A Talk between Two Fathers

[Reviews are so much appreciated! Thank you for taking the time. -- I love the scenes with Alice and Jasper in the Twilight movie. Jasper and Alice were holding each other or touching in almost all of their scenes together. Loved it when Jasper gave Alice the tiny flower while they were in the greenhouse. Wish we had more time with them in the books and movies. Oh, well. -- Please leave a review! Take care, Kelli]

Chapter 8. A Final Chat with Charlie, Part 2

Charlie Swan

Carlisle was late. Only a couple of minutes, but Charlie couldn't help feeling aggravated. Maybe it was because he was impatient to talk about what went on behind closed doors in the Cullen house. He looked up when the diner's front door opened again, hoping this time it would be the doctor. Instead of Carlisle, a movie star walked in. He had to blink a couple of times to make sure he wasn't seeing things. It took him a moment to realize that the movie star smiling across the room at him was Carlisle's wife, Esme.

Charlie had met her once, at some charity event. He'd forgotten how gorgeous she was. The whole diner got quiet as she walked toward his table. Men were nudging each other and exchanging longing looks as they watched her. Even modestly dressed with a minimum of makeup, she still looked out of place in this dingy diner.

He stood up, feeling as awkward as he had back in high school. Esme held out a gloved hand that Charlie shook gingerly, afraid that he'd bruise her.

"Carlisle had to go out of town unexpectedly." She smiled at up at him. "He sent me in his place. I hope you don't mind."

"No, of course not." Charlie was pleased with himself for not stuttering. Her voice was as beautiful as her face. "Please, sit down. Would you like some coffee?"

"Yes, thank you. Black, please."

Charlie poured her a coffee from the carafe the server had left behind. He felt a flash of annoyance. Esme's expression was somehow gentle, kind. He couldn't bring himself to say to her what he'd planned to say to her husband. He fiddled with the milk and sugar, wondering how he could get out of this meeting without embarrassing himself.

Esme must have sensed his discomfort. She got right to the point and said, "Carlisle told me of your concerns about Edward and Bella. Then last night Alice told me that you seemed upset when you saw that she and Jasper are together."

Heat flooded Charlie's face when he remembered seeing Alice's brother bend down to kiss her. Touch her. Nothing brotherly about it. At the PTA meeting, the teachers had told him that the two of them had always been wrapped around each other in the lunchroom before Jasper had graduated. Made him mad all over again. Heck with it. "Shouldn't you be protecting Alice? She's only seventeen."

Esme frowned. She asked, "I'm sorry, I don't understand. Protect her from what?"

"Jasper."

"From Jasper?" Esme's voice was confused. "He worships the ground Alice walks on. He'd never do anything to hurt her."

"He's over eighteen now, isn't he?"

"Yes." Esme sat back. Her tone cooled. "As Bella is. Edward is still seventeen, just like Alice."

Damn it. Charlie felt the blood rise in his face again as his temper ignited. It was hardly the same thing! His daughter wasn't taking advantage of Edward. The idea was absurd! Except of course, according to the law, all that mattered were the ages, not the gender. As an officer, he couldn't argue that the case was different. He didn't like that she'd thrown his argument back into his face.

"Are you all right?" Esme asked. She gave him a concerned look.

Oddly, he felt a wave of calm. His temper faded away. He took a drink of coffee to give himself time to think about what to say next.

"I'm fine, thanks." He tried a different tact. "Mrs. Cullen-"

"Esme, please, "she interrupted with a smile.

"Uh, okay, Esme," Charlie cleared his throat. She wasn't making this any easier for him. "I guess I'm concerned. Why do you and Carlisle think that it's okay to let kids raised as brother and sister be in a relationship together? It sounds very wrong to me."

"Oh, dear." Esme shook her head. "I'm afraid there's been a misunderstanding. Edward, Rosalie and Jasper grew up together, yes. However, Carlisle and I adopted Emmett and Alice when they were much older. They'd already been teenagers for years."

That did sort of change things. A little. "It's still not right. I've seen it too many times. Kids thinking that they're in love, when it's just hormones. They're too young to understand what they're doing."

Esme gave a gentle sigh. "Carlisle has always taught his family how important responsibility was. To each other, to themselves. Including being in a relationship."

