Disclaimer: I don't own them...

Thanks to SunflowerFran3759 for her taking time out of her weekend to beta this.

Bella:

Edward walked out of the room with my dad, Jasper and Emmett. I was a little worried about him. Jasper has been watching us all morning and I'm sure he realizes that Edward is...more.

"Isabelle..." my mother says, in sing-song voice.

I immediately cover my face and my mother laughs loudly.

"Mom..." I whine.

She bumps me with her hip. "He's very handsome. And that accent..." she trails off, waving her hand in her face as if she's cooling herself off.

I shake my head and roll my eyes, but I smile brightly at her.

"He is beautiful, right?" I whisper. "And he is so nice; like genuinely nice," I say at a more normal volume. "Do you think he's okay in there?" I glance worriedly into the living room.

My mom waves a hand, "he's fine. What exactly are they going to do? You'd probably see it before it happens."

She is rinsing off dishes and placing them in the dishwasher, but looks up at me when I don't answer.

"What?"

"I can't see him."

She straightens and looks at me closely. "What do you mean, you can't see him?"

I smile, and bite my lip. Mom pours us another cup of coffee and we sit in the breakfast nook as I tell her all about Mr. Masen, Edward and Rosalie.

"So let me get this straight," she says, looking out of the window. "You cannot see Edward at all, Mr. Masen pushes images at you and Rosalie is blurry at best?"

I nod. "I'll get to know them; truly get to know them without any interference."

She frowns, and takes a drink of her coffee. "I don't remember Grandma Marie ever mentioning that there was someone she couldn't see or read." She turns to me with a serious look on her face, "do you like it here, Bella?"

"South Carolina? Yes, very much. People are nice and I feel...like I can relax. I'm not worried someone is going to bump into me on the street and I'm going to see something terrible happen." I ran a finger along the top of my cup, contemplating if I should say the next thing on my mind.

"What is it, honey?" Mom puts a hand over mine.

"It's just...I like the idea of getting to know Edward without having the thought in the back of my mind that I'm going to see something. I don't even know what we are right now, but if things don't work out, it won't be because I pulled away after seeing him with the woman of his dreams."

"Oh, honey," Mom said quietly, and pulled me into a hug.

I wrapped my arms tightly around her and soaked up the comfort she was offering.

She opened her mouth to speak when my dad walked into the room, "Bella, Ren, Charlie Swan just called."

And just like that, our talk was over and my anxiety shot through the roof. I buried my face into my mom's shoulder.

"He wants to meet for dinner tonight."

No. Not tonight.

"I think that's a good idea. Let's just talk to him and deal with this, Bella?"

"I have plans with Edward tonight," I said quietly.

"It's Saturday, invite him to stay. We'll have dinner here at the house, maybe all of you youngsters can go out afterward?" She said, questioningly, as if trying to convince me this was a good idea. "You know, rip off the band aid and then soak up some alcohol."

I looked up at my mom with a what the hell look on my face. My Dad laughed, "Ren, really?"

"What? It sounded better in my head." She waved her hand and then gave me a concerned look. "Come on, honey. It's better to do this with all of us here to support you. It will be fine, and I'm sure Edward will understand."

Mom got up from the chair after squeezing my hands and walked out of the room with Dad. I stood up and walked out onto the covered patio and curled up onto the chaise lounge. The wind was cool, but not unbearable.

I stared off into the distance wondering what Charlie wanted to talk about. Is he angry with my mother? Did he ever look for her when he got back to the states? Is he married? Does he have other children?

The door opened and footsteps sounded on the wood floor. I didn't move, but the wind carried Edward's familiar scent toward me and I closed my eyes. When his shadow stopped in front of me, I looked up at him.

He was holding a throw blanket out for me, and I smiled. "Thank you."

His smile was soft, "Hi."

"Will you stay for dinner? Will you stay again, tonight, please?" I asked, timidly, selfishly.

"Bella," he said, and I shook my head.

"Never mind, you probably have things to do; you have to get back to your family, right? That was..." his hand covered my mouth, and my eyes widened.

"Bella," he said again, with a small smile and removed his hand. "Are you sure you want me to be here for this? We can go out to dinner another time. Don't invite me to stay if this will be uncomfortable for you."

"It won't. The only reason I didn't fall apart yesterday is because you were with me. Your...presence soothes me in a way I have never felt before. I don't know how else to explain it." I shook my head. "There are things that I need to tell you about myself, and I don't know where we are headed and I know this is extremely heavy conversation but, I just..." I trailed off, not knowing what I was trying to say. I was working myself into a panic with all of the things running through my mind.

"Hey, Bella," Edward's soft voice snapped me out of my internal rant. "I'll stay. I'll stay for dinner and we'll talk, okay?"

