Disclaimer: Don't own Twilight……but will own the DVD I pre-ordered from Barnes and Noble in a few weeks! Mmmmm, generic sparkles……

A/N: Hello, Hello faithful readers……we hope you enjoyed our last installment of SFS, here we are with Bella again feeling a little worse for wear…..enjoy!

Technicolor yawns over Stepford

BPOV

When I woke up the next morning, I felt sick, but I wasn't hung over. My stomach was gurgling and I thought for a moment while I was in the shower that I was going to throw up. I didn't remember feeling sick before the party, maybe I picked up a stomach bug.

Edward had already left for work, taking a cab to the hospital since he had left his car there. He knew that we would both be drinking last night, so he had shared a cab with the tramp from the hospital to get to the party.

Speaking of the tramp, I hope she made that skank of a man James wrap it up, because he'd probably missed his vaccinations. I couldn't believe what a sleezeball he had turned out to be. He definitely had us all fooled back in the day, but looking back on it; I was disgusted at falling for his false slimy charm, not to mention the number that he had done on Alice's self esteem. She hated thinking of herself as the other woman, and I can't imagine that would have been a highlight for me either.

Walking downstairs to try to find something to calm my stomach, I nearly tripped over one of Bailey's toys; a loud squeal went pealing through the house.

Ahhh!

Not only did my stomach feel like it was trying to eat itself, but my head hurt so bad that the dim light coming through the living room curtains was making my temples throb. I hated migraines, and adding it to my already aching body, was not something I was enjoying.

After I ate some plain cheerios, my stomach felt better so I went back upstairs to finish getting ready for work. Something was off, but I couldn't figure out what. Maybe I was just getting early cramps, my period was supposed to be starting soon, but usually the pills made the PMS and cramps bearable.

The morning at work went quickly, and I still didn't really feel any better. Suzanna brought back my draft edited and really only had a few suggestions on how to improve it. I quickly made the changes and submitted it to the copyright department to get approval before I sent it back to Suzanna.

Since we were using the names of books and quotes from Scarlett, we needed to have their use approved by the author's agents and Scarlett's quotes fact checked from hers before we sent it to print. The article still wasn't due until Thursday, but I wanted to make sure that it got out early since this article was pretty much make it or break it for my possible column.

By the time lunch rolled around, I was more than ready to talk to Alice, I was anxious to hear what had happened with Jacob.

I strolled to her office slowly, and when I got there, she was talking on the phone. I didn't want to interrupt, but she sounded happy, I only assumed that she wasn't talking to Jacob, especially with what she had told me about her feelings for him.

I waited until she placed the phone down and stepped into her office. She jumped up from her chair and grabbed me by the arm and shut the door to her office behind her as she dragged me towards the elevators.

"So…." I said once we were in the elevators, hoping that she would clue me in on her weird mood.

"Not yet, I will dish once we get food."

Alice seemed like she was in a good mood today, so I could only assume that either something really good had happened, or that her talk with Jacob went a lot better than expected. She really didn't want to be the one to break his heart, so I hoped that he took it easy on her. Although, knowing Jacob, he probably just dutifully went along with everything she said. When it came to being selfless, he often rivaled me.

We decided to go for sushi for lunch, but the second we walked in the door, my stomach lurched and I ran towards the bathrooms with my hand clasped over my mouth. I barely made it to the stall before my small breakfast revisited my mouth.

I took a few moments to catch my breath and walked out of the stall to see a very concerned looking Alice sitting across from me, perched on the sink.

"Ok, maybe sushi isn't such a good idea," I said as she giggled at me.

"You sure you're ok?" she asked as I leaned against the counter to catch my breath.

"I'll be fine, I just feel gross, give me a minute."

Once I had washed my face with some cool water and dragged a stick of gum out of my purse, she linked her arm with mine and dragged me back out into the restaurant.

