I own nothing but this plot. No infringement intended.

A huge thank you to all who have joined me again.
It is exciting to see how many have followed and
favorite in the last 48 hours.
Fran is my beta-extraordinaire, and MrsK81 and
Prettyflour originally pre-read.

Full steam ahead!

-LWTC-

Chapter 2

Esme was stunned to see the way Bella withdrew at her compliment. The few times she had been around the woman she had been greatly affected both by her intelligence and by the beauty that radiated from within her. She was lovely to look at—Esme easily understood why her son was so taken with her—but it was a beauty from within, which made her shine. True, there was a part of Bella that was closed-off, but from the little she knew of her it appeared to Esme that it was some sort of self-preservation, a shield if you will, against whatever heartache she had suffered in the past. Whatever demons shadowed her, Esme was determined that Bella would become part of her family. She belonged.

Ever since Edward had returned home from Chicago, Esme had been worried about her son. She prayed daily that God would send someone to fill the emptiness in his heart. He had never shared with his mother what exactly had taken place, but she knew that it was haunting him. He wore it like a stone around his neck. She wanted to see him free of whatever it was that lay in the past.

Twice now, she had seen him soaking up Bella's presence—once at his store when she stopped in for breakfast, and then again at the Labor Day cookout. She observed them both carefully that day on the beach as they surreptitiously watched each other with a longing that was palpable. It made her simultaneously thrilled to see the possibilities there and disheartened that neither seemed to be aware of the other's regard. That day, her prayers took a much more decidedly specific bend.

-LWTC-

It was the week before Halloween, and the snow had already started falling. There were only a few inches, but it definitely appeared that winter was going to be cold and white. Bella had always loved the idea of snow as a child, but the realities of it as an adult now having to drive in the stuff were somewhat less appealing. This was the main reason she had chosen to drive an SUV; gas guzzler or no, a four-wheel-drive vehicle was a necessity for her hour-long trek into work. Yeah, except now it's more like an hour and a half, she reminded herself as she pumped her gas, looking into the window of Cullen Conveniences and Confections.

Bella was surprised she had managed to keep Edward in the dark as to where she lived. Deflection was her main goal every time location was mentioned. She had always managed to steer the conversation away from specifics when topics were brought up that might lead to that one particular question. Alice had confirmed to her that Edward was in the dark about her added trek each day, and had sworn not to tell him.

Alice hadn't even known exactly where Bella lived until the end of September. It was Jasper and Alice's anniversary, and Esme and Carlisle had made prior arrangements to be out of town, and Rosalie—who had originally agreed to take the twins—got sick, and could not fulfill her promise to keep them. Bella had a rare weekend off and volunteered to watch them, not having thought through the logistics. She had plenty of room, seeing as she lived alone in a three- bedroom house, but it didn't register until they asked where to drop the kids, that she would have to let them know where she lived.

Alice was thrilled that she would finally find out where Bella lived. It had become somewhat of a mystery to her, and unsolved mysteries usually grated at her high-strung nature. She was enraptured by the quaint, simple beauty that was Bella's house. It was situated at the edge of the Historic District in Hart, and was well maintained. She had often admired it from afar during the Hart Heritage Festival each August. She and Jasper usually took the kids for the tour through the historical buildings that had been salvaged and moved to the two blocks that had been purchased in a joint venture between the Historical Societies of the different towns and villages in Oceana County. There was the Sackrider Church, an old Saw Mill, a one-room schoolhouse, the original office of the Oceana County Chamber of Commerce, and three or four other buildings that had been restored to their original condition.

Bella's house sat on the corner, across the street. The two-story house had white siding with firebrick colored shutters, doors and trim. Alice had always wondered who lived in the pretty house with the large, two-bay garage and dog kennel in the backyard. When she was a kid, and her family would take their yearly 'light tour' at Christmastime, the house had been her favorite. The former owners—who she now knew to be Bella's aunt and uncle—had always trimmed it timelessly with evergreen garland and white lights, with candles in every window, and a large wreath on both doors. They put lights in the pine trees scattered across the lot and trimmed the garage like the house. She also noticed that the last few years it had not been decorated.

After a full summer together, there were still things that remained a mystery about her new friend. That weekend, while dropping her children to stay with the woman who she had come to cherish as a close friend, several pieces of the puzzle that was Bella Swan, finally fell into place. She already knew Bella had a crush on her brother-in-law, but it became more evident to her just how deep those feelings ran. After all, who travels north fifteen minutes to buy gas and breakfast, when work is nearly an hour to the south? Hart has four gas stations, a Subway and a McDonald's that Bella drove by—every day—to get onto I-31. Alice let Bella know that she was onto her, but swore to keep her secret.

The secret ended the night before Halloween, without Bella or Alice's knowledge. Uncle Edward had volunteered to take the kids trick-or-treating that night. The towns in Oceana County always coordinated and spread the festivities out over three nights—to help downplay the terrors many towns and cities deal with on 'Hell night'—with different towns 'hosting' each night. It was staggering how much candy the kids accumulated. Hart had taken the night before this year, and Edward took the rare opportunity to spend time alone with his niece and nephews. He laughed as he took in their costumes. Annie was just that, with a bright orange, curly wig, and red dress, with freckles drawn across her nose. He knew she chose this after a musical movie marathon with her mother, and 'Auntie' Bella, having watched the 1982 version with Carol Burnett and Aileen Quinn. Aaron was a Ghostbuster, complete with 'ectoplasm' in his hair. Nathan was a nearly perfect replica of Captain Jack Sparrow. Edward had dressed himself as a Zombie Doctor with Alice's help on his make-up.

Edward made sure to take them to all of the houses he remembered getting loads of candy from. He was happy to find that quite a few of the places he remembered still gave out mounds of treats. He was saddened when he got to the corner of Washington and Union streets. This house was one of his Halloween and Christmastime favorites. This year it was dark. The porch light was off, and there didn't appear to be anyone home.

"Well, I guess this place is a bust, huh kids?"

"Duh, Uncle Edward," Annie rolled her eyes at him.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Edward tickled her sides until she begged him to stop.

"She means that Aunt Bella is at work. Of course, we wouldn't get candy here tonight," said Nathan around a huge wad of Bazooka Joe.

"Oh, right. Of course, I forgot," Edward mumbled, as confusion crept in. He was so sure Bella lived to the north of Pentwater. He never had asked her specifically where she lived, but he was certain they had discussed generalities … hadn't they? But, she worked in Muskegon. She had just stopped in this morning for gas. She stopped in every day. Why would she do that?

-LWTC-

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