A/N: I want to thank all of you for your responses! I appreciate all of you for reading this story and sticking with me. Some interesting stuff happens here, so I won't bore you. Answers to a couple of your questions at the bottom, though, so stick with me!

Chapter 9: Growing

Edward

The afternoon in the meadow was probably my favorite day in all of my existence. We chatted while she ate and ran her fingers through my hair. I stole several kisses from her, continuing to keep the monster at bay. By the time we had to start heading back down, I was completely in love with her. Even more so than I had been before. My assessments on her character were totally right; she had confirmed many thoughts I'd had, but most of all when she spoke of her mother and stepfather.

"I had to give them time alone, you know? Mom was so stressed out trying to make sure I had what I needed for school and everything plus taking care of Phil. It was too much for her; so, I decided to leave and live with Charl-my dad for a while."

We were walking down the mountain, hand in hand. I glanced over at her. "But now you are unhappy?"

She stopped and looked at me. A smile played on her face as she scooted closer to me, kissing me lightly. "No, I'm not unhappy. Actually, I think this is the happiest I've ever been. Right now."

My thumb stroked her hand. "I'm glad. I can't remember a time when I was this happy either." We continued to walk then, and my heart was full. Her smell didn't even cause a problem for me anymore; now I just enjoyed it rather than craved it. "But you don't like cloudy or rainy, right? Phoenix is the epitome of sunny."

"Yeah, that's true. But maybe I'm ok with the cloudy and rainy after all." She laughed. "Mom would never believe me if I told her that."

We continued to chat as we made our way down the mountain. When we got to my car, though, I started to sort of panic. It meant that my time with her was closing. I didn't want to leave her, ever. Dropping her off at her house, and me going back to mine sounded like the worst thing ever.

I heard Rose and Alice in my head, from a conversation we'd had earlier that day. They were telling me that I should be honest with her about what we are. Rose insisted that I needed to be honest to start off with, to make sure I was giving Bella a choice. That had been the hardest thing for her to accept. Through my mother's influence she was much better, but she still had some resentment for this life we had.

Alice just wanted Bella to know everything so she wouldn't have to hold anything back.

"We are going to be best friends, Edward! I need her to know everything before that happens." She sniffed, in a terrible attempt to make me feel sorry for her. "I can't not tell her when I see a vision. She needs to know!"

But still I resisted. This tiny piece of perfect that we had was too amazing to risk. What if I told her the truth and she hated me? How could I live with myself if she hated me? Internally, my mind really wasn't at war with this decision. I simply didn't want her to know.

When I pulled into her driveway, her father's car was absent indicating he wasn't back from fishing yet. She glanced over at me, biting her lip again.

"I don't want you to leave yet. I don't want the day to be over." She looked up at me with her big eyes. I leaned in and kissed her softly, enjoying her flavor once again.

"But you don't want your dad to know about me yet?" I finished for her.

She shrugged, licking her lips. I couldn't look away from them. "He would probably be fine with it; I just need to talk to him before he sees me kissing a boy in a strange car."

I smiled. "But you are going to tell him? About us?"

Her eyes turned devious. "And what are we, exactly? What should I say to him?"

"Maybe tell him that you have a boyfriend?" I suggested, my eyes shooting to hers.

"Is that what you are?"

"I would like to be. Only if you are ok with it," I added quickly. Suddenly the nerves were back.

She leaned in, running her tongue along my bottom lip. I captured her lips quickly, my hands in her hair. She leaned back, fisting my shirt. "I suppose that's an acceptable title."

I laughed, kissing her cheek. Suddenly, I heard something in the back of my head. I turned slightly to the side, catching the beginnings of a mind I couldn't identify. It sounded like her father, and he was getting closer.

"Charlie should be back soon," I said, kissing her swiftly. "Text me later, ok?"

She smiled. "I will." She started to get out of the car.

I leaned forward, catching her hand. "And Bella? I had the best time today. Thank you."

Bella

I watched from inside the house as Edward's car zoomed away. Before I knew it, giggles started erupting from my mouth. I started half dancing in my kitchen as I remembered the whole day; I played out every time he touched me in my head, again and again. I marveled at how this beautiful man had felt; had tasted. I sat down at the kitchen table running my fingers over my lips. They felt bruised, but in the best way.

I hadn't even minded hiking, truthfully. He had kept me safe, just as he had promised. No scraped knees, stubbed toes or bruises had ensued from the day. Just a sense of overwhelming joy. The fanged and cold Edward in my dreams before was now replaced with the memories of today. Though, he was still cold. Maybe he had a circulation problem?

