"At first she was just a bright spot in my day or week or month," Edward says, holding my hand as we sit on the bed together and look into the camera of my laptop. "I felt guilty that I was so happy to see her, considering the circumstances. I found something I didn't know I was looking for when I met her and I couldn't get enough. I even made sure I had nothing scheduled after her appointments so I could spend more time with her. I was . . . well, from the first moment I was hers."

"Don't be corny." I smirk, nudging his shoulder.

"She was a beacon of light in a hurricane. It was as if her smile made the sun rise each day. She—"

"Shut up," I laugh. "Either tell your side of the story or let me go. We're running short on time."

"We've got fifteen minutes until we should leave. Twenty until we must," he says, glancing at his watch. "I'm good on time."

"Resume," I sigh.

"Thank you," he says, winking. "Where was I? Oh yes, she changed my life. Around the time I met her I was starting to question some of my choices. I thought I was prepared for my specialty, but it often felt like I was fighting a losing battle. Just before I walked into the room she was in for the first time, I was talking to my dad, your grandfather, about taking a break. Looking into your mom's eyes for the first time lit a fire inside of me. I was in awe of her strength and bravery. She was so full of life and ready to fight for it. She once told me, 'this isn't how my story ends,' and she was right."

He runs his hand through his hair, which he does whenever he's uncomfortable or nervous. This is hard, and we've been doing it for weeks. It's also wonderful, too. His words to our baby have shown me his side of our little love story, and it feels so incredible to hear his thoughts and feelings in a way I haven't before. I'm remembering how I felt and I'm smiling as tears fill my eyes.

"I couldn't help but love her," he says as I squeeze his hand. "I didn't realize I had fallen in love with her at first, but it hit me just before Christmas time a little over two years ago. She had pneumonia at the time, so she was in the hospital during the weeks leading up to the holiday. I spent every single free moment I had with her. I found myself coming in early and staying late, just to talk to her. I had to be there for her. I knew I was meant to be. That illness . . . it took a lot out of her, but she asked me for one thing — one more Christmas. I decided right then that I would make it as magical as possible."

"And you did," I say, wiping my tears. "And you've made me cry!"

He dips his head, pressing a kiss to my forehead. "I'm sorry, beautiful, but to be fair, you cry over everything."

I roll my eyes, but it's completely true. Hormones; they're a bitch. I literally cried this morning because my bagel was so absolutely, perfectly toasted. An actual tear rolled down my cheek, and I have to live with the fact that a bagel made me cry for the rest of my life. The craving had been so strong that Edward had to hop out of bed at the ungodly hour of five-thirty in the morning on his day off and drive to Panera Bread to get me an Asiago bagel. He even did it with a smile on his face for some reason.

It was perfection, and I mean, I was really craving it.

"We should probably leave soon," I say, kissing his cheek. "I'm about to be proven right, sweet thing."

I smirk at my laptop as Edward chuckles, leaning closer to it. "We'll see you soon, little one. We love you."

"Love you," I say, rubbing my bump as he turns off the video camera and closes my laptop.

Edward gently tosses it further down the bed and then holds his hands out for mine, helping me scoot to the edge of the bed to get off. He pulls me into his arms, kissing me as I stand on my toes.

"Let's go find out if she's actually a she," he says, kissing me softly once more before kneeling and kissing my belly.

My bump's a little bigger, but the kid's only the size of an avocado so I'm not all baby bump yet. It's there, though, and only growing more. Within the next few weeks, I'll start to feel her move and I cannot wait.

. . . . .

Kate saves the best part of our appointment for last. I've happily endured all of her torture for this, and I'm shaking with excitement as I hold Edward's hand tightly.

"Thank you so much for doing this yourself, Kate" I say, smiling nervously. "With the whole, chemo and radiation thing, I'm a little nervous. I hope she's okay."

"I'm sure she's fine." Kate smiles, shaking the gel and patting my arm. "And I'm more than happy to do this for you. We'll see what you're having first and then I'll check hopefully her out. Edward, would you like to do the honor of telling her the sex?"

My husband's eyes widen and he quickly nods. "I'd love to. You get to feel her first, so it's only fair I have this."

I giggle as Kate squeezes the gel on my bump and starts moving the transducer over it. "It's fine, but if you're wrong, I'm going to laugh."

"I know how to read an ultrasound, sweet girl." He smirks.

"But I'll take pleasure in correcting him if he doesn't," Kate says, laughing as she fiddles with the machine.

I hear a beautiful heart beat fill the room and it's easily become my favorite sound. I close my eyes for a moment, smiling as I listen to the whoosh. She adjusts the transducer and my toes wiggle in anticipation.

"I know I'm not wrong," I say, trying to sound convincing.

Edward keeps his eyes on me, brushing his fingers through my hair as he smiles. "I'm sure you're not."

"Okay, this shouldn't be hard," Kate says, drawing our attention. "Go ahead and look, Edward."

