Chapter 8

Edward

I woke up as the sun was just starting to rise. I looked down at Bella, sleeping soundly in my arms. Her hair was splayed out across the pillow, her pink, pouty lips were slightly apart. She was even more beautiful in her sleep.

"Edward," she mumbled as she slept. My heart leaped at the sound. "I love you." Hmm...she talks in her sleep. A wide smile broke out on my face and I couldn't think of anything more perfect coming from her lips.

As I watched her, I thought about our date.

The iPod had shuffled to Claire de Lune. She looked at me quizzically. "Claire de Lune?"

"You know it?" This woman would never cease to amaze me.

She merely nodded her head. I moved out of the waltz stance and held her in my arms, while our bodies swayed to their own pace. She fit so perfectly in my arms, like she was made for me. She would be all I'd ever want. But was I good enough for her? Being a doctor was all I'd ever known. She deserved someone who could be there for her in ways I couldn't. Someone who didn't have to leave her to constantly work long hours at the hospital. Someone who would be able to sleep by her side every night for the rest of their lives. Someone who didn't have to leave in the middle of an anniversary dinner, while trick-or-treating with the kids, or while exchanging Christmas presents, because of an emergency at the hospital.

I looked at her, losing myself in the depths of her warm, chocolate eyes again. But would I give it up for her? The answer absolutely terrified me. I would. Without a shadow of a doubt, I knew in that moment that everything in my life had led me to her. Every thought, every choice, every action brought me here. I was nothing without her. In that moment, I felt something shift inside of me. The feeling that overcame me was indescribable. I rested my forehead against hers and breathed her in.

"Bella," I whispered, my eyes never leaving hers. She shivered and I wondered if she was cold. I love you, I thought as I bent down to kiss her. Her taste consumed me again, even more powerful now with the knowledge of my love for her. It was all I could do not to drown.

"Bella," I said as I struggled to catch my breath. Her name was so sweet on my tongue. "I don't know how, but I'm already in love with you," I whispered before I could stop myself.

The look that came into her eyes spoke to me before she said the words. And I knew she felt the same way. "I'm in love with you, too," she said, smiling, as a single tear rolled down her cheek. I thought my heart would explode with joy in that instant.

The smile remain plastered to my face as I thought of the memory. Bella shifted in her sleep and I looked back at her. Her face was no longer peaceful, but set in a frown; my smile faltered. She mumbled incoherently before a tear rolled down her cheek. "Jacob! Jacob! I'm so sorry!" she cried. "It's my fault. It's my fault!" She was thrashing, tears streaming down her cheeks.

I had the sudden urge to protect her from this Jacob, as I wrapped my arms tighter around her. "Bella, Bella. Shh, love. It's okay, it's all right." I spoke calmly, rubbing my hands soothingly over her arms. She relaxed again, her breathing becoming more even. A nightmare, I thought as I slowly untangled myself from her and got out of the bed.

I went to the bathroom and brushed my teeth, then made my way to the kitchen. I rummaged through the refrigerator and got out everything I needed to make her breakfast. I wanted to make our first morning together special. After some more rifling through the cabinets, I found everything to make coffee.

I put the biscuits in the oven and started frying the bacon, my mind going back to the pain and sadness that was on Bella's face as she laid in my arms dreaming. Who the hell is Jacob? I couldn't stop myself from speculating, a million things running through my head. Did he hurt her? Is he the one who broke her heart? Why would anyone want to do such a thing?Was she still in love with him? Surely she's not, right? Did she really mean what she said last night? You saw the look in her eyes, how could you doubt that? Where is he now? What does she think is her fault?

I had finished the biscuits and bacon and kept it warm in the oven and was just about to start on the eggs when I heard Bella shuffling into the kitchen. I grabbed a mug and handed it to her. "I don't know how you like your coffee," I said sheepishly.

"I keep some Coffeemate in the fridge." She smiled as she looked around the kitchen. "You made me breakfast?" Her face lit up at the possibility.

Does she honestly not know how amazing she is?

"I was going to bring it to bed, but you beat me."

She walked over to me and put her arms around my waist, kissing my shoulder. "Thank you."

I turned my body to face hers. "You're welcome." I bent down to kiss her gently before turning back to the stove.

I made us both a plate and carried them to the table. "Here you go."

She took a bite. "This is really good."

