Author's Note: Thanks again to moosals for pre-reading. Stephenie Meyer owns all characters.

This is it, we've finally reached the end. Hope you enjoy. :)

July 2016

The premiere date of Edward's Chopped episode has finally arrived. It's a huge night for our family, and the Cullens have invited a few of their and our closest friends over to watch it with us. To be honest, Edward has really drifted away from his old friends over the last three years. As he grew up and most of them… didn't, they no longer had a lot in common.

Since it's a Tuesday night, only a few people could make it. Among the guests are Edward's brother Emmett and his six-months-pregnant wife Rosalie, who are in town for a few weeks, one of only a handful of times that I've seen them in person. Since his release from prison, Edward has formed a tentative brotherly relationship with Emmett, which I am so happy to see.

Carlisle barbecued dinner out in the backyard earlier, and as 7pm arrives, we all gather in the family room to watch Edward's big TV debut. No one, besides me and the owner of Bella Italia, knows the results of the show. I still don't know any details, so I'm very much looking forward to seeing it. Not as much as our daughter though; Charlotte has been crowing to everyone at her preschool for the last two weeks that her daddy is going to be on TV.

"Bella?" Edward asks, standing in the doorway. "Can I get another beer?"

I know what he's really asking is if I'm comfortable driving home, since I won't let him drive when he's had more than one drink. I will drive now, though never in bad weather, and I avoid the freeways as much as I can. There's no way off Mercer Island without taking I-90, but if I can make it the three or four miles to 148th Avenue, then I can exit there. I've never driven on the freeways with Charlotte in the car, but I nod. I can do this.

A few moments later, Edward returns with his beer, taking a seat next to his parents on the couch since Charlotte and I already occupy his favorite recliner.

As the show begins, host Ted Allen introduces the four competitors: Eric, executive chef of his own restaurant in Los Angeles; Alec, a 25-year veteran and executive chef at a top San Francisco restaurant; Jane, a young sous chef from Portland, and Edward.

"That's Daddy!" Charlotte yells, sliding down from my lap so she can jump around the living room.

"Yes, baby, that's your daddy. Now sit down so we can watch the show, ok?" Charlotte finally takes a seat on the floor in front of me. We all listen closely as Edward introduces himself.

"I'm sous chef at Bella Italia restaurant in Seattle, Washington. I started cooking when I was 5, and every job I've ever had has been in a restaurant kitchen, but I still feel like a bit of a late bloomer. I didn't go to culinary school until I was 24, at the urging of my girlfriend, now my wife. I got into a lot of trouble as a teenager and a lot of people wrote me off. I want to win today to prove to everyone who doubted me that I have made something of myself, but most of all I want my wife and our daughter to be proud of me. Everything I do is for them."

As Ted explains the rules of the competition, we're all sitting on the edge of our seats, ready to see what ingredients the chefs will be working with. Finally, the contestants open their mystery baskets revealing the mandatory ingredients for the appetizer course: cube steak, salsa, queso fresco and frozen French fries.

"Hell, Bro, even I could cook something with those ingredients," Emmett snorts.

I laugh. "I could too, but I don't think it would win any points for creativity."

"Go ahead and laugh," Edward says. "Having two premade ingredients like the fries and salsa is actually much harder than starting with all raw ingredients."

We all watch transfixed as the four chefs work on their appetizers, eagerly anticipating the little interview snippets from Edward as he explains his thought processes. I don't often watch him cook, so it's fascinating to see how his mind works.

As they cook, Ted introduces the three judges for the episode: Maneet Chauhan, Amanda Freitag and Chris Santos.

"Were you happy with the judges, Edward?" I ask.

"Yeah," he nods. "I just didn't want Scott Conant in case I made a pasta." I laugh; I've seen enough Chopped episodes with Edward to know how tough Scott is on anyone who doesn't cook pasta properly.

Soon, the 20-minute timer is called and the four chefs move to the chopping block.

Eric goes first, introducing his dish of Southwestern steak frites. The judges like that his steak is spicy and love the seasoning on the fries, though they think his proportion of fries to steak is off. They also like the way he baked the queso fresco with the salsa. He seems like a shoe-in for the second round.

