All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc., are the intellectual property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement is intended.


Chapter 7

She awoke the next morning to a light tapping at her door. "B..Marie," she heard Jake call, softly. "Breakfast is ready, are you up?" She then heard him mumbling about getting her name right. Despite the seriousness of it all, she couldn't help but smile at his inclination to fuss at himself, sotto voce.

"I'm awake, I'll be right out. Thanks!"

She padded into the kitchen a few minutes later to find Edward seated at the table, his plate piled high.

With her bare feet and still in her flannel pajamas, rubbing her eyes, she looked very young and innocent to him, the image in no way diminished by her swollen middle.

She stopped abruptly as the aroma of freshly brewed coffee assailed her nostrils. She groaned, barely able to resist the urge to pour the herself the biggest mug she could find.

"What?" Edward asked, dropping his fork to rise and come toward her, concern furrowing his brow.

"That coffee just smells so good!" she whined, to Edward's relief.

He and Jake, who was tending to the frying of sausage, both chuckled. "But, it's not good for the baby, right?"

At her confirmation of this fact he reached over her shoulder to grab a large glass from the cupboard. He filled it with freshly squeeze orange juice from the frig and handed it to her. "Here, it might not taste as good as coffee right now, but it won't make you feel guilty. And, it won't be too much longer before you'll be able to drink a whole pot by yourself."

She smiled her thanks, and as their eyes met, in both was recognition that this was only a tiny sacrifice, one of many that would be made for the life residing in her womb.

Jake interrupted their wordless communication. "Food's ready, B..Marie, grab a seat." She complied, and he broached the subject that had been on his mind.

"Now that we have your papers, I think we should get you to Doc Banner's office and let him take a look at you and put a cast on that arm. What do you think?" he asked, sliding a heaping plate of sausage, eggs and biscuits in front of her.

"Thank you, but oh my gosh, Jake, you always give me too much food, that's what I think!"

He harrumphed, cocking a grizzled eyebrow at her. "It's not going to work to try to change the subject, you need to get to a doctor. Neither of us are up for deliverin' that baby!"

She was quiet for a moment, taking a few bites while considering his suggestion, if one could call it that. It was more of a demand, actually, but Bella quelled her usual reaction, realizing it was out of concern.

"You're sure we can trust this doctor?" she asked, finally. She knew he was right, but was very hesitant to meet anyone else. "Isn't he going to ask questions that we just can't afford?"

"We can trust him. I've known him for twenty years. He's gotten a little crotchety here of late, but he's still the only doctor I'd go to."

Edward made a strange noise and she looked over at him quickly. He seemed to be struggling not to laugh. Jake noticed as well, and took offense. "What are you snickerin' about? You could barely get around when you came here. Now look at you, you could go dancin' if you wasn't so stubborn. And who's been your doctor all this time?"

"I wasn't laughing at the doctor. I was laughing because you, of all people, called him crotchety."

Jake gave him a dark look. "I'll not dignify that remark by replyin' to it. Now, where was I? Oh yeah, we should give him a good story to spread around. We don't want it to look like you're hidin', we want everyone to know you, and know were you came from and why. That way there won't be any nosy suspicions.

"I'll give him a call and get an you set up right away, if that's alright with you?"

Bella nodded, reluctantly conceding to his judgment, hoping his trust in this doctor was not misplaced.

Jake went off to place the phone call, leaving Bella and Edward alone.

Bella toyed with her food, her appetite dissolved by the anxiety a visit to a doctor always engendered in her, doubled in this case by fear of having her identity revealed.

Edward finished cleaning his plate and took it to the sink. "Would you like some more juice?"

"No, thank you, I'm good."

He sat back down at the table after refilling his coffee cup, and scooting his chair a little closer. Her clean, sweet smell conjured the feel of her soft cheek under his lips when he had stolen that kiss from her last night. He wrestled with his thoughts, trying to block his vivid imagination from spinning out the scenario he wanted, one where he was free to taste more of that sweet, soft skin.

They were quiet for a moment, contemplating the tablecloth, each resisting the pull of the other. They gave in together, and their eyes met. He smiled, and she responded with a slightly tremulous one of her own.

"Did you sleep well?

"After I finally went to sleep. It's hard to get comfortable, between the belly and the arm."

