CHAPTER NINETY
EDWARD'S POV:
I was worried that Bella was going to shut down after that disastrous phone call with the police, but she persevered. Following dinner, I assisted her in phoning Sam to let him know what had occurred. Sam was quick to point out that now that Jacob had an arrest record, he had little chance of proving he'd be a better guardian for Tony. In other words, he shouldn't still be coming after us. I was relieved to hear this. Bella was too, though her joy was masked with sorrow for her once best friend. I knew nothing but time would help her mourn that betrayal, so I didn't pressure her to talk about it. After finishing up with Sam, we also touched base with Angela, who was very apologetic that something like this happened on her watch.
"Not your fault," Bella said, yet again, to her blubbering friend.
"I told you I would look after the house. What sort of friend lets this happen!" Angela wailed.
I saw that Bella was getting frustrated with not being able to vocalize her thoughts, so I stepped in. "Angela, yes, you said you would look after the house, but that doesn't mean you were expected to do a stake out to watch over it 24/7. You have a life. That is just not feasible. This was going to happen regardless of whether Bella was here or there, so it is not your fault. No one is blaming you. What you need to do is calm down. Getting this worked up isn't good for the baby."
"Yes. Breathe Ang," Bella followed up.
Through the phone we heard several deep breathes, before she spoke. "I'm sorry. It's the hormones. I'm overly emotional. It doesn't take much to set me off."
"Understandable," Bella said, with a chuckle. She sobered up quickly, and added, "Just glad. You're safe. Not. There. In house…" She trailed off, not finishing her thought.
Not liking how depressing this call was getting, I quickly changed tactics. "Angela, I know you are busy with work and everything, but do you think you could arrange to get the locks changed? I doubt Jacob is stupid enough to commit the same crime twice, but I think we would breathe a little easier over here knowing exactly who can and cannot get into the house."
"I already put a call out to Waylon Forge. He said he could stop by tomorrow after lunch. Do you want me to send you the keys there, or hold on to all the copies for now?"
"Hold on. To them. Easier," Bella answered.
"Okay. I can do that. I will call you once it's all done. How many copies do you want? One for you, one for me, one for…" she trailed off. I felt like the girls were trying to have a side conversation about me while I was sitting here.
"Three. Should do," Bella answered her. I'm guessing the third is for me, but I didn't want to push in case I was reading things wrong.
"Okay. On it. And again, I'm—"
I cut her off, "Please, Angela, there is nothing to be sorry for. Stop apologizing. Just be thankful that Forks is full of nosey neighbors who caught them in the act."
"Never thought I would be thankful for that, but you're right. Okay. No more apologies. I'm good. You're good. We're all good. You are good, right?" Angela pressed. While Bella may be upset at losing Jacob, she still had one genuine friend that cared about her. I was glad that she had people like Angela in her corner.
I didn't want to answer for Bella, so I waved my hand towards her, telling her she had the floor. "Yes. All good. Going exploring. Tomorrow."
"That sounds like fun. You guys need it after the day you had. Give Tony some lovin' for me please. And tell him all the kids at day care miss him. They ask about him often. Actually, they'd probably get a kick out of a postcard or letter from the far away land of Chicago, if you guys are up for it."
"Will do. Tony. Pick out."
"Excellent. Anyways, I will let you know when the locks are changed. And I will continue to keep an eye on things down here, though I agree with you, Edward—they'd be stupid to try again."
"Yes—well, while I hope Jacob has learned his lesson, I don't know this investigator. And anyone who is okay with breaking and entering, and framing clients is unsavory in my book," I spat.
"Agreed. Okay, Ben is telling me to wrap things up, so I have to go. You two have a glorious night, together, doing together-y things."
Bella snorted, and I full out laughed at that. "Sure. We'll get right on that Angela. Good night. And thank you again."
By the time the call was over, it was late, and I was starting to feel the exhaustion from working a long shift prior to all this extra drama. Wanting to get an early start on our family day, I decided to call it a night. "I should head out, especially with our busy day tomorrow. Do you need help getting off to bed? Or do you want me to go get Mom?" I asked, suddenly feeling awkward. I didn't really want to leave. I was feeling strangely protective of my family, and leaving felt wrong.
