CHAPTER THIRTEEN

It took weeks of convincing and crying for Esme to finally gather the courage to speak with her husband about her eldest child taking his family back home. Bella begged her, saying that she needed her father, and she wanted to be in her home with her son, not surrounded by guns.

Carlisle was very adamant, but Esme eventually talked him into considering it. Bella was halfway through her pregnancy, telling her angry father that she had fallen ill while in Sacramento and wasn't able to travel quite yet. He demanded that she tell him where they were so that he could come help, but Bella promised that she was being taken care of and that there was nothing to worry about.

It took Carlisle another month to come to an agreement with Edward. They were able to move back to Washington if they had a security team move with them. Three people would take eight-hour rotations taking care of the small family. Although Edward and Bella resented the idea, they were glad to accept that and be able to go home instead of staying in Sacramento. By then, Bella was much more than showing, entering her third trimester when she was finally able to flop down on her bed. Carlisle had sent out the security team a week before them to make sure that the house and surrounding area was safe. Ezra was sad to say goodbye to his family, but they promised to see him soon. Rosalie and Alice were already making plans to come to stay in Washington with their husbands for a month or two after Bella had her baby.

Esme was so honored when Edward and Bella mentioned the name they had chosen. "Renesmee, after my mother and you." Bella explained with a grin on her face. Although no one would say it, Bella seemed to be taking this pregnancy harder than her previous one. She had an overall grey tone to her skin and had appeared to lose weight everywhere except her round belly.

"When I was pregnant with Alice, I felt like she sucked all the estrogen out of me." Esme told her very worried son a few nights before they moved. "It's just the life of having a baby girl. When she's born, things will be different."

"Ma, she's getting worse and worse every day. You guys don't see it the way I do." Edward insisted.

However, that didn't delay the move. The day after the Cullens moved back into their small house, Charlie came to visit. He was bursting with happiness when he held Ezra in his arms again, hugging his grandson tightly and peppering his cheeks with kisses.

"Where's your mommy?" Charlie asked, moving E.J. over to his hip. He reached a hand out to shake Edward's hand, then began to head towards their bedroom.

"Charlie, wait." Edward said before his father in law could get too far. "There's some things you need to know."

So, the three boys sat on the couch while Edward explained in the vaguest way possible as to what was going on. He told Charlie that Bella was pregnant, and they got married while in California. He was upset, obviously, but Edward promised that they didn't tell him for a good reason, something that he needn't worry over, but also something he didn't need to know. Edward also mentioned that Bella was struggling with her pregnancy physically. Their daughter was taking a toll on her stressed-out mother, but he was dedicated to making sure that his wife was going to be okay. He had as intensive of a knowledge as you could get from getting a majority of your medical schooling online, and he applied it to Bella every single day.

When Charlie went to check on Bella, she was buried under a pile of blankets.

"Hey baby girl." He whispered as he sat on the bed, gently waking her up with his hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, dad." Bella whispered, a tired smile pulling at her lips.

"So, Renesmee, huh?" He asked, reaching up to push some of her brown hair behind her ear.

"Do you like it?" She asked quietly, thankful that Edward filled her dad in so she didn't have to.

"It's really nice, your mother would love it."

Renee had died when Bella was very young, but Bella still remembered her mother every day.

Bella and Charlie spent a while just catching up over everything that the other had missed. Jacob was mentioned, and Charlie asked a question that Bella asked herself every day; could she forgive Jacob? He didn't ask her to actually forgive him, just if she thought she ever would.

That was a hard question. Her and Jacob fell out of love, and although he really hurt her, he gave her the best thing in her life; Ezra.

"I think I do forgive him." Bella whispered. "I think he didn't know what he did. He really thought that we were just… fighting. I don't know, dad."

"I don't think I could forgive him for doing that to you. Every time he calls me or comes over to ask about E.J., its so hard for me not to just… sucker punch him in his jaw." Charlie whispered, his hand rubbing over Bella's arms. "It's gotten to the point where I'm ashamed to talk to Billy. How could he have created a son that could do such an evil thing?"

"Dad," Bella whispered. She never knew that he felt that way. Did he feel this way for the entire time since Bella began to feel insecure in her marriage? Or was it since he found out that Ezra was conceived while Bella was being raped? "I don't think Jacob is evil. I think that he was too young to get married. I think he wanted me to be someone else, who would party with him or something, but I wasn't. And that's okay. I have Edward now, and I'm really happy. I've never been this happy, and now with Renesmee on the way… my heart just feels… full." Bella whispered. "I just wished that things ended different with Jake sometimes. I wouldn't trade E.J. for anything, but I miss the idea of his friendship sometimes. I see the same people every day."

"I can come over more often, baby." Charlie insisted, earning a smile from Bella.

"That would be really nice. Edward's sisters are coming down in a few months to help out with the baby, so we're going to have a pretty full house for a while."

"I bet you're gonna love that." Charlie said sarcastically.

After Charlie left, Bella almost instantly fell asleep, only waking up to eat some soup that Edward made for her. He took her blood pressure and temperature, then let her go back to sleep. She was running just a slight fever, and her blood pressure was low. The doctor recommended lots of rest for the young lady, so that was what she got.

Edward and Ezra spent a lot of time together, but after three days of being stuck inside, the young boy had had enough.

"Let's go to Papa's house." Ezra insisted walking into Edward and Bella's room with his small backpack slung over his back. The parents smiled and got ready for the day, then told their security team what the plan was, and not to worry about them.

When they arrived at Charlie's house, Bella immediately sat on the couch, seemingly exhausted from the five steps that it took to get inside. Ezra ran to Charlie and hugged his legs, then ran towards the back of the house where all of his toys were.

"How are you feeling, honey?" Edward asked quietly, taking Bella's hand in his while rubbing her back softly.

"I'm fine." She whispered, her hands rubbing over the tight skin of her belly.

"I bet its nice to get out of that house." Charlie noted, sitting on the table across from his daughter with a glass on water in his hand. He offered it to her, and with assistance from Edward, she began to sip on it.

"So, dad," Bella began, sitting up on the couch. "Edward and I talked about it, and we think that it would be okay for Billy to meet E.J. He needs to know that we want to set boundaries with him before he steps foot inside, though."

"Are you sure, Bella? Usually with Billy, comes Jacob."

The young couple hadn't seen Jacob since the one time they dropped Ezra off at Charlie's house, almost a year ago. Edward looked at Bella, not wanting to interject. This was a choice she had to make, and if she wanted his help, he would gladly assist her in making it.

"I think that's okay." Bella said after a few moments of silence. "I don't want him to grow up confused."