I don't own Twilight or its characters. Stephenie Meyer does.

Cheryl and Gabby, thank you for pre-reading, and April, thank you for editing. Any mistakes left are my own.

Ch. 19

After everything that the boys had said about Edward's father, I wasn't looking forward to meeting him. Part of me blamed him for taking Edward away from me. Also, for making my sweet and happy Teddy into someone who was violent and miserable.

"So how much time do we have before dinner?" I asked.

Edward glanced at the clock. "A few hours. Dinner is served at seven."

"Great. Do you have a Target…or a Kohl's around here?" I was going to need nicer clothes for tonight.

"Both," Edward answered me.

"Then I think we should hit one sooner than later. Target preferably since I need a few things other than clothes," I told him.

"Okay. Let me try to get ahold of Rose again, so you can borrow a wig," he said as the lights flashed. "Never mind, I bet that's her. The light flashes twice for those who have access to the floor and three times for intruders."

I shook my head in amazement. "You guys really don't hold back, do you?"

He punched in a code on the keypad before heading to the living room. I followed behind him to see Rose and Emmett enter the penthouse. Emmett looked a little disgruntled.

"Dude, way to ruin a welcome home celebration." Emmett pouted.

Rose was looking pale as she placed a bag on the coffee table. "Nothing was going to happen regardless."

"Are you okay, Rose?" Edward asked in concern.

"I'll be fine. But it had to be a man who called this stage of pregnancy morning sickness. It hits whenever it pleases," she grumbled. Rose unzipped the bag and pulled out a few wigs. "I brought a couple for you. I suggest a darker one, so your eyebrows don't stand out so much. I can show you how to put them on."

"That would be great," I agreed.

"Come with me." She picked up her supplies and led the way to the nearest bathroom. "Which is your pleasure?"

"Originally, I wasn't going to go for red. But I like the color of this." I fingered a dark almost burgundy one.

"Good choice. Usually it works best if you can get your hair in a bun or another type of up-tuck." Rosalie moved behind me, then met my eyes in the mirror. "I owe you another apology."

"For what?" I was confused.

She started working on my hair. "I shouldn't have let you leave. I thought you were running from an abusive boyfriend. Tanya mentioned the bruises on your hip. Then there was Edward trying to take control of your life, by the horrid suggestion to get married. No one had clued me in that it was the Costas. I would've never let you go if I knew."

"You don't owe me an apology. I made my own decisions. The bruises on my hip were from a kickboxing lesson, where I failed to block the person I was sparing with. Also, I never would've agreed to marry Edward just for my safety," I explained.

Rosalie placed the wig on my head and started to pin it in place. "Kickboxing…I guess I shouldn't be surprised. You've always been very athletic."

"It should come in handy hopefully." I fluffed the hair. I was impressed how realistic it looked.

Rose frowned. "Emmett told me you wanted to help, by using yourself as bait."

I grew immediately defensive. "Are you going to tell me I can't handle it?"

"There is no handling it," she said humorlessly. "I'm telling you based on experience. I thought I could do it. I wanted to protect people, so they didn't end up like my mom. You may be stronger and smarter than I am, but it still doesn't change how dangerous it is. Especially, if you're headstrong about it. I know they told you that I almost got hurt, but did they tell you I didn't only because Emmett saved me? He broke protocol and burst in there. He ripped the guy off me and snapped his neck, he was in such a rage."

"No. They didn't." I shook my head.

"He completely blacked out and doesn't even remember doing it. I'm appealing to you for Edward's sanity," she said.

"Edward?" I frowned.

"I know you have your reasons to be upset with him. But if you do this, he won't be able to think straight and focus. Let them take care of it with clear heads," she implored.

"I'll think about it," I promised. My mind was starting to fill with doubts. As much as I wanted my mom safe, putting Edward's life at risk in the process wasn't an option either.

Days

Edward followed so close behind me, pushing the bright red cart that he hit me a couple of times. I found a few pairs of jeans and several tops. I selected a dark charcoal skirt and dark blue sweater, figuring I would need at least one nice outfit for dinner. I kept track of what I was spending on a piece of paper.

"Why are you writing all the prices down?" Edward asked me, holding my list.

I glanced up from the shoes I was looking at. "Because I have limited amount of cash on me and I need to spend it wisely. I assumed I couldn't use my bank card or any other credit card."

"No, you shouldn't use yours. Don't worry about the cost, I have you covered," he stated.

"Thank you for the offer, but I can't let you do that," I told him.

"Why not? I owe it to you, to make up for what I've done," he insisted.

I frowned, putting the shoe back on the shelf. "So you're doing this out of guilt."

He shook his head. "I'm doing this because I want to help you. You would do the same. Besides, using big bills will only call attention to yourself."

"You pulled that last one out of your ass." I smirked, then sighed. "Fine. But I insist on paying you back."

"Get everything you need without worrying about it." He grabbed a box from the type of shoe I had been looking at and placed it in the cart.

I immediately took it back out and exchanged it for my size. I moved on toward intimates and came to a standstill in the aisle.

"If you need to get anything of your own, you should go do it. That way you're not waiting for me," I suggested.

"I don't need anything. And I'd rather not go far. I know you think I'm being overprotective. If you need to try on clothes, I'll wait outside the dressing room," he said.

"It's not that. I need some other items." I side-eyed the department.

He followed my gaze and his grin grew. "Just go. I've seen your bras before."

"Perv," I mumbled teasingly under my breath but couldn't help but smile. "Please behave."

