Chapter 21

Edward's free hand was in a fist by his side. His jaw was tense and he could feel the heat of the fury that was coloring his face. He held his breath as he stopped and turned around to face Tanya.

Bella's hand squeezed his and he looked at her. She was pale, but there was a spark in her eye and she was taking deep breaths, trying to calm herself.

"Edward, can we talk?" Tanya asked, approaching him.

"Stay where you are. Give me a minute." His teeth were clenched together as he spit the words at her.

He was turning back to talk to Bella when he noticed Seth. His eyes were wide and he was looking from Tanya to Edward and then at his mother.

Edward released the breath he'd been holding. Some of the anger that had been building seeped away as he looked at Seth.

He turned to Bella. "I think that I need to have a serious conversation with Tanya."

She nodded, taking another deep breath.

"I really think that you should be part of that conversation, Bella."

Tanya started to interrupt him. "But, Eddie…"

He held his hand up to stop her. "I'm not talking to you yet, Tanya. Bella and I are deciding what we are going to do. If you'd like to talk to me, you'll wait."

He looked at her and she was pursing her lips, angry that he wasn't allowing her to dictate the terms of their discussion. "Fine," she snapped, but nodded in agreement.

Bella touched his cheek, pulling his attention away from Tanya.

"Are you sure you want me here for this?"

"I want you to know everything. I don't want to hide this from you. But, if you aren't comfortable, I'll understand."

She took a minute to answer.

"If you want me here, I'll stay. But, Seth shouldn't be here for this." Her voice was low, almost a whisper.

Edward turned around and faced his friend. He tried to speak in a lighter tone.

"Peter, I'll bet that Seth can kick your butt at baseball on your PS3. He's good. I've played against him."

Peter was happy to accommodate Edward. "Seth, you on?"

Seth jumped up and down. "Yes!"

He followed Peter as he walked through the door and closed it. A moment later the knob turned and Charlotte poked her head out.

"May I join you?" she asked.

Edward shook his head. "I think you've done enough, Charlotte. You really should just go back inside."

"But…" She stopped when he looked at her. He meant business. "Fine. I'll be here to talk to you if you need me, Tanya."

"Thank you, sweetie," Tanya said, wiping at her eyes.

Charlotte stepped back inside, but Edward was sure she would be listening at the door.

He turned back to Bella and kissed her forehead. "Thank you for supporting me."

Tanya cleared her throat, but Edward ignored her. He continued to look at Bella. "Are you okay?"

She nodded and smiled at him. "I'll be fine. I just needed a minute."

She turned to look at Tanya. "You want to talk to him? This is your chance. Go ahead."

Tanya looked away from her. "Really, Eddie. I don't think your friend should be talking for you. We need to talk alone."

"Bella is my girlfriend, Tanya. We've just decided that I'm moving into her house. This concerns her now. There is nothing you can say that she shouldn't hear. She already knows what happened."

"Does she know that you ignored me? Did you tell her why I did what I did?" She sneered at him.

Edward's voice was a snarl. "I still don't know why you did it, Tanya. How the hell could I tell Bella?"

He felt Bella squeeze his hand again, trying to calm him.

"Oh, come on, Eddie. You know what happened. I'm sure you know why I left. You weren't a very attentive boyfriend. I was afraid of what you'd be like as a father."

Edward sucked in a breath, nearly choking. Tanya's words were like knives, striking him in the tender spots in his heart where it would hurt the most. She knew exactly what to say to inflict pain. She smiled at him sweetly.

He felt Bella stiffen at his side.

It took a great deal of effort to prevent crushing her hand in his grip. He could feel every muscle in his body tighten. His lungs felt closed off, almost impossible to fill with air.

"You can justify what you did by saying that I wasn't a good enough boyfriend? Are you really that sick?" His voice was shaking with rage.

Tanya's face fell for a moment and her eyes filled with tears again. "Don't say that! I didn't know what to do, Eddie." She was pleading.

"And so, instead of talking to me about it, you aborted my baby." His voice was a whisper. He dropped his eyes, looking at the floor in front of him.

"I didn't think you would care."

He started to move forward, wanting to lash out at her, to hurt her in some way, but stopped when he felt Bella pull on his hand. He turned to look at her and she reached for his face with her free hand.

"Calm down, Edward. Please. You can't change what happened. Don't stoop to her level."

Edward heard Tanya grunt. He knew that sound. She made it when she wasn't getting her way.

He looked at Bella's face and felt stronger when he saw the concern in her eyes.

"Let's get Seth and go to the zoo. I don't want to listen to this anymore," he said, trying to smile at her.

"But, Edward…I need to talk to you." Tanya was begging him.

He turned to face her again, and he felt Bella's hand slip from his face as he moved.

