

just trying to let out some of the rage you have built up inside of you and Demetri seemed like

an easy target,"

His expression hardened, his jaw set. "You're taking his side?" he was shouting now. "After

everything he's put you through?" He walked forwards, towering over me. "What about the

fact that you're carrying my baby?"

"I'm not taking any sides and do not use this baby against me!"

"It's my baby, I'll do whatever the hell I want," His eyes were cold and dead, only making his

words seem harsher.

My fists curled up at my sides and I felt a twinge in my stomach, all this stress was bad for the

baby. I closed my eyes and tried to calm myself down, taking a long deep breath. I needed

time to think, away from him. "Leave, please," I didn't hear him leave, but I heard the sound

of my door being slammed shut, the glass shaking in the frame. My eyes began to sting with

tears, I was really fucked up. I took a seat at my desk, trying to get my breathing to even out,

it was still far too fast and shallow. With my eyes still closed, I pressed down on the intercom,

trying to reach Jessica.

"Yes, Bella?" she asked hesitantly.

"Jess, could you um, get me some water, please?"

I heard her sigh, relieved. "Sure thing,"

A few seconds later she appeared at my door, placing the glass of water on my desk. "You're

looking a little pale," she commented as I took a small sip. "are you okay?"

I nodded weakly, "Just a little..." I contemplated the right word. "stressed,"

"You should go home if you're not feeling well, get some rest,"

I groaned slightly, the offer sounding so inviting. "I can't, I've got like a thousand letters still

to answer,"

"...And they'll all still be here tomorrow," she reminded me. "even if they're urgent, you can

always answer some from home,"

I guess she was right...I started gathering my things. "Tell Esme I'm going home, will you?"

"I'll take you," she offered once she saw me sway on my feet as I stood. Before I could object

she quickly added, "I'm meeting Mike for lunch near your apartment anyways,"

I sighed and smiled at her, "You're the best,"

"I know I am," she winked. I laughed despite my shitty mood and she helped me out my

office. "Should I be taking you to the doctor or something?" she wondered as she drove to my

apartment.

I faked a smile before I opened the door, "Nah, I'll be fine,"

"I'll see you tomorrow, Bella." She called as I walked up my apartment steps.

"Bye," I called back before making my way up the stairs to the apartment. Once I was safely

inside and behind closed doors, I let it all out again. Heartbreaking sobs rocked my body

making me shiver and shake as I sat down on the cold floor, my back pressing against the

door.

How was I going to face seeing them both everyday at the office?

My head was spinning, my stomach felt like it was constricting and I felt the bile rising up in

my throat. I scrambled to my feet, holding my hand over my mouth as I ran to the bathroom.

Clutching the ceramic toilet as I was violently ill. Once I my stomach was empty I continued

to dry heave into the toilet, my throat felt dry and scratchy. Finally, it subsided, letting me

breathe properly. Normally I would have just blamed it on bad food poisoning or something

and refuse to be taken to the hospital, but it wasn't just my body this time. Somehow I

managed to make my way over to my handbag and found my cellphone, redialing whoever I

had called last.

Luckily for me, it was Alice.

"Hey, Bella. How are you feeling? Jess told me she took you-"

I cut her off, "Alice, could you take me to the hospital, please?"

I heard the sound of keys jingling on the other end, "Oh my god, are you okay? Should I bring

Edward?"

"Alice," I shut my eyes tightly, trying to will away the black that spots were fluttering in front

of my eyes. "calm down and don't bring him, I don't want to see him right now,"

"I'll be there in two minutes, just hold-"

I didn't hear the rest, my eyelids clamped shut and my body slumped against the cold wooden

floor.

-x-x-x-x-

"I can't believe you only called me now,"

"What was I supposed to do? She didn't want you here,"

"It's still my child,"

"Technically, the baby belongs to both of you,"

"Will you shut up? God, you irritate me so much,"

"Rosie, calm down,"

"Emmett, do not tell me to calm down,"

"Shut up all of you, she's waking up,"

I opened one eyelid, wincing as I saw the harsh hospital lights. Standing before me was Alice,

Esme, Emmett and Rosalie, all with concerned looks on their faces. Edward sat in the chair

next to the bed I was on, Alice and Esme stood on the other side and Rose and Em were

standing at the foot of the bed.

I groaned, why did I always seem to be waking up in hospitals? "Not again," my throat was

dry and I coughed.

Before any of them could respond, Dr. Andrews entered the room, smiling gently at me.

"How are you feeling?"

"Tired and...weak," I responded.

"I have your blood work results back," she announced, flipping through papers on a clipboard.

"Alice advised me to take it while you were still unconscious,"

I smiled at my best friend, "Thanks again,"

She waved me off and Dr. Andrews continued. "I'm not sure why I didn't pick this up before,

seeing as you've been showing all the signs of this condition,"

My heart sunk in my chest and then shot up into my throat, "Condition?" everyone in the

room asked.

Dr. Andrews nodded, "Toxemia," she explained. "It's a form of high blood pressure in

pregnant women. Have you been under a lot of stress lately?"

"Bella's always stressed," Emmett told her and I shot him a glare.

Dr. Andrews scribbled something down on her paper, I felt nervous.

"Is it..." I swallowed, trying to get rid of the lump in my throat. "serious?"

She looked up at me with a small, sad smile, "Toxemia restricts blood flow, food and oxygen

to the placenta. It can result in a small baby, premature delivery or other complications."

I think I'm gonna be sick...again.

She saw my expression and quickly added, "Don't worry, we're lucky that we caught it early

and the symptoms should start to reverse once you've started the treatment,"

"Let me have it,"

She pursed her lips, "It's not an injection or pills. It's a no-salt diet, no stress and as much bed

rest as you can get,"

I nodded, I'd be able to do that. My lower lip quivered at the fact that my baby hadn't even

been born yet and I was already screwing up as a mother. I was no better than Renee.

-x-x-x-x-

As I lay in bed awake that night, my hand resting over my stomach as my baby fluttered

inside of me, I made the decision.

Dr. Andrews had said that the main cause of my condition was stress. I thought of all the

things that made me stressed...work was the first that came to mind.

I sighed as I got out of bed to find my laptop, for the first time in my life I was actually

prepared to do something that Renee had done when she was pregnant. The white light

coming from the screen as I typed, illuminated the room.

Tomorrow I would hand in my letter of resignation effective as of next month. No more stress

for me...or my unborn child.

This will be a good thing...I think.

Chapter 15

BPOV

The next morning as I was leaving the apartment, Angela ran ahead and blocked me. "Whoa,

whoa, whoa, where do you think you're going?"

I rolled my eyes, "Bed rest doesn't technically mean..."

"Yes, it does, Bella." she disagreed and began ushering me back to my bedroom. "Now get

back in that bed,"

"Okay," I agreed in a sickly sweet voice. "you can hand in my resignation letter then,"

Her eyes grew wide and she immediately stopped, "Nuh-uh,"

I smiled glumly, "That's what I thought."

APOV (since I feel like some entertainment)

I really wasn't expecting Bella to come into the office today since she was so sick yesterday

and the doctor told her she should be staying in bed.I guess I can't blame her, if I was told that

I had to stay in bed...I think I would have gone crazy. Unless...Jasper was with me. Hehe.

That man made all my girly bits tingle. Every single one of them.

Now, I'm not the type of girl who goes crazy for a man after she's just met him, but Jasper was

different, with his calm personality, ocean blue eyes and that sandy-blonde hair, he was a

walking Alice wet dream.

Too bad he was only coming down again next month since Ed and Elizabeth were planning

on visiting to help with Bella.

Speaking of Bella, she's just gone into Esme's office without even coming to say 'good

morning' to me. Being the ever-sneaky person that I am I managed to get myself close enough

to overhear their conversation. I stood next to the water cooler, staring blankly at a piece of

new artwork hanging on the wall as I listened in.

"Bella, you can't be serious," Esme murmured.

"It's the only way, Esme, with you leaving and this condition...it just makes sense," Bella said,

her voice breaking slightly.

What the hell are they talking about?

"You're really leaving?" Esme verified and my heart sank.

How could she do this to me? Who was I going to go to lunch with? Or take shopping with

me?...Oh my God, No!...who was going to carry my bags when I go shopping?

I felt light-headed as it dawned on me that I'd have to start making arrangements with Bella

whenever I wanted to see her, instead of her being in the same building as me everyday.

I saw Edward, who was talking to Laurent, trying to look in Esme's office. His forehead

creased with worry upon seeing Bella. He looked over at me with an expression that seemed

to say 'what's going on?'. I shrugged one shoulder and moved closer to Esme's office. Esme's

eyes flickered up to where Edward and I were standing, just outside of her office and she rose

out her chair to close the door.

Dag-nabit. What were they planning?

BPOV

"You're really leaving?" Esme asked after she had read over my resignation letter.

"It's the only way, Esme," I explained my decision further for her, hoping she'd understand.

She looked up and rose from her seat, closing the door. "I wasn't sure how to ask you this

before, but since you're leaving...I guess it would be okay,"

"Ask me what?" I frowned.

"I'm not really old enough to retire, Bella," she said with a smug smile as she retook her seat,

reclining back in it slightly.

Huh? "What are you talking about?"

"I'm only fifty-three," she told me very matter-of-factly.

Again...huh?

She saw my expression and continued, "When I decided that this was the job I wanted to

do...I just wanted to be able to have a loop-hole in case the whole thing blew up in my face,"

My mind was blank as I stared at her, somehow all the wrinkles on her face seemed to

disappear. "Can't you tell Demetri, let him keep you on?"

She smiled ruefully, "I could...but, I've been dealing with the Merta's for a few years now and,

quite frankly, I'm happy to be rid of them. Not Elena, of course," she added quickly. "she's a

wonderful woman...just Aro and Demetri. Both of them are very difficult to read, I have a

hard time telling if they're being honest with me or not,"

"That makes two of us," I muttered under my breath, then spoke louder. "What does this all

have to do with me?"

"Nothing," she answered simply and I frowned again. "...yet. But it could have everything to

do with you. See...I've been toying with the idea of starting up a magazine, I would've stuck to

newspapers since it's all I know but there's enough newspapers in this town and only a handful

of magazines,"

It was all making sense now, I smiled. "And you want me to join your magazine?"

