AN: Some Bella POV today.

Thanks to Shaina who is a new mommy to the prettiest girl and still manages to beta for me each day. Also, thanks to Katmom and Krista who continue to be so supportive.

Chapter 21

Ray of Hope

BPOV

I hadn't had a drink since the night my father brought me home from Seattle all those years ago. I didn't keep anything in the house, not even a bottle of wine. It was just too much temptation for someone who had a previous affection for drowning her sorrows.

A bottle of wine sounded pretty good right now.

I was trying so hard to stay calm about all of this. I thought I was doing okay. I was going through the motions, anyway. I had dressed my daughter. I'd cooked us breakfast. I had taken a shower and dressed myself. I hadn't burned his toast, and I hadn't cried in hours.

That's a lie. I had cried in the shower.

I think he knew.

I had prepared myself for the worst. I knew that somewhere in the world there was a woman looking for him. When Alice had arrived, I'd cried tears of relief, because I was just so happy that she wasn't his wife.

I'd expected a wife, you know? Wouldn't a wife be looking for her husband?

So when Alice revealed that she was his sister, it was as if a weight had been lifted from my heart. For a few wonderful hours, I had allowed myself to hope and dream.

Happily, I'd left them to talk and I'd fallen into a peaceful asleep, content in the knowledge that he was getting some answers. I knew it wouldn't be smooth sailing for any of us, but it was family. I could deal with family. I was all about family.

But then he came to me in the middle of the night, and I had wanted him so much. He'd wanted me, too. I could feel it in his kiss and in the way he touched me, but last night had been so different. His touches were desperate and frantic, and at the time I'd confused them for passion…

And then he'd said no.

It was at that moment that I knew that every dream I'd dared to dream was about to be shattered into pieces.

He had a wife.

It was a fight to see the wedding picture, but I wanted to know. I wanted to see her. I wanted to see the face of the woman who wore his ring but couldn't be bothered to pick up the damn phone and report that he was missing. I wanted to see the woman who'd stood before a minister and promised to love him for the rest of his life but hadn't even attempted to find him.

I'd wanted to see her, because I had wanted to see the face of the woman who might wear his ring but could never love him as much as I do.

As I stared at her picture, I couldn't really imagine her as competition for his heart. The Edward I knew smiled all the time, and he seemed content with the simple life that we led. He liked his job and he loved my daughter. He was happy here.

In his wedding picture, he looked like a man who'd just been sentenced to the gallows.

Maybe Edward was right. Maybe he didn't love her. He certainly didn't look like he loved her, and she wasn't exactly gazing up at him with starry eyes.

But I also wasn't a naïve girl.

They'd definitely married each other for a reason.

But why?

"You got quiet on me," Edward said softly. We'd spent the day alternating between the living room and the bed. We were back in the bedroom now, me on my stomach and him on his back.

Our hands were joined.

Always joined.

"I was just thinking that neither of you look very happy in that wedding photo."

"That's the only bright spot in all of this. It'll be ridiculously easy to get a divorce."

Something told me it wouldn't be easy at all.

Edward sighed heavily and moved closer to me. He had always been affectionate, but today was on a whole other level. His hands were always on me, and I let them be, because I needed them.

"I love you, Bella."

His fingers drifted along my spine. Slowly. Rhythmically.

I sighed softly and closed my eyes.

"Do you still love me?" Edward murmured. He was trying so hard to keep the emotion out of his voice, but I heard it. It wasn't the first time he'd asked.

"Of course I love you," I whispered, just as I had all the times before.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart."

It wasn't the first time I'd heard that, either.

"You didn't do anything wrong," I reminded him.

My eyes remained closed as he played with my hair, twirling the strands between his fingers. It was so soothing. I needed soothing, because I was about to say something that was going to kill me.

"You need to talk to her."

He stilled.

"No, I don't."

"Edward, she has the answers."

"I'll find the answers somewhere else," Edward replied. "It's very possible that she had something to do with my disappearance. If that's the case, the last thing I want is for her to know that I'm alive. I will not put you or Lily in danger. I'll find another way."

I opened my eyes and found him gazing intently at me. He looked exhausted. The dark circles under his eyes had grown more prominent as the morning had drifted into afternoon.

"Surely I have one friend in this world," Edward smiled at me. "I'll find another way, Bella."

"You are the CEO of a powerful company," I murmured sleepily. "There has to be someone on your payroll who knows what's going on. Someone you can trust. Maybe a lawyer or something…"

Edward's eyes widened.

"Jasper!"

Suddenly, I was wide awake.

"Who's Jasper?"

"Jasper is…my lawyer, I think?"

Excited, we both jumped off the bed and ran toward the living room. Once again, the Internet became our lifeline.

"We need a last name, Edward," I told him, pulling him and my laptop over to the couch.

"Jasper…" Edward struggled to remember. "He likes to collect Civil War memorabilia. We play basketball a couple times a week."

"That's so good, baby," I smiled excitedly at him – my first honest smile in hours. "What else?"

"He's my best friend," Edward whispered. "He grew up in Dallas, I think. Or Houston. Hell, I don't know, but somewhere in Texas."

In the meantime, I typed crazy phrases like Edward Cullen's attorney into the search box and prayed for a miracle. To my extreme amusement, an array of articles appeared.

"People like to sue you," I smirked as I scrolled down the page.

"I'm not surprised," Edward chuckled. "Anything about Jasper?"

I clicked on the most recent article and skimmed the page.

"There!" Edward shouted, pointing at the bottom paragraph.

"We are pleased that justice has prevailed," Jasper Hale, Cullen's attorney, announced at the press conference held yesterday on the front steps of the courthouse. "The lawsuit was frivolous and a clear attempt to extort millions from my client."

"Jasper Hale," I whispered.

"Google him!" Edward demanded fervently, and I shot him an amused grin.

"Wow, we trigger a memory and you go all bossy CEO on me," I laughed.

Gently, Edward tilted my face toward his. There was renewed hope in his eyes, and it was so wonderful to see. It gave me hope, too.

"I'm sorry, baby," he whispered tenderly. "Google him, please?"

I grinned as I typed Jasper's name into the search box. Immediately, his firm's website appeared, offering contact information.

Jackpot.

"Do you want his email address or his phone number?"

He didn't answer. I glanced his way and found that he wasn't looking at the screen at all. He was looking at me, and the look on his face was indescribable.

"Don't leave me," Edward murmured, his voice soft and pleading. He gently brushed his thumb across my bottom lip. "I can survive losing everything else, but I can't…"

Overcome with emotion, he bowed his head. I'd never seen him so vulnerable, not even when he was in the hospital. We were exhausted and scared and our emotions were all over the place, but I knew one thing for certain.

"I am not leaving you," I whispered softly, placing my hands on each side of his face. "I am not leaving you. Not unless you tell me to go."

Those were his exact words to me from last night, and I remembered thinking that he couldn't possibly make me that promise when there was so much uncertainty surrounding us.

But today was a new day, and we now had a ray of hope.

Many are asking how long this story will be. I honestly don't have a clue. Writing smaller chapters each day is limiting as far as how much of the story I can tell, so...I wish I could give you an estimate, but I just don't know. I also want to prepare you because I go back to work in one week, so my update schedule may change. I'll let you know.

Your reviews, especially for the last two chapters, have made me smile so much. The trust warms my heart, honestly. And the theories...without giving anything away, I'll just say my readers are so smart. :)

See you tomorrow!