Thanks to SusanQ, Nicffwhisperer, VampiresHaveLaws, Kikki7, Julie, KittyVuitton, Stephanie, Jaime, Nolebucgrl, and Sydney Alice for all of their help pre-reading/betaing/supporting me. I'm always tinkering until right before posting and any mistakes are mine.

Max

Alec's words of warning stuck with me while I sat through class and barely paid attention. It was a review for midterms anyway, so I didn't feel guilty for letting my mind wander. My attention was focused on whether I had made the same mistake I accused Edward of by not talking to him first before taking the puppy.

It was a big responsibility to own a pet. And what if Edward didn't like animals?

It was stupid of me to be so impulsive, and I was close to tears when class ended, wondering if Edward was going to be mad at me. Or worse, whether I would have to find a different home for Max.

Alec was right where I left him, holding Max on his lap. I smiled at the sight of my puppy wagging his tail at me, even though my eyes were welling up.

"What's wrong?" Alec asked, immediately aware I was upset.

I sat down beside him, hugging Max to me when he left Alec's lap for mine.

"I'm a bad person."

"Shit," he muttered. He had been bearing the brunt of my mood swings for a couple weeks now. I almost felt bad for him, but not really. "You aren't a bad person."

"Yes, I am." I sniffled and Max licked my cheek. "What am I going to do if Edward doesn't like him?"

"What's done is done, Bella. Just be honest with him and I imagine things will work out okay."

I nodded, still feeling unsure. We were silent except for the occasional loud sigh from Alec as we made our way to the car.

He must have felt guilty or something—even though he shouldn't have—about my tears, because he suggested we make a stop at a pet store on the way home to get supplies.

I started to feel immensely better while loading up on essentials. It was like a sign from fate when I found a cute red collar with the name Max embroidered on it. Along with the collar, I also picked out puppy food, bowls, a leash, shampoo, and even treats shaped like real bacon.

I promise you they did not smell the same when I opened the package.

When we arrived home, Alec helped me carry everything in, and I immediately set out to find Hannah. It wasn't the easiest task since Max seemed more interested in biting his leash than being led by it.

But we finally arrived in the kitchen, finding Hannah snipping flower stems, and I smiled at the sight. She had managed to keep many of my birthday flowers flourishing over the last couple weeks, constantly trimming and watering them. There were several vases full all over the house.

As soon as Max saw her though, he let out a loud bark, and I held onto the leash tightly, trying to restrain his eagerness to lick a new face.

Hannah's eyes widened when she saw the puppy, and I bit my lip nervously as we made our way over.

"You brought home a puppy?" she asked.

I wasn't sure if her tone was surprised or horrified.

Shit.

"Um...yeah." I explained to her how we'd come across him, and that he needed a good home. "He's really so sweet."

She bent down, rubbing his ears with a smile. Almost wistful. "I haven't been around a dog in a long time. The Cullens never had one."

"Why?" I had to know, even if I was scared of her answer.

"Oh, Mrs. Cullen has always been allergic." She sat back on her heels, laughing when Max licked her.

"But not Edward, right?"

She glanced up at me. "No, I don't think so, but I'm not sure how much he's ever been exposed to them either. I take it he doesn't know about this yet?"

I shook my head. "It was stupid. I know. I should have talked with him—and you—first."

"Well, I have no problems with it. I think it would be nice having this little guy around. Although he's not going to stay little for long." She laughed and stood up again. "You'll have to talk to a vet about what it will mean with the baby coming too."

"Yeah. I bet Max will be protective of the baby."

"His name's Max?" She chuckled and leaned over to pet him again. "He's either going to be protective or jealous. But I'm sure he can be trained either way. That is if Edward is okay with all this."

I sighed. "You don't think he will be?"

Her eyes twinkled while she mimicked zipping her lips. I got nothing more when she turned back to tending the flowers.

"Fine. Don't tell me." I huffed and grabbed Max up in my arms. "I'm going to give him a bath so he smells nice for when his Daddy gets home."

