A/N: Thanks for your reviews and for giving my story a go.

A big thanks to MrsKatyCullen for betaing this for me.

Chapter 2

"Well, Doctor Cullen. Welcome to Forks Hospital Maternity Unit. I hope you'll enjoy it here."

Edward looked at Bella Swan and was suddenly certain that he would enjoy his stay here very much. There was something about her that intrigued him. He wasn't planning on doing anything about it but it would make working here that much more pleasant.

He closed his hand, remembering the spark he'd felt when they shook hands. It almost felt like he'd been burned, and he absently ran his fingers over his palm, as if he would be able to physically feel whatever it was.

Bella Swan wasn't beautiful in the classical sense. Instead, her face was full of character and it was her eyes that fascinated him. They were a dark chocolate brown, deep and soulful. Edward wondered what hidden depths were in those eyes. Teamed with her mahogany coloured hair, she was certainly attractive. A fact that wasn't lost on him. Surreptitiously looking at her, her slim figure was hinted at under the uniform she wore. He suddenly had an urge to know if her legs, covered by the material of her trousers, were as shapely as he imagined.

Pulling himself abruptly back to the present, he dismissed his thoughts. The last thing he wanted was to get involved with a work colleague. Look at the trouble he'd had with Tanya back in New York. And it would be even worse in a hospital this size. No, he would just enjoy working with his attractive colleague and leave it at that.

"I'm very sure I will," he agreed as they walked down the corridor to the nurses' station.

"I suppose Dr Haas should be the one showing you around, and if you had been starting next week, he probably would have. But he's taking a well deserved day off today," explained Bella. "It's been difficult for him as he's had to cover shifts and take most of the clinics. He's on call if we need him."

"Well I'm glad I'll be able to relieve him of some of the burden," said Edward, as they stopped at the desk. The nurse there stopped what she was doing and looked at them, her eyes widening in surprise as she took in the extremely handsome man standing with Bella.

"Karen. This is Dr Edward Cullen. He's our new obstetrician."

"Cullen? Are you any....?"

"Yes, Dr Cullen is Carlisle Cullen's son," said Bella, amused at the nurse's reaction at seeing him for the first time. It made her feel slightly better. It's obviously not just me, he seems to have this effect on most females.

"Oh. That could get confusing," smiled Karen. "Which Dr Cullen are we talking about? Anyway, welcome to the hospital. We're certainly glad to have you here," she said, reaching out to shake his hand.

"Thanks."

"Since Carlisle doesn't come up to maternity that often, I don't think we'll have too much of a problem," said Bella.

The others agreed and Bella continued Edward's orientation. "This is Elaine. She's the secretary for the OB/GYN's here. She makes clinic appointments, does much of the paperwork and generally keeps the doctors in order. Isn't that right, Elaine?" laughed Bella, making the introductions. Edward shook hands with the older woman. "This is your office," she said, showing him the room. "If you need anything for it, let Elaine know."

Edward looked around and saw it looked like it had everything he needed. "When do we run the clinics?"

"We hold pre-natal clinics on Mondays and Thursdays. You'll share those with Dr Haas. Post-natal clinics are usually on Tuesdays and Fridays. Obviously, these can change, especially if there's an emergency or an emergency c-section. We try to schedule caesareans on Wednesday since there's no clinic that day.

"Of course. So who was holding today's post-natal clinic if Dr Haas is off?" he asked.

"We cancelled today's clinic which means Friday will be hectic," Bella grimaced.

"I worked in a New York city hospital. This should be a breeze compared to that," he grinned.

There should be law against that smile, thought Bella. It positively addles the brain. "Yes, I suppose it would be," she agreed. "Although we do have our moments."

Bella led him towards the birthing suites, stopping to introduce Edward to staff they met on the way. Every female, bar none, looked slightly stunned when they looked at him. Looks like Carlisle's got competition from his son in the hot doctor stakes, thought Bella.

She took him into the birthing suites, empty of patients at the moment, and showed him where everything was kept. Also showed him where the nursery with its few humidicribs was.

"We can cater for four babies if necessary but we will transport them to Seattle if their conditions are too poor to be looked after by us."

"By road?" he asked, checking out the facilities as he spoke.

"Mainly, but we've had airlifts on a couple of occasions. There's a heli-field at the back of the hospital."

"Do you have a paediatrician on staff?" he asked, looking at her, all business in his attitude.

