EPOV
"I wish you could come, Bella," Hadley says while Bella finishes the fishtail braid she was giving her.
"Don't worry about me, Sweets, I have your aunt to keep me company while you're at dinner," she assures Had.
If it weren't for Hadley, I wouldn't even be going to visit Rose, let alone spend the weekend doing family activities with her but I wanted Hadley to have this time with her mother.
She needed some semblance of normalcy and this is all either of us can give her at the moment. Bella felt the same way when we discussed what this trip meant for Hadley and her relationship with Rose. Bella has mostly kept her thoughts about Rose to herself, but since Renee left more than a month ago, Bella has grown even more protective of Hadley.
On mornings that Bella's with us, she's up early helping me with the school run. She even hovers around the Rose morning and evening calls.
The day after that disastrous dinner, she went off on Irina in front of the Lululemon Mommies after the kids got on the bus. Irina looked horrified and told me I needed a muzzle for my sugar baby, which led to me having to hold my girl back.
She might have called her a hag that repels the opposite sex, but I was carrying her away over my shoulder at that point.
That was the most combative she had gotten. I think she was taking the anger she had toward Renee out on Irina. If Rose had been around, she probably would get some kind of brunt of it too.
Bella smiles slightly at me when she catches me watching under the ruse that I'm looking for my phone.
I know that we need to hurry up before Carlisle tries to come down here to hurry us to the Family Weekend kick-off dinner.
On the drive up he had been quiet, but mostly because he was working on service orders from his laptop. His anxiety about this weekend was rolling off him in waves. Part of it was because we were all together on this trip and Newton was left in charge of Le Cygne.
To ease his mind I suggested he have Jazz babysit because Jazz knew the ins and outs better than Newton. He actually turned down Carlisle for the promotion before it was offered to Newton. Jazz liked not being tied to the restaurant.
He was able to take side gigs that paid more as one-offs than he made in a week, not to mention his photography was starting to take off thanks to Ali. She knew a lot of people who worked in galleries and shopped some of Jazz's stuff around for him.
I think Carlisle was just waiting for Jazz to announce he's leaving at this point, but Jazz was more than willing to do me the favor of helping out while we were gone.
A knock from the door echoes around our room.
I grab my phone from the nightstand that's right next to where the girls are sitting and place a kiss on Bella's temple.
I open the door of our suite to find Esme with a strained smile.
I knew her annoyance was with Carlisle. She has made it her mission to support Bella instead of Carlisle this weekend.
I agreed that Bella shouldn't have to be cooped up in our suite all weekend.
This town is small, probably as small as Forks but it did have a busy main street, so Esme decided that she would keep Bella busy while we were at the rehab facility.
The facility Rose is at is very exclusive and I wager a bet that a lot of important people from the city escape here to sort out their demons.
"Carlisle's pulling the car around front," she announces as she pushes past me. "You look so cute," she coos to Hadley.
"Thanks, Bella did my hair," she explains with her arms around Bella.
Bella gives her one last squeeze.
"You two better head out or you'll be late for sign-in," she tells us before standing and giving me a hug.
"Behave," I tease, knowing that they were going to a sports bar we passed when we entered town.
"Don't lose your cool," she warns me quietly.
I snort.
It should be fine.
I hope.
The whole way out to the car I can feel the excitement radiating off Hadley. She has missed her mother and was elated that she was finally able to spend time with her this weekend.
I really need to suck it up.
We get settled into Carlisle's rental when he explains the registration process at the facility.
"You have Hadley's birth certificate?" he asks for probably the third time since we left the city.
"Yes," I sigh.
There was an age cutoff at ten for visitation but with Hadley's birthday coming up they were able to make an exception for us.
I understand that they didn't want kids running around but my kid wasn't rowdy. She was a rule follower.
"The dinner is supposed to be like a barbeque," he informs us.
"It's February," I say dryly.
"There are themes for the activities this weekend, Edward. Did you not look at the itinerary I sent you for the weekend?" he asks exasperatedly.
"I read it, just saying it's odd to have a barbeque in February, but me and Hadley love a good burger. Right, Had?" I ask, looking at her over my shoulder.
"We do," she says cheerfully. "Uncle Carlisle?"
"Yes, Hadley?"
"Will I get to see Mom's paintings tonight?"
"I think tonight is just a welcome dinner and tomorrow you'll be able to see your mom's room," he explains.
He knows way more than me about Rose's treatment plan. I only know what I need to do for Hadley, but other than that I don't need to know the day-to-day protocols of the facility.
"Don't worry, kiddo. You'll be able to see the stuff she's been working on. We have all weekend," I remind her.
The drive to the facility is short but it's almost like the place is hidden as we travel down a long winding road in the woods.
I take in the glass building we pull up to, surprised by the architectural choice for this establishment. There is a valet waiting to take the car when Carlisle pulls up. I'm a little skeptical of the seriousness of the treatment Rose is receiving due to this looking like an exclusive spa above all else.
The valet approaches with a clipboard.
"Name?"
"Cullen for Hale," Carlisle says, giving his name.
The man nods but notices Hadley in the back. "Registration is in the lobby please make sure you have your ID ready," he reminds us.
I get out of the car and help Hadley out while Carlisle hands his keys over to the valet.
