Yes, you don't need your eyes tested. This is an update. Hey guys, for those of you who don't know I broke my hand in eight places end of last year and it has taken months to correctly heal. I have struggled to keep up with Uni work and even lost my job because of it. But things are looking up now.

Anyway, a huge thank you to everyone who left me messages, you guys made my dark days brighter :-) You may want to go back and re-read the last chapter, just to refresh your memory.

Thank you to my beta as always. I don not own Twilight but I do own Speak.

Speak

Chapter 12- Part 2

Daddyward

I didn't have time to dwell in my pity party as Emmett banged on my door, telling me to get my ass moving.

It was going to be a long night.

XXX

Sunday Morning- 40 Hours Later

My mind slowly awoke. I could feel something cold, hard, almost like marble on my face. I tried to open my eyes but they wouldn't obey, instead I slowly moved my legs that were stiff and very sore.

A groan escaped my mouth and again I tried to open my eyes, but again they refused. My arms were heavy and my head felt light and dizzy. What the fuck was wrong with me?

Music suddenly blasted somewhere close by. I grabbed my head in pain, I felt like my head was about to explode from the music that was playing... music? I moved my head towards the music – bad idea. I could feel the room start to spin with my eyes closed.

The music finally stopped and I took a deep breath. The coldness on my face was refreshing, but it felt too hard and uncomfortable. I slowly opened my eyes and looked around very slowly.

I was alone, in a bathroom.

My head had been on the toilet and from the smell of it, I'm sure my stomach had been in it.

The music started again. It was very close. It took me a couple of minutes before I realized that the music was a ring tone- my ring tone. I pulled my phone from my jean pocket and smiled to myself. It was Bella.

"Morning," I croaked out.

"DADDY!" Anthony yelled into my ear. Argh, yelling, not the best thing this morning.

"Hey, Buddy, you don't have to shout at me, I can hear you."

"Okay," he giggled, "you coming home today? You said two sleeps and it's been two sleeps. Bella said your coming home today."

I can hear the panic in his voice which made my heart ache. Things had changed very quickly this week and they would change even more in the next few weeks. Not only is my little boy growing up and starting school, but we have gained two neighbors who I hoped would become a big part of our lives.

"Of course I am buddy, I'm not sure what time, but I'll make sure Uncle Emmett drives really fast. Are you behaving for Bella?" I asked, leaning back on the toilet.

"Yeah, we can't go to the beach because it's raining. Bella says it's a heavy rain."

"Oh that's a shame; we'll just have to go another day." I replied.

"Bella and Leah too?" He asked.

"Yeah, Buddy, we can all go." I took a deep breath trying to keep the nausea at bay.

"Is Bella there?"

"Uh huh, she's cooking us waffles with strawberries and cream, Daddy. I like cream..." he broke off for a second, "Leah asked if you're almost home?"

I smiled at the thought of Leah talking to Anthony. I had told Bella that Leah spoke to Anthony and what she has said so far. She was happy that she finally talked to someone, but I knew she wished it was her. I can't imagine not hearing Anthony call my name or not chat to him whenever I wanted. It would kill me to lose that part of our relationship. I just had hope that things would change for the better for them - they both deserved it.

"Tell her I'm leaving very soon and can you put Bella on the phone please, Buddy?"

"Okay, tell Uncle Em to go really fast, like Batman fast."

"I will, son, I love you," I chuckled which did not help the major headache I had.

"Love you, too."

"Hello," Bella's voice replaced my son's.

"Morning, Beautiful." I croaked.

"How are you feeling this morning? Hangover?" She asked.

"A little." A lot.

"You were really drunk," she giggled. I guess I called her last night. I can't remember calling her... then again I can't remember very much.

"Shit, what did I…"

"Eddie, you awake?" A female voiced called from the bedroom.

What the fuck?

"Edward?" Bella asked, alerting me that she heard the female voice.

"Um, I, I…" I stuttered.

"Eddie?" The women called again before she appeared from behind the bathroom door, wearing nothing but one of my t- shirts. What the fuck?