Instead of looking with him, I watch his expression. The screen lights up his features in the dim room and he lifts his head, narrowing his eyes slightly. It doesn't take long for a grin to spread across his face.

"I am going to be changing a lot of diapers in the middle of the night," he says, smiling down at me and quickly capturing my lips.

Girl.

"A girl?" I ask, pushing his face away. "Really?"

He nods. "We're having a baby girl. A little you."

I'm stunned and he kisses me again. It sinks in slowly and I see flashes of pink in my mind. I hear sweet lullabies and envision myself holding a little bundle in the middle of the night. It's the most wondrous thought and soon will become a reality. Also, I was right.

"I win!" I laugh.

"Fair enough, but you really didn't win all that much," Edward says, rolling his eyes.

"We'll see how much I won at two in the morning," I tease.

"Ah, he'll be fine," Kate says, smiling. "I'm so happy for you both."

"Thank you. So, is she okay?"

Our baby girl is absolutely perfect in every way — her heart, her brain, everything's as it should be. I'm still in a little bit of shock, but I'm over the moon and Edward is grinning just as much. I barely feel the late February chill as we walk to the car — too taken by the photos in my hands. Kate did a 3D ultrasound as well, so I have a beautiful picture of our daughter with her little mouth open.

I'm in awe of how . . . real she is.

"I can't believe it," I say, absentmindedly buckling my seatbelt as I look at our girl. "Look at her little mouth!"

"She's gorgeous," he says, kissing my temple. "Just like her momma."

"I'm nowhere near as adorable as she is," I laugh. "I'm so relieved she's okay. This is the best day of my life, baby."

He nods. "Mine too, and I'm so thankful that won't be on our minds anymore. You're healthy, she's healthy, and I'm the luckiest man in the world."

"I love you so much," I say, taking his hand over the center console as he pulls out of the parking garage.

"I love you, too. You wanted to go to Target, didn't you?"

"Yes! I need girly things. I must satisfy the urge."

He chuckles. "This should be fun. Good thing the trunk's empty, huh?"

Yes, very good thing.

. . . . .

I buy booties and tights and bows and onesies. I even throw in a few pink bottles and pacifiers, too. I don't seem to care that I still have another twenty-four weeks until I'm due to shop, and I just keep adding adorable baby girl things to the cart.

I'm in baby heaven.

Edward's just standing near the cart as I toss things in, hand on his chin and suppressing laughter. I'm a woman on a friggin' mission for the cutest things imaginable and he's indulging me.

"Yeah, I'm glad we have a couple extra bedrooms for storage," I say, laying four, stacked pink buckets in the cart. I mean, I need pink buckets to store pink clothes in, after all.

God, I'm really on a pink kick.

"I feel like we're going to have a lot of things she'll never wear," he says, eyeing the almost full cart.

"Donations," I sing, smiling sheepishly. "Let me just look at the blankets and then you can drag me out of this section, okay? We still need to get party decorations and snacks, so don't let me forget."

"Blankets, decorations, snacks." He nods. "Got it."

I'm ashamed to say how many blankets my uterus makes me add to the cart, but Edward doesn't bat an eyelash. He does keep me from making one more round, but only because his family is coming over for dinner at seven, so we need to get home and set up.

I get cute pink plates and decorations and then we hurry through the grocery section before checking out. The back of his Volvo is filled with bags, and I can't wait to get home and add my stash to everything I've already bought. This is just the beginning and thoughts of getting our home ready for our child fill my mind. I'm not sure why this is so exciting to me, but it is. Again, damn hormones.

Our final stop before going home is the bakery. I placed an order for two dozen cupcakes a while back — half decorated for a boy and half for a girl. I knew I'd want to tell the family right away, so I wanted to be prepared. Yes, it does leave us with a dozen extra blue-themed cupcakes, but I'm pretty sure my stomach can't tell the difference and cake freezes well.

By the time we get home, we have less than two hours before everyone gets here for dinner. I cleaned the house yesterday, so aside from decorating, all I need to do is cook dinner. The chicken's been marinating since last night, so part of the work is already done. Once I get that in the oven, Edward offers to take over making the sides so I can start decorating. I have to promise to leave the banner for him to hang, but I've got the rest handled.

I considered a few different ways to share the news, but covering the house in pink seems the best. I mean, they'll walk in and bam, pink galore. Straight to the wonderful point that I was right. There's pink confetti in vases, pink flowers scattered around, a pink tablecloth over the dining room table, pink plastic champagne glasses, and pink—yeah, you get the point. Pepto bismol exploded in a chevron pattern all over my house.

I may have gone too far.

"Mom just texted that they're fifteen minutes away," Edward says, walking into the dining room as I hold the banner for him to hang. "Just under the archway?"

"Yes, please. How's dinner looking?"

"Delicious," he says, standing on his toes and easily taping one side to the wall. "Mom tried to get me to tell her what we're having."

"I got a text earlier, too," I giggle.

"Is it even?"

I stand back, inspecting his work before nodding. "Looks good to me. I'm going to go change really quick, all right? The chicken should need a half hour more, so we're good on timing."

