A/N...WOW! I've never seen such excitement before for a sequel. Thank you. I won't keep you long up here, but I did want to thank each and every one of you for your reviews. I hope my American friends enjoyed their Thanksgiving and survived Black Friday, whether you had to work or you braved shopping. :) But it was freaking awesome to see some of my fave familiar faces and some brand new ones, too!
I know I worried some of you with my "no cheating" reminder, but I know how some of you react to things, so I thought I'd put you at ease from the beginning. There was a reason for the warning. And even though this story probably won't be as angsty as the other two, I didn't say it wouldn't be a bumpy ride.
So let's get started...
CHAPTER 2
BELLA
"You might as well just stay, sweetie," Esme snickered softly as we took in the living room of the penthouse apartment in Twi Tech.
"Yeah," I sighed with a stupid ass grin creeping up my face. "He's exhausted, really, but he missed them."
Stretched out on the sofa, Edward was draped in sleepy kids. Our plane had been late taking off, so we'd landed in Seattle just before bedtime, but he'd insisted on seeing them and had asked Esme to keep them awake until we got to Twi Tower. Samuel was on the right side of his chest, a heavy, protective arm wrapped around the chubby, twitching baby boy, and Bethy was on his right, gripping her daddy's t-shirt in one tiny fist. They'd attacked him with kisses and stories, wrestled with him, and then all fallen asleep after Edward had eaten a late dinner.
"Then leave them be," she chuckled, kissing the side of my head. "What about you?"
"I'm okay. I slept on the plane," I said, fighting my smile, because Edward had held true to his word. He'd kept me up all night at the Beijing hotel, and my whole body felt every minute, every touch still.
Lowering the volume on the TV, Esme and I left the room, but not before I took a picture on my phone, because my little family was too sweet for words. I'd peel the kids off of him in a bit, but for now, they looked just blissful, and it hurt to imagine breaking that up at the moment, so we left them to find Carlisle quietly at work on his laptop at the kitchen table.
"Honey, you can work tomorrow," Esme chided gently, patting his shoulder on the way to the cupboards. "I'm sure the world will survive eight hours without you."
He grinned up at her. "It's not that, Es," he chuckled. "I had to postpone a meeting until Monday... You know...some rescue thing..." He waved a nonchalant hand toward me, rolling his eyes.
I chuckled, kicking at his foot when I sat down next to him. "Shut it. He's your son. He'd have come for you!"
"And you would have gone without me, too," he countered with a raised eyebrow. "But it's fine. Chang had been a problem for some time. We actually killed two birds with one stone."
"Small world," I muttered, taking the hot cup of tea Esme was handing me.
"Not really," Carlisle stated with a shrug. "Mrs. Vincent is greatly involved in Twi Tech charities. It's how she knew to use Gravity to find Frank. In fact, she's one of the biggest contributors to the homeless shelter we built with Preacher."
"Oh, okay," I said, taking a sip of tea.
"And she's been pushing her husband to open a free clinic in the neighborhood, though he may actually finally consider it after what happened in China," Carlisle chuckled. "She may have enough ammunition to convince him."
I grinned, remembering the doctor's sweet smile at the mention of his wife's message that he needed to retire. "Well, maybe he won't have to retire after all," I chirped, shrugging a shoulder and glancing over at his computer. My eyebrows shot up at the info on the screen. "You know Kyra Bailey?" I asked him, my mouth hanging open at the thought that he knew one of the most popular singers on the radio.
"Who? Her?" he verified, pointing to his screen, and I nodded, probably looking a lot like Bethy at the moment. "No... No, I don't, but I'm scheduled to meet with her Monday. Her agent contacted me a month or so ago, because Twi Tech just bought the record label that promotes her. She wanted to make sure that the studio was still booked to record her new album. Apparently, they want to take her in some 'new direction.'" Carlisle used air quotes and rolled his eyes at the same time.
"Shut up," I chuckled, spinning the computer around to look at her.
She was a stunning woman, with the voice of an angel, but could also work the crowd into a frenzy. She was a mix between a pop diva that made millions dollars and had the same amount of rabid fans, a drama queen that was always in the tabloids doing something or someone famous, and a flawless performer. She'd started as a child star, but had morphed into something more as the years progressed. She'd earned some respect by playing in a film or two, winning an Oscar and countless other awards, and for her constant charity work all over the world. If I'd had to guess, she was probably about my own age – thirty-one – with a beautiful head of deep auburn hair and porcelain skin.
"She's very pretty, sweetheart," Esme huffed, but the taunting gleam in her eye was a dead giveaway that she was just messing with him.