"Um," I wanted to ask who she was and why she was wearing my clothes, but the words would not come out of my mouth.

"There you are?" She muttered sweetly. Her blonde hair was tied in a ponytail; her eyes smudged with make-up, her face patchy from sleeping with her foundation and her body; very small, all bones, no curves or anything. She was everything I didn't like in a woman.

"I'm going to go since you have company this morning." Bella's tight voice hit my ears.

"Bella, wait!" I yelled into the phone, panicked by her voice. But she was gone. Shit.

What have I done? Have I really thrown away my chance with the only woman I have ever had any real feelings for, before we have even begun? For what? A woman that I struggled to even look at?

Something wasn't right. This wasn't me. I don't just pick random women to sleep with.

Besides I don't like blondes.

"What is that smell?" The woman wriggled her nose in disgust. Instead of answering her; I tried to wrap my head around what had just happened. I wished I could remember last night; my mind was still coming up blank.

"Argh, it smells of sick. Flush that toilet, brush your teeth, and then you can join me in the shower." She winked before bending over to turn the shower on, giving me a view of red lace panties.

I turned my head away from the awful view. She had nothing on my Bella. My Bella was a woman; with womanly curves, beautiful long legs, hips that I couldn't wait to get my hands on, an ass that I dreamt about every night, breasts that would fit perfectly in my hands, eyes that I got lost in, a face so beautiful I couldn't look away, and long brown hair that I wanted to run my fingers through.

There was no way I could be with anyone else.

"Eddie, are you coming in." The woman purred from inside the shower, my t-shirt now lay next to me on the floor.

"Fuck, no!" I grunted.

"Glad to hear." I looked up to find Jasper leaning against the doorframe with his arms folded in front of his chest. He was sporting a black eye and there was a burst lip on the smirk he was wearing.

"What the fuck happened to you?"

He raised his left eyebrow at me. "You don't remember?"

I shook my head, "I don't remember anything."

"Maybe you shouldn't drink so much next time. Come on I'll fill you on the way to the station."

"Station?"

"Yeah, Emmett's been arrested. Let's hope that Charlie can get his ass out of this mess," he chuckled.

"Shit. If Charlie's involved it can't be good…"

"Will you boys hurry up and get in here. There's plenty of room for the three of us." The mystery woman pulled the shower curtain open. She was completely naked and wet.

I shuddered and stuck my head back into the toilet where the rest of my stomach emptied. Jasper's laughter made my headache worse.

I groaned in pain.

I just wanted to go home.

Friday Night- 40 Hours Earlier

"Where are we going first?" Jasper asked. We were back in the car, Emmett was still driving over the limit but at least he was no longer using the siren. I wouldn't want to be him if Charlie found out he used it all the way here.

"I'll drop you off at the hospital so you can find out how badly her injuries really are. Eddie and I will go to Rose's; hopefully she's gone back home." Jasper just nodded in agreement.

Twenty minutes later, I stood in front of a very large stereotypical white picketed fence house. It had white shutters on the windows, a rocking chair on the porch, all it needed was a large tree in the back garden and it would be my dream house. Ever since Anthony was born I have always dreamed of owning a house like this one. I could envision kids running around, chasing a dog as I sat on the porch watching my family. What didn't surprise me was that now I could see Anthony and Leah chasing the dog while Bella took photos of them playing. I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts. I was getting ahead of myself again, I needed to slow down. There was only two ways this could go if I didn't; Bella would admit her feelings but I would become too intense and clingy so she would leave me, or Bella would shut me down completely. Either way, it's my heart that would be destroyed- mine and Anthony's if I didn't play this right.

The inside of the house was just as beautiful as the outside. There was a long hallway which was warm and inviting. I walked into the living room, trying to find anything that showed that Bella or Leah had lived here once. It didn't take long before I found photos of them; one with Bella and a blonde woman who I guessed was Rosalie, baby pictures of Leah, there was one with Emmett sitting on the couch with Rose in his lap. They looked very much like a happy couple. Next to it was one of Bella and very tall, tanned man. I wondered if he was Leah's father- I could see Leah's features in him. I paused at the last one; it was Emmett holding a very smiling Leah, she had her arms around his neck and their heads were pressed together.