"Yes, we have two. Dr Cooper only works part time though. She's got small kids," explained Bella.

As they made their way around the maternity unit, Edward kept asking questions. Bella was impressed. He asked about every facet of the unit, about patients, staff, procedures. He was keen to learn as much as he could about how life at Forks Hospital worked. He listened intently to Bella, his eyes looking directly into hers as she spoke.

Bella could feel butterflies in her stomach as her eyes met his. He was just so damn gorgeous. She took the greatest care not to touch him at all, didn't want to know if there would be a repeat of that spark she'd felt before.

"Well, I think I've shown you just about everything. Did you want to meet some of the mothers that are in the wards?" she asked.

"Sure, why not?" he replied. "Lead the way."

Bella took him to the wards and introduced him to the mothers and their babies. Edward, as Bella was getting used to, blew most of them away. She smiled inwardly as they smoothed their hair, straightened their clothes and sat up straighter when they were introduced.

The man was positively lethal. Here were mothers of newborn babies, most probably too tired to string two coherent words together, preening in the presence of this stunning doctor. When Edward picked up their babies and cradled them while speaking softly, they all fell in love, regardless if they were happily married. Bella could almost see the women sigh as they moved on to the next mother.

Bella had to admit she felt funny watching him holding the tiny babies. He looked so comfortable with them, cradling them expertly while talking softly to each one. Of course, as an obstetrician, he'd have a lot of experience holding babies. Still, there was something very appealing about watching such a large man holding a tiny, defenceless baby.

Bella wondered if he was married or had children. Since she hadn't known of his existence until this morning, she'd obviously never asked Carlisle about him. Alice had only mentioned her brother in passing, and Bella had never asked. If he wasn't married, he had to have a partner, thought Bella. A man like him couldn't possibly be single at his age. Bella looked at him covertly as he talked to another mother. He looked around thirty which sounded about right. He would have had to spend at least six years studying for his degree, then do his residency in order to be in his current position. His previous hospital obviously thought highly of him if they didn't want to let him go.

With nothing to judge his skill as a doctor as yet, Bella thought that if he was anything like his father, then he must be a pretty good doctor. Even his sister Alice was great at what she did, designing and selling clothes. Yes, they were a high achieving family all right.

By the time they finished meeting everyone, Bella suggested that it was time for lunch. She planned to get something from the cafeteria and assumed that Edward would seek his father out. Instead, he asked if he could go with her to lunch.

"I want to ask you more questions and we can talk as we each lunch," he said.

Feeling slightly deflated, Bella agreed. Oh for goodness sake! Of course he wants to talk about work. What did you think? That he wanted to have a romantic lunch with you? Grow up Bella, she told herself sternly.

Grabbing a sandwich, Bella sat at one of the tables, in the near empty eatery. Most of the lunchtime crowd had left already so there was plenty of choice of where to sit. Edward joined her and launched into more questions, Bella answering as well as she could.

Bella had just finished her sandwich when her beeper sounded. Due to the sensitive medical equipment, they couldn't use mobiles which could interfere with the equipment. Therefore the good, old-fashioned beepers were still the best way to contact other staff.

"Excuse me, I'll just go see what's going on," said Bella, getting up and heading to one of the staff phones scattered around the hospital. "Bella here," she said into the mouthpiece.

Edward watched as she spoke into the phone. Bella obviously knew her stuff. She'd just spent the last two hours showing him around, answering his questions and introducing him to staff and patients. He wondered how old she was. She looked to be in her mid-twenties or thereabouts. Despite her youth, she seemed very experienced at her job. She was able to answer most of his questions and seemed quite popular around the unit.

He found himself studying her as she spoke. Her hair was tied in a bun and he could see the delicate skin of the nape of her neck. It looked soft and touchable. His eyes moved to her lips, watching their movement as she spoke. He hadn't really noticed how full and naturally pink they were, especially her bottom lip. His mind suddenly filled with entirely inappropriate thoughts of those lips.

With a small shake of his head, Edward dismissed the images. Ok, so she was more attractive than you originally gave her credit for, but that doesn't mean you can think like that, he told himself. He was a professional and he was going to act like it. No more sexy thoughts about colleagues.

Bella walked back to the table and began packing away her rubbish. "I'm going to have to leave. One of our expectant mothers has just been admitted and I specifically asked to look after her," she explained. Picking up her rubbish, she walked to dispose of it before heading back to the lift. Her thoughts already on the job ahead, she didn't notice Edward walking behind her. When he spoke, she jumped, startled.

