Bella's POV
Edward and I were curled together on his bed the next morning, his arms around me in comfort, when he suddenly stiffened.
"What?" I asked quickly, wondering what had put him on alert.
"Charlie's coming over," he said, relaxing back against me. "Alice just told me he'll be here in thirty minutes."
I looked over my shoulder at the clock on the wall and noticed it was close to eight in the morning. "He must be going in to work late," I commented, feeling unsettled as I thought about what his visit might entail. Edward had explained about my dad's thoughts from the night before, but I was still nervous.
~*~FC~*~
"Bella," Edward called as he caught up to me in the trees. "Stop, please."
I shook my head and continued running. I knew I wasn't going to go far—I couldn't...I couldn't leave Lizzie—but my heart was aching at the thought of my father turning his back on me, and I needed to run or I'd break down.
With Edward beside me, I raced up into the mountains. When I finally reached the cave where Jacob had kept me hidden during my change, I collapsed, burying my face in my hands. I felt like crying, I felt like screaming, throwing things, but I did none of those things. Instead, I hid—from the world, from Edward...from myself. For a few minutes, nothing outside my little personal space existed. I was numb to everything and everyone outside the little circle I'd drawn around myself in my head.
The moment I lifted my head, intent on searching for Edward, he scooted a few inches until he could wrap his arms around me, and pulled me onto his lap. How he knew that's what I'd been seeking, I didn't know, but I wasn't going to question it. I just clung to him as he brushed kisses across my hair and murmured words of love.
After a few more minutes of silence, he finally spoke. "He doesn't hate you, you know." His voice was quiet, thoughtful.
I swallowed around the sudden lump in my throat. "Wh-What?"
"Charlie," he explained. "His thoughts came through loud and clear before I left. He wanted you to understand that he didn't want you gone for good. He just needed time, and he hopes you understand."
"He wasn't scared of me?" I asked timidly. "He doesn't hate me?"
"No, love," Edward rushed to reassure me. "He really doesn't."
~*~FC~*~
Shaking myself from my memories of the night before, I kissed Edward, showing him how much it had meant, having him there with me all night.
"We'd better go downstairs, huh?" I asked, fighting the urge to protect myself by running away from my dad before he got to the Cullens' house. If I wasn't there to see the fear and anger—or maybe even worse, the disappointment—in his eyes, then I could pretend like nothing was wrong.
At Edward's nod, I sighed and stood, holding my hand out for him to take.
Together, we walked down the stairs, meeting the rest of the family in the living room.
"Don't worry, Bellsy," Emmett said. "The chief won't be able to be mad at you for long. I'd say if he's coming over now, it's a good thing, right?" He grinned from his spot along one wall.
Giving him a halfhearted smile at best, I nodded. "Thanks, Em. Hopefully you're right." Then I looked at Alice, who was perched on Jasper's lap on one of the dining room chairs. "Have you seen anything, Alice?"
From her expression and the way Edward froze again, I knew she had.
"Tell me," I growled, really not in the mood for them tip-toeing around me.
"He's bringing Lizzie," she said, smiling tentatively.
I felt hope bubble up in my chest. "That's a good thing, right?" I asked, looking around the room. "I mean, surely he wouldn't bring her if he was just going to tell me to leave and never come back." Then I realized that was a distinct possibility. Gasping, I asked, "He wouldn't just bring her to try to force me into saying goodbye, would he?"
"I don't think so, Bella," Alice answered. "He keeps changing his mind about different things, so I can't get a solid read on him, but I haven't seen him try anything like that."
Nodding, I smiled my thanks and went back to picking at a stray thread on my jeans until Edward pulled my hand away, holding it tightly on top of his thigh.
"Relax, love," he murmured. "Everything's gonna be okay."
A few minutes later, I tensed again as we heard Charlie's cruiser pull up at the end of the driveway, slowly making its way up to the house. His heart was beating slightly faster than normal, and when he stopped in front of the garage, it skipped a beat before settling. I heard him exhale once, and whatever he was thinking must've been calming him, because his breathing and heartbeat settled to a much more normal pattern.