"Cute, eh?" Emmett whispered behind me.

"Yeah, she looks so happy."

"She was- that was taken at her birthday party last year."

"Tell me about her Em?" I asked, "What was she like then?"

XXX

A year and one week ago – Emmett POV

Shit, Bella was going to kill me. I was late. I promised her I would be on time, but it's not my fault that the plane was delayed. I've still made it though; I'm here in Phoenix on a Saturday, driving through shit loads of traffic. I had been looking forward to this trip for weeks. I had planned to bring my Anthony with me, but he's sick. He caught the chicken pox, poor kid. Bella would definitely kill me if Leah caught them on her birthday.

I finally pull onto Bella's street. There were cars everywhere. I spotted Royce's car straight away, which means he came with Rosie. My Rosie.

I have been in love with Rosalie Hale for years. With her feisty bossy attitude, quick witted mind and God that body. She filled my days and nights with endless dreams of the things I wanted to do to her. But unfortunately, she was dating that prick of a boyfriend, Royce King. He was everything I hated in a person- shallow, selfish, and superficial. He liked having Rose on his arm because of the way it looked. He didn't care about her personally as long as he could parade her around like a trophy he was happy. I still didn't understand how Rose could date someone like him.

I opened the front door that was covered in pink banners and balloons to find the party in full swing. Kids were running around squealing in joy while adults stood around chatting about anything and everything. I made my way to the kitchen knowing that's where the food was.

"You are a dead man," Jasper laughed.

I sighed and placed the box I had on the closest table. "I know, where is Bells?"

"On her way to stick her foot up your ass!" I turned to find her leaning against the door frame. Her arms folded across her chest, her brown eyes narrowed in frustration.

"I'm so sorry, Sweetheart. The plane was delayed and then traffic and…"

"Uncle Em, you're here!" Leah interrupted me. She ran straight for me and leaped her whole body into my arms. She was getting a little heavy now. Gone are the days where she could sit on one arm. She was growing up so fast... too fast.

"Wow, Chipmunk. You're almost as big as mom now." I kissed and hugged her tight. I wished I could see her more. She and Bella were everything to me and I will admit I struggled with them living so far away. Even after all these years, I'm still not used to not seeing Bella every day. Maybe I should move out here? I could pretend to like the overbearing sun and dead forests.

"I'm five today, Uncle Em."

"I know, happy birthday, Mowgli." I tickled her side and was awarded with her giggles.

"Stop, Baloo, stop," she giggled.

"Okay, okay," I laughed with he and placed her body back on the ground.

"Alright, why don't you go and put your present beside the rest, honey. Mom wants to talk to Uncle Em about something." Bella announced.

Leah looked up at me with excitement. Her mouth and nosed scrunched together reminded me of Jake. He used to do the same thing when he was considering something. "Did you get me a present?"

"Look, now it's like this, little britches. All you've got to do is...

Look for the bare necessities, the simple bare necessities." Leah joined in with me and we were soon dancing and singing around in the kitchen. I could hear other people laughing with us and Bella covered her face with her hands. She had seen us do this so many times before. It was Leah's fault. She made me sit through that cartoon everyday a few months ago. We copied the dance with Leah following and clapping our hands. I lead right outside in front of everyone. The best part was when I started to rub my back on a small tree that was there. It was one of my favorite memories. Everyone applauded when we had finished making Leah run back inside from the attention. She was her mother's daughter after all.

XXX

The thought of Emmett rubbing himself on a tree was funny and disturbing. It was the way he described Leah that had me captured. She was still the little girl I knew, but the thought of her singing, dancing, and just having fun on her birthday, warmed my heart. I wished that I could hear her sing; I wanted her to say my name so badly. At least Emmett has that memory. He knew what her voice sounded like when she spoke or sang. I didn't have any knowledge of that; but I had faith. I have only known her a week, there was plenty of time for me to hear her.

