Boy, writing this chapter felt like writing an essay. I sure hope it doesn't read like one.

Eclipse and all of the characters from the Twilight saga belong to Stephanie Meyer. I just like them better than she does.

Laying on the lakebed, I watched the raindrops from the storm pelt down on the water, sending ripples in all directions. In absolute stillness, not even needing to breathe under the water, I stared up as the storm slowly eased into a drizzle, and then stopped altogether. It would be a calming sight if everything in my head wasn't tumbling around in chaos. I had no idea what I wanted anymore. No, that was wrong—I knew exactly what I wanted. I wanted the love of my existence to be happy and safe and by my side. The issue was, I had no idea how to make any of those things happen anymore. I thought I figured out how to accomplish all three of those things at once. But, it turned out I had been wrong. Terribly, horribly wrong.

Drowning in a sea—or more accurately, a lake—of self-loathing, I didn't hear the thoughts approaching, nor the footsteps that accompanied them until it was too late. A large hand plunged into the water above me.

"No, no, no, no!" My protests trailed out of my lips as bubbles as I tried to dodge the hand, but it accurately predicted my movements and caught me by the front of the shirt.

With one hand, Emmett hoisted me out of the water and threw me onto the ground. Before I could try to make my escape, Emmett sat down heavily on my stomach, pinning me into the mud.

"I hate when you do this!" I whined.

"How do you think I feel? I'm gonna walk away from this with a wet butt."

I groaned.

"I know you're annoyed, but the last time we let you take the lead on something like this, things got real messy real fast. Nothing is going to get better if you choose to brood silently rather than talk things out."

To spite him specifically, I brooded silently.

Emmett pulled his small, silver cell phone out of his breast pocket and held it delicately in the palm of his hand. Using only his pinky, he fought against his natural strength so he could press the buttons without breaking it. After only one ring, Jasper picked up and asked if Emmett had found me yet.

Emmett chuckled, "Yeah. The little scamp made it all the way to Lake Ingalls." He reached down to muss my hair. Trapped, I had no way to dodge his hand and I was forced to take it. On the other end of the phone, Jasper told Emmett he would contact Carlisle and the two of them would be on their way.

Perfect. It was just what I needed. Pity and sympathy I didn't want or deserve. What I wanted and deserved was to drown in the lake beside me, but life wasn't going to let me have my way.

After Emmett hung up the phone, he glanced down at me. "Alice saw that you and Bella got into a fight. She didn't see any specifics—only that you made Bella cry and that you ended up at the bottom of a body of water. Once Jazz and Pop get up here, we'll get everything sorted out and help you fix it."

I stared up at the clouds overhead. "There's nothing to fix. I've already ruined everything."

"Bella's gonna forgive you."

"She shouldn't. I'm a danger to her heart as well as her life!"

Emmett leaned back on his hands and strained his neck back, and groaned loudly up at the night stay, "God! You are such a fucking drama queen!" He turned back to me. "You would risk your life, every minute of every day to be her side, would you not?"

I already knew where he was going with this and was already annoyed. Although it would be more fun to be difficult, I played along with him and his little game, hoping that it meant this conversation would come to an end faster. "Of course."

"And if she were to break your heart and run off with Jacob, only to come running back six months later, would you take her back?"

"Absolutely."

"And if you found out that she made a massive mistake that sent you into an emotional tizzy, what would you do?"

"I would forgive her."

"Well, dude, Bella can do the same for you." He poked me hard in the chest between syllables, "Fem-in-is-m!"

As I caught his hand before he could land the final poke, Jasper broke through the tree line.

"Thank god! The cavalry's here!" Emmett cheered.

"Why am I the calvary?"

"You know," Emmett shrugged, "because horses." He didn't elaborate out loud or in his mind.

Deciding to not address whatever that was, Jasper stood beside me. "I had to physically restrain my wife from coming up here herself and giving you a piece of her mind." You know how I feel about saying no to her.

"Sorry, Jasper." And I was.

"How's our future lookin'?" Emmett asked.

Jasper knew Emmett was asking after Alice's involving Bella and me. "Apparently, everything is still in place. Alice is confident that your fight with Bella hasn't ruined anything." He rose an eyebrow. I'm inclined to believe that whatever your fight was about, it was a necessary step towards that future.

I grimaced. I doubted that was true. If my future with Bella was still intact, it was only because Bella's overly-forgiving heart gave me yet another chance I did not deserve.