Another wave of nausea hit me as we walked out, but I didn't have to got back to the bathroom, and I actually felt better once I stepped into the fresh air on the sidewalk. She led me down the block a few shops over and we stopped at a small café. We had been here before, but usually just for coffee, and Alice must have noticed my hesitation because she flashed me a knowing smile.

"They have really good soup," she said as we sat down at a table.

I smiled weakly and sighed as I waited for the waitress to come over to take our orders. I really wasn't that hungry, but I knew that if I was getting sick, that I was going to need my strength.

"Sorry, I just haven't felt like myself today, maybe I drank too much last night."

The waitress came over before she could respond and we ordered. She got a salad, and I got some chicken and dumpling soup with a large water.

Once our food was in front of us, I knew she no longer had an excuse to stay quiet so I decided to break the silence.

"Ok, you have to tell me, how did it go with Jacob?"

"I was surprised by his reaction, he was visibly upset, but he understood."

I was a little shocked, but I guess it made sense considering it was Jacob. He was always understanding about everything, even when he shouldn't have been.

"What did he say to you?"

"Well, before he said anything, there was a long pregnant pause. I told him that we should stick to being friends, that I loved him but wasn't in love with him. We sat there for a while completely silent, after about five minutes, I started getting nervous and asked him to say something, even if it meant calling me a bitch and yelling at me, and he just laughed."

That definitely sounds like Alice; she always likes to talk situations to death, so having him clam up on her must have been like torture. Although, I couldn't see Jacob calling her a bitch no matter what she did, so I knew that she didn't need to worry.

"Leave it to Jacob to diffuse an awkward situation with laughter, his is definitely infectious. What did he say after that?"

"He told me that he understood. He'd thought it was what I wanted and that as much as he loves me; and as much fun as we have together, he wasn't in love with me either."

Well, that is an interesting turn of events, especially since he was the one to bring up the whole idea of taking their relationship public in the first place. You would think that he would have thought it through before forcing her hand.

"Wow, well that's good right? Are you going to attempt to stay friends, or do you think it's too soon?"

"Oddly enough, I think we'll be fine. We won't be hanging out as much as we have been, but there's really no awkwardness between us like I thought there would be. It was like a mutual cancellation of the agreement. It was strange, really. He gave me a huge bear hug before he left; telling me that we needed to learn how to communicate. Then he told me he loved me and that whoever was able to win my heart was a lucky son-of-a-bitch, and took off. I was stood there dazed for a minute before I was able to laugh if off. Bella, it was so surreal."

I mean, it sounded like Jacob, but still, I could tell that he really cared about her in hindsight. The wistful look on his face he would get when he talked about her, or how his face would light up when she walked near him. At the time I thought that it was just him being friendly, but now that I knew their history, it seemed like so much more.

"Oh my god, that's amazing. You totally dodged a bullet with that one. I am glad that you two were able to work things out so smoothly. So have you decided what you are going to do about Jasper?"

At least if things with Jacob were left in what seemed to be a good light, she wouldn't feel so guilty when she talked to Jasper. Not that she would make a move on him with the bitch princess in the picture, but at least she really could start to see him as a friend. I knew that Rosalie always wanted us to be friends with her step-brother, so if Alice was able to do that, then it would be good for all of us if he came to visit Seattle more often.

"I'm going to take your advice and just be his friend. I can deal with the rest; I think I would rather have him in my life than not at all. I think it'll be good for me to take some time and reflect. I need to get my life back on track; I can't keep running away from my reality. I think that's why I was so upset about Jacob."

"I'm so proud of you Ali; it looks like Jasper coming into your life has really changed things for the better."

It was true, even though Jasper turned out to be taken; meeting him had awoken her to the fact that Jacob was not right for her, and she had gotten out of that situation without it getting any messier. At this point, it seemed like repairing the relationship with Jacob might actually be possible, given some time away from each other.

After lunch, my stomach was still feeling strange, but I didn't feel the urge to throw up anymore, I just felt off. I couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was, I just knew that I didn't feel like myself.

