A/N: Song: "Fishing in the Dark" by Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

Chapter 14: Fishing in the Dark

Lazy yellow moon coming up tonight
Shining through the trees
Crickets are singing
And the lightning bugs are floating on the breeze
Baby get ready

Across the field where the creek turns back
By the old stump road
I'm going to take you to a special place
That nobody knows
Baby get ready

EPOV

"Hey, Alice, I need you to do something for me."

Alice looked up from the bridal magazine she currently was reading. "What is it, Ed?"

I scowled at the shortened version of my name. "I need you to find Bella's father's phone number for me."

"What do you need that for?" my sister looked confused.

"Well, Bella agreed to marry me…" I began, but didn't have a chance to finish. My pixie-like sister had thrown down her magazine and was currently bouncing around the living room. She was talking so quickly, I wasn't exactly sure what she was saying, but I could have sworn she was talking about flowers and dresses and reception sites. She was already planning our wedding.

"Alice!" I tried once to get her attention. It didn't work.

"Alice!" I yelled louder. Still no response. She was talking about invitations now.

"ALICE!" I couldn't believe it. She still didn't stop. Growing up with her, I knew there was only one way to get her to be quiet and sit still. I tackled her.

"Edward!" she squealed as she landed on the couch. "That was mean!"

"You wouldn't stop to listen to me!" I complained as I stood up.

"I have plenty of time to listen to you! I may not have much time to plan the wedding!"

I rolled my eyes. "How did we know that you were going to take over?"

"Because you guys want the best wedding ever!" Alice grinned up at me.

I sighed. "Well, no matter what, could you do me the favor of finding Bella's father's phone number?"

"Oh yeah. Why?"

"Well, I wanted to do this the traditional way by asking her father's permission and all that, so you need to get the number without Bella realizing what you're doing." I was a bit embarrassed to confess that, seeing that this wedding was not happening in a traditional way, but I felt it was important to ask the bride's father for permission. I also wanted to give Bella a real proposal. Our situation shouldn't rob her of her one chance to have a romantic proposal.

"Aww," Alice sighed. "You're so cute." She reached over to pinch my cheek.

I swatted her hand away. "Seriously, Alice."

"What?" She looked innocently up at me.

I rolled my eyes at her. "You're too much. But I also need your help in another area."

"What's that?"

"I need help picking out a ring."

Apparently, that was another thing that would send Alice into hyper-activity mode. Once again, she was bouncing around the living room.

It was going to be a long evening.

"You don't have any idea who sneaky I had to be to get this," Alice murmured the next afternoon as she shoved a piece of paper in my hand. "I got his home number and the number at the police station."

Oh crap. I forgot. He was a police chief. He was going to kill me when he found out. I certainly hope that Bella doesn't tell him about her condition until after I call him.

"Thanks, Alice. You're the best."

"So have you decided anything yet?" my sister asked as she looked down at all the jewelry.

"No. I just know that Bella would want simple."

Alice rolled her eyes. "Yeah, no kidding. What I would give to see a Tacori setting on her finger. You have to promise me to at least get her one karat."

I shook my head. "Bella would hate that."

"Three quarters?" Alice looked up hopefully.

"Maybe. I care more about quality than size."

"Yeah," Alice sighed happily as she stared at the rings. "Shiny."

I laughed. I absolutely loved my sister. More often than not, people assumed that she was superficial because of her love for clothing and accessories, but she was one of the most down-to-earth people I knew. She was also easily amused with anything that glittered.

"Did you ever notice how diamonds sparkle more in church?"

"No, Alice, I have not."

"Well, they do."

"I believe you."

"You better."

Our pointless conversation came to a close thankfully as a sales lady approached us. She listened much better to my opinions than Alice, but in the end, the ring I picked out was almost a karat. It was simple, however. It was round cut set in a simple platinum band, to the consternation of my sister. The size and quality was enough to satisfy her, though.

I had the ring, now I only had to call Charlie, Bella's father, and plan a way to ask Bella. I already had something in mind. There was a meadow only accessible by an off-road vehicle that was perfectly round. To the side, a creek that fed into the larger river flowed. I wanted to propose there, but I hadn't decided exactly what to do yet.

But first, I had to call Chief Swan.

As soon as Alice left my company to back to the salon, I took out my cell phone and the piece of paper Alice had handed me in the jewelry shop.

Well, it's now or never.

I dialed the phone number and pressed "send." Then I pressed "end." I did this several times before I finally got up the nerve to actually say on the line.

"Swan residence."

"Mr. Swan?" I nervously asked.

"Yes? Who is this?"

"Mr. Swan, my name is Edward Cullen and I have been dating your daughter." So that was a little fib, but it would be better than telling him that I knocked his daughter up and wanted to make an honest woman out of her.

"Cullen, eh? Bella has mentioned your family, but she never mentioned dating you."

"Well, you know how private she is." I hope that worked.

"Yeah, that's Bells for you."

