A/N: Apparently, I can't say no to GinnyW - so if any of you are waiting for Notes on the Fridge or Tomorrow is Another Day, yell at her. ;)

There was a definite bounce in his step as Edward headed down the stairs. He felt rather silly, grinning like an idiot because Bella thought the old her had good taste in men.

It was a small victory, as these things went, but he'd take what he could get.

Just as he got to the landing, the front door opened, and Charlie Swan walked in. The two men regarded each other cautiously, Edward finding himself slightly tongue-tied by nervousness.

"Where's Bella?" Charlie asked. His tone was suspicious, but that hardly surprised Edward at that point.

"She's upstairs getting dressed."

Charlie's eyes narrowed, and reviewing his words, Edward realized his mistake. "Oh, no," he said quickly. "We're going to see my parents, and Bella insisted on changing," he explained.

Another handful of tense moments passed as Charlie considered this. Finally, he gave a short nod, apparently accepting Edward's explanation as fact.

He sighed, the sound grudging, and looked up with his hands on his hips. "Look - I haven't forgotten all you've done for my daughter. I guess now I know why you did it. And Bella... she was more sensible at seventeen than most people are their whole lives. Obviously, she trusts you, so I'm going to respect her opinion."

The older man looked up at him with Bella's expressive, brown eyes. "I'm going to trust you to do the right thing," Charlie said slowly.

"I wouldn't ever hurt her on purpose," Edward said softly but fervently.

Grudgingly, Charlie nodded. "I can see that," he said gruffly.

"Dad?" Bella's voice drifted down from the top of the stairs. "Stop giving Edward a hard time."

Both men looked up, watching as Bella descended the stairs, her look stern on her father.

Charlie's face gentled considerably. "What makes you think I'm giving him a hard time?"

Bella raised an eyebrow, and Charlie rolled his eyes. "Anyway, kid. I hear you're visiting the Cullens tonight."

Edward didn't miss the way Bella's eyes tightened, and she crossed her arms lightly, defensively.

"Seems fair," she said, and Edward knew her well enough to tell that she was working at keeping her voice steady.

Apparently, Charlie could read her just as well. "You don't have to-" he began, but Bella's exasperated little growl cut him off.

"I already had this argument with Edward," she said with a touch of impatience. Looking over at him, she smiled slightly. "What are you not telling me? Are your parents cannibals or something?"

Charlie chuckled, answering for him. "Actually, Carlisle and Esme Cullen are some of the nicest people I've ever met. I have a great deal of respect for both of them." His smile tightened. "It's just been a long week for you, Bella. Maybe it's best to take it easy for another week or so."

"They can wait another week," Edward agreed.

Bella's eyes narrowed, a flicker of annoyance passing over her features. Obviously, she didn't like being ganged up on. "No. As long as it's okay with them, now is fine," she said stubbornly.

Edward looked down, hiding a smile. Once she'd decided something, Bella was hard to shake.

~0~

"Don't be so nervous," Edward murmured, looking over as Bella tried not to squirm in her seat and failed rather miserably. Pulling up to a red light, he took a moment to lean across the console, smiling gently at her. "Don't worry. I'll protect you from them."

That brought her little smile back.

She was silent the rest of the drive, staring out the window with her hands twisting occasionally on her lap. At first, Edward tried to think of what to say to her to make her feel better, but then, shortly after he'd turned down the long, private path that would lead to his parents' house, he glimpsed another car in the rear view mirror. "Oh, hell," he muttered under his breath.

Bella glanced first at him, then over her shoulder at the other car. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Edward said quickly. "Nothing really, it's just that I wasn't expecting my brother to be here." He ran a hand through his hair, a twinge of anxiety twisting his stomach. "He doesn't know about us. He and his wife were having a baby when everything happened, and I haven't had the chance to talk to him about it."

Bella seemed to shrink slightly. "Is he going to be..."

"Oh, Bella, no. It's fine," Edward assured, kicking himself for making her more nervous. "Emmett is one of the most easy going guys you'll ever meet. It's just that he has personal space issues." He shook his head ruefully. "Well, you'll see. I'm sure he'll love you. I haven't met a person Emmett couldn't get along with. But he likes to make fun of me, so..."

"Ah," Bella said, suddenly understanding. "And you're about to show up at your parents' house with a pregnant girl."

Parking in front of the garage, Edward shook his head. "It'll be fine," he repeated.