He began whispering sweetly to Lizzie as he got her out of the back seat. I could tell he was trying to be quiet, but there was no way I was able to miss the words that caused my now-still heart to flip in my chest.
"C'mon, Lizzie girl," Charlie murmured to the baby. "Let's go see your momma, huh? Yeah, you'll love that." Then his tone turned wry. "Long as she doesn't try to eat us."
Emmett cracked up at the last part. "Drink, maybe," he cackled, smacking his thigh.
Edward growled at Emmett's tasteless joke while Rose jabbed her elbow hard into her husband's stomach from her position on his lap.
"Kidding, kidding!" Emmett said with a groan. "Bellsy knows I'm just teasing her. Relax. She's got this thing under control, right, baby sis?"
His confidence in me made me grin, even through my nerves, and I chuckled. "Sure, Em. Thanks."
He nodded once and winked before bending his head down and whispering words to Rose that I knew I didn't want to hear.
We were all still as Charlie walked slowly up the front steps to the door, and when he knocked once, Carlisle smiled over at me and moved to the entry to answer.
"Hello, Chief Swan," Carlisle said as soon as the door opened. "Please come in."
I heard Charlie hesitate before stepping across the threshold. His shoes squeaked slightly on the floor of the entry, the soles damp from the dew-covered ground. "Thank you," he said gruffly. "Bella here?"
"Yes, of course. She's in the living room, right around the corner."
Three seconds later, Carlisle walked through the open doorway, followed by a cautious Charlie carrying Lizzie in her car seat. From her even breathing and soft exhalations, I could tell she was asleep.
Charlie startled as his eyes fell on the group gathered in the room, but his shoulders relaxed slightly when his glance landed on Edward and me, sitting together on the couch. "Hey, Bells," he said, his voice softer now.
"Hi, Dad," I responded, smiling nervously at him.
"I, uh..." He cleared his throat softly. "I knew we needed to talk more, and I figured it was about time for Lizzie to see her momma."
I had to work to keep my head on my shoulders with the force of my nod. "Yeah, thanks."
"Have a seat, Chief Swan," Esme said sweetly, gesturing to the chair across from the couch we'd left open for him.
"Thank you," Charlie answered with a nod. "And I thought I told you to call me Charlie, Mrs. Cullen." He moved toward the chair, careful not to jostle Lizzie too much.
"Charlie," Esme repeated, smiling. "Please, call me Esme."
Everyone was quiet as Charlie set the car seat down on the floor in front of the chair and unbuckled the baby, taking her and an extra blanket out of the seat and then moving two steps in my direction. "Uh, Jake said you'd probably want this," he said, holding the thick blanket out. "Something about—" he paused, drawing in a deep breath before continuing "—being a little too cold and hard for her."
Mutely, I nodded, taking the blanket from his outstretched hands and putting it over my left arm like I had the first time I'd held her after my change. Once that was settled, he leaned down and carefully placed Lizzie in my arms.
I cradled my daughter gently to me, feeling my eyes sting as I looked down into my angel's face. "Thanks, Dad," I said softly.
Lizzie startled at the sound of my voice and opened her eyes, gazing up at me like she'd done so many times before. Before I could even blink, she threw her hand out and found my finger, grasping it tightly—something that was routine, even now.
I expected her to jerk away from my touch—the cool temperature, if nothing else—but I was once again shocked and awed when, instead of moving away, she gripped me tighter, her tiny fingers squeezing with all her might.
"Hi, baby," I whispered. "Don't worry. Momma's got you. I'm never going anywhere again, I promise."
My voice was much calmer than I was feeling inside, but Lizzie definitely recognized that it was me. She focused her gaze on my face, gurgling happily up at me and waving our hands around as she kept her grip on my finger.
