A/N: Sometimes, life is hectic & I don't reply to reviews. I try, though. Regardless, each & every one is read and appreciated. Now on to what you really want :)

~Edward~

I arrived home just in time for family dinner at my parents' house, and I was greeted immediately by my toe-headed nephew, who ran straight into my arms.

"Uncle Eh-ward!"

I hugged him close to me, spinning us about until my sister came over and smacked my arm for getting him so wound up. I was shuffled toward the kitchen, where everyone was gathered, and was immediately inundated with questions about my flight, the trip, and how the writing sessions went. I filled them in on the surface details but quickly redirected the conversation to all of them. My brother-in-law Emmett took over, telling us about the new parent-and-tot gymnastics class he had started doing with Jasper. Apparently, Jasper's shaggy blond hair had made him a hit with all the teachers, and we all had a good laugh over that.

I spent the rest of the evening enjoying the company of my family and sharing a couple glasses of wine with them. I didn't leave until I was sure the alcohol had worked its way out of my system and I would be okay to drive. I departed before I could get too tired, even though my mother offered the guest room to me.

"Thanks, Mom, but there's just something about your own bed when you've been away from home."

"Of course, dear. Call us when you get home."

"I'm a grown man, and I live a mile and a half away."

"And I'm still your mother, therefore, I worry. At least text me."

"Sure." I smiled, giving her a kiss and hugging my dad. Emmett and Rosalie decided to leave at the same time, tucking a sleepy Jasper into his car seat.

"Golf Saturday morning?" Emmett asked, and I agreed, telling him I'd call to work out the details. We both slipped into our cars and set off for home.

I showered and fell into bed once I arrived back at my house, praying it would finally be the night my nightmares stopped, but I wasn't that lucky. I awoke four separate times, and I felt even more exhausted when I finally dragged myself out of bed in the morning. Instead of running, I did laps in the pool, hoping the water would revive me a bit.

Unsure if Angela would be working, I pulled out my cell phone a little while later and called her. The truth was, I felt desperate for an update on Bella and Ruth. Angie had told me the baby's name, and though I didn't know her at all, I felt an odd affection toward her. There was no answer to my call, so I left a message, hoping I'd hear back soon.

As luck would have it, Angela returned my call fifteen minutes later, saying she'd missed the call while she was packing the boys up to go over to Bella's. It was a gorgeous day, so I suggested she bring everyone over to my place. The boys could swim, and I was hoping to talk to Bella a little bit . . . to see if there was anything else I could do for her.

"Oh, Edward, that's really thoughtful of you, but I don't know."

"Why?"

"I'm not sure Bella would feel comfortable, you know?"

"You could convince her. Come on, Angela. You've known me for how long now? Three years? I'd really like to talk to her now that the shock has worn off. I just feel like . . . like I need to see for myself that they're both all right."

"Oh, Edward, you have the heart of a teddy bear. Tell me again why you're not married yet?"

"Because you were already married when I met you, Angie."

"Oh, geez! Shut up, you dumb flirt!"

We both laughed a bit and continued our short conversation. Eventually, she agreed that she would ask Bella if she'd like to accept my invitation. She didn't promise me anything; in fact, she told me to prepare for disappointment, but I was pleasantly surprised an hour and a half later when Angela called me and said they were all on their way. I quickly prepared a cooler full of bottled water, juice boxes I kept stocked up for my nephew, and some cans of soda I found in the little fridge behind my bar. Thanks to Jasper, yet again, I gathered some snack foods and paper plates and arranged everything out on the patio.

When the doorbell rang, I jogged to the front door, opening it, only to be nearly knocked off my feet by two little hurricanes.

"Michael! Tyler! If you break anything in this house, I swear you'll be cleaning Edward's pool instead of swimming in it!"

I laughed, glancing from Angela to Bella, noticing that she was smiling as well.

"Can I help with that?" I asked, gesturing toward Ruthie's carrier. Bella hesitated momentarily, looking nervous, but she allowed me when I said I'd show her the way to the patio. I glanced down at the baby, who looked absolutely darling, fast asleep in her seat.

I showed everyone around, amused by the boys' excitement. I pointed out where the bathroom was and gestured down the hall toward the guest bedroom, welcoming Bella to use it whenever Ruthie needed changed or a place to nap. We finally made our way out to the patio and the pool. Angela hollered again, halting her three and four year old children from jumping into the pool before she could put sunblock on them. They groaned but came back to her, pouting as she sprayed them down and made sure it had absorbed before they were allowed to swim.

I sat at the table, beneath the shade of the umbrella, watching Angela settle herself and Bella lift the baby from the carrier.

"Thank you for coming," I said to both of them, my eyes lingering on Bella for a moment longer in hopes that she would sense my sincerity. "It's nice to have company. Mostly, it's just my family who come over."

"You have a really nice home," Bella replied quietly, her eyes focused on the baby.

"Hey," Angela interjected suddenly, "I think I'm going to hop in with the boys. It's hot today, and I can't resist the lure of the pool." She was grinning widely, standing and grabbing her bag. "Boys! I'm going to change! Be good for Edward and Bella!" The children yelled back in acknowledgement, and Angela disappeared into the house.

"How've you been?" I asked Bella carefully, watching her lightly bounce the baby in her arms.

"Pretty well, I suppose. Not much sleep, of course, but that's what most new parents say, isn't it?"

"It's what I hear, though I wouldn't know from personal experience." I looked away, lost in thought for a few moments.

"Angela's been great. I really appreciate you . . . you hiring her. You didn't have to do that."

I looked back at her, smiling slightly. For some reasons, I couldn't help it, no matter how awkward this felt.

"You know, she would have done it for free. I had to force her to take any pay for it, but she finally agreed when I told her I'd give it to her boys for video games."

