Thanks to shoefreak37 for reading over this at the last minute. And thanks to lislar for her support, even though she didn't get to look at this chapter.

Chapter 26: Lie to Me

Bella yawned and rubbed her eyes as she walked down the stairs. Ben usually woke her up in the mornings, but when she rolled over, there were no sounds coming from the monitor and the clock revealed it was nearly nine. She wondered why Sue and Charlie had let her sleep so late.

The living room and nursery were empty, so Bella headed into the kitchen. Sue was loading breakfast dishes into the dishwasher; a plate of sausage, eggs, and toast was sitting on the table in front of Bella's usual seat. Ben was in his high chair, nibbling on Cheerios and bits of banana. A quick glance out the window revealed that the cruiser was gone; Charlie had already gone into work.

"Morning," Bella said, followed by another yawn. She stopped for a moment to check on her son, tickling his belly and kissing his cheeks. He responded by laughing and pulling her hair.

"Sleep well?" Sue asked, moving to pour Bella a glass of juice.

Bella nodded in reply as she sat down and began to eat her breakfast. Sue moved to sit across from her at the table and when she picked up her coffee mug, Bella noticed the tiny diamond ring on her finger. A huge smile broke out on Bella's face and she hoped the ring meant what she thought it did. When her eyes met Sue's, the answering smile confirmed her suspicions.

"Sue, oh my God!" Bella said, rising from her seat to move to Sue's side. Sue held her hand out and Bella inspected the solitaire as it glinted under the kitchen's fluorescent lighting. "I'm so happy for you guys!" Bella wrapped her arms around Sue and hugged her tightly.

"Thank you," Sue said with a laugh. "Charlie hoped to wait long enough for you to wake up, but he had to leave."

"Did he propose last night?" Bella giggled as she thought of what Charlie's idea of a romantic proposal might be. She imagined him taking Sue out on his fishing boat, proposing between catches, and toasting the occasion with a can of Vitamin R. "Was it cheesy?"

"No, it was very sweet. He took me out to dinner in Port Angeles and he proposed during dessert. He even got down on one knee beside of the table. And he was so nervous! His palms were sweaty and he kept fumbling with his words.

"Later, when he'd finally calmed back down, he said he wanted to do it on Christmas, but he chickened out. Then, he decided he'd do it for New Year's, but he didn't want to wait that long."

The smile on Sue's face was blinding and Bella was happy for her and Charlie. Her father had been alone for so many years, burned by his disastrous marriage to Renee. Bella was happy that he'd finally found a woman worthy of his love and attention.

"Have you told Leah and Seth yet?"

"I called both of them last night. I was afraid Leah might be upset, but she seemed genuinely happy for me. She still has a hard time dealing with her father's death," Sue said, her expression sobering as she thought of her daughter.

"When's the big day?"

"As soon as the weather warms up, I think we'll just do it here in the back yard. We're both older and have been married before. No need to make a big spectacle out of it. I'd love for you to help me plan, if you want."

"I'd love to," Bella said, already imaging how things could be arranged in the backyard to allow for a small wedding. She stopped her train of thought, however, when she realized she was no longer thinking about a wedding for Charlie and Sue; she was thinking of a wedding for herself…and Edward.

~ O ~

Struggling down the stairs, dragging her heavy suitcase behind her, Bella couldn't keep the smile off of her face. Edward had asked her to go out of town with him for a few days, to ring in the New Year together. They had originally planned to just spend the evening at his house, but when his mother mentioned his parent's cottage a few hours from Forks, he'd suddenly had the idea to take Bella away.

The cottage was nestled deep in the woods, a quiet place that Carlisle and Esme liked to retreat to for the weekend, to find respite from their hectic lives. Edward said he hadn't spent much time there, but was excited to share the place with Bella. Even if it was only for a couple of nights, Bella was looking forward to spending so much uninterrupted time with Edward.

The edges of her luggage flopped and banged against the wooden steps, but it was too big for her to carry. She realized that she probably should have just waited for Edward to arrive and asked him to bring it downstairs for her. She still needed to pack Ben's things, which would take the longest. Babies needed a lot of stuff.

As she sat on the floor of the nursery, piles of Ben's little clothes all around her, Sue walked in. Ben was lying on the floor next to Bella, watching his mother with interest. Sue sat down beside Bella, her hands tracing a design on one of Ben's sleepers.

"I remember when my kids were this small. Sometimes it feels like it was forever ago, and then other times, the memories are so clear that if feels like it was yesterday. I was about your age when I had Leah.

"Harry was ecstatic. He'd wanted kids for so long. He was older than I was, had been married before."

"I didn't know that," Bella answered, wondering why Sue was sharing this story with her now.

"He and his first wife were married for 10 years. She was killed in a car accident and Harry thought that was it for him, that he'd end up alone. I had barely turned 18 when we met, and Harry was 35, almost twice my age. It was a big scandal on the reservation, especially when we ran away and eloped a few months later.

