A/N:

I had a great weekend away, and I was touched with a few of the reviews I received from you! You guys are seriously the best!

So, Edward's away now, but he doesn't know how long he'll be gone. Could be months...

How will Bella handle everything now that he left?

Title: The Perfect Partner Program

Author: MarieCarro

Beta: EdwardsFirstKiss

Pre-reader: brwneyedgrl01

Genre: Angst/Hurt&Comfort/Romance

Rating: NC-17

Summary: The summer of 2005 was the summer that changed Bella Swan's life forever. Sent to Ohio by her mother to attend a school for debutante girls not quite up to par, she meets Edward Masen, an apprentice. But is that really all he is? AH

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter Word Count: 2, 749

CHAPTER 27 TIME DOES FLY

Following Edward's departure from Seattle, I was back to my routine very quickly. He and I hadn't spent enough time together for me to feel a huge impact from his absence. But I guess the big difference compared to before we had met again was that now he was on my mind every day.

Whenever I wasn't occupied with work or preparing for my baby's arrival, which was creeping closer and closer, or focusing on my family and friends, he was present in my thoughts. Especially the first couple of weeks since he had found a way to make sure I didn't forget him.

It started with a text from an unknown number.

I am being sent out on a new case, but I'm thinking of you every day. - EM

Naively, I'd saved that number in my contacts, believing he'd found a way to keep in contact during his leave, but the next time I received a message, two days later, it was another unknown number.

I hope my messages aren't unwelcome. I guess I can't help myself. I wish I could hear your voice. - EM

When it took more than three days before I received the next message, I became anxious, and I found myself checking my phone the first thing when I woke up, several times throughout the day, and then just before going to bed. My heart skipped a beat when my phone alerted me to a new text message, and it had not gone unnoticed by my colleagues, my family, or Becca.

They dropped comments here and there that annoyed me at first because it appeared they were indicating I was in love with Edward, but then I understood they were right and I was in denial.

The day that realization came to me was brutal. It started as any day when I woke up, and I immediately stretched for my phone.

No new messages.

It was the instant tightening ache in my heart in reaction to the absence of a new message that made me see the truth in the comments I'd gotten. I froze up under my covers, unable to move or do anything as tears welled in my eyes.

How had I allowed it to happen again? Didn't I have any self-preservation at all anymore?

I couldn't go to work that day, so I called in sick, which quickly reached Dad's ears, who in turn contacted Becca and asked her to check up on me.

She found me still underneath my covers, pulled all the way over my head. When she looked at my face, my red, puffy eyes and the tear streaks down my cheeks, she sighed before taking her shoes off and crawling into bed with me.

"It finally hit you, huh?" she asked and gently stroked the hair away from my face.

"I didn't want this, sis!" I wailed. "I was content with the thought of never falling in love again. Why did he have to show up? And now he's gone again, and I don't even know if he'll be back."

"I don't want to promise you anything but I have to say that from what you've told me, that man has it bad for you. I doubt he'll be able to stay away once he's finished his next job," she said in an attempt to cheer me up.

"Yeah, but what then?" I asked, and she frowned in confusion.

"What do you mean?"

"Is this how it's going to be? That he'll only be able to come here for a couple of months at a time before he's sent out on a new case? What will that mean for us? For my baby? Am I supposed to let him or her believe Edward is their dad? Seriously, what am I supposed to do?" I sobbed helplessly. I really was a mess, and I was certain my overly-dramatic crying had something to do with my hormones, although I did feel filled with despair.

"That's the kind of thing you need to figure out with him, darling," Becca pointed out. "But before going down that road, you need to ask yourself, no matter what you're feeling right now, are you ready to trust Edward with your heart again? You might have just figured out that you have feelings for him, but you still have a chance to walk away, as long as you don't get any more involved."

I swallowed hard to try to dissolve the huge lump in my throat. "I'm scared," I admitted. "He's shown me over and over again that he's honest, and that he has no intention of playing me, but I'm still scared. A part of me screams every time I feel sympathy for him that I need to remember what he did."

Becca nodded. "That's very understandable, but I want to ask you something. Please don't hate me, but I'm not sure you've thought about things from his perspective."

"How so?"