I could hear the conversations going on around me—Carlisle, Emmett, Jasper, and Alice were gathered behind the couch, looking over my shoulder as they cooed at Lizzie and made comments about how cute she was—but all of it was muted. My focus was entirely on my precious daughter. Her blood and Charlie's didn't even really register as anything more than just different scents in the room.
Lizzie finally began looking around at the different faces hovering behind me, smiling at what I assumed were silly faces made by Emmett—or Uncle Emmett, as I heard him proclaim proudly.
As they began to settle and move back to their places around the room, I finally looked back at my dad. "Thank you for coming by," I said quietly, still incredibly nervous.
"I, uh..." he began, clearing his throat once more before starting again. "I'm sorry I made you feel like that yesterday. It was a lot to take in." There was a deep breath before he looked fully up at me and sighed. "I didn't know what to think or say, Bells. But I talked a lot to Sue, Jake, and Seth last night. The kids are pretty persuasive." He chuckled, shaking his head, before getting serious again. "Anyway, they explained more about the treaty and said I would need to talk to the Cullens more about the secret and what your plans are from here, so..."
I nodded. "We have to move," I started, rocking gently back and forth when Lizzie started fussing. Once she was calm, I explained, "I look too different to stay, and really, it's too dangerous for me to be around normal humans for the first year or so. My control is good with you and Lizzie..." My voice trailed off as I tried to think of how best to phrase it.
"Your control is exceptional, Bella," Carlisle said gently before turning to Charlie. "As we explained, Bella's gift and the familial aspect help with the control around the two of you, and even with Sue, her control is good because of the shield. But really, it's best not to chance it. Normally, we would take Bella up to Alaska, where some friends of ours live—another family that lives like ours—but because of the baby, we all thought it prudent to stay somewhere not quite as cold or remote."
"We found a place in Wisconsin, Charlie," Alice said in an upbeat voice. She ran through everything we knew about the new place, including the fact that it was only a short plane ride away, while I soothed an increasingly upset Lizzie.
"Dad," I interrupted, shooting Alice an apologetic look, "has she eaten yet?"
He shook his head. "She was still sleepy when we left the house, so I just brought her bottle. I changed her, but she hasn't eaten."
Making my first decision as a mother since my change, I looked at Edward and smiled. "Hold her for me?"
Edward looked hesitant, but held his arm out, accepting the transfer of Lizzie and blanket without further comment.
Brushing my finger lightly across her cheek, I took a deep breath and then turned to Charlie. "Come on, Dad. You can help me get the temperature right."
~*~*~FC~*~*~
Edward's POV
I froze when Bella put the baby in my arms. It was like the entire world boiled down to just the two of us. Nothing and no one else existed for a moment but myself and the two-month-old baby I was holding for the first time. I heard Bella take Charlie into the kitchen. I heard my family collectively holding their breath. But all my focus was on Lizzie.
I'd seen her on our visits to Charlie's and in the thoughts of everyone in Bella's life, but seeing her in my arms was a whole different ball game. Her eyes, though green instead of the deep brown I used to see when I looked at Bella, were the same shape as her mother's. The green reminded me much of my own before my change. It was unusual to see a two-month-old with eyes other than blue, but from my memories of baby pictures of Bella, hers had been brown from the very beginning, too, so maybe something about it was genetic. Her thin, wispy hair was the same shade of brown, and her nose was just the right size, turned up slightly at the end. Her light pink lips were pursed, making sucking motions. Her cheeks were slightly chubby, although she was a small baby, and while her skin was pale, the apples of her cheeks were a light pink, reminding me of Bella's blush. In fact, aside from the eye color, she looked like a miniature Bella.
I was still gazing down at her when she flailed her arms and grasped onto my finger. When she looked up at me, her eyes focusing on my face, and grinned a happy baby smile, I could have sworn I felt something in my chest flutter. Suddenly, I knew it had taken me about as long to fall for little Elizabeth Anne-Marie Swan as it had for her mother. From that moment on, I knew I would love this little girl as if she were my own.
