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LadySharkey1 rocks my world by being the most amazing, kick-ass beta I could ever imagine.

Chapter 34

Romance…the romantic way.

We spent most of that night kissing and talking. Okay, we did a whole lot more kissing than talking, before we parted ways; I climbed into the bed next to our daughter, while he retreated to his room.

As ready as we were to give this thing between us another chance, and seal our new promises of love and a future together with a kiss, we were nowhere near ready enough to go all the way.

Yet.

If there was anyone who was excited about the two of us getting together, it was Charlie. When we announced our news over breakfast the next day, we had to stop her from jumping up and down on top of the table. She was like a ball of pure energy with a smile on her face that no force on earth could wipe away.

Her happiness was a huge relief to me, even though I'd kind of expected it. After all, it had been hard not to notice the way she'd been trying to steer the two of us back together again. She had come up with many schemes to keep Edward over for dinner, and insisting that we both attended her soccer games (not that either of us would ever want to miss them).

Not even the impending end of Charlie's underwater adventures could dampen her spirits, though when I dropped her off at the diving school, she did pout at the thought of having to exchange the wonders of tropical, underwater life for those of the deep, green forests at home again.

But perhaps it was just the fact that she didn't want to say goodbye to us.

As much as I would have loved to spend more time with her, I knew she would regret if she missed the final day with her fellow Kid's Club friends. They were supposed to go out further and dive deeper than they had before since they'd all passed their basic training. It was what she'd been talking about all week.

Besides, Edward and I needed the time she was away to work out some sort of schedule for when we returned home.

"I don't want to go back to having just minutes a day with the two of you." Edward sighed, arranging his body into one of the comfortable lounge chairs next to the hotel pool. "I want hours…days at a time if I can get them."

"So do I," I was quick to agree. "But how do we manage that? I mean, we've both got busy jobs, and as for living together…" I let my voice trail off, too afraid to disappoint him.

"No, it's too early for that." His quick and confident reply set me at ease. "But I think that if we compare schedules every week and give our relationship priority over non- family related stuff, we should be able to find more time together."

I nodded. "Especially now that we can share our time with Charlie." I smiled, the future already taking shape in front of my eyes. "It will be nice to do stuff together again."

"Yeah," Edward nodded along, his fingers closing around my hands. "Do you want to tell our friends and family once we get back or do you want to wait a little bit?"

"Do you think waiting to tell them would even work?" I smirked, knowing there was no way I could keep being with him a secret, even if I had wanted to. "I mean, your parents are picking us up from the airport, which means we'll be in a car with them for three hours. Even if we could somehow manage to bribe or scare Charlie into keeping her mouth shut, I don't think I could fool anyone for that long. You know I'm not much of an actress!"

He snorted, undoubtedly thinking of some of my previous failed attempts at deception. "You're right about that."

I smirked; my fingers played with his while the look in his eyes set my stomach aflutter. "And when your mom finds out, you know as well as I do that it will be only seconds before she calls my mom to tell her what's going on."

"Oh, shit," Edward groaned, rolling on his back as he covered his eyes with his hands. "Your dad's going to kill me."

"I don't think he'd go that far." I chuckled, taking a sip from my drink that had a tiny umbrella in it. "My dad will definitely have his reservations about us being back together, and I imagine he will make you feel it for quite some time, but I think that apart from that, you're safe."

I was right.

After a mellow afternoon and evening of saying goodbye to the island and a much more comfortable flight back home—thanks to Edward's tender kisses and strong shoulder lending me support—it took Esme only one look at the three of us to squeal and grab for her phone.

It only took about twenty seconds later for my phone to start beeping with an incoming message.

Mom.

It was at that moment that I gave thanks to the fact that my father had never joined the modern world. If he'd had a cell phone, I was pretty sure mine would explode with the brunt of his displeasure. As it was, the only indication as to my dad's state of mind was a slight warning from my mom, ten minutes after her first, jubilant reaction, that my dad was a little hesitant to share in the general spirit of rejoicing.

Her words exactly.

"I don't want to say goodbye yet," Edward murmured as we drove down my street, the contours of my bakery—my home—slowly came into view.

"Then don't," I whispered, trying to ignore how up front, his mom sat a little straighter. "Come over as soon as you drop your luggage off at your place. Or better yet, don't go home at all. I have a perfectly good washer and dryer."

"You'd do my laundry?" he asked incredulously, knowing how much I hated pretty much everything that had to do with housekeeping.

"As far as I'm concerned, I still have a thing or two to make up to you." I shrugged. "I figure doing your laundry is a good place to start."