I settled back into my chair in my cubicle and tried to focus on work, because I knew that I needed to make a good impression with this first installment. Suzanna told me that there was no pressure, but I really wanted to prove to her, and myself that I could do this job as well as anyone else. Alice had helped me get it, and I wanted to keep it and earn respect with my own merit; and the thought of having my own column was something I wanted to work towards.

Once the day was over, I headed to the parking garage, and climbed into my little silver Volvo to make the drive home. I always hated driving through rush hour traffic, even though we didn't live that far away, it just always grated on my nerves, and I was so tired that I really didn't have the patience for it. Luckily, seeing Edward's car in the garage calmed me down before I went inside.

When I got there, Edward was sitting on the couch dressed very nicely in a pair of crisp chinos, a light blue checked button up shirt, and a dark blue tie. He had actually gone to the trouble of attempting to tame his hair, and he looked very handsome.

I wondered for a moment if he had planned a nice night out for us and I had forgotten about it, but then he reminded me of something else I had forgotten about while I was stuck in my haze all day long.

"Hurry up, honey, we have to leave in forty minutes," he said as I came over to give him a kiss on the cheek.

Bailey squirmed in his lap and leaned up to lick me on the cheek, her tail beating wildly against the couch. My dog had been a lot more affectionate since I had gone back to work, and I think she might actually have missed me.

"I love you baby girl," I said as she rolled over on her side to let me scratch her belly.

"Leave to go where, Edward?"

Obviously, I had forgotten something, and from the look on his face, it was something big. I guess I should have checked the dayplanner in my briefcase today, I knew I had felt this strange compulsion to check it earlier in the day, but figured that I was just being paranoid.

"You forgot? Bella, my mom's birthday, we are going over there for dinner."

Edward didn't appear to be upset, he just seemed to be mildly amused. He loved it when I totally spaced things because it meant that I actually acted like a normal person for once. He said it wasn't natural to be so responsible all the time, and I only wished that he would look in the mirror, he was the epitome of an uptight control freak.

I grumbled and closed my eyes, leaning my head against the back of the couch. I couldn't believe that I had actually let myself forget Esme's birthday, I felt so stupid. At least when I was in my right mind, I had thought to wrap her present, because there was no way that I had time to change and mess with giftwrap. Knowing my luck, I would have just ended up slicing off the end of my finger and going to the hospital, again.

"Are you feeling alright love?" he asked, his hand running over my cheek.

He pressed his hand against my forehead and sighed.

"You are a little warm Bella, are you sick?"

"I don't know, I just haven't felt normal today, I'm sure it's just a bug. I'll go get ready, her present is wrapped in the hall closet, on the top shelf, get it out while I go change."

Esme Cullen was a wonderful woman, don't get me wrong, but she had a definite way of making me feel inadequate. I was never going to be the perfect hostess, and I knew for a fact that I wasn't ever going to be a perfect mother. I still wasn't exactly sold on the whole idea yet, I was going to use my nephew as a test drive when he came along. I figured that if I could take care of my brother's child for a day then I might not totally screw up my own child someday.

I trudged up the stairs and changed out of my suit into a knee length cap sleeved navy blue dress. It had a boat neck and was clingy, yet not too tight. The dress was sophisticated, yet still me; and I knew that it was something that would get the Esme seal of approval. Even after all these years, somehow I still wanted her approval and acceptance.

I had always been the one to take care of my mother when I still lived with her, and Esme was the complete opposite of her. She was the epitome of a perfect wife, mother and business woman. My mother was flighty, and couldn't even remember to pick up her own dry cleaning. She probably would have starved if she hadn't married my step father, or worse, lived on Chinese takeout for the rest of her life.

"Hey there," Edward said as he snaked his arms around my waist and laid his head on my shoulder while I was looking at myself in the full-length mirror on the closet door.