Emmett was out of his car and tapping on Bella's window with a giddy expression on his face almost before Edward got the engine turned off. His face turned to one of complete surprise when he got a better look at the woman in the passenger seat.

"You're Bella Swan," Emmett said, opening the door for her.

"Don't worry, Emmett," Rosalie called, getting out of their car on her own. "Your wife and child don't need your help." She glared at her husband ,but spared a smile for Edward. "I apologize in advance for him."

"Not your fault. He was like this before you married him," Edward said, waving a hand as he hurried over to the passenger side of the car.

"I'm Emmett. I don't know if you remember me. I know I used to see you around Forks." He offered his hand.

Looking somewhat bemused, Bella shook his hand.

"Sorry if I startled you. I just thought Edward here was cheating on his boyfriend," Emmett continued jovially.

Bella's eyes darted to Edward's uncertainly. He sighed. "He means Jasper. Sorry, my brother thinks he's hilarious."

"Yeah, but looks aren't everything," his older brother said with a shrug and a grin. "Hold up." He sprinted back to his car, batting Rosalie's hands away as he picked up baby Dean, car seat and all.

"Bella, this beautiful, charming, amazing woman is my wife, Rosalie, and this is my boy, Dean," Emmett introduced.

Rosalie rolled her eyes. "Thank you for the kiss ass introduction," she said wryly before shaking Bella's hand and offering her a wane smile. "Hi."

"Hello," Bella greeted. She peered in the car seat. "Your son is very beautiful."

"We do make a good looking baby!" Emmett said, throwing his free arm around his wife. "Babe, remember that case Edward's been involved in? This is the chick he threw himself off a cliff for." He looked at Bella curiously. "I bet you have a killer scar."

"Your tact is amazing, Em," Edward said, shaking his head.

Ever a good sport, Bella merely bent her head forward, pulling up a section of her hair to reveal the jagged scar beneath.

Emmett whistled. "That's wicked."

"So, Edward's bringing work home with him?" Emmett continued, keeping up conversation enough for the four of them as they started to walk toward the house. "What happened? This isn't something cool, like some witness protection stuff, is it? 'Cause, you know, I tried to tell Mom and Dad that they should have like these metal shutters that can seal up the windows with the push of a button." He turned around, walking backward toward the house as he looked at Bella. "See, if you haven't been here before, almost the entire wall facing the river is pure glass - because my mom is crazy and apparently loves that we have to pay a window cleaner once a month - so I keep telling her she needs to install security measures... you know, in case of zombie Apocalypse."

Bella looked at Emmett as if she wasn't sure whether to laugh her ass off or run away from the crazy man as fast as she could.

"We aren't here because of work, Emmett," Edward said with a sigh, amused in spite of himself. Instinctively, he reached out, clasping Bella's hand and squeezing reassuringly.

Of course, Emmett caught the movement before Edward realized what he was doing and dropped Bella's hand. Again, his eyebrows shot up, but this time he stumbled.

"Jesus, Emmett. Give me our child before you drop him on his head and he ends up exactly like you," Rosalie grumbled, pushing forward and yanking the car seat out of his hand.

Dean, disrupted from his nap by all the jostling, gave a whimper of protest that quickly turned into a disgruntled yowl. Just a few seconds after he started crying, the door opened and Edward's parents appeared. This time, it was Bella who squeezed his arm though only briefly.

Esme surveyed the scene looking surprised to find her eldest son and his family there with Edward and Bella. "What on earth is going on out here?"

"Rose thinks you dropped me on the head as a baby," Emmett explained as if that was the more important thing happening.

"Not I!" Esme protested, reaching into the car seat to retrieve her sobbing grandchild. "That was your father."

Carlisle started, his eyes going wide. "Hey!"

"This is a bus," Emmett said, holding up one hand. "This is you." He pointed to his father with his other hand. Making a loud honking sound, he proceeded to run over 'Carlisle' with the 'bus'.

"We were out and about and thought we'd drop by and surprise you," Emmett explained to his mother. "Looks like it's a good thing we did." He threw one arm around Edward, the other around Bella, and steered them inside. "Come on, kids. Apparently you have a story to tell."

~0~

"Wow. Do you realize what this means? You have eight years worth of Super Bowls to catch up on."

Edward balked at his brother. "That's what you got out of all this?"

