3. Good News

Edward

Skye and I have been together for eight years now, seven of those years in marriage. And the love I feel for her is as strong today as it was when I made her my wife. We fight like any other married couple. We piss each other off too, but we both know where, and to whom we belong. The woman owns my very soul. She was, and is, my everything. And I had no doubts that the feeling was mutual.

0~~~~~~~~~~~0

I sat on the sofa and half watched the game as she combed through Lisette's wild hair. Lisette was fidgeting and trying to move away as Skye caged her between her legs.

"Sit still, Elisabeth," Skye groaned. "I'm almost finished."

"I hate getting my hair combed!" Lisette complained.

"And I hate combing it. Just be still and we'll both get through this."

I laughed because this was an everyday thing with them. To no one's surprise, Lisette was a tomboy. She could care less that her hair was a tangled mess. And she could rough house and play ball with the best of them. Skye didn't mind of course, she had grown up the only girl and a tomboy as well. She knew Lisette would grow out of it. The only one who didn't like it was Alice, but that was because she wanted to play dress up with Lisette the way she did with Nessie and Lisette never cooperated. She had those dresses off and stuffed in the back of her closet as soon as Auntie Alice walked out the door.

There was a brief knock at the door before it opened. Colin walked in and called out for me.

"In here!" I called back.

He headed toward the living room.

"I love how you just walk in my house."

He smiled.

"What? I knocked first."

I shook my head. He was entirely too comfortable around my family and I didn't know how to feel about that. Because being too close to us could be dangerous. But we'd become very close over the years and he was like another brother to me. And even though I'd never told him any of the secrets I'd been keeping, and there were plenty, he still hung around.

Colin was a smart man, brilliant actually, he graduated high school by the age of fifteen and was a doctor by the time he turned twenty-two. Over the years I'd watched in his head how he had begun to piece everything together. He knew I was different, but he didn't pry and he never spoke of it to anyone. He hadn't voiced his assumptions to me either for two reasons. The most obvious being my children. They were clearly mine and Skye had given birth them. He knew that. He'd seen her pregnant twice now. She was pregnant with Elisabeth when he first met her at the fundraiser and he was around throughout her entire pregnancy with Etienne.

In the legends, vamps didn't have children. It was supposed to be impossible. And not only that. My children were so…normal. At least to the outside world. They threw everyone off that even suspected we were different. Even Colin, who was the only human we'd let into our circle since Bella and was around us on a fairly regular basis.

The other, and possibly the most convincing reason being his own subconscious. His own ego. It was the main reason we were able to live like we did. Humans just couldn't wrap their brains around the thought of anything inhabiting the earth besides themselves and Colin was no different. Even with it right in front of their faces they refused to believe. Ignorance truly was bliss.

The boys came barreling down the stairs, snapping me out of my thoughts. They'd heard Colin coming in.

"Colin, Dad said we can go with to the gym with you and him and shoot hoops."

"Did he now? So which one of you is on my team today?"

"Me!" EJ said. "We're going to kick butt."

"My man!" Colin smiled as he high five'd EJ.

I watched as my boys chatted Colin up.

"Guys, let the man breathe, please." I told them and they backed off.

"So we got the twins today?" he asked as we did our handshake.

"Yeah, they wanted to come."

"It's cool, man. You know I love these guys. I like spending time with them." He hugged my boys.

He walked over to Skye and gave her a quick peck on the cheek which she returned smiling.

"Hello, little mama. Smelling and looking good as usual. How's the little one? Sleeping better?"

"Yes, much better, thanks."

"Good, Ed told me you were never going to let him touch you again if you didn't start to get some rest. He was a little worried. I'm glad things are looking up for my boy."

She looked at me and smiled.

"Really, is that what he said? Well don't get too happy," she chuckled, "I'm still debating."

She winked at me and smiled.

Colin caught our interaction and shook his head.

"Sure you are."

Lucky bastard, he thought. I looked at him and smirked.

"Okay, Lisette, I'm finished." Skye told her and released her from between her legs.

Lisette jumped up and ran to Colin who scooped her up in his arms.

