Father Knows Best
Chapter 1
"Reid Charles Pace!" Garrett yelled as the pilot came over the intercom to be seated and buckle up, but he was too busy bouncing around the plane.
"Reid!" I snapped.
"What?" he asked over exaggerating the 'T'.
"Sit down and buckle up NOW!" I said through clenched teeth.
"Yes ma'am." He sighed and sat down beside Garrett.
"Sorry for not listening Uncle Garrett." His bottom lip wobbled.
"That's OK sport." Garrett ruffled his hair and winked at me.
We landed at Sea-Tac airport and Garrett had a car waiting for us and instructed them to take us to the nearest Land Rover dealership, so we could purchase a car before driving to Forks.
Garrett had me pick out whatever one I wanted so I settled on a Range Rover Sport in maroon and fully loaded. Garrett even made sure it had a built in DVD player and game system for Reid.
"Really Garrett, that's just a little over the top isn't it?" I asked.
"Is your sanity worth it?" he asked.
"Garrett, you've been to Forks, it's not that big." I laughed.
"What about your trips to Seattle?" he asked.
"OK." I raised my hands in defeat.
After we purchased that Garrett sent the rental car on it's way and we loaded everything inside the Land Rover and headed on to Forks.
It was a pleasant ride because Reid was quiet with his movie and headphones.
We finally reached Forks and pulled up to my dad's house.
"I'm so glad your dad is cool with our arrangement. It makes my life easier." Garrett smiled.
"My family isn't the one made of money and the grandfather who had stipulations." I shrugged. "But I still love you." I kissed his cheek and he hugged me.
"As I love you." He smiled and swatted my ass.
CPOV
"Charlie, I thought you said she was divorced?" Edward snapped.
"She is, she is. They're just each other's best friends and don't worry. He's gay." I laughed.
"What? No way!" Edward scoffed.
"Bells!" I shouted as they walked up to the porch.
"Daddy!" she ran into my arms.
I hugged her as tight as I could.
"How are you feeling?" she asked.
"As good as can be expected." I smiled.
"Where is Dr. Cullen? He said he'd be here and that someone would always be here with you." She snapped.
"I'm Dr. Cullen." He reached his hand out to shake Bella's.
"I'm sorry. I was expecting the blond haired Dr. Cullen." Bella smiled as she shook his hand.
"Oh, that's my dad. Please call me Edward." He smiled.
"Very well Edward, I'm Bella." She blushed.
"I'm Reid, I'm 8. Who are you?" My grandson interrogated.
Edward laughed and crouched down to his level.
"I'm Edward Cullen, your granddad's Oncologist." He smiled.
"So, you're a doctor?" Reid asked, smart boy.
"Why, yes I am. You're very smart for 5." He smiled at Bella.
"Well duh! I'm not a baby!" he rolled his eyes.
"Reid Charles Swan!" Bella yelled at him.
"It's OK, really. My niece is just as sassy. I think they'd get along great." Edward laughed.
"I'm so sorry." Bella apologized and the entire time, Garrett is propped against the porch post smiling with a knowing grin.
"Reid, come inside with grandpa, I've got some new fishing tackle I want to show you." I told him as I left the adults outside.
BPOV
My dad had a way of being subtle, not.
"Sorry again about Reid. He's just so used to being around adults all the time." I shook my head.
"Really, it's OK. My niece is the exact same. My sister can't wait for kindergarten." He smiled.
"Oh, where are my manners! Um, Edward, this is Garrett. Reid's father. But as far as Reid is concerned, it's his uncle." I sighed.
"OooooK." Edward looked at us.
"It's a crazy story. Have a seat." I motioned for the table set my dad had on the patio.