"Wonderful," he says, meeting me in the doorway and putting his arm around my waist. "Have I told you how absolutely stunning you are today?"

"I suppose not in so many words." I smile. "Thank you, handsome."

"Thank you," he says, laying a soft kiss on my neck. "Go change. I'll handle things down here."

"Don't let them in the house until I'm downstairs."

He laughs, nodding. "I'll guard the door."

I make quick work of freshening up and changing into a nicer shirt. I keep my yoga leggings, which I've deemed everyday attire because stretchy waist. Seriously, bless these things. They go well with everything. I'm done with plenty of time to spare, so I check on the chicken and lay out the snacks before the doorbell finally rings. I almost run to the door and turn my camera on before letting Edward open it.

"It's a girl!" I yell as the door opens wide and Carlisle's, Esme's, and Alice's eyes land on the decor. Rose, Emmett, Seth, and Nana Cullen are close behind them, walking up the path as Esme screams.

"I knew it!" She rushes in, enveloping me in a gentle hug. "Oh, I'm so happy for you! For both of you!"

She pulls Edward into the hug before we're broken up for more hugs and congratulations. Nana Cullen is the last one to embrace me and actually smiles while doing so. "Cullen girls are smart," she says. "Alice clearly smoked entirely too much of that marijuana as a teenager, so she doesn't count, but we are. You're lucky."

I choke as she points her finger at my sister-in-law, who just rolls her eyes. "Thanks," I say, and add in a whisper, "I think."

"I take it everything looked good?" Carlisle asks as we make our way into the living room and wait for dinner to be ready.

"She's absolutely perfect," Edward says, nodding with a proud grin.

"I left the envelopes on the dining room table," I say. "Would you grab them for me? We've got pictures for everyone."

Esme grins and sits down beside me with a glass of wine in hand, thanks to Alice. Since Nana Cullen is attending, I pulled out the best bottle we have for my mother and sister-in-law. They'll need it. "Did you do that 3D kind?" she asks.

I nod. "Yes! Just wait until you see the picture; it's so adorable."

Edward hurries back in the room, passing out the envelopes according to name. We had a copy made for everyone, so I put them in little, "it's a girl!" cards. The room is filled with oohs and awws as they each look their the sonograms photos. I look at Esme's as she flips through, once again in awe of the little girl inside of me.

"She's beautiful," Esme says, tearing up as she puts her arm around me. "We are so blessed to have you, Bella. I am so proud of how far you've come and how hard you've fought. Carlisle, I do believe we hit the daughter-in-law jackpot with our girls."

Carlisle nods, patting Rosalie's hand from the sofa across from us. "Yes, we have. I couldn't be more proud of our wonderful family, and I'm so glad it includes you both now. Boys, good job."

Emmett gives him a thumbs up from the other side of Rosalie and Edward just chuckles softly.

"What are you naming the baby?" Nana asks. "You're not going to chose one of those made-up ones, are you?"

"Wasn't planning on it, but now that you mention it, the possibilities are endless," I say with a light smirk. "We were talking about naming her after my mother, but what if we combine our moms' names? Esme and Renee. Esre? Renes? Esne? Oh! Renesmee! Just smoosh them both together."

"Definitely going on the list," Edward says as Nana's expression is one of horror.

"I love it," Esme says.

"We can call her Nessie," Emmett says, grinning. "Like after the Loch Ness monster."

"Oh, now you're all just screwing with me," she finally says, rolling her eyes as we laugh. "That's a terrible name."

"I like unique names," Alice says. "Maybe not, you know, that unique, but you want something creative — something cool and cute. Please god, don't be like Mom and Dad. Emmett got the best name and it's still fairly lame."

"Mary Alice is a beautiful, but you refuse to use it," Esme says.

"And Edward and Emmett were named after their grandfathers," Nana says. "My Edward was an incredible man and it meant a lot to me that Esme and Carlisle chose it. It would also be nice if my name could live on, you know." She cocks her brow, looking directly at me.

Lilliana is a beautiful name, but I'm not sure it fits our daughter. "It's definitely on the long, long list," I say. "I think we might have to meet her before picking a name, though."

"Fair enough," she says as the timer on my phone goes off.

Alice heads into the kitchen with me to help pull dinner out as everyone else continues to discuss the new addition to our family. Little Seth isn't far behind, wanting to help us, so she puts him on the counter and let's him help put the sides into bowls as I add finishing touches.

It all turns out so delicious and we tell everyone it was all Seth's help, which puts a huge grin on his adorable face. He sits on my lap as we ate and asks all about his new cousin. He even makes me promise he can hold her and I happily agree. This family is more than I ever could have dreamed of, and I'm so thankful for my second chance at life.

There are so many good things ahead of us and as the conversations flow around me, it hits me that I'm not afraid of what the future holds. My life has been filled with so many downs, but this up . . . it outweighs all the bad. I have a family, I'm loved, I'm healthy, and I'm going to have a daughter.

What more could a girl ask for?