"Well, go on, Biggie C," I teased him, standing up from the table and kissing his forehead. "Are you gonna start wearing baggy pants and shit, too?"
"Hell, no!" he grumped, poking my side. "I've known Teri Foley for years...the girl's agent. I'm merely sitting in on this meeting. Solstice Music was about to lose Kyra Bailey, until Twi Tech stepped in and bought them out. They're hoping working in Seattle will be a better experience than Los Angeles."
Esme and I chuckled at how put-out he sounded, not to mention how pink his cheeks had turned at my teasing.
"Go to your room," he growled, pointing down the hall.
"Ha-ha. You think you're funny, Dad," I chuckled, because the penthouse we were currently in used to belong to my father, Charlie, and my old room now belonged to Bethy. Edward and I had taken the room next to it, and Samuel usually stayed with us. "That's it, I'm stealing my kids back tomorrow. You're officially on Poppy restrictions."
"Oh, no. Wait," he gasped, looking generally disappointed. "What about the park?"
I giggled, because he spoiled my kids endlessly and never missed a thing. "Fine, tomorrow afternoon at the park. The whole crew is coming."
"Excellent," he beamed, rubbing his hands together.
I rolled my eyes at the man, because he was an enigma. He could command a small army in another country in order to save his son and Emmett, or he could play endlessly with his grandchildren and never tire of it.
"Perfect," I told him with a nod. "You can bring dessert."
After setting my tea cup in the sink, scooping Bethy up out of her father's arms and putting her in her own room without even rousing her, I knelt beside my two boys. God, they were so beautiful together, a clone of one another. Long eyelashes rested against cheeks, pouting lips pursed in sleep, and dark hair with reddish highlights stuck up everywhere. With caresses to Edward's sleep-relaxed face, sweet green eyes opened up to me.
"Let me have him, baby," I whispered, gently taking a slumbering Samuel into my arms and laying him on my shoulder. "Let's go to bed, huh?"
Edward nodded wearily, blinking awake just enough to stand up from the sofa and walk down the hall to our room. I settled Samuel in the middle of the bed between us and crawled in after kissing both of my handsome men. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day.
~oOo~
The park was packed the next day with families cooking out, kids on the playground, and balls and Frisbees in the air. We'd taken over a small corner by some trees, but not too far from the playground, because it was all the kids could focus on – especially Bethy and Abby.
Carlisle and Esme were on their way, but Jasper, Edward, Alec, and Emmett were manning the grill. All my girls, including Sarah, were camped out on a picnic table as close to the playground as we could get in order to keep an eye on them.
"So I found a place in Forks," Mickey muttered quietly at my side, spinning her soda can in her hands nervously.
I wrinkled my nose, because I'd known this was coming for the last few months. She and Obie just couldn't see eye to eye on some things, which had resulted in her moving out of Aunt Kate's.
"I thought you had an apartment in Seattle, Mickey," Rose sighed sympathetically, having heard her. In fact, the whole table came to a standstill.
"Sold it. Last year," she said, glancing around the table, her eyes finally landing on me. "Obie just won't budge on this, Bells. I think it's why we never got married."
"He's really good with Bethy, Caleb, and Samuel when we all go up there," Alice noted, shaking her head. "I don't get why he doesn't want kids."
"Yeah, he loves teaching Bethy about the horses," Makenna piped up, her brow furrowing as she shook her head slowly.
"He says he doesn't know how to be a dad," Mickey practically growled, and her temper could be seen rising to the surface over something that was obviously still a touchy subject. "You know, because he and Tom were abandoned and shit."
I glanced over at Edward, knowing that playing devil's advocate was going to be hard, but Obie had a point. "Mick, he has to be ready, or it won't work," I told her, and all the women at the table nodded with me. "I don't think Obie's giving himself enough credit, but maybe this...break will help him see. What does Aunt Kate say?"
"Oh, she's pissed," Mickey laughed, swiping at a tear she'd never want anyone to see, especially the boys. "She told me that she'd talk to him, but to go, just to teach him a lesson. I'm not sure why it's such a big deal, but it is."
It was a big deal – if you truly knew Mickey. She had no family. None. Her father had died when she was just a teen, and then all three of her older brothers were taken from her on September 11, 2001. I could see how she would want a family, want children of her own, because she was alone, otherwise. We all claimed her as a sister and the kids all called her Aunt Mickey, but I could see that she really wanted something she could truly call her own, something that was connected to her by blood.
"Alec didn't know what he was doing, and he's a great dad," Sarah pointed out, shrugging one shoulder.