"Hello princess, how's my girl?" he asked pulling on the ends of her ponytails.

"Well, thank you." She blushed.

"That's great. Now give me a kiss for luck." He pointed to his cheek.

She kissed him and smiled. I stood up and walked over to them. He passed her to me and she gave me a quick peck on my lips.

"Love you, Daddy."

"Me too, baby." I stood her up. "We'll see you when we get back."

"Will you read 'Lord of the Flies' to me?"

"Tonight, after dinner." I promised.

"Yes!" The boys murmured. It was one of their favorite books too.

"Okay." She smiled then turned to go upstairs.

I walked over to Skye who now had Etienne in her arms. I kissed her gently before planting a kiss on the top of his head.

"We'll be back before dinner."

She nodded while I stroked the underside of her chin with my finger. She was soft everywhere and I couldn't stop myself from touching her all the time.

"Don't forget to feed them. They haven't had lunch yet."

"Like they'd let me forget." I smiled. They already ate like grown men. Even more if they haven't hunted for a while.

"Love you." I told her. "Call me if you need anything."

"I will. And I love you too."

0~~~~~~~~~~~~0

We stopped and got McDonald's for the boys and Colin. I ordered something but the boys ate it thank god. The shit smelled terrible. Processed, overcooked cow, on a bun...only humans. If I had to have cow, and yuck, because livestock was bottom of the barrel, a last resort, I preferred mine alive, fresh and bloody.

The game went well even though we ended up calling it draw. JR and I won two games and they won two. It wasn't evenly matched but close enough. EJ was better than JR and I was better than Colin. But only because I was a vamp. If he were a vamp or I still human he would definitely kick my ass. He was better at basketball than most humans. He could've played professionally if he wanted to. But he'd told me before that it wasn't what he wanted to do with his life, and his family was well off so he had the freedom of choice. You always had more choices when money, or lack there of, wasn't a factor. It was sad but true.

We were sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall relaxing when a woman walking toward the gym slowed down to look us over. She was pretty, but a little too thin for my taste. She really didn't need to lose anymore weight, she looked sickly as it was. And trust me, I'm a doctor, I know.

I smiled to myself. I'd read a lot of things in peoples heads over the years and I can honestly say that there are very few men, living or dead, that preferred to make love with a bag of bones. In fact many human men secretly fantasize about thicker women, but were afraid to do anything about it for fear of ridicule from their peers. We vampire men are quite the opposite however. If we want a tall, short, or downright obese woman, we go after her. If we want a woman that is not in our social class or of our race, we go after her. Hell, I even went outside my species. Because after living so long and seeing what we have seen, we don't care about such idiosyncrasies. We've learned to look deeper. Choosing your mate is one of the most important things we vamps ever do. We would never let anyone dictate who we should or shouldn't love.

The woman stopped walking, her eyes on my boys. She looked them over and smiled.

"Well aren't you two just the cutest little things?" She purred.

Colin and I looked at each other. This happened every time we took the kids out. I've learned that cute kids are women magnets.

"Thank you," they said in unison.

"And so polite. How old are you?" She ran her long nails through JR's bronze curls.

"Seven and three quarters," he said smiling.

"Oh my, look at those dimples!" She pinched his cheeks and he blushed. "Are they yours?" She looked at me.

I nodded and she looked down at my left hand.

Damn, he's married, she thought.

"Well you look way too young to have kids."

"Good genes I guess. I'm a lot older than I look." I smiled.

"Good genes indeed." She cocked a brow. "I'm Chrissy, Chrissy Washington." She held out her hand.

I shook it.

"Edward, and these are my boys, JR and EJ. This is my best friend Colin…"

"Dr. Colin Williamsen," he said smiling and holding his hand out for hers.

She gave him her hand and he kissed it softly. My boys started giggling and I shot them a smile.

"Dr. Williamsen?" She smiled.

"That's right, but please, just Colin." He stood up. She looked at him towering over her and smiled. It was like she was in a trance. Me and the cute kids forgotten about. I shook my head. Colin had some serious mojo.

"Alright then…Colin. It was a pleasure to have met you. Perhaps I'll see you arou…"

"No need to say goodbye so soon. How about I walk with you to the locker room? Give me a chance to know you better." He smiled, squeezing her hand.

