EPOV
I walked through JFK in a fowl mood. I had to leave the love of my life and my baby girl all the way across the fucking country.
Now I'm in the presence of Tanya, who I think is trying to intentionally annoy me. As soon as I get off the plane she pinches my ass, then slides her hand in my back pocket as we walk.
"Do you mind?" I hissed.
"What?" she shrugged he bare shoulders nonchalantly.
"Remove your hand." I warned.
"It never bothered you in the past." She grinned. She knew I was getting pissy and she love pushing my buttons.
"Tanya we fucked five years ago I haven't touched you since..." I said bluntly before being cut off.
"Since you knocked up your precious Bella blah, blah, blah." She said pushing my Ray Bans up so the were resting on my head.
"Bitter much." I laughed humorlessly.
"Quit being a little bitch, Edward, I'll get you back to your girls." She sighed throwing her hands up.
"I'm not being a bitch." I grumbled. Maybe I was.
"Since you stepped foot in this terminal you look like the most miserable person I've ever met."
"You want to know what I did all day?" I snapped.
"What did you do all day?" she said mocking my tone.
"I cuddled with Kenz and Bella in our bed, watching six Disney Princess movies."
"At least now you can do something productive." She smiled nudging my shoulder.
"I'm in pain and you don't even care." I sighed dramatically. I knew what she was doing; she was trying to cheer me up.
Tanya is a cold person unless you're friends with her, and then she is the most loyal human being you could ever meet.
"She put you under some weird voodoo shit." Tanya mumbled brushing her strawberry blonde curls over her shoulder then began to fidget with her dress.
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"When I first met you… you were a force. You had such passion for the photography. You were wild and reckless. Any location offered to you, you took it no questions asked. There was also a sad boy who wore a mask in front of everyone… We fucked those first few months you stayed here and then you went back to Seattle. When we slept together you were so detached, I couldn't figure out why. Then I met Bella when you did that Seattle tourism shoot. She was your world. That sad boy was gone and your eyes sparkled and shit." She said rolling her bright blue eyes.
"Is there a point to this?" I asked impatiently.
"She tamed you and now you're domesticated with your mansion, matching his and her cars... Don't even get me started on Mackenzie, that child is perfection. I think we need to sit down and get your career goals figured out because your passion has shifted the last couple of years."
"So less traveling?" I asked hopeful.
"I said we'll talk about it later, right now we need to get to Vogue before their editor-in-chief has an aneurism." She sighed tugging on my arm.
Once we got to the car and I texted Bella telling her I made it here.
I miss you more then you'll ever know. ~E
Oh, God you've become that guy… ~B
What are you doing? ~E
Getting my nails done. ~B
Mom's basically spoiling you? ~E
I plead the fifth… ~B
I miss you ~E
I miss you too. ~B
"Are you done now?" Tanya questioned rolling her eyes at me again.
"For now, yes." I pouted snapping my phone shut.
We spent two hours working on a campaign for Tanya's new client Alice Brandon. The girl was a pixie and that even made her short haircut suit her. She was only 5'0" if that and had more energy then my four year old. She was the new 'it' girl dominating Fashion Week like it was hers. I've never in my life met anyone like her.
Anna and Tanya came to the agreement that Alice and I could go back to our hotel to brainstorm ideas for the shoot. We also found out that Tanya booked our rooms next to each other.
"You don't want to be here." Alice's melodic voice sung as she flew back on her bed.
"I was sort of on a hiatus." I sighed leaning in her doorway, standing opposite her.
"Interesting." Was all she said.
"Is it?" I asked looking at her confused.
"Sure, I've never met a world class photographer that takes a hiatus for the heck of it."
"Well then let me be your first." I said with a gentlemanly bow.
She giggled and it reminded me of something.
"What?" she asked her gray eyes looking at me curiously.
"You really want to know?" I asked rubbing the back of my neck.
"I really want to know." She nodded.
"It's just you remind me of Tinker Bell from Peter Pan."
"You watch Disney?" she gasped in amazement.
"All day, everyday." I said honestly.
She hopped off her bed and marched over to me. We probably looked ridiculous, I had about a foot and a half on her. She just stood there and stared. "You're serious."
"I am." I said nodding slowly. "I watch it with my four year old daughter."
"Daughter?" she asked incredulously. Was it so unbelievable I was a parent?
"Yeah my daughter."
"Do you have pictures?" she bounced excitingly.
"In my bag."
"Go get them." She ordered.
I walked over to the adjoining room that was mine and dug through my bag for what I called "My Heart" portfolio. I walk back to an eagerly awaiting Alice. I started to flip to the most recent pictures of Mackenzie.
"Ah, ah, ah, I want to see the whole thing." She giggled.
"The beginning of it is really nothing." I argued. I've never let anyone see any on these pictures.
"I'll be the judge of that." She said grabbing it from my hands. "My Heart," She murmured as she read the cover. She had begun flipping through my world.