"Thank you." We ate in silence for a moment before I asked the question that had been burning in my brain for over an hour. "Who's Jacob?"

Her eyes widened with shock and she choked on her coffee. "How do you know about Jacob?"

"You were talking in your sleep."

Her cheeks grew red. "Oh, God. What did I say?"

"Which time?"

"I said something more than once?" She was really blushing now.

I chuckled. "Yes." I took a sip of my coffee. "Well, first, you said my name and that you loved me." She blushed even deeper. "After a while, you said his name twice before saying you were sorry and that it was your fault." I paused. "Bella, you were crying."

I could see the tears start to form in her eyes. I looked around the room trying to think of a way to make her feel better about telling me. I needed to know. I thought of her love for books. "Bella."

"Yeah?" she asked weakly.

"Tell me a story, love." She looked at me in confusion. "If it helps, tell it to me like a story."

She took a deep breath before starting. "There once was a girl who lived in Phoenix with her mother. Every summer, she would travel to Forks to visit her father for two weeks. Her father's best friend, Billy, was a member of the Quileute tribe in La Push. They would spend a lot of time with him and his son, Jacob. She and Jacob became friends, and looked forward to their time together during her summer visits with her father.

"One year, the girl decided to live with her father in Forks. She started going to school at the high school in Forks and made new friends. Even though she had friends, she still spent most of her time with Jacob. Eventually they became best friends, becoming practically inseparable.

"One day Jacob invited her over and told her he was in love with her. He begged for her to give him a chance, to take her out on a date and let her see that they were meant for each other. She agreed, because she would do anything for him, and wondered if maybe she felt the same way, too.

"Jacob took her to Port Angeles to dinner and a movie. Everything felt right, natural, between them. He took her home and walked her to her door, kissing her good night; it was her first kiss. She knew at that moment she loved him. She told him how she felt and they made plans to go out again the next night."

She took a deep, shaky breath and wiped a tear from her eye. "She was going to meet him at La Push beach after work the next night. About halfway to the beach, her truck died and she pulled over to the side of the road. Jacob couldn't afford a cell phone and she knew he was already at the beach, waiting for her. She called his father, Billy, who told her he would call Jacob's friend Embry. At the time, she thought that Billy was going to ask Embry to come and get her since Jacob was at the beach. Billy called her back five minutes later and told her that Jacob was on his way to pick her up. She waited in the truck for over an hour before she called Billy back. She told him Jacob had never came and gotten her, so Billy said he would call Embry back. Billy called her again and told her Jacob had left the beach right after he called Embry to tell him about my truck. He then told her to call her father and explain to him what had happened. Thirty minutes later my father came and told me the news."

She was in tears now. "You see, Edward, Jacob and Embry had gone down to the beach and were setting up a tent when Billy called Embry's cell phone. Jacob was planning a romantic, candlelit picnic for me. It was almost dark and raining and Jacob didn't want me to stay by myself for very long. He got on his motorcycle and left Embry to finish setting everything up. He was rushing to get to me and he overshot a turn and crashed." She started crying. I went and knelt in front of her, rubbing my hands on her thighs. "H-h-he was t-tr-trying to s-s-see me. H-h-he d-d-d-died because of me!" Her chest was heaving and she was sobbing uncontrollably.

"Oh, God. Bella. It wasn't your fault. It wasn't your fault." I pulled her into my lap and she buried her face in my chest. "Shh, it's okay, love."

"Yes, it is. If it wasn't for me, he wouldn't have ever gotten on his bike that day!" she screeched.

I stroked her hair and began softly humming the lullaby I had composed, trying to soothe her. It all suddenly made sense to me why she didn't date.

Eventually her sobs subsided and she looked up to my face. I wiped her tears with my hands and kissed her hard on the lips. "Thank you," she said.

"For what?"

"For letting me cry it out." She took my face in her hands. "I'm sorry you had to see that."

"Bella, it's okay. I understand. But understand this. It was not your fault. You have to let go of this guilt you feel. You didn't make Jacob's choices that night. He did."

She looked at me for a few minutes before she spoke. "Alice keeps telling me that. And I get that, I do. My head understands perfectly that it was not my fault. I was just sitting in my truck on the side of the road somewhere, nowhere near Jacob when he crashed. But my heart won't let it go. We were supposed to go on a date. He was coming to get me. If I hadn't agreed to go out with him in the first place none of it would have ever happened. He would have gone to college and become some hot-shot engineer like he had always planned. I have lived with this...this guilt and...fear since I was seventeen."

