Callie began to doze off against him, and when her eyes finally shut completely, Edward lifted her carefully and carried her toward her bed. His surrogate sisters had certainly done a number on her; she was wearing a short silk slip, lacy and white, making her sun-kissed skin stand out in russet glory. Her lips shone with a nightly moisturizer and her eyes were soft and red from being wiped clean of make-up.
Her layered hair refused to be pulled back evenly, and it fell loosely from her head despite the hair band's best efforts. Even missing pieces, her ponytail cascaded like a red waterfall down her back and across the pillows. Edward didn't put her down right away, too concerned with watching her eyelids flutter with dreams.
With every intention to let her down carefully, Edward bent down and set her against the bed. He let her legs collapse to the pillow-top mattress, then went to remove his other arm from around her neck. There he found an issue. Callie had latched onto his arm as if it were a teddy bear. When he tried to pull away slowly, she whimpered, threatening to wake. Edward rolled his eyes at his predicament, not wanting to wake her.
Without warning, a thought popped into his head. There was enough room left on the side of the bed for him to lay…Edward held his breath. Should he lie next to her? Would she be upset? He didn't even answer his own questions before his arm slipped further around her neck and he pressed his chest against her back. He then pushed his hips against hers and let his legs mold to hers. Without realizing it, he exhaled. His eyes slid closed and he buried his face in her hair. He let his free arm lie across her side, his hand resting possessively on her belly. Despite the unusual warmth, he found himself playing with the idea of "our baby."
Facing the other way, Callie's eyes opened. She noticed Edward, laying next her, breathing evenly against her ears. She smiled, and her eyes closed again.
The next morning, Callie turned to see what appeared to be Edward, sleeping. Confused, she said, "I thought vampires couldn't sleep," thinking out loud.
Edward, eyes still closed, said, in an annoyed voice, "We can't."
Callie grimaced. "Sorry." Her stomach grumbled loudly. "Looks like a monster ate my baby and won't cough her up until I feed it something else." Edward laughed and helped her stand.
"Well, let's go satiate it then."
The two wandered downstairs, their fingers subconsciously entwined. The house had emptied during the night for a hunting trip.
"When do you eat?" Callie asked.
"Intermittently. I try to wait until you have something else to occupy you while I'm gone. For instance, Alice has every intention of a shopping trip this weekend. I'll probably go while you're in Seattle."
Callie nodded. Despite her wardrobe overload just a day before, she was excited to go shopping with Alice. "Wouldn't Rosalie come?"
Edward shrugged. He put some bread into their toaster and pressed the button down, then turned towards her. "Shopping trip aside, we have a mission today. We have a meeting at two o'clock at the school to get our work, as well as clean our lockers."
Callie nodded. "So this is like maternity leave for me, then?"
"Indeed. In fact, I can use this as community service on my college applications."
She laughed. "Glad to do something for you."
Edward smiled. "You do a lot for me, Callie." She smiled back. The toast popped up right then, and halted their conversation as he prepared it for her.
She ate quickly, especially when she noticed that she had slept till nearly noon. After eating, she stood, carefully maintaining her balance as she walked briskly to Edward, kissed him gently (with a sad attempt at nonchalance) on the cheek, and said "Thank you." She then proceeded back upstairs, shutting the door only a crack.
Edward stood in place, stunned. Allowing a few minutes, he shook out of it and ran after her. Not even thinking of knocking before entering, he pushed the door open, too concerned with his own curiosity.
Callie hadn't heard him. The room was dark with the light of an overcast day, and she stood by the window, facing away from him, shadowed by the brighter outdoors. Her naked silhouette imprinted in his mind and he was sure that his heart skipped a beat. Before she noticed, he closed the door and walked back downstairs slowly.
He was sure he had just seen a goddess, though his senses told him otherwise. The logical side and the romantic side of him warred as he sat in the kitchen. Either way, he had never seen anything more beautiful.
Moments later, she returned, wearing a yellow gingham dress and a sunflower in her hair. She carried a white cardigan over her arm and a pair of strappy white sandals in her hand and smiled at him.
