Disclaimer: All the Twilight stuff belongs to Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement is intended. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

Author's Note: Slightly shorter chapter - if I unpack 5 boxes a day, I can be all done by Thanksgiving - as of today, I am 21 boxes behind due to spending the weekend seeing my daughter and her family! Woops! More from back home on Thursday . . . we still need to hear from Carlisle and Esme, not to mention Jake!

Chapter 116 Back Home

Edward smirked, obviously taking my comment as something to do with sex

as he immediately stood, anxiously saying that we should hurry home!

~oooOooo~

BPOV

"Edward, the locket is just beautiful, " I told him as I sat back in the soft leather seats of the car that my husband so blatantly adored.

"I'm glad you like it, love."

"Your mother had green eyes, and Masen's eyes are green most of the time," I mused, "didn't Carlisle say that your eyes were green when you were human?"

"Yes."

"Such a pretty green. I hope Masen's eyes stay that color."

"I love the chocolate brown eyes I look into every day, but I'm getting used to Masen's green ones as well," Edward laughed, shifting gears and speeding up as Masen laughed and played with his teddy bear behind us.

I took the time to just look around me, admiring not only the scenery as we sped through the ancient streets and out into the countryside, but the car as well. Edward really loved his cars, and I could see the craftsmanship and detail that had gone into this one. It was easy to see why he was so nuts over it, even though I still shuttered at the price. I guess I was just wanting to press my luck, or maybe I was just in a mischievous mood when I asked . . .

"So, when will I get a turn driving this?"

It was all I could do to hold back laughter and keep a straight face as my husbands eyes opened wide and his chin dropped. I couldn't be sure, but I would have sworn that a shudder ran through his body, if only for a moment.

"You want to drive the car, love?" he said, an incredulous tone in his voice, "I thought you didn't know how to drive a stick?"

"I don't," I paused for a long moment, letting him stew, "but you could teach me."

"I would love to teach you, but it would be better to learn on a different car . . . one that has an easier clutch. This one is quite sensitive and much harder to learn on, " he all but stammered.

How funny was he, trying not to offend me but grasping at every possible reason for me not to drive his baby, at least, not to learn on it.

"I'm sure you can teach me on this one, sweetheart. I have faith in you," I told him, still managing a straight face.

Masen must have picked up on my mood because he started clapping his hands and laughing and Edward cocked his head at me and furrowed his eyebrow, understanding creeping in.

"Bella!"

I lost it, cracking up and laughing as he shook his head and the tension in his body relaxed.

"You are just so funny about your cars! What gave me away? Was it Masen?" I said, turning in my seat to poke the little monster in the ribs and make him laugh even harder.

"He sensed your mood and thought it was funny, well, he thought my thoughts were funny and then he gathered that you were doing it on purpose," he laughed, "You really had me going. I thought you were serious!"

I deadpanned, staring straight at him, "I am serious."

He froze. I couldn't help it, I couldn't torture him any longer and I reached over and squeezed his thigh, laughing.

"You're so easy, Edward!" I laughed.

Lucky for him we pulled up to the bed and breakfast and I unbuckled Masen as Edward came around to open my door.

"That was funny wasn't it, baby. Daddy is funny about his cars. Wait till you are old enough to drive and you want to borrow this car. We'll see what he has to say then," I chattered on to the baby, my words causing Edward to turn to stone momentarily as he stood holding our door.

"Well, you know he'll want to drive this . . . he'll probably inherit your love for fast cars and want to drive yours," I said as a final jab before I took his hand and pulled the half stunned vampire into the inn with me.

Dinner was waiting and we were warmly greeted as the door opened and delicious smells escaped. Edward said something about putting away the things we had bought in town and he hurried upstairs as Masen and I went to sit at the table. The food was delicious, but all I could think about was the gift that I had waiting for Edward.

I had researched it, of course. I had wanted to get him some original music, the actual manuscript sheets that the composer had used to first write down his new creation. I wanted classical, and the composer had to be someone that would have been alive and composing when Edward was human - and old enough to have heard of him.

