Hey guys, I hope everyone enjoyed the last chapter and you've all had a good week (and a half). I'm so sorry that this chapter is a bit late, but the next one will deffo be out on time : )
Enjoy…
"Emmett, I don't get it, why would you say those things about me?" I stalked around the island in my kitchen three weeks later and wandered towards the living room with the phone pressed against my ear, coffee cup in hand, bagel in the other.
"I'm sorry baby girl, I didn't know the whole story and I was drunk and upset, I really am sorry, I know that you aren't a slut." I waited for a little bit. "Or a whore." I nodded and made a sound of approval as I took the first bite of my bagel. "Hon, you don't have to sound that happy about me apologising, unless of course, you have company and I am interrupting. Maybe, I should just go." I swallowed quickly and groaned.
"Emmett! I was eating a bagel!" He laughed loudly and I couldn't help but join in, feeling the warmth build in my stomach at the camaraderie between Emmett and I. "Shut up!" I gasped out through my laughter.
"Ahh, baby girl, I love you." I froze, mouth poised to take a bite. The phone fell from my ear onto the sofa. "Rose? Rosie?" He waited for a bit, I could hear his heavy breathing coming from the sofa cushions, but I couldn't move; I was frozen in place. "I'm coming over." I heard the bleep of disconnection as he hung up the phone.
There was a loud knock on the door and I was startled from my reverie. I hurried to the door and yanked it open, not expecting Emmett on the other side. His arms engulfed me in a hug as I was pushed back from the door by his enormous frame.
"Thank God! I thought something bad had happened. Can you remember anything from the past five minutes?" I shook my head. A lie. The subdued doctor in Emmett took over and he pushed me back towards the sofa. Sitting, he grabbed my hand and steadily counted my pulse as I thought about what caused me to freeze.
The last time I had heard those words was about two months ago, and just before He said them, I had finished having sex for the very first time in my life. Edward. I sighed and Emmet's head snapped up to look at me. His hand flew to my forehead as he inaccurately tested my temperature. He sighed and looked down, seemingly gathering his thoughts before he slowly tilted his head to look at me through his eyelashes with a mischievous glint shining in his eye. I backed away slowly, before he pounced on me and swept me into his arms.
"There is nothing wrong with you!" He roared as he swung me back and forth around the room in his gorilla like arms. "You just decided to faint!" I looked at him in confusion before he whispered to me, "Right now." His face was very close to mine; we were both breathing heavily and his sweet breath washed over me in long, laboured pants. He looked deep into my eyes as he moved closer to me and tilted his head ever so slightly. I closed my eyes before feeling the air rush past me. I opened my eyes again to look at him questioningly before my expression was one of surprise as he flung me onto the bed. I looked at him with hooded eyelids as he crawled up me until we were face to face.
He leant forward...
... And kissed me.
~0~
I woke up naked and alone.
~0~
At 3 in the morning, six weeks later, I woke up with an odd feeling.
Nausea gripped me and I leapt out of bed, rushing towards to bathroom. I looked up in between retches and saw a pack of tampons on the corner of the cabinet above my sink. I felt the blood drain from my face and threw my head back over the toilet with a groan.
I leapt up from the floor when I was finished chucking my guts into the toilet and ran back into my bedroom to dress. I snatched Emmett's undershirt from the floor, my heart squeezing tightly as I thought about possible reasons for him not still being there. Slipping it on, I yanked my jeans up my legs and wrapped my cardigan tightly around my body.
I flew into the kitchen and straight to the calendar over the kettle.
I stared at the calendar, doing the sums over and over again. I was late. Very late. So late, in fact, that I knew already that I was pregnant. I checked once more to make certain and then grabbed my keys from the counter and dashed out of the door.
I pulled my phone from my handbag and dialled the first number I could think of.
"Pick up dammit, pick-"
"Hello?" Emmett answered the phone groggily, as if he had been asleep and I instantly felt guilty.
"Oh, shit, sorry Emmett, I'll call...well, I'll call back later." I moved to take the phone from my ear and close it, but I heard him yell.
"Wait! I'm up! I'm u... shit Rose, what the hell do you need at three in the morning?" I felt the tears pricking at my eyes as I tried to quell the emotion that was thick in my voice.