The sound of her laughter echoed as I disappeared into a first-floor bathroom, and I cracked a smile. I had gotten the thumbs up from Hannah. Now all I had to worry about was Edward.

I turned on the water, adjusting the temperature to warm, and set a confused Max down in the tub. I took off his collar and leash, placing them on the counter.

"Now you stay there. I'll be right back," I told him, rushing to grab the bag containing his shampoo.

I returned with the bag and towels, Max cocking his head to the side and watching me.

"You are such a good boy! You stayed just like I asked. Now we're going to make you all pretty and sweet smelling and Edward will love you just as much as me."

I was quite certain he gave me a puppy grin and agreed that he was a good boy.

Anticipating this task might end up quite messy, I took off my jeans and button-down shirt, diving in wearing only my t-shirt and underwear. I kneeled next to the tub, grabbing the sprayer and wetting down his fur.

Regardless of him being mostly well-behaved and not moving around too much while I lathered and cleaned and rinsed, I still ended up drenched.

We had a good time though. I kept up a stream of conversation throughout, and he seemed to listen intently—or at least that's what I told myself—because he tilted his head and yipped in agreement at various points.

We were just finishing the final rinse, when I heard Edward's voice from somewhere in the house calling my name.

The only problem...Max heard it too.

He hurdled the side of the tub like a champ and took off running, dripping and shaking water everywhere in his wake.

"No! Max, stop!" I almost slipped trying to get myself up and out the door, but caught my balance and continued the chase.

He was already out of sight.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

My good boy had turned into a gremlin from the water.

I followed the trail of liquid, finally coming to a halt when I found a stunned Edward. He stood in the middle of the hallway, glaring down at the excited puppy, who was barking and pawing Edward's designer suit. His eyes quickly darted from the dog over to me.

I shivered as his intense gaze started at my feet, slowly moving up and lingering on certain parts of my body. Maybe it was a good thing I was standing there in a clinging, wet t-shirt, because he seemed to have forgotten Max sniping at his legs.

"Wha?" His voice broke off and he shook his head before finally meeting my eyes. "Bella, why is there a dog in our house?"

Damn.

Apparently there was a time limit on wet t-shirt distractions. It was time to face the music.

But first things first.

"Max, come here!"

His head snapped in my direction at the sound of my voice, and he came bounding my way. He circled me a couple times, dodging my arms, but I finally caught him. It didn't hurt that Edward probably got a good show of my backside when I bent down to catch the wiggling, wet puppy.

The strangled noise coming from behind me was a good indication anyway.

What?

It wasn't like I meant for it to happen that way.

Really.

"I'm going to take him back in the bathroom and dry him off," I told Edward, turning my head back in his direction. "Can you come with us and I'll tell you everything?"

I didn't wait for his answer because I felt him following behind me. I sat Max up on the counter when we returned, taking a towel to rub him down. Edward leaned in the doorway, watching me, and listened while I told him about Alec and I finding the puppy.

It surprised me when he remained silent, even after I was finished explaining and apologizing for my impulsive behavior. Once Max was as dry as possible, I put his collar back on and set him on the floor.

Before I could even turn back toward Edward, he was spinning me around and setting me up on the counter where Max had just been. He pushed my knees apart, pressing his body flush to mine, his hands gripping my ass to pull me as close as possible.

I started to ask him what he was doing, but his mouth was on mine before I could speak. I put my arms around his neck, trying to keep myself upright from his advance.

Apparently he wasn't too upset about Max, because his hands and tongue were everywhere. When his kisses started down my neck, I decided to press my luck.

"Don't you want to talk about the dog?"

"Oh, we're going to talk about the dog. Trust me." He nibbled below my ear, making me moan out loud despite his somewhat ominous tone. Then he slid his hands down my thighs, and I broke out in goosebumps all over. "In about two minutes, I want these long legs wrapped around my face. So first, we're going to shower, because, baby, you smell like said wet dog and now I smell like wet dog." He brought his lips to my ear. "Then we're going to fuck. A lot. Because you've had me worked up since your phone call earlier. And after that, we'll talk about the dog."

