Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Stephenie Meyer owns it all. I am merely having fun with her characters. Also, not sure if Seattle General is a real hospital or not. If it is, I do not own it.
A/N…Songs I listened to on repeat for this chapter…especially towards the end…
Never Say Never by The Fray
http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=Aihu16RyYp8&ob=av2n
We Belong by Everly
http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=hwP6DQWDjFc
Chapter 27
BPOV
Sunday September 20, 2009: Age 26
My eyes fluttered open and I was on my side staring at the wall in the hotel room. This was not the room I had booked. The wallpaper was different in mine.
I felt a warm body snuggled into my back and strong arms wrapped around me.
Edward
Everything that happened last night was unreal. I could not believe Riley had set us up and that he was the father of Lauren's daughter.
I couldn't believe that Lauren had made Edward think he slept with her every time they were together. While I felt relieved that he had only slept with her twice…he still cheated.
However, after my own experience with Riley, I could see his need to feel wanted…desired…neither of us had made the other one feel that way for awhile when we were still married.
If I really thought back far enough, I could see that we had started drifting from one another even before we started trying to get pregnant.
At first, trying for the baby helped us become close again, but then it ended up driving us even farther apart.
We both played our part in the demise of our relationship…but to know that we had been set up like that…made me angry.
What infuriated me even more was that I didn't put my daughter first…I put her in the line danger by just allowing that monster around her.
The way that he beat Lauren…he hired someone to shoot my father! He was purely evil! I constantly allowed him in Charley's life…encouraged him to have a relationship with her…because I could not fail again at another relationship.
Dumb decisions and choices seemed to be a reoccurring thing for me.
It was stupid of me to throw myself at my ex-husband last night. He was right…we were nowhere near ready for that…and might never be ready.
Now…in the light of day…I was thankful that he stopped us before we went too far.
I was unsure how we ended up like this…the last thing that I remembered was crying in his arms. We must have fallen asleep.
It felt amazing waking up like this…wrapped in his strong, warm embrace…it could not happen again…not until we were in a better place.
I pulled myself out of his arms and kissed his forehead. He was still in a deep sleep. I needed to go to my room, get out of this dress and call my dad to check on Charley.
It was also my intention to do some major thinking…which I could not do while I was this close to my Edward.
Yes…my Edward.
I hated thinking of him that way…but he was. Since Charley was born, he had been the boy that I once knew…my best friend…the man that I turned to for everything.
I had missed him terribly.
A part of me really wanted to be able to forgive him…and take him back into my life as my husband.
I did not know if that was even possible…but if there was any chance for us as a couple…there were some things that I needed to do first.
I looked around the room and found a pen and a piece of paper.
E
I had to go to my room and get out of this dress.
Thank you for last night…you were right to stop us.
B
I didn't really know what else to say…so I left it at that.
I had to stop myself from signing 'love B' because I knew after all the revelations last night that there was no doubt that I still loved that man with every beat of my heart.
I was not foolish enough to think this was some fairytale though…this was real life and love did not always conquer all. However, I did pray that we might be able to put ourselves back together…if for no other reason than to be whole for our daughter…whether that meant being together or being apart…but we needed to be happy and emotionally healthy…for her.
I slipped out of his room without him waking. When I entered my room, I saw my cell phone on the nightstand blinking indicating that I had messages.
I flipped it open and pressed the number to get my messages.
"Bells…everything is fine with Charley so don't worry. I just wanted to see how you were…I don't want to say too much on this damn machine. Just call me when you can, sweetie. Charley and I love you, Tink."
"Bella, Dad and Emmett told us what happened after the party was over. We're worried about you guys. Em said you two wanted to be alone. Please just let someone know you guys are all right. We'll leave you alone until you come to us and are ready to talk. We love you, Bells…Edward too. Please tell him that."
Alice…I loved her dearly…and was thankful for the space they were offering.
Before I got in the shower, I called my dad.
"Bells? Are you all right, sweetie?"
"I'm fine, Dad. Sorry I didn't check in last night. Is Charley okay?"
"She's perfect, Tink. She's sleeping."
"Oh that's good," I replied.
I wanted him to put the phone to her ear so she could hear my voice…but I would not disturb her while she was sleeping.
"So…how was your night?" he asked hesitantly.
I tried to hold back the tears as I remembered everything that happened last night.
"Oh Dad, it was awful!"
"You know the truth about Riley, then?"
"Yeah, how do you know?" I asked him.