"Umm, nothing Emmett, nothing, I'll talk to you later, bye." This time I ignored him when he called out to me and just closed the phone, throwing it back into my bag as I raced to the pharmacy. I didn't hear my phone trilling from the foot well as I drove madly through the streets of New York. I didn't hear it bleeping at me as I rounded the corner of the street that the pharmacy was on. I didn't hear it ringing as I slammed the door shut. Or at least, that's what I told myself.
I stepped reluctantly through the doors of the pharmacy and made my way over to the family planning section. I took my time finding the small piece of shelf that held pregnancy tests, ironically right next to the condoms. I groaned as I looked at the different types of test available. I ended up going with the simplest one they had. I plucked it off the shelf and turned it upside down so that I didn't have to stare at the smiley face on the front.
As I approached the counter, I gulped and stood up straight, trying to give off an air of confidence, probably failing miserably. The next five minutes were a blur as I paid for the test, watching the older woman at the tills slipping it into the pink plastic bag with a disapproving glare. I turned around and walked straight into somebody, my bag falling on the floor and the test sliding out into plain view.
I scrambled to grab the small packet and clutched it to my chest as I felt the pain begin to curl around my heart again. I looked up and saw the person staring at the floor where the test had just been. My eyes refocused and I felt my face flame up and fall at the same time.
The man turned to face me and whispered in his distinct accent.
"Rosie..."
Edward found me. He found me! I couldn't believe it; he actually came and found me.
"What?" That's great Rose, very eloquent. "I mean, hi." He just stared at me blankly; well he stared at the bag in my hand blankly.
"You're pregnant?" Well, I don't blame him for being blunt really, it's big news. Who am I kidding, it's huge news, and he was probably thinking it was his anyway, so, who am I to judge?
"Um, yeah, well, I think so, I'm kind of hoping that I am just feeling really stressed which is why I'm like three months late, not that you need to know that, but yeah, I am hoping that because, I don't think the guy would like it that much, besides, he has a girlfriend, so she would be pretty mad, although it was before they got together and everything-" I was cut off. By his mouth.
Not that I didn't enjoy being kissed by him, but he wasn't who I wanted, not who I needed, and not who I disappointed and hurt. I pushed as hard as I possibly could against his shoulders, but he wouldn't let me go. I pushed his arms, his chest, his head, until he finally got the message and released me.
"What? I kiss you, and you back off? That's not what happened last time I kissed you." He looked smug and raised an eyebrow at me. I saw crimson swimming in front of me.
"How DARE you?" I shook with anger as I screeched at him. "How can you insinuate that I am 'easy'? I was...confused at the time, and you were drunk..." My voice trailed off as I saw the guilty expression on his face. "You weren't drunk at all were you?" He shook his head. "Right, so I bet you think it's funny that you forgot a condom?" His eyes went wide.
"Why would I need a condom? You're on the pill right?" My jaw dropped, God he was thick back then.
"Why the hell would I be on the pill, Edward? I was a virgin, remember?" His eyes went wider as he stared at me stupidly. "Obviously not. Right, ok, let's get a couple things sorted out: one, I was a virgin when we had sex. Two, you pretended to be drunk to get in my pants. Three, you got me pregnant because you were too stupid to ask whether or not I was on the pill." He nodded each time and then did a double take.
"The baby's mine?" I shook my head vehemently.
"No. The baby is mine. Why would you want it anyway?" He looked at me in disbelief, anger growing in his captivating green eyes, but his anger was nothing compared to the furious face hovering just behind his.
Emmett grabbed hold of his arms and pushed him out of the way before wrapping his oversized hands around my shoulders.
"This is why you called me in the middle of the night? Because Edward is here? Why the hell didn't you tell me? I've been driving all over the place thinking something was desperately wrong with you." I felt the tears begin to build up again as he shook my shoulders lightly. I half expected to hear rattling as the pieces of my shattered heart clinked together. I suddenly burst into tears again and Emmett wrapped his arms around me whilst glaring at Edward over my head, no doubt giving silent threats about where he would stick his balls if he had hurt me again.
"Emmett, I didn't do anything, she's the one who has got the problem. A rather big problem that I, apparently, don't want anything to do with!" Edward fell silent again and Emmett continued to rock me back and forth in his arms.
I tried to force a shaky sentence from my lips, but nothing would come out. Once I had calmed down enough to speak, I tried to clarify the situation for Emmett.