She smiled sheepishly, "Yes, although, it's not technically a magazine yet, it's only a

possibility. I still need a publisher,"

"Edward's dad is a publisher," I suddenly blurted out, recalling one of my conversations with

him.

Esme's eyes lit up, "Really?"

I nodded, "Plus, they're kind of loaded...so they should be able to help out..."

"Thank you, Bella. I'll be keeping in contact, will you be working from home for the next

month?"

I nodded, "I'll probably be chained to the bed, it's the only way they're gonna get me to stay

in,"

"I'll be sure to bake a cake with a key in it to release you," she winked.

I laughed and exited her office only to come face-to-face with Alice and Edward, they were

standing right outside Esme's office straining to hear what was going on. I glared at Edward

and quirked a brow, silently telling them I was waiting for an explanation for their

eavesdropping.

"Um, we were just..." Alice's glassy eyes scanned the space around her, trying to find

something to use. Her eyes settled on a small painting of a beach. "admiring this piece of

artwork, isn't it beautiful?" her voice broke on the last word and she suddenly ran off and

disappeared into her office, closing the door.

Shit, she must have heard that I was resigning.

"Alice!" I called as I ran after her, leaving Edward to continue 'admiring the artwork'. I didn't

bother knocking on her door just let myself in to see her seated with her head on her desk. Her

tiny shoulders shaking indicating that she was crying.

Without thinking, I pulled her up and held her against me. "Alice, I'm not leaving you," I'd

only ever seen Alice cry over a pair of shoes that were sold out.

"You-you're leaving the paper." she stated, her arms wrapping around me ans squeezing so

tight it felt like my eyeballs would pop out of my skull.

"Well, yes," I said and she sobbed louder, so I quickly added. "but you'll still see me

everyday, trust me, you're going to be sick of seeing my face," She laughed despite the tears

and I was happy to hear it, "and when the baby's born I'm going to need the godmother to look

after him or her from time to time so I don't go insane,"

She pulled out of my embrace to look at me, a large grin lighting up her child-like face. "You

mean it?" I nodded and she squeezed me again, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she sang.

"You sure you want to be the godmother?" I checked, it had been difficult to choose between

my best friends but I'd find a way to make it up to Angela and Rose in the future.

"Are you crazy?" she shrieked, I winced and covered my ears with my hands. "I'd love to!"

I laughed, "I'm glad you're so enthusiastic."

"It's one of my many talents," she winked. If I hadn't known Alice for the past couple of years

I would have been confused by her drastic mood changes, but I was used to it by now. It's just

who she is.

Before we could both say anything further on the matter, there was two loud knocks on the

door. I had a feeling I knew who it was...

Edward let himself in and nodded at Alice in greeting before looking back at me, his emerald

eyes gazed at me so intently it felt like he could see right through me.

"Mind if we have a word?"

I rolled my eyes, dismissing the uneasy feeling in my stomach. "Yeah," I agreed, following

him out the office, giving Alice a small, sad smile. I walked straight to my office, I could keep

myself distracted by packing up my things while we talked.

Edward closed the door behind him quietly after we were both inside. I made my way over to

my desk and began collecting various things.

"I thought you were supposed to be in bed..." Edward hinted, sounding a little apprehensive.

I kept my eyes away from his as I spoke, "I came in to hand in my letter of resignation,"

I heard him exhale sharply and looked up to see him pinching the bridge of his nose with his

thumb and forefinger. "That is the most irresponsible thing I've ever heard, how are you

planning on providing for our child?"

My mouth fell open, "I'm going to get another job, Edward. I just have to get away from,"

You. "all this stress and Demetri,"

He nodded, understanding. "Bella, I want to apologize for the way I acted yesterday. It was

completely uncalled for and I don't want to cause you anymore stress in your life," all that was

said without a single pause. Maybe he was related to Alice?

"I understand," I murmured quietly. My eyes dropping from his again. "I would have been

upset, too,"

He sighed and walked closer towards me, "It's still no excuse, I just get...angry when I see

what that man," he spat the word. "does to you,"

I inhaled deeply, when I spoke again my voice was firm with conviction. "I'm not going to let

him get to me anymore,"

He walked closer still, pausing only when he was a few feet away. His fingertips brushed

gently against my hands. "I care very deeply for you, Bella. Even if you weren't carrying my

child I'd still feel the same way,"

Like the spineless person I am, my anger for him disappeared completely with those words.

A light fluttering began in my stomach like it always did before a light kick, I grabbed his

hand in mine and placed it over our bump. "Kicking," I explained when he looked at me,

slightly confused.

His expression cleared and he smiled. When there was a light tap just underneath his hand he

chuckled lightly. "Does it do this a lot?"

"Now and then," I answered, waiting for the next flutter. "What happens now?"

"What do you mean?" he wondered, his eyes still fixated on my stomach.

"Between us."

His hand moved from my stomach, up to my hip and, gently, pulled me closer. "I think we

should take it slow, do things the right way. If that's okay with you?"

I trudged up the stairs up to my apartment, feeling oddly...lighter after my talk with Edward.

All the built-up angst and frustration I had was now successfully vented and I no longer felt so

alone. I wasn't paying attention as to where I was walking since I knew this path like the back

of my hand.

It was only when I was unlocking the door of my shared apartment and heard a throat clear

did I realize I wasn't alone...

Chapter 16

BPOV

My hand froze on the door handle and I turned to see the last person I ever expected to see.

Her light-brown hair with blonde highlights was pulled back in a messy bun, strands of hair

falling into her face. Her clothing style was still as eclectic as before. Only she would wear a

pair of bleached jeans with a red paisley tunic that was belted in the middle. A pair of ankle

boots on her feet and a large bag that looked bigger then my head.

"What are you doing here?" I spat, watching the smile disappear from her thin lips.

"What?" Renee drawled out. "I can't come visit my own child?"

"Since when have you decided that I'm your child?" I growled.

She placed her thin arms on her hips, "Well, whose child are you then? Obviously I just

imagined being in labor for fourteen hours,"

I rolled my eyes and turned back to my apartment door, unlocking it so I could step inside. I

tried to slam the door behind me but suddenly a large suitcase was placed between the door,

successfully halting my actions. Unfortunately, my body didn't stop and I ended up hitting my

head against the wood. "Gah!" I gasped, holding my hand over the injury.

"God, you're still as clumsy as ever," she tutted as she pushed her way through despite my

obvious displays of unwelcome.

"And you're still as irritating as ever," I grumbled. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

I questioned when I saw her taking a seat on the couch.

"You're quite hormonal," she commented. "even more than usual. I suppose what Vicky told

me is true?" she didn't give me a chance to respond, "I don't understand how you can be so

irresponsible, Isabella Marie!" she had now risen off the couch and was pacing, her arms

flailing around like the mad woman she was. "I always knew you'd be the careless one,"

"How the fuck would you know that?" I shouted. "You've never spent longer than ten minutes

in the same room as me,"

She grumbled something about 'language of a sailor' under her breath. "That's not the issue

right now,"

"When is it ever?"

She ignored my question, "What I'd like to know is what preparations have you made for this

child?"

"Oh, well, excuse me," I sneered as I plopped down on the couch. "I never knew you were so

maternal,"

"Every woman has some sort of instinct deep down inside of her,"

"What are you then? A man?"

She sighed exasperatedly, "Despite what you might think, I do have those instincts. Which is

why I'm here to help."

"Yeah 'cause you did so great raising me and Emmett," I said sarcastically.

"Emmett and I," she corrected. "What type of man would like a woman who can't even

compose a proper sentence?"

"Obviously the one who knocked me up," I countered, patting my stomach for emphasis.

"Speaking of which," she continued. "who is the father? Do I know him? Was it Demetri?"

I sighed, picking at my nails. "No, it's not Demetri and no, you don't know him. His name is

Edward Masen,"

"I'll have to meet him right away, where is he?" she looked around as if he'd appear in front of

her.

"At work, he's the new editor of the paper,"

"...and you're not there because?"

"I'm supposed to be on bed rest since I have Toxemia,"

"Then why aren't you in bed?" she exclaimed, looking at me like I'd completely lost my mind.

"Because. I'm. Talking. To. You." I said through gritted teeth.

"Isabella, you're making me feel extremely unwelcome,"

So, now she finally gets the picture? "Good."

She stared at me blankly for a moment, "Just wait until you have to have this sort of

conversation with your child,"

"I'd never be in the same position," I said defiantly. "I intend to be an actual mother,"

"Do you always have to be so stubborn?" she asked, her hands balling up into fists at her

sides.

"Yes." I snapped. "Feel free to leave if it bothers you so much," She rolled her eyes and

walked towards the fridge. "Hey! This isn't some self-catering establishment,"

She paused and looked at me, the fridge door blocking half of her face. "Would you like to

make me something to eat, then?"

"I'd like for you to leave," I said in a sickly sweet voice.

"What would your father think if he heard you talking to me like this?"

I rose from the couch and walked towards her, she watched me hesitantly as if she were

waiting for me to snap. "Do not bring Charlie into this conversation he was more of a parent

then you'd ever dream to be and he'd take my side like any other parent would,"

Renee looked away from me, closing the fridge door. "You know, Isabella. I only came down

here to help you."

"You're about twenty-four years too late, Renee."

She looked up at me then, her face still as cold and emotionless as ever. "I suppose you'd

prefer me to leave?" I nodded with narrowed eyes. She'd never given in so quickly before.

I watched as she walked to the door, picked up her luggage and left without another word.

EPOV

I drove to Bella's apartment, the sound of Three Days Grace's Animal I have Become blasting

through my radio. I tapped my fingers on the steering wheel to the best until I arrived.

A mousy looking woman wearing a bright red top and old fashioned bleached jeans exited the

apartment building, pulling what appeared to be a heavy suitcase behind her. As I approached

her bag got stuck in the door and she fell forward but managed to catch herself, narrowly

escaping falling flat on her face.

"Are you okay?" I asked concerned. There was something there in her features that was oddly

familiar...