Sergei Rachmaninoff was from Russia and had been in his 40's and 50's when Edward was a teenager. He was known as a famous piano player before a composer. His hands were ridiculously large, which allowed him to make huge stretches across the keyboard and his playing style was extremely clean and precise. Rachmaninoff's music was sultry and passionate, most of it being mysterious and gloomy - even old Rach himself said that he had trouble writing happy-sounding pieces! I started to pass on his because they were not cheerful, but the fact that his hands could reach about one and a half times what normal hands could reach and he had an appetite for speed made his pieces require somewhat superhuman skill to perform. Not many were apparently able to perform his pieces . . . but I was fairly certain Edward would love them.

I had spent a fortune on them, having to transfer money into my account to cover the cost, but I wanted him to have something special from me for our first Valentine's Day together. I had ,et with the seller in Paris when Alice and I had been out shopping. Edward's composing a song for me the other day just made the gift of music even more special. Alice and I had carefully packed the sheets of music, already wrapped and encased in protective covering, and they were in the side pouch of the small bag we had brought with us from Venice.

Edward came down and joined us at the table, feeding Masen and talking about the sights we had seen and telling me how far it was to the house we owned and how beautiful the drive was going to be in the morning. Masen's appetite was growing just as rapidly as he was and we had picked up a few new clothes for him in the shops today. It seemed he was wearing toddler sizes now and the 18 month sized clothes were getting tight. I was sure Alice had seen this, but happy that she hadn't packed for it and Edward and I had gotten to enjoy shopping for Masen's needs.

We thanked our host for dinner and headed upstairs to put Masen down. Edward changed him and I sat and breastfed him in the rocker in his room till his eyes closed and his lips fell away from my nipple. He was just so cute like that, totally out of it and completely dependent on us. Edward laid him in his crib and covered him with his blanket and we headed to our room.

The door had barely closed before Edward had me pressed against it and lifted my legs to wrap around his waist. He seemed beside himself, unable to control his need to be closer, to touch more of me.

"Sweetheart, I need a human minute," I told him quietly between kisses.

"Don't take too long, Mrs. Cullen," he said as he put me down and I headed towards our closet.

I grabbed a nightgown, the blue one that he loved so much, and Edward grabbed some silk sleep pants, starting to undress as I watched him.

"Enjoying the show, Mrs. Cullen?" he asked as he laid his shirt across the chair and took his belt off, unbuttoning his jeans.

"Always, Mr. Cullen," I smiled as I turned and headed into the bathroom.

Edward had a book in his hand when I returned from the bathroom, but he was instantly beside me, covering my neck and jaw with kisses as his hands traced the laces that held the back of my nightgown together. I put the palms of my hands against his chest and pushed. He noticed immediately, of course. Though my pushing him had no effect in reality, the surprise on his face was evident as he allowed some space between us. It was unusual for me to push him away. Okay, I had never pushed him away like that before, and he was startled by it.

"Bella . . ."

"I just want to give you my present!" I explained, "Go sit on the bed and close your eyes."

He did as requested immediately, though he made no effort to hide the pouty expression that covered his face.

"I hope you like this as much as I like the locket you gave me," I told him, handing him the wrapped folder.

He carefully opened it and stared at the contents, his eyes wide and his mouth open as if if he were going to stay something, but had stopped.

"Bella! Are these . . . these are the originals? Original manuscript sheets from Rachmaninoff himself?"

"Yes."

"I can't believe it. He was famous when I was still human, though nobody but him was supposed to be able to play some of his compositions . . . they were too difficult and requited too much speed and reach. It challenges me to play his work. Oh My God! Bella, I love it, I just can't believe you found these!" he said looking at the papers like he just got the best Christmas gift ever.

"Thank you, love. This is amazing!" he said quietly. "There is a piano at our house and I can't wait to play these for you!"

"We could leave tonight and go there if you want," I told him, starting to stand and head toward my clothes.

"I can wait till morning," he said, grabbing hold of my wrist and carefully laying the folder on the night side table. "Our son is asleep, and I need to make love to my wife. It's Valentine's Day," he whispered against my skin, kissing my throat and down my neck towards my collarbone as he stood holding me beside the bed.

I lost count of how many times he made love to me that night. He said something about our having been married for eight months, so I think he was going for eight - but it was difficult to be sure when you were so consumed.

I was exceptionally unaware when I was otherwise occupied.

Or so Edward liked to tell me.

We were up midmorning, Edward having already packed the car and dressed Masen while I slept, obviously anxious to head to the house in Bolzano . . . and the piano that waited there!