"What are you afraid of?" I asked, cupping her face in my hand.

"I was afraid if I gave my heart to someone else, something would happen to them, too. I didn't want to date, didn't want to try. I didn't want to fall in love again just to have my heart broken. And then I met you. I gave you my heart and never even gave it a second thought. Edward, I can't...I can't even begin to think how I would be if I lost you. My chest feels like it's been torn open just thinking of the possibility." She blushed as she said this, new tears running down her face.

"Bella," I growled, kissing her passionately. "Nothing will happen to me." I took a deep breath and looked into her eyes. We were moving so fast, I wasn't sure I could keep up anymore. "Isabella Swan, I meant what I said last night and more. The night before I met you, I dreamed of you. You were this perfect, beautiful angel who stole my heart." I grinned sheepishly. "I had never felt anything like it before. And then you left, ripping my heart out and taking it with you. I woke up with my chest throbbing. I was petrified. And then I saw you at the hospital. Nothing could have prepared me for the feelings that ran through me when you looked at me that night. I tried to fight it, but I realized last night that I couldn't anymore. You're like gravity to me, Bella, pulling me in to you. I don't have a choice; I don't know if I ever had a choice. I love you--so deeply, so truly--it terrifies me." I exhaled sharply, waiting for her response.

Her face broke out into a wide smile. "I dreamed of you, too. Of our life together. I dreamed that Jacob came to me and showed me what I always thought our life would have been like if he was still alive. He told me I could still have it and took me to a beautiful khaki colored room with hardwood floors and a black piano. He showed me a man and a little bronze haired little girl. The man in the dream was blurry, but the little girl was perfectly clear. She looked just like you, but with my eyes. As soon as I saw you, I knew. You were the man in my dream, I was just too afraid to see it. You...you put me back together, Edward. You found a part of me that I didn't even know I was missing and gave it back to me. And I love you, more than I could have ever thought possible."

I kissed her so fiercely, I thought my body would explode. "Bella, that room...that's my living room."

"What?"

"The room, from your dream. You just described my living room." I couldn't believe it. I hadn't had a chance to take her to my house yet. "Apparently, it's our living room." I smiled at the thought. "How weird is this?"

She giggled softly. "Very weird."

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

I held her in my arms, unable to let go, kissing her everywhere. I couldn't get enough of her, would never get enough of her.

I heard the front door close and hear a high, soprano voice call out. "Bella?" How long had we been sitting here? I heard footsteps walk towards us. "We're here a little early. I hope you don't mind..." She trailed off when she saw us in the kitchen. I'll just...I'll just go in the other room." I looked up to see Alice as she spun around, dragging the blond-haired man with her.

Bella looked over towards her living room and called out to her. "It's okay, Alice, we'll be ready to go in a minute. Edward's going to come with us." She turned to me and smiled as she rolled her eyes. "Alice. For someone so intuitive she can really have bad timing," she said laughing. "We should probably get ready to go. Would you like to take a shower?"

"Yes, but you can go first. I'll clean this up while you're in there." She nodded her head, and I reluctantly let her go.

I got up and started to fill the sink with water. "So you spent the night here, huh?" I looked over at Alice, who had an all-knowing grin on her face.

"Yeah," I was blushing. I was blushing!

"Why?" I looked at her, confused. "I mean, I told her I didn't think you two would be having sex together but I knew you'd be here today when I got here. However, I didn't know I would walk in on a make-out session today. I'm sorry about that." She smiled ruefully. "So, back to my question. Why did you stay?"

I had finished washing the dishes and was rinsing them. I shrugged my shoulders, hoping to be nonchalant. "She didn't want me to leave, so I offered to stay here with her. It actually worked out because she invited me to her dad's with you all. I hope you don't mind." I turned to Alice with a hopeful expression on my face.

She smirked. "Of course not. You do realize you're the first guy she's ever brought home to Charlie, right?" I nodded. "You do know what that means, right?" I nodded again. "Do you love her, too?"

"Yes," I breathed.

She grinned widely. "Good. Does she know?"

"Yeah. I told her last night. Listen, Alice? She told me about Jacob this morning."