She looked up at me with a scowl on her face, "Do yourself a favor and never have kids

they're the worst thing you could ever do to yourself,"

I blanked for a moment, not expecting that. "Uh," I looked around, scratching the back of my

neck. "It's a little late for that, I have one on the way,"

She huffed, blowing a strand of hair out her face. "Too bad, you could have probably made

something out of your life and I bet you treat your mother better then how that stubborn child

of mine does," she didn't let me respond. "Just like her father, that one. She's never given me

the time of day and now she gets herself knocked up-"

Shit, I knew she looked familiar. "Wait." I interrupted. "Are you...Renee Swan?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Renee Dwyer," she corrected. "How do you know..." then Renee's eyes

widened as she put the pieces together. "You! You're the one that knocked her up!"

I grimaced, unsure of whether I should run for my life or not. "I'm sorry?" I offered.

"You have nothing to be sorry about, boy. I'm the one who feels sorry for you," she appeared

to be as much as an enigma as her daughter. "We, Swans, aren't known for our maternal

instincts, you'll be picking up the slack when she figures out that she wants more out of her

life,"

"Bella's doing great for your information, she's going to make a wonderful mother."

"The same thing was said about me,"

"I highly doubt she'd want to follow in your footsteps," I snapped. Usually, I'd never be so

rude to someone I just met but after all the stories Bella had told me about her childhood, I

couldn't care less for this woman.

That comment halted her, her mouth opened then faltered a bit as if deciding on what to say.

With one final huff, she lifted her suitcase from the ground and marched past me. "I'll be

seeing you." She sneered over her shoulder.

I shivered with rage, the woman was mad. As in crazy-mad. As in no-wonder-her-daughter-is-

hot-and-cold-all-the-time mad.

I watched her as she retreated, rounding the corner with a mobile phone pressed to her ear,

and shook my head before heading upstairs. If she'd just spoken to Bella, what type of a state

would Bella be in?

I knocked hesitantly, pressing my ear to the door to hear if there was sound to indicate she

was crying. But she opened the door, her face flushed with anger which dropped slightly

when she saw it was just me.

"You'll never guess who I ran into in the lobby," I said breaking the slight silence between us

as I entered the small apartment.

She sighed heavily as she plopped down onto the couch, "I can probably guess. Although I'm

surprised you're not emotionally scared or..." she cocked her head to the side. "physically

harmed. She's apparently got a mean back-hander."

"I wont lie, she's slightly deranged."

"She's bloody demented." Bella corrected as I took a seat next to her. "What are you doing

here, anyways?"

"I figured visits would fit into the whole 'taking it slow' arrangement?"

"I suppose." she shrugged then moved slightly closer to me.

"Where's Angela?" I wondered, glancing around the apartment, noticing that it wasn't it's

usually meticulous self.

"At Ben's for a few days," she explained. "they're trying out the whole 'living together' thing."

I was suddenly worried. The only reason I was able to let Bella stay here was because there

would be Angela to watch over her most of the time. "So you're staying here alone?"

"Why?" she asked with a slight smirk. "Are you planning on having your way with me."

"You have a one-track mind, but no, taking it slow, remember? No, but really, I'm not happy

with you here all by yourself. What if something goes wrong?"

"I have neighbors," she offered, indicating with her thumb.

I rolled my eyes, "They're not always home, Bella."

"Look," she sighed. "I'm not a baby. I am capable of operating a phone in an emergency. I

was able to call Alice in the last incident, was I not?"

I nodded reluctantly. What I really wanted her to do was move in temporarily with me and let

my mother take care of her when she came down in a few weeks or so. Something tells me

Bella wont be so happy with the idea. Hell, I decided to try it out anyway. "Well, you

could...always, ya know, stay with me for a while? You don't have to but I think it would be

for the best and I could get my mom to look after you while I'm at work and you wouldn't

have to lift a finger and-"

She cut me off by waving her hands, "What the hell? I thought we were taking it slow?"

"This isn't about us, it's about the baby." I tried, knowing that she'd be more likely to consider

this if I involved the baby's health into the equation.

She looked down at the floor for a moment then at the blank TV screen as she made her

decision. "Look, I'll think about it, okay? Don't smile like that, Masen. I'll probably say no

and stay here anyway."

I dropped the wide smile that was on my face but was still smiling on the inside. The fact that

she was even attempting to consider the option was proof that I was breaking through the

sarcastic, fiery, shell that is Bella Swan.

Chapter 17

EPOV

Bella sat next to me in the car with her arms crossed over her chest, looking like a sulking

child.

"Bella, stop sulking, you knew we'd have to do this sooner or later,"

She sighed and relaxed a bit, fingering the hem of her dress that came mid-thigh now due to

her ever-expanding stomach. "I would have preferred to make the decision for myself,"

"Just because the doctor suggested it doesn't mean you didn't make the decision,"

"Yeah," she grumbled. "well, Emmett told me I was being selfish to the baby and that I was

going to turn out like Renee,"

I swerved slightly on the road, "He said what?"

She gave me the side eye, "Just kidding, he'd never say that, but I had a dream that he did,"

This was the latest thing, Bella has been relying on all the dreams she's had since she's been

having these weird deja vu moments and convinced that it's the baby telling her what

decisions to make. Alice was overjoyed that Bella was feeling the same things that she did

and was adamant that our baby would take after her since she was, of course, 'going to be the

best godmother ever', as she put it.

I had no doubt that Alice would be a great godmother since she already loved the baby almost

as much as Bella and I did.

It was now a week after Renee's arrival and we still hadn't heard from her. Two days after I

had taken Bella for a check up since she was feeling a little light-headed and the doctor

suggested either she stay in the hospital for a few days or move in temporarily with me so that

she would be forced to be on bed-rest and be monitored constantly.

Much to my joy, Bella had decided to move in with me and we'd packed up some of her stuff

to bring with that was now stored in the boot and back seat of my Volvo.

My family arrived yesterday and Jasper was already going out for dinner with Alice tomorrow

night, she was coming over to my place once Bella was settled in so she could do an approval

of her outfit and calm her down a bit. Bella and I were babysitting Henry tonight while Rose

and Emmett went out on a date.

My mother was waiting at home fixing up Bella's room which used to be my office. The

office was now in a corner of my lounge.

We pulled into the parking and climbed out. I grabbed a box of Bella's things from the back

and winced slightly from the weight. What could she possibly have put in here?

"Careful with that," she warned. "If you harm my books in any way..."

The weight was now explained. "Bella, I have books, why would you possibly need these

with you?"

"I doubt you have the same ones,"

I sighed and readjusted the box in my arms before walking upstairs to my apartment. The door

flew open before I could start trying to figure out a way to get the key out my back pocket.

"Bella!" My mother squealed with delight and pulled her into a tight hug.

"Hi, Liz," Bella breathed.

Liz pulled back and looked her over, it was easy to say she already loved Bella. "You look

beautiful as always, dear, how's my grand baby?"

Bella sighed and smiled, rubbing her hand over the bump. "Good thanks, either way I'm going

to be a soccer mom with the way this kid kicks,"

My mother laughed and stepped aside so we could come in, I placed the box on the floor by

the door.

"Edward was the same but he was never really into sports as a kid, he's always been more into

music,"

Bella smiled, "I was the same, which was difficult in my family since Emmett and my dad

were both sporty,"

My mother and Bella took their seats on the couch and chatted away for most of the

afternoon. It was as if I wasn't even there. It was entertaining though. Mainly, I watched Bella

and all her little facial expressions, like how she would smile in the middle of a sentence

whenever she felt our baby inside of her.

Would I be able to take things slow? The way I was feeling now as I watched her made me

certain that I couldn't hold out for much longer.

BPOV

Liz left shortly after it started to get dark, leaving Edward and I alone. It actually hadn't been a

hard decision to move in with him. Though I'd much rather be staying in my own apartment

with my own stuff, I knew that this was for my, and the baby's, safety and that we'd be taken

care of here.

I turned around after closing the front door and looked back at Edward who was still seated in

the same spot on the couch as this afternoon.

I walked over to the kitchen with intentions on making something for dinner, hopefully he had

restocked them since the last time I opened them.

"I can make dinner," he offered, suddenly very close behind me. "you've been up the whole

day,"

"I'm up the whole day at home anyway," I reminded him. "and I manage to make breakfast,

lunch, dinner and snacks,"

He chuckled humorlessly and opened the fridge, "You're never going to let me take care of

you, are you?"

I sighed and pulled a pot from the cupboard below the sink. "I've basically taken care of

myself my whole life, Edward, even though there was Charlie and Emmett...I've just always

felt I had to..."

He placed brushed his hand along my forearm. "Do you think you could, maybe, just try it

out, even for a little bit? Maybe you'll like it."

I turned around, coming face to face with him. Would I be able to let him do this? Without

any complaints from my side? My mind was screaming 'no' at me but my heart could see the

pleading reflecting in his eyes and knew he was just looking out for my best interests. I

thought back to the reasons why I was like this. The cause being from the absence of a

mother. Ultimately, I was prepared for anything that would erase the traces of her from my

life. "I-I think I could try, just don't...expect it to be easy for me...I'm pretty stubborn-"

He cut me off with a smile, "Believe me, Bella, I know how stubborn you are,"

There was a knock on the door and I grinned, my favorite nephew was here. I left Edward and

the kitchen and opened the door for them. Emmett stood there with Henry cradled against his

chest with one arm and Rose had the baby bag over her shoulder. She wore a red dress with a

plunging neckline that fit her form flawlessly. I could only hope I'd be able to bounce back

after my baby.

"Hi, guys," I grinned, excited to see them.

"I swear you've gotten twice the size since the last time I saw you," Emmett commented,

earning a glare from Rose.

"Emmett, women don't like being told they're getting bigger, or have all the years I've been

married to you taught you nothing?"

He laughed despite the obvious threat in her eyes, I could see they really needed this date. She

turned to me and smiled before hugging me tight, "Thank you so much for doing this for us,

Bella."

"It's good practice," I smiled, opening my arms for Henry. Emmett carefully handed him to

Rose who kissed both his cheeks then handed him to me. It felt weird holding him now...more

natural, I guess. Or maybe it was just because there was a thought constantly playing in my

mind that reminded me 'you're going to be mother'...or maybe, I was just crazy.

I felt Edward's presence behind me, "Evening, Rose, Emmett," he placed one hand on my

back and smiled at each of them.