"Emmett, that wasn't the problem, I didn't even know he was here. I came here to buy something, and we bumped into each other and-and-and..." I burst into tears again, crumpling into Emmett's arms once more. I wordlessly handed him the bag, hoping that he would understand.
He did.
"Edward Anthony Cullen! You poisoned my Rosalie with your demon sperm? How DARE you go anywhere near her!" Emmett released me and hurled me unceremoniously to the floor. My hands curled over my stomach before I hit the linoleum tiling. The woman for behind the counter rushed to help me up and fussed over me. I thanked her and pushed her away, gasping as I saw Emmett and Edward rolling around on the floor together.
"Stop! STOP! STOP!" I screamed. They separated from each other, breathing heavily, and stood up, glaring at each other relentlessly. I rushed over to Emmett and brushed my hands over his arms, making sure he was ok. He had a small cut on his lip and a graze along his jaw. By far the worst though was his knee. It was oozing blood that swelled over a rip in his jeans and ran down the leg.
I leaned up to whisper in Emmett's ear, applying slight pressure to his chest, but he hissed and pushed me away, so I grasped his shoulder instead. I placed my hand on his face and he leant into me, a hum of contentment seeping from his split lips. My head fit neatly on his shoulder, my breath just brushing over his jaw as I spoke.
"Emmett, I don't need this from you. What I need is support and help, can you give me that?" He nodded his head, still glaring at Edward, but he lowered his head slightly to look at me. Immediately, our eyes locked and his expression softened as his bright blue eyes bore into mine. I smiled and patted his shoulder delicately. I turned to Edward and my face hardened.
"And all I need from you is your absence. Think you can handle that?" He glared right back at me as I stood, shoulders back, hands on hips, chin raised.
"Yes, I mean, after all, it's none of my concern!" Edward growled at me and I gasped, my hands turning into fists at my sides while I prepared to launch at him. I felt Emmett's hand on my shoulder and instantly, an icy cool feeling spread through me, soothing the red hot anger that was burning in the pit of my stomach. I relaxed my tense muscles and stepped back into Emmett's side, effectively shielding myself from harm.
"Yeah, whatever, just please, go away." He looked at me defeated and turned slowly to walk out of the shop, almost as if he were hoping that I would call him back.
I turned to face Emmett and sighed.
"Why did you leave?" He looked down at his feet and then back up at me with a sad expression on his face.
"Listen, Rosie, I didn't want you to wake up and regret what we did, I thought that you might not have wanted me there or something, I don't know, I guess I wasn't thinking straight." He sighed and placed his head in his hands. His shoulders started shaking violently as his body was wracked with sobs.
I wrapped my arms around him as we sank to the floor, my head resting atop his while he cried into my neck.
"Shh, it's ok, you're fine, everything is going to be ok, do you understand me? Everything will be fine." I whispered into his ear as the woman from behind the counter stood awkwardly, breathing in as if to speak before sighing and wringing her hands once more. "Alright, baby, alright." He shook still, leaning against me and pushing me down onto my knees. "We are going to be ok, don't you forget that ok, sweetheart? We are going to be just fine."
~0~
I walked around the kitchen quietly while constantly flicking my eyes towards my bedroom, anxious of waking Emmett. I cursed quietly as I knocked over a glass on my way around the island in my apartment. I froze as I heard a yelp and thundering feet as Emmett flew from my room, tripping on the rug on the way through the living room.
"Where's the fire?" I laughed as Emmett stood up disgruntled from behind my settee. "No, seriously, are you all right? You looked like you were in a bit of a hurry there." He grunted and shrugged, trudging into the kitchen and sitting himself down in one of my kitchen chairs. "Um, are you all right? Do you remember last night?" He nodded looking down at his hands and then preoccupying himself with the mug of coffee that I placed in them.
"Yeah." He sighed, his head drooping as he groaned before forcing his neck to support the weight of his head. "I don't understand though. You're pregnant?" I nodded. "By my brother?" I nodded again looking down. He sighed again and I heard him stand up and walk around to my side of the breakfast bar. His hand came to rest underneath my chin. "Then we'll do exactly the same as we would if it were mine then, won't we?" I nodded dumbly, a fool-sized smile spreading across my face as Emmett wrapped me in his arms and squeezed me tightly to his chest, kissing my hair.
