19

Bella walked into R&R after leaving Edward to deal with Jasper and Alice. The last thing she needed or wanted was to interact with them; not after turning down Edward's proposal. Though he insisted he was fine, she'd seen the hurt in his eyes. More than anything, she'd wanted to say yes, but a part of her worried that she was only setting herself up for heartbreak.

"Bella, what the hell are you doing here? Your shift doesn't start for three hours?" Carlisle asked, carrying a large box from the back room and setting it on the bar.

She shrugged her shoulders. "I . . . I don't. . . Carlisle, I'm in trouble."

"What? What's wrong?" he pressed, rushing closer. He reached for her arms, but she automatically flinched, causing him to step backward. "Honey, you're scaring the shit out of me. Did that boy hurt you?"

"What?"

"Edward? Did he hurt you?"

"No, no, of course not," she stammered, wrapping her arms around herself. "He wants to marry me."

Carlisle's eyes widened, but he smiled. "Oh."

"Yeah," she whispered.

"Did you say yes?"

She sighed.

"Why not? You love him, don't you?"

Bella nodded.

"Then why'd you say no?"

"It's. . ." She sat at the bar. "He's sick."

"What do you mean sick?"

"He has a brain tumor, Carlisle. He's. . . he's dying."

Carlisle inhaled a sharp breath. "I'm assuming he knew about this tumor when you started seeing him?"

She nodded.

"And when did he tell you?"

"A couple of weeks ago."

"It's all starting to make sense now."

"What is?"

"You, and the way you reacted the morning that little bitch almost got her ass whooped by me."

Bella's eyes widened.

"What? It's true. I ain't never hit a woman before, Bella, but she almost became my first."

"You never would have hit her, Carlisle."

"No, I wouldn't," he admitted, sitting next to her. "So he's dying."

"His doctor has a colleague who wants to run some more tests, says . . . says he may be able to remove it."

"Okay, I'm confused."

Bella sighed. "You and me both." She shook her head. "When he started getting headaches, his doctor ran a bunch of tests, and well, they found out he about the tumor. They originally thought it was inoperable, but I guess his doctor has been talking to a colleague who thinks he might be able to remove it. Most of it, at least. Edward's supposed to hear back from them in a few days to set up an appointment, but it's a chance that could give him more time."

"And he asked you to marry him."

Bella nodded.

"And you said no because you're scared you're going to lose him."

"You know me too damn well, Carlisle."

He smiled. "You're just like me, Bella. Afraid of taking chances in case it bites you in the ass."

"So I'm supposed to just say yes? What happens in a few months if . . ."

"Can you honestly tell me you could walk away from him whether you marry the guy or not?"

"No," she admitted.

"Well, there you go."

"You make it sound so easy."

"Never said it was, kiddo." Carlisle placed his hands on her arms. "You're scared. I get that, I do, but you can't keep living your life afraid to take chances. Do you love Edward, Bella?"

"More and more every day."

"Then love him for as long as the two of you have together, whether it's a few months or fifty years."

"Carlisle," she whispered.

"Don't let your old man cause you to lose the first and only person who's ever made you smile, honey."

Bella nodded. "Will you do me a favor?"

"Anything."

"Will you walk me down the aisle?"

Carlisle grinned. "I'd be honored."

—WSHB—

Bella woke the next morning to the smell of bacon frying. Climbing out of Edward's bed, she made her way to the kitchen, leaning against the door frame. Edward was standing in front of the stove, wearing a pair of plaid pajama pants and a gray T-shirt. He reached over and picked up his cup of coffee, taking a sip before setting it back on the counter.

"Are you just going to stare at me?"

Bella laughed. "Maybe."

Grinning, he looked back at her. "Hope you're hungry."

"Starving, but when did you go grocery shopping?"

"Couldn't sleep, so I went early this morning."

"Headache?"

"No more than usual." Edward flipped the bacon. "Did you mean it?"

