DISCLAIMER: The characters do not belong to me…they are all the creation of the wonderful Stephenie Meyer.
Edward's POV
I laid in the bed, watching Bella sleep, with my hand resting on her abdomen. I knew it was too early to feel anything, but I couldn't seem to keep my hand to myself. There was a baby growing right beneath my fingers...our baby.
I placed a light kiss against her skin, not wanting to wake my beautiful wife just yet. "Hello, little one," I whispered, knowing it was too early for me to be heard, but still feeling an overwhelming desire to say it.
Bella looked so peaceful and angelic as she slept, her brown hair fanned out across her pillow, with her arms above her head. Her long legs were tangled up in the blanket with her feet poking out at the end of the bed. I chuckled, marveling at how lucky I still felt every day, getting to wake up next to her. This wonderful angel had come into my life three years ago, and ever since then, I had been blissfully happy with her. She loved me more than I deserved, and I loved her more than I could ever express with words or gestures…Bella was my world.
She sighed and began to stir, beginning her morning wake-up ritual. I knew her next move would be to kick the covers off the rest of the way, so I made sure to keep my legs away from her. She groaned lightly and then began to move her legs, pushing the covers until they were practically falling of the bed.
She yawned loudly, lifting her arms into the air and scrunching up her face, closing her eyes even tighter. She arched her back and groaned as she stretched herself out, and then she relaxed into the bed, putting both of her hands on top of the one I had on her stomach.
"Morning, Edward," she chuckled, finally opening those gorgeous, brown eyes of hers.
"Morning, Love," I laughed, kissing her cheek. "Did you sleep well?"
"Very well," she replied, turning onto her side and snuggling up against me. "How long have you been up watching me sleep?"
"Not long. Just enough to be reminded of how very lucky I am to wake up with you every day."
"Mmn. You've got that backward, Mister."
I was getting ready to reply when I felt her tense up. I quickly pulled her over me and set her on the floor so that she would be closer to the bathroom. As soon as she was steady, she took off running and I followed right behind her. I held her hair and rubbed her back as she knelt down on the cold tile floor. I would have to ask Esme to pick something up to put there for Bella so she could be at least a little more comfortable during this stage of her pregnancy.
Once she was done, I set her on the counter and wiped her face down with a cool towel. She smiled gratefully at me, holding my free hand tightly in both of hers.
"Are you okay?" I asked her.
"Six to seven more weeks of this," she sighed.
"Why don't we look through that book you bought me and see if it has any tips on how to make your morning sickness better?"
"I would really like that, Edward."
A booming knock sounded on the bedroom door. Bella and I exchanged a glance and then started laughing, having a pretty good idea of who we would find on the other side of the door. We walked over and opened it just a crack, and were greeted by a laughing Lily.
Emmett moved Lily from side to side as he pretended she was the one talking. "Auntie Bella, Uncle Eddie. Santa came and I want presents. Pwease come downstairs."
"Pwease?" Bella asked, laughing.
"I'm just a baby," Emmett continued. "And I'm cute so forgive my speech."
"What a wordy baby you are," I laughed, opening the door wider.
Bella took Lily from Emmett and cuddled with her, kissing the baby all over the side of her face. "I love you, I love you, I love you," Bella chuckled, continuing to kiss Lily.
"She loves you, too," Emmett assured Bella, smiling proudly at the sight before him. "And you, too, Eddie," he added, patting me on the shoulder. "Now let's make her day by taking her downstairs to open up gifts."
"I think it's your day that will be made," I told him, wrapping an arm around Bella's waist and helping her down the stairs.
"There you guys are!" Alice chirped as we entered the living room.
"Bella, dear, we let you sleep in as long as we could, but with a whiny Alice and a pouting Emmett, we were outnumbered," Esme said, hugging Bella and Lily, and then me.
"It's okay, Esme," Bella chuckled. "I was already awake."
"Were you sick this morning?" Esme whispered.
Bella nodded her head, a slight blush tainting her cheeks.
"I'll make you some tea and bring you some crackers. It'll perk you right up."
"Thank you," Bella said with a bright smile.
I pulled my mother into my arms and hugged her tightly. "Thank you, Mom."
Esme hugged me back just as tight. "I am so thrilled for Bella and you. You will both make wonderful parents."
"Come on, you guys!" Emmett whined. "I finally get Squirt and Eddie down here and we still aren't opening any gifts."
