Chapter 20 No Father's Day

The metal drawer of the mail drop box swung closed with a familiar thunk. Bella could hear the Father's Day cards she'd gotten for Charlie, the now two days late Father's Day cards, slither in with the other envelopes in the box. She sighed as she walked back to the car. She'd managed to get Mackayla to 'sign' Charlie's grandfather card with an inked footprint last week, but forgot to mail it. She knew it was some kind of passive-aggressive thing related to the fact that Mackayla might never have a father for whom to make a card, which led her down the sorry path of no father for father-daughter dances, or assembling toys on Christmas Eve, or teaching her the right way to dribble a soccer ball, or walking her down the aisle...

Stop feeling sorry for yourself!

So what if Jake had never called, or so much sent as sent a text message for her first Mother's Day? She didn't need his sorry ass. He sure as hell wasn't getting a card from her or Mackayla. She could assemble Mackayla's gifts, and why worry about walking her daughter down the aisle when Bella had skipped that step herself? She was a strong, independent woman, and if she could just find a decent apartment for the two of them they'd be set. They didn't need a man.

She stopped herself from thinking about someone who could give excellent soccer lessons, among other things. No, stop thinking about him! After the blow up in Edward's office, she'd heard nothing, not even those little numbers he'd been texting to her every day at 8:00 a.m. She didn't understand him at all. She'd been quite clear that she wasn't interested in his proposal. She still couldn't wrap her mind around what he asked…how could she have misjudged him so badly?

The whole ordeal was right up there with finding out that Santa wasn't real. Her world lost a little magic that day. It wasn't like they had a relationship, but she looked forward to those little chats once a week. She only realized how much she enjoyed them now that they weren't happening.

Stop, stop, stop! I only have two hours to look at apartments; I don't have a minute to spare to think about what might have been.

Bella came to the conclusion that she was not cut out to be a spy.

Sneaking around looking at one bedroom and studio apartments without letting Alice or Jasper or Mrs. Cope know, was exhausting. Mrs. Cope was going to think she didn't have two brain cells to rub together if she told her she forgot something at the grocery store again. These last two apartments, like the eight before, were too expensive, too small or too scary. She couldn't wait to get back to her own place, which in comparison was warm, expansive and a fortress of security.

After the new apartment, it was time to get a new job.

Everything was connected; she needed a job reference from NJMC since the apartment complexes all requested length of employment on their applications. Two weeks at some burger joint would not cut it. Once she was settled in the apartment, she'd start the job search.

She still hadn't heard from Mr. Cullen at all. The courier dropped off and picked up the boxes on the past two Thursdays, and the little text messages had stopped. She wasn't afraid of him, but after the scene in his office, she didn't want to face him either.

She was late. She told Mrs. Cope she'd be gone two hours and it was going on three. Good thing she was so nice.

Bella could hear giggles through the door as she turned her key. She couldn't help but smile. It sounded like Mackayla was having fun with Mrs. Cope.

On the couch, holding the giggling baby on the cushion and blowing raspberries on her belly, was Edward Cullen.

She dropped her keys. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm conducting an experiment. When I blow air on her belly, right here," he proceeded to do so, "she laughs and laughs." Mackayla proved him right by giggling louder than ever. "We're up to thirteen times."

She picked up her keys and closed the door, trying to compose herself. She fought the urge to run over and wrestle Mackayla away from him. He was still her primary source of income. Mrs. Cope must know he was here and Alice would be home soon. No need to call 911. She didn't actually think he was dangerous, but she was not happy he was here playing with her child. He better not be renewing his proposal. She looked over and Mackayla was happily gumming his knuckle. Traitor.

Bella stood as straight and tall as possible before she spoke. "I meant, how did you get in here? Is there a problem?" Was he going to fire her after all? Take back the bonus money? Take away Jasper's new job?

He spoke to her, but was smiling at Mackayla, who was smiling and waving her arms in delight at her new playmate. "Since you find it acceptable to show up at my place of work without calling or requesting an appointment, I felt it would be acceptable to do you the same honor."