"Yoohoo! Anyone ho-oh! Sorry, I didn't realise I would be interrupting, I'll go shall I?" Carmen stood awkwardly in the doorway and Emmett and I broke apart anxiously. I blushed furiously and shuffled my feet.
"Carmen, are you going to drag her out here or wha-ah! Ok, come on Carr, let's go, we are obviously interrupting something important. Hey wait, you're Emmett, Edward's brother, God, he's such a prick, did you hear what he did to Rose?" I sighed and stepped forward taking Tanya's hand and pulling her and Carmen into the kitchen.
"Let's stop talking about Edward, ok? I don't really want to talk about him right now. I have something to tell you both which is way more important." They looked at me expectantly and I looked at Emmett, wondering if I should actually tell them or not. He nodded and wrapped an arm around my shoulders in an attempt to comfort me and give me support. "I'm pregnant." They both looked between me and Emmett and then at each other before squealing in harmony and unison. They jumped up and hugged one of us each before swapping places. I swear that they practised these things in the mirror together.
"OMG! Congrats both of you!" Tanya practically yelled. Emmett groaned and turned around, bashing his head on a cabinet repeatedly. "What? What did I do?" I shook my head and rubbed Emmett's back gently.
I mouthed to the two of them, 'It's not his.' They both looked confused and then frowned at me, well, glared is probably a better description but it didn't really register. 'It's Edward's.' They both practically growled at me. I shook my head and turned to Emmett, rubbing his back and whispering soothingly into his ear.
"This is what it's going to be like isn't it? People thinking it's mine and me knowing it's not and not being able to stop them saying it and causing me pain." He said it so quietly, I almost didn't hear him, but his words confirmed all of my fears about his feelings.
"Listen, Em, really, I want it to be yours, I don't want his kid, I want yours, ok? This baby will be yours sweetie, I am sure it will love you as a father, even though Edward is it's real father, but as long as you're there, it will have the love and attention it deserves, ok?" He looked up at me and smiled cheekily. He grabbed me around the waist and spun me around as I squealed.
"We're gonna have a BABY!" He yelled excitedly and I laughed with him. He set me gently on the floor and squeezed me tightly to his chest as I sighed.
"We're having a baby." I whispered softly into his shirt, my voice muffled by the fabric.
"YOU'RE HAVING A BABY!" Came the squeals of delight from my friends as they jumped forward to hug us again. I looked despairingly up at Emmett and he laughed gaily, leaning down to kiss my forehead. I smiled and leant against him whilst rubbing my still flat stomach gently.
A proper family.
~0~
I sat quietly in Emmett's living room running a hand incessantly over my inflated stomach after the longest day at work. The twins were active, rolling around, kicking me and each other.
"Sweetheart, I forgot, did you say scrambled eggs or omelette?" Emmett called to me from the kitchen, quickly whipping up my dinner as I had arrived home only minutes previously to sit down in my chair and refuse to move.
"Well that depends chicken; what have I got?" I smiled at my stomach and when I heard Emmett mumble from the kitchen I laughed. "Speak up dear, pregnancy impedes hearing you know!" He chuckled and I waited patiently for his answer.
"Scrambled omelette." I laughed hard, shaking furiously in my chair. I doubled over gasping as pain suddenly ripped through my stomach. "Emm...mmm...eett!" I gasped out, gripping the armrest tightly to keep from screaming and alarming him too greatly.
"It wasn't that funny, love, you can stop laughing now!" I could see spots forming before my eyes and I knew that I needed to make him understand that I needed to go to hospital before I blacked out. I looked down at my lap and felt any blood that may have been in my head drain.
Blood. I was covered in blood.
I remember hearing a piercing scream erupt before I fell to the floor, blacking out before I hit Emmett's arms.
~0~
I woke up in a white room.
I heard crying and looked down to see a small baby boy in my arms. He was crying and had a mop of dark blonde hair on his head, although, underneath the harsh lights of the room, I could very clearly see the streaks of gentle red laced into the tangled mess.
I rocked my son gently from side to side to soothe him and was rewarded with a look into his dark green eyes. I felt the tears brewing as I looked down at my angel child lovingly.
"So young, not even seven months in the womb. Darling boy." I closed my eyes and held him tightly to my chest as the tears fell silently onto his forehead.