To my surprise, she giggled, shaking her head.

"Well, it's really more than I ever expected. The groceries . . . the flowers . . . the car seat . . . . I don't expect anything from you."

"I know you don't. Garrett was very clear about that; it actually took a bit of convincing to get him to agree, but it's the very least I could do. What happened that night . . . I just didn't see you there, and for what could have happened . . . ."

"Edward," she cut me off, "I don't want to dwell. It's taken me the last couple weeks to accept that. Neither of us can change what happened. I'm just grateful that we weren't hurt too badly. Cars and things can be replaced; life can't."

I cleared my throat and stood.

"Care for a drink?" I choked out, my eyes trained on the cooler. "Boys? Want to come out and have a juice box?"

Michael and Tyler cheered, clamoring out of the pool and over to me. I handed them each a drink and placed a bottle of water in front of Bella just as Angela came back outside.

"If you'll excuse me for a moment . . . ."

I walked quickly into my house, closing my bedroom door behind me and grabbing my phone.

"Hey, man, what's up?" said the voice on the other line.

"Hey, Em. I'm having one of those days."

"Shit, that sucks. What happened?"

"Angela is here with the kids today," I explained. "She brought the girl from the accident – Bella – with her. She said something about it, and I guess it just triggered it, you know?"

"Listen, Edward, you know I love you, and I understand why you don't like talking to anyone else in the family about what happened before, but it's been months and you're not doing any better. Are you still having nightmares?"

"Yeah."

"I think you ought to see a therapist. There's no harm in talking to someone, and it might help you work through some of this. I gotta run, but think about it. If you want to talk some more, I'll be home tonight, but I don't think our conversations are gonna cut it."

"Yeah, maybe. I don't know. My head's just so screwed up, but I have guests. I should go."

"Okay, E. Go enjoy the sun and fun. Remember, golf Saturday. We can talk more then."

We said our goodbyes, and I went into my bathroom, splashing water on my face and trying to compose myself. I felt like I was suffocating in here. Maybe a second dip in the pool today would help. Stripping off my shirt, I tossed it on my bed and moved out to the hall. I nearly ran into Bella when she rounded to corner, looking around.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" she said, her eyes darting away from my face and down my body before meeting my eyes again. "I was just looking for the guest room."

"My fault," I mumbled in apology, gesturing toward the first door in the hall. "It's right here. There's an en suite bathroom, and there are towels under the sink if you need anything."

She excused herself, carrying Ruthie into the bedroom and shutting the door softly.

"Everything all right?" Angela asked as I came back out.

"Yep," I said, redirecting my attention to her boys. "Cannonball!"

With a splash, I entered the pool and carried on playing with the kids until they were exhausted and hungry. Angela pulled two packed lunches out of her bag and got them arranged at the table while I went inside to put something together for the adults. I had just pulled out all the ingredients for sandwiches and some potato salad my mom had sent home with me.

"Want some help?" I heard behind me, and I turned to see Bella smiling sweetly, Ruthie awake and alert.

"Oh, I think I can manage. What do you like on your sandwiches? Is ham okay?"

"Um, I prefer just cheese and veggies. I read something about eating meat while pregnant and nursing and I . . . well, I never really ate much of it, so I stopped several months ago. Let me just go give Ruthie to Angela and I'll come help you."

"I can hold her," I offered, taken aback by my own words.

Bella looked hesitant, but after a moment of consideration, she nodded and held that baby out to me. As I slipped my arm under hers, being careful to support Ruthie's head, I felt a shock of energy. My breath caught, but I wrote it off as nerves. I hadn't held a baby this small since Jasper was born, and that was two years ago.

"Thanks," she said softly, giving me a half smile. "So what do you like?"

"I'm a guy. Whatever you make is fine with me, just no mustard."

"If you don't like mustard, why do you keep it in your fridge?"

"Well, I guess it's for other people. My sister used to whine about me never having any, so I bought it for her."

"That's thoughtful."

I laughed lightly. "You don't know my sister. She'd punch me every time she came over and wanted some on a sandwich or hot dog."

"You're close to your family?"

"Yeah, I guess I am."

"You're lucky," she said, piling layers upon layers onto the sandwiches.

"Very true . . . . Angela told me . . . . Sorry, it's not my place to ask," I amended.

"No, it's fine," she replied. "My mom took off with me when I was a baby. When my dad went after her, she said she was never coming back, so she left me with him and basically disappeared. We never heard from her again."

"Did you ever try to find her?"

"No . . . . Why go in search of someone who doesn't want you? She admitted to my dad that she didn't want any of it – the family or the shotgun wedding. If she cared, she would have shown up at some point."

"And your dad?" I prompted.

"He died doing what he loved. The man spent every minute he wasn't working or watching baseball out fishing. His little fishing boat capsized in a storm. They said it must have been a blow to the head that knocked him out. He drown."

"I'm so sorry."

"I'm okay now," she said, smiling as though she was remembering something fondly. "It's been a while. I was in college. His life insurance saw me through the rest of my undergrad."

"How old are you now?" I asked out of curiosity. She looked so young to me. "I mean, if you don't mind me asking."

"It's fine. I'll be twenty-six in September. You?"

"Just turned thirty-three."

"I figured you were somewhere around there, since Angela said you'd finished residency. Hey, I think we're all set, unless you wanted anything else."

"No, this is great."

Ruthie had been absolutely perfect as we talked, cooing and gurgling sweetly. I couldn't resist running the tip of my finger down her tiny nose. Her wide blue eyes met mine, making me smile instantly. For something so small, she really was beautiful.

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"I asked if you were ready."

"Sure. Are you ready, Little Miss?" Ruthie squeaked, as if in response, and the three of us walked back outside together.