I felt myself relax. "Thanks. I get a little carried away sometimes," I said, with a smile.

He chuckled and sat down next to me. I leaned against him and he kissed the top of my head. "I don't think you have anything to worry about with the man from the store. If I'm being honest, he looked genuinely concerned about you and a little freaked out.

Do you realize you have his eyes?"

"I know," I whispered. We were quiet for a few moments before I built up the courage to ask him about what happened yesterday.

"Did he say anything to you in the store?"

I felt Edward shift next to me, leaning against the back of the chaise more comfortably. He adjusted me so my feet were in his lap and my back was against the arm of the chair. We were looking at one another, but I still had the comfort of his touch.

"Not really. He was worried about you," he looked back and forth between my eyes, searching for something. "You had just knocked over that table and looked like you were going to pass out. He asked me if your name was really Isabelle and did I know Renee. And then Emmett walked in and took over."

His hand was lightly massaging my sock-covered foot and it gave me the strength to keep talking.

"So..." I said, and cleared my throat. "I think he's my biological father."

Edward's eyes widened a little but his gaze didn't move from mine. He didn't look repulsed or shocked or confused; he looked curious.

"I figured it had to be something big, considering your reaction. And...well...I've wondered about your last name," he said, looking almost embarrassed to mention it.

I nodded, "Yeah, Swan-Whitlock. My Dad, Phil, is Whitlock, and Charlie is Swan. My mom may not have told him about me but she didn't want him to think she'd disregarded him, you know? Just in case he ever did actually find her...us."

I looked down at the blanket I was holding in my hands and took a deep breath. Edward's fingers tilted my chin up to look at him, and when I did; he leaned in and placed a soft, gentle kiss on my lips.

With that I spilled the entire story. How my mom spent an entire month with Charlie Swan before he left to serve a twelve month tour overseas. That she found herself pregnant, and with no way to contact him.

"We all knew it was a possibility that he might show up one day or that Mom would run into him when she was in Texas, but seeing him here, in South Carolina?

I never thought that would happen. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, there's a military base close by. Did you know that?"

Edward nodded, his head was tilted and his body was angled toward me. I didn't realize how close we were; how intimate this must have looked to someone watching us. It sent a shiver of happiness through me.

"Are you cold? We should go inside."

He held out a hand for me and helped me stand. I folded the throw blanket and we walked inside quietly.

I couldn't stop moving. My feet were just taking me back and forth across my bedroom, from one wall to the other. I didn't see anything, didn't hear anything; but the images I got from Charlie Swan were swirling in my head.

My mother looked happy with him. If things had been different, if he hadn't left, would they have ended up married? Would they have been happy together?

It's so strange to see my mother with another man. But I'm glad that I was the product of a happy time. So many times I've wondered what really happened and if she was telling me the story of a good time because she didn't want to burden me with the truth.

I feel bad thinking that my mother would lie to me, but isn't that what any mother would do to protect her child?

A light knock on the door stopped my pacing. "Come in."

My mother walked in and closed the door quietly. "You ready?"

"I don't know. This feels strange."

"It does. It's been twenty six years since I've seen Charlie Swan."

I stopped and looked at her. How could I forget? This must be so awkward for her, too.

"How are you? How's Dad?"

She smiled softly, "I'm okay, and your dad is...freaking out. He was pacing in the living room when I last saw him."

I chuckled, "yeah." Like father, like daughter.

"Meeting Charlie isn't a bad thing, Bella. I'm sad that the two of you didn't get to know each other sooner, but it was out of our hands. I have a feeling things will work out. I think you'll like him; he was a really nice guy all those years ago. I can't imagine he's changed too much."

She pulled me into a hug and squeezed me tightly. "Let's go downstairs. I had dinner catered but I want to make sure things are comfortable. It's going to be a strange night, we don't want to come across like boring stiffs."

I laughed and followed my mother out of the room.

When the doorbell rang half an hour later, I thought I would pass out.

I am going to meet Charlie Swan.

After all of these years I guess I never really thought we would come face to face. I hadn't ever felt the need to seek him out. My family was happy, our home was happy, so meeting him wasn't even a blip on my radar.

"Everyone, this is Charlie and Susan Swan," my mother said with a smile, and turned toward Charlie. "This is my son Jasper and our honorary child, Emmett. This is Bella's friend Edward," my mother said with a cheeky smile. "And this is Isabella," she said with a soft smile gesturing towards me.

I smiled, and took a deep breath before reaching out to shake his hand. "It's nice to meet you."

He had a nice smile, "It's nice to meet you, too."

It got really quiet and awkward for a minute.

"Okay, why don't we eat? Everything is set up in the kitchen. We thought a buffet style meal might suit everyone tonight so we can mingle and talk."