Carlisle stepped into the clearing next; disappointment was as clear in his thoughts as it was on his face. "Esme's upset." Which automatically meant Carlisle was upset.

It almost felt sinful to ask after all I had done to her. "How's Bella?"

"Asked Esme for nighttime cold medicine so she could sleep without having any dreams."

"Hardcore," Emmett tried to joke with Jasper, who coolly shook his head and said, "Not the time, man."

Carlisle continued, "Bella and Esme had a long talk that Esme feels good about. Charlie returned home about ten minutes ago to find his daughter fast asleep safe in her bed. Esme is currently in Bella's rocking chair, where she plans to remain until Bella wakes up."

I closed my eyes, once again thankful for Esme.

"I would love to know why, once again, my daughter is left heartbroken while my son is trying to run from her."

"I wasn't going to run," I grumbled.

Eyebrows lifted to his hairline, Carlisle gestured at Emmett who was sitting on top of me to prevent me from escaping.

"This is an unnecessary precaution," I told them defensively, "I was thinking. I was going to return once I figured everything out."

"Oh, we're figuring this out! We're figuring this out right now," Carlisle declared, "You have ignored, run away from, and dodged your problems with Bella for long enough. I will not allow my daughter any more pain. What happened?"

I had no choice but to tell them everything. My conversation with Jacob, and the conclusion that came with it. The hope of a perfect future for Bella that I could not seem to muster the happiness for no matter how hard I tried. Our fight tonight, that surprisingly did not begin or end with a breakup, like I had expected it to. By the time I was finished, they looked like the three wise monkeys: Carlisle's eyes cast downward with his hand on his brow, Jasper staring straight ahead squeezing his fingers to his temples, and Emmett covering his mouth to hide his dropped jaw. See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil, respectively.

Hand still upon his brow, Carlisle broke the silence. "Let me get this straight: when I suggested that you and Bella find fulfillment outside of one another, and Bella found that fulfillment in a friend, you decided that friend was now all she needed in her life."

"That would be correct," I nearly squeaked.

"And while the rest of us were working on ways to ease Bella out of her panic attacks by making her feel like a part of this family, you were actively making them worse by pushing her away?"

"It wasn't like that! I was giving her…"

"...something she didn't want and didn't ask for," Carlisle finished for me. "Do you understand that, Edward? Once again, you have hurt the girl you love because you decided you knew what was best without consulting her. Have you learned nothing at all from last September?"

"Of course, I did! It was nothing like September! It was always going to be her decision to make! I merely stayed back to allow the natural course of her life progress."

Carlisle pursed his lips, "And you truly believe that you are not on the natural course for her life?"

I swallowed hard. "Why would I be?"

Carlisle quickly blinked away the horror at that statement from his eyes, but it lingered in his thoughts. Jasper and Emmett remained mercifully silent.

"Do you really think that?"

When I stayed silent, Jasper took it upon himself to speak for me. "It's obviously an issue of trust."

Carlisle's eyebrows drew together, "What makes you say that, son?"

"Both Edward and Bella have zero trust in themselves to be enough for the other. Bella has gotten much better since Edward came home—she no longer doubts his love or his intentions. But she doesn't have faith in the relationship itself, which is why she still suffers from panic attacks when he's away for too long or why she needs to hear his voice every few hours to assure her that he's coming back. And I don't blame her. Bella is so attuned to Edward, that she can sense the uncertainty he harbors towards himself but wrongly places it on their relationship."

Carlisle and Emmett nodded along with Jasper as he continued, "Until Edward gets to the point where he is assured in himself and their future together, he is going to continue to search for something better for Bella, which is going to put a strain on the relationship, which is going to instill doubt in Bella and trigger her panic attacks."

"But Edward promised Bella he would never leave her," Emmett pointed out. "Do you think he didn't mean it, or that Bella didn't believe him?"

"No. He meant it and she believed it. He knows not to leave her, and I don't think he actually could. But that's just not enough. When he made that promise, his intention was to stay with Bella throughout her mortal life; it was never to turn her into a vampire. And even if she did end up leaving him for another, he would still spend the rest of her life watching her from afar. And in his mind, those things qualify as 'not leaving Bella.' But to Bella, 'not leaving' is being romantically involved for the rest of eternity. To Bella, 'not leaving' means she won't leave him either, even in death."

Carlisle nodded, "Yes, yes. I can see that. The same promise meant different things to both parties. Which is why neither can find peace in the current arrangement."