I opened my eyes and looked at my baby as he smiled showing pink gums and a little tongue poking out slightly. I put my nose down to the top of his head and breathed in deeply, smelling new baby and sweetness. I breathed out hard against his head as I willed myself not to wail and he giggled softly; my undoing.
A sob broke free from my mouth and I crushed my baby to me, mourning for my dead son. The tears came fast and furiously hot against my cheeks. I looked down at him once more and saw Edward reflected in his eyes. I spun around to find him standing behind me. He reached out to take my child from me.
"No, Edward, not my baby, please not my baby." I held tightly to my son and showered his face with kisses as the tears raced down my face and into my lap.
"Our baby, Rose, and I'll look after him, I promise. I will take him as far as I can." I placed my hand over my baby's head and smoothed his hair gently.
"Please, at least let me name him." I pleaded with Edward and he nodded infinitesimally. "EJ, for his real dad and his uncle." Edward beamed until he saw the hatred in my eyes. EJ smiled and gurgled at me happily as I leant down and kissed him once more on the head, breathing in his gorgeous smell before letting Edward take him out of my arms.
"See you later Rosie." He smiled gently before walking away from me, with my child. The tears began to fall thick and fast once more as I missed the baby I had only just held in my arms.
"Rose, baby, I am so sorry." Emmett's voice filled my head and the tears worsened. "I just need you to know, before you blame yourself, that if there was anything else anyone could have done, they would have done it. We couldn't save our little boy darling, I am so sorry, there really wasn't anything else that could have been done for him. But we have our angel girl, she's so precious and tiny, but boy does she have the most gorgeous eyes! They are just like yours sweetheart, and I can't wait for you to meet her."
I closed my eyes slowly, and when I opened them, I was lying down in a hospital bed with Emmett by my side, tears running down his face as he leant over me. I lifted my hand and stroked his hair softly before brushing the tears from underneath his eyes.
"We lost him, but it's OK. We have Ab... sorry, we can name her what you want darling." Emmett smiled at me through his tears and I smiled straight back at him, welling up at the desolate expression on his beautiful face.
"Honey, I don't care, she will still be my...our daughter. You can name her whatever you want; you're her daddy." His smile turned into a confused frown before breaking out into the largest beam I had ever seen.
"Thank you sweetheart, I love you. My baby. Abigail Rose Cullen." He pushed himself out of his chair and pressed his lips to my forehead, then my nose before pulling me up from the bed and kissing me soundly on the lips...
~0~
I had expected to go back to sleep and dream of my little boy, but instead I was confronted with a distraught younger Edward, crying over "Little baby, little baby" and then grown up Edward grinning and counting down from 10 hours.
I woke up shortly after eight o'clock with a ripping pain across my stomach. Emmett shot up from the chair on the right side of the bed at my groan. He grinned sadly and pressed the call button above my head. A large, friendly nurse in deep pink scrubs came bustling into the room dragging a tray with an assortment of large needles; I cringed violently. She laughed heartily and I heard a small cry come from the left hand side of the bed.
"Ooh, someone little is hungry!" Her loud voice bounced around the room happily and I smiled, glancing briefly down at my daughter before swivelling painfully to face her completely when I saw her beautiful face. She was the spitting image of EJ and there was no doubt in my mind that she would grow to be as beautiful as he would have been handsome.
"Oh." The sound left me in a breath as I took in the angel lying in the cot beside my bed. Her tiny face was scrunched up in a bright red mess of tears and, well, baby, but I had never seen anything so gorgeous. She wriggled around in her cot, impossibly loud, angry wails coming from her wide open mouth with a small pink tongue pressed tightly against the bottom of her mouth. "Baby." I cooed softly at my child and reached into the cot with itching fingers and slid my child from her bed and into my arms. She leaned into my breast, rubbing her face deep into the soft skin, her cries quieting as she recognised me. I rocked her slightly watching while the redness faded from her cheeks and the tears left her eyes. Her gorgeous baby blue eyes locked with my grey ones and her small mouth opened again. I panicked for one moment imagining her face crumpling and turning red with anger again, but a gurgle erupted from her mouth, light spreading through her eyes.
I welled up, a smile spreading across my face and I turned to Emmett, seeing the same light shining in his eyes. He looked down at our baby girl and his face fell slightly when he noticed the slight red in her hair, but when she turned and waved her minute hand towards him, I saw the tears spring into his eyes and threaten to run over onto his face.