"I'm fine. Go. See you tomorrow."
"You sure?" When she nodded at me, I forced a smile on my face. I hoped she couldn't see the apprehension behind it. Trying to lift my mood, I said, "I can't wait to spend the day with you two. I have it all planned out."
"Not. Too much?" Bella asked. She had given the job of planning over to me, but I had yet to share any details with her. I wanted her to enjoy everything just as much as Tony would.
"It'll be a balanced day. And again, it's not like we have to do everything tomorrow. We've got time. Weeks!" Under my breath, I added, "Months, hopefully."
Bella sent a smile my way, and told me, "Okay. Goodnight Edward."
I leaned down and gave her a kiss on her forehead. "Goodnight Bella. Sleep well."
Usually after a long week of crazy hours at the hospital, on my first day off, I sleep most of it away. However, I was up, dressed, and out the door by 7AM. I was excited for this family day, and I wanted to get things rolling. Not wanting to show up empty handed, I stopped for coffee for the adults, and hot chocolate for Tony. With that mission taken care of, I couldn't not stop in the little flower shop next door. I got Bella a small bouquet of Freesias, the flowers I gave her on our first date. Bella was never a fan of clichés, so I would never get her red roses—too easy. Though considering I could send her a ton of messages through rose colors, I might need to rethink things going forward. Anyways, I stuck with the classic for today. I just wanted to make her smile.
When I let myself in my parent's house, my father was the only one I saw, making me second guess myself. Was I too early? As if sensing my unease, Dad chuckled, before adding, "Your mother is helping get Bella ready. And Tony was up at five, wondering when you were going to get here. We set him up in the living room to watch cartoons, but due to the early hour, he fell asleep again. I'm sure he'd appreciate a wake-up call from you."
I handed my father the drink tray, and patted him on the shoulder as I made my way further into the house. "Thanks Dad."
Tony was half hanging off the couch. I wasn't sure how gravity was keeping him upright, but it was too precious a site to pass up. I quickly took out my cell phone, and snapped a picture. Opening up my favorite text thread, I sent her the picture, along with the caption:
How does he manage to get into these strange positions? –Edward
I heard tittering laughter from farther in the house. She must have shown my mother the picture as well. The phone vibrated in my hand.
Takes after you. You always could fall asleep anywhere. —Bella
I pocketed my phone, and made my way towards the couch. I ran my fingers through his hair, pushing it out of his face. He must not have been in as deep of a sleep as I thought, for he quickly sat up.
"Ed-Dad! You're here! Finally. Can we go now?" The excitement for the day clear on his face.
"Got to eat breakfast first buddy. Mom is almost ready. Let's go whip up something good for everybody, okay?"
"Can we have French Toast? And bacon?" he pleaded.
Pulling him in for my morning hug, I told him, "I'm sure Grandmas has those ingredients. Let's go check."
When we got to the kitchen, I placed the bouquet of flowers down on the counter. Tony had a puzzled look, then asked, "Why do you have those?"
Heading towards the refrigerator, I spoke over my shoulder. "I got them for your Mom. They're her favorites."
"You got Mommy flowers?" he parroted back. He had such a peculiar look on his face, I wasn't sure what he was thinking.
"Yea. She had a tough day yesterday, and I thought these might make her smile." That brought such a big smile to Tony's face. Wanting to make him happy as well, I offered, "Do you want to give them to her for me?"
"No!" he yelled, making me jump in surprise. "No, you gots them. They should come from you."
"You sure? It can be from both of us."
"Just you. It'll be better." He was now giving me a look that I have often seen on Alice's face. It made me wonder again what the three of them were up to. But before I could press the issue, I heard a throat clearing behind me.
"Good morning," came from my angel.
Turning around, I offered, "Morning. I was worried I came too early, but here you two are up and ready to go! But first breakfast."
"I have a French Toast casserole in the oven keeping warm. Why don't you guys get settled at the table, and figure out drinks, while I get things ready in here" my mother said, coming in behind Bella.
"Right. Okay, Tony you want to do silverware, while I work on the drinks?" I ask my helper.
"Dad, you gotta do the thing first," he whisper yelled.
"What thing buddy?" I asked him, confused.
