A/N So obviously life happens which is why I didn't get this posted yesterday. It's been crazy. I want to share a little background about a part later in the chapter, so there's another A/N at the bottom. Please enjoy and review! Thank you to everyone! :)

Chapter 25 – Meet the Cullens

Bella lay beside Edward on her back in the middle of the meadow. The morning had been absolutely incredible. Her experiment this morning was more of a success than she would have ever dreamed possible, causing his need and desire for her to grow exponentially. She had lost count of how many times they had made love.

She wasn't sure how many hours had passed since they had been there. It honestly didn't matter any way. When she was with Edward, time ceased to exist. Whenever she was with him, wherever they were, he was the thing of most importance.

She was just lying there staring up at the clouds in the sky when she heard Edward inhale like he was going to say something but after a minute he let his breath out in a loud sigh having said nothing at all.

"What's on your mind, cutie?" she asked him. Maybe if he knew she heard him trying to say something it would make it easier for him. He wasn't a shy person; he was just reserved after what happened in his life.

"Well, I was sort of hoping I could bring my girlfriend home for dinner and introduce her to my family, but I'm afraid of what she'll say. You know 'its too soon,' or 'too much pressure,' that sort of thing." By this point he had rolled to his side and was running his fingers through her hair that was fanned out behind her head.

"You'll never know unless you ask her," she told him with a wink. "If it were me, there's no way I'd turn you down. You are so sexy I'd give you anything you wanted if you were my boyfriend." She was looking directly into his piercing green eyes as she said it, smiling at him.

He leaned in and placed a kiss on her lips before saying, "I love you so much, Bella. I don't know what I ever did to deserve an amazing woman like you, but I'll do whatever it takes to keep you." He kissed her again before he continued. "Are you sure you wouldn't mind coming to dinner with me? You saw what it's usually like at the barbeque a few months ago, but somehow I think it will be different tonight. I've lived with my family for just over two years and you are the first person I've ever wanted to bring home. They've never said anything, but I think they all secretly thought that I was socially inept."

"Edward, I am beyond honored that I'm the only person you've wanted to bring home. I love you so much and I'd love to meet your family… again." She chuckled at a thought that just popped in her head and grinned. "I might, however, need a little convincing," she said shoving his shoulder so he was on his back again before straddling him.

"Oh god Bella! You are absolutely insatiable," he stated before she brought her lips to his to shut him up. It didn't take more than a few seconds before she felt him spring to life underneath her.

"That may be true babe, but it's completely your fault. You are just so incredibly sexy, I can't get enough of you!" She smiled against his lips before kissing up his jaw to his ear and nibbling on it.

Edward started laughing. He flipped them over so that he was hovering on top of her before saying, "I've successfully created my own sex monster." With that, he entered her for another round.

…..

Bella had a voracious appetite for sex it would seem, but he couldn't really blame her. She was a gorgeous woman and he couldn't get enough of her either. He wasn't sure if their sexual appetites would ever abate, but for now he wasn't going to complain; he loved being with Bella in every way possible.

He wasn't sure how long they had been in the meadow, but he could tell from where the sun was in the sky that it was about time to head back. The only thing that made it possible for him to get dressed was the pride he felt about introducing her to his family.

He had never brought anyone home before and had never wanted to until now. He knew it was a rare thing for an eighteen-year-old male like himself to have never had a girlfriend, but after his parents died, he never really felt drawn to anyone. Sure, he had found girls pretty; he was a guy after all, but he never felt any desire to go after any of them. All of that had changed the day Bella had walked with his mother into their backyard. As he thought back to that day when she walked into his life, he smiled widely.

"Hey Beautiful, it's getting late. I'm guessing it's almost four and my family eats dinner at six. If we want to make it there in time to help out, we should probably get going. Plus, I'm sure you'll need to call your dad and let him know where you'll be; he's probably back from fishing already and I don't want to do anything to jeopardize the fact that he's okay with us right now."

He had to laugh when he saw Bella's bottom lip jut out from her face. She was adorable when she pouted like that and he couldn't help but lean in and suck that bottom lip into his mouth tracing it with his tongue. He felt more than heard her moan before opening her mouth to him.

Twenty minutes and another round later they had decided to finally get dressed and were packing up the picnic blanket and putting it in the basket. When they had everything securely packed away, he picked up the basket in one hand and grabbed Bella's hand with his other and they headed towards home.

Bella was getting faster with each trip to the meadow. Today, it only took them about fifty minutes to get back to the house. When they walked in, hand in hand, Esme was in the kitchen just as Edward had suspected. Bella, being the angel that he knew she was, immediately released his hand and approached Esme asking if she could help in any way. When Edward approached a second later, he smiled at his mother.

"Mom, I hope you don't mind, but I've asked Bella if she wanted to stay for dinner tonight. I thought it was about time I bring my girlfriend home to meet my family." He smiled his crooked smile that she'd never been able to resist when he was finished.