I shrugged, not really caring. It was the best day ever, and I wasn't going to let Jacob's made-up horror story get into my head. I had more concerning things to deal with: how was I going to tell Charlie that I was already dating someone in town? Logically, I knew there was nothing he could do to stop me, but it was still a concern. I knew that I wouldn't be able to keep myself away from Edward after today, because I just simply wanted to be around him all the time. Charlie was sure to notice.

Before I could set out starting dinner, Charlie pulled up in the driveway. Instead of making anything, I decided to just heat up some leftover lasagna from the night before. I was pulling it out of the microwave when he walked in. "Smells good, Bells. What'd you make?"

"I just heated up some of the lasagna from last night," I replied, glancing up at him. "This has to sit for a few minutes before we eat it. Do you want to go take a shower while it cools?"

"Smell that bad, huh? Sure, I'll be right back." He laughed, setting his tackle box down near the door, and toeing off his shoes.

That gave me a few minutes of reprieve to gather my thoughts. I still wasn't really sure how to start the conversation. I worried my lip a bit more, setting the food down at the table, grabbing forks and drinks for us. By the time he came downstairs my lip hurt from me biting it.

"Looks good, thanks, Bells." He never was much of a conversationalist.

"So, Dad?"

"Hmm?"

"I have to tell you something." This caught his attention. He glanced up from the food, eyes on me. I rushed into the explanation, so he wouldn't create too much in his head. "I'm sort of seeing someone from school."

"Oh? You dating someone?" His face didn't convey how he felt about the question.

"Yes, he-he's my boyfriend."

"Since when?"

"Um, earlier today?" His face still hadn't changed.

"Who is it? Anyone I know?" He took another bite of his food.

I rolled my eyes. "You know everyone in town, Dad. It's Edward. Edward Mason. Dr. Cullen's adopted son."

Then his face did change. I watched his stoic look turn into concern quickly. "Isn't he a little too old for you?"

"No, we are the same age. He's in my class at school."

"But..." he said, then stopped. Concern etched into something I couldn't identify. "There are some awfully bad rumors about the Cullens and Masons, kid. You sure he's safe to be around?"

Well, that wasn't what I was expecting. "What do you mean, safe? Why wouldn't he be? What aren't you telling me?"

"Well, Billy keeps saying all these things about that family. Keeps telling me how dangerous they are."

"I don't understand, how would they be dangerous? Are they like the Manson family or something?" I eyed him suspiciously. "And since when do you listen to rumors about other people, Dad?"

He shifted a little in his seat, taking a long drink from the beer I had gotten out for him earlier. He was stalling, and we both knew it. "I don't know, Bells. Billy seems pretty sure about it. Hell, everyone at the rez thinks the same thing. Cullens seem nice enough to me, but Billy is my best friend. I can't just dismiss everything he says out of hand."

This wasn't going the way I wanted at all. "Dad, Edward is really great. We spent the whole day together. He's walked me to and from class for the last week. We've talked a ton. Hell, you gave him my cell number!"

He looked surprised. "No, I didn't. I haven't given your cell number to anyone."

I backtracked, wondering what the hell was going on. Did Edward lie to me? "Oh, I probably misunderstood that, sorry. Even still, he's a great guy. He is nice to me. I really like him." Well, that was the worst lie. I felt way more for him than 'like' at this point.

He sighed. "I know I can't make you do anything, just be careful, will you? I don't know why Billy and the boys at the rez hate them so much, but they are sure that family is dangerous. I don't want you to get into a situation you can't handle, ok? Maybe don't be alone with him until you know him a lot better."

I huffed. "I know him really well already, Dad."

He leaned forward, slightly frustrated. "How well, Bells?"

"Not th-that well, Dad! We only just started dating. I'm saying I know his personality pretty well," I stammered, shocked that he went there so quickly. What kind of girl did he think I was? Ok, well, let's be honest here. I was so attracted to him that if it did get to that point, I would be totally fine with it. But my dad didn't need to know that.

He let it go then and went back to his dinner, but we had already surpassed uncomfortable by then. As soon as we were done eating, he made his way to the living room and I ran upstairs. I was desperate to talk to Edward. I needed to know why he lied about getting my number, and what the hell was going on with the people on the reservation.

Me: Hey, so, my Dad knows about us now.

His reply was almost immediate. Edward: How did that go?

Me: IDK, he wasn't really happy. He was worried. He also said that he never gave you my cell number. Should I be worried that you lied to me, Edward? I waited, holding my breath, for his response. But he didn't text, instead he called.

"I'm sorry, Bella. I should have been honest with you," he said when I answered the phone. "I was worried you might think I was creepy."