My mom kept talking and led everyone into the kitchen but Charlie and I held back. My dad gave me a soft smile before walking away; my heart hurt a little for him.

"I'm sorry for scaring you yesterday. It was just a shock. And you look just like Renee. I really just..." he trailed off, and rubbed his face with his hands. "You're beautiful." His eyes welled with tears.

This made me tear up. "Thank you." I nodded, not knowing what to do. "I was pretty freaked out when you called me Renee. And then I saw your name and well...you saw the whole table incident."

He laughed, "I did." He looked at the ground and then swallowed thickly. "You knew my name?" His face was serious and a little scared.

"Yes, my name is Isabella Swan-Whitlock."

He covered his mouth with his hand and tears fell over his cheeks.

"I'm sorry. I just...I can't believe I have a daughter. And you have my name, even though I wasn't there for you. Renee..." his voice cut off and his hands were trembling and I could tell he was trying to calm himself down.

I cautiously took a step toward him. He seemed like a good man, and looked like a typical military, tough guy, but his reaction to my name stirred something in my heart.

If he had known, he would have been there for me.

I leaned in to hug him; I wanted him to know I held no ill will, nor did I ever feel abandoned or unloved. It was just a bad circumstance.

He wrapped his arms around my shoulders and I felt him shaking. My throat was tight with emotion and tears were an unstoppable force at this point.

After a few minutes, we pulled apart and found my mom standing next to us with a box of tissues and watery eyes.

"Renee, I'm so sorry I didn't try harder to find you," he said roughly.

"Oh, Charlie, me too, me too."

They hugged for a moment and then Charlie excused himself.

"You okay, sweetie?"

I smiled and nodded. "I am." When Charlie walked out of the bathroom, we made our way into the kitchen.

Dinner was loud. It seemed like everyone was talking at once. Jasper was grilling Charlie about his military service. My brother is a history buff and I can practically see the questions forming in his head. Mom and Susan, or Sue as she preferred, were talking like old friends. Edward and Emmett were talking about work. And my dad was sitting at the island watching everyone.

I walked up to him and gave him a hug. "You okay, Dad?"

He nodded. "I never expected this to happen, you know?"

"I know," I whispered. I didn't expect it either.

"I love you, kid."

I squeezed him tightly, "I love you, too, Dad. Always."

"Come on, let's join the crowd."

He kissed the top of my head and gestured toward the family room where everyone was seated.

"Who wants coffee and pie?" Mom asked.

"I'll help," Sue said, with a squeeze to Charlie's hand.

My dad held out a cigar and gestured toward Charlie, who smiled and gave him a short nod. Jasper and Emmett jumped up and headed toward the kitchen, leaving me alone with Edward.

I smiled and then fell onto the couch, wrapping an arm around him. He responded immediately, and his warmth enveloped me.

"So? He doesn't seem like a total jerk."

I laughed. "No, he doesn't."

"I don't think he likes me very much. He gave me the same look Phil gave me this morning and asked me exactly what kind of friend I am. How is it that the men in your family make me feel like an awkward teenager?"

I was laughing when I looked up at him. His eyes were bright and his smile made my heart beat faster. His face was so close to mine that I couldn't resist kissing him. It was soft, and chaste, and we lingered longer than what was appropriate with all of the men in my family so close.

His hand cupped my face and he kissed me a little more firmly, but pulled away quickly.

"I really like you, Isabelle."

"I really like that you call me Isabelle," I smiled, feeling my cheeks warm. "And I really like you, too."

Edward smiled and opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off when Emmett walked in, being obnoxiously loud.

"Alright, break it up you two. I've got three decks of UNO cards. Who's in?"

"Yes!" Jasper yelled, and I shook my head. "You are going down, my friend."

"Wanna bet on that?" Emmett and Jasper were ridiculously competitive and UNO brought out the worst in them both.

"Absolutely."

The rest of the night was spent drinking, laughing and yelling out random colors. Mom even made Emmett sit in a five minute timeout for trying to cheat.

When Charlie and Sue were ready to go, we exchanged phone numbers and made plans to meet for lunch during the week. They seem like really nice people and my anxiety at meeting him seemed silly to me now.

Mom was right; meeting Charlie Swan wasn't a bad thing. It didn't change the way I feel about my dad or make me feel like I missed out on anything as a child; but by opening up my heart and letting him in, I may have gained a great friend.

AN: Hi everyone! So sorry for the lateness of this. I was sick this past week and it completely wiped me out. I am also sorry for not replying to your reviews. Thanks so much for taking the time to send me a note, I really appreciate it.

So this was a little glimpse of Charlie...I hope you like it. Edward's up next time. Please drop me a line and let me know what you think or if there are things you feel I've skipped over, and I'll be happy to answer.

Have a great week! See you on Saturday. :)