"Where's Mrs. Cope?"

"Locked up in the laundry."

Bella looked towards the double closet that housed their washer and dryer.

"Really Bella, she wouldn't fit in there. She was late for a hair appointment. I said I would stay with the baby until you got here." He bent over to give Mackayla another raspberry on her soft belly. She squealed and laughed, slapping her little hands on his head.

Bella sat on the other end of the sofa, putting her handbag on the floor. She reached out, expecting Edward to hand Mackayla over right away. He was holding her up to his face.

He seemed happy to have her tiny hand in his mouth, while he made eating sound effects, "Nom, nom, nom. She's very delicious."

It must be all the handing around she got, all the people who had taken care of her, that Mackayla had no fear of this man who was a stranger to her. Bella could see that he wasn't dangerous, but after the incident in his office, she couldn't trust him. Her hands itched to take Mackayla, but she was giggling in Edward's arms.

She blurted, "Why are you really here?"

"I'm sure you read the contract you signed when you agreed to become an independent contracted employee of NJMC. You will recall the paragraph that details our right to inspect the premises in which said work is being conducted, as well as in the case of company owned equipment being used in that work, the right to periodically inspect the equipment for excessive wear or misuse. I drafted that paragraph myself, but the legal team vetted it before it was added to the contract."

She stared at him, hands on hips, still not sure if he was serious or not.

Mackayla was gumming his jaw. He chuckled, "Okay, I'm blinking first. I'm sorry. Things went really badly in my office. I was—overeager?"

Bella glared at him. "I thought of some other words to describe it, but not in front of the baby."

Edward looked more somber. "I want to explain, apologize. I know Jasper is taking the job in Philadelphia, and when I asked, he indicated that his fiancée, Alice, was going with him. This apartment isn't cheap, Bella. How are you going to afford it alone?"

"I can budget."

He nestled Mackayla on his chest and leaned back against the cushions. She curled up under his neck. "She seems comfy. It's been years since I held a baby." His hands covered her whole body. "This is very nice."

He spoke in a quiet monotone over Mackayla's head. "I ran a budget spreadsheet for you. I know what you take home from NJMC, I subtracted the typical costs of formula, diapers, wipes, clothing, got a lowball price on car insurance, gas and upkeep, called Mrs. Cope yesterday to see what apartments here run a month, plus childcare. Unless you don't plan on eating, there's no way you can do it."

"I have some help."

"How much help? You'd need at least $200 more a week. What are those brochures in your bag? You've been looking at smaller apartments." It was a statement, not a question. She was so not cut out to be a spy.

She stuffed the brochures to the bottom of her bag. "And what if I have?"

"I know real estate. You're not going to get something you like, something safe enough for this little girl around here. If you find something further away, up go your gas costs plus you'll pay for more hours of childcare. It doesn't have to be this way."

She felt a little like a hostage negotiator, trying to deal with a deranged person. He wasn't acting like any guy she'd ever known. She never expected him to just drop in. After she stormed out of his office she expected that he would play it cool. He was a handsome man, and if he wanted female company, he didn't have to deal with someone who was so complicated. She never expected him to calmly come to her home, play with her baby, and to have done a budget analysis to make her life work. Mackayla seemed entirely content snuggling with him. He looked so natural holding her baby. It made her want things she didn't think were possible. The situation was confusing. He seemed great with the baby, why was she so resistant—oh yeah. He wanted to pay her for sex.

"But you still want me to 'entertain' you, for pay, in secret? I'm not a hooker." She felt her face heat up. She didn't like his game.

He rolled his eyes up at the ceiling, and blew out a long breath. "I'm so sorry you thought that. It's not what I meant, at all. I just wanted to help you. I, I don't know how to say this. Bella, we've already established that I'm an idiot when it comes to relationships. My relationship with Tanya was easy. She told me what she wanted me to do, or buy, or wear, I did it, and she acted like she was happy about it. I like to fix problems. You said you needed money, I thought I had a way for us to spend time together…I didn't expect you to prostitute yourself. I explained what happened to Emmett, and he asked if your lawyer had contacted me yet."