"Edward explained it to me when he came to say goodbye to Charley. Bells, I'm sorry that I encouraged you to date him, sweetheart. From now on…I am staying out of your personal life."
"It's not your fault…he fooled us all."
"He sure did. When are you coming home? I think we should talk. I've been wanting to say some things to you…and I think it's time."
"I'm checking out as soon as I get cleaned up…and then I'll be heading straight home. I'll call you right before I get on the road, okay?"
"Sounds good, Tink. I love you. I'll kiss Charley for you."
"Okay, tell her I love her."
After I hung up the phone, I went to the small suitcase I had brought and pulled out some clothes.
While I went through the motions of showering and getting ready for the day, I thought about my life.
Obviously, I had rushed the relationship with Riley.
A part of me knew I only stayed with him to hurt Edward. I did not officially start dating him until after Charley was born…which meant it was after Edward was sober. I wanted him to watch me with him and I wanted to see the pain on his face.
I felt disgusted at the fact that I could be so malicious and childish
Clearly…I had my own issues that I needed to work on before I could even fathom being in a relationship with anyone.
I had tried to hurt Edward as much as he hurt me and my parents taught me that two wrongs don't make a right.
What the hell had happened to me?
Over the weeks, as I had tried to figure out things with Riley…I started to think back and see…really see…all the mistakes I had made in my marriage.
Edward was not the only one at fault.
We both needed therapy.
But I had gone from one relationship to another…and I've always had someone taking care of me.
I needed to be able to stand on my own…with my daughter.
That was the first step I was going to make. Tomorrow morning, I was going apartment hunting. I would use some of the money I had from the divorce. After that, job hunting was on my agenda.
There was no guarantee that I would get my book published when it was finished and I needed money now.
It was time that I supported myself. I needed to show myself as well as my daughter that I was a strong and independent woman.
Edward and I would never be able to be together again if I didn't make some personal changes.
He had changed…it was time that I did as well.
Then there was a part of me that did not know if I could be with Edward again. I wanted it badly…but could I trust him? Could I put myself through that?
Only time would tell.
I was tired of my mind going back and forth on the issue…I just wanted to make a decision that I could stick with and feel good about for my daughter…as well as myself.
We would need a lot of therapy. I knew he was willing to do that.
I had just finished packing all of my toiletries into my bag when there was a knock on the door. I closed my eyes and inhaled…even with the distance between us…I knew who it was. I always knew when he was near.
When I opened the door, Edward stood there with a shy grin on his face. He looked amazing. He was dressed in jeans and a t-shirt with his overnight bag hanging off his shoulder.
"Hey, I just wanted to tell you that I was heading out."
"Oh, okay. I just talked to Dad…"
"Yeah me too," he said sheepishly.
My heart melted. He called to check on our baby just as I had.
He was an astounding father…Charley was lucky to have him.
"Well I'm going to head out soon too…"
"Can I come in for a minute?" he asked nervously.
I opened the door wider and motioned for him to enter. He put his bag down on the floor and stood in front of me.
"I hope you understand why I stopped us last night…"
"I do…and I meant what I said in the note. You were right…so thank you for being strong enough to stop it. I would have kept going," I admitted.
"You have no idea how difficult it was."
I nodded.
"I'd like to talk to you, later. We had many revelations last night…and I want to give you your space. But if we could talk that would be great," he said nervously.
"I would like that. Come by this evening. I need to go home, see Charley and talk to my dad and then I think I'll be ready to talk. Um…come by before I put Char down…I know you're dying to see her. We can put her to bed together…and then we can go talk if you like."
"I would love that," he said with a huge smile plastered on his face.
He picked up his bag and headed towards the door. His hand paused on the knob and he turned to look at me. "Can I ask you something?"
"Sure," I told him.
"Did I do the right thing last night? Should I have just let the cops show up and arrest Riley…and never showed you the video?"
"Yes, you did right by me, Edward. I'm glad you showed it to me. He probably would have found some way to charm me into believing his lies…again…if I had not seen the tangible proof on that tape."
"I'm glad…I was worried about whether or not I was doing the right thing. I'm trying hard not to fuck up anymore here, Bella."
"I know that," I responded.
"You don't seem very sad…about Riley I mean."
I shrugged.
"It was a shock to find out how evil he was…and it hurt me more to know the things he really thought about me…about our daughter…and the things he had planned. It breaks my heart to realize what a monster I allowed to be around our daughter. But it didn't hurt to lose him. I was starting to see that he was never as important to me as I thought."