She nodded. Her thoughts like mush in her head. Colin had that effect on women. He was smooth and easy going and women ate it up.

"I'll be back." He smiled.

I nodded and shook my head when he walked away with her. As soon as they disappeared around the corner the boys laughed.

"Colin has a lot of girlfriends." EJ smiled.

I laughed. "I know, son."

I wasn't about to tell my seven year old children that none of the women Colin met on our outings ever ended up being his 'girlfriend'. Most of them didn't make it pass a month.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. I took it out and answered after glancing at the ID.

"Dad, what's up?"

"Nothing much, Edward. Listen, I got those test results back on Skye. I think you should come by so we can discuss them. I've already called her and she's on her way over here. You and the boys should come by after your game."

"Is everything okay?"

"Sure, it's just…well I have some interesting news."

"Is she pregnant again? She's going to kill me if she is."

He laughed deeply.

"No, Edward. She's not pregnant."

"Alright, then I'll have Colin drop us off there."

"See you soon then." I pressed the end button after I heard him hang up.

I sat there staring at nothing wondering what he'd found out that had him feeling like he needed to call us over when JR tugged on my shorts.

"Is mama having another baby?" he asked.

"No Edward, you won't be getting another sibling for a while if mama has any say so."

"Oh…" he shrugged and stood up. EJ followed suit. They worked on their jump shots while we waited for Colin.

I heard him approaching but didn't turn until he was right on me.

"So, how did it go? You get her number?" I chuckled. I knew he got it. I heard the entire conversation.

"Yeah, but I don't think I'm going use it."

All that and he wasn't going to call her.

"Why not?" I asked.

"She's kind of skinny. I need something I can hold on to when I'm riding that as…"

"I get it!" I interrupted quickly.

Even though he was speaking quietly, I knew my boys could hear him.

"My bad, I forget sometimes. But you know what I mean, right?"

"I know what you mean." I laughed, thinking of my internal monologue when I first saw the girl. "Hey, can you drop me by my parents house?"

"Sure, will they let me clean up there? I got rounds tonight."

"Please, you practically have your own room already."

Skye

As soon as we walked in the door Lisette took off to find Em and Rosie and mom took Stevie's carrier from my hands.

"Hello grandma's, baby." She cooed at him as she carried him to the dining room. She sat the seat on the table and he smiled at her as she unbuckled and unwrapped him. She brought him to her bosom and kissed his head.

"He smells so good. Like fresh honeysuckle on a warm summer day."

I smiled and nodded in agreement. All my babies smelled like honey or flowers or a combination of the two. They smelled like the perfect blending of Edward and I.

Alice came floating down the stairs and into the dining room. She kissed my cheek and smiled before moving to Stevie.

"He's getting so big, Skye. And he's so freaking cute."

"Well he eats a lot and thanks. How was Paris?"

"Wonderful. I bought you guys presents. I'll give them to you before you go." She bounced.

"Thanks, Alice." I smiled.

"But you don't even know what I got you."

"It doesn't matter. I'm still grateful."

"And this is why I love you." She winked at me.

She looked away then turned to face me again.

"Edward and Colin will be here in a few minutes. Let me go get Colin's gift. He's going to wear it to work tonight."

Sure enough, about five minutes later Edward, Colin and the twins walked in. Colin had a gym bag swung over his arm and the boys took off toward the kitchen to find out what kind of goodies Mama Esme had for them. She followed behind them with Stevie in her arms. Lisette came running around the corner headed to the kitchen as well.

"Hi, Daddy!" She belted out.

"Elisabeth Dawn, stop running! You know better!" I chastised her and she slowed to a fast walk.

Colin laughed and Edward came and wrapped his arm around me.

"Carlisle called you?" I asked and he nodded before pulling me closer.

"Should we go up?" I asked taking shallow breaths. He felt and smelled so good.

"Yeah, we should, he's waiting for us." He smiled before attacking my lips. I moaned and kissed him back hungrily.

"God, you taste good." I told him.

"Hmm…so do you, mon amour."