"Go ahead," Esme laughed, releasing me. "Let Emmett open a gift. I'll be right back."
"No," Rosalie said sternly. "Emmett is more than old enough to wait a few more minutes, Esme."
"Ah, Rosie," Emmett groaned.
Bella chuckled, hiding her face behind Lily. She always loved to watch Rose boss Emmett around, especially with the way he always caved and listened to her.
Lily reached out her little hands and took ahold of my shirt, pulling herself toward me as she giggled.
"I think someone wants her uncle," Bella chuckled, handing Lily over to me.
"Hello, Lily Bear," I said, helping her to stand up on my legs.
She bounced up and down in my arms, her little knees buckling slightly and her curls bouncing all over. She excitedly talked to me in her baby gibberish, her little blue eyes wide and sparkling.
"You are one excited little girl this morning, aren't you?" I asked, getting a huge laugh from her in reply.
"She really does love her Uncle Edward," Alice chirped, scooting over next to me. "But she loves her Auntie Alice even more." Alice wiggled her fingers toward Lily, but Lily grabbed my shirt and tucked herself against me.
Jasper laughed and pulled a pouting Alice into his arms. "Seems she still hasn't forgiven you for the twenty-two wardrobe changes you put her through the last time we babysat."
"Alice!" Rose hissed. "Twenty-two?"
Emmett glared at Alice as he took Lily out of my arms, hugging her against him in a protective manner. "No wonder my poor princess cried when she saw you. You're an evil little pixie. Evil!"
"I made it up to her," Alice huffed. "Just wait until you see what I got her for Christmas."
"Her room is already overflowing from the way you spoil her," Rosalie said with a grin.
"Yes, but she's getting older every day. She needs big girl toys," Alice explained. "And if Bella and Edward have a little girl, Lily's old toys can go to her."
"I believe they are both hoping for a boy," Jasper chuckled.
Bella's eyes widened seconds before she dropped her head to hide behind her hair.
"What's wrong, Bella?" I asked, pulling her against my side. "Why are you blushing and hiding?"
"Well…I…I don't mean to be so biased," she whispered.
"Bella, dear, here is your tea," Esme interrupted, holding out the steaming cup.
I carefully took the cup and saucer from her, knowing how easily accidents seemed to happen around Bella. "I'd better hold onto those until my lovely wife decides to come out of hiding," I said, hoping a joke would coax Bella out of her shy state.
"Which one of you has embarrassed my daughter to the point of hiding?" Esme asked, her hands on her hips and a frown on her face.
"Jasper did it," Emmett yelled out, using Lily's arm to point at him. Lily giggled happy and continued to point on her.
"Jasper Hale," Esme scolded. Lily helped her out, yelling at Jasper in her baby talk.
"Esme, I swear I didn't mean to. I had no idea she would get embarrassed about it," Jasper said quickly.
"Yeah, Squirt, why are you embarrassed anyway?" Emmett asked.
"Because," Bella huffed, blowing her hair away from her face and pushing the rest away with her hands.
"My, we are moody today," Rose chuckled.
"Rose, don't tease the dear girl," Esme said, trying to hide her smile. "Go on, Bella. Tell us what's troubling you."
"Well…It's just…I know I should be happy to be pregnant at all, and not worried about if it's a boy or a girl. I know there are so many couples out there who dream of having a child and it just seems sort of selfish of me to be picky. But I can't help it." Bella looked up at me through her lashes, seeming so shy and innocent in that moment. "I really love the idea of having a little boy," she said, her voice so soft I had to strain to her the words.
I smiled and kissed her forehead, pulling her completely into my lap. "I like that idea, too, Love. And there's nothing wrong with it."
"Bella, dear, it's not selfish at all," Esme assured her, sitting down next to us. "I wished with both of my children. And I was lucky enough to get them in the exact order that I wished for them in."
"Really?" Bella asked, her smile slowly returning to her face.
"Yes, my dear. I believe all mothers have a secret wish in their heart," Esme replied. "But that's okay. Once that baby is placed into your arms, it doesn't matter if it's a boy or a girl. It only matters that the baby is alive and healthy, and all yours. No dream can replace the reality of your baby in your arms."
"What was Renee thinking when she dreamed up this big lug?" Rose teased, resting her head on Emmett's shoulder.
"She was thinking a special blonde haired beauty was going to need a big, strong man to love her and take care of her," Emmett said, kissing Rose's cheek sweetly.
