A/N

Hi! Thanks for coming back, and thanks for all the lovely reviews!

Ignore all the mistakes. Flying by the seat of my pants means no Beta. Hopefully, any erroneous errors won't pull you out of the story too much.

S. Meyer owns everything, Twilight.

Chapter 16

EPOV

I rub a towel over my wet hair as I stare into the dark abyss that is my closet. Choosing something to wear shouldn't be this fucking difficult. It's not like I haven't been dressing myself for the better part of three decades. But suddenly I'm nervous. I want everything to be perfect for my date with Bella tonight. I throw the towel to the floor and start combing through my shirts, pushing the hangers aside one by one.

"Just pick something, for god's sake," I mumble.

I settle on three possible contenders and almost jump out of my skin when I turn around.

"Jesus Christ!"

Clutching the shirts to my chest, I stare at George, who hangs over the side of the bed, looking up at me from his upside-down position.

"I'm bored, Uncle E. What cha doin'?"

I stride over to him and smile as I look down at his mop of brown curls and the expressive blue eyes he inherited from Rose. He giggles when I come closer, and I loom over him playfully before dropping the shirts on top of him. His muffled laughter floats up from beneath the clothing, and that's when I come in for the kill, flipping him up on the bed and tickling him.

"Bored? You're bored? How can you possibly be bored?"

The shirts fall away, and he smiles adoringly at me before taking his little hands and clutching clumps of hair on either side of my head. For a little guy, he's got a damn fierce grip, and I try to hide my wince. His face is flushed and happy, and staring down into it makes my heart break all over again. Riley should be here. He's the one who should be laughing with his son. I'm just a poor substitute.

He lets go of my hair and flops back. "Mom's making dinner, and Henry's doing homework. I'm bored." The whine is pretty much perfected by this point.

"Dinosaur Train?" I say.

He turns over onto his stomach and lets out an exaggerated sigh. "Over it."

A burst of laughter erupts from me, and I try to conceal it by clearing my throat. "What about the new Legos? I thought you—"

He hangs his body off the bed again, and I wonder how that position can be at all comfortable.

"It's no fun without Henry." He runs his fingers over the carpet in circles. "Can you play with me?"

I sit on the bed next to him, feeling guilty for not spending more time with him and Henry lately. Work's been crazy since we got the Anderson deal, and now, with Bella...I smile just thinking about her—about last night. Kissing her in the kitchen, on the couch, standing at her front door at 3 AM, refusing to let her go. We kissed for another half hour before she finally pushed me out.

"Go!" she says. Her laughter sounds like the most beautiful symphony I've ever heard … only better. She peppers my lips with kisses before pulling me to her by the front of my shirt and standing on tiptoes to kiss me again.

I grin against her mouth. "Maybe I should just stay. It seems to me you can't make up your mind."

She giggles before pushing me away again.

"Okay, Okay. Get some sleep," I say. "I'll see you soon."

I take two steps back until we're only connected by our hands. And then it's just our fingertips. And then, there's a space between us—a cavernous space. And I don't like it.

"Go," she whispers again.

So, I did. But not without leaving my heart there with her.

I look down at George again. "I'm sorry, bud, I can't tonight. How about tomorrow?"

He blows raspberries against the back of his hand and cracks up. It's all about the farting noises with him lately. "Can we go to Springers?"

I grin at the mention of his favorite ice cream shop. "Yeah, we can go to Springers. Not before dinner, though, or your mom will have my Hyde."

"What's that mean?" he says. "Why do you have to hide from mom?"

I laugh. "It's just an expression, Georgie. It means she won't be too happy with me if I spoil your dinner with ice cream first."

He rolls over. "Yeah," he whispers. "Then you'd really have to hide from Mom."

"Where you going tonight?"

George and I both turn toward the doorway to see Henry standing in it. George springs up in excitement. "Are you done your homework? Can we play Legos now?"

