Please forgive the tardiness for the upcoming chapters. I know I am three behind and will work to edit the others and get them up in the next few days. Real-life has been making me budgeting my time between working, eating, and sleeping with little room to do much else these past couple of months. Thanks for understanding!
Since dad was already ready for the day, he took care of the kitchen while Bella and I juggled getting ourselves ready and Elizabeth, who was really squirmy when it came to getting dressed.
At first I thought it was cute, but after a while, it just became irritating before Bella took the clothes from my hands, a second later she handed me a dirty diaper before putting on a new one and the clothes within three minutes.
I watched her in awe and a little remorseful that Bella did the work for me.
She just turned to me with a smile and a kiss.
"Practice," She whispered against my lips then left the room with Elizabeth on her hip leaving me gaping like a fish out of water.
Ten minutes later, we left the house and piled into dad's car with him driving while Bella and I opted to sit in the back with Elizabeth.
"Bella, what shelter have you two been staying at?" Dad asked after we had been driving for 15 minutes.
"Jubilee Women's Center," She answered.
"The one on 18th Ave," He asked.
"Yeah, do you know it?" She asked back.
"I should say so. My office sponsors the organization as well as represents them. Personally, I don't, but my partner does. The last I heard they had a fundraiser to expand the shelter." He explained.
"Lot a good that did." I mumbled.
"Edward," Damn, Bella heard me. "Space had been filling up already even with the expansion plus there is a limited amount of time that women can stay depending on their situation. I was just a runaway who had a baby and needed to get back on my feet. In reality, my situation was not as dire as the other women's are."
"Listen to her, son; the people at Jubilee have helped so many in the past despite the hardship of the economy."
"Sorry," I reached over to peck Bella's cheek.
She smiled back letting me know that all was forgiven.
We continued on till we were in the heart of downtown Seattle. From the outside I would have thought the shelter to be another office like every other building surrounding us. Talk about hiding in plain sight.
Dad got out first while Bella began messing with Elizabeth's straps. Gently pushing her fingers away, I did it myself and carried my little girl out of the car completely ignoring Bella's annoyance. I met dad on the sidewalk he had the stroller.
As much as I hated to put down my little girl, dad deserved some time with his granddaughter.
Bella met us on the sidewalk with the diaper bag. She got smart when I tried to grab it, hiding it behind her body then stuck her tongue out at me. I playfully glared at her letting her have her fun even though I could easily wrestle the bag away from her. So I settled holding her close to my side as we walked into the building.
The lobby was fairly grand still giving off that vibe of a business office rather than a shelter.
I followed Bella up to the counter where an older, exotic woman was stationed.
"Oh, Bella, dear," She gushed in a thick Spanish accent. "I was wondering where you had gone off to. We were getting worried."
"I'm sorry, Carmen, but I got in contact with some…relatives who have agreed to take Elizabeth and I in." I internally rolled my eyes at Bella's humbleness.
"Oh, well, that is wonderful news. And who might you be?" The woman glared at both dad and me.
"Edward Masen Sr.," Dad stepped up holding out his hand for the woman to shake.
"Masen," The woman mused while shaking dad's hand. "Of course, Edward Masen from Masen and Jenks law firm. I should have recognized you, so sorry about that, but old habits die hard you know."
"Don't I know it?" He chuckled.
"And I'm Edward Masen Jr. Thank you for taking care of my family." I reached out to shake the woman's hand.
I could tell that she was genuine about Bella and Elizabeth's well-being which made me respect the woman even more.
"Family," She mused once more. "Oh, now I see it. Those eyes I would know anywhere, you and your daughter share a very unique feature."
"Thank you." I said sincerely.
"Well, I wish you both the best and here," She dug underneath her desk for a moment before reappearing. "I know how difficult it can be to be parents at such a young age, so here are some brochures for support groups just in case." She smiled.
"Thanks, Carmen. We really appreciate them." Bella answered for us as I took the papers.
"Think nothing of it, mi amiga. Am I to assume that you will be moving out today?" She asked.
"Unfortunately, yes…"
"Unfortunately? This is a very fortunate thing to happen, chica. You are smiling more than I've ever seen, and it suits you." Carmen interrupted.
"It goes well with the blush too." I added in.
I got another smack on the arm for that, but Bella was smiling and blushing all the same.