To cover up his abashed embarrassment, Edward said, "You look lovely, darling, but we have an hour to wait before we have to leave."
Callie noticed his pretense, but let it slide, instead rocking back and forth on her heels. She said, "I was thinking we could clean our lockers first." Edward shrugged an agreement, and they gathered a backpack and left.
The drive over was quiet, except for Callie, humming along to a song on the radio. "You have a lovely voice," He said at some point. She blushed, but didn't stop humming.
They were at the school sooner than he would have liked. They had half an hour before their meeting. They checked in at the office, and were admitted to their lockers. They went to Edward's locker first, which was all but empty, except for his books. He slipped them into the bag, then they headed towards Callie's.
Her locker was a different story. Just the door was enough of a mess for both of them, hung with ultrasound pictures and photos of her and her brother. He was tall, like her, but without the disproportioned torso (maybe that had to do with her pregnancy). They had the same brilliant green eyes and thorough tan, though his hair was sun-bleached to blonde. He had a mechanic's build; strong arms and big hands, broad shoulders. Edward couldn't imagine him in a courthouse like Callie's parents had intended. It appeared they didn't get much of what they wanted from their children.
Callie pulled down the pictures and removed her pile of books, as well as her sketchbook, her notebook, and a stack of junk from the top shelf. The backpack was brimming by the time she was finished, and even Edward bowed under the weight. When the locker was empty, Callie stood and gathered the trash.
Right then, a classmate of hers walked by, a plastic smile on her face. "Callie! Where have you been?" The classmate didn't look at Callie so much as she did Edward. He ignored her.
"Oh, doing pregnant things. How are you, Jessica?" She said uncomfortably.
Jessica Stanley. That was her name.
"I'm great, but Callie, don't be rude," She laughed obnoxiously, "Who's your friend?"
"This is Edward. I'm sure you've seen him around."
She nodded, grinning voraciously at him. Then, for a moment, she was distracted. "Speaking of seeing people around, your brother was here over lunch today. He was looking for you."
Callie immediately perked up. "Did you talk to him?"
"Of course. I told him you were at the Cullens'." She gestured to Edward with another fake smile. "He asked where they lived, but I don't know. Maybe you could invite me over sometime." She got closer to Edward.
"What then?" Callie demanded with some urgency.
"He said he'd check with some old friends." Jessica was put off by her insistence and Edward's silence, and said, "See ya," soon after.
When she was gone, Callie looked to Edward. "That must mean…He must be up at La Push." Edward didn't have to read her mind to know what she was thinking. She wanted to go to the reservation. Immediately, he said no.
"That's not fair, and you have no right to tell me where to go," she said harshly. In retrospect, Edward realized that telling a girl whose parents repressed her every activity for fifteen years what to do was probably not on his list of effective persuasive skills.
"Callie, it's too dangerous," He said, taking a more tactful route. She bit her lip.
"I have to see my brother, while he's still there. Lunch was only an hour ago. I bet I could find him."
Edward didn't have time to remember the meeting before she was waddling full speed out towards the parking lot. "Callie, I'm not driving you there. I can't cross into the werewolf territory."
She glared at him. "Then I'll call Jacob."
"What?" He exclaimed. "Are you entirely insane?" With no other alternative, he got in the car, motioning for her to hurry. "Come on. I'll drive you to the border."
"I have my license. I can drive the rest of the way."
Edward grimaced. He wasn't really willing to part with his favorite Volvo, but the desperation on her face didn't give him a choice. He agreed. They were out of the parking lot in a short moment, and speeding up the road, well on their way.
They were quiet until the car skidded to a halt ten feet before the werewolf border, though Callie wouldn't know that. Edward got out of the car and helped her out as well, and, before she got in the driver's seat, he said, "Be careful."
The words made Callie stop, and she looked him in the eye. She bit her lip, thinking hard but not allowing Edward to hear her thoughts. Suddenly, she wrapped her arms around him and pushed her lips against his. Without thinking, he clutched her to his chest and deepened the kiss.
She pulled away too soon and jumped into the car with surprising agility. Without making any adjustments, she took off, knowing Edward would wait where he was for any sign of danger.