CHAPTER 12

I shared her smile and followed her downstairs in one and a half inch heels. Being a vampire certainly had its perks, such as the fact that it was almost impossible for me to be clumsy anymore.

The others were downstairs in the living room watching TV, or pretending to. Alice and I flitted into the room and almost involuntarily all eyes turned to me. I smiled self consciously and watched as their faces froze with the power of my expression. I imagined that if I could stunned them when a normal vampire, as this new and improved one I could possible "kill" them.

"Bella," Emmett finally breathed. "You look…amazing," he said.

I tried to hide my smile and failed but it seemed the family was prepared this time. "Thank you Emmett. Alice really is amazing isn't she?"

He shook his head, "she would have had to have something very special to start with to end with something so miraculous."

I would have blushed, had I been able to. But since I couldn't, I settled for kissing him passionately. He took me tightly in his arms and swung us around. Suddenly, he broke away and set me on my feet.

"Are you ready?" he whispered. I inhaled slightly and realized that Edward and Rosalie were only about a hundred yards away from the house. Emmett took a position right behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, resting his chin on my shoulder.

"Hello! We're here!" Rosalie called through the house a moment later. In a flash, she and Edward had entered the living room and stopped.

"Rose, Edward," Esme said, going forward to hug them. "It's been too long."

"Yes it has, I've missed you Esme," Edward said softly.

Jasper and Alice went forward with Carlisle to welcome back the two missing family members. As I knew we would, Emmett and I stayed away, not changing our position at all. Finally everyone stopped greeting each other.

In that instant, when the rest of the family separated, both Rosalie and Edward looked at us. Not surprisingly, their eyes widened, though I was sure Edward's were going to pop out of his head.

"Bella?" he breathed, sounding almost how Emmett had earlier.

Knowing what it would do to him, I smiled sweetly. Immediately he froze. "Bella? What, what are you doing here?" he asked, taking an involuntary step forward.

"I live here Edward. I have since you left." I wondered how he would take this. Perhaps he would think that his family had been only too happy to be rid of him.

"But, how did this happen? Who…?" he looked accusingly at Carlisle.

Carlisle shook his head, "in all of your extensive planning you seem to have forgotten Victoria." Even now Edward let out an angry hiss. "Yes, well, she came back while we were hunting and decided that instead of killing Bella, she would make all of us happy and change her instead. She's been living with us ever since, occasionally seeing Charlie as well."

"What? You're letting a newborn near humans? Have you gone mad Carlisle?" Edward demanded.

"On the contrary Edward, I believe I am incredibly sane at this moment in time. Bella is immune to the smell of human blood. We don't know why, but it doesn't affect her one way or another."

Edward scrutinized me again. New appreciation appeared in his eyes as he took in my newly perfect body. And then his eyes focused on Emmett's hands around my waist and he frowned. I could imagine what he was seeing, me standing there looking beautiful with Emmett's arms wrapped casually but possessively around my waist.

"It appears we did not need to come back and console Emmett, Rosalie. It seems he's being consoled already. I didn't think you would run off to my brother after we split Bella. I didn't take you as such a low, loose woman."

I sucked in an outraged breath. "How dare you say such a thing to me Edward Cullen! How dare you, when you and Rosalie were sleeping together even before you met me! And while we were dating! Low am I? You're the low one Edward! You left me out of no where, because you couldn't stand that fact that you were with a petty human that you didn't love! Or did you and Rosalie have this all planned? You would break my heart first, disappear, then Rosalie would find a convenient excuse to join you, and then you would break Emmett's heart?"

Rosalie and Edward exchanged a glance. I had been fishing in the dark, this thought had just now occurred to me, but it seemed it was true.

"Wait! You two were sleeping together even before Bella moved here?" Alice demanded.

Edward and Rosalie turned to her, "Alice, we can explain," Rosalie pleaded.

"Save it Rosalie. What about Emmett? You and he were married! Just because we aren't human doesn't mean that doesn't bond us just as strong! What… why would you do something like that?"

"Alice, we love each other," Rosalie pleaded again.

"Oh, but you couldn't tell Emmett that could you? You couldn't ask him for a divorce or tell him that you wanted to see other people could you? You and Edward are perfect together. Bella and Emmett deserve people who will love them, they deserve each other. How do you think Emmett feels right now?"

The entire room turned to face us and Emmett's arms tightened oh so slightly around me. I brought my hands down to cover his and squeezed encouragingly. Finally he said, "I already knew. I've known for a long time that Rosalie was unfaithful, that my brother was a backstabbing pig. But what you did to Bella, Edward, I didn't think even you were capable of that. I don't care that you both betrayed me, I'm just glad that Bella will be loved and cherished the way she should be."

"Wait, you knew Emmett? And you never said anything?" Rosalie asked.

"What could I say? That you're a stupid whore who can't keep her legs closed? That's not generally something I like saying to my wife. See, I might not have been in love with you, but I did love you, and I'm enough of a romantic and a gentleman not to go around calling my wife a slut. Maybe I just didn't care. I knew you would keep doing it even if you knew that I knew so I just saved myself the time. Maybe I wanted you to leave me. I don't know, all I know now is that whatever has happened to this family has got to be fixed. I won't let personal relationships ruin what this family has built over the years. But I will say this; Bella is and always will be a member of this family."

Carlisle was looking at Emmett in admiration and pride. I knew that this was one of those things that Carlisle and Esme had tried to instill in their "children", and I realized that though Emmett could be obnoxious, he had learned these lessons well.

"I agree," Jasper said. "Let bygones be bygones. This family has been together too long to let something like this get in its way. Rose, Ed? What do you say?" he asked.

Rosalie looked at Edward questioningly, who was in turn inspecting Emmett and I knew that he was reading his thoughts for sincerity. Then he nodded, "alright, I'm willing to put the past behind us and move on to the future."

Emmett let me go, but only to come to my side, one arm still around my waist. "You'll understand if it's a little too soon to touch each other right?" he asked.

The other two nodded. Then Edward cocked his head, looking at me. "You know, I always thought that when you were a vampire I'd be able to read you. But you're still as blank as you always were," he said.

I raised an eyebrow. "That's interesting, and a relief."

Surprisingly, he grinned. "I suppose you would see it like that."

An awkward silence ensued. I glanced around at everyone and noticed that while they were silent, they also looked much happier than they had for a while.

"Um…" I said. "I think I'll go relax somewhere." I turned to leave and noticed that Emmett didn't let go of me, but went with me. At the stairs a few feet away, he suddenly swung me up into his arms and carried me upstairs to his room. I was surprised when I realized I had never been in his room before.

It was surprisingly tasteful with elegantly painted green walls, green and silver bedclothes, and shelves of CDs and books organized perfectly. When he set me down I roamed the room for a few minutes before going to his bed and flopping down on it. I didn't think about my dress, I knew that Alice would not expect it to be worn again anyway. After a moment I looked up and noticed Emmett still standing by the door. I smiled softly and patted the bed beside me.