"Gimmie a second, bro. That's a lot of info to digest in a short amount of time," Emmett said, shaking his head. "I mean, you're throwing quite a wrench in my plans here. I was going to tell Rosie we had to start trying for another baby as soon as the six weeks is up because I know Mom wants a passel of grandkids and you and Jasper weren't going to help any time soon."

Rosalie snorted. "Good luck on ever touching me again, thanks," she muttered, folding her arms over her chest.

Emmett shook his head. "See, I knew this would happen," he mock whispered, leaning in close to Bella. "This kid? He's always been the biggest copycat. He's gotta do everything his big brother does." He put a consoling hand on her shoulder. "Sorry. I bet it makes you wonder what you were thinking, getting involved with a guy like him."

"Emmett, you are entirely too old for me to have to tell you not to antagonize your brother," Carlisle chastised lightly.

"The truth hurts, Dad," Emmett replied with a shrug.

Quirking her lips slightly, Bella looked down. "You don't give Edward enough credit," she said lightly. "Not a lot of people would have been so patient." She looked up at Edward, her smile shy but serious.

"Ah," Emmett said, reaching out to ruffle Edward's hair playfully. "He's a good guy, my brother. Plus, you gotta admit, the Cullen genes are a force to be reckoned with." He gestured to his face. "Right?" He leaned back, considering Edward and Bella as he tapped his finger against his chin. "What do you think, babe? Is Dean gonna have some competition?"

"If their baby is a girl? No. If it's a boy..." She pretended to think about it then shrugged, smiling at Bella. "Sorry. I might be biased, but hands down, Dean is the most handsome little man ever born."

~0~

The Cullen clan was a little overwhelming, though it was clear they were trying not to be.

Well, that wasn't entirely true. Esme was trying hard not to show how... enthusiastic she was for everything to work out. Her questions were innocent but leading, and her attempts to gauge how Bella felt both about her son and their child were none too subtle.

Emmett, on the other hand didn't even attempt to cover up the fact that teasing his new sister - his words - was quickly becoming a favorite past time. Of course, it didn't help that Edward was very protective, and it was immediately obvious that, in true big brother fashion, Emmett relished pushing his buttons.

"Makes you hope for a girl, doesn't it?" Rosalie had mumbled, shaking her head when their bickering devolved into a wrestling match.

It was nice in many ways, though. Watching Edward with his family, Bella felt another weight lift from around her heart. Though she hadn't know how to verbalize it, when Edward had been outed as the father of her baby, a part of her had recognized that he or she had lost a loving grandfather and aunt at the very least. Billy would have cherished the child.

It was obvious, watching the Cullens, that her baby would not be lacking for love. Bella wondered if little Dean had ever been set down in his grandparents' house. Carlisle and Esme were obviously doting parents and grandparents. They openly adored their sons and more than that, went out of their way to be kind to Bella, something which, as Rachel proved, was not prerequisite.

Though she could see how the family functioned together, how they fit as they doubtlessly had for years, yet they reached out, seemingly effortlessly, to include her. For minutes at a time, she forgot that she was an outsider.

Still, at times, their enthusiasm made her nervous. Letting these people in meant she was allowing them to have some say in her life and some opinion about how she chose to live it.

To that point, it had been enough just to keep stepping forward, figuring out her life; figuring out how to want to be a mother at all. Bella had to admit she was intimidated both by Esme and Rosalie. Bella quickly lost patience with Dean who squalled restlessly for no good reason for the first hour of his visit. Rosalie never seemed to lose her composure. Both of Esme's boys quite obviously adored her.

How could Bella, woefully behind on life in general, ever hope to be as good a mother as either of them were?

Rather than taint the atmosphere with her suddenly crippling uncertainty, Bella quietly slipped away while Edward was caught up in conversation with his brother.

On the second floor, she wandered aimlessly, deep in thought, until she came to what looked like a little office. She paused, distracted by the myriad of paintings and photos that decorated the walls.

It was as good a place to take refuge as any. Bella slipped into the room, sliding down along a small piece of wall just to the left of the doorway. Drawing her legs up, she let her eyes wander, taking in the pictures. It seemed that the family's history hung on the wall, parsed out between pretty paintings.