"What do you want Tanya? You've got two minutes to explain why you keep texting me."

She smiled at him through the tears that were now streaking down her face.

"I knew you'd talk to me, Edward. I knew that you still cared enough to hear me out."

Edward heard Bella suck in a breath and felt her hand shaking.

"Don't read anything into this, Tanya. Just hurry up. I have plans with Bella and Seth today."

Tanya took a deep breath and he could tell she was evaluating his stance, trying to decide what she should say to him. Her face wrinkled and a few more tears fell down her cheeks.

He knew this behavior. She would stand in front of a mirror, practicing crying over and over before an audition.

"What, Tanya? I'm not waiting." He could hear the rough edge to his voice.

She moved her mouth, preparing to talk, but still holding back.

"I'm so unhappy, Edward. I made a huge mistake."

Bella gasped behind him.

"What are you talking about?" he asked with a sneer.

"I never should have left you. I should have stayed and had our baby. You would have been home more when your residency ended. I know that now. Charlotte tells me how much better it is now that Peter is an attending physician."

Edward felt the like he'd been hit in the gut with a sucker punch. The air left his lungs and he was speechless.

"I miss you. I want you to come back to New York, to me." She took a step forward as she spoke. "We could raise my baby together."

Edward stepped back a little and felt Bella release his hand. She stepped in front of him.

"I can't believe you," Bella said. "You have a fiancé. You are getting married next week. What are you trying to do?"

Tanya stopped moving. Her face changed instantly from sadness to anger. "I'm talking to Edward. Get out of my way."

Edward moved his hands to Bella's shoulders, resting them there. His thumbs rubbed the sides of her neck, reminding him that she was standing with him, supporting him.

"Bella is right where she belongs, Tanya. She's not moving." He leaned down to whisper in her ear. "I think we should go now."

She nodded and started to move toward the door to Peter's apartment. He knew she was anxious to get to Seth.

"Please, Edward…" Tanya sobbed. "Please don't leave."

"I've heard enough. I don't see any reason to stay." He moved with Bella.

"But, I'm so unhappy. Please don't leave me. I don't know how to take care of a baby. You know I never wanted to be a mother."

Edward stopped moving and pulled Bella back to his side.

"You should have thought of that before you got pregnant with Marcus' baby. I would think you learned something after you got pregnant with mine. You sure knew how to end a pregnancy when I was involved."

"But…" Tanya hesitated.

"But what?" Edward growled. He was losing patience with her.

"He told me that I'd get a modeling contract for maternity clothes. He told me that I'd be working for his agency. He lied to me, Edward. He just wanted to tie me down."

Edward had never felt anger like this. It burned him. His stomach twisted and he felt nauseated. He felt Bella turning to look at him. He didn't want her to see the monster that was growing in his chest. He turned away to hide, but heard her voice and was pulled back to look at her.

"You got pregnant just so you could model? Are you kidding me?" He could feel her body shaking next to him as she spoke.

"It's none of your business. I'm talking to Edward," Tanya snapped.

Bella continued, right over Tanya's protest. "You are unbelievable. I don't think I've ever met anyone who is as selfish as you are. That baby deserves better than you. You make me sick."

She turned to reach for the doorknob.

Edward was stunned. He'd never heard Bella so angry. He looked at Tanya to see what her reaction would be to Bella's outburst.

She pulled her lips into a pout and tried to look hurt. Edward turned back to the door.

"Bitch," Tanya muttered.

His resolve to be calm broke with one word. He turned back around, letting go of Bella, and facing Tanya. He stepped forward, closing the space between them.

"Tanya…" His voice was a warning, but she didn't comprehend it.

"Eddie, I knew you'd see the light. You should stay and help me raise my baby." When she looked up into his eyes she faltered a little.

"Don't' speak to her again, Tanya. Go home. I am done with you. Do you hear me? I don't want to be with you. I don't want to talk to you. Don't text me. Don't talk to Charlotte about me. Stay out of my life."

"You don't mean that, Edward. Why don't you let her go inside so that we can really talk?" She was crying again, her sniffles punctuating her words.

"Don't you get it? I can't stand to be around you. I thought I had done something wrong. I thought I was the reason you left. You encouraged me to believe it. But, I've figured something out, Tanya. You don't care about anyone but yourself. You didn't even care enough about me to tell me what you were thinking of doing."

She stepped forward and touched his arm. "I want you. Marcus doesn't treat me like you did. Please, don't leave me here to marry him."

Edward was about to answer when he heard a deep voice from the stairs. "I don't treat you well? You don't want to marry me? How long have you felt that way?"

Tanya jumped. The look on her face went from pleading to completely mortified. She turned around quickly. "Marcus? You misunderstood."

"I misunderstood? Really? I've been standing here for a while, Tanya. I know what I heard."