"That thing," he said, pointing to the flowers. Right, I already forgot. This woman's presence flusters me more than I care to admit.
"Oh, yes. How could I forget." Picking up the bouquet, I kneeled before Bella. "For you. Just wanted to brighten your day."
Bella chuckled, then said, "Corny."
She was in a playful mood. Let's see how far I could push her. "You think that was corny? I could have said 'If actions speak louder than words, this is my way of shouting.' Would that have been better?"
Bella's eyes widened, and then her cheeks flushed. Yup, I've still got it.
Tony was looking between all the grown-ups, not entirely sure what was going on. He directed his attention back to his mother. "Aren't the flowers pretty Mommy? It's nice Daddy got them, right?"
"They're. Perfect," she answered Tony, then looked back towards me. "Thank you. Really."
"You are most welcome. The first of many, I hope."
Bella opened her mouth, no doubt to protest my spending unnecessary money on her. Thankfully Mom stepped forward, and said, "Let me put them into water for you dear, and then I can place them right by your bedside. Does that sound okay?"
"Yes. Thanks Esme," Bella said with a sigh, giving up her argument.
"No problem, sweetheart." As my mother prepped the flowers, she sent a wink my way. I would have to thank her later for intervening.
Settling down for breakfast, Tony doing the majority of the talking. Since I didn't want to give away all of the details, he spent the time wondering where we were going, listing ten different places. Most weren't happening today, but now I at least had ideas for future family days. Mom asked when we planned to be back. I wasn't entirely sure how long Tony's attention span would last. I was hoping to take them out to dinner, but I guess we would have to play it by ear and see how much energy he had left later on in the day. Regardless, I told her not to wait for us. I'm sure my parents could appreciate a night out for themselves as well.
In no time, we were bundled up and getting into the car. Despite being late March, it was still rather chilly. Tony was bouncing in his seat, and if it wasn't for his many layers, I would have assumed he was moving so much to keep himself warm. Instead, his bouncing was due to excitement, a fact that was confirmed when he asked, "Where are we going first?"
"I thought we could head to Navy Pier first before the crowds descend. After all, it is the most visited attraction in Illinois."
"But I thought we were in Chicago?" asked Tony, thoroughly confused.
"Illinois is the state that we are in. Chicago is the town. Just like you live in the state of Washington, but the town of Forks," I explained.
"Whoa, that is so cool. What's at the Navy place?"
"Ferris. Wheel. By water," Bella answered him.
"Yes! I wanted to see that. And the carousel! Can we see that too?" Tony asked.
"The Carousel is not open year-round. It opens in late Spring, so it's still a little early for that. But we can come back in a couple of weeks and give it a try, along with the other rides. How does that sound?" I asked, hoping he wasn't too disappointed.
"That's okay. The Ferris Wheel is what Mommy told me most about, so that's good enough for me."
"Oh yea?" I asked, sparing a glance at Bella. "What did Mommy tell you about it?"
"It goes high in the sky, and you can see all of Chicago. You ride in these cars called gongallas."
"Gondolas" Bella corrected.
"That's what I said," Tony replied. "The Gongolas are red, and there are forty of them. That's all of your toes and fingers twice. Mommy said her favorite time to ride was at night so she could see the lights of the city. She said that her Edward took her there after going to see Shakes, uh, what was his name Mommy?"
"Shakespeare. He wrote. Plays."
"Mommy's Edward took her to see a play and then up in the sky to see the lights. And that being up so high in the sky made Mommy cold, so her Edward had to give her hugs to keep her warm."
Bella was blushing again at Tony's mention of her Edward. While I wanted to poke fun, I decided to teach Tony some new things. "Actually, you want to know something? The Ferris Wheel from Mommy's story was old, so they replaced it. This one is called the Centennial Wheelnow, and is even taller. And, the gondolas are blue to match the water. It opened in 2016, so Mommy's never been on it. You both can ride it for the first time together!" I told him.
"Didn't. Know that." Bella said, with a frown.
"Yea, it was in honor of the Pier's 100th anniversary. The updated version allows patrons to enjoy the ride year-round now since the gondolas are climate controlled."
"Makes sense," she said, though the frown was still there.
I reached over to grasp her hand. "Hey, new doesn't erase the memories that you had there. It just means now you have to create new memories."