"We need to go, but I'll be back down to say goodbye when we're finished. I promise." Bella said.
"Not a problem, just come on down and we'll say our last goodbyes, chica." Carmen waved her off with a warm smile on her face. "But before you two go up, I need to see your identifications as well as signatures here please. We are nothing if not thorough about keeping our residents safe."
"Understandable." Dad and I nodded.
After a quick search of our background, we were shown to the elevator by a female security guard.
"I see that money has done this place some good." Dad commented as we rode up.
"Yes, I got to help organize a few of the rooms including the nursery on my floor." Bella replied. "Elizabeth just loves that room."
Elizabeth looked up at her mother and let out a giggle then squealed. I couldn't help but chuckle at her which only made her squeal more in giddiness.
The elevator stopped on the third floor and Bella walked out holding onto the stroller while dad continued to push it. I followed them both since the hallway was pretty narrow, although, I wanted to be next to Bella or on the other side of the stroller. We stopped at the fourth door and Bella pulled out a key to unlock the door.
The room inside was fairly nice. It was a studio style with no kitchen and a full size, basic bathroom closed off from the rest of the room. A small twin size bed was pushed against the far wall next to one of the windows with a side table. There was a desk, coffee table, a papasan chair, a loveseat, a dresser, a crib, and a small dining table set spread tastefully around the room.
Dad let out a low whistle.
"This place has turned out well, but where's the kitchen, Bells?" He asked.
"There's a community kitchen and dining room on the second floor. The offices are on the first while everything for the residence is on the other floors." Bella explained. "The board was trying to negotiate for the vacant lot behind the building to make it the community swimming pool, but the city couldn't cough up that much money."
"Ahh," Dad growled. "We'll take another look at that next tax year. I'm sure we can get those politicians to fork over some of their salaries to give to places like this."
"I know, I looked at the figures and even wrote to the governor saying that if Jubilee got a little more money for that new construction project then it would be the last one for a couple of years." Bella huffed.
"You sent him a letter?" I asked in disbelief. The Bella I knew was so mousy that she would take a heavy beating without saying a word. My girl seems to have found her voice.
She blushed in embarrassment I'm sure at my question, but nodded her head sheepishly. I walked up to her and wrapped my arms around her.
"I'm so proud of you, love." I whispered to her.
"I couldn't stand around; I had to try something…" She said.
I gave her lips a quick peck silencing her humbleness.
"You did what you could, but it will be done. We can do it." I said cryptically hoping that she hadn't forgotten our future goals.
"I know we can." With those four words, I knew she understood my message, and with that smile, she was just as passionate about the idea as I am.
"Alright you two, enough smooching." I had to laugh, dad had one hand covering his eyes while the other covered Elizabeth's eyes. Apparently she thought it was a game too and was laughing.
Bella joined in the laughter before taking her daughter out of the stroller.
"Now you be a good little girl and play while we pack everything up, ok sweetie?" Bella babbled to a still giggling Elizabeth as she crossed the room to where the crib was.
"No playpen, Bella?" Dad asked.
"No, I usually just let her roll around the room or leave her in her crib. We don't stay in this room for very long when we're awake anyways. Mostly, I take her down to the nursery to play with the other babies…she's very social too." Bella explained while pulling out some toys from the diaper bag.
"What should we pack up?" I asked looking around for boxes or luggage.
"I don't have much. Just a few things, but they're mostly in the closet there." She pointed out.
I opened it to reveal a walk in closet. A small changing table was in the back surrounded by shelves that held diapers and other baby changing supplies including clothes.
One side of the closet held Bella's small wardrobe, and on the ground below was a few pairs of shoes that had seen better days. Dad stepped in behind me to take a look; we shared a mental note to take Bella clothes shopping soon.
The opposing wall was lined with shelves that held some canned food, cleaning products—those were on the top shelf—bottles, a few dishes, and a safe.
"Hey, Bella, what's in the safe?" I asked.
Bella came into the closet, and without looking at the safe, pulled out a couple pieces of luggage.
"I'll get it." Was all she said, but something in her voice made me suspicious.
Respecting her wishes, though, I grabbed a handful of her clothes and walked into the main room.
Thankfully, Elizabeth was playing happily with her toys while we cleaned out the apartment. There were times when I had to stop and stare which made her want me to play with her. The few times that I did, Bella all but shoved me over saying I needed the bonding time.
