34. Home At Last

BPOV

Emmett drove us to Charlie's house in his jeep. Esme was already there with some food she had prepared for me. Rose and Alice stopped by after school to keep me entertained. Rose took over the phone, screening all my calls and deflecting all the nosy gossips.

"Frankly, Jessica if we wanted you to know, we'd tell you. If you were supposed to know, you would have been there at the time. Since you weren't and we don't, you're just going to have to wait for the memo like everybody else," Rose snapped into the phone. "Bella's not your friend, she's not your sister, and she's certainly not your rival, as that would imply you actually had a chance, so really, you're just not on the 'need to know' list. Actually, you're on the LIMP list, for Least Important People. So, get a life and stop trying to live vicariously through everyone else's." She slammed down the phone, glaring at it irritably.

A few seconds later it rang again.

"Hello, Swan Residence, Bella Swan's Answering Service. How may I help you?"

"Uh, this is Mike Newton. I was calling to check on Bella?"

"She's fine. Goodbye."

"Wait!"

"Yes?"

"Can I talk to her?"

"I'm sorry Newton but she's busy right now. The love of her life and soul mate, Edward Cullen, is feeding her grapes with his fingers while she is curled up in his lap. He's been waiting on her hand and foot all day like a lovesick slave, and, honestly, one lovesick puppy is enough for any girl. Since she already has someone stronger, smarter, and better looking filling that role, you need to give up and apply for that role with some other chick, got it?"

"Uhhh… Who is this again?"

"This is Bella's sister. I'm going to do you a favor and let you in on a little secret. Bella does not want to go out with you. She will never want to go out with you. Even if you were the only boy in the entire town of Forks, she still would not date you. So go find another girl to be the object of your obsession, because this one is already taken. I don't think there is a man alive who is more obsessive than Eddie here, so he's even got you beat there. Do yourself a favor and focus on Jessica instead. At least then you'll probably finally get some." She laughed evilly and hung up briskly.

"Did it work? Will he finally give up on asking me out?" I asked Alice hopefully. She went into her vision trance and came out again shortly thereafter giggling. She shook her head and laughed.

"Nope! That boy's head is harder than ours! I'm not sure there's anything strong enough to knock some sense into him," she professed.

The phone rang again, for the twenty-fifth time since school let out.

"Hello, Swan Residence, how can I help you?" Rose answered sarcastically.

"Rose? Is that you?"

"Oh, hi, Angela. Would you like to talk to Bella?"

"Sure, if she's up to it."

"Well, let me see if I can sneak you past her resident bodyguard," Rose quipped. She tossed the phone over to Bella and Edward promptly caught it, handing it to me.

"Hey, Angela!" I greeted her enthusiastically.

"Bella! You sound pretty good to me. Must not have been too bad then."

"Yeah, I'm doing okay. Just got a little bump on the head. No biggie. Everyone needs to concentrate on Tyler instead of me. He's in worse shape than I am. I'm pretty sure he's still in the hospital, so maybe everyone can go visit him or something."

"Hey, that's a great idea! I think I'll suggest it to Jessica, but let her think it's her idea. That way it'll be sure to be a success. Everyone can make him a card or something and hang them on the wall in his room to make him feel better."

"You're such a sweetheart, Ang, always thinking of others."

"Isn't that like the pot calling the kettle black?" Angela laughed. "Well, you obviously have plenty of help right now, so I'll just talk to you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay, sounds good. I'll probably be at school tomorrow."

"Great! I'll see you then."

We hung up and I tried to toss the phone back to Rose. It almost hit Alice in the head. If she didn't have vampire reflexes, it probably would have. She caught it with a laugh and passed it on to Rose. I had to endure a few snide comments about my pitiful aim, so I ignored them all and concentrated on snuggling up with Edward. My head was starting to throb a bit, and it felt better when pressed against his cold skin. I lay there in his arms, resting my head on his chest, letting my eyes drift closed. I listened to the conversation around me until it faded into a nonsensical buzzing. Finally, I drifted off into dream land.