"You know I love you, baby. I'm just getting cold feet. I want to be with you and have our baby." She moved away from Edward.

"I think we should leave Edward and his friend alone. It seems we have a lot to talk about." He approached her and grabbed her by the arm, pulling her toward the stairs.

Edward looked at Bella. Her eyes were huge. She was shocked at the turn of events.

The door behind her opened and Charlotte rushed out. She ran to the stairs and watched Marcus dragging Tanya out of the front door.

"Shit," she muttered as she ran back into the apartment. "Peter, why did you do that?"

Edward and Bella followed her. Peter looked away from the game on the screen.

"Because you shouldn't have told her to come. Her fiancé deserved to know what was going on."

"You just caused a huge problem!" Her voice was getting louder.

"No, Char. You caused the problem when you told her to be here to see Edward."

Charlotte stormed up the stairs and slammed a door at the top.

Edward looked at Peter and shrugged. "I think we'd better go to the zoo. Looks like you have some things to talk to Charlotte about."

"We obviously won't be joining you today. Maybe I'll see you tomorrow at the Yankee's game. Your tickets will be in Will Call."

Edward stepped forward and shook Peter's hand. "Thanks, man."

"I'm really sorry about all of that, Edward. I've been telling her for months that she needed to keep her nose out of it."

"Why did she think I should see Tanya?"

"There are some things that you don't know about. I didn't want to be the one to tell you."

Bella took the controller from Peter and sat down on the couch next to Seth, allowing the two men to leave the room to talk. They walked into the kitchen and Edward leaned against the counter and watched Peter pull a chair out.

"What's going on, Peter? You need to be straight with me."

Peter sighed. "I saw an e-mail about three months ago – otherwise, I wouldn't know any of this."

Edward waited.

"Tanya was seeing Marcus before she left you. He was the friend she stayed with when she left. She thought he was her ticket to a modeling career. But, he just closed one of his agencies in April. The economy is killing his business. He's cut way back."

Edward felt sick to his stomach again.

"So, when she was pregnant…"

"She didn't know whose baby it was, man. I'm sorry. She had a contract for the ad she was working on, and she thought it would turn into something bigger. Marcus was helping her, but he won't let her work now that she's having his baby. He is pretty controlling. After today, I doubt she'll be able to have a cell phone until after the wedding."

"You think they'll still get married?"

"Yes. Marcus wants Tanya and the baby. He won't let her go that easily."

"I almost feel sorry for her."

"You shouldn't. She has everything she wants, except you. She had a fit when Charlotte told her about Bella. I guess she thought you'd be there for her when she and Marcus tank, which they will at some point."

Edward shook his head. "I don't know why I couldn't see her behavior for what it was when we were together."

"Edward, can I tell you something?"

He looked at his friend and nodded. "Anything."

"I don't know Bella. But, I just played baseball against one of the nicest kids I've met. She must be something to raise a child like that."

"He's the best."

"I've only seen you together for a few minutes, but I think you are right where you belong. You look happier than you ever have. Tanya did you a favor by leaving."

"I know." Edward smiled. "They are my future, Pete. I'm sure of it."

"I'm glad you're finally happy."

Edward stood up and started to walk back to the living room. "I really am."

They walked into the room and he called to them, "Hey guys, we have an entire zoo full of animals waiting for us."

Seth protested a little when they turned off the game, but decided that the zoo would be worth it. He bounced as he approached the front door.

"Thank you, Peter. That was a good game."

Peter laughed. "I still think I could have come back to beat you."

Seth laughed.

Edward patted Peter's arm. "I'm sorry to leave you with such a mess to deal with."

"I should have stood up to her a long time ago. I'm sorry I didn't stop this from happening, Edward."

"I needed to have that conversation. It wasn't fun, but at least I know that everything is the way it should be."

"I'm glad. I'll call you later, let you know if I'll make the game tomorrow."

"I hope you'll still come with us," Edward said.

"I'll see what happens." Peter looked toward the stairs that led to their bedroom. "We need to discuss some things."

Peter turned to Bella. "It was nice to meet you, Bella. I'm sorry things worked out this way. I would love to talk to you and tell you a few stories about Edward in medical school." He laughed lightly.

"Well then, I hope you make it to the game tomorrow. I'd love to hear them."

He reached out to shake her hand and she stepped forward to embrace him. "Thanks for inviting us. I think everything will be fine."

Peter kissed the top of her head. "Thank you, Bella."

Bella breathed in the fresh air when they stepped out of the apartment. It was already getting hot and muggy, but it felt good to be outside. She had stopped shaking while she sat in Peter's apartment playing baseball on the PS3.

"Are you okay?" Edward asked her. "It's been an eventful morning."