"Well, tell me the story and I'll let you know if it's creepy." I leaned against the bed frame, waiting for his explanation.

"My sister saw the contact information on your file at school. She gave me your number."

I smiled. "Yeah, that's a little creepy, Edward. Why didn't you just ask me for it?"

"I didn't know how to until Monday, and I didn't want to wait that long."

"Hmm. I guess that's ok. I mean, yeah, it's creepy but not too bad. I suppose I'll forgive you. But," I stressed, cradling the phone between my shoulder and ear. "Don't lie to me again, ok? Just tell me the truth, even if it's not so great."

"Deal. I am sorry. I just wanted to talk to you more."

"Yeah, I guess I can understand that."

"How was the rest of the talk? Other than the cell conversation."

"Well, to be honest, he wasn't very happy."

"Doesn't like his little girl growing up and dating someone, huh?" He chuckled a little.

"No, actually. He was more concerned with the fact that his friends at the reservation don't like you or your family. I don't know why, but you guys have a bad rep down there. Do you know why? Like, what happened with you guys?"

He was quiet for a moment. "It's an old feud. Years ago. The Quileute's have long memories."

"I have no idea what that means." I chewed my lip again. "Old feud, like the Hatfields and the McCoys or something?"

"Something like that."

"Well, that's odd. Never thought anything interesting ever happened in Forks. Guess I was wrong." My curiosity wasn't easily squashed, but I didn't press. He seemed reluctant to talk about it, and I didn't want to push him. I'd already accused him of lying to me, on the same day that we decided he was my boyfriend. Best not to push my luck any more than that.

"I should let you go, Bella. My mom is calling me."

"Oh, ok. Well, I'll talk to you tomorrow?"

"Sure, sounds good. Night, Bella."

"Night," I said, but he had already hung up. I shrugged and got myself ready for bed. There would be more time later to find out what the hell he was talking about.

Edward

I almost threw my phone when I hung up. But I didn't want to give them the satisfaction of showing anger.

"Alice? Mother?" I said, knowing they could hear me. They were at my side in just a moment.

Alice looked grim, her lips in a straight line. Mother just sat down next to me, putting her hand on mine. "It's ok, dear. I can see that it will all work out. Though, we do have a complication."

My eyes shot to her. "What complication? My mate's father believes the wolves that I am dangerous? That he doesn't want me to see her?"

"He didn't say that, Edward, and you know it. Charlie is smart enough to know not to forbid her from seeing you," Alice said, sitting down on the other side of me from my Mother. "Charlie is suspicious right now. Billy has said much more than he led on to Bella about us."

"What?" I stood up, staring at them. "He broke the treaty!"

"He felt it was better for Charlie to know some things, but he didn't say everything. Though the treaty is definitely in question. He was trying to keep Charlie from befriending us when we got into town. And then, once he knew Bella was coming, he chose to tell Charlie even more. He knew she would be going to school with us." Alice hadn't moved, though by her posture I could tell she was just as unhappy about this as I was.

Mother's eyes went blank for a moment, and I watched her mind circle around a few different branches of choices. There was one that was the best-case scenario, where we were all surprised yet happy. Content. That's the one she focused on, because it was a strand of her future we were seeing.

Just as soon as Mother made a choice, I watched it play out in Alice's head. I fell to my knees, grabbing Mother's shoulders. "No!"

She shrugged. "It's the only way. All other paths just lead to you and Bella being separated, or worse. We have to go down this path or nothing ends well."

"I need to tell Bella first. Mother, please, you have to let me do this," I begged her. She had to listen to me!

She smiled at me. "You have until dinner time tomorrow, dear. Make sure you tell Bella what to expect. Esme and I will be over around 5 or so."

I nodded in understanding, but inside my mind was spiraling. I saw why Esme needed to be involved, but I was still more confused than ever. None of this made any sense. I fished my phone out of my pocket and texted Bella quickly, asking if we could have lunch together tomorrow. She agreed, in a fast reply, so we made plans for me to pick her up the next day.

In order to clear my head, and not listen to the quiet conversation between Alice and my mother, I took off toward Bella's house, to my customary tree. As soon as I was there, I sat down and searched for her heartbeat. I located it fairly quickly, as was my custom now, and I sunk back into the tree just listening. It was like the best lullaby in the world, and I felt sure that if I could sleep, I would have.

By the next day, when it was time to go pick up Bella, I was calmer about the situation, but still not quite ready to tell her. I knew I didn't have a choice, though. Mother was going to complete her plan no matter what I said, or didn't say, to Bella.