"You're right. Just…Change. Is hard," she shrugged.
"Yes, it is hard. But it can also be exciting." When she didn't respond to that, I added, "We could always head down to Missouri. That's where the old one got repurposed if you really want to ride on that one."
"Not. Necessary." Bella rolled her eyes, but a smile graced her face. I was glad to see I got a positive reaction.
"Tell me more about the Ferris Wheel Daddy," Tony whined, bringing the attention back to him.
"I don't know too much more buddy. I've only been on the new one once myself. Alice and I took Sophia a few years back. But I'm sure the people there can tell you a whole lot more."
Despite the early hour, the Pier was still relatively crowded. We had to wait about twenty minutes before we could board the Ferris Wheel, but Tony asked the employee a million questions while we waited. Some of the questions, the employees didn't have answers to, but they still provided information with confidence to appease the little guy. Once we finally boarded a gondola, Tony rushed up to the glass to see all that he could see.
"Sit down. Tony. Or can't. Go."
"The ride can't start unless everyone's seated buddy. Sit here by the window. You'll be able to see everything, I promise," I reiterated, in case he didn't understand his mother's message.
Tony was in awe the entire ride. Bella was snapping pictures, wanting to capture this moment. I quickly stole the camera, and told her, "It's your first ride too. We need to commemorate that."
She tried to put up a fight, but posed with Tony to get it over with. Another guest saw us, and said, "Would you like one of the whole family? I can take it for you?"
"Yes, please. That would be great." Tony came and sat on my lap, leaning over to place his head on his mother's shoulder. I wrapped my arm around Bella to bring us closer together.
The lady took the picture, and looked at the display screen. "Looks perfect. You guys are very photogenic." She turned the camera around so we could see the outcome as well.
"What's photogeric mean?" Tony asked.
"It means that we take good pictures," I told Tony, though my eyes were captivated by the first family photo we had together. That was so going on my desk at work. And in my apartment. Maybe even in my wallet.
"Oh." Turning to the lady, Tony said, "Thank you. You take good pictures."
"Such a gentleman. Why thank you, young man. Enjoy the rest of your ride."
After we got off the Ferris Wheel, Tony asked if we could go to the dessert place that served the long cinnamon sticks. I figured he meant Xurro. Looking at my watch, I saw it was still morning, which probably wasn't an ideal time for sugary desserts. I offered an alternative instead.
"How about we hold off on those desserts, and go to Billy Goat Tavern instead? We can get some of their Cheezeborger's To-Go, and go take the Classic Lake Tour? That way we can see more of Chicago from the water?" Second guessing myself, I turned to Bella, "Does he get sea-sick? Maybe eating and going on the water isn't a great idea. We could always do something else."
"Used. To boats. Should. Be fine," Bella reassured me. Silly me. I forgot he was Charlie's grandson, and had probably been on the lake fishing before he could even walk.
"Do they serve Goats at this place? I don't know if I want to eat a goat, Daddy," Tony looked at me strangely.
"That's just the name buddy. The story goes that a goat fell off a truck, and went inside the bar. The owner adopted it, and grew a goatee, which is a beard, so they could be twins! He loved the goat so much that he named the bar after his new pet. This place is known for its cheeseburgers. Your Uncle Emmett and I would eat these all the time. His tummy is so big, he would get 4 burgers on one sandwich. It's called a homerun."
"Four burgers? How did he open his mouth that big?" Tony disbelievingly asked.
I chuckled at him. "Your Uncle Emmett's mouth is pretty big, just like the rest of him. We'll have to come back with him one time so you can see him do it."
We got our lunch, and headed towards the loading dock for the boat tour. I was worried Tony might get bored, since it was forty minutes long, but he wanted to see all of "Mommy's Chicago." Because of this, he paid very close attention to the sights the guide was pointing out. I wouldn't be surprised if we found ourselves heading to the aquarium, the planetarium, Grant Park or Buckingham Fountain in the future.
Since finding things from Bella's stories was so important, I made sure we went by Chicago's Shakespeare Theater, so I could point out that this is where Bella and I went before the Ferris Wheel ride all those years ago. While there, I saw Bella's eyes light up when she saw that they were currently running a production of Twelfth Night. I filed that tidbit away for a potential date night option for us.