"I might as well tell it now before it gets all over and your my dad's doctor so… Garrett and I met in college, it was instant attraction, I mean look at him! We clicked, had so many things in common, by Thanksgiving I was meeting his parents, by Christmas he was meeting my dad. Valentines had us engaged and the following Valentines had us married with Reid on the way. Our families were happy, especially his who were very wealthy in California and have one of the oldest and well known law firms in the country Pace Law. So any way, shortly after our marriage, it started to fell strange, we were still great together, but not all consuming. And that's when I noticed Garrett looking at other men and I asked him straight up. I was about 6 months pregnant and my hormones had me saying whatever, I didn't care. I guess because I was sexually frustrated and he so wasn't helping. So he came out and said that yes he indeed thought men were more desirable. But his grandfather was very old fashioned. He couldn't 'come out' or else his future would be damned and he wanted to be a lawyer more than anything and he was on the fast track. He was a year ahead, doubling up on classes, when he could. It was expected. Anyway, out of the blue his grandfather passed away in his sleep of a heart attack. Everything was left to Garrett, except for 10% of the company, it was left to his father just so he wouldn't contest the will, and the women just got money and property, like I said his grandfather was old fashioned. So fast forward, Garrett and I are divorced, almost as soon as the will was finalized and I changed my name back to Swan and that's the name we gave to Reid, so he doesn't know and Garrett is OK with it, he has money and safeguards set aside for him, a trust and college fund. I'll never have to worry about my boy. Garrett and Alistair are wonderful uncles to Reid. They even bought our house here and had it renovated. I'm presuming by someone in your family. An Esme Cullen." I finished off.
"My mother." He smiled. "That's quite the story. Wow!"
"Yeah. So Garrett and Alistair will be here a lot and we'll visit California on Reid's school breaks." I shrugged.
"What about your job?" Edward inquired.
"Well, I'm a photographer, so I can do that anywhere. I freelance and I plan to set up a studio here in my house. I know the closest one is in Port Angeles." I smiled.
"My mom will love that! She hated having to drive for family portraits and she's always complaining about the people she hires to shoot the houses she fixes up, saying they don't know how to 'use the light', whatever that means. And then there's my little sister Alice, she's a clothes designer, I won't even tell you what she'll want with you." He laughed heartily.
"Don't let me interrupt your flirting session." Garrett laughed.
"Garrett!" I chastised.
"I will admit I'm trying to flirt with you Ms. Swan." Edward smiled. "That's actually why I'm here instead of my dad. I just got off a 48 hour shift at the hospital and I knew you were coming in today, I've seen your picture, and your dad has talked non-stop about you and Reid and I just had to be here." He smiled.
"Oh, well. Thanks." I blushed.
"OK, I'm going inside to look at Charlie's new tackle." Garrett rolled his eyes.
"So were I your house?" Edward asked.
"Just around the corner. I didn't want to be far from dad, just in case." I smiled sadly.
"Oh, you bought the Cope's old house?" he asked.
"Yes." I smiled.
"That's a beautiful home." He smiled.
"It is. I flew in a few times to take pictures of it and the progress and to make sure I got it just right." I shrugged. "Your mom is amazing. She knew just what I needed and Reid's room is out of this world, literally."
"Is he into space?" Edward asked.
"Very much! Alistair works for NASA so that helped, he got some awesome posters and official pictures and your mom found these wonderful constellation bed sheets. He's going to freak out." I laughed.
"Have dinner with me?" Edward blurted out.
"What?" I asked.
"Have dinner with me, please." He asked
"Um, I'd really like to but I don't know you and I have no one to watch Reid." I shake my head.
"You have Garrett." He smiled.
"He's leaving tomorrow." I laughed.
"So go out with me tonight." He shrugged.
"You just admitted you've been up for 48 hours straight." I admonished.
"Bella, I'm used to 72 or more." He shook his head.
"I have so much unpacking to do." I sighed.
"I'll come help this weekend." He bargained.
"You're not going to take no for an answer are you?" I smiled.
"No." he laughed.
"OK." I nodded.
"Tonight, seven I'll pick you up. Jeans and a nice top are fine. Any type of food you don't like?" he asked.
"I'm good with most everything." I shrug.
"OK. See you at seven. I'm going to say bye to your dad and his nurse should be here any minute. Her name is Sue. She's here most days, she's a great woman. They're very close." He raised his eyebrows making me gasp.
"What do you mean 'very close'?" I made quotation marks.
"Just the way I stressed it. She might as well move in with him, but I think he's worried how you would take the news. They've been together for almost a year now." Edward smirked.
"Since his diagnosis?" I asked.
"Yep. They grew close very fast. They've been friends for years." He smiled.