I smiled weakly, and my stomach flipped, but not in a good way. I clasped my hand over my mouth, and fought from his grip and ran towards the water closet. My heart was beating frantically as I heaved into the toilet, and I could hear Edward following me when I fled.

He rushed up behind me and held my hair as I got sick again, rubbing his hand over my back until I calmed down.

"Are you ok, love? We can go another time if you don't feel up to it, she will understand."

I sighed and pushed myself up from the floor and he held onto my arm as I steadied myself. I hated throwing up, it was so horrible, and the taste of bile in my mouth was making me feel queasy all over again. My hatred of all things vomit were a major reason that I usually never let myself drink to excess. One time in high school spending the entire night with my head resting on the toilet seat was more than enough for me, I still can't look at a bottle of tequila the same way.

"No, it's ok, I just have a stomach bug, I'm sure it will go away."

He smiled at me and kissed me on the cheek, helping me back to the sink. I knew that the doctor in him was itching to examine and analyze me, but he knew that I would just get irritated, and we had somewhere to be this evening.

I brushed my teeth and drank a full glass of water before I went into the closet to retrieve a pair of navy blue ballet flats. I didn't have the strength to wrestle with heels, being sick and clumsy were never a good combination.

Once I was fully composed, I made my way downstairs and Edward followed. I grabbed the present off the kitchen island and headed towards the garage. Edward opened my door and helped me into my seat before he hurried over to the driver's side and buckled himself in, instantly grabbing my hand and rubbing circles across the back of it.

He was always very attentive when I was sick; even though I was sure I was a horrible patient. I knew that it came naturally to him, being a doctor and all, but having him dote on me was actually endearing. He, on the other hand, made a terrible patient, and the fact that he had an excellent immune system was a godsend, because a sick, whining Edward made me want to pull my hair out.

It took us about a half hour to get to the Cullen's house on the water just north of the city. It wasn't really a house, it was more of a mansion, but they were always understated in their wealth. Sure, they had multiple nice luxury cars in the garage, and a sprawling five bedroom house, but they never acted like snobby rich people. They even rented out their beach house in the Hamptons during the off-season because they didn't want to seem to pretentious, and figured that it was good for people to be using it frequently.

I hadn't even known that Edward came from money until he took me home for the first time once we had been dating for several months. He never acted like a spoiled rich kid; he even had a part time job as a waiter. It wasn't until I had to sign a prenuptial agreement that I even knew what the net worth of his family was. It never mattered to me, but people in college had often teased me about it, saying that I had snagged myself a good one. They were right, of course, but the reason Edward was a keeper had nothing to do with the size of his bank account.

My parents had both been appalled that I was signing one, but I didn't really see what the big deal was, prenuptial agreements only became an issue in the case of a divorce or infidelity, and neither of those were an issue for me. I didn't ever plan on falling out of love with Edward, and we loved each other too much to go to anyone else.

It expired after ten years anyways, so it was more to protect the family than me. His father and grandfather had millions in investments and I knew it was just a piece of paper protecting the money his family had earned over the years, money that didn't belong to me anyways. The only thing that mattered to me was that our children would be provided with the best that life had to offer.

I never wanted his family to think that I was a gold-digger, because I wasn't, so I never hesitated to sign it, and Esme had even had a talk with me about how she had told her son at a very young age that whoever he married would have to sign one, no matter who they were. That actually made me feel a little bit better about the whole thing, because she was telling me that to make sure that I knew that they still loved me and wanted me in their family, and that a prenup was just a formality.

"Bella, we're here," Edward whispered, leaning over to tuck a stray lock behind my ear.

My stomach had started feeling better, so I smiled and squeezed his hand before I got out of the car. I was trying to will myself to be in a better mood, because I didn't want to ruin the birthday festivities. Even though Esme intimidated me, she really was someone who I liked. She was funny, and warm, although she did occasionally step over her boundaries when it came to Edward. Luckily, Edward was no momma's boy, so he often took her advice with a grain of salt.