Hadley's grip on my hand is a little tight as we walk up to the registration desk.
"Hello, how may I help you?" The woman greats from behind the counter.
Her name tag reads Sasha.
"We're here for family weekend," Carlisle answers. "Rosalie Hale."
She smiles before entering Rose's name into her computer.
"Here you are, Carlisle, Edward, and Hadley?" she asks.
We nod in confirmation and Carlisle hands her our driver's licenses and Hadley's birth certificate.
"I see the note for Miss Hadley in Ms. Hale's file," she says with a smile before handing us our visitor passes.
She gives us a map of the facility and directs us to the visitor room on the second floor. I watch Hadley while we're in the elevator and the way she keeps worrying her bottom lip. A habit she's picked up from Bella.
"This place is nice," Carlisle comments optimistically.
Hadley looks up at me and I give her a squeeze.
I hated that she even had to visit Rose at a treatment facility. If I could, I would have shielded her from Rose's addiction for the rest of her childhood.
That's where I feel like I failed her.
She's going to see how cruel the world is to people. This place wasn't only for narcotics and alcohol addictions, it dealt with a variety of illnesses from eating to mental health disorders.
The elevator dings as we arrive on our floor.
The room was filled with people, some hugging loved ones and others looking bitter. Hadley wrapped her arm around my back as we walked.
"There she is," Carlisle says, spotting Rose by a window.
She looks a lot better than she had the last time I saw her. Her hair is slightly shorter and blonder, so I assume the campus has a salon. She's healthier, less gaunt, and more muscular.
I catch the smile that grows on Hadley's face.
She takes off, jumping into Rose's waiting arms.
She loves and trusts her mother.
If only I could say the same about the latter.
All I have right now is Rose's and her doctor's word that she has turned a new leaf.
"I missed you so much," I hear Rose say once we catch up to them.
I shove my hands in my pockets when she looks at us and smiles.
Her smile falters.
"Where's Esme?" she asks.
Carlisle glances my way and I want to roll my eyes.
"She's having dinner with Bella," I inform her.
"Oh," is all she says before she nods in understanding.
I notice her take a few deep breaths before she looks at Carlisle.
"We have all weekend, right?" she says with a shrug.
That must be the motto of the weekend.
I don't know if Esme planned on visiting at all. She was more concerned with mothering Bella since Renee left doubt in my girl.
It has been interesting, the more Renee has tried to reach out, the more Bella leans on her dad. This had been what he's been trying to protect her from all along. He knew what Renee was capable of and now we're learning.
Rose leads us to a table with her name on it.
She sits in between Hadley and Carlisle. Hadley launches into everything that has been happening at home and school like she doesn't talk to Rose twice a day.
I watch as Hadley skirts around any mention of Bella. When she starts to bring her up she almost freezes mid-sentence.
I don't miss the sideways glances Rose is giving me when she does it.
I hate it.
Bella is with Hadley more than me at times. Work has been hectic and I have cut back majorly from helping out at the restaurant. She offers to stay more at our house so she can help me with Hadley.
There are times when the thoughts of marriage cross my mind but then I think it's way too early for that.
Bella might also freak out if she even knew that's where my head goes. She is basically living with us, which is fine by me. Emmett likes to point this observation out to her but she always seems to get irritated by the mention of it.
I feel like it's mostly because she wants to do things on her terms. When she wants to admit that she's practically living with us, I'll be there and act surprised.
"How's the restaurant?" Rose asks Carlisle.
"Busy, we are in the process of hiring another bartender," he explains.
"Did someone leave?" she asks, glancing at me.
"Edward's been busy with work so we need someone that can be part-time," Carlisle explains his answer.
I had worked at the restaurant since high school, college, and med school. It was only supposed to be temporary. After Hadley was born it brought in good money when I was working my way up in the research department.
I wasn't the only one with this same path. Almost all of us employed there were just waiting for our big break in whatever profession we were seeking.
Bella wasn't looking for writing jobs, but I thought she should be. Emmett has offered her several freelance opportunities at ESPN for their website. She has shot him down repeatedly.
She has been writing, though, it's just nothing any of us could read yet, and if you tried to hover to sneak a peek she'd shut her laptop.
"It was bound to happen," I say, shrugging the conversation off.
"How's Bella?" Rose asks after a moment.
My eyes snap to her.
She looks like she's being genuine.
"Good," I say with a tight smile.
"Emmett talks about her a lot—" she trails off before Hadley feels comfortable enough to launch into a story about how Emmett and Bella wrecked the kitchen last week.
It was bad enough that I had to replace a Staub Dutch oven that they somehow cracked while trying to make some kind of stew. Em looked guilty while Bella tried to smooth it all over. I felt like she was more behind the damage than him but I never called her out over it.
I was slowly learning they were a packaged deal.
Mischief and mayhem.
They made Hadley laugh and taught her how to be a kid. I couldn't get too mad at them for that reason.
The more Rose listens, the more she seems to have changed in the past month or maybe she is telling the truth when she was in the hospital.
I guess only time will tell.
A/N: Sorry, I was living life that's why this got behind, that and I rewrote this chapter. You guys did disappear too it seems. I think we're wrapping up not sure how many chapters but it feels like it is getting there. Thanks to CoppertopJ for her edits! Any mistakes are my own.