Disclaimer: I own everything but their names.

June 29, 2001 – Santa Cruz, California

I learned a lot from Jasper in that first week. With his flirty, playful and often hilarious attitude, it only took a short time before I began feeling more comfortable; not only with what I was doing, but around all that testosterone as well.

Edward, though, continued to be a conundrum. He was always the first one I saw in the morning, but he typically stayed hidden throughout the day.

Though I knew I shouldn't, I looked forward to those precious few minutes I got with him each morning. I wasn't about to leap at him, granted, but I didn't see anything wrong with a harmless crush. Girls my age had them every day, sometimes more than one at a time. So, I fully gave in to the fantasy. My stomach had a habit of jumping into somersaults as soon as I heard his Jeep approaching. He would show up all sleepy eyed with wet hair and smelling like the ocean, and I locked each one of those details away to be dissected later.

I rarely got more than the gentlest of smiles before he unlocked the door, but I didn't care because it was something. Every day I wondered if maybe that day would be different; that he'd actually, you know, talk to me. And some days, he did. It never felt like enough though—he always left me wanting more.

The few times I did get more were when Lisle came around. On Friday afternoons Edward would disappear and, when he resurfaced, Lisle was always wrapped around him like a little spider monkey.

He would suddenly become more animated, more talkative. Happier. Like a switch had been flipped.

That second Friday, as soon as Lisle noticed me, his eyes lit up and he wiggled to be set free from Edward's hold. Once on his feet, he bounded around the counter and threw himself up and into my arms like we'd known each other forever. I was shocked, even more so that he'd even remembered me. I hadn't realized kids his age were so smart.

Don't judge me; I'd never really been around one before.

"What you doing here?" he asked. "You come to see me?"

I grinned and tickled his sides, deciding to indulge him a little. "I sure did."

His face lit up like I'd given him the best news ever.

"Daddy, Bella came to see me!" Lisle yelled.

Unsure how he'd handle me interacting with his son, I shifted my gaze to Edward. Some people were weird about their kids, and I was still a virtual stranger to them both.

His face betrayed absolutely nothing except a smile.

"She sure did, buddy," he said. "Why don't you come over here and play with me?"

"Nu uh," Lisle argued, snuggling closer to me. Edward looked on, reaching up to run his fingers through his hair. I smiled at him and turned my attention to the action figure Lisle was telling me all about. Satisfied that his child was in relatively safe hands, Edward moved to the back of the shop to unload some of Lisle's toys.

After a few minutes, Lisle rested his head on my shoulder and buried his thumb in his mouth. And I had no idea what to do. When I looked over to Edward for help, he was watching us quietly with that look on his face. The one that intrigued me and made me uncomfortable at the same time.

When I looked back down at Lisle, he stirred and snuggled in even closer. Edward walked in our direction and apologized quietly as he attempted to pry the little boy from me, but he refused to let go.

Lisle grumpily shook his head and squeezed tighter. He pulled his thumb from his mouth and scowled up at Edward. "She more comfy den you, Daddy."

Edward's eyes widened and then he smiled a little, gasping as he clutched his chest playfully. "Nobody's comfier than me, dude."

"Yes huh, her is." Lisle reached up and wrapped his fingers around a lock of hair that'd escaped from my ponytail.

Edward bit his lip and just stared like he didn't know what to do. Slowly he dipped his head toward my shoulder, trying to catch Lisle's eyes.

"L, you're hurting my feelings," he pouted.

Completely unfazed, Lisle reached out and patted Edward's cheek. "No worry Dada, I still love you mostest."

I had to bite my lip to hold in my laughter.

"It's okay," I whispered.

"I remember when I was the coolest thing in his world," Edward whispered back.

"I bet you still are."

Edward smiled at me then. The best one he'd ever given me up to that point. It made my heart pound in an entirely different way than it ever had before.

His voice was so soft when he spoke again that it made goosebumps rise on my arms. "Thank you, Bella."

More Edward and more Lisle. That's good, right? Also, several of you were curious about his name. It's Lisle, short for Carlisle. He's named after Edward and Jasper's father. So is the surf shop. CC stands for Carlisle Cullen.

Thank you for reading!

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Until tomorrow!

xx