Disclaimer-Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.


This was the third time I had come by Newton Outfitters to try to see Rebecca with Jeannie. Most of the time, she wasn't there, conveniently. Charlie and I had had a long talk the morning after our blow up over Jeannie. We both broke down and I apologized to him, and he apologized to me, too. Things were unusually quiet, but emotional in our house. I cried at everything, much to Charlie's concern, but I began to adore Jeannie. She was actually pretty great, now that she was in cloth diapers. Cloth diapers weren't that bad to clean up, anyways.

Isaac Weber was putting out the newest stock of hiking boots when I came in with Jeannie.

"Hey, Bella!" he cried, rushing over. "How's she doing?"

"Oh, she's good," I said. "Do you want to hold her for a moment? I'm just looking for Rebecca."

"Oh," he said, looking a little guilty, taking Jeannie. "She said not to be disturbed in her office."

"This is the third time," I said. "She hasn't even seen Jeannie, yet."

"Really?" he asked, his eye brows arching. "Oh."

"Well, I'm sure she has a lot to do," I said, realizing that I had just taxed him with family information that wasn't really any of his business, although I'm sure he'd hear it from Angela.

"Not that much," he muttered, rocking Jeannie. "Man, she's tiny!"

"Yeah, she was six pounds, one ounce," I said. "Can I see Rebecca?"

"I'll check," he said, giving Jeannie back to me. I walked around the store for a few minutes.

"Hello, Bella," I looked up to see Edward Cullen standing by the tent display.

"Hi, Edward," I said.

"You and Jeannie on an outing today?" he asked.

"Yeah, we came by to see her grandmother," I said. "If she's up to it."

"Oh," he said.

"Are you looking for something in particular?" I asked. I knew the layout of the store pretty well.

"I'm not familiar with these brands of tents," he admitted.

"OK," I said. "The Coleman tents, they're good if you're pitching your tents on really rocky ground. You want to lay something like an air mattress under yourself, though if you're on a lot of rock. The Bitrate tents, they're good for beach camping, like on sand, but they're not too terribly water repellent but they'll do the job in light rain. The Hooper brand is really good at keeping the wind and rain out in a heavy downpour."

"Do you camp a lot?" he asked.

"Mike and I did," I admitted. "I haven't been hiking or anything since I got pregnant. I may have to wait until I wean her before I do it, again. How many people are you taking with you on this trip?"

"Just me," he said. "I need to get away from the world for a while."

"Oh," I said. "Then, you should go with the Hooper two-person tent. It's small, but does the job. That's the smallest one they carry, here."

"Thanks," Edward said.

"Bella, are you stealing my commission?" Isaac asked, returning.

"No, Isaac, you can ring him up," I said. "What did she say?" I asked.

Isaac shook his head. "Sorry."

"Oh," I said. "Well, Jeannie, let's go visit Carlisle and Esme."

"I was just about to go over there," Edward said. "Do you want to ride together?"

"Sure," I said.

I went to my car to get the diaper bag and the car seat while Edward got rung up. I put Jeanne in the car seat while I waited on Edward.

"Ready to go?" Edward asked, putting his sunglasses on.

"Yes," I said. He used a remote to unlock his car and helped me get Jeannie buckled in the backseat properly. Then, he helped me into the front passenger seat.

Jeannie fell asleep on the ride over.

"Edward," I began. "I want to apologize for how I acted when I first met you. I was being very selfish."

"Oh," he said. "I understand. Mourning process." He sounded nonchalant. He did understand. I breathed a sigh of relief. "So, how has she been doing? Everything going OK? Are you doing formula or breastfeeding?"

"Breastfeeding," I said. "She tends to spit up when she burps, but I think maybe I'm sitting her up too fast. My dad figured out that she's allergic to disposable diapers, though."

"So, you had to go to cloth diapers?" he asked.

"Yes. She's much happier, now," I said. "I showed her herself in the mirror, and her eyes got really big. I think she recognized herself."

"Maybe. Her sight isn't that well developed, yet," Edward said. "Has her belly button fallen off, yet?"

"Not yet," I said. "My mom says I should save it for her scrapbook, but I don't know when I'm going to have time to scrapbook."

"I don't know when moms have time to scrapbook, either," he said. "they're always so busy. There's always so much to do with kids."

"I know, I've only been a mom for ten days," I said. I realized a smile had inched its way across my face. This was the first natural smile I recognized in months. He pulled into the almost hidden driveway to the Cullen's house.

"I'm sure it gives you a whole new respect for parenthood," he said.

"You're not a father, are you?" I asked. I couldn't remember if Alice had said if had been married before or not.

"No, no," he said.

"Where are you originally from?" I asked. "I don't quite recognize your accent."

"Chicago," he said. "A suburb of Chicago. You're not originally from here, are you?"

"Well, I was born here, but my Mom and Dad divorced when I was a baby, and my Mom took me to Riverside, California to be with her parents for a while. After that, she moved us to Phoenix, and when she remarried when I was seventeen, I moved here to live with my Dad," I said. "I finished my last two years of high school here."