Still, with the three of us, it only took a half an hour to pack everything up into two rolling bags and one duffle bag. The crib and the rest of the furniture had to stay, but we had our own stuff which was nice.
Dad walked in front of us wheeling the larger bags while Bella and I took our time following him. She was pushing Elizabeth who was still playing with a rag doll and I had the duffle bag. Bella pushed her weight around and slung the diaper bag around her body. Even with our help, she still liked to keep her sense of independence.
"Oh Bella," Carmen called from the front desk. "When you're done, will you and your family meet up with the rest of us in the dining hall? We would like to say goodbye to all of you."
Bella nodded her head immediately then looked down to Elizabeth. "Would you like to see your friends again before we leave, Elizabeth?" She asked.
Elizabeth looked up at the sound of her name and smiled a great toothless smile.
"I think that's a yes." I chuckled.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Edward…"
"No, don't worry about it. It's your party anyways." I told her.
She kissed me on the cheek then continued to push the stroller out the doors.
"Hey, Ed," Bella called out to dad who was pushing the larger bags in the trunk of the car. "Do you think we could stick around for a little? The others want to say goodbye to me, but I know they want to turn it into a little party."
"Since when do you like parties?" He asked in mock seriousness.
Bella returned the serious face then raised her eyebrow. "Never." She replied.
"That's what I thought, but we can go if you wish. No hurry today." He chuckled letting his guard down.
We finished loading up the car—which took some serious fucking work before everything fit. It also reminded me that I needed to get my car so that Bella and I wouldn't be dependent on my dad for rides this weekend.
When everything was packed up, Bella grabbed the stroller and wheeled it back into the building with dad and me following her.
Watching her face, Bella looked both happy and sad. Happy because of her recent good luck, I'm sure, and sad because she could have to leave her new found friends behind.
This time when we entered the lobby, Carmen had another girl take her place behind the desk so that she could lead us to where the party was going on.
On the elevator ride up, Bella looked nervous which I could understand, unlike me—and apparently Elizabeth—she's always hated being the center of attention. I wrapped my arm around her for comfort and she melted into my body.
God I fucking missed her.
The doors opened on the second floor and Carmen was the first to exit while dad moved to hold the doors open for the rest of us. We followed Carmen down the long hallway until it opened up into a large open room with many women and children sitting at the tables talking. They stopped and stood when they noticed us walking into the room then the women gushed towards Bella only to be stopped by Carmen.
"Ladies, ladies, please keep calm. I know you've heard that Bella is leaving us today and want some answers, but please settle down." Carmen announced then turned towards Bella. "The floor is yours, chica."
Bella's face paled a little and she reached for my hand. I squeezed it to let her know I wasn't going anywhere.
She stepped forward while pushing the stroller. Elizabeth was looking around the room excitedly.
She cleared her throat before speaking.
"So…yeah, I'm leaving today. It was time for me to go anyways, and…a few days ago, I didn't know where I was going to go. I was lucky when I ran into Edward here." She looked up at me and I smiled her favorite smile. "As you've probably noticed, he does look a lot like Elizabeth here." This time she looked down adoringly at Elizabeth to cooed back at her. "That's because Edward is her father. He just met her for the first time about 24 hours ago, and it wasn't by choice that I couldn't tell him I was pregnant. My parents separated us when they found out about our relationship, but conceiving our little angel was a beautiful accident that I would never regret.
"My pregnancy showed who really loved me, and helped me grow a backbone." The room chuckled with her. "I knew I had to be a stronger person for my daughter since my protector, Edward, wasn't with me at the time. I ran away from my parents a few months ago and have been hiding from them ever since.
"I didn't know Edward and his father had moved to Seattle, but I was glad that fate brought us back together again since I was so caught up in trying to stay two steps ahead of my parents. I'm glad now that I can be with the man I love and know that he would never abandon me or our daughter."
Tears were glistening in her eyes and in mine. I couldn't help but bring her close enough to kiss her lips soundly. I vaguely heard the cheering in the background as well as our daughter laughing.
"You really did grow a backbone. That speech was beautiful, beautiful." I whispered against her lips.
She giggled and her blood filled her cheeks.
"Alright you two, break it up, it's fiesta time." Carmen shouted and everyone cheered again.