Bells. That's cute. "So Mr. Swan," I began.

"Charlie."

"Charlie, I was calling you to ask permission to propose to Bella."

Silence. For a moment I thought the line went dead, but Bella's father spoke once again. "You want to marry her?"

"Yes, sir."

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-nine."

"What do you do?" Translation: Do you make enough to support my daughter?

"I'm a pediatrician."

"Hmph."

"Where did you go to college?"

"Dartmouth for undergrad, Ohio State for med school."

"Wow. Go Buckeyes."

I laughed. Was he really talking about sports when I just asked him for his permission to marry his daughter?

"Where were you born?"

"Chicago." My nervousness was actually fading away during the interrogation. I actually found it a little amusing.

"What was your G.P.A. in high school?"

"Uh… I don't remember that, sir."

I heard genuine laughter on the other end of the phone. "I was just kidding about that. I have to give you the complete third degree."

"I don't blame you, sir."

Finally he asked the million-dollar question. "Do you love her?"

"With all my heart."

There was silence again, and I began to think that he wasn't going to give his permission. I didn't see why he would. This was the first time he learned that his only daughter was "dating" a man that he hadn't even met. I probably wouldn't be too keen on giving my permission, either.

I heard a sigh on the other end. "I really hate the fact that I don't even know you, but I know Bella, and she wouldn't be with a man if he wasn't right for her. On the condition that she agrees, I will give my blessing."

I grinned. I just got Bella's father's blessing on our marriage.

"Thank you, sir. I promise I will make Bella the happiest woman alive."

I meant every word.

"Go to the passenger side."

"Nuh uh," Bella shook her head. "You said that we had to take my jeep, so I'm going to drive."

"You don't know where we're going."

"You can give me directions."

"I want it to be a surprise."

"What are you going to do? Blindfold me?"

"Maybe," I smirked. In a role reversal, it was Bella who was picking me up for our date so we could take the jeep. It was Friday night, and I thankfully had the weekend off again. With the help of Alice and Rosealie, I had come up with a plan of proposing to Bella. "Come on, babe, it's almost sunset and we need to get there before it gets dark."

Bella just smirked at me. So I did the only thing I could think of. I kissed her.

A breathless moment later, I pulled back to see a dazed expression on Bella's face and an adorable pout beginning to develop. "You don't play fair."

"I never said I did."

As she got out to switch sides, I opened the back to store away all of the supplies I brought. Blankets? Check. Picnic basket with food? Check. Fishing poles? Check.

"Edward, you know I love you, right?" Bella asked as I climbed into the driver's seat.

I grinned. "I don't know. Do you?"

She leaned over to kiss me on the cheek. "Yes, I do. But I want you to know that fishing isn't exactly my ideal date."

"Why not?" I frowned.

She shrugged. "I was always forced to go along with Charlie when he went fishing. I hated it."

"Well, you never went fishing with me, did you?"

"No."

"Well, I promise you that it will definitely be worth your while."

"I'll hold you to that, Mr. Cullen."

"So how do you feel about fishing now?" I asked Bella as she laid with her head on my chest.

She giggled. "If by fishing, you mean casting the line and totally ignoring it while we cuddled, I would say I like it very much."

It was several hours later, but I had not proposed yet. I was waiting for the perfect time.

When we arrived at the meadow, we unpacked everything from the back of the jeep and set up a layer of blankets on the ground. For most of the evening, we ate from the picnic basket, drank sparkling grape juice, and laid on our backs, watching the stars. I couldn't believe my luck at how clear the night sky was and how relatively warm it was. I smiled at the thought that God must have been on my side.

It was peaceful just to be with her. We talked some, but for the most part, we just enjoyed each other's company while stealing kisses every once in a while. I imagined plenty of other evenings like this in our future.

As I was laying with one hand resting on her stomach and another hand caressing her left hand, I realized who much I wanted my ring on that hand. I had to propose soon.

"Where are you going?" Bella frowned as I moved to stand. I had hidden the ring at the bottom of the picnic basket.

"I need to get something."

I chuckled lightly at her expression as she sat up with a blanket wrapped around her legs. A moment later, I had the ring box in my hand and was attempting to come up with the courage to ask her.

Yes, I know she already agreed to marry me, but it was still nerve-wracking. This was the only proposal I was going to give, and I wanted it to be special.

Turning back towards Bella, I smiled lightly as she sat with her arms around her legs and her chin resting on her knees. Her eyes were closed, and by the expression on her face, I could tell that she was happy.

"Bella?"

The smile that she gave me took my breath away. "Yes, Edward?"

"There is something I need to ask you." I slowly walked towards her and got down on one knee.

"Isabella Marie Swan, will you do the honor of becoming my wife?"

You and me going fishing in the dark
Lying on our backs and counting the stars
Where the cool grass grows
Down by the river in the full moon light
We'll be falling in love in the middle of the night
Just moving slow

Staying the whole night through
Feels so good to be with you