Bella had been right about the state of the kitchen. Charlie had seen her eye it and then waved her away. "I'll get to cleaning it up tomorrow," he had said and then took her for dinner at the diner.
But there was no way Bella was waiting on Charlie to clean up the house. It needed more than one set of hands, and her skin practically crawled, eyeing the months of accumulated messiness and dirt. He'd obviously done some cleaning while she was away, but his standards were nowhere near hers. She frowned, thinking how things hadn't looked this bad when she'd first arrived in Forks. Her absence had obviously affected him more deeply than she'd expected.
He was buckling on his police duty belt when the knock at the door came. Bella went to push herself up from the kitchen table, but Charlie waved her back down. "I'll get it. You finish eating."
She heard his quiet, "Hey, Esme," and her forehead wrinkled with confusion. He was talking to Edward's mother as he would a friend.
"That's super generous of you, but we'll be fine," he said, his voice growing closer.
Esme smiled at him, setting down a paper bag on the one empty spot on the counter. "Well, then, maybe Bella and I will just catch up for a bit."
Charlie turned to Bella, eyes seeking her permission.
"We're good, Dad. See you after work, okay?"
He glanced at his watch. She knew he was going to be late if he didn't leave soon.
Charlie looked at Bella and then at Esme. "Thank you," he said softly.
After Charlie left, Bella said, "You and Charlie seem to be on fairly friendly terms."
"We are, a little. We ran into each other a few times when I was shopping."
Bella gave Esme a level gaze. "Esme, you know perfectly well that my dad rarely sees the inside of a grocery store. You were totally watching him, weren't you?"
"I might have wanted to keep an eye on him, yes," she said, letting her gaze wander around the kitchen.
Bella couldn't help but follow Esme's gaze. God, the cobwebs—
"It helped to talk to him," Esme said softly. "We both missed our children."
So not just surveillance. "Thank you," Bella said gently. "I appreciate it."
"Clearly, though, I should have been keeping a better eye on what was going on inside the house." She rubbed a finger along the counter, rubbing off the grime that it gathered.
"Yeah, things seem to have slipped a bit more than I expected," Bella said.
"He hasn't been spending a lot of time here," Esme said. "He's often on the reservation."
Good, Bella thought. At least he'd had company.
"I didn't want you trying to tackle any of this on your own," Esme said.
Given that walking up the stairs too quickly still left her feeling slightly breathless, Bella agreed. "I think I can handle some of this, but I'd really appreciate the help." Her thoughts drifted to Marcus and Erastus, wondering what they were cleaning. She shook her head. Such thoughts were not helpful. "I'll get a start on the dishes."
Bella would have liked to say that they tackled things together, but Esme had more of the cleaning done in minutes than she would have accomplished in the better part of a week. Bella emerged from the still grimy kitchen after an hour, having washed and put away the contents of the sink, to find the remainder of the main floor cleaned and tidied. She suspected that she'd find the upstairs in a similar state if she checked.
"Um, wow," she said. "Thank you."
"It's nothing," Esme said, smiling. "And you really shouldn't be straining yourself." The look on her face told Bella that her heart was doing what it really shouldn't. "Maybe go sit down?"
So Bella did, pen and paper in hand, starting to make a list of groceries she'd need for the week. After seeing what Charlie had been eating, there was no way she was letting him continue with such unhealthy habits. She was determined to make sure he had good food to eat while she was there. Better yet, she would teach him how to cook. The thought of his arteries clogged by the greasy fries the diner served made her frown with worry. He needed to take care of his body.
"Do you need to head to the store?" Esme asked a few minutes later, putting away a bottle of window cleaner.
"Yeah. I was going to take my truck for an inaugural drive."
"Hmm," Esme said.
Bella smiled. Ah, the familiar Cullen commentary on her vehicle of choice.
"I'm not sure it's been driven in a while, and I imagine it will be quite a large shop you'll need to do. Perhaps I can give you a hand?"
Bella sighed. She actually enjoyed grocery shopping alone, but Esme was right. Given her physical state, doing it solo might not be wise. "That'd be great. Thanks, Esme."
Bella showered and changed into what felt like suitable clothing with which to face the small world of Forks. She wondered if she'd run into anyone she knew. Maybe. But most people her age wouldn't be wandering the aisles of the local Thriftway.