"Aw!" Alice, Bella, and Esme sighed as Rose sniffled. Lily leaned over and put her forehead on Rose's cheek, patting her mother's head softly.
"That's right, Princess," Emmett cooed. "Give your mommy lots of love. She deserves it."
"Edward, I think he's finally catching on to how to speak romantic," Jasper chuckled.
"It took us long enough to teach him," I joked, grinning at Emmett.
"Are we going to open some presents or what?" Emmett asked, looking slightly annoyed.
"Yes, we are," Carlisle chuckled. "And Lily goes first."
"Ah, man!" Emmett groaned.
"Daddy, you get to help your princess open those gifts," Rose pointed out, effectively wiping away Emmett's pout.
"Let's go with that huge purple one first," Emmett said, settling Lily into his lap. "We want to see what's in that one, right, Princess?"
Lily only laughed and clapped her hands together. Jasper chuckled as he put the giant gift right in front of Lily and Emmett. Lily immediately leaned forward and started smacking her hands against the gift and excitedly talking in her little baby language.
"She likes the wrapping paper," I chuckled, holding Bella close as she sipped her tea and munched on her crackers.
"What in the world did you get her, Alice?" Rose asked, eyeing the large package warily.
"Something every princess deserves," Alice replied with a giant smile.
"Rip it right there, Lily," Emmett instructed as we all watched Lily and him tear at the paper. They both were yanking off big pieces and tossing them to the side.
"Em, she's got a piece in her mouth," Rose cautioned, trying to reach her baby girl.
"Don't let her choke on it," Esme warned, looking as if she wanted to reach for the baby too.
"What are you doing, Princess?" Emmett asked as he turned Lily to face him. He gently held her mouth open while Rose took out all of the paper.
Lily started to whimper, upset that her snack had been taken away. As the last of the paper was cleared out, Lily let out an ear-piercing scream.
"Don't cry, Princess," Emmett pleaded, hugging his screaming daughter. "Daddy couldn't let you choke. Don't be mad." He started kissing both of her cheeks loudly and soon turned her tears into happy laughter.
"Who would have ever thought my big bear of a brother could be so sweet and tender?" Bella mused, looking up at me.
"Lily has had a very calming effect on him," I said, kissing her forehead.
"What kind of effect do you think our baby will have on us?"
"I have no idea, Love, but I can't wait to find out."
As the morning progressed, the living room became a sea of tattered paper and loud, moving baby toys. The giant purple package had ended up being a castle, complete with horse-drawn carriage. Carlisle and Esme had gotten Lily a rocking zebra that she loved to hug more than ride. Bella and I had gotten her some books, hoping she would be an avid reader, just like her aunt. Rose and Emmett had given her clothing since Lily seemed to be growing every single week now. Carlisle and Esme gave her some educational toys and deposited some money into her college fund.
Once Lily crashed in her sea of gifts, Rose took her upstairs and put her into her crib. After that, we all took turns opening the gifts we had gotten each other. We were usually done by now, but with a baby in the house, everything seemed to move at a slower pace. It was hard to imagine what next year would be like with two babies, but I was extremely excited to find out.
"Alright," Carlisle sighed. "Christmas is finally over with."
Esme sat down on the arm of his chair and kissed his cheek. "Are you tired already, dear?"
"I think I'm getting too old for Christmas," he chuckled.
"Don't say that, Dad," Alice told him. "You're only as old as you feel and you are not allowed to feel old, ever."
"Planning on making sure I'm around forever, huh?" he asked, smiling at her.
"Absolutely," Alice said, hopping up and dancing over to him. She sat down on his lap and hugged him tightly. "You have so much to do, Dad. You have to give me away in two days, and then you have to be here to help me spoil my own children when I have some one day."
"I'll be back," Bella said suddenly, standing up and putting her tea cup on the coffee table.
"Everything okay?" I asked, watching her face closely.
"Sure," she replied, giving me a smile. I knew right away she was lying, but not the why.
I nodded my head and let her go, planning to follow right behind her. I gave her a few seconds head-start and then went after her. I found her in our bathroom, sitting on the edge of the tub and crying into her hands. "Bella?" I called, kneeling before her.
She wiped at her eyes with the tissue she was clutching and tried to smile at me.
"Don't pretend, Love. Tell me what's bothering you," I pleaded.