Henry walks into the room and sits on the bed next to us. George stands on the mattress behind his brother and throws his arms around Henry's neck before resting his chin on the top of his head. Henry reaches up and pries George's fingers apart.

"Not so tight, George."

George relaxes his grip a little. "Sowwy, Hen." And then he leans down and kisses him on the cheek. I revel in the sweetness of the gesture. Both of these kids. Damn. An enormous feeling of protectiveness flares up in me, and I know I'll do anything I can to make sure they have everything they need. I sigh as I look at the two of them, knowing they're going to be grown before I know it.

Henry eyes the shirts and asks again. "Where you going?"

I look between his face and George's.

"Well, I'm uh… I'm going out tonight for a little while.

"With who?" - George.

He lets go of Henry's neck and starts jumping on the bed. "Is it Bella? Please say it's Bella! Can I come?" He practically Rowdy-Roddy-Piper's me in the chest, pushing me back onto the bed before landing on top of me. "Can I come? Please? Let's take her to Springers. They have hot chocolate there." He looks over at Henry. "Right?"

Henry shrugs and looks at me with a small smile. "Is it Bella? Did she forgive you for messing up?"

I take a moment to catch my breath from the sneak attack and sit up slowly before reaching behind me and grabbing George. I swing him around and place him on my lap before looking at Henry.

"Yes, I'm going out with Bella tonight."

George does a quick fist pump. "Yaaaaassss!"

Henry looks at the shirts and cocks an eyebrow. "And you're wearing one of those?"

I look down at the wrinkled mess of fabric that's now tangled around the three of us. "Yeah. One of these with a pair of jeans."

"Oh my God, not the ones with the holes at the knees." We all turn at the sound of Rose's voice. She strides into the bedroom and stands in front of us. "This is a date, right?"

"They're going for hot chocolate at Springer's!" George says. And then he does a somersault on the bed. "I'm going too!"

Rose glances at him. "Sorry, honey, not this time."

George pouts for a second before continuing to do somersaults behind Henry and me.

"What's the matter with the ones with the holes?" I say. I have no intention of wearing them, but I like to get a rise out of Rose. "They're my favorite pair."

"This, I know," she says.

"How about what I've got on?" I look down at my T-shirt and basketball shorts before looking up with a smile. Henry grabs my shoulder while shaking his head. "No, Uncle Ed. Just no."

I laugh before scooting up to the top of the bed and leaning against the pillows with my arms crossed behind my head. "I'm open to suggestions."

"Where are you going?" Rose asks. "Formal or casual?"

"Casual," I say.

George scrambles from the bed and heads right for my dresser. He pulls out a pair of Santa boxer shorts—his Christmas gift to me this year—and places them on the bed. Next, he tugs Rose's hand and steers her toward the closet before pointing to the top bar.

"Which one?" Rose asks.

"The white one," he says.

Rose pulls a white shirt from the hanger and looks down at George, who holds up his arms to her. She picks him up, knowing what he wants. George loves pushing the button on the rotating tie rack that Henry got me for my birthday. It's one of our morning rituals when I get ready for work. He stops at a red one and plucks it from the rack. Rose puts him on the floor, and he brings the shirt and tie over to me, beaming with pride.

"You think Bella will like it?" I say.

He nods vigorously as Rose comes over and places her hands on his shoulders with a smile. "It's a great outfit, honey, but I think Uncle Edward's legs might get cold in those."

George frowns, seeming to contemplate her observation.

"Oh, yeah," he says.

"Okay, guys," Rose says. She picks up George and ushers Henry toward the door. "Dinner's just about ready—"

"Did you remember my—" George interrupts.

Rose is already nodding. "Yes, I remembered your apple sauce."

When they reach the door, Henry looks back at me with a smile. I smile back and swing my legs over the bed.

"I wish I could go too," George says. "I miss Bella."

Rose looks at me over her shoulder as she crosses the threshold into the hall. Her eyes fall on the hunter green button-down shirt on the bed, and she nods towards it, indicating that's her choice for my wardrobe tonight. She turns back around. Her words sound brusque—that's just Rose's way—but her expression is soft. "Maybe next time, Georgie. Right now, we're going to let Uncle Edward have a life."