Alec is up next, not even attempting to hide his disdain for the ingredients as he describes his dish — also Southwestern steak frites. He made his own salsa, which the judges love, to go along with the premade salsa. For some reason, he placed a stripe of Dijon mustard on the plate, which the judges don't like at all.

Jane is third, describing her dish of chimichurri steak frites with purple potatoes. It doesn't escape my attention that all three of the other chefs just cooked the frozen French fries, albeit with their own seasonings, while we saw Edward doing something different with them. The judges rave about the way Jane cooked her steak, but complain that the fries are limp and greasy, too saturated with oil.

Finally Edward gets a chance to introduce his dish of steak and eggs, with the fries turned into a potato hash. As I expected, the judges love that he was the only one to repurpose the fries. Their only complaint is that his attempt at runny egg yolks failed and the eggs are slightly overcooked.

"I only had room in the pan for four eggs," Edward explains. "I was so afraid of the eggs being undercooked and one of the yolks breaking as I plated them that I cooked them a little too long."

The judges spend a few minutes — of TV time, anyway — deliberating before calling the four chefs back into the room. Even though I know the outcome, I groan along with everyone else when the show goes to a commercial break before revealing who was chopped.

"Put us out of our misery and tell us if you made it, Edward," Esme begs him.

He laughs. "Nope. Just a couple more minutes!"

After the commercials, Alec is revealed as the one chopped, mainly due to the combination of flavors — salsa and mustard — not working at all. He of course feels that the judges made the wrong decision. I want to laugh at his ego.

Esme and Carlisle yell out their pride in Edward for making it through the appetizer round and I can't help smiling. They're proving to be as proud of him as they are of Emmett's successes.

Then, it's time to open the mystery baskets for the entree course: blue foot chicken, broccolini, tequila and dried limes.

"I smiled when I saw the tequila," Edward chuckles.

"What on earth is blue foot chicken?" I ask him.

"Chicken with blue feet," he shrugs. Yeah, that explains it.

Charlotte screams as the camera focuses in on the chefs chopping the blue feet off the chickens. "Does it hurt?" she asks Edward.

"No, Princess, it doesn't hurt," he tries to soothe her.

All three chefs are rushing around as Ted counts down the 30 minutes. I laugh as Edward pours himself a shot glass of tequila just after time is called. He just shrugs sheepishly.

Edward is up first this time, describing his dish of blue foot chicken two ways with a side of lentils. Right away the judges complain that he undercooked the lentils — "I didn't get them in the pan early enough", he explains to us — but they praise the way he poached the chicken, which can apparently get dried out easily. One judge also complains that she can't really taste the limes in the dish.

Jane is up next with her dish of chicken with shaved broccolini "fettucine." All three judges complain that her chicken is very dry. They like the flavors in the dish, especially the sweet potato that she added as a side, but feel that the tequila and lime were underutilized.

Eric goes last, introducing his dish of stewed chicken with a lime and tequila condiment and a side of pink lentils. We all breathe a sigh of relief when the judges complain that his lentils are slightly undercooked also. Like Jane's, they feel the chicken is too dry, though they love his condiment, only questioning why he served it on the side.

As the judges deliberate, they all praise Edward for having the best-cooked chicken and I glow with pride. The three remaining chefs are called back to the chopping block, and… we go to commercial again.

After the break, Jane is revealed as the chef leaving, because her chicken was so dry as to almost be inedible. Again, the room goes wild cheering for Edward making it to the dessert round. I smile when Esme reaches over to hug him.

Eric seems like very tough competition for Edward. He's an executive chef at his own restaurant, with many years more experience than Edward has. Since I already know the outcome, I am even more proud of Edward for beating such a formidable competitor.

Eric and Edward open the mystery baskets for the dessert round: white balsamic vinegar, chocolate covered peanuts, dried cranberries and masa harina.

"What is masa harina?" I ask.

"Corn flour," Edward explains. I'm too embarrassed to ask if that means it's flour made from corn.

