MP Ch16a

A/n: So here we are again...so glad to have you all back;)

We appreciate your time and patience with us as we work to get these last couple of chapters completed and out to ya'll. We are so close to the end (wipes a tear)...neither Bnjwl or I want to discuss it;(

But, we're excited for you all to read where it's going. The EPI has already been partially written and to be honest, I cried most of the time writing it. It's exactly how we've invisioned this fic ending since the very beginning.

Thank you to A Jasper For Me, as always her speeding beta'ing is bringing this one to you quicker than we had originally planned. We appreciate you so much for all you do not only for us but for the entire fandom. Seriously peeps, she is one of the hardest working women in the fandom for getting fics beta'd, rec'd and out there for all of you to enjoy. Visit her blog she does amazing rec's almost every day of the week in all genre's. She is simply amazing. Love ya, AJFM:)

Much love to our pre-reader, Mamadog93. She adds little touches and makes us purty...and luscious;)

And, my undying love to my partner, Bnjwl. She is a pillar of strength for me in all that I write. I truly wouldn't still be writing in the fandom if not for her devotion to me and my written words. I cannot ever thank her enough for having the vision that she had in line with mine on this fic. She gave it more life by bringing Bella to life. I would have written this entirely from EPOV, but she stepped in with an idea and made it the fic you've all been reading. I love her for that...and for EVERYTHING that she does to love me and support me on a daily basis. MWAH, bb!

A special treat in store for you all this week, btw. Stay tuned to find out...it'll be hitting your inboxes, soon...for this fic;)

Now...on with the show...

EPOV

I lay and watched Bella sleep. The only thing I felt was freedom.

Free of the pain from my past drug use.

Free of the hurt from missing my Princess.

Free of the ghosts that haunted me.

I was ready for our lives together to begin, in a committed, responsible, loving way.

I was ready for Bella to carry my name, to be mine in the eyes of the law forever, in this life and the next.

I wanted us to be a real family … and start a new one of our own.

To keep a level head when I dealt with the situation with Riley hadn't been easy. He still didn't know Bella and I were his birth parents. It took a lot of therapy, arguments and conversations before we all finally agreed to wait until he started to ask questions. Once he did, then Carlisle and Esme would sit down with him and explain. It would be simple, Carlisle and Esme are his parents, but he is the son of Bella Swan and Edward Masen, our son. They would explain we were young, not ready to handle the responsibilities a child would bring and we put him first in allowing him to be adopted by parents that were ready and able to provide for all his needs. We all felt this was the best way; it really depended on his age. If we felt he was too young, we decided to leave Renee completely out of the explanation all together. Riley didn't need to be confused with her shitty attitude at all. I didn't want her to corrupt him as well. She had already done enough.

I wanted to be the one to tell Riley I was his real dad. But, that didn't go over well with anyone involved. First of all, I was his birth father, not his 'real' dad; that title belonged to Carlisle. I see that now. However, it still hurt.

I wanted him to eventually know I didn't just sign away my rights. I never even fucking knew I had rights until he was almost six years old. I wasn't surprised Bella confirmed I was indeed Riley's father; I knew in my heart the moment I saw him I was his father.

It still burned my ass to know how carelessly Renee had turned away her own grandson, how she'd just ripped him from Bella and never even tried to notify me or let my parents weigh in on the decision.

My mom and dad had already suspected Riley was the product of Bella and I, but had no proof other than his uncanny resemblance to the both of us.

So, here we were, on the brink of our six month anniversary since we've reunited, and I was worried about how to fill Bella in on one last thing I had not told her about yet. While it shouldn't be a major source of contention between us, I was afraid it might hurt Bella in some way when I revealed I'd bought her old house in Forks.

We were going back to Forks in a few days to spend some time with my parents, so I knew I had to tell her before we got there. I had talked about it in therapy and knew I needed to be ready for whatever reaction she would have, and it could go either way.

I never intended for it to be something that would hurt her.

I was selfish when I bought it, because I simply didn't want to let her go.

And, I hoped she'd see my reasoning and rationale on that line of thinking.

I decide to let it go for the moment and get some sleep. I pulled her naked body a little tighter against mine, felt her sigh as her breath fanned across my chest and closed my eyes with the peace of mind that she was here, real and actually in my arms. Even after the amount of time we had been back together, I still had a hard time with the fact she was really here with me.

The drive from Seattle to Forks was quiet and somber; neither of us said much until we got a little closer to home. Bella sat up in her seat and began to take it all in. It was like her eyes were thirsty for the wet land that surrounded her. She hadn't been back to Forks in almost six years.

"Do you want to go straight to my parents' house?" I asked with a hint of hesitation in my voice before I glanced at her out of the corner of my eyes.

She murmured a 'yes' and squeezed my hand.

"I think we should make one quick stop first, if that's alright?" I asked. I knew it was time to reveal it all to her as I turned down the street that led to both of our childhood homes.

When I pulled into the driveway of her house, she began to look at me curiously.

"Edward, we can't stop here; this isn't my home anymore. The new owners may not like us parking in their drive," she said as she looked from me back toward the house and back to me again.

I could see the desire to go inside in her eyes.

I smiled weakly and squeezed her hand.

"Let's go have a look inside," I said and opened my door.

She sat there stunned as I walked around the car and opened her door as well.

"Edward, this is someone's home. We can't just walk in and look around," she said in protest as I tugged her out of the car.