Her eyes widened and her mouth formed a round 'o'. She shook her head, looking down. "She never got over it. It's been eight years, and she never got over him. Never let herself. Until now. She doesn't talk about it...ever. Jasper and I have tried to get her to go out, set her up on dates, everything we could think of, but she just wouldn't try. It was like she lost a piece of herself when Jacob died." She looked back up at me. "I think you gave it back to her."

I nodded my head. "She told me this morning I gave her back a piece of herself she didn't know was missing." She beamed at me upon hearing this. "She also told me about the dream."

"Yeah, I wish I could explain that. I mean, it took her a few days, but she realized the man in the dream was you." Her expression turned serious. "Look, I don't know how to say this, but I just get the feeling you're going to fuck it up."

My eyebrows shot up at the bluntness of her statement. "What?"

"Maybe not deliberately fuck it up, but you're going to hurt her. I don't know. It 's just a feeling I have. I get those a lot, by the way." Her brown eyes bore into mine. "And they're always right."

"So Bella wasn't lying when she said you were intuitive." She nodded her head. "I don't know the future. But right now, there's nothing more I want than to be with Bella." That seemed to pacify her.

What did she mean, 'You're going to fuck it up'? What was I going to do?

"Edward?" I heard Bella calling my name.

"Yeah, love?"

She came into the kitchen wearing jeans and a dark green turtleneck sweater, and her hair was still wet. She looked wonderful. "Hi," she breathed.

My face lit up. "Hey, yourself."

"I'm done if you want to get in now." I nodded my head and walked over to her. "I love you," I whispered as I brushed my lips against hers. I couldn't stop saying it.

"I love you, too," she said, before I walked away.


Bella

Edward had just gotten in the shower when Alice came following me into my room. She was bouncing up and down with excitement. "Okay, Alice, just get it out already."

"Oh, my God, Bella! He loves you!" she squealed.

"I know, I know! It's so amazing, Alice!" I was breathless just thinking about it.

"I want details. What happened last night? Did you have a good date? When did he tell you he loved you?" She was spouting off questions so rapidly, my head spun.

"Whoa, whoa, slow down, Alice! Just sit down and stay calm. I'll tell you everything. And do not interrupt me or I'll stop talking." She acted like she was zipping her lips shut. I told her about his reaction when he first saw me, dinner, dancing, and the words he spoke to me last night. I told her about asking him to stay and falling asleep in his arms. I told her that I woke up to him making me breakfast. "He asked me about Jacob while we were eating. Apparently I was dreaming about him and was talking in my sleep." I blushed. "Anyway, I told him everything, and he just held me in his arms and let me cry it out. And you know what?" She shook her head. "I don't feel that guilt I've been carrying around all this time. It's like I finally let him go." She was grinning widely. "Anyway, then he told me how much he loved me. How he'd dreamed of me before we met and that he'd loved me since the moment he laid eyes on me. He said I was like gravity, pulling him into me." A tear rolled down my cheek at the memory.

"Aww, Bella! That's so romantic!"

"I know! Wait, you don't think we're going too fast, do you?"

"No. Just as long as you don't go to Vegas and get married tomorrow," she said , laughing.

I looked at the clock, it was 9:52. "We'd better get going, we don't want to be late."

We walked back out to the living room and sat down on the couch with Jasper. He was watching a football game. I looked at the screen to see who was playing. "Hey! Edward's brother plays for the Bears!" I said, excitedly.

Jasper looked at me. "Who's his brother?"

"Emmett Cullen."

"You're shitting me!" I looked at him curiously. "He's one of the best defensive linemen out there!"

"Uh, okay." I had no idea what he was talking about.

Just then, Edward came to the living room, his hair still glistening with water, looking like a Greek god. He loves me. My heart leaped inside my chest for what felt like the millionth time this morning.

I walked over to Edward and gently kissed his lips while grabbing his hand. "So, Edward, you've already met Alice. And this is her husband, Jasper Whitlock." I said, pointing to Jasper. "Jasper, this is Edward Cullen."

Jasper got up and shook Edward's hand. "It's nice to meet you," Edward said.

"You too, man. Your brother is Emmett freakin' Cullen?" Edward looked over at me and I blushed, mouthing the word 'sorry'.

He ran his free hand through his hair. "Yeah, he is."