She snorted, "The thought crossed my mind."

"Let me just explain, please, before you throw me out. I tried to tell you on the elevator, just before the lights came back on."

Bella looked at him; hair a wreck from Mackayla's play, baby snuggled under his chin. His eyes looked sincere. She kept her lips in a straight line, nodding for him to continue.

"That was the best day of my life. Ever. I mean, I know what those giant lottery winners must feel like. Finding out that the girl I was crazy about wasn't getting married to someone else, and as a huge bonus, you liked me too and then, beyond imagination, we acted it on it, and it was the hottest sex I've ever had. I wanted you to come home with me and never leave! I would have booked the red eye to Vegas and gotten married that night. "

Bella sat up, as if she'd had an electric shock. "Married?"

He waved a hand in the air, finally resting it on his forehead. "I know! I sound like a lunatic. I told Emmett most of what happened, and what I wanted to do, and he threatened to put me in a straight jacket. He said I needed to give you some space, and if you didn't try to get me arrested, I should try apologizing and explaining that I'm socially stunted, and that he'd be happy to vouch for my cluelessness."

Bella sat back, arms crossed, trying to absorb everything he'd said. Could he mean it? She glanced back at his face, which seemed earnest enough.

Taking her non response as permission to continue, he said, "I have revised my proposal. I presented the whole thing badly. I know you don't want to be paid, and that was crass."

He squinted at her with a little grimace. "And I'm guessing you don't want to marry me right now."

She shook her head and said firmly, "No."

"But you still need help. I propose we barter. I want you and Mackayla to come live with me, not live with me, live in my house. There's an apartment, meant for a nanny or live in maid. You would have your own space. You can keep me company however you like. I would enjoy being mauled by this little one on a regular basis. It would satisfy my need for human contact, increase the noise level in my tomb of a house, and you wouldn't have to pay for housing or utilities, which would make your life much easier. My house is obscenely big, and I heat the whole place for shadows. You had no issue living with Jasper and his wife-to-be to help make ends meet. This is almost the same thing."

Bella shook her head quickly and took a closer look at him. "Have you been drinking, or are you crazy?"

He was rocking Mackayla gently, caressing her back. "I'm not crazy. I'm lonely. There's something between us, and I see no reason for you to work so hard when I can help you. You don't want me to pay you. Fine. Housing and utilities don't count because I pay for them anyway. I provide food and supplies for you and your daughter. You and she…"

"Do what?"

"Whatever you want to, as long as you keep me company. Have dinner with me. Make noise. I'm responsible for your situation. If I hadn't offered Jasper the job, you'd still have your roommates, right?"

She couldn't help but nod her head in agreement. If not for him she wouldn't be sneaking around looking for a place she could afford.

Now he sounded like the Edward she was used to, a businessman laying out a plan of action. "Let's take sex off the table. You need a cheap place to live, I have space. I'm lonely. You can keep me company, give me someone to talk to, watch a movie with, eat with. This one," he looked at Mackayla's head, "is the bonus."

Bella tilted her head and looked at him. He didn't seem drunk, but he was obviously out of his mind. How was it that no one mentioned that he was nuts? "That's crazy; it's like buying us to be your friends."

He smiled, shaking his head. "Did you ever treat someone to dinner or coffee because you had money at the time, and they didn't? Were you buying their friendship? Or did you just want to be with them?"

"But you've just met Mackayla. She isn't always so quiet or clean or giggly."

"She's not the first baby I've ever met. Remember my mom is her pediatrician."

"I know that—but have you ever lived with a baby?"

"I assure you Mackayla couldn't be louder, smellier or dirtier than Emmett, and I survived living with him."

Bella felt like she was in a weird dream. He couldn't be real. White knights that came to rescue damsels in distress were only in fairy tales. There had to be something else going on. "What do you tell people who want to know why I'm living with you? Aren't they going to assume something more is happening?"