"That makes sense," he said. We pulled up in front of the Cullen's house. "Here we are."

He around to my side of the car quickly and helped me out. I got Jeannie out in her car seat, not bothering to unbuckle her.

Esme met us at the door. "Oh, what a surprise!" she squealed. "My nephew, Bella and Jeannie! Welcome!" She ushered us inside and took Edward's rain coat. Mine was a little more tricky to get off while holding a car seat. "What a day! All three of you, coming over for a visit!"

I set a blanket down on the floor to lay Jeannie on. She woke up amidst the action. Carlisle came downstairs from his study when he heard Jeannie's wake-up cries.

"There she is!" Carlisle cried. "Babies change so much so quickly!"

"Bella, you know you can always call me if you need anything or any advice," Esme said. "Any time of the day or night."

"Thanks," I said.

"She's like a daughter to us," Carlisle explained to Edward. "She became one of Alice's best friends when she came to live in Forks. She was over here all the time the last two years of high school."

"Oh, so, you're like a cousin to me?" Edward asked.

"No, not quite," I said, blushing when I saw the smile on his face.

"No more than Rosalie and Angela," Esme said. "So, has Jeannie done anything that's amazed you, yet?"

"You were telling me on the way over," Edward said, "that she recognized herself in the mirror."

"Oh, let's see if she does it right now," Esme said, getting up.

"Dear, don't get up," Carlisle said.

"Oh, I need to get drinks for everybody," Esme said.

"No, I'm fine," I said.

"Me too," Edward replied.

Jeannie grunted. She probably wanted to nurse. I picked her up off the floor and took one of the throw blankets off the couch to cover up with.

"I see you've switched over to cloth diapers," Carlisle said. "That's very good for her, and the environment."

"Yeah," I said. "They're not as bad as I thought they'd be."

"Is Renée coming up to visit, soon?" Esme asked.

"Yes, next weekend," I asked. "She also wants me to fly down to Jacksonville with the baby, soon."

"She can stay with us, instead of having to go to Port Angeles for a hotel," Esme said.

"Thanks," I said.

"Hotel Cullen, open for business," Carlisle joked. "You're going to do all the work, since this was your offer."

Esme rolled her eyes. "Edward, how's the house on beach working out?"

"I love it. I just wish I could spend more time there," he said.

"You have a beach house?" I asked.

"Yes, I do," he said. "A cottage. I love the water. I grew up less than a mile from Lake Michigan."

"He was on the sailing team in college," Carlisle said.

"It was basically an excuse to get drunk," Edward said. I actually giggled. Edward smiled, too. "I went to undergrad in a landlocked state. The sailing team was just a joke. But, I feel more relaxed when I'm by the water."

"Where did you go for undergrad?" I asked.

"U of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana," he said.

I nodded. Jeannie was ready to be burped and switched to the other side. I had to be careful, because I had gotten so good at switching that I would go too fast and that's when she'd spit up. We were sitting on Esme's nice couch.

"Have you heard from Angela, recently?" Carlisle asked.

"Yeah, she's doing pretty well. They think she's having a girl, although I don't put any stock in ultrasounds anymore," I said, patting Jeannie's back. She burped healthily. I changed her to the other side, carefully. "At least when it comes to predicting the sex of the baby."

"Well, it's imperfect, at best," Edward admitted.

"So, how long are you here for, Edward?" I asked.

"The program stations me in one area for three years," he said. "It's a six-year program. It's good program to be involved with for a new doctor, because I get two weeks paid vacation my first two years. I get three weeks paid vacation starting this year. Everyone gets one week of personal time, and a week's worth of sick leave standard. And, I only have to work anywhere from fifty to sixty hours a week when I'm not on call."

"You work that much?" I asked.

"For what ER doctors get paid, it's really not that bad," Carlisle said. "It's exclusive, to say the least. They don't accept just anybody. When I heard that Metro Hospitals were investing in it, I told Edward about it. It wasn't such a bad program, really. The Baptist and St. Thomas hospitals weren't investing in it, but it was placing residents in great locations."

"I'm glad I'm in Metro Hospitals," Edward said. "Although the Catholic Hospitals are pretty nice, too."

"I agree. When Metro bought the Forks County Hospital, I thought it was odd, but it's worked out pretty well," Carlisle agreed.

"I'm learning a lot," Edward said. "I just spent three years in Baltimore before this."

"How was that?" I asked.

"Baltimore isn't that bad," he said. "Carlisle and Esme had to help me get set up when I moved out here. I'm glad I had Rosalie Hale's help with Real Estate." Rose used Hale as a professional name, but signed all her checks as McCarty, though.

"I didn't know she helped you move," I said.

"Oh yeah, she did everything for me," he said. "She was great."

"She was one of my bridesmaids and threw my baby shower," I said.

"I noticed she's was a shrewd businesswoman," Edward commented. Jeannie was done with the other side. I picked her up and slowly set her head on my shoulder with the burp rag. She burped almost on command.

"So, what are you going to do after this?" I asked.

"We'll just see where the path follows," Edward said, shrugging.