"So," Emmett began to summarize the points into an appropriate conclusion, "we need to get Edward to trust that himself and the life he can offer her will be enough to make Bella happy, and then he will be able to give Bella the commitment she needs to feel secure in their relationship, thus stopping the panic attacks."

"I believe so, yeah."

"Very insightful, Jasper," Carlisle commended his son.

He interlaced his fingers and flexed them over his head, "I just call 'em as I see 'em."

Simultaneously, they all turned to look down at me. I laid my head down on the ground and listened to three separate minds devise three separate plans on how to get me to see their side of the situation and get on board with turning Bella into a vampire and joining our family.

Always a man of action and never a strategist, Emmett kicked us off. "Eddie," He rested his forearm right on my chest and leaned over so we were face-to-face. "No one here is gonna is say you haven't done some stupid things. Because you've done some really stupid things. Probably the stupidest thing anyone had ever done. And you didn't just stop there. You kept making stupider decisions..."

"I really hope this has a point."

"But we were all stupid! When we left Forks with you, we all expected Bella to move on to bigger and better things beyond her dorky, emo boyfriend. I mean, who were you? Some punk kid who was straight up mean to her during her first month at a new school and then—"

"Emmett, I am begging you to make a point."

"The point is, all of those stupid things were done with the purest of intentions. You only did what you did because you put Bella's happiness miles before your own. If you only listened to what Bella wanted and fought for that as hard as you do for what you think she wants, you would make her the happiest person in the world. Give her what she wants, Eddie. Let her become a vampire for you."

"She shouldn't become a vampire for me." I repeated all the things Bella so accurately accused me of doing just a few hours ago. "I lied to her. I manipulated her. I gave up on her. I gave up on us. I used to fear that I might not be the best person for Bella, but now I am certain that I am actually the worst."

"Edward." Carlisle suppressed a sigh. "We are going to ignore the idea that you are the worst person for Bella, because it is so vastly inaccurate, it isn't even worth mentioning. There is not a single best, person for anyone. Every single relationship is between two flawed people. Some flaws you grow to love; some flaws you only tolerate. And all of that is healthy and normal."

"It's hard to remember that after living with three pairs of perfectly matched lovers," I grumbled.

"You think I'm the best person out there for Rose?" Emmett asked. "The girl was born and bred to be married off to upper-class royalty. You think she'd end up with an illiterate country boy who still laughs at fart jokes?"

I fought back a smile. Although I often thought Emmett was everything Rosalie needed in a partner, there were the rare occurrences where Rosalie found Emmett's child-like antics more annoying than charming.

"I have to get down on my knees if I want to kiss Alice on the collarbone," Jasper commented, as if this fact had just dawned on him. Despite ourselves, we all laughed at that mental image. Even Jasper joined in.

When the laughter died down, Jasper added more seriously. "But truly, I can't be the best thing for Alice. She's pure and sweet and deserves someone with a cleaner history than mine. Someone with willpower as strong as hers; someone who doesn't keep her on the outskirts of society, when she could easily integrate further in."

I've heard Alice's thoughts inside and out; I knew for a fact neither of those things ever crossed her mind. Every time one of Jasper's darker memories haunted him, she only felt concerned over his wellbeing, never disgust over his past. When he struggled with his thirst, she celebrated his successes, and never dwelled on his shortcomings.

I told Jasper as much.

"I know; she's amazing." He smiled, somehow falling a little more in love with Alice at that second. "And I want you to remember what you just told me when think Bella can't love you because of your past," he added, accurately guessing one of my doubts. I opened my mouth to tell him that it was different for Bella and me, but then closed it again. Because it wasn't different. Alice loved Jasper for who he was, not what he'd done in the past. And Bella could feel like same for me.

Carlisle stayed conspicuously quiet. Emmett noticed, as well. Still sitting on me, he reached over and playfully slapped either side of Carlisle's knees since he couldn't reach his shoulders. "Ey! We all know you and Ma are perfect for each other, Pops."

Carlisle smiled to himself. "We have our spats. I know she would appreciate someone who is more satisfied with a quiet evening at home, instead of always working or dragging her on explorations around the world."

I thought about how Bella told me she wasn't the best thing for me. As abhorrent as the thought was to me, it was true. Falling in love with my singer certainly was not in my best interest. I essentially tortured myself for months. At first, I tolerated the flames that licked my throat at her presence and regarded them as a price to pay to stay by her side—one I was more than willing to pay. But as time continued, I began to welcome the flames, because their presence meant I was with the one I loved most in the world. Of course, Bella's main flaw was something she couldn't help.