"You can live in your own rooms. I don't have that many people visiting my house to question my living arrangements."

"My friends won't believe that."

"Well, you could tell Jasper and his fiancée that he can't take that job, because you haven't figured another way to afford living here. Or you could go home to Washington."

She heard what he didn't say; go home to Washington and subject Mackayla to the scrutiny of the gossiping hens in her little town and Charlie trying to run DNA tests on any guy that smiled at her.

Bella said, "We barely know each other. We haven't even been on a date, and you want me to move into your house?"

"People date to see if they'll get along, to see if there's an attraction. You kissed me first in that elevator, though I admit I would have kissed you if you hadn't beat me to it, so you must agree that there's an attraction. All our little talks-I like you as a person, and I respect you as an employee. Don't you think I could have had a courier dropping off those boxes all along? If it wasn't for my thinking you were with Jasper, I would have asked you out long ago. I understand your reasoning; you don't want to drag a bunch of jokers past your daughter. I agree with you. I'm serious about us."

She was too stunned to speak. As Charlie had taught her, anything that sounds too good to be true, isn't true. She stared at Edward.

He continued, "This can be a business arrangement if that's what you want it to be, to start with. But I hope it becomes more."

They both turned at the sound of the key in the door. The baby was dozing on Edward's chest. Alice swung the door open and immediately put her fingers to her lips to shush herself.

Bella got up quickly and scooped Mackayla up from Edward, and said to Alice, "I was just putting her down for a nap."

Alice giggled quietly and whispered, "She looked pretty comfortable right where she was."

Mackayla went down easily, sighing as she felt the soft sheets of her crib. Bella stood, flicking on the baby monitor, wishing there was a grown up monitor so she could hear what Alice and Edward Freakin' Cullen were discussing in her living room. This apartment was her sanctuary, her fortress. How dare he invade her space, spouting his outrageous plan? The most confusing thing? Part of her wanted to believe him.

She closed the door carefully and walked back to the living room. Of course Alice had plied him with soda; he must have refused the tequila or wine which she would have offered him first. She needed to get in there quickly, before Alice…too late.

She was a step away from the room when Alice said, "You must stay for dinner. I defrosted the lasagna rollups Bella's mother left for us, and I forgot Jasper wouldn't be here and I made too much. They're too good to go to waste."

Bella tried to get Alice's attention, rolling her eyes towards the door so she would get the hint that Bella did not want him staying for dinner. "I'm sure Mr. Cullen has other things to do."

Edward sat back on the sofa, hands crossed behind his head. "No, I'm entirely free tonight. And as I told Alice, please, call me Edward."

Alice refused to meet her eyes, so Bella sunk down onto the sofa next to 'Call me Edward.'

Alice hopped up from the armchair. "Now you two just sit right there. I'll heat everything up and be back in a jiffy."

Bella sat. Really Alice? Who says 'jiffy' anymore? Oh, right, roommates who are trying to meddle in other people's lives.

She glared at Edward. He wore a wide grin.

"Mackayla is charming."

Fine, what was she supposed to say about that? Disagree?

He leaned closer to her, speaking in a confidential tone, which made her lean towards him to hear. "You know I was quite the baby wrangler growing up. I spent summers working in my mother's office, mostly filing, but sometimes holding a baby while a sibling was being examined. Have you ever tried to examine triplets? One cries and they all go off. Of course my mother's plan didn't work."

"What plan?"

"My parents tried to turn me from the dark side, business, to become a doctor. My parents, my brother, his wife, everyone we hung around with were doctors. All that filing and repetitive paperwork didn't make me want to become a doctor. It made me want to find faster, more efficient ways to deal with the information. And I learned that most doctors are terrible business people."

Bella scowled. "So am I supposed to admire you or feel bad for you?"

"Neither, I was just trying to illustrate that things don't always go as you plan, but they can still work out."

Alice returned, holding a tray with their best cloth placemats, the china plates, napkins and three daisies in an old Patron bottle. She must have raided the bouquet Jasper brought her last week 'just because.'