I was expecting him to smile or act cocky that the thing with Riley blew up in my face…but he looked sad.
"I'm really sorry that he wasn't what you wanted…you deserve love…and to be happy."
"Thank you," I said.
"I'll see you later tonight, then?" he questioned.
"Absolutely. Be safe driving back to Forks."
"You too…can I hug you?" He blurted.
I nodded.
He wrapped me in the warmth of his embrace and it felt surreal. His arms always made me feel safe and secure.
We simply stood there wrapped in each other's arms for several minutes. My body longed for us to stay wrapped up in each other forever. I nestled my head into his chest and allowed myself to be surrounded by his comfort.
I felt him kiss the top of my head and he left the room.
It was time to head home and talk to Dad about all of my plans…and I could not wait to see Charley. Twenty-four hours was way too much time away from her.
When I walked into the house, I heard my dad cooing to Charley. I followed the sound of his voice.
Dad was on the couch with Char in his lap talking to her in a silly voice.
"There's my baby girl," I said.
They both turned their heads to look at me.
"Look Charley, Mommy's home," Dad said to her.
I held my arms out for her as he stood and gave her to me.
"Hi sweetie, Mommy missed you. That was too much time away from you," I said while placing kisses all over her.
I looked around and did not see Sue anywhere.
"Where is Sue?" I asked him.
"Oh, she went home last night. What kind of guy do you think I am?" My father laughed.
"Please, you two are adults," I told him honestly.
As much as I did not want to think about my dad doing that kind of thing…I knew that adults were usually sexually active…and he had been dating Sue for several months now.
I knew they were crazy about each other.
"No, really…it's not like that with us…yet. Um…Tink…I really don't want to discuss this with you."
"It's uncomfortable isn't it?" I asked with a smirk.
He nodded.
"Good…remember that the next time you want to discuss my sex life," I laughed.
He put his hands up, "Okay…I don't even want to hear my daughter discuss that she even has a sex life. I'm going to go upstairs…clean up a bit…call Sue…and then we can talk when Char goes down for her nap. How's that sound?"
"Sounds good, Dad."
I enjoyed the moments feeding Charley and singing her to sleep for her nap. She was the best thing I had ever done.
I loved that little girl with all that I had. As much as Edward and Charlie said she looked just like me…I could still see so much of her father in her.
That made me ridiculously happy.
"She down for the count yet?" I heard my father ask softly from behind me.
I had just placed Charley into her crib.
I turned to him and nodded before grabbing the baby monitor off the dresser.
He followed me downstairs to the living room.
We sat facing each other on the couch…neither of us knowing quite where to begin.
"Mind if I go first?" Charlie finally asked.
"Of course not," I told him.
"Tink, I've been quiet for a long time now. You are the best thing that ever happened to me…my baby girl…always…and I love you very much. I'm sorry that I pushed you away after your mom died. You didn't deserve that. We should have been there for each other."
"Dad, we were both wrong. I pulled away from you…just as much as you pushed. We've discussed this."
He nodded and continued.
"There's something I need to tell you about your mom. I've been talking to Carlisle and Esme…they filled me in on some things that Edward told them about your marriage. Things that I was unaware of because I was being a horrible father and avoiding contact with you as much as possible.
"They told me about your bouts of depression after your mom died…how you closed yourself off from everyone…including Edward. They also told me about how you handled all the negative pregnancy tests and finding out the one positive that you had was false. Sweetheart, is it true? Were you really that depressed?"
I nodded.
"Oh, Bella," he sighed.
"What does this have to do with Mom?" I asked him.
"Your mom was depressed after you were born. She loved you more than anything, but I was in the police academy, we were broke and things were quite stressful. It was all I could do just to get her out of bed some days.
"I almost had to leave with you because of it. She was wasting away and it scared the hell out of me."
"What did you do?"
"I threatened to leave with you and never come back. I was going to go stay with my parents. I didn't know what else to do. I loved her dearly but you were my main priority at the time. You needed me to take care of you."
I was floored by what my father was telling me.
My mom was always a loving, attentive person. It never would have occurred to me that she was ever depressed to the point of being unable to care for me as an infant.
"What did you do?" I asked him.
"I threatened to leave. I told her what I was planning and it scared the crap out of her. We immediately found a doctor that could help her and she began going to therapy. She eventually got better and we were back on track as a family."
"Is that why I'm an only child?"