"Wish I could have been there. Why did you never introduce us Emmett? Why am I only getting to meet them now?" I wondered.

He took a deep sigh and looked back at the photo.

"I don't really know. I guess I was being selfish. Bella never came home often, so when she did, I wanted to spend as much time with her as possible. But everything is working out perfectly now. They're back home, where they belong, and when she finally wakes up and marries your sorry ass, we'll all be one big happy family," he laughed. I could feel the heat on my face from his comments. But I couldn't help but smile at the idea.

Our little bubble had burst when a loud noise caught our attention. Emmett took off running out the back door, I quickly followed. The sound of raised voices was coming from the pool house that was beside the main house- I could tell that it was a male and female voice. I guessed- and hoped- that the female was Rosalie.

It was now past midnight. The sky was black, without any stars out. It made me miss Forks, where you could see hundreds of stars at night.

I continued to run; my legs carried me to the door of the pool house where I was quickly stopped by Emmett's huge body.

"Don't come in Emmett," Rosalie whispered. Her voice quivered as she spoke. I looked over Emmett's shoulder. Rosalie was standing in front of a table, pointing a gun at some male. The male- who I assumed was Royce- was sitting on a loveseat. His hands were in the air, surrendering to Rosalie.

"Rosie, what are doing? Put that gun down." Emmett tried to keep his voice soft and sweet, but I could detect a hint of fear in it.

"No, no, Emmett. You don't understand. You don't know what he's done to me. He needs to pay," she babbled.

"I know babe. I know that he... um...abused you and he will be punished Rosalie." He finally got out. My heart clutched at the words.

Emmett moved forward a little- enough for me to get into the room.

"STOP," she screamed at us. I froze in my place. I could see them both so clearly now. My attention rested on Rosalie. Her face was covered in bruises, and her nose was tapped up from where it had been broken. Besides her bruises, I could also see how beautiful she was. Her blonde hair was tied into a ponytail- I spotted large bruises on her neck too. She was dressed in yoga pants and a zipped up hoodie, which probably covered even more of her injuries. From the way she swayed and was putting her weight on one foot suggested that she had some broken ribs and had damaged her knee. She looked so vulnerable and scared. I wanted to grab her and carry her away from here. Take her back to Forks and protect her from the bastard in front of her.

I finally looked at Royce. I clenched my hands into fists from the anger that built in me. This man had been around Bella and Leah. He had slept in this house while my girls were only a few feet away. He put Rosalie in the hospital.

"Rosie, you don't want to go down this road," Emmett tried to reason with her.

"No, he has to pay for what he's done to me," she answered back while shaking the gun in front of Royce's face.

"And he will. I'll make of sure of it." I was unsure of what to do here. Emmett knew this woman, but everything he was saying to her, wasn't working. She was lost in her pain, demanding her own revenge. Could I really blame her? Not really. I beat up my sister's ex-boyfriend in revenge for hurting her, and the thought of actually killing him did cross my mind more than once.

Rosalie laughed at him. "As long as he stays alive I'll never been free from him."

Royce just stared at Rosalie. He didn't say anything, his face now look tired and bored. But I could see the clock ticking in his head. He was waiting; waiting for her to lose her focus for just a second and then he would make his move.

I tried to think of what his next move would be. As much as I hated this man, I didn't want Rosalie to have murder on her hands, or for anyone to die in this situation. I wanted Emmett or myself to take her back to Forks with us where she would be safe.

Emmett moved a fraction of his body forward hoping she wouldn't notice. But she did. "STAY AWAY," she screamed. I could tell that her body was giving out on her. She started to sway a bit. If I hadn't heard so much about this woman, I would think she was bat-shit crazy. She had a weird scary crazy look on her face. I knew I never wanted to be on the wrong side of her with that look.

I decided I needed to do something because Emmett was too close to her. This was hurting him as much as her.