My phone chimes with an incoming text, and when I pull it out of my pocket, I see it's from Bella.

Can't wait to see you.

I smile before looking around at the pile of rumpled clothes on the bed. The red tie and Santa boxer shorts stare up at me, and then I look back at the text from Bella. And that's when it dawns on me. Despite every shitty thing that's happened this year—even Riley's death, I'm right where I'm supposed to be.

~!~

Twenty minutes later, I walk downstairs and into the kitchen. George has applesauce in his hair, and Henry is bringing his plate to the sink.

"Niiiice," Rose says.

I make a show of brushing imaginary dust from my shoulders as if I'm in an opulent tuxedo at a formal affair.

"You clean up well," she says.

"Thank you," I reply. "I try."

"Where are you taking her? If you don't mind me asking," she says.

"I don't mind," I say. "I'm taking her ice skating at Navy Pier."

"Where'd you and Dad go on your first date, Mom?" George asks.

I walk over to Henry and take his plate before loading it into the dishwasher. Rose turns her head and stares past us with a glazed expression. Tears form in her eyes.

"I know this one," Henry says.

Rose stays quiet.

"Dad told me. He took you to the arboretum, and then you ran out of gas on the way home."

Rose chuckles. It's a low, sad sound, tinged with longing and heartache, that rolls off her in waves. But then she smiles before looking at Henry.

"That's right," she says. "I had zero interest in going to a hot and stinky greenhouse. But once we got there, and I saw how passionate your father was about it all, well … "She pauses. "I never understood it, but I loved it because he loved it. And he wanted to share it with me. It was the first time anyone ever wanted to share anything like that with me."

I watch Rose in stunned silence. Have I ever questioned that she loved my brother? No. Have I ever heard her talk about him this way so openly? Never.

She stands from the table and picks up George's plate and then her own before walking into the kitchen.

"How'd you get home?" George asks. "If you ran out of gas?"

Rose stands by the sink and rinses the dishes before pushing her long blonde hair over her shoulder.

"We didn't," she says. Her voice cracks just a little bit. I'm not sure if the boys hear it, but I do. "The car your dad had back then had a sunroof. He had a couple of sleeping bags in the trunk, and we slept in them in the front seats and looked at the stars all night."

George jumps down from his chair. "Yeah, but how'd you get home, Mom? Like, you didn't just stay there forever, right?"

Rose laughs and turns to George, who's now entered the kitchen. "No, Mister. We didn't stay there forever. The next day, your dad called his friend, who brought us a gas can."

"And that's when you knew you loved him, right?" George asks.

Rose looks down at him and smooths his curls. "I think I always knew," she whispers. "But yes, that was when I really, really knew." She smiles before leaning down to squeeze him. "Go get your PJs on, and I'll read you a story before bed."

George races past me, slipping and sliding on the wood floor in his socks, before grabbing my pants to steady himself. He looks up at me excitedly. "Don't forget, Uncle E."

I lean down to pick him up and rest him against my chest. "Forget what?" I say with a smile.

"The marshmallows," he says. "Bella likes three. If you take her ice skating, you have to get her hot chocolate, and she likes hers with three marshmallows."

He squirms out of my embrace, and I let him go, watching him as he pretends to shoot baskets as he rushes toward the stairs. He stomps up them like a miniature sumo wrestler, hanging onto the railing for balance before calling back down. "Three, Uncle E! Three Marshmallows!"

"Got it," I call.

"Good," he says. "Because I don't want you to mess this up!"

"You and me both," I mumble under my breath. "You and me both, Georgie."

A/N

Sorry not much E&B this chapter. I missed the boys and the family dynamic. Don't worry, next chapter will be the date.

I hope to have one more chapter posted in the next few weeks. I leave for a three-week trip to Australia at the end of the month, and I refuse to bring my laptop. Lol.