Twilight belongs to the ridiculously talented Stephenie Meyer.
A Father's Hope belongs to me.
A HUGE thanks to twimom817 for beta'ing. This wouldn't be nearly as pretty without her.
Chapter Seven
The weekend after the wedding, I made plans with Bella to take her and Chloe to the beach. The weather was sunny and warm, and I knew the three of us would welcome the getaway.
"Can we build sandcastles, Daddy?"
"We sure can, Chloebear. Did you grab your floaties? They're in the hall closet upstairs."
Bella and I had talked on the phone nearly every night since the wedding. Thankfully I'd been put on days at work until I started the detective program in September, but it meant a lot of paperwork. It seemed like all I did all day long was finish up reports and enter them in the computer. Talking with Bella in the evenings was a refreshing end to a boring day.
That's not to say that I didn't enjoy seeing Chloe fly out the door to welcome me home every evening because I did. It was something that I cherished and I realized that I'd miss it when she wasn't there. I had less than a month with her.
When I talked to Bella about it that night, she was very supportive much to my surprise.
"Edward … I don't mind waiting until Chloe goes back to California to spend time with you. I'm not saying that I don't want to spend time with her because I do, but I understand that it's important for the two of you to spend time together."
"Thank you for the offer, Bella but she'd be upset if she didn't get to spend time with you too. Sometimes you're all she talks about. Chloe adores you and I kinda have to admit that I'm not far behind her," I chuckled.
"I told you she was a smart little girl," Bella giggled.
So we made a deal that weeknights were reserved for Chloe and me, and on the weekends if Bella was up to it they were reserved for the three of us.
Chloe had begged and begged to go to the beach although I'm sure the beaches in Southern California were far superior to the cold, rocky beaches of the Pacific Northwest.
At first, Bella tried to beg out of going with us saying that the beach was relaxing but not one of her favorite places. Then she said she didn't want to go because we'd decided to make it an overnight trip and she didn't want to impose on both of my days off with Chloe.
But with both Chloe and I giving her puppy dog eyes and telling her that we'd cry if she didn't go, she finally caved and kissed both of our cheeks telling us that we were irresistible.
Something should have told me there was something bigger going on with Bella than merely not wanting to go to the beach. When we arrived in Ocean City, she took Chloe and they went into the bathroom at the hotel while I checked us in. Once we'd dropped our things off in our room and got changed into our beach attire; me in my t-shirt and board shorts; Chloe in her swimsuit and cover-up. We sat and waited while Bella changed and she emerged wearing a pair of gray yoga pants and a form fitting tank top with her blue bikini top underneath.
"No shorts?" I asked playfully.
"Umm, not really," she said nervously.
"Bella … are you okay?" I asked, concerned.
"Yup," she replied before turning to Chloe. "Ready to hit the beach, kiddo?"
Chloe charged the door in excitement as I grabbed our beach towels and Chloe's beach toys.
Once we were down on the beach, Chloe made some friends with Bella's help and began to make sandcastles with them while Bella and I settled into our chairs and I adjusted the umbrella.
"Are you sure you're okay?" I asked Bella quietly.
"I'm perfect, Edward. Thank you for inviting me."
Bella's gratitude was sincere, but she didn't meet my eyes when she spoke. That wasn't at all like her but I decided not to question her again right away. I'd ask her later after Chloe was asleep.
For most of the afternoon, Bella and I played in the sand with Chloe, building sandcastles, tearing them down and then starting all over again.
"Let's go down to the water now!" Chloe said excitedly.
Bella looked a little bit leery of the idea but agreed none the less, and moments later we found ourselves walking in the surf swinging Chloe between us. Both of my girls laughing as we went. At one point they thought it would be funny to gang up on me and tickle me, pushing me down into the damp sand as they went. I tickled back with all that I had but they were no match for me and I finally had to cry uncle.
I tossed Chloe over my shoulder and we marched back up the beach to pack up our things for the day.
We took our time cleaning up after being out in the sand all day, but Bella was breathtaking when she emerged from the bathroom wearing a tight pair of dark skinny jeans and a black tank top with a lace jacket over it. On her little feet, she wore a pair of black lace ballet flats.
Chloe was dressed in a lavender sundress and she wore a pair of white shoes similar to Bella's.
"Look, Daddy! My shoes are just like Bella's!" Chloe said excitedly.
"I see that, baby girl. You look beautiful just like Bella too," I chuckled.
I reached out for Bella's hand and I led my girls out of our room.
That night, I took them out for seafood. Chloe of course, turned her nose up at it but Bella was thrilled. Dinner was relaxing. There was good conversation and even better company.
"So, Chloe … your daddy tells me that you're going to be starting Kindergarten next month," Bella began.
"Uh huh. I'll be bigged enough to go this year. I was too small last year."
"Aww, it happens Chloe. But it's so exciting that you'll finally get to go. Do you know what you'll do in Kindergarten?"
"Mom-mom says they'll teach me my a b c's but I already knowed em. She said they'll teach me how to write my name too, but I knowed that too. I just wanna do art and draw pictures for my mommy and daddy."
"You're so smart, Chloebear," I said, leaning over to kiss her temple.
"I love you, baby girl," I whispered.
"Love you too, Daddy. Do I really haveta go back to California and go to Kindergarten? Cuz I could just stay here with you and Bella and draw pictures. We could mail em to Mommy."
Bella looked at me sadly knowing that it would kill me to let Chloe go in a couple weeks.
"Mommy would miss you an awful lot, Chloebear. Besides, you've been here all summer, don't you want to spend a little time with Mommy?"
Chloe was off in her own little world after that. Bella slipped her warm hand into mine and squeezed it gently, a small reminder not to push it with Chloe.
That night, after Chloe had fallen asleep, Bella and I took a bottle of wine and went out on the deck. It was warm out and the sky was still tinged with the pastel colors of the sunset.
"Bella?"
"Hmm?"
"Something's wrong. I know I asked you about it earlier today and you said you were perfect, but you didn't meet my eyes and that's not like you. Did I do something wrong or …"
"No, Edward. You did nothing wrong. It's nothing like that."
"So what is it, Bella? Did you really not want to come with us this weekend?"
Bella looked away from me and exhaled heavily.
"Please, Edward … we've had such a nice day. Just let it go."
"Bella … you asked me to let you in and I'm trying. The door swings both ways, you have to let me in too or we won't work."
A/N: A little cliffie, I know. But maybe just *maybe* if I can manage to get in gear before we head off to Disney I'll give ya a bonus tomorrow. Any theories as to what's up with Bella?
Just so ya know ... I have the best readers = ) Thank y'all for joining me on this little journey.