I placed my hand on Emmett's back and moved around him. I could feel his eyes on me, but I ignored him.

"Rosalie, my name is Edward Cullen. I'm friends with Emmett and Bella." I saw her eyes flick to me at the mention of Bella. Maybe this was my way in? "I actually live next door to her and Leah. My son has taken quite a shine to them," I chuckled.

"You have a son?" She asked- her voice was quiet, but full of curiosity. Rosalie was a kid person.

"I do. He's five and suddenly loves making cupcakes." She smiled briefly. I decided that maybe Leah was a better approach. "Leah's a natural on the piano."

I caught Emmett slowly moving from the corner of my eye. He has clicked on to my plan.

"Piano?" She asked still looking at Royce. I could see that I did have her attention though.

"Yep, she's only had one lesson so far, but she rocks at Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star." This made her laugh.

Then everything happened quickly. Rosalie looked at me for a just a second, but that was all Royce needed to leap forward and knock Rosalie over. The gun flew out of her hand and under something. I didn't have time to register what it was. I leaped over the chair that was in my way while Emmett ran around it. I headed straight for Rosalie knowing that Emmett wanted a piece of Royce.

"I've got you, you're okay," I whispered to her when I finally reached her. Her whole body was shaking and she clung to me while she sobbed into my chest. I knew in that moment that no matter how strong Rosalie was trying to be, she would never have been able to pull that trigger. I held her close to me and tried to soothe her, the best I could.

"Get the fuck off me," Royce yelled while wrestling Emmett on the floor. I pulled my phone from my pocket and dialed the Phoenix police.

XXX

I glanced at the clock on the wall. I was exhausted. It was just after four-thirty in the morning, and I was still at the police station. The police had interviewed Rosalie first; however, she was quickly sent back to the hospital when she started bleeding all over their floor. Then they took Emmett and me into different rooms. I was released over an hour ago. Emmett was still in there.

I've done these interviews thousands of times on both sides. I've been interviewed and conducted them; but I'm at a loss as to why Emmett is still in there. It's a straight forward case. Royce admitted to not only almost beating Rosalie to death, but he also raped her twice and threatened to shot her. When she signed herself out of the hospital earlier, she knew where he stored his gun and decided to take things into her own hands.

I was not sure if I admired Rosalie for her bravery or her strength. Maybe it was a bit of both.

"What's that grin about?" Emmett pulled me from my thoughts. "

Eh?"

"You've got a cheesy grin on your face. You thinking about Little Bell?" He replied wiggling his eyebrows.

I rolled my eyes and answered, "Actually, I was thinking about Rosalie." I watched his face grow hard. His eyebrows pulled together, and he narrowed his eyes at me.

"My Rosie is off limits to you!" He glared- which made me laugh out loud. "I'm fucking serious, Edward, and what about, Bella, huh? If you can switch your attention that quickly then you don't deserve that girl…"

"Emmett calm down," I tried to reason through my laughing.

"Fuck you, after drooling over Bella for the last week, you've giving up already? Maybe Newton would be better for her? I know he's always had a thing for her."

My laughter stopped.

"There's no way fucking Newton is going anywhere near my Bella." I stood from my chair, deciding I now needed air, and made my way through the clear door of the station.

"Oh so now she's your Bella? One girl not good enough for you now, Dickhead?" Emmett shouted while following me across the parking lot towards the car.

"Fuck off, Emmett. You're over-reacting." I yelled back. He stopped just outside the station which left a good bit of distance between us, and I could feel other people watching our exchange in the parking lot, but I didn't care.

"I might just ask Newton to watch over Bella while I'm away this week. Take her out to dinner or the movies. He could even take Leah with them and…"

I cut off his rambling by throwing a stone from the ground at him. "Fuck Eddie, you throw like a girl," he whined while clutching his stomach where the stone hit him.

