BPOV

"Do you remember our trip to California?" asked Brody, laying down next to me.

I smiled as I leaned over and laid my head on his chest. Brody wrapped his arms around me, holding me tight against his chest. I missed the feeling of him holding me, loving me. He smelled evergreens and leather mixed together.

"How could I forget," I smiled. "Alex was conceived there."

"On the beach," whispered Brody, pressing his lips to the top of my head.

"I miss you," I murmured, snuggling into him even more.

"I miss you, too," said Brody. "Angel, you know that it's ok to move on, don't you?"

"What do you mean?" I asked, looking up at him. He smiled as he looked down at me. His blue eyes sparkled brightly.

"I mean that I won't be mad if you find someone else to love," he said, bringing his hand up and stroking my cheek.

"But I love you," I cried.

"I love you, too," he said, "but you can't keep hiding just because you are scared. He'll take good care of you and Alex."

"Who?" I asked.

"You know who, Angel," murmured Brody. "I have to go now."

"No, stay," I begged, clutching onto him. "Please, just stay."

"I can't," he whispered, pulling out of my arms. "I'll be seeing you."

"Brody," I cried, reaching for him.

"Mom! Mom, wake up!" yelled Alex. I snapped my eyes open and took a deep breath. Alex was standing next to my bed.

"I'm up," I said, quickly.

"You were talking in your sleep again," said Alex.

"I'm sorry if I woke you," I whispered.

"I was already awake," shrugged Alex. "You just sounded like you were crying. I was scared you were having a nightmare."

"I'm fine, Sweetie," I sighed, sitting up. "Go get ready for school."

Alex groaned as he shuffled out of my bedroom. I sat there on my bed for a couple more minutes, trying to catch my breath. Once I had caught my breath, I climbed out of my bed and pushed the dream out of my mind. It made no sense to me, anyway. There wasn't one around me who could love me the way Brody did.

I quickly showered and got dressed, deciding to wear my favorite jeans and Poison t-shirt. I made my way downstairs and into the kitchen. Alex was already sitting at the table with his coloring book and crayons. He was wearing a pair of jeans, a Scooby Doo t-shirt, and his sketchers.

"What do you want for breakfast?" I asked, looking in the fridge.

"Um," he said, thinking about it. "Can I have cereal?"

"Cereal?" I asked, cocking my eyebrow at him. Alex simply nodded his head and went back to his coloring book. "Ok."

I grabbed a bowl and the box of Lucky Charms out of the cabinet. I set the bowl in front of him, poured out the cereal, and covered it with milk. Alex picked up his spoon and took a big bite, letting some milk spill down his chin.

"Good?" I asked.

"Really good," he muttered, mouth still full of food.

"Gross," I laughed, putting the milk up. "Don't talk with your mouth full."

"Sorry," laughed Alex, swallowing the cereal in his mouth.

Once Alex had had his fill of the sugary cereal, he went to brush his teeth and we headed off to school. I parked next to Edward's car and we climbed out at the same time he and Anthony did. The boys took off around the corner, completely ignoring us.

"Think they are in a hurry?" chuckled Edward as we followed them.

"Apparently," I snorted.

"You ok?" he asked. "You look tired."

"I didn't sleep very good last night," I muttered.

"Something on your mind?" he asked.

"No," I sighed.

As we caught up with the boys, I could hear them whispering to each other. I shared a look with Edward. Yeah, this wasn't going to end well. I was fixing to ask them what they were talking about when Alice opened her door. As usual she had a huge smile on her face. She was wearing a white peasant skirt and red fitted t-shirt.

"Morning, children," she sang as they filed in past her. She looked up at Edward. "Jasper told me to tell you that he won't be at practice tonight. He has a meeting about a job on the other side of town."

"No problem," said Edward. "I think Ben and Garrett were going to be there anyway since Emmett is working."

"Ok, I'll let him know," giggled Alice, before she shut her classroom door.

Edward and I turned and headed back out to the parking lot. We were almost to the car when my foot got caught on the ground and I started to fall. However, Edward reached out and gripped my waist in his hands, pulling me into his body.

"Whoa, you ok?" he asked, chuckling softly.

"Yeah, ground tried to trip me," I snorted, looking back at him. I never noticed before just how beautiful his eyes were. I took a deep breath as I stepped away from him. "Um, thanks for catching me."

"No problem," said Edward, looking away. "I guess I'll see you later, then."

"Ok," I murmured.