"But Alec wanted it," I sighed, tucking an unruly stray curl behind Mickey's ear. "Edward wanted it. Emmett wanted it. It makes a huge difference. They're willing to try, willing to work at it. Obie's just scared. Give him time, sweetie."
She nodded, again swiping at her tears messily, because she considered them a weakness. "I hope you're right. I miss him, but it became..."
"A bone of contention?" Rose finished for her, to which Mickey nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, it became the underlying cause of every fight," Mickey sighed.
"Maybe it's time for Obie to leave the nest...so to speak," Alice huffed with a frown on her face, folding her arms across her chest. "He's too comfortable at Aunt Kate's. Make him come to you."
We giggled at her protective nature, at her assessment of the situation, but she may have had a decent point.
"At least let it go for today, or you'll have four very angry boys to contend with as to why their baby sister is crying," I chuckled, wiping away the tears from her cheeks. "It wouldn't shock me if Edward flew to Kate's just to say something."
"Don't tell them," she begged, looking around at the guys, and then back to the table.
"They're going to know something is up when you're living here, Mick," Rose warned her. "It's your story to tell, but they will figure out something is up."
"They'll kill him," she snorted, rolling her eyes.
"No, they won't," I chuckled. "They may fly up there for a very loud...chat, but they won't kill him. They know how much he means to you. They'd never hurt you that way."
I knew Edward well enough to know that much. He was as protective as a lion over his pride when it came to family and friends, but he wouldn't do anything to cause them pain if he could help it.
"But we'll keep it at this table until you tell us different," I vowed, and she sighed deeply and nodded.
Squeals and laughter echoed up from the playground, but it was my daughter's voice that caused me to seek her out.
"Don't touch him!" she snapped, shoving a little boy about her age so hard that he stumbled back a few steps.
"He's a baby. He can't play our game," the blond boy countered, stepping back up to her.
"Oh, Lord," I sighed, because I knew Bethy was just about to ball up a fist.
"He's my brother, and he can play if he wants to," she growled back, her eyes darkening to almost black pitch with her temper, just like her father's.
I could see where Samuel was picking himself up off of the ground with the help of Abby. He wasn't crying, but he was watching the blond boy with a wary look on his face.
"Well, then you can't play," the boy huffed back, rolling his eyes.
"Yes, we can," Caleb growled, looking just like Emmett with his fists balling up and his face changing from a sweet, dimpled smile to a red-faced scowl.
When Samuel reached for the slide again, the boy knocked him out of the way, and that was when I needed to move, because Abby, Caleb, and Bethy all landed on the boy without shame.
"Oh shit," I half-laughed, half-gasped. "Edward!" I called over my shoulder, before taking off to the slide.
Samuel landed roughly this time, because he'd been holding onto Bethy, but her movement caused his stumble. His cry rang out loud, but I needed to stop the little free-for-all brawl first.
"Elizabeth Renee," I snapped, tugging her off the boy at the same time Rose grabbed Caleb and Sarah snatched up Abby. "What were you thinking?" I asked her, setting her on her feet, but her angry glare wouldn't leave the pissed off blond boy that was dusting himself off. "Look at me!" I commanded as Edward scooped up a very upset Samuel.
"I-I t-told h-him n-not to touch him," she sneered, glancing at me, and then back to the kid. "H-He knocked S-Sammy d-down," she growled, and it was all I could do not to laugh, because that scowl, that pure show of anger was all her daddy. It was unwavering and honest. It was loyalty to her very soul.
"Then get away from him. He's not worth playing with," I said, glancing at the little boy, whose own mother had figured out the problem. "In fact, you two should stay away from each other, but fighting wasn't the answer. You should've come and gotten me or Daddy."
"S-Sorry, Mommy," she grumped.
"Mmhm," I scoffed, rolling my eyes. "Go to the table and sit. Don't get up. It's almost time to eat anyway."
Sarah had already put Abby at the table, and Rose followed suit with a still puffed up, angry Caleb. All three looked like pissed off badgers as they sulked at the end of the bench while we fixed them a plate of burgers and potato salad.
Mickey chuckled at my side, but my head spun in her direction. "Still want kids?" I asked her with a laugh.
"Yeah," she said dreamily, but her eyes were on Edward and a still upset Samuel.
He'd sat down on a swing with our son on his lap. They were backwards baseball cap forehead to backwards baseball cap forehead and deep in conversation as Edward checked him over to make sure he wasn't hurt.
"Boy pushed me, Daddy," he muttered with a hiccuping breath, and I smiled at how clear his speech was becoming due to being around Bethy all the time. In fact, his speech was further along than hers was at a year-and-a-half, because he followed her example.