Emmett grinned, shocking us all, "Hey, man, thanks for babysitting tonight,"

"No problem, have a great time,"

Rose and Emmett left then, I looked down at Henry seeing his bright blue eyes, curly black

hair and dimples. He truly was a mini Emmett. I was half-expecting him to say something like

'dude' or suddenly burst into a roar of laughter.

I tickled his tummy and he gurgled, giving a gummy smile up at me. "Look, he's smiling," I

said to Edward who was watching us intently.

"You're a natural at this, you know that?" he murmured into my ear. "Our baby is so lucky,"

I smiled at his words, "Nah, I've just had practice with him,"

"Another thing you'll have to try – taking compliments,"

I laughed under my breath, "I think that one will be even harder,"

He chuckled and leaned forward, holding out his pinky finger to Henry. Henry squirmed a bit

but took the finger in one of his hands, gripping onto it tightly.

"Wow, this kid's got a mean grip,"

I laughed, it would have been impossible for me to believe this unless Emmett was the father.

"Do you wanna hold him?" I wondered, watching the smile on his face as he played with the

baby. He smiled eagerly, but I could see the hesitation in his eyes. "Come on, I'll show you

and I wont abandon you this time,"

I turned around and instructed him how to hold his arms before placing Henry in them gently.

He whimpered and stirred a little and Edward's expression turned into one of fear.

"I'm hurting him," he said, sounding worried and scared.

"You're fine," I assured him, adjusting his arms slightly so they would both be more

comfortable. Edward patted his hand on Henry's small stomach and he gurgled, smiling up at

him. "Now who's the natural?"

Edward grinned at me, the pride in himself was easy to see in his eyes. It was easy to see he

was going to be a great father and maybe something more...for me.

Would I be able to try let him care for me? I looked at him again and smiled. I think I could.

Chapter 18

BPOV

This morning I was woken up with a slap in the face. Literally. I must have slapped myself in

my sleep because when I woke up I had my hand over my face. It was bright, too bright. I had

a feeling I had been asleep for a very long time. I opened my eyes and winced, rubbing my

eyes and blinking a few times, trying to register where I was.

Oh! Edward's apartment. I got up and stretched wincing as my bones clicked, I hated that

sound. It was like nails on a chalkboard to me. I could hear voices coming from the lounge

and paused at my door, it was a woman's voice. I padded barefoot down the passage until the

voice registered in my head and I smiled.

"Good morning, sleepy head," Rose chimed, seated on one of the marshmallow couches with

Henry bouncing on her knees. Emmett sat next to her with his arm draped casually over her

shoulder and Edward sat on the smaller loveseat.

"Hi," Gah, my voice was always so gravelly and hoarse after sleep.

Edward smiled crookedly and patted the empty seat next to him, "Did you sleep well?" he

wondered as I sat down. I nodded with a smile and turned to Em and Rose.

"Renee came over earlier," Emmett started, blurting it out as if he were passing a hot potato as

quickly as possible.

I growled, "She's still here?"

He nodded, "Apparently she's not leaving until she's comfortable with the arrangements

you've made for your child's future,"

"That's a little hypocritical don't you think?"

"That's what I said," Rose added, taking her eyes off the bouncing baby in her lap to look at

me. "she had the nerve to say she has a feeling you'd freak out and leave, so she wanted

Edward to have proper arrangements just in case," she rolled her eyes. "I'm sorry, I know

she's your mother, but I've never met anyone as infuriating as her before, she has no regard for

anyone else's feelings,"

I nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly. "The question is: How are we going to get rid of her?"

Edward, who was twirling a strand of my hair, spoke up, "Didn't you say she remarried?" we

nodded. "Can't you phone this 'Phil' guy and let him know what's going on, maybe she'd listen

to him?"

Emmett shrugged, "It's worth a shot, although I've never really spoken to Phil, he could be

just as insane as she is,"

I snorted, "I doubt that's possible,"

He grinned at me, "You never know, Bubs. Do you have his number?"

"Uh, it's on my laptop."

Edward got up and unpacked one of the boxes, producing my laptop. I turned it on and found

the number. Emmett programmed it into his phone and pressed dial.

I could hear a muffled greeting from the other end before Emmett spoke. "Uh, Hi, it's, um,

Emmett Swan, Renee's son...No, she's okay, I think. I'm just calling to make sure you know

where she is. Oh," his eyes widened and he looked at me, a slight smile on his face as if he'd

found the missing piece of the puzzle. I had always called it Emmett's Eureka! face "You

don't? She's here in Port Angeles." Renee hadn't even told her own husband where she was

going? "Don't worry about that, we'll meet you there,"

Emmett finished off and grinned at me, "Phil's on his way by plane, he didn't even know

where she was. Apparently, they had a fight and he's been trying to contact her for a while,"

I shook my head in dismay, how was one person so insane? "Hopefully once he's here he can

talk some sense into her,"

Emmett shrugged, "He sounded like a nice enough guy, we have to fetch him in five hours

from the airport since he's never been to Forks or Port Angeles before,"

5 hours later

Emmett and I were seated in front of Terminal A, awaiting the arrival of our step-father. We

were seated next to a woman not much older than me trying to control two kids. One was a

boy who looked about five years old, he was holding a sign saying 'Welcome home, Daddy'

and bouncing in his seat as he rattled off some story to his mother who was only half-listening

as she was trying to control her one-year old daughter who was wailing at the top of her lungs

as she tried to grasp the sign her brother was holding. The picture would have been terrifying

to me if the father hadn't shown up at that moment, dropped the bag he was carrying and

greeted his family. A bear hug for his son, a kiss on the forehead for his daughter and an

anything-but-chaste kiss to his wife. The moment was so private I looked away but looked

back again after a moment. They were no longer attached at the lips but staring into each

others eyes, their fingers intertwined. The love and adoration was easy to see.

I smiled to myself and watched as they walked away, the son balancing on the shoulders of

his father as he carried his bag in one hand, held his wife's hand in the other while she held

their baby.

I looked back towards the terminal doors and saw a man kitted out head-to-toe in baseball

gear.

I nudged Emmett next to me, "You think that's him?"

He shrugged and got up, "Can't hurt to try,"

We walked towards him, cautiously. He hadn't seen us as his eyes swept over the seated

people waiting for their loved-ones.

"Uh, Phil Dwyer?" Emmett wondered.

Phil nodded and shook both our hands. "Hi there, boy. Wow, you really are a big guy and this

beauty must be Isabella,"

I grinned, though I felt anything but beautiful. Apparently, this was what overexertion felt

like. I was still supposed to be in bed after all. "Hi, Phil, please call me Bella,"

He grinned widely, showing off a pair of perfectly white teeth. I gave him a once over, he was

still young. In his early thirties perhaps?

His hand wavered over my stomach, "Do you mind?" he asked me.

I shrugged. What was one more person? "Be my guest,"

He patted my stomach gingerly. "Hello down there, I'm your step-g," step-g? Oh god, he was

one of those 'modernized grandpa's'. "You don't know me yet, but I'll be the one who sneaks

you candy when you're not supposed to have," he threw me a wink.

I laughed and so did Emmett. He was genuinely a nice guy from what I could tell.

Phil dropped his hand and straightened up, "He's gonna be the best damn baseball player there

is,"

I laughed again. "I was actually thinking a soccer player and why did you say 'he'?"

Phil shrugged, "You're carrying low, doesn't that mean a boy?"

"I'm trying not to listen to old wives tales, but somehow I just get this feeling it's a boy,"

"She's been having weird dreams lately," Emmett added. "claims she's a psychic,"

I smacked his arm, "I didn't say I was psychic, I just feel...ugh, I don't know how to explain

it,"

Phil waved it off, "No worries, I'll never question a pregnant woman, I have a feeling it

wouldn't go down to well,"

Emmett laughed under his breath, "You have no idea,"

"Speaking of women," Phil started. "Any idea where that crazy wife of mine is?"

I looked to Emmett who answered. "She's staying at a hotel not too far from here,"

As we drove in Emmett's Jeep, my curiosity got the better of me. Phil was seated next to me

in the back, so I turned to talk to him. "So, you think Renee's crazy, too?"

Phil gave a low chortle as he watched the trees speed past us. "I'm almost sure she's certifiably

insane," the way he spoke about her, there was no hint of bitterness, only a reverence. I hadn't

heard anyone talk like that about Renee.

I stopped, "Then why-"

"Am I married to her?" he suggested, looking at me. I nodded. "Well, there's a great woman

under that crazy exterior. She's not always there but when she is..." his expression grew

faraway as if he was remembering something. He shook his head to clear it, then smiled at

me. "it overcomes everything you've had to go through. I'm not lying when I say she really

does love you Bella – so much. You and Emmett are the biggest accomplishments of her life."

"If she loved us, why would she leave us?" Emmett and I asked at the same time.

Phil sighed, "It's no secret that Renee's not the most 'motherly' person you'd ever meet. She

was, in her own words, a terrible mother to Emmett and had been planning on leaving your

father for some time before she fell pregnant with you,"

I frowned, feeling a little hurt that my suspicions of being a 'mistake' had been confirmed.

Phil saw my expression and quickly back-tracked, "Don't take it that way, Bella. You were

never a mistake, just unplanned...like most children are. I bet you never planned on that," he

pointed to my stomach. "but you love it anyway?"

My hands folded over my tummy, "Of course I love it,"

Phil smiled so widely that the sides of his eyes crinkled a little. I saw a brief flicker of Charlie

in that action. "Now I can't put words in Renee's mouth but she was terrified of messing up

yet another child." he saw Emmett's expression and quickly added. "Not that you're messed

up, Emmett,"

Emmett guffawed, unperturbed. Nothing ever worried Emmett.

"That fear left her unable to ever be a proper mother to you. Now there's a whole other part of

the story but I'd prefer Renee to tell you 'cause I don't know all the details."

"Thank you for telling us," I said sincerely for both Emmett and I.

Phil smiled in return and went back to watching the trees.

Emmett caught my eye in the rear-view mirror and he didn't need words to express that we

would be talking to Renee about this.

It was about time we got some answers from her.

Chapter 19

BPOV

The rest of the drive was in silence until we arrived at the hotel where Renee had been

staying.

Phil let out a low whistle as he took in the appearance of Port Angeles' finest accommodation,

"So that's where my credit card went."