I climbed into my car and headed back home. I pulled my car up into the driveway and headed straight upstairs to my office. I had intended to work on my book. I had already fallen behind but I couldn't seem to find the words. So instead of writing the next chapter, I found myself staring at the blank screen.

I'm not sure how long I had been staring at the screen when the phone rang, breaking me out of my mindless staring. I groaned when I saw that it was Tanya Denali, my editor. She wasn't going to be happy about my work or lack thereof.

"Hello," I sighed.

"Isabella," she said, firmly.

"Tanya," I said, equally as firm. "I'm trying."

"Not very hard," she snorted. "What's stopping you?"

"Don't know," I said, shrugging my shoulders. Then I remembered that she couldn't actually see me. "Guess I'm just not feeling it."

"Well, maybe it's time you gave something else a try," she hinted. "Like a real novel instead of that garbage."

"I'm not that good of a writer," I scoffed.

"Yes, you are," sighed Tanya. I could almost see her rolling her eyes. "How many times do I have to tell you that you are better than that?"

"How many times do I have to tell you that I'm not?" I countered.

"One day, Isabella Swan, you will write the greatest book ever written and I will be able to say I told you so," laughed Tanya.

"Whatever you say," I muttered. "I'll try to get something to you soon, ok?"

"No rush," she said. "I was just worried because you've usually sent me at least the first smutless filled chapter by now."

"Thanks," I chuckled. "I'd better get back to staring at the blank screen now."

"Ok, have fun," she sang.

I rolled my eyes as I hung up my phone. Sighing, I once again turned my attention to the blank screen that sat in front of me. The black curser was mocking me, taunting me to make it move. By lunch time, I had given up on writing for the day and had decided to spend the rest of the day laying on the couch, watching TV. When the clock stuck three, I was pacing back and forth. I ran over to the door and threw it open. I skidded to a stop when I found my father standing in the doorway, hand raised like he was getting ready to knock.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I asked, shortly.

"Wow, Bella, it's nice to see you, too," laughed Charlie. "I came to visit."

"Visit?" I asked, pulling the door shut. "Well, Dad, that's great but I have to go get the boy from school."

"I'll go with you," smiled Charlie.

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes as I led my father to my car. He climbed into the passenger seat without saying anything, even if he did have that fucking smile planted on his face. Pulling on my seatbelt, I pulled the car out of the driveway and headed off toward Alex's school.

"So," said Charlie. "How's your week been? Haven't talked to you since last Saturday."

"Great," I said, not looking over at him.

"Good, good," muttered Charlie. "Alex still liking school?"

"Yeah," I smiled. "He seems to love it."

"That's great," chuckled Charlie. "So…who's Edward?"

"Dad," I whined, pulling my car up next to Edward's car.

"What?" he asked, innocently as I cut the engine. "I'm just curious about who the man answering your phone on Saturday night was."

"I told you," I said, looking over at him. "He's Anthony's father. I kept Anthony for him while he worked and I invited him and Anthony to stay for dinner. It was nothing more than a couple of friends, enjoying some pancakes."

"And what does Edward's wife think about him eating dinner with you and Alex?" asked Charlie, smirking. I sighed and looked out the window.

"He's a widower," I muttered.

"Oh," whispered Charlie.

"Yeah," I said, looking back at my father. His smirk wasn't on his face anymore. "He understands."

"I'm sure he does," muttered Charlie.

"Well, we should go get Alex," I whispered.

Charlie just nodded as he climbed out of the car. We headed over to the gates and into the school yard. Edward and Angela were leaning against the side of school, talking as we came up on them. Edward looked over and smiled at me before he looked over at my father.

"Dad, this is Edward Cullen and Angela Cheney," I said, gesturing to them. "This is my dad, Charlie."

"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Swan," said Edward, offering his hand.

"You too," said Charlie, shaking his hand. "Call me Charlie, Edward."

"Mr. Swan, it's nice to meet you," smiled Angela, looking from him to me. It was like she just put together the fact that we have the same last name.

"It's Charlie," chuckled my father. "Mr. Swan makes me feel old. Don't say it, Bella."

"I wasn't going to say anything," I snorted as Alice opened her door.

"GRANDPA!" yelled Alex, leaping into Charlie's arms.

"Hey, squirt," laughed Charlie. "How was school?"

"It was boring," scowled Alex.

"Hey, my class is never boring," complained Alice. Charlie chuckled as he looked over at her. "You must be the infamous grandpa Alex has been telling us all about."