Not surprisingly, Esme rushed over to him and wrapped him in her arms. "Oh Edward, of course I don't mind if Bella stays for dinner! That's great son! I'm sure everyone will be so excited to meet her officially."

"Thanks mom," he said lacing his fingers with Bella's. "What can we do to help?"

Esme, obviously wanting to ensure both of them were completely comfortable, smiled at them and said, "Absolutely nothing. I've got everything under control here. Why don't the two of you go down to the family room and hang out until dinner is ready. I think that's where everyone else is."

Bella obviously wanted to argue, but his mom insisted, winking at Edward when Bella wouldn't see. With their hands still linked, Edward gave Bella a light tug and led her out of the kitchen and downstairs to the family room.

He chuckled when they walked in because of the sight in front of them. His family was not your average group. They all loved each other deeply, but it was more than just platonic love. His siblings were all adopted like he was but they had all claimed to have found their soul mates within the family. Rosalie found Emmett and Alice found Jasper. He squeezed Bella's hand as they walked in to the room, bracing himself for explanations.

Rosalie was sitting right beside Emmett on the couch, leaning her head on his shoulder; his arm was slung around her. Alice was actually sitting on Jasper's lap in the recliner while he had his arms wrapped around her waist. Ah, his happy family. They were watching 50 First Dates with Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore.

"Hey guys, do you mind if Bella and I join you?" Edward asked because his siblings hadn't noticed their presence yet. As soon as he spoke, his family all but jumped apart. In public they wouldn't dream of showing such affection toward each other because of the way people talk. Here at home was a different story; here they didn't have to hide who they were.

"Bella, let me introduce you to my brothers and sisters." Holding her hand, he led her into the heart of the family room and prepared to tell the long story of his family.

…..

When Edward brought her into the family room, she wasn't sure what to make of it. She remembered back to the day of the barbeque a few months ago when Esme had explained that Rosalie and Emmett were a couple and so were Jasper and Alice, but she hadn't really thought much about it since then. After all, they hadn't really been overly affectionate towards each other. Yes, they were as affectionate as you would expect a family to be, but no more than that.

Walking into the room though, she finally understood what Esme must have meant. The pretty blond haired girl was leaning against the big burly guy while his arm was wrapped around her. The short pixie girl was sitting actually sitting on the lanky guy's lap and he had his arms wrapped around her waist. It was definitely a sight to behold.

She was a little apprehensive, but followed Edward as he led her by the hand farther into the room. They were so into the movie they were watching that none of them had noticed she or Edward standing there yet. She glanced at the television and saw that it was a comedy with Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore; the one about the girl with no short-term memory who can't remember meeting the male lead as he keeps trying to impress her over and over again. She smiled remembering her favorite part of the movie – Ten Second Tom.

Edward finally cleared his throat and asked if they could join in the movie watching which automatically caused four sets of eyes to turn toward him. When they saw Bella standing there beside their brother, they blanched and almost jumped apart like kids caught doing something they knew they shouldn't be doing.

Bella was asking herself what she'd gotten herself into now when Edward interrupted her inner babble. "Bella, let me introduce you to my brothers and sisters." He squeezed her hand to reassure her and dragged her to the center of the room.

"These are my adopted siblings; Rosalie, Emmett, Alice, and Jasper. Guys, this is my girlfriend Bella." He nodded to each of his siblings in turn as he named them. Once the introductions had been made, there were a few very timid hellos tossed out there.

Bella had no idea what to do or say and was desperately trying to think of something when Alice, the little short pixie looking one jumped of Jasper's lap and skipped over to her; there really was no better way to explain it than skipped.

Bella was taken aback when Alice's arms enfolded around her and hugged her tightly. "Welcome Bella! We are so glad to have you here. Jazz, can you pause the movie so we can all talk, please?" After releasing her from her grip, Alice turned to Edward and said, "Hey Eddie, why don't you and Bella sit on the loveseat? It's open."

The 'loveseat' was more of an oversized chair but Bella wasn't complaining. When Edward walked her over to it, he sat first and then held his arms open, inviting her to climb into his lap which she was all to willing to do.

Edward was quiet for a moment while he was apparently deciding whom to start with first. Finally, he started to speak. "Well, I guess the best way to do proper introductions is to start with the person who's been here the longest; Alice. Hey Tinkerbelle, if I miss something just interrupt okay? Not that you need an invitation to do that, but still." He laughed at Alice and she responded by sticking her tongue out at him.

"Alright. Alice has been a Cullen for eight years. She grew up with her mom, who wasn't a very stable person. She would have a new boyfriend every week and would move herself and Alice all around the country. When Alice turned ten she got fed up with it. She was so sick of her mother spending all of her money on things like drugs and alcohol that she ran away to Seattle. Her mom was living in Reno Nevada at the time and would make money by being a prostitute. It wasn't a life Alice wanted.

