Author Note: Thank you for the great response so far! Most readers think that Edward's tale of moving to Forks for the big trees probably contained a lot of editing. Masen's mom being dead is still the top guess, though it felt like a few more readers started throwing out other ideas where she's still alive.

Thanks again to moosals for pre-reading. Stephenie Meyer owns all characters.

Chapter 4 – Is There Something I Should Know

On my actual birthday the following Tuesday, I meet my dad for dinner at the nicest restaurant in Forks, The Lodge. For the first time, he's also invited his girlfriend, Sue Clearwater, and her two children, Leah and Seth, whom I first met last Christmas, to join us.

"Bells," he greets me, standing up from the table for the usual awkward hug.

"Hi, Dad."

"Good to see you again, Bella," Sue says with a wide, genuine smile as I take my seat next to my dad. Seth, who's 16, gives me a warm hello. Leah's greeting is less warm, but a bit less chilly than the way she behaved the first time we officially met. We're the same age, but she's struggling, working at the checkout at the Thriftway since Sue was unable to afford college after her husband, Harry, died of a heart attack. My dad says it's just jealousy and Leah doesn't really dislike me.

Once we've ordered our meals, I'm shocked when Leah turns to me. "So this totally hot guy I've never seen before came into the store last week with a baby. One of the managers thought he'd bought the house next to you?"

There can only be one guy she's talking about, but I'll never hear the end of it from my dad if I recognize him by the description of "totally hot."

"Does he have kind of oddly colored reddish-brown hair?" I ask.

"Yes!" she replies animatedly.

I nod. "That is my new neighbor. He and his son moved in a few weeks ago."

"No mom?" Sue asks, brow furrowed.

"No," I shake my head. "I think they split up recently. Edward still wears his wedding band."

"Edward, huh?" my dad asks, stroking his moustache. He seems to be in cop mode.

"Yes, his name is Edward Cullen."

"Cullen? That name sounds familiar," Dad muses.

"I don't know why it should. He's not from around here," I explain. "He came from Chicago, still had the Illinois plates on his car. Maybe you've heard of someone else with that last name?"

"Maybe," he nods. "Seems like the name came across a police report or something."

"Charlie, it's Bella's birthday! No shop talk," Sue chides.

I'm amazed when my dad actually grins sheepishly. "Nice guy?" he asks.

"Yes," I smile, my heartrate speeding up. "He seems a little shy and quiet, but he's friendly. And his son is adorable! He's about nine months old now, I guess."

"Oh, that poor little boy," Sue frowns. "Having his parents split up so young. I wonder why he's not living with his mom?"

"I have no idea. It seemed like a nosy question to ask someone I hardly know," I chuckle. "Maybe she joined a nudist colony."

Sue laughs nervously, then reaches out to squeeze my dad's hand. It's so sweet that I can't help my grin. Maybe he's finally met the love of his life, nearly 23 years after my mom left us.

"I don't get it," Seth says, wrinkling his nose.

"My mom left home when I was two to join a nudist colony," I explain.

"Oh," he frowns.

"It's fine," I assure him. "It was a long time ago."

"She didn't understand how amazing you are," Dad says, winking at me. I smile widely. As a kid, I used to hesitate to bring up my mom, afraid of hurting him, but now that he's found happiness with Sue, it no longer seems to be a sore subject.

"It's really odd for a dad to end up with custody of a baby after a divorce, isn't it?" Leah asks. "Maybe Edward kidnapped his son and is hiding out here in Forks."

"Leah," her mom chides, "I think you've been watching too much TV."

"Edward would never do that," I protest. "Seriously, he seems like a really nice guy. He came out with the gang to Port Angeles last weekend when we celebrated my birthday." It's ridiculous to think that Edward could have kidnapped his son and is now hiding out in Forks! Besides the fact that it doesn't seem like something he would do at all, surely he couldn't buy a house without attracting the attention of whoever would be looking for him.

"It would explain Charlie recognizing his name," Seth interjects. "Maybe there's an Amber Alert out for the kid or something."

"You guys! No!" I insist. "If you'd met Edward, you'd realize this is just crazy talk. Can we change the subject, please?"

"Well, the Seahawks won their home opener on Sunday," Dad says, making me groan.

And I'm saved by our waitress delivering our salads.

Later that night, I'm watching the late news when a story comes on about two toddlers from Seattle who were found safe after an Amber Alert went out for them earlier today. Their drug-abusing parents had kidnapped them from the grandparent who has temporary custody.

I had completely dismissed Leah and Seth's suspicions about Edward a few hours ago, but… could there be something to them? My mind keeps coming back to the fact that buying a house, obtaining a loan… all of that would mean giving his real name and employer information. It can't be possible to do that and not get caught if the police are looking for you.