"Sorry," he smiled. "I was going to ask if I could come along, but you left so quickly I had to run to catch up."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realise," she answered, her brow furrowed quizzically. "Did you really want to come? You haven't properly started yet."

"I know, but I'm here already so I can help out," he said, following her into the lift. "If that's ok with you, of course. I know you're more than capable of handling things." His voice trailed off.

"No. Oh no. I don't have a problem with that. I'd have to call a doctor in anyway, if there were problems. I just meant that as you've only just arrived in town, you might want to go and get yourself settled," explained Bella.

"I'm fine. Mom's in no hurry to get rid of me," he said.

"Ok then," said Bella, impatiently waiting for the elevator to arrive at her floor.

"May I ask why you requested to take care of this case?" asked Edward.

The lift finally arrived and Bella answered as they exited. "I have a particular interest in this case. The mother had a great deal of trouble conceiving and had a history of miscarriages. She's been in three times with threatened miscarriages which luckily never eventuated. About halfway through, her body seemed to finally settle down and she's been complication free for the final trimester. I've formed a bond with her throughout her pregnancy and I promised that if I was on duty when she went into labour, I would look after her. All the staff here knew to contact me when she came in. She came in about half an hour ago but the nurse who admitted her thought it was better to let me have my lunch as who knows how long she'll go for."

"Is this her first baby?" asked Edward as they walked to the birthing suites.

"Yes it is. Like I said, she and her husband have been trying for a number of years, during which she suffered a number of miscarriages. They'd virtually given up on ever having a baby when she fell pregnant again. They've been on tenterhooks, always expecting the worst. I think they only relaxed slightly when they reached the point where they knew the baby had a high probability of survival if it was born early."

"Do they know what they're having," asked Edward, his mind processing Bella's information.

"No. They didn't want to find out. Not that they care anyway. They just want a healthy baby."

Edward nodded. "That's good. I think finding out seems to take away some of the excitement of having a baby, don't you think?"

Bella could only agree. "Yeah, think the same. I wouldn't find out."

"Not planning on having any soon, are you?" asked Edward, before kicking himself mentally. What the hell made him ask that? Now she's going to think...what the hell will she think?

Looking at him, Bella shook her head emphatically. "No."

Pushing open the door to the birthing suites, Bella walked to the nurse who was already there. "Hi Sue. How are things? How's Mrs Evans?"

"Hi Bella. Hello Dr Cullen," she replied, finishing writing in the notes. "She's fine at the moment. I've checked her and she's only just about 4cm dilated, so she's got a while to go. Due to her history, I thought she would feel better if she's admitted rather than sending her home to wait for a bit longer. Her blood pressure's fine and the baby seems quite happy still."

"That's great, Sue. Thanks for that. I'll take over now and Dr Cullen wants to stay so we should be fine. That's unless we get more admissions today," said Bella, moving to wash her hands.

"Won't be the first time," commented Sue. "So you're going to experience your first birth at Forks Hospital, Dr Cullen?" she asked Edward.

"I hope so, Sue. I may as well get the first one over, for luck," he smiled. "I'm just going to observe as I know Bella is more than capable of handling things. I'll just be here for backup if needed." He moved to wash his hands as well.

"Well have fun kids," she called out as she left the room. Edward chuckled.

"Come on, I'll introduce you," said Bella, moving into Suite No 1. Edward followed, eager to get started.

The only occupants of the room were the labouring mother and her husband. She was sitting up on the bed, rubbing her large belly.

"Hi Carol," greeted Bella as they entered the room. "I see the big day's finally arrived."

The woman nodded, her face showing both excitement and apprehension. "Looks like it," she agreed, looking at the stranger, the question in her eyes.

"Carol, I'd like you to meet our new obstetrician, Dr Cullen," introduced Bella. Turning to Edward, Bella introduced the about-to-be parents. "Dr Cullen, this is Carol and David Evans who have been waiting for this day for a long time."

Edward moved forward and shook hands with both of them. "Good afternoon. You're going to be the first birth I observe in my new job, so I'm quite excited," he smiled, exuding charm and calmness.

"I'm so glad we've finally got a new doctor," said Carol, looking as enchanted by the new doctor as every other female today. "Poor Dr Haas has had to work so hard."

"And I'm very happy to be here. I'm only going to be observing today as I know that Nurse Swan is more than capable of looking after you."

