Chapter 41 - Calls

EDWARD

I had a daughter. I sat in the hospital room, looking over at Bella who was fast asleep, while our little girl was tucked safely down in the nursery. It still hadn't all sunk in. I just stared at my girl laying there, shocked that she was really here.

She was here, and we had a daughter.

Needless to say, I was freaking out. I wished I had my parents to talk to. I wished I had someone to talk to. I had become closer with Carlisle over the last couple of years, but this was something I didn't think he could understand. He had never had a baby.

My phone rang, pulling me out of my thoughts. I smirked when I saw it was Carlisle. I answered it nervously, not sure what to tell him.

"Hello?"

"Edward, thank goodness. Esme has been a mess, where are you?"

"I'm…" I looked over at Bella, "I'm fine."

"Good, now where are you?" he asked again.

"The hospital."

"What? What happened? Are Jasper and Alice alright?"

"Yeah, I'm here with Bella."

"Bella? Bella who?"

"Swan, Carlisle, I'm here with Bella Swan."

"What is she doing in New York? Shouldn't she be back home with her parents?"

I remembered Carlisle had been her mother's doctor for some time. "Renee's dead, Carlisle."

"What happened?" he snapped.

"She died last summer, I guess not long after we left."

"Oh, no, how is Bella taking it?"

"I don't know; she hasn't really talked to me about it."

"Which hospital are you at?" Carlisle asked gently.

"Saint John," I answered.

"Uh, are you, um, in the mental health wing?" he asked carefully.

"What?"

"I know she put a lot on herself when it came to her mother's health."

"No, Carlisle," I didn't say it rudely, I knew he was right. "We're in the maternity ward."

The line was silent for a moment, and then he spoke softly, "Edward, is she pregnant?"

"No, we just had a baby girl."

"You had a…" he paused, I was sure letting it all sink in. "She had a baby? Edward, why didn't you tell us?"

"I didn't know, I just found out yesterday."

"Why didn't you come to us?"

I was getting annoyed with this line of questioning. He was acting hurt, which was ridiculous. "It's not like you have experience in this area, Carlisle. I mean she just freaking showed up and then pop, my little girl was here."

"You don't think I have experience with suddenly becoming a parent? Need I remind you I had no warning before you and Alice were thrust on us? If anything, I think I probably have the most experience."

He was right. "Yeah, I'm sorry, I just, it hasn't all sunk in yet. I'm sitting here in her room watching her sleep, and I still keep blinking, trying to see if I'm seeing things. But she's here, Carlisle, and we have a baby girl. I was there for it, I cut the cord, and right now I'm freaking out, but I'm trying to be strong for her, and I'm worried I'm going to mess everything up."

"Don't worry, Edward, we'll be there soon. I'll let Esme know what's going on."

"Thanks, Carlisle."

"I just have one question, Edward; are you sure the baby is yours?"

I let out an audible growl. "Yes, and don't you dare question her about it, she's a mess as it is."

I heard Carlisle take a deep breath. "Alright, we'll be there soon."

BELLA

I woke up in my hospital room. It was dim, but I could see someone sitting there watching me. They got up and came closer, and I was relieved to see it was Edward. It would have been creepy if it had been Demetri.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" he asked.

"Alright, how's the baby?" I was worried. They said she was fine, but I wanted to be sure nothing had happened since they had moved me to my room.

"She's good; do you want me to call for the nurse to bring her in?"

I nodded yes, and he reached my call button then a woman's voice came over the intercom. "Yes?"

"Ms. Swan would like to see her baby; could you have someone bring her in?"

"Of course."

Edward was being so cool-headed now, and I wondered if he really was okay with being a daddy, but I wasn't going to ask him. I wondered if he wanted to really be a part of mine and our daughter's life.

The nurse came in pushing the little bed and picked up the baby's wrist. She compared mine and the baby's bracelets before smiling and leaving us alone.

Edward surprised me by going over and picking her up, but I guess he realized I couldn't really get out of bed yet. My legs were still a little numb. He looked terrified and amazed at the same time, as he brought our daughter to me. "She's so little."