"He's the best lineman there is! He could go anywhere! Why'd he pick the Bears?"

"Our family's from Chicago and so is his wife's. It was important for them to stay close to home." He was smiling sincerely at Jasper.

"Oh. That makes sense." They started talking about football. I tuned it out.

"Okay, boys. Enough football talk. Let's go. I've got lots of things planned today once we get to Forks!" Alice interrupted. Leave it to Alice to plan the entire day. For someone so small, she had an awful lot of energy.

We all got in Jasper's Mercedes SUV. Edward and I sat in the back, holding each other's hands. I laid my head on his shoulder and watched out the window as we drove out of Seattle, listening to the radio in silence. That lasted exactly one hour.

"Okay, guys! Let's play a game!" Alice exclaimed. Jasper and I groaned collectively while Edward looked startled. "Um...how about Twenty Questions?"

"Sure," we all said together. It wasn't like we were going to get a choice in the matter.

"Okay, Edward, here are the rules. Since you're the newbie in our group, you have to answer first each round. No dodging the questions. And you must answer truthfully. You don't have to ask the questions this time, since you've never played with us. 'Kay?"

"Got it." He looked down and grinned at me.

"All right, I'll start." She cleared her throat. "Where are you from?"

"Chicago," Edward said.

"Forks," I said.

"Houston," Jasper said.

"Forks," Alice said. "Okay, next question."

"Um, okay. Let's see...what's your middle name?" I said.

"Anthony," Edward said.

"Marie," I said.

"Thomas," Jasper said.

"Alice," Alice chirped. She looked back at Edward, who had a puzzled expression on his face. "My first name is actually Mary but if you call me that, I'll cut off your balls and stuff them down your throat," she said, smiling sweetly. Edward nodded and gulped.

"Number three. Who's your best friend?" Jasper asked.

"Um, my brother, Emmett," Edward answered.

"Alice," I said.

"Bella," Jasper said.

"Bells," Alice said.

"Ooh, I'm so popular," I said, laughing.

"Okay, my turn! Number four. Who with, when, and where was your first time?" Alice asked.

"In my dorm room at Harvard, sophomore year. Her name was Dana," Edward said, laughing. I looked at him, wondering what was so funny. "It was awful," he said, laughing harder.

I couldn't help but laugh with him. "At least it was memorable. Okay, my answer. Not applicable." Edward raised his eyebrows. "I told you had no experience." I shrugged.

"Behind a barn at my friend Peter's, during one of his parties junior year of high school with Missy." Everyone started laughing.

"You redneck!" Alice said laughing as she leaned over and kissed his cheek. "Okay, with Dane, in my bed at my parents' house in Forks, senior year of high school."

"Okay, number five. Favorite hobby." I said.

"Playing the piano," Edward said.

"You play the piano?" No wonder he could move his fingers like that. The thought made me blush.

"Yeah, since I was five." He looked me over. "You're blushing," he said smiling. "What are you thinking?"

"Nothing. I'll, um, tell you later." I cleared my throat. "So, um, my answer. Reading." Let it go, please. After looking at me curiously for a moment, he did.

"Fighting," Jasper said. He looked at Edward's confused expression in the rearview mirror. "I've practiced martial arts all my life."

"Really? What kind?" Edward asked him.

"Mostly Jujutsu, but I've got some practice in Judo, Muay Thai, Fencing, and Eskrima.

"Don't be modest, Jazz. He fought competitively in high school and college. We have a whole room dedicated to his trophies and awards." Alice looked at him lovingly.

"Yeah. So, um, don't hurt Bella or I'll have to kill you." He was joking, but the look in his eye was serious.

"Jazz!" I reached over and slapped his shoulder. "Excuse my friend here. He tends to take his role and my pseudo-brother a little too seriously sometimes." I looked at Edward, who still looked like he was wondering if Jasper would do it.

"Okay, guys. That's enough. My turn to answer. Shopping!" Alice trilled.

It continued like that until we were over half way to Forks. "Number nineteen. Longest most, most serious relationship to date," Jasper asked.

"Bella," Edward answered. Alice looked at him skeptically. "I'm being honest. I didn't date. Fooled around, yes. Date, no."

"Wow. Why the hell not? You're gorgeous!" Alice said, receiving a sideways glare from Jasper.

"I was too busy trying to be a doctor," he said with a grin.