"I'm just not myself, Edward. I promise that's all."
"What's upset you, Bella?"
"I'm not upset, just sad."
"Okay, then. Why are you sad?"
"Because I miss my parents," she sobbed, sliding off the edge of the tub and into my arms. "I want my mom to be here to help me with this pregnancy and I want my dad to sit around and spoil his grandchild. I want to hear stories about me as a baby and go through old family photos with them."
"I'm so sorry we can't truly share this with them, Bella. But you have to know they are watching out for you, and that they are happy to see you happy. And I know it's not the same, but we can do those things with Emmett and the rest of our family. I'm sure he was old enough to remember a few things about you as a baby."
She nodded her head, her sobs somewhat quieted. "I know some of the stories, but it's not the same when they aren't here to tell them in their voices." She sniffled and wiped her face. "I'm sorry, Edward. It's Christmas morning and I shouldn't be crying like this."
"Bella, we've talked about this. You have nothing to apologize for. It's natural for you to miss your parents, especially with the holidays and the baby. Would you like me to get Rosalie so you can talk to her? We know she's already been through this exact same thing, with Jasper and her having lost their parents."
"Yes, please. Don't tell everyone why, though. I don't want Emmett freaking out and coming up here. I can't handle him right now."
"Okay, Love," I promised, lifting her up and carrying her into our room. I set her down on the sofa and covered her with the throw blanket. "I'll be right back. Just rest while I get Rosalie, okay?"
"Okay," she agreed, smiling a true smile for me.
I made it to the second floor and saw Rose coming out of Lily's room. "Is she still asleep?"
"Yeah," Rose chuckled, softly closing the door. "She was whimpering in her sleep because she had managed to kick her blanket off of her."
"Rose, can I ask you for a favor?"
"Anything, Edward."
"It's Bella…"
"Her parents?" Rose questioned.
"Yes."
"I'll go talk to her. "
"Thank you, Rose," I said, pulling her into a hug.
"Bella is my little sister in all ways," Rose replied. "I'll go up and talk to her and have her smiling and laughing in no time. You just go downstairs and relax."
"That's really not possible, but I'll go downstairs anyway," I told her.
"She'll be fine, Edward. I promise you. She's just feeling overwhelmed. I went through all of this and I'm so happy to be able to use those experiences to help Bella. Now! Go do something with yourself and I will return a much happier Bella to you. And let Emmett know that Lily is sound asleep before the big bear runs up here and wakes her."
"Okay," I chuckled, turning and heading down the rest of the stairs.
"Where's Bella?" Alice asked, running up to me.
"She'll be down in a bit," I replied.
"Oh. Should I go up?"
"No, not this time. Rose is with her."
"Oh," Alice said in a soft voice. She knew just as well as I did that neither of us could completely understand the pain Bella was going through—we still had our parents with us.
"She doesn't want Emmett to know so I need you to help me keep him distracted."
"That won't be a problem," she chuckled. "He opened his new game and is currently trying to win against Jasper." Alice linked her arm in mine, pulling me over to the loveseat with her. "How upset is she?"
"She really misses them right now, Ali."
"Do you think having Mom talk to her would help?"
"No. Mom is good at comforting, but Rose knows exactly what Bella is going through."
"Are you a bit jealous that you aren't up there with Bella right now?"
I chuckled, hugging Alice tighter against me. "I'm not Emmett, you know."
"I do know, but I also know how close Bella and you are."
"I know that as much as I want to understand and sympathize, I will never know exactly what it is that Emmett, Bella, Rosalie, and Jasper have gone through. I can't imagine having come this far without Mom and Dad being there for us, so there's really no way for me to know what Bella needs to hear right now. If Rose can do that, then I owe her and have nothing to feel jealous about. Bella's happiness is first and foremost."
"So, I guess maybe I should hide that last gift I have for Bella until later on," Alice sighed.
"What did you do?" I asked, turning to look at my sister's face.
"It's a gift for the baby."
"Ali, she begged you not to," I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose. I loved my big sister dearly, but sometimes, she just didn't know when to quit. Bella had explicitly told her no baby gifts until we knew the sex of the baby.
"I'm sorry, but I couldn't resist it! It was too perfect," Alice replied, not a bit of remorse in her face or posture.
"What is it, Alice?" I asked, curious about what could make her blatantly go against Bella's wishes.