"How much did she weigh?" I asked, as he handed her to me.

"Seven pounds even," he answered still looking at her wide-eyed.

"That's a good size. I was worried she'd be small, being a little early. Did the doctor say she was fine, all developed?" I asked.

"Yeah, yeah, she has a great pair of lungs and was very alert. The doctor said she was healthy."

I smiled down at my little dark-haired baby girl. She didn't seem to look anything like Edward yet, but I wondered if she would end up with his eyes. I hoped she would. I loved his eyes.

"Bella?" he asked nervously.

"Yeah?"

"What's her name?" Edward seemed to blush lightly as he asked.

"I was thinking we could name her after our mothers if that's alright with you?"

"Renee Elizabeth?" he asked excitedly.

Hearing the sound of my mother's name hurt a little, but I still needed to use her name. "How about Elizabeth Renee?" I asked.

"Really?" he asked in awe.

"Yeah, are you okay with using your mother's name?"

He laughed lightly. "I love it, baby, thank you," he said and leaned down and kissed me softly.

The clearing of someone's throat caught our attention.

"Edward," Carlisle said smoothly. "Bella, how are you doing?"

Esme came up behind him. He hadn't stepped into the room yet, and she was trying frantically to peek around him. She surprised us all by giving him a good shove and barging her way in. "Where is this baby?" she asked excitedly. I couldn't help but laugh as the scene played out. Carlisle straightened himself and looked over at his wife. "I said to be calm, Esme."

She waved him off, not taking her eyes off my daughter. "What's her name, dear?" she asked me.

"Elizabeth Renee Cullen," I said nervously looking up at Edward, worried he wouldn't want to use his last name, but he just seemed to smile wider.

"Elizabeth," Esme said with her hand on her heart and then reached out to Edward, squeezing his hand. "She's so beautiful," she said fighting back tears. "Can I hold her?"

I passed little Elizabeth to her, and I watched Edward, as his eyes watched my daughter, our daughter. He couldn't take his eyes off her. I could tell he was scared, but in awe at the same time. He watched as Carlisle came over, and little Elizabeth grabbed his finger. Edward let out a choking laugh, as Carlisle smiled down, a little surprised at our daughter.

"She's beautiful, Edward," he told him.

"Yeah, now I just have to figure out what you're supposed to do with a baby," he said.

Esme tisked at him. "Oh, dear boy, you love her," she said and kissed her little head.

"Where are you staying when you're released?" Carlisle asked me.

"With me," Edward answered for me.

"Oh, that's wonderful! Carlisle, dear, we need to go shopping!" Esme squealed.

"You might want to hold off on that," a deep voice said from the door. The large man I recognized as the cabdriver knocked on the frame of the door before stepping in, holding a huge flower arrangement. He looked over at the little bundle that was my daughter, and I felt the urge to jump up and protect her from him. Edward quickly stepped between them, and the man passed him the flowers. "My boss heard about the baby coming. He wanted me to tell you guys congratulation, and he understands that Ms. Bella will need six weeks to recoup, but at the end of the six weeks, you need to vamoose, the deal is the same," he said looking sternly at Edward.

Edward nodded his head firmly.

"Who are you?" Carlisle asked a little accusatorily, and I didn't want them to start anything with him.

"Tell your boss thank you very much for the flowers and the time," I cut in.

The cabby nodded at me and headed out the door, leaving Esme and Carlisle looking bewildered and confused.

"What just happened, Edward?" Carlisle asked sternly.

"We were just given six weeks before we have to leave the state."

"Six weeks? Who was that?"

"That was one of Big Boss Barone's men."

"Big Boss…" Carlisle said shocked, "The mob? What have you gotten yourself into?"

"Nothing, as long as we leave town, we'll be fine," he said taking my hand and kissed it. "We'll be fine," he said looking right into my eyes. I guess he saw the panic. I didn't want anything to happen to my baby.

Somehow, I doubted it would take me six weeks to get us the hell out of here.