Emmett helped me slip the thin, papery hospital gown from my shoulder to expose my breast. I briefly noticed his eyes darken, but when he saw the beautiful face of our daughter lean into me, he smiled and his face was once again filled with a look of innocence and adoration. Her hand nestled between my breasts, she began to lightly suck, her grip becoming stronger and stronger until her mouth was like a vacuum around me. I winced slightly when her new-born nails scraped the inside of my breast, but soon relaxed into the odd, but wonderful sensation of her feeding.
Emmett and I were silent: there was no need to speak as we gazed at Abby sucking softly at my chest. The nurse had administered some very light painkillers which she assured me would do the job without harming the baby and had presently left to leave us alone.
I noticed Abby's strength dwindling as her grip loosened and her hand fell slack on my breast. I snapped my eyes down to look at her as she released me completely and her small eyelids closed gently and slowly.
"She's falling asleep." Emmett's voice was full of wonder and awe as he looked longingly at our child. I nodded before leaning over and slipping my hands from underneath her as she settled into the cot at the side of my bed. I adjusted my gown and looked back up at Emmett.
"Baby, we need to call the family." My whispered instruction didn't stir him and the only acknowledgement I had was a distracted nod of his head as he drowned in the sight of Abby asleep in the cot. "We'll do it later then." Again, all I received was a small nod which allowed light to fall on his face and illuminate the tears streaming down his face...
~0~
I looked down at my angel and felt the warmth rise inside my chest. I could see Edward in her, but that wasn't what I was looking for now. Now, I saw Emmett. His smile in her naturally upturned mouth, and the red that glinted from their heads in the sunlight, and the way her eyelids crinkled, just so, at the corners of her eyes when they were scrunched tightly shut.
I felt her tiny little hands grasp a few locks of my hair before tugging sweetly, not painfully, to attract my attention and I gazed into her adorable heart shaped face and smiled again as I watched her features crumple with a wail that threatened to escape. I held her closer, knowing instinctively what to do, and rocked her gently in my arms until the small ridges adorning her nose and forehead disappeared.
"You're a natural Rosie." I smiled at Emmett and he smiled back, despite the slightly sad shadow in his eyes. "And she is definitely yours." At this I frowned.
"And yours sweetheart, she's yours too, always will be. Edward won't be getting much custody as long as I can help it." He smiled slightly but the over-riding emotion in his eyes was still sadness. It was true though. Her hair was dark blonde, what there was of it anyway, and her eyes, although a sparkling new-born blue, held tiny specks of grey. I was aware of Emmett looking at me intently as I stared at my amazing child in wonderment and turned to face him.
"What?" I asked, the corners of my mouth were raised in a smile as I gazed back into Emmett's shocking blue eyes. The corners of his mouth lifted again, although I still detected some sadness in his eyes. My sweetheart was hurting and I didn't know why.
Until he walked through the door that is.
"Where is she? Did I miss it? Is everyone OK?" Edward's eyes fell on me, but he had no look of longing or desire on his face, no, he only wanted my baby. His eyes became almost hungry as he started to move towards my angel faced girl and I shielded her from him desperately. Emmett stepped in front of me and held a hand out to stop him in his tracks.
"Hey, Edward, dude, take a small step backwards and think about this. Seriously think through what you are doing here. Fu-Hell man, are you high or something?" I wanted to smile at his thoughtfulness but I gripped Abby closer to my chest as the rising tension woke her slowly and she began to fuss.
"Emmett, I think you might want to take a step back and think about what you are doing in her life, maybe? That's my baby, Emmett," He spat out the name and tried to find a way around Emmett to get to me.
"Edward, please." I felt tears welling up as I held my tiny child closer. She began to fuss and cried out a little at the raised voices in the room. I said the only thing that I thought would quiet them both. "You're scaring her." Emmett immediately whipped around and rushed over to my side, smiling at Abby and pulling funny faces that made her watch with open mouth, curiosity lacing her features.
Edward did not respond in the way I had hoped.
"Oh! Oh! I'm scaring her? Well, maybe if she were allowed to see her real father, she wouldn't be scared by the lump of shit leaning over her and pulling terrifying faces!" His face became puce coloured and he threw his arms up in indignation.