Bella picked up Elizabeth who was squirming in her seat then proceeded to walk around the room. Dad stayed behind to talk with Carmen while I stayed glued to Bella, my arm wrapped securely around her waist.
Many of the women surrounded her as well as the children who hugged her legs with all their might. Bella looked uncomfortable with all the attention, but kept it hidden underneath a pleasant smile. I was so fucking proud of her knowing it wasn't easy.
"Bella," An older woman with caramel colored hair came up to us.
"Oh Esme," Bella hugged her even though I was holding onto her and Elizabeth. "Esme, I'd like you to meet Edward Masen, Elizabeth's father and my boyfriend. Edward, this is Dr. Esme Cullen. She's one of the volunteers for the shelter as well as on the hospital board who provides for the center too."
I shook hands with the woman who looked naturally younger than she should be.
"An honor, I can't thank you enough for watching over my girls." I said while shaking her hand.
"I should thank you. This young woman's smile is brighter than I've ever seen. It has to be true love." She beamed at my Bella. "I trust you will take good care of her?" She glared at me.
"If I don't then I will crawl to your place and beg you to kick my ass." Bella slapped me on the arm, but it was the truth.
"Without a doubt," Esme chuckled. "You do remember that Elizabeth has an appointment with Carlisle on Monday, and promise me that you will schedule an appointment with me as well."
Reluctantly, Bella nodded her head.
"I promised I'll be there for both of you." I whispered into her ear.
She gave me a soft smile in return.
"Attention, ladies and children." Carmen called out shortly after we left Esme to talk to another woman and her infant. Elizabeth was fascinated by the little boy in his mother's arms wanting to play with him.
"Sorry to interrupt, but it's time for cake before the guests of honor leave." Carmen pointed out to a large sheet cake covered in red and white frosting.
I was drooling at the sight mostly because I was fucking hungry.
Bella and I were pushed in front of the cake by the crowd who offered their congratulations to us as we moved.
I took hold of Elizabeth as Bella picked up the knife. We held it together as we cut the first piece. I made it huge—which earned me a glare from my girl—but I was hungry and thought we could share it.
After everyone got their piece, Carmen pulled Bella up in front of the seated crowd to a large wheel. I chuckled at her as she walked up there and held Elizabeth in my lap feeding her little bits of cake.
"Now, you all know this little tradition. We at Jubilee would like to give our departing residents a parting gift to help out. This gift will be Bella's to keep and be reminded of the home she had here at Jubilee as well as the friends she made, so spin the wheel and let's see what you're getting." Carmen led the women by clapping her hands rhythmically.
The wheel stood straight up and didn't offer cash prizes like on Wheel of Fortune. These prizes were more for necessities like a new diaper bag filled with fresh diapers or a new piece of furniture. Each prize, though, came with a grocery gift card all the same amount…$200.
Bella stretch high on her toes, her blush covering her entire face, but she was smiling as she pulled down the bar and got the wheel moving.
The women were now cheering hoping the red flag would stop on their preferred prize. Even Elizabeth was getting into the excitement by squealing and clapping her hand even if it wasn't in the same timing as the crowd. I clapped along with her anyways.
Finally, the wheel started to slow down—damn, my girl had developed some muscles too—until it finally stopped on a picture of a rocking chair covered in blankets.
Dad and I stood up with the crowd cheering loudly as Carmen stepped up to hug Bella.
From my seat in the back of the room, I could tell my girl was crying, but they were happy tears. She was sad to leave, but she was so fucking happy.
"The wheel has spoken," Carmen announced quieting down the room. "Bella has won a beautiful, mahogany rocking chair with handmade blankets to take with her. I hope they help you and Elizabeth out wherever you go, chica."
"They will." Bella's soft voice echoed in the large room. "Thanks everyone for your support and friendship. I promise Elizabeth and I will never forget any of you." She promised the crowd.
The large group stood once more for another round of applause which made Bella blush even more, how that was possible, I have no fucking idea.
Carmen led Bella back into the crowd where the women intercepted her to give their hugs and best wishes and shit. I was getting too fucking impatient waiting for my girl to be back in my arms, and apparently, so was Elizabeth who was starting to kick up a fuss, but I had a feeling she was more hungry.
It took a while before Bella reached our table then she scooped up a fussy Elizabeth and kissed my lips then kissed my dad's cheek before whispering a soft thank you.