"Maybe the doctor will be able to give you something that will help you sleep, and be safe for the baby, of course."

"Do you really think this is OK, going to this doctor, I mean? Are you sure it's safe? I...it's not just me I'm concerned about, I can't put you and Jake at risk, I'd sooner...," she stopped, dropping her eyes, "Well, I just can't. Let's leave it at that."

Edward's eyes, had she been able to meet them, were soft as he watched her bowed head.

"I absolutely do. Of all the things to worry about, this is one thing you can scratch off the list. I think that Alice, Dr Banner's nurse, would be great for you to meet, too." The tone in his voice raised her eyes to see that a fond smile had settled on his face when he mentioned her name, causing in Bella a sharp pang of...what was that? Jealously? She mentally shook her self, viciously stamping down the feeling.

"Oh? Why is that?" she managed, trying not to grit her teeth.

He looked at her curiously, noting the odd timbre in her voice, and then chuckled. "Alice is...well she's like no one else you'll ever meet!"

She thought she had blocked the unwelcome emotion, but the next words out of her mouth belied her control.

"Are you, I mean, do you," she stumbled over her question, unable to keep from asking, but dreading the answer with every fiber of her being. Finally she took a breath and just spit it out. "Is she your girlfriend?"

His eyebrows rose in surprise. "Oh my god, no!" He laughed out right, causing Bella's heart to pick up a beat or two. She realized she would give almost anything to hear that laugh on a regular basis.

"It would take someone much calmer than me to be with her, my nerves just couldn't take it; the energy that radiates off her, well, you'll see what I mean when you meet her."

His smile faded as he continued, "I'm not with anyone, haven't been for a long time."

Bella tried not to be relieved at this revelation, but failed.

"I haven't forgotten that you promised to tell me about yourself, I'm going to hold you to that."

He nodded, "I know. I want to tell you, but it won't be easy." He paused, "Thank you for sharing some of your story with me last night. I know that was not easy for you, either."

"Strangely, it was easier than I thought it would be, once I started. There's so much more to my life than what I've told you, so much that even I don't know, I only sense. But, I'm so...," she hesitated, "do you feel it?"

"A connection, you mean? A pull between us?"

"Yes," she nodded. "I'm...," she stopped, feeling as though the ground was dropping out from under her, torn away by the words she was unable to hold back. "I'm so drawn to you. I've never felt anything like this before, and it scares me."

He leaned forward and took her hand in his, holding it carefully. "Yes," he admitted, "I feel it, and it scares me, too." He sat back, retaining his hold on her fingers with one hand, while running the other aggressively through his already unruly copper locks. "I've been in only one relationship in my life, and...well, let's just say it didn't end in a way that would make me open to trying again. But, even at the peak of that relationship, I didn't feel what I felt for you the first time I touched you."

Bella could not prevent the soaring elation that took over her emotions at his words. Tears filled her eyes and spilled over, running down her cheeks. She smiled as he dabbed at her face with a napkin to prevent her bandage from getting soaked.

"Obviously, I've never been with anyone by choice, but the way I react to you is so unexpected, and," here she laced her fingers through his and gave them a gentle squeeze, "I have to be honest, not entirely welcome. I...the timing...it's not what I need to concentrate on. I can't be distracted, but I can't ignore these feelings, either, they're too strong."

"I know exactly what you mean. I didn't want this," he gestured between the two of them, his face morphing into an expression that was half pained, half sheepish. "I thought you were someone totally different than you are, and I didn't want to care."

Jake bustled in, briskly, pretending not to notice the hastily dropped hands at his entrance. He could not prevent the grin on his face that the sight brought about, however.

"OK, Dr. Banner is meeting us in an hour, so let's get you ready, B...Marie. Dammit! I can't seem to get your name right. Don't be insulted if I don't use it when we're out and about!"

"I won't, don't worry about it, Jake."

"About that, what did you tell him about her circumstances?" Edward inquired.

"Nothin' yet, just that she's a relative of my Leah's, visitin' from Washington.

"Good, because after giving it more thought, the best story to give the doctor, it would seem to me, would be that she is hiding here from her ex. That would reinforce the importance of her treatment being off the record."

"That makes sense," Bella agreed, "it will head off questions that being a widow wouldn't."