He said fuck. A lot.

I liked the sound of that.

"Are you going to say I have to give him away?"

He sighed and pressed his forehead to mine. "No. But I have some stipulations."

Hmm.

"Stipulations?"

"Yes, and I think that's fair since you made a big decision without talking to me first. Right?'

I nodded, satisfied that I was going to get to keep Max. "I have to admit, you seem to be taking this better than I thought you would."

He chuckled. "Well, a little birdy may have given me the head's up before I got home."

"Alec?"

"Yeah. He said he was tired of our pissy moods, so he was playing mediator before I came home and blew up at you." He paused, his eyes boring into mine. "I don't think I would ever have truly blown up at you though. Not for something like this."

I gave him a small smile. "It seemed like you were caught off guard when you came in though."

"Well, you did catch me off guard in this getup." His fingers slipped up under my wet t-shirt. After a few more lip-locks, he pulled back again. "I'm not happy you did this without discussing it first, but I love you. If you truly want a puppy, then we can keep him."

I couldn't hold myself back, kissing him hard on the lips. Then his cheeks, forehead, anyplace I could reach.

"I love you so much," I said between kisses. "You are so good to me."

He groaned, his mouth on mine again before pulling me off the counter. "I'm going to be very good to you soon enough." He smacked my ass lightly with a smirk. "Go on up. I'm going to take the dog outside really quick and will join you in a few minutes."

My eyes widened. "You're taking him out?"

"I don't want him peeing in the house and you're not going outside like that," he explained with a shrug.

I was still soaked and only wearing a t-shirt, so I went along willingly, scampering upstairs and into the shower. It warmed me he was already going out of his way in regards to Max. In fact, not only was I keeping the puppy, but I was also about to get sex out of the deal.