Carol looked at Bella. "Oh Bella, surely you'll let Dr Cullen help, won't you?"

Bella shook her head in bemusement. Was there no-one this man couldn't charm? "Of course Dr Cullen can help out if he wants."

Nodding her head in satisfaction, Carol smiled briefly before she grimaced in pain as another contraction started. Bella leaned forward and put her hand on her stomach, wanting to feel the strength of the contraction. Satisfied that it wasn't too strong yet, Bella made note of the time.

"How far apart have the contractions been, Carol?" she asked.

"About ten minutes or so," informed the mother to be. Bella nodded as the answer confirmed her findings.

"Well Carol, it looks like you have while to go yet. I'm just going to have a listen to baby and then I'm going to suggest that you and David go for a walk around. It'll help speed things up a bit. Gravity is our biggest friend, you know?" said Bella, moving to get the foetal heart monitor. "I'd also suggest getting something to eat if you can manage it."

Bella turned on the monitor and held it out to Edward. "Did you want to do the honours?"

Edward smiled widely, causing Bella's heart to flutter briefly. Good thing her heart wasn't being monitored. It would have been a dead giveaway.

He took the equipment and proceeded to hold it against Carol Evans' stomach. After moving it around for a bit, he located the baby's heartbeat. The sound came out of the monitor loud and clear. Bumpity, bumpity, bumpity, sounded the baby's heartbeat through the monitor. It was very fast, as was the norm for foetuses.

"Sounds quite happy in there," said Edward, turning off the monitor. "Nurse Swan's right. You should go, walk around for a bit. Being your first baby, none of us have any idea how long your labour will last. Obviously, when the contractions start getting closer and stronger, we'll know things are happening."

"The contractions hurt now," said Carol. "And they're only going to get worse?"

"Afraid so Carol," smiled Bella sympathetically. "But think of it as your body's way of making sure you get to meet your baby as soon as possible. Carol, if you feel you can't handle the pain you can always try the gas or even have an epidural."

Carol shook her head vehemently. "No, I may never be able to have another one so I want to feel everything." Bella nodded her understanding and they left the room, David Evans supporting his wife.

"I might go to my office and start getting myself sorted out while we wait," said Edward. "I'll come back a little later or else call me if things start happening."

Bella nodded her agreement and watched him go. It was sort of a relief when he left and she could relax. She couldn't explain it, but she felt strangely tense in his presence. Like some force was tugging on her, drawing her to him.

Getting involved with a colleague was definitely not in Bella's plans. It was just fraught with danger. Forks Hospital was just too small to avoid someone you didn't want to see if things went badly. She'd seen it happen during her training, colleagues desperately trying to act normally when a love affair had soured.

Oh don't be stupid Bella. There's no way someone like Edward Cullen would be remotely interested in you, she told herself. It's a moot point. The Edward Cullen's of this world are only interested in your average supermodel types. And you're certainly not that, Bella.

Deciding to grab a quick bite to bring back to the unit while the Evans' were walking around the hospital, Bella asked the nurse at the desk to call her if they' got back before she did. Deciding to give the lift a miss, she half-ran down the fire escape stairs. Waiting in line in the cafeteria with a salad roll, a number female colleagues gave her the third degree on the new doctor. The amount of interest was slightly annoying so Bella made her excuses and returned to Maternity as quickly as possible.

Sitting at the desk with the other nurse Cassie, they chatted easily while Bella ate what would probably be her dinner. Carol walked past a couple of times with her husband, stopping in her tracks when a contraction would hit.

"How's it going Carol?" asked Bella when the other woman leaned on the nurse's desk, panting slightly while she waited for the pain to pass. "Is the pain getting stronger?"

"Oh yeah," she panted. "I thought it hurt before but that was nothing."

A couple of hours had passed since the Evans' began walking so Bella suggested that they head back to the birthing suite.

"I'll have another look to see how far dilated you are," said Bella, holding one of Carol's arms for support. She could see that the contractions were definitely getting closer.

As Carol climbed on the bed, another contraction hit, making the woman groan in pain. Bella placed her hand on her stomach and noted that the contraction was stronger and longer than before.

"Just relax as I see how dilated you are," soothed Bella. "Dave, how about you hold Carol's hand while I do this. It's never the most pleasant thing is it?" Carol shook her head.