"True," agreed Jake. "Then, if anybody else you meet gets nosy, we'll just tell them you're widowed."

"I have to tell you, I really don't plan to do very much socializing. It's just too dangerous, for all of us," Bella asserted.

"Understood," said Jake, nodding. "We need to leave in about thirty minutes. Is that OK?"

"I'll be ready in 15," Bella promised.

BR

Doc Banner's office was in an old brick building on the main street of Jackson. Inside, it smelled like an earlier age, of years of polish on the wooden floor and wax on the railing, of ancient papers from the law office across the hall. The Doctor appeared to be from the same era. He was tall and thin, with a beak-like nose upon which perched a pair of wire rimmed spectacles that looked too small for his face. A pair of keen gray eyes peered at her over them. He had a rim of fluffy white hair through which the top of his head poked up like a weathered mountain through clouds. He wore no lab coat, the only evidence that he was a doctor was the stethoscope hanging around his neck between a pair of red and orange plaid suspenders. They held up a pair of baggy black pants that were shiny and worn at the knees. He and his office were a far cry from the expensively dressed doctor and elegant office she had gone to in Miami. He smelled of peppermint and pipe tobacco.

Jake had taken the doctor aside as soon as they arrived to have a brief discussion with him. Bella wasn't sure how much Jake told him, and he made no comment as he invited her into the examining room.

"My nurse will be right with you, Ms. Atera, and she will help you change into a gown, get your temp and blood pressure and all those details." He eyed her thoughtfully. "When did you say you were due?"

"In three or four weeks."

"Hm," he said, and left, leaving Bella to wonder if they taught all doctors how to make that particular sound to just to worry their patients.

In a few moments the nurse came bustling in, as business-like as the Doctor was casual, and immediately Edward's description of her made perfect sense. Her starched white uniform rustled crisply as she hurried about, laying out a gown and the instruments for the doctor's use. She was a diminutive woman who looked to be in her mid twenties with dark hair cut short and spiked, giving her the look of a pixie. Bella would not have been surprised if she sprouted wings and began to flit around the room. Her movements were brisk, but her voice and smile were warm.

"My name's Mary Alice Brewer, just call me Alice, and we're going to take real good care of you sweetie. Now, why don't get you into this gown, and then will see how you're doing. My, my, that is a nasty bruise. And you say Jake set that arm?" She tsk-tsked and shook her head. "What's the world coming to when a woman has to run from her own husband? I don't know if the Doctor will want some X-Rays, he doesn't like to use them around a baby, but if he does he'll take the splint off first."

By the time Alice had gotten her into the gown and taken her vital signs and weight, Bella was almost out of breath from watching and listening to this bundle of energy. She never stopped talking, except when she took her blood pressure. She did not come across as flighty, however, on the contrary, she gave the impression of absolute competence. She just seemed to be operating at a different speed than everyone else.

"Well now, these look good." she said as she jotted the results down on Bella's chart. "Just lie back and relax and the Doctor will be with you in a few minutes. There are some magazines to read if you want to, but they're old." She left, grumbling under her breath a bit about, "People running off with the new ones!"

Bella was never good at waiting for anything, and rather than lie down, she paced the floor, what there was of it, and tried to hold the back of the gown together. She paused in front of the various awards and diplomas displayed on the wall beside the door. The good Doctor had been around a long time and collected quite a few of each. There were some Norman Rockwell prints over the examining table, and some diagrams of the human anatomy. Over the sink were charts detailing medical statistics about smoking and heart disease, AIDs and sundry other topics of community interest. The other wall was taken up by cabinets and a bookcase full of very well used books. The bottom shelf was devoted to children's books, the rest were medical textbooks.

She did not have long to wait. She had just worked her way around to the picture of a small boy in a doctor's office, about to receive a shot. His pants were pulled down in back to expose an area not usually subject to daylight. The doctor's credentials were posted on the wall and he was examining them carefully.

Bella was smiling when Doctor Banner and Alice came in. "I see you've found my favorite." he said, noting the picture that had elicited her smile. "To me, that's real art, none of this silly stuff where somebody just throws paint at a canvas and sells it for thousands of dollars." He seemed to feel very strongly about the matter.