I noticed her father's car in the driveway when I pulled up, so I put my best pleasant face on and knocked on the door. He answered the door, and his face portrayed all of the concerns he had about me. I listened intently, but his mind was sort of muted. Almost like the TV being on, but the sound so low you can't actually hear all of it. Like you knew there was something on, but couldn't hear the details. Interesting. He was quiet, but his daughter was totally silent to me.

"Hello Chief Swan. My name is Edward Mason. I'm here to pick up Bella." I extended my hand to shake; I had put gloves on before I left my car, just to be safe. At least that way he wouldn't have to wonder why my skin was so cold.

He shook my hand, but I could tell he wasn't happy about it. I hoped this plan of Mother's would work out like it had in Alice's vision. It seemed like the only possibility of him liking me in any way.

"Hello Edward. Nice to meet you." He didn't seem happy at all, but I let it slide. "Where are you and Bella off to?"

"I thought I'd take her to Port Angeles for lunch, sir. There is this Italian restaurant that I think she would like." I stood my ground, looking at him eye to eye. He didn't back down either.

Normally, humans shied away from us. They usually didn't know why, but they never really trusted us. Our very nature screamed predator to their base instincts, so they kept their distance. However, when you are trying to date one of their daughters, I guess the parental instinct to protect was stronger.

Bella came into the room and looked between us. I saw her roll her eyes, and she grabbed my arm, pulling me toward my car.

"Bye, Dad! I'll be back later."

"Be careful, Bells," he said as he took a step out onto the patio, continuing to watch us. I opened the door for her, which caused another eye roll, before heading over to my door.

After we left, I breathed a sigh of relief. "You weren't kidding. He doesn't like me at all, does he?"

"He'll get over it." Bella shifted in her seat so she could look at me. "And who cares if he doesn't, right? I'll be 18 soon. It's not like he could really do anything to stop me from seeing you."

"You would defy your father to continue seeing me?" I asked her, smiling.

"Hell yes I would."

I took my hand off the steering wheel, placing it on hers that was sitting in her lap. I left it there for the rest of our drive. She was focused on me, and didn't notice how fast I was going. I had slowed down, though, because I didn't want to scare her. Going 80 seemed like crawling, but it was better than over a hundred like normal.

When we got to the restaurant, she didn't wait for me to open her door. Rather, she got out and started walking up without waiting for me. I huffed a laugh, and just followed. The hostess seated us in the back part of the restaurant where it was pretty empty. This early on a Sunday, people were probably at home, sleeping in, at church, or whatever. It was the perfect place to have a strange conversation.

The waitress came up to us once we were seated and got our drink order. Having no idea what to order, I waited to see what Bella wanted; then I would order the same thing she got. We went back to looking at our menus, though Bella had a strange look on her face. I put my menu down and looked at her, questioningly.

"What is it?"

"Nothing," she snorted, glancing at me before going back to the menu. Then she mumbled, "Pretty sure what the waitress wants isn't on the menu."

I stopped myself from laughing, as I was fairly sure Bella hadn't expected me to hear that. I honed in on the waitress in the back, and Bella was right. She was giving them all exaggerated details about my looks, almost fanning herself. I rolled my eyes and went back to the menu.

"You two ready to order? Or do you need a few minutes?" The waitress had appeared next to the table. She was looking directly at me, batting her eyelashes.

"I'll have the mushroom ravioli," Bella said, breaking her out of the staring contest she had with me.

"I'll have the same," I told her, grinning hugely before grabbing Bella's menu and giving them to the waitress. I shifted my chair so it was closer to Bella, and I reached out and kissed her softly. "I've been wanting to do that since I picked you up. I didn't think the Chief would be too happy with me if I had though."

I heard the waitress become angry at my show, and I almost smiled in satisfaction. That's the exact response I wanted. But I kept my face passive, as I really did have something I needed to talk to her about.

"You shouldn't do that, you know," Bella chided me.

"Do what?"

"Dazzle people. You may have given her a heart attack, just before her heart broke when you kissed me. Cruel." She snickered, though.

I leaned a little closer to her, our noses almost touching. "Do I dazzle you?"

She smirked and kissed me quickly. "Frequently."

I shifted back in my seat, chuckling. "So, Bella," I began, right as she said, "Um, Edward?" I held my hand out to her. "You go first."

"So, um, I was talking to this kid, Jacob..." she said, glancing down at the table.

"Is he from Pheonix?" I asked, drawing a blank. I couldn't think of anyone named Jacob at school.

She shook her head. "No, Jacob Black. Billy's son? The one who lives on the Quileute reservation?"

"Oh." I really didn't know what else to say.

"I wanted to ask you about something. I'm sorry if this is rude, but something he said made me curious."

"You can ask me anything, Bella."