~oooOooo~

Sam Uley. As I have witnessed firsthand your treason and betrayal and you have admitted openly to breaking the treaty, your place in this pack is forfeit. You may only join us when called upon, phasing to wolf only when you are requested to do so.

I will be asking you to phase periodically so that I can know what you are thinking, and if you are still abiding by the orders I am going to give you. This is your punishment.

As far as Emily is concerned, your relationship is between the two of you. You will be allowed to work and live on the reservation still, if you choose to and if it is acceptable to her.

As a type of community service, you will be required to maintain the grounds at the Cullen estate for as long as they continue to own it and you continue to be a member of this tribe.

This will include the home where Charles Swan resides as well, for as long as he or his descendants own the property.

~oooOooo~

Charlie POV

"So, everything is going well with the baby?" I asked .

Emily had brought over some of the most delicious cinnamon rolls I had tasted in awhile, and I was having my third one as we sat at the kitchen table, drinking coffee and watching Sam out the window as he worked in my yard.

"Everything is fine, heading into the second trimester and NOW I'm starting to get sick in the mornings. I thought I bypassed that all together, but it seems to have caught up with me!" she laughed. "Have you heard from Bella and Edward?" she asked, pausing to sip her coffee.

"Not since they left Paris a week or so ago. They were taking some train to Italy, to that city, whichever one where they use boats instead of cars to get around . . . "

"Venice?"

"Yea, that's it, Emily. Venice. She seemed real excited about it," I told her, sipping my coffee and grabbing another cinnamon roll.

"How exciting is that!" Emily exclaimed, "And Renee is still traveling with them?"

"Yea, yea. She was. She called me last night to tell me she was back home, seems Phil caught a stray ball in the head and broke his ankle in the process."

"No!" Emily almost whispered, "Is he alright?"

"She said he would be fine, but Edward and Bella took her to the airport in Venice and shipped her home to Jacksonville. She really wasn't sure where they were going after that, something about Romeo and Juliet if that makes any sense."

"Verona."

"What?"

"Verona, Italy. That's where Romeo first met Juliet and I think it's near Venice. I bet they're going there. Edward would take her to some romantic place like that, especially for Valentine's Day," Emily guessed.

"Well that figures then, Emily. That Edward has it bad for her and he would do something romantic like that, wouldn't he?" I laughed.

"I suppose so. They really are in love, Charlie. It's nice to see after all they went through," she told me, her eyes wandering off out the window to stare at Sam as he worked.

"Have you heard from Jake?" I asked.

I really missed Bella and my grandson, and I wasn't sure that talking about them wouldn't make it worse.

"No, I haven't, Charlie. Not since he left last month to head back to Highlands. He seemed to be doing well, though," she smiled, "well, after he managed to convince the Council that he could be effective and be Chief and still spend a considerable amount of his time in Highlands running Black Swan Racing."

"So, how are things with you and Sam?" I asked, knowing it was a somewhat loaded question.

It was a question I had avoided, not being one for getting involved in emotional topics, but Emily was a really sweet girl and I didn't really think she had anyone to talk to . . . especially not a dad. I was thinking maybe I could help and just be there for her.

"Oh, I don't know, Charlie. He's trying, I know he's trying," Emily sighed. "He doesn't say anything about any of it. He goes to work, he doesn't socialize at all, he comes home and takes care of my yard and cleans and does whatever he sees that needs doing . . . and sleeps on the couch. He never comes upstairs to our room unless he's putting away laundry or getting something for me."

"So, is that bad?" I asked.

"It's not that it's bad, it's just that he's acting like he's scared to rock the boat, Charlie. Like if he talks to me or assumes anything, I might ask him to leave," she paused, "I just don't know what to do. I just don't seem to have it in me to forgive him for what he did, how he acted. I just need to somehow know that he wouldn't make the same decisions again if he was in that situation."

I started to see watery eyes, and I hoped it wouldn't come to that . . .

"I want him around, Charlie. I love him but . . . I just can't," she confided, checking her tears and regaining her composure.

Thank god.

"What did Edward have to say about him, Emily? That mind reading could come in handy for you here. It would be hard to fool him, wouldn't it?" I asked, refilling my coffee cup.

"I think so," she said, almost to herself.

She nibbled on a cinnamon roll while I helped myself to a forth one off the plate she had brought over, and she seemed to be considering something as she stared out the window.