"Come on, I need to show you something," I said and pulled her with me up the steps of the porch.

My mom had spent a lot of time decorating and making it feel like 'us', homey and comfortable, but it still had a feel of what Bella might remember it to be. She had been happy to do it for me when I told her I wanted to bring Bella home and tell her the truth.

I put my key in the door and heard her gasp beside me. She squealed when I picked her up and carried her inside. I was uncertain of the nature of her squeal, so I tried for playful and hoped it was the right emotion for her.

"I've always wanted to do that," I said with a small laugh as I placed Bella on her feet.

She looked around and then spun around with fire in her eyes.

"What did you do?" Her voice gave off the uncertainty. I searched her face to see if she was angry or sad. I still had no idea.

"Welcome home, Princess," I said with a serious look of calm on my face; all the while, I was shaking inside.

"Home?" She questioned and looked around again before turning back to me.

"I bought your house when Charlie put it up for sale. I was miserable without you, and it was the closest I could get to you during that time. So, I had my parents offer the realtor a price above asking and bought it," I said quietly and hesitant.

Her eyes grew wide and then narrowed just before they filled with tears.

"You bought my house to be close to me?" She whispered and stepped closer to me.

I nodded and swallowed the lump in my throat.

"Did you stay here?" she whispered again as our hands intertwined.

I nodded again and slowly closed my eyes then cautiously opened them to find a tear had strayed down her cheek.

"Did you get high here?" She asked; her soft voice full of worry as I looked down at her and nodded again.

"The last time I OD'd was in this house, um, in your room actually," I said, barely audible.

Her eyes soaked me in, and I felt my own tears form in my eyes before I felt her tug me into the room further until we reached the stairs.

"Then we need to make a new memory in that room," she said before she took off up the stairs with my hand in hers. Her strength was amazing as she pulled me behind her.

We reached her bedroom door and stopped. She opened it and stepped in while I stood in the doorway as memories of that day flooded my mind.

And then I saw it, the strip of pictures I'd clung to.

They still lay there on the floor.

I had told my mother under no circumstances was she to enter this room.

It was bare except for the curtains on the windows and the pictures on the floor.

Bella hadn't noticed them yet as she stood in the window and looked out.

Suddenly, she turned and pulled me into the center of the room, and demanding I stay right there while she walked out of the room.

I reached down and scooped up the tiny strip of pictures and held them in my hand as the feelings of that loneliness and hurt filled my mind.

"Edward?" I heard her call me back to the present as I opened my eyes and looked at her with a face full of tears, hurt and ache.

I opened my hand, and she gasped.

"Is that mine?" She questioned and dropped the blankets and pillows she'd been holding.

She walked over and took the little piece of photo paper from my hand and put her hand over her mouth as she cried out.

Bella tucked the pictures in her back pocket, wiped her eyes and returned to pick up the things she'd dropped by the door.

She gently laid the comforter down and threw the pillow down on top of it.

I still stood where she'd left me.

I was frozen as she began to take off her clothes and then lay down on the makeshift bed she'd made.

Her arms opened up and then stretched toward me as she beckoned me into her warmth.

"Let's make a happy memory. Let's remember those silly kids we once were and celebrate that we have each other again," she said with a small smile.

I wiped my own tears, stripped out of my clothes and finally found solace in the comfort of her outstretched arms.

As our bodies joined, the connection electrified our souls. We pushed against each other, so we could pull our minds out of those dark shadows and into the happier moments we'd shared as children.

Our bodies continued the delicate tango until we reached the moment when I stilled and just simply held her tight within my arms. I was as deep inside of her as I could physically get. Our eyes met, and we held each other's gaze as I began a slow motion to build and reaffirm the now, the present moment we created, and the future we held within our grasps.

Our mouths cried out each other's names as we both peaked at the same time. The explosion of her orgasm sent me reeling over the edge of bliss as well.

Our breaths were sporadic and unsuccessful at the task of slowing down as the emotions continued to fill us both.

We'd started out so strong.

We'd fallen apart during the years that stretched between then and now.

We'd come back together in a moment of need.

We'd shown each other there was no future for either of us without the other.

Hours later as the sun began to rise; it cast a pink hue across the room as I got up and dressed. I left her sleeping in the middle of her bedroom floor while I made my way across the yard to my old fort in the tree.

I knew what I wanted.

I just needed to wrap my head around the fact it was time for me … but was it too soon for her?

I sat on the floor of the tiny fort to watch the sun rise. It was so funny that now my head almost reached the ceiling even from my sitting position.

I was at peace.

I had fought a war, and Bella was my victory prize.

Riley … well, he was a bonus prize I hadn't counted on.

Our future was my greatest reward.

Now, I just had to wait for the right moment to seize my next opportunity.

A/n: I know a lot of you weren't happy with some decisions that we made about our little couple….but thanks for sticking with us.

If you haven't already, you should check out Bnjwl's fic 'Love, Death, Birth'….it's a great new and refreshing spin on New Moonish type story. I love it. And, she's worked really hard on it.

Also, I'm totally in love with 'My Life without Me' by Betty Lovegood….it's sooo good, and updates regularly.

And, I'm completely absorbed with ANYTHING that Chloe Masen writes. Come Closer, Say Goodbye, When you close your eyes…..all amazing…and soooo good.

Check 'em out…all in my favs.

See ya Thursday!

Kyla