"Jacob said...well, he said that you and your family were dangerous. That's what his dad believes, anyway. Though, Jake didn't really seem to believe it, he was more like passing along information." She shifted, and I waited. She hadn't actually asked me a question yet. "So, I was wondering about something he said. He said the legends say that you and your family are dangerous, because you are 'cold ones.'" She used air quotes.

I sucked in a breath. Jacob, probably without knowing it, had just killed our treaty as much as his father had. I kept my face passive, waiting for her question.

"Anyway, I thought that was sort of odd, but I know your skin is always cold. Well, I thought at first maybe it was just circulation, but that seemed weird because your lips and even your breath are cold."

I leaned forward, not touching her this time. "What is your question, Bella?"

She blushed, looking away toward the kitchen doors. She paused for a minute, and then looked back. "I was thinking that every single person on the reservation hates you and your entire family. You said it was an old feud, which seems really strange to me. My question is, will you tell me the truth about why they hate you guys so much?"

I had given her this. I told her to ask me anything, and I would be honest. I had promised not to lie to her. I heard the waitress getting our food together, though, so I held up my finger. She didn't say anything, but I did notice that her eyes were wide when the food was set down in front of us. Once the waitress had gone, I leaned toward her again.

"Bella, I promise I will tell you the truth. But please just listen with an open mind, ok? Don't make any judgments about me or my family until you hear all of it ok?"

She nodded; her eyes still wide. But she leaned forward, putting her hand on mine before I could speak. "It doesn't matter to me. You know that, right? I don't care what the truth is, I-I'm still going to feel the same about you." She looked down. "I just want to know, is all. If I'm defending you or your family, I want to know what I'm defending."

"I understand, Bella. You eat, and I'll talk. Deal?" She nodded, taking a bite of her food, dropping her hand from mine. I took a deep breath. "Your friend Jacob is right. Me and my family are the 'cold ones' from his legend."

She stopped chewing to stare at me. So, I continued, "It's not as bad as they say, though. We don't hunt humans," I said the word as a whisper. "We live with them in order to keep what's left of our humanity, I suppose."

She scanned my face quickly. "Undead?"

I nodded. "There are legends all over the world about undead, you know. We come in many forms; I suppose you could say. Jacob's tribe met us years ago when we were first in the area. They called us cold ones, based on someone like us who had attacked their village years ago. I was not lying when I said there was a long history – a feud – between us. I just didn't go into full details.

"Jacob's tribe is interesting; I've never met anything like them before. One of my kind attacked their village many years ago, and the chief and his son turned. They are a type of shifter species, and they just happen to take the shape of a wolf. They are a vampire's natural enemy."

"Vampire?" she whispered. Again, I nodded. This time, I couldn't meet her eyes. "But not a dangerous one."

I leaned forward. "I am very dangerous, I assure you. We all are."

She shook her head, leaning toward me, too. "Not dangerous to me. Jacob said you were dangerous to the wild life. Not to us. But he said his father and all of the village leaders were still scared of you regardless."

"Jacob is very well informed," I stated simply. She still wasn't freaking out, though the wide-eyes look seemed to be frozen on her face. "You don't seem that surprised by what I'm saying to you."

"I already told you," she said, taking another bite and chewing it. "It doesn't matter. Whatever you were going to say doesn't make any difference in how I feel about you."

My mate was an incredible woman.

A/N: Well, the truth is out, so to speak. I know that many of you were wondering how Esme would play into the story, and I promise it's coming. We will get more to the point in the next chapter.

I'm celebrating today because I have basically finished this story. I'm currently in edit mode now, so the chapter count may change, but for now it's set at 25 chapters with an epilogue. During the edits, I may end up expanding the story a little, but we'll see.

So, yes, the deviation from the story is fairly clear in this chapter also. I liked the idea that Bella had a thought about what he was, but there wasn't any real proof in my story to lead her down the path. Writing in Jake telling her about the legends was her only clue, so it needed to be Edward who told her. And, he only told her because of his mother and Alice. You'll see why in the next chapter.

Though I am posting this early, I will still continue to stick to my twice a week chapter updates: Wednesday and Saturday. You just get an extra chapter this week because I am so happy to have finished the first drafts of all the chapters! I hope you enjoy!

One question that has come up a lot was if Esme would get a HEA – absolutely. I love her character, and I wrote in some good stuff coming up for her. Just remember the deviations we have already taken from canon as you continue to read the remaining chapters. I hope you all enjoy where I took it.

Thanks again to my pre-reading sister, and my amazing beta zombified419, for all of your support for this story. I appreciate the chats about plot, and encouragement when I got stuck.