"I saw that, buddy," Edward soothed him, but lifted up his shirt, his feet, and his arms. "But I think you're okay. I don't see anything wrong," he chuckled, because the lifting of arms and legs, the tickling of his daddy's fingers was causing Samuel to giggle uncontrollably.
"Stop!" Samuel gasped, trying to grab as his dad's hands and finally settled for his face. "No, Daddy!"
I chuckled at the two of them, because their laughs and smiles were identical, even down to the slight tilt of their heads. But it was the deep green gaze down at the boy in his lap that was hard to miss. Edward's love for his son was a giant neon sign all over his face. It was the same over the moon gaze he gave to Bethy.
"Obie's totally missing out," Mickey sighed, shaking her head and walking away.
"Yeah, he is," I agreed, though I spoke to myself, because I couldn't help but keep watching my boys.
"I wan' to swide, Daddy," Samuel stated, pointing a pudgy little finger toward the slide.
"Well, then, get to it, pal," Edward encouraged, setting him on his feet.
Little jean-clad legs pumped furiously to the steps of the small slide, and Samuel took each step one by one, finally plopping down at the top.
"Catch me," he yelled to his dad, who was waving him down from the bottom.
There were times that Edward was completely oblivious as to how good of a dad he was. He was also completely unaware of the stares he was getting. He stood tall, strong, and proud, wearing the sweetest of smiles that was meant only for our son. With stubble on his chin, dark jeans, and a tight white t-shirt – not to mention the ink that was peeking out from his sleeve – Edward radiated confidence laced with a touch of danger, but all that melted away with the laugh that he let loose when he caught Samuel at the bottom of the slide. I smirked at the blatant ogling some of the mothers were doing around the playground, because...yeah, he was just that hot.
Samuel ran around to climb again, and I walked to them.
"My boys, it's time to eat. Don't you think?" I asked, smiling when Samuel nodded fervently. "Well, then, get down here, handsome," I said, smiling at Edward's chuckle.
"What happened?" Edward asked, placing a kiss to my head as we waited for our son to come down.
"Your daughter decided to beat the shit out of a kid that hurt her brother," I laughed, looking up at his amused face.
"Damn, school's gonna be a bitch," he murmured, rolling his eyes at my laugh. "Laugh it up, sweetness," he warned, giving me that sexy as hell raised eyebrow. "The first time someone picks on Samuel for being shy, she's going to tear them up."
I laughed again, only this time, I squatted down to scoop up Samuel at the bottom of the slide. "There he is," I crooned, smooching his face all over, which caused him to giggle and squirm in my arms. I stood up and faced Edward. "Well, at least we have a while before he starts kindergarten."
Edward harrumphed, rolling his eyes. "At least," he muttered.
What I noticed was that he wasn't upset with Bethy. At all. And that thought caused me to laugh.
"Edward," I chuckled, "you have to talk to her."
He grinned, shrugged, and kissed my forehead, and then Samuel's. "Fine, I will, but...food first!" he said to the much happier boy in my arms. "And I think...Poppy's here," he sang, pointing to the table.
"Poppy!" Samuel chirped, wriggling to get down, and I set him down just to watch him hurry to his grandfather.
Warm, strong arms wrapped around me, pulling my hips flush to his. I couldn't help but snake my arms up around Edward's neck.
"I'll talk to her," he vowed, his face much more serious. "She shouldn't be fighting, I know."
I giggled, because he sounded like he didn't believe a word he was saying. "It's okay that she's protective of him, but she can't just start swinging..."
He chuckled and nodded. "I know. Fuck, if my dad didn't call that one," he groaned, rolling his eyes again.
"She starts kindergarten in the Fall, baby," I reminded him, which caused a wide range of emotions to flicker across his handsome face – pride, sadness, worry. "I just don't want her to be the kid I get called into class for every day. She's just as protective of Abby, you know."
He sighed, placing a small, light kiss to my lips. "At least she won't be alone when she starts," he said with a nod. "Separating her from Caleb and Samuel will be hard enough."
"Yup," I sighed, nodding once, because that was one tight little gang. They spent just about every day together.
Dragging his lips down my cheek, despite the fact that we were in a public park, he opened his mouth to my neck.
"Now," he rumbled softly against my skin, "what's wrong with Mickey?"
I grinned, because he rarely missed anything, but I'd promised her that I wouldn't tell. "I promised, baby," I groaned, stepping away from him. "It's her story to tell. Not mine."