"Huh. Okay." She was still confused. Hell, so was I, and I'd known it for a few days now.

"Okay. My turn to answer," I interrupted. "Edward." Everyone nodded, not surprised.

"Alice," Jasper said.

"Jazz," Alice said. "Okay, question twenty. Full name of first love and how old you were."

"Bella Swan, age thirty," Edward said, wrapping his arm around me. Then he started laughing. "God, I am the walking definition of geek." We all laughed at him.

"Aw, I don't think you're a geek, baby." I was giggling.

"Thank you, love." He kissed the end of my nose.

"You're welcome. All right, my turn. Jacob Black, age seventeen," I replied, happy my voice didn't break and I didn't feel like crying.

"Amy Johnson, age five," Jasper said laughing. "Gotta love a kindergarten romance."

"Tommy Grant, age thirteen," Alice said.

With the game over, Alice tuned up the radio. Edward held me tighter against his chest and moved his mouth to my ear. "I really like your friends."

I looked up at him. "Thank you. You don't know how happy that makes me." I leaned into him and closed my eyes.


Edward

We pulled into a small, gravel driveway and I saw a police cruiser parked in front of us. I looked to the house where Bella lived with her father. It was small and white, with a covered front stoop. A large tree stood in the front yard. It wasn't much, but since it was a part of Bella's life, I couldn't find any fault with it if I tried.

I looked down to see Bella still sleeping in my arms. "You'd better wake her up before Chief Swan sees us out here. I don't think she told him she was bringing you," Jasper said, as he and Alice got out and walked to the back.

He opened the hatch and Alice started grabbing bags and handing them to him. "What do you mean?" Should I not have come?

"He means nothing, Edward. Just being an idiot. Charlie will love you," Alice said as she playfully smacked Jasper's shoulder.

I looked back at Bella. "Wake up, love. We're here," I said, stroking her hair.

She yawned and stretched before she slowly sat up. "How long was I asleep?" she asked sheepishly.

"About an hour." We got out of the car and I held her hand as we made our way to the front door with Alice and Jasper. I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous. I was sweating bullets.

Bella knocked on the door before opening it, never letting go of my hand. "Dad? We're here!" she called as she led us into the house. We walked into a small living room. A staircase was directly in front of us. The living room held a small TV, a plaid couch, and a recliner.

"I'm in here, Bella!" he called from what I assumed was the kitchen.

We walked through the living room and into the kitchen to see Charlie standing at the table, cleaning fish.

"Ew, Dad! Couldn't you have done that outside?" Bella asked, her nose scrunching up in disgust. It was adorable.

"Hey, Bells!" he exclaimed as he turned around. He looked over at Alice. "Hey, Alice!"

Alice flitted over and gave Charlie a peck on the cheek. "Hey, Charlie! How're you?"

He grinned at her. "I'm just fine now, Alice. How are you?"

"I'm good." She went to start unloading some of the bags Jasper had brought in before going back for the rest.

Charlie turned back to where Bella and I were standing. "Dad, there's someone I want you to meet. This is Edward Cullen. Edward, this is my father, Charlie." She looked at us expectantly.

"Hello, Chief Swan. It's a pleasure to meet you," I said, extending my hand.

"Hello, Edward. I must say I'm surprised to see you. I didn't know Bella was bringing anyone besides Jasper and Alice." He shook my hand. I was thankful his hand didn't have fish guts all over it.

"I'm sorry, Dad. I didn't ask Edward to come until last night." Bella was looking at her father hopefully.

"I see. So," he said turning his attention back to me. "Are you dating my daughter?"

"Yes, I am." I said, clearing my throat. It was suddenly dry.

"Uh-huh. Well, Edward. What is it exactly you do?" He was eyeing me warily. I could tell no one was good enough for his daughter.

This must have been what Jasper was trying to say.

"I'm an ER doctor, sir." His eyes widened with surprise.

"Really? Well, that's...that's great." He turned back to the fish. "I hope you don't mind, but I invited the Clearwater's and, uh...uh... Billy to join us."

"No, that's great, Dad! I haven't seen Billy since...well, since the funeral I guess." I expected her to get sad again, but she just looked thoughtful. "It would be nice to see him again."

Charlie spun around and looked at her in surprise. "You sure?"

"Yeah, Dad. Why?" She looked completely baffled by his response.

