HAPPY BIRTHDAY ROB!

CHAPTER 7

I woke up the next day and rolled over the bed expecting Edward to be there, only to find the floor. Ouch! I thought. Maybe Edward went hunting.

Picking myself off the floor, I searched around for anything to let me know where Edward may have gone to. A small, folded piece of a notebook was folded neatly and standing up against my alarm clock.

Quickly, I grabbed it an unfolded the lined paper. My eyes scanned over my name before reading the actual content.

Bella,

Charlie came in this morning, he was going to tell you that you had a message; but I suppose you will read of that when you walk downstairs.

I'm sorry I had to leave but I haven't really hunted in a while, and I can never be too careful around you – like I have said before.

I wish I could be there to wish you a good morning, but I promise I will be back as soon as possible.

Oh, and don't let Alice bug you about the wedding today; you deserve a break.

You still hold my heart and you always will. Keep it safe.

Love forever,

Edward

His perfect handwriting captured my heart once again. I could read his noted over and over again while he was away – and I would bet my life savings that I would not get sick of it.

He had said he would be back soon, I trusted that. I grabbed my clothes from the cupboard and got dressed. My dark denim jeans and a grey sweat shirt would do for today.

I battled the stairs slowly, making sure not to hurt myself whilst I was home alone. As I walked into the kitchen and noticed yet another note for me stuck on the fridge.

Sighing, I pulled that note off of the fridge door and read it. Bells, it read.

Got called into the station early today and I might be home late, so don't wait up. Just wanted to say that you had a message – from someone called Jackie, I think. Anyway, her number is written down by the phone. She sounded kind of…energetic I guess, so it may have been important, but to be honest, I have no clue.

I'll see you tonight.

Dad

Jacqui called? When? And how did she get my number? Not that I was complaining, I did mean to find a way to contact her – but this is just a little creepy. I decided before calling Jacqui back, breakfast would be a good idea.

I got a bowl out and filled it with cereal and milk, grabbed a spoon and sat down to eat. I made a plan for today; call Jacqui, clean up the house and then cook dinner for Charlie – even if he got home late, he needed to eat.

I washed my bowl and then went to pick up the phone. I dialled Jacqui's number and waited for her to answer.

"Hello?" I heard a bubbly voice answer.

"Jacqui? It's Bella. My dad said that you left a message for me. What's up?" I asked.

There was no pause before she replied. "Bella! Oh my gosh! I hoped I got your number right. Alice gave it to me 'cause I wanted to speak to you. It seems like forever since we spoke…well, met really. Anyways, Alice kind of also said you wanted to speak to me."

"Oh, um, yeah. I wanted to see if you wanted to help us plan the wedding sometime. I mean, Alice would love the extra help – so would I if it meant I got a bit more of a break. But you seemed so excited about the wedding from what I remember and I thought you may like tha-"

"Ohmygosh! YES!" she screamed into the phone. "YES! YES! YES! I would love to. Oh, Bella, I'm so honoured. Thank you so, so, so, so much. This made my day!"

"That's actually so great to hear. I can't wait to get to know you better and I know that Alice is just as excited. I will call you and let you know when we will be planning next. Edward forbid me from doing any planning today; he said I deserved a break while he went hunting." I heard Jacqui giggle on the other end of the phone. "Considering that you called me, was there anything you wanted to talk about?"

She stopped laughing and took a breath. "Oh, yes. Actually, I was going to see if I could come and see your dress again because it was just so beautiful and I have had it in my mind since you showed me. I think I may be in love with your wedding dress, Bella," she joked. I muffled a laugh with a cough.

"Well, too bad, because I think I was first. Anyways, you're obviously welcome to come and…visit my dress. I have to go now but it was really nice talking to you."

She said goodbye and left me to clean the house up. I placed the phone back on the charger and spun around to face the white door. It was time to get some work done around here. I had a feeling Charlie may be feeling a little neglected at the moment, with me being out of the house planning our wedding and all. I do feel sorry for him.

I did the best job I could of cleaning up the house; dusting and vacuuming, wiping the windows and mopping the tiles. By three o'clock, the house was practically sparkling to the best of its ability. I smiled triumphantly before heading into the kitchen to cook dinner.

Charlie got home at around eight and ate the stroganoff I cooked – using my Grandma's recipe. He deserved a treat. We sat down and talked for a few hours.

He asked how the wedding planning was going and what we had done; it turned out he was actually quite excited about our wedding – just not so much about the love of my life whom I was marrying. I asked him some questions about the football game we were occasionally watching and he told me about the rules.

It was a great night. I really do enjoy spending time with Charlie.

It was late so I said goodnight and headed up to my bedroom. I grabbed my pyjamas and toiletries and went to have a shower. The hot water loosened up all of my muscles and relaxed me almost as much as the soothing smell of my shampoo did. I turned the tap and the water shut off before I got out and dried myself.

Once I was in my pyjamas, I slowly walked to my room, watching my steps with extra care as my eyelids drooped. I didn't expect what I found when my face hit the pillow.

A/N: WOAHHH! Cliffhanger..it's actually not that hard to figure out what it is on her pillow - I just needed to end the chapter somehow. Anyways, sorry I haven't updated; I know that I am VERY slack and I do apologise. Next chapter will be out soon hopefully. I actually know what I am going to write so that's a bonus :)

Elyse xx