The house was bright and warm when we arrived. Alice led me through the garage and into the kitchen, where Esme was pouring steaming water into a teapot.
"Bella, dear, good evening!" she greeted me. "I'm just preparing some tea for you. It's a bit chilly tonight, isn't it?"
She sounded quite cheerful, but when she came over to embrace me, I caught a tiny pucker in her perfect brow.
"Thank you for inviting me," I said, feeling slightly awkward.
"Everything was so rushed the last two times we saw you," she replied softly. "We didn't have a chance to speak with you… to tell you how grateful we are."
"Oh, you don't need to," I began.
Alice darted to the door with a quick wave. "See you at 8:45," she chirped then vanished.
"Where's she going?" I asked, perplexed. Wasn't she planning to torture me at least a little?
"She and Rosalie are going on a short hunt," Esme replied pleasantly. With a glance at the china teapot, she added, "There's a lovely fire in the study. I'll bring your tea up when it's ready."
She led me up the stairs to the second floor. The large door was open, revealing Carlisle sitting in one of the richly upholstered armchairs before the hearth. He stood immediately and strode toward me.
"Bella," he said, placing his hands lightly upon my shoulders. He smiled, but his gaze was deep as he seemed to study my face for a moment. "Come and sit down."
I settled on the leather sofa beside Esme. Carlisle perched before us on a low, wooden table. His hands rested upon his knees.
"I believe," he began, "that Esme started to speak with you, but I wanted to be sure you knew that this comes from the entire family. Thank you, Bella. There are no words to express our gratitude to you. You saved Edward. You brought our son back to us."
I felt my cheeks flush and stammered, "You're welcome." It wasn't eloquent, and it wasn't at all what I wanted to say, but their expressions were so earnest, so full of heart-felt appreciation, that other words failed me.
Esme clasped my hand softly. "We love you, honey."
My throat was tight, and my eyes began to prickle. I squeezed her hand and replied, "I love you, too."
We sat without speaking for several long moments, then Esme glanced at Carlisle. I saw him give a slight nod, and she rose.
"I think the tea is ready now," she said. "I have some of those ginger cream cookies you like, too."
"Thanks," I said, but she was already gone. I began to get up. "I'll help her—"
"No, dear," Carlisle said softly, motioning for me to remain seated. "She'll be back soon."
I sank down again. I felt there was something he wanted to say to me.
He offered me a smile, but it seemed wooden, forced somehow. "Bella," he began, shifting a bit, "in addition to offering our deepest thanks, there's another topic I need to discuss with you. I've been thinking about it since you returned... "
Maybe he really had changed his mind. Maybe he was hoping to try to talk me out of the plan. They didn't want me to join their family. I wasn't sure I could bear to hear such a heart-breaking truth.
My chest felt heavy as I waited for him to continue, steeling myself for the inevitable.
To be continued...