He broke our kiss slowly and I put my head against his chest.

"How was the game?" I asked.

"Alright." He stroked my hair and I looked up at him.

"You okay?"

He smiled and it lit up the room.

"Yes, I'm great. How could I not be?" He stroked my cheek and I smiled.

0~~~~~~~~~~~~0

We sat in front of Carlisle and he handed Edward and I a blue folder with my name on it. It was full of papers and had a elastic around it to hold everything in.

"What's that?" I asked.

"It's your medical chart," Edward said. "All the information we've gathered on you. It's all in here."

"I didn't know you were keeping that close of a tab on me."

"Of course we are. You are a rarity, my beauty and there's so much we can learn from you."

"You know how I feel about being someone's lab rat."

"Amour." He took my face in his hands. "Have Carlisle and I ever made you feel that way? You could've said no to any of the tests and we wouldn't have pushed you in any way. And we are not testing you with malicious intent. We are trying to learn from you. You are a new species of human. The things we learn from you could possibly save lives one day, human lives. And the stuff we're learning will tell us what to expect when our children start giving us grandchildren."

"Grand babies?" I looked at him.

"Yes, if our boys marry a human or a hybrid, and Lisette a vamp or a hybrid, then we could be grandparents."

He smiled. His legacy and family name would truly live on forever through our kids. It was something he thought he'd lost with the passing of his parents and him into this life.

"If it weren't for you, we wouldn't know that Lisette and Nessie could only procreate with a male who had venom in his blood or a phasing shifter."

It was true. We found out that the reason I never got pregnant with Chevy was because the venom in my blood and body fluids killed his sperm, and any other invading bodies for that matter, instantly. It was a natural defense mechanism. It is also why I never get sick and am immune to most human illnesses. Edward's venom protected his sperm, made it strong, and that is why he was able to fertilize my eggs. So, it wasn't a fertility issue. I simply can't procreate with a human. Which to me, further proved I was meant to be with a vampire. Edward also theorized that as long as Jake was still phasing, he and Nessie could procreate. If he stopped though, the magic would stop and that would change everything.

"We have files on all of you. And we've learned so much. If we hadn't studied PJ, we wouldn't know how my venom would affect your body. We wouldn't know that your memories won't fade, that you'd still feel soft to the touch, or even that those brilliant blue eyes of yours would remain as clear, as blue, and as beautiful as the ocean after I changed you."

"Actually, that's why I asked you two here," Carlisle jumped in.

We both looked at him.

"Why?" I asked.

"I was wondering if you were still planning on changing her."

Edward looked at him.

"Ummm...yes, someday I suppose. We haven't really discussed it in awhile though. We just figured we had time before we had to worry about that." He looked at me.

"Yes, well that's what I wanted to talk about. The tests I ran on her are showing significant changes…"

"What kind of changes? Is something wrong with her?" Edward stood up and I grabbed his hand.

"Edward, I told you she was fine."

"It doesn't sound fine, Carlisle. Spit it out already." Edward demanded.

I gave his hand a squeeze and tugged him back to the chair. He let me.

"Calm down and let him speak."

"Thank you, Skye." Carlisle smiled.

I nodded and gestured for him to continue. "Like I was saying… Your last tests show some significant changes. It seems that your aging has slowed down so much that it is no longer traceable."

"Excuse me?" I said.

He opened the folder and showed Edward and I the test results spanning back to when I first met Edward. In the last five years I hadn't aged at all physically. Or if I had it was so little that it wasn't registering on any of the tests we previously used.

He pointed to the numbers.

"When you met Edward, you had just turned fifty. And we determined back then through testing that when you got pregnant you were about eighteen biologically not sixteen as you originally thought."

I nodded.

"Well if you consider that once you reached puberty you started aging slower, then in the thirty eight years following that you only aged roughly about six and a half years."

Again I nodded.

"Well you've been with us almost ten years now and in the past five, nothing has changed. Not even at a cellular level. Everything has seemed to come to a halt. I wasn't sure at first but after this last blood test I am certain."

"What does it mean?" I asked.

"It means that for the time being you don't have to worry about getting older."