"Well," she started carefully. "Put yourself in his shoes for just a moment. Let's say Demetri asked you to go on an undercover mission where your goal was to find out information from a certain person no matter what it takes. During this mission, your target falls in love with you, and you fall in love with them. Then you finally gather that little piece of information that you needed, but by giving it to Demetri, you essentially send your target to prison yourself. Would you still do your job, or would you resign it to another cop?"

I thought about the picture she painted up for a moment, but it made me uncomfortable and I automatically became defensive. "That's not the same thing," I retorted, but she just smiled patiently at me.

"Isn't it? Then tell me the difference."

"Well—" I started, but after that, my mind was blank. I couldn't tell her about the difference because I rationally knew there was none. "Since when are you on Team Edward, anyway?" I muttered. "I thought you were supposed to be on my side."

She laughed softly and kissed the tip of my nose. "I am on your side. That's the difference between a normal friend and a best friend. I'm not afraid to challenge your thoughts and help you see things from every perspective even though it might hurt. I love you enough to not always agree and pacify you to keep you happy."

I blinked. "That's so weird it actually makes sense," I told her, and we laughed together which instantly made me feel a hundred times better.

"Now, what do you say about getting some breakfast in that belly of yours? I want my little niece or nephew to be adorably chubby when they get here," she said before jumping out of bed to help me up.

Once it had completely sunk in that my feelings were stronger for Edward than I would have preferred, it became easier to handle. I felt fine even when it took several days before I received another message from him, and it continued like that for a month.

Then, the messages stopped. I didn't think much of it the first week, but the second week I started to wonder, and the third week I was downright worried; not about the possibility that something bad had happened to him, but about what was keeping him from contacting me when he'd had no problem doing so until then.

My constant thoughts of Edward distracted me from freaking out that my due date was getting closer, and even as I put the finishing touches on the nursery, it was as if it hadn't clicked in my head that I was mere days from becoming a mom.

Not until I looked at my calendar and the huge circled date, March 10, stared me in the face. It was tomorrow's date, and suddenly it sunk in that I could go into labor at any time, and of course, I freaked out.

I had gotten so used to being pregnant and constantly preparing for the baby that I had completely forgotten about what things would be like when he or she was actually here. Would I be a good Mom? Could I really do this on my own? What if, for whatever stupid reason, I started to act like Renée?

When those irrational thoughts entered my head, I knew I was just being stupid, even though the fear of turning into Renée would most likely always linger inside me, however likely that would happen.

Luckily, I had prepared for going to the hospital in my daze. I had already packed a bag with everything I would need and placed it by my door. My official maternity leave had already started two days ago For all intents and purposes; I was ready to have my baby.

Still, as I ate my lunch in front of the TV, my companion, loneliness, crept up on me violently, and I started crying. I had cried a lot lately, and while looking around the open layout of my kitchen and living room that so obviously displayed that I was the only one who lived here, the tears were unstoppable.

I started to question if it was fair of me to bring a child into my life when I was such a broken person, and I knew it was a question I'd already answered long before I decided on being inseminated. But the reality that my baby was imminently on its way had me questioning everything all over again, and I had no one there who could assure me that everything would be fine or that I would be a wonderful parent.

My family and Becca had repeatedly told me exactly that, but they weren't close when I needed to hear it the most.

That night, I was so strung out, expecting every minute to feel my water breaking that I didn't get any sleep until I passed out from exhaustion in the early hours of the morning. The entire next day, I walked around as if I were walking on pins and needles. Nothing I did helped me relax, not even the aromatherapy bubble bath I drew for myself after I'd eaten dinner. My heart continued to pump loudly in my chest.

The day passed, and so did the night with no indication whatsoever that I was even close to going into labor, and it caused me to feel jittery. My ankles and feet became increasingly more swollen every day, and while I wanted nothing more than to lounge on my couch all day with my feet propped up, it was impossible to get completely comfortable.

I was eternally grateful for my family who came and visited me every day to help me with the things that I had no energy or motivation to do, and when I lashed out irrationally out of frustration and impatience, they all took it in stride.

"Uuugh, I hate this," I whined while Becca and Solomon cooked dinner for the three of us. "A week ago, I was terrified of not being pregnant anymore and actually do the whole 'Mom' thing, but now I just want this shit to be over with!"