He nodded. "I think we were both always afraid of something similar happening if we had another baby. I want you to know, it was never your fault. Your mom adored you…she just didn't know how to process everything once you arrived. Does that make sense?"
"Actually it does. It must have been hard for her…here all alone all day with me and not knowing what to do. I know she was not close with Grandma because she did not approve of you…so it's not like she could call her for help. I'm glad she got the help she needed though and that you were able to work things out. I wish she were here now."
He opened his arms for me as he always did when I needed a hug and I went willingly into my father's embrace.
"I also owe Edward an apology," he said quietly.
"I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you correctly because I could have sworn you said you owe Edward an apology."
"Yes, that is what I said, sweetheart. I was never very fair to Edward. I judged him because of what his father did and I should not have done that. He told me everything that Lauren revealed to him. I know that nothing will ever excuse what he did…I really do…but I honestly believe that if Lauren had not presented herself to him and said the right things...he would not have cheated on you.
"Nothing will ever change what he did…and the fact is that he did cheat. For some reason, I feel that if Lauren and Riley were removed from the situation…his breaking point would have finally been to drink himself into a coma, which would have woken you up to all of your problems…or he would have found the courage to leave you and force you both to deal with your problems."
"Well…we'll never know will we?" I asked bitterly.
"Hey, Bells…come on now. Don't get mad at your old man for stating his opinion."
"I'm not mad at you, Dad. I'm just frustrated and angry at the entire situation. I'm mad that we were targeted the way we were…I'm mad that Edward still cheated…I'm mad at myself for believing in Riley and pushing my husband away. I'm mad that my mother is not here to guide me! I'm just mad!"
I removed myself from his arms and started pacing the floor.
"How could I be so naïve? Two men in my life have cheated on me! Two! One of them was a raging psycho who I allowed to be around my daughter! What kind of mother does that? The man fucking paid to have you shot! I've always depended on everyone around me! I've never stood on my own…someone always takes care of me. Poor, helpless Bella! I'm done, Dad! I'm done! I can't be that girl anymore! How did I lose myself?"
"Isabella, please come sit down with me again," he said in his authoritative tone.
I sighed and did as he asked.
He took my hand in his as he spoke, "You are an amazing mother. At some point in our lives, I think we all lose sight of our true selves. At that moment in our life, we are at a crossroads and we have to choose which way to go. We can go one way and continue to make the same mistakes repeatedly…or we can go the other way and do what we need to do to fix ourselves and learn from the mistakes we have made. Edward has made his choices when he faced his mistakes…now it's time for you to face yours. What's it gonna be Bells? Are you going to keep making the same mistakes? Or are you going to learn from them?"
He was a brilliant man, my father. I smiled and gave his hand a squeeze. "Well, Dad…I'll tell you…I am done making the same mistakes. I have a plan but I need to go have a talk with someone that is long overdue…and I need to get some things off my chest."
"Edward?" He questioned.
I shook my head no and he froze. He knew where I wanted to go.
"You still haven't been?"
"No," I whispered.
"Oh, Bella. She understands, sweetheart."
"How could she? I'm a horrible daughter! What kind of child does not even visit their mother's grave…ever?"
"You weren't ready before. I take it you're ready now?"
"Yes, I am. I need to do this. Is it all right if Charley stays here?"
One day I wanted to take my daughter to meet my mom…but today I needed to go by myself.
"Of course, you know I will never turn down time with that little angel."
I leaned in and gave him a hug before I stood up from the couch. I wanted to go look in on Charley before I headed to the cemetery.
Pausing on the bottom step, I turned back to dad and said, "I love you, Daddy. You know one of the things I need to do is get a place of my own, right?"
He smiled and then nodded. "Yeah, I know. I hate to see my girls go, but I completely understand. I love you too, sweetheart."
With that, I turned and headed upstairs to check on Charley.
She was sleeping peacefully on her back, so I rubbed her stomach gently. I placed a kiss to my fingertips and then pressed them lightly to her forehead.
"Mommy loves you, angel. I'll be back in a bit…you be a good girl for Pops," I whispered to her.
Once I was back downstairs, I went into the kitchen to get a bottle of water. Dad was sitting at the table eating a sandwich.
"I figured I better grab a bite to eat before little bit wakes up and consumes all of my time," he chuckled.
I leaned against the counter, opened the water and started drinking. My fingers began toying with the label, peeling it from the bottle.
"Bells, what are you doing?"
"Nothing…having a drink of water before I go. Is that all right?"