"What do you mean 'for the time being'?"

"Well, I'm not sure if it's permanent or not. I've never dealt with a human hybrid. It could last forever, it could start back up, or you could have some crazy growth spurt and age five years in a month... I just don't know."

"Oh…" I said.

"It could be your mother's potion, or the magic in her blood, that's now in your blood. You see the changes it's made in your children. They are more vampire than Nessie, yet here they are at seven still looking like children."

"Am I changing into a some kind of vampire hybrid?"

"No, I don't think so. Your body systems are still working as they always have."

"Well won't they tire out or shut down from being overworked. I'm almost sixty years old. How long can they really last before they just give out. I mean do I look twenty on the outside but am sixty on the inside? "

"I don't think you have to worry about that. The venom will keep you strong, and young on the inside and out. It will ensure that everything works as long as you are living. That's what it does." Carlisle smiled.

I looked at Eddie and took a deep breath.

"Do you know what this means? If I've stopped aging..."

"It means that, at least for now, I don't have to worry about changing you. It means I can keep you human and keep you forever." Eddie smiled happily.

I nodded and jumped into his arms.

"I'm glad, because I was really going to miss the heat your body generates." He smiled. "I love feeling your heat wrapped around me."

"And I love wrapping it around you. My hand, my mouth…my pussy." I smirked.

"Fuck, Skye…" he closed his eyes.

I stroked his face and ran my lips over his slowly.

"I swear... You make me want to bend you over Carlisle's desk." He kissed me back.

"Can you get him to leave?" I winked.

Eddie turned toward Carlisle who was watching us.

"Forget it, Edward. Do your wife on your own desk."

I chuckled. Now he was reading minds too, or at least Eddie's dirty one.

"I have," Eddie said and I slapped his chest.

Carlisle shook his head but smiled.

"You two need counseling." He teased. "Now one last thing before I kick you out of here."

Eddie pulled me into his lap and I sat on his thigh.

"I think this new info will also help with your birth control problem."

Eddie looked at me.

"What birth control problem?"

"I asked Carlisle if there was something else I could do besides tracking my fertility."

"Like what?" Eddie asked.

"She asked me about the pill, Edward. Nothing permanent. And I think it would work for her…if she took it twice a day."

"Twice a day?" I asked.

"Yes, I mean we all know how fast your body metabolizes meds and heals. But I'm thinking that with these new changes your body may be more susceptible. My logic could be all off but I would like to try. You'll probably need to double up for it to stay in your system. You know, take one in the morning and one in the evening but I think it will work." He handed me a script.

I smiled and started to reach for it but Eddie was quicker.

"Hold on. We were doing fine with the other method. I don't know if I want you putting those things in your body. And they have side effects…like decrease in libido." He complained.

"You two could use a decrease." Carlisle murmured.

"No we couldn't." Eddie countered.

"I'm gonna try it. I hate counting the days and you hate...pulling out. Besides, we both know that we've just been lucky. Pulling out is not a truly effective method."

"I don't know, Skye."

I snatched the script.

"Well we're going to try it."

"Fine, but any problems and we're flushing them."

"Okay."

Carlisle looked at me.

"Okay, Skye, start the pills tomorrow and I need to see you in a week. I won't know how effective they'll be until I run some tests. So you and Edward still need to take precautions."

"We will." I stood up and hugged Carlisle. "Thanks."

"Sure thing, honey." He clapped his hands together. "Now, where are my grandchildren?"

"Downstairs with Mom," Eddie said.

Carlisle headed for the door but Eddie and I didn't move.

He stopped and turned around.

"Out of my office."

Eddie laughed.

"Fine…" he grabbed my hand and pulled me out the door and up the stairs toward our old bedroom.

0~~~~~~~~~~~~~0

AN: So it seems so far that you guys are liking the story. I'm glad. A lot of you are asking about Jazz and Skye and Edward. All I can say is you'll have to wait and see. I'm. Not. Telling! LOL. So next chapter things start getting interesting. The plot thickens as they say. Some of you went back and read Second Chances again and told me you'd forgotten how much you loved it. So thanks and Smooches... LRC. Review.