The Letter
Part Three
Bella hummed as she served herself some coffee the following morning. William and their father had left for their fishing trip with some of his old buddies. She had already checked in with the officer assigned to protect her mother while her father was away from home. All of her blogs and YouTube videos were uploaded for the day, leaving the rest of the day clear to enjoy other pursuits.
Normally, she would spend free time working on videos and deadlines, but she had freed up the day to spend it with a handsome man. Together, they'd shop for the items he needed to make his rental more holiday friendly, something he was doing for not only her baby brother, but himself.
There was something else she had to do first. She had to pay a visit to a meddling neighbor, Tanya, who conveniently hadn't answered any of her calls. Alice may have warned her off, the brat.
Bella put the last touches on her decorated sugar cookies, grabbing her favorite digital camera and taking a photo for her blog. The time on her oven said it was still quite early for a Saturday.
Perfect.
She checked her locks before waving at Officer Monroe sitting on her mother's porch. All the way to Tanya's house, she whistled, a spring in her step. It wasn't all Edward, though he was a pretty damn good reason to whistle. No, this was in anticipation for pissing off her best friend.
What were friends for, right?
She rang the doorbell, allowing her finger to linger for much too long. Tanya loathed the chime, it was rather obnoxious. It was a tune that usually stayed in one's head for days. She hummed along to "It's a Small World" snickering when she heard Alec yell.
"I told you to talk to her or else she'd do something like this!"
Tanya groaned loud enough to wake the dead. "I didn't think she'd be so cruel."
Bella heard something thump in a room above, having let herself in the house. Having a key to her neighbor's house had some perks.
"Good morning!" Bella didn't use her indoor voice. "I brought some cookies and coffee."
"Thank God," Alec grumbled as he descended the stairs. He gave her a glare, but the tilt of his mouth gave way to a smile. His dark brown hair flopped over his gray eyes. "Knowing my wife, she deserves it." He helped himself to one of Bella's cookies and took a big gulp of the steaming hot lifer saver in a cup. "What did she do now?"
Bella pulled out a copy of William's letter.
Alec's brow furrowed at the sight of a child's scrawl as he read, and then spewed out coffee and cookie crumbs all over it. He grabbed a hold of the letter and started to laugh so hard, he had to sit down.
Tanya appeared as if she just rolled out of bed, her strawberry blonde hair looked like a bird nest. She rubbed her sleep hooded eyes and joined her husband, adjusting her robe and glaring at Bella. "You are so lucky the kids spent the night at my mom's or you'd be dead right now."
Bella playfully shivered, smiling all the while. "You deserve it and you know it. I was really hoping to interrupt sexy times. That would've been way better."
Alec grumbled, but kept his mouth shut. He knew better to go toe to toe with the woman, plus he'd lose access to her cookies.
"What did I do now?" Tanya yawned, stuffing her face with a cookie and groaning at the taste. "These are amazing." She leaned her head against her husband's shoulder to see what the letter said, her eyes immediately going wide.
"Are you implying you've done something other than this?" Bella grabbed the letter from Alec's grasp, waving it around. "You know the post office here in Forks intercepts these and does their best to make the children's wishes come true after the Christmas parade. Can you imagine Judy or Shelley getting a hold of it?"
"I doubt if anyone on the Christmas committee would even know what kind of happy endings the letter refers to." Tanya shrugs. "Besides, I didn't send it from here, I put it in the mailbox in Port Angeles. How did you get it anyways?"
Bella decided to let Tanya off the hook for the moment—besides revenge was best served cold, not that she wanted to seek payback anymore. Edward was a damn good reason for that, but she'd never admit it out loud to her best friend. She told Tanya and Alec the events of the day before, and of course, Tanya took all the credit.
"You like him, don't you?" Tanya fluffed her messy blonde hair, smirking. "Now, that we've established that I'm awesome for helping Will with his letter, I'll go get ready so I can go with you."
Bella's eyes widened. "I don't want to scare him away!"
Tanya ran up the stairs. Bella started to pack away the containers and travel mugs, as Alec cackled. "You'd better go. If she's determined, she'll be ready in ten minutes."
Bella shook her head. She wasn't quite ready to share Edward, especially when they had at least six hours before they would meet up with her brother. "Tell her, thanks, but no thanks. If and only if he sticks around, I'll consider them meeting." She all but ran to the door. "Bye, Alec."
Alec was too busy laughing to say a word, offering his friend a wave. He checked his breath and decided he'd find a way to keep his wife occupied until Bella made her getaway. Tanya would hopefully be unable to resist the idea of sex without their kids in the house. They could be as loud as they wanted, something both of them enjoyed. If it helped Bella get her happy endings, then everyone would smile more. Less early morning Saturdays, too.
.
.
.
Bella knocked on Edward's door with another batch of cookies and coffee. She was already wired, but she couldn't help that. She was too excited at the prospect of spending time with the man.
