Charlie POV
"Whatever you're doing in there, Bella, it smells like heaven."
I couldn't identify all of the delicious smells from my recliner in the living room, but I couldn't wait to sit down with a big plate of it in front of me. I had been banned from the kitchen an hour ago when I snuck in to do a little taste testing and Bella noticed a few cocktail sausages were missing.
"It's almost done, Dad, I promise. Give it another 15 minutes. Billy and Jacob should be here any minute."
"You sure you don't want to sneak me a plate now before Jake comes in and eats it all?"
"Dad," she shot me a look from the kitchen.
"Fine, fine. Fifteen minutes."
The doorbell rang.
"I got it," I shouted.
I opened the door and stepped back to make room for Jacob to wheel Billy into the living room.
"Hey there, old man." I clapped Billy on the back. "Good to see you!"
"You too, Charlie. That smell! Bella, it smells wonderful in here!" Billy called into the kitchen.
"Hey Billy, Jake. Everything should be ready in—"
"Fifteen minutes," I interrupted. "Trust me, I'm keeping track."
"Thanks for having us, Charlie," Jacob said.
He made the quickest eye contact before turning his attention in the direction of the kitchen. I wasn't sure if he was feeling awkward after our phone conversation or if he was just as invested in Thanksgiving dinner as I was. If anything could distract this kid, it was food.
"Sure. Glad you boys could make it. Come on in and have a seat."
Jacob wheeled Billy over to the empty space beside the couch and started to head to the kitchen.
"I'll go see if Bella needs any help with—"
"Don't you dare come in here, Jacob Black! It will be ready soon enough. And know that I have eyes in the back of my head and every roll has been counted," Bella shouted back from the kitchen.
"Okay, okay!" Jacob obeyed and took a seat on the couch, both hands raised in surrender.
"Don't take it personally. I'm banned, too," I muttered. Those sausages had been worth it, though.
Bella POV
"Bella, don't tell Sue, but this green bean casserole might be the best I've ever had," Billy admitted while helping himself to a second serving.
"Thanks, Billy. I'm glad you like it."
"Speaking of Sue, how is she? And the kids?" Charlie asked through a mouthful of potatoes.
I remembered Charlie had been spending more time with Sue Clearwater a few months back. At the time, I wondered if there was more to it than friendship, but he never said anything about it. I had been too caught up in my own problems to ask, and now they didn't seem to be seeing much of each other anymore.
"They're doing alright, I suppose. They're having dinner over at Emily and Sam's. I'm sure they're well taken care of," Billy explained. "I hear Emily's got a dessert table that could start wars."
"With Quil and Embry, I wouldn't doubt it," Jake added. "I hear she's cooking four turkeys this year."
"You sound like you're already disappointed that there won't be leftovers when you get back," I teased.
"Maybe, but I also feel sorry for them. They're not getting to eat this green bean casserole, are they?" he asked, leaning over and helping himself to a heaping spoonful right off of my plate.
"Hey, get your own!" I screeched.
"I thought I just did," Jake slurred through a mouthful of beans and shrugged.
I picked up my spoon and flicked a pea in his direction. Or tried to, anyway. It didn't even come close to hitting him and landed with a sad splat right in Charlie's glass of water.
Charlie shot me a look across the table. Oops.
"That's enough, kids," Charlie said, emphasizing "kids." He pretended to look irritated while he tried to fish the pea out of his glass with his still-clean butter knife. The more he chased after it, the further it sank to the bottom.
"Geez, dad, I thought you were a better fisherman than that," I joked.
Everyone laughed, and for just a minute, everything felt...normal.
Bella POV
It was a good afternoon. We all ate until we were stuffed. Charlie and Billy "watched" the game, which really meant that Charlie passed out in his recliner and Billy took a nap on the couch. I walked in once and noticed Charlie with a glazed, half-awake look on his face.
"So what's the score?" I asked. I knew he had no idea.
"I'm keeping an eye on it," he said defensively. He was snoring again about 30 seconds later.
Jake helped me put away the leftovers (both in the fridge and in his stomach), and Charlie insisted I leave the dishes and that he would do them later once his food coma wore off. We didn't talk much, but it was nice that way. Comfortable. I knew they must have been thinking it, but nobody asked me how I was doing for once.