He grimaced, but shoved his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. "She's moving here." He stated it like he knew, but he looked to me for confirmation.
"Yes, she is."
"What did Obie do?" he said, the last word coming out in a low, rumbling growl.
"Leave it alone, Edward," I said, using the calmest voice I could muster. "It's their problem. Okay?"
He studied my face with intense green eyes that matched the grass and trees around us at the park. He took a deep breath, and then let it out slowly. "But she's okay, right?"
"She's okay, baby. Let it go," I crooned to him, taking his hand. "Come. Let's eat."
"Bella, she was crying," he argued, tugging me to a stop.
I smiled up at him, cupping his face. "Well, yes, she was, but you men tend to wring us out emotionally. Just give it some time. If it was something...dangerous, I'd tell you."
He scoffed at my first statement, but my last sentence seemed to placate him just a bit. "Swear?"
I kissed his lips roughly. "All the damn time," I laughed. "A habit I picked up from you, if I'm not mistaken."
He grinned and shook his head. "Yeah, you probably did..."
At the moment, he let it go, but I knew he'd watch her like a hawk, because that was just how my husband was.
~oOo~
Rose and I pulled back into my driveway after taking Caleb and Bethy to Mrs. Cope's for the day. She kept the place open during the summer, running it like a day camp. It was great for the working parents of our small town, plus it gave some of the local high school girls something to do during the summer. They volunteered for Mrs. Cope as a summer school thing.
I scooped Samuel up out of his car seat, brushing an errant curl from his forehead so I could kiss him there.
"Did Edward grill you about Mickey?" Rose asked as we pulled a few groceries out of the back of my SUV.
"Grill?" I laughed, looking up at her. "No. He did ask, but he let it go when I told him it was not what he was thinking."
"Lucky you," she scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Emmett wouldn't just let it go."
I grinned, shaking my head. "Those boys, I swear. It's not like they'd want to know. It's a girl thing."
"Exactly," she agreed. "I told Em that last night. He got pissed."
We dumped the groceries off in my house, making our way out to Gravity's office. There wasn't much on the agenda for the week, though I knew that Rose had some phone calls to return. Alice and Makenna had taken the day off, so it was Alec, Edward, and Emmett in the office when we finally opened the door to the dumbest conversation I'd ever heard.
"So I told her...this is my roof...my pussy," Emmett growled, slamming a hand down on the table.
His back was to us, but Edward's was not. He barely glimpsed our way when I stopped Rose from most likely slapping the back of her husband's head. In fact, Edward leaned back in his chair at the conference table, kicking his feet up onto the top and crossing them at the ankles.
"You told Rose that?" Edward asked as he crossed his arms, obviously egging him on, which I couldn't decide whether it was hilarious or just plain cruel.
"Yeah! Hell, yeah, because I'd asked her about Mick and she wouldn't spill, dude," Emmett continued, sounding like a pouting child. "So she got pissed off...threatened to cut me off, man..."
I grinned up at Rose, who shrugged and nodded.
Alec finally saw us in the doorway, an evil grin crawling up his face. "And just how'd she take that...declaration?" he asked Emmett with the best dramatic acting I'd seen yet.
"She came at me with a skillet!" Emmett said incredulously.
I had to slap my hand over my mouth to keep from laughing out loud, because Emmett honestly didn't see what was wrong with what he'd said.
"Your roof...your pussy," Edward mused slowly, smirking and shaking his head. "Em...you do realize that the...pussy is mobile, right?"
Alec chuckled, looking over at Edward, before turning back to Emmett. "Yeah, Em. It can leave that roof you're claiming, which technically belongs to you and Rosie, because Bellissima gave it to you...both of you."
Rose snickered beside me at Alec and Edward, but Emmett wasn't to be deterred from his thinking.
"I'm the man of the house..." he started, but his buddies cracked the fuck up.
Edward and Alec burst into laughter, their heads falling back, but it was Edward that spoke first. "Being the man of the house only grants you heroism when it comes to killing spiders and shit. Otherwise...you do what they say...or there is no pussy."
I grinned, shaking my head and rolling my eyes.
"Mobile pussy," he said again, raising his eyebrow, but he made the mistake of letting his gaze fall to me.
"Aw hell," Emmett groaned. "They're here, aren't they?"
Alec chuckled, turning away from the table to get himself another cup of coffee, but Edward only grinned and nodded slowly.
"What happened to bros before..."
"Finish that sentence, Emmett," Rose snapped. "Go ahead..."
"Umm...no way," Emmett muttered, shaking his head but smacking Edward's feet down off of the table with an angry glare. "Asshole," he hissed, when he realized I had the baby with me.