I sat down next to her and saw the moments of my past staring at me. I took all the photos in this book. Except for one or two that Bella took with my camera without my knowledge.
The first one was of Bella when she was fifteen. She was sitting with Jasper trying to figure out a math problem or some shit like that. She was beautiful. Her long mahogany hair cascaded down her back in curls. It made her look like she an angel. She had a simple white tank top on; you could see the curves of her breast because she wasn't wearing a bra. I remember when I took it I instantly went hard and felt guilty because she was my kid best friend.
She was going through what mom called a transitional phase. She was still a tomboy, but didn't understand the changes her body was going through. I remember Charlie begging my mom to talk to Bella, they were both having a rough time since Renee left. The next thing I loved about this photo was she was so deep in thought she biting her bottom lip. Her braces evident, it was the only picture I had that had proof she wore them.
"Who's this?" Alice asked softly.
"That would be Bella." I smiled, brushing my fingertips over the photograph.
"She is beautiful." She sighed dreamily.
"Thank you." I whispered.
The next page had two photos from Bell's sixteenth birthday. I held the camera towards us in both of them. One we were making a funny face, both of us looking intently at each other and in the next we were kissing. Both were taken with two simple clicks.
I looked at Alice and saw a bright smile light up her pixie face. We moved on to the next ones. There was nothing monumental in the next few pages, just more birthdays, graduations, and some college photos.
She turned the page to one Bella took of her bare pregnant belly. I chuckled like I always did when I saw this photo because where the roundness of her belly disappeared her Chucks peeked out.
Alice looked curiously, when she saw the one of me asleep on Bella's huge stomach.
We finally got to the Mackenzie ones and she gasped. "Bella's your daughter's mother?"
"She is Mackenzie's mom." I smiled softly.
"They're beautiful, Edward." She beamed at me looking at the photo I took of Bella and Mackenzie right after she was born.
Bella's hair was matted to her face and her tears weren't helping her out much. She stared down at Mackenzie who looked all innocent and snuggly in her blanket. They were more then beautiful they were exquisite.
She flipped through a couple more baby photos of Kenz. Alice stopped at one and brushed her fingers over our faces.
It was last year when I took Kenz and Bella on a vacation to Fiji. The three of us were laying on a beach towel on the beach. I held the camera above us as my girls cuddled close to me.
Mackenzie laid in the middle of us giving her biggest cheesy smile, her normally auburn hair appearing to be a much lighter red. I had my free arm around Bella and she had her head in the crook of my neck. She looked at me with a gorgeous smile on her face, like you could see the adoration radiating off of her. Her arm wrapped around Kenz, but her hand was resting on my chest. I had my cheek resting on the top of her head looking at both of them.
"This picture is beyond words." Alice said quietly.
"It's just a picture." I shrugged
"No it's more then that." She said shaking her head furiously.
"Really Alice…"
"Your wife and daughter are gorgeous. You are very lucky." She insisted her face turning sad. I was curious to why these were her reactions.
"We're not married." I said quietly.
"Are you an idiot?" she said bluntly.
"Excuse me?" I asked, my head snapped up.
"I'm sorry, if I'm out of line, but you have this amazing book. You freaking travel with it, which that in itself screams how important it is to you. Bella looks like she adores you and… it looked like you were high school sweethearts." She stopped in frustration.
"We met when she was six and I was nine. My brother and best friend dared her to climb the jungle gym. You never dare Bella to do anything because she will do it in a heartbeat. She fell halfway and broke her arm. I made sure she was alright and got help." I explained.
"This keeps getting better. You are her prince charming!" she squealed.
"We're not some fairytale."
"And this is why you're an idiot." She said poignantly.
My phone started buzzing letting me know I had a text.
Our bed is cold and I can't sleep… ~B
Where's monk? ~E
In a fort in the living room with Nana ~B
Why are you alone, love? ~E
Because I'm missing you and I was crying… ~B
Mom sent you upstairs. ~E
Yeah, I'm a fucking baby. ~B
You want me to start crying too? Cause I miss you and Kenz a fucking lot right now. ~E
I heart you, Eddie-ward! ~B
I heart you too love. ~E
Saying I heart you only made me feel even more like a shit. I was a coward that just should have said love.
"I know what I want to do for my shoot." Alice announced suddenly standing on her bed.
"You're crazy, pix." I grinned at her enthusiasm.
"You make it sound like that's a bad thing." She sung jumping around.
"What do you want to do?"
"First off we need to leave New York." She declared loudly.
"Leave but we just got here." Girl was off her rocker.
"Well the shoots in Seattle now."
"Seattle?" I fucking gasped.
"Yup! So get packing, if you haven't already unpacked." She squealed going for her bags.
Looks like this assignment won't suck so much after all.
A/N: Questions, comments, concerns?? Luv ya all!!!!