The crowd did a collective aw at the sight then laughed at Bella's reaction.
I pulled her close to my body, and with one final wave, we left the dining hall. Dad was pushing the empty stroller as Bella and I followed him. Elizabeth had calmed down since her mother picked her up and was now burrowed into Bella's chest looking for her milk.
"We'll be home soon, sweetie, and then you can eat as much as you want." Bella cooed in Elizabeth's ear.
I helped dad pack the stroller into the trunk since it was fucking full already from the larger bags then joined my girls in the backseat.
Elizabeth fussed all the way back to the house, and nothing I did made her happy. Bella explained I wasn't doing anything wrong our little girl was simply hungry. I still pouted like a fucking child inside and just doubled my efforts until we got home.
When dad turned off the car, he told Bella to get inside while we would handle the bags.
She protested at first, but then Elizabeth started to wail and she all but ran into the house.
I took the bags while he wheeled up the rollers, although, he rolled his lot into the foyer then stopped behind me to set them down.
I gave him a questioning look before hearing some soft suckling sounds coming from the living room. I understood then.
"I'll go grab some lunch and bring it home. Will you two be alright while I'm gone?" He asked.
"Yeah, no problem." I said confidently.
He tipped his head to me before walking out the front door.
While Bella sat in the living room finishing up with Elizabeth, I moved everything upstairs despite Bella's attempts to get me to stop and wait for her.
I pretended that I didn't hear her and finished before she and Elizabeth were done.
I was proud of my daughter too because she didn't need Bella to burb her after she was finished with her lunch.
"Such a big girl." Bella cooed to our sleepy baby.
"Dad will be back in a few minutes, why don't you lie her down for a nap before we go grocery shopping tonight." I said. "Better, yet, why don't we have dad babysit while we grocery shop?"
She hesitated, looking down at the sleeping angel in her arms.
"Or we can wait until she wakes up and take her with us." I offered.
"She'll be asleep for a while, what would we do until she wakes up?" She asked.
"I can think of a few ideas." I smiled nuzzling her neck.
"Edward." She hissed brushing me off.
Elizabeth stirred a little before snuggling further into Bella's chest.
Lucky girl.
"Just kidding, love." I relented. "I can move her crib in the guest room. That can be turned into her nursery; she can get used to it while we unpack your sh…bags." I caught myself.
"Nice save, Masen." She retorted.
"You know how I try, Swan." I grinned.
"I think we should wait till she wakes up," She gazed back down at Elizabeth. "I'm still not comfortable leaving her alone for too long. You should have seen how antsy I was when I started working at the diner." Then she gasped. "Oh God, I have a shift starting in a couple of hours. I hate to call in at the last minute."
"You can go if you want, work your last shift tonight and then put in your resignation afterwards. Dad can drop you off or I could whenever we can get my car." I grumbled.
"Do you still drive the Volvo?" She asked.
"Yes, although I'm thankful now that I didn't trade in that thing for a motorcycle." I laughed.
"Did you ever try for your motorcycle license?"
"After you left, I didn't feel the need for it. Especially since I didn't want to give up the Volvo, it held too many good memories." And what fucking blissful memories they were.
"Edward." She scolded quietly.
I bit my lip to keep from laughing too loud.
"Ok, I'll ask Ed if he can drop me off for work tonight and I'll talk to my supervisor about letting me go. I think he'll be relieved too."
"What do you mean by that?"
She bit her bottom lip before answering. "He's an older guy who hasn't updated his system above anything but a pen and ledger, so it's hard for anyone to trace or hack into his books. That was lucky for me, I knew Charlie was looking for me, plus, my boss paid everyone in cash."
It dawned on me about why she acted flustered in her old apartment room.
"The safe was filled with money." It wasn't a question.
"Yes, and coupons. I couldn't open a bank account and was too chicken to try and open one with a false identity."
"Coupons?" I asked.
"For groceries," She replied in her best duh voice. "I still did have to buy stuff that the shelter couldn't offer. The ladies there had a group for couponing where we would get together and share ads. I've been pretty successful on my shopping trips too."
"I'll bet you did knowing that smart brain of yours." I kissed her forehead and kept my head close to hers.
She sighed before moving, carefully, to get up. I followed her like the whipped boyfriend I was.