They strolled at a leisurely pace through the store, Bella picking up the extra items she'd forgotten to add to her list. Her culinary swath was a wide one. She hadn't been able to cook for months, and she'd missed it. She'd keep her guidelines for Charlie basic, but her own meal plan was ambitious. She wanted to cook like she'd never cooked before. Nearly every recipe she picked was well seasoned with garlic and onions or other fragrant herbs she knew would likely offend sensitive, supernatural noses. She hoped Edward wouldn't mind.
No, she decided, Edward would not object. While he might have made faces at her food before when asked if he wanted some, he otherwise never commented.
In the aisle that held shampoo, soap, and other personal hygiene products, Bella paused by the section that housed products she hadn't needed in the last few months. The shot she'd been given would be wearing off soon, and she looked at the many packages, plucking a bag of pads from the shelf. She had no idea when her cycle would return or if it would before—
"Oh my god, Bella?"
Facing the shelf, hearing the voice, Bella cringed. Of all the people to run into, this was the one to guarantee that the entire town of Forks would know of her return within the next few hours.
"Hi, Jessica," she said, smoothing her features, turning around, and putting the pads into the cart.
Jessica's hug was fierce and entirely unexpected, and Bella struggled not to noticeably stiffen. "When did you get back?"
"Just yesterday." Her nose rubbed against Jessica's hair, heavily scented and stiff with hairspray. She gently extricated herself from Jessica's embrace, trying not to be too obvious about it.
"My mom said she heard that you were in Italy? How cool is that! I mean, you missed graduation and everything, but I wish my parents would let me do something like that. Oh, hi, Mrs. Cullen."
"Hello, Jessica," Esme said softly.
Jessica looked between the two of them, first at Esme who was clearly in charge of the cart, and then at Bella's hand which had just released the latest item into the basket. Bella didn't have to be a mind reader to know what Jessica was thinking.
"So is, um, Edward back, too?"
Nope. No mind reading required.
"Yes, he is." Esme answered for Bella. She smiled at Jessica in a way that suggested she silence any further inquiry on this topic.
"Are you back for good," Jessica asked, "or are you heading off on another giant, crazy adventure?" She laughed as if this were an unlikely proposition.
"I'm home for now," Bella answered.
"We should get going," Esme said, eyeing the cart. "You probably want to get the frozen things home pretty quickly."
"Right," Bella said.
"Call me, okay?" Jessica pressed. "I want to hear all about your time in Italy. It must have been amazing!" WIth a final hug, which Bella half-heartedly reciprocated, Jessica walked away, leaving Esme and Bella to eye each other.
"I hadn't really thought about what else to say to people beyond what I told Charlie," she said quietly.
"I'm quite sure your father can help you find a diplomatic way to circumvent any awkward questions," Esme said, pushing the cart forward, "which will help you establish the cover he needs to know, too."
Bella paused for a moment to admire Esme's cunning. Her point was a good one.
"But people will ask questions that you don't have answers to, so let me give you a few pointers on how to avoid them."
The store wasn't crowded, and as they collected the last few necessities, Bella listened to Esme's quiet instruction.
"Always stick as close to the truth as possible. You were in Italy studying, which is true. Don't ever give details unless they're true because otherwise, you'll forget them. So it's okay to say you stayed in a castle. But it's best if you can make the most general statements. And finally, have a few, safe anecdotes that you can share—something funny, something pretty, and something tastefully sad."
"Got it. Lying one-oh-one covered."
Esme turned to Bella, her face serious. "Not that I don't have a sense of humor, but I'm not joking. You'll need to know this to blend in. And blending in and not attracting attention to yourself or to us are crucial skills for all of us. Our survival depends on it."
Bella hadn't meant to diminish Esme's advice in any way. "I didn't mean—"
"I know," Esme said gently, "but we are under far more scrutiny than we ever have been before. We can't make mistakes. You can't make mistakes. It would endanger not only us, but your father, too, and anyone else who's connected to you in any meaningful way."
Her heart drummed out a set of arrhythmic beats, and Bella focused on finishing up their shopping trip, silencing her habitual objection when Esme paid for the groceries. She even managed what she felt was a gracious statement of thanks.
WIth the way her heart was beating, she supposed she shouldn't have been surprised to find Edward leaning against his mother's car, watching them approach. The glare he was directing at Esme could only be described as murderous.
Though his words were silent to her human ears, Bella could tell they were harsh ones by the tightening in his cheeks and lips.
Esme replied audibly. "I'll not be lectured on keeping the people I love safe, not after what you put me through." She eyed him levelly. Her voice was much softer but more urgent when she spoke again. "She needs to be taught."
Edward eyed his mother for a moment, still frowning, then turned to Bella, speaking gently. "I'll take you home."