"She was taken to a Seattle precinct one rainy afternoon after she had tried to hitchhike up to Canada. She had no idea that the person she was begging for a ride was an undercover police officer. After hearing her story detectives tracked down her mother and confirmed everything. Alice was made a ward of the state after her mother was deemed unfit and was in a foster home for about six months before Carlisle and Esme found her and adopted her.

"Emmett is next. He's been here for seven years. His mom took off when he was a baby spouting some crap about not being ready to be a mother. He grew up with his dad doing the typical male stuff: hunting, fishing, camping, etc. One weekend they were out hunting in the Rocky Mountains when a stray bullet from another hunter's gun struck his dad instantly killing him. Emmett was alone in the woods for almost twelve hours before someone found him and took him to the ranger station. Not being able to track down his mother, the state placed Em in foster care where the Cullen's found and adopted him.

"Rosalie came into the family next. She's been here for just under five years. She lived with both of her parents until she was almost fifteen. She came home from school one day to find her dad had shot and killed her mother and then shot himself. Police think he was drunk or high, but no one knows what could have possibly driven him to do something so drastic. There was no note or explanation but everyone agreed on one thing; Rosie was very lucky she wasn't home at the time or she would have undoubtedly succumbed to the same fate. Carlisle and Esme saw the tragic story on the news and didn't even have to discuss it. They looked at each other for a split second before Carlisle reached for the phone to call Child Protective Services and start the process of at least fostering her. When it turned out she had no other living relative that wanted her she because a Cullen permanently.

She was extremely broken when she first came; after all, she had been the one to discover her parent's bodies. No one had really been able to reach her, but Esme was willing to keep trying. Alice and Emmett were sent on a short vacation to visit Esme's parents as Carlisle and Esme tried to acclimate Rosie to the home and surroundings. Three days later, Alice and Emmett returned. Apparently, the moment Em and Rosie saw each other they connected, sort of like you and I did, but different. They've been inseparable ever since.

"Jasper was the last to join the family before me. He's been here for just over four years. His story is a little less tragic than the rest of ours in some ways but worse in others. No one knows who or where is parents are. He was dropped off in front of a fire station in Austin, Texas. There was no note, no explanation; just a baby swaddled in a dirty blanket left in a cardboard box. He was placed in a foster home as the local authorities desperately sought to find his family. It was impossible for him to be adopted right away until all avenues were exhausted. He doesn't remember the first few homes he was in and doesn't start remembering them until he was around six.

"It was then that he started being physically, mentally, and sexually abused. He was in that home for more than four years enduring whatever the couple could come up with whenever they wanted it. He slept locked in the attic and was only allowed out when they wanted to use and abuse him. When he was transferred to another home he was glad until the abuse got worse. I won't go into it, but it was horrible.

"Esme was in Texas at a conference and was asked to offer consultation on Jazz's case. She went in not knowing anything about his situation; just that he had been abused and was under constant supervision after he beat the living tar out of his foster family. He was in the local juvenile detention center, awaiting trail when Esme first saw him. After learning his story and promising to help him, she called Carlisle and the rest is history. Alice and Jazz share the same connection as Rosie and Em. We're all family, but it goes so much deeper than that for some of us.

"It's not something we like to broad cast either. People talk, a lot, and we've run into some problems in the past so we're really careful now." Edward smiled down at her before bringing his lips to her ear and continuing, "I want you to be part of this family, too, Bella. I love you more than anything in this world and I trust you to be part of our secret. Thank you for listening and accepting us as we are."

Bella was speechless for a second. The level of devotion this family had for each other was obvious in every action and word, spoken or not. She saw and felt the same devotion exuding from Edward when it came to her.

She turned her head and kissed his chest before hugging him tightly. "Thank you Edward." She turned to his family and continued. "Thank you to each one of you for allowing me to hear your stories. It means so much to me to feel so welcome here in your home. I promise I will protect your secrets. I love your brother very much and would do anything for him – and for you. Again, I don't know what else to say but thank you."

After everyone mumbled some sort of response, Emmett bellowed out, "Alright, enough of this sappy crap. Play the damn movie Jazz, we need some laughs down in here."

With that, the movie was resumed and they all sat and watched in companionable silence until Esme called down to ask for help setting the table.

A/N Okay, so 50 First Dates is one of my favorite movies! It's awesome and if you haven't seen it, I definitely recommend you do. Anyway, it was a personal connection with me as well. Ten Second Tom is someone who suffered a severe brain injury and can only process ten seconds of memory at a time before he can't remember. In 2007 I had a severe cranial injury as well and while I was in the hospital, I received the nick name of Six Second Sally because that's literally all I could process. It was my husband who gave me the nickname and it really pissed my mom and sister off. They couldn't understand why he would make a joke out of something so serious. I'm grateful that he did though because it helped him make it through which in turn helped me make it through as well. If you can't find the humor in life, it's pretty much pointless. So anyway... that's my story! :) I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Please let me know what you think and thanks for reading! 3