"That would be perfectly fine, if that's what you were doing. You forget, I know you little girl. Go to your mom…stop stalling. It won't get any easier the longer you wait."
Why was he always right?
"Okay, okay, I'm going," I told him.
On my way out of the kitchen, I paused in the doorway, "Edward is coming over tonight. We're going to put Char to bed together and then talk. I don't know what time he's coming though…so if he shows up…just let him hang out until I get back."
"Will do…I guess I can start working on my apology."
I shook my head at my dad and made my way to my car. He did not give apologies lightly; Edward was going to be thrilled he was getting one.
Before heading to the cemetery, I stopped at the grocery store for some flowers. The one flower shop in town was closed on Sundays and I did not want to go see Mom empty handed after taking this long to visit.
Unfortunately, being from the grocery store, they weren't the freshest flowers, but they were pretty and they would do.
I chose daisies because they were her favorite.
When I finally arrived at the cemetery, I forced myself from the car and made my way to her. I had not been here since the day of the funeral but I still remembered exactly where she was.
I laid the flowers down in front of the headstone. There was already a vase of daisies sitting there and the flowers looked like they had been there for a while.
"Hi, Mom. It's me. I know it's been too long and I would like to say I'm sorry for that. I wasn't strong enough before…but I am now. I won't stay away so long again, I promise. I want to bring Charley here to meet you. That's right, you have a granddaughter. She's amazing."
I sat down on the ground and crossed my legs. I put my head into the palm of my hands and let the tears fall. Mom always said that sometimes it was good to cry it out. Purge yourself from all the pain with your tears and let it all go.
"I'm tired of being angry, Mom…tired of all the pain. I want to let everything go and get it out. I need you here with me! Why did you leave me? Couldn't you see that I needed you? How could you think that everything would just be all right if you left me? I need my mom here! You need to help me be a good mom! Charley needs her grandma. Why did you go away?"
My sobs got louder as the tears flowed faster. I slowly started rocking back and forth while allowing myself to cry about everything that was hurting me.
The sun was setting and I did not realize I had been out here as long as I had.
"What do I do Mom? I love Edward with all my heart…I never stopped. He is an amazing father to Charley…but what if I can't forgive him? What if I can't get passed what he did?"
The tears were slowing down but still had yet to stop.
I heard footsteps approaching behind me as his shoes crunched down on the grass.
Fear should have plagued me…but it didn't because I knew exactly who it was.
I always knew when he was near.
He quietly sat down beside me and crossed his legs just as mine were.
When I turned to look at him, I saw that he had a fresh bundle of daisies that looked like mine. I raised my eyebrows in question and nodded towards the flowers.
He smiled gently and removed the older daisies from the vase as he put the new flowers he had in their place.
"I've been coming here to talk to Renee."
"What?" I asked in shock.
"You know how much I loved her. She was always like a second mom to me. I miss her too…I know it's not the same…but…it helps. I like to come talk to her and I bring her flowers."
"My dad didn't tell you I was here?"
"Nope, but I'm glad I decided to stop by here before going over there. You look like you could use a friend."
All I could do was nod as the tears consumed me once again as he pulled me into his lap quickly.
I loved having his arms around me.
"Shhh…it's okay Bella. Let it out."
We had never done this after my mom died. I closed up and would not let go of the pain that I felt…I wouldn't deal with it.
Flashback
Mom had been gone for three years. I still had not really cried or grieved for her. Today was the anniversary of her death and I was angry.
Edward had been sweet and was trying to be there for me. I went to the coffee shop that Edward and I liked to go to and I sat there all day without moving. When I got back home, my beautiful husband had made us a romantic dinner when he returned from class.
He had candlelight, soft music playing, the whole nine yards. I ignored him.
I walked into our house, without saying a word and went straight to bed. He came into the room and tried to get me out of my clothes, into pajamas and under the covers…but I screamed at him.
"Stop touching me! My mother fucking died three years ago today! The last thing I want is to be mauled by you! Get off me!"
"Love, I'm just trying to get you into bed."
"I'm an adult Edward; I think I am capable of doing that myself now leave me alone!"
He left the room quietly and I did not see him again until the next morning. When I woke up, I went downstairs and saw an empty wine bottle as well as an empty Jack Daniels bottle sitting on the coffee table while Edward was passed out on the couch.
I shook my head trying to remember how much alcohol had been in each bottle the night before…but I could not remember.
I picked up the bottles and tossed them into the trash. Out of sight out of mind. This was not the first time something like this had happened when things were bad between Edward and me…and it would not be the last…but I was happy to ignore it.