I didn't know if he was joking or not, so I offered a meek smile, then turned to Emmett to ask

what number suite she was in, I didn't get to ask as I heard a woman's voice coming from the

front desk as we entered.

"I don't care if it's not available, I asked for a sparkling water. Does this look like sparkling

water to you?" Renee shrieked, waving the bottle of water in front of the concierge.

Phil did a sort of half-sigh, half-laugh under his breath and walked ahead of us, stopping just a

few feet behind her. He said something and she jumped and turned around.

"What are you doing here?" I heard her ask as Emmett and I approached.

Phil waved her off, "There's time for that later, hon. It's time for you to talk to your children."

At the mention of children, Renee's glanced past Phil and noticed us standing there. Her entire

posture changed, instead of the self-assured, confident albeit insane woman I always thought

she was, she looked a little defeated.

Emmett nodded his head slightly in greeting while I just gave her the vacant stare.

She sighed, "Very well, but I'm not airing my dirty laundry in the lobby of a hotel." with that,

she turned on her heel, flicking a finger behind her to indicate we should follow.

Emmett shook his head but followed after her.

"Emmett," she started, still not looking at us. "help your sister walk, you know she's clumsy at

the best of times and pregnancy doesn't do wonders for one's equilibrium."

"You don't have to," I muttered under my breath as he wrapped his arm around my waist for

support.

"You're supposed to be on bed rest anyway, can't let anything happen to my future niece or

nephew. Plus, Edward asked me to take care of you," he gave me a leer at the end.

I blushed slightly, but didn't comment as we had arrived at Renee's suite. Number 15.

She swiped her card and entered, leaving Phil to hold the door open for us.

The suite was large, but I'd seen better décor. Edward's apartment came to mind.

She led us to a small seating area and took a seat in a single wing back chair, leaving Emmett

and I to take the small loveseat and Phil to take the other single chair. I suppose her was

representing a neutral party.

"I suppose you'd like me to just get down to business?" she queried, arching a manicured

brow at both of us.

I nodded, "I think we've waited long enough,"

She sighed, "I have no real excuse for my behavior towards both of you, my only reasoning

was that I felt you'd both be better of without me,"

Emmett made a move to get up, but I grasped his arm. "Bella, I'm not listening to this crap."

"Let him go," Renee said. "I don't blame you for the way you feel towards me,"

"Just stop with the pity party already," he groaned then imitated her voice. "'You'd be better

off without me,' blah, blah, blah. It wouldn't have mattered to us whether or not you were the

most 'motherly' mother there was. Kid's just need to feel like they're loved-"

"But I did," she interrupted, her eyes growing wider. "I mean, I do."

"Well, you have a weird way of showing it," I grumbled. "You've never said you love us

before, did you know that?"

She frowned slightly, "I have."

I shook my head, "Oh, no, no. You've never said 'I love you,'"

"It's because my parents never said it to me," she blurted out, her fingers knotting together. "I

wasn't raised in that type of environment,"

Emmett let out an overly dramatic sigh and plopped back down on the couch, making my side

raise a little.

"You can't blame your own parents for that," I muttered. "Charlie was never overly

affectionate and god knows you were never there, but I still love my baby," my hands rested

on my stomach to prove my point.

"Just as I love Henry," Emmett added.

"I never said it was a good reason, I just want you to try and understand. I know it's asking a

lot of you and I know I don't deserve it, but ever since I've met Phil," she looked over at her

husband with a smile. "I know that even though love just sets you up for hurt, it can be the

most wonderful feeling in the world."

I strongly resisted the urge to make a gagging sound.

"So you've been with Phil for what, ten years, maybe? And you're able to say 'I love you' to

him, but Emmett and I, we're in our twenties and you've never said it to us. Why now? Why

not before?"

Her voice had a new edge that sounded a bit like she was turning hysterical. "I'm sorry, okay?

I've made mistakes, huge ones, especially with you and Emmett and I don't expect you to ever

forgive me. I just wanted you to know in case something were to happen to me, like Charlie. I

have been a terrible mother, but I sincerely thought that it you would be better off without me.

You've always said I was crazy, Bella," she gave me a half-smile. "and I am, to an extent. I

found out last year that I'm bi-polar and I'm now on medication,"

"That explains a lot," Emmett mumbled under his breath.

Renee heard him but didn't acknowledge it. "Mostly, I'm sorry it's taken me so long to explain

this to both of you, procrastination is something you both inherited from me."

I released a deep breath and saw Phil smile in my direction, "I appreciate you telling us this,

but don't expect us to forgive you so quickly."

"I would never." her voice was firm with conviction. "I just thought...maybe someday, I

would be able to visit my kids and grand kids and receive a warm welcome."

"Bella and I would never deny our kids the right to a grandmother, you know that, just give us

a heads-up first."

Her eyes widened and misted up a little, "Really?"

Emmett shrugged and looked at me, awaiting me to confirm. I looked at Renee wearily,

taking in the way her eyes were watering and the honesty in them. She looked like she was

sorry. Even though I wasn't ready to completely forgive her yet, would I be able to deny her

seeing her grandchild? I wasn't completely heartless.

I nodded and she immediately grinned, "On one condition," I raised my index finger and her

smile faltered. "If you're going to be a part of Henry and my baby's life, then you'll need to

have a calender. I'm not going to be the one that explains to them why Granny forgot their

birthday,"

She smiled and laughed through her tears. Emmett shortly joined in and laughed quietly at my

side, squeezing my shoulder. I grinned. This was probably the happiest we'd ever been in

Renee's presence.

-x-x-x-

It was dark by the time I hugged Emmett goodbye outside Edward's apartment and thanked

him for being my favorite big brother in the whole world, of course this was said in an

extremely sugary-sweet baby voice that made him guffaw loudly and ruffle my hair in what

felt like a gentle-noogie.

He left me and as I was about to place the key in the lock, the door opened, revealing Edward

standing there smiling crookedly at me. I smiled without thinking, it just felt right.

"You had me worried," he murmured softly, reaching forward for the fingers of my free hand

and pulling me inside.

"Sorry," I sighed, placing my key inside the glass bowl like I always saw him do. "Renee took

longer than I thought to explain herself,"

"How did it go?" he wondered.

"Well, Phil had kind of explained some of it already in the car when we fetched him," I

explained my conversation with Renee and then added. "I'm not sure if I'm ready to

completely forgive her but..." my eyes landed on the set dinner table, complete with food. No

wait, better than food.

Pizza.

I wasn't sure if it was my stomach, or my baby that growled with hunger. I'm hoping it was

the former. I sincerely didn't want to breastfeed a growling baby. "is that food?"

Edward chuckled, "I thought you'd be tired so I called Alice to ask what your favorite meal is.

Since I couldn't get you a chicken salad, I figured Pizza was probably the best."

I kissed his cheek, "This could possible be the best thing you've ever done,"

He laughed and handed me a plate with two pieces of pizza on. After we finished eating, we

both sat on one of the marshmallow couches, watching one of my Charmed Box sets, the

episode where Piper has to freeze Leo to stop him from being taken by the Angel of Death.

Needless to say, tears were streaming silently down my cheeks as I bit down on my index

finger to stop myself from sobbing out loud.

Edward noticed and wrapped his arm around my shoulder, pulling me over so that my head

was against his chest. His scent and the warmth radiating off him was comforting and

eventually the tears ceased, but my head remained on his chest. His fingers stroked my cheek

softly, removing all the evidence. Slowly, I grew tired and fought a losing battle with my

eyelids. After this long day, it felt like my body just needed to recharge. Edward's soft

murmurings kept me awake for a little while longer.

"Bella, I know I don't always say the right things and I tend to put my foot in my mouth a lot,

but, I do care for you. Deeply. You make me so happy."

The smile that was on my face was either incredibly goofy or incredibly lazy. And it was true,

he had said some slightly stupid things in the past in heated discussions, but the fact that he

was able to be responsible and man up to his mistakes was enough to show me the type of

person that he was.

A strange warmth shot through me and tingled in my veins. I smiled wider. "You make me

happy, too."

Chapter 20

BPOV

2 months later. (Bella's seven and a half months)

"Edward!" I shout from the bathroom for what seems like the hundredth time in these past

two months.

He runs in only half-dressed, his t-shirt hanging from his neck. "What? What?" he asks

frantically.

I point to the toilet with the seat still up and smack him upside the head as he leans down to

put it back how it's supposed to be.

He laughs and kisses my temple when he's back up, "Sorry, baby,"

I try to keep the frown on my face but hearing him calling me by my latest pet name manages

to transform it into a blush and small smile. The fluttering feeling returns but it's not my baby

kicking, it's a warming of the heart and tingling of my nerves.

"It's okay," I grumble, "but next time I'm going to do a really bad impression of ma from the

nanny and go 'I almost fell in'," I said in my most obnoxiously loud voice.

"Your voice is much more beautiful than Fran's mother, I assure you,"

I ruffled up his hair, "Oh, I've trained you well,"

"Woof," he replied, leaning forward to peck my lips.

"Ew," I replied, wiping at my mouth with the back of my hand. "You know I don't like dogs

licking my face,"

His eyes lit up as they usually did when he was excited or amused and he kissed my shoulder.

"How about here?" then my neck. "Or here?" he hummed against the skin there and a sigh

escaped my lips.

My eyelids fluttered closed, "I guess it's okay," I gasped out.

"Do you really have to go to that baby shower today?" he asks, skimming my collar bone with

his tongue.

Oh god, that tongue, it's been so incredibly long since I've been 'acquainted' with it and these

pregnancy hormones are making me as horny as a hormone-ridden teenager.

I can tell he's only half-joking with me, I know we'd both prefer to be together so that we can

finally have sex again since it's been driving us both crazy ever since we agreed to 'take it

slow'.

"You could pretend to hold me hostage," I suggested and he hummed in approval. "but Alice

and Rose would probably bring you along as punishment and make you do all sorts of girly

things,"

His kisses stop immediately and I giggle loudly, if there's one thing Edward fears it's being

subjected to an overload of ribbons, glitter, shopping and, of course, screaming girls.

"In that case," he murmurs as he pulls away and smooths out my dress, his hands lingering on

my swollen stomach. "You look beautiful and as much as I'd like to have my way with you

right now, I am happy with my level of testosterone at the moment."