My flaws, however, were more numerous and things I had absolute control over. But, as Emmett pointed out, every mistake I made, I made with Bella's best interest in mind. I already made the effort to stop lying to Bella. I thought I stopped manipulating her, but I supposed that was something I needed to improve upon. So, maybe no one would ever be the best for Bella, but I could always work to be better.

What I didn't understand was what someone like Bella saw in me that would help her look past my obvious flaws.

Carlisle spoke as if he was the telepath, "Your love for Bella is something she has never experienced in her human life. You ask nothing of her. You consistently put her first. You take care of her and keep her safe. On top of all that, no one is going to love Bella as unconditionally and irrevocably as you do. So, you may never be the best for her, but what you can offer her is what she wants."

I couldn't argue with that. My love for Bella was as eternal as I was. It would never falter; only grow. No one alive could promise Bella the love that I could, even with the best intentions.

However, other men could offer her many things that I couldn't. "Okay, so, maybe I'm good for Bella, but you cannot convince me that life as a vampire is good for anybody."

"That might be true," Carlisle agreed, surprising me. "But you have already instilled more than enough fear in Bella for what is to come. Rose, Alice, and Esme have each spoken to her candidly to ensure that she is making an informed decision. Allow her to make her choice."

"She could hate it!" I argued. "Rosalie does! What if Bella hates it as much as Rose? What if she grows to resent me because of what she did for me?"

"Edward," I turned my head through the muck to look at Jasper, looming near the tree line behind Carlisle, "You can't center your entire frame of reference on Rosalie's darkest thoughts. Yes, she struggled the hardest with what she became, but that isn't everything she feels."

"I'd like to think that I've done a fairly decent job at making Rosalie happy in this life," Emmett interrupted.

"You make her immeasurably happy," Jasper confirmed. "And so does shopping with Alice. And interior design with Esme."

"Her research makes her happy," Carlisle added, "She loves knowing that she will always be the smartest person in any room she walks into. And she's happy that she gets to keep a young face, so she'll never have to give up the joy of proving a man wrong who underestimated her based on her youth and gender."

Emmett laughed. "She loves correcting those dusty mechanics who like to talk down to her, too. And she loves wearing her shortest skirts and highest heels while doing it."

"Believe me, Edward," Carlisle placed a hand on my shoulder, "If anyone understands the guilt of bringing Rosalie into this new life it's me. But every time Rosalie gets a new degree that would not have been available to her in the Thirties or takes interest in a new hobby that might have been frowned upon by other women in her class," his hand moved to Emmett's forearm, "or finds the greatest treasures life has to offer, I feel a little less guilt."

Emmett read my hesitant expression. "Edward. What was the one thing Rosalie truly hated most about becoming a vampire?" he challenged.

"That she was technically engaged to me?"

"That's only the second greatest," Emmett chucked, then grew serious, "It was that she didn't have a choice. And you've given Bella her choice."

The logic of it chipped away at the ice around my heart, but I shook my head anyway. "Yes, I've given Bella a choice, but I would also be taking things away that Rosalie yearns for."

"Has Bella mentioned—even once—the desire to have kids or raise a family?" Emmett pressed.

"No, but—,"

"No, nothing!" Emmett interrupted. "She already knows you can't give her that. And you know what? You've given her plenty of opportunities to ditch you and pursue that future, but she keeps clinging on to you, bud."

"Okay, fine. But there could be something… else. Something Bella isn't thinking of that will make her unhappy."

Carlisle spoke up. "There will be aspects in any life Bella chooses that will make her unhappy. And it's your job as her partner to help see her through those darker times. And we as her family are going to do all that we can, as well. We love her, too, Edward."

We all had our moments of unhappiness—I've heard the silent moments as well as the spoken ones. And I could not recall a single instance where those moments of sadness were not immediately attended to in one way or another, because of the love we had for one another. The love that made us think of ourselves as a family rather than a coven.

I thought back to Esme's Mother's Day present, how much love was put into that one gift, and not only our love for Esme. Our love for Alice, by letting her take charge and have the creative control she enjoys. Their love for me, by taking the time to fix up my petal, though I had reluctantly accepted its fate. And of course, the love that warmed and melted the ice in my chest, the love for Bella by redesigning the gift so she could be a part of it.