Hearing his voice, Abby began to wail in earnest, turning her head away from the noise into my breast, her little arms reaching for Emmett's fingers.
"Get out Edward; you're not wanted here. By anyone." I glared at him, eyes narrowed, face sharp. His face immediately fell, betraying no emotion but defeat. "Well then, maybe you should have taken an interest in being her father when you still had the chance." His face became livid and he stormed from the room.
The tears I had been holding back suddenly burst free as the defensive walls I had built up around myself and my child broke and fell to the ground. Emmett perched on the edge of the bed and wrapped his arms around us. With Abby dozing against my chest and Emmett curled around my shoulders, we both cried in pain at the situation...
~0~
We went home later that day as the doctors declared Abby and I to be in perfect health. The whole family fawned over our little sweetheart, but after losing EJ, there was no way on this earth that I was letting Abby out of my own or Emmett's arms for more than five minutes. The family understood, but that didn't make Esme and Bella and my own mother any easier to cope with. Alice and Jasper were in Spain doing rehab after the fifth time they were caught with drugs, but we sent them both pictures.
I was happy that my family were so thrilled with the new arrival, but after 12 years of dedication to him, I couldn't help but notice the glaring absence. Edward had never arrived; not that I expected him to, but I still hoped that our argument would mean nothing over our child. In reality, I had nothing against Abby knowing her father, but the way he had stormed into the hospital room, demanding attention had set Emmett off and when Abby became upset, it upset me to so I had to do the only thing I could to protect my family and I told him to leave.
At around five that evening, Emmett noticed my discomfort and offered me pain killers, but I had taken some the hour before and while it was my stomach bothering me, it wasn't the incision itself, but worry that was causing me pain.
Edward had been known to make some rash decisions when riled up and I didn't want him getting hurt; he was still my best friend. Emmett huffed around when he realised what the issue was but as I held Abby gently in my arms as she slept and I began to drift off to sleep, I heard the door bell ring out. Emmett opened the door quietly as I listened, half asleep.
"She's just drifting off, but you can see her if you like." There was a low murmur in reply to Emmett's lulling voice but I heard the door close and the pair walked into to living room. I roused myself long enough to feel Abby pulled gently from my arms as I resisted a little but Emmett soothed me and stroked my forehead promptly sending me back into my dosing state.
"How...um, how do I hold her?" I startled awake at the sound of Edward's voice in the room. My eyes flew open and he took a step away from Emmett, arms raised in surrender. His eyes widened as I leapt from my chair and launched myself into his arms.
"I'm sorry." He stroked my back and hair tentatively as I felt tears pour from my eyes onto his shirt. I released him gently and stepped back looking at Emmett sheepishly but he simply looked relieved that he didn't have to hate his brother anymore.
I sat in the seat next to Edward and held my arms out for Abby. Emmett laid her in my arms and I turned to face Edward.
"Listen, I want you in her life, but I also want Emmett to be her father. I need to know if you can do both. You can be her uncle and you will still have your rights to her, but I would like it if Emmett could adopt her as his own." I looked towards Emmett and saw him smiling in surprise. "We aren't going to make any drastic decisions, like leaving the country without telling you and getting your input, but neither are we going to put our lives on hold if you don't like something we are doing. If something were to happen to either of us – please God, no – then we would want you to take custody of course."
Edward looked at the child in my arms, a sad look on his face, but he nodded nonetheless.
"Edward, you're not losing anything here, we want you to be in her life, but she knows Emmett's voice and has grown fond of him. We're not going anywhere soon either, so cheer up." He smiled at me and Emmett and I held my arms out towards him, gesturing that he should lay his out so that I could lay Abby in them.
I helped him adjust her head so that it sat neatly in the crook of his elbow. She didn't fit as neatly as she did in Emmett's arms but they both looked comfortable so I sat back against Emmett and smiled. Edward had tears in his eyes as he looked down upon her and he whispered words so low that I almost didn't catch them, but when I did, my eyes began to glisten as Emmett held me against him.
"Thank you"...
Thanks so much for reading everyone : )
We've got one more chapter left before we say goodbye to Emmett and Rose.
I'll probably post it in about a week, and I'm sorry again that I was so late with this one…it's first week back at school and I'm a bit hectic : S
Lots of love,
GeorgieMarie95 xxxxx