I giggle again and I can't help it, things have been going so well the past two months and I'm

scared that the other shoe will drop and everything will turn sour, so I'm making the most of it

while I can. "Who knows, maybe I'll get some new lingerie?"

He hisses and adjusts the front of his pants, "I don't care what you're wearing as long as I get

to take it off,"

Before I had a chance to respond there was a loud knock on the door. That must be Jasper

here to pick up Edward for their own version of a baby shower, or as they were calling it a

'guys day out'. Even Emmett was going to hang out with them.

I rolled my eyes at the thought and went to open the door but instead of being greeted by one

of Jasper's usual kiss on the cheek but a small but firm frame that crashed into me.

"Alice!" Jasper chortled as he tried to gently pry his new girlfriend off of me. "you saw her

two days ago,"

Alice stood her ground and gripped onto me, "That's like a year in girl time,"

I laughed and hugged her back, "I'm glad you're so happy to see me,"

Jasper sighed but his eyes showed amusement as he pecked my cheek and moved past us,

calling, "Bro, get your ass out here!"

Alice was, as usual, dressed like a supermodel. The lilac coloured dress she wore

complimented her eyes beautifully and she had straightened her hair into a sleek bob.

My hair was curled and pulled up into a messy bun since I was told to have my hair up and

my face was to be free of make-up.

The dress I was wearing was light, frothy and was a beautiful baby blue since Edward and I

had found out at our latest ultrasound that our baby was in fact a baby boy. We had yet to

decide on a name but we were leaning towards William since I always felt it was a strong

name, plus it had been Charlie's middle name. The other name was 'Daniel' since I always

liked the nickname 'Danny'.

Edward, Elizabeth and Ed all liked the name 'William' and loved the fact that I wanted to

include 'Anthony' as his second name, since it was Edward's middle name.

"So, what forms of torture have you planned for me today?" I asked Alice.

She just grinned and shook her head, "My lips are sealed but it's anything but torture. Quick,

go kiss your boyfriend goodbye so we can go,"

"Yes, ma'am," I agreed and turned around to find Edward standing there.

He leaned down and placed a too chaste kiss on my lips, "Have fun, baby,"

"You too," I murmured and gave Jasper a meaningful look. "Keep him out of trouble,"

Jazz laughed, "Don't sweat it, Bella, Edward's about as wild as a bag of toenails,"

Alice giggled loudly and I couldn't help but laugh a little. "Okay, that's so not true,"

"Best leave now, girls," Edward suggested. "I don't think you want to see me kill my own

brother,"

"Bring it, brother," Jasper crowed, curling in both his hands in a 'bring it on' way.

Alice and I were still in a fit of giggles by the time we were on our way to Rose and Emmett's

house – apparently that's where the shower is being held. The outside looked the same as

usual, it was a small-ish house between Forks and Port Angeles but inside it was decorated as

lavishly as they could afford.

Alice pulled out a blindfold from her glove-compartment and grinned impishly, waving it at

me.

"Alice," I groaned, sounding a bit like a whiny three year old.

She wagged a finger at me, "No, you agreed to let me have free reign with this part of your

pregnancy,"

"Remind me how you got me to do that,"

"It was either this or the entire baby room and we both know Elizabeth and Esme would

gouge my eyes out with hair pins if I even tried since that's their job, apparently," she sniffed

the last word, sounding a little offended.

"Fine, fine," I grumbled, grabbing the stupid blindfold and placing it over my eyes.

"You're going to love it, B, I promise!" I could hear the grin in her voice. She helped me out

of the car and guided me to the front door over the gravel pathway. "Okay," she gripped my

shoulders and turned me slightly after opening a door.

The blindfold came off and I gasped.

Standing there was Angela, Rosalie, Esme, Elizabeth and Renee (who had decided to stay

until the baby had been born.) The living room had been completely transformed into a mini

spa, complete with foot spa's, massaging tables, candles and meditation music. Behind my

friends and family was seven Asian women, dressed in white and all smiling at me.

Alice gave my arm a slight squeeze, "We figured you'd like a day to relax and de-stress,"

I nodded eagerly and felt the tears beginning to form, "Oh," I sobbed quietly and they

immediately giggled in joy at my response.

"You like it?" Rose asked.

I shook my head and looked around again, "I love it, thank you so much,"

I was taken into the guest bathroom and told to strip down into my underwear then dress in a

light purple robe.

A young woman named Christina introduced herself to me and told me she would be taking

care of me today since we were all assigned individual carers. I didn't think of them as carers,

I thought of them as angels. She led me to a small section, closed off by one of those standing

blind-thingys, where I would be getting my massage.

Obviously, I couldn't lie face down on the massage table so I had to lie on my side while she

worked out all the knots in my back.

"So tense, Bella, doesn't your boyfriend give you massages?" Christina wondered as she

pressed down on a particularly painful knot in my shoulder.

I laughed but it came out more like a sigh, "No, I've never asked,"

"I know a story that can help you."she began. "It's about a girl named Lucy, she was always

very shy but she knew what she wanted. Lucy had a husband named Bruce and every year for

their anniversary she would hint that she wanted flowers but Bruce never got them for her,

instead he always bought some type of jewelery. Lucy was simple and even though she loved

the sparkling gems and diamonds, all she ever wanted was flowers. On the day before their

fifth anniversary Lucy told him to not buy her jewelery this year but to buy her a bouquet of

roses instead."

She went silent for a moment, letting me absorb her story as she continued to massage my

back.

"So you see, even though women hint about things to their lovers, men can be obtuse

sometimes and never really understand. They need us to tell them what we want,"

I lay there and pondered her words for a bit as she requested me to lie on my back so she

could begin the body scrub.

I drifted in and out of sleep once she'd left me for a moment to let the moisturizer to sink in.

The short amount of sleep I had was dreamless.

"Bella?" Christina whispered, shaking my shoulder gently.

I opened my eyes slowly and smiled at her. "Thanks, Christina,"

"It's time for your foot treatment," I wiggled my toes out of habit. "Your friends and family

are waiting for you,"

I eased myself off the table and wrapped the robe around me, I really did feel better. Like all

my muscles had been transformed into a mushy substance.

They're all seated on comfy looking chairs with their feet in these big bowls of water with

little rose petals floating in them and they're all wearing the same look of peace that's

probably on my face.

"Hey there, preggers," Rose says in a sigh, using her new nickname for me.

What is it with everyone and their different names for me? There's Emmett who calls me Bubs

or bubba, then there's Edward with baby, then Renee and Phil call me by my full name,

Charlie used to call me Bells and then lastly, Alice calls me B.

Once I have finished with my internal pondering I am sure I'm insane, so now I'm going to

shut up and enjoy the massage Christina is giving my feet.

-x-x-x-

At the end of the day I've been polished, buffed, moisturized and just about every other thing

you could think of. I almost cried again when I said goodbye to Christina and her colleagues,

she's given me her card and made me promise I will call her once the baby has been born so

she can give me another massage.

The shower was a complete success and you could see the smugness radiating off of all my

friends. At first I was a little hesitant about Renee being there and her seeing how close I was

with Esme and Elizabeth, but she was actually quite enjoyable to be around. She just kept to

herself a little but I could tell she was ecstatic she had been included today.

After lunch, I received a lot of gifts and we were all laughing at some of the things I got.

Rosalie gave me an ice-blue lacy baby doll complete with matching panties and specially

made for pregnant women. My face had flushed bright crimson and I tried to hide it from

Elizabeth and Renee since I wasn't sure how they'd both react but they laughed and giggled

along with the rest.

Alice gave me lots and lots of baby clothes all for our little boy, there were shoes, bibs, shirts,

shorts, one-sies and even little tiny socks that made me go 'Aww'.

Elizabeth had to leave the room to fetch her gift which made me a little anxious until I saw the

baby stroller. It was one of those expensive ones that doubles as a car seat and a pram.

Esme presented me with a gift voucher to the spa where Christina worked, and get this, it

doesn't expire. Which means I can go anytime I want, they even have a massage especially for

babies that is proven to help them sleep at night, there is also a baby massage course that I

will be sure to start.

Angela gave me all different books for children and classical music for babies, proven to

make them smarter and sleep better. She had joked and said any child from me would need all

the help it could get in the intelligence area. I had only feigned offense.

Renee was the last to present her gift and I truly hadn't been expecting anything let alone a

baby book. It was a light beige with a pastel blue and on the first page was a place pictures for

mommy and daddy. I gushed over the picture over a baby Edward she said she got from

Elizabeth and then my picture was pretty damn cute, too. The tiny nose, huge brown eyes and

wild chocolate curls. I think my cheeks were even flushed. Well, not much has changed there.

I wasn't sure if we were in the 'hugging' stage yet, so I reached across and held her hand in

mine.

Now I am standing inside the main bathroom in Edward's apartment changing into my new

lingerie from Rose. He's still not home yet but I've just got off the phone with him and he's on

his way.

Apparently he doesn't like me being by myself. Yeah, I had no idea either. Sarcasm.

"Baby?" Edward calls, wow I didn't even hear him come in.

"Yeah," I called back, straightening out the lace. "I'll be out in a minute,"

I can hear his footsteps as he walks into the bedroom and I'm suddenly self-conscious, the last

time we had sex I wasn't so big...

I open the door and he's standing there looking as delicious as ever. Will I ever be able to

think straight around him?

"Bella," he gasps and my whole body flushes, but it's not because I'm self-conscious this time.

The need. The want. It's easy to see in his emerald green eyes and I suddenly feel brave.

A slow, sexy smirk pulls at the corners of his lips as he approaches me. "Remind me to thank

whoever gave that to you today,"

I grin, "Hopefully I'll be able to remember after tonight,"

His arms wrap around me and our lips connect in a heady brew of touches, tongues and

groans.

I make a sound of protest as I'm pushed against his fully clothed form, I want him now.

Without removing my lips from him, I unbutton his shirt one at a time, trailing kisses down

his hot flesh.

I try to unzip his jeans but my impatience makes it difficult for me to think straight and my

fingers are shaking. Edward stops me by placing his hands on my shoulders.

I look up at him and he has this glint in his eyes, "I want to try something, again,"

I quirk a brow at him and straighten up, my head only reaches up to below his chin.