There was no group of people I would trust more with Bella's happiness than with this family. How did it take me so long to realize that?

Jasper felt my hesitant acceptance. "So, you believe that Bella can be happy in this life, with us? And won't resent you for turning her?"

"I...I trust you all to take care of Bella's wellbeing," I clarified. "You already do."

"And yourself?" Emmett confirmed.

"Yes. I was always willing to do whatever it takes to keep her happy. Forever."

"Which includes turning her into a vampire?" Emmett asked, pointedly.

I wasn't quite ready to agree to that one. "Look. I can agree that I'm good for Bella. I can agree that we will all make her happy. I will stay with her. I will listen to what she wants and only to what she wants for the rest of her life. Can't we just leave it at that? Do we have to turn her into a vampire?"

"If Bella says that it is enough, then that's fine," Carlisle said, "But you two need to talk about it and make sure you're on the same page."

I frowned, "You already know she would want to be turned."

"Then you have your answer."

I wasn't ready to give up. I had a few more arguments for my case that had not yet been thwarted. I decided to start with the excuse that Bella accepted so easily just a few weeks ago. "It would be selfish to turn her just so I can keep her when I know there are better options out there for her."

"Isn't it just as selfish to assume that your morals and ideas on what's best are more important than Bella's?" Jasper asked.

"Maybe even more so," Carlisle agreed.

I frowned. They poked a hole through that logic quicker than I expected. I already felt secure that Bella would be happy in a future spent with me and my family, so I had to skip over that reason and move on to the next point. "Bella would never get to see her mother again."

Jasper snapped his fingers, "Didn't Alice just have a vision that Renee was going to miss Bella's graduation because her husband broke his leg?"

"Oh yeah," Emmett recalled. "Going to miss her only child's high school graduation because she couldn't bear to be away from her grown-ass husband for one freaking day." Emmett threw me a fake look of concern, "Damn shame Bella will have to give up that relationship for someone like Esme."

Defending Renee was going to leave a bad taste in my mouth, but I needed to for the sake of the argument—for the sake of Bella. "I'm sure she has perfectly valid reasons."

"Don't try that crap with us," Emmett snorted. "We all know you hate Renee."

"I don't hate Renee," I bristled.

They all tossed me a matching look.

"Okay, I don't particularly like Renee. Honestly, some of the stories Bella tells me about her childhood make me want to rip the woman's head off, but—"

"Sounds a lot like hate to me," Emmett stage whispered to Jasper.

Jasper tasted the emotions in the air, "Feels like it, too."

"But," I repeated with extra emphasis, "Bella loves her relationship with her mother. I cannot force her to give that up."

"You aren't forcing her to do anything," Carlisle said, feeling like a broken record, "She is choosing this."

The ground I once stood on was beginning to crumble beneath me. Every excuse I could conjure, they refuted with sound, solid logic. What was worse, was that their logic was actually working on me.

Deep in my heart, I wanted to keep Bella for all of eternity, despite knowing that it was wrong. My love for her let me keep that desire at bay, knowing I would want whatever was best for Bella more than what was best for me. Now that my father and my brothers were making it clear that giving Bella what she wanted was for the best, it was becoming increasingly difficult to stand my ground.

Alice already confirmed that Bella will ease into this life and suffer very little from the bloodlust, because of the love and support she will have from myself and the entire family. As promised, I would bring her to the center of Antarctica if I had to, to save her from the trauma of blood on her hands.

Without the horrors to worry about, I could see exactly why becoming a vampire would appeal to specifically Bella. For her entire life, my darling had put others before herself. She became the parent so her mother could remain free and aloof. Bella gave up friendships and relationships all for the sake of her mother's happiness. The second Bella's presence took a toll on her mother's happiness, she extracted herself and sentenced herself to a life in Forks, where she continued to cook and clean and nurture her father in the way that she should be nurtured. Bella wrongly spent her childhood as a homemaker; it was something she found little to no enjoyment in.

If I turned Bella into a vampire, I would take things away from her, sure. But thinking back on the conversations we had, I wouldn't be taking away anything she truly yearned for. When I looked at what Bella truly wanted, and not the desires I had projected onto her, it was obvious that she did not want the life I fought so hard to give her. However, there were things that Bella told me she wanted—whether directly or in between the lines—that I could give her. Incredible things, that only I could offer by bringing her into this life with me.