"Uh oh," snorted Charlie. "Am I already in trouble?"

"Oh, it was mostly good things," laughed Alice. "I'm Alice Whitlock. It's nice to officially meet you, Mr. Swan."

"Again with the mister," sighed Charlie, putting Alex back on the ground. "It's Charlie, Mrs. Whitlock."

"Oh, well, it's Alice," smirked Alice.

"Ok, Alice," laughed Charlie.

"Grandpa, this is Anthony," said Alex, dragging Charlie over to where Anthony was standing next to Edward. "He's my friend. This is his dad, Edward. He coaches my soccer team. Can you stay and watch me practice?"

"It's nice to meet you, Anthony," said Charlie, squatting down in front of the boy. I heard Charlie's knees pop as he held out his hand. "I have heard so much about you."

"Me too," smiled Anthony, shaking his hand. "Since my Nana and Papa said that Alex could call them Nana and Papa, can I call you Grandpa?"

"Um, sure, as long as it's ok with your dad," said Charlie. He, Alex, Anthony, and Alice looked up at Edward, who then looked at me. I shrugged my shoulder.

"Sure," muttered Edward.

"Yay," cheered the boys.

"Grandpa, let's go play," yelled Alex. He and Anthony each grabbed one of Charlie's hands and dragged him out onto the playground.

"Oh, yeah, he's going to be feeling that tomorrow," laughed Alice, going back into her classroom.

"Are you sure you are ok with Anthony calling Charlie grandpa?" I asked.

"Yeah, why not," shrugged Edward, looking over at me. "So, I didn't see you on Facebook all day. Did you actually start writing?"

"No," I grumbled. "I still can't seem to get anything down. When my editor called, she basically told me that it was a sign that I shouldn't be writing that crap and I should be writing, as she calls it, the next great novel."

"Maybe she's right," said Edward, looking over at the boys and Charlie. They had somehow talked him into climbing up on the slide with them. I swear, he was a bigger kind than they were. "Of course, if you would tell me what your penname was, I could read your books and tell you with the utmost certainty that you are an amazing writer."

"Yeah, not going to happen, Cullen," I snorted. He'd been bugging me all week about it. "Why do you want to read trashy romance novels anyway?"

"Cause I'm so freaking bored," grumbled Edward, looking over at me. "Please, Bella?"

"Please Bella, what?" asked Charlie, coming back over to us with the boys.

"Nothing," I said, glaring at Edward.

"She won't tell me her penname," smiled Edward, ignoring my glare. I tuned and glared at Charlie.

"It's Mallory Marie," said Charlie, ignoring me.

"Thanks a lot, Charlie," laughed Edward.

"You're welcome, Edward," smirked Charlie. "The boys have informed me that they are hungry."

"Ok, well, I guess that's our cue to leave," I chuckled, looking over at Edward. "We will see you at practice."

"Ok, see you," smiled Edward. "It was nice to meet you, Charlie."

"You too, Edward," said Charlie. He looked down at Anthony. "See you later, squirt."

"Later, Grandpa," laughed Anthony.

Charlie and Alex followed me back out to my car. As I drove us back home, I listened to Charlie and Alex talking about all the stuff that he and Anthony do together. I knew Charlie was enjoying listening to Alex. He had pushed me to put Alex in a pre-school last year but I wasn't ready for him to be gone. Besides, my little boy was smart. He didn't need pre-school. I pulled the car up into the driveway and the three of us climbed out.

"Alex, I've gotta get going," said Charlie, squatting down in front of Alex. "I'll call you tomorrow, ok?"

"Ok, Grandpa," said Alex, hugging Charlie. "Love you."

"Love you, too," chuckled Charlie. Alex ran into the house while I walked Charlie over to his cruiser. "Let me know when his games start so I can come see him play."

"I will, Dad," I said, hugging my father.

"And, um, Edward seems real nice," said Charlie, opening his car door and looking back at me. "Seems like he's a good…friend."

"He is," I muttered, rolling my eyes. "Go home, old man."

"I'm not old," he said. However, he groaned as he climbed into his car. "Ok, so maybe I'm a little old."

I just laughed and headed into the house. I fixed Alex a quick snack before he got ready for soccer practice. He was so excited for practice that he was nearly shaking. I tied his cleats tight before we gathered our water, his soccer ball, and headed back out to the car. He climbed into his booster seat and buckled his seatbelt himself. I smiled as I made sure that his seatbelt was tight. He was growing up so fast.