He guides me back so that I'm lying down on the bed and he's hovering over me clad in only

his boxers. His hands massage my breasts through the thin lace and I can feel his hardness

pressing into my thigh.

"Your skin is so smooth," he commented, dragging the lace up my chest as he pulled it over

my head. "And softer than usual, what did you do at the baby shower?"

"It was a, Ah!" his mouth latched onto my right breast and I lost all coherent thought. He

continued massaging the left as he spoke, "Come on, baby, tell me," his mouth started licking

down my stomach and my eyes rolled back into my head a little.

I wasn't sure how he managed to get my panties off so quickly but I wasn't about to question

this mans talents at the moment. He licked at my pelvic bone and I arched off the bed.

"Tell me," he says again, his voice now gruff with his arousal as he moves his face further

down.

"Massages," Gasp. Lick. "b-body scrub," Moan."p-p," I couldn't say it, he slipped two fingers

inside of me before looking up.

"P-p- what?" he curled his fingers creating a sharp jolt of pleasure.

"Pedicure!" I shouted it as an expletive. Oh, how I once loved that word.

Edward removed his fingers and suddenly I was filled with his rock hard cock. I gasped out in

both pleasure and surprise as the feeling hit me.

He took it slow again this time, savoring each stroke as we dissolved into a chorus of moans,

groans and pants. My legs wrapped around him as he thrust deeper into me, each time

bringing me closer and closer to my release as the familiar coil tightened inside me. All my

muscles froze in anticipation as he gave one last push.

"Edwaaaaard!" I screamed out in my climax, my nails digging into his back as he called out

my name seconds later followed by a loud groan. He carefully removes himself and leans

forward to kiss my lips.

This time, I'm not scared of what we've just done, because the feeling is clear to me now. The

fluttering, that steady current of electricity flows through us...it's love.

I'm in love.

Chapter 21

EPOV

(Skipping forward 2 months again)

It's been two months since the night I realized I was in love with Isabella Marie Swan.

Although I have yet to express it in words.

I was always a procrastinator as a child until I was given a much needed shove in the right

direction. Usually it had been my mom or dad or even a teacher, but this time it was from my

brother and his girlfriend.

They had been dating for a shorter period then Bella and I but they were already that couple

who struggle to hang up first, or the couple that has fights over who loves the other more.

"So, Edward," Alice began as she grabbed a beer out the kitchen fridge of my apartment.

"when do you think you're gonna drop the L-bomb?"

"Uh," I scratched the back of my neck, one of my nervous habits.

Jazz snorted and leaned against the counter, "Don't tell me you've been putting it off again?"

"I'm just...scared, I guess, I want it to be perfect and I'm having a hard time deciding since

every moment I spend with her is perfect,"

Alice slapped my arm, "Then just blurt it out. Bella's a simple girl, she wont care how you do

it,"

"But I do," I argued. "I want to be able to tell our child that when I first said 'I love you' to

mommy that it was someplace special, so that it can set a good standard for him when he's

older and in love,"

Jasper shook his head, "You over think way too much,"

"Oh yeah? Well, how did you first say it to Alice?" The pink tint to Alice and Jasper's cheeks

gave it away. "You said it after sex didn't you? And how are you gonna tell your kids that?"

I realized the nervous habit runs in the family as Jasper scratched the back of his neck.

"Tell their kids what?" Bella wondered as she entered the kitchen, holding an empty glass in

her hand.

Alice's eyes grew wide, "Uh, we were talking about the birds and the bees. Eddie, here, is a

nervous about telling Will,"

She looked a little confused but smiled anyway, "Don't worry, there's still loads of time before

we have to have that conversation," she patted her stomach and spoke to it. "First off we gotta

get this little guy out,"

Alice nodded her head, "Yeah, you really do because there's a whole lot of clothes and toys

waiting for him, plus if you get any bigger you'll never be able to bounce back,"

Bella narrowed her eyes, "Wow, thanks for reminding me. Just wait until you're the one

carrying around another human being,"

Jazz laughed, "That wont be happening for a while,"

Alice gasped and looked at him with a heartbroken expression, "What do you mean? I thought

you wanted kids,"

I was tired of being in the hot seat tonight, so I looked over at Jasper with a mirrored

expression of Alice's on my face. "Yeah, Jazz, I thought you wanted kids,"

"Uh, guys-" Bella said.

"Well, I-" Jasper started.

"I can't believe this, Jazz, you told me last night you wanted kids! Or more precisely, a little

girl with my blue eyes and your sandy-blonde hair,"

"Guys!" Bella shouted.

"What?" Alice, Jasper and I all shouted back in unison.

"Well, I hope I'm not interrupting anything, but my water just broke!"

It was like one of those scenes from a movie where everything just stops. Then restarts even

faster then ever but you're still stuck in pause.

I stood still while Alice shrieked and ran out the room to fetch Bella's bags, Jasper grabbed

my car keys and started helping Bella to the door once she had been changed.

"Edward!" Bella shouted and I snapped out of it.

"Jazz, I got her," I informed him as I supported Bella's waist. Her hands gripped my shirt, her

nails digging into my flesh.

Jasper drove my Volvo with Alice in the passenger seat next to him frantically calling all

family members to inform them Bella was going into labor.

I was seated next to Bella at the back, her hand clasped tightly around mine as she cried and

panted with each contraction.

Thankfully the hospital was close and in mere moments Bella was taken in a wheelchair to the

delivery room. Rose, Emmett, Renee, Phil, Esme and both my parents were already in the

waiting room.

"Mr. Masen," A nurse called. "I need the name of your OB/GYN,"

Were they seriously bothering me with this shit right now? "Dr. Andrews." I answered. "I

need to get in there,"

She nodded and held the door open for me. Inside was a flurry of nurses and doctors all

surrounding the love of my life.

BPOV

I felt scared, alone and in excruciating pain until Edward was back at my side and letting me

use his hand as a stress ball. Now I just felt scared and still in excruciating pain, but at least I

wasn't going through this alone.

If Edward thought I was a screamer before, well, that's nothing compared to the screams that

were coming out of my mouth as I tried to push out my baby.

"Bella, Bella, love," Edward murmured, trying to get me to calm down. "Baby, look at me," I

did and was met with frightened eyes. "I've been waiting for the perfect moment to say this

and it's now or never..." he sucked in a deep breath. "I love you, Bella. So much."

All pain in my body ceased for a moment but then returned with full force, I squeezed down

on his hand harder as I gave one more push, "I love you too, Edward," I gasped out, my heart

swelled as I finally expressed my feelings. "But...oh my god," It felt like my body was being

run over by a train. "We're never having sex again, okay? Not unless there's at least a million

different types of birth control being used, ahhh!"

"Bella, you need to get your breathing right," the nurse told me, making 'he he who' noises to

try and make me follow.

William Anthony Masen was born at 20:02 PM on the 28th of February, weighing at a perfect

six pounds and eight ounces. After his birth he was taken away to be cleaned and thouroughly

examined to determine his developmental condition and I started crying with happiness when

the doctor confirmed Will was a happy, healthy baby.

I couldn't really tell what color his eyes were but right now they were a dark blue, his skin a

pinkish color and his hair looked browny-red, but we were told he would start to look more

like Edward and I over a few days.

One year later

"Alice," I gasped as we stood in the church foyer. "I think I'm gonna throw up,"

She shot me a glare as she fixed the front of my dress, "Isabella Marie, so help me god if you

throw up on this dress..."

"She'll be fine, Alice," Renee assured her as she took my side. She leaned in to whisper in my

ear. "Although if I were you, I wouldn't chance the wrath of that girl, heaven forbid I say the

wrong thing when I give you away,"

I brought my thumb into my mouth and bit down on the nail, trying to calm down my nerves.

I thought you were supposed to feel butterflies in your stomach when you were nervous?

Right now they felt more like hungry piranhas chewing at my stomach lining.

Angela gently tugged on my hand to release my thumb from my teeth, "Come on, Bella, it's

fifteen minutes tops and then you and Edward are officially married, plus you'll have William

with you the whole time,"

Another reason for my anxiety was that I was away from my baby boy who was seated on his

grandpa's lap. Apparently. I had yet to see him today and that did nothing for my nerves.

The piano began to play the traditional Wagners March and I felt like my legs were about to

give in. For the thousandth time in my life I cursed Alice for her dictation of my footwear. I'd

be much more comfortable walking down in simple ballet flats...but, no I had to wear these

deathtraps.

"Ooh, this is so exciting," Renee commented in a tone barely below a squee. It was easy to see

she was in her element despite the fact it was my special day. Over the past year we've gotten

closer and her demeanor has changed marginally – she's no longer so self-absorbed but has

adopted some of the qualities of a sweet grandmother from spending time with Elizabeth and

Esme. They were all lunch buddies now, believe it or not and would take turns babysitting

since Renee and Phil decided to move down to Forks since Phil was unable to continue with

his baseball career due to a shoulder injury. His new job, you ask?

Esme had started up her own magazine a few months ago titled 'Home – the place you're

always welcome' it was an interesting blend of cooking, décor, fashion, sporting and even an

advice section run by yours truly. Phil was in charge of sporting, Elizabeth handed out some

of the best recipes you could ever imagine, Alice took over the fashion department and Esme

used her love of interior design for the décor section.

I was so caught up in my own thoughts I didn't even realize Alice and Angela had already

started walking down the aisle.

Was there one of those brown paper bags somewhere that I could hyperventilate into? Or

throw-up?

Renee began to walk and somewhere, somehow I found the strength inside me to will my legs

to move forward at the correct pace.

And then my eyes connected with Edward's and I suddenly wanted to walk faster down the

aisle to get to him. He looked...delicious.

There was simply no other words to describe him.

Everything about our wedding was traditional besides the fact we'd already had our first child,

but Edward was dressed in a tailored black suit and my dress was simple and elegant. The

straps of my dress were just below my shoulder, leaving my entire neck area bare except for

my hair that hung loose in beautiful curls.

He grinned then, huge and cheesy. It was probably even cheesier than the grin on my face.

Before I knew it I was at his side as Renee kissed both our cheeks and placed my hand in his.

"You look so beautiful," he whispered taking both my hands in his.