She would have centuries to do whatever she wanted and nothing she didn't. Whether it was traveling to all the places she only dreamed of or reading every book her hands touched.

She would have a family where she would never have to work to earn her place.

She would have four siblings who would remain lifetime friends no matter where she went in the world and would never want anything more from her than companionship.

She would have a partner whose love would never fade for all of eternity.

It should be an easy decision. I loved Bella so much, I should be thrilled to be the one to give her the only thing she has ever asked anyone to do for her.

But I could not do it.

As helplessness began to seep into my impermeable skin, I did the only thing anyone in my situation would do; I began to beg. "I can't," I closed my eyes, "Please, please don't do this to her."

Carlisle lowered himself onto the ground, so he was kneeling beside me. "Please tell me what truly worries you about turning Bella."

"I'm scared," I whispered, "I'm scared that when she turns, the soul shining through the eyes that I love so desperately will be gone, and the blood-red eyes of a monster will in its place."

"You know that that's not going to happen, Edward. I still loved Esme after her transition; Rosalie still loved Emmett."

"It's not that. I know I'll still love her. I will love her in every form, in any state. But, please, I cannot be the thing that destroys her soul, Carlisle."

Carlisle's voice grew impossibly soft. "I know we've talked about the existence of our souls a lot, Edward, and it's always felt like an uphill battle in the past." I've been waiting for this. "But in the past, you haven't had Bella. I would like you to remember how you felt at certain points in your relationship, Edward. And really think about what caused you to feel how you did. Okay?"

His demeanor was calm, but inside he was bouncing on the edge of his seat. He had planned this little speech out long ago and had been waiting all this time until he thought I was ready to hear it. I nodded once without speaking.

"The second you realized you loved Bella, the golden light you must have seen. Was that not your soul singing with joy?

"The first time she told you she loved you, too. The rightness you felt. The completion. Did it not feel like your soul became whole that day?"

I knew exactly what feelings Carlsie had spoken of. When I realized I loved Bella, I thought the sun had risen in the middle of an endless midnight. I had never experienced a joy so intense than that moment; it was almost blinding. That couldn't have been my soul—could it?

Carlisle continued, "Not just the good, Edward. But the bad as well.

"The terror you felt when James lured her into that ballet studio. Did it not feel like your soul was on the line?

"The agony you experienced when you were apart from her. The piece of yourself that was gone. Was it not your soul that you left here with Bella?

"The nothingness you felt when you believed you had lost Bella forever. Was it not your soul that disappeared when she did?"

He let those raw emotions sink into me. The memories clawed through my aching chest. Though they were only in my mind, I still gasped out loud from the pain.

"A soulless monster would not have the capacity to feel what you have felt, Edward. You look at the depth, the range of the emotions that Bella brought out in you and tell me you do not have a soul."

I instinctively blinked back tears that I knew could never come.

"Tell me you do not have a soul, Edward," Carlisle commanded.

I opened my mouth to refute the existence of my soul like I always did, but I couldn't. For the first time since my change, it felt wrong to say. Finally, I realized I could not love Bella the way I do without a soul.

Along with this revelation, I heard music. It began purely classical, like the pieces I had once played as a human. Suddenly, the notes dropped into a minor key. The once sonorous lines began to twist into a harsh, polytonal mess. Eventually, the discordant notes and jumbled rhythm began to come together when infused with the melody of Bella's lullaby. The two lines harmonized, bringing out the beauty in the other.

My soul. I felt it. I heard it.

It was incredible.

Emmett let me up so I could stand on my knees in front of Carlisle. Correctly guessing my intention, he opened up his arms for me and wrapped me in a strong embrace.

"I have my soul," I whispered in his ear.

In his mind, Carlisle cheered and applauded. But out loud, he simply stated, "Yes, you do. And so will Bella."

I would not destroy the soul of my love.

I felt like I could cry.

Unable to resist, Emmett latched on, crushing Carlisle and me closer in his massive bear hug. Jasper lumbered over and placed a hand on both mine and Carlisle's shoulders.

Taking a deep breath, Jasper reveled in the emotion in the air. "You have never been this at peace, Edward."

"I know," I marveled at my own weightlessness. It felt like a thousand pounds had been lifted from my chest.

Emmett gripped my shoulder and playfully shook me until my teeth rattled. "So, you're ready?"

I could not believe I was saying this without any doubt or turmoil or fear. "Yes. The next time Bella asks me to, I will turn her into a vampire."