I'd like someone to bring me flowers 'just because'. Instead, I have a lunatic trying to buy an instant family.

Edward got up and took the tray from Alice. "Let me help you with that."

Alice daintily set down the placemats and plates, folded the napkins into pockets, put the forks and knives into each napkin pocket, and then set the daisies in the center of the table. Bella gave her the stare of death, but Alice merrily ignored her. "I'll be right back."

Bella got up, saying "I'll help," but Edward beat her to it, waving her down to her seat while he followed Alice the few steps to the kitchen. She stared at the baby monitor, willing Mackayla to wake up.

She watched Alice return with a bottle of wine and three glasses. Edward carried the steaming dish holding the lasagna rollups made by her mother, being used against her by these two. Should she tell Alice about Mr. Charming's outrageous request? Then she'd refuse to go, and Jasper would lose his big chance. Should she insist that he leave? Then Alice would know something was wrong. Play along, Bella, play along.

Alice sat to her left on the arm chair. She put down the glasses and poured. "Bella, why didn't you tell me you were employee of the month? Edward told me they usually take the honoree out to lunch but since you're always so busy, he had to come here!"

"You know me." Bella smiled and drank from her glass. "I try to sneak under the radar."

Edward sat on the sofa to her right, essentially trapping her. "Oh, I don't believe that. You're impossible to miss."

Alice squealed, "Right, that's what I'm always telling her! She thinks she just an average, plain Jane but I think she's beautiful."

"I'd say stunning."

Bella put down her glass. "I'd say ridiculous. Hunger is making you two light headed. Eat up." She spooned two rolls on Edward's plate, and one Alice's and her own.

Edward protested, "I'm not going to eat this much, why don't…"

"Oh, no," Alice pointed at his dish. "Wait till you try them. Bella's mom is an amazing cook, and Bella knows all her secrets."

"Alice…"

"Don't be modest. It's true." Alice took a bite to demonstrate. "It's like a party in your mouth. So good. Mmmm."

Edward took a bite and nodded in agreement, making a noise very similar to the sounds he was producing in the elevator two weeks ago.

"Oh," Alice said, "Did Liz and Kat come look at the apartment? Did they like it?"

Bella answered carefully. "They did, and they did. They'll let me know in a few days." She didn't want Alice to know that they wanted the apartment, but not her and Mackayla. Kat was an artist and planned on using the third bedroom as a studio.

"My compliments to your mother, Bella. Best thing I've had all month," said Edward.

"Your mom!" Alice said through a mouthful of pasta and cheese. "She wants to know about the thing for Charlie in August. She says she'll buy the plane tickets for you and Mackayla."

"Why is she calling you? When I talked to him on Father's Day he didn't say anything." She had a moment of sadness, thinking that Mackayla would never have a father to call on Father's Day.

"We exchanged numbers when I was planning your shower. She knows you can't afford the tickets. She said it's really a big deal for Charlie, and he's never going to say so but she knows he'd really like you there."

"Ugh." Bella put her head in her hand. She'd love to be there for her dad, but she was pretty sure the Black family would be there, Billy and probably his new grandson, William, and William's parents, those people who shall not be named. There were many things she'd rather do than sit at a table with those people, including having her inner lip tattooed and running naked through campus. And the flight, at best, would eat up most of her bonus check. She really needed that money if she was going to pull off her plan.

"When in August did you say?" Edward had finished roll one and was now onto roll two.

"The second week," Alice answered, "Bella's dad is being honored as Washington State Police Chief of the Year. It's a big deal."

"Well that's a coincidence." Edward was wiping his mouth with the napkin. "I'll be visiting a hospital in Seattle in August to see a new MRI machine we're thinking of buying. The vendor will be flying me out on their corporate jet, and they're flexible with the date. Bella and Mackayla could go with me for free."

"THAT'S AMAZING!" Alice yelled, loud enough that Mackayla started crying from the bedroom.

Bella put down her fork, but again, Edward was faster. "I'll get her."