Eric immediately starts making an ice cream, while Edward measures out the masa harina to make what he refers to as a shortcake. "Our pastry chef taught me ice cream and shortcake," he laughs. Eric seems to be having trouble with his ice cream, putting the base in a blast chiller to get it cold enough for the ice cream machine while time ticks by too quickly for him.

When time is called, both chefs move to the chopping block to introduce their dishes. Eric goes first, describing his masa harina ice cream with cranberry sauce. The judges love his ice cream with chopped peanuts mixed in, but feel that the sauce is too tart, and that the dish just isn't complete without some sort of garnish. Eric sheepishly admits that he'd never serve it like that without a garnish at his restaurant.

Edward is next, introducing his masa harina shortcake with cranberry and blueberry chutney. He was worried that his cake was too dry, but the judges think it's delicious. They also praise the way the fresh blueberries cut the tartness of the cranberries and vinegar.

As the judges deliberate, they note that Edward's dessert showed more technique, but the final round is judged based on the entire meal, not just the dessert.

We all hold our breaths as the two chefs are called back to the chopping block for the final decision. Ted lifts the cover, revealing Eric's ice cream. Everyone in the room applauds, congratulating Edward.

"Hey, Ed-O," Emmett says, reaching over to slap his brother on the back, "You made it to the top before me! I don't have a Super Bowl ring yet."

"I wouldn't say I'm at the top," Edward replies with a grin, "But thanks." He's trying to be modest, but I can see the way he's smiling, glowing with pride.

"Your Daddy won, sweetie," I tell Charlotte, who's looking around the room in confusion at all of the yelling and cheering.

"He won?"

"Yes," I nod.

"Go, Daddy!" she yells, climbing up onto Edward's lap to throw her little arms around his neck and hug him tightly.

"Thanks, Princess," he whispers, discreetly trying to wipe the tears from his eyes.

I stand up slowly, knowing this is the perfect time to make my announcement.

"Um, so, winning Chopped wasn't Edward's only victory that weekend," I begin to looks of confusion.

"What else did I win?" Edward asks, looking adorably confused.

"You managed to knock up your wife," I tell him. I want to laugh as his jaw drops in surprise.

"You're pregnant?" he asks in disbelief.

"Yes," I nod happily. "I took a home test last Friday and just had it confirmed at my doctor's today."

Still holding Charlotte in one arm, Edward jumps up from the couch and throws his other arm around me, kissing me passionately.

"Ewww, Daddy! You don't eat her face!"

Edward pulls back, laughing. "Sorry, Princess. Did you understand what Mommy said?" She shakes her head no. "You're going to be a big sister. We're going to have a baby."

Charlotte's brows furrow for a moment, before she smiles brightly. "Baby like Aunt Alice has?" she asks, referring to Alice and Jasper's six-month-old daughter, Alanna.

"That's right," I smile.

"When do we get her?" she asks eagerly.

I laugh. "Not for a long time yet, sweetie. Another seven months or so." I don't have the heart to tell her that it might be a baby boy.

"After Christmas," Edward adds, putting it into terms a three-year-old can understand.

"Congratulations, Bella," Esme says, standing up to hug me. "Soon this house will be so full of grandchildren." She takes Charlotte from Edward's arms so he can kiss me again.

"I love you, baby," he whispers.

"I love you too."

A/N: The Chopped details are from Season 10, Episode 4, which was repeated a few weeks ago. I made up the competitors' identities, duh.

Thanks to all of you who've read, reviewed, followed and favorited this story! Cheekyward thanks you as well, unless you still don't like him. ;)

Thanks again to my pre-reader, moosals, who has been there since the first inkling of a plot bunny for this story popped into my head.

To reviewer Susan who's always a Guest: Thanks for your support and love for this story! Sign in some time so I can PM you and say hi. :)

I know you guys want a few outtakes! Or maybe one more future take? They'll pop up as I get the opportunity and inspiration to write them.

For those who've asked, I do have another story planned. I started writing it back in May but just wasn't feeling Edward, especially in comparison to Cheeky. I'll get back to it when my head moves off of this story. Like always, I'll pre-write before it's posted, so it'll be awhile. Keep me on author alert if you want to know when it's posted. :)