"Shut the fuck up about Newton. He's getting nowhere near my girls, and if you start this shit again I swear I'm gonna take that stone and -" I took a deep breath as Emmett stood in front of me, laughing. "What the fuck are you laughing about?" I was pissed off now. I just wanted to get back to Forks and spend my weekend with Bella and the kids.

"You," he chuckled loudly. "I was just teasing you Eddie. I know you have no interest in Rose, but your face man… you really think I would let Bella go out with Newton? He's a douche."

"Fuck off, Emmett." I turned and opened the car door, leaving him at the station, and headed back to the hotel.

XXX

After seven hours of sleep and two phone calls to Bella, I felt more calm and relaxed. Jasper and Emmett spent most of the day at the hospital with Rosalie.

It was now night time, and I had barely eaten anything all day. So I found a nice little cafe just beside the hospital and ordered myself a large steak and potatoes meal. I sent a text to Emmett hoping that he would join me for a bite. I wanted to find out what happened when he was interviewed. I was halfway through my meal when my phone buzzed. I grinned when it was a message from Bella.

Is Anthony allergic to peanuts? - B

Nope, just carrots. x - E

Carrots? He had carrot cake at your mom's yesterday. -B

Lol, he's not allergic really. He just refuses to eat them. x -E

Lol, I get it now. - B

What u doing? - B

I started to feel like my face was permanently fixed with a smile nowadays. She was so cute. She used my son as an excuse to talk to me. I could live with that. Her enthusiasm to talk to me was giving me hope that maybe she liked me more than she pretended.

Just grabbing some dinner. What are u doing? x - E

Making dessert. ;) - B

Mmm, what are u making? x -E

Walnut and chocolate cake, with cream. - B

Whipped cream? - E

My mind started forming pictures of me licking whipped cream off Bella's body. I couldn't wait to get back home.

Yep. It's Leah's favorite. -B

And just like that she shattered my whole sexual fantasy and replaced it with an image of Leah's face covered in chocolate and cream.

I'll have to remember that. What's ur's beautiful? xx -E

She took a bit longer to reply this time, so I finished my dinner hoping I hadn't gone too far. I refused to hide my feelings from her, unless she decided she didn't want me romantically; but I also didn't want to push her too far, too quickly.

I took a deep breath when she replied, hoping that she wouldn't shut me out.

Strawberry cheesecake. ;) What's ur's? -B

Strawberries, mmm. My mind created dirty images again.

Chocolate cinnamon mousse. x- E

I enjoyed getting to really know Bella. I had spent most of the weekend talking to her, getting to know her better, and the more I found out about her, the more I wanted to be with her.

"Hey," Jasper greeted, taking the seat opposite me in the booth.

I raised an eyebrow silently asking him what he was doing here.

"Emmett told me you were here."

"How's Rosalie?" I asked while reading Bella's message.

Mmm, that sounds great. You'll have to make it for me when you get back. ;) -B

"She's doing okay. Doctor said she can come back with us tomorrow if she goes to see a local doctor as soon as she gets to Forks." I nodded my head, letting him know I was still listening to him

. I would love to make it for you. What's ur favorite meal? I could make that too. x –E

Maybe I could cook dinner for just the two of us.

"Emmett said that your dad's a doctor?" He asked. I looked up at him. His eyes were pleading for my help.

"Yeah, I could ask him to see her if you want." I knew my dad would never refuse her.

"Thank you, Edward, I would really be grateful."

Spag Bol. -B

I laughed out loud. Out of all the meals in the world, Bella's would be a classic dish. It was also Anthony's favorite. Just another thing that they both seemed to have in common.

"What's funny?" Jasper asked.

"Bella's favorite dish," was the only answer I gave him. I could see his reaction from the corner of my eye. He didn't give anything away, but his hands clenched into fists which spoke volumes to me.

"You want to grab a drink while we wait for Emmett?" He changed the subject. I looked up at him as he titled his head towards the bar across the street.

"Sure," I replied. I could really use a drink after the day I've had. I paid my bill, sent Bella another text, and followed Jasper towards the bar.

What do you think? Let me know please :-) BB