He was three strides down the hall before Bella was standing.

Alice was still hopping in her seat clapping her hands together. "Bella, why aren't you happy? You get to see Charlie, ride in a private jet with Mr. Handsome, and all for free! Win, win and big WIN!"

They were interrupted by the sounds coming through the monitor. "Hey there little princess, no crying, I'm here. Shh. How about a binkie? That sound good?" He started singing. It was too muffled for her to make out the words. Mackayla stopped crying and she could hear what he was singing. "Oh the shark babe, has such teeth, dear, and he shows them, pearly white. Just a bunch of jacks has old Macheath, babe, hmm hmm, they call him Mack the knife."

He came into the living room, with her tight against his chest, rooting around. "Someone was missing the party and would like a bottle."

"I'll get it." Alice jumped up and went to the kitchen.

"You were singing her Mack the knife? What kind of baby song is that?"

"Well it kind of has her name in it."

"Mack? You will not call my daughter Mack, like the truck."

"It's just a song. I'll have to brush up on my lullabies."

She should have told him he had no need to brush up on lullabies, but Bella was trying her hardest not to be charmed by the sight of Mackayla being cuddled by this gorgeous man, who seemed to be getting better looking the longer he held her daughter. Now she understood all those sighs emitted by Alice and Angela when their guys were feeding the baby. Stop right there Bella. He's not your guy. He thinks he can buy your affection! The way this thing started was all kinds of wrong. She was just thinking about getting some release, not…this... whatever this was. How would she tell Mackayla about how they met? She already had some tawdry stories to share with her daughter concerning her conception. How would she explain how she got together with Edward? And what happens if he finds some other pathetic girl in an elevator somewhere?

There was no way she was going to go live in his house; that was off the table. But he was right; she did feel a connection to him. Could she accept that he was really that clueless when it came to relationships? Could this man, the one sitting on the sofa feeding Mackayla the bottle Alice had whipped up, be worth taking a chance on? Again, for a new reason, he was making her head spin.

Bella carried the plates into the kitchen. Alice followed, and hissed in her ear. "If he offers to change her diaper, I'm dropping Jasper and marrying him instead."

Bella cornered her. "Could you stop trying to sell him to me? And me to him? You're practically pimping me out." Bella mimicked Alice's voice, "she knows all her mother's secrets." She pointed at Alice's chest. "You don't know him. Besides, they probably have an anti-fraternization policy at work."

"Right, babe. That's how they get away with all those husbands and wives working there. I think it's more like a pro-fraternization policy. You almost have to marry someone in the company to get a job there."

"What are you doing now?"

Alice was digging in the freezer, and came out with a pint of Ben and Jerry's New York Super Fudge Chunk ice cream. "My secret weapon."

"What, you're going to hit him with my favorite ice cream?"

"I'm testing him. I wouldn't want you to marry a man who doesn't like Ben and Jerry's."

Bella turned in frustration and returned to the living room.

…

Alice was scooping ice cream into three dishes when Jasper called, excited about the apartment he'd seen. Alice went to her room to speak with him.

Edward held the now sated Mackayla, who was trying to grab his nose. When Alice left the room, he said to the baby's belly, "Tell your mommy to think about what I said."

Bella huffed, sitting with her arms crossed next to him on the sofa. "I think it's crazy, like having a one night stand that never leaves."

He was blowing up his cheeks like a chipmunk, and then letting out the air with a gobbly sound. He turned to Bella as Mackayla pulled his hair. "You have to admit there're advantages."

"You mean besides saving money?"

"Besides saving money, and my delightful company, I could come up with fifty reasons that living with me would be better than any place you could afford to rent."

"Sure. Keep your list, I have a baby to put to bed, and work to do."

She stood, holding her arms out for her baby.

Mackayla had a firm hand tangled in Edward's hair, so Bella held the baby while Edward bent over, trying to disengage her fingers. Bella tried not to notice how close he was, or how nice his hair felt, or the sandalwood scent she remembered from the last time she was so close to him. He needed to leave soon. Just his presence was wearing her down.