She turned to look at him. "I'm fine. I almost expected to see Tanya at the ball game tomorrow. I guess I was a little surprised when she was at Peter's apartment, waiting for us."

"I'm sorry about that. If I had known…"

"Don't apologize, Edward. I just hope that you're able to shake it off. We have a zoo waiting for us." She smiled at him. She wasn't ready to discuss what had happened this morning. She wanted to be alone with him when they talked about it.

Seth grabbed his hand and pulled him forward. "Are we going to walk?"

"Not right now. I thought I'd get a cab so that we can get there quickly and so that you'd have enough energy to walk around the zoo."

"I can walk, Edward. I'm big enough." Seth wrinkled his eyebrows.

"I know you are, Seth." He leaned down and whispered in his ear, but Bella could hear him. "I think your mom is still tired from the flight. We should let her ride in a cab, don't you think?"

Seth smiled at him. He gave her a sly look and nodded. "She is probably still tired."

They only waited a few minutes before the cab pulled up in front of Peter's apartment. The ride was short and Seth was chattering the entire time. He commented on every part of the park, and was brimming with excitement when they finally arrived at the zoo.

He couldn't stand still as Edward paid their admission and he was almost at a dead run going through the gates.

Bella could hardly keep up with him at first. He was anxious to see everything, and ran from one exhibit to the next. He wanted to see the monkeys and the lions. Then, he decided that he was really interested in the red panda and the sea lions. He buzzed as he talked about each animal, and Edward spent a lot of time reading the information on each cage to him.

They made it to the sea lion exhibit just as the handlers were getting ready to feed them. Seth watched with wide eyes as they fed them one fish after another. The sea lions would jump through the air, catching the fish in mid-flight, and would land in the water with a huge splash. He laughed as they balanced on their flippers - a fish perched on their snouts until the handler gave them permission to eat it.

Every time the animals did something exciting, Seth and Edward would high five or knock their knuckles together. They were having a great time.

Bella snapped one picture after another. She laughed along with Seth when he watched the kangaroos moving around their enclosure. He did his best imitation and Edward picked him up and hopped with him, leaving him in a fit of giggles.

Several times, she handed the camera to a stranger, asking them to take a picture of the three of them.

By noon, Seth was slowing down. He still hurried through the zoo, but his pace was not the same as it had been. Edward offered to allow him to ride on his shoulders and he relented. Edward grabbed him around his ribs and flipped him on the way to his shoulders, eliciting squeals of pleasure. Bella snapped more pictures, feeling contentment settling back into her.

Edward finally said they had seen everything there was to see and guided them to the small café inside the zoo for lunch.

"I don't think Brighton Beach is a good idea right now," he told Bella quietly. "Someone looks like they might need a nap."

Bella watched as Seth's head dipped and then snapped back up. He was exhausted.

They finished their lunch and Edward was ready to call a cab when Bella saw the carousel.

"Can we ride?" she asked Edward, with a smile.

He took her hand and led her to the carousel. They rode together in a dragon pulled chariot while Seth chose a horse near them. After their third ride, Seth was drooping even more.

They finished the ride and walked for a little while, finally sitting on a bench to wait for their cab. Seth sat on Bella's lap and put his head on her shoulder. Before long, his eyes closed and he fell asleep. Edward took him from Bella and carried him to the road when the cab came.

He slept all the way to the hotel and into the room. She asked Edward to tuck him into his bed. When he returned Bella was sitting on the couch, her knees tucked under her chin.

"Are you okay?" he asked her, sitting with her and wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

"I am," she said, snuggling into him. "I didn't think seeing Tanya would be a good thing, but it was. You needed to ask some questions. I'm just sorry I got so upset with her."

"You didn't do anything wrong, Bella. She was out of line. Do you know how lucky I am? I have everything I need now, and I know it." He pulled her chin up and kissed her lips lightly. "I can't believe I wasn't more aware of what was happening with Tanya."

"Did Peter have a lot to tell you?" she asked.

He nodded and told her what Peter had related to him.

"Is it hard to hear that the baby may not have been yours?" She watched his face for a reaction.

"It hurts, but everything that she said today was meant to hurt me. Peter told me the truth. I needed to know."

She snuggled into his side again. "You've been through a lot, Edward."

"But I wouldn't be with you if things hadn't gone the way they did with Tanya. I am right where I belong."

He picked her up and carried her to their room.

A/N

It all belongs to SM…I just have a lot of fun twisting it to fit my ideas. ;)

First – you all just blew me away this week. Our fandom raised over $80,000.00 for Alex's Lemonade Stand. Just, wow! What an incredible thing to do!

You also blew me away with your reviews! I was ready to hide, leaving you at a cliffhanger. But, you were kind – and I thank you for that!

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As you can probably tell, this story is nearing completion. I'm sad. I'll miss your input and feedback! Thank you again!