This was turning out much better than I planned.

~~~*~~~NOP~~~*~~~

"Are you hungry?"

It was a week later, and Edward and I were leaving from our second OB appointment. The baby was perfect and I was a healthy thirteen weeks along.

"Yes, starving actually," I told him, leaning against his side in the back of the car.

Edward had Felix stop at a restaurant on the way home, and we were quickly seated and served our lunches. I took a bite of my steak, wishing there was some way to get a jar of peanut butter on the side.

"I think we're having a boy," he said.

I smiled over at him across the table. He had barely touched his food, too busy looking through the ultrasound photographs from the doctor.

"What makes you think that?"

He shrugged and popped a french fry in his mouth. "He just looks like a boy."

I shook my head, but didn't tell him my real thoughts. Although I loved our baby, he or she looked more like an alien at this point than anything. But I didn't want to hurt Edward's feelings.

"Are you saying you would rather have a boy?"

"No!" He looked up at me and shook his head. "I don't care either way. I only hope they're healthy."

There he went...melting my heart again.

"Really? You really don't have a preference? It's okay if you want a boy first, you know. It's alright to admit it."

"Honestly. Boy or girl. Doesn't matter to me."

I dropped it since he sounded pretty adamant. With his views on heritage and desiring heirs for his fortune, I'd assumed he would prefer having a boy first. But maybe I was wrong.

"Did you call your mother yet?" I asked.

He shook his head. "No, but I will tonight."

"If you don't, I'm going to."

He snorted. "I will. I'll make reservations this weekend."

When Esme had called me a few days ago to ask if I would accompany to her to a ladies charity benefit, I'd realized during the conversation she didn't know yet I was pregnant. Edward told me he hadn't said anything to them because he was waiting for me to get to the second trimester. I had my doubts about that reasoning, and thought it had more to do with him still being resistant to make up with his father.

I pointed my fork in his direction. "This is going to be a nice dinner. You know your mother is going to be ecstatic and so will your father."

"Yeah, I know."

I rolled my eyes. It was like pulling teeth getting Edward to give an inch to anyone aside from me.

He liked to give me all his inches.

And he had a lot of them.

He raised his eyebrow when I started giggling at my thoughts. Nobody would understand the crazy that went on in my head.

I eventually finished most of my lunch before asking the server to wrap the rest of the meat and the bone.

"For Max," I explained when Edward questioned me.

He groaned.

"Oh, quiet you. I know you love him," I teased.

They had a relationship which could only be labeled tenuous at best. Well, the tension seemed to be mostly one-sided. Max loved Edward, but the feelings weren't exactly reciprocated.

Especially when Max showed his love by chewing on Edward's shoes.

This would result in Edward and I chasing the puppy around the house, trying to get the shoe back. It became clear quickly that Max thought it was a game. I would usually quit after a few minutes, put my feet up, and laugh at a winded Edward running around cursing for another twenty.

Then Edward would do something sweet the next day, like bring home a Louis Vuitton dog collar, and I would be assured he liked the puppy at least a little.

The stipulations which had been laid down from the onset were relatively tame. Edward had insisted on an additional veterinary visit, so we were sure about vaccines, development issues, and had all relevant information for first-time dog owners.

Further, he hired a dog-walking service, who would send someone once daily-every day-to come take Max on a long walk outside. Edward didn't want me walking around long distances alone and said if I wanted to take him on additional walks close to the house, I could do that.

I had readily agreed to that particular suggestion, since I knew Max needed the exercise and sometimes I was too exhausted for long hikes. Plus, I didn't want to force Alec or Felix to walk me around, nor should Hannah feel obligated to take care of my dog.

The third stipulation had been a re-landscaping of the back yard. He'd contracted someone to rip up part of the stone patio, putting a decent-sized sod area out there where we could let Max outside to do his business without being worried he would run away.

I'd nodded and smiled when Edward told me these rules while we were lying together in bed after several rounds of sex in and out of the shower. Then he'd tickled me mercilessly when I asked him if he was going to make me sign another contract.

I thought it was funnier than he did.

Once we got home from lunch, Edward called his mother and made dinner reservations for us, while I went upstairs to change and look online to see if my midterm grades had been posted yet.

I smiled when I saw three A's and one B. That B was hard-earned though.

Chemistry's a bitch.

He walked in just as I was closing the laptop, and I ran over and leapt into his arms. He didn't even have time to send a glare in Max's direction for gnawing on his steak bone in our bedroom.

"Whoa, what's this for?" he asked when I started molesting him.

"My pristine midterm grades. Did you know you married a genius?"

He laughed, walking the both of us over to the bed where we fell into a tangled mess of limbs and kisses. "I did actually." He kissed my newly exposed skin as he started undressing me.

"Did your mother agree to dinner?"

One shoe thudded against the floor when he threw it, soon followed by the other.

"Of course."

I finally got his shirt unbuttoned and off by the time he had me stripped completely. He kicked his pants and boxers off the rest of the way after my feet managed to push them down to his knees.