I woke up when Charlie came home, and all the Cullens cleared out, except for Edward who agreed to stay for 'dinner.' Esme had been a real sweetheart and made a delicious home cooked meal of pot roast, cooked with onions, carrots, and potatoes, allowing the beef flavor to percolate throughout the vegetables. It was a genius way to get Charlie to eat some vegetables for once. At least fish is supposed to be good for the heart, considering how many pounds of it he consumes in the average week. She had used the juices from the roast to make a yummy gravy. She had even made a peach cobbler for desert, complete with a quart of vanilla ice cream in the freezer.

When it came time to actually eat, Edward claimed he had gotten full being his mother's official taster while she was preparing everything. Charlie didn't mind, as it meant more for him. He moaned appreciatively throughout the meal. The pot roast was so tender it could be cut with a spoon, and it simply melted in my mouth. I had to admit it was the best I'd ever had. I wasn't sure which spices she had chosen to toss into the mix, but I wanted to learn her secrets. I couldn't believe that a vampire who couldn't even smell or taste the food appropriately was still a better cook than I was. Talk about an inferiority complex.

When I told Edward the peach cobbler a la mode was 'to die for,' I even got a chuckle out of him. Of course, Charlie gave him a weird look for laughing, since he didn't see anything amusing in the statement. This made me lose it, and I burst into laughter. Charlie smiled at me in bemusement, clearly wondering if I was suffering the after effects of my head injury.

I calmed myself down and concentrated solely on the pleasure of consuming my dessert. I found myself moaning occasionally and sometimes licking the ice cream off the spoon. I didn't think anything of it until I saw Edward watching me intensely, his eyes black with hunger. This wasn't hunger for my blood, but hunger for my body. My eyes widened, and I blushed as I realized how my behavior might have been viewed by an audience. Thankfully, my dad was oblivious to the electricity shooting between us. Suddenly, I was in a hurry to finish my dessert, desiring to go to bed for the night, where I knew Edward would meet me and hold me in his arms again.

I finished the last few bites, and Edward grabbed my dirty dishes before I could, taking them to the sink and washing them while I watched. Charlie noticed and was smiling at Edward's back with approval. When he finished, he came back to my chair to carry me into the living room.

"Actually, I'm feeling rather tired, even though it's not so late. I'm ready for bed now," I announced once I was in his arms. He raised an eyebrow at me in amusement, flicking his eyes in Charlie's direction. I blushed even worse than usual and groaned when I realized how that probably sounded in my current position. Thankfully, Charlie simply chuckled at my embarrassment, letting it go without saying anything.

Edward walked into the living room, lowering me down onto the couch. I looked at him indignantly. Why hadn't he carried me up to bed like I wanted?

"Getting a little forgetful, love?" He asked with a chuckle, kissing my uninjured temple. "Perhaps you hit your head harder than we thought." Huh? What was he talking about? Why did he always insist on being so cryptic anyway?

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

"Don't worry, Charlie, I'll get it," Edward volunteered, rising swiftly from the couch. He opened the door and ushered Carlisle inside. Carlisle brought his little black bag of tricks with him, though he probably didn't actually need most of the tools.

"Hey, Charlie," Carlisle greeted pleasantly as he passed by the kitchen door. "I'm just here to check on Bella. Please enjoy your dinner in peace."

"Actually, your wonderful wife made it, so please feel free to join me when you finish with Bella."

"Thank you for the offer, Charlie, but I prefer to spend dinner time in person with my wife whenever possible. She usually waits for me to be available before eating."

"Oh, I understand. Well, it's available if you change your mind."

"Thanks, Charlie," Carlisle replied as he walked over to me. As soon as he was out of Charlie's line of sight, he shuddered, wrinkled his nose in disgust, and then winked at me. I clapped a hand over my mouth to keep from laughing, though my eyes teared up with the effort.