There was a connection between them, one forged the moment they met. She still had to tell him she'd known his sister for years, and that she had met his parents when Alice invited her to stay with her shortly after meeting at a fan event. Not only did she have a great, long standing friendship with his sister, but his parents, too.
Once a month, she even Skyped with Carlisle for a game of chess. Something she often looked forward, too. Her father didn't like the game very much, preferring fishing or baseball.
What if Edward didn't like that she knew them?
Suddenly nervous, she stepped back from the door. Honesty was so important to her, but the truth could hurt them before they even stood a chance. Carlisle's reluctance to see him still stung Edward.
The door opened with a sleepy-eyed Edward on the other side, looking wonderfully sexy shirtless and in low-hung joggers. Her doubts lingered, but she couldn't walk away—not when he looked so happy to see her. His smile reached his tired eyes, brightening them up in an instant.
"Now it's going to be a very good morning." Edward grabbed a container from Bella's outstretched hand, pulling her in close. "You smell good."
"It's the cookies." Bella closed her eyes, sensing her soft smile on her lips. "I think."
Edward hummed as he closed the door behind her, breathing deeply. "They smell great, but sweet. You smell incredible."
"I do?" Bella asked, dumbfounded and still a bit dazzled by the man in front of her. "I'm not wearing any perfume." She looked in his eyes, almost regretting it. They looked wonderfully inviting and a tiny bit mischievous.
"You smell sexy and warm," he murmured, bending low enough to catch another whiff of her neck. "You look it, too."
"Oh," she whispered, almost moaning at the feel of his nose and cheek brushing against her skin. "What happened to my slightly shy and cautious, but irresistible, Edward?"
"I'm not sure, but I can call him back, if you'd like." He smiled at her, leading her to the kitchen, where her To Do List awaited them. His hand lingered on her lower back, brushing upward to move her hair away from her face. "I can't promise this Edward won't make another appearance." He leaned close enough to share breaths. "You are much too irresistible, Ms. Swan."
"A nice mix of confident, sexy Edward, and the endearing one from last night and I'll melt at your feet. You're going to have to find a balance or we'll get nothing done." She pulled away, fanning herself and smiling.
Edward laughed and winked, taking the cup of coffee she offered him. "We'll get something done, I'm sure."
Bella looked over the list, but wouldn't meet his eyes. If she did, she'd probably jump him. He looked too damn good to resist. "Oh yeah, what's that?" Why oh why did she ask that out loud, as if she didn't know the answer already.
"We'd get quite a few happy endings in before I meet up with your brother."
Her heart stopped, she swore it, only for it to restart at an astounding pace. Her breaths equaled the rhythm, her eyes probably the size of saucers.
"We have a lot to do," she all but whined. "Why work on those happy endings if we have to stop so soon?"
Edward shook his head, his smile falling. "You're right, it would be a travesty to stop giving you happy endings after a few hours."
"Oh God," Bella said, holding up her hand. She made the mistake of looking at Edward and down his nicely sculpted body to the inviting shape of his hips. There was no mistaking the hard length in Edward's chosen sleepwear. "Stop saying happy endings. You're going to program my body to react to those words." She mockingly glared at him. "Can you imagine me getting all hot and bothered during a Disney movie?"
Edward snorted and laughed for a full minute, before putting up his hands up in surrender. "All right, I'll go get dressed since my half-nakedness bothers you so much."
"I can take off my shirt if my half-nakedness doesn't bother you," she quipped, her hands on the hem of her blouse. "Think about it, we'd be at an equal disadvantage."
"No," Edward said, shaking his head and walking backward. "Considering the outline of your…a chest area, you are not wearing a bra. We'd never survive the need for a happy ending." He winked when she huffed, and he laughed all the way up to his new master bedroom.
Edward had dealt with work for the last hour, rescheduling a few meetings to later that week. After Monday, he'd have the next three weeks free from anything pressing or that couldn't wait until after the holidays. He'd have to go back into the city Monday morning, but if all went according to his plan, he'd be with Bella again by Monday evening.
He dressed quickly and joined Bella. They went over their plan, deciding Seattle would be the best place to buy what the house needed. She was going all out and Edward had no issues with it, despite the cost of it. Especially if it meant that he could spend more time with William and her.
"There's something I need to tell you concerning your family," she said after finalizing their plans for the trip. She looked nervous, which made his walls reconstruct instantly. It couldn't be helped, it was something he did a lot with anyone other than family. In business, he had to place a mask over his face and erect walls to not allow potential business associates to walk all over him and take advantage. It worked too well sometimes.
"Fine." The word felt foreign on his tongue. He sat back, his arms resting on the back of his couch, watching Bella's smile morph to a frown.
"Whoa, did the temperature dip by fifty degrees?" Bella pretended to shudder, even crossing her arms over her chest and rubbing her arms. "I can tell you right now, this Edward is not someone I want my brother to be around."