"My father wanted to kill him, of course. And things were awkward for a long time between our families, but eventually people grew to accept it, to accept us."

"How did he die?" Bella asked, suddenly realizing that in many ways, she and Sue had a lot in common. Though Sue had been married when she'd given birth, they were both young mothers, also both devoted to men much older than them, although the distance between herself and Edward was much less than that between Sue and Harry.

"Heart attack. He went camping for the weekend with a bunch of his friends, your father included. Harry decided to take a walk in the woods early one morning; Charlie found him later in the afternoon, but it was already too late.

"I'd known your father for years, of course, but had never really spent much time with him. But after Harry died, he felt some sort of responsibility towards me, I guess. He started stopping by the house more frequently, just to check on me, see if the kids or I needed anything. And eventually, something between us started to change."

Bella reached over and clutched Sue's hand tightly. "I'm really glad that you're here, that you're marrying my dad."

"Me too," Sue said with a smile. "Now, about this trip," she continued, wiping the wetness from her eyes. "Charlie is probably going to be a little miffed at me for suggesting this, but if you want to leave Ben here, that would be fine. I wouldn't mind taking care of the little guy for a few days."

"Oh, I don't know. What if he needed me? I mean, it would be for two nights and he's never been away from me for that long."

"He'll be fine. Charlie and I put him to bed sometimes when you're working. He won't notice the difference. You deserve a little break and it'll give you a chance to spend some time with Edward, just you and him."

Sensing the trepidation in Bella's eyes, Sue continued, "It doesn't make you a bad mother to leave him." She squeezed Bella's hand and gave her a pointed look.

"Thanks," Bella said, smiling as she leaned over to hug Sue.

~ O ~

After running a few errands in the afternoon, Bella was surprised to pull into the driveway and see Charlie's cruiser there, as well as the SUV Edward had borrowed from his parents. He was afraid it would snow, which meant they couldn't take Bella's car. Edward's truck wasn't an option because they had planned on taking Ben.

She heard mumbles of conversation coming from the kitchen as she walked in with Ben on her hip. Sue, Charlie, and Edward were all sitting around the table with tense looks upon their faces. They all turned to stare at her as she walked in and Bella wondered what was going on. Sue tried to smile, but it was obvious that it was forced.

Bella walked over and sat down in the seat next to Edward. "What's going on?" she asked, her voice filled with worry.

"Just a couple of things we needed to take care of. Nothing to worry about," Charlie answered.

Bella wondered if Charlie was giving Edward some sort of speech, warning him about taking her out of town…alone. Surely he wouldn't embarrass her that way. As she looked at Edward's face, however, she could see the stress and worry in his eyes, the tenseness in his shoulders. This was something else entirely and she wanted answers. If Charlie wouldn't tell her what she needed to know, surely Edward would.

"Edward?" She turned to face him, a pleading look on her face.

"Bella, I can't…I…" Edward reached out to hold her hand, but she pulled away from him, waiting for him to say something, to explain what was going on.

"I asked him not to say anything, Bella," Charlie piped in. "I thought it would be better if you didn't know, at least until everything was taken care of."

"Taken care of? What are you talking about? Please, someone tell me something," Bella begged, a million different scenarios playing out in her head. Her stomach churned as she considered what could be so terrible that her father had called Edward to their house, to have a meeting behind her back. It was obvious from their shocked faces when she walked in the door that they weren't expecting her to interrupt them.

James. He was the only person that Bella could think of that would cause such a reaction—or maybe his mother. But why would he want to come back into her life after all this time? After he'd given his son away? Ben no longer belonged to him, so what sort of threat did he pose?

He'd made no attempt to contact her since she'd left Florida, expressed no desire to see Ben. Bella wondered if James even knew whether she'd had a boy or girl, what she'd named the baby, or where she even was. This all seemed so out of the blue and it didn't make sense.

Just when she was finally starting to get her life together, it seemed like things were crashing around her again. What could James possibly want from her? And why had he contacted Charlie and not her?

"It's Renee."

Renee. She hadn't even crossed Bella's mind. Renee was the one person she never expected to want anything to do with her again. She'd never taken good care of Bella and had sent her away when she needed her mother most. Bella couldn't think of anything she had to offer her mother.

"She called the day after Christmas, asking a lot of questions. I guess Mrs. Stanley found her phone number online and gave her a call after she saw you and Edward together at the diner, told Renee she was worried about you cavorting with such an older man."

Bella snorted and rolled her eyes. "I'm sure that's what she was worried about." Mrs. Stanley was the town gossip and Bella was sure she'd seen this as her opportunity to find out about Bella's past, about who Ben's father was, all under the guise of concern.

"What else did Renee want? I'm sure she wasn't just calling to check up on me." Renee had made no attempt to call Bella, to write, to do anything since her arrival in Forks. The only time anyone had spoken to Renee, up until now, was the night she told Charlie she was pregnant.

"Bella, we're taking care of it. There's no need to worry," Edward said, reaching over to place his hand on her thigh, hoping she would just let things go. Bella fought the urge to glare at him, angry that she was being treated like a child.