She thought of Charlie's refusal to have Edward in the house and glanced at her watch. She was pretty sure they'd be safe.
"He won't know I've been there," Edward said to Bella.
Of course he would have heard what Charlie had said even though she hadn't mentioned anything about it when they'd spoken on the phone the night before.
"Thank you, Esme," she said, feeling a little awkward about leaving things this way.
"You're more than welcome," Esme said. "You're part of our family. We'll keep you safe, but I want you to know how to keep yourself safe, too." She followed Edward around her car to the driver's side where he opened the door for her. Bella watched Esme put her hand to Edward's cheek and saw him nod at her before she got into her car to leave. She was relieved to see that his face seemed more relaxed.
Not certain whether she'd been too sick to see it or if Edward and the rest of his family had hidden their fractiousness from her before, Bella didn't like seeing this state of affairs between the Cullens at all.
Before she could say anything, Edward took charge of the cart, pushing it towards his car, a few spaces away. As they walked, he said, "I'm afraid word of our being together again will be well spread by the end of the day." He turned his head slightly to the right.
Bella followed the trajectory of his gaze, catching sight of Jessica Stanley walking diagonally across the parking lot, clearly able to see them.
"Good," she said. She didn't like gossip, but she didn't care who knew about her and Edward. She'd suffered enough to be with the man she loved. The entire world could know, for all she cared. She looked at Edward. "I'm not embarrassed to be with you."
Edward blinked. "I'm not saying—"
"Good."
There was a tiny smile on his lips. He understood. "I can't say I like what she's thinking though." His smile became a frown.
Bella shrugged. Small towns always gossip, but she would not be in this small town for long. It was immaterial to her. More important was the state of Edward's relationship with his family.
At the house, Edward wouldn't let her help with the groceries beyond giving him instructions on where to put them. When she did attempt to put a few cans away, he eyed her, cocking his head to the side. She knew he was listening to her heartbeat, which was again pattering irregularly, so she sat at the kitchen table, offering direction as needed, finally watching him fold up the last of the reusable bags.
"You were rather harsh with Esme."
"I think she was harsher with you. You've had enough stress on several fronts. I was . . . surprised she put that burden on you."
"I'm not a fragile flower, Edward."
"No, you're tough as nails, Bella Swan," he said, sitting across from her and imitating Charlie's gruff tone.
She laughed. "Seriously, though, she's right."
Edward frowned.
"She is. You just don't like it. You're . . . chivalrous to the point of being"—she struggled for the right word—"chivalrous."
He shifted his stance, moving one leg to rest over the other. She had only recently come to appreciate just how human the gesture was and how unnatural it was for him as a vampire. In public, Demetri had been the same, but in private, he had been a statue—an unnerving, terrifying statue. She wondered if her face reflected the direction of her thoughts, how he had displayed the outward appearance of such courtly notions. "Not that I don't mind some aspects of chivalry, but . . ."
"But Demetri thought of himself that way."
She wasn't surprised Edward had sensed where her thoughts had gone without hearing them, but her hand still froze as it came up to brush her hair away from her face. "Well, Demetri is an ass," Bella finally said.
"He is definitely that."
"You're nothing like him." She hoped he didn't persist in this line of conversation.
"Do you want me to speak with Charlie?" he asked.
Her head jerked up. "About what?"
"About us."
"No," she said. "I think that's something I need to handle."
"It isn't a question of your capacity to handle the conversation. It's more that he has several things he wants to know about me and say to me that I think only I can answer."
It was not hard to imagine that.
"I'd like to earn the respect of the man who is the father of the woman I love."
She let those words sink in before replying. "Well then, I suppose you'd better plan on coming to dinner tonight."
Edward lifted an eyebrow. "So that he can throw his steak knife at me?"
Bella laughed. "Well, at least by dinner he'll have put his gun away—and I'm making chicken by the way, not steak." Inside, though, her stomach churned with nerves. This would not be an easy conversation, but it was one that she wanted to see happen, because Edward was right. She loved him, and she loved her father, and if there was peace to be made before she left, she wanted it achieved.
A/N for 2020-08-03: The good news is that Chayasara and Eeyorefan12 are still amazing and still going gangbusters on this story, as I am. The bad news: work / teaching stuff is ramping up far faster than expected, so I will be moving to a weekly posting schedule for the time being.
Looking forward to meeting some of you via Zoom on Saturday!
- Erin
DISCLAIMER: S. Meyer owns Twilight. No copyright infringement intended.