"So, how are you feeling, Bella?" he asked, switching over into doctor mode. He checked my eyes and my reflexes while waiting for my reply.

"I'm fine, really," I assured him. "My head was throbbing a bit earlier, but felt better once I applied an icepack." I smiled and indicated Edward, my personal icepack. They both grinned in response. "In fact, after my nap, I feel well enough to return to school tomorrow." I beamed at him, trying to project the picture of perfect health.

"Don't fall for it, Dad," Edward protested. "She just got finished complaining of fatigue and wanting to go to bed early."

I glared at Edward and poked him in the chest. "Duh!" I whispered, rolling my eyes and frowning. Carlisle watched the exchange and smirked while putting away his tools.

"Well, Bella, your reflex responses are still a bit delayed, though you are much improved over this morning. I'd feel a lot better if you took it easy tomorrow too. You should be able to take care of yourself, but I think the noise and stress of school, with all the attention you'll be receiving from the other children, might delay your recovery. I want you to take it easy, rest and relax, and allow your brain a little more time to heal before you subject yourself to the chaos and cacophony that reign supreme at the high school."

I started to protest, but Carlisle place one cold finger on my mouth to stop me. "It's going to be sunny tomorrow," he whispered. My eyes widened in understanding. Oh, well, that makes all the difference in the world.

I sighed forlornly, for the benefit of my father in the other room. Carlisle and Edward shook with suppressed laughter at my theatrical attempt. "Well, if you say so, Carlisle. You know best, of course. I wouldn't want to disobey doctor's orders."

"Thank you, my dear," he snickered, planting a gentle kiss on my forehead. We heard Charlie's footsteps approaching, and once again his demeanor became entirely professional. He stood up from where he had been kneeling and approached Charlie with a smile.

"I'd like her to stay home and take it easy for one more day, if you don't mind, Charlie. I'll write her a note for school, though I'm sure the whole town already knows what happened earlier. She should be fine to look after herself as long as she agrees to take it easy."

Charlie shook Carlisle's hand with approval. "Thanks, Carlisle. You're a good man. I really appreciate all you've done for my girl."

"Anytime," he replied peacefully. "We've all grown rather attached to your Bella. We like having her around." The two of them smiled at one another, in perfect accord. Carlisle walked toward the door. He stopped just in front of it, his hand on the knob.

"Come along, Edward. I'll give you a ride home, since you don't have your car any longer." Edward had been about to protest, but swallowed it when Carlisle pointed out his lack of a vehicle.

"Certainly, sir. Let me just help Bella up to her room, and I'll be right down," he answered calmly. Carlisle nodded and went out to wait in the car. Edward lifted me up and carried me effortlessly up the stairs to my room. When we got there, I giggled and looked up into his eyes.

"You know, you should at least be breathing hard after that workout, or you're going to give Charlie an inferiority complex," I reminded him. "Don't worry; I know just the thing to help you." So saying, I drew his head down to my lips and proceeded to kiss him senseless. When we pulled apart to allow me to breathe, he was panting, just as I knew he would be.

"There you go, that's more like it," I teased, giving him a push toward the door. "Now don't keep your father waiting."

He grinned at me, leaned forward, and whispered in my ear. "I'll be right back, little one, and then you'll get your just desserts." I shivered in anticipation, as well as due to his cold breath tickling my ear.

He marched downstairs and said goodbye to Charlie, before heading out to ride home with good old Dad. I knew Carlisle would pull over and let him out again as soon as they were out of sight, so I knew I didn't have much time for my human minute. I rushed to the bathroom to get ready, eager to be back in the arms of the man I love.

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Well you guys did surprise me by the 12 votes in 24 hours... Sorry its a bit short!

NEW GOAL! - GET ME 12 VOTES AND ILL UPLOAD ASAP LIKE I DID RIGHT NOW. AND THE CHAPTERS WONT BE SHORT TWO PAGERS EITHER....

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