I set Samuel down in the play area that we'd created when Bethy had started coming to work with me; he immediately picked up the building blocks. Edward opened his arms for me, and I sat down on his lap, wincing when the inevitable smack to Emmett's head finally resounded in the office.
"Idiot," Rose mumbled, walking to her desk. "I told you before, and I'll say it again. It's not your concern what happened to Mickey and Obie. So stop gossiping like old women in a hair salon."
"Guys," I sighed, kissing Edward's temple. "I know you care about her and want to take care of her," I started, looking around at all three of them. "But this really is personal for her. I'm asking all of you to let it go. She'll tell you when she's ready. Okay?"
"We just want to know if she's...hurt," Emmett huffed, setting his elbows on the table. "Because if he hurt her..."
"Stop," I said gently. "This is...irreconcilable differences. And that's all I'm saying. Obie would never hurt her, and you damn well know it."
I turned to Edward. "And you... bros before hoes... Really?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
He laughed, pulling me closer. "Used to be that way, sweetness," he sang, shrugging one shoulder. "Now...not so much." He leaned in to kiss my cheek, only to press his lips to my ear, whispering, "I'm not stupid, love. I know what I want, and I'll do anything to keep...mmm, getting it. Loyalties change when you get married...something I'm not sure Emmett has learned."
A warm hand caressed my thigh, gliding around to my ass, where he patted softly, only to slip slowly between my legs.
"Mhm, loyalties indeed," I chuckled, shaking my head at my husband's shameless groping. "And the whole 'my roof, my pussy' thing?"
"Keep the fucking house," he rumbled sexily in my ear as his tongue swirled over the spot that caused my whole body to react. "But this," he purred, grazing a long, knowing finger over the seam of my jeans. "That is mine."
I grinned, letting out some sort of sound I didn't recognize, which caused Edward to drag his teeth across my throat even as he smiled against my skin.
"It is, but don't we have work?" I barely breathed out.
"Not yet," he sighed, pulling back to look up at me. "I'm sure there's something on Rose's list of call-backs. We were waiting for you guys."
"Where's Kurt?" I asked, closing my eyes and running my fingers through Edward's hair.
"Coming in later this afternoon," he replied, pressing his lips to mine briefly. "He was stopping by his parents' to see his sister, Evie, off to summer camp."
"Oh, okay," I said, thinking Kurt was a fantastic big brother. "Well, let's help him out. Come check the emails with me, and we'll get a list for Rose and Alec to call. Okay?"
"Sure, love," he chuckled, tilting his head at me. "I had better ways to spend the waiting time, but if you insist on all this...working shit, then come on."
I laughed, standing up from his lap and tugging on his hand. "Shut it. Computer room. Now, mister."
We spent the next few hours composing lists of prospective clients for Rose and Alec to contact back. Alec took the security details, calling back to find out if what we could do would meet the needs of the person that needed protecting. Rose took the calls of the more personal nature – missing persons, cheating spouses, and lost relatives.
By the time Kurt came in, we'd sorted out a list of a few possibilities. I tended to rank things that were of an urgent nature higher than other things. A missing child was top priority in the office. And everyone knew it.
"Geez, Bells, I'm sorry I'm late. Did Edward tell you?" Kurt gushed, rushing into the office like his hair was on fire and setting down bags of fast food. "But I brought lunch."
I chuckled, shaking my head. "Ah, food always earns forgiveness, and yes, he did," I told him, ruffling his black spiky hair as he grinned up at me. "There is life outside of this office, Kurt. I urge you to go be in it."
Kurt had turned into an incredible asset to Gravity. He had a sharp sense of street smarts, but a fairly decent knowledge of computers. Despite his rocky beginnings with petty criminal mischief and his emotional and mental issues that were now being monitored perfectly, he'd proven himself worthy. He loved to learn anything we'd teach him, from guns, to self-defense. He approached cases with a sense of humor and a quirky outlook on everything.
"Okay," he chuckled shyly, pulling a bag of burgers to him. "So what'd I miss?"
"Not much," Edward said, sitting down at the conference table and setting Samuel on his lap. Tiny fingers immediately grappled for the French fries. "We've got some possible security gigs coming up in a month or two, but everything Rose is looking into is kind of old."
Cold cases were hard, and we tended to take our time with them, because we allotted Makenna and Alice to work them on the computers first. The older they were, the harder they were to work, because it required huge amounts of legwork, which sometimes led to nothing.
"Pickles!" Samuel chirped, pulling his dad's burger open just to snatch the pickles. He loved his sour stuff.