Figuring we should just make a day of it at Navy Pier, we decided to stop by the Children's Museum so Tony could enjoy some of the hands-on experiences. While he busied himself in the Cloud Buster, an indoor climbing structure, I took the opportunity to chat with my girl.
"You doing okay? I know this is way more activity than you're used to."
"Fine. Sitting not. So strenuous."
"But getting in and out of the gondola, in and out of the boat, not to mention the car—it's a lot of jostling around for you. No weird twinges in your ribs?"
"Have meds. If need them." I guess she could see in my face that I didn't believe her, so she added, "Stop worrying."
"It's the doctor in me. I can't help it. And I'm not sure I fully trust you would tell me if you weren't feeling okay. So, I need to do my own sleuthing here."
"You don't. Trust me?" Bella asked, eyebrow raised. Of course, she would focus in on that aspect of my statement.
"I trust you explicitly. However, I do not trust you to put yourself first, especially when Tony is having an amazing day. Regardless, we've already done plenty today—even if we had to cut it short, he would not be disappointed."
"I know. But I'm fine."
"Oh, I know you are fine. Damn fine," I said, with a smirk, which earned me another eye roll, but also another blush.
"Stop. It."
"Stop what? Speaking the truth? I can't do that my fair lady. My mother always taught me to speak the truth."
"Too good. At this," she muttered to herself, but I overheard. Not wanting to push my luck, I moved to a safer topic.
"So, since you're the Chicago story-teller, any other ideas of what we should see today? Or do you think we did enough?"
"Think did. Enough."
"You certainly have given him plenty of landmarks and things to see. I just hope you guys are here long enough to get to them all," I said, though my heart plummeted at the thought of them leaving again. Why did I have to bring this up now? We were having such a good time.
"Have time. And options."
"Rights…options." As if sensing my mood had taken a turn, Bella reached out and took my hand.
"We'll figure. This out."
"I just want to be together Bella, as a family. Whether it be here, or Forks, or Timbuktu. I just know that this last month has been the best month I've had in years. And I know the best has yet to come. I don't want to lose this."
Tony rushed forward to tell us he wanted to move on to the Dinosaur exhibits, so the conversation was dropped. We made our way through the museum, letting Tony dictate where we would explore next. By the time we were done, and after spending a vast amount of money at the gift store, I saw that it was close to 5 PM. I figured it was time we started thinking about dinner. Turning to the guest of honor, I asked, "So we've done deep dish pizza. And we've done Cheezeborgers. What are you hungry for tonight?"
Tony stretched his arms out, and give a big yawn. "I'm kinda sleepy. I think I just wanna go home."
"That's fine buddy. We can head back now. I can pick something up to eat on the way back to Grandma and Grandpa's."
Tony shook his head no. "But you guys aren't tired. You guys should go eat something."
Bella gave Tony a strange look, but said, "Can't leave. You alone."
"What about Grandma and Grandpa? Aren't they home? They can watch me while I sleep?" Tony asked.
"I told Grandma and Grandpa this morning that I didn't know when we were going to be home, so I believe they went out on a date night."
"A date night? That's 'mantic!" Tony said.
Raising my eyebrow at him, I inquired, "Romantic? What do you know about Romance?"
Tony got a panicked look on his face. "Sofia made me watch all those Disney movies. She likes to talk about 'mantic stuff. Every princess needs a prince."
Bella and I shared a look, wondering how we ended up having this strange conversation.
"Well, since they're out doing romantic stuff, no one is home to watch you, so we're all going to go home."
"Maybe Aunt Alice can watch me? Grown-ups need time away from the kids."
"What's going on buddy?" I asked him.
"Nothing. Nothing's going on," he insisted, but made it only clearer that something indeed was going on instead. Before I could question him further, he pushed, "Just call her. I'm sure it's okay."
Confused, but wanting to move along, I dialed Alice's number.
"Yellow?" I heard my sister's exuberant greeting.
"Hey Alice. Tony here is tired, and insisting he wants to go home and sleep, but he doesn't want Bella and I to come with him. This has you written all over it. Do you have any idea what's going on?"