We both laughed at that; the question of who had done what in the past no longer a sore subject between us. We'd been there, done that, and moved beyond it onto better things.

Our first week of being back together went a lot easier than I thought it would. At first, things were still a bit strange and new. Just like we'd promised each other, we'd compared schedules and blocked off every moment we could spend together. It was strange, showing up at his work for lunch without the pretext of having Charlie with me or to just discuss an important parenting matter because that was the only time he had free. After being alone for so long, we both had to get used to giving up some of our freedoms again and making decisions together instead of apart.

It felt good, though.

And it wasn't until I had Edward sitting next to me on the sofa every night he wasn't working, as we talked about everything and anything we could, that I realized just how much I'd missed having that one very special person in your life with whom you could be completely honest and open.

We made great use of that openness and honesty to attack some of the things on our horizons head on, before they could start to become an issue.

Edward and I found that, while we both weren't ready to move in together just yet, we both saw that happening very soon. After all, we were both grown ups, with adult desires and very little time in which to fulfill them. We already knew each other through and through and what we didn't know, we'd find out soon enough.

While we were both still afraid of what would happen if things between us went wrong, we knew there was only one way to find out. After all, a situation where we had to drag ourselves, our child, and our stuff all over town for sleepovers wasn't exactly a healthy child-rearing environment, either.

All we had to do was decide where we wanted to live and how we wanted to merge both our households into one.

That week, though, we had more pressing matters to attend to. As poor Edward came back from working the overnight shift at the hospital, he had just enough time to drag himself into the shower before we had to leave for a birthday party.

My dad's birthday party.

"Are you sure his guns are all locked up?" Edward groaned as we pulled up in front of my childhood home, Charlie oblivious in the backseat playing with her iPod.

I rolled my eyes, bringing the car to a stop. "Don't be so melodramatic, Edward! I wouldn't have brought you here if I thought your life was in danger."

"There's no being too safe where your dad's concerned," Edward muttered, looking worriedly at the front door as it opened to reveal my mom.

"You're here!" she squealed, beaming as she tried to wrap all three of us into a hug. "I'm so happy you're all here."

"Subtle, Mom!" I groaned, squirming out of her hug. She giggled, the extra space only allowed her to squeeze Charlie and Edward against her that much tighter.

"What? This is a huge thing, Bella, and might I remind you that this has been at least ten years in the making?" my mom fake-complained as Charlie skipped off into the house in search of her grandfather. "Seriously, if the two of you wouldn't have come to your senses soon, Esme and I would have had to stage an intervention."

"I would have liked to see you try," I huffed, brushing my hair back into place. "Did you manage to work on Dad a bit?"

She shrugged, smiling apologetically. "A bit."

It soon turned out that her attempt meant that dad kept his opposition to our happy reunion strictly verbal and in the most veiled possible wordings. It still didn't exactly take a college degree, though, to get the sense that he wasn't exactly a fan of our relationship.

"I hope you know what you're in for," he spoke, quiet enough for little Charlie not to hear, but not so quiet that Edward didn't pick up on it as he sat next to me at the dinner table. "If you're going to shack up with a doctor, you're going to have to learn to love your own company because you won't be sharing his."

"Dad—" I started.

"I know what I'm asking from Bella," Edward interrupted me, speaking calmly and collectedly, his eyes never leaving my dad's as he went on, "and I'm well aware how much that really is. But we talked about it and she finds she can live with my absence while I work to finish my residency. Once I'm done with that, I'll still be away from home more than someone working a regular office job but at least my hours will be more reasonable than they are right now. But I want you to know that I don't want to be away from them any more than I have to. I love my family, sir."

"I've made my decision," I pressed, trying to feed off Edward's calm. "I'm not a naïve teenager anymore and neither is he. We both went into this with our eyes wide open. We know what we're doing."

"Huh," he huffed, biting into his steak. "Well, I hope you do."

I knew that was probably as close as my dad was ever going to get to giving us his blessing.

Before I could tear into him about his double standards—after all, I wasn't exactly blameless in what had gone down between Edward and me either—a squeal from little Charlie turned my attention to the other side of the table.

"Grandma wants to know if I can stay over this weekend," she announced, her voice barely registering below a yell. "She says we can go on an insect hunt while Grandpa is fishing at the lake."

"You know," my mother chimed in, "so the two of you can have some peace and quiet?" The wink she added left little to the imagination and I could feel my skin heating up as I heard Edward accept the offer quite enthusiastically.

Was my mom really facilitating my sexy times with Edward?

My dad seemed to catch on as well, judging by the way he nearly choked on one of his fries but, between my mom and my daughter, he really was powerless to stop this from happening. And in that moment, I wasn't quite sure if I was happy about that.