But… what if someone is helping him? What if that person actually bought the house and it's not in Edward's name after all? Seems like that would be easy enough to check in the county records, but I'm not sure that the information would be available online after only a month.

I could check the Amber Alerts though. Shaking my head at myself for even considering this, I get out my phone and search for children in Illinois who went missing in 2016 and are still missing. I'm relieved when I can't find anyone named Cullen or any baby boys less than a year old.

I feel like I've betrayed my new friendship with Edward for even thinking something so horrible, but my dad always taught me to be suspicious when the pieces don't seem to add up. Leah is right that it's odd for the dad to get custody, unless the mom is a drug addict or truly did just leave, as my mom did. I'm living proof that it could happen, even if it's not the norm.

I still don't feel right about just coming out and asking Edward something so personal, but maybe if we spend more time together, he'll tell me what happened because he wants to. Angela had suggested inviting him to dinner sometime, so I resolve to do just that.

The following Saturday, I hear the roar of a lawn mower start up; it sounds like it could be next door. I haven't seen Edward since I committed on Tuesday to invite him over for dinner, so I decide to take the golden opportunity to do that now.

Carolyn Brandon always had the tradition of making a big family dinner on Sundays. I've got all of her casserole recipes, but they make so many servings that I end up either eating them for a week or filling up my freezer with the leftovers; consequently, I don't make them often. But if Edward was helping me eat…

Heading outside, I walk down the porch steps, taking a minute to ogle Edward's backside as he pushes the lawn mower across his front yard. When he turns and comes back toward me, I wave to him and he shuts off the engine.

"Hi, Bella," he smiles. "Did you need something?"

As I move closer to him, I see Masen's playpen up on the porch. "I was wondering if you'd like to come over for dinner tomorrow night? I have a lot of yummy casserole recipes, but they make way too much just for me."

He smiles. "A real home-cooked meal would be great, actually. I can grill, but I'm not the best in the kitchen."

"Awesome!" I can't contain my smile. "What would you like? I'll pick up the ingredients at the store this afternoon."

"Um… can you make lasagna? That's my favorite food."

I laugh. "I remember that's what you ordered at Bella Italia last weekend." He nods, smiling. "Sure I can. Is dinner at six OK with Masen's bedtime? You can bring him along, of course."

"How about 5:30?" he proposes. "That way I have time to give him a bath before bed."

"It's a date," I smile before mortification hits me. "Um, I mean…"

Edward chuckles. "I know what you mean."

I know that I can usually have my lasagna on the table about 90 minutes after I start it, so I put a pot of water on to boil and get out the ground beef around 4pm.

I'm just checking on how brown the cheese is getting on top when I hear a knock at the door. Closing the oven door, I rush to let Edward in.

"Hi," I greet him with a smile. "And hello to you too, Masen." The baby is strapped into the removable part of his car seat. "Come on in."

Edward steps across the threshold and I try not to notice how good he looks in my house. "This way," I lead him toward the kitchen.

I've got two place settings already set at my small, round table. Edward sets his son down across the table from us. "Is this OK?" he asks. "I don't want to take the chance that he'll fall off a chair. And if I let him out of the carrier, he'll be in the next room almost before we can blink."

"It's fine," I agree, peeking at the lasagna again. It seems to be ready, so I grab a potholder to take it out of the oven.

"Oh, let me." Edward takes the potholder from my hand and instead, I move to get us drinks from the fridge.

"This looks really good," he comments, setting the baking dish on top of the stove.

I hand Edward the loaf of Italian bread, motioning for him to take a seat. Once I've brought our drinks over to the table, I cut two portions and carefully lift them onto the plates, taking the messy first piece for myself.

I barely even have my napkin spread across my lap when Edward takes a bite of the steaming hot lasagna, letting out the sexiest moan I've ever heard. "This is as good as it looks," he mumbles, his mouth still full of noodles.

I can't contain my smile. "I'm so glad you like it."

"DAAAA!"

I look over at Masen, laughing at the way he's holding his hand out toward us. "You can't have any, little boy," I chuckle, worried that the garlic and oregano might be too much for him.

"Sorry, Mase, maybe in a few months," his dad laughs.

We eat in silence for a few minutes before I get up the nerve to start subtly — I hope — probing Edward. "So, um, you said you're a writer. Do you do freelance articles?"

"Actually, no," he replies, looking over at me. "I write books — fiction."

"Oh!" I gasp in shock. "Are you published?"

"Yes, my first — well, only — book came out in November of last year."