"Did I mean what?" she asked.

"When you said, yes."

Bella bit the inside of her lip. "Yes."

Edward turned toward her again. "Yeah?"

"Yes," she laughed. "You don't believe me?"

"I do. Just like hearing you say it."

Bella rolled her eyes. "You're a dork."

"The dork you're going to marry."

"You are." Bella walked over and slid her arms around her waist. "Can I have some coffee, or is it just for you?"

Edward tilted his head to the side. "Hmm, I don't know. Let me think about it."

"That's not fair." she snickered.

"Fine, you can have some. On one condition, though."

"And what condition is that?"

"Kiss me."

Bella smiled as she leaned up and pressed her lips to his. "Like that?"

"I think you can do better."

"Oh?" Sliding her hands from his hips to the back of his neck, she pulled him down to her. "Maybe like this?"

And without giving him the chance to speak, she once again pressed her lips against his. Edward moaned, his arms encasing her, one hand resting on the small of her back while the other tangled in her hair. Their lips moved slowly, passionately against one another's.

Edward tightened his arms around her, turning and walking her backward until she hit the wall. His lips left hers only to travel along her jaw, down her neck to where her T-shirt covered her skin. He tugged on her shirt, exposing more of her shoulder, and the feel of his body pressed against hers had her reeling with need and want.

"Stop. Edward, stop." she groaned, sliding her hands to his chest and pushing him away.

"Sorry," he panted, taking a deep breath. "I, um, I'm sorry."

"I just . . . I've never and . . . I don't want our first time to be against the kitchen wall."

"You're right. I'm sorry," he whispered, blowing out a thick gust of air. "I got carried away."

"It's not that I don't. . . I don't want to, I just . . ."

"Hey, you don't have to explain, okay?"

Bella nodded, but before she could say anything else, his cell rang from the living room. He bolted past her, greeting the person on the other end. While he spoke, she picked up the fork and tended to the bacon. She'd just pulled the last slice off when Edward returned to the kitchen.

"That was Emmett," he told her, sliding his hand along her back before leaning against the counter. "The doctor he told us about can get me in this afternoon. Can you go with me?"

"What time?"

"Three."

"I'll let Carlisle know I can't come in."

Edward nodded. "Thank you. I . . . I don't think I could handle going by myself. I could ask Jasper, but . . . he's pissed at me right now."

"Because of me?"

"No, no, because I'm a selfish asshole who can't let you go. He's not wrong."

Bella frowned. "Kind of presumptuous of him to assume I'd let you go."

Edward laughed. "Yeah, it is." He leaned over and kissed the side of her head. "Thank you."

"Why are you thanking me?"

"Because you make me want to live." He pressed his lips against her head again before saying, "Sit while I finish breakfast."

—WSHB—

At a quarter till three, Edward parked outside the doctor's office, and the two headed inside to the third floor. A woman with short blond hair was seated behind the receptionist's desk and smiled as she looked from him to her and back.

"May I help you?"

"Um, Edward Masen. I have an appointment at three."

The woman's smile faltered for a moment before she nodded and stood. "They're waiting for you inside Dr. Volturi's office."

"They?" Edward asked.

"Dr. Volturi and Dr. McCarty. They instructed me to take you straight back, Mr. Masen."

Edward glanced at Bella before nodding. The two followed the young woman through a thick, wooden door, down one hallway, turning right, and down the hall, before they stopped at the last room on the left. She knocked before opening the door.

"Edward Masen is here, Doctor."

"Thank you, Jane."

Jane smiled at both before stepping out of the way and gestured for them to enter. Edward's hand tightened around Bella's as the two entered the room. Emmett was seated on one side of the desk while another man with short black hair and bright blue eyes sat on the other. Dr. Volturi was a good ten years younger than Emmett, Bella figured.

"Edward, Bella, thanks for coming in this afternoon," Emmett said, standing and gesturing to the chair he'd just been sitting in. "Especially with such short notice."