I thought about Edward and Esme and felt a little guilty for turning down their Thanksgiving plans, but I was glad I had decided to spend it with Charlie. And while they'd never admit it, I was sure they were enjoying their trip to Denali more than pretending to love my green bean casserole just for my dad's sake. I tried not to think about next year or if maybe this was the last time I would be enjoying green bean casserole myself.
"Well, that was fun," Charlie said as he shut the door after walking Billy and Jacob out.
He went straight to the kitchen and peered inside the fridge.
"Don't worry. I know what you're checking, and I didn't let Jake take all of the leftovers."
"Good girl." He shut the fridge and started picking up dirty dishes in the sink
"Dad, can I ask you something?"
"Sure. What's on your mind?"
I wasn't sure I should be prying, but I felt like an awful daughter for not asking sooner.
"What ever happened with you and Sue? I mean, were you guys...together?" I asked.
Charlie turned on the water and began scrubbing the plate.
"Aw, Bella, you don't really want to hear about that, do you?" If I wasn't mistaken, his cheeks were a little pink.
"Not anything you don't want to share. I just want you to be happy," I told him.
"After Harry...Sue and I started spending some more time together, as friends. I was worried about her. I guess after a while, yeah. I liked her. But I don't know, Bells, I'm an old man, now. I'm not exactly the dating type."
He was concentrating pretty hard on scrubbing an already spotless plate.
"Dad, you are not old. You're still a catch."
His cheeks were definitely red now.
"Are you making more fishing jokes at my expense, kiddo?" he laughed.
"Not on purpose," I giggled. "So then...what happened? Why haven't you seen her in a while?"
I hoisted myself up onto the kitchen counter and grabbed a towel and the immaculate dish out of Charlie's hand before he could wear a hole in it and began drying while he washed.
"I don't know. I guess it seemed like things were going okay at first, but it always felt like she was holding something back. I think maybe she just wasn't ready," he admitted. "Don't worry, sweetheart, I'm fine."
I couldn't help but feel sad for him. Of course I didn't know anything about their relationship or what had really held Sue back, but I knew there were more complications to her life than losing a husband. She would never be able to tell Charlie about Seth or Leah or the council. My dad would always be an outsider to that world.
Charlie changed the subject.
"Listen, Bells. There's kind of something I've been wanting to talk to you about too," he said.
"Yeah?"
"It was nice of you to invite Billy and Jake for dinner, and they're always welcome here. You know that."
"Sure," I told him.
Charlie put his hands in his pockets and fidgeted with his pocket knife. Whatever he wanted to say was making him nervous.
"What is it, Dad?"
"It's just…be careful not to be too nice, you know? I know things aren't how they used to be anymore. And they can't be. I know you know that and Jake knows that, but sometimes it's easy to forget…" he trailed off.
"Just be careful, Bella. You and Jake have been through a lot together and I'm grateful for what he has done for our family and for you. Hell, I know you might not be here right now if it weren't for him, and I won't ever forget that. I just don't want him getting…confused."
"He's not confused, dad. He's my best friend."
"Honey, you didn't mention Edward once today. Why is that?" he asked.
Ouch. Something about that stung, even though I knew it wasn't his fault that he didn't know the whole story. I couldn't exactly tell him that his best friend hates vampires and that I just happened to be married to one and that bringing him up makes for worse dinner conversation than politics with strangers.
"I just didn't think they'd want to hear about him is all. I don't think it's any secret that Jacob and Billy have never cared much for him. I didn't want to make them uncomfortable," I explained.
"You love Edward, right sweetheart?"
"You know I do."
"Then if they want to stay a part of your life, they'll have to accept that Edward is a part of it, too. You should bring him next year."
Charlie gave me an awkward smile and a pat on the back, then filled a plate with cookies and pie and headed back to his recliner without another word.
Of all the things I had expected him to say, I wasn't prepared to hear him defend Edward like that. And I wasn't prepared to think about next year and whether or not I'd be refereeing leftovers between old family friends or hunting my own Thanksgiving dinner in Denali. Worst of all, the first image that popped into my head at the mention of "next year" wasn't either of those options. It was an impossible third scenario, all of us around the table filled with pies and dressing and turkey, and at one end, a high chair with the dark-haired boy from my dreams that felt like so long ago.