"Wow! I just want him to be happy. I know he doesn't have long." A tear escaped me, Edward wiped it away.
"He is happy. You're hear and is grandson is here. That's what he's wanted for a very long time, my dad said." Edward smiled softly.
"That we are. I'm not going anywhere." I shook my head.
"I'm glad to hear that." Edward smirked again. "Let me give you some alone time and I'll see you in a few hours." He walked inside and I took a deep breath.
"Wow! That was fast." Garrett walked outside laughing.
"Shut it Garrett!" I snapped.
"What? You're not even here an hour and your dad had a suitor lined up for you." He dared me to argue.
"I think my dad had this planned as soon as I told him I was coming home." I shook my head.
"I always thought I was his favorite." Garrett acted wounded.
"He loves you Gar, but I think he wants more grandbabies." I laughed. "And he's not afraid to get me started today."
"Yeah. I think you're right. He'd probably pay for another wedding of your dreams if you wanted it." He smiled sadly.
"Garrett, I don't regret marrying you. Not for one minute. I loved you. Hell, I still love you. But I love you like my brother and I know you love me like a little sister. So please don't get down on me about our wedding. It was beautiful, the time we spent together, the memories, and our son." I bumped shoulders with him.
"Yeah, we did make a beautiful kid didn't we?" he smiled.
And as if on cue Reid came running out the door, Edward running behind him acting like a dinosaur.
I loved that Garrett and I had a lot of the same features.
We both had brownish red hair and brown eyes. Reid had the same hair, but it was a crazy mass of waves and curls everywhere on his head.
His eyes were big and brown, just like ours and he was long and lean like Garrett. But had my grace.
"He's a natural Bells." My dad snapped me out of my trance.
"What?" I asked.
"Edward, he's a natural. He loves kids." My dad winked.
"Dad, are you trying to get me to sleep with Edward?" I asked.
"Why? Is it going to work?" he laughed and then sobered up when a red car pulled into the drive way.
"Bella, I've really got to go. Reid, sorry buddy, I'll come and play at your new house tomorrow, if that's OK with your mom." He asked.
"That's fine." I nodded.
"See you tonight." He whispered in my ear as he kissed my cheek.
I just blushed and nodded.
"Charlie! You're supposed to be resting!" a woman's voice rose.
"Sue, Bella just got here, I'm visiting." He pouted.
"She's going to be living right around the corner." She chastised him.
"And Edward was here too." He gave a knowing look to Edward's retreating form.
"OH!" Sue smiled and blushed too.
"Dad, you're not very subtle." I shook my head.
"What?" he tried to play innocent.
"Hi Sue. I'm Bella, Charlie's daughter that he's trying to marry off to the handsome doctor Cullen." I laughed and Sue laughed with me.
"That's ALL he's been plotting since he found out you were moving back. How he could get you two together. He's going to try and get you a date." She gave up a secret.
"Already done." I smiled and my dad looked like a proud father.
"Edward asked me out for tonight." I smiled.
"Are you going?" my dad asked eagerly.
"Thanks to Garrett's big mouth, yes!" I glared at him.
"Yep! I told her she had to go. I mean free babysitting tonight and he gets Uncle Garrett. What's better than that?" Garrett laughed.
"Ugh! OK. With that we need to head to the house dad." I leaned down to kiss him.
"Don't come home at a decent hour, OK?" he asked.
"Dad…" I groaned.
"She really needs to stay out late Charlie, if you know what I mean." Garrett laughed.
"In the car NOW!" I smacked his head as he laughed.
"Reid, we're going!" I yelled and he came running from the back yard covered in dirt.
"Great. Garrett, you're walking with him to the house, it's just around the corner. See you there." I smiled and drove off.
I'm Bella Swan and this is the story of how my Father Thinks He Knows Best…
AN:
OK…
So this has been brewing in my head for about a month…
I was talking to a friend on another site about this name
And how it'd a great name for a new story for her…
She said "Yeah you should run w/ it…" So I thought and thought and after several different
Charlie's popped into my head, this one won out… He wouldn't STOP!
So… Here we are…
I hope you enjoy… :0)
This will be a little different… No angst (GASP!)
Mostly light and fluffy… (I think I can write that…)
Reviews=Love