"Should you really swear right now?" Becca teased. "I thought babies could hear everything going on after twenty weeks."

I glared at her. "Shut up. They're going to grow up with me, so they'll have to put up with some swearing, anyway."

She laughed at me, and I grunted as I stood up to set the table, but I instantly got the feeling that I needed to pee really badly.

"Dammit," I cursed under my breath and disgruntledly made my way to the bathroom. My back was aching after sitting slouched down for so long, and I had to use the sink for support for a moment as I waited for it to subside.

It didn't, though. It only intensified and caused me to groan. Then, I gasped when my thoughts wandered to my suspicions of what was going on. I left the bathroom again to pace the hallway outside, all the while taking deep breaths until I felt the ache subside, and just as I thought it was over, the muscles in my back and lower abdomen contracted violently and it reminded me of really intense menstrual cramps.

Sue had told me that when my contractions began, this was what they would feel like, so I instantly knew I had finally gone into labor.

"Guys!" I yelled, and after just a short moment, they both came out into the hall and simultaneously frowned when they saw me supporting myself with a hand on the wall and the other on my lower back. "I think it's time," I told them.

Becca's jaw dropped and her eyes widened for just a second before she ran into action. "Okay, okay. We got this. It's cool." She turned to Solomon. "Take her bag, put in the car and start the engine," she ordered before fishing out her phone. "Darling, I'm going to call Sue for you, alright?"

I nodded. "Sure," I said with another groan. The contraction was over, but the discomfort lingered.

I concentrated on my breathing while Becca walked around all over; turning off the stove and oven and helping me put on my jacket and shoes. It appeared as if Sue didn't answer the first call, but the second time, I heard the click of her picking up, and at the same time, my next contraction hit me.

"Hey Sue, it's Becca!" she greeted. "Guess what? Charlie and you are about to be grandparents again!"

I heard Sue's muffled reply and reached out my hand for the phone so that I could talk to her myself.

"I think you'd better talk to Bella about that," Becca said. "I'm going to put her on and help her out to the car. We should be at the hospital in about thirty minutes."

"Sue?" I said as soon as I had the phone against my ear.

"Yes, Bella, I'm here. Now tell me, how far apart are your contractions?" she asked.

"Maybe eight or ten minutes, but I'm not sure. I've only had two that really hurt so far."

"Did your water break?"

"No, not yet."

"Have you had your bloody show?"

"I don't know. I haven't checked."

"Okay, well, I'll make sure someone's waiting at the entrance with a wheelchair, and I'll get to the hospital as fast as I can."

"Okay, thanks! I guess I'll see you soon then."

I gave the phone back to Becca, who helped me stand up and put on my shoes. With a steady grip on my arm and around my waist, she led me out to the driveway, but halfway to the car, another contraction caused me to freeze and tighten my hold on her hand. It was the worst one yet, and I had to bend over and really breathe through it.

"Fuck, that one hurt," I whimpered, and Becca had to force me to continue moving.

"C'mon, honey. The faster we get you to the hospital, the better," she encouraged, and I put everything I had into taking the last steps needed to the car.

It was at least a twenty-minute drive to the hospital, and the entire way there, Becca sat in the backseat with me and talked soothingly. But when she instructed me with the Lamaze breathing when the next contraction hit, I seriously wanted to punch her.

Everything became blurry once we arrived at the hospital. I was placed in a wheelchair with a nurse asking me all kinds of questions, which I answered mechanically. I wanted to wait to give detailed information until I had Sue in front of me.

I was wheeled into a room and given a gown to put on, and it became quiet in the room. Not even Becca appeared to know what to say.

It was as if neither of us could wrap our heads around that the time had finally come.

Although, when Sue entered the room with a wide smile on her face and eyes filled with love and pride, I finally felt like I was completely ready for the next part of my life to begin.

A/N:

Question only to those who have not read this before: boy or girl? What do you hope for and why? :-D

To clear up any confusion, this chapter went through another fast forward. Edward left Seattle in January, and this chapter ends on March 15th, so he's been gone for quite some time already.

Bella is now occupied with thoughts of her baby.

If/when Edward returns (dun dun dun) how do you expect he will react to the baby?

Until Wednesday

Stay Awesome!