I heard Alice chuckle through the phone, and said, "Tired, huh? No, I have no idea where this is coming from. But we're home for the night. You can definitely drop him off. Heck, him and Sophia can even have a sleepover. If he seems adamant about it, he must really want you guys to do this," she deadpanned.
"You know I don't believe you right?"
"Moi? Are you calling me a liar? I take offense to that," she angerly mocked.
"I just don't understand why he's being so adamant about it. We've had a long day. There's no harm in all of us going home now."
"Oh, I'm sure if you thought reallllllly hard about it, you might put it all together. But there's no time for that now. Why don't you just give in to the boy's desires, and send him my way. Then you and Bella can ride off into the sunset together. Doesn't that sound appealing, Big Brother?"
She had me there. If Tony was taken care of, then I would have the perfect excuse to take Bella out on a date. I looked at Tony to see that he had his hands folded together, begging me to say yes. There certainly was more to this than meets the eye, but who was I to shoot a gift horse in the mouth?
I put my hand over the mouthpiece, and turned to Bella. "It's up to you. Alice says Tony is welcome to stay over there for a sleepover. You want to get dinner with me? Or are you too tired, and just want to head home?"
Bella looked back and forth from Tony and me, debating what the right answer was here.
"Go out Mommy. Have a night on the town. You never do."
"Where. Did you. Hear that? Night. On town?"
"From Uncle Jake."
"Of course," I scoffed. Not looking to start an argument, I focused back on Bella. "Well, yay or nay? Will you have dinner with me?" I offered her my best smile, hoping that might help sway her decision.
Bella dropped eye contact, and focused on her lap. I figured she was about to let me down easy. "Free. Sitting. Hard to. Turn down," she said softly.
Was that her saying yes to a date? Though she still avoided eye contact, I saw that her cheeks bloomed red, showing that she was embarrassed by the situation. But yet, she still said yes to going out to eat with just me. That must mean she wants this. She wants us. This was a good sign.
I didn't think it was possible but I felt my smile got even bigger on my face. "That it is. Alright, you start thinking about where you want to go while I square things away with my sister."
"But the boy's gotta pick," Tony said, bringing the attention back to him.
"Not always," I said, putting the phone back to my mouth to talk to my sister.
"Thank you for offering. We will love to take you up on it. We can be by you guys in about 30 minutes. Does that work?"
"That's fine. I'm guessing if you go home and pack him a bag, that might put a nix on the whole idea?" Alice asked me.
Right, Tony didn't have any pajamas, or clothes for tomorrow. But if we went home, would that just give Bella time to talk herself out of this? Worried that Bella might renege, I simply said, "I don't want to chance it. You have stuff he could use?"
"Of course. I have things I bought for him but haven't gifted to him yet that we can make work for tomorrow. Just get him to me, and then worry about you. You ready for this? Where are you going to take her? Nothing too fancy—she didn't have time to prepare for something like that."
"We'll figure that out ourselves, Alice. I know something is going on here, but I'm not going to worry about that right now. We'll see you guys soon." With that I hung up the phone.
"So, I'm going to Aunt Alice's?" Tony asked, trying to play catch up with the conversation.
"Yes. And she said you can sleep over there with Sophia."
Tony threw his fist in the air, "YES! I can't wait."
"Thought. You were. Tired," Bella asked, surprised by his energetic outburst.
Offering a very fake yawn, Tony responded, "I am. So sleepy. Just excited I get to see my best friend again. Well, let's go. Time to go to bed. And time for you guys to go get some food."
Bella and I made eye contact again, but all I could do was shrug at our son's behavior. I may not understand it, but I wasn't complaining.
We made our way back to the car. I put Bella in first, and then went to put her wheel chair in the trunk. Tony followed me to the back of the car. He motioned for me to lean down, so he could talk to me, which I obliged.
"I think you should get 'ghetti and meatballs. It's kinda 'mantic."
"Is it?" I said, realization starting to set in.
"Worked in Lady and the Tramp," he said, shrugging his shoulders.
I cracked up, "I guess it did. I will keep that in mind. Thanks Tony."
"No problems," Tony said, with a huge smile on his face.
I'm sure my smile mirrored his. After all, it seems that he and I had the same agenda. To get Bella to fall in love with me. Now that's a plan I could work with.