Edward gave me a mischievous grin as he pushed the cart through the racks. I warily walked in to find some simple bras and underwear. I was looking through a rack when he called out to me.

"How about this one? You're a double D right?" Edward had a wide smile as he held up a lacy red bra, which was far too big for me.

I stared at him in mortification, unable to speak. An older woman glared at him and cleared her throat loudly. Edward glanced at her and the tips of his ears turned the same shade as the bra. He tried to hang it back up, but ended up knocking a few off. He appeared very flustered as he tried to fix it. I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing.

Edward made his way over to me. "I'm going to wait in the aisle."

"Leave me the cart?" I asked, reaching for it.

Once he was in the aisle, looking at his phone, I continued my search. The older woman made her way over to me. I could see in her face I was about to get a scolding from a stranger and braced myself. She made an exaggerated point of looking at my hand.

"I don't see a ring. Didn't your mother ever teach you, it's inappropriate to have your boyfriend with you when shopping for such private items?" She tsked.

I toyed with how I wanted to respond to her. "He's not my boyfriend. He's my evil twin, who thinks he's funny. He refused to wait in the car."

"Oh, I see. My condolences." She wandered off.

I met Edward's gaze. Evil Twin? he mouthed. I shrugged and laughed, then went back to my shopping.

The last few items I needed were in the personal care area. Edward had remained quiet since the bra debacle.

"I think I have everything I need," I said as I placed a bottle of body wash in the cart.

"Great. While we're here, I might as well grab cat food." He pushed the cart in the direction of pet supplies

I smiled when I thought of the sweet cat I met earlier. Edward looked embarrassed by her name, so there had to be more to it. I wondered if it was me after how he reacted, but I couldn't get what the second B stood for. I looked at the array of toys while he got the food. I grabbed a toy mouse, then a bag of catnip, and tossed it into the cart. I noticed something that looked like a fishing pole with a feathery toy dangling at the end, so I added it too.

Edward glanced at the items with a tiny smile. "You're going to spoil my cat, aren't you?"

"Absolutely. I need to make up for lost time while I'm here," I told him, grabbing a bag of treats.

His eyes dimmed, but he still smiled. "She actually likes the cheese ones more than the salmon."

I traded the treats, then we headed to the check out.

Days

When we arrived at the Masen house, I was a bit nervous. Not only was I about to meet his parents, but also, I was well aware Edward's dad already didn't seem to like me. I knew it was possible he had the final decision if my mother was helped out. I silently reminded myself to say Anthony instead of Edward too.

We found Esme and Tanya in the kitchen, working on dinner. Tanya looked up from her cutting board and gave us a smile, while Esme wiped her hands on a towel and came over to hug us.

"Hello, dears, how are you this evening?" Esme asked.

"I'm fine, Aunt Esme. It smells good in here." Edward kissed her cheek.

"Thank you. We're having seafood casserole with homemade butter noodles and salad. Bella, how is your head?" Her fingers brushed the area that I'd hit.

"Much better. I haven't had any headaches and it's only tender when it's touched," I told her as she gave me a warm smile. "Can I do anything to help?"

"We have everything under control. Anthony, why don't you give her a tour of the house. Your parents are around somewhere. Dinner will be ready in half-hour." Esme went back to work on her pasta dough.

"Sure." Edward gestured to the swinging door.

We entered the dining room first. There was a large wooden table with a crystal chandelier that hung above it. I noticed Rose had told me truth that with the French doors open you could see straight in the entry way.

Along the walls were some paintings, but what caught my attention were a few framed crayon pictures. One of them in large, blue crayon had Antone ag 4 written. I grinned widely at it.

"This is sweet," I commented.

"I don't remember it too clearly, but I used to send my mom pictures all the time, while I lived with Aunt and Uncle." Edward stood next to me with his hands in his pockets.

"I bet they used to cheer her up," I told him.

Edward smiled shyly and led the way out of the room. "Where shall we start?"

"How about the torture chamber," I joked.

Edward stopped short and turned. "The what?"

"Rose said you had one in the basement," I told him.

The poor guy looked confused. "Why would—"

"It was a joke. Or at least, I hope it was," I explained.

"All I can think of is the gym. She hates to work out." He took a left down a hallway.

We passed an elevator door, and he opened another one. He led me down a set of stairs.

"We usually save the elevator for my mother," he explained.

At the bottom, he flipped on a set of lights. There was a huge open area. One side had exercise and weight equipment lined up. On the opposite side, was a large matted area, and along the back there was a lap pool.

"Behind that wall is a sound-proof room for a gun range." Edward pointed. "And you can access the garage by the door over there."

"Wow. I've never seen a home gym so big, but I guess it would make sense with what your family does." I stepped further into the room.

"The guys will do your training in here." Edward leaned up against the wall.

I wanted to ask if his father would let me given his response earlier. But I decided to cross that bridge when we came to it. "Sounds great."

We were on the main floor, heading down a hallway. Edward had just shown me their impressive library. We were approaching a closed door when we heard loud voices from a man and woman arguing.

"Tony, please be reasonable—"

"I won't apologize for protecting you."

A/N: I feel bad for Carlisle, he's getting the blame for Anthony(Tony). Just a reminder Carlisle and Esme are not Edward's parents in this fic. I realized I broke the normal for most fics, so that is leading to the confusion.

A little fun in this chapter. Next chapter, we will meet Alice and also Edward's parents(Anthony and Elizabeth).

Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me.