For the remainder of the week, I was on edge; my nerves heightening as we got closer to Friday afternoon. Edward was quick to pick up on my nervousness; it took him until we were back in the car on the night of my dad's birthday to ask about it, but even when he pressed me for an answer, I couldn't give him one.

I wasn't really sure what I was feeling.

Part of me was excited about reconnecting with Edward that way. We had sex in the past, obviously, since we had Charlie, but it had always been in a sneaking around clumsy-teenager way. Being able to spend a whole weekend with him without having to worry about what little eyes were seeing both sounded as heavenly to me as it was freaking me out.

Was it too soon?

Was I ready for it to happen?

What if we weren't compatible anymore in that respect?

In the end, I managed to scramble what courage I had and went over to the hospital the next Monday at noon with a basket full of goodies and a go-ahead for our weekend of love.

I wasn't quite sure what made Edward happier; well, that wasn't exactly true. Of course I knew, but I chose not to acknowledge it for fear of losing all my newfound courage.

On Thursday I received a forwarded e-mail confirmation of a weekend booking at a nice, little boutique hotel that screamed 'romantic getaway'. Seriously, they might have just changed out the rose petals scattered artfully on top of the pristinely white covers of a canopied bed with condoms. The message wouldn't have been that different.

On Friday, I almost dropped a cake I'd been working on all afternoon as my inward nervous trembling transported to my hands and then, after Emmett had all but chased me out of my own business for being completely and utterly useless, my whole body. It left me some time to talk to Rose while I hung out front in the shop with her. In between serving customers, we caught up on both our lives as she gave me some tips and insights that were incredibly useful if not blush-inducing. Now that she had at least accepted the fact that Edward and I were back together, our friendship had reverted back to what it had been before. I knew it was too much to ask for them to be friends but this status quo in which they could at least be in a room together without being at each other's throats?

I could definitely live with it.

Suffice it to say that when Edward came to pick me up, I was a ball of nerves. And the way he was dressed—a blue suit, crisp white shirt and sunglasses—didn't exactly help either.

Sex on fire.

"You're going to have to tone that shit down," I breathed, sagging in the passenger seat like a sack of potatoes. "There's only so much romance a girl can takes before she croaks!"

He merely laughed, though it didn't exactly escape my notice how on our drive to the nice seaside B&B, his hands were tapping nervously against the steering wheel as his eyes flashed between the road and me.

It stayed like that until we reached our destination; the wind blowing my hair in all directions as soon as I stuck my head out of the car. My hand was clammy as I placed it in his; my eyes on the ground as I followed him to the entrance of the inn on shaky legs.

This was it.

I was ready for it, I thought. We were ready. Everyone around us thought we were or else our mom's wouldn't have basically organized our getaway. Hell, even the nice, grey-haired lady at the front desk though we were ready, judging by the blush-inducing wink she shot our way.

But then again, if I was really as prepared as everyone believed me to be, then why was I so fucking nervous?

"If you'd like to follow me," the saucy old lady announced, winking again as she rose from her chair and preceded up the stairs to our room. "I've set up the table in the bedroom according to your specifications." Waving us into the large but cozily furnished bedroom, I soon spotted the little table in the corner, overflowing with bread, various cheeses and fruits, as well as a chilled bottle of white wine.

"I didn't think we'd be in the mood to go out and find someplace to eat," Edward clarified, his breath ghosting over my skin made me shiver in a very good way. "We could still go out if you wanted to."

"No, you're right," I nodded eagerly, my stomach rumbling with a hunger that couldn't be stilled by food alone. "This is perfect!"

"I'll leave you to it then," our hostess announced with yet another suggestive wink, bowing out of the room as soon as she'd made sure we were settled in okay.

I snorted. "I bet she'll be watching the ceilings all evenings for swinging lamps."

It was probably the nerves, since my remark wasn't all that funny to begin with, but in seconds we were both laughing like a pair of hyenas until we were almost blue in the face. It was only after I'd regained command of myself again that I realized I was lying on the very soft, very comfortable bed with Edward's face inches from mine.

"Well, what do you say," I whispered with what I hoped was a sexy little grin. "Do you want to make some lamps sway?"

The eagerness in his eyes made me snicker, even though he was trying like hell to temper it. Silly boy, like I'd care if he pounced onto my very willing body! "Are you sure you don't want to eat first?"

"Nope." I answered decidedly as I started to open the buttons of my shirt. "Food can wait; let's work up an appetite first."