He chuckled, "She's got quite a strong grip. I think she wants me to stay."

"Sometimes what we want is not what's best for us."

Edward's head was only inches from her own as she freed his hair, strand by strand. When he spoke, his warm breath tickled her neck.

"Sometimes we don't know what's best for us. Sometimes we need to step back and look at the whole picture. Sometimes we need to act on instinct, not logic."

"There you go. You're free." Bella stepped back, but Edward followed her, his face level with hers.

"Promise me you'll think about it."

She started to talk but he held a finger to her lips to stop her. "Don't answer today, just think about it."

He leaned closer, and when his finger left her lips she held her breath, closing her eyes in anticipation. Did she think he was going to kiss her? Did she want him to? She couldn't deny her attraction to this crazy man, but letting him kiss her would send the wrong message. She heard a quiet smacking sound and opened her eyes to see Edward's lips leaving Mackayla's forehead. He whispered in the baby's ear, "Princess, put in a good word for me with your Mom."

...

He'd left by the time Alice finished her phone call and emerged from her room.

Alice stated the obvious, "He's gone?"

"He didn't offer to change any diapers, so I allowed him to leave." Bella was filling the baby bathtub at the kitchen sink. There was more counter space there than in the bathroom.

Alice said in a sing song voice, "I think someone likes Bella."

"I noticed, Alice." If only you knew how much, thought Bella, looking at her oblivious friend. Bella tested the water with her elbow, and started to remove Mackayla's clothes, putting her feet in the water while her diaper was still on. As soon as the baby's feet hit the water, the 'fountain of youth', as Alice dubbed it, began. Bella put the wet diaper in the bag Alice held out for her. "I don't want to turn into Renee, dragging man after man past Mackayla. I can't start something unless I'm 100% sure it's going to work out."

Alice played with Mackayla's kicking feet while Bella shampooed her head. "The fact that you're even worrying about that proves that you're no Renee. And, news flash, no relationship is 100% guaranteed. The question is; do you like him?"

Bella rinsed the baby's head with a clean cup of water. "Alice, that's not the question. The question is what's best for Mackayla."

Alice held up a towel and wrapped it around Mackayla, holding her while Bella dumped the water. "He really seemed to like her, and you. Having another person around that loves her can only be good for her."

Bella slipped a diaper on Mackayla while Alice held her, and then pulled on the pink footsie pajamas. "You don't think it was an act, him playing like he liked her?"

Alice laughed. "Guys that pretend they like babies hold them for two minutes, then claim they want their mothers. That was no act."

"I'll think about it." She looked into Mackayla's eyes. "Story time for Mackayla. How about some Dr. Seuss?"

...

Bella closed 'The Foot Book.' She was happy they had room in the living room for the rocker; the motion put Mackayla right to sleep. Bella rocked, smelling her baby's sweet head. What a day it had been. A marriage proposal, one of the strangest she'd ever heard, but it was her first, and he certainly seemed sincere about it. She giggled quietly into Mackayla's hair. What an odd, sweet man.

Her phone started playing "You're no good, you're no good," an old Linda Ronstadt song downloaded by Alice to announce Jake's calls. He hadn't called her since February, when they agreed not to waste anyone's money on a DNA test.

She reached for the phone, hoping to get it before it woke Mackayla.

She tried to squash her 'nice of you to call three months after your daughter is born' voice and answer civilly. "What's up Jake?"

"It's me, Leah. Jake's been in an accident."

.

.

A/N: I know, all you moms out there are yelling at me for putting a baby down for a nap right before bedtime. Crazy. Oh, the marriage proposal? That was Edward's idea.

Emmett is busy delivering a gift basket to LayAtHomeMom to thank her for reccing me in her story, In Your Room, starring the usual cast of character and the funniest, kinkiest Tanya ever (don't worry, her kink doesn't involve Edward, only the boyfriend she calls Chocolate Thunder)

Thanks to all the reviews, favs and recs. You all make this fun.

2old