At one end, Carlisle and Esme appeared as a young couple, their faces smooth and hair lacking even a hint of the white and gray that streaked them now. As the wall progressed, pictures picked out main events. There was a wedding photo, Carlisle and Esme looking into each others eyes, obviously very much in love and endlessly happy. A grinning Esme stood profile, her belly huge with Emmett, if Bella had to guess. Another photo showed a little boy with Emmett's devilish grin and mischievous eyes, his hand on Esme's once again rounded belly. There were graduations, Emmett's wedding... even baby Dean's birth announcement was tucked into the corner of one of the frames.

Resting her head on her knees, Bella wondered how this would all end, how she and the baby fit on this wall. Would there some day be pictures where she stood with the rest of the family, tucked under Edward's arm with their son or daughter at her hip? Or would it be just Edward and their baby - a broken family amidst two perfect nuclear families.

"Bella?"

The voice, soft and gentle as it was, startled her. Bella jumped, climbing to her feet unsteadily as she found Carlisle leaning in the doorway.

"I'm sorry," she said quickly. "I didn't mean to be nosy."

He held a hand up, stopping her apology short. "You being in here is fine," he assured. "You just seemed sad. Are you alright? If Emmett is disturbing you-"

"No!" she interrupted. "No, not at all."

Carlisle's smile was kind. "My family... I know they can all be very intense in their own ways." He gestured at the comfortable looking armchair. "Please, sit. Do you mind if I sit with you, or would you like to be alone?"

"This is your house," Bella responded, sitting in the chair she hadn't even noticed before. "But I don't mind the company."

They exchanged idle pleasantries, speaking for a few minutes about some of the pictures. Carlisle indulged her with a few anecdotes about Edward and Emmett, making her smile as she thought about the teenager she'd known nothing about when he first caught her eye.

"You look pensive," Carlisle observed when they'd lapsed into silence for a moment.

Bella bit her lip. "I was just thinking about how uneven we are... Edward and I, that is," she admitted quietly. It was probably rude to talk about this with Edward's father, but she knew he would never admit it himself. "It's just not fair that he should be stuck with me."

Carlisle tilted his head and Bella recognized the way his eyebrows furrowed. He looked so much like Edward at that moment. "Stuck with you?" he echoed.

"It isn't fair," she repeated. "I know I had this whole life before - these plans and dreams, and that he was a part of all that. But I don't remember what my plans were. I'm different. I'm changing. I cant go back to being a person I know nothing about. The problem is, that was the person he fell in love with. He had plans with her. Now he's stuck with me, and I have nothing to offer. I'm a mess."

She honestly didn't know why she was babbling like this to Edward's father. Part of her hoped he would talk some sense into Edward, because it had occurred to Bella that she was too selfish to walk away herself. She needed Edward, needed his steady presence, but how could that be fair when she couldn't be the woman he'd fallen in love with?

Someone had to look out for his best interests. Since she could not, the very least she could do was be honest with his parents so they could succeed where she'd failed.

When she chanced a look up, she could see Carlisle was staring off, his lips pursed and his eyes heavy with thought. "May I ask you something?" He waited for her short nod before continuing. "Do you care for my son at all?"

All the breath left Bella then, and she slumped, not knowing how to answer at first.

The past couple days, since everything had been brought to light, Bella had given the word 'love' a great deal of thought. She knew she was attracted to Edward, that the even looking at him sent pleasurable chills down her spine and made her body tingle with need to touch and be touched. She liked his company, and her thoughts strayed to him often when he wasn't around. She admired him.

Where she got confused was when she stopped to consider the depth of what she felt for Edward. From the moment she'd woken to find him in her hospital room, he'd been steadfast and affectionate. She knew now that more than just being her friend, his every action was painted with adoration.

She'd briefly entertained the notion that she was falling in love with him before the trial. But it was difficult to tell. It wasn't difficult to enjoy his attentiveness. She couldn't imagine trying to get through her chaotic life without him to lean on. Was she mistaking comfort for love?

"I do care," she said to her hands, finally answering Carlisle's question. "I'm just worried that I'm wasting his time when I don't know who I'm going to be, who I want to be, a year from now."

Carlisle tapped his finger against his lips, his expression contemplative. "You know, Esme and I lost our first child just a few days after he was born," he said softly.

"Oh, my God. I'm sorry," Bella murmured, startled at the turn in conversation.

"Thank you," he nodded. He took a deep breath. "As you might imagine, that was a very difficult time. Both Esme and I were profoundly changed by the loss. We were not the same people we had been before in many ways, and for a time, we were strangers to each other."

