This is a short one, but I am flying out tonight, so it's all I could manage!

Disclaimer: Usual.

Forgive and Forget

William, Eric's manservant, came with the message when the occupants of the Masen House were having breakfast in their warm, cosy kitchen. Bella was getting conscious of her slowly swelling abdomen, saying it looked like she had swallowed a rather large egg. Mistress Cope admonished her that babies were little miracles and she should not mind her figure for a few months. Edward said nothing. He was too busy admiring her sparkling eyes and rosy cheeks. He was also remembering how it had felt to touch Bella's breasts under her shift the night before as she sat on his lap. When the housekeeper tried to attract his attention, he looked at her with glazed eyes before shaking his head and blinking rapidly, trying to clear his head from lustful thoughts.

"Edward, William here has a message for you." Cope repeated herself, loudly and clearly as if she was addressing an elderly, hard-of-hearing gentleman. Edward pasted a welcoming smile on his face even though he expected nothing pleasant from Bella's uncle. Still, that wasn't the poor servant's fault.

"My master sends you all his best wishes," said the boy rather diffidently. He was a local lad who had found employment with Eric Swan only a few months ago. "He wants to visit you today if it is all right with you."

He stood waiting as Bella stared at Edward and he stared back at her. Bella thought it was his prerogative as the master of the house to confirm or deny the visit. He imagined that Bella might have an opinion as it was her uncle who was seeking the permission. After a moment of awkward silence, Shelley Cope cleared her throat and told William that his master was welcome to visit them. The servant thanked her and departed rather hurriedly.

"Why was he so nervous?" asked Bella.

"Perhaps he imagined Edward here would assault him for being Master Swan's messenger", remarked the housekeeper, trying to suppress her smile. "Everyone in the village knows how he has treated you, after all."

"I would never—"began Edward, eyes wide at the comment. Then he realized she was pulling his leg. "Ugh, Mistress Cope! But Bella, do thou really not mind seeing thy uncle? I can meet him in the other room, in that case. I will not have him upset thee."

Bella remained quiet for a moment. Then she shook her head. "I am displeased with him for lying to me—that is true. But Edward, now that I have found thee, I am too thankful to carry anger within me. I will ask him after Aunt Lauren and my cousins, and then thou can talk business with hm. Ask him to collect his money from Jenks."

Eric Swan entered the house in a little while and was invited into the kitchen. Contrary to what the occupants had expected, he did not swagger in like a creditor. In fact, he looked quite abashed; his eyes seldom meeting theirs and instead looking at the pots and pans and everything else. Finally they settled on Bella, who was sitting with Edward on a wooden bench. As his eyes slid downwards, something like shock flashed in them.

"Good day, uncle," said Bella calmly.

Eric had features similar to Charlie Swan, but his eyes were a pale blue instead of the warm brown Bella had inherited from her father. His hair too was more blond than brown, and his figure thinner as opposed to Charlie's stocky one. Still, the resemblance was enough for Bella to remember her father and heave a sigh of longing. Edward squeezed her hand in comfort.

Mistress Cope waved Eric to a rough-hewn wooden chair near the window in which she sometimes sat and did her sewing. Edward wished him a good day as well, and Eric took the seat hesitantly.

He seemed to struggle for words, fidgeting in the hard chair and clearing his throat repeatedly. Finally Bella broke the ice by asking him how her aunt and cousins were.

"They were good when I left them," said her uncle rather quickly. His fingers twisted in his lap nervously. "They—um, they will be joining me soon."

Bella's face lit up. "Aunt Lauren is coming for a visit? I want to meet her too! She was always so kind to me."

"Ahem, no, she wants to come and live here," he explained, looking uncomfortable. "She says she has had enough of living with her parents. We are becoming old now, and it's time we live independently. So…she will be arriving here with your cousins in a fortnight or so."

"That is a matter of great joy, Uncle," exclaimed Bella, clapping her hands together and smiling widely. "It's been so long since I saw any of them. Please bring them to visit me as soon as they settle down. Edward wouldn't let me go that far in my condition." She made a little moue at the end.

"It's because we don't have a horse as yet," explained Edward. "We are expecting our new coachman to arrive soon. After that we will buy a horse and Bella can go out more."

"Of course, of course," agreed Uncle Eric, nodding vehemently. "So—you are going to be a mother? And what I heard about the Newtons leaving you alone in the house and running away—that did happen?"

Bella confirmed it did, and Eric Swan's naturally pale complexion darkened with fury.

"How dare they leave the daughter of the house to die alone?" he thundered. The three of them stared at him in astonishment. None of them had expected him to be angry on Bella's behalf. "When I agreed to their proposal, they promised me they will always take care of you. Is this how one looks after a family member?"

Edward could not keep quiet at such hypocrisy. "She was a member of your family before she became theirs. What did you do to ensure her happiness? You lied to her—told her I was dead!" His voice rose on the last word, bitterness coating it: his breathing was hard, and so were his eyes. Eric forgot his own anger for a moment and made a sudden movement that made the chair scrap back noisily.

"I—I wanted the best for her, I swear," he proclaimed, throwing up his hands. At Edward's look of continued outrage, he garbled on. "Bella, you had had a comfortable life, whether it was here with your parents or in Cornwall after they passed away. How could you have lived with Edward then—with his limited resources and relative penury? You would have been miserable!"

"Oh, really? And it had nothing to do with you climbing the echelons of society?" challenged Edward.

Eric deflated a little. "Yes, that was a factor in my decision, but—Edward, please believe me, my first and most important reason was to ensure Bella's happiness. I knew she would lack for nothing in the Newton family. Bella, before Michael died, were you not happy living with him?"

Bella gave him a small, sad smile. "Uncle, I think happiness for you has a different meaning than it does for me. You equate it with material possessions—and yes, I did have enough of them. I did not lack for silks and jewels, and there were maids and footmen for everything. But truthfully, there was not a single day I did not remember Edward and weep over his loss. When you said he was buried at sea, I knew my heart was buried with him." She wiped at her tears discreetly, but Edward still noticed. So did Shelley Cope and Eric Swan. "If you think one can live happy and content without a heart, then yes, I was happy in that life." Her tears broke forth anew.

Eric looked stricken with guilt. "I am so, so sorry, niece. I had never imagined you were that attached to Edward. You were both so young when he went away. I thought you will forget him once you were married. Can you forgive me? My heart is heavy with the wrong I have done to both of you."

He looked truly contrite, and Bella nodded even as she dried her tears on her sleeve. When she spoke, her voice was soft. "Perhaps I would not have been able to forgive you had I not found Edward. But God has been kind enough to let us meet—in the most unusual of circumstances. I think it is a sign to me that I should forgive and forget the past, and think of the future. You are forgiven, Uncle."

This time it was Eric's eyes that teared up. His hands folded in gratefulness. "Thank you, niece. I will always remember your kindness. God bless you and yours!"

End Note: I wish I could complete the story before leaving on my trip, but…Anyway, I will be back in July and post the next (and probably last) chapter as soon as possible. Until then!

Most readers were wary of Eric Swan, thinking he wanted his money. Were you surprised, or did you expect his change of heart? What do you think of Bella's reason to forgive him?