He grabbed my hand as we headed towards the front door, and squeezed it before he reached for the handle. He had the present tucked securely underneath his other arm. I took a deep breath as the door swung open and plastered a smile on my face before we took the few steps inside.

As soon as we walked in the door; Esme was bolting toward us, her arms wide open. She was definitely a very affectionate person, which had initially thrown me off the first time that I met the Cullen's but I guess having Emmett as a brother made it easier for me to accept her hugging.

"Oh my babies," she said as she took us both into an embrace.

Esme considered me just as much her child as Edward, which was comforting. She had become a real mother figure to me over the years, even telling Edward once when we were dating that if he ever broke up with me that she would gladly trade Edward to have me as her daughter. I could tell that she always wanted to have more children, but they were only blessed with the one. She had only had Edward, after a very difficult pregnancy, and I knew that she considered me her daughter, even if it was only by law.

"Hi mom, happy birthday," Edward said as he kissed her on the cheek.

"Happy birthday Esme," I chimed as she released us.

She giggled and her gaze fell to the package under Edward's arm.

"Oh, a present, you know you didn't have to get anything," she said, grinning from ear to ear.

Esme was a big fan of presents, and even though she was convinced we needed to save our money until Edward started making a steady salary, I always prided myself in picking her out good presents. Edward was always amazed that I seemed to get her the perfect gift for every occasion. I usually just tried to find things that she had mentioned to me in passing, or for several years, I had taken present buying as an opportunity to upgrade all of her kitchen gadgets. She could buy anything that she wanted for herself, but somehow, she had never gotten into the new kitchen technologies. She had been amazed last Christmas when we bought her an electronic pressure cooker. To be truthful, I had purchased it more for her safety than anything else, because her old one was older than Edward and made scary noises whenever she used it.

"It's your birthday, of course we had to get you a present," I said as we followed her towards the kitchen.

Even on her own birthday, Esme was still the perfect hostess. Somehow, she found the time to not only work, but arrange the perfect dinner party as well. She had laid out the china on the large mahogany dining room table, and the food in the kitchen smelled delicious.

After chatting with her in the kitchen for awhile; she had us go into the den to listen to some music while she finished up and we waited for Carlisle to get home. Edward put on some classical music and settled us into one of the large worn leather couches, pulling me into his side and running his fingers through my long hair as I closed my eyes and absorbed the music.

Carlisle had been working frantic hours at the hospital lately, and Edward had been assisting him on some surgeries. Even though he was his son, Carlisle was still very hard on Edward, often criticizing him in front of the surgical staff. It stressed Edward out to no end, but he didn't expect to get easy treatment from him, and I think he secretly enjoyed the punishment.

As the soft music wafted through the air, Edward began to hum along with it, practically lulling me to sleep as we waited for Esme to call us to dinner.

Carlisle came home after about ten more minutes, greeting us both before he went upstairs to freshen up.

He was the epitome of a professional society husband, and he was the perfect match for Esme. His parents were still madly in love after thirty plus years, and I envied their grace and ability to charm a room. Carlisle's charm had definitely rubbed off on Edward, and sometimes I hated his ability to talk his way out of a situation. He knew exactly how to dazzle me into submission, most of the time.

Dinner was laid out on the table at precisely seven o'clock, and we took our usual seats across the table from each other, while Esme and Carlisle sat at each end. Esme was completely strict when it came to formal dining etiquette, insisting that the table seating be balanced. I usually prided myself in bringing Emmett and Rosalie to dinner parties, so Edward and I would actually have a chance to sit next to each other.

"So Bella, we hear that you are now gainfully employed dear. How is that going?" Esme said as we all began to eat.

I swallowed my bite of filet quickly, which plummeted to the bottom of my irritated stomach, before I answered. Esme had been on the fence when it came to me pursuing a career; I knew that she understood that having something to do would keep me focused, even if we didn't need the money. She had even tried to get me to do some work with her on the philanthropies that she worked with, but being stuck in a room with other society wives had never appealed to me. They were all so catty, and the fact that I didn't come from money seemed to be a morbid fascination to them all.