"Go on, buddy," Edward conceded, shaking his head and pulling the other two pickles off of his sandwich. "Anyway," he said, looking back up to Kurt, "we were just about to sit down and list them by priority."
"Good freakin' luck," Rose groaned, falling into a chair beside Kurt. "It's quiet out there today. Out of thirty calls, we maybe have a possible...two cases. Though, one is a cheating wife," she stated, before popping a fry in her mouth.
"Aw, hell," every last man in the room, except for Kurt, groaned, and Rose and I laughed, because they all hated posing as "man-sluts," as we liked to tease them.
"Aren't there any lost dogs or somethin'?" Emmett whined, sipping soda down until it slurped obnoxiously.
I laughed again, pointing to all of them. "I don't want to hear it. When you have to catch a gropey man, who smells like the fish he cleans all day, weighs like three hundred pounds, and sweats constantly, even in a cold room, then we'll talk. Otherwise, you'll play your part."
"We'll never top that," Alec muttered to Edward, who was nodding with an adorably disgusted look on his face. "That man was like Fat Bastard from those movies..."
"Get in ma' bellah!" Emmett guffawed, which caused Samuel to giggle with him. "Yeah, I wasn't sure whether we needed to save her from his hands, or if he was going to eat Bella."
"See?" Rose chuckled. "So you guys can entertain a bored housewife."
Suddenly, the biggest, most intense game of Rock, Paper, Scissors started in order to rule out who wasn't going. By the time they realized that they could just heap it all on Jasper, because he wasn't there, the phone was ringing, and Rose and I could barely see straight we were laughing so hard.
Kurt answered it, still chuckling. "Gravity Investigations...Kurt speaking." His eyebrows shot up, but he replied instantly. "Yeah... Hey, Carlisle," he said, and we all quieted down. "Um, Bells, Ed, Emmett, Alec, and Rose... Okay, hold on." He put down the receiver and punched the speakerphone button. "You're on..."
"Hey, guys," Carlisle sighed over the speaker, "I need you to drop whatever case you're working on. I've got a security detail for you, but I think there's more to it. Can you guys come this way and meet with me?"
"Today?" Edward asked, his face growing serious. "What's this all about, Dad?"
"I'd rather go over with you in person. And privately."
"Damn cloak and dagger shit," I muttered, rolling my eyes. "Carlisle, what do you need?"
"I need you to hear this girl's story and tell me if you don't think there's a bigger problem. I think she needs more than just security," Carlisle answered.
"Okay, well, who is she?" Rose stated, tugging her ever present notebook and pen closer to her in order to start taking notes.
"Kyra Bailey," he answered.
My eyebrows shot up at the same time Kurt muttered, "Whoa..."
"Okay," I said, dragging the word out. "Doesn't she have like a billion dollars in order to hire a small army?"
"That's why I'm calling you!" Carlisle snapped. "Just humor me, please."
"Fine. Be there soon," I told him, ending the call.
"Kyra Bailey...Kyra Bailey," Emmett muttered, his brow furrow like he was trying to remember something. "Oh, shi...crap! I remember her," he suddenly boomed, pointing to Edward, who I'd just realized was frozen in one spot. "Isn't she..."
"Yes," Edward breathed, shaking his head. "We're not taking this case."
~oOo~
EDWARD
Kyra Bailey.
Well, fuck. I shook my head slowly, not knowing whether I wanted to fucking punch Emmett for his outburst and now silent laughter, or call my dad right back and tell him no fucking way. However, the first thing I needed to do was set my son down.
"Go play, buddy," I told him, setting his feet onto the floor so that he could wobble over to the play area.
"Why aren't we taking this case, Edward?" Bella asked, and I knew her well enough to know that she was reading me loud and clear at the moment. "It won't hurt to hear her story... And Jesus, Emmett, stop freaking laughing!"
Finally taking the opportunity to do what I wanted, I reached over and slapped the back of Emmett's head. "Jackass. It's not funny." I turned back to Bella. "I don't want this case."
"Why?" she asked again, this time her eyes narrowing on me like an owl spots a mouse, but I stalled long enough for her to figure it out. "You...know her... How?"
"Shit," I hissed, my elbows hitting the table and my fingers gripping my hair.
"Oh he knew her all right," Emmett stated with a chuckle, but before I could truly beat his ass, he was up from the table. "She came for a visit in Afghanistan during a USO tour. Guess who flew her from stop to stop..."
"Damn it, Emmett," I snapped, slamming my hands down onto the table.