He shook his head and looked at her, smiling softly again. "It's been my experience that every person changes as time goes on. The man I was when I met Esme was not the same man I became after our fist son died, and he is not the man I am now. Esme and I managed to find our way back to each other, and our relationship grew stronger because of it - different because we were different people then - but stronger.

"I think that relationships are not stationary things, but should grow and evolve with time and circumstance." He hesitated. "As much as I would love to subscribe to the beautiful idea of permanence, we are very malleable creatures. Through all our life, all the changes we went through as people and as a couple, my relationship with my wife changed for the better, but I recognize just how easy it would have been for that not to be the case."

He let out a long breath and looked at her carefully. "Forgive me. I know I'm babbling. It's just that I've been concerned, for both you and my son, since he told us everything that was going on."

His smile then was more genuine, fatherly. "I know you didn't ask for my advice, but let me say this: don't let any perceived responsibility be the reason you leave or stay. I spoke to Edward this afternoon, and I think that you are being honest, both with yourselves and with each other. He understands that you aren't the same person you were before the accident, and you likely never will be.

"Please know, though, that if it turns out you and Edward are not meant to be together, what won't change is that we are here for you. Regardless, you and the baby will always have a place here."

~0~

As evening began to descend into night, Edward took Bella back to her father's house.

"I really like them," she murmured, breaking the silence about midway through their trip.

Edward had to admit he felt a great deal of relief at her admission. "I'm glad," he said earnestly. He grinned at her. "They like you too, you know. Emmett made me promise to call him the next time you came over."

"Emmett just thinks it's funny how easily he can make me blush," Bella grumbled, but she was smiling.

"Yes, well. That's Emmett for you. Dean is probably already more mature than he is," Edward said, shaking his head fondly.

They pulled up in front of Charlie's house, and Edward tried not to sigh, disappointed that he would have to leave Bella at the stoop. It had been a good day, he thought. It had been hard not to imagine that this could be part of their future: visiting their parents on some weekends, being a part of a big extended family.

Before he could get out, Bella reached across the console, her hand wrapping around his arm. "Hold on a second," she implored.

When he looked over, Edward was surprised to find she was blushing furiously. She looked indecisive about something, and her eyes were slow to flick up to his. "I was thinking there was something I wanted to try."

Perplexed, Edward waited, curious as to what she wanted. Then, when she reached out to cup his face between her hands, he thought he understood, and his heart began to race. When her hands pulled him forward, he followed her direction, leaning in.

"Please be still," she whispered, and he froze instantly. She smiled at him, the expression nervous but wanting, and when she closed her eyes, he did, too.

For long moments they were both still. She was so close that their breath mingled in the slight bit of space between them. It was all Edward could do to resist his instinct to reach out, wrapping his arms around her and bringing her all the way forward. It seemed like his very skin ached, longing to feel her up against his body again.

An eon seemed to pass before he felt the brush of her lips against his. It was only a faint brush and then she pulled back, but she didn't pull away, still holding his face in her hands. Edward could feel the light tremble of her fingers against his cheek.

What was she doing, he wondered.

Could she feel this pull?

With her so close, it was impossible not to act, not to express physically the things he felt. Carefully and tenderly, with the slightest of movements, he leaned forward, taking her upper lip between both of his. He kissed her sweetly and she kissed back.

Bella pulled away completely then, but when Edward opened his eyes, she was smiling, her cheeks pink and her eyes, even in the dim light from the garage, looked happy. She bit her lip, brushing his cheek with the pads of her fingers. "Thank you," she said in a whisper.

It might have been strange, maybe even a little insulting, to be thanked for a kiss - or rather, for letting Bella kiss him. Edward understood, though.

They weren't on the same page yet and they both knew it, but they were flipping, trying to find each other.

Smiling at her, Edward got out of the car and walked around to her side. He kept his hands to himself, shoving them deep in his pockets, as he walked her to the door.

"So I'll see you tomorrow," she said a little awkwardly, looking at his lips like she wanted to kiss him again and didn't know if it was okay.

Leaning forward, Edward kissed her softly, sighing happily against her lips. "Yeah. Tomorrow."

A/N: Many thanks to GinnyW, barburella, and jfka06. jadedandboring is home now, but I'm leaving for Yosemite in a couple days. Weeeee.

Much love to you all. I'll see ya soon.