It wasn't a problem if I ignored it. Edward did not have a drinking problem if I forgot about what I saw.
End Flashback
Oh my god! Why did I do that? Deep down, I knew he had a drinking problem! Hell, I knew that I had depression issues. Why would I push him away and not say anything about his drinking?
Even though, I knew we were both responsible for the choices we made, it amazed me that we had let it go as far as we did.
When our marriage was good, it was damn good, but when it was bad, it was the epitome of bad.
At that moment, I felt in my heart that one day I would truly like to take my husband back…and I knew we had a lot of work to do in order to make that happen.
The tears stopped and I turned in his lap so that I was facing him with my legs straddling his.
"What is it, baby?" He asked quietly.
"I need to get this out. We have both messed up tremendously. But if you still think we have something to salvage then I want to try."
"Are…you sure?"
I placed my hands on his face and stared straight into his eyes so that he could see the truth and determination in mine.
"Yes. It's going to take a lot of time and a serious amount of work on both our parts. I'm not saying that I am one hundred percent certain I can forgive you, trust you, or even have you back as my husband. The most I might ever be able to offer you is friendship…but I would like to try…for that…and more."
He smiled a breathtaking, heart-stopping smile.
"Then we start with therapy…and friendship."
"Agreed. First thing tomorrow, I am going job hunting and apartment hunting. It's time for me to get out on my own with Charley. I need to prove to myself that I can be independent from you and my dad."
"Absolutely and I can watch Char while you go."
I released my hands from his face and placed them gently on his shoulders.
"Thanks, I appreciate that."
"Anytime," he smirked.
I leaned forward and laid my head on his chest. His arms tightened around me, pulling me closer to him.
"I don't know what's going to happen and I can't make any promises…but life is short and I just want to say, I love you Bella. I never fucking stopped. You have owned my heart since we were five-years old and I never want it back. I know we have a long way to go…and I will never be able to tell you enough how sincerely sorry I am for everything that I have put you through.
"I can see now so many other ways I could have chosen to deal with our problems, but I took the coward's way out and I will always regret hurting you. I'm not going into this with any expectations from you other than hopefully getting my friend back. I will never pressure you or do anything you are uncomfortable with, okay?"
I nodded into his chest.
"When Lauren was telling me everything that happened I had a memory…of the phone message that I left you…the awful one…"he paused.
My breath hitched as I remembered the words he had said to me.
"I don't know how I will ever be able to make that up to you, but I will damn sure try. I'm trying to be the man that you deserve." He tilted my head up to look into his eyes as he spoke his next words. "You have my sincere apology for the words that I said to you in that message. I know I was drunk and that is no excuse for me to speak to you that way…but I never meant them. They were said out of pain and anger. I could never feel that way about you. I am truly sorry."
I nodded not knowing what else to say right then.
I did believe that he was sorry…about everything. I only prayed that we could find our way back to one another…eventually.
Quietly enough that I almost hoped he could not hear me, I whispered, "I love you too…always you."
I didn't think I was ready for him to actually know that I would always love him…no matter what.
As we sat there and held each other a little while longer, I felt a new resolve in my heart to fix everything in my life that was broken.
I stood up from his lap and held my hand out to help him up from the ground.
"Come on, let's go back to Dad's and feed our daughter. We can play with her for a bit and then put her to bed like I promised."
He grinned and said, "Sounds good. I think we have had a good start on our talk for now; I don't want to overwhelm you. After we put Char to bed, I'm going to take off and head home. Then, I will be over bright and early to help with her so you can go search for your job and apartment. Does that work?"
"I think that's perfect, Edward."
Baby steps.
Before I left to follow Edward to our cars, I turned back to look at the headstone.
"Thanks, Mom. I'll be back soon."
Somehow, I knew that Edward showing up was a sign from her.
A sign that everything would be okay.
A/N…Here we go kids…we will be moving forward with some time jumps in the next chapter.
Reviewers will get a teaser from EPOV for the next one.
Thanks to dolphin62598 for being my rock AND my fabulous beta. Thanks to teacher1209 for always listening to my bitching and moaning and pre-reading no matter how many times I send them to her.
Story Recommendation:
You, Me and the Baby Make Three by sarah8989
http:/www(dot)fanfiction(dot)net/s/5551027/16/You_Me_and_The_Baby_Make_Three
This is a good one! Go enjoy and tell her I sent ya!
oHo