"What's it about?" I ask, fascinated.

"Well, um, the most fitting genre would be mystery, I guess. The lead character is a detective."

The wheels in my brain start turning at that bit of info. Maybe this is why the name Cullen sounded familiar to my dad! I don't think he's a big reader, but if he did read something, a book about a detective would probably be near the top of his list.

"I know this is probably a rude question," I chuckle, "but did anyone buy it?"

"Well, I'm not looking to be the next Dan Brown, but it made it to #19 on the New York Times bestseller list for Hardcover Fiction," he shrugs. "Good enough that they asked me to write more."

"You know I'm totally gonna go look for it," I grin.

"You won't find it without more information," he grins back. "I published under a pseudonym."

And my heart falls. I guess Dad didn't recognize the name Cullen because he'd read Edward's book.

"Are you going to tell me?" I ask, batting my eyelashes — before I realize that I'm flirting.

"Oh, I suppose," he sighs dramatically. "My pen name is E.J. Pratt. E and J for my brothers, Emmett and Jasper. Pratt is my mom's maiden name. It was my way of thanking them for supporting my career choice," he adds quietly.

I can't help but notice there's nothing for his father in there. Or his wife. "Your father didn't support you?"

Edward shrugs. "It's not that he disowned me or anything, but… my dad — and my in-laws, for that matter — were pretty much convinced that Bree was going to end up supporting me after I failed as a writer."

"But you didn't," I murmur, my head still reeling from all of the new information. "What about a second book? You said they wanted you to write more."

"Masen was born about a month after the release, so that distracted me from writing for a bit. Once I got started, it was going well for a few months until…" He stops, swallowing thickly, then slowly shakes his head. "Well, I hit a bit of a roadblock. I'm almost done with the first draft now and ready to send it to my editor. The goal is to release the book next March."

"So is it totally different from your first book? Or a sequel?"

"I'd call it more of a series than a sequel," he answers. "Same lead character." He sets his fork down. "Could I have seconds?"

"Of course!" I nod happily. I start to scoot my chair back to stand, but Edward holds his hand out.

"I'll get it."

When I've finished my serving of lasagna, I debate getting more, but I don't want to look like a pig. Instead, I try not to stare at Edward as he finishes eating. When I fail miserably, I turn to amusing Masen, who's watching us intently.

"You're good with him," Edward says suddenly.

"I like kids," I shrug. "That's why I wanted to teach young children."

He smiles at me and I try not to swoon. When he finishes the last bite, he scoots his chair back a bit, patting his stomach. "Thank you for having me over, Bella. I've really missed having a good home-cooked meal."

"You're welcome to come every week and save me from too many leftovers," I smile. "Do you need to leave now?"

Edward pulls his phone out of his pocket to check the time, then shakes his head. "We could probably stay a few more minutes."

"You and Masen can go wait in the living room while I clean up in here," I suggest and he agrees, carrying Masen's car seat out of the kitchen.

I quickly run our dishes under the water and wrap up the leftovers to put in the fridge. When I join Edward and Masen, I smile widely at the baby standing on his own two feet, his small hands braced on the edge of my couch.

Edward looks up at my footsteps, smiling. "He's just started doing this. I can't convince him to take a step even holding onto my hands, but he's getting steadier on his feet."

"Are you sure you really want him to be able to walk?" I tease, getting down on my knees on the floor with them.

"Good point," he chuckles. "I'll have to do more babyproofing around the house."

"How is the remodeling coming?" I ask curiously.

"It's coming," he shrugs. "I'm trying to work on the house whenever I get a little bit stuck with my b—whoa!"

Masen wobbles on his feet and Edward quickly reaches out to catch him, pulling his son into his arms.

"Guess you're not ready to run a marathon yet, hey buddy?" He kisses the top of his son's blond head and I nearly melt. "We'd better be going. Masen needs his bath before bed."

"Oh, of course," I reply, trying not to show my disappointment as I get to my feet. I watch Edward get the baby back in his carrier, then follow them to my small foyer.

"Thanks again," he smiles, nodding as he steps onto the porch. Once I've closed the door, I lean my back against it, closing my eyes. Could this man be any more perfect?

A/N: Though she felt guilty for her thoughts, Bella started to get a bit suspicious of Edward's situation. She couldn't find anything though. BTW, there really was an Amber Alert in Seattle on that date last year; I didn't make that up!

Edward let slip a little bit of info as he was talking to Bella. Finally his wife has a name! Any change to your current theories?

You guys all know this Duran Duran song, right? I can remember hearing it for the first time on 4th of July weekend 1983, as we were driving to Niagara Falls for a family vacation.

Next update on Monday.