"Edward said his thoughts were sincere and he was sorry, but I just have to be sure he really has changed. maybe when they get back from Europe, maybe Edward would be willing to look in and see if he still had the same thoughts,"

"Well, I have no idea when they are coming back, but Jacob will be back next month for that council meeting. Couldn't he phase into wolf and do that mind thing to see what Sam's thoughts were?" I asked.

"Mind thing?" she laughed, holding her stomach and almost spitting coffee all over.

"I don't know what you call it, but you know what I mean. Don't the wolves know what each other is thinking when they are wolves?"

"Yes, Charlie, that's what they tell me. Jake would do that for me, wouldn't he?" she questioned, seeming to brighten up.

"Sure, Edward or Jake either one would, you know that. One way or the other, they would get you answers if you asked them, Emily," I told her, sipping the last of my coffee and vowing not to try and stuff any more into my stomach this morning.

"Well, I'm not going anywhere, and apparently neither is Sam. I guess I can just wait and see what happens," she said, getting up to put my cup and hers in the sink, "The longer he stays consistent, the better the chances are that the change was permanent."

"If it's any indication, Emily, I've been past the Cullen house just to check on it and the yard and grounds are always picture perfect. Sam keeps my yard like Better Homes and Gardens," I confided, "and he has never complained . . . not even once."

"Thank you, Charlie," she said, hugging me as I stood to put the left over rolls in the fridge," thank you for telling me that. I guess time will tell,"

"You just take care of you and that little one. Babies can change lots of things, Emily, and we need some little ones around here. I miss my grandson more than I can even tell you," i explained.

"Tell your daughter that she needs to make a trip out here, Charlie. We would all like to see Masen," Emily said brightly, like she really did want to see him.

"I don't know how good an idea that would be. He's growing faster than any human, you know. Last time Bella sent me a photo he was walking around holding on to things. He's less than two months old, Emily. No human baby could do that and folks here would notice right away. No, I think I'll need to go see him, not have him come here," I told her, "Maybe I should get a passport. If they aren't back in a month or so, they just might have to deal with me coming there to see them!"

I was laughing and kidding as we walked outside to join Sam. We had seen him putting the equipment away and knew that he was finishing up. I loved all my friends here in Forks, but I really was serious about keeping in touch with my grandson. I would be applying for a passport later today, now that I had thought about it. I had never been out of the country, but thee was a first time for everything. If they were going to run around the globe, I guess I would just have to go and find them.

I looked at my watch, realizing I was about to be late. If I was going to go globe hopping, I guess I needed to get some overtime in to afford it . . .

I was just walking out the door as the phone rang. Guess I just wasn't used to having to carry around a damned cellular phone in addition to the radio in my patrol car, but when I looked at the caller and it was Sue, any irritation vanished just like if it had been Bella. I was getting kind of used to having Sue around, if the truth be told.

"Morning, Sue! Happy Valentine's Day!" I said before she beat me to it.

"Happy Valentine's Day to you, too, " she answered, always so cheerful, "I just called to make sure you still wanted to go out tonight. I really could just make us dinner at home, you know. there will be so many people going out to dinner tonight, it might be a long wait at the restaurant."

"No, no. I want to take you out tonight. No cooking for you on Valentine's day, not for my girl. I'll pick you up at 7, alright?" I asked just to check.

"Okay, Charlie. If you insist, I'll be waiting. Bye now."

"See you at 7. Bye, Sue," I told her, pushing the button for off and putting the phone back in my jacket pocket.

"Ha! Like I would cancel," I muttered out loud as I walked toward the car.

I had these reservations since I got back from Highlands. Dinner at the Lodge, and the best table, quiet and in the back with a view. I fingered the little box that was still in my pocket where I put the phone, taking it out to check just one more time. She was going to like the ring, at least I hoped so. I pulled out into the street, remembering to stop by the cleaners and pick up my suit. It was going to be quite an eventful evening and I wanted it to go perfectly.

I thought about talking to Bella first, giving her a head's up, but I had decided not to. As well as I had gotten to know her Edward, the boy had already picked it out of my head before I left his house, and she would know soon enough. As much as I wanted to talk to her about it and make sure she was okay with it, this was between me and Sue, and I wanted her to be the first one to hear it from me.

I hadn't done this in a lot of years and I was nervous as hell. Besides, she might say no . . .

~oooOooo~