"Well, it's actually very interesting. I am working as a literary critic for the magazine at which Alice is an editor. It has been really very challenging so far; I even had the opportunity to interview a celebrity for my first piece."

"Oh wow dear, that's wonderful, I'm sure you will do well in that position. You always have had your head stuck in a book," Esme replied with a giggle.

Edward snorted across from me, and I kicked him in the shin. He was always making for of my affinity for books, and it was irritating.

"Actually, earlier this week I was approached about being a columnist for the feature, they are considering reworking the layout."

"That's excellent Bella," Carlisle intervened, as Esme made little clapping motions while she chewed.

Edward gave me a confused look, and said, "You never told me that. When did you find out about this?"

"Oh, wow, I totally forgot, well I found out before I met you for your party, it was my reason for celebration."

He laughed and a familiar twinkle appeared in his eye at the word celebration, and I knew that he had plans for when we returned home later on.

"So I hear that you two had a wonderful time at Rosalie's baby shower," Esme said as she flashed me a sly smile.

I knew that look, it meant that I was about to be bombarded by questions about infants and my plans of carrying one, a subject that I always felt uncomfortable talking to Esme about when Edward was around. His opinions on the fact never wavered, and I knew that it just pushed his buttons when she wouldn't take the hint.

"Yes, it was entertaining, Rosalie received lots of blue, I am sure my nephew will have a wardrobe to last his entire infancy in style. Alice really helped me pull it together. I really wished you would have been able to make it."

"Well, I wish we would have too, but Carlisle's conference was already scheduled before we got the invitation. I hope that Rosalie received my gift."

Rosalie's shower had been schedule to fit into her own schedule and the ones of the alumni from the sorority, when I had sent out the invitations, Esme was the last person I had considered when it came to the date, given that she was only associated by law to Emmett and Rosalie. I had gotten an earful from Edward about that, but I was actually secretly glad that I didn't have to endure his mother's scrutiny.

"I'm sure that she did, I can check this weekend when I go over to help her finish the nursery."

Esme smiled brightly, with the same "why don't you make me a grandmother" look on her face, and suddenly I was not so hungry.

"Well, maybe someday I can help you, with a nursery Bella; you know how I like to plan a space," she said with a devious grin on her face.

Edward and I both simultaneously choked on a sip of water and I could feel my face flush with embarrassment as Edward looked at me with a horrified expression on his face. Usually she was more subtle than this, but apparently the thought of me becoming an aunt went hand in hand with the thought of me having my own child.

"Mother, we actually haven't planned on that happening anytime soon. You will just have to be patient," Edward said as he tried to recompose himself.

"Bella I was about your age when we conceived Edward. Twenty five is a good time to start having babies."

I hated it when she cornered me about this subject, we had explained it time and time again in the past year that now was not the time, but she just wouldn't give it up.

"Esme, I appreciate your input, but we have decided that it's best to wait a little longer," I said winking at Edward.

"So," Carlisle said, breaking the awkward tension at the table. "Edward, tell us about your exams. How do you think you fared on them?"

Thank god! Carlisle always did have a way of steering the conversation away from awkward or undesirable topics, and I was glad to be out of the spotlight. As he continued to talk to Edward about his exams, and his plans for his residency, Esme turned towards me with a smile on her face, and I could only imagine what she was plotting now. That woman always had a hidden agenda for our visits, and I knew that she probably was going to spring something on me.

"So Bella, I was wondering if you and Edward had any plans for Halloween."

I furrowed my brow and thought about it for a second. I had no idea why she would be asking me about such an obscure holiday, but I knew she had to have had a reason.

"No, not anything that I know of, why?"

"Well dear, as you know, Carlisle and I host an annual gala every fall for the cardiac wing at the hospital."

