Chapter 5:

"But Mom!" Nessie argued. "Why not?" Bella sighed. It was moments like this that made her feel bad for everything she had done to Charlie and Renee.

"I didn't say no, I said that I'd talk to your father," she defended.

"That might as well be no," Nessie grumbled as she stomped off to her room.

Once she was alone, Bella flopped down on the couch and put her head in her hands. Nessie wanted to have a sleepover with some of her new human friends, and Bella found herself with certain…reluctance. Without a doubt, there was danger in bringing humans into their world; it made keeping their secret so much harder. Nessie didn't fully understand this as well as the rest of the Cullens; her experience with the Volturi was limited to the one instance following her birth, thankfully.

The second Edward got home; he could sense the tension in the air from the earlier argument. Silently, he took a seat on the couch next to Bella and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"What's wrong love?" he asked her softly. She shrugged him off bitterly.

"Nessie wants to have these two human girls sleepover, and I don't agree with it," she replied as she got to her feet stiffly.

"Why not?" Edward prompted; he remained seated on the couch.

"Because it's dangerous to bring two humans into a house full of vampires! So much could go wrong if they come, like-"

"Like you?" A low growl escaped from Bella, and her gaze hardened.

"That's not what I meant, Edward Cullen, and you know it! She may become too close with these girls, and what's going to happen when we move again?"

"And putting her in school won't prevent this from happening?" Edward's voice remained the ever-calm voice of reason while Bella boiled over.

"That wasn't my idea either! Since you seem to be so smart about raising our daughter, you can make all these decisions!" she screamed before storming to their room and slamming the door, with surprising control, behind her.

Somehow, Nessie managed to doze off during the fighting. It was incredibly lonely in bed alone; Jacob was at La Push for a few days taking care of a few things. The bed was cold and vacant, but she still fell asleep until about three that morning.

Bella was sitting up in bed flipping longingly through her photo album when she heard the bedroom door creak open. She looked up to see Nessie cautiously poking her head in.

"Mom?" she whispered. "Can I come in?"

"Sure." Nessie scrambled onto the bed like a small child and rested her head against Bella's shoulder. Her gaze drifted down to the photo album in her mother's lap.

"It's Charlie," she breathed. A sad smile graced Bella's lips. Nessie pressed her hand to her cheek, flashing images of the first time she and Charlie had met. "He always seemed so hesitant to be around us for long periods of time."

"Our way of life never completely settled with him," Bella pointed out sadly before turning the page. The next picture was of Edward and Bella from their first prom together.

"You guys look so beautiful!" Bella scowled.

"You were gorgeous that night," Edward commented from the doorway. Their heads shot up in surprise as he approached them and sat on the other side of Nessie. He had been silently watching his two girls for several minutes and thinking about how lucky he was to have two such amazing girls in his life. Nessie nestled against Edward just like she used to do as a small child. He wrapped an arm around her and rubbed her upper arm as they continued to flip through the album. Every so often, Edward or Bella would comment on one of the photos, but, for the most part, it was a silent affair.

Bella stopped on a picture of the three of them taken shortly after the Volturi's visit and asked, "You remember that Renesme?" There was no response. She looked up and saw that Nessie was fast asleep.

"I'll be right back," Edward whispered before picking her up bridal style and carrying her back to her bedroom. Bella silently closed the album and returned it to the bottom shelf of her nightstand.

Edward returned moments later. Without any warning, he leapt into the air and landed directly on top of Bella, pinning her to the bed. No matter how much she wiggled, she couldn't break free from her husband's iron grip. He immediately attacked her neck with loving, yet forceful, kisses.

"Edward," she moaned as her fingers found their way to his windswept hair.

"Say my name again," he pleaded.

"Edward." His mouth captured her in a heated kiss.

The next morning, Nessie awoke to feel a warm body pressed against hers. She smiled. Jacob passed out asleep on her bed next to her. He was absolutely adorable when he slept. As much as Nessie longed to stay in his arms forever, the growing pit in her stomach told her that she had to go get something to eat. She placed a feather soft kiss on his forehead before carefully climbing out of bed and gliding out to the kitchen.

In the kitchen Bella was struggling to make Nessie breakfast. The source of distraction came from Edward. He had his arms wrapped around her waist firmly and his lips pressed against her neck. Nessie cleared her throat, causing them both to look up.

"Morning Nessie," he said cheerfully as he finally let go of Bella.

"Morning Dad," she replied sleepily as she flopped down into her seat at the table. "How long has Jake been here?"
"Only an hour or two," Bella replied as she slid a plate of eggs in front of Nessie. Her constant craving for eggs during her pregnancy had no doubt been passed on to Nessie. "So Nessie, I did some thinking about this whole sleepover thing, and it's fine if we're all careful." Nessie's eyes lit up.

"Really?" in a split second, she was on her feet with her arms flung around Bella's neck. "Thank you, Mom!" Bella returned the hug. It was amazing how something as simple as a sleepover made Nessie so happy. Chuckling, Edward shook his head. The scene was ruined by Jacob trudging into the room still mostly asleep.

He yawned loudly and asked, "What's for breakfast?"