"OK, let's see what we have here," he said, picking up her chart and studying it. "Your blood pressure is fine, your weight is a bit on the low side. No fever, so probably no infections, but of course we'll do blood and urine tests to be sure." He put down the chart. "Let's get you up here on the table so I can have a look at you." He helped her onto the table covered with thin, crinkly paper and removed the bandage from her face. He looked closely at the laceration. "This looks nice and clean. It's healing well, but you are probably going to have a slight scar. You might consider cosmetic surgery later on down the road." His fingers gently probed the bruise and swelling on her forehead. "Any dizziness, nausea, headaches?"

"When I first came to after the accident my head ached, but it's fine now. I have been very nauseous, but I was that way before the accident. It's probably why my weight is low. No dizziness."

"Good. Now let me listen to your heart, and the baby's, and then we'll do a pelvic."

"What about my arm?" Bella wanted to know.

"We'll get to that all in good time. Is it bothering you very much?"

Bella nodded. "I haven't taken any pain medication, I didn't want to do anything to hurt my baby."

Doc Banner patted her shoulder. "That's very brave. I know you've been suffering with it. I'll give you something that you can take safely."

The rest of the exam was thorough, gentle and quick. Bella had never gotten used to this part, and usually found it uncomfortable and embarrassing. The old Doctor put her at her ease however, and Alice chimed in for the first time since she had come in with him. Bella would have given pretty good odds that she could not have been quiet as long as she had. She asked whether Bella preferred a boy or a girl, if she had names picked out, if she had clothes and other baby necessities. By the time Bella had answered all her questions the exam was over and the doctor was having her set up so he look at her arm.

"Wiggle your fingers, and open and shut your hand." he instructed. "Can you feel me touching you?" At her affirmative he went on. "The color looks good, and there doesn't seem to be anything pinched, cutting off the nerves. I don't want to X-Ray this if I don't have to." he told her. "That is not good for the baby at all, and it looks to me like Jake did a good job of setting this straight. I am not even going to put a cast on it; this splint is doing as good a job as the cast would, and air can circulate around it. And, it would hurt terribly to move it, I would have to give you more pain medication than would be good for the baby. If there are any complications we'll rethink the situation, but for now we'll leave it as is."

"Do you think the baby will come on time?"

"Ms. Atera, I would be very surprised if it waits one more week, much less 3. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if that baby came in the next few days. You are already dilated somewhat. Have you had many contractions?"

"I've had what Jake called the flyin' miseries."

"Yep. Braxton Hicks. You're getting ready. You can go on home for now, but I want you back here when your contractions begin in earnest. Just call me and I will meet you; I have a bed in here, and I think this would be a better place for you to have the baby than for you to go to the hospital. I presume, from what Jake told me, that you don't have insurance, or if you do, you wouldn't want them contacted. Am I right?"

"You are absolutely right. I can't thank you enough for being so understanding."

"That's what we're here for. Now, I don't want you to worry about a thing, everything looks good, and I don't see any problems with the birth from your 'accident'. Any questions?"

"I can't think of anything."

"Fine. Alice will help you dress, and I'm sure we'll see you soon!" He gave her a reassuring smile and left her to Alice's capable hands.

When she stepped out of the examining room, Jake was pacing in front of the window overlooking main street. A deep frown quickly replaced his smile of greeting. "Why in tarnation are you still wearin' that mess I put on your arm!" he demanded, gesturing toward her splint. "Why didn't you let the Doc put a proper cast on for you?"

Bella laughed and put a calming hand on his. "Relax, Jake! It was not my idea to leave it there, it was Dr. Banner's. He said it was doing as good a job as a cast would. Now, aren't you proud?"

The tips of his ears reddened a little, and he huffed a bit, but Bella could tell that he was happy to hear that his splint had been good enough to keep in place. "Well, I guess that's alright then. Are you ready to go?"

"Yes, I am. I'll need to stop at the pharmacy to get a prescription filled, if you don't mind."

"No problem at all," he assured her. "Did he give you somethin' for the pain?"

"Yes, he said I needed to sleep."

"You shore do! OK, let's get you home and settled in."

Bella's heart clenched when Jake referred to his house as her home. She knew she was going to cause him, and Edward, pain when she left, and the pain that caused her was almost unbearable.