"And you look so handsome," I said lamely, what I really wanted to say was superb, amazing,

incredible...but I figured it was a bit much.

"Yes, yes, you both look beautiful,"Angela's Dad, Father Weber, commented with a knowing

grin and our family and friends laughed.

His speech traditional yet unique, "We are gathered here today to celebrate the union between

these two lovers, Isabella and Edward. Two souls destined to live as one in perfect

harmony..."

I tried to pay attention, I really did but I got lost in staring at Edward who was staring back at

me with such a look of love and adoration in his eyes that it made my eyes water a little.

"Isabella Marie Swan," Father Weber started and I almost jumped out of my skin. "Do you

take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to hold from this day

forward?"

I cleared my throat a little to make my voice louder, "I do," it still came out just above a

whisper.

"And Edward Anthony Masen, do you take this beautiful woman as your wife? To have and

to hold, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

"I do!" he almost shouted with his excitement. A chuckle sounded through our audience and

echoed throughout the room.

"Very well then," Father Weber announced, a wide smile on his lips. "By the power vested in

me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Edward, you may kiss your-"

he didn't get to finish as Edward already had his arms around me and his lips pressed against

mine.

He kissed me sweetly yet passionately. Heated yet chaste. It was heaven and desire wrapped

into one. It occurred to me then, as this kiss sealed my destiny that this was it. The moment I'd

been waiting for my whole life, the moment where you realize you are absolutely blissfully

happy and nothing and no one can ever take that away from you.

He pulled away, too soon for my liking and turned out bodies to our audience as Father

Weber pronounced us "Mr and Mrs Edward Masen,"

Whoops, cheers and applause sounded through the small church as we started our walk down

the aisle.

"Ma!" Will announced happily from his seat on Ed's lap, his arms raised as he indicated he

wanted to be picked up.

"Hey there, buddy," I cooed, lifting him onto my hip. His copper curls and emerald green eyes

made him look so much like his father.

Edward kept his hold on my hand as we exited the church through the huge doors, the sun was

shining brightly outside as it set and probably made us look like silhouettes from behind as we

journeyed off in bliss into the sunset.

Epilogue

BPOV

Five Years Later from William's birth

"Okay, three, two, one!" I counted down as my son, William, stood there on one of the dining

room table chairs, in front of his birthday cake baked especially by both his grandmothers. His

hair was a coppery-brown with Edward's green eyes and facial features.

Edward was at my side, camera in hand as he snapped a shot of him blowing out the candles.

"Make a wish, buddy,"

Emma gurgled from her spot on my hip, "I wanna make wish too, mama," She was only three

and a half but her vocabulary was impressive. Not to mention she was the cutest baby girl I

had ever seen, with her chocolate brown curls and brown eyes. There were often jokes about

me and my mini-me. She would always giggle a long but never really understood as she had

never watched Austin Powers – just another thing I was grateful for.

"Your birthday's coming up soon, sweetie," I reminded her, brushing a curl out of her eyes.

"Auntie Bella! Auntie Bella!" Henry yelled from his spot next to my son. "Can we eat the

cake now?"

I laughed and Emmett made a whooping noise, "There's my boy!"

Henry was now six years old and looking more and more like Emmett everyday, he wanted to

be the center of attention at all times but he didn't mind sharing as long as it was to his baby

sister, Lucy.

Lucy was the perfect little lady, she rarely cried and was always dressed to perfection. It was

one of Rosalie's dreams made true.

Will ran up to me, his mouth covered in cake, "Look, mama, I'm a cake monster!"

I brushed his hair back from his face, "I see that, are you having a good birthday?"

He nodded eagerly, "But I gotta go,"

I frowned, "Go where?"

"Go." he emphasized the word, his green eyes widened.

"Oh." I understood, he needed the toilet. "Honey?" I called to Edward who was busy cutting

the cake decorated like a lion. "Would you mind taking Will?" I nodded towards the

bathroom. Will was still being trained to aim into the toilet.

"Sure thing, baby," he said, kissing my cheek and handing me the knife.

Esme was there in a flash, using any chance she could get to hold one of my kids. "I'll take

her,"

I giggled and passed on a willing Emma, "You know I could always bring her to work with

me if you were to set up a day care,"

She pondered it for a second, "Don't tempt me, my dear, we both know we'd never get any

work done at that magazine,"

It had been almost four years since the launch of Esme's very own magazine, Home, and it

was obviously now the most popular in the entire city of Forks and in Port Angeles. It didn't

really feel like a job since we were always working with friends and family but sometimes I'd

get behind on my articles because I was so involved with both my kids.

Obviously I had taken back my decision about never having sex again after the painful

experience of giving birth to William, otherwise we would have never had Emma. She was

brought to us by the joys of a c-section, I didn't mind the scarring as opposed to the pain.

Alice Whitlock, now five months pregnant with twins of both sexes, Chloe and Alex, was

trusting my judgment and going for a c-section for her delivery.

I cut up a new square of cake for Seth Black, son of my first boyfriend and Leah who I had

given some advice to a few years ago. Seth went to the same pre-school as William and was

also one of his best friends.

It was both strange and incredible to see how my friends and family had grown over the years.

With the inclusion of children, cousins, grandchildren and godchildren.

My godchild was a gorgeous newborn baby girl called Skye that belonged to the newly-weds

Angela and Ben Cheney. She had Ben's huge blue eyes and his smooth brown hair but had

Angela's features and personality.

Renee and Phil were still going strong and Renee and I had grown even closer over the years,

my kids loved her and it was hard not to trust their judgment of her. True to his word, Phil

was the sneaky grandpa who gave out candy even when I specifically asked him not to since it

would ruin their appetites and teeth. Edward just thought the whole situation was hilarious

and told me to lighten up and enjoy the fact it was just candy and that he wasn't pressurizing

them into becoming baseball fanatics like him.

I didn't mention the fact that Phil secretly was trying to recruit Will into sports but he didn't

want to since all his focus was on animals.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have a son who wants to be a vet when he's older so that he can

adopt all the animals in the pound and bring them home so they can all have food, shelter and

love. I immediately loved the idea that he was so passionate about something...until I found

out he'd been secretly feeding a stray cat all his leftovers and allowing it to sleep in his bed

every night.

The cat was as an orange tabby, appeared to be fairly young and after various shameless

puppy dog eyes and pouting, now had a new home with us. He was dubbed with the name

Nemo, or Nem-Nem as Emma called him, since he was lost and now was found. Needless to

say, Will and him were inseparable and it was actually very cute watching how he cared for

him. Anything or anyone that loves my kids is alright in my book. In fact, I recall Charlie

saying something like that before and now I finally understood.

Nemo was positioned in the wicker chair next to the phone and seemed content even with

hordes of kids trying to pet him.

"Where's the birthday boy?" A deep voice boomed.

"Uncle 'Metri," Will announced from the bathroom.

Demetri met my eyes and smiled, no longer holding bitterness towards me. "Hey there,

Bells,"

I smiled back at him and his wife, Heidi, "Nice to see you could make it,"

This was yet another change that had occurred due to my children, when Demetri first met

William it became his life goal to have his own children and his newly pregnant wife, Heidi,

was proof that he was getting his wish. He'd apologized for his behavior and although Edward

was still a little weary of him, we became friends.

The party ended a little later and I was ecstatic it had turned out to be a great success, the

guests left and William was passed out on the couch, mouth hanging agape and his arm

hanging off the edge of the couch. Emma was seated in the corner of the room playing with

Nemo, normally I would have been anxious leaving her alone with an animal but Nemo was

extremely gentle with her.

I stood in the kitchen wearing a pair of yellow latex gloves as I washed the countless number

of dishes. I heard Edward enter the room and place more in the dirty pile.

I groaned, "Remind me next time to buy paper plates,"

He chuckled and wound his arms around my waist, placing a soft kiss behind my ear. "I don't

know what we were thinking,"

"Obviously nothing,"

He laid his head on my shoulder and laughed, "I love you,"

Even five years later he still had the power to make my heart flutter and ignite my skin with

the power of a thousand bolts. "I love you, too,"

Gently, he reached down and slid the latex gloves off my hands, leaving them bare except for

my wedding and engagement ring. He turned me so that we were facing each other, his eyes

darting between my lips and my eyes, as if it was the first time we'd ever kissed.

He lowered his lips to mine at a pace that was arousing and painful at the same time.

"Mama!" screeched Emma from the living room.

"Mom, Dad, come look!" Shouted William, having awoken from his nap.

Edward and I shared a look before running into the living room.

The first thing I checked was that both of them were unharmed and I let out a sigh of relief as

I saw that they were.

"It's snowing!" William exulted with his face pressed against the glass window as he

overlooked the yard of our new house in Forks.

"No way," I murmured, walking forward to observe this for myself. We hadn't had proper

snow in a year due to global warming. We just got slush and frost.

"Can I go get them on my tongue?" He asked eagerly, "Uncle 'Metri said he used to do that in

Pinland,"

"It's Finland, Will," I said quietly, "you can as long as you wear a jacket,"

Emma tugged on my legs, indicating she wanted up. Sometimes she was a little lazy and

refused to use her words.

Edward followed after Will to make sure he put on a warm enough jacket and I carried Emma

outside, she was already wearing warm enough clothes.

I sat on the porch steps with Emma on my lap as William danced around trying to catch the

snowflakes on his tongue but he seemed to be getting more in his hair.

Edward picked him up and placed him on his shoulders, "Hold on with both hands, please,"

he said to our son.

I looked down at Emma who had also caught a few spots of white in her chocolate curls, she

whimpered a little at first as it was foreign to her.

"Can you catch them on your tongue, Em?" I asked as I stuck my own tongue out and caught

one.

She giggled as she watched it melt then stuck out her own red tongue, a tiny frown forming

between her brows as she tried to see if she was catching any.

She really was too cute for words.

Edward caught my eye and grinned, it was easy to see he was as content as I was. Not only

did he get the little boy he'd dreamed of taking camping and playing sports with, he also got a

baby girl that loved him to death.

It was moments like these, when even the smallest of things brought our family closer

together and I was left to wonder how drastically my life had changed since that fateful night

in the dark alley.

It was true what they say that Love can be found in the most unlikely places.

Who would have thought that I would meet the love of my life in an alleyway?

...The End...