"Enough," Bella stated, giving me a look that said there was no room for arguing. "Emmett, Kurt, Alec...get your stuff together and get ready to go."
"Bella," I groaned, but she held up her hand to me and turned to Rose.
"I'll keep Sammy and go get the kids in a few," Rose answered without even having been asked. "Let me know if you take the case," she said, looking between us. "Otherwise, I'll let the cheating case know that we're in."
"I will," Bella said, walking to me. "Did you have sex with her?" she asked softly so that only I could hear her.
"Yeah, but..."
"Are you still attracted to her?"
"No fucking way!" I growled the pure truth, rolling my eyes. Kyra was a beautiful girl, but she was nothing compared to the concerned woman in front of me.
"Then what's the problem?" she asked, softly and calmly, tilting her head at me. "We can go listen to what Carlisle needs us to hear, and if you still say no, then it's no."
I was shaking my head before she was even finished.
Bella bit the inside of her cheek as she studied my face, her sweet chocolate eyes sharp on every expression I was trying to hide, but was failing. "Did you hurt her?"
Fuck, if she didn't hit the nail on the head. But Bella knew me, knew about my past. It wasn't pretty, and I damn well wasn't proud of it. I'd just never kept anyone around long term, but Kyra had been different. Long term wasn't feasible, even if I had wanted it. She was on tour, I was in a fucking war, and I assumed we'd never see each other again.
"She wanted...more," I sighed, finally answering her question and looking away from her.
"And just how would that have worked?" Bella scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Famous singer...soldier in the desert..."
I finally cracked a smile, because no one had my back like Bella did. "Which was what I told her..."
My wife took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, and nodded. "Your dad doesn't send us clients unless he feels it's something big," she stated. "He doesn't normally ask for our help. And he damn well doesn't ask for the entire freaking crew when he does. Don't you think we should at least hear him out?"
Grimacing, I sighed, but shrugged petulantly. I knew I was being stubborn, but I just didn't want to see the girl. In fact, if I could erase my past, only leaving Bella, then I'd be a happy man.
"You can't bury your head in the sand, baby," she said, almost as if she could read my mind. She took another deep breath. "To be honest, I'm not thrilled about my husband having had a sexual relationship with one of People Magazine's Most Beautiful People. That's just a little intimidating. But I owe your dad for helping me with going to get you in China. The least I can do is go listen like he asked."
"Damn it," I groaned, running a hand through my hair, because I knew she was right, but the magazine statement was pure fucking bullshit. "Y-You'd o-own th-that f-fucking m-magazine, sweetness," I sputtered.
I was rewarded with a brilliant smile and a giggle. "Good to know you think so, Edward," she chuckled, shaking her head. "As many famous men as Kyra has been with...she may not even remember you. She's a tabloid queen, you know."
"No...hell, no. I don't know," I huffed with a shrug. "And I don't care to know."
"You are such a child," she sighed, a smirk playing at the corners of her mouth. "Perhaps this is an opportunity to apologize for whatever it is you did."
"I didn't do anything, Bella," I growled, shaking my head. "I never promised her anything. I thought what we did was just a mutual thing..."
"Well, you're going to tell me all about it on the way," she stated. "Let's go."
A/N...Before you kill me for ending it there, you need to know that Edward's story is a long one, so it just wouldn't have worked here. But I promise you'll hear it in Chap 3...which is detailed and full of a lot of info.
No, Kyra Bailey isn't based on anyone...though I'm sure she'll sound like Lady Gaga, Beyonce, and Jennifer Lopez – with a dash of Madonna – all rolled into one. LOL Only her level of fame is based on those women. And for those that don't know what a USO tour is...Edward will explain it next chapter, but it's when celebrities go overseas to a war zone and entertain our troops. It's been something of a tradition since World War II, if I'm not mistaken. Maybe earlier than that, but I don't think so.
I need to thank JenRar for beta'ing this for me, and for all the advice I constantly beg for. A big thank you to GooberLou for helping me sharpen my claws for Bella's sake. LOL And a big, huge thank you to MedusaInNY for all my blog stuff. For those that have asked, Sin & Innocence is currently being put together as a PDF, but with real life and the holiday, it's just been madness for everyone. MedusaInNY did a fantastic job on Everything I Thought I Knew. It's now downloadable and up on my blog. So go check it out. Drotuno(dot)blogspot(dot)com You'll see lots of stuff on there.
Okay, so chapter 3 is ready to go, and it will be posted Wed. We'll be back to my normal posting schedule. :) So with that being said, let me hear all about your theories on the famous Kyra Bailey... Until Wed... Later. :)