Ten minutes later, I pulled the car up behind Edward's car at the park. I got Alex out of his seat and he took off running out to where Edward and Anthony were. I watched as Edward gave Alex a knuckle bump.

"Hey, Bella," said Angela as she, Anna, and a dark haired man came up to me. "This is my husband, Ben. Honey, this is Bella Swan, Alex's mom."

"Nice to meet you, Bella," smiled Ben. "I've heard all about Alex."

"It's nice to meet you, too," I said, returning his smile.

"Babe, Anna and I are going to head out onto the field. You have our water?" asked Ben.

"They are in Anna's bag," said Angela.

"Ok," smiled Ben.

He and Anna took off toward the field. Angela and I headed over and found a place to sit. She was smart enough to bring a blanket to sit on. I was going to have to remember to put one in the car. After a few minutes, most of the team was out on the field. Kate and Rose had joined us while Kate's husband, Garrett, when out to help Edward and Ben.

"Ok, ladies," smiled Kate, looking around at all of us. "It's about time for a girls night out."

"Yeah, it is," laughed Rose. "Been way too long since we just went out and had fun. I'm sure Alice is ready for one since we haven't had one since Ivy was born."

"Ok, so how about tomorrow?" asked Angela. "Ben's off."

"So is Garrett," shrugged Kate.

"Emmett's not but I'm sure Esme would keep Elliott," said Rose, looking over at me. "How about it, Bella?"

"Um, I can't," I muttered, looking out at the boys,

"Oh, come on, Bella," pleaded Angela, grabbing my arm. "You have to. It would be so much fun."

"I can't," I whispered.

"Bella, I'm sure Edward or Esme would watch Alex," said Rose. I took a deep breath and looked over at her. "Come on. It would do you some good to have a night out with the girls."

"I don't know," I muttered, looking back at the boys.

Neither of them said anything else about the matter. I focused on watching Alex. He was trying so hard to do as Edward, Ben, and Garrett, a tall man with sandy blond hair, were telling him. As I watched him smiled when he kicked the ball between two other players like Edward had told him to, I realized just how much he had missed not having a father.

After about an hour and half, Edward gathered all the boys and girls into a circle around him. He knelt down so that he was at eye level with them as he spoke. He smiled and placed his hand in the middle. All the kids threw their hands in the middle and they cheered as they threw their hands up. I stood up as Alex came running over to me.

"You did so good, Alex," I smiled, hugging him.

"Thanks," laughed Alex. "What are we having for dinner?"

"Um, how about if we go to McDonalds?" I asked, smiling.

"YES, YES, YES!" he cheered.

"Mind if we join you?" asked Edward, gesturing to him and Anthony.

"Nope, but I'm buying," I smirked. Edward scowled as I laughed. "You're too slow, buddy."

"Yeah, yeah," muttered Edward. "Let's go."

Once Edward had loaded all the equipment into the trunk of his car and we got the boys loaded in, I followed him down to the nearest McDonalds. The boys took off for the playground while Edward and I placed our order. I filled our cups with soda while he grabbed our tray of food. We headed into the playground. Alex and Anthony managed to eat about half of their food before they were off playing again.

"You're being extra quiet," said Edward, munching on a fry. "What are you thinking about?"

"Do you ever find yourself jealous of what other people have?" I asked.

"Sure, who doesn't," shrugged Edward. "What are you jealous about?"

"Well, Rose, Kate, and Angela were planning a girls night out for tomorrow. I couldn't help but be jealous that they could go," I explained. "I mean for them it's just a matter of making sure their husbands are off."

"Did they invite you to go?" asked Edward.

"Yeah, but I think they were just inviting me because I was sitting there," I said.

"You should go," encouraged Edward. I just looked at him. "What?"

"More like who," I said. "What about Alex?"

"He could stay the night with me and Anthony," shrugged Edward.

"I don't know if he's ready for that," I said, warily.

"Bella, he would be fine," insisted Edward. "I mean, I understand if you don't trust me enough to let him stay-"

"Edward, that's not it. I do trust you with him," I said, quickly. "He's never stayed the night with anyone. Ever. Not even my father."

"Oh," sighed Edward, understanding. "Maybe it's time to let him. Look, Anthony would love it and Alex would too."

"I don't know," I mumbled.

"Bella, take some time for you," said Edward. "It's ok to think about you for a change."

"Give me your cell phone," I muttered, holding my hand out.

"Why?" he asked.

"Because I'm going to call Rose and tell her I'm in," I huffed.