"I found your old silver rattle in the attic. I took to the jewelry store and had it polished."
"Alice," Esme gasped, having overheard our conversation.
"I wanted you to be just as surprised as Bella, Mom. That's the only reason I didn't mention it, I swear," Alice said, looking apologetic this time.
"You really did that for us?" I asked her.
"Yeah," she replied smiling wide. "I know how much Bella loves learning about your childhood and how she hates to let me buy her stuff, so I thought this was the perfect thing for her."
"Did you wrap it in a way that we can see it?" Esme asked. "I haven't laid eyes on it in nearly twenty years."
Alice ran over to the tree and then ran back to us, holding a rectangular box. She carefully untied the blue ribbon and then lifted the lid from the box.
"Oh, Alice," Esme sighed, running her finger across the shiny, silver surface.
"I figure this is where Edward got his love of silver cars," Alice chuckled.
"Why are you three huddled together?" Carlisle asked, walking over to us.
"I'm showing them Bella's surprise gift," Alice chirped.
"Carlisle, look," Esme said, pointing at the box and sniffling lightly. "Do you remember when you gave that to me?"
"Of course, I do," he replied, hugging her tightly. "Alice, it's wonderful that you remembered it and thought to give it to Bella."
"What's up folks?" Emmett asked, popping up behind Carlisle with Jasper. "What are we all staring at?"
"Is that for Bella?" Jasper questioned, looking down at the box in Alice's hands.
"Yep," Alice chirped.
"What's for me?" a sweet voice asked from the stairs.
My family moved to the side, making room for Bella to join us. Rose and she came down the last stair together and walked over to the sofa as Alice finished getting the lid back on the box.
"What's for me?" Bella repeated, smiling at me, as I pulled her into my lap.
"Edward?" Alice questioned.
"I think it'll be fine, Ali," I assured her.
Alice smiled wide and held the box out to Bella. "Bella, this is for you. I promise it's your last gift this year."
"I'll hold you to that," Bella said, smiling a little. She carefully took the box from Alice and began working the lid off. "The box is heavy, Alice. I hope you didn't get anything too extravagant."
"Just open it up," Alice urged.
Bella finally got the lid off and her breath caught in her throat. Her eyes filled with tears and a few spilled over onto her reddened cheeks. "Oh, Alice."
"So you like it then?" Alice asked nervously, bouncing around next to us.
Bella traced the engraved letters on the rattle, slowly nodding her head.
I kissed her wet cheek and smiled for her. "Do you really like it, Bella?"
"Edward, it's beautiful. Is it really yours?"
"Yes. My dad just reminded me of the story behind it. Would you like to hear it?"
"Of course I would," Bella replied, putting her hand against my cheek. "I love hearing stories about you growing up."
"Well, my mom was eight weeks pregnant with me and was having a rough time with her morning sickness." I winked at Bella and she giggled, pressing her forehead to mine. "Smells really affected her and she couldn't handle food in the early morning. So, my dad was forced to eat plain old cereal all the time."
"Not that I minded," Carlisle interjected.
I chuckled. "And because he didn't mind and he wanted to prove to my mother how happy he was about her being pregnant, he went out in search of the perfect gift. You see, my mother was absolutely convinced from the moment she found out she was pregnant that I would be a boy. She had my name picked out within hours of getting her test results. So after searching all day, my dad saw this rattle in the window of a jewelry shop. He went inside and asked to have my initials engraved onto it. A few days later, the rattle was ready and my dad brought it home to my mom."
"Did she get all weepy like me?" Bella giggled, her brown eyes bright with excitement.
"Why, yes, I did," Esme chuckled.
"Thank you. This is just perfect," Bella said. She hugged Alice first and then Esme. "I'm so lucky to have all of you with me and I love you all."
"And we love you, Squirt," Emmett said, walking over and wrapping Bella and Esme in one of his bear hugs.
The rest of the family followed suit until we were just eight sets of arms holding tightly to each other. Bella was right and we were all very lucky to have each other. Our baby was definitely coming into a wonderful, loving family and I couldn't wait to meet him…or her.
Of course Alice wasn't going to let Christmas pass without having something for the baby! LOL! And next chapter, is Alice's POV and her lovely wedding to Jasper. I hope to have that out next weekend for you guys!!
And a quick shout out to the ladies that keep me sane and writing ... You are my favorite cookies in the all word and I'm glad we share our duct-taped jar!