Bella performed the examination and noted that Carol was approximately six centimetres dilated. Pulling off her gloves, she smiled at Carol, who was really starting to struggle with the pain. "Six centimetres. You're well and truly in labour now, Carol."

"You think?" groaned Carol.

Bella laughed gently. "You're doing really well. Your contractions are coming about every three minutes now."

"How long do you think it'll be, Bella?" asked Dave, looking worriedly at the pain on his wife's face.

"Being a first timer, it's impossible to tell. It could be an hour, or it could be ten hours. It's all up to her body."

"Ten hours? Oh God," groaned Carol. "I don't think I'll last ten hours."

"Any time you want painkillers, just ask."

"No, I'm going to do this without an epidural."

Bella nodded and sat with them as Carol's contractions got closer and closer together. She reminded Carol to use the coping mechanisms she'd learned in pre-natal classes. The mother-to-be used various positions to try an ease the discomfort.

Edward wandered in and stood next to Bella. "How's she going?"

"Things are really moving along now. I would suspect she's nearly ten centimetres by the length and closeness of the contractions," said Bella, trying to move away from him without being obvious.

Edward nodded in agreement. "How's the heartbeat?"

"Nice and strong. No worries on that score," she replied. "Her blood pressure's fine as well."

After about fifteen minutes, Carol began moaning continuously and started crying. She held on to her husband and sobbed that she wanted to go home, that she didn't want to have this baby any more, that she wanted the pain to go away.

Bella asked her to lie down so she could confirm that Carol was fully dilated. Pulling on gloves, Bella performed the check and told the parents to be that Carol was indeed, dilated to ten centimetres.

"That's why you're so emotional Carol. You're going into the transition stage. You could be holding your new baby within a couple hours," she told them.

"Thank god. I don't know.....if.....I......can stand it.....much longer," gasped Carol, as the pain radiated through her body. She gripped her husband's hand as if it were the only thing anchoring her to the planet.

Without warning, Carol said she was going to be sick. Fully expecting this, Bella grabbed a surgical bowl, which was promptly used by Carol who then burst into tears.

The transitional stage between dilating and pushing was usually the most dramatic part of the birth process. Mothers felt out of control, like their bodies have taken over, which it had to a certain extent. There was no turning back. Pushing the baby out now the only option left.

After only ten minutes, Carol cried out that she felt like pushing. Edward and Bella used the cue to get the birthing pack out ready and put on their sterile gowns and gloves.

"Breathe Carol," said Edward. "You want to push during a contraction for the best results."

"Yes, Dr Cullen's right," concurred Bella. "If you do what we tell you, hopefully you won't tear, ok?"

Carol nodded, unable to speak.

"How do you want to give birth?" asked Bella. The labouring mothers were always given the option to give birth in any position they felt most comfortable with. Some preferred to sit up on the bed, other's like the birthing stool, a stool that had a section cut out to enable the midwife to deliver the baby. Some liked to squat, other's stand, while other's used the bean bag to lean on.

Bella discouraged lying down if it were at all possible as she found that mother's struggled the most with the pain in that position. Being upright also helped with gravity.

"On the beanbag," stated Carol, still panting.

Grabbing the beanbag and putting it on the bed, all three helped Carol climb up and kneel down over the bean bag. Dave went and sat next to her, taking hold of her hand as she cried out as another contraction started. Bella loved it when mother's chose to lean on the bean bag as it gave her clear access to the birth canal. She also found it caused less mothers to need stitching after the birth.

"Ok Carol, I want you to push with this contraction," instructed Bella. She could feel the baby's head just inside. "Push with your stomach muscles, Carol. Not your throat."

Carol did as she was instructed and grunted and groaned whilst pushing with all her might.

"Ok, start panting now," said Bella, as the contraction eased.

Edward stood next to her, watching the proceedings. "You're doing really well Carol. I can see the top of the head. Not long now."

The pattern of pushing and panting continued for another twenty minutes until the baby's head began crowning.

"Now Carol, push with all your might," urged Bella, her hands ready to ease the baby's head out of the birth canal.

Crying and grunting at the same time, Carol pushed as hard as her body would let her.

"Aarrrghhh...." she cried out as the burning sensation of the baby's head crowning consumed her.

"That's it Carol, the head's nearly out," cried Bella. With one more massive push, the baby's head emerged.

"Now pant Carol. I need to turn the baby's shoulders. Don't push until I say, no matter how much you want to," insisted Bella.