He didn't waste another second, pulling his shirt over his head before pushing my shaky hands out of the way to all but tear open the remaining buttons. "You're right. Food is fucking overrated anyway." I giggled at his joke, and with that, he crushed his lips against mine, my squeal as I once again fell backwards onto the bed made both of us giggle as we scrambled to get our clothes off as fast as humanly possible.

I'd never hated buttons as much in my entire life.

"God, you're fucking beautiful!" he groaned, his eyes drinking me in as they traveled from my eyes down to my chest, his mouth opening slightly as they finally landed on my underwear.

I blushed, smiling nervously as I tried to fight the urge to cover myself up. "I'm glad you think so. You're not too bad yourself either." Looking at him made me hate myself for all the excessive batter tasting I'd done over the years. I was by no means overweight but I didn't exactly look like a supermodel either. And years of sampling my own goods had kind of wreaking havoc on my thighs.

I was sure Voldemary, or any of the other girls he'd met on campus, didn't have cellulite or stretch marks.

He, on the other hand, had only gotten better with age; his body lean and perfect with slightly pronounced abs and pecks but not in any overstated way.

He was just right.

"Don't doubt your beauty, Bella," he insisted; my skin broke out in goose bumps as his hands landed on my shoulders in a feather light caress. "You're fucking gorgeous."

My mind may have had trouble accepting his words but in his eyes I could see that, to him at least, they were the truth. And knowing that? It was so much better than thinking it myself, because I felt it in my heart.

I felt like the most beautiful woman on the earth, even though I knew I wasn't.

All because of him.

"I love you, Edward," I whispered, a tear falling down my cheek. "I never stopped and I never will."

His lips were wet as they touched mine, the emotion in our moment so overpowering that it had to spill out. "I love you, too, my Bella," he echoed hoarsely, his lips leaving my mouth to touch my neck…my shoulders…my breasts. "My beautiful Bella."

My hands reached out and touched his skin as I got lost in the sensation of his kisses. "Always."

His lips found mine again, the passion we both felt took the backseat for a moment as I awkwardly helped him roll a condom down his length; my hands shook even worse than his did. He chuckled, falling back against the sheets as we finally did it. "I guess nothing's changed, huh?"

"I guess not!" I laughed, lying down next to him, "though I've gotten much better at taking my birth control pills over the years."

"Hmm." He grinned, pulling my body flush against his. "That would open a whole new window of possibilities." Brushing a few strands of hair away from my face, Edward's eyes turned serious. "Though I have to say that I wouldn't mind giving Charlie a little brother or sister somewhere along the way."

I smiled, feeling my heart all but explode in my chest. "Nor would I, but let's just have a few try outs first, before we take this show on the road?"

"Yeah." Laying me down on my back, he hovered over me; his arms taking away most of his weight as our lower bodies aligned perfectly, almost as if they still knew their way. "We're going to need some very thorough practicing before we get there."

I gasped, feeling him at my entrance; the sensation as he slowly slid in heightened by the sheer amount of love that flowed between us. Joining with him was like coming home again after a long and tiring journey abroad.

This was where I belonged…where we were whole.

"Bella," he whispered, his pelvis meeting mine as our breaths mingled, our eyes locked and said things no words could ever do justice.

"Ah!" I groaned, my back arching as he started to move. I needed him deeper…I needed him more than anything in this entire word. "I'm here…Edward."

We moved together, our hands clawing, searching as our bodies danced; his thrusts became erratic and my panting louder. It was like a race to the top, only our race was one of pleasure…each of us wanting to give as much as we got it.

Then, finally, we reached the top; I sucked in a breath as my body thrashed while stars danced before my eyes. The only thing that broke through my bliss was that he followed, crying out my name as he reached his high.

From that point on, it only got better. After a short interlude where we both caught our breath, he fed me dinner in bed. The crumbs of the bread stuck to our sweaty skin as we replenished our energy for round two.

And three.

And…four.

We were insatiable for one another, just like I remembered when we were younger.

It was just before we finally drifted off to sleep that he almost broke my heart as he whispered, "Please, don't leave me again."

Lifting my bone-tired body up by my arms, I forced my eyes on his as I gave him my reply. "Never."

I had been stupid enough to let this amazing, wonderful man slip through my fingers once.

But never again.

Edward and I had learned from our mistakes the hard way, but made to a new life together; one filled by doing what was best for our family, and no one else.

We had since added another dash of trust and loyalty, a heaping tablespoon of commitment, and a cup overflowing with love. We shaped a future in which we refused to fail, and one where letting go was not an option.

It was a recipe we were whipping up for our happily ever after…though I was sure we'd burn a few batches along the way.

But as a family, we'd savor our successes.

We had adapted, after all.

Thoughts?