"Eager, are we?" he asked, settling between my legs.

"I want you inside me now."

"I love it when you say things like that."

His arms slid under my shoulders, so he could hold himself up while still being close. I loved him close. Loved his skin on mine everywhere. Loved his weight on me.

He filled me completely in one thrust and I moaned loudly before his mouth muffled my cries. His pace was slow and deep as our bodies moved together, his lips leaving mine to trail kisses along my neck.

"Do you know how much I love you?"

Yes, I knew. He showed it every single day.

Sometimes I felt consumed by how much I loved him, and I think he felt the same way.

It was easy to get lost with him. To lose time and perception of our surroundings and just feel.

That was probably why neither of us heard the growling puppy getting closer and closer, until he was right next to us, barking in Edward's ear.

"Go the fuck away, Max."

I would have giggled, but I was so close to coming apart. I gripped Edward's hair, keeping him focused on me.

"Just ignore him. Don't stop."

Max had other ideas though. He growled and barked loudly in Edward's face.

"Fuck!"

"I think he's just being protective. He thinks you're hurting me." I tried to reach over to calm Max down. "It's okay, boy. I'm okay."

Edward buried his face in my neck, keeping his rhythm despite our canine distraction. "That little fucker isn't allowed in the bedroom anymore."

He reached down and pulled the sheet over the two of us like a bubble, grumbling something about me being his wife and he could have me whenever he wanted, with a fuck you or two thrown in at the dog for color. I really tried not to laugh out loud at his pouting.

Max seemed to calm down once he lost sight of us, but stood guard just outside, with only the occasional growl slipping out when the bed bounced too hard. To prevent Edward from losing any limbs, I tried to keep as quiet as possible when I came apart.

Luckily, Max seemed none the wiser.

When we held each other afterward, I brushed Edward's cheek as he watched me. "You know, this was probably a good thing."

"The dog joining us in bed is not a good thing. That little shit almost made me lose concentration."

I giggled and shook my head. "Well, it's called patience. You need to develop some. It's going to be a lot worse when the baby's born."

His brow furrowed. "If our son is growling and barking at me while I'm fucking you, there are going to be bigger problems than not getting off."

I slapped his arm. "No, you goof. I meant being interrupted. You better get used to having no private time."

He leaned in and kissed my neck. "That's where you are entirely wrong, gorgeous. I'll hire a nanny."

"You want to hire a nanny just so we can have sex?"

"If necessary."

I rolled my eyes. He was hopeless. I didn't know why I ever thought he would process information like a normal person.

"I did want to ask you something though." He pulled back, twirling my hair through his fingers.

"What?" I asked.

"Well, you getting the dog made me start thinking about something. Remember when I told you about my wanting to semi-retire?"

I nodded, wondering what in the world was going through his head.

"Did you have your heart set on NYU, or would other colleges work as well?"

"What do you mean?"

"If I did turn things over to Jasper, step back from the day-to-day management, and maybe just remain in more of a consulting role or silent partnership, I thought perhaps we wouldn't need to live in the city. If it interested you, we could get a place close, but with more room outside. Maybe up in Connecticut, near my parents or something."

It was an interesting idea. One that had never crossed my mind before.

"Do you want to live closer to your parents?"

"No, it's not that. I'm just thinking about what would be best for us as a family. If you want to stay here, we can make it work, but if you weren't set on being in the city, we could find or build another place. I don't want to be too far. I like the city and don't want to be in the middle of bumfuck nowhere, but the idea of a bigger place has been in the back of my mind."

I snorted. "You and your bigger places. This house is huge, but I do agree with the outside thing. Max doesn't have much room to run around."

Edward's gaze shifted over to the dog asleep next to me and he shook his head.

"It's something to think about anyway."

I watched his eyes as he smiled at me, knowing I'd go anywhere as long as he was there too.

"I'll think about it."

Edward pulled me close and I rested my head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat as he drifted off to sleep. I couldn't turn my mind off though.

The idea of living closer to his parents held a lot of merit to me. We saw them so rarely as it was, and it would be nice to have family around more frequently once the baby was born.

Hopefully, the coming dinner would be a good barometer in gauging Edward's interest in rekindling a relationship with his father. Not only were we going to be announcing their first grandchild was on its way, but we were also planning to discuss what we'd learned about Kate.

How would that information change the relationship between Carlisle and Eleazar?

I hugged Edward tight, hoping in my heart of hearts his father would choose to stand by his son and his family above anything else.

We were going to find out very soon.

AN: So this was a fun little chapter, introducing the newest Cullen, before the drama of their lives begins again. What do you think of Max? Do you think the baby is a boy or girl? What is Carlisle going to say when he learns about the real Kate?

Thank you all so much for reading, reviewing, and letting me know your thoughts. I appreciate you all very much!

Find me on facebook at Twilover Seven-six – I try to put up pictures and a teaser for coming chapters in the NOP group.

Find me on twitter at twilover76

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