"Sure, no problem," Edward said before the two sat.

"This is Dr. Marcus Volturi," Emmett said, gesturing toward the man on the other side of the desk.

"Nice to meet you both. Dr. McCarty speaks very highly of you."

"Thanks," Edward murmured.

"As I'm sure he's told you, I believe I may be able to remove your tumor."

"He mentioned it."

Marcus leaned forward, placing his arms on his desk. "Let me tell you about myself, okay?"

Edward glanced at Bella before nodding.

"I've spent the last twenty years specializing in neurosurgery, specifically tumors. There is so much about the brain we don't know and never will. But I believe, based on your latest round of tests, that I can go in laparoscopically and remove your tumor."

"All of it?" Bella asked, drawing their attention to her. "You really think you can get all of it."

"I'm hopeful. Of course, I'd want to run my own tests before we go any further. But based on what I've seen, I think I can get it all."

"And if you can't?" Edward asked. "How long will I have if you aren't successful?"

Marcus sighed. "Maybe a year. Most likely just a handful of months. You both need to understand that there are risks to attempting this type of procedure."

"What kind of risks?" Bella questioned.

"I'll know more once I've run my tests."

"Tell us now, Dr. Volturi," Edward said, frowning. "I'm sorry if I'm being rude, but I . . . We need to know what the risks are. You're asking us to put my life . . . our future, in your hands. The least you can do is be upfront with us."

Marcus nodded. "Very well. Because of where your tumor is located, there is a chance you could end up having seizures, maybe even a stroke. You could experience vision or speech loss, paralysis, behavior changes, or memory loss."

"I could lose my memories?"

"Yes."

"Would it be permanent?"

"Ninety percent of the time, it's not, but there's a possibility it could be."

Edward nodded, shifting his eyes to Bella. "But if I don't let you do your procedure, I'm going to die."

"Yes."

"Look, let's not put the cart before the horse, okay?" Emmett said. "Let Dr. Volturi run his tests; make sure he can even touch your tumor."

"I don't know," Edward whispered. "I just . . . Bella, what do you think?"

As everyone shifted their attention to her, she cleared her throat. "It's not my decision to make."

"I want to know what you think," he murmured, angling his body toward her. "It affects you, too."

Sighing, Bella said, "I mean, it's worth running the tests, right?"

Edward nodded before looking back at Emmett and Marcus. "How soon could you make that happen?"

"Tomorrow."

"That quick?"

Marcus nodded. "I know Emmett told you your tumor hasn't grown, but I see a slight difference between the scans he did last month and the ones he did last week. It's not a big difference, but it's there. I would rather not wait any longer than necessary."

"Okay," Edward said breathlessly. "And how soon would you do your procedure?"

"Two or three days."

"Oh."

"The longer we wait, the more likely we will be too late."

Edward nodded. "Okay. I'll let you run your tests. I don't really see what choice we have."

Marcus frowned but said, "I will see you at Northwest Hospital tomorrow morning at nine."

Edward and Bella thanked him, before he placed his hand on her back and ushered her out of the office, down the hallway, through the waiting room, and into the elevator. They rode down to the lobby in silence, before walking outside. Edward stopped and brought his hand up to his hair, dragging his fingers through it before he looked at her.

"Marry me tonight."

"What?"

"Marry me tonight. I can't . . . I don't think I can do this if you're not mine in every way."

"Are you sure? Are you really, absolutely sure you want this, Edward? Because if you're not . . ."

"You're the only part of my life I am sure about, baby. I love you, and if I'm going to fight to live, then I want to fight with you as my wife."

Bella bit the inside of her lip. "Okay."

"Yeah?" he asked, smiling.

"Yeah."

Edward closed the distance between them, his lips touching hers once more.

Thank you for all the AMAZING reviews! Thank you to Sunflower Fran for cleaning up my messes. Just a reminder, there will be a HEA. Just going to be a long journey.