"She wants money," Sue blurted out. "We can't keep this from her. It's not fair," she continued, giving Charlie the look.

Bella was confused. They had no money to give Renee. Charlie worked for a mediocre salary and her paycheck from the diner was barely enough to buy Ben's diapers. It didn't matter, though. Just because she asked for money didn't mean they had to give it to her. Bella was a legal adult; there was nothing Renee could do.

"Did you tell her to leave us alone?"

"Yes," Charlie said. "But she threatened to contact the family of Ben's father."

"I don't understand. James signed his rights away. He has no claim to Ben."

"No, he doesn't, but I guess his family does if they wanted, or even Renee. There are laws. I'm not exactly sure of all the statutes in Florida, but grandparents can petition the court for visitation."

Bella felt her heart sink. When James had given up his parental rights, she'd never even considered the idea that someone could come along and try to take her son away from her. She didn't realize she was shaking until she felt Edward reach out for her hand, holding it gently between his. Sue reached for Ben and Bella handed him over without a word.

"How much does she want?" Bella asked, her voice barely a whisper. She was staring at her lap, unable to meet the concerned gaze of those around her.

"Everything I have in my retirement fund, which is ten thousand dollars."

"Dad, you can't give her that money! That's all you have."

"Bella, I told you not to worry. It's already been taken care of."

Bella shook her head back and forth, unable to comprehend that Charlie would hand over his entire life savings to Renee in order to help her. It wasn't right and she couldn't allow him to do it, no matter what it cost her.

"You can't do that. It's not—"

"I paid her," Edward interrupted.

Bella's eyes widened as she turned in Edward's direction. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Sue standing and pulling on Charlie's arm, urging him to leave the room. She didn't speak until they were out of earshot.

"Why would you do that? Edward, you can't. If she thinks she can just get money from you whenever she wants, she'll keep doing this. You don't know Renee."

"I know enough. And she doesn't know it was my money. She thinks Charlie cleaned out his bank account."

"I can't let you do this," Bella said. "That's so much money and I don't know how I'd ever be able to pay you back." It would be years before she could even imagine having a good job, starting her career, and even then, she'd be entry-level, struggling to make it. And she wouldn't just have herself to worry about; Ben would need her.

"I don't expect you to pay me back. Charlie told me what was going on and I offered to help. He didn't want my money either, but I insisted. I love you, Bella. I just wanted to protect you."

Edward urged her closer and she moved to sit in his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck and Bella rested her head on his shoulder. He placed his arms around her waist and held her tight.

"You can't protect me from everything, Edward. And you weren't even going to tell me." That was what bothered her most—not the money, but that Edward had intended to lie to her. She thought they'd always been honest with one another, but she was left to wonder if there were other things he was keeping from her.

"We were going to tell you, once everything was taken care of and Renee sank back into whatever hole she crawled out of. I didn't want to upset you." Edward felt terrible for keeping things from Bella, but Charlie had asked for his silence. He hated seeing the hurt in her eyes, knowing that he was at least partially responsible. He wanted to tell her immediately, but Charlie had been adamant that she would only be overwhelmed by the information. Edward sighed as he realized their attempts to protect her had failed completely.

Bella's lips pressed softly against Edward's neck and he sighed in relief. "If you want to stay here for New Year's…" His voice trailed off, hoping she wasn't so angry that she wouldn't want to spend some time away with him.

"No, I still want to go," she said, finally pulling her head from his shoulder to look him in the eye. "I love you, Edward. I just need you to be honest with me."

"I love you, too," he answered, leaning forward to kiss her chastely. "And I won't keep things from you ever again."

~ O ~

Edward quickly loaded their things into the SUV, surprised that Bella had arranged to leave Ben behind. He had mixed feelings about it. Though he was happy to have some time alone with Bella, he also knew he'd miss the little guy. Even though Ben wasn't his child, Edward felt very protective of him and enjoyed the moments they spent together. Ben was a part of Bella and he couldn't help but love him.

The drive to the cottage was relatively quiet, the radio playing softly in the background, making the silence between Edward and Bella seem less awkward. Bella sat staring out the window, thinking as she watched the scenery pass. Her emotions were jumbled as she thought of the life she had in Florida, of the mess she thought she left behind her.

It was dark when they finally pulled in the driveway and Bella was exhausted. Edward carried in the luggage while she made herself a cup of tea. After drinking the tea to help her sleep, Bella quickly brushed her teeth and washed her face, putting on a pair of cotton pajamas, and sliding into bed.

Edward slipped in behind her a few minutes later, moving until her back was flush against his chest. He wrapped his arm around her waist and kissed her bare shoulder, hoping that sleep would help her put things into perspective.

A/N: We're starting to wind down. I'm thinking 5-7 more chapters. I posted an outtake from Charlie's perspective today. It gives some insight into his life, so be sure to check that out too.

Reviewers get a teaser. See you next week!