"Well, I figured I'd get an earful about it. You haven't wanted to be around anything that reminded you of...of..." He was moving his hands around trying to figure out how to say Jacob's name.

"Jacob." He froze when she said his name and just looked at her. "It's okay, Dad. Honestly." Charlie looked at me in wonder before she continued. "So anyway, you said you invited the Clearwater's?"

He cleared his throat. "Uh, yeah. I did."

"That's great. Edward's friends with Seth." She leaned into me, grabbing my arm.

"Oh, really?" He went back to cleaning the fish. "How'd you meet Seth?"

"We go to the same gym and we get together to play basketball every few days." He didn't get a chance to respond because Jasper came in with the rest of the stuff Alice had brought.

"Well, this is the last of it. I swear, Alice, you bring more and more crap with you every time we come." Jasper looked at his wife warmly as he said this. "Hey, Charlie. How's it going?"

"Good. Hey, grab yourselves a beer. I'll be just a few more minutes."

Jasper walked to the fridge and grabbed us all a beer. He opened them before giving them to us and went to the living room to give Alice hers. Bella took my hand as we followed him.

"So," Alice said to Bella as we sat on the couch, "What are you going to dress up as for my Halloween party Friday night?"

"Aw, Alice! I'm not dressing up! I already told you!" I chuckled to myself.

"Yes, you are." She looked at me. "Edward, are you coming?"

I looked at Bella before answering. "Well, Alice, considering I hadn't been invited yet, I don't know."

"I was going to try to just stay home and do something with you," Bella said, smiling.

"No, you two are coming. End of discussion." I took it Alice was not into negotiating.

"C'mon, love. It'll be great. We can dress up as..." Think Edward! "Um, Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn."

"What are you going to do? Hire someone to pose as an executioner to follow me around with an axe?" she asked, laughing.

"Hmm...what about Romeo and Juliet?" Alice asked.

"No, too cliché," she said, scrunching up her nose. I really loved seeing her do that.

Alice chimed in. "Um, what about Sid and Nancy?" No.

"No!" she said, rolling her eyes.

"Well, love, how about Adam and Eve." I don't know why I said that.

"Are you serious?" she asked me.

"Well, yeah. I mean, she was literally made for him. She was a part of him. That's how I feel about you." Did I just say that out loud?

"Aw, Bella, that's so sweet! You have to do it. I'll make your costumes!" Alice was more excited about dressing us up than the fact we were going to attend.

"Well...okay, I guess." She turned to me. "You're sure?"

"Yeah. I'd love to do something like that with you." I shrugged my shoulders before she kissed me lightly on the lips.

"Just think, Bells, you won't have some puffy dress to trip over and Alice can't make you wear heels." Jasper said as he took a pull of his beer.

"You're right! Since apparently I have to dress up, might as well not try to kill myself over it." I didn't think it had dawned on Bella yet that she would be wearing next to nothing Friday. But I would be keeping that thought to myself. I didn't want to ruin the chance of getting seeing it.

"Okay, guys. I'm done with the fish." Charlie walked into the living room, wiping his hands on a towel.

"We'd better get started so we can have everything done by the time everyone gets here." Alice said. Bella hopped up and headed into the kitchen with her, leaving me with Jasper and Charlie.

"Who's playing today, Charlie?" Jasper broke the silence.

"Well, the Bears were playing the Steelers earlier but I missed it. I think they're showing it again on ESPN2."

"I want to watch it, if you don't mind, Chief Swan."

"No, not at all Edward. You a Bears or Steelers fan?" He turned the channel.

"Bears."

He looked at me incredulously. "You actually like the Bears?" Jasper was laughing.

I shrugged. "Well, I am from Chicago."

"Oh."

"Don't be so modest, Edward." Jasper was still laughing. "Charlie, Edward's brother plays for the Bears."

"What? You're kidding me!" I shook my head. "Who's your brother? Wait, your last name is Cullen. Your brother's not Emmett Cullen, is it?"

"Yeah, it is." I was very proud of my brother but I usually tried to keep his identity to myself. Otherwise, I was constantly fielding requests for autographs.

"Wow. I guess your parents are proud of you guys, huh? I mean, one son is a doctor and the other is one of the best football players in the country."

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. "Yeah, they are."

I didn't know how to explain it, but I felt like I was a part of this little 'family' of Bella's already.