Edward stood next to her ready to take the baby as soon as it was born.

Bella gently turned the baby's head, the action making the baby's shoulder's turn, facilitating their emergence from the birth canal.

"Ok Carol. One last push when the contraction starts and you'll have your baby," said Bella.

Exhausted, Carol only nodded. Thirty seconds later, the next contraction started and she pushed with all the energy she had left. Bella, guiding the baby, gently pulled at the same time and with a gentle 'plop' the baby was born.

Without any encouragement, the baby opened its mouth and emitted a wail, the sound more like a kitten's meow than a baby's cry.

Dave moved forward, his face radiant as he looked at the baby. "Carol, it's a girl!"

Carol began crying with joy as her longed for baby was finally here. "A girl. I've got a little girl," she sobbed, from happiness and exhaustion.

"Do you want to cut the cord, Daddy?" asked Bella, holding out the surgical scissors. Edward was holding the baby, and Dave reached forward to do the honours. With a bit of effort, he cut through the rubbery umbilical cord, beaming the whole time.

Edward did a quick APGAR test at one minute and gave the baby to Bella, who put the baby in her mother's arms, letting the two meet for the first time. Edward would do another test at five minutes and then do a more thorough check, but this could wait.

"APGAR at one minute is a 9" said Edward as Bella wrote this in the notes. The APGAR score was a quick check of the baby's colour, breathing, reflexes and pulse that was taken at one minute and five minutes post birth. It was used to determine if there was an immediate cause for concern. The score was out of ten, so the Evans baby's score was very good.

Edward checked the mother for tearing and delivered the placenta, declaring it healthy before disposing of it. Apologising to Carol, he took the baby to give her a quick examination. Bella was cleaning up Carol and disposing of the waste.

"How does she look, Dr Cullen?" asked Bella, watching him manipulate the tiny limbs, checking for any problems.

"She's a little beauty," said Edward, smiling down at the tiny baby. "APGAR at five minutes is a 10. Everything seems perfectly fine so far." Wrapping her back up in the blanket, he picked up the crying baby and held her to his chest, crooning softly at her.

Bella watched him cradling the baby and felt a rush of tenderness for him. He looked so comfortable with the infant. Bella looked at them and felt an overwhelming attraction to Edward at this moment. The urge to grab him and kiss him swept over her.

She stood back and tried to banish the thought. It was just a reaction to the emotion of the evening, watching one of her favourite patients finally give birth to the child she'd longed for. That's all it was. Nothing else.

Edward handed the baby to her mother with a smile. "She's a lovely, healthy baby Carol. Congratulations."

The new parents smiled and thanked them profusely. "Please, thank Bella. She did all the work," protested Edward. "I was just a bystander."

Carol asked Bella for a hug, which Bella promptly gave. "Do you have a name yet?" asked Bella.

Carol looked at her husband, who nodded. "We were thinking of calling her Danielle Bella."

Bella eyes watered with emotion. "Oh wow. Thank you. That's a beautiful name."

"Thank you for all you've done. Not just now, but throughout the pregnancy. You put up with my fears and tears."

"It was my pleasure," said Bella. "Now, we'll leave the three of you alone to get acquainted for a while. Then we'll get you to the ward. You can shower here if you want. Do you want anything to eat or drink?"

They shook their heads, their focus now on their newborn daughter. Bella and Edward left the room.

"You did a great job, Bella," praised Edward, watching as her cheeks got pink. She obviously got embarrassed by praise, thought Edward. It was quite charming really.

"Thanks, but it is my job," said Bella, hating the fact that she was blushing again. Why couldn't she just accept praise without getting all stupid about it?

"No, I can tell it's more than just a job," said Edward.

They looked at each other for a few moments, Bella's heart thudding. Edward was the first to break the spell. "I think it must be way past your finishing time?"

Bella nodded. "Yeah, yours too. Why don't you head off? You've probably missed your mother's dinner."

"I rang Dad before and told him I might be late. I'm sure she's saved me something," laughed Edward. "I think I will go. What about you?"

"I'll just get Carol settled in the ward then leave," said Bella, walking towards the nurse's station.

"Ok. Well then, I'll see you tomorrow?" asked Edward.

Bella nodded and watched as he went back to his office to grab his coat and left. She had the porters transfer Carol and her baby to the ward, wishing the happy family goodnight.

Grabbing her bag and coat, she said her goodbyes and walked out into the night.