"Ok," I responded, knowing that the gala was usually held during the spring.

"This year we have decided to move it to the fall, and we were wanting to have a Halloween Masquerade Ball. The reason I am telling you this is because I wanted you to speak with Alice and Rosalie about maybe involving their employers in the implementation of the party. Usually we have a few corporate sponsors and then leave the admission as the public donation."

"I can talk to them for you; I know that our issue is still a few weeks out and maybe I could get them to donate some ad space. Alice would probably be the best to talk to the advertising department. I am not sure how involved Rosalie will be with work since the baby is coming, but I can have her call you, maybe she can get someone from her firm to work up a contract for you," I offered, wondering why she came to me with this when she had plenty of contacts in the industry herself.

"That would be wonderful dear, but I really wanted to see if you would be interested in helping me plan the party. It will be a themed ball; we were thinking maybe doing a traditional Renaissance themed masquerade."

"Well, I don't know how much time I will have with work, but I can try to set aside some time. What exactly did you want my help with?"

"I was wanting you to be in charge of trying to attract some people in your age group, usually these parties are dreadfully boring, and we were wanting to involve the up and coming youth of Seattle in the gala this year. Since you are now involved in the work force, and with Edward still being tied to the university med school, we were wanting you both to seek out a younger generation of donors."

Well, it seemed easy enough, and she was right, I usually hated going to the gala, because all of the stuffy blue haired old ladies with too many diamonds usually annoyed the shit out of me. The idea of a masquerade actually sounded like a lot of fun, I knew that Alice would jump at the chance to help.

"That sounds like a great idea, let me talk to Alice and Rosalie first, but I would love to lend a hand," I said, actually getting excited about the prospect.

The rest of the evening consisted of Carlisle and Edward talking shop, and Esme grilling me about my new position at the magazine. She seemed genuinely interested, and it was nice to talk to her about it because Edward usually got this glassy look to his eyes after I got too in depth about what I was learning about the publishing industry. I was sure it was probably the look I gave him when he talked about medical procedures, so I let it go.

By the time we moved to the den to open presents, I was both physically and mentally exhausted.

Esme received some pieces of handmade pottery from Edward and I from a street fair that I had attended with Alice over the summer. From Carlisle, she received an "upgrade" on her already striking engagement ring.

As if a carat and a half were not enough, she was given a three carat diamond ring with two side stones that were larger than the center stone in my own ring. It was her third engagement ring, because Edward has lost her first one when he was a toddler. Apparently, he had an affinity for "cleaning up" as his mother put it, which usually meant hiding anything of value he could get his hands on. Once he got his tiny little hands on it, it was never seen again. Even when they moved out of their old house, the ring never materialized, it was as if it disappeared into thin air.

After we had spent the appropriate amount of time visiting with his parents, we decided to head back home. I knew that we were both tired, and he had an early shift, so we both needed our rest.

I must have fallen asleep in the car, because I vaguely remembered being carried into the house and up to the bed.

"Mmmm, Edward, I'm sleepy," I mumbled as he struggled to get my dress up over my head.

"Shh, love, I know, lay down, you can go back to sleep now," he whispered as he laid me back against my pillow and pulled the covers up over me.

The last thing I remembered before sleep claimed me was him pulling me tightly against his bare chest, kissing my on the cheek and whispering, "I love you my Bella."

My dreams that night were mixed; varying from nightmares about wading through a sea of diapers, to imagining myself on a deserted private beach with my naked husband. I always had the most bizarre dreams when I was sick, so I was sure that they were all a product of my clouded mind.

A/N: Ok people, I know that there will be a lot of speculation over this chapter, and I can just say that you have to be patient because all will be revealed in a few weeks, so no, I won't answer any questions about it…….:)

Next up, Alice……splish splash….takin' a bath……;)

And for those of you wondering about the title……yes, Technicolor yawn is code for throwing up……and well, we all know that Esme is a good little Stepford……;)