Edward pursed his lips and wondered what the hell was he doing there? To keep a promise to his sister, so that he could see his family? Why should it only be him to make the effort? It was always him apologizing to them.
"I know your sister, Alice, through fanfiction." Bella continued in the hopes to reach over the wall Edward through between them. "I've met her almost five—"
"This was a setup, wasn't it?" Edward knew all about Izzy, a friend of his older sister that she often met all over the damn country for meetups with other like-minded fans. "You all set me up." It was stated as a fact and not as question, his words injected with venom.
Bella started to laugh. "She warned me that when I told you, you wouldn't take it well. I told her that the man I met wouldn't jump to conclusions. I guess I shouldn't have bet against Alice this time." She stood and grabbed her things, leaving Edward gaping at her like an idiot. "Let's save ourselves a lot of time and end this before one of us gets hurt, or worse, my baby brother."
She stood at the opposite end of the room and Edward remained rooted to the spot, caught in a bubble of his own making.
It popped.
"Wait." He stood, unsure of what to say or do to prevent all of this from unraveling. "I'm s—"
Bella shook her head. "Don't apologize, Edward. From what I've heard through your sister over the years, you've done enough of that. I understand in a way, but I can't risk William or…" her hand came to rest on her chest.
He nodded, clenching his hands into fists. "I'll promise you anything else, but I do need to apologize. You're here for all the right reasons. You want to make your brother happy, who only wants to see you happy. I'm trying to see my family, because I miss them. I want to apologize for taking out my insecurities about them and women in general on you. Everyone I've come across in the last decade has wanted something from me."
"I know that, which is why I wanted to be honest with you. Alice didn't set this up, but I've known her and Jasper for years. Your parents for the last few, but keeping it from you was never something I considered."
"Because you're refreshingly honest." He rubbed at the back of his neck. "I love that about you and your brother. There's no front. You two are just yourselves around me."
Edward approached Bella with caution, hoping his nearness wouldn't send her out the door. Watching her leave because he couldn't believe someone like her would want to spend time with him would undoubtedly hurt. Not at the moment, when anger and partly relief would overcome the grief, but once he was holed up in his cold condo in Seattle would he feel the loss.
The letter didn't find its way to his desk by mistake. He'd known it the moment he held it in his hands.
"I promise to be myself, at least the one I tend to hide from most." He stepped closer, the side of her body touching the front of his. "My family is and will be a sore spot for me. I'll try from now on to not let that come between us."
Bella looked at him, her hands tightening around her arms, afraid to touch him. "You need to keep that promise. My brother is inquisitive, he'll ask about them."
Edward knew that already, but had managed to redirect William's attention to himself the other night. It wasn't something he could continue to do. Not if he wanted the instant bond he made with the young boy to deepen.
"I wonder where he got that from?" His words were teasing, causing her to smile.
She delicately sniffed, shrugging one shoulder. "I have no clue. I don't ask questions, people just tend to unload everything on me."
Edward nodded, curious about something. "You've met my parents, I know that you have. My mother has raved about your visits." He took a deep breath, wondering if he should ask or not. "What do you think of my father?"
Bella grimaced, but soon, a soft smile graced her lovely face. "He's stubborn as a damn mule, has the strangest sense of humor, but he was a bit standoffish at first. He has to get to know you for him to open up, like someone else I know." Edward stepped back, but Bella shook her head. "Oh no, you don't. I'm only telling you my honest opinion."
"To tell me I'm like my father." He hated the way his voice cracked. She was right, though— he wanted to know what she thought. "I have to work on my first impression."
Bella rolled her eyes. "Your father said those exact same words that after I got him a pen that resembled a wooden stick for his birthday. I told him that the pen was just a reminder to remove the stick he had up his ass."
"You told him what?" Edward started to laugh, shaking his head, already feeling the stress of the last few minutes dissipate. "I would've loved to see the look on his face when you told him that."
"I have a Skype chess date with him tonight."
"He still plays chess?" It was something they used to do growing up. "Are you any good?"
"It's been a few months since I won," Bella said, pouting. "It's more the discussion that we look forward to."
"What do you two discuss?"
"Just about everything, but mostly William. He seems fascinated by my little brother. I asked him why once."
"What did he say?"
Bella's hand lifted from her arm to touch his cheek. "He said William reminds him of his son."
Edward closed his eyes and allowed himself to feel something other than resentment for his father. Could it be that his father missed him as much as he did? Going home wasn't an option. The nightmares were manageable, but they'd only return, possibly with panic attacks.
There was something he could do, though—offer an olive branch. It would be up to his father to take it.
AN: Thanks to my lovely, beta and bestie kyla713, she makes my fumbling look prettier. I thought I would get past any initial hang-ups out of the way, little William did not need to be present for that. Okay, I'll try my best not to take too long on the next update. We'll see Edward and Bella test some new furniture pieces Edward insists on. How does one test a mattress? Hmmm