Charlie snorted. Sounded nice, but what did it mean, really? "Why didn't you guys tell them that they had to wait until they were older? Forbid them being together while they were still at home?"

Esme frowned. "Does that ever work? Forbidding teenagers from loving each other?"

"You could at least set rules. Like I do with Bella."

"Bella's a very sweet girl who loves her father. Who doesn't want to disappoint him. She knows you disapprove of her being with Edward." Esme gave him a shrewd look. "That hasn't stopped her. Have you tried to forbid her from seeing Edward?"

Charlie felt another flare of temper. Her question reminded him of some uncomfortable memories of the night Bella had returned from her three-day disappearance. He had tried to do just that, and Bella had threatened to leave him to go live with the Cullens. He couldn't help being angry about that. Then his anger faded away, leaving calm in its place. He'd lost the thread of his argument. He backtracked.

"It's still irresponsible for you and the doc to allow your kids to be together in your house."

"What would you have us do?" Esme asked. "Chain them in their rooms? Somehow monitor them twenty-four hours a day? Should we toss out Rosalie and Jasper, my sister's children? Tell Alice and Emmett that they're no longer welcome and throw them out? What would that do to them? To us? Or should Carlisle and I force them to pretend at home to obey us, and then have them sneak around behind our backs? None of these options are conducive to a having a stable and happy family."

Charlie noted that she didn't mention getting rid of Edward. Too bad. "How about boarding schools?"

Esme looked amused. "They're a little too old for that. Edward certainly wouldn't go."

"Yeah, Carlisle told me that he let Edward have his parent's money." Charlie shook his head. It still seemed insane to him to let a kid have access to what seemed to be an independent fortune.

Esme tilted her head. "Yes, Edward's money does give him options. If he were a different kind of person, he would have sued to be emancipated and moved out on his own, where he could live without any restrictions on his behavior. He'd certainly drop out of high school."

"A different kind of person?"

Esme smiled. Charlie could see pride and love in her face. This wasn't going to be anything that he wanted to hear.

"He's become a man Carlisle and I are both proud of. A good son and brother." She chuckled. "Oh, he's far from perfect, like any of us. He's almost as stubborn as Bella, and he does have a bit of a temper. In general though, he's a kind, generous, talented man-," Esme cut herself short. "I'm sorry. Like any mother, I'm always happy to talk, too much, about my children."

Charlie managed to keep from saying anything unpleasant. He had more coffee.

"Do you have any reason to be angry or upset at Edward beside his relationship with Bella?" Esme asked.

Charlie winced. It wasn't a fair question. The only thing he'd found negative about Edward was his lack of friends. That was true of all of the Cullens though. Even Esme. She didn't exactly hang out with the locals. He slid another glance at that picture perfect face. Maybe that was understandable. She didn't exactly fit in.

He shook his head in answer to her question. His frustration jumped up another notch. This meeting wasn't going anyway like the way he'd thought. All his arguments seemed to have evaporated into smoke.

"Charlie, as parents, we both want what is best for our children." She looked down at her hands. "When Edward was… apart from Bella, he suffered. Terribly. For a while, we thought we'd lose him." Her voice dropped lower. "I couldn't bear to see that again. Alice has told us what Bella went through, how much pain she was in. It seems that they need each other. Trying to pull them apart seems crueler than anything else we can do."

Edward suffered? Charlie had a hard time believing that there was any true emotion behind that handsome face. Esme believed it though. He would almost swear that he could feel her sincerity, her own pain. It broke down his defenses, made him see past his own worries. At least he felt that Carlisle and Esme weren't ignoring the situation. Their options seem as limited as his were, as Esme had pointed out.

"I suppose," Charlie said. All he could do now was hope that somehow Jacob would steal Bella away from Edward. Jacob was so such a better fit for her, so much more normal. There was something off about Edward. Always had been. "Thank you for coming."

Esme gathered her purse and gloves. "Please forgive me for leaving, but I need to go grocery shopping before the kids get home."

"With five teenagers, I can imagine the size of your grocery bills." Charlie said, trying to be cordial. "Thanks for coming. Please tell Carlisle hello from me."

"Of course." Esme slid out of the booth. "